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Two deanons from the ultima_arena challenge, although only the first gets extra points (the second I'm just posting for easy reference):
Username: the_404_error
Class: Black Mage
Title: The Devastated World
Summary: Hilda and Gordon take a tour of the world five years after the Empire ruined just about everything.
Characters/Pairings: Hilda, Gordon, Maria, Lelia
Word count: 1,000
Rating/warnings: PG for, er, bleakness?
"Are you sure you wanna leave like this?" The purple-haired woman crossed her arms and eyed the two across from her.
"Yes Leila, they'll be able to handle everything while we're gone." Queen Hilda boarded the airship, followed by her husband, Gordon. Leila chuckled to herself as they walked by. She could hardly believe it when she became their adviser during the war, but royalty trusting her like this? She used to purposely mislead people into boarding her ship like this, but she had no such intentions to day.
None of them ever expected that it would end up like this. Leila had traded in her pirate ship for an airship, as few ships now sailed too far into the seas, and those that did were aid ships from Fynn, which she found herself unable to plunder. If asked about it, she enjoyed using the excuse that it was easier to get money by overcharging people for rides on an airship anyway. The once small Kingdom of Fynn now seemed like the center of the world, as people from all over came to flock to the realm that defeated the mighty Empire. They knew it was thanks to how the lands they came from had been devastated, but many still entered the main city with a glint of hope in their eyes.
They frequently went hours on end without seeing even a single living human. Instead, they would find the remnants of long abandoned towns, towns which had been devastated to the point no one could identify what buildings the rubble once was. Some of the towns had cemetery markers they had commissioned to place in what were once sprawling cities. For those without even a marker of remembrance, they noted their location for later.
On rare occasions, they’d come across a stray wanderer struggling to survive. Their city had already expanded too rapidly, but still they offered if the survivors would like to come back to them. Most of them were thrilled to say yes. More frequently, they found groups that had managed to survive together by building make-shift homes out of the rubble. When asked why they had remained instead of seeking a new life elsewhere, they all gave similar responses. “Even if there are only a handful of us left, only if we stay here and regain what was lost will we have truly beat the Empire!” had become a slogan to them.
The few towns which had not been destroyed by the empire, most notably Mysidia and Salamand, had now expanded and taken in stray survivors from the devastated areas. Mysidia was attempting to teach all its new citizens magic, in an attempt to keep its oath. Salamand welcomed the newcomers, as their numbers had been hurt by the Empire as well; not all of them survived their enslavement, even if their buildings still remained.
They planned to stop at Kashuan long enough for Gordon to pay homage to his fallen friends, family, and Kingdom. Much to their surprise, a sentry was keeping watch outside the castle walls, and greeted them with a hearty “Welcome to Kashuan Castle!”
Hilda and Leila both turned to Gordon as he walked inside appearing dazed.
A group of former soldiers had exterminated the remaining monsters, and were now using the Keep as a base to help any misplaced people they found. Elina had been among them, and in the past few years had become the head of the guards, swearing that she was going to keep the dragoon spirit alive even if their Kingdom had fallen and their wyverns perished. Her son was following in her footsteps and showed astounding aptitude with a spear even at his young age.
“I thought it was a ruined castle where only monsters prowled,” he glanced back at the crowd and then again towards Hilda, “These people don’t even recognize as me as their prince. Only a few are originally from here; it’s better that they pick who they want as their leader. There’s little I can do that they haven’t already.”
“Humans are very resilient.” She nodded and grabbed his hand, leading him back to the airship as he kept on looking back over his shoulder at what in another life may have been considered his Kingdom.
For every success, they saw tragedy. None resonated in their minds more than a man who was the sole survivor his village and clung to it still. He refused to believe that everyone he had ever known had died, and talked to their skeletons as if they could respond. At their offer of aid, he scoffed and ran.
On their way back to Fynn, Leila spotted a lone man in dark armor. The moment they began their descent, he disappeared from sight.
Upon their return, they were greeted with a number of questions and demands, some about their journey, others about minor events that had transpired while they were away. Most related to how they needed to build even more houses to adapt to their growing Kingdom, which they quickly brushed away with a “Yes, go ahead and build them.”
Maria, being among the few she left in charge during their departure, rushed up to them when they entered throne room.
“Between Firion and Guy always going off on their searches and adventures, and now this… The next time there’s a trip, I’m definitely going!”
“Sorry Maria, this wasn’t a vacation, but I can convince Gordon to stay next time, if you so wish.” Hilda smiled at she looked at what Maria had become, despite how she could feel Gordon giving her an unpleasant look behind her.
“That means it’s not getting better?” Maria’s smile faded; she knew it wasn’t a vacation, but she had been waiting for good news.
“No, it’s getting better. Slowly, but if it continues at this rate, the world will recover. It will seem like a long time to us, but this will all pass quickly in the scope of history.”
Title: FFIV: Beginnings (FFIV in 15 Minutes)
Summary: The title is pretty self-explanatory, especially since it was for that UA challenge. ;X
Characters/Pairings: Cecil, Rosa, Kain, Rydia, Tellah, Edward. (Also briefly Cid and Anna, but I'm not sure if they should count in the tags.)
Word count: 1,235
Rating/warnings: As a general disclaimer, I love this game, which is why I'm willing to mock it. XD
[We open to a man in dark armor invading a city of mages to steal their shiny rock. The mages don’t fight back because… They would burn our dark armored hero, Cecil, to a crisp and the game would end within the first minute if they did?]
Cecil: Maybe I shouldn't have done that...
Rosa: O rly. This isn't like you! Let's do something about this!
Cecil: I will tomorrow. After my next mission. The King becomes more violent every day, but surely he wouldn’t send me on an even worse mission!
[The next day]
King of Baron: Here, take this ring and go to Mist with Kain.
Cecil: Okay.
Cid: I think I was in this scene somewhere as Mr. Exposition… HEY. STOP IGNORING ME.
[Insert a dungeon here, then suddenly, they’re at Mist!]
Cecil: So I just take this ring out and…
[Bombs come out of the ring and destroy the village! How bomb monsters can fit in a ring is one of this world’s greatest mysteries]
Cecil: Nooooo! How could I have known someone who made me invade a town the other day would make me do this?!
Kain: ... it's called a Bomb Ring in some translations. What else would you expect?
Cecil: But how am I supposed to know which translation is right?!
[They see a little girl crying amidst the destruction]
Kain: *shrugs* He wanted us to kill everyone, so…
Cecil: Wtf, seriously Kain? You’re clearly going to be the best bff ever in this story.
Kain: You would oppose his orders, then?
Cecil: Yes. Will you help?
Kain: What does Rosa think?
Cecil: … uhh, why? I’m sure she’d agree.
Kain: Then I’ll help you.
Cecil: … This is getting more suspicious by the second. We painted our nails together! I even gave you a friendship bracelet! Remember that means we’ll never hurt each other!
[The little girl stops crying and notices them]
Rydia: You killed my mother, prepare to die!
[Rydia summons a man wearing only beads and a string-tail hanging off his ass! Cecil and Kain can’t stand to look at him without having strange thoughts and end up separated while shielding their eyes. Cecil ends up in the obligatory desert stage with Rydia.]
Cecil: She’s unconscious, but alive… to the inn! Sleeping for a few hours cures all ails!
[He wanders around the desert and finds nothing before finally deciding to walk straight into the desert itself. After finding an oasis town in the middle of nowhere, he takes her to an inn.]
Rydia: [waking up] … ? You’re the man who killed my mother! I don’t trust you.
Cecil: Are you alright?
Generic Baron General: Watch me just barge in here at the right time and attack! Rawr!
[They fight him off]
Generic Baron General: Remember me… as the plot device I was! [dies]
Rydia: Okay, now I trust you!
[They waltz into every house in town, steal items people were keeping in chests for their life’s savings like the heroes they are, and find Rosa!]
Rosa: ... Cecil... *cough* ....
NPC of useful information: She has desert fever and can only be cured with a sand pearl, and to get that you must first go to Damcyan and get a member of the royal family to open-
Cecil: Okay, I’m in a SNES RPG and I have to go through a lot of minor tasks until I get a small item hidden in a cave somewhere. Got it.
Rydia: Hey, you were walking around for hours in the desert in that armor! Why didn’t you catch it?
Cecil: My armor has a self-hydrating feature! … You really don’t want to ask for the details, but it also keeps my hair nice and clean under this helmet!
[They pass through another cave on their way to Damcyan, because you know, everyone loves even more cave dungeons! Inside, they find an old man who… uhh, just look at this]
Tellah: Take me along! Some sinister bard took my daughter, Anna, away!
Rydia: I’m sure he’s doing terrible things to her. Like singing. And playing the harp. The horror!
[Because We Needed Someone Else With White Magic joined the party!]
[They travel onward, and finally their destination is in sight! … and being attacked by Baron airships.]
Rydia: A castle in the middle of a desert with no water in sight… Unless they're always risking their lives to steal water from the cave we just got out of, how do they survive?
Cecil: And why would we want to attack them?
Tellah: They have a shiny rock. Also, they’re the most financially prosperous Kingdom in the world.
Cecil: This is a medieval world where we haven’t discovered oil yet… That only raises more questions!
Tellah: Magic, then. *insert awkward mage lack-of-muscle flex pose*
[The three enter the castle, which must be too preoccupied with the aerial invaders to notice a Dark Knight coming in on foot. They find Anna at the top, slowly dying]
Tellah: This has to be that bard’s fault for taking you here! Totally not the airships that actually shot those arrows! And look, there he is now!
Anna: Wait!
Edward: It’s not what you think, I-
Tellah: I know very well what you are, you spoony bard!
Everyone else: … *snickers*
Anna: Won’t anyone listen to me?! I’m still alive here! Someone throw me a potion or a cure spell, please!
Rydia: I’m out of MP…
Cecil: We’re out of items…
Edward: My item pack was stolen by goblins.
Tellah: Cure… cure… how does that go again?! All I can think is “must kill bard”…
Anna: You have to be kidding me… I feel like I existed only to give backstory to other characters… [dies]
Edward: [cries] I’ll stay here. That’ll help!
Rydia: No, we need you to enter the next dungeon! I’m just a little girl, and I’m not crying about my parents dying anymore!
Cecil: Yes, real men hide the fact they wear lipstick and nailpolish under dark armor! On that note, seriously, no one look under my helmet.
Tellah: REVENGE! I’m going after Golbez, brb.
[Tellah leaves the party and Edward joins. They discover all he knows how to do is sing at and hide from monsters.]
Rydia: Why does your family lock this cave off? Why not just get the pearls routinely and give them to everyone who needs them?
Edward: … because this is a RPG and the more unnecessary dungeons the better?
[They go through it and arrive at the nest of very friendly looking monsters]
Edward: Don’t worry, they won’t hurt anyone! I’ll just steal one of their eggs and I’m sure they won’t mind!
[He does so and the Antlion attacks! Rydia and Edward both scream like little girls, but they get through it and gtfo of there. Cecil wonders what he’s gotten himself into]
Edward: Here, to get back to Kaipo, we can take this unique craft I have for no apparent reason!
[They take the Hovercraft back to Kaipo and cure Rosa]
Rosa: Cecil! I.. hey, I just woke up, why is the screen fading to black?!
Cecil: Something about a 1250 word limit…
Rydia: Stop breaking the 4th wall! It’s getting redundant!
Edward: … and thus our story is to be continued in the next episode of-
Rosa: Does this mean the player is shutting the power off now? Is this still a dream?
Username: the_404_error
Class: Black Mage
Title: The Devastated World
Summary: Hilda and Gordon take a tour of the world five years after the Empire ruined just about everything.
Characters/Pairings: Hilda, Gordon, Maria, Lelia
Word count: 1,000
Rating/warnings: PG for, er, bleakness?
"Are you sure you wanna leave like this?" The purple-haired woman crossed her arms and eyed the two across from her.
"Yes Leila, they'll be able to handle everything while we're gone." Queen Hilda boarded the airship, followed by her husband, Gordon. Leila chuckled to herself as they walked by. She could hardly believe it when she became their adviser during the war, but royalty trusting her like this? She used to purposely mislead people into boarding her ship like this, but she had no such intentions to day.
None of them ever expected that it would end up like this. Leila had traded in her pirate ship for an airship, as few ships now sailed too far into the seas, and those that did were aid ships from Fynn, which she found herself unable to plunder. If asked about it, she enjoyed using the excuse that it was easier to get money by overcharging people for rides on an airship anyway. The once small Kingdom of Fynn now seemed like the center of the world, as people from all over came to flock to the realm that defeated the mighty Empire. They knew it was thanks to how the lands they came from had been devastated, but many still entered the main city with a glint of hope in their eyes.
They frequently went hours on end without seeing even a single living human. Instead, they would find the remnants of long abandoned towns, towns which had been devastated to the point no one could identify what buildings the rubble once was. Some of the towns had cemetery markers they had commissioned to place in what were once sprawling cities. For those without even a marker of remembrance, they noted their location for later.
On rare occasions, they’d come across a stray wanderer struggling to survive. Their city had already expanded too rapidly, but still they offered if the survivors would like to come back to them. Most of them were thrilled to say yes. More frequently, they found groups that had managed to survive together by building make-shift homes out of the rubble. When asked why they had remained instead of seeking a new life elsewhere, they all gave similar responses. “Even if there are only a handful of us left, only if we stay here and regain what was lost will we have truly beat the Empire!” had become a slogan to them.
The few towns which had not been destroyed by the empire, most notably Mysidia and Salamand, had now expanded and taken in stray survivors from the devastated areas. Mysidia was attempting to teach all its new citizens magic, in an attempt to keep its oath. Salamand welcomed the newcomers, as their numbers had been hurt by the Empire as well; not all of them survived their enslavement, even if their buildings still remained.
They planned to stop at Kashuan long enough for Gordon to pay homage to his fallen friends, family, and Kingdom. Much to their surprise, a sentry was keeping watch outside the castle walls, and greeted them with a hearty “Welcome to Kashuan Castle!”
Hilda and Leila both turned to Gordon as he walked inside appearing dazed.
A group of former soldiers had exterminated the remaining monsters, and were now using the Keep as a base to help any misplaced people they found. Elina had been among them, and in the past few years had become the head of the guards, swearing that she was going to keep the dragoon spirit alive even if their Kingdom had fallen and their wyverns perished. Her son was following in her footsteps and showed astounding aptitude with a spear even at his young age.
“I thought it was a ruined castle where only monsters prowled,” he glanced back at the crowd and then again towards Hilda, “These people don’t even recognize as me as their prince. Only a few are originally from here; it’s better that they pick who they want as their leader. There’s little I can do that they haven’t already.”
“Humans are very resilient.” She nodded and grabbed his hand, leading him back to the airship as he kept on looking back over his shoulder at what in another life may have been considered his Kingdom.
For every success, they saw tragedy. None resonated in their minds more than a man who was the sole survivor his village and clung to it still. He refused to believe that everyone he had ever known had died, and talked to their skeletons as if they could respond. At their offer of aid, he scoffed and ran.
On their way back to Fynn, Leila spotted a lone man in dark armor. The moment they began their descent, he disappeared from sight.
Upon their return, they were greeted with a number of questions and demands, some about their journey, others about minor events that had transpired while they were away. Most related to how they needed to build even more houses to adapt to their growing Kingdom, which they quickly brushed away with a “Yes, go ahead and build them.”
Maria, being among the few she left in charge during their departure, rushed up to them when they entered throne room.
“Between Firion and Guy always going off on their searches and adventures, and now this… The next time there’s a trip, I’m definitely going!”
“Sorry Maria, this wasn’t a vacation, but I can convince Gordon to stay next time, if you so wish.” Hilda smiled at she looked at what Maria had become, despite how she could feel Gordon giving her an unpleasant look behind her.
“That means it’s not getting better?” Maria’s smile faded; she knew it wasn’t a vacation, but she had been waiting for good news.
“No, it’s getting better. Slowly, but if it continues at this rate, the world will recover. It will seem like a long time to us, but this will all pass quickly in the scope of history.”
Title: FFIV: Beginnings (FFIV in 15 Minutes)
Summary: The title is pretty self-explanatory, especially since it was for that UA challenge. ;X
Characters/Pairings: Cecil, Rosa, Kain, Rydia, Tellah, Edward. (Also briefly Cid and Anna, but I'm not sure if they should count in the tags.)
Word count: 1,235
Rating/warnings: As a general disclaimer, I love this game, which is why I'm willing to mock it. XD
[We open to a man in dark armor invading a city of mages to steal their shiny rock. The mages don’t fight back because… They would burn our dark armored hero, Cecil, to a crisp and the game would end within the first minute if they did?]
Cecil: Maybe I shouldn't have done that...
Rosa: O rly. This isn't like you! Let's do something about this!
Cecil: I will tomorrow. After my next mission. The King becomes more violent every day, but surely he wouldn’t send me on an even worse mission!
[The next day]
King of Baron: Here, take this ring and go to Mist with Kain.
Cecil: Okay.
Cid: I think I was in this scene somewhere as Mr. Exposition… HEY. STOP IGNORING ME.
[Insert a dungeon here, then suddenly, they’re at Mist!]
Cecil: So I just take this ring out and…
[Bombs come out of the ring and destroy the village! How bomb monsters can fit in a ring is one of this world’s greatest mysteries]
Cecil: Nooooo! How could I have known someone who made me invade a town the other day would make me do this?!
Kain: ... it's called a Bomb Ring in some translations. What else would you expect?
Cecil: But how am I supposed to know which translation is right?!
[They see a little girl crying amidst the destruction]
Kain: *shrugs* He wanted us to kill everyone, so…
Cecil: Wtf, seriously Kain? You’re clearly going to be the best bff ever in this story.
Kain: You would oppose his orders, then?
Cecil: Yes. Will you help?
Kain: What does Rosa think?
Cecil: … uhh, why? I’m sure she’d agree.
Kain: Then I’ll help you.
Cecil: … This is getting more suspicious by the second. We painted our nails together! I even gave you a friendship bracelet! Remember that means we’ll never hurt each other!
[The little girl stops crying and notices them]
Rydia: You killed my mother, prepare to die!
[Rydia summons a man wearing only beads and a string-tail hanging off his ass! Cecil and Kain can’t stand to look at him without having strange thoughts and end up separated while shielding their eyes. Cecil ends up in the obligatory desert stage with Rydia.]
Cecil: She’s unconscious, but alive… to the inn! Sleeping for a few hours cures all ails!
[He wanders around the desert and finds nothing before finally deciding to walk straight into the desert itself. After finding an oasis town in the middle of nowhere, he takes her to an inn.]
Rydia: [waking up] … ? You’re the man who killed my mother! I don’t trust you.
Cecil: Are you alright?
Generic Baron General: Watch me just barge in here at the right time and attack! Rawr!
[They fight him off]
Generic Baron General: Remember me… as the plot device I was! [dies]
Rydia: Okay, now I trust you!
[They waltz into every house in town, steal items people were keeping in chests for their life’s savings like the heroes they are, and find Rosa!]
Rosa: ... Cecil... *cough* ....
NPC of useful information: She has desert fever and can only be cured with a sand pearl, and to get that you must first go to Damcyan and get a member of the royal family to open-
Cecil: Okay, I’m in a SNES RPG and I have to go through a lot of minor tasks until I get a small item hidden in a cave somewhere. Got it.
Rydia: Hey, you were walking around for hours in the desert in that armor! Why didn’t you catch it?
Cecil: My armor has a self-hydrating feature! … You really don’t want to ask for the details, but it also keeps my hair nice and clean under this helmet!
[They pass through another cave on their way to Damcyan, because you know, everyone loves even more cave dungeons! Inside, they find an old man who… uhh, just look at this]
Tellah: Take me along! Some sinister bard took my daughter, Anna, away!
Rydia: I’m sure he’s doing terrible things to her. Like singing. And playing the harp. The horror!
[Because We Needed Someone Else With White Magic joined the party!]
[They travel onward, and finally their destination is in sight! … and being attacked by Baron airships.]
Rydia: A castle in the middle of a desert with no water in sight… Unless they're always risking their lives to steal water from the cave we just got out of, how do they survive?
Cecil: And why would we want to attack them?
Tellah: They have a shiny rock. Also, they’re the most financially prosperous Kingdom in the world.
Cecil: This is a medieval world where we haven’t discovered oil yet… That only raises more questions!
Tellah: Magic, then. *insert awkward mage lack-of-muscle flex pose*
[The three enter the castle, which must be too preoccupied with the aerial invaders to notice a Dark Knight coming in on foot. They find Anna at the top, slowly dying]
Tellah: This has to be that bard’s fault for taking you here! Totally not the airships that actually shot those arrows! And look, there he is now!
Anna: Wait!
Edward: It’s not what you think, I-
Tellah: I know very well what you are, you spoony bard!
Everyone else: … *snickers*
Anna: Won’t anyone listen to me?! I’m still alive here! Someone throw me a potion or a cure spell, please!
Rydia: I’m out of MP…
Cecil: We’re out of items…
Edward: My item pack was stolen by goblins.
Tellah: Cure… cure… how does that go again?! All I can think is “must kill bard”…
Anna: You have to be kidding me… I feel like I existed only to give backstory to other characters… [dies]
Edward: [cries] I’ll stay here. That’ll help!
Rydia: No, we need you to enter the next dungeon! I’m just a little girl, and I’m not crying about my parents dying anymore!
Cecil: Yes, real men hide the fact they wear lipstick and nailpolish under dark armor! On that note, seriously, no one look under my helmet.
Tellah: REVENGE! I’m going after Golbez, brb.
[Tellah leaves the party and Edward joins. They discover all he knows how to do is sing at and hide from monsters.]
Rydia: Why does your family lock this cave off? Why not just get the pearls routinely and give them to everyone who needs them?
Edward: … because this is a RPG and the more unnecessary dungeons the better?
[They go through it and arrive at the nest of very friendly looking monsters]
Edward: Don’t worry, they won’t hurt anyone! I’ll just steal one of their eggs and I’m sure they won’t mind!
[He does so and the Antlion attacks! Rydia and Edward both scream like little girls, but they get through it and gtfo of there. Cecil wonders what he’s gotten himself into]
Edward: Here, to get back to Kaipo, we can take this unique craft I have for no apparent reason!
[They take the Hovercraft back to Kaipo and cure Rosa]
Rosa: Cecil! I.. hey, I just woke up, why is the screen fading to black?!
Cecil: Something about a 1250 word limit…
Rydia: Stop breaking the 4th wall! It’s getting redundant!
Edward: … and thus our story is to be continued in the next episode of-
Rosa: Does this mean the player is shutting the power off now? Is this still a dream?