Chapter 11 - Nothing Else Matters
Losing a life is harder than death itself… Avidan…
Garrett had returned to the hospital around midnight, focusing on what the glyphs were saying. It began to really make him think. Possibly more that he even had to do in his life about a certain situation. Things like this always happened; he just learned the hard way.
Garrett stops at the front desk. A doctor looks up at him and acknowledges his approach. "May I help you?" The doctor asks.
"Yes, I'm looking for a room a friend of mine is staying in?" Garrett asks.
"Ok, may I ask you their name?"
"Her name is Alyssa, Alyssa Boettcher."
The doctor gives a nod, looking down at a piece of paper. "Ahh, your friend is in room 211. She's in surgery."
"Thank you." Garrett mutters.
The halls were empty, yet a bit chaotic. The only thing that was heard was the paging of various doctors and nurses. Garrett couldn't remember the last time he saw so much activity in a place like this. Then again, he was never dragged into a hospital or at least he didn't remember the last time he was. Garrett let out a soft sigh, walking in a silent, quick pace. He arrives at the right place, spotting Cloud sitting on a couch, God only knowing what was crossing him mind, even Garrett couldn't tell. Cloud's expression was an exhausted one. Bags were starting to form under his eyes as dark gray circles appeared.
Garrett joined Cloud, sitting next to him. "You should go home. You need the rest."
"I'm not leaving." Cloud automatically answers.
"You're pushing yourself." Garrett snaps back.
"And you wouldn't?"
Garrett didn't respond back. It had been a long time since he thought about love itself. No words could express how to explain. Garrett just thought that love was overrated sometimes.
Cloud studied Garrett's silent, confused expression. "You never loved?"
Garrett shrugged. "Almost. I lost her though. A prophecy predicted her death even before I wanted to listen to what the Keepers were trying to tell me. I was also young and the time though."
Cloud gave an interesting look. He buries his head in his right hand. "Prophecy? Then what's your reason for helping us?"
"Changing the subject?"
"Sorry, I have a lot on my mind." Cloud apologizes.
"I can tell. Everything was written in the books that the Keepers had, they all came true. I went both through the Dark Project and Metal Age without even bothering about the prophecies or the glyphs. It was only till I lost a person I loved to understand and believe in the prophecies. Things then turned into chaos for the Keeper, not just me. A Dark Age almost approached and I stopped that, only to see everything fall apart."
Cloud grew frustrated. "What does that have to do with me or Alyssa?"
"After the attack that broke the Keepers apart and almost killing us, we found one last piece of information. It was about the balance being regained. The Third Child of Jenova. That 'child' would be our last hope for the Keeper Council. Surprisingly enough, she was the one that made you pull through the Reunion that you got sucked into. From there she kept a watchful eye. Alyssa doesn't remember a thing about what she or anything. So don't bother asking. It seems as though she went through a bad case of Mako Poisoning."
Cloud couldn't really find anything to say. He surely remembered Alyssa saying to him two years ago about 'saving his life.' "Can you tell me more?"
"I can try my best to explain, but it may be a little difficult."
Sephiroth had pulled out a map. The map of what Midgar used to look like. Many silvers gathered around Sephiroth, glancing down at the drawn map.
"Cloud and the others are, for sure, in Midgar. We will head there tonight. Two groups of six should go after Garrett and his members while I and a couple of other party members should plan out capture for Alyssa. We need her for the Reunion. We need to destroy all who resist us. As for the rest of you, locate Alyssa's position and report in, understood?"
"Yes, Sir." The silvers obeyed.
"Very well. Dismissed. Jarrell, if you may, I must speak with you."
"Yes, Lord Sephiroth." Jarrell responds.
Jarrell and Sephiroth both walked over by the lake, not saying anything. Sephiroth seemed to have some time to think before heading out. The quiet forest made sure the air drifted calmly. Sephiroth drew his sword, sticking it in the ground and sat down at the edge of the crystal clear, sparkling lake.
"Jarrell… is there any reports on Avidan?"
"No ... there is no sign of him anywhere. He's not answering his cell either."
"Very good. Then it comes to one situation. He disappeared without a trace. Avidan is doing two things. He's rather stalking them and helping us or he may have changed sides, betraying us."
"I'll try my best to track him down." Jarrell says, bowing low and leaving without a second thought.
Sephiroth on the other hand stands up, walking into the cool, crisp water gracefully. His thoughts began to vanish. They started to readjust, mustering about Alyssa. Sephiroth was drifting in a sort of muse. He needed to think of a plan to successfully capture Alyssa, but there was only a brief moment of time remaining. Sephiroth knew that he needed to set up a plan and fast.
The memories of Alyssa flashed in his mind. Her 'real' father beating her to death. Sephiroth felt his own heart sink. He tried to stop her father from killing her, forcing her in the experiments. Her voice sounding terrified, begging him to stop. Nothing was the same after her father discovered her role of being part of Jenova. He just snapped, no one, besides Sephiroth grew witness to what happened.
Sephiroth started to feel relaxed as the soothing water whipped his current memories into reality. All he wanted now was to get Alyssa and have her join the Reunion and see the world through his eyes, changing her prospective.
Avidan grew disturbed thinking about Alyssa's dissolution, his chest grew heavy and unsettled. He kept on thinking over and over about how much she was going through. Avidan suddenly got startled, seeing Tifa enter the bar area they were now both in.
Tifa gave a light, exhausted smile. "You can't sleep either?"
"It bothers me for the fact there's nothing we can do." Avidan expresses in an upsetting and angry voice. "Sephiroth must have done something and we need to figure out exactly ourselves."
Tifa avowed his response. She saw sorrow in his eyes, the remorse was saddening her as well. "Would you like something to drink?"
Avidan gave a strange look. She probably was up talking about Alyssa's situation. "Something that's warm and nonalcoholic, if you please." Avidan replies.
Tifa gave a quick moment, scrambling into the bar, making something. A sweet scent filled the air which caught Avidan's attention. Within minutes, she came back out with hot chocolate and it was none the less topped with whipped creme.
"Thanks." Avidan speaks gratefully, receiving his cup Tifa has handing out to him.
"You're welcome." Tifa says back, joining him by sitting down at the table.
"I'm guessing for the moment things have hopefully calmed down for you a little at least?" He inquires with an interesting tone.
"Well, I'm unsure about that right now. I mean everything was managing to calm down until Alyssa came into play. Everything is just seeming to happen so fast I can't keep track of what's going on or what Cloud's even thinking. We were hit by an unexpecting curve ball."
"You know... David wasn't the type to pull off this, Tifa. No one was expecting this, he WAS depressed as far as I heard. But most of the time he was so happy, even his attitude was random, but that wouldn't stop him from having a bad day. Alyssa's real father trusted him because of his personality and confidence. So did I... I trusted him as well." Avidan's voice was dropping tone, having it turn rough and thoughtive. "I just still can't believe that he was persuaded into such a cruel intention."
"That would have been nice to see what kind of relationship Alyssa had with her adoptive father. I barely knew him. Cloud was great pals with him though."
"Well, at least you were an acquaintance with him and not a complete stranger." Avidan jokes a little.
Tifa gave a light smile. "Yeah I guess you're right-" She gave a yawn. "-well, I'm going to see if I can get any sleep. I'll see you in the morning?"
"I'm sure you will." He answers. "We all had a long day and we're all whipped out."
"Good night then, Avidan. You try getting rest yourself, ok?"
Avidan didn't respond back as he watched Tifa walk off. The air once again grew silent, stiff and unsettling. He took in a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Avidan took notice he wouldn't be able to sleep or relax for at least another hour or so. He decided to take a walk outside, to clear his mind.
As the door opened, leading out, a wind of fresh, cool air brushed his face. He let his breathing taste the sweet air, forcing his thoughts to regather themselves. Avidan starts to stroll the streets of Midgar, what was left if it at most. Not many people seemed to be out, two reasons were that it was cold and late, possibly early morning, late night, Avidan couldn't tell anymore.
Avidan looks up at the night sky, admiring its clear view of sparkling stars shining bright, joining the moon that was in the distance. The light was glowing radiantly, lighting up the night sky. He gave a grunting breath, only wanting to focus on the night, enjoying its beauty. It was a rare moment which Avidan always took advantage of all the time. A drifting moment like this only came so often for him though.
Very light pitter pattering broke Avidan's thought, making him look around quickly. A shadow moved as he drew his gun... The shadow turned out to be a wolf, it reveals itself as it walked into the dim moon light's path. Its yellow eyes seemed to shine in the night. Its fur was a remarkable silver, giving off magnificent structure that was unimaginable.
The wolf stood still, as if time itself stopped. It stood with loyalty, confidence and protective attitude. The wolf's breathing slowed, concentrating on Avidan's figure. It did no harsh movements.
Avidan lowers his gun, slowly so that there wouldn't be anything to have it attack him or have it run away. He concentrated on the wolf, taking notice it must have been the Alpha/Leader. It cautiously approached him as Avidan froze every bone in his body. The wolf continued to hesitantly approach. It stops just a few feet from Avidan, still not showing any signs of fear.
Avidan squats down putting his hand out carefully and gently. The wolf's fur was soft with a mixture of cold and warmth. Its texture was smooth, soft, yet rough. Its eyes still stared into Avidan's. It started to showing a sign of rather affection or trustworthy. The wolf sits down, but still aware and skeptic about the petting it was receiving from Avidan.
"It's not like you to wonder in here alone. What would you be doing in a place like this, anyway?" Avidan questions.
It gave a look back as if to say 'I know what's on your mind.'
Avidan gave a smirk. "You seem to like human contact rather than other animals like you." Then again I'm not human either.
The wolf arose to its feet as Avidan stands without anything else to say, He walks away, beginning to focus on Alyssa. His expression dropped, and his chest grew heavy again. He walks, only to pay attention now to his own footsteps. Avidan then noticed that the wolf seemed to be following him, he looked back and smiled.
"I appreciate the company, but 'tis not necessary for you to follow me. I don't care what you do though, as long as you don't become a burden."
The two continued to walk into the night, heading to the outskirts of Midgar and siting upon a rock that was nearby and gave a delightful view of the night sky. Avidan had his legs hanging on the ledge as he sat down on the cold surface. The wolf sat next to him in silence, seeming to enjoy the moment in an odd way.
"It's moments like these I don't was taken away from me or Alyssa. I sure hope she can pull through this." Avidan mutters.
The wolf gave a respectful look and began howling an unforgettable sound. It sounded as if it expressed its feelings through what Avidan was feeling depressed about. Avidan gave a worried sigh, taking in the lulling song the wolf was making.
Cloud had fallen asleep, listening to Garrett. His thoughts were mingling and he couldn't seem to concentrate since he was half dead. His energy was finally draining. Everything was drifting off, sinking into a dark abyss.
"Cloud... Cloud... Hey, wake up..." A light, calming voice was calling out to him...
Cloud forced his eyes to open, a blinding light made him shut his eyes, feeling the sharp, hurtful and burning pain. He tried again, blinking a few times, having the adjust. His body seemed to be floating for a brief moment, but he stood up or at least tempted to stand up. His feet levitated, even feeling a little weak-kneed, wobbly and unsettled wanting him to collapse. Cloud gave in, his feet stumbled something solid, causing him to cave-in, collapse.
The ground he was standing on wasn't even a ground at all, everything around him was just pure white, nothing seemed to be surrounding. Cloud stared to feel heavy, so he leaned his head back a little. An instant touch made him flinch, making him become aware and taking in a short, quick breath. A sound escaped from Cloud's throat, it sounded like a surprised gasp. He moved his arms a bit to see what was behind him. A soft feeling indicated that it was skin. A soft material of a shirt also grew noticeable. Both of his arms dropped. His mind immediately knew who or what it was.
Cloud's thoughts confused him, many of his thoughts began to confuse him. His thoughts broke as fingers touched his hand. The slickly moved in-between his. Cloud responds by gripping the hand that combined with his now. The hand he was holding felt small and familiar.
"I know you much have a lot on your mind." The voice echoes. "You do know you're not only in a dream, right?"
"What's going on?" Cloud questions.
"This may sound strange, but-" The voice hesitates, then speaks. "I heard you calling for me."
By this time, Cloud had two guesses in his head, but only one thing could really come to mind. "Alyssa how is that possible?"
"That's what I want to figure out myself. Perhaps a memory? Something we can't remember ourselves?"
Cloud jerked awake and his body instantly grew ice cold. He felt confused and a lot of thoughts, questions rushed through his mind. What...what? Was the only thing that his mind seemed to only come up with. Cloud once again found himself sitting on the couch in the hospital, giving a strange expression to Garrett.
"Is something bothering you on what I said?" Garrett's voice turns cold in asking.
"No..." Cloud lied. "I just..."
Garrett noticed. "Cloud..." He speaks. "You lie. You were mumbling about Alyssa."
Cloud fell silent with nothing to say. He didn't know Garrett could judge that well. Only did he say a lie, but Garrett knew. It was a skill very few people would have to detect the 'truth.' What mainly came to Cloud attention is that they were making eye contact.
Cloud had noticed Garrett's cold eyes were filled with despair, depression, hurt and most of all careless. "Garrett ... do you ever speak of your past?"
"I rarely do. What I told you a while ago was a summary of what I've been through. More has happened than what you may have known. I cannot tell you anything else." Garrett admits. "Anyway, listen... I'm leaving. I've got other work to do than hang around here, wasting my time. If I'm correct, I've already long worn out my welcome."
"Garrett." Cloud calls out, stopping him. "Thanks, even though it wasn't much."
Garrett has said nothing, but still paying full attention just for a split second. He then walks off after a moment of silence, with nothing else to say to Cloud at the moment. Cloud just continued to watch... His concentration was then broken, slow footsteps approached Cloud from the right of him. It was a doctor.
"Cloud, would you like to see Alyssa? She's now regaining consciousness. The surgery is complete." The doctor announces.
Cloud gave a slight nod. "Yeah, it would be nice to see her."