12 - Capture and Isolation

[Sephiroth X]

*The helicopter trip from Midgar towards the Senate home city of Zion felt like forever to Sephiroth X. He managed to slip in and out of conciousness during the flight, but was quickly either sedated by one of the people on board.. or was knocked out by one of them. The pain of the stab wound inflicted by The Senator was still present... which baffled X because the stab wound wasn't vital what so ever... which means there's something unique about that katana The Senator uses... so if he really is the man of legend he has a few unique tricks up his sleave... that or he's just really good at inflicting pain.*

*About 15 hours later the three helicopters arrived at Zion's main landing bay. Four soldiers dragged Sephiroth X from the helicopter into the base, a fifth soldier carried The Masamune in its sheath... X hoped that guy didnt plan on using it, X was the only person who could wield the sword for a reason. X saw Bax and Zack get draged from the other helicopter too, they were just as beat up as he was apparently. The third helicopter, the one The Senator was in, didn't land with them though... X guessed it was too much of a risk. Then X slipped unconcious again.

"Get the hell in your cell damnit!" Where the next words X heard, and the first thing he saw was solid steel rusing towards his face as he was thrown in his cell within the Senate's triple-max facility. X looked around, it looked like a normal jail cell to him, he guessed the "triple-max" part of it all was from the security itself and not the cells or something...

*X then heard some other guards yelling followed by a couple more sounds of people slamming into steel... it must have been the guards locking up Zack and Bax. The Senator said something about Zack escaping once... does that mean he was here before...? X thought for a moment of how The Senate tracked him without him noticing them. X felt stupid, it seemed that he was so caught up in the other massive powers around him that he didnt even notice Senate troopers basically looking over his shoulder...Then Sephiroth X passed out from the stab wound, the loss of blood was starting to take effect. If the Senate really wanted to keep him alive for questioning he figured they'd at least try to help. The loss of blood would make his brain focus on keeping itself alive rather then to slip off into random thoughts such as dreams and stuff... ironically this would be the best night's sleep he'd have in a long time...

[ZaCloud]

The battle had left Zack awestricken. Both of these men exhibited strength beyond his expectations. For a while, he couldn’t believe he had trusted them enough to sleep in their vicinity. But that was soon out of his mind, for he was then busy trying to keep track of the intense fight… and worrying that someone would seriously get hurt or killed. He felt extra worried when the fight kept going after Sephiroth’s slam into the wall; he thought that would have knocked him back to his senses. But he kept fighting, even more intensely than before. This was unsettling. But at least he was able to see that no truly brutal injuries were being inflicted, despite the fight’s grand scale.

Then, out from a haze of dust, Sephiroth stood over Bax, the final edge of the great Masamune at the alien’s throat. Bax then worked into words, "You... want answers.... I try give..."

More answers, finally, Zack thought, ready to listen intently, It’s really hard to hang out with people when ya have no idea what they’re really like, or what’s going on.

But then, the rumble of helicopter rotors sounded overhead, and the group was bathed in unnatural light. Zack looked up, and felt some kind of horrible dread well up in his stomach. He felt as if he were seeing something to strike terror into anyone’s hearts. But then he shook it off quickly. How ridiculous to be afraid of something he knew nothing about, right? They could fight off whoever these weirdos were! Already, Sephiroth was slamming a few of the armored men around. Zack quickly closed the gap between himself and Bax, scooping up the great sword on the way, and handing it to its owner as he helped him to his feet.

“You ok?” he asked hurriedly, moving his own sword into combat position with none of the grace or ease the other two had with their own weapons. “This really sucks, doesn’t it? From one fight to another, and we still don’t even know what each other’s favorite color is!”<br>
He meanwhile eyed the soldiers surrounding them. He felt strange, as if he were fighting a panic he couldn’t understand. He wanted to run, even while he wanted to kick all of their asses into a bloody mess. He decided to do both, charging toward the nearest soldier with his sword raised, his eyes blazing and his voice shouting a wordless angry battle-cry. But from the corner of his eye, he saw Bax fall to his knees with a shocked expression on his face, and this threw Zack’s charge off balance. He skidded to a stop and looked at the one who may have stricken his fiery acquaintance.

“What the hell did you do you—“ He was cut short by a sharp blow to the back of his head. He staggered forward, but used Fjalar to prop himself from falling over altogether. He then turned with rage and tried to swing at the many soldiers behind him, but by then he was so dizzy that they easily knocked the sword from his hands and closed in like hungry wolves. Before he knew it, his hands were cuffed and he was stricken by another painful blow, too woozy and restrained to fight back.

His vision blurry, he still tried to find out how the other two were faring. But he saw that all of them had been subdued, and these strange soldiers were in control of the situation. Then, he focused on the old but proud-looking man speaking to Sephiroth X. He could hear the conversation even past the ringing in his ears.

“I, my friend, am The Senator.”<br>
The feeling of panic again. His heart was pounding madly. Oh come on, me! He’s the stinky old man in charge of the weirdos, so what?! Stupid!! He snapped his eyes shut and his teeth together, jarring himself out of the panic.

The Senator spoke again after Sephiroth’s defiant retort. "Let the blonde one go... We tried to break him once and he didn't break... so lets not waste some more time with him... But, give him a nice beating for slipping out of Zion in the first place please."

“What the hell are you talking about?!” Zack demanded, trying to struggle as he was forced toward a building wall, “You buncha weirdos! You stinky old man!”<br>
“Just for that,” one of the soldiers hissed, “You get this!” He elbowed Zack right in the stomach, shutting him up and making him emit an agonized cough. He still couldn’t breathe for a long time as they began beating him up, making the world a blur of pain.

But he felt like he was used to this… Used to worse…<br>
Finally, the blows slowed, then were reduced to the occasional slap every time he tried to look toward the other two captives. He could only hear snatches of what was going on, and right now they were too jumbled for him to make sense of them.

When he heard The Senator laugh and say, “I changed my mind…” he could hear some downright evil chuckles from the soldiers restraining him. When they began to drag him toward one of the choppers, he knew he wouldn’t be able to apply for a job in the morning. Well, he had had the feeling that would have been the case anyway…<br>
Soon he was dropped onto the aircraft’s floor with a pained grunt, curling up for a moment with his eyes squeezed shut. Then, he heard another body hit the floor and forced himself to look. There was poor Bax, looking so subdued by whatever he had been hit by. The Senate troops took seats nearby, several around the two captives to keep them from resisting.

“…Bax?” he asked. He felt surprised at how difficult it was to speak.

“He’s having a little nap,” one of the soldiers sneered, “I’ll help you take one too, if you want...”<br>
“NO! No no no, that’s not necessary,” Zack managed to squeak innocently, “I’m tired anyway so I’ll just go to sleep right now, by myself.” He promptly closed his eyes to prove his point.

Indeed, he did fall asleep. It had been a tiring day. Even with the uncertainty around him and the horrible possibilities ahead, he somehow felt it natural to sleep through it all. Just an average day, it feels like. How weird…<br>***

After several hours, he slowly woke up, looking around. Nope, it wasn’t a dream. He could feel every bruise and cut, and could clearly see the soldiers still around him. He couldn’t be sure if Bax was awake or not; his eyes were open, but maybe whatever drug they had given him wouldn’t let him be aware yet.

“…Hey Bax,” he roughed out, “Did they pass out peanuts while I was asleep?”<br>
“Shut up,” one of the soldiers growled, stomping on Zack’s chest.

“Aagh!...” Zack lay with his face in a grimace, trying to recover from the pain. He then grunted out to Bax, “Ok, don’t answer that. This ain’t exactly first-class travel. Hey, where we goin’ anyway?”<br>
“To Zion,” another soldier answered with a smirk, “Your home for, how long was it, five months or so? Guess we’ll get to finish what we started, and this time you’re on your own.”<br>
Zack looked genuinely puzzled, and angry at these liars. “Look, I have no idea what you’re talking about. Yeah I was in Zion but I’d remember faces as ugly as yours.”<br>
“He’s sounding more like the other one,” one of the men said with his own puzzled look.

The one who had kicked Zack asked, “Say, where is that other one anyway? Did he dry up in the desert? I was hoping to see him finally crack.”<br>
Zack sighed. “Man, you guys say the weirdest stuff, seriously.”<br>
One of the soldiers shook his head and chuckled, “Oh, I see! Hahaha! Boys, we have a genuine nutcase on our hands. We missed the crack, but it already happened. He thinks he can just forget all the fun he had with us.”<br>
Several of the soldiers grinned. “Well that just means we can refresh his memory!” one of them chuckled darkly.

“We get to break him again, for the first time,” another joked.

“Uh, I think I’m just gonna stare at the ceiling for a while,” Zack said with a cautious tone, turning his head upward. “Pretty nice ceiling.”<br>
Their laughter bit at his ears, but he drowned them out as well as he could, so he wouldn’t have to wonder what they were talking about.

***

Still more time went by. Day was drawing to a close. Zack was very hungry… He had already gone the previous day without food, so this was the second in a row. His stomach growled very loudly in protest.

“…Are we there yet?” he finally asked in the most annoying voice he could muster.

“Shut up,” the stricter soldier spat, kicking him in the thigh this time. That was definitely going to bruise badly.

“This sure is weird,” the more alert looking soldier speculated as Zack once more tightened and bit back a cry of pain, “It’s like having both of them here in one body, the way he’s acting. But that’ll make things interesting.”<br>
“Ceiling time,” Zack grunted, once more turning his eyes and face upward. But soon he fell asleep once more, his pain keeping him from wanting to stay aware for long.

[ZaCloud]

“Home sweet home!” a soldier’s voice announced, shoving Zack into the cell. He tried to catch himself, but was too weakened from the damage they had inflicted. Getting back up was out of the question for the time being. He did, however turn enough so he could see Bax, who had also been thrown to the floor.

He waited tensely until the non-guard soldiers left, then looked around, managing to sit up slightly, supporting himself with shaking arms. It all felt too familiar. Too frightening to be real.

“I…I had a dream like this…” he stammered to nobody in particular, his eyes looking distant and afraid, “The cell was different… But everything was terrible… So terrible and for so long… But it was only a dream! THIS is only a dream! Right?! RIGHT?!” He began to shake, both in body and voice, absolutely terrified. “A dream isn’t real and this is ONLY A DREAM!!”<br>
He slammed his head into the wall next to him twice in succession, leaving it leaned on the cold steel after the second impact. His eyes were tightly closed and he was panting in exhaustion despite the shortness of the outburst.

Suddenly, he opened his eyes and his posture changed so he was now just casually leaning on the wall. “Oh well, at least we have a roof over our heads now, right guys? Aw man, none of us look too good…” His voice softened, and he sank back into a lying position. “But we’ll be ok, guys… Everything will be ok. I promise we’ll get out of here… Guards, Sephiroth’s bleeding bad, I think he fainted… Bax, I’ll help you learn to talk when we get a hold of a dictionary. I can’t read too good but, well, we can both learn something then…”

In spite of his pain, he smiled. A warm, hopeful smile. Even while a single tear that had formed during his outburst finally fell from his eyelid and dropped onto the floor.

[CursedDragoon]

Still on the roof, Dragoon sat propped up against a air conditioner, sleeping. He was woke from his slumber by some shouts below. He stood up and looked over the edge. He saw Sephiroth X pointing his sword at the other 2 warriors. He simply watched and listened as the warriors bickered, and then started to fight. Dragoon watched their fight intently, studying their moves and attack patterns. They didn't seem like enemies, but Dragoon had learned not to trust anyone but himself. As the fight drew to a close, Dragoon noticed helicopter sounds behind him. He jumped behind a air vent on the roof as the lights from the helicopter turned on. He watched as armed men jumped from the choppers, and headed toward X, Bax, and Zack. "Damnit, I can't hear anything over these choppers." he muttered.


Soon enough, the men returned to the helicopters. One man in particular had a strange aura about him. Dragoon then saw X, Bax, and Zack being dragged onto the choppers. "This keeps getting better and better."

Dragoon then jumped onto the nearest helicopter. He grabbed the rail, and swung himself up onto the support. He sat on it as the chopper flew away, no one noticing his presence.

Dragoon nodded off during the flight. When he awoke, the helicopter was landing. As it landed, Dragoon kneeled on the ground underneath the helicopter. He watched as Zack, and Bax were carried off the helicopter, and into a doorway on near the landing pad. After the men were gone, the chopper started to lift off. He quickly dashed in the shadows toward the door where the men had gone. Not being noticed, he slipped in the door.

Dragoon walked down the hallways, ducking behind things as he went to avoid being discovered. He eventually found a pair of metal doors with "Holding Cells - Triple Max Security" written on them. He pushed them, they did not open. He saw no opening device around him. "Oh well, I'm getting bored anyway."

With that sentence he held up his hand. A feint crackling echoed through the hall. A dark light shone around his arm, as his sword began to materialize. The blade formed in mid-air, then dropped into his hand. He slashed at the air once, and looked at his weapon. The sword then started to glow with a black flame. Dragoon then swung his sword hard at the doors.

On the other side of the door, a guard was walking down the hall that lead to the cells. "Man, this job sucks. Nothing ever happens down he......"
The door in front of him exploded, sending shrapnel everywhere. A piece about the size of a baseball impaled him in his left shoulder. He screamed with pain. The guard looked up and saw Dragoon walking through the now open doorway. Alarms started going off throughout the entire building. The guard yelled into his headset "We have a intruder in the holding area! Alert th........"
The guard was impaled through the chest by Dragoon. Pulling out his sword, he shook the blood from it. 20 armored men busted into the hallway, their guns pointed at Dragoon. He smirked. "Come on!"
And he dashed at the soldiers.

[Shadow Phoenix]

“Hey, Bax, come over here! I’ve got something to show you!”<br>
Bax opened his eyes and felt the warm breeze of the Zokarian fields caress his cheek. He got up from his resting place under a tall, spiraling purple tree and tossed a small yellow spotted dome-flower back down on the ground. His older brother, Drax, was calling him to show him something. Bax, at the tender age of 8 was still very mature for his age being in the line of royal descent, but here on Zokara he could simply let loose and enjoy himself. The royal Firago family was taking a much needed vacation here on this strange planet, and Bax was finally getting the chance to play around like a normal Phoeniyan kid: something he and his brother never really got the chance to do. Drax was 15 at the time, and a tricky devil who still liked to involve Bax in the things that he did, be it riding on his souped-up hover craft, showing him the latest Phoenix-suit edition featuring the hottest models on Auralis, or taking him to the greatest parks that the galaxy had to offer. Bax loved his big brother, even though he sometimes played dirty tricks on him. That was why this trip was so great: they got to spend some quality time together.

Bax reached his brother with a big smile on his face. “What have ya got, Drax?”<br>“Look what I found!” Drax held up a large, glistening blue jewel and Bax stared at it with wide eyes.
“Wow!” was all that Bax could manage to say in the awe that now overtook him. He’d never seen such a vibrant color of blue before in all of his life, and it looked so gorgeous. He almost felt as if he’d never see such a potent shade of blue again in his entire life, so he memorized the color perfectly as he stared at it.
“I found it in the stream, and one of the locals told me that I could eat it and that it was real tasty, like the best candy you’ve ever had!”<br>Bax’s eyes turned as wide as saucers and his hands shot out towards the gem, which Drax promptly lifted out of his reach.
“Ooh, can I have it?”<br>Draw waved his finger at his little brother, “Ah, ah, ah! I want to taste it first, just to make sure it’s okay for you.”<br>Bax groaned and put on a big annoyed frown-scowl, at which Drax laughed as he grabbed a smaller rock from the stream and tossed it in his mouth. His eyes widened and it almost looked as if he were shaking for a moment. He looked at Bax and smiled.
“Oh, Bax, you’re gonna love this! It slides down your throat so easily and then it’s an absolutely shocking taste!”<br>“Really? Oh, give it to me, please big brother!”<br>Drax dropped the blue gem into Bax’s hands, and Bax greedily inserted the thing into his mouth. As the jelly-like substance passed down his throat, he instantly leapt into the air with a gasp as his eyes nearly popped out of his head. Drax was already on the ground laughing hysterically.
“Oh my God, it’s so cold!”<br>Bax was clutching his throat and shivering as the cold feeling swept uncontrollably through his body. His brother had just played another trick on him, and Bax had never felt so cold before in his entire life, even when he mistakenly stepped out of the cruiser on the ice planet Katiro three years before. Bax couldn’t help but laugh, too, through the minor choking.

* * *


Bax’s eyes flickered open and he shivered. That memory was so pleasant, but this current cold was so brutal, even though it certainly rivaled how Bax had felt that day with Drax. A brief smile came to Bax’s blue-tinted face as he remembered his dear big brother when he was still in his prime. That had been so long ago, before things grew too hectic.
Bax raised his head and looked around his latest residential environment. Not even slightly cozy. Where was he now? What had been happening since he had been so cold and asleep?

The memories seemingly flashed before Bax’s eyes as he remembered the intense fight with Sephiroth X and then the cold bite of the dart as he prepared to pull the Valermos from its sheath and kick some soldier ass. He was still shaking from that cold, but he could only guess that he’d been out for hours…wherever he was. Bax moved a bit and felt the bruises covering his body – a few from the fight with Sephiroth, but probably a few more from the treatment he supposed he received in transit.
“Pyrmandas,” Bax stated simply as he rubbed his especially sore shoulder. The bruises were being made even worse by the cold feeling that still covered him like a blanket.

Bax wondered what had been in that dart. The blue liquid in it seemed to act so quickly, almost like the gem Drax had given him to swallow. But this was even more potent, yet not lethal. It was a scary thought that he had been neutralized so quickly by beings who he assumed knew nothing about him. Could they possibly know more than he’d expect them to? Whoever these people were, they had him confined now, and they certainly knew how to keep him under control. They wouldn’t want to mess with him when he got his hands on-

The Star Fighter and the Valermos! They had been confiscated of course…it was too bad. Bax likely could have cut his way out of the cell had he had his weapons with him. As it was, he was too weak to conjure his own flames at that moment.

Bax looked across the room and sat up. Zack appeared to be dozing. They had all had a rough time, to be certain. Bax wondered where Sephiroth X was. He had been out cold – literally – the entire time that he’d been carried in here, so he knew nothing.
“Are you ‘wake, Zack?” Bax asked out loud, hoping to arouse the sleeping boy. Bax waited for a moment as he saw Zack’s eyes flicker open to greet him.

The blue…it was suddenly so familiar, and Bax knew why. He’d only seen such a vibrant blue one other time in his life, and then he thought he’d never see it again. Apparently, he’d been wrong – for here the blue was staring right back into his own eyes in the most calming and welcoming expression Bax had seen for a long time.

[ZaCloud]

“Are you ‘wake, Zack?”<br>
Zack slowly opened his eyes, an automatic smile gracing his young face despite his coat of bruises.

“Ah, Bax,” he said in quiet relief. He slowly sat up, face tightening with pain, which he quickly hid once he was semi-upright. “I was kinda worried… You’ve been out for a long time, supposing you weren’t awake in the chopper. Um, the aircraft we were in.” He tried to make his speech more understandable from that point on. Not in a condescending way like most would, just a helpful way.

“I guess you didn’t hear what those strange men were saying. That’s good, because they made no sense. They aren’t worth the trouble of understanding, anyway.”<br>
He then laughed, crossing his legs Indian-style and rocking back a bit. “Wow! That’s probably the first time I’ve spoken proper English in a long time! It feels kinda… er, kind of weird. But well, you deserve to understand this language better, since it looks like we’re now roommates.”<br>
He looked around, then his face fell back to serious and concerned. “Sephiroth's still out, it looks like. I can't tell if they've stopped his bleeding or not…” His eyes darkened for a moment as he very quietly growled, “I hope they're not gonna mess with him... They better not inject The Bite… It’d be terrible.”<br>
Zack then blinked hard, and his expression reverted back to carefree. “Oh well, he’s a tough guy from what I’ve seen. He should be fine. He might even be able to escape. That would be good. These guys are mean; they didn’t even serve peanuts on the flight!” Then, “Oh, that’s a bit of sarcasm there. Usually on leisure flights, the passengers in the luxury section get a snack called ‘peanuts’ to eat. You’re smart, you’ll get the joke now.”<br>
He smiled a bit more, then seemed to duck his head down as if ready for insult or injury, his voice quieting. “Not that I’m any good at being funny… I just try, but I’m not much good at anything.”<br>

[Sephiroth X]

*The Senate barely seemed to give a damn about Sephiroth X's wound... they gave him enough medical aid to simply keep him alive for a day or two more it seemed. Forcing Sephiroth X to allow his wound to heal naturally and the more painfull way. X was being held alone in his dark cell for a few days now, so he had been able to block out the pain easily at this piont though he still blacked out once and a while from blood loss. Sephiroth X recognized what they were doing to him though, a form of torture it seemed... both mental and physical. Last X knew it was used early in the 200 year war to break POWs. It was designed to keep the pain present in the person 24-7 with enough aid to just keep him breathing, and the mental effect was that it drove the recipient insane... to the point where he would beg for death and do or say anything to recieve it or be healed. A very clever trick indeed... but Sephiroth X made sure he wouldnt succumb to old war tricks.

He knew where they kept The Masamune. It was locked in a locker directly outside of X's cell. X knew this because no normal locker could hold the massive blade, it was a much taller locker while the ones next to it where normal... his sword was right there. Then X heard footsteps walk toward the cell, the first noises from a human he'd heard in days. Two Senate soldiers walked up in front of the cell and then walked over to the locker and pulled out X's Masamune.

Soldier 1 - "Hey look at this over-sized pizza cutter, holy crap..."

Soldier 2 - "Yeah it must be nice to be able to cleave anything within throwing distance... I think he's just compensating for something!"

*They both laughed at him

Sephiroth X thought you guys wish and then he saw one of the soldiers hold the sword in a fighting manner and it quicklky got X's attention.

Sephiroth X - *He spoke with a somewhat weaker voice* Hey you guys... I wouldnt try to use that if I where you...

Soldier 1 - "Shuddup inmate, this isnt gonna be your sword for much longer, now is it?! Hey Mike, stand back and watch this!"

*The second soldier took a good amount of safe steps away as the first soldier prepared to swing the Masamune. He had a grand ol' smile on his face as he prepared to make fun of X with his own sword. The soldier held it up and then swung it like a baseball bat. Suddenly somehow he lost control of the Masamune in his own hands and it viciously spun the soldier around in circles uncontrolably and suddenly the Masamune spun and imbedded itself deep into the thigh of the soldier, who then let out a scream.

Soldier 1 - "Son of a b*tch! OW GET IT OUT!"

*The second soldier quickly grabbed the handle of the Masamune and jerked it from the first soldiers thigh, and with the momentum from the pull the Masamune sliced into a locker next to them both. Sephiroth X in his cell chuckled.

Sephiroth X - "In the only person who can wield that sword for a reason."

*The second soldier looked angrily at X.

Soldier 2 - "Now you shut the f*ck up inmate!"

*The second soldier safely tucked the Masamune back into its locker and then assisted the first soldier off towards the medical bay.

Sephiroth X - "Arrogant fools..."

*For a moment X thought about what possibly is going on with Bax and Zack. He knew they were together in one cell, he heard them get tossed in... but he didnt know exactly where they were. He coulda heard those noises from two floors below him in an air vent for all he knew.

But in a way, Sephiroth X didn't want to think about Bax or care about him... from what The Senator said, the reason X was captured was because he was following Bax. So was it in a way Bax's fault that X was captured? Sephiroth X didnt know what to think, he didnt hate Bax but at the moment he didn't exactly care about him either...

Sephiroth X did though give thought towards the boy, Zack. The Senator said that he escaped here once... that means The Senate captured him before... X wondered how all this adds up into the big picture. Bax the alien, Zack the boy, The Senate, that legend about the Element of Prosperity, and himself a lone fighter. And what about those other presences he sensed in Midgar? He felt many strong presences, good and evil... obviously he coudnt sense them any longer since he was on the other side of the Alpha Continent now, he could only sense Bax and Zack.. which actually made X wonder even more. The Senator defeated him with ease yet he couldnt even feel a small glimpse of what was The Senator's power... perhaps the old man could mask his energy? X didnt know... it could have been a lucky shot for all he knew, he was weak from fighting Bax.

Suddenly Sephiroth X heard more footsteps walking towards his cell, this time it was a small group of 5 or 6 soldiers armed with large stun guns. They wouldn't send this many troops to punish me for what those two idiot soldiers did before would they? X examined the group, they all had fancier armor on... higher ranking officials X guessed. And those stun-guns looked like they meant buisiness, X had seen lesser and lighter versions of them on the streets.. which meant this things were state-of-the-art too. One soldier opened the gate to the cell and the whole group entered and circled X. The lead soldier tapped the barrell of his gun on X's chest and moved it upwards in the air.

Lead Elite Soldier - "Get up."

*Sephiroth X quietly followed orders, didnt think starting a ruckuss with 6 fully armed of the Senate's finest would be a smart thing, especially without The Masamune. A guard quickly grapped X's arms and handcuffed them behind his back while another guard put a large metal collar around his heck with a long chain that ran down the back and connected to the cuffs... they weren't taking any chances with X. X found that kind of complimenting. Then another soldier poked him in the back with his gun.

Elite Soldier 2 - "Move it."

*Sephiroth X walked forward following the lead soldier in front of him while the remaining five soldiers circled him, the guard behind him had his stun gun pointed directly at X ready to fire incase of the worst.

The soldiers escorted X down a long narrow hallway, well at least narrow enough that the soldiers to his sides had to rub up against X. And they led him into a somewhat small room with little illumination, X quickly surveyed the room... no surviellence cameras... that wasnt good. Nobody looking on, meant things where probably gonna get a little ugly. Sephiroth X heard the door behind him emphatically shut and the handcuffs and collar were removed form X. The six elite soldiers then circled the walls of the room.

Lead Elite Soldier - "Stay right there, dont even think about f*ckin moving or we'll fry you in an instant."

*Sephiroth X abidded by their rules, and looked around at the soldiers stareing at him. They looked at him almost in wonder, they were probably thinking something like "he's taken such a beating yet he still stands there like a firm soldier..." or something.
Suddenly a door on the opposite side of the room opened up, it was very bright on the other side. Basically only white like seemed to pour out of the doorway, it probably seemed bright because the room he was in was relatively darker. X saw a man quickly walk in with a chair and he set the chair down behind X and left.

Lead Elite Soldier - "Sit down."

*X followed orders again and sat down on the chair, quickly the soldier behind him grabbed his arms and handcuffed them behind the chair. X found it interesting that they would uncuff him and then re-cuff him just for a chair? Maybe they were testing him to see if he'd make a run for it. Suddenly a voice darted from the white doorway again, with a familiar accent."

Voice - "It's nice to see that you are an obiedient follower of orders within my... estate."

*X saw the sillouhette of a cloaked man coming from the doorway. The person walked closer to X and when the door closed behind him the rooms illumination revealed the man to X, it was The Senator.

Sephiroth X - "Great... you again."

The Senator - "I must first ask you, how is the wound I gave you feeling?"

Sephiroth X - "Just fine. Im more concerned about the wound my eyes will get from constantly having to stare at your sorry old ass."

The Senator - "My my thats no way to talk to me within my own home now is it?"

Sephiroth X - "What do you want Senator..?"

The Senator - "I want answers from you Sephiroth X thats all, simple little answers."

Sephiroth X - "One plus one equals two jackass there can I leave?"

*X's arrogance seemed to get under The Senators skin a little. The Senator looked over at one of the soldiers behind X and nodded his head. The soldier behind him stuck the tip of his stun-gun up against the back of the chair and pulled the trigger. Sephiroth X felt surges of electricity shoot through his body and he screamed out for a moment. Obviously the chair he sat in was metallic too... a nice touch for a stun-gun torture chair.

[Sephiroth X]

The Senator - "Thats enough."

*The soldier stopped his stun-gun and X took a few heavy breaths of hair.

The Senator - "Now tell me X, what did that little Claude boy tell you about The Valley of the Promised?"

Sephiroth X looked at him confused - "Claude?"

The Senator - "The blonde haired boy you were with, the one with the large sword."

Sephiroth X - "You mean... Zack?"

*The Senator laughed and X looked confused.

The Senator - "It looks like the boy took the name of his older brother after they escaped. Im guessing the Desert of the Dead claimed the life of the real Zack Strife... I guess that little 'Zack' boy actually cracked without our help."

Sephiroth X - "Zack didnt tell me anything about that place... he barely talked at all. I was focused on Bax."

The Senator - "And why were you so intent on tracking down Bax, my friend?"

Sephiroth X - "...Because I wanted to know how he landed here."

*The Senator looked back up at the soldier, who shocked X again through the chair for a second then stopped.

The Senator - "You are a rather bad liar Mister Sephiroth. Now tell me again, why were you looking for Bax?"

*Sephiroth X could pretty much feel the stun-gun behind him prepare for another zapping... X had to tell some truth.

Sephiroth X - "Because when his ship crashed I instantly felt his great presence from a few miles away. And it was just around the time of his crash that my... dreams... became extremely vivid and worse. And it was also when I sensed other massive presences around me too.

*The Senator smiled and became curious.

The Senator - "Dreams huh?"

*The Senator gave an eye to one of the other guards in the room.

The Senator - "Lets see these... dreams."

*One of the soldiers went through the doorway and quickly came back with a strange device. He walked up behind X and attatched the device to the back of the chair quickly. Then X suddenly felt a few pins get inserted through temples of his head.

The Senator - "Dont worry, my friend, this wont harm you at all we just want to see what you see a night."

*The same soldier who brought in the device handed The Senator a small monitor with a cords that branched out and attatched to the needles stuck into X's head. Suddenly The Senator flipped on a switch that apparently turned on the 'dream viewer' and suddenly X felt his whole body go numb. He was still fully awake and could see, he just couldnt move.

The Senator saw most of what was in X's most recent vision.. the one he had in Midgar moments before fighting Bax. The first thing The Senator saw was X surrounded by the fleshy walls of the Midgar alley.

The Senator - "Ha! It appears our old magi-toy is having his own fun within the Midgar area... guess that would also explain the mass murders there too. Nice to see The Senate's work at its finest.

*The Senator then saw X's 'fights' with the other figures in the dream, and the encounter with the fire-being.

The Senator - "That I obviously guess is Bax..."

*And it then lead up to the moment where the giant cat-eyes appeared before Sephiroth X.

The Senator - "Hmm... it appears Lynx has some sort of twist in all that too.

*Sephiroth X wondered who is Lynx?

The Senator then came to the worst part of X's dream, the cloaked man with the evil eyes he saw under the hood. The Senator's eyes opened up a little bit almost in amazement.

The Senator - "Him..."

*That word suddenly triggered another stream of thoughts through X's mind... He recognizes that man! The cloaked man! He's familiar with him! Who is he? Why is he in my dreams?. Then The Senator put down the monitor and turned off the dream viewer and X felt his body return to him. He could move himself again as the soldier pulled the needles out of his skull.

The Senator - "Interesting little dilema we have here isnt it, my friend?"

Sephiroth X - "Stop calling me 'your friend'... just because I have long hair doesnt mean I want to be the 'b*tch' in some sick relationship fantasy you have."

*The Senator quickly became enraged, made a closed fist, and backhanded Sephiroth X with it. A trickle of blood ran down from the side of X's mouth.

The Senator - "Tell me what you know about the 'legend' about The Element of Prosperity."

*Sephiroth X spit a small bit of blood out from his mouth*

Sephiroth X - "I know about the legend... who doesnt... It's a folklore about some magical crystal or something storred within a place called 'The Valley of the Promised' and the man who enters that place and finds the element is supposed to recieve the power stored within the valley and the planet. Basically turning him into a super-self. But even in then the Warrior of Prosperity could still be defeated by the hands of a man, and that man could receive the Element's powers or the element could return to the valley and hide away for a century... though legend states that the warrior was only defeated once by a mortal."

The Senator - "And tell me about that 'once'."

Sephiroth X - "Legend says that the last Warrior of Prosperity lived sometime past the halfway point of the 200 year war.. that he lead his faction of troops and their allies against the dictatorous regions threatening the world... including the newly formed Senate. And in one of the fiercest battles in the war, which I think gave 'The Desert of the Dead' its name, the Warrior of Prosperity was killed by the Senate's finest soldier who claimed to be called 'The Apprentace', basically the aire to the Senate 'thrown'. Legend and common folklore say that man is supposed to be you."

*The Senator pulled out his katana and observed it with a smirk.

The Senator - "This was the blade that killed him.. I can still see the look on his face and the blood on the blade as I watched him die. Let me ask you this... how did it feel when you killed a man for the first time?"

Sephiroth X - "Thats between me and him... Does your sword have a name..?"

The Senator - "Yes actually it does, I call it 'Hades'."

Sephiroth X - "God of the underworld... said to be the truely cold-hearted god."

The Senator - "Nice to know you're up to date with your mythology."

Sephiroth X - "I guess that sword is as cold blooded as its owner... which is why The Element didnt want you."

The Senator - "That was a mere fluke... when I find the Element of Prosperity this time it will have to choose me."

Sephiroth X - "Sure.."

*The Senator put his sword, Hades, away and looked at X with an evil grin.

The Senator - "How would you like to find The Element of Prosperity for us?"

Sephiroth X - "How would you like to bend over and kiss-"

*Sephiroth X was quickly interuppted by the soldier zapping him again.

The Senator - "Think... doesn't all this make you angry at him... At Bax.. he is the reason we followed you... him and that boy... they dragged you into it..

*The thoughts actually did get into Xs head... it was their fault in a way... he shouldn't really be here...

The Senator - "This pain could go away easily.. just help us..."

*X didnt know what to think... he would pretty much betray Bax and Zack and probably doom them to the torture he's endured... and help the Senate find the element? He didnt know..

Sephiroth X - "...No..."

*The Senator smiled

The Senator - "This was probably a lot for you to take on for one day... Soldiers take him back to his cell."

*Five of the elite soldiers stood up and escorted Sephiroth X back to his cell. The lead elite soldier stood next to the Senator and The Senator said a few simple words to him.

The Senator - "We'll crack him yet... leave him alone for a day or two and then prep the same room we brewed Pyramid Head from..."

Lead Elite Soldier - "Roger that sire, shall we bring in the Phoenyian now?"

The Senator - "Yes."

[Shadow Phoenix]

As Zack carried on in his little schizophrenic monologue, Bax simply sat there, listening and watching the young man. He went back and forth from being serious to carefree, from sarcastic to almost forlorn, and a myriad of other strange emotions. It was like a roller coaster, and Bax found it quite peculiar. He found Zack peculiar regardless, but that was beside the point.
“You are funny, Zack…I just no understand well,” Bax admitted, trying to cheer up the blue-eyed blonde from his latest comment. “Though peanuts sound good. They no give us some? Bastards,” Bax continued, smiling sheepishly. He let out a little chuckle and gazed up at the bare and rusting ceiling.
“So,” Zack said, breaking the silence, “Where are you from, anyway?”<br>Bax looked back to Zack and smiled, “I from Auralis. Long way ‘way from here.”<br>“Oh, how is that? What do you do there?”<br>Bax cast his eyes to the side. He sort of didn’t want to answer that truthfully as he was still having a hard time dealing with that himself. But he decided to give Zack the truth anyway, “I am King.”<br>Zack’s eyes seemed to widen a bit at that last comment, but Bax only saw him out of his peripheral vision, so it wasn’t clear what he did. Bax tried to move the conversation along, though.
“You said earlier about favorite color. Mine is red, what you like?”<br>
The door slid open and six armed soldiers burst in with such a clamor that if Zack had even tried to say something, Bax would not have heard him.
“Alien, come with us,” one of the soldiers said.
Bax’s eyes widened and he immediately began standing up as the soldiers ushered him out. He saw one of the soldiers whack Zack on the back of the head, likely for being insubordinate in his eyes. Bax winced and shuffled along. Through winding stairs and narrow corridors, the soldiers led him until they shoved him into a dark room. His hair gave perfectly fine illumination in this darkness, however, and Bax could see just fine after a few short moments.

One of the soldiers hit Bax with the back of his gun, “Remember that dart? Do anything funny and you’ll be feeling a little cold again.”<br>Bax took a step away from the man with a horrified look on his face. He felt so naïve right now, and that wasn’t pleasant in the slightest. He had never been treated this way before in his entire life. He’d had bruises and such, been in his fair share of fights, but never had he been treated like a common criminal. He had a feeling, however, that these man were treating him more like a dangerous criminal; still naïve, but very dangerous.

Bax was then forced to stand on a small metal square, whereupon his feet where strapped down by a strange contraption with the metal and his arms were stretched out and strapped in to more strange devices on the side. He felt pin pricks on each arm as needles entered his wrists and the fleshy part on the opposite side of his elbows. There were also more pin pricks around his Achilles tendon and his feet immediately began to go a little numb. He recovered quickly though and stood up, wondering what all of this was for. A door opened at the opposite side of the room from where he’d come in and Bax watched as a man he’d never seen before entered. He was clothed in a dark blue robe with gold trimming and had a very deadly-looking katana strapped to him.

“Well, look who’s awake. So good to see you, Bax; I trust you enjoyed your flight.”<br>Bax looked at the man in a very bewildered fashion as countless questions rampaged through his mind. Who was this man? How did he know his name? Where was he? Why had he been captured? Why was he strapped into this strange contraption? What did these strange people want him from? Bax looked down, and then back up.
“Who are you?”<br>The man strode forward and Bax saw what his face looked like. “I, my dear Phoeniyan friend, am The Senator.”<br>“Sena…tor?”<br>“Yes, Sena-tor. I am the leader of the faction which has brought you here. You sure gave us a lot of trouble trying to find you, Bax, m’boy. Sephiroth X led us right to you, and you led us to him.”<br>“I no understand.”<br>The ‘Senator’ laughed, “Of course not. Now, listen, I have a little story to tell you.”<br>Bax shifted around a bit in the contraption he was strapped to and looked inquisitively at his captor. After a moment, he began.

“You are on Earth, my friend, and you are currently in the possession of the Senate, a faction controlling the great city of Zion. Understand so far?”<br>Bax nodded slowly. A few of his questions had been answered, at least.
“A little lesson in mythology now. Legend has it that there is a place on our planet called ‘The Valley of the Promised,’ and that in that sacred land there is something called ‘The Element of Prosperity.’ Now, when a person finds this precious ‘Element,’ it is said that he will receive great power; not immortality, but damn near close to it. Still following me?”<br>Bax blinked a bit before answering, “Yes.”<br>“Good. When war still ravaged this planet, a man found that element and became the ‘Warrior of Prosperity.’ Frankly put, I killed him. Our folklore says that the person who is to kill the Warrior of Prosperity will be endowed with all of his powers. Well, I wasn’t, and the Element was sealed back into the Valley and we have been searching for it ever since. Simple enough?”<br>Bax had to be honest with this man, “No, not really.”<br>The Senator rolled his eyes, “Damn. Oh well, I tried.”<br>“Why I here, Senator?”<br>“Why you here?” the Senator mocked. “Bax, we don’t really know why you’re here on this planet, but you’re here in Zion so that we can get some answers. We have plenty of alien races here on Earth, but you’re the first of your kind any of us have ever seen. From what you’ve shown us so far, you’re very powerful and your talents could be useful. We want you to help us find the Element of Prosperity.”<br>Bax was shocked. They found him powerful and wanted his help. It was too twisted to be true – why would they have used force to capture him instead of just finding him and asking for his help. Perhaps that was just the kind of organization this Senate was: shoot now, ask questions later.

Bax looked up at the Senator. “I just want go home.”<br>The Senator raised his hand and Bax instantly felt his body temperature drop as the blue liquid flowed through the needles. Bax slumped a little closer to the ground and began panting. After a moment, the temperature grew stable once more, and Bax noticed that the Senator had put his hand down. Pain was coursing through Bax’s body, and the flame on his head was already dwindling.
“Bax, you must not understand. You have no way to get off of this planet and back to yours except through us. We can basically control the airways here however we want: we have the power. I’m making you an offer you can’t refuse. If you follow through, we’ll see if we can give you a ship in the end. Sound reasonable enough.”<br>Bax was slowly realizing that this was truly a dangerous situation and that he would be unable to do much if he couldn’t escape. He could either escape by agreeing to work for this Senate, or he could try to break out. From the looks of things, he didn’t like either of his options. He needed more time to think this through. He just wasn’t ready to give in yet.
“And what if I decide to refuse?” Bax spoke in very good speech. This was the only way that he could see out for now.
The Senator’s smirking face drooped into a near snarl and his hand flew up. Immediately, the blue liquid began flowing through Bax’s veins again and it never went back down before Bax slipped into an unconscious state.

[ZaCloud]

Whoah! Zack thought with widened eyes, Bax is a KING?!?!

He was pretty well shocked at that. Many things ran through his mind in that moment: It must really feel strange for the Auralian to have no royal power all of a sudden. Heck, it must be really awful and strange for him to be locked in some jail cell and harmed. All that in addition to the obvious misfortune of not knowing the language or customs of a strange world.

But at least Bax was optimistic enough to wish for regular conversation. “You said earlier about favorite color. Mine is red, what you like?”<br>
Zack wasn't even sure what to answer, when a group of soldiers bustled in. They commanded Bax out. Zack knew he couldn't really do anything to prevent this, but that didn't stop him from being upset. He glared daggers at the soldiers, which earned him a swift blow to the head.

“Soon enough,” one of the men snarled as the majority of them left with Bax, “you won't be able to make that look again.”<br>
Zack only allowed himself a moment to recover, before growling, “He didn't do anything to you guys. Leave him outta this crap. He's an alien; you don't know what might kill him!”<br>
They only laughed, making Zack grit his teeth together in anger. One of them shook his head in wonder. “So strange, to see him being the protective one this time.”<br>
“Tomorrow we can watch the experts wipe that look off his face,” another said eagerly. They all left, conversing about disturbing subjects.

Zack sat down after a while, holding his hand over his forehead. He sighed, then ran his hand through his hair until it rested where they had hit him. “A bump on top of a bump,” he said with a sad chuckle. “You’d think they had something against me.” He brought his knees up and rested his chin and arms on them. He wondered where Sephiroth was, and how he was doing. He didn’t want to think about what they might be putting him through. The same went for Bax. But that was hard; he was a sympathetic person. Refusing to think about their pain made him feel like he was cold and uncaring.

But it was like his mind winced away from thinking too deeply, a reflex to escape from pain. Thus, his current line of thinking shut down, and diverted instead to what he would tell Bax when he came back. About his favorite color, that is. But he liked so many; color was just cool in and of itself. He was fortunate enough to have visual access to the full spectrum.

Wait… I thought I was red-green color-blind. Uhhh…<br>
He looked at his arm. Some of its numerous scars were pink; only a couple weeks old at most. He didn’t wonder why or where they came from though, only making sure he could see the light red shade. He also recalled Bax’s outfit. Then he tried to recall anything green he had seen, since he had no access to the color now. Hmm, Sephiroth’s eyes… did they look different from red? Yes. They were a striking green-turquoise.

Now why would I have even thought like that? Color-blind? Pheh!

Oh well, he would think of a reply on the fly; that would make it more honest, anyway.

He then focused his mind on looking around, trying for the umpteenth time to figure out an escape plan. But for the umpteenth time, he was stumped. The security was tight around here, and even if he got to be prepared for fighting, the guards and their guns would likely come in overwhelming numbers.

“Can’t lose hope,” he murmured, patting his own wrist, “We’ll get outta—“ He sighed and shook his head. “Talkin’ to myself again… Sounds like I’m reciting some forced lyric or something.” He decided it best to pass the time in a more productive fashion, so he began to do push-ups. He kept that up for quite a while, then removed the wide armored belt to do sit-ups. It was a wonder the guards hadn’t taken away the uniform since it looked so much like some of theirs. They had taken away the strong magnetic straps that sheathed Fjalar. Too bad; that may have been useful in escaping somehow.

Just as he was getting tired from his workouts, he heard the hall door open. He immediately sat up and watched warily as more soldiers came in. He felt dismayed as he saw they were dragging Bax’s limp form toward the cell. His head-flame was definitely not very bright or strong, and his skin had an unwell look to it compared to before.

“Bastards…” he growled, standing up as they unlocked the cell. He felt ready to attack them no matter the cost, fiercely angry at them for hurting others, especially someone he was beginning to categorize as a friend.

They all trained their guns on him, though, and that snapped him out of his temporary rage. He stepped back, leaning against the wall behind him, but his eyes remained full of contempt.

They then threw the unconscious Bax into the cell. Zack managed to step forward and catch him by the shoulders, lowering him to the floor so he wouldn’t have to suffer the after-effects of impact. The Auralian felt cold. Zack knew that could not be normal or healthy.

“Damn,” he muttered, “who do they think they are?”<br>
“Come here, blondie,” one of the soldiers commanded in a strict tone.

Zack looked at him with some confusion. He found himself afraid they would take him out too. Not because they’d hurt him, but because then Bax would have to be all alone in his bad state. But with the guns on him, he had no choice but to stand and approach the open gate.

“Do you remember who I am?” the chiseled, black-haired man asked with a cold smirk. His gold eyes looked strangely warm in contrast. Too warm.

Zack suppressed an involuntary shudder and shook his head.

“I only saw you in person a few times… But I’ve watched the clips plenty from before. Great stuff to eat popcorn with, watching you scream. I’m Jadus. That ring a bell yet?”<br>
“N-no,” Zack answered. He felt sick though.

Jadus suddenly grabbed onto Zack’s lower jaw and squeezed, causing the boy to gasp. “I’m the reason they left your face pretty,” he growled. “But I liked it a lot better when it looked afraid. Ahh, there’s some of it now. That’s much better. Now, I know I haven’t bothered you much at all before… but who knows, maybe in the next few days that’ll change.” He then leered, “And that Sephiroth… He said a rather interesting thing to the Senator. Very inspiring. We’ll have to keep his face pretty too.”<br>
Zack was near panic and felt he was going to vomit, but he heard a familiar-sounding voice in his thoughts remind him: Remember, Jadus uses scare-tactics. He wouldn’t really do that sh*t. But if he ever did, bro, I’d do worse than kill him!

He let his eyes lower in defeat, so this frightening weirdo would leave him alone. But he still got several slaps and back-hands, until a spot on his cheek bled from a striking fingernail and his eyes watered.

Jadus then stepped back with a satisfied look on his face. “Isn’t that better, boys? That’s how you get a prisoner to look the way they should. Now he’s on the right track for tomorrow. And nobody’s here to give him a nice little hug right now. Unless… do you want me to give you a hug?”<br>
Zack shook his head hard, eyes squeezing shut as he stepped back. “No! Leave me alone!”<br>
The soldiers laughed, a few giving high-fives to Jadus, and they slowly leaked out the door after securely locking the cell. Zack stood where he was until the last one was gone, then he sunk to his knees and held his shaking hands over his face. He somehow knew this was far from the first time he had felt this kind of fear and upset. Maybe they had had him before, had really tortured him after all…<br>
“Just a dream,” he whispered desperately, to silence such thoughts, “just a dream…”

Once he had calmed down, he uncovered his face and looked at Bax. Once more, it was difficult to tell if he was conscious or not by now, but regardless he looked terrible. Zack crawled over, since getting up would waste too much time, and felt Bax’s forehead. Still way too cold. He then felt his neck for a pulse. He couldn’t be sure that would tell him anything; he had no idea what physiological differences there were between humans and Auralians. But at least by human standards, it would have been weak and irregular.

“Aw man,” he muttered. He sat back and took off his dark, sleeveless turtleneck shirt, then struggled to partially lift Bax’s upper half. He lay the textile between the alien and the cold metal floor. “Sorry ‘bout moving you,” he quietly apologized, “but that floor’s a real b*tch to lay on, especially if you’re already freezing.” He then unwrapped the jacket sleeves from around his waist, and covered Bax with it.

“There, that should help at least,” he said with a tired sigh, remaining close enough to make sure Bax was still breathing. “Now the rest is up to you; if you got aware again, only to find me sharing my body heat, I bet you’d never forgive me. So you better start getting warm as soon as possible, King Bax. Don’t give up… for your people.”<br>
He brought his knees to his chest once more, feeling rather cold himself now. He refused to acknowledge the fact that more countless scars had now been revealed. Refused to think about the fact that if he turned heads at the beach, it wouldn’t be from good looks (although, sadly, he would have been handsome without the horrific marrings).

“We’ll find a way out…” Zack quietly said, now looking off into the distance, his vivid blue eyes half-closed. “Dunno if you can hear me, but just in case, we will get out, and you’ll get to go back home. Don’t lose hope… And… don’t leave me alone here.”<br>
His eyes closed, and he leaned his forehead against his knees.

“…I don’t want to be alone…”

[Sephiroth X]

*Sephiroth X was down on both knee's clutching the sides of his head as he was stuck in the center of a dark horrible room. Glowing red symbols seemed to glow randomly on ever wall, the floor, and cieling, while mythical chanting came from nowhere and everwhere.

Sephiroth X - AAAHHHHHHHHHHH!

*The pain within X's own mind slowly increased with every passing moment... Sephiroth X wondered what in the hell this kind of torture was, where was he? What were they doing? And this room flooded X's mind with all sorts of thoughts... evil thoughts....

You want power...
The Senate wants power...
You're mutual allies in this quest...

Bax... Zack...
The pain is because of them...
Your sensing of them has caused this...

You have a great destiny Sephiroth X...
Its hidden under those magnificent mako green eyes...

*Sephiroth X's screams of pain never receeded at all, and in fact they grew louder... But the room was very soundproof, only the guards outside the door could hear X's faint cries... But thoughts ran through X's mind independantly, how do they know about the Mako eyes... nobody knows...

Let go of your anger Sephiroth X...
Give in to your desires
It will free you... liberate you...
The Senate wants you to be free...
They want us all to be free...

*As X continued to scream massive amounts of sweat poured from X's face drenching himself and the cold metal beneath him in sweat. What this voice was saying pushed the brink's of X's own will to survive... He thought about giving into it all... succumbing to the pain and letting whatever this 'entity' take over...

*Meanwhile from a surveillance monitor in another room... The Senator laughed midly as he watched Sephiroth X suffer.

The Senator - Thats right, my friend, give in...

*Sephiroth X suddenly let go of his head and slammed his fists down onto the floor as he continued to fight... but X felt himself start to give in...

*The Senator saw the change with his own eyes... The Senator was present for the Pyramid Head experiment and witnessed the convict transform into the horrible monster... but now he watched as X's appearance simply altered... For quick moments Sephiroth X's skin turned pure white and the mako green glow of his eyes turned white as well... X looked like he was on and off transforming into a zombie or something...

The Senator - Thats it... its working...

*Suddenly Sephiroth X looked upward, fully extended both his arms to his left and right, and let out an extremely loud scream.. almost like a battle cry. Immediately as X let out the roar his skin color returned to normal and his bright luminous green eyes glowed fiercely. Sephiroth X's body glowed the same green color and the glow filled the room almost completely, except for the blood-red symbols that appeared on the walls. But just as suddenly as X unleased whatever energy he had within him... the room itself retaliated, numberous red bolts of lightning erupted from the walls of the room striking at Sephiroth X. The green glow quickly went away... and Sephiroth X was silenced... He fell forward, his skin color and everything was normal still... but the effect physically from the room's attack took effect. Sephiroth X bled from his nose, mouth, ears, even the corners of his eyes. The small cuts and wounds on his body bled a little bit too... X looked like he just got out of a war, and in a way it was the truth.

*Suddenly the room's door busted open and several soldiers walked in slowly.. escorting The Senator. And just as the Senator's foot struck the metal of the room, the room lit up and looked like a normal room in the building. The Senator looked down at X, who was virtually unconcious.

The Senator - Take him... You know what to do...

*A few of the soldiers lifted up Sephiroth X and took him out of the room... with The Senator a few feet behind.

-----

*Bax and Zack quietly sat in their cell tending to their own pains. The fire hair of Bax had rekindled, not as brightly as he would be in full health but it was a sign that Bax was recovering nicely.

*Zack mentally was just getting over the reincounter with Jadus... Zack was confused about all of what was going on... and was even confused about how he was supposed to be color blind but could see the red of Bax's clothes...

*Suddenly the cell door swung open and twelve armed soldiers with stun-guns and ice-dart guns stormed into the room and circled the two inmates.

Soldier 1 - Guess what... we have good news...

*Bax and Zack looked at the soldiers, then at each other, and look back and wondered. But suddenly they were both silenced as they saw two other guards walk by the cell... carrying the unconcious and bleeding Sephiroth X...

Zack - Oh my God...

*Slowly after the soldiers carried X away... The Senator slowly entered the cell... with a smile...

The Senator - You two are free to go.

*Zack and Bax both suddenly stood up confused. The soldiers tapped the barrels of their guns against the two just to remind the two that the soldiers didnt like fast movements like that.

The Senator - You heard me... you two are free. We have all the information we need. You two and your companion Sephiroth X are going to be let go now. Boys, escort them to their ride.

*Bax and Zack barely saw the butts of the rifles slam into their heads. The soldiers picked the two up and carried them to the helicopter landing pads. The lead soldier stood and talked to The Senator.

The Senator - Take them and drop them off in the middle of the Desert of the Dead.

Lead Soldier - Yes, my lord.

The Senator - Drop them off a nice distance apart from each other, but close enough so they can meet back up.

Lead Soldier - Why do that sir?

The Senator - Keeping them distant but together will make them think that Sephiroth X was dropped off with them.

Lead Soldier - Ahh... I see. And what about the weapons? The aliens two swords and the boys large one?

The Senator - You can return them to the two. Even I would feel guilty leaving two poeple alone in the Desert of the Dead without any weapons.

Lead Soldier - It will be done, my lord.

*The Lead Soldier went to the armory to retrieve their weapons and then go to the helicopters with them. The Senator turned the opposite direction towards his luxury room within the prison complex. As he approached the door from the hallway it quickly automatically slid open. The room wasnt fully lit, shadows were cast on the borders of the room, the center was the only fully lighted area. The Senator slowly walked in looking straight ahead. The automatic door slid closed behind him and The Senator stopped momentarily and spoke.

The Senator - You will be ready. Right, my friend?

*A voice spoke from the shadows next to the door.

Voice - Yes, my Master...

[CursedDragoon]

Dragoon walked down a hallway, he wiped a trickle of blood from his cheek. He knew the blood wasn't his. He looked behind him at the pile of slaughtered soldiers.

"Hmph, child's play."

He turned and continued to walk down the hall. He eventually found some empty cells, ones that looked like they had been occupied recently.

"They were here, I can feel it. But where are they now?"

Another voice rang out from down the hall.

"Looking for your friends?"

Dragoon turned quickly to the sound. A robed man carrying a katana stood in the hallway.

"They aren't here anymore. I've sent them to the Desert of the Dead."

Dragoon sensed a strange aura around him. Something wasn't right with this man.

"I saw what you did with my men back there, I am very impressed. Not many people in this world can do that. What is your name?"

"You can call me Dragoon. Number 1: Who the hell are you? and number 2: Give me a reason why I shouldn't kill you..."

The man smirked.

"I am the Senator. And the reason you shouldn't kill me....."

The move was so fast that Dragoon had no time to react. The Senator was already behind him. Dragoon spun and formed his sword into a buckler on his right arm. The sword hit the buckler so hard that Dragoon's feet made craters in the floor. The Senators face was now inches from Dragoon's.

"...is that I'd kill you first."

He then disappeared. Dragoon spun again. The Senator was standing in his original spot.

"Don't get cocky. You caught me off guard, you do that again I'll..."

The Senator interrupted. "I do not want to fight you, rather I have a proposition. I'd like you to go look for something for me. If you get it for me, I'm sure that I can cure you of certain things."

Dragoon's eyes got wide. The curse. Maybe this man could help him.

"I'm listening..."