Adult-FanFiction.org : Final Fantasy

Darkened Skies	By : Cynthia Category: Final Fantasy VII > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 949 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: Final Fantasy and all characters are the property of Square Enix. I do not profit from this fanfiction, it’s for entertainment purposes only.

Chapter List
- 1
- 2
- 3
"Darkened Skies"
Chapter two: MIA
A Final Fantasy 7 AU fanfiction
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Author's note: Angst here! Get your red-hot angst here! Now with improved flavor!
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*Disclaimer: Final Fantasy and all related characters belong to Square-Enix. This fiction piece is strictly a non-profit exercise of creativity and entertainment for people (like me) who can’t get enough of this world and the characters.
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            A month passed. Zack kept trying to contact Angeal intermittently; in the off chance that he might actually get an answer. He went on missions as assigned and he tried to keep his spirits up, certain that Angeal was still alive and had a good reason for vanishing like he did. Sephiroth began to train with him, taking up where Angeal left off to help Zack hone his skills in preparation for the day he would be promoted. There was little doubt that day was coming, though Lazard wouldn't give an estimate on exactly when that might be or what conditions Zack needed to meet.
            Sephiroth wasn't talkative, but that didn't bother Zack. Angeal hadn't been particularly talkative, either. The one thing about the general that bothered Zack a little was his apparent coldness. He wasn't void of personality or anything, he just seemed to lack human empathy. Combined with his unearthly looks and strange eyes, this made Sephiroth seem like he wasn't really part of humanity, to Zack. He knew the man must have some sentiment buried deep down inside of him, to have taken him under his proverbial wing in honor of Angeal. He was clearly capable of forming friendship bonds with people; it just took more work.
            Eventually, Seph began to open up a little and Zack found it easier to interact with him. Not even Sephiroth was immune to Zack's special charm and eventually; the two of them began to have actual conversations during training and when running into each other off-duty.
            One day after sparring together, Zack decided to mention some of the odd research information his friend Kunsel had stumbled onto. They had just finished showering and they were in the locker room together, retrieving fresh uniforms to change into. Zack fought off a playful streak as he removed the towel around his waist and instead of popping Sephiroth with the towel as his impulses urged him to do; he wisely dropped it on the bench and pulled his underwear on. Sephiroth politely looked away, busying himself with laying out his various garments.
            "Hey Seph, have you ever heard of something called the 'Jenova project'?"
          Sephiroth froze with his leather coat halfway out of the locker. He looked at Zack sidelong, his emerald gaze shrouded behind damp, silver bangs and long lashes of the same hue. Zack took an involuntary step back, unsettled by the intense, haunted look in those normally opaque eyes.
            "So...you've heard of it, right?" guessed Zack uncomfortably, suddenly wishing he could take his question back.
            Sephiroth abruptly shifted his gaze to his clothing and turned his back on Zack. "Jenova...was my mother's name." He removed his towel and began putting his pants on. His nudity was veiled by his long hair as he pulled his pants up.
            Zack raised his eyebrows. "Oh. I thought it sounded like a girl's name, but then I wondered how you could inject a girl into someone." He started putting the rest of his uniform on.
            Sephiroth paused again and looked over a shoulder at Zack with a frown.
            "What'd I say?" demanded Zack at last, squirming under that steady look.
            Sephiroth finished fastening his pants. He turned to face Zack as he reached for his harness straps. "I don't know what sort of information you stumbled upon, Zackary, but it isn't physically possible to 'inject a girl into someone'."
            Zack checked his reflection in the mirror on his open locker door as he started putting gel into his hair. "Yeah, well...this old file I ran across said something about injecting people with Jenova to give them special powers. Sounds like something from a comic book, to me."
            Sephiroth began to put on his weapon harness, his expression unreadable. "The information you read was likely referring to injecting subject with the cells of Jenova...not the whole woman." He tightened the straps crossing over his chest and he reached for his leather coat. "Where exactly did you get this...information, Zack?"
            "Someone sent it to me." Zack shrugged.
            Sephiroth remained as he was; shirtless with his coat in his arms. "Who sent you this information, and why?"
            Zack felt the feline gaze boring into him and he had a horrible feeling that if he told the General the truth, Kunsel might get into trouble. "Just some random fan. I...uh...guess they thought it was cool. Don't ask me where they stumbled on it because I honestly couldn't tell you."
            "Random fan?" Sephiroth raised an elegant, silver brow.
            "Yeah. Didn't you know? All the SOLDIER officers have a fan base. I guess I've got one too because I hang out with you and Angeal so much. Cool, huh?"
            "No," denied Sephiroth. He slipped into his jacket and pulled his hair out the back of it. "It's pathetic."
            "You think it's pathetic to be admired?" Zack finished applying the gel to his hair and he retrieved his blow dryer and comb.
            "I think it's a waste of time that people could be spending on more important things—such as bettering themselves."
            Zack shrugged. "Boy, were they wrong about you."
            "Who?"
            "Some of the fans. Last time I checked the chat boards, there was a raging debate happening over whether you're stuck on yourself or not. You're obviously not, since you don't care about what people think of you."
            Sephiroth didn't seem phased. He checked his masamune blade for kinks before sliding his boots on and buckling them. "They can debate whatever they want. Meanwhile, I have work to do."
            "You should check out the fan club sometime, Seph," Zack suggested as the general finished his preparations and started to leave the locker room. "It's called 'Silver Elite'!"
            "Focus on your training, Zack," Sephiroth called over his shoulder as he walked out the double-doors. "Not internet chat rooms."
            Zack chuckled softly and picked up his hairstyling tools, looking around for a power outlet. "I think I'm starting to get him, Angeal. He's not easy to crack, though." He frowned as he mentally reviewed the conversation. It was an odd coincidence that Sephiroth's mother had the same name as the project Kunsel told him about, but what really interested Zack was the way Seph referred to his mother in past tense. He wondered what happened to her.
~***************************************~

            Sephiroth went to his quarters, deciding to eat in solitude as he thought some things over. He found that he didn't have an appetite after all, once he checked his mini-fridge and stared blankly at the unappealing foodstuffs inside. He took a seat at his desk and he sighed, his gaze settling on the blank screen of his computer.
            "He wasn't lying," Sephiroth mused softly, "but he wasn't telling me the entire truth, either. Interesting."
            ~They ALL lie, my son. It's in their nature.~
            Sephiroth's frown deepened and he tried to shut the voice out. She was strong, today. Though her presence was comforting to him, her efforts to influence his actions, thoughts and feelings weren't lost on him.
            He thought of his fellow officers and he wondered what they were planning. A childish part of Sephiroth resented his only friends for taking off without him, leaving him in the dark about whatever it was they were trying to do. The practical side of him reminded himself that Angeal and Genesis had grown up together and would always have a special bond, as a result. They weren't really "shutting him out", he was certain of it. This wasn't about being spiteful to him. Sephiroth had a chilling suspicion that like himself, Genesis was beginning to discover things about his origins that required some answers and Angeal was likely trying to help him.
            There was also the issue of missing soldiers—not just the ones taken by Genesis, but the regular forces taken from the Wutai battlefield to be brought in for treatment and recovery. There were no records of some of them ever making it back home, and all of the missing names were picked up by a department calling themselves "SOLDIER unit 14: Lost Force". He'd asked Lazard about it last month and the director claimed to have no knowledge of the department. He seemed sincere in his ignorance, so Sephiroth could only presume they were a special unit under classified information Lazard didn't have access to. ShinRa was composed of several different departments, after all. Even as director of SOLDIER, Deusericus was only privy to information the president deemed necessary for him to do his job.
            Now, on top of the mystery of the disappearance of two officers, the classified retrieval unit and Hollander's latest whereabouts, someone had leaked information about Sephiroth's mother. He supposed he could have asked Zackary to show him the files sent to him by this alleged "mystery fan", but the 2nd's description of the information led Sephiroth to believe it was only a grain of data.
            Was it an honest coincidence of someone stumbling across a snatch of information from old records, or was someone deliberately fucking with him through Zack?
            "I'm becoming as paranoid as him," snorted Sephiroth in derision.
The truth of his own origins was buried so deep, even he didn't know all of it. He'd searched for the records himself, for many years. He knew his "father" was hiding things from him and though Professor Gast was presumed to be dead by now, Sephiroth believed that finding his old records could be the key to unveiling the truth.
With that thought in mind, Sephiroth decided he should pay a visit to Professor Hojo's lab.
~*************************************~

            Hojo watched the replay of the security recording for perhaps the hundredth time since the incident in Icicle occurred, years ago. He still seethed over his people's inability to bring the Cetra and her daughter in alive. Gast Faramis' death was a bonus in retrieving the test subjects from the village they were holed up in. Had the man survived, Hojo had no doubt he would have eventually blabbed Sephiroth's true origins to him and that would have been costly. The less information Sephiroth had, the easier he was to monitor...and to mold into a god.
            The cells of the preserved Ancient served his purposes fantastically, but Hojo itched to think of what he could have accomplished with not just one, but two live specimens.
            "Where are you now, Ifalna?"
There were only so many places in the world she could hide from the long arm of ShinRa, yet somehow, the Ancient still eluded Hojo to this day. He narrowed his eyes on the fuzzy image as the woman in question escaped out the back door with her baby, while Gast fired a gun at the soldiers to cover her escape.
            "Go, Ifalna!" The love in that cry was obvious, even when heard through electrical static.
            Hojo clicked his tongue and tapped the screen over Gast's image, shaking his head. "You shouldn't have done that, Faramis. What a poor scientist you were."
            He fast-forwarded the clip to the part where Gast finally went down, killed by multiple bullet wounds. Hojo paused it and grinned maniacally, as he always did when he replayed this video.
            "Here lies Gast Faramis," whispered Hojo through his teeth. "Fool in love, traitor to science."
            The door to his lab slid open and Hojo immediately shut down the video clip. He looked up at his "son" as Sephiroth approached his workstation. As usual, the young man's expression gave little to nothing away but Hojo had monitored him since birth. He knew when something was on Sephiroth's mind by the changes in his body language, the way his pupils expanded or contracted and the oh-so-subtle clench of his jaw.
            "Good afternoon, boy," greeted Hojo. He checked his watch. "If I'm not mistaken, our weekly treatment session isn't for another sixteen hours. What brings you to my lab, hmm?"
            "There's been an information leak," answered Sephiroth flatly.
            Something inside Hojo twisted and he cursed Genesis Rhapsodos for defecting. At the same time, he doubted Sephiroth knew the whole truth—else he would have cut him into pieces before he could even set one foot out the door. The contingency plan regarding Genesis was very situational.
            "What do you mean, an 'information leak?" demanded Hojo calmly. "Be more specific."
            "Someone's been asking questions about Jenova," answered Sephiroth succulently. There's a rumor floating around about 'project Jenova', in which recipients are injected with the cells of Jenova. Is it mere coincidence that my mother shares the name of this being rumored to be spliced with humans for experimentation?"
            "You know project Jenova was named after your dear, deceased mother, Sephiroth." Hojo kept his voice level and his gaze steady on the tall, formidable swordsman, knowing that one ill-timed blink could give him away to the young man's perceptive powers. "You are a specially enhanced operative, but this nonsense of splicing alien genetics with human is mere fantasy. Who's been asking these questions and spreading these lies?"
            Sephiroth shrugged. "Unknown. I was asked about it by a cadet, who found the subject fascinating when he read it on some blog."
            "Which cadet?" pressed Hojo. "We can't have young fools spreading hysterical lies about your mother, can we?"
            "It doesn't matter which cadet," Sephiroth answered firmly. "He isn't responsible for the information being posted; he merely read it and asked if I had any idea what it meant."
            "Then why come to me with this information?"
            Sephiroth smirked. "Because I thought if it was a leak and you had failed to give me all the facts, I should give you the chance to do so."
            "I've told you everything you need to know, boy," Hojo insisted with a frown. "You can't allow yourself to be distracted by the whispers of fools who stumble upon bits of information they can't understand."
            "Then perhaps you should tighten your security," suggested the general, "to prevent these 'fools' from seeing things they shouldn't see."
            "I'll take that into account." Inwardly, Hojo made plans to take it a step further and destroy the records he kept on ShinRa file systems.
He noticed Sephiroth's tension hadn't eased and he regarded him shrewdly. "You look a bit pale, Sephiroth. You aren't getting ill, are you?"
Sephiroth lowered his gaze, his thick silver lashes sweeping down to conceal the glow of his eyes. "I think we should do this month's treatment early."
Hojo frowned and adjusted his spectacles. "Oh? Is your head that busy?"
"Excessively so, today," admitted the Soldier.
Disliking the thought of leaving it to the risk of getting out of hand, Hojo gestured at the treatment room to the left. "Then go in and have a seat. I'll have you feeling better in no time, my boy."
Sephiroth obliged without argument and to Hojo's twisted perspective, he almost seemed eager. One could never accuse the General of being a treatment junkie—in fact, he expressed loathing for it regularly and he only put up with it because he was raised to endure it. His willingness to get into that chair and allow Hojo to strap him down and administer drugs to him was a testament to his suffering.
Sephiroth removed his coat, reclined in the chair, shut his eyes and held still as Hojo secured the clamps to restrain him. His lips moved and the professor narrowed his eyes with interest, guessing he was silently communicating with the voice in his head. Hojo smiled. He may have lost the last true Cetra to walk Gaia and the only half-breed ever born, but he'd preserved an Ancient of his own, in Sephiroth. He applied a tourniquet to the warrior's bicep and had him make a fist a few times until he found a good vein.
"You know the routine," Hojo said conversationally as he measured out a dose of special medication into a syringe. "Just a quick sting and then everything will feel better."
Sephiroth didn't react when he pushed the needle in. Hojo injected him and he watched as the young man's body slowly relaxed. He removed the needle once all the medication was distributed and threw away the syringe. He sat down on his stool and he waited patiently, checking his watch. After approximately three minutes, he got back up and he lifted Sephiroth's right lid to check his eyes. They were dilated and unfocused.
Satisfied, Hojo started the pendulum on the counter up and as it swung, it made a sound much like a heartbeat. Hojo waited for it to make a few passes before he spoke to Sephiroth in a gentle, lulling voice—quite a feat for someone with his vocal chords.
"Sephiroth, can you hear me?"
"Yes," answered the Soldier, his eyes still shut.
"Good. What about your companion. Can she hear me too?"
"We both hear you," answered Sephiroth.
Hojo smiled in satisfaction. "Excellent. Now Jenova, I need you to sleep. It isn't time for you to come out, yet."
"I grow tired of waiting," came the ominous answer.
"What are a few years to a powerful, immortal being such as you?" cajoled Hojo. "When the time is ready, you can reclaim this world without opposition. Gaia will be yours again, and the glory of the Cetra will be reborn."
Sephiroth's lips smirked. "Yes...the glory of the Cetra."
Hojo wondered about the irony in that tone, but attempting to understand the psyche of such an ancient being was a futile endeavor. For all he knew, Jenova was the very first Cetra ever to walk Gaia.
"So will you sleep until it is time to awake?" Hojo couldn't count on the being to keep such a promise—hence the reason behind him including this exercise in Sephiroth's monthly reinforcement treatments. Jenova seemed incapable of remaining dormant for long.
"Very well," agreed the being.
Hojo waited for a moment. "Jenova?"
No answer. The professor nodded in satisfaction. "Sephiroth?"
"Yes."
"We need to be sure you remember your directive. Tell me who your biological father is."
"Vincent Valentine," answered the Soldier in a sleepy voice.
"That's right," approved Hojo. "Now, what do you have to do if this knowledge ever becomes available to you when you are awake?"
Sephiroth didn't hesitate. "Execute him."
            A malevolent, oily smile spread over Hojo's lips. "Precisely. Good boy."
~************************************~

Two days later:
            Angeal touched down on the path leading into his home village. He tucked his wing in before drawing it back into his body. If anyone had asked him to explain the physics of the phenomenon, the best he could have offered was a shrug of ignorance. He still didn't know how it worked, but he'd learned to control the appendage and fly with it over the past month.
Now, he wanted to find Genesis and this was the first place he could think of to look. After much soul-searching, Angeal came to the realization that he no longer belonged in the world of humans. His life was forever changed and according to Genesis, his time was limited. He wasn't sure if he wanted a cure for the deterioration he faced, but he did want to help his old friend. The thought of Gen withering away and dying was enough to convince Angeal not to give up and die himself, just yet.
He walked into town with no visible sign of his mutation, save for the tear in the back of his sweater where his wing emerged. The limb had merged with his body and would not appear again until he allowed it to or stress triggered it to manifest. He passed very few people on his way into town and he frowned, finding the population oddly sparse. Banora had always been a small village, but now it seemed almost like a ghost town. Some faces he recognized from his youth and some were new. When he reached the center of town, a resident recognized him.
"Angeal?" called an old man from one of the market stalls. "Angeal Hewley...Gillian's boy. Is that you?"
Angeal walked over to the fruit and vegetable stall. It took him a moment to recognize the withered old man, having not seen him since his teens. "Mr. Kelley. You're still running this stand? I thought you'd be retired, by now."
"Well, Martha passed away a couple years ago and I don't have much to stay home for," answered the merchant. He looked at the path leading out of the square to the richer part of Banora, where the estates were. "Especially after what happened last month. I see you've got a big old sword and a SOLDIER badge."
Angeal self-consciously touched the tags hanging from his neck. Though he wasn't fit to be a member of SOLDIER anymore, he couldn't bring himself to destroy them. The old man's words sunk in and frowned, getting a bad feeling in his gut.
"What happened here last month?"
The old man frowned at him. "You don't know? I figured that's why you're here! That rich kid you used to hang around with...Rhapsodos? He came through here with a bunch of troops, about three and a half weeks ago. They went straight to his estate and unleashed holy hell there. Killed both his parents and all the help. Anybody that tried to stop them got killed, too. Most folks have moved out of town since then."
Angeal literally felt the color drain from his face and for a moment, he feared he might be sick. He swallowed hard and composed himself, prioritizing his concerns. Genesis had accused Gillian Hewley of lying to Angeal, the way his parents had lied to him. If he was mad enough to kill his own parents...
"My mother? What about her? Did Genesis do anything to her?"
"Gillian's fine," assured Mr. Kelley. "Genesis did stop by her house before he went after his folks, but he never touched her. I couldn't tell you what they talked about."
"Thanks," Angeal sighed, feeling some relief. "Please excuse me, I have to go...home."
"Here," offered the old man, dropping a few random pieces of produce into a sack and handing it over. "You take this to her and make sure she eats."
Angeal took the sack. "Thank you."
~***********************************~

            He wanted to investigate the Rhapsodos home himself, if only to convince himself that his best friend was truly capable of such carnage. He put it off in favor of seeing his mother and finding more answers. He called out for her and as soon as he knocked on the door, it swung open a bit. It was unlocked. Angeal opened it slowly and stuck his head in.
            "Mother? It's Angeal."
            He saw her, then. She was sitting in a rocking chair by the fireplace, knitting something. She looked up and her eyes lit up with joy when she saw his face. She got out of her chair as Angeal came in and she hugged him around the neck immediately, kissing his cheek and whimpering, "My boy!"
            Any resentment he might have felt for her alleged lies faded in the face of a son's love. Angeal dropped the sack of goods on the floor and he hugged her, mindful not to squeeze too tight. She had always been a bit thin but she seemed even more so now.
            "Mother," he murmured against her hair, shutting his eyes.
~**********************************~

            The first thing he did when they both calmed down was to direct her to her seat and kneel before her. He asked her plainly to tell him the truth about his birth, searching her eyes as he promised not to turn from her, no matter what he found out.
            "I need to know, Mother. Is Hollander my biological father?"
            Gillian's eyes filled with tears and she nodded, twisting her thin fingers together in her lap. "I'm so sorry, Angeal. All these years, I've wanted to tell you, but I wanted you to have as normal a life as you could! When they came into town recruiting for SOLDIER, I knew I would lose you. I knew you'd learn the truth some day, and that you would hate me for it."
            Angeal shook his head and took her fragile hands in his. "Don't. I could never hate you, okay? It's just very important for me to know the truth about where I came from. Something has happened to me that...that..."
            She pulled one of her hands out of his grip and caressed his face. "What is it, sweetheart? Have you been sick? Did they do something else to you?"
            It was so close to the mark that Angeal was staggered. He gently released her hand and stood up, having misgivings about what he planned to do, but needing her to understand how serious things were.
            "I don't know what they did to me," he said truthfully, "but it wasn't standard procedure and I was already...different...before I joined the military. I never knew just how different, until recently."
            He took a deep breath, braced himself and stepped back to give himself room. He then allowed his wing to come out, accompanied by its smaller companion beneath it. Gillian stared up at him with a slack mouth for a moment, and then she covered her face in her hands and bowed her head. Angeal swallowed a lump in his throat as his mother began to weep softly.
            "I know, I'm a monster," he murmured. "I'll leave for a little while, to give you some time to cope."
            "No," she said, sniffing. She reached out and caught his hand. "Don't go, son. I'm not crying because of the wing...I'm crying because of what it means. Genesis visited me weeks ago, unexpectedly. He also had a wing, you see."
            "I know." The pain in Angeal's heart lessened a little, seeing that his mother wasn't recoiling from him. "He defected and I ran into him in Wutai. He told me some things and that's why I came. I need to know if there was any truth to what he told me."
            "He's beginning to degenerate," whispered Gillian with a sorrowful sigh. "And that means...that means—"
            "I'll probably soon follow," finished Angeal for her, squeezing her hand gently. "It's okay, Mother. I know that part. I'm prepared to deal with it but right now, I need to understand my origins. What did Genesis say to you when he came here?"
            She took a shaken breath and she wiped her eyes with her free hand. "Not that much, to be honest. He was very polite. He told me to say 'hello' to you when I saw you...as if he knew you would come. He told me to tell you he'll wait for you in the warehouse, just outside of town. He also said I did the right thing, not giving you up. He said he wished his parents had done the same. I tried to talk to him about that, but he refused to listen and he left."
            Angeal bowed his head. So, that was it. Genesis felt abandoned...betrayed by his biological parents. Living in the lap of luxury was meaningless to a man like him, if he didn't know where he came from. "He killed them," Angeal whispered, raising his eyes to look at his mother again. "He killed the people who raised him. Maybe they weren't his biological parents, but—"
            "They were his real parents," interrupted Gillian softly. "His information was wrong, son."
            Angeal was beyond the point of feeling more shock than he'd already experienced. He sighed heavily and dragged his fingers through his hair. "How did he get information that he was adopted, then?"
            "It was a cover-up," answered Gillian, "Just like my story about your father was a cover-up. You were both meant to grow up believing you were adopted, but I didn't see the point in feeding you that lie. The truth is, I used to work for Dr. Hollander. I agreed to be his test subject in an experiment. He named it 'Project G', after the first letter of my name. The Rhapsodos' couple was also involved in the experiment. When Genesis was born, Hollander declared him a failure. The cellular fusion was imperfect and that's why he's degenerating now."
            Angeal furrowed his brow. "I feel like I don't know you at all."
            Gillian bowed her head. "I was a different woman, back then. Angeal, listen to me. You have to convince your friend to stop this. Genesis is sick and he needs help. Whatever Hollander has told him is a lie. Science is all that matters to that man."
            "How did we end up here, in Banora?" Demanded Angeal.
            "The Rhapsodos family was paid a large sum of money and given an estate here," answered Gillian, "in exchange for their contractual silence. They agreed to put it on public record that their son was adopted, so that they could raise him themselves."
            "And you? You said Hollander is my father. Did the two of you..." Angeal didn't finish, grimacing despite himself at the thought.
            "No," Gillian answered, smiling a little. "It was purely professional, Angeal. My egg was blended with his sperm in a Petri dish and I was inseminated. There was no touching involved, so there's no need to look so disgusted."
            Angeal managed a faint smile. "I'm sorry."
            She reached out and smoothed a lock of hair away from his eye. "Sons don't like to think of their mothers having relations. I understand that."
            He bowed his head and lifted her gnarled hand to his lips, kissing the top of it. "Why didn't they make you give me up, or claim I was adopted? Why didn't they set you up the way they did Gen's family?"
            "Because I was much more stubborn than they were," answered Gillian dryly. "I refused to give you up and as I said before, I refused to pretend you weren't my birth son. I agreed on three terms. It was the best I could do, if I didn't want you taken from me by force."
            Angeal frowned. "What were the terms?"
            "The first was that I raise you here, in Banora," answered his mother. "The project was shut down, you see, because Professor Hojo's 'Project S' was considered a greater success. Still, they wanted to keep an eye on both you and Genesis, for future possibilities."
            Angeal shivered at the mention of Project S, guessing that it had something to do with Sephiroth. "Go on, Mother."
            "The second condition was that you never be told the identity of your biological father. I had no problem with that, actually. By the time you were born, I was swimming with guilt and I had no respect for Dr. Hollander."
            It was of some small comfort to him to know that his mother didn't just see him as an experiment, while he was growing in her womb. "It's over now. What was the third condition?"
            She sighed. "That you would one day join the SOLDIER program, if you grew to the potential Hollander expected of you. I would never have tried to force you, but you were so eager to become a champion for your fellow man, I never had to even consider it. I was never given the benefits the Rhapsodos family was granted because I turned down their initial offer. They sent a pittance every second month, but I was determined to raise you with as little help from ShinRa as possible. I'm sorry for that, son. You could have had a better childhood if I'd swallowed my pride and lived the lie they wanted me to live."
            Angeal lowered his eyes. "My childhood was fine, Mother. Even though we never had money, I never really felt 'poor'. I'm glad I grew up knowing you're my true mother."
            She cupped his face in her hands and stared up at him, as if memorizing his features. "I couldn't have asked for a better son. Can you forgive me?"
            "I can," he answered readily, unable to find it in his heart to refuse. "I know you didn't do any of it to hurt me."
~*********************************~

            Angeal cooked a pot of stew using the chicken legs he found in the freezer and the fresh produce he'd been given by Mr. Kelley. When he found out the meat came from him as well, he tried to lighten the tragedy of the situation by teasingly telling his mother that he thought the merchant was sweet on her. She chuckled and informed him he was just imagining things, and she was too old for romance.
            They ate together and Angeal washed up, put away the leftovers and gave her a kiss on the forehead as she sat down in her favorite rocking chair.
            "I'm going to speak with Genesis," murmured Angeal. "Maybe if I tell him what you've told me, he'll reconsider his actions."
            "What if he won't?" pressed Gillian, worried for he son.
            "Then I'll have to keep trying," insisted Angeal.
He stood up and turned away from her, walking toward the door. When she noticed that he wasn't taking the Buster Sword leaning against the wall, she called out to him. "Angeal, please don't go to that place unarmed. I know Genesis is your friend, but he's very unstable."
Angeal didn't pause or stop. "He won't hurt me, Mother. He could have killed you, but he didn't. I need to show him I'm not interested in a fight. I'll be back for the sword later, so please, take good care of it for me."
Gillian watched her son go and when he shut the door behind him, she sighed and looked at the Buster Sword. "I hope you're right, son. Thank you for forgiving me, even though I can't forgive myself."
~************************************~

            Zack was called into Lazard's office while in the middle of eating his dinner. He was surprised to find Sephiroth in there as well and he immediately perked up, thinking this could mean they'd found Angeal.
            "What's going on?"
            Lazard was rubbing his forehead and he looked up at the two Soldiers from the paperwork on his desk. "I need to dispatch someone trustworthy to investigate Banora."
            Zack felt even more hopeful. "That's where Angeal and Genesis grew up, right?"
            Lazard nodded. "That is correct. The company has decided that they're too much of a liability. There have been reports of sightings there and—"
            "Find someone else," Sephiroth interrupted.
            Lazard frowned at him. "Excuse me?"
            "I said; find someone else," answered Sephiroth. He crossed his arms over his chest. "You're about to ask us to assassinate them. I won't do it."
            Lazard sighed and looked at Zack, parting his lips to say something. The brunet looked between Sephiroth and the director incredulously. "What...you think I'll do it? You're both nuts!"
            "If the both of you would let me finish," Lazard said with annoyance as he stood up and placed both of his gloved hands flat on his desk, "there has been a major incident in Banora. Genesis reportedly showed up in town and he slaughtered his parents and everyone else in their home. Evidence suggests he's made a base of the warehouse, on the outskirts of the village. This is going to raise far too many questions, and the company intends to eliminate all evidence of the event."
            "How are they going to do that?" Zack asked.
            At the same time, Sephiroth asked a rather peculiar question. "Where is Dr. Hollander, Director?"
            Zack forgot his question for a moment and he stared at Sephiroth in open perplexity. "What the hell does some doctor have to do with—"
            "Answer the question, Director," Sephiroth said, narrowing his eyes on Lazard.
            For a moment, Lazard looked flustered—probably because he didn't understand why Sephiroth wanted to know the doctor's location, either. "We don't know. His last known location was—"
            "Wutai," finished Sephiroth for him, nodding. "Around the same time Genesis went missing, correct?"
            "Yes. The timing and location is suspicious, I know, but what would Rhapsodos and Hollander be doing together?"
            "Conspiring," answered Sephiroth. "Hollander has always resented Hojo for being made head of the department after Gast disappeared. He's worked on both Genesis and Angeal before in the lab. You never considered any of this?"
            Zack was more worried about the order to execute Angeal and Genesis, but he had to admit Sephiroth's query on Hollander was interesting. "You think Hollander convinced Genesis to defect?"
            Sephiroth glanced at him. "Try convincing Genesis to do anything he doesn't want, Zackary. No, I think they reached a mutual agreement and Hollander has something to do with those copies we found in Wutai. Does that fit to you, Director?"
            "Whether Hollander is working with Genesis or not, he hasn't been spotted," replied Lazard firmly. "The issue now is the carnage in Banora and how quickly the news is going to spread that a renegade SOLDIER operative came into town and murdered his own parents. I'm sure you can imagine the effect this will have on this organization's reputation, Sephiroth. We're thinned out enough as it is, without our recruitment ratio dropping too."
            "Send Zack to deal with Banora," insisted Sephiroth. "I believe there's a diplomatic mission to Wutai that you need someone to volunteer for. I can take care of that."
            "Wait a minute," protested Zack, "I can't fight Angeal either and I don't know Genesis that well, but he's Ange's best friend! Why is Angeal being blamed for this anyway? Genesis did all of it."
            "As you just said," Lazard answered him, "Hewley is Rhapsodos' best friend. He deserted the same night you found the Genesis copies in Wutai. He's obviously helping Genesis, even if he isn't guilty of raising a sword against any civilians himself."
            "Well, I'm not going to fight him."
            "That isn't why you're going," Sephiroth said, before Lazard could answer. "Director, I assume that if Hewley and Rhapsodos give themselves up, the execution order will be lifted?"
            Lazard nodded. "Yes. That was what I was trying to tell you both before, but you chose to go off on a rant about Hollander, instead."
            Sephiroth looked to Zack in satisfaction. "You have a way of getting people to talk to you, Zack. If you can convince Angeal, Genesis may follow. Nobody can force you to raise your sword against either of them...remember that."
            "If his diplomacy is so fantastic, perhaps he should go on the mission to Wutai," suggested Lazard.
            "He has no political tact," answered Sephiroth seamlessly.
            "That's true, I don't." Zack sighed. "Okay, I'll do it. I sure hope you're right about Angeal listening to me."

~*****************************************~

            When they both left his office, Lazard took a steadying breath and he opened his drawer to retrieve a prepaid cell phone he'd purchased for privacy. He dialed a number he'd memorized, not daring to risk putting it on a contact list. He checked to be sure his office door was securely locked before hitting the "send" button. After a while, someone picked up on the other line and Lazard gave his warning.
            "It's me. Sephiroth is getting suspicious. I've had to dispatch an investigative crew to Banora and Sephiroth refused to take part in it. Zack Fair will be going, instead. My dear brother is sending some Turks along with him. No, I don't know how much he's guessed. Father always said Sephiroth is too brilliant. Lie low and warn our antagonist, if you can."
~*************************************~

            Angeal saw guards stationed around the warehouse and he suspected they were more copies. He approached with his hands behind his head and he made no threatening moves. They didn't even raise their weapons against him. They just let him walk on in, as if they'd been expecting him. One of them even opened the door to one of the buildings for him, indicating that Genesis must be inside. Angeal stepped into the warehouse and the sight of his old friend sitting on a crate, reading his copy of "Loveless", greeted him.
            "Genesis," greeted Angeal, coming to a stop and lowering his arms to the sides.
            The redhead looked up and he shut his book before replacing it in the inner pocket of his jacket. "I wondered when you would come to your senses." He got to his feet and he crossed the room to Angeal, his footsteps echoing in the sparsely supplied room. A crooked, sensual little smile curved his mouth. "You look well."
            Angeal was about to say the same of him. Seeing him smile like that made everything go away, just for a moment. Then he saw something that made him frown. At first, he thought it was just the way the overhead lights shone on Gen's hair, but a more thorough inspection confirmed that there were strands of gray mixing in with the auburn. It wasn't obvious yet, but it would get more pronounced with time.
            "So you've noticed," observed Genesis. He ran a gloved hand over his hair and sighed. "The color goes first. On the plus side, there hasn't been any weakness, yet. Observing the copies taught me not to expect that until the end."
            Angeal remembered his purpose for coming. "Genesis, you have to stop this. You've killed innocent people. This isn't who you are."
            "Then who am I?" challenged the redhead. He began to pace and his gaze pinned Angeal to the spot. "Who am I, if not a label they put on me? The goddess has blessed us with a way to fight our fate, Angeal. We don't fit in our old lives, any longer."
            "No, we don't," agreed the bigger man. He closed the distance between the two of them and he put his hands on Genesis' shoulders. "I can't live the way I used to and neither can you. I know that, now. It doesn't mean we have the right to dishonor ourselves by turning on the people we used to call friends."
            Genesis pulled away, scowling. "I have no intention of drawing on Sephiroth—unless he forces me to. As for your puppy, I'll leave him alone as well. The company, however, must die. ShinRa must go down, if you and I are to live. You understand that, don't you?"
            "And how did killing your parents fit into that?" demanded Angeal harshly, hoping to shock some sense into him. "Did it help Hollander's research at all for you to cut them open?"
            "They betrayed me!" Genesis yelled, losing his temper. His eyes glittered wildly and his wing manifested in his anxiety. "They lied to me my entire life and my true parents allowed ShinRa to use me...to make me this...monster!"
            Angeal shook his head, feeling both pity and empathy. "Genesis, there are things you don't understand. The records you found weren't entirely accurate and Hollander can't be trusted. My mother explained everything to me and—"
            "Because she couldn't get away with lying to you anymore," insisted Genesis. "I left her no choice! I knew you would go to her to confirm the things I told you and I knew you would join me once you heard it all from her."
            In a macabre way, it was just like childhood again. Genesis was ever the know-it-all. Losing patience with his smug self-assurance, Angeal came out with the brutal truth that he knew would get the redhead's attention.
            "Did you also know that those people you slaughtered were actually your real parents?"
            Genesis stared at him as if he was the crazy one. "You're full of shit, Hewley. I don't know why you're trying so hard to stall me, but I know the truth."
            "No, you don't," insisted Angeal. "Your father never 'inherited' that estate, anymore than my father was a fisherman who died at sea. Both of your parents were involved in Project G, just like my mother. The research department paid them off and set them up with that land in exchange for their silence."
            "I have a fucking copy of the adoption papers," Genesis snapped in exasperation. "Your mother was either lying or relaying false information to you!"
            "No," answered Angeal. "Those adoption papers were falsified, Genesis. That was part of the deal. You and I were never supposed to know who our real parents were or the circumstances surrounding our conception and birth."
            "Then how is it you ended up knowing who your real mother was, if this is true?"
            "She refused to go along with the adoption lie," answered Angeal.
He explained the rest as he'd been told and he was both relieved and saddened to see the comprehension dawning in Genesis' eyes as he explained. He pressed on and when he finished, he suffered for the pain he saw lurking beneath Gen's eyes.
"My mother will tell you this herself," promised Angeal. "And if you don't believe her, we can interrogate Hollander. He was head of the project and he knows the truth, whether he's been giving it to you or not. Just don't trust him, Genesis. He has his own agenda and I'm sure it isn't to cure either of us."
"He's the one that enabled the genetic transfer," Genesis murmured, looking toward the door. "Hollander worked with me to make those men into copies."
Angeal laid a comforting hand on Genesis' shoulder. "He convinced you to infect your fellow Soldiers and turn them into puppets. I know that you wouldn't have—"
Genesis suddenly shoved Angeal away from him, making him stumble. "You don't know anything, Angeal. Stop trying to excuse my actions! I chose them myself, not Hollander."
"You buried your parents," reasoned Angeal. "I saw the graves by the estate entrance, Genesis. I saw your markings on them."
"What the hell does that have to do with anything?"
Angeal's sympathetic expression didn't change. "If you didn't care at all for them, you wouldn't have bothered. You can come back from this, Genesis."
The redhead looked away, his eyes glistening tellingly. "You always were a fool with romantic notions, Hewley. There's no 'coming back'. I buried them because even liars and betrayers deserve a decent burial."
"I don't believe that's why you did it," insisted the big man stubbornly. He reached out and stroked Genesis' hair, half-expecting him to pull away or shove him. "And neither do you."
Genesis raised a gloved hand and to Angeal's surprise, he settled it over the one stroking his hair. He parted his lips to speak but the tune of a cellular phone interrupted him. Angeal took his hand away reluctantly as Genesis dug what appeared to be a cheap, pre-paid phone out of his pocket and put it to his ear.
"Yes? Hollander. How...convenient."
Genesis met Angeal's eyes and the big man could have groaned. He could see trouble brewing in that gaze and he had no idea who would be on the receiving end of it. Genesis began to pace again as he listened to the doctor on the other end.
"Interesting. Not very surprising, but interesting. No, you stay put. I want you where I can find you. I have Angeal. Yes."
Genesis looked at Angeal again and the brunet felt like he was staring into his soul.
"He's always 'on my side', doctor. You can be assured of that. I wouldn't worry...it's nothing we can't handle. I'll contact you when I've decided on our next move."
Genesis hung up the phone and replaced it before sighing and regarding Angeal with guarded eyes. "Our contact at ShinRa has issued a warning to Hollander. Sephiroth is starting to suspect something. You and I both know it won't take him long to discover the truth, if he insists on pursuing it."
Angeal almost felt relief at that notion. "And what does this contact think Sephiroth is going to do?" He didn't bother asking who the contact was, knowing that Gen wouldn't tell him until he was good and ready to.
Genesis shrugged. "They didn't say. What they did say was that an investigation team starring your puppy is being sent here. I suspect their orders are to shoot on sight, if they've heard about my little homecoming."
Before Angeal could respond to that, Genesis gestured at the door. "Go, Angeal. Your hands are still clean and I'd rather not be the one to stain them."
"I'm not running away," Angeal said with a frown. "If Zack is with them, maybe an agreement can be reached."
"Maybe your pupil will want to negotiate," reasoned Genesis, "but the others won't. He'll have Turks with him and you can bet your muscular ass that their orders don't include bringing us in alive."
Angeal was a little thrown by the reference to his "muscular ass" and he flushed. "Then we avoid the Turks. I thought you didn't want to fight Zack, anyway?"
"Not unless he gets in my way," agreed Genesis, "but you must understand, Angeal...you and I aren't part of their world anymore."
"That doesn't mean we have to be at war with it," reasoned Angeal.
Genesis seemed to waver. "I want those responsible for this to be punished."
"Then save it for the ones who deserve it," urged the bigger man. "And remember, one of them claims to be 'helping' you."
Genesis stared at him for several heartbeats. Finally, his mouth curved into a subtle, tired smirk. "Only you could make me rethink my course, Hewley."
~*************************************~

-To be continued
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Darkened Skies