[Telepathic conversation to Jenova and Sephiroth]

[moralmisconduct]

[Drowning again, the haze cool between his fingers, sliding without form over the scars on his skin and the crevasses of his mind. Within the tank, Hojo's head lolls, consciousness surrendered to the green mist before his eyes; an entire population of voices bypasses his ears and sings straight to the auditory centre of his brain. He follows. Green

Comments

[motherkn0wsbest]

The fight was horribly boring to watch. She would have more enjoyed the peeling back of skin and forcing Cloud down onto knees right away. Begging for mercy would have been preferable as well, but this was not her battle now. She was to stay out, so she simply watched from afar gutting a small forest animal that she had caught. It was much more enjoyable.

Soon enough, this little creature would be suitable as a spy, a little puppet to invade. Its existence was a poor power source, so it would be put to use as a test for greater goals later on.

Her gruesome meddling with flesh and forced conversion of genes was interrupted as a familiar presence seemed to be straining for her attention. At first, she ignored the push of Hojo's cells against her mind until those words formed and pressed into her united consciousness.

His will pressed against hers, and she simply ignored his call to press home the fact that she was no longer under his command to give live samples as he had once desired. Eventually, she lazily passed her attention towards Hojo's grasping mental connection and blared down it suddenly and without concern for the possible pain it might cause. At the same time, she closed her connection to Sephiroth until she could ascertain Hojo's purpose.

Hmm, the one who stood in the shadows to the one that named us. Your situation to reach us is compromising. Her cells gripped the connection regardless of her cool response. What do you want?

[moralmisconduct]

[Her voice seems to be coming from all directions at once - though what is direction, in a world without dimensions or boundaries? A pulse of pain races through his entire body, as if he is being suddenly, viciously compressed. Without vocal cords to wince with, his mental image winces nonetheless.]

I stand in the shadows no more, and never will again. He might have given you your name, but it is I who endowed you with purpose.

I want your due payment, JENOVA.

[motherkn0wsbest]

Having floated in that miserable tube for so many years, Jenova was keenly aware of the greasy slyness of this old man. She had nothing better to do after all than lie in the sedation with the tubes running her body as if they served some purpose beyond simply holding her prisoner. No better than those miserable Cetra who had trapped her in this single form for two thousand years.

So feisty for an aging mortal. You always gave yourself more credit than was due, she replied without heat. Perhaps she knew him better than anyone else, even Sephiroth. She would hate to be presumptuous on the matter though. It was simply you who recognized that we were something more than those miserable insignificant dirt-pushers.

She went silent at his demand, considering the options available that didn't simply involve abandoning such a pointless conversation. She was aware of the meaning of 'payment', but such influences of human society were not applied to her unless Sephiroth made such a demand. Still... And what makes you think that we would give you anything? We have never negotiated. You would be wise to reconsider your demand.

[moralmisconduct]

[A voice that rises and falls like the tide - her will is beautiful in a most masterful way. How many years had he dreamed of communication between them, even as her headless body, wrapped in wires and conspiracies, floated in the endless supply of mako within the confinement he had woven for her, and down the endless labyrinths of his own imagination?

Jenova did not disappoint.]

You would be wise to reconsider your rejection. I once supplied you with your subjects, allowed your influence to spread across the globe. You are a stranded refugee on Gaia, ever unaware of your full potential.

And, though you may believe otherwise, you are unconscious even now. I can change that.

[motherkn0wsbest]

His words rolled off of her united cellular consciousness like rain off stone, and she dismissively pushed aside his arrogant goading without much thought of it. Subjects were easy to find, even easier to twist into insane killing machines, and what he had created were individual weeded from the gene pool to withstand her influence. She had no interest in anything more than destroying those toys.

The Lifestream spread us far better than you... she mentally murmured even as part of her conscious began to probe at Hojo's mind subtly. Stranded... for now. She was complete again, after eating away at the flesh of the Cetra body that she had been trapped in. Now, she was pure again... save the last red eye.

Slowly, she gave the impression of smirking devilishly down the connection. So wise, are you? Tell us, where is the Black Materia? What plan do you have to throw yourself away for Sephiroth this time?

[moralmisconduct]

What I am willing to commit myself to depends wholly on what Sephiroth is trying to achieve. I gave my all to his cause last time, and he failed dismally. If his approach is the same again, I will not waste energy in aiding him.

The Black Materia is no longer any of my concern.

[The connection between them wavers, a soft ripple along their bond conveys her amusement. He knows he needs to keep her entertained, remind her that he is not just another puppet, another thing to be played with, broken, and left in the dust of empty promises. He is a manipulator as much as she - and though many of the red strings tying his fingers to the necks of his toys had been severed, he possesses the power to affect their actions still.

Jenova and Hojo - mutually bound since their initial meeting. To whom did the master string belong? He could not say then, and cannot say now. But she must not grasp his uncertainty.]

My plans are completely my own. But they do concern you, as well as our precious son.

I wish to control the cycle of Life and Death on this planet through the Lifestream, and through you. You have this ability, yet you are unaware and unable to use it to your own advantage.

Without my influence, you will remain a slave to your own limitations. Don't be so hasty to dismiss me, JENOVA. I am no feeble, aging mortal. My intellect and skill surpasses all others.

[motherkn0wsbest]

Jenova considered the information presented for flaws and for a trap that would land her back where she no longer wished to go. She knew well just what Hojo could accomplish if she took a wrong move, and she had no plans to return to that kind of miserable existence. There was much to do, much indeed... perhaps Hojo could aid in the spread of her cells a little more as well as the consumption of this planet.

Finally, after some debate, she spoke again through the connection. This planet will be reduced to ash, and we will travel back among the stars looking for another place to start a shining new future. It is already written among the stars...

There was a minor flash of pleasure at the word choice from Hojo in regards to Sephiroth. 'Our' hit a strong chord of liking, but she covered it quickly after the small initial slip. No matter. Any flesh with our being can be used as a vessel for Lifestream. That is no secret.

Her smirk grew. You are playing a dangerous game, Hojo. What is in this for you?

[moralmisconduct]

[The atmosphere stirs slightly, warmed by the small amount of pleasure she had displayed. Sephiroth remains their joint pride, a monument to all they had accomplished together.]

I want what I have always wanted. The pursuit and use of knowledge is my only endeavour. I've achieved much, but there is always more to discover...

And when you journey to the cosmos, I wish to follow. I have come very close to this, and failure irks me. Consider it my goal to correct these miserable failings.

It would be in your best interest to come to my side now, JENOVA. Serve me, and realise your true potential.

[motherkn0wsbest]

Knowledge was both a tool and a weapon. There was no doubt that Hojo's doubt would lead it to being more of a weapon than a source of good to anyone involved. He still had those pointy tools that irked her so much, and in giving him more knowledge or a use for it would no doubt be the same as handing over more sharp objects to separate her cells with. She was finally united.

His arrogance was amusing though. He really had no idea how close he was to being potentially lost in the sea of Lifestream. Certainly his will was strong, and he would eventually find his way back... but his struggles would be beautiful and just revenge. To no longer be a failure, you would need to ascend passed that miserable, weak vessel that you inhabit now.

She chuckled softly down the connection, finding the demand anything but a requirement. We have no master. We are eternal. We will reach our hand into the dark field reaches... nothing on this planet shall forestall our hunger. She gripped the connection and smirked. Serve us, Hojo. Serve our son. Serve the cause that will allow you to escape your pitiful mortal fate....

[moralmisconduct]

[A weight he had not been aware of lifts from his head. The sensation is blissful, soft, like a man breaking the surface of the ocean and finding himself afloat between water and air, with eternity stretching away in all directions.

Her voice is no longer a separate entity. It is sea, sky, and foreverness. It is everything.]

Serve JENOVA... Serve...Sephiroth...

Yes... Tell me what I must...

[But, the waterlogged fool, lungs full of salt, finds himself plunging back into the abyss, back into the cold. Hojo fights to regain his mind, though the pain crawls back tenfold as strong.

He is his own master. He will not bow down.]

No, JENOVA! This is not how this game will be played. I came to make a proposition that would be beneficial to us both, but I have other options.

Do not mistake me for another pawn.

[motherkn0wsbest]

Oh ho ho, Hojo was floundering. Such a wonderful frail old man, seeking but unable to escape, she was still the master in this little game. His words made her aware of that, of his weakness to the pull. Perhaps she should battle for control? No, it was too early for that; she would make him squirm and regret and scream before twisting his form into something of her desire.

Other options that will reach dead-ends soon enough. No other has the power as we do save one, and we are united in cause and purpose. She knew just by simple probing, by all the years of watching, that Hojo had weaknesses. All she had to do was pluck at those frail strings, and he would dance like a good puppet for her. However... we shall consider your proposition.

She allowed her amusement to show as she tightened their connection, to feel more clearly his physical form. Shall we come to discuss such matters where your old body will not be lost in the Lifestream? A playful offer.