fic: living chemical child (ffvii/fma)

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Living Chemical Child
V. Philosophical Working.

Word Count: 1,419
Disclaimer: The title's definition is quoted from Bartlett's Real Alchemy.
Note: Disjointed philosophical and pseudo-scientific exposition.  At great length.  Because I can.  I'M SORRY I KNOW IT'S PRETENTIOUS BUT SOMETIMES MY BRAIN REGURGITATES STUFF LIKE THIS AND IT MADE SENSE IN THE STORY TO ME.  ;__;

V. Philosophical Working.

(n.): The Alchemist [believes] that by understanding Nature's
laws and applying them with Art, that it is possible to remove
hindrances to the evolutionary wave so that the energies of
life can predominate and lift the subject towards perfection.

They moved Cloud from the lab to one of the bedrooms on the first floor. It was a light, airy room overlooking one of the overgrown gardens, where the IV stands and monitors didn't seem quite so unnatural. Sephiroth had carried him while Zack carefully balanced all the tubes and bags, trying to keep them from getting tangled or yanked from under Cloud's skin. Cloud had been stripped of his clothes and then wrapped modestly in a sheet to make caring for his body easier.

Zack now sat on the bed with Cloud's hand in his, absently stroking the skin with a thumb as Sephiroth paced around the room.

"Alchemy is based on the premise that there is a prima materia," Sephiroth murmured, "and that this fundamental force naturally falls into duality, Celestial Salt and Celestial Niter."

"Two sides of the same coin," Zack provided, and Sephiroth nodded his head distractedly.

"From this duality come the four classical elements Earth, Fire, Water, and Air. But these aren't the elements we see in the physical world – no, they're more than that. They're essences, they're…foundations.

"And from these we have the three essentials of Salt, Sulfur, and Mercury. Body, Soul, Spirit. These three are manifestations of the four elements, and thus the duality, and ultimately the prima materia."

"Like a pyramid." When Sephiroth shot him a look, Zack raised a brow and said, "Non-alchemist here, I'm just calling it as I see it."

The general snorted and resumed pacing. "We have Cloud's body. Alive, which suggests that his spirit is still somehow connected to it. What's missing is his soul."

"How do you know it isn't the other way around?"

"The soul is bound to the body through the spirit, like an animal at the end of a leash. If the spirit was missing, then by default the soul would be as well. No, if Cloud's body is still living, then the spirit is still there."

"So what can take someone's soul?"

Sephiroth turned sharply on his heel and prowled back across the room. Though his face was neutral, his gloved hands were curled into fists. "The Gate," he said flatly. "Equivalent exchange demands that a price is paid for every transmutation, but the price of a soul is high. It would be connected to something as powerful and taboo as human transmutation."

"Hojo never seemed like the type to pay much attention to taboo."

"No," Sephiroth hissed. "Alchemy was designed to have three stages – separation, purification, and reunification. By putting a substance through this process, it would be evolved into a higher spiritual and physical vibration, make it just that little bit closer towards perfection. I have little doubt that Hojo would've been enchanted by the idea of bringing men to that pinnacle. He always did have a certain disdain for the natural human condition."

Judging from the tone in his voice, Zack had little doubt that if it was possible Sephiroth would be slowly killing Hojo all over again. "What do you mean?"

"Don't tell me you don't see it, Lieutenant," Sephiroth said coldly, stopping to turn and look at him with narrowed eyes. "I am a little too inhuman to be human. I've heard the whispers of soldiers debating which creatures Hojo used to create me, and I cannot blame them – "

"Oh, shut up, Sephiroth," Zack growled. "You are who you are, soul and spirit and, yes, that particular body. I know it, Cloud knows it, and ours are the only opinions that really matter in this instance. Maybe Hojo tinkered with your genetics, but so what? I'm rather fond of that hair of yours, and even though he'd never admit it I know for a fact that Cloud adores your eyes."

When Sephiroth opened his mouth to argue, Zack added, "So unless you're willing to question our intelligence, you better let this drop and just accept it."

Sephiroth hissed again as he resumed pacing, catlike.

"Now, if I was trying to raise a person's 'vibration' or whatever, what would that entail?" the soldier asked.

"Separation of the three essentials, their purification, and then recombining them. Theoretically, it would make a human…more human, in essence. Evolve them to the highest possible…humanness."

"…Very eloquent."

"It makes sense in Latin," Sephiroth returned, rather sulkily. "Or Greek, originally. Hojo often spoke of Jenova – "

"Who?"

Sephiroth waved a negligent hand. "The name is a corruption of Jehovah, which itself is a corruption of what is thought to be the true name of God. Why Hojo chose that particular version, I have no idea. The man was usually exact in his methodology, so for him to not use the closest approximation of the original Tetragrammaton – "

Zack nodded and pretended he knew what the general was going on about.

"But it lends credence to the idea that Hojo was attempting human transmutation on…on Cloud." He paused. "Particularly given the name that he chose for me."

"What?"

"My name is the plural of the ten aspects of God," Sephiroth explained. Zack knew him well enough to see the irritation at so much religious imagery, and at this point Sephiroth was nearly talking to himself as he paced around and around, long hair shifting in a somewhat distracting way. "Well, more than just that, technically, given that the virtues all have unholy counterparts, but the point remains that, philosophically speaking, someone who managed to actualize all the virtues would attain godhood. As much as a human can, that is.

"Names are powerful," he said, suddenly switching topics. "Matter, when reduced to less than its subatomic parts, becomes vibration and thus is merely the intersection of said vibrations – which means that the potential power of sound, of words, cannot be underestimated. It makes a beautiful sort of sense. Names give form to otherwise abstract concepts, gives them definition…so it's possible that using Cloud's name – or perhaps the unique vibratory pattern that links his body and soul? Would greatly increase our chances of success. Especially as alchemy itself functions on more than just a material level in the first place and so has some room for error in natural law.

"Then again, I may be confusing entirely separate concepts."

"…Okay," said Zack. Despite the seriousness of the situation, he was having to suppress a smile.

"The circle that Hojo used was unfamiliar to me," and yes, the general had retreated so far into his musings that he'd completely forgotten the rest of the bedroom. Zack focused on the warmth he could feel from Cloud's hand, the steady pulse at the thin wrist, and the sight of Sephiroth in plain shirtsleeves and slacks rambling about metaphysics. "And he used blood, which is powerful. Salt of the body, Sulfur of the passions, Mercury of the life-force. But the theory is sound. He must have been in the second stage of the process when he was interrupted and so the three essentials were separated, but not fully purified nor recombined."

"So…can't we recombine them?"

"No. Transmutation on this level…human-animal chimera have been experimented with, but never something like this. This is…this is an atrocity, pure and simple. A violation at every level of a person's existence. The alchemist is meant to evolve himself alongside his work as he masters his art, but this - ! Zack, this would be me reaching into the deepest layer of your being and molding it against what nature intended."

"Maybe, but the difference here," Zack said quietly, "is that I would trust you to do it."

Sephiroth stared at him as though he'd suddenly become a chimera himself, but Zack just smiled crookedly. "I know none of us say them that often, but the words 'I love you' aren't just the result of some mind-blowing orgasms, y'know. If it were me in Cloud's position right now, I'd be standing around wherever he is and wondering what the hell was taking you so long."

I know life has done a number on you, Sephiroth, but don't break on me now.

"After everything I've done," the general asked, "you would trust me with something like this?"

"Yes."

Well, that was rather hard to argue with.

"I…all right. Yes."

Comments

[jukeboxhound.livejournal.com]

I'm so entertained that you nailed some of the scenarios that I was happily IM-ing to artimusdin. <3

[shiri-matakami.livejournal.com]

Our brains work at similar wave lengths it seems. Or we are just Special in the same way.

<3