The others have finally arrived! They run into the room, Fang leading them.

"Serah!" I hear Vanille shouting for me. I realize they mustn't be able to see me because of the rabbles that separate us.

"Vanille! Hope! I'm here! Behind the rabbles! Come quick!" I shout back at them, my hands still hugging Lightning. I look down at her. To my relief, her eyes are fluttering and she is stirring softly. You're alive…

Then an Aerora spell hits the rabbles and they are scattered to the other end of the room.

I can see all of our friends now, running fast towards us. They look relieved to see me okay.

Hope reaches me first, shouting "Serah! You're okay! Where's…"

His words stop as he sees Lightning in my arms.

His expression changes from relieved to shocked to disbelief to horrified. His face becomes very pale; his mouth opens and closes, as his brain tries to register the situation. A soft whimper comes from his lips.

"Lightning…"

The others have reached us too. They stand aghast, terror fills their faces.

"What happened…?" Fang asks; her eyes open wide in shock, fear and disbelief as she stares at Lightning's torn stomach.

I tell them about the samurai and the fight as quickly as possible.

"We were wrong! Lindzei really set his strongest monsters in this room! When I arrived, Lightning has defeated the horse and the bird because they were nowhere in sight, but there was also this foreign samurai monster… Stronger, faster and smarter than any other monster! He was… stabbing Light with his sword… that's when I came… and then he attacked me…

Light… she tried to protect me and… and…" My tears flow uncontrollably now. "And the samurai hit her! The blow was meant for me, but she… and then… I don't know why… the samurai just disappeared… but… Light is…"

Fang approaches me. "Tell us the complete story later. Now we've got to work fast!"

She takes Lightning from my clutch and lays her on the ground.

"Guuh…" Lightning moans as Fang moves her body.

"Don't worry, Light. We're here. You're gonna be okay…" Fang tries to comfort her, but her voice is trembling as well.

"All right, now," Fang turns her gaze to Sazh, Snow and Hope who are standing close together, their faces pale and terrified. "I know you boys are very lucky to be here, but I need you to control your thoughts. Understand?"

I don't get what she is saying, and judging from their faces, Sazh, Snow and Hope don't, too. But Fang's gaze is so intimidating. Almost as scary as Light's, so they just mumble 'yes' and nod.

Fang then turns back to Lightning and begins unclasping her overcoat.

Hope's face immediately goes red as he realizes what Fang is doing. I know Fang's right though, to remove Lightning's overcoat so we can reach her wounds.

Underneath, Lightning only wears her brown turtleneck that leaves her stomach bare for us to see. Hope's face becomes even redder as he looks at Lightning. Sure, her stomach is slim and muscular, but her wounds really take us aback.

Lightning's stomach is a mass of blood. The wound tears the front of her stomach and continues to her left waist. It is throbbing, blood flows out with each throb. But this is not all. Next to the wound, Lightning's midriff is full of bruises from countless internal bleeding. Doubtlessly, Yojimbo has broken some of her lower ribs when he punches her. Lightning's broken ribs are pressing against her skin from underneath, threatening to jut out. Besides all this, her arms and hands are full of cuts and there is a particularly nasty wound on her right shoulder, not to mention the knife that is still stuck in her right arm.

Lightning has been gravely wounded. I sob as I look at her wounds. Beside me, Fang throws her face away from Lightning, her teeth clenched in anger, her eyes shut.

Vanille has knelt down beside me, crying as well. She tries not to look at Lightning's injured form. Sazh and Snow, too. They avert their gaze from Light, sadness fills their faces.

Hope is the only one that still looks at Lightning. He is no longer blushing now as he stares wide-eyed at Lightning's wounds. I think I see his eyes begin to water. This is too much for him… First his mother, then now Lightning… I know he must be terribly shaken to see Light in this condition…

Lightning has been some sort of a mentor to Hope. His role-model. Not only that, she has even been some kind of an older sister to Hope, too. After his mother died, Lightning has been protecting him, giving him hope, giving him the strength to move on. She teaches him to fight. She risks her life to protect him in Palumpolum. I know Hope fears Lightning at first because of her intimidating appearance, but he told me once that even from the beginning, he has been admiring her for her courage and fighting skills. Now, he not only admires Lightning, but he also loves her. A sibling kind of love, just as how I love Lightning. I observe him gazing at Lightning whenever he says his opinion, as though asking for her agreement. In battles, he fights close to her, as though looking for the protection and safety Lightning always gives to everyone around her in battles. Or maybe, he is trying to impress her with his developing fighting skills. I know he wants Lightning to be proud of him. He wants to show everyone that he is now able to fight, thanks to Lightning's teaching. And he wants to express his gratitude to Light, even though he still doesn't know how.

I felt a bit jealous when I realized all of this, of course, but I know there's actually nothing to be jealous of. Sure, Lightning cares about Hope, but she cares about me and everyone else in the group, too. Lightning has the kindest of heart, even though she looks cold and distant at first. She is… the most selfless person in the world… She'll do anything, risk everything when it comes to the safety of those she cares about, even to the point of risking her own safety. Hope must have understood this by now, too.

And now Lightning is badly injured. Our protector, the one person both of us think is invincible, the one person that we believe will always be there for us, is now injured.

Hope has lost his mother once, and he has left his father at Palumpolum. The person he is closest to in the group is Lightning. Seeing her like this, wounded, in pain, and probably even dying… it must be too much for Hope.

No! I mustn't think like this! Light will be okay… She'll survive… she promised!

I look up at Hope and Vanille. "Well? Can you two heal her?"

Upon hearing my words, the others look at me, pain fills their faces. Vanille puts her hands

on my shoulder as Fang stands up and looks at me. Her face is pained, her hands are trembling.

"It's no use, Serah… She is gravely wounded. I don't think any spell can save her now…"

I stare at her in disbelief. "It can't be true! Lightning is strong! She just talked to me… She was okay until just now! She is strong! You know her, Fang!"

I stare in disbelief into Fang's sad eyes. I realize the others must have agreed with her too, from their sad faces.

But we can't just do nothing!

"Please… Hope, Vanille… Can you two please try? Light is strong… Her power is immeasurable! Even I don't know the full extent of her strength. I believe she can survive this! Please… just…try…"

But they all just look at me in silence.

"Serah, that's enough…" Vanille says. "She's suffering, she is in great pain… If we try healing her, she must live through painful recovery period afterwards, and the chance of her… not surviving… is still high. Serah…just…let her rest…"

I can't believe my ears. I know the others care about Light, I can't blame them for thinking that way, I know they are actually showing their love towards Lightning, even though they are very sad… But…

"Vanille! Hope!" I shout at them, tears of anger fill my eyes. "You two are our best spell casters! I believe you two are able to save her! We can't just sit here and do nothing… Lightning must be wanting us to save her! She has been saving our lives all the time, and now it's our turn… Please… I know she wants to live…"

"Serah!" Fang shouts at me. "Do you think she would like to feel more pain? She has been through hell! Don't you think it's enough? Do you really think she wants to go through more pain, just for a small chance of surviving?"

I stare at her, unable to answer. I hadn't really thought that way… If my wish of Lightning's survival will only lead her to experience even more pain, then… shouldn't I just… let her rest, like Vanille said? Am I really willing to let Lightning suffer more, just because I need her, just so that I can be with her again, if she survives? That would be twisted and selfish of me... Maybe I should just… let her…go…

Right then, suddenly Lightning's hand shoots up, grabbing my shirt and pulls me close to her. I stare in shock into her blue eyes. Those eyes are now burning with fearsome intensity, like blue flames.

"Heal me," she growls. "I'll live."

We all stare at her in surprise. But her eyes speak all. She wants to live. She doesn't care what it takes, she won't die.

Lightning's determination reassures us. Hope and Vanille immediately act. They approach Lightning.

"Move outta their way, Serah!" I feel Fang's arms around me and I am suddenly pulled away from Lightning. "You'll only disturb them if you sit there." I look up at her, and see her smirking. "Heh. As expected from Light."

Snow comes to us. "I told you, Fang. She's too stubborn to die."

Sazh approaches us too, and says, "Hey, shouldn't you just stay with Lightning? I believe she wants you to be with her… You can comfort her without disturbing our Medics right?"

I know he is right. I wriggle myself free from Fang's clutch and approach Lightning again, cradling her head on my lap. Hope and Vanille look up at me, but they don't seem to mind my presence. They nod at me, and I reply them.

Hope and Vanille begin to work. The green Curaga spells form in their hands, and they join their two spells to make a blue, powerful healing spell. They press it against Lightning's wound. I look down at her face. She shuts her eyes, but I know she is awake. She is just trying to suppress the pain. I know she doesn't want to pass out, fearing that she won't wake up again. Her face is covered in cold sweat from all the suppression.

I turn my gaze to Hope and Vanille. To my horror, they look confused, then their expression quickly turn to terrified.

"What's wrong?" Sazh asks them. He has noticed their expression, too.

"No way! It's not working!" Hope shouts in frustration as he creates another Curaga in his hands. Vanille is doing the same thing. All of us watch them as they press the spells against Lightning's torn stomach. Usually, the wound will stop bleeding. Then it will start to close slowly, depending on the power of the applied spell. But now, nothing happens. The bleeding doesn't stop, the wound doesn't close.

Frowning in despair, Vanille tries healing the cuts on Lightning's arms. Still, nothing happens.

"There must be something in that samurai's sword that prevents the wound from being cured!" Vanille howls in frustration and fear. "It means…"

I feel terribly scared. No… if they can't use their magic, then… Light will surely be…

"Is there no other way?" Fang demands. I know she actually really wants Light to recover, just as much as I do.

"Actually… we can change the structure of the spell…" Vanille starts hesitantly.

"And…?" Fang pushes her.

"And instead of providing her with external energy to heal the wound, we can give additional internal energy for her body to heal the wounds by itself… but…"

We wait for her next sentence impatiently.

"But it will mean we have to treat her wounds manually first, without any spell, then casts some healing spells on her to help her recover."

"Just do it! It's the only way!" I answer immediately.

But Hope looks up at me, worry and fear fills his face.

"We have to force her ribs back to their original positions before we bandage it if that's the case, Serah," he says. "And it will be excruciating."

I fall silent. I hadn't thought of that.

I don't know what to do anymore. I just sit there, mouth agape, trying to answer Hope. But no answer comes to my mind.

Just then, Lightning decides to choose by herself again. Her eyes snap open, and she stares at Hope and Vanille.

"Just do it," her voice barely audible, but her eyes are stern. "I'll be okay."

And she smiles, so confidently, that all of us immediately feel that everything will really be okay.

"Can you really bear with it, Light?" Vanille asks, her voice thick with worry.

Lightning smirks. "It's not a question of can or can't… some things in life you just do."

Hope grins upon hearing this, despite his tears begin to fall.

"All right, then… Serah, you'd better stay with her, okay, try to comfort her as much as possible… this will hurt…" Vanille whispers to me. I nod, beginning to run my hand through Lightning's soft hair.

"It's okay, Light… You can get through this…" I'm glad to hear my voice doesn't tremble. Lightning closes her eyes, expecting the pain.

Hope and Vanille observe Lightning's midriff, sometimes pressing her ribs gently. Each time they do this, I can feel Lightning tenses a little, but she doesn't show any other sign of pain.

"Lucky, I think only four ribs are broken… the lowest ribs… so her heart and lungs shouldn't be damaged." Vanille mutters.

She looks up at me, nodding. They'll start soon.

Hope positions his hand on Lightning's waist, his thumb and forefinger placed against the first jutting rib. He blushes slightly, but his eyes are serious. Vanille does the same thing beside him.

And they begin forcing the first jutting rib into its original position.

Immediately Lightning tenses, her fists clenched, her teeth bared in a grimace. I know she is suppressing a scream. I feel so scared!

"Hang on, Light!" I say over and over again to her. "Please… Be strong…"

Hope and Vanille look nervous and panic as they force the next rib into its position.

A long and low cry of pain escapes Lightning's lips, but she quickly suppresses it.I can't bear watching her in pain like this… I begin crying again. Beside us, I can feel the others standing, stern with worry and fear.

Lightning lets out another suppressed cry.

"It's okay, Light, it's okay… They're half-done… You can get through this…!" I say to her.

Another rib is fixed. By now, Lightning is drenched in cold sweat and blood begins to flow out from her mouth. Her fingers create indents on the ground as she claws at it in pain.

"Guuuuuh…!" Lightning groans, but she still refuses to scream.

"Light, Light, listen to me! They are almost done, just one more and you can rest! Please Light, stay with me!" I beg her, holding her face, trying to comfort her.

Hope and Vanille, frantic and scared, force the last rib into its position.

"AAAHHHK!" Lightning roars, blood spluttering from her mouth, her hands clench into fists.

"Light, sis, they're done! Everything's over… You can rest now!" I say to her desperately.

"Uuuugh…" Lightning is panting, her chest heaves up and down as fast as possible considering her broken ribs.

Hope and Vanille immediately cast some spells on her, and I can hear her breaths slow down to a normal rhythm. I exhale in relief when I see Lightning opens her eyes a little, staring at me. Her eyes look so tired, cold sweat still flows down her brows and her cheek. A splashing sound makes me look up, and I see Sazh is casting a Water spell to a piece of cloth held by Fang.

"Here," she gives it to me. She looks pained, too, after seeing Lightning suffering like that.

I use the cloth to wipe the sweat and blood from Lightning's face. Then I pass it back to Fang and Sazh, who wet it again and pass it to Vanille. Vanille uses it to clean the wound on Lightning's stomach.

Wet grunts escape Lightning's throat as her torn stomach is being cleaned. Luckily, the bleeding has slowed down now.

"Don't worry, soldier," Sazh speaks up. "It will only sting for a while…" The chocobo chick in his afro pops out, chirping at Lightning. I see Lightning's eyes move to look at Sazh and his chocobo chick, and she gives a faint, tired smile.

"We have bandage, right?" Hope asks, his eyebrows frown in agitation.

"Yeah, here." Snow takes out the bandages that we bring and tosses them to Hope, who catches it.

"Can someone lift her body up a little… so we can bandage the wound?" Vanille asks.

Immediately Fang comes forward, kneels, and places her hand on Lightning's back. She then lifts Lightning's torso up.

"Thanks… Fang…" Lightning mutters.

"Heh. No big deal." Fang scoffs, smirking. I know she must be feeling relieved to hear Lightning talks, but she just covers it. Vanille's words echo in my mind: "I know Fang respects Lightning, and she cares about her, but she just… can't express it clearly…"

I smile softly.

Hope and Vanille hurriedly wrap the bandages around Lightning's stomach and midriff. Blood stains it immediately, but then it stops. I huff in relief.

Then Vanille looks up with a nervous expression on her face.

"What?" Fang asks.

"Urm… It's nothing… I just… I'm scared to pull the knife out…"

My attention shifts to the knife that is protruding from Lightning's upper right arm, above her armbands. It seems to be stuck deep… I gulp. I hope they won't ask me to pull it out…

"Hmm, so what do you want, 'Nille? I can't pull it out for ya. I'm no Medic, I might make the wound worse…" Fang says thoughtfully.

"I'll do it."

We all look at Hope. He is shaking, but his eyes look determined.

"Great," Fang says, and steps back. I nod too, and Hope approaches Lightning's arm. Lightning's eyes are following him.

He looks back into those blue orbs nervously.

"I'm sorry, Light… This will hurt, but Vanille will cast the healing spell as soon as she can…so…"

Lightning blinks and mutters a "Just get it over with."

Hope nods, places his hand carefully on Light's arm and wrap his other hand on the knife's hilt. Then he pulls it out slowly, so as not to widen the wound.

Lightning grits her teeth, but she keeps her arm relaxed so Hope can pull the knife out easier.

"Just a bit more, Light," Fang says.

Then the knife leaves Lightning's arm, covered in crimson. Hope passes it to Fang, then preparing to cast healing spells to the open wound while Vanille is cleaning it with the cloth. The cloth is entirely stained in red now. After Hope casts the spells, Vanille wraps Lightning's arm with bandage. Then they begin cleaning her ripped shoulder, remove her gloves and repeat the procedure with the other cuts. As they work, I keep whispering soothing words to Light.

Finally, everything's done. Hope and Vanille stand up, tired and panting. Their hands are bloody, but Sazh and Snow help them clean it with their Water spells. Then Vanille looks at me.

"All right, now's your turn, Serah!" she says cheerfully. Looks like the fear and worry have begun to fade, now that we have treated Light's injuries.

I stare at her, confused.

Vanille shakes her head, then approaches me and turns me around. Before I can do anything, she has cast Cura on my scratched shoulder.

"Oh… right… Thanks!" I say to her.

"You're welcome!" Vanille answers happily. I can feel the scratches close and the sting disappears. Light… How much more pain have you actually suffered? I think sadly.

"Thank you…guys…"

We all turn to that voice that we have all missed so much. Lightning's.

She looks at us with her tired eyes, her left hand holding her bandaged stomach. Her entire stomach has been bandaged, as well as her right arm and shoulder. As for her left arm, only the hand and forearm are bandaged as the upper arm and shoulder are not injured.

Before I know what I am doing, I'm already kneeling besides Lightning, hugging her lightly, crying in happiness and relief.

"No…thank you, sis…" I sob.

"Glad you're still alive, Light!" Fang smirks at Lightning.

"I told you, she's too stubborn to die!" Snow laughs.

"At the end, you really keep your promise not to die, huh," Sazh mumbles.

"And you beat those monsters!" Vanille adds.

"But you were too reckless, Light… You shouldn't push yourself like that!" Hope says, worry still fills his face.

I release Light and I see her already fallen asleep.

I smile. "She must be very tired…"

Upon seeing Lightning asleep, the others' smiles fade and a worried look replace our smiles. We know Lightning is still in critical condition, but we smiled to comfort her, to make her feel that everything's fine. Now that she is asleep… We don't have to fake smiles anymore. We stare at her battered-up form in worry and sadness.

Light…please… stay alive… I pray in my mind.

"Alright, we shouldn't spend more time in this place! Let's go!" Fang says. She lifts Lightning up effortlessly, just like how Light lifts me up whenever I need it. And Fang carries Light in her arms, leading us to leave the room. Hope quickly picks up Lightning's overcoat and brings it with him.

I throw a last glance into the room, where our fates have almost been changed forever. I can still see Lightning's blood on the ground and the wall. I shudder. I almost lost my sister here…

I shudder again at the thought.

Please don't die… sis…

Night has fallen. It's full moon tonight, and it provides us with silver light that makes it easier to walk in the wilderness of Archylte Steppe.

Lightning is still asleep, her head resting on Fang's shoulder. Fang walks slowly so as not to shake Lightning too much and hurt her further. I walk beside her; my eyes never leave Lightning's face. Sometimes a groan of pain escapes her lips. Snow and Sazh are walking in front. Every time there is a monster that gets attracted to us by the lingering scent of Lightning's blood, Sazh and Snow take care of them for us. Hope and Vanille are too tired; they walk slowly behind with Fang and me. Vanille whispers to Fang, the two of them converse as they walk.

I look at Hope. He looks wan and worried. Sensing my stare, he looks up at me. He looks so sad and scared that I think I need to comfort him a little.

"Don't worry," I say to him. "Light's gonna be okay. She won't die… she promised."

"I'm not scared that she will die… I know she won't…" Hope answers with trembling voice. "I'm just thinking about all the pain she must have gone through during the fight, the healing process… and the pain she will have to go through during her recovery period…"

I fall silent. I've been thinking of that, too.

"Yeah… me too, Hope…"

"Why? Why must she fight that hard?" Hope asks me.

I keep quiet for a while, thinking.

"Maybe because… she can't let those monsters get pass her and chase after us."

Hope smiles a little.

"She's always like that," he mutters. "Doing absolutely anything to protect people she cares about…" He pauses for a while. "Well, that means you," he says to me, a sad smile spreads on his face.

"No," I answer him immediately. "Not just me."

He looks up at me.

I laugh. "She does it for everyone here, Hope. She cares about all of us. Might not look like it at the outside because she's not good with words… She doesn't talk much… but just observe her actions, and you can tell that she cares."

"Do you think…" Hope says, looking away. "Do you think she is proud of me…?"

"Of course." I smile. "Look at her. She lets you fight alongside her instead of behind her, right? That means she acknowledges your fighting skills. Maybe you don't realize, but every time you perform well in a battle, she always nods… sometimes even smiles a little... at you. Sure, she doesn't want you to see it, but I saw it. Relax, Hope, she is proud of you! You're her first, only, and best subordinate." I wink at him. I feel happy to see him beaming.

"But why doesn't she want me to see it?" Hope asks, confused.

I just laugh. "Why do you think? She is shy! Lightning is always shy to show feelings that she thinks are 'too emotional and unnecessary'. Quite cute at times, though." I wink again at him. He laughs, too.

"Yeah… Light can be very cold and intimidating, but actually she has the kindest of heart…" he mutters, still smiling.

I nod, agree with him. Then suddenly I grin as I have an idea to make Hope blush again.

"Wow, but I've never thought Fang would strip my sister in front of everyone like that… I know it was okay, because she still has her turtleneck underneath and the action was needed, but still…" I laugh, silently eyeing Hope.

Mission accomplished! He is blushing like a tomato! I suppress a giggle. I want to tease him further.

"What do you think of Light, Hope? Do you like her?"

"What…what…?" he asks, still a bit nervous from my last statement.

I repeat my question.

"Of…of course I like her! She is kind; she teaches me to fight, she always helps me and protects me… without asking anything back…She gives me hope and strength… everything I need. She is like… like… an older sister to me…" he blushes again, looking away, afraid of my reaction.

I laugh, punching his shoulder playfully.

"No need to be afraid of me, Hope! I don't mind that you think of her that way!" I giggle. "She is always caring towards people that are precious to her… Too bad not many people know and understand her that way."

Hope laughs too.

I steal glances at him. He looks happy, now that I've reassured him that Light is proud of him and that she cares about him too.

I walk beside Fang again, looking at Lightning's face. She is frowning in her sleep, and I know she is still in pain. What will you do if you know I just told Hope about your thoughts of him? I ask her in my mind. I know, she'll surely get mad at me, but she can't get mad for too long. Soon she'll forgive me. And if it can make the sad Hope happy again, then I think I can stand a few hours of scolding and anger.

Suddenly we hear Snow's voice.

"Guys! We're here! We have reached the basecamp!"

We walk into our basecamp, exhaling in relief and exhaustion. This has been an extremely long and rough day.

Fang lays Lightning carefully on the mattress. She is covered in cold sweat, and the wound on her stomach seems to have bled a little more.

"Oh, no…" Hope whispers as he looks at Lightning.

Sazh hands me the wet cloth again, and I wipe Lightning's face with it.

That's when I realize her body is warm… too warm.

"Guys! I think Light has a fever…"

Fang immediately comes to us, pressing her forehead against Light's. Lightning tenses a little at the sudden contact.

"Yep, Light here's got fever," she announces, standing up. "What do you think, 'Nille? What can we do?

Vanille thinks for a while, frowning.

"I don't think we can do anything much to help her… Maybe the fever is from the wound on her stomach… For now, just put the cold cloth on her forehead and let her rest…" she says, shaking her head sadly. She looks at me.

"I'm sorry I can't do much, Serah… But since we can't use any spell on her wounds… We can only use the normal methods…"

"No, no, don't be, Vanille! Without you and Hope, Light would have… would have…" I can't continue my words. Vanille seems to understand though, because she smiles, despite sadly, and nods.

I put the cloth on Lightning's forehead, brushing aside her bangs. Her breathing is ragged. I look at her sadly, then stand up to help the others making the campfire. Once it's done, all of us sit around it, exhausted.

"What a day," Sazh grunts. The others huff and exhale loudly. No one else talk. We just stare into the fire, worried looks on our faces. No one has ever thought that this day can end like this. With Lightning hurt and all… it is so different from our expectation in the afternoon, when we thought that all we had to do is to break a sealing spell and free Lightning.

We keep staring into the fire. Yes, it's true that we are sitting around the fire with the sword and everyone alive, but Lightning is badly injured… She does fulfill her promise, but at what price? All this just doesn't end well. I sigh.

We sit there until late night, watching over Light. Then as the moon creeps higher and higher above our heads, we fall asleep, one by one. I crawl besides Lightning, careful not to touch her and hurt her more. I just want to lie down beside her, to feel her presence near me. I reach out my hand, placing it under Light's. I fall asleep quickly, considering my exhaustion. The last thing I saw was Fang, still awake, sitting near the fire and frowning at the cold moon. Sometimes she stares at Lightning, sadness in her face.