Second Side 1
Title: Second Side 1
Rating: PG-13 to R ish... I'm horrible at rating.
Warnings: Male/Male relationships, torture, language, and other things I'm sure. If I think of anything else I'll put it at the top of the chapter that has it in it.
Summary: A year after the Hojo incident a split second decision leads Roxas down the road of terror that uncovers a lot of things he never knew about his nearest and dearest relatives.
Pairings: Roxas/Axel, Sora/Riku, Zack/Cloud
Disclaimer: I still own nothing.
Part 5 of the Second Series.
“Why didn’t you tell us?” Sora whined as we followed Cloud back and forth from the house to his bike where he was getting ready to leave on another delivery.
“Tell you what?” Cloud asked as he tested his tie downs to make sure they wouldn’t unhook while he was driving.
“About Zack,” Sora replied as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.
Cloud blinked before looking at Sora, “What about Zack?”
I couldn’t help my amused smile at the frustrated look on Sora’s face, “About you and Zack!”
He received a blank look in reply and I really couldn’t help but wonder how the two of them had survived on their own for so many years. Clearly Sora was not good at communicating with Cloud on a personal level.
Cloud shot him a confused look as he headed back toward the house to gather something else that he would need, “What about Zack and myself?”
I was starting to think that Cloud was secretly enjoying making Sora nuts. We followed him to the kitchen where he was going over a list of the things he needed, making a check mark every now and again. Sora was on the verge of exploding.
“You know what!”
Cloud looked up at him over the paper in his hands, “Look, I have places to be so if you could just explain why you’re here without being so round about that would be great.”
“Zack said you two went for dinner the other night,” Sora said as though that explained everything.
Cloud raised an eyebrow, “And…?”
Sora made a frustrated noise and I smiled, “Cloud, I didn’t know you had a sense of humor.”
I was given a dry look in response as Cloud brushed by us and headed toward his office upstairs, “What’s the big deal?”
“How about the fact that you’ve never gone out to dinner with someone?” Sora offered.
I had to take his word on that. I hadn’t known Cloud as long as Sora had and I really didn’t pay much mind to Cloud’s tendencies. Besides, with as much as he was gone he could have a whole secret life that we’d never know about.
“You’re exaggerating,” Cloud’s voice echoed down to us.
“Name one time you went out to dinner with someone other than the other night and no, running into them while you’re out doesn’t count,” Sora said, crossing his arms.
There was a pause and I wasn’t sure if it was because Cloud was thinking it over or if he was just focused on whatever he was looking for. He replied a moment later.
“Between work and taking care of you two my life’s been a little hectic. I’m allowed to enjoy myself from time to time.”
I sighed; there had been very few times that I had seen Cloud and Sora go at it like this. Normally it was over something personal. Cloud was a very secretive person who kept to himself while Sora was very open about things and didn’t see a need to keep things from us. The last time they had gotten into it like this was because Cloud had come home with lipstick on his cheek. He swears he has no idea where it came from. I was inclined to believe him, simply because he was Cloud and it was rare he let someone in his personal space, let alone display affection.
“What about when we were away at college? There was plenty of time then,” Sora said, looking frustrated.
“Who says I never went out while you were gone?” Cloud countered.
Sora faltered a brief moment, “But you’re Cloud! You don’t date!”
“Whoa, who said anything about a date?” Cloud said, appearing in the doorway of his office, “No one said anything about dating.”
Sora crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, “You really expect me to believe you’ve never dated anyone?”
“I went to High School just like you. You really think I didn’t date then?”
“Who’d you date?” Sora asked, looking excited.
Cloud groaned and disappeared back into the office. I half considered making some popcorn; this was much more amusing than last time.
Sora headed up the stairs and I followed, just as curious as Sora was at this point, “Common! Who’d you date?”
“It’s not like you’d know them,” Cloud muttered as he picked up some papers from his printer.
“You have yearbooks,” Sora countered and even though Cloud didn’t look up, I could see his eyes widen a little at what Sora had said.
Apparently Sora had gotten much better at arguing his case over the years.
Cloud let out a sigh and looked up at Sora again, “It wasn’t a date.”
“Then why did just the two of you go?” Yes, Sora had gotten much better.
“It was a last minute thing,” Cloud said and held up a hand before Sora could continue, “and it’s not going to happen again so just drop it.”
Sora pouted and a slightly heavy silence fell around us and I felt the words leave my mouth before I could stop them, “Why don’t you date Cloud?”
I could see the slight tensing of his shoulders even if the rest of him didn’t give away how uncomfortable the question had made him. Sora looked at Cloud worriedly.
“Yeah, you haven’t dated for as long as I can remember. Why not?”
“My love life or lack there of is not up for discussion,” Cloud said with a slight bite to his tone.
Sora looked startled, but I had been waiting for Cloud to lash out. Cloud and I were a lot alike and I was usually able to predict his reactions better than Sora. So now Cloud would either shut himself down or lash out and say something without thinking about it because he’s angry.
I weighed my options and decided that I wasn’t suicidal. As much as I wanted to know what was up with Cloud I also valued my continued existence.
Besides, I could grill Zack at work tomorrow.
Cloud moved past us again, pulling on his gloves as he went, “I’m leaving, so either do the same or lock up when you do leave.”
Sora frowned after him, clearly not liking being brushed off like that. I rolled my eyes and pushed Sora toward the door. We headed down the stairs and out the front door. Cloud paused to check that the door was actually locked before heading to his bike. He moved the goggles from around his neck and situated them over his eyes before kicking the motorcycle to life. He gave us a salute before taking off and disappearing down the street before we even had time to blink.
Sora sighed a little before turning to me, “I can solve a murder mystery about a complete stranger but I can’t figure out my own brother.”
I gave a small shrug as I moved toward the car, “Yeah, well I can’t figure out half the people in our lives. Cloud’s just not an open person. You know that.”
Sora moved to follow me, “I know, but it worries me that he doesn’t date.”
“Maybe he does date, but doesn’t bother you with it since it’s not serious.”
“Did you date anyone before Axel?”
I rolled my eyes, “Sure.”
“What? Really?” Sora asked as though such a thing had never crossed his mind.
“What’s surprising about that?” I asked, unsure if I should feel offended or not.
“I… I…” Sora faltered, clearly unsure, “I donno. I guess I just can’t picture you with anyone else.”
I slid into the car with a sigh and started it up as Sora slid in next to me, “That’s because as long as you’ve known me I haven’t been with anyone else.”
I focused on backing out of the driveway and turned the car toward Sora’s house with a lot more mental strain that it should have taken. Habit had kicked in and tried to make me drive back to my own house. Stupid habit.
“…Whom did you date before?”
I gave a small shrug, “People.”
“Wow, thanks, cuz I was picturing dogs,” Sora drawled sarcastically.
“It doesn’t matter. It was never serious and rarely lasted more than a week.”
“Then why bother?”
“Because the streets are a cold, lonely place and there were some days when my friends just weren’t enough.”
I could practically hear Sora’s mind trying to wrap around that concept. I allowed him to ponder that in silence as I navigated our way through the streets of Destiny Island toward Sora’s home. It was late so we didn’t have to worry about any of the commuters. I couldn’t help but wonder why Cloud had chosen to leave at night instead of first thing in the morning. I mentally shrugged it away, assuming he had a reason.
Sora sighed quietly, “I donno, I can’t understand that. Why be with someone you don’t want to be with?”
“No one said I didn’t want to be with them, at the time anyway. I just lost interest. Can you honestly tell me that you never had a crush on someone one week and then more or less forgot about them the next?”
Sora just stared at me and I vaguely wondered why I even bothered. I sighed and shook my head a little as I pulled up to his house and brought the car to a stop.
“Well it’s like that for the rest of the world. You’re the oddity here Sora.”
Sora pouted at me then sighed a little, “I guess you’re right.”
With that he slid out of the car and gave a small wave before heading up the walkway to his door. I gave a half smile before pulling away and toward my own house. I eased myself into a comfortable silence, not even bothering to flip the radio back on like I normally did. I wanted the silence to maul things over.
Cloud was awfully dodgy about the dinner. If it really wasn’t such a big deal surely he would have just come out and said so from the beginning. Sure Cloud had issues talking about personal things, but going to dinner with someone he’s known since High School wasn’t really a personal thing.
Maybe Sora had been right to react the way he had when Zack mentioned it offhandedly. He had instantly freaked out and drug me off to see Cloud. Which leads me full circle, back to me sitting in my car, waiting for a light to change, and wondering about the love life of my older cousin.
Apparently I had too much free time if I could debate whether or not the way Cloud reacted proved or disproved that there was something going on between him and Zack.
I sighed as the light changed and moved the car forward. I caught something out of the corner of my eye and hit the brakes seconds before a car skimmed the front of my car. Only I came to too sudden of a stop. The car behind me hit me and pushed me into the back end of the car that had run the red light and sent it tail spinning into the car in the lane next to me. The car that had run the red light didn’t stop there though. It spun and hit the front ends of the cars that were sitting at the red light on the other side of the intersection.
I sat frozen for a moment as the last few seconds replayed in my mind. I shook my head and put my car into park before removing myself from the car. The person in the car behind me was getting out saying they were sorry, but I wasn’t listening. The air bags in the car next to me had gone off and the driver hadn’t gotten out of the car. My eyes drifted up to the car that had started the mess and I could see the driver bailing.
Reacting instead of thinking I took off after them. I reached down and pulled out my cell phone, quickly calling dispatch and telling them about the accident. I shoved my cell phone back into my pocket and weaved through the people on the street, determined to catch the guy I was following. He turned into an alleyway and I was quick to follow. The alleyway was a dead end and the wall was much too high to jump so he had to be there somewhere. I reached back and pulled out my gun from its holster as I made a slow circle, searching for the person I had been pursuing.
A sound behind me made me turn only to gasp as I felt something pierce through my body. I choked on my gasp and felt my free hand come up to the wound as my mind registered the fact that there was a gunshot echoing around me.
I felt my knees give as I fought for air. I’d been shot. That bastard shot me.
I heard the scuff of a shoe but the world went black before I could even finish turning my head.
__________________________
I blinked and groaned quietly at the bright lights that were glaring down at me. They were florescent and I was in a white room, leading me to believe I was in a hospital. Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to blind the patients when they wake?
I frowned a little as I tried to remember what I could have possibly done to get myself put in a hospital. Talking to Cloud, taking Sora home, heading home myself...
Oh, the accident. Then I followed the guy. And then...
I frowned a little more. Something. Something happened. What? I shifted a little and nearly screamed as pain shot through my body.
Mental note: don't move.
I blinked a few more times and tilted my head to the side to try and see where I was. It wasn't like any hospital room I had ever seen, that was for sure. In fact it looked more like...
More like the room in the warehouse that Hojo had used when he kidnapped all those kids.
Well, that wasn't a good sign now was it? I looked down at myself and noticed that my ankles and wrists were in restraints. I also noticed that my shirt had bloodstains on it.
Nope, not a good sign.
"Ah, you're awake..."
I felt my eyes widen as I jerked my head to my left where I could now see a door. I knew that voice. God I knew that voice. It haunted my dreams. I licked my lips as the man stepped out of the shadows.
Hojo stood there with his glasses glinting in the bright light of the room.
I felt fear flood me and nothing I did would push it back. No one knew where I was. No one knew what happened. I called dispatch about the accident, but if they didn't find us while he was bringing me where ever the hell we are then there was no way they could find me now. I was trapped. With Hojo. And I had no way to defend myself.
"You look so much like Experiment C..." Hojo purred as he moved closer to me, "Course, the rest of the world calls him Cloud Strife."
I felt my eyes widen in shock. Experiment C? Cloud? As in our Cloud? He had been in the hands of Hojo? I felt panicked. If Cloud was left at the mercy of this man, what chance did I have?
"It's just too bad I couldn't get your cousin too. You already sent him home. He's a lot like Experiment Z personality wise. To have had both of you would almost be like having Zack and Cloud at my mercy once more..."
My mouth went dry. Zack? As in Zack Fair? I was so screwed.
Hojo chuckled, "Experiment C never told you did he? So unthankful for all that I gave him. Ever notice how his eyes glow?"
I honestly could say that I hadn't. Then again I never really paid much mind to Cloud's eyes. The only time I had ever noticed them was the first time I met him and I registered that they were the same as mine.
"No?" Hojo asked, seeming unbothered by my silence, "Well, it's the mako in his blood."
Mako? Mako... that sounded very familiar... Why? I frowned and racked my brain for where I had heard that word.
"You've heard of mako, hm? Sephiroth been talking again?"
It clicked then. Yes, Riku's family had been talking about mako. They had wanted to put it in Riku the time we had all been kidnapped and taken to the coroner's office.
...I really needed to stop being kidnapped if I have to clarify which time I was kidnapped even in my own mind.
"Experiment C was so much more than I ever thought he'd be. I had thought him to be a failure, but I was wrong. Experiment Z couldn't live up to the potential of Experiment C; he was already a SOLDIER after all. Experiment C was untouched and all mine for the taking..."
I made a face at the way that sounded and hoped that it didn't happen the way I was thinking it did. And if it did...
Hell, maybe that was why Cloud didn't date.
"He was much younger than your though... you're twenty-five right? Yes, he was around ten years younger than you at the time... Course, Experiment Z being a year older had already started his SOLDIER training. Too bad really. He would have been just as good if not better than Experiment C...."
I wasn't really sure he was even talking to me anymore. He was walking around the room and talking in low tones as though he was talking to himself. Maybe he was. I forced myself to stop listening and focus on figuring out how the fuck he got out of jail without me being told about it!
I mentally shoved that away. No, focus on getting free or getting help. Worry about everything else lat-
"OW!"
Hojo smiled up at me as I looked down at the needle that had just been rather unkindly shoved into my arm, "I've always liked your voice. It will be wonderful to hear you scream..."
I could feel the blood drain from my face at those words. One, he sounded like a creepy stalker. Two, I really, really didn't want to know what he had planned to make me scream.
"What is that?" I asked looking at the glowing green liquid that filled the vial he was injecting into me.
He didn't reply, only pulled out the needle once it was empty and picked up a tape recorder, "Hojo's log. New experiment on the table named Experiment R. He has been injected with 50 cc of mako. He has never been injected with mako before so this is a test run."
If being called Experiment R hadn't been enough to make my blood run cold the 50 cc of mako was. I opened my mouth to snap at him but no sound left me as a sudden pain wracked my body and a scream tore itself from my lips.
Next Chapter
Rating: PG-13 to R ish... I'm horrible at rating.
Warnings: Male/Male relationships, torture, language, and other things I'm sure. If I think of anything else I'll put it at the top of the chapter that has it in it.
Summary: A year after the Hojo incident a split second decision leads Roxas down the road of terror that uncovers a lot of things he never knew about his nearest and dearest relatives.
Pairings: Roxas/Axel, Sora/Riku, Zack/Cloud
Disclaimer: I still own nothing.
Part 5 of the Second Series.
“Why didn’t you tell us?” Sora whined as we followed Cloud back and forth from the house to his bike where he was getting ready to leave on another delivery.
“Tell you what?” Cloud asked as he tested his tie downs to make sure they wouldn’t unhook while he was driving.
“About Zack,” Sora replied as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.
Cloud blinked before looking at Sora, “What about Zack?”
I couldn’t help my amused smile at the frustrated look on Sora’s face, “About you and Zack!”
He received a blank look in reply and I really couldn’t help but wonder how the two of them had survived on their own for so many years. Clearly Sora was not good at communicating with Cloud on a personal level.
Cloud shot him a confused look as he headed back toward the house to gather something else that he would need, “What about Zack and myself?”
I was starting to think that Cloud was secretly enjoying making Sora nuts. We followed him to the kitchen where he was going over a list of the things he needed, making a check mark every now and again. Sora was on the verge of exploding.
“You know what!”
Cloud looked up at him over the paper in his hands, “Look, I have places to be so if you could just explain why you’re here without being so round about that would be great.”
“Zack said you two went for dinner the other night,” Sora said as though that explained everything.
Cloud raised an eyebrow, “And…?”
Sora made a frustrated noise and I smiled, “Cloud, I didn’t know you had a sense of humor.”
I was given a dry look in response as Cloud brushed by us and headed toward his office upstairs, “What’s the big deal?”
“How about the fact that you’ve never gone out to dinner with someone?” Sora offered.
I had to take his word on that. I hadn’t known Cloud as long as Sora had and I really didn’t pay much mind to Cloud’s tendencies. Besides, with as much as he was gone he could have a whole secret life that we’d never know about.
“You’re exaggerating,” Cloud’s voice echoed down to us.
“Name one time you went out to dinner with someone other than the other night and no, running into them while you’re out doesn’t count,” Sora said, crossing his arms.
There was a pause and I wasn’t sure if it was because Cloud was thinking it over or if he was just focused on whatever he was looking for. He replied a moment later.
“Between work and taking care of you two my life’s been a little hectic. I’m allowed to enjoy myself from time to time.”
I sighed; there had been very few times that I had seen Cloud and Sora go at it like this. Normally it was over something personal. Cloud was a very secretive person who kept to himself while Sora was very open about things and didn’t see a need to keep things from us. The last time they had gotten into it like this was because Cloud had come home with lipstick on his cheek. He swears he has no idea where it came from. I was inclined to believe him, simply because he was Cloud and it was rare he let someone in his personal space, let alone display affection.
“What about when we were away at college? There was plenty of time then,” Sora said, looking frustrated.
“Who says I never went out while you were gone?” Cloud countered.
Sora faltered a brief moment, “But you’re Cloud! You don’t date!”
“Whoa, who said anything about a date?” Cloud said, appearing in the doorway of his office, “No one said anything about dating.”
Sora crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, “You really expect me to believe you’ve never dated anyone?”
“I went to High School just like you. You really think I didn’t date then?”
“Who’d you date?” Sora asked, looking excited.
Cloud groaned and disappeared back into the office. I half considered making some popcorn; this was much more amusing than last time.
Sora headed up the stairs and I followed, just as curious as Sora was at this point, “Common! Who’d you date?”
“It’s not like you’d know them,” Cloud muttered as he picked up some papers from his printer.
“You have yearbooks,” Sora countered and even though Cloud didn’t look up, I could see his eyes widen a little at what Sora had said.
Apparently Sora had gotten much better at arguing his case over the years.
Cloud let out a sigh and looked up at Sora again, “It wasn’t a date.”
“Then why did just the two of you go?” Yes, Sora had gotten much better.
“It was a last minute thing,” Cloud said and held up a hand before Sora could continue, “and it’s not going to happen again so just drop it.”
Sora pouted and a slightly heavy silence fell around us and I felt the words leave my mouth before I could stop them, “Why don’t you date Cloud?”
I could see the slight tensing of his shoulders even if the rest of him didn’t give away how uncomfortable the question had made him. Sora looked at Cloud worriedly.
“Yeah, you haven’t dated for as long as I can remember. Why not?”
“My love life or lack there of is not up for discussion,” Cloud said with a slight bite to his tone.
Sora looked startled, but I had been waiting for Cloud to lash out. Cloud and I were a lot alike and I was usually able to predict his reactions better than Sora. So now Cloud would either shut himself down or lash out and say something without thinking about it because he’s angry.
I weighed my options and decided that I wasn’t suicidal. As much as I wanted to know what was up with Cloud I also valued my continued existence.
Besides, I could grill Zack at work tomorrow.
Cloud moved past us again, pulling on his gloves as he went, “I’m leaving, so either do the same or lock up when you do leave.”
Sora frowned after him, clearly not liking being brushed off like that. I rolled my eyes and pushed Sora toward the door. We headed down the stairs and out the front door. Cloud paused to check that the door was actually locked before heading to his bike. He moved the goggles from around his neck and situated them over his eyes before kicking the motorcycle to life. He gave us a salute before taking off and disappearing down the street before we even had time to blink.
Sora sighed a little before turning to me, “I can solve a murder mystery about a complete stranger but I can’t figure out my own brother.”
I gave a small shrug as I moved toward the car, “Yeah, well I can’t figure out half the people in our lives. Cloud’s just not an open person. You know that.”
Sora moved to follow me, “I know, but it worries me that he doesn’t date.”
“Maybe he does date, but doesn’t bother you with it since it’s not serious.”
“Did you date anyone before Axel?”
I rolled my eyes, “Sure.”
“What? Really?” Sora asked as though such a thing had never crossed his mind.
“What’s surprising about that?” I asked, unsure if I should feel offended or not.
“I… I…” Sora faltered, clearly unsure, “I donno. I guess I just can’t picture you with anyone else.”
I slid into the car with a sigh and started it up as Sora slid in next to me, “That’s because as long as you’ve known me I haven’t been with anyone else.”
I focused on backing out of the driveway and turned the car toward Sora’s house with a lot more mental strain that it should have taken. Habit had kicked in and tried to make me drive back to my own house. Stupid habit.
“…Whom did you date before?”
I gave a small shrug, “People.”
“Wow, thanks, cuz I was picturing dogs,” Sora drawled sarcastically.
“It doesn’t matter. It was never serious and rarely lasted more than a week.”
“Then why bother?”
“Because the streets are a cold, lonely place and there were some days when my friends just weren’t enough.”
I could practically hear Sora’s mind trying to wrap around that concept. I allowed him to ponder that in silence as I navigated our way through the streets of Destiny Island toward Sora’s home. It was late so we didn’t have to worry about any of the commuters. I couldn’t help but wonder why Cloud had chosen to leave at night instead of first thing in the morning. I mentally shrugged it away, assuming he had a reason.
Sora sighed quietly, “I donno, I can’t understand that. Why be with someone you don’t want to be with?”
“No one said I didn’t want to be with them, at the time anyway. I just lost interest. Can you honestly tell me that you never had a crush on someone one week and then more or less forgot about them the next?”
Sora just stared at me and I vaguely wondered why I even bothered. I sighed and shook my head a little as I pulled up to his house and brought the car to a stop.
“Well it’s like that for the rest of the world. You’re the oddity here Sora.”
Sora pouted at me then sighed a little, “I guess you’re right.”
With that he slid out of the car and gave a small wave before heading up the walkway to his door. I gave a half smile before pulling away and toward my own house. I eased myself into a comfortable silence, not even bothering to flip the radio back on like I normally did. I wanted the silence to maul things over.
Cloud was awfully dodgy about the dinner. If it really wasn’t such a big deal surely he would have just come out and said so from the beginning. Sure Cloud had issues talking about personal things, but going to dinner with someone he’s known since High School wasn’t really a personal thing.
Maybe Sora had been right to react the way he had when Zack mentioned it offhandedly. He had instantly freaked out and drug me off to see Cloud. Which leads me full circle, back to me sitting in my car, waiting for a light to change, and wondering about the love life of my older cousin.
Apparently I had too much free time if I could debate whether or not the way Cloud reacted proved or disproved that there was something going on between him and Zack.
I sighed as the light changed and moved the car forward. I caught something out of the corner of my eye and hit the brakes seconds before a car skimmed the front of my car. Only I came to too sudden of a stop. The car behind me hit me and pushed me into the back end of the car that had run the red light and sent it tail spinning into the car in the lane next to me. The car that had run the red light didn’t stop there though. It spun and hit the front ends of the cars that were sitting at the red light on the other side of the intersection.
I sat frozen for a moment as the last few seconds replayed in my mind. I shook my head and put my car into park before removing myself from the car. The person in the car behind me was getting out saying they were sorry, but I wasn’t listening. The air bags in the car next to me had gone off and the driver hadn’t gotten out of the car. My eyes drifted up to the car that had started the mess and I could see the driver bailing.
Reacting instead of thinking I took off after them. I reached down and pulled out my cell phone, quickly calling dispatch and telling them about the accident. I shoved my cell phone back into my pocket and weaved through the people on the street, determined to catch the guy I was following. He turned into an alleyway and I was quick to follow. The alleyway was a dead end and the wall was much too high to jump so he had to be there somewhere. I reached back and pulled out my gun from its holster as I made a slow circle, searching for the person I had been pursuing.
A sound behind me made me turn only to gasp as I felt something pierce through my body. I choked on my gasp and felt my free hand come up to the wound as my mind registered the fact that there was a gunshot echoing around me.
I felt my knees give as I fought for air. I’d been shot. That bastard shot me.
I heard the scuff of a shoe but the world went black before I could even finish turning my head.
__________________________
I blinked and groaned quietly at the bright lights that were glaring down at me. They were florescent and I was in a white room, leading me to believe I was in a hospital. Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to blind the patients when they wake?
I frowned a little as I tried to remember what I could have possibly done to get myself put in a hospital. Talking to Cloud, taking Sora home, heading home myself...
Oh, the accident. Then I followed the guy. And then...
I frowned a little more. Something. Something happened. What? I shifted a little and nearly screamed as pain shot through my body.
Mental note: don't move.
I blinked a few more times and tilted my head to the side to try and see where I was. It wasn't like any hospital room I had ever seen, that was for sure. In fact it looked more like...
More like the room in the warehouse that Hojo had used when he kidnapped all those kids.
Well, that wasn't a good sign now was it? I looked down at myself and noticed that my ankles and wrists were in restraints. I also noticed that my shirt had bloodstains on it.
Nope, not a good sign.
"Ah, you're awake..."
I felt my eyes widen as I jerked my head to my left where I could now see a door. I knew that voice. God I knew that voice. It haunted my dreams. I licked my lips as the man stepped out of the shadows.
Hojo stood there with his glasses glinting in the bright light of the room.
I felt fear flood me and nothing I did would push it back. No one knew where I was. No one knew what happened. I called dispatch about the accident, but if they didn't find us while he was bringing me where ever the hell we are then there was no way they could find me now. I was trapped. With Hojo. And I had no way to defend myself.
"You look so much like Experiment C..." Hojo purred as he moved closer to me, "Course, the rest of the world calls him Cloud Strife."
I felt my eyes widen in shock. Experiment C? Cloud? As in our Cloud? He had been in the hands of Hojo? I felt panicked. If Cloud was left at the mercy of this man, what chance did I have?
"It's just too bad I couldn't get your cousin too. You already sent him home. He's a lot like Experiment Z personality wise. To have had both of you would almost be like having Zack and Cloud at my mercy once more..."
My mouth went dry. Zack? As in Zack Fair? I was so screwed.
Hojo chuckled, "Experiment C never told you did he? So unthankful for all that I gave him. Ever notice how his eyes glow?"
I honestly could say that I hadn't. Then again I never really paid much mind to Cloud's eyes. The only time I had ever noticed them was the first time I met him and I registered that they were the same as mine.
"No?" Hojo asked, seeming unbothered by my silence, "Well, it's the mako in his blood."
Mako? Mako... that sounded very familiar... Why? I frowned and racked my brain for where I had heard that word.
"You've heard of mako, hm? Sephiroth been talking again?"
It clicked then. Yes, Riku's family had been talking about mako. They had wanted to put it in Riku the time we had all been kidnapped and taken to the coroner's office.
...I really needed to stop being kidnapped if I have to clarify which time I was kidnapped even in my own mind.
"Experiment C was so much more than I ever thought he'd be. I had thought him to be a failure, but I was wrong. Experiment Z couldn't live up to the potential of Experiment C; he was already a SOLDIER after all. Experiment C was untouched and all mine for the taking..."
I made a face at the way that sounded and hoped that it didn't happen the way I was thinking it did. And if it did...
Hell, maybe that was why Cloud didn't date.
"He was much younger than your though... you're twenty-five right? Yes, he was around ten years younger than you at the time... Course, Experiment Z being a year older had already started his SOLDIER training. Too bad really. He would have been just as good if not better than Experiment C...."
I wasn't really sure he was even talking to me anymore. He was walking around the room and talking in low tones as though he was talking to himself. Maybe he was. I forced myself to stop listening and focus on figuring out how the fuck he got out of jail without me being told about it!
I mentally shoved that away. No, focus on getting free or getting help. Worry about everything else lat-
"OW!"
Hojo smiled up at me as I looked down at the needle that had just been rather unkindly shoved into my arm, "I've always liked your voice. It will be wonderful to hear you scream..."
I could feel the blood drain from my face at those words. One, he sounded like a creepy stalker. Two, I really, really didn't want to know what he had planned to make me scream.
"What is that?" I asked looking at the glowing green liquid that filled the vial he was injecting into me.
He didn't reply, only pulled out the needle once it was empty and picked up a tape recorder, "Hojo's log. New experiment on the table named Experiment R. He has been injected with 50 cc of mako. He has never been injected with mako before so this is a test run."
If being called Experiment R hadn't been enough to make my blood run cold the 50 cc of mako was. I opened my mouth to snap at him but no sound left me as a sudden pain wracked my body and a scream tore itself from my lips.
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