Wild ARMs: Rehabitated and Rehabilitated
by Black Fenril
Disclaimer: Media Vision owns Wild ARMs. I don't. I own a copy of the game, and I wish a had a shirt that had Zed on it, but I don't. That's all, folks!
Chapter 1: The Misfortunate Exile of Rudy (...?) Roughnight
Life is gradually fading from the land. Slowly, but surely, the destruction of Filgaia continues. A devastated enviroment filled with ferocious monsters plague the people of Filgaia who desperately try to cling to their land. Those who dare to venture out are called 'Dream Chasers'. There is a youth in the village of Surf... it's difficult to think of this youth as a 'Dream Chaser', but his potential is phenomenal. What does he seek?
The slim, tall, hat covered boy is seen leaning against a barrel that he had just pushed back into place. He seemed to be resting. Let's look in on him, shall we?
He had the features of a regular 15 year old youth. Except small strands of blue hair hung out from the hat he was wearing. He also had dark crimson eyes. He wore a beaten old red vest, binding it tightly against his upper body. Dirty, what seems to be white sleeves stuck out from the sleeves of the vest. He wore loose teal jeans and brown boots with white trim on the top that almost went up to his knees. Black fingerless gloves covered his hands, and a red cloth was tied around his upper left arm.
When he spoke, it was a soft whisper, barely audible, and he barely spoke. He didn't look the least bit strong, but he was. Stronger than probably your average adult male human.
All of a sudden, the guy that runs the stables he was working in ran in. Telling the young boy to stop working and to gratify him.
"Hey, kid! Thank you for the work," the owner said with gratitude. There should be more money for this kid. He's done such a great job... the horses even seem happier than usual... the stable owner thought. "Here's this week's pay. Sorry, kid, this is all the village can afford."
The owner handed him a Heal Berry. The blue haired boy looked down at the Heal Berry, then looked at the owner with dismay.
"What your name, kid?"
A sharp pain goes through his stomach. I can't be found out! Not now! Damn it, what's the name I gave Mayor Pifer? ... I GOT IT! "Rudy Roughnight, sir," he replies, wincing and putting a hand on his stomach.
"Are you okay, Rudy?" the owner asks Rudy.
"I'm fine," he whispers.
"Well, anyway, you should go talk to Mayor Pifer. He's probably got more work for you," the owner suggested.
Grrrrrrreat... just what I need. More damned work!
He ambled slowly to the mayor's house. He stays there. Um, well, what I mean is, when he stumbled into Surf, the took Rudy into his- er- 'wing', shall we say, and Mayor Pifer let him stay in his home. Rudy thought that this was pretty sweet of him. This day, today, is Rudy's one week anniversary in Surf Village. Rudy went into the two story house, ascended the stairs and tried to sneak past Mayor Pifer unnoticed, but he was about as stealthy as a car crash in Baskar Village at night.
"Rudy! There you are! I wanted to give something to you," the mayor said.
Aw, damn it, he saw me. No matter. Rudy looked up, and mumbled, "Hi, mayor. You good, today?"
"Yes, I am. And speak up, son! I can barely hear you. It's not really possible to make it in the world when nobody finds you audible. Anyway, about the thing I wanted to give to you. But I want to ask you something. Are you really sure you want to become a Dream Chaser?" the mayor asked the blue haired boy with a sword sheathed across his back.
"Of course I am, Mayor Pifer!" Rudy said louder and higher pitched than he might've liked. "In my eyes, I have already achieved the Dream Chaser status that I have been aspiring my. Whole. Life." Damn... that outburst could've sabotaged my masquerade. But still, I can't believe he would ask me something like that. I still could've blown my cover, tho'.
"Well," Mayor Pifer began. "If that is the case, then I shall give you these magical bombs..."
He walked over to the counter, where three black bombs lie. He picked them up, and shoved them into Rudy's arms.
"Uh, tell me, Mayor Pifer," he said to him, more quiet this time. "What exactly is so 'magical' about these bombs?"
"Well, they never run out. You blow one up, and another takes it place. Since I'm old, too tired, and waayyy to occupied being mayor to start excavating ruins again, and since you're young, don't get tired very easily, and a 'Dream Chaser', you'll have much more use to them then I do."
"Thanks, Mayor," Rudy said while smiling weakly to him. He did something nice. Or maybe he is one of those people who give others false hope, or throw kindness at just anyone. I LOATHE people like that... er... Ow. That damned sharp pain is back... damn it, damn it... Rudy tried his best to hide it. He winced a couple times.
"You know that Berry Cave to the south of here?"
"Yeah, what about it?"
"We used to harvest Holy Berries there. Then, some daring villagers ventured further into the cave, and found this 10 foot high statue. While they were investigating it, it cracked, and this zombie - type thing came out. It attacked them, but they escaped. They brought the Dream Chasers who were visiting the village out to the Berry Cave, and paid a pretty good bounty on having it killed. They killed it, or at least tried to, and almost did. They would have, if the thing hadn't kept regenerating itself when it was defeated," Mayor Pifer hesitated for a second.
"Go on," Rudy insisted.
"Well, one 'brilliant' Dream Chaser had a 'brilliant' idea. To plant the last Holy Berry seed inside the demon while it was regenerating itself. They did it, and the Zombie had been sealed inside the statue it was once in. Made to be sealed for ALL eternity. Never to be awakened again. Anyways, the planting of the last Holy Berry seed caused us to lose trading with other towns. Thus, we are a poor village, and will take anything we can get our little meathooks on, ya know? That's why everybody's so pleased with your work in the stables. You're a good worker."
Rudy blushed a little. "Uh, thanks."
He turned to leave, Rudy did. He tried to descend the stairs, but the guy that guards the town, Paul, ran up the same staircase Rudy was going down, and Rudy got knocked down. The guy apologized quickly, brushing past him, and telling Mayor Pifer the uber - important news.
"Mayor! A child from the village has sneaked past the guard in the Berry Cave!"
Tony... that was probably what he was talking about when he said he had some 'things' to attend to out of town. Rudy slipped out of the room, unnoticed, this time. Agh... I, Cassie Roughnight, am going to save Tony! Guardians, leave this human some faith... Ru... um, Cassie realized that the cramp was still there, but didn't care. She had a little kid to save.
Back in Mayor Pifer's, um, quarters, shall we say...
"Berry Cave... how on Filgaia are we gonna rescue that kid? Rudy..." he turns around to expect to see the gender - ambiguous boy, but he didn't. "Rudy? Paul, did you see a boy with blue hair?"
"Boy? There wasn't a boy in here. There was a gender - ambiguous girl, and she left already," Paul replied.
That last thing made Mayor Pifer stutter like an idiot. (Peter Griffin-like laugh) Anyways, Cassie goes through Berry Cave. Then she sees a sign (no not the "I saw the sign" type...). It said "Do not destroy this sign! Danger ahead! That means you, young lady! Yes, we know you're a young lady, and the place that leads to here isn't a place where ladies should go..."
Too freakin' bad. I'm goin' there... you smart ass sign... So I'm 15 and female, big freakin' deal.
Then a few minutes later, she came up to another sign that said "Danger! Bats will bring "Bad Omen"! Footsteps will wake them up! Take it slow and easy..."
"What the Hades is "Bad Omen"? Well, I'd better find out..."
She dashes down the bridge. Then some bats come and attack her. She fights to shoo them off, but they are way too damned persistent.
"GET THE HADES OFF ME! STOP IT! ARGH!"
Then she comes across a Holy Symbol. She holds it up in the air, and thank Solus Emsu, they backed off. Then she read the sign next to it.
"The Holy Symbol will exorcise the "Bad Omen". Thanks for running, asswipe!" she read aloud.
Another wise - ass sign... (sigh) They never give me a break...
Then a statue puzzle comes up a few minutes later. She pulls the right lever, and the one behind the first statue moves. It can't get up because the first statue is blocking it.
"DAMN IT!"
Then she pulls the right lever again, went to the left lever. The first statue came up. Then she goes back to the right lever and pulls it AGAIN. The path is cleared. She goes south. In the next room, there is a Bullet Clip and a cough star of David cough save point/magic encampment.
Hmm... I must be getting close or something...
And she was right. She goes all the way west she could, then goes north a ways. There was Tony, the strawberry blonde headed 8 year old boy.
"Ca- Rudy! There you are..."
"It's all right here, Tony... You can call me by my real name."
"All righty then. Cassie. Do you have anything to clear this blocked passage? I've tried for freakin' ages and nothing has worked."
"Well, Mayor Pifer gave me some bombs... but..."
Tony told her the whole story. The Holy Berries, and his wounded father.
"Okay, you have pretty much convinced me. You're not worried about any Zombie, kid?"
"No. It's sealed away in that statue, 'member?"
"Oh, yeah..."
"By the way, take off that hat... it cramps your style."
Off came her hat, and down came her shiny blue hair. It came to at least 3/4 down her back.
"Your hair... it's beautiful... why do you hide your gender, Cassie?"
"I will tell you later..."
She set a bomb down by the blocked passage. It went off in a couple seconds, and the passage becomes clear.
Chimes, Freddy! YEAH!
"Great.. now... get that last Holy Berry and let's get out of here!"
By the way, did I mention she leveled up two levels in the cave? Also, she found a Bandanna in the next room, partially hidden by a wall. It raises her defense, ladies and (not-so) gentleman. She picked up the Holy Berry, which is emitting a faint purple light. Then in came Tony.
"You've got it... good..."
"Now let's get the Hades out of here!"
They get to the entrance of the cave... nothing has happened yet... They meet the entire village there. By then, she already had her hair up in her hat again.
Her really hat... Tony thought.
"Rudy! Tony! Thank the Guardians you're all right!" Mayor Pifer was relieved.
"Yeah. All we needed to do was retrieve the Holy Berry..." Tony explained.
"WHAT!" the village exclaimed at the reddish blonde and blue haired cough ARMslinger cough gender ambiguous girl.
Just then, there was a giant earthquake. It was so huge, you could probably feel it from Milama Village, in far southwestern Filgaia! Cassie held onto Tony. It seemed to go on for about 5 minutes.
"Whoa, what the Hades was that earthquake about?" Mayor Pifer asked to no one in particular.
"Uh... I dunno..." Cassie replied stupidly.
"Anyways, I guess the Holy Berry thing can't be helped. Let's go back to Surf Village and heal Tony's father..."
As everybody started to leave, the dog ran up behind Cassie and started barking madly.
"What is it, boy?" Cassie asked the now known as male dog. A strange type of tension-y sort of music was playing. The blue haired ARMslinger REALLY didn't like it. Well, actually it sounded cool, but really is just a teaser in a situation like this... Then everybody saw the horrid thing after a gust of wind blew out from the entrance to the next room.
"Oh, my Guardians! It's the ZOMBIE OF SURF VILLAGE!" somebody yelled out.
DA DA! DA DA DA DA...
The battle begins. The thing is really horrid looking. Misshapen and shapeless at the same time and really really ferocious looking. Two horns were coming out of its head and sharp dagger like claws on its fingers (...?). Its eyes were chasms of pitch black, never seeming to end, and in short, it wasn't really something you would want to mess around with.
It attacked first. Since Chapapanga, the Guardian of Luck, wasn't exactly smiling upon Cassie today, the monster attacked with its dagger - like claws. She evaded it easily, but they cut through the binders holding her vest together tightly, and her C - cup femininity (still in the white shirt, tho', sorry guys) showed.
"Agh! Damn it! You're serious. Oh, well... it was fun while it lasted. If it's a fight you want..." Cassie drew out her Hand Cannon ARM, neatly polished, and all 'spic and span'. "It's a fight you'll get. ARM Lock On!"
A green crosshair type thing appeared, and Cassie aimed her Hand Cannon precisely, at the stomach. "HAND CANNON!" she yelled. She grabbed the hammer and pulled the trigger. The bullet tore through the demon's stomach, but the Zombie just regenerated after the attack. "What! You can regenerate? Damn, this battle is gonna take forever."
Then she remembered something about Tony saying that if you throw the Holy Berry into the demon's digestive tract, it will die instantaneously. Hm... big word, eh?
She drew her 'Long Knife' sword and got on the Zombie's shoulders (...?), pried his mouth open with it and forced in the Holy Berry. He was reduced to sludge instantaneously. Hey, there's that word again.
So the battle ended. That was a considerably short battle, even for Cassie. Her red eyes (and no, they're not bloodshot from lack of sleep, crimson is the color of her irises) have a sign of pride and courage. But that look turned into sadness as to what happened next.
"Great job, Cassie! You defeated the Zombie!" Tony congratulated her, but his mother took hold of his shoulders and pulled him back. "Mom? What happened?"
"You have unleashed a terrible omen onto Surf Village. You have lied to us about your gender. Why?" the stable owner asked the now revealed blue haired ARMslinger.
She pulled off her hat to reveal the beautiful, shiny blue hair again. It cascaded down her shoulders gracefully.
"I was in desperate need of work. I've seen you turn down women who were perfect for that job!"
The stable owner just clenched his fists and said nothing. Now, Tony's father spoke. "I've heard about you. You possess an ARM. I know I shouldn't have, but I looked through your stuff the other day," Tony's father confessed.
"The ARM has cursed us all!" one voice said.
"Cassie probably directly caused that earthquake!" said another.
"ENOUGH!" Mayor Pifer said. "Cassie, you will be judged on this by village law. Do you agree, Cassie?"
She lowered her head and mumbled, barely audible, "Do I have a choice?"
The next day... Cassie stares out the window. Her hair was down, but she put it back up with her hat. Her clothes had been fixed, and she looked like a male again. She made her way downstairs, to overhear the conference/trial that Mayor Pifer and four other villagers were having.
"Then the decision is made. We will ask her to leave. I took her in, so I'll inform her of our decision," Mayor Pifer said.
Her jaw literally dropped. Her red eyes began to tear up. The only place I belong... and I messed that up, too... Oh, Grandfather, what should I do now?
Cassie sees Mayor Pifer and runs to him.
"Were you eavesdropping, Cassie?"
"Yes."
"Then you know of our decision. I must ask you to pack your things and leave. And please, don't come back."
She could feel her tears running hot down her cheeks, burning her face. Maybe I wasn't meant for Filgaia... the only place that had accepted me...
She runs upstairs, grabs her knapsack, and with the ARM that had betrayed her, she put it between her and her belt.
As she walks to the town entrance, she thinks with scorn, Why is it that I curse every freakin' where I go? Why can't I be like every other human? Why is it that people stare at my cerulean hair, and my crimson eyes? WHY!
Her life was made up with 'why's. As she left Surf, Tony came running up to her.
"Hey, Cassie! Thank you for saving me! I was so helpless. You should know that those villagers are wrong.""Go tell them that. They'll just go 'No, she trashed our village and put a curse on us'. Face it, Tony. This village has people with hearts built with stone. All excepting you. Have a good life, Tony."
"But- I'll never see you again?"
"Not for a long time. I don't think this village wants Dream Chasers here at all."
"That's- I have to get back. Thank you, Cassie. Have courage to conquer your next mission."
He ran from her then. How come he, of all people, are different! WHY!
She used her skill to protect them, yet they rejected her out of fear. She was born with a power she never asked for. The skill to use the forbidden 'ARM's. She still roams Filgaia, in search of her soul, unaware of her inborn power...
Dani: So... that was okay, wasn't it?
Rudy: Couldn't have been better.
Smart Ass Rudy: Yes it could have!
Jack: Hey! HEY! Where's the bourbon, dudes?
Smart Ass Rudy: Up your ass, asswipe!
Cecilia: You are being rude!
Rudy: Eheh... no wonder he was named 'Rudy'.
Cecilia: (Laughs) You want to go out sometime?
Dani: Back off, Princess, Rudy is MINE.
Cecilia: Sorry.
Rudy: Right. (Purrs my name) I want you, Dani.
Jack: Now we're gettin' a party! WOOHOO!
Cecilia: (Sighs) This is getting nowhere.
Dani: Okay, I am only using Rudy as something.
Jack: 'EY!
Dani: And Jack, but you'll have a different name.
Rudy: TOGA! TOGA! TOGA!
Dani: Man, this really IS getting nowhere...
