Prophesies... Legends... Myth...
All victims of time and decay.
There are tales of heroes... Warriors of Light.
Four special warriors with four orbs...
Foreseen by Lukahn – remembered by Time – recorded onto books.
However, not everything is as true as one reads.
What if light wasn't as pure as we see?
What if destiny wasn't as perfect as we design?
A tale at the end of the illusion.
A Final Fantasy unlike one we hold in our hands.
Final Fantasy I – Another Miracle (Working Title)
"What do you mean this buffoon is the Chosen One?" The King of Cornelia bellowed to the Sages.
The Sages, esteemed recorders and holders of the kingdom of Cornelia, were taken aback as their king yelled and fumed. They were not surprised by his reaction to the news. That didn't stop their
common sense telling them to step away from a rather ill-tempted royal. While usually one of a calm and steady hand, their king was not one to tolerate such, for lack of a better word, unsettling news. Moreso, when it involved the release of a criminal.
His majesty slouched on his throne, his fingers stroking his beard as he thought to himself in silence. Quietly, the Sages resumed their place, picking up their dropped papers and books. A young Mage-in-training stepped forward to the king, bowing respectively before speaking for his stunned masters.
"My lord," the boy spoke in a quiet, calm tone, though one could see his knees selling him out quickly. "It is as the Sages say. That rouge is indeed a Chosen Warrior. The crystals have never been wrong before-
"There is a first time for everything, especially in this manner!" The king snapped in quick response, causing the poor lad to fall on his rear in shock.
The king cleared his throat, before getting off of his throne, helping the shocked student to his feet. "All I am trying to say is, this man simply cannot be... of a noble calling. Think on it, and what he is charged with. It makes no sense to me, or am I going dull in the upper story that I call a mind?"
"Not at all, sir."
The young student sighed in relieve as his Mistress stepped in. The king and the Sages all lowered their head as the leading professor and Sage stepped in, bowing to her majesty and fellow colleagues.
She wore her robe in a rather unprofessional manner, opened with the sleeves rolled back. Her shirt exposing a rather unhealthy amount of her large tracts of land. Her skirt was shifted just above her knees and her glasses seem to be the only thing neat on her, despite holding such a title as High Sage. Her long, red hair covered bits of her face as she yawned softly, before settling down on a chair.
"Professor... I see you've returned from your personal labyrinth of papers, books, and maps," welcomed the rather "impressed" king, who sat back onto his throne. The professor blinked, then hastily pushed her shirt up once one of her fellow Sages pointed out that her secrets would be exposed before the king. Brushing herself off, she crossed her legs and nodded to the king.
"Well, I had hoped to alert you under... better times, but now is better than never."
The king sighed heavily, still refusing to accept the earlier news. With a wave of his hand, the Professor rose, taking a map off the floor and expanding it out, revealing a detailed and recently updated map of their world. In the center of the map, were four orbs drawn. Above them stood six figures filled in by shadow, each posed in a dramatic, heroic position, though the light trial of running ink indicated that it was recently made. The Professor settled it down on a table before standing before the king, clearing her throat before beginning to speak.
"As I discovered... It seems our history books may need some... changes. As I've learned recently, Lukahn's prophesy was incorrect. We await six warriors, not four. Though unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on how you see the glass, the Fiends are still four, as are our the orbs."
"That's not what concerns me," the king whispered. "My concern is... a Rouge. A criminal. A perverted knave... is our... dare I say, savior."
The Professor's smirk unsettled the small audience, the young student's face losing color. The king knew of that smirk: the High Sage was enjoying the situation.
"That Lukahn could be wrong... That is one idea. That a-"
"Swine? Knave? Cow patty? I could help give you quite a few titles, your highness." The High Sage cheerfully interrupted.
"No. that will not necessary. However... We already have quite a schedule to keep. Our neighboring allies have sent their two warriors, which should have been top priority... However, with so many things happening at once... Let's say our week is becoming quite exciting. I simply want some clarification. Can you give that to me, Professor?"
With a small giggle, she bowed once more before escorting the sages and student out, stopping at the doorway and turning to the king before making her exit.
"I swear to you, by my family name and the unity of the Races, I, Professor Nephilim Mekabrah, will deliver solid evidence. Just sit back and wait for me?"
Sighing in defeat, the king nodded to his High Sage before she took her leave.
"I have a slight chill that things won't be so easy. Alas... I can only wait."
Chapter I
Over the Fading Night
Dungeon air wasn't so bad, as compared to the food, at least. Or maybe they reserved their best slop for criminals of his tier. Didn't matter to the young man one bit: being charged with things he didn't do was his life's story. Just that this crime was the first chance he would leave with less than a few months of his life. He liked his head, had it ever since he was a mere lad, and losing it didn't sit so comfy to him. Alas, being Byon was one of many bittersweet lives in this world. Being the bad boy was always nice, but sucked once they left you at the door. They never take them home, as they say.
Still, he knew he had to take this seriously, otherwise this would be his first and final stay at the royal jail. The king had a rather strong peeve for crimes like this, and he didn't have proof he didn't do it. One favor to a stranger, and now...
"My life's quite the plaything, isn't it, Fates?" Byon muttered to himself.
His short, dark hair was messy thanks to rather kind gesture of being thrown face first onto the cell floor. Leaning back, he stroked his stub of a goatee, looking around as he noticed he was all alone. That stung a bit, since he was used to a more crowded jail. To his credit, the king rarely had to execute anyone, usually one of a fair hand. With a sigh, the young man looked up to the night sky, brown eyes reflecting the moon.
"Lovely, isn't it?"
Byon hadn't noticed that he wasn't alone until that voice woke him from his daze. Turning around, an eyebrow raised as the one of the most unlikely of guards stood before him. One would not expect their kind to leave their domain, but there before him stood a Gria. Surely, the night was going to be an ill omen, but a fun one at least.
Standing up, Byon kept his cool, paying his respects to the rare beauty by giving his a quick bow. She clicked her teeth in response, but sat on a nearby stool, their eyes focused on each other.
Byon took a sit down on his bed, looking to the knight out of the corner of his eye.
"My, a Gria in a human kingdom. I must surely be lucky to be executed by you."
The Gria chucked, sliding a small flask into his cell.
"No need for the flattery. I'm just here out of curiosity. You certainly don't seem like a rapist. If anything, you look like a victim due to those sharp bishonen looks."
Byon's face cracked with a smile. This woman wasn't your average brood at the bar. She pointed out one of his best charms without a single real attraction. He loved being right about having a good time.
The Gria in question had had short, red hair, yet her bangs managed to cover some of her face. Her sharp, yet gentle yellow eyes examined his fully in moments. Unlike her kin, she wore armor that actually covered his skin, bright red at that, though the chest was obvious custom-made, her wings stretched out as she sat before him. With a quick glare, he noticed a rather long scar, from her face to her horn, tale worth a free drink at the bar if she knew how to spin a tale.
The most amazing thing about her was the fact she came with no weapon, so it would seem he wouldn't have private session with the gallows. All she had were keys on her side, which shined in his eyes moreso than the moon. Freedom within a single reach. His fingers twitching ever so slightly. All he had to do was make a quick dive. But his ears belayed that command, his curiosity wanting to know why a knight of the castle would see him, armed with nothing more than salvation within an arm's grasp.
"I am one of the guard to the castle, obviously. My name is Ria. You are a Byon, charged with the raping of no less than five girls this past month. The king had seen that you would personally die before the gallows. That being the original idea, at least."
Byon's ear ringed at the words "original idea." He kept his mouth shut, hanging onto every word coming from this Ria. She gave his a smirk, knowing she had his full attention, and resumed.
"It seems... You have been called, O Thief of story."
All that he could utter at the title was a well thought of response after several moments had passed.
"What?"
"Hehe... I knew that would catch you off-guard. According to the Sages, though, you, good Byon, are a Warrior of Light."
Another silent minute passed before Byon stood up, walked over to the bars, and proceeded to calmly beat his head against the lukewarm steel. Ria understood his reaction fully, and knew what crossed his mind during that pause. This is-
"Utter crap."
"Don't worry – the king doesn't like it either," Ria remarked, now moving to the cell door.
Byon, still in a understandable level of shock, barely noticed Ria stepping in, her sharp eyes examining his body. Without another word, she walked out of the cell, leaving the door wide open. The stunned young man could do little but follow the odd knight, still having questions that needed answering. As they walked, Byon could hear a small band in the distance. Accompanying the sounds were smells, glorious smells. It seemed the king was having a feast.
It was confirmed once they stepped into the bright dining hall. While Ria kept her knightly composure, Byon himself had never felt so misplaced in his life. The place wasn't huge, but the decorations and rich atmosphere wasn't something you were common to when your usual drinking hole was in the northern back alley. But what caught his attention most wasn't the area, but who was gathered at the sole table.
At the end of the table, the King sat there, examining Professor Nephilim's guests, his face kind, yet his eyes just waiting to roll. Nephilim did her best to hide her snickers, fully knowing the king was unable to stand such a sight. The prophecy had foretold of four warriors of light, and understandably, one would expect warriors of high class, noble souls, and gentle hearts. While the news of six warriors would come instead of four was at the most surprising, how they would be like never settled on anyone's mind. To be sure, they were far from the silent protagonists.
Closest to the king sat a middle aged Bangaa, possibly in his thirties, no less. He seemed like the most mature of the guests, just eying the other quietly while sipping his cup. His skin was a dark orange while his sharp, dark eyes barely glanced up, yet saw everything his needed to see. His clothes seem worn out, stale and wrinkly, as though he were plucked fresh off the streets. With a quick snort, he leaned back in his chair, never minding the talk of the others.
To the king's right sat a a woman with dark skin, her nails long and sharp. What perplexed the king most were her long, rabbit ears. He had never seen a Viera before in all of his days. Like the Bangaa, she carried herself a quiet manner, not minding her surroundings, yet ever watchful. Her white robe laid over her chair as she slouched on the table, her long white hair covering her face rather messily. If the king didn't know better, she'd look bored beyond death. However he threw her a mental bone, partially it was due to how the next "heroine" busied herself.
A woman with long, brunette hair, her large, yellow hat rested on the table as she swapped small talk with one of the maids, a glimmer of dark delight in her eyes. Not even the king could ignore the obvious flirtation she laid over one of his servants. Another sight that caught his eyes was her outfit. While the blue robe was common of magic users of the dark arts, never before had he seen so many belts on a person before. She wore some around her arm, her legs, and he could have sworn even her skirt was purely belts. Though at first a trick of the eyes, he saw her thin devil tail slowly wrap itself around his maid's leg.
Finally, he looked to the last warrior, a young girl in all red, her feathered hat sat on her lap as she kept to herself. Possibly no older than thirteen, the young lass' soft eyes looked to her clean plate, her stature gave away her uneasiness to being around so many adults. Her soft fingers tapped her thighs rhythmically as the girl hummed to herself quietly, one would think in an attempt to steady her nervousness. Though, for a girl just at the doors of puberty, she certainly had a rather large set of orbs...
The king shook his head, rebuking the impulsive thoughts from his mind. He may be male, but he knew better than that. A soft cough brought him back from his inner world, Nephilim kindly pointing over to the stairway as two figures step forward from the dungeon floor.
"I believe your last two guests have arrived, sir."
With a sigh, the king took another moment of control as one of his most trusted knights brought forth the prisoner from the morning. To see his slick face in his halls made the king uneasy in his seat, yet his did his best to uphold a certain neutral glance as they step forward. Byon took a seat next to the Viera, who nodded to his presence before resuming her slouching. The young man only chucking to himself as Ria stood before her king, giving the knight's salute before resting her sword to her side, nodding to the professor in acknowledgment.
His Majesty's acting needs some work, Ria thought to herself as she turned around, studying the others. Though her face shown indifference, her mind was at work, sizing them up to see if there was something more to the than a quiet middle-aged man, a flirt, a child, a sloth, and a would-be rapist that sat before royalty. She though, gaving no credit to herself, only the fact that she was just another sword her majesty may use when the time is needed. With that in mind, she stood to the King's right and awaited his word.
The king cleared his throat, getting their attention. The maid who was flirting with the devil-tailed woman suddenly stepped , her face bright red. The other woman looked disappointed, but turned to face his majesty, hoping that he would keep it short and sweet – she had some quick romancing to catch up on.
"Allow me, the royal king of Cornelia, Steven, welcome you all, Warriors of Light to my humble dining hall. I do hope the food was to your satisfactory. Young man, please, have your fill. After being falsely charged and left to sit in a dungeon, I sure your stomach could use a real meal."
Byon wasn't one to say no to a free meal, quickly ripping a piece of chicken and devouring it hastily, helping himself to fine drink as he kept his ears sharp. If playing hero meant no execution and wonderful grub, he was all for it. As he ate, the king resumed his speech.
"As most of you are well aware, there were originally prophesied that there would be four light warriors. However, due to sudden evidence, there are indeed six of them. You who sit before me are indeed, those warriors. So says my High Sage and leading Professor, Madam Nephilim Mekabrah."
Nephilim nodded to them, her face kind and amused.
"I do pray that the light will bless our country, and the world, with peace. May fortune smile upon your journey, br-"
A snort cut the king off, as the woman who tried to seduce his help made little effort to hide her amusement. She leaned back in her chair, holding back the urge to laugh. The Bangaa raised an eyebrow, sneering at her before facing at her direction.
"I see the young lass here has no problems speaking her mind," he said in a gruff tone.
The Viera finally bothered to lift an eyelid herself, eyes moving around, before shrugging.
"Your highness, with all due respect, what makes you think we even agreed to be your heroes or whatever," the lady Devil began softly. "You certainly dug through the trash heap if you got us together for some lame epic quest to save the world..."
Ria's mouth was left to hang at how nonchalant they were to royalty – her king for that matter. As she watched, Byon motioned his hands, trying to settle down the snark gang's irritation.
"Hey hey now," he spoke softly. "No need to bite the man's head off. Save some for me. After all, I got roughed up by his goons for being near the area of the latest attack. If anyone gets to rip him a new one, may I go first?"
The trio nodded in agreement.
"Go right ahead," the devil-tailed brunette kindly pronounced.
With a nod, Byon turned to the king, eyes shining in slight anger.
"Lord Steven, ahem, you locked me up for... BEING at the scene with the woman who was raped and then accused me of being said rapist because... ah yes, I HAD HER IN MY ARMS! Your goons really didn't seem to bother noticing the obvious fact that the healer was just a few blocks away, or that, the victim was actually a pretty good friend of mine. And now that I'm on it..."
Byon pointed to the Bangaa across from him.
"That man right there is Stinrigg, correct? The guy who was reported to have robbed the Cornelian bank about a few days ago, if I'm correct once more."
The Bangaa, Stinrigg, snarled lowly at that statement, his tail lightly hitting the floor to express his discomfort at that question. He knew of that incident, but he was not the Bangaa that attacked the bank. But he shared no further thought or outer comment on it, but merely resumed tapping the floor. He noticed the young man nodding to him in apology, merely sighing as his way of accepting. With that, Byon turned his attention to the brunette mage.
"Your name, miss?"
With a giggle, his question was answered by a gentle, soothing voice.
"Melody, good 'rapist'," she whispered as she rested her chin on her hands, her smirk small but alluring.
"Melody. An-
"Enough!"
Byon was cut off, a certain Gria standing before him, her eyes dark and piercing through him. Byon glared to her, his face a bit drained of color. It wasn't his style to upset someone who had been kind to him, and he could see he hit a nerve with this one. As he tried to face her, Ria's wings stretched out, her hand on the hilt of her blade.
"One bad move – you're done."
The amused knight was on leave, in her place stood a faithful retainer, a woman who would strike at any moment her liege gave her the word. She even managed to retrieve a sword without him being the wiser. As knight and thief went into a stare down, a soft voice spoke out. It was a bit surprising, but all eyes directed to the quiet white haired girl, who wasn't expected much attention.
Softly, she spoke, getting to the point.
"If they do not wish to fight, then I will, good King of Cornelia..."
The king was aback with this sudden resolve. A mere child had not thought twice about the trials that awaited. The red-eyed girls stood up, presenting herself before king and sage, placing her hat on her head and bowing quickly.
"My name... is Dere. I will take my duties as the Red Mage of Light."
Melody whistled softly as Byon and Ria put aside their would-be fight. Young Dere's heart raced a bit; she wasn't expecting this turn of events, nor did she really want to do it alone. But someone had to, and if the older folks were quick to argue and bicker, she'd do it.
But her face flustered a bit as the Viera stood next to her, following Dere's lead and bowing before the king. Her white robe's sleeves were wrapped around her waist, her eyes fully open to really soft, dark brown-red eyes.
"Seeing as a mere child would go for a sacred duty alone. This, I cannot allow. Rube, White Mage of Light, shall lend her spells and bow."
Dere's heart leaped a bit. With one person to assist, things weren't so bad after all. To her left, the knight stepped beside her, her wings settled down on her back.
"My lord, please allow me to go forth. Ria, Fighter of Light, shall fulfill this prophesy of Lukhan's..."
Byon placed his hand on his head, shaking it profusely before stepping aside Rube, bowing before the king he had snarked earlier. Stinrigg finally dragged himself out of his seat, stepping next to Ria and took a bow.
"Byon, Thief of Light, at your service... I suppose." He smirked at the line he uttered. Just moments ago, he had called it ridiculous, and now, before the very same man who would have been his judge, he was making a solemn oath.
"Aye, and I, Stinrigg, shall throw my muscle into the lot. A Monk of Light shall fight for you... Your Highness."
They turned to where Melody say, with the last member out of her seat, gone without a trace. Dere made a suddenly yelp as she's picked up, Melody right before her with her arms around the young Red Mage's waist, smiling brightly.
"Black Mage of Light, Melody, throwing in her magic with the gang. Might as well after all."
Dere's arms flailed about as she was forcefully snuggled like a teddy bear, helpless to resist as Ria sighed in disbelief, Byon and Rube snickering softly. They then face the king, before bowing together in unison.
Nephilim glanced to her majesty, who was quiet, yet mentally turned upside down.
"It would seem they are ready with their tasks, sir," the High Sage pointed out.
King Steven placed his hands together, absorbing the quick change in events, from two warriors about to fight each other to all six, ready to risk their lives for the sake of others. Truly, an unlikely group, but it was the best they had. Was it the audacity of it all that made the king amused with this, or a sense of foreboding that made him worry so? In any case, all he could do was rise from his seat.
"Let this night mark the birth of the six Light Warriors. May your gods watch other you. Tonight, you shall rest and prepare for the battles ahead. I shall give you your first task tomorrow morning."
With that, they departed upstairs, Melody's tail whisking back and forth as the servant she was messing with other found herself in a near-trance like state of peace. Once they left, the king sighed sadly, Professor Nephilim patting his back kindly.
"This will be a long night..." He spoke in a low tone.
"Indeed. But at least Princess Sarah will finally have a proper rescue," the good sage responded.
With a nod, the king rose up and left for his chambers. Soon, their worth will be proven by the dawn's bright welcoming. Nephilim his a grin on her face, anxious for the morrow to come as soon as able. This would be the start of some true fun.