Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ I Know What Lies Beneath the Snowfields ❯ Chapter 35 ( Chapter 35 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Yay, a reviewer! Thank yas kissing Kitty, though it isn't my fic. I'm just bringing it to the people of mm.org. ^~ *will continue with the fic posting now*

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"I Know What's Beneath the Snow Fields"
Chapter 35

Time had long passed midnight, instilling an even deadlier silence into
the chilly air. At such a late hour, where endless darkness and grim
shadows ran amuck, night had spread its vast wings clear across the
sky.

Ir return, the frozen, deserted park down below had grown more still
and ghostly than before. For any passerby looking up, the barren tree
branches extended like thin, black arms overhesd. Many pathways and
corners disappeared into obscurity. Indeed, the meek, winter-ridden
garden had humbly succumbed to the night's terrible decree.

The two companions slowly strolled up the gravel pathway in absolute
silence. Their lonely footsteps re-echoed loudly in the still air,
adding a feeling of haunted desolation to the place. Vincent led the way
through several narrow sideroads and dark arbors, followed close behind
by Aeris. Often times, he chose pathways which extended through an eerie
forest of dark, shapeless shadows; he hardly persued the broad, lighted
ones. Perhaps he simply felt more comfortable in the dark.

The air stung with such bitter coldness, Vincent had muffled his mouth
again under his woolly scarf. His keen eyes gleamed brightly in the
dark, as if engrossed in deep, profound contemplation. Both arms had
been stiffly folded across his chest to bar out the chilly air.

Yet in spite of the cold, the bleak darkness, and ghostly silence,
Vincent seemed to find such a morbid atmosphere quite pleasing to his
gloomy thoughts. He strolled with a steady, easy step through the
deserted forest-park, heedless of the strange shadows that surrounded
him from every direction. He never looked at the girl behind him, not
even a quick glance to check on her; nor had he spoken another word
since leaving the "Snow Fields". He was completely aloof.

Aeris quietly followed the man, her eyes timidly lowered down to the
ground. She made no objections to any grim path Vincent picked (although
she would have much preferred the brighter ones). Nor would she dream of
even speaking for fear of disturbing his train of thought. In truth, his
mood had grown so morose, Aeris preferred to be silent rather than
arouse his annoyance with talk.

They walked thus for a long time through the park, passing so many
leafless trees and following endless stone paths. The winding road
extended into the black distance, often times merging into other
sidepaths.

Though Vincent walked at a reasonably slow pace, Aeris found it
increasingly difficult to keep up with him. Her feet ached miserably;
her legs felt slightly sluggish. Vincent marched silently on, while poor
Aeris lagged a step or two behind, occasionally rubbing her temples in
exhastion. Indeed, such a long stroll, across virtually the entire
sector, had drained the girl.

"Are you feeling sleepy?" Vincent asked all of a sudden, stopping in
his spot. He turned his head around to look at the startled girl.

"Eh?! Oh no," Aeris faltered confusedly, halting right behind him,
"..I..I'm just a bit..tired, that's all."

She fidgeted in her spot, very uncomfortable with his thoughtful eyes
lingering on her face. Vincent turned fully around to face the girl.

"If you're too tired to walk anymore, Aeris, I don't mind carrying
you," he suggested softly.

"Of course not, Vincent!" she immediately refused, a light blush
colouring her cheeks, "I'm fine...r-really!"

Though Aeris smiled to disperese his worries, Vincent still gazed
thoughtfully down at her. He had easily detected the heavy fatigue
playing on her voice, as well as a tired nervousness in the way she
fumbled before him.

In his own mind, Vincent sorely berated himself for extending his night
stroll to such a late hour, knowing the girl would eventually tire; more
so for neglecting her while engrossing himself in private contemplation.

Without a word, Vincent extended his metallic arm out for Aeris to
take, keeping his eyes fixed on her lovely face. In her surprise at the
gesture, Aeris stared at the shiny, sharp object, then up at his
expressionless face. After some hesitation, she slowly slipped her arms
around his metal arm.

They soon resumed their path up the stony road, passing through a dark
forest of stout, snow-ladden trees and barren shrubberries. Out of kind
consideration for the tired girl, Vincent purposely walked with an even
slower pace to make sure she never lagged behind again.

Aeris walked very closely by his side, feeling nervously apprehensive
of his cold, metallic arm snuggled between her two slender arms. Yet at
the same time, she eyed it with cautious curiosity; she had never
willingly touched his claw before.

"Y'know, I remember how much your claw used to frighten me," Aeris
remarked softly. She tapped the claw once, then added under her breath,
"..sometimes, it still does."

Vincent marched on without a reply.

"That night we first met, you muffled my mouth with it, and ever since,
I get so nervous just looking at it, let alone touching it," Aeris
smiled weakly to herself, "..it's so sharp..and feels so hard and
cold.."

"It was quite heavy at first too," Vincent interjected coolly without
looking at her, "and very awkward for me to handle. I couldn't move my
arm at all, not even a finger, because I had no idea how...or maybe, I
was simply too scared to try."

Aeris hesitantly peeked up at him, then lowered her eyes again.

"But eventually, I got used to it," he concluded simply, "I just
pretended it was a normal arm, not a claw."

"Still..," the tender girl whispered compassionately,
"..it must have been painful all the same."

With that kind comfort, Aeris gently tightened her grip around his hard
arm, even though she knew he could not feel the touch.

Suddenly, Vincent froze still in his spot.

Puzzled by his abrupt behavior, Aeris stared up at him without
releasing his metallic arm. Vincent, however, seemed to have utterly
forgotten her presence. His keen, ruby-red eyes glared suspiciously at
the road up ahead. His ears, pricked up in suspicious alertness,
listened attentively to the air. He did not speak a word.

Aeris looked in the same direction which had so completely absorbed his
attention: nothing. The trees were perfectly still; the air cold and
quiet; the pathway empty. She let go of his arm.

"What's the matter?" she asked in fearful concern.

He made no reply, except narrow his bright eyes on the road. He seemed
to see something...or someone only visible to him.

"V..Vincent?" she faltered out nervously, "What's wrong with.."

"Sh!" he ordered firmly, yanking her whole body closer to himself. His
senses grew sharper by the second.

He had distinctly heard footsteps...many footsteps.

Much to Aeris' astonishment, Vincent quickly encircled her waist with
his metallic arm, then immediately dashed for a dark thicket of trees on
the side of the road. He easily hopped across the snow, landing safely
behind some frozen hedges. With the girl securely tucked under his
armpit and her mouth muffled, Vincent stooped cautiously as he crept his
way along the bushes. He headed straight up to a large, stout tree.

This knotted tree, its barky roots gripped firmly into the snowy
ground, stood with other such venerable trees in complete darkness. Its
clumsy branches stretched out in all directions, intertwining around
other braches so convolutedly, even the bright moonlight could not
penetrate through. Pitch black shadows infested this thicket of trees.
Absolute darkness ruled supreme.

No sooner had Vincent reached the stout tree, than he huddled against
its rough bark. He instantly embraced the confused Aeris all to himself,
pressing his metallic claw against her back to secure her body.

The darkness obscured the two completely. Vincent appeared as a very
tall, black shadow, with deep crimson eyes glaring ever so suspiciously.
He never once peeked around the tree or flinched a muscle, but kept his
arm securely wrapped around the girl. He was perfectly silent.

Aeris had been swept away by Vincent with scarcely understanding the
reason. From his tense, mistrustful behavior, she gathered the man had
somehow detected something "bad" in the air. And he pressed her so
tightly against himself, as if fearing this evil force might snatch her
away any moment. The loathsome image of Davoren immediately flashed
across her mind.

Against such a sinister face as that brutal gunman's, poor Aeris could
not help but tremble. At the possible prospect of experiencing another
bloody battle, or worse, of being forcefully returned to her hateful
tormentor the "Professer", her trembling turned to violent shivering.

Sensing her obvious fright, Vincent nestled Aeris as deeply as possible
into his open, long black coat. He gently pressed her head against his
chest.

"I don't think he's with them," he assured in a barely audible whisper,
"Just be quiet and hide your face."

Aeris nodded once. She burried her full face further into his coat, and
did not move. Vincent, keeping his hand against her head, huddled
himself deeper into the thick darkness. He was perfectly still.

The heavy silence in the park was unnatural. For a seemingly long time,
everything was dead.

At long last, faint, very distant footsteps broke the stuffy stillness.
They grew steadily louder and louder as their mysterious owners
cautiously approached this path. Vincent still avoided peeking for fear
of betraying his dark hideout. He kept his bright eyes fixed down on the
girl snuggled in his arms, but focused all his attention on the
movements of this unidentified enemy.

From the scufflings of their heavy boots, Vincent guessed three, maybe
four men had reached this road. He automatically assumed they carried
loaded guns ready to fire on the least suspicion. When he heard a very
faint "bleep", Vincent realized these men had fitted transmitter radios
into their ears. If so, then they wanted to stay in contact with each
other, which ultimately meant that there were more men on the prowl in
this park; and more men meant more guns.

But was Davoren with them?

Vincent sensed the men shuffle about here and there in search of
something. They spread out in all directions off the gravel road,
trudging as quietly as possible through the heavy snow. He heard the
thick hedges across the pathway being roughly examined. Another man
crept suspiciously along the trees by the roadside. One man in
particular, rather large and muscular, wandered very closely to the
dense thicket of stout trees. Luckily, Vincent had concealed himself so
well in the bleak darkness, and the brawny man did not search that
attentively, so he passed on by without noticing anything unusal.

These armed men spent almost a quarter of an hour in their intensive
search. They scoured the entire road, checking the narrow sidetracks and
scanning the territory.

During this painfully long time, Vincent neither fliched a muscle nor
lifted his eyes off the girl, even when he came so close to discovery.
Whenever poor Aeris trembled (undoubtedly remembering Davoren), Vincent
gently stroked her hair to soothe her distress. His hard metal arm
remained protectively pressed against her back.

Finally, assuming all was in its normal order, the men returned to the
deserted stone path. They met again at the very begining of the road.

"Nothing here," confirmed one gruff voice, obviously into his
transmitter radio.

Vincent heard a "bleep", then another voice answer through the device,
"Roger that. We'll take the north part, the other team will take the
section further down. You search the area again."

"I just told you, there's noth.."

"..and Mr.Davoren's orders are we search each area twice, second time
more closely. Now go!"

That argument thus settled, Vincent heard the transmitter rudely
closed. One of the men began to hurl out a string of violent oaths.

"Goddamn bastard!" the gruff voice cursed, stamping his foot in anger,
"Just because Davoren gave him the orders, he acts like some big time
hot-shot!!"

"Sh! Keep your voice down," begged a gentle voice, "Mr.Davoren said
this guy we're supposed to catch is really, really dangerous. He could
be hiding anywhere, even here."

"Oh, gimme a break!! Like that freak with the claw is *really* hiding
from us in the park. How would Davoren know where this guy is, anyway?"

"Well, y'know," coughed a deep voice importantly, almost with a
superior air, "Mr.Davoren has his own 'special' ways. I personally think
he used to be a professional assassin, or maybe a spy.."

"Like shit you'd know!!" the gruff voice retorted rudely,
"He could be the friggin' devil, with those weird eyes of his.... gives
me the creeps! Damn man! If he wasn't paying us so much, I wouldn't give
a...."

"Sh!Sh! Keep it down!" the same gentle voice pleaded nervously.

"Anyway, orders are orders," commanded a husky voice which hadn't
spoken before, "...and the money he's paying is damn worth it too.
Search the area again."

"Okay," grumbled the gruff voice, "but I never been wrong before, and I
tell ya: no freak with a claw or a liite girl is here in this park."

Vincent cautiously peeked around the ancient tree, then instantly hid
his face again: There were four mercenaries, all armed. One wore a
bright blue kerchief and a heavy, open coat; his rugged face looked very
dirty in the feeble lamp light. Another man, of a lean appearance,
carried two guns and an army knife. The muscular mercenary who had
previously passed by wore a red scarf around his thick neck and three
bandoleers across his brawny chest; he peevishly held a huge assault
rifle between his paws. The last man, short with curly red hair, darted
his nervous eyes from one corner to another in paranoid suspicion.

Soon, The armed men silently resumed their search along this empty
road. They scattered off the gravel path again, and began slowly and
meticulously inspecting every inch of the territory. The brittle bushes
were savagely kicked; each tree along and beyond the roadside was
searched; the dark sidetracks were re-checked, this time with greater
care.

Vincent frowned in apprehension: if these men had, indeed, intensified
their search, then it would be a mere matter of minutes before they
uncovered this hideout.

Immediately but with forced calmness, Vincent bent forward until his
mouth lay right by Aeris' ear. He did not loosen his grip around her, or
even lift his hand off her head.

"Aeris, listen to me," Vincent whispered very, very softly through his
woolly muffler, "I want you to stay right here in this spot, okay? I'll
only be gone for a short while."

When she had somehow brought all her fears and chaotic thoughts under
control, Aeris nodded her head in consent. Vincent gently tore her away
from his body, then leaned her back against the knotted tree. Her
anxious eyes fixed themselves right on Vincent's face, even though the
stuffy darkness completely obscured his features. In return, he gazed
down at her for a moment, then abruptly turned away.

Without another look behind, Vincent noislessly slipped out of the
thicket of trees. He crept as stealthily as a cat along the frozen
hedges, keeping his back sharply bent and head very low. His hand
mechanically reached for his gun. It felt so cold between his hot
fingers.

Based on those men's conversation, Vincent was now *almost* sure
Davoren had not accompanied them on this mission. Most likely, the
ruthless gunman had simply hired these mercenaries on condition they
follow his orders to the letter: find the little girl and retrieve her
unharmed; find "the freak with the claw" and retrieve him...dead or
alive (probably better dead).

But a deep suspicion played on Vincent's mind: how, as one of the men
had plainly pointed out, had Davoren known where to find Vincent? The
man certainly posessed a wise and evilly cunning nature, but he was
definitely not psychic. Vincent suspected no spy or informer either;
both Cloud and Tifa had proven themselves loyal friends many times, and
they were the only two who knew for sure of Vincent's whereabouts. If
so, then how could Davoren possibly know?

However, the instant he neared one of the armed men, Vincent
automatically stopped thinking.