Author's Note: I do not own Final Fantasy or anything affiliated with it. The rights to it belong solely to their respective owners.
Notice: I thank all of you who voted in helping my title for this story. So here, it is, the sequel to Threads Connected! (The story will mainly be told through the POV of my OC, Deiru. If it ever changes though, there will be an indicator.)
The story so far:
Deiru Tamashi, an average human sixteen year-old, arrives home one day and starts a new game on his copy of Final Fantasy XIII. But as soon as he does however, a meteor shower fall down around his home, and Deiru is hit by one. When he awakened he has no injuries, save for a silver crescent-shaped burn mark on the bottom of his right forearm. Later, after making sure he's fine he starts to play the game when he is pulled into the Hanging Edge, now in the world of Final Fantasy. Using powers he gained upon arriving Deiru meets the cast and is made a l'Cie, also learning that the goddess Etro brought him there. The makers of FFXIII had captured the timeline of a real world and built it into a game, so anything that any player of any game did would be reflect in the real Final Fantasy world.
The timeline was in danger of being destroyed, and so Deiru was tasked with changing events to prevent that. Along the journey Deiru and Lightning feel in love with each other, the key point being after Deiru saved her life in Palumpolum. The l'Cie traveled from Cocoon to Pulse and back, finally saving Cocoon and Deiru choosing to stay in the world of Cocoon, leaving his old life behind. However, it was not to be. Deiru was pulled into Valhalla along with Lightning, serving the same purpose as Etro's champion. Later Lightning sent him along with Noel to find Serah. As their journey grew to a close Deiru resolved to stop Caius Ballad from killing himself and ending the world. His efforts were in vain though, and Serah died while the Chaos flooded forth.
Afterwards, in Valhalla Deiru learned that when Etro had brought him to that world she accidentally imparted a fragment of her soul, which becomes the last living part of her. Deiru accepts to become her vessel and absorbs Etro's spirit into her own, causing him to gain her powers. With them Deiru resolves to fulfill is final promise to protect Lightning, and kneels before her crystal statue in the Throne of the Goddess.
Since then, five hundred years have gone by…
Strings Unraveled
Ch.1 A Changed World
For half of a millennia the darkness flooded reality, infecting every aspect of existence.
In an unknown land there existed a massive city, one that merged together the aspects of medieval and modern. The streets were alive with festivities, and near the end of the town existed a massive palace, with an equally large clocktower in front of it. Atop the clocktower stood two figures, both of which looked down at the citizens below. Inside the palace they could hear the sounds of even greater festivities, and in their communicator's a voice said "It's starting. The banquet at the end of time. The people know it's almost over." "Yeah," the woman beside me said. She stood and took of her shades, gazing out at the broken world.
Because of my failure, this world is doomed to die. And it won't be in centuries- the world had less than a couple of weeks.
"Only thirteen days to go," Lightning said, and I nodded beside her. Lightning's hair was long and fell over one shoulder, and without her sunglasses her eyes were revealed to be a pale aqua-blue. Her armor was composed of a chest plate held by straps, armor covering her shoulder and arms, knee-high boots of black metal and red leather, and a collared cape that was white on the outside and red on the inside, which was the same case with the two legs of cloth covering her legs. Attached to her left arm was a red shield and in her right hand she held a long metal sword with almost no hand guard, and a blade that could cut through the strongest steel. In the center of her chest was her emblem of the Savior.
I stood next to Lightning, my gaze solemn. With the two of us standing together I was taller my only an inch. My hair was a disheveled mess of chaotic black spikes and my skin was both tanned and muscled, although not a lot of either. My left eye was sapphire blue, while my right was a golden-yellow. I wore a suit of armor composed of black metal chest armor with my own symbol in the center: a silver crescent moon over the Eye of Etro. On my arms were black metal and silver leather gauntlets and leather gloves with metallic rectangles sewn onto the back, and on my legs were armor that protected them and a pair of metal boots with pointed tips. On my back was a massive sword that was five feet long and a foot across, with silver and gold cloth wrapped around the handle and the same symbol that was on my chest was on the hilt.
On the blade were lines written in Etro Script, reading "The blade of all, made by the union between mortal and divine. To decide that destiny of eternity, the sword Omnes destroys all in its path." I stood next to my beloved and we both sprang forward, landing the ground and running for the palace. Inside the ballroom of the castle countless people were partying, enjoying the fun. Waitresses dressed in cat-girl outfits moved through the crowd and handed out drinks, and on several stages dancers did as their names implied, much to the watchers' delight. The whole scene was bright with colors, festive and overall full of happiness. But far above was one person who wasn't sharing the festive mood. That person was the Patron of Yusnaan, the city they were in: Snow Villiers.
The once bright man now wore an all-black formal suit, with boots, gloves and his engagement pendant of Cocoon. His blonde hair had lengthened until it was straight and layered, reaching his shoulders. He also had a short beard, and his blue eyes were filled with a mire of sadness, anger and regret. Hidden underneath his left sleeve was the brand of a l'Cie, the last one left in existence, and it had reached its thirteenth stage. Snow sat forward on his throne and watched the events down below, while one either side of him stood a guard. He was waiting for something to go wrong, as it usually would. What did didn't see was Lightning and I moving through the ground, remaining in stealth unless something happened.
Something did happen. The music dimmed and the room grew dark, and we all looked up as a dark shadowy mist appeared from nowhere and spread across the ceiling. In our ears Hope's voice sounded over the communicator, saying "It's the Chaos. Do you want to go back?" "Too late now," Lightning replied. I smiled, and without thinking both my voice and that of a woman said "We can take it." I blinked, and waved my hand in apology when Lightning looked back. Sometimes Etro and I happened to be thinking the same thing at the same time, and both of our voices came through. It didn't happen often, but was rather embarrassing when a stranger heard two voices coming out of your mouth at once.
The crowd stopped when the Chaos appeared, instantly going from cheerful to apprehensive and full of fear. One of the walls split apart and began to shimmer, the Chaos having ripped open a hole in reality. When nothing came through one of the waitresses slowly took a step forward. That step would be her last, because just then an arm shot forward from the void and grabbed her, pulling her in. Her screams was cut sort, but the other's began when more monsters burst through, charging. There were several Anubys as well as a couple of Niblet. The crowd scattered began running for exits, while one of the guards said "Sire!" "Got it!" Snow said, standing. Rather than join the running crowd Lightning and I pushed through them, trying to reach the monsters and kill them.
A Niblet came close to Lightning and tried to bite her, but she swung her sword and cut it across the face. The monster fell back and I flicked my hand, casting Thunder and blasting it to a crisp. An Anubys swung at one of the people and creating a gaping hole in that person's stomach, falling back. I pulled of Omnes and leaped, rising above the crowd and calling "Hey!" It looked up and I cast Aeroga, creating a massive gale of wind that hit the beast hard enough that it took a step back. Lightning knelt before the dying person and she placed a hand on their chest. "Rest in peace," she said, and their chest glowed. A sphere of light that was their soul rose out of their chest and entered the symbol in the middle of Lightning's armor, causing it to shine as another soul was given salvation.
The other monsters mace various sound of battle and charged at us, and the Chaos surged forward. That was when Snow leaped from the level above and yelled, landing on the ground and slamming his fist against it. The Chaos swirled around him before vanishing, Snow having drawn it into his own body. I was shocked that he had done hat and froze, but then in my head I heard Etro called "Look out!" Out of the corner of my eye I saw an Anubys swing at me, and I blocked. While I kept the monster from attacking Lightning came from behind, jumping and stabbing her sword, Crimson Blitz, through the back of its neck. The beast tried to roar, but all that came out was a gargle. It fell to the ground when Lightning pulled her sword out, and Snow picked up its ax.
With a grunt he flash froze the item into a double-ended weapon of ice, which he swung at and hit a Niblet so hard it flew until it hit the wall, the impact cracking its skull like an egg. Lightning leaped off of a pillar and zipped through the air, moving with such sped that she was faster than her namesake. One of the Anubys tried to hit me with an overhead blow and I blocked, pushing back and causing the monster to teeter on one foot. I stabbed Omnes into its free foot and the Anubys fell back, where I cast Blizzara and dropped a chunk of ice the size of a table on its head. Snow knocked the axe of the last one's hand, and looked around. There were more appearing, but they stuck around the edge. Now that we had time to breathe, Lightning said "Snow, it's been a long time. You know what I am, and you know what I want."
Snow scoffed, smiling without humor. "You're a regular angel of death, Light. So now what? Is that the bit where you 'save my soul'?" he asked. "I can help. If that's what you want," she answered. Snow was silent for a moment, before grabbing her by the arm and pulling her loser. Instantly I was there, the point of Omnes resting against the tip of his spine. "One wrong move…" I warned. I may have considered Snow an ally in the past, but now I wasn't sure what he was. And if he was an enemy, I wouldn't hesitate to strike him in order to fulfill my duty: protecting Lightning. Just then everything went still, even Snow, and a small girl appeared between him and Lightning. We both gasped, and she giggled, waving her finger. She taped against Lightning's blade and a cracked appeared in hit, before the blade burst apart and half of it flew off into the distance.
Everything began moving again, and the girl had moved from being between Lightning and Snow to sitting on the chandelier, swinging her legs. Her eyes were blue gray and she looked like a younger version of Lightning, or perhaps Serah. She was wearing a gothic Lolita dress with stockings, a long sweeper with a pink interior, a sleeveless halter top with a black collar, a lacy skirt, and a long glove over her left arm and pump shoes. Snow glared at the girl, calling "Lumina!" Lumina shook her finger from side to side. "Now, now, it you can't just throw your life away!" she said, before pointing at the ceiling. A bolt of red lightning burst outwards and spread hitting every joint holding up the chandelier. She jumped of and vanished with bright flash.
The chandelier fell down and Snow shoved Lightning and I away. Beneath his sleeve his brand glowed before he threw a sphere of energy. The chandelier froze in mid-air and stopped, turning into a shape supported by a pillar similar to a miniature Cocoon. Snow huffed a breath. "I swear, that kid is a demon," he stated. I decided not to comment on that, and instead stepped closer. "You know what our purpose for being here is. Getting in our way will change nothing," I said. Snow looked at his fist, clenching it tighter. "Nothing's going to stop me, you hear? Not the two of you, and definitely not her. If you have to fight the Savior and her Protector, then I will," he said. I raised an eyebrow. "Against just Lightning or me, you might stand a chance. But do you really think you can defeat both of us?" I asked, my golden eye gleaming.
Snow looked at me dead in the eye. "Like I said- nothing's going to stop me," he said. But then he turned and dashed for a set of door, crashing them and running. I blinked, but then ran after him when Lightning did the same. As we did I switched my communicator back on. "Hope, maybe you can fill in here. What the hell is going on?" I asked. "If you're talking about Snow, he's become the patron of Yusnaan, and has been for a long time," Hope replied. "The Patron? I know he liked to help people, but lording over an entire city?" Lightning asked. "That was the idea, but now all he shows up for is for the nighttime activates, earning him the title 'Lord of the feast-hall'," Hope explained. I sighed, and within my head I could feel Etro's despair as well.
"And that young man used to have such a positive outlook on life, did he not?" she asked me. I knew that since we shared heads she could have just looked in my memories to find out, but she respected me enough to not. I nodded. "He was. But five hundred years can change a person, particularly with the world in this state," I said. Etro didn't say anything, but I knew what she was thinking. If she had been able to hold back the Chaos instead of dying, none of this would have happened. I felt the same guilt over having been unable to prevent her death, but none of that mattered now. All that was left was pick up the pieces of this shattered world and try to save it. Which, at the moment, involved chasing after Snow. We made it to the second level and saw him a good distance head of us, punching an Anubys in the face so hard it fell over a ledge into the ballroom.
He didn't even look to see it fall and kept going, barreling past two Niblet. They began to chase him, but once they saw us switched targets, hissing. Lightning cast Ruin and hit one while I swung down with Omnes, burying it halfway through the second one's head. I ripped the blade back out and cast Water to get rid of the blood, while Lighting slashed with the remains of her Crimson Blitz. Now that it was broken the sword's power wasn't what it was, and the cut was only half as deep as it could have been. The Niblet tried to bite her and she frowned, stabbing her sword in its eye. Now that both of the fiends were gone Lightning held up one finger, signaling for me to wait. I did, and her body was surrounded by light as she charged from her Equilibrium outfit to Dark Muse. Her sword and shield were replaced with the blade Scramasax and the Double Cross, and once that was done she said "Let's go."
I nodded and we both continued rushing forward, tailing after Snow. We managed to make it to a larger room made of stone when we stopped- Lumina was standing in the way. She wasn't paying attention to us, instead she was laughing as she wandered around in the middle of the chaos. My eyes narrowed and I looked at her. Just what was this girl? "If you're playing around in the middle of this Chaos, I'm guessing you're not human," Lightning said, stepping forward. Lumina stopped and looked at us, her eyes wide and innocent. "Oh, so you can see inside this stuff? Then you must not be one of God's regular lackey, huh?" she said, before looking at me. "And you, you're not even tied to God at all. You have his daughter's soul inside you," she said.
I froze, both Etro and I radiating shock from the same body. How did she know? Lumina laughed, saying "Etro was the goddess that controlled the Chaos and held it back in Valhalla all those eons. And since I'm using the Chaos, I can see her inside of you." Slowly my shock faded to anger, and I held up Omnes. "Hmph. Since you're so smart, are you going to keep standing in our way?" I demanded. Lightning held up her own blade, and Lumina chuckled. "No, but I will leave you a little parting gift," she said. Then she spread her arms and the Chaos pulsed, creating a burst of darkness behind her that resolved into a Zaltys. Lumina vanished while the beast roared, and Lightning I both prepared to fight.
Well, there's the first chapter of Strings Unraveled. Hope you all enjoyed it, and if anything confused you, know that next chapter there will be a lot of explanations at to what I have going on. So stayed tuned!
Please review! If you flame me Liam Neeson will look for you, he will find you, and he will kill you. (I'm just kidding... or am I?)