A/N: This is my first Final Fantasy fic, so I'd appreciate it if flames could be kept to a minimum, despite my quite obvious lacking of any real knowledge on the subject. To all those who bother to read this, I apologise for putting you through my rather boring scrap of writing, but there was an annoyingly cute, chocobo haired plot bunny gnawing on my ankle and he reminded me of Cloud, so I just had to adopt him.

This is NOT a slash/yiao fic, just to point it out and make it clear and such, as I am frequently annoyed if I begin reading a fic only to find that it ends up being something I was not forewarned of, such as slash. Therefore I will endeavour to warn you should there be anything I believe you need to be warned of. In this particular chapter, for instance, I will warn you that there is some mild coarse language, as well as the beginnings of some Cloud whump…although I'm not sure if that expression is used in this particular genre of fan fiction, as I have not seen it used in my whole two days of reading here.

I think it's a given that I don't own this, but y'know, if you don't believe me then that's ok, I'm all too happy to take Cloud home…

Oh, also, I did not make up Zack's last name, I merely saw it in Kiraya's fic 'Butterfly Effect' (totally AWESOME fic, by the way, and I highly recommend it to anyone who has not already read it) and it looked quite shiny so I thought I'd steal it for myself. If the original designer of the name reads this and is offended, simply let me know and I will try to atone. Anyways, once again just clarifying that I don't own anything...the plot's not even that original, but I don't know who originally designed it or I'd be sure to give them credit.

Ok, seriously though, I really should shut up about now, ey? See you on the other side! (Well, other side of this chapter, at least)

Summary: Hojo is not a nice person, as SOLDIER-in-training Cloud Strife finds out when Hojo makes him pay for his friend Zack's deeds against the evil scientist.

Note: The title doesn't really mean anything, other than it's a really cool song by Panic! At The Disco (haha, what am I, a walking billboard?) and thus, I shall post snippets of the song at the beginnings of some of the chapters. Simply because I have the power to do so. Mwauhahahahahahaha!

The Only Difference Between Martyrdom And Suicide Is Press Coverage

Sit tight, I'm gonna need you to keep time, come on just snap snap snap your fingers for me.
Good good, now we're making some progress come on just tap tap tap your toes to the beat.
And I believe, this may call for a proper introduction.
And well, don't you see? I'm the narrator, and this is just the prologue.

0o0o0o0o0

Knock, knock, knock.

The nervous knocking on the door to his private office made First Class SOLDIER Zack Sinclair turned towards the offending party, smiling kindly at the young cadet who was shaking so much that Zack was almost surprised he hadn't fallen over.

"Uh…First Class Colonel Sinclair, sir," squeaked the boy, who had to be at least seventeen or eighteen. It was actually starting to concern Zack a little. Around the base he was notoriously known for his kindness and disposition toward helping the anti-social types become more friendly. Two shining examples of this were his commanding officer, Sephiroth, and the young, withdrawn boy who had just finished his cadetship and graduated into SOLDIER, Cloud Strife.

"Hey kid, it's alright. I don't bite, you know." It didn't help, though, he still looked like he was about to announce his own execution. There was even a slightly thoughtful look in the corner of his eye that gave Zack the impression he was planning his own funeral.

The cadet saluted swiftly before responding, still shaking and squeaking. "Sorry, sir. I have to deliver a message, sir, from the medical department. There's been an accident."

Now Zack really was worried. "What kind of accident?"

The kid gulped quite audibly, "The new SOLDIER you decided to sponsor as your apprentice, Cloud Strife…there was an accident with his mako enhancement procedure…"

"What kind of accident," Zack repeated, really trying not to scare the kid, but at the same time needing the information he held.

"They, uh…they gave him too much mako…" Zack frowned. They had specific procedures in place specifically to ensure that things like that didn't happen. Before they graduated, every cadet was tested for their mako tolerance. If it was even slightly below average, they were failed immediately and sent packing. Cloud's mako tolerance hadn't been amazing, but it had been quite good, perhaps due to the fact that he had grown up near a mako reactor. The results of every cadet's tests were immediately put onto the medical records of the cadet so that if and when the time came to do the mako enhancement procedure on them, the medics would know exactly what measure of mako to use.

"But he's going to be alright, isn't he? They can't have gone that far over the limit…"

The kid gulped again, looking as if he had finally resigned himself to his fate he straightened up and prepared to deliver the full story. "They uh…They don't know if he'll survive the night. It appears as though Strife was given almost three times his recommended dosage…he has severe mako poisoning."

"Shit! Who the hell was in charge of the procedure?"

"Professor Hojo, sir" the cadet grimaced, shrinking back at the look of utmost contempt that had now formed on Sinclair's face, despite the fact that it had not been directed at him, but at an absent third party, namely Professor Hojo.

"That no good son of a bitch!" Zack hissed, kicking the wall. He knew it was improper conduct, especially in front of a cadet, but he couldn't help it. He and Hojo hadn't exactly seen eye to eye on a lot of things, not least of all because of the fact that Hojo just happened to be a slimy little bastard.

Hojo's latest little scheme had been finding homeless people in the slums and kidnapping them, using them as specimens for testing and experiments. Gaia only knows what sort of experiments the sick little beaver was conducting. Fortunately, though, Zack had found out and reported it to the higher-ups, who had immediately ordered Hojo to stop. Not that they really cared what happened to the lowly slum people, but it would further tarnish ShinRa's name if the public were to find out. Apparently Hojo's way of getting back at Zack for that one was to kill his new apprentice. His friend. Not that Hojo knew what those were.

Zack composed himself quickly, grabbing his keys and wallet as he headed out of the office. "Thankyou, cadet. You're dismissed." The kid all but sprinted away.

Arriving in the training centre's main infirmary, Zack immediately headed over to the small ICU, hoping and praying that Cloud was still there and not in the morgue already.

Drawing back the curtain of the only occupied bed, Zack felt almost relieved to see the telltale blond chocobo hair. Cloud was very pale, shivering despite that he was sweaty and feverish. His eyes were open a sliver, allowing Zack to see his normally bright blue eyes were dull, yet glowing and with mako-green ringed pupils, an obvious sign of mako poisoning.

'Cloud doesn't deserve this,' Zack thought. The kid was very shy and withdrawn, finding it hard to make friends, but he was also very loyal to the few friends he did have. He was a talented fighter, particularly with a sword, but did prefer not to resort to violence. He was never quick to anger. In fact, Zack wasn't sure if he'd ever really seen the kid angry before, bar one time when they had been socialising (well, Zack had been socialising and had insisted Cloud tag along) in one of the lower sectors when they had passed three guys with knives trying to rob a young woman. None of the older guys with whom Zack had been fraternising had noticed a thing, until Zack noticed that Cloud had quietly slipped away. By that time, ofcourse, all three guys were down, disarmed, and Cloud was helping the woman to her feet. That had been the first time Zack had seen Cloud as anything more than just an antisocial young cadet who made a perfect specimen on which to inflict 'Zack Sinclair's Famous (or so he said) Socialisation Class'.

"How ya doing, kiddo?" he said, pulling up a chair beside the fifteen-year-old's hospital bed. Heh, it even had those clinically white sheets that Cloud hated, said they were a sign of sickness. Made him think of Death.

Sitting here, now, Zack couldn't help but share the views of the deathly pale boy before him.

Cloud had come to the SOLDIER program younger than most, at the tender age of fourteen, but eager to prove himself. He had been immediately labelled 'shy mountain kid', because of his quiet, introverted nature and the fact that he just come to Midgar from the little mountainous town of Nibelheim, though he had impressed his instructors with his obvious talent for sword work and hand-to-hand combat.

"You're a cool kid, y'know Strife? In fact, when you get better I'll even let you try out my Buster Sword. But you're gonna have to be real careful with it. Don't want you trying to pull some sweet move and end up more of a ladies man than I am, eh Cloud?"

Cloud's only response was to curl into himself, whimpering in pain. He stayed that way for a minute or so, before splaying out over the bed and arching his back, twitching wildly as his mako-glowing eyes rolled backward into his head.

"Shit! Nurse! Nurse, something's wrong!" Zack shouted, attempting to get someone to help his little buddy. Apparently, though, the nurses had already been alerted by the frantic beeping noise the heart monitor that Zack only just noticed was wired up next to Cloud's bed, along with various other monitors. Startled, Zack did a quick sweep with his eyes to see if there was anything else he had missed through his lack of attention. There was one notable thing – Cloud was in restraints. From his guesses, that could only mean one of two things, one being that Cloud had been suffering delusions (highly unlikely from the almost catatonic state he had been in when Zack arrived) or, more likely, that this was not the first time had had a seizure.

As two nurses and a doctor rushed over to help, Zack found himself gently pushed to the background. "He's seizing again, BP dropping…" trying to listen to their exchanges proved futile, as Zack found himself quite lost to their medical jargon. However as Cloud suddenly slackened, falling back onto the bed limp, there was one yell that he understood the implications of quite clearly.

"He's crashing!"

0o0o0o0o0

A/N: Ooh, evil cliffy, and on the first chapter too! Well, I had to do something to try and get people to review, didn't I? Well, review and give me a piece of you mind…-cackles evilly- with enough mind-pieces I shall be able to make Mind-Piece Pie! Mwauhahahahahahaha!

Uh…yeah…moving right along now…Well, I didn't put Sephiroth in this chapter, as you already know (well, incredibly brief mention at the start not included, anyway) which is for a simple reason: I want you guys to tell me what you want, then, at the time of writing for whenever I get around to writing a bit I intend to put Sephiroth in (possibly next chapter) I shall tally up results and go for a majority rules verdict. The subject of my apparent indecision, is this: Do we want an Evil Sephiroth, a Nice Sephiroth, a Nice-But-Going-To-Go-Mad-Anyway Sephiroth, or no Sephiroth at all?

Oh, and if you hadn't worked it out already, this is an AU fic, but considering that all fics are AU, you already knew that.

Thanks for reading, sayonara and please review!

Suicune.

PS: Has not been Beta-read, all faults are my own.