Chapter 22: Death Becomes Us
Genesis thrummed his fingers against Sephiroth's door. It was tedious really, having to fetch the man for a mission like some Third Class. Honestly, he just thought Lazard was worried Sephiroth was going stir crazy being cooped up inside all the time. Genesis was more worried the SOLDIER would just go plain crazy.
It was a high stress job, obviously, but everything with Cloud had really amped up Sephiroth's normal level of crazy to a 10. It's not to say he didn't understand the appeal, because anyone looking at Cloud understood the appeal, but the kid was far too high maintenance for his liking.
The door to Sephiroth's apartment opened, and he nodded to his friend as he pushed inside. Sephiroth looked exhausted for his part, his eyes wary as he looked him over, normally meticulous hair was strewn about as he was dressed only in a pair of leather pants, obviously working on getting ready for the day.
"You look like shit. Not sleeping?" Genesis questioned, glancing around the apartment as he didn't see a trace of the Omega. "Where's your better half?"
Sephiroth frowned at the question, and Genesis saw almost pain reflected in his eyes at the mention of Cloud. "Why are you here?" he snapped.
Genesis ignored the ire in the cranky SOLIDER's tone, going instead to the full pot of coffee as he dug around in the cabinets. "Lazard has a high priority mission. I was sent to fetch you like the dog of Shinra that I am."
Sephiroth took the offered cup of coffee, and Genesis raised an eyebrow at the look of suspicion on his face. "A mission where?"
"Wutai," Genesis answered easily with a sigh. "Where else? They do so love their meaningless war."
"I can't go to Wutai," Sephiroth spoke with a frown. "I'm not to leave headquarters. Lazard should know this."
"From what I hear these orders come straight from the top," Genesis motioned to the ceiling. "Like the President top."
"There are other SOLDIERs to send," Sephiroth argued, and the wild look in his eyes seemed to only increase. "Angeal can go, or Zachary."
"Funny you should mention that," Genesis murmured. "They are going. Lazard has a plan to finally topple Wutai's forces. We could end the war in just a few months." Genesis sipped at his coffee, observing the way Sephiroth's eyes kept darting back towards his bedroom, anxiety tight on his face.
"Months?" Sephiroth questioned. "I can't be gone months. I can't even be gone weeks."
"Seph," Genesis started. "Where's your boy toy exactly?" He inhaled, recognizing the Omega's scent, but frowning as there was something else mixed with it. Something...wrong...an acrid rotting smell in the air. "Sephiroth?" he questioned again, nose wrinkling with the smell of sick. "Is Cloud, okay?"
Genesis grit his teeth at the low growl emitting from Sephiroth's chest at the question, taking a step back at the way his eyes seemed to almost slit with madness.
"I'm fine," a voice interrupted, and Genesis dragged his eyes away from the growling Alpha, to throw a jibe at Cloud. The mocking faded on his tongue the moment he saw him.
"Blondie…" Genesis whispered under his breath in concern. Cloud's normally pale skin looked ashen. His cheeks were sunk in with sickness. His skin looked clammy and wet. The smell he had inhaled on the air was even more cloying than before. He wrinkled his nose as it burnt his senses.
Sephiroth's anxiety suddenly made sense.
His Omega was sick.
...His Omega was very sick.
Sephiroth put a hand to the bridge of his nose, inhaling his frustration, before lowering his hand. "You're not supposed to be up. We talked about this."
"I think you should go," Cloud argued. "You're going crazy being stuck in here. If you don't go it'll look suspicious."
"Suspicious?" Genesis questioned, looking between them. "Cloud, what's wrong with you?"
"Nothing," Cloud managed, and a slight bit of color came to his face as the other blushed in embarrassment. It didn't help much, he still looked like a walking corpse. "I'm fine. Just a stomach thing. But I think I'm doing better."
Genesis frowned at that. "Really? Cause you don't look better."
Cloud shot him an annoyed look at the way Sephiroth's neck had tightened in worry. "I feel fine, Sephiroth, you can't just say no."
"Orders are orders, and all that," Genesis agreed with the brat's assessment.
"Clearly nobody ever taught you to not use the word you're defining in the definition," Sephiroth bit out, his normally callow voice tinged with anger.
"Clearly no one ever taught 'you' to get a full night's sleep to avoid being so pissy," Genesis shot right back with. He felt an itching underneath his skin. A need to go to Cloud...to make him better. He knew it must be Alpha instincts calling to him. He could only begin to imagine what Sephiroth must be feeling right now being his mate. ...Whatever that really meant.
Sephiroth ignored Genesis as he moved towards Cloud, reaching out to press a hand to his forehead. "Your fever hasn't broken," he managed in a worried tone, and Genesis wandered if Cloud was aware of the way this powerful being seemed to dote on him.
To think that Sephiroth, who had always been trained to be a soldier and follow orders, would be debating a direct one from the President. To think that a man who constantly bathed in the blood of his enemies could be content to play house in a place he despised. Genesis could see the writing on the wall. It was all about to come to a head. ...It was all about to come crashing down.
Cloud stood up on his tip toes, laying their foreheads together to calm the Alpha. "It'll be good for you to get out."
"Being away from you is not 'good' for me," Sephiroth stressed, and Genesis saw the way those eyes seemed to once more slit, as if a simple deviation could spill him into madness.
"You could end the war," Cloud pointed out, fingers stroking through Sephiroth's hair as those eyes once more turned back to normal. "It'll be fun."
Sephiroth scoffed at that, fingers stroking through greasy unwashed hair as if every touch to his mate was precious. "We can't afford months."
Genesis wasn't even sure they could afford days at this point with how Cloud smelled...like he was rotting. But he definitely wasn't planning on commenting. He wondered if Zack was aware of whatever seemed to be happening. The last he had spoken with the SOLDIER he had been in a right foul mood. Apparently something bad had happened down in the slums, but that had been weeks ago. He certainly didn't think he'd let him continue to be in this state if he knew.
Cloud kissed Sephiroth then, and Genesis felt an overwhelming longing in his gut for what they had. Would he get one? Could he possibly be rewarded after all of this? After the spying for Hojo...the deceit of his friends. When would it be enough to give him his poetry? When would he find the other part to his soul?
"We don't have a choice," Cloud pointed out. "If you disobey they'll press the issue of me going to the lab. Tseng can only run interference and keep Hojo busy for so long."
Sephiroth growled again, anger and hurt covering his features. "Then maybe you should go there. Hojo could…"
"I told you I wouldn't," Cloud snapped, weak voice taking on a tone of anger. "I know my limits. This isn't it. But your limits...you need out."
Genesis looked down to smile at the way Cloud spoke to Sephiroth. Had anyone dared speak to him like that before? Genesis had tried from time to time, and it normally ended with him bleeding. He felt sorry for what had happened with Zack, but this...Sephiroth had never had this before.
"They don't need me for the whole war. I can win them the battle," Sephiroth conceded, and Genesis saw a sense of almost relief etched into his features. Whatever was happening here, it was causing the Alpha great pain. It was breaking him. "Someone needs to watch you."
Cloud rolled his eyes. "I'm not an invalid."
"Someone needs to watch you," Sephiroth repeated. Whatever sickness was gripping Cloud, the Omega seemed innately stubborn about it.
A stomach flu...was that really it?
"I'll call Tseng if I need anything."
Since when did Cloud get so friendly with the Turks? Though, he supposed he was friends with their newest member. Reno was even coming with them on their mission as a diplomatic aid. He was proud of his cousin, annoying as he may be. Though, he wasn't entirely sure how diplomatic a group of people that dealt in swift murder were really going to be.
"I'll leave instructions," Sephiroth conceded. "If your fever hasn't broken by tomorrow...you will go to the 65th floor. Promise me." Cloud frowned at the concession, and the grip Sephiroth had on him tightened. Growling filled the air, and Genesis saw those eyes slit once more in madness. "Promise."
"By tomorrow," Cloud finally relented, and Genesis could imagine he was secretly crossing his fingers by the way those blue eyes seemed deadened at the prospect. He did notice the fact that the Omega never promised, a fact Sephiroth seemed to realize as well as he frowned at him.
Nevertheless, Sephiroth pulled away anyways, clearly conceding that he wasn't going to win the argument as he grabbed for the leather overcoat hanging up. "Let's go. The sooner we get on that boat, the sooner we get back."
Genesis shrugged, not able to argue with that logic as he shot Cloud a last look. "Take care, Blondie. Maybe try showering every once in a while as well? It might help."
"I'll keep that in mind," Cloud assured him with a tired smile. Sephiroth for his part couldn't seem to look in his direction. It was as if he looked at his mate again he would crumble. Something was very wrong. He wasn't suicidal enough, however, to ask the other Alpha what was really wrong with his mate. So instead he would do what he did best.
...Kill some Wutai scum, and hopefully they would finally end this war.
"What do you think?" Zack heard Reno's voice ask from behind him. He was in the armory sharpening his sword for the upcoming mission. They were supposed to end the war...as if they could be so lucky. What then? Who would Shinra be after when they didn't have the Wutai to villainize with their prejudice? How would they continue to pull the wool over the people's eyes?
He shook off his distraction to look behind him to where the Turk stood in the doorway. His eyes scanned appreciatively over his suit clad form. From the smirk Reno shot him, he knew that he had noticed the gaze.
"You clean up nice, Turk." He had officially been named amongst their ranks the day before. The redhead had been all but giddy as he had dragged Zack out for a drink. Reno had proved to be an actual decent friend since the incident in the slums. He had a proven an even better distraction to keep Zack's mind off his lost love who he had yet to see leave Sephiroth's apartment since the man had put him down on his knees and made him obey.
It still pissed him off. It infuriated him that Cloud, who had never bowed to anyone since he met the stubborn blond, was fine being subjected and humiliated in such a way. How could he let himself be used in such a way? Was it his upbringing, or was it the person he had once considered a friend whispering sweet nothings in his ear?
He hadn't heard from Rufus since they had left. He had no doubt the Prince of Shinra was biding his time for the perfect moment to strike against his Father. Zack suspected he may be waiting for something pesky like a 10 year war to be over. He wondered if President Shinra knew that by bringing them peace, he was also signing his own death warrant.
"A compliment from your surly ass, I'm shocked." Reno tugged on his suit. "Couldn't seem to get you to even crack a smile last night."
Zack laughed at that, rolling his eyes in amusement. "How would you know? You ran off with that guy from Sector 7 20 minutes after dragging me all the way down there on the train."
"What can I say?" Reno defended. "Tall dark and handsome is definitely my type."
"Oh?" Zack questioned. "Then what is Rufus Shinra, exactly?"
Reno tilted his head as he thought about it. "An anomaly."
"He certainly is that," Zack agreed. "Have you ever been to Wutai before?"
"First time," Reno managed, stepping closer. "Gonna show me around, SOLDIER boy?"
Zack laughed at the thought. "In between battles? Sure, why not. It's beautiful there. Besides...you'll probably find plenty of tall dark and handsome while stuck on the ship over."
"I wasn't worried about finding that particular niche on the ship," Reno assured him. "Going to go say good-bye?"
"To who?" Zack asked, even though he was fully aware of who he could go say bye to.
"I'll pretend like you're not really being this obtuse," Reno murmured, pulling out his nightstick as he twirled it around playfully.
"Guess we'll keep pretending then," Zack agreed. He couldn't see Cloud. Not now. Not with the way he couldn't get the image of his ex-lover down on his knees in front of Shinra. Not after he had clearly stayed with Sephiroth after. He didn't feel like he knew Cloud at all anymore. Had he ever? Had this really been who Cloud was all along when he no longer was playing their lie?
Reno chuckled. "You're ridiculous, man," he teased.
Zack just shrugged. "He's alright, and if he wasn't...not like he doesn't have my number."
"Would you answer?" the Turk asked curiously. "If he did call?"
He ran his hands through his spikes, keeping the grin on his face even if his chest had tightened in pain at the thought of the Omega. "I'd consider it." Had it really been weeks since he had even heard his voice?
"I miss him," Reno managed, echoing his own thoughts. "I miss him before all this." Before Sephiroth, was left unsaid and hollow between them. "I miss my friend."
Zack missed him too. Seeing him give into his nature hurt him down to his very soul, because it was the opposite of everything Cloud would have wanted. For what? Sex? A baby? Did Cloud even want a baby? He had wanted to become a SOLDIER. He had wanted to see the world and fight for a cause...now he was playing house like a kept pet.
It was wrong.
He missed him so much.
"We better get going. The spots on the ship go quick," Zack changed the subject, sheathing the sword behind his back as he motioned to the door.
"You're a First Class though, right?" Reno questioned, following Zack's lead as he fell into step beside him. "Don't you get your own cabin?"
Zack's mouth opened to argue, before realizing that Reno was absolutely right. "Yeah, I guess I do. I've never taken advantage before though."
"You could, you know," Reno assured him. "Take advantage that is."
Zack shrugged. It could be nice to not be stuck in the hull with the rest of the troops. It might also be a good way to avoid Sephiroth. "Guess I should."
Reno laughed, shaking his head at him. "Sometimes you're very dense, did you know that SOLDIER boy?"
"Suppose I can be," Zack wasn't going to argue with the observation as Reno's amused grin widened. "What about you? Where do Turks stay?"
"I don't know," Reno mused as they headed towards the train station. "I've never been a Turk before. Think I'm supposed to get a partner on this mission, but Tseng seemed distracted."
"Too busy wondering new ways to kiss Rufus' ass?" Zack murmured, and if there was a slight bit of spite in his tone he wasn't going to point it out.
"He could only be so lucky," Reno murmured dreamily.
"So who's your partner?" Zack asked. "Did they tell you before you left?"
Reno nodded. "Someone named Rude. Seems pretty chill. Deep stalking into his file only reveals a gambling problem and a pension for big busted beauty porn."
Zack laughed at that, shaking his head fondly at the Turk. He'd never tell him this, but he didn't know how he could have gotten through the last month without his constant irritating presence. "What's he going to find if he looks into you, exactly?"
"A lot more than big boobed porn," Reno answered, face tilted in a teasing grin as he turned to face him, walking backwards. "What about you? What are you into?" He bit his lip in amusement. "Is it weird? Please tell me it's weird."
He opened his mouth to respond, but his smile soon faded as he saw who Reno almost backed into. Zack lunged forward to grab Reno's forearm, yanking him towards him before he ran into Hojo.
"Dude, wha?" Reno spun around, shutting his mouth as he saw who he had almost bumped into. Zack glanced over, never seeing the redhead so cowed as he looked down to the ground.
"What do you want, professor?" Zack asked, not quite able to pull all the hatred out of his voice as he looked at the monster who had puppeted all of their lives.
"So snippy," Hojo observed, brow arched over his thick glasses. "I wasn't the one that dumped you."
"No," Zack agreed. "You just facilitated it in every way." He had ripped Cloud away from him bit by bit. He had turned them all into monsters.
Hojo shrugged, sighing in irritation. "You give me far too much credit. Need I remind you, but you left him during his first heat, did you not?"
Zack flinched at the snipe, teeth gritting as he glared at the man. He couldn't defend himself against the accusation, however, because if he had mated Cloud during his first heat when he had been too scared to even touch him, then none of this would have happened. If he had been here for the second heat and not trusted Sephiroth to stay away, then he would still be with him. This was all his own fault. He had wrought all of the pain upon himself, and he knew that. Cloud may have made his own mistakes, but in the end, Zack had done this to them.
"What do you want?" he repeated again, glancing over to see Reno was still subdued beside him. Had Hojo done something to the Turk? Though, he supposed, the better question would be to ask who here Hojo hadn't experimented with in some way. He would make it a note to ask Reno later, however, just what they went through to become Turks.
"I need your assistance. Now," Hojo didn't make it a suggestion even, but a demand.
"What could you possibly need my help with?" Zack hissed out, tone dripping with the same hate he felt for the scientist.
Hojo stared him down, motioning towards the elevators. "It won't take long. You'll still make the ship to Wutai. That Turk will make sure they don't leave without you."
Zack sneered at the haughty tone, knowing he couldn't really argue. Not in the halls of Shinra where Hojo held the rank. He nodded to the scientist, shooting one look back towards Reno, frowning as the fiery redhead was still just staring at the floor.
He tore his eyes away, determined to question the Turk later about just what the hell Hojo had done to him. He glowered at the man as they got on the elevator, Hojo obviously not intending to fill him in on what this all was about.
When they exited into the laboratory, Zack got a chill down his spine as he remembered coming to this place for the mako injections when he had made SOLDIER. This place just invoked memories of pain...of sickness. He could only imagine what Cloud felt when he had to come to this place.
"When's the last time you saw Cloud?" Hojo asked offhandedly, not beating around the bush on why he had dragged Zack up to this place.
"A few weeks," Zack murmured, voice guarded as he knew he couldn't tell the scientist about what had happened in Sephiroth's apartment.
...Couldn't tell him about the baby.
...Sephiroth's baby.
"Interesting," Hojo remarked. "That by choice, or has he been keeping you away?"
Zack frowned at the question. "Seeing him wasn't healthy for either of us," he said simply, leaving it there to hide the pain behind his voice.
Hojo snorted at the explanation. "You're very wrong about that."
"Trying to encourage me to see him, now?" Zack questioned bitterly. "I seem to remember you all but shoving him into Sephiroth's arms."
"Well that was for the child," Hojo remarked. "That situation has been taken care of already. It's growing inside him now." Zack stiffened at the words, fingers itching to reach back to his sword. "Relax," Hojo assured him, rolling his eyes. "Of course I know. What I don't understand is how they possibly think they've been hiding it from me. If I had wanted to test him and put the pregnancy on record...I obviously would have. He's nearly two months along now."
Zack opened his mouth to speak, but shut it again as he realized Hojo could be backing him into a trap. He could be bating him to confirm something he didn't know. "I don't know if he's—"
"Don't insult me," Hojo interrupted. "I told you I know he is. They only know about certain cameras. I'm not very well going to allow my first omega to be unmonitored."
"Your son, you mean?" Zack questioned with ire, causing Hojo to shrug.
"Semantics. He belongs to be in either sense." Hojo eyed him over the thick spectacles. "I'm going to tell you something. What you do with the knowledge is up to you."
"More lies?" Zack questioned, knowing Hojo never gave up any information freely without an agenda.
"You can think what you wish, it matters not to me," the scientist spoke almost boredly. "The thing growing in Cloud's stomach is not an Ancient. It's something else entirely. No one else at Shinra knows about this...besides my son of course. I can't imagine he has any illusions about what's inside him."
Zack hid the shock he felt, shifting in uncomfortableness as horror filled him at the thought of some sort of experiment growing in Cloud. "What is it?"
"A calamity," Hojo breathed with pride. "The child will change the world. If it lives."
"Doesn't sound like it should," Zack pointed out darkly.
"Would you like that?" Hojo questioned. "If he lost it? Do you think he would lean on you then? Instead of Sephiroth?"
"I don't need him to lean on me," the SOLDIER assured the sociopathic doctor. "As you pointed out earlier, I missed my chance to have him."
"You're lying," Hojo assured him. "Do you know how I can tell?" The professor moved over to the fridge, pulling out some kind of vile as he came close to him. Zack eyed him warily as the shorter man stood in front of him, uncorking the vile as he held it close.
The smell...it was Cloud's smell. It was his scent when he was in heat.
The reaction was almost instantaneous as the sclera in his eyes spread and his teeth sharpened as his body called to him to seek out the Omega. Memories of being buried inside of him flashed before his eyes as needwantfucklove all filled him at once.
Hojo grabbed for his face then as Zack let out a growl at the treatment. The scientist moved quickly, and Zack hissed as a needle pressed underneath his lips and into the gums above his grown in fangs.
Zack continued to growl at him as Hojo pulled the needle out of his gums, and some sort of serum liquid was in the syringe. "What is that?" he asked, taking a deep breath to calm himself as Hojo recapped whatever he had used of Cloud's scent.
"Alpha venom. It's what makes the mating take...makes an Omega a bit more compliant." Hojo raised an eyebrow as he watched Zack. "You'll notice he's a bit different since Sephiroth took to biting him during sex?"
Every sentence uttered from Hojo's mouth was emotional sabotage, and so he tried to catch up with what he was trying to imply. "Are you saying he's making Cloud submissive?"
"Not cognizantly," Hojo assured him. "I don't think so anyways, but Sephiroth is quite desperate to keep him."
"Is he hurting him?" Zack questioned, worry filling his voice even after he had tried his best to beat it down.
"Again, not consciously...but he is hurting him. Cloud's body is rejecting the child. That will happen when he's not with his mate."
"Sephiroth is his mate," Zack bit out, not understanding this line of reasoning.
"Technically," Hojo agreed. "Sephiroth picked Cloud a very long time ago, and so I did my best to comply with the request. I told Cloud over and over again that he was with the wrong Alpha when he was with you, because it served my purpose to do so. I had manufactured their bond, however, it doesn't mean Cloud hadn't found his actual mate."
"Are you saying that Cloud is my…"
"I'm saying his body is rejecting the baby that I need him to grow," Hojo interrupted. "Everything besides that is just pointless. You may have been together had it been another life, and had he been given free will. But he wasn't. I told you, he's my property...and his purpose is to birth the next stage of this universe."
"Rejecting the baby?" Zack asked, trying to wrap his mind around everything else Hojo had told him to ruin his world.
"Yes, it's killing him. Quickly. I had Sephiroth sent on a mission, and have confirmed he's now on the ship." Hojo held up the vial of liquid he had taken from his gums. "You need to go give him his medicine."
"He was supposed to be my mate?" Zack questioned, pain igniting once more through his soul.
"Don't let your thoughts get away from you. Cloud never had a choice on who he mated with, and as for you...the only way to break a mating bond is through death. I daresay your misplaced nobility wouldn't let you kill Sephiroth to reclaim him. Even if you could, which you can't. His abilities are far superior to your own."
"Why are you telling me all of this?" Zack questioned, fists clenched in pain as he realized just how evil everyone at this organization actually was.
"Because I like to see what people do," Hojo answered easily. "You could tell people what I told you here today. You could tell Cloud that he was supposed to be with you, but what good would that do laying that burden on a dying boy? The best thing you can do is inject him with what you should have when you found him...and live with the knowledge of what could have been."
"You ruined our lives," Zack spoke breathlessly, fingers pressed to his mouth as he tried not to vomit.
"I created his life. It's mine to do with as I please," Hojo spoke. "You're going to be late for your ship, and you still need to stop by and give that to Cloud."
Zack's eyes felt blurry as he turned them in hatred towards Hojo. "Why don't you just give it to him?"
"I told you," Hojo spoke. "I like to see what people do. He'll need injections throughout his pregnancy...doses of his Alpha to calm the toxicity the alien seed is causing in his bloodstream."
"Alien?" Zack questioned slowly. "Does that mean that Sephiroth is—"
"Does it really matter at this point?" Hojo interrupted, patience wearing thin. "Cloud's exactly where he needs to be."
"Right in the hell you put him," Zack agreed, once more itching to grab for his sword and skewer this man against the wall. ...But what would that mean for Cloud? What would that mean for Sephiroth's plan to get him out after the death of the President? If he killed the head of the Science Department, they would never get close enough to the President. He took the vial, meeting those dead eyes as he stared at him in contempt. "I'm going to kill for this. No matter what...I will kill you for this."
"I welcome the challenge," Hojo assured him, and Zack turned away in disgust as he headed back towards the elevators to get to the SOLDIERs' floor.
Zack used the spare key he had gotten from Sephiroth over a year ago when they were friends, entering the apartment and covering his face as he was immediately assaulted by the smell of sickness...of rot. It made him beyond sick to instantly know that it was Cloud.
How long had he been this sick? How long had Sephiroth been hiding it? No, he knew deep down that it wasn't Sephiroth's idea to hide. This particular kind of masochistic deception had Cloud written all over it.
He knew the story before it was ever even told to him. Cloud hated the lab. He hated being an experiment. There's no way he would ever let his child run into a similar situation. Even if it cost him his life in the long run. His selfless Omega. No...not his...he would never be his, even if he truly was.
Zack let his nose lead him towards the bedroom. His stomach was roiling in nausea at the stench. He opened the door slowly, eyes softening at the blond spikes just barely sticking up above the comforter. Even dying, the Omega was adorable.
He moved towards the bed, Sephiroth's scent strong in the room. How many times had they had sex in this bed? In what ways had he taken Cloud that he had never had the chance? He shook his head, disgusted with his own jealousy. Sex was fine, but it had never been about that for him. He had just wanted to know him. Now, if he couldn't know him in the way that he was now, he just wanted him to be safe.
Cloud didn't wake up as he came close, and as Zack reached towards the comforter to pull it over his head he noticed how his sunken cheekbones were lit with a fevered glow. He probably couldn't even wake up right now if he wanted to.
Zack squatted down beside the bed, hand coming out to sweep through sweaty spikes, leaning forward as he laid their foreheads together and frowned at the intense heat coming from Cloud's skin. How could Sephiroth leave him like this? How was he allowing him to go through this? Why hadn't he brought him to Hojo? He clearly had no problem making Cloud obey when he needed to, so why was he allowing him to suffer? Could he not smell the death coming off his own mate?
He twisted his head to press his lips to the blond's cheek, sighing as the other reached for him in his sleep. Zack evaded the touch, pulling back as he knew he didn't have much time before they shipped out. He grabbed at the hand reaching for him, gently upturning it to reveal his veins. Zack's eyes flickered to Cloud's neck to where the mark there looked almost fresh.
Would Sephiroth be so quick to bite if he knew the truth behind it? ...Or would he be even quicker? Until death do they part...death didn't seem that far away now.
Zack pulled out the syringe, uncapping it with his teeth before plunging it into the Omega's vein. It broke his heart that he didn't even open his eyes with the puncture. Was Sephiroth planning to let him die while he was off fighting Wutai? Had he had a backup plan that involved getting Cloud help when he wasn't there?
"How could he leave you?" Zack whispered, leaning down to press his lips once more to Cloud's cheek, trying to memorize the way his skin felt against him.
"Zack…" Cloud breathed out in sleep, reaching again, and Zack allowed a hand to fist into his sweater for a few moments. He sighed as a bit of color came back to the Omega's skin, and knew that whatever crazy theory Hojo had had been right. It was helping him. ...He was helping him.
"I love you so much, Spike," Zack managed, telling secrets in this room of sickness to someone who would never hear them. "I can't do this anymore, though. I have to move on...I'll help you with the kid. I'll help save you...but I can't feel this way about you anymore." It was too painful. He was pathetic. The world was wicked and broken, and it had ripped them apart. He was with Sephiroth now.
...Until death do they part.
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