Warm, sticky blood gurgled forth from the wound gleaming on the tip of the blade protruding from his chest. His body convulsed in writhing spasms as his final bursts of instinct clung to fleeting moments. His cerulean eyes, wide with pain and shock, began to glaze over as breath became shallower with each pitiful gasp. A strangled cry of rage tore itself from the other and the chorus of gunfire thundered over the roar of battle. A silence settled over the bloody tomb, an eerie and impenetrable silence threatening to swallow those who uttered a sound. Cid defied the silence, gasping and coughing up the blood pooling in his mouth. Beside him Vincent crumpled to his knees, cradling the volatile blonde in his arms, pushing back stray strands of hair plastered to his face.
He tore the shirt off and carefully dislodged the blade, pressing the bloody cloth to the wound in a futile attempt to stanch the flow. He wasn't willing to admit was Cid had already accepted. Calloused fingers brushed weakly against Vincent's cheeks, leaving behind angry red streaks. He grasped the other's hand and laced their fingers, trying to bring himself to admit the inevitable. The dying should have been terrified, paralyzed by fear and the prospect of death as he watched the life slowly slip through his fingers to seep back into the earth and nourish the planet from whence he came. Yet he felt no such thing. It wasn't his style to fear that which he knew would be pointless in fearing. Death was the only guarenteed thing in life. Fearing it brought only a wasted existence, terrified of the slightest thing that might endanger the pathetic length of time bestowed upon man at birth. He certainly was not the most cautious of people, even after thirty-something years of life he never saw any good come from letting life pass him by. He, in turn, lived his life to its fullest and he supposed this knowledge was what comforted him in the face of his demise.
"Hey.. stop cryin' ya big baby." he weakly brushed away a fat tear tracing down the other's bloody cheek.
"D-Don't speak.. you'll be okay. You will be okay, please!" A meager excuse for a hearty chuckle gagged the dying man. Never before had Vincent ever been nauseous at the sight of blood but now, as it trickled from his beloved's mouth and pumped from his chest in steady streams he wanted to vomit. How could Cid laugh when his death was blown so plainly before him, crystalline and fragile glass slowly cracking under the pressure of the end? He shouldn't have been so surprised, he mused. It wasn't Cid's style.
"Got myself good, huh?" Cid whispered, his clammy hand grasping Vincent's warmth. Vincent pressed the hand to his chest, kissing the tip of each finger, the bittersweet taste of the other's blood lingering no his lips.
"You did.." he agreed reluctantly.
"Don't cry babe." slowly the other's eyes slid shut. "Do one more thing for me?"
Vincent nodded vigorously, "Anything." They had been through so much together. Endured every challenge life shoved them into. The concept that Cid, a seemingly invincible figure, a steady hand on his shoulder, a ray of light piercing through the gloomy darkness was dying in his arms seemed almost surreal. It was so sudden it didn't register as actuality. These twisted emotions knotting themselves around his stomach were just nightmares he would wake from and beside him on the soft pillow would be the face of his beloved pilot at ease in sleep after their lovemaking. The onset of regret and loneliness carved deeper into his heart, wrenching free another fresh wave of tears. Never again would he hear the rough, southern drawl sweeter than any songbird's symphony. Never again would he feel those rough hands or pouty lips. Never would he see the deep wisdom in the bottomless oceanic eyes or feel love grace his broken heart.
"Kiss me?" Vincent leaned in and obliged his lover's last wish, blood mingling with the sour bite of tobacco. He felt the other's body tighten as the muscle grew rigid and death finally stole away his last grains of sand.
"Cid!"
"Vincent.. I love ya.. I'll..be waiting.." Vincent ripped free the cold steel from it's holster at his side, putting the muzzle to his head. What reason did he have to live now? Everything and everyone he'd ever loved and cherished had withered before his eyes to rejoin with the planet. He knew when he crossed to the other side Cid would be standing there, maybe even with Lucrecia, the two tapping their feet and shaking their heads. He would get the riot act but he was prepared to confront the consequences. His other hand laced with Cid's fingers and he placed one more kiss on the chilled lips before whispering his final words to the winds.
"I love you too..."