For Honor or Glory

Again?

Chapter 101 

Alex was still in a mostly sleeping state when she felt the edge of the bed dip down. She had no idea how long it had been since Sephiroth left, as she had been dozing, but it hadn't felt like long, so she turned over with a sleepy smile as she said, "Glad you took care of that fast. Now get back in bed. I miss your warmth."

Her eyes had been closed when she said that, but they flew open when she heard a dark chuckle. Before she could move, scream, or try anything else, a bruising hand covered her mouth, and a body was pinning her down. It was even more aggravating that Weiss didn't bother pinning both of her hands. He only held one of them because the other was partially trapped by his body and ineffectual against his strength.

Her eyes were focused on his, and the madness in them was even more evident than it had been the last time they had met. Where before they held indifference, this time, his emotions flashed between anger, hatred, and some twisted form of affection. His voice carried all of that as he said, "You betrayed us—you betrayed Mother, and you let them kill her. Our reunion was disrupted, but you should be happy. We have found another way."

By that point, Alex's shock had worn off, and she started fighting his hold on her. She was much more effective than she expected to be, but it wasn't surprising. A fighter, she wasn't, but her enhancements were just as thorough as the Soldiers'. However, Weiss still seemed to have the upper hand. It wasn't long until he shifted their positions to where he was straddling her waist. He had both her hands pinned above her head with one of his while the other was still over her mouth.

He leaned so close to her that she could feel each of his breaths across her cheek as he smirked. "I missed your warmth too, and your screams. But don't worry, we have allies that will make sure we are one big happy family again. They are the ones that helped us get out after all. Now we just need to get you back to them. The others will follow, just like last time. But this time, we won't let you go."

Panic was starting to overwhelm Alex's thoughts. The only thing that kept it at bay was the stray thought that she was damn tired of people trying to kidnap her. It would have been funny how many times it happened if it hadn't been such a dire situation.

By that time, she could hear the sounds of metal clanging against metal outside and realized that someone had attacked the town. That must have been the sounds that drew Sephiroth away. She couldn't help but wonder if it had been nothing but a distraction so Weiss could slip in and take her. Even if it was, she had no plans to go silently.

She redoubled her efforts to slip out of his grip, and to both their surprise, she managed to get her hands free. When she did, her first instinct was to go for his eyes, which forced him to jump back or risk being blinded. His glare could have caught the room ablaze, but all Alex felt was a fierce sense of satisfaction. It helped steady her and beat the panic back enough for her to jump up and call out. "Seph! Geal! Help! I'm—"

That was all she was able to get out before Weiss tackled her hard enough to slam her to the floor. Between the impact of his shoulder in her middle and her head bouncing off the floor, it took her a few moments before she could suck in a breath and clear her spinning head. By that time, Weiss had already gestured toward the doorway, and a ball of darkness sprang into existence. He looked back at her with wild eyes and said, "It's too soon for us to be interrupted."

Alex's thoughts were still not entirely coherent after her fall, but that quickly changed when she heard Sephiroth calling her name from the other side of the door. It took less than a second for her to realize the danger he would be in if he tried to enter with that ball of dark energy blocking the way.

Absolute horror nearly closed off her windpipe when she thought of what could happen, but she somehow managed to scream, "Sephiroth! Don't come in here! Only Vincent can—"

Sudden pain exploded across the side of Alex's face and cut off the rest of what she had been about to say, and the blow had her seeing stars. She was dizzy enough that she barely heard Weiss's harsh whisper as he leaned over her. "Why do you insist on ruining my fun?"

Alex's head was still clearing when Weiss moved off of her. She could hear ripping fabric but ignored it in favor of trying to get her wits back. Thankfully, her quick healing had already kicked in. Her jaw was still too tender to move, and she didn't dare call out again, but Weiss must have forgotten that tidbit about her. His back was almost fully turned toward her, which created an opportunity.

Alex looked around desperately for something that could help when her eyes landed on the window. She was halfway between it and Wiess, and he was still faster, so she needed something to divert his attention. It didn't even matter that they were on the second floor. She'd jumped farther and lived.

She tried to keep her movements to a minimum, to not attract his attention, but she nearly panicked when she realized he was ripping the sheets to make strips. It didn't take much for her to figure out that he likely planned to use them as bonds. She couldn't allow that to happen.

It took too long for Alex to finally spot something that could help. At least in her own mind. It didn't help that the miniature model of the Gold Saucer was on a table that was closer to Weiss. If she wasn't careful, he would see her. Still, she couldn't just lay there and wait for him to finish.

Somehow she managed to keep her movements slow and silent. She just prayed that Weiss wouldn't turn before she had her objective—especially since she could tell he was probably almost finished, if the small pile of strips was anything to go by. A sigh of relief nearly passed her lips as her fingers closed around the statuette.

Now came the hard part. She knew there would be no second chance, so she had to make this work. There was no way in hell she would take the chance of him being able to grab her, so instead of trying to get closer and bash his head in, she opted to draw her arm back and throw it with all her might.

The whole room seemed to pause and hold its breath as she watched the improvised weapon fly straight to its mark. She only waited long enough to verify it had hit. She was even more pleased that she had underestimated her own strength. It took all she had not to triumphantly laugh when Weiss faceplanted into the bed with the momentum of her throw.

Though, she knew that wouldn't last long, so before he even finished falling, Alex turned on her heel and ran toward the window at full speed. Her jaw clenched when she thought about how much what she was about to do would hurt, but that didn't stop her. She crossed both her arms in front of her face to keep the glass from doing more damage than necessary.

Every single one of her senses were suddenly amplified as she hit the window. The sound of shattering filled her ears but was quickly overwhelmed by the sounds of battle—men shouting and metal against metal. She also heard Weiss's roar of frustration and anger. That sound was enough to cause a cold sweat, and she prayed she never had to face him alone again. Somehow, she had a feeling she would not like the encounter if that noise was anything to go by.

As soon as she was through the glass, time seemed to speed up again, and Alex barely had time to orient herself. Even so, she landed hard enough for her teeth to rattle. She sent up a prayer of thanks that she at least managed to stay on her feet. She could already hear Weiss behind her, but she didn't pause to see if he jumped too. Instead, she ignored the pain from the many cuts she received and sprinted toward the sound of fighting. It might not be safe, but it sure as hell beat letting Weiss take her again.

Alex didn't have to go far before she nearly ran headfirst into a sickening scene. Genesis and Angeal were surrounded by a large group of men that almost looked like Soldiers. It wasn't until she tried to reach her brother that she realized the men were not normal. Something about their blank faces had her goddess-given memories stirring. A gasp escaped as she realized they must be Fuhito's pets—the Ravens.