Welcome to Adventu, your final fantasy rp haven. adventu focuses on both canon and original characters from different worlds and timelines that have all been pulled to the world of zephon: a familiar final fantasy-styled land where all adventurers will fight, explore, and make new personal connections.
at adventu, we believe that colorful story and plots far outweigh the need for a battle system. rp should be about the writing, the fun, and the creativity. you will see that the only system on our site is the encouragement to create amazing adventures with other members. welcome to adventu... how will you arrive?
year 5, quarter 3
Welcome one and all to our beautiful new skin! This marks the visual era of Adventu 4.0, our 4th and by far best design we've had. 3.0 suited our needs for a very long time, but as things are evolving around the site (and all for the better thanks to all of you), it was time for a new, sleek change. The Resource Site celebrity Pharaoh Leep was the amazing mastermind behind this with minor collaborations from your resident moogle. It's one-of-a-kind and suited specifically for Adventu. Click the image for a super easy new skin guide for a visual tour!
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Day light was approaching and Mikoto found herself unable to sleep. This world was too new and unknown to her. So far, it left her wanting to learn more. Or perhaps needing to learn more. She found herself skipping across the valley, arms folded behind her back as she soundlessly tested the gravity here against her own weight. It felt much different than Terra or Gaia. Another skip as she watched the ground beneath her. Each landing was gentle. ‘Heavier’, she decided. She felt heavier here. She would grow use to it in time.
The lush green vale opened into a flat land before her. She studied the tents and caravans still housing sleeping occupants. There were some early risers already stirring up breakfast. The temples were well kept and carefully built as not to obscure the true reason people came here. Her eyes lifted at the large gate. Its entwining iron work seemed to move as it shed its gentle emerald light. A beacon in the night.
Mikoto turned her eyes to look at the other arches. The light had fled from them, but their support still held. She jumped onto the smallest one. She found it supported her weight. She quietly padded from arch to arch until she reached the tallest of the four that was lined up. At the final hop, she took a seat, scattering the sleeping sylphs. They shimmered an angry red before going to find a safer resting spot. A lightness filled Mikoto. She was amused at the sylphs and the fact that she could still be light on her feet on this planet. Her tail and feet hung from the arc as she studied the beautiful gate.
Why did so many come to see its light? She heard whispers that it was where the gods left. What were these gods? Were the gods the one that created these lifeforms here? Even if they did, the genomes never stood at Garland’s own magical gate to await his return. Did these lifeforms not know that when the time came, it would be apparent? Did these gods even appreciate their efforts?There was no point in being idol. There was always science and mental exercises to be done. Yet, here these fragile creatures were, simply reverent and staring. And here Mikoto found herself doing the same. Or at least staring.
Did the gods even love their creations?
The lifeforms began to stir to the morning breakfast. She could hear hymns from the temples. It seemed their morning ritual was to share food together and talk amongst each other. Some of the temple had priest come out and tell stories and myths to any that would listen. The kids seemed to run through the grounds laughing and chasing each other, while their parents did yet another ritual. They pressed their hands together and bowed their heads in silence in the light.
Did Mikoto need to do that to understand? It seemed pointless. And yet, she quietly pressed her hands together and bowed her head. A sudden voice came to her from behind.
“MONKEY!”
A child screamed and pointed up at her. It seemed the children had taken to trying to jump for her tail. The only movement she made was to turn and look at them. The palms of her hands dropping from her chest to press into the arch’s cool stone. She only watched as they jumped. They would never reach her tail and it was pointless correcting them. So, instead she watched them. They were full of energy and their expressions were interesting. Their lips curled up and the creases from the smile touched their eyes. Mouths were open as they gasped with exertion. They turned their mouths up at each other as they played their game. Interesting. What was the purpose of their upturned lips, she wondered? Did it communicate something more?
Quina... Was starving. There was nothing more to it! He had taken SUCH a wrong turn at the past couple places that were empty of food that he ended up in ANOTHER ONE! First, it was a cave that smelled so PUNGENTLY of fresh soil that the Qu could barely make it through without passing out then and there... The second was a beach GLASSED to the point of being nothing but a MAW of jagged, shiny teeth! Pleasant to look at... but no munchies anywhere, even if Quina were to wade into the bank! Not a fish, not a rodent, not a bird, bug or frog to be seen! Now he was in a plain, a grassland in the middle of the night with the big cheese-wheel that was the moon in the sky... and the Qu couldn't stop staring at it! As the wild-grasses surrounded the chef-uniform-wearing beast, it stared up into the sky longingly, almost thoughtfully, its movements as still as stone itself as its star-shaped eyes gleamed a the astral body above... The lively, bubbly, excitable Qu was only like this on one other occasion, when significantly difficult prey had eluded his fork. He would watch it, study its patterns, plot a means of attack that would assure capture...
All Quina could see, looking up above at that untouchable light above... was how delicious it must be, resembling some of the tougher white cheeses Quina had the pleasure to work with... His stomach, its utter droning CRIES dulling his mind to the point of hallucination! He could just see it... if the cheese would allow him to touch it... He could taste it's sharp yet fragrent flavor, how he would stew it with the proper ingredients to a nice, fondue-texture... Spicy, savory and sweet all at once with a fillingness that could only be matched by the heartiest of meats! Drool ran down the white, smooth lips of the Qu as its fantasies played through its mind...
...Until a true tangible smell wafted across his face!
*sniff sniff....*
Quina's tongue waggled as the creature's head turned SHARPLY to the north, its eyes widening as the smell grew stronger...
*SNIIIIFFFFF*
"Smell.... Cooking..." Quina mused! Specifically... the smell of a fire. The savory burn of wood alone would get a normal human RILED up with hunger... But for a hungry Qu, it was outright maddening! ...But where he lacked in mind, Quina made up for in purpose! With IMMENSE speed and drive Quina would RUSH off in the direction of the smell, a sprint that would carry him... until he found what he was looking for! A Caravan! Rather, a camp surrounding one, bustling with people!
People! It meant food! As if nothing was wrong or as if anybody would treat a long-tongued monster in a chef-costume like anyone else, Quina would wander through the camp-site, scooping up little bits of food as he passed them! A half-eaten pickle here... a piece of bread there, stuffing them into his mouth without a care in the world! As if completely immune to the stares (some growing ever hostile) of the entire camp, Quina would catch a new scent... this one... Familiar!
"Zidane...?" Quina whispered to himself, crumbs and pickle-juice flicking out from between his lips... crumbs that were QUICKLY snagged by his long, agile tongue! The Qu froze... sniffing the air again and again... So similar but... weird... Hope filled the Qu's belly as much as the food in his mouth had, the Qu BOLTING OFF in the direction of the scent! "ZIDANE! I KNEW YOU NOT EATEN! I...." Quina would come to a SCREECHING HALT... nearly tripping over his own feet and coming to a disgraceful, stumbling stop as he reached the source of this smell. It was a girl... blonde like Zidane but far more thoughtful-of-face and dressed in red-white attire. Children surrounded her, attempting to snag her tail like a Qu chasing a frog as she sat atop a caravan rim... Quina couldn't help but stare at her, its white-faced grin turned lopsided in confusion!
"You..." The gourmand muttered, pointing a swollen, white finger in Mikoto's direction! "I know you! You smell like Zidane! You! We! I... I not know your name! You pulled into this place too???"
Mikoto watched the children and their curious expressions. But she could also hear a commotion starting to stir in the camp. Before she could even turn to look to see what the cause was, she observed the children visibly change before her. They went from upturned mouths to gaping mouths and wide eyes. They quickly ran to conceal themselves behind the pillars, trying to make themselves as small as possible. Is that how small lifeforms dealt with these scenarios? They were as good as dead.
Alerted to danger, she hopped quickly to her feet and turned to meet the threat. Her tailed puffed from the excitement and her arms down by her sides and balled into fists. She stood tall and looked down at the blob that stumbled before her. She eased at its familiar voice and then came to realize what she was looking at. The creature that Zidane brought to Bran Bal. The one that seemed relentlessly hungry and contaminated their crystals with its tongue. It did not harm anyone, but it was certainly peculiar. Was it Zidane’s creature?
“Zidane?” She looked around, but she knew he could not be here at the divide. She did not feel the resonance of his soul. Then she realized it was talking about her. “My name is Mikoto.” She could remember Zidane’s words. ‘Mikoto, huh? That’s a nice name. A lot of people are gonna call you that from now on.’ It seemed like Zidane was correct. “I saw a light and found myself here.” Was there a pull? She did not remember any pulling. It was almost like teleportation magic.
“What is your name?” She asked back, eyes studying its features and gestures all the while. “What is this place? Do you know where Zidane is?” She had a hundred more questions, but she decided to reel it back. “You displeased the people.” She stated bluntly looking at the crowd behind Quina. They seemed to be cleaning up the mess Quina made and tending to the food once more. Some of them had furrowed brows and deep frowns on their faces.
"That your name! Yes!" Quina exclaimed, nodding his head with such enthusiasm that his tongue nearly jerked up and slapped its owner across its face! Something was odd about this girl, though. While some might find Quina's face unnerving with his everpresent smile and almost constantly wide-open star-shaped eyes, Mikoto wasn't unlike him in this respect. Obviously she looked far more human than any the average wayward Qu, but her expression was oddly stagnate, her eyes... dead...? Looked kinda like the way a frog did when Quina stabbed it with his fork, how the life just fades out of it until only the eye remains and not the life behind it. She was almost like a living statue... and that off-put the Qu on some level... almost as if he were talking to the body of a person... rather than the being within the body! Upon mention of her fellow genome, Mikoto would glance around confused... and the Qu would too, confused just what exactly she was looking for!
"...He not here...?" Quina asked, Mikoto returning her gaze back to him, appearing just as confused! "...But... If you here, then he here too! Gotta be! This place pulling in everybody!" The Genome would explain how she came to be here, a light seemingly abducting her from Gaia and placing her on this planet... and all Quina could do was stare silently! Odd! He just woke up here one evening, no light or nothing! Maybe she just DREAMED of a light or something like that! Yeah, that was probably it! Still... there was no small amount of disappointment that this one didn't know where Zidane was... Seeing all these people from his world end up here, the Qu couldn't help but assume his friend made it to!
...He wanted to believe that... It would at least put the Qu's wandering mind to rest a smidge to know his friend was okay!
"Oh! I Quina! Quina Quen!" the Qu responded, holding a large, stubby hand out to Mikoto! "We not talk much so it okay you not remember! Why you here, with random tent-people? They feed you lots?"
...Speaking of them...
Quina had been oblivious to the burning eyes of the people in the camp burrowing into his back until Mikoto pointed them out to him, the Qu glancing over hsi shoulder... and watching as they swarmed behind him! Like ants, they flourished their camp, quickly picking up after the wanton disturbance Quina had made! Food knocked over, stools, stands and firewood kicked around but also like the insects, they needn't make a move... yet. After all, he wasn't doing anything to attack the people personally!
"I not know why they so mad!" Quina mused loudly, eyes narrowing. "They have food all over! Someone gonna eat it! They share!"
Quina's gaze would flick back to Mikoto, his arms flapping excitedly at his side!
The creature seemed excited at hearing the name. What meaning Quina attribute to it? She studied Quina as it talked in an abnormal speech pattern. The fact it could still talk with its unusually long tongue, in which could not fit in its own mouth, was beyond her comprehension. What creator came up with this design and why? There was much room for improvement on it. She dared not linger on the thought for long. It did not seem worth her current effort.
“He is not here.” She confirmed with Quina. She would most certainly know if he was. It was creating conclusions that simply because she was present, another of her peers would be too. “What do you mean by this place? Do you mean here?” She certainly gestured out to the open field before the gate. Certainly, this gate was dormant and there was that word pulled again. “And who is doing this ‘pulling’ you speak of?” She jumped off the pillar, her knees bending to offset her weight. She noticed the small ones had taken to running away while Quina was distracted. Probably smart. She doubted one of them would fill its appetite.
Quina seemed to get excited about their exchange of names and shoved a hand at her. She stared at the hand curiously. Was this another custom? Or was it going to pull her into its maw? Her gaze was accented by a curious tilt of the head. A question mark was nearly visible above it. She made no other movements as she stood there.
“When a species feels their resources are threatened, their instinct is to fight.” That much she understood. She was made essentially to assist in reaping Gaia’s resources for the people of Terra. She watched as Gaia was threatened in the end, its allies rose to protect it. It was a matter of survival.
“Where does one start?" It seemed improbable that random guessing and wandering would get anyone anywhere.
"He somewhere!" Quina exclaimed, nodding rapidly! "We just gotta find him!" Mikoto would express curiosity (if one could even call it that) at Quina's choice of words regarding how they had even gotten here, the Qu only tilting his head in confusion at her question! She thought HE knew? How could he possibly know?... But then, how could she know that he didn't know...? There was so much knowing about not knowing about knowing all going on right now, just knowing about it was starting to make Quina's head spin!
"I not know!" Quina exclaimed his nodding shifting to a quick shake of his head! "I just wake up here! If you here too, then everyone else be here too! Gotta be somebody pulling us in!" Mikoto only seemed to grow further confused by the Qu's questions, much to his annoyance, seeming to want specifics as to what "here" meant! This spot, this country, this moment in TIME? Qu's didn't usually think in that much detail! They kind of just... bungled their way into meaning and expect others to understand! Mikoto, however, just didn't seem to get what Quina was angling at, forcing the Gourmand to try and think outside his very small box!
"Here!" Quina exclaimed, waving his arms around wildly as if to point at EVERYTHING around them at once! "This place! It not where you were before, right? It not Gaia, that for sure!" Quina tilted his head a bit to get a better look at Mikoto... finding it hard to actually judge anything about her! Her voice... while gentle, was as monotone as a speech from Quale, so deadpan and blunt, he might as well had been talking to his master's cooking skillet! Her expression also annoyed Quina, how... stagnate and undynamic it was, almost as if it were a piece of wood with her features scribbled onto it! She looked like someone that survived life, but never quite lived it, someone who hardly took pleasure in the little things in life. or anything it at all, for that matter! Never once had Quina looked upon a face as dead and lifeless as the girl before him.... and it really disturbed Quina! The Gourmand LIVED for life, enjoyed everything he could in search for an improvement to his current situation! Making friends, being a better cook, saving the world on occasion! He was all about enjoying everything on the way to a larger, more important path...
...And here this girl was... his apparent antithesis... It was like staring your shadow in the face.
"Oh, who care? They got food enough for all!" Quina exclaimed brushing away Mikoto's explanation for the caravaner's behavior! "It not like I eat all of it!" It would be then that Mikoto would ask WHERE, oh WHERE would they even begin to search for Zidane, a question that had as little meaning to the Qu as "Why the sky was blue."
"It not matter where we start!" Quina explained with a frustrated huff, his seemingly permanent smile curling slightly downwards in annoyance! "It only matter that we find him! You here, so he is! Lets go on adventure!"
Mikoto bottomless teal eyes simply stared into the star-like ones at Quina’s response. It was obvious Zidane was somewhere. Well, yes. That was most certainly true. But was he was teleported to this planet? She began to wonder about the other Genomes. Were they brought here too? It was apparent that she would not get an answer from this Quina. Especially not when it was its thought process seemed to be oriented around food and expending abundant amounts of energy. Worse yet, it seemed to emphasize the same response over and over.
Despite Quina taking food from the other beings, it seemed to have no idea on what it wandered into. It was pointless to keep asking questions. It only grew agitated and continued to flap its tongue in response. Her calm was not broken by its excited emphasizing. “…” Instead, she turned her back to Quina. Then, began to pad away lightly. It did not seem to understand the importance of resources, nor did it seem to care. Were all the lifeforms here this carefree?
However, she came to a light stop after a few steps. Perhaps…Perhaps, Quina did have an answer to something. “Why do they have such diversity in sustenance?” She asked calmly, turning back to him. That should be a simple enough question. Was one type of source not enough to maintain these beings? Her curiosity got the better of her and perhaps one with a tongue as large as his might be able to tell her. She did not even know where to start about what this ‘adventure’ was. Was it simply facing obstacles as one traveled? She decided it was not worth asking.
The children had seemed to observe them from a distance. Seeing that Quina had not attacked or ate this girl, but rather just took food to eat, they slowly returned curiously. One of the boys came around and offered what looked like a round, spongy object [bagel] to Quina. Though he seemed completely shy, as if one of the other boys had dared him to do it.
Mikoto began to walk away... offering nothing but her back in response to the Qu's questions! A wordless rejection of Quina's offer, a smack across the olive-branch the gourmand offered her! It actually shocked and confused Quina how the girl could just turn from him and walk carelessly away, showing just how much utter disdain she had for him! Had Quina... wronged her in some way...? Maybe snatched some food off her plate without him knowing...? As if Mikoto had stolen the Qu's fork an stuck it in it, the chef's excitement deflated somewhat rapidly, his enthusiasm seeming to vanish as quickly as it had spawned! Well... if she didn't care about Zidane, Quina would find him and DRAG him back here to rub in her face, show HER that he had gotten to him first! Heh! That would show her for being so... stupid! Yes! STUPID! His, somewhat extended reverence for Mikoto through her relationship to Zidane faded to nothing, returning to a more neutral standing... if somewhat irritated with her frustratingly cold and dismissive behavior! Still, not one to be so easily disregarded, Quina would waddle along after Mikoto as she began to wander towards the outskirts of the camp, turning back and asking something odd... but right up Quina's ally! A discussion about food! OOOH! This was something he could get behind! Maybe she wasn't so bad after all!
"Oh! There lots of reasons!" The Qu explained, his face lighting up instantly! "Some thing are necessary! Humans can't eat most stuff raw! Other stuff just better tasting cooked so they do that to eat more! Sometime, it about curiosity, if they can make new stuff from old stuff, improve on old stuff, or just make mistakes that turn into new stuff! Cooking is an adventure all its own!"
The children, those who had once fled from the long-tongued cook would steadily wander back, one of them even nudging a bagel into his hand! Quina's eyes, flicking down, would notice the object and GRIN even wider, taking it quickly and breaking it in threes! One piece would go to the child, the smallest of course, the next smallest he would offer to Mikoto and the third, the largest, he would consume on the spot, each bite careful to not leave a single crumb unattended!
"This, for example..." Quina remarked, wiggling Mikoto's bagel piece at her should she have refused to take it, "...Is result of experiment and it is very popular! It basic, but everyone love a bagel! It all about trying new thing and making something good to eat! This is what make life worth living!" The Qu attempted to explain in one short rant about the true nature of the world, what made people do what they do, why they did it and what it all meant... all using the allegory of a piece of egg-cooked bread! Should Mikoto take the bagel-piece now, Quina would only smile wider, watching and waiting for her to take a bite!
"Everybody want to make new thing! Everybody want to make something tasty and good! Some better at it than others, some make something nobody no-can-eat at all! Some just want to make one thing forever, like a bagel! I no understand that."
If there had been any questions by Quina, she picked up on none of it. She only heard shouting that he did not know where Zidane was, nor did it know where to start this search. She simply did not understand how searching with Quina at random would benefit the mission of finding Zidane more than if she were to search on her own. She was genetically built to work with other genomes, not with Gaians. But Zidane’s words came to her as she walked away from Quina.
“Mikoto! Listen to your big brother and make some friends!”
Zidane’s words echoed through her memory. She still thought his recommendations were silly. How could a Terran work with occupants of other planets? The two had been considered enemies until…
Until Zidane took his ‘friends’ with him and showed her their strength and saved Gaia in the process.
She stopped in her stride, unaware of the emotional changes the Qu went through due to her actions. However, it was quite noticeable that it was waddling along behind her.
She turned to regard Quina with unblinking eyes. Then after her question, the creature seemed to light up as if she hit the on button on one of the Terran computers. She tried to process what was being said to her at a rapid pace. She could understand not being able to digest raw food. She could understand improvement as well to prevent mental decay. “But why would one consume more of a food than was necessary to survive?” She asked curiously, trying hard to understand what was being said.
She was quite surprised by the Qu’s speed as she watched him break the material into thirds. The child seemed to cautiously take the bagel back, but was pleased to be sharing with someone. He munched happily on his portion. The Qu was quick to finish its piece as well. When Mikoto’s portion was held out to her she looked at it curiously for a moment. Thinking it was probably best to follow the example of the two, she reached out with both hands and gingerly took the offered piece.
“Result of an experiment?” She imagined this being made in one of the many medical tanks. Was it grown like genomes? “Only basic?”
Teal eyes continued to stare at it intensely for a moment. "..." She took in its color and warmth. The texture and its spongy nature. She could even smell its saltiness. It was much like a child looking at something for the first time. And for the first time, she realized the pit in her stomach was hunger.
She raised the item to her mouth and took a small bite from it. She felt the salt dry her tongue, but the sensation was pleasant. Her eyes seemed to light with a delight as she took another bite. Was this what was worth living for? Simply the nature of eating? Her tail swished thoughtfully behind her.
“Everyone has this knowledge?” Her eyes looked out at the crowd of people who had just finished their morning rituals. “What do you make?”
If Quina could contort his expression to reflect the sheer sense of dumbfounding brought forth by Mikoto's innocent but intensely ignorant questions, one might bare witness to a face upon a Qu far from the intimidating smile that trademarked their race! The gourmand could only stare at Mikoto, maw slightly agape as she questioned WHY exactly one would eat more than was necessary... Quina starting to wonder if this girl was even ALIVE! He must've been talking to some kind of robot or something, maybe one of those Black-Mage freaks that he'd never seen eat ANYTHING... beyond the one that he'd fought beside! Indeed, her existence must have been so completely dull and devoid of any concept of meaning beyond survival that she would even THINK to question the secondary (and arguably more important) aspect of food! Why would one eat more than they had to!? WHY WOULD ONE BREATH MORE THAN THEY HAD TO!?
"...Because it good...?" Quina answered slowly, almost as if talking to a child too young to even remember her name. "Yes, it taste good! People eat more because they want more! Taste is very important when making food! After all, if it nasty, nobody want to eat it! Then they starve and die... become food for new thing..." The Qu spun its massive wrist in a circle as if insinuating some kind of perpetuating cycle. His star-shaped eyes would lock upon the girl as she took her first bite, likely, of real food since the moment she came into existence, her sudden change of expression from a form of sterile curiosity to a serenity uncharacteristic of such an emotionless being! Oh, how Quina fed upon and manifested his own satisfaction watching Mikoto's face GLOW with delight. A minor change if an obvious one, no doubt the very first flavors of the Genome's life being a mildly savory/Very salty bagel! It wasn't the best start but, by far WASN'T the worst when it came to an introduction to cuisine! Quina's only regret... was that he wasn't the one to make it for her! Mikoto's attention would turn from the world around her to food, Quina's bread and butter, asking if EVERYONE had the knowledge of baking!
"No! In fact, it kinda a rare thing to cook good!" Quina explained, shaking his head. "Most people either beginner or just bad! It not often you find people who can make a bagel! Especially in this place!" Almost as if bestowing her glow of temperary enjoyment upon Quina, his expression would FLASH with excitement as Mikoto asked what he could cook!
"Oh! I make anything!" He exclaimed, nodding his head heavily! "Sweets, frog stew, Zaghnol-flank steak, Geyeshi-pickle over potato salad... I make anything good out of anything! It job of a gourmand after all!"
Quina grinned proudly his hands flapping eagerly at his side!
"I can make you something right now, if you want!"
