Final Fantasy XIII 1. Prologue

Cocoon had fallen. Its people displaced.

Gran Pulse lie waiting, its bounty of resources and excess of dangerous fauna testing the once sheltered humans of the floating continent.

The people struggled. Separated from the false embrace of the duplicitous Santcum fal'Cie, their technology no longer sheltering the poor souls, it was a time of trial and error for the humans that usually resulted in fatal consequences and severe in-fighting between fellow man.

Yet the humans persevered and eventually prospered, building up settlements across the vast plains of the Archylte Steppe until settlements grew into towns, and towns into functioning cities.

Although the days of higher technology were long gone, the humans adapted their own ingenuity and re-harnessed the power of electricity, complex running water systems, and basic forms of convenient transportation. In time, monuments in the form of towering buildings were erected, celebrating the determination of the human will and newfound from fal'Cie dependence.

400 years.

The crystalline magnificence of the towering spherical wonder, overlooking a beautiful watery vista stood for all that time, undisturbed for fear of possible collapse. In time and with successive generations, the story of how Cocoon came to fall and become encased in crystal was forgotten. Myth replaced fact, telling of the great womb from the Almighty Maker that was birthed onto this world, spilling forth Her children, mankind, upon this great earth.

Religions were created following this belief. Those who had faith joined with other like-minded individuals and swore loyalty to the "truth" and would readily die in its name.

On the other side remained those who possessed documents and literature proving the religion a fallacy and they were attacked, labeled as heretics and demons.

500 years.

War between two sides: those for the combined religion of Faith and those for the side of the Truth. Their numbers rapidly diminishing from an already low and unseemly pool, the side of Truth sought the ancient "God Machines" that had long since disappeared in a desperate attempt to harness the power that they were claimed to grant humans.

The Machines were found and the humans appealed to them, invoking the Truth to convince the reclusive Machines to back their cause.

Their resolve was rewarded and the God Machines granted them power. The humans sided with Truth returned to battle and strings of victories ensued. Yet it was short lived because even with the power of the God Machines at their behest, the forces of the Faith were far stronger and more resilient.

And on one fateful dawn, the last of the Truth was extinguished in flames. Those who had fought for Truth along with their evidence were caught in the inferno and rend to dust.

Riding high on the success of its crusade, the soldiers of Faith turned their attention upon the God Machines that dared to assist the infidels that touted fallacies and heresy.

One by one, the mighty Machines were challenged and eventually felled, their magnificent crystals, source of all life and holy energies, harvested and used in further campaigns.

800 years.

Faith is the common denominator of all humans upon this world. They are born into Faith's embrace, live by Faith's precepts, and they die by Faith's blessings.

The God Machines no more, the Known World has become heavily populated and is stagnant to the point of rot.

Corruption exists within the Faith and the ruling governments.

Well to do individuals never hazard a second thought to those living in squalor.

Violent crime is reality of life, not an exception.

Fortunately there are those, however rare they may be, within each institution of Faith and Government that realize the dire situation the Known World is facing. So they search their literature for clues from the past, they search their surroundings for keys toward progression, and they search the massive Crystal Sphere for visions of hope.

The Crystal Sphere; it is here where this story shall begin anew…


	2. ONE

ONE

"Hey. Hey! Wake up."

His eyes fluttered open, looking dazedly up into the night sky. The stars looked especially brilliant in this part of the countryside as there were no streetlamps or other artificial lighting to veil their natural glint.

He could have lay there for the rest of his life.

"Hey! Get up, damn it!"

A rough kick to the side knocked the young man out of his reverie and elicited a yelp of pain from his mouth. "The hell…" the young man growled as he rolled gingerly onto his other side, holding his kicked side with his left hand, "You don't have to be so rough."

"Well apparently I do. We don't have all day," the tall, striking olive-skinned woman spoke with a sneer in her unusual accent, her beautiful face illuminated in the fiery light of the transport wreckage. "You wanted to follow me so now you've got to keep up. Don't go falling asleep. Up and at 'em!"

The young man looked sourly at the Amazonian woman then stood up slowly, still holding his side. His blond bangs falling stylishly in front of his forehead. Brushing his already charred clothing off, he sighed, rubbing a bump on his forehead. His female companion however looked none the worse for wear.

"Lady Luck just wasn't on your side again, I see," the woman said as she looked the young man over, "But you're still good for this, right?"

The young man sighed and nodded.

"Of course."

The woman smiled. "Right, then. Let's be on our way," she said and began to take point down the darkened path leading away from the crash site. "They'll probably send scouts to check for any survivors. Best not dilly—dally 'round here. Then again…" and as she trailed off she gripped a cloth-covered pole-shaped object the length of her body strapped to over her right shoulder and underneath her left underarm.

"Let's just try to avoid battle for now," the young man added. "I'm really not comfortable with this thing yet." He looked down at his own weapon: a retractable, mechanical monstrosity that had dual function as a high-powered rifle and damaging blade. It sat in a hilt that was strapped securely to his left hip.

The woman turned slightly, noticing the young man's weapon and smiled with fond memories. "You'll make it, kid," she said quietly, "Now, let's go."

"Are they dead?"

"No idea, sir. Their transport was shot down but so was our scout. He's…dead, sir."

"…"

"Just before he fell, he thought there were two, maybe three inside the transport, sir. I've taken the initiative of sending out some of our people to go find them."

"…"

"Sir, if I may…what is so important to these people that they would trespass into this region?"

"You'd do well to focus on your job and on none of my secrets. Do I make myself clear?"

"Y-yes, sir. I was just…"

"Just nothing. Do your damn job and make sure these interlopers are killed. I don't need any more problems this evening."

"Yes, sir."

The woman jumped from a relatively high cliff wall, her deep brown ponytail flitting behind her in the wind as she came closer to the ground. As she made contact with the ground she rolled forward, her already torn and slightly singed black overcoat receiving additional marks of dry dirt upon the backside. She stayed in her crouched stance for but a moment's glance around then sighed as she stood erect, turning and looking upward at the young man climbing his way slowly down the steep incline.

"Hey, now," the woman called with exasperation, "We haven't got all night. We need to make it to Cocoon before daybreak."

The young man turned and whimpered, looking down at the treacherous drop below. He could not fathom any reason for this woman's ability to defy human nature and perform such daring feats. "I'm not like you, lady," he called, "I'm not skilled in espionage or…fighting." He yelped as his foot took a misstep, only to reclaim ground once again. "I sit behind a desk and push paper. The only reason I'm here is because…"

"Because you want to find out the truth," the woman finished for him as she placed her hands on her hips, shaking her head. "You wanna know if all the nonsense about the Old World is really fact like I know it is. Or if I'm exactly what everybody else thinks I am."

"Exact…augh!"

The woman quickly rushed toward the cliff and held out her arms just in time to catch the man from his fall.

Breathing heavily, he looked at the strong warrior woman holding him and gave a quick nod of gratitude, his eyes shifting shamefully to the ground as she gave him a smirk.

"Like I said, you'll be fine," she said and set him on his feet. "And since I'm here that can be guaranteed."

"Right," the man said as he brushed himself off. "What…" but his voice trailed off as he heard rustling from nearby. He looked at his female companion who nodded with confirmation. She motioned for him to follow and he follow he did as they took cover in thick foliage hugging the cliff face.

No sooner did they crouch low within the bushes did seven lightly armored men all toting different manner of firearms appear from the forested area the two stood in front of, walking slowly, scanning the darkened clearing.

"I thought I heard a scream nearby," one of the scouts, a man's voice, spoke to the others.

"No doubt you did," another male scout replied. "They may be close by." The talking man turned and faced three men who had guarded the group's back. "Two of you stay behind and search this general area. You two head east toward the river. You two follow me around the way to the top of the cliff. We'll get a better vantage from there."

"Sir," the men stated in unison and splintered off into their ordered directions.

The woman looked at her male companion and smiled. "Then we'll be going west," she whispered and lead the way forward deeper into the forested area they were hiding in.

Then man closed his eyes and tried to overcome the fear that was overtaking nearly every function of his body.

Unfortunately, even as he followed the strong and confident woman through the thicket of greenery and brush, his efforts were highly unsuccessful.


End file.
