Strength comes from within.
Hindsight is 20/20
A Final Fantasy VII Fanfiction
Author: Sanjuno Shori Niko
Summary: Cid stages a daring rescue that probably would have worked out better if he had been more awake.
Timeline: More of this fic is here!
=/=
(In which Cid only mostly escapes captivity.)
The power went out as an explosion rocked the lab complex, exposed wooden supports shedding dust and splinters.
“Hojo knows about the baby, Ilfana!” Gast grabbed his lover’s hand and pulled her after him as he ran. “We need to leave now! Hurry!”
The Cetra woman nodded, one hand held protectively over her abdomen as she followed Gast into the dark winter night.
/…/
Hojo looked up from his notes with a scowl. The guard standing at the door remained impassive.
“So Gast and the Ancient have run?” Hojo stood up, his shoulders still noticeably hunched despite his best efforts to straighten to his full height. “Have a team bring Sephiroth to me. The rest are to secure the lab and pursue Gast. He is not to be allowed to escape with the Cetra Specimen. See to it, Sergeant.”
“Professor.” The guard nodded and turned on his heel, radio already halfway to his mouth as he left the office.
/…/
Cid opened his eyes. He was in a small, narrow space, like a box - or a coffin - and there was no soothing hum of engines to calm his claustrophobia.
Cid panicked and kicked out. The top of his prison broke free and flew through the air to land on the far side of the room with a loud crash.
Cid sat up and looked around without truly recognizing where he was. The room was dark, dusty, and the air was stagnant in a way that suggested that the door did not open often, if at all. There was a shattered coffin across the room, a solid metal lid half buried in the rotten wood, and several unbroken coffins were lined around the walls.
Why was he in a crypt? Cid climbed out of his box and stumbled towards the door. Still feeling sluggish, Cid fumbled with the door handle for a long few minutes until giving up with a whine. Forehead pressed against the reinforced portal, Cid whimpered in dismay. He needed out, he needed to get out…
An explosion boomed somewhere overhead, muffled by distance and solid-matter obstructions. Cid staggered, his support gone as he stumbled to a stop on the other side of the door. Confused blue eyes stared for a long moment at the still-sealed door before Cid turned away to head for the stairs.
He really wanted a smoke. Cid sighed and patted himself down. No smokes. At least he still had all of his bits - well, all of his girl bits anyway.
Which meant - which meant, um - where was Sephiroth? His son, how old was his baby now? How much had Hojo hurt him? Sephiroth had still been so little when Cid had been locked away…
Picking up speed as he became more aware of his surroundings, Cid focused furiously on finding his kid and how long it would take Hojo to die after Cid shoved the pointy end of spear up the Tonberry-fucker’s ass.
Later, Cid would kick himself for letting the drug-induced cryostasis-hangover mess with his cognition enough that he completely failed to notice the wires and tubes attached to the bottom of Vincent’s coffin. They had been out of sight, but not hidden, and maybe if Vincent had been there to help…
/…/
Sephiroth was not a child prone to whinging, a life as a science experiment tended to discourage such tendencies, but he was still only seven years old. Even a child as self-controlled as Sephiroth tended to get cranky when hauled out of bed at three in the morning and hustled off in his sleepwear.
The guards were doing their best to move speedily but they had all seen the silver-haired child take small tanks apart with his bare hands. None of them wanted to know what he could do their all-too-fragile flesh, and so none of the guards wanted to be the unlucky one who triggered a homicidal rage in the demon child. Even a tantrum could be deadly. So Sephiroth dragged his feet, tired and sulky, and his guard escort exchanged helpless looks as they tried to hurry him along without actually touching or speaking or looking directly at the boy they chivvied along.
/…/
“What took so long?” Hojo snapped as they approached him, silver-haired child-subject in tow. “Who knows where that sentimental fool has gone by now.”
The guards stood at attention and kept their faces blank. It would do no good to remind Hojo that they were living people under their faceless helmets. Not when he was in this kind of mood. Attracting his interest was a bad thing.
Sephiroth just looked bored and in dire need of a nap.
“Wake up, boy!” Hojo’s gaze sharpened on Sephiroth. “You should have arrived five minutes ago. Your laziness will have to be addressed later.”
Frowning Sephiroth looked up, opened his mouth - and froze.
Wearing the most intently attentive expression anyone had ever seen on his face, Sephiroth’s head swivelled back and forth like a hunter trying to pinpoint the sound of his quarry. Uncanny green eyes were shining, pupils blown wide and blind. Sephiroth looked right through the other people in the room, ignoring their movements and voices as if they were not there at all.
It was disconcerting, and the guards shifted uneasily, exchanging speaking looks as they firmed their grips on the tranquilizer guns that were standard issue for this posting. Spirits have mercy on you if you accidently killed one of Hojo’s ‘precious specimens’. Hojo shifted forward, attention caught by Sephiroth’s twitching. The scientist looked almost anticipatory, eager, the mad light in his dark eyes growing more fervent.
“Mother?” Sephiroth’s voice was loud in the sudden hush, loud and lost and young, high and piping in the way all children’s voices are. The boy took a few steps towards the door, shock giving way to confusion. “Where are you, mother?”
In a less than surprising turn of events, Hojo looked pleased by the child’s sudden bout of insanity. The guards shifted, clearly uneasy with what they thought it meant.
“Excellent.” Hojo’s muttering was audible to the guards standing closest to the scientist. “Jenova is initiating contact with the subject.”
“Mother.” Sephiroth blinked, and smiled, nodding his head as his eyes shone in innocent joy. “Yes. I’m right here.”
The door exploded inward, reinforced metal reduced to broken shards and burning slag. The blond woman in a torn white dress carrying the biggest spear any man there had ever seen grinned at Hojo over the carnage her entrance had produced. Sephiroth blinked again, this time in surprise as the guards standing over him went down, hit by the shining metal that never touched the boy himself. She flickered in and out of view like a mirage, a guard falling victim to each unseen lunge.
“Stop her!” Hojo screeched as his guard unit reeled in surprise. That was a mistake on his part, it caught her attention. With an impossible leap over the guards that still stood, she glowed briefly, hovering in the air before she dove at Hojo like a stooping hawk. The scientist managed to dodge most of the attack, but the secondary blast caught him in the gut. Hojo was hammered into the wall behind his desk and pinned like a particularly large insect. The woman spun around, and the ragged lace on the hem of her skirt danced around her bare legs as she yanked her spear free of Hojo’s flesh. The nearest upright guard was strong-armed to the side and he crashed to the ground after flying for several feet, taking a handful of other guards down with him. Sephiroth’s hand was grabbed up, and they were running from the room before anyone could find their feet.
“After them!” Hojo clawed at the wall, his lower body a mess of blood and burns. “Don’t let her get away! Retrieve Sephiroth!”
Two guards stayed behind to tend to the injuries sported by Hojo and the other guards. The few who had managed to remain uninjured pounded out after the woman as the alarms started to scream. Radios crackled as reinforcements were called and the rest of the unit was informed. The hunt was on.
/…/
Sephiroth looked up at the tall woman dragging him down the hall. Long, un-styled hair had been left to grow unchecked, spilling over her shoulders and down her back in a metallic curtain of ash-blond strands. Her eyes were pale blue, almond pupils surrounded by a visible glow that Sephiroth had only ever seen in his own reflection. Inhumanly strong muscle rolled under pale skin, hidden under the aged white lace of her dress, the blue ribbons faded and worn. It was impossible. Sephiroth had never seen her before in his life, yet…
Sephiroth knew that she was his mother. Her voice was in his head, whiskey-smooth-warm as she sang his name, her love and her protectiveness and her worry-alarm-hurry wrapping around him like a blanket of concern. She could be trusted, as Sephiroth had never trusted anyone before. She was true, and she was truth, and she was everything good about the world. She had blown up Hojo for him.
Cid grinned despite his near-mindless panic and hauled the kid into an empty room at the back of the mansion, locking the door and hoping that nobody noticed the disturbance in the dust. They could not stay here long, but Cid needed the time to think, to figure out where and how and when. A locked door was not really enough, and it would not last for long, but it would have to do for now. Cid turned to look at his son. Spirits, his son.
“Ya’ve grown.” Cid’s voice was cracked, rusty from disuse and the shock of seeing his baby so grown. He had missed years of Sephiroth’s life, locked away in the basement. Despite the roughness of his throat, Cid’s voice was still higher and sweeter than he was expecting, even after however-many years in this female form. Being a chick was hard on a man’s image. Cid blinked tears from his eyes, looking down into Sephiroth’s bright green eyes. “Ya’ll were still a baby the last time I saw ya. Barely walkin’, babblin’ ‘mama’ ta git my attention.”
“Mother.” Sephiroth blinked back as his eyes started to sting, reaching to fist his hands in the skirt of her dress. Mother dropped to her knees, arms wrapping around him, pulling him close to her body. Pressed to his mother’s warmth, Sephiroth released his hold on fabric to wrap his own arms around her neck, hot tears running down his face. “You’re real. I’ve dreamed of you before but… you’re real.”
“Oh, baby boy, a course I’m real. Don’t ya ever go doubtin’ that.” Cid sighed and curled around Sephiroth, one hand at the back of his son’s head as the little boy cried. Pulling back, Cid looked into Sephiroth’s teary eyes with a serious mien. “Listen ta me, because we ain’t got much time, sweetheart.”
“Mother?” Sephiroth felt a chill in his chest. Was she going to go away and leave him alone again?
“I never left ya. I was taken away from ya.” The growl was savage, animalistic, and not something that should be possible with a human throat. “It was never, it will never be my choice to leave ya. It’s Hojo - it’s always Hojo - who tore us apart.”
“Mother…” Sephiroth looked up at his mother’s face with wide eyes. She was so strong, he had never seen a woman so strong, but Hojo was…
“No. Listen ta me.” Cid took a deep breath, feeling the weight of what-had-been in conflict with what-could-be, but Fate would always lose out to Free Will, and Destiny will always be subject to choice. Shaking off the dizzying knowledge that everything was going to change, Cid gave Sephiroth a secretive smile. “Yer a son ‘a the clan Highwind, and ya’ll show the world what that means, child a mine. Never believe what Hojo tells ya, because he ain’t yer father. My name is Cid, not Jenova - never Jenova - Jenova is evil, don’t listen ta her, don’t go lookin’ fer her, and if ya hear mention’a her you run. Yer father’s name is Vincent Valentine, formerly’a the Turks. When ya get older try ta find Veld, he was yer father’s partner and he’ll help ya out if ya can make him yer ally. Never accept the truth at face value, the more evidence ya have the better, and never trust what Hojo tells ya. Make as many friends and allies as ya can, baby boy, because I assure ya that yer gonna need ‘em.”
Cid stopped and swallowed painfully. Sephiroth was shaking and looked like he was about to break into more tears.
“Remember that yer father and I love ya more than anythin’, darlin’ boy.” Cid brushed silver bangs away from Sephiroth’s face and kissed his forehead. “Even though it may seem like yer alone, we’re gonna be doin’ our best ta keep ya safe and happy. We’ll always be doin’ everythin’ in our power ta find ya when yer missin’, kiddo, so never let go’a hope. I love ya, baby, love ya more than I kin say.”
“Mother?” Sephiroth clung to her warmth, burying his face in her chest as he hiccupped. “I don’t want you to leave again! Why are you saying those sorts of things?”
“I’m just a ghost, baby, just a memory. I died years ago.” Cid rubbed Sephiroth’s back as the little boy gasped and choked, fighting back the cries that wanted to burst free. “I dunno what the future is going to bring, kiddo, so all I can do is give ya the truth. Hold on ta what I’ve told ya, and hold on ta this.”
Sephiroth looked up in confusion, eyes reddened but free of tears, and Cid dropped a chain of green-gold-blue-red-violet light around the future general’s neck. It sank into his skin, hidden under his clothes.
“What is it?” Sephiroth touched the glow with a tentative hand, and it solidified in the tight clench of his fingers, warm and humming and warding away despair.
“A gift, a memory, an anchor. It’s whatever ya want it to be, sweetie.” Cid swallowed against the pain in his throat. Maybe this time Sephiroth could be free of Hojo, but even now Cid could almost sense to malevolent attention Jenova was turning their way. “If things git bad, if yer hurt, or scared, or confused, or even if ya jest wanna see yer dad and me, ya close yer eyes and hold on ta that. Ya hold on ta that, and ya call us - ya hear me? Ya’ll call us if yer in so much danger ya can’t think of another way ta get free. Yer dad and I’ll come, even if we gotta come as spirits, we’ll come fer ya. Hojo can’t take that thing from ya, baby boy. Nobody can.”
Sephiroth nodded and released the chain, watching as the colourful light faded away into his skin. He touched his chest - it was still warm, his mother’s Memory hidden safe where Hojo could not get to it. The secretive smile Sephiroth gave his mother was a mirror to Cid’s own.
“Now let’s get goin’.” Cid stood up and pulled Sephiroth to his feet. “We’ve been in one place fer too long.”
Cid could not say how - it was probably a side effect of using the Lifestream to fucking time travel (goddamned pushy demons fucking with casualty willy-nilly, the shitheads) - but Cid knew that right now Aeris’ parents were in the process of escaping Hojo’s lab. It was just like when he had known where Vincent was, and how he had known it when Lucrecia committed suicide. Just like before, Cid saw the choices laid before him. Gast and Ilfana needed a distraction, something to keep Hojo and his lackeys busy until they were well away from Nibelheim. Last time the distraction had been a series of explosions, the ones that had woken Cid up in his coffin. This time the distraction was going to be bigger.
Cid could do distraction like it was going out of style. Hell, he would enjoy the chance to destroy more of Hojo’s toys.
It took a good five hours for Hojo’s goons to catch up to Cid and Sephiroth. By that point Cid knew that Aeris’ parents were safely away from Shin-Ra’s reach for the moment, and he was actually starting to think that he and Sephiroth would be able to get away as well despite being the focus of the Shin-Ra guard unit’s mission. They could come back for Vincent later, after Hojo made his move to Midgar.
Hope is a painful thing to see destroyed.
Cornered, vastly outnumbered, and weak from five years of stasis, Cid still figured that if he had been given more time to practice fighting as a woman he would have had a fair chance at winning. As it was, well… numbers and dumb blind luck count for something.
As Cid slammed into the dirt, sharp knives of pain dragging along his nerves from the bullet in his leg, he recalled his own mother teaching him how to fly. She had been dressed in patched overalls and using an old broom handle as a make-shift spear, her face lined by smiles and hair fading early to grey. Regret washed over Cid at the memory, he would not be the one to teach his son how to fight or fly or how the two worked together. The guard who had shot Cid ended up with a thank-you spear in the gut. Cid spun out of the way, avoiding retaliatory fire, but the wound in his leg slowed him down, the bullet grating against bone. From that point on it was just a matter of time until Cid was tagged again, and again, and again.
Less than a third of their number remaining, the guards had long since lost their ability to remain professionals to the desire for revenge and survival.
Cid’s back hit a tree as he jerked his spear free of someone’s ribcage.
‘Shit.’ Cid had less than a second to complete the thought as his bare foot slid on mulch and moss. ‘This is gonna hurt.’
A horizontal rain of bullets pinned Cid to the trunk of the tree, each impact tearing free chunks of bloody bark, and Sephiroth screamed denial at the first spray of crimson, bursting from cover. The gunfire stopped. None of the remaining men were suicidal enough to risk damaging Hojo’s prized specimen.
‘Sloppy.’ The thought was inane, completely incongruous to the situation, but it was at the forefront of Cid’s mind as he slid down the tree to the ground. ‘Missed my brain and heart. None of ‘em managed a kill shot on their own. The only reason I’m dyin’ is because’a the numbers.’
“Mother!” Sephiroth fell to his knees in the early snow, ignoring the blood soaking into his pants. “Mother, get up! Please, get up!”
“Shh…” Everything hurt, but the grey haze was blocking out most of the pain - and yeah, Cid knew that was a bad thing, but… Cid lifted one hand to gently brush the tears from Sephiroth’s face. “S’all right, kiddo, don’ cry.”
“Mother!” Sephiroth curled over Cid’s bloody body, clutching the torn, reddening lace of the once-beautiful dress. “Don’t leave me! Please, don’t leave!”
“Ya’ll be okay.” Cid gasped for air, the familiar slow suffocation of blood in his lungs stealing the strength from his voice. “Remember what I told ya, and don’t worry, my sweet baby boy… I’ll find ya again…”
“Mother?” Sephiroth felt his pulse thunder in his ears as he stared without comprehension into his mother’s empty eyes. Blue glazed over with grey, dull, and without any glow. “Mother! No!”
A large hand gripped Sephiroth by his upper arm, hauling his to his feet, and the boy wailed. Grief blinded him to everything else, and Sephiroth thrashed against the guard’s hold, breaking the man’s fingers along with the grip on his arm as he screamed, fighting to get back to his mother’s body.
A flare of light scattered the approaching guards. Sephiroth stared for a moment, uncomprehending, as the small motes of light drifted by his face. Then Sephiroth howled, tortured denial given wordless voice, as he watched his mother’s body consumed by mako-green flames, dissolving into pyre-flies. The pinprick of the sedative went unnoticed as the boy thrashed against the hands holding him back, twisting with frenzied violence until he eventually slumped to the ground as the drugs took effect.
The security team exchanged uneasy glances as one of them shouldered Sephiroth’s limp body. The woman’s corpse had been completely overtaken by the flames that had lit from nowhere, the sparks faded away, and nothing had been left behind but the red stains and melted snow at the base of the leaf-bare, bullet-gouged tree. One of the younger men swallowed, looking from the churned earth to the silver haired boy draped over his superior’s shoulder. They had all heard what Sephiroth had called the woman, and the idea that he had helped kill a mother in front of her child made him ill at ease. This was not what he had enlisted to do.
Unnoticed tears continued to fall from Sephiroth’s half-closed eyes, eyes that remained locked on a heavily marked tree, and his pale lips moved in a voiceless plea. “… Mother…”
(Word Count: 3,586)
=/=
Cid is one crazy mother. And before ya'll go and freak out over the fact that I killed Cid... remember that this is FFVII we're talking about here. I have got some crazy metaphysics to explore in this thing before all is said and done. That aside, I hope you all enjoyed this bit!
I'd like to apologize to everyone who follows my fic. I've been without a computer since shortly after I moved into my apartment and that's made it extremely difficult to post anything, as I'm sure you all can well imagine. I'm currently hijacking my mother's desktop in her home office in order to post this bit here, and I hope to manage at least two more posts before I leave to head back to my place. I should soon have enough saved up to buy myself a new laptop, so keep your fingers crossed everyone.
To end this post on a high note; WHO'S EXCITED ABOUT THE FFVII REMAKE?!?!?! *shrieks in glee and rolls around in delight*
=/=
HERE THERE BE DRAGONS!! (Have you fallen over the edge of the world map yet?)
♥
♠
♥
♣
♥
♠
♥
♣