Chapter Eight

A/N: someone asked me why Cloud's wing was different from the others. It's because the only wing Cloud is known to have is in Kingdom of Hearts, and that wing is a leather dragon wing with no feathers. He also has a scarf similar to Vincent's cape, but I decided to leave that off.

Disclaimer: I don't on anything Square Enix touches

…

The staircase to Cloud's personal hell hadn't changed since the last time he was here. The chains still hung from the cement bricks above and the wooden circular steps leading down were just as rotten and crumbling away as they will be in the future. Complete with the same dried rotten stench drifting up the shaft and the feeling of death and despair.

Cloud walked down the steps, his mako sight making it easy to see where he was going. He made sure to test their weight each time he moved down. He could survive a fall from this height and Zack possibly could as well. But Tseng wouldn't be able to. The Turk was distressingly fragile in the wrong circumstances.

"Bad one." Cloud called out behind him as he felt it give under his weight.

Cloud stepped over it and tested the one after it. A second later he heard a startled gasp and the sound of wood breaking. Cloud spun around just in time to catch the Turk as he fell short of the safe step and started to fall. He kept a tight grip on the Turk's waist until Tseng was steady on his feet again. His heart jackhammering out of control against Cloud's arm despite the cool look on his face.

"Thank you." Tseng muttered.

"Woah! Good catch Spike!" Zack call out from the back as he gracelessly jumped from step to step.

"Just be careful" Cloud cautioned "This place is falling apart. It's been deserted for more than twenty years now."

"You seem to know it rather well for someplace that's supposed to be abandoned." Tseng said dryly.

"Like I said, I grew up here. Kids would dare each other to spend the night in the old haunted Mansion." Cloud told them. He even assumed he was telling the truth. Just because he had no memory of something happening doesn't mean it didn't happen. It sounded like something kids would do.

Fortunately, the rest of the journey had no more surprises. Tseng pulled out a flashlight from somewhere as the light failed to reach any further down and nearly blinded Cloud with the sudden brightness. Cloud couldn't be positive but he was sure Tseng did it on purpose.

"How does the creepy Professor know 'Project Chaos' will still be down here?" Zack asked.

As they neared the bottom Zack decided to jump down the rest of the way. Cloud chose to follow him while Tseng stuck with the stairs. A ten-foot drop wouldn't kill him unless he was really unlucky but a fall from there would still hurt for a non-enhanced.

"He has been in a…form of sleep for the last two decades. A kind of self-inflicted stasis." If either noticed his pause, neither chose to comment on it. Cloud knew Vincent would be there for the same reason he was there. The planet sent back its Weapons, and Chaos was as much a Weapon as he was. It would be good to have one friend who knew him before but Cloud regretted that Vincent would also share his memories of what happened to their world.

One of his major regrets was that he never got the chance to say goodbye to anyone.

The second Tseng hit the bottom of the pit Zack jumped over to Cloud and hung his arm over him again. Cloud was amused by the attention. He had no memory if Zack was this physically friendly before but he liked to think so. Since re-meeting Zack he has received more physical contact then the entire time he has been in the past, plus a couple of months from before. He missed touch. For all that he liked to act like a lone wolf, he was always happier to have his family near him. He knew he would never have his family back, but this; this eased a lot of the pain.

…

Zack pulled Cloud closer to his side almost knocking the blonde off base as he looked around the cavern basement. It was foul, dark, wet, and did he mention foul?

Well it was worth mentioning it again!

There were parts of skeletons just lying on the ground. Who just leaves skeletons laying around? Chains were hanging from the ceiling with cages and bats attached to them. Good thing the bats didn't seem interested in them. He didn't like bats. Bats were almost as bad as frogs.

Also a double headed/bodied monster shuffled along the path in front of them.

"Hey Zack, remember earlier when I said the blade swinging monster was called ying yang?" Cloud said out of the blue.

"Yes?"

"I was wrong."

"Huh?" Zack was getting confused as the creature moved slowly closer.

"That is a ying yang."

Cloud pulled out his massive sword again. Zack wondered how he was going to wield that large blade in such small quarters. But it didn't seem to trouble Cloud in any way for in one of his bursts of speed Cloud shifted forward and lashed through the two-headed beast. Just as he passed it Cloud pivoted and sliced into its side. The force of the blow threw it into the side of the cavern. Zack was pretty sure it was dead before it impacted.

Cloud swiftly hung it on his back again. Yup, his new friend was a bad ass. He also seemed like he was about to jump out of his skin at any moment. Zack wondered what happened to him here as a kid. Someone doesn't get that skittish over spending the night in a scary place. Zack guessed that something else, something pretty bad happened to Cloud here. Kids can be cruel and Cloud didn't strike Zack as someone with a lot of friends.

"So if that thing is ying yang, then what was the other thing called." Tseng chimed in when it was over with.

"Uh, I…don't remember." Cloud said slowly as he ran his hand through his hair in embarrassment.

"You don't reme – Cloud that thing nearly split me in half!" Zack half shouted.

"I forgot!" Cloud shrugged.

"You and me need to have a conversation on forgetting the names of thing that almost kill me." Zack told him with all the seriousness he could force in this ridiculous topic.

"…sorry." Cloud said, giving Zack the first smile he'd seen from the blonde since coming down here.

The levity didn't last long as they continued down the corridor. This was not a happy place; this place had a history of horror written all over it. He knew Shinra had dark secrets but this seemed darker than most. Zack looked over to the Turk. He wondered if Tseng knew about this place and what was happening here but Tseng looked as lost as he was. Tseng also didn't look happy about it either but that could just be because he got mud over the back of his jacket.

"So" Zack said "You seemed pretty cheerful when we were fighting that…uh rainbow number up there." He was trying to distract them from the foul-wet-dark tunnel of terror they were walking in. Although it didn't seem to work on Tseng. If the soft cursing every time Zack heard him step in something wet was any indication. If Tseng was cursing, you knew it was bad.

"Well yeah" Cloud spoke softly "I'm designed to be a weapon. Hunting and fighting always makes me feel good. It gives me…purpose."

Cloud said something similar about the Buster Sword. Is that really how he felt? Zack rushed over to him and pulled him close in a one arm hug.

"You're not a machine Cloud! You're a human being." Zack said appalled.

Cloud gave him the softest, saddest smile Zack had ever seen before ducking under his chin "Thank you for saying that, but I haven't been human for a long time now."

"Spike…"

Cloud shook his head and pulled away from Zack. He had the urge to gather Cloud up and never let him go again. It was the only way Zack could be sure no one would be able to hurt his friend again. Whatever Hojo and who knew who else did to him clearly messed with sense of self-worth. He'd clearly suffered enough and Zack was determined not to let anyone else make him suffer more.

Zack turned to punch the wall and noticed that Tseng was standing only a few feet behind them. Zack saw a thoughtful frown on him as he looked at Cloud. It gave him hope that maybe he could turn the Turk into an ally when it came to Cloud. Zack didn't trust the Tseng with much but he had a feeling that with this, he could. If Tseng decided to take Cloud under his wing than nothing on the planet would be able to touch him.

Cloud paused outside of a door almost to the end of the tunnel. Yet more skulls and barrels of stuff lined the rock to either side of the wood doorway but at this point Zack was already used to it. Cloud pulled the key from his pocket and turned to face them.

"I think…it would be best if I go in alone."

Zack wasn't having that. "No way! You said this guy could be trouble. You brought me along because you might need help. Let me help you."

To Zack's amazement, Cloud blushed. If he wasn't seeing it he would never had thought it was possible.

"I, I asked you to…come because I…wanted, you to come." Cloud's blush got worse.

The more he stared at Cloud the more flustered he became and the bigger Zack's grin got.

Zack couldn't grin any wider if he tried "Awe Spikey, you DO love me!"

Cloud got himself under enough control to glare at him and then glared at Tseng as if daring him to say something. The Turk's poker face was firmly in place but Zack thought he saw the remnants of a smile.

"Just wait here…and try not to…hear anything."

"I still don't think it's a good idea going in alone." Zack complained.

"I'll be fine Zack, I promise. This isn't anything I can't handle."

With that Cloud opened the door and closed it firmly behind him.

Zack sighed in frustration at being left out and paced in front of the door. He hated waiting. He did a few squats then stopped and turned to the Turk. This might be a good opportunity to get a few answers.

"You know something about him don't you." Zack stated.

Tseng nodded slightly "I don't know nearly enough, but I know there is more to that man than what we've been told."

Zack was a little surprised at how forward Tseng was being with him. Didn't that violate like some sort of Turk code? Weren't there rules against something like this?

"He seems like a great guy for someone who was an experiment. Something like that has got to take a toll. Who knows how long Hojo has had him." Zack kicked a skull and caused it to ricochet off the opposite wall. He cringed from the sound. The bats fluttered ominously above him.

"Hojo's only had him for approximately two weeks."

Zack turned to face Tseng "What? Repeat that. I want to be sure I heard that right."

"Hojo has had Strife for two weeks." Tseng repeated.

That didn't make any sense "Huh? Was he already training for Soldier?"

Zack searched his brain but couldn't think of anyone remotely matching Cloud's description. Angeal and Genesis didn't recognize either. Sephiroth might, for all that he liked his space he made sure to know everything that was happening in the Soldier program.

"He was an ordinary infantryman. No mako enhancements or exposure. He disappeared from duty and two weeks later turned up with Hojo at the meeting for the Modeoheim mission."

"But that's impossible! It takes YEARS to build up mako enhancements like that. That can't be rushed, the mako would kill you or turn you into a monster."

"I know, and yet, here he is." Tseng paused for a heartbeat "Hojo trusts him."

"That crazy bastard doesn't trust anyone." Zack scoffed.

Tseng nodded again. "True, yet he trusted Strife to protect him at the meeting. He trusted him with information regarding the cure when he didn't tell anyone he was working on it, as well as this 'Project Chaos' whatever that is."

Zack scoffed again and agitatedly ran his hands through his hair. He didn't want to think about this. He didn't want to think of where it could lead. Hojo was slimy and twisted and if he trusted Cloud…

If Cloud trusted Hojo…

"Hojo left him alone with me, Lazard, and Sephiroth." Tseng continued "He knew we would have questions for Strife, maybe offer him away out. He knew Strife would refuse."

"He fights like someone who's used to his mako enhancements." Zack added with a sigh "It takes a long time to adjust to them hence the VR rooms."

Zack turned to Tseng with dread in his soul "You said they were both at the Modeoheim planning meeting and that Hojo had a cure then right?"

"That is correct." Tseng confirmed.

"So if they had the cure at that point…why the mission?"

"I don't understand."

"Tseng, we were all there in Hojo's labs during the attack. Genesis, and Angeal were in the labs at the same time! So why wait? Why not apprehend them and give them the cure there? If Cloud was around, I didn't see him and I was in Hojo's labs for awhile before they showed up."

"I…don't know. Professor Hojo has his reasons for doing things and he doesn't always share them with the board. I do know that the reason he gave for having Strife added to the mission was because he wanted him to be field tested…against Angeal and Genesis."

Zack sighed and leaned back against the rock wall and slid down. It didn't matter anymore that he was filthy. Things weren't adding up. Maybe what Tseng said was true, maybe Cloud was as evil as that madman, but Zack couldn't forget what Cloud told Angeal.

'Because Zack wants you to live'

That was what Cloud said. That was his reason for saving Angeal, and Cloud had been pissed at the First. What made him so important to Cloud? Zack said he wanted to go to Nibelheim so Cloud lied to get him added to the mission. To a Turk! Of all people to lie to, Turks were among the last ones someone wanted to get caught by. He protected them from the lost rainbow and saved Tseng from falling on the stairs.

He refers to himself as a weapon.

He doesn't think he's human.

Zack would prove him wrong even if he died trying.

…

Cloud sighed heavily with his eyes closed and leaned against the door. He could hear Zack and Tseng discussing him. They were trying to work him out. Cloud was somewhat surprised that Tseng was being as informative as he was. It went against what he knew about the man. He must be desperate to figure him out if he's willing to share information. It didn't matter though. The truth was to bizarre to be considered.

Cloud opened his eyes and looked around. The same five coffins were in the small room. Same giant pile of bones next to the back wall. Same boxes and barrels scattered everywhere. There was one difference though. Vincent was already awake and sitting calmly on the lid of his tomb.

The demon looked exactly how Cloud remembered him. Like him, Vincent didn't age. His signature blood red cloak was in far better shape than Cloud could recall though. Cloud wondered idly if Vincent's body was sent back like his or was it just his mind. Either way, it didn't matter. He was here.

Cloud smiled softly, "Hello old friend."

Vincent nodded at him, "Hello…Cloud."

In that moment Cloud felt burning in his eyes. Everything started tilting dangerously as he tried to gasp as it all came crashing down on him. It was too much. The crushing weight of the enormity of what was coming, knowing everything that had happened to him, and everything that will, broke him inside.

It hurt, It hurt, It hurt.

His family, his home, his son. His people he risked everything time and time again to protect were all lost to him.

He couldn't breathe.

They were gone forever and he would never get them back. He couldn't even hope for it. He lost them all. He was alone…

Please no.

Forced to come back and face Sephiroth again. Face his tormentor. To pretend nothing happened. Pretend to…

Make it stop.

Forced to work with Hojo who hurt him so horribly over and over again. Who cackled as he screamed.

It was too much.

Cloud released a keening from deep in his chest. He didn't want to do this-please don't make him do this. Please…

Vincent silently glided forward and grabbed him around his neck pulling him into his arms. Cloud fell bonelessly forward into the demon's embrace. Vincent didn't say anything as he sobbed out dry tears. Just stood there holding him and letting him grieve.

Vincent understood this pain. It was all too similar to his own. The planet could wait a moment. Right now, Cloud needed release.