supersoldier | ( aefenglom inbox. )

[The correction is unexpected. If not the changes, the most invasive thing about being on this planet, then what? All that left was his suggestion about asking for advice, and if that’s true, it isn’t what he would have expected from Cloud.]

...The address on the note is nearby. A high rise a few blocks down from the posting. I remember because I thought that the building looked new.

[His reply is automatic. He’s still thinking.

Cloud, who travelled with others back on their planet. Cloud, who certainly has made friends on this one? Or does he assume too much? He realizes, then, that he does not really know him; that he rarely ever knows anyone deeply enough to really understand what makes them tick, even if he always has been able to assume through observation with relatively successful results.

Still, he’s spent ample enough of time around him — here and there. There are parts of his personality that are similar to his own, in a way. As though Cloud’s own reticence were a rougher version of Sephiroth’s aloof nature.

If that’s the case, he likely doesn’t want to linger on the subject. Probably wouldn’t do well with questions. But he has to clarify, for even Sephiroth finds it impractical to not rely on this world for workable information. On the people who might have answers where they do not.]

...It’ll be difficult to function on this planet through independence alone. It simply isn’t practical. Think of everyone else as representing... a resource, unused.

[And to avoid making himself sound like a hypocrite, an addendum—]

When I am admitting to something like that, you know you should take it into consideration.

...Right, yeah.

[Shit. The listing was in his pocket now, wasn't it? So much for a subject change. He retrieves it, and reads it, offering a faint nod at Sephiroth's (pretty astute) comment about the building. The guy had a good head for direction. But honestly, that ...made sense.

But as for the rest?]

Yeah, like bonds.

[This thinking is flawed. Highly so. But to him, it makes sense. This world forced connection in a way theirs didn't. Nothing about what Sephiroth is saying is wrong- people needed people. He's aware. He'd been aware of it since he was a child- (even if thinking of himself back then is still enough, even now, to make him want to think about anything else) but the deviation in his thinking lies with assuming such could be obtained through bonds alone.

He did travel with others, on his world. But even then, it'd been for a purpose. For a point. For him, the realization that they were friends too, that they cared about each other, isn't quite formed yet. At least, not entirely. Not before an event in his future, where given the opportunity to leave, to spend what time they could with their loved ones, instead they came back.

If he asked himself about it, he'd know he felt that way, sure. Friendship. Something more than just banding together for a purpose and then returning to their respective lives. He did see them as friends. He did care, and he did cherish them. Problem is, the feeling's only worth a damn if they thought the same.

Plus, there's another problem. He takes things too far. He knows he does- and this feeling could've easily been exactly the same one that's plagued him for years- the one that had him look through a little girl's window, even if she barely knew him. The same one that made him follow her- the one that got her hurt.

It's a belief that something's wrong with him. That he takes everything too far. Confirmed by her father's blame. Embraced with the act of hurting her friends afterward.

But.]

...Right.

[Nothing else is said. Whether it's apparent the advice has sunk in or not isn't clear. But.]

If there's a way out, and we get back, are you going to look for that Genesis guy?

[For him, it's a while ago. A ... very long time ago. His memory's pretty foggy, but there's one thing he knows for certain.]

He was supposed to be killed the same time as Angeal. But there were sightings.

[No, he cannot tell if Cloud has taken that advice to heart. But Sephiroth is not the kind of man to press it onto someone a second time unless they’re being particularly foolish — Cloud doesn’t strike him as a fool, and he can make his own decisions on how to proceed. His Bonded might just make the errant commentary on it, once in a while, as he sees fit.

The question causes a silence to fill between them. Sephiroth continues walking at a steady pace, down the street, and they near the postings board where this all started. But finally-]

I already was. That had been one of the reasons why I accepted the assignment to Nibelheim. There had been rumors of activity linking him to the area.

[He supposes it’s only right that Cloud knows the underlying intent of the mission so unduly interrupted for him. To the other man, it had been years ago.]

If I were to return to that exact place and time, I would see it through to the end. What happens after that depends on the result.

[Perhaps more than Sephiroth realizes.]

...But I’ve been thinking that certain obligations with the company might be at an end.

[That... explained a lot. He'd wondered, at the time. What exactly someone like Sephiroth was doing on such a low-stakes mission. There was the fact that there weren't all that many Firsts around any more. But even then, why use two for something as simple as putting down monsters and investigating a cause?]

...Right.

[Sephiroth, being bonded, might feel a faint amount of disappointment at that word. Because... yeah. Cloud does feel disappointed, somewhat. But if Sephiroth does feel anything, it's fleeting. Mostly because the source of this emotion knows, full well, that he doesn't have the luxury of them. Not any longer. He has to rein it in. ]

Makes sense.

[A few more steps, a turn around a corner, and:]

Almost there.

[Errant commentary. Solely intended to detract from the larger issue being discussed. A few more steps, another corner, one makeshift alleyway and:]

Shinra never were what they say in their publicity. But they've done things that're beyond terrible.

[No, the disappointment doesn't pass his notice, though attributing it to something is a trickier task. His answer regarding Nibelheim? His faltering loyalty to the company? Sephiroth supposes it doesn't matter in the end; if Cloud is so many years ahead of him, it's likely not a very surprising admission. According to Aerith, he's gone missing in the future, so he only relays information that bolsters what Cloud already knows.

Insofar as he assumes, at least.

Down the alleyway they go. The cat in his arms wiggles, meows, wiggles a bit more, but Sephiroth's grip — while not painful — is tight and unerring.]

This doesn't surprise me as much as it should. Not any longer.

[Not after what happened to Genesis and Angeal, but if only Sephiroth actually knew how deeply Shinra's questionable, immoral business practices ran.]

But you're referring to more than just [apparently] draining the life out of the planet?

Pretty much.

[Let's see. Five- no, seven years ago. That meant-]

In your time, the Corel reactor's being built. Probably early stages, right? The company just managed to convince the townspeople there to abandon their coal mines. Gonna take a few years to build it.

[He moves his gaze back to Sephiroth to ascertain that. It... should be right. It just about lines up. Maybe the company hadn't quite completed the negotiations. But they'd be close. ]

But they do it, same way they always do. The reactor's in the mountains, powers the town. Also, there's another reason for it.... I'll... get into that later. Anyway, something goes wrong, the thing blows.

[He's slowed to a stop now, because... honestly, this part's important. He... wants to see how Sephiroth reacts.]

They blamed the miners, and they killed 'em. Every one they could find, anyway. Then, they torched the town, with their families inside it.

...Years later, they built a theme park over it. What's left of the place is now some prison for people kicked out of the park. The point of time I'm from, the survivors moved to a new settlement, called North Corel. And it's worse than the slums.

[Slight pause.]

North Corel's not the only place. Fort Condor, by Junon's, going through something similar. Difference is, they got their loved ones out. ...Gongaga blew, too.

[As Cloud speaks, the little cat still wriggling in Sephiroth’s arms, there is a part of him that isn’t surprised by this information. As though knowing what the department heads were like — and therefore knowing the company’s mindset, their priorities, in a way — provided insight regarding their business and moral practices. One far outweighed the other.

And it was easy to detach oneself from it, to not overthink the measures they would go to make the company look good, make it look corporate-clean and untouchable. A life entrenched in the army made that simple — follow orders from the top, knowing you were providing protection for those who could not manage it for themselves. Or that you were fighting back the potential onslaught of an enemy force, nipping a resistance in the bud before it could sprout its creeping vines across Midgar’s foundations.

But time passes and eats away at those certainties, just as it did with Sephiroth's. And that does that make him any better for keeping his loyalties entrenched, for a time, with Shinra? Because it was the purpose he was born for, raised for, told what to do and he did it well?

He is expressionless as they stop in front of a tall building, craning his gaze upwards to spot the floor they need to be on. A short climb, if anything. But Cloud will feel a discontent stirring in their bond, malignant and deep.]

Negligence is the least of Shinra’s crimes. You said they torched an entire town?

[He wonders if there’s any shred of honor to cling to, working for the company. Perhaps he’s already made his decision, knowing the answer to that.]

That’s unforgivable, and yet— Anything for the bottom line, anything to expand their influence. It’s easy to be blinded to all of that from the inside.

[He feels it, all right. It's not exactly new. His own feelings, stirring at least halfway through this conversation resemble this discontent well- but feeling it from Sephiroth himself makes the nagging, familiar feeling more like a wave- crushing him from above.]

Yep. Not even that far into your future.

[His gaze moves with Sephiroth's, noting the elevation. Then he half-turns, back.]

There's something else, too. The company's never been what it says, right? Even someone like me worked that out pretty quick. But Shinra from the point I've come from're different. There's some SOLDIER around, sure. But it's Thirds at the Headquarters. Seconds, sometimes, for company objectives. But... I've been in their hair a few times, with AVALANCHE. I've never seen another First. But I've seen their mechs. Advanced Weaponry's pretty much the new SOLDIER. Thier machines don't question orders, and they don't run.

[Sephiroth... can probably link the mention of Fort Condor, Corel, and Gongaga by himself. So there's no need.]

...Also... [Does there need to be another one? No, but.] The space program isn't the only thing that got shitcanned. Urban Development's gone, too. Only thing Shinra care about nowadays is building another Midgar.

The Neo-Midgar you mentioned.

[He continues, and up, up, up the stairs they go, leading to the higher floors. Sephiroth keeps idle count of how many they’ve taken. It’s no Shinra building, at least.]

...Even in my time, SOLDIER had begun to bleed members. Maybe they’ve had enough of what Shinra represents, too, or maybe the toll it would take on their body had shaken their resolve.

[This is the floor, and the door they’re looking for is just down the way.]

Even after leaving, they’ll spend a life under quiet Shinra surveillance. But you know that. [Though Sephiroth is not certain they would get away with such a thing for him.] What you’re saying doesn’t surprise me, then; falling back on machines is less work for more immediate results. The kind that never question orders or have a shift in their moral compass.

Are you trying to sell me on leaving, Cloud? You should know it’s redundant at this point.

Yeah, probably.

[Soon enough, they're at the right elevation. Regardless, Cloud lingers by the stairwell, just long enough to respond. It's redundant, yeah. He knows that as well as Sephiroth does, but he simply shrugs.]

Yeah, I get it. You're leaving anyway. It's still important you know what's going on, right? Probably save you some hassle if you thought about hiding out in either of those places.

[And.]

All yours. [Return of said escape artist cat, of course.] It's not like I'm the great hero.

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