Good Luck and Goodbye, 5/6 by Lucky_Ladybug (Final Fantasy VII, Ostinato)
Title: Good Luck and Goodbye, chapter five
Author: Lucky_Ladybug/insaneladybug
Theme: #6 - Ostinato
Fandom: Final Fantasy VII
Warnings: Thematic elements, violence, insanity
Disclaimer: The characters are not mine and the story is!
Summary/Comments: The final confrontation.
Cross-posted to ladybug_tales and http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4243414/5/
Notes: Many thanks to Kaze and Lisa for plot help, including Kaze's help with Barret and Cid's first lines in this chapter!
Chapter Five
Meeting and Parting
Angeal's eyes narrowed as he hung up with Zack and Cloud several minutes later. What Zack had told him and the others was a tale of a highly disturbed man, willing to do anything to obtain his goals and considering himself to be in the right no matter who died. Zack was now convinced that this madman had taken Sephiroth. And Angeal could see that it was possible.
So far they had not found anything else at the first house or the surrounding area. It was looking as though the wallet had just not been discovered earlier and had probably dropped when Sephiroth had been dragged from here---if indeed he had been at this location. Some of the police would remain to continue the search, but now it seemed more expedient for Angeal and the others to go to the new addresses Zack had given.
Barret turned away from the scene in frustration. "The police are sayin' that Sephiroth might already be dead," he said.
"What the heck?! He's come out of bigger messes than this!" Cid retorted.
Barret nodded. "Yeah. It took all of us to take him down on Gaia, and that was when he was nuts! Some two-bit crook ain't gonna do him in now."
"I'll feel insulted if he croaks from this!" Cid agreed.
"It sounds like it's more than a 'two-bit' criminal," Vincent inserted, his tone flat.
"Well, whatever," Cid said with an impatient wave of his hand. "Two-bit crooks, terrorists, we can handle 'em!"
Angeal shook his head, moving past them as he headed for the car. "I'm going to the address Zack mentioned that's in the rich neighborhood," he said. "That's not too far from here."
Vincent nodded, moving past Barret and Cid to follow. "Let's try there first. If we don't have any luck, we can call Zack and Cloud." He glanced back to the others. "Are you coming?"
"You think we'd miss the action?" Cid exclaimed, hurrying to catch up.
"You're not goin' anywhere without us!" Barret asserted, following too.
Vincent's tattered cape swirled out behind him as they walked to the car. It had certainly been drawing attention. Cid had ceased to be Yazoo's manager after regaining his memories---though Yazoo had stopped singing as well---but Vincent had opted to keep his occupation as a medical doctor. It had seemed somewhat ironic, to be saving lives instead of taking them---as he had as a Turk---or instead of feeling responsible for Lucrecia's fate, but it was not a bad change. Perhaps it was part of his redemption. At least that was how he chose to see it.
The police who had seen him at the hospital were now undoubtedly confused by this "second life" of his. He had brought along everything he had thought he might need for this venture, including his claw and his gun. He was an intimidating figure if one did not know him---or if those he was encountering were enemies. And the monster they were tracking down now was the very worst kind of nemesis.
Though Vincent did not show it, he was concerned. Sephiroth would cling to life as long as he possibly could. But realistically, he did have his limits. And he needed to be located without further delay.
****
The house they arrived at several moments later was three visible levels and a basement. The porch was small---no more than a slight square area carved out of the area between the garage and a wall of the house. Five steps led up to it, and unlike the other homes, the door was shut. Angeal frowned at this. A break in the pattern was not likely a good sign. But on the other hand, could it mean that Sephiroth would be here?
"We're the first ones here," Vincent noted as they got out of the car. "We shouldn't wait for the police." There were several reasons for that. Of course, if Sephiroth was inside dying, no time could be wasted in finding him. But also, if the madman was there and would happen to reveal the truth of their origins, it would be better for the police not to hear it. And if there were traps inspired by methods from Gaia, they would be able to handle them better than the local police.
Barret was already heading to the porch. "The guy's got a fancy house here," he said. "This ain't much smaller than Sephiroth's place." He reached for the doorknob, turning it. It gave a creaking wail as it slid open.
"And he's still not lockin' the doors," Cid frowned.
Angeal came up behind them, staring into the room beyond. They were facing a parlor, but beyond that was a living room designed the same as the other living rooms. And as they watched, lights throughout the house were beginning to come on, as if by some automatic means.
"This house must be being controlled by a computer," Angeal decided as he stepped onto the marble tile. Quite a few of the more expensive homes in the city were that way, but Sephiroth had never gone along with the concept. Other than the security system, very little in their house was controlled by computers. And no one minded. It was preferable to control the affairs of the house themselves.
"But should the lights all be comin' on like this?" Cid advanced towards the hall, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. "It's more like we've waltzed into some show set up for us."
That was what was concerning Angeal. He looked into a room at the beginning of the hall, raising an eyebrow. It was a den, furnished with plush couches and chairs, thick rugs, and a lit fireplace.
Barret came up behind him. "Is there a reason for that, or is it just to try to creep us out?" he frowned.
Angeal shook his head. Something seemed very wrong about leaving the fireplace unattended---well, besides the obvious safety risks. Barret had a good point. If there was a definite reason, what was it? If they went to put it out, would something explode?
"Let's leave it for now," Barret said, turning away to head down the hall. "The police'll be here soon and they can figure out what to do about it."
That was true; the police had been following close behind. But a frown crossed Angeal's features. It was strange that they were not here yet. Had they been deliberately delayed? Maybe the orchestrator behind all of this wanted Sephiroth's friends and allies to be here alone.
Vincent moved past them to step into the room. "We should put it out," he said, his voice leaving no room for arguments. "Go on ahead and I'll take care of it."
Barret frowned. "Just looks like a waste of time to me," he objected.
"We'll see," was all Vincent would say in reply.
The others went on ahead, searching each room to no avail. When Vincent caught up with them again, he took part in the inspection too. No one was anywhere in the house, at least not on this floor. And the situation did not change when they ascended the stairs to the next floor and resumed the excursion. The house was eerily silent. And the rooms they were peering into up here were also empty. Maybe the madman had escaped again. But if he had, he had probably left a dubious parting gift. Angeal clenched a fist. If only it could be Sephiroth . . . a living Sephiroth. . . .
"Somethin' don't smell right in here," Barret muttered as they met in the corridor after checking the last rooms on the second floor. Then the explanation dawned. "The gas is leakin'!"
Vincent's eyes narrowed just slightly. "We need to find where it is and turn it off," he said. They needed to be able to search the rest of the house. None of them would last long with the gas actually able to be smelled.
"If we can smell it, we're liable to keel over at any time," Cid remarked, turning to head for the stairs. "It's a good thing you shut off that fire, Vince."
Vincent grunted in agreement.
Angeal hated to follow them. Maybe the third floor would be where Sephiroth was, and he was laying helpless as he was being killed by the gas leak. But it would not do any good if all of them were incapacitated or killed as well. They needed to shut it off first and then come back to continue looking for Sephiroth. Quickly Angeal hurried after Cid and the others as they made their way down the stairs.
They were just barely out of the house and preparing to look for the gas meter when Vincent stiffened. "There's no time!" he said, his voice rough and filled with urgency. "We have to get off the property right now!"
No one questioned him. Angeal felt his stomach twist as they ran for the car. Was there another fireplace in the house that was also lit, and the fumes were about to reach it? Was that why the one they had found had been ablaze---because the gas leak had been planned?
The force of the explosion sent everyone flying. Angeal tumbled over the hood of the car, slamming onto the pavement. Somewhere nearby, Barret gave a loud curse as he also crashed. Cid and Vincent rolled in opposite directions.
Angeal looked up, staring in the direction of the home from which they had just fled. Now it was unable to be seen through the blazing inferno. The sight of the flames seared into his mind. Suddenly he felt sick, and not because of the spill. He barely even heard the police yelling around him as they arrived.
If Sephiroth had been in there, now he was most likely dead.
****
It took nearly two hours to reach the manor near the mountains---one hour for the normal drive to the area, and what became close to a second just looking for the house's exact location. By that time both Zack and Cloud were all the more deeply agonized. And it did not help that they had lost the police somewhere along the way and had not been able to contact them or Angeal or anyone else. The cellphone signals this close to the mountains were very unstable, fading in and out at will. At last they were forced to concede defeat.
"Is that it up there?" Cloud asked as they rounded the corner. Up through a row of tall pine trees, a house was visible. Amid its protection, it looked cold and ominous.
"It'd better be!" Zack exclaimed. "Man, talk about 'near' to the mountains. This is pretty much in the mountains!"
He drove along the winding road until the building came into full view. The trees were waving wildly, blown by the wind again. The storm that had been approaching for the past day was now almost here. And the house, with all its lights ablaze, might hold a storm of a different kind.
"It's the place." Zack steered onto the driveway. "There's the address."
Cloud gave a firm nod. "Let's go then."
As Zack parked, both he and Cloud leaped out and ran over to the large porch. They were on their own now, and they were certainly not going to wait for the police or anyone else to catch up to them. They had to find Sephiroth. But what if he was not here and there were no clues as to where to journey next? What would they do? What would there even be to do?
Zack was alert the moment he found that the front door was locked. What reason would there be for such sudden security, unless Seph was inside? He clenched a fist, looking to Cloud. From the blond's expression, he was having similar thoughts.
"We've gotta get in there now!" Zack exclaimed. "There's no sense waiting around for everyone else to get here."
Cloud nodded. "We'll break it in," he said. "On three?"
Zack nodded as well. "Let's go!" he directed.
As he counted, he and Cloud got into position. Then they slammed into the door, using their full body weight in an attempt to weaken it.
Cloud made a face. "It didn't budge."
"It usually takes a few tries," Zack said, struggling to hold in his frustration anyway. "Again!"
The second time they propelled themselves into the door, it groaned. "It's weakening!" Zack exclaimed.
The door began to splinter when they tried for the third time. Cloud surveyed it with an approving nod. They were going to get inside.
By the fourth try it flew open on its hinges, crashing into the wall so hard it left a mark.
Cloud rolled his eyes. "I'm not paying for that," he noted.
"Me either!" Zack smirked. "The guy doesn't deserve it!"
The two friends rushed inside, standing and staring at the spacious entryway. For once, this was a home different from the others in layout. But from somewhere nearby, a clock chimed half-past the hour.
"I'm starting to hate that sound," Cloud muttered.
Zack was already hurrying ahead, peering into the nearest room. He wanted to scream Seph's name at the top of his lungs as they searched, straining to hear some weak and faint reply---or even better, a normal, healthy one. Surely it would not be unwise to call out; the creep probably knew they had come in here.
A loudspeaker crackled. "So now the Shinra dogs are destroying my house!" the hated electronic voice said. "They're so desperate to find their poor, unfortunate friend."
Cloud's eyes narrowed. "He's here, isn't he," he said, looking around for the source of the sound.
"His body may be," was the sneering retort.
Zack stiffened. "It hasn't been twenty-four hours yet!" he cried. Not that he did not think this wretch was capable of lying to them some more, but the thought that they were too late and that Seph was already beyond help was too much to bear. There had to still be time! There had to be! He turned, rushing from the empty room to look in the one across from it. Cloud took the next room.
"I played a little game with him, too, you see," the voice said in delight. "I had him collecting the vials that he would need to purge himself of the illness that plagues him. Or so I told him."
Zack could not control himself. "And they were all poisoned?!" he screamed, the panic rising even more as he ran out of the next vacant room.
A laugh. "No, not really. But he didn't give himself all that he needed. Of course he couldn't have, even if he had tried. You see, I split up the properties of the antidote. He pieced together the clues about combining two of them. But he did not realize he also needed the third property. I didn't give any indication that he did! The two he used kept him alive for a little while and fixed some of the damage, but . . . well, I can't say if it's still the same. He fell unconscious almost as soon as he injected himself."
Zack's eyes blazed as he entered the next room. In each, the voice was just as clear, indicating a speaker in each one. A harsh curse escaped his lips, directed at the demon to whom he was speaking. "You always did think you were guiltless, no matter what you did!" he cried. "Even burning up an orphanage was nothing to you!"
Cloud was chilled by Zack's tone and his words. Zack had tried to keep his composure throughout most of this nightmare. Now he was dangerously close to snapping. When they met the guy in person, there was no telling what Zack might do . . . or try to do, at least. Not that Cloud did not feel the same way. Even though he had not known this person before today, his fury and outrage were close to the breaking point. And for Zack it would be so much worse, having the memories of the previous crimes this madman had committed against humanity.
"And what about Sephiroth?" was the embittered retort. "He destroyed so many places in Wutai."
"He felt awful about it!" Zack burst out. "He never wanted any innocent people to die. And he never thought it was some token of bravery, like you think about what you've done!"
"Once anyone associates with and condones Shinra, then they cease to be innocent! It doesn't matter how old or young they are!"
A retort to that was on Cloud's tongue, but it never fell. As he approached a room at the back, he stiffened, his blue eyes widening in his horror at the sight of a man laying lifeless on the floor. "Sephiroth!" he cried. His legs felt like Jell-O as he ran inside, collapsing on his knees next to his friend. A syringe lay on the floor near him, as if he had dropped it during his fall. His eyes were closed, his expression deeply pained as his hair spread out around him. Was he breathing? It looked like he was, but what if Cloud was just imagining it in his anguished mind?
"Seph!"
Cloud's heart twisted at Zack's agonized cry. In an instant the brunet was running in, crashing to his knees beside the motionless form. He reached out, grabbing Seph's wrist as he searched for a pulse. Then he relaxed just slightly.
"He's alive," he managed to say, a weak grin coming over his features.
Relief spread over Cloud. Then they still had a chance to save him.
He looked over Sephiroth's limp form again as he reached to pick up the syringe. It was a relief that he was wearing clothes, too. After finding both the shirt and the pants, Cloud had wondered if they would find Sephiroth stripped of everything. It didn't seem like it would be beneath the creep to leave him like that.
It looked like his wounds had been taken care of, too. That was somewhat a surprise, but maybe not really, once he thought about it. After all, since the guy had set up all of this, he would want Sephiroth able to participate in his "game" instead of bleeding all over the place. Cloud's stomach twisted as images of what may have happened during the crash flashed through his mind. But he had to force himself to concentrate.
"How will we even give him the rest when we find it?" he frowned, eying the needle. "This thing's been on the floor. We probably wouldn't be able to get it sterilized good enough."
Zack swallowed. "We should probably call an ambulance," he suggested. "There's probably not another needle thing around here."
Cloud nodded, frankly amazed that he could think enough to move at all. "Yeah. But it'd take so long for any ambulance to get up here," he realized. "And would the cellphones even work?"
"They have to," Zack said, the helplessness and anguish all too obvious in his voice. "Or maybe there's a landline phone in here. There has to be something!"
Cloud nodded again. He was still feeling numb, unable to process what was happening. He looked up at the assortment of vials laying on the desk. It looked like Sephiroth had mixed ones that had red and blue marks on them. Then there were two others like that, as well as two greens. Did that mean it was the green that was the rest of the antidote? And how much should they give him? He had probably taken half a vial each of the blue and the red. Would he need the same amount of the green? Or had he even given himself too much of the red and the blue? Suddenly it was all overwhelming.
"Call an ambulance?" the treacherous voice purred now. "Your friend is right, Commander Fair; they'd never get here in time. Isn't Sephiroth's pulse still racing?"
Zack bit down on his lip. Seph's heartbeat was much faster than it should be. It could very well be true, what the guy was saying. But they could try anyway, and meanwhile do everything they could to help Seph. It would be much better if trained medical people could monitor the situation and tell them just how much of the stuff Seph would need. But they could not fully rely on that. Maybe it was even a poison the doctors would have no knowledge of, and with this creep being from Gaia, that was likely. Even on Gaia, the physicians might not know how to deal with it if it was something that this guy or some other terrorist had invented.
"What's more, now that you're in here, all telephone signals are completely blocked! Neither of your cellphones will work! Not that they were doing very well anyway." He sounded particularly delighted about this.
Horror gripped tighter at Zack's heart. He grabbed up his phone. "No Signal" flashed across the screen. And from Cloud's expression, he was having the same experience.
"You are completely on your own!" the voice cackled. "You will have to save Sephiroth by yourselves. Oh! And one more thing. If you're thinking of washing that needle under hot water, you won't be able to. I never had the water fully installed."
Zack gritted his teeth. What could they do now? Even if it took a long time for them to find this place, the police should have come by now. Had the creep done something to delay them? Right now Zack and Cloud really were on their own. And Seph looked so helpless and sick. . . .
"Hey!" Zack exclaimed, looking to Cloud. "Didn't you end up bringing the mini-first aid kit in from the car?"
Cloud blinked. "Yeah," he said slowly, confusion written in his eyes. "Since we didn't know if Sephiroth would have open wounds or something. . . ." But then realization dawned of what Zack meant. "There's sterilization stuff in it!" he declared, moving to pull it out of his pocket.
Zack gave an eager nod. "We'll just have to give our best shot at cleaning it!" he said. "That's our biggest problem with the thing. It'll be okay to reuse it, since it's still for Seph and no one else." The plastic wrapper on the desk was hopefully what the syringe had come in. If it was something that had already been used by someone else. . . . Zack shuddered. He did not want to think of that.
He hated leaving Seph on the floor like this, too. With their first priority being to give him the rest of the antidote, they could not take the time to move him onto the bed. But at least he could be given a little more dignity and comfort. Zack shifted, moving further across the floor until he was above Seph. Gently he reached out, curling his hands under Seph's arms and lifting Seph's upper body until his head and shoulders could be supported by Zack's lap. Seph never made a sound as Zack eased him into position. Instead he was limp and lifeless, like a ragdoll . . . or like that awful dummy thing. It was unbearable. How far gone was he?
Zack touched his hand to Seph's forehead. His temperature was definitely higher than it should be.
"There. That's probably as good as I can get it."
Zack looked over to Cloud, who had been cleaning the syringe all this time. Now he set it on the desk before wiping his hands with another antiseptic pad.
"So it's this green one?" he wondered, picking up one of the containers marked with green. How would they really know? What if the guy was lying and this was poison? What if Sephiroth had injected himself with poison, too? Or what if the stuff he had used was good enough and the green one was just more of the same? Maybe he was unconscious while his body repaired the damage. If he was given anything else, it might be an overdose.
Zack nodded. "I guess so, if that's the only other color there." He laid an arm around Seph's chest for extra support. He abhorred feeling how limp his pal was right now. He wanted Seph to move, to get up, to say something sarcastic. . . . Instead he was just laying here, not even knowing what was going on around him. The rise and fall of his chest was erratic.
"Let's just try a fourth or something to start with," Cloud suggested. "And if it looks like it's going good, we can add some more."
That sounded fine to Zack. He watched as Cloud opened the vessel and filled the syringe with some of the liquid. When it was about a fourth full, he pulled it back and corked the vial. He took a deep breath as he turned to face Zack and Sephiroth.
"Okay," he said at last. "Here goes everything, I guess."
Zack nodded, holding up Seph's arm. Cloud took hold of it as well, pushing the needle into it. Still Sephiroth did not respond or move.
"How long should we wait?" Cloud wondered uncomfortably as he removed the needle a moment later.
"Just a few minutes, probably." Zack reached to feel Seph's pulse again. Was it his imagination, or was it slowing just a bit?
Cloud nodded. He turned to fill the syringe with another fourth, just in case.
"Seph?" Zack said, his voice low and pleading. "Can you hear us?" He took a deep breath. "We're with you, pal---me and Cloud. Angeal's coming, too. Man, I wish we could've got here sooner. . . ." Right now he did not care if the madman was overhearing. He only wished that Seph was capable of hearing.
He gave a weak grin. "Hey, even Vince and Cid and Barret turned out to help find you. They couldn't stand that the guy was treating you like this. . . ."
Cloud knelt where he was, gripping the knees of his pants. He did not feel comfortable speaking to someone laying unconscious, not when he was not alone with the person. It would just make him feel silly. He knew he would just stumble over his words and sound like an idiot, too. He would let Zack do the talking, since Zack actually wanted to . . . and since he was already doing it.
Cloud took up Sephiroth's limp left wrist to search for his pulse rate again. It had definitely come back down, but it was not altogether normal. Taking up the needle for the second time, he injected Sephiroth with a bit more of the liquid.
It seemed an eternity later that Sephiroth stirred, a weak groan escaping from his lips. Zack perked up, his eyes shining with hope.
"Seph?!" he exclaimed.
Green eyes cracked open, glassy and unfocused. Zack had been talking to him, Zack was peering down at him, and it felt as though Zack was supporting him. A confused frown crossed Sephiroth's features. Zack was here? This was not a product of illusion?
His lips parted as he tried to speak. "Zack . . ."
Zack broke into a wide, relieved grin. "You're awake, Seph! Oh wow, you're really awake!"
Sephiroth gave a weak grunt. He remembered something about injecting himself with what he had hoped was the antidote . . . and seeing that disturbing vision. . . . The last thing he had heard before swooning had been the madman's cruel laughter.
And Zack was not the only one with him. He turned his head to the side, trying to focus on Cloud. The blond was setting down the syringe, looking uncomfortable. But there was relief in his eyes and posture, too.
". . . You needed some of the stuff in the green one," he mumbled.
Sephiroth nodded slowly. "I'd wondered if I would," he answered. So he had done all that he could, but he still would have perished if Zack and Cloud had not found him and given him the rest of the antidote. He was not entirely certain what he thought of that. He had wanted to save himself on his own, and to be just fine when he was found. Instead, Zack and Cloud had seen him laying on the floor. On some level, that embarrassed him. But mostly he loathed knowing how they must have felt.
Placing his hands on the floor, he began a shaky attempt to sit up. Zack assisted, easing his hands around to Seph's back as he gently pushed his friend off of his lap.
Sephiroth raised a hand to his forehead. Now he was fully feeling the effects of what it was taking to eliminate the poison. He was immensely weakened. And the headache was rushing behind his eyes and through every part of his brain. All he wanted now was to lay down and rest.
"What happened to Koseki?" he grunted.
Cloud blinked in surprise. "You already knew it was that guy?" he asked.
". . . He was laughing like the madman he is before I lost consciousness," Sephiroth said. "Even through the electronic disguise, I recognized it."
Zack swallowed. "He was talking to us when we came in," he said. "We haven't caught him yet."
"And you won't catch me at all!" his voice crackled over the speaker. "You're welcome to try. And you might want to! At the push of a button I can destroy every one of the homes you've visited. I happen to know there are still police officers and friends of yours at all or most of them."
Sephiroth's eyes narrowed. He had struggled to search every part of the house he could make himself get to. But the third floor, which he knew existed from looking out windows, had been sealed. There must be a secret panel concealing the staircase that led up to it. That was likely where Koseki was hiding, if he was on this property.
"I'm only giving you fifteen minutes, too," Koseki purred. "I'll just place this clock right here by the speaker so you can hear it."
Cloud made a face as the loud ticking filled the room. Fifteen minutes? How would they have any luck in fifteen minutes? And even if they found the guy, he probably had one more cruel surprise planned. Maybe he was going to detonate everything while they watched, helpless, before dying themselves.
Zack was already leaping to his feet. "Okay!" he yelled. "We'll take your challenge, Koseki. But you're gonna regret it." The dark tone in his voice was unmistakable.
Sephiroth reached for him, grabbing at the back of his shirt. "Zack. . . ." He looked up at his friend, hating that he was still sitting on the floor. He would make himself get up somehow, but he would certainly not use Zack as his support unless or until Zack offered it himself.
Zack blinked, looking back at him. Seph's eyes were grim and urgent.
"He must be on the third floor," he said. "I wasn't able to get up there because it was blocked."
Zack considered this, then nodded. "We'll just unblock it!" he vowed, reaching out a hand to help Seph stand.
Sephiroth gripped it, pushing himself off the floor. He wobbled before catching himself, his eyes narrowed in frustration.
Cloud stood by, watching Zack helping Sephiroth get up. He had started to move forward to help when Sephiroth stumbled, but then had stopped when Sephiroth had caught himself. Did Sephiroth know that Cloud had been holding back? Maybe he was still feeling guilty for wondering if Sephiroth had written the note, in spite of what Zack had talked about with him. Maybe he would not be able to feel at peace until he had discussed the matter with Sephiroth. Or maybe he was just worried about catching that nutcase. None of them could have any peace until Koseki was no longer a threat.
Now Zack hesitated. Seph should really rest and not come with them, but on the other hand he hated to leave him behind. There was no telling what might happen if Seph was alone in his condition. Koseki might have something else in mind.
But Seph had his own ideas. "I'm coming with you," he said, his grip growing more firm.
Cloud gave him a worried look. When he spoke, more of an edge came out than he had intended. "You could have died!" he snapped. "We came in and you were laying on the floor. The antidote's still trying to heal you. And now you're going to get up and try to track down this idiot?"
Sephiroth grunted. "I didn't say I would try to fight him. I said I'm coming with you." It angered him that he could not fight Koseki and stop him, but he was aware of his limits. It would only cause more trouble were he to overexert himself.
Not that going up long flights of stairs would not bring that to pass, as well.
Zack gripped Seph's shoulder. "Let's go then," he declared. "Let's bring this guy down and then get home so you can rest!"
Sephiroth grunted, but nodded.
"Thirteen minutes," Koseki purred.
Cloud felt like telling him to shut up. But that was not going to help anything. Instead he narrowed his eyes, making his way to the door. Behind him, Sephiroth and Zack followed. And it sounded like Sephiroth was stumbling again. Cloud looked back.
Sephiroth grabbed the wall in displeasure. "I'm alright," he said.
All of them knew it was not true. But they could not stop to argue. As quickly as they could, they hurried into the hall.
****
Angeal could not help but feel a mixture of panic and hope as he rushed into the house around the same time. The police had indeed been delayed at the place that had exploded, and it looked like they had not yet arrived here, either. He had gotten some story from them about being led on a wild goose chase by either the person or someone working for him. If that was what had happened here, too, was this house also going to explode? And why hadn't Cloud and Zack answered their phones? He wanted to believe it was just because the reception was terrible up here. But when so many horrible things were going wrong, there could be any number of less-encouraging explanations.
He stopped short in the entryway as Zack and Cloud emerged from a room near the back of the hall, supporting Sephiroth between them. Sephiroth looked weak and wobbly and possibly even faint, but he was alive. Angeal ran over to them.
"Sephiroth!" he exclaimed. "Are you alright?" Which was a foolish thing to ask. He knew what Sephiroth would say.
The silver-haired man gave a weary nod. "Yes," he said, moving forward another few steps.
Zack looked to Angeal worriedly. "Long story short, Koseki says we have thirteen minutes to find him or else he'll press a button and blow up all of the other houses---with everybody in them!" he cried.
Angeal's eyes narrowed. "One of them's already in flames," he reported.
Zack took notice of the scratches on Angeal's face and arms. "Are you okay?!" he gasped.
Angeal nodded. "But nevermind that," he said. "Do you have any idea where he is?"
"The third floor," Sephiroth said. "If we can find a way up to it."
By now they were approaching the staircase. Sephiroth reached for the banister, his hand shaking. As he grasped it, he took a step up.
Angeal frowned. "Should you be coming?" he asked.
"No," Sephiroth grunted.
Zack shook his head. "But it wouldn't be safe for him to be somewhere alone, either!" he said. "That creep did poison him!" The anger was slipping into his voice again as he also began to ascend the stairs.
"I received the antidote. I'll be fine." In determination Sephiroth continued making his way up the steps. Cloud hurried on ahead, leaving Zack and Angeal to help Sephiroth if he needed it. His blond bangs slapped against his face as he ran.
Maybe he could find the entrance first and get up there to stop Koseki. But his eyes narrowed. Koseki was not especially large in stature, Zack had said, but he had amazing strength---which was obvious if he had managed to drag Sephiroth anywhere. Not knowing what to expect, Cloud might not be able to defeat him all on his own. But it would even be a help if he could hold the guy off until the others arrived.
He leaped past the final stair, landing on the edge of the second floor. Then he ran down the hall, staring at every inch of the walls and ceiling. Nothing looked out of place. Would the entrance be in one of the rooms? Or would they have to press on the walls to find some secret passage? That would take a lot of time that they just did not have---as further evidenced by the ever ticking clock over the speakers.
He had to think! There was probably some solution to this mystery that he was just overlooking.
The clock. . . .
He whirled around, looking to Sephiroth as he arrived at the landing. "Where's the big clock in this house?" he demanded. "There's been one in every other place we've gone to."
Sephiroth shook his head. "I don't know," he said. "I heard it every fifteen minutes, but I never did see it."
Cloud cursed, running his hands through his hair. "If we could find it, we might find the entrance to the third floor!" he said.
"The next time it chimes will be when we don't have any more time," Angeal frowned.
"Maybe we'll be able to hear it ticking or something through the wall," Zack suggested. "Let's go along pressing up against the wall to see if we can hear anything!"
"That's going to look stupid," Cloud muttered. But he complied. Right now it was about their only chance.
They had gone down nearly the entire corridor when Sephiroth suddenly came to attention. "I can hear something," he declared. He was sagging against the wall more than anything else, and gripping at it in desperation to keep from sinking to the floor.
"Is it the clock?" Angeal asked, looking over at him.
"I think it is," Sephiroth said. He struggled to straighten up, frowning at the blank piece of wall in front of him. "There must be a passageway through here," he mused.
"But where?!" Zack exclaimed as he came over to investigate. "Is it really as simple as moving something?" He flung out his hands, accidentally clipping a painting. It swung back and forth in response, scraping against the wall. In protest, the wall creaked.
"There is something back there!" Zack cried. He gripped the edges of the painting, preparing to take it down from the wall.
"Wait!" Sephiroth said, reaching to grip part of the frame. "The painting may have a clue on how to open the panel so that we don't waste time."
Zack blinked. "Yeah?" He studied the thing. It relied heavily on shadows for effect, showing a silhouetted figure standing at the doorway of a dark passage. The light shining around the figure illuminated a set of stairs leading to a closed door at the top.
"All I'm getting out of it is that there really is a panel here," Zack frowned. "It doesn't look like it says how to get into it!"
Cloud came over, peering at the canvas. "Maybe there's a trigger right here?" he suggested, pointing at the person's left hand. It was resting against part of the wall outside the ominous room.
"But where on the wall is it?!" Zack burst out.
"Right under the painting," Sephiroth said. He reached out, feeling along that part of the wall as Zack lifted the frame. Under his fingers, the wall moved.
"Take it off the hook," Sephiroth directed.
Zack did, swinging the painting around to place it on the floor out of their way. Sephiroth gripped the hook, turning it to the left. The panel slid open.
"Hey!" Zack grinned. "Great detective work, Seph!"
Sephiroth grunted, peering into the space. It was exactly as depicted in the painting, with the empty floor, mysterious staircase, and closed door at the top. Underneath it, a strip of light could be seen shining through.
Well . . . there was one item in the room, he surmised as he leaned in further. The grandfather clock was ticking away to his left, mostly hidden in the shadows.
He regarded it in annoyance. How he had been able to hear it all over the house was another mystery, unless it had been fitted with a speaker as well. Slowly he made his way inside the room, gripping the edge of the wall for balance.
"Let's go," Angeal said, stepping into the room as Sephiroth entered. "I don't know how much time we have left, but it can't be much."
"I lost track myself," Zack said, hurrying in but looking over to Seph. His lavender eyes were wide and filled with his worry and concern.
Sephiroth shook his head. "I'm fine," he said. "Don't try to help me; just get up there. I'll follow."
"But there's not even a banister!" Zack protested.
Angeal was already at the top. He turned the doorknob, his eyes narrowing as the door slipped open. He had half-expected it to be locked. Beyond it, he could see a large room filled with monitors, all depicting different parts of the house, as well as what was happening in other houses. On the largest screen in the middle, it was counting down the time to detonation.
"Seven minutes," he muttered, stepping onto the floor. There was no one to be seen. Was this another trap? Would they still not meet the one behind this and instead be forced to find a way to dismantle the bombs on their own?
Cloud peered in next, he and Zack having finally convinced Sephiroth to allow himself to be helped again. "So where is he?" he frowned.
Sephiroth moved away from them, walking over to the monitors. Every few moments, the scenes on each would change. "There he is," he announced without warning, indicating a man with round glasses and a long braid standing on what seemed to be a platform outside. In his hand he held what looked like the control box.
Physically speaking, Koseki had not changed much in ten years. But now he had lost whatever semblance of sanity he had once had---unlike Dalton, who had mellowed through the years.
"Where's that?" Zack exclaimed.
"It's on the roof," Angeal frowned. "I noticed what it looked like when I got here. Vincent, Barret, and Cid have been inspecting the yard."
"Oh great." Cloud looked around the room. "So now we have to find another secret entrance?" It looked as though the third floor consisted almost entirely of this one, large space. But over near the far wall was a lone door. He hurried over to it, hauling it open. Beyond it was a narrow staircase.
"It's been found!" Zack whooped.
The four men made their way into the small stairwell, going up the steps as fast as humanly possible. Being that it was such a confining space, they could only move single-file. Sephiroth held on to both sides of the wall as he ascended.
Cloud thrust open the door. The wind, much more ferocious than he had thought, whipped the slab of wood away from him. It slammed into the wall with a sickening crack. The demented man whirled around, his expression twisting in grotesque delight to see his company.
"So!" he cried. "You've come at last. I knew you would have the intelligence to find your way here." The wind was also flinging his braid this way and that. It was a wonder that it did not tear his glasses from his face.
"Of course we'd come!" Zack snapped as he peered out from behind Cloud. "Letting you blow up places isn't our style!"
Cloud stepped out onto the roof, the others quickly following. Koseki looked from him to Zack, and then to Sephiroth and Angeal.
"Naturally," he purred. "You think yourselves so grand that of course you must stop such a scheme."
"Actually, we just want to stop it so people won't die," Cloud retorted. "It wouldn't bother me if they never even knew I helped."
Koseki sneered. "Well, then, maybe they'll never know how you spent your final moments," he said. "It's a pity that you went through so much trouble to save Sephiroth, only for it to all come apart now. But at least you can die together. I'm sure you'll appreciate that."
A strong hand came down on his shoulder. "None of us have any plans to die tonight." Sephiroth's voice was cold and hard.
The wild eyes widened. Koseki had been so distracted in taunting Zack and Cloud that he had not noticed the other two slipping away and coming over to him. Angeal was on his other side.
"You can hand over your device, or we can take it by force," said Angeal. "It's your choice."
The wicked sneer widened. "Then take it!" he cried. "Take it and be the instruments of your own deaths!" With that he flung the box into the air. The moment it impacted, everything would explode. He had long ago ceased to care if he was among the number to die.
Zack and Cloud both dove for it, their arms outstretched in desperation. As they clawed, they brought the box down into their hands. The red button glowed, as if sneering itself.
"Turn it off!" Sephiroth directed from where he and Angeal were still restraining the madman. He had seen the various controls on the device, and similar to the ones long ago used in Dismal, this one had an Off switch.
Zack had noticed as well. Hastily he flipped the switch. Cloud looked on, his expression tense.
"Everything's okay!" Zack announced, placing the box in a pocket. "So now it looks like we just have a score to settle with you."
They had not thought it would be possible for Koseki to become even more crazed. But now he reacted as a wild animal. A sudden burst of strength allowed him to break free of the men holding him captive.
"You will not imprison me again!" he cried. "I will never be disgraced by you in that way on this planet! You will die! You will all die!" He lunged for the weakened Sephiroth before anyone could stop him.
Sephiroth backed up, initially startled by the abrupt action. But then he caught the younger man's wrists, gripping them firmly in his hands. Koseki was attempting to shove him over the edge of the railing. Sephiroth planted his feet, his hair blowing wildly in every direction as he struggled against his adversary. With every bit of his remaining strength, he swung Koseki to crash into the railing instead. Now he was being restrained.
Koseki regarded him in hated rage. He never had been skilled in direct combat. He was only formidable when attacking from the shadows. But he still had one last, cruel trick.
From his sleeve he withdrew a small and deadly ninja star. In a flash of silver it was slicing into Sephiroth's arm. Sephiroth grunted in pain, his concentration momentarily broken. Koseki took the opportunity to raise his foot, shoving Sephiroth in the stomach. Sephiroth fell back, yet was already going to attack again. And by now the others were converging as well.
Koseki's eyes gleamed in sadistic glee. The one thing he had learned about combat was how to fling ninja stars to cause the most damage. He would use this one now, harming all of them in one grand arc. And when they were hurt, he could steal the box back. He raised his hand into the air.
And lightning split the sky, finding its desired target in the metal in his hand.
Eyes that been filled with cruel delight a moment before were now encompassed by agony. A scream tore from the twisted lips as the electricity channeled through his body. Sephiroth and the others could only stand by, stunned and somewhat sickened by the sight. It was a horrifying, painful end for anyone.
The lightning released its hold. For a long moment there was silence. Koseki's eyes were already deadened as his body wobbled on the edge of the roof. Then he slammed backwards into the railing, tumbling over the side as it broke free. Zack came to life, reaching to grab at the wretched form, but to no avail. The body disappeared from their view. The sickening thump at the bottom seemed to echo around them all.
A curse of disbelief from Barret startled them back into the present.
"Seph!" Zack exclaimed, running over to the silver-haired man. Seph was gripping his wounded arm, blood seeping through his fingers.
Zack looked back to Cloud. "Where's that first aid kit?" he demanded.
Cloud dug in his pocket, getting out the small box and handing it to Zack. With shaking fingers Zack pried open the lid, taking out a disinfectant wipe. Quickly he cleaned and bandaged the injury, unheeding of the wind slapping his hair in his face. Then he looked up at his friend.
Seph was looking back down at him, giving a slow nod of acknowledgment and thanks. He was okay. He was alive . . . ! There had not been time to fully process it before, when Seph had awakened from the antidote. Koseki had seen to that. But now, with the wind howling around them, it was sinking into their hearts. The nightmare was over. They would be able to go home safe.
Zack immediately pulled Seph close in a hug.
"Oh man, Seph . . . when I think of how we could've lost you . . ." But he shook his head, not wanting to finish the thought. Sephiroth laid a hand on his shoulder.
"You haven't," he said.
"Yeah. . . ." Zack gave a weak grin.
After a moment he pulled away. "We should get out of here and go home. . . ." he said.
Sephiroth nodded. Home sounded incomprehensibly wonderful. As did a shower and a bed.
Angeal placed a hand on Sephiroth's shoulder. Sephiroth looked at the one who had been his friend for the longest amount of time. A silent reunion passed between them.
Now Cloud stepped forward. "I knew you shouldn't have come with us!" he snapped at Sephiroth. "You got hurt again. Do you know how worried Zack's been today? And Angeal? And . . ." He trailed off, unable to finish.
Somehow he found his arms going around Sephiroth, as the older man stiffened in shock. It was only for a brief moment, before realization and embarrassment took over Cloud's senses. But in that brief moment he said what he had not been able to get out in words.
And his friend understood.
Author: Lucky_Ladybug/insaneladybug
Theme: #6 - Ostinato
Fandom: Final Fantasy VII
Warnings: Thematic elements, violence, insanity
Disclaimer: The characters are not mine and the story is!
Summary/Comments: The final confrontation.
Cross-posted to ladybug_tales and http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4243414/5/
Notes: Many thanks to Kaze and Lisa for plot help, including Kaze's help with Barret and Cid's first lines in this chapter!
Chapter Five
Meeting and Parting
Angeal's eyes narrowed as he hung up with Zack and Cloud several minutes later. What Zack had told him and the others was a tale of a highly disturbed man, willing to do anything to obtain his goals and considering himself to be in the right no matter who died. Zack was now convinced that this madman had taken Sephiroth. And Angeal could see that it was possible.
So far they had not found anything else at the first house or the surrounding area. It was looking as though the wallet had just not been discovered earlier and had probably dropped when Sephiroth had been dragged from here---if indeed he had been at this location. Some of the police would remain to continue the search, but now it seemed more expedient for Angeal and the others to go to the new addresses Zack had given.
Barret turned away from the scene in frustration. "The police are sayin' that Sephiroth might already be dead," he said.
"What the heck?! He's come out of bigger messes than this!" Cid retorted.
Barret nodded. "Yeah. It took all of us to take him down on Gaia, and that was when he was nuts! Some two-bit crook ain't gonna do him in now."
"I'll feel insulted if he croaks from this!" Cid agreed.
"It sounds like it's more than a 'two-bit' criminal," Vincent inserted, his tone flat.
"Well, whatever," Cid said with an impatient wave of his hand. "Two-bit crooks, terrorists, we can handle 'em!"
Angeal shook his head, moving past them as he headed for the car. "I'm going to the address Zack mentioned that's in the rich neighborhood," he said. "That's not too far from here."
Vincent nodded, moving past Barret and Cid to follow. "Let's try there first. If we don't have any luck, we can call Zack and Cloud." He glanced back to the others. "Are you coming?"
"You think we'd miss the action?" Cid exclaimed, hurrying to catch up.
"You're not goin' anywhere without us!" Barret asserted, following too.
Vincent's tattered cape swirled out behind him as they walked to the car. It had certainly been drawing attention. Cid had ceased to be Yazoo's manager after regaining his memories---though Yazoo had stopped singing as well---but Vincent had opted to keep his occupation as a medical doctor. It had seemed somewhat ironic, to be saving lives instead of taking them---as he had as a Turk---or instead of feeling responsible for Lucrecia's fate, but it was not a bad change. Perhaps it was part of his redemption. At least that was how he chose to see it.
The police who had seen him at the hospital were now undoubtedly confused by this "second life" of his. He had brought along everything he had thought he might need for this venture, including his claw and his gun. He was an intimidating figure if one did not know him---or if those he was encountering were enemies. And the monster they were tracking down now was the very worst kind of nemesis.
Though Vincent did not show it, he was concerned. Sephiroth would cling to life as long as he possibly could. But realistically, he did have his limits. And he needed to be located without further delay.
****
The house they arrived at several moments later was three visible levels and a basement. The porch was small---no more than a slight square area carved out of the area between the garage and a wall of the house. Five steps led up to it, and unlike the other homes, the door was shut. Angeal frowned at this. A break in the pattern was not likely a good sign. But on the other hand, could it mean that Sephiroth would be here?
"We're the first ones here," Vincent noted as they got out of the car. "We shouldn't wait for the police." There were several reasons for that. Of course, if Sephiroth was inside dying, no time could be wasted in finding him. But also, if the madman was there and would happen to reveal the truth of their origins, it would be better for the police not to hear it. And if there were traps inspired by methods from Gaia, they would be able to handle them better than the local police.
Barret was already heading to the porch. "The guy's got a fancy house here," he said. "This ain't much smaller than Sephiroth's place." He reached for the doorknob, turning it. It gave a creaking wail as it slid open.
"And he's still not lockin' the doors," Cid frowned.
Angeal came up behind them, staring into the room beyond. They were facing a parlor, but beyond that was a living room designed the same as the other living rooms. And as they watched, lights throughout the house were beginning to come on, as if by some automatic means.
"This house must be being controlled by a computer," Angeal decided as he stepped onto the marble tile. Quite a few of the more expensive homes in the city were that way, but Sephiroth had never gone along with the concept. Other than the security system, very little in their house was controlled by computers. And no one minded. It was preferable to control the affairs of the house themselves.
"But should the lights all be comin' on like this?" Cid advanced towards the hall, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. "It's more like we've waltzed into some show set up for us."
That was what was concerning Angeal. He looked into a room at the beginning of the hall, raising an eyebrow. It was a den, furnished with plush couches and chairs, thick rugs, and a lit fireplace.
Barret came up behind him. "Is there a reason for that, or is it just to try to creep us out?" he frowned.
Angeal shook his head. Something seemed very wrong about leaving the fireplace unattended---well, besides the obvious safety risks. Barret had a good point. If there was a definite reason, what was it? If they went to put it out, would something explode?
"Let's leave it for now," Barret said, turning away to head down the hall. "The police'll be here soon and they can figure out what to do about it."
That was true; the police had been following close behind. But a frown crossed Angeal's features. It was strange that they were not here yet. Had they been deliberately delayed? Maybe the orchestrator behind all of this wanted Sephiroth's friends and allies to be here alone.
Vincent moved past them to step into the room. "We should put it out," he said, his voice leaving no room for arguments. "Go on ahead and I'll take care of it."
Barret frowned. "Just looks like a waste of time to me," he objected.
"We'll see," was all Vincent would say in reply.
The others went on ahead, searching each room to no avail. When Vincent caught up with them again, he took part in the inspection too. No one was anywhere in the house, at least not on this floor. And the situation did not change when they ascended the stairs to the next floor and resumed the excursion. The house was eerily silent. And the rooms they were peering into up here were also empty. Maybe the madman had escaped again. But if he had, he had probably left a dubious parting gift. Angeal clenched a fist. If only it could be Sephiroth . . . a living Sephiroth. . . .
"Somethin' don't smell right in here," Barret muttered as they met in the corridor after checking the last rooms on the second floor. Then the explanation dawned. "The gas is leakin'!"
Vincent's eyes narrowed just slightly. "We need to find where it is and turn it off," he said. They needed to be able to search the rest of the house. None of them would last long with the gas actually able to be smelled.
"If we can smell it, we're liable to keel over at any time," Cid remarked, turning to head for the stairs. "It's a good thing you shut off that fire, Vince."
Vincent grunted in agreement.
Angeal hated to follow them. Maybe the third floor would be where Sephiroth was, and he was laying helpless as he was being killed by the gas leak. But it would not do any good if all of them were incapacitated or killed as well. They needed to shut it off first and then come back to continue looking for Sephiroth. Quickly Angeal hurried after Cid and the others as they made their way down the stairs.
They were just barely out of the house and preparing to look for the gas meter when Vincent stiffened. "There's no time!" he said, his voice rough and filled with urgency. "We have to get off the property right now!"
No one questioned him. Angeal felt his stomach twist as they ran for the car. Was there another fireplace in the house that was also lit, and the fumes were about to reach it? Was that why the one they had found had been ablaze---because the gas leak had been planned?
The force of the explosion sent everyone flying. Angeal tumbled over the hood of the car, slamming onto the pavement. Somewhere nearby, Barret gave a loud curse as he also crashed. Cid and Vincent rolled in opposite directions.
Angeal looked up, staring in the direction of the home from which they had just fled. Now it was unable to be seen through the blazing inferno. The sight of the flames seared into his mind. Suddenly he felt sick, and not because of the spill. He barely even heard the police yelling around him as they arrived.
If Sephiroth had been in there, now he was most likely dead.
****
It took nearly two hours to reach the manor near the mountains---one hour for the normal drive to the area, and what became close to a second just looking for the house's exact location. By that time both Zack and Cloud were all the more deeply agonized. And it did not help that they had lost the police somewhere along the way and had not been able to contact them or Angeal or anyone else. The cellphone signals this close to the mountains were very unstable, fading in and out at will. At last they were forced to concede defeat.
"Is that it up there?" Cloud asked as they rounded the corner. Up through a row of tall pine trees, a house was visible. Amid its protection, it looked cold and ominous.
"It'd better be!" Zack exclaimed. "Man, talk about 'near' to the mountains. This is pretty much in the mountains!"
He drove along the winding road until the building came into full view. The trees were waving wildly, blown by the wind again. The storm that had been approaching for the past day was now almost here. And the house, with all its lights ablaze, might hold a storm of a different kind.
"It's the place." Zack steered onto the driveway. "There's the address."
Cloud gave a firm nod. "Let's go then."
As Zack parked, both he and Cloud leaped out and ran over to the large porch. They were on their own now, and they were certainly not going to wait for the police or anyone else to catch up to them. They had to find Sephiroth. But what if he was not here and there were no clues as to where to journey next? What would they do? What would there even be to do?
Zack was alert the moment he found that the front door was locked. What reason would there be for such sudden security, unless Seph was inside? He clenched a fist, looking to Cloud. From the blond's expression, he was having similar thoughts.
"We've gotta get in there now!" Zack exclaimed. "There's no sense waiting around for everyone else to get here."
Cloud nodded. "We'll break it in," he said. "On three?"
Zack nodded as well. "Let's go!" he directed.
As he counted, he and Cloud got into position. Then they slammed into the door, using their full body weight in an attempt to weaken it.
Cloud made a face. "It didn't budge."
"It usually takes a few tries," Zack said, struggling to hold in his frustration anyway. "Again!"
The second time they propelled themselves into the door, it groaned. "It's weakening!" Zack exclaimed.
The door began to splinter when they tried for the third time. Cloud surveyed it with an approving nod. They were going to get inside.
By the fourth try it flew open on its hinges, crashing into the wall so hard it left a mark.
Cloud rolled his eyes. "I'm not paying for that," he noted.
"Me either!" Zack smirked. "The guy doesn't deserve it!"
The two friends rushed inside, standing and staring at the spacious entryway. For once, this was a home different from the others in layout. But from somewhere nearby, a clock chimed half-past the hour.
"I'm starting to hate that sound," Cloud muttered.
Zack was already hurrying ahead, peering into the nearest room. He wanted to scream Seph's name at the top of his lungs as they searched, straining to hear some weak and faint reply---or even better, a normal, healthy one. Surely it would not be unwise to call out; the creep probably knew they had come in here.
A loudspeaker crackled. "So now the Shinra dogs are destroying my house!" the hated electronic voice said. "They're so desperate to find their poor, unfortunate friend."
Cloud's eyes narrowed. "He's here, isn't he," he said, looking around for the source of the sound.
"His body may be," was the sneering retort.
Zack stiffened. "It hasn't been twenty-four hours yet!" he cried. Not that he did not think this wretch was capable of lying to them some more, but the thought that they were too late and that Seph was already beyond help was too much to bear. There had to still be time! There had to be! He turned, rushing from the empty room to look in the one across from it. Cloud took the next room.
"I played a little game with him, too, you see," the voice said in delight. "I had him collecting the vials that he would need to purge himself of the illness that plagues him. Or so I told him."
Zack could not control himself. "And they were all poisoned?!" he screamed, the panic rising even more as he ran out of the next vacant room.
A laugh. "No, not really. But he didn't give himself all that he needed. Of course he couldn't have, even if he had tried. You see, I split up the properties of the antidote. He pieced together the clues about combining two of them. But he did not realize he also needed the third property. I didn't give any indication that he did! The two he used kept him alive for a little while and fixed some of the damage, but . . . well, I can't say if it's still the same. He fell unconscious almost as soon as he injected himself."
Zack's eyes blazed as he entered the next room. In each, the voice was just as clear, indicating a speaker in each one. A harsh curse escaped his lips, directed at the demon to whom he was speaking. "You always did think you were guiltless, no matter what you did!" he cried. "Even burning up an orphanage was nothing to you!"
Cloud was chilled by Zack's tone and his words. Zack had tried to keep his composure throughout most of this nightmare. Now he was dangerously close to snapping. When they met the guy in person, there was no telling what Zack might do . . . or try to do, at least. Not that Cloud did not feel the same way. Even though he had not known this person before today, his fury and outrage were close to the breaking point. And for Zack it would be so much worse, having the memories of the previous crimes this madman had committed against humanity.
"And what about Sephiroth?" was the embittered retort. "He destroyed so many places in Wutai."
"He felt awful about it!" Zack burst out. "He never wanted any innocent people to die. And he never thought it was some token of bravery, like you think about what you've done!"
"Once anyone associates with and condones Shinra, then they cease to be innocent! It doesn't matter how old or young they are!"
A retort to that was on Cloud's tongue, but it never fell. As he approached a room at the back, he stiffened, his blue eyes widening in his horror at the sight of a man laying lifeless on the floor. "Sephiroth!" he cried. His legs felt like Jell-O as he ran inside, collapsing on his knees next to his friend. A syringe lay on the floor near him, as if he had dropped it during his fall. His eyes were closed, his expression deeply pained as his hair spread out around him. Was he breathing? It looked like he was, but what if Cloud was just imagining it in his anguished mind?
"Seph!"
Cloud's heart twisted at Zack's agonized cry. In an instant the brunet was running in, crashing to his knees beside the motionless form. He reached out, grabbing Seph's wrist as he searched for a pulse. Then he relaxed just slightly.
"He's alive," he managed to say, a weak grin coming over his features.
Relief spread over Cloud. Then they still had a chance to save him.
He looked over Sephiroth's limp form again as he reached to pick up the syringe. It was a relief that he was wearing clothes, too. After finding both the shirt and the pants, Cloud had wondered if they would find Sephiroth stripped of everything. It didn't seem like it would be beneath the creep to leave him like that.
It looked like his wounds had been taken care of, too. That was somewhat a surprise, but maybe not really, once he thought about it. After all, since the guy had set up all of this, he would want Sephiroth able to participate in his "game" instead of bleeding all over the place. Cloud's stomach twisted as images of what may have happened during the crash flashed through his mind. But he had to force himself to concentrate.
"How will we even give him the rest when we find it?" he frowned, eying the needle. "This thing's been on the floor. We probably wouldn't be able to get it sterilized good enough."
Zack swallowed. "We should probably call an ambulance," he suggested. "There's probably not another needle thing around here."
Cloud nodded, frankly amazed that he could think enough to move at all. "Yeah. But it'd take so long for any ambulance to get up here," he realized. "And would the cellphones even work?"
"They have to," Zack said, the helplessness and anguish all too obvious in his voice. "Or maybe there's a landline phone in here. There has to be something!"
Cloud nodded again. He was still feeling numb, unable to process what was happening. He looked up at the assortment of vials laying on the desk. It looked like Sephiroth had mixed ones that had red and blue marks on them. Then there were two others like that, as well as two greens. Did that mean it was the green that was the rest of the antidote? And how much should they give him? He had probably taken half a vial each of the blue and the red. Would he need the same amount of the green? Or had he even given himself too much of the red and the blue? Suddenly it was all overwhelming.
"Call an ambulance?" the treacherous voice purred now. "Your friend is right, Commander Fair; they'd never get here in time. Isn't Sephiroth's pulse still racing?"
Zack bit down on his lip. Seph's heartbeat was much faster than it should be. It could very well be true, what the guy was saying. But they could try anyway, and meanwhile do everything they could to help Seph. It would be much better if trained medical people could monitor the situation and tell them just how much of the stuff Seph would need. But they could not fully rely on that. Maybe it was even a poison the doctors would have no knowledge of, and with this creep being from Gaia, that was likely. Even on Gaia, the physicians might not know how to deal with it if it was something that this guy or some other terrorist had invented.
"What's more, now that you're in here, all telephone signals are completely blocked! Neither of your cellphones will work! Not that they were doing very well anyway." He sounded particularly delighted about this.
Horror gripped tighter at Zack's heart. He grabbed up his phone. "No Signal" flashed across the screen. And from Cloud's expression, he was having the same experience.
"You are completely on your own!" the voice cackled. "You will have to save Sephiroth by yourselves. Oh! And one more thing. If you're thinking of washing that needle under hot water, you won't be able to. I never had the water fully installed."
Zack gritted his teeth. What could they do now? Even if it took a long time for them to find this place, the police should have come by now. Had the creep done something to delay them? Right now Zack and Cloud really were on their own. And Seph looked so helpless and sick. . . .
"Hey!" Zack exclaimed, looking to Cloud. "Didn't you end up bringing the mini-first aid kit in from the car?"
Cloud blinked. "Yeah," he said slowly, confusion written in his eyes. "Since we didn't know if Sephiroth would have open wounds or something. . . ." But then realization dawned of what Zack meant. "There's sterilization stuff in it!" he declared, moving to pull it out of his pocket.
Zack gave an eager nod. "We'll just have to give our best shot at cleaning it!" he said. "That's our biggest problem with the thing. It'll be okay to reuse it, since it's still for Seph and no one else." The plastic wrapper on the desk was hopefully what the syringe had come in. If it was something that had already been used by someone else. . . . Zack shuddered. He did not want to think of that.
He hated leaving Seph on the floor like this, too. With their first priority being to give him the rest of the antidote, they could not take the time to move him onto the bed. But at least he could be given a little more dignity and comfort. Zack shifted, moving further across the floor until he was above Seph. Gently he reached out, curling his hands under Seph's arms and lifting Seph's upper body until his head and shoulders could be supported by Zack's lap. Seph never made a sound as Zack eased him into position. Instead he was limp and lifeless, like a ragdoll . . . or like that awful dummy thing. It was unbearable. How far gone was he?
Zack touched his hand to Seph's forehead. His temperature was definitely higher than it should be.
"There. That's probably as good as I can get it."
Zack looked over to Cloud, who had been cleaning the syringe all this time. Now he set it on the desk before wiping his hands with another antiseptic pad.
"So it's this green one?" he wondered, picking up one of the containers marked with green. How would they really know? What if the guy was lying and this was poison? What if Sephiroth had injected himself with poison, too? Or what if the stuff he had used was good enough and the green one was just more of the same? Maybe he was unconscious while his body repaired the damage. If he was given anything else, it might be an overdose.
Zack nodded. "I guess so, if that's the only other color there." He laid an arm around Seph's chest for extra support. He abhorred feeling how limp his pal was right now. He wanted Seph to move, to get up, to say something sarcastic. . . . Instead he was just laying here, not even knowing what was going on around him. The rise and fall of his chest was erratic.
"Let's just try a fourth or something to start with," Cloud suggested. "And if it looks like it's going good, we can add some more."
That sounded fine to Zack. He watched as Cloud opened the vessel and filled the syringe with some of the liquid. When it was about a fourth full, he pulled it back and corked the vial. He took a deep breath as he turned to face Zack and Sephiroth.
"Okay," he said at last. "Here goes everything, I guess."
Zack nodded, holding up Seph's arm. Cloud took hold of it as well, pushing the needle into it. Still Sephiroth did not respond or move.
"How long should we wait?" Cloud wondered uncomfortably as he removed the needle a moment later.
"Just a few minutes, probably." Zack reached to feel Seph's pulse again. Was it his imagination, or was it slowing just a bit?
Cloud nodded. He turned to fill the syringe with another fourth, just in case.
"Seph?" Zack said, his voice low and pleading. "Can you hear us?" He took a deep breath. "We're with you, pal---me and Cloud. Angeal's coming, too. Man, I wish we could've got here sooner. . . ." Right now he did not care if the madman was overhearing. He only wished that Seph was capable of hearing.
He gave a weak grin. "Hey, even Vince and Cid and Barret turned out to help find you. They couldn't stand that the guy was treating you like this. . . ."
Cloud knelt where he was, gripping the knees of his pants. He did not feel comfortable speaking to someone laying unconscious, not when he was not alone with the person. It would just make him feel silly. He knew he would just stumble over his words and sound like an idiot, too. He would let Zack do the talking, since Zack actually wanted to . . . and since he was already doing it.
Cloud took up Sephiroth's limp left wrist to search for his pulse rate again. It had definitely come back down, but it was not altogether normal. Taking up the needle for the second time, he injected Sephiroth with a bit more of the liquid.
It seemed an eternity later that Sephiroth stirred, a weak groan escaping from his lips. Zack perked up, his eyes shining with hope.
"Seph?!" he exclaimed.
Green eyes cracked open, glassy and unfocused. Zack had been talking to him, Zack was peering down at him, and it felt as though Zack was supporting him. A confused frown crossed Sephiroth's features. Zack was here? This was not a product of illusion?
His lips parted as he tried to speak. "Zack . . ."
Zack broke into a wide, relieved grin. "You're awake, Seph! Oh wow, you're really awake!"
Sephiroth gave a weak grunt. He remembered something about injecting himself with what he had hoped was the antidote . . . and seeing that disturbing vision. . . . The last thing he had heard before swooning had been the madman's cruel laughter.
And Zack was not the only one with him. He turned his head to the side, trying to focus on Cloud. The blond was setting down the syringe, looking uncomfortable. But there was relief in his eyes and posture, too.
". . . You needed some of the stuff in the green one," he mumbled.
Sephiroth nodded slowly. "I'd wondered if I would," he answered. So he had done all that he could, but he still would have perished if Zack and Cloud had not found him and given him the rest of the antidote. He was not entirely certain what he thought of that. He had wanted to save himself on his own, and to be just fine when he was found. Instead, Zack and Cloud had seen him laying on the floor. On some level, that embarrassed him. But mostly he loathed knowing how they must have felt.
Placing his hands on the floor, he began a shaky attempt to sit up. Zack assisted, easing his hands around to Seph's back as he gently pushed his friend off of his lap.
Sephiroth raised a hand to his forehead. Now he was fully feeling the effects of what it was taking to eliminate the poison. He was immensely weakened. And the headache was rushing behind his eyes and through every part of his brain. All he wanted now was to lay down and rest.
"What happened to Koseki?" he grunted.
Cloud blinked in surprise. "You already knew it was that guy?" he asked.
". . . He was laughing like the madman he is before I lost consciousness," Sephiroth said. "Even through the electronic disguise, I recognized it."
Zack swallowed. "He was talking to us when we came in," he said. "We haven't caught him yet."
"And you won't catch me at all!" his voice crackled over the speaker. "You're welcome to try. And you might want to! At the push of a button I can destroy every one of the homes you've visited. I happen to know there are still police officers and friends of yours at all or most of them."
Sephiroth's eyes narrowed. He had struggled to search every part of the house he could make himself get to. But the third floor, which he knew existed from looking out windows, had been sealed. There must be a secret panel concealing the staircase that led up to it. That was likely where Koseki was hiding, if he was on this property.
"I'm only giving you fifteen minutes, too," Koseki purred. "I'll just place this clock right here by the speaker so you can hear it."
Cloud made a face as the loud ticking filled the room. Fifteen minutes? How would they have any luck in fifteen minutes? And even if they found the guy, he probably had one more cruel surprise planned. Maybe he was going to detonate everything while they watched, helpless, before dying themselves.
Zack was already leaping to his feet. "Okay!" he yelled. "We'll take your challenge, Koseki. But you're gonna regret it." The dark tone in his voice was unmistakable.
Sephiroth reached for him, grabbing at the back of his shirt. "Zack. . . ." He looked up at his friend, hating that he was still sitting on the floor. He would make himself get up somehow, but he would certainly not use Zack as his support unless or until Zack offered it himself.
Zack blinked, looking back at him. Seph's eyes were grim and urgent.
"He must be on the third floor," he said. "I wasn't able to get up there because it was blocked."
Zack considered this, then nodded. "We'll just unblock it!" he vowed, reaching out a hand to help Seph stand.
Sephiroth gripped it, pushing himself off the floor. He wobbled before catching himself, his eyes narrowed in frustration.
Cloud stood by, watching Zack helping Sephiroth get up. He had started to move forward to help when Sephiroth stumbled, but then had stopped when Sephiroth had caught himself. Did Sephiroth know that Cloud had been holding back? Maybe he was still feeling guilty for wondering if Sephiroth had written the note, in spite of what Zack had talked about with him. Maybe he would not be able to feel at peace until he had discussed the matter with Sephiroth. Or maybe he was just worried about catching that nutcase. None of them could have any peace until Koseki was no longer a threat.
Now Zack hesitated. Seph should really rest and not come with them, but on the other hand he hated to leave him behind. There was no telling what might happen if Seph was alone in his condition. Koseki might have something else in mind.
But Seph had his own ideas. "I'm coming with you," he said, his grip growing more firm.
Cloud gave him a worried look. When he spoke, more of an edge came out than he had intended. "You could have died!" he snapped. "We came in and you were laying on the floor. The antidote's still trying to heal you. And now you're going to get up and try to track down this idiot?"
Sephiroth grunted. "I didn't say I would try to fight him. I said I'm coming with you." It angered him that he could not fight Koseki and stop him, but he was aware of his limits. It would only cause more trouble were he to overexert himself.
Not that going up long flights of stairs would not bring that to pass, as well.
Zack gripped Seph's shoulder. "Let's go then," he declared. "Let's bring this guy down and then get home so you can rest!"
Sephiroth grunted, but nodded.
"Thirteen minutes," Koseki purred.
Cloud felt like telling him to shut up. But that was not going to help anything. Instead he narrowed his eyes, making his way to the door. Behind him, Sephiroth and Zack followed. And it sounded like Sephiroth was stumbling again. Cloud looked back.
Sephiroth grabbed the wall in displeasure. "I'm alright," he said.
All of them knew it was not true. But they could not stop to argue. As quickly as they could, they hurried into the hall.
****
Angeal could not help but feel a mixture of panic and hope as he rushed into the house around the same time. The police had indeed been delayed at the place that had exploded, and it looked like they had not yet arrived here, either. He had gotten some story from them about being led on a wild goose chase by either the person or someone working for him. If that was what had happened here, too, was this house also going to explode? And why hadn't Cloud and Zack answered their phones? He wanted to believe it was just because the reception was terrible up here. But when so many horrible things were going wrong, there could be any number of less-encouraging explanations.
He stopped short in the entryway as Zack and Cloud emerged from a room near the back of the hall, supporting Sephiroth between them. Sephiroth looked weak and wobbly and possibly even faint, but he was alive. Angeal ran over to them.
"Sephiroth!" he exclaimed. "Are you alright?" Which was a foolish thing to ask. He knew what Sephiroth would say.
The silver-haired man gave a weary nod. "Yes," he said, moving forward another few steps.
Zack looked to Angeal worriedly. "Long story short, Koseki says we have thirteen minutes to find him or else he'll press a button and blow up all of the other houses---with everybody in them!" he cried.
Angeal's eyes narrowed. "One of them's already in flames," he reported.
Zack took notice of the scratches on Angeal's face and arms. "Are you okay?!" he gasped.
Angeal nodded. "But nevermind that," he said. "Do you have any idea where he is?"
"The third floor," Sephiroth said. "If we can find a way up to it."
By now they were approaching the staircase. Sephiroth reached for the banister, his hand shaking. As he grasped it, he took a step up.
Angeal frowned. "Should you be coming?" he asked.
"No," Sephiroth grunted.
Zack shook his head. "But it wouldn't be safe for him to be somewhere alone, either!" he said. "That creep did poison him!" The anger was slipping into his voice again as he also began to ascend the stairs.
"I received the antidote. I'll be fine." In determination Sephiroth continued making his way up the steps. Cloud hurried on ahead, leaving Zack and Angeal to help Sephiroth if he needed it. His blond bangs slapped against his face as he ran.
Maybe he could find the entrance first and get up there to stop Koseki. But his eyes narrowed. Koseki was not especially large in stature, Zack had said, but he had amazing strength---which was obvious if he had managed to drag Sephiroth anywhere. Not knowing what to expect, Cloud might not be able to defeat him all on his own. But it would even be a help if he could hold the guy off until the others arrived.
He leaped past the final stair, landing on the edge of the second floor. Then he ran down the hall, staring at every inch of the walls and ceiling. Nothing looked out of place. Would the entrance be in one of the rooms? Or would they have to press on the walls to find some secret passage? That would take a lot of time that they just did not have---as further evidenced by the ever ticking clock over the speakers.
He had to think! There was probably some solution to this mystery that he was just overlooking.
The clock. . . .
He whirled around, looking to Sephiroth as he arrived at the landing. "Where's the big clock in this house?" he demanded. "There's been one in every other place we've gone to."
Sephiroth shook his head. "I don't know," he said. "I heard it every fifteen minutes, but I never did see it."
Cloud cursed, running his hands through his hair. "If we could find it, we might find the entrance to the third floor!" he said.
"The next time it chimes will be when we don't have any more time," Angeal frowned.
"Maybe we'll be able to hear it ticking or something through the wall," Zack suggested. "Let's go along pressing up against the wall to see if we can hear anything!"
"That's going to look stupid," Cloud muttered. But he complied. Right now it was about their only chance.
They had gone down nearly the entire corridor when Sephiroth suddenly came to attention. "I can hear something," he declared. He was sagging against the wall more than anything else, and gripping at it in desperation to keep from sinking to the floor.
"Is it the clock?" Angeal asked, looking over at him.
"I think it is," Sephiroth said. He struggled to straighten up, frowning at the blank piece of wall in front of him. "There must be a passageway through here," he mused.
"But where?!" Zack exclaimed as he came over to investigate. "Is it really as simple as moving something?" He flung out his hands, accidentally clipping a painting. It swung back and forth in response, scraping against the wall. In protest, the wall creaked.
"There is something back there!" Zack cried. He gripped the edges of the painting, preparing to take it down from the wall.
"Wait!" Sephiroth said, reaching to grip part of the frame. "The painting may have a clue on how to open the panel so that we don't waste time."
Zack blinked. "Yeah?" He studied the thing. It relied heavily on shadows for effect, showing a silhouetted figure standing at the doorway of a dark passage. The light shining around the figure illuminated a set of stairs leading to a closed door at the top.
"All I'm getting out of it is that there really is a panel here," Zack frowned. "It doesn't look like it says how to get into it!"
Cloud came over, peering at the canvas. "Maybe there's a trigger right here?" he suggested, pointing at the person's left hand. It was resting against part of the wall outside the ominous room.
"But where on the wall is it?!" Zack burst out.
"Right under the painting," Sephiroth said. He reached out, feeling along that part of the wall as Zack lifted the frame. Under his fingers, the wall moved.
"Take it off the hook," Sephiroth directed.
Zack did, swinging the painting around to place it on the floor out of their way. Sephiroth gripped the hook, turning it to the left. The panel slid open.
"Hey!" Zack grinned. "Great detective work, Seph!"
Sephiroth grunted, peering into the space. It was exactly as depicted in the painting, with the empty floor, mysterious staircase, and closed door at the top. Underneath it, a strip of light could be seen shining through.
Well . . . there was one item in the room, he surmised as he leaned in further. The grandfather clock was ticking away to his left, mostly hidden in the shadows.
He regarded it in annoyance. How he had been able to hear it all over the house was another mystery, unless it had been fitted with a speaker as well. Slowly he made his way inside the room, gripping the edge of the wall for balance.
"Let's go," Angeal said, stepping into the room as Sephiroth entered. "I don't know how much time we have left, but it can't be much."
"I lost track myself," Zack said, hurrying in but looking over to Seph. His lavender eyes were wide and filled with his worry and concern.
Sephiroth shook his head. "I'm fine," he said. "Don't try to help me; just get up there. I'll follow."
"But there's not even a banister!" Zack protested.
Angeal was already at the top. He turned the doorknob, his eyes narrowing as the door slipped open. He had half-expected it to be locked. Beyond it, he could see a large room filled with monitors, all depicting different parts of the house, as well as what was happening in other houses. On the largest screen in the middle, it was counting down the time to detonation.
"Seven minutes," he muttered, stepping onto the floor. There was no one to be seen. Was this another trap? Would they still not meet the one behind this and instead be forced to find a way to dismantle the bombs on their own?
Cloud peered in next, he and Zack having finally convinced Sephiroth to allow himself to be helped again. "So where is he?" he frowned.
Sephiroth moved away from them, walking over to the monitors. Every few moments, the scenes on each would change. "There he is," he announced without warning, indicating a man with round glasses and a long braid standing on what seemed to be a platform outside. In his hand he held what looked like the control box.
Physically speaking, Koseki had not changed much in ten years. But now he had lost whatever semblance of sanity he had once had---unlike Dalton, who had mellowed through the years.
"Where's that?" Zack exclaimed.
"It's on the roof," Angeal frowned. "I noticed what it looked like when I got here. Vincent, Barret, and Cid have been inspecting the yard."
"Oh great." Cloud looked around the room. "So now we have to find another secret entrance?" It looked as though the third floor consisted almost entirely of this one, large space. But over near the far wall was a lone door. He hurried over to it, hauling it open. Beyond it was a narrow staircase.
"It's been found!" Zack whooped.
The four men made their way into the small stairwell, going up the steps as fast as humanly possible. Being that it was such a confining space, they could only move single-file. Sephiroth held on to both sides of the wall as he ascended.
Cloud thrust open the door. The wind, much more ferocious than he had thought, whipped the slab of wood away from him. It slammed into the wall with a sickening crack. The demented man whirled around, his expression twisting in grotesque delight to see his company.
"So!" he cried. "You've come at last. I knew you would have the intelligence to find your way here." The wind was also flinging his braid this way and that. It was a wonder that it did not tear his glasses from his face.
"Of course we'd come!" Zack snapped as he peered out from behind Cloud. "Letting you blow up places isn't our style!"
Cloud stepped out onto the roof, the others quickly following. Koseki looked from him to Zack, and then to Sephiroth and Angeal.
"Naturally," he purred. "You think yourselves so grand that of course you must stop such a scheme."
"Actually, we just want to stop it so people won't die," Cloud retorted. "It wouldn't bother me if they never even knew I helped."
Koseki sneered. "Well, then, maybe they'll never know how you spent your final moments," he said. "It's a pity that you went through so much trouble to save Sephiroth, only for it to all come apart now. But at least you can die together. I'm sure you'll appreciate that."
A strong hand came down on his shoulder. "None of us have any plans to die tonight." Sephiroth's voice was cold and hard.
The wild eyes widened. Koseki had been so distracted in taunting Zack and Cloud that he had not noticed the other two slipping away and coming over to him. Angeal was on his other side.
"You can hand over your device, or we can take it by force," said Angeal. "It's your choice."
The wicked sneer widened. "Then take it!" he cried. "Take it and be the instruments of your own deaths!" With that he flung the box into the air. The moment it impacted, everything would explode. He had long ago ceased to care if he was among the number to die.
Zack and Cloud both dove for it, their arms outstretched in desperation. As they clawed, they brought the box down into their hands. The red button glowed, as if sneering itself.
"Turn it off!" Sephiroth directed from where he and Angeal were still restraining the madman. He had seen the various controls on the device, and similar to the ones long ago used in Dismal, this one had an Off switch.
Zack had noticed as well. Hastily he flipped the switch. Cloud looked on, his expression tense.
"Everything's okay!" Zack announced, placing the box in a pocket. "So now it looks like we just have a score to settle with you."
They had not thought it would be possible for Koseki to become even more crazed. But now he reacted as a wild animal. A sudden burst of strength allowed him to break free of the men holding him captive.
"You will not imprison me again!" he cried. "I will never be disgraced by you in that way on this planet! You will die! You will all die!" He lunged for the weakened Sephiroth before anyone could stop him.
Sephiroth backed up, initially startled by the abrupt action. But then he caught the younger man's wrists, gripping them firmly in his hands. Koseki was attempting to shove him over the edge of the railing. Sephiroth planted his feet, his hair blowing wildly in every direction as he struggled against his adversary. With every bit of his remaining strength, he swung Koseki to crash into the railing instead. Now he was being restrained.
Koseki regarded him in hated rage. He never had been skilled in direct combat. He was only formidable when attacking from the shadows. But he still had one last, cruel trick.
From his sleeve he withdrew a small and deadly ninja star. In a flash of silver it was slicing into Sephiroth's arm. Sephiroth grunted in pain, his concentration momentarily broken. Koseki took the opportunity to raise his foot, shoving Sephiroth in the stomach. Sephiroth fell back, yet was already going to attack again. And by now the others were converging as well.
Koseki's eyes gleamed in sadistic glee. The one thing he had learned about combat was how to fling ninja stars to cause the most damage. He would use this one now, harming all of them in one grand arc. And when they were hurt, he could steal the box back. He raised his hand into the air.
And lightning split the sky, finding its desired target in the metal in his hand.
Eyes that been filled with cruel delight a moment before were now encompassed by agony. A scream tore from the twisted lips as the electricity channeled through his body. Sephiroth and the others could only stand by, stunned and somewhat sickened by the sight. It was a horrifying, painful end for anyone.
The lightning released its hold. For a long moment there was silence. Koseki's eyes were already deadened as his body wobbled on the edge of the roof. Then he slammed backwards into the railing, tumbling over the side as it broke free. Zack came to life, reaching to grab at the wretched form, but to no avail. The body disappeared from their view. The sickening thump at the bottom seemed to echo around them all.
A curse of disbelief from Barret startled them back into the present.
"Seph!" Zack exclaimed, running over to the silver-haired man. Seph was gripping his wounded arm, blood seeping through his fingers.
Zack looked back to Cloud. "Where's that first aid kit?" he demanded.
Cloud dug in his pocket, getting out the small box and handing it to Zack. With shaking fingers Zack pried open the lid, taking out a disinfectant wipe. Quickly he cleaned and bandaged the injury, unheeding of the wind slapping his hair in his face. Then he looked up at his friend.
Seph was looking back down at him, giving a slow nod of acknowledgment and thanks. He was okay. He was alive . . . ! There had not been time to fully process it before, when Seph had awakened from the antidote. Koseki had seen to that. But now, with the wind howling around them, it was sinking into their hearts. The nightmare was over. They would be able to go home safe.
Zack immediately pulled Seph close in a hug.
"Oh man, Seph . . . when I think of how we could've lost you . . ." But he shook his head, not wanting to finish the thought. Sephiroth laid a hand on his shoulder.
"You haven't," he said.
"Yeah. . . ." Zack gave a weak grin.
After a moment he pulled away. "We should get out of here and go home. . . ." he said.
Sephiroth nodded. Home sounded incomprehensibly wonderful. As did a shower and a bed.
Angeal placed a hand on Sephiroth's shoulder. Sephiroth looked at the one who had been his friend for the longest amount of time. A silent reunion passed between them.
Now Cloud stepped forward. "I knew you shouldn't have come with us!" he snapped at Sephiroth. "You got hurt again. Do you know how worried Zack's been today? And Angeal? And . . ." He trailed off, unable to finish.
Somehow he found his arms going around Sephiroth, as the older man stiffened in shock. It was only for a brief moment, before realization and embarrassment took over Cloud's senses. But in that brief moment he said what he had not been able to get out in words.
And his friend understood.