longer than the last one, but easier to write. :-D fortunately i know where everything's going from here.

Chapter 9--Theory of Deadmen

Shalua made a few notes on the clipboard at her side, then looked at Vincent. "Are you sure that's all you know about him? There isn't' much here."

"No," Vincent disagreed. "There simply isn't whatever you were expecting to hear. And I do not see where things such as his favorite food or his decorating tastes might be relevant. Now, tell me what this is all about."

She raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"You've taken a disturbing interest in my mate and I want to know why."

"Your mate?" Vincent found himself slightly pleased with Shalua's stunned reaction.

"I believe I mentioned that earlier. Surely you didn't think he lived with us simply because he could find no other accommodations."

The scientist opened and closed her mouth several times before managing to reply. "I guess I missed that part. I never thought your relationship might be that way."

"Now you know. You still have not explained your interest in him."

"You're right. I didn't." She turned to her computer and punched in a command. "This is from Doctor Crescent's project. Look here."

Vincent came around the desk and looked over her shoulder at the text she was indicating on the screen. He scrolled through the data, reading carefully. Then he looked to Shalua.

"Are you saying that Chaos might be the harbinger of the apocalypse?"

Shalua nodded. "Doctor Crescent and the Ancients seemed to think so."

The gunslinger scowled. "I don't see how. He's strong, but this suggests near immortality and a level of powers that I know he doesn't possess."

"You and your wife said it yourselves, Mister Valentine. Chaos wasn't himself during the attack," she said pointedly. "And I'd say his behavior and his own testimony point to a much stronger outside force."

It didn't take much for Vincent to follow Shalua's line of reasoning. "Something like this Omega that's in Lucrecia's report. This think that he's supposed to be the herald for."

"Exactly."

Vincent opened his mouth to reply, but he was interrupted by an inhuman--and familiar--bellow. A moment later, alarm claxons began shrieking.

"What's going on?" Shalua asked, punching frantically at her keyboard.

"Chaos," Vincent replied, sprinting for the door.

He slammed the door open as the first of the human screams sounded, a shriek of pure terror that was cut off abruptly. The gunslinger knew he had only a matter of minutes to stop Chaos.

As he ran by, he wasn't surprised to see the doors to Chaos' holding cell ripped off their hinges. He didn't spare a glance inside, knowing the demon was no longer bound to the operating table. Instead, he followed the faint claw marks on the highly polished floor leading away from the cell.

Between his tracking skills and the amount of noise Chaos' victims were making, it didn't take Vincent long to find the demon. He hadn't gone far--just a few doors down from his own.

Into the ICU.

If Shalua's theory was right, then Chaos was beginning his purge of the living with the weakest and least able to fight back.

Vincent drew Cerberus from its holster and stepped over the twisted remains of the door.

One of the nurses was laying in a bloody heap just inside the door and another was slumped against the far wall, clutching a stomach wound. Chaos stood in the center of the room, staring blankly down at Kylia, who was blissfully unconscious.

Raising his firearm, he asked cautiously, "Chaos?"

The demon didn't respond.

"Chaos, wake up."

The demon twitched and Vincent repeated the command. "Chaos, wake up!"

Chaos' eyes flared brightly red for a moment, then he blinked twice and looked around the room. His gaze settled briefly on each of the nurses, then Kylia, before settling on Vincent.

"You can put Cerberus away," he said. "Its me, Vincent."

"What happened, Chaos?" Vincent lowered his firearm, but didn't holster it.

"I fell asleep. I think it took my body while I was with Ilrya."

"Ilrya?" Vincent felt briefly like he was talking to Cloud about Aeris.

"Vincent?" Shalua Rui's voice interrupted before the demon could answer. "What's the situation?"

Vincent holstered Cerberus before turning to the scientist and the medical technicians she had brought with her. "The situation is resolved. There are two people in here who require immediate medical attention."

Quickly, the techs stepped into the room, followed the Shalua. As they went to work, she moved over to Kylia's bed to check on the girl's condition.

"Where's your other demon?" she asked, distractedly.

Eyes widening with horror, Vincent realized that he hadn't seen the Galian Beast when he entered the room. Moving quickly around Kylia's bed--the only object in the room to create a blind spot--he looked for the loyal creature.

"Beast?" he asked, scanning the area behind the bed.

He closed his eyes in pain when he saw the gutted purple form laying against the back wall. "Shalua, get me some bandages and a mega-potion!"

He knelt down next to the Beast, who opened his eyes at the sound of Vincent's voice. The creature let out a pain filled whimper that was more of a blood filled gurgle.

Vincent rubbed him gently between the horns. "You did well, Beast. Kylia couldn't have asked for a better guardian."

The Galian Beast sighed and closed his eyes. Vincent didn't miss the moment his ragged breathing stopped. The gunslinger closed his own eyes, allowing himself a moment of grief, before standing up and turning back to Chaos and Shalua.

"Beast is dead."

Chaos gaped for a moment. "No, Vincent! He couldn't…I didn't…" The demon closed his eyes and sunk to his knees on the floor in defeat.

Vincent's own grief doubled at Chaos' reaction. Even when his father had died, he hadn't felt such a sense of loss as he did watching the demon fall apart. He laid a hand on Chaos' shoulder, wishing he could do more to comfort his mate.

But how do you comfort a man who's just killed one of his best friends?

Shalua looked over at them. "I'm sorry, Mister Valentine." wordlessly, she gave the medical supplies back to the technician she had taken them from.

"Thank you," he said as Chaos collapsed, weeping, into his side.

sad, i know. and i'm sure some of you hate me so much right now for killing off the Galian Beast. i didn't plan for that, or expect it; it just happened. and it worked, so i'm leaving it alone.