Author's Note: Okay, THIS is my favorite chapter so far, hands down.

You still make me a happy writer, Joshua Chung. Thank you for leaving your always charismatic reviews when no one else will. :3

S o S t a r s t r u c k

Chapter Fifteen

Deliver the Divine, Ragnarok

After the sky pirate had left them, Hope had awoken and summoned his Eidolon, Alexander. The group sat around the fire once things had calmed down, but no one said a word. They all were troubled by Balthier's departure, but it seemed that Snow was the one who took it the worst. Vanille looked toward him, worried, and then cast her eyes downward to the fire.

"What do we do now?" she asked, "It doesn't feel right to leave Balthier out there on his own..."

"He's a tough one," Fang reassured her, placing a tender hand upon her shoulder. "He can handle things for himself. If he wants to come back, he'll come back."

"But..." The girl's voice trailed off, and she hugged her legs closer to her chest when her eyes darted toward Snow's silent form again.

Lightning, who stood leaning against the shelter they'd set up, turned her head to look in the direction Balthier had walked off, a look of longing on her face. Sighing heavily and standing up straight, she looked toward the others and stated, "Then let's go find him." When no one answered her, she stormed over to Snow and glared down at him. "Haven't you thought about how he must feel about being here, Snow?"

The blond didn't look up at her, continuing to stare into the fire.

"Have you even considered what he's been through?" she yelled, grabbing the front of his shirt and pulling him to his feet. "This isn't his world, or his home! But he still helped us! So get it together and bring him back!"

Fang tilted her head as soon as Lightning calmed down, letting go of Snow's shirt. Standing straight up, Vanille put her hands on her hips. "We're a family," she stated, "All of us. It's not every day a hero must save another!"

Nodding his head, the tall blond looked between them all. "All right. Then let's go."

Although Lightning led the group through Gran Pulse, Snow was the one who was their driving force. Constantly he'd remind them as they traveled through fields, underground tunnels, and ice-covered lands that finding Balthier was their main goal, even before finding more clues to their Focus. Fang would then remark on how he was completely different from how he was before, and that obviously there was something he wasn't telling them.

"Look, we need to find Balthier," Snow told her as they walked behind Lightning and Hope. "After that, we'll go to your home - Oerba Village, or whatever it was called..."

"Who knows, maybe Balthier's already there!" Vanille cheerfully interrupted, skipping between them. "We're almost to the village, anyway!"

Fang rolled her eyes. "You've said that about every time we go to a new place, Vanille," she murmured, shaking her head. "And still no sign of that pirate. For all we know, he could have found a way back to his world. Or, he became Ragnarok and has already destroyed Cocoon."

"Fang, don't say that! Maybe Balthier isn't Ragnarok! Dysley mentioned that only l'Cie can become that monster...And Balthier's not like the rest of us."

"Yeah, well, he sure isn't trying to get on our good sides," Sazh added in, falling in step with the other three. "He'd been in a bad mood since we met with Dysley."

The redheaded girl pursed her lips as Lightning and Hope stopped walking, which probably meant it was time for a break. They'd been walking around all day, and no doubt everyone was getting tired. But, it seemed that neither Snow or Lightning would stop until they found the sky pirate. And who knew how long that would take...

Not long after they'd stopped for a rest, Snow and Vanille led the group through the frosty lands, knowing that soon they'd reach their next destination: Oerba Village, Fang and Vanille's home. They were surrounded by cliffs and endless ice, but even though it was fairly cold out they still continued on as if nothing was wrong. Fang had mentioned that everyone needed to be careful around those parts, especially with the untamed wildlife around. However, Vanille ignored her as soon as she spotted something on the ground up ahead.

She smiled widely, running forward. "Hey!" she squealed, "It's him! Balthier!" She kept running, the others close behind, but she stopped all of the sudden and cried out, and Fang pulled her close when she covered the girl's eyes. Snow felt his heart stop when he saw why she'd screamed.

Lying in the middle of the path was Balthier, like Vanille had seen, only he was covered in his own dried blood. There was a thin, but long gash on his chest, and his open eyes were glazed and unseeing. "No," Snow breathed, rushing forward and kneeling beside the sky pirate's body. Lightning slowly followed him, her aqua eyes widening as soon as she saw what was wrong.

Vanille was crying into Fang's neck while the woman held her close, and Sazh placed a hand on Hope's shoulder while the boy looked down toward the ground. Even the chocobo chick chirped quietly, fluttering by Sazh's shoulder.

"He's...He's not...Balthier!" Snow yelled, shaking the man by the shoulder, as if he was trying to wake him up. "Balthier! Dammit, you can't be...!"

"Not even the strongest soldier can survive a wound like that," Sazh stated, sadly shaking his head. "Look there. See that? Stabbed. Right in the heart."

Snow held one of Balthier's cold hands in his own, pressing it against his forehead as he hung his head low. Lightning stood back, staring at him as she didn't believe that Balthier was no longer among them.

"A Cie'th...couldn't have done this...Right?" Hope asked, holding back his tears. He looked at everyone, but no one answered.

Lightning touched a hand to her lightning-bolt necklace, turning away from Snow and Balthier's unmoving form. Then, without a word, she began to walk away.

"Hey!" Sazh called out, stepping away from Hope as everyone looked toward the female soldier. "Where're you going?"

Fang narrowed her eyes, letting go of Vanille and walking forward as well. "What about him?" she asked, clenching her fists in frustration. "You're just gonna pretend nothing happened to him?"

Snow finally looked up, gently setting Balthier's hand down and standing upright. He glared at Lightning, saying her name. "Light." She didn't turn around, and so he stormed right up to her and grabbed a hold of her arm, turning her around. She glared at him, but unlike before, everyone could see the sadness and regret in her eyes. "So that's it, huh?" Snow yelled, "You're just going to give up on him? Just like you did before, with Serah?"

"Serah isn't dead!" Lightning yelled as she pulled away from the tall man, her voice shaking from anger. "Balthier is!" She stormed off, leaving Snow standing there in silence. Vanille wiped her eyes as she followed the woman, not looking back at the others, or Balthier's body.

Fang touched the blond's arm, regretfully looking down at the sky pirate's form. "We can give him a proper burial at the village," she told him, shaking her head as she walked away. "He deserves it."

While the other walked after Lightning, Snow stayed back and went over to Balthier's body. Gently, he lifted him up into his arms, staring down at the pale face. He hung his head low, closing his eyes. "...I'm sorry."

When they reached the village, Fang pushed open to large stone doors of some sort of ruined tomb, leading the party inside. She turned around and faced them all, sighing deeply. "This is where we put our dead to rest back then," she told them, "Hasn't been used in years, but...It's better than leaving him out there."

Snow walked forward, still carrying Balthier's still form in his arms, and set him down on one of the white stone tables. He reached down and touched the sky's pirate cold face for a moment, then got down on his knees and held his hand again. Vanille walked up beside him, still sniffling from crying all the way there, and held her hands together in some sort of praying motion.

"Miss you already..." she whispered, and then she stepped back to Fang's open arms. She allowed the woman to hold her close again, and began to let the tears fall again from her cheeks.

"He was a good man," Sazh murmured, "An idiot, but a damn good man."

Hope added in quietly, closing his eyes, "Never met anyone like him."

Fang only nodded, sighing heavily as she couldn't find the right words to say. Lightning stood in the back, staring down at the stone floor and remaining silent. Snow, on the other hand, took a deep breath.

"I'm going to save Cocoon," he said, his voice cracking weakly, "And your home. I'm going to keep my promise, Balthier. You can count on that."

Everyone was silent as he stood up, walking back toward the others after letting go of the sky pirate's hand. At that point, Lightning slowly walked forward in silence, ignoring their gaze upon her. As soon as she stood above Balthier's body, she stared down at him in both regret and sadness. "You told me that the leading man never dies," she quietly said, "And you were right..." She pulled off her lightning-bolt necklace and enclosed it in one of his hands, closing her eyes. "You were right."

And then, after slowly moving her hand away, she turned around and walked out of the tomb. Eventually everyone else followed her, apart from Snow, who stood there with his eyes blankly staring at Balthier's body. Like Lightning, he turned around left with a heart-felt sigh.

They spent the night in the house that had belonged to Fang and Vanille, and they ate their dinner in absolute silence. Not even Sazh could say something to cheer them up, and Vanille, for once, wasn't giving everyone one of her bright and cheery smile. After dinner, they all parted ways and went to bed in separate rooms. Lightning sat in the window of the room she and Snow were sharing, staring up the stars in the sky with a content, but sad look in her eyes. Snow was sitting at the edge of one of the beds, looking down at his hands.

"Did you really mean it?" she asked, breaking their long lasting silence, and he looked at her as soon as she spoke. "What you said back there, about...about keeping your promise. To save Cocoon, and the other world."

He looked back down at his hands. "I made a promise to both of them - Serah and Balthier," he answered, "And I don't plan on breaking another promise. I will save Cocoon and Ivalice, even if I die trying."

"I wish I could keep promises like that. I'd tried, but..." She leaned her head against the windowpane, sighing. "It got me nowhere, in the end."

"Sis..."

Lightning laughed weakly, shaking her head. "I'm not your sister. At least, not yet. How many times do I have to remind you?"

He tried to smile, but he didn't find the will to do so. "Light, I think we - I was wrong. About Balthier." He could feel her questioning gaze on him, and so he continued, "I had thought he was the one to become Ragnarok, after hearing what Dysley had said about him being nothing but a puppet of his own gods. But, after seeing...what happened to him, I know he wasn't really that monster. I just...wanted an excuse to believe that we weren't meant to end everything. I blamed him, and..." Snow sighed, "Now he's gone. I never got the chance to say sorry to him."

"Serah believed in him," she stated, sitting up and turning her gaze back toward the stars. "That's all the proof we needed. Balthier was as he always told us: a hero."

"Then, let's not let him down. The rest of us heroes...still have a job to do."

When morning came, they left as soon as everyone was ready to go. They managed to reach the ruins of an old high-way, despite having to deal with a battle against Vanille's summon, Hectoncheir, after Fang revealed that she remembered her old Focus - that she had been the one to become Ragnarok in the War of Transgression. Vanille unwillingly summoning her Eidolon proved that to be true, despite what she tried to deny. Lightning and Snow looked toward each other at hearing this, any doubts they had before being willed away.

Their spirits slightly higher than the day before, the group walked along the high-way's path with their eyes only looking forward to their future, whatever that would be. As they walked, however, they heard a familiar suave, yet haunting voice around them.

"Ragnarok. Come Day of Wrath, O Pulse l'Cie..."

Lightning's breath caught in her chest, and her eyes widened.

"Embrace thy fate, thine home to burn...That fallen souls might bear our plea...To hasten the Divine's return..."

They all looked toward each other, and thinking the same thing.

"O Piteous Wanderer, Ragnarok...Make of this day a brave epoch..."

When they stopped walking, Balthier walked toward them as he appeared from a burst of light. He looked some-what different from when they had last seen him, wearing what he had once described as his 'clothes from Ivalice'. Lightning could only stare as he approached them.

"Deliver the Divine," he recited, "Ragnarok."

They all stared at him in shock, words seemingly leaving them. Snow was the one to step forward, watching as Balthier smiled at them. "Balthier!" the blond exclaimed, "How did you...?"

"I've been waiting," the sky pirate answered, "For you to open your eyes and see the truth." The other man took another step closer to him. "The entire time I was gone, I could see what was happening. So I've been trying to think up a way to save Cocoon...Together."

"Balthier?" Snow reached out and touched his shoulder, only to push the man away when he saw the color of his eyes. They weren't his warm, dark brown eyes, like before - they were dark blue. Empty and cold.

Balthier stood up straight, smiling darkly as Snow's eyes widened in fear. "You understand now," he cruelly stated, and he walked past all of them, looking up toward the sky as an owl flew overhead. "There are no gods with miracles to save us, no matter where you think to look. That is why we must call one." His smiled widened, and he looked at them directly. "Destroy Orphan, and we'll save both our worlds!"

Lightning reached for her gunblade when Balthier stood in front of her. "Stop it!" she yelled, narrowing her eyes.

"I know that you wouldn't lay a hand on me," he said to her, resting his hands at his sides. "You love me. Isn't that right...Claire?"

She flinched at the sound of her old name, only to remember that she had never told the real Balthier what she had been called in the past. Snow stepped between them, glaring at the sky pirate.

"Enough already," he hissed through gritted teeth. "Listen up. We are all shooting for the same goal here."

Suddenly, a dark-light enveloped Balthier's form, and once the light faded away Dysley stood in his place. "And the result of that," the old man said with a dark smile, holding out his arms, "is this."

"You son of a...!" Snow ran forward and tried to punch the man, but was sent back by an invisible force. He tried again, his anger getting the best of him and claiming his emotions, but was sent back to the stone-flooring almost instantly.

"You betray your fal'Cie to chase after dreams and shadows," Dysley continued, "The world you claim to protect now faces the end of days with no hope of salvation."

Lightning scowled. "I didn't think the fal'Cie had the means."

"Oh, it won't be fal'Cie who destroy her. For centuries now, Cocoon has provided generously for its human inhabitants' every want and need. Coddled them, one might even say. The result being their deep-seated hatred of change and all things alien." He smirked, "Fed, nurtured, and ready to detonate at the slightest spark. The seeds of destruction take root, even now. One not of Cocoon will be the one to destroy her."

She pulled out her gunblade and held it toward him. "Where's Balthier?" she demanded, and everyone stared at her.

"It's not I who took him," Dysley answered with a turn of his head, "You will find him soon enough, waiting for you like a good tool does."

Snow stepped forward. "Balthier?" he asked, some-what relieved. "He's alive?"

"The puppet is restrung to fit my needs, yes. His eyes had long since turned to glass. Of course, the people's eyes will see our friend as nothing more than a threat to society - an outsider. They'll say the fal'Cie got to him, too, or some such drivel. And imagine," his smirk widened in humor, "when I spread that it's Orphan tugging at his strings, what happens next."

"You'll be sending Balthier to his death!" Sazh exclaimed, reaching for his guns.

Dysley nodded. "Perhaps. Or perhaps I'll feign the howling of Pulsian wolves and let the fear-addled sheep slaughter themselves first. Either way, the end is at hand!" He laughed darkly, turning his head toward the sky. "But what of yourselves? Will you enjoy the festivities beside me? Or perhaps..." Right before their eyes, he transformed into the fal'Cie Barthandelus, watching them menacingly. "Greet the end here, in the place it all began?"

Snow was the first to charge at the fal'Cie, not caring if he injured himself in the process. What drove him to fight was only one thought: Balthier was still alive. He still needed them, and once they dealt with Barthandelus they would save him, and then save both of their worlds. Just like he had promised.

He summoned the Shiva Sisters to assist him in battle, and as he felt the cold wind upon him when they arrived at his side, his determination only increased. The others summoned their Eidolons as well, and together they stood against Barthandelus, ready to stop his madness. With less of the a struggle than the first time they had faced them, the l'Cie managed to defeat the monster with their summons' help.

Dysley stood before them, and like the first time he appeared to be unharmed. "The time has come," he told them, laughing. "Allow me to extend my invitation. To save people beyond salvation, there is only Ragnarok." Behind him, the owl-familiar became the same air ship as it had before. "Cocoon will suffer by tomorrow's end. Release her from the pain."

And he disappeared in a flash of light, and the group could only stare as they faced a fork in their path: leave and save Cocoon, or find the one they had believed to be dead.

I, like, completely re-wrote the original storyline for this part. xD Having Balthier appear before the party instead of Serah seemed a lot more...effective and creepy to me.

And, as you can tell, I hate writing battle scenes. ;D I apologize.