Poor Lazard. I'm oddly fond of him for some reason.

Chapter 6 - Lost and Found

*During the Fort Tamblin Mission Chapter 16*

Lazard cursed quietly as his slacks caught on a prickly bush for the umpteenth time. It gave an ominous rip as it came free. Lazard hadn't been lying about not being use to the terrain. He may direct Soldier, but he certainly wasn't one himself. It wasn't like him to oversee a mission, but no one had raised a brow when he suggested it. Hollander wasn't making any headway with the insurgency, and when asked why he'd go into a tirade about him being pressured and Genesis being stubborn. He gave up after the third or fourth tantrum. Lazard intended to speak with the Commander and find out exactly what was going on, but Genesis wouldn't answer the directors calls.

After the mission. He'd said. But obviously things had gotten a little out of hand and now he couldn't find Genesis anywhere. He ran into Angeal and his spirited student, so Genesis shouldn't have been far behind. He cursed as a tree branch smacked his glasses askew while he was watching his footing. Damn trees… damn mud… damn Genesis!

Lazard had money ready to go. It had been funneling away for the past three months. What was the hold up? He had seemed so eager to go through with it at the start. What would have made him change his mind now? It was frustrating to say the least, and the Wutai wilds weren't helping the city boy any at all. Enough! I'll just have to find some time to pull him away at the base camp. He turned from the path he was on and stilled.

It was quiet.

This was still a combat zone technically and while he could still faintly hear the sound of combat in the distance where he was it was quiet.

And he was rather lost.

Lazard cursed again and fished out his phone. I really should have stuck with those infantrymen. His phone rang… and went to message. He tried again. Answer your damn phone Genesis! Nothing.

"Shit shit shit!" The Soldier director was quickly becoming panicked.

He was in the middle of an active combat zone unarmed and with no idea where he was. He followed the distant sound of gunfire and kept crouched low. He kept trying the Commanders number as he crept through the thick underbrush. This is a disaster…

The three Firsts sat waiting in the main tent intending to give their debriefing to Lazard and go over the potential promotions, but Lazard had yet to show. It wasn't until Genesis' phone buzzed incessantly that he pulled it out to check it… to find about five missed calls from Lazard.

"The hell?" Genesis stared at his phone bewildered. The other two gave him a puzzled look as he went to answer the ringing phone.

"Lazard, are you okay?"

Lazard sounded frantic on the other line and Genesis turned to the others. He raised a hand and they went silent. The redheads face contorted with confusion as the Soldier director rambled.

"Director slow down… what? You WHAT?! How did you…never mind." Genesis' jaw locked in a scowl and his face was steadily turning red. Angeal looked at Sephiroth with notable worry. "NO...no. Stay where you are. We will come to you."

Angeal opened his mouth to ask what was going on, but Genesis raised his hand sharply to cut him off. He gave an angry hiss that made Sephiroth raise a thin brow. The crimson commander breathed in slowly through his nose to calm himself. When he spoke again his words were clipped and forced.

"Tell me what you can see and we'll go from there," The directors voice on the other line responded quickly, falling back into hysterics. "Lazard…" Genesis growled in a low warning.

Lazard's paused and they could hear him speaking something in a sort of mantra repetitively in an effort to calm himself. Genesis glanced at the other two impatiently and rolled his eyes. When Lazard spoke again it was much more coherent.

"Okay… sounds like you may be southwest of here. Stay where you are and we will send out a search for you. Do you have anything you can use as a beacon, any materias?" Genesis paused as he listened to the Directors uncertain reply, "Okay… just don't burn the forest down… You will be fine Sir. See you in a few."

Genesis snapped his PHS shut and the room was completely silent for several moments. The three Firsts stared at each other. Angeal was the first to break. He plopped down into a chair and held his face in his hands as he laughed.

"This is no laughing matter Angeal… it's still a war zone out there," Sephiroth's tone was stern but there was a slight smile on his face.

"I can't believe… what the HELL was he doing out there in the first place?" Genesis ranted as he paced the small room.

Angeal shook his head as his laughter subsided, "Zack and I ran unto him after the mission… but we left him with a group of infantrymen."

"Full permissions to give Director Lazard a lecture once he's found Commander Angeal." Angeal burst into another fit of laughter at Sephiroth's remark. He could play it so serious. No one could beat Seph's poker face… except maybe Tseng.

Maybe an hour later the Soldier director was led into the room by a pair of infantryman. He was wide eyed and his finely tailored suit had seen better days, but he was intact. Genesis looked at him blandly as he approached. Gen gently plucked a twig from the directors' hair and flicked it away. Lazard cleared his throat awkwardly and moved to take a seat at the table.

"Let's get back to work shall we?" Lazard wore a nervous grin on his normally regal face.

Lazard held his face in his hands in humiliation once Angeal and Sephiroth left. Genesis leaned against the far wall giving him one of his best glares.

"I told you after the mission," Genesis said in a low hiss.

Lazard cringed a little, "I hadn't expected you to be delayed… I wasn't aware your men took so much damage."

Gens anger cooled a little at the genuinely apologetic reply. He gave the director a slight nod. "They were more prepared than we thought…" He sounded worn.

Lazard nodded slowly and stared down at the floor. After a moment he ran his fingers through his hair and gave a heavy sigh. Glancing up at the redhead, Lazard looked at him warily.

"Gen…what's going on?" His voice was serious, but exhausted.

Genesis sighed softly and pushed away from the wall to pace. "It's not going to happen. I've been stringing Hollander along so he doesn't go do something foolish."

Lazard stared at him incredulously, "W-why? The funds are ready. There's enough discontent among the ranks, your men will join you. Why wait?"

The director was met with a glare, "We aren't waiting. It's not happening period." The glare eased and he looked at Lazard warily, "Did…did Hollander ever tell you what he was planning to do with the men that defected?" Lazards' puzzled look said plenty. Genesis straitened and came to stand before him with arms crossed. "Genesis clones. He was going to make them into copies of myself and in turn make them mindless puppets that would suffer my fate. They would be powerful, but degrading… nothing but fodder."

Lazards expression had steadily turned to one of disgusted disbelief as the commander spoke. When Genesis finished Lazard returned to stare down at the floor and he shook his head.

"I…I was not aware that was his plan, no," Lazard stood from his seat and fought to regain some of his usual composer. "Very well, I-I am glad that you informed me of this. I…" The composure fell away and the disbelief steadily turned to indignant anger, "What sort of mad man would even come up with such a convoluted plan. Goddess… those are people, our men! I-I can't abide this. You're right in backing out of this Gen. It's…insane."

Genesis smiled a sad bitter smile. A few months ago it sounded quite sane to me… "So you will pull your support and funding?"

Lazard waved a hand dismissively as though even the question was insulting, "Of course! I haven't given the man a Gil and I'm sure as hell not going to now!"

Gen watched the blond man pace, "We should keep and ear out though, I've no doubt he will try to get back at us somehow. If he contacts you let me know. The man's a coward in the truest sense of the word." Genesis gave the other a darkly amused grin, "It wouldn't take much convincing to dissuade him."

Lazard scoffed and shook his head, but it didn't hide the amused grin on his face. He straitened his slightly tattered suit and stood tall. After a deep breath he nodded sharply.

"Thank you Genesis, I fear if we'd kept on our course it would have spelled disaster. Think no more of it. Now… let's finish up this war."

Genesis grinned and laughed softly. Lazard was a good man… if a bit disenfranchised. Though he could hardly blame him for that.