*Prologue: Experiment*
The girl with silver hair and aqua eyes stood in the middle of the fireproof room, staring at the stack of wood. She is 6 in a half years old. She is very different than the rest of the children. More different than her half-brother, Sephiroth. Cyrus was born from the test tube in the Shinra Lab, as both an accident and an experiment. She is part Phoenix. She has the power of the Phoenix. Her powers are very dangerous, she even killed those who kidnapped her months ago. Ever since that day, Cyrus had to be experimented along with her powers. How the girl hated this.
Cyrus stares at the stack of wood as it started to smoke. She slowly brought her hand up and the flames appeared. The stack catches on fire. Cyrus's eyes moved over to the mirror. She knows that Shinra scientists are watching her from the other side. Even Hojo. The one man she hated most in the whole building.
"Well done, Cyrus. Now, the next test." A man from the speaker said.
"I don't want to do it anymore!" Cyrus protested. But her request is ignored as usual. A man in a fireproof suit walked in the room and held a soundproof headset. The suited man took a deep breath and put on the soundproof headset. Cyrus stared at him, knowing what this test is. Her scream. Not just any scream. Her Flame Shriek as Hojo calls it. It was a loud scream with rings of fire coming out.
"Begin." A man from the speaker said. Cyrus's eyes turn gold as she takes a deep breath. The suited man shuts his eyes, preparing for the attack. He is very nervous about this. Cyrus let out a shriek as rings of fire appeared. The fire hits the suited man as the sounds of screaming makes him fly back to the wall. Cyrus stops her screaming and got on her knees, feeling exhausted. The suited man fell on his hands and knees, groaning. He was grateful for the soundproof headset. He looked over at Cyrus whose eyes went back to aqua.
The man wearing a lab coat named Hojo, watched everything with glee. He formed a grin as he rubbed his hands together.
"Such a powerful specimen! Here I thought she was a failure since the start. The Phoenix inside her needs a little push." He said to himself.
"Don't you think you're overdoing it, professor?" A female voice spoke, causing the scientist to frown. A half black woman stood by the desk with her arms crossed. She is both a caretaker and the coworker of Shinra who handles guns. "Cyrus is just a child. She's not a weapon, and neither is Sephiroth!"
"Must you always ruin a moment, Sonia? These children are born to be the greatest weapons of Shinra. Sephiroth had been learning how to fight so well, and he must accept the pain and consequences! And this one here, she still has a lot to learn mind you." Hojo said.
"Those Rhadorans were killed and their hideout outside of Midgar was destroyed by her. You didn't see what we saw!" Sonia argued.
It was 6 months ago while some selected grunts and Turks are in the woods outside of Midgar and Sephiroth was brought for training. He was only 12, but he succeeded most of the virtual training. Sonia brought along Cyrus since she had never been outside of the building or the city. Sonia sat on the cliff with a rifle while watching little Cyrus sitting around the bed of flowers. The little girl made a small smile as she picked a daisy. She remembered seeing pictures of flowers from the storybook Sonia had read to her before. Cyrus had discovered life outside of the Shinra Building. The sights, the smell, the sounds, anything that the building never had. Sonia couldn't help but to smile. Cyrus is collecting some flowers. But suddenly, Sonia got hit in the head from behind. She grunted and looked up to see a Shinra grunt removing his helmet.
"Now!" He called out.
"What are you doing?!" Sonia asked, feeling the pain in her head. She is going to have a big headache afterwards. The grunt turned to her.
"Taking the phoenix girl. Thank you for the opportunity." He replied. He jumped down from the cliff as the Rhadorans appear around Cyrus.
"No!" Sonia cried out as they took Cyrus from the fields and brought her to the van. "Cyrus!" The little girl let out a scream of fear, kicking her feet as she was thrown in the back. The van took off. Sonia cursed and got on her feet. One of the Rhadorans is a spy and in disguise of a Shinra grunt. Now the Rhadorans knew about Cyrus.
XX
In the hideout in the woods, Cyrus was brought in the room where the leader of the small group is. He is wearing a tattered poncho and have one blind eye. Cyrus looked up at him in fear. What do they want from her?
"Hm. This is the child who holds the power of the Phoenix?" The leader asked.
"Yes sir." The Rhadoran said who is still in the grunt uniform.
"Well? Show us, little one. Show me your flames." The leader said. Cyrus tried back away, but one of the Rhadorans blocked her by holding her head. The girl shook her head at the leader.
"I...I'm...I'm not...a Phoenix." She finally said. The leader and the others stared at her in silent. The leader made a scowl.
"What?"
"Sir, this is the child! I swear it!"
"Has she exposed her powers to anyone in Shinra?" The leader asked his comrade.
"...No. She did not. She...never learned." The disguised grunt admitted. The leader gritted his teeth. He brought out his sword. Cyrus was moved to the side as the leader pointed the tip of the sword against the grunt.
"Fool."
"At mercy! We...we can force her to expose the power!" The comrade pleaded, putting his hands up. "If she fails...I will die. My blood will be on the blade on the sword." The leader didn't say a word. He lowered his weapon and turned to Cyrus. The little girl flinched when the leader brought his sword down to scare her.
"Show us the beast!" He demanded. Cyrus let out a cry. Sparks appear around her, and the room is getting a little warm. The leader smirked. "That's it."
"Leave me alone!" Cyrus cried out as she held her head as a ring of fire appeared. The Rhadorans watched in awe. The girl's eyes turn yellow...
XX
Two vehicles of Shinra followed the tracks of the Rhadorans and shortly after, they found a hideout. Suddenly, the hideout exploded with fire! The trucks stopped and the Shinra grunts got out of them to see the sight of the explosion. The forest itself is on fire. Sonia watched in horror, fearing for Cyrus.
"What the hell was that?!" One grunt asked, bringing out his gun.
"Look!" One of the grunts pointed at the destroyed hideout. Coming out of the flames is Cyrus, unharmed. The fire couldn't hurt her. Gold eyes set on the Shinra group. Sephiroth watched in shock, horror, and awe. Did his little sister do this? He didn't think she held so much power.
"Holy shit."
"Is that Cyrus?"
"Hold your fire!" Voices of the grunts were talking all at once. Sephiroth knew something must be done. He cautiously approached Cyrus, shielding half of his face. Cyrus glared at him, backing away, fire appearing in her hands.
"Cyrus!" Sephiroth spoke. "Cyrus, it's me!" His words couldn't reach the girl. Cyrus was ready to attack him. Sephiroth can't hurt her, and he couldn't let her kill anyone. He approached her and wrapped his arms around her. The hot feeling of flames are around them. Sephiroth shut his eyes, preparing for the worst. Cyrus blinked and her eyes went back to her normal color. She felt her brother's arms around her.
"S-Sephy...?" She asked. Sephiroth opened his eyes as he heard her voice. Is she calm now? He slowly pulled away, his hands on her shoulders.
"Cyrus. Look what you did." He said as he looked around them. Cyrus looked around to see rubble and crisp bodies. Her eyes widen. Did she really do this? She destroyed the hideout and killed those who took her away. Tears form in Cyrus's eyes. Sephiroth frowned at her. The girl buried her face against his stomach, hugging him.
"I...I didn't mean to." Cyrus spoke. She began to cry. Sephiroth held her close with one arm as his other hand rested on Cyrus's head.
"You're okay. You're gonna be okay. I'm here." Sephiroth told her. "They won't hurt you anymore." Cyrus started to feel lightheaded. Sephiroth got his little sister on his back to carry her back to one of the trucks. Cyrus's arm dangle over the boy's shoulders as she closed her eyes. Sephiroth held her legs as he walked. "We're going back home."
After finally finishing experimenting on her powers, Cyrus felt sleepy. Testing her powers make her tired. She didn't think she could be so powerful. She was still spooked about months back when she killed those Rhadorans. She was told she was a Phoenix after she was brought back. She stared at her hands with a frown.
"I'm a monster." She told herself.
"Cyrus, you should be sleeping." Sonia told her as she walked in the room. "Are you okay?"
"I'm scared." Cyrus said. "Why am I part Phoenix?"
"Cyrus..." Sonia doesn't know what to say to her. "It's...a gift. You're special. You and Sephiroth are special."
"But he doesn't have powers like mine. I...I don't want these powers." Cyrus said as she started to cry. Sonia held her close, trying to calm her down. Her hand is rubbing up and down Cyrus's back.
"It's okay, sweetie. I'm here for you. I'll help you. Sephiroth will help you too." Sonia told her softly. Cyrus cried against Sonia's shoulder, gripping on her shirt. "Shhh, shh. Hey, it'll be okay. Here, let's get you some water." She carried the girl in her arms and walked out of the bedroom.
Sephiroth leaned against the wall of the hallway, watching Sonia carrying his little sister out. The boy remembered the day when Cyrus was born in the lab from the test tube. When Sephiroth was 6 in a half years old, he saw her wrapped in the blanket in Sonia's arms. He refused to hold her or have anything to do with her whatsoever. He never asked for a sibling like Cyrus. Hojo had to create a hybrid. When Cyrus took her first steps, she tried to follow Sephiroth, but the boy can easily get away from her. Even her first word is his name. How Sephiroth despised her. Until that day when he saw her power months back, he never felt impressed or afraid. Yet he never dared admit that to Sonia or anyone in Shinra. Sephiroth can't show weakness. He's training to be the SOLDIER and one day he will be assigned to be out there to test his skills.
"Cyrus's powers are too dangerous. From now on, she cannot be allowed to go outside the building. She has much to learn. The world isn't ready for her." Hojo said that to Sephiroth one day. Keeping his sister indoors shouldn't be hard. Just as long as she didn't try to use her powers against him or anyone.
The boy brought his head up as Sonia and Cyrus returned to the hallway and went in the bedroom. He didn't hear any sobs from Cyrus. After hearing them say goodnight, Sonia walked out and closed the door.
"...How is she?" Sephiroth asked.
"She'll be okay. She's just tired." Sonia told him. "You need some sleep yourself, Sephiroth."
"Right. I should." Sephiroth said as he didn't realize how late it was. "Good night, Sonia." He walked down the hallway to get to his room. Sonia smiled a bit.
"Good night, Sephiroth." She turned around to the opposite direction.
Cyrus is lying in bed, staring up at the ceiling. Her eye lids are getting heavy. She let out a yawn before closing her eyes. She held the Moogle toy close to her. And the story of the Phoenix is just beginning.