Chapter 35: The Cost of Freedom is Steep

Zack paced around his cell, not able to sit still for days. Rufus Shinra had grabbed Cloud, taking him for some task his omega had promised he'd help on. Anxiety spiked through him as the only reason his mate had agreed in the first place was to get in to see him. He bargained with a psychopath for just an hour where they could be together, before he was ripped away again. An hour here and there…that's what it had been for years now. The only way he had been able to keep track of time at all was the food basket Hojo deemed to give Cloud once a year, as if it were a demented picnic instead of his son's birthday.

If they took Cloud away from here he couldn't protect him—whatever poor excuse for a job of that he was able to do while locked in a cell. Rufus had always thought Cloud was property. The thought of him anywhere near his omega—of anyone near him, set his blood to boil. He hated this feeling, hated feeling so jealous. He just saw Cloud so infrequently. It was his only reprieve from this nightmare. Cloud and he had been together nearly five years now, and he had spent less than an entire day total with him. It was a torture in on itself.

His frustration got the best of him, punching forward as he slammed his fist over and over again into the doorframe. Zack felt his knuckles split, not caring about anything besides getting out of this room and stopping anyone else from Shinra from putting hands on his mate ever again. He didn't truly know where he stood with Cloud. How could he? It's not as if they talked during the short times they were allowed to see each other…it's not as if he could bring himself to speak with his mate when he could be buried inside of him instead. …It was hard to stomach how weak his willpower had become.

It was different—being mated. Zack had always thought it would get easier—being away from him. He thought that if he knew Cloud was his, truly his, then he would learn to relax at the thought of him straying. It was the exact opposite. It had only increased his paranoia, because he realized what he had with finding his mate, and the thought of anyone taking him away from him made him want to kill.

—It wasn't a wonder that Sephiroth went mad. Not that he would ever give that son of a bitch alien the reprieve of an excuse. He just understood him a bit more. Understood what he had been going through while worrying that Cloud might leave him. Zack hated the feeling..and loved it. Being with Cloud, even how little they were allowed, was like touching the sun. It was peace he had never felt before in his life. It was like universes exploding behind his eyes. It was the only future he ever wanted to know.

Zack punched the door one more time, using every bit of the jacked up strength they had pulsed into his veins. To his surprise, the door banged back. Taking a step back, the SOLDIER eyed the exit warily as it slowly opened. They were done with experiments for the day. It wasn't Shinra. There's no way Hojo would let Cloud return so soon. It would impede him making the blond into a trained dog.

The man on the other side of the door was wearing a gas mask, obscuring his features as he tilted his head to the side. "You look like shit."

Zack's eyes widened, recognizing that voice even after all these years. "Genesis!?"

"Keep your voice down," Genesis scolded, tossing him over his own mask. "Put that on. We need to go."

"Why do I need a gas mask?" Zack asked skeptically, staring down at it with a feeling of dread.

"What do you think, Zackary?" Genesis mocked. "Honestly, it's a wonder you ever became First Class. Just put it on."

Zack listened, slipping the mask over his face as Genesis nodded at him, yanking two canisters out of his pocket just as troopers rounded the corner with guns raised. The troopers began to cough, falling over in unconsciousness as they hacked. Zack took his cue from the other SOLDIER, sprinting down the hall as he watched Genesis toss more grenades down every corridor as they went.

"Are we grabbing Cloud?" Zack spoke, voice muffled behind the filter.

"Don't suppose we would leave Blondie—not after I came all this way." Genesis skidded around the corner, grabbing for his sword and slicing down through a trooper who was unlucky enough to not pass out from the gas.

Blood splattered across the viser of his mask, and Zack tried to wipe it as clean as possible with his sleeve. They stopped in front of Cloud's door, and he felt sickened at the fact that Hojo had put him back into the room he had been raised in…a cruel joke no doubt designed to teach Cloud a lesson.

Everything in his life seemed to be that way. It wasn't a coincidence, considering who his father was. Hojo must have gone back to Midgar for Genesis to risk this now. The thought made him sneer, as it just meant he was going to have to work all the harder to track him down and kill him. …Make him cry and beg for forgiveness first, and then kill him.

Zack glanced down the hallway of the basement, seeing incapacitated bodies lying by the stairs. "Did you bring another mask?"

Genesis scratched the back of his head awkwardly, shrugging. "Well, not exactly. But hear me out, I figured he would already be out from the gas, and so there wasn't a point." Genesis plugged his phone into the mechanism that secured Cloud's door. Whatever technology he had installed was currently working on the code.

"Why'd you come here?" Zack questioned, brow furrowed. "Why now? It's been years." He wasn't foolish enough to think this was coincidental. This was because they had seen Rufus. It was all connected.

"Can we talk about this after I single handedly save both of your perfectly round and bubbly asses?" Genesis tilted his head in thought as he typed in more code. "Actually, you have a perfect bubble butt…Cloud's is a little flat. Kind of ironic considering…"

The door beeped green, unlocking as Genesis put away the phone. Zack rushed forward to yank open the door, heart surging up into his throat as he saw Cloud lying unconscious on the ground. Memories of Cloud in a pool of his and the baby's blood flashed in his brain, and it took his mind a good 30 seconds to realize he wasn't staring at the dead body of his mate.

"Cloud…" Zack rushed forward, breathing deep through the filtration system of the mask as his fingers pressed up against the incapitated blond's throat. It was slow, but it was there, and the absolute panic he had been feeling began to fade when his brain caught up to the fact that he was unconscious from the gas. He flipped Cloud onto his back, slipping one arm under his knees and the other under his neck as he lifted him easily into his arms, turning to Genesis. "Did you do recon? How many people do we have to fight through when we get back up?"

"We got lucky," Genesis motioned towards the stairs. "Hojo just headed back to the city and took his lackies with him. It was the perfect time to get you out. Not to say I don't think you'll have to swing a sword soon, but it definitely could be worse."

Zack nodded his understanding. He wanted to ask the SOLDIER so many other things, but there wasn't time. Their window with the gas was closing, and he just hoped Genesis had a plan to get them away from this backwater nightmare of a town that he would be taking great care to never come back to again.

Letting Genesis lead the way, Zack trailed close behind him as they ascended the stairs. His heart was pounding so hard he couldn't hear anything else. Five years. Five years in this place, and someone had finally come for them. Five years in this place, and he had settled for relying on someone else to rescue his mate. It was as unforgivable as it was alluring. Freedom…true freedom. The chance to be with his mate—truly be with him. It was all happening so fast that it didn't seem real. He knew he was going to wake up soon strapped to a table with Hojo's beady magnified eyes leering down at him and laughing as he took in his latest cruel joke.

He didn't wake up though. They passed through the mansion without issue, and Zack stared at the front door in almost fear of what would be on the other side of it. Were they waiting for them? Was it an entire firing squad? SOLDIERs? Other monsters that Shinra must have learned to create by now? Surely, there must be something. He wasn't dumb enough to think that there wasn't an alarm on his and Cloud's cells. They would be coming. Hojo would never allow Cloud to truly escape him.

Zack wanted that door to open to sunshine. He wanted to feel the rays beating down on his skin like they hadn't in years, but when Genesis pushed it open all he saw was darkness. It was the smart choice by the SOLDIER to sneak them out by moonlight. He understood it even as a pange of longing pulsed in his chest. He removed the gas mask from his face, inhaling fresh air for the first time in years as he stared utterly transfixed up at the stars. Violet eyes blinked as the moonlight reflected down at him. Were there always this many in the sky? Had they always been so beautiful?

"Stare later!" Genesis knocked him out of his reprieve, ripping his own mask off as he pointed towards the road leading out of the town. "Come on, Kadaj is waiting for us." Zack nodded, hugging Cloud tighter as he ran after the other SOLDIER. They snuck down alleyways until reaching the gate where a black truck was idling and waiting for them with Kadaj in the driver's seat.

Genesis lowered the tailgate on the truck, and Zack leapt up inside without a moment's hesitation as the hatch was slammed behind him. The SOLDIER ran around the side of the car, jumping in next to Kadaj as the omega floored the gas and they took off into the night.

Once secured in the truck bed, Zack placed Cloud to lean up against the side, making sure he didn't fall as he grabbed for the rifle that had been placed in the back for him. He checked to make sure it was loaded, taking the safety off as he stared through the sight while they drove as fast as they could away.

It wasn't long before the sound of engines began to get closer in the dark. Zack focused on the sound, pointing the rifle as there were four troopers on motorcycles following after. Aiming for the closest one, Zack didn't even hesitate in pulling the trigger as he watched the man's head explode and the bike go spinning out.

"Zack, do you have this!?" Genesis yelled through the glass, ducking his head as bullets began to fly at them. He lunged to the side, yanking on Cloud's arm so that he was fully laying down for cover.

As soon as he was sure bullets weren't going to be flying into his mate's skull, Zack took aim again and knocked down another of them. "Got it!" He yelled up to the front, expelling the empty shell as he aimed it towards the other drivers. It should make him feel guilty to take their lives. At one point it had, but that was before the war. That was before he was kept as a lab rat for years. That was before he came to the conclusion that everyone at Shinra deserved it. He took another headshot, glancing back towards Genesis—well mostly everyone.

Kadaj swerved around the corner as they were taking heavy fire from the two left, throwing Zack off balance as he struggled to sit up while dodging fire. Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he aimed and began to fire at the last two, taking them out as their bikes smashed into each other in the wreckage.

Letting out a shaky exhale, Zack put the safety back on the rifle before laying it down in the bed as he struggled to catch his breath. He turned towards the window, drawing it open as he looked between the two. "Are you guys okay?

"For now," Genesis assured him, before leaning forward as he pulled Kadaj's mouth to his own. Zack raised a brow, not all that surprised, but never before having a confirmation that they were together. "Thanks for the ride."

"Is my brother okay?" Kadaj questioned, glancing worriedly into the rear view mirror. "Why's he unconscious?"

"Genesis only brought two masks," Zack teased, earning him a glare from the other SOLDIER as he shot apologetic eyes over to Kadaj.

"He's fine. Promise." Genesis placed a finger under his chin as he thought about that. "Is he fine? I guess I haven't actually seen him conscious. Reno said he was fine…"

"Reno!?" Zack kneeled to get further into the window. "You're here cause of Reno?"

Kadaj nodded to him. "He called us after he saw Cloud here. Told us everything we needed to know to get you out."

"He's okay then?" Zack questioned, letting out a sigh of relief he didn't even know he needed to exhale. He hadn't seen Reno since he had taken off in the helicopter. He and Cloud had speculated, but this was the first proof he had that he was alright.

"I mean, he's a major jackass like normal, but he's okay I suppose," Genesis explained. "He's back at Shinra—part of Rufus' entourage."

"Of course he is…" Zack wasn't surprised by the knowledge. All Reno ever wanted to be was a turk. "Is this going to fall back on him?"

"I hope not," Kadaj managed, shifting the truck as he took another sharp turn down a dirt road. "He's been helping us stay hidden. He's a good guy."

Genesis scoffed, rolling his eyes at the praise of his cousin. "He's alright." He dug into his jacket, pulling out some smelling salts as he handed it through the glass. "You want to wake up your princess?"

Zack grabbed the salts gratefully. "Thank you. I will in a bit when I know nobody is following. He's easier to protect when he's unconscious." He reached back through, patting Kadaj's back before grabbing comfortingly at Genesis' shoulder. "Thank you. I can't even express that enough. I can't imagine what it must have cost you, but you did what I could not."

"Zack…" Genesis hesitated, never being one for sentimental moments as he awkwardly patted the hand on his shoulder. "You're my friend…he's Kadaj's weird brother—you don't have to thank us."

"It took too long," Kadaj explained, sounding mournful. "We wanted to come back sooner, but we've been on a different continent. The manhunt hasn't completely faded, but it's not as bad as before. Plus, we didn't know where they were holding you. …We didn't even know if you were really alive."

Genesis nodded his agreement. "Hojo found you in the reactor. We had to take off or end up in the same place, but you didn't look good. It's not an excuse…but you didn't look good."

Zack could imagine. He remembered staring across from Cloud on that stretcher and knowing for a fact that they were both going to die. He'd never hold it against either Kadaj or Genesis for assuming they had. He did another check on his own reality, glancing around to take in how real the world seemed. He had dreamt of escaping every night for five years. Was this just another dream? Was he going to wake up with the realization that he had once more failed his mate?

"We chartered some tickets on a ship heading back towards Midgar," Kadaj explained. "The dock isn't too far away. Reno has connections there. He's been helping out a group called AVALANCHE. They have what we need to get new papers to disappear. It'll only be for a day or so, and then you two can run anywhere you want to."

"Is it safe?" Zack questioned, glancing towards the unconscious omega as he didn't want to bring him back anywhere near that terrible place.

"Necessary," Genesis shrugged. "We need new identities, and this is Reno's hook-up." The SOLDIER exhaled at just the thought of what that must mean. "It'll be like going home…like if everyone at your home wanted to murder you."

"Sounds fun," Zack murmured, shaking his head with a grin as a plan that bad had to be real. Leaning back, Zack yanked Cloud back up to lean against the truck's side, snapping the salts as he waved them just under the omega's nose.

Brilliant blue eyes popped open, and Zack tried to reach through the bond to calm his partner as those glowing eyes flickered around their surroundings. "Spike, it's okay," he spoke softly. "We're safe now." Cloud felt chaotic. Their bond was burning as panic seemed to overwhelm his mate as he gripped the edge behind him and stared around with wide eyes.

"Safe?" Cloud looked over to his side, and Zack knitted his eyebrows as he almost looked like he was staring at someone. "You're sure?" He spoke to the space next to him, before his eyes flickered back over to Zack. "Reno helped?"

"Yeah…" Zack hesitated, not quite sure how Cloud knew that. "Genesis and Kadaj mostly. Why don't you say hi, babe?"

"Hi?" Cloud repeated, and then seemed to realize what that meant as he sprang forward. "You're here!?" he greeted, and Zack smiled at his excitement. "Are you real?"

Kadaj laughed at the question. "I think so." He glanced over to Genesis. "We're real, right?"

"In the vaguest sense of the term," Genesis agreed, looking over his shoulder at him. "Hey Blondie, long time no see." His head tilted as he examined him. "My my…you sure sprouted."

Cloud bit his lip at the compliment, leaning all the way through the small window as he wrapped Genesis in his arms. "I missed you too, Gen." He turned to Kadaj, reaching out to swipe a hand through the long silver hair. "I'm so glad you're okay." His fingers lingered in Kadaj's hair, seeming to get ahold of himself as he pulled back and out the window, almost like was ripped through it as he batted aggressively at his waist, like something was crawling on him.

"Spike?" Zack asked hesitantly, not sure where he stood with his mate. Their bond was still completely shut. Would Cloud blame him for not breaking them out sooner? Was he a failure now in his love's beautiful mako eyes? "Do you have fleas or something?"

Cloud's head snapped up at that, hands pausing on his stomach as he seemed to realize what he was doing. He did this sometimes…talking and reacting to something that wasn't there. Zack felt he was due a little insanity after everything they had been through, and so he tried his best not to comment. At least something had been there for him all the years that he couldn't be.

"Zack…" There was such breathy hesitation in that tone that all of Zack's previous anxieties came back ten fold as he waited for the moment where Cloud would reject him. "Zack!" He barely got his arms up as Cloud sprang forward, knocking him back onto his ass in the truck as he wrapped his arms around the shaking blond. "We're okay…We're out…" Zack smiled, kissing the top of blond spikes as he felt his shirt getting wet with tears of relief as his hand stroked up and down his spine in comfort.

"Yeah baby, we're out." He kissed the top of his head again, inhaling the omega's scent as this reality finally became tangible. They actually were out. They actually were free, and Cloud didn't hate him for having no part in their rescue.

"Gods…" Genesis murmured from the front seat. "I forgot how annoyingly sweet and unhateable he can be. It's exhausting."

"Where are we going?" Cloud questioned, shifting to all but crawl in his lap as he wrapped his arms securely around his neck, snuggling into his chest.

"A ship." Zack didn't have the heart to tell his mate that they were heading back to Midgar. They would cross that bridge when they came to it. He shifted his hips to get Cloud more comfortable, hugging him close as his hand rubbed his lower back in comfort. "No one's following—not yet."

"They will," Cloud murmured with finality. "They won't just let us go…won't let me go."

"Spike, Hojo is on his way to Midgar. It could be days before the news gets back to him," Zack tried to comfort. "They're not going to find us." Cloud squeezed tighter around him, and Zack felt their bond open as his mate pushed lovecomfortsafety through to him, even when he knew Cloud had to be scared.

"I know," Cloud managed, pulling back to look into Zack's eyes. "It'll be okay now. We're together…all of us." The omega batted once more at his hip, ignoring his own weird behavior as he laid their foreheads together. "I love you so much."

Zack yanked Cloud to his lips, practically growling at the timid purr that left the omega's mouth, arms tightening around his neck as he shifted to straddle him. Wanting to taste him, Zack pressed his tongue against the other's, deepening the kiss as he poured his love through the bond, hoping Cloud knew it was genuine.

Cloud pulled back, panting slightly as he carded his fingers through Zack's hair, making him growl with just the feel of them. "It's okay that we're going to Midgar. I understand why we need to." Zack blinked at the words, knitting his eyebrows in confusion at how his mate would ever know that. Had he accidentally pushed the knowledge through the bond? Did he wake up earlier than the salts? "But promise we don't have to stay there." Cloud's voice came out as a pained beg. "Promise I don't have to ever go back to headquarters."

He didn't answer for a few moments, trying to wrap his head around how Cloud knew in the first place. But he knew he had to when his mate's eyes turned guarded and mistrustful with his silence. "Of course, Spike. Of course you never have to go back there." His hand came to a bony hip, rubbing it in comfort as he used his other hand to cup a soft cheek. "I would never let them anywhere near you. Never again. We're just going in to get new identities, and then we can go anywhere we want."

"Be anything we want?" Cloud asked, tightening his grip in Zack's hair as his fingers twitched with anxiety. "Just the two of us?"

Zack nodded to him, moaning as Cloud leaned back in to kiss him. He would do anything to keep the promise he had made to him. They would board the ship back to Midgar, get their papers, and then never look back.

,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,

A.N- OMG an update, are you proud? Admittingly, I struggled a bit with HOW I was going to do this chapter, because I didn't really know how to rescue them. But Genesis and Kadaj seem just as good of an answer as any. I'm excited to get them back to Midgar! Also, I had to throw in some of Cloud's craziness from a different POV, because I personally feel like a lot of things could have been solved throughout the course of FFVII if someone would have just told the poor thing how crazy he was. Instead they let him just grab his head and talk constantly about his stolen identity and Sephiroth…and it nearly ended the world. Of course, Zack is sort of just letting him have his insanity right now, but of course…Zack doesn't know who he's talking to. Sorry. That was long. Hope you enjoyed and are still reading! There's a few more chapters (Planned few, probz more) until the end! Also, I've decided that Genesis and Kadaj together are perfect, and that this was surprisingly a nice happy chapter. ..I struggle with happy.