I'm so sorry this wasn't updated earlier but I wasn't writing over the holidays, had way too many distraction . Namely my friend who lived over my house and that I was away quite a bit towards the end. I went on a holiday to Melbourne, it was the first time I ever went there. I have to say but that place is absolutely amazing for shopping, and coming from me that's a lot seeing as a single detail on a piece of clothing can make me hate it. But I walked into a store and my first thought was that I loved it. Also got my shoes for the convention I'm going to later this year.

I'm a drowning a little in homework and assignments so for the first few weeks of school I've had to sacrifice some of my writing time so I haven't really been getting much headway in my chapters. I not to sure how things will turn out in the next few weeks so I can't promise it'll get better, but I'll always be writing.

Hope you enjoy the chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy.

Freedom without a name

Serah followed the darkly garbed figure in front of her through the many chambers of the underground passage. It spawned a vast amount of area, held hundreds of different twists and turns and seemed never ending. Despite this the girl who broke her out of her cell seemed to know exactly where to go. She turned each corner without a hint of hesitancy. When Serah asked her how she knew where to go, she's simply said that she remembered the way.

Though Serah felt strongly that remembrance might not be enough to stop them from getting lost, there was a much more pressing matter in her mind. The sheer enormity of this place. The girl had told her that these were the underground cells of the military base that the Valhallans had taken over near Bodhum. But by now though she doubted not that the military base was far behind them and they were now in nothing more than underground passageways. Serah couldn't think of a reason they were here. Sure there was a need to have cells within military bases but not ones that stretched for kilometres on end. It brought to mind so many questions Serah didn't have an answer to. Like the obvious one of why cells of this magnitude were in a place like this. The two of them had been walking around the labyrinth of corridors for well over an hour now and still the girl guiding her made no move to stop or move towards an exit of any sort. They were structures of mystery that didn't end.

In the unending time they traversed the dark hallways they came into contact with a few Valhallan men, but in the dark it took no more than clinging to a wall to hide their presence. Serah was surprised that there were even people this far out, but the girl told her that there were hidden entrances everywhere. She guessed that it was one such entrance that this girl was taking her to.

Serah was correct, but it still took another hour to reach their exit. There was a ladder bolted to the wall leading into a small exit tunnel that appeared to be closed by some means at the top. Climbing up it without a word, the girl entered the tunnel and disappeared from Serah's sight. The sounded of something metal being twisted was heard and looking up into the narrow tunnel Serah saw that the girl had removed the lid enclosing it from the outside world. Without looking down at Serah the girl said, "Come up, climb up."

Waiting until the girl had climbed out of the tunnel herself Serah got onto the ladder and lifted herself up through it and out into the night. It was a new moon so there wasn't much light so Serah could only just see the outline if the person beside her. Not much better than in the tunnels really, but at least now she could confirm that she was definitely wearing a cloak.

Moving away from the entrance to the corridors the girl told Serah, "Come on, we have a long way to go."

Following her Serah left the hole behind them and went with the girl into the encircling forest. They travelled many hours more before she told Serah it was safe enough area to get some rest. Serah slept little, and wasn't much better rested when the girl roused her to get moving again.

It was light now; the sun was just beginning to peer over the horizon dying the clouds beautiful shades of orange. Serah bathed in its beauty. Cooped up in the safe house she hadn't seen things like that in a long time. She looked down sadly and felt a pang of sadness hit her with that thought. The price of their safety had been to give up even the sunrise. Thinking about it, they had given up a lot more things too, things much worse than just the sunrise. All because of these men who held their world and lives hostage in a war that wasn't their own.

Rising her eyes they landed on the girl guiding her through the forest. Watching her, she wondered what her story was. Who was she and what had her life been. She figured easily that she was one of 'their' side like Aaia, but she wished she had a name to give her. Not just to keep calling her 'the girl' like she had done with Aaia before she gave her that alias. But that made her question why this girl didn't give her one. She didn't see the harm in self introduction, so what did this girl see in it? That brought her back again to the question of who she was. Who was this girl that she never told Serah her name or showed her face to her?

Wait, what?

Serah almost stopped dead in her tracks, she hadn't realised it until she'd thought that but she was yet to see this girl's face. This entire time in the daylight her back had been to her and at night it was too dark to see. Serah didn't think it was accidental, since paying attention to the girl's movements she saw that all of them were too purposely done. She was intentionally moving in a way that hid her front from Serah. This made her wonder who the girl was all the more. To be involved with the Valhallans like she was, she didn't think it would be a nice story. Aaia's little one certainly hadn't been. But operating under the impression that this girl would be as reluctant as Aaia to tell her about herself Serah left the thought there, realising how futile it was.

The hours ticked by as they trekked and soon it was afternoon. Still they continued. Past rivers and over hills, Serah followed this girl without a name. Exhaustion was biting at her heels but the girl never stopped. Always it seemed that she was ready to jump at any sound, never trusting her environment. About that, Serah guessed her intuition was right. For they couldn't; not with the war mongers who called themselves men around. Every moment outside was a moment of danger and uncertainty.

And true to fashion, that danger personified itself. It started first as the sound of a stick breaking, then as a man charging towards them ferociously. He roared and the cloaked girl dodged under him. The man went head over heels and landed hard on his back side. Madded by the humiliation of his surprise attacks failure he shot up.

But as Serah saw, his fury fuelled motivation quickly vanished. Staring at the face of the darkly garbed girl in front of him his own twisted in a hideous mix of recognition and fear. He stepped back and his mouth fell agape. Suddenly, regret took over his every motion.

"Tulat yue," he whimpered piteously, "Sarken ven yue!"

Watching him back off some more Serah heard the girl chuckle humourlessly, in his foreign language she replied back, "Itavan viet, ven yue chazo dincru davith fia raiz fann un koden."

Then she moved, and with wonder beyond belief Serah saw that the earth moved with her. It threw the man off his feet again and he landed metres away. He tried to scramble up and flee but the girl was moving again. She danced closer to the man and the wind danced with her. It lifted the man up and set him back on the ground with a heavy thud. Her arms went skyward and the man was pinned where he was standing with shackles of rock. Then came the fire. With immerse beauty the girl channelled it around her with grace as she spun on her heels. Around and around she went, flying closer again to the man. She came alive with the fire; she spun and twirled it around her like it was a part of her. In a flash Serah saw her hood fall down and the girls locks as black as midnight flew around her. In this moment she was truly alive.

But then it ended, and the fire came down on the man. Yet it missed. At first Serah was dumbfounded, for all her previous show how could the girl have missed him? But then the girl summoned more fire to her fingers and in a powerful movement she blasted it at him, and then more and more and more and Serah realised it wasn't an attack but a scare tactic. All she was doing was making the man too scared for reason.

But then that ended too. And in one movement the girl went from standing in front of the man to being right in his face. Grasping his head painfully she yelled in accusation, "Am thin sarmot vu yue rund plase!"

"Tulan!" He whimpered back, "Itavan onne ai fout; thin itkin sarken non fan nell!" At the end of his straw he broke into tears.

Letting go of him, the girl turned to Serah, and once she saw her face Serah realised how truly stunning the girl was. She saw again her short hair, most of it falling in curls at the sides of her head and her grey eyes. But it was the girl's face that took Serah's breath away. Since in the dark cell last night it had been too dark to make out. But she had to be only half Serah's age, not even twenty. And she was gorgeous, a true beauty.

Serah was speechless at her looks, but the girl hadn't seemed to notice, in English she relayed to her, "He says there isn't anyone else around here, we should be somewhat safe, but I never trust a Valhallan like this one."

Nodding her head not even taking in that she was doing so Serah followed the girl as she began to move away from the sobbing man and back onto the trek. So enthralled by how beautiful the girl was it momentarily left Serah's mind that she should have questioned her on how she had attacked that man back there.

…:…

They were moving again now, a night had passed since they were attacked and Serah stilled hadn't quite figured out how to ask the girl about what she'd done with magic. Since missing out on her original chance she hadn't been able to force the words out of her mouth. That didn't stop her from thinking about it though. What that girl had done should be impossible for those except L'cie. From the insignia on her clothing Serah presumed that the girl was a part of the Pulsian military, so she could easily have access to manadrives. But manadrives don't get that powerful. So that left only the option that this was a power she created straight from herself. But Serah didn't know of any other than L'cie who could do that. Yet her intuition told her that this girl couldn't be a L'cie. So what was she then?

The question ate away at her, but she couldn't voice it no matter how hard she tried. So instead she asked, "Where are you taking me?" She'd asked before but she didn't even get a verbalised response, so for a while she just trusted her guide to take her there. But now she wanted to know.

"That question again?" The girl said.

"Yes, can't you at least give me that? Serah asked.

Humming to herself as she pondered the girl responded, "Somewhere."

"That's not an answer." Serah grumbled.

"It's the best one I can give you, the place I'm taking you has no name, it's just a place." The girl clarified for her.

Puzzled at the answer Serah inquired, "And why are you taking me there?"

"So you can meet up with Aaia again. Our information network is vast here on Pulse; she'll know where to find you by now. All I need to do is take you there and leave you for her to find."

Serah paused for a moment before the meaning of those words hit her, "Wait!" She shot out suddenly, "By leave me there do you mean that you're literally going to leave me there alone in a place like this?"

The girl didn't say but her silent reaction was enough to give her the answer.

"Why?" Serah probed.

The girl tensed, "I cannot…stay there. I just…can't" She girl told her falteringly. Perhaps Serah might have argued more, but something in the girl's reply stopped her. She didn't like the question.

So she gave up the fight knowing well the insanity of leaving her in a place like this. But when it got down to it if that girl was going to leave her alone then there was no stopping her. She could disappear into the trees and be lost to Serah forever. So she walked silently by as the girl led her to whatever destination she was taking her.

Sometime just before noon, the girl stopped. "Here." She said, and nothing more.

Serah sat down on a rock sticking up out of the ground and watched her. The girl seemed a little sad, and Serah wondered if something she had said had gotten to her in a bad way. Obviously though something had, because the girl didn't just leave her there, but she didn't seem to want to be there.

In the minutes they sat there, Serah on the rock, the girl kneeling by her side, Serah found the strength to ask, "What was that before?"

"You mean what I did against that Valhallan man?" She inquired.

Serah nodded; there wasn't anything else she could mean.

Gnawing on her lip the girl said, "I'm not a L'cie, if that's what you're thinking."

Serah froze at a certain sound of sureness in that answer. It showed in her face.

The girl didn't even look up before she said, "We know who you are Serah, and we know what you were. Don't be surprised. But I'm not anything like what you were."

"Then what are you?" Serah asked earnestly looking down at the girl.

A sad look passed over the girl's face, and then she said, "That is not a question I will answer, but know this Serah," she said looking up into her eyes, "We were always here."

A moment passed then and reacting to something Serah could not see or hear, the girl got up and left. Not a minute later Aaia appeared at her side, Hope soon on her heels.

Serah was vaguely aware of their questions about if she was alright. Serah answered them all but she never took her eyes away from the spot where the girl had disappeared through the trees. In the corner of her eyes she saw that Aaia too kept her eyes on that area. It seemed that she too knew that the girl who had led her here was still leaving that way on a path they couldn't see.

Almost not at all she heard Hope ask her, "Who helped you escape?"

She answered truthfully, "I don't know."

Hope you liked the chapter.

This was an annoying chapter to write because I have another character now that doesn't give away their name when they meet someone. I have three of them now, and trust me in this story they'll be plenty more. Though I don't know if all of them will get into the story. They'd be a lot easier to handle if I was a better writer, but there's nothing I can do to fix that but get better now can I.

Please review, I'll love you for it.