Chapter Four: Temptation

Battles were so much less stressful when one had a fully competent partner, Vincent thought to himself as he fired his gun at an approaching creature, hitting it directly between the eyes. It fell to the ground with a brief yelp and did not move again.

He was crouched behind a large boulder, one of several in the otherwise open plains surrounding Junon Harbor, methodically picking off the large, mutated wolves one by one. Sephiroth stood about thirty feet away, easily cutting down the creatures who circled around him as if it were effortless. Vincent continued to fire upon the wolves at the outer edges of the circle they'd formed around the swordsman, confident that Sephiroth was not foolish enough to make any sudden movements into his line of fire. Besides, even if Vincent had accidentally shot him, he doubted it would have done much harm. He had always been an unusually accurate shot even among other Turks, however, so it was hardly a concern.

The creatures largely ignored him as he paused to reload the Death Penalty before continuing to fire, concentrating on the more obvious threat before them. Sephiroth was nearly grinning as he fought them off with his sword, back in his element and thoroughly enjoying the exertion. Vincent's thoughts were far more practical. They had a job to do, and he would be pleased so long as they succeeded without being seriously injured. Part of him had to admit that fighting alongside his son was rather enjoyable, though. They made a formidable team, and he was filled with an unexpected pride at how well Sephiroth fought.

One of the large, salivating creatures finally seemed to realize that someone else was killing many of its companions from a distance, turning to glare at Vincent with angry orange eyes. As it did so, a few others nearby followed its gaze and finally spotted him behind the bolder, starting to move toward him together. Sephiroth was occupied with at least half a dozen others, his back turned.

Vincent frowned in concentration, rising into a better shooting stance since his cover was already blown. He aimed first at the leader of the group of four, firing and hitting him several times in the chest and shoulder. The creature fell to the ground, twitching but still barely alive as its companions growled in fury and continued to approach. It seemed witnessing one of their own cut down in their midst did nothing to deter them. In fact, it only seemed to tick them off and motivate them further.

Wonderful…

The three remaining creatures suddenly rushed toward him, faster than he'd previously seen them move. Vincent had time to pick off the largest of them before turning his fire on one of the others and instantly dropping it to the ground. But the third was still charging as he focused his aim upon it, taking to the air and leaping at him before he was able to get off his next shot.

Vincent squeezed the trigger as the mutated wolf tackled him to the ground, hitting it in the stomach but not wounding it seriously enough to stop its attack. The creature pinned him to the ground with massive paws, its weight upon his chest making it difficult to move or breathe. It snarled and leaned down, angrily biting him in the right shoulder.

The pain tore through him and he winced, holding back an agonized cry and managing to raise his clawed left hand to punch the wolf firmly in the jaw. It yelped as solid metal met bone with a loud crack, stunned for a moment. Vincent took advantage of the opportunity and attempted to raise his injured arm to shoot the creature again and hopefully finish it off.

The fresh wave of pain brought on by the movement instantly caused his vision to go red, thoughts of violence pouring unwanted into his consciousness. Yes… He would tear out the creature's innards and feast upon them, bathing in its blood and reveling in its suffering. He would-

No!

Vincent grit his teeth, already able to feel the fangs of Chaos beginning to emerge. He blinked rapidly, fighting to clear his vision and his mind. He was not going to let the demon break free again. As his body began to tremble, he cursed himself and his weakness and tried again to lift his gun arm as the creature leaned down toward his throat with its teeth bared. It was going for the kill.

This time, Vincent was successful and aimed for the wolf's chest, firing three times in rapid succession. The creature let out an angry howl and instantly collapsed on top of him, its warm blood soaking into his shirt and cloak. The smell of it was overpowering and his mind began to race with Chaos' vile desires. The blood was so warm and smelled so wonderful…. No, it smelled terrible! He wanted nothing more than to get out from beneath the creature.

And then feast upon its remains…

Vincent heard a low growl escape his lips, his muscles growing tense as Chaos slowly began to take over his body. He struggled to get out from beneath the creature's corpse, but he was so distracted by pain and his inner battle that he was unable to find the strength. He closed his eyes and shuddered violently, clenching his hands into fists even as they began to warp into demonic claws.

Just as he was convinced the battle was lost, the weight upon his chest was lifted away. Suddenly able to breathe easier, he struggled into a sitting position, gasping for air and staring down at his trembling limbs. His skin had taken on a purplish tint and his muscle mass had already increased. He glanced over at the bloody corpse of the creature that had been removed from atop him, his mind filled with a mixture of revulsion, relief, and violent desire.

"Are you all right?"

The familiar deep voice broke through his troubled thoughts, and Vincent finally noticed the large black boots firmly planted beside the creature's remains. Forcing himself to focus and lift his head, he found himself looking into the concerned eyes of his son.

At first he could not speak, closing his eyes and fighting with everything he had to force Chaos to relinquish his body and go back into hiding. He fought to slow his breathing and the racing of his heart, calling on memories of his time with Lucrecia to aid him. Slowly, despite the fact that the odor of blood remained strong and nearly intoxicating to the demonic part of him, Vincent felt the tension ease as his body began to return to normal.

"I… think so," he finally replied in a voice that was not yet quite his own, far more gravelly than his usual whispered tone. "Thank you…"

Sephiroth simply nodded, sheathing his sword and continuing to study Vincent with concern. "You are injured," he noted flatly, his eyes falling upon the shoulder wound the creature had inflicted. Vincent had nearly forgotten about it, but realized it burned quite a bit when he tried to move his arm. Chaos enjoyed the pain, and he was careful to keep it still while he remained vulnerable.

"It is minor… and though I do not heal quite as quickly as you, I still do so at an accelerated rate." There. His voice sounded closer to normal now, though the tension remained and a stifling exhaustion had begun to creep into his aching body. Transformations, even those that he was able to stop, always left him physically and mentally drained. He fought the urge to yawn, memories of his long rest in the coffin at Nibelheim suddenly quite appealing.

"It should still be tended to," Sephiroth insisted, glancing around to make sure all of the creatures were indeed dead. "And you ought to take a moment to recover and wash away some of the blood before we attempt to continue our mission…"

He had clearly noticed how close Vincent had come to transforming, but somehow managed not to sound alarmed. Vincent appreciated that more than he would be able to express in words, so as was often the case he didn't even try. He simply nodded to Sephiroth and accepted the gloved hand he offered, rising a bit shakily to his feet and glancing down at his torn shirt and the deep scratches beneath it. He placed his gun in its holster and sighed heavily, disgusted with himself. So close… He had come so close to losing control again, and so soon after the last time. What was wrong with him?

"There is a stream just a bit East of our position," Sephiroth went on when Vincent only continued to stare down at his boots, unmoving. He seemed to sense how uneasy and shaken his companion was, calmly taking control of the situation like the experienced leader he was. "Let's take a moment to recuperate there before hunting down the remaining creatures."

Vincent nodded weakly and began to follow after Sephiroth, his pace more sluggish than usual. What was going on, he wondered, ashamed of himself and more than a little frightened. Was he finally beginning to completely lose his mind to the demon that possessed him? Why did he feel so weak, so easily overcome the moment Chaos was given the slightest of openings? Suddenly, the future he'd finally started to believe might actually be bright looked far more disturbing…


((Author's Notes: This scene sort of just... came out of thin air. I was unsure of whether or not I was going to include some of Vincent and Seph's actual fighting, but I sat down this morning and just decided to... start typing and see what happened. This is the result. I actually enjoyed it, considering I am not a fan of writing action/battle scenes. I think because I was still able to do character work while doing so? Anxious to hear what you all think of it! Please take a moment and review if you don't mind, as I tend to worry when I see lots of hits but no comments...lol. Thanks again! ~ JenesisX ))