Unsynced, Chapter 4

[sinnatious]

Title: Unsynced, Chapter 4

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

Author’s Note: Things should hopefully get a bit more interesting after this chapter. I sort of wanted to focus on canon timeline more than Crisis Core timeline, but maybe it wasn't the right choice? Well, this whole thing was just a big experiment and excuse to write lots of Kunsel so oh well let's see how it goes.


Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3

__________

Chapter 4

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Time passed. Too much of it.

To begin with, Kunsel hadn't even been aware there was anything wrong. He'd been so injured, sure he should have been dead. Consciousness was brief and fleeting, and the few periods of snatched lucidity were painful and filled with bright light. Somewhere in his muddled thought processes, he thought he must have been in a hospital.

Later his theory expanded, when he saw Cloud there too, and started recognising lab assistants instead of nurses. He wondered if maybe in order to save their lives, ShinRa had needed to experiment with new medical technologies. That maybe the constant operations were to rescue them. That in the long run the agonising, timeless, burning soaks in the mako tanks would help.

It wasn't until he started trying to ask questions, until they started making him run tests, that he realised they wouldn't.

Things only got worse from there.

……………….

At some point, Kunsel realised no one would be coming.

There would be no rescue. No one would get them out of this hell.

There was only him, and Cloud. Cloud, who he'd promised Zack he'd look out for. Cloud, who'd stopped reacting at some point, and now just hung, unresponsive, in the mako.

Inside his tube, Kunsel's gaze drifted to where, what had been days, possibly weeks ago now, his fellow captive had painstakingly scratched a message into the glass, using nothing more than his fingernails.

'We have to get out of here'.

It only showed up when Cloud pressed his palm against it - the background glow of mako rendered the message invisible, otherwise. They’d learned the perils of open communication quickly, and found ways around it.

It wasn’t anything Kunsel hadn’t thought about before, of course. Shiva, he’d barely thought about anything other than escape in who knew how long.

But since that message, Cloud had stopped looking over. He just hung in the tank. Like he’d given up. Hojo had been furious, muttering about ‘failures’. Then he’d vanished – gone to Midgar, perhaps. And suddenly the lab was empty, and they were mostly left alone for… well, he didn’t know exactly how long. The longest Hojo had been gone yet.

In the past, Kunsel had busted his knuckles on the glass multiple times, trying to break out of these tubes. Had cracked it once, but Hojo had come in before he could get any further, and the glass was alarmed after that. He’d begged and pleaded and threatened and even tried to bribe the various lab assistants and guards that would pass through. None of it had worked. Not with Hojo looming over their shoulders. Nothing Kunsel could offer was worth the possibility of ending up one of Hojo’s test subjects.

With Hojo gone, though… routine began to settle in for the first time. Routine, he could work with.

Every so often the techs would drain the tanks, to clean off the mako crystals that formed along the interior surface before they could grow and block the drains or damage the feeding tubes. They’d done it at least a dozen times, and the procedure was always the same. Sedate them via the tubes, drain the tanks, take them out of the tanks, clean the tanks, and put them back in the tanks before the sedatives wore off. Always one at a time.

When Hojo was present he always oversaw it. Adjusting the sedative dosages and checking over the assistants’ work.

Without Hojo, the lab techs grew lax. They didn’t notice the tiny tear in the feeding line made by a fingernail, and didn’t think to check vitals, content it was working when Kunsel went limp and stayed limp as the mako drained from the tube, his limbs folding awkwardly underneath him.

Until the glass slid open with a hydraulic hiss, and arms reached in to drag him out.

Kunsel attacked.

It was lightning-fast, pure desperation fuelling him as he blindly reached for a head, grasped it, wrenched. A gasp of breath, a crunch of bone, a cry of alarm from the second tech. Kunsel lurched towards the sound, throwing a wild punch. It connected poorly, sent the tech sprawling. He leapt after him, pinning him to the ground, hands squeezing around his throat until his eyes rolled back into his head, lips blue. And held on for another thirty seconds beyond.

Sudden silence blanketed the lab, broken only by the faint sound of mako dripping from his hair and the wet, ragged draw of his own breath.

Two techs lay on the floor, chests still. One with his head at a sickening angle, the other with a crushed windpipe.

It worked.

He was out.

Kunsel staggered to his feet, the laboratory spinning strangely, colours smearing before his eyes. He didn’t wait for it to sort itself out, stumbling over to Cloud’s tube.

The process on the other side he’d watched plenty of times before. It only took a matter of seconds to re-drain the tank. Cloud sank with the mako until he slumped on floor. The glass slid open with a hiss, disappearing back into the wall.

Cloud’s skin was cold, and clammy, and slick with mako. Kunsel nearly dropped him, dragging him out. “Cloud. Hey, Cloud, you’re out. You with me?”

Cloud’s head hung low, rolling on his shoulder. His eyes were open, gazing into nothing. Blank.

Glowing.

Kunsel sat back on his heels, and pressed his hands against his eyes.

He’d taken too long.

Cloud was deadweight. Severe mako addiction, maybe even poisoning.

He should leave him. Run for it. Kunsel couldn’t fix this, not in the window of time they had. And frankly… if he brought Cloud along, his own chances of successful escape plummeted.

But damn it… those speeches about SOLDIER honour… they’d meant something to him, too.

“Okay,” he said. “Okay. We can do this. We just have to be smart about it.”

He scanned the laboratory with far-too-familiar eyes. It took only seconds to find what he needed.

Kunsel picked up a handful of scalpels and headed towards the door. “Hang in there, Cloud. I’ll be right back.”

………………….

The two other laboratory assistants were easily tracked down and taken care of. One had been on his way to the lab. The scuffle lasted only seconds. The other he found in one of the basement’s side rooms, taking a nap in a chair. He jerked awake at the squeak of the door hinges. Kunsel stabbed him in the throat before he could even make a gurgle of surprise.

He dragged both bodies back to the lab – less chance of them being stumbled across. If he were really lucky, they’d dissipate before that. Kunsel had no idea how long it would take before any of the lab assistants were missed, but it would buy them precious time.

“Ready to go, Cloud?” Kunsel hauled him up, draping his arm across his shoulders. Cloud did at least partially support his own weight, and the first few tentative steps had him stumbling automatically alongside. It wasn’t much, and slowed them down, but it also meant that Kunsel could have an arm free in the event of a surprise.

"Slow and steady does it," he murmured.

They made their way through the library, and out into the dark and dank basement beyond. He had already done a sweep of the area, and pointed them straight to the ladder leading up into the mansion proper.

The ladder… that would be a problem. He eyed the rickety metal struts, and then Cloud. “Okay, this part might be tricky.”

In the end, he slung Cloud over his shoulders and back, held in place with one hand, climbing with the other, bracing his feet to hold them steady while he grabbed for the next rung.

When he reached the top, he was panting for breath. “That was harder than it should have been.” He might have only been a Second Class SOLDIER, but hauling another person, even deadweight, should have been nothing. “What the hell have you been eating, Cloud?” His following laugh came out strangled. Because, of course, for the past whoever-knew-how-long, they’d swallowed nothing but mako and the occasional meal of tasteless protein-rich paste.

He fumbled in the dark, hands running across the wall, until at last his fingers landed on a lever. One quick tug, and the hidden entrance ground open.

Then… sunlight.

It was filtered through threadbare drapes, but it stole Kunsel’s breath away. Outside.

It took all of his self-discipline to turn away from it, to resist just busting straight through the glass to the outdoors. Acting rashly now would only draw attention. They’d made it this far. He wasn’t about to screw it up due to impatience.

The room had a single bed, so Kunsel helped Cloud over to it and laid him down.

“I’m going to go scout around, get us some clothes and weapons,” he said. There really wasn’t any need to explain, but it felt good to use his voice again, hoarse as it was. Using it for something other than desperate threats and even more desperate bargains.

The mansion beyond hadn’t changed much. It had been cleaned at some point, the once pervasive layer of dust removed, though the musty scent of old books and mildewed carpets persisted. The nest of dorky faces appeared to have been cleared out. There were signs of habitation in a number of the rooms, with notes scattered haphazardly. He skimmed several, distilling clues about what exactly had been done to them. Hints about Project G, and Jenova cells, and Specimens K and C.

The papers crinkled in his hand, tearing under the force of his grip. He forced himself to release them and move on.

It didn’t take long to find the rooms the scientists had been staying in. Kunsel helped himself to their gil and ID cards. In the cupboard of one room he discovered a broadsword, SOLDIER-issue – not his, judging by the grip on the handle, but it hardly mattered. He dug deeper into what looked like the unofficial armoury, flipping open boxes and pushing aside cartons of ammo, until he broke the lock on one sealed box and was greeted with faintly glowing light.

Materia. Jackpot.

Kunsel was decent with a sword - all SOLDIERS were, you didn't get into the program unless you had some aptitude with weapons - but he never excelled at it. In the rush of combat, yeah, he'd do more than fine, but if he came up against another swordsman with any real skill he'd be toast. He was the kind of SOLDIER who'd aced all the theory exams and squeaked by on the practical. And there was only so much theory could do to make you better at waving a big knife around.

Materia, though - materia was the one area where knowing a lot of theory did make you better at it.

There wasn’t a lot. A mastered Lightning that felt strangely familiar when he picked it up – he suspected it was his. His Time was there too, but no sign of his Restore or Poison. He pocketed them and moved on.

Next was a box of discarded electronics. Most of it looked like spare parts for the computer terminals, but sitting on top…

A PHS.

His PHS. With his ShinRa ID scratched into the casing, and the keypad so worn that the letters and numbers were barely legible. Kunsel snatched it up so fast his hand was practically a blur.

It didn’t turn on, though. Battery was dead. Still, he tucked it away with the materia and moved on.

The next box held SOLDIER uniforms - and that sent Shiva's finger down his back like nothing else. If there were more than just troopers around, this whole affair would become a lot more complicated.

Too late to worry about it, though. The uniforms were musty - he'd take that as a good sign and stick to the plan. An extra helmet, too, which would be invaluable in covering up Cloud's ridiculous head of hair.

He dragged his spoils back to the room where he’d left Cloud. Getting out of the mako-soaked scrubs they were currently wearing would do them both good.

The only uniform small enough to fit Cloud was for a First Class, and even then it was a little baggy and the dye was more a midnight purple. "Congrats on the promotion buddy, you've earned it," he muttered. "Though you outrank me, now. Orders, sir?"

Cloud's head rolled slightly, eyes unfocused.

"Yes, sir." He gave a mock salute. "I'll escort us to the perimeter immediately."

As he and Cloud slowly made their way through the mansion, Kunsel had to wonder if maybe all that mako had addled him a little bit too.

……………………

When Kunsel stepped out of the mansion grounds, he'd expected to stumble through the ashen remains of a town. Sephiroth had spared nothing - he couldn't imagine there'd be enough people left to want to rebuild.

Yet Nibelheim stood almost exactly as he remembered it. The only sign anything had changed was that none of the paint on the signs was peeling, and the rotting wood of the water tower had been replaced by freshly treated lumber.

It was creepy. People didn't rebuild houses exactly the same - and certainly not all of them, not when there wouldn't be enough survivors to fill them. And how the hell had they rebuilt everything already anyway?

A wave of dread slithered up his spine.

Exactly how long had they been trapped in that mansion?

It didn't matter right then. Kunsel quashed the urge to investigate and moved forward cautiously, keeping an eye out for any guards. Cloud shuffled along beside him, head drooping.

A shrill whistle split the silence.

Shit. Troopers were all but scrambling out of the woodwork. Had they been noticed, or did someone discover the missing scientists?

Didn’t matter. Kunsel dropped Cloud as gently as he could against the water tower supports and drew his sword.

“Drop your weapon!” Red scarf. Security forces Corporal.

“You drop yours if you don’t want to die, Corporal,” Kunsel retorted. With his spare hand, he thumbed his pilfered materia into his bracer’s slots. “Or do they pay you enough to take on SOLDIERs now? How do you think that’ll work out for you?”

The Corporal hesitated, but only for a second. “You and you, secure the second specimen!” He pointed at two of his cohorts. Green scarves, extra equipment. Special Ops infantry.

“I don’t think so,” Kunsel raised his blade, but didn’t budge from his position in front of Cloud.

The troopers shared a glance, but inched forward, braced for an attack. Reinforcements poured in. Close to a dozen, all up. They swept into formation, four moving to flank him on either side. Rows and rows of red lights.

Idiots.

The whine of materia split the air, and Kunsel unleashed a full-powered Bolt.

Thunder cracked, and lightning whipped through the ranks with a blinding flash of light and energy and heat. The troopers dropped, puppets with their strings cut. The ones on the edges screamed and flailed, their panic punctuated by blind gunfire.

Kunsel didn’t wait for them to recover. He dashed forward, broadsword bared.

In the end, there were only four left to deal with, and none were a match for a SOLDIER running high on adrenaline.

The last body thudded to the ground, and Kunsel was left standing amidst the carnage, breath ragged and shoulders heaving.

He glanced back at Cloud. Still slumped against the water tower. No movement.

He slung his arm around his neck, and helped him back to his feet. “Come on, buddy. We probably shouldn’t hang around here after that.”

They limped away from Nibelheim together. He never wanted to see that cursed town ever again.

………………..

Kunsel didn’t dare stop for the better part of two days. He found a river, made sure both he and Cloud drank their fill, and then veered immediately away from it again. If they were being pursued, the river would be the first place ShinRa would sweep. Better to go cross-country, steering clear of any landmarks.

“Hey buddy, I think we can stop here. Sorry to make you walk so long.” He lowered his companion to the ground. Cloud made a sound a lot like a sigh as he slumped against the tree trunk. “Can you take first watch? Guess not. Looks like we’ll just have to risk it.” He couldn’t go without sleep forever. At least most of the wildlife around here was too big to sneak up on them – or conversely, not big enough to worry about.

ShinRa troops were another matter, but they weren’t so crash hot on stealth either.

“We’re almost clear of the mountain range. If we keep going another three days, we should hit the Corel desert,” Kunsel announced. “What do you think? Hide out in the mountain ranges, or take our chances out in the desert?”

No answer.

Kunsel slumped, letting out a heavy breath, and slid down next to Cloud.

He was exhausted, drained of his every last reserve. They’d made it out, but he wasn’t naïve enough to think that would be the end of things. They needed a plan.

For starters, he had no idea how much time had passed since Sephiroth burned down Nibelheim. It had taken a long time for them to heal – it was a miracle they’d survived at all. Then, the mako… so much mako, what felt like an eternity, locked in a tube of burning green…

Then too, Hojo would sedate them sometimes, and as grateful as he’d been for the reprieve a much larger part of him had quailed in horror every time he woke up, frantically wondering what might have been done to them while they were asleep. What Hojo did to them when they were awake was enough to fill a lifetime of nightmares.

“There used to be all sorts of rumours about the Science Department, you know? Troops on guard used to tell ghost stories about their shifts.” Kunsel huffed a laugh, and jostled his shoulder. Cloud’s head bobbed with the movement. “Wonder what they’d say if they found it was all true.”

Reality had turned out to be a thousand times worse than even the darkest of rumours.

“Enough of this,” he muttered. “Let’s see what we’ve got.”

Kunsel retrieved his PHS from his pocket and let it charge under the sun. Lucky he’d spent the extra to get one of the newer field models from Urban Development.

As soon as he turned it on the messages went crazy. It must have beeped well over a hundred times – Kunsel didn’t know if there was even enough room in the memory for that many unread messages.

He didn’t wait for it to finish before he started scrolling through. The first fifty were variations of ‘what’s going on’. Useless. Then a handful more expressing confusion – a convoy had apparently already been dispatched after his previous check-in.

The PHS creaked in his grasp. A convoy.

They’d answered his call for help with Hojo.

His laughter came out bitter, and maybe just on the edge of hysterical. He bit it off sharply – he was not going to crack, not after having made it this far. He was SOLDIER, dammit. And he had a mission. He needed to focus.

Then he found it.

A ShinRa newsletter. Announcement from General Affairs.

From: ShinRa News
Subject: Personnel Announcement 0210
‘This is an official notification of the change in status for the following personnel.
Sephiroth – SOLDIER 1^st Class: Killed in action
Kunsel – SOLDIER 2^nd Class: Killed in action
Two infantrymen were also killed in action.’

Disgusted, he tossed the PHS to the ground.

A ShinRa cover-up. As cold and blatant as it got.

Did nobody ask questions? From what he’d picked up of Hojo’s demented mutterings in the lab, Cloud had succeeded in finishing Sephiroth off by throwing him into the Reactor Core, but the rest? Didn’t anyone think to check? Zack at least had to suspect – especially after the lies they’d been fed about Genesis Rhapsodos and Angeal Hewley!

Kunsel leant back against the tree trunk, staring at the leafy canopy through the helmet’s visor. “Idiots.”

He picked the PHS back up, toying with it for a minute. There wasn’t anything else of use or interest in the remainder of his messages – just the usual fanclub newsletters after that. Even in standby-mode, his PHS would have run out of battery within a fortnight, and anything sent later would have hung in limbo until eventually purged from the system.

Could he call anyone? Was it safe to call anyone? Now that they’d escaped, ShinRa would almost certainly be watching his old friends and contacts.

What could he do, then?

He slanted a glance at his companion, whose head hung against his chest. If it weren’t for the occasional twitch of his fingers and the faint rise and fall of his chest, Kunsel might have thought him dead.

“We need to fix you up, somehow.” He flicked a drooping spike of blond hair with his fingers, and tried not to be disappointed at the lack of reaction.

Wutai? No, they wouldn't trust a SOLDIER, would never believe his story. Same with Fort Condor. And there was no point in trying to go undercover in either of those places – outsiders weren’t any more welcome than SOLDIERs.

Junon and Midgar were out, too – they might be able to disappear into the crowds of a big city, but if they slipped up and got discovered, ShinRa would have the resources to bring an entire battalion down on their heads within minutes. Tactically, that was a dumb idea.

What they needed was a place where ShinRa had minimal presence, but somewhere that also had the facilities to help Cloud.

There was only one place on the Planet that fulfilled both of those requirements.

“Mideel,” he decided. “We’ll go to Mideel. ShinRa will never expect that.”

Next chapter