Chapter 29

"Well well, look what the cat dragged in."

This simply had to be a record. He'd been back a sum total of five minutes, and already Hojo was pissing him off. Somewhat wistfully perhaps, Vincent had hoped that he wouldn't have to talk to the irascible Doctor for a while after returning. A few days, maybe. Weeks would have been nice. Wishful thinking. Evidently the Crackpot had heard the chopper arrive and decided to form a little one man welcome committee.

Fine. Two could play at that game. "Delightful to see you too, Hojo" said Vincent, breezing past the scientist. "Words cannot describe just how much I've missed you." He strode up the swooping staircase towards his room, his long stride forcing Hojo into an undignified scuttle to keep up.

"Very good, Turk" smirked the Doctor as he shuffled along behind. "I would assume that hitman humour is something only your kind find amusing."

Vincent sighed and rolled his eyes. Stopping suddenly on the landing, he dropped his suitcase and turned to face Hojo. "Is there something you actually want?" he asked, folding his arms over his chest impatiently. "Or did you just feel like following me round like a sheep for a few hours?"

The Doctor stopped short. In crossing his arms, Vincent had artfully exposed the twin pistols he kept on his hips, and Hojo had no intention of being on the receiving end of those, no matter how fun it was to irritate the blasted Turk.

"Gast wants specimins" he replied brusquely.

Vincent merely raised an eyebrow. "And?"

"And you can go and get them!" The doctor explained with evident frustration. "Go out, shoot something and bring it back. Alive though, so you might have to use what little passes for your brain." Vincent's expression didn't falter, but his hands edged unerringly towards his guns - a motion that Hojo didn't fail to notice. "Gast says it's urgent!"

"I'm sure it is" replied Vincent calmly, "though I expect that the Professor worded his request slightly more eloquently than you did." He picked up his cases and resumed his previous course towards his room.

Hojo remained glued to the spot, his brow creasing into a heavy scowl as the suited back of the Turk moved away. He spun round and headed for the lab before pausing and twisting back.

"Things change, Turk" he called out. "People… change." Vincent halted midstep but didn't turn, didn't speak. "A few weeks can make all the difference" Hojo continued maliciously. "Remember that."

Was the scientist finally losing his mind or was that supposed to be some kind of threat? Vincent wondered. Either way, he didn't have time for this. Putting Hojo behind him, he marched up to his bedroom door and unlocked it.

Evidently the maid had quartered the SOLDIERS sent to replace him elsewhere, for his room was still as he had left it. Hauling his luggage onto the bed, he rapidly began to unpack, whilst mentaly running through a check list of things he needed to do.

First things first, he had to alert the SOLDIERS that they were free to return to normal duty. The chopper that dropped him off was returning to Midgar, so would take them with it. He also needed to get full reports from them of everything that had happened during his abscence before they departed. Then he supposed he would have to carry out Gast's orders and hunt down a specimin or two, which would take a while. He'd been hoping to pop down to the lab and see Lucrecia too - what with one thing and another, he didn't think they'd been able to have a proper conversation since he'd left. Idly he toyed with a small box in his jacket pocket, running his fingers over the velvet.

Whilst he'd been languishing in Midgar, he'd reached a decision. In a way, it had been one of the most difficult he'd ever had to make, but at the same time there was almost no question of him not making it. The unwritten laws of the Turks said no emotional attachment, no involvement. It was easier that way, they all knew it. But he was choosing to put those rules aside and ask Lucrecia to marry him.

He couldn't stop a small suggestion of a smile creeping across his face at the thought. Who would have believed he would ever have found himself in the position to make that choice? Certainly if you'd asked him a year or so ago, then he would have laughed the idea down as preposterous. Vincent Valentine, leader of the Turks and cold-blooded killing machine, settling down into married life? Ridiculous. But now, having spent these past weeks apart from Lucrecia, he couldn't imagine his life without her.

Too much to do now though, he knew. This would have to wait for the right moment. Carefully placing the jewellery box on his bedside cabinet, he equipped himself with the requisite number of firearms, and hauled a large shotgun over his shoulder for good measure.

- - -

Having gleaned as much information from the SOLDIERs as humanly possible, it was a slightly worried Vincent that made his way down the stone spiral staircase and into the laboratory.

The impression he'd been able to get from the guards was that things had been picking up over the past two weeks. The scientists had started some new kind of project, and had virtually holed up in the basement. Vincent had been unable to determine exactly what was going on - SOLDIERs were not Turk trained, and whilst they were very good at providing a protective presence, they didn't pay attention to most of the things that he would have done. In fact, the men had seemed to keep as far from the lab as they could, a fact which annoyed Vincent more than a little.

They said the place was creepy, a fact he couldn't really deny. The Jenova specimin had that effect on people. The SOLDIERs had taken one look at the alien creature in her tank and swore never to go near it again. They'd spent most of their time patrolling the perimeter.

Vincent had to admit to being concerned. From what he gathered, the scientists (Lucrecia included) had barely come out of the lab for weeks, emerging only for food, and even then not on a regular basis.

Pushing open the door, he could see only Gast working at the main desk. The Professor looked up as the Turk strode in.

"Mr Valentine" he exclaimed. "I didn't expect to see you…"

"Why not?" Vincent queried.

Was it his imagination, or did the Professor seem a little out of sorts? He brushed it off. He'd been away for a while, not been around them for weeks.

"Didn't Doctor Hojo give you my message? I'm in dire need of some specimins to test."

Vincent nodded. "I was just on my way to collect them" he replied, indicating the shotgun. "I was wondering though if there was any kind of animal in particular you wanted?"

Gast shook his head. "No, no… Anything will do really. As long as it's alive." He went back to his work for a few seconds before looking back up to where Vincent was still standing. "Was there anything else?"

"Yes, I was hoping to speak to Lucrecia before I…"

"She's busy."

No, there was definitely something there, he could tell. An edge to the man's voice as he interrupted. He'd heard that kind of edge before, in prisoners he'd interrogated. Prisoners trying to convince him that they knew nothing and weren't worth bothering with.

He quickly scanned the lab, noticing some movement in the room behind. Hojo walked past his line of vision, holding a syringe filled with some green liquid. No sign of Lucrecia. His eyebrows pulled together in the beginnings of a frown.

"Alright" he agreed slowly. "I'll come by again later." But Gast wasn't listening, he was once more engrossed in his work.

From his position inside the next room, Hojo watched Vincent leave. The Doctor smirked as he double checked his syringe. Perfect. He picked up a small cotton wool pad with his spare hand and dabbed at Lucrecia's arm.

Lucrecia herself said nothing as Hojo eased the needle into her skin and injected the viscous gloop inside. She heard the exchange outside, knew that Vincent had returned, yet she was unable to react. Her heart was overjoyed that her lover was back, and longed to see him, yet something stopped her. Her heart was pleased, but the voice in her head warned her away, knowing that he would cause trouble.

He'll get in my way, he'll stop me. He doesn't want me to succeed…

Her thoughts were broken as the Jenova infusion began to flow throughout her body. This was the third now, but still they felt… She couldn't begin to describe how it felt, like a prickling sensation in all her veins. Pins and needles, only… not.

For his part, Hojo could sense Jenova's pleasure that the experiment was going according to plan. The Ancient had informed him that she could already feel her cells taking hold of the embryo, something which Hojo had not anticipated. Apparently Jenova was still in some way connected to the child, there was a link there. Different to the one he shared with the creature, and again, different to that the Cetra had with Gast and Lucrecia. He wondered how that would develop. But that was something to look into at a later stage. For now, he had to ensure that the child absorbed the Mako and Jenova cell mix.

- - -

Vincent was not in the best of moods. His hunting was proving problematic, and not for the reasons he'd expected. There was no shortage of creatures lurking in the Nibel mountains, more than usual for this time of year in fact. It was more the problem of shooting one so that it wasn't injured mortally, but still enough to stop it trying to take off his arm when he went to retrieve it. A nasty gash in his formerly immaculate sleeve stood testament to that.

The first couple of beasts, he'd been too good. His aim with the shotgun was true and he'd killed them straight out. That was no help to Gasts' experiment. Next time, he'd aimed for a less critical area, but still the animal had died. The shotgun's ammunition was too powerful it appeared. So he had to use his pistols instead.

Unfortunately, these weren't as effective against Nibel monsters as the shotgun. The bullets hardly penetrated the tough exterior of the creatures, and their main weak points just happened to be the places that would kill them instantly. He fired off a few more rounds at the animal that was even now charging him down. It failed to slow down.

"Shiva's sake, these things are armour fucking plated…"

He dived to one side into a roll, thankfull that he was at least faster than these damned monsters. As he did so, he used the weapon in his left hand to send some more hot lead screaming into the creatures side. It cried out loudly, a good sign as far as Vincent was concerned. He was also heartened by seeing a stream of blood starting to ooze from two of the bullet wounds.

Five minutes later, the beast lay on the ground, exhausted. Some more well placed shots had caused a large amount of bloodloss, and all he'd had to do then was tire it out. Binding the monster's mouth and legs securely (he wasn't making the same mistake twice, he thought with a wry look at his tattered sleeve), he hauled the injured creature back to the Mansion.

Gast was less than overjoyed at the specimin Vincent presented him with. Alright, so the day was getting on a bit, but the Professor hardly acknowledged him when he bundled the monster onto a lab trolley.

"Is Lucrecia…"

"She's gone to bed."

Another monosyllabic, barely courteous answer. Vincent was beginning to get suspiscious. Certainly the Project team had been working extremely hard, but Gast always had a kind word, a friendly smile… Didn't he? The Turk frowned once more as he left the lab, something he seemed to be doing a lot today.

Stalking up the stairs, he paused outside Lucrecia's room, whilst on the way to his own. Maybe she was still up? Besides, he'd prefer to talk to her alone than with Hojo or Gast watching.

"Lucrecia?" he called softly, rapping on the door with his knuckles. "Lu, are you awake?" He was greeted with silence. He couldn't see any light shining through the keyhole, so tried again. "Lu?"

Gently he tried turning the door handle. He'd been a late night visitor to her room many times in the past, and she had never minded. The door refused to budge. Locked.

He had a master set of keys to all the doors in the Mansion, but he decided to leave her be. If Lucrecia had been working hard all day then she was probably tired and asleep already. He wouldn't disturb her now. Turning away from the door, he tried to mask his disappointment and made for his own room.

She heard him arrive, She heard him whisper her name in that loving voice. And she heard him leave. Lucrecia lay on the soft covers fo her bed, staring up at the ceiling. No matter how hard she had tried to call out to him, in spite of her efforts to stand up and unlock the door, she had failed. Instead, all she could do was lie there, some great invisible weight keeping her in place.