"Xenogears: Remembrance"

Chapter One, Fallen Angels

Ethos H.Q.

It all seemed to happen in slow motion; the Etone's gunfire and that man falling into her arms; but, yet it happened so fast Yui didn't even have time to blink. His unexpected weight caused her knees to buckle and they both fell to the floor.

" Oh my GOD !!"

Yui barely heard him, shifting under the man until his head was resting in her lap. Run... Run, you fool... They'll capture you if you don't... Although it made sense to do so, her heart prevented her from moving. She was captivated by his deep, sensual brown eyes; the way they seemed to penetrate the very essence of her soul, as if only she could ease his pain. Whoever you are... I'm sorry... Her golden eyes flew up when she finally came to her senses and saw the Etone rushing towards them. At that point, her instincts took over, causing her to grab her sword and run.

" Wait !!" Billy yelled as Yui disappeareddown another flight of stairs. " Oh my god, Citan,... you damned old fool..." Billy ripped open his shirt and began examining the bullet wounds. " You fool... why'd you do such a damned fool thing?..."

Yui fell back against a wall several floors below, panting heavily and watching to see if the Etone had followed her. After several moments of dead silence, she relaxed and sheathed her small sword in the folds of her cloak. How did he know my name?... The way he looked at me... as if he knew me... intimately...

" ... Yui?..." A gentle, aged voice whispered from the shadows in concern.

Yui jumped, gasping in fright. She quickly recovered and eyed the shadowed doorway curiously. " You startled me, Anna ."

An elderly woman suddenly crept out from her hiding place in the shadows and reached Yui's side. Anna was in her late sixties, early seventies with long, silvery hair pulled back to show a whithered, sun-kissed face with kind, pale blue eyes. " What happened ?"

" Where's the children ?" Yui inquired as she began rebraiding her honey-gold hair and pulled her hood up to conceal her face.

" Safe..." Anna glanced up at the young woman. " Down below ."

" Good place for them... Its a good place for you... "

" What happened up there, Yui ?" Anna tried again.

" Nothing important, Anna. Don't worry about it ." Yui's thought suddenly fell on the man that now lay dying in a pool of his own blood up above as she glanced down at her bruising wrist. I've got to help him... He needs me... Her eyes shot up at the sound of another growl. " Anna, get down below ."

" Why ?"

" I think the Wels are back..." Yui whispered, stealthily drawing her sword and moving towards the staircase. " Please, Anna,...Take care of the children ."

" Be careful, Yui..."

Billy's head shot up in surprise and quickly drew his gun when a slender, cloaked figure appeared in the doorway, sword drawn. " Get down ." She commanded. Billy reluctantly obeyed just as a Wel lunged over him and slashed out at Yui.

Yui jumped back to avoid the blow and hastily lunged forward with her sword, slicing open the Wel's chest. He growled in pain and and attacked again. Yui twirled past him in a swirl of black garments, bringing her blade back and defeating the foe. Giving the blade a victory twirl, she sheathed her sword and reached Billy's side.

Billy gave her a skeptical look with his sky-blue eyes. " I don't know whether I should thank you or shoot you ."

" Please... This has all been a misunderstanding..." Yui whispered, her golden gaze resting on an unconscious Citan.

" You can say that again ." Billy replied.

" How is he ?"

" I have to get him to a doctor,...or else..."

Yui collapsed to her knees beside them. " I'm so sorry... This is all my fault..."

" Hey, calm down ." Billy commanded. " I'm the one who shot him..." He admitted guiltily. " Just who are you ?"

" ...Yui..."

" Yui what ?"

" I don't have a last name ."

" Why not ?"

" I don't remember it ."

Thats odd... Billy thought to himself. " How do you know Citan then ?"

" I don't ."

" He sure seemed to know you ." Billy remarked.

" I've never laid eyes on him before in my life ." Before Billy could reply, another Wel roared in the distance. Yui and Billy both drew their weapons in unison. " Get him out of here. I'll cover you ."

" It's too dangerous--"

" I can take care of myself. Go!"

Yui waited until Billy had Citan outside before she cloased the large double doors with an exasperated gasp, waiting for the appearance of more Wels. Why was I so drawn to that man... Maybe I did know him... Erghh... Why must all my memories be such a blur?... Yui hesitantly looked down at her right hand, her sword hand. With great deliberation, she removed the black glove, exposing a gentle, slender hand. Her golden eyes rested on the small wedding band around her ring finger, a deep sadness washing over her. Is he the one that made the engraving inside my ring?... Why can't I remember ?

Approuching footsteps caused Yui to drop her glove and take a combat stance, anticipating another Wel. " Sister Yui..."

Yui let out a sigh of relief and set down her sword. " I'm right here, Mary ." She slowly stepped forward, reaching out for Mary. Suddenly, a Wel dove out at Yui from the side, knocking her to the floor. Yui could hear Mary screaming her name out in the distance as she recovered from the fall and wrestled for her life with the Wel. She felt her body weakening against the Wel's awesome strength, but she couldn't give up, it would mean her and Mary's life.

Yui twisted around, reaching out for her sword. The Wel took advantage of her vulnerable position and bit down on her arm. " Aghh!!!" She cried out in pain as his razor sharp teeth tore into her flesh. She began punching and kicking her attacker, trying to free herself from the excruciating pain. She finally managed to kick him off her and rolled over to her sword. Mary ran to Yui in fear of the infuriated Wel as she slowly pulled herself up, cradling her blood-soaked arm and picking up her sword.

The Wel got up with lightning speed, flashing Yui a feral grin. Yui steadied herself, standing between Mary and the enemy, anticipating the next attack. " Be careful, Yui ." Mary whispered, hiding behind a desecrated statue.

Yui side-stepped the Wel's outstretched claw, swiping down at his midsection. The Wel swiftly slashed out at her in blind fury, slicing her acrossed the stomach and knocking her into a wall. She hit the wall with a loud thump and winced when a sharp pain shot up her arm. The Wel charged after her without hesitaion; Yui struggled to bring up her sword and impaled him. She let out a sigh of relief, relaxing against the cold wall.

" Sister Yui!" Mary came running towards her. " You're bleeding !!"

Yui gave her a weak smile in reassurance, glancing at her blood-soaked clothing. " I'll be fine... I just...need... to rest ." Mary removed her worn-out cape and began wiping away the blood on Yui's exposed hand. " Thank you, dearest ."

" Yui !!" Anna called from the open doorway, rushing to her young friend's side. " Dear god... You're bleeding to death !"

" Calm down, Anna..." She commaned weakly, her face losing color. " They'll heal ." She extended her hand out. " Now,...please... help me up ."

Anna hesitantly obeyed, not trusting Yui's self-diagnosis. She encircled Yui's tiny waist, careful not to touch her wounds as they began to walk. After a few steps, Yui lost her balance and nearly fainted. Anna gently laid her down on the cold floor, wiping away the blood and sweat collecting on her forehead. " Oh, Yui... Poor dear... Hang in there..." Anna whispered as Yui's eyes began to close and she lost her grip on conscious reality.

Midori Uzuki suppressed a smile in delight when she felt the tug of a fish biting on her fishing line, looking up to her great-grandfather. Wiseman Gaspar instantly knew what she was saying with those big brown eyes and bent down to help her.

Primera Black, too, felt the tug of a fish and looked up to Jessie. " Papa..."

Jessie, who had been brooding against a tree, instantly shot up to help his daughter. He came down here with Primera and Midori to fish with Wiseman Gaspar, thinking he'd do it the **old fashioned way** by shooting the fish out of the water. Gaspar quickly let him know otherwise by taking his guns away and refusing to give them back. It only made matters worse by taking the small amount of alcohol he'd brought away too.

A deep sadness washed over Midori and she sat down on a nearby tree trunk, her angelic face etched in deep thought. Gaspar instantly noticed the change and took a seat beside her after tossing the fish back into the water. " I'm sorry, Midori. We had to let the fish go ."

Jessie and Primera realized something was wrong as Midori wiped away a rogue tear and shook her head. "...Daddy...Mommy..."

Fear for Citan's life washed over Gaspar and Jessie as Primera pointed upward. " Billy..." They all looked up as the Yggdrasil approuched Nisan.

" Something must have happened ."

Fei and Elly walked down another flight of stairs, arms entwined. " I wonder why Billy sounded so strange in that message. He even scared Bart ."

" I wonder why doc didn't say anything ." Fei mumbled absent-mindedly, not even hearing Elly.

She gave him a side-ways glance with her crystalline blue eyes. " I don't know why you're so worried about Citan, Fei. He can more than--"

" Damnit, Billy! Why didn't you tell us you needed a doctor ?!!!" Sigurd raged in the distance.

" Fei and Elly stopped, looking to each other in wonder.

" What the HELL was I supposed to say !" Billy shouted back. " Hey, Siggy! Guess what! I shot you and my father's best friend !!!"

" Oh my god!" Maria yelled." Somebody get a doctor !"

" I'm already here !" The female doctor from the Yggdrasil announced. " Oh yes!! Bullet wounds!! I've always wanted to treat--"

" Shut up !" Billy and Sigurd both shouted in unison.

" Boy!" Jessie boomed. " First you shoot me out of a gun and now you've shot Hyuga! Next you'll be shooting Primera !"

" ...Daddy..." Midori whispered.

Fei let go of Elly and made a mad dash down the stairs. " Doc !"

" Fei!" Elly chased after him, afraid of the scene that awaited them downstairs. They both stopped at the bottom of the stairs when they saw little Midori hugging her father's large hand, crying her little heart out. Sigurd and Billy finally stopped arguing and Jessie was awkwardly silent.

The doctor glanced up nervously from her unconscious patient. " We need to move him to a bed so I can remove the bullets ."

Sigurd and Jessie carefully picked up their fallen friend and followed the doctor down the hall. Midori just watched, clutching her father's glasses as more tears made their way down her cheeks. Fei was in complete shock, unable to move. Doc... shot? Midori...crying? What's going on?! Midori didn't even cry when Yui died...

Elly glanced at Fei with concern before catching Billy by the shoulder. " What happened ?"

" Citan and I split up..." Billy's sky-blue eyes shifted around, trying to carefully word his explaination. " All I know is some woman attacked him and he wouldn't fight back ."

" Who was it ?" Elyy asked curiously, clutching Fei's hand.

" She said her name was Yui---"

" Yui ?!" Fei's head shot up in surprise. " Impossible...She's dead..."

" Just who is she? Citan kept calling her name like a madman, and yet..." Billy ran a shaky hand through his white-minx hair. " She said she'd never seen him before in her life ."

" Yui was Citan's wife and Midori's mother, I believe..." Elly replied, passing Midori a concerned glance.

" Where is she ?" Fei demanded.

" I don't know... We were attacked by Wels... She held them back to give Citan and me time to escape..."

" How could you let her-- How could you leave her defenseless against-- How could Citan ?!!"

" Calm down, Fei ."

" If this woman really was my granddaughter..." Wiseman Gaspar spoke up as he bent down and picked up Midori, patting her little back. " She can take care of herself. Citan knows that ." With saying that, he followed in the general direction they'd taken Citan, soothing Midori the whole time.

" He's right ," Billy continued. " She could wield a sword just as good as Citan can ."

" Yui's never picked up a sword in her life..." Fei, swimming in a pool of confusion, sat down at the bottom of the stairs. " Citan... How could he just leave her..."

" Maybe it wans't Yui..." Elly suggested, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder and sitting beside him. " Billy, tell us everything that happened ."

Billy nodded. " I believe she was one of the survivors... She attacked Citan thinking he was the enemy. When he saw who she was, he refused to fight her... but she kept attacking... So I shot at her and Citan took the bullets..." Billy looked away from Fei's furious glare.

Elly flashed Fei a warning glance. " Continue, please ."

" She disappeared but returned moments later, saving me from a Wel. The way she looked at him, as if she were trying to remember, but couldn't. More Wels were approuching, she held them off while I got Citan out of there ."

Fei shook his head in disbelief. " It couldn't have been Yui ."

" I suppose we'll just wait until Citan recovers... He'll know for sure..." ________________________________________________________________________

Author's Note: Hope you liked the first chapter!^_^ I'm sorry it took me so long to update from the prologue, but since school started again, I find it hard to find time to do much of anything. Chapter two is almost complete, so expect a quicker update! As always, I really appreciate feedback, good or bad, and I appreciate the advice from my fans. Thanks!

~Melissa McClendon

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