Final Fantasy XIII
Part One: The Hanging Edge
Chapter 6: The Fal'Cie Awaits
Summary: A massive object is being transported through the sky over the Hanging Edge. This object is a Pulse Vestige-a lowerworld artefact that had been nothing more than a Bodhum landmark. Two days ago, it was discovered that the Vestige housed a long dormant Pulse Fal'Cie.
The Fal'Cie had slumbered undisturbed on the outskirts of a Cocoon city for centuries. The Sanctum declares that the presence of the Pulse entity and its corrupting magics have tainted the entire population of the city, and orders the Purge.
For different reasons, Lightning and Sazh now make their way towards the very being that was the catalyst for so much tragedy.
Snow, meanwhile is crushed by feelings of guilt after many die under his command. He only emerges from his gloom when Gadot reminds him that the Fal'Cie is holding a certain young lady captive-who needs her hero now more than ever.
Around the area of the Hanging Edge everyone was wondering what was going on, what the siren meant and what was going to happen next. Then, a voice sounded, the same as the siren in the fact that it could be heard all around the Hanging Edge began to speak, the specific voice speaking to everyone in the rebellion against the Purge and the Sanctum.
"Attention Purge deportees. Attention Purge deportees. Put down your weapons and surrender immediately. Your removal is the will of the people of Cocoon. Should you attempt to flee, the Sanctum will employ every resource necessary to bring you to justice. This land is no longer your home. Cease hostilities and surrender at once." The voice spoke out from an undisclosed location, ordered by the Sanctum to give a speech to persuade the deportees to surrender and make their elimination all the easier.
But that's not all that was going on. The Sanctum was readying itself for the final stage of the Purge. As everyone knew the Purge was a Sanctum initiative to get rid of everything and everyone that had been tainted by Pulse from the seaside city of Bodhum. This also meant the Pulse Fal'Cie, the one that was discovered only a few days ago, the catalyst that put in motion the events that led to the Purge which in turn turned out to be the biggest massacre that had ever befell Cocoon.
The Pulse Fal'Cie and the Vestige it had been dwelling in for the past hundred, maybe thousand years as the citizens of Cocoon were unaware of how long it had been there, had been hidden ever since it had been revealed to be hostile ever since the incident in Bodhum. But now it was time for it to be destroyed and put the fears and concerns of the Cocoon populace to rest. This would be one of the last acts of the Purge, the last two acts however was still to come, and that's if they were even needed, releasing the net and catching the net, the final part of the Purge to finally eliminate any lucky stragglers who had escaped the massacre that had been started at the Hanging Edge.
But, for now it was too early for that stage now it was time to reveal the Pulse Fal'Cie Vestige and the evil monster that dwelled within to the Hanging Edge. The idea was to use several pieces of machinery to pull the Vestige out of the secret hiding place it had been hidden in and to hold it in place, in the dead centre of the Hanging Edge whilst the military got ready and began to obliterate the Vestige, insuring the destruction of the hostile Fal'Cie and then dropping the Vestige down into the powerful and ferocious waves of Lake Bresha where it would float around until eventually it fell to the bottom of the sea where it would remain until the end of the world.
And that's what they had done, several pieces of equipment, along with airships and people operating other technological pieces of equipment to place the Bodhum Vestige as it was known to Cocoon in the middle of the Hanging Edge and soon it's destruction would begin, and the fear of an invasion from the dark lowerworld known as Pulse would cease to exist and would only be a daft fear and a foolish wish that would exist to the people of the lowerworld who wished to destroy Cocoon.
From all around the Hanging Edge, people could see the Vestige, many wondering what was going on, many wondering if it was being destroyed and a few not paying it any attention instead focusing on a way to escape with their lives intact. But there was one person who this meant a lot to, the hero of Bodhum who had luckily managed to survive a terrific fall and started at the Bodhum Vestige knowing that it carried the love of his life in there and could only let one pass his lips, the name that he would carry with him until the day he died, the very name of his love, "Serah!"
Meanwhile, across on the other side of the Hanging Edge, still on the mobile flying platform was Lightning and Sazh, who the same as almost everyone else was staring at the Bodhum Vestige. "Just what you were looking for." Sazh commented, the memory fresh in his mind when Lightning told him that her angle was the Pulse Fal'Cie. "Yeah. Right in there." Lightning said with a slight smile on her face, realising that she was close and could be finally reunited with the only family she had left in the world. "The Pulse Fal'Cie. Huh." Sazh said, still wondering what could possess Lightning to want to go into the Vestige, or see such a frightful being.
Hope and Vanille were also watching as the Vestige was made to go into the very centre of the Hanging Edge. They had both discarded their Purge robes, refusing to wear them any longer, Hope was wearing his favourite outfit, a yellow shirt with orange shoulder pads and a pair of grey trousers and a blue/green and black scarf. Vanille was wearing no shirt and only wearing a pink bra and a fur pair of shorts and a strange necklace which she wore on the back instead of the front, with a strange symbol emblazoned on it.
Hope watched a young boy and his mother as the little child said "Mum…" in a frightful voice wondering what was going to happen, whilst his mother tried to console him and said "Don't worry. We'll be okay." However, she didn't know that and as much as she wanted it to be true she had no idea whether she and her child would make it out of the Purge alive or not. As Hope watched on he remembered his mother's death as the word, "Mum," passed his lips and that he had no one to rely on now and would have it to make his own way if he wanted to survive the Sanctum initiative of the Purge, which had turned out to be a giant massacre.
Vanille smiled at Hope, who had turned around worried that he might cry if he looked at the mother and son for much longer. The young woman reached down and picked up the gun that was on the floor and put it in Hope's hands saying "Here," to him. Hope, however, froze up when the gun touched his hands, as he held an instrument of death so shortly after the death of his mother. Vanille noticed and wrapped her arms around him bringing him in for a strong embrace and said "It's too much, isn't it?" Vanille then unwrapped her arms from around him and said "Face it later." Hope got a perplexed look on his face and Vanille just smiled and said "Ciao!" and began to run off, which caused Hope to say "Hey! Wait!," and run off after Vanille dropping the gun to the ground and follow the mysterious woman who he only met a few hours earlier.
Meanwhile over on the mobile flying platform, Sazh was asking Lightning about the Fal'Cie and said "So, how do you figure that Pulse Fal'Cie is different from the Sanctum's?" Lightning however was still focused on the Fal'Cie and trying to make her way down to a platform below her. Sazh continued on by saying "All things being equal, I'd just as soon keep wondering."
Lightning had figured out what to do and walked back so she was in line with Sazh and said "Time to jump." Lightning then charged forward and jumped out of the platform and began plummeting towards the ground, all the while Sazh saying "Hey, hang on! What the-? Hey!" As Lightning got closer to the ground, she clicked her fingers and activated an electromagnetic field which she landed in causing herself no damage whatsoever.
Sazh, still on the platform was shocked by what had just happened and said "Damn. If she can do it, so can we." Sazh, however was very nervous about what he was about to do and his small Chocobo chick had decided to make its own way down and Sazh climbed down until he was just hanging on by his fingers and then let go, also plummeting to the ground and was caught at the last second by the electromagnetic field, saving his life. Lightning realising Sazh was fine, started to run onwards knowing that he would catch up later.
Snow, meanwhile had found the unconscious but still alive body of his best friend and right hand man Gadot and began slapping him across the face trying to wake him up saying "Come on. Come on!", the entire time in the hope that he would wake up and they could continue onwards. Gadot, eventually, came back to consciousness and held his shoulder tenderly as it had been injured during the fall from the higher platform as he looked around him as he was surrounded by the bodies of people who had assisted him in rebelling in the Purge and the bodies of Sanctum soldiers alike.
Gadot turned to face Snow and said "What about the others?" fearing for the safety of his friends and fellow NORA members. Snow sighed, also unaware of the fate of his best friends and Gadot tried to reassure him by saying "They didn't die! They couldn't have died!" Snow tried to take what he said to heart and said "Of course not." Gadot rose from the ground and clicked his shoulder back into place and turned to face Snow, who he could tell was seriously troubled about something.
"Hey, get a grip, man! What's wrong with you?" Gadot said trying to figure what had depressed Snow so much. Snow, however was still hearing Nora's last words in his head and he repeated them to himself whilst asking the same question over and over again. " 'Get him home…' Get who home?" A explosion erupted from somewhere elsewhere in the Hanging Edge which distracted Snow long enough for Gadot to get his attention and pointed to a gun next to Snow and said "Toss me that," who picked it up and threw it to him saying "Catch."
Gadot caught the gun and then pointed the gun at Snow who turned around and said "What are you doing?" Gadot simply replied "So what are you afraid of, huh? You're supposed to be the hero." Gadot then took a look at the Pulse Fal'Cie Vestige in the sky and said "She's waiting there, ain't she? Your lovely bride-to-be. Isn't it about time you picked her up?" Snow looked at the Vestige and with a smile on his face said "Yeah."
Then, three motorcycle flew overhead and Snow and Gadot hid behind some boulders to avoid being spotted and when they had landed and no chance of being able to see them until they came closer, Snow said "There's our ride." Gadot laughed and said "Now you're talking. The two of them then began to head off with Snow having a restored determination and with one goal on his mind; to rescue his fiancée from the clutches of the Pulse Fal'Cie.
Author's Note: That's Chapter 6 done and only one chapter left for the first part of Final Fantasy XIII. Hope you enjoyed the chapter and if anyone would like to be my Beta reader, I'd happily accept it. Please review and I may be able to finish part one by tonight. Till Next Time, The Fantasy Man.