A/N: I'm sorry. It's been a while, I know. I've been super stressed-out trying to find work in my vicinity, and when I get stressed I tend to abandon my writing for a while until I feel settled enough to write again. Figured I'd put up an apology chapter for my time away.

Story time! Read on.

Chapter Twenty – Odin

She had been lying on that stretcher for too long. She didn't stir at any noise, any movement.

"What's the status on her?" asked Fang.

The brown-haired soldier shrugged. "Been lyin' there since we got hold of her. Won't move an inch. We know about as much as you."

Fang nodded. She'd need to wake soon, otherwise they'd have to start feeding her through a tube.

"I'll watch her for now. Stay close."

He laughed. "You know I only obey orders from the Brigadier-General. But seein' as you asked so nicely…"

"Being cute with me won't help you any, Rygdea," said Fang, grinning slightly.

"Can't hurt to try." He smirked, leaving her to it.

"Now then…" Fang took a seat near the girl. "When are you gonna wake up?"

It was a few hours into her watch with a guard outside the door – more for her benefit than anything else – that anything changed.

Keller gasped in a breath, her eyes opening a mere second after. She jerked up, eyes darting around the room before they settled on the raven-haired woman sitting next to her. Her eyes widened.

"Good, you're awake," she said, standing as a hand gravitated to her hip.

"No…no way…"

Fang narrowed her eyes at her accent. "What?"

"You're…you're Fang, aren't you? This…makes no sense…" Keller moved to get up, but stopped abruptly at the feeling of cold steel on her wrist. She was cuffed. "You're kidding me…"

"You're on an airship, in Cavalry custody," said Fang, fixing her with a suspicious stare. "Now how about you tell me how the hell you know my name?"

"Can't you tell?" Keller's eyes held a look of soft idolisation. "I'm from Gran Pulse. Same as you."

Lightning continued to lead Hope through the Vile Peaks, noticing quickly that he was rapidly beginning to slow down. It was late at night, after all, the second day since they had been made l'Cie, and they had been awake for most of it, having only been unconscious for a few hours. Logically, she understood. But logic wasn't riding her here.

He had no choice. He chose to stick to her like a lost puppy. There was no safe place to let him rest, and she felt fine. They were surrounded by soldiers that would love nothing more than to see them dangle from a noose. They didn't have time to rest!

After gathering what supplies they could from the conveniently-unlocked supply spheres, fighting a horde of soldiers and their machine playthings, climbing and descending, Hope finally ran out of steam.

She heard him trip. And decided that enough was enough.

"This isn't working," she said.

"Huh?" Hope looked up at her, eyes wide.

Just like a damn puppy. "I mean, you're a liability." Tough words, she knew, but he was the one who wanted to "toughen up". His shot at being a kid died when they were branded. "You'll just slow me down." Turning, she made to walk away.

"What?" Hope shot up, his lethargy obliterated in the face of his panic. She couldn't leave him behind! Not now!

"I'm sorry," and she was, "but I can't protect you when – ugh!" She groaned in pain, lifting her hand to her covered brand as it lit up in pink. Something was happening. But she couldn't stop now.

"You can't leave me here!" said Hope, anger in his tone. "You've gotta take me with you!"

"Enough!" He winced at her tone. "The whole world is against us!" She cried out again, brought to her knees as the pain intensified. She struggled to force out her words.

Hope's eyes widened at what he was seeing. Was she using her power to force him away? Summoning something?

"I can barely keep myself alive," she panted. "Let alone some helpless kid!" She winced, the pain strengthening as her own strength dwindled. A magic circle began to appear underneath her.

She was summoning something!

"I don't have time to baby you." Her head swivelled in his direction, her words biting at him. "You wanna get tough? Do it on your own!" The circle beneath her glowed blindingly bright, and as it did so, some of her strength returned. She darted out of it.

After an almost audible burst of power, the light faded, revealing what looked to be a giant pink rose unfurling in the centre of the circle. And in that flower, floating a mere inch above the ground, was what looked to be a mechanical knight with a double-bladed weapon and a longshield.

"This cannot be happening," said Lightning, dumbstruck. It faced Hope, its expression unreadable, before starting forward, weapon in hand.

If you do not want this boy with you, then surely you won't mind if I rid you of him, said a voice in her mind.

What!? The pieces abruptly fell into place, and Lightning darted forward. "Look out!"

Hope backed up, mind clouded by panic. Dimly, he noted that this must be an eidolon before the eight-foot being readied its weapon and brought it down. He raised his arm, eyes shut tight as he turned his face away, yelling in panic. Please let it be quick.

Shing! The sound of metal on metal forced Hope to open his eyes. He gasped.

Lightning had somehow made it in between the boy and the eidolon's strike. Its sheer power forced her onto her back foot as she struggled to push the double-bladed weapon away. Realising that she couldn't best the entity in sheer strength alone, she pushed off from its weapon, darting backwards to gain some distance and landing next to Hope, who hastily righted himself and pulled out his newer boomerang. If he was going to die here, he wanted as few regrets as possible.

I am Odin. Best me in battle, and I will become your ally. Lose, and you will die.

The eidolon was powerful, that much was evident. The power of its sweeping strikes could easily knock either of them into the air, and in between attacking and using magic, it would guard against them with its shield.

"Focus on attacking it, Lightning!" shouted Hope, sending several cure spells her way before showering the eidolon with elemental spells. "I'll back you up!"

He's stepping up. Realising what he was trying to do, she nodded and faced Odin head-on, keeping it busy while Hope backed her up with buffs, offensive magic and cure spells when she needed them. Likewise, when he was in peril, she would do her best to send as much healing magic to him as she could, ensuring his survival.

After a significant beating from both sides, Odin stepped back, stabbing its weapon deep into the ground below.

I am impressed by your strength and fortitude. My power is yours to take. His voice was male.

He then launched himself into the air, soon becoming encompassed in bright green light as his body began to change, flip, and turn, taking the form of a white and green stallion. Neighing into the night, he cantered back down to join the duo. As if guided by instinct, Lightning grasped his weapon, giving it a sharp yank, satisfied that the weapon – Gagnrad, whispered Odin – dislodged from its place easily. She leapt onto his back, pulling the weapon into two identical blades.

Well done, Lightning. The joining is complete. She slipped off the horse, and its form disappeared completely, soon replaced by a rose-shaped crystal that glowed with familiarity. It was identical to the crystal inside her, she realised as it flowed back into her brand. My power is yours to call on in times of need.

Her strength faded, and Lightning collapsed onto one knee. Hope immediately put away his weapon and ran to face her. "Lightning!" As he did so, his eyes were drawn to her brand, still glowing and projecting its form from her chest. He quickly checked his brand, which maintained its normal shape and colour. "Your brand looks…different. Was that an Eidolon? Like l'Cie can summon?"

It must have been. She thought they were just myths. Eidolons hadn't been seen in centuries, not since the War of Transgression. "Magic and mumbo-jumbo," she muttered, clutching her head as the light from her brand faded. "I must've hit my head on that Purge train." Picking up her weapon, which she'd dropped when he fell, she climbed to her feet.

"Um…am I…really in your way?" Hope looked down as he asked the question – as though ready to accept the rejection.

Lightning looked away from the boy, unsure what to say. She never had been very good at expressing her emotions, or saying the right things to comfort someone else. Sheathing her gunblade, she walked around him, hoping he'd get the hint and just follow her.

Clearly, he took it the wrong way. "I'll do better! I'll try harder, I'll–"

"Hope," she said, interrupting his pleas. He looked at his feet. She turned to look at him, and smiled a little.

"We'll toughen you up."

Hope lit up like a kid at Christmas.

"I'm sorry…about before."

Unable to believe his luck, Hope ran to catch up to her, and together, they pushed forward.

But it was further in the Vile Peaks, a bare ten minutes later, that they would be cornered by another squadron. "l'Cie!"

Both drew their weapons. "Got my back?" asked Lightning.

"Yeah!"

The battle was hard, and soon, they both found themselves overrun. Lightning and Hope were driven to their feet in the wake of their foes' assault.

Use my power. Summon me. The time is now!

"Odin!" Lightning drew the eidolith from her brand, throwing it high into the air.

Break it. Jumping after it, she swiped at it with her blade, and the magic circle appeared underneath her. Odin appeared, just as he did before, but this time, he reached out a hand for his master, catching her as she fell and flipping her onto her feet. "Cut us a path!"

The soldiers were panicked. "What did she just do!?"

"Just shut up and kill them!" the Commanding Officer snapped. "That's an order!"

Odin leapt into the fray, his steel singing as it collided with the comparatively weak bodies of the soldiers and the hard metal of the uhlans they had brought with them.

Back me, little one!

"Hope!"

"Right!"

Both l'Cie rained spells down upon the soldiers, wiping them out. But the more they killed, the more that took their place. They knew exactly where they were.

They were cornered again.

Lightning charged in, swiping out with her gunblade, felling the soldiers in her way as Odin dealt with the uhlans.

Join with me! We fight together!

Odin transformed as Lightning took up his weapon, and together they annihilated the rest of the military in their way while Hope backed them up with elemental spells.

I will take you to a safe place not far from here, that you may rest, said Odin, turning his head to the l'Cie on his back. But that is all I can do at this present time. I do not have much time left to help.

Lightning coaxed Hope onto Odin's back, and he took off, galloping through the Peaks and meeting no resistance on the way. Turning left, he slowed to a trot as he took them into a small clear area, protected by rocky walls from three sides. It was then that Lightning and Hope dismounted, and Odin disappeared, leaving only his eidolith behind. As it faded back into her brand, Hope doubled over next to her. "We'll stop here."

"Sorry," he panted.

"Don't sweat it," she assured him as he fell to his knees. "I'll look around. You rest up." She folded her weapon into a gun and took off to inspect the area around their tiny sanctuary.

Odin was correct in that it was safe to rest there. There were no soldiers around, and the area was sparse enough that she could see them coming, yet there enough rocks scattered around that could provide cover if needed. It was even on the edge of the Vile Peaks, right near an entrance to the Gapra Whitewood, their next destination. Satisfied, she returned to find that Hope had fallen asleep while waiting for her.

Gently, she lowered herself onto the ground and sat opposite him, eyes sharp as she kept watch. After a time, he curled up on the spot, his head twisting to the side. "Mom?" he whispered in his sleep.

Startled, Lightning let loose an embarrassed smile. "Not by a long shot," she said. As she looked at him, she noticed that the way he was sitting was almost as if he were leaning on someone, head on their shoulder.

Ah. He was dreaming about her. She looked down. She could hardly blame him for doing so. Countless times she had dreamt about her mother when she had died, curling up with her sister when they both could not sleep. It was something that had kept them both going, knowing that they still had each other.

But Hope was alone. He did not have anyone else he could go back to. Except…

He did talk briefly about his home, if only to say he would no longer be welcome there. Surely that meant he had a family member there waiting for him? A father, perhaps? Or a sibling?

It would be dangerous. She decided to leave the decision for later. For now, they both needed to rest, conserve their energy. Their journey was hardly over yet, and they would both need their strength.

A/N: We got to see something from the ship here! Finally, it has been revealed completely that Keller is not from Cocoon (surprise, surprise). So what's her story? You'll get to find out later on.

If all goes well, you'll see another update in two weeks' time. if not, I deeply apologise but I'm most likely stressing again. Please be patient with me!

Fang out.