(Before I begin, I would just like to remind other Yggdra Union fans that I haven't played the game in a while. I recently picked it up again, so I'm a bit fuzzy on details.)

Disclaimer: I only own a copy of Yggdra Union and a rather…raunchy fanart I haven't posted of it yet due to it not being acceptable for deviantart. Other than that, I own nothing! HA!

Yggdra Union: Bad Ending

Yggdra awoke to feel warmth on her face. The early morning sun had peeked through the curtains to bathe her in its light. At first, it was blinding and almost painful, but almost as soon as it was there, it was gone. Of course, that was due primarily to the new queen sitting up to rub her eyes. Her mind was clouded with the muddled dreams of the past night. Along with those were the glimpses of what had transpired between her and the man beside her.

Speaking of Gulcasa, the redhead was still slumbering away. Idly she thought that he resembled the dragons of which he was descended. Though, the great beasts of those storybooks slept on large piles of treasures. Unless she was counted as precious as gold or gems, he and the dragons were different in that respect at least. As for the other similarities, she could count them easily. His bright gold eyes burned into the souls of those foolish enough to cross him. His body was muscular and well-defined, having little fat. His hair, one of her favorites of his features, reflected the flames that would incinerate any caught on the wrong side of him. He cared for few, if his country counted in that she did not know, and loved next to none. Where she stood in that regard, she didn't know. Since their marriage and the union of Fantasinia and Bronquia, Gulcasa had never admitted any words of love to his bride.

She never would have wanted them when he first proposed the marriage, at least. Yggdra could recall the day with some sense of dread. Sitting in that lonely cell with the voices of her companions so close, yet so far away, seeing the imposing statue of a man facing her on the opposite side of the bars; it all seemed like a dream. But it was real. The voices of Milanor and Durant were incredibly far away as she remembered how they told her to say no. Gulcasa was promising their lives for hers. It wasn't her place to say no. Despite their protests, she knew those she'd come to call her friends would eagerly trade their lives for hers if prompted. And with the deal struck, the Empire released them and never so much as thought of them again.

She did, though, every day. In the time between her release from prison and the wedding she so opposed, her thoughts went to them. Milanor especially. The thief had shown himself to be a good leader, a superb fighter, and an even greater confidant. It was through him that she had begun to grow stronger as a future monarch. To think it all began with a promise of a castle in return for help. That thought had entertained her and made her giggle quite loudly before she would lapse into a small fit of tears. She had loved him, but there was never any time to say so. Also, he had Kylier, didn't he? No man in his right mind would sacrifice freedom for duty to a gaggle of people who he didn't know. That would never change, no matter how much she wished.

For a brief moment, her thoughts stopped and she focused on Gulcasa. He still slept there beside her. He was close enough for her to feel his breath on her hip. It made her shiver in spite of the warm air in the chamber. Her hand found its way into the bright red locks and tangled in them. It was simply amazing to her how he could look so innocent and childlike while temporarily dead to the world.

All along there had been some connection there between them, but she had never truly seen it. It had been there, a product of her empathy. Something about Gulcasa called out for her, reached for her, wanted her. There was always a look in his eye when he glanced her way on the battlefield. It was fleeting, but always there no matter what. During those times, she thought it to be a hatred too deep for her to fathom. In the prison, she considered it lust, and rightfully so, in her own mind. Since marrying her, he had shown her body many earthly pleasures, but had not so much as uttered a single word to signify what she meant to him. Even in the midst of their wedding night and the furious motions during, he hadn't spoken at all. Normally, men would do that if they wanted compliant females. How he promptly fell asleep afterward didn't help matters either. For some foolish reason, she had believed he would change after she was his wife. But he never became more amiable. He didn't treat her with scorn or hatred. During their time together, he would simply hold her while looking out the window at the countryside far off, or would make her scream in not necessarily terrible ways.

Yggdra felt him stir, and was startled to discover she'd been stroking his hair while lost in thought. She carefully untangled her fingers from the silky red curtain and moved to the edge of the bed. One look down at herself told her plainly that the room was colder than she thought. Either that, or her thoughts had gotten the better of her again. It was something Gulcasa would have noticed and pointed out had he been awake.

'I wonder if there will ever be a day where you tell me what's going on behind your eyes.' She looked at him as she wondered, as if somehow what she was thinking would transfer into him.

"What does the world look like through your eyes?" she asked him, her voice barely above a whisper. She drew her robe off the chair near the bed and slipped into it. Her back was turned to him only for a second before the low, smooth voice of Bronquia's emperor cut through the silence.

"There is only you, if that means anything."

Yggdra whirled around fast in surprise, a tinge of embarrassment there as well, and smiled faintly. Gulcasa had moved onto his back to face the ceiling. He seemed to be staring at nothing, then his eye slid to the side to watch her as well. Her smile faltered for just a moment before she forced it back up.

"Good morning, husband."

Gulcasa kept her locked in his stare, and no matter how much she wanted to look away, his eyes held hers tight. His lips slid upwards a fraction at the corners. With a yawn, he returned the greeting and turned onto his side to fall back asleep. Yggdra waited a few minutes in the eerie silence that followed. When his light snoring began again, she let out a breath she forgot she'd been holding and turned to face the window. As she looked out at the countryside, she saw the border where he homeland and Bronquia became one country.

She supposed things would only improve, especially with the Gran Centurio sealed. A millennia of peace. If only that applied to her as well.

End

A little after note.

I may get questions as to the title. I'm sure you're all aware of dating sims, RPGs, and the like where you can get different endings based on requirements met throughout the game. I thought of this while wondering what Yggdra Union would be like with such a function. Though this is in disregard toward the multiple endings it already has. While I suppose either of the endings can be considered a good ending, I wanted to see what a "bad end" might look like. Of course, that led to the thought of "what if the antagonist won?" and how else could he win? By doing what he set out to do in the first place. And how to do that? Well, this, obviously. xD But that's just how I see it as a Ygg/Gul fan. Then again, this might not have the feel of a real "bad ending" to most people.

Please try not to point out timeline flaws and other story-related things in a review. Well, if you leave one at all. I play the game mostly for its gameplay, and enjoy the story on the side. I'd hate to step on people's toes if they have a million theories as to how characters act and react, but rest assured that the characters here in my own works behave solely in the way I view them to act.

For example, it wouldn't make sense to me to make Gulcasa be very kind to all his subordinates, though Emilia is an exception since she's his sister, when my impression of him was a VERY good villain. What do I mean by villain? Well, remember in the days of old? Bad guys were bad just for the hell of it. They never had any reason to their actions. They just were against the good guys and that was it. I like that about antagonists. I don't like feeling sorry for a guy, or feeling like I can relate to them when I'm trying to win against them. It defeats the purpose of me wanting to beat the game. So the Gulcasa in my YU fics will always see his underlings as just that: underlings. He won't hurt them without a thought, but he won't be unnecessarily kind to them either.

Speaking of his subordinates, I never really liked any of them to begin with. xD But that's mostly due to my focusing on how hard a boss they were rather than the character they had. Nessiah, as cute and complex as he is, just ticked me off by being hard to beat. So I just never liked him past that. Course, that's nothing against him personally.

Why don't I get into a rant about the protagonists? Well…for one, this story focuses mostly on Yggdra's thoughts after becoming associated with Gulcasa. Maybe if I make a fic about Milanor, I'll rant about him. Thought you can bet said rant would mostly be about his game stats.