Hanging Edge The Hanging Edge , the Restricted Zone is a location in " Final Fantasy XIII " . It is a series of highroads and railways at Cocoon ' s outer rim . It used to be a bustling metropolis but was abandoned after the War of Transgression , and has since been a restricted zone . It comprises the first chapter of the game and as the Crystarium system is yet to be unlocked , enemies fought here give no experience . Datalog . " A relic of days before the War of Transgression , the Hanging Edge is located near Cocoon ' s outer rim . The area was once a thriving urban center , but residents were forced to abandon the location when an attack by Pulsian forces cracked Cocoon ' s shell during the conflict several centuries ago . It was since designated a restricted zone and , with civilian access prohibited , soon became nothing more than a name on local maps . " Story . " Final Fantasy XIII " . Lightning and Sazh Katzroy enter the Hanging Edge on the Purge train carrying the exiles from Bodhum to Gran Pulse . They derail the train before fighting their way through hordes of PSICOM soldiers to try and reach the Pulse Vestige where Lightning ' s sister , Serah , is being held captive by the fal ' Cie Anima . Elsewhere , the resistance group NORA fights against the Purge , which aims to send all the citizens and tourists from Bodhum to Gran Pulse because a Pulse fal ' Cie was discovered in the area two days before . Snow Villiers , Gadot and Lebreau from NORA enlist a number of volunteers including Nora Estheim . After one of PSICOM ' s ships blasts a highway , many fall and Nora ' s son , Hope Estheim , watches as she loses her grip on Snow ' s hand and falls to her death . The Pulse Vestige is brought into the warzone by the " Palamecia " amid the chaos . Lightning and Sazh make their way to the Vestige while Snow and Gadot survive the fall and rejoin the rest of NORA . Snow sets off to rescue his fiancée Serah from inside the Vestige using one of PSICOM ' s airbikes . Gadot stays behind to keep an eye on the citizens , but Hope and a girl named Vanille steal Gadot ' s airbike to follow Snow into the Vestige . Hope plans to confront Snow about his mother ' s death and make him pay for it . Lightning , Sazh , Snow , Hope , and Vanille meet at the heart of the Vestige where they find Serah collapsed on the floor . Snow and Lightning rush to her aid and Serah whispers her final wish for Lightning to save Cocoon , before turning into crystal . The group makes its way to the fal ' Cie Anima and Snow begs for it to turn Serah back before Lightning attacks it in a grief - induced rage . The group fights Anima , after they are marked with the brand of a Pulse l ' Cie . PSICOM destroys the Pulse Vestige with their weapons while the party is all inside . As Anima dies the Vestige sends outs an energy wave that destroys the Hanging Edge and is sent falling towards Lake Bresha below , crystallizing it on impact . " " . When the Purge train containing Aoede comes to a halt at the Hanging Edge , an explosion sounds in the distance , the Purgees revolt against the PSICOM soldiers , taking their weapons and escaping . After removing her Purge clothing , Aoede leaves the train car and steps onto a skybridge , seeing the Hanging Edge turned into a warzone . She witnesses Sanctum attack ships directing their gunfire at the rebelling Purgees and realizes the Sanctum never intended to exile them from Cocoon , and that the Purge was a way to cover up their plot to take the supposedly tainted civilians to the restricted area and enact a concealed genocide . Realizing her foolishness for plunging herself into the situation , Aoede can only stand in a daze and watch the carnage . An attack vessel locks on to her but she is moved out of the way before the pilot fires and she escapes with her saviors , the members of NORA . In the midst of their flight , Aoede sees the Pulse Vestige suspended beneath the " Palamecia " . Aoede focuses her camera on the Vestige and records that NORA ' s leader Snow Villiers is heading towards it . With her will to live restored by Lebreau ' s confidence , Aoede asks NORA to let her go with them and they accept her into their group . From this point on , Aoede promises herself that she will record everything that happens . Even if she sacrifices herself in the name of journalism , there is the chance her footage will get circulated and serve to shatter the public ' s blind faith in the Sanctum . As Aoede runs through the battlefield , a single thought comes to mind : the Sanctum must have known they wouldn ' t be able to hide the truth about the Purge , and Galenth Dysley and the other Sanctum leaders had already decided they didn ' t care about suffering a blow strong enough to overturn their authority , whether or not they succeed in strengthening the public ' s fear of Pulse . Aoede believes the Purge to be nothing more but the beginning of a huge conspiracy , one in which even more people will die , something that would make the Purge pale in comparison . Guided by NORA , Aoede and other surviving Purgees escape the battlefield and take refuge in a crevice in the ground . After breaking through PSICOM ' s defenses , Aoede , NORA , and a portion of the surviving Purgees escape the Hanging Edge and hide inside an ancient Pulsian building that was inserted between the layers of Cocoon ' s outer shell during its construction . The Hanging Edge can be seen as an apocalyptic vista in the trial known as the Altar of Salvation in the Luxerion Cathedral . Musical themes . The tracks that play as background themes of the Hanging Edge are its eponymous theme , " The Warpath Home " and " Snow ' s Theme " . The Hanging Edge ' s eponymous theme can also be heard in " Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy " as Lightning ' s dungeon theme . Other appearances . " Theatrhythm Final Fantasy " . The Hanging Edge appears as the BMS for " Saber ' s Edge " and " Defiers of Fate " , the latter only playable during a " Dark Note " . " Theatrhythm Final Fantasy Curtain Call " . The Hanging Edge returns as the BMS for " Defiers of Fate " , " Saber ' s Edge " and " Blinded By Light " . " Final Fantasy Record Keeper " . The Hanging Edge is the first dungeon in the " XIII " world . Clearing it obtains Snow . Under rule of the Sanctum , the people of Cocoon knew peace and prosperity . The story of this realm begins as a train carrying Lightning speeds towards the Hanging Edge . . .