A/N: It took me a while to make a decision on whether or not to reveal this yet, but... I have made a decision, and whipped this short but HIGHLY IMPORTANT AND REVEALING chapter in about an hour. So, yeah. Short. But vital. And worthy of its own chapter.

A small reminder of the violent nature of this story, as this one does get a little depraved. *grins*

Enjoy~ *slinks into the shadows*

Darkness... All that Vulture could see, was darkness...

"Hey, someone light up a torch!"

"Hm..? That's strange," Vulture thought and made another failed attempt at looking around, "I don't recognize that voice..."

"Hah, found one!"

The strike of a match was heard, followed by a small light from the open flame. But no sooner than Vulture turned towards to small light did it rapidly grow, turning into an all-engulfing fireball with a powerful roaring boom...

Silence... followed by a sharp ringing. The explosion knocked Vulture off his feet, and had caused him a moment of deafness...

Screams were the next thing he heard, screams of agony and despair, and the veil of darkness was lifted by the small flames still dancing on smoldering bodies.

"H-help... i-it hurts... please... s-someone..." a body spoke out while the other three burning masses could only groan.

A shadow approached the poor dying man, and as it grew closer it formed itself into a tall brute. He had a mining pick in his hand, and with a single powerful strike he split the other's skull with a sickening squelch.

"Why does this... bother me?" Vulture wondered, as he found himself frozen in place on his hands and knees with his eyes staring at the burning bodies. The flickering light of the fires made it clear where they were - a cave, one that had apparently collapsed.

"Aya..?" a new voice spoke out from the distant dark. Footsteps joined the voice, echoing on the cavern walls. "Aya! Oh thank god you're okay!"

Two arms suddenly enclosed around Vulture, pulling him up into a tight hug.

"I was so worried... The ground just started shaking and there was a bright red light! And then that explosion just now... The earthquake must have broken into a gas pocket in the mine or something... We should be careful."

Vulture turned to the source of the voice to see a young man around the age of 17. He was just slightly taller than Vulture, and had golden eyes that glinted brightly against the flames. And his hair, much like Vulture's, was strange in color. It was short, smooth, and was stunningly green in hue.

"This must be him... Sora." It was a name Vulture had heard very few times, and never before was an image provided, but something instinctively told him that he was right.

"Aya..? Sweetheart, snap out of it," Sora said and gently grasped Vulture's hand, "We need to move, okay? This area isn't stable."

Vulture didn't respond, or perhaps he was unable to, as Sora carefully ushered him away. But as they left the light of the flames and darkness once again took over, the hand that guided him was suddenly gone.

Instead, a firm cylindrical item was held in his fist. "What..?" Vulture's body moved on it's own, and bent the item until it snapped. A dim red glow then radiated from it, but suddenly without any warning it flashed brighter.

A full body appeared from the darkness, the clothes gone to reveal a naked body bathed in the red glow, but something was... horribly wrong. Countless chunks of flesh had been crudely hacked and ripped away - in some places even, there were human teeth marks on the torn edges of skin and muscle. "THIS IS YOUR FAULT!" the half-eaten corpse yelled as it reappeared barely an inch from Vulture's face. Blood started to poor from the corpse, from the wounds, the nose, the mouth, the empty eye sockets, and with a twisted, tormented grin the lips parted, laughing sadistically before the corpse faded into the darkness yet again, and reappeared instantly piercing its teeth into Vulture's neck...

"No!"