"My name is Quintonimus Calegarae, or Quint, for short. Someone must know my story, and you have been chosen to pass it on."

My story starts when I was still going to school. Ah, those were good times. That was back when I went by Jack. I still wasn't an average student though. I had powers that have an awesome, destructive force. I could do pretty much anything, except fly. In school though, I was relatively quiet and calm.

There was a bully in school. His name was Maison. If I had to describe him in one word, it would be jackass. He picked on everybody. One day, I was leaving class, when he came up behind me. He made fun of me, as usual.

I just gave him an elbow to the gut, and then I grabbed his hair, and threw him into the wall. Then I just threw a fireball at him. The teacher obviously tried to stop me, but I just threatened him. I had just about enough of everyone.

I dropped my stuff, and just gave the wall a wild punch. It made a bigger dent than I thought. I ran out of the school, and I've been on the run ever since. That is until I met a woman named Fang.

I kind of attacked her at first. I hit her with everything I had, and I did get the best of her. She said to me that I was "the strongest of my kind that she's met". After that, a team appeared. I started to get wary.

"Who are you guys?" I asked.

"We're the people that are going to make your life, and powers, have a purpose." Fang answered.

She walked up to me, and put her hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry kid, we'll take care of you." She promised.

"I don't need any help." I yelled as I pulled away. "I'm just fine on my own."

"Must you be so stubborn?" Fang asked. "How about this? We can teach you how to expand your powers."

I was intrigued by this. I looked her straight in the eye. "Do you promise that this isn't just a way to arrest me?"

Fang held her hands up in defense. "Hey, we're against everyone as much as you are. You're not alone."

I contemplated for a minute, but eventually agreed. "Fine."

"Good, now, come on. We'll take you aboard our airship." She said as she pointed upwards.

I looked up, and saw huge flying ship in the sky. "Whoa."

The next thing I knew was looking for a weapon with Fang. "So kid, what do you want to use? A katana, or nunchucks, or a lance, or maybe a gunblade."

"A weapon that I want to use. Hmmm." I said to myself.

Suddenly, something appeared in my hand. It resembled a cane, but it had a hooked end. It was black, and it had a red aura around it. It had a guard, and a keychain that had the symbol of Death on it.

"Um, will this work?" I asked.

Fang turned around from searching, and her eyes widened when she saw the weapon. "Where did you get that?" she asked in her usual Australian accent.

"I don't know. It just appeared in my hand. But, will it work?"

Fang nodded her head. "Awesome, now how do I put it away?" I asked myself.

As I said this the weapon just disappeared. It felt like a tug in my gut. "Cool. Anyway, who are you guys?"

"We're a group that is trying to topple a secret organization called PSICOM. It's also our job to seek out individuals like you. You are something different though. You're far too strong to be like the others. You might be the one that leads us to victory. Oh, by the way, your name isn't Jack. Your real name is Quintonimus Calegarae."

"Oh, come on, I just came here to expand my powers. I didn't come for your revolution, and I'm not staying for it either."

5 years later

I was running, with Fang, through the halls of the main hub, trying to get to the deck. "Man, PSICOM won't give us a break."

When we got there, I was met by many familiar faces of Rikku, Rinoa, and Tifa. "What's the situation?" I asked once we got there.

"PSICOM is attacking. They're coming in from all sides." Rikku answered.

"Okay, Fang, you go with Rikku to the front to try and help with the defense there. Tifa, Rinoa, and I will try to flank them and attack them from behind. Go." I ordered.

They all nodded, and split. We started to head for the enemy line's border. When we got there, I summoned my cane, Darkside, and started to move around cautiously. We successfully made it past their front lines, and continued to the heart of their base.

As soon as we got there, I leaped into action, and started chopping the guards to pieces. The other joined, and soon, we took out the main room. People were speaking into the intercom, asking what their next order is.

The group then went back to the front line to help out. They did, and the fight was over. There was only one problem, Fang disappeared.

I ran over to Rikku. "Where is Fang?" I demanded.

She shook her head. "They took her. I don't know where. I couldn't protect her. I'm a failure."

I put my hand on her shoulder. "No you're not. You're anything but a failure. Don't worry, we'll get her back."

2 months later

"Sir, sighting of Leader Fang, reported."

"Where?" I asked.

"On the streets in Bodhum, sir."

"Set course immediately."

When we got there, I went in alone. I found her just lying in the street. She was bloody. It was like she was a twig, or a dead tree that someone discarded. She was just about as skinny.

I ran over to her, kneeled down, and started to shake her violently. I feared the worst. Finally, she stirred, and I was relieved. Her eyes fluttered open. She lazily looked around and then finally at me.

She smiled weakly. "You came." She whispered. I could only smile back. She raised her hand slowly to my cheek. "It's been so long."

I picked her up, and carried her back to the airship. I went immediately to the medical station. They put her on a stretcher, and started to run some diagnostics.

I went back to the deck, and told everyone the good news. They all came, and checked on her.

"I-I-I told them- They made me- They know-"she stuttered.

"Shhhh, it's okay. It's fine as long as you're safe. Save your energy." I comforted her.

"But they know everything. They're going to attack!" she insisted as she tried to get up, only to have everyone push her back down.

"Tell us what happened."

Flashback

Fang woke to an unbearable headache. She found that her hands were tied behind her back. She remembered what happened before she was knocked out. They were holding off the PSICOM troops at the front line. Fang rushed them, and dove straight into their ranks.

A soldier came in, and pulled her into a separate room. She was met by Jihl Nabaat. She embodied everything that Fang hated. "Hello, hun." She greeted.

"Is that what you say to every hostage, or is this just a special occasion?" she said, putting emphasis on the word 'hostage'.

"Just shut up, and tell me everything about your operations."

"No. I'm never telling you that."

"Yeah, we'll see about that." She said as she approached Fang while cracking her knuckles. "You know, I've needed a new punching bag."

Jihl gave a defenseless Fang a hard punch to the gut. She dropped to one knee. Jihl then kneed her in the neck. Fang went into a coughing fit. Jihl continued to beat Fang, and there was nothing she could do about it.

Eventually, Jihl knocked her into the wall, and repeatedly punched her in the stomach, which caused her to bleed from the cracks she was making in the wall. Then Jihl grabbed her hair, and cut her bonds, and then threw her into the middle of the room. She hit an invisible barrier, and she was suspended.

"Ready to give?" Jihl asked.

"Not even close."

"You know, this pain isn't going to stop until you tell me what I want."

"I'm not telling you."

Jihl pushed a button, and electricity surged through Fang. It went on forever. Then, Jihl did it again.

"That went on for like 2 months, and I eventually caved in." she concluded. She let that sink in. "Now, help me get ready." She ordered as she once again tried to get up.

"In your condition, you're not 'ready' to do anything except rest." Tifa insisted.

"Come on!" she whined.

"No." Rinoa said.

"You too?"

Rinoa nodded.

"Just leave it to us professionals." Rikku said.

"Just help me to the deck." Fang insisted.

I chuckled. "You're really stubborn, just like I was 5 years ago."

Fang once again tried to get up, but we let her try this time. She managed to sit up, and hold herself up. She then tried to stand, but that was tricky. I had to help her. When she finally got her balance, she started to limp toward the deck. We followed.

When we got there, we evaluated the situation. PSCOM was preparing a full-scale assault on our airship. They were using the majority of their forces to directly attack on the side of the ship.

"Okay, I'll go to the front line and help out there. The rest of you go around and attack them from behind." I saw Fang about to speak. "Fang, you stay here and try not to get kidnapped again."

"Hey!"

"Anyway, let's get to it."

We all left to go to our positions. When I got to the front line, a soldier told me that the enemy seemed weaker than usual. I summoned Darkside, leaped into action. I ducked and slashed, and jabbed.

The soldier was right. It seemed easier than usual. I shot ice pillars at another group, and continued cutting them down. Then I suddenly realized why the enemy seemed weaker. They were trying our tactic of circling around us and attacking from behind. That meant that they would be attacking the deck first.

I stabbed another soldier in the stomach, and sprinted toward the deck. I heard bangs coming from the deck, and I heard screams coming from there also. When I got there, I saw most of the soldiers either dead or wounded, and a couple PSICOM Elites and Jihl Nabaat standing over Fang.

Jihl was saying something like "It seems that you're in better shape than you were when I was done with you." or something along those lines. Anyway, I crept around the corner, and motioned for Fang to stall her. She slightly nodded, and started to stall for me. I gave her a look like "I'll be back soon" and left back to the front line.

When I got there, I saw that PSICOM had lost. The others were just finishing off the stragglers. I ran as fast as I could to them, and told them the news. They nodded, and we silently made our way back up to the deck.

As far as I could see, Fang was pretty much dead, and that lit my fuse. I kind of… lost my temper a bit. I charged in there, with the others close behind me, and we easily took out the PSICOM Elites.

The real problem was Jihl. That was the only reason I needed help. I slashed at her with precise strikes, attempting to hook her neck on the hook. She expected it, and easily ducked, and dodged. The others surrounded her, and we pressed her from all sides. We continually attacked her, and she eventually went down. We knocked her unconscious, and Rikku 'escorted' her to the prison block.

I went over to Fang, and shook her. She opened her eyes, and focused her eyes on me. "We told you to stay out of this. We told you to stay in the medical center, but did you listen? Nnnnoooo, you didn't."

She raised her hand, and made it look like blabber. "Blah, blah, blah."

Tifa came over, and kneeled down. "Now are you ready to listen to us?" she asked.

"Not even close."

"Well, let's see if you can stay on your feet." I said as I picked her up, and put her back down on her feet.

She stumbled for a minute, but she eventually fell to her knees.

Rinoa came over and helped her back to her feet. "Try as you might Fang, you're not well enough to stay and fight."

"I'm fine, really." She insisted.

Fang, surprisingly, stayed on her feet this time. A soldier came over. "Sir, another 'individual' has been spotted, sir."

"Okay, have a squad ready to move out on my order." Fang ordered.

"Oh no you don't. You're not ready for that yet. I'll do it this time." I said. I turned to the soldier. "Make that on my order."

Fang sighed. "Fine, but if you mess this up, I'm blaming you."

When I landed, I found a girl with long, mangled, silver hair that reached down to her waist standing about two feet in front of me. It looked like she has been on the run for a while now. She looked to be about two, maybe three years younger than I. She was wearing a white top with short sleeves, and a white miniskirt, and she was also wearing a heart necklace that had several beads on them. She immediately yelled "GO AWAY!" and threw a fireball at me.

I blocked it with an ice pillar, and stood there calmly. She widened her eyes in surprise, and stumbled back a few steps. "Shhhh, it's okay. I know what you've been through. I went through the same thing. I promise, cross my heart and hope to die, that we're not here to arrest you. I won't come any closer until you're more comfortable." I said in a soothing voice.

I made no attempt to move forward. "I-I don't trust you!" she yelled.

"Okay, how about this. Look up." I said as I motioned toward the airship. She did, and her eyes widened even more. "Is that something that police would use? I don't think so. I can already tell that you're like me. You're more powerful than most of our kind. Most of us would've had to train for years to put that much power in an attack."

Her eyes darted back to me, and it looked like she was about to cry. "Are you okay?" I asked. She ran toward me, and grasped me tight. Then, she really did cry. I patted her back gently. "There, there, it's going to be okay. I promise. Hey, do you want to come meet the rest of the group?"

When we got back to the bridge, she had her arm around me, and was sticking close. I couldn't blame her. I would've been the same way at her age, and if I wasn't so pissed off at the time, and if I wasn't a guy. This was all so new to her. Fang turned and smiled. "At least you didn't mess up." She joked. I smirked.

She limped over, and put her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Hello, there. What's your name?"

"I'm Faith Fathom."

"Hi Faith, I'm Fang. That's Quint." She said while motioning to me.

Tifa walked over. "I'm Tifa."

"My name's Rinoa." She yelled from across the room.

Faith studied Fang's injuries. "What happened?"

"You don't want to know. Anyway, I take it that you've figured out that you have powers." Faith nodded. I cut in.

"I believe that she's like me. She has more control over her powers than most."

"Hmmm, could you show her around?" she asked.

I nodded.

We were walking down the halls, just exploring really, for what seemed like forever. I gave her the grand tour. I decided to look for a weapon last because I already kind of knew what she would be using.

Anyway when we got there, it looked like she would pass out from exhaustion.

"Faith, hold your hand out, and will a weapon to appear. It will feel like a tug in your gut." I told her.

She did as she was told, and seconds later, a near replica of Darkside appeared in her hand. It had some major differences though. First, it was light blue, with a white aura surrounding it. Next, instead of the symbol of Death on a keychain, it had the symbol of Light on a keychain.

"As I thought."

"What?"

"We're opposites. I'm darkness, and you're light. Our destinies are intertwined."

She looked confused. I chuckled. "You'll understand in time. Until then, let's find you a room so that you can sleep."

One day, I and Faith were training together, and I got to know her a little better. She had a bully, just like I did. She landed in pretty much the same scenario that I did.

The major difference I out fighting style was that she held it like a sword, and I held it like Fang did with her lance. In terms of skill, she was improving significantly, but she was still rough around the edges. She occasionally caught me off guard, and did get the advantage, but I soon got it back.

2 years later

Faith has improved so much that I think that she stands a chance against me. We were undergoing a heated battle (for training) and she was keeping me on my toes. Of course, that was only when I was playing defensive. She even learned to mix her powers with her melee attacks.

Suddenly, the intercom told both of us to go to the deck. We stopped to rest, and then headed there. When we arrived, Rikku looked unusually depressed.

"What's up?" I asked.

"You have to go out on a mission. Rikku's sad because she can't go." Tifa answered.

"Okay, what do we have to do?"

"You have to go to Bodhum, and explore a cave there. If you find anything of value, bring it back."

We both nodded and started to head out. We were stopped by Rinoa. "Be careful. The cave is said to trap those who enter with dreams that you never want to leave."

"Got it. Bye."

The cave was just a linear path that went on and on and on and on. When we finally got to the end, we immediately found a crystal that shined with radiance. "I think that has some value."

"Same, let's pull it out, and get out of here."

We both grabbed hold, and when we did, we started to feel lightheaded. I saw Faith fall forward before I blacked out.

I awoke to the sound of birds whistling. I was in a garden that was overlooking a city. I looked at myself, and found that I was twelve. I turned around to find a woman behind a screen door. She was staring at me, and she was smiling.

I suddenly couldn't remember why I was here. All I remembered was a girl's face. I walked over to the screen door, and opened it. The woman said "Look who fell asleep again." I ignored her and looked around.

I saw a room with a TV, and a kitchen. "Hi mom." I said. I don't know how I knew that this was my mother.

"Hello dear, we're having macaroni for dinner, want some?" she asked.

"Um, sure."

Something in my heart told me to wake up. It was a girl's voice. "On second thought, I'm going to go outside for a while."

After a couple minutes, the woman came out again. "Your macaroni is getting cold."

I suddenly got really pissed off. "No, go away!" I yelled.

The woman looked angry, and slowly, her face morphed into that of a monster. "You mustn't wake up, dear." It said.

I summoned Darkside, and killed it easily. I suddenly remembered what I was doing here, and I remembered Faith. The scene shifted to that of a farm. I saw Faith herding cows. I looked at myself, and found that I was back to normal.

I also saw a few adults working nearer to the barn, but when Faith was done she ran towards me. I was about to embrace her in a hug, but she passed right through me.

She ran towards the barn, and I followed. She started talking with the adults, and I started to get impatient. I crossed my arms, and tapped my foot. I called out to her, but she wouldn't answer.

I yelled her name, but she still wouldn't answer. She just kept talking to the adults. They started to go off toward another house, but I grabbed her arm. I pulled her towards me, and started to shake her frantically. When she still wouldn't respond, I kissed her.

Her eyes widened as soon as it started. The scene returned to the cave. She pulled away from me, and gave me a good smack. "What the HELL?!" she yelled.

"Let me guess, you couldn't remember why you were here. A voice in your heart told you to wake up, and then everything came rushing back when I kissed you."

She looked like she was at a loss for words. "So what? It still didn't give you the right to do that."

"What did you expect me to do, smack you?"

"Maybe I did."

"Well, it wasn't going to happen." I saw her reach out for the jewel again. I pulled her arm away. "Don't touch it again." I ordered.

She jerked her hand away. "Don't touch me!"

"Whatever, let's get out of her-" I was interrupted by the intercom.

"Both of you come quick! It's an emergency. It's PSI-"

"Repeat, repeat!"

The intercom let off static. We both ran for the exit.

When we got to the airship, we found that PSICOM launched a surprise attack. We ran to the deck, and found that we practically lost. Elites were standing over the others, and had swords to their necks. Jihl was pacing in front of them.

"Well, well, if it isn't the people who 'defeated' me last time. Come quietly, or they die."

We looked at each other, and held our hands up in defeat. Soon after, they forced us into cells. I was with Fang, Faith was with Rikku, and Tifa was with Rinoa.

I banged on the door. "God damn it! I failed. I couldn't protect you guys."

Fang just sat against a wall. "Relax, it's not like we can't get out of this."

"Oh yeah, how might we do that?"

"You have Darkside. You can bust through the door, right?"

"Wrong, I reinforced the doors to block against the power of darkness."

"Why'd you do that?"

"Most villains use darkness."

"Well, did you reinforce it to protect against the power of light?"

"No." Fang raised an eyebrow. "Ooohhh, I got you." I said.

As if on cue, the cell next to ours exploded. Out came Faith and Rikku. Faith looked like she was contemplating whether to set us free or not.

"Oh, come on Faith. It wasn't that big of a deal."

"I'm setting you free for Fang, not for you."

"Oh thank god."

She blew the cell door open, and we walked out. The others retrieved their weapons, and we headed for the deck. I summoned Darkside. We got there, and immediately took out everyone. Jihl wasn't there. We took back the ship, and we split up to clear out the rest of it.

When we all met back, Faith seemed to have cooled down. I was about to talk to her, when the ship rumbled. I looked outside to find that Jihl had returned with an even bigger army. We were forced to leave, or die.

We left the airship, and started to walk on the road. After a while, we stopped at a rest area, and Faith went off by herself to a sunlit hill. I followed. I got there and kneeled beside her. "Hi there, Faith." She remained silent. "I really am sorry for the whole incident."

She sighed. "You know, the reason I acted that way was because I didn't want to face the fact that it was just another lie."

"What's that mean?"

"All my life, people have been lying to me. Whenever I got upset, or angry, my powers got out of control. One time, I set our house on fire. My parents lied to me when they explained that it was only an accident, and that it wasn't my fault. In school, I froze a bully in ice. I didn't remember until we went into that dream. They always said that I was special, and that I was only taken away from everyone else because I was smarter than them. It's all just one big lie. And then that dream just made me relive all of my past mistakes, and that was a lie too."

"Wow, it seems like you've had it pretty rough."

"Yeah, but just listen to me ramble. I bet you've had it ten times worse, huh."

"Not really, I just try to keep my head cool. I'm less…emotional than you."

She turned to face me. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I'm just saying that girls are more emotional than guys."

"Whatever," she paused. "But in all honesty, I did enjoy our kiss."

She softened when she said that. "You're not just saying that to make me feel better, are you?" I asked. Faith shook her head.

She waited for a moment, moved forward, hesitated, and then kissed me.

Fang came up behind us while we were making out. "Ah, I hope I'm not interrupting."

We both pulled back. "Uh, no, what's up?"

"Well, we're all ready to leave. We were waiting for you two to finish the conversation. It took longer than we thought, and then this." She said referring to us making out.

I stood up. "Well, let's go then." I said as I held my hand out for Faith. She took it, and we were on our way.

Soon, we came to…Bodhum? Wow, either we traveled a lot, or we landed closer to it than I thought. PSICOM was everywhere, looking for us.

Fang halted us. "Hey guys, I know a place where we can stay."

"Where's that?"

"It's at my old friend Lightning's house. It's on the edge of town, near the ocean."

"Okay, lead the way."

We got to the end of a dock, and found a house that looked like it could hold three. Fang walked up, and knocked on the door. A strawberry blond answered. "Lightning!"

Fang brought the girl in a tight hug. "Hi Fang, long time no see- can't breathe."

Fang let go. "Oops, sorry about that. I would like you to meet some new friends. Meet Tifa, Rinoa, Rikku, Quint, and Faith."

Each of us waved in turn. Lightning eyed me suspiciously. She allowed us to come in, and we all spread out. She pulled me into a separate room.

"What are you doing here?" she asked me.

"What?"

"The Goddess told me that there was one final paradox, and you're it."

"What are you talking about?"

"The Goddess Etro told me that there was one final paradox to solve. You use the power of darkness, don't you?"

I shook my head. "I don't. It's just that my weapon is made of darkness. I'm Faith's opposite. Her weapon uses the power of light."

"Hmmm, so you're the darkness that is supposed to belong to Faith." I gave her a confused look. "Never mind. Just don't do anything that might change history. If you do, I'm going to hunt you down."

"Okay, geez."

"Good."

We walked back into the main room, and Fang started talking to Lightning about getting their airship back. I went to talk to Faith. "What did Light want to talk to you about?"

"She thinks that I'm a 'paradox' and that I'm the manifestation of the darkness that's supposed to belong to you. I don't get it."

"Me neither. Listen, I'm sorry, about everything."

"What are you sorry for? It's only natural with everything that you've been through."

"I was always taught to be better than everyone else. It's kind of hard not to be, I guess."

I ruffled her hair. "You're the most beautiful, talented and perfect girl that I've ever had the pleasure of being friends with. And that's not a lie."

She stared up at me gratefully, and brought me into a hug. "I'll protect you, always." I promised.

We stayed there for a few seconds, and then she pulled away. "Thanks, I needed that."

She walked away smiling, and Fang announced that we would be staying around here until we can get our airship back.

She said that we should stay in the house until things cool down.

One day, me and Faith were hanging out (and making out, tee-hee), when PSICOM barged in. Lightning motioned for us to stay low. "Can I help you officers?" she asked.

"You are hereby under arrest for suspicion of harboring underground fugitives. Surrender and die!"'

"Hmm, whatever you say." She said. She quickly dispatched of the guards. "Well, I don't think that you guys can stay here anymore." She said.

"Yeah, no kidding. We need our airship back."

Faith stood up. "I think that I'm going to go outside" she said as she walked off.

"Well, I guess I'll follow her."

I caught up to her when she reached a cave. "Hey, what's that?"

"I don't know."

We ventured in and found a machine. I read the instructions. It said that it had the power to destroy a continent. "Oh my god. We could use this to destroy PSICOM."

"I don't think that we should. They are still humans. They deserve to live."

"Um, Faith, I don't think you realize this. They tried to kill us several times."

"They were only following orders."

"They enjoyed it."

"If you're going to try to do it, then I'm going to try to stop you."

"Yes, I'm going to do it. You know that you can't beat me." I said while summoning Darkside.

"I am going to try, though."

She came at me, but she did it clumsily. I sidestepped, and hooked her left arm on my blade. It made a gash, and she stepped back. This continued for a while, and she started breathing heavily.

"We don't have to do this you know." I said.

"I can't…let you…do this!" she yelled.

She now had several gashes that are squirting blood everywhere. She rushed toward me, but she passed out on the way there.

I caught her, took her to a chair, tied her to it with special rope, and started to clean her wounds. After she stopped bleeding, I went over to the machine. It started talking. It said it was the Oracle Drive, and it claimed that it would show me the future. It showed Faith dying while trying to protect us from PSICOM. I turned it off, and went to prepare for the attack. Eventually, Faith came to. She groaned in agony. She took in her situation.

She tried to burn through the ropes, but she got a nasty shock. I chuckled. "Don't even try it. Don't try to cut through them with your cane either. You'll get another shock. I made those especially to counter those with the power of Light."

"Why?"

"I was bored."

"Not that, you idiot! Why do you want to kill all of those people?"

"I want to protect you. I watched the Oracle Drive. It showed you dying while trying to protect us. I can't allow you to do that. I have to destroy PSICOM before you die at their hands."

"They're only following orders." She insisted. "What about their families? You'll ruin their lives!"

"They can rot for all I care. At least you'll live." I said while walking over to her and petting her hair.

Almost immediately, she jerked her head away. I knelt down, and started to bandage her wounds. She tried to struggle away though. When I was done, I continued making preparations.

"Etro! Etro, please answer! Arrrgh, it must be the paradox!" she said as she went to track me down.

While I was working, someone tackled me. It was Lightning, and she looked ready for a fight. "I told you not to change history!" she yelled.

"I'm changing it for the better! You hate PSICOM as much as I do. If I don't do this, then Faith will die!"

"Maybe I do, but if she has to die, then she has to die. It's just the way it has to be."

"No it doesn't. I'll do anything it takes to keep her alive! I promised that I would keep her safe!"

"You call this safe? You gave her a crap ton of gashes, and she could've died from blood loss." She yelled as she came at me.

She beat me easily. I was good, but she was better. She pushed me to a wall, and was about to shove her blade into my heart. "NO!" Faith yelled.

This distracted Lightning. I took my chance. I leapt up, broke her sword arm, and knocked her out. "Why'd you do that?" Faith yelled.

"I did that so that she wouldn't attack me." I answered.

I picked her up, and threw her out. Then I went back to the machine, and continued preparations. "Please, don't do this!" Faith pleaded while struggling against her bonds.

"I'm sorry, but it has to be done to keep you safe. I hope you'll forgive me."

"No, it doesn't! If you don't do it, then we can go off somewhere together. It would be just the two of us. I promise. If you do it, then I'll never forgive you, but I'll still love you forever."

"It's a tempting offer, but I must refuse." I said as I started the attack on PSICOM.

"No! Please, I beg of you, don't do this! I know that you have a heart!" she yelled. She looked like she was at near tears.

Just then, Lightning walked in. "I'm sorry Etro, I've failed you." She whispered.

"Good God, are you still trying to win?"

Faith had tears streaming from her eyes. "Please stop the attack!" she choked out.

"Do you promise not to do anything stupid like trying to protect me and the others by standing the way?" She nodded franticly. "Fine, as long as you stay safe." I said as I stopped the machine just before it launched.

I took out a handkerchief, and walked over to Faith. I dried her tears, and untied her. She immediately punched me in the face. "That was for almost killing all of those people." Then she pulled me into a kiss.

"I'm sorry. I won't do it again as long as you keep your promise, and stay safe." I said as I helped her to her feet.

She ran over to Lightning. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"Thank God. History hasn't changed as much as it would've if he made the wrong choice. What a relief." Lightning whispered. "No, I'm not fine. He broke my arm!"

I walked over calmly. "Oh, quit whining. Here I'll fix it right up." I healed her arm with one of my powers. "There, is that better Ms. Drama Queen?"

"Yes it is. Thank you."

"Why don't you do that for my wounds?" Faith asked.

"I only have the power to do it once before my energy recharges."

"Whatever."

We all walked out, and found that Fang and the others had already left. Then we looked up, and saw the airship. I expected to hear PSICOM tell us to surrender, but we instead heard Fang's voice telling us to get aboard.

Lightning headed back to her house, and we boarded the airship. They grimaced when they saw Faith's new wounds. She just smiled. "What happened?" Tifa asked.

"It's a long story." She said, and she told them everything.

That leads us back to the present.

"That pretty much wraps it up." I told you. "Be sure to pass it on, bye!"

I walked back, and the others were still in shock about what happened. "Why didn't you let him wipe out PSICOM? They're the whole point of this operation."

"I think that we can solve our dispute without annihilating them." Faith explained. "Am I the only one that actually has a heart here?"

"Hey, I stopped." I said in my defense.

"Yeah, but that was only when I agreed that I wouldn't sacrifice myself for them." She reminded me.

"Yes, but I did stop."

"You're impossible."

"Yes you are." I joked. "Anyway, what now?"

"We're all sick and tired of PSICOM, so we're going to storm their base." Rikku yelped excitedly.

"Um, Rikku, are you a necrophiliac?" I asked.

"No, why do you ask?"

"You were so excited about killing them."

"Well, they've been bothering us too long, and I'm looking forward to having a life without them." She explained.

"Whatever, what's the plan?"

"You and I are going to go in through the ventilation shaft, take out the guards that are guarding the entrance, and let the others in. Then, I'm going to go with Rikku, and try to find a way to the weaponry to knock out their supply. Meanwhile, Rinoa is going to go into the control room, and bomb it. After that, Tifa, you and Fang are going to find the heart of the base. Once you've done that, we'll all meet up at the entrance, take out any reinforcements, and go to the heart and defeat the big boss. I'm going to take a separate route, and meet up with you there." Faith explained.

"Okay let's go."

When we got there, me and Faith jumped into the ventilation shaft and knocked out the guards. We got one of their keys, and unlocked the door. We split up. Fang and I were walking through the hallway, and there was a big KABOOM, indicating that Rinoa had succeeded in her mission.

Eventually, we found the heart, and we headed back the way we came. We saw everybody but Faith there. "Where's Faith?"

"Weren't you listening? She went off on another route, remember?"

We went to the heart, and found something that we didn't want to see. "Dysley." Fang whispered.

We saw 'Dysley' sitting in a throne. Next to him, we saw two PSICOM soldiers holding Faith. One of them had their hand clamped over her mouth. She had a look like "GET OUT OF HERE!"

"Let her go!" I demanded.

He teleported to us and said "Fine, you can have it."

He teleported back to his throne, and waved for the soldiers to release her. They pushed her to us, and I caught her. "Run, it's a trap!" she yelled.

Just then, about a hundred PSICOM Elites came and surrounded us. She face-palmed. "We weren't leaving you. I promised to keep you safe." I said.

"Now, surrender, or the girl dies." Dysley said. The Elites all had their rifles pointed at Faith.

"Don't do it!" she pleaded.

"Fine, just don't hurt her." I said.

"What?" The other asked in unison.

"We can't let her die."

"We shouldn't jeopardize the mission because he threatens to kill her." Fang insisted.

"What about 'The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.'?" Rinoa asked.

"She's too important."

"I vote we don't give in for me." Faith said. "All who agree say I"

"I" they all said, except me.

"Good," Dysley said, "kill her."

"What, No!" I yelled.

"Now." He ordered.

They all fired at Faith. I jumped in the way in an adrenaline rush. The bullets pierced my flesh. Searing pain engulfed my entire body. I fell to my knees, and onto the floor. Faith kneeled down beside me.

"NO! You monster." She yelled at Dysley.

"Oops, that didn't go as planned." He said to himself.

Everyone drew their weapons. Faith charged right at Dysley, while the others took on groups of soldiers. It was a losing battle at all fronts.

The soldiers eventually got the best of us, and pumped everyone full of lead. Faith was in a heated battle, but eventually backed off.

She saw that most of her friends were near death, and that must've sparked a fuse. It was like she said, her powers got out of control whenever she got angry or upset. It didn't look like she moved, but every single one of the soldiers soon lay on the ground dead.

Then, a white aura surrounded her, and a bubble appeared around her. It expanded rapidly, and engulfed the entire room. Dysley vaporized when it touched him, and when it touched me, all of my pain went away. I looked at myself, and it looked like I was as good as new.

The others looked that way as well. But when I looked at Faith, I saw her lying on the ground, and she looked dead. I got up and ran over to her. I held her in my arms, and shook her frantically while the others approached us.

She half opened her eyes and weakly said "Looks like I broke my promise, huh?"

I nodded. "Here, don't move." I said. I did the thing that healed Lightning's arm. "And yes, you did break your promise."

She grabbed my head, and we made out. She looked a little better. "I can't move. So, can you take me back to the airship?" she asked.

I nodded, picked her up, and started my way out. When we got there, they ran some tests, and said that all of her bio readings are normal, and that she just needed some rest.

Then I took her to her room, and let her go to sleep. I crashed shortly after.

The next morning, everyone was celebrating the defeat of PSICOM, except Faith. When I got up, I went to check on her. "I killed all of them, didn't I?" she asked.

"What?"

"All of those people in that building. I killed them in my rage, didn't I?"

I put my head down. "Yes."

"Thanks for saving me." She said.

I looked up, and saw her giving me a grateful look. "Like I said, "You're the most beautiful, talented, and perfect girls that I've ever had the pleasure of being friends with.""

"I love you." She whispered.

I smiled, and made out with her. "Hey, maybe when I can move, we could go off together somewhere, like I promised." She suggested.

"You do realize that you're only, like, 20, right?"

She chuckled. "Yes, I'm aware of that, but legally, I am old enough." She reminded him.

"Okay deal." I whispered. We continued making out, and we ended up doing it. We went on our honeymoon, and lived happily ever after.

That is my story. You must pass it on. You must tell them of me, and Faith. Bye!