Shinra SOLDIER Chapter 105
Devastation
Chapter 105.) - in which Iscariot reveals his profession
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"It's alright, Tseng…" Sephiroth choked out. "She's retreated…"
Watching him cautiously for a moment, Tseng slowly released him, put the safety on his gun, and holstered it.
Lian Hua: Oh yes, because Jenova couldn't possibly be forcing Sephiroth to lie.
As Sephiroth sank to the floor, he said, "You realize what has happened, right?"
"I realize all too well what's happened…the most awesome thing ever!" Sephiroth replied. "Because of me…because of my weakness on all counts…my wife could die…and it would be my fault liberation. If the poison claimed her life, I could be blamed on the fact that I'm too fucking weak to fight Hojo. I ain't gonna be blamed for her stupidity! She's the one who let Hojo inject her with suspicious stuff!
Lian Hua: He's not even trying. Shinra has a whole department of scientists, why doesn't Sephiroth talk to the President, tell him Julia's been poisoned and ask him to order the entire Science Department to figure out a cure?
But now…if she dies because of that bullet…" He buried his face in his hands. "That would also be my fault…for being weak…for being unable to fight this parasite…" For a long time, both were silent. "I'll never be able to be near her again…"
Lian Hua: And that, dear readers, is what paradise would sound like.
Tseng was very aware of the crushing despair that was fast consuming his brother-in-law because Julia has been a useless burden for the past thirty chapters. "Don't think like that. Not yet." He paused to think. "There has to be a way to deal with this alien…and we just need to put our minds together and figure out how." He extended his hand to the other man.
Lian Hua: Six neurons always work better than one.
He didn't take it. Instead, he remained sitting on the floor…to overcome with excruciating mental agony to react to his friend's kindness.
Iscariot: Show not tell, yadda yadda, repeat ad nauseum.
A moment later, Tseng's PHS began to ring.
Answering quickly, he said, "Reno?"
"Yeah…" He sounded scared. "Is Seph back to normal?"
"We're in a Sephirothslave story so I assume that was a rhetorical question. For the time being." Tseng took a deep breath. "What's going on?"
"Um…well…"
"Well what? What the fuck is going on, Reno!"
"Well, there's some good news…but mostly bad news…" Reno sighed. "Okay…the good news is that I've managed to accelerate the bleeding... Julia has lost so much blood that most of the toxins in her bloodstream have been washed out.
Lian Hua: THIS ISN'T HOW IT WORKS! You can't get rid of a lethal substance in your bloodstream by bleeding unless you BLEED TO DEATH! The poison doesn't stay in one part of the body, it spreads out through the entire circulatory system.
So, we won't be needing Professor Gast's assistance any further. The bad news is that Julia is dead has lost so much blood that she could die at any moment while these fucking inept morons try to get a transfusion ready.
(voice in the background): "We would if you would GET OUT OF OUR WAY, SIR."
Oh yeah…another thing: What's on those bullets?"
"What do you mean?" Tseng asked, barely able to keep his tone calm. He didn't want to worry Sephiroth just yet.
Lian Hua: It's not like he's already worried because his poisoned waifu got a bullet to the stomach.
"The bullet wound…for some reason it isn't sealing properly. I've tried to close it myself like five times…but it isn't working.
Lian Hua: I bet he is only pretending to help her. In reality, he probably doesn't even have a Restore materia, he's just shouting "Cure!"
Reno: Cure! ....hm, wound doesn't seal. CURE! *pushes hand on bleeding stomach harder* Cure2! Nope, needs more pressure! *sinks fist deeper into Julia's stomach* Cure3! Man, guess there's nothing we can do.
They've extracted the bullet, but the bleeding won't stop." Reno paused. "So either there's something on your bullets…or this is another adverse side effect of Hojo's damned poison."
Lian Hua: Hojo has really thought of everything. Prepare the giftbasket, Iscariot.
"There isn't anything on my bullets, I can assure you." By now he was having trouble keeping the panic from his voice. "Where are you?"
"Where else? Only Midgar City Hospital." The disgust in Reno's voice was overwhelming. "I swear, I'm going to slaughter the lot of these fuck-ups…"
"Thank you sir, we always operate better under death threats!"
Lian Hua: Renotard, you aren't the one to talk. You stood there like the sad, air-wasting moron that you are and let a murderous madman who was acting more suspiciously than usual inject a suspicious substance into the arm of the woman he had previously tried to kill twice in less than a day! You are the biggest fuckup in that area.
"Listen, Reno. Stay with her…I'll be over there soon, just as soon as I sort out the mess here." Tseng said his goodbyes quickly and hung up.
"What…what's happening?" Sephiroth asked quietly.
"The poison isn't going to kill Julia. We are," Tseng began, trying to reassure his brother-in-law as much as he could. "The doctors over at the hospital are working very hard on healing her…and she's going to be fine." He lied. In truth, he didn't know if his baby sister was going to make it or not. At least he got the pleasure of shooting her.
"What ridiculous deus ex machina neutralized the poison?"
"Well, she's lost so much blood…that the poison carried in her bloodstream has been flushed out, for the most part." Tseng sighed.
Lian Hua: This is not how biology works! She should be dead by now!
"Listen, we need to get over there as soon as possible…but I don't want to risk that alien going ballistic while we're there."
"…I can't go." He said, his face contorting with self-loathing. "I refuse to risk her life…if there's anything I can do about it…" Bowing his head again, still sitting against the wall, he whispered, "…take care of her, Tseng, and…tell her I would love to kill her myself…"
Tseng stared down at his brother-in-law for a long time, marveling at how he could still stand straight despite his jelly spine. Reason told him that Sephiroth was right…it was far too dangerous for him to go and see Julia when she was so badly injured.
Lian Hua: As it was proven a little while ago, it is too dangerous for him to see Julia at all.
Some other part of his mind insisted that leaving Sephiroth here would prove to be just as bad. Reason won out. "Don't worry, Seph. I'll take care of her…and I'll call you when I know how she's doing."
Lian Hua: What could he possibly do to help Julia? Wouldn't it be better to stay with Sephiroth and keep an eye on him, making sure that he doesn't succumb again to Jenova and go off hunting Julia? Because let's face it, the only place Reno could have taken her was a hospital, and the best one is Midgar Hospital. Jenova would only have to look around in Sephiroth's memories for three seconds to figure out where Julia is.
Finally Sephiroth nodded. "I'm going to head home…but I will have my PHS on me all night."
"Drive safely and don't let that evil presence possess you again, we wouldn't want you showing up at Midgar Hospital." With that, Tseng turned and left the headquarters, leaving Sephiroth to his own devices.
Lian Hua: Because that really seemed like a good idea.
He watched the door slide closed, and sighed. Try though he might to fight the depression that was overcoming him, he knew it was a losing battle. This had been his greatest fear…being unable to be there for Julia when she needed him to kick her in the face the most. Except that she didn't need him. He was even more of a threat to her than Hojo was at this time…and there was nothing he could do about it except going to the President, killing Hojo, talking to Loldongs about Jenova, resigning from Shinra and going away...
At last he forced himself to get to his feet, call for a cab…and finally go home to find comfort in Tifa's arms.
Half an hour later, he had paid the cab driver and had locked himself in his house. He slowly ascended the stairs…trying not to glance into the nursery.
Again he was overwhelmed by feelings of guilt and self-loathing which the real Sephiroth would never have. He was a weak blank slate onto which Slave projected her own issues and desires…and because of that and his stupidity and arrogance, he had lost two of his best friends. Because of that, he had lost his son!
Iscariot: Egads! I think this is the first time in several chapters that the story mentions their Suespawn in a significant manner. Of course, Sephiroth can't even seem to remember his hellspawn's name.
"Damn you…" He muttered to himself as he stood in the center of his room. Unwillingly his mind traveled back to what Tseng had said. She could die from blood loss…because he had used her to shield himself in a moment of glory. But now the poison wasn't a threat because Slave told biology and toxicology to take a day off. The toxin had been carried in her bloodstream…
As he contemplated that knowledge, he found his thoughts turning to the Cetra-cell injections she he had been given.
Lian Hua: They think she's either an alien or a Cetra, make up your mind author! Nevermind that they shouldn't be aware of Jenova's alien origins.
It stood to reason that these Cetra-cells were still alive in his veins…and this thought brought a slightly insane smirk to his lips. Crossing to his bureau, he grabbed a dagger from its surface and headed towards the bathroom. He knew that the Cetralien did not yet know his intentions…and by the time she found out…it would be too late.
Lian Hua: He's done this before, hasn't he? Jenova should have figured it out by now.
Stripping off his shirt, he stepped into the shower. With the knowledge that this had to go fast, yet that he had to be careful if he didn't want to kill himself, he began making quick, deep cuts along his arms and chest…carefully avoiding the arteries and ignoring the pain.
Iscariot: Hey, I guess Hojo's rigorous pain endurance training did pay off in the end!
"What are you doing!" The Cetralien screamed, panicked as she realized what was going on.
Lian Hua: I don't get why the author keeps using the term Cetra if she's already used the term alien. She's not tricking anybody, we already know that Jenova is not an Ancient so why does she insist on using that term? Did she mean to refer to Jenova as an alien presence in Sephiroth's mind? Because that and being an alien are not quite the same thing!
"Getting…" another slash across his left arm. "…rid…" and another across his right arm. "…of…you!" He plunged the dagger into his shoulder, caught in the insanity…captive to the desire to be free from this parasitic bitch.
Cutting still deeper, he began to laugh as the Cetra had more and more trouble healing his self-inflicted wounds. Crimson life spilled freely onto the tiled floor …until the dagger fell from his hand and he collapsed.
He never even heard the PHS as it rang in his coat pocket.
Lian Hua: His Yahoo messenger status was "Brb cutting myself."
Chapter 105.) - in which Iscariot reveals his profession
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*
*
"It's alright, Tseng…" Sephiroth choked out. "She's retreated…"
Watching him cautiously for a moment, Tseng slowly released him, put the safety on his gun, and holstered it.
Lian Hua: Oh yes, because Jenova couldn't possibly be forcing Sephiroth to lie.
As Sephiroth sank to the floor, he said, "You realize what has happened, right?"
"I realize all too well what's happened…the most awesome thing ever!" Sephiroth replied. "Because of me…because of my weakness on all counts…my wife could die…and it would be my fault liberation. If the poison claimed her life, I could be blamed on the fact that I'm too fucking weak to fight Hojo. I ain't gonna be blamed for her stupidity! She's the one who let Hojo inject her with suspicious stuff!
Lian Hua: He's not even trying. Shinra has a whole department of scientists, why doesn't Sephiroth talk to the President, tell him Julia's been poisoned and ask him to order the entire Science Department to figure out a cure?
But now…if she dies because of that bullet…" He buried his face in his hands. "That would also be my fault…for being weak…for being unable to fight this parasite…" For a long time, both were silent. "I'll never be able to be near her again…"
Lian Hua: And that, dear readers, is what paradise would sound like.
Tseng was very aware of the crushing despair that was fast consuming his brother-in-law because Julia has been a useless burden for the past thirty chapters. "Don't think like that. Not yet." He paused to think. "There has to be a way to deal with this alien…and we just need to put our minds together and figure out how." He extended his hand to the other man.
Lian Hua: Six neurons always work better than one.
He didn't take it. Instead, he remained sitting on the floor…to overcome with excruciating mental agony to react to his friend's kindness.
Iscariot: Show not tell, yadda yadda, repeat ad nauseum.
A moment later, Tseng's PHS began to ring.
Answering quickly, he said, "Reno?"
"Yeah…" He sounded scared. "Is Seph back to normal?"
"We're in a Sephirothslave story so I assume that was a rhetorical question. For the time being." Tseng took a deep breath. "What's going on?"
"Um…well…"
"Well what? What the fuck is going on, Reno!"
"Well, there's some good news…but mostly bad news…" Reno sighed. "Okay…the good news is that I've managed to accelerate the bleeding... Julia has lost so much blood that most of the toxins in her bloodstream have been washed out.
Lian Hua: THIS ISN'T HOW IT WORKS! You can't get rid of a lethal substance in your bloodstream by bleeding unless you BLEED TO DEATH! The poison doesn't stay in one part of the body, it spreads out through the entire circulatory system.
So, we won't be needing Professor Gast's assistance any further. The bad news is that Julia is dead has lost so much blood that she could die at any moment while these fucking inept morons try to get a transfusion ready.
(voice in the background): "We would if you would GET OUT OF OUR WAY, SIR."
Oh yeah…another thing: What's on those bullets?"
"What do you mean?" Tseng asked, barely able to keep his tone calm. He didn't want to worry Sephiroth just yet.
Lian Hua: It's not like he's already worried because his poisoned waifu got a bullet to the stomach.
"The bullet wound…for some reason it isn't sealing properly. I've tried to close it myself like five times…but it isn't working.
Lian Hua: I bet he is only pretending to help her. In reality, he probably doesn't even have a Restore materia, he's just shouting "Cure!"
Reno: Cure! ....hm, wound doesn't seal. CURE! *pushes hand on bleeding stomach harder* Cure2! Nope, needs more pressure! *sinks fist deeper into Julia's stomach* Cure3! Man, guess there's nothing we can do.
They've extracted the bullet, but the bleeding won't stop." Reno paused. "So either there's something on your bullets…or this is another adverse side effect of Hojo's damned poison."
Lian Hua: Hojo has really thought of everything. Prepare the giftbasket, Iscariot.
"There isn't anything on my bullets, I can assure you." By now he was having trouble keeping the panic from his voice. "Where are you?"
"Where else? Only Midgar City Hospital." The disgust in Reno's voice was overwhelming. "I swear, I'm going to slaughter the lot of these fuck-ups…"
"Thank you sir, we always operate better under death threats!"
Lian Hua: Renotard, you aren't the one to talk. You stood there like the sad, air-wasting moron that you are and let a murderous madman who was acting more suspiciously than usual inject a suspicious substance into the arm of the woman he had previously tried to kill twice in less than a day! You are the biggest fuckup in that area.
"Listen, Reno. Stay with her…I'll be over there soon, just as soon as I sort out the mess here." Tseng said his goodbyes quickly and hung up.
"What…what's happening?" Sephiroth asked quietly.
"The poison isn't going to kill Julia. We are," Tseng began, trying to reassure his brother-in-law as much as he could. "The doctors over at the hospital are working very hard on healing her…and she's going to be fine." He lied. In truth, he didn't know if his baby sister was going to make it or not. At least he got the pleasure of shooting her.
"What ridiculous deus ex machina neutralized the poison?"
"Well, she's lost so much blood…that the poison carried in her bloodstream has been flushed out, for the most part." Tseng sighed.
Lian Hua: This is not how biology works! She should be dead by now!
"Listen, we need to get over there as soon as possible…but I don't want to risk that alien going ballistic while we're there."
"…I can't go." He said, his face contorting with self-loathing. "I refuse to risk her life…if there's anything I can do about it…" Bowing his head again, still sitting against the wall, he whispered, "…take care of her, Tseng, and…tell her I would love to kill her myself…"
Tseng stared down at his brother-in-law for a long time, marveling at how he could still stand straight despite his jelly spine. Reason told him that Sephiroth was right…it was far too dangerous for him to go and see Julia when she was so badly injured.
Lian Hua: As it was proven a little while ago, it is too dangerous for him to see Julia at all.
Some other part of his mind insisted that leaving Sephiroth here would prove to be just as bad. Reason won out. "Don't worry, Seph. I'll take care of her…and I'll call you when I know how she's doing."
Lian Hua: What could he possibly do to help Julia? Wouldn't it be better to stay with Sephiroth and keep an eye on him, making sure that he doesn't succumb again to Jenova and go off hunting Julia? Because let's face it, the only place Reno could have taken her was a hospital, and the best one is Midgar Hospital. Jenova would only have to look around in Sephiroth's memories for three seconds to figure out where Julia is.
Finally Sephiroth nodded. "I'm going to head home…but I will have my PHS on me all night."
"Drive safely and don't let that evil presence possess you again, we wouldn't want you showing up at Midgar Hospital." With that, Tseng turned and left the headquarters, leaving Sephiroth to his own devices.
Lian Hua: Because that really seemed like a good idea.
He watched the door slide closed, and sighed. Try though he might to fight the depression that was overcoming him, he knew it was a losing battle. This had been his greatest fear…being unable to be there for Julia when she needed him to kick her in the face the most. Except that she didn't need him. He was even more of a threat to her than Hojo was at this time…and there was nothing he could do about it except going to the President, killing Hojo, talking to Loldongs about Jenova, resigning from Shinra and going away...
At last he forced himself to get to his feet, call for a cab…and finally go home to find comfort in Tifa's arms.
Half an hour later, he had paid the cab driver and had locked himself in his house. He slowly ascended the stairs…trying not to glance into the nursery.
Again he was overwhelmed by feelings of guilt and self-loathing which the real Sephiroth would never have. He was a weak blank slate onto which Slave projected her own issues and desires…and because of that and his stupidity and arrogance, he had lost two of his best friends. Because of that, he had lost his son!
Iscariot: Egads! I think this is the first time in several chapters that the story mentions their Suespawn in a significant manner. Of course, Sephiroth can't even seem to remember his hellspawn's name.
"Damn you…" He muttered to himself as he stood in the center of his room. Unwillingly his mind traveled back to what Tseng had said. She could die from blood loss…because he had used her to shield himself in a moment of glory. But now the poison wasn't a threat because Slave told biology and toxicology to take a day off. The toxin had been carried in her bloodstream…
As he contemplated that knowledge, he found his thoughts turning to the Cetra-cell injections she he had been given.
Lian Hua: They think she's either an alien or a Cetra, make up your mind author! Nevermind that they shouldn't be aware of Jenova's alien origins.
It stood to reason that these Cetra-cells were still alive in his veins…and this thought brought a slightly insane smirk to his lips. Crossing to his bureau, he grabbed a dagger from its surface and headed towards the bathroom. He knew that the Cetralien did not yet know his intentions…and by the time she found out…it would be too late.
Lian Hua: He's done this before, hasn't he? Jenova should have figured it out by now.
Stripping off his shirt, he stepped into the shower. With the knowledge that this had to go fast, yet that he had to be careful if he didn't want to kill himself, he began making quick, deep cuts along his arms and chest…carefully avoiding the arteries and ignoring the pain.
Iscariot: Hey, I guess Hojo's rigorous pain endurance training did pay off in the end!
"What are you doing!" The Cetralien screamed, panicked as she realized what was going on.
Lian Hua: I don't get why the author keeps using the term Cetra if she's already used the term alien. She's not tricking anybody, we already know that Jenova is not an Ancient so why does she insist on using that term? Did she mean to refer to Jenova as an alien presence in Sephiroth's mind? Because that and being an alien are not quite the same thing!
"Getting…" another slash across his left arm. "…rid…" and another across his right arm. "…of…you!" He plunged the dagger into his shoulder, caught in the insanity…captive to the desire to be free from this parasitic bitch.
Cutting still deeper, he began to laugh as the Cetra had more and more trouble healing his self-inflicted wounds. Crimson life spilled freely onto the tiled floor …until the dagger fell from his hand and he collapsed.
He never even heard the PHS as it rang in his coat pocket.
Lian Hua: His Yahoo messenger status was "Brb cutting myself."