Disclaimer – I don't own FF7

Coeurl

By Crimson Skies

Chapter Three – Mentor

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An uncomfortable silence had enveloped the cave where the recently acquainted Cloud and Vincent resided. It had been a little over ten minutes since ChocoBoy had awakened. Vincent knew. He'd been counting the seconds. Really, what else did he have to do? He watched as Cloud reached up with one hand to brush the hair from his eyes. A thought suddenly occurred to him.

"Doesn't it hurt?" he blurted, rather unlike him. The atmosphere was really getting to him.

"Huh?" Cloud asked intelligently.

"Your right arm. It's broken…" Vincent said, staring. Actually, he couldn't really see it in the almost non-existent light, but it had been broken the last time he'd checked. Which could have been days ago, though he doubted it. Besides, bones simply didn't mend in a few days.

"Eh? Well, no. I wasn't aware it was broken. Wait, when that thing bit me it felt like my arm was being crushed. You mean it broke the bone? It hurt a lot back then." Cloud started at his arm before poking it experimentally. "It doesn't appear to be broken," he said, holding his arm out. Vincent leaned forward to examine it. The dim light made it difficult to see any kind of visible evidence. He tentatively pressed a hand against the arm.

It was completely healthy.

Frowning, Vincent rubbed at the dried blood on the boy's arm. Enough fell away that he could see the puncture wounds beneath. Or, what had been puncture wounds. Now there was a set of scars in an odd shade of silver. That was…weird, to say the least. He'd never seen scars like that before. And this was ignoring the obviously advanced healing. That break, along with the punctures had healed in a very short amount of time without him noticing. Had they been healing the whole time, or did it take awhile for the healing ability to kick in and instantly heal him? Either way, the phenomenon screamed of abnormality. He had a few suspicions about ChocoBoy, and none of them were good. The child's situation was far too familiar to be any kind of 'good'.

"A gil for your thoughts?" Cloud said.

"What? What's that supposed to mean? You just found out that you're arm was broken and all you say 'A gil for your thoughts'? What kind of question is that anyway?" Vincent ranted.

"Yeesh. You don't have to get all upset. It's just something my mom used to say. Look, it's not like we're going to figure it out here and it doesn't seem to be bad," Cloud explained. It was a surprising amount of wisdom coming from such a young boy. Then again, that wasn't the only peculiar thing about ChocoBoy's mental capacity. Since when did kids his age say things like 'I wasn't aware' and 'it doesn't appear to be' anyway? It was a bit creepy. Vincent breathed deeply, becoming calms once more.

"You seem pretty intelligent," Vincent probed.

"My mother was a teacher before she had me. She taught me a lot," he said softly. He snorted. "Of course, I had wanted to take fencing lessons, but she wouldn't let me. She used to say 'A keen mind is a more effective weapon than the sharpest of blades. The next time you want to go and lay about with a sword, remember any idiot is capable of swinging a sword. In the end, the swiftest is superior and sometimes speed has nothing to do with physical ability.'"

"She's very wise. Did you understand what she meant?" he inquired. The boy looked thoughtful.

"I didn't then, but…maybe it has something to do with using your wits?" Cloud mused.

"You are pretty smart. In a battle, opponents don't just fight physically. It is also a test of wit. Those that can predict or fool their opponent often gain the upper hand," he explained. "You must be aware of all your surroundings and use every possibility to your advantage. Also, a huge advantage can be gained from knowing the enemies weakness. In example, it is a commonly known fact that most machine-type enemies are weak against thunder spells. Experience is the best teacher for acquiring that sort of knowledge, but some just have the talent for it."

The explanation had turned into a lesson without Vincent noticing. Cloud paid close attention. He'd always had an interest in fighting, but had never had the opportunity to even learn basics. He had a vague memory of wanting to join SOLDIER once, but that almost seemed like another lifetime now. An odd sentiment for a boy. In any case, it seemed that his knew companion had a lot of experience with battle. His good fortune caused him no end of excitement. He planned to take advantage of the opportunity.

"So, do most SOLDIERs have that talent naturally? They're supposed to be the best, right?" he asked.

"Not always. It's kind of complex, by I'll try to explain. Tell me if you don't understand something." Vincent paused until Cloud nodded his agreement. "Usually those who don't show extraordinary physical talent, but extraordinary mental talent are accepted into the Turks." Seeing Cloud's confused look he explained. "Turks are a group of people who scout out talented individuals for Shinra, mostly for SOLDIER. That's they're official purpose. However, it's no secret that all of them are also trained to be assassins, kidnappers, thieves, spies, hackers, and just about any other unsavory profession you can imagine. They also make very good bodyguards. No doubt they would ever lack job offers," Vincent snorted. He chuckled grimly.

"What's so funny?" Cloud asked suspiciously.

"Kid, you have to understand, Turks don't ever work for anyone but Shinra. There's only one way to leave the Turks, and that is death," Vincent smirked.

"I think I understand." Cloud shivered uncomfortably.

"Physical talent can be achieved through training and time. Natural mental talent can't always be matched, though one can come close. Those who do have physical talent are accepted into SOLDIER. For the typical SOLDIER Shinra wants to recruit talented, quickly trained fighters. Let's just say that the training to become a Turk is nearly twice as long as the training for SOLDIER. In the rare occurrence that someone is born with both physical and mental talent, they are also accepted into SOLDIER. Those are the recruits that make it into the first class and become commanders while the less talented stay in the thirst and second classes. Except for the most hardworking, the rest of the unfortunates who apply end up contracted as Shinra grunts. Not a pleasant existence, I assure you," the gunner said wryly.

"How do you know so much?" Cloud asked, somewhat awed.

"I used to be a Turk," Vincent declared with a maniacal grin. Cloud's face visibly paled.

"A Turk?" he stammered. Vincent description of them hadn't exactly been pleasant after all. "But I thought you said…"

Vincent couldn't help but smirk.

"I was dead for awhile, and as far as they know, I still am. Only one man knows I'm alive," Vincent told him.

"Riiiiiiiight."

COEURLBYCRIMSONSKIESCHAPTERTHREEMENTOR

"Oof!"

A body sprawled awkwardly on the hallway floor. Harsh fluorescent light glared in his eyes. The wall he'd collided with became suddenly recognizable as a person. A very tall, intimidating, and well known person. The teenage boy stared up in awe. Shrinra's own General and the pride of SOLDIER stood before him.

"Sorry sir! I didn't realize…what I mean is…um…it won't happen again," he stammered nervously. The imposing figure stared.

"What's your name cadet?" he asked tonelessly.

"Zackary Donovan, sir," the teen said, standing straight.

"Do you always go charging into your superiors after curfew…?" he asked archly. Zack fumed. The man didn't have to act so utterly superior! All initial nervousness vanished.

"Only every other Thursday," he snapped. Sephiroth's eyes widened a fraction. Zack slapped a hand over his mouth, suddenly realizing the possible consequences. To his surprise, a soft chuckle floated past his ears. He blinked.

"Your hair violates regulation," the General observed.

"So does yours," Zack muttered. A small smirk crept onto Sephiroth's face. He couldn't help but thank any listening deity that not every cadet was a mindless drone. The recent batch had been particularly dense. The General watched the teen fidget. He grinned inwardly.

"I would report you, except that the paperwork would inevitably return to my desk," he said in his best 'I'm only doing this to save myself the agony of writer's cramp' voice. His proficiency in the use of that tone was second only to his proficiency in using the 'I am an unfeeling bastard' voice. Actually, the 'I am an unfeeling bastard' voice was how he usually came across. What Sephiroth didn't realize was that when he made a deliberate effort at using one of these voices those people subjected usually lost all bladder control.

So, once again the cadet was left utterly dumfounded. Sephiroth took the blank expression as his cue to leave. He allowed a small smirk onto his face. The General decided to make a point of watching Cadet Donovan in the future. It would be interesting to see how someone as free spirited as Zack would turn out.

Meanwhile, the teen in question was left standing in the empty hallway, slowly regaining his wits.

"Was he…joking?" Zack whispered to himself. That very question would lead to a close observation of the General in days to come. This would cause a chain of events that would eventually lead to an unlikely friendship. But for now…he really needed to get some sleep. He could already feel a headache forming…

ENDCHAPTERTHREE

So, what did you think? I wasn't all that pleased with how this chapter turned out. Perhaps I'll revise it later. In any case, I hope you enjoyed it. Please give me your opinion. Thanks to all my lovely reviewers by the way. I'm very grateful for your input.Particular thanks to the anonymous person who alerted me of the chapter repetition glitch. I can tell you it was rather frustrating when decided to be temperamental and didn't want to load my stories properly.

Simone of Zordiak – The explanations may be a while in coming, I haven't really decided yet. However, I will be sure to drop clues if it takes awhile. I'm glad you liked how they met. It took me awhile to figure that out (several weeks, really). I hope you liked this chapter as well.

schu – I'm glad you like it. Poor Cloud indeed. I feel so bad about that. Ah, the sacrifices we make for a good plot. I'm feeling a bit cold hearted now. sighs On another note, I won't be revealing anything about the Coeurl quite yet, so you still have time to try to figure it out. I sympathize with the unresponsive brain problem, by the way. I only figured out recently how to jumpstart mine.

Firefly99 – You get a cookie! Would you like the chocolate chip, molasses, or sugar variety? I myself am partial to snickerdoodles. Hehe. Guess you still have to work on getting the box of pocky though. Speaking of which, do you know how hard it is to find strawberry pocky in New Mexico (my current location)? Seriously, I'm starting to suffer from withdrawal! Anyway, you're right, there is a similar monster in FF7 called a Cuahl. However, I have to admit that I didn't like those as much (they were kind of ugly), though there were others reasons why I chose the Coeurl as well.

On a closing note, please forgive me for not taking the time to proofread this update. Honestly, I'll try to replace it with a more grammatically correct version soon, but it is currently 2:30 in the morning, and I just can't bring myself to do it right now. I figure I might as well just leave it as is for now, since I won't have a chance to update for awhile. My mother is going in for surgery next week and I'm going to be helping her out for awhile. It will significantly cut down on my writing time you see. I'll try to update as soon as possible though. Until next time.