The two guards at Coneria castle stood watch as usual when they saw a group of five people approaching. They got ready to draw their swords as a precaution, but then they made out who these people were. They were the Light Warriors (from four days ago) and traveling with them was... Princess Sara? They couldn't believe their eyes!
The five made their way up to Coneria castle. They got to the door when the guards simply stepped aside in awe. The group made their way as best they could up to the king's chamber, with advice from Sara keeping them from wandering into the kitchens or an empty bedroom. They finally arrived at the regal chamber and filed in silently. When they did, the king raised his head and looked at them.
"Sara? Can it be?"
"Yes, daddy. It's me, Sara."
Both the king and his daughter burst out in tears. The monarch rose from his throne, all signs of the weakness of age he had before gone. He ran over and hugged Sara.
"I've missed you so much."
"Me too, daddy."
"Are you okay? Did Garland...?"
"No, I'm fine. I'm okay thanks to these people."
"Light Warriors, thank you. I owe you my daughter's life. The celebration in your honor will be held tonight. Sara, let's go see your mother."
The party was being held in Coneria city. The king and queen, Sara, her younger sister Laura, and the four victorious warriors stood on a platform. The whole of Coneria city and the castle guards were there for the party. Everyone waited as the king gave his little dedication speech to the Light Warriors.
"Thanks to these four fine young men, Princess Sara has been saved from the evil knight Garland! This celebration is in your honor, heroes. Now, let us begin!"
At the king's words, the traveling musicians the king hired to play picked up a fiddle, a bagpipe, and a flute, and started playing a lively dance jig like nothing the Light Warriors had ever heard. It sure was a change from drawn-out chants or drinking songs. The villagers started dancing with one another, and the warriors thought it looked like fun to join in.
Then, a group of people came out of a house carrying trays all sorts of food. There were roast and grilled meats, vegetable dishes of all types, exotic foods the warriors had never even imagined before, and a huge bowl of punch. "A feast for our heroes!" they announced. "Everyone dig in!"
The heroes, not having had a decent home-cooked meal since they first left on their journey, eagerly accepted and began to eat.
Logan got herself a plate full of roast deer with Gaian greens, her favorite food in the world, when she decided to try a little bit of the punch. She poured herself a glass and took a sip, then immediately wished she hadn't. She had to force herself not to spew the vile concoction out of her mouth. What was this? Logan got her answer when she spied an old man adding a bottle full of some liquor labeled "Liquid Devil" to the punch. Logan quickly decided she didn't want any more.
Michael was just standing around the table, eating small bits of this and that, when a woman about his age walked up to him. She was wearing a low-cut dress that also barely covered what it should have on the bottom. She took a drink of the punch, then stepped closer. Michael didn't say anything, so she started talking to him.
"Hello, hero. My name's Arylon. I'm a dancer. You wanna dance?"
Michael didn't really have a good first impression of the woman. "No, thanks."
"But why not? Too good for a commoner, big, strong hero?" Arylon drank another glass of the punch. "Come on, let's dance."
"I said no."
"But I'm a really good dancer! Watch!" Arylon started kind of swaying back and forth, then took another stiff drink of the punch before she passed out onto the ground. Michael kind of edged away as Arylon's dad showed up to carry the girl back home.
Cadoc was having a good time dancing with whatever girl asked him, but pretty soon he got tired of it. This was just like life back in the guards: you'd meet girls at dances who you'd never speak to again. He would rather marry a nice, quiet girl and settle down or live his life as a monk than go to pointless social gatherings like this. To pass the time, he decided to practice his martial arts off to himself.
Aiko hadn't seen civilization in seven years, so it was kind of a shock being in a place like this. All these people dancing and having a good time was something completely foreign to him. Was this supposed to be fun? All that silly romance was of no use to him. The only thing Aiko cared about was getting so powerful no one could hurt him. Getting emotionally attached to someone is opening oneself up to weakness; he learned that the hard way. Aiko resigned himself to casting weak lightning and fire spells to impress onlookers.
The part being at full swing, the king rose up from his seat on the platform and announced to the crowd, "Citizens of Coneria, thank you for making the Light Warriors feel at home! Now, we come to the highlight of the party. Princess Sara will thank each of her rescuers with a kiss!"
Every Conerian man looked enviously at the warriors as they made their way up to the platform. Kissing a princess was something they could only dream of, and they were seeing it happen to someone else before their very eyes. The warriors themselves were nervous as they lined up and awaited their just reward. Logan really wished she were somewhere else, but she had to go along with this to keep up the charade, at least for now.
Sara started with Michael. She walked in front of him and gave him a big smooch on the cheek. He couldn't help but smile and blush a little bit. "Hmm," thought Sara, "not bad. He's not too shy, so at least we could talk."
Next was Cadoc. She gave him a kiss on the cheek just like she did Michael. Cadoc smiled, and he'd be lying if he said he didn't enjoy it. Sara considered this one for a moment. "Nice and strong. I'd take him. But he's a monk, though. What a waste."
Logan closed her eyes while Sara gave her the reward she earned: a polite little kiss on the cheek. Logan used every last ounce of her willpower to keep herself from making a scene and giving herself away. Sara pondered over this one in her head. "Nice smooth skin. Kind of shy, though. Oh well. The other two look better anyway."
Sara looked at the mage in the black robe and huge hat. His face was completely hidden from view. Still, she casually walked over, stuck her head under the hat's brim, and gave a kiss to the man under the hat. When she did, Aiko felt a sudden warmth come over him. What was this emotion? It felt kind of nice. Suddenly, Aiko thought that maybe, just maybe, their might be something more than power in this world. But this made him feel vulnerable and dependent, the exact opposite of what power did.
After Sara walked off stage, the party begin to wrap up. As everyone was saying their farewells and heading home, Aiko was off to himself again. He was gazing up at the stars, when suddenly he felt a strange presence, a disturbance that should not be happening. Something was wrong. Something was definitely wrong.
In a dark and ancient temple, something burdened beneath a pile of armor began to stir. It disappeared in an instant into the black orb in the room.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"I... do not... perish!"
- Golbez, FFIV
The five made their way up to Coneria castle. They got to the door when the guards simply stepped aside in awe. The group made their way as best they could up to the king's chamber, with advice from Sara keeping them from wandering into the kitchens or an empty bedroom. They finally arrived at the regal chamber and filed in silently. When they did, the king raised his head and looked at them.
"Sara? Can it be?"
"Yes, daddy. It's me, Sara."
Both the king and his daughter burst out in tears. The monarch rose from his throne, all signs of the weakness of age he had before gone. He ran over and hugged Sara.
"I've missed you so much."
"Me too, daddy."
"Are you okay? Did Garland...?"
"No, I'm fine. I'm okay thanks to these people."
"Light Warriors, thank you. I owe you my daughter's life. The celebration in your honor will be held tonight. Sara, let's go see your mother."
The party was being held in Coneria city. The king and queen, Sara, her younger sister Laura, and the four victorious warriors stood on a platform. The whole of Coneria city and the castle guards were there for the party. Everyone waited as the king gave his little dedication speech to the Light Warriors.
"Thanks to these four fine young men, Princess Sara has been saved from the evil knight Garland! This celebration is in your honor, heroes. Now, let us begin!"
At the king's words, the traveling musicians the king hired to play picked up a fiddle, a bagpipe, and a flute, and started playing a lively dance jig like nothing the Light Warriors had ever heard. It sure was a change from drawn-out chants or drinking songs. The villagers started dancing with one another, and the warriors thought it looked like fun to join in.
Then, a group of people came out of a house carrying trays all sorts of food. There were roast and grilled meats, vegetable dishes of all types, exotic foods the warriors had never even imagined before, and a huge bowl of punch. "A feast for our heroes!" they announced. "Everyone dig in!"
The heroes, not having had a decent home-cooked meal since they first left on their journey, eagerly accepted and began to eat.
Logan got herself a plate full of roast deer with Gaian greens, her favorite food in the world, when she decided to try a little bit of the punch. She poured herself a glass and took a sip, then immediately wished she hadn't. She had to force herself not to spew the vile concoction out of her mouth. What was this? Logan got her answer when she spied an old man adding a bottle full of some liquor labeled "Liquid Devil" to the punch. Logan quickly decided she didn't want any more.
Michael was just standing around the table, eating small bits of this and that, when a woman about his age walked up to him. She was wearing a low-cut dress that also barely covered what it should have on the bottom. She took a drink of the punch, then stepped closer. Michael didn't say anything, so she started talking to him.
"Hello, hero. My name's Arylon. I'm a dancer. You wanna dance?"
Michael didn't really have a good first impression of the woman. "No, thanks."
"But why not? Too good for a commoner, big, strong hero?" Arylon drank another glass of the punch. "Come on, let's dance."
"I said no."
"But I'm a really good dancer! Watch!" Arylon started kind of swaying back and forth, then took another stiff drink of the punch before she passed out onto the ground. Michael kind of edged away as Arylon's dad showed up to carry the girl back home.
Cadoc was having a good time dancing with whatever girl asked him, but pretty soon he got tired of it. This was just like life back in the guards: you'd meet girls at dances who you'd never speak to again. He would rather marry a nice, quiet girl and settle down or live his life as a monk than go to pointless social gatherings like this. To pass the time, he decided to practice his martial arts off to himself.
Aiko hadn't seen civilization in seven years, so it was kind of a shock being in a place like this. All these people dancing and having a good time was something completely foreign to him. Was this supposed to be fun? All that silly romance was of no use to him. The only thing Aiko cared about was getting so powerful no one could hurt him. Getting emotionally attached to someone is opening oneself up to weakness; he learned that the hard way. Aiko resigned himself to casting weak lightning and fire spells to impress onlookers.
The part being at full swing, the king rose up from his seat on the platform and announced to the crowd, "Citizens of Coneria, thank you for making the Light Warriors feel at home! Now, we come to the highlight of the party. Princess Sara will thank each of her rescuers with a kiss!"
Every Conerian man looked enviously at the warriors as they made their way up to the platform. Kissing a princess was something they could only dream of, and they were seeing it happen to someone else before their very eyes. The warriors themselves were nervous as they lined up and awaited their just reward. Logan really wished she were somewhere else, but she had to go along with this to keep up the charade, at least for now.
Sara started with Michael. She walked in front of him and gave him a big smooch on the cheek. He couldn't help but smile and blush a little bit. "Hmm," thought Sara, "not bad. He's not too shy, so at least we could talk."
Next was Cadoc. She gave him a kiss on the cheek just like she did Michael. Cadoc smiled, and he'd be lying if he said he didn't enjoy it. Sara considered this one for a moment. "Nice and strong. I'd take him. But he's a monk, though. What a waste."
Logan closed her eyes while Sara gave her the reward she earned: a polite little kiss on the cheek. Logan used every last ounce of her willpower to keep herself from making a scene and giving herself away. Sara pondered over this one in her head. "Nice smooth skin. Kind of shy, though. Oh well. The other two look better anyway."
Sara looked at the mage in the black robe and huge hat. His face was completely hidden from view. Still, she casually walked over, stuck her head under the hat's brim, and gave a kiss to the man under the hat. When she did, Aiko felt a sudden warmth come over him. What was this emotion? It felt kind of nice. Suddenly, Aiko thought that maybe, just maybe, their might be something more than power in this world. But this made him feel vulnerable and dependent, the exact opposite of what power did.
After Sara walked off stage, the party begin to wrap up. As everyone was saying their farewells and heading home, Aiko was off to himself again. He was gazing up at the stars, when suddenly he felt a strange presence, a disturbance that should not be happening. Something was wrong. Something was definitely wrong.
In a dark and ancient temple, something burdened beneath a pile of armor began to stir. It disappeared in an instant into the black orb in the room.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"I... do not... perish!"
- Golbez, FFIV