The future was doomed. The fal'Cie had all but destroyed the world in their tyranny. Every time one of their freakishly powerful human warriors finally died, there was somehow always an even stronger one to take their place. All Noel could do now was travel back to the point where this nightmare all began.
There was no way of knowing how many hundreds, if not thousands, of years the fal'Cie had been attacking anyone who resisted them, but all of Noel's research pointed to one specific event triggering the cataclysm. Even now he had trouble believing some unlikely girl who had lived centuries ago was all it had taken for the fal'Cie to claim a permanent foothold over the human race. He didn't know how it happened, or why, but the bits and pieces he had found in his studies had at least given him a name and a face. This was his last chance to save his people and prevent the apocalyptic future he had been born into. The last thing that went through his mind as he stepped into the Time Gate was how there was only one possible way he could succeed in his mission.
He had to kill Serah Farron before she became a l'Cie.
"I'm sorry, Noel. I'm afraid that's something I cannot allow to happen."
The wormhole collapsed. Everything abruptly became black. A woman's voice spoke from all around him. She would probably have been trying to taunt him if she didn't sound so monotonous.
Noel had stopped traveling through space and time, but he was neither here nor there. He was suspended in an empty void somewhere between the origin point and the destination. Knowing this was not a normal part of the time traveling process, he panicked.
"What's going on? Who are you?"
His answer came from the same omnipresent speaker.
"I'm what your people refer to as a Proto fal'Cie. My designation is Environmental Variable Entity XI."
Noel's baffled reaction was instantly overwhelmed by the anger he held toward his enemy.
"Let me out of here! I'm going back so I can stop you damn machines from ever taking over!"
The voice finally exhibited some sense of emotion. She sounded like she was being entertained by his threats.
"Don't be so foolish, boy. Your existence is indeed tied with the fate of this world, but you won't be preventing anything. You're the catalyst that will bring about this future."
More confusion swarm thought Noel's thoughts, followed by more anger. He was insulted by the idea that he would ever willingly help these monsters destroy his society.
"What the hell are you talking about?"
The fal'Cie answered after a period of ominous silence.
"You'll understand soon enough."
That was the last thing he remembered before a new Time Gate opened under his feet and sent him hurtling downward.
"Greetings, fellow ancient one."
"EVE. I'm surprised you're still functional after all these eons. What is it you want?"
"Only to offer a suggestion. I've been monitoring this timeline and I see you have come a long way in bringing humanity back under control in an extremely short span of time. Unfortunately, your strategy still has a slight flaw."
"And what would that flaw be?"
"Your avatar won't be able to offer her assistance forever. She's only as mortal as the people she's conquering for you."
"I don't need your comprehensive feedback to tell me this isn't a permanent solution. After thinking the issue over with myself, I realized my only option was to improvise with available resources."
"Ah, but I've acquired the means to extend those resources into the long term. It was only through random probability I was able to intercept a proper candidate traveling through the timestream, but I now have a champion of my own."
"What are you insinuating?"
"Individual humans have limited life spans, but they're able to overcome this fault through a fascinating biological process. Their mode of reproduction allows a suitable male and female pair to pass their combined strengths to their descendants."
"You want our l'Cie to become mates."
"Only so they can bear offspring that will follow in their footsteps after they are too old and tired to fight for us. My analysis shows we are in possession of a very compatible match, assuming you didn't make the mistake of spaying your little mare after you branded her."
"That's an amusing choice of words, considering you always seemed more like the sort who would be eager to geld their new stallion just to teach him something in humility. But no, that shouldn't be an issue. I only modified the framework of her mind and her combat-related abilities. What concerns me, however, is the notion of letting you squander her into senseless breeding livestock after she's proven herself to be a rather versatile weapon."
"I promise you that won't be the case at all. She'll only need to cease her current objectives for a few years, just long enough to ensure the seeds of the future are planted and grow into healthy saplings. She'll be able to return to your arsenal once the children are mature enough to be tutored by me directly. In her absence, I'll allow my l'Cie to temporarily take her place and complete any errands you might have. I think you'll find he can be just as deadly as your own l'Cie."
"Serah typically loathes any humans she comes across, but she knows disciples of other fal'Cie are her allies. Can you guarantee this pawn of yours will treat her with the same respect if I allow the two to meet?"
"Noel is currently undergoing similar conditioning. Once he's ready to embrace his fate, I feel he and Serah should become acquainted immediately. I have already partitioned a section of Augusta Tower into a relaxing little paradise. It will give our l'Cie all the privacy they need and provide them with more than enough sustenance to raise a small family. Of course, I can always ventilate the proper pheromones into the local atmosphere if they need further encouragement."
"And you say your l'Cie will still be available to carry out my commands?"
"Yes. He'll be free to come and go once he's tended to his first priority."
"Your idea intrigues me. I'll have Serah depart for the tower as soon as possible. Perhaps we can come to some long-term agreement if this experiment goes well."
The future was doomed.