The Underworld, Outskirts of Cocoon

The Holy Government of Cocoon had finally located Team Nora, an underground resistance movement whose aim was to usurp their powers. Agents of the military had traced the group to "The Underworld", the last stop for traitors of Cocoon before sending them to Pulse. What was most disturbing was that one of the members of this 'little resistance' was an ex-officer who was a danger to government's plans and the safety of those in Cocoon. Three separate militias, with one-hundred men each had been sent to remove the traitor, preferably dead. All orders were to have her eliminated as soon as possible.

By the time that the fourth round of soldiers was beginning to form, ex-officer Lightning was on her last leg. She had been able to take out hundreds of more people, more trained than the one being sent now. Yet wave after wave of PSICOM soldiers had taken its toll on the warrior. After another soldier fell to the ground, Lightning collapsed to her knees, breathing deeply and painfully. The woman was already bruised allover her body, cuts covered her legs, and most of her ribs were broken. She could taste blood in her mouth. Though she was fighting with the other members of Nora and Snow, it was getting harder and harder to keep battling.

"Lightning!"

She quickly turned around to see Snow, who was also beaten up. He waved one of his giant arms in a motion that indicated for Lightning to 'get a move on'. She nodded, stood up, finally noticing that the right side of her body ached, and began to run towards Snow. Every step she took was like a searing pain running through her whole body. As she neared Snow, she noticed that he was worn down and breathing hard as well.

"There's more coming! I don't think we can hold them off", he spoke, leaning his enormous six foot body down to Lightning's eye-level.

"I know", she responded, gasping for breath.

"What do they want?"

"Me apparently."

Lightning began to scan the area with her eyes, trying to find any way she could escape from the area. Her gravity powers were too low to get her to a higher platform out of the path of the enemy forces. She wondered how so many men could have come all at once. Her options were slim. Running would do nothing, as she and Snow were too worn down to outrun the PSICOM soldiers. Fighting would also be futile, as they would be quickly defeated. Yet if one of them were to get away, then Nora could rest and fight the government another day. That seemed to be the only solution. Lightning had made up her mind.

"Look," she told Snow, "take Vanille and the others and get out. I'll stall them for as long as I can."

"Li…Lightning. Don't do that. We're all getting out of this."

"Sometimes you need to loose a few good men."

"I would rather loose none!"

"You should have thought about that before you started a rebel faction."

Why was he still talking to him? He and the rest of Nora needed to get out.

"Just get going!"

"But Lightning…"

"I know the risks. And so do you."

"Bu…"

A missile exploded a few hundred yards away, making the platform they were on sway.

"No buts! Go or we'll all die here!"

Lightning turned around and saw fifty heavily armed PSICOM officers heading her and Snow's way.

"GO SNOW!" she yelled. Lightning could not bear to look her comrade directly in the eye. Tears began to form in her eyes. Closing them, all she could hear was the sound of heavy footsteps running away from her. The tears she was hiding under her eyes seeped out and flowed down her face. I'm going to die here. Make it worthwhile.

The sounds of fifty automatic guns preparing to fire caught her attention and shook Lightning out of the peaceful moment she was thinking of. Opening her turquoise eyes, she saw the enemy forming before her. She immediately tensed up, and raised her gunblade to her chest, taking a fighting stance. It would only be a few seconds before she would have to fight for her life.

"The future belongs not to those who wait" she whispered. And then, with blade raised, she ran towards the soldiers.

But before she could attack or strike anything, a great, blinding light appeared. Then everything went black. The sensation of falling, not having any ground bellow her, took over. After a few moments, her body hit ground with a sickening thud and crack. In the distance, she could hear the screams of Snow. His screams were then blocked by the crash of a steel beams and crumbling debris. Everything then went black, as she felt her whole body being crushed by the weight the fallen platform.

Lightning's eyes opened one last time, thinking that it would be the last time she ever saw this world. Her last vision was of the sensation of being turned over on her back and the outline of cobalt blue armored feet.

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