His Punishment

It was deathly quiet, deathly dark. A lone figure sat hunched over his knees in the midst of the darkness, his breath coming in rough, ragged, gasps. A trickle of blood slid its way down his forehead, rudely discoloring a few strands of drooping silver hair. It found its way past his face and fell to the floor, an ugly crimson stain set against a black void beneath him.
His green eyes fluttered for a few seconds, and he focused them on the droplet of his own blood that had landed on the ground in front of him with a clumsy ‘plop’. He stared at it, then shook his head, bringing his hand up to the wound.
He looked around. It was nothing but endless darkness around him. He didn’t know who he was, where he was, or what he was doing here…
A sharp, seething pain attacked his skull quite suddenly then, and the man brought two naked hands to either side of his temple in an attempt to reduce it. As the pain intensified, his mind was suddenly filled with raging memories…

Sephiroth... The General. Shin-Ra’s most important, most powerful, most tactful SOLDIER.
Jenova… Mother. My wish is your command….
We shall take back this planet from those who stole it from us!
Nibelheim… burning. Children crying, women screaming. Men dashing through the fires that engulf the town, in hopes to save those they loved, only to meet their maker in the form of a terrible six foot long sword….
Masamune…
President Shin-Ra would have to pay now… and all who stood in the way would be martyrs as my return is revealed…
A chase across continents…. Mother is leading, ‘the failure’ puppet is following…
Soon the reunion will take place, and Mother will be by my side as I destroy this hateful planet and take back all the energy that belongs rightfully to us. I will assume it all into my being, and stand beside Mother as we rule the universe. The stars will even bow to us…
A Cetra.. “meddling” mother calls her. Praying for Holy? She must be stopped…
Though she is beautiful… is this necessary? She appears to be so innocent…
But then, Mother says, in this grand battle to reclaim what was stolen from us, even the innocent maybe become victims... and this Cetra is an obvious traitor…
The Northern Crator, it is time… but her prayer has worked, Holy unleashed... it is still no match for Meteor…
Now the puppet and his rag-tags have followed me here… I will destroy them, once and for all, mother says they will not be able to interfere…
They have killed Mother… I will take care of them… I will carry out her legacy… her plan…
What is this? They have destroyed my manifestations? All is well… I will defeat the puppet in a one on one battle, as a man, I am undefeatable…

Sephiroth was shaking when the flashbacks finally stopped coming. He tore his hands from his face, and looked on the back of his right hand where a tiny number “1” was tattooed to the back of it. Amongst all the calluses and battle wounds, it looked oddly fitting.
Now Sephiroth knew where he was, and why he was here. He was dead, killed by Strife again to stop him of the horrible atrocity he was trying to commit under the guise of insanity. Mother had deceived him… who was Mother, anyway? Why would she force him to commit such horrible acts?
Sephiroth could not shake from his mind’s eye the faces of the many lives he took and destroyed. The men, the women, the children… the praying Cetra girl who had tried so hard to stop him… and what of Meteor? Had his plan succeeded without him? Had he destroyed all life on the planet?
Sephiroth suddenly heard footsteps in front of him. He froze and stared, waiting to see who would approach him in his place of dying… more than likely the Judge of his fate. He wished for the very worst punishment, in hopes that it would purge him of his sin… if that could ever be possible.
The figure was becoming identifiable now in the darkness, a light seeming to follow behind to highlight her. A woman, beautiful, looking only to be in her late twenties. No older than Sephiroth himself.
She was smiling at him, something Sephiroth didn’t understand. Why would anyone want to smile at him, especially in this place? Unless, of course, she were planning some sort of trickery. Smiling because she knew his end would come soon, and she would enjoy watching it. Sephiroth had smiled plenty of times in the faces of his victims. He had smiled when he murdered the Ancient…
The woman was wearing a long, turquoise hued tunic, with ruffled sleeves and a hem that reached nearly her ankles. Her hair, a dark, almost black, chocolate brown color, was loose and flowed all around her form in thick, tumbling waves. Her eyes were a bright, almost dazzling aqua color that was greener than they were blue. She continued to approach Sephiroth until she was nearly directly in front of him.
He didn’t want to look up at her. Whoever she was, it didn’t matter to him. It was time for him to rot and whatever penance he was dealt would be fine with him.
“Sephiroth.” A pause. “Sephiroth, please look at me.”
Her voice was very soft and soothing. Sephiroth didn’t understand. Surely the powers that be were trying to trick him.
She then knelt in from of him and tried to take his hand, the one that had been tattooed by Hojo many years ago. He snatched it away from you.
“What do you want?” He asked nastily, his deep baritone echoing through the darkness. “Who are you?”
Her eyes seemed to be holding tears. “I…I…” She was choking on her words.
Sephiroth stared at the bumbling woman, annoyed. He was sure now the Planet was playing tricks on him. What was the purpose of this? He had died, and was seeking judgment. Who was this woman that stood before him in the darkness, unable to say anything?
The tears finally escaped her eyes and she swallowed, preparing again to speak. “Sephiroth,” she said softly. “I… I … My name is Lucrecia. I am your mother.”
Sephiroth gazed at her coolly for a moment, and then grew angry. “What?” he scoffed. “How dare you say such a thing? I have no mother. I was created by the labs in Shin-Ra. The closest thing I have to a mother is a monster called Jenova who used my mind for her own selfish and twisted needs.”
“No, Sephiroth!” Lucrecia exclaimed. She shook her head. “That is not the truth. Listen to me, and I will tell you the truth. Please, give me a chance.”
For the first time since awakening, Sephiroth rose to his feet. “Move away from me with your lies,” he spat at her. “For all my life I have sought the truth and found nothing but lies. Even in death my existence torments me. Go away from me. If this is to be my Hell, than so be it. I wish to suffer it alone.
Lucrecia stared at Sephiroth. Never did she have the chance to hold him, to even touch him. She looked upon him from afar, wishing she could be there to comfort him and lend him the truth with the torments of his life descended upon her only child. He was beautiful, her son, the flesh of her blood, but he was angry. So very angry, so cold and hurt inside.
“You’re so tall,” she admonished, not intending for the thought to escape her lips.
Sephiroth smirked at her. “You’re much to young to be my mother, anyway. What kind of fool do you take me for?” His voice rose then, and he found himself taking a threatening step towards Lucrecia. “I have done many horrible things in my life, but one thing I have never been is a fool!”
Lucrecia shivered, looking into the burning green irises of her sons eyes. His body seemed to announce strength and demand respect. She understood now why everyone would cower in free when faced with her son.
But Lucrecia was his mother, and she refused to back down for any reason at all. She stood up straighter and took a step closer to Sephiroth, so that they were only inches apart.
“Did Jenova know about the time Hojo returned from playing golf with the President?” She asked him, anger rising in her own voice.
Sephiroth stared at her. He felt his jaw tightening. What did she speak of? Certainly not…
“You were ten,” She reminded him. “Tseng foolishly forgot to lock your room, and you, being the attentive child you were, noticed this and snuck out. You wandered out into the halls and down the back stairways to a lower floor.
“You found, on the thirty-eighth floor, The Shin-Ra daycare,” she continued. “Where all the Shin-Ra employees leave their children while they’re at work. There were lots of kids there, most of them your age, playing with each other. You’d never been to the day care. You never played with other children. You didn’t even know there were more there at Shin-Ra.
“A couple came to retrieve their child. A young couple, both employees that were wearing dapper business suits. They had a little brown-haired boy that was just about your age.
“As you stared into the glass and watched the activities of the children, the couple passed you in the hallway and went in to retrieve their son. The little boy anxiously abandoned the game he was playing with the other boys to leap in to his mother’s awaiting arms. The mother passed the boy to his father, who hugged him lovingly before the three walked out together.
“As you stood there, seething with jealousy and anger, President Shin-Ra and Hojo were passing by, as the President had come to retrieve his son Rufus. Hojo had caught you, out of your room. Angry, he dragged you back to his lab. Do you remember the beating he gave you with his nine iron?”
Sephiroth merely stared at her, too shock to speak. How could she possibly have known that? He opened his mouth, but Lucrecia continued.
“How about the time when Tseng visited your room?” She asked, her eyes filling with tears. You were about twelve, and were growing quickly in comparison to other boys your age. You’d become quite handsome, your hair nearly reached your waist, and your physique had filled out nicely. You were to begin your training in SOLDIER the next year and it was the only thing you were excited about.
“You lay in your bed crying that evening, as you had just returned from the labs where Hojo’d given you shots that left your limbs aching. He gave you tranquilizers to quiet you, but they succeeded in making you feel light headed and weak as well.
“Tseng entered to bring you dinner, but instead of setting it on your table and leaving, he entered the room and locked the door behind him. He advanced towards you, and you knew, from the look in his eyes, something was wrong.
“The tranquilizers and the pain in your extremities left you so weak you could hardly move. And then, Tseng leaned over and kissed you on the mouth. At first, it was a strange, welcome feeling, something you never had experienced before. But it turned sour when Tseng removed your pants and flipped you over on your stomach. When he exposed himself to you, and then violated you in a way you never imagined. The pain only added to what you were already suffering, and you couldn’t scream, or resist, and –“
“ENOUGH!” Sephiroth suddenly shouted, shaking. These were memories that he had pushed so far into the recesses of his mind that not even Jenova could resurrect them. He himself had forgotten them. Yet here stood this woman, painfully bringing them to life, and with every little detail and emotion that accompianed them…
“Who are you?” He demanded. “How do you know these… these things?”
Lucrecia was almost sobbing now. “I told you, Sephiroth, I was there throughout it all. I am your mother. I saw all of these things, and although I could do nothing to help you…”
She sighed and turned away from him, now openly sobbing and finding it hard to speak. “I was a lab assistant at Shin-Ra, and part of the JENOVA project. We were working on the alien lifeform we thought at the time was an Ancient, a Cetra.
“I had a relationship with Hojo when I was a scientist at Shin-Ra, before Jenova was discovered and the project began. He wasn’t the most handsome man, but he was a brilliant scientist and was a joy to be around, at least, in those early days. We would have the most engaging conversation, and he even had somewhat of a sense of humor that I enjoyed. Finally, we married.
“About six months after our marriage, Gast discovered Jenova, and the Jenova project immediately began. We were sent to the Mansion in Nibelhiem, where we could conduct our research privately.
“While the project was under way, I began to notice a change in Hojo. He was almost never around; he would lock himself in the labs working on the project for hours at a time. He never joined me for meals, never took me anywhere anymore. Soon, he stopped speaking to me altogether, unless it was to snap at me. He started to become vicious. Gast noticed it as well. His temper grew short; he seemed consumed by his work.
One of the Turks, Vincent Valentine, was assigned to the mansion during the project as a form of protection. Soon, I began to have an affair with Vincent, and the next thing I knew, I was pregnant. I was fearful of how to tell Hojo, for we hadn’t made love in months, and he would know it was his.
“To my surprise, Hojo knew about my affair, and knew I was pregnant. To this day, I don’t know how. But to punish me, he wanted to use my unborn child in the project. He threatened my life, yours, and Vincent’s, so I had no choice but to follow along.”
“Gast thought I was a willing participant and was excited. Vincent was angry and wanted to escape, but I was too fearful. Vincent gave up and stayed by my side, despite my stubbornness.
Hojo injected my and my womb with Jenova cells throughout my term. That may be why you thought she was you mother. You have her cells in you, so do I. But she is not your mother.
“I fell deathly ill when it was time to give birth to you. My labor was a difficult one. But soon, you were born, and I named you Sephiroth. The only part of you that I could give before I died, was your name.
“Hojo snatched you away before I could even cradle you in my arms. Shortly after that, I died, but it wasn’t a real death. I was suspended between realities, never able to walk amongst the living, never able to rest with the dead. I cannot age, which is why I appear to you the same as I did when you were born.”
Sephiroth looked at the crying woman, who was shaking now after her revelation. Could it be true? He had a mother and a father that was snatched away from him… in fact, one of Strife’s party was named Vincent Valentine. Had he become such a monstrosity that his own father felt it nessessary to destroy him?
Lucrecia seemed to know what he was thinking. “I’m sorry, Sephiroth. Vincent didn’t even know he was your father.”
“What?” Sephiroth questioned. “But I thought you said…”
“I lied to Vincent,” Lucrecia said, bowing her head. “I told him you were Hojo’s child. I did it to protect him, but I failed even in that, as Hojo had his way with Vincent’s body, too.”
Lucrecia stood there, sobbing, and Sephiroth had no idea how to react. He had seen crying women plenty of times before, but never had it pulled on his heart strings like this. Yet, he didn’t know how to respond. He just… didn’t.
Lucrecia looked up at him and then suddenly moved toward him, throwing her arms around Sephiroth, catching him off guard. He looked down at her, ready to push her away, but something made him think better of it. Not sure of what to do, He slowly encircled his arms around her, in the way she held him. She cried harder as he did this.
“Oh, Sephiroth, I love you, son,” she whispered into hear.
Sephiroth wasn’t sure he could repeat it to her. No one had ever told him those words, and he had never given them to anyone. Not even with Jenova had he shared such intimacy.
Sephiroth merely held onto his weeping mother for long moments. It seemed they had been holding each other for an eternity when a bright flash of light formed in the darkness.
Mother and son turned to look at the light, surprised to see the figure of a woman forming in it. As the light dissipated, they saw the form of a beautiful woman who appeared to be in her forties. Her chestnut brown hair was long, wavy, and thick, and she had bright, emerald green eyes. She wore long white robes that were trimmed with gold.
Lucrecia gasped. “Ifalna…”
Ifalna looked at the two. “Hello Lucrecia… Sephiroth.”
Sephrioth merely stared at the woman.
“The Cetra have given you ample to time to reunite with your son, Lucrecia,” Ifalna said, almost sadly. “But I’m afraid it is now time for him to be punished for his actions.”
“No!” Lucrecia cried, holding Sephiroth tighter. “Can’t you see? He wasn’t himself. Please do not condemn him. He is all I have!”
Ifalna shook her head. “I am sorry, Lu. But I do not control the powers above me. He must be punished.”
Lucrecia wailed.
“But,” Ifalna continued, a smirk dancing on her face, “I have convinced them to give me a special honor. Perhaps it is with this his punishment will not be too great.”
Sephiroth didn’t care either way. He wanted to be dead, destroyed, finito. But his mother was too hopeful.
“What is that?” She asked.
Ifalna stepped forward. “You murdered my daughter,” she spoke to Sephiroth now. “Aeris… a kind, loving, soul, with a heart of gold, the last of the remaining Cetra.”
Sephiroth hung his head in shame.
“And it is so,” Ifalna continued, “That Aeris shall choose your condemnation.”
Ifalna smiled as Lucrecia looked at her in bewilderment. Sephiroth was not amused.
“Just have the powers that be destroy me and that be all!” He shouted to Ifalna. “Enough with this foolery. I will not be made a mockery of, even in death!”
“Silence,” Ifalna said. “It is not your descision what your fate will be. And I do this as a favor to your mother, who was robbed of everything she held dear.”
At that moment another bust of light shot forward out of the darkness, and Sephiroth watched as the figure of Aeris, the innocent Cetra he had slaughtered, formed there amongst it. She wore a long pink tunic of silk, covered with gold and silver sequins. Her hair was pulled back and left to fall down her back in one enormous chestnut wave. She looked at Sephiroth, and her eyes widened in fear. She looked to her mother. It was apparent Aeris did not know what she was here for.
“Aeris,” Ifalna spoke softly. “You have an important duty to fulfill. You must choose punishment for Sephiroth, your murderer.”
Aeris looked at Sephiroth, who regarded her with a chilly gaze. His eyes did not seem as malevolent as they did when she last saw him; they seemed to be wholly human. He stood beside a beautiful dark haired woman, who held an arm around him protectively.
“Punishment?” Aeris repeated, bewildered. How would she be able to do such a thing? That was a task left to the powers above her. How would she know what to do? How could her mother place such a heavy burden on her head?
“Alright, Aeris,” Ifalna spoke, “You a choice. You can keep it simple, and condemn Sephiroth to a hell of a burning, endless fire, or to a cold void where he will be tortured for eternity. Or, you can think of your own punishment. You have this right, as he is your murderer, murderer of the last living Cetra. Think wisely.”
“Please,” Lucrecia suddenly cried. “Sephiroth is my son. This is our first time meeting. Don’t condemn him, Aeris, I beg you to have mercy on my son! He was not himself when he hurt you, Aeris, he was being controlled –“
“Lucrecia, be silent,” Ifalna warned. “Let Aeris decide.”
Lucrecia’s lip trembled and she buried her head into Sephiroth’s shoulder.
Aeris looked at Lucrecia, who was crying for the salvation of her son. Although Sephiroth had murdered her, and many others, Aeris was not a vengeful soul and would not condemn Sephiroth to either Hells. To her best knowledge, it had been hundreds of thousands of years since a soul was condemned to a Hell, and it wasn’t likely a human soul.
“I will chose my own punishment,” Aeris said. Lucrecia sighed in relief, and Ifalna nodded. Sephiroth merely stared at her, his eyes not humble in the least.
Aeris ignored his gaze. She was relieved that it did not appear to be marred by insanity, instead he held the look in his eyes that he once held when he was a great General for Shin-Ra, years ago. A look that was, if not a bit arrogant, completely human.
“What will you do, daughter?” Ifalna asked.
Aeris wasn’t sure. She could easily send him to the Lifestream to dwell with other souls, but that would be letting him off too easy. The Planet would not be happy, because if they had wanted to do that with him they would have done it and she never would have been called.
It was a tough decision for Aeris, deciding the fate of the soul of the man who had murdered her and nearly destroyed the Planet. She knew she should be vengeful. He had taken her away from Cloud, away from her friends, away from a lifetime of happiness and a future full of excitement…
But Aeris was not a vengeful person, and she knew Sephiroth had been under Jenova’s control. It was Jenova who needed to be sent to an everlasting Hell. Sephiroth only needed to be redeemed.
She stared at him. He was very handsome, she noted that right away. He stood there, over six feet tall, wearing only black pants, boots, and a dark gray sleeveless shirt. Aeris could not ignore his muscular body, or how his beautiful hair traveled in waves of molten silver down his back, or how his bright mako-green eyes gazed at her with a cat like intensity. If things had been different, she could have…
A thought came to her.
Aeris whipped around, not wanting to face the others as a blush crept on her face. A wonderful idea, a way to punish Sephiroth without being vengeful. And she would finally satisfy a fantasy she had since she was young…
She turned back to the others. “I’ve decided,” she said, smiling and looking at Sephiroth.
“Alright,” Ifalna said. “What is Sephiroth’s punishment?”
Aeris tried not to giggle. “Sephiroth is coming back to the Promised Land with me,” she answered. “He is going to be my personal slave, for all eternity.”


A/N: Okay, I know there was no sex in this Chapter, but don't worry, the next one will give you what you've been waiting for...