My story made it into someone's favourite-list! Yay! Happy happy joy joy! Thank you, Lovely Lucrecia! . But I still don't own anything or anyone. Square does, the lucky bastards.
Und the blood thickens! ...plot. Plot thickens. Yes.
Chapter four: The more the merrier!
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The experiments had been worse than in a long time. Hojo had just left the room, leaving his goons to throw Cloud back in his tank. The professor had made Vincent stand right next to the operation table for the whole time, but now he was able to relax and move away from the bloody table and instruments of torture.
He didn't know how much time he had spent in the dark room, but it had felt like weeks. After he had been let out Hojo had made him stand and watch how Cloud was tortured for what he, Vincent, had done. It had been almost too much to take, but he felt like it was the least he could do.
What had happened in the dark room... the Turk didn't want to think about it. The first few hours had been the worst, the voice laughing in his mind, mocking him. Somehow he had managed to calm himself down enough to push the voice to the back of his mind, to ignore it as best as he could. Lucretia had spoken up then, whispering calming words, but Vincent had ignored her as well, not knowing whether it was her or the demons.
It had taken its time, but using all the mind controlling tricks he knew, he had managed to ignore everything else and think about the files he had read. Going over and over the facts, again and again, he had come to the conclusion that ignorance had been a bliss. He had wanted to know what Hojo had done, and now that he knew, he wanted nothing more than to forget it all. Still, Vincent had kept thinking about the files, using the information to block out whatever dwelled in his mind.
While the assistants cleaned up the Turk walked noiselessly to the tank, taking his regular place on the floor next to it. Cloud was laying on the floor, too tired and pained to care about the cold and the impression the crate would leave on his skin. Most of his wounds were still bleeding, and his pale skin was black and blue with bruises. The blue eyes were closed, face twisted in pain and breath coming in small gasps.
Vincent sighed, hating himself for not being able to do a thing, and Hojo for being able to do anything. He lifted his human hand, running the fingers over the smooth glass, and whispered calming nonsense. The words didn't matter, as long as the boy knew that he wasn't alone. The Turk was actually humming a song, one of the few love songs he knew. He'd never been one for the mushy, lovey-dovey pop tunes, enjoying classic pieces and songs of tragedy far more.
'Isn't that fitting...' he thought and stopped, realizing that he had forgotten the rest of the song. It had been one of Lucretia's favourites. 'How could I have forgotten it?' Thumping his head softly against the class, Vincent swore and berated himself.
"...don't... do... that..."
"Cloud?" Vincent whirled around, to look at the boy who had opened one eye slightly. "I apologize. Did I wake you?" The boy blinked twice, meaning no.
"Are you in pain?" One blink, yes. Vincent sighed and leaned his forehead to the glass, closing his eyes. He could hear the assistants finish their cleaning and leave the room. They turned the lights off again, leaving the prisoners in the near-darkness of computer screens and a few dim lights.
"He's gone now. Just hang on, Cloud, it'll be a few weeks before he comes back." The Turk whispered, relieved by the thought. Cloud attempted a small smile but gave it up soon. "Hang on."
"...the... files?" The boy whispered after a while. Vincent didn't want to tell, but he knew that the last experiments, the last week and a half, the sheer violence of them was a punishment for reading the files. Cloud deserved to know why he was in such pain. So Vincent told him. Mostly about Sephiroth, for that information couldn't hurt the boy directly. He was a bit more careful about things he'd read about the blond, telling him only that Hojo had used them both as guinea pigs for his curiosity, and that the scientist didn't even know himself what he'd exactly done. He also remembered the fact that had annoyed Hojo much, that professor Gast was apparently still alive somewhere, even though the mad scientist had tried to kill the man. The Turk suspected that Gast might be able to figure out whatever Hojo had done to them. He was surprised that Cloud stayed awake through the whole time, staring at him.
When he finally finished, the blue eyes closed slowly and Cloud let out a long sigh. The boy didn't breath for a while and Vincent feared that he'd just given up.
"When... we get to... kill Hojo... let's do it... slow... real slow..."
Vincent closed his eyes and smiled with relief. "Yes. That we shall do."
Cloud was out cold the next day when the assistants came into the room. Vincent stood up, wondering what was going on, as they'd already had their meal.
He was ordered to stand still while the assistants opened the tank and dragged Cloud out. "This way." One man carried the boy and the other pushed Vincent out of the laboratory, into the hallway leading to the stairs. The Turk kept looking over his shoulder at Cloud while he was guided to a door. After a moment he realized that it must have been the door to the room he had slept in. The assistant opened the door with a key and ordered Vincent to step in.
"Why are you taking us here?" The Turk asked while the other man just about dropped Cloud into the open coffin in the middle of the room. He gave the boy an injection, checked his pulse and closed the lid.
"Spring cleaning." The assistant at the door said after a moment. Vincent frowned and looked up from the coffin. "What?"
"None of your business." The man said and nodded to the other one, who went to open the other door in the room. Vincent realized that it was through that door that Hojo had taken him to the lab, through a short hallway and the library. His eyes grew wide when the grinning assistant gestured for him to step through. "Move it, Valentine. Stay there until we come and get you. And be quiet, or you'll spend the next few days in the dark room."
His body obeyed, even though his mind was completely against being locked into a corridor with no way out and no light. As if this wouldn't be as bad as the dark room.
"No, don't..." Vincent tried to ask but the door already closed in front of him. Not even daring to breathe, he listened to the footsteps until the assistants had left the coffin room as well, the image of a dead-like Cloud laying in a coffin printed to his mind's eye.
"Seph? Yo, Seph!" –thunk!- "Oww, shit!" The dark-haired man swore as he peered down the seemingly endless stairwell. Rubbing the back of his head which he'd managed to bump on the frame of the hidden door, he looked back at the nervous trooper before shrugging. "You wait here, Alan, I'll check on the General. Keep an eye out for monsters!" With that, he took a deep breath and stepped into the darkness.
The stairs seemed to go on for ever, but finally his boot touched ground and Zackery Lindeman stopped to take a good look around. He was annoyed to see that his almost clean 1st class uniform was covered in cobwebs and dust. "Damn it, I bet Seph didn't get any of this stuff on his crispy, clean and oh-so-BLACK clothes..." he murmured, wiping the worst away. His long, dark brown mane of hair was in a similar state, but he decided to leave that chore for later. Adjusting the Buster-sword tied to his back, the Soldier decided to follow the dim light ahead of him.
"Seph?" The Soldier called again, coming to a stop in front of a bookshelf. "Here you are! I was starting to get worried, you know..." Zax looked at the taller man and frowned. "Seph?"
It was as if the great General didn't even hear him. Sephiroth just stood there, next to a pile of books, one in his gloved hands, jade eyes fixed on the page, pale brows arched in concentration. Yellow candlelight made the silvery hair glitter and stand out even more against the black fabric of the long coat. Zax wanted to step up to his friend and shake him out of whatever he had, but didn't have the heart to ruin such a beautiful picture. Watching the man, he barely dared to breathe, fearing that any noise would snap Sephiroth from that pose.
'Wait, that's what I WANT to do...' the Soldier reminded himself and stepped closer, lifting one hand to touch his general's arm.
Sephiroth's glowing eyes snapped to him, wide with surprise for a second, but soon just a pair of green slits. "What do you want?"
Zax took a step back, amazed by the ice-cold tone of voice. He was used to it, after all he had known the man for years, and was one of the very few the General thought of as friends. But still, that voice could have frozen the devil's tail. "Oh, uh, well..." he swallowed and rubbed his neck. "I just came to see where the heck you are, Seph. Everything's under control and all, I was just..." he grinned, knowing that it always seemed to make Sephiroth relax. "Just wanted to check up on you."
The General did relax, even lowered his hands a bit. "Zackery. There is no need to worry about me, you know that perfectly well. Now go back to the inn."
"Uhh, if it's all the same with you..." the Soldier looked around and smiled, "I'll just hang here a bit."
"Do as you wish, but do not interrupt me again." Green eyes turned back to the book and Zax sighed. Whatever it was that was bothering Sephiroth was certainly scaring the living daylights out of him. He WAS a Soldier First Class, he WAS the second-in-command to Sephiroth, he WAS the second most powerful man in the whole Shin-Ra army, but this place still made him queasy.
Vincent lifted his head and opened his eyes. He was sure he'd heard a noise. From outside the door. He sat up sharply, ignoring the whisperings in his head. He hadn't heard a squeak from the demons, or Lucretia, since his release from the dark room, but during the past few days, which he had spent alone in the corridor, the voices had returned. Lucretia's sweet whispers were often drowned under a deep, menacing voice that threatened to drive him insane. It even promised that life would be so much easier if he did lose his mind and give control to the voice.
There it was again. Vincent stood slowly up and felt his way to the door leading to the library. Holding his breath, he pressed his ear to it.
Someone was outside. Kicking the door. Kicking the door and humming. No, singing; out of tune, but singing. He was used to Hojo's assistants shouting or whistling, but they had never sang before.
Raising his claw carefully to the door Vincent knocked on it quietly. The singing stopped, and after a hesitant moment there was a knock from the other side. The Turk knocked again, more urgently, and was answered soon with a muffled 'hello?'
"Can you open the door?" He asked as loudly as he dared. The goons would just have told him to shut up, this could be someone else...
"Uhh, wait a sec, let me see..." came the quiet answer, and he could hear and feel the thumping of a fist. "It's pretty solid. And there's a dodgy looking lock here. Who are you? What's behind the door?"
"A man called Hojo keeps me as a prisoner here."
There was a long pause and Vincent feared that it was just one of the professor's assistants, playing games with him. But then the voice returned.
"Oh, I know him. Sit tight, buddy, I'll get you out!"
The Turk backed away from the door, not daring to believe what had just happened. Were they... were they actually going to get out of here?!
"Seph!" Zax ran back to the other room of the library, where his General stood next to a glass tank. He had been sure he was hearing things, but then the voice had mentioned Hojo... and anyone who wanted to get away from that man was a friend of his. And he was sure that Sephiroth would agree to that without questions. "Seph! Hey, man, there's a--"
"DON'T interrupt me!" The General exploded, stopping the Soldier dead in his tracks. The dark-haired man was so stunned he backed away and tripped over a high pile of books, falling on them.
"But... but... Seph, just hear me out! There's--"
"Go. Back. To. The. Inn. NOW."
"Seph, please--"
"NOW!!"
Zax got up slowly and brushed the dust from his clothes, trying to save what could be salvaged of his dignity. "Ok. Okay, sour ass, I'll just piss Hojo off on my own." He turned away and grinned, knowing that he wouldn't get farther than two steps.
"...Hojo?"
Turning back, Zax carefully wiped the smile off his face and looked nonchalantly at his fingernails. He knew that Sephiroth could see straight through the act, but this is how the game was played. "Yeah, I was wandering around, found this secret door and stuff... and the guy who Hojo keeps locked up behind it."
"..." Sephiroth gave him a suspicious look.
"Come on, Seph, we gotta let the poor bugger out! Hey, even if it's a monster trying to trick us, we can kill it, no sweat, AND we'll get to see what's behind that frickin' thick door there." Allowing the smile back on his face, Zax leaned forward. "Now tell me you ain't interested. Go ahead."
He almost danced a merry little jig as Sephiroth found a piece of paper for a bookmark and carefully set the book on the top of the latest pile. Pulling his famous Masamune from its sheath, the General walked towards the other room of the library and stopped only to give his friend a questioning look. Zax grinned and ran to him, showing the way.
Vincent couldn't allow himself to think that they were going to get out, didn't want to get his hopes up. He had resigned to the fact that he would spend the rest of his life in the lab, but he still hoped that Cloud could get out, that the boy would have a chance of a somewhat normal life. Still, he didn't dare to believe that it was actually happening when the voice and knocking came back. The Turk pressed his cheek to the door when he heard the muffled voice again.
"Hey buddy, you there?"
A bit annoyed, Vincent sighed. "I'm a prisoner, where would I go?"
"Sorry. Okay, stand back from the door, or you might get hurt!"
Vincent couldn't hear the rest, the voice was talking to someone else, but he obeyed and stepped back. There was the sound of metal scraping against metal, and he was almost blinded when a tip of a silvery sword pushed its way in, through the barely visible crack between the door and the wall, throwing sparks all around. The sword started to move back and forth, sawing the door open. Astounded, Vincent walked backwards until his back was against the door to the coffin room. "We're actually getting out...?" he muttered and shook his head.
"Yes! Man, you rock!" Vincent heard the cheery exclamation after the sword disappeared back out and the door opened a bit. A soft light streamed in, from a torch that was soon poked in. "Where are you?"
"Here..." The Turk said quietly as a tall, dark-haired man with dark blue clothes and a huge sword stepped in, carrying the light. He squinted and waved his human hand slightly, and the man turned to him.
"Damn this place is creepy! Come on, Seph, you won't believe until you see..."
"Seph..." Vincent whispered and watched, frozen to the spot, as the man stepped into the corridor, followed by a taller one, with black clothes, silver hair and Mako eyes. "...Sephiroth..."
The green eyes turned to him, like the man had heard the whisper Vincent barely heard himself. Sephiroth looked after his friend before walking closer to the Turk, sword still drawn and ready.
The General stopped before Vincent and looked him straight in the eye. After a moment of cool observation, the thin lips parted. "Hojo keeps you here against your will?"
"Hey, who'd be even in the same room with that creep willingly?" The dark-haired man said, sticking out his hand with a grin. "I'm Zax, this is Seph, who're you and who did you kill to be sent here?" The words were meant as a joke but no one else smiled.
"My name is Vincent Valentine." Vincent said quietly, staring at Sephiroth. The General stared back, curiously, perhaps seeing how alike they looked.
Zax frowned as he realized the same thing, but didn't say a word as the stare between the two taller men was so intense he barely dared to breathe. Looking around, in stead of the men, he shuddered and finally opened his mouth. "Okay, Vinnie, now that you're free and all, could we get out of here? Not that I don't like your little cell here, I just... don't like it."
Vincent tore his eyes from Sephiroth and turned to look at the Soldier, nodding. "Yes. This way." He pointed towards the coffin room. Sephiroth and Zax looked at each other.
"This door's already open, and we can get out through it." Zax said, pointing towards the library.
"There's someone else locked up in here. Please, open this door." Vincent said quietly.
Sephiroth told Zax to hold the torch higher, stepped to the door and looked at it up and down. He sheathed his sword, nodded and kicked the door so hard it flew open and almost fell off its hinges. The Soldier blinked a few times and grinned at Vincent. "You do not mess with this man."
"..." Vincent stood still for a second, but after the General stepped into the room he followed. Zax was right behind him, hand on the hilt of his sword.
"This... is a tomb." Sephiroth said quietly, standing by the broken door. The Turk walked straight to the closed coffin and grabbed the lid.
"You're not going to..." Zax asked with a horrified expression but came to stand next to the coffin. "Your friend's not in there, is he?" The General followed them more slowly, eyes roaming around the room. Vincent ignored the Soldier and opened the coffin. Three pairs of eyes landed on the sleeping boy.
"...you've got to be kidding me..." Zax whispered after a very quiet moment. "Who's he?"
"His name is Cloud. Hojo has kept him down here for a few years now. We need to get out."
"...no shit..." Zax muttered. Sephiroth shifted his gaze back to Vincent who leaned down and shook the boy's shoulder gently with his human hand.
"Cloud? Cloud, please wake up. We're leaving." His only reply was a quiet, pained moan. Vincent stood up and opened the small belts holding his cape. "Could one of you carry him?" He showed them his claw, not wanting to explain. Sephiroth nodded to Zax and took the torch. The Soldier took the cape Vincent offered, spread it over Cloud and picked the boy up, cradling him in his arms.
"Damn, he looks sick. What did Hojo do to him?" Zax whispered, looking and sounding concerned.
Vincent shrugged. "Whatever he felt like. Now we have to hurry, before the assistants get here." He took a step towards the door to freedom, but Sephiroth's firm arm on his shoulder stopped the Turk. The General looked at him closely before speaking.
"Valentine... why... how... who are you?"
Zax stared. He wanted to get out, out of the mansion, out of Nibelheim, and fast, but he still had to stop and stare. Sephiroth actually stuttered? This was turning into the strangest trip ever.
Vincent stood quiet for a while before lifting his eyes. "There is no time for this now. But once we get out I promise that I can tell you quite a few things I'm sure Hojo never thought of telling."
Sephiroth nodded and let go, gesturing for them to go out first. They returned through the corridor to the library. He stayed there for a moment longer, and took a good look around.
The place was familiar, in a very uncomfortable way. The same way Nibelheim was. He'd always known that Hojo kept secrets from him, that there was a lot he didn't know. But now, here, he felt like he could almost remember...
"Seph! Ifrit's balls, come ON!" Zax's impatient hiss made the General sigh and shake his head before following the other men. Perhaps Valentine could deliver what he promised.
The corridors were dark, except for the dim light from the library. Zax was leading them, hurrying towards the stairs, the Turk following right behind him. Vincent was concerned, for Cloud, and that the assistants would soon notice their escape, but it wasn't enough to keep down the rush of adrenaline that welled up inside him. They were almost out of Hojo's reach. Even if he couldn't leave the mansion he had met his son... the Turk looked quickly over his shoulder and stopped dead on his tracks when he saw that Sephiroth still stood in the laboratory. "Sephiroth!"
Zax stopped and turned around, careful not to cause Cloud any pain. "What is it?" The Soldier asked, eyes glowing with a soft, violet light. Vincent just returned to the laboratory.
Sephiroth was going through a high pile of books, searching frantically for something and muttering quietly. Vincent stopped for a second before stepping next to the silver-haired man and taking the book from his hands. Ice-green eyes snapped up to his, and a gloved hand went to the hilt of Masamune. "Give it back."
"There is no time. And if it's written by Hojo, you can't trust it. The only thing he's good at is lying. We must hurry." The Turk said with a quiet, calm tone that accepted no objections. Well, at least not from anyone else. Sephiroth crossed his arms over his chest and frowned.
"And are you more trustworthy, Turk? That's who you were, the fabulous Vincent Valentine."
"I can tell you the truth, Sephiroth. Of your mother. And your father. And what Hojo did to them. I was there."
"Come on, Seph, trust him for now, ok? Let's get out, the kid doesn't seem to be doing well." Zax's impatient words interrupted the quiet moment, and the taller men nodded in unison and walked out, leaving the stunned Soldier behind for a second. It had been dark in the corridor, he had thought his eyes had tricked him, but now he saw it again. Sephiroth and Vincent were almost identical. "What the hell?" Zax asked quietly and looked at Cloud's face. Getting no answer there, he turned and half ran to catch up with the others at the bottom of the stairs.
"Here, take this." The General said and gave Vincent a fire materia. The Turk looked at it and raised one eyebrow. "Just in case."
"Yeah, there are a lot of monsters around, and if someone follows us..." Zax muttered and looked back. Vincent shrugged and took the small orb, putting it to a slot on his wristband.
"Zackery, you after me, Valentine, you last." Sephiroth ordered and started the ascent.
Vincent kept looking back in paranoia for most of the trip up, and was about to fry the startled Shin-Ra trooper at the top of the stairs before Zax called for the man to put down his gun. "It's just us, Alan. And a coupla new friends." They stopped for a while in the room, Sephiroth closed the secret door and Zax pulled Cloud up to a better position. After glaring at Alan, Vincent walked next to the Soldier and checked on the boy.
"He has a fever. It usually passes in a few days. We must hurry, we're not out of danger yet." The Turk muttered and turned to the room's door. It was still the same, the room, just like he remembered it. Only more dusty. But the bed was still there, and next to it the chair, where he had sat that one day, when she had come to the room and sat down on his lap. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she had nuzzled his ear and whispered sweet nothings. He had turned to kiss her, and she had kissed him back, and
"Valentine."
Vincent turned sharply to face Sephiroth. The General had a strange, unemotional expression which still managed to say that he didn't think much of the Turk's mental health at the moment. Looking around, Vincent noticed that the others had left already, and followed them. Sephiroth stood there for a moment longer before following.
Night had fallen some time ago when they reached the courtyard. The small band stopped at the gate, wondering what they should do. Looking at the sleeping town, Vincent almost fell into his memories again, but shook his head to clear his mind. "We must leave Nibelheim, as soon as possible. It won't take long before they notice we're gone."
As to prove his words they heard the mansion's door open and three of Hojo's assistants ran out, firing their guns at them. Forgetting all objections, Sephiroth went into general-mode.
"Zackery, you leave for the hills towards the reactor. Kaze, Valentine and I stay here and take care of the enemy. Rendezvous at the Mako cave. If we're not there by tomorrow morning, Lindeman, retreat to Rocket Town."
Zax nodded and ran. Vincent watched after the Soldier until a bullet flew right past his ear. Alan was already firing back. Sephiroth pulled out his sword and took his battle stance. "Valentine, you better survive this, I intend to hold you to your promise."
"Fear not, I do not wish to die before Hojo lies dead at my feet." Vincent answered with the same monotonous tone and aimed the first spell. It took out the closest one but the other two continued their progress, covered with wall spells which protected them from Sephiroth's ice spell and the bullets.
Alan screamed in pain as a bullet ripped through his side, and the young man fell back, dead before he hit the ground with another bullet in his head. The assistants ceased fire, pointing their guns at the General.
"Don't do anything stupid, Valentine!" One assistant shouted. "Stand still!"
"Retreat, Valentine. I can take a couple of bullets." Sephiroth hissed, ready to call up a wall to protect them, but the Turk couldn't move. The assistants started to slowly walk closer.
"Sephiroth, run. They have control over me. I won't be able to escape." Vincent muttered, trying in vain to move his body.
"What?"
"Take Cloud away from here, he never did anything to deserve what Hojo did to him. He also knows everything I could tell you. Go, before they turn me on you. I am unable to fight them."
"Valentine, SHUT UP! General, stay still, the professor will want to talk to you." The other assistant ordered.
Vincent couldn't speak anymore but the glare in his blood red eyes made up Sephiroth's mind. The General turned and ran.
Both the assistants guns went off, and Vincent could see Sephiroth stagger and almost stumble. They had hit him.
/...kill them.../
The Turk roared in anger, and the two men turned to look at him.
/...let me out.../
Vincent found himself staring down the barrel of a gun, while the other was still pointing towards Sephiroth, who had used the moment of confusion to escape. Swearing loudly, the assistant fired and Vincent could feel the bullet go through his body.
/Let me out, and I'll take care of them!/
The sweet, sickening pain, almost pleasant, lifted a twisted smile up to his face, and the dark-haired man felt a new pain in his back just before two wings grew out.
/Their deaths shall be painful!/
He didn't know what exactly was happening to him, but he could see the horror in the assistants faces as they backed away. His consciousness was fading and he guessed that one of the monsters Hojo had planted in his mind was coming out, taking control.
Cloud was free, and could tell Sephiroth everything the General needed to know. Sephiroth would be smart enough to realize the truth, to turn his back on Hojo and Shin-Ra. And even though Vincent couldn't be there to see what happened next, he found comfort in Hojo's misfortune. It was a twisted kind of revenge, but it was his revenge, and the Turk felt free, even though the collar was still around his neck, even though his body was twisting into another being.
With a smile, Vincent Valentine welcomed it.
Author's notes, now almost as long as the chapter!: Personally I think that there's something really wrong with this chapter, but I've read it through about a ten times and haven't figured out what it is...
This story will be updated every Friday, as that's currently just about the only day I can get to a computer. Stupid school... don't know about this Friday, though... great, I'm already breaking my promises... and yes, I am aware that it's now Monday. Call this a lucky break. The police are calling it breaking and entering.
I've read somewhere that Zax's real last name is Knightblade, but by then I'd already dubbed him Lindeman. Too much Rammstein will do that to you...
And doesn't it just fit perfectly? ...or is it just me... (edit. Note: Yeah, his real last name is Fair, but it'll stay Lindeman through this story.)
Hit that nice little button there and tell me what you think... please?