The Chaos Theory

Summary: The battle for the world is over. The job of rebuilding Midgar has just begun. But not everything on the slate has been wiped clean. The Chaos Beast still rages within Vincent, and it's latest attack threatens to take everything precious from him.

The Chaos Theory

Chapter 2


The light of the full moon shone in through the small bedroom window, illuminating the sleeping Cid. He screwed up his eyes in discomfort, and pushed his face further into the soft pillow, trying to block out the light. After a few minutes he gave a low, unintelligible grumble, and realised that if he wanted any more sleep tonight, he would have to get up and close the curtains. From the warm comfort of the bed, the window sill seemed miles away.
He let out another groan, he didn't want to wake Vincent, he was a light sleeper. Either that or paranoid, every tiny sound would wake him. Cid reckoned it was probably a result of being stuck inside a coffin for however many hundred years.

He wriggled his fingers, expecting to feel the soft skin of his partners stomach, but instead he felt nothing. Only the hard mattress met his fingertips.
He frowned in confusion, and decided with a sigh that he would have to open his eyes. As he did he was met with only the crumpled up duvet next to him.

"..Vincent?" he mumbled into the dark room.

His blue eyes tried to focus around him, staring into the shadows trying to pick out objects. After a while his gaze fell finally back to the space beside him.
The moonlight had picked out a spot of something on the mattress. His eyes widened as he realised it was blood. Immediatley he reached out and touched the space.
It was dry.Which meant it had been there for a while.

Cid swallowed nervously, and pulled himself over to the edge of the bed. He spotted more blood splattered onto the floorboards below him. The fuzzy feeling of sleep had deserted him, and was being rapidly replaced with a large sinking feeling in his stomach.

With his eyes still fixated on the crimson stain, Cid blindly reached for the bedside lamp. After a few seconds of feeling around his finger found the switch, and the room was bathed in a warm orange light.

He shoved the duvet unceremoniously to the end of the bed, and got out to fully inspect the blood specks. Walking around the side of the bed he followed the tiny trail to the bedroom doorway.

What is that smell? He thought, the sinking feeling turning more into an ache.

Holding his nose with his fingers he gingerly stepped into the doorway of the bathroom. He switched on the light.
The brightness blinded him for a second, but as his eyes adjusted to the change from dark to light they widened suddenly. He gave a gasp and stumbled back a few steps, bumping into the doorframe with his shoulder.

Blood.

Lots of blood.

From his position he could see it was filling the toilet, smeared on the seat, dripping down where it had soaked into the carpet. The smell was overbearing, and it took all the power in the world as he stepped forward again, almost gagging, his hand clamped over his mouth and nose. The blood was a bright red. It was internal.
Cid hurridley reached for the flush, and then stumbled back out of the room with a gasp for air.

"Vincent!" He cried, turning wildly, hoping to catch a sign, a glimpse of his partner still in the house.

He took another glance into the bathroom. This blood came from Chaos, it had to have. The monster inside Vincent had finally broken him, this blood was evident of the struggle between the two. Vincent had been fighting for control with the beast for so long now, even before they had first met him.
He'd tried to hide these attacks from him and the others for a long time too, but ever since he and Cid had started living together, well, it's hard to hide that sort of thing from someone who's always around you.
It confirmed that there were side effects of limit break ability. Harsh ones.
But of all the attacks in the past, of all the times where Vincent had led breathless in his arms, very nearly passing out on occasion, there was never as much blood as this.

Cid heaved and let out a choking cough.
No, this time was different. This time felt worse, much, much worse.

There was a fluttering of paper from downstairs and Cid grabbed the banister, trying not to be sick as he shakily walked down the stairs.

"Vincent...?" He called, but it was barely above a whisper, he voice wavering as he spoke.

He swallowed as he saw nothing but the front door, swung open as the early morning morning breeze blew magazines and newspapers across the living room floor. He ran over to the doorway, and was more than half expecting, hoping perhaps, to see Vincent lying on the doorstep.
Chillingly though, this was not the image that met his eyes.

Nothing.

Only the dark grey cobblestones. Looking closely he noticed more faint blooddrops.
It was sad but by now the sight of blood had become almost normal to Cid. Battle after battle, watching friends and neighbours lose their lives under the grip of Shinra and Sephiroth.
But he knew then that this image would never leave his memory.

"Vincent?!" He called louder, but his will was weak, and he knew deep down there would be no reply.

He had gone. The Chaos beast had taken him finally.
All he was left with now were the rows of small houses which led down into where the slums used to be, the large bubbling fountain in the middle of the square and the silent shadows of the night, bent and twisted by the now approaching sunlight.
He stubbornly wiped the moisture that threatened to build in his eyes, giving a shiver as the freezing winter wind blew across him, reminding him that he had stumbled straight out of the house in only a pair of boxers.

Minutes passed seamlessley as he stood transfixed by the empty space before him, the pale blood spots the only sign Vincent had ever been there at all.

He felt numb.


These Chapters always seem much longer then they turn out to beD: