A/N: Tomorrow with be exactly a year since I started posting "Pity". lol

Disclaimer: I don't own FFVII or any of its characters.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Yazoo, Shelke, and Reno made their way through the narrow ravine, casting glances left and right, looking for any sign of danger in the forsaken area. There appeared to be none, just as there appeared to be no one around, but none of them could shake the feeling that they were walking into danger.

They had traveled for hours, leaving Gongaga behind and traveling in an unknown direction, using Yazoo's built in sense of direction, and Reno's general knowledge of the area. They allowed Yazoo's awareness of Kadaj to lead them through the wilderness, to the place where Banora was supposed to be. Reno mentioned he had visited the town several years ago, but it had been a while, and the landscape had changed a lot since then. The roads were now grown over.

It was a couple hours after noon, the sun following their direction as it began its descent that would eventually lead to night.

"So both of you knew Kadaj was missing all this time?" Shelke asked, trying to start a conversation, since they had abandoned talking long ago. She took a step closer to Yazoo, catching his gaze and he glanced back at her.

"I realized he was in trouble when we were back on that freight," he answered.

"I was informed yesterday morning," Reno said.

"Yet you both still decided to get drunk, when you knew all this was going on? That wasn't very wise."

"Drinking is never wise, Shelke," Yazoo commented flatly.

"It's fun," Reno concluded with a shrug.

"Drinking isn't fun, it's..." The girl paused when they came to the end of the ravine, the rock walls giving way to the split land before them. The three of them stared in wonder at the florescent mako radiating beneath the surface, casting is ethereal glow over what was left of the town's structures. The plants thrived around the pure stream if life, adding a peaceful touch to what was an unsettling scene.

A great among of destruction caused this. Just one more of Shinra's many disasters.

Reno was the first to step forward, gazing down the crevasse before them, into the depths below. Yazoo slowly made his way around him, walking along the length of the crack. He continued further, to where the center of the town used to be, where a particularly large hole in the ground was. His two companion stepped to his side, all three of them gazing down at the hole.

"Should we go down there?" Reno asked, looking reluctant.

"Not yet," Yazoo replied.

Shelke raised a brow. "What are we waiting for?"

Yazoo lifted his arm and pointed out into the distance. Both his companions looked to the indicated direction, spotting two figures heading their direction. At first glance, Shelke couldn't decipher who they were. But if Yazoo could tell their identities, even from this distance, it meant one thing.

Loz, followed by Yuffie.

Kadaj slowly opened his eyes. He immediately regretted waking, wishing he could remain in his dream. Anything was better than facing the fact that he was still a captive. With a heavy sigh, he turned over to see where exactly he was.

It was a different room than the last one, perfectly symmetrical with nothing but the bed. Even stranger, the door wasn't even closed.

Pushing passed his fatigue, he sat up, pulling himself out from beneath the blankets before standing. He wobbled a bit, but was steadier than the last time. Maybe he was used to the drugs now, or maybe he had just slept longer.

Cautiously, he approached the open, placing his bound hands against the wall as he carefully looked out. His room was adjacent to another, larger room, one that wasn't nearly as empty. Tables and equipment were everywhere, computers and machines alive with sounds and lights. It was some sort of laboratory, no doubt set up to feed his captor's fascination with-whatever his reasons were for having him here.

He was captivated by a tank at the far end of the room. It was filled with water, or some other such fluid, and contained a young, white-haired man. He recognized him from one of the pictures from before, but either than that, the man was a mystery. No doubt, they were connected somehow. Otherwise, why would Genesis have them both?

"Did you sleep well?" Genesis asked.

Kadaj ignored him, knowing he had been sitting in the corner the entire time but refusing to acknowledge him. In stead, he stared at the tank, wondering if he would share a similar fate-if he would be locked in a tank for experimentation.

Genesis closed the book he read with a snap. He rose to his feet, finally getting Kadaj's attention as he approached him. The remnant drew away from him, even though there was really no place to go, besides the bedroom. Genesis grabbed him by the arm, his grip firm but not harsh. He pulled him back into the lab, leading him to the chair he previously occupied. Kadaj decided not to fight as he pushed him down on it.

He relinquished his hold afterward, turning to one of the tables. "His name is Weiss," Genesis said, gesturing to the suspended man.

Kadaj swallowed nervously, watching his back as he prepared something unseen. "Who is he?" he asked.

"I told you. He is Weiss."

"But why is he also here?" he asked, his voice shaking with uncertainty.

Genesis turned back to him, a glass of something in his hand. "Because if he wasn't here, he'd be dead. He's barely alive as it is."

"What did you do to him?"

"I saved him," he answered, smiling smoothly as he held the glass out to him.

Kadaj stared at it in disgust. "Do you really think I'm going to drink that?"

His captor seemed amused. He withdrew the glass, bringing it to his own lips and taking a small sip. He swallowed, showing how unaffected he was. He crouched to the remnant and took his bound hands, placing the glass inside. "Please, drink."

Kadaj glared at him, pulling his hands from his and reluctantly drinking. It was apple juice. But it was unlike any apple juice he had ever tasted. Genesis looked greatly pleased, though Kadaj couldn't figure out why. That reason alone made him want to throw the glass down.

"How is it?" Genesis asked.

"What do you want with me?" Kadaj asked, ignoring his question.

The ex-SOLDIER smiled, drawing away from him and leaning against the nearest table. "Do something for me first, then I'll answer your question."

"Do what?" he asked angrily, afraid of what the answer would be.

"Finish the juice."

"Why?"

"Because I want you to."

Snarling angrily, Kadaj brought the glass back to his lips, downing all the juice in one gulp. Genesis looked amused, as the sour-yet-sweet nectar settled in his stomach, temporarily sating his hunger. With a sigh, he lowered the glass.

"How was it?" Genesis asked again.

"It is was fine," the teen answered impatiently.

"Not good?"

"It was good. Are you happy now?"

Genesis' smile dropped, replaced by his displeasure. "Not particularly." He went back to Kadaj, snatching the glass from his hands.

"Now answer my question."

Genesis set the glass down on the wooden table, his back turned to the boy as he looked over his shoulder. "I need you."

"For what?" he pressed, standing from the chair and approaching the man to address him more directly. Genesis met his eyes.

"Several years ago, I was given a gift. A gift from the Goddess, and that gift compels me..."

"To do what?"

He paused briefly, his eyes wandering up and down the boy's form, examining him with a look Kadaj couldn't place. Displeasure, curiosity, pity...

"I was once like you, Kadaj. Jenova's cells are a part of my body, and they nearly destroyed me. I was injured, and they broke me down from within. There was nothing I could do to save myself, not even..." For a moment, anger and regret ghosted across his features.

"Stop dancing around the subject," Kadaj snapped, "Just answer my question."

"I need you because you are Sephiroth," he said bluntly.

"I am not Sephiroth," he replied, his anger taking on a different edge.

"You're different, that much is obvious. But you are him. Your blood is his."

"My blood is my own."

"Your blood is Jenova's."

"No!" he snapped, taking a threatening step closer to his captor, "This is my body, and this is my life! Neither Sephiroth nor Jenova, nor you will ever control me again!"

Genesis smiled, laughing suddenly, pleased beyond Kadaj's understanding. The remnant took a step back, wondering if the man before him was entirely stable. "I don't seek to control you, Kadaj. It would be meaningless to try."

The remnant liked those words better, though he wasn't sure why Genesis said them.

"I was controlled all my life, from the moment of my birth. My body was used without my knowledge, my life was given to those who didn't even conceive me, who only cared for me because it was their duty. And I was still controlled, through SOLDIER, through the very people who twisted me, through madmen...through Jenova. Through all of it...Jenova."

Kadaj stayed back, staring at him in wonder.

"She is a disease. Her very essence is destruction. If she cannot destroy your body, she will destroy your soul."

"I don't serve Jenova," he said, his voice barely more than a whisper.

"No, you don't." He stepped closer him, reaching out to the remnant with a crazed look in his eyes. Afraid, Kadaj stepped away from him. "That is why I need you Kadaj. You are not Sephiroth. Your life is destined to be so much more. That is why you are here. That is why you live."

Kadaj gasped when his back was suddenly against the wall, Genesis' arms on either side of him, trapping him there. He looked directly at him, a smile in those Mako eyes. "Together," he said, "we will destroy Jenova."

A/N: Well, Genesis sure turned out loopy. LOL

Please review, give me your thoughts. :D