AN: I wrote loads of chapters in advance so I can update rather fast. Enjoy, and again, I ask for reviews because its good to know that people are reading my stories, also concrit is always appreciated as I write to improve as an author.

Chapter Three: Hostage

The new mission was supposed to be easy, he wasn't supposed to be bound tightly to a chair in some dungeon somewhere in Corel. He wasn't supposed to be gagged, half beaten and slowly bleeding to death through a terrible wound in his thigh. It was ridiculous, they had only been checking out a reactor, a simple mission that shouldn't have involved any fighting, except for monsters of course. He struggled fruitlessly against his bonds before giving up again and sighing, he closed his eyes and tipped his head back, feeling the hot trickle of blood that trailed down his thigh, staining his skin and uniform. He had been captured by what was left of the terrorists AVALANCHE. He had already told them, repeatedly, that he was not a member of SOLDIER, he was a lackey. Canon fodder. No one would come for him. But they refused to listen, they didn't appear to be all that bright. They had explained that they were suing for ransom, they were certain that ShinRa would negotiate to get him back, Cloud had made the mistake of laughing at that, ShinRa negotiated with no one. He had a black eye to attest to his own moment of stupidity. He had tried pointing out his uniform, the fact that he had been escorting engineers, even the fact that he had actually been kidnapped in the first place but they wouldn't hear any of it. These men were desperate and idiotic, never a good combination.

"You're quite pretty for a SOLDIER." Cloud turned his head towards that voice and blinked a little as blood dripped into his eye from a wound in his head. It was a woman, her face was tanned from the searing sun and she wore ragged clothes and cheap armour. He tried to tell her that he wasn't but the gag prevented him from speaking, instead he shook his head rapidly from side to side. "Oh, I know you're not." The woman sighed and crouched before him, looking into his eyes. "The others though, they have hope that you are and I can't bring myself to tell them otherwise. You see, none of us have ever met a real SOLDIER, but I do know that their eyes glow and, of course, they never would have allowed themselves to be kidnapped." On closer inspection the woman appeared to be in her forties, pity entered her gaze and she sighed. "You're so young, why are they sending children to fight their battles?" Cloud made a noise and frowned a little, he didn't like being called a child, he was fifteen. "You remind me a little bit of my son, which is going to make what is to come that much harder. We cannot be seen to be weak, you understand? I know as well as you do that no one will come for you, you're a nobody, ShinRa don't care." Anger tinted her voice and Cloud's eyes widened. "You realise that when no one responds to our demands that we will have to kill you, don't you?" Cloud swallowed as fear settled into his gut. He wasn't ready to die, although a part of him had always known it was a strong possibility in the profession he had chosen. "We will, of course, send recompense to your family, along with our sincere condolences." She reached up and undid Cloud's gag, still gazing at him sadly. "Where do they live?"

Cloud paused for a moment before letting his head fall forward. "Nibelheim. My mother...she's...all i've got left, please, don't break her heart anymore than it already is!" He clenched his hands into fists and squeezed his eyes shut tightly, his whole body ached horribly and he forced the urge to cry away. "She...she doesn't know anything that's happened to me since I left, I never told her anything, never replied to her messages...What...what she doesn't know can't hurt her. Don't tell her I-I'm-" A Failure...His voice trailed away, he couldn't bring himself to say it but the woman seemed to understand.

The woman opened her mouth to speak but before she could voices interrupted her, Cloud let his head fall back again and listened to his captors. Most of them were men and they were discussing what to do with their prisoner. "He's got to have loads of important info, torture him to get ShinRa's weaknesses!" One of the men insisted. "If he is SOLDIER then he would have been trained how to deal with torture, after all we're not Turks. If he's not...well, he won't know anything anyway." "He is! He has to be! They all got blue eyes aint they?"

"I was born with these eyes!" Cloud muttered, looking at his captors who broke off to stare at him. "SOLDIER have eyes that glow because they're showered in Mako, I have normal blue eyes. My mother's eyes are the same. I'm just a grunt. I...I'm not anywhere near SOLDIER yet. Please, it would be pointless to-" He was cut off as a fist connected with his jaw, his head pounded and he gasped, hiding behind his hair as he let blood drip from his broken lip.

"Jace, please, calm down. He's just a boy." The woman who had been talking to him earlier said softly.

"A pretty boy." Cloud winced at that, he hated the nick name, he had been given it the second his commander had seen his face and it had stuck. "How did you idiots even think he was SOLDIER? Look at him, he's pathetic." Cloud felt something stir inside him at that, distantly he could hear the voices of those who used to bully him echoing similar words. He realised what the emotion was, anger. "He's useless to us, this mission was a failure, we need to get hold of someone who really matters! If there was a chance i'd suggest ShinRa's son...what's that kid's name? Rufus? Yeah, him. He'd be worth a fortune! This one here is trash. Kill him and get someone better."

Slowly, Cloud lifted his head, all he could hear were the words ringing in his ears along with some sort of low heart beat. Useless. Failure. Pathetic. His breathing speeded up, he barely saw the woman's eyes widen and her lips part as laughter, that soft, cruel laughter echoed inside his mind as his restraints snapped.

XXX

Zack kicked open the metal door that lead down to the basement of the make-shift fort. He was fuming. He had heard of the teams capture and forced Lazard to give him time off so that he could hunt Cloud down and rescue him, he knew ShinRa wouldn't bother, he was surprised when Sephiroth had opted to come with him. He remembered how Cloud had even struggled with Hollander, the poor kid wasn't strong enough to get away on his own, Zack couldn't leave him with terrorists. Abruptly Sephiroth, who was following behind Zack, froze. His body stiffened and his hands tightened on his sword, Zack turned and arched an eyebrow at him curiously. He saw Sephiroth's eyes burning brightly and his head turned toward a corridor and he pointed. "He is being kept down there." He said quietly and moved off before Zack could ask how he even knew that. He simply could not understand what the guy was thinking.

He followed and as they drew closer he could hear screams shattering the silence, loud thuds and the sickening sound of cracking bone. Sephiroth quickened his pace, his hands tightening on his sword as Zack drew his own. They charged down the corridor and burst into a room, Zack skidded to a halt, catching his breath as his eyes took in the scene. Cloud was standing above a cowering man, in one hand he held what appeared to be a piece of metal broken off of a nearby overturned chair. His blond hair was streaked with blood and he was trembling, Zack couldn't see his face from this angle but he saw his jaw clenched and his teeth bared. His clothes were bloodstained and ragged, his leg appeared to be injured and Zack could see bruising covering the skin that was on show. Cloud raised the metal bar as if it were a sword and made to bring it down but Sephiroth spoke, his voice soft but the tone of command unmistakeable. "Cloud, hold!"

Cloud froze, his arm raised high above him as the man shrank away from him. Slowly he lifted his head and looked at Sephiroth, Zack stifled his gasp, he could have sworn that his eyes had turned green, the same colour as Sephiroth's. Cloud's arm trembled and finally, after a tense moment, it fell to his side again. He took a breath and stumbled backwards, blinking rapidly as he took in the devastation surrounding him, bodies scattered the room like discarded dolls and Cloud seemed unsure of where he was. The bar fell from his bloody fingers and clanged onto the metal floor before he swayed, Zack ran to his side and caught him as he fell, supporting his weight as conciousness fled. He looked up at Sephiroth who was looking around coldly. "We should return him to ShinRa, it seems that he has done our job for us." He turned and left without explaining anything.

XXX

They returned to ShinRa after Sephiroth called a helicopter. They managed to drag Cloud into the back while Sephiroth contacted HQ and discussed their arrival. Zack sat in the back with Cloud's head resting in his lap, he had never even known that he had been capable of such destruction. It was amazing he hadn't got into SOLDIER yet, but perhaps Cloud too was unaware of his true strength. He remembered those eyes and shuddered, he decided that he had imagined it, especially since it was a scene he would have expected Sephiroth to be involved in, not some cute, quiet infantry soldier. Gently he stroked bloody hair from Cloud's face and watched it contort, he muttered something and Sephiroth looked over his shoulder at them, eyes burning intensely in his face. "What did he say?" Zack asked, curious as to why Sephiroth had reacted to it.

"Nothing." Sephiroth replied, "He is dreaming."

"Oh...right..." The rest of the journey was done in silence, finally they returned to ShinRa HQ. Zack picked Cloud's limp body up and struggled out of the helicopter, he stopped abruptly when he was greeted by a small crowd of scientists, led by Hojo himself.

"Give the boy to me." Hojo demanded as someone wheeled a chair forward.

Zack hesitated, eyes narrowed, no one liked the man. "Why?"

"Do not question me! He is under my jurisdiction now and nothing you can say or do can change that." He waved some papers in Zack's direction.

Sephiroth sneered and clenched his hands into fists. "Give him the boy, Zack. We have other business to attend."

"But..."

"Now." Zack reluctantly set Cloud down in the wheel chair and watched as he was wheeled away, Hojo smirked and turned away.

"Sephiroth, I will need you to come visit the laboratory in an hour." He walked away, chuckling evilly to himself.

"I hate that guy. Shouldn't Cloud have gone to the hospital?"

"He will take care of him." Sephiroth muttered, he seemed oddly distracted as he strode off and Zack deflated, hanging his head and shaking it, this was all too far out of his zone of understanding.

XXX

Cloud opened his eyes, he felt sick and slightly dizzy and his body ached. He tried to move but realised that it took far too much effort, it was much easier to simply lie there.

"Are you still afraid of needles, Sephiroth?"

A chill went down his spine at the sound of that voice and slowly he lifted his head, the light blinded him momentarily but he blinked to clear his vision. It revealed a sterile white room with no windows or decoration but a mirror that hung on one wall, the voices were coming from the ventilation leading to the next room.

"I am no more afraid of needles than I am anything else, I merely dislike them." It took him a moment to realise where he was and when he had he sat upright, instantly regretting the action as pain ripped through his head. He gasped and clutched at it, shaking violently as he did so and trying not to vomit. He swallowed back bile and grimaced before forcing himself to look around and gauge his situation.

"Do not move, Sephiroth, or it will prolong the process."

"Just hurry it along, I do not have time to spend dallying here with you. I have a job to do." Hojo's laugh was as nasty as it always had been, Cloud shuddered and wrapped his arms around himself, realising he was wearing a white hospital gown and little else. "It will be over soon enough and then you may go and chase your beloved Genesis to your hearts contentment."

"We are merely friends." Sephiroth replied softly before taking a breath and Cloud could hear the soft hiss of pain as something happened. "Were...we...were merely friends." He corrected himself before Cloud heard the faint bustle of movement from the other side of the wall. "What have you done to that boy, Cloud?"

"Boy? The blond one? He is safe." Hojo replied. "His injuries were not so severe that he needed a doctor, I healed him. Why are you so interested?"

"I..." Sephiroth's voice trailed off before he cleared his throat and seemed to regain his composure. "Zack is worried, he cares for him."

"I see." Cloud could hear the smirk in Hojo's voice and felt sick again, the scent of chemicals and disinfectant was cloying. "Very well, we are done here. I must check upon my other exp-patient."

"I must see the boy to ensure he is safe." Sephiroth insisted but Hojo laughed at him.

"He is safe, trust me."

"Trust you?" Sephiroth laughed this time, a low chuckle that made the hairs all over Cloud's body stand on end. "I trust no one, professor."

"A very wise thing to say. Now leave, go about your business and tell Zack Fair that his princess is unharmed."

"I shall."

Princess? Cloud's face twisted at that but he pushed it aside to dwell on later as he quickly checked his body for wounds. Sure enough he had a few bandages but many of his lesser wounds had been healed easily with Materia, for that much he was grateful. He could still feel those fists and hate filled eyes and he had no wish to be reminded of them with bruises. He froze as the only door to the room rattled as someone opened it and entered, Cloud fought with his immediate reaction to crawl further back onto the bed and sat still as Hojo himself walked in smiling evilly. "Ah, you are awake." He said with about as much emotion as a log. "I have some tests to run to ensure that you are healthy enough to return to work, it won't take long and very soon you will be back in top condition." He advanced on Cloud with a syringe, Cloud eyed the needle warily and leaned away. "Come now, it won't hurt." Hojo grabbed his arm roughly and before Cloud could protest the needle was emptied into a vein. He winced and yanked his arm free, ripping the needle out and standing up, preparing to bolt for the door but he swayed and stumbled. His eyesight blurred and before he knew it darkness enclosed on him as he collapsed to the floor.

Cloud...

Who...who are you?

Ha-Ha...

What's happening? Am I...dreaming?

Hee hee...

What's going on?

Cloud...Wake up...

His eyes opened to reveal bright, searing light. He closed them again and groaned. He could hear a soft noise, like water dripping from a tap but ignored it. His body burned as if he was on fire and he shook violently from head to toe, his hands twitched by the side of his head and he realised he was lying on a cold, hard floor. Again, he opened his eyes, this time he found himself gazing up at a metal ceiling. He blinked sluggishly and heard soft mutters nearby. He turned his head and found himself gazing out of a large glass container towards Hojo who was at a set of controls talking to another man in a white coat. He shifted but this caused agony to rocket through his body so he stilled again, his voice wasn't working and all he could do was groan. He licked his dry lips suddenly wanting a cold glass of water but no sound came out of his mouth, instead he gazed blankly up at the metal ceiling and tried to order his sluggish thoughts. He hurt everywhere. He was sick and overheated. He wondered if he was going to die and the thought didn't leave him with as much fear as he thought it would.

"Sir, the subject is coming round."

"Put him back out then, we cannot have him fighting us."

Cloud shuddered and rolled onto his side, he closed his eyes tightly but still saw a strange greenish light seep into his eyes despite his eyelids. It was painful. He wanted it to stop. He choked on a scream as he curled into a tight ball, pressing his hands to his head as it felt as if he was being torn apart.

S-stop...

"Up the dosage."

"But sir, he might not be able to handle it..."

"Do as I say!"

"Yes sir."

It h-hurts...please...stop...

There was a terrible whining noise in his head, he felt bile rise in his throat and before he could stop himself he was sick. He groaned again, rolling over, away from the small puddle and twisting in agony. His stomach cramped violently, his hands curling into claws as he shoved them into his hair.

Stop! Stop! It's too much!

"His vitals are going haywire, sir."

"Watch him and if he comes too close we can revive him with some adrenaline."

Please...someone...help me...

A scream was torn from his sore throat, his back arched and he heard the sound of glass shattering before the whine in his head stopped abruptly and his body slumped as he descended once again into unconsciousness.

XXX

He woke in his own bed, momentarily confused as his memories slid from his mind like ice on a hot day. He groaned and rubbed at his aching eyes, slowly he sat up, wincing as pain bit into his back. He gazed around the room and spotted one of the last people he expected to see; Zack was slumped in one of the chairs that normally sat at the only desk in the room. His eyes were closed and he looked as if he had been sat there all night. Cloud shook his head, he was having a difficult time in focussing. "Z-Zack?" He said softly and watched Zack grunt and open his eyes, he blinked and when he saw Cloud a bright smile touched his face, Cloud returned it weakly.

"Hey, man, you're awake!"

"Yeah...what the hell happened to me?"

Zack's face fell into a frown of concern as he leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. "What do you remember?"

"I...I'm not sure. I remember...Corel...the reactor...and then...nothing." He frowned a little as he tried to think back, he had reached the reactor with the engineers and then...then what? Sharp pain ignited behind his eyeballs and he covered them with a hand.

"Are you all right?"

"Ugh...just...headache. Trying to remember but...it's all just blank."

"Well, I can fill you in." Zack leaned back, pushing the chair back on its legs as he did so and gazing up at the ceiling. "You were taken hostage, those AVALANCHE idiots thought you were a SOLDIER." Cloud snorted at that, amused that anyone could ever think him important. "I asked for time off to come look for you and found you in their hide out..." Zack trailed off and finally met Cloud's gaze, he seemed to search for something before humming quietly and returning to his story. "You had escaped on your own, taken a few of them down and were about to get another but Sephiroth intervened."

"Sephiroth?" Cloud's eyes widened, why would the Hero of Wutai bother with a grunt like him? Zack smirked, as if he knew what Cloud was thinking.

"I know right? That was one hell of a shocker when he asked to come with me, but anyway, we got you out after you collapsed and got you back to HQ. When we got there Hojo was waiting with papers for you to be put under his care."

"What?!" Cloud's eyes widened. "That doesn't make any sense. I'm just normal infantry, not worth the notice of Hojo..."

"I thought the same but it seems you've become quite popular recently. Anyway, it's been three weeks and now you've been returned with an order to stay off duty for a week to rest."

"Oh..."

"Cloud?" Zack leaned forward, his face a mask of concern as he looked at him intently. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine...apart from a headache. Why?"

"Well...Hojo's not known for his sanity, I was worried he'd do something to you. I'm glad you're ok." Cloud looked away, he did feel odd, as if his body was remembering something his mind had forgotten.

When he looked back up at Zack he realised that he was very close and his smile had changed slightly, Cloud couldn't put his finger on it but it was as if Zack was seeing him differently. "Uh..." Cloud began but before he could speak Zack reached up and ruffled his hair, pushing his head a little as he did so.

He grinned widely and stood up, stretching. "I got to go, shit's hitting the fan and I'm needed. I'll see you around, Cloud." As Zack reached the door Cloud dived out of bed and reached for him, his fingers closed on the back of Zack's top and made him turn around curiously.

Cloud didn't know what had come over him but he stood on tip toe and gazed into those glowing blue eyes, the eyes of a true SOLDIER. "Did it...did it hurt?" He asked, his face very close to Zack's as he inspected those fascinating eyes.

"What? Oh you mean these?" He waved a hand at his own face and smiled. "A bit. Why do you ask?"

Cloud's fingers clenched unconsciously on Zack's uniform and he looked down at his own bare feet. "I want them." He whispered, frowning a little. "I want to get stronger. To become SOLDIER...I..."

"You want to be a hero? Like Sephiroth?"

Cloud looked back up and smiled shyly. "Maybe."

Zack's eyes misted over a bit as if he were immersed in memories, they looked to be a little painful but he didn't let go of Cloud's fingers. "If you want to be a Hero, you've got to have dreams and Honour. My mentor told me that, Angeal was...he was an amazing SOLDIER. Best advice I can offer you, kid."

Cloud wrinkled his nose and stepped back suddenly, the closeness to his friend was making him highly aware that he was virtually naked except for a pair of shorts. "I'm not a kid."

Zack laughed brightly and once again ruffled his hair. "If you say so. Anyway, I got to go. I'll see you around, Cloud."

"Yeah." Cloud watched Zack leave, feeling his face turning pink as he remembered the feel of those hands on his own, despite the leather glove that separated their skin. He sighed heavily and fell back onto his bed. He stared at his own bare hand and then covered his face, what was wrong with him? Why had Zack's smile given him the feeling of being full of flapping, overzealous butterflies? He took a shaky breath and smiled as he buried his face into his pillow, Zack was the first person to ever treat him normally despite his obvious weaknesses. He was a genuinely nice guy and that smile, that happy-go-lucky smile made Cloud want to blush like a girl.

When he finally drifted into a light doze his dreams were strange, he dreamt of half formed images, of green pulsing light, of soft whispers in the darkness, of cool hands pressing into his skin. He fought those dreams. He tried to escape but something kept pulling him back again. Laughter in his head, soft and evil like the whispers of demons. He heard someone calling his name, as if from a great distance and then laughter again. He spiralled through alternating green light and darkness, his head pounded, his body was aflame but he couldn't escape. He felt as if some horrible foreign thing was infesting his veins, burning his blood, forcing his body to change. It hurt. He wanted to wake up but couldn't. He could feel it, like poison gathering in his nerves, his muscles and warping his body, destroying his mind. He shuddered violently and screamed...

Cloud... Wake up. Clou-

"-d. Cloud! Hey, wake up!" Cloud gasped, his eyes flying open and his arm lifting to push the face leaning over him away, he heard a yelp of pain as he sat bolt upright, panting and feeling terror sweeping through his body and making his heart pound against his ribs. Finally his eyes adjusted to the light and he found himself gazing around his own dorm, on the floor and looking thoroughly disgruntled was Johnny. He sat up, rubbing his head where he had hit it on the nearby chair and glared at Cloud. "What the hell was that for?"

"I-I...I'm sorry." Cloud whispered, putting his hands to his head and staring blankly down at his knees. "I didn't mean..."

"It's fine. You were crying out in your sleep."

"Nightmare." Cloud replied and closed his eyes tightly, trying desperately to recapture the dream.

"Well, commander Lock wants us in the training room in ten minutes."

"I thought I was off duty...?"

"You were but then these bloody Genesis clones got into ShinRa. Come on, let's go." Cloud was out of bed and dressed as quickly as he could, he followed Johnny to the door while he checked his PHS for messages. He saw the order to patrol the outer perimeter of the Headquarters and sighed as he stowed it back into his pocket.