Spot the FF2 and FF9 references?

The Beginning

"It came from that way!" Saria and Ailith said, running towards the castle with the two boys close behind. They ran into a castle that was ruined and old. The gates could be opened and looked like they would break if they were opened. The hallway was lined with ominous gargoyle statues. There was a door in front of them and they could hear someone talking from the inside, they quietly walked toward the door, and nodded to each other. Then they busted the door to see a knight clad in armour in front of an ominous purple crystal orb, behind him was an unconscious girl. Leon and Saria gasped, they knew exactly who those two people were. It was the Princess of Cornelia, Princess Sara Mi-era III, who was the third to be born a daughter of the line of kings and queens of Cornelia. Yes, most of the Queens in Cornelia were not blood related to the king. The knight was Garland; the greatest swordsman in Cornelia, he slew thousands of men for the King in the time of the Great War, where all four continents waged war against each other.

"Garland?" Saria said. Garland smiled under his helmet and slowly turned to face them.

"Hahaha. My, my, little lapdogs are we lost?" Garland said in an ominous, smooth and deep yet dark voice. The Ninja and Red Mage watched from afar. "Kill-Face me now! Warriors of Light!" The both of them face palmed. "I, Garland, will knock you all down!" Garland said as he lunged forward. His sword changed into a hammer and he brought it down at a ferocious speed, completely shattering the floor underneath him. The four of them dodged just in time to miss his attack, and then Erick began throwing fireballs at him, while his daggers attacked for extra damage.

"What did we do!? I just said your name!" Saria said, putting a protective shield on herself. Then Erick, Leon, and Ailith. Leon got up close and started swinging his sword at Garland whose sword shielded him from Leon's attacks. – began to run towards Garland and then she kicked him in an uppercut-style kick back flip, then Leon began to attack again. Leon, Erick, and Ailith attacked cooperatively, leaving no space for Garland to attack himself. Then after a good long while Garland's armour began to wear because of the punches and kicks from the monk. The monk then dodged Garland's blade and punched him in the face, he was knocked down, and then Leon stabbed him in the chest.

"Hahahaha...HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Garland's maniacal laugh echoed throughout the ruined castle. Bleeding through his chest, he fell limp and his breathing stopped.

"Leon...Saria..." The Ninja said, looking back. Claude then grabbed her arm. "Amilia, he's watching now." Claude said, nodding his head. The Red Mage and the Ninja then left the castle. They looked back one more time before taking off for their next mission: To guide the warriors down their chosen 'path'.

"Yes, you're right. It has already begun. Let's go." She said, quickly regaining her composure. Then they took off.

~ Back at the Chaos Shrine ~

"W-whoa...G-Garland!" Princess Sara said upon seeing Garland dead on the floor. "G...You...Those are! The Warriors of Light?! You are the ones the prophecy spoke of! D-did you...thank you...You saved me, thank you. We must get back to my father." She said, getting to her feet. The four of them then escorted her back to the King's castle.

"My daughter!" The King happily got off his chair and hugged Princess Sara. "Oh, I'm so happy you're safe..." He said, hugging her tighter. "Come! We must celebrate the return of my daughter and the death of our highest and best knight!"

"I don't think he understood what he just said..." Saria said and the four of them looked at the king, trying not to laugh. A celebration was held in honour of the four Warriors and the return of Princess Sara. The table was lined with various foods baked to perfection, with aromas that made the stomach hunger and the mouth salivate. Everyone was gathered around the table and not one person inside or outside the castle, did not get food. Indeed, the entirety of Cornelia was happy.

"Oh! Father! Father! Tell the Warriors of their mission! I think they have a right to know what they're in for." Princess Sara said, happily eating her corn and vegetables, sprinkled with sauce that made the mouth water.

"Let me tell you the prophecy of the Warriors of Light!" The King happily shouted, his voice cracking in the process. "When the world is in darkness... the four Warriors of Light shall come..." The room became silent and quiet. "Well, that's about it. Anyway, have fun trying to find out what to do next!" The King laughed. "Oh, guards, tell the other to hurry your construction with the bridge! The Warriors will be leaving soon!"

"Yes, sir!" The guards said and took off.

"Argh dad...Whatever, please Warriors, take this lute as a sign of my gratitude. It plays a lovely tune of light that I'm sure will come in handy later on. Oh, and about the prophecy...um...You can start by restoring the four elemental crystals first, then see where that leads you. Goodbye warriors! And...thank you." Princess Sara said, hugging Leon. The three of them smirked and looked away trying not to laugh at him.

"Smooth move." Saria whispered to Ailith and Erick who both giggled while looking at Leon, who was red as an apple and glaring at them.

~ Somewhere at a bar in the forest ~

"Can I get you something handsome?" The bartender asked a man in a sleeveless high collar shirt. He had silver hair that was in a ponytail, fair skin, a muscular build and ominous silver eyes. Yes, this was Claude in disguise, but no one there knew him, he was a new face there.

"I'll have what he's having." The man said, gesturing to the older man beside him. This man had an eye-patch, a hat, and a cloak that covered most of his bearded face. Yes, he was a pirate and he seemed to be a pirate of high ranking. The pirate cautiously looked at the one next to him.

"So? What brings someone of your ranks here High Pirate...Bikke...?" The man asked the pirate in a smooth voice. He leaned against his chair and crossed his arms, looking at Bikke with an arrogant face.

"What does it matter to one like you? Wanna stick yer nose where it doesn't belong do ya? Get lost." Bikke hissed at the man, but the man just smiled arrogantly. He unfolded his arms, got some gill from his pocket and put it on the counter. The bartender put his drink on the table and got the gill.

"Hmph, I thought as much. What if I wanted to talk to you about a certain town south of here...maybe next to the shores?" The man said, smiling arrogantly. Bikke almost drew out his Dao, his eyes wide and his hand gripping the hilt tightly. "Now, now, there's no need to get violent. I only want to make a deal..."

~ Somewhere on the northwest side of Elfheim ~

"My King...there is a beautiful young woman that says she would like a word with you." A dark elf, clad in black armour said, bowing down to a King on the throne.

"Oh? Bring her in. Let's see if we can enslave her then if she really is as beautiful...Hehehe..." Astos said, licking his lips. Then the chambers opened and a woman in a skimpy kimono came in. She had dark brown hair tied into a ponytail high on the back of her head, hazel eyes, and a muscular yet curvaceous figure. Yes, this was Amilia in disguise, but they did not know her, they did not even know her name.

"Astos you're going to do something for me." The woman said, and he cringed. No one should ever call him like that, like he was some commoner. She put her hands behind her back in a petite manner, reaching into a large ribbon that was tied to the back of her kimono. The dark elves started to swarm nearer to her and she smiled, her hazel eyes full of arrogance.

"It would do you well to watch your mouth girl. You are at MY castle, The Western Keep, the house of Dark Elves. Know your place you lowly dog." He said. The dark elves tried to grab her hands but then she took two sharp objects hidden in her ribbon and completely sliced their hands off. The objects opened and retracted in one smooth movement, and left the elves in shock. They were two long fans, with incredibly sharp blades on their edges. Astos noticed the energy that radiated from them it was strong and it was as if the energy was an extension of the fans themselves, giving them a larger range for attacking. The two dark elves bled then fell dead, the woman smiled.

"Get her!" Astos said and the dark elves lunged towards her with their swords and axes at the ready. However, she calmly smiled and readied her fans.

~ Back at the bar ~

"Now, now! There's no need to be so cruel!" Claude said to the female pirate with blue hair in front of him, who started to whip him repeatedly. He barely flinched every time the whip cut into his skin and just smiled arrogantly at Bikke. The pirate began whipping him more and more.

"I'm asking if you want revenge for what happened to you. I can grant you some power and you can take your title there back." Claude said arrogantly, receiving more whips to the back and front, until his pants were dripping with blood. Yet he barely flinched, and continued to look at Bikke, who was pondering whether to take his deal or not.

"How much power? Are you certain this will work on Pravoka?" Bikke asked, sipping a little bit of beer.

"Pravoka isn't exactly a place like Cornelia, it doesn't have that much defence. It's one of the lesser towns, which is humiliating now that I think of it. Because you actually got kicked out of a lesser town!" Claude teased and was whipped repeatedly until his skin was almost completely scraped off. "Ow." He said plainly and was whipped again.

"Stop Leila. That's enough." He ordered the pirate and she nodded then stepped back. "I'll take yer offer." He said, drinking again. "Release him."

"There's no need." Claude plainly said and jerked his hands forward, breaking the chains that bound him with ease. "Oh, here's your power by the way." He said opening the door and exiting the ship, leaving Bikke wide-eyed. In front of the door were nine very buff pirates, and Bikke could tell that they were as dangerous as they looked. He did have experience with various other pirates, after all.

~ Meanwhile in the Western Keep ~

She quickly and gracefully evaded their attacks and hit them with deadly counter strikes. Soon all of the elves that attacked her fell dead and Astos and the rest of the dark elves were left wide-eyed and in shock. The dark elves were too afraid to attack her anymore, and Astos was also afraid to order them to attack her, for she wiped out a fourth of their men with such ease.

"Astos you are going to do something for me." She said while calmly walking toward his throne, her weapons placed back into a hidden sheath in her ribbon.

"Why? Why should I do something for the murderer of my people?" Astos asked, readying his sword.

"Because you don't want me to murder the rest of them and you value your life." She said, giving him a potion. "You are to make the Prince of Elfheim take this potion and dream an endless dream. Okay?" She said and Astos cautiously took the potion.

"Is that all you want me to do?" Astos asked. She nodded and left the castle. She then concentrated for a while and when she opened her eyes, she vanished. Within the split of a second, she was back at the Chaos Shrine. The door opened and a bloodied man with only bloodied pants on came in.

"I've already convinced Astos to drug the elfen prince...what was his name again? Kuja? Ah, whatever I forgot." She said in her usual cynical tone, approaching him with her arms crossed. By then he healed his scars until his smooth fair skin was intact again. "So where's our next destination? We need to set up the stage after all." She asked, throwing him his Red Mage armour.

"Our next destination is to watch and secretly guide them. I've already made the deal for Bikke to take down Pravoka, so the news should reach their ears in a few days time. Hell, maybe even sooner." Claude said, putting his shirt on. "Besides...I have to help one of them remember."

~ Back at Cornelia ~

"What do you mean I we have to pay? That's not fair, I work here!" Saria yelled at the Inn registration woman.

"Well, look. I'm not the one who makes the rules Saria. However, for those who work here there is a discount." The registration woman said. Saria slowly nodded, her eyes turning softer.

"Fine. But how much of a discount?" Saria asked cautiously.

"It'll only be thirty gill for your party. Would you like to stay the night?" She asked. Saria nodded and threw thirty gill coins at the counter.

"Huh. Nice place, Leon, Saria. I've...never been in a bed this...soft. Or on a bed for that matter..." Erick said, carefully eying the bed. Saria giggled, she could tell he wasn't used to living in a place like this.

"I know...It's...so soft...the closest thing we usually have to soft is grass. It's really nice though!" – said, smiling at Leon, who awkwardly smiled back at her.

Well. That'll be it for today, cause I'm beat! I'm so tired!" Saria said, plopping down on her bed. "I've never had a day like this...well...not ever since..." Her expression turned serious, but then Leon looked at her with a frown, and she shook her head became cheerful again. "Haha. Do you like it Erick? You seem to be having a lot of trouble adjusting!" She teased in her usual happy-go-lucky voice. Leon smiled.

"What? N-No I just...it's so soft...I'm not used to being on something this soft that won't attack you..." He said, awkwardly sitting on the bed. Leon and Saria tried not to laugh. Then Erick suddenly jerked up and looked out the window, eyes wide and threatened. Then Leon and Saria lost it and started laughing, it looked like he was afraid of the bed and got surprised once he touched it. However – noticed that he was alerted.

"What's wrong Erick?" She asked, looking at the direction he was staring into, but seeing nothing but darkness.

"Someone's watching us. They're using a spell that allows you to see others from far away, however how far depends on the skill level of the one who's doing the spell. This...they're seeing us from...I can detect maybe several hundred kilometres away...this is amazing. I can only reach up to five hundred kilometres." Erick said seriously, while – just looked at him dumbfounded.

"You know five hundred kilometres far exceeds most mages standards right?" She asked him. "The normal standard is at least one hundred kilometres."

"I don't care about other mages, I'm only interested in my improvement. Well, anyways, I'm just saying. Whoever's doing this spell is very skilled with magic." Erick stated, plopping down to his bed. "Several hundred...am I getting this right? That's insane you know."

"Yes, I know, and you're insane. Five hundred, Erick." She said. "Five hundred kilometres."

~ Somewhere in the woods of Cornelia ~

Amilia smiled, she could see their happy faces from where they were at. She saw Leon and Saria smiling and laughing. She smiled, that brought happiness to her heart.

"Hmph. That Erick has some skill. He could sense me from here." Amilia said, watching Leon and Saria with soft eyes.

"Indeed. He's always been the strongest magic user in all our lives. Well, aside from me, of course." Claude said, watching them from a distance as well. Unlike Amilia or Erick, he didn't need to put effort anymore into 'basic' spells. Well, what he considered as basic anyway, because most of the spells he knows are beyond a normal magician's lifetime to master. That's how crazy skilled and talented he is at magic. Of course, no human could obtain such skill by normal means...

~ The next day ~

"The boy said he just came from Pravoka my King." A guard said to the King, bowing down while saying so. "He has urgent news, apparently the pirate Bikke has taken over the town in revenge."

"Hmm...I see, bring this news to the Warriors. They should be at the Inn, hurry." The King demanded and the guard nodded and rushed to the Inn.

A knock was heard from their doorstep. The four warriors looked toward the door, still wrapped in their blankets, and Leon got up and opened it. "Yes? Is there something I can help you with?" He asked.

"Indeed there is. The King has sent me here to bring urgent news. The town of Pravoka has been attacked and overrun by pirates. Since he cannot afford to send any of the troops there, he is entrusting you to take back Pravoka." The guard said with a serious tone. "I would suggest you leave soon. The safety of Pravoka is in your hands." He said and went downstairs, leaving the Inn.

"Well. You heard him. Get up guys, this is news from the King, it's not just some prank. We'll leave at noon." Leon said sternly and the rest of them got up and started packing.

"Will we have to walk there?" Saria asked while eating her lunch.

"Unfortunately yes. Don't worry though, we should be able to reach Pravoka within a few hours time." Leon said and Saria gave him a look that said the world was ending.

"Leon, I've never walked that far! I'm not gonna make it if we have to battle the pirates right after that!" She said.

"Don't worry. If you get tired, you can rest on my back. I've done worse trust me, so it's okay." Ailith said, smiling at Saria and reassuring her.

"You're sure?" Saria asked and Ailith nodded. "Thank you! That way I'll still have energy for the battle!" She said cheerfully. Then they took off for Pravoka. When they reached beyond the bridge, on a nearby mountain side, they looked back. Behind Cornelia, the sun was already setting and the wind blew all sorts of petals and leaves to make the scene.

"This is it...This is the start of our adventure." Leon said, looking at the leaves, flowers, and petals, that were being blown by the wind.

"Yeah. Don't worry, I'm sure we'll be able to handle whatever comes our way." Ailith said reassuringly and gave a gentle smile at Leon, who nodded and turned a little red.

"Let's do our best guys. This is the start of a new journey. A new beginning...A new fantasy..." Saria said, looking at the beautiful scene before them.