Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Dragon Heart ❯ Last of Her Kind ( Chapter 2 )

The mountains were just as beautiful as ever; green forests covered the land and waterfalls cascaded down the mountain sides. Large colorful birds flew over head as Vincent made his way through the mountains, keeping an eye out for any sign of a dragon. Twilight picked its way easily over the rocks and ledges, unafraid of falling. The forest was quite peaceful and if were any other time, Vincent probably would have enjoyed it.

 

Suddenly, Twilight warked with fear and stopped dead in front of a waterfall that fell into a large spring. Vincent looked towards the waterfall and could see, high up on a ledge beside the falls was a cave. He could also see the bony remains of large animals at the foot of the mountainside. With a slight smile, Vincent dismounted and tied the chocobo down to a tree where it could nibble at the branches if it wanted to. Placing a hand near Cerberus, Vincent started to make his way up the mountainside to the cave. It was easy climbing so he made it there in no time. As he stood on the ledge in front of the cave, he could hear the heavy breathing of a dragon inside. He stepped forward and then there was a loud roar that exploded from the cave, causing Vincent's hair and coat to blow back.

 

“Dragon Slayer! You were once a friend to the dragons, now you are our greatest enemy!” the dragon inside roared. By the voice, Vincent knew that it was a female and possibly an older dragon. The voice was deep and smooth and held a great deal of anger to it and, Vincent could hear, betrayal. As he peered deeper into the cave, he could see the darkened form of the dragon inside, eyes glowing with anger and hate.

 

“You dragons are all the same,” Vincent said, removing Cerberus from its holster. “You all should be destroyed.”

 

“And you are the one who kills us for money!”

 

“One must have some way to live in this world,” Vincent snarled. “Besides, I do this more for the pleasure of doing it than the money.”

 

“Yes, one must live... but perhaps this deal you made is less pleasurable and more costly than your heart tells you!”

 

Suddenly, there was a rush of wings and Vincent ducked as an enormous, blood red dragon burst from the cave and took to the sky. This dragon was twice the size Aneilla had been and more spikes lined down her back and tail, the horns on her head longer and thicker. This dragon, although the resemblance was close, couldn't be the dragon he was looking for. It seemed much older and wiser, the shade of red was wrong and it had four spikes along the underside of both cheek bone, the spikes going from an inch long to three inches going away from the jaw. But it didn't matter, it was a dragon and Vincent was going to destroy it. He jumped down from the ledge and landed on the ground, rolling as he did. The dragon landed a few feet away and crouched low to the ground, letting out an earsplitting roar that shook the trees.

 

“So you are going to face me instead of trying to run like the rest of your kind?” Vincent asked, raising Cerberus and pointing it at the dragon. “This will be an interesting battle.”

 

“And you'll never have one like this again!” the dragon hissed, swinging her tail at Vincent with a growl. “Either way this battle turns, it will be your last!”

 

“I won't stop fighting your kind until I destroy every last one of you…”

 

“I AM THE LAST ONE!” the dragon roared and she opened her jaws and expelled a burst of angry dark red flames at Vincent. Vincent jumped behind a cluster of boulders, but he could see the rock becoming white from the hot flames. When the fire died, he stepped from behind the rocks to see the dragon breathing heavily with anger, her nostrils flaring and glowing red. She stretched her wings and stood on her hind legs, glaring down at Vincent. “I'm the last one...” she repeated through a growl.

 

“You're lying…” Vincent snarled, aiming his gun at the dragon. “You're just trying to save yourself.”

 

“Hardly... I could care less in dying,” the dragon said and Vincent thought he heard a hint of sadness in her voice. “But you've killed every single dragon on this planet. I am the last.”

 

Vincent began to lower his weapon, staring at the dragon. If what she said was true, then that meant that Aneilla was already dead, gone… He felt something twist deep in his heart and he knew that it wasn't the hate that he'd been feeling for his past lover. He then frowned and raised his gun again, pointing right at one of the dragon's eyes. “Guess then I'll just put you out if your misery then,” he said.

 

Before he could react, the dragon roared and slammed her tail into his chest. The breath was knocked out of him and he dropped Cerberus from nerveless fingers. He slammed against the mountainside and dropped to the ground. He sat on the ground, trying to gain his breath, feeling as if a few of his ribs were cracked. He looked up at the dragon as it approached him. He thought he saw pain flare in its eyes, as if it too had been hurt, but it vanished the moment she thrust her head in front of him. Vincent remembered only one other time he had been in this position; him sitting on the ground trying to gain breath back into his body while a dragon had her face close to his, looking at him with one eye. “So…” Vincent gasped. “Are you going to kill me now?”

 

The dragon chuckled and shook her head. “I don't want to kill you... I never did. And I don't want you to kill me either. But you have to think... if I win, I have to wait for Deepground to find someone else who's brave enough to face me... if you win, then Deepground will have no more use of you and they'll dispose of you, leaving you to wander through this world, immortal and alone. I may not understand your hate for dragons, but I know we have a common enemy: the Empire.”

 

“What are you suggesting?” Vincent asked.

 

“That we make a truce, and find a way to throw off the Empire and take our world back. But if you don't want to do that, we can continue this senseless battle until one of us is destroyed. But think: the end of this fight will be a lose/lose situation for yourself.” The dragon backed away and turned towards the water. “It's your decision...”

 

Vincent groaned and rolled over to his side, staring down at the ground as he felt his body try to heal the damage that was caused. He knew, painfully, that the dragon was right. Aneilla was gone, which meant that his vengeance would never be fulfilled. He had no reason to kill the dragon now… but the Empire…

 

It had destroyed his friends, his allies, and taken over the planet that he, Cloud and the others had worked so hard to rebuild. He hated the Empire, more than the dragons, and would be happy to be a part of its downfall. He looked up at the dragon and for a split second, he saw Aneilla standing by the water. The dragon's head hung low as it stared into the water and the anger and hate that had been in her eyes was gone now, replace by sadness and loneliness. Vincent felt pity for the dragon, for only a moment, before he pushed himself to his feet and the dragon turned her head to look at him, the anger back in her eyes. “Well?”

 

Vincent nodded and said, “A truce, then…”

 

The dragon returned the nod and then turned towards the forest. “Come along then,” she said. “You cannot return to Kalm now.”

 

Vincent sighed and walked to where Twilight was still standing. He rubbed the bird on the neck and said, “Don't worry, she won't hurt you. Just stay by me and you'll be safe.” He then mounted the bird and nudged it in the sides so it would walk up alongside the dragon. “Where to?” he asked, still not trusting the ancient creature.

 

“Where ever the road takes us...” the dragon said, looking forward. “Perhaps we'll search out the rebels... they will want all the help they can get.”

 

“Do you know where they are?”

 

“I have an idea, but it's been a long time since I've been in contact with them.” With a soft growl, she launched herself into the air. “I will meet you at the summit at nightfall. Don't get lost!” Then she was gone.

 

“Damn dragon…” Vincent snarled, pushing Twilight into a trot. “What did I get myself into…”

 

*~*~*

 

For the next few days, Vincent and the dragon were travel companions. They hardly spoke to one another, but their mutual agreement kept the peace between them. As Vincent traveled with the dragon, he felt his hate for them begin to fade, although the anger and betrayal he felt for Aneilla remained. Vincent had a feeling that that would never go away, not even if he made peace with the dragon and rebels.

 

One night, they were resting on a cliff in the center of a large forest. The large ledge where he started making camp overlooked the forest and he could see over the treetops. He gave Twilight his dinner of grain before settling himself to make a fire from brush and wood he gathered. Using a fire materia, he had a small blaze in no time. He laid out his sleeping bag as the dragon settled down near the fire across from him. He could feel her eyes watching him and he looked at her. “What?”

 

“I was just thinking... why do you have such hate for us?” she asked, her voice deep and calm, not filled with anger as it did before.

 

“I hated one of you… and I killed your kind because I was after her… but I never found her…” he said, as he settled himself onto the ground. He looked out across the now darkened plains and forest, the moonlight and stars giving it a silvery glow. Resting an arm on an upraised knee, he continued. “I probably never will, if you are the last… she must be dead…”

 

“Hmm... tell me, what was she like?”

 

Vincent didn't look at the dragon as he said, “She broke my heart, after she helped me piece it back together…”

 

Above him, he heard the dragon growl softly and he looked up as she stared down at him. “Vincent Valentine, so it is you...”

 

Vincent jumped to his feet and stared at her. “How do you know who I am?” he demanded.

 

The dragon sighed and said, “I only know you because you destroyed the heart of the dragon who brought us back.”

 

Vincent felt rage fill him and he snarled, “What do you mean? She destroyed my…”

 

“Silence!” the dragon roared. “Let me tell you what happened. The dragon that searched and gathered the dragons back together was only half-dragon, but even the eldest of dragons respected her. She worked hard in trying to make the world a better place for the people she called her family... and for the only man she loved.

 

“One day, her family came to her, asking her to help them. Her lover was dying... and she did the only thing she could: she saved him, but for a price. She could never see him again. The love she had for him made her save his life, although she knew that the laws forbid her to ever see him again. She rather him live and never see him again than have him die... that was how much she loved him.

 

“But, to her great sorrow, the man she loved began to kill the dragons, her people, the creatures she brought back to this world. She watched as the man who once told her he loved her destroyed those that made her who she was. Heartbroken and torn, she fled to the deepest parts of the world and grieved. Her heart was crushed and the dragons never heard or saw her again. They say that she died of a broken heart, because the one she loved believed that she didn't love him anymore when she did indeed love him, more than the great creatures she flew with. Many dragons had attempted to fly her after she saved her lover's life, but she refused each time, because she stayed loyal to the one she loved.

 

“You, Vincent Valentine, destroyed the dragon who worked so hard to make this world a better place to live for both humans and dragons.”

 

Vincent stared at the dragon in shock. He knew the dragon wasn't lying; he could see it in her deep crimson eyes. Aneilla... still loved me... and I... He shook his head and said, “That's not true…”

 

“You know that it is...”

 

Vincent gripped his hair and dropped to his knees. “No…” he muttered. Everything that he made himself believe, everything his friends told him, had been a lie. A lie that led him to kill every dragon on the planet and unknowingly kill Aneilla. She suffered... I had planned to kill her quickly, but instead I made her suffer... Aneilla... Annie... Vincent staggered to his feet and made his way to the forest, where he threw up everything he had eaten that day. He gagged for a few more minutes and he heard the dragon sigh softly. “Why…” Vincent said softly. “Why did you tell me this?”

 

“Because you have a right to know,” the dragon said. “She wanted you to understand.”

 

Vincent looked at the dragon and asked, “Did you know her?”

 

The dragon looked to the side and down. “I did... once. If she was still... she wouldn't be the same... you wouldn't recognize her. She took the blame of the murders of the dragons all onto herself...”

 

“But it wasn't…”

 

“It's too late now, Valentine,” the dragon said, looking back at him. Her eyes glowed with hurt and suffering. “What's done is done. But if you want to make up for your sins, I suggest that you fight alongside the people you fought against during your rage and help them in this war against the Empire. Perhaps... Aneilla may forgive you for what you've done.”

 

Vincent looked at the dragon and then asked, “What's your name?”

 

“You may call me Moro...”

 

“Moro… I am sorry, for what I've done… I didn't know… I thought she left me out of spite, because she didn't want me anymore. If I knew that she still loved me…”

 

“You would have continued to search for her,” Moro finished for him.

 

Vincent nodded and he heard Moro let out a sigh. He watched as the red dragon lay down her head with a deep breath. Before he could say anything though, she spoke again.

 

“The heart can be a painful thing... but sometimes it can give you strength.”

 

Vincent sat down next to the dragon, who looked over at him with one eye. “Can sins… ever be forgiven?” he asked, voicing a question that Cloud had once asked him, long ago.

 

Moro sighed softly and closed her eyes. “I've never tried...”

 

Vincent blinked; that was the answer he'd given Cloud. Looks like I have to find out on my own, like he did... With a soft sigh, Vincent stood up again and went to his sleeping mat. As he lay down, he thought of Aneilla. All the hate is gone, well most of it. I'm still angry at her for leaving me without an explanation, but now I feel loss and guilt... and I know that I still really love her. It's just been hidden from me for all these years by that hate I had for her. But now I cannot make up for my sins, because she's gone. He rolled over and forced back the tears of sorrow that threatened to fall.

 

She's gone... and it's my fault. Once again, I am guilty for the death of the one I love.