Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy VII or any of its characters.
Chapter Thirteen
Under the influence of power that Chaos brought with it, Vincent tore through the swarm of shadow creepers. He watched their solid forms disappear into nothingness as he attacked. The hunger for death that his entity thrived on was satisfied as he felled creature after creature; Vincent's own need for retribution were also satiated.
He was aware of the Turks' presence on the battlefield. Reno was not far away with Shelke beside him. They both endeavored to break through the mass of creepers that engulfed him, freeing Vincent for the much more important task of stopping Sephiroth.
Once again, Vincent found himself faced with a choice, and reminded of promise he had made.
He launched himself into the air, pulling away from the creatures that gouged and clawed at him. They leapt after him, but had no hope of reaching his height. He circled overhead, picking them off at a distance with his firearm. He angled himself to fly under the Turk's helicopter as it passed by, still firing at their enemies.
Movement in the distance caught his attention. He looked with curiosity at the group of people coming down the pathway of rock. It only took Vincent a second to recognize Yazoo's long silver hair. He had no idea who the rest were, but the fact that they were attacking with Yazoo gave him hope. They had a chance for victory.
Vincent turned from them and searched again for Loz. He spotted him a good distance away, plunging for the heart of the crater. With a thrust of his wings, he chased after him.
Kadaj stared down at the pool of blue energy that was before him. He could feel the essence of the planet radiating off it, telling of life and vibrancy. Among the energy, he could feel the tainted vein - the same vein he was born of, the same vein he had come here to destroy. The reality that he had come to the end of his journey finally sunk it, and he realized it was the end.
The life he had been given was about to be taken away.
For a second, he thought of fleeing. But that thought was quickly crushed by the reality that surrounded him. The people he cared about were fighting to survive. The evil he was destined to destroy was ravaging the land. If he didn't stop it, nobody would. He would die, his brothers would die...but in their death, many others would live. Vincent would live, Cloud would live, all the other people he and his brothers had come to care about would live.
He decided that that would be worth it.
Don't be afraid, his mother said to him. He could feel her there, among the life of the planet. I will always be with you.
He closed his eyes and basked in the warmth of her presence, feeling her comfort and solidarity. He understood her then, and understood her reasons, her intentions, and her love.
Aerith's presence was suddenly interrupted by the all-too-familiar presence of Sephiroth. Kadaj snapped his eyes opened and spun around, just in time to see Loz coming for him. He was unable to moved before his brother slammed into him, throwing him to the ground with as much force as Sephiroth could channel through him.
Kadaj was assaulted with pain from the force of the impact. He had no time to struggle before Sephiroth took him by the neck, cutting off his supply of oxygen. The smaller remnant fought to get away from him, taking him by the arm and trying in vain to pull his grip away. He tightened his hold on the hilt of his sword, then swung to strike Sephiroth in the head. With his free arm, Sephiroth blocked it, pinning Kadaj's arm to the ground.
He looked into the eyes of his elder brother, into the foreign emotions Sephiroth was pouring through him. He saw hatred and rage, two emotions Loz never would have directed at him.
What had he done to his brother? Kadaj would have killed Loz if only to spare him, if he had control over the sword in his hand. But he was held powerless, with his airways closed and his body battered.
He felt the lack of oxygen taking its toll, but he purposed to hold on. "Loz," he hissed, looking passed Sephiroth's emotions, "Fight him!"
Sephiroth's grip only tightened further, threatening to break his neck.
Mother, he prayed in his mind, "Mother!"
A blast of energy slammed into Sephiroth from behind, jolting his body. Chaos came out of nowhere, swooping down crashing into him, dislodging his grip from Kadaj. He was pulled off the remnant and thrown to the ground, where Chaos assailed him once again.
Kadaj gulped in the cold air and coughed around the pain in his throat. He rolled over to get out of the vulnerable position as his body continued to heave, recovering slowly. His head ached painfully and the bruises on his neck were tender, but he was free and alive. From the place where he sat on his hands and knees, he watched Chaos.
The bottom of the crater suddenly went silent, and Kadaj looked with fear upon the unmoving body of his brother. He felt his stomach sink.
Chaos pulled away from Loz, standing back to its full height and facing Kadaj. The remnant turned his attention to the frightening entity, instinctively shying away. He had only heard of Chaos mentioned in passing. Vincent had never told him much about the creature, or how much he was actually in control of it.
He would have fled, if he didn't know that it was essentially Vincent. The face of the monster was definitely his and there was calmness in the eyes that no creature could have maintained on its own. Kadaj slowly relaxed as he saw the creature changing.
In a flash of purple light, Vincent, in his normal human form, was there.
The remnant sagged with relief, coughing away the rest of the soreness in his throat as he turned back to his brother.
"He's not dead," Vincent answered the question he had been afraid to ask. He was soon at Kadaj's side, stooping down to support his injured body. Kadaj leaned into him, thankful for the familiar touch.
"Where's Yazoo?" he asked, blinking the tears from his eyes as he turned back to Vincent.
"He's fine. He's waiting for your near the surface." He made a move to pull Kadaj to his feet, to start leading him back out of the depths.
"No," Kadaj said, pulling away from him, "I have to finish this."
"Kadaj!" he snapped.
Kadaj staggered from how weak he was, but managed to keep his footing as he walked back to the pit of energy. Vincent grabbed him roughly by the arm, pulling him back.
"I have to do this!" he said to Vincent.
"You don't, Kadaj. Genesis was using you, there's no guarantee this will work."
"Please don't try and stop me," the remnant begged pitifully, "I have to, for Loz."
"We'll find a way to remove Sephiroth, I promise. You'll all die if you go through with this."
"Vincent, don't make me fight you. I'm tired of fighting."
He took Kadaj firmly by the shoulders and turned him to face him. He looked directly into his eyes, forcing him to meet his stare. "I want you to live, Kadaj. Don't you understand that? I don't care what you and your brothers did before. It's forgiven. You don't have to make amends."
"We won't die, Vincent," he said with certainty.
Vincent paused briefly, examining his conviction. "How can you be sure?"
"Because I trust Mother," he answered. He dropped his sword, letting it clang harshly on the ground. "Trust her, too."
For a moment, Vincent didn't answer. He continued to hold the remnant by the arms, reluctant to let him go. Kadaj could see the fear in his eyes, and the pain behind his stoic expression. He remembered the time several months ago, when they were in Midgar together. Kadaj had asked Vincent to go with him, to run away and leave his obligations behind. Now here they were, reversed. Kadaj couldn't help but smile at the way things had turned out.
"I want you there with me, Vincent," he said. "I want you to witness it."
Vincent was clearly bothered. He took a moment to decide. "If you're wrong about this, you'd be asking me to witness your death."
"I won't die," he reiterated. "Please. Come with me."
A/N: Obviously, this story isn't gonna be as long as "Pity" or "Pitiful" was. It's not at the end yet, but it's getting there. :)
Thanks for reading. Please review. ^_^