Disclaimer:
Please understand that this is a complex process to make this story and I understand that it canonically does not exist in any existing Final Fantasy Universe. I am taking the adventures of our D20FF Group and after having them review the chapter, writing them into a coherent story after heavy modification to make the story flow as a novel instead of feeling as if you are watching a tabletop adventure.
I personally have NEVER done anything Final Fantasy related nor played ANY Final Fantasy Games and it took some convincing from my fellow players for me to play. All of the information presented here is just what I know from a perspective of the world presented to me. I have genuinely enjoyed this so much that I decided to begin writing these. According to my proofreader, this appears to be multiple FF Universes put together which for our GM makes sense. I personally am going to say this is my ONLY experience with the universe. If you are a Fanboy or Hardcore person looking for something involving a canonical universe; I apologize in advance and perhaps this story isn't for you. My group has advised me to go with FF9 or 6 as that is where most of the world is built from, I am trusting their judgement.

To everyone else, thank you for reading this disclaimer, now I hope you find some enjoyment here.

I sat in the inn, crowded with Chocokin and their mates celebrating something they called Sentience Day. I knew it was a holiday of their kind celebrated near the eclipse, I was just never sure what it was about exactly; something about the first one stepping out a thousand years ago?

I was only here because I had received a letter of invitation to be here at this inn on this specific day. I wondered why and who exactly had invited me. They had enclosed a substantial down payment along with a letter that read:
"Dear Bartholomule Havenstance the Historian,

Attached to this envelope you will find a package with a down payment of 5500 Gil and an invitation to the Sentience Day celebration at Crescent Garden. You are to come and present this letter to the current mayor for entry to the Refuge. There you will come to an Inn called Gaia's Fearless Banquet with a Distinctive Moogle on the sign.

Upon arrival I will meet you there and explain the job offer of a generation to you.

Sincerely,

S.F.B."

The mysterious S.F.B. wasn't identifiable to me. It was just a set of initials that meant nothing and could easily be anyone in the realm, but 5500 Gil as a downpayment? Now that was a hell of a starter package. If not for that, I would have told them I had better things to do or not even bothered to respond.

I am a renowned historian and archeologist at the Academy of Heroes to Hume. I have many important things to do, but a month's salary to make three days travel and back definitely has my attention.

Arrival at the Refuge required a letter of permission to enter. Many know of Crescent Garden; in our world it is where the Tree of Gaia was planted after she passed, rebirthing from a single special acorn into a mighty tree of life once more. The inn was named after the long dead hero group: Gaia's Fearless, who had staved off the destruction of the world. Now they were all a distant memory, immortalized in statues, story books, and history manuscripts. The Stratego Academy of Heroes had particular special ranks named after them, even an entire building was dedicated to each one.

The hero outpost here at Crescent Garden was across the street from the inn I was sitting in. There was a tale of another outpost belonging to the Mithra Tribes Island that was dedicated to them, and their Mithra Dancer member. But they were from a Millenia Ago, long since gone.

So who had invited me here? I was unsure, but the really frustrating part for me was that no one was sitting at my table, despite the open invitation to have a seat. Two people started to, a Mithra and a Chocokin, but when they turned they looked surprised and went somewhere else. Any company tonight would be nice. The Mithra boy had been cute, but I was a bit too sober to be into other men yet.

An hour passed and my mysterious patron had not shown themselves. I was starting to wonder if I should just keep the money and head out. That's when I realized someone was sitting next to me. They had just materialized there. A Chocokin, all silver feathers and wrinkles. Her feathers were looking a bit manged from age. I could see the cataracts through her glasses, though in their emerald hue I could see the spark of vigor and intelligence. Her mind was still all there at least.

"My apologies for being late, I had lost track of time and my father never keeps good track of time," She spoke in a slow measured voice that was graceful, controlled, and measured, but also painfully racked with old age and grimmers of her long time alive.

"Your father?" I questioned. "While I have never really seen an old Chocokin, I have to ask, how is your father still alive if you are, well, this old? Time mage accident?"
She blinked a few times through the thick spectacles and then let out a mocking laugh that echoed just above the music. "Oh! Oh boy! I have never had someone phrase it that way!" The rest of the room came up to the table, fear in their hearts and looking with concern at the old Chocokin who had to usher them away and assure them she was okay.

When she calmed down and could breathe again, I looked at her with concern. "Do they all know you? The whole room stopped to check on you. I know chocokin have a lot of children but… you can't be grandmother to all of them, right?"
She slowly sat forward and held out her talon, attached to an arm with slightly aged and worn down feathers across its length. "The letter, if you please."

I presented her the letter and she waved her hand in the air, magic essence pouring from it across the page. "I enchanted it with magic called Figment; once forgotten, now still a rare form of magic that only the most studied of mages can reproduce." She tapped the page twice and the sparks made a cloud of glitter. The S.F.B. on the bottom of the page changed to reveal an intricately drawn picture of a Chocokin. The detail of the drawing was fantastical and beyond words, almost life-like. It resembled her but was much much younger, and honestly, if she were that youthful again, I would have bought her a drink right then and there, even if I had no chance of scoring the shot.

But more importantly were the new words in place of the letters. They had me flabbergasted. Spelled out in glittering calligraphy: "Solid Flare Branford, Arch Wizard of Crescent Garden, last of Gaia's Fearless."

"I couldn't let it be known you had a letter in my possession, someone may have tried to steal it and take your place."

"No…" I stood up, outraged, and turned to leave as I ranted at this imposter with utmost vigor, "This is some trick and insult, there is no way you are Solid Flare Branford! You would have to—"

She cut me off with a few words, "One-Thousand Ninety Nine Years old, technically a few more months than that and several days, but do continue."

"Mentored by Vivi?"
"Yes."

That one was easy, too easy.

"Daughter of Ramuh and Terra Branford?"

"Yes."

That one was also far too easy.

"Creator of the Bones of New spell and therefore the first Chocokin to exist?"

That one was slightly harder; the spell name was definitely difficult to find.

"Also Yes."

I leaned forward, hoping to catch the lie. "Rumors say you are immune to lightning and can reflect lightning back at any attacker…"

She laughed. "Immune? No, it still hurts if the bolt is strong enough, but I can reflect them all so long as I'm not burned of my mana."

Intimate answer. A lover of someone of her descendants might know that one. "Graduate Hero of the Stratego Academy of Heroism?"

"Oh astrals no, I failed Graduation. I only got labeled a hero later and even then it took an act of the Astrals themselves to get the title to stick." She held up one of her talons and produced a staff that she leaned on heavily as she stood up. "How about we skip the interrogation, you'll get to hear it all. What would convince you?"

"It would require an astral themselves to come here and confirm you are who you claim to be. She is long past with her friends."

"You mean Gaia's Fearless? Tecmet's Slayers? Refuge's Misfits? Literal Dragons and a Bird? Or are you referring to the party of professors and educators at the Academy?"

"Name everything you want, I'm going to leave, your down payment is appreciated but I simply do not believe you are who you say you are."

I noticed a Carbuncle avatar entering the room. They walked right up to Solid Flare, jumped onto her shoulder and nuzzled into her. "Hey Solid! Happy Sentience Day!"

"Carbuncle, the chef has some mint chocolate chip ice cream cake for you, reserved and earmarked." Carbuncle's eyes lit up and he started purring.

"Oh, Solid! Who's your guest?" Carbuncle looked over at me excitedly. Me, who in that moment, had their jaw slacked as far as it would go, pointing a finger at Carbuncle, then Solid Flare, then at Carbuncle, then at Solid Flare.

"He apparently did not believe I was me and he was about to leave, unless that has changed? By the expression on your face, I might say yes?"

I fixed my jaw and stood up straight, giving a low bow towards Solid Flare. "Yes, indeed, what may I do for you, Miss Branford? I apologize for the, umm…"

Solid raised her talon to dismiss me. "No need to apologize." She motioned for me to sit up straight. "And do not bow to me, please, I am no god or noble. Half of my academy students don't believe I was me for the first three weeks or so… well, didn't, I should say. I retired today, but for good reason."

She motioned for us to take our seats, and a waitress brought out a small square shaped mint green pastry on a plate that was freezing cold. Carbuncle licked their lips and started to nibble on the masterpiece without question.

"Thank you Carbuncle, your timing is always impeccable." She took a seat as I regained my senses and retook a seat as well.

"W-What was your reason for r-retiring?" I stammered as I contained my embarrassment, though as a historian I was intrigued now. I settled in, thinking this may be a long night.

"I would like you to clear your schedule for the next several weeks. I wish to share my story with you, from beginning to end as clearly as I remember it. Ramuh granted me a perfect memory and an directly inability to lie, so you have a lot of work ahead of you. How much do you expect to be paid to be my biographer for the next several weeks? I wish to tell you everything; from the moment I came to be, to as far as we get, before…."

She trailed off, as if something were wrong, and Carbuncle shook their head at Solid as if to tell her no. It was the only time Carbuncle had stopped gnawing on the ice cream cake treat before them.

"Well, we'll see how far we get," She finished and offered me a contract, one with every generous term laid out for my time and expenses, and it required me to stay until the story was done or her time to tell it ran out, neither of which had a definitive date.

"You… want me to… write down your history?"

"Yes, all of it. We can begin as soon as you are ready."

I, like any good historian, pulled out a quill, parchment, and ink pot. I undid the cork with a pop and dipped my quill into the ink. Solid, however, reached forward and removed my ink pot. She offered one of her own that had rainbow swirling liquid inside it.

"Use this, it's living ink. It will come to life for any reader and animate the things they read. I have plenty from years of needing it and forgetting I had a replenishment order when I didn't require it." I took the offer of living ink with a grandiose look in my eye.

"You're the creator of this stuff! What do you mean by a replenishment order?"

Solid shook her head. "No no, that was Relm Arrowny, oh how I do miss her. I am merely the person who popularized its use with my paintings."

I quickly wrote that down for historical notation and made a note on the parchment to change the history of the item in the library when I returned. The ink came to life, showing a scene with voices and full motion of two outlines. One belonged to a small human woman I did not recognize, who wielded a large paint brush as if it were a staff.

The other figure of ink was a silver chocobo, but she had Solid Flare's eyes, and there was great intelligence behind them. They appeared to be painting in the air, and what they painted took solid form and came to life before them. I could hear their conversation; the unidentified figure spoke about how the living paint worked as if she were teaching a student.

"Is that…"

"Relm Arrowny, as I remember her, the day she taught me how to use the living ink," Solid Flare affirmed and took her seat in earnest.

"Are you ready to begin?"

I nodded and asked a waitress to order me some coffee, I would need to be fully alert for this story to start.

"It begins with running away…."

ooOOoo

I was running very fast. I remember little in these moments, before Sentience.

"Wait, you weren't sentient when you were born?"

"No, no animal creature is, I was just a normal chocobo. Well, a normal chocobo except my eye color was green instead of silver, the reason for you will learn later."

Whatever was chasing me corralled me into a cave of some sort, hit a rock wall, and I became covered in white dust. Then a bolt of lightning, and suddenly, I had thought and consciousness…

"Oh yes, my tea is ready, let me enjoy it for a moment before we continue…"