The New Turk

The first lady, having the bullet that went through Sephirena hit her in the liver, bled to death hours after Sephirena had tried to save her, and Rufus was born, in an emergency C-section, weighing almost nine pounds.

Sephirena lay in the Midgar hospital, where she had been airlifted after the shooting. She was still alive, barely, and hanging now in a coma.

“Tseng... you did everything you could, Sephirena did all she could too.” Sean sighed as Tseng sat beside the dying form.

“I know, Sean... I just wish that I would have taken those three bullets and not her.” Tseng lay his head low, resting his black hair beside his secret wife’s body.

“Why don’t you go home Tseng? Get some rest?” Sean sighed, “You look horrible...”

“I just can’t Sean... I can’t leave her...”

“Ah, you love her more than as just a Turk... don’t you?”

“I have for almost a year...” Tseng looked at his boss, they had grown so close in the last few years, him and Sean, him and Sephirena... and the other two remaining Turks... he loved them all.

He just loved her more.

“Talk to her now, she can hear you... she’s only in a coma...” Sean said, turning, “I’ve got to go to the office... and help the President with young Master Rufus and the funeral of his wife... I do suggest you go home, Tseng, and I can see that an order would be futile... you wouldn’t listen to me...”

Tseng watched his boss leave the silent hospital room. Tseng turned back to Sephirena, laying there almost dead on the bed and whispered to her.

“I love you Sephirena Wulong... I love you...”

Sephirena’s breathing was slow and steady, and Tseng didn’t move from her side.


***

Vincent Valentine walked down the hallway of the Shin-Ra tower, going towards the one place he hadn’t been to in ages. The Morgue. Instead of being the experiment, he was going to see his daughter.

Sephirena had held on for a little less than a day after being shot, before dying. Tseng had been crushed, and Vincent had known about the two of them.

And Vincent had a plan.

“Ah, Valentine... I thought I’d see you...” Dr. Hojo said, in a fresh lab coat, splattered with the blood of Sephirena, he had just done the autopsy.

“Hojo, listen, I want to make a plea bargain with you...” Vincent spoke quietly, as if Sephirena could still hear them.

“What is in it for me?” Dr. Hojo gave a deadly grin at the reanimated man, as if he knew what he was going to say.

“You can do whatever you want to with me... but please, reanimate my daughter...” Vincent said, looking at the girl.

“Anything I want to do with you Vincent?” Hojo seemed to smile.

“Yes, anything... but please... please... Reanimate her...” Vincent sighed.

“I will, on two conditions...” Hojo said.

“Okay...”

“One, you will be locked away for as long as it takes until someone finds you... and two... I don’t ever...ever... want you to call her your daughter ever again... She and Sephiroth are mine.”

Vincent thought long and hard, staying silent for minutes. “Deal.”

“One more thing...” Hojo said, setting down his scalpel.

“What?”

“She cannot remain in the Shin-Ra, as you have...”

“You mean, she can’t let Tseng know she’s alive.”

“No, she cannot contact that boy.” Hojo said, glaring at Vincent. Hojo hated Tseng with a passion, something that had to do with Wutans in general.

Vincent sighed, knowing how much Sephirena had loved Tseng, watching her from a distance for the last three years, he had even attended their small secretive wedding, not letting them know he was there.

“Yes, please reanimate her...” Vincent said, looking at the girl on the table, the autopsy scar still fresh in her body. “What’s that?” Vincent pointed to a small metal container.

Dr. Hojo sighed, showing a sliver of compassion, however small, for the girl, “A baby, I’d say two weeks along at most...”

Vincent sighed, “She was pregnant?”

“I doubt she even knew it Valentine...” Dr. Hojo said, “She probably hadn’t even missed a menstruation.”

Vincent shook his head, “How long do I have before I disappear?”

Dr. Hojo smiled, “Three hours. Meet me back here, I will reanimate her then, then we will take her to Mideel and then I will take care of you...”

Vincent didn’t have much time. He ran through the halls, there was one thing that he had to do.

***

Tseng sat in his office, thumbing through his mail. He had been crushed by the death of Sephirena, and the death of the President’s wife, but he was too busy to mourn, because he had been assigned the interesting and round the clock job of watching the now week old Rufus.

He caught his reflection in the window of his office, and his dot he had received from his now deceased wife. He would wear that as a battle scar, not telling a soul about his wife... And the only two that knew about his marriage were now dead, and they wouldn’t tell a soul either. He was determined to forget about his heartbreak.

He hadn’t even noticed the small note on his desk, written in haste. It fluttered to the ground as he thumbed through the remaining mail.

“Hey.” Sean sighed.

“Yeah?” Tseng looked up.

“You dropped a letter...” Sean handed him the small note, which was sealed in an envelope. Then Sean looked at him and smiled, “Tseng, try and get some sleep tonight? Please... that’s an order.”

Tseng sighed, “I try... but it’s hard.”

***

Sephirena’s eyes shot open, showing their mako- aquamarine color. She brought her arm to her head and sighed, the first words out of her mouth was...

“Where is Tseng?”

Dr. Hojo glared at Vincent, then spoke, “I am sorry Sephirena... he died about three hours ago... I couldn’t save him, I tried... honestly. He’s going to be buried in the Sector One cemetery.”

Vincent hung his head. He didn’t know Hojo would lie, and now, he was bound... unable to tell Sephirena anything. He just hopped that Tseng got his letter.

“Dead?” Sephirena sat up, naked. Dr. Hojo handed her some clothes and turned away.

“Yes... the same assassination attempt that killed you... killed him. I just couldn’t save him, I’m sorry.” Hojo didn’t even blink as Sephirena put on her black pants, white shirt and black trench coat.

“Tseng... dead...” Sephirena sighed, her voice waivering, her eyes full of tears.

Vincent now wished that he hadn’t had her reanimated, she would live her ‘life’ in pain.

“Now what do I do?” Sephirena sighed, holding her head, her silver hair cascading down around her like a waterfall.

“You can’t stay here.” Hojo said, sneering at the trapped Vincent, who was chained to one of the metal slabs.

“Where will I go? I need to stay here with Tseng... even if he is dead...” Sephirena said, reaching up and touching her dot.

“No, you see... you were... so close to death that the president thinks that you are dead... he cannot give you a job...” Hojo said.

Sephirena let out a small cry as she sobbed. “I can’t be a Turk even? Tseng and a Turk taken away from me in the same day...”

“I know, I am sorry...” Hojo said, still not showing any emotion. “I am taking you to Mideel, where you can live.”

“Please Dr. Hojo... take me to Wutai, please?” Sephirena looked up, her mako-infused aquamarine eyes stained with tears.

“I have to go to Mt. Nibel anyways... I will think about it.” Hojo said, turning to Vincent.

Valentine strained, watching the pains that he had caused his ‘daughter.’ He now wished that he hadn’t had her reanimated, it hurt her, and Hojo had lied about Tseng.

Vincent knew for a fact that Tseng was alive.

***

“Sephirena....” Tseng mumbled in his sleep, tears streaked his face, “Sephirena... no... don’t die on me...”

Sean stood in the doorway of the Turks dorm, watching is youngest Turk sleep, a single tear rolled down his cheek and he whispered, “I’m sorry about her, Tseng...”

***

Tseng looked at the note that was obviously written to him in haste. He read it over and over and over again. He didn’t recognize the handwriting.

“‘Dear Mr. Wulong, I know about her, Sephirena. She’s not dead. She’s alive and well, find her and love her.’” he again read the note aloud, not believing it. “It’s got to be a joke.”

Tseng set his hand on his forehead and sighed, then took the note and ripped it into several bits and pieces. “Whoever sent that has a sick, sick sense of humor. I can’t... believe that.” He then laid his head on his desk and sobbed.

It was ten minutes before he lifted his head, his face was stern, his eyes were hollow. He wasn’t going to let his weakness show, he’d keep it inside and only let himself know his pain.

***
((Sorry about the short chapter, but I am having trouble at home, so if I don’t update soon, it’s a long story... anyway... next chapter coming up soon... I HOPE!))