Hey everyone. Sorry this latest update took so long again. I've actually been ready for a while...I just didn't get to it. The heat is affecting my cable modem, and that doesn't help. Anyway, because it's been so long, I present to you a double-sized update. Enjoy.

"Are you ready yet?"

"Almost." Aerith called back. She turned her attention to her robe after that. She didn't have enough strength to commit that much force to anything, but for now she felt strong enough for this. After clenching her fist around her sleeve again, she gave one final tug. The white cloth ripped, and soon she was sleeveless on her left arm as well as her right. After doing that, she let out an exhale, and looked down over her body. Not bad. She had used a strip of cloth to tie the lower portion of her robe closer to her body, and she had pulled the hood back now. With no sleeves, her arms moved easier and weren't so hot. And now, she felt strong enough to walk. With that in mind, she turned back up to Krystea and gave a nod.

The Turk nodded back. "Alright. We better move then. Sorry we couldn't do anything for shoes…"

"It's alright." Aerith called back as she began to make her way forward. She was a bit wobbly, having not done much walking in technically four years. But with a bit of shaking and stumbling, she soon got the hang of it, and was able to walk fairly regularly. She wasn't sure how long she could do that, but she had to try. "I've walked barefoot outdoors before."

Of course…it wasn't through such a nasty place…

Krystea gave a nod, and then turned back forward and began to walk as well. Soon, Aerith was focusing mostly on keeping up with her as the woman took a step into the mud and muck of the world's largest swamp. A squishing sound resulted as wet mud balled up around her shoes. However, for Aerith it was much worse. As she took her first step into the marsh, she struggled to find a dry spot, but there was none to be found. When she put her own foot on the muddy earth, she felt a horrible slimy sensation bulge around her foot and in between her toes. Wincing a little, Aerith forced herself to make her way forward, following after her sister.

True to Krystea's word, the car had eventually broken down. Even now, they could still see it about a half mile away, parked just outside the entrance to the marsh. The fact that they could see it testified to how long it had been working, however. The sun had been starting to come to the horizon. By now, the sky was lit up gray as the morning began to come. That entire time, neither Aerith nor Krystea had slept. Krystea had been forced to stay awake, but Aerith didn't feel it was right to rest while she did all the work. Besides, she had slept a lot the day before, and she felt better. Despite the fact that her body was worn out from staying up so long, she did feel strong enough to stay on the move. And so, that was what they did. Once the car had stopped, they had to hotfoot it afterward, making their way to the marsh. And now that they were here, they had to cross it to get to the Mythril Mines. By land, it was the only way to get to Junon other than using the new road, which had already been ruled out as an option.

Aerith didn't get that far before she began to feel tired. The lack of sleep coupled with her weakened body soon made her begin to falter. She quivered unsteadily as she stumbled forward through the mire, wavering off balance more than once. Taking steps began to ache and hurt. But still, she kept on going. She didn't want to burden Krystea again, because, contrary to what the woman might say, the strain was starting to show on her as well. Up ahead, she heard her breathing hard, and putting in extra effort to take longer steps. She was by no means exhausted, but she wasn't fresh as a daisy either. Aerith had taken this road before, and knew that there was a long way between here and Junon. She seriously doubted they could make it that far without stopping. Even without sleeping, there was the fact that both of them were growing thirsty. And they couldn't keep pushing themselves without food to refuel their reserves…

Aerith's thoughts were interrupted as she heard something. It sounded almost like a sliding noise…or a rushing. It took her a moment, but then she recognized it. It was something moving through water. She turned her head to the source, and found herself looking at a line of water on the swamp. It was rippling in a direction…as if something had just moved through it.

The woman suddenly remembered what they had gone through the first time she and her friends had went through this swamp…and the thought suddenly made her very afraid.

"You know…there's a rather large snake that lives in this swamp…"

"I know." Krystea simply answered.

"How are we going to get by it if…"

Aerith was cut off as something happened. Abruptly, a practical eruption of water exploded into the air in front of the two women. Aerith gasped and stepped back. However, having only partial footing and weak legs, she immediately toppled over and fell on her back. The ground was soft enough for her to avoid getting hurt, but now she could clearly see the murky water fly everywhere, and a great dark shape emerge in its wake. As the water died down, a new massive body towered twenty feet in the air over the two women.

The Cetra gasped at the sight. She supposed she should have expected this…trying to cross this place on foot. But there it was. The monstrous Midgar Zolom. It was the largest, deadliest snake on the face of Gaia. The huge beast looked down upon the tiny mammals that had been foolish enough to wander into its lair. Its great yellow eyes narrowed as it opened it giant mouth, revealing teeth as large as sabers. It hissed slowly as it looked over the two women, seeming to wonder which one it should eat first.

Aerith didn't know what to do. Even Cloud couldn't kill one of these things. The only thing that had been able to was Sephiroth… She was all but helpless at this stage. She didn't even have a rod for a weapon. She panicked. She knew there was only one hope. She had to somehow use her skill from earlier. She didn't know how she could…and she was so nervous she could barely focus. But she had to try before it was too late…

Yet before Aerith could even begin to try and remember how she had done it before, a massive gunshot suddenly tore through the air, echoing for miles in every direction. It sounded almost like a cannon. From her position, Aerith winced and raised her arms to cover her ears. But she didn't cover her eyes, and because of that she saw a surprising sight. Abruptly…the entire upper portion of the Midgar Zolom's head was obliterated in an explosion of blood and bone. The thing opened its mouth to yell…but it was already dead by the time it did so. It let out a hiss that immediately fizzled and faded into nothing as its jaw slackened. Its long tongue hung lazily out of its mouth, and then with a groan the creature spilled to one side and collapsed. A moment later, it sent out another eruption of foul, muddy water as its body splashed back into the mire from where it came. Almost immediately it began to sink into the muck.

Aerith was overwhelmed. However, she noticed a thin trail of smoke rising into the air. She looked to it and followed it down to its source, and found herself looking at the barrel on Krystea's gun. She was breathing a bit hard herself, and looked a bit unnerved at what she had done. But it was only for a moment. Then, she swallowed and calmed herself down before replacing her gun at her side. She turned afterward and looked down to Aerith.

"Oh." She reacted, as if noticing her for the first time. "Did you slip?"

Aerith was stunned into silence. She could only gape at Krystea and think of the weapon at her side.

"Here, I'll help you up."

Krystea came forward and reached down to grab Aerith's hands. Touching her seemed to snap her out of her daze, and bring her back to reality. She blinked a moment, and then looked to Krystea as she pulled her out of the mud.

"That…that gun…" She slowly remarked. "Zack's old sword…couldn't leave a dent in the scales of one of those things… But that shot blew its head off… How can you shoot that thing without having your arm ripped off?"

Krystea let out a bit of a nervous smile at that. "Well…it's modified pretty heavily. There's special shock absorbers in the stock. The barrel can snap like a cannon's. And then there's this…"

The woman finished pulling Aerith to her feet, and then too a step back. She reached down to her wrist, and pulled back on her suitcoat sleeve. Aerith looked down, and saw that underneath was more than just her shirt. Metal braces circled her arm all the way up to her wrist, hugging close to her skin.

"These lock into place whenever I fire." She explained.

Aerith nodded in acknowledgement. Still…she wasn't too comfortable with a gun of that power. Firearms themselves made her uneasy. However, she couldn't deny the fact that this powerful gun was their only defense at the moment. And it seemed to be a pretty good one.

With the incident over, Krystea smoothed her sleeve back down over her arm and turned. "Let's get going. We killed that one…but it frankly scared the heck out of me. Next time, it might pop out under me before I can get a shot off…"

Well…at least things can't get any worse.

…Now I know I've cursed us. Things always get worse after that…

The Turks had been somewhat at a loss after landing. They had planned on getting some form of transportation to follow after Krystea, but that had proven almost useless. Both the civilian and military portions of the city were empty. There was some sort of mass evacuation going on. None of them knew what this meant or why this was happening. Had the New Shinra gotten some new weapon? Or was a bombing coming? They didn't know. All they did know was that it made it almost impossible to rent a car. The three had been forced to hike about twenty blocks through the city back to where there was life before they could find a car to steal. After doing so, they immediately took off down the road and made to exit town.

However, they weren't headed after where the GPS showed them Krystea was. Chasing after her was too much trouble. The Turks had no idea what she was doing, but if she wanted to be safe from both the New Shinra and the PPA, her only choice was to evacuate to a continent where neither had a presence. The only way she could do that right now was by ship, and the only place she could go for that was Junon. There were two different roads open to her…a quick one and a long one. She was obviously taking the long one, which was good for them. She no doubt planned to use the country to lose them, but what she had done instead was give them more time.

Now, Rude was racing down the cliffside highway as fast as he could take the car and still maintain control around the sharp bends. Elena paled more than once, and uneasily looked out over the ocean on her right as they sped along. The sun was just starting to rise now, turning the ocean red and orange. It would have been a pretty sight, to drive along the new highway around the cliffs and into Junon this early in the morning. But the Turks had a job to do, and had no time for sightseeing. Rude stayed focused on the road. Elena stayed focused on getting them to the nearest New Shinra operative that had a helicopter for use that was stationed in Junon.

And Reno had the lovely job of explaining this debacle to General Leers.

"Perhaps you should remind me why I hire you."

Reno sighed into his end of the cellular phone. He knew something like that would come through. But he had to give them some explanation as to why they were here, why they were stranded, and why the mission was taking so long. As it turned out, he didn't enjoy the explanation that much, and he was sounding more cross all the time.

"It really wasn't due to a flub on our part, general. If Krystea hadn't turned on us, both generals would be dead, the Sierra would be destroyed, and you'd have Aerith Gainsbourough."

"I'd say it was a…flub…on your part to recruit someone and take her into your confidence so well that you let yourself be so open to so drastic a betrayal." The General retorted. "What exactly are you doing that's useful?"

"We're headed to Junon." Reno answered. "At our rate, we'll be able to get there, get a helicopter, fly to the south entrance of the Mythril Mines, and bust the two of them in the only exit they can take."

"You better. You had three of your four targets lined up in front of you, and yet due to some wave of sentiment you let them slip through your fingers. You claim you never renege on a job. I told you I didn't want them prisoner. Why didn't you kill them?"

Reno, for once, was at a loss for words. He couldn't answer that question, because he honestly didn't know. None of them knew what had made them spare Cloud and Ragnar yesterday, although doing so might have ruined everything. However, there was nothing to do now but press on, and keep trying to finish the job.

"I want the woman here tomorrow, dead or alive. As for your associate, go on and kill her."

This sudden phrase made Reno pause. His eyes widened a little before relaxing. His normally calm expression faltered. He licked his lips once, and then tried to sound regular.

"…I didn't realize Krystea was part of this job."

"She's made herself part of this job, in case you weren't paying attention when she shot you yesterday."

"Well…" Reno slowly continued. "That's true…but she may have had a good reason. She didn't hit us with the same darts as Cloud and Ragnar. She obviously wanted us to wake up in time to diffuse the bomb before we got blown up with it. And if she wanted us dead, she could have killed-"

"I don't care!" General Leers suddenly snapped, cutting Reno off. "She's ruined your whole mission and may have cost me that specimen! You of all people should understand what a threat she is. She's a liability to your group and a liability to me. There's no place for liabilities in this army."

Reno hesitated again, and once more moistened his lips. "…Well, general, I'm afraid we aren't getting paid for this. Our current job is just to bring Aerith in and eliminate the other targets…"

"If a price is that damn important to you, I'll pay you for it. Yes…I'll pay you to make your own damn team more efficient and handle your own internal problems."

"Even so…the job is the strict thing. Once we start, we-"

"You know, Reno…" Leers' voice cut off, suddenly turning rather sharp and irritable. "I hire your group because you're supposed to be the best of the best. You never back down off a job until it's done. And yet…the first assassination mission I give to you, you automatically turn it down. You say you can't do it. Then I send you on this little mission…even agree to pay you extra for doing it… And what happens? Your colleague goes turncoat on you…and yet you somehow live through the betrayal. You don't eliminate any of the other three targets. And now…you're wanting to let the wolf in your fold slide.

"Reno…I don't know if you think I have dumbass tattooed on my forehead or not, but I'm starting to think that you may have more interests in this than the job and the money. It only takes a man so long to put two and two together. You haven't done one bit of damage against the PPA since I hired you, but you may have cost me considerable. And I know you were working with Cloud Strife and several other officers of the Planet Protector Army two years ago."

Reno said nothing. He silently held the phone against his head…but both his unease and smile had disappeared.

"Now…there's a chance that this is all some great cosmic coincidence…but I'm a man who doesn't believe in the damn things. In my line of work, it's not healthy. This is the bottom line. If you come back to me empty handed, then don't bother coming back at all. Otherwise…the only way you and your group is coming into this Dome is sideways."

Click.

Reno stiffened once, but then pulled the phone away from his head and shut it. He let out a long, slow sigh. Apparently…his thoughts of jinxing them were well founded. They were in some serious crap now. Krystea may have just ruined their careers as well as gotten herself killed. This was a real mess. He had no idea how they were supposed to get out of it. Yet in the end of things, it still came down to one factor. They had to get Aerith.

"So what did he say?" Rude asked.

"The situation is a bit worse." Reno answered. "Let's just get that damn broad before things get more messed up…"

"We could have brought a car…"

"No one said you had to come with me."

"…A car would have been easier."

"Not for me."

Zola sighed and continued to run across the field, hot on the heels of his new acquaintance. He wondered almost if he was getting too accustomed to being human. There was a time when he would have not wanted to use one of their machines himself. But now, for the sake of convenience, he would have preferred it. Yet there was nothing he could do about it now. He had to stay on the tail of this man.

The truth was he wasn't tired. It would take more than what they had done to be able to wear him out. They had been running nearly all night in the directions that the dark man specified, taking them out of Midgar and away to and past the Kalm area. They stopped only to look for further clues that signified in which direction the women went. It hadn't taken them long in the search to find that they were in a vehicle, and that the two men were hotfooting it. To Zola, that seemed a good a reason as any to grab a car and follow them, but the dark man had refused. He continued to run along the plain, with Zola on his heels. The basilisk hadn't understood it. If they were on foot, then their stamina would be a help. But if they weren't, then they'd be hopelessly lagging behind.

Then again…there were some advantages. They could cut across rough country on foot. What more, Zola was continuing to taste the air in his own method of tracking, and found that the scent of burning oil was still present. They were pushing the car too hard, and it would break down soon. Hopefully, that would enable them to catch up.

The sun had cleared the horizon by now. The day was turning brighter. Well…for now it was. Zola saw that clouds were massing on one edge of the sky, almost a sure sign that a storm was going to be coming. Soon, the two men would be running in the rain. It didn't really matter to Zola. It was just more of an inconvenience. To tell the truth…part of the reason he had complained about needing a car was because he was bored. The dark man hadn't said a word since they had taken off, and he didn't like running with this man for practically nine hours and not saying anything to him. As they continued to run, he decided to venture out again.

"So…what brings you to want to join the Planet Protector Army? You don't look like the typical environmentalist student…"

"I have…acquaintances…in the army already." The dark man simply answered.

Zola ran on a bit farther silently. "…What's your name?"

"Is that really important?" The dark man simply answered.

The basilisk hesitated, but then shrugged. "Well, for me it sort of is. I'd like to know who I've been tailing for almost half a day."

The dark man continued to run on silently for a moment, but then finally spat out an answer.

"…Vincent."

"I'm Zola." The basilisk answered.

"I didn't ask for your name."

The man frowned slightly in response to that as he kept on running. He turned his head forward instead and wondered exactly where, if anywhere, this was going, and beginning to wonder why he had gone on this little trip in the first place…

However, his thoughts soon terminated. Just up ahead, on top of a slight rise in the landscape, he saw something. For the past hour, they had been running across these plains and fields without a sign of any change or serious vegetation. But now, gleaming in the sun, he saw an amount of metal rising up from the ground. It looked like some sort of big machine. Zola wasn't sure if this was related to their target or not, but the dark man, named Vincent, was now running right for it. That, he supposed, was good enough for him, and he continued to run after him as they made their way to the new object.

As they closed in, Zola was able to get a better look at it, and make out more details. It was a truck. It was rather old and battered…and it looked like someone might have just left it out here. However, his eyes saw an unusual amount of heat gathered around it, and he could taste burning oil on the air. It was a bit cold now, but still in present enough quantities to confirm that the truck had been used not too long ago. It was abandoned now, but someone had been using it that morning. Considering how empty it was out here…Zola guessed who long before he arrived.

The two finally came to a halt at the vehicle. Vincent stopped first, and Zola moved in a bit behind him before halting. The dark man turned and looked over the car. He silently seemed to be examining it. Afterdoing soa moment, he walked over to the side and looked into the interior. He opened the door, revealing it was unlocked, and ducked inside to examine it a bit further. Zola waited at a distance as he conducted this investigation, saying nothing but watching silently. The dark man looked about for a short while longer, but then moved away.

Zola gave a shrug. "Well?"

Vincent said nothing. He turned and looked ahead, over the back of the hill. Zola looked up a bit. The entire road had been hanging close to the mountain range that was south of the Midgar area. However, they had been progressively looming closer as they went on. Zola was well traveled enough to know that the only way through those mountains that was easy was through the old Mythril Mines. They were getting pretty close to them too at this point…

Hearing nothing in response, Zola frowned. Vincent was beginning to walk forward again, although he didn't run. He seemed to still be investigating the area. The basilisk sighed and walked forward a bit, until he took his own position next to the car. He turned his head and looked in as well. Nothing out of the ordinary, it seemed. No obvious clues. He frowned again at this. Afterward, he turned and looked over to Vincent. The man was still looking ahead and saying nothing.

With that in mind, Zola hesitated for a moment, making sure that Vincent wasn't turning around anytime soon. Then, very quickly, he ducked down to the ground and squatted so that his head nearly touched it. After that, he opened his mouth and let his tongue slide out. Only it wasn't the short little thing humans kept in their mouths. It was long and rope like, and once it came out it slid over the ground a moment, wriggling on it like a snake. After tasting for a moment, he sucked it back into his mouth, and shut it again. He immediately began to focus on the tastes that he had received…

"…What are you?"

On hearing that, Zola froze. His face turned pale, and he immediately cursed himself. He wasn't careful again. Vincent had to have spun around and seen him using his tongue. A moment later, he looked up and quickly rose to his feet, turning his attention on the dark man. Sure enough, Vincent had turned and was looking at him…

…But he also puzzled the basilisk. Usually, whenever a human caught a sign of his true heritage, they either screamed and ran or pulled a weapon on him in fear. Vincent did neither. In fact, he looked just as calm as he had been moments ago. He made no move for his gun, and simply stared at Zola. The basilisk was justly confused, and was actually stunned into silence from Vincent's lack of a reaction.

Then again…as he thought about it, Vincent was hardly a normal man either. Blood red eyes were not a trait among humans, and neither were many other items of his physicality. It was likely that this man too had to deal with people being afraid of him or viewing him as some sort of monster. If so, then that might explain how he was rather nonchalant about Zola's own physicality. Realizing that put Zola a bit more at ease… Still, he wasn't sure how he could best explain this. Only Ragnar would have accepted this as fact immediately. Telling others that you were an ancient creature was…

However, while thinking of this, Zola suddenly got another idea. This was the first time Vincent had willingly spoken to him. He realized that he must have got his curiosity. At that thought of that, he became aware that he suddenly had an advantage over him, however slight. The thought made Zola grin slightly. With a more confident air, he crossed his arms in front of him.

"What did you find out when you looked in the car?"

Vincent paused for a moment, obviously getting the hint.In the end, he responded.

"…I looked for signs of blood or a struggle. I saw none, which meant they weren't pursued this far and they weren't injured. That means they'll be able to make fairly good time. I next looked for anything they left behind. They left nothing, which gives me little to go on to infer who they are. The cushions only bear grooves from sitting, which means that they haven't slept. If I keep after them, they will eventually give into exhaustion and will have to rest, and I can catch them." The dark man paused after that, and then gestured to Zola. "I suppose you learned something as well using that tongue of yours."

The basilisk gave a shrug. "Well…to tell the truth, I was tasting the ground. I can usually detect the presence of others by traces they leave. I was trying to get some idea of who the ladies were."

"And did you?"

Zola frowned, and scratched his head. "You know…it's kind of weird. I can only taste one of them…and it's kind of…I don't know, muddled. Like she's been rolling around in some other foreign scent."

Vincent hesitated on hearing that. He appeared to be thinking again about hearing that. Zola stood and waited, watching for him to give some sort of reaction. In the end, he looked back to the basilisk.

"Alright…now what about you?"

Zola swallowed a bit there. He thought he had managed to get around this, but obviously not. After all…a long tongue like that was kind of hard to overlook. He looked a bit uneasy for a moment, and rubbed his chin uneasily. He wasn't sure exactly how to phrase this…

"Well…um…that is…"

"Wuuhh…"

Zola's attempts to craft a plausible answer were cut a bit short by a rather loud and inhuman sound just to the left of the two men. He immediately turned to the source, and Vincent did likewise.

A great creature, elephant sized and appearing to be of the same nature, was slowly walking forward.Like a pachyderm, it possesseda long trunk and a thick, stocky body. However, unlike one, its skin was bright blue, and its eyes were bright green. Its tusks were also unusually long and sharp, and matched by long horns that went across its back. Both Zola and Vincent recognized great creatures like this. They weren't indigenous to Gaia. They were one of thousands of animals that had become grossly mutated by mako waste in the wake of Shinra's reactors. At this point, most of the original ones had either died out or been exterminated. Some, however, managed to produce viable offspring even after they had been mutated, and had become established in some areas. This was one particular species that had done so. They never had a proper name, but the locals nicknamed them, "Elfadunks".

It was common knowledge when dealing with one of these creatures to give them the same distance you would give a bison or bear. They were extremely ill tempered, and frequently killed nonfamilial members of their own species. They were also incredibly territorial, even to the point of charging at rabbits that they saw around them. Generally, one should always keep a distance of a hundred yards between oneself and them.

Zola and Vincent were about forty feet from this one.

The great creature let out another low bleat. Afterward, it began to paw at the ground, showing its growing anger and its intent to charge. Zola swallowed slightly. He turned slightly to his right, to look and see what Vincent was doing. The dark man looked like he was barely interested in the creature, looking at it with his normal calm, dark expression. Zola turned back to the creature afterward.

However, as he stared at it, an idea began to formulate in his head. When he realized it, he suddenly cracked a small grin. Afterward, he turned and looked back to Vincent.

"Better yet…let me show you."

The man turned back to the Elfadunk soon after. He thought for a moment of not doing this…but in the end, he decided the cat was out of the bag. Vincent might easily mistake him for one of the earlier attackers, but it really didn't matter. In his basilisk form he was bulletproof. Besides…he figured that Vincent wasn't a person to act hastily, or to be jumpy. That much was clear now. And so, he jabbed the end of his sword into the ground, and then flexed his arms at his sides.

Moments later, his hips and shoulders popped as his arms swung around into a "four-legged" position. He slammed down on the ground and creened his neck, allowing extra vertebrae to pop into them. His hair fell out as he seemed to unhinge his jaw, allowing more teeth to pop into there as it expanded. A long tail protruded from his rear end, and his outer flesh was sloughed off as his clothes ripped, revealing the green-scale covered body of his true form. Soon, Zola the human was gone, replaced by Zola the basilisk.

Zola cast a look behind him to quickly gauge Vincent's reaction. However, to his surprise, Vincent looked totally unmiffed. That was odd. He expected some surprise… At any rate, he supposed it was good, and turned back to the Elfadunk in front of him. The beast scratched against the ground one last time, and then gave out a sonic roar, much louder and more deafening than before. Afterward…it took off into a full speed charge to the basilisk. Zola hissed once at it, and then scurried up to it to meet it. For a moment, the two monsters charged each other at full speed. But once in range, the basilisk leapt into the air and lunged at the Elfadunk, outstretching its talons and preparing to pounce on its face and claw it to pieces…

Instead, once in range, the Elfadunk merely swung its head powerfully in a headbutting motion, smacking into Zola the moment he got close enough. Like a ball hit by a bat, Zola's body was knocked away from the creature and sent flying backward a good hundred feet before crashing into the ground. Once there, he toppled and tumbled over himself for a few moments before finally coming to a stop in a heap.

Zola moaned once, and then raised his reptilian head. The creature shook it once to clear the cobwebs, and then looked up to the Elfadunk. He saw that it was ignoring Vincent entirely for now, charging right by him and headed straight for the basilisk. Obviously, he was viewed as the true threat for now. Zola hissed once, and then quickly leapt onto his feet. Again, he took off for the giant creature once again, once more hissing and spitting all the way.

This time, however, he didn't jump at it. He continued to run forward once in lunging distance. The Elfadunk leveled its tusks and kept chargingregardless, ready to impale the basilisk. However, just as it was getting close enough to do so, Zola used his superior speed to leap quickly to the side, and keep running forward. Soon, he was beginning to flank the creature. Quickly, he extended his razor sharp talons and prepared to swipe.

However…right before he passed the head and moved in…the Elfadunk suddenly pitched its head back out, and brandished a tusk at Zola. Moments later, Zola went by and raked four of his claws against the side of the beast…but also gave out a yell of pain as a stabbing motion went into its side and slashed through. Screaming out, he faltered and collapsed to the ground, tumbling forward once again. As for the Elfadunk, it gave out a grunt of mild annoyance at the scratches it had received, and continued to charge forward as it tried to overcome its own amount of inertia.

Zola exhaled and struggled to get back to his feet. It was painful to do so. He looked down, and saw that a bloody gash had been torn in his side. It was already sealing itself up, but it was a rather nasty wound and took a bit of energy. This was a bit harder than he thought. He had to try a different strategy…

The beast turned and looked, and immediately sighed. The Elfadunk had recovered, turned, and was barreling at him once again. The basilisk let out a groan, and then forced himself back to his feet, turning his entire body toward the creature and waiting. He didn't run after him to lunge this time. He just stood his ground and waited. That suited the large creature fine, who made a bee line for his opponent. Soon, it was bearing down on him, and ready to slash at him with its tusks again.

However, as it was moments from connecting, Zola reacted. This time, he leapt straight into the air. The creature continued to close on him, and swung its own head up to try and smack Zola away as it had before. But this time, Zola was coming too high, and had no horizontal component. The creature ran right into him with tusks pointed upward, which the basilisk reached out and seized. He held tight as the creature brought its head back down, and quickly scrambled on top of them and held. Soon, he was anchored right in front of the creature's face.

With that in mind, Zola turned and looked into the mad beast's eyes. He began to bring his power to bear…

But that only made the Elfadunk madder. Roaring with a cry so deafening that it broke Zola's concentration, making him draw back and wince, it thrashed about and threw its head up and down, struggling to knock off the attacker. It proceeded to smash Zola's legs and hips against the ground several times, jarring him painfully. The impact nearly threw him off more than once, even after hooking his claws into the horns. Zola raised his tail up and wrapped it around the end of one horn to help steady himself, but it barely left an effect. Finally, he realized he had to make a move.

Zola sighed to himself at the fact that he would essentially make his opponent invulnerable to his greatest attack by doing this…but it was the only vulnerable spot. Hissing in frustration, he reached out and slashed both of the Elfadunk's eyes, blinding the beast.

Now, the creature really did throw a fit, jostling Zola around so hard that he was nearly thrown loose, ripping his talons out, and dazzling his sense of balance. However, chaotic as the ride was, it wasn't with the intention of throwing him off this time, and as such Zola was able to recover from his pain somewhat. In the midst of the violent struggle, the basilisk extended his claws again and anchored them into the thing's flesh. Moving as quickly as it could, it ran up the front of the creature's broad forehead and onto its back. Once there, he felt much better. The throwing wasn't nearly as violent, and he was able to hold onmore securely. He actually turned and faced forward and rested a moment, getting his bearings back…

However, that didn't last either. The Elfadunk calmed down, and realized that it had a passenger. On doing so…it abruptly threw its massive body on the ground, and began to roll to crush its attacker.

Zola gulped at this, and quickly rushed around the edge of the thing's neck to avoid being flattened. However, the Elfadunk quickly began to roll around one way and the other, struggling to iron Zola off. And despite its size, it was rather good at it. It also began to thrash its horns out and struggle to impale the great lizard. Zola was soon scurrying around like a gecko to avoid getting killed. He realized he was in another bad position, and still not doing that well. He had to do something again...

Finally, after enduring the chaos for another few moments, he saw an opening and went for it. Giving a hiss and a lunge, he dodged out from being crushed and went for the thing's nape. He drove his claws in and dug deep, and proceeded to cut a long, deep gash across the neck. In the process, his nails slashed straight through the jugulars.

But the thing didn't die right away. Thrashing about violently, spraying blood everywhere, it rolled back onto its feet in a violent rage. As it did, it swung its horns out wildly, but managed to snag Zola in doing so. It gave out another violent cry, flinging its head around as it did so. Once more, the basilisk was thrown off of the Elfadunk and flung violently against the ground, bouncing a bit this time. Zola cried out again on landing, this time hearing something snap inside him.

Yet even now, the Elfadunk refused to die alone. Forming a red puddle at its feet, it turned around to its fallen opponent. With one last surge of strength, it stormed forward and attempted to crush him with its massive feet. Zola, tired, dazzled, and sore, weakly looked up and saw this happening. Flinging his own body wildly and struggling to move, he writhed out of the way of the huge feet, and scurried backward as fast as he could manage with his broken bones. The Elfadunk stayed on him, furiously and relentless…

But in the end, the thing stomped down one final time…with far less force and speed. It let out a low groan, signifying its rapidly fading life. It gurgled once, and bubbles of blood formed around its neck. It tried to take one more step…but it failed and faltered. It lacked the strength to keep itself steady after that, and slumped down onto all fours. It let out one last breath, and then fell over to the side. It lay on the ground and moved no more.

Zola slowly exhaled, wincing a bit as he did so. His sides still hurt from bones that were still reconnecting. He lay still, sprawled out on the ground in his basilisk body, his tongue lazily extended and spread across the ground in front of him. His yellow eyes blinked slowly. Weakly, he began to look up and around with his eyes alone, too tired to raise his head.

To his surprise, he had ended up right back where he started, next to the abandoned vehicle. Vincent was still there, appearing to have not moved a muscle the entire fight. He stared back at him plainly without change for negative or positive. In all honesty, he looked unimpressed. That irritated the basilisk somewhat, but right now he was too weak to complain. He was just glad that his opponent was dead…

"Wuuhh…"

Zola froze at that…and let out a slow sigh. Not again…

Weak as he was, Zola managed to turn his head slightly over to the direction of the noise. It came from the same direction the first one's call had. Only that one was dead. However, it now appeared that a second one, likely a family member, had been aroused by the cries of its relative, and had come to check it out. And now…it saw the relative dead, and two intruders on its territory. It snorted at them both, and began to paw against the ground, preparing to charge again.

The basilisk really wasn't up for this. Slowly, he turned his reptilian head over to Vincent. Without even bothering to recoil his tongue first, he spoke out in his reptile voice to him.

"You…wanna…handle this one…?"

Vincent stared plainly back at him, not changing expression. Then, he turned and looked over to the Elfadunk. The creature was snorting and roaring under its breath, twisting its head and continuing to paw the ground. The dark man didn't react. Finally, the creature gave out a loud roar, once again so powerful that it made Zola's ears hurt, and then began to take off in a full charge. This time, however, it went for Vincent, the only opponent still standing.

Zola waited for Vincent to do something. Maybe charge…dodge…something extreme or powerful. However, he did none of that. He barely shifted weight as he turned his body to fully face the closing creature. He regarded its murderous rage with total calmness and patience. He motionlessly let it draw a bit closer…let it build up more speed and intertia…

Then, all of the sudden, Vincent drew his gun. At least…Zola thought he drew his gun. He didn't actually see him do it…just saw him with his gun a moment later. Right afterward, Vincent fired off four shots. Again…Zola assumed he fired off four shots. He only heard one slightly extended single shot. However, when he looked back forward, he saw that not one, not two, not three, but four splurts of blood went out from the creature, each one around the "wrist" areas.

The Elfadunk gave out a cry of agony, and seemed to lurch forward on its feet. As it did, a great cracking sound went out, and the Elfadunk bellowed another deafening cry of pain before beginning to crash forward. Zola didn't fully understand what had happened right away, but later he thought about it more and realized what occurred. Vincent had waited for the creature to come to full speed and put maximum strain on its wrist joints. Then, he had fired out at a key point at each of those spots, hitting them in a way to drastically reduce their ability to support weight. The creature, unable to stop itself, had continued running forward and put all of its weight onto each limb…promptly breaking all four of its wrists. In a moment, it was crippled, and its massive bulk crashed into the ground. It slid forward a bit from the sheer power of its charge, digging slightly into the grass and earth as it did so. In the end, it halted about five feet from the two men.

Zola's reptilian eyes widened and he gaped at what had occurred. As for Vincent, he was totally calm. He returned his gun to his side, and proceeded to walk up to the side of the fallen creature. It was still alive, and groaning in pain. It struggled to move its bleeding limbs, but each move only put it in more agony. It twisted its head and yelled at Vincent somewhat, but it was powerless to do anything about him. The dark man was left to quickly and calmly move up so that he stood over its head. Once there, he raised his gun and rested the barrel against a certain key point on the Elfadunk's skull.

A single gunshot later, and the moaning and writhing stopped forever.

Zola was justly stunned by that display. After all…he had seen a lot of things in his time, and that wasn't that common in any era. As he continued to recover and the last of his body repaired itself, Vincent calmly returned his weapon back to his side, and turned to look to him. His look was still calm and unchanged.

"So…you appear to have the ability to transform into a moderately powerful creature."

The way Vincent said that…totally unimpressed and calmly…without so much as batting an eye…made Zola's face widen in shock. "Moderate?" He answered, speaking around his tongue again. Immediately, his face began to crush. His extra teeth fell out as hair sprouted on his head again. His long tail fell off and disintergrated as his limbs popped back out into place, and his scales shed to let fresh skin grow in underneath. Clothing, no longer prisoner wear but a battle uniform of the PPA, grew out over his body as he continued to twist back into his former shape. Last but not least, the human Zola sucked the long tongue back into his head and morphed it back into a normal appendage, and pushed his head off of the ground.

"Moderate? Transform?" Zola continued in some indignation. "I'll have you know that…"

Zola didn't get out another word. He cut himself off in mid-speech, and his eyes widened slightly again. The anger vanished from his face, and for a moment he was silent and motionless. Vincent watched this, and seemed to recognize the change in Zola's mood. On seeing it…he finally responded with some emotion again. He appeared to tense up slightly as he turned fully to the basilisk.

"…What is it?"

Zola swallowed, and then turned to him. "I tasted the ground again when my tongue was spread out against it. I tasted a fresher presence here…something that passed by here not long ago. It's the same inhuman taste I ran into last night."

"…I guess I can understand now how you didn't trust me."

Aerith said nothing, mostly because she had already said it all. The two of them were working their way through the Mythril Mines. They had managed to stay clear of anymore Midgar Zoloms, which was good news for her. However, Aerith was progressively getting more tired. The normal hikes she used to take with Cloud and the group drained her, but now she was positively wiped out. She was stumbling a bit more as she made her way along. Luckily, Krystea had slowed them down somewhat. But it wasn't due just to consideration. Krystea was getting tired too…and it was showing more as she wiped the sweat from her brow and breathed heavily.

The Mythril Mines always sparkled with an unnatural green glow. In its raw form, Mythril ore produced a somewhat green luster, which was the reason that it shone that way. It did so more when there was sunlight to reflect off of. The vivid green color had earned it the name "Fools' Materia", which was what it was sometimes mistaken for. However, the glow at the moment was getting brighter. That was a good sign. It meant that they were almost clear of the mines. That was a relief. Aerith's feet were aching from having to make her way over the rough ground barefoot. The soles were starting to throb. It didn't help that she still had gunk from the swamp around them.

However, what really tired her out was the fact that their trip was far from over. They would have only gone about halfway once they left these mines. They still had to hike across ground for miles before they could reach Fort Condor, let alone Junon. Aerith had no idea how she was supposed to make it. She didn't know how she was still walking as it was. She knew she would have to rest, no matter what Krystea said, once they left these mines. She simply couldn't go any further. Hunger and thirst weren't helping…

With nothing but each other and a long, lonely road ahead of them, Aerith had caught up Krystea on some of her own lifespan. She had only gone partially into her story, however, and it had been intentional. She didn't want to talk about what happened at and after the Temple of the Ancients… It still unnerved her to think about it, as it might for the rest of her "second" life. However, she had let Krystea know without a doubt that her own life had been far from pleasant, and had been wrought with much the same danger that she was facing right now.

This whole trip was making her uneasy. People she knew and trusted were behind her, and going farther and farther away. She also felt something…some inner sense inside her telling her that she was doing something wrong. She knew it well enough to recognize that it was the Planet trying to get her attention. But she was too strained to focus on it now. She was too busy being on the run with Krystea, and didn't have time to rest and talk to it. She hoped she had some time soon…

Otherwise, the message might come too late.

"I'm sorry for all that happened to you, Aerith." Krystea slowly spoke, although interjecting it with some huffing and panting, while continuing to walk. "You've spent your whole life on the run…and you're still doing it. The Turks haven't helped… You've had to live in fear since you were a baby…"

Aerith continued to walk along, but managed a slight smile and an innocent shrug. She panted as well as she spoke…far more profusedly. "Oh…it wasn't so bad… The whole time I had people who loved me, cared for me… You…you had to live with a man like that…"

Krystea paused at that, turning her head down momentarily. But in the end, she gave a shrug as well. "…Life goes on. My life also taught me how to defend myself, self-reliance, and conviction."

Aerith paused for a moment after hearing that. Her face turned somewhat uneasy, and she looked over to Krystea with that same expression. This brought to mind a question that had been in her brain for quite a while…but that she hadn't asked until now. She wasn't sure she wanted to ask it even now. But as she knew Krystea longer and longer...she realized that this would inevitably become a more important issue. It was better to settle it now. And so...she finally garnered the strength to ask the big one.

"…Why did you join the Turks?"

Krystea's face fell a bit at that. She formed a slightly more anxious and fearful expression. She looked to the ground, and did not meet Aerith's gaze.

"…I was good at combat and fighting." She finally answered, somewhat blandly."I was a crack shot with a gun. Shinra was gone, so I didn't have any career in military. The Turks were the only things available. I found Tseng operating out of Junon…showed him my stuff…he decided to let me join even though the others were a bit questionable." Krystea paused after that, and let out a small snort. "…Perhaps he let me in because I looked like you."

Aerith didn't react to that.

"…Have you killed anyone?"

Krystea stiffened again, nearly stopping this time and stumbling in her step. She turned a bit pale. Shebegan to sweat a little more, and seemed to grow a little smaller...as if she was suddenly trying to shrink to avoid the look or question. Aerith looked at her, and examined her behavior. Both were silent…but no words were needed. Aerith already knew the answer just looking at that.

It upset her. Relation or not…Krystea was a Turk as well. She was an agent for hire and hired for dirty work. Realizing that she was her sister might have endeared Aerith to her…but it didn't change who she still was before Aerith had known that…or what she knew she should have done. Knowing that this woman, this relation, was a person who could think of lives as a source of income... It unnerved her, no matter who she was now or then.

Aerith slowly turned her head away, and spoke on a bit more slowly.

"…Have you…ever tried to…help anyone? Any…target? Like you're doing with me?"

Krystea licked her lips once.

"…No. I had a stake in this…a personal interest. I didn't even know any of the other people I've done so far."

Aerith turned and looked up to Krystea at that. "Done?" She asked her, echoing her word. "Is that what you feel about those people's lives? That they were just a task to be 'done'? Nothing more?"

Krystea slowly exhaled, and closed her eyes a moment. She knew this wouldn't be easy. She seemed somewhat tired to have to explain it to her.

"…There was a risk in doing so, you know. I'm probably marked for death by the Turks as well as Shinra for helping you now. It was a risk I was willing to take. I've killed other people…but they were going to do God knows what to you. I wasn't going to let them turn you into a lab rat, even if it meant losing everything and putting my own head in a noose."

Aerith didn't look up or change expression.

"…If I hadn't been related to you…" She slowly responded. "…Would you have even cared?"

Krystea swallowed again at that. Now...she did slow down. Her face turned a bit whiter...before she bowed it lower.She kept it that way and didn't answer. She shook slightly, and she sweat a little more. But she stayed silent. She couldn't answer that question. She refused to even think about what she might answer. Even if she could live with it...she wouldn't dare tell Aerith the same.

In the end, Aerith turned and looked back over to her again. "Krystea…I believe that you're my sister. Impossible as it is…I believe it. I can feel a connection between us. And because you are…I love you no matter what. But what I can't understand…not with you…not with any of the Turks…is how you can do what you do. How can you treat another life as if it means so little? How can you do things like this without batting an eye?"

The Turk sighed and closed her eyes again. In the end, she raised her head slightly and spoke in a more calm, more businesslike tone.

"Aerith…the world is full of people. A lot of them are deadbeats, lowlifes, drug addicts, thugs, murderers, rapists, and the like. Now…the people I killed weren't exactly very high on the list of upstanding citizens. Some of them were more guilty than others, but I guarantee that all of them didn't think about life as much as you do. They didn't even care about their own futures, much less the futures of anyone else around them. They didn't ever try to help anyone but themselves or crawl out of any of their rum pots or syringes. The highlight of their lives was when they earned enough money to rent a cheap hotel and a woman.

"I don't know exactly what I would have done in your case. You're different from any of the other people I've had for jobs so far. But the people I did…they were nothing. No one cared about them. No one missed them. They weren't innocent children. They weren't aspiring students. They weren't fathers of five. They were deadbeats. They were wastes of space on this world and wastes of resources. Why do you think no one ever looked for them? Cared that they had been shanghaied? Because the world, for most purposes, didn't miss them. They didn't matter. No one invited them to parties or said hi to them or anything. Deep down inside…people are glad they're gone.Because they don't want to have to see them dirtying up their neighborhoods. They don't want their small lives cluttered up by seeing danger or poverty or starvation or any other vice.And that's the real culprit who doesn't value life."

Aerith listened to this, but she didn't change. Her expression stayed the same as she watched Krystea present her defense of herself and her actions. But at the end of it, she still hadn't altered. She stayed silent for a moment, but then turned her head and looked back forward.

"…I'll agree that a lot of people think that way." She finally conceded. She inhaled slowly after that.

"But if one less person had thought like that in Midgar twenty-six years ago…we might still have a mother."

Krystea didn't answer that or change.

Aerith looked back to her. "I know all about people who are considered wastes, Krystea. I lived among them for most of my life. And worthwhile as you think I am, I was one of those people. I saw a lot of different kinds where I lived. Some of them thought like you…and some of them tried to maintain that there was still some good in humanity, and that people were worthy of respect and dignity. And I'll tell you what…I've had my fill of thinking too little of other people, and I think the world has too. Shinra didn't care that it was poisoning its own customers and killing this world. President Shinra didn't care that he killed several million of his own citizens by dropping the upper plate on them. Sephiroth didn't care that he shattered one life after another, thinking they were all beneath him. I can't even begin to describe how little Hojo valued any life.

"If you're going to think there are some people in this world who don't matter, you better be careful. Because there is no standard in this world to judge the value of one's life. And everyone who I've met who cares nothing about some people eventually doesn't care anything about any of them. They go on to treat everyone around them like dirt or garbage, no matter how close they are to them, because they stopped seeing some lives as sacred. They saw it as some commodity or transient thing, and like it or not that made all other lives lower in their estimation the day they did that to some. They end up becoming the things they hate...the heartless and cruel people they see the world is full of.Until one day the people they oppress start thinking as coldly and emotionlessly as their oppessors, and care nothing about anyone else either, so that they can repeat the cycle.

"Perhaps you can't change people and make them better, but you can keep yourself from becoming worse. You can always change the way you feel. You can choose to give in to the mentality of so many others, the mentality that's been leading to the erosion of this world as well as humanity...or you can fight against it, even if it's futile, simply because you yearn to put at least one good and caring thing in the world.

"Krystea…I'd like to think that you didn't save me just to give yourself peace of mind, but that you actually care whether or not I live or die. And if that is why you saved me…then I wish you would rethink what you've been doing with your life."

Krystea didn't answer that. However, she looked far more uncomfortable than she had a moment ago. She seemed to be shifting slightly as she walked along. She kept her head low. She had reacted slightly to several items Aerith had said...but for the most part she kept her head low and kept walking. She was silent as the two women made their way forward a bit longer. Aerith had worn herself out talking that much, and was struggling to catch her breath and keep going. A few minutes went by, enabling both of them to let the issue sit and perhaps be put aside for a brief while. In the end, as they wound their way around a corner, Krystea called out again.

"We're almost out."

Aerith said nothing in response, just continued to follow. That speech had taken the last bit of strength out of her. She had to rest soon. Yet sure enough, as they wound their way around, Aerith began to see some genuine pale light ahead, and not just reflections from Mythril. As the two women worked around another corner, they emerged into a straight tunnel leading back out of the mines. Ahead of them was the cave opening, and beyond the world was spread out. At least, rocky ground was, the kind of material that stretched down from the mountains. However, there wasn't as much light outside as Aerith expected, and she soon found out why. The sky was filling with dark clouds…and a moment later a crack of thunder pealed and echoed into the chamber. Aerith sighed a bit as she continued on.

"We're going to have to march in the rain…"

Krystea sighed as well at that, and then shrugged. "Can't be helped, I'm afraid…"

"Krystea…I'm on my last legs. I have to rest for a few minutes or I won't be able to take another step."

The Turk turned to Aerith at that, and looked a bit uneasy. She seemed like she wanted to reply to that…but she didn't seem to have the heart to do so. She hesitated a moment longer, but in the end sighed and turned back ahead. "…Alright. I guess we can take a fifteen minute break once we're out of here. But no more. I'm not sure who exactly is on our heels."

Aerith nodded, grateful for any break. The two women continued to press on, making for the entrance. Thunder roared again. A slight drizzle began to fall outside the entrance. Still, they went on. A cool shower would mean some water for their parched throats. They kept on until they were going out from under the tunnel and out into the rock-lined entrance. Once there, both women plopped down onto the ground, and panted. Boulders rose up on either side of the mine entrance, and so both of them stretched out and braced themselves against the ones on opposite sides, using them as seats.

Krystea wouldn't admit it, but now that she was at rest she began to show just how tired she was. She proceeded to pull off her suit coat and remove her tie, which she had already loosened hours ago. She looked like she thought of throwing them away, but in the end she didn't. She must have wanted to keep the fabric for something in case an emergency arose. Aerith, on her part, leaned her head back and opened her mouth to the sky. The rain was picking up, but it was still precious little to be able to drink. Only a few drops moistened her tongue. Aerith closed her mouth soon after and let her head fall. She supposed she had to wait for the rain to pick up a little more…

However, as Aerith was coming to a rest…an object suddenly dropped down in front of her and dangled. Immediately, she blinked and looked back to it.

It was a canteen.

"Care to whet your whistle?"

The Cetra blinked again, and then looked up above to who was holding it.

She immediately went white as a sheet.

Reno was grinning as he looked down on her.

Krystea's head snapped up, seeing that he was there. However, before she could get to her feet…Rude and Elena dropped down from the rock she was pausing at, and landed right in front of her. They turned and stared her down. Krystea looked in surprise…and then turned to go for her gun. However, Elena had the element of surprise. She reached out and pointed her gun at her first, right at her head.

"Don't make me kill you, Krystea." Elena warned.

The Turk knew she was serious. Slowly and hesitantly…she pulled her arms back and put her hands up.

Reno pulled his canteen back up and leapt down in front of Aerith. On landing, he took a moment to smooth himself out. Aerith recoiled from him, but other than that could do little. She was too tired to fight back, and what she had done the day before still eluded her.

"Once again…you prove yourself the most troublesome target we've ever had." Reno remarked to her. "Though I had to admit, I never would have thought that Krystea would be the one helping you to slip through our fingers this time…"

Krystea looked up and anxiously at this exchange, from between the two Turks. "Reno…please…I'm begging you…"

"What was the big idea with that stunt back on the airship?" Elena outburst suddenly, cutting her off and glaring at her irritably. "You have any idea what that did to us? How much trouble that got us in?"

"Krystea, if you know what's good for you, you'll shut up while we try to figure out a way to keep your ass from being executed." Reno threw in, turning away from Aerith for a moment to glare at her. "That general is breathing down my neck to kill you. Your act of conscience back on the Sierra may have cost us all. Leers is thinking that we were all in on it from the start. So if we don't bring the Cetra back with us, we're targets ourselves."

Krystea stiffened, and rose up against the wall a bit despite her situation. "I can't let you do that."

"Well, that's tough, because you kind of forfeited your vote yesterday." Reno answered back. "But for the sake of fairness, I don't suppose you care to explain why you suddenly felt the urge to knock us out and run off with her, do you?"

"Yeah!" Elena chimed in. "You've been acting weird ever since you first saw her picture in the briefing room. What was the big problem?"

Krystea hesitated. Aerith looked over to her, and saw that she looked uneasy. Something inside her obviously wanted her to keep from saying the truth. The Cetra thought she had a good idea of what. Telling them that Aerith was related to her wouldn't necessarily save her…but it might put her in more trouble. After all…they had the same parents. Krystea had Cetra blood in her. That meant…she could join Aerith in a giant test tube as well…

But whether or not she would answer that question never presented itself.

That was because the incident was suddenly erupted by a pair of bestial talons reaching down, seizing Rude by the shoulders, and yanking him into the air.

The normally stoic Rude gave out a cry at this, but the incident itself caused both parties involved to suddenly forget about their argument and turn to look at him. To their shock, Rude had been ripped off of the ground by what could only be described as a bat thing. They couldn't make much out from it, other than it had giant skin flaps and enlongated arms to enable it to fly. Most of the rest of its main body was shrouded by some sort of dirty poncho with a hood. On seeing it…Aerith paled. She knew what it was. It was the same kind of clothing the things from last night had.

The bat thing gave one large cry, and then abruptly flung Rude forward hard into the side of the rock mountain. His body smashed against it with a sickening thud, and then peeled off and lifelessly fell the twenty feet he had been in the air back to the ground. The other Turks and Aerith could only watch in shock as he landed against the ground again, bouncing slightly as he did so. Rude was tough enough to take a billboard falling on his head from a hundred feet. However, that still didn't mean that he was invincible. He was down for the count.

What distracted the group next, however, wasn't the bat creature. It was another roar that sounded almost like suction, followed by a cry from Reno. The others wheeled around, and Aerith looked up. She cupped her mouth in horror and pulled back. Another rag-clothed creature had leapt on Reno's back, and was dragging him down right in front of her. But this thing was doing something. To her grotesque shock, some sort of slimey tube was coming off of its face…looking like it was its face…and connecting itself to the back of Reno's neck. It was like…a leech. It looked like it was sucking the strength out of Reno. He struggled against it only a moment before he started going limp.

Krystea and Elena were just as horrified as Aerith, but they were able to get their bearings back. Quickly, Krystea yanked out her sidearm while Elena spun around and took aim at the creature. Yet before either of them could fire…some sort of translucent lines shot out and tethered themselves to their guns. The two Turks barely managed to look down and see what had done it…when they saw their firearms yanked out of their grasp by the same cords. They turned and looked up to the source…and likewise turned to horror. Aerith almost didn't want to know what had done this, but she followed their eyes and soon found her gaze resting on the cave entrance…in particular the ceiling. Another rag-clothed creature was there…but it was hanging from the rocks. What more…it had a rather swollen appendage attached to its rear…that looked like an abdomen. The lines were coming from there. Aerith realized in disgust that the monster was part spider…

"Ugh!"

Yet another cry of pain caused Aerith to wheel around. This time, the person affected was Elena. Krystea was likewise stunned, staying back and looking at a loss to do anything about what had just happened. That was because in a flash, while Aerith had been looking away, a large fourth member came up. However, this one wore clothing low to the ground, obscuring its legs. What it did reveal was that instead of an arm…it had a rather large and monstrous red crab claw, which it had seized Elena by the neck with, ripped her off the ground, and pinned her against the boulder behind her. Elena had grasped for the claw and was trying futily to pry it off. However…her eyes were also fixed on the face of the beast, which only she could see. Aerith could see nothing of the horror she was looking at…but she did notice two long, segmented feelers coming out and brushing themselves along Elena's face.

Krystea was unarmed. She rose to her feet…but she knew there was little she could do. A whump was heard behind her, and she turned and saw that the bat had landed. It sprawled out its long, clawed forarms and hissed at her slowly from beneath its hood. The leech one finally took its hideous mouth off of Reno, who was now totally out of it. The spider one scurried forward, now holding Elena's gun in one hand and Krystea's in the other, and then did a nimble leap and flip off of the rock and onto the same floor as the rest of them. The crab held Elena menacingly. Slowly…it brought another claw out. Just like a true crustacean, this one was smaller than the other…and looked more for cutting than crushing. It began to raise it up to the Turk…

Aerith looked over them all, swallowing and beginning to sweat. She may have been fearful a moment ago…but now they were in the grip of these monsters. Something told her she would prefer what the New Shinra had planned for her than what these things did. For now, nothing moved. The creatures looked to her more than once, making her shudder, but none of them made a move on her or Krystea.

Finally…Aerith heard footsteps to her left against the rock ground. She turned her head to the source. Moving slowly and deliberately was one final clothed monster. This one, on the outside, appeared to be rather human. Yet Aerith doubted it was. Yet as she looked over it…she realized something. The other ones were new…but this one was one of the creature's from the night before. She had seen it in the abandoned building. It was the one that spoke of emotions. As it got closer to them, and waded into their midst, it let out another hissing laugh before doing so again.

"Fear of death…surprise…horror…" It slowly spoke. "The remaining ones are paralyzed with their fear of us. It looks like we have intruders again."

"This one's fluid is spicy." The leech one spoke. At least, Aerith thought it spoke. The sound was a horrible wet sucking noise that somehow made words. "He's been drinking a lot. He doesn't agree with me…"

"We got extras." The one with the claws said, seeming to boom it out in a rather loud and strong voice. "The doctor won't care if we pop off a couple heads, will he?"

"Leave them." The emotion one said. This order caused the others to snap to her, and actually look a bit surprised. However, she was calm in her answer. "They're better specimens than us… Maybe the doctor will let them take some of our places…"

To that, however, the bat hissed, and lowered its head. It spoke in a harsh faint whisper tone. "And whose place will they be expected to take, Erea? Yours? What about me? What about all of us?"

"I'm a bigger monster than any of you…" The spider one growled as it stepped forward. "I deserve to be let out first!"

"You, a monster?" The leech one squished in its horrible voice. "Look at me! Look what I must do to survive! I can't even chew anymore!"

"Silence, all of you!" The female one, Erea, announced. Quiet immediately was generated. The others turned to her again, somewhat crossly, but did as she said. "None of this matters! Once we've delivered the two specimens, the doctor will cure us all, so this bickering is pointless. I merely want to keep them for insurance. The doctor may make us wait until the experiment is ready. But with specimens like the Turks, they probably won't need the rest of us."

The other creatures hesitated at this. However, after a moment, they seemed to accept what Erea said for now. They grunted and went back to their specific tasks. The crab one seemed to be especially irritable when he looked back to Elena. After sneering once, he reared back his other claw and smacked her across the face. The blow was strong and threw her head back against the rock wall, dazzling her if not knocking her out. After doing so, he stepped back and let her fall to the ground.

"Now for the real targets…" Erea hissed, turning her head over to Krystea.

Aerith began to stiffen. She struggled to pull herself up, seeing one of these monsters headed for her sister. However, Krystea wasn't simply curling into a ball either. She may have been disarmed, but she immediately got ready for a fight. She balled her hands into fists and took a ready position.

"I may not be as good hand to hand as Rude…but I'm no pushover either." She threatened.

Erea merely seemed to snort at that. She continued to close in on the woman. Krystea held and waited, hesitating for Erea to make the first move. However, once the creature was close enough, she lashed out with a fist in a jabbing motion.

To Aerith's surprise…Erea's neck seemed to break off and her head swished to one side, appearing to separate from her body, and leaving Krystea's fist to hit only air. Both women gaped. Aerith looked over, and saw the head continuing to move, although it was no longer on her shoulders. Yet as it did, she noticed a break in the clothing that she wore…and saw that a long, thick, green-scaled appendage connected the thing's head to its body…like a snake. Krystea seemed to notice this too, and continued to look stunned as she turned to look at the woman's face. A moment later, she turned angry again, and moved to lash out once more…

But it was too late. Moving like lightning, the head of Erea lashed out and struck against her. Krystea gave a cry and backed up. Erea was striking like a snake, and she had lashed out with her teeth. As Krystea recoiled, Aerith saw two red pricks form on her shoulder, indicating a point where blood had been drawn. It rapidly soaked into her white shirt. Krystea looked to her injury, then back to the woman. Gritting her teeth in anger, Krystea lashed out and punched Erea in the head. A horrible hiss was given out as the woman's head snapped back, like a balloon on a string. The thing staggered.

The crab man turned and growled at that angrily, and began to stomp forward. The bat one hissed, and began to reach down over Krystea's head with his claws. Erea wiped her mouth once, reattaching her head to her body as she did so, and then reached out and held her hand in a stopping motion.

"Stay where you are!" She hissed. "It's too late. I already bit her."

Krystea didn't react to that. She merely continued to brandish her fists and looked ready to deal out more pain. However, that lasted only a moment. Suddenly…she wavered a bit on her feet. Her eyelids dropped a moment before shooting back open. Yet when they did, Krystea's determined face faded quickly into a dazzled look. She wavered again, and her eyelids started to close once more. She began to breathe a bit shakily as well. Then, at long last, she let out a large groan and fell to the ground all together. She appeared to pass out.

"Krystea!" Aerith called. But the woman didn't respond. She was down and out. Erea finished straightening herself, and stood up straight. Aerith looked from her fallen sister, and then looked up to the woman. She didn't know what these things were…but they appeared to be mixtures of animals and humans. And if they were…that would mean Erea wasmixed with a snake, probably a venomous one… But what did that mean?

Weak as she was, Aerith looked back up and glared at Erea. What if she had killed her? What if she was dying right there? There was no one to help them…and Aerith lacked any power to generate any form of healing… She had just found out she had a sister, and she was lying there dying… The last words she would have said to her would have been ones of disapproval and anger…

The thought made Aerith anguished…and angry.

At last…she began to sense something deep within her come to life.

"Your friend isn't dead, if that's what you're thinking." Erea responded as she turned her head around to Aerith. Her features were again concealed by her hood, and Aerith couldn't see even a trace of a face within them. However, she heard the venom and maliciousness on her voice. "I can smell your fear…and your growing anger against me. She would have been too hard to control, so I bit her. I can kill with my venom, but I merely gave her enough to knock her out for a few hours, until we can get back to the doctor."

Aerith formed the most furious and hard face she could muster…which wasn't much. "What do you want with her? What do you want with me?" She cried at her with surprising volume. "What'd we ever do to you?"

"It doesn't matter." Erea simply answered. "All that matters is that you come with us. And whether or not I tell you won't affect it. Now are you going to come quietly?" After saying this, Erea wheeled around back to Krystea. "…Or should I give her a stronger dose?"

Fear rippled through Aerith for a moment. However…it was only a moment. A new feeling was starting to well up in her…one she wasn't nearly as familiar with but had tasted briefly of yesterday. A feeling of anger. It began to grow toward this woman…and to her companions. The spark that had started within her began to blaze up again.

"You touch her again…I'll kill you." Aerith spoke out.

Her voice was strained…but very serious.

Erea, however, didn't seem to be that impressed. She hissed. "You? Weakling girl? Not even able to stand?" She gave out a light laugh at that. After saying so, she turned slightly to her side. "Arana…I'm not even going to waste the venom on her. Wrap her up."

Aerith's anger was deflated a moment, and looked puzzled instead. She turned next to the side, where Erea had looked. She saw another one…the spider one…for a brief moment, just as he stood up and twisted his abdomen down, aiming it for the Cetra. Aerith's eyes widened, but she realized too late what he was doing. Moments later, thin cords erupted from the end of the creature and shot at her.

Aerith raised her arms and shielded her eyes to protect herself, but the cords impacted against her arms anyway. In no time at all, however, they adhered to her skin and spread out. The spider thing continued to spray them out against her, and soon a white webbing was starting to form on her arms. She was surprised at this, and pulled them down, which was a bad move. Now the white cords began to spray across her face and upper body as well. She tried to pull her arms apart, but already they were anchored together. The thing moved down and sprayed his webs over her legs next, locking them together as well. After that, he began to spray her entire body, covering her with webs and reinforcing where she was already tied.

Aerith tried to open her eyes, but webbing was already spread across her face and holding them shut. To her surprise, she realized she couldn't open her mouth either. She struggled for a moment, and somehow forced her eyes open, but it was only to see the horror of what was happening to her. Arana was covering her with his webs, and continuing to spray. Already a thin layer was obscuring her, making her vanish beneath a white shroud. She was being wrapped up in a cocoon like a regular insect. The shock and fear at what was happening paralyzed her mind for a moment…making her forget about what was going on and focusing only on what was happening…

But then, as her vision began to turn white…she saw Krystea lying on the ground again. Seeing her, she forgot about the attack. She thought only about her. Krystea was helpless now…helpless to stop anything that they might do to her. She didn't know who this doctor was…but she had seen enough scientists to know that they never had good intentions where she was concerned. This doctor had made these monsters. They were going to turn her into a monster…or worse. And here she was…almost totally immobilized…helpless to do anything to help.

She was too weak again…too helpless… She was always too weak. She could never help those she loved. The only way she could before was by dying…by giving into an act of death and futility…and weakness… She couldn't save herself…and she couldn't save Krystea… These monsters would do goodness knew what to her…and she couldn't help her…

No…

I'm not going to let this happen…

At once, the spark within her surged…and this time it began to grow. As it did…the storm that now thundered over the gathering suddenly cracked out with a new peel of lightning. Seconds later, it did so again. The rain abruptly began to pick up as a third bolt went out. The winds began to build, and the heavy shower began to turn into a true tempest. The bat creature and the crab one looked up at this, gazing about at the air as it suddenly grew more violent. Arana himself looked up and around even as he continued his work. And as he did…he began to grow uneasy. The air was starting to grow more charged…more turbulent…more fearsome…

The five turned and looked back to Aerith. She was now just a human shaped silk bundle. However…she didn't stay that way long. To their surprise, a fire suddenly broke out on the cocoon. It was a small one, but it quickly began to spread over the rest of it, burning away the silk. Arana, shocked at the sudden reaction, quickly cut off his spraying and stepped back, not wanting to set himself on fire. Erea backed up a bit as well, and the leech slithered back slightly. The bundle continued to burn and expand, and burning chunks of web fell to the ground and were disintergrated. Yet as the fire moved on and consumed the cocoon…the five soon received another shock.

Aerith was slowing being revealed by the fire…and she was untouched by the flames. At least…untouched physically. As her green eyes were revealed…they saw that they blazed with a fervor and light that was totally unnatural. Some sort of glow was in them now, illuminating the darkness around them…and focused entirely on them. Her face had turned angry, and she glared at the five darkly. As the last of her bonds burned away…she began to step forward toward them…no longer tired or weak, and having both hands in fists at her sides.

Stunned…the five actually stepped back from her.

Aerith continued to glare at them, and held both of her hands up in front of her. Slowly, she opened her palms. When she did…green light seemed to suddenly form in the air, in some sort of physical particulate form. It swarmed around once…and then gathered in her open hands. As it did…it suddenly condensed, and turned into balls of fire. She wielded both now as she walked forward, burning like an angel of judgment.

"I warned you."

That was the last phrase any of them heard before they were bathed in flames far larger and stronger than what Reno had experienced.

To be continued...