A/N: This is my first fanfic, hope I did okay.

And man, I wish I could come up with something more creative. The idea popped into my head while I was doing homework. So I guess I'll just see how it goes. And cut me some slack – I'm new to the fanfic world (I just started reading these a few weeks ago) so I might make a few mistakes…okay, maybe a lot. Don't judge me!

This takes place after Final Fantasy XIII Episode I – The Promise. So Lightning had wandered into this blob where time was shapeless. This is basically what happened after that.

Disclaimer: I do not own Square Enix, nor any of the characters, plot lines, etc.

It had been years since our ordeal as l'Cie. The time we shared together was a time we truly found each other. When we had finally discovered what we needed to release from ourselves to be free.

That time was lost. My time to bask in freedom has been far too short. I am dissolved into time. But I am not under an ordeal anymore.

I was afraid at first. I had walked out of the darkness and into the light. I was in a palace. Everything was glistening crystal. Feathers floated down from the heavens. Time still felt like liquid. I didn't know what to think.

Lightning Farron.

The voice was sweet and impossibly soft. It was coming from the shrine across the hall. Something told me I didn't need my gunblade out. I walked up to the shrine, completely afraid.

"Who's there?" I asked, tense.

I am Etro, goddess of balance. I have heard your pleas, Lightning.

"What pleas? I didn't ask for anything."

I understand you are seeking the revival of your friends.

My heart skipped a beat in hope. "Can you bring back Fang and Vanille?"

They still sleep as l'Cie. Their time to complete their true Focus is yet to come.

I stiffened. "What are you talking about? They became Ragnarok and crystallized Cocoon! Isn't that their Focus?"

Fate is a curious thing, Lightning Farron. The fal'Cie planned more for them. Cocoon is at peace for now, but there is no Cocoon in the future. Chaos will rule lest they remain in crystal sleep.

I felt a scowl grow on my face. "So basically, there's no way to save them from their fate?"

If that is what you truly desire...I may be able to awaken them. But it comes with a price, Lightning.

"I'm listening, Etro."

I am in eternal sleep in this dimension. Right now, we are in between life and death, the same place where l'Cie rest as crystals.

"So this is where we came in crystal stasis…but does this mean…I'm dead right now?"

You are in…limbo, as you mortals would say. Lightning, I will release you on a quest to find your friends. Find them in this land and bring them to me. I will then return you to the world of life.

"That will be no problem. I'll find them."

Young warrior, your quest will be perilous and the results come with consequences. There is another undying warrior god seeking a similar goal. He is seeking to protect his time plane, the future. In it, Cocoon has fallen and the world is being eaten away by chaos. He seeks to destroy the cause of this tragedy and to protect his fate. The cause of this is the liberation of your friends.

I couldn't believe it. Waking up Vanille and Fang would do that much damage to the timeline? Then I remembered. I stood in unmoving time, the past, the present, and the future. And I had changed my fate as a l'Cie. I could change it again.

"So, what can I give you in return for blessing me?"

During your quest, you will encounter enemies beyond mortal comprehension. Only a divine being or crystallized l'Cie will be able to survive outside the safety of my gaze. And my gaze only goes so far out.

"So how am I supposed to find Fang and Vanille?"

You will become my protector, Lightning. A warrior of equilibrium. You will join my knighthood and be given celestial power. You shall protect my legacy until you complete your quest. If you fail to remember that you fight under my name, your divinity will disappear and your journey will end.

"You…can't be serious."

Lightning, what I fight for is for the balance of life and death. If you agree to my knighthood, you are agreeing to protect peace.

Protect peace…wasn't that what Serah wanted? I would become a goddess. A warrior undying. Perhaps…it was possible to accomplish. After what felt like ages of thinking, weighing the benefits and possible terrors, I gulped and stood a little straighter.

"I…accept, Goddess of balance. Awaken me to your power."

A warm light enveloped me. My Guardian Corps uniform disappeared and was replaced with glowing armor. It was bathing me in a refreshed sense of courage and hope. A sash of feathers blanketed my left leg, a symbol of my promise to Etro. My blazefire saber dissolved into a shining new gunblade. It flashed like lightning with the smallest movement of my wrist. I sheathed it and kneeled down before the shrine. I understood what I had to do. Protect Etro, find Fang and Vanille's crystal spirits, and return to the real world.

Sleep in peace, Divine Etro. I will stand guard over your legacy.

I stood up again and turned around. Every step, I felt the power flowing through my veins. I am a goddess. I am undying. I am on a mission to save the future. Feathers flew down around me, the blessing of Etro hovering around me. I stopped at a balcony, and I took in a sharp breath. I could see years flashing by in an instant. And I could see them. My allies. The ones who went through the sufferings as a l'Cie with me. My heart swelled as I watched them grow up and die right before my eyes. That was what I was fighting for.

I unsheathed my sword again, flicking out the deadly blade. It flashed and sparked, releasing a flurry of white feathers, symbolizing my new power. I was going to free Vanille and Fang. I was going to bring them home. I was going to reunite my family. Our family.