Sazh's eyes peered over the edge of the Skybridge, scanning the endless horizon as warships collided; explosions peppered the sky like a violent display of fireworks. Only these were fatal, and most certainly not for entertainment. His grip on a support wire tightened.

"It's an out-and-out massacre out there. Those people won't even live long enough to die on Pulse. The Purge was just a set-up, and then this follows?" he said, angry.

"You're right. That was the idea."

Lightning came to his side, her cold eyes staring straight ahead.

"What do you mean, 'idea'?"

"Sanctum logic. They conjured up the Purge to eliminate a thread; to cover up their mistake. I mean – why carry the danger all the way to Pulse? What does that accomplish? Why not just stamp it out here – where no one will witness anything?" said Lightning. Sazh shook his head in disbelief, clenching his teeth angrily. "Execution masquerading as exile. That's all the Purge ever was; all Dysley ever intended it to be."

She was of course, referring to Cocoon's Primarch. Sazh remembered his foul words from earlier as he addressed the "pioneers" of Pulse. "How did we get here anyway?" he wondered.

She didn't say anything.

Sazh threw up his hands, growing more irritated by the second. "'Relocation to Pulse.' How does the government get away with pullin' crap like that?!"

He suddenly turned to her, a thought ringing in his head. So far, she was an enigma, but her icy responses and startling knowledge of their surroundings couldn't be a coincidence or a result of a devoted soldier.

"And you – you knew this was gonna happen?"

She shook her head, glancing at him. The Skybridge moved ever so slowly towards the Pulsian artifact. "The Purge was PSICOM's deal. Private Sanctum troops, not the Guardian Corps."

Sazh sighed. "PSICOM...Guardian Corps...soldiers are soldiers, aren't they? They're supposed to protect us, not send us to an early death!" He said haughtily, gesturing towards the Pulse Vestige. It was close to being lowered from the ceiling. "Pulse fal'Cie and their l'Cie are enemies of the state, no matter what."

He pointed towards one of the fallen PSICOM soldiers from earlier. "Tell a soldier to kill an enemy and you really think it's going to matter what uniform they're wearing? You killed all of the PSICOM soldiers we've seen so far...how is that different to a PSICOM soldier killing off innocent civilians?"

She turned and strode to the control panel, hardly giving the fallen soldier a glance. "Might have mattered to that one. He couldn't shoot...got himself shot instead."

"That's not what I asked. Orders say shoot, so you pull the trigger?" he asked as she toyed with the panels, directing the Skybridge on a linear path to the Vestige's base.

He didn't wait for an answer before turning away in disgust. "Fine! Forget I asked!"

Before Sazh could dwell on this newfound revelation any longer, an alarm went off above them, originating from the Pulse Vestige as the panels in the ceiling opened fully, revealing the top of the Vestige. Both he and Lightning looked up, straining to see the top of the massive structure.

"That's not...the Vestige, is it?" he asked, gaping at its foreign design. She nodded. "Just what you were looking for then."

"Yeah. Right in there."

"The Pulse fal'Cie, huh?"

"Wait..." she said, holding out a hand and perking her ears.

An intercom from the ceiling of their Skybridge crackled to life:

"Attention Purge deportees! Attention Purge deportees!"

Airships the size of Bodhum advanced upon the Vestige, launching massive anchors into the side of the structure and tightening as the Vestige's enormous weight pulled them slightly down. Curls of blue energy erupted from the boosters of the airships as they strained to hold it up.

"Put down your weapons and surrender immediately! Your removal is the will of Cocoon!"

"At least they're not sugar-coating it anymore," Sazh pointed out.

Lightning nodded, putting a hand on her hip.

"Should you attempt to flee, the Sanctum will employ every resource necessary to bring you to justice..."

"Are they kidding? Bringusto justice?"

"This land is no longer your home. Cease hostilities and surrender at once."

This time Lightning stepped forward, raising her voice. "This is our home as long as we have the will to fight for it. I intend to do just that."

Sazh looked to her in approval. "What she said!"

Underneath the wreckage of the fallen Trussway, Snow climbed to his feet, grimacing in pain at the new ache in his back where he had landed. His left glove was charred by the fire where he had hung so desperately minutes before. He leaned against the debris beneath him for support, straining his eyes to catch a glimpse of the Vestige as it was fully lowered into the Hanging Edge. War seemed to cease as all attention was diverted to the enormous structure.

Around him lay bodies of the dead, but Snow only had one focus:

"Serah..."

Floating aimlessly through the Hanging Edge and bearing a band of refugees was the only safe Skybridge in the entire district. Snow's Team NORA had rounded up a good number of survivors; all gathered together as they said their last prayers. As the last words of the intercom played out, most cast their eyes to the ground, believing their lives were already over.

The boy victim to watching his mother's death cast off his Purge uniform, still shaken. Underneath he wore the simply clothes of Palumpolum, the shopping district of Cocoon. Beneath two layers of an orange and yellow jacket was a black undershirt accented by a blue handkerchief – more styled as a scarf – tied around his hands were covered by a thin leathery glove and he wore the lightly-padded shoes of the teenage norm of Cocoon and dark green khaki shorts. He looked down, glad to be rid of the uniform's restraints but looked aside to catch the words of a mother as she bent over to her little one, cradling her face in the palm of her hand.

"Mom...are we going to die?" the child whimpered.

"No, no, sweetie...we'll be fine, you'll see. We'll be okay," she comforted.

A pang in his stomach reminded him that he would never have another one of those conversations again. He tore his eyes away to find the girl from earlier standing in front of him, donned in the most peculiar clothes he had ever seen.

She wore a thin pink piece that revealed her midriff and laced with colorful beads of blues, reds, greens, and whites. A train of them ran down the middle of her figure, around her waist, and around her neck along with three leather necklaces. She wore a short orange skirt tucked under her waistband and lined with fur pockets. He noticed she had a brown fur attached to the back of her skirt and his curiosity notched up a bit. She adjusted her dark red pigtails and looked up to find him examining her odd clothes. Her bright green eyes sparkled, giving him a reassuring smile.

She looked down at her feet and bent over, hefting the gun she had been given earlier. As she did he noticed her heeled ankle boots were lined with white fur, too.

However, his thoughts were interrupted as she pushed the gun into his hands with a bright "Here! Take it!"

"I don't know if I–"

His words were cut off as she suddenly stepped forward and squeezed him gently around the shoulders, patting him on the back. It was a motherly gesture, something that only made him remember the events of before even more clearly now.

"It's too much, isn't it?" she guessed, the bangles on her wrists jingling together quietly. She stepped back. "If it is, face it later."

The side of his mouth twitched as he tried to find the right words. She raised her hands before he could and bent the quickly, smiling.

"Ciao!" she chirped, before galloping off.

He hesitated for only a second more before chasing after her yelling, "Hey! Wait!"

You said it made you happy when I smiled, didn't you?

But really, I was afraid.

I was always afraid.

blue eyes pierced through the darkness of the Hanging Edge, accompanied by a long stride as Lightning walked quickly to the very edge of the Skybridge, kneeling down. Hundreds of feet below was another Trussway that led directly to the base of the Vestige as it was suspended in mid-air. She guessed they were having difficulties holding it up despite the advanced technology.

However, if Sazh hadn't broken...

"So, how do you figure the Pulse fal'Cie is different from the Sanctum's?" When he received no response he continued on, speaking only to his chocobo chick. "All things bein' equal, I'd just as soon keep wondering."

The chocobo chick chirped in agreement and pecked at his wings, his beady eyes staring up at Sazh. The latter smiled. In his peripheral vision he noticed Lightning at his side.

"Time to jump."

He looked over in confusion, but she was already gone.

She sprinted to the edge, pumping her arms hard until she reached the edge.

"H-Hey!" Sazh yelled, running after her. She was leaving him again! "Hang on!"

She planted her feet firmly on the edge and leaped, straightening her arms to her sides and diving over the edge. Sazh stared after her in shock, watching her figure quickly become a small dot in his vision as she neared the Trussway hundreds of feet beneath the Skybridge.

"What the–?Hey!"

Below, Lightning ignored his calls, focusing on the fast-approaching solid platform. This required perfect timing if she didn't want to end up a smear on the Trussway. Forty feet above the Trussway and she snapped her Grav-con Unit to life, feeling the satisfying spark of energy race through her body once again. Normally the action would have triggered an immediate stop in motion and a rise into the air, but her immense speed and momentum completely crushed those rules. Using her weightlessness to her advantage, Lightning flipped forward to fall feet-first, landing on the platform and causing a tremor from the sheer force. The Unit sent out a shockwave as she straightened.

The impact left a small bubble of gravity under her feet, perfect for secondary use. She stepped aside and looked up, barely able to make out Sazh's afro over the edge of the Skybridge above.

He himself was impressed. "Damn."

He threw the chocobo chick in the air, waiting for it to regain its position in his hair and lowered himself over the edge. "If she can do it, so can –whoa!"

He slid off the edge, tumbling through air without a sense of whether he was about to fall forever until he hit the icy waters of Lake Bresha or break every bone in his body by landing just an inch outside of her mechanism's wave.

Lightning cast a glance upwards to make sure he was heading her way before turning and jogging, leaving the energy wave behind to absorb his landing as well. Just an inch above the platform was Sazh's nose.

As the energy bubble faded he got to his feet, shaking off the last bits of the adrenaline rush he had gotten from that. As he hurried after Lightning he couldn't help but cast a glance upwards.

The Pulse fal'Cie lay waiting.

Aerorail Trussway 3-N

Among the ruins and flaming debris, two people were alive.

Bearing the weight of two, Snow had climbed to higher ground after finding Gadot buried beneath a pile of burnt debris. He dragged him up another Trussway, laying his friend down. He shook him hard, then slapped him hard.

"Come on!" he said desperately, ready to punch something in frustration.

Gadot awoke instantly, grunting in surprise. Suddenly he grit his teeth, holding his arm and wincing. When he drew away his hand blood was smeared over it. Nonetheless, he stood and looked around, shocked. Bodies lay everywhere. Some were bent in odd angles after being crushed when the Trussway collapsed. Others simply lay limp, bodies dotted by bullet holes. He shook his head hard and turned to Snow, who had his back turned.

"What about the others? What happened to them?" Gadot asked.

Snow wanted to give him an answer, to reassure himself more than anything. So many people had died...under his command. If he hadn't led that group of rebels, none of this would have happened...shewouldn't have died. But what was she trying to tell him...?

"They didn't die! They couldn't have died, right?"

"Of course not."

Gadot watched his friend sulk, his face downturned. He knew exactly what Snow was thinking – everything was his fault. Yet the man also knew it wasn't the time for feeling sorry for yourself.

"Hey, get a grip, man! What's wrong with you?"

Snow ignored him, looking down at his hands. One of them had held her limp wrist as she died right before him. "'Get him home...' Getwhohome, though?" murmured Snow.

Gadot rolled his eyes and pointed towards a gun laying on the ground. Before he could anything they looked up to see a Skybridge collide into a huge communications tower, its front end blasting a hole in the side. Snow was captivated. He couldn't stopthinkingabout it!

"Toss me that, will ya?" Gadot growled.

Snow retrieved a semi-automatic gun and threw it to Gadot, who caught it easily. Without a word he turned the barrel on Snow. The said man whirled, tensing. What...

"What are you doing? Going to shoot me now?" Snow said, but he wasn't entirely worried.

"So what are you afraid of, huh? Scared of what else you might do? Get over it," said Gadot, lowering the weapon. "You're supposed to be the hero." He grinned and Snow relaxed.

"Damnit, Gadot."

"She's there, ain't she? Your lovely bride-to-be? Don't you think it's about time you picked her up? All that commotion can't be good for a lady," he laughed.

The sides of his mouth curved into a smile. "Yeah, I think you're right."

The sound of engines roared over them as two aircycles landed at the end of the Trussway, blocked by cargo, debris, and even more soldiers. Gadot and Snow hurried behind a grate, peering around the edge as two soldiers unloaded, checking out the casualty count.

"There's our ride," Snow sighed. His side hurt like hell.

Gadot chuckled and stood, resting the gun on his shoulder. "That's what I like to hear."

"All right then. Let's do this."

They took off, flitting from limp body to limp body. Snow leaned down and pushed the hood back on one particular refugee and sucked in a breath. The same eyes he looked at now – unblinking and still opened wide – belonged to the girl he had watched plummet to her death earlier. For a moment, Snow simply sat in silence, still holding her hand after he had lifted it to check her pulse. He heard footsteps behind him but didn't look behind.

"She's gone, man. There's nothing else you can do," Gadot growled, peering over his shoulder at the heap.

Snow slammed a fist on the platform, gritting his teeth. "But what if this was Serah, and I couldn't help her? I let her die, Gadot. She fell right in front of me and I couldn't do anything!"

Gadot sighed but clapped Snow on the shoulder. "I feel you, but right now you have Serah to save. She needs you now, boss."

The large fist-fighter sighed and laid her hand back down, quietly standing up. There truly was nothing else he could do. Nora had been in his arms...he couldn't have saved her, right?

For the moment, Snow erased the image of that girl's face. Gadot was right. He couldn't save that girl, but hecouldsave Serah.

"I'm fine," Snow confirmed as Gadot gave him another questionable look. No more distractions.

They crept forward, ignoring the countless bodies strewn across the Trussway. Ahead was a pile of crates placed in a box shape. Around the corner were two PSICOM Enforcers, each carrying their guns, ready to fire. However, Snow's eyes were attracted to the pair of aircycles leaning against another obstruction, the engines purring quietly as green energy radiated from the back.

"You cover me and I'll take these guys out. Make sure they don't land one on me!" Snow whispered, holding up a fist. "All right, on my go.

Gadot nodded, raising his weapon and bracing himself.

"1...2..."

His red-haired friend leaped out, dashing towards the two soldiers and unloading the clip without a single look backwards.

"...3. What happened to our plan, Gadot?" Snow admonished, laughing.

"Hey, you took too long! I was takin' charge..."

"Yeah, sure. So do those aircycles work or not? We can get to Lebreau and the others with these things," Snow said, jumping in and pushing the throttle.

Gadot climbed inside the other, jumpstarting it. Both immediately rose into the air without any fuss. "That's a sad sound," Gadot complained. "Where's the soul?" He flicked the steering handle, unimpressed. As Gadot tinkered with the machine, Snow leaned out the side, peering over the hood to see the Pulse Vestige looming over the Hanging Edge. By now it had fully emerged, supported by gossamer ropes of some kind of technology no regular citizen on Cocoon knew about. Airships flashed by, but besides the actual airships carrying the structure, no one paid it any attention. Then again, there was a war being waged.

"Hey, Gadot..." called Snow.

"Yeah?"

"If you don't know who you've got to save, you try and protect them all, right?"

"What's with the deep-thinking? Something on your mind?" Gadot revved the engine, whistling when the engine responded with a rumble. "Now that's what I like to hear! Listen, you've got plenty of time to think on the way...hero. Let's just get out of here. Ready?"

Snow smirked. "Yeah."

Gadot steered the vehicle to Snow's side, gripping the handles firmly with a childish grin on his face. Seeing his expression, Snow tightened his grip and leaned forward.

"Ready?"

"Go!"

The aircycles shot off, carving a luminescent path through the chaos as they made their way to Skybridge No.103. The Pulse fal'Cie towered above, lying in wait.