Prologue
"Cosmos...Now I know what you've left behind."
The ten warriors watched the god of discord, Chaos, wither in pain. The Edge of Madness, Chaos's shrine, started to tremble and there were numerous explosions all around them. The world was collapsing and suddenly the crystals started to glow as bright as day. One by one the ten pawns of Cosmos started to disappear in flashes of light. They heard the fallen god's last words, "Begone, mortals." and there was nothing but whiteness.
A castle loomed in the distance. After a few seconds they ended up in a lush, fertile field where all kinds of flowers and trees grew. A sparkling clear lake was behind them and the weather was pleasant. A cool breeze blew and birds sang their peaceful tunes in the air. The warriors looked stunned at their new surroundings. They were at the Cornelia Plains.
The Warrior of Light, the leader of the group, sighed in relief for the first time. "The battle has come to an end." Then the heroes congratulated themselves as he remembered the fate of the fallen warriors in the previous cycle.
Lightning, a pink-haired soldier; Kain, a Dragoon; Yuna, a summoner; Vaan, a wannabe sky pirate; Laguna, a gun wielder; and Tifa, a fist brawler each layed lifelessly on a grassy field at Order's Sanctuary. The Warrior of Light watched as they each glowed, risen, and faded as a dragon made of radiant light claimed them. Lightning was the last one as she smiled at him and dissipated. He bowed his head sadly since they never returned.
Terra, a young girl of magics, brought him out of his reverie as she laid a hand on his broad shoulder. "Hey, why do you look so sad?" she spoke quietly.
"It's nothing you would want to know..."
There was a pause, then she asked "Did someone die?"
"Yes..."
"Is it...Cosmos?"
"Hey, guys?" Bartz, the mimic warrior, curiously marched up to the duo. "I just remembered something...There were some other warriors besides us. We haven't seen them in awhile. Do you know where they went?" he asked facing the lone warrior.
Soon that same question brought everyone's attention. They stopped talking to one another and everything became silent. With a deep breath, he turned toward his friends.
"Everyone...I have some horrible news for you. In the previous cycle, there were other warriors of Cosmos besides us. In total, there were six. I wasn't going to tell you before facing Chaos because...this is very tragic."
They all started to mutter at once.
"These other men and women befriended and trusted us. Their mission was to stop Chaos's forces and obtain their crystals. But instead they've decided to stop the endless horde of manikins. Those brave souls journeyed to the center of the Interdimensional Rift. They destroyed the portal that connected their world to ours. Once it was closed, each one gave their last ounce of strength then perished. Their souls were lifted and never seen again."
Everyone can barely speak. Cloud, Cecil, Tidus, Firion, and Terra had flashbacks on how they first met the fallen warriors and were devastated since they didn't even say goodbye.
The Paladin fell to his knees and his face reddened as he tried to hold back his tears. "Kain...you're gone...?"
Terra sobbed as she covered her face. "V-Vaan...I can't believe you're dead...!"
Cloud was the most stupefied. "Tifa...I didn't get a chance to..."For the first time he cried as a small tear dropped from the corner of his eye. Her death reminded him of his old friend, Zack, as he passed on.
Firion bowed his head so low, he was actually looking at the roots rather then the wild roses. He held his flower close to his heart and whimpered "Lightning...I promise that...I promise I'll make a grave and give the rose to you...Your death shall not be in vain" He swiped his eyes with the back of his hand.
Squall was the only one who didn't cry; in fact, his face showed no emotion at all. On the outside, he looked like he didn't care about Laguna's death. But deep down he was a wreck. He wished he'd known him more and gotten to know his jokes and light-heartedness. He sat and sulked under a tree with his Gunblade stuck in the ground. "This would make a mediocre memorial." he thought.
Tidus turned away from the group to hide his emotions. "Yuna...? I never got to know you, nor understood you. But I'll always remember you...summoner..." he cried hard and no one noticed since they were wrapped up in their grief.
They weren't aware of their crystals, as they glowed and made their tears glisten in the light. One by one everybody disappeared to their correspondent worlds...or so they thought.
When the warriors disappeared, Cosmos's voice was heard. It was kind of strange since Chaos perished her.
"Warriors of harmony, you've defeated the god of discord and brought peace to the world. The crystals bestowed you the strength to do so, but I have given you one more task. Before you return to your homes, you must meet the wizard of the castle of Stormhaven. He will provide you information about your next quest; to investigate the fortress of Shadowgate. If you succeed, you will all go back to your homes you once knew. However, if you fail, you will perish. Go to the castle, your journey awaits you!"
When they opened their eyes they realized they were still together, in a deep forest. They looked at their surroundings in awe.
"We're...still together. But where are we?" Firion queried.
As they found themselves, they noticed that the Warrior of Light was no longer with them.
"Why isn't he with us?" Terra asked.
"It seems the Cornelia Plains was his homeworld and left us here." said Cecil still in his Paladin form.
"Hmmm. The last thing I remember was Cosmos...speaking to me. She said we should find a castle called Stormhaven and talk to someone there." Cloud added.
"We might as well, if that is what she wishes." Firion suggested.
Over the tall tress there was a bright castle with white towers, the pawns went straight to it. After entering a clearing a gateway awaited them.
Lightning, Vaan, Yuna, Laguna, Tifa, and Kain were sitting in the courtyard. They were discussing how and why they ended up being here instead of their homes.
"What are we doing here?" Tifa asked in disbelief. "Shouldn't we be in our homeworlds by now?"
"I actually thought we'd be dead...since we closed the portal to the Rift." Vaan said.
Laguna used his usual gesture. He rubbed his chin in deep thought. "Hmmm. That may be so. But it seems like we've been given a second chance. All I can remember is seeing a bright light and heard Cosmos speaking to me."
"Yes. I remember it, too. Maybe we are still alive." Yuna gasped. "I might be able to see Tidus and Jecht after all."
"Don't dwell on that." Kain spoke in his monotone. "We're still here, and the wizard told us to stay here until the other warriors show up." Then he thought aloud. "At least there are no manikins. But we're still in this strange world. Maybe we're not alive, but rather in purgatory."
"I'm not sure why we have to stay here. It feels like forever since we destroyed that portal." Lightning intervened impatiently. "I wish we could just go home already if it wasn't Cosmos's last words."
Then everyone stopped talking and looked perplexed as they sat like a bunch of inanimate dolls.
Meanwhile Firion and the others wandered the outside of the castle seeing bards and townsfolk passing by. As they passed, they stopped and stared. They have never seen these people before and wondered where they came from.
"Is this the place?" Luneth asked.
"Looks like it." Firion answered.
A jester stepped in front of him and said in a joyful tone. "Hi, welcome to Stormhaven! Ooo, you must be weary from yor travelers. Eh-why don't you rest at our courtyard and stand before our holiness, Lakmir, when you're ready. Ta ta!"
He hopped away and Terra muttered "That sure isn't like Kefka."
"No, that is actually a real jester." Bartz observed.
"And we are in Stormhaven, we're in the right place!" Zidane beamed.
"Let's rest for a couple minutes and meet ourselves to the king. We've been travelling for miles." Firion recommended.
As they went over the drawbridge and through the massive doors the castle was full of activity. Chickens clucked in their coupes. Peasants were busy at work. And some of them were talking rumors about the land being threatened by an evil being. This rminded Cecil of Baron, and Firion reminisced about the strongholds of Fynn and Altair.
As they walked on two guards in navy blue armor stood on eaach side of the next room closed by a door with a circular handle. One asked "May I help all of ye?"
"What brings ye here to Stormhaven?" queried the other.
Firion stepped forward. "We're looking for the wizard, Lakmir. We wish to see him."
"Bah! How do we know ye're not messengers of the dreaded warlock lord?"
"The who?" Bartz asked.
"The what?" Luneth added.
"I'm sorry travelers, but we've been in peril by the warlock and his minions. They lurk from a dark castle known as Shadowgate."
Firion thought agog. "Shadowgate! That was the castle Cosmos was talking about!"
"We're here to help. We've heard about Shadowgate from..." Cecil's head bowed. "...a fallen goddess."
"Then it must be true! Ye're all welcome to stand before him! My pardons!" Slowly the doors opened and the team went in.
Lightning and her comrades heard the rumble of the opening doors. They shielded their eyes as they made out an army of warriors. As their eyes cleared they saw Firion, Terra, Cloud, Tidus, Squall, Cecil, and the others standing before them.
"It's them! They're here!" Yuna cheered.
They walked to them and embraced them as they talked all at once how and why they got here. As the conversation quieted, Tifa asked "Where is he?"
"Oh, you mean, Warrior?" Terra asked.
"He didn't come with us. He stayed at Cornelia and left us here." Firion explained.
"Well, that's a relief." Lightning said. "I was never too fond about him and his fairy tales anyway. Although I should warn you that Kain is-"
Before she could finish there were trumpets blowing. The same jester appeared. "Hear ye! The warriors of Stormhaven has come!" He walked to them and escorted them to the throne room. "Please come with me."
A tiny mage with pointy ears put her hands on her hips. And on the other side there was a young Elvaan girl with long purple hair. She beamed with delight as she greeted herself.
"What's up, y'all? I'm Prishe, one of the so-called warriors summoned by this guy over here." She pointed at Lakmir.
"Ahem. My name is Shantotto, can't you see? It's going to take awhile to get along with me."
"What're you doing here?!" Vaan asked irritated at Prishe.
"Oh, we came to help you on this 'quest' that Cosmos assigned us to. And this wizard here will explain it all. Take it away..." She did some air quotes "Highness."
The majestic wizard stood up and put his tall wand aside. He waved his hands and said "Within the castle, Shadowgate, lies your quest. The dreaded warlock lord will use his black magic to raise the behemoth from the depths of combination of his evil arts and the great titan's power will surely destroy all of the world."
He pointed to Firion and the others "You are all the last of the line of our defense, the seeds of prophecy that were foretold eons ago. Only you can stop the evil one from darkening our world forever."
Firion declared to stop the warlock and bring peace to the kingdom and beyond. "We will do it! If it's to save this world and many others. That was a wish from a fallen goddess and we shall fulfill it!"
"I've assigned these two fine mages to assist thee. Please stop the dark warlock and the behemoth!"
"Will do!" Firion nodded.
"Fare thee well!" and he and his party were off to the castle.
He wished there were some Chocobos to make the journey more faster, but they had no choice but to go on foot.
A/N: Well, here's the Dissidia x-over. This takes place after the 12th and 13th cycles. As the conflict drew to a close, everyone realized there were still some warriors that have fallen recently, particularly Kain, Tifa, Yuna, Laguna, Vaan, and Lightning. Now all of 'em wound up in Stormhaven for a final mission from Cosmos, a last hurrah before they return home, if successful.
Hope you guys will like this fic. And hey, the warriors that have been defeated in Duodecim gotta go somewhere, right?
