Sorry! The original upload had loads of mistakes, I think they're all fixed now
Stepping out of the military airship, an ocean breeze swept across the landing zone, Lucia had landed in Palumpolum. She brought nothing with her but a PSICOM elite uniform and a few thousand Gil. After all, she wanted a new start, and was determined to do it the right way.
"Soldier" Lucia called to a nearby guard, "Direct me to the intake center".
"Yes Ma'am" he responded obediently. And with a weapon held to his chest, he led her along a pathway to a nearby tower entirely made of glass. Once they were inside, she dismissed him with a salute and sauntered ahead. Her boots clicked against the marble floors and echoed off the walls as she ventured further into the building. She marveled at the expansive windows and modern fixtures before spotting a door, a rather large one, at the opposite end of the palatial room.
Once she reached it, a hologram animated, blocking her way. "Identification", it requested in an electronic voice. When Lucia didn't respond immediately the hologram spoke again, "Identification", this time, far more demanding.
"Lucia Adrien, Senior Communications Correspondent" she stated matter o' factly, with her arms crossed, being way too impatient for this type of technology.
"Processing… Processing… Processing-"
"Are you kidding me?" Lucia threw her hands in the air, "You're pretty slow for being such a voracious twat".
"Having a hard time there?" A voice spoke behind her.
She swiftly turned around to see a tall young man with silver hair (that seemed to wisp in the wind despite there being none). "I am so sorry; you didn't hear me, did you?"
He laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck, "Uh, no, didn't hear a thing".
She looked at him questioningly, because he obviously did hear. But lost her train of thought as she noticed the prestigious medals pinned to his uniform. She gasped, and nearly choked because it was Hope Esthiem, savior of freaking Cocoon. "Admiral", cough, "I apologize", cough, "please forgive my language", cough.
He hesitated for a moment and then grinned slightly, "Forgiven. Are you okay, Lieutenant?"
"Who-"she asked with a raised eyebrow, then remembered her promotion, "Oh yes, sorry, I- um, I've been a little sick this past, uh, hour".
"Really?" he crossed his arms and tried not to laugh. His eyes glinted with humor and kindness.
Realizing the stupidity of her excuse, Lucia tried to recover, "It must have been the airship, those things-", she laughed uncomfortably and did an awkward rendition of jazz hands, "Am I right?"
"The airship you're referring to is the newest in the fleet. I highly doubt that it could make a passenger ill".
"Oh."
"Anyways" he pulled out a virtual data log and read it out loud, "Lucia Adrien, Senior Communications Correspondent, correct?"
"Yes Sir" she straightened up and held a hand to her chest in salute.
"I will be your new director" He looked up from the data log to see Lucia saluting him, "You don't have to do that, you know. You're off duty. Actually, the entire battalion is until next week".
Her jaw dropped a bit, along with her salute, and she quickly placed her arms behind her back. That is, until the hologram had finally loaded, causing her to jump in surprise, "Lieutenant Adrien, you have been granted access into PSICOM intake hall, do you need any further assistance?"
"Negative" Hope spoke behind her, causing the hologram to disappear.
"I actually needed to know where to go" she said worriedly.
"Let me show you" he grinned and walked ahead of her as the massive doors opened before them.
The sight of the intake hall was like nothing she had ever seen before. Hundreds, probably even thousands of PSICOM officers and soldier bustled around inside the expansive hall. She followed Hope as he led her through the crowds and didn't even notice the people shuffling to clear a way for them. Instead she gazed at the elaborate mural covering the ceiling and watched as a ship took off through a window. It was marvelous, it excited her, she felt like she was part of something so much greater than anything she had ever experienced.
"Impressive, isn't it?" Hope commented after noticing that Lucia had stopped walking. She just stood still and stared at the intricate mural above her. He smiled at her innocence; there was little of it in PSICOM.
"Breathtaking" she replied and turned to him with a winsome grin.
"It took ten years and hundreds of artists to complete", he began, "During the Fall, this building had been destroyed, but now it's more beautiful than ever".
"It sure is". She frowned for a second, "Actually, I have no idea what it looked like before."
He chuckled before saying, "Come on, I'm pretty sure I was showing you around".
"Yes Sir!" Lucia exclaimed, this time far more excited.
Lucia lounged on the bed in her hotel room flipping the channels on the television; there was no news, no sports, and only reruns of her favorite sitcom. She sighed deeply, throwing the remote control down by her feet. Normally she'd be cooking dinner for Fraus, or taking him to a bar so he could get drunk while she stood by, sipping water. What a dick, she thought.
Rolling out of bed, she thumped on the floor with a groan. Looking up through the window she saw New Eden, a symbol of Cocoon's might after the Fall. That was where her life would be in only a week. She wondered what sort of blind luck got her there, she was nothing special, never had been never will be. That's what her parents told her, that's what Fraus told her. That's what she told herself.
Her communication device buzzed on the bedside table just as she started thinking about Fraus again. So lethargically she pulled herself up from the ground with a whimper and stalked over to answer it. "Mhmmhh" she mumbled into the device.
"Um, Lieutenant Adrien, are you there?" an increasingly familiar voice spoke on the other end.
"Yes Admiral" she stated, knowing that Hope was the only one who called her Lieutenant. She was nothing of the sort, perhaps it was a formal attempt at flattery.
"Great" he paused for a moment, "Some officers and I were going to have a small get together. I told them you'd like to come". When she hesitated for a moment out of shock, he continued, breaking the silence: "I thought it'd be a good way for you to meet your colleagues- being new, and all".
"Definitely" she replied, squealing on the inside, "You don't have to explain your motives Admiral, thank you very much for this opportunity".
"Yeah, of course" he muttered, taken aback, "Be there at eight, you'll learn a lot, formal attire. I'll send you the information. Bye".
After hanging up Lucia collapsed on her bed. "Formal attire" she muttered to herself.