A completely random thought I had while listening to You Fight Me by Breaking Benjamin. I hope you enjoy it. If anyone likes it, well, there'll probably, probably, be a slight delay in between chapters. And yes, this is my first straight fic. Took me fucking long enough, too . . .

Chapter 1: Thief in the Night

An explosion tore through the sub-deck of the ship, obliterating many of the crew and blowing a huge hole in the hull. Water gushed in, the ship greedily drinking from the ocean, not caring about those still alive inside. The blood was further food.

Another explosion hit, this time a burst of flame punching a hole in the hull above the water. The ship was docked in Luca, the first explosion frightened many nearby people, but the next sent some running. Some for help, others panicking. Those that didn't go for help were either too stunned or didn't care since it was an Al-Bhed ship.

The door at the top of the ship blew out, the thick, iron door flew into stacks of crates, blowing them to pieces and sending more people running for their lives. Two people were tossed out of the now open door. Screams and shouts could be heard from inside the ship.

A single figure stepped out of the door. A long, black robe with splits down the sides covered the person's body, a black hood hid the face. The person looked around once before jumping from the ship. They spun in the air and landed with both feet on the ground, almost silently.

People backed away from the tall figure, others took his presence as the last straw and headed for the hills. The person drew a hand out of the robe. It had a black glove on it, the thumb was the only finger that had any coverage, but it only reached to the joint. The rest of the glove just cut off at the knuckles. In the person's hand was a large, silver pistol. A huge, square magazine jutted from the bottom of the barrel. The person turned and aimed the gun at the ship, near the water, and pulled the trigger.

The shot exploded, a large fireball tore through the ship, opening another side to the water. The figure turned and slowly began to walk away. They pressed a button on the gun and the magazine fell out with mechanical whine, followed by a short click.

Another hand came out of the left split, a similar glove covered it, and shoved another large clip into the gun before both arms retreated under the robe.

*******

A man ran into the Luca café. He scanned the patrons frantically and caught sight of who he needed. He ran towards the back of the café where three girls where seated.

One saw him before he reached them and stood up defensively, making the other two turn around. The man slid to a halt in front of the three and tried to say something, but could only gasp.

He bent over, hands on his knees, and tried to catch his breath. One of the girls walked over to him, "Yuna." the one who had stood up first growled.

Yuna stopped and looked back at her, "I don't think he means us any harm, Paine. You can calm down."

"Not with how he looks." Paine said, training crimson eyes on the man.

"He looks scared." the third said.

"That's what I meant, Rikku." Paine said.

The man finally rose up and looked at all three in succession before turning his attention to Yuna, "Lady Yuna . . someone . . an Al-Bhed boat in the docks . . it just . . exploded . . a man came out of it . . shot it with . . something . . he caused it . . I just came from there . . he's headed . . further into the city."

"What does he look like?" Paine asked.

"You'd know . . if you . . saw . . saw him." he took a deep breath. "Huge robe, hood . . really tall. Stands out."

Yuna turned back to her companions, "Well?"

"I don't know . . did he attack anyone nearby?" Paine asked the man.

He shook his head, "Doesn't mean that he won't. Someone went to get guards. If they try to take him . . he'll probably . . defend himself."

Paine nodded, "Makes sense."

Rikku looked at Yuna and Paine, obviously nervous, and pissed that someone attacked her people, "Well? We can't just let him get away with this! There were people on that ship, weren't there?" the man nodded. Rikku looked at Yuna pleadingly, itching to carve a few holes in this guy.

Yuna nodded, "Right. We'll handle this." Yuna said.

"So, instead of letting this guy kill a few guards, we're gonna let him kill us?" Paine asked, arching an eyebrow.

Rikku and Yuna paused in their tracks, Rikku turned her head a little, "Pretty much." she giggled nervously. Paine rolled her eyes but hurried to join them after muttering, "Idiots."

*******

At first, the three girls where a little lost as to how they would find this mysterious attacker. But, an explosion near the center of Luca drew their attention.

On the way, two more explosions lit the night. They arrived just as the man reloaded his weapon. Only this time, he holstered it. He pulled a long, wicked dagger out of his robe. The blade was black as pitch, and was straight for an inch or two before curving.

A guard came at him with an iron rod. The man grabbed his arm and, using the man's velocity, twisted it back, shattering his shoulder. The man cried out and fell to his knees. Another guard came at him, but swung low. The robed figure parried the blow and kicked him in the face with a steel-toed boot, breaking the man's jaw.

Yuna felt her guns materialize in her hands and raised them, "Hey!" Rikku yelled, beating her. The man slammed the back of the dagger into a guard's head before turning to look at them. "Give yourself up or we'll teach you a lesson you'll never forget!"

The man rose to his full height, several inches taller than Paine, and tilted his head to the side. "Well?" Yuna asked, giving her cousin a look.

The sheathed his dagger. Yuna lowered her guns a fraction, thinking he'd surrendered. But the man shook his head, turned around ,and headed away from them, in the direction one would take to leave Luca.

Rikku dropped her arms to her sides and yelled, "Hey! Don't you dare ignore us!" she yelled, pouting a little. Paine rolled her eyes and nudged Yuna with her elbow.

"Shoot him." the warrior said calmly. Yuna looked at her like she was crazy but sighed. She looked back at the man and fired a warning shot. He paused as the bullet zipped past his head and turned around just a fraction. He shrugged and continued on his way.

A flash of light made Yuna turn. Paine, now in her gunner dress-sphere, lifted her single pistol and fired. The bullet hit the man's leg, making him stumble. He stood straight up and turned around.

"Nice going grumpy, now he's gonna show us how his gun works!" Rikku squeaked before putting efficient space between herself and the warrior.

"I'd just like to see him . ."

"Rikku." Yuna sighed. The thief whined, but ran back and she and Yuna tackled Paine out of the way just as the man pulled the trigger of his gun. The steps they had been standing on flew in all directions. Pieces of rock and metal scattered and the three girls just managed to cover their faces.

Paine lifted her face and groaned, Rikku grimaced, "Well? You saw him do it? Satisfied?!"

"Arrogant fuck!" Paine growled, changing back to her usual attire. Her sword appeared in her hand and she pointed it at the man. "How about you fight me up close, huh?" she asked, hoping for a reaction. The man clicked a new clip into his gun and holstered it. He shook his head and turned around, now limping and bleeding, and walked away.

Paine growled and ran after him. Rikku sighed, "He's gonna kill her." she muttered. She helped her cousin up and ran after the warrior. Yuna dusted herself off and watched her two companions.

"They must both be crazy." she said. She saw her guns a few feet away and snapped her fingers. They blinked back into her hands and she sighed.

Paine lifted her sword as she closed in on the robed figure. She swung it in an arc at his side. He turned around faster than she thought he could and caught her blade. Paine just blinked as he ripped the sword from her hands and tossed it over his head. She took a step back before spinning to kick him.

She thought she heard him sigh, but the thought vanished when a new problem arose: He had caught her leg. "Saw that coming!" she heard Rikku yell.

The man tilted his head and let go of Paine, who fell to the ground, dazed and confused. But when that passed she was even more pissed than before.

She was about to stand up when Rikku ran past her and dodged around the figure. She stopped in front of him and pointed a finger towards his face. "Why did you do it?" she asked, voice low. He only stared at her. "Don't ignore me! Why did you . ."

"I do not have to explain myself to you." a low voice came, making Rikku stop dead. The voice sounded cold, devoid of emotion, almost. It almost reminded her of Paine.

"I think you do!" Rikku growled. "They were my people . ."

"You may say that all you wish, but unless you . . no, never mind, forget it ever happened, girl. You'll regret lingering on it."

"I beg to differ!" Rikku yelled. She lunged at the man. She had always counted on her fast reflexes in a fight, this guy threw that right out the proverbial window.

She felt his hand grip her wrist and tighten, forcing her hand open and making her drop her dagger. She spun the other dagger in her hand and was about to drive it up into him when he spun her around and yanked it out of her hand.

Rikku winced and felt his hands leave her wrists. Confused, she turned around and saw him knock Paine back by hitting her in the stomach with his palm. Paine yelped and fell to the ground a few feet back. Rikku was almost certain that she'd heard bones snap.

Rikku felt her daggers return and slowly crept up behind him. "Don't." she heard him say. It stunned her. How had he . . .

He turned back to Rikku and she heard him sigh, "They weren't your people. No matter what you think. Drao fanah'd Al-Bhed."

Rikku stared at him, "You . ."

"Are." he said. "And for now," he began to move closer to Rikku, "you don't need to . ." he was cut short by a gunshot. The sound of it echoed throughout the vacant section of the city. The man was still, silent.

Then his knees buckled.

He tried to push himself up but failed and fell onto his back. Rikku felt her daggers fall from her hands and she ran towards him. She caught sight of Paine on the ground, in her gunner dress-sphere once more. She lowered her gun and she let out a pained sigh. Yuna raced down from the stairs and went to Paine.

Rikku dropped to her knees by the man. She gently pulled back his hood. His skin was tan, but lighter than an Al-Bhed's should have been, like he'd spent less time in the sun. His hair was a pale blonde, close to white. His eyes were barely open, but before they closed Rikku managed to see the final piece of proof: The trademark spiral green eyes of the Al-Bhed.

Rikku pressed two finger to his neck and managed to find a pulse, but it was growing faint. Rikku didn't know why, but she felt like she couldn't let him die. He'd said that the people on the ship weren't Al-Bhed. And the way he'd said it made her believe it.

She hurriedly pulled out a potion and poured it into his mouth. She worried that he wouldn't be able to swallow it, but he was apparently still semi-conscious, because he did manage to swallow the potion.

"Rikku, what're you . ." Yuna started.

"I . . I can't let him die. He's Al-Bhed, and he said that those other people weren't." Rikku said.

"But they were still people!" Yuna cried.

"I doubt he'd kill innocent people." Rikku said. "Otherwise he wouldn't have hesitated to kill us. But he didn't. He didn't try to."

"Idiot girl." Paine murmured. She pressed two fingers to her chest and hissed. "Damn, didn't think he was that strong."

Yuna looked like she was going over what Rikku had said. While naïve in certain cases, Yuna was still a good judge of character. She sighed, "I think Rikku may be right." Yuna said.

Paine furrowed her brow, "Huh? You believe . . her?!"

Rikku frowned, "Hey!"

"Paine, I think she's right." she looked down at where the man was laying, "We can't just let him die."

Paine groaned, "Both of you are idiots."

Author's Note: Well, I hoped you liked it. It may seem a little confusing, but I'll smooth certain things out as time goes. But other things may take a little longer. Also, for anyone who reads Farplane Legacies, somehow the new chapter got deleted off my computer, so there will be a delay on getting that out.

- Thank-you for reading.