guiltyred (guiltyred) wrote in areyougame, @ 2010-02-09 12:57:00 |
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Title: All In
Author: GuiltyRed
Rating: PG13 (language)
Warnings: none
Word count: 2440
Prompt: Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core, Zack/Nero (order doesn't matter): General Badassery (car chases, fights, etc) - "There is a reason why no one messes with the "creepy kid". "
Summary: The enemy of my enemy is my friend – if he’ll agree to the terms.
A/N: I’m taking the canon appearance of Weiß and Nero from “Crisis Core,” and trying to work it to make sense of some of the stuff from “Dirge of Cerberus.” Also, making a guess as to the origin of the Tsviets in relation to Restrictor here.
“Consider them found.”
The voice on the other end of the line sent a chill down Tseng’s back. This was a gamble beyond all others, and deep down he hated gambling – not from any sort of ethical stance, but from an almost visceral distaste for such an uncontrollable outcome. Still, it was either this or let the main army get hold of them, and that outcome, predictable as it would be, was in no way preferable to a gamble of any size. “Understood.”
For his part, Deepground SOLDIER Weiß appreciated gambling for what it was: a thumb in the eye of those who enforced the rules. It was a way to grasp the impossible, if one had enough luck on his side.
One did not become the de facto “ruler” of the SOLDIERs of Deepground without an assload of luck.
Weiß turned toward his brother. “We’re on. I’ve got Alpha-level authorization for this.”
Nero gave a thin smile. “Shinra job, is it?”
“Not exactly.”
The smile widened to show teeth. “Ah. I see. Then we should hurry.”
The two prepared their gear, then made their way to the upper levels, where a small fleet of helicopters waited like patient birds of prey. Weiß gave his authorization code to the attendant and dismissed his offer of a pilot: only the two of them were to know the details of this mission, no exceptions. After running through the pre-flight checklist, Weiß eased the bird into the sky and turned toward Banora.
It wasn’t hard to find them. Four life forms, indistinguishable from monsters, appeared on the sensor dials; Weiß and Nero watched in silence as one of them faded to nothing. The other three seemed immobile, as if wounded or resting.
“Do we put down now?” Nero asked, scowling.
His brother shook his head. “No. I have the feeling that they’ll flee or attack, if they’re able, the moment they see the logo. Let’s get as close as we can without being detected, see what they’re up to.”
The helicopter he’d selected was one of the few equipped with stealth mode. Even so, a SOLDIER on the ground could sense it fairly easily at a good distance.
As if proving this thought true, two of the life forms began to move out.
“Now we go,” Weiß stated, aiming for the one still stationary. He glanced back at Nero. “Take the flight gear, but be careful. They’re desperate.”
“Understood.” Nero quickly began to unpack an intricate assembly comprised of several long, jointed spans of carefully crafted steel and electronics. He hauled his regulation SOLDIER flak-shirt over his head, then wriggled into the synth-skin biocontrol unit. Deft fingers ran the thing through its test cycle; once the tiny indicators glowed all green, Nero called for his brother.
Weiß grinned and left the chopper on autocruise for a minute as he turned to help Nero into the unwieldy contraption. He easily held the tangle of steel aloft, allowing Nero to shrug into the control harness and fit the couplings to the hookups in the synth-skin. Once set, the rig electonically balanced itself, allowing Nero to stand unaided.
“If they ever make this thing light enough to put on without help, it’ll be the best improvement they could possibly do!” Nero grumbled, flexing one articulated steel wing.
“Don’t bitch,” Weiß chided. “They could always make it worse. You want to fly, or go by ground?”
In answer, Nero reached for the hatch.
“Remember – whatever happens, we don’t leave them for the army,” Weiß intoned. “The red-haired SOLDIER is for Deepground; the other two…”
Nero nodded, then dived out into freefall.
* * *
Zack looked around, his senses stretched to the limit. Something was not right, but damned if he could figure out what, or where. For a moment he cursed himself for leaving Genesis behind; then he felt Cloud go utterly slack again, reminding him of why he’d had to make that choice.
He cast about for a safe spot to set Cloud down. If they were being hunted, he’d need to be able to fight, and he just couldn’t do that while carrying dead weight. Zack picked a tangle of thorny bushes for cover; Cloud might get scratched up a bit, but it’d slow down any animal attacks, and might hide him from human view as well. “I’ll be right back, kid,” he murmured, making Cloud as comfortable as possible.
As he extricated himself from the brambles, Zack felt his hackles stand on end. He blinked slowly, bracing himself before turning to face…nothing. There was nothing behind him. He let his breath out on a nervous laugh, but did not relax his grip on his sword.
Cautiously he prowled around the area, searching for anything out of place. He was met by a deep and unnatural silence: no birds, no insects, nothing. That could mean anything from weird coincidence to monster on the hunt; in any case, his sense of being watched only grew stronger.
An odd shadow sped across the ground. Zack jerked his gaze skyward, his first thought absurdly one of Angeal.
No white feathers adorned the wings that now angled groundward. Zack dived out of the way as the metal-winged hunter swooped toward him. Rolling quickly back to his feet, Zack raised the sword and braced himself for impact.
He was not braced for the sudden wash of darkness that separated him from the world of the living. In a heartbeat, everything was gone – everything except despair. Zack watched as if in a nightmare as Sephiroth destroyed Nibelheim, as Cloud thrashed against Hojo’s restraints, as his own weapon tore Angeal Hewley to pieces. Distantly Zack felt rocks dig into his knees as he crashed to the ground in abject penitence.
“I think I can make you an offer you will find appealing.”
The voice sounded strange, distant; he couldn’t recognize the accent. Still, if it could make this nightmare stop…
“Today I was just thinking to myself, ‘Today a SOLDIER will drop from the sky’…”
“…Aerith?”
“If that’s the sky I’m looking at, then I’m not scared at all.”
The darkness flickered and danced with sparks of green, until it shredded like fog on the wind.
Zack leapt to his feet and brandished his sword. “Who are you? What do you want?”
The strange young man with mechanical wings staggered back a step. His face showed weariness, but no surprise. “I am SOLDIER Nero, of Deepground,” he stated. “I have conflicting orders in regard to you and the other escaped project. Perhaps you could help me sort them out.”
Zack scowled. “What kind of conflict? I’m not going back to Shinra, if that’s what you’re after.”
Nero gave a tiny smile and shook his head. “Not exactly. Shinra proper is set on execution. You’re a monster, you see. You both are. But there are those who would find such power useful.”
“Not fucking likely!” Zack snarled. “I’m not a goddamn experiment!”
“Yes. You are.” Nero flexed a shiny wing and unholstered a pistol with the mechanical hand at the end of it. He didn’t aim at Zack, but the threat was there. “We all are. The entire program is littered with the dead and dying. There are two ways to stop it, and that’s why I’m conflicted.”
A chill started deep in Zack’s bones, progressing slowly outward until he shivered and his skin prickled from it. He remembered the Genesis clone that had ripped out his hair, eaten it, and promptly mutated. That couldn’t bode well for his own health – but Cloud… “Two ways, huh? I’m listening.”
“There is an unofficial power, within Shinra, that seeks to rise,” Nero said coolly. “It can offer you both new identities and protection, as long as you agree to serve should they ever take power.”
Zack spat on the ground. “Lovely. Let me guess –”
Nero raised his hand for silence. “Please don’t. You’re probably right, anyway. The second offer is a bit more…interesting, and certainly more immediate. It’s also the bigger risk.”
“Do tell.”
“There are factions within SOLDIER. This shouldn’t surprise you.”
“It doesn’t, not in the least.”
“Some serve Shinra. Others serve themselves. One serves the research department, to the point that it is speculated that they would willingly hold down other members of SOLDIER for experimentation. If they were gone…”
“Get rid of them yourself,” Zack growled. “I don’t want anything more to do with Shinra, in any manner.”
Nero shrugged, making the steel wings flex alarmingly. “They will hunt you and they will kill you. Both of you. Do you want to die like a monster, or live like a man? What do you want for your friend?”
Zack paused, his refusal bitter on his tongue.
Voice bland, Nero asked, “What about the girl with the flowers? If they know she’s a friend of yours, where do you think they will search?”
Zack raised the blade and charged. “Leave her out of this!”
Nero caught the blow on one wing and deflected it, though the force of it staggered him. He fired off three shots; the last one caught the seam of Zack’s trousers, but nothing more. Under his breath he murmured, “That’s right, First; show me what you can do.”
Zack leaped, bringing the sword down in a great arc. Sparks danced where it connected.
Nero whirled and struck, nearly taking Zack’s legs out from under him; but the First was faster than he’d anticipated – impressive for someone who’d been on the run for years. Nero reversed the movement and caught one ankle.
Pulled momentarily off-balance, Zack hit the ground hard before getting his feet back under him. He stood panting, sword braced, eyes glaring murder at this bio-mechanical freak who’d dared threaten Aerith. “Get. Away. From me. And take your devil’s offers with you!”
“You’re certain of this?” Nero asked calmly.
Foam flew from Zack’s lips as he shouted, “Hell yes, I’m certain! The butchers of Shinra stole my life, they stole everyone’s life! Sephiroth is dead because of them, Angeal is dead – by my hand, because of them!”
“If you could watch Shinra collapse, and the people in charge be punished…would that help?”
Zack frowned, uncertain.
“Here, help me with this.” Nero returned the gun to its holster and folded the wings, then set about unhooking the control harness. He glanced over at Zack. “I’m serious, help me get this thing off.”
Cautious but unable to find a good reason not to act, Zack moved closer. Deciding that this wasn’t some kind of trick, he secured his sword, then took careful hold of the wings. His eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Damn, this is heavy!”
“I know, it’s a pain in the ass to get into,” Nero muttered as he contorted his way out of the harness. “You can set that down, if you want.”
Zack did so, watching as Nero flexed his shoulders and neck. “Why?”
Nero fixed him with a sharp stare. “Because I need you to really listen to me, and I get the feeling that Shinra technology doesn’t actually inspire much trust with you.”
“Astute observation…”
“SOLDIER First Class Fair, listen. The only reason I know your name is thanks to that unofficial power within Shinra. You’ve already been stricken from the record, along with any information on what is now only known as Project G. There were men, good men, who have simply been erased.” He regarded Zack with sympathy and what could only have been compassion. “My commander believes that we are slated to be next on that list. We, too, have been experimented on, to enhance our abilities far beyond anything considered normal. Most of us are barely even human now – and the work is ongoing. Do you understand? Even now, Shinra is not content. We will be enhanced and changed until we are no longer human at all.”
Zack swallowed; his throat burned. “You’re the second offer?”
“Pretty much. And as I said, it’s extremely risky. It would involve hiding right within their scrutiny. There would be no chance for mistakes, and no re-do. When the time comes, we will have one shot at it. One.” Dark eyelashes veiled the amber stare a moment; for some reason the image reminded Zack of praying. “My commander will be speaking with the one you left behind, if he was able to make the retrieval. Unfortunately, our orders regarding him are quite specific, but they did give us an idea about you.”
“I…don’t follow,” Zack said softly.
Nero sighed. “In Deepground, there are two factions. Together they are the strongest units of SOLDIER ever made. We suspect treachery in the dealings of the 14th with the science department. If they should turn on us, I really don’t know who would win. And I wouldn’t want to lose. Things are bad enough already…”
Zack felt his eyes widen as Nero’s words sank in. “Wait, you mean – you mean, Hojo’s not done, is he?”
“No. He’s not.”
“And he’s got this 14th Division of SOLDIER working for him, maybe even helping him experiment on other SOLDIERs? And no one’s trying to stop this?”
“Deepground is designated as a medical facility. You do the math.”
Zack stopped pacing and turned his face up toward the sky. “What’s your offer?”
“Let us bring you in as casualties. We do what we can to keep you alive, though there may be hell to go through for a while. As soon as we are strong enough, we take out the 14th – hopefully before they strike. From there…” He shrugged. “At that point, we could make any demand of Shinra, and they’d have to listen.”
“So, subject myself and my friend to god-knows-what, for however long, on the off chance that we can help your unit overthrow the first- or second-most-powerful SOLDIER division ever made, and thus stop Shinra and Hojo in their tracks?”
“Basically, yes.”
Zack leveled a no-nonsense glare at the Deepground SOLDIER. “No. Not him. Just me. Help me get Cloud to Midgar, and I’m yours.”
“Our sources say he’s suffering from mako poisoning. We could –”
“I said no. Not him.” Zack’s voice softened slightly as he stated, “I know someone who can help him there.”
Nero held out his right hand. “Very well, SOLDIER First Class Fair. It is an honor to serve with you.”
Zack shook his hand and said, “It’s the honor of Angeal Hewley that will serve with both of us, Nero. I will never forget that, no matter how long I live. Now: how do we get to Midgar?”
Nero offered a genuine smile. “The SOLDIERs of Ragnarok have our ways.”
(reposted to fix formatting issue)