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!
Final Fantasy Adventu is a roleplaying forum inspired by the Final Fantasy series. Images on the site are edited by KUPO of FF:A with all source material belonging to their respective artists (i.e. Square Enix, Pixiv Fantasia, etc). The board lyrics are from the Final Fantasy song "Otherworld" composed by Nobuo Uematsu and arranged by The Black Mages II.
The current skin was made by Pharaoh Leap of Pixel Perfect. Outside of that, individual posts and characters belong to their creators, and we claim no ownership to what which is not ours. Thank you for stopping by.
Post by Garnet Til Alexandros XVII on Mar 1, 2024 2:53:05 GMT -6
[attr="class,beacont"]
[attr="class,beatext"]
Caius didn't seem particularly convinced by Garnet's example of how to speak, and she noted that he said 'right' instead of 'alrighty'. But she supposed it was a baby step. Not everybody could pick it up as naturally as her, she assumed. She just smiled and nodded to his comment. It was good enough to sound informal, so it was a nice start.
He commented on her needing a more Sonoran sounding name, and she hesitated, because she was unsure what that was. She found it bizarre to imagine Sonoran police would arrest you for your name. She had heard they were corrupt but that was almost completely ridiculous. For a moment, she wondered if actually Sonora was the bigger threat to Zephron than Kuja. Maybe once Kuja was dealt with, finding a way to stop Sonora's cruelty should be her priority...
"And what would a Sonoran sounding name be?" she asked. "I am afraid I have no clue," she admitted. It had been hard to figure out so far. Sonora was a strange place, but if she needed another alias to blend in, she was happy to do so. At the end of the day, what was another name? She was already Sarah, Garnet and Dagger. She supposed she could add another one to the pile.
Caius continued to outline his concerns, and they all related to Sonora. Which caused Garnet to raise a quizzical eyebrow in his direction.
"Did you not just say yourself that Sonora would arrest a person for having a slightly unusual name?" she inquired, bringing his own point against him. "Given that context, I hardly suspect that they will concern themselves highly with concepts such as 'evidence' when presented with an off-worlder with an unusual name and incredible magic powers that they are told is a threat to their nation," Garnet pointed out. "Truthfully, with what you have told me, I am almost tempted to abandon the plan and simply slide an anonymous note under the law enforcement's door and leave them to do all the work for us," she stated. Since it seemed Sonora had absolutely no worries about arresting anybody for even the most tenacious reasoning. "Alternatively, we take the anti-magic device out of Sonora," she suggested. "Once we have it, why not take it back to Torensten with us, and bait the trap there? It would mean stealing from the Sonoran Government, but from what you have told me, they are not exactly the type of people that we should respect," Garnet pointed out.
She paused, and sighed slightly.
"I cannot help but feel that you are humouring me, and you do not want us to capture Kuja," she huffed slightly, hands on her hips. "I thought you understood what a serious threat he was. Didn't he try to kill you? I've seen his destroy a planet, and nearly destroy a second one. We cannot sit back while this happens again," she tried to persuade him.
Garnet nodded simply when Caius went on to explain how he still had much to unlearn about how to speak. It was somewhat ironic, hearing somebody else discuss that issue. It was an issue Garnet knew only too well, after all. She had spent a great deal of time learning how to speak differently. She hadn't thought somebody else would struggle with it, too. Especially not someone like Caius, who seemed so... practical and capable, otherwise. She offered him a small smile. "I, too, had to unlearn my manner of speaking," she pointed out. "When I first left Alexandria, I was attempting to go undetected. And my manner of speech didn't help. Fortunately, Zidane helped me to learn otherwise, and I found by observing others, and adapting their speech patterns, I could learn to talk in a much less formal way," she explained, even if her tone was still slightly formal. She had fallen back into her speech patterns a little when she had returned as Queen after Kuja had been defeated, but now, she was caught between the two.
When he told her that he would do all he could to honour her request, she smiled a little. He really did remind her of Steiner in how he spoke, and she wondered what Zidane would have thought if he could see her now, trying to teach others to relax. "You know, you don't even have to be that formal. Instead of saying, 'I will honour your request', you can just say.... 'alrighty'," she smiled. After all, it worked for Vivi, and had been the first real casual word she had learned. She still liked to lean on it sometimes.
"It's fine," Garnet smiled when he apologised for criticising her fake name. "I've never understood the issue myself. A garnet is but a precious stone, what's the difference between being named after that and another object?" she asked. Of course, the fact that neither were her real name wasn't lost on her, but she didn't bother to bring it up at that point.
He seemed impressed, at first, by her plan, but then he went on to point out the flaws. Civilian causalities, the fact that Kuja could still fight physically, and more. Garnet hesitated for a moment, considering these factors. "Kuja has shown no aptitude without his magic; and in fact, has demonstrated in the past that he will not tread where it is taken away. I am confident that the right team could take him down without trouble without his magic," Garnet answered. "We would need to install hidden guards, to help the civilians evacuate," she added. "And as for your last point; you are quite right, I am not a physical fighter either. That is why I would be liaising with the Dragonblades. You have as much interest in stopping Kuja as I do, it seems. And I believe that you have plenty of warriors capable of battle without magic," she pointed out.
"The issue of containment once he is captured is one we must approach, but I feel that we have the formations of a plan. Kuja's capture is vital to protect Zephron. As is his containment. Sonora famously hates outsiders; I am sure they would not take much persuading to lock away Kuja and contain him once he is our prisoner," she added. Of course, doing that without being arrested themselves might be tricky, but Garnet was confident they'd find a way to pull it off.
Post by Garnet Til Alexandros XVII on Oct 12, 2023 10:53:38 GMT -6
[attr="class,beacont"]
[attr="class,beatext"]
Garnet wasn't sure what she had expected in response from Kuja. She certainly hadn't been naïve enough to expect him to, what, accept her points and apologise? To somehow change his ways? Of course not. But while she had no idea what she expected, she was fairly certain his response wasn't it. An accusation that she didn't understand him? As if he was just some misunderstood good and honest soul who had stolen a loaf of bread to survive? As if he was a thief with a secret heart of gold? Her lips tightened a little as she tried to take this in, as she tried to remain objective and not simply snap back with her anger and wrath that she felt towards him. "If I believe that I understand you, it is only because of the plethora of evidence you have provided," Garnet replied calmly instead, even if her tightened expression said that she felt otherwise. "Perhaps the fault is mine. Perhaps in between your rampant murder and chaos, your raising an entire magic army, your attempts to steal my Eidolons, your attempts to kill me and all of my friends, to annihilate my kingdom and destroy my world, I should have also taken the time to consider your hobbies and habits," she replied. Sarcasm was not particularly befitting a queen, and truthfully, Garnet wasn't too certain where she had picked that particular habit up from on her travels, but it seemed rather useful in this scenario.
Of course, as she looked at Kuja, she knew logically that he could not be all evil, all the time. She knew Kuja's schedule was not the likes of 'wake up at 9am, eat a baby, get dressed, kill some orphans, break for lunch'. Obviously he must have interests, hobbies, and a life outside of murder and destruction. Just his appearance said that much. Nobody was that good at make-up without dedicated practice. He put more time and effort into his appearance than she did, and she was royalty. It was just that... it had never seemed worth considering. Not in comparison to the evil acts he had done. So, perhaps she had to accept that she did not understand him. At least, not all of him.
She just wasn't sure that it mattered.
She did, however, flinch a little when he turned her own upbringing on her. When he spoke of the hardships of life on Terra, of fighting for survival, for acceptance, and compared it to her own luxury. Surprisingly, for all her time adventuring as royalty, very few had ever turned her own privilege on her, or had called out the life she usually led. Even when she had been awkward and confused because of her royal upbringing, Zidane and the others had been sympathetic and understanding. But this was the first time she could recall feeling quite so called out.
Yes, her life in Madain Sari had hardly been the same, but she could still barely recall it. The odd flash of images, the odd disconnected memory. But, truthfully, when she thought of herself, in her heart, she was still Princess Garnet til Alexandros XVII. Princess. Not Queen. Not summoner. Not adventurer. That was who she had been raised as. The identity at the core of her heart.
For a moment, she stood frozen, awkward, and then her eyes fell to the book in Kuja's hand. And she could see how little he truly knew. "...Perhaps it is only right that you keep that book. You should read it more carefully. I do not think you have ever truly understood the text," she commented, nodding to the copy of I Want to be Your Canary. "Cornelia is a princess. By your metric, she was raised safe, and loved, just as I was. And yet, she is trapped in a cage. The entire story is about how deeply unhappy and how difficult her life is. And yet, just like myself, she was raised as a princess. Because, make no mistake, I grew up in a cage, just as you did. It was just of a different nature," she explained.
"Do you honestly believe that I was free to step out of line, without repercussions? That I could say or do as I chose? I was always told how to act, what to say, what to wear, where to be. I was, in many ways, a prisoner too. For so many years, I could not even tell what were my own thoughts, and what were those of the 'Princess'. Who was I? Was I even a person, or just a puppet being told what to do? I had no say in what I did. No say in who I was. I was the Princess of Alexandria. Not 'Garnet'. Not 'Sarah'. Not even 'Dagger'. Perhaps my life was not in constant danger as yours was, but I was still controlled, still imprisoned, still deprived of my free will. Rather more shocking when you realise that I was not even the real princess, but just a child they found who they mutilated to look like her," she pointed out, slightly alarmed by her own point. She had never thought of it that way before. She loved her mother and father, the queen and king, and blamed Kuja for Brahne's corruption. But, given what they did to her as a child, perhaps... Perhaps that darkness had always been there. Garnet had just refused to see it. "And then, ironically, it turned out that, just like you, I was being raised for the slaughter. Just as you were raised to be replaced by Zidane, I was raised until my Eidolons were ready to be torn from me, and to be cast aside, as useless waste. My life may have had a few more silk sheets and expensive gowns than yours, but... perhaps our upbringings were not as different as you suspect." That was a sobering thought.
"And as for the natural wonders you speak of, do you know what natural wonders I saw, in my youth?" she asked. "I could see the sea. I could see grasslands, shrouded in mist. I could see distant mountains. I never visited them. Ever. Until I fled the castle on my sixteenth birthday, I have never truly been outside of its walls, except on an airship to visit Lindblum. I grew up in a world of cold stone. I still remember being so naïve and unaware of the world at large, when Dr Tot showed me the globe, I thought he was saying that the castle was a ball. There is part of me that remains glad I was unconscious and drugged in the Evil Forest, because the truth is, when I awoke on the grass planes outside, I barely knew how to walk on uneven ground. The night that we camped, I got up in the middle of the night to practice walking on grass and slopes, because I had never done it before!" She wasn't entirely sure why she was telling Kuja all of that. She just wanted him to understand that his world had not been as indifferent as her own. "Visting Terra was strange. It was cold, and it was sterile. But if we are being honest, I felt more comfortable there than I did exploring the Qu's Marsh, or the forests we trekked through. At least there, the ground behaved," she said, although she wasn't sure that was QUITE true. Yes, Terra had a sort of, refreshing simplicity to its terrain that reminded her of growing up in the castle, but also it was a terrifying, nightmarish world. So cold and devoid of life. Devoid of love.
He went on. And then he spoke of Memoria. And again, he surprised her. By admitting his plan to wipe out all life had been a mistake. A confession she had not expected at all. So, he thought everything else was fine, but trying to destroy the crystal was his error? She was rendered temporarily speechless at that. Until he asked her if she could imagine how he felt. If she could imagine how it had been to nearly have his victory then have it torn away. And she turned away for a moment, and looked down sorrowfully for a moment.
"Yes. I can," she replied. She swallowed, and she waited a moment, to try and compose what she was going to say. "Alexandria. When Bahamut attacked. I had lost so much, but finally, I saw the answer. Everything felt like it was coming together. My journey to understand the Eidolons, gathering the jewels, finding Eiko, even my own upbringing in the castle... Realising that it was Alexander himself. That finally, I could save my people. That after all my mistakes and failures, finally, I could do the right thing. I felt that power. I saw Alexander appear, effortlessly defend the castle, dispose of Bahamut, and I felt that moment of victory. Of power. And then..." She trailed off.
Kuja knew what had happened next. "I did not handle it well. I retreated into myself. I felt pain that was indescribable. Rather literally, as a matter of fact. I could not describe it. I could speak. I could barely think. I did not feel anger. Or wrath. I did not wish to destroy. I did not wish to lash out. I was... broken. But, I know that pain. I know that feeling. I... understand the crushing despair it can bring," Garnet explained uneasily. "But understanding the destruction you tried to bring in Memoria does not excuse your other crimes. I understand that you felt trapped, that you felt you had to find a way out, but there were other ways. Lies and corruption and stealing power were not the right path. You could have spoken to Zidane, formed an alliance, even beseeched Alexandria for help as a citizen, instead of manipulating, stealing, making an army, and killing. As you said, it would have been in Gaia's best interest to stop Garland, so we would have assisted you. Instead, you lied, cheated and murdered your way to power. And... this is the result," she said, simply nodding at him.
Despite her anger, Garnet couldn't help but feel a mixture of pride and annoyance when he complimented her performance as Cornelia. "Adequate?" she repeated, rather questioningly. "I had to jump onto stage at a moment's notice in the middle of an escape attempt with no rehearsal time, blocking, costume, or preparation. If I did adequately in that situation, imagine what I could do in a dedicated performance?" she pointed out. WHY was she riling against THIS description of herself? Garnet wasn't sure. But much like Kuja, she took pride in her knowledge and love of the theatre. To the extent she had to nod back at the book. "I came here for the book to stage a performance, you know? I'm not a Queen here. So I thought I would try my hand at theatre, professionally." Not a lie. She of course didn't mention that the entire plan was a trap for Kuja. She wasn't even sure if she SHOULD try to trap him now. He still had to pay for his crimes on Gaia, of that, she had no doubt, but if she pursued it, was she not just seeking vengeance, just like Kuja had done so? "I always loved the theatre because it showed me the world beyond the castle walls. It gave me a glimpse at the life I could only dream of. So, I suppose it was rather ironic that I Want to be Your Canary became my favourite, the story of a sheltered princess living in her castle, but, when I first experienced it, I remember... that feeling of connection to Cornelia. It was the first time I felt I had seen myself represented on stage, so I fell in love with the tale. I am... surprised, that it is a favourite of yours, however. I imagined you would prefer the more violent plays..." she confessed, although if anybody asked she was unsure how she had ended up discussing theatre with the man who had destroyed so much of her life.
Post by Garnet Til Alexandros XVII on Oct 11, 2023 14:42:13 GMT -6
[attr="class,beacont"]
[attr="class,beatext"]
"And you were?" Garnet shot back, without missing a beat, when Kuja tried to claim Garland was neither 'fair nor just'. She shook her head firmly as she looked at him. "You placed yourself in the exact same position as Garland, and you did exactly as he did. You cannot condemn Garland for his actions, and then expect to repeat them and be free of blame. You are as awful as Garland ever was," she stated firmly. "Except, at least he sought to save lives, even if he did it in the most corrupt, foul way possible. You sought only to destroy," she pointed out.
Of course, it was then that Garnet realised perhaps she had gone too far, for Kuja spoke back to her, stating that she had become like her mother. That hurt Garnet. It cut into her like a wound, and the flinch was visible on her face. Was he correct? Was this fierce hatred she felt for him, this belief that she had to stop him through any means necessary, the type of war mongering belief that had led her mother down her path? Or instead, was she right to feel the way she did? Had she really changed? She didn't like to think so. She thought that her compassion was what caused this hatred; her compassion for those he had killed.
He shoved her aside easily, and she stumbled back as he snatched the box. She felt her face burn with irritation, at his disregarding her. Even after all of her adventures, to him, she was still the weak, helpless princess, who couldn't stand up for herself. Even here, with them both deprived of their magic, she was useless and unable to resist him. She felt her fists clench.
"You're wrong," she finally said. "My kindness never led me astray," she replied firmly. "And do you know what that kindness tells me now? It tells me if I let you go, you'll hurt somebody. Maybe not today. Maybe not even tomorrow. Maybe all you want to do right now is go back and read your book. But if I let you go, one day, you'll hurt somebody again. Whether it's some new scheme to stop you from dying, or just your latest power grab, somebody will suffer because I did not try to stop you here and now," she stated, the words pouring out as her decision solidified.
From her back, she drew her staff, holding it in her fighting position.
And then, after a moment staring at Kuja, she threw it to the ground. And she looked back at him, her eyes wide. "I cannot defeat you in a fight. Even if I were to somehow triumph, you would only return to plague me again and again. So instead, I am going to try something I suspect nobody as ever truly tried," she said. "I am going to talk to you."
"All the pain and suffering you brought to Terra, your attempts to end all life on Gaia, it was because you were afraid of dying. But... the fear of death simply means that you are alive. That's what you've never understood. So, you'll die one day? Guess what, so shall I. And Zidane. And Steiner. And Eiko. And Amarant. And Beatrix. And Quina. We shall all die some day. And part of being alive is never knowing when it'll come. Perhaps tomorrow, perhaps fifty years from now, but one day, we shall all die," Garnet said simply.
"And here is the thing that I think you have never understood. That's okay. Dying is okay. Life is not precious because it never ends. It is precious because it does. Every day matters, because you know that one day, you shall not see another one. Garland was a monster, but he gave you the gift of being truly alive. Free will, mortality, it's what makes us who we are. And it's okay to be scared of death! We all are. Do you know how many times I thought I was going to die, foiling your schemes? And every time, I was terrified. But afterwards, I knew to appreciate that extra day of life just a little more. Because I knew how close it had come to ending. And had I not been able to die, I'd never have felt that fear, or that joy." Even Garnet wasn't too sure what she was doing. Using diplomacy instead of weapons? What was the point? Kuja would never listen. But at least she could say she tried. So she spoke from her heart, and tried to show him that she wasn't as cold as he thought. To show him that she was something else.
"If you're so afraid of dying, instead of being angry, instead of wanting to use that to destroy, why don't you try to use that to understand?" she asked, pleadingly. "Because all the fact that you are dying means is that you are in the same situation as all of us. So, instead of using it to end lives early, why don't you use it to understand why every life is precious. Why people should be allowed to live, for as long as they can? Why should you take their lives away early? Why should your fear of death mean you bring it to everybody else? Why not, instead, do what you can to preserve life? To give people the gift of living longer. Why twist your fear into something that causes you to destroy? When you could use it to make such a difference," she suggested.
"Because you're right. One day you will be gone. All that will exist of you is your memory. Perhaps you should ask yourself, how you wish to be remembered? Because that is the only immortality any of us will ever achieve. The memory of us. Would you not rather it was a good one?"
Post by Garnet Til Alexandros XVII on Aug 26, 2023 6:32:59 GMT -6
[attr="class,beacont"]
[attr="class,beatext"]
Garnet listened as Caius explained, and not for the first time, he reminded her of Steiner. More subtle, certainly, but just as stuck in his ways. But Steiner had the excuse of being her knight. Caius's explanation, that she was a foreign dignitary to him, she supposed made a level of sense. But she didn't particularly like that answer. "Perhaps it would help if you didn't think of me as a foreign dignitary, but as a friend?" Garnet suggested. After all, there was no Alexandria there for her to be Queen of. She realised that was something that made Zidane so special to her. It wasn't that he ignored she was a Princess when they met, but that he saw past that. He didn't treat her as if she was somehow different, but instead, saw her as a person. He understood her upbringing was part of her personality, but he also didn't see it as a barrier. He treated her as a friend and a person from the moment they met. Instead of some kind of important political force to be kept at arm's length.
Garnet smiled a little. "I suppose there is no need for me to use an alias here, but..." Garnet paused, and smiled to herself. "Dagger... brings back some special memories to me. When I chose it, most people I knew still refused to use it. But those who did... I knew saw me in a way I had never been seen before. They didn't see the Princess of Alexandria. They saw the person that I was. They saw... Dagger," Garnet explained. "It meant more to me than many realised when they used that name... Even if it was just a silly alias," she admitted.
He mentioned the pickle story, and Garnet just laughed lightly. She didn't particularly want to experience that again herself, but she'd do whatever was necessary in the situation.
Her thoughts were derailed however by his next question. What was she skilled in apart from rulership and combat? Well, firstly, she was flattered that he thought she was skilled in combat. But secondly, it was the kind of question that had her suddenly sit back with sobering realisation. What WAS she good at? She paused for a moment as she tried to think. Caius was right. No white mage clinic could be set up in Sonora. And even if it could, it wouldn't require an anti-magic field.
That was when the idea hit her.
"Theatre," she answered suddenly. "I have always enjoyed theatre. I once played the part of Princess Cornelia on stage in Alexandria at every short notice, and, well, I rather suspect my performance was somewhat... unforgettable," she smiled. That was an understatement. "But a theatre would require an audience, and thus, an anti-magic field to keep them safe. And Kuja has a vested interest also. It might even lure him to us, and, as I believe the phrase goes, kill two chocobos with one stone," she said, rather proud of using that slang term.
Post by Garnet Til Alexandros XVII on Aug 26, 2023 5:49:22 GMT -6
[attr="class,beacont"]
[attr="class,beatext"]
Garnet simply stared back for a moment as Kuja insisted that they had not, in fact, managed to defeat him. It wasn't how it had felt at the time. It had felt like they had taken everything Kuja could throw at them, beaten him back, to the point where he was unable to keep fighting, and his only option was to try and take them all out. "As I recall, you stated that you 'were going to die anyway', and therefore gave up fighting us because you couldn't defeat us, without trying to kill us all," Garnet countered. "Something which, I must point out, you failed to do," she added sharply. "So, from where I am standing, we did indeed defeat you. You failed in your goal to destroy Gaia. We stopped Necron. The being your destruction of the crystal unleashed. You lost, Kuja," Garnet reminded him firmly.
When he tried once again to blame her mother for everything that had befallen Alexandria, Garnet simply shook her head firmly. She stared back, defiantly. Unshaken by words that would have once cut her to the bone. "We both know that is not true," Garnet said back. "You corrupted my mother. You turned her into the monster she became. We both know it. We are so far past the point of these lies. I have seen who you really are, Kuja. Who you have always been. A scared little boy, so afraid of his own death. You feared Garland, you feared Zidane, you feared your own death. And you didn't have the strength to endure it. So you stole mine. And when that wasn't enough, you stole the souls of every Terran. And in the end, you still failed," Garnet pointed out. Any other time she would have reflected on how proud she was of how she had spoken; not just in the sense of what she had said to Kuja, but her choice of words. Using contractions like they were no big deal. Zidane would be proud. But right at that moment, she was too focused on defying Kuja.
"You wish to be condemned for what you cannot deny? Fine. You destroyed my home. You murdered my parents. Both of my mothers died by your hand. You assaulted my kingdom with power you had stolen from me. You created one of my best friends, only to give him a year long lifespan and allow him to die. You waged war upon my world, and tried to destroy it. You tried to murder me countless times and all of my friends. And when that wasn't enough, you tried to destroy all life. Entirely. You, Kuja, are nothing but hatred and evil, and the only thing that ever gives me hope for a fair and just creator in this world is that you are dying and there is nothing you can do about it!" Okay, maybe that last bit was a bit harsh coming from Garnet, who usually wouldn't say things so awful, but, this was Kuja. Her sworn enemy. The boogeyman of her nightmares. The man responsible for all of her pain and sorrow.
"Whatever your business here, you can wait until I have concluded mine. And then yes, I shall observe to ensure that you are causing no harm. Perhaps you are only looking for something to bring you some comfort. It would be smart to seek that instead of destruction in your last days. After all, you cannot have much time left," she said, her words unusually cold for the otherwise somewhat gentle Queen.
Post by Garnet Til Alexandros XVII on Jul 26, 2023 9:20:00 GMT -6
[attr="class,beacont"]
[attr="class,beatext"]
Garnet simply stared back at Kuja, radiating her own indignation as he tried to convince her that he was there for a hobby. As if Kuja, of all people, would come to an antique store in an absurdly powerful city just for a hobby. No, something powerful must have drawn him there. There must be a reason. Kuja was a monster. He didn't come to an antique store to shop. If he was there, it had to be for some kind of superweapon. It just had to be. Kuja didn't have normal interests.
"Then you shall not mind if I get to observe your purchase? If it is truly nothing dangerous?" Garnet shot back. It wasn't exactly the perfect solution, but at least this way she could see what it is that Kuja wanted. And from there, at least, form a hypothesis to what might be his plan.
"Oh, you knew a few spells, but when you needed real power, you stole it from me. And when that was not enough, you had to instead steal the souls of Terra, so that you could trance. I mean, have you not wondered?" Garnet asked, after a moment. "How it is that we defeated you? I know that I asked myself that, often. You had absorbed the souls of an entire world. You were powerful enough to tear a planet apart with just the energy flowing through you. And yet, four mortal souls, who had no abilities bar the one natural to themselves, stopped you. We defeated you. Because our power was our own, and your power was stolen. It was never yours to wield," she pointed out, her tone hot and accusatory, but still spoken with that polite tone that Garnet usually spoke with.
"Because I am not the fool you believe me to be," Garnet replied, when Kuja asked what made Garnet assume that he had no weapons training. "I remember Oelivert. I remember you forcing Zidane to go in your stead because your magic was useless. If you had any skill with weapons, you would have gone instead. Zidane had not even reached his full potential, he was nowhere near as powerful as he was when he defeated you, and yet, he could handle those monsters easily," Garnet pointed out firmly.
"You stole my kingdom, my mother and my eidolons from me," Garnet shot back when he told her not to steal what was his. "I believe I shall take whatever is rightfully yours that I feel like, and still it shall never equal what you have taken from me," she replied simply, refusing to hand over the box, and instead beginning to look through it to find what Kuja was looking for...
Post by Garnet Til Alexandros XVII on Jul 23, 2023 10:25:56 GMT -6
[attr="class,beacont"]
[attr="class,beatext"]
Garnet stood frozen as Kuja's reply came. Maybe she should have snuck away, found Caius, and come back, before Kuja could leave. That thought only crossed her mind now. Instead, here they were, in conflict. And Kuja was as smugly arrogant as ever, perfectly aware that Garnet wasn't able to fight any better than he was without magic. She clenched the candlestick harder, feeling her hands turn white as she gripped it, and not just from the strain. "It is Your Majesty now," she corrected him. "I'm not a Princess anymore," she reminded him. Thanks to him, she had ascended to Queen far younger than she should. She paused, still holding the candlestick. "I rely on my magic, but I've still fought when I had to. I still wielded a staff. You've never let a weapon touch those manicured hands of yours," she pointed out rather hotly. Of course, she was a Queen and rather sheltered and that life didn't really lead to muscle mass, and he was a man, and one who was genetically engineered as a weapon of war, so he was likely stronger than her still, but she didn't want to admit that.
"Unlike you, Kuja, I can target my Eidolons. You could never use them properly because you stole them. You were no summoner. You used them like a blunt instrument. A real summoner knows how to control them. To direct them. But you've only ever had stolen power. You wouldn't understand what it's like to have it as part of your being," Was it a low blow? Well, yes, but Kuja had blown up a planet, sent her kingdom into chaos, and nearly destroyed another world. He deserved it. Besides, it was true. Some thought Garnet was weaker than Kuja, because in his hands Eidolons like Atmos could obliterate Lindblum, and in her hands, they just attacked a single monster, but Garnet saw that as a strength. It was the control that Kuja never had.
Although despite her words, she had no intention of fighting Kuja outside the anti-magic field. Last time it had taken four of them to beat him. She knew she couldn't take him alone. She just... didn't want to let him win the verbal sparring.
She paused awkwardly when he asked for help. "It would be more of a medium bruise..." she admitted after a moment, before slowly lowering the candlestick awkwardly. She stepped forward, and took the box from him. Not because she wanted to help him, but because if he was going to hand her what he was trying to find, she'd take it from him.
She basically snatched the box away, and staggering under its weight, brought it to the shelf near her, protecting it from Kuja with her body. "What are you here for, Kuja? What weapon have you found in Sonora? It won't help you win! We'll find a way to stop you!" she insisted, as she looked through the box for evidence of what Kuja had been looking for.
Post by Garnet Til Alexandros XVII on Jul 22, 2023 12:04:39 GMT -6
[attr="class,beacont"]
[attr="class,beatext"]
Garnet searched through the first few boxes in front of her, rattling around with aimless frustration, when she heard a distant voice. A voice that made her blood run cold. It was only an utterance, but it was a voice she would never forget. A voice that was burned into her nightmares. She'd know that voice anywhere. It was the voice of a demon. No, that didn't do it justice. It was the voice of more than a demon. A destroyer of worlds. A being of such cruelty Garnet had literally seen him commence genocide, to blow apart an entire planet, and not show the slightest remorse. It was the voice that had been the last thing millions of Terrans had heard, and a voice that had scarred Gaia so deeply it might never heal. It was a voice that would haunt her to the end of her days. It was a voice that-
-was currently complaining about carrying a medium sized box down a ladder.
Garnet ducked behind a shelf, even though she was technically out of view, for a moment, trying to consider what to do. Kuja was here. And clearly unprepared. Within the anti-magic field. This was everything they had been waiting for. A chance to finally defeat Kuja when he couldn't fight back.
Only, there was a problem.
Garnet was on her own, and Garnet couldn't fight without her magic either. In fact, she couldn't really fight with her magic. She was a white mage. She was support. For a moment, she considered if she could do anything. She had seen Zidane and Steiner fight often enough, right? You just sort of, tried to stick the pointy end into the other person. The problem was, she didn't have anything pointy. Or even her staff, which she also couldn't summon here. When it came to weapons to stop Kuja with, she had exactly... absolutely nothing. She held her breath for a moment, and checked the shelf next to her. The closest thing she could see was a fairly small candlestick. Okay, well, that was better than nothing. She grabbed it, and held it ready like a weapon.
Except, even though neither were particularly talented without magic, Kuja had been bred as an Angel of Death for the Terrans. He had led armies and fought in wars. He was a warrior. Surely he'd be more formidable than her in physical combat.
And then it hit her. She had led armies. She had fought in wars. Yes, Kuja was formidable, but so was she. She wasn't that poor, helpless princess from Alexandria anymore. She was Queen. She was an adventurer. And this man represented everything that was a threat to the world. This man had killed countless numbers of her people. And, for perhaps the first time ever, they were on an even footing.
She jumped out from behind the shelf where she had been lurking, clutching the candlestick awkwardly, half like a staff, half like a sword as she had seen Steiner do. She had no idea how to use it as an effective weapon, and it was far too heavy for her, but it was better than nothing. "Kuja!" she found herself yelling out before she even had time to consider whether or not this was a good idea. "I don't know what you're looking for here, but... whatever your plan is, it ends here!" she declared. Doubtlessly only a super weapon or some kind of ancient magical device that could threaten the very heart of Zephron would have drawn him to such a place. There was no other explanation.
She clutched the candlestick tighter. Was Kuja wearing... pants?. Well, she supposed, there was a first time for everything. That didn't make him any less of a threat. "Surrender!" she tried to muster as much Queenly authority as she could in her voice. "You have no magic here! This time, you can't win!" She didn't explicitly state that she was on her own, of course. If he thought Zidane, Steiner and the others were lurking in the shadows, all the better for him possibly surrendering. If he did though, she'd have to figure out what to do then. If she could get a message to Caius before he left the anti-magic field, perhaps...
Post by Garnet Til Alexandros XVII on Jul 21, 2023 8:13:16 GMT -6
[attr="class,beacont"]
[attr="class,beatext"]
Progress in Sonora had been slow, but not entirely unfruitful. It turned out that Garnet's reason for coming had justification; anti-magic devices were common here. And with them, Garnet was one step closer to being able to spring a trap for Kuja. She appreciated the irony; that taking Kuja's magic away made him vulnerable, when the exact same could be said of her. Not that she was much of a fighter even with her magic, but she at least had Ramuh on call. But this wasn't about her. With Caius and his martial skills on her side, she was confident that they could capture and take down Kuja if needed.
In the meantime, Garnet had done her best to make the best of their time there. She had managed to get some clothes that fitted in slightly better. Her white mage robe might have hidden her identity, but it was still clearly the robe of a mage. Instead, she had managed to get a similar outfit to her favoured adventuring gear, only, slightly more in a Sonoran style. She still had her orange top and pants, although they had pockets, and belt straps, and a floral design that she was actually quite fond of. Her shoulders were bare but her sleeves were still similar puffy white silk. She had never been worried about bare shoulders; Alexandrian tradition tended to show a far bit of skin; even her gowns. Her shoes remained modest heels, a bit higher than her usual adventuring pair, but lower than what she'd wear with her gowns, and with laces, which had actually been a foreign concept to Garnet, although she soon understood doing them up wasn't all that different from a corset. Which she also didn't know how to do up, since usually someone else was doing up Garnet's corsets for her, but she understood the principle.
She spent most of her evenings in the lodgings they had secured, looking over various paperwork she could acquire. Most of Sonora ran on some kind of strange magic that Garnet didn't entirely understand; technical screens that reminded her of Terra, but were in actuality quite different. Finding printed information was difficult, although not impossible. One such source was a gigantic antiques warehouse, which released regular listings of their newest inventory. While the warehouse itself was too big to really search, she had the idea that if an old anti-magic device came in, they could buy it outright. So whenever she got an inventory update, she browsed through it. Which was what she had spent the last evening doing.
And was why she was now stood in the vast, dusty warehouse, alone. She hadn't asked Caius to come because this had nothing to do with him, or her mission. No, this was personal. While there was no anti-magic device for sale in the warehouse (although, judging by the fact she had no spells, there was one active), there was something she just had to find.
A book. A very important book. In fact, probably the only copy in all of Zephron. I Want to be Your Canary by Lord Avon. She had no idea how it had gotten there, but she knew that she had to have it. Not that the owner had been much help. He had been the kind of rude that Garnet rarely encountered, despite her best efforts. He seemed the anti-thesis of everything she had been trained to be, and being polite, and softly spoken, and royal had gotten her nowhere, and her Dagger personae which was all those things but with an attempt to use slang, hadn't helped either. So he had just shown her to the warehouse and told her if she could find it she could buy it.
She huffed, hands on her hips. There was a lot of stuff there. This was going to take a long time. She sighed, and started at the nearest shelf. She looked up. They extended high too. She'd have to get a ladder to check the height of each one. Which was definitely not something she was looking forward to. Those ladders looked heavy. She was an experienced adventurer these days, sure, but she hadn't exactly put on a lot of muscle. She was still a Queen, and a white mage at that. Life would be much easier if she could cast float. But that wasn't an option.
So, knowing it would be a long day, she started on the first row of shelves, looking through the boxes, peering in each. It was easy to look, at least, since she disregarded anything that wasn't a book, but it was still going to take a loooong time...
