((Because everyone knows he's been poltergeisting around anyway, you can have his ghosting posts in his journal now. Got to use his journal time while it's still here. :/ Already wasted three months))

It's always interesting to see where one's conscious puts them when one has enough mind to separate themself from the lifestream and hivemind enough to manifest. He rather wishes he could feel the Jenova bloodline easier, something like he used to so that he might be able to find his brothers. It's an ultimately useless wish, but he can't help it. When he isn't awoken around them or they don't happen by, he doesn't find them.

He's outside Midgar today, eying the ruins he and Sephiroth fought over. Something seems unusual about them, but he can't place what-- maybe something like a voice in the back of his mind that's a bit louder than the mass consciouses he knows. He's not close enough to investigate them and he's not entirely fond of walking the grounds where he had almost met death the first time. Still, something bothers him about the grounds enough that he turns away and begins heading for one of the Nexus jump portals he's aware of. Maybe his memory will hold out long enough to let him remember somewhere interesting to go.

The contamination of Midgar was finally done.

Kadaj strains to keep his focus as he returns from the city, pain sparking his vision white. It was some miracle when he finally pulled up next to the other bikes, turning off the engine and ungracefully half-sliding, half-falling off the bike. He steadies himself against the bike frame, trying desperately to catch his breath as he heads up to the house. He just needed sleep. That was all. The burning skin, the tight chest, the lack of air- it was all stress. Just stress.

He swings open the front door, pulling it shut behind him as he heads for his room, using furniture to keep his balance as he passes the living room into the hallway. Suddenly a hand snaps out to try to catch himself against the wall, his legs giving out under him, collapsing him to the ground with one hand clawing at his chest.

Terror. Pure unadulterated terror. Something was wrong. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't move. PAIN.

Kadaj blinks groggily before eyes opening fully, realizing he shouldn't be groggy because he shouldn't be asleep. He sits up sharply, disoriented and rather alarmed. One hand snaps up to press over one eye, cupping half of his face. If he knew what one was, he might describe this as feeling like a particularly nasty hangover. His arm burns and he finds his lungs are aching furiously- he can't seem to catch his breath. The youngest sighs, resting his head against the wall, letting the hand on his face drop to rest on his chest.

Surely it was just stress. He pushes himself out of his bed, heading for his closet. He needed armor... and where has his souba been put? It had to be cleaned. He needed to return to Midgar as soon as he could-- the upper plate hadn't been properly introduced to Geostigma yet, and Mother was an impatient person. There would be no risking her wrath after what he had done for Yazoo.

There was no time to consider the exiled or the dead. A soldier would always continue advancing.

((I'm sharing Funker Vogt. My FTP expired, so you'll have to hope I can send it through IM if you'd like any))

Kadaj gets home and kills the engine on his bike before groaning and folding his arms, laying against it with a malcontent moan. His strings to his puppet have been severed, one of his wayward brothers had managed to best him, and he feels like hell-- the cells still haven't finished with the poison in his system. He wants to eat and sleep but it's more important to find Yazoo. The mental barrier had the faintest hints of a jenovite signature- but surely his brother wouldn't act against him. And... what could brother possibly want with ShinRa admittance? He mentally scans the presences in the near area, noting that Yazoo is, in fact, missing. That was far from reassuring.

He turns his head, extending out the mental reach to find his brother. He's not even in the Midgar/Edge area. He does, finally, catch hint of his brother somewhere in Junon. Well, there's never rest for the wicked. He mentally taps any/all brothers in the midgar/house region, informing them all that he'll bet out for an undetermined amount of time. He then gently informs mother that he'll be in Junon and will return for her command as soon as possible. With that Kadaj turns the engine back on, shaking out his muscles before kicking off. It will be a fairly long drive.

--------

It's late morning when Kadaj pulls his bike up in front of the hotel he's tracked Yazoo to. He spares no time [rather ungracefully] slipping off his bike and tracking Yazoo to his room. Knocking on the door seems to get no response so he pulls out the picks he always seems to have, carefully tripping the lock and swinging the door open. He leans against the wall a moment before striding inside the room.

Kadaj shuts of the engine of his bike, sitting on it for a few moments before turning his attention towards the house. He slides off the bike, resting his hand on his left arm gingerly as he strides for the house. It was an unwelcome and unappreciated familiarity. There was no physically visible presence- perhaps it was just strained muscles. He had been doing a great deal for mother lately. Spreading, cultivating, manipulating geostigma in the people suited for it, encouraging it to mutate and spread own it's own. No easy task by any means. Still, Mother had demanded control and he would give it to her.

He drops his hand away, flinching slightly but heading inside, going immediately for the kitchen. How long had it been since he had eaten?

Kadaj doesn't seem to be coming home tonight. How strange.
Of course, if the mental connection is checked, he's very much alive and in no obvious trouble.

((Edit: And thank you for the six months of journal time and user pictures. We are highly pleased.))

My goddess.

Once Mother has tired of questioning, the youngest quickly makes an escape to his room. He has no intent on staying around if it might irritate Mother. Her presence reminds him all too clearly of the rejection of her predecessor, and he's not quick to suffer it again. In fact, he's still doing his best to remain comfortably in denial.

Once safe in his room he shuts the door, not locking it, heading to his bed and curling up on it, back to the wall. He shucks off the chest armor and picks up the book off his nightstand, turning on the lamp. He'll keep himself entertained by staying out of the way and reading. In fact, he may make his way outside shortly, just to make himself even more scare.

Skittish around mother-types? Very much so.

And questioning? There would be NO questioning of this mother. Not of her coming, of her intent. Not of the shocks of pain when she touches him. Not of his former mother. Was there ever a former mother? ... perhaps not. Perhaps this has been Mother all along. Rejection was just a vicious and unsettling nightmare.

The youngest winces and pulls back his sleeve, looking at the bandages. He hisses slightly, rubbing his forearm tenderly before mumbling mostly to himself. "Hurts more than usual. Not healing right..."

He frowns and tugs his sleeve down, muttering a curse in the general direction of the other Kadaj before setting on returning to making User as miserable as he possibly can.