Author's Note: Well, this chapter was a long time in coming. I wasn't sure about some elements in it, but I hope it turned out alright ... I would have probably waited a bit longer to post it, in case I had to go back and revise some of the details, but the characters seem to be taking care of things for me in the later chapters, so I doubt I'll have to revise anything. XD Besides, I wanted to get something up this weekend, since I'm going to be really busy this coming week and won't have time to write anything at all! Oh, the agony.
Incidentally, I discovered a giant kimara bug (praying mantis) on my screen door the other day. It really does look extraordinarily like the bugs from the last chapter, I was a bit surprised and creeped out to note. Man, they have the freakiest eyes. XD ... And for all I know, it's still there!
Special thanks to LuckyLadybug for advice! Hope you guys enjoy the chapter!
Chapter Five
Answers
Sephiroth forced his way through the crowd of security guards, Turks, and forensics investigators blocking his access to the hallway. It had been cordoned off; they were only letting relevant parties through for questioning and investigation. A tarp lay over something several yards beyond the cordon, in front of Zack's cell, not quite concealing the object beneath it. Patches of blood were splattered on the walls, even more smeared on the floor.
"Tseng!" The Turk, evaluating the actions of the forensics team, turned at the sound of his name. Sephiroth spoke as he drew nearer, raising his voice to be heard over the din. "Are all these people necessary? Get them out. I only want those actively investigating to be here." For the moment, he purposely ignored the gruesome sight of the body.
"My apologies, General. Most of these are security having reacted to the threat in this area, and my men bringing reports."
"Your men can report over the phone. And this level is a detention block – it is already secure." Supposedly. "Have one guard familiar with the layout of this area take two SOLDIERs and conduct a sweep. The rest are to leave."
Tseng nodded, gesturing to the captain beside him. The man headed toward the crowd to carry out Sephiroth's orders.
"You are aware that a sweep has already been conducted, of course," the Turk commented.
"Yes. I want one done again, more thoroughly. Everyone here is required to sign in and out of the block, correct?"
"Yes."
"Seph!" The voice, bordering on the edge of panic, stole the General's attention. Zack, having finally caught the sound of his friend over the noise of the crowd, scrambled to the front of his cell and waved, frantically. "Seph! Thank Gaia." The SOLDIER was about to collapse against the bars of his cell but managed to refrain at the last moment, remembering the nasty shock they delivered.
Quickly, Sephiroth strode toward his friend, keeping to the side of the mess. "Are you alright?" He examined Zack's haggard appearance. He didn't look injured, but his eyes were bloodshot and haunted.
"No, I'm not alright." Zack's voice was low, but shook, betraying the controlled tone. He clenched a fist. "They think I did it, Seph." He pointed toward the investigators, then began to pace the confines of his cell. "I heard them talking. There was a man killed, right in front of my cell, right in front of me, and I couldn't do anything. I couldn't do anything except listen to him scream as something ripped him apart! And they think I did it!"
"Zack …" It was plain to see that the young SOLDIER was horribly shaken by what happened. Sephiroth began to step forward to comfort him, only to be brought up short by the bars. Suddenly furious, he let out a low curse. Zack was falling apart in there, and these bars were not helping. Turning slightly to the guard beside him, so as not to take his eyes off his friend, he demanded that the bars be deactivated. Fearful of Sephiroth's tone, the guard had them down within a few moments.
Zack had returned to pacing. His shoulders were hunched, and he gripped his arms hard enough to leave painful-looking marks. Once the bars were down, Sephiroth was at his side in an instant, firmly grabbing his shoulders.
"Stop it, Zack." He gave his friend a gentle shake to break him of whatever horrific memory he was reliving.
Zack just shook his head. "I can hear him screaming," he whispered. "Gaia, why couldn't they just kill him and be done with it?" Abruptly, he clapped his hands over his ears. "I can still hear him in my head! And the blood … it's everywhere; I can smell it!"
It twisted Sephiroth's heart to see Zack like this. He gently tugged down on his wrists, got a good grip on them with one arm, and wrapped the other around him securely, pulling him close. Zack struggled, trying to pull free, but Sephiroth simply tightened his grip.
"That's enough," he murmured. "It's over. No one's screaming anymore."
Zack shook his head, beginning to tremble. "He was just three feet from me, Seph. Three feet! And I couldn't do anything! I wanted to reach out, but I couldn't. I-I … It killed him, right there, and all I could do was listen to him screaming, and the sound as i-it … it …"
"Shh, that's enough." Sephiroth needed to get Zack out of there. Clearly, he could not have murdered Dr. Davidson, and he couldn't stay here, not with the body nearby. There had even been blood spattered into the cell, upon the walls and floor, bright to contrast with the dark steel. With SOLDIER's heightened senses, it was no wonder it affected Zack so much.
He glanced back at Tseng. Understanding Sephiroth's wishes, the Turk nodded, and gestured for them to follow. Gently tugging on Zack, Sephiroth led him out of the cell, taking care to block his view of the body. Though no stranger to death, even scenes as grisly as this one, it was still easy to be overwhelmed, especially at an innocent suffering so horrific a fate. And Zack had a kinder heart than many.
Tseng guided them further down the hallway, around a handful of corners, until the sharp copper tang in the air faded, and the muted discussions of the investigators were lost under the hum of the circulation systems. They arrived at a small break room, usually reserved for the guards stationed up here. A table sat, surrounded by a handful of chairs, and two couches were set against the walls. There was already a tray sitting on the table, holding some water glasses and a steaming mug.
Sephiroth glanced questioningly at Tseng, as he had Zack sit on one of the couches.
"Something to calm him down," the man replied, quietly.
The General nodded his thanks, wondering, at the same time, how Tseng had managed to have the tray arrive before him. But he refrained from asking, accepting it as one of the Turk's little secrets.
Sephiroth presented the mug of liquid to Zack. "Drink this. You'll feel better."
Zack nodded, shivering, and took it. He'd been silent since they left the cell, and currently had his eyes trained on the floor. After another moment, when Zack made no move to do anything with the offered drink, Sephiroth sighed and knelt before him, gripping his shoulder.
"Zack. Look at me. … Look at me." Sephiroth snapped his fingers in front of Zack's face, at last succeeding in bringing the violet gaze up, slowly, to meet his. "Drink." He gave the mug a gentle push.
Zack's eyes gradually flicked down to the steaming liquid. Finally, he raised it to his lips and took a sip. After a moment, he closed his eyes and sighed, a portion of the tension seeming to slowly drain out of him. Wrapping his hands around the mug, he took a moment to appreciate the warmth radiating from it.
"… Thanks, Seph. Tseng." He raised his eyes, acknowledging them both, before glancing back to the drink. "I …" He trailed off, finding his words pointless, and just shook his head, sighing.
Unsure quite what to say himself, Sephiroth instead took a seat beside him. Right now, what Zack needed was the simple comfort of a friendly presence. Sephiroth hoped that that, and the hot drink, would eventually relax him enough to bring him back to normal.
Tseng stepped away, taking up a position near the door, content to let Sephiroth handle things his way. He would know that they would need Zack's recounting of events at some point, but it wasn't necessary to rush it. Tseng had done his best to keep Zack calm, talking to him before Sephiroth had arrived, but he knew he was no substitute for a close friend.
After several minutes, Zack eventually spoke.
"… You know I didn't kill him, right? … I mean, I know I didn't kill him. I was in the cell before it all started, so there's no way I could have." He shuddered. "I heard one of the investigators wondering if I'd somehow done it anyway, since he was right in front of my cell. Like if I'd done it with my mind, or somehow escaped, or ripped him apart right through the bars …"
"That's ridiculous-"
"I know! I couldn't have done it, right? You believe me? I mean, I remember it – I remember everything. I heard him screaming outside the cell … He just screamed and screamed …"
"Enough, Zack." Sephiroth wrapped an arm across his shoulders, only to notice slight tremors running through his friend. "Stop doing this to yourself."
Zack sniffed and nodded, running a shaking hand through his disheveled hair. At Sephiroth's encouragement, he continued to drink from the mug, eventually calming down. It seemed that he found some solace in Sephiroth's partial embrace, and did not pull away.
When Zack's shivering had finally ceased, Sephiroth decided it was time they asked for his version of events.
"… Are you ready to tell us what happened?"
He took a deep breath; blew it out. "Y-yeah … Yeah. I'm good." Another sigh. "It's just … still so surreal. Dr. Davidson was there … and then, all of a sudden, it hit. No one saw it coming."
Sephiroth shared a glance with Tseng, then returned his focus to his friend.
"He said he'd come to examine me, had to do a late-night call, since he'd been so busy. So I moaned about it, good-naturedly of course, and we chatted a bit and he asked some questions while we waited for the guard to go get the codes for the cell.
"And then, without any warning, the lights went out."
Suddenly, it was pitch black, and silence fell upon Zack's ears as the circulation systems died. Even the glowing bars before him had blinked out, causing him to take a startled step backward and leaving orange afterimages upon his vision.
"What in the world …?" came the surprised voice of the doctor.
Zack blinked, willing his SOLDIER night-vision to adapt to the sudden darkness. "Hey, Doc, you alright?"
"I'm fine, just a little surprised is all."
"Well, stay put – I'm sure the guard'll get the power turned on pretty quick."
There was a slight rustle, and Zack assumed that Dr. Davidson had nodded.
"Have you had problems with the power up here before? Strange that it should go out, considering this is the First Cl-"
There was a sudden thump, interrupting the doctor's words, and a startled, Oof!
"Hey-!"
"Doc? … Dr. Davidson? Hey, Doc, you okay?" Zack took a hesitant step forward, wondering if the man had somehow tripped.
"What the-? Get off me!" The voice was indignant. Then there was a gasp. "What are you-?"
Unexpectedly, a frightened yell split the air. "Stop it! What are you doing!" Some scuffling. "Get away from- Zack, help me!"
At that, Zack took two steps forward, still lost in the pitch blackness, only to be jolted to a halt by an sudden, agonized scream. Something hot and wet splattered his face; he jerked in shock.
"Zack! Hel-Help!" That was the last coherent word the SOLDIER made out, before all Dr. Davidson's cries dissolved into ear-piercing screams.
Zack recoiled in utter horror, slamming the back of his knees into the bed and making it crash against the wall. For one heart-stopping moment, he was sure that whatever it was would come after him. But it didn't; after only a brief pause, the raw screams continued.
What was it? What was it? Zack couldn't see, and now didn't want to. He'd backed himself into the corner beside the foot of the bed, and stood, petrified, as he listened to the horrific sounds just beyond the entrance to his cell. In between screams, he heard the scuffling of clothing and limbs, the scrabbling and slipping of shoes against wet floor, the solid impact of flesh against flesh … Dr. Davidson must still be struggling with the thing. But amongst all of that, there was also the distinctive, familiar sound of something sharp slicing through-
There was another blood-curdling scream.
Holy … The man was being ripped apart.
Zack's legs gave out, sending him slowly sliding down the wall to the floor, and he brought a shaking hand up over his mouth as he stared in horror at the darkness beyond the cell. He now thought he could see shapes, awful, terrible, deformed shapes, in a violent, desperate tussle.
No … nonono No, this couldn't be happening …
In a futile effort to reject the reality, Zack shut his eyes, clapping hands over his ears to shut out the screams. But he could still hear them; they wouldn't stop!
Go away go away go away go away! More than anything, he wished for the screams to stop, or to blast it all away with materia, or, better yet, to just wake up …
And then, abruptly, he got his wish.
The screams stopped.
… Gaia, no …
There was the sound of something being dragged a short distance, and then a quiet thump. It was followed by some pattering noises, of something stepping across the floor, then silence.
Dread stopped Zack's heart. It was coming. There was nothing between him and it; the energy bars had vanished. He was trapped.
And it knew where he was.
Zack waited, heart pounding. His sensitive ears strained to catch the tiniest sound.
After several moments, there was a barely audible shhh and a creak.
Zack remained huddled in the corner as silence pounded his ears to deafness, and prayed for someone to wake him up.
They were quiet for a few minutes, after Zack finished recounting the events. Finally, Tseng spoke up to explain how this had occurred at roughly eleven the night before. No one had come to discover the body until about three-thirty that morning, shortly before Tseng had contacted Sephiroth. The guard gone to fetch the codes had been locked out of the area; it had taken hours for him to locate someone and bring the power back online.
Four hours. Over four hours, Zack was in there …
Sephiroth found himself squeezing Zack's shoulders tightly, and forced himself to relax.
Zack gave him a wan smile. "Hey, Seph, I'm okay now." Though Zack himself was clutching the mug tightly, his knuckles white. He drew a shuddering breath. "I dunno why I j-just … froze … Gaia, I should have done something, but I …"
"No one's blaming you, Zack."
Zack grunted. "Tell that to those investigators." He scowled, glancing down into the half-empty mug.
Tseng stepped in. "They're just spooked. They've been on edge, as we all have, since the murders began."
Unconvinced, Zack turned away. "They look at me like I'm some kind of monster," he said, bitterly.
"Zack," Sephiroth chided.
"Well, it doesn't help when I'm locked up in a special cell like some kind of freak gone bad."
Mentally, Sephiroth flinched. He knew this was a sore point with the young SOLDIER, but Sephiroth was not immune to it either, and did not appreciate the careless words. He stiffened, removing his arm.
"You know that is not the case. You are here because we are trying to help you and keep you safe. If this were not the best solution, I would not have allowed it." He regarded his friend sternly. "I know you have been through something terrible last night, Zack, and I sympathize. But you need to keep a clear head, and wallowing in self-pity will get you nowhere."
Zack stared at him with widened eyes. Then he seemed to shrink down into the couch.
"… Sorry, Seph," he apologized, quietly. "… I … I guess I wasn't thinkin' …"
Sephiroth allowed him to stew for a few minutes. Then he relented. "Accepted. … Finish your drink."
Zack nodded, wordlessly, and did as he was told.
Sephiroth sighed. He understood that Zack was likely beating himself up over not helping Dr. Davidson, and Sephiroth also regretted that the young SOLDIER had been unable to do anything. But another part of him, the illogical part, was glad. With no weapon of his own, Zack would likely have been injured, if not killed, by the unknown murderer. Yes, as a SOLDIER, he technically should have the advantage. But they could not afford to underestimate this killer; clearly, he had chosen to attack in the dark, so may have had some kind of advantage there. How he was able to infiltrate the area, cut power, and remain undetected was another mystery entirely. Sephiroth would need to consult with Tseng on that.
However, now that he thought about it, this sick occurrence did have one bright note. It meant that Zack was not the killer. The revelation lifted a burden from Sephiroth's shoulders that he hadn't known he'd been carrying.
He set a hand upon Zack's shoulder. "There is one good point in all of this." When Zack looked up at him questioningly, he continued. "At least we know you're not to blame. The fact that you were conscious and remember it all indicates that something was not occurring to you without your knowledge."
Zack's glum expression slowly gave way to a tired smile. "… Yeah …"
"What do you say to returning to your own quarters?"
Zack brightened. "That would be awesome." All he wanted to do was sleep, and to do so in his own bed would be Heaven!
Tseng stepped forward, clearing his throat. "Sephiroth … I would caution you on that." Giving Zack an apologetic look, he waved Sephiroth closer.
The General frowned and, indicating to Zack that he would return in a moment, got up and followed the Turk into the hallway, just outside the door.
"What is it?" he asked, lowly.
Tseng hesitated. "… We have some … interesting … surveillance footage that does not quite agree with Zack's story."
"Surveillance …? There were cameras in his cell?"
"Just a precaution, General. There are cameras in all the cells on this level."
Sephiroth growled. "Is there no depth too low for ShinRa to stoop?" He shook his head. "Never mind. … Are you telling me Zack just lied to me?" He fixed the Turk with a stern glare.
"… Not … precisely …" Tseng looked as if he would have liked to elaborate more, but was unable to. "… It is something you will have to see for yourself. I am unsure how to describe it, except that it is … strange."
Growing frustrated, Sephiroth sighed. "Is there some reason why I should not allow Zack to return to his quarters?" His hard tone indicated that there had better be a very good reason for him to force Zack to stay here another night.
"… Perhaps keeping him under house arrest should suffice."
Sephiroth gave the Turk a calculating look, but Tseng remained unmoved.
"… All right. I'm trusting you on this, Tseng."
He nodded. "I will ensure it is not misplaced, General."
Sephiroth whirled, striding back inside the room. Zack cast him an apprehensive look.
Without preface, Sephiroth spoke. "The good news is, you may return to your quarters." At this, Zack's eyes brightened. "… The bad news … is that you will be confined to your rooms for your own safety." Glancing sidelong at Tseng, he continued. "Hopefully, this will blow over soon."
Zack frowned, processing the information. For a moment, he looked as if he might protest, then he simply shrugged. "Fine by me, I guess. I just wanna sleep all this off."
Relieved that Zack wasn't going to fight this, Sephiroth gave him a small smile. "I'm sure you do. … If you're ready, let's go."
"Oh, I've been ready for a long time!" Zack stood, wearily, setting the mug back onto the tray. "It'll be a good day when I never have to see this place again."
Sephiroth smirked, falling into step beside his lieutenant as they exited the room and headed in the direction of the elevator. The General chose a route that would skirt the crime scene at Zack's cell.
Tseng chose that moment to excuse himself. "I'll be in my office, General." Before the General could comment, he added, "And I'll have the preliminary investigative report ready for you."
Sephiroth nodded. "Thank you."
It was several minutes later when the two SOLDIERs arrived at the door to Zack's modest apartment.
"Suppose you'll be needing my key, huh?" the younger SOLDIER asked, with a wry smirk.
"I'm afraid so."
Zack fished around in his pocket for the keycard, then handed it to his friend. Sephiroth took it. Taking out his own master card, he slid it into the device beside the door, and keyed in the override code that would seal the room unless he opened it himself. There was a beep, and the small indicator light turned yellow. Then he keyed the code to open the door. The light turned green as the door slid to the side, revealing the darkened interior of Zack's rooms.
Zack hesitated, bouncing on his feet. "Sooo … Guess I'll … see ya around, huh?" He swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry.
"I'm just a phone call away, Zack," Sephiroth replied, reassuringly.
"Right …" He scratched the back of his head. "Well, I'll just … I'll be here! You know where to find me, I guess …" He trailed off, uncomfortably, not sure what else to say as he watched Sephiroth nod. "Er … bye …"
The General watched as Zack turned away, the glum expression returning to his face. Sephiroth's eyes softened. In a moment, he had wrapped Zack in a strong hug, having missed the chance to properly do so after Zack's ordeal.
"… Seph …" Surprised, Zack slowly returned the embrace, letting his fingers curl into the back of Sephiroth's coat.
"I'm sorry about this, Zack. About having to suspect you, and keeping you locked up, and about last night …"
"… But it's fine, it's not your fault …"
"I wish I'd been there last night." Sephiroth's chest tightened as he realized that, with the cell bars having been deactivated, it could easily have been Zack torn apart, too. "You shouldn't have had to witness all that. I'm sorry."
Zack's fingers tightened. "Aww, stop it, Seph. You're gonna make me cry." He chuckled, then pushed Sephiroth away, his eyes bright. The memory of that horror was still too fresh and far too painful, but he hadn't broken down yet, and didn't want to, certainly not in front of his friend. Rubbing an arm across his eyes, he turned away. "Now hurry up an' go find that killer. Next time I see you again, it better be to tell me that you caught 'im!"
Sephiroth crossed his arms with a grunt, a smirk finding its way upon his lips. "I'll see what I can do."
"You better!" Zack stepped into the room, only to glance back with a wave. "See ya."
Sephiroth gave him a nod. He keyed in the code; the light turned red, and each friend watched as the door separated them.
Had anyone later asked, Sephiroth would have reported that, afterwards, he immediately spun and left, heading to Tseng's office.
He would never admit that there were a good five minutes during which he simply stared at the door that he had sealed with his own hands.
And he knew that, on the other side, Zack was doing the same.
to be continued …