ABSOLUTION

Convict_Panthress Presents:

ABSOLUTION
Chapter IX

He could hardly feel himself. Shock was settling quickly in his bones. His mind perfectly blank except for the simple word ‘why’. Even though he was not staring at the Gate, he could still see her fighting with a tired vigor, gnashing her fangs as each thrust and swoop of her strong bone shattering blows rocked her lithe body, growling and roaring in challenge and vehemence. Her aura dark and mysterious as it fell around her like an evil veil of chaos, destruction and mad resignation. And all so suddenly, her body too weak to fight off so much of the tranquilizers that it didn’t even seem to feel the impact of, she fell to her knees in an exhausted kneel before clashing to the hard ground with a rise of dust. He shuddered as he remembered those open empty, not her indifferent emptiness but plain empty, white blue eyes. He was enraged into complete stillness at how those humans, inferior to the fallen warrior’s strength, defiled both her body and weapons with their touch by picking her up and dumping her and her precious belongings carelessly into some sort of container.

He opened his eyes and heaved a sigh, trying to hold back the keen that was welling up in his throat. Glancing over at the man beside him, he felt the urge to comfort him. The blonde haired male looked so…broken and the uncertainty and self-loathing in his aura swirled around him.

“How could she do that?”

Vergil looked back at the mako eyed man, frowning slightly at his question he answered with the only thing he knew as fact. “She is a noble fighter and an extremely exceptional one despite her young age,” he stared, “Sky’s soul is a very old one, and that makes the pup wise beyond her years. She is not a very protective wolf by nature, but she is more stubborn, if she doesn’t wish for one to live, then they will no by no means survive. But if she wants them to thrive then they will succeed.”

The pale man finished his words, hoping that the blonde would understand what he couldn’t say. Pale blue eyes searched the outside area from his position on the Gate Guard wall, remembering the fateful day the Clan of KNIGHTs had found him. Sky’s father, a strong black wolf who was Commander of the Elite group, had wanted to kill Vergil and his younger twin, Dante. Both had been brutally wounded by a group of demons. But it was Sky, the small feisty girl had challenged her own father over the half-demon brothers. Ryoto, her father, had laughed in amusement, and allowed his eldest daughter to take the older twins into her charge.

Vergil remembered with a smile as the quick to grin girl, who became stoic as she progressed in life, taught them about her clan and their customs and rituals. It was not until then that he had learned that it was unheard of, that day when she had challenged her father. Even at such a young age, she had started breaking and bending the rules to fit her whims and needs. However, she made sure that him and Dante flourished in the Clan. So when it came time to protect her during the War of Bretrony, a war before the original president of Shin-Ra’s grandparents were even thought of, Vergil didn’t have to be told twice. It was the Great War, Sky’s fifth encounter, it was during this underground war that Rufus Shin-Ra had been born, in which Ryoto the KNIGHT’s commander had died, and Sky, still a youngling, had taken up the duty bestowed to her; added to the responsibility to raise her younger sister, Akira, who was talented in the devious ways of escaping and highly exceptional in Healing even at such a young age. During this time it had been Vergil and Dante to show their loyalty to the young, but strong and dashingly wintry beautiful KNIGHT who became a wise and noble Commander. For this, she had made them her Seconds.

“Do you sometimes…wish that Ryoto were still alive?”

Vergil glanced over at the hesitation in Cloud’s voice. Shrugging lightly he sighed and ran a hand through his hair, “If only for Akira and Sky not to have so much responsibility. Ryoto-sama was a great warrior, but quite frankly he sucked at being a father.”

“Maybe that’s why Sky is so…hm,” the blonde trailed off, and Vergil saw him nod to himself. The motion was strange, Cloud’s actions when he finished a sentence to himself, but the pale blue eyed half-demon was used to it over the centuries. At any rate, he knew what Cloud meant. Because the lack of a Father or dad in Ryoto and his early death, there was no wonder as to why Sky was almost always in an identity crisis. She didn’t know what part of her was her or what people expected from her as the Lady Sentinel. That was why she tried to keep busy, so she wouldn’t be alone with those particular thoughts.

“Where’s Dante?” The blonde SOLIDER asked out of the blue. It was strange to see one of the twins, who didn’t have his ward, without the other and his ward.

“With Akira.” He answered simply. After a couple more moments silence, Vergil stood, taking a sheathed Yamamoto into his gloved hand. “Let us go. They won’t come back. The bastards have what they want…for now.”

He watched Cloud stand, both about the same height. The massive sword usually holstered on his back rested against the wall, a contemplative look stayed on his face. “Sins can be forgiven…right?”

Vergil stopped, and turned half way towards the warrior. “I don’t know. I’ve never tried.” Inwardly, the KNIGHT softened towards the younger man. No. Vergil never had tried to atone for his sins…simply because he knew that the Gods would never forgive him. He knew at least a small semblance of what Cloud was going through.

“Never…tried…” the blonde murmured, brows furrowing, before nodding to himself again after what looked to be an intense inner battle. “Well I’m gonna try.”

Vergil cocked his head to the side in surprise at the blonde’s hidden meaning and new found will power, watching as the mako eyed Warrior picked up his large sword and easily swung it into the holster on his lower back, confidence in those inhuman eyes. “I’ll phone in the verdict.”

Pale blue eyes sparked.

He was going for Sky.

***

‘Mother of Pearl!’ She thought, trying not to curse out loud as she peered around the corner. ‘Don’t these guys ever stop prowling around?’

Carefully, Akira stood in the shadows, and watched the gorgeous dunpeal turn to walk the other way on his patrol. She silently sent thanks to her elder sister for raising her as the young woman crossed the hall on quick quiet feet. Holding her breath as she hid behind a nook, she listened for the faint click of D’s leather cape, as he turned again to walk away.

Resisting the burning in her lungs as she finally heard the sound, she gently and with great control, let out her breath and with the same restraint, collected it before setting off again. She could feel her adrenaline kick into full gear as the realization of what she was doing finally set in. She was sneaking out of the Base. Sneaking because if everyone—fuck anyone!—knew what she was going to do, she would be held back and be implored to see reason.

‘But I have to tell them.’ Akira thought, silver-blue eyes darkening. She thought back to what Sky had once told her.

“Our people are just too stubborn, so sometimes…you just have to take the initiative and do it yourself.”

‘And besides,’ the Healer mumbled in her mind, ‘It’s about time everyone stops treating me like a baby! Why can’t they just see that since Sky doesn’t, then they shouldn’t do it either?’

Akira snuck around the corner when she felt something in the air change. Waiting for the sound of D’s round, she noted that he was a minute off schedule. Dark brows furrowed, ‘That’s odd. D is never late for anything…especially his patrols…’

Slowly she began to retreat. Something wasn’t right.

“It’s rather rude to try and sneak out. Not to mention unsafe. And here I thought this type of stuff would be below someone of your status, Akira.”

Letting out a lungful of breath she didn’t realize she was holding, the Healer turned around sharply, only for her eyes to land on pale orbs, silver hair and a red and black outfit. Well, now, he didn’t look too happy, if the frown on his thin lips indicated to anything.

“Dante? How…?” she shook her head. Hearing someone clearing their throat behind her, she turned never giving the silver haired half-demon her back. He was a potential enemy to her goal.

D bowed to her, his long hair falling around his broad shoulders. “My apologies Lady Healer.”

Akira let her shoulders slump, but refused to let either man out of her sight. “How long did you know?” she asked, wary of the answer.

He paused, his eyes flitting from the ground to her eyes as if unsure, a slight frown pulled at his lips, hesitating before he answered, “Since you left your bedroom, Lady.”

‘I guess Sister’s teachings weren’t that good.’ Akira thought sourly.

“I was unable to detect your exact locations since from your room door, however.” The dunpeal admitted, almost as if he could have read her mind.

Akira couldn’t detect a lie from the vampire half-breed, so the admitted piece of information made her feel a bit better. She frowned, the realization of being caught sunk in deep.

“What are you doing out here, Akira?” Dante asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

Silver-blue eyes glanced at D, before she growled, “You cannot stop me.”

Something flashed across the dunpeal’s eyes, and he paled whiter than Sesshomaru’s royally pristine white hakama. “You mean to tell them?”

At her nod, Akira surely thought the man was going to either faint or be sick. “Yes, I am. I need to. Their power is great…and you know that if I do not tell them, when they find out…” she paused for emphasis, “the situation will be disastrous.”

“You want to go tell,” Dante shook his head, “the Silver Haired Brothers? Woman, you’re crazy. They don’t have a right to know anything that happens within the Clan.”

She growled, eyes flashing electric blue, “They are Sky’s brothers!”

“They are only half-bloods.”

“So now we know what you think of Cloud-san.” She snarled, “When I should remind you that you and your brother have no blood making you part of this Clan!!” The Healer lifted a clawed finger to his face, and slashed open his cheek; watching the blood pour from the wound. “How dare you judge that which you can never understand? Even half-blood commands more loyalty to kin than no blood.”

Seeing surprise writ in D’s stance as she looked away from the silver haired half-demon, she ignored the flicker of pain deep inside the now bleeding Dante. As her nostrils flared delicately, she smelled his blood and his shame. Just thinking about what he said made her blood boil. She briefly thought him fortunate seeing as she did not have the rightful ability to transform into her wolf like her ancestors and kinsmen, else he would’ve been ground meat on the floor, sometimes he irked her so. Pushing the sorrow of being the only full blooded KNIGHT in their history to not be able to transform, she gathered her breath and calmed herself, readying to face the half-breed.

“I will not apologize—” she started, before he interrupted her.

The silver haired man fell rigidly to his left knee, right knee pressed to his chest, fists in line with his knee and foot, head bowed. “As the Warrior Healer, it is your right to punish as you see accordingly, as it is to act on decisions based on the best interest of the Clan. However, it is my right, as a Second of the Lady Sentinel, to see to the protection of her direct kin.”

Brows furrowed, a frown tugged at black marked lips, “You are not going to stop me?”

“It is not my right.” Slanting his head up, pale blue eyes looked up into silver-blue. “I’m going with you.”

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