A/n: Welcome back! This is unfortunately not a sequel to Alexandria's Treasure, however it is a complete reimagining of Underworld Chaos. If you've already read it, some events will undoubtedly be mostly the same, but hopefully it will be far more enjoyable than the first one! As a warning to any of you that don't enjoy dark stories, this one may end up being even darker than the first one as I don't plan on holding back any of my major ideas this time. That being said, I look forward to hearing your thoughts and I hope you enjoy it!

…

A pained scream echoed throughout the almost empty city of Treno as a lone Blond-haired woman yanked the blade of a small dagger from her abdomen. A worn leather satchel hung loosely from her neck, many of her meagre possessions having already spilled out on to the cobbled stone. Among them a necklace given to her by someone she loved dearly and had prayed to the gods would stay by her side till the very end; but they were gone now… All of them. One by one they had all lost everything, so why was she still here?

She coughed up a splattering of blood as she curled feebly into a ball and tried to drown out the pain. The pain from the wound burned white hot but she would have gladly given anything, taken a hundred more wounds, if she could bring them back. She knew she would even offer her own life without hesitation if it meant that she could fix things back to the way they were less than a year ago… The truth was though, life was never that kind. Instead, it was a cruel, heartless thing that was more than willing to give you almost anything you ever wanted. It would build you up, make you feel like you could finally be happy and that everything would be worth all the bad things that had happened. But then, just as quickly it would take it all away.

In all her life, she had never given up. Even when things had seemed hopeless, she had always been able to dig a little deeper and keep it together. But now? She just wanted it to all be over. Maybe it was just her own weakness, who was even left to care if she lied here in her dark cloak soaked in a puddle of blood-tinged mud? She could die here and there would simply be no one left to even notice. As pleasant the thought of dying was, it was no use. She could already feel the residual magic flowing through her and healing the wound till it would likely only leave a small scar. Sobs wrecked her body as the immense feeling of hopelessness flooded though her.

She wasn't sure how long she laid there, only that her eyes burned and her throat was sore from her cries. "Why couldn't it have been him?" She asked herself hoarsely as she forced herself back to a sitting position. It just as easy could have been him, should have been him. He hadn't given a damn about them, or anyone else that had died in the battle. All that had mattered was winning to him and stopping the ones he had hated so deeply. So, why couldn't he be the one to survive and reap the bountiful rewards?

She laughed bitterly while reaching to scoop up her spilled items but stopped herself and stared at them instead. Looking at the gleaming blue light that reflected off the beautiful sapphire necklace, she wondered if she had any right to even still possess such a thing. She never got to ask him where he had gotten it, or to even thank him properly, but he had given it to her freely despite its incredible worth and without expecting anything in return… would anyone else have ever done the same? She knew the answer but after lowering her gaze further to the blond-haired, green-eyed reflection staring back at her; she knew both of those people were long gone now. The parts of her that had mattered had died with him and now here she was a shell of her former self.

No matter how bad things were, no matter how badly she just wanted to lay it all down and quit, she couldn't let herself give up. It was too late for her, he had made that abundantly clear, but it she was truly willing to give up everything, all that she had left, that girl who had cherished the sapphire necklace and all the ones people that she loved just might have a second chance to thank him for such a beautiful gift and tell him how much it had meant to her. The only real question that mattered for her now was if she was strong enough to do it? She wasn't afraid of dying anymore, gods knew she would give her life in a heartbeat, but was she strong enough to go through it and watch it all happen again? Was she strong enough to only interfere in the parts that had went astray?

With a soft whimper, she reached and pulled a small bundle of cloth form the deepest part of the satchel and held it tenderly in her hands before carefully unwrapping it. Despite the bundle's size, it felt quite heavier than it should have now that she was holding it. At the center of the fabric lay a cold, smooth black stone. Even though it held little shine. Its sheer blackness seemed to pull you in to its darkest depths that you would feel had no end. Just looking at it, even the very first time, had left her deeply unsettled. How was a stone so black and cold supposed to help her fix things?

Closing her eyes, she remembered Ramza's last words. "Please… take this last stone. I pray that you can find a way to live and not ever need to use it, but if it comes to that, you only ever need to picture in your mind and heart what you wish to happen and if it is in the stones power it will fulfill it. Just don't let it steer you awry."

"Then why… Why can't I use it to bring everyone back!?" She had pleaded.

Ramza laughed weakly. "Would that it could, I would have done it and paid the price happily."

"The price…?" She asked, trying desperately to keep him alive just a little longer. "Every power or wish that it grants comes at a great price… I don't believe the stones are evil, but I suppose… even the best of deeds must come at a price… and sometimes that price is far more than… you could ever afford to…"

No matter how bad it hurt, no matter high the cost… she had no choice, she had to at least try. Concentrating as hard as she could and hoping she was directing her thoughts of how everything had once been before all of the terrible events had happened, she gazed deeply into the stone. "Please… Help me make everything right."

Moments passed and her desperation grew as the stone remained unchanged and offered her no reply. She searched deep inside its depths but found nothing. Had it all been a waste? Had they all sacrificed so much for nothing? She could accept that she would never be happy again and that her life was all but finished, but if it had all been for nothing… Just when she was about give up and set the stone down, a blue glow pulsed from within and began to grow warm.

"Holder of the stone…"

The ghostly feminine voice whispered through the wind, almost as if she were imagining it.

"Holder of the stone…. Is it power you desire?"

"Power?" She asked hesitantly.

"Yes.. Do you desire the power to destroy your enemies and return your loved ones from the dead? Together we could create a world as you see fit."

A part of her wanted so badly to say yes, if she could bring them all back from the dead, then together they could work on rebuilding all that had been lost… together they could slowly pick up the pieces and maybe even make things better than they had ever been. They could- "No." She replied firmly, shutting out the thoughts and not giving in to her temptation.

"Then what is it you desire...? Surely you do not desire to be alone?"

"Gods..." She breathed quietly, it would be so easy to wish for it to be over so that she could die and see them all again. As if reading her thoughts visions of her happiest moments, ones she could never forget, began playing in her mind and made her feel though she were still there. She wept openly as she saw her most cherished memories with the man that had stolen her heart.

"I can return you to them…" The stone beseeched.

Hating the tears that burned their way down her cheeks and knowing that it was all something she could never have, she again shook her head. "No. I want you to help me do what needs to be done. I know you don't have the power to fix everything that's happened, but I want you to take me back there. Take me back to before all of it happened! Give me the chance to set things right!"

The stone went silent and turned back cold for a few moments before replying. "If I grant your request… then you will never return to the life you once had… nor will you pass peacefully into the endless cycle of souls… even if you succeed in all that you endeavor, your very soul will slowly fade into the darkness just as others that have possessed me before you… Is this what you truly desire?"

Looking down at her blood-stained hands and the necklace she didn't realize she had been clutching ever so tightly, she closed her eyes for what was bound to come. "Yes."

...