~Standard disclaimers and what not: Neither Kookiiz nor I own Final Fantasy or Black Rock Shooter/Innocent Soul. ^^ Hope you enjoy.~
[Lightning - 05: A Lost Soul]
Lightning looked around at the hazy expanse before her. This was not the Gran Pulse she had seen the other day. It was far too desolate and barren to the home of her companions.
"Fang?" she called out, "Vanille?" she was met with stark silence. "Where the hell am I?"
"Oy, Rock! Where are you?"
Lightning heard a male voice in the distance and her hand instinctively moved to her Gunblade, which... was not where it usually was.
"Oy, Flat-chan! Say something!"
Flat-chan? Lightning thought that was an odd name for someone. Her eyes surveyed the area looking for the source of the voice. It shouldn't be too hard, there was barely anything to be used as cover. This also worked both ways seeing how there was nothing for her hide behind.
"Eh?" The male voice sounded like it came directly in front of her, "You're not Rock..."
Once again Lightning's eyes darted around. Was she going crazy? Why couldn't she see anyone?
"I'm down here..." The voice was getting more annoyed. "A little lower..."
Lightning's eyes dropped right to her feet where she saw a black snake. The two stared at each other for a while trying to figure out what was going on.
"Hey, lady... Have you seen a pale flat-chested girl with long black ponytails? She has a peachy sweater and a black cloak."
Lightning was stunned at the sight of a talking snake. All she could do was shake her head.
"Hmm... Alright then..." The snake was about to leave when it caught sight of something in Lightning's pocket. "Wait a minute, what's that?"
The soldier looked down and pulled out the star shaped rock Fang gave her.
"Huh... Rock had something just like that. Are you sure you didn't see her?"
Again Lightning shook her head.
"Strange... It's not like her to just disappear like that. I wonder where she could be."
Lightning tried to speak but she couldn't find the right words for this situation. Her mouth awkwardly moved as her mind tried to form some kind of sentence. The snake waited for a moment waiting for the woman to speak.
"Hey, can you talk? You look like you're trying to ask me something."
The poor woman was at a total loss for words. She must have looked like an idiot standing there. Finally after screaming internally she was able to ask a question.
"W-Where am I?"
The snake tilted its head.
"What do you mean? You're in Hazama... The Realm of Souls."
Realm of Souls? Lightning was utterly confused now. Was it all a dream? Was it ever real? Did she really see the Pulsian Plains?
"Are you saying you were just created? Where's your partner?"
Lightning was frustrated to the point where fumes would be shooting out of her.
"Ok..." The snake sighed, "There's no point in me bombarding you with questions. Why don't you tell me who you are and what you remember?"
Lightning nodded and cleared her throat.
"My name is Lightning Farron. I'm and ex soldier, formerly part of the Bodhum Guardian Corps. I was branded a L'Cie and I was on a journey to save my sister. Along this journey I made some new friends. We were traveling together and we swore to fight back against the Gods. No one decided our fate but us. We arrived on Gran Pulse and-" She stopped. Arriving on Gran Pulse was the last thing she remembered.
"Do you remember dying, Lightning?"
"Dying?" That was a really strange question. How could one remember their death?
"What I mean to say is that I don't think you belong in this realm."
"What is this realm anyway?" Lightning looked around still trying to accept the fact there was nothing here.
"This is Hazama... Think of it as limbo in a sense. It's a realm where spirits linger holding on to the memories of their regret and greed. These souls are unable to move on and they stagnate here."
Lightning thought hard about herself. She was holding on to the regret of pushing Serah away. She was holding on to the greed of never wanting to let her sister go to another person. Perhaps Lightning was killed on Gran Pulse and this is where she would have to bear her burden. She collapsed on her knees and clutched her chest. Where she expected to feel a heartbeat she felt nothing. Her body was hollow and she had begun to panic.
"I-I'm dead?" Her body began to shake horribly.
The snake noticed her heaving for air. She huddled herself into a small ball slowly rocking back and forth. No... This wasn't right at all. This woman was far too emotional to be a Stagnant Soul and definitely too emotional to be a Black Star. No, this had to be a mistake.
"Lightning..." It slithered closer to the shattered woman. "None of it makes sense. You remember you past life."
She stopped rocking and stared blankly at the snake.
"If you were a Black Star then you would have absolutely no memory about yourself. But if you were a Stagnant Soul then I would be experiencing your deepest regrets right now."
Lightning was motionless. She had no idea what this snake was trying to say.
"I believe you're not supposed to be here. Your stone is very similar to the one Rock was carrying. If I had to guess I'd say that is the key to finding her and getting you back to where you came from."
Still trying to hold herself together Lightning couldn't do anything but nod.
"I know it's difficult to understand what is going on here but I need you to bear with it. I want you to go back home, Lightning. I want you to return to your friends just as much as I want Rock to come back."
Lightning stared at the snake. She wasn't sure what she could do to get back home. This was the first time since becoming a L'Cie where Lightning was genuinely scared. All she could do now was trust the words of a snake.
"I may not know all the answers but I think I know where we can start. If you help me then I will help you. What do you say, Lightning?"
Her body tensed as she stood up. She looked down at her hands and struggled to keep them from shaking.
"Can you really send me back home?"
The snake shook its head.
"I can't promise that I can... Only that I will try."
She wasn't sure how far she would get or what she could possibly do but she wasn't going to accept it. Lightning Farron was not going to accept this as her fate. She would challenge the Gods if she had to. She reached out her hand towards the snake.
"I'll bring your friend back... I'll find some way..."
The snake coiled around Lightning's arm and looked into her eyes.
"Thank you... By the way, call me Ron."
A/N: Platinum here kind of glad the introductory segments are done. I had this part done for a while now... Just got caught up with school work. I'm still hoping this makes some amount of sense. Lightning is... kind of really out of character (at least to me) but how would someone react in this odd situation? I'll be honest I don't know what else to say. My mind is a little melted with assignments and prepping for midterms. I'll try to get Kookiiz to upload something while I'm comatose next week. (As much as I complain I did this to myself :P)