Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Dragon Heart ❯ Avenging a Broken Heart ( Chapter 1 )

Kalm had grown in size in over four hundred years. Most of the city ran on machines now, just like the rest of the world outside of the wildlife and what had once been called the Dragon Lands. Kalm was still surrounded by cliffs and mountains but the once desert-like land was now full of trees and wild beasts. But that didn't stop Kalm from growing. It was almost becoming a new Midgar.

 

Vincent Valentine had watched Kalm's growth in the past hundreds of years. The city, once run by the WRO, was now run by Deepground and its soldiers could be seen walking the streets. He could see them now as he stood at the window of his apartment, looking down at the city. They were in the gray and glowing blue uniforms that he remembered them wearing 493 years before. They all looked the same, but were terrifying to the citizens nonetheless.

 

Vincent had changed since he woke up from the coma he went into as he healed from the injury he retained by WRO rebels. His once mid-back length hair was now cut about an inch past his chin and was more neatly kept. He wore a long dark red trench coat, which was frayed at the edges like his old cloak, over a slightly baggy white long sleeved shirt and black leather pants tucked under knee high black leather boots. In its usual place at his side was Cerberus, but the golden claw-like gauntlet was gone. Chaos was no longer apart of him; the demon returned to the planet with Omega after Vincent beat the first Deepground. But he was still immortal, still able to heal much quicker than humans and was just as powerful as he'd been before. Only now, his heart was set on one thing and one thing only: to destroy every last dragon on this forsaken planet.

 

“Aneilla…” he said softly, coldly. How that name burned his tongue every time he uttered it. She left him; during a time he needed her most she left and disappeared without a trace. He remembered how he searched for her for years before returning back home and finding the people he'd come to see as his family old and dying. When Cloud finally died, the Mako inside of him causing him to live longer, Vincent finally realized that she wasn't coming back and he snapped. He vowed that he would find her and kill her when he did and by doing that, he'd kill every dragon that he came across. It was then that the new Deepground attacked and forced the WRO and Shinra out of the cities and to the Ancients knew where. After the attack, Deepground sought Vincent down, offering to pay him for every dragon he found and killed. Vincent agreed, hoping that by doing this, he would find her.

 

“Muttering your old lover's name… Vincent, my man, she's not worth the breath you're wasting.”

 

Vincent grunted and turned to see, through the darkness of the apartment, two young men, Raphael and Colin, one sitting in a crouched position on the table, the other leaning against the door of the apartment. He could see their golden eyes glowing in the darkness. They were loup garoux, or werewolves and they fought with him, although Vincent preferred to work alone. His crimson eyes narrowed and he asked, “What are you two doing here?”

 

“Just thought I let you know, a dragon's been spotted near the ridge,” the one leaning against the door, Raphael, said. He had thick wavy brown hair and a slightly accented voice. He smiled at Vincent and said, “Shall we go after it then?”

 

“No, I'll go alone,” Vincent said, turning to walk out the door.

 

“Why fight alone?” the second, Colin, asked. His voice was also accented and his hair was a white blonde. “These are dragons, and you may be immortal, but a dragon can still kill you.”

 

“Because I made a vow, long before Deepground contacted me, to kill every dragon I came across, and I plan to do just that… alone.” With that, Vincent brushed Raphael and left the apartment.

 

*~*~*

 

Night had fallen by the time Vincent returned back to Kalm. Cerberus was hot against his thigh from use and gripped in his hand was the skin of a blue scaled dragon. Blue, not the ruby he had hoped for. The dragon had been too young as well to be the one he sought, but it still put up a fight. The last words it said before it died still rang through his head. “Dragon Slayer...” Vincent never saw himself as that, but he had to agree with the monster. Vincent walked right to the large building that was Deepground's headquarters. He walked right through the front doors, past guards and other members of Deepground and walked right into the General's office.

 

He walked right up to the desk and tossed the still bloody scales on top of it, right in front of General Jenson. The graying, long haired man looked up at Vincent, who said, “Another dragon down.”

 

“Excellent!” Jenson said, standing and ignoring the bloody skin on his desk. Instead he took out a brown pouch from one of the drawers of his desk and tossed it to Vincent. “Your pay,” he said.

 

Vincent caught the bag and hefted it in his hand before slipping it into an inside pocket of his coat. He was about to turn when Jenson said, “I have the feeling that you're dispatching of all the dragons for another reason than for money.”

 

Vincent glared at the Soldier and asked, “You trying to get at something?”

 

“Nothing,” Jenson said, shaking his head. “Just want to say that you're doing a good deed for the Emperor.”

 

“I never said I'm doing this for him,” Vincent said coldly. “I follow no one.” With that, he turned and walked out of the office and building. As he walked down the empty road, with the exception of night guards, he found himself walking under five darkened figures that were sitting and crouched up on catwalks that went across the street feet above him connecting two buildings together. He stopped underneath them and asked, “What now, Raphael?”

 

“Saw that dragon skin you brought to the General,” Raphael said, his golden eyes gleaming in the darkness. “Not the dragon you were wishing for, eh?”

 

“Go bury a bone somewhere…” Vincent snarled as he continued walking.

 

“Come on now!” Raphael exclaimed, jumping down from his perch and landing cat-like on the cobblestone street. “Let us join you in the next hunt. What's that saying? `Hunt as a pack or not at all'?”

 

“I `hunt' alone…”

 

“That's not what I use to hear,” the wolf said sarcastically. “You use to fight with others… I even heard you fought in a battle astride a dragon.”

 

Vincent moved swiftly and Raphael couldn't stop the man from slamming him against the wall, holding him by the throat. “I work for no one, with no one… is that understood?”

 

Raphael nodded, his eyes flashing. “Sure…”

 

Vincent grunted and let go of Raphael. He turned and started walking towards his apartment. As he did, he heard the wolf yell, “You'll never find her, Valentine. She hasn't let you in the past four hundred or so years, and she's not going to now.”

 

Vincent ignored him and continued to walk down the street. In a few moments time, he returned to his apartment and was relieved to walk through the front door, closing and locking it behind him. He moved to his room, shrugging off his coat as he did. He tossed his coat onto a chair in his room and sat on the edge of the bed and began to take off his boots. Resting them on the floor at the end of the bed, he lay down and closed his eyes. One less dragon in the world, and yet it isn't the one I seek. But I will find her, even if I have to look until the end of time. After that thought, he drifted off to sleep.

 

*~*~*

 

“Vincent?”

 

“Hmm...” Vincent replied, looking over his shoulder at Aneilla. He watched as she sat up and pressed her body against his from behind, her warm flesh a comfort against his cool skin.

 

She wrapped her arms around him and asked, “Are you okay?”

 

Vincent nodded and said, “It's that dream again... I don't understand why I'm still having it.”

 

Aneilla kissed his shoulder gently and said, “It's only a dream... maybe you're having it because you're afraid that you're going to lose me like you lost her.”

 

“I think that might be it...”

 

“Well, I'll let you know now, you'll never lose me. I'll always be with you...”

 

Vincent gasped softly as he pulled out of the nightmare. Even though it would have been a pleasant memory to some, it wasn't for him. It was of a promise she made… a promise she broke. Vincent growled and sat up, swinging his legs over to the side of the bed. He sat there for a moment, thoughts swirling through his head. Finally he made a decision. No more waiting for a dragon to appear like he'd been doing. He was going to find her, and before he killed her tell her the pain she caused for him in the four hundred and ninety six years he'd been alone after she promised that she would always be with him.

 

He started to get ready for travel, not knowing when he was coming back. It took him less than fifteen minutes and he left his apartment, locking it behind him. He walked out of the building and to the stables where his chocobo was kept. Despite all the bikes and vehicles that been invented in the hundreds of years, chocobos were still the best way to get around, especially if you were going into the uncivilized lands. His black chocobo, Twilight, looked over his stall door and warked at him when he recognized him. Vincent saddled the bird and strapped his bags behind the saddle. He mounted and headed out, pushing Twilight into a trot as they began to leave the city and then to a full run when they were out. It was still dark out, so no one saw them leave, and Vincent found that was best. He didn't want to bring any attention to himself.

 

He traveled until daybreak and then he stopped to eat and allow Twilight to rest. Vincent watched the sun rise from the mountains and he decided that that would be his first stop. Dragons usually stayed in the caves in the mountains, so there was a chance that she would be there. Vincent lay back onto the ground and thought of the dragon he was hunting. Ruby red scales that glittered like the gems its color was, long, agile but muscular, blood red spikes that ran down her back and tail, two blade-like spikes on the tail tip… after so many years, he could still see her in his memory. He had a feeling that she may have changed a bit, but probably not by much. He will find her…

 

Once rested, Vincent continued on his way, turning his chocobo towards the mountains. Something deep inside of him told him that she was there. How ironic... Lucrecia's cave is there... so of course the only other woman I've ever loved in my life would be there as well. With that thought in mind, he pushed Twilight into a run, his heart thudding in his chest at the thought of finally getting his revenge for his broken heart.

 

*~*~*

 

The evening was cool and he could see the sun setting from where he stood on the ledge of the cliff where an old rusty sword once stood, four hundred and ninety eight years ago. Trees and over vegetation covered the once desert now, but he could still see Midgar from over the tree tops. Blonde hair fell over glowing blue eyes as the wind blew softly through the trees. “We were brought back for a reason…” he said in a calm voice.

 

“Yeah, and you know who brought us back too, don't you?” another man asked, who sat with his back leaning against another tree behind the blonde. His spiked shoulder length black hair fell over glowing blue violet eyes. He had one knee upraised with an arm resting on top of it. He smirked slightly as the blonde nodded. “So where to old buddy? Can't really go to Midgar now…”

 

The blonde shrugged and a small crooning filled his ears. He looked up to see a dragon, no bigger than a kitten, with a tail longer than its body, perched up on one of the branches of the tree he was leaning against. It was the same color as his hair, glinting in the setting sun. It crooned again and swooped down to rest on his shoulder. It rubbed its head against his cheek and purred. “I'm not sure, but I think this little girl is going to help us. After all, she's been with us since we've come back.”

 

“You sure you can put your trust in it?”

 

“If I'm right, and if she was the one who brought us back from the Lifestream, then I know we can trust this little one.”

 

“Whatever you say, Spike, I'm with you all the way.”

 

Cloud Strife smiled and turned to look back to his old friend. “I know it, Zack,” he said. “That's why I didn't bother asking you on where we should go next.”

 

“So you do know where to go…”

 

“Yeah, I do… somehow, I know where to find her…”