And here it is, Chapter 5! Originally, more was going to happen in this chapter, but Skiba thought there should have been more emphasis on certain details, enough emphasis to where I was actually comfortable with splitting it up. This chapter may have been awkwardly long had it not been for that, and I am kind of trying to make thing consistent even though Skiba said it doesn't really matter.
I must thank Skiba also. She helped a whole, whole lot on this chapter especially when it came to Beta-ing (lol), so THANK YEW, SKIBA!
Hopefully, this chapter turns out okay. I kinda had my inspiration and overall creative drive shot down for a while, and I'm still trying to get it back. Chapter 6 should be better, and I plan on starting it tonight. Also, those who are reading this and have read Broken Facade, once I finally manage to transition into the main target scene in Part 3, it shouldn't be long before I post it up as well. And those who haven't read it, GO READ IT, I NEED FEEDBACK-also, I'd still like some ideas on where anyone would like to see it go.
Anywho! Enough pimping out my other fics, now to the important shit:
Warnings: None, unless one is shocked by Flirty!Zack... then there's your warning.
Pairing: Extreeeeeemely vague, one sided, kind of undesired Zack/Sephiroth, some Zack/Cissnei
Don't own it people!
Enjoy!
When Zack walked into Lazard's office, the first thing he noticed was a pair of familiar—quite annoyingly familiar—cyan eyes trained on him. Normally when a person stared at him, he opted to meet their gaze, but on this particular occasion, Zack had no interest in looking into those piercing eyes or at the silver-haired man that owned them. For whatever reason he had been called into the Director's office, he would take his orders and go; he wasn't really in the mood to deal with much else.
He strode past the imposing SOLDIER First, easily avoiding his gaze—easily missing the way the man's eyes narrowed as he passed—and approached the Director's desk just as the blond man was turning in his office chair to face him.
"Congratulations," Lazard began. "As of this moment, you're promoted to SOLDIER First Class."
That certainly hadn't been what he was expecting—another mission, maybe, but not a promotion, not the promotion that he had been working so hard to attain. And strangely, he felt no surge of emotions—no happiness, no sense of accomplishment, nothing. It was stranger yet considering how overwhelmingly happy he had been the day Angeal had informed him of his recommendation. Still, he felt absolutely nothing, and he looked down at his hands, perplexed.
"Huh... I thought I'd be happier," he murmured, and he glanced up to see the Director's expression fall just a bit.
The room was silent for just a few moments before Lazard spoke up again.
"Understandable," he said, voice solemn, and he brought his arm up to rest his chin on his hand. "Too much happened too fast."
At that moment, Zack could hear the faint creaking of shifting leather, but nothing else. So the First wasn't leaving... Why was he here in the first place?
However, Zack had no time to dwell on that question. "Zack," Lazard's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "I'm afraid I need your assistance again."
Instantly, Zack's attention turned to the silver-haired man behind him. He was leaning very slightly against the desk behind him, his arms crossed before him. Zack was inwardly surprised when the man's face remained downcast, half-expecting to see those eyes boring into him as he turned.
"Are you pushing another assignment on me?" He heard that deep voice sigh out and for some reason it made an ever-so-slight shiver travel up his spine. He barely repressed another when those eyes finally met his.
"My apologies," was the man's frank reply.
Zack's eyes narrowed just slightly; of course Sephiroth had to play a part in this, just like the last mission. He honestly couldn't help but feel a stir of agitation. Hadn't the man put him through enough as it was? Hell, wasn't he putting him through enough now? For months, the silver-haired man had plagued his mind relentlessly, and while the more sensible side of Zack reminded him that Sephiroth really had no hand in his recent trains of thought, he still couldn't help but be a bit irked at the SOLDIER; it was easier to quell certain other, more questionable feelings anytime they began to surface.
"Whatever," he said, discontent oozing from his voice. A mission was a mission, and he was duty bound to carry it out regardless of circumstance.
He crossed his arms as he turned back to face Lazard, awaiting further orders. He could see the only slightly veiled sympathy in the man's eyes, and that made him wonder.
"I'll fill you in on the assignment, but before that," Lazard began, "go to the briefing room and change in a First Class uniform."
It took Zack a moment before he complied and turned to leave. This time, he made a point to meet the silver-haired SOLDIER's gaze as he left; his face was as unreadable as ever which was no surprise, but Zack fit him with an equally even stare as he passed him.
o0o
Were it not for keeping the Director waiting, Zack likely would have been trudging along to the briefing room. Knowing that his next mission assignment was—once again—Sephiroth's doing did not bode well for his mood. It hadn't been that long ago—during his first mission to Wutai to be exact—that he had been eager to get the chance to meet the man hailed as a hero. Joining the man on a second mission had only piqued his interest in getting to know him all the more, and he would readily admit that he would have liked to become friends with him. But now the man seemed to be present when Zack least wanted him to be, as if the gods themselves were making it so he could never hope to get the SOLDIER out of his mind.
At the thought, Zack's shoulders seemed to slump further as he entered the briefing room and made his way to his assigned supply pod. He removed his new uniform from its confines, slinging the pants over a shoulder. He held the shirt in his fingers, staring into the black weaving. Angeal wore the very same uniform... he'd always wondered why his mentor had never opted to wear his own unique uniform like his fellow Firsts. Zack once entertained the thought that maybe it was to prevent younger ones from becoming so intimidated. The uniforms worn by Genesis and Sephiroth set them so far apart from the rest of the men, proved just how high in rank they were, how powerful they were. Angeal however seemed almost at a more... tangible level despite the fact that he too was quite strong. Perhaps in seeing him, new recruits found assurance that their dreams were not so unattainable, their goals not so unreachable. Zack had certainly felt that way.
His thumbs brushed absently over the fabric. With his gloves on, he could not take in the feeling of the weaving, but he knew well enough that despite the memories invoked, the sweater that made up his new uniform would feel no different than the one he wore at that moment.
Zack let himself brood for just a bit longer before realizing that he was keeping his superiors waiting. He did not bother to look as he quickly shed his pauldrons and harness before setting about changing. In the back of his mind, he felt he should have perhaps opted for a place with a little more privacy; however, the only one who ever consistently visited the briefing room was Kunsel, and the two of them had seen enough of each other's anatomy that there was no real need for shame.
When fully dressed, he carelessly tossed his old uniform back into his supply pod where it would be removed, cleaned, and placed back into inventory. He gave himself a once over before heading towards the door just as one of the researchers entered. ...
o0o
He returned to Lazard's office as quickly as he could. While that crash course in materia fusion had been useful—though in all honesty, he had forgotten the majority of it—he didn't want to waste any more time than he already had. He strode into the Director's office, paying no heed to Sephiroth as he went, and stood before his desk.
"The company has decided to eliminate Genesis and his cohorts," Lazard said as he stood from his chair.
Zack remained silent. Though he couldn't help but wonder why the company would so quickly dispose of one of their strongest SOLDIERs so readily, it wasn't his place to object. In the end, it was probably for the better, although he did not like to think such a thing of his mentor's and Sephiroth's best friend. Zack knew there was little that could be done in the way of diplomacy, and it would likely lead to a needless loss of lives. He nodded briefly to show he understood but said nothing; there had to be more to it than that.
"This includes Angeal as well."
All that stuff about his place and objections went flying out the window in an instant.
"And you want me to do it?" He was unable to hide the distress in his voice, and he was sure that it showed on his face as well. There was no way he would—no way he could kill his mentor!
"No, the Shinra Army will handle it."
"What about me?"
"They don't trust you."
Zack's shoulders sagged in defeat. It wasn't as if he could object. He could understand why the company wouldn't be able to trust him. Hell, if he had been assigned to the task, he wasn't even sure he could trust himself to do the job. He had barely been able to stand facing the man in Banora; there was no way he'd be able to face him knowing that one of them wasn't leaving alive.
He heard footsteps coming from behind him.
"They believe your emotions will hamper your... judgment," Sephiroth spoke up behind him.
Zack bit back a growl as he nearly slammed his hands onto the desk and leaned forward. Way to point out the obvious, he thought sourly.
"Well of course!" he said, tossing his head to look back at the tall man. He almost relented and looked away when he saw the man turn to face him.
"That's why I am going too."
The tension he felt and most likely expressed all but increased tenfold at that statement. The very last thing he needed was Sephiroth accompanying him on yet another mission after everything he had just had to deal with. Not only did the youth have to deal with the fact that his mentor was going to have to be killed, but his first mission as a SOLIDER First Class would likely not go well because he was going to be distracted by the one man he couldn't get out of his head! Just glancing at him made all those... lewd thoughts surface in one overwhelming moment, and hearing him speak only gave a voice to those images. Being in close proximity to the First was only going to prove to be disastrous, especially since he was going to be on a mission—and an important one at that.
Slowly, he stood straight and faced Sephiroth. The man gazed right back at him as if he were waiting for him to speak.
"To kill them?" Zack asked after a tense moment, his brow creased in an almost accusatory manner.
He watched the man, waiting for his answer but got only silence. However, he noticed the slightest upturn of the SOLDIER's lips; there was something he wasn't saying, something he was hiding. Zack narrowed his eyes just slightly.
Before anyone could say or do anything further, the room was suddenly bathed in red light and the deafening sound of the alarms filled his ears.
"An Intruder," he heard Lazard say over the noise.
He turned to the Director. "Where?"
"Close," the blond stated simply.
Lazard looked to the silver-haired SOLDIER. "Sephiroth, the President," then looked to Zack, "Zack, entrance."
The youth nodded and could barely hold back the urge to smile. "Yeah, you got it!"
He turned and ran quickly to the elevator, Sephiroth striding next to him. As grave as the situation was, Zack couldn't help but be glad for the brief distraction. He hadn't been in a serious battle in way too long, and this was just what he needed to vent his accumulating frustration.
The young SOLDIER paid no notice to Sephiroth as the two parted ways to attend to their duties; he rushed into the elevator and fidgeted the whole time down, his sword hand twitching every few moments. The decent to the main entrance of the building was relatively smooth, aside from it stalling suddenly a couple floors down. He had to resist the urge to take a look around that particular floor, knowing that his orders were to defend the entrance; it was likely that any intruders managing to make to higher floors would be dealt with by the other operatives.
o0o
When he made it to the lobby, Zack's excitement turned to alarm and confusion at the sight before him. It had been all but reduced to rubble, Shinra guards nearly in a panic as they tried and failed to hold off the attack. Zack's confusion only doubled at the sight of what Shinra's men were trying to hold off. Anyone familiar with Shinra, especially those working for the company, could recognize its machinery, its robotic weapons being of an especially unique—and terrifying—design. But...
"Why the hell are Shinra weapons attacking the building?"
He watched in masked horror as man after man was shot down and very nearly filled with bullets. He glanced at one particular Sweeper just as it took down two of Shinra security's men. In a flash another, smaller, human figure appeared behind it. He recognized the unique design of its helmet and the red twin blades it wielded, and an image from his mission in Wutai flashed briefly before his eyes. It was one of his copies.
Genesis.
The ex-SOLDIER First had to have been the cause of this, and Zack understood why Shinra wanted him destroyed. While he couldn't guess how one man, regardless of his strength, could gain access to and control of some of the company's strongest machines, it was clear that the man had and bore no qualms with using Shinra's resources against it. The man had to be stopped, or else he'd only be allowed to wreak further havoc.
The youth's hand was instantly on his sword, and he brought it before him. Orders were orders... wasn't like he was gonna have to pay for any damages.
He rushed forward towards the Sweeper and the copy, easily sidestepping as the mech open fired. The copy moved at a speed comparable to his and lashed out with its blades. He dodged the first blade and blocked the other with his sword before quickly slashing at the copy itself, bringing it down as quickly as possible. The sweeper—though made of steel and therefore much less simple to destroy—was nowhere near as quick, so while it could take more blows, it was much easier to evade. He made quick work of the weapon and looked towards the now demolished entrance just as more clones and sweepers came barreling into the building.
He cursed as he raced down the wrecked steps.
Sure are a lot of them, he thought. No doubt they're all over the place... what the hell is he planning?
Engaging the next wave of enemies proved to be much more difficult. They came in waves, and as soon as he had taken down a few, more had come to replace them. He also realized that Genesis had command of more than just sweepers as he watched small groups of Red Saucers glide along the wrecked floor, their bodies sparking menacingly with electricity. Zack nevertheless fought tirelessly. Admittedly, there was some part of him that enjoyed the chance to fight for real after being idle for so long, and he reveled in the opportunity that was being given to him.
He wasn't sure how long he was fighting, or how many of the attackers he had taken down, but he breathed a sigh of relief when the last sweeper fell and no more came to take its place. He placed his sword back onto his back and strode over the one of the fallen clones. He stared at it for a moment inwardly fascinated at how it looked no different from its comrades and at the fact that there were just so many of them. After a moment, the sound of footfalls met the young SOLDIER's ears and he turned, starting at who it was approaching him.
"S-Sephiroth!" What the hell?
The man strode briskly to stand before him.
"The intruders are Genesis copies," Zack said automatically as Sephiroth scanned over the bodies and wrecked machinery.
He heard the man make a noise and looked into his face. He seemed pensive, and Zack wanted to inquire as to what the man was on the man's mind. Clearly he knew something that he wasn't letting on.
"Hollander must be behind this," he said, but he seemed to be speaking more to himself than to Zack.
Hollander? The name didn't sound familiar to him.
"Who's that?"
"A Shinra scientist," Sephiroth said, and Zack could detect a bit of distaste in his words. "He vanished after lifting the copy technology."
Well that explained why he hadn't heard of the man. Zack always found those guys in the Science Department—especially the ones responsible for overseeing mako injections and the additional boosters for SOLDIERs—to be a bit on the creepy side. But if Sephiroth was right and this guy was behind all of these copies...
"So you're saying this guy Hollander and Genesis are workin' together?"
Zack saw the man's expression darken just slightly as he turned away from him.
"Perhaps."
"But... what is it they're after?"
"Hollander lost his bid for the leadership of the Science Department," Sephiroth answered. By the contempt that seemed to seep into his voice, Zack certainly knew the silver-haired man's opinion on the matter. "He has borne a grudge against Shinra since. Revenge is likely his objective."
"That's just stupid," Zack scoffed. "You're telling me Genesis is supporting that idiotic cause?"
If that was true, he couldn't understand why. Why would a SOLDIER go against the entire company, endanger and kill so many people, and cause so much damage for some nerd's personal gain?
Sephiroth's head tilted down. "I'd prefer not to believe it, but..."
There was something in the First's voice that Zack couldn't readily identify. There was no edge to the man's words, none of the disdain he seemed to harbor for the whole situation, and Zack felt his heart twinge in sympathy; he'd momentarily forgotten that the silver-haired man was being forced to fight against his best friends. He was sure that Sephiroth did not like the idea of another's petty grudge being the reason for that.
"Then don't believe it," Zack said simply.
Sephiroth turned to him, silent for a moment. He almost seemed to be trying to read him, eyes boring into him, and that feeling Zack tried to repress surfaced just briefly.
"Very well, I will not."
Almost instantly, the shred of emotion Zack had seen on the man's face was gone, and the stoic mask was back in place. Sephiroth brushed past him without a glance.
"Come, Fair. The copies have been sighted in Sector 8 as well." He paused and turned his head back to Zack, their eyes locking. He nodded ahead of them. "Let's go."
o0o
Zack was admittedly taken aback at the sight of Sector 8. Citizens were mowed down as they desperately tried to escape their attackers, the machines shooting wildly at what seemed to be anything that moved; it certainly looked a lot worse than he'd originally thought.
"This isn't good," Zack said to himself.
"We should split up."
He turned to the source of the voice, Sephiroth standing just a small distance from him. He nodded to the First, face set in determination.
"Understood!"
He turned his back, sparing one last glance at the other as he strode in another direction. He watched the man for just a moment—perhaps a moment too long—then sprinted in the direction of LOVELESS Avenue. That particular location was quite popular and was almost always bustling with people; there was no doubt that he'd find a lot of Genesis's forces there.
The square had quickly become deserted, people fleeing for safety as quickly as possible. Zack quickly approached the fountain, scanning for any signs of stragglers. He chanced a glance ahead and nearly skidded to a halt.
Two of Genesis's copies stood near the entrance to LOVELESS Avenue, surrounding a young woman—quite a pretty woman at that—and backing her into a corner. Zack growled in the back of his throat, hand reaching back and gripping the hilt of his sword.
"Hold on," he called. "I'm a-comin'!"
He charged forward... and almost headlong into a metal rod.
Zack just managed to stop short, very nearly stumbling as he did. He looked to his right and took in the familiar black suit, donned by a man with messy red hair.
"Sector 8 is Turk jurisdiction, Slick."
He hadn't expected to be intercepted by the Turks. While he knew little about their branch, he did know that they were almost never at the forefront of an operation, so to see them out in the open in the middle of a city-wide attack was cause for confusion. More importantly, they were stopping him from saving someone—that someone being a really pretty girl, he would add. And whenever there was a pretty girl in trouble, he just had to jump into action. Tseng's arrival just set him more on edge, and he was moments from rushing forward before he saw her suddenly take down her attackers with an enormous... something-or-other, then brush aside her hair and turn around.
"Okay...?" he uttered to himself in confusion... and then he noticed the suit.
Another Turk?
She was a Turk, and she was a girl, and she was a Turk, but most importantly, she was a girl, and while Zack's most intimate experiences had been with other men, a part of him was still very much straight. He loved looking at and flirting with women, and did so whenever possible. Plus, this new Turk was providing a very much desired distraction from another certain someone.
Whatever was being said amongst the three men around him was ignored until he caught the sight of them departing, no doubt to another area within the sector. He put his hands behind his head, watching them go.
"So now we're outsourcing to the Turks?" he asked, mostly to himself, not exactly sure what to make of the situation.
"SOLDIER's being stingy."
He shrugged. "There's a manpower shortage—huh?" He stopped short when he realized she was speaking to him. He turned to look for the source of the voice and came face to face with the woman he had previously attempted to save... and gods, she was even prettier up close. "You're a Turk, too?" he asked, though wanted to hit himself for how stupid that had to have sounded.
Luckily for him, she just smiled politely at him. "I'm Cissnei."
She was quite cute, with long, curly chestnut hair, and honey-brown eyes to match—couldn't have been much younger than him, either.
"I'm Zack, pleasure to meet ya," he readily introduced himself to her, unable to stop grinning like an idiot—his assignments, the attack, and the man he couldn't stop thinking about momentarily all but evaporated from his mind.
"Zack, aren't you on assignment?"
...Dammit. Tseng just had to ruin the moment, much to Zack's disappointment, and Cissnei simply laughed quietly behind her hand. So close.
Though Zack didn't want to cut his meeting short, he did have work to do, and he offered Tseng his help in taking care of the attackers. His objective had been to suppress Genesis and his copies, essentially the same objective as the Turks, seeing as how they were attacking the city. Of course the Turk had been ready to decline before Cissnei piped up, thanking him for his generosity.
She left for LOVELESS Avenue with a wink. Zack, taking her words as an invitation, followed, the popular street having been his intended destination in the first place.
o0o
Zack was actually fairly surprised to find the streets of LOVELESS Avenue just as deserted. However, he did a thorough sweep of every alley way in the area, not surprised to find people that had not escaped and were being cornered by rogue sweepers and copies. His enemies were no less difficult to take down, the only challenge being to find all of them and ensure the safety of anyone that had been left behind.
It didn't take him long to relocate Cissnei; however before he could have the chance to go back into flirty Zack mode, he noticed her struggling against a very familiar and unwelcome red-clad figure.
Genesis?
Zack instantly positioned himself in front of the female Turk; she had been injured, and he wasn't about to stand by and let that bastard do anything more. He glared at the auburn-haired man, his sword drawn, but he couldn't help but notice something off. The man was silent, and his face was blank. The Genesis he had met was not at all averse to running his mouth, and was very smug about it too. This... thing he faced was not Genesis.
"Another copy," he growled.
He ordered Cissnei to stay back and charged. Aside from looking just like the original, this copy wielded a firearm, and was certainly stronger than the others he'd faced. Nevertheless, he was able to defeat it with only minor difficulty, having not quite expected the thing to possess the speed and power it had. Still, even if the copy had the deserting SOLDIER's face, it didn't seem to possess even a shred of his power.
Upon bringing it down, he noticed a familiar black wing burst from its back, and it made a last ditch attempt at escape. Of course, in its weakened state it was much too slow, and Zack was able to finish it off just as it lifted off.
He looked at the fallen creature in a barely veiled disgust as its feathers floated to the ground. His mind went back to Banora, and he was once again seeing Angeal's desertion, black feathers falling from the clear sky, and the bombs laying waste to a small, unsuspecting village. He barely noticed Cissnei approach and kneel down beside the body.
"When I was a kid, I always wanted wings," he heard her say. "You know, like an angel."
He looked down and noticed her brush finger tentatively over the limp wing. The sight of the wing made him shudder and he turned away.
An angel? he thought. No, that thing was no angel, Genesis was no angel; he claimed himself to be a monster, and Zack was beginning to believe him.
"If people had wings... they'd be monsters," he muttered darkly.
He didn't see the look in Cissnei's eyes as he said that. "Wings symbolize freedom for those who have none," she explained lightly. "They don't symbolize monsters."
For some reason, hearing her say that brought a smile to his face, and he laughed softly. She sounded so certain and that conviction somehow put his mind at ease. He turned back to her, and she must have noticed as she smiled in turn.
"SOLDIER First Class indeed," she marveled at him, a coy look in her eyes. "A very impressive show of force."
"Unlike the Turks, we folks at SOLDIER are paid to fight." He smirked at her, as flirtatiously as he could, and she waved her hand at him.
They exchanged words for a short while, but Zack wished they could have talked longer. She was proving to be a welcome distraction to all of the things that were bothering him, but Zack didn't just see her as a way to forget his troubles. Though he'd just met her, there was something about her he genuinely liked.
"Well, I'm off to my next job," she finally conceded, and he was sure his face fell at the notion. "Don't you have another assignment, too?"
"Assignment... Yeah, I do..." He sighed heavily, as he really didn't want to get back to what he was doing. Because that meant he'd have to face Sephiroth again, and he'd just finally succeeded in getting the man out of his head.
"I'm sure we'll see each other again." She smiled one last time, then turned to leave.
He watched her retreating figure, shamelessly watching the swing of her hips. There was no one around to see him staring, which was good because he wasn't exactly good at being discreet. That smile was still present on his face, his talking with her lifting his mood. However, he was brought out of his blissful thoughts at the feeling of his handset going off. Upon taking it from his pocket and checking the caller ID, the smile fell from his face, and all those happy thoughts were gone.
Goddammit!
He quickly calmed himself before answering. He didn't have the chance to say a word, the man he knew was calling speaking almost immediately.
"Once Sector 8 is clear, come to Mako Reactor 5." That voice once again made a shudder go up Zack's spine, and his mind instantly filled with images of the man, images that he was actively trying to suppress.
"Did you find something out?" he asked, voice just slightly clipped, but luckily it didn't crack.
"Angeal has been sighted."
He wasn't sure whether to take that as good news or bad. On one hand, Angeal was close by, alive. On the other hand...
"So it's search and destroy?"
"The army is mobilizing, but there is still time," Sephiroth said. "You and I will find them before they do and—"
"And what?" He honestly didn't think it was very wise to yell like that at the man who was still his superior, but he couldn't help himself. He was still stressed with the whole desertion situation and he'd not long just met a nice girl, only to be practically cockblocked by his superior officer, who just happened to be the focal point of all the fantasies brought on by his teenage male hormones. There had to be some kind of term for th—
"...Fail to eliminate them."
That brief moment of anger faded when those words met his ears. Zack was almost sure he could hear the smile in those words, and he smiled too in spite of himself. Obviously, Sephiroth did not want to harm the deserting SOLDIERs and appeared to have a plan to buy them more time. That would explain the seemingly devious smile on his face in Lazard's office. Maybe the silver-haired man wasn't too bad.
"For real?" he said hopefully.
He almost thought he heard a deep, quiet chuckle on the other end of the line.
"Yes, Fair. 'For real.'"