Disclaimer: Tales of the Abyss belongs to Namco. I do not own it in any way, apart from the game that my cousin got for me on my 3DS.

A/N: Hello there, and thank you for clicking on this link! I decided to pose myself a challenge; was it possible to write a female OC into the story of Tales of the Abyss without making her a shameless Mary Sue who's the seventh God-General and falls for Sync? (There actually is already a seventh God-General; if you look in the library in Daath, you'll come across a charming lady called Cantabile. Please, don't hurt her feelings, even if she is only in a book and has purple hair.)

So I decided to give this a shot. Any constructive advice would be great, since I'm young and therefore not used to the way of writing just yet. ;P If there's any incorrect information, do not hesitate to tell me, please!

But that's enough from me. Hope you all enjoy. :)

ஜ۩۞۩ஜ -The Faithful Sentinel- ஜ۩۞۩ஜ

Prologue: Piggy Promise

Lunaday, 27 Undine Decan. AD2015

"Today, I met my best friend."

"You need to be more agile than that."

Sacha grunted loudly, sweat dripping down her red face as she breathed in heavily with shaky breathes, hands trembling from exhaustion. Her whole body ached at her, screaming at her to stop training and to rest for the day, but she couldn't! If she did, then she would never become a Fon Master Attendant! It was what her family wanted her to be; no, it was what the Score needed her to be. And if she didn't fulfil the Score, then...

A dark shadow fell over her hunched body, and she didn't need to look up to know that Largo would be frowning down at her. Yet, he never got angry at her for her many mistakes. He was always patient, knowing when the teenager needed to stop and rest for a few minutes. He may have looked frightening to anyone who wasn't a God-General or Oracle Knight, but Sacha looked up to him as a father that she never had.

"Do you want to take a short rest before we resume?"

"...No..." she finally muttered after what seemed to be forever, her long brown hair falling over her ocean-blue eyes. "I...I'm fine. I can keep going." her grip on her two weapons; a simple, silver pair of butterfly knives, tightened, leaving her knuckles bone-white. However, it seemed that Largo had other ideas.

"No. You shall rest. The last thing I; no, we need is you collapsing." Patting her on the shoulder to get her attention, Sacha weakly glanced up to see the familiar sight of an Orange Gel in Largo's hands. Taking it (her hand felt so small in his massive gloved one), she shakily ate it in one mouthful. Already, she could feel her energy return to her, urging her to continue fighting onwards and training for as long as she could do so! After it, it was-

She cut off her thoughts, sighing. She knew that that was a lie to herself. That had been the sixth Orange Gel he had used on her, and that wasn't including the sheer amount of Lemon Gels she had eaten (Sacha had lost count after nine. The maximum that anyone could carry at one time was sixteen). Not for the first time, she was grateful that God-General didn't make her buy them all. She would be out of Gald in no time flat.

Largo pulled the brunette up by her elbow forcefully, yet gently at the same time. "We need to practise your fonic artes," his deep voice boomed in the quiet area outside of Daath. "I should get Legretta or Cantabile to assist you in that matter, perhaps."

"No sir." Sacha stood back up to her full height and shook her head. "I will be fine. There is no need to trouble either of them with that matter. Besides, isn't Legretta busy assisting Van's sister?"

"There's no need to use such a formal manner with me, Sacha. But that is correct; the Commandant's sister, Tear Grants, is receiving similar lessons on fonic artes from Major Legretta." Largo smiled softly, taking a few steps back. The afternoon breeze ruffled his grey hair gently, and the setting sun had painted the high hill a rosy red color similar to blood.

"Tear..." Sacha whispered. "That's a nice name."

The man nodded and gripped his scythe in his hand. "Now, do you think you're already to resume?"

"Yeah." Sacha gripped her weapons, feeling the familiarity of the black leather in her hands. Her black shorts had already been torn in several places from Largo's sharp scythe, and her red sleeveless top wasn't faring much better. Thankfully, there were only several minor bruises on her tanned skin. Nothing that wouldn't heal up in a few days, anyway. "I'm ready when you are, Master."

"Just remember to be more agile!" Largo taunted, already going for a sweep with his weapon. Sacha remembered his advice earlier on and leapt over it, her foot narrowly tapping the steel. She raised her two weapons to attack, their sharp ends pointing down and glistening in the setting sun.

"Sharp Edge!"

"Good attack!" the man called as he blocked the attack, his strength easily overpowering that of his student's. She fell back onto the grass, and barely had enough time to cross her weapons over before Largo charged at her again. "However, you need to react faster; don't give the enemy time to counter!"

"Understood, Master!" she kicked out her legs, hoping to try to catch Largo by surprise. However, he had leapt back before the attack connected, and Sacha instead pushed herself up onto her two shaky feet again. Her vision was starting to go blurry again, damn! But she had to-

"Sacha!" her blue eyes widened in horror when Largo called her name. Glancing down, she tried not to shake as she felt and saw Largo's smooth blade pressing against her throat. "Are you alright?"

Ho-how had he done that? She could have sworn that he was beside the tree just a second ago. But-

"M-Mas..." she tried to choke out the words, but for some reason, her throat had suddenly run dry. She didn't know why, or how it had happened, but she hated it! She wasn't weak, damn it! "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"Ah, so this is where the Black Lion was hiding out?"

Sacha glanced over from the ground to see a blur of black and dark green walk up the hill. His spiky green hair was soon followed by his wide eyes, a golden mask shaped like a bird held in his hand. Largo swiftly removed his weapon from Sacha's throat, and offered out his hand to help pull her up. She took it, brushing some dirt off her legs as she glanced up to the newcomer.

"Sync the Tempest. It's been too long," Largo offered, his face as stoic as ever.

Sync, however, didn't appear to be in the mood to act polite. He looked down to the younger brunette, smirking. "So she didn't even bother to put up a fight this time? How pathetic."

"..." Sacha bit her cheek in shame, looking down. She could already feel the blush rising up, the redness suddenly decorating her cheeks. He was right. She was nothing but a-

"She's coming along far faster than what Van anticipated." Largo sighed. "However, Sacha still has her mind set on becoming an attendant to the Fon Master."

"Because of the Score?" the teenager sneered. The man nodded.

"Yes." Largo turned to face the female, and felt a short pang of guilt for her sad face. However, he quickly dismissed it; he couldn't show mercy to anyone. "Sacha, we'll meet here next week at the same time. For then, I expect you to have mastered control of your Butterfly Kiss and Storm Break artes. Understood?"

"Y-yes Master Largo."

A small smile appeared on his lips, a rare sight. Even Sync seemed surprised by it, raising an eyebrow. "You are dismissed, Sacha Eclinn."

The brunette gave Largo a stiff bow before turning away. She started to make her way down the tall hill back to Daath, long brown hair flying in the breeze.

"The Commandant wanted to see you," Sync was the first to break the silence between the two God-Generals. He gave Largo a sideways look, as if he was dirt found on the bottom of his shoe. "And honestly, what do you see in that girl? She's a wimp, a chicken, can barely stand on her own stupid feet-"

"She's young. Give her time, Sync."

"No. She just reminds you of the daughter you gave up because of the Score, doesn't she?"

"..."

"Poor little Meryl. Must be heartbroken that she can't ever see you again. Oh wait, she doesn't even remember you. How sad." Sync's cruel tone of mocking voice echoed in the trees. Largo tried to not let it get to him, this was Sync when he was on a good day.

"Why does the Commandant wish to see me?" Largo asked, turning to the younger boy. He snorted and crossed his arms.

"He needs to discuss with you on how the First Division's getting along. Arietta's talking to him now about the Third Division."

"Ah... I see. And about Asch?"

"Still sulking, that stupid brat."

Same as always. That answer made Largo briefly wonder on why he had asked the question. "Let's return back to the Oracle Headquarters. Legretta should be returning shortly from Yulia City as well."

"I found this Daathic arte the other day; Ion called it a curse slot or something like that. I'm gonna go and find out more about it. All I know is that it stirs up rational memories and paralyzes thoughts... according to Ion." Sync had already turned around, back facing Largo as he began to walk down the hill back to Daath. The man easily caught with the much-smaller boy's steps, and paced himself so that they were walking at the same pace.

"Going to use it on some poor soul soon?"

Sync smirked. "How did you guess? If I use it on Legretta and lock her in a room with Van-"

"No. I forbid you from doing that."

"Have you forgotten who's higher in position, Largo?" Sync teased in a sing-song voice.

Largo merely grunted and walked down the hill, although he would actually want to see Legretta with a curse slot in the same room as Van, alone.

It would be... an unique experience, to say the least.

The city of Daath was beautiful at night, even if it was in a somewhat haunting way. The torches hung overhead gave off a gloomy aura in the pitch-black darkness. People were still scattered around the small city, discussing quietly to themselves as a crowd of drunkards merrily made their way through the city. There were no stars in the sky, which did little to help improve the dark mood in the city.

Sacha made her way through the large crowds, the thoughts of her birth Score still in her head, despite the fact that it was a few weeks past already. Her knives chimed gently in her dark red belt, although she hoped that anyone would just mistake it for her many golden bracelets on her wrists.

She pulled her black hood up over her head and frowned, stuffing her hands into her pockets. She hoped that Mother wouldn't be too angry at her taking so long to return from her training. It had dragged on for far longer than she had assumed. She was used to having long and intense training sessions; she had no doubt that she had much better stamina that before, no thanks to Largo ruthlessly pushing her through her limits almost every training day without failure.

"Tokunaga... are Mama and Papa gonna be okay?"

Sacha stopped just outside the cathedral. Glancing to her right to where she had heard the voice, she saw a young girl sniffle loudly. There was a tall orange doll on her lap, small pale arms wrapped around it firmly, so tightly that it looked like the girl was afraid of losing it. Her short black hair fell limply over her head, and the brunette felt a pang of sincerity come across her for the young girl. She didn't look any older than ten, yet... her soft toy and the splash of torn pink that was her clothes was the only sign of color in the girl.

"Hey, are you alright?" Sacha bent down gently to the girl, and gazed at her in thought. The girl took a few seconds to look up, and her brown eyes widen in surprise. There was some kind of hidden sorrow in them, and she did notice the wet marks trailing down her cheeks.

"Huh? Um, I'm fine..." her voice was quiet, and she glanced back down to her white shoes, kicking them against the stone ground.

"Now, it's pretty obvious that you're not. At least tell me your name. I'm Sacha." the teenager placed a hand on the girl's shoulder, and she looked up abruptly. Shock was written over her face, and she clutched the toy (was it the Tokunaga that she was talking to earlier?) tighter to her tiny chest.

"A-Anise..."

"That's a sweet name. Do..." Sacha wasn't sure about how to word her next question. She really did want to get to know this girl better; she was a splash of color along the dull black and greys of Daath, even if she did look on the verge of tears. "Ah, do you have any future job in mind? I know quite a few people who want to be servants."

Anise shook her head fiercely, a wide grin coming onto her face. She looked up to Sacha with a smile that could light up any dark alley. "Nuh-huh! I'm gonna be a Fon Master Attendant when I'm thirteen, because that's the legal age, right?"

For one of the few times in her life, Sacha was left speechless. It felt as if someone had just punched her in the stomach; hard. That... that was her dream. To be a Fon Master Attendant. And... here was this ten-year-old who was dying for the position; she could tell from the way she had immediately cheered up, her brown eyes lightening up with joy and that wide grin. But...

"-or Guardian, since they're both the sa – Hey! Did I say something wrong?"

Sacha blinked and snapped out of her thoughts. She smiled back at the black-haired girl, ruffling her hair gently. "No. You've just got a little contest in that area, that's all."

"Huh?" Anise blinked. "What? But I thought that I was the only person going for it! Not that anyone's gonna be as awesome as me, of course!"

"Well, I want to be a Fon Master Attendant too! So you've got someone else to fight it out with, huh?"

Anise leapt up, grinning widely at Sacha. She shifted the orange doll in her arms softly. "Well, you're an oldie! Old people are worse than cute, adorable people like me!"

"You really think so?" Sacha grinned. The girl nodded.

"Yeah! I'm only ten after all! And you're, um... eighty?"

"Haha, very funny." the brunette ruffled Anise's soft hair again. "I'm seventeen, and still going strong! One day you'll be a bag of bones, and I'll be running rings around you."

"Booo!" the girl stuck out her tongue. "Then I'll hit you with Tokunaga, and then you'll be a bag of bones too!"

"May I ask who Tokunaga is?"

Anise looked hurt for a second. "Huh? Oh, this is Tokunaga!" she held out the doll in her arms proudly, grinning a toothy smile at the girl. The doll's empty eyes made Sacha shiver, but it was cute... in a really weird and odd way. "Isn't he adorable?"

"Um... yeah."

"He's not as cute as me, mind!" she pointed to herself. "No one's as cute as little me!"

The brunette reached out a hand to gently stroke Anise's doll. She almost fell on the ground in shock when it suddenly growled at her.

"What on Lorelei!"

"Oh, sorry!" Anise said, but she didn't really look too sorry. "I forgot to mention; Tokunaga's a living thing!"

"..." Sacha was too busy staring at the doll as if it would grow giant fangs and eat her in one mouthful.

"One day, I'm going to make him really big, and then he can bash up anyone that I don't like! But you won't get hurt, since I like you. You're funny."

"T-t-that's nice to know." for some reason, the image of a giant Tokunaga was enough to make her have a panic attack. She was glad that Anise didn't plan to attack her with it, but she felt bad for anyone who would get in her way.

"I know! Isn't it? I was thinking of selling him to get more Gald, but- ohmyYuliahowmucharetheyworth!" Anise suddenly lurched forward, staring at the gold bracelets on her wrists as if they were the Seventh Fonstone. Blinking slowly, Sacha nervously smiled at her.

"Um... that's not actual gold, by the way. They're just painted that color."

Anise's face falling told her all that she needed to know. "Booo! Man, I really need that Gald too!"

"Why do you need Gald?"

"I've got my reasons!" Anise winked at her. Sacha couldn't help but laugh loudly at it, and the girl soon joined in with her laughter. "I'm gonna try and marry a real rich person when I'm older, so that I'll have plenty of Gald!" she declared once they had stopped laughing, looking thoughtful. "Maybe he should be noble, so that he's famous and all..." Anise put a hand on her chin and hummed.

"Aren't you a little young to be thinking of marriage? What does the Score tell you to do?"

"It tells me to marry a rich man and have all of his Gald."

"...I'm sure it does."

Anise was about to offer another retort, but then gasped as the church bells chimed loudly overhead. The two glanced up as the giant clock hit midnight above. A sinking feeling of dread suddenly washed over. Anise seemed to notice this, and she looked up to Sacha in surprise. "Hmm? Is something wrong?"

"I've gotta get back home. I'm sorry for wasting your time." Sacha stood up and suddenly began to walk away. Much to her surprise, something firm latched onto her hand. She turned around, to see Anise grabbing her hand tightly with wide eyes.

"Yo-you'll come back, won't you? Please? I..." the girl looked down at her scruffy shoes, and sighed. "I haven't got any friends to play with. Everyone makes fun of me."

The teenager turned around slowly and bent down so that she was eye level with the younger girl. It amazed her, really, on how much alike the two of them were. She didn't have too many friends either, and she wouldn't count the ones that she did have as true friends. "I promise. I haven't got many friends either."

"Piggy promise?" she held out her little thing. Sacha looked at it blankly.

"Piggy?"

"Ohh! Piggy, pinkie; whatever they call it!"

The brunette laughed, and then twirled her little finger around the much-smaller one.

"I promise."