Chapter Five:

Something Evil This Way Comes

((Author's Note: This one is for the readers who didn't give up on me and kept following my Facebook page or checking here for updates over the last two years. Also, to the friends who have encouraged me and assured me I would write again. Thank you, guys, so very much! With love and gratitude, ~ JenesisX))

Vincent kept his eyes on his boots as he followed their small group, traveling eastward toward the unknown entities. It was about three in the afternoon, two hours before his regular shift would have begun, and the sun was still painfully bright. He couldn't wait until winter arrived with its shorter days and long hours of blissful darkness. He would always choose to be cold over sweltering beneath that damn ball of fire, had been that way even before the experiment changed him. He was fairly sure Costa Del Sol was hell on earth.

Vincent tried to tune out Yuffie and Reno's juvenile bantering, sighing quietly to himself. He must truly enjoy punishment. That was the only explanation for allowing Reno to come along, and then Yuffie as well. She'd spotted the group on their way out of the base and quickly attached herself to them, claiming boredom and a desperate need for an adventure. Cloud initially ordered her back to her post, but Vincent inexplicably found himself overruling him as her direct supervisor. Yuffie had appeared comically surprised for a moment before her face split into a wide grin. Then she'd hugged him. Vincent shuddered at the memory. He welcomed any and all contact from Lucrecia, and he'd adjusted to Aeris hugging him now and then, but as far as he was concerned everyone else could keep their hands to themselves. Thankfully he freaked people out enough that most would never dream of actually touching him.

They were soon just over halfway to the target location, the ground slowly becoming more rocky and uneven as they neared the closest eastern mountain range. The tallest peaks visible on the horizon were already capped with fresh snow. Vincent had been out to the area before while taking care of some local monsters with Sephiroth. He seemed to recall there being a small graveyard almost directly where the dots had originally appeared. It was probably unrelated, but for some reason he felt like it might be important. Reno's theory that something had come out of a cave nearby was quite reasonable, however, as there were several sizable ones in the area. They'd never sent anyone inside them to see if they were occupied, after all, and now Vincent wondered if maybe they should have.

He briefly closed his aching eyes, wishing he had braved the inevitable laughter and commentary and worn the damn sunglasses after all. Being blinded in a possible fight was not the best idea he'd ever had, and a headache was steady developing at his temples. Lucrecia was so thoughtful to buy them for him, and he vowed to wear them next time he was out in the sun. Who cared what anyone thought of him aside from his wife, who told him he looked like a sexy movie star. He knew she really meant it, too, which still blew his mind.

"I hope it's monsters! Lots and lots of monsters!" Yuffie was saying, practically bouncing up and down at Reno's side. Vincent could not recall ever being so young and full of energy.

"I could use a good battle," Reno agreed, twirling his borrowed spear like a baton. "This better not just be insects or birds or some lame shit like that."

"Those can be vicious, though! And really, really gross!" Yuffie argued, her volume gradually rising as she broke into a story of a battle with a giant spider. Vincent winced, cursing his overly sensitive hearing. The young ninja's voice was the perfect pitch to make his eardrums pound even when she wasn't shouting. The only thing worse was that he could always smell her pink bubble gum, something he found nauseating and loud. It really was too bad that she'd chosen to latch onto him like he was some sort of father figure…. though he had to admit he was grateful for her friendship. Not that he would ever tell her that.

"Hopefully it's not anything like that," Cloud interrupted with mild irritation, shaking his head as he looked back at the pair. "We should all be hoping it's nothing but a sensor malfunction that Cid can fix."

"My fucking sensors don't usually malfunction, though," Cid replied a bit defensively. "But I guess it's possible with as rushed as we were getting everything set up. The parts available were a bit limited and outdated, too. Thankfully, I'm a goddamn genius."

"Modest as well," Sephiroth dry-panned.

"Damn right!"

"We'll be in the area shortly," Cloud continued, lifting a hand to shield his eyes and peering into the distance. "If this really is something dangerous, we're going to have to be on our toes."

Sephiroth nodded his agreement, absently touching the hilt of his sword as if making sure it was still there. Vincent often did the same with his gun, a subconscious act of comfort. Even as he watched his son, his own hand absently slipped inside his long cloak to brush over the cool metal butt of his favorite three-barreled weapon. He had other weapons in the event they were needed, too… although he really hated it when the most deadly of them overtook him and fought in his place.

"I'm always ready for action," Yuffie said, spinning her shuriken over her head and throwing a high kick into the air. Reno looked like he really wanted to trip her but thought better of it. Instead, he inexplicably slowed his pace a bit until he was at Vincent's side, an odd expression on his scarred face.

What does the pest want with me now?

"Hey, man," Reno said when Vincent finally turned to acknowledge him, his voice oddly hesitant. "Just wanted to say thanks for taking up for me and letting me come along. That was cool of you."

Vincent arched an eyebrow, genuinely surprised by the sincerity in redhead's blue eyes. That was absolutely not what he'd expected the other man to say. He finally got over his shock and nodded before lowering his eyes back to the ground.

"You are a highly skilled fighter, and I have a feeling we are about to make good use of you," Vincent said in his usual near-monotone. "See that you don't make me regret my decision."

"Understood," Reno said firmly, as if addressing a superior. Which, in his situation, he was. "I'll make you very glad I'm here if there's a battle."

Yuffie suddenly laughed, having overheard at least part of the exchange. "Hey, guys! Reno is kissing Vinny's pasty ass! Reno just loooooves Vinny! Maybe he wants to be Mister Valentine, haha!"

"Sadly, I am spoken for," Vincent quipped, realizing it would be a waste of breath to bother correcting her, for thousandth time, about the butchering of his name.

"And how the fuck do you know what his ass looks like, anyway?" Cid asked, raising both eyebrows at her.

"Fuck you, punk!" Reno exclaimed at the same time, grabbing for Yuffie as she leaped away laughing and circled around to hide behind Sephiroth. "When I catch you, I'm going to spank you so hard!"

"Kinky," Cid remarked as he lit a cigarette, throwing the butt of his previous one to the ground. Sephiroth immediately bent over and picked it up, tapping a surprised Cid on the shoulder and holding it out to him in one gloved hand.

"Do not litter," he said, his green Mako eyes burning into the former pilot. "It hurts Aeris."

Cid stared at the offered piece of trash and seemed ready to refuse, but then caught the unspoken threat in the bigger man's words. He sighed, but did reach out and accept the butt, jamming it into a back pocket with a snort.

Good. I did not feel like preventing Sephiroth from killing him…

Reno continued to chase Yuffie around the group and through the few thick trees in the area. Vincent did his best to ignore his threats and her shrieks, rolling his eyes heavenward for strength. Children. He absently wondered if he should have suggested bringing Marlene Wallace instead. At least she was polite.

When Vincent next looked up and shielded his eyes, what he saw in the distance made him stop dead in his tracks. His eyes widened, taking in the tiny forms that had just come into his enhanced range of vision. What in the hells was out there? Chaos' instincts flared to life inside his mind, the demon recognizing impending danger before Vincent could make a determination. He'd recently learned to work with Chaos to an extent, however. and the one thing he trusted was the creature's strong survival instincts and senses.

"Stop for a moment," Vincent commanded, raising his voice past its usual near-whisper. Everyone instantly did as he said, even Reno and Yuffie off to the side mid-chase. They all knew that Vincent did not waste words or raise his voice unless he had a very good reason.

"Can you see what's ahead?" Cloud asked with some surprise, frowning and wrinkling his brow as he stared into the distance. Vincent knew there was no way he could see a thing yet. If anyone could even come close to matching his enhanced eyesight, it was Sephiroth. But his son was also frowning and squinting.

"Somewhat…" Vincent answered with a bit of hesitation, not entirely sure what he was actually looking at. Whatever it was had just entered his maximum visual range, and the sun was wrecking havoc on his photophobic eyes. "They are only barely visible to me."

"Fill us in anyway," Cid coaxed, turning to face him. "We ain't all got super eyes."

"I see…" Vincent paused, unconsciously cocking his head to the right as he always did when relying on Chaos' senses and instincts. "…many moving forms coming directly towards us." Vincent's frown of concentration grew as the mob continued to approach, and he did not like what he thought he saw next.

"Is it that bad?" Cloud asked, watching him closely. Vincent wasn't sure how to answer at first, or if he was possibly seeing things because of the sunlight. But a moment later, he was almost positive. And it was indeed 'that bad.'

"These creatures appear… varied to a degree, not all the same size or form. And… many of them appear demonic in nature." Vincent swallowed hard, hating to speak the hated word aloud. Deep inside his mind, Chaos laughed maliciously.

"Demonic? How can you tell?" Yuffie asked, coming to stand at his side. She'd finally entered serious mode, all joking cast aside for the moment. Perhaps she was maturing after all. "Although…. I guess if anyone would know, it'd be you, huh?"

"I see… what looks like wings on many of them," Vincent elaborated, choosing to ignore Yuffie's last remark. He squinted a bit as he continued to watch them move closer, noticing more details by the second. "Possibly horns as well. And that one off to the right definitely has a tail."

"What the fuck?" Cid swore, his brow wrinkling beneath his pilot goggles. "There have never been demons in this area before. Mutated wildlife and some other nasty locals, but nothing like that."

"That we knew of," Sephiroth pointed out. "If Reno is correct and these creatures have indeed been living inside a cave, we may have never realized they were there until they decided to show themselves."

"How many are there, give or take?" Reno asked, standing very still with his blue eyes trained on the horizon. His posture reminded Vincent of the intense training all Turks underwent. Reno was alert and curious, but calm and prepared for anything. Vincent knew then it had been wise to trust his former enemy. The other man seemed hyperactive and clownish most of the time, but Reno had thrown the switch into mission mode the moment there was potential danger in sight. There was a reason he'd been Tseng's second in command, after all.

"I estimate… three dozen," Vincent told them after a quick headcount. "But keep in mind others may still be out of my range. The sun also makes this very difficult for me." His eyes were now tearing down his cheeks from staring into the brightness, and he impatiently lifted his right hand to wipe them away.

"I see them now, too," Sephiroth announced a short time later. "There are indeed many of them. And some appear quite large if the trees nearby are any indication."

"Yes," Vincent agreed with a nod, glad someone else could now offer an opinion. "Some could be well over seven feet tall. Keep in mind the size of Chaos."

"Shit," swore Cloud, drawing his wide sword. "We might be dealing with three dozen of Chaos?!"

"I take it that's really, really horrible?" Reno asked, arching a red eyebrow. He'd never seen Chaos for himself after all, and Vincent imagined what information the former Turks had managed to pull out of Yuffie was on the vague side. None of them had ever seen him transform, and Vincent hoped it stayed that way.

"They could be similar to it," Vincent told their leader after considering for a moment. "But there are others among them that are smaller and humanoid in appearance… at least from what I can tell at this distance."

"Erm…" Cloud thought out loud, a puzzled frown on his face. "What the hell?"

"Well, we ain't accomplishing anything standing around fucking talking. Let's get a closer look, eh, kids?" Cid suggested, gesturing toward the creatures with his spear point. "I think we can assume they're not heading our way to share some goddamn tea over a polite chat."

Everyone quickly agreed, and the group began to move forward again. Vincent was very glad he had contacted Sephiroth to join them, as it was quite clear they were about to need his swordsmanship and powerful magic. He had quite a few very potent abilities, and together Vincent and his son were a force to be reckoned with even without backup. But he was definitely glad to have their companions along now they he had a better idea what they were up against. Cloud was a skilled swordsman and solid leader, Reno was both crafty and lethal, and Cid was surprisingly competent combining his spear with his love of dirty fighting. Yuffie was young and deceptively small, but she was a highly skilled martial artist, and her skill with a shuriken was impressive at both close range and when she threw it like a deadly boomerang. They were going to need every advantage they could find if what he saw coming toward them was any indication.

Vincent continued to closely watch the horizon as the group moved ahead, and he definitely didn't like what was developing. He could clearly see the outline of large wings on some of the creatures, sharp horns on others, sometimes both. But there were definitely humanlike beings mixed in throughout the pack. They were smaller and did not have any extra appendages, but they traveled among the demonic beings as if they belonged there. He informed the rest of his party of what he was witnessing as new details became available, frowning to himself with concern. This just did not seem right. And whatever it was put Chaos in an uproar.

Vincent's headache grew steadily worse as the demon began to throw his influence around, doing his best to slam the lid on its desire to break free. Oddly enough, it almost felt as if the demon was… worried? It was something he'd never experienced before, and that alone put him on guard. Anything new with Chaos could not possibly be a good thing.

"I didn't think demons tended to hang in packs or whatever you call a shit-ton of them," Reno was saying when Vincent was able to shake off the demon's increasingly loud thoughts and tune back in to the conversation. "I can sort of see them now, but I can't make out any real details yet."

"You are correct. Most demons are solitary creatures, though a few types live in small groups and hunt together," Sephiroth said. "What is stranger is the humanoid beings traveling with them."

"Yeah, that's seriously fucked up," Cid agreed, pocketing another cigarette butt to avoid the wrath of Sephiroth. Reno's sneaky littering had remained unnoticed by the former general, but Vincent couldn't spare the energy to give him up. "Demons that size usually dine on humans and large mammals, right?. So what the hell are those guys doing traveling with them? Providing dinner on the go or some freaky shit?"

"I did not say they were human," Vincent clarified, shaking his head to remove the hair hanging into his eyes. "Humanoid could be a number of different species."

"Still fucking weird."

"Agreed."

A few minutes later, Vincent knew the exact moment the creatures were visible to the others in enough detail to have an impact. They was a sharp, collective intake of breath, and the group came to a halt en mass.

"Holy shit," Yuffie said quietly, her dark eyes gone wide. "You guys weren't kidding!"

"Hot damn, battle time!" Reno exclaimed, jabbing his spear in the air experimentally. He frowned as if unsatisfied, then shrugged to himself as if accepting his fate.

"Form up!" Cloud commanded a moment later. Everyone drew their weapons and took up a triangular attack pattern. Sephiroth took the point since he was the strongest melee fighter they had, with Cid and Cloud lined up just behind and to either side of him. They were followed by Reno and Yuffie, and Vincent brought up the rear since he was the only entirely long ranged fighter. Not that he couldn't fight hand to hand battle if need be.

"I think they've seen us," Vincent said, checking his gun one more time. "I can hear them, though they are not using any language I know. Or perhaps any true language at all. But they sound… excited." Chaos' thoughts had rapidly grown more insistent as they came closer to the mob, and as they watched them approaching Vincent could have sworn he heard a single word echoing around inside his skull.

"FLEE!"

What the hell, now Chaos was afraid of a fight? Since when? Vincent frowned, annoyed, and focused hard on quieting the creature. He needed to be able to focus without the damn demon struggling against him.

"Forget it," Vincent snapped, realizing he'd spoken aloud when everyone turned to look at him. He silently shook his head at their questioning stares, pulling his gun from its holster and focusing on it to avoid having to explain himself. Thankfully, no one pried.

"All right, let's stay here for now and wait to see what they do when they're closer," Cloud said. "If they're peaceful and not interested in a fight, I don't want to go running up there attacking for no reason."

"This is a good area to defend as well," Sephiroth agreed after briefly studying the immediate area. "We have enough room to maneuver, and there are still enough trees and boulders about to cover the ranged fighters."

"Of which I ought to be one," Reno muttered. "I'll stick you with the fucking pointy end…"

Cid rolled his eyes, roughly clapped Reno on the shoulder. "You've got this, Turk. Once you go spear, you never go back!"

"Whatever, man."

Vincent kept his eyes focused ahead, using all his self control to shove Chaos into the background so he could concentrate. The demon was restless, roaring his protest as he was forcefully suppressed. Vincent was not going to endanger any of his teammates' lives because he was distracted by his unwanted companion. And the last thing he wanted to do was leave Lucrecia a widow.

"They are armed," Vincent said quietly, surprised by the discovery. "Some of them, at least. Crude clubs made from tree limbs for the most part."

"Which hints at at least partial sentience," Cid mumbled, smoking a last cigarette before battle. "Creepy."

"It is only the ones who appear humanoid with the weapons," Sephiroth added, and Vincent realized he was correct. The demons had wings with sharp talons, long claws, sharp teeth and deadly horns. They had no need for any other weapon. The humanoid members were not only carrying various blunt instruments, but most were also wearing the ragged remains of filthy clothing.

What the hell….? Since when do monsters possess modesty?

Suddenly, the entire mass stopped moving as one, only about a hundred and fifty yards away. The volume of their varying sounds greatly increased at the same time, followed by a loud chorus of roars that echoed through the valley. And then they all began moving forward again, much faster than they had before. It was an unmistakably hostile act, and Vincent tensed as he prepared for a long fight.

"Um, they're coming!" Yuffie said, nervously shifting from foot to foot. She no longer seemed quite so eager to march into battle.

"This is gonna be an epic throw down, yo!" Reno exclaimed with continued enthusiasm, dropping into a loose martial arts stance. "They don't sound real happy to see us."

"Get ready!" Cloud shouted, dropping into a stance of his own to the right and slightly behind Sephiroth. The bigger man was a lefty like his mother while Cloud was right-handed, their positioning giving each the room he needed without interfering with the other. Cid got into position on Sephiroth's other side, and Reno moved to stand beside Yuffie behind them. Vincent quickly scanned the area again and decided on the best spot for a gunman. Satisfied, he waited for the order to move ahead.

Chaos briefly roared inside his again head and tried to get him to turn around and head the other way. Vincent frowned hard, fighting to squash the unexpected instinct. There was no way he was going to let the demon convince him to abandon his teammates.

What the hell is wrong with you today? he demanded of the creature that possessed him, remembering not to speak aloud this time. Chaos had no reply. Vincent was relieved, hoping the creature was finished bothering him. Now was not the time.

As the giant mass of creatures came within fifty yards, they paused again, a chorus of roars and screeches rising into the air as they stared down Vincent's group. Their volume made his ears pound, and he winced involuntarily. There had to be close to fifty of them, and Vincent's burning eyes widened as he finally got a really good look at the 'humanoid' members of the pack.

"Holy shit, I was right!" Reno exclaimed a moment later, though he didn't sound happy about it. "Zombies!"

"Oh my gods," Yuffie whispered, lifting a small hand to her mouth. "We're all gonna die!"

"Well… uh…" Cloud stammered, blinking rapidly, "I have no idea what to say."

"Son of a bitch," Cid muttered. "This is unreal… Dammit, Reno."

Vincent had seen a lot of things in his life, but this was like nothing else. As he took a close look at the mob, he saw that all of them appeared to be injured in various ways, humanoids and demons alike. Some were missing entire limbs or had open, oozing wounds, ruined eyes, and other serious injuries. Many were limping or had useless arms hanging at their sides. A few were nothing but torsos crawling across the ground. Their skin was collectively grayish and sloughing off in places…. as if they were rotting. And the smell… Vincent was glad he didn't need to eat very often, or he might have pulled a Yuffie and vomited. It was so overpowering that he knew he'd never forget the odor as long as he lived.

The demons appeared sluggish and dazed even while they sized up the small group as potential prey. Another round of roaring and ungodly screaming followed, and then the entire group was moving toward them as fast as they could in their condition. A battle, it seemed, was about to begin.

Sephiroth held his right hand up in the air at the front of the group, palm open and facing outward. "On my command!" he calmly ordered, Masamune held in his dominate left hand. Vincent felt a momentary rush of pride and admiration for his son, still amazed that he and Lucrecia actually had a child together. Sephiroth's raised hand began to glow, and Vincent knew he was channeling a powerful spell for their opening salvo.

The magical glow grew steadily brighter, and Vincent quickly felt the power gathering around them. The air was electric with it, and he could smell the magic being channeled. The energy pooled around his son's hand until it was shining so brightly Vincent had to avert his eyes. Seconds later there was a deafening roar as a huge ball of fire formed in the sky and streaked downward, slamming home right into the pack's center. The sheer force of the impact shook the ground beneath their feet. Shrill shrieks and screeches of pain quickly followed as a dozen of the foul mass caught fire. Others had been crushed beneath the fireball when it landed on top of them. The 'lucky' creatures had been instantly consumed by the flames, cremated out of existence in the blink of an eye.

"Attack!" Sephiroth shouted as the creatures struggled to regroup. Cloud, Cid and Reno ran forward with him, weapons drawn and at the ready. Vincent followed, but when he reached a thick tree off to his left he leaped into the air and grabbed a claw-handed hold of the lowest branch that looked strong enough. Using his forward momentum, he flipped himself backward and up onto the limb. He landed in a crouch, gun already aimed at the mob. The thick leaves thankfully shaded the area so the sunlight no longer partially obscured his sharp vision. Vincent scanned the battlefield below for just seconds before choosing his first targets.

He fired a series of bullets in quick succession, each one finding its target. Vincent's higher vantage point helped him quickly decide where to fire, while also letting him keep an eye on his companions so he could aid when needed. He could also more easily avoid hitting any of his allies, not that he'd ever done that in his life. For that, there was simply no excuse.

Vincent continued squeezing off bullets as the fight heated up on the ground. Sephiroth stood alone in the center of the conflict, swinging his sword around him effortlessly and cutting down anything that approached him. The others knew to keep their distance, as the length of his reach made him lethal in a wide circle. Sephiroth used his long, slender sword as an extension of his arm, completely relaxed and focused as he fought. Cloud was holding his own fairly easily, though he lacked Sephiroth's effortless grace and had a much shorter reach. It took him three times as long to finish off an opponent, but nothing had been able to land an attack on him yet, either. The two swordsmen drew the majority of the pack's aggression, and thus far they were more than up to the task.

Vincent briefly paused to reload, then began firing again as Cid kicked a demon to the ground and then impaled it through the chest. The pilot took a second to spit on the creature, then whipped around and jabbed another enemy in the throat. More monsters were quickly approaching him, though, and Vincent was about to throw him some cover fire when Yuffie's shuriken tore through the air, beheading two of them and knocking a third to the ground for Cid to finish.

"Got them!" Yuffie shouted, catching her returning weapon in one hand. When one of the humanoids approached her from the side with a thick tree branch raised in the air, she quickly spun on her heel and sliced into it in melee range.

Sephiroth had just cast another fire spell on a large central group when Vincent paused to reload again. It took him just seconds, but in the time his eyes were lowered a number of the mob had spotted him on his perch and begun to approach. Vincent swore in Wutaiian and fired, getting off just one round before one of the biggest demons took to the air so quickly he didn't see the incoming attack until it was too late.

The winged demon slammed into Vincent, knocking him out of the tree and staying with him as he landed hard on the ground. He found himself on his back, the demon leaning over him and snarling into his face. Its fangs were rotten and its breath putrid, but there was no time to be distracted. Vincent raised his clawed left hand and viciously sliced the monster's throat before it could bite him. Its pained shriek quickly turned to a gurgle, dark blue blood soaking into Vincent's clothing as he shoved the body away. He staggered to his feet, unhurt, and emptied his clip into the rest of the group still focused on him.

After finishing them off, Vincent leaped back into the tree and quickly scanned the area. Sephiroth and Cloud were now fighting back to back and doing just fine, and Yuffie was tossing her shuriken to great effect from atop a boulder to the far right. Cid continued to kick out knees, gouge eyes, and brutally stab his opponents out of the fight, felling anything that got near him. He was sweating heavily and beginning to slow down, but Vincent decided he was all right for the moment. Reno, however, was in trouble.

The redhead was slowly being backed up by five or six creatures. For each one he managed to awkwardly finish off with his wooden spear, two more seemed to take their place. He was swearing loudly, fighting desperately with everything he had, but was slowly losing the battle. Reno has been correct; he just was not meant to fight with that type of weapon.

That fact was about to cost him dearly. He'd already suffered at least one wound, blood running down his shoulder and soaking into his shirt. Vincent made a quick decision he hoped he wouldn't live to regret, but he was not about to crouch up there and watch Reno die. He reached inside his cloak with his clawed hand, still firing rounds with the other, and removed his backup weapon from his chest holster. It was his original duty pistol from over thirty years ago when he was a Turk, but it still worked perfectly.

"Reno!" Vincent called across the battlefield to his fellow former Turk, just as Reno managed to stab a monster in the eye and send it, immobile, to the ground. He turned in Vincent's direction, red faced and panting with exertion, a desperate look on his face. "Catch!"

Vincent tossed his spare weapon with perfect accuracy, and Reno caught it in his left hand while he barely held off attacks with the spear. He saw the ex-Turk's blue eyes light up, a crooked grin on his face.

"Hot damn!" Reno exclaimed as he began to clear house, swapping the spear to his left hand to block blows and keep the creatures at a distance. "You da man, Valentine!"

Vincent rolled his eyes but couldn't help but allow himself a slight smile. He should have just given Reno a gun before the battle, but at least he'd corrected the oversight in time. The others were too involved in their own battles to take much note of the Turk's new acquisition, though Vincent did see most of them briefly look in his direction to see where the additional gunfire was coming from.

Just as he was certain they were growing closer to victory, a large shadow fell over the area, as if dark clouds had suddenly appeared in the middle of a clear day. When Vincent glanced heavenward, he saw that the source was a pack of winged demons, some of them carrying humanoids in their arms. The new arrivals roared as they swooped down to the others, instantly joining the battle. There had to be at least a dozen or so, and Vincent worried that more would join them before the battle was over.

"Damn," Vincent swore, reloading yet again and very glad he brought a ton of bullets. When he raised his gun to start picking off the newcomers, Chaos suddenly came raging back to life, the same feeling of grave concern and almost… panic… washing over Vincent as his vision took on a reddish tint.

No, no, not now… Be quiet!

"FLEE!"

Vincent cringed at the volume of his personal demon's desperate command inside his mind, rapidly shaking his head. And that was all it took for another demon to spot him in the tree, it and a friend flying upward to land beside him on his perch. The limb groaned in protest as the pair attacked him as one, forcing him to quickly choose a target at close range. Vincent lifted his right hand, attempting to slam the butt of his gun into the head of the larger demon. That was when he felt the branch cracking beneath his feet. Seconds later, it snapped. He wished he could say he was surprised.

I have the worst luck…

The demons, caught off guard by the disruption, fell to the ground with him. One landed across his legs, the other a few feet away. Vincent grit his teeth and sat up, aiming first at the monster pinning him down. He fired, blowing a large hole in its forehead before freeing himself.

Vincent had just gotten back to his feet when the other demon slammed into him from behind. He fell forward and threw his hands out to catch himself, momentarily stunned as the air was forced from his lungs. He knew he had to get up quickly or risk being overrun. He fought to his knees, making a fist and slamming his prosthetic into the demon's face when it leaned over him. It roared in fury and managed to grab Vincent's wrist as he raised his gun to fire. Before he could react, it bit into his forearm with razor sharp teeth.

"Arrgh!"

The pain was blinding as jagged teeth sunk into his flesh through his shirt sleeve, far worse than it should have been. To make matters worse, Chaos instantly went berserk. Vincent's vision grew hazy, and he feared he might actually pass out. He blinked rapidly and managed to hit the demon with his claw a second time, dislodging its bite. As the determined creature went for him again, this time with claws bared instead, a hole appeared in the side of its head. Blood sprayed into the air, much to Chaos' delight, and Vincent breathed hard as he stared down at the corpse. When he managed to lift his head and glance to his right, he saw Reno looking in his direction. The redhead gave him a quick thumbs up before turning to find another victim.

Saved by my own gun… How ironic.

Finally given a moment's peace, Vincent was alarmed when the intense pain in his arm seemed to travel throughout his body, growing worse instead of subsiding. It was not a very serious wound, but he felt as if his blood had turned to acid, the bite itself throbbing more intensely with each slow beat of his heart. His entire body began to tremble, his vision flickering in and out. Worse still, Chaos remained frantic, somehow sharing the pain and desperate to get away from the fight. It was not his usual response when Vincent was injured, and he struggled to concentrate so he could put a leash on the demon. Normally, Chaos fought to emerge when Vincent was injured because he simply wanted to be free to hunt and kill, and it knew pain often prevented its unwilling host from holding containing it. This time, however, there was a mixture of pain, fear, and rage coming from the demon. Vincent had no time to think about it as a fresh wave of pain wracked his body, an all too familiar feeling that went all the way to the core of his being.

As Vincent knelt on the ground, staring down at the oozing bite wound and breathing hard, he felt his body begin to transform. Try as he might, the injury was quickly weakening him, and Chaos knew it. In addition to a lingering panic, the demon was pissed and determined to get revenge for the pain he was experiencing. Vincent fought as hard as he could, unable to rise from his knees. But he knew in his heart he'd already lost the fight. A moment later, he screamed in agony as Chaos' leathery wings burst free from his back. His last coherent thought was directed at the demon, begging it not to leave his allies and help them in his place.

((Author's Notes: Check me out, I updated again. In less than a week even. Anyway. I ended up splitting this chapter in half from my original plan because it got to be pretty long (6.3k words!), and this scene is really important to the fic's main plotline. I wanted to do this from Vincent's PoV, but obviously now that Chaos has come out I need to switch. So I decided to stop here in the interest of reasonable chapter lengths and more frequent updates. Chapter Six will be from Reno's PoV and continue the battle. Hopefully our heroes don't get overtaken, and Vincent is going to be okay! Is Chaos going to fight or flee? He sure is acting weird. Anyway, look for the next part in a week or so! I'll post updates on my progress on Facebook as usual. Please come and join us at my page if you haven't already. Thanks for reading! ~ JenesisX))