Vincent walked down the hall from the sick bay. He was giving Vianca a few moments alone to think. She was feeling a little better thanks to his comfort, but she wanted just another minute or two to grieve the deaths she caused and remind herself of what she was striving for. Vincent understood. He spent thirty years confined in a coffin, contemplating everything from his words to his actions. So if Vianca needed a few minutes, then that was the least he could give her.

A jolt of pain suddenly hit him, causing him to flinch and stop in his tracks. It was happening again, but worse than before. His vision blurred and turned red, and he was unaware of the growls and snarls coming from his own throat. His body had changed almost completely into Chaos. To him, it felt too surreal, like he was sleeping and caught up in a dream. He stumbled around in the corridor, flailing and clawing at thin air. His claws raked across the wall, leaving grooves. He paused upon hearing voices from a few women passing by, and he was on the verge of lashing out at them.

Vincent's plight hadn't gone unnoticed. Vianca felt a tinge of pain in her chest that made her jump out of her seat. She could feel Aegis reacting to something, and judging by the intensity, it was close by. She glanced at Shelke, who appeared to still be resting, then headed for the door. She clutched at her chest, struggling to contain Aegis. As soon as the door slid open for her, she spotted a winged creature in the hall. Her eyes widened. She knew exactly what it was. That creature was Chaos, which also meant...

"Vincent!" she called.

The demonic looking man whirled around to face her in an instant. His sharp canines gritted together, and his gold eyes fixated on her. Vianca was having trouble staying on her feet from the jolts of pain in her chest, leaning against the door frame for support. Chaos reached out toward her, but in an instant, he shifted back to Vincent. The male stared at her in confusion, unsure of what just occurred.

"What's happening?" he asked, looking down at his hands. "A dream?"

Vianca straightened up as the pain died down, looking toward the claw marks on the wall with horror. Vincent followed her gaze, gasping when he saw them. He recognized them, of course.

"Chaos was here, in your place," the girl told him.

She went toward him only for jolts of pain to hit them simultaneously. The pair crumpled to the floor, gasping as they grasped their chests.

"Am I losing...control?" Vincent questioned.

"If you are...then I am too," Vianca replied.

After a few moments, the throbbing pain they experienced died away. Slowly, they stood, catching their breaths. Vincent looked upon the claw marks once more, perturbed.

"Why is Chaos...? Why now...?"

Vianca was a bit surprised by his lack of knowledge. "You don't know? You no longer have the Protomateria that gave you control over Chaos. Like Aegis, he has a mind of his own, and thus, will act on his own if you are unable to remain in control."

Vincent looked down at his chest where Rosso had once ripped the Protomateria out of him. "So, that's it." He sighed and met her gaze. "But what about you? Why were you affected as well?"

Vianca shrugged her shoulders slightly. "I don't know. I think it has something to do with Choas. Aegis is the complete opposite --- a protector of life instead of a bringer of death. I can only assume she feels the need to stop Chaos from carrying out his task."

"Okay, dogs!" Cid's voice announced through the loudspeaker. "It's time! We're approaching Midgar! All hands to battle stations!"

Vincent shook off the remaining traces of the feeling. "Looks like we'll have to worry about that later. You ready to head into battle?"

The girl took a deep breath. "As ready as I'll ever be."

The male was about to turn and leave, but paused, looking at her once more. "Also...be careful, okay? I know you're capable of handling things, but...I still worry."

Vianca smiled softly. "That's sweet of you, thanks. I'll be careful. Of course, I can say the same to you. Will you be alright out there?"

Vincent gave a quiet chuckle. "I won't be dying anytime soon. Come on."

Before the two could head for the hangar, Reeve stopped them, and Shelke caught up to give Vincent something. "I retrieved your phone in Kalm," she told him. "I modified it slightly. Just dial #VIN to contact my personal terminal directly. From this workstation, I can perform a Synaptic Net Dive into almost any network system in Midgar. I may also be able to help guide you into Deepground." The other three glanced at each other, causing Shelke to get defensive. "It's not what you think. By monitoring your movement, Dr. Crescent's data fragments are restored within me. I'm simply providing a service for my own benefit."

"I didn't say anything," Vincent replied.

That flustered Shelke. "I, uh...anyway, my resources here are limited. Don't expect too much."

Vincent nodded, tucking his phone into his pocket. "I'm counting on you Shelke."

"Uh... I... It's just... I've never actually been...counted on by anyone before." She swiftly tried to recover from stammering. "Uh, never mind."

Reeve chuckled lightly, smiling at her. "Well then, can I 'count on' you to keep an eye on the airship while we're away as well? I have already witnessed your strength and skill once. This is war, and we have to be ready for anything. Your assistance would be of great help." A soldier called for the commissioner, so he had to hurry away to attend to his duties.

Vianca reached down to place a gentle hand on Shelke's shoulder, a smile on her face. "We're all going to be counting on you, Shelke."

The redhead nodded, still a bit flustered by everyone telling her that. "Uh, right. By the way, Vianca, you do know your part of the plan, don't you? Because you're capable of flight, you are to head directly to the Shinra building. You will need to clear the area of Deepground, striking from within their forces. Then you will wait for your comrades to join you before storming the building."

"I know," Vianca answered. "I always follow orders. You know that better than anyone."

With that, Vianca and Vincent went to join the rest of the squad planned to drop, leaving Shelke to prepare. In the hangar of the Shera, Vianca, Vincent, Yuffie, and the rest of the squad gathered. On Cid's order, the hatch before them opened up, the strong wing blowing in the sounds of combat outside. Yuffie and the first group jumped on their hoverboards, sliding out of the hangar and into the air, heading for their target location. The second group then prepared for their jump.

Just as they were preparing, a small explosion rocked the ship. Vincent was quick to hop onto his hoverboard, and Vianca created a pair of crystal wings. Before any further damage disrupted them, they dropped from the ship into the flurry of gunfire. The female kept herself shielded with crystals, flying close to her friend.

"Vincent!" she called. "Good luck! Try not to keep me waiting!"

The man gave a nod, watching her fly away before shifting his focus to the ongoing drop, weaving around to avoid being hit while shooting down enemy ships. Vianca was forced to keep going alone, trying hard not to look back. She hoped all the others would be okay, especially Vincent. Her thoughts were interrupted by a missile zooming toward her. She nimbly dodged to the side and looked to the ship that had fired at her. Throwing out her hand, crystals erupted from inside the ship, ripping it open from the inside out. Spinning out of control, the ship descended and crashed to the ground below.

Vianca continued on, her focus on the dilapidated Shinra building at the center of Midgar. She made it there rather quickly, gliding down to land at the front doors. She scanned her surroundings, but to her surprise, there didn't appear to be anyone else around. The distant sounds of battle could be heard, but in that area, there was nothing.

"Where are...the troops?" she mumbled to herself, finding it odd that the place wasn't guarded.

"Fancy seeing you here, Vianca."

With a gasp, the girl spun around, coming face-to-face with a familiar Tsviet. "Nero..."

"Such a shame to see you on the opposing side. You were a valuable ally before you let Aegis get in your head."

Vianca stepped back, on edge with such a powerful foe before her. "Aegis has nothing to do with it. I was tired of hurting people. I'm tired of all this fighting."

Nero stared blankly at her. "Oh? How absurd." He slowly shook his head in disappointment. "My brother had faith in you, but clearly it was misplaced. You've become a threat too dangerous to let go." His robotic wings stretched out. "His awakening is near. Tonight will be the final chapter. And you..." His appendages snatched up his twin guns. "Aegis must be eradicated!"

Nero didn't hesitate to let loose several rounds, but Vianca brought her hand up, shielding herself with a wall of crystal. A cold, uncomfortable feeling on her toes made her look down to see darkness beginning to envelope her feet. With a gasp, she jumped back to avoid being swallowed up. She had to be vigilant and watch out for Nero's dark powers. Even though she didn't want to, she knew she was going to have to fight back.

With a fiery determination in her pale eyes, she focused and started creating crystals around her foe. Nero was quick to dodge around the spears shooting up from the ground, and he nimbly leapt over the waves of crystals crashing around him like water. At the same time, Vianca's concentration was broken by more dark puddles forming at her feet. She had to jump over them, and created a platform under her to get her off the ground.

"I'm sorry, Nero," she said, peering down at him. "I can't hold back. I can't let you hurt any of my friends."

Crystals covered her arms like blades, and she immediately leapt down to slash at the male. Nero effortlessly danced around her swings, almost as if he was toying with her. His magenta eyes narrowed, and he moved in a way that allowed one of Vianca's blades to slice into him. The cut was light, but it was just enough to snap the restraints that bound him. A frightened gasp escaped the girl's lips as she stepped back, her gaze on his tattooed arms. They were now free, spread open as darkness formed behind Nero.

"No more games, Vianca. There are still souls in need of collecting."

Darkness suddenly loomed over the girl. She frantically looked around, and started running toward Nero again to try and stop him. But without his restraints, his dark power was stronger than ever. The shadows surrounding her only followed her, and halted her movements. It was cold, and it felt like the hands of the dead clawing and grasping at her. She couldn't move, frightened shrieks erupting from her throat. Yet even with the darkness closing in on her, she could see Nero's cold stare through the haze.

In the blink of an eye, the world around Vianca disappeared to be replaced with a void of darkness. It was practically suffocating her, weighing down on her body. Her agonizing screams went unheard, and she flailed about, forming crystals to try and protect herself. With her eyes squeezed shut, she cried for help over and over. Only a single voice answered in her head.

"Do not fear... Do not despair..."

Aegis had taken over, and Vianca hadn't even realized it. The shimmering crystals belonging to Aegis grew up around her, cocooning her in a protective shell that the darkness couldn't penetrate.

"Chaos..." She uttered in her distorted voice. "Life is precious... Protect it from Chaos..."

It seemed the corrupted darkness had deceived her into thinking Chaos was there. For quite some time, she remained there in her cocoon, waiting for an opportunity. There was a brief flash of light before a bubble appeared nearby, though Aegis paid it no mind. A red-haired girl was inside the bubble, which was a shield created from the materia she held.

"Aegis," Shelke mumbled with a soft gasp. "So, Nero caught you as well. This is bad news for us."

"Chaos..." That was the only response from the onyx-skinned being.

Shelke was relatively ignored, but she questioned the being anyway, "Chaos?" Just one look around was enough for her to understand. "Soul wrought of terra corrupt. This darkness is reminiscent to his, isn't it?" With nothing else to do, she sat down in her barrier and hugged her knees. "This might be the end for us, Vianca."

"Life is precious..." Aegis repeated.

Shelke was shocked when a layer of crystal surrounded her bubble, as if reinforcing it. Aegis was protecting her, as was her role. The younger girl knew that, yet it didn't stop her from being amazed. She was aware of the imminent death that loomed over them both, but because of Aegis, she held onto a shred of hope that maybe they'd make it out.