With less than a month until the Japanese release of Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, Square Enix has released new screenshots from the game, including images of Fang’s return to the series.

The hard-headed l’Cie was one of the strongest playable characters in FFXIII. Along with Vanille, she defeated Orphan and prevented the collision between Cocoon and Pulse by transforming into a crystal pillar between the two worlds. For centuries, Fang and Vanille slept within said crystal pillar, holding Cocoon aloft in the sky. But a few short years ago, they awoke. At first, the pair lived under the care of the Order, until Fang set out to the Dead Dunes, a barren expanse of desert within Nova Chrysalia, in search of a long-lost relic. She did not return.

Fang and Lightning eventually reunite and team up to explore the ancient ruins that lie buried beneath the sands of the Dead Dunes. When battle erupts, Fang fights by Lightning’s side, and the pair can easily take on foes that would be extremely difficult to defeat alone.

In the world of Nova Chrysalia, no new humans are born and there are limited numbers of each monster species. When Lightning slays all of one species, they become extinct, never to be seen again. The last survivor of a monster species is known as the Last One. It is extraordinarily powerful, far more so than its defeated predecessors. When the Last One is defeated, the species is extinct… although some monster species can never be eradicated completely.

Also revealed is a new EP-based Ability: Escape, which allows players to exit battle, reconfigure Lightning’s schemata, and challenge the monster again should it prove too difficult.