Taming the Fates Amidst Chaos

'Internal thought'

'CHAOS SPEAKING'

~ (Time and/or story focus shift)

Chapter 48

Behind the barrier created within Vincent's fragmented spirit, Sin was in a panic. 'We almost got Master killed. We were too slow and now Master is…' The slave's form flickered wildly throughout the space, unable to maintain a constant position with his broken thoughts and emotions. His dark eyes fell upon the unconscious figure that seemed to float within the barrier surrounding them, dark raven hair spread wide and a rare expression of peace on the human's features. Sin knew it was his duty, his obligation to absorb the man; he could only serve Master properly if he was whole. But... 'We are not meant to be without our collar. It is how we are contained, how we know our Master's will.'

The slave moved closer to the human, studying him closely. 'He is not who he was when he became us. He has changed, he thinks differently, acts differently. Perhaps he will know the answer to our dilemma.' Sin knew that even if he absorbed Vincent, he would not get answers from the man's knowledge. His way of thinking compared to the human's was too different, so he needed to ask the gunman. 'Hopefully he will be willing to tell us. We have failed Master terribly.' Dark crimson and black eyes slid shut as he began to allow some of the human's stolen energies to return to their owner.

~

Cloud nearly crashed into the winged back when Chaos suddenly froze, a stunned expression on the gray face. The blond studied the unfocused golden eyes for a moment, "Chaos?"

The demon seemed to break out of his trance, shaking his head as he muttered, "What is that damned bastard up to? This makes no sense." Cloud started to ask what was going on but a muffled, angry sound came from a nearby tunnel, drawing his and the demon's attention, "I'll have to deal with that when I am better able. Come, human. See what has become of the accursed half-breed."

Cloud gave the winged man a nod, tucking his blade back into its holster. Chaos turned on his heel with a grin, night locks swaying with the movement as he made his way to the tunnel's entrance. The blond followed the demon, feeling uneasiness creeping into his gut. Before they reached the darkness, Chaos stopped to turn his head enough to glance at the fire wolf, who hadn't even risen as they started to walk away. Golden eyes connected before the dark haired demon turned back, his voice echoing through the tunnels and cavern. ”I…trust that you will watch and guard Shinga-Chi, wolf. Do not let anything befall him.”

Nanaki gave a soft, knowing smile and placed his muzzle on his paws, “I will not take my eyes off of him.”

”Good.”

Cloud was silent and just listened to the exchange with a cocked brow, arms crossed. Chaos resumed walking and soon blended into the dark embrace of the shadows, the blond hot on his heels. Cursing, the swordsman stumbled over a small crack in the stone beneath his feet. It was bad enough that he could barely see the path that he walked in the blinding darkness, even with the Mako in his blood. He knew that the demon wasn’t far ahead of him, faintly catching the glow of silvery skin and bright wicked golden orbs. The bottom of his right boot caught on a loose rock and he went skittering forwards, landing on his hands and knees.

Soft blue eyes narrowed as Cloud moved to stand, brushing his hands on the rough fabric of his pant to wipe the small pieces of stone from his gloves, "Oh, for fuck sakes! I hate the damn dark.”

There was a small rumble of a chuckle from his side, glowing eyes staring at him in mirth as the demon titled his head. It seemed Cloud had skidded forward enough to catch up with the winged creature, Chaos stopping to stare down at the amusing sight. "Really? The darkness has many wonderful qualities. I feel quite at home in the shadows." The demon grinned, fangs flashing, “You are a puzzling creature, mortal. You fight with power and strength, having killed the half-breed with your sword three times. And yet…you manage to trip not once, but twice within but a few seconds on a mere stone. How intriguing and so…human of you.”

Cloud frowned, his eye twitching. ‘Did I just get insulted by a demon?’ Chaos shook his head and lifted a clawed hand to the wall, muttering something in a strange and unfamiliar language. A red glow left the hand, spreading over the stone in strange patches to illuminate the passageway for several feet. "Come, manling. Its not much further."

~

Scarlet and amber eyes slowly slid open to a strangely calm emptiness. 'What happened?' The last the gunman remembered, Chaos had awoken and rushed out to save Yazoo. Then the exhaustion and drain had finally won out over him and everything had simply faded away. As he became more aware of himself, Vincent realized he no longer felt the tug on his spirit from Sin. Blinking, he swept over his surroundings, stopping as he found the dark eyes watching him with nervousness and a strange amount of worry, "Sin?"

"We require your assistance, human."

~

The swordsman studied the glowing shapes, the pattern was vaguely familiar. Slowing a moment to take a closer look, his eyes widened, "Is that blood?"

The demon gave a chilling grin, "Some of it is the host's and mine. Most, however, is from our friend the half-breed."

Cloud took a wary step away from the walls and hurried to follow the dark-haired demon. They turned the next bend, a dark opening breaking the red glow and the sound of ragged breathing echoed over the stone. As long silver strands came into view, the blond's fingers automatically reached for First Tsurugi before his brain fully registered what his eyes were seeing. Hateful jade eyes rose to meet glowing blue, a moment of shock breaking through before Sephiroth turned toward the demon with a snarl, his voice muffled by a long strip of black leather.

Cloud felt his stomach clench as he studied the former General of the Shinra army. No longer was Sephiroth the vision of perfection and strength that many had once regarded him as and, somewhere in the depths of the blond's mind, a part of him felt satisfaction in seeing the silver-haired man on the receiving end of painful tortures for once. Once bright green eyes were red rimmed and glazed, hatred and pain burning within their depths. The long silver locks were dulled and dirty with blood and sweat caking the strands. Black energy danced along pale skin, crackling as it surrounded the muscular frame and kept the vast number of cuts littering the body open. Long limbs were widely spread, the madman's hands and feet disappearing into the dark shadows of the room.

Chaos noticed the blond's curious gaze and gave a smirk, "I told you, manling, the shadows are like home to me. I can walk them as you would the forests or plains of this world. The half-breed-," A low angry snarl from the silver-haired swordsman was responded to with open slap across his face, red claws leaving four parallel gashes on the pale cheek, "The half-breed's hands and feet are being held within the shadow realm. Without a guide such as me to pull him out, he won't be moving his limbs anytime soon."

Cloud nodded, relief obvious on his features before his curious gaze was drawn to the deep, thin cuts that covered the pale, muscular frame. The pattern was odd and he looked closer, particularly at one familiar set over the former General's heart. His eyes flew wide as he realized it was names, hundreds of names; the one he had been staring at said 'Aeris Gainsborough'. As he began to recognize several others, he turned to the watching demon, "Chaos? Are these what I think they are?"

"Since your little Meteor incident, the host has been wandering the Planet searching for that silly atonement of his. At one point, he decided to find the names of as many that the half-breed had killed that he could. Since then, he has been searching out their families and finding ways of helping them. I know that these are not nearly all that this bastard killed but they are the ones the host found. They mark his soul and now they mark his body."

"You remembered all of them?"

A wide fanged grin appeared on the demon's face, "Actually, there are a few more I need to add. I was just waiting for the right time." Cloud wasn't sure he wanted to watch as Chaos approached the bound madman, a look of sadistic glee in the golden gaze, "He did not kill them, but I believe he did sufficient damage to their lives that it stains his soul."

Sephiroth's eyes showed insurmountable rage in their green depths as the demon approached, one of the red claws extending further from the steel-gray finger. A metal-encased hand grasped the long strands of hair and pulled mercilessly until the former General was forced to look up, unable to move his head any further, "I wouldn't move if I were you, half-breed. I would hate for you to lose your eyes. It's a lot more fun if you can see it coming"

The blond swordsman watched with a mixture of horror and fascination as Chaos' claw easily parted the skin on Sephiroth's forehead. The silver-haired man's body tensed from the pain but he remained silent until a red glow appeared around the demon's finger, the energy causing the blood to sizzle and harsh pants to escape the bound man. Cloud started to turn away but froze as he recognized the letters being written. Cloud Strife, Tifa Lockheart, Cid Highwind; one by one, the names of the members of AVALANCHE were carved into the pale face.

When he had finished, Chaos turned to study the blond's reaction. As the golden eyes fell on him, Cloud attempted to appear as though he was uncaring but the demon chuckled and shook his head, "Do not try to hide what you feel, mortal. I can practically taste your fear and anxiety. I would be more concerned if you truly were unaffected by this, human as you are."

The ex-SOLDIER started to respond but as he glanced towards Sephiroth, he found himself frozen, his eyes locked onto suddenly strangely intense jade. A soft voice rose in his mind, one that he hadn't heard this strongly in years, the tempting call of Jenova to come to the aid of her son. Her siren-like words spoke of unimaginable power and eternal life if only he freed the silver-haired swordsman and attacked the demon.

Chaos frowned as he saw the human's eyes change, his pupils becoming the cat-like slits of the alien's sons. Wings twitching in irritation, he carefully watched as Cloud's gloved hand wrapped around First Tsurugi's hilt. The demon knew he could easily avoid any attack by the blond but he was curious to see for himself just how strong the human's mind was. A low angry growl left the spiky-haired swordsman and the large blade was brought around to Sephiroth's throat. The look of satisfaction in the jade gaze brought a sudden understanding to Chaos, who quickly took hold of the sharp blade, "Drop it, mortal. He knows you can resist her but still he uses you to end his punishment."

There was a tense silence before First Tsurugi slowly lowered toward the floor but glowing blue eyes remained locked with stubborn green. The demon gave a sigh before he melted into the shadows, reappearing behind the silver-haired man and reached down low to twist harshly at something. The connection was broken then, Sephiroth screaming in agony and Cloud stumbling back, swaying slightly as he shook his head to clear it. Once again, silver strands were painfully pulled until the bound man was forced to look up and back at Chaos, "You know, for a supposedly god-like entity, you really are a moron, half-breed."

"Chaos?" Golden eyes looked up to meet slightly dazed blue, "What did you do? Before it was broken, I felt his pain. It was...I...I can't even describe it."

A purely sadistic grin morphed the steel-gray face, "The half-breed believes himself to be the ultimate weapon for his oh-so-precious Mother. I simply reminded him that he is better suited as a holster. Isn't that right, bastard?" Only pained, ragged growls left the silver haired man and Cloud still held a look of confusion, "If you really wish to know, mortal, come and take a look for yourself."

The blond nodded nervously, much of him screaming to just leave it alone but that small side of him wanted to see what was bringing the former General such pain. Slowly he walked toward the bound man, jade eyes glaring at him murderously. Chaos stepped back to allow a clear view and chuckled as the human suddenly went pale. Death Penalty had been shoved inside of Sephiroth's ass and now sat with fresh blood streaming down the gleaming metal, "The half-breed used his weapon against the host and I thought it only polite to return the favor."

____________________________________________________________________________________

A/N: I think Cloud is probably making a mental note to never piss Chaos off. I would. Anywho, my apologies on the lateness of this chapter. At first I had writer's block and then the very day that I knocked it down, my internet went out. The repairman couldn't make it out until Tuesday so I got this up as soon as I could. I really hope it was worth the wait. I should have Tainted 5 and the first chapter of Electric up very soon.

BTW: You have my fiancee, Mr. Cocky, and SapphireDog to thank for the main idea behind this chapter. He heard about what happened to Vinny in Chapter 41 and demanded that there be retribution in the form of Death Penalty being used in the same manner. At first I wasn't so sure about crossing that line again but when I mentioned it to Sapph, she very much agreed that it needed to be done. I will admit though, I had fun with this chapter, even if it was a bitch to get out.

Now, on to the reviews!

SapphireDoG
*waves arms around* Oh OH OH I WANNA SEE HIM TOO! CAN I CAN I CAN I??? OH CHAOS!!! I WANNA GO TOO!!

wow, damn chaos. Iv never heard you talk so damn much :D hehe lovely little story.

Haha wow. tifa just blew cloud's ear off XD
Frizz: You got to see him. What did ya think? LOL I'm evil

BreaXStrify
as;lfkjsl;djkf;lskdj ::naws on pencil and pounts:: wow...i never knew chaos was long winded o..O

::pouts even more:: you are forgiven....for now....I JUST WANNA SEE WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM! ::wiggles around on the floor:: i hope it's good....REALLY good....make him pay!!!!

wait...why is Vincent blocked...::confused but knows Sin's behind it:: damn Sin ::glares off into space and snaps pencil in half on accedent:: O..O

~SO MUCH LOVE YOU DROWNED IN IT!~ ^^ how i shall harass you about chapter 48 mueheehehheheheheheheheh!
Frizz: Yeah, sorry bout the long-winded Chaos but I needed to get that story up. Hope you like what happened to Seph.

Kuragari
lol, Finally I know what the Whole Shinga-Chi thing is for... very very good background story!!! and now we get to see Sephy's condition *grins evilly* I don't like him much... can't wait for the next chapter! later!
Frizz: Yes, finally, how long has it been? Glad you like it.

Anonymous Sister of the Author
FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! now HOW LONG HAVE WE BEEN WAITING FOR THE MEANING OF SHINGA-CHI?!?!?!?!?!?! sheesh man!!! you're EVILLLLLLLLLLLLL!!! i'm glad that cloud was able to heal my yazoo, somewhat!! i wouldn't be able to resist touching the shiny either!! ooooooooooohh!!! shiny!!!!
ASOTA
Frizz: Hehehe, of course I am evil. Hope that you enjoyed the explanation.

Kerianya
*applauds*

What an excellent insight into the history of the Shinga-chi. I always enjoy a little mythological history - it helps to digest the yaoi! So Yazoo is in some way Vincent and Chaos' Soulmate? That b*****d Hojo did something right for once.

Meanwhile, I'm looking forward to seeing what has become of our dear little Sephiroth. I do hope that Chaos has spent some time causing considerable damage to the general's man-vegetable area. After all, that area was used to torture Vincent, humiliate little Yazzie, so that's four times that Chaos can cause the damage, because on both occasions Sephiroth was also doing those things to Chaos. If you count Sin's endurance that's SIX tortures on Sephy's man-veggies!

*ignores wounded stare of Sephiroth*

Hee hee, looking forward to the highly necessary and well-written next instalment!

Kerianya XxX
Frizz: Yes he did something right and nearly got himself and the labs destroyed in the process. Too bad it was only nearly. Sorry bout not doing anything to the man veggies but I figure this covers it well enough.

viva_rose
yay for history lessons! the only thing they were missing from this lovely discussion was liek a cup of tea or somethign lol
Frizz: LOL a british accent Chaos anyone?

fyrbyrd
Wow, you continue to impress me. I love this so much. So I'll say thank you now, I'm about to jumop in the deep end myself.
Frizz: Yay! Deep end is fun. Join the party

AnimeFanGrrl-4-Life
* * * * * * *
*Blink Blink* The fuck are you doing to Sephy? Can we see?
I hope it's super painful x10 for what he's done to Vincent! As always your chapters are well worth the wait :D *hands you a cupcake*

Fan-of-u-4-life
* * * * * * *
Frizz: Hehehehe! It definitly is super painful. Hope you enjoyed it.

Suki Rios
*rubs eyes* 47 chapters in 6 hours....not bad...although its 5 in the morning now......*yawns* great story so far. i hope you update soon! *toddles off to bed now with a zack plushie*
Frizz: Wow. I have to admit, Im impressed.

AnimeFanGrrl-4-Life
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Geh! Waiting for the next chapter is like pulling out nails... slowly >_
Frizz: Sorry it took so long. Mixture of alot of uncontrollable stuff. Hope it was worth the wait!