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The Path to Redemption	By : Nakkinomiko Category: Final Fantasy VII > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 1095 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don’t own Final Fantasy VII or any of its characters. SquareEnix does. I make no money from this…I just like to play with them.

Chapter List
- 19
- 20
- 21
Disclaimer: I don’t own Final Fantasy VII or any of its characters. SquareEnix does. I make no money from this…I just like to play with them.
A/N: Ah, we’re so close to the end of this one! No real warnings for this one, outside of violence and Jenova tentacles. :P Kayla, I’m so happy you are enjoying this story! More fun and surprises in this chapter. Muci, I’m sorry, but no Zack in this story! Out of curiosity, what is your favorite Zack pairing?
On with the chapter!
*****
Chapter 20
He watched as the vaguely female-shaped creature moved through the shadows of Midgar. It was surprisingly small, but he knew better than to judge the potential danger by her size alone. She had been snapping up small animals as she went. Rats and un-suspecting alley cats were captured with slime coated tentacles and quickly absorbed into the main body, and yet she grew no bigger. He knew she had the potential to do so, if she wanted--he was willing to bet that the human sized thing stalking the alley had a massive density and probably weighed a ton. She had even managed to capture a homeless man, and he’d been absorbed just as quickly as the stray dog she had nabbed a block earlier. It had taken all of his will power to not give himself away and rescue the man, but it would have been suicide to reveal himself and his companion now. She would want them, more than she wanted the cat she was currently stalking. He felt a sneer pull at the corner of his lips. He could not believe that he had ever thought of this creature as his mother! He knew better now, and he would never go back to being her puppet.
There was a sudden cracking sound, and the unfortunate cat was captured and absorbed before it could even cry out. He had a good view from the roof-top, and his lips curled in distaste as he watched the small furry body engulfed by pulsating flesh.
“Disgusting,” his companion whispered. “She’s moving again.”
“Yes, and headed for the hospital, no doubt. We’ll follow and keep watching from a distance.”
“Yazoo, we should try to stop her.”
Yazoo glanced sideways at his brother and shook his head. “We can’t, and you know it. We can’t risk her touching us. Think about it, Loz. If she gets either of us in her clutches the nightmare will start all over again. Is that what you want?”
Loz made a frustrated sound but shook his head. “She’s going after Kadaj.”
“Of course she is,” Yazoo murmured. “I daresay the President is ready for her. He has to know by now. That nurse would have run directly to him, and you and I both know Rufus will not take it lying down.”
Loz chuckled. “Especially not where Kadaj is concerned.”
“Indeed,” Yazoo replied. Unbeknownst to Kadaj, he and Loz had been watching. They had watched as Cloud had carried him off the field after their battle, and they had watched as Rufus had made Kadaj his personal responsibility. They had seen Rufus kiss their brother more than once, and Kadaj had returned those kisses with enthusiasm. It was more than a little obvious that the two were completely lost in one another.
“There goes another rat,” Loz hissed, his tone one of loathing.
“Come on,” Yazoo whispered. “We need to get ahead of her and make sure there isn’t anyone in her way. I can’t watch her kill another human being.”
“Me either,” Loz confessed.
They moved silently and quickly, from rooftop to rooftop, until they were a good three blocks ahead of her. They saw nothing but more stray animals, and Loz scared a few alley cats away with a few well-aimed rocks just moments before the mutated beast turned the corner. It hissed displeasure at finding nothing and moved on.
“Bitch,” Loz murmured under his breath. “We need to get to the hospital before she does.”
“Agreed.” Yazoo paused and looked at his eldest brother. “Loz, let’s make a pact.”
Loz raised a questioning brow.
“No matter what, we will not let Kadaj, or anyone he loves, fall into that beast’s clutches. He’s been through enough, don’t you think?”
Loz gave Yazoo a lopsided smile and nodded. “Yeah, he has.” He glanced down at the street and frowned. “She’s moving faster. Let’s go.”
Yazoo nodded and leapt to the next roof. The hospital was only half a dozen blocks away now, and Yazoo found himself praying that Rufus Shinra and his friends were ready for what was coming their way.
*****
Tseng tried not to fidget, but it was difficult not to. He and Elena had been sent down to watch the front entrance of the hospital the moment they’d returned from inoculating the city’s water supply, and that had been nearly two hours ago. The others were still on the third floor, gathered in the waiting room there and waiting. Most of that floor had been evacuated, and the elevator had been rigged to stop on no other floors but the third, and the stairwells were locked down. The only thing Jenova would find when she arrived at the hospital was a one-way ticket to the third floor, and when she arrived, she would be met with extreme prejudice.
“You okay?” Elena asked.
“I’m fine,” Tseng replied. He reached out to touch her hair before turning his attention back to the window before him. “I just want to get this over with.”
Elena shoved a dart home and cocked the tranquilizer rifle she had been cleaning a moment ago. The dart--and the dozen and a half others contained in the case at her feet--was loaded with the Jenova vaccine.
“You and me both, Chief,” Elena said. “I want that bitch out of all our lives for good.”
“As do I.” Tseng wished to all the gods that he were somewhere that allowed smoking. Even though he’d quit nearly ten years ago, he felt the sudden need for a cigarette. The last time he’d felt like this had been the night of the Nibelheim incident. He had no illusions that the next few hours were going to be anywhere near easy. Tseng had done battle with Jenova spawn before, and while he was sure they were going to beat her, he knew it wouldn’t be without casualties.
He didn’t turn when he heard the elevator ding behind him. He listened to the footsteps approach behind them, and a moment later he caught a reflection of white hair and black leather in the glass. He fought the urge to tense defensively, but his body remembered the abuse all too well, and regardless of the fact that he knew Kadaj wouldn’t hurt him again, he couldn’t quite relax.
“Any sign yet?”
Tseng glanced sideways at Kadaj, and immediately forgot his own discomfort. Even though Kadaj didn’t sound afraid, the fear was in his expression as he gazed out at the street, and Tseng thought he could detect a slight tremor in the leather-clad form. The kid was petrified.
“No,” Tseng replied. “Everyone else had their shots?”
“Yes,” Kadaj murmured. “Sephiroth was the last.”
Tseng swallowed the sigh of relief that wanted to leave him. He refused to think about what would have happened had Sephiroth chosen to return to Jenova’s side. It was a moot point now--thank the Planet!
“Kadaj, are you okay?” Elena asked.
“I think so,” he replied, and he tried to smile for her. “I will be happy, when this is over.”
“We’re not going to let her hurt you,” Elena said. She reached out to brush a silver strand of hair out of Kadaj’s eyes. “You know that, right?”
The smile Kadaj gave her was wry. “It’s nice of you to say, Elena, but we all know that when it comes down to it, I will have to fight her. I, Cloud and Sephiroth are the only ones strong enough to take her on.” He spoke with words without an ounce of arrogance and with a stark finality that made Tseng want to reach out and hug the kid hard.
“Well, the three of you will not face her alone,” Tseng said.
Kadaj’s smile was fleeting. “Safety in numbers?”
“Something like that,” Elena said with a chuckle.
They all jumped when Tseng’s cell phone rang shrilly.
“Shit, you should turn that down!” Elena exclaimed with a nervous laugh.
Tseng acknowledged the statement with a nod before answering the phone. “This is Tseng.”
“This is Reno. Heads up, boss. She’s here.”
Tseng cursed and peered out the window at the street. “Where?” he barked into the phone.
“About two o’clock from your vantage point. Just came out of an alley. Look hard, Tseng. You can’t miss her.”
Kadaj made a strangled sound next to him, and his wide eyes seemed to be fixated on something across the street. Tseng snapped his head around to look again, and hissed softly as he spotted their foe. Yes, vaguely human shaped, and vaguely female, but it definitely was not human in any sense of the word. It seemed to glide across the ground, not unlike a slug, and instead of arms it had elongated tentacles. Even as Tseng watched, one of the appendages snapped out like a whip and captured what looked like small dog, but Tseng couldn’t be sure at that distance. What he could be sure of was the fact that the hapless creature was almost instantly absorbed by the greenish-yellow flesh that made up the creature.
“I see her,” Tseng said, grimly.
“Ugly bitch, isn’t she?” Elena said. She shouldered the rifle and backed away from the door.
“Sit tight,” Tseng ordered Reno. He glanced at Kadaj. “Kadaj, are you ready?”
Kadaj said nothing, but he nodded sharply.
“Let her get a glimpse of you, and then up the first elevator, got it?” Tseng said. “And straight to where Cloud is waiting. No heroics!”
“Got it,” Kadaj said. He swallowed hard. “And just for the record, I don’t really want to do this.”
Tseng cracked a quick smile. “Duly noted, kid. Now go!”
Kadaj went to the rotating glass doors at the front of the lobby and stepped through one. Tseng watched the creature crawling towards the hospital, and knew the exact moment she spotted Kadaj. Jenova seemed to pause for a moment, and Tseng swore he could see her dark eyes narrow slightly before the creature resumed its beeline for the hospital, and this time at a much faster rate.
“Hide, now.” Tseng commanded Elena as he went for his own hiding spot. “Be ready to hit her with a dart just before she gets on the elevator.”
“Yes, sir.” Elena hid herself behind the security counter, and Tseng walked into the nearby men’s room, killed the lights, and opened the door just a crack so he could peer out into the lobby.
Kadaj came striding back into the lobby, and headed straight for the elevator. He watched as the kid hit the up button, and then pause half in and half out of the elevator. Tseng shifted his position slightly so he could see the front of the room again, and when Jenova’s form appeared on the other side of the glass, he heard the elevator chime softly as Kadaj took it to the third floor.
Tseng started when the sound of shattering glass filled the air.
“Shit!” he hissed as he watched Jenova literally walk through the front doors. His eyes darted to where Elena was hiding, but there was no movement, and as far as he could tell, the shattered glass did not reach that far. The creature hissed as it moved through the lobby towards the elevators, and a moment later the second elevator chimed its arrival. Tseng opened the door further and stepped out of his hiding place even as Elena was doing the same.
Jenova was getting onto the elevator, and Elena took aim. The elevator doors started to close, and Elena took her shot. The dart hit home just a split second before the elevator doors slid completely shut. Tseng smiled grimly at the shrill scream he heard come from behind the doors and lifted the phone to his ear again. Reno was still on the other end.
“She’s all yours.”
*****
Jenova came out of the elevator on the third floor still shrieking in pain and anger. Kadaj smiled grimly as he noted the spot just below her right shoulder that, as he watched, swelled and broke out in weeping rashes. She was so caught up in the pain that she seemed to have forgotten her purpose for being there in the first place.
“Over here,” Kadaj called. He stood down the hall about thirty feet, and as soon as she started to give chase, he would lead her down a connecting hall and towards where the others were waiting.
Jenova ceased her wailing, and Kadaj found himself speared with a dark, inhuman gaze. Her eyes were completely liquid black, and her lips curled in a slight smile.
“My son,” she hissed.
Kadaj swallowed the fear rising in his throat and forced himself to answer. “That’s right, Mother, I am here.” He backed up a few steps, and she started to slowly follow.
“You were always my favorite,” she crooned.
Kadaj did not let the sneer reach his lips. Favorite son, indeed! As if he didn‘t know the tune she‘d be singing when Sephiroth was revealed to her!
“I know,” he said, and somehow managed to keep the disdain from his voice. He backed away another step.
“Come to me, Kadaj.” She opened her tentacle arms wide. “Come to me, my son.”
Kadaj shook his head slightly. “But I want to show you something, Mother.” He forced himself to sound like the simpering fool he’d once been with her, when he had believed he meant something to her. “Please let me show you.”
“Whatever it is, it can wait,” she said. There was a touch of impatience in her voice, and it made Kadaj angry. She only wanted him because she thought she could bring Sephiroth back if she had him. It was all so clear to him now--Jenova had only used him and his brothers, and she wanted Sephiroth only because she believed he was the only being that could win the planet for her. She wanted only death and destruction, and Kadaj had seen enough of that for several lifetimes!
“But I think you’ll like it, Mother,” Kadaj said with a forced whine. He backed up a few more steps. “Please? Let me show you . . .”
“And what would possibly be more important than you, my son?” Her voice was liquid silk, all promise and false hope.
But Kadaj knew better now, and he had a family that he was willing to fight for . . .to die for, if need be. He thought of Rufus, and the way the man treated him. That was love--unselfish and unconditional. What Jenova offered was a twisted parody of what he’d received from Rufus, Sephiroth, and the others. He would never go back. Never.
“You have to come see, Mother. I want to surprise you!” He was at the mouth of a connecting hall now, and it was time to lead her down it. “Follow me, Mother!”
Jenova hissed in displeasure as he ran down the hall, but he heard her following. He ran until he reached the archway that opened into the waiting room, and stopped. Cloud stood there, armed and waiting. He met Cloud’s azure gaze and nodded.
“She’s coming,” he said, breathless.
“I can hear,” Cloud said. His lips twitched with a smirk. “You had best come in here and draw that sword. I can’t imagine she’s going to be very happy when she realizes what you’ve done.”
Kadaj drew his double-edged blade and stepped into the room. The rest of their party--including the two children--had been moved across the hall, into Sephiroth’s room. The waiting room was the only room on the floor big enough to accommodate a real battle, and the whole back wall was nothing but plate glass windows that overlooked the hospital’s front entrance. If they needed to, they could take the fight outside. They planned to keep Sephiroth out of the fight completely, if possible, because the knowledge of his existence would make Jenova desperate for a reunion, and everyone knew that a desperate foe was a most dangerous foe.
“Cloud.” Kadaj looked over at the man as they listened to Jenova draw closer. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For not killing me,” Kadaj replied. “For caring, and mostly, for believing in me. Because of your forgiveness I know what happiness is now, and I finally understand why you fought so hard for those you love. If I die here, I will die happy knowing that I have done so to keep those I love safe.”
“Idiot,” Cloud said with a puff of laughter. “You sound just like me two years ago. Do you think your death would make those you love happy?”
Kadaj snapped his mouth shut and just stared at Cloud.
“It won’t,” Cloud said with a wry smile. “What good will it do Rufus if he survives and you do not? I’m telling you, Kadaj, you’ve made Rufus a happy man. I’ve never actually seen him happy before now. I don’t think he’d appreciate your death, no matter how valiant it might be.”
“But . . .”
“But what? Are you so eager to die? Do you honestly think it’s that hopeless?” Cloud shook his head and gave Kadaj a reproachful look. “Have faith in yourself, Kadaj--I do.”
Tears stung at Kadaj’s eyes, and he blinked them away before they could fall.
“She’s here,” Cloud said. “Fight, Kadaj. Fight to live.”
Kadaj nodded, gripped the hilt of his sword more firmly and turned to face the monstrosity that was approaching.
“Here,” Kadaj called as the creature appeared in the doorway. The vaguely humanoid head turned in their direction, and Kadaj steeled his nerves as he watched the inhuman eyes take in the situation. The dark eyes narrowed, and a hiss of definite displeasure escaped its lips.
“I can’t say I’m overly happy to see you, either,” Cloud said darkly.
“You!” Jenova hissed again. “You killed my beloved son!”
Kadaj allowed himself the sneer this time. “Ah, and now the truth comes out,” he snapped at her. “I was only the means to the end. Right, mother?” He spoke the word with all the acid he could muster and let all the hate and hurt he’d ever felt on account of this creature fill his expression.
“Traitor!” Jenova hissed.
Kadaj found himself laughing. “Oh, you only know the half of it!” Kadaj crowed. “You are doomed this time, Jenova, and there is no escape for you!”
The sudden cracking sound was their only warning. Kadaj and Cloud leapt in opposite directions, and a split second later the floor right where they had been standing exploded in a shower of tiles and plaster as her tentacle attack hit home. Cloud was quick to counter attack, and his buster sword slid through the thick appendage like it was butter.
Jenova hissed sharply, and then began to laugh. “A valiant effort, but to no avail!”
Kadaj swallowed convulsively as he watched the tentacle reattach itself before she pulled it free from the floor. He exchanged an almost panicked look with Cloud.
“She has to have weakness,” was all Cloud said, and the warrior dodged another attack. More plaster rained up from the floor.
“I have no weaknesses,” Jenova hissed. “You will learn that soon enough. I will kill you both! I don’t need you alive for my Reunion!”
“It’s always about him, isn’t it?” Kadaj ground out. “Was I ever anything to you at all?”
Jenova laughed, a mocking, grating sound that proved beyond a doubt that all Cloud and Rufus had ever told him about this creature was true. She was selfish, and only saw others as toys to use as she pleased.
“You are merely a Remnant, Kadaj. How can you possibly believe you were ever important to me?”
“You can shut up, now,” Cloud said flatly.
Jenova’s eyes narrowed. “And you can die.”
Her next series of attacks were so swift they were faster than Kadaj’s eye could follow. He trusted his instincts, and was somehow able to dodge them. Cloud was having a more difficult time of it, and Kadaj realized it was because she was making a greater effort to take him out of commission. Kadaj felt anger rise--she didn’t even consider him a threat, then?
He felt something dangerous rise inside, and when he dodged her next attack, he used his momentum to propel himself off the nearest wall and right inside her defenses. He saw the dark eyes register surprise right before he slashed hard at her. He felt the blade bite, and he landed behind her, and then propelled himself out of her immediate reach. Jenova screamed in outrage, green ichors leaking from the deep slash Kadaj had inflicted in her side.
“Not bad for a Remnant, ne?” Kadaj spat at her.
Cloud made an amused sound at his left. Jenova hissed and turned her attention back to Cloud.
“This is your fault! You’ve turned Kadaj against me, and you killed my beloved son!”
“Twice,” Cloud supplied helpfully.
Jenova screamed and attacked again. Kadaj and Cloud split up as she attacked with both tentacles, and even as she did so, a second set sprouted from her sides.
“That’s not good,” Cloud said flatly.
“No,” Kadaj agreed. He barely dodged the next attack, and felt the air stir near his cheek as the tentacle hissed past him and imbedded itself into the wall behind him. Bits of plaster stung his exposed skin as he sidestepped and then dodged another attack. He leapt over a row of chairs and tucked and rolled. He came up on his feet next to Cloud.
“I will kill you,” Jenova hissed at Cloud. “I will have my revenge!”
She attacked him with all four tentacles, and for a moment, it seemed as if Cloud would dodge this attack as well. But then, the fourth caught him around the ankle midair, and with a whip like motion the tentacle slammed him hard against a nearby wall. Kadaj heard something crack, and then he watched, horrified, as she flung Cloud hard at the plate glass behind them.
The sound of shattering glass was deafening, and Kadaj hardly recognized the scream that tore through the room as his own. Time seemed to slow down as he watched Cloud’s body go through the window and then drop out of view.
“CLOUD!”
*****
TBC
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The Path to Redemption