Unsynced, Chapter 2

[sinnatious]

Title: Unsynced, Chapter 2

Summary: FF7. Someone in ShinRa HR mixed up assignments, and Kunsel gets sent to Nibelheim instead of Zack.

Author’s Note: I look back at this and wish I did so much different now but it is what it is, let's keep this post train rolling until it's out of steam choo choo. There's a few scenes I actually wanted to cut since they retread canon ground a bit too closely, but kept them in for anyone who couldn't really remember Crisis Core, since they're referred to later. So fairly long chapter, hope you enjoy.


Chapter 1

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Chapter 2

__________

Even after his research, Kunsel found himself surprised at how small Nibelheim turned out to be.

It was, for the most part, a circle of several dozen houses on a small plateau partway up the base of Mt Nibel. They were all very brown, drab, and compact, and what little grass and shrubbery grew in the area was withered and gnarled, struggling for life in the gaps between the cold rock. The water tower was the main feature in the town square, and even the wood on that looked perilously rotten.

Sephiroth glanced over at Cloud. “It’s been a while since you’ve been back to your hometown, hasn’t it?” So Cloud’s inclusion on the mission wasn’t accidental after all – Kunsel was heartened by the sign that ShinRa’s mission assignments weren’t completely random. “How does it feel? I don’t have a hometown of my own so I wouldn’t know…”

Curious now – and it certainly didn’t look like Cloud would speak up – Kunsel asked, “Did you move around a lot, sir?”

“I don’t know. I remember nothing of my childhood.” He spoke frankly, but something about his posture suggested it bothered him more than he let on.

“Nobody has at least told you about it?”

“…I know that my mother’s name was Jenova. She died shortly after I was born. As for my father…” He trailed off. “It will be dark before we reach the peak if we leave today. We will begin our investigation of the mako reactor tomorrow morning. You are free to do as you wish until then.” He disappeared into the inn with no further fanfare.

Leaving him to take care of the troopers again. “You don’t need to stick around, Cloud. Go visit your Ma or something,” he said with a smile, knocking the top of the short trooper’s helmet.

“I don’t mind. I’ll keep watch.”

Kunsel paused at that. Regulations insisted that someone had to, but he’d been prepared to do it himself. “You sure?”

Cloud nodded quickly, pulling his scarf up high and his helmet low as some of the villagers looked over their way.

Hiding under his helmet?

Kunsel guessed it might be a bit hypocritical to lecture him about that.

“Suit yourself, but if you change your mind let me know.” He turned to the other trooper. “And you. Go get a shower. You’ve been sitting on a blood-spattered seat for hours.” The trooper flinched, saluted once, and hurried into the inn.

Kunsel watched him go, then cast a look at Cloud who appeared to be trying to manifest an Enemy Away materia by will alone.

He glanced at his PHS. The signal bar flickered once, then sat empty and forlorn.

Nibelheim, huh? He’d been there less than ten minutes, and he already hated the place.

………………

Kunsel personally didn’t see why they needed a guide up the mountain when they had Cloud, who probably knew Nibelheim just as well as another local even after two years away and had the benefit of security forces training. Surely it was the reason why he’d been assigned to the mission in the first place? Small country towns didn’t tend to change that fast, after all.

Protocol, maybe. The agenda of some pushy local bureaucrat. Or, Kunsel considered, eyeing the cowgirl thoughtfully, some pushy local bureaucrat’s daughter.

“I’m Tifa,” she introduced. She was a brunette, like most of the other locals, with dark brown eyes to match. He eyeballed Cloud, knowing under that helmet was hair the colour of straw. “Are you the SOLDIERs sent here to investigate?”

Seeing as the General had apparently decided he had done his part, Kunsel nodded. “Yeah. I’m Kunsel, SOLDIER Second Class.”

“Hmm. Are there many SOLDIERs?” she asked.

This stuff fell into the realm of common knowledge, but Kunsel indulged her. “Not really. Maybe two hundred across all three classes, if you count the guys stationed in Junon and Wutai.” After the end of the war, anyway. There had been more before that.

“I see. And it’s just you two here?”

“From SOLDIER? Yeah.”

She hesitated. “Do you know any SOLDIERs with … actually, never mind,” she cut herself off and gave a bright smile at the local bustling towards them. “Oh, that’s right, I almost forgot! Do you mind if we take a photo for the local paper?”

Kunsel had read the local paper, and considered it more of a town newsletter, but agreed nonetheless. Sephiroth didn’t make any motion to move, so they arranged themselves next to him.

“Did you want to take your helmet off, sir?” the photographer asked him.

“Part of the uniform,” Kunsel replied with a steel smile. It hardly mattered anyway. The photo was really for the General.

He and Tifa posed, the camera flashed, and the photographer thanked them profusely before hurrying on his way. “Do you ever take it off? The helmet, I mean,” Tifa asked.

“Sure. When I’m sleeping.” He gestured ahead. “Lead the way.”

……………..

The Reactor sat strangely silent. There was the ever-present rumble of the core, but the general hum Kunsel had come to associate with mako Reactors was missing.

The interior was nothing but dark grey metal walls and catwalks, their edges only found with the occasional strip of yellow hazard lines. And pods. Rows and rows of them, each sporting a round window of glowing green.

It wasn’t the first Reactor Kunsel had visited, but it was definitely the oldest, and it showed, with the faded paintwork and rust gathering in the gaps and edges. Something about the layout made him uneasy.

“You seem distracted,” Sephiroth noted as they moved deeper into the Reactor.

“We lost a trooper,” Kunsel reminded him. They should never have crossed that bridge in the first place. It had been pure luck they hadn’t lost Tifa or Cloud as well. The thought curdled in his stomach. Zack never would have forgiven him.

“Hm. He landed poorly. It was unfortunate.”

“It doesn’t bother you?” Kunsel asked.

“I didn’t know him,” Sephiroth said, as though that was all the explanation necessary.

Maybe it was. For all he was adored as a hero and the pinnacle of SOLDIER, Sephiroth’s world looked very… small, of late.

It happened on missions though, more frequently than it should have. Security forces had some of the worst casualty rates in the company. They often couldn’t spare more than a few moments of regret.

That said, Kunsel couldn’t quite bring himself to keep up the conversation. He wished they could have brought Cloud in with them. Security clearance was a pain sometimes.

Kunsel wasn’t a qualified expert when it came to mako Reactors, but he figured he knew enough to have a poke around as well and see if he could spot anything obvious. While Sephiroth was examining some gauges on the other end of the room, he mounted the steps, glancing down the rows of pods as he went.

When he reached the door at the top, he realised that there was writing above it. From a distance the glare from the door’s light rendered it unreadable in the Reactor’s gloom. Kunsel squinted at it.

Jenova?

Hadn’t Sephiroth said that his mother’s name-

He glanced at the General. Still occupied with reading gauges. He tried the door. Sealed.

His uneasiness grew.

He moved back down the stairs. Should he say anything?

Kunsel very badly wanted to know what was behind that door, but was equally sure he wouldn’t like it. The General had a right to know, but… this might be the sort of thing he would be happier not knowing.

He didn’t know Sephiroth well enough for this. He pulled out his PHS, halfway ready to write a message to Zack. There was enough of a signal here, for now. Zack knew the General better, after all.

He’d barely started typing it out when Sephiroth made his way to one of the pods. “This is the cause of the malfunction,” he declared. “This section is broken. Go seal the valve.”

Kunsel slipped his PHS back into his pocket and did so. Sephiroth did something on his end of the room, and slowly a low hum rose in the chamber, one he’d come to associate with a normal mako reactor.

“But why did it break?” Sephiroth mused. The words hadn’t been meant for his ears, but they were both surely thinking the same thing.

ShinRa had sent SOLDIERs all the way from Midgar to make these repairs, after all. Normal wear and tear would have been taken care of by a more local technician.

Kunsel reset the valve. He turned to find Sephiroth staring into the window of one of the pods. Curious, he approached. The General moved aside to let him look.

Kunsel recoiled.

It was a face. Of that, there was no mistake. Humanoid at first glance, but contorted, canines elongated and strange bone growths from the skull. Frozen in what looked like a furious, agonised scream.

“What… is this?” he croaked. It almost looked like…

He hadn’t expected an answer, but Sephiroth provided. “You average SOLDIER members are mako-infused humans. You’re enhanced, but you’re still human. But these things? Their mako energy levels are exponentially higher than yours.” Sephiroth turned from the pod, arms folded. “Hojo was the one who created them. Abominations spawned by mako energy. That is the definition of a monster.”

“You said… average member,” Kunsel said. “Do you mean there are different methods?”

Sephiroth wasn’t listening to him anymore, though – didn’t even appear to remember that he was there. To Kunsel’s alarm, he staggered, bracing himself for balance against one of the handrails.

“Could it be… that I… was created the same way?” He raised his other hand, staring at it in horrified fascination. “Am I… the same as these monsters?”

Kunsel could only watch, silent. His gaze flit uneasily to the door at the top of the stairs.

“I knew, ever since I was a child. I was not like the others. I knew mine was a special existence. But this…” Sephiroth shuddered. “…This was not what I meant.” He hunched his shoulders. “Am I… a human being?”

A flash of flight caught the corner of Kunsel’s eye.

“Sir-!”

The following shockwave knocked Kunsel to the ground. He coughed, wincing at the impact. An explosion? No, a spell. A warning shot. Sephiroth had deflected?

A single set of footsteps echoed through the Reactor.

“No such luck,” a third, strangely familiar voice answered. “You are a monster.”

Kunsel blinked the stars out of his eyes. Striding into the Reactor came a once-famous face he’d half-dreaded to see. Red hair streaked with grey, and a single, double-bowed black wing stretching from his back like a malevolent shadow.

“Sephiroth,” Genesis greeted. “You were the greatest monster created by the Jenova Project.”

“…Genesis.” Sephiroth returned neutrally, as though he hadn’t just announced his entrance by lobbing a fireball at them.

“You are alive,” Kunsel blurted from the floor.

Sephiroth might have forgotten that Kunsel was there, but Genesis was quick to notice.

“I suppose I am, if you can call this living.” He ran a hand through his hair, as though in fond remembrance of its brighter hue. His gaze dwelled on him for a moment, then slid back to Sephiroth. Kunsel had been deemed unimportant, apparently.

“What is the Jenova Project?” Sephiroth asked, laser-focused.

“The Jenova Project was the term used for all experiments, relating to the use of Jenova’s cells.”

“My mother’s… cells?”

Genesis’s answering smile was cruel. “Poor little Sephiroth. You’ve never actually met your mother. You’ve only been told her name, no? I don’t know what images you’ve conjured up in your head, but…”

“Genesis,” Kunsel tried to interject. He couldn’t tell him, not like this-

Genesis’s gaze flickered to him, but he went ignored. Without missing a beat, he continued, “-Jenova was excavated from a 2000-year-old rock layer. She’s a monster.”

The word hung in the chamber, like the echo of tolling bell.

Sephiroth did not react.

Kunsel very slowly, very cautiously, shifted to a kneeling crouch. Follow my lead, Sephiroth had said. But which way was this going to fall?

If Sephiroth’s lack of reaction perturbed Genesis, he didn’t show it. Merely continued his speech. “SOLDIER First Class Sephiroth… I need your help. My body is continuing to degrade. Jenova Project G gave birth to Angeal and monsters like myself. Jenova Project S, however, used the remains of countless failed experiments to create the perfect monster.”

Project S. That could only be-

“What do you want of me?” Sephiroth interrupted, voice rough.

“Your traits cannot be copied onto others. Your genes can’t be diffused. Therefore, your body cannot degrade. Share your cells with me.” Genesis outstretched an arm, holding a dumapple as though in offering. “My friend your desire…

Is the bringer of life, the gift of the Goddess…”

The Reactor fell silent for what felt an age. Kunsel almost didn’t dare breathe.

When he finally spoke, Sephiroth’s words were slow, measured, and colder than the frigid winds of Modeoheim. “…Whether your words are lies created to deceive me, or the truth that I have sought all my life… It makes no difference.” He pushed Genesis’s hand aside. The dumapple hit the catwalk with a clatter. “You will rot.”

Then he left, striding out of the Reactor without looking back.

Genesis remained where he stood for a long moment.

“I see…. A perfect monster, indeed.”

He bent to pick up the dumapple, brushing it off. “When the war of the beasts brings about the world’s end… The goddess descends from the sky.

Wind of light and dark spread afar,

She guides us to bliss, her gift everlasting…”

Genesis sauntered from the chamber, the poem fading into echoes as he left.

Kunsel was left alone in the Reactor, apparently completely forgotten about.

He glanced up towards the door once more.

Maybe he could-

The sound of gunfire thundered from outside. Kunsel scrambled to his feet. “Shit! Cloud!”

He burst outside to the sight of Cloud being knocked to the ground by a copy. Kunsel was upon it in an instant, the air crackling with lightning.

The fight was brutal but short – one last swing of his broadsword, and the copy hit the ground with a pained gurgle. Adrenaline still pumping, Kunsel dropped next to Cloud, turning him over. Unconscious, but no blood. He was already coming around.

“He… He tried to protect me,” Tifa explained.

“I know,” Kunsel replied. He primed his Restore materia. “Keep watch for a second, will you?”

Tifa nodded hurriedly. “What happened? What was that thing?”

“It’s classified,” he replied shortly. Cloud let out a faint groan as the materia did its work. “On your feet, buddy,” Kunsel coached. “It’s not safe here, we have to get back.”

There was no sign of Sephiroth.

……………..

They made it back to Nibelheim in great time, considering.

“You sure you’re okay, Cloud?” Kunsel asked, giving the trooper a quick scan once they made it back to the inn and Tifa had been shooed away. “Take off your helmet, let me check for injuries.”

“I’m fine, really.”

“You could barely walk!”

“Just a sprain and some bruises. It was fine after you cast that second Cure.”

“Doesn’t matter. We’ve already lost two people on this mission and I’m not risking losing another to your pride!”

Cloud shifted awkwardly in place. “Can we go inside first, at least?”

It took a minute for Kunsel to process that request. “Sure, whatever.” He hauled him up to their rooms, yanked his helmet off, then made Cloud stand still while he checked his pupils and felt for bumps. “Okay, you’re good. Sorry, but there’s procedures we have to follow in case of concussions. Restore materia doesn’t always take care of everything, you know.”

“I know.” Without the helmet, Cloud was the picture of perfect misery. Kunsel took some solace in the fact that somebody was having an even worse day than he was, and dumped the helmet back on his head.

“Cheer up, Cloud. It could have been a lot worse.” Hard to imagine how, though, at this point. “Why are you so stubborn about hiding? Is it really that embarrassing that you’re not a SOLDIER yet?”

Cloud gaped at him for a full ten seconds before sputtering, “What- How- How do you even know about that?”

Kunsel shrugged. “Nibelheim’s small. You leave for ShinRa, ShinRa comes to town, of course everyone is going to ask about you.” He grinned and tapped him on the helmet. “Don’t worry, I haven’t said anything to anyone. Not even Tifa.”

Cloud’s shoulders sagged in relief.

“Don’t know why you’re so hung up on her knowing you aren’t in SOLDIER though. Even if you made some kind of promise to come back and sweep her off her feet.”

His expression immediately switched from relieved to mortified. “That was a secret! There’s no way you could know about that! Only Tifa and I-”

“You’re right,” Kunsel admitted with a grin. “That was just a lucky guess.”

Huffing, Cloud crossed his arms. “Zack never mentioned you were this mean.” Belatedly, he seemed to remember he was talking to a superior officer. “Uh, that is…”

Kunsel laughed. “It’s okay, we’re not standing on ceremony right now, alright?” He shifted over to the window, flipping open his PHS. The signal bar flickered hopefully for a second before settling back into non-existence. “It’s probably not my place to say, but do you really believe she’ll think that much less of you for not being SOLDIER yet?”

Even wearing his helmet, Cloud telegraphed discomfort like a neon billboard. “…I tried, though. I failed the exam.”

“So?”

“What do you mean ‘so’? I wasn’t good enough.”

Kunsel snapped his PHS shut and slipped it away again. “For what it’s worth, maybe you were lucky. SOLDIER is… SOLDIER’s not as great as they make it out to be.” The memory of those grotesque creatures preserved in mako lurked behind his eyes. “You’re doing pretty well outside of it. Zack raved about you in his report after Modeoheim. And they don’t just assign anyone to a squad with Sephiroth, you know – he’s got a reputation for expecting too much of the regular troops. You don’t have anything to be embarrassed about.”

“It’s just… I didn’t want to come back until I made something of myself. Something more.”

Kunsel shrugged. “In the end, it’s up to you. That’s just my opinion.” He sagged, rolling his neck. Even though there had been surprisingly little fighting, it had still been a long day. “Consider yourself off duty until further notice. Stop in at home or something. Have you even visited your mother yet?”

“What about Commander Rhapsodos though? Shouldn’t I be standing guard?”

He doubted the former Commander would be showing his face again anytime soon, given the words exchanged at his parting. ‘You will rot.’ “Nothing you can do if he does show up. Leave that to me and Sephiroth to worry about.”

Reluctantly, Cloud nodded. “Where is Sephiroth, anyway?”

Kunsel sighed. “That’s what I’m going to go find out.”

Second Class pay wasn’t enough for this.

………………….

Black feathers scattered, and another copy collapsed to the ground.

Zack swiped Buster Sword once, removing most of the blood still staining the blade, and twirled it over his head. Just another damn copy. He must have taken out half a dozen by now.

“All clear, Zack?” Cissnei’s call floated on the warm breeze.

“Yeah, I’m good. How about you guys?”

“It was just a Bagnadrana. No trouble. We can head back, now. The Reactor’s secure.” She was already picking her way across the rocky concourse, leading a small squad of troopers back down to the desert.

Zack caught up with a short jog, falling into stride beside her. “It was all a little easy, don’t you think?”

Cissnei answered him with a straight face but teasing eyes. “For you, maybe. We’ve lost a lot of troopers to copies, don’t forget.”

“I guess.” And the copies were starting to visibly degrade – feathers moulting and streaks of grey appearing in their hair. Where one might have once given him a lot of trouble, it now took several attacking in tandem to get him worried. “Still, I keep wondering, you know. Where the real one is.”

This time, Cissnei’s look was decidedly reproachful. Zack matched it. “C’mon, Cissnei, you don’t have to toe the company line with me. I was there, and I can tell the difference between the real deal and the copies.” His PHS beeped before she could answer. “Hey, neat! We must be back in a signal area.”

“We’ve moved around to the southern side of the mountain – it won’t be blocking the signal anymore,” was the Turk’s offhand explanation.

“Right.” Zack held his PHS close, out of the sun, so he could read the screen without being blinded by the glare. Mt Corel sucked. It managed to combine all the worst things about mountains and deserts into one geographical location.

From: Kunsel
Subject: Ran into an old friend of yours
‘I’d say more, but you know who I’m talking about. There was a bit of trouble, but don’t worry, Cloud’s okay. That guy said some pretty concerning things, though. Do you know much about the origins of SOLDIER, Zack? I’m starting to wish I knew less.’

From: Luxiere:
Subject: Next leader of SOLDIER
‘Hello again, Zack!
I heard they gave you command of your mission! With the main SOLDIER 1sts gone missing, and Sephiroth not being the type to look after subordinates, I’m thinking it’s you who’s gonna lead us. You’re moving up the chain! And I’m following you until the end, Zack!’

From: Red Leather
Subject: Breaking news
‘Here at Red Leather, we have received numerous reports of Genesis sightings. If Genesis does indeed live, despite being reported as killed in action, has he perhaps solved the riddle that surrounds the “gift of the goddess”? Genesis can never do wrong, and he deserves our support!’

From: Cloud
Subject: I wanted to tell you
‘It’s weird being back here. The thing is, I haven’t been back home yet since I’ve been here. I haven’t been able to make up my mind about it, but today I decided that I should show my face, even if it’s a bit uncomfortable going alone. Maybe I’ll ask Kunsel to come along. I can see why you guys are friends. He’s easy to talk to.
This might be out of the blue, but some things that have happened here made me want to tell you. I was going to wait until we got back to Midgar, but it’s a little embarrassing, so I’m going to write it out and send it to you.
The day you changed your hair, when you wished us rookies good luck before our sortie – I’ll never forget your words. Remembering what you said that day gives me the courage to stay strong.
So… thanks, Zack.’

“Good news?” Cissnei asked lightly.

Zack slapped his PHS shut. Should he say anything about Genesis? It sounded like something happened, but Kunsel was being oddly cagey about it. “Mostly. Cloud and Kunsel seem to be getting along.”

“You were worried?”

“Not really. Kind of sorry I didn’t get to introduce them myself, though.” He hummed to himself, casting a glance back at the following troopers to make sure they were keeping up. “And Sephiroth’s there too, so they’ll both be fine.”

She tilted her head. The warm orange afternoon light caught the edges of her hair, turning her curls into finely spun copper. “Your friends are really important to you.”

Zack laughed. “Of course!” He hopped down a shallow rock shelf, boots crunching in the sandy grit. He held out a hand for Cissnei, but she ignored it, deftly dropping beside him with an easy grace and a teasing smirk. “You’re my friend, too, you know.”

Her smile vanished, like the sun disappearing behind a mountain. “You should know better than to be friends with a Turk.”

Zack let out a breath. “Look, what you were saying before, I’m not… I’m not stupid, okay? I’ve been on enough missions… I’ve done enough of ShinRa’s dirty work to know it’s not all flowers. And there’s probably even more that I don’t want to know about.” His thoughts flitted uneasily to Kunsel’s aside. ‘Do you know much about the origins of SOLDIER, Zack?’ “But you’re still good people. You, and Tseng, and hell, even Reno. I think that if really came down to it, that if it were something unforgiveable… I don’t think you’d cross that line. Not even for orders.”

He held her gaze, as deadly serious as he could ever get. In the end, she broke eye contact first, turning away as the thump of boots and murmur of conversation from the following troopers drew close. She started moving down the dusty trail again, steps as light and swift as a needlebird. “I hope you’re right.”

………………….

“Sir?”

Sephiroth continued pacing back and forth in the mansion’s library, muttering to himself as he leafed through book after book after book. The few snatches Kunsel picked up were ominous – about Jenova, and the Ancients, and the true origins of SOLDIER.

Beyond that, his commanding officer gave no signal that he’d even registered another presence. In the aftermath of his odd behaviour in the Reactor – staggering, such naked vulnerability in his tortured musings – it was more than a little concerning. But when Kunsel had pushed the point on the second day, he’d very nearly wound up thrown through a wall for his efforts.

He hadn’t tried again.

He slid a fresh plate for food onto the desk and refilled the water jug – at least there were signs that the General had partaken of both at some point over the past day, unlike the previous three. At this point, all he could hope to do was make sure Sephiroth had provisions, and would come out of this state on his own.

It wasn’t like anyone could force Sephiroth to do anything he didn’t want to do, after all. The memory of dragon scales rent like paper flashed across his mind’s eye.

“I’ll be back again tomorrow, sir. Your room is still available at the inn if you decide to sleep.”

Sephiroth still didn’t respond. Kunsel trudged back outside.

It wasn’t as though Commander Rhapsodos’s words hadn’t left him unsettled too. He’d fought his share of Genesis copies, and Zack had told him about what happened to Commander Hewley. He’d spent more than a couple of uneasy nights over the past few months wondering what that meant for the rest of SOLDIER, and made a few forays into the restricted records of his own.

It was looking increasingly like he had his answer. A lot more went into making a SOLDIER than just processed mako.

The cool mountain air brushed against his skin, welcoming him back outside. He stopped for a moment, taking a long, deep breath, and tilting his head up against the breeze. It whistled softly through the gaps in his helmet’s visor.

The grounds around the ShinRa mansion were always eerily quiet. The mansion itself harboured a self-sustaining nest of dorky faces, and the secret basement he’d found Sephiroth in housed a handful of malnourished-looking sahagins. Mt Nibel itself regularly echoed with wolf howls and dragon roars and the screeching squawks of needle kisses. But around the mansion, nothing. Not even the usual rodents scurrying through the sparse underbrush.

Kunsel flipped open his PHS, hoping for a distraction. The signal in Nibelheim wasn’t great – the transmitter was old and didn’t handle the weather well, and most locals relied on landline phones as a result. Still, he could occasionally catch enough of a connection while walking around to send off a few texts.

It beeped four times. The first two were fan club updates – he skipped those to read later. The third, Luxiere. Huh. His lot were already back at ShinRa and resuming regular missions.

Fourth… Jackpot. Zack had messaged him back. He’d been slack with it ever since he met his new girl.

From: Zack
Subject: Stay safe!
‘I was wondering where the real one was at, but it sounds like you guys came through okay. You can give me the details when you get back to Midgar. We finished up two days ago but got stuck taking the ferry back, totally sucks! At least Cissnei’s with us, so it’s not all bad. Keep an eye on Cloud for me, okay? He didn’t sound too happy to be back in Nibelheim in his last message.’

Kunsel grinned and immediately started tapping out a response.

From: Kunsel
Subject: No problem
‘Idiot, I would anyway. He’s bored, there’s not much for him to do at the moment. Especially since he’s spent most of the time hiding in uniform. Don’t worry, I’ll drag him out for materia lessons or something this afternoon.’ He hesitated, wondering if he should add anything more. It wasn’t the sort of thing really appropriate for PHS mail. But out of everyone left in SOLDIER, Zack knew Sephiroth best. They were both First Class now, after all, and Zack had been Commander Hewley’s protégé. ‘Sephiroth’s been acting strange since the run-in with a certain Loveless fanatic, though. Have any suggestions to snap him out of it?’

He tapped the ‘send’ button. The signal bar flickered precariously, but held long enough to dispatch the message.

After a few minutes there was still no reply, but he hadn’t really expected one. If Zack were still travelling his connection would be just as patchy. With a sigh, Kunsel snapped his PHS shut.

It sounded like the rest of the teams were back, then. Nibelheim’s reactor was one of the furthest away, but ShinRa would be wondering where they were soon, or at the very least expecting an update. As the highest-ranking officer, that should have been Sephiroth’s job, but Kunsel doubted he’d taken the time to bother in his current state. If he didn’t get a response from the General tomorrow, he might have to patch through a call to Headquarters himself.

At least Genesis hadn’t shown his face again.

Kunsel kicked at a rock. It skittered across the path, disappearing into a withered patch of half-dead grass.

He was out of his depth. They were down another man from the accident with the bridge, and now the General had, for all intents and purposes, gone AWOL. Their mission should have been over five days ago, but they were still stuck here, with two troopers dead, the other hiding under his helmet, and disgustingly bad phone reception.

The latter made Nibelheim his own personal purgatory.

………………

On the seventh night in Nibelheim, Kunsel woke up to hell.

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