Once upon a time, a god ruled the world. He was called Buniberzei.
Buniberzei defeated his mother, the goddess Muin, and took control of the world for himself.
Muin disappeared into the unseen world-the invisible world.
Buniberzei was a god with many troubles.
The world, it was certain, was destined to die.
He believed this was a curse laid on the world by his mother Muin. Buniberzei knew he had to destroy her.
To do this, he must search for the door. The door to the invisible world where his mother waited.
Using his will alone, he created the first fal'Cie.
First, he created fal'Cie Pulse.
The duty he laid on him was to open the world, and search for the door to Muin.
Next, he created fal'Cie Etro.
But it was a mistake. Unknowingly, he created her exactly in the image of Muin.
Buniberzei feared her, and gave Etro no power of her own.
Instead, he created fal'Cie Lindzei.
The duty he laid on him was to protect Buniberzei from all who might seek to destroy him.
Buniberzei gave Lindzei one special duty. To wake him once the time came.
Then he turned to crystal, and fell into an endless sleep.
Pulse wished to expand the world, so he created many fal'Cie and l'Cie.
Lindzai wished to protect the world, so he created many fal'Cie and l'Cie.
But Etro was powerless, and could do nothing of her own.
Lonely, she thought of her mother, who she so resembled.
Etro tore at her body, letting her blood flow to the earth, and disappeared from the visible world.
From that blood, torn from her body, sprung humankind.
Creatures that were born, only to die.
The destruction of the visible world was no curse, only fate.
The world was divided into two halves, the visible and the invisible.
If the balance between these two were destroyed, the world itself would be destroyed.
The goddess Muin could do nothing to stop this fate.
She was being swallowed into the chaos of the invisible world.
Just before her last moment, Etro came to her side.
Muin told Etro that she must protect the balance of the world, before slipping into the chaos forever.
But Etro was foolish, and didn't know the meaning behind Muin's words.
Etro was lonely, but she felt affection for those humans who live only to die.
As they died, she smiled, and gave them chaos.
The chaos Etro gave them, the humans named "heart".
Their hearts would become their power, but the humans did not yet know this.
Soon, they called Pulse the all powerful ruler. Lindzei they named their protector, and Etro... Etro the named 'death'.
The humans lived on the world, hold chaos inside them.
Because they held chaos so close, the world once again was in balance.
And Buniberzei still sleeps. A crystal.
Until the end of forever...
So I hope you read that up there ^^ if no one really gets it, I'll add a few pointers in the next chapter. (I didn't write it btw, it's a translation of the FF Legend).
Anywho, welcome to my first Final Fantasy XIII story! This is set straight after the ending of XIII, so if you don't want spoilers Do Not Read!
In a nutshell, this is the story summary:
"Lightning, spurred on to save Fang and Vanille from an eternity of crystallisation, journeys on a series of quests, each bringing her closer to the key. However, there's someone on a similar quest that might impede her own mission."
It's LightxOC
It was inspired by the trailer for XIII-2 but is NOT what will actually happen in the sequel! It's just my own imagination running away with me!
Anyway, now that I've convinced everyone I'm not psychic, lets begin the story!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything related to Final Fantasy in any way, shape or form. I acknowledge that it is all Square Enix's mastermind invention/creation/baby so I definitely do not own it! I also notice that this is not an official thing. Just a young writer playing around with fiction, trying to become a better author
I did create the personality of the dashing hero you'll come into contact later though. He's a wistful product of my imagination, based of the image given in the trailer, but definitely not it.
For a moment, her eyes didn't respond. Her arms. Her legs. They remained frozen like icicles, no matter how hard she tried to move them, or how hard she wished, willed and prayed for her body to respond.
Unable to move, her mind went into overdrive.
I've been attacked. Paralysed. Using some kind of weapon or magic. I don't know how far my weapon is. I don't even know if I'm being watched right now.
Trying to breathe, but not able to open her mouth, she tried to remember anything.
All I can remember is darkness. I have been attacked. By who, I don't know.
And so, as she began to hyperventilate, natural instincts kicked in. She could feel…soft something under her back…a slight breeze? From her right…yes, her right side…
She could hear…some kind of calling far away. Not human, some kind of animal. Softly calling.
Taste…Her mouth was dry…She'd obviously been unconscious for a while – dehydrated.
Around her was the smell of something familiar. Something strange, but welcome. She'd came across it before, but where?
As she tried to place the scent, her alerted hearing caught the snapping of something light towards the place the breeze was coming from.
Thump…Thump-
CRACK.
And that did it. With a sense of knowing urgency at survival, her body leapt into obedience and within a moment, she was standing with her feet apart and arms raised, eyes snapping open, narrowed and concentrated, but squinting at the sudden brightness.
"Whoa there!"
Something white and blurry was standing in front of her. Standing?
Cursing her slow adjusting eyes, she simply found better footing and tensed her muscles. Slowly, the blurriness ceased and she could see the stranger properly.
"Look," His hands were held up in surrender, "I just went to get us some clean water. If you get your act together and take a seat, I'll tell you what you want to know."
"I'd like to know now." She replied curtly, finding her voice but hearing it was alarming.
The man only raised an eyebrow at her rough sounding voice. "Look, it's all good for you to be standing to attention like that, but I've got a new wound that makes standing up a pain in the arse for me." He shifted his weight and lowered his arms, "So, if I may."
He didn't wait for a reply. Casually, he crossed the distance, heading straight towards her. As he kept getting closer, she darted back-
"Ouch, that gotta hurt." He smirked at her from his perch on a fallen tree branch.
Glaring up from the dirt floor, she struggled up, her body wavering and her mind dizzy. Not wanting to face his amusement at her struggles, but not wanting to faint in front of him, she carefully picked her way back over the other tree branch that tripped her, before sitting on it lightly. Poised and ready to attack if he showed any threat.
The man shook his head slightly at her antics, before tapping his knee. "Can't do much lately with this baby. Damn nearly cut my leg off."
The pink-haired woman remained silent, her ice blue eyes narrowed slightly.
Figuring her a warrior of some sorts, he noticed her lack of weapon. "In a fight recently, hmm?"
She didn't respond, but he noticed a flicker of confusion and worry in her eyes.
They stayed silent for a while, the man waiting for something. When he didn't get it, he kicked off his right boot and rolled up his pant leg.
A horrible disfigured scar marked his tanned skin. Her eyes darted to it, widening slightly, before returning to see him smiling grimly.
"Yep. Got this one fighting one of those darn rebels in the Far Ranges. Have had to keep out of trouble since…" He regarded her calmly. "Of course, then I found you."
She snapped to attention then, interest piqued.
He scratched his stubbled chin, eyes rising in thought. "Lets see…must have been, oh, a week, since I found you."
"Where?"
It was the first time he heard her proper voice and it made him start slightly. As smooth as water, but as sharp and quick as a flash of a sword. It was no tinkling of bells, but it sure was lovely to hear, even on his old harsh ears.
"Just a mile or so that direction, in the river." He vaguely pointed over her right shoulder. Of course, she didn't turn to look, obviously not trusting him much at the moment. "What were you doing in there anyway? Could of drowned if I wasn't heading that way myself."
She shook her head slightly. "I don't remember being in a river."
"What do you remember then?" He challenged.
A bite of her lip. She shook her head once again. "I don't remember anything but darkness."
His eyes darkened. "You were attacked then."
The pink haired beauty just shrugged, and finally took in where she was. It had seemed familiar before, and even now something nagged at her, but she couldn't remember exactly. The ground was bright green grass, only marked brown where the campfire stood. They were on the edge of a cliff, nearly, it wasn't too far away. On her right was forest, and then to her left was an open field of grass with rolling hills stretching as far as her eyes could see.
Their camp was made out of fallen trees, and the sky opened up to a wonderful blue spread complete with fluffy white clouds here and there.
"The view on the cliff is spectacular." He offered, gesturing.
Unsure about him still, she didn't move.
"Look," He said, exasperated at her attitude, "I'm not going to bloody hurt you, alright? For one, I can't move with this stupid leg, and for another, I have no reason to! If I really wanted to, I could have left you to drown!"
Her only response was a slow blink, and then a slight nod. Finally, she stood, lowered her eyes, and then walked to the cliff. She stood there, pink hair fluttering with the breeze, one hand lowered on her hip where he supposed she would have usually kept her weapon, the other hugging her middle like something hurt there.
Shocked at his own outburst, he shook his head and tried to gather his thoughts. Okay, so the mystery woman had finally woke up and didn't trust him. Okay, if he was her, he probably wouldn't trust her either. Now, he needed to get his act together and see if she was alright, especially with that arm wrapped around her stomach.
Slowly, so as not to startle her, he got up and hobbled over to her side. She made no move to acknowledge his presence, so he decided to declare himself.
"You can see all over the land from here. It's away from the hustle and bustle of most of the normal routes, so I figure'd you'd rather wake up here than some strange little town."
The woman nodded, her hand clenching around her hip.
"Have…have you seen my…blade?"
She turned to see his brow furrowing and knew the answer before he explained.
"You had nothing on you when I saved you. Although, the water might have hidden your sword." She gave a little start at that, "We can detour past there once you're well enough to travel."
"I'm fine. We'll leave now."
The man chuckled and shook his head. "I call the shots here, girl." He gestured to her arm. "And if you're so fine and dandy, why are you clutching your stomach?"
Surprised, she glanced down. It was true. Quickly, she released her torso and let her arm hang loose. "I don't know. It's a funny feeling that's all."
"Ah," He turned and staggered back to the campfire, "If that's it, then maybe this is what you need."
As she turned, a delicious smell overcame her senses. Her eyes zeroed in on an open pot of soup. Without realising it, she was suddenly sitting over by the campfire, a full bowl in her hands. No sense in waiting, she dug in.
The man watched her eat hungrily and wondered just what had happened…
Full of sustenance, they both sat lazily under the orange sky. They hadn't conversed over their supper, but the woman had finally relaxed, letting her muscles loose and shutting her eyes briefly.
The sounds of the land had changed. Chirping was still evident, but now the night was filled with growls and shrieks. Fog had also started to creep up towards them, and she eyed it warily.
"Don't worry," The man interrupted her study, "Nothing prowls near the cliff. Just, don't go wandering in the middle of the night."
She gave him a curious look.
"The fog will circle us, surround us. If you step out of this campsite, you'll become lost in it. And if you end up at the cliff, you'll go over it. I'm not sure if you realised it, but there's a bunch of sharp rocks at the bottom."
Squeezing her eyes shut against the image that flickered in her mind, she shook her head. Finally, she opened them again. The man was looking sombre.
'Happened too many a time with kids from the village. One last week, actually. A kid went adventuring during the night and ended up being found by the village people down near the bottom of the cliff."
"Only kids?"
The man shrugged. "The stories about kids pull the heartstrings, but there are stories about other people. Adults. Travellers. Actually, used to be a good defence back when the armies were invading. Used to come this way. Cliff's not on the map for those reasons you know. And since they travelled by night, when the fog came in, they had no hope."
The woman raised her eyebrows, surprised. "Armies?"
"Oh yeah," The man waved a hand. "Big great wars. Last one was about twenty years ago now, but there's always rumours."
"About?"
"A new war between this country and another that we have no knowledge about." He stretched out an arm, "But if we're going to get down to politics, we should really introduce ourselves. I'm Lucilius Donahue."
A bit amused, she shook his offered hand.
He nodded at her reaction. "I know, I know. A bit regal for a roughie like me, but what can I say, my family line has a long history." As she let out a smile, they dropped their hands. "And you?"
The woman looked worried. "I don't remember."
Tilting his head, he regarded her with a soft expression. "That's okay. Perhaps it'll come to you sometime later."
Appreciating his gesture, but not wanting to feel any weaker than she already was, she continued the conversation. "Do you know anything? I mean, why was I in a river?"
"You have a better idea than me, darlin'." He clattered some dishes and shoved them in a battered bag. As soon as he tied the bag, he settled back and sighed. "Let's see…I was walking along the well worn travelling path, when there was a bunch of wolves in front of me. Of course, I can't fight with this leg, so I did a bit of a detour. Part of that was going through the river…"
The river was always messier upstream, but downstream was easier enough to cross without doing too much damage. Of course, there was always the chance of supplies getting destroyed by the water.
"Ah, darn it. I'll just throw my pack over and be done with it." He decided, and leant heavily on the makeshift crutch he had made.
A few minutes later, the river appeared. He sighed and tugged at the straps on his shoulder. He heaved the bag off and collected it in his hand. Standing at the edge of the river, he evaluated, leant back, and then threw the bag forwards, releasing it in a high arc over the river.
It landed heavily, but safely, on the other side.
"Okay, me next." Grasping his crutch tightly, he stepped into the river.
The smooth pebbles at the bottom were soothing on his tired, aching feet. He waded through the water, trying to keep most of himself dry. And then, something made him pause. He looked around, trying to figure out why he had stopped.
"Huh…what's that?"
Carefully, he stepped forwards and pulled back a funny looking bunch of river weeds.
He cursed and leapt forward. A pink haired woman was cradled on her side in the river, head only supported by a rock. As he watched, her head lolled off and fell into the river. Almost instantly, the river current began to sweep her away.
"No, no, no!" He shouted and dropped his crutch.
Leaping forward, he waded through and managed to grasp her forearms in each of his own hands. Cheeks reddening, he pulled her up and into a princess cradle. Trying not to think of her smooth skin and soft pink hair, he tried valiantly to wade through the river to the other side.
Finally, he made it, and gently deposited her on the soft grass. Without wasting a moment, he rummaged through his pack and found his spare set of clothes. Averting his gaze, he dressed her and then placed a blanket over her.
Then, he counted her pulse. It was a little quick, but it would be fine.
As he surveyed her for other injuries, he noticed a slight blush coming back into her cheeks and sighed thankfully.
"Well, aren't you a mystery."
…and then, I picked you up and carried you to here. Set us up a little campsite."
"Why here if the cliff is here…?"
"Well, since it is here, there are less people going this way. That's why I said before that this is away from the hustle and the bustle."
"So I had a fever?"
"Yes." His brow furrowed once again, and he crossed his arms. "Gave me a scare a few days ago. Started screaming in your sleep. Course, I was out getting us some food and water. Came back expecting your guts to be everywhere, the way you were screaming."
She blushed brightly. "Sorry." She murmured so quietly he almost didn't hear her.
He waved it away, though. "It's fine. Anway, all was good." A smile curled his lips. "Oh and there was other things you were murmuring. Names."
"Names?"
He held up a hand and counted them off his fingers. "Hope, Snow, Sazh, Dajh, and then Vanille, Fang and Serah."
She repeated each on her mind, but ended up running a worried hand through her knotty hair. "I think I remember them, but I don't actually…remember."
"Hmm, well how about something about Lightning-"
The woman jumped, and her hand went to her chest. Blue eyes opened wide she gasped.
"Lightning. It flashes bright, then fades away. It can't protect, it can only destroy."
Lucilius tilted his head. "Lightning huh…"
"I…" She blushed, "I think it's my name."
The man nodded. "Ah, well, nickname it must be. Unless you separated from your family name…?"
'Lightning' looked confused, so he continued.
"My son disliked the Donahue name, and so he cast it away. Kept his first name, of course. Lovely first name, you would've liked it. But the last name didn't suit well with him, he said." Lucilius sighed. "That boy…"
Feeling slightly awkward, Lightning pursed her lips. "You know, I don't think Lightning is my real name. It's kind of like it, I think. But I had a normal name…"
"Hmm how about… Claire?"
Lightning leapt up, smiling. "That's it. I'm Claire. Clair…and my sister is…Serah."
The man looked happy, gleeful in fact. "Then your last name must be Farron."
She nodded exuberantly. "Yes, that's right. Oh, thank you Lucilius."
He waved it away, "Call me Lucil, please."
Lightning nodded, and then realised she had jumped up like a child. Embarrassed, she sat back down.
"I guessed Farron because you were murmuring in your sleep. That Snow would sound silly with Farron as his last name when he married your sister, Serah."
Lightning held onto every piece of new information like a lifeline. "Did I say anything else?" She asked, urgently.
Lucil shook his head, and stood. "I'm sorry, that's all I heard."
Lightning sighed, her whole body melting back into the tree trunk. "Oh…"
She watched him walk up and down the edge of the fallen tree, kicking dirt here and there, before he piled up a bunch of dirt near one end. He moulded it with his hands, before shrugging off his coat.
At this point did Lightning finally observe his appearance. Lucil had warm brown eyes, with slight creases around the side, hinting at his older age. As he was taking off his coat, she realised that he was about her height. His hair was the same deep brown as his eyes, but it looked like it needed a cut.
"We'll see how things go in the morning. If it's all well, then we'll start on our way back to the river." He explained, settling down to sleep. His head rested on the moulded piece of sand, and he threw his coat over himself as a blanket.
"Where are you heading?" Lightning asked, not making a move.
"Well, down there to the city." He shut his eyes. "Make sure you keep that blanket on you. Gets freezing up here on the cliff."
Lightning looked down at the blanket, before her eyes drifted to her clothes. They were loose – too big. He had said that he had dressed her when he found her in the river. She blushed bright red and grabbed her blanket. Funny though…the clothes didn't seem familiar. They were rough too. She hoped she wouldn't have to be in them too long…
The sounds of the night loudened, growls and shrieks echoing and seeming closer than ever. The fog was only a few hundred feet away now. At a particular loud growl, Lightning tensed and clutched the blanket. Soft snores came from the lump that was Lucil. He got to sleep quickly…
Lightning breathed in deeply and carefully crawled onto her knees. She patted and pushed the ground around, trying to find the softest piece of grass. Before long, she just gave up and curled up with her back against the tree trunk she had been sitting on before.
Quietly, she listened to the creatures and the night time.
Sleep would not come.
Lightning lay on her back, staring up at the last bit of starry sky. The fog had closed in around them, and was slowly climbing above, shutting them into a grey world. She didn't like this. She felt like running, and that's when she realised how all those other poor people had ended up dead or missing. The sheer terror would have forced them to run, to follow their fleeing instinct, but they had been misled by the fathomless fog.
Quivering, Lightning glanced over at Lucil. She startled herself, because his caring brown eyes were staring back at her.
"Relax. It won't come inside." His voice was soothing.
Her body responded and stopped quivering in terror. She clutched the blanket tighter and turned her head away, embarrassed at her childish fear.
"It's a bubble, of sorts…A magic shield that it cannot enter. Sleep easy, my mysterious friend. No harm will come to us tonight."
And with that, the fog cut off the remaining view of the stars and the sky, leaving them lonely, but untouched…
And there's the first chapter of this story :) Review pls and tell me if you didn't really get the story about the gods up the top, cos I'll add some pointers next chap. Thanks! ;)
