The True Power of Life
Don't read this if you haven't played (and beaten) Final Fantasy 9! Although some of it is fictitious, some actually happened, and it can spoil your experience! You have been warned! Read at your own risk! Now, on to the fic!
This is a fic about Zidane and Dagger, the mysterious revival of Zorn and Thorn, and the appearance of Garland, thought to be dead on Terra. Our story takes place 5 years after the destruction of Kuja…only 2 years after, Zidane offered his hand in honest marriage to Dagger, who accepted in a heartbeat. The rulers of Alexandria were now King Zidane and Queen Garnet, who were shocked at the reappearance of three of their foes…
It was the dark of night. Zidane was holding an audience with his old boss, Baku. He was a hearty guy, always loving a good challenge. He and the rest of the group Tantalus (including Zidane) kidnapped the princess. She, however, didn't mind at all, in fact, that was what she dearly wanted. She got more out of it than she had ever imagined. "Gwahahahaha!" Baku laughed heartily. "You haven't changed there, Zidane!" Zidane scratched his head. "Aww, shucks, boss!" he said playfully. Zidane, despite being a king, still wore his standard attire, much to Steiner's displeasure. "Master Zidane, a king should wear flowing robes! You look like a commoner!" he had said. Zidane shook it off with a simple "Nah, I don't like robes. They make me itch." And although he probably could have come up with a retort, he kept his big, fat mouth shut and let him be. Zidane was chattering about all of this to Baku, but was interrupted by Steiner-"Rusty!!!!" who said simply "Lunch!" "Sorry, gotta have lunch. Heh heh, a cute chick for a wife! Aren't you the jealous one, boss?" "Master Zidane!" Steiner yelled. "I'm comin', I'm comin'. See ya later, boss!" Baku guffawed heartily, and was escorted by two females Alexandrian guards to the front gate. "Haw haw! What a kid! Yo, fools!" Cinna, Blank, and Marcus, the other members of Tantalus, scurried to their boss. After doing the standard Tantalus gesture, Baku spoke up. "What have you been up to anyway, huh?" Marcus grunted, and Blank replied "Tryin' to get into Ruby's theater, of course. What in tarnation does it take to get in there, anyway! Cinna, whose mouth was stuffed with bundt cake, guffawed. "Bwahaha! You're talkin' like her now, Blank! Gwahaha!"
Meanwhile, Zidane, Dagger, Steiner, and Zidane's black mage friend, Vivi, were all sitting down to eat a huge feast. Steiner, oddly, always called Vivi "Master". Zidane thought it was because Vivi was 10 times as skilled. He thought of that and almost choked on his roast beef. He was chuckling silently in his mind, very hard. Vivi had also brought his 7 sons, who happened to look exactly like Vivi only slightly smaller. Zidane had always wondered about that. Who did Vivi marry anyway? They were almost finished with their meal, when Regent Cid from Lindblum arrived-with grave news. "Uncle Cid!" Dagger cried as Cid came in. " I bring dire news!" he said. "What is it, Cid?" Zidane asked, jumping out of his seat. "Three of your greatest enemies have risen from what seems to have been the grave!" Everyone gasped. "But Kuja is not an enemy of ours anymore!" Zidane exclaimed. "Kuja is not one of the three." Cid said, his face pale. "Then who is?" asked Zidane, out of his mind. "Well, two are the jester twins, Thorn and Zorn, and the third is a man who calls himself Garland…." "Garland!?!?!?" everyone exclaimed. The group was speechless, all except for Zidane. "Where are they?" he asked. "Well…" Cid said. "Thorn and Zorn are just outside Alexandria, and Garland seems to b in a forest southwest of Conde Petie, the village of dwarves." Vivi and Zidane gasped. "The Black Mages! He must be after them! Their life span hasn't ended yet!" said Vivi, fixing his hat. "The Genomes, too!" Zidane added. "We gotta find him!" "But, Master Zidane, what about those traitors, the jesters? We can't let them-" Steiner's ranting was cut off by Zidane. "No! We gotta find Garland! Cid, you stay here and guard the castle. Tell the soldiers you have my orders to attack the jesters if they get here before we're back. "I shall do just that, Master Zidane." Cid replied, seeming for the first time, humble towards Zidane. "Wow! Aren't I great?" Zidane said, smiling. "Everyone calling me master! Hee hee! I guess I deserve it! Alright people, here's the deal: we gotta find Garland! He's up to something, I know it! We gotta put an end to it! To the Invincible!" "To the Invincible!" everyone else echoed. They set off for the mighty Invincible, the huge airship with the incredible red eye on it.
Thorn and Zorn were on their way to Alexandria. Their mission? To get revenge on Zidane and the group for defeating them long ago. They were bruised, but capable. "We must get revenge!" Zorn cried. "Get revenge, we must!" Thorn said. The jester twins had a strange way of speaking, especially the red-colored Thorn (Zorn was blue). "We must kill Zidane!" Zorn said, beginning to hop. "Zidane, kill must we?" asked Thorn, also beginning to hop. "Yes, he beat us before!" Zorn replied swinging his arms. "Before, he beat us, yes he did!" said Thorn, mimicing Zorn. Zorn stopped and asked "Must you do everything that I do?" "I must do everything you do, yes!" Thorn replied, stopping as well. "For we are twins!" Zorn said, and Thorn said "For twins, we are!" at the same time. And they continued towards Alexandria. They failed to notice the huge Invincible flying north.
In the meantime, Garland was searching for the Black Mage village. "Hahaha…a mere enhancement to each and every one of these Genomes…hahaha…I will destroy Zidane, as he is of no use to me…Then, I will destroy the Iifa Tree. Kuja will be annihilated! I will absorb each and every one of the souls! HA HA HA! Then, Terra and Gaia will finally merge. Terra will heal in time…" Garland was pondering all this to himself as he wandered through the forest. He was badly injured from the destruction of most of Terra, but he managed to survive by somehow escaping to Gaia. He, however, seemed to be not of his usual thinking…he craved destruction…
"Quickly now!" Zidane cried, as they landed outside of the forest. They all piled out. Zidane, Vivi, Steiner, and Dagger all left the Invincible and entered the forest. When they saw Garland, they crept up quietly, and…Zidane pounced! "AARRRGGGHHHH!" Garland cried as Zidane choked him. He hurled Zidane across the forest towards the others and took a battle stance. "HAHAHA! I will crush you, and your puny friends as well, Zidane!" Garland yelled, enraged. "Garland! You're usually not the bloodthirsty! What's up with you?" Zidane asked, confused. Garland laughed. "Do you really want to know why???" he said. He laughed uncontrollably. Zidane started to shiver. "What?" he yelled, shaking. "HAHAHA! Because… …I am the creator of time, space, and life…my less-than-superior creation, Necron fell to your force, but never, ever will I lose! HAHAHA! The man known as Garland is merely a puppet for the stage…a marionette made to dispose of…Terra will once again live, you will see! With this merging, Terra will gain infinite strength! And then, I will remove all live from the world! Haha! Your dead souls will scream in agony, and your spirit will roam free in a lifeless paradise. HAHAHA! I am not Garland…although I have taken his body, him I am not…I…am the guardian of time…the ruler of life! I am Gaia itself! I am Terra itself! I…am…life..." Garland suddenly began to turn to ash. The ash disappeared and in it's place, a giant red creature, appeared. It was unlike anything ever seen. It spoke. "Zidane…I am your creator…you are merely a marionette…a stage hand…you are a slave to life, as is all! You would be nothing without it! I…am life…that is my name…Life…Hahaha! Even if I die…The world will be devoid of it's spirit energy…Hahaha! HAHAHA! Not you, not Kuja, not anyone can foil my master plan! I am…the ruler of all creation! I will demonstrate just how powerful I am to you…HAHAHA…FLARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!" as Life screamed, he launched huge fireball in every direction. The trees were set on fire completely. "BWAHAHAHA! You cannot defeat me! Just try!" Finally, Zidane spoke up. " NO! Never, dammit! Your plan will never work! We are lifeforms, just like you! So is the Earth! It will absorb all the life energy from you before you perish! In fact, that is how we kill you! It's called teamwork! Let's finish this once and for all! We'll send you to your own lifeless hell!" Life laughed. "HAHAHA! You think you four can absorb all my energy by yourselves?" "Of course!" Zidane's voice was bold, resounding, and echoing. Life was taken aback for a second, then said "Just try it! Ultima!" A blinding light flooded the forest and a huge explosion occurred, rocking the earth…
Thorn and Zorn were nearly at Alexandria when they saw the huge explosion. "That was huge!" Zorn said, eyes wide. "Huge, that was!" Thorn said, widening his eyes also. "I wonder what that could be?" Zorn asked. "The time to wonder, now is not!" Thorn replied. "We must go to Alexandria quickly!" Zorn said and Thorn said "Quickly to Alexandria we must go!" at the same time. They ran off towards Alexandria, faster now.
Back at Alexandria Castle, Cid was concerned about the explosion. "I do hope they are all right." He said, pacing. Suddenly, a Weimar, a Knight of Pluto, rushed in. "Regent Cid! Is Queen Garnet or King Zidane present?" "Indeed, no." Cid replied. They tended to a matter of theirs. In fact, they are at the site of that explosion most likely!" Weimar gasped. "Was Captain Steiner with them?" he asked. "I'm afraid, yes." Cid replied. "Hopefully they will be alright." Weimar said. "The reason I asked is because the two jester twins, Thorn and Zorn are entering Alexandria! Cid gasped. "Fire at will! That is an order from King Zidane, he told me that!" "Yes sir!" Weimar said, rushing out.
Thorn and Zorn were just entering Alexandrian premises when-BOOM! A cannon was fired! "Thorn, we are under siege!" said Zorn. "Siege, we are under, Zorn!" replied Thorn. "But we must find Zidane!" Zorn said. "Find Zidane, we MUST!" Thorn said, with enthusiasm. And they rushed through Alexandria, dodging cannon fire swiftly. Soon, they had reached the castle. They were confronted by Blutzen, sword drawn. "Enguarde, filthy jesters!" "We must cast Meteor!" Zorn said. "Yes, Meteor we must cast!" Thorn said. "Meteor!" they both screamed. Two meteors fell from the black sky and crushed poor Blutzen. "MMF!" he mumbled, as the twins entered the castle…
After the explosion in the forest, it seems like Life was the only thing that existed. But out of the fog came the four warriors. Now it was Vivi's turn to show what he was made of! "I can't let you do this!" He yelled. He sounded bolder and more defiant than Zidane! "My friends have taught me so much, especially Zidane…I can't let you kill them! You'll have to kill me first! Doomsday!!!' Suddenly, the world was plunged into darkness! Vivi began to glow blue. Trance! "Never will you win the fight! Friendship will always win! Courage will prevail! It's time to stand up for myself! I'll show you what I'm really made of! Double Flare!" While the dark shadows engulfing Life took their toll, Vivi bombarded him with a double Flare. "ARGH!!! Damn you!" Life said. Then Dagger stepped forward. "For the sake of everyone…for the sake of friendship and love and eternal bonds…Bahamut! Come forth and destroy!!! The sky suddenly started to rumble. Bahamut came plunging out of the sky and used Mega Flare. "AAAAK!" Life screamed, in agony. Then…Steiner stepped forward. "For my comrades-in-arms, for the princess, for Alexandria and for all creation, I will put an end to this ridiculous power you have come to! Flare Sword!" Steiner leaped at Life, and with the fiery power of Vivi's Flare, he slashed Life fiercely. "HUUUUUUAAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHH!" he bellowed. "Urrrgghhhh…..HAHAHA! Never! It's not over until it's over! Grand Cross!!!!!!" Life then used his Grand Cross attack. Everyone was struck by the powerful wavelengths emitted by it…
Thorn and Zorn were almost to the top when Kohel appeared and attacked. But he, too was taken down. "We are almost there!" Zorn cried. "Almost there, we are!" Thorn said. "But you will go no further." A voice said. "What? Who said that?" Zorn asked. "Save the Queen…shine!" around the corner, Beatrix appeared, holding her sword, the Save The Queen. "Climhazzard!" she yelled, and struck both Thorn and Zorn ahard with her blade. "Now, feel Alexandria power! Stock Break!" again she struck, cutting through both their flesh. "Argh! We are perishing!" Zorn said weakly. "Yes! Perishing we are! Urgh…" Thorn said. "But we can fuse!" Zorn said. "Fuse we can!" Thorn said! And, in a flash of red light, the jester twins became once again the terrible force known as Meltigemini. "We are indestructible!" it bellowed, but Beatrix thought otherwise. "My blade will cut right through you! Shock!" Meltigemini was sent flying backwards. "For Alexandria!" Beatrix said. "Thunder Slash!" she leaped at Meltigemini, and with one electrifying slash, the jester twins were gone for good. "The deed is done." Beatrix muttered to herself, and walked back down the corridor.
The Grand Cross had weakened everybody, and it seemed hopeless…Life was laughing uncontrollably. "HAHAHAHA! You thought you could win, too! HAHAHA!" But Zidane stood up. There was a flash of blue light, and Zidane was in Trance, glowing red. "The time is now." He said. The others slowly got to their feet. "The time to end this endless war has come. GRAND LETHAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!" The energy flowed through Zidane like lighting, then he blasted Life with all his might. "AAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!" Life screamed. Then, tehre wa a huge explosion-it was white and overwhelming. It was so large it sent Zidane and the other flying all the way across the ocean…the raging blast destroyed the Outer Continent completely. Zidane and the group landed, somehow, next to Treno, the city of never-ending night. They all fell unconcious. As they slept, however, energy was flowing to them. Lots of it. The planet would live on. When Cid heard of this, he took the Hilda Garde 3, all the Knights of Pluto, all of Zidane and the gang's other friends, Beatrix, and Tantalus, and set off for Treno as soon as possible…
Zidane, Vivi, Steiner and Dagger were taken to Alexandria Castle, where they rested peacefully. Soon they all awoke, where they met in the town square. Zidane and the gang told the whole story to everyone. "Wow!" Cid exclaimed. "So, Life was the source of life, the creator, and you four received the energy? Wow!" "Hehe! You're always the lucky one, Zidane!" Baku said, guffawing heartily. "Well, I guess this has a happy ending after all!" said Zidane, stretching. Dagger, strangely, was silent. "What's wrong, Dagger?" he asked. All she said was "Follow me." And so he did. Dagger went to the docks at Alexandria Harbor and sat down. Zidane sat down as well. "These waters…they bring back so many memories…this is when I first came to Alexandria from Madain Sari…" Dagger said. "I was thinking…I realized today that my life has meaning. Never before have I ever felt this way! And I realized I owe it all to you, Zidane. You, and you alone, Zidane Tribal. Do you know how many memories you've helped me understand?" "No." he replied, staring out over the ocean. Dagger looked at Zidane. "I love you, Zidane. It took me this long to realize, but I do." " I love you too, Dagger. Don't ever leave me. I'd be all alone then." Dagger looked up. "Two planets…each with their own fate…makes you wonder, doesn't it?" she said. "Yeah." said Zidane. "It really does." Dagger kissed Zidane on the cheek. "Come on, let's go back." Dagger said, starting to get up, but Zidane stopped her. "No." he said. "Let's stay." He embraced Dagger, and out of the corner of his eye, he thought he caught a glimpse of Steiner and Beatrix sharing a romantic moment as well, but he kept his thoughts on Dagger-the one he loved forever. Zidane looked up at Terra, still glowing red. All his questions had been answered, and he had come from a thief to a king. He finally knew what life meant. All was right with the world-finally.