onepassingnight | 004 || all you need is a guardian angel

Desolation. Death. Destruction.

It spans as far as the eye can see, possibly even further. To the outreaches of the Planet and beyond, only growing in its ravenous hunger and taking anything it can with it. It's a horrible, bloody sight... not one would expect to find bright, white wings shimmering in the too-bright sun. Even less so, the bundle in his dirtied arms, sound asleep.

The wings flutter once, dropping a few, floating white feathers to the remains of the torched building they were perched upon. The tips of the feathers are also burned, almost even rotting as they lay there, guided by a gentle breeze in the silent environment. And as the man shifts, the faint glow of a halo can be seen reflecting off of a broken window, the beaten body sagging against the brittle, splintered wood. He's tired of the fighting, the chaos and the panic caused by those soldiers. They weren't anything like he remembered, and... this was the result. Insanity finally caught up to him, and in a sense, he was glad to have passed before it'd gotten hold of him, too.

The infant in his arms stirs, a few soft, fussy groans jumping out of it.

In response, he gently rocked the baby in his arms, whispering in a low tone, trying to get his adopted bundle to calm down. Though still dirty, he'd long-since been able to heal it. It'd just... taken a toll on whatever spirit energy he had left, tethering him to this bleak world.

"Just a little while longer, kiddo."

[ooc: So... kind of an odd dream for him to be having, but pretty much? While Zack himself is still canon, he's dreaming of a universe that *did* fall to ShinRa. Certain things have been changed around, and I'll explain more in detail to whomever responds~]

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So, they did erase Sephiroth's memory.

The pit-feeling in his stomach is obvious by the slackening of the SOLDIER's posture. The one person who had been guiding him through this whole mess was now effected, and he felt very alone in that instant.

"They hurt you." His voice is quiet. "They must've taken you in, made you forget. And that's why..."

He shifts uncomfortably, trying his damndest to make light of the situation but was there any real way to? No matter where he looked, the bodies just kept piling up.

"I can take you back to our base, sir. Maybe someone knows how to help you?"

He dislikes the idea that he may have been taken and altered in some way. There are few things that disturb him more than the thought of being experimented on or changed, especially without his knowledge. As unsettling as Zack's explanation is, he does have no memory of any of this. What other reason could there be? "You may be right. I can think of no other explanation." He concentrates, tries to access more memory, but no matter how he strains, there is simply nothing there. He doesn't remember what happened to Zack, or why he has wings.

Yet he trusts Zack. Zack is perhaps the only person he still trusts. He nods. "Thank you, Zack. It's possible there's something that can be done. You must tell me what's happened, on the way. The last thing I remember is being in Modeoheim."

"A lot happened since then, so maybe I should just fast-forward to the bigger parts of it."

He started, leading the taller man away from the wreckage. One of their older bases, and a place that had been so teeming with life so long ago. It was too depressing here, and there wasn't much they could do to escape it.

"You went missing, and me an' Cloud... we were trapped down in Hojo's labs for a few years. I tried bustin' out getting Cloud out of there, but I just remember bein' ambushed by a batallion of lower troops and gunned down." Starting in a hover, the SOLDIER led the safest route possible. "I watched everything happen from the Lifestream. ShinRa took over, the remaining SOLDIERs went nuts, and... everything just burned. It wasn't until a few years ago that I popped back here in the state you see now, but with the way the Planet's hurtin' like this..."

There's a long silence before he says the next part, unable to meet Sephiroth's gaze.

"...there's a good chance I won't even exist as a spirit anymore."

He went with Zack, keeping an eye on the surroundings, wary of attack in what looked to be a warzone--especially as he did not know the particulars of the situation, or what he most needed to be wary of.

He didn't like anything he heard from Zack. "Hojo?" He knew the man, only too well, and he frowned at this, his expression not lightening in the least as he listened to the remainder of the news. It pained him, in fact, but he'd always been good at masking his feelings, remaining calm and cool even under extreme stress. "I'm sorry, Zack." Not that being sorry could help a great deal, when what was done was already done, but the words were sincerely meant.

Sephiroth shook his head, determined. He didn't fully understand the situation yet, but he wouldn't allow himself to give up hope, not if Zack was depending on him. "We can't allow that to happen. I will do whatever is necessary to ensure that it doesn't." It would be better to focus on action rather than sentiment. "How many of us are there? Do we have any allies?"

...yeah. Yeah, he'd gotten into a whole discussion before about how effective 'sorries' were, so he simply shrugs in response.

As long as Sephiroth, now, wasn't actively trying to run Masamune through his chest, he didn't mind what had happened or their rocky past together. Part of this was Sephiroth's fault to begin with, but it was mostly Hojo and his scheming ways. "Just... try to stay sane, given the circumstances. Okay?" It spoke volumes without revealing much at all. But the hidden message was still there.

'I don't wanna lose you again.'

Allowing the subject to change, he focused more at the task at hand. "You, and a few remaining AVALANCHE members still holding onto their minds. I know it sounds weird as hell, teamin' up with AVALANCHE of all people, but they've changed for the better after we all took care of Fuhito." The wings flapped, slowly, to keep the man airborne.

"...everyone else is just... gone."

Edited 2011-11-03 18:39 (UTC)

004 || all you need is a guardian angel

--how u do dat.

I just c&p'ed the symbol~♡

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡!

Precisely! ♡

I will keep these fancy hearts forever! B[ 9