FORTY-FIVE

Like Corneo had said, Abzeth was a lot bigger than her mate. And twice as ugly. She looked more or less like Abzu, but her hide had more of a reddish tint than the blue on his, and her horns were longer, much more curved, and glowed with a pale red aura. She had the same thick, spiked tail and cloven feet as Abzu, though, and looked to be every bit as strong, maybe more. She roared, her beady yellow eyes finding us as her long tongue hung from her mouth.

But Firebrand was right there in her path, out front with Kunsel as Abzeth charged, and easily got the monster's attention. Jessie moved so fast I could barely even see her. She was just a dark blur as she raced in to meet Abzeth and started slicing away with those incredible weapons of hers. My left arm and shoulder still ached from where I'd been shot, but not as much as before thanks to the healing spell Jessie had cast on me. So I was able to ignore the pain and focus on watching the battle as I sat just inside the tunnel with my mom.

Gotta admit, it's really exciting to be able to be a part of all this, but I never thought when Jessie invited me out to Cosmo Canyon with the others that I'd actually get to tell part of the story myself. My role in the whole thing was pretty small, honestly, and I'd have been happy just to sit and listen to everyone else as they laid it all down. But Jessie handed things off to me with a little smirk, so here I am.

Anyway, Kotch had gently set me down on the floor next to Mom, who was busy bandaging my arm as best she could with a strip of torn cloth she'd ripped off her dress. Even down here, Corneo had probably wanted his girls to look all fancy like the ones up top. She looked thin, and I realized then that she and the rest of the women probably hadn't been brought any food or tended to at all in the two weeks since Shinra had stormed the mansion after the plate collapse.

Kotch stood nearby, his eyes on the fight. He looked ready to move in an instant, bracing himself to protect us if it came to that. Maybe he did regret what he'd done under Corneo to me, my mom, and so many others over the years. It looked like he'd finally found his courage. He'd stood up to his old boss, him and Scotch both, and saved me. As much as I'd thought I'd hated them, I wasn't so sure anymore. They were both still here, even though they could've run away and left us behind while the others were fighting Abzeth. But they didn't.

Leslie was watching the battle as well, his gun in hand and ready in case anything came at us. But so far, Jessie and the others were keeping Abzeth pretty well contained. Although the monster was swinging one huge fist after another and spinning around with her spiked tail, Jessie kept well ahead of it even after her speed boost wore off, cutting at her over and over again with those cool blaze talons while Kunsel kept the pressure on with his sword and magic. Biggs, Wedge, and Lena backed them up from farther away with bursts of gunfire.

Then Abzeth jumped onto one of the walls, clinging to it like some kinda giant bug, and at least eight or nine little Abzus suddenly rushed outta the tunnel. Looked like mommy had called out the whole pack to help. At least it gave Firebrand and the others a chance to rid the town of these things for good. They were ugly little brutes, maybe five or six feet tall but hunched over. While Abzeth hurled sewer water across the room from the drains in huge, thick streams, her kids all scattered and charged after the others in a mad rush.

Jessie cut one down with a flurry of blazing slashes and a few sharp kicks, then made another one squeal with a burst of fire from the green magic materia on one of her blades. Kunsel took down another, slicing into it with his sword, but that still left over half a dozen. Biggs, Wedge, and Lena shifted their aim away from Abzeth to the shoats, but though they took out two more with Biggs and Lena's bullets and the fire from Wedge's flamethrower, three others got through, closing the gap before my friends could get outta the way.

I winced as one of the shoats charged right at Lena and tackled her while another headbutted Wedge. Biggs slipped as the sewer water that Abzeth had thrown splashed into him, and another of the shoats spat a stream of the stuff at him, too. But then, just when it was really looking bad for my friends, Firebrand was there, dashing like the wind again as she cut and sliced one shoat after another, a black and orange blur that fought like hell and was incredible to watch.

While Kunsel hurled fire spells of his own at Abzeth—she and her kids really didn't like it—Jessie dove aside as one of the shoats tossed a broken metal beam at her. When she rolled to her feet just a second or two later, her purple materia flashed brightly, and she spun around, her arms out wide as she jumped. A searing circle of orange energy burned several of the shoats to a crisp, giving Biggs and Wedge a chance to get back on their feet and help Lena. Together, they blew away the monster that had pinned her down onto the floor.

"Thanks, guys!" she said.

Biggs helped to her feet. "No problem, sis. Though we're all gonna need a good shower when this is over."

Jessie sliced another shoat. "I can tell, Biggs!"

"Don't I know it," he grimaced. "Man, I smell rank!"

"Sure do!" Lena smirked.

Wedge chuckled. "That goes for all of us."

I sighed in relief when I saw my friends were okay. A few scratches, but nothing serious. There were still a few shoats left, and while Kunsel kept Abzeth busy, Jessie and the others worked on finishing off the rest of her kids. But one of them suddenly saw us and charged right toward the tunnel. My mom grabbed me, pulling me close and shielding me as it got closer, and I flinched as it threw a pipe at us.

But then, Kotch rushed in front of us, grunting as the pipe hit him instead, and swatted it aside. Then he started punching the shoat while Leslie shot it over and over. Scotch was a little slower to get involved in the fight, but eventually he started hitting and kicking the ugly thing as well. At one point, the shoat shoved the guys back a few steps, then bit Kotch on the arm when he swung at it again.

I gasped. "Kotch!"

"Ain't too bad," he grunted. "Just a scratch."

Then Leslie poured more lead into it, finally hitting it between the eyes and sending it sprawling onto the floor with a loud squeal. By the time Jessie raced over to us, it was dead, and so were the others. Abzeth was all that was left, and Kunsel, Biggs, Wedge, and Lena were fighting that monster, who was still perched on the wall. Bullets and spells flew through the air while Jessie rushed to check on me and Mom, her eyes worried as she knelt down and looked at us.

"You okay?" she asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, we're fine. That thing never touched us."

Jessie smiled, took my good shoulder for a moment, and turned to the others. "Thanks, guys. Kotch, hold out your arm."

He did, and she used her Restore materia's magic to treat that bite. It started to close up as the blue and green sparkles hovered all around him for a moment before fading away. Then we all jumped as the room suddenly shook with the impact of Abzeth jumping back onto the floor again. My friends out there stumbled a few steps as they were knocked off balance, but they recovered pretty fast.

Jessie hefted her blaze talons and gave me a little wink. "Well, looks like somebody's about to get her ass kicked."

"Nail it, Firebrand!" I grinned.

Flashing me a smirk, she hit her left glove switch and vanished in a haze of rippling orange energy as she got ready to smash Abzeth with a surprise attack. Kunsel sliced at the monster again and again, his sword leaving streaks of bright purple energy behind it as he cut into Abzeth's thick red hide. She roared and unleashed another torrent of icky sewer water, but he and the others stood their ground.

Then Abzeth charged at Biggs, swinging her horns as she got close. But he managed to get out of the way just in time, darting aside before rolling a flat black disc at her feet. It exploded only seconds later, and I cheered as Abzeth stumbled back. Then she suddenly lurched forward again as something invisible struck her from behind, slashing her back. But by the time Abzeth had spun around to swipe at her, Jessie must've already moved on, and the monster flinched as she stung her again just a moment later from one side and then the other.

At the same time, Kunsel struck at Abzeth's tail. She swung it above him, slamming it down again and again to try and smash him, but she missed every time, hitting the floor instead and making it crack where it landed. While Lena and Wedge kept attacking from the front, Kunsel focused on the tail, hacking on it until it the barbed end of it started to break. And just then, Jessie reappeared at his side.

"I think we can slow her down if we can take out her tail," she said. "Looks like you've got a good start on it."

Kunsel nodded. "What are we waiting for?"

She laughed, then quickly sliced Abzeth's tail with her blaze talons, slashing and dodging as it whipped around her. Kunsel struck at it, too, hitting it closer to the body while Biggs blasted it with his gun. Abzeth jumped and spun around again, but my friends were ready and rushed into position to press the attack. And soon enough, Kunsel had severed the tail with a big overhead chop that went right through it. As Abzeth roared in pain and whirled on him, Jessie was right there to meet her. I leaned forward eagerly as I watched her fight.

"Yeah!" I cheered. "Take her down, Firebrand!"

Jessie slashed both of Abzeth's swinging arms while Kunsel burned her with more magical fire. But my friends weren't the only ones who'd heard me. Abzeth snarled and looked my way, moving across the room toward the tunnel faster than I'd thought possible. She was way too big to get inside, but she started swiping at us from the entryway, reaching inside as far as she could. I shrieked as Mom and I tried desperately to get out of range. Kotch, Leslie, and even Scotch did what they could to drive her back, but she was just too strong.

They fell away, knocked aside like so many bowling pins, and then a heavy, smelly hand grabbed my leg and started pulling hard. I fought frantically to hold onto my mom and then Kotch, but I couldn't, and as Abzeth pulled me toward her, I screamed. My heart was pounding and I was scared to death. But just as I thought I'd end up as her next meal, she suddenly flinched and roared, and I heard the others striking at her from behind, bullets, blades, and spells tearing into her. In the midst of it was Firebrand. And she was pissed.

"Get away from her, you bitch!" Jessie snarled.

Abzeth roared and let go of me, and I looked up just in time to see her spin around and charge at Jessie, pounding both fists into the floor. But Jessie was faster, jumping into the air and avoiding the tremors the impact caused even as Kunsel and the others just barely stayed on their feet. She came down lightly on her toes and dashed right at Abzeth, her reflexes like a cat's as she dodged one blow after another, ducking aside out of the way of the monster's swinging arms.

Jessie glared at Abzeth, her weapons raised. "Come on!"

The others moved aside, knowing it was just her and Abzeth now. I did as well, seeing the fury in her eyes. Jessie hit her right glove switch and rushed at Abzeth, moving fast as the wind. Abzeth swung her fists around and swiped at Jessie with her horns, but Firebrand was just too quick and agile for her to hit. And as Jessie slashed at Abzeth again and again, her weapons left trails of glowing orange energy behind them. I noticed they'd also gotten brighter, too.

Then, after she'd gotten Abzeth turned around with her back to the trench, Jessie stopped in front of her and backed up until she was a few feet away. Abzeth roared and lunged at her, but she was already moving again, rushing right for her. Jessie jumped, yelled, and buried both her light daggers into the monster's chest. Abzeth stumbled backward, and Jessie used her as leverage to backflip away, tearing her weapons out at the same time and unleashing a massive explosion from the energy she must've built up with all her other attacks.

Abzeth crashed backward into the trench, black and burnt all over, but Jessie wasn't done yet. After she landed in a crouch with both arms out, she straightened, holstered her weapons, and took one of her cool purple and red grenades from her belt pouch. Then, as Abzeth tried to climb out of the trench, Jessie yanked out the pin and lightly tossed the grenade straight up. When it began falling down again, she quickly hit it with a fast roundhouse kick that sent it flying right into Abzeth's face. Then we all ducked just as it exploded.

When it was over and the dust had settled, I looked up to see Jessie standing there, hands on her hips as she stared hard at what was left of Abzeth. The charred mess had crashed back into the trench, and it was still burning a little. Jessie herself looked okay as she caught her breath, her skin all sweaty and with a few scratches here and there. It had been a tough fight, but when she turned to me and smiled, I knew then that we'd won. Firebrand had done it again.

I hugged my mom tight as best I could with my good arm, and she did the same with me. We both started crying then, but we didn't care. We were just so happy to see each other again. My family was gonna be whole like it always should've been, and Dad would smile again like he used to. It was all I'd ever really wanted. When I heard Jessie walk over, I let go of Mom and flew into her arms, thanking her over and over for what she'd done for me, for us. My hurt shoulder still throbbed a bit as I stood there with her, but I didn't care.

"Thank you, thank you!" I told her. "You did it, Firebrand!"

Then Mom came over. "Yes, thank you so much! Jessie, was it? For so long, I've wanted to get out of here and back to my family. Now you and your friends have made that possible."

Jessie smiled. "Thank your daughter. Lydia's the one who asked me to come down here in the first place. I wouldn't have known any of you were here if it wasn't for her. She never gave up."

"Firebrand…" I blushed.

She laughed, then glanced at the others as they all gathered around us. "Alright, everyone. Let's get these women home."

Leslie took out the key and started unlocking the cells one by one, and after giving me a light squeeze, my mom went over to do what she could to help the other women get out and explain to them, to the girls who must've been her only friends down here, what had happened and that they were finally free. There were more than I'd expected, but with Abzeth dead and Corneo gone, I knew we'd able to get them back up to the surface and home without a problem.

"Uh, Lydia?" Kotch asked.

I looked at him. "Yeah? Oh, how's the arm?"

"Hurts a little, but I've had worse," he said. Then he slowly took off his sunglasses and gazed at me. "Listen… what I told ya before… about being right in what you said about us. I meant it. But I figured I had to find a way to make it up to ya before I could even begin to tell ya I was sorry. So when this is over, I'll take anything you wanna dish out at me. It's okay. I know what I did to ya, what I've done."

"You saved my life," I told him. "Mine and my mom's. Put yourself in harm's way to protect us. That's what you did."

Kotch nodded. "I just… didn't want ya to be hurt anymore."

"You were really brave, you know?" I said.

"I was?" he blinked, stunned.

I smiled. "Oh, yeah. Maybe… we can both put the past behind us. I think I can finally do that now. What about you?"

He ran a hand along the side of his shaved head. "I think I'd like to try, at least. Never been brave before. I kinda like it, though. Used to do whatever the boss told me because I was too scared to stand up to him. Didn't wanna get shot or fed to Abzu."

"But when it really mattered, you did," I reminded him.

"Yeah," he grinned. Then he got serious again. "Listen, Lydia. I just wanna say… I'm sorry. For bein' such an ass and takin' your mom away for all those years. It was the Don's orders, but that ain't no excuse. And now I know better, thanks to you."

I hugged him. "Like I said, Kotch, it's all behind us now. So I think it's time we both let it go. You helped me get my mom back and fought to keep us safe. I'm not gonna forget that."

He stared at me, a little surprised at what I'd done. "Uh, thanks. I'm just glad I could help. And you know, I actually feel good about myself for once. I think… I finally did something right."

"You sure did," I agreed.

"And don't worry about Scotch," he assured me. "I'll keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't do anything stupid. He helped out today, but it was more for himself than anything else. Still, I think you did get through to him, Lydia. It'll take time, though."

I'd figured as much. "Right. Hopefully he'll come around someday. But what about you, Kotch? What'll you do?"

Kotch shrugged. "Aside from whatever punishment the Trio hands out for me, I dunno. Been with the gang for years, you know. Not really sure what to do now that I'm finally out."

"I could always use a friend," I smiled. "And if you're up for a bit of honest work, I think my dad could use someone to help out around the shop. Take the load off him a bit, you know? There's only so much that I can do, and he could really use a hand from someone strong like you. Stocking, heavy lifting, unloading the delivery cart, that sort of thing. I can talk to him about it later if you want."

He gaped. "Really?"

I laughed. "Of course! Interested?"

"Sure," Kotch grinned. "Thanks, Lydia."

"Least I can do after all you've done for me today," I said as I let go. "I think you've earned a second chance."

Jessie smirked as she joined us. "I'd say he has at that."

I looked at the small crowd of women that was milling about now as we got ready to leave. "Is that everyone?"

"Yeah," she said. "Leslie got all the cells open."

"What about Corneo's room?" I asked.

Jessie nodded. "We checked it out. No one was in there, so it looks like we've found everybody. Kotch, is there another way out? Or do we have to go back the way we came?"

"Backtracking to the mansion's probably our best bet," he said. "I'm not too familiar with the rest of the tunnels around here. The boss kept a lotta stuff to himself and only told us what we needed to know. Never said much about the rest of the sewers."

"Alright, then," she decided. "To the mansion it is."

The women—who were anywhere from teenagers like me to older than my mom—were understandably wary of Kotch and Scotch, but it didn't look like they'd cause any problems. They just wanted to go back home to their families. I went over and talked to a few, seeing if I could find my friend Marcy, who'd also gone missing, but… she wasn't there. Even though I'd known the odds had been against me finding both her and my mom down here, I couldn't help feeling disappointed and a bit sad. I still missed her. Then I noticed Leslie seemed to be searching for someone, too. His fiancée, I remembered.

"Hey," I said, walking over to him. "Looking for her?"

He nodded. "Yeah…"

I'd thought so. "See her anywhere?"

"No," Leslie shook his head and sighed. "Asked around while I was getting everyone out. She's not here, and nobody knows where she is. It was a long shot, but… I had to try."

"I'm sorry," I told him.

He straightened his cap. "Thanks. Guess I'm about done here once we get everyone topside. Then I'm gonna track down Corneo. Not like I've really got anything better to do."

"I don't know about that," Jessie said as she joined us. "Your fiancée could still be out there somewhere."

"What do you mean?" Leslie wondered.

She pointed at the pendant hanging around his neck. "It's a symbol of reunion, Leslie. She wanted you to know that you'll see her again. So don't give up, okay? Go and look for her."

"You can never really know how much someone means to you 'till they're gone," I added. "Believe me, I know."

"Then I guess I've gotta find her first," Leslie decided.

Jessie smiled. "Good luck."

I did the same, Leslie's hope giving me hope, too. "There's someone out there I care about who's still missing, too. My old friend. Maybe I'll find her someday. Or maybe she'll find me."

"I hope so," Jessie said.

"Me too," Leslie added. "Just stick with it, Lydia."

I grinned. "I will if you will."

He gave me a faint little smile. "Deal."

As I stood there for a moment absently rubbing my wounded arm, Mom came over with a few large pieces of cloth that she must've taken from Corneo's bedroom—it looked like she had cut them off his sheets with whatever sharp thing she could find in there—and made me have a seat next to the wall while she bound up my arm in a makeshift sling. I'd been holding it against my chest for while and it had started to get a little stiff, but this made it easier to bear.

"We'd better get moving," Jessie told Kunsel. "Lydia's still hurt, and being down here where it's so damp and dirty all over can't be good for her. The materia helped, but that gunshot wound still oughta be looked at as soon as we get topside. Is everyone ready?"

He nodded. "Yeah. The ladies are pretty weak from not having any food for the last two weeks, but they can move."

"Then let's mosey," she said.

We all headed back into the tunnel, Mom with her arm around me to support me. Although I wasn't so hurt that I couldn't walk, I still felt a little weak. The adrenaline rush of the fight and of narrowly escaping death had kept me going for a while, but now it was fading away, and I felt the pain in my shoulder come back to bite me hard. That bullet was still in there, too. But it had all been worth it.

Jessie smiled encouragingly at me, then went ahead to lead the way with Kunsel and Kotch. Wedge and Lena stayed close to the other girls and helped them whenever they stumbled or struggled, and Biggs took the rear, watching our backs just like before. We didn't have any trouble this time, though, and got back to Abzu's chamber without incident. It took a little longer than getting to the cells had, but we'd expected that, and we all made it to the exit in one piece.

Kunsel climbed up the ladder first. Then, once he'd seen that it was clear, he called down for us to follow. The women went up, one by one, hurrying eagerly out of the sewers as best they could. Mom had me go ahead of her, so I did, climbing with one hand while she went after me and made sure I didn't fall. Even though it wasn't very far, I still had to stop and rest for a moment or two. Kunsel helped me get out as soon as I reached the top, and then I saw Marissa.

She came in a minute or two after I'd sat down on a nearby chair to rest. No way in hell was I gonna touch Corneo's bed. The other women waited anxiously in here or in the office, hesitant to go any further just yet. Marissa had brought her first aid kit with her, ready to take a quick look at each of them to make sure they were really alright, but she went to me first and checked on my shoulder.

"How's it feel?" she asked.

I winced. "Still hurts a bit. You got here pretty fast."

Marissa smiled as she opened her kit. "Kunsel messaged me just as soon as he got out. I was waiting over at Madam M's for you guys, so it didn't take very long for me to get here."

After carefully opening the makeshift cloth bandage my mom had made for me, Marissa disinfected the wound with some iodine. Wasn't much else she could do here away from the clinic, but I was grateful for it anyway. Although it stung a bit as it settled in, I didn't mind. It was a lot more bearable than the throbbing ache that was still going on in my shoulder where I'd been shot. Once Marissa had replaced the bandage, she took out a potion and had me drink it.

"Nasty, aren't they?" Jessie smirked as she walked over.

I curled my nose. "Oh, yeah."

She grinned. "I'm not a fan of 'em either, Lydia. But they do get the job done. You'll be feeling better in no time."

"Thanks," I giggled.

"Are you sure she'll be alright?" Mom wondered.

Marissa nodded. "She'll have to stay at the clinic tonight to get that bullet out, but she should make a full recovery."

"Thank you," she replied.

Giving both of us an encouraging smile, Marissa went to check on the rest of the women. There were almost thirty altogether, and while I chatted with Mom, Jessie, and the rest of my friends, Marissa looked at each woman one at a time, mending what hurts she could and getting a sense of their overall condition. Better to have them wait a bit first than let them rush outta here on their own.

"Well?" Jessie asked when Marissa was done. "How are they?"

She closed up her first aid kit. "Borderline malnutrition, but I don't think there's any permanent damage. They just need some food, a good hot bath or shower, and plenty of rest."

Jessie nodded. "Good. I take it the Trio's heard?"

"Yeah," Marissa answered. "Madam M told me when I left to come here that she'd let Sam and Andrea know you'd succeeded. The news is probably all over Wall Market by now. So I'd imagine there's quite a big crowd waiting for us outside, Jessie."

"Then let's not keep them waiting," she said.

So we all headed downstairs, Mom supporting me again like before while Jessie and Kunsel led the way. Marissa hadn't been wrong about a crowd. When we finally got outside, I saw a lot of people waiting across the bridge—the street was packed full of them—and as we reached the other side, there were a lot of emotional, tear-filled reunions when the women and their loved ones found each other. Andrea, Madam M, and Sam were there, too, and as they were talking with Jessie and the rest of my friends, I heard someone calling to me.

"Lydia!" It was Dad.

I turned to see him rushing toward us. "Dad!"

His eyes widened and he stopped short when he saw Mom, and for a moment, neither of them moved. And then they were in each other's arms, holding each other tight. When they finally let go, Dad turned to me, worry all over his face when he saw I was hurt, and hugged me for a moment as carefully as he could. I held onto him with my good arm, so glad to be alive and see him again.

"What happened down there?" he asked when he let go. "Are ya in any pain? You scared me to death, girl!"

"Sorry, I just… wanted Mom back," I told him.

He hugged me again. "I understand. I missed her, too."

I knew he had. "My shoulder hurts a bit, but I'll be fine, Dad. Don't worry. Jessie and my friends kept me safe."

"I'm so glad…" Dad breathed.

"She'll need to stay at the clinic tonight," Mom explained. "Surgery, I'm afraid. But it's nothing serious. We'll explain on the way there. Our daughter was very brave tonight, Gant."

He smiled. "I don't doubt it."

As we started to leave, I looked around for Jessie. She was standing there amidst the crowd, calmly watching everything unfold and talking with some of the people and families there who were profusely offering their thanks to her and the others. And as more of the women reunited with their families and loved ones, more and more pointed her out and brought them over to see her. It was a lot of attention, but Jessie wasn't fazed by it at all. More like she was used to it.

Of course, I didn't know yet who she really was. Only a few people did. But that would all change at the tournament tomorrow, and by her own doing. It would be a shock felt all over Midgar and a day that a lot of us would never forget. Just like tonight. I waved to Jessie, knowing I couldn't reach her right now, and she waved back with a smile. And as I walked away with my parents on either side, she gave me a little wink. I grinned, happier than I'd been in so long.

My family was whole again.