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

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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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"I'm sorry." He says it soft and low. He's sorry that he wasn't stronger. That he let Hojo warp him into whatever monster he'd warped into. But he's also apologizing for whatever that monster did to Zack. Because that's his sin too. There were no excuses or passes on his failures. He'll never make amends for it. But he can try to make it better. Hesitant, because it feels almost as if he's comforting Zack and that seems all backward, he raises a hand to rest it on Zack's shoulder. Zack's the strong one, the one that can do anything, the one that doesn't need anyone's help to do the impossible.

"I'm make it right."

It's a promise. He'll make it right. For Zack and the baby and Aerith's planet... but he'll do it because of Tifa. And Marlene. And Denzel. Because he's going to finish this - and he isn't planning on coming out the other end. Having that goal, that finish line, to concentrate on is all that he has to keep himself together, to keep himself from utterly shattering into uselessness. Just a little longer. Just finish this.

"Tell me where he's hiding, Zack."

He tenses up at the apology - something he'd heard far too much and spread too thin as the situation grew out of control. I'm sorry it happened, I'm sorry they're dead. I'm sorry you're dead. I'm sorrysorrysorry--

"Don't."

His voice is even quieter, his hand dropping from the man's arm slowly.

"Don't... start apologizing. Start helpin' to make things right again." Because he doesn't want Cloud to apologize for something that was out of his control as well. He adjusts his hold on the infant, using his free hand to gently guide his friend over, out of the smoldering ash and tattered remains.

"We're workin' on finding that out now," He said, strength returning to his demeanor once more. "He keeps moving, keeps crawlin' back into whatever little hole he can find. ... But Sephiroth's got a plan to flood him out."

Cloud let's his friend guide him because Zack's not on the diseased side of him, not touching the rotting part of him, but he only lets him guide him out of the building. He's not going back to whatever camp what's left of the rebels have set up. Not for him. He's already done that, already been part of a team. Already lead his team. He can't afford to do that again.

And there are some things he can't forgive.

"What is it?" he asked, focusing on what's important, and he hopes to Holy that it's better than his plan.

He knows Cloud has issues with Sephiroth. After everything that had happened ay Nibelheim, how could he possibly blame him? But he wasn't going to let Cloud run off on his own again, either. He saw what happened the last time he'd attempted something like that, and the sight of the man's body mutating so horribly while all he could do was watch from the Lifestream was something he never wanted to witness, ever again.

So he ignores all that for now, focusing on the mission at hand. Maybe he's holding your arm just a little too tightly. He doesn't want his friend to leave.

"We've got an ally, posing as one of his monsters. Whatever information Hojo's giving him, we're keeping track of here." Using his free hand, the SOLDIER pulls out a small PDA, revealing countless folders and files crucial to their mission.

"The only downside is that we can't protect the guy from here. We... can only hope he's able to hold his own against that kind of an army." Just saying those words leaves a bad taste in his mouth. The young soldier had chosen his fate, had explained in great detail how anyone coming to help would just jeprodize the mission. It was a suicide endeavour.

...Zack knew. No matter what happened, they all would get out alive.

Maybe Zack is holding his arm too tightly but it feels good. It feels - real. Cloud needs Zack to be real and he needs his friend's grip. His own arm shifts so that he can grip Zack's arm in return. Needing the contact, needing his friend to still be alive and there. Even if that makes him a selfish bastard considering the fact Zack looks like death warmed over and Cloud should be the one doing the supporting.

He sure as hell hadn't done it enough for his own family when he'd... when he'd still had the chance...

He does look at the files though, noting them even if he can't take the time, doesn't have the concentration, to analyze them. Whoever the plant is, they're braver than anyone should be. And they're risking a lot more than death if they get caught. His eyes lift back to Zack's.

"Why doesn't Sephiroth just use the cells to find Hojo?" Except Zack wasn't around for that part. "Sephiroth dragged me all over the Planet using the Jenova cells inside me. He did it to the clones too. I didn't realize it but the Jenova inside me wanted to rejoin the cells inside him. Some kind of reunion. Before I killed Sephiroth, I had to stop Hojo first. He'd injected Jenova cells into himself. Why doesn't Sephiroth use the cells to find Hojo?"

"Heh. If only it was that easy."

Of course Hojo wouldn't leave such a wide link open. So somehow, someway, the scientist found a way to block off any connection to Sephiroth. This war would have ended so long ago, and all of this destruction could have been avoided. "I don't know how he's done it, but Hojo's trail is so scrambled anymore that we can't tell where he is. Sometimes, we'll think we find him and it'll just be some kind of Copy."

Though the Zack of present wouldn't know about this. Any of this. The Zack of this dreams does, and his grip stays steady on his friend, hearing about all he'd gone through. Even if they did escape the labs... that wouldn't be the end of it.

"Cloud, if you know anything at all, now's the time to tell me."

...he doesn't seem to be talking about the dream's events anymore.

Cloud's not the best at picking up on subtle changes sometimes, but whether he's really just that in-tune with Zack after almost a year of doing nothing but living with the man while comatose or whether it's the dream, he picks up on the change. Suddenly phantom Hojos and hidden monsters and mutated SOLDIERs all fade into the back ground and when he lifts his eyes to look at his friend, they're bottomlessly blue and aware. He knows he shouldn't say anything, swore to himself he wouldn't - but Zack is dying in this place and so is he, here and there. What's he got left? He trusts Zack with everything. Anything. He just doesn't even know where to start or where Zack is in time. His voice is soft, and for the first time willing, when he asks:

"What do you want to know?"

Edited 2011-11-24 18:03 (UTC)

Zack's hand gently moves, without a word, to the arm that seemed to be plaguing his friend so terribly. And it's lifted with the utmost care, blue eyes trailing down to where he suspected the wound to be, then back into the blonde's own blue-green eyes. They remain locked for but a moment, and then the SOLDIER finally gains the courage to speak.

"This. Cloud, tell me about this."

Because he wants to know. Because he wants his best friend to be right in the head again, and prevent something like the dream, the apocolypse, the pain and the torment. All of it. Whatever it took.

He'd been expecting Zack to ask about their past, about what happened to them, to him - so when Zack doesn't it throws him and he doesn't resist the touch to his arm the way he should. Zack's shouldn't be touching that - what if...

Right. Dead people can't catch geostigma. He doesn't even really think geostigma spreads that way it's just... the black rot seems like such a part of his soul that's crept out that he doesn't want... himself infecting anyone else.

There's a little wince, a little frown, at the edges of his lips that go tight but he doesn't give any other sign. Instead, he simply looks up with empty eyes to meet his friend's gaze.

"I'm dying." It comes out easier than he thought it would, and with less emotion. He'd raged against it when he'd first found it but the bone numbing apathy has been setting in since. With an inhale he reaches out to lift the concealing sleeve out of the way, revealing the bubbles of dark pus under his skin and the angry red wounds starting to spread, the dark bruise looking markings that are the beginning signs of it that have spread like fire up from his forearm to begin creeping toward his shoulder.

"It's called geostigma. Denzel's got it too.

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004 || all you need is a guardian angel

LOL - fanfiction is an amazing, horrifying, wonderful thing

ISN'T IT SO. There needs to be more awesome fics like that. ;n;

I plead the fifth - or insanity. I think they both work in this case

bb are you holding out on awesome fics on me.

I don't think awesome would be the right word if we're still talking about mpreg fics

even worse if it's sleepwalking mpreg WHAT IS THIS CONVERSATION.

one we should probably stop if we want to make it out with our sanity intact

http://nobodyxaldyn.tumblr.com/post/13651455612/pffffffft-lolol-dammit-cloud-stop-enabling-all

Noooooo. Cloud denies it all. ALL OF IT! Those photos are obviously shopped!