Chapter 8—Questions
"You said the demon's name is Chaos?" Vincent felt ambushed by Shalua Rui as he came out of Chaos' room.
"Yes." He looked at the scientist, wondering what she was thinking.
"Could I get you and your wife to speak to me in my lab? I have some questions for you."
"After Anessa settles down," Vincent replied, still faintly able to hear his daughter's cries from the room Reeve had given them.
"I'm sure one of our people could—"
"No." The gunslinger's tone brooked no argument. "My family has had a very traumatizing day, and I will not add any more to it."
"All right." Shalua held her good hand in front of her in a gesture of defeat. "I'll be in my lab most of the day. Come by whenever you're ready."
"We will." Vincent turned and walked to their quarters.
Yuffie was holding Anessa far more awkwardly with her one good arm than Vincent did with his own. With a broken smile at his wife's ineptitude, Vincent took the crying baby from her.
"She wants Chaos," Yuffie said, sadly.
"I know." The gunslinger cradled his protesting daughter to his chest. "So do I."
There was a long silence between them before Yuffie asked, "What else did he tell you?"
"He says that something is calling him. Trying to get him to just give up and disappear. He's afraid."
"So am I." She ducked under Vincent's claw and pulled herself close to him, needing her husband's comfort as much as their daughter did. "What happens if this thing wins?"
Vincent swallowed heavily, not wanting to tell her Chaos' demand. He also wasn't willing to set a precedent by lying to her. "He made me promise to stop him if things went that far."
He wasn't surprised when Yuffie's broken sobs joined Anessa's.
It was late when Vincent finally stopped by Shalua Rui's lab. Despite the hour, he wasn't surprised to see the scientist sitting behind her computer.
"I was beginning to think that you weren't coming after all, Mister Valentine," she said, not looking up from the screen.
"Sorry." He wasn't really, and his tone showed it.
A moment later, Shalua looked up from her monitor. "Where's your wife?"
"Sleeping."
"I see. Well then, let's get started." She pinned him with a serious gaze. "What is your relationship with Chaos?"
"Mine specifically? Or my family's?" He really didn't see the relevance of the question, but he was willing to follow any lead—no matter how tiny—to save Chaos.
"Both, if you don't mind."
Vincent sighed. It had been hard enough for their friends to understand the relationship between Chaos, himself and Yuffie; he didn't want to explain it to a virtual stranger.
"Yuffie and I are mated to him. Before that, Chaos was genetically bonded to me some twenty seven years ago."
"Twenty seven years…" the scientist's tone was thoughtful. "Were you one of Doctor Crescent's experiments, then?"
"Do you mean Lucrecia Crescent?"
Shalua nodded. "Yes. Doctor Crescent's Chaos project began approximately thirty years ago as part of her doctoral thesis. For the most part, her research was disregarded and the project was never finished."
Vincent closed his eyes against the bit of pain caused by Shalua's casual words. Lucy may have forgiven him for what happened, but he still felt somewhat responsible for what had happened to her. "No. I was never part of Lucrecia's experiments. Chaos and the other demons I hosted were grafted into me by Professor Hojo."
"Other demons?"
"I prefer not to talk about them."
"They could be relevant to the situation at hand."
The gunslinger shook his head. "Not likely. Chaos told me that none of them had known each other before I hosted them."
"But—"
"The only one who might matter is the Galian Beast, who is staying with the girl Kylia in the ICU. I do not wish to speak of the others."
Shalua seemed to be learning very quickly, how far Vincent could be pushed. She changed the subject. "Okay. Tell me everything you know about Chaos."
Chaos lay facedown on the table wishing he could go to sleep. He was afraid to sleep, though. The call had gotten much louder when Vincent left; if he slept, he would most likely not wake up again.
With a sigh, he turned his head, trying to ease the soreness in his neck. The demon understood the need for him to be restrained, but he would definitely be requesting more comfortable accommodations tomorrow.
As he felt sleep, and the ever-present calling, pulling at him, he began to wish that Vincent had stayed. Talking would have kept him awake. Despite any efforts he made, his present circumstance would make staying awake impossible without outside stimulation.
It was against his best efforts a few minutes later that his day's exhaustion overwhelmed him and he slipped into slumber.
"Chaos…"
The demon opened his eyes at the sound of a familiar voice. "Ilrya?"
His first wife smiled at him brilliantly, with all the warmth he remembered. "Hello, my love."
"How is this possible?" He reached a hand out to her, then realized that he was no longer bound. "Where are we?"
"The place in between the Planet and the Lifestream where Cloud sometimes sees Aeris." Ilrya took his outstretched hand gently. "But we don't have much time to talk."
"Do you know what's happening to me, beloved?"
She nodded. "An imbalance in the Planet. It is causing both your dark self and the final WEAPON to awaken. Their purpose is to destroy the Planet."
"What? Why?"
"No time, beloved. You must stay close to Vincent. He is the key. You must stay with him!"
"I will. But I need to know what's going on." Chaos' grip on her hand tightened with desperation.
Ilrya shook her head. "There isn't time to explain everything. You'll discover the truth soon enough. I love you. I'll be waiting for you."
"Ilrya!" He could feel her hand fading from his own.
"I have to go, beloved. And you have to wake up."
He looked at his former mate in confusion as she faded away. Her mouth shaped the words "Wake up" but it was Vincent's voice he heard.
The command was repeated. "Chaos! Wake up!"
Chaos opened his eyes to a scene of destruction in the real world.