The Epsilon Project

"We're closing down the Epsilon Project."

The other members of the rebuilt Shinra Corporation stared at their current leader with dumbfounded expressions plastered on their faces.

"But why?" asked Elena, former Turk, who was head of the project he was speaking of.

"Its getting to be too costly." the man explained. "The extravagant spending you've been doing has forced me to..."

"Extravagant?! I've bought nothing for the project except what was neccessary."

"All that's neccessary is that you keep an eye on the project and make sure it doesn't decide to wander off."

"*It*?!" Elena nearly exploded. "*Him.* This is a human being we're talking about."

"He's a clone, Elena. A construct. Nothing more."

Elena was furious.

"No need to get your panties jumbled." the head of Shinra told her. "We've already removed the project."

"Where is he?" Elena demanded. "Damn it, he's just a little boy!"

"A little Sephiroth."

"A *powerless* little Sephiroth." Elena reminded him. "You withheld Sephiroth's powers from him. Only gave him the body."

The head of Shinra did not reply.

"Damn you." Elena swore as she stood up and departed from the conference room.

*****

Yuffie was leaning on the railing of the Highwind, feeling the familiar queasiness of vessel-sickness, when she spotted a figure in the snows below. It looked like a child.

"He'll freeze to death if he's left there all alone." She told herself. Without another thought, she leapt from the ship, realizing in mid-air how incredibly stupid this was. As she felt downward, she remembered the materia she'd stolen and cast a regeneration spell on herself. It would have to do, she decided as she crashed to the ground.

The regeneration spell worked, fortunately, and she cast a full-restore spell on herself to rid herself of all the broken bones and damaged organs.

Shaking her head, to clear it, she hurried over to the figure who was huddled in the cold snows. "Little boy?" she asked.

He looked up, his aquamarine eyes glistening with tears.

//He looks just like Sephiroth.// Yuffie thought to herself. //Well, that doesn't matter. Even if he is another Sephiroth, he has the right to live.//

"What's your name?" she asked.

"Sephiroth." the child stumbled over the name.

"I'm Yuffie." Yuffie told him. "Come on, I'll take you home and make you a nice hot meal. Okay?"

"No!" the child screamed in terror. "I don't wanna go home! Don't wanna!"

"I meant to my home." Yuffie explained.

Little Sephiroth stopped screaming and blinked. "Oh. Okay." he said.

(part 2)

Cloud went topside to see how Yuffie was doing. Alarmed to find her missing, he hurried back to the bridge. "Yuffie's gone." he said. "Cid, turn the ship around. Slow down and go low. Let's see if we can track her"

"Right." Cid agreed, turning the Highwind around and heading back on the same route they had come. "I'm not picking up anything." he said, apologetically.

"Try lower." Tifa suggested. "The cold might be interfering with the trace."

Cid brought the Highwind even lower.

"That's it! I've got a signal. No.. wait...two signals. She's with someone."

"I hope its Sephiroth." Cait Sith muttered.

"You *hope* its Sephiroth?!" Barret exploded. "Why? Do you think he's going to use his destructive powers to make a bonfire to keep her warm?!"

"I meant the new Sephiroth." Cait Sith explained.

"The *NEW* Sephiroth?!" Everyone demanded at once.

Cait Sith winced. "I've been spying on Shinra." he admitted. "I heard something about a Project Epsilon. They made a new clone. Completely powerless."

"Sephiroth Lite." Cid rolled his eyes.

"Go on." Cloud told Cait Sith.

"They wanted to make him mentally stable by depriving him of any power that might drive him mad and then introducing it into him later on in life. They felt that if the original Sephiroth had been created that way, he would've remained under their control. But things happened and they abandonned the project."

"And Sephiroth?" Tifa asked.

"They found the bug I planted so I don't know what happened to him." Cait Sith apologized. "I hope that's him Yuffie found."

"There's something you're not telling us about this new Sephiroth clone, isn't there?" Cloud asked.

Cait Sith did not reply.

Everyone leaned forward, expectantly.

"He's a child." Cait Sith finally revealed. "Literally, I mean. He's only about four years old."

Cloud turned to Cid. "Land as close as you can to Yuffie's location."

"Right." Cid nodded, landing only two feet away from Yuffie.

Yuffie was cradling the child in her arms. He'd finally succumbed to the freezing temperature and she was trying to warm him. She raced to the Highwind and ran aboard. "We need to get him warm."

"We will." Cloud nodded. "Let's head off to Casa Del Sol. We can stay in the Villa there. Its nice and warm and he's sure to recover."

"Great idea." Cid agreed. "I would't mind a few days vacation myself." He turned the Highwind in the direction of Casa Del Sol. "We're on our way." he told the others.

END PART 2