Specimen Serenidipity

by SapphireIceheartt

Summary:

Hojo is dead. Sephiroth is now the director of Research and Development, and he is trying to fill the void that the Professor has left while ending the cycle of abuse. He comes across experiments of Hojo's and has to battle his own emotions and morals while making decisions that will keep Shinra off his back and keep his sanity at the same time. One of the many specimens is what appears to be simply a traumatized feral human woman. Her will to survive touches Sephiroth's heart and he wants to help her with all he can. Will he stand by his own senses and do the right thing? Or will he fall from grace and restart the cycle?

Notes:

An AU of my main FF7 Fic Left Behind.

Chapter 1: A New Beginning

Never in his entire life did Sephiroth feel so happy to see Hojo’s name until he was handed that pristine crisp sheet of paper with the large letters spelling out “Death Certificate” along the top. Yet here he stood restraining the urge to grin like a fool even in the privacy of his brand-new office. The official confirmation deserved to be ornately framed and hung on one of the walls, maybe right next to the door so whenever he sat at his desk, he could see it out of the corner of his eye. 

Unfortunately, such a self-indulgent gesture would have to wait. Many details needed to be addressed. Sephiroth needed to appear properly humble now that he had been given complete command of the Research and Development Division. 

A knock on his door took him out of his silent internal celebration. Sephiroth put the death certificate in the top left drawer of his new black metallic desk. The rest of the office was crowded with official file boxes and disorganized paperwork that was still being added to by scuttling researchers and boorish bureaucrats. It would take months to go through it all and was the least favorite part of Sephiroth’s new duties. 

Sephiroth stepped over the file boxes and almost opened the door before he hesitated. He adjusted the freshly pressed bone white lab coat he had traded in his famous black leather coat for. Once satisfied with his appearance, Sephiroth opened the door to a mousy young research woman. 

“Hello, Professor. Is now a bad time?” She asked timidly. 

Sephiroth stared at her, recognizing her as one of the researchers he had seen frequently as he had worked with Hojo for the past year. She was one of the few reliable ones that Sephiroth could bend to his will. 

“Helly, was it? Do you have the new security pass and portfolio?”

She nodded, before quickly passing over the thick folder and the new unique security card that smelled of freshly printed plastic. It was already slipped into a holder with a plain lanyard. 

“The head technician reset the security codes and added your biometrics, so you have access to everywhere in R&D. This pass will unlock everything, including every ward in the Drum and specimen cages.” 

Sephiroth pulled his hair up and hung the security card around his neck. He then flipped through the portfolio at a glance. It outlined all the immediate priorities for the Director of Research and Development. 

“Thank you. Be on your way now.”

Helly nodded and scurried off. 

So much needed to be done, he thought as he returned to sit at his desk. Sephiroth reviewed everything. The main thing was specimen inventory and decommissioning. All of the current projects of Hojo’s needed to be restarted. Experiments needed to be reviewed and reapproved. Sephiroth would handle terminating the most dangerous creatures. 

Something in the folder caught Sephiroth’s attention. Review the collection in Ward H and dispose of unwanted test subjects. Ward H. Sephiroth knew about Ward H, though he had not set foot in there for over a decade. It was Hojo’s private lab, not accessed by anyone else. Now it was Sephiroth’s private lab. Sephiroth pulled up a map of the labs to refresh his memories of the layout. 

Only Hojo went in there, and he was now dead. Anything still alive in that lab would need to be disposed of or taken care of immediately. Sephiroth collected up his papers and stuffed them into the portfolio. and left his office.

The researchers stopped what they were doing when Sephiroth walked by and greeted him as he strutted down the many hallways and floors. He ignored all of them. They were not being genuinely friendly. Sephiroth had complete control over their careers. More than their careers, if he decided to emulate Hojo in his administrative practices. Some of them had experimented on him. He was in control of their very lives now. 

Everything was in chaos. Cages were being relocated, carefully shoved by some borrowed troopers from the Public Security Division. Heidegger owed him. A bloodhound howled in one cage as he passed by. Smaller cages were carried by young interns. Sephiroth walked by as a few lowly interns dragged a limp body of a misshapen humanoid to the shute that led to the incinerator. 

The smell of blood was strong in this area. Sephiroth’s sensitive senses made him move on quickly. It disgusted him to do this, but better to put the creatures out of their misery if it can be helped. Whatever remained of their souls would thank him.

Sephiroth held the security pass up to the smaller elevator that would lead him into the bowels of the Drum. Large portions were under construction. Sephiroth would have to confirm resuming the work. So much busy work to do. It frustrated him, but there were worse things to deal with. 

Ward H. Such an unoriginal name. It would need to be changed. He did not want any reminders of Hojo, not even his initials. Sephiroth had more security checkpoints to do now as he stood before the Ward’s singular heavy duty door lock. He held up the pass in one hand and placed his palm on the hand scanner at the same time. Leaning into the eye scanner, Sephiroth wondered if the technician had a hard time configuring it for his slitted pupils. Finally, a sharp painful needle jabbed his finger to draw blood. The wound was gone as soon as it appeared. 

Everything glowed green in approval and the door split in half for him. Sephiroth entered, then hesitated at the door until it closed behind him. He had been here before. It was not a pleasant place. While most of the laboratory smelled of mako and cleaning chemicals, this place was rather pleasant in terms of smell. The mako and chemicals were muted. Perhaps that is why Hojo had made it his private sanctum. 

Jars of perfectly preserved creatures were at the beginning of the area on shelves. They were meticulously organized and labeled. Sephiroth stepped forward to look at a complete body of a levikron embryo floating there. He looked at Hojo’s notes on it. Collected in 1983 near Kalm. Most of the jars were smaller pieces of larger animals but in the center was a large mako tube drifted the preserved body of an entire chimera.

Sephiroth resisted the urge to take every jar and dump them into the incinerator with everything else being taken to it. He went into the live specimen area and the more utilitarian area with sinks for cleaning and lab supplies. Most of the cages were empty but what did remain were an eclectic bunch of creatures that did not make much sense to Sephiroth. A bloodhound whined in one, baring its teeth at Sephiroth defensively. Stitches wove around its body from vivisections. A thoroughly plucked featherless zu perched dismally in another. A twin brain flopped around in its glass tank. In a water filled tank, a crown lance swirled under the tank lights with a beautiful violet glow. A wererat hissed at him. There had been other specimens at some point. Disturbingly one wall of a cell was marked with old blood stains. It was deliberately made, spelling out words. 

Bewar O Nova. Smears of blood and handprints circled these letters as if they wanted to write more and had been unable to. 

Nova. It sounded familiar, on the tip of Sephiroth’s tongue. Some vague memory he had shoved down and locked away. Whatever it was, Sephiroth did not want to remember. He chose to concentrate on the present.

The cells reeked of waste but that would have to wait. Sephiroth filled the water dishes of the creatures that needed it. The bloodhound eagerly shoved his mouth into the water. The zu did not react at first, but he saw it dipped its beak in as he left it. The twin brain attempted to attack him, but Sephiroth swatted it back down. The wererat sniffed the water curiously before eagerly consuming it.

He thought all of the cages were empty with that, until he heard the slightest movement in one of the dark ones. He cautiously approached the cage. There, in the corner lay a human woman. She wore a filthy bloodstained hospital gown. Her hair was long, not as long as Sephiroth’s and it was heavily matted, as if she had not been given a chance to brush it. 

“Great Gaia…” Sephiroth cursed, quickly unlocking the cage and entering.

What happened next took him off guard. The woman looked up at his approach. Sharp blue eyes locked in on him. Her skin was pale, nearly as pale as him. Filthy and thin, the woman should have been terrified to see him.

The rage in her eyes were the only hint before she lunged at him with all the fury of a behemoth. Her teeth flashed and as Sephiroth raised his arms up defensively, she attempted to go for his throat, but instead he managed to get her teeth to sink into his forearm, protected by the lab coat sleeve. Not that she could have done real damage, but the strength of her jaw and the pain surprised him. He tried to pull her off him but again her strength was surprising. An average woman would not be able to fight him so viciously and especially not such a weakened one. 

“Calm down, I am not going to hurt you,” Sephiroth tried to say calmly, but the woman dug in her teeth.

He managed to pull her off and shove her back onto the thin cot that was her own furniture. This woman did not even get a proper cell with a water closet or toilet. So taken aback was he was with a human in a cage he had not looked up at the specimen memo hanging above the cage. Sephiroth lifted the clipboard off its hook. It was not a full history, just a simple summary. Any more details would be elsewhere. Next to the clipboard hung what could only be described as a muzzle for humans. Bile rose in his throat.

 

SA-001

Sex: Female

Age: 25 years old

Birthday: Unknown. No Birth Certificate

Weight: 148 lbs. Height: 5’ 3”

Birthplace: Mideel

Medications: None

 Allergies: None 

Drug Use: None

 

Behavior: 

Subject SA-001 uncooperative. Aggression atypical of female specimens. Restraints required. Sedation highly recommended. No signs of degradation after treatment with J Cells. Only surviving test subject of Civilian Test Group 34. Wild stock genetic material proving an asset.

 

To his horror, Sephiroth read about the dated experiments she had been subjected to. This woman had been in Hojo’s custody for over a year at least. He glanced at the enraged woman and noticed a knotted scar just peeking out of the hospital gown. She was trembling. Her legs had given out and she lay curled up in the corner. The look in her eyes was fury and fear.

“I will get you some water and come back. I’ll take care of you. No harm will come to you,” he said slowly and softly as if she were a feral dog. She did not say a word, instead hissing at him like a cat. He got a bowl of water for her, noticing there were no cups or human appropriate utensils. She refused to touch the water when he put it in front of the cage bars.

This would complicate things. Sephiroth left the live subject area and sighed deeply before covering his face with one hand. It was one thing to put down with mercy Hojo’s mutated, deformed creatures but this was something different all together. He could not put down SA-001 like a dog. Something about her interested him. Tough. She’s a survivor. Surviving Hojo as long as she had with the ability to still lash out with rage and fury instead of becoming apathetic was a miracle. She deserved better than a cage drinking water out a bowl. 

He gave himself some time to restore his composure. Sephiroth then did what he had been doing all day. Assessing priorities. 

Ward H needed cleaning, and the live subjects needed daily maintenance. SA-001 needed rehabilitation from Hojo’s torture. Should he ask for help? That would be like throwing blood in the water. He was freshly anointed and needed to show strength. Even dead, Hojo was reprimanding him in his head for being weak.

If she was treated like a kicked animal by Hojo, Sephiroth would follow his example but in the opposite direction. Speak to her softly, build trust, and desensitize her to his presence. She would eventually open up. He could heal her and then she could finally leave the lab and be human again. Unlike him.

Chapter 2: Nova

“As you can see in the reports my research on stem cells will be a vital part of the future of SOLDIER and Shinra’s profits-”

“It is derivative of Hammond’s work. Your study patients are not showing the same results either. There is no good justification to continue the study.”

“But sir!”

Sephiroth damned the young man’s work by stamping DECLINED across the abstract paper. He held it out for the scientist calmly. Shaking hands accepted the new useless paper. The now despair filled researcher left Sephiroth’s office. It was not the first paper Sephiroth had rejected nor will it be the last. 

All day and night proposals and budgeting resubmissions. No wonder Hojo hated working with other people. All they did was waste time. Some of the researchers bribed him with coffee, lunch, compliments, and favors. Some try to befriend him but he knew from past mistakes that friends only disappoint you.

Still, one person at least attempted to prove him wrong. Sephiroth appreciated the gestures.

He barely had time to relax his tense body from hours of paperwork before there was a knock on his door.

Sephiroth sat up and rubbed his face. “Come in.” 

Instead of seeing white in the corner of his eye. He saw black. Sephiroth briefly glanced at Webber’s paper on the correlation between mako concentrations with cardiovascular enzymatic activity. It was important work. He most would likely approve the continuation of Webber’s work. He looked away from the paper and lifted his head. 

There in front of him stood the new face of SOLDIER, First Class Zack Fair. He was grinning enthusiastically as he tried to maneuver around the boxes of paperwork. 

“Hey, Seph! Nice new office! I brought you a few welcoming gifts for it!”

Sephiroth blinked in surprise at the gift wrapped chaotically in celebratory colors. The tangled bow around it was amusing. Sephiroth tore it apart to reveal the joyful secrets. There was one of those tear away calendar pads with poorly constructed puns for every day of the year. Another gift was a miniature mustard yellow caution sign like those that said “Caution: Wet floor” but instead it said “Caution: Boss at Work.” Finally, Zack had provided Sephiroth with a lovely pack of colorful pens. 

Sephiroth smiled at the amusing little novelties. He inclined his head at Zack. “Thank you very much for these gifts. I will use each and every one.”

Zack was a good SOLIDIER. He did everything that was asked of him. Such a loyal puppy. He was trusting and trustworthy at the same time. Sephiroth stared at him thoughtfully. 

“Zack, are you busy today after this? I have a sensitive matter that I cannot trust with anyone else. I could use a strong SOLDIER for this.”

Zack looked touched at this sudden declaration. He nodded eagerly. “Anything for you bud!”

He probably regretted that proclamation as he entered into Ward H, took in the horror of the specimen jar shelves, the preserved bodies, and finally the live specimens. SA-001 paced in her cell only to get alarmed at their approach. When he left her and the others, there was food in bowls for the beasts and a pile of heavily processed prepared meals and bottled water left just in reach of the woman. Several of the packages lay torn and completely licked clean of their contents. Water bottles were bone dry, but there were less than what he had left. She had attempted to hide the rest under her bed, but Sephiroth easily saw them. After this, he would leave her more. Perhaps consuming that much food might keep her more docile for what he needed to do.

Sephiroth found all the supplies he needed and went to the room with the medical exam tables. Before he left, he noticed the robotic equipment attached with shining needles and razor-sharp scalpels. Dragging a privacy screen next to them, to hide them from the woman’s view. She would be stressed out enough by what he was going to do. No need to terrorize her. He was not Hojo. 

“So what am I here to do exactly? Why is this woman in a cell?” Zack asked worriedly. The woman was curled up behind her cot, glaring at the two men warily. 

Sephiroth sighed at her hostility. “Hojo experimented on her. Unfortunately, she doesn’t seem like a talker. I cannot in good conscience just let her loose in Midgar like a stray cat. So, I am going to take care of her. Find out every trauma Hojo has committed against her. Today, I need blood for tests.”

At that, she hissed. She understood them at least. Sephiroth unlocked the cell. 

“And she is strong. So I am going to need you to hold her down while I do that.”

Zack looked very unnerved, but he loyally nodded before entering the cell. He slowly approached SA-001.

“Hey there, miss! I am Zack, Zack Fair. Listen, this is my best friend, Sephiroth. He’s not like the bad guy who was awful to you before. He wants to help you.”

The woman’s lip curled up in disgust, showing off her teeth. 

Sephiroth suddenly realized he had not warned Zack. “Wait, Zack-”

She lunged at Zack, who recoiled back in alarm. As she had done with Sephiroth, she sank her teeth into the closest part of the SOLDIER, which happened to be his wrist.

“AH! OW!” 

Sephiroth intervened and lunged back, snatching up the woman’s body. Wrapping his arms around both her arms to restrain her. She screamed and tried to kick.

“Sorry, Zack. Should have warned you.”

The current SOLDIER waved his wrist around reflexively. “It’s fine. I know now. Here, I got her.”

They traded her off. Careful to avoid her teeth and fingers, it was not easy to transfer her from the cell to the medical table. She kicked the table and almost knocked all of Sephiroth’s tools from their tray, but he managed to save them.

The woman kicked and thrashed in Zack's arms. He and Sephiroth stood on different sides of the table, to keep her down properly. Her teeth flashed. Sephiroth tried to grab her arm, but she writhed around. A filthy foot kicked him in the stomach. He grunted but was persistent. This was not personal. She did not hate him because she knew him. He was not Hojo, but she did not know that yet. To her, he was close enough to Hojo to be considered a threat. 

After he got a strong grip on her arm, he held it down. From what he could tell, her veins were small. He hoped he had given her enough liquids to rehydrate. He attempted to stick the needle into one of her veins, but she was not making it easy. Her thrashing broke the first needle. Sephiroth sighed before getting a replacement. This is why he had brought some. Why couldn't she just stop fighting?

Zack winced as a foot hit him in the stomach. He wiggled around to reaffirm his grip on her. It was quite impressive that what appeared to be an unenhanced, pale, and malnourished woman gave a First Class SOLDIER problems.

"Why can't you sedate her?" Zack asked desperately as nails gouged thin red lines into his skin.

"Sedatives will affect the results. I need a baseline of her health."

She seemed to wear out eventually as her struggles faltered. It was just enough for Sephiroth to feel the vein and take a gamble. The needle went in and red came out. Sephiroth reached over for a collection tube and snapped it into place. Blood dripped out, beads of ruby flowing to the bottom of the tube.

A rainbow of collection tubes lay on the metal tray next to him. Yes, it was a lot of blood he needed but it was important.  He needed all the information her blood could give him. It was not like he could just ask her about her medical history. He did not even know her name. 

In the midst of all her kicking, she hissed and bared her teeth at him.

Sephiroth stared into those rage filled eyes. "I'm sorry."

She sneered in contempt, probably not believing him. It was understandable.

Slowly but inevitably her blood filled each tube. Somehow as pale as she was, she turned even paler. Sephiroth cut his losses on the last tube and pulled the needle out. She whimpered. 

“Thank you, Zack. She’ll probably appreciate this eventually."

Zack nodded, loosening his grip on her when he noticed how weak she had become. “Yeah of course. Wait, do you even know her name?”

Sephiroth hesitated. No, there was no name anywhere. Hojo probably never even bothered with her real name. He preferred numbers and letters. Keep them in his mind as the inferior specimens that he thought they were.

“No.”

“Oh, why don’t you make her one? Like Lisa!”

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow. Zack laughed awkwardly. “Okay, maybe not Lisa.” 

The woman laid her head on the table with a light thump. She was disoriented. Not a threat anymore. 

Sephiroth thanked Zack again and led him out of the ward as he was not needed anymore. When he returned to the exam room, the woman had not moved an inch. She briefly lifted her head when his shadow crossed over her but she did not even frown at his presence. 

To help her, he found a light sedative in one of the medication drawers. She did not fight the needle this time. At that, he decided to finish up her care for the day with a good bath. Her hair was an oily matted mess. At least Zack had not pointed out how much she stank. 

The exam room had a very large industrial sink, which Sephiroth plugged up and started to fill with hot water. There were no nice smelling shampoos or lotions, just medical grade unscented soap. It would have to do.

He tried to remain professional as he pulled off the filthy gown that she wore. The surgical scar he had noticed at the top of her chest went all the way down nearly to her belly button. It was not the only one either. Long scars lined her forearms and on her back over the spine. Hojo had butchered her and not bothered to use materia to speed up healing and prevent scarring. No, he had wanted her to remember what he did. 

As gently as he could Sephiroth scooped up the woman’s now naked body and took it over to the sink when the water was high enough. He lowered her body down into the warm water and began gently scrubbing away all the dirt and grime from her. 

He thought of what Zack said. About her needing a name. She was not going to talk to him anytime soon he was sure of it. And calling her SA-001 was distasteful. He needed at least a temporary name to give her.

He tried to think of a few names while bathing her, but they all seemed to disappoint him. Aurora, Lucia, Helena, Alissa, Bianca, Angel, Jenny. None of them fit her. 

He unplugged the sink and let the water drain. It had turned a light greyish brown color. Now she was clean, but her hair was still matted beyond repair. Hopefully she did not prefer her hair long, Sephiroth thought as he pulled out some scissors. Clumps of chestnut and copper colored hair fell into the sink. He would clean it up later.

He found a new gown to robe her in and then carried her back to her cell before laying her limp body on the thin cot. It was cold down here. All of R&D was cold and she was still wet.

After some time searching, Sephiroth found a few blankets for her. Soon she was wrapped up in several of them, only her head visible. She looked so vulnerable laying there. Her lips were slightly apart as she breathed in and out deeply.

Sephiroth had this overwhelming urge to protect her from harm. Her. Right. Still no name.

The other specimens needed attention. Her cell and the others needed cleaning as well. The blood scrawled message in the other cell suddenly came to mind. 

Bewar O Nova.

“Nova,” Sephiroth whispered, feeling it roll off his tongue and something telling him that it was perfect.

Nova. That was a name. It was not a bad name. Nova was the term for a new star that shone brightly briefly for a time before going back to its original brightness in the night sky. The reason it shone so brightly was caused by a nuclear explosion. Nova was new and bright, if a little dangerous. 

Sephiroth preferred astronomy over any other discipline of science, but it seemed his fate was not amongst the stars. 

But at least he could have this little star. Nova.

Chapter 3: Research Begins

The director’s meeting dragged on for hours. There were a lot of congratulations for Sephiroth which he brushed off with icy indifference as best as he could. None of the congratulations were genuine. Even some of them had obvious ulterior motives for their sycophancy. 

Heidegger wanted the SOLDIER program to be streamlined. There would be more cost effective SOLDIERS for the new peacetime protocols. There would be new SOLDIERs, but there would be less of them. SOLDIER was being shunted into obscurity instead of being the pride of the company. At least Sephiroth had a new role instead of being thrown off to the side. 

While that was a want of Public Security, it seemed Heidegger wanted stronger, smarter guard dogs more so than SOLDIERs. He was adamant that Sephiroth get to work on that. 

Sephiroth did intend on working on the SOLDIER program, he had not been thinking of cost. He mostly wanted to create more humane protocols for the participants. Less painful injections, easier recovery, and maximizing efficiency of mako diffusion. 

Guard dogs seemed a waste of his time and talents. Still, he made a mental note to prioritize searching files for Hojo’s Ward H on the bloodhound in the cell by Nova. Most likely, Heidegger had approached Hojo first for his wants. The female hound might be a part of improving the breed standards to his specifications.

Reeve was the only one who seemed to be genuinely pleased to have Sephiroth a part of the board. 

Scarlet supposedly did not need anything but welcomed him to visit her own division anytime. 

Palmer merely sung false praise and attempted to call the two of them “men of science.” Sephiroth’s visible disgust at that comment silenced the repulsive little man. 

It was the President who did not even say anything directly to Sephiroth or about his new elevated position. He sat back in the fine leather chair at the head of the table with a smug aura. He smoked his mako infused cigar. The smell of burning mako was a normal scent in Midgar, but the sickly scent combined with tobacco always filled Sephiroth’s nostrils and seared his lungs. 

Besides the falsehoods, the meeting was dull. It consisted of quarterly financial projections. They were optimistic. Peace time usually meant poor upward trends for the economy but surprisingly profits were still increasing. Life was good. 

As with any meeting he had ever attended, Sephiroth observed instead of participated. To keep up the appearance of showing interest, he shuffled through the official documents given to him at the beginning of the meeting by a timid little intern. Charts and graphs, bright and colorful, offended his sensibilities. Greed did not resonate with him. Even Hojo never cared for profit beyond the need to secure funding for his research. 

At one point, Sephiroth looked up as Reeve presented some new infrastructure to shore up the older foundations of Midgar’s plates. When he did, he caught Scarlet’s eye. She sensually tilted her head in his direction and smiled. He tried to be friendly and smiled back. Scarlet licked her lip. Sephiroth winced internally. Clearly, he had been wrong about her not wanting anything. That was a good enough reason to never be alone in a room with her. The rest of the meeting, he spent his entire time pointedly avoiding looking at her. Luckily the meeting ended.

Sephiroth entered his office with a tired sigh, leaning up against the door as he closed it. Meetings and paperwork summed up his life currently. He felt like such a puppet being pulled at by strings. For a brief instant, Sephiroth thought he might be able to actually use the doctorate he worked hard on years ago. There was a halfhearted plan to reallocate funds for researching SOLDIER degradation. He wanted to look at the SOLDIER biotechnical formula itself but had not been able to schedule a meeting with the team head in charge of the SOLDIER’s medical program.

Instead, it felt like a PR stunt to put him in charge. He could not even plan preliminary work until he got caught up in the paperwork. It was all the paperwork. Apparently, Hojo was always behind on paperwork, too focused on his own work. Interns typically scrambled to do what needed to keep the department floating. 

Sephiroth weaved through his boxes to his sleek desk. On the desk, the little pun calendar Zack gave him was a colorful break from the muted industrial colors. The day’s pun was “No matter how much you push the envelope; it will still be stationary.” He chuckled at the humorous wordplay. While work was dull, at least Zack’s gift could brighten his day. The younger man tried his best to keep Sephiroth’s morale up. He appreciated it more than Zack knew. 

Hojo punishing him beyond the grave was the real joke. Sephiroth collapsed into his desk chair. It sank under his weight. He would need a custom chair for his weight and height soon. There was too much to do in not enough time. 

Fresh reports littered his desk. He covered his face with one hand and groaned. Then he deeply inhaled and got to work.

Flipping through the paper blurred graphs, study abstracts, funding requests, and lesser concerns. He flippantly discarded them all, until he found the folders he had been waiting for. 

It was the reports for Ward H. He held Nova’s back for last, glancing quickly through. All of the specimens showed signs of stress in their blood tests, but it was minimal. The bloodhound was pregnant. It must be a part of Heidegger’s request. The twin brain had higher levels of cortisol in its blood than the others. Sephiroth could not determine why that was. The wererat tested positive for a modified strain of hepatitis. Sephiroth would need to do more tests. Hojo perhaps was working on a treatment for hepatitis. Or something less benevolent. That seemed more likely. The crown lance and Zu were less apparent on what Hojo had them for. 

Finally, he held Nova’s blood report. Sephiroth eagerly read the summary. 

It did not take long. The results were very positive. Potassium, ammonia, oxygen, enzymes all were at normal levels. Her thyroid looked good. Her blood type was O negative, the same as him. It was rare but not completely remarkable, but the coincidence intrigued him. 

Blood pressure and cortisol were elevated but not dangerously so. Given the circumstance when he took the blood, that was understandable. Calcium levels were low. So were her Vitamin C and D. These seemed to be caused by lack of sunlight. Who knew how long she had been locked up in the labs? Sephiroth could relate to that. Hojo used to keep him regimented with the proper vitamins and specialized lamps to keep him healthy while still confined under Hojo’s watch. Sephiroth thought he knew where to get one of those lamps. Vitamins were easier to deal with. If she refused a pill, adding it into her water would be easy. 

Her immune system was weakened. Less white blood cells and albumin showed. Most likely caused by captivity without sunlight or healthy food as well. Her BUN level, which was blood urea nitrogen, was lowered. This was a symptom of dehydration. But it was not at a dangerous level.

All in all, she was healthy. None of the diseases he had the lab test for showed. Her weakened immune system and the wererat’s positive hepatitis diagnosis worried him. He would dispose of it humanely. He did not see any reason to keep it.

Sephiroth looked through the report briefly again, determined to not miss anything. To his frustration, he saw that whatever lab tech had filed the blood report had mislabeled her specimen sample as a part of the SOLDIER program. She was tough but not a SOLDIER. Perhaps the tests were from the same formulas given to him, Zack and the others. He would have to contact them and correct this. Or did he? It would raise suspicions if someone saw SOLDIER formula in a non-designated human being. There was a reason Hojo kept her to his private ward.

Sephiroth went over to his file cabinet and put the reports into it. Then, as if on a whim, he left the office to look for the supplies closet. He found the leather-bound notebooks that all researchers used for their own personal notes. He pulled one out and felt the leather, remembering his own black leather uniform. It was not proper attire for a lab setting. And Sephiroth always found lab coats a…comforting presence. 

A memory stirred in the back of his mind. He was smaller. Much smaller. He saw himself pulling open a filing cabinet much like the one back in his office. It was huge and gaping. He remembered stuffing several lab coats into the drawer and then crawling in to curl up into a ball. 

He was woken later and reprimanded for Hojo for disrupting his sleep schedule and for misusing lab equipment. Sephiroth never curled up in a pile of lab coats or a drawer again. He tucked the black journal under his arm and returned to his office. 

 This seemed…appropriate. He could not just discuss this with anyone else. He needed an outlet for these thoughts. Once settled back at his desk, he set up the desk and opened the journal gingerly as if it was precious material. The crisp fresh paper was unblemished and blank with gridded dots instead of lines for minimum clutter and optimal organizing.

 

Personal Observation Notes

 

Do Not Read without Authorization from Professor Sephiroth, Director of the Research and Development division for Shinra Electric Power Company . 

 

Entry One  

 

Subject Designated “Nova” is a living remnant of an apparently nonconsensual civilian test from my predecessor. Professor Hojo. Due to currently unknown experimentations, there are significant medical concerns. She shows extreme aggression and fear. Probable cause of behavior stems from previous interactions with personnel. Currently shows no sign of communicating verbally. Unclear if this is due to captivity, previous psychological issues, or other causes. 

Death of the previously named predecessor led to an unknown amount of neglect. Mild dehydration and starvation that has been treated with scheduled meals consisting of heavily processed foods and liquids reinforced with electrolytes and vitamins. Health status incomplete but overall, she seems lively. Her survival instincts are robust. Everything about her seems capable, were she not weakened by captivity. 

Behavioral issues and potential unknown health concerns make her unsuitable for release. I have taken it upon myself to keep her in custody. Decision unfortunately influenced by personal feelings. On the memo over her cell, it said she was from Mideel. Research into the region must be undertaken to aid in positive relations with Nova.

Chapter 4: Nova Speaks

As meticulously as he could, Sephiroth drew an amount of oral sedative from the small bottle. The amount had been calculated best for Nova’s body weight and metabolism to keep her in a docile, but not unconscious state. She deserved to know what was happening to her. Waking up disoriented and confused without knowing what has happened to you during your state of unconsciousness was one of the worst feelings in the world.

Once he had the right amount, Sephiroth poured it into a bottle of water. There was some powdered drink flavor that was labeled grape. Sephiroth knew that foul flavor was not remotely related to grapes. While unpleasant it would disguise the taste of the sedative. Perhaps the medication would even taste better than the drink flavoring. 

To tempt her to eat and drink, Sephiroth picked up his special bag of treats and headed back to Nova’s cell. She heard him ahead of time. When he stood before her cell, she had retreated into the place of safety under the bed. 

Sephiroth’s voice came out like silk. “Nova. I brought you a surprise…Nova.” 

She did not respond. That was expected. Every time he fed her, this occurred. She refused to eat in front of him. But this time, he needed to be around while she drank. 

He knelt down in the front of the bars. 

After she refused to acknowledge him, Sephiroth knelt down to place his special treats in front of the bars as an offering. Peaches, mangoes, an entire bunch of bananas, a variety of citruses, kiwis, dragonfruit, apples, and berries. All of these were sweet and enticing, but Sephiroth expected her to focus on the tropical fruits that were imported from Mideel. Her birthplace.

“Nova, are you hungry?”  He made sure to address her every time with her new name. She needed to be humanized after so much time being treated like an object. 

Finally, a response. Her body shifted. Nova peaked out from under her bed, witnessing the bounty laid before him. This might be the first fresh fruit, perhaps even food, that she had seen in months. No matter the amount of effort Nova exerted to keep her expression neutral could hide the light that came to her eyes. 

“Take your pick or take all of them. I can cut or peel-”

Nova scrambled out from her safe haven to the bars in a very quick movement. She snatched up a mango, and a peach before rushing backwards to the left far corner. 

Sephiroth sat up straight, delighted at this new response. He watched with fascination as Nova hand peeled the mango. She savagely sunk her teeth into its orange flesh. Juice squirted out loudly and dripped over her and splattered onto the metal floor. Sephiroth winced. Another thing to clean while she was indisposed. 

With food entering her stomach, Sephiroth now held up the water bottle filled with purple liquid. Nova suddenly stopped mid bite and glared at this suspicious item. He shook it to redisperse the powder and drug once more. Then he placed it down inside the cell through the bars. He rolled it forward, where she watched it bump against her bare foot. 

“Drink it all and I promise more mangoes. Every day if you wish. Any fruit, any food at all.” 

Halfway through her meal, Nova relented. She uncapped the bottle and drank. Sephiroth tried his best to hide his thoughts. She never suspected it was drugged though it was clear she did not like the taste. 

Sephiroth left briefly to write down in his notes about her eating and drinking. He marked down the suspected calories of an average mango as well as the drink flavoring. While he waited for her to finish, he checked on the other inhabitants. He had disposed of the wererat, so that cell was now empty. It was bigger than Nova’s. Perhaps after being fully decontaminated, he would move her into it. She needed more room, and stimulation as well. 

As Sephiroth checked on the bloodhound, letting the creature lick his hand affectionately, he heard a noise of something small coming at him hard and fast. 

Sephiroth dodged the projectile, alarmed by the sudden attack. Nova had nothing in her cell that could have been thrown at him to harm him! He had been careful to keep anything but food and water away from the cell bars.

The offending object had hit the wall behind him. He stared down at the crumpled plastic bottle still caked from the artificial flavor powder residue. She had thrown an empty bottle at him knowing it was harmless even to an unenhanced human. Sephiroth looked back at her with bewilderment.

Nova now crouched defensively in the corner of her cell. When their eyes met, she did the unthinkable. She stuck her tongue out at him mockingly. He blinked in surprise at the childish and crude display.

This was not an attack at all. Sephiroth was not Hojo. In her mind, he was an unknown variable, potentially more dangerous than her last cruel caretaker. People did not like to experience unknown situations. Since she had no information on him, experimenting would have to give her that information.

"You are testing me. Antagonizing me to see my tolerance for misbehavior," Sephiroth surmised. He was frankly impressed.

Nova's eyes narrowed warily. He watched her cautiously. She started to sway a little. The drug was taking effect.

With that, Sephiroth unlocked her cell door and opened it wide. The woman, alarmed, tried to back away from him as he entered.

“Shhh…It’s alright. I am not mad. I would rather you not do that again, however. I really want you to leave this cell eventually.”

She hissed at him as he knelt down by her. He grabbed her hand when she tried to slap him.

“No!” She snapped, pulling away from him helplessly. Sephiroth smiled.

“So you can speak. Shhh. It’s okay. I won’t hurt you. I am not Hojo. He’s dead and can’t hurt you anymore.”

She stopped fighting him, blinking. She turned to look him in the eye.

“Dead?”

Sephiroth cursed himself. He had not even told her about Hojo’s untimely demise. Now who was treating her like an object?

“Yes. He is dead. Dead and gone. You are safe now.”

“....Dead…” She whispered. Then tears started to form in her eyes. She slumped limply against the wall. 

Sephiroth watched as her eyes started to glaze over. The sedative was taking effect. He had not planned on her completely losing consciousness, so he gently picked her up. She let out a weak protest noise but did not fight back.

“I am sorry. I should have informed you better. I have not yet found all your records. Hojo was secretive. What is your real name?”

She murmured something unintelligible. That was alright, Sephiroth thought as he carried her to the exam room and laid her down on a table. She rolled over and tried to get off, but Sephiroth stopped her. This examination was different from the last one. He pulled her clothes off gingerly. The scars on her body were clean and thin. While it was despicable to open her up like a corpse to poke around, at least Hojo had been precise and clean when doing it. There were no signs of infection or complications. 

Sephiroth checked Nova’s teeth, to her dismay. She tried to pull away, but Sephiroth wrapped his arm around her body and used the other to keep her mouth open.

“I know, I know it’s not pleasant. I need to see if your teeth are all intact. And your tonsils are still there. No wisdom teeth. I wish you had revealed your speech before I sedated you. Did you have your teeth removed?”

Sephiroth removed his fingers from her mouth to let her speak. Nova shook her head. “Hhhh….no.”

So, she must have been born without wisdom teeth. They would have shown themselves by now given her age. He saw no need to check with an x-ray. What reason would she lie?

“What about the appendix? Spleen? Gallbladder? Are they all in there?” Sephiroth asked, poking her abdomen where each organ should be. Nova nodded. She then glared at him woozily. He reached up to stroke her short hair. The cuts he had made were rough, but the short hair suited her more than the rat’s nest from before. Her hair was soft. He pet her some more, almost too distracted to continue his examination. But her squirming brought him back to reality. 

“Any health problems I need to be concerned about?” He asked sincerely as he checked her abdomen for any swelling and inflammation.

“No.”

He wondered if “No” and “Dead” were the only words she could speak. It would be easier if she could speak more liberally. He sighed, wondering just what she was thinking. Once the examination was done, he allowed her to lay on the cushioned chair and went to the same sink he had used to bathe her when he first sedated her. She rolled over clumsily to watch the sink fill with warm soapy water. Her eyes narrowed. 

“You are not going to be experimented on. No more surgeries. Not if I can help it. I am only keeping you around to make sure that whatever Hojo did to you will not compromise your future health. Do you understand?”

Despite the fuzziness of her thoughts, Nova nodded. 

Sephiroth stopped the water and came over to her. 

“Can I bathe you? Hygiene is important for health.”

Nova glanced over at the large industrial sink, then at him. She nodded. With that, Sephiroth scooped her up easily. When fully submerged, Sephiroth let her enjoy the warm water for a moment. Nova pointed up at his face but said nothing. He had to tilt his head. She then pointed at her own eyes and back at him.

Sephiroth nodded. “Yes, my pupils are not a typical shape. I was born with them. Unfortunately, I cannot tell you why.”

She screwed up her face. “Hojo?”

Having selective mutism did not mean unintelligent that was for sure. She was quick to connect the dots.

“Yes. I was raised in this lab. I am sure he had something to do with it,” He explained, starting to clean her off with the soap. Again, he needed to remind himself to find some more pleasantly scented soap. It was industrial medical grade sure, but everything smelled like it in the lab. Something as simple as lemon would be preferable. 

She grunted as he poured water over her hair and swatted at him, but not aggressively. He let her take the soap from her and she clumsily started to wash herself. He let her do so. She eyed him now and then and as she finished up, she smiled. Then pointed at his eyes again. Before meowing realistically at him.

The sedative loosened inhibitions. Her real personality was slowly recovering with no active threat to worry about. Sephiroth smiled back.

Chapter 5: Puppy Hound

The lights in the room was blinding. Bright eyed recruits gazed up at Sephiroth with sheer wonder and awe. He tried not to make eye contact with any of them. They stood in all the welcoming media room of SOLDIER, where all initiations were performed.

But Sephiroth was not a SOLDIER anymore. Yet he stood there wearing his iconic SOLDIER uniform, the one everyone knew him for. It was purely performative, as the photographer in the back indicated. The occasional flash of light did not help Sephiroth's mood.

In the forefront, Zack stood as the new face of SOLDIER. He was pontificating, telling the new recruits of dreams and honor. SOLDIER honor. A hollow dream. But Sephiroth did not say so. He did not want to tell Zack that he was beating a dead chocobo. SOLDIER had no honor.

But he did not. And Sephiroth did not leave Shinra despite how disillusioned he was. There was no where for him to go. No purpose outside of Shinra and no authority. In Shinra, he could actually help.

Sephiroth glanced down at the young ones. One of the new SOLDIERs caught his eye and he could see in the youth's gaze that it was overwhelming. The young man was practically vibrating in his new uniform.

Half of the kids before him would fail their physical and psychological evaluations. Half of those who did achieve their dreams would never make it past Third Class.

And none of them would live to old age. Some will be killed by a monster or a lucky terrorist. Those that were not killed in combat? It might take a decade or two, but they would start to decline. They would appear to age to appear twice as what they really were. Grey hairs would streak their hair and even modest exercise would leave them exhausted. Bruises appear more easily. Joint issues, abdominal cramps, and irritability begins soon after. More worrying, wounds stopped healing as effectively. Then cracks in the epidermis would be followed by oozing sores. Violent outbursts were common.

Death happened in all known cases. Sephiroth was desperate to find a cure. Medical journals went into extensive studies on recreational mako consumption and while there were quite horrific side effects, none of them were comparable to degradation. No, the issues facing SOLDIERs was not the mako injections or baths. No, it was the specially designed SOLDIER formula that caused degradation. Project G formula. Genesis. Even now, he haunts them.

He only noticed that the speech was over when all the young recruits all cheered and started to file out. Sephiroth stirred himself to find the beaming smile of Zack as the new face of SOLDIER turned.

"That was a rush! I've never thought I would be so hesitant to talk on stage until I got up here! How'd I do, bud?" Zack managed to get out.

He met Zack's eyes and smiled. "You did well. Angeal would be proud of you."

Zack's eyes glistened. "Wait, you really think so? I…Thank you, Sephiroth. Will you be coming to the party later?"

Sephiroth did not like parties. SOLDIER parties were loud and bright and noisy. But Zack would be there as well.

"I suppose I can spare a few moments."

"Yes!!! Oh you are the BEST. Best SOLDIER, best new Professor. Best FRIEND!" Zack proclaimed. Sephiroth smiled before glancing at Zack's spiked black hair. Not a single strand of it hid a flash of silver grey. There was still time to save him.

---

Performing a water change for the crownlance proved difficult. The process itself was easy. Dealing with the aggressive inhabitant. Saltwater dripped down Sephiroth's arms, dampening his coat sleeves. Blood intermingled with the water. Crownlance possessed stronger senses than the typical cnidarian. One barbed tendril had lashed out and caught him off-guard.

He pulled out a Curaga and used it, feeling the flow of materia go through his wound. It closed quickly and the stinging eased.

Once finished cleaning the tank filter, Sephiroth closed it with a snap and ran through the checklist. He had siphoned the water, treated the fresh water with specialized salts, disinfected the sponge filters, and finally added some beneficial bacteria to the filter.

Sephiroth finally noticed Nova was watching him. She had previously been eating, noisily munching on the protein bar given to her. She was now focused on the healed wounded. He held out his arm and twisted it around to show it to her.

"I am fine," Sephiroth reassured the young woman. But she gestured to the materia. Then she pulled the neck of the simple gown. He had examined the scars previously. They were clean cut if tragic to see on a living person. She stared at the cure materia. Sephiroth connected the dots.

"I am sorry. It does not heal old scar tissue."

Her eyes faded with disappointment. It hurt him to see her let down.

"I will see if something else can be done," He tried to reassure.

But Nova curled up defensively and avoided eye contact. He stood there useless and helpless. She deserved better. Then he saw the bloodhound circling in its own cell, pawing at the door. He thought of something. The hound showed no aggression. This was an acceptable risk. When he opened the door of the cell, the beast's tentacle wiggled in joy. She licked his hand and tried to run off but Sephiroth snatched the heavy metal collar around her neck. He guided the hound to Nova's cell.

The woman lifted her head. She gasped. The second the door was open, the hound lunged over to the open arms of Nova. She was assaulted by a wet tongue and giant paws.

Another idea came over him. He creaked the cell door wide open. Nova noticed.

"Can I trust you to roam safely? You cannot leave the Ward yet, but at least you can stretch your legs."

Nova contemplated his words. She nodded. There was a tenuous peace at least. With that, Sephiroth returned to his duties. For most of it, she refused to leave the cell. The hound wandered around curiously, sometimes knocking over things with its tentacle. After the first few times, Sephiroth just gave up and decided to let the dog tire itself out and clean up after. Older medical files on the counters scattered on the floor. A medical tray filled with packaged tools loudly fell to the floor. Sephiroth did pick up the dangerous packs of scalpels and needles and put them in a drawer.

He sat down on a medical exam table and opened up his notebook.

 

Entry Four`

Subject Nova no longer hides upon my presence. Her appetite continues to improve. Communications remain minimal. Her personality has become more obvious. Beyond the initial fear and trauma, she proves herself to be intelligent and spirited. She is curious. Everything I am in her view, she watches everything I do not out of wariness but deep thought. Despite risk of another physical attack, I have allowed her access to the entire Ward. I know what being confined in a small space is like. More room and external stimuli will improve her mental and physical health. I also introduced the pregnant bloodhound to her. Both were happy to be near each other. Humans and canines alike prefer company.

 

As he wrote down his notes, he saw a tentative first step. Quite literally, as Nova's bare foot touched the cold metal floor outside of her prison. The bloodhound came over and enthusiastically pushed her out.

Her whole body soon appeared. She stood in the hallway, alone and small. She glanced to the more extensive laboratory to further into the area, then glanced over at Sephiroth, who sat in the examination and maintenance area. He kept his attention to his notebook.

She tottered uncertainly to the other inmates. Nova poked the glass of the twinbrain's tank. The creature aggressively smacked the glass back. She seemed to decide against bothering it more. The zu lifted its head but remained as morose as before. Nova sighed.

Then, she noticed the wererat's empty cell and ran over to it. Panicked, Nova ran over to him. Sephiroth closed his notebook, and watched her point desperately at the cage. His heart swelled with sorrow.

"I am sorry, Nova. The wererat was infected by a highly infectious disease. Your immune system is compromised. It needed to be euthanized-"

Nova slapped him. So taken aback, Sephiroth did not stop her from running off. The dog suddenly stopped sniffing the cabinets where food was kept, and ran after her. It was not like she was able to escape Ward H. Chasing her would be futile.

But then he heard the scream. Glass shattered. Sephiroth leapt to his feet and ran to the entrance of the ward.

The shelves of wet specimens had disturbed him, but clearly they horrified Nova. She was sobbing, grabbing jar after jar and smashing them against the floor. The fumes of alcohol and formaldehyde seared his nostrils. He stepped on a furry mass by accident and it squelched as the fragile preserved meat disintegrated into mush.

"Nova! Nova, calm down-" Sephiroth tried to say, but she grabbed a dark jar and flung it at him. She screamed again, clutching her head and stumbling over broken glass and fluids. She stepped onto preserved bodies without awareness. To his alarm, she did not even flinch when her feet were cut up. Blood mixed into it. She collapsed against the heavy door.

The bloodhound ran over to her protectively, confused by the events. When Sephiroth carefully treaded over the carnage, she growled at the man. Sephiroth held up his hands and moved slower.

"Nova, I am sorry about the wererat. But it was suffering and a threat to yours and of course this bloodhound's health."

She sobbed into the beast's shoulder, arms flung around it. Sephiroth sighed. It was not just the wererat. He glanced over at the wreckage of the specimen shelves. He knew not how to comfort someone for simple distress. This? This was not simple distress. So he thought it was best to just let her cry as long as she needed. Nova cried some more, but the sobs lessened in severity over the time of perhaps an hour. She petted the bloodhound occasionally. The hound laid its head into her lap and sighed a few times. The tentacle along its back wrapped around her arm comfortingly. 

Sephiroth cleared his throat."My friend, Zack, the one who helped hold you down a while back? You bit him. He has a nickname, though the one who gave it to him has…left. He's called the Puppy. Spend five minutes with him and you'll realize why. It's nice…to have a friend. That bloodhound is quite tame. Why don't you give her a name?"

Through reddened eyes, Nova looked up. She did not even hesitate. "Cinnamon."

Sephiroth tried to smile.

"Oh, that's a good na-"

"You killed Muffin!"

Ah. She had named the wererat. Had she named all the specimens who had come and gone? Was that one of the ways she kept herself sane? Sephiroth never considered naming specimens he encountered. Getting attached always hurt. So he used to not get attached. Before people came into his life and opened his heart. Now he was attached to a woman whose name he did not know.

"I am sorry. Truly. Please, let me help you now. Those cuts on your feet. And you need to get cleaned from all the preservatives."

She sniffled, and looked at the dog for approval. "Cinnamon" did not react any differently. Nova tried to get onto her feet but winced.

Sephiroth reached forward, and wrapped his arms around her. "Let me."

 

Entry Five

Giving her free access ended poorly. She showed extreme distress over fellow specimen (infected wererat) euthanization. She tried to escape, only to come across predecessor's wet specimens. Disposal went into effect immediately. I was hesitant to remove them before, but no longer. Nova's mental health is more important than my own reservations. Nova is kind hearted. The trials she has faced have not broken her of that. I promised her that I would dispose of all the wet specimens with proper respect.

She has named the other creatures kept in Ward H. As I removed broken glass from her feet after the incident with the wet specimens, I coaxed the names of them all. I have not managed to get her name.

Wererat - Muffin (Deceased)

Zu - Harpy

Twin Brain - Squish

Crown Lance - Orchid

Bloodhound - Cinnamon