*Warning*- The characters of Final Fantasy VII in no way belong to me (damn), and therefore I take no credit for the characters, which are all copyright to Square Soft Inc and everyone else who owns Final Fantasy VII! Can you tell I'm not good at writing these things? This story may contain spoilers and some violence, but besides that I don't think there should be too many problems! Please email me if you have any queries or comments… thanks! *^_~*


Chapter Two: Awakening

Blackness. A never-ending black hole that surely went on forever, darkness. Falling, falling, still falling? Before the darkness, a choke. A gasp. A hand outstretched too late. A light appearing from the midst of the gloom, brightening, constantly getting all the more brighter, brighter. Glowing like a beacon... so bright. Something pulled suddenly, and in one short instant, the light was gone.

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Vincent coughed violently, feeling as though he'd swallowed ten litres of seawater in one go. Everything ached, from his toes to his throbbing forehead. And it wasn't just an ache either; it was a sharp, hot pain that seared his body every five seconds, causing him to gasp in agony. At least I'm not dead, he thought wryly. Then he realised he was alone, and sat up so quickly it made him clutch his stomach in severe pain.

"Argh!" He let out a moan of anguish, again reminded of the injuries he'd received at the hands of Sephiroth. He ignored this, blocking out the torment and looking around for any one of his allies. His heart sinking when he couldn't see anything but the long stretch of blinding white sand and forest. Ahead of him was nothing but peaceful waters, a clear contrast to the events that had happened only a short time ago. Or was it a short time ago? How long had he been lying on the beach? He noticed that the sun was out, meaning Sephiroth was no longer nearby. Now he was even more worried about his newfound friends and their fate.

He tried desperately to remember where he'd last seen each person. Cloud had fallen into the water, Red hot on his tail after him. Barret had grabbed hold of Aeris and Yuffie, so they were probably safe, while Cait Sith and Cid had still been on the Tiny Bronco. Vincent wondered if they, too, had been overturned. As for Tifa... she had been near Vincent himself as the boat plunged to the water, he recalled, with Rufus lying nearby clutching his cheek. If only he'd managed to hold onto Tifa, maybe he wouldn't be alone right now, practically defenceless. His shotgun was waterlogged, and would take at least three hours to let to water all drain out. His claw felt full of water also, so that wouldn't be much help if he should be in a battle.

"Maybe I am dead," he murmured to himself. "But if I'm dead, I shouldn't be in so much pain. Death doesn't hurt." As soon as he said it, he took back that remark. Death did hurt, more than any injury could ever. Maybe not to the person who died, but to the others who loved that person dearly, it hurt like nothing imaginable. His heart panged as he thought longingly of Lucrecia. If he was dead, where was she? He concluded that he was not dead, and held a hand over his chest, which hurt painfully. As usual, no heartbeat. No surprise, however- he hadn't heard his heart beat for... thirty years. Damn that b***ard Hojo, he thought angrily. He took everything from me thirty years ago; Lucrecia, Sephiroth, my g**-d*** heartbeat. And now he wants to take away my friends. I won't let him.

He forced himself to his feet, ignoring the searing pains in his left shoulder and ankles. He wobbled a bit, but had otherwise recovered enough to stand and walk a little bit. His hearing was much sharper than any normal human's, and he could hear sounds right now coming from his far left, about fifty metres down and a little bit into the forest. He hoped it was one of his friends, realising in a short period of time they had become very dear to him. Relying on his instincts that it wasn't some creature, Vincent set off for the clump of brush that was rustling slightly.

He soon reached the sand just before the noise, and could hear someone groaning softly. Wondering who it was, he curiously peered past the ferns, and was shocked to see Elena, one of the Turks, lying propped against a rock weakly. She looked much worse for wear than he did, her pale face covered with small scratches. He noticed a large gash in her sleeve, blood leaking out slowly. Vincent hesitated, wondering if he should help his enemy who wouldn't hesitate to kill him in any normal situation. It doesn't matter, he thought, bending down next to Elena. If I were to ignore her and leave her here, I'd be just as bad as them.

He wrapped one of her arms around his neck, and pulled her to her feet gently. She seemed oblivious to the fact that she was being half-carried by someone else, almost unconscious. He put his arm around her slim waist carefully, helping her limp back to the beach, away from the creepy vines and brush. He didn't know what to do. Cloud was the brains of the bunch, even if he didn't look it. He always knew what to do, and Vincent himself had always been unsure, second to that blasted Marinald. He dismissed this from his thoughts as a shriek of anger pierced the silence, undistinguishable from human or animal.

Vincent tensed, trying to listen to where the sound had come from. He strained his ears, but his hearing was already severely weakened and he couldn't place the sound. Elena moaned, and her eyes flickered open weakly.

"Who… are you…" she mumbled, her eyes unfocused as she glanced at Vincent. Then her eyes widened in shock, and she squirmed to get out of Vincent's grasp. "You! Let me go…" But she was too weak from the attack from Sephiroth, and her attempts were in vain.

"Look," said Vincent firmly, trying to hold her still. "I'm not going to hurt you." She snorted, but stopped struggling, too worn out to even fight against him.

"Rufus…" she whispered in a meek voice.

"I don't know where he is," Vincent said, still trying to hear the noise. But there was nothing bar the quiet ripple of waves. Elena sighed, starting to regain some of her strength. Vincent let her go, and she sank down to sit on the beach forlornly. Vincent remained standing, trying to spot any land in the distance. But it appeared that they were stranded on some other island, in the middle of nowhere. Who knew how long it would be until they were found? A horrible thought crossed his mind. What if everyone else had been killed… then he would have nothing left in the world. He may as well crawl back into his coffin if that had happened. His heart jumped as he heard another shout, this time it was definitely a girl's voice. He helped Elena to her feet, and they headed to where the sound echoed loudly.

He could place the sound now; it was only a short distance away near where Vincent had first woken up, through the trees. They followed the forest trail, both hearing thuds and crashes just ahead of them. Elena stiffened, as if she heard something behind them. Vincent glanced behind them nervously, but there was nothing there. He continued, hearing Elena's soft footsteps following him. The sound was just in the clearing ahead, and he pushed through some hanging vines which almost seemed to welcome him into their grasp, tumbling out the other side.

"You good-for-nothing p***k!" someone yelled weakly. Elena stumbled after Vincent, still very exhausted from their encounter with Sephiroth before. Vincent pulled himself to his feet, and almost laughed at the scene before him. It was a relief to see Tifa safe, but she was brandishing a large stick at Rufus, who held a fern. Both were obviously as tired as Vincent himself, but were determined to hurt the other before collapsing. Vincent shook his head at the unsurprising situation, and decided to put an end to it before someone else got hurt. He closed his eyes, concentrating with all his might on what he was about to do. Astonished gasps filled the clearing, and he opened his eyes again. It had worked.

Tifa and Rufus were suspended in mid-air, a few feet above the ground.

"Now listen," Vincent said shortly. "Once I let go of you, don't attack each other, or I'll throw you up a tree, got it?" He knew Tifa would listen, but Rufus was as trustworthy as a fox. His blue eyes glared at Vincent steely, while Tifa's eyes observed him with interest. He let them both go, releasing his hold on them which had drained just about the rest of his energy and strength. Tifa jumped to her feet, and rushed over to him fervently.

"Vincent!" she cried. "I didn't think anyone made it, thank goodness you are alright!" She flung her arms around him, and then withdrew almost immediately, wondering if she had been too forward. Vincent, on the other hand, had felt almost human again when she held him, and returned to the feeling of emptiness as Tifa stepped back, and turned to face Rufus, who was being held up by Elena shakily. He eyed them both, pure anger in his eyes.

"This isn't over," he said heatedly, and turned to go.

"Wait!" Vincent yelled, before he could stop himself. Rufus and Elena turned back to them, their eyes full of questions. Vincent paused; even he was unsure why he had stopped them. "We should stay together…" Rufus managed an amused laugh, shaking his head in disbelief.

"You've got to be kidding me," he said evenly. Elena didn't say anything, staring at the ground silently. When Vincent didn't reply, Rufus raised his eyebrows. "You're serious…" He laughed again. "Look, rebel, I nor Elena need your help whatsoever, so if you'll excuse us. You're lucky that I'm too enervated to kill your spiny a**es now, but I will recover so expect a call long overdue from me in future times."

"Let the weasel go," Tifa seethed, glaring at him. Rufus glowered back at her, and limped out of the clearing, Elena assisting him without saying a word. Vincent watched them disappear, still feeling uneasy. Tifa shrugged, her brown eyes narrowed as she stared at Vincent.

"Why did you want them to stay?" she asked in astonishment as soon as they were gone. Vincent didn't reply, his face shadowed. "Hello! Vincent!" She'd always hated being ignored.

"I am sorry," he said finally. "I just have a really bad feeling about all this." And he did. There was a feeling of dread building up inside him, and it was much stronger than any emotion of hatred that he felt towards Rufus and the Turks. Something was very wrong, and the division between the two groups would only lead to disaster. He could feel it, sense it. Tifa wouldn't understand, nor would anyone else, because it wasn't something he could explain in words. Just a feeling. Tifa looked up at him expectantly, but he just turned away heavily. Her eyes were full of questions he couldn't answer, questions that he himself did not know the answers to.

Tifa looked down at the ground, wondering what Vincent meant by his words. A bad feeling… anyone would have a bad feeling about something if their group had been divided by a crazed, superhuman being whose mind was concentrated on fulfilling some mission that would surely bring destruction to the world. And also if Cloud was missing… She tried not to fill her head with horrible thoughts of her longtime friend lying on the ocean floor dead, knowing that she couldn't believe that. Cloud was stronger than that, and so was everyone else who'd been involved in the incident before. It was just a matter of finding them.

Vincent explained that they would probably have to find a campsite for the night, somewhere far away from the forest and preferably high up. They didn't know how large the island was, so Tifa offered to climb the nearest tree and see if she could spot any nearby areas that they could camp at.

"This one looks alright," she said, pointing to a mahogany coloured tree. Vincent nodded, and gave her a boost so she could reach the first branch. She quickly made her way up the tree, grasping each branch as she hoped desperately that she wouldn't slip and fall. The branches were quite strong, and held her weight without moving. Tifa reached the top swiftly, and pushed away the branches to see around her. The sight was breathtaking. In front of her were a large amount of trees, all huddled together as if in some meeting. Just beyond them were some tall reeds, suggesting the existence of a lake. To her left were mountains and cliffs, the grey a sharp contrast to the green surrounding it. To her northeast was the clearing, which looked much smaller than it had when she was fighting Rufus in it. To her right were more trees.

"What's it like up there?" called a muffled voice. Tifa looked down, and almost puked when she saw how high up she was. Vincent wasn't much more than a blob on the ground.

"Scary!" she yelled back. She returned her gaze to the surrounding area, trying to pick out a good campsite. There was a small area nearby where she was, which was close to the beach and not surrounded tightly by trees. "There's a tiny clearing nearby that I think would be good!" Vincent nodded, or at least that's what she thought he did, and she started to climb down slowly.

Vincent watched as Tifa made her way down the tree, trying not to look at the obvious places. He cursed himself for even looking at all, and stared around him. The forest seemed deadly silent, and this made him feel edgy. Without much more than the slight sounds of a struggle, Tifa yelled out and Vincent's eyes shot up again, to see some vines wrapping themselves around her. He jumped up and grabbed hold of the first branch, scrambling as quickly as he could up the large tree. By the time he reached her, Tifa was quiet. And unconscious, he noticed. His gun was still useless, but his claw had dried out a little, and he swung it with all his might at the vines. They were sliced in half, but some of them remained wrapped tightly around Tifa's ankles and wrists.

More vines appeared, and struck him with surprising force. He fell back against the trunk with a sharp intake of breath, winded. His agility aided him as the vines came after him, and he jumped up to the next branch, then down again. Tifa was held by the vines, her head hung. Vincent hurried to free her, swiping at the vines that were bound tightly around her wrists and ankles. She fell free of the vines, and he clambered to the ground quickly, holding her in his arms. There were red marks on her arms, which looked painful. He swallowed a gulp, and landed on the ground lightly. She had said there was a clearing nearby, so all he had to do was find it. He carried her through the forest, soon finding the small area she had talked about. It was a good size, about twice his body length wide and circular shaped. There were a few large, flat stones in the centre of the clearing, which would be perfect for makeshift mattresses that night.

It almost seemed a little too perfect… Vincent shrugged, laying Tifa down on the rock ledge carefully. She seemed okay, and was breathing heavily but nothing to worry about. She must have just fainted from lack of oxygen when the vines had wrapped around her. Vincent checked through her backpack which was still damp, and found some bandages, a waterproof torch, a few Materia, some rations, matches, a small cloth, soap, a few small bottles labelled 'ANTIDOTE', 'ELIXER' and 'POTION', two Phoenix Downs and a small pouch. Feeling slightly intruding, but his curiosity getting the better of him, Vincent opened the pouch and emptied the contents into his hand.

A delicate chain slipped out, with a small pendant of a crystal teardrop. The chain was a thin silver one which looked very frail but was quite strong, Vincent discovered as he tugged lightly on it. The pendant itself was amazing. It was only small, but the pale blue crystal sparkled with all the colours of the rainbow and more, glimmering brightly. Vincent wondered about the origin of this necklace, and whether it had some sort of special magic blessed upon it like many other necklaces around the land. And he also wondered why Tifa never wore it. It seemed like a waste, to let such a necklace just lie at the bottom of her backpack in a pouch.

Tifa was breathing lightly now, as she recovered in her sleep. She would probably wake up soon, Vincent realised. He placed the necklace back into its pouch, and put everything back into the bag. Vincent built a small circle of stones, which could be used as a campfire site for later on as the night fell. It was late afternoon now, the sun dipping behind some clouds every now and again. Night would come in less than two hours, and he had to be prepared. He cast a Barrier spell around the camp, which wouldn't stop anyone from coming in completely, but would offer a slight protection that would give him and Tifa precious seconds to retreat. His eyes rested on Tifa, who seemed to be completely recovered now, however she still slept peacefully.

....She is quite a fine lady, almost as fine as Lucrecia....

Chaos' voice chilled Vincent to the bone. No, Vincent screamed in his head, trying to make Chaos retreat. Chaos was a part of his life that he had become used to now, but that didn't mean he wasn't terrified of the demon's presence. It made him as if he had no control over himself, which sometime he didn't. Before anything could happen, Vincent ran from the clearing, from the campsite, from Tifa, through the forest and back to the beach, where he collapsed on his hands and knees, breathing hard.
Chaos wasn't something he wanted to tell anyone about, but he knew the inevitable would happen. And he just hoped that it would be later rather than sooner. He knew he would never have control over Chaos, and this frightened him more than a lot of things. Suicide crossed his mind, but he brushed this thought away, knowing he would be leaving Tifa alone, and letting down Lucrecia again. His last failure was a burden on his shoulders, one he longed to make right but knew nothing he did could ever make him feel fully forgiven.

He stared at the damp sand, feeling it between his fingers. I am Vincent Valentine. I am human beneath all this and I can overcome. How he wished he could believe those words. How he longed to feel normal again, to feel like a human. But, he thought bitterly, I'll never be as I was thirty years ago. Hojo has certainly seen to that. Chaos' whispers had died down now, no more than quiet murmurs in his mind, things he could control. But he couldn't go back to the camp now; it wasn't safe for him or Tifa. He didn't like Tifa in that way, but Chaos didn't care about that kind of emotion.

The sky was darkening quickly now, the light blue changing to lavender. Clouds drifted above him, shrouding the bright stars that were slowly coming into view. Vincent sat up, his legs stretched out in front of him. He brushed the sand away, loathing the feeling of the sand granules under his fingernails. He overlooked this, leaning back on his hands as the now black waters rippled softly. The clouds themselves seemed to be disapparating, showing the darkness above which was studded with stars.

A memory floated down upon Vincent, intruding his mind unwelcomingly. The last time he'd sat on a beach watching the stars… His heart ached and his eyes stung. Of course, he thought resentfully, Hojo would leave the emotions of pain and hurt in him. The last time he had been in this situation was with Lucrecia, two nights before Sephiroth was born and the love of Vincent's life died. How he remembered the look on Hojo's face when Sephiroth was born. The absent glance at Lucrecia, lying on the white bed, still as death. Vincent himself had been collapsed against a wall outside, his heart broken.
A wave of sleepiness swept over Vincent, and he welcomed it. His mind was already pained after reliving the scene in his head, and the events of the day had tired him out. He wanted nothing more than to just fall asleep, right there on the sand, under the stars. And that was what he did.

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"Vincent… I'm scared."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm scared for you, I'm scared for myself, but most of all… I'm scared for my baby."

"Then trust me, Lu, and leave here with me tonight. We'll go away from here, away from everything that could hurt you."

"But… you know that could never work, Vince. I'm married to Hojo…"

"… But I love you, more than anything in the entire world, in the entire universe. And I know you love me the same way!"

"I do…"

"Then what's wrong?"

"I don't know… I love Hojo, and I can't betray him. I promised that I would spend my life with him, and I will. Even if it means that I die."

"Don't ever say anything like that! I will never let anything happen to you, never!"

"I'm sorry, Vincent. I can't leave, even if it means that my baby will have to stay. I would love to leave here with you, but I just can't. Hojo… he loves me. And if this is what he wants, then I am going to give it to him. He saved your life, too, Vince!"

"…"

"Look up there, at the stars… aren't they pretty?"

"…"

"Please don't be mad at me… You of all people should understand my loyalty to him. You have loyalty to Shinra, don't you?"

"That's different. Shinra isn't going to kill me or inject cells of some creature whose effects on humans isn't even researched!"

"…"

"Lucrecia… nothing I say is going to change your mind… All I can say is I love you, more than life itself, and I'll be by your side to the end, no matter what happens."
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Author's Note:- Ahh… I finished it! Yay! *jumps up and down* So let's reflect on what happened this chapter. About where this is set, if you look at the map on FFVII, you can see a small group of islands to the east of the Temple of Ancients. Basically, Sephiroth threw the boat up in the air near there, and Vincent, Tifa, Rufus and Elena are on the biggest one. Yeah.. I know that there are no mountains or anything on the island in the game _;; but be imaginative! For all those Cloud lovers out there… heh. No comment. Next chapter will have some development in the island, so stay tuned! And please review!! *^_^* I love reviews! *dances off to do a Drama assignment* Bye! Also, if you know anything about making the stories look better, please, please, please email me! Thanks heaps!