Author’s notes: Man, last chapter turned out completely different from how I projected. I think I’ll take a break from games and such for awhile so I can actually write for a change. I try to write only at dusk and beyond so I can write better. I’ll try to update more frequently as I quite literally forget how things go and it throws me off.

Current Inspirations: GetBackers, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, Bleach, Saiyuki, Bahamut Lagoon, Final Fantasy 3 (yes, I have finally reached the insanity of ROMs, though reading Japanese is a pain in the ass), Vampire Hunter D

Music: “Crystal Teardrop” from Castlevania in the caves, Chrono Trigger’s boss music during the battle, none during Riku’s scene

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Piece Five Rhythm

The dark was encompassing as a glove, seeping and oozing around rock and over water. Jade-green orbs traveled behind ruby-red ones as two figures cut through a honeycomb of caves deep in the bowels of the earth. Vincent led because of his excellent night-vision with Sephiroth behind, his large blade shouldered.

“Are you sure we’re heading towards it?” Vincent asked without looking at Sephiroth.

“Yes, I definitely feel that…beating becoming louder.”

“You must good hearing. I can’t hear a bloody thing.”

“It’s not exactly a sound, more like a…feeling.”

“Odd. It’s not anyone we know, correct?”

“Yes, it’s something…throbbing.”

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On the level above the duo were the trio of Cloud, Tifa, and Kain who were slightly better off because they were dry and also had a lamp with them. Surprisingly, no Heartless or Nobodies came, though Cloud still had his blade at ready in case something came. He still couldn’t shake a rather bad feeling, like something was pressing a sword to his throat constantly. Damn, maybe if Sephiroth was around they could figure out where enemies were coming from, but they were pretty much ignorant at the moment.

Tifa sighed, constantly looking down at the floor and hoping that Vincent or Sephiroth would just burst through at any moment. She supposed it was natural to worry about her brother, but that was his job as the older sibling, right? Tifa lowered her lids, her eyes half-covered.

“What’s eating you?” Cloud broke the silence the three had maintained since the group split.

“Uh, nothing.”

“Out with it, you suck at lying.”

“It’s just Vincent. It’s not that big of a deal.”

Cloud observed the buxom, brunette martial-artist. Not a big deal his ass.

“What’s he to you?” Cloud asked.

“He’s…my brother.”

‘Tch, I see the resemblance.” Cloud chuckled.

“Huh?”

“You can get just as gloomy as he is.”

“Not funny.”

Kain led them down another path, the lamp held out in front.

“Ms. Lockheart.” Kain said.

“Just Tifa.”

“Alright, Tifa, do you have faith in Vincent?”

“Huh?” Tifa raised an eyebrow “Of course I do. Why do you ask that?”

“It’s a bit contradictory of you to worry about him then. If you have faith, then there’s no need to worry, correct?”

“Yeah, I guess so. Uh, thanks.”

“No need.”

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“Blast, blocked.” Vincent cursed.

“Well, this is an unnecessary impediment in our progress.”

The two men had kept going forward until they had blocked by a cave wall. Having such happen when one was in the dark was not exactly something one wanted. Vincent began walking another way.

“Where are you going?” Sephiroth asked.

“As much of a bother it is, we’ll have to find another way to our destination.”

“Fool, the shortest distance between two points is a straight line.”

Sephiroth trudged through the water again, pressing up against the wall and tapping it with his fist. Vincent raised an eyebrow, wondering what the silver-haired man was doing.

“Hmm, about a foot thick, but there’s definitely just that blocking us.” Sephiroth mumbled.

“Not even my strength can break through a foot of rock.”

“Your strength, not mine.”

Sephiroth stepped back slightly, unsheathing his long, thin no-dachi.

“Step back a bit more, if you don’t wish to be harmed.” Sephiroth almost smiled.

“What are you…?”

FWAP! FWAP! FWAP! FWAP! FWAP!

The entire wall in front of Sephiroth collapsed, leaving a pathway open to him. The man shouldered his blade, flipping his hair.

“I believe you were leading.” Sephiroth pointed towards the entrance.

“Right.”

Vincent led, Sephiroth following behind him, striding calmly. The other side of the wall was at a higher level than the catacombs so it wasn’t submerged in water. Vincent took glances at Sephiroth every now and then, evaluating him.

Vincent had seen Sephiroth unsheathe his sword, but that’s all he saw. Vincent hadn’t seen Sephiroth swing his sword, and neither did he hear the rock being sliced apart by a blade. Vincent was beginning to understand why Sephiroth could remain so calm whilst battling things that consumed entire worlds. But how exactly could someone move so fast that they couldn’t be seen, even by Vincent’s eyes? One thing was made clear, but a few more mysteries showed up.

Sephiroth knew Vincent was keeping an eye on him, but he didn’t exactly care. What mattered right now was what in the world was inside the mountain. The Heartless inside the walls were getting denser the further towards the center he and Vincent got. And threw as that throbbing, that undulating, pulsating sensation like a gigantic in the middle of the mountain. Those fools at the Omniscient were here, or at least their puppets were.

Vincent stepped into a huge chamber, his footsteps echoing around the large area. Sephiroth stopped, Vincent not realizing until a few seconds had passed. The older man looked over his shoulder.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Aim your guns at the ceiling, now”

“What?”

“Now!”

Sephiroth raising his voice was an obvious warning of hostility so Vincent did so. He wasn’t going to wait for an order to fire so he did so at his own discretion. Dark blood splashed down, staining Vincent’s crimson clothing. Vincent rolled to one side, evading several corpses falling towards him. He quickly reloaded his guns, aiming at new targets. Sephiroth unsheathed his blade, closing his eyes.

“What are you doing?” Vincent wondered.

“My eyes won’t do my any good, so I think I’ll rely on my other senses.”

“Behind you!” Vincent saw a rather large Heartless descending on Sephiroth with a blade.

Sephiroth turned to the side as if he knew where the blade was the whole time and then brought his own sword down, decapitating the Heartless.

“I…” Sephiroth then turned on his heel, slicing a creature in two “don’t…” he hopped over the claws of another Heartless “need…” he pierced the head of said Heartless “your…” he caught the hand of one enemy “bloody advice.” then he sliced the offender in two.

Vincent was busy tending two his own matters, but he often caught glances at Sephiroth every now and then. How someone could evade like that without using his eyes was baffling. Perhaps his movements weren’t as fluid as usual, but effective nonetheless.

Vincent blocked a strike with his clawed arm, fingers clenching over his limb. Vincent merely responded with glare and then a shotgun blast to the fiend’s face. As the fiend crashed back, Vincent pointed his gun at a crowd.

“Moonlit Serenade.”

Vincent unloaded his shotgun in the blink of an eye, multiple shots from the powerful gun ripping through targets. Vincent charged the mob, not giving them a chance to recover as he unloaded his guns into them. Soon there was nothing but blood splattered everywhere. Sephiroth sheathed his blade, his senses not detecting any more hostility.

“Well, that was interesting.” he said.

“Interesting? I hate having to go through these slaughters.”

“Slaughter on their side, perhaps.” Sephiroth poked a corpse with the toe of his boot “These ones were stronger than usual.”

“And what might that indicate?”

“That we’re getting closer to our target.” Sephiroth walked past Vincent.

“I though I was leading.”

“My sight has adjusted to the light, so you can rely on my sense now.”

Sephiroth shouldered his blade again, Vincent following this time around. More powerful Heartless were no problem, as they were only about as annoying as ants. However, anything where large numbers of Heartless dwelled obviously meant that there was something worth guarding nearby.

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Fire flickered deep in the caves, revealing a man with an extremely pale face and grey eyes. His hair, a dark black, was covered by a bandana with intricate markings. His body, whipcord and thin, was covered in a blood-red cloak that seemed to burn with unholy energy.

“I’ve waited far too long.” he growled.

“Is that so, Rubicant?” asked Aaron’s voice.

“Yes.”

“Just keep them busy, though you’re allowed to kill who you wish.”

“Alright.”

Aaron looked down at the throbbing, pulsating mass of black below him. The very aura it gave off was so putrid that lesser people would be consumed by it without even having a chance to resist it.

“It’s almost ready.”

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Cloud swung his sword once more, hitting his target which was a large Heartless. His group had barely gone any further when Heartless swarmed out of the woodworks like ants. They ripped at his cloak, only to be met by his blade which sent them to the underworld. The heavy broadsword ripped through enemies like a storm, cleaving them in two and sending body parts flying everywhere.

“Beat Rush!”

Tifa pummeled with her bare hands, beating her opponents with a multitude of swift blows. Despite being of a build that allowed less destructive force than Cloud or Kain, she was doing almost as well as they were. Tifa planted her hands on the ground, using them as an axis and then doing the splits, spinning to knock away any enemies coming near her.

Tifa whipped back onto her feet, putting her hands to her side and then delivering a mighty, double-open-palm blow to an Invisible, sending it several feet back. Tifa definitely felt a few bones break.

Hmm, Tifa is quite impressive thought Kain.

Kain whipped his spear around to his back, knocking away several Heartless and then stabbing it upward to pierce another fiend’s skull. Kain wasn’t as agile as Tifa perhaps, but he could force more power out of his body then she could. Not stopping his assault, Kain thrust forward and pierced a Heartless in the chest and then swung his spear to the side to shake the creature off of it.

Why use so many against us? Kain thought No matter how high the number, it always turns out to be a slaughter. Unless…defeat is not their goal, but impeding us is.

Cloud sliced down the last enemy, his blade covered in their dark blood. Despite having killed so many, his breath was not heavy at all.

“Dammit, what the hell is up with this?” he wondered.

“Aye, something is amiss.” Kain agreed.

Cloud’s glowing sapphire eyes changed their attention to something coming down one of the dark tunnels. He raised his sword.

“What is it?” Tifa asked.

“Something’s coming.”

The sound of boots treading on the ground came further up the tunnel. They grew louder with each passing second, the time stretching seemingly into infinity. A shape began to seep out of the darkness, revealing a tall, slender figure in a hooded coat. A face could be seen, revealing an androgynous profile with snow-white skin.

“The hell…?” Cloud wondered.

Cloud’s wondering was not allowed to last a great deal as the youth charged instantaneously and was ready to stab Cloud in the back. Cloud saw the attack in time though, blocked the strike and then turned around to face it. The youth held a long, thin, curved sword in its hand and undoubtedly knew how to use it. The youth’s hood had come undone during the charge, revealing a shock of short, electric-yellow hair.

The youth kept assaulting Cloud, its sword pointed low this time and aimed for Cloud’s belly. Cloud blocked again, but felt that he was being pushed back by the assailant’s strike. Tifa decided to charge, kicking to at least distract the assaulter. However, the youth brought its hand up, blocking Tifa’s strike and the retaliated with a backhand, sending the young woman elsewhere with the powerful blow.

“Tifa!”

That minute distraction gave the youth a large enough window to strike Cloud, its sword finding Cloud’s shoulder and slicing outward. Cloud went to his knee, grinding his teeth. The youth brought its blade upward, ready to strike down at Cloud’s open head.

“Kaze-katsu”

WHOOSH! THWOP!

A great rushing sound was coupled swiftly by the sound of flesh being sliced through. The youth stood still and then the top half of its torso fell off, blood as black as the Heartless’ pouring free from the corpse.

“What the hell?” Kain wondered.

“A Nobody, or an Unknown.” explained an approaching Sephiroth “It’s the remains of the victim of a Heartless.”

“What?”

Sephiroth sheathed his blade, coming out of the darkness with Vincent at his side. The corpse had vanished, leaving only a sliced coat.

“That’s what happens when a person has its heart taken?” Tifa asked.

“Yes, an asexual, emotionless shell.” Sephiroth picked up the coat with his scabbard “They’re not as great in number, as only the strongest shells are used, but they’re far more powerful than a Heartless is.”

“Cloud, you’re injured.” Tifa tended to the man.

“It’s nothing.” Cloud argued.

Vincent sat on the ground, figuring it was as good a time as any to rest. Sephiroth examined the corpses littering the ground, thoroughly looking them through.

“Why in the bloody blue hell are ye looking at those daemons?” Kain asked.

“They’re getting stronger.”

“What?”

“These are getting more powerful along with the Unknowns. This is most worrisome.”

“Ah guess so if’n these bloody things are getting greater in number it would be.”

“Indeed.”

Tifa finished using the healing spell on Cloud’s arm, sealing the cut. Cloud moved his shoulder slightly, grunting slightly.

“Sorry if it’s a bit sore,” Tifa said “I’m not that adept at healing.”

“It’s enough to swing my sword with.”

Sephiroth looked down the cave tunnels, feeling that pulse once again.

It’s getting stronger and faster, and not just because we’re closer to it

“We ready to go?” Kain asked, getting the lamp.

“Yes.”

Vincent stood back up, keeping his gun at ready and taking the rear. Sephiroth was right behind Kain, his sword at ready despite the narrow corridor. The throbbing was getting louder, heavier, faster. The very beating went into Sephiroth’s bones, his own body seemingly getting into rhythm with the beat.

“That’s odd.” Kain said.

“What is?”

“There’s a will o’ the wisp up ahead.”

Indeed there was. A red light was up ahead, glistening up ahead and illuminating a room. Sephiroth narrowed his eyes slightly, knowing what that light actually was.

“Welcome.” said a deep, rich voice.

Bright, red flames burst around the chamber, making it as bright as day. Sephiroth blinked his eyes madly as they now had to rapidly adjust to the change of light. At the other end of the room stood a man in a long, gaudy blood-red cloak His hair was mostly concealed by a bandanna, but the strands that were free were greasy and black. Kain recognized the man immediately.

“Rubicant.” he growled.

“You know him?” Vincent asked.

“Yes, we fought years ago. I swear this fool was dead.”

Rubicant cackled, stepping forward and the ground turning black as he did so.

“I was dead.” Rubicant explained “However, my new masters took me back from the underworld and gave me even greater power than I had before.”

“Enough talk,” Sephiroth drew his blade “we have little time to discuss, so let’s just get this over with so we can move along.”

“Fair enough.”

Rubicant stepped back slightly and opened his palm, revealing flames in it. The fire danced, flicking out and undulating. Then the flames burst, shooting everywhere and igniting even the very air. Shadows were cast in every direction and the temperature skyrocketed.

“What the hell is this?” Cloud wondered.

“He’s a master of manipulating fire.” Kain explained “Be careful lest ye want to get burned.”

“Crap!”

Cloud dodged a tongue of flames shooting out, his cloak getting scorched slightly. His hair was also slightly singed, the heat of the flames obviously insanely high. Kain leapt over one prominence, hitting the ceiling and sinking his spear in to evade the raging inferno that was dancing around. Kain looked down at the floor, seeing his current comrades having to constantly dodge the fire as Rubicant stood in the very same place he began.

Bloody hell, this isn’t good

Vincent fired his gun rapidly, but the bullets were immediately blocked and melted due to the intense heat of the fire. Vincent grunted as he narrowly dodged the flames, the tips of them striking his cloak and burning it. However, several lashes made from fire came and struck Vincent, throwing him against a wall, causing it to crack. Vincent tasted copper in his throat and blood spat from his mouth.

Rubicant was enjoying himself quite a bit. Not a single one of his enemies could touch him, especially since his cloak was newly enhanced. The fire snaked around, covering any blind spots that would otherwise be exposed from the use of any other weapon. Flames whipped around, batting Tifa like a fly, but she managed to recover in midair and land on her feet. However, another flame shot out and pierced her right shoulder, burning and stabbing her at the same time. Tifa didn’t cry out, but gritted her teeth instead, giving Rubicant a death-glare.

SHWING!

Cloud’s heavy blade cut the tongue of flame impaling Tifa’s shoulder and then pulled it out, burning his glove slightly.

“Well, aren’t you the chivalrous one?” Rubicant said.

“No, I just hate arrogant bastards like you who get off on not actually fighting.”

“How rude, considering that I can spear you from here.”

Rubicant did so, or at least attempted to as he shot out a chain of flames at Cloud and Tifa. However, the attack was countered quite nicely.

“Blade Beam!”

The flames were obliterated as a shockwave of energy ripped through the ground and nearly hit Rubicant. Cloud was already moving the second his attack struck and had his sword at ready. Rubicant wasn’t nearly that sloppy as Cloud had hoped for the dark-haired man fire spheres of flame at Cloud. The spheres hit their target, bursting and splashing on impact.

“Eat that you-huh?” Rubicant was flabbergasted.

Apparently Cloud’s sanity wasn’t something normal as he hadn’t even attempted to dodge the flames. He charged through them instead, his blade at ready the whole time and ready to come down on Rubicant. Rubicant did something odd at that moment. He covered himself in his cloak as Cloud’s sword struck hard.

Cloud looked slightly relieved upon striking Rubicant, but then he noticed that his blade had not slashed through the cloak nor did he feel any sort of give from the blow. Suddenly, Rubicant, still alive somehow, gave a heave and pushed Cloud back. The man came out from his cloak, revealing that he was unscathed.

“How the hell did he do that?” Tifa wondered.

“His cloak turns attacks into healing for him.” Kain answered “It’s a bloody pain.”

“So, kill him in one strike is the curriculum?” Sephiroth said with a nasty grin.

“Yes, that would be my guess.”

“Alright then.”

Sephiroth stepped forward rather calmly, his blade at ready. Rubicant had his flames already dancing towards Sephiroth who just kept his calm stride as he walked ever closer to Rubicant. Rubicant was nervous. While the others had displayed anger or anxiety, Sephiroth showed none and what made it even worse was that fact that he was…smirking. A tug at the side of the man’s mouth was subtle but undoubtedly a smirk. And that pale, cold light coming from Sephiroth’s eyes continued making it worse.

“Stop grinning!” Rubicant snapped at the tension, sending a wave of flames at Sephiroth.

Sephiroth, for some odd reason, squatted, one leg sticking out while the other was drawn close. Then Sephiroth vanished, not a trace of him seen anywhere Rubicant looked around for a second, wondering where the silver-haired man was. Then Rubicant felt blood rise to his mouth and saw the crimson fluid trickle from his mouth.

“What the…?” he said feebly.

“Odd, I didn’t think I was that swift.”

Sephiroth had somehow moved faster than anyone there could comprehend. He was standing in front of Rubicant, the blade of his sword buried up to the hilt in Rubicant’s gut. Rubicant grabbed Sephiroth’s shoulder, choking on his blood.

“Soudai Kaihou.” Sephiroth said simply.

Sephiroth slashed upward swiftly and then spun on his heel. He struck once, twice, thrice, cleaving Rubicant’s body into pieces. The man burst into flames, illuminating behind Sephiroth like some odd display of lights. Everyone just stared at Sephiroth, wondering how he moved that fast.

“Stop staring and get moving!” Sephiroth ordered, getting everyone’s attention.

Sephiroth sped down the tunnel, his form soon melting into the darkness with the others following close behind him. Cloud was the last to leave, putting his blade onto his back and racing after them.

The others hadn’t seen why Sephiroth had moved that fast, so fast that he couldn’t be seen. However, Cloud got a glimpse of why exactly Sephiroth vanished. A moment before Sephiroth had shot himself forward, something appeared from his side. What it had been was the three black wings that only Cloud knew about. However, each of them pulsated with a bizarre, white light.

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Aaron was still in the room he had always been in. He heard the sounds of battle die down as the minutes passed. Aaron also felt a tug he had not felt in awhile, that odd bizarre pull of his aura being gravitated towards something. Rubicant must be dead, he thought. No matter, the item was close to being finished and it wasn’t as though anyone in the group could do anything.

On cue, Sephiroth came from a tunnel, using his foot to stop as he hit an ungodly dark aura that made the very air stagnate. He was resistant to it, but that didn’t rid the fact that the place wasn’t pleasant to be in.

“Why’d you stop?” Vincent asked as he had caught up to Sephiroth.

“Because we arrived at the throbbing.”

Cloud felt the same sensation Sephiroth did that odd, pulsating feeling. Cloud stepped towards the edge of a crevice, looking down at some bizarre, beating mass. Dread filled the young man’s heart, causing him to step back slightly.

“What the hell is that?” Cloud asked Sephiroth.

Before the man could answer, a strange, black light emitted from the mass and the beating stopped. Surprisingly, the mass burst, coating the sides of the crevice with a thick, purple liquid. Cloud leapt back as it did so, not exactly sure of what would happen if he touched the stuff.

A sound like meat being ripped open was heard and the light intensified, bathing the area in a black glow. Something came from the split mass, going upward in the chamber. A pale hand reached out, grabbing the object.

“Well, well, it’s been awhile.” said a voice like a young girl’s.

The entire group looked up, seeing a young woman by the looks of it. Her red hair went to her knees and her eyes were a brilliant shade of green. Her bust wasn’t of noticeable size, but her figure was curved and shapely. Her skin, white as paraffin, had slight blush on it to add a bit of red to her face. Her long fingers had their nails well-manicured and looked like they could snapped by merely sneezing on them.

Her attire was a pair of red slacks, flaring out a bit at the cuffs and hugging her legs rather nicely. A long shirt going to her knees covered her torso along with a turtleneck sweater under it. Her shoes were high-heels with silver pins for heels. All in all, she was a rather lovely figure, but Sephiroth glared at her as though she was a horrid creature.

“Aaron…” he growled.

“Well, you’re as pretty as ever.” Aaron giggled.

“Don’t give me that garbage. Stop toying with me, Jester.”

“Oh my, calling me by my title.”

“Do you mind explaining who this woman is?” Cloud grabbed Sephiroth’s shoulder.

Sephiroth seemed a bit uncomfortable in explaining things.

“That’s….not a woman.” he whispered.

“Huh?” Cloud blinked.

“That’s Aaron, the Jester of the Omniscient and quite an annoying person at that.”

“Hmm, I see that the Strife boy is quite cute, though not in the beautiful way like you are, Sephy.” Aaron purred.

“Now I’m really in the mood to slice him up.” Cloud reached for his sword.

“Agreed.” Sephiroth unsheathed his sword.

Both men leapt at Aaron, swords raised, but the effeminate man didn’t budge in the slightest. Then a blast like a storm blew both Cloud and Sephiroth away, sending them into the wall and then falling to the floor. Vincent looked in shock at Aaron, wondering just how the man did that.

“Well, Lord Metatron was right in saying this was powerful.” Aaron said, looking at the item, which was revealed to be a purple crystal that gave off a rather ominous glow.

Sephiroth got to his feet, his hair disheveled due to the blast.

“What in blazes is that?” he glared.

“This? This is the result of many different worlds’ hearts, claimed by us, being compressed to make an artificial heart.”

“An artificial…that’s possible?”

“Yes, it is. Why do you look so surprised? Nothing is impossible for us as long as Lord Metatron is with us.”

“Arrogant…!”

“Well, ta-ta.”

“Come back here!”

Aaron vanished in a burst of red light, disappearing as Sephiroth raced towards him. Sephiroth skid, stopping as Aaron vanished, and glaring at the spot he had been at a second before. Sephiroth stomped the ground, cracking the floor as he did so. He still glared, gritting his teeth as well.

Blast it, where in the world are you, Riku?

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The boy in question was currently in a mid-sized town with Zax, Raechel, and Fenrir. The town they had entered was filled to the brim with soldiers, each one of them looking for Riku. Riku had put his hood up before entering town, so the chances of him being found out was reduced.

“Oi, pretty-boy.” Zax said around the cigarette in his mouth.

“What, slab-man?”

“What’s say we get supplies and just get our asses outta here before too long? Last thing I need is to be in a town full o’ soldiers.”

“Alright, I’ll go to the shop.”

“Can Raechel come too?” the innocent girl asked.

“Sure, whatever.”

Zax shouldered his massive blade, eliciting odd looks from passerby. Riku just shook his head and rolled his eyes at Zax’s nonchalant nature. Though he had known Zax for only a few days, he knew by now that the older man always had a way to make simple tasks become needlessly complicated.

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Tifa and Kain weren’t able to get very far down the tunnel due to the intensity of the dark energy emanating from further up the tunnel. Kain lasted a bit longer because of his experience in evil things, but he eventually had to start going back because his stamina gave out. At least that was the case until a few minutes ago when the source of the energy stopped emitting it. As such, both Tifa and Kain were recovering and were able to move forward.

“Lord, how in the world could those three stand up to that bloody air?” Kain wondered.

“They have some weird blood in their veins.”

“That’s rather rude.” said Sephiroth’s voice from the darkness.

“Eh? Weren’t you up ahead?”

“I’ll explain it to you on the way.” said Vincent as he passed Tifa.

Sephiroth took the lead as Vincent explained to Kain and Tifa about Aaron and the bizarre, artificial heart. Kain was confused as usual, but Tifa somewhat understood, even though she was shocked at a heart being created from a mass of Heartless.

Sephiroth was deep in thought as he led, his facial expression indicating seriousness. That crystal, that bizarre artificial heart, what exactly was it for? A heart was a powerful force, but it only worked if it was placed in something. A Heartless was useless as they didn’t retain hearts for long, devouring them in a relatively short span of time and then moving on to their next victims. Unknowns were also out of the question as they lacked bodies only so a heart would be of no use to them. That heart was also too powerful for either party to use, unless…

Sephiroth pondered a bit, stroking his chin with his index finger and thumb. He had heard Metatron and the other Omniscient say something some time ago. Something about “Mother”, though exactly what that was had still remained a mystery. Sephiroth was still thinking when he walked into the chamber that he and the others had fought Rubicant in.

“What the…?” Cloud exclaimed.

There was a fire burning where Rubicant had fallen and it seemed that these flames were even brighter and more intense that the ones the fire-wielder had used.

“Don’t tell me he’s still alive.” Tifa glared.

“If he is, then I’ll just slice him in two again.” Sephiroth said, drawing his sword out.

The flames converged, beginning to form something. However, it was not the figure of a man. A torso showed, but it was not upright, legs formed, but there were four instead of two, and what was by far the strangest was that three canine head appeared, howling. The flames vanished, showing a massive, three-headed dog with features like a Doberman pinscher. Its fur was mostly black, but its throats and paws were blood-red. It literally glowed like the flames of Hell and its eyes were as intense as burning embers.

“What the hell is that?” Cloud wondered.

“An…what’s an Eidolon doing here?” Sephiroth quirked an eyebrow.

“Huh?”

The huge dog growled.

“So, at least one of you knows what I am.” the canine answered in a low, gravely voice.

“Explanation.” Tifa demanded from Sephiroth.

“An Eidolon is a spirit of sorts.” Sephiroth explained “It’s a creature born from nature itself.”

“Wow.”

“Yes, though they can’t last long in the mortal world due to their purity.”

“Hmph.” the dog grunted.

The hound walked towards the group, its large paws moving slowly. Cloud went for his sword, but Sephiroth kept his hand down with his own, shaking his head. The large dog slowly went around, evaluating each of the people there. It shook its three heads several times at Tifa, Kain, Cloud, and Sephiroth, but then it came to Vincent. It stopped in front of him, looking him in the eyes and sniffing him.

“You, half-breed, what is your name?” it asked.

“Vincent, Vincent Valentine, why do you ask?”

“You’re appropriate for…a pact.”

“Can I safely assume that you know what that is?” Vincent asked Sephiroth.

“He’s asking you to keep him alive.” Sephiroth answered “In exchange for that, he’ll allow you to use him in battle.”

“Alright then, I think it might be worth it.”

The dog grunted, nodding its middle head and then looking at Vincent from head to toe. Its eyes then came upon Vincent’s left arm.

“Can you use that as a weapon?” it asked.

“Yes, though I don’t use it as often as my guns.”

“I think I’ll fuse with this.”

The dog burst into flames, becoming a miniature inferno and dancing to its heart’s content. The flames hot at Vincent’s arm, bonding into it and turning the copper appendage jet-black. Vincent looked at his claw, noticing that it seemed to have flames glowing under it and its blades were as red as blood. The main change was a crest in the shape of a three-headed hound.

My name is Cerberus, the watchdog of Hell said the dog’s voice Use me well

Vincent flexed his claw’s fingers, feeling power surge through them. Feeling anxious to test the powers of Cerberus, he aimed his arm at a wall. A shot like a cannon going off fired and created a crater in the cave wall, chunks of rock falling from it. Sephiroth raised an eyebrow, impressed.

“When this is over,” Vincent said “I still have that matter to settle with you.”

“I’m ready whenever you are.”

Kain just shook his head, amazed at the oddities appearing before him. He set his spear behind his neck, his hands holding it.

“Oi, Sephiroth.” he said.

“What?”

“What’s say ye get another li’l fighter coming along with ye?”

“Intrigued?” Kain asked, a bit of a smile on his face.”

Kain sighed, looking at the ceiling.

“I’ve got a duty to my king and country.” he said “So I better make sure you finish this little fight of yours.”

“Well, we’ll be glad to have you.”

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Abram was in the main chamber, looking at the monitor when a flash of red caught his attention. Heels clacked on the marble floor, their sharp report echoing around.

“Well, that sure was fun.” Aaron smiled.

“I see the item is safe.”

“Yup! It even blew away the two prettiest of the group.” Aaron swooned after throwing the crystal to Abram.

Abram’s fingers examined the crystal, seeing how its appearance was clouded, not translucent like most crystal, how fitting that something so impure could be beautiful. Then again, perhaps it was impurity that made things beautiful.

“It’s pretty.” Aaron commented.

“Yes, fitting for the Mother.”

“Oh yes. By the way, when has Sephy been able to increase his power?”

“Hm?” Abram raised an eyebrow “Repeat that?”

“Well, Sephy was fighting Rubicant and for some odd reason there was this…spike, I guess you could call it.”

Abram brushed his thumb over the crystal, his gaze becoming one of thought.

“It’s just a fluke.” he tardily answered Aaron’s question.

“Alright, I thought so.”

Abram left the chamber, going down a hall illuminated with the midday sun. Abram feet echoed in the hall as he examined the crystal and was deep in thought.

Could he…? No, even if he did, he couldn’t do it for long, and he’s not as powerful as his father either.

“Something bothering you, Abram?” asked a solemn voice.

Abram turned around, looking at a shadow.

“How long have you been there?” Abram asked.

“You ever said I was in the hall?”

“Feh, you need to stop playing mind games with people.”

“A battle is always in the mind more than half the time.”

A flutter of cloth was heard, but not the sound of feet landing on marble. Abram looked out of the corner of his eyes, seeing a dark shape.

“What is it you want, Mute?” he asked.

“I believe you already know.”

“Tch, alright, go retrieve the other item, and do what you will to the group since we have the heart already.”

“And what of the young boy?”

“…Authorization is now given to kill him on site.”

A swish of cloth was heard and Mute left Abram to himself, looking at the crystal.

“So, it begins.”

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“Lessee, that’ll be one-thousand-eight-hundred-ninety-seven.”

“Alright, keep the change.”

Riku exited the shop, his haversack full of the supplies he needed. Raechel was waiting outside, stroking Fenrir’s coat as she stood outside. Riku looked stoically, grunting to get their attention.

“Is Riku done?” she asked.

“Yeah, I’m done.”

“Alright, let’s go find Zax.” Raechel hopped onto Fenrir’s back.

“I can only think of one place where he could be.”

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If Riku guessed Zax was in a bar, then he would have been right. The mercenary knew bars were some of the best places to get info, plus he could do his favorite thing in the world next to fighting: drinking. Shot glasses were lined up in front of him, totaling a dozen altogether. Several men were drunk as all hell because of Zax, but none of them had anything worthwhile.

Zax tipped back another shot, wiping off his mouth after doing so. The latest that was going around was some kid was going around slicing apart soldiers. He was merciless and wielded bizarre blades that no one could quite tell where they came from. Zax thought it was intriguing, but useful was another thing altogether. As Zax was about to tip back another shot, he felt an armored hand descend on his shoulder. Zax looked out of the corner of his eyes, seeing a soldier.

“You a mercenary?” the soldier asked.

“What? Me? Pfft, hell no.” Zax joked, going to take his shot.

“Then what’s this for?” said another soldier, tapping Zax’s huge sword.

“I use it to cook.”

“Alright, punk, quit the crap and come with us.” Zax’s shot was once again interrupted “We have positive info that a big man carrying a sword bigger than him was accompanying a kid that is wanted. Now come along.”

“Sorry, I’m allergic to prison.”

Zax quickly downed the shot he had in his hand and then lit a match. Spitting the alcohol into the fire, he created a miniature flame-thrower and stunned the soldiers. Zax ran, grabbing his sword and even paying for the shots on his way out.

Just as Zax was running from the soldiers, Riku came strolling down the same street the bar was on. He was wondering what the ruckus was, hoping it wasn’t a certain someone’s doing, when he saw Zax and his massive sword exit the bar. Oh…shit.

“Oi, pretty-boy, less’ go!” yelled Zax as he ran towards Riku.

“Just what the hell did you do?”

“No time to explain!”

Riku knew whatever Zax did was trouble and that he would promptly kill him when they got out of this little mess. Running down an alleyway, the quartet saw soldiers at the other end. However, when they attempted to retreat, they discovered that they were boxed in.

“Shit.” Riku cursed, taking his sword out of his coat and pushing on the tsubawith his thumb.

“Well, looks like this is gonna be messy.” Zax grinned, readying his sword.

Before the soldiers could charge, a sphere rolled into the alley and promptly exploded, gray smoke blinding everything. Before Riku could actually get a grip on what was happening, a strong arm yanked him into a nearby house and slammed the door closed.

“Should I say that trouble has a way of finding you, or would saying you and trouble go hand-in-hand be more appropriate?” asked a feminine voice.

Riku brushed his bangs out of his face, correcting his sight. The person who asked the question was a woman, about in her mid-twenties by the looks of her, sitting on a chair with her legs crossed. Her eyes were a strange blue, glistening in the low light of the house. Her hair went to her shoulders and was jet-black in color, the ends flipped out. Her frame was seductive, but her style of dress wasn’t feminine. She wore a black suede duster jacket going to her knees, black slacks loosely fitting her legs, black, high-heeled boots, and a red sleeveless shirt.

“I would say that the latter would be more appropriate.” said a voice that Riku had not heard in some days.

Riku looked to a wall, seeing the red-headed Gabriel leaning against it.

“You again.” Riku said “Who the hell is this?” the teenager stuck his thumb at the woman.

“That’s Lilith. She’s an old friend of mine.”

Zax stood, getting a cigarette out and lighting it.

“So, you just saved our asses, huh?” he asked Gabriel.

“Yes, mostly because we can’t have you getting caught so early. Lilith also has something to tell you.”

Riku just lied down on the floor, throwing his arm over his eyes. Lilith stood, showing her full height.

“You, mercenary, did you hear that rumor about the boy?” she asked Zax.

“Huh? The one about the kid slicing up knights as of late?”

“Yes, that boy is your next charge.”

“Great, a crazy.”

“You’ll be compensated.”

Riku sat up, looking at Lilith.

“Who’s the kid?” he asked.

“You know, Riku.”

Riku’s eyes looked at Lilith’s. The older woman’s eyes told him the answer without saying a word.

“Where is he?” Riku asked.

“West.”

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Some distance from Riku’s position was a bridge spanning a river about half a mile wide. The boy Lilith spoke of was walking over it, his spiked hair quivering in the wind slightly. At the middle of the bridge was a man of odd dress, shouldering something wrapped in cloth.

The man was in his mid-thirties by his facial features and his iron-gray hair that was spiked at the front and a thin ponytail was tied at the back of his head. His frame was tall and muscular, showing scars of many battles. His eyes, though covered by a pair of dark sunglasses, were reddish-brown in color. His clothes were a tattered, red robe in which he had his left arm out, green pants that had the cuffs tucked into a pair of heavy boots, and a black sleeveless shirt that hugged his chest. At the man’s left wrist were a rosary and an armguard and at his hip was a large jug.

The man gazed at the river through his dark glasses, watching as the waters rushed by. He took the jug at his hip from his side, bringing it to his mouth and sipping whatever was inside of it. Sora walked past him, not giving the man a glance.

“You there, boy.” the man said, his voice low.

Sora merely kept walking. The man raised an eyebrow, feeling the powerful aura emanating from the boy. He was like a phantom, but he most certainly wasn’t dead. The man took the rosary off of his wrist, mumbling a prayer of some sorts. It was a spell for exorcism, but the incantation had no effect on Sora, unless you could count him getting his blades out as an effect.

Sora leapt towards the man, his blades raised. However, he man raised his left arm, blocking the strike with his armguard. He pushed Sora away, causing him to seemingly fly all the way to the west side of the bridge and land on the ground. Sora, instead of fighting more, just ran to the west. The man’s spikes quivered as a light breeze came through.

“Well, I was heading that direction anyway, but this should be interesting.”

The man hefted the large object he had and went westward, following Sora.

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Author’s notes: Ah, much better than the last chapter. I was planning to have this out sooner, but Bahamut Lagoon derailed me for a bit. I’ll try to get this out ASAP from now on, though I still have projects to finish.

Profiles:

Name: Vincent Valentine

Birth place: Midgar

Age: 42

Height: 6’

Weight: 175 lbs

Species: Half-breed (demon)

Weapons: Revolvers named Vampire and Goblin, shotgun named Death Penalty, claw

Hair: Jet-black

Eyes: Blood-red

Name meaning: Vincent means “conquer, to outlast, to defeat”. Saint Valentine is the saint of protecting lovers. His first name fits the fact that he’s actually quite a bit older than his physical age and his last would fit with his FFVII counterpart better, though in this story he’s quite protective of Tifa

Voice actor choice: This was a pain in the ass until recently: Andrew Philpot (Yurimaru in Ninja Scroll, D in Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust). I think that D’s stoic, apathetic tone would be quite perfect

Why Vincent: I think he should have gotten some screen time in KH, though I’ll let Dirge of Cerberus make up for it.

Name: Zaxarias Wutend

Birth place: Unknown

Age: 25

Height: 6’4”

Weight: 200 lbs

Species: Human (berserker)

Weapon: Zweihander named Dracke Toten Sie

Hair: Black

Eyes: Light black, white when in Berserker mode

Name meaning: Zachariah means “Jehova hath remembered” this links more with FFVII than anything. Wutend is German for “berserk” and I needn’t explain this. Dracke Toten Sie means “Dragon Slayer”, also in German

Voice actress choice: Steven Jay Blum (Spike Spiegel in Cowboy Bebop, Shishio in Rurouni Kenshin, Mugen in Samurai Champloo, Roger Smith in The Big O, Darcia in Wolf’s Rain, Hatake Kakashi in Naruto). I think the nonchalant voice Mugen does would be best for Zax’s personality

Why Zax: Because Zax didn’t have that big of a role and he deserved more screen time.

Preview for Piece Six:

Heretical monk

A dragon’s tail is used

Watch as a rain of blood happens

A mountain once again

Though this one is a journey to the top

Man of death, blade of death

The pieces are coming together