[Vincent tried writing an apology. He really did. He's not very good at writing, but it would be easier to deliver than anything verbal. But no matter what he did, he couldn't make it sound right
( Read more... )
[CommentLog]wutaiwarheroOctober 24 2010, 20:24:35 UTC
[After locating the room in question on the Deck 05 plan on the comm, Sephiroth makes his way to the room, giving the door a firm but quiet knock. He has questions, Vincent. Don't worry about that.]
[CommentLog]notwhatiwasOctober 25 2010, 06:08:05 UTC
[Vincent opens the door without hesitation for once; he looks more drawn than usual, tired and distant and sad, but in spite of all that he just lowers his glowing eyes and steps back, gesturing for Sephiroth to come in.]
You have my apologies, again. I hope you're recovering swiftly enough.
[CommentLog]wutaiwarheroOctober 26 2010, 03:23:35 UTC
[He takes the invitation, but keeps his distance. The shadows are silent again, and maybe that had been what had set off...whatever had effected Valentine, but he isn't going to risk a repeat performance.]
Well enough. [He crosses his arms, eyes hardening at the pain in his chest, but he wince doesn't reach his face. He'd decided when he'd seen Vincent's post to simply confront him with the questions as they'd arisen the day before, and he doesn't see a reason to change the plan now.]
[CommentLog]notwhatiwasOctober 26 2010, 03:51:29 UTC
I'm...a project.
[Vincent closes the door.]
An experiment.
[Pause.]
A monster.
[He takes a deep breath, eyes closed, and hates how hard this is.]
I'm a vessel. For a WEAPON called Chaos. He's...not well-known, but you may have heard the stories. I'm not overly familiar with the educational level of your upbringing. But I'm--he's inside me. My blood, my cells, my head. Forever.
[CommentLog]notwhatiwasOctober 26 2010, 04:33:59 UTC
Harbinger to the end of all things.
[Another steadying breath before he continues.]
The projects, the ones you know of and the one that resulted in my current condition, took place around the same time. Mine was...dropped. The others weren't.
SOLDIER was still in its infancy at the time; Hojo used me as a sort of prototype for the treatments. At first. I suppose he found what he was looking for somewhere down the line, because after that--
[CommentLog]wutaiwarheroOctober 26 2010, 04:45:12 UTC
[He listens without interrupting, head bowed in thought. He looks up suddenly at the mention of Hojo, though, eyes narrowing. No, Vincent. Sephiroth isn't a fan, either. He looks away, though, returning to logistic thought progression. Something didn't make sense.]
That would be twenty-five years ago. Hollander's participation in Project G made him a candidate for the Head of the Science Department after Professor Gast's...departure. If your project was halted, it must not have resulted in successful SOLDIER augmentation, as Professor Hojo had intended.
[and the rest is said more to himself than to Vincent.] ...how did Hojo win?
[CommentLog]notwhatiwasOctober 26 2010, 04:51:59 UTC
[Vincent raises his head now, and the look he gives Sephiroth is still detached, still distant, but there's such an obvious underlying current of pain, guilt and regret and pity, that it would be hard to miss.]
...Hojo had his own project.
[There were two of them. Two projects. Two men trying to build the perfect soldier, trying to craft a god. And Vincent didn't stop either of them.]
[CommentLog]wutaiwarheroOctober 26 2010, 04:59:14 UTC
That I assume was successful.
[he looks up, meeting Vincent's glowing crimson eyes with his own of gleaming emerald. Interests glitters there, and a subtle apprehension. Something in him is telling him he may not want to know the answer.]
[CommentLog]notwhatiwasOctober 26 2010, 05:27:54 UTC
[...He can't do this. He can't, he can't, there's no WAY he can possibly tell Sephiroth what he is. He'd rather announce what a monster he is to the entire ship, and more besides, than be the man to answer that one question.
But there's no one else here. And...is there really anyone more appropriate to tell him than the man who could have stopped it, and didn't?
Still, the moment of silence is ridiculously long, the tension almost heavy enough to crush them both. Vincent forces himself to meet Sephiroth's eyes.]
You.
[And before Sephiroth even has time to react, he goes on, doing his best to keep things clear, to stave off the psychotic break that nearly destroyed their entire planet.]Gast, Hojo and your mother set out to create something better than the best of what humankind could offer. Your mother was desperate for a chance to do something worth remembering, something that would make the world a better place in her eyes. You, undeveloped as you were, served as a blank slate. What you are now, what you're capable of, is
( ... )
[CommentLog]wutaiwarheroOctober 26 2010, 06:25:28 UTC
[Ever since I was a child, I knew mine was a special existence. His own words echoed through his mind, mingling with Vincent's words, solidifying his infantile musings and recent suspicions into a throbbing pressure behind his eyes. You. It kept rattling around, ramming into one thought, rebounding, shattering another. It was difficult to think, so many thoughts clambering for his attention at once.
He turned away, raising his hands to his temples unconsciously in a vain attempt to slow the speed of thought.
Gast. And Hojo. And his mother. No. One thought at a time. Gast. Gast had set out to create something better than the best of what humankind could offer. Gast, the only person resembling a father he'd ever known. Gone. Abandoned. Hojo. A walking jumble of complexes. Had HE truly had a hand in his...creation? His mother. Jenova. He stopped
( ... )
[CommentLog]notwhatiwasOctober 26 2010, 06:45:27 UTC
I knew Jenova. But that--creature, that monster was not your mother. Your mother was...
[He pauses. He can't afford to hesitate for long, Sephiroth's brain works far too quickly to allow him time to gather his thoughts and he knows it, but he needs a few seconds at the least.]Very eager to please. Intelligent, well-spoken, polite in most cases. Easily misled, a bit unstable, even dangerous, but...that didn't matter to me. She was beautiful, brilliant, and very difficult to understand. Truly a star member of her department, not without blame for what occurred; what she allowed to be done, to herself and to you, was wrong. What she did to the people around her, yourself and me, was wrong. Inherently, unequivocally, absolutely wrong
( ... )
[Okay. Sephiroth doesn't sound happy at all.]
Reply
General.
Reply
I want answers.
Reply
So long as you're providing questions.
Room 8202. Deck five.
Reply
Reply
You have my apologies, again. I hope you're recovering swiftly enough.
Reply
Well enough. [He crosses his arms, eyes hardening at the pain in his chest, but he wince doesn't reach his face. He'd decided when he'd seen Vincent's post to simply confront him with the questions as they'd arisen the day before, and he doesn't see a reason to change the plan now.]
What are you?
Reply
[Vincent closes the door.]
An experiment.
[Pause.]
A monster.
[He takes a deep breath, eyes closed, and hates how hard this is.]
I'm a vessel. For a WEAPON called Chaos. He's...not well-known, but you may have heard the stories. I'm not overly familiar with the educational level of your upbringing. But I'm--he's inside me. My blood, my cells, my head. Forever.
Reply
[His eyes follow Vincent as he moves into the room.]
So, whatever this "Subject J" was they were experimenting with was not the only substance in play.
[Pause.]
And the legends are true.
Reply
[Another steadying breath before he continues.]
The projects, the ones you know of and the one that resulted in my current condition, took place around the same time. Mine was...dropped. The others weren't.
SOLDIER was still in its infancy at the time; Hojo used me as a sort of prototype for the treatments. At first. I suppose he found what he was looking for somewhere down the line, because after that--
[He breaks off and just gives his head a shake.]
Reply
That would be twenty-five years ago. Hollander's participation in Project G made him a candidate for the Head of the Science Department after Professor Gast's...departure. If your project was halted, it must not have resulted in successful SOLDIER augmentation, as Professor Hojo had intended.
[and the rest is said more to himself than to Vincent.] ...how did Hojo win?
Reply
...Hojo had his own project.
[There were two of them. Two projects. Two men trying to build the perfect soldier, trying to craft a god. And Vincent didn't stop either of them.]
Reply
[he looks up, meeting Vincent's glowing crimson eyes with his own of gleaming emerald. Interests glitters there, and a subtle apprehension. Something in him is telling him he may not want to know the answer.]
What was it?
Reply
But there's no one else here. And...is there really anyone more appropriate to tell him than the man who could have stopped it, and didn't?
Still, the moment of silence is ridiculously long, the tension almost heavy enough to crush them both. Vincent forces himself to meet Sephiroth's eyes.]
You.
[And before Sephiroth even has time to react, he goes on, doing his best to keep things clear, to stave off the psychotic break that nearly destroyed their entire planet.]Gast, Hojo and your mother set out to create something better than the best of what humankind could offer. Your mother was desperate for a chance to do something worth remembering, something that would make the world a better place in her eyes. You, undeveloped as you were, served as a blank slate. What you are now, what you're capable of, is ( ... )
Reply
He turned away, raising his hands to his temples unconsciously in a vain attempt to slow the speed of thought.
Gast. And Hojo. And his mother. No. One thought at a time. Gast. Gast had set out to create something better than the best of what humankind could offer. Gast, the only person resembling a father he'd ever known. Gone. Abandoned. Hojo. A walking jumble of complexes. Had HE truly had a hand in his...creation? His mother. Jenova. He stopped ( ... )
Reply
[He pauses. He can't afford to hesitate for long, Sephiroth's brain works far too quickly to allow him time to gather his thoughts and he knows it, but he needs a few seconds at the least.]Very eager to please. Intelligent, well-spoken, polite in most cases. Easily misled, a bit unstable, even dangerous, but...that didn't matter to me. She was beautiful, brilliant, and very difficult to understand. Truly a star member of her department, not without blame for what occurred; what she allowed to be done, to herself and to you, was wrong. What she did to the people around her, yourself and me, was wrong. Inherently, unequivocally, absolutely wrong ( ... )
Reply
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