Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Seduction of the Darkness ❯ chapter 10: an unexpected twist ( Chapter 10 )

Chapter 10: An Unexpected Twist

 

Hellfire and Vincent came to the bridge as soon as Cid made the call. All of AVALANCHE was there, which could only mean something concerning their mission had come up. Cid stood before them with Reeve close by. Both had grave expressions on their faces and Hellfire's heart leaped into her throat.

 

`We've just received word that Deep Ground is more ruthless than we thought,' said Cid. `They've just killed all the hostages they could get out of Kalm during the last assault.'

 

Hellfire gasped and turned to Vincent whose eyes flashed in anger. Reeve nodded in confirmation and turned to the team.

 

`They've recently uncovered information concerning an entity by the name of Halanitum. It's an ancient demon that was vanquished five thousand years ago after it tried to kill every last living thing on the planet.'

 

`What happened?' asked Cloud.

 

`Halanitum was unleashed upon the world after a known tyrant named Arotu massacred over a hundred thousand people in the Battle of Knoawin, where he and his army raided the city and killed everyone they could find. It was described in many ancient texts as an enormous creature like a dragon but with a wolf's head, a snake's tail and talons over two feet long. It lived off the essence of the fallen that was to flow back into the Lifestream after they died.'

 

`But not all went as planned. An Ancient Queen who was versed arcane magic called Nerissa fought Halanitum and sent him back to the Abyss from whence he came. But not before the beast struck her. She died shortly after the battle.'

 

`Poor girl,' said Cid. `She was a young thing too, wasn't she?'

 

`No older than twenty,' confirmed Reeve.

 

`But if she sent him back, that means he's gone for good,' said Yuffi. `Right?'

 

`Deep Ground have discovered a way to not only awaken the beast, but bring him forth from the Abyss,' said Reeve. `That's why they attacked Kalm in the first place. They were looking for Vincent. But in comparison to reawakening Halanitum, he was considered a minor inconvenience. They needed hostages so they could harness the essence after they killed them. That's how Halanitum was awakened in the first place.'

 

`If so, why hasn't he been awakened now?' asked Hellfire. `If what you say is true concerning the hostages.'

 

`Because they need a pure source,' said Reeve, looking visibly grief-stricken. Hellfire narrowed her eyes.

 

`Reeve, you're holding something back.' Her tone was stern.

 

Reeve looked at them, very disturbed by what he knew. `The last person Arotu killed before the beast emerged was a young woman no older than the girl standing with us. She also possessed great strength and was a warrior in her own right, But she still hadn't lost her innocence despite of the life she led. Arotu considered her the purest of the fallen and her essence was what triggered Halanitum's awakening.' They all turned to Hellfire. She was stricken by this.

 

`What are you saying, Reeve?'

 

`You're the trigger they need,' replied the WRO member. `That was why they suspected you were with Vincent when you questioned them. They thought you already knew of the awakening and that you were trying to stop it. Don't you see, Hellfire? If their commander spills your blood, history is going to repeat itself. Except this time, we won't have an Ancient queen to stop it.'

 

Hellfire looked down at her hands and saw they were trembling violently. She hadn't been with the team for a month and already she was in too deep. To discover such power within herself was one thing, but to discover that she was the key to unlocking a Pandora's Box of dark legend….she steeled herself, determined not to fall to her knees under the burden of this information. Her daze was broken by a familiar voice filled with undisguised anger and determination.

 

`I am not going to let that happen.'

 

Everyone turned in surprise to see Vincent was visibly angered by this news. He had his fist clenched so tightly his hand shook and his crimson eyes glittered with a hellish flame. They were shocked to see him so upset.

 

`There has to be a way to stop this from happening,' said the gunman.

 

Reeve hesitated. Seeing the crimson gunslinger so angry intimidated him more than he wanted to admit. Vincent glared daggers at him.

 

`Reeve, you know something. Tell me what you're holding back.'

 

Reeve swallowed. `They are passages into Deep Ground that can be accessed through the vents. We could infiltrate the base and break into the facility where they're containing the essence they've collected from the hostages they killed and shut them down. But that would mean an all-out assault.'

 

`Well, I don't like it as much as you do,' said Cid. `But seeing as this is our only option, we'll take it. They've gone unbeaten long enough. It's time to take control and give those damned bastards hell!' He turned to the team. `All right, we've got twelve hours till showtime. Anything you need to do, do it. Cause tomorrow night's the final standoff. And we're the ones who'll drive it home.'

~*~

Hellfire sat in the darkness of her room, gazing down at the elaborate white outfit she once again wore. Her hair was loose and fell over her shoulders, curtaining her face as she bowed her head. Her room was slowly brightening in the creeping light of dawn, but she didn't look out the window. She was counting the minutes she had left of her life, treasuring every second before it slipped through her fingers like sand. She reminisced on her time on The Shera. On the battles, the moments of quiet…on her friends, whose faces were forever burned into her mind. She silently whispered their names, remembering with relish the wonderful if brief time she had with them.

 

Cid.

 

Yuffi.

 

Red XII and Cait Sith.

 

Barret.

 

Tifa.

 

Cloud.

 

But a crimson-eyed avenger who held a dear place in her heart suddenly replaced all those faces.

 

Vincent…

 

She reflected on the first day they laid eyes on each other. She remembered how beautiful she thought he was and how he became such a huge part of her….

 

How she grew to love him so quickly.

 

Their moments of intimacy remained the moments she cherished most of their time together. The talks, the fights…and then the embraces. She wanted to cherish those moments while she had the time.

 

Because she knew that with the rising sun, and with the impossible mission they were undertaking, that she was going to die.

 

A gentle hand on her shoulder quieted her thoughts and she raised her head to stare into the crimson eyes of her quiet dark angel. They gazed at each other and she finally voiced the question she had been dreading to ask.

 

`We're not going to make it out this time, are we?'

 

Vincent sat down on the bed beside her, struggling with his own emotions. He looked at her, his expression one of stern determination.

 

`It will be one of the hardest trials we've ever faced,' he said, his voice quiet. `Some of us may not survive it, but I promise you Halanitum will not be awakened.' He brushed her hair away from her face and saw her eyes were bright with tears. `I am not going to stand by while the one someone for whom I care so deeply is taken from me. You have my word.'

 

Hellfire felt herself break down at his declaration and wiped away the tears that threatened to fall. Vincent cradled her in his arms as she sobbed quietly against his shoulder, saying nothing else. He stroked her soft hair, comforting her silently. He had to wonder how long she'd been awake, trying to keep this despair from pouring out. Because he'd meant what he said: as long as there was strength in his slender frame, he was not going to let her die.

 

Hellfire clung to him as though she was drowning in the sea of war that constantly lashed at her.

 

`Don't leave me,' she whispered, unaware that she'd said it. Vincent pulled her closer to him in response, the promise that escaped his lips an echo of a time where he wasn't afraid to feel love for another like he did now.

 

`I'll never leave you.' He kissed her gently and rested his head on hers, holding her until her crying subsided and she drifted off to sleep as the last shreds of darkness slipped away.