(Author's Note: And so we've reached the end. It's been a fun journey, getting this idea, starting to write and getting awesome reviews. I'm telling you guys, if it wasn't for your support and encouragement (and occasional hate mail ;)) I would have given this up a long time ago.
I've had a lot of fun writing this, and I just want to apologize for taking so long between posts. I'm sure I've lost some of my favorite fans due to my negligence, but you guys know how it is. That sillly thing called life keeps getting in the way. So, I present to you, the final chapter. This is the first story I think I've EVER completed.
That's a joke. This isn't the end. Oh, sure, the end of this story, but...there could be more later. Read the note at the end and see.
One last thing: this chapter is very religious heavy in the beginning. It's not meant to be any particular religion, but I think you'll all agree that many video games have some religious overtones. It's not meant to offend anyone, and I hope it doesn't.
Now stop listening to me babble, and read THE FINAL CHAPTER)

In the beginning…

All stories have a beginning. What most don't realize is that few actually have endings. Oh, true, a chapter may be completed with the death of a character, but if you back up a few steps, you will see how THIS person affected THAT person and so the tale moves on. All is connected.

Every moment of every day there is a new beginning. Yet, it will be a long while before a True Ending.

Still-

In the beginning, there was darkness. Then there was light. The first pure, true light, which banished all forms of darkness.

All other forms of light come forth from this light but the original was fractured and scattered throughout a black universe.

Not all was lost to oblivion, though. For reasons of His own, the LightMaker held a shard, which He placed inside a crystal and then left on a young world. It was found, thankfully by powers of good, who forged a special object made of precious metal to house this most cherished treasure.

They called it the Stigmon.

It had been hidden from those who would use its power for destruction. Safeguarded for centuries, it had existed only in legend and whispered tales.

She wouldn't have believed such a thing existed if she hadn't been staring at it. The metallic part was silver and made of an uneven 'x' shape, like a cross. In the center, shining so bright her eyes burned, was a clear crystal, burning with inner fire. Her breath caught as she examined it. It wasn't very large, about the span of her hand, yet she could feel strength radiating from it. Her fingers inched towards it. Suddenly, a violent explosion rocked the ground, making her struggle to retain her balance. It wouldn't be long before they—the other teams—would find their way down here.

She looked around the Treasure room for an alternate route. In the back there was another doorway, smaller, easily missed. She turned to study the Stigmon again. How was she to transport it? She knelt down and examined the altar, hoping it would give a clue, anything useful. There were etchings, some two inches deep, going all the way around the stone structure. It told the story, the origins and purpose of this treasure. There were words, written in arcane script—long flowing letters and symbols from a language that had long since disappeared from mortal knowledge. Yet it wasn't hard to decipher the meaning, as there were pictures, beautifully carved into the rock. It spoke of a very special individual who would be keeper of the Stigmon's power, though they wouldn't be able to harness it until-this was harder to make out. There was some kind of catalyst, something that had to happen before the power of the Stigmon could be tapped. Paine's head was pounding, as much from the roaring of her blood, the rumbling of the room and her frustration at the whole situation.

A 'ping!' went off above her head, and light flooded the previously dark room. Slowly, she rose, half blinded by the intensity. Along the walls, she could now see more pictographs, more stories, left here for centuries, unseen, undisturbed. She rotated on her heel, taking it all in. The walls were awash with silver light, throwing out all forms of shadow from the corners to the ceiling. But the show didn't end there.

Even impaired, her eyes widened as the Stigmon rose of its own accord until it was face level. It rotated in the air, giving her a three hundred sixty-degree view of its magnificence. Suddenly, her sword arm jerked forward, raising her blade straight out in front of her. Her whole arm began to burn and tremble. Almost lazily, the silver cross lowered, and the closer it got to her sword, the fiercer her arm burned, until she had to cry out in pain. It set itself into the blade, right below the skull motif. This was almost too much for Paine as a flash of shrieking agony skated up her arm and down her spine. She dropped her sword, but it didn't hit the ground. Instead, it floated about three inches off of it. She cradled her aching appendage as another earth shattering shake rumbled. Then she leaned down and picked up her weapon. It felt like it was a part of her, just another extension of her being.

She looked up. There was…a skylight of some kind. A hole that led all the way to the surface, too small for any person to get through, but enough to let her see the stars.

Thank you, she silently whispered, to whoever might be listening. She felt that she'd been given some great honor…but it had come at such a sacrifice. She turned all the way around and looked at the doorway she'd come through, now closed off.

Could he have survived? Surely against odds such as that, even the toughest warrior-yet, somehow, she couldn't bring herself to believe that he would have fallen so easily. In fact, she knew with absolute CERTAINTY that he was still out there, somewhere, fighting in the darkness.

She took a resolute step forward, and stumbled. The shaking was coming more and more frequently, and getting more violent. Rocks had begun to tumble from the ceiling and strike the floor with disturbing velocity. Several of these large chunks dropped in front of the door. Now there was no way she could get out there in time, not without being crushed herself. She looked back at the still open doorway.

Paine closed her eyes, hating everything. It wasn't fair. She ran, eyes still half-closed to the smaller door as more and more stones, some boulder sized, crashed into the ground. There she stopped and took one final look back.

I will find you again someday. Soon.

She disappeared into the darkness as the entire cavern fell in on itself.

She couldn't see anything, all was dark around her. And then she remembered. She was a bearer of True Light. She raised her sword above her head. There was no noticeable difference, and yet she could see. Her arm still felt the lingering sensation of silver fire, but now she also felt the channeling of something…other than herself.

She turned corners, went down steep inclines. For a moment, she panicked. She didn't want to go farther down, she wanted to go up. Back to the sky, back to the light, away from the imposing stone walls of the Temple. Every so often she would hear a shriek, then all was silent. The rumbling wouldn't stop and running was almost impossible. She fell to her knees, sharp stones digging into knees and hands. She drew herself up, no thoughts in her head other than escape and survival.

Suddenly, as if the darkness had never even existed, she found herself out in the open air. Above, the storm still raged, though not as ferociously. No, all the destruction was inward. She stumbled and staggered but made it far enough to be able to turn and see the whole Temple. At least what was left of it. The beautiful window had shattered, the ornate doors had splintered and the whole structured had collapsed. She felt a swell of loss. It had been a marvelous building, arcane and ancient. And now it was gone forever, destroyed by greed and the lust for power. Falling in on itself to protect its ward. A martyr for its cause. She saluted it in silence then sprinted to the beach.

The ship was still there, half covered in water. She hoped it would be able to get off this rock. A sight caught her eye. There were two more ships, in perfect condition. How they had managed to get through the storm safely bewildered her, but the scene gave her comfort. If…WHEN he got out…he would at least be able to get off too. It never crossed her mind to take any other ship than his. She felt that she owed it to him.

She climbed into the hatch on the top of the ship. She almost thought she could hear the silver starship groan. It, the ship-she KNEW. She knew something was wrong with her Pilot. And that whoever was now sitting in his seat didn't belong there.

Paine ran her gloved hand along the sides, getting a feel for it. She didn't know where or if there was some kind of voice command box, but she leaned forward anyway and whispered hoarsely:

"Rinoa."

The whole ship twitched and trembled, seemingly in protest. Paine grabbed the armrests, trying not to fall out of the seat.

"Now, wait. Please. If we don't leave now, we'll both be destroyed. He'll be all right. Rinoa, listen to me, we have-"

The lights of the Pilots console lit up, and Paine felt the engines start.

Shakily, and with a few false starts, the ship began to rise. A fiery explosion rose from where the Temple once stood, turning the entire area into a crater. It almost sounded like singing…or screaming, as shrapnel and debris shot upward, pushed by flame and wind. Now, there would be nothing left.

Paine held onto the steering controls, pulling away from the wreckage, shutting off her mind from the possibilities. He was all right. He was a stubborn arrogant fool and he wouldn't let a little thing like certain death get the best of him.

She was almost completely sure. Almost.

The ship rose into the atmosphere with less drama than it had descended. Paine poured as much fuel as she could into the receptor, hoping it would be enough to get her…where? She had no idea where to go, where to stop. But she bet Rinoa did.

She wiped her hands off on her pants and sat back down in the Pilots seat. In no direction in particular, she said:

"Take us home."

Four Days Later

She didn't recognize the world. It was teeming with life, people walking back and forth with no fear of danger. She'd walked into what looked like a Town square, after coming through a huge mahogany door. A few people regarded her strangely, but then went about their business. A strange creature walked across the square, something she recognized. A moogle! She didn't know they existed anywhere else than Spira. She blinked at it a few times when someone came up behind her.

"Excuse me. You look lost."

The voice made her defensive almost immediately. It reminded her of HIS: that kind of quiet threat that she knew better than to ignore. Looking unconcerned, she turned. Besides voice, the individual in front of her and Leon had nothing in common except for gender. He wasn't quite as tall, and instead of shoulder length dark hair, his hair was blonde and shot out from his head at all sorts of weird angles.

She readjusted her earlier assessment. They actually had two other things in common. Blue eyes…and very large swords. Though, instead of a Gunblade, this one was wider, almost as tall as the man himself, and wrapped in some kind of off-white material. She didn't want to imagine what that could do to a body, and the individual holding it definitely looked like he knew how to use it.

"What's it to you?" she asked, flippantly, fingering her own, amped up weapon. The man shrugged nonchalantly.

"Nothing really. Just though maybe I could help. You see," he said, lifting his sword and resting it on his shoulder like it was a fashion accessory, "we get a little suspicious of strangers who come in, carrying weapons. Especially when we notice that they got here in our friend's ship. ESPECIALLY, when no one has heard from him in a disconcertingly long time."

Paine opened her mouth to answer when a voice, again behind her, made her spin around.

"Paine!"

There was no mistaking the high pitched squeal.

"Yuffie!" she called back. The sable haired ninja dashed down some steps and across the square. Before she could reach Paine though, the blonde haired man stepped between them. Yuffie all but ricocheted off his arm.

"Cloud! Let me go, she's a friend!" she whined, tugging on his outstretched appendage. Cloud's eyes narrowed.

"You're the Warrior?"

Paine nodded silently. Yuffie looked up at him.

"Okay, do you believe me now! Now, let me go."

Cloud put his arm down. Yuffie threw her arms around Paine's neck. For her part, Paine didn't react much, just stood there while Yuffie managed to get out, in one breath:

"Oh my word, you wouldn't believe it, we were so worried, when we couldn't get a hold of you, and then these people came looking for you and we called and called, and then suddenly we detected the ship coming in and I knew it had to be you, I totally knew it, but what happened to you guys, where have you been!"

Cloud put a hand on a breathless Yuffie's shoulder.

"I only want to know one thing," he told her. "Where's Leon?"

Paine hung her head, regretfully.

"He…he fought them off so I could complete the mission. I don't know if he made it or not."

At first, she was afraid they'd demand to know why she didn't stay and look for him, but instead they just digested her words silently.

"Come on," Cloud finally said, motioning for Paine to follow. All the air seemed to have gone out of Yuffie, she was no longer bubbling with barely checked excitement. Paine felt truly sorry, more sorry then than she had ever felt before.

They led her to a small house, where she met two more people. One was an abrasive man, humorously enough, named Cid. He even reminded Paine of Rikku's dad, they had similar voices and mannerisms, though this Cid definitely had more hair, held up by a bandana wrapped around his head. The other individual in the house was introduced to Paine as Aeryth, and she too, reminded Paine of someone. Soft features, kind eyes and a serene smile.

They had Paine stand in the middle of the room while the rest sat on chairs or the bed that rested against the wall.

Quickly, giving only the bare facts, Paine went over their adventure and all the things that had transpired.

How they had been commissioned by Mirt, how they had crashed onto a planet where they met with less than welcome, the reunion Sevren (Paine enjoyed watching Yuffie's expression switch between revolt and then glee when she heard of how Paine had held a sword to the redhead's throat), fighting a Guardian, getting the message from Yuffie, finding the dead planet and the Temple and then finally, their last stand.

A few times, one of them would break in with a question, or Cid would make some comment like, "What an idiotic foolhardy thing to do, sounds just like him" before he would be loudly hushed, leaving him to mutter to himself.

When she had finished, she stepped back and walked outside to let them converse among themselves. This was a strange place, far different than her world. It was always dark, giving her a full view of the stars…and worlds. She wondered if any of those she saw winking on and off was a world she had seen. She decided she'd have to become more accustomed to other worlds or she'd get left behind. Eventually, she was called back in. Cid spoke first.

"Before we tell you what we've decided, we want to hear from you. What is it that you plan to do?"

She looked each one in the eye in turn.

"I know that you don't know me very well. And that you have only my word to go on, and I am sorry that we had to meet under these circumstances. But no matter what conclusion you've come to, I have already made my decision. I am going to go look for him. If he's still on the dead planet, then I will find him. If he's not-"she shrugged, "Then I'll keep looking."

Yuffie's smile reached from ear to ear.

"See? I TOLD you she'd say that."

Paine winked at her while no one was looking. Cid removed the ever-present toothpick from his mouth.

"Alright, then. But you won't be able to take Leon's ship, it's too banged up. I'll work on it, I mean, heck, I built the dang thing. But you're goin' to have to find yourself a new ship and likely a new pilot. And I would suggest gettin' yourself some more muscle. If everything you've told us is true, you've made some powerful enemies. Now, I'm not sayin' you can't handle yourself, but it never hurts to be cautious. You got all that?"

Paine nodded, silently. A thought seemed to occur to Cloud.

"I have a good idea where you can find another fighter."

Two weeks later

Another day, another world, another dark alley. She'd been down a dozen more just like it, smelly, dank. But maybe this one would be different, not just another dead end. Maybe she'd have finally found who she was looking for. Then all she would need was a half-decent pilot with a working ship. Should be cake after this search.

She moved down as quietly as she could. Somewhere off to her right, the shadows shifted. She half spun, crouched in a defensive position and brought up her sword, still bearing the Stigmon.

"I heard you were looking for me," a voice from the shadows whispered, making it impossible to determine age, gender or size. Paine straightened.

"Are you Vincent Valentine?" she asked, wishing her eyes could penetrate the deep shadows of the alley. There was a long silence.

"I am."

Paine lowered her sword and crossed her arms.

"I have a job for you."

(See! I TOLD you it wasn't done! I'm not sure when I'll get the sequel out because I need to do a little more 'research' on the characters I'll be including. I can gurantee you that there will be a bigger cast (and from different games...Xenosaga, anyone?) and plenty more adventures. So keep an eye out for 'A Cross of Swords 2', coming at you, hopefully, VERY soon.

Thanks again, everyone.

Ace Voxen