Note from future me. The fic mentioned in the note from past me can be found on AO3. Which is also where this fic was originally posted.
This is 100% based off of She_Sees_In_the_Dark's fanfic Son. So you really do need that context before you read this. I highly suggest you do. It's a really good fic, and it's still updating as this fic was posted. (69 chapters nice)
Anyways hope you enjoy the story!
A baby cries all alone in a lab. It is cold; there is no comfort. This baby only quiets down when the sound of cracks, snaps, and pops reaches the baby's ears. It is the only comfort the baby has.
snap
Crack
POP
snapcracklecracklesnapnsapnsapPOP
A man's scream is unheard as the babe sleeps.
And as scientists move out with the baby in their possession, they do not hear the cracks snaps popping that the baby hears. They do not understand why the baby cries when the baby no longer hears it.
They do not hear nails, claws, scratching at a metal door.
No, they hear nothing at all.
All the better for the dead man behind the door, who is determined to save the babe held in cold hearted hands.
Veld needed to know.
He needed to know.
There was no way Vincent would…
They were partners.
The funeral came and went but Veld needed to know.
Vincent was too fucking stubborn to die. Or Veld was too stubborn to let Vincent die.
It might be the way Vincent's death report was too… fishy. It might be that Veld was in denial.
His partner was dead and he was given a half ass reason for how and why.
So the first chance he got, Veld created an elaborate ruse to keep others off of his track. He needed to do this and damn anyone who got in his way.
Nibelheim was a quiet town. A small town. A town where everyone knew everyone. One had to be careful in a town as the people could get suspicious easily. Not to mention any loose tongues. However that last bit could be of use to Veld.
There is merit to listening to gossip.
Disguised as a mountain climber that wanted to tackle Mt. Nibel, Veld ate at the inn.
"Trust me, you don't want to climb Mt. Nibel." The innkeeper tsked.
"And why not?" Veld, under the name of Johnson, asked. Voice altered to sound like he hadn't had a good drink of water for a good couple of days. "I was told it's a good challenge. And I want to be challenged!"
The innkeeper, who was done with stupid outsiders, rolled her eyes. "Look at me."
"I'm looking."
"If you don't want to die, you don't go climb that bitch of a mountain."
Fake bushy eyebrows rose up high into a hat. "A bitch of a mountain?" He parroted back.
"Yes a bitch." She deadpanned. "Nibel's got her wolves, her dragons, and other nasties that are so fucking inconvenient compared to said wolves and dragons. Although if you came here in the winter then I would be more insistent. If Mt. Nibel's a bitch in her other seasons, she's a down right devil in the winter."
'Johnson' snorted. "Can't be worse than that cliff over on the northern continent."
A rueful grin was shot back at him. "Nah, of course not. That's suicide that fucking cliff. But I'd say Nibel's a damn close second."
Barking a laugh out, the man agreed.
All the while this conversation happened this was what Veld heard from across the room.
"No, I'm telling you, I heard screams coming from the mansion!" A young voice, a teen, exclaimed.
"Wait- the fuck? Are you serious?" An older sounding voice. Perhaps an older relative.
"As serious as a wolf attack! It sounded like a man. Remember all those scientists that were here?"
"Geoff…" The older voice warned.
"No, listen, they probably did something about it! There was that lady scientist. Ya remember, the one with the hair? And then-then there was that man in a suit that followed her around-"
"Geoffrey shut it." Was hissed out.
"But they both never left with the other scientists." Geoff whispered.
Good thing Veld always kept an ear out. Because now he had a lead.
'Johnson' thanked the innkeeper and promised that he was strong enough to keep himself out of trouble. Then he left.
A female scientist with 'that hair.' As far as Veld remembered, only Lucrecia Crescent had quite a hairdo that would warrant that reaction. Not everyday one sees someone with long hair held up by a scarf poorly. How Lucrecia managed to keep it up like that, Veld would never know.
And the man that followed her around… it had to be Vincent. He was assigned to her and the others.
Just what could have happened to both Vincent and Lucrecia?
Just as young Geoffrey said, Lucrecia never left with the other scientists… and she never made it back to Shinra.
All of this was very, very, suspicious.
Making his way towards Mt. Nibel, Veld walked enough of a distance to make his climbing story believable. It was time to double back, get out of his disguise, and investigate that mansion.
It hurt. Everything hurt. Throat burnt with blood. Skin shocked with metal. Bones clashing like earthquakes.
Nails and claws sharpening, teeth lengthening, growing and shrinking growing and shrinking growing and shrinking-
Can't breathe too much air-
Can't speak screams too loud-
Broken to be remade again again again and again and again again again-
It was almost maddening the first time, and he feared he wouldn't make it this time around.
But he had to. He can't sleep. He can't sleep and lose time and have everything slip by him like the last time.
What a terrible sin, being inactive. What a terrible sin, letting an innocent be twisted into a monster.
What a sin, not picking himself up to do what must be done, the first time around.
He, eventually, felt like he was alive with his… strange band of… family. But it's now back to the beginning of his nightmare. He is dead once more and he will crawl out of his grave to fix his past mistakes.
He will get the man, the teen, the child, the baby, back and give him a life without the pain that man would inflict.
Just… as soon… as he gets out… of this god forsaken basement…
pop
S n a p
CRACK
"What was that?" A familiar voice reached his sensitive ears. Words that were almost drowned out.
Claws that momentarily sharpened just long enough to drag him further along.
A sudden intake of breath.
Light blinded his eyes.
Chaos laughed in his head, mocking him.
Then the bastard made things worse.
Veld had no idea what he was looking for. Some clues obviously. But he felt… so out of depth. Like a rookie on his first mission. First floor yielded no results. Nor did the second floor. Except for that safe, but he didn't have the proper equipment to deal with that. Not yet.
Aggravated, he stalked into the last room he hadn't searched. A bedroom with a stone circular wall.
Searching it provided no clues.
Nothing.
Zip.
Zero.
In his anger he hit the stone wall… and heard an eco.
That… now that could be a clue. Quickly, he knocked on the stone, searching. And found that the wall could be opened like a door with a push in the proper place.
This was not in the reports.
Teeth grinded together. Veld was sure as hell going to find out what was going on. While Veld was not prepared for a safe, he did come prepared for dark spaces. Pulling out a flashlight, he turned it on to light his way.
There was no way he was going to do something stupid like die in the dark. He peered down the circular wooden stairs that winded down into the depths.
'Or die from tripping down the stairs.' He thought, grimly snorting.
Halfway down he finally began to hear it.
"What was that?" He whispered to himself.
Something that sounded like… it was being broken over and over again. Snaps. Cracks. Pops. A lot like wet wood in a hot fire. But there was no smoke. No… it sounded like something else. Something that was just out of his reach.
It sounded sickening.
Even slower than before, Veld went down the rest of the steps.
A long hall extended into oblivion. It looked more like a cave that was roughly shaped into a hallway than an actual building's hallway.
What the fuck was Shinra's family doing down here.
Creeping down the hall, as silent as he possibly could, Veld made his way towards the noise.
And from the sound of it, it was coming towards him.
Gasps rattling around Velds ears as… something dragged along the dirt and stone floor.
Ccrraacckkllee
P O P
s n a p
And the sounds of metal ringing, like a child playing blacksmith.
He gasped.
Suddenly red.
Red eyes peered up from the floor, staring at nothing. No, not nothing, his flashlight.
Fear gripped him as his flashlight roamed over the… the thing.
Black and red and white and gold .
Screams were mangled as the thing in front of him writhed in pain. As its form was twisting, turning, popping, snapping, and cracking into something Veld's brain couldn't fully conceive.
Those were bones that were making those noises.
It sounded like a man.
And for a moment, a face was reassembled into something recognizable.
"Vincent!" Veld cried out, running closer.
A golden claw swiped out, stopping him from coming closer.
No it wasn't a claw. It was a gauntlet.
Tears pricked at glowing blood red eyes, bright against the pale pale white skin.
Black hair barely held back by a red headband, and what wasn't hidden away by a red cape was clad in black leather. Or golden armor.
Veld felt he would vomit when he saw Vincent's chest caved in.
This was a nightmare.
It had to be.
"…el…" harsh gasps snapped the man out of his panic.
"V…el…d." Vincent. It was Vincent. Vincent recognized him. Vincent was still coherent.
"Vincent, I'm here, Vincent."
Broken fingers attached to a warped hand reached out to him. The arm changed into zigzags while it lifted upwards.
"Ve…ld… S-S-S…" Vincent tried to speak. His neck suddenly twisted around, his face now facing his back.
Crying out, Veld reached for his partner, his friend, his brother. Oh god Vincent was dead, he had to be he-
Vincent's neck twisted back into place.
"Seph… iroth…" Vincent, the absolute bastard who somehow wasn't dead, managed to get out.
Jerking back Veld tried to scramble his mind together. "Seph…iroth? Sephiroth?"
Was that a nod?
"Nnn…nnnnn…eeeed… tooooo…"
"Need? Need to? Need to what?" Veld had to held himself back from shaking Vincent. "Who's Sephiroth?"
A glare. Vincent was glaring at him with that same glare that told him to shut the fuck up. Veld almost started to laugh hysterically.
"Get… get hhhhiiiiimmm… Lu-Luuucre… Lucrecia'sssssssoon…"
Son?
"Lucrecia's son?"
Another almost nod. "Bbbbaaa…byyyy…"
God this was just getting worse and worse. "A baby? Okay. Okay, where's Sephiroth?"
He felt like he wasn't going to like the answer.
"Ssss…Ssssciiie…nce…" Vincent's red eyes suddenly turned golden. "Hojo." He growled, sounding less human and more like a monster.
Hojo.
Dread and rage filled him. "Did Hojo do this to you?"
Another growl.
"What about Lucrecia?"
The glowing gold faded back to the glowing red. A sadness entered them. "De…ad…"
Dead. Fuck.
Okay… okay Vincent was… was alive. He was in pain and… thinking about it made his stomach churn, but Vincent was alive and his body was doing things that it shouldn't do.
And now there was a baby that was with the man who did this to Vincent.
Veld will make sure Hojo will pay.
In fact, there are quite a few Turks that would agree with Veld, and help him.
But first…
"Vincent, let me help you."
Something… Something like resignation crossed his face. "Caaaa-caaareffffful… P-plaannnn…"
Harsh breath came from two people.
"Okay. Okay I'll plan." Veld rasped.
The stupid god awful of a bastard grinned at him. "Donnn…t beeeee s-stuuuupid…"
Tears finally dropped down from Veld's eyes. "Fuck off asshole."
God what was he going to do?
More cracks filled the air.
Well, maybe getting Vincent out of that hell hole was a start.