--- III ---

Rows of sharp fangs embedded into Vincent's shoulder, tearing away a good portion of meat. The lean vampire screamed in pain. Even though he was a veteran fighter armed with high-level materias, it was still a challenge to fight more than thirty giants while protecting the avian chick.

"No! Don't move!" Vincent yelled at the blond child as it bared its fangs and flapped its wings angrily. "They'll tear you to pieces!"

"Wark! Wark!" The chick protested tearily, seeing blood spurt from its father's shoulder.

"Ughh!" Shooting one mutated grizzly dead, Vincent felt his Limit increase. Smell of monster blood mixed with his own almost reeled his senses; two of the monsters tackled him to the ground, immediately clawing his garb and skin into scarlet shreds.

................!! Red stars sparked in Vincent's vision. Four demons within him howled for release, which he granted them as his Limit reached the max. Aura darker than the night sky emulated from his frame, causing the monsters to jump away with start.

"Wark!?" The winged humanoid whimpered fearfully. It, too, was instinctively afraid of Vincent's transformation.

Chaos moved with lightening speed, disembodying the enemy monsters as if they were made of paper or clay. The black entity shrieked with sadistic rage, relishing at the sight of bloodshed. If any of Vincent's former companions had been there, they would have noticed the abnormality right away. Vincent's persona had lost its power over the inner demons, so weakened it was by the prolonged loneliness.

Only death-cries of monsters filled the starless night... and merciless silence was restored shortly after.

**********

So dark...

"Wow, look inside this, Cloud! A vampire!" An energetic, female alto.

"Tifa, don't say such a thing. Hey, mister, wake up." A light, youthful voice.

"C'mon, leader! You gotta do better than that to wake the dead!" A gruff, rough tone.

From the dark depths of seemingly endless nightmare, Vincent gathered his consciousness to hear the voices of the intruders. Just as he was about to slit his eyes open to see who they were, strong hands grabbed his shoulders and shook hard.

"Wake up!!! You'll get your pretty nose clogged with freaking dust and die for real if you stay in this damned coffin any longer!!"

Vincent was startled by the sudden contact. Snapping his ruby-red eyes open wide, he stared up at the man who 'abused' him. His gaze met with the man's, holding there for a moment that felt like forever.

The sky...

The striking blue was the hue of bright midday sky which had been forbidden to Vincent for twenty-some years of his slumber. The color was so intensely alive that he felt blinded by its strength. The stranger's golden hair held the gleam similar to the sun, casting light upon Vincent. Unconsciously, the pale vampire brought his palm over his eyes to block the 'shine'.

"What the hell you doing? Don't like my face?" Scoffing mildly, the man grabbed Vincent's clawed arm and pulled him out of his confinement. Noting the metallic, mutated state of the appendage a second later, he raised an eyebrow.

".............." Feeling self-conscious, Vincent hid his inhuman hand behind his cloak. He let his gaze wander from the man to his companions. They were a young man with very spiky blond hair and Mako-blue eyes and a pretty young woman of long cocoa-hue hair and model-like body.

A short conversation followed, and Vincent learned that the youth's name was Cloud, the woman was Tifa, and the man with the sky-colored eyes was Cid Highwind. They invited him to join their quest for Sephiroth, and he accepted, reasoning that he would have to settle his scores with Hojo.

"Hey, Vince. Why did ya hide your face from me?" Cid nudged Vincent with an elbow as the four ascended the spiral stairs of ShinRa Mansion. The pilot didn't sound angry, just a trifle upset.

"...I thought I was looking at the sky." Vincent answered quietly.

"Huh?"

"Your eyes, your hair. They shone so brightly that I thought I'd be blinded by the light."

"...Man, give up the poetry crap, will ya? And you sound like you are hitting on me." The blonde grinned good-naturedly. Their talk trailed off there when Vincent lowered his gaze to hide his reddening cheeks.

Cid Highwind. If only you knew how I yearned to see the sky during my imprisonment in that coffin... Hopelessly drawn to the light coloring which so contradicted with his own, Vincent sighed softly. Cid, I saw the sky in your eyes..., the sky I so longed for.

**********

Vincent found himself in a kneeling position when he returned from the nostalgic dream. He was covered with blood, chunks of dead flesh slowly caking in his hands. He shook the filth off of his fingers, and wiped at the trail of tears on his face.

Surveying the vicinity for the damage he had inflicted upon the enemies, Vincent felt vile surge in his throat. Everywhere, he only saw sea of blood and fast-decaying carcasses. To think that he had created such a scene of mangled gore made him sick.

Where did the child go? Did I scare it away?

Carefully rising to his feet, Vincent searched for the small being he had sought to protect. He didn't have to look far; immediately in front of him, he found the mass of gold and red.

"................!!"

Sound caught in the man's throat, and he opened his mouth in a silent scream. The comely humanoid chick lay at his feet in pieces; chocobo-like wings had been torn off its back, one leg missing, neck bent at strange angle. There were five parallel slashes along the slim mid-section. The gaping wound told Vincent what had destroyed the innocent avian.

The vampire screamed abruptly, clutching the sides of his head with both hands. A pair of lifeless eyes were staring up at him. Although the gaze no longer held sparkle, it was still a small replica of the midday sky. Vincent wanted to turn away from the horrifying sight, but his attention was glued to what he had done.

At that moment, something precious broke inside Vincent. He ceased to wail, and slowly extended his clawed hand to the remnants of his terrible sin.

"I want the sky in your eyes. I want... Cid." The beautiful vampire whispered softly.

**********

Vincent sat down under a large tree, tired after miles of walking. He didn't feel anything anymore. He knew that he was tired, because his legs weren't moving any farther. Resting his back against the trunk, he stared blankly at the 'sky' he held in his hand.

Emptiness was all Vincent felt. He wanted Cid, but Cid wasn't here. He wanted love, but he couldn't love anyone besides Cid. He wanted companion, but he had betrayed or destroyed all the companions he had. He didn't see the need for Vincent Valentine without those things. What good was in a person when there was nothing for him to live for?

The vampire closed his eyes, capturing the blue hue in his mind's eye. He slowly drifted off to a dreamless sleep, seeking to find the lost color of the midday sky.

THE END