Guilt’s Cost: Part XXV

Shipment

Hojo sat listening to the tapes of Tifa’s transmissions that had been captured before the bug had apparently quit working a few days before. The quality of the tapes wasn’t particularly good, and Hojo felt some disdain at knowing that the model of implant that they had used wasn’t up to par with the ones he had invented.

Most of what he heard so far was nothing too surprising. The tale of Cloud’s suicide was old news. The second Shin Ra had gotten news of that they had gone and claimed the ex-SOLDIER’s body per Hojo’s request. There was Vincent’s statement that he had seen Tseng outside the window in New Niblehiem which was also no big surprise, as Shin Ra had known of the man’s continued existence for some time now.

Now though, he listened in on the conversation between Tifa and Vincent on the air ship. Hojo smiled to himself as he heard the anguish in Vincent’s voice as he revealed his altered form to the girl.

"Oh, Vincent, don’t be ashamed of anything." Hojo said to no one. "You deserved everything that I did to you."

Hojo turned up the volume as suddenly the talking stopped. As he realized that he was now listening to the sighs and moans of some sort of sexual encounter, he became aroused. Although this was the moment when Tifa was manually relieving Vincent’s sexual tension, in Hojo’s mind, the scenario he was convinced he was listening to was far more perverse. One would assume that he was being turned on by the thought of Tifa, but that wasn’t the reality, it wasn’t even close. He was by far more excited by the memories of having Vincent in his lab so long ago. It was the recollection of his moans and cries at the hands of the scientist as he was tortured and manipulated that gave Hojo his rush.

The scientist reached down and shifted his erection beneath his clothing. "Vincent, I told you that it would still work, didn’t I? I just can’t believe that you would have the nerve to touch another woman after fucking my wife…" Hojo growled as he continued to stimulate himself.

As the tape continued, Hojo heard Vincent again start to talk to Tifa, letting him know that whatever they had been doing was over. Disappointed, Hojo brought both his hands back up to the tabletop, having not managed to finish what he had started.

"Even now you still manage to make things difficult for me, Mr. Valentine." He mumbled, awaiting any more useful information to be uttered on the tape. What he then heard drew his attention. He rewound the tape, listening again as Vincent’s voice spoke softly.

"Tifa, I love you." The tape cracked.

Hojo stopped the tape and stood up, shaking in his excitement. The ultimate revenge on Vincent Valentine formulated itself in his mind. He ran from the room and toward the lab, almost tripping in his haste. He flew over to the refrigeration unit in the lab and flung open the door. In the back of the cooler was a wall holding thousands of tiny vials. He scanned over them until he found the one marked Lockhart, Tifa.

This vial contained a small tissue sample that had been taken from her during her surgery to remove her dead child from her womb. He took it up in his gnarled fingers and made his way over to a large analyzer.

After turning the machine on, he dropped the vial into the loading port. He sat impatiently in front of the machine until a graph came up on its screen. He narrowed his eyes as he studied the computer’s analysis, a horrible smile coming to his lips as he came to a realization.

"Ah, Mr. Valentine, you have a knack for being attracted to women of a high caliber, don’t you?" He hissed between his teeth.

Tifa was genetically the type of female he was looking for. Her genetic make up was perfect for the Neo-Jenova Project, and Hojo got goosebumps.

The scientist reeled when he heard something behind him. He relaxed as he saw that it was Porter, accompanied by his dog. The Turk had taken to bringing D to work with him everyday. Hojo at first had seemed angry that Porter had ‘stolen’ the dog from the garbage, but quickly gave up caring once his attention was drawn to the fact that Cloud’s body was up for grabs.

"Sorry if I startled you, Sir." Porter said, his dog sitting at his feet.

Had he not been so overjoyed at his recent discovery, Porter would have been in for a barrage of insults. "Quite all right, dear Porter. I was just checking something out."

The sound of false kindness alerted Porter to the fact that Hojo was again up to no good. "I just came to let you know that the shipment from New Nibelhiem is here."

"Ah, very good. I will go down to the warehouse and inspect it. Will you come with me?" The scientist asked.

Porter remembered the trip he had made to the small village the day before. Hojo had disappeared into the Shin Ra mansion, ordering Porter to stay in the car. Several hours later, Hojo had come back out, too happy for the Turk’s liking. He had no idea what Hojo had gone to New Niblehiem for, and going with him to the warehouse to finally discover what the trip was about got the better of him. "Yes, Sir."

They made their way to the warehouse. Due to the late hour, most of the lights were off, and an eerie glow from the other end of the room drew them toward it. The glowing glass cylinder stood about seven feet high, and three wide. Plumes of frost drifted from its sides, obscuring what was inside. Hojo walked right up to it and wiped his hand across the surface, brushing away the frost revealing what was suspended inside.

Porter couldn’t believe his eyes. "Isn’t that..?"

Hojo sneered. "Yes, my dear Porter, it is Cloud Strife."

"Oh my God." Porter was awed by the sight of the once proud warrior now hanging motionless inside the life support chamber. "Is he dead?"

Hojo licked his lips and smiled. "Yes and no."

Porter was confused. "What?"

"He is brain dead, he had died too long before our men got to him, but his body had not achieved cellular death yet." Hojo brushed more ice off the cylinder, exposing more of Cloud’s form. "His body is very much alive still."

"What are you going to do with him?" Porter asked in a whisper.

Hojo turned to the young man, eyes gleaming. "He is to be the bait to lure in the fish."