Never were we told

That we'd be bought and sold

When we were innocent

Yeah and this prayer is for me tonight

This far down that line

And I still aint got it right

Chapter 16

Silverfall

Yazoo stalked through the forest surrounding Healin Lodge. He had already dodged more than enough patrols and didn't want to lose his element of surprise now. Toward the back of the lodge was the room he thought Rufus would be. He had seen one of the Turks he and his brothers had 'met' at the Northern Crater enter the room and leave again several times as if relaying information. Yazoo knew that the other black haired Turk was probably in the room with the President.

Vincent was close and nearby but Yazoo had asked to do this alone. So far it was the most intense part of his self appointed mission and he didn't want Vincent hurt. The security here was tight. But they changed the guard in about an hour. He would use the gap to run straight through and into the room. Making sure the two Turks weren't a problem would be another matter. Yazoo hoped he could render both unconscious without harming them. Jenova had had enough blood spilled in her name.

He waited, then took his shot and swift as a shadow passed directly behind a guard and up into the doorway he needed. He tested the door assuming it would be locked and was vaguely startled when it wasn't. He slipped in and dodged gunfire from the blonde female Turk. The dark haired one called Tseng drew his two short swords. Rufus sat behind an overly large desk and just watched the proceedings with an aloof interest.

Yazoo did not return fire but flipped into the air towards the woman and quickly twisted her arm behind her and pulled her body in front of him. She struggled but wasn't strong enough to break away. Tseng closed in as if not caring that he held his comrade. When Tseng came in with an attack Yazoo pulled both himself and the Turk in his grasp back and out of the way. He applied pressure to a point on her neck until she fainted and he dropped her to the ground.

He lunged at Tseng with Velvet Nightmare using the blade of the gun to block his swings and try to get in close. It was the exact opposite of how he usually fought. Usually he kept his distance letting Kadaj and Loz take the close range attacks. Tseng was also an excellent fighter and he was pushing Yazoo to his limits. The silver haired youth twisted under another slash only to be caught in the side by the other blade. He took the blow with out a sound and took the opportunity to wrench Tseng off balance and crack him over the head with the butt of his gun.

He turned to Rufus who was reaching for a call button for more security. Yazoo jumped onto his desk and kicked his hand away.

"What else is left of Shinra's experiments?" Yazoo's voice was calm and steady. He was still crouched on the Presidents desk. His blood was running down his side from the blow he had taken but he ignored it.

Rufus glared up at him. "What makes you think there is anything left?"

Yazoo let his cold smile creep across his face. He lifted a gloved hand carefully and began removing the leather with his teeth, keeping his gun handy in the other. When his glove was off he gently laid his hand on Rufus's chest. The president flinched but kept his eyes on the deadly beauty in front of him.

"I am going to ask you a question. You are going to give me an answer. If you lie I will know. What you don't want to know is what will happen to you if you lie or refuse. Now are there remnants of anything to do with Sephiroth or my brothers in the old Shinra building?"

Rufus tensed his jaw and glared daggers at Yazoo. "Yes" he answered between clenched teeth.

Yazoo let his smile grow wider. "Are there any remnants of Jenova that you know of?"

"Yes"

Yazoo felt a little thrill in his heart. So mother was still around?

"Where is Jenova?"

Rufus didn't answer at first and Yazoo pressed his hand harder into the mans chest. Not enough to hurt but enough to remind the President of the possible consequences. How was Rufus to know what powers Yazoo may posses?

"She is here. In the basement. Under lock and key. You can't get to her." Rufus stated with a confidence that Yazoo almost found laughable.

"Is there anywhere else I can find the information I am looking for?" This was the crucial question. Yazoo really didn't have any hidden ability to tell whether Rufus was lying or not. He just hoped he wouldn't call his bluff.

"No, you have wiped out every other place I know of." Yazoo studied Rufus's face. If he was lying then he was damn good at it. Yazoo would just have to believe him. He lifted his hand away from Rufus and jumped off his desk.

"I recommend you get your people out of here. This place wont be standing in a few hours" Yazoo told him curtly. Rufus had a kind of cocky smile back in place.

Tseng had begun to stir on the ground and Yazoo felt it would be a good time to make his exit. He would save Jenova for last. He would take the old Shinra building first, then come back and finish off Mother.


Redflame

The orders to return to headquarters caught Reno and Rude already on their way. Apparently Yazoo had come and gotten answers out of Rufus and headed off again instead of trying to destroy Jenova. Reno had asked Tseng why Rufus cared what happened to Jenova. Why not let Yazoo burn the thing to a crisp? He had gotten a very sound tongue lashing that basically amounted to Rufus not trusting that that was Yazoo's intention at all. Could anyone prove that he didn't just want his own Reunion?

During the flight back Reno was tense and almost quiet. They were supposed to come straight back to Midgar and go to the old Shinra HQ, since it was assumed that that was the silver haired mans next target. Sometimes orders just didn't make sense to Reno. If Rufus was so worried about Yazoo getting his hands on Jenova then shouldn't he pull all of his forces back to Healin?

After what felt like eons he saw Midgar emerge out of the forest. When he landed on the almost demolished helipad he got a sinking feeling. There was something very wrong here.

Reno jumped out of the cockpit and took his EMR in hand. He noticed Rude checking his ammo.

"I gotta bad feeling about this Rude"

His partner just nodded. They made their way towards the roof entrance. It was incredibly quiet still. This high up the sounds of Midgar below were faint and the wind carried most of it away.

"I'll take the odd floors, you take the evens" said Rude as they descended the stairs. Reno didn't like the idea of splitting up but it was the most logical thing to do considering the sheer size of their search area.

"Sure thing call me if you find him. Don't try and take him down alone" Reno warned. He knew it was unnecessary, that Rude knew how to handle himself but he could shake the feeling of foreboding.

Reluctantly he took his floors and began his search. They had orders to kill Yazoo and bring back the body, if there was one. Reno forced himself to forget what he knew about Yazoo as a person. Forget that he couldn't be more than 20 and had seen more pain than most people ever will. Forget that he had obviously tried hard to bring himself back from the brink of a crushing depression that Reno was himself all too familiar with. Forget everything that made him human.

Reno felt the familiar mental coldness pass through his mind. It sharpened his focus and narrowed down his perspective to just his objective. This floor was clear, continue down one more.


A/N okay, so, the next chapter is the last one. Hope everyone had enjoyed the fic so far, and that this isn't too much of a cliffhanger.