Disclaimer
I do not own any characters from Final Fantasy, but I do own the one's of my creation. If you wish to use any of my material, ASK ME FIRST! Oh, and mention that you used my material. I accidentily used some of Rose Flame's material, but made this story before I read her's.
Read Faith and Feather, By Rose Flame.
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Vincent was dreaming. What was he dreaming of, exactly? He does not even know for sure. Is he dreaming, or is he simply remembering something? He doesn't know. Suddenly, Vincent is awake.
Vincent opened the lid of his coffin with many thoughts in his head. He had had a strange dream. Wait, was it a dream? He had dreamt that he- wait, it wasn't him. It was the him from before he was changed by Professor Gast.
He was talking to someone. It was a lady. He just happened to notice the little jewel she was wearing around her neck. Vincent reached into the folds of his cloak, and pulled out the same pendant. He didn't know what this meant, but he had better things to do than to sit around discerning old dreams. After all, he had his fill of dreams.
As Vincent was walking up the basement stairs, he was surprised to see a beast roaming around. Vincent thought he had hunted them all down. As Vincent started to pull his gun from its holster, he noticed that this was no ordinary monster. It looked extremely fierce, but calmed Vincent at the same time. He slide his gun back into his holster and started toward the creature. Then he saw that it resembled a lion, without the main, had red fur, walked on all fours,
and wore a feathered headband. Vincent laughed at his own foolishness. "Red! Red the 13th!" Vincent called. Red turned his head in Vincent's direction. "Are you Vincent Valentine?" the creature asked. Vincent's eyes widened in surprise.
He began to take a closer look at the creature, and noticed that it wasn't the Red he had journeyed around the Planet with. It certainly looked like Red, but it wasn't him. " I am he." Vincent asked cautiosely,"Who, may I ask, are you?" The creature
approached Vincent, examining Vincent with strange, green eyes. Vincentrealized what the difference was between Red and this creature. Red had yellow eyes, not green. As it approached, Vincent laid a hand on his gun, the Death Penalty. " I am
Nakanai, though others refer to me as Red the 14th." Vincent smiled at his own mistake. " So you are Nanaki's... son, I assume?" " You assume correctly, Vincent." answered Red. " My father, Red the 13th, sent me to travel the world with you.", explained Red," My father spoke highly of the Vincent Valentine." Vincent silently agreed with the animal. Red continued," My father told me that I was to out of place in the world." Vincent remembered how Red the 13th always seemed to fit in everywhere he went. His son looked like he could hardly stand still. Red continued," He said that I would embrace the solitariness that you would show me." Vincent waited for Red to speak, but it appeared that Red expected Vincent to speak. Vincent cleared his throat and said," Nanaki was very wise. I only accept you because you are his son, but I warn you that I do not expect to be troubled in any way by Nanaki's son." Vincent saw a look of resentment on Red's face, but it quickly vanished."One more thing,", said Vincent," I refuse to call you Red. I shall adress you as Nakanai. Oh,", Vincent added," Do not enter the basement, for that is my chambers, and I do not wish to be disturbed. You may have the entirety of the upstairs, but not the basement." Vincent was starting to turn away when Nakanai spoke. " When will we begin my training?" Vincent looked at him for a moment, then said," You already have.", and withdrew to the basement.
Vincent was dreaming again, and it was the same dream as earlier. Wait, it was different this time. Vincent was still in it, and so was the girl from his previous...vision, as he had come to call it. Though it was different. The girl was on the ground, arms folded and eyes closed. It reminded Vincent of himself while he was sleeping, but this wasn't the same. In this vision, the girl was on the ground, and the old Vincent was kneeling by her side, head in hands. Suddenly, the girl opened her eyes, and Vincent saw how pale and weakened she looked. The old Vincent looked into her eyes, her empty, empty eyes. She reached into her pocket and produced the jewel Vincent had seen previosly, cupped it in her hands and gently mimbled something. A flash of light, and in place of the jewel was a glove. It was similar ti Vincents gauntlet, but it was shiny and black, with red lining the finger ridges. She placed it in Vincents hand, then passed away. The old Vincent looked at the glove and put it on, shouting in anger. There was a flash, and the dream ended.
Vincent sat in the library of Shinra Masion, pondering over this new mystery. He was searching through the various files and research paper when he heard footsteps from the upper levels. Vincent laid a hand on his trusted Death Penalty and headed for the stairs. He hesitated, the reached inside his cloak, fingering the Black Materia inside it. Vincent remembered how he had received it. After they had defeated Sepheroth, the team flew off in the Highwind, but Vincent had stayed. The eruption of Holy left not even a scratch on Vincent. Instead, it filled him with new strength. He closed his eyes, then opened them to find himself floating in the Lifestream. Vincent saw the Black Materia. It seemed to call to him, and as he approached, the Galian Beast, Death Gigas, Hellmasker, and Chaos appeared before him.Vincent fought them all, one on one, without the ability to transform into these beasts. When he closed his metal gauntlet around the Materia, it spoke to him. Not spoke, but more of a thought. You are the heir to Death. You have proven yourself by showing that you are master of your own mind, not an inner beast. Later, Vincent awoke to find himself asleep in the Northern Cave, with the Materia in his metal claw. Vincent had been asleep for twent-five years. He returned to the Shinra Mansion, studying and using the Black Materia on the way. Unlike may materia, it did not have to be put into a weapon or armor to work, but when it was, it gained and lost several functions.
Vincent was using it without inserting it, for this way he could use a certain power. He stepped into the shadow of the stairs, letting te materia do its' work. Vincent had watched it in a mirror, once. All the colors on Vincent seemed to become a darker tone, to blend in with the shadows, to become the shadow. Vincent ascended the stairs, not worrying about his metallic boots, for he was one with the shadow, and shadows make no sound. Vincent reached the top of the stairs, emerging from the secret door in the bedroom. Still in the shadows, Vincent approached a red-furred creature lying atop the bed, aiming the Death Penalty. He then spoke, saying," Speak, beast. What are you?" Vincent watched as it lifted its' head and looked in his direction. It had a look of dignity around it, and a fiber of memory pulled at Vincent, to no avail. " I will never understand humans." said the creature," One minute accepting you into their apprenticeship, the next minute pointing a gun at your back.", he finished, shaking his head in what looked like either shame, pity, or disgust, but withan unmistakeable look of hurt pride. Suddenly realization dawned on Vincent.
" Nakanai!", said Vincent, separating with the shadows and holstering his gun," I apologize for my rash actions. I have been deep in thought, and am not used to having people, excuse the expression, around the Mansion." finished Vincent with a bow. Nakanai noded his head in approval, but found it a bit disturbing haveing this menacing figure bow to you, no matter how formal he is. Vincent turned and motioned Nakanai to follow, which he did. Vincent had many questions for Nakanai, but Vincent saw that Nakanai ws as smart as his dad, and knew that some of Vincent's questions were to test him. " So, Nakanai," Vincent began," I am sure your father, Nanaki, has told you of my twenty-five year absence, right?", Nakanai had a temporary look of surprise on his face when Vincent said this, but it dissapeared as quickly as it had come. Vincent thought again on how different he was, and at the same time how alike he was to his father. "My father has told me many tales of you, but that one must of slipped his mind. After all, time is different for us than it is for you." answered Nakanai. Vincent opened his mouth to explain that he did not age, but thought that it wasn't time for that yet. Instead, he told him of Holy, the Lifestream, and his Inner Beasts. Vincent withdrew the information about his obtaining the Black Materia,
for he still did not know if Nakanai could be trusted. Besides, thought Vincent, he probably would not understand.
Vincent had a way of doing things. They're not the best ways, either, but it accomplishes the task at hand. Now, Vincent was reviewing young Nakanai on various subjects. The way he answered these would determin if he could be trusted, and if Vincent should teach him something or leave him in the quiet. "Tell me," asked Vincent, speaking in his cold, emotionless voice,"How much has Nanaki told you of materia?" The animal looked puzzeled, and asked,"What is materia?" Vincent was surprised by this. Nanaki was one of the most compotent users of materia he had ever met. Then he remebered. Nanaki did not beleive in Mako energy. He beleived materia came from the lifegiving energy of the Planet, Lifestream. He might not call it materia. Vincent unlatched a Fire materia from his backup revolver, the Peacemaker, and showed it to Nakanai. The puzzled look on Nakanai's face vanished when he saw. "Oh, that!", he said,"Father always called them 'Spirit Orbs', although materia slipped his mouth once or twice." Then he answered Vincent's earlier question. "Yes, Father instructed us in the Uses, but he also gave us teachings in the use of Spirit Energy. Would you explain to me more of 'materia'? Father didn't talk much of it." Vincent told him of materia and that it came from Mako Energy, which Nanaki called the Spirit of the Planet. He also told him of the Lifestream. Vincent then asked of the 'Spirit Energy' that Nakanai spoke of. " Father told us how ancestor Bugenhagen showed you his machine, and you already know of the Blood of the Planet.", said Nakanai. Vincent nodded. Nakanai then proceeded to explain. "Some call my Father Nanaki the Wise, because he can speak with the Planet, that is, when the Planet wills it. You see, my Father discovered that we were once a race called the Unbaen en mu Gatuima, which was Cetra for 'One with the Flames', because of our tail flames." When he said this, the flame on his tail seamed to flare for a moment. Vincent guessed that Nakanai was trying to show off. Then the Unbaen continued,"You see, in honor of the Life Stones, your 'Huge Materia', we turned Ancestor Bugenhagen's Laboratory into a shrine. We removed his furniture and personel possesions, placing them at his buriel site, but left his machine, for it was a place to study and observe the Planet. We compiled all the knowledge our Elders and Ancestors had gathered, making a Library. We put the Library in Ancestor Bugenhagen's Laboratory, for they belonged with the LifeStones. The Laboratory become the Shrine to The Planet, a place to honor the Planet, observe the Planet, and learn from the Planet." Vincent interupted, saying,"It sounds wonderful. You must take me some day." They had been walking around the Nibel Mountains, and reached a spot Vincent liked, for you could see for miles around. You could even see Lucrecia's cave. When they sat down, Nakanai continued. "Father was reading from the book of Elder Hami in Ancestor Bugenhagen's machine when the Planet first spoke to him. It told him of the history of our race. Our eace has a Cetra name for a reason. The Planet told Father that we were once Cetra ourselves."
"How can that be? Aeris," asked Vincent, wincing at the name,"was a Cetra and she didn't look like you." Nakanai nodded his head, then continued saying," I said we were Cetra once. The first of our race were human, so to speak, and had normal lives. They were a couple, having recently married. They were both extremely powerful Cetra's, and were the defenders of their tribe. The Cetra had stopped their wandering momentarily, in order to rest. They rested in what is now Cosmo Canyon, unkowing of the threat of the Gi. The couple were wandering the Canyon with the young Cetra, when the Gi attacked. The two were unable to save the young ones, who perished in the fires of the Gi, and escaped. The two prayed to the
Planet, asking for the strength and power to avenge the lives of the lost. The Planet spoke to them, saying ' They perished by the Flame, so you shall live by it.' and transformed them. I am sure you can figure the rest." Vincent nodded. He then asked proceeded to ask, " Is that why you have the Cosmo Candle?" Nakanai nodded, then said," The Cetra moved on, but the couple stayed, protecting the Canyon. Being touched by the Planet affected their ageing, giving them extended lives. They lived to see the humans settle in the Canyon. The humans accepted them as thier gaurdians, and we have been ever since.
Vincent and Nakanai got up and continued their treck through the mountains. Vincent was listening to Nakanai, carefully absorbing every word. It was easy to listen to the lengthy story, seeing as Vincent hadn't had much contact with anybody in a while. Nakanai continued, "Father listened as the Planet told him of the Power that us Unbaen had frgotten we had. It showed him how to harness Spirit Energy, your Mako energy, but left the rest for him to learn. Father learned quickly. He could turn an acorn into a full grown tree, bend and twist rocks to his will, and heal with the Flame of his tail. He taught me very little, like the Planet had him. He did teach me how to heal and exelerate plant growth, very little on the use of the earth. Then, my Father found a way to transform into his human body. He does it very little, though, for the Planet changed us, and that is how we are meant to be." Vincent asked onefinal question before dropping the subject. "Do you know how?", asked Vincent. Nakanai answered, saying," Yes, Father showed me. He said it was my choice wether or not I wished to live this way. I change only when I need to appear human, or I need my human combat skills. Do you wish me to show you?" Vincent nodded. "I wish to see your combat skills.", explaned Vincent, watching Nakanai transform into a muscular man with wide-set shoulders, brown hair, and red eyes. Vincent noticed that when Nakanai transformed, he had on rawhide breeches, a long staff with a wooden sphere at the top, and was shirtless. Vincent removed his clawed gauntlet, revealing the prothetic hand he had had grafted onto his hand, and laid it on the ground. Nakanai did the same, then asumed a fighting stance uknown to Vincent. Vincent went into the stance he had learned as a turk. He curled his fists, pointing one arm at Nakanai and the otheron the ground. As Nakanai charged, Vincent used his inhuman strength to push himself into the air with the one arm. As the Unbaen charged by, Vincent twisted aound with lightning fast agility and slammed the heel of his boot into Nakanai's back. The force of the blow knocked Nakanai foreword, but he rolled along the ground, flipped over ontoall fours, like he was in his other form, and pounced at Vincent. Nakanai's shoulder slammed into Vincent, but he grasped the Unbaen's arm and twisted around to Nakanai's back. He put his feet on Nakanai's back, then pulled hard on the Unbaen's arm, nearly dislocating it. Nakanai fell to the ground, pinned by Vincent's foot. "I succumb.", he said, changing back into his original form. Vincent lifted his foot releasing the animal, and put on his gauntlet, saying, "That was very good." They then headed back down the mountains, towards the mansion. One breathing loudly, the other walking with a limp.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the mountains, Nanaki was speaking with the Planet. Nanaki, she said, Your son Nakanai is with the Dark One. He fooled him into accepting him as a trainee. Nanaki spoke, " Thank you, I am greatful for the help of the all-seeing Planet." and bowed. He turned and walked away, lowering himself on the elevator. When he left the Shrine, he ran into his wife, Coalata. They had met in the Wutai area, and it was love at first sight. Nanaki had thought that there were no others like him. He was wrong. " Where is Nakanai? Is he safe? Has he been kidnapped?", erupted Coalata. She was extremely worried, especially with the problem now. " Calm yourself, Coalata.", he said, " Our son is safe. He must have overheard me when I was discussing the problem with Yuffie. He has gone to Vincent." His wife stood, shocked. Nanaki continued, " He told Vincent that I sent him to be apprenticed, so he would train him in the art of Combat." Nanaki smiled as he finished. " I think he will find it harder to convince Vincent than it is me." Coalata sighed, satisfied, then trudged off towards the place where she can relax. The Ancient Forest. He she can relax there, he did not know, but he was glad to be alone. He had much to think about.
How did this start?, thought Nanaki, Oh yes...
After they had beaten Sephiroth, they had split the summons materia. Actually, the materia picked them. They had checked their slots, only to find a summon materia that some one else had been holding. Nanaki had been chosen by Ifrit, the Flame Demon. About three months ago Nanaki was patroling the Conyon when Ifrit had started to glow. Soon, the glow became a blinding light, but then ceased. His Ifrit had changed from red to gold. Not yellow, but litterally a golden color that seemed to resemble the sun. He tried summoning Ifrit, but nothing happened. He could use extremely powerful fire magic, like flare, fire1-3, he could even control the flames to a certain degree, but only when he had the materia. He had informed the Planet of this, and it spoke to Nanaki. She told Nanaki the history of the Summons. They were all real, and most were seeking more power, similar to Sephiroth. The one's that didn't were Odin, Shiva, and Titan. They defended the Planet, and defeated them one by one. Once they had been defeated, Titan threw their bodies into the Lifestream, where they turned into the materia. Then Odin, Shiva, and Titan gave themselves to the Planet, too. Nanaki had listened intently, not interupting. This was the Planet, after all. The planet said that she, too, was an entity such as the summons. She was called Gaia, and she was merged with a human so that she could walk and teach about the Planet. The human soon died, and that was the only one Gaia could merge with. Soon, other elements wanted to walk upon the ground, like her. Diablos, who was Death. Pheonix, who was purification and rebirth of Flames. Quetzalcoatl, who was the storm. Cactuar, who was the sand. Cerberus, who was the enforcer of Death. Her siblings, Sacred and Minotaur, who presided over the mountains. her beloved sister, Eden, who was life energy, and joined Gaia. Last, Gilgamesh, who ruled them all. They began possesing humans, not merging, killing them in the process. Gilgamesh was wise, and decided against this, but the others refused to listen. Gilgamesh gathered his Knights of the Round, and defeated the other elements. Their essences survived, though. Gilgamesh was already part human, so he died of old age, and his Knights of the Round became materia, and sealed themselves with him in his tomb.
Nanaki had asked how they could have, since the found the Knights summon in a cave without a body. Gaia explained that Gilgamesh's body was the tomb. He made in unaccessible so that no one would gain the power of his Knights or the essences of the elements which he sealed in there, also. Nanaki had only been in the entrance of the Tomb, but there was much more to it. Those elements were in tune with the materia summons that Nanaki and his friends have. She feared that some one had taken the essences. That was not possible, though, because only she knew about them. When Gilgamesh sealed thier essences, they must have turned crystaline, looking like materia.She said that some one must have taken them thinking that it was materia. If they used it, they would merge with the essence of the element. They had no choice. The element would have complete control over them, and would try to free it's brothers! Nanaki's materia must have changed because the Pheonix has possesed somone, and will only be used by the on they are destined to merge with.
Nanaki had contacted and discussed thiss with Cloud and the gang, with the exeption of Vincent, for hehad no summon, and he probably wouldn't care. Gaia had wished to speak with them, so they gathered at Cosmo Canyon, inside the Shrine. Gaia explained to them, and then asked to see their summons. some were like Nanaki's. It was Barret's Titan, Yuffie's Leviathan, and Cid's Ramuh. When Titan came in contact with Gaia, it sprang to life. He informed Gaia of their plight, and told them how to defeat the merged elements. They are more powerful than you could imagine, he had said, Even more so than Sephiroth. The only way to destroy them is to merge with a summon and combat them. Titan said that Barret was the only one who he could merge with. Barret agreed, on the condition that they only merge for the fight, and that he is in charge, not Titan. Titan agreed to this, and returned to his materia, and Barret stuffed it into his gun-arm. They left the shrine, exept for Yuffie and Nanaki. Yuffie wanted to know why Leviathan wouldn't merge with her. " It's been in my family for longer than any written record, and it should merge with me!" she had yelled, but she quickly stopped and apologized, for she was now the Ruler of Wutai, and that was not the behavior expected from a Ruler. Little did she know that it was the least of their worries. Nakanai had been eavesdropping, and overheard the entire thing.
Nanaki shook his head, clearing his mind of those thoughts. He headed towards the Inn, and informed Elder Bugah that he was leaving. " Godspeed, Wise One, godspeed.", said Elder Bugah as Nanaki walked away. He shook his head, his furry mane waving all over, and let out a loud and ferocious roar. It was to inform predators that if they mess with the people of the Canyon, they must answer to him. He finished, and exited the town, heading towards Nibelheim.
Elsewhere, in Neo-Midgar, Cloud, Barret, Tifa, and Cid were having a meeting. Cloud looked around the bar. It was Tifa's new 7th Heaven in Kalm Towm, and like the first one, it had a meeting place underneath. That's where they were now. Cloud looked around the new base. It was much more advanced than the old AVALANCHE base, and it was neater, too. Cloud's thoughts were interupted by Cid's yelling. " Why the #$ do we have to do this? We've already saved the Planet once! Doesn't it have somone else to bother?" Tifa was about to say something, but Cid continued, " And where the f is that darn Youffie, anyway?"he finished. Tifa waited until she was sure he was done, then said, " You know that we are the only one's who can defend the Planet, Cid. Anyone else would either chickin out or die. As for Yuffie, you know that she is the Leader of Wutai! She has a place to govern." Cid looked a little like a child that had just been scolded, but he quieted down anyway. Tifa looked over to Cloud and nodded, indicating that he was supposed to speak. Cloud sighed. "Why did they pick me to be the leader?", he thought, " Oh yeah, because I'm so darn good looking!" he smiled at his own thought, but Tifa thought he was smiling at her, and she quickly turned her head and blushed. Cloud saw this, and supressed a blush himself. He stood up and said, " First things first. Gaia said that the essences were on the island where we found Knights of the Round, so we have to go there, Barret, could yo-", but he was cut off by a remark from Cid. " And how exactly are we supposed to get there? We only have one Gold Chocobo, and the Highwind can't land there." Cid had a smug look on his face as he said this, but it was quickly abolished with the next thing that Cloud said. " Barret, could you take our Gold Chocobo to the Chocobo Sage, and see if he can breed more?" Barret grumbled something about 'smelly 'ol , good fo' nuthin' dung boids', in his gruff accent, then replied, and with an exaggerated salute, " Aye, Capn'! ", then left the room. A few minutes later you could hear the roar of his motorcycle that he had bought shortly after saving the Planet. Cloud turned his attention to Cid. " Cid, I know your in a bad mood, but this is serious!", he said. Cid gave him the evil eye, but Cloud ignord it and continued, " I need you to fly Tifa and me to Nibelheim in the Highwind, then fly to Wutai and see if you could help her or, if she's not busy, fly her to Goblin Forest. We need her special 'skill' so we can get a Zeio Nut.", he finished, raising his eyebrows at the word 'skills'. Everyone knew he was talking about her skills as a theif. Cid gave a breif laugh, then went back to his old sullen face and started walking towards the door. He looked over his shoulder and said, " Hey, are you two comin', or are you just gonna sit there and whisper in eachother's ears?" Cid laughed at the sight of Cloud and Tifa blushing, then walked towards the elevator leading to the bar-area.
In the Shinra Mansion in Nibelheim, Vincent was patroling the hallways. He had heard something walking, and he was sure it wasn't Nakanai. He was much to silent. Vincent stopped just before he turned a corner. The steps were closer than ever, and Vincent could also hear ragged breathing. Vincent had inhanced senses, speed, and reflexes. He reflexively unholstered his Death Penalty, sensed danger, and ran around the corner with his enhanced speed. Vincent leapt on on wall, then leapt to the other, repeatingin this until he reached the ceiling about twenty feet in the air. He dug his one claw and metal boots into the ceiling, clinging to it as quietly and speedily as a spider. Vincent flipped a switch on his boots, activating the gravity-pull mechanism he recently had added. It was like a magnet, but was not limited to just metal. Anything with friction, hecould stick to. He silently focused his sight on the creature. It was not Nakanai, and he was not friendly. It was a man, about VIncent's height, looking around his late twenties. He was wearing a light-blue cloak with the hood over his head, but Vincent could see the light armor he wore underneath it. He also carried a polished staff of wood, and in about the middle of the staff was a slight split, one only Vincent's enhanced senses could see. He assumed it to be two swords with wooden handles, connected by a hollow tube made with the same type of wood.
Vincent slid across the ceiling, as silently as a shodow, and stopped before the fork in the hall. He waited untill the man was five feet from the fork, then turned off his boot mechanism, dropping to the floor with a slight flip in the air. He landed as softly as if he had landed on a bed of goose down, and pointed the Death Penalty directly at the intruders' head. This stopped the man in his tracks. Vincent spoke in the cold, heartless voice he always uses on people he does not know, or trust. He said, " You come into my home, uninvited and unwelcomed, acting like you live here. Speak your name, your bussiness here, and who sent you. Then I will consider letting you go with a bullet in your arm.", and Vincent was not bluffing. Vincent enjoyed his privacy, and when somone enters his house without his personel consent, he was ready to put a bullet between their eyes. The man hesitated, then removed his hood with his right hand, keeping his left on his 'staff'. Vincent had misjudged the intruder. He was only a boy, looking to be about eighteen. He had shaggy black hair, glowing green eyes that looked like he had been exposed to Mako, and one, long scar curving from his left eyebrow to diagonally dow his left cheek. The boy spoke in a slightly deep voice, looking directly at the Death Penalty, as if to show that he wasn't afraid. " I am Myrkash, born to the town of Kalm, raised in the Northern Continent, and trained at the Dojo of Wutai. My master sent me, and that is all I can say of him. Though, I can speak more of why he sent me. That is, if you remove the gun from your hand.", answered Myrkash, gesturing towards the Death Penalty. Vincent scrutinized him one more time before saying, " The gun is removed when you, too, are unarmed.", saying this in his fluid, icy tone, he gestured towards the boy's staff. The boy raisd an eyebrow at Vincent, lowered it, then replied, " This is my walking staff, sir, and I prefer to hold it. I assumed that such a disguise would not fool you, but I tried. I will remove the bades, but keep the staff. Agreed?" he asked, reaching out his hand. Vincent looke down cautiously at the hand, watching the boy from the corner of his eye. He shrugged then said, " Agreed. ", without bothering to shake Myrkash's hand. He holstered his Death Penalty, crossed his arm and claw over his chest, and walked off, gesturing for him to follow. The boy stood for a second, dumbstruck, then hurried after the scarlet cloaked man.
Nanaki was about halfway to Mt. Nibel. He was running across a vast grassland when he encountered a problem. A monster was destroying the grassland, burning it. Nanaki wouldn't have thought twice about it, but he saw all the animals being driven from their habitats because of the monster. He took a slight detour and started in the direction of the smoke. He reached the monster in three minutes. It walked on two legs, but was covered in blackish fur. It's feet resembled a wolf's, but with longer claws. The upper body portion only had a slightly thin layer of the hair. It's arms looked human enough, but at the elbow area protruded a large bone spike. It's hands had glowing red talons, which seemed to be on fire themselves. The thing looked at Nanaki with a face that had beady black eyes, matted brown hair, eyebrows with protruding spikes, and pointed sharp teeth. It snarled and leapt at Nanaki, swiping at him with it's flaming talons. Nanaki jumped to the side, whiping the monster with spikes he had recently attached to his tail. The thing howled in pain, then turned and spewed a fire-ball at Nanaki. The Unbaen stood his ground, digging his claws into the soil, touching the Lifestream with his mind. A blue beam erupted from the mouth of Nanaki, freezing an area of grass around as it met the fire-ball. The flames froze in place, dissapearing. The beam continued forward, striking the monster square in the chest area. It froze on contact. Nanaki turned and released a few more, lower-powered beams to extinguish the flames, then continued on his way. Unknown to Nanaki, two figures were watching him from high above. " Do you think he is the one?" said the one on the right. "We shall see." answered the one on the left.
Cloud was in the communications room of the Highwind, the airship that the legendary pilot Cid flies. Cid had recently remodeled it to a training room, and Cloud spent most of his time on the ship in that room. Moving helped his motion-sickness, and your always moving while traing. He had taken an anti-acid, just in case. He sat, polishing his Ultima Weapon. It really didn't need polishing, for it was made of a smooth glassy substance that seemed to be a part of Cloud. Whenever he was dangerously hurt, the blade would turn a darkish-blue. Now, it did more. Whenever something bad was going to happen, it glowed green, and other things similar to that. it was it's normal, white color now. Cloud sighed and stood up, still griping the weapon, and walked over to a small speaker an the wall. He pushed the button above it, then a voice spoke through the speaker. "Yes, Cloud sir! What do you need?", the voice said. Cloud sighed again, then said, " First, don't call me sir. Second, send a c-class monster dow here.", then flicked the switch again, not bothering to here the mans' 'sir'. The teleporter on the opposite wall lighted up, then a monster chrged through. It was an Ochu, so charging wasn't exactly the right word. 'Lumbered' was more like it. The Ochu swung it's tenticle at Cloud's feet, but he leaped over the tenticle. He twisted around, slicing the tenticle right down the middle. The monster yowled in pain, then spewed acid all over Cloud. It burned horribly, but he endured. Cloud charged forward, lifting his sword above his head as he leapt into the air. He fell to the ground, bringing the Ultima Weapon straight down the Ochu, spliting it it two. Cloud wiped the gunk off of his sword, then snapped his fingers. A pair off tiny robots came and place the split Ochu onto the teleporter, sending to who-knows-where. Cloud reached into his pocket, pulling out an antidote, in case the acid was poisoned. He only took a small potion, and allowed the rest to heal. He exited the room, heading towards the Chocobo Stable room.
Tifa was already there when he entered. She looked at his burns and sighed. Cloud didn't mind when she healed his burn with her heal materia. He unclipped his sword from his back, placing it on a pile of hay. He walked over to Tifa, and sat down. She cuddled up to him, laying her hed on his shoulder. He still felt a little uncomfotable when she did this, even though they were engaged. He guessed that it was his pride as a man, but some of it was his love for Aeris. He quickly shook those thoughts from his head, then nodded off to sleep. A few minutes later they were both jarred awake by the sudden crash of the Highwind. Cloud looked over to his sword, noticing that it was glowing green through it's sheath. "Damn!", he muttered, then looked to Tifa and said "Stay here." She looked at him, raising an eyebrow and putting her fists on her hips. "We may be engaged, but don't think I need somone to protect me.", she said, then lightly pecked him on the lips, running off. Cloud sat there for a moment, then grabbed his Ultima Weapon and hurried towards the door. He almost ran into Cid, who was standing with his Venus Gospel at the ready. He turned his head towards Cloud and yelled, "It got Choco! The &$! thing got her. Charged right into the $#& ship, almost tearing it the apart!" Cloud had known Cid to use language, but he had never even heard of these words before. Cid pointed his spear at a long gash in the wall of the ship. The he realised what happened. "Cid, are we close to Nibelheim?", he asked. " The $#$ we are where less than a &#$ mile from it! The &! thing came out of the town!",Cid answered. Cloud nodded, then went to the training room to let off some steam.
"Pull us in."
Vincent was talking to the boy, whose name was Myrkash, who had been sent by to Vincent by his master for uses the boy did not know when the ground started to shake. Vincent leapt to his feet and ran towards the front door, charging through it. He tore it of of the hinges, but that was the least of his worries. A giant winged creature resembling a dragon was flying away from a burning Nibelheim. Rage filled him, but he decided to save the town first. He extinguished the flames with a quick Aqualung, then let Choas take over. The demon spread it's wings and flew towards the monster with alarming spead. Chaos slammed into the monster, causing it to fall to the ground. Chaos dived toward the creature, but it moved with awesome speed. Choas slammed into the ground, making a crater about ten yards long. The demon flew back into the air, shaking the dirt off of it's body, only to find the creature waiting for him. It slammed a claw into Chaos, sending him flying backwards. The monster turned and started to fly off, but not without a nice gash from the Chaos Saber.
Vincent awoke about an hour later. He was back at the mansion. The boy Myrkash and Nakanai had carried him back shortly after Chaos had given up control. "We were worried.", they had said, but they knew Vincent better than that. He went back to sleep, and when he woke up they said they had visitors. "Three visitors came and asked to speak with you, Vincent.", said Myrkash, who had apparently been a page or squire at Wutai, for he did for to many things without complaining. Vincent rose, not noticing the scar on his cheek. He walked to the piano room, surprised to find Cloud, Cid, and the curvacious Tifa. He was surprised to find himself staring, then quickly looked away when Tifa looked at him. They could not see him blushing because it looked like part of his cloak. Tifa squinted at him and for a moment he feared she had seen him. Then she said, "Vincent! We missed you so much! We really didn't want to bother you with this, but-Oh! What happened to your face? You have a scar." Vincent reached up nad felt the scar, but didn't care at the moment. Instead he said "Bother me with what?" He listened while Cloud related the whole story to him. Cloud didn't say anything about Nakanai, because Nanaki hadn't mentioned him. Vincent told him about the young Unbaen, then turned to Cid, asking "Cid, did this creature resemble a dragon? And did it have a long gash in its' side?" Cid shivered, Vincent was unshure if it was from his voice, or the memory of the beast. Finally, Cid said "Yeah, the &$#&# had a long cut in it's side. I was su'prised when it didn't eat the Chocobo. I was jes' walkin' it around the ship to stretch the fleabag's legs when the &$#&!$#$& came." Vincent was startled when he heard the words coming out of the old pilot's mouth, then said "The same monster attacked Nibelheim, leaving it on fire. I extinguished the flames then Chaos fought the beast, leaving the cut that you saw. Likewise it left a mark on me.",he said, pointing to the scar. " No wonder the town was a wreck. Oh yeah, I like whatcha' did witha' door. Had to fix the #$$# thing.", mumbled Cid. Vincent ignored this remark then said. "I, too, have strange materia. Two of them, in fact." He then showed them his Black-Materia and his dream-materia.
Nanaki was at the entrance of Nibelheim. It appeared that something had happened here. He walked through the village, looking around. He reached Shinra Mansion, which hadn't been touched. He ran inside, only to find Vincent and his friends discussing something, along with his son. Nanaki let out a ferocious roar, causing everyone to jump, with the exeption of Vincent, who merely turned his head. Nakanai looked at his father with eyes full of fear, then transformed into a human, grabing the dream materia that Vincent had layed on the table. He leapt towards the other side of the room, the materia in his hand glowing, then said, " You fools! You beleived me to be Nakanai! Ha! I am Kua'shipo, and I will rule the world with this materia!" He then crushed the materia in his hands, releasing an image of a three-headed dog, which said, "You have served well, Kua'shipo. Your reward will be a merging with me, Cerberus! Essence of Death!" Then, the Black-Materia that wa on the table revea;ed an image of a black demon, which said, "You are the fool, Cerberus! You wish to become the essence of Death? Take it! I, Diablos, knows the outcome, and I am siding with the winners. You, Cerberus, you cannot command souls that you have killed. They must die freely, and come to you freely. Creberus, I will see you in Hell!" and a brillant flash of light filled the room, and when it dissapated, Kua'shipo was gone. Along with Cerberus, But Diablos remained. It turned its head towards Vincent and said, " Vincent, you are the one destined to merge with me. Take me to Gaia, and I will explain all." then returned to the Black- Materia, which was actually the essence of Diablos.
Mail me and tell me how I did. Scouts honor that this was all my creation.
Everyone was gathered at the Shrine in Cosmo Canyon, with the exeption of Yuffie, Cait Sith, Cid, and Barret. Yuffie was attending to business in Wutai, and Cid and Barret were with the Chocobo Sage, trying to breed another Gold Chocobo to get to the cave that had the essences. Cait Sith had dissepeared. They were listening via PHS as Gaia and Diablos conversed. When they were done, Diablos returned to his Materia. Gaia then told everyone what had happened so far, since they had all experienced something different. Tifa then asked "Gaia, Diablos was Death. Why is he choosing to side with us?", she told Nanaki, who relayed the message to Gaia. Then a voice spoke in their heads. Diablos ruled the souls. Cerberus only gaured them, and knew nothing of them, only that they could be controlled. He didn't know that they could only receive souls that had died naturally, or came to them of free will. The most important thing he didn't know was that they could only be controlled to an extent. He will try and dictate them. Diablos knew that there would be few souls, and that Cerberus would try to overthrough him. He sided with his sister. Me. They all sat, absorbing all the knowledge they had just received. Nanaki spoke, saying, " So let me summarize the events that have taken place. Ancient Elementals were trapped in materia-like substances. Someone or something has taken the essences that were there. Two of the essences were in the ownership of Vincent, and one with Barret. My son has dissepeared, possibly kidnapped. A man named Kua'shipo disguised himself as my son to steal Cerberus from Vincent. Vincent had a Black-Materia, which was actually the essence of Diablos. Diablos can merge with Vincent, and Titan can merge with Barret. We need the power of the merge to combat these essences, and obtain the ones that have not awakened yet. Which puts us where we are now." he finished. Everyone nodded. Cloud turned his head towards Vincent. "Vincent," he said, "you are destined to merge with a very powerful essence. We need you to do this in order to save the Planet. You would be more experianced at this from dealing with the beasts inside you. Are you going to merge?", he asked. Vincent looked around the room. He looked at Nanaki, Cloud, and breifly at Tifa, afraid he was goung to stare. He held up the essence, saying, " I will do it." The essence glowed, then formed the gauntlet he had seen in his dream long ago. He finally understood that it was this materia he had seen, not the other. He still did not understand who the lady was, though. Suddenly, the voice of Diablos spoke. Vincent, wear this gauntlet. When you wish to merge, just think it, but nothing will happen if you do not wear this. Vincent then removed his old gauntlet, and equiped the new one. "Hey," said Tifa, "you must get a special item in order to merge. Barret received a rock-fist, and Vincent got a new gauntlet." Nanaki nodded at Tifa, then looked to Cloud and said, "Cloud, I think we should check all of the Materia Caves.", then he turned to Vincent and said, " Vincent, don't you have a Black Chocobo?" Vincent nodded, then Nanaki continued. "Can you check the one near Corel Mountains and Wutai? I will explore the others with Tifa, if Cloud doesn't mind." Both Cloud and Vincent nodded, then everyone exited the room, exept for Cloud, who was going to stay and research the Writings of the Elders.
Vincent was collecting his things from his room at the inn. He stuffed a small pistol into his boot-holster and strapped his Death Penalty to his side. He called Myrkash via PHS and said, "Boy, go to I am going to be absent longer than I expected. Do not destroy the mansion while I am gone." Myrkash answered, 'Yes, Vincent. Oh, and please sto calling me boy, I am seventeen years old, and nearly a man.', then hung up. Vincent lifted the edge of one side og his lip in a smirk. Almost a man, but not yet. He walked over to the door, already hearing the familiar panting. "Greetings, Nanaki.",said Vincent, opening the door. Nanaki started, but calmed, saying, "No one ever could sneak up on you, can they?" He quickly changed the subject. "Vincent, I have a favor to ask." Vincent raised an eyebrow. "What is the request?", Vincent asked. Nanaki looked around, making sure no one was watching, then entered the room. He closed the door behind him with his tail. "No one has come to realize this, but my son is still missing. Vincent, I fear he has been kidnapped. I have a theory that he has been chosen to merge with Ifrit's counterpart-Pheonix. Vincent, I ask this of you because I cannot trust anyone else. If you see my son, and he is possesed by an essence, please end his suffering.", he finished, nonchalanty poitnting his tail at Vincent's gun. The ex-Turk replied, "I will.", then left Cosmo Canyon.
Vincent was about three leages from the Canyon, he raised his black gauntlet in the air, calling upon Diablos. They interacted through thought. 'Diablos, you share space in my mind with other...entities. I will transform into Chaos, but merge with me at that time and make sure I reach Nibelheim withoutharming anything.', said Vincent. Diablos responded, 'Just because we are partners, do not think I am one to be ordered. I will comply, but do not expect to be let of so easy. Next tinme.' the demon said. Vincent shrugged, then brought Chaos to life. The demon roared, spreading its wings, only to have its mind intruded upon by Diablos, who easily took over. Chaos protested, not being used to facing something more powerful than itself. The demon was quickly silenced with a mental shove from Diablos. Outside of Chaos' mind, its body began to change. The demon's skined turned black, and it's wings became red. The fangs grew longer, resembling a tiger's.The demon grew thinner, and became taller. The new-and improved Chaos flew off in the direction of Nibelheim to get Vincent's Black Chocobo, Kael.
Elsewhere, in the fiery depths of an underwater volcano, a meeting was being held. Four men stood silently against a wall, protected by a glowing green barrier. On the outside of the barrier, their masters were conversing. They were Pheonix, Cerberus, Doomtrain, and Carbuncle. Though they weren't really there, their essences were. Pheonix spoke in thought-speak. 'We have to find a way to get rid of those mortals! They already have Titan and worse, Diablos! The only other essences that we have of our brothers and sisters are Sacred and Minotaur. Sacred isn't worth merging, so count him out. The one to merge with Minotaur does not exist yet!' Carbuncle answered, 'Calm yourself, brother. I have found one who can merge with Minotaur. He is the son of one of the mortals, but has incredible longevity, giving him the ability to support Minotaur.' A green bubble-like barrier floated in the room, containing a lion-like creature. 'I beleive they called him, Nakanai, the one your servent disguised himself as, Cerberus.', announced Carbuncle. Pheonix did something close to a nod, as close as a bodiless figure could get. Carbuncle brought another bubble into the room, this one containing the essence of Sacred. Carbuncle then combined the two bubbles. In a flash of light, there stood Minotaur. These essences didn't merge, they posses. When that happens, the two figures don't share physical features. The essences former features are the only ones present. Doomtrain stepped forward saying, 'I have a plan to get rid of Diablos and his merger. If Minotaur will accompany me, I will transport them to a different dimension.' Cerburus, who was apparently the ring-leader, approved, and the two essences exited the Volcano, their mergers carried by Carbuncle's barrier.
The Diablos-Chaos had landed on Mount Nibel, changing back into red-cloaked Vincent. He layed his hand on his Death-Penalty in case any monsters were foolish enogh to attack him. He made his way to a smal cave which he had made a Chocobo Stable to hold Kael. Before he had made it to the mouth of the cave, the ground began to shake. Vincent leapt back in time to avoid being smashed by a falling rock, only to see that it wasn't a rock. It was one of the essences that Gaia had described as Minotaur. Vincent jumped above the mace Minotaur had swung at him, landing on the spiked-ball. He leveld his Death-Penalty at Minotaur's chest and fired.Vincent leapt of of the mace as the ancient monster swung it around in rage. "How dare you strike me, mortal! You shall pay!", Minotaur roared, but Vincent smirked at this. He said, "I don't really care who or what you are, I will do what I wish. As for being a mortal, I am over eighty years old, but my body has not aged, and probably never will." Diablos yelled in his mind. Fool! Merge with me or you will perish! Vincent ignored this, and fired again at Minotaur. This time, though, the creature dodged the bullet. Minotaur hurled a huge boulder at Vincent, to large to dodge. It struck Vincent full on, knocking him into unconciousness. He was dimly aware of being dragged into a train like thing be for fully passing out.