Crisis Core: The Female SOLDIER

27

The first thing that Zack saw when they made their way back to the others was the helicopter bearing Shinra's logo. As for Sera, the first thing she saw was Hollander being held by Cloud and the other infantryman, who she had honestly forgotten until now, walking over the snowy ground as they made their way towards the helicopter.

She felt pure, unadulterated rage  course through her.

BABANG!

"AAAAAAHHH!" Hollander cried out in pain when a bullet was suddenly shot through his leg, causing him to fall to the snowy ground and everyone quickly turned to see Sera holding up a gun, a look of cold fury in her eyes while her face remained blank.

"Sera!" Zack was aghast, quickly standing in front of her before she could shoot anymore. "What the hell are you-"

"Don't worry, I won't kill him," Sera cut him off sharply, her voice freezingly cold sending shivers down everyone's back as she spoke. She holstered back her gun as she walked past him. "This is just to make sure he doesn't run away anymore, as he has an annoying habit of doing that every chance he gets."

Tseng said nothing, merely standing by the helicopter as he turned away from the scene as Sera walked towards the whimpering scientist being held back up by Cloud and the other soldier. Sera stopped in front of the group.

"But make no mistake, Hollander," Sera practically spit out his name as she spoke. "Should you try to run again, and should I be tasked to eliminate you...You won't receive a quick death from me."

She leaned in to whisper against the quivering man's ear, voice turning even colder. "I'll end it... excruciatingly slow."

Hollander's eyes widened even more so, and he whimpered as a dark patch appeared on the crotch of his pants and she leaned back, letting the two soldiers drag and board him into the helicopter as she watched. "Tseng," she turned to the Turk.

"I didn't see anything," Sera nodded in thanks at his words and the rest of them boarded the helicopter.

The helicopter ride was silent the whole way, Hollander's bleeding leg had been bandaged up in the old-fashioned way as Sera refused to cast a cure spell, even one just to stop the bleeding, and no one else was willing to either.

When they finally landed in Shinra's headquarters in Midgar, everyone went their separate ways, Tseng and the infantrymen taking Hollander into custody while Zack went to the slums, most likely to see Aerith.

As for Sera, she went back to her apartment, walking along the corridor to her room when she found herself stopping in front of the spare bedroom, the one she had offered Angeal to sleep in.

Reaching a hand to the knob, Sera hesitated before turning it, opening the door as she entered, finding nothing was out of place, as though no one had even been here.

Angeal always was a clean freak.

She then saw something lying on top of the made bed. Becoming curious, she went towards it, picking it up to find a small wrapped package, a bit bigger than her open palm but as thin as an empty wallet.

With her name on it.

In Angeal's handwriting.

She quickly unwrapped the package, ripping the brown packing paper to find a small plain box with a lid on it. She took off the lid.

And her heart went to her throat.

Inside was a clear photo frame, which was nothing more than two pieces of glass screwed together to hold a photo in the center, as well as a pair of aquamarine crystal ear studs sitting on top of it. But it wasn't the earrings that caught her attention, or even the frame.

It was the photo inside it.

A photo of Sephiroth, Angeal, Genesis, and herself when she was just ten years old. It was taken on the rare days that all three SOLDIER 1st Class, Sephiroth, Angeal, and Genesis, have their day offs on the same day and therefore decided to head off somewhere away from the city, renting a car and driving off to the countryside, taking Sera with them as well.

They didn't go very far, just somewhere where there was a field of flowers, separated from the farmhouse by a simple wooden fence. The three SOLDIERs were simply chatting amongst themselves, sometimes watching Sera as she frolicked within the flower field.

That was where the photo was taken. The first... and the last.

The photo just showed the three men standing straight, but casual enough in front of the camera. Sera was in front of them, as she was the shortest being the only child among them, a shy smile on her face as all four of them stared straight at the camera, with the background being the field of flowers.

Honestly, her teachers looked really out of place in that field.

A small chuckle escaped Sera's lips at the peculiar sight, and she turned the frame in her hand to look at the back, and her breath hitched, seeing the writing etched on the glass.

"My little bluebird,

Embrace your dreams, and no matter what happens, protect your honor as SOLDIER... and your family."

"Stupid Angeal," Sera whispered, tears falling on the glass frame as a choked sob escaped her lips. "Stupid, honorable, Uncle Angeal."

Alone in the safety of her apartment, she let herself forget that she was a SOLDIER, that she was from the military, that she had trained herself not to show any emotion while she was in Shinra and that she was a killing machine bound to do the company's dirty work.

For once, she let herself think that she was just a normal girl with feelings.

She let the tears fall, clutching the frame tightly to her chest as she cried her heart out. Her sobs unheard outside the apartment.

'Uncle Angeal...'

------------------  Shinra Headquarters  ------------------ 

Sera followed Zack out towards the deployment field where a batch of SOLDIER 3rd classes stood in formation. The both of them had changed their look since Angeal's passing a week ago. Whilst Sera's change of appearance was slight, almost nonexistent as she had only trimmed her hair and put on the ear studs gifted to her by Angeal, Zack's change was visible. His hair now longer and wilder, he wore it all spiked up and combed back with only a lock of hair hanging out in front of his face, giving her the impression of an angelfish. There was also an x-shaped scar on his cheek where Angeal had thrust his trident at him, and he now had the Buster Sword strapped to his back, entrusted to him by Angeal before his passing. 

Stopping in front of them, Sera stood back as she let Zack take the lead. "So, is everybody here now?"

"Sir!" was the overall response, though she could hear about half of them responded "Ma'am!" to her surprise, and Sera nodded in acknowledgment.

"You're all rookies, right?" Zack questioned.

"Sir! Yes, sir!"

"One piece of advice... no, an order," Zack stated. He pulled out the Buster Sword from his back and pressed it to his forehead, and Sera closed her eyes briefly while the rest watched in silence. "Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your SOLDIER honor." He glanced around. "Got it?"

"Sir!"

"We're all coming back here alive, you hear me?"

"Sir!"

Sera watched Zack as he raised his sword to the sky and she let out a small smirk, tilting her head to look at the sky. "Let's go."

'Angeal, are you watching?'