Author's Note
The 2012 Version
Can you honestly believe that it's been seven years since I first posted this story? Time flies, to be sure. Unfortunately, I've all but fallen out of writing fanfiction and moved on to other, larger writing projects. But this story always stuck in my craw. I've always liked it. I liked the idea, I liked the delivery and I loved how it all turned out. This and Verite au Vie were my big 'magnum opus'' here on , stories I always thought of when I thought of their respective games.
I recently found some down time and in a kick of both nostalgia and drive, decided to look at some of my older works. A lot of it is awful, yes, but I found this again and enjoyed re-reading it. Thing was, there was a LOT of terrible things in it. Bad structure, awful grammar, pacing, spelling—on and on. Not to mention that my writing style has found itself in a place much different than this. So, re-reading this now lead to a lot of cringing and shaking of the head. The fact that I was so sold on the 'italics for what characters are thinking' thing makes me sick. Plus, there was a lot of text that didn't need to be there. Descriptions of things that are just as easily shown, confusing bits of dialogue and really just a lot deadwood that could be (and has been) trimmed.
Editing this to what I like now that I'm seven years older was a lot of fun, actually! It made me go pick up my ancient copy of the game to double-check things and wouldn't you know it, I had to play an hour (or ten). My combined hours in that game are well over 250. Goddamn.
Anyway.
While I didn't change the main focus of the story, a lot of events have been changed, cut down or plain removed. Marche's final fight with the Judges, for instance, is different, as is Ritz and company's return to the world. Still, even after all that, you can still see traces of my younger self through it. Isn't it funny how much one can change in seven years? Reading the original version of this made me realize how immature I was back then, how much I had to learn about writing. Tacking on an author's note that points out what music I listened to when writing, for instance, is a great example of such immaturity. It's like, who cares. It's just was what playing. Imagine if Victor Hugo published an author's note that said 'Oh, I was listening to Wagner while I wrote Fantine's death'.
Not that I'm anywhere near Mr. Hugo. Shame on me, really, for making that comparison.
Okay, okay, I'm rambling again. It's what I do. I hardly ever stay on track. Give me enough time and I'd build you a train station when you asked for a hamburger.
Again, thank you for reading. Thank you for enjoying. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Email me at ZorgonXtreme2
Or don't. Whatever.
Finally, it's balls cold where I am.
My pants have stayed on my legs.
Ah-ha-ha!