Final Fantasy Main Story RP ARC VIII

Zack, I just got out of the hospital,
where the hell are you? And
where is Sephiroth, Denzel
and the rest?

Cloud probably should not have been texting while driving, especially not when Fenrir was roaring louder than ever. Slipping his PHS into his back pocket, the blond moved his hand back to the handlebars. He leaned his body to the side and dodged a massive rock. The stupid nurse had insisted on him staying another three days. Yeah. That was going to happen. Jenova's on the loose, Zack's probably in danger (as much as he'd come to trust Sephiroth in the recent weeks, that had been all revoked), and more than anything... he needed to talk to Denzel.

He knew it was probably too late. Rufus was a bastard and everyone around him was even more of a bastard. He didn't know if Denzel had received any injections or enhancements, but he hopped to Shiva and back that it wasn't too late.

It was only then that he saw something from the corner of his goggles. Silver hair. Short. But what really made him frown was the fact that he was wearing a Turk uniform. So Rufus gets Denzel and one of the remnants? As he zoomed closer to the other, he tried to tell who it was. The frame was too small to be Loz, and it was only after Fenrir had slowed down and parked next to the wandering idiot, that Cloud muttered "Kadaj."

Can you help me?

"Yeah. Where the hell are the others?" He was still waiting for Zack's reply, but he wasn't expecting anytime soon. Healin' had been his best bet, but he couldn't have been sure. "I take it you escaped WRO just fine, good for you." He was fighting back an unleveled amount of built-up, bottled-up rage from exploding. He took one glance at the silver haired teen and sensed no aggression.

That didn't put his guard down, though.

He took one look at Reno's outfit and frowned, "Why the hell are you working for ShinRa?"

There was a beat before Reno burst into laughter. For once his mind didn't go down his usual perverse route - which it very easily could have done - but instead latched onto the old comparisons of the SOLDIER to an overly excited puppy.

"Oh... oh gods..." He laughed, trying to wipe away the tears. "I... There...." He burst into further hysterics, unable to do more than shake his head. After a moment he began to calm again, wiping the last of the tears of laughter. "There is something all the more beautiful about it being said by him. Oh... oh my sides... I needed that. The way he deadpanned it was genius!"

Cloud wasn't completely sure if he could trust the remnants confusion. He looked confused and it seemed real, plus Kadaj was never good at holding back his emotions from their previous encounter--but this could easily, easily be Jenova's smoke and mirrors. He was tentative, but spoke again. "Kadaj... If you don't work for Shin-Ra, who gave you those clothes?"

His stare was focused, but it wasn't necessarily angry.

Cloud raised an eyebrow at that but nodded, "Alright... if you don't have a name then what do you want me to call you?"

So he met up with Cissnei? He never really met her, but he'd been informed about her. She was a Turk, which would explain the outfit. "The people that gave you those clothes are ShinRa... a company that doesn't have the best of intentions." Why was he explaining this? Could he trust this feigned innocence?

I could kill him, right here. Eliminate one of the remnants... for good. He pursed his lips, thinking.

He listened and his guard began to lower. This sounds... familiar. He didn't want to admit it, but self-identity problems were nothing new to him. In fact, Kadaj was dealing with it rather well, better than he was... mopping around for a couple years. He paused, thinking what to say, then opened his mouth with hesitation.

"A name isn't important. There's nothing in a name." He looked over to the silver-haired remnant and shrugged. "If I was called 'Cloud', or if I was called 'Zack', it wouldn't change who I am. I wouldn't become someone else with another name." He pursed his lips, "Most people don't choose their own names, you know. Their parents choose it for them. Some people like their name, others hate it. I got picked on, when I was young, because my name was Cloud.

"Kids thought it was funny to be named after white fluff in the sky," he continued. "I didn't like it, but it's not like I could change it. I'm Cloud, but that doesn't mean anything. You can be whoever you want. You could be a destroyer, a mad scientist, or you could even spend your days selling flowers in the slums that you grew in a church. Just because your name is 'Kadaj' won't determine any of that."

"Maybe." Was Cloud's answer. He sighs, still not sure if he should believe all of this, but something was telling him to do so. To believe without verifying. A leap of faith he couldn't take, but... Denzel. Denzel attacked him, on sight? He wasn't sure how to feel about that... He wanted to frown at Denzel's aggression, but he was close to doing the same thing. Cloud, however, did show restrain. But did Denzel not do so because he was a kid, or Shin-Ra's influence? He shook his head, this all had to be done with later.

"Your past is your past. If you don't want to know, I won't tell you... I will say that... You should probably set the story straight: it wasn't your fault, though. You did bad things, but you had no control." He remembered what Kadaj told him a couple years ago and sighed.

So what if I'm a puppet... Once upon a time, you were too!

"If you're worried what the name means then you can either throw it away, or try to make it mean something else. Even if you throw away your name, can you throw away your face, your voice? Your fingerprints?" He looked over, keeping his face neutral. "A long time ago, you put the planet in danger. It wasn't your fault, but now the planet in danger again. You have the chance to redeem yourself, and redeem your name if you want it." He wasn't exactly sure about working with a remnant, but it wasn't like Kadaj was Sephiroth. "Your choice. There's no shame in either decision."

Cloud looked at Kadaj and shook his head, he would answer things one at a time, the most important going first. "There's no shame in crying, either. Crying is what makes you human. Monsters don't cry." He thought back to Tifa's reaction when Aerith...

"Not trusting everything you hear is also human, especially when it's something you don't want to hear... so listen, and make the choice for yourself. If you still don't believe me, I'll take you to Midgar. I'll show you proof." He sighed and thought about where to begin. "A long time ago, a monster came to this world in attempt to destroy this planet. That monster's name is Jenova. She was sealed away by an ancient civilization for a long time, until she was rediscovered.

"A crazy scientist decided to make a child from the cells of Jenova, Sephiroth. He tried to destroy this world in his 'Mother's' name, but we pushed him back." He looked over to Kadaj and sighed, "This is where you come in, so pay attention... if your heart, or whatever, really tells you this is a lie or the truth, listen. You, and your two brothers, were created in an attempt to bring Sephiroth back, and finally destroy everything. Jenova released a disease on the people of this world, killing them, while you stole children to make an army. You attacked a city, but worst of all, you took in Jenova's essence and let yourself be used and your body became Sephiroth."

He stayed silent, having no idea what he explained in too much detail and what he skimped out on. He silently stood there, awaiting a reaction.

Cloud turned away from Kadaj and looked forward. He seemed to be lost in thought for a moment before he shrugged. "It happened. You were there." He tried to think of a way to confirm--he suddenly pulled out his phone. Flipping through his folders, "What about her. Is she real to you?" He saw Kadaj lift up and hold out his hand, and while he could never know, he felt it was Aerith.

Showing Aerith's picture to Kadaj he hoped, hoped it could stir some kind of feeling. "Do you feel anything when you see her?"

He flipped his PHS closed and shoved it in his pocket, face souring as he wondered what he could do to help the remnant.

"Maybe nothing will make you feel anything towards my little story." He sighed sadly then shrugged. "The only way to do that, it seems, is if you actually came face-to-face with Jenova, but it wouldn't be worth it, and I don't even know if that would work. But, then again, maybe you're right to not feel anything. It wasn't you who did those things. You didn't take those lives. Being under her influence, there's nothing worse."

He looked over to the silver haired teen and pursed his lips again. "I'm not sure what to say, but you're barefoot and going nowhere, while I have a motorcycle. Maybe you just need time, so... are you hungry?"

"I won't let that happen." Cloud spoke softly and motioned to the seat behind him with his head, "Get on. If they're still at Healin Lodge, then we're not going there. Shin-Ra is the enemy just as much as Jenova is." He couldn't go see them. Not yet. "We can head to Edge for now, get something to eat until I get word from a friend."

He squeezed the motorcycle's handlebars and waited for Kadaj to get on.

He knew he'd meet up with them eventually, and he knew he would gain nothing from avoiding them, but still... He felt shame, for what happened with him to Denzel... and for letting Denzel slip through his fingers. He's ShinRa now, like Zack. That meant it was just like last time. Until they revoke that, I'd rather fight them then trust them.

Cloud took Kadaj's arm and moved them to a safer grip, "You have to hold tighter, or you'll fall off. This motorcycle is fast."

He suddenly rev'd up the engine and began moving. He started slow at first, until he turned around, heading away from Healin. The roar of the machine grew louder and the wind was fast. It was only then that he realised he only had one pair of goggles and he hopped the dust wasn't getting into Kadaj's eye. Why was he doing this? Why was he helping this kid? He looked over his shoulder to check on Kadaj.

"Hmm," he looked forward again, leaning his body to the side to dodge tree, continuing his way to Edge. "What kind of food do you like?"

He chuckled rather loudly for the first time in a long time and smiled as Edge came in view. It was still pretty far, but he wondered. "Alright... I hope you like what I choose, I guess." Where the hell was he going to take this poof anyway?

What kind of food would Kadaj like? He thought about it then pursed his lips. Kadaj was kind of like Sephiroth, so what did Sephiroth like? No, Kadaj is nothing like Sephiroth. What kind of food did Sephiroth [b]hate?/b] is the question. He tried to think back and remembered Zack mentioning Sephiroth detested greasy food. He smirked. While he, himself, didn't like greasy food, it had been a while since he'd have any fast food. Kadaj's body was still fairly new, though, it did need nutrition.

As they neared Edge, he took a turn and moved to the outskirts of the city. He stopped in front of the best place on this world to have a burger and looked at it. "Aren't you like a teenager or something? Teens love fast food." He parked Fenrir and got off, offering his hand to Kadaj as he took off his goggles. "Take a look at the menu, choose whichever combo looks appealing. Choose a bottle of water for drink, though."

(Just a kind of those places that have real hamburgers with all the things on it, and huge fries)