Down the Barrel-.

Cloud gently laid Vincent against the cave wall, cursing himself the whole while. He should anticipated an attack in this area. They'd had so few attacks lately that he'd let his guard down. And now Vincent was suffering for it. Cloud still couldn't believe that the gunman could move so fast. One minute Cloud was about to be monster mash, and the next Vincent was in front of him, taking the blow while he blew the monster into oblivion. Now the ex-Turks claw was in tatters, and he was bleeding from deep slash marks across his chest and neck. Cloud's sword was buried in whatever monster had tried to attack the unconscious gunman, and now he was unarmed and hiding from a pack of roaming creepys. Finding the cave had been a spur of luck that was currently keeping the two of them alive. But the scent of blood would bring the beasts to them soon, and the blond needed a plan.

"..Cloud?" The ex-SOLDIER quickly knelt down next to the gunman, propping him up against his chest and holding a water bottle to his lips.

"I'm here, Vincent. Don't move, your wounds will reopen."

"Where ..are we?" The ex-turk's voice was quiet, more whispered than spoken. Cloud could see pain written clearly in the man's red eyes, try though he might to hide it. Vincent was fading fast, and Cloud hadn't thought to bring any Cure materia. It had supposed to have been just a scouting mission, and Cloud had chosen Vincent because he was fast and was the only one who'd had training on the art of scouting and patrolling.

"We're in a cave. Actually, it's more of a hole in the ground, but it should do for now. Cid and the others will come as soon as we turn up late. Vincent, you really need to drink."

Vincent complied, taking a few swallows of water before letting his head fall forward against his chest and closing his eyes. Cloud laid the gunman against the wall again, creeping to the mouth of the cave. All the blond had by way of materia was a Fire and a Lightening, neither of which were his best, nor his most powerful. The rest were back on the Highwind, and out of his reach. Maybe he should run and get help. It was only an hour back to the Highwind, and he could shave 20 minutes off by going as the crow flies…

Cloud crept back to where the gunman was resting, guilt eating away at him. How could he even think about abandoning Vincent? The man had saved his life by almost sacrificing his own. The blond reached down and gently shook the other man awake, casting a glance behind him. No monsters yet. That was a good sign. Maybe they had found a more delectable prey. Maybe. But with the massive bloodstain leading to their hiding place, Cloud doubted it. No, they had two options: stay and fight, or run and probably fight anyway. From the look of things, the blond was leaning toward the latter.

"….What's...what's happening?"

"We've got to get out of here. If they find us in our current location, we're monster chow."

Vincent nodded, struggling to stand. His strength was gone, however; with an ill disguised gasp he slid to the floor. Blood was flowing freely from his wounds, and Cloud quickly knelt next to him. The blond gently slipped his arms underneath Vincent, picking up the much lighter man with ease.

"Cloud, what are you…"

"I'm sorry, Vincent, but we need to get out of here. Try and go back to sleep."

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Cloud made better time than he'd hoped for, but it wasn't long before he heard the snarls behind him. The creature's were gaining fast, and the blond quickly set Vincent down behind him. He had to hope that the monsters weren't too bent on eating them, and that help would come soon. He squared his shoulders, prepared to tackle the monsters at soon as they got in range.

"Cloud… that's...suicide. Here…" Vincent thrust Death Penalty into the swordsman's hands. "It's better than nothing."

Cloud clutched the rifle, astonished by both it's weight and the fact that he was holding it. "..Vince…I don't know how to shoot!"

"Aim…your target…in between the notches….end of the barrel… When they're lined up…pull the trigger. Seven rounds...more in handle…"

Cloud was about to ask what he meant by 'in the handle' when the first monster charged. The blond swung the rifle up, took aim, and pulled the trigger. The repercussions almost knocked him over, but one shot had killed the monster. The others were wary now, and made a large circle around the two warriors. Cloud counted eight of them, all told, which made him nervous. He only had six shots left, and while Vincent could reload in the blink of an eye, Cloud wasn't even sure where to start. He could only hope that any monsters left alive when he ran out of bullets would run off.

Another cretin decided to try it's luck, and Cloud fired again. The buster sword may have been the most efficient sword for him, but death penalty was amazing. No matter where the bullet struck, it always seemed to take out his target. Three monsters were left now, and Cloud was on his last round. He took a deep breath, aimed at the biggest one, and pulled the trigger. Nothing. He'd miscounted, or Vincent had miscounted, but even as he pulled the trigger again the chamber shot dry. He couldn't attack the creatures without bullets. Frantically he sought out the extra rounds Vincent had told him about, almost dropping the gold tipped bullets when he found them. Alright, Vincent always opened the chamber, fed the bullets, closed the chamber…Cloud tried to feed the bullets as fast as he could, but it wasn't enough. Before he could get the barrel closed, the monsters rushed him at once. Cloud dodged the first set of claws, and closed his eyes against the attack that would take his life. He couldn't avoid it at this range… didn't have time to shoot…

A gunshot, and the monster fell dead. In that second Cloud closed the chamber and shot the next monster. He was dimly aware of Vincent dropping Cerberus with a bloody cough, but his attention was all on getting the last monster. One shot killed it, and six more ensured it's demise. Cloud watched in elation for a second, then blanched and spun around. Vincent lay on his stomach, pale lips coated with blood. His eyes were closed, and the still smoking Cerberus pistol lay touching his hand. The blond quickly tucked Death Penalty into his sword belt, gently put Cerberus back in Vincent's leg holster and scooped the gunman up again. He was running on sheer adrenaline now, but all that mattered was that the man in his arms was growing paler with every minute. If he didn't make it back to the 'Highwind' soon, Vincent wasn't going to make it. So he ran harder and faster than he ever believed possible, not stopping until he pelted into the airship.

"Tifa! Aeris! Help, quick!"