This is going to be a very, very fun story for me to write.
Ashrak
Prolog
"Kinoc! We are going to be late unless you stop your whining and hurry up!" Auron quipped, half pushing the pudgy man up the towering steps of Bevelle's library. Kinoc grunted, Auron's two large hands pressing against his chubby shoulder blades. The two elder teenagers were scampering towards their morning class when they almost ran head first into a tall, handsome Yevonite named Braska.
"Auron, Kinoc. Hurry up or Lord Mika will be displeased," Braska chided, falling into step behind the two breathless monks. Braska sighed and shook his head with a smile, his long decorated robes falling gracefully behind.
"This… was… his fault!" Auron hissed, strands of ink black hair falling into disarray upon his crinkled forehead.
"Was not!" Kinoc gasped, wiping his damp brow. "You're the one whom forgot your training boots-"
"Enough."
The three 17 year olds froze at Lord Mika's soft yet commanding voice. Kinoc swallowed heavily, and Auron just stared at the ground, his rust eyes refusing to meet the elder Summoner's. Silently and in single file, the three students of Yevon walked solemnly into the library and sat cross- legged before the many ancient scrolls that adorned the walls. The room was stone, like the majority of Bevelle's structures, and the architecture was as ancient as Yevon himself. In this particular library, the books were hundreds of years old, and only closely monitored students were allowed to be taught in such a sacred area. Lord Mika had planned this lesson over a month ago, making the tardiness of the three students all the more aggravating.
Mika sighed and stood before the most colorful of the scrolls, the oldest off them all. Auron, Kinoc, and Braska sat quietly before the summoner, their wide youthful eyes drinking in the sacred text.
"This," Mika began, "Is truly the most… sacred of scrolls within Bevelle's libraries. Taken from Zanarkand before the great burning, this scroll was supposedly hand-written by one of Yevon's most trusted monks, just before the dawn of Sin." The three students stared up at the aged tapestry in awe. "This scroll contains the legend of the most sacred of races. More so than we humans, more so than the Guado or Ronso. This tapestry depicts Yevon's oldest children, a race He created with His bare hands. We call this race… the Ancients."
Mika moved closer to the aging material, pointing but not touching. "I'm sure you've heard of the Ancients, correct?"
"Yes," Braska intoned, "The Ancients were the first guardians of the summoners, hundreds of years ago."
"That is correct. After the birth of Sin, the Ancients would guard the summoners as they journeyed to Zanarkand."
"What did they look like?" Kinoc asked, his eyes moving rapidly over the tapestry.
"We have no definitive image or drawing of these creatures. The old text of Yevon describes them as powerful beasts, capable of changing their form. Cat, Wolven, other wild things. Other, more refined documents account the creatures as humans with the eyes of animals. Both state the supreme power that these beings possessed, the power of Yevon himself.
"It is said that long ago, the Ancients would come to the summoners in the form of a child, man or woman, and study the summoner for a time. They studied the form and soul, searching out only the strongest and companionate. When the Ancient was satisfied, he would change, becoming his true form, and accompany the summoner until he or she summoned the final aeon. They have been described as… mortal aeons, aeons of flesh and blood, if you can imagine." Mika paused a moment to let the image manifest itself to the teenagers.
"What happened to them, then? If they were so powerful?" Auron asked quietly, he too enchanted by the fairytale Mika wove before them.
Mika sighed. "That is… unclear. Some text depicts a strange war between them, some say that a few of these creatures betrayed Yevon, and the others tried to cleanse their ranks of the infidels. I have read, in my time, of a monk who came upon an argument; a summoner cursing her Ancient. The Ancient shook his mighty head and simply… faded away. The truth? The truth… is that we do not know for sure. Approximately two hundred years after the birth of Sin, they simply… disappeared."
Mika stood back, observing the dreamy looks of his three best students. The elder summoner sighed wistfully; Auron and Kinoc would soon leave his classes, their future goals being of the warrior cast. Only Braska would remain to be tutored. Mika was unsure if the boy would become a simple priest, or take the path of the summoner. Regardless, Braska had seemingly been blessed by Yevon, his bright blue eyes eager to appease and help.
"Do you think… they are still alive?" Auron suddenly asked, his gaze shifting from the scroll to the summoner. His russet eyes were intent and scrutinizing, you could practically see the gears churning inside his head.
Mika merely smirked. "No one has seen or written of an ancient in hundreds of years. Today, they seem only a fairytale. No one knows. Regardless, it is Yevon's wishes whether they are here or not. Now, be gone with you. Our time here is done."
Auron and Kinoc stood, followed by Braska. But before they left, Auron turned one last time to look upon the aging tapestry… and wonder.
Ashrak
Prolog
"Kinoc! We are going to be late unless you stop your whining and hurry up!" Auron quipped, half pushing the pudgy man up the towering steps of Bevelle's library. Kinoc grunted, Auron's two large hands pressing against his chubby shoulder blades. The two elder teenagers were scampering towards their morning class when they almost ran head first into a tall, handsome Yevonite named Braska.
"Auron, Kinoc. Hurry up or Lord Mika will be displeased," Braska chided, falling into step behind the two breathless monks. Braska sighed and shook his head with a smile, his long decorated robes falling gracefully behind.
"This… was… his fault!" Auron hissed, strands of ink black hair falling into disarray upon his crinkled forehead.
"Was not!" Kinoc gasped, wiping his damp brow. "You're the one whom forgot your training boots-"
"Enough."
The three 17 year olds froze at Lord Mika's soft yet commanding voice. Kinoc swallowed heavily, and Auron just stared at the ground, his rust eyes refusing to meet the elder Summoner's. Silently and in single file, the three students of Yevon walked solemnly into the library and sat cross- legged before the many ancient scrolls that adorned the walls. The room was stone, like the majority of Bevelle's structures, and the architecture was as ancient as Yevon himself. In this particular library, the books were hundreds of years old, and only closely monitored students were allowed to be taught in such a sacred area. Lord Mika had planned this lesson over a month ago, making the tardiness of the three students all the more aggravating.
Mika sighed and stood before the most colorful of the scrolls, the oldest off them all. Auron, Kinoc, and Braska sat quietly before the summoner, their wide youthful eyes drinking in the sacred text.
"This," Mika began, "Is truly the most… sacred of scrolls within Bevelle's libraries. Taken from Zanarkand before the great burning, this scroll was supposedly hand-written by one of Yevon's most trusted monks, just before the dawn of Sin." The three students stared up at the aged tapestry in awe. "This scroll contains the legend of the most sacred of races. More so than we humans, more so than the Guado or Ronso. This tapestry depicts Yevon's oldest children, a race He created with His bare hands. We call this race… the Ancients."
Mika moved closer to the aging material, pointing but not touching. "I'm sure you've heard of the Ancients, correct?"
"Yes," Braska intoned, "The Ancients were the first guardians of the summoners, hundreds of years ago."
"That is correct. After the birth of Sin, the Ancients would guard the summoners as they journeyed to Zanarkand."
"What did they look like?" Kinoc asked, his eyes moving rapidly over the tapestry.
"We have no definitive image or drawing of these creatures. The old text of Yevon describes them as powerful beasts, capable of changing their form. Cat, Wolven, other wild things. Other, more refined documents account the creatures as humans with the eyes of animals. Both state the supreme power that these beings possessed, the power of Yevon himself.
"It is said that long ago, the Ancients would come to the summoners in the form of a child, man or woman, and study the summoner for a time. They studied the form and soul, searching out only the strongest and companionate. When the Ancient was satisfied, he would change, becoming his true form, and accompany the summoner until he or she summoned the final aeon. They have been described as… mortal aeons, aeons of flesh and blood, if you can imagine." Mika paused a moment to let the image manifest itself to the teenagers.
"What happened to them, then? If they were so powerful?" Auron asked quietly, he too enchanted by the fairytale Mika wove before them.
Mika sighed. "That is… unclear. Some text depicts a strange war between them, some say that a few of these creatures betrayed Yevon, and the others tried to cleanse their ranks of the infidels. I have read, in my time, of a monk who came upon an argument; a summoner cursing her Ancient. The Ancient shook his mighty head and simply… faded away. The truth? The truth… is that we do not know for sure. Approximately two hundred years after the birth of Sin, they simply… disappeared."
Mika stood back, observing the dreamy looks of his three best students. The elder summoner sighed wistfully; Auron and Kinoc would soon leave his classes, their future goals being of the warrior cast. Only Braska would remain to be tutored. Mika was unsure if the boy would become a simple priest, or take the path of the summoner. Regardless, Braska had seemingly been blessed by Yevon, his bright blue eyes eager to appease and help.
"Do you think… they are still alive?" Auron suddenly asked, his gaze shifting from the scroll to the summoner. His russet eyes were intent and scrutinizing, you could practically see the gears churning inside his head.
Mika merely smirked. "No one has seen or written of an ancient in hundreds of years. Today, they seem only a fairytale. No one knows. Regardless, it is Yevon's wishes whether they are here or not. Now, be gone with you. Our time here is done."
Auron and Kinoc stood, followed by Braska. But before they left, Auron turned one last time to look upon the aging tapestry… and wonder.