Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix.

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Chapter 7

After having spent the last half hour navigating through the narrow corridors and small chambers of Mt. Nibel's complex and somewhat confusing cave system, the eight members of Avalanche finally found themselves inside the main room, which basically consisted of a huge grotto located directly under the Mako reactor.

The room was surprisingly well lit, pools of exposed Mako filling most of the room with an eerie green glow. About the room, huge pipes could be seen snaking down from the shadowy ceiling and into the Mako. A series of five incomplete pipes started off from a metallic platform that hung high above the ground before jutting off in five different directions.

Cloud was currently inspecting one of those pipes, leaning inside of it to get a better look, his left hand keeping a firm hold of the pipe's edge to prevent from accidentally slipping down the old, rust-ridden metallic tube.

"Can you see anything?" Tifa was the one who asked this question, the martial artist standing a short distance from her leader along with most of the group. Yuffie was alone on the other end of the platform near a pile of discarded metal sheets, looking the pile over with interest.

"As far as I can tell, it's empty like the others." Cloud pushed away from the pipe and walked back to the group, wiping the dust and specks of rust from his gloved hand onto his dark trousers. "I can't tell where it leads though. It might be safer to just go down the ladder…"

"Make way!!"

Cloud barely had the time to step aside as an overexcited Yuffie ran forward, hurdling over a stunned Red XIII before diving head first into one of the pipes with a metal sheet held out in front of her.

"Yuffie!!" Tifa and Aeris cried out at the same time, both girls rushing forward in an attempt to catch the reckless girl before she was out of reach, but they were too late. She disappeared down the pipe, her makeshift toboggan creating sparks as metal grinded on metal.

"WOOHOO!!" The ninja's enthusiastic cry echoed up the pipe just as the worried group rushed over to the railing, trying to figure out exactly where their young friend would end up. A moment later, Yuffie flew out of one of the pipes to the left of the group, landing roughly onto a small plateau. She nearly skidded off the elevated rock formation, rolling off the metal sheet a split second before it reached the edge. It clattered to the ground below with a resounding clunk.

Yuffie stood up, turning her dusty face up towards the platform where her friends were staring at her with disbelief. "Well? What are you guys still doing way up there?" she asked innocently, completely ignoring the angry scowls sent her way by most of Avalanche. She grinned mischievously. "Leviathan, you guys are slooww…" She rolled her eyes in mock exasperation as she said this.

Up on the platform, Cloud was pinching the bridge of his nose, trying to calm himself down enough not to scream at the teenager. Barret on the other hand held no such inhibition and wasted no time in scolding the girl.

"Have you lost your fuckin' mind?!?" shouted the gun-armed man angrily, his good hand fisted tightly at his side. "That pipe coulda led straight to them Mako pits down there for all ya know!!" He pounded his prosthetic against the railing, causing the girl below to flinch. "Ya could've gotten yourself killed doin' somethin' stupid like that!!" He raised his prosthetic, intent on hitting the railing once more, but a gentle hand on his shoulder made him pause.

"I think she got the idea," said Aeris when Barret turned to face her. He looked back to the ninja; her playful demeanor from moments ago had been replaced by what appeared to be shame and embarrassment. Barret still felt peeved, but he settled on simply glaring at the girl, all the while muttering a few choice words under his breath.

"Stay where you are Yuffie," said Cloud with authority, hoping the girl would listen to him for once and stay put. "We'll be down in a minute."

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Yuffie sat on the edge of the plateau, sulking as she waited for the others to make their way down. That slide down the pipe was the most fun she'd had all day, and Barret had to go and ruin it for her by making her feel bad.

The girl let herself fall back with a sigh, wincing when her elbows collided painfully with the rocky surface. Upon closer inspection, she discovered both her elbows to be bruised a deep purple, probably from her brutal toboggan landing on the plateau. A shallow cut marred her right forearm, blood slowly seeping from the dirt incrusted wound.

"Nasty…" She wrinkled her nose in disgust as she dislodged some of the filth from her cut.

"Ok… So maybe Barret was right after all," she finally admitted to herself, albeit grudgingly. Jumping into the unknown –literally – wasn't exactly the smartest thing to do, no matter how much fun it might be. 'Still doesn't give him the right to be such an ass about it, though…'

Her musings were cut short when a glint in the distance caught her eye. While most of the cave was illuminated by the Mako glow, the area with the glint was covered in dark shadows. Yuffie sat up straight, straining her eyes to try and make out exactly what it was she was looking at. It was really shiny, that much she could tell. And small… And kinda roundish looking… Almost like…

"Materia!" she whispered loudly to herself, her cuts and bruises all but forgotten. She glanced over her shoulder to check on her companions' whereabouts. They had all made it to the lower level of the platform by this point, but for some reason they had stalled there. By the looks of it, they were having some difficulty lowering the ladder leading to the ground. Good. They were all too busy to pay any attention to her.

Yuffie jumped down from the plateau, landing soundlessly on the ground. Quickly yet silently, the ninja crept over to the shadowy region ahead of her. Once she reached the relative cover of darkness, she stopped and looked back to make sure none of the others had noticed she was missing. They hadn't. She looked around, trying to locate the Materia.

A small amount of dust fell from the dark ceiling onto the girl's shoulder. She brushed it off quickly, thinking nothing of it.

She finally spotted the Materia a short distance to her right, half hidden behind a pile of rocks. 'Gotcha!' She crept over to it, kneeling down and reaching behind the rocks to grab the jewel-like object.

Just as her fingers made contact with the small orb, more dust and pebbles trickled down from the ceiling onto her head, followed by a barely audible clicking sound. Yuffie froze. Something was moving above her. Slowly, very slowly, Yuffie tilted her head back towards the pitch black ceiling.

Up above her, twin lights seemed to float in the darkness, periodically disappearing only to reappear an instant later. Her heart nearly skipped a beat. Eyes. Fiery yellow eyes blinking down at her. She suddenly regretted having disobeyed Cloud's order to stay put.

For a moment, Yuffie was paralyzed with fear. She couldn't run. She couldn't scream. Hell, she could barely breathe.

"Yuffie?..." The others had finally noticed her absence. Tifa's distant yet concerned voice had the effect of a cold shower on the petrified ninja. Grabbing the Materia, she bolted towards the group as fast as she could, but didn't manage to get very far. With a deafening roar, the creature hanging from the ceiling dropped down. The massive beast swept one of its insect-like limbs at the retreating girl, sending her flying across the room until she crashed into a stone wall with a sickening thud. Yuffie collapsed on the cold hard floor, unmoving.

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Vincent stepped off the ladder leading to the lower platform. He walked over to the group, mindful not to let his metal-tipped shoes scrape on the metal platform. He just couldn't stand that particular sound.

Cloud was crouching beside the edge of the platform, apparently trying to lower the ladder to the ground. The ladder was rather peculiar; instead of sliding up and down like most ladders Vincent had seen, this particular model could be folded up in half, bending in the middle so the top and bottom half were sandwiched together.

"I think the hinges are rusted. It won't budge." Cloud got back up and gave a kick to the ladder's lower half. It hardly moved an inch.

"Humph… That the best you can do? Step aside rookie…" Cloud moved to stand next to Tifa, giving Barret access to the ladder. With a loud grunt, Barret's massive foot came crashing down on the ladder. Flecks of rust were shaken loose as the ladder started to move, the old hinges moaning from disuse. Barret gave his leader a smug smile, but it was short lived. The ladder stopped moving nearly as soon as it had started. The dark-skinned man kicked at it again, but the old ladder refused to move any further.

"It's stuck…" Barret walked back to the center of the platform where the others were. "Shit!! How we suppose to get down, now?"

"We could always slide down the pipe like Yuffie!!" suggested Cait Sith happily.

"HELL NO!!"

A loud bang, followed by a metallic grinding sound that had Vincent cringing was heard coming from the ladder. The group turned to find a self-satisfied Tifa standing next to the now lowered ladder. "Amateurs…" said the martial artist before disappearing down the ladder. Cloud and Barret stared after her, baffled.

Aeris giggled, giving both men a nearly apologetic smile before rushing off after Tifa. Cloud cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "Hum… Ok then, let's get going."

Vincent walked over to the edge of the platform, leaning forward against the railing as he waited for his turn down the ladder. Below him, Aeris giggled some more when Tifa teased Cloud and Barret, both men having finally made it down the ladder. Red XIII was carefully lowering himself down the ladder; quite a feat for a four-legged creature. This left only Cait Sith. The doll was looking up the second platform, where the pipes were.

"Too bad the ladder's fixed…" The doll sighed, looking almost sad as he said this. "I was really looking forward to sliding down the pipe… Yuffie always gets all the fun…" The doll turned to face the plateau where Yuffie had landed. "Hey! Where is she?"

Vincent turned around. Sure enough, the teenager wasn't where she was supposed to be. Grabbing hold of the railing, Vincent leapt over it and landed in a low crouch next to Cloud, startling the group with his sudden appearance. Straightening back up, Vincent wordlessly walked past his leader, heading towards the plateau to the left of the platform.

"Hey guys! Yuffie's missing!" Cait shouted down from the platform.

"Huh?" Tifa looked up at the mechanical cat. "Are you sure Cait? I can't see from down here."

"Positive!" assured Cait as he started descending down the ladder. "I can't see her anywhere."

"Where could she be…?" Aeris sounded worried.

"Goddamn kid probably just got bored with standin' still…" grumbled Barret, although he too sounded a little worried.

Vincent was next to the rock formation now and was making his way around it. Looking down, he saw a set of footprints in the dust leading away from the plateau. He finally spotted Yuffie half concealed in a shadowy corner of the cave, crouched down and looking up.

Something was amiss. He couldn't see the girl's face since she had her back to him, but her rigid stance betrayed her fear. Vincent looked up to the ceiling, following the girl's line of view but couldn't see anything. The ceiling was uneven in certain places and because of this, the section directly above Yuffie was obscured from his view.

"Yuffie?..." Tifa shouted the girl's name as she came around the plateau with the rest of Avalanche. They hadn't spotted their young friend hidden in the shadows yet.

Vincent watched as the young ninja jumped upon hearing Tifa's voice. She grabbed something off the floor and took off running towards the group. A blood curdling roar echoed through the cave just then, gaining everyone's attention. Vincent's eyes went wide as he saw a massive monster drop to the ground where Yuffie had been a mere moment ago. The creature swept one of its massive clawed appendages at the fear stricken ninja. Vincent heard his team mates gasp as they helplessly watched Yuffie soar through the air and collide with the wall, before falling limply to the ground.

When the insect-like creature started crawling towards Yuffie, intent on finishing off its prey, Avalanche rushed to action.

Vincent whipped out his gun, shooting multiple rounds at the creature in order to distract it from its prey. Barret started shooting a moment later. The beast didn't stop its advance on Yuffie. It barely seemed to notice the bullets, its hard, green exoskeleton protecting it from the projectiles.

"Fire3!" Cait cast the spell on the creature, but it didn't seem to affect it what-so-ever.

Cloud, Tifa and Red rushed forward to attack the creature up close, but by that time it was already towering over the unconscious ninja, its clawed limbs raised and ready to strike a fatal blow.

Vincent didn't think. He just reacted. Holstering his gun, he ran forward swiftly, speeding ahead of Cloud, Red and Tifa. He reached Yuffie just as the monster struck, positioning himself over the girl's prone form with his back to the beast.

The claw ripped through his backpack, through his clothes and entered his thorax, breaking multiple ribs and piercing his left lung on the way in. Crimson blood sprayed all over the young ninja. Looking down, he could see the bloodied tip of the claw sticking out of his chest. Pain lanced through his body, but Vincent repressed it as best he could. Dimly, he heard Cloud's angered cry as the swordsman finally came close enough to attack.

The creature roared and backed away from Vincent and Yuffie to face its new opponents. The gunman shuddered violently as the claw pulled out from his body. Now that the creature was distracted, Vincent took the opportunity to gather up his unconscious companion in his arms, mindful not to injure her with his razor-sharp claw. He shrugged off the shredded remains of his backpack and got up on shaky legs, using the wall for support. He watched as his companions battled with the monster for a few seconds before he dashed out of harms way, clutching Yuffie close to him.

He nearly collapsed once he reached Aeris's side. He handed the injured girl over to Aeris so that she could tend to her and then managed to drag himself over to the plateau, leaning his right side heavily against the hard surface. His knees finally gave way and he crumbled to the ground, his right hand clutched tightly against the gaping hole in his chest in a vain attempt to slow the bleeding. At this rate, he would pass out and die of blood loss in a matter of minutes.

A sudden pain erupted in his head, causing the gunslinger to cry out in agony. It felt a thousand times worst then the pain caused by the creature's claw. His breathing became labored and his heart sped up as the pressure in his head increased. The painful pressure soon spread to the rest of his body, and Vincent finally realized through the haze of pain what was happening to him. He was loosing control to one of his demons.

He felt, more then he saw, Aeris approach him. Fearing for her safety, he tried to warn her away but only managed to snarl menacingly at her. It seemed to have the desired effect however as she recoiled fearfully away from him. Tremors shook his body as he tried to remain in control, but he knew he was fighting a loosing battle. He was too weakened by the blood loss.

Digging his bronze claw into the ground, Vincent braced himself for the wave of pain he knew was about to come. A red glow surrounded him as an unnatural wind suddenly picked up. The last thing Vincent saw before blacking out was his right hand quickly morphing into something utterly bestial.

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"…Holy fuckin' shit!!"

Barret could hardly believe his eyes. One minute Vincent looked about ready to keel over, and the next he goes and transforms into a freaking monster! Barret placed himself in between the Behemoth-like Vincent and the two girls with his gun-arm raised at the ready, uncertain if he should consider Vincent a threat or not, but unwilling to take that chance.

At first, Vincent didn't move. He just laid there on his right side with his eyes closed.

"Is… Is he dead…?" asked Cait Sith nervously from somewhere behind Barret. No sooner had he said this, Vincent's eyes snapped open. He got to his feet slowly, at first standing on all fours before rising up on his hind legs. Taking notice of the group near him, his lips curled up in a vicious snarl.

"SHIT!!" Barret's eyes grew wide as the now feral Vincent took a step towards him.

"Vincent stop!!" Recognition flashed in his yellow eyes upon hearing Aeris cry out his name, and Vincent stopped his advance. He looked positively confused as his eyes darted from Barret to Aeris and then back to Barret.

A roar coming from the other side of the room caught his attention. Vincent's eyes drifted to the source of the cry, answering the insect-like creature with a roar of his own. He then rushed towards the monster, now completely disinterested with the humans near the plateau.

Barret sighed in relief, before realizing exactly where Vincent was headed. "CLOUD!" he hollered to get his leader's attention. "Watch your back! Somethin's wrong with Vincent!"

Cloud, who'd been busy trying to evade the insect-like creature's attacks, glanced back briefly to see what Barret was talking about. His eyes widened in surprise at seeing a purple-skinned monster running towards them. He quickly dodged a strike from the first monster and grabbed Tifa's arm, pulling her to the side so they didn't end up getting attacked on both flanks. Red had already noticed the other creature approaching and ran to safety alongside his companions.

The new monster completely ignored the three of them, its attention fully centered on the gigantesque green creature in front of it. As the green monster took a swipe at the Avalanche members, the Behemoth-like creature countered, ramming its horns into its opponent, piercing through the exoskeleton. The insect-like monster shrieked in pain and recoiled away from this new threat, but the smaller monster didn't give it time to recover. The sight and smell of the other creature's blood seemed to send it into a frenzy, as it started attacking relentlessly.

Seeing as this new monster seemed to be at least temporarily on their side, Cloud, Tifa and Red XIII stepped forward to aid it in bringing down the green monster. Soon after, the massive creature gave its final dieing roar before collapsing heavily to the ground, dead.

Its prey now defeated, the Behemoth creature turned its attention to the three Avalanche members next to it. It watched them with caution, teeth bared but not attacking.

"…What's it doing?" asked Tifa warily, not trusting the blood covered beast.

"Cloud!" the creature turned its head towards the source of the voice, but otherwise remained still. Cloud turned as well upon hearing Aeris's voice to see the girl in question running towards them along with Cait Sith. Barret was walking further behind, cradling the unconscious Yuffie in his arms. "Don't attack him!!" said the girl as she stopped next to her leader, her eyes locked on the purple beast. "It's Vincent!!"

Once again, recognition filled Vincent's bestial eyes as he heard his name. He took a few steps back from the group, looking almost fearful. He fell forward on all four legs, panting heavily as the same red glow from before enveloped his body. Seconds later, Vincent's human form emerged as the light receded, the gunman breathing raggedly.

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Vincent's head was spinning like crazy. He couldn't remember where he was at first, or what he had been doing. Looking down to his hands, he was shocked to find them covered in thick warm blood. He quickly realized that he was covered from head to toe in blood.

Memories flooded back to him in bits and pieces and he suddenly remembered the monster that had attacked Yuffie. He'd been injured while rescuing her, had he not? Looking down to his chest, he found that the wound was now completely healed. Even his shirt had somehow mended itself.

Vincent was more and more confused. He knew his injuries, no matter how severe, couldn't account for all the blood covering him. He tried to recall what he had done after rescuing Yuffie, but his memories were hazy. It suddenly occurred to him that. Only one thing could account for his memory lapse and the overwhelming amount of blood on him. He had lost control.

In a panic, Vincent attempted to get up, expecting to be surrounded by the bodies of his companions. He fell back onto one knee, still lightheaded from the blood loss and his exerting transformation.

"Vincent…?" Relief washed over him when he heard Cloud's voice. He looked up to see his team mates safe and sound. The relief didn't last for long however. He could see the fear and weariness on his companions face.

They knew. They had seen him loose control and transform, and now they knew he couldn't be trusted. Vincent was overcome with guilt. How could he have been so selfish? How could he have thought even for one second that he had the right to endanger them by keeping his demons secret?

"Vincent… Are you…" "Stay where you are!" Vincent interrupted Aeris, his voice sounding hoarse. She stopped advancing, looking at him with pity in her eyes.

He couldn't take much more of this. Rising up to his full height, Vincent gave his companions one last apologetic look before taking a step back towards the shadows. Before any of them had the time to say anything, Vincent was gone.

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Author's note: Dun dun dun… Oh no! Vinnie's gone!! What's going to happen to him?!? o.O

Ok… First off, let me clear up a few things. The monster that attacked Yuffie is called the 'Materia Keeper', in case some of you didn't recognize it. And as for Vincent's transformation, the demon was Galian Beast as he is depicted in the original FF7 game, not the one in Dirge of Cerberus.

Secondly, I just want to apologize for not posting this chapter sooner. Blame it on my being lazy… Not sure when I'll be posting the next chapter… Sometime soon, hopefully.

Thanks to the following for reviewing last chapter: sona, dragonlady200015, Pieling, and especially to H.Tool07. That review of yours really made my day. Thanx a bunch!! ;)

Hum… I guess that's all…

Till next time!!