Yay for another short by me. This was at first my entry in the Phantasy-Star-Arts art jam for Jan. on Deviantart. The goal was to attempt to make Phantasy Star medieval. Didn't post it right after because I didn't want posting it here to influence the votes. Now that it's a few months after the deadline, I think it's safe to post now.
I only own Ami, other characters that are not deemed PSO canon are from my friends and I have received permission from them beforehand to use them.
"This is robotic speech"
The sun's rays beamed through the window of a room. There was slight movement from the person under the sheets of the medium sized bed. After a few moments, the person awakens. A female, more specifically. She makes her way to the bathroom to get her morning routines out of the way. The female looked at herself, stylized short blue hair with narrow blue eyes lighter in shade. Her elongated ears pointed upward, a prominent feature of her newman race.
After completing her routines, she is dressed in long navy blue robes with a black undershirt and leggings. She walked over to her dresser where a piece of folded parchment laid. She opened the paper reading its contents again. The Principal had called her. Wanting her to start back up on her investigation. The female took a medallion and put it around her neck. It was mostly gold, except for the middle. That was embellished in pink of a symbol. Her Pinkal section ID. The newman slipped on her boots. She couldn't afford to make them wait.
Out of her small home, the female walked through the town of Pioneer. Pioneer was the epicenter of all business in the planet of Ragol. Thousands of people, different races and cultures together at one city. Her living section of the city was in a particularly close knit community. She gave small waves to her neighbors as she made her way towards the government building. Going through the usual motions of showing her credentials to the guards she had reached the main room. To the left was a human girl. She was younger than the newman woman by quite a few years. Her black hair adorned in pigtails. To her right was another human, a woman. She was older with her short light brown hair in a bob like style. In the middle was an elder human male. It was obvious that the wrinkles on his face were a result of stress as well as his age.
"Hunter Ami." he said.
The newman's ears perked up.
"Yes sir?" she responded.
Her voice was low, a sign of rarely talking. Ami was a quiet hunter. She really couldn't figure out why she never spoke more. She got along pretty well with most of her guildmates, so it wasn't a manner of shyness. He took out three discs. Each of them were a different color; red, blue, and green. He passed them to her.
"We scanned the discs you've given us after your missions and they are most definitely keys to something."
Ami took the discs and secured them in her waist pouch.
"Ironically enough," he continued, "Our researchers had found the gateway to a passage to where the first Pioneer was. Maybe now we can find out what happened to it."
Ami nodded. She recalled the story of the first Pioneer, dubbed 'Pioneer 1' by the scholars. It was completely annihilated with no reasoning as to why. It's one of the well known mysteries of Ragol. She shook her head to break her from her thoughts. The male looked at her again before starting.
"We would like for you to explore these ruins and see what you can find. Without a doubt, it'll be dangerous so bring three other hunters with you. As usual you can see Irene for the details" he said.
Ami looked at him. "Yes sir." she said again.
The woman that was to his left, Irene, walked to a room.
"Follow me."
She followed Irene to the room. Irene placed a piece of paper on the desk. "This gives you permission to explore the ruins." Ami took the paper and put it in her pouch as well. For a moment the two women were silent.
"Has there been any new information on Rico?" she asked.
Rico Tyrell was the principal's daughter. A well known Hunter amongst Pioneer. There wasn't a hunter who didn't know about the accomplishments of 'Red Ring Rico'. It was assumed that there were hunters who became one because of her. She too began the investigation of what happened to Pioneer 1. But she had disappeared. When Ami began her work with the government, Irene had asked Ami to discover what had happened to Rico in the meanwhile. They could see that Principal Tyrell wanted to ask to lead a search. Unfortunately it didn't reflect well for a person of his stature to ask for such a personal favor. Along her travels, Ami had come across documents from Rico. Some were helpful about what laid beyond Pioneer's walls. Others were side remarks.
Ami shook her head.
Irene looked down at the table for a moment.
"I see..." Then she looked at the hunter. "That is all then. The ruins are uncharted territory for us, so we don't know what is ahead. Be careful."
Ami walked into the Hunter's Guild. It looked full as usual. It was the place to go if you made your living as a hunter. She could see various people of the different races, Newmans, Humans, and Casts. Her eyes swept the building. She couldn't find her usual party members among the crowd. It worried her a bit, she had to find some people for her mission. And three strangers just didn't feel right with her. Ami walked to the back, which held the stock room.
"Another quest?" asked the attendant.
"Yeah..." Ami said quietly.
The attendant was a human woman, dressed in light blue robes. She short blond hair bounced as she turned around. Shuffling of weapons could be heard.
"So what will you want to equip today?"
"Just a sword and my daggers." Ami said.
A few minutes later three blades were presented to Ami. They looked to be made from similar creator. The long thin blades on all of them showed the level of skill that was put into it. Ami examined each of the blades before putting them on her belt.
"The Tsumikiri and Two Kamui, as you requested." said the attendant, "It must be a pretty high level quest."
Ami didn't elaborate on the quest. She just nodded. "Thank you."
Ami turned back around to walk amongst the guild. She sighed to herself.
'The principal is so insistent in bringing a full party.'
"Ami?" said a male.
The newman turned at the sound of her name. She noticed a male walking towards her.
"It is you Ami. It's been so long." he said.
The male was a human dressed in black mage robes. The robes had teal accents, making it stand out more. At the base of his neck was a silver medal with a blue engraved symbol. Ami knew that his ID belonged in the Bluefull section. She displayed a rare smile.
"Marron, it has been a long while."
Marron was a Force. Unlike Ami, he was well versed in magical studies. Even though her race was genetically superior when it came to magics. He smiled back at her.
"You're going on a quest right? I noticed you have your weapons out."
She nodded her head. She looked into his teal eyes. She knew the question that was coming up. Ami shrugged her shoulders. Having a Force in the party would be way more beneficial.
As a Newman, Ami did have access to magic as well. But devoting herself to being physically strong locked her out of learning the advanced magic. She touched Marron's shoulder.
"I could use a Force, want to come with?" she asked.
Marron nodded. "I was hoping you'd ask."
The two wandered around the guild. They kept their eyes out on potential party members to add to the party. Ami stopped when she saw a lone female newman sitting at a table. She walked up to her. The newman looked at her. Ami was immediately startled by her red eyes. It was then she noticed that the newman was smaller than her. She looked to be maybe a year or two younger as well. The newman stood up. Ami noticed that her clothing was similar to hers. Just in violets.
"You're a Hunter aren't you?" she asked.
Ami nodded. "And you as well?"
The newman nodded an affirmative. Ami walked closer to her. She saw that the newman had a huge sword propped against the table. Maybe larger than her Tsumikiri. Around the newman's waist was her medal. Golden but bearing an orange symbol, belonging to Oran ID. Ami could see that despite her stature, the newman had to be skilled to wield a sword twice her size. She took a deep breath.
"I'm going on a quest. Do you want to go with?"
The newman appeared to think about it for a moment.
"Yes." she said.
Ami briefly smiled before sticking her hand out.
"Ami."
"Tingle."
After exchanging information, Ami began to look for a final party member. She felt someone tap her on the shoulder. She turned around to see a person. This person was female. The woman was tall with dark brown skin and long black hair. She wore a dark purple one piece bodysuit with the same colored shoulder guards. Her eyes were a lighter purple. But unlike the others there was a black circle in the iris and a thin line going across each eye. Everything about her just made her look exotic instead of intimidating.
"Newman. Hunter Ami. Correct?" she asked in a monotone voice.
Ami nodded. "I am." The woman took a moment to look at Ami. Ami noticed that on her chest was a metallic medallion with a symbol engraved in purple. The medallion looked to be grafted into the skin.
"Principal Tyrell requested my assistance for this quest. I am Lacey, model number 458. My strong suit is physical attacks. Shall I go on?"
"That isn't necessary." Ami said. She looked down at her hands. "Lacey right? Do you think you can talk more...human? I'm a bit uncomfortable with your current speech."
"Understood."
There was a few moments of silence before Lacey looked at Ami again.
"Is this better?"
Ami nodded. "Much, thank you."
Lacey started to walk towards the exit. "I will go and get prepared. We'll meet at the station."
The group of four were silent as they rode in a carriage to their destination. Ami looked around to see what her fellow party members were doing. She saw that Tingle was looking at the scenery as they were traveling. Marron looked to be flexing his fingers. She could hear him mumble a few words. When she looked at Lacey, the cast was preparing her sword.
"What's this quest anyway?" Marron asked.
Ami shook her head from her thoughts. Then she pulled out the three discs from her pouch.
"There are ruins just pass the mines." she explained, "Apparently these discs are the key to unlocking it. We're going to explore those ruins and see what we can find. Maybe some clues as to what happened to the first Pioneer."
He picked up one of the discs. He noticed the markings on it. "Where did you get these?" he asked.
Ami looked at the other discs in her hands. "From the forest, caves, and mines. Each one had a shrine that housed them." Her eyes went to look at the cast.
"The government recommended you to this quest right Lacey? Do they know more about this?"
Lacey was quiet. Then she shook her head. "I do not. I am a hunter like the rest of you. My information of these items is lacking."
Ami simply nodded. She had known a little that it wouldn't be easy to get information. Ever since she had started these requests, it hadn't been easy.
"I guess we'll see when we get there then."
The group arrived at the entrance to an underground cave. They looked at each other before heading down into the cave. The passage had mining and exploration equipment littering the walls. As they got closer to their destination they noticed that the cave started to form into an entry to a type of building. Tingle touched the wall.
"This looks like it was made recently." she noted.
"Incorrect." said Lacey.
The cast touched the wall. There a few moments of a humming sound. Then she looked at the group.
"These were already created. There has been theories that there was an advanced civilization living in Ragol. Even before the first Pioneer."
Ami shook her head.
"There's no point for us to worry about it now. Lets just get started on our mission."
The other three nodded and continued walking. The group had reached a door made of stone. In the middle was a huge circle with three smaller circles in the middle forming a triangle. Ami touched the circles in the middle. It was an indentation. She used her free hand to take out the three discs from earlier. Then she placed each one in each indentation. The discs began to glow dully in their respective colors. The outside circle began to glow orange. There was a rumbling sound heard, prompting Ami to step back. The door had shook a little before moving up, opening the passage to the group of hunters. Ami looked at each of them.
She gave a small nod.
Marron tightened up his fingerless gloves. The markings on the back of his gloves pulsating lights. Tingle touched the hilt of her long sword, making the edge emit a reddish-aura. Ami could see that the newman enchanted her blade to strengthen the power. Lacey's sword was of a similar make of Tingle's. But she saw the cast insert a capsule into the hilt of hers, making the blade glow a hot pink. Ami felt her sides to take out her two Kamui daggers. Ami felt comfort in the well used daggers.
"Just a moment."
It was Marron who said it. He walked ahead, his back length lavender hair flowing a little with each move. He faced the group. He put his right hand out. "Let me give a little bit of a boost." Lacey nodded.
"Affirmative. There has been signs of being hostile creatures inside."
The force nodded. He softly chanted words at a fast pace. The only words Ami could make out was 'Shifta' and 'Deband'. Around the four of them, sparkles of red and blue lights touched their feet. Ami could feel her body becoming stronger and more sturdy than a few moments prior. Marron stopped chanting and looked at the group, smiling.
"That should lower the amount of surprises we might get." he said.
They stepped inside of the entrance. For a while, they were surrounded by complete darkness. The only source of light were Lacey's and Tingle's strengthened blades. But even with that light there was nothing. Suddenly, they were in a room. The walls were dark brown with navy blue markings. The patterned reminded Ami of veins. The floor they walked on was of a lighter blue. At the corner of the ceiling, was an orange orb. It didn't give off much light, but it was enough. Light mists of steam flowed from the other side.
"This is the ruins huh." Marron remarked.
They walked through the only door of the room. They were led to an even larger room. From the ground, forms began to materialize before them. The forms were a dark purple and had no facial features. Their arms were two light blue blades.
"What are those?" Ami asked.
Lacey had her sword poised to attack. "Keep on your guard. There is little information about these creatures."
The creatures let a out a shriek. The other three were in a stance to attack as well. The creatures walked slowly towards the group. Marron was already chanting, his finger tips showing sparks of fire. Lacey did a downward slash at one of the creatures that got too close. The creature let out another shriek before falling to the floor. Ami moved ahead to intercept one of the enemies that was getting close to Marron. She took one of her daggers to block the slash the creature was about to make at him. She used her weight to knock the creature off balance. Gaining momentum Ami used her free dagger to thrust into where she supposed the creature's mouth was. It stepped back from the group. Ami heard a gurgle and purple liquid leaked from the wound.
Marron opened his eyes. "Gifoie!" he shouted.
Balls of fire circled outward from him. The fire had no feeling when it touched the group. But once it touched the enemies they ignited in flames. The collective cries of the burning creatures was deafening. The smell of burning flesh was prominent in the air. But with all being experienced hunters, they were used to it. The group looked around the area. All that was left was the smoldering corpses. Ami walked over to one of them. She winced at the smell of burning flesh being concentrated.
"That's one strong door if this things haven't burst out yet. You'd think that over all the years they would have managed to escape."
Her eyes turned toward Lacey again. The cast only shook her head.
"I do not know. I was only suggested to be your partner. My knowledge of this area is as much as all other Hunters."
Ami stood up, dusting her robes off. She looked around the field. She noticed that Tingle was staring ahead. She followed her fellow newman's line of sight to reveal a door. "It's unlocked." she simply said.
The trek through the ruins was long and difficult. From all sides, the group was attacked with never before seen creatures. The further they ventured into the ruins, the more ominous it seemed. The deepest depths of the ruins felt more "alive" than the previous floors. If one looked close enough, the walls pulsated.
"How's everyone?" Ami asked.
The creatures were a lot more sturdy as they ventured into the depths of the ruins. They had stopped at a cleared hallway to rest.
"All vital signs are in good standing." Lacey immediately said.
Marron felt around the inside of his robe. He pulled out a vial filled with blue liquid. He uncorked the top and drank down the contents. He grimaced at the taste.
"I'll be fine. Haven't had my reserves drained this much in a long while."
Tingle didn't say anything. She kept staring at the end of the hallway.
"We're getting close."
Ami dusted herself off. She grimaced at how soiled her robes were. They had killed so many creatures but there seemed to be no end to them. She looked at Tingle.
"Close to what?"
Tingle walked on.
"Wait!" Ami shouted.
She ran after her. She stopped shortly after. Ami felt a sponge like texture under her boots. Her light blue eyes went downward. Then she screamed. She fell backwards, scooting herself far away from the object. Her back hit Marron's legs. She pointed towards the object. Marron followed Ami's point to the object. He let out a gasp. Lacey walked to where Ami was pointing at. She lowered her eyes a bit, looking at the object.
"It's a human arm. Female."
Marron helped Ami up. Ami touched her chest. She felt her heart beat rapidly.
"This was recent." Lacey added, "It hasn't decomposed that much to make it noticeable." She look on ahead, the door at the end of the hallway was open.
"I am beginning to wonder if this is the mission that the Hunters went missing..." she quietly said.
"Wait!" called Ami, "We're supposed to be the first hunters here right?"
"That is correct. I do not know why there are limbs here."
The three walked to that opening. They soon saw the source of the hand. On the ground laid a young girl, not quite the age of adulthood. The long black hair fanned out. Various cuts and holes were made in her soldier armor an arm missing. Beside her body was a broken handgun and rifle. Marron picked up the medal from her chest. He touched the white markings.
"A Whitill ID." he said quietly.
Ami continued staring at the female.
'I've seen her around the guild. Just starting out if I remembered correctly.'
Lacey searched through the female's clothing. She took out a card. She looked over the front and back of the card.
"Name, Khyli. Whitill. Ranger class. Started last month."
She took the medal out of Marron's hands and put it in her side pouch, alongside with the card. Ami shook her head.
"We'll need to report this to the Guild." Ami reported.
"Negative." Lacey interjected, "After we complete our mission. There's nothing we can do to change that she is no longer alive."
Ami frowned at the answer. But she knew that Lacey was right. They had to finish this mission. The cast looked ahead into the room. "There are more pressing matters we have to attend to." she added
Ami and Marron nodded. The three walked into the room. This room was different than the others they had traveled so far.
It was bright.
Ami looked around the area. There was a sky, hills, an even a field of flowers.
"What is this place?" Marron asked. He knelt down and touched the flowers. "It feels real."
Lacey kept walking, towards an obelisk. Ami followed after her. They stopped just before the steps leading to it. Ami gasped at the site.
"W-w-what?!"
The obelisk had the facial features and limbs of people. Every now and then Ami could make out medals, Section IDs. The sight of it overwhelmed her. She turned her head and heaved up her stomach's contents. Marron went to Ami's side and rubbed her back. She touched his chest to stop him.
"I'll be fine." she muttered.
She turned to look at the grotesque monument.
"Being a hunter, I'm used to seeing the dead. But this is even beyond my restraints. Who could do such a thing?" she asked.
"What." Lacey corrected, "Not who. What. It is impossible for any person to do something so grand."
Ami processed the information. She pulled out a parchment from her pouch. The writing on it was legible, despite the hurried strokes of the handwriting.
"Rico...she wrote that something could have been sealed here." Ami remarked.
They looked at the monument again. Ami winced at the expressions on the faces of the corpses. Whatever faces she could make out, they looked to be at the height of pain. She shivered at possible outcomes.
'Whatever they went through, it must have been torture.'
There was laughing. The three looked to see Tingle appear from behind the monument.
"Tingle!" called Marron, "What are you doin-"
Lacey placed a hand in front of him. "Stop." she said.
She noticed Tingle's body swaying back and forth. Her eyes widened seeing the group. A smirk was planted on her face.
"The dark god." she said.
She caressed the altar that was just in front of the monument.
"This is what happened to the first city of Pioneer. They thought the ruins was ripe with resources to make the kingdom flourish. But they touched something they shouldn't have. The Dark God. That which was sealed by our ancestors thousands of years ago. He's sought out the perfect body. So lonely, so very very lonely..."
Ami and Marron let out a gasp. Their minds only went to one conclusion.
"So these are the failed hosts? This monument is the failed hosts!?" Marron shouted.
Tingle was silent for a moment. "After their destruction there was nothing. And then They came. They provided more fuel. But no one was quite enough."
The front of the monument began to shift at the surface. It rippled as something began to emerge. A feminine head of short reddish-orange hair appeared first and stopped at the neck. Then two arm emerged stopping at the elbow. On the left wrist was a red bangle. The woman was unconscious, only being held by the obelisk.
"Rico!?" exclaimed Ami.
Tingle laughed more. She lifted her arms.
"But this one! She has proven that her strength will help his revival greatly!" Tingle proclaimed
Dark smoke began billowing from the sides.
"Four more bodies such as us should free him from this casket."
Rico moaned slightly. Tingle turned to look at the famed hunter. Rico opened her eyes slightly. The dull faraway reddish orange eyes was an indicator she didn't have long. If she had any at all.
"Light and Darkness. Light makes Darkness, a pair always exists. But not always. Reincarnation goes on forever." Tingle chanted.
"Stop it!" Ami shouted.
She gripped tightly to her robes. Her heart was racing. For the first time in a long while, Ami was petrified of what was going on. In that moment, all the documents Rico had left behind made sense. "Dark Falz must not be revived!"
Lacey and Marron looked at their leader from her statement.
"Don't you get it? Ragol will cease to exist. You'll die!" Ami reasoned.
Tingle chuckled. "You actually believe that this child would lead you here willingly? Her mind was perfect for hosting us. She has served her purpose well. But, you hear his voice too, Newman child."
Ami shook her head. Faint whispers began in her head.
"Ple...please." said Rico.
They all looked at her.
"I want..I want to go home." she muttered weakly.
The smoke became more intense. The platform of the shrine exploded into the air. The shards of supposed stone disappeared before hitting the ground. Rico looked towards the group, finally noticing them. A bit of strength showed in her eyes.
"But I can't. Please...stop Dark Falz. Its millennial awaken must not happen!"
Then she let out a scream. The monument was absorbing her back inside. Ami started to run towards the monument, but Lacey stopped her.
"There is nothing we can do now. Tyrell has been dead for a long time." she said flatly.
The ground beneath their feet became solid stone. Marron got into a stance himself. "Get ready."
Tingle laughed as the monument began to disappear behind her. Lacey gave a brief nod before running towards the newman.
"Apologies." she said quietly. Then she hit Tingle hard enough to knock her unconscious.
At that moment, the monument faded away. Ami and Marron looked down at the ground. The entire ground was engraved with faces, that moved. When they looked back up the clear sky darkened into a grim gray. Marron had a rod out. It was slim and silver. At the top was a blue orb surrounded by silver spikes. Purple items rose from the ground and hovered. There were a lot of them, seemingly to cover the entire field. The spines around it began to spin at a fast pace. Marron quickly chanted an incantation, flames surrounding him.
"Gifoie!" he shouted.
The flames circled outward, hitting the items. His eyes widened as the flames went through some of them.
Meanwhile, Lacey had Tingle in her hands. She let out a small sigh of relief as she saw that the newman wasn't seriously hurt from her attack. She looked on to see that Marron was casting Gifoie at the spinning enemies. She stood up, putting Tingle over her shoulder. Then she began to walk towards Marron and Ami. She avoided the enemies the best she could from their spinning spines. But she couldn't avoid all of them. She could hear the slight screech in the spines hitting her artificial limbs. But she kept walking. She had reached the group, Placing Tingle behind Marron. Her eyes turned to their leader. She was on her knees, just staring ahead. Marron was doing a good job of keeping the enemies at bay with his offensive magic. But she could see it would be a moment of time before they were surrounded. She looked at the enemies. They needed to find how to stop them. She noticed that with some there was a purple flicker. When the flame hit one of the nearest ones with a purple flicker, it went down.
"Marron, aim your fire at the enemies with purple flickers." she ordered.
Then there was a metallic crunch.
Ami looked towards Lacey at hearing the crunch. Lacey looked down at her left arm. They noticed that the limb was no longer there below the elbow. Various wiring was exposed to them. Ami's eyes widened at seeing the injury. She shook her head.
'No no no. This is too much.'
She covered her ears. In the deep recesses of her mind, she could hear the moans of the dead. They were horrible to hear for the newman. She winced at the frequency.
"I can't." she said.
They were all sounding sad, feeling regret. They wanted her to join them.
"I can't!" she shouted. She shook her head. "Get out of my head!"
Marron glanced at Ami, keeping his attack up.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"I hear them!" she shouted, "They keep speaking to me. They want us to join Dark Falz." Ami's arms was shaking. It was taking everything she had to not shut down.
"I can't take it. It's too much."
"Hunter Ami." said Lacey.
With her free limb, Lacey swung at the enemies with her sword. She glanced back at Ami. For a moment, there was a look of sympathy in her eyes. Then it went back into an expressionless state. "We can not let this entity go free. Our oath is to protect Ragol. We will not lose here. Get your bearings together."
Ami stared at her. Then at Marron. She noticed how the two were fighting hard against the enemies. Her hands brushed Tingle's forehead lightly. The whispers were still in her head, but quieter. They were barely a murmur. She stood up her back towards Marron. She began to chant words. She could feel the familiar warmth circle her hand.
"Rafoie!"
An explosion of fire shot from in front of her, leaving a ring of fire aftershock. She was able to bring down a couple of the enemies despite her magical prowess was not of Marron's calibur. With the three of them attacking, the enemies went down faster. The area flashed around them. The spinning creatures disappeared. In its place was a massive creature. It had a human-like body with the bottom limbs looking like four creature heads.
The most distinguished feature was a red ring around its wrist.
Ami took a deep breath. Seeing that ring confirmed the worse. She searched through her pouch for a flask. In the flask was a green fluid. She downed the flask quickly, feeling her body get energized by it. She took off her shredded dark blue robe, revealing her black sleeveless turtleneck and leggings.
"That's Dark Falz." she said. Marron had his rod prepped for another offensive spell while Lacey gripped her sword. Ami took out her sword as well.
Marron quickly chanted a Shifta and Deband spell.
"Marron, protect Tingle. Lacey and I will keep it at bay." Ami ordered.
The mage nodded. The two female hunters exchanged looks. Ami displayed a small smile at her. Her sword feeling a bit lighter on her hands.
"We can't let it go free." Ami repeated.
"That is correct." Lacey affirmed.
"Then, let seal it up again."
Yep a cliffhanger. And no I won't be continuing it. It's really meant to give you a taste of the concept. Probably a poop place to put it, but eh. I think I did a decent job of hitting the goal.