Creative Writing Wishes (CT / FF7 / FFTactics / Vagrant Story)

It¡¯s been 4 months since the final battle against Altima. It¡¯s still a mystery to all who participated, but it seems that everyone in the battle survived and managed to make it back to Ivalice in one piece. They¡¯ve since said their good byes and went their separate ways.

Ramza and Alma decided it would be too dangerous to live a very public life while Delita was king. But since they knew nothing of the world outside of Ivalice, they found a small home in Warjilis, and Ramza took a job as a town guardsman, under the assumed name Azmar.

Thunder God Cid was now an outlaw, hunted by his former friends as a deserter. Although the legend of his strength had not weakened over the years, and his persuers scarcely dared to come close to him. He began wandering the countryside, taking odd jobs posted in bars to try and give back to Ivalice the best way he could. This saddened him emensely not to have a home, or a powerful position to help the people. But he took what he could get, and made due.

Beowulf and Reis were happy simply to be alive and together. They moved out to the countryside and started a Demon Ranch, for people who wanted a pet, a protector, or even a mode of transportation. They enjoyed their work, and while they weren¡¯t very successful, they never regreted their decision.

Meliadoul knew there was nowhere for her to go now. Her entire family had been killed, and after the church¡¯s scheme, she no longer wanted to go back there. Like Orlandu she made up her mind to simply roam wherever the road lead her. She had little adventure, little money, and no where to go. She was extremely sad, and so decided to head back to Goug to find Mustadio, at least then she¡¯d be with a friend.

Mustadio went back to Goug and took over his father Besrodio¡¯s business. He was even more successful then his dad, and made enough money to let them both live comfortably for the rest of their lives, but he kept his job more as a hobby than anything else. Nothing pleased him more than tinkering with a new toy, or trying his hand at reprogramming Worker 8, who they all decided would be better off with Mustadio.

Cloud was disheartened to find out that the machine that brought him to Ivalice was malfunctioning, and he was stuck there until Mustadio could find a way to fix it. He stayed with Mustadio and helped him the best he could. He was not very adept with technology, but still more so than most of the people around, and Mustadio found a few uses for him.

Agrias like many of the others felt lost after the world had changed so much. The only thing she¡¯d ever done was be a bodyguard, but with Ovelia dead, she had nobody to guard. She wandered the country looking for possible clients, but it seemed that every few months she was drawn back to Warjilis to see Ramza and Alma. She couldn¡¯t really explain it, in fact she hadn¡¯t really noticed until Alma pointed it out one night while Ramza was out on a job.

¡°Agrias, can I ask you something?¡± asked Alma, fetching the kettle from the fire for their tea.

¡°Of course, Alma. What¡¯s on your mind?¡± replied Agrias. It was odd, but she was beginning to really trust Alma, almost like........ a friend.

¡°Well, I don¡¯t mean to be personal but...... well..... I was just wondering why it is that you keep showing up here. I mean I love having you here, and I¡¯m sure Ramza does too. But every time you leave you end up coming back a little bit sooner. This time you were only away a few weeks before you were knocking on the door again.¡± She poured the boiling water into the cups of Gysahl Greens. Alma had long ago realized that while normally used to feed chocobos, the greens made a very delicious tea....... she just had to lie about what was in it. ¡°Well....... I¡¯m not really sure, Alma. I mean, I love being here, it just feels like home. But you¡¯re right I do come here pretty often. I didn¡¯t even realize it to be honest. I guess it could be because you and I have become such close friends.¡± Agrias answered sipping her tea.

Alma simply laughed. ¡°I¡¯m thinking there¡¯s more too it than that.¡±

¡°What?¡± Agrias said confused, but before Alma could answer, Ramza came in the door with some very tattered armour and a large sack of gil over his shoulder.

¡°Agrias! Back again I see. You know I really wish you¡¯d stay longer this time, I could use some help at these jobs.¡± Ramza said, clasping Agrias¡¯ shoulders while she sat. He took a seat next to her and Alma poured him a cup of tea, giggling all the while.

¡°Are you sure that¡¯s the reason you want her to stay, brother?¡± she asked with a smile.

¡°Well of course I enjoy her company, that¡¯s obvious.¡±

Alma sighed. ¡°You two are so blind.¡± and got up to refill the kettle. Ramza and Agrias looked at each other and shrugged.

* * *

So, all was quiet in the land of Ivalice, but someone was making sure it wouldn¡¯t stay that way.

King Delita sat at his thrown in Lesalia, going over the current business of the kingdom with his advisors.

¡°With the recent murder of High Priest Funeral the nation is in chaos over who the new religious leader will be. The only obstacle to monarchy has ever had to complete dominance has been the Church. But with the High Priest gone it would be simple for us to put one of our own men in his place, then we can assure that the public will follow you and only you.¡± said Minister Gelwan, but Delita was hardly paying attention. After the glory of finally becoming King he now missed the adventure and excitement he had in getting this far. Truth be told, being a King is boring work.

¡°I¡¯ll leave that up to you Minister. You seem to have this all planned out. But I¡¯ve had enough of this for now, all other new business may be brought forth tomorrow, you are all dismissed.¡± and with that his aides bowed and departed. ¡°And guards you may wait outside, I¡¯m not to be disturbed.¡±

Delita turned to face the window. From his high parapet he could look out upon his kingdom almost as far as Lionel. A breathtaking sight to say the least. Couped up in the thrown room it was his primary source of amusement. But it also left him much time to think. And when he had time to think he thought about Teta. How long had it been since she died? He could scarcely remember. Not long enough it would seem, for her face was still engraved in his mind. It nearly brought him to tears.

¡°Horrible...... what happened to her.¡± said a voice behind him. Delita whirled to see Gelwan in front of him again.

¡°I said you were dismissed senator..... how did you....¡± but as he was talking the figure of the senator seemed to warp and fade. Changing to that of a man in a long black coat and shortly cut hair with two odd pieces which were very long and trailed from his bangs over his head.

¡°They have weak minds..... as aparently do you, your highness.¡± the man said with a slight smile.

Delita was about to yell to the guards but he felt something restraining him.

¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, I¡¯m not here to kill you, or it¡¯d be done already. I¡¯m simply here to talk. And as you¡¯ve probably noticed I¡¯m stopping you from calling your guards in here. Wouldn¡¯t want to be interupted now would we?¡±

¡°Who are you? And what power is this that you possess?¡± Delita said in a dignified voice, hiding the fear and respect he felt for the stranger in front of him.

¡°I am the Lord of Darkness, but for our purposes you may call me Riot. I have the power of all that is dark. I go wherever I please, whenever I please. For I am a Vagrant. A wanderer. A walker between worlds near and far.¡± the man stated in a bored tone. Like he¡¯d explain it a million times before.

¡°If that is true, then why have you come here to this world?¡± Delita questioned, not entirely believing the man¡¯s story.

¡°I¡¯ve come to you as I have come to rulers in other planes to offer you a proposition.¡±

Delita sat back down in his thrown. ¡°This sounds interesting. Please, go on.¡±

* * *

Ramza and Agrias were walking back home, carrying the spoils from a recent quest in Lionel.

¡°I have to say Ramza, it¡¯s quite refreshing to be back fighting along side you again. Even if it is only against petty thieves and minor demons. I¡¯m thinking about staying a little longer.¡± Agrias said, keeping her eyes on the road in front of her. Ramza looked over happily.

¡°Alma and I would be delighted if you¡¯d stay. I don¡¯t know why but the house seems empty when you¡¯re not there.¡± and after that they continued on in silence for a while. Both emersed in their own thoughts.

¡°Greetings, nobles and commoners of Ivalice.¡± a voice boomed above them. One that was very familiar.

 

¡°Delita!?!?¡± Ramza gasped, looking in the sky and seeing a giant vision of Delita¡¯s head looking out over the land.

¡°It is I, your King Delita Hyral. I know this must seem strange to you. It is for me too. But a man has appeared to me recently and offered me a proposition. One I couldn¡¯t refuse. It was that man who gave me the power to tell you all this. The deal we made was this. In one year¡¯s time, a tournament shall be held on the island of Nelveska. This tournament is open to all those in Ivalice who believe themselves worthy of the challenge. There will be three divisions. Noble men, noble women, and commoners. The winners from each division shall be granted twice their weight in gil. But that is not nearly all. The main goal of this entity is to arrange an even bigger tournament than this one. One where the greatest competitors from worlds far and wide will meet, where one person will be declared the greatest fighter of all time. And that person will be granted one wish of his or her choosing. The winner of each division of our tournament, as well as the competitors who finish in second place will be entered in the ultimate tournament. So there you are. You have 1 year to prepare for the greatest spectacle our land has ever known. One year till the Three Champions of Ivalice are crowned, and the Ultimate Champion will be decided. I encourage all of you to spend this time in training for what may be your chance to have anything you wish in the entire world granted. For this is the power of the one called Riot. I bid you good day.¡± and with that the vision vanished and left Ramza and Agrias (as well as every other person in the country) staring gape mouthed at the sky where he appeared, wondering if it were real, or just a dream.

 

It was a very dark night in the slums of Goug. Meliadoul had just arrived after many days travel on her way to visit Mustadio. The street smelled like boiling oil, and the steam from the machines blocked most of the sky so the stars could hardly be seen. The only light was emanating from a small lantern Meliadoul carried, and from the few windows of people who were still awake at this late hour.

She took a turn down a very cramped alley, a shortcut she¡¯d learned a while ago to get to Mustadio¡¯s house near the dig site. As she was walking through her instincts told her something wasn¡¯t right, but she passed it off as fatigue and kept walking, she was near the house and didn¡¯t feel like stopping.

Suddenly she heard something move behind her. She turned quickly, the light of her lantern barely penetrating the oily thick darkness surrounding her. She saw nothing and thought it must have just been a rat. But when she turned back around she was face to face with a grinning Monk.

She reached for her sword out of instinct, but where it normally hung at her hip was nothing but an empty scabbard. She looked down dumbly then back towards the Monk who was chuckling under his breath.

¡°Looking for this?¡± said a female voice behind her. Meliadoul turned again and saw a female Knight standing in the darkness, her own Save the Queen broadsword glinting in the light of the lantern. Meliadoul was completely baffled. How¡¯d she steal it without her even noticing?

¡°Oh, not so confident with your precious sword now are you, Ms. Tingel?¡± said the Monk again. When Meliadoul turned again she could faintly see something glowing around the hands of the Monk. ¡°I guess Ramza should have thought about that before he dumped us for you.¡± and with that he swung his arm around, blue energy glowing around his fist and hit her in the stomach. Meliadoul flew backwards and impaled herself on the sword the Knight carried. She looked down incredulously at the blade protruding from her stomach, and she thought her lantern must be dying, because everything was slowly getting darker.

¡°I¡¯m sorry it had to come to this miss. But Ramza needs to be taught a lesson.¡± the Knight said, a hint of compassion in her voice. She pulled the blood-soaked sword from the woman¡¯s gut, letting her collapse to the ground.

¡°Now, for Mustadio.¡±

* * *

¡°You gonna be alright out there, Cloud? It¡¯s getting pretty dark.¡± Mustadio asked through the kitchen window.

¡°Yeah, I¡¯m just doing a little light sparring with Worker 8, I¡¯ll be in in a minute.¡± replied Cloud, he circled Worker 8, his Materia Sword drawn and ready. Worker 8 stood perfectly still, awaiting commands.

¡°Attack.¡± Cloud said, and Worker 8¡¯s eyes blinked red, and he charged. Cloud parried the monsterous arms of the robot with his sword, retreating under the relentless blows of the machine. One shot made him leap backwards, giving Worker 8 enough time to charge energy to his weapons. When Cloud landed he was faced with a full force beam of energy from Worker 8 that he barely dodged, leaving a small crater in the ground where he stood.

Cloud ran forward, anticipating the machine¡¯s next move, as it swung it¡¯s massive arms downwards, trying to compact Cloud into a tiny block, Cloud slid on the damp grass between the robot¡¯s legs and kicked upwards as hard as he could, just barely unbalancing the huge ball of iron. He then flipped up, but before he could bring his sword down on Worker 8¡¯s back, he heard Mustadio¡¯s gun go off in front of the house. He ordered Worker 8 to stop and ran around the building.

* * *

¡°With all that noise back there I¡¯d better take a walk until they calm down.¡± Mustadio said to himself, leaving the house for a walk. But he didn¡¯t get far before he noticed something odd. The smell of blood was in the air. It was a smell he loathed. It reminded him of the dark muddy days on the road with Ramza. All the death, all the blood, all the wasted life. He¡¯d never forget the smell. But why was it here. He had his gun out in an instant in case something happened.

It was then he felt a hand move around his throat from behind and another grab at his arm. He shot the gun off on reflex before he succumb to the person¡¯s control. Whoever they were, they were strong.

Then a figure emerged from the darkness. A Monk just like any other, but he had a disturbed look on his face, and he was holding something behind his back.

¡°Don¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t remember me Mustadio. I was still around when we came across you. But that¡¯s okay, I was very different back then. Tell you what, if you don¡¯t remember me. You must remember her.¡± and the monk produced Meliadoul¡¯s severed head, still dripping blood from behind his back, and threw it at Mustadio¡¯s feet. Mustadio tried to scream through the hand covering his mouth, but he was still gagged. He could only stand there and stare at the surprised death gaze of someone who was once his friend.

It was then that Cloud came running around the side of the house, sword drawn, and found the group there. Quick as lightning the hand around Mustadio¡¯s mouth was replaced with a sword at his throat.

¡°Put the sword down or he dies.¡± The woman holding him said. Know that he could finally speak, Mustadio took the opportunity.

¡°Wha..... Xavier........ Lavian? Is it you? Why are you two doing this? What did you do to Meliadoul? What are you gonna do to me? Wha...¡±

¡°Shut up, Mustadio. Yes, it¡¯s us. Why? Take a wild guess. Meliadoul? You can clearly see what we did to her. And I won¡¯t lie to you, we plan to do the same to you.¡±

Cloud was again about to attack, but a small trickle of blood running down Mustadio¡¯s throat stopped him dead.

¡°I don¡¯t know what the hell is going on here, but let Mustadio go!¡± he said, looking back and forth between the two warriors. ¡°They don¡¯t look any different from normal fighters. How¡¯d they get the jump on Mustadio like this. Even more how¡¯d they do that to a great warrior like Meliadoul?¡± Cloud thought to himself.

¡°Go ahead and tell him Mustadio, I could use a bedtime story.¡± Lavian said.

Mustadio sighed. ¡°These two are Lavian and Xavier. Two of the warriors that used to fight with Ramza. But once Meliadoul and Orlandu joined up with us, Ramza thought it¡¯d be better for everyone if these two, as well as Alicia and Rad were to leave the rest to the more skilled fighters.¡±

¡°I couldn¡¯t have said it better myself. We were shunned. Why? Because were weren¡¯t nobles with sword skills like Meliadoul and Orlandu. But of course they kept Mustadio here because he had his sniping abilities. But not us, oh no. It ruined us. We wandered for months, not knowing where to go or what to do. Rad ended up hanging himself from a tree in Sweegy Woods because he couldn¡¯t stand the rejection. We lost Alicia when we were attacked by Behemoths. The only thing that kept Lavian and I going was each other. We came to love each other, but even that wasn¡¯t enough. We were out our end when we stumbled into the Dead Forest. We thought it¡¯d be fitting to be killed by others like us. Abandoned souls. But then, something happened. The souls of the forest didn¡¯t attack us, but embraced us. The fed us, trained us, made us strong again. All because of Cyrus.¡± Xavier said. His eyes were filled with pain and rage.

¡°Cyrus was different from the other ghosts of the forest. He was dead like they were, but he had died elsewhere. But his soul had migrated here. Not even he knew why or how. All he knew was that he was in a place where there were others like him. That he was in a place far away from the ones he loved. He gained control over the other spirits. And when we entered he sympathized with us. Under him we trained harder than ever before. We became stronger, faster, smarter. And under his instruction we learned how to combine the skills of the so-called lesser job classes and improve them. To use all of our skills at once. Until finally we had the power to come back and teach Ramza the lesson he deserves. I¡¯m sorry Mustadio but this is the only way. The only way he¡¯ll realize what a mistake he made.¡±

Mustadio started to squirm under Lavian¡¯s grip as Xavier raised his fist, a blue glow emanating from around it. But the killing blow never came.¡±

 

¡°Cherry Blossom!¡± Cloud shouted and swung his sword through the air. Xavier barely had time to turn around before a powerful blast of energy sent him flying into the wall of a nearby building.

¡°Xavier!¡± yelled Lavian, and with an angry look slit Mustadio¡¯s throat from ear to ear. She ran towards her lover, while Mustadio collapsed to the ground, his hands groping at his mortally wounded throat.

¡°****. I knew the super villain speech was a bad idea........ it gave him enough time to charge his attack.¡± Xavier said as Lavian helped him to his feet. They knew it was safe to depart when the saw Cloud hunched over Mustadio instead of chasing them. They left through the darkness of the alley.

¡°Mustadio! Dear god!¡± Cloud exclaimed, running over to his wounded friend. Blood was everywhere, and his pupils were already beginning to dilate.

¡°Besrodio! Get out here! And bring potions! Lots of them! Hurry!¡± He yelled frantically, holding his hands on the wound.

¡°What¡¯s going on he......... oh my god! Son!¡± Besrodio yelled out the window. He ran and fetched a bag full of potions on the table, but by the time he made it outside, Cloud was closing the young man¡¯s eyes.

¡°He¡¯s..... gone, Besrodio. I¡¯m so sorry.....¡± Cloud stood, and looked into the old man¡¯s eyes. The bag of potions dropped to the floor, and Besdrodio knelt on the damp ground. He was almost too surprised to cry. He crawled over to his son¡¯s lifeless body, shaking and dazed. He touched Mustadio¡¯s face, the colour starting to drain. And that did it. He doubled over and cried aloud. Those neighbours not awaken by the sounds of the violence were now at their windows, looking out at the body of a man most of them knew very well. At his father¡¯s heaving sobs, and the puddle of blood on the cold grass.

Cloud, who was seldom compassionate about anything, took Besrodio by the shoulders and lead him back inside. Several of the people living nearby began to gather around the body. Not a word was said among them. Once Besrodio was inside, Cloud returned with a large blanket, and gently wrapped up his friend¡¯s body. Of course not a tear was shown on the young man¡¯s cheek, but he wept on the inside for his fallen comrade. It only served to bring back foul memories from his own past. Several men helped him carry the body down the street to the undertaker.

* * *

Xavier collapsed on the bed with a grimace of pain. The blow had hurt quite a bit, and his torso was cut up pretty bad. Lavian grabbed a handful of healing potions and sat down beside Xavier.

¡°Drink this, it¡¯ll be okay, you¡¯ve had worse.¡± she said, a calm smile on her face. A smile that tried to hide the genuine concern she felt. Xavier smiled back and placed a hand on her cheek.

¡°What would I do without you?¡± he said and downed a potion. It burned on the way down but he began to feel a little better almost immediately.

¡°Well, we got the job done...... all things considered...... gah....¡± Xavier said painfully. He opened another potion and took a long slow drink. It burned less this time, and his stomach began to numb a bit.

¡°Don¡¯t drink them too fast, it¡¯ll make you sick.¡± Lavian said standing up.

¡°Yes, mother....¡± Xavier said in a mocking tone. Lavian smiled mischieviously and punched him lightly in the gut. He cried out in pain and she laughed. ¡°What was that?¡±

Xavier laughed. ¡°Makes me wonder who wears the pants in this relationship.¡±

Lavian smiled. ¡°Oh we both do. But too bad they¡¯ll have to stay on till that wound of yours is healed.¡±

Xavier looked shocked. ¡°Oh, c¡¯mon, I feel better already, see!¡± he said as he tried to stand, but the pain in his stomach made him gasp and fall back to the bed. Lavian laughed again.

¡°You never could fool me. Down boy.¡± and she came back over to sit beside him again. She kissed him on the cheek and laid him back down onto the bed.

¡°As much as I hate Ramza for abandoning us, I have to thank him for one thing. If it weren¡¯t for him, we may never have met.¡± she said, brushing Xavier¡¯s forehead. He smiled.

¡°I know... I honestly wish things didn¡¯t have to be this way between us and him. We used to be close friends. I remember back when we went to the academy together in Gariland. Ha! I had to sneak in under an assumed name because I was a commoner. Ramza stood up for me when they questioned my lineage. I¡¯ll never forget that. That¡¯s why I¡¯m so torn. But then I think how he sent us away... the four of us, alone, out in the middle of the Zeklaus Desert. We were too weak to fight the forces they were going up against. So instead of protecting us like they should have, they sent us out into the wilderness to die. No food, no money, only the clothes we had on our back and the swords at our belts. As much as I once admired that man, I will never forgive him for that. Never.¡± Xavier said, a distant look in his eye. As Lavian sat looking at him a single tear ran down his cheek. She hadn¡¯t known Ramza nearly as long as he had, and the dismissal had come as less of a surprise to her. But she felt his pain as her own, and swore that she would do anything she could to help him rest. But could she kill otherwise innocent people for a simlple grudge. The answer was yes. She¡¯d already done so that evening. The thought brought a sick feeling to her stomach, and she got up to leave.

¡°Good night, my love.¡± she said sadly, but he was already asleep. She quietly crept into the ajoining room and did the same. But as expected, her sleep was wracked with nightmares.