Fractured - Chapter 2
Title: Fractured
Authors: madisuzy and calvi_sama
Pairing: Vincent x Tseng
Point In Canon: Two years after FFVII, immediately before Advent Children
Rating: NC-17
Disclaimer: We do not own, nor profit from, the characters and/or locations of Final Fantasy
Warning: Eventual Yaoi, oral, anal, y'know... the good stuff! X3... some violence, some insults, oh, and angst, but that comes standard ;3
Summary: Vincent revisits his past looking for an explanation to the nightmare, only to discover an unexpcted intruder looking for his own answers. As a result, both men find more than they could have ever expected.
A/N: Simply put, this is an RP with madisuzy writing Tseng and calvi_sama writing Vincent (surprised? thought not *snickers*). It was an interesting challenge to bring Vincent back to character (with a little stretching), but well worth it by the end I think X3. Our writing style has matured a bit since the last (ongoing) fic, and due to length, this story is four chapters. It is also the first story in the Salvaged Fate Trilogy.
Chapter 2
Vincent had heard the pursuing footsteps, had known that turning his back would be courting an attack, and as a result had expected some sort of action. From that wariness, he had moved just in time to avoid a rather spectacular blow to his head, only to have the pipe crash down onto his shoulder instead. With a grunt, he felt his right arm go limp and he actually heard a crunch of bone as his collarbone cracked in two. With a snarl he made a fist and brought his gauntlet up to backhand Tseng in the jaw hard enough to send the man flying over into the stone wall. He was at Tseng a second later, hauling the stunned man to his feet and in close to his face. “And you call me insane, Turk,” he hissed, wincing from the pain in his broken collarbone. “You have no clue what you are dealing with.”
Tseng tried to focus on Vincent’s face, but his vision was so affected he could only see a dull blur in front of him as he tried to recover from the hit to his face and the impact into the wall. His plan to knock out the ex-Turk had failed, instead leaving him damaged and with one very pissed off Vincent Valentine pinning him to the wall. He had the ominous feeling that his day was about to get even worse.
Ignoring the pain coming from his jaw and back, Tseng tried to process what the other man had just said, searching for a way to escape this whole scenario with his life. His panicked mind presented him with nothing, so he fell back to his original goal, retrieving the data Valentine held.
“I… I’m a Turk,” he stuttered out, pausing to wince as his jaw protested to the movement. “You know what that means. I have to… to get the data, in any way I can.”
“Even if it means getting yourself killed?” Vincent snarled, shoving Tseng back and wincing in his own barely concealed pain as the bones in his shoulder ground together then began to knit under the influence of Chaos’s power. But could he be so critical? He had been a Turk once, and he knew that the risks for gathering information included the sacrifice of one’s own life if necessary. He had no choice but to respect that, but to send the Director to do this? This he could neither excuse nor forgive. It was a stupid move on Shinra’s part and he said as much. “There’s canon-fodder to send for this job. Shinra is and always will be an idiot. He’s using you and you let him. You’re nothing but a disposable resource to him,” he spat.
Tseng blinked through eyes that were finally beginning to focus, his gaze drawn to Vincent’s shoulder by the sound of cracking bones. He could see what looked like movement under the other man’s clothes and suddenly realized that his attack must have connected with Valentine’s shoulder, which was now healing itself. His eyes wide, he met his opponent’s gaze.
“Yes, even if I get killed. It is my duty, my responsibility to serve the President however he wishes. Besides, all Turks are canon-fodder realistically and I am no better or more valuable than any other.
“Oh, there you are wrong, Tseng,” Vincent growled low in his throat. “You are the Director, are you not? That places a new responsibility upon your shoulders, or have things changed so much in the thirty years since my tenure among you?” He paced back and forth in front of the rattled man. Why did that bother him? The Turks were no longer his concern, but then something Veld had said to him when they were cadets came back to him: Once a Turk, always a Turk, Vince. And he realized that that was true, deep down, viscerally. His loyalty was no longer to Shinra, but his brothers in arms commanded a respect from him, nay, demanded a respect from him, and he knew that they would have felt the same way had the circumstances been reversed.
“Damn you, Veld.” He muttered, and looked back up at Tseng. “Fine,” he growled. “Take your ‘information’ back to your beloved president. We’re done here.” And he turned once more to leave, flexing his newly healed shoulder carefully, wincing as he did so.
“Vincent! I need the data you found, not your own musings on the subject,” Tseng insisted, straightening his clothes as he moved to follow the other man. “I can’t leave without it.”
“Then you’ll be here a very long time,” Vincent said over his shoulder as he paused. “I burned it. It’s all up here.” He tapped his head. “I told you. Find Jenova’s remains.”
Tseng stared at Vincent, his eyes wide with shock. “You… you burnt it? What possessed you to do that? Didn’t you realize how important the information was?” When the ex-Turk simply ignored him and kept walking, Tseng’s temper flared, the smaller man striding up behind him and grabbing onto his arm. “Fuck you, Valentine. Stop walking away while I’m talking to you!”
When Tseng spun him around, Vincent’s eyes narrowed dangerously and his voice growled like approaching thunder, “Get your hands off of me, Turk,” he said, bringing up his arm to dislodge Tseng’s grip. “I burned them because your manipulative employer need not meddle in things he knows nothing about. One Sephiroth was enough, the Planet doesn’t need another one, or have you forgotten about Sephiroth? And that bastard, Shinra has no business even entertaining the idea of resurrecting the SOLDIER program.” He then took several steps forward, pushing Tseng back with his sheer presence alone.
His hand shot out, fast as a striking snake to grab Tseng’s slowly bruising jaw. “Fuck me,” he said with a sneer, “wouldn’t you like to do that.” And he crushed his lips down onto the Turk’s. It was neither passionate, nor kind; it was sheer masculine dominance over the other. And when he drew back he could see undisguised malice in the other man’s black eyes.
“Rufus is nothing like his father. He has no interest in the SOLDIER program and wants this information only to find a cure for Geostigma,” Tseng hissed, jerking his head out of Vincent’s grasp and stepping back. “It is people like you who make his attempts to rectify his father’s sins near impossible. You have no right to judge him, Valentine. Of all people, you should understand the need to rectify sins. After all, wasn’t it you who failed to protect Sephiroth’s true mother from Hojo? Or was it that you supported Hojo and his experiments, until you became one yourself?”
“Don’t you dare to presume to know what happened from a time when you were still sucking on your mother’s tit!” Vincent hissed and brought his balled fist up to crash into Tseng’s face, sending the Turk’s head snapping back on his neck, and causing the man to fall back onto his back with a sickening crunch. He then straddled Tseng’s abdomen, fisted his hand in the Turk’s shirt and dragged the man’s face up close to his own. “So Rufus is sick then? That’s the only way he’d send his lapdog into a pit like this, that or to find another way to take advantage of the people of this Planet. And if that’s the case then they’re better off dead. I don’t know what Veld saw in you,” he sneered.
“The man I remember would never tolerate a sycophantic ass-wiper like you. But you’re right up Shinra’s alley, or do you have Rufus’s cock so far down your throat you can’t even think for yourself anymore?” Disgusted with the Turk, he head butted Tseng, momentarily seeing stars and loving it. “There is no rectification for his father’s sins, and like father… like… son. Let him rot.” And he spat in Tseng’s face and got up, fully intending to leave before he shot the man, Turk or no.
Tseng’s vision blacked out as he gasped for air, winded by the impact with the floor. Blood filled his mouth and he sat up to cough through it, his head pounding with pain as he groped blindly at his ankle, his hands finally finding his back up pistol. Pulling it out and blinking rapidly to clear his vision, he aimed at the retreating blur.
“You so eagerly leave your so called friends to Geostigma’s curse, unwilling to lift a finger to help those that call you family. Rufus has more honor than you will ever possess, you selfish, self-centered, abomination,” he rasped, firing at his retreating attacker until his gun clicked, empty and useless. His hands dropped the spent weapon as he collapsed onto his side, trying desperately to cling to consciousness.
Vincent froze and looked back over his shoulder at the bloody Turk. The gun Tseng was pointing at him was wavering and the man looked as though he fought to stay conscious. Every shot had swung wide, but for one, and that one had nearly hit his shoulder. He shook his head. “The day Rufus has honor is the day I will be forgiven for my sins, Tseng,” he said softly. “And I shall live a great deal longer than he. I have no intention of abandoning my friends. I just do not require your dear little perfect President’s help. They are all that matter to me, and if I am to die along with the rest of the Planet to save them, then so be it.” He laughed harshly, the sound grating and rough. “And I am absolutely an abomination you are right, but ultimately your opinion of me, means nothing.”
“Then you must have already been forgiven,” Tseng muttered, rolling onto his back with a gasp of pain, completely drained from the beating he’d received. Staring up at the ceiling, Tseng gathered that none of his shots had hit the other man and sighed in frustration. This would be so much easier if Valentine had taken a direct hit. “Your hatred of the last President is justified but your hatred of Rufus is not. He wasn’t even born when you were wronged and yet you pass him equal blame. It is easy to judge blindly… and here I was thinking you were an intelligent man.”
“Your loyalty amuses me, Turk,” Vincent said wryly, cocking his head slightly. “Misplaced though it may be. Is your memory so flawed that you forgot that I was a part of the group that stopped Sephiroth? I saw what Rufus had done, and there was no honor in that, only rash stupidity. It’s a pity, really that he didn’t die in that explosion.” He walked over to stand next to Tseng’s prone body, and then knelt. “Poor, poor Tseng, ‘Head of the Turks’. You would never have survived in my time.” He pursed his lips a moment before chuckling.
“Rufus is most certainly not like his father, he knows how to truly manipulate people. One has only to look at you to see a perfect example. It’s actually rather funny.” He then propped his chin on the heel of his hand and said as though explaining something to a very small child. “Think about it, Turk. If you were the president, with ultimate power and everyone under your heel, then you lose everything, it would behoove you to play to the public, pretend to care and put their best interests first and above your own.” He sighed then. “I pity you, poor creature, that you will finally see his true self only when it is too late. Who will mend your broken heart? Your wounded pride? ”
“You know nothing. I raised Rufus for most of his life and know he is capable of being a good man. What he did at the beginning was wrong, but he has learned from that and will not slip back down that path again. I will make sure of it,” Tseng insisted. “As for your insistence that I would not survive in your time as a Turk, I was trained by Veld and he said that I was the only one to ever surpass your skills, Valentine.” Tseng couldn’t help but smirk up at the other man, hoping that if Vincent still had a heart, he could maybe make it sting a little.
Vincent snorted. “Your argument is growing as weak as it is pathetic. Time changes people Tseng, ‘Head of the Turks’. Veld might have said that of you then, but what of you now? You’ve been playing wet nurse to little Rufus Shinra for so long that you’ve forgotten what it’s like to actually be a Turk. Just wait until he betrays you. It’s in his blood.” He sighed and stood back up. “We’re finished here Tseng, stop wasting my time.”
Tseng sighed in frustration, watching Valentine turn away from him once more. He’d tried insults, force and even asking, which left him with only one other option. It was a last resort, one he’d only ever used once or twice in his life, and then only on females, but with no other ideas coming to mind, Tseng was forced to use it. Dragging himself upright as quickly as he could, he stumbled towards Vincent’s retreating back and threw his arms around the other man’s waist, pushing his body flush with the ex-Turk’s and holding on tight.
“Veld told me many things about you, Vincent. Do you still have the same weaknesses that you had all those years ago?” he whispered, his body trembling from the pain the movement caused him.
He had expected more insults or even another physical attack, but what in Hades was Tseng trying to pull now? “What you are doing?” Vincent asked in disbelief as he felt Tseng’s body press up flush against his own. “Have you completely lost your mind?”
“Maybe,” Tseng chuckled softly. “Then again, with all the times you’ve hit my head today, would it be such a surprise?” He managed to get one of his hands to the buckle of Valentine’s belt, letting the other one slowly began to creep lower and hoping he didn’t lose an arm for his actions. “Why, am I making you uncomfortable?”
With a hiss, Vincent grabbed both of Tseng’s wrists and pulled them away from his waist. He then released the Turk and turned around, eyeing the man cautiously. “In point of fact you are. Just what do you think you are trying to accomplish?”
Tseng looked up at Vincent, grinning at the ex-Turk’s reaction. It looked like he had finally found something that would throw the other man off balance. “You started this with all the rubbing and sniffing, Valentine,” he retorted, stepping forward to grasp onto the front of Vincent leathers, pulling their bodies close again. “Do you really hate my touch so much?”
In return, Vincent knocked Tseng’s hands off of his leathers and mirrored the position, fisting his right hand in the Turk’s shirt. “I started it?” He narrowed his eyes. “You can hardly blame me, nor call it my fault when you were the one who couldn’t control your own body. You were practically begging me to fuck you with the pheromones you were giving off. And as a matter of fact, I do hate your touch.” He ended in a sneer and released Tseng with a rough shove, causing the Turk to stagger back a couple of steps.
“So Veld was right. He always said you were too virginal for your own good. Does cock really scare you that much?” Tseng retorted, grinning as he straightened up, his head spinning once more.
Vincent snorted. “What, do you have a selective memory? You must not have heard all Veld’s stories. The man always did talk too much when he was drunk,” he muttered, then said a little louder, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “No, cock doesn’t ‘scare’ me, Turk, just yours. You’ve been bending over for Shinra for so long, there’s no telling what you’ve contracted.”
“Only in your dreams, Vincent,” Tseng replied, still grinning. The Turk was beginning to enjoy the banter back and fourth, which led him to believe he’d definitely been spending far too much time with Reno. “And I don’t bend over for anyone. Do you? Or are you still guarding that purity of yours so carefully? Maybe you just find yourself too good for us mortal humans now?”
“I don’t sleep, ergo I don’t dream and if I did, and dreamt of that blemish between your legs that you call a dick it would be enough reason to avoid sleep at all costs.” Vincent rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. “You don’t bend over for anyone? Well, I suppose Rufus is smarter than I thought, knowing better than to let a filthy Wutainese gutter rat near any hope he might have at an heir. Of course,” he said meditatively, “Rufus might want to reconsider his orientation if he ever wanted to obtain an heir in the first place. Though I still have to question his decision that your mouth is any cleaner than your ass. And no, I’m certainly not worthy of ‘mortal humans’ now, but I’m closer to that worthiness than you and the other Shinra scum who betrayed them are.”
Tseng laughed outright, not able to hold back his amusement. “Oh Valentine, hit a nerve did I?” he managed to say, once he’d gotten his laughter under control. “You’re very defensive on this particular subject, aren’t you? Hmmm… I sense maybe you might have some performance issues in that department, or size issues, at the least.”
Vincent chuckled through his irritation. Classic Turk move: identify a weakness and hack away at it until your prey gives and either spills the information or attacks to give you the upper hand. He’d play along then. It had been awhile since something had amused him this much. “Oh, well I guess you sniffed me out, Tseng ‘Head of the Turks’. You just know me so well that you can identify my weaknesses by speaking to me for only a short time,” he said mildly. “Though, I do have to wonder at your own interest on this subject. I mean, before you diagnosed me as having performance issues and a clear lack of size, indeed before you even knew who I was, you were interested in me. I could smell it! If I am so concerned with my ‘purity’, then I think you might be suffering from a rather… looser problem, yes?”
“What can I say? Danger excites me. Of course, once I’d seen you… well, you’ve got a nice ass and I always did have a weakness for leather,” Tseng murmured, grin twisting into a smirk. “Seriously, Valentine. Have you even had sex in the last twenty years? You know, celibacy can make a man irritable and it’s not good for you health.”
“And why do you care again?” Vincent asked, quirking an eyebrow. “Oh wait,” he said holding up his gloved hand solemnly. “Forgive me, my ‘virginal purity’. Well, since that is such a concern it would be in my best interest to avoid sex now wouldn’t it?” He blinked innocently.
“Your choice. It’s a shame you constantly deny yourself pleasure though. Do you honestly think that you can make amends for past errors by making yourself suffer now? Rather depressing view on life you have. You look down on Turks, but at least we understand that life is short and pleasure one of its few rewards,” Tseng murmured, beginning to tire of the conversation as Valentine stopped reacting. The man really was a block of stone when it came to sex, it would seem.
Vincent shrugged. “Perhaps. But it is my choice, is it not? And maybe my path is one destined for self destruction, but that is not your concern. I remember the faint memories of being a Turk, and my animosity is not for you, nor do I think you really hate me. Your loyalty is admirable, Tseng. It’s a shame it is not appreciated. But the circumstances for my sins are far beyond your ability to comprehend.”
“You should leave your judgment to the gods, Valentine,” Tseng said softly, walking over to lean on the nearest wall as his injuries began to throb. “Don’t you tire of it? All this self hatred and mourning over sins that you can do nothing to redeem? If what little knowledge we do have of you is true, you are going to live a very long time. Far too long to waste in darkness.”
“The Gods have abandoned me, Tseng,” Vincent said softly, moving over to rest against the far wall. “They hold sway and judgment over all things mortal and since I am no longer mortal then I would be waiting a very long time indeed for their judgment. And the truth of it is I have existed this way for so long that I no longer remember what an unburdened life feels like. I rather envy you your simple, short lives.”
“Well, if the gods have abandoned you, what are you worried about? It only means you answer to no one and are free to do what you please. After all, life is not measured by length, but the quality of the living, Valentine,” Tseng replied, closing his eyes and sighing. “You really are a very depressing man.”
“You just don’t get it do you, Turk.” Vincent replied with a sigh. “I could turn myself into a saint; do ‘good things’ for the rest of eternity, but still be shackled by my own sins. I would be no closer to absolution. Those who could forgive me are gone, and I can never ask them for forgiveness, and so I shall remain trapped. I think,” he said pushing off of the wall and taking a step toward the laboratory so that he could see the dim outline of the metal examination table beyond. “I think I shall be forgiven, when I am allowed to die.” He shuddered and turned away from the door then to face the wall, and he gave a dry snort. “And I’ll take that last bit as a compliment.”
“Fine. Insist on your self torture if you must,” Tseng murmured, opening his eyes to look over the other man. He really does have a nice ass… “But while you’re waiting for your death, would it really be so bad to fuck once in a while?”
Vincent raised one eyebrow in a smirk. “Are you offering? Tseng, ‘Head of the Turks’?”
Tseng’s interest in the conversation was suddenly back with that one line. Was the other man serious? Thinking over their conversation, he reasoned this was just another bluff from the ex-Turk so he decided to play along. After all, he could hardly back down now.
“I would think my interest was already quiet clear to you, Valentine. You are the one who was so frightened of my apparently ‘diseased’ body. Have you suddenly found your bravery or is this just more chest thumping from you?”
Vincent laughed outright at that. “Oh I wouldn’t worry too much about what diseases you might be carrying, Turk. My body is nearly indestructible. But I suppose I could always get lucky and ‘catch’ something from you that might kill me. Oh the irony of finding my death from a Turk-born disease. My redemption delivered by a member of the organization that betrayed me! Now that is humorous.”
“Now you’re making me wish I did have something to pass on to you,” Tseng retorted, a grin finding its way back to his lips as he pushed off the wall and slowly approached the ex-Turk. It would be interesting to see how far the other man would let this go. “I do have to ask though, have you ever had sex with a man before, Valentine? Actually, have you ever had sex with anyone before?”
Vincent’s only reply was a secretive little smile. When Tseng stood in front of him, strong chin raised in pride, he leaned forward to murmur into one ear. “Well I guess we’ll find out won’t we.” He then brought his gloved hand down to firmly cup and squeeze Tseng’s crotch as he nipped Tseng’s earlobe. “You were wrong when you said you bend over for no one, Tseng ‘Head of the Turks’, because you will bend over for me.”
Tseng was glad Vincent couldn’t see his eyes go wide in reaction. He hadn’t expected the ex-Turk to move so boldly or aggressively, reasoning that the other man would back down before any actual touching occurred. The words Valentine whispered into Tseng’s ear had him tensing up, despite his efforts to try and keep his body relaxed. He’s just pushing it, waiting for me to back down first… surely…
“Me bending over for you will require more than a grope and a threat, Valentine,” he retorted, wrapping one arm around the leather clad waist before him and pushing his hips forward into the other’s hand. “Sure you’re really up for this?”
Grinning toothily, Vincent stood firm against Tseng’s advance. He brought his gauntlet up to wrap around Tseng’s throat, the claw on his thumb gently scratching the Turk’s cheek. “Would I have been so forward if I weren’t ‘up for this’?” He countered, eyelids dropping halfway, hooding his red eyes. “But your concern for my ‘virginal purity’ is duly noted.” He smirked. “More than a grope and a threat you say? Is this you asking me to force you? I should hate to do that.” His grin turned feral. “But I will if you give me no choice.”
“I…,” Tseng began, stopping to swallow and steady his voice, his eyes locked onto the ex-Turk’s. The claw wrapped around his throat was having an unpredicted effect on his libido and Vincent’s words continued to only add to his arousal. “I’m sure your heart would bleed over my discomfort,” he managed, his voice sounding far calmer that he felt.
Vincent rumbled a chuckle, face mere inches away from Tseng’s. “Actually, I don’t really care about your comfort. You’re a Turk; you’re trained for this…” He brushed his lips against Tseng’s, just the barest hint of contact before his lips spread back into their feral grin. “… or has a desk job made you…” he openly let his eyes roam down Tseng’s body, then back up to the man’s black, black eyes. “… weak?”
“I am not weak,” Tseng hissed, alarm bells going off in his head, which he tried to ignore. He would not let Valentine intimidate him, no matter how vulnerable he was right now. “If it is pain and not pleasure that interests you, I would suggest you let me go. I may be perverted, but I am not twisted.”
“And what’s wrong with a little pain mixed with pleasure, hm?” Vincent purred. “Don’t you ever long to have someone control you? Someone who is your equal and not your superior? Someone who knows the awful weight of responsibility? And someone whose pulse is quickened by danger just as much? Haven’t you ever wanted to relinquish that control… just once?” His voice ended in a near whisper as he lowered his head to Tseng’s neck, taking his time to lick up column of the man’s throat before trailing his lips back down to just above Tseng’s collar where he nipped sharply.
Tseng opened his lips to respond to Vincent’s words, only to gasp when his neck was licked. He could feel his face heat as his body reacted, against his wishes. “There is nothing wrong with a little pain mixed with pleasure… as long as you remember my human limits,” he responded breathlessly. “And while danger does excite me, you will find my control is not so easily broken. No one has managed it yet.”
“Oh, I think I’ve come so very close already,” Vincent murmured, sliding his hand to the waistband of Tseng’s slacks. “I can hear it in your very blood,” he said, slowly working the button open, followed by a slow pulling of a zipper. “Your human limits?” he asked, reaching into Tseng’s slacks and cupping the Turk’s cock boldly, squeezing just shy of pain. “Push them, Tseng. Push them until they scream for mercy.”
The moan that slipped from Tseng’s lips left his mind screaming obscenities at itself. He was losing this battle of wills at an embarrassingly fast rate that was completely unacceptable. Valentine was beautiful, dangerous and could break him in two with little effort and all of these facts should have warned him not to even try. Problem was, he’d always had a weakness for everything Vincent was and as a Turk, he had an overwhelming urge to challenge his own weaknesses.
“Make me,” he whispered, leaning in close to nip at the ex-Turk’s bottom lip, pulling it gently between his teeth. Tseng suddenly realized that his only chance lay in trying to get the upper hand, no matter how much his whole body wanted to just surrender.
“Oh, I think you’re going to regret saying that, Tseng, ‘Head of the Turks’.” Vincent rumbled right before crushing his lips back down onto Tseng’s once again. He thrust his tongue into Tseng’s mouth, staking an irrefutable claim on the shorter man and making an inarguable point at the same time. While his mouth kept the Turk busy, his gloved hand remained active, quickly and efficiently frisking him. He gasped and pulled back as he located a set of plasticuffs. “What have we here, Turk? Been hiding some toys have we?” Of course he had known some sort of tool of restraint would have been on the man. It had been his goal to find them when he had kissed Tseng.
He quickly grabbed Tseng’s wrists and there was a set of zipping ‘whizzes’ as he bound the man’s hands in front of him. “Shall we make this more interesting?” He purred, smirking.
TBC
Chapter 3
Authors: madisuzy and calvi_sama
Pairing: Vincent x Tseng
Point In Canon: Two years after FFVII, immediately before Advent Children
Rating: NC-17
Disclaimer: We do not own, nor profit from, the characters and/or locations of Final Fantasy
Warning: Eventual Yaoi, oral, anal, y'know... the good stuff! X3... some violence, some insults, oh, and angst, but that comes standard ;3
Summary: Vincent revisits his past looking for an explanation to the nightmare, only to discover an unexpcted intruder looking for his own answers. As a result, both men find more than they could have ever expected.
A/N: Simply put, this is an RP with madisuzy writing Tseng and calvi_sama writing Vincent (surprised? thought not *snickers*). It was an interesting challenge to bring Vincent back to character (with a little stretching), but well worth it by the end I think X3. Our writing style has matured a bit since the last (ongoing) fic, and due to length, this story is four chapters. It is also the first story in the Salvaged Fate Trilogy.
Chapter 2
Vincent had heard the pursuing footsteps, had known that turning his back would be courting an attack, and as a result had expected some sort of action. From that wariness, he had moved just in time to avoid a rather spectacular blow to his head, only to have the pipe crash down onto his shoulder instead. With a grunt, he felt his right arm go limp and he actually heard a crunch of bone as his collarbone cracked in two. With a snarl he made a fist and brought his gauntlet up to backhand Tseng in the jaw hard enough to send the man flying over into the stone wall. He was at Tseng a second later, hauling the stunned man to his feet and in close to his face. “And you call me insane, Turk,” he hissed, wincing from the pain in his broken collarbone. “You have no clue what you are dealing with.”
Tseng tried to focus on Vincent’s face, but his vision was so affected he could only see a dull blur in front of him as he tried to recover from the hit to his face and the impact into the wall. His plan to knock out the ex-Turk had failed, instead leaving him damaged and with one very pissed off Vincent Valentine pinning him to the wall. He had the ominous feeling that his day was about to get even worse.
Ignoring the pain coming from his jaw and back, Tseng tried to process what the other man had just said, searching for a way to escape this whole scenario with his life. His panicked mind presented him with nothing, so he fell back to his original goal, retrieving the data Valentine held.
“I… I’m a Turk,” he stuttered out, pausing to wince as his jaw protested to the movement. “You know what that means. I have to… to get the data, in any way I can.”
“Even if it means getting yourself killed?” Vincent snarled, shoving Tseng back and wincing in his own barely concealed pain as the bones in his shoulder ground together then began to knit under the influence of Chaos’s power. But could he be so critical? He had been a Turk once, and he knew that the risks for gathering information included the sacrifice of one’s own life if necessary. He had no choice but to respect that, but to send the Director to do this? This he could neither excuse nor forgive. It was a stupid move on Shinra’s part and he said as much. “There’s canon-fodder to send for this job. Shinra is and always will be an idiot. He’s using you and you let him. You’re nothing but a disposable resource to him,” he spat.
Tseng blinked through eyes that were finally beginning to focus, his gaze drawn to Vincent’s shoulder by the sound of cracking bones. He could see what looked like movement under the other man’s clothes and suddenly realized that his attack must have connected with Valentine’s shoulder, which was now healing itself. His eyes wide, he met his opponent’s gaze.
“Yes, even if I get killed. It is my duty, my responsibility to serve the President however he wishes. Besides, all Turks are canon-fodder realistically and I am no better or more valuable than any other.
“Oh, there you are wrong, Tseng,” Vincent growled low in his throat. “You are the Director, are you not? That places a new responsibility upon your shoulders, or have things changed so much in the thirty years since my tenure among you?” He paced back and forth in front of the rattled man. Why did that bother him? The Turks were no longer his concern, but then something Veld had said to him when they were cadets came back to him: Once a Turk, always a Turk, Vince. And he realized that that was true, deep down, viscerally. His loyalty was no longer to Shinra, but his brothers in arms commanded a respect from him, nay, demanded a respect from him, and he knew that they would have felt the same way had the circumstances been reversed.
“Damn you, Veld.” He muttered, and looked back up at Tseng. “Fine,” he growled. “Take your ‘information’ back to your beloved president. We’re done here.” And he turned once more to leave, flexing his newly healed shoulder carefully, wincing as he did so.
“Vincent! I need the data you found, not your own musings on the subject,” Tseng insisted, straightening his clothes as he moved to follow the other man. “I can’t leave without it.”
“Then you’ll be here a very long time,” Vincent said over his shoulder as he paused. “I burned it. It’s all up here.” He tapped his head. “I told you. Find Jenova’s remains.”
Tseng stared at Vincent, his eyes wide with shock. “You… you burnt it? What possessed you to do that? Didn’t you realize how important the information was?” When the ex-Turk simply ignored him and kept walking, Tseng’s temper flared, the smaller man striding up behind him and grabbing onto his arm. “Fuck you, Valentine. Stop walking away while I’m talking to you!”
When Tseng spun him around, Vincent’s eyes narrowed dangerously and his voice growled like approaching thunder, “Get your hands off of me, Turk,” he said, bringing up his arm to dislodge Tseng’s grip. “I burned them because your manipulative employer need not meddle in things he knows nothing about. One Sephiroth was enough, the Planet doesn’t need another one, or have you forgotten about Sephiroth? And that bastard, Shinra has no business even entertaining the idea of resurrecting the SOLDIER program.” He then took several steps forward, pushing Tseng back with his sheer presence alone.
His hand shot out, fast as a striking snake to grab Tseng’s slowly bruising jaw. “Fuck me,” he said with a sneer, “wouldn’t you like to do that.” And he crushed his lips down onto the Turk’s. It was neither passionate, nor kind; it was sheer masculine dominance over the other. And when he drew back he could see undisguised malice in the other man’s black eyes.
“Rufus is nothing like his father. He has no interest in the SOLDIER program and wants this information only to find a cure for Geostigma,” Tseng hissed, jerking his head out of Vincent’s grasp and stepping back. “It is people like you who make his attempts to rectify his father’s sins near impossible. You have no right to judge him, Valentine. Of all people, you should understand the need to rectify sins. After all, wasn’t it you who failed to protect Sephiroth’s true mother from Hojo? Or was it that you supported Hojo and his experiments, until you became one yourself?”
“Don’t you dare to presume to know what happened from a time when you were still sucking on your mother’s tit!” Vincent hissed and brought his balled fist up to crash into Tseng’s face, sending the Turk’s head snapping back on his neck, and causing the man to fall back onto his back with a sickening crunch. He then straddled Tseng’s abdomen, fisted his hand in the Turk’s shirt and dragged the man’s face up close to his own. “So Rufus is sick then? That’s the only way he’d send his lapdog into a pit like this, that or to find another way to take advantage of the people of this Planet. And if that’s the case then they’re better off dead. I don’t know what Veld saw in you,” he sneered.
“The man I remember would never tolerate a sycophantic ass-wiper like you. But you’re right up Shinra’s alley, or do you have Rufus’s cock so far down your throat you can’t even think for yourself anymore?” Disgusted with the Turk, he head butted Tseng, momentarily seeing stars and loving it. “There is no rectification for his father’s sins, and like father… like… son. Let him rot.” And he spat in Tseng’s face and got up, fully intending to leave before he shot the man, Turk or no.
Tseng’s vision blacked out as he gasped for air, winded by the impact with the floor. Blood filled his mouth and he sat up to cough through it, his head pounding with pain as he groped blindly at his ankle, his hands finally finding his back up pistol. Pulling it out and blinking rapidly to clear his vision, he aimed at the retreating blur.
“You so eagerly leave your so called friends to Geostigma’s curse, unwilling to lift a finger to help those that call you family. Rufus has more honor than you will ever possess, you selfish, self-centered, abomination,” he rasped, firing at his retreating attacker until his gun clicked, empty and useless. His hands dropped the spent weapon as he collapsed onto his side, trying desperately to cling to consciousness.
Vincent froze and looked back over his shoulder at the bloody Turk. The gun Tseng was pointing at him was wavering and the man looked as though he fought to stay conscious. Every shot had swung wide, but for one, and that one had nearly hit his shoulder. He shook his head. “The day Rufus has honor is the day I will be forgiven for my sins, Tseng,” he said softly. “And I shall live a great deal longer than he. I have no intention of abandoning my friends. I just do not require your dear little perfect President’s help. They are all that matter to me, and if I am to die along with the rest of the Planet to save them, then so be it.” He laughed harshly, the sound grating and rough. “And I am absolutely an abomination you are right, but ultimately your opinion of me, means nothing.”
“Then you must have already been forgiven,” Tseng muttered, rolling onto his back with a gasp of pain, completely drained from the beating he’d received. Staring up at the ceiling, Tseng gathered that none of his shots had hit the other man and sighed in frustration. This would be so much easier if Valentine had taken a direct hit. “Your hatred of the last President is justified but your hatred of Rufus is not. He wasn’t even born when you were wronged and yet you pass him equal blame. It is easy to judge blindly… and here I was thinking you were an intelligent man.”
“Your loyalty amuses me, Turk,” Vincent said wryly, cocking his head slightly. “Misplaced though it may be. Is your memory so flawed that you forgot that I was a part of the group that stopped Sephiroth? I saw what Rufus had done, and there was no honor in that, only rash stupidity. It’s a pity, really that he didn’t die in that explosion.” He walked over to stand next to Tseng’s prone body, and then knelt. “Poor, poor Tseng, ‘Head of the Turks’. You would never have survived in my time.” He pursed his lips a moment before chuckling.
“Rufus is most certainly not like his father, he knows how to truly manipulate people. One has only to look at you to see a perfect example. It’s actually rather funny.” He then propped his chin on the heel of his hand and said as though explaining something to a very small child. “Think about it, Turk. If you were the president, with ultimate power and everyone under your heel, then you lose everything, it would behoove you to play to the public, pretend to care and put their best interests first and above your own.” He sighed then. “I pity you, poor creature, that you will finally see his true self only when it is too late. Who will mend your broken heart? Your wounded pride? ”
“You know nothing. I raised Rufus for most of his life and know he is capable of being a good man. What he did at the beginning was wrong, but he has learned from that and will not slip back down that path again. I will make sure of it,” Tseng insisted. “As for your insistence that I would not survive in your time as a Turk, I was trained by Veld and he said that I was the only one to ever surpass your skills, Valentine.” Tseng couldn’t help but smirk up at the other man, hoping that if Vincent still had a heart, he could maybe make it sting a little.
Vincent snorted. “Your argument is growing as weak as it is pathetic. Time changes people Tseng, ‘Head of the Turks’. Veld might have said that of you then, but what of you now? You’ve been playing wet nurse to little Rufus Shinra for so long that you’ve forgotten what it’s like to actually be a Turk. Just wait until he betrays you. It’s in his blood.” He sighed and stood back up. “We’re finished here Tseng, stop wasting my time.”
Tseng sighed in frustration, watching Valentine turn away from him once more. He’d tried insults, force and even asking, which left him with only one other option. It was a last resort, one he’d only ever used once or twice in his life, and then only on females, but with no other ideas coming to mind, Tseng was forced to use it. Dragging himself upright as quickly as he could, he stumbled towards Vincent’s retreating back and threw his arms around the other man’s waist, pushing his body flush with the ex-Turk’s and holding on tight.
“Veld told me many things about you, Vincent. Do you still have the same weaknesses that you had all those years ago?” he whispered, his body trembling from the pain the movement caused him.
He had expected more insults or even another physical attack, but what in Hades was Tseng trying to pull now? “What you are doing?” Vincent asked in disbelief as he felt Tseng’s body press up flush against his own. “Have you completely lost your mind?”
“Maybe,” Tseng chuckled softly. “Then again, with all the times you’ve hit my head today, would it be such a surprise?” He managed to get one of his hands to the buckle of Valentine’s belt, letting the other one slowly began to creep lower and hoping he didn’t lose an arm for his actions. “Why, am I making you uncomfortable?”
With a hiss, Vincent grabbed both of Tseng’s wrists and pulled them away from his waist. He then released the Turk and turned around, eyeing the man cautiously. “In point of fact you are. Just what do you think you are trying to accomplish?”
Tseng looked up at Vincent, grinning at the ex-Turk’s reaction. It looked like he had finally found something that would throw the other man off balance. “You started this with all the rubbing and sniffing, Valentine,” he retorted, stepping forward to grasp onto the front of Vincent leathers, pulling their bodies close again. “Do you really hate my touch so much?”
In return, Vincent knocked Tseng’s hands off of his leathers and mirrored the position, fisting his right hand in the Turk’s shirt. “I started it?” He narrowed his eyes. “You can hardly blame me, nor call it my fault when you were the one who couldn’t control your own body. You were practically begging me to fuck you with the pheromones you were giving off. And as a matter of fact, I do hate your touch.” He ended in a sneer and released Tseng with a rough shove, causing the Turk to stagger back a couple of steps.
“So Veld was right. He always said you were too virginal for your own good. Does cock really scare you that much?” Tseng retorted, grinning as he straightened up, his head spinning once more.
Vincent snorted. “What, do you have a selective memory? You must not have heard all Veld’s stories. The man always did talk too much when he was drunk,” he muttered, then said a little louder, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “No, cock doesn’t ‘scare’ me, Turk, just yours. You’ve been bending over for Shinra for so long, there’s no telling what you’ve contracted.”
“Only in your dreams, Vincent,” Tseng replied, still grinning. The Turk was beginning to enjoy the banter back and fourth, which led him to believe he’d definitely been spending far too much time with Reno. “And I don’t bend over for anyone. Do you? Or are you still guarding that purity of yours so carefully? Maybe you just find yourself too good for us mortal humans now?”
“I don’t sleep, ergo I don’t dream and if I did, and dreamt of that blemish between your legs that you call a dick it would be enough reason to avoid sleep at all costs.” Vincent rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. “You don’t bend over for anyone? Well, I suppose Rufus is smarter than I thought, knowing better than to let a filthy Wutainese gutter rat near any hope he might have at an heir. Of course,” he said meditatively, “Rufus might want to reconsider his orientation if he ever wanted to obtain an heir in the first place. Though I still have to question his decision that your mouth is any cleaner than your ass. And no, I’m certainly not worthy of ‘mortal humans’ now, but I’m closer to that worthiness than you and the other Shinra scum who betrayed them are.”
Tseng laughed outright, not able to hold back his amusement. “Oh Valentine, hit a nerve did I?” he managed to say, once he’d gotten his laughter under control. “You’re very defensive on this particular subject, aren’t you? Hmmm… I sense maybe you might have some performance issues in that department, or size issues, at the least.”
Vincent chuckled through his irritation. Classic Turk move: identify a weakness and hack away at it until your prey gives and either spills the information or attacks to give you the upper hand. He’d play along then. It had been awhile since something had amused him this much. “Oh, well I guess you sniffed me out, Tseng ‘Head of the Turks’. You just know me so well that you can identify my weaknesses by speaking to me for only a short time,” he said mildly. “Though, I do have to wonder at your own interest on this subject. I mean, before you diagnosed me as having performance issues and a clear lack of size, indeed before you even knew who I was, you were interested in me. I could smell it! If I am so concerned with my ‘purity’, then I think you might be suffering from a rather… looser problem, yes?”
“What can I say? Danger excites me. Of course, once I’d seen you… well, you’ve got a nice ass and I always did have a weakness for leather,” Tseng murmured, grin twisting into a smirk. “Seriously, Valentine. Have you even had sex in the last twenty years? You know, celibacy can make a man irritable and it’s not good for you health.”
“And why do you care again?” Vincent asked, quirking an eyebrow. “Oh wait,” he said holding up his gloved hand solemnly. “Forgive me, my ‘virginal purity’. Well, since that is such a concern it would be in my best interest to avoid sex now wouldn’t it?” He blinked innocently.
“Your choice. It’s a shame you constantly deny yourself pleasure though. Do you honestly think that you can make amends for past errors by making yourself suffer now? Rather depressing view on life you have. You look down on Turks, but at least we understand that life is short and pleasure one of its few rewards,” Tseng murmured, beginning to tire of the conversation as Valentine stopped reacting. The man really was a block of stone when it came to sex, it would seem.
Vincent shrugged. “Perhaps. But it is my choice, is it not? And maybe my path is one destined for self destruction, but that is not your concern. I remember the faint memories of being a Turk, and my animosity is not for you, nor do I think you really hate me. Your loyalty is admirable, Tseng. It’s a shame it is not appreciated. But the circumstances for my sins are far beyond your ability to comprehend.”
“You should leave your judgment to the gods, Valentine,” Tseng said softly, walking over to lean on the nearest wall as his injuries began to throb. “Don’t you tire of it? All this self hatred and mourning over sins that you can do nothing to redeem? If what little knowledge we do have of you is true, you are going to live a very long time. Far too long to waste in darkness.”
“The Gods have abandoned me, Tseng,” Vincent said softly, moving over to rest against the far wall. “They hold sway and judgment over all things mortal and since I am no longer mortal then I would be waiting a very long time indeed for their judgment. And the truth of it is I have existed this way for so long that I no longer remember what an unburdened life feels like. I rather envy you your simple, short lives.”
“Well, if the gods have abandoned you, what are you worried about? It only means you answer to no one and are free to do what you please. After all, life is not measured by length, but the quality of the living, Valentine,” Tseng replied, closing his eyes and sighing. “You really are a very depressing man.”
“You just don’t get it do you, Turk.” Vincent replied with a sigh. “I could turn myself into a saint; do ‘good things’ for the rest of eternity, but still be shackled by my own sins. I would be no closer to absolution. Those who could forgive me are gone, and I can never ask them for forgiveness, and so I shall remain trapped. I think,” he said pushing off of the wall and taking a step toward the laboratory so that he could see the dim outline of the metal examination table beyond. “I think I shall be forgiven, when I am allowed to die.” He shuddered and turned away from the door then to face the wall, and he gave a dry snort. “And I’ll take that last bit as a compliment.”
“Fine. Insist on your self torture if you must,” Tseng murmured, opening his eyes to look over the other man. He really does have a nice ass… “But while you’re waiting for your death, would it really be so bad to fuck once in a while?”
Vincent raised one eyebrow in a smirk. “Are you offering? Tseng, ‘Head of the Turks’?”
Tseng’s interest in the conversation was suddenly back with that one line. Was the other man serious? Thinking over their conversation, he reasoned this was just another bluff from the ex-Turk so he decided to play along. After all, he could hardly back down now.
“I would think my interest was already quiet clear to you, Valentine. You are the one who was so frightened of my apparently ‘diseased’ body. Have you suddenly found your bravery or is this just more chest thumping from you?”
Vincent laughed outright at that. “Oh I wouldn’t worry too much about what diseases you might be carrying, Turk. My body is nearly indestructible. But I suppose I could always get lucky and ‘catch’ something from you that might kill me. Oh the irony of finding my death from a Turk-born disease. My redemption delivered by a member of the organization that betrayed me! Now that is humorous.”
“Now you’re making me wish I did have something to pass on to you,” Tseng retorted, a grin finding its way back to his lips as he pushed off the wall and slowly approached the ex-Turk. It would be interesting to see how far the other man would let this go. “I do have to ask though, have you ever had sex with a man before, Valentine? Actually, have you ever had sex with anyone before?”
Vincent’s only reply was a secretive little smile. When Tseng stood in front of him, strong chin raised in pride, he leaned forward to murmur into one ear. “Well I guess we’ll find out won’t we.” He then brought his gloved hand down to firmly cup and squeeze Tseng’s crotch as he nipped Tseng’s earlobe. “You were wrong when you said you bend over for no one, Tseng ‘Head of the Turks’, because you will bend over for me.”
Tseng was glad Vincent couldn’t see his eyes go wide in reaction. He hadn’t expected the ex-Turk to move so boldly or aggressively, reasoning that the other man would back down before any actual touching occurred. The words Valentine whispered into Tseng’s ear had him tensing up, despite his efforts to try and keep his body relaxed. He’s just pushing it, waiting for me to back down first… surely…
“Me bending over for you will require more than a grope and a threat, Valentine,” he retorted, wrapping one arm around the leather clad waist before him and pushing his hips forward into the other’s hand. “Sure you’re really up for this?”
Grinning toothily, Vincent stood firm against Tseng’s advance. He brought his gauntlet up to wrap around Tseng’s throat, the claw on his thumb gently scratching the Turk’s cheek. “Would I have been so forward if I weren’t ‘up for this’?” He countered, eyelids dropping halfway, hooding his red eyes. “But your concern for my ‘virginal purity’ is duly noted.” He smirked. “More than a grope and a threat you say? Is this you asking me to force you? I should hate to do that.” His grin turned feral. “But I will if you give me no choice.”
“I…,” Tseng began, stopping to swallow and steady his voice, his eyes locked onto the ex-Turk’s. The claw wrapped around his throat was having an unpredicted effect on his libido and Vincent’s words continued to only add to his arousal. “I’m sure your heart would bleed over my discomfort,” he managed, his voice sounding far calmer that he felt.
Vincent rumbled a chuckle, face mere inches away from Tseng’s. “Actually, I don’t really care about your comfort. You’re a Turk; you’re trained for this…” He brushed his lips against Tseng’s, just the barest hint of contact before his lips spread back into their feral grin. “… or has a desk job made you…” he openly let his eyes roam down Tseng’s body, then back up to the man’s black, black eyes. “… weak?”
“I am not weak,” Tseng hissed, alarm bells going off in his head, which he tried to ignore. He would not let Valentine intimidate him, no matter how vulnerable he was right now. “If it is pain and not pleasure that interests you, I would suggest you let me go. I may be perverted, but I am not twisted.”
“And what’s wrong with a little pain mixed with pleasure, hm?” Vincent purred. “Don’t you ever long to have someone control you? Someone who is your equal and not your superior? Someone who knows the awful weight of responsibility? And someone whose pulse is quickened by danger just as much? Haven’t you ever wanted to relinquish that control… just once?” His voice ended in a near whisper as he lowered his head to Tseng’s neck, taking his time to lick up column of the man’s throat before trailing his lips back down to just above Tseng’s collar where he nipped sharply.
Tseng opened his lips to respond to Vincent’s words, only to gasp when his neck was licked. He could feel his face heat as his body reacted, against his wishes. “There is nothing wrong with a little pain mixed with pleasure… as long as you remember my human limits,” he responded breathlessly. “And while danger does excite me, you will find my control is not so easily broken. No one has managed it yet.”
“Oh, I think I’ve come so very close already,” Vincent murmured, sliding his hand to the waistband of Tseng’s slacks. “I can hear it in your very blood,” he said, slowly working the button open, followed by a slow pulling of a zipper. “Your human limits?” he asked, reaching into Tseng’s slacks and cupping the Turk’s cock boldly, squeezing just shy of pain. “Push them, Tseng. Push them until they scream for mercy.”
The moan that slipped from Tseng’s lips left his mind screaming obscenities at itself. He was losing this battle of wills at an embarrassingly fast rate that was completely unacceptable. Valentine was beautiful, dangerous and could break him in two with little effort and all of these facts should have warned him not to even try. Problem was, he’d always had a weakness for everything Vincent was and as a Turk, he had an overwhelming urge to challenge his own weaknesses.
“Make me,” he whispered, leaning in close to nip at the ex-Turk’s bottom lip, pulling it gently between his teeth. Tseng suddenly realized that his only chance lay in trying to get the upper hand, no matter how much his whole body wanted to just surrender.
“Oh, I think you’re going to regret saying that, Tseng, ‘Head of the Turks’.” Vincent rumbled right before crushing his lips back down onto Tseng’s once again. He thrust his tongue into Tseng’s mouth, staking an irrefutable claim on the shorter man and making an inarguable point at the same time. While his mouth kept the Turk busy, his gloved hand remained active, quickly and efficiently frisking him. He gasped and pulled back as he located a set of plasticuffs. “What have we here, Turk? Been hiding some toys have we?” Of course he had known some sort of tool of restraint would have been on the man. It had been his goal to find them when he had kissed Tseng.
He quickly grabbed Tseng’s wrists and there was a set of zipping ‘whizzes’ as he bound the man’s hands in front of him. “Shall we make this more interesting?” He purred, smirking.
TBC
Chapter 3