A/N: Okay so the end of 13-2 wasn't very well explained so I've done a bit of research and come to this. I realise DLC will be coming out in the future that will HOPEFULLY give us an ending to the game but in the meantime, I have wrote this to hopefully satisfy some needs for closure. This is a single chapter conclusion to 13-2, and hopefully ties up loose ends regarding Lightning/Serah. Of course, it's completely outta my own head and I could be well off, but who doesn't love a little bit of speculation? Let me know your opinions in the reviews please!
Sacrifice
Kneeling before Etro's throne, I could sense presence behind me. That darkness was clawing at me again, trying to pull me away from the divine. I resisted. I could not fall into temptation. One moment's lapse in focus, and it could be the difference between everything and nothing. Caius Ballad stalked the dead streets of Valhalla, waiting for that moment when I dropped my defenses and let myself be consumed by chaos. Yet there was little point. The Heart of Chaos pulsed inside the chest of Caius, giving life to both he and the goddess herself. I could not kill him without killing the goddess and he wanted to kill the very being which gave him life, all to save a little girl. Etro had tried so hard to find a solution which could rescue those she felt pity for, but the girl who possessed the Eyes of Etro, no matter what way time was distorted, always died.
Six and one l'Cie… The goddess spared the six and one, and another. The goddess changed history that day. Etro changed the future and the effects rippled down the timeline, and she saw it. And it killed her. And he held her; a Yeul that loved to dance or a Yeul that loved to sing or a Yeul that collected flowers. He came and held her when she died, every time without fail. He wanted a world that was without time, so she would never have to die again. He would never lose her again. There they were irrevocably in love and yet, it was never to be. He would tear time apart and send the world to Valhalla just to be with her. And that broke my heart, just a little. Serah was same. She possessed the Eyes of Etro and she would die. I wanted to bring her here, so she would not have to. But I could not leave. Noel would bring her here. He promised.
My eyes followed the smoke crawling around me, that darkness that had no place anywhere in any world. My breath caught in my throat. I swallowed, trying to regain myself as I felt the sharp blade touch the place between my shoulder blades. It passed through my armor, like it wasn't even there. I could feel it cutting the skin, piercing through my flesh and the hot blood leaking around the blade, trickling down my spine. I moaned as my head fell forward, unable to focus on anything now except the pain. I reached for my gunblade lying a less than a foot in front of me but before I could, I felt the blade be plucked sharply from my back and the presence reappeared before me, all his body weight quickly landing on my fingers. I flinched and groaned at the sudden pain, but I couldn't let that or the blood rolling from my back distract me.
I was weak. I was praying to the goddess for strength. I was tired and hungry and the thirst had rubbed my throat raw. My body ached from the almost non-stop fighting, but I couldn't stop now. Quickly moving all my weight to my other hand, I kicked my feet around into the air, aiming both of my armor covered feet into his shin. But he was gone before I could hit him and I landed heavily on my shoulder. I grunted as I landed and coughed, the pain in my back became more prominent. There were tears stinging my eyes, but I couldn't cry.
I was too far away from my blade now. He'd knock me down again before I could even reach for it. I raised my hand to the level of my eyes as I steadily took position on my knees again, head bent low, and the other arm crossed against my chest. Etro give me strength. I beg you. I waited a moment and cringed as I saw my white feathers stained with red.
"Divine Etro, give me strength. I beg you," I whispered, shutting my eyes as tight as they possibly could.
An icy chill ran down my spine as I felt his breath touch the back of my neck. I shook my head, refusing to surrender, my hand creeping towards my breast for the crystal to summon Odin. However, a hand clasped around my wrist before I could reach it. A tear slipped from the corner of my eye as I felt his cold fingers wrench my hand from my chest. His foot quickly followed, slamming into my breastplate and the blow knocked me several feet back before coming to a sudden stop, courtesy of a damp stone pillar. I cried out as my body impacted with the slab, the screeching metallic sound of my armor filled my ears as I landed heavily on the ground. I felt the chest plate snap suddenly under my weight, and I gasped as the broken metal pierced my skin. However, the metal quickly fragmented into tiny crystal shards which were carried off by the slight breeze.
"Divine Warrior, servant of the goddess," he said, words echoing throughout the empty chambers of Etro's throne room. I tried to sit up, but the pain was too much. I collapsed back down again, my cheek pressed against the cold ground. I could see the blood pooling around me, originating from the cuts to my chest and the stab wound in my back. I breathed slowly, trying to relax enough to cast a healing spell. But I couldn't. I was on the edge. Why wouldn't the goddess respond to my prayers? She always had before, granting me strength whenever I was in need. An icy pain burned deep in my chest and my hand flew up to touch the pain.
As I did so, I saw him materialize several inches before my eyes. He kneeled down and his hand wrapped around my throat. I tried to hit his hand away but soon, I was held several feet above the ground, dangling like a life size doll. My chest heaved, trying, and failing, to suck in any air. My eyes went in and out of focus, but when they did focus briefly every couple of seconds, all I could see was his face and that stupid smirk he proudly wore.
"The goddess is dead," he said and his other hand quickly snapped up to pull down the black bandeau top I wore underneath my chest plate. I gasped, trying to use my arms to hide my breasts but something else caught my attention.
"My brand," I whispered. There it was etched and bloody in my skin. However, it was slightly shiny around the edges as if… as if it were crystallizing. I gasped, forgetting that I had a hand tight around my neck and choked violently. It had been gone! It had disappeared when I awoke from crystal stasis before… yet now there it was; a painful reminder of the fate I once shared. But I'd finally come to my senses and forgot the pain I was in.
Caius chuckled darkly as he dropped me to the floor, before turning his back to me and sauntering casually away. "The goddess is dead. Not long from now, your sister and that boy, Noel, will come here and kill me. But you will already be gone. That is a future you, nor man, nor god can change now. When you change the future…"
"…the effects ripple outwards, up and down the timeline. The seeress is forced to see it all," I murmured, my cheek again pressed against the cool stone. My tears rolled freely now. Serah was out there somewhere. She was going to die. How could I let that happen? What kind of sister was I? Yet even if I hadn't tried to bring her here, she still would have died. Etro showed me. I could remember but the memory was shallow, dreamlike, because the goddess was dead, like she never existed. I was never shown those visions.
He chuckled again, still not looking at me. "Yes, but also, here in Valhalla, time does not touch its shores. In the past, the present and future, the goddess is dead and the world will be lost to chaos. As for you, Claire Farron, you are nothing more than a l'Cie that completed her focus."
I shook my head. I couldn't… If the goddess was dead, I would go into crystal stasis, as would Hope, Snow, Sazh, Dajh and Serah. What could I do? I could feel the sharp crystal shards burning in the bloody opening of my brand. I gasped my heart beating faster, trying to somehow heal the strange intrusion.
"You have seen every possibility, you knew this day would dawn soon enough." He materialized before me and kneeled, his fingers brushing my cheek. In eyes, I could see a sense of ecstasy from the feeling of duty he felt to Yeul but I could also a see a sadness that I couldn't place. My eyes couldn't focus for long. I couldn't let the world go to Valhalla. It couldn't become chaos.
"Accept it, child," he murmured softly as he placed a gentle kiss against my lips. It only lasted a second or two but I could taste the chaos on his breath as I he pulled away. "For this is the only possibility that could become reality."
And with those words, he disappeared and I could sense that he was gone.
Valhalla was dead again and I still had time. Yeul must have only seen the goddess's death moments before he came here. The effects couldn't have rippled too far yet. I grabbed my gunblade and used it to help me climb to my feet. I touched my feather sash, which was stained with blood. It seemed to symbolize the death of the goddess, in a way. The blood dripped from the very tip of it onto the floor and I left a trail as I limped feebly towards the goddess's throne, which was still shining with light. The energy of the goddess still lived despite her imminent and long past death.
I kneeled before her throne, placed my hand over my heart and bent my head forward deeply. "I'm so sorry, Serah," I whispered and my last tear slid down my cheek. The throne flickered slightly and dimmed, the energy of the goddess dying with every passing moment. I knew what I had to do. The energy of the goddess inspired me and Caius' knowledge of what I had seen of the future was limited. The goddess needed a new body and a new life. This was my final wish.
The pain was soon replaced by the feeling of contentment as the crystal stasis took effect. My body floated upward, onto Etro's throne as if guided by the goddess herself, and I would sit there for eternity. I fell into a sweet slumber yet I still had a sense of what was happening. All my pain was gone and I could feel the crystal of my body entwining with the crystal throne. We were as one, Etro and I. And before I lost all sense of reality, I saw Serah's eyes gleaming before she fell, dead, into Noel's arms. The future had changed. If it hadn't, six and one and another l'Cie would have become crystal.
My last tear slid from my cheek and crystallized on my lap. That tear was for Serah. She was going to die, no matter what I did. Entrapped in crystal or due to the curse of the seeress, the choice was mine. I sacrificed my sister, who sacrificed herself. She knew the consequences of her actions. Her sacrifice would not be in vain.
The future Serah saw was not one where the world became Valhalla. Everyone was smiling. That was the true future. When the world became Valhalla… that was just another paradox.