Side Post!

Well, I figured it has been a while since I had a Side Post, so I'm going to try and whip one up here really quick. As usual, I'm really starting to run out of ideas for Final Fantasy related posts. I have to get either overly creative or go in an estranged direction. I'm not really up for doing another in-depth review, but I will probably try to do another in the future. As for now, I'll be going over...storytelling!

Recurring Fantasy Side Post Theater Proudly Presents
A Crude Runabout and Opinion on Storytelling

My plan for this post is to be quick and easy yet informative! (In a way...) So for starters...Let's start with a really crappy and common opening.
WHAT IS A STORY? Webster's Dictionary defines it as...(I kid!) However, I looked around a bit, and the definition (or combination of) that I like best is that...A story is a sequence of events or recounting thereof. That's pretty black and white, but it states the truth. A story is just a group of events all happening one after another, but of course, it can (and generally does) become more than that. It becomes something bigger, epic-er, and more powerful. A really good story should move you in one way or another. If nothing else, a good story will make you want to never stop until you finish it!

Of course, a great story isn't just about the events. It's about...everything! It's the characters, their lives, the events taking place, and the places they live and explore. Stories open your mind to all sorts of imaginary and real things. They can take you places you've never been, or they can simply introduce you to a lineup of ragged and fun characters. They draw you in and make you feel and believe. A story should make you feel like you are doing more than just reading words on pages...It should make you feel apart of something greater and bigger. All else fails...it should at least entertain your pants off! (I don't mean that sexually... although that is possibility.)

But where does Final Fantasy fit in all of this? (A rhetorical question!) As far as I am concerned, the Final Fantasy series is one of the first video games to bring the idea of a video game story to life! The first title didn't have a vast array of fancy graphics or insane amount of character, but it did get one basic idea across..a story! From there, the series grew and grew with each title. As it grew, the story generally got better and better. With the arrival of Final Fantasy 4, we recieved more than a story. We finally recieved a story with full characters who had a wide range of emotions. As far as it should be concerned, Final Fantasy 4 is where the series truly started to become something worthwhile...storywise.

As the characters grew to be more real, so did the story itself. The story turned into being more than just "good versus evil." The events grew bigger and things weren't always clear. Right and wrong weren't necessarily the obvious. Sometimes, the characters questioned their actions of what they did. At this point, it grew and became more. Of course, it is always possible to try too hard. This is most apparent in many forms.

The hardest thing to obtain in a story would have to be balance. Balance in multiple means. Balancing the story between the bigger picture and the small views, the main cast and the supporting roles, and much, much more. Of course, that is when one strives to make a "perfect" story. As far as most stories go, they tend to focus on one goal over another. They might aim for an all together well written big picture where the characters are decent but never truly given life. Or, maybe they create a real-to-life characters with feelings and beliefs, but they overshadow the often weaker and not well driven story. It's no easy goal, and you can get easily sidetracked by small things. I believe no perfect story exists, but there are quite a few that are most definitely worthwhile nonetheless.

As far as I am concerned, stories don't always have to be deep. Yes, it is interesting and such to have a deeper meaning, but there are times when you take deepness too far. I feel like you hit a point of "This isn't deep. This is just retarded mush of nonsense." Of course, I'm no master storyteller myself, so I'm not one to talk. A deep story isn't for everyone though, but I believe there are times when a simple and almost straightforward story can be more fulfilling. If nothing else, you can trick everybody into a false sense of safety and surprise them unexpectidly!

And honestly...that's about what I have to say. As far as stories go, it is simply "To each his own". Every person has their own form of storytelling that they prefer. Maybe you want action and adventure. Perhaps you thrive on romance and drama. Hell, you might love yourself a good and horrible mix of all that! I would say that the core theme that needs to happen in every story...is it needs to be enjoyable in one way or another. That varies by reader, but if the reader likes the story, than the story has succeeded. It is up to debate whether that person should enjoy it or not, but there's nothing I can change there.

The biggest thing a story has to do for me...is keep me interested. It needs to have events and characters that make me want to learn more. An atmosphere that draws me in and makes me feel and see the events as they take place. The story needs to draw me in both interest-wise and emotionally. If I get attached to it all, I'm going to stick with it all until the end. And that...is what I have to say.

This has been a hastily written and opinionated Side Post.
Has it been my best one? Nooooooooo.
Will it be my last one? Nope.
The next Side Post...will be better thought out.
However, I thank anybody who took the time to read my post and give it some consideration. Who knows... Maybe someone out there read this and was sparked to improve their writting! Maybe it just showed someone a great example of "How not to write a blog post". Regardless of what you take from this, I've succeeded somehow. Worst case, I've eaten up some of your time. Either way, thanks for reading and stay tuned for a REAL Recurring Fantasy post! Going to aim for three of four days though.

Day 63

Game - Final Fantasy 9, Day 63
Hours Played/Hours Total - 7-1/2 hrs / 17-1/2 hrs
Starting Point - Nearby the South Gate.
Current Goal - Make it through the South Gate and back to Alexandria (with Steiner and Dagger).
Make it Burmecia and try to help out (with Zidane and co).

What Happened - Oh dear me...I got a loooot to type up for this post. Prepare for a long post full of lots of stuff and such. It's going to be fun! (Hopefully...) Let's get started.
     As a reminder of where I was, I (Steiner and Dagger) had just reached the initial area of the South Gate. From here, I had to take a lift to the top of the mountain so that we could (technically) go around the South Gate. The actual South Gate goes through the mountains or something, and I feel like this lift was simply takings us over and to the other side of the mountains. The lift was a train car of sorts, and it worked on a system where one side would descend while the other one ascended. (Makes sense really.) As we head up, Steiner begins to praise the Princess in getting them this far. How they got a Chocobo at the forest and using the gyashl pickles to bypass the guards with ease. Of course, she is all deep in thought at the moment, and then the game switches back to Zidane and co!
     They had just finished up with Master Gizamaluke, and they left the Gizamaluke Groto to find themselves in Burmecia country...place. I'm basically there! I walk around on the world map and do a bit of exploring before heading straight for Burmecia. I found some Chocobo tracks and hopped on Choco. With the Chocograph, I managed to find another chest! However, this chest did something a little different. It put Choco to sleep and took him to...CHOCOBO'S DREAM WORLD! Once there, Choco met with a giant chocobo. He rewarded Choco's progress by making him a Blue Chocobo. This would allow me to cross rivers and shallow bodies of water. (Yaaay!) However, despite having this Chocobo update, it didn't really open any new areas for me, so I just walked around a bit and got in a few battles. However, it didn't seem like I was going to get anything new out of these monsters, so I immediately made my way to Burmecia.
     As I entered the main capital of Burmecia, the game revealed it as Burmecia, Realm of Eternal Rain. Freya mentions that she is finally returning here after FIVE YEARS! As for why she left in the first place, that is to come up later. I continued to search through the city, but it was in great shambles. Quite a few dead Burmecian soldiers were about, and many buildings were thoroughly destroyed. I made it to a large mansion and came face to face with Zorn and Thorn (Stupid jesters...). They ordered some Black Mages to attack us, but of course, I easily defeated them. After the battle, Zorn and Thorn said that the General was going to be quite mad at us, and the two jesters ran off. I looked around the large house that they were just in and never found them. However, I did happen upon several treasure chests. They almost all turned out to be Mimics. (For those who don't know, Mimics are treasure chest-looking monsters. They're generally pretty hard, but this batch was fairly easy. I wish they had given decent items though...) After dealing with the couple of Mimics, I happened upon a dying soldier. He told me to look for the Protection Bell, and that it would open the way to the palace. I didn't have to search long before happening upon it.
     With the Protection Bell in hand, I was ready to proceed into the royal palace. Along the way through Burmecia, I gained a few new Blue Magic spells for Quina. Among these, I got Magic Hammer (a returning power that damages enemy MP) and Angel's Snack (spell that uses Remedy items on all party members). With the bell in hand, I made it through the door. Just as we were getting through, Freya mentioned her fear and sadness of seeing the palace all in ruins. Zidane urges her to continue onward as to protect those few people who are left. Vivi was also scared, but he really wanted to know the truth about himself. Freya questioned him and asked if he truly wanted to know. Vivi felt he needed to know even if he wasn't sure about the answer. As they are talking, a Burmecian soldier comes through with his family. Freya identifies him as Dan and urges him to flee the city with his family. They all run off, and we continue further in.
     I also spotted a wounded soldier near a statue. His wife was waiting there with him, and she didn't want to leave without him. As we were talking, the statue started to come down. Zidane quickly grabbed the soldier (named Kel) and pulled him out of the way. He told the couple to escape Burmecia and head for Lindblum. He said that Cid would gladly welcome the refugees. They run off, and I get to continue on through the palace area. The next area revealed a couple of huts with some new weapons for the group (spear for Freya and rod for Vivi). I also found a Moogle in one hut who was selling items. They were some pretty good items as well! I bought up what I could, and Stiltzkin came in. He's a famous Moogle among the group, and he's popped up a few times now. He sells me a group of items for a modest fee and says that this will help him move along. As we finally reach the actual Palace, Freya goes ahead of the group and jumps to the top with no problem. Of course, this isn't an easy task for the rest of them. Zidane jumps up fairly quickly, but Vivi and Quina are forced to make their way around.
     Zidane and Freya sneak up and hide behind a couple statues. From there, they spot Queen Brahne alongside her leading General...Beatrix. Freya talks about Beatrix briefly, and the game goes into a flashback. We see Freya talking to another Burmecian that she calls Sir Fratley (also hints that this is her lover of sorts). Sir Fratley mentions that Beatrix is known as one of the best swordsmen in the land, and he plans to set out into the world to hone his skills. Freya doesn't want him to leave, but she can't stop him. She asks him to promise her that he will return upon the journey's finish. He promises...but the game's events lead to the idea that he hasn't returned yet.
     Back to the present, a mysterious person enters the area and speaks with the two there. The Queen identifies him as Kuja, and he appears to be the one who supplied Brahne with the Black Mages. Brahne says that they need to hurry up and find the King so they can kill him and prevent an uprising by these "rats". She tells Beatrix to search the area for him again, but Kuja says to not bother since he isn't here anymore. He informs them that the rats have moved to their "sandy tree house". They seem surprised that he knows this and also concerned since Cleyra is protected by some form of magical sandstorm. Kuja doesn't seem too concerned with this, and he says that he can easily get past this. Freya informs Zidane that Cleyra are made up of people who isolated themselves from Burmecia long ago based on some trivial matter. However, Freya believes that the king and her people will be fairly safe there.
     As those two are talking, a pair of soldiers come out of nowhere and try to attack the group. Seeing that this is suicide, Freya and Zidane jump in to assist them. They tell the soldiers to run off, and they do so. As our two allies run in, Beatrix says something about defeating a hundred soldiers single handed in the past. Basically, she thinks we don't stand a chance. BOSS BATTLE TIME!
(Seeing as I haven't many images to add, I figured that I would throw up Beatrix! This is the best & easiest I could find.)

Now THAT is a General. 

There's not too much details to go with this battle of course. I throw everything I have at her, and I try to steal a few items while I can. She has one attack that is a 1-hit kill regardless of anything you do. I had to revive a few people before it was doen though. However, despite everything I do, she says a bit and ends the battle with her attack Stock Break. This knocks everybody down to 1 HP, and the battle ends. The bad guys start to walk away as the group is out of it. Kuja starts to look over the group, and he mentions something about "the boy becoming a problem". Next up....more cutscene! We get a close up look at Kuja, and although he is supposed to be a man, he looks an awful lot like a woman. His appearance and outfit really look like they would belong on a lady person. He climbs aboard his giant dragon, and they fly off. This ends Disc 1. /END DISC 1 (Also insert Kuja picture to make my point.)

Hard to believe that is a man...isn't it?

     I switch to Disc 2, and the game switches back to Steiner and Dagger. Steiner believes the Queen wouldn't start a war, and that she will confirm this when they speak to her. Their lift reaches the Summit Station, and they get off to wait for the other train car to arrive. As I said earlier, the two cars work together so one ascends while the other descends. There is a rest area up at the top, and the two enter there to wait for the other side's train car. I buy some new equipment and talk with the people there. While looking about, a familiar voice is heard outside. I go to investigate and find out it is two of the Tantalus members, Cinna and Marcus. The two of them enter the rest area, and Steiner starts yelling at them. He blames them for everything that has happened to the Princess. Dagger chimes in and scolds Steiner for his yelling at them. She tells him to shut it, and he remains quiet.
     The group only talks for a bit before the opposite train car arrives. Steiner and Dagger board it, and Marcus follows behind us. Cinna was heading for Lindblum and had missed his car down. Marcus informed us that he was heading for Treno for some reason. He didn't initially reveal it to us, but after talking with Dagger briefly, he revealed that he was trying to obtain an item called Supersoft in order to cure Blank. He asks Dagger about Zidane, but she simply says that they split ways a while ago. All of a sudden, the car comes to a halt, and the conductor heads outside. He immediately runs back inside and says something about seeing a demon with a pointy hat. The three of them run outside to find a incredibly broken Black Waltz No. 3. Dagger attempts to ask him why he wants to take her back to the castle, but he is too far gone to answer anything...BOSS BATTLE TIME! There isn't too much of a fight left in him though. I take advantage of Marcus's Steal skill to try and grab what I can off the damaged Black Mage. This battle made me quite happy to have a White Mage again. Dagger's white magic made the battle quite a breeze, and Steiner is basically a brick wall with a powerful sword. Those two alone make this battle fly by. With the battle's end, we continue along our track to the bottom.
     As we are heading towards the bottom, the group talks a bit more. Marcus lets us know about the Black Mage attack on Burmecia. Of course, the group already knows about this, but Marcus adds in that it is quite obvious that Alexandria and Queen Brahne are involved. Steiner stands to question his thought, but Marcus just wonders if he is serious in his stance. Dagger is simply interested in questioning her mother directly. Marcus looks at Dagger and tells her that she has changed quite a bit. When she responds about her way of talking, he said that it was more than just that. As they disembark, Dagger tells Marcus that she plans to accompany him to Treno to help him obtain this Supersoft item. With the group ready, I make my way to Treno. I spent a bit more time in the field than necessary though. This grouping of characters was around four to five levels behind the rest of the group. As we walked about, I came into a strange event battle. Strange and cheerful music blared as a ghost talked with me and requested some Ore. (An item that a huge number of enemies seem to have.) I threw him a piece of Ore, and he told me to say hi to Ladybug. That concluded the battle, and although I got zero experience, I was rewarded a large portion of AP (20 if I remember correctly...). Having my fill of battles, I finally entered Treno, the Dark City (how the game put it).
     The first thing that comes up is Marcus warning us to be careful in Treno. He also adds that the plan for the Supersoft involves stealing it from someone in town. (Quick town description time! It's a circular area where the outside ring is the poor group while the middle area is settled around a water source and the richer group.) Dagger isn't too keen to hear this idea, and she ends up splitting off to try and find another way to obtain it. Steiner is angry with Marcus and doesn't notice her leaving. As he is distracted by her gone status, Marcus slips away to head for his meeting. I take control of Steiner and start exploring Treno. A good group of ATEs follow that involves Marcus heading for his meeting and Dagger exploring the town. At one point, she has money stolen from her, but it comes back around when Steiner runs into the thief. The thief had already used the money though, but he gave me the item he bought instead. It's a rather nice item, so I didn't think twice about the decent exchange.
     While here, I took the time to buy any new equipment I could. I also got my hands on new synthesized goods. You certainly get some powerful things through synthesis. It's possible to not do it, but you'd certainly miss out on some powerful items (or at least the opportunity to get them early). ATE time again! Dagger hits the town's auction house at one point in search of the Supersoft. While there, she spots a face she recognizes (and one I clearly know). It is Kuja! She seems to recognize him from somewhere, but she doesn't know who he is really or his name. Upon leaving the auction house, she meets up with Steiner. From there, I make my way around to a small Inn where the two team up with Marcus to steal the Supersoft. Steiner isn't too fond on the thought of being apart of the crime, and he tries to sway Dagger from this venture as wewll. As it turns out, Baku is also here and coordinating the plan and all. At one point, he asks Steiner if he has any real thoughts of his own (based on words exchanged during). Steiner is baffled by this question and claims he very much does, but Baku feels sad that Zidane didn't seem to change Steiner any. The boat ride to the destination gets both Dagger and Steiner thinking about their own situation. Steiner was obviously jumbled by the idea presented by Baku of course. Dagger is just thinking on Zidane and all the events going on.
     The group makes it to the location (appeared to be the synthesis shop), and they are hurriedly searching to find the Supersoft. However, before they get anywhere, a person comes down, but as it turns out, this person is an old acquaintance of Dagger and Steiner...Doctor Tot! He asks what they are doing there, and the group briefly explains. He offers them the Supersoft (as he seems to have one), but he will have to give it to them later. He asks the group to meet at his place on one side of town. We head off and roundabout to meet Doctor Tot at his research...tower place. He lets Marcus have at the Supersoft immediately. Dagger starts talking with Doctor Tot about the old times. It seems a lot of information is given away during this time. The first thing is that Doctor Tot was an instructor for Dagger. We also learn that the planet's name is Gaia. Before too long, the game works around into a flashback.
     Most of the flashback involves information obviously meant for background thought. Doctor Tot is pacing in a library and thinking about things. He mentions that the two oldest phrases involving the word "jewel" and "summoner tribe". Apparently, they disappeared from the books around 500 years ago though, and he feels that the "jewel" might somehow involve the royal pendant passed down through the rulers of Alexandria. However, he feels the royal jewel is much too small to be the jewel talked about. Then there is a mentioning of there being a relationship between special magical stones and the powerful Eidolons (names of summon creatures in this title). About this time, a young Dagger wanders into the flashback. They start talking about all sorts of things, but most of it isn't gravely important to the game. So I didn't make any notes from that bit. The game returns to the present, and Dagger starts informing Doctor Tot of everything going on.
     Needing a way back to Alexandria, Doctor Tot has just the method for us to get back quickly. Marcus decides to come along as well. He says that getting to Alexandria will allow him to reach the Evil Forest faster and cure Blank as soon as possible. To our luck, Doctor Tot's tower lies above a large underground highway of sorts known as Gargan Roo. It is an ancient travelling tunnel that connects Treno to Alexandria (used before the widespread technology of airships). He said that we had to activate some sort of sequence trigger in order to connect the tunnels appropriately. I went about trying to do so, but it seems the tunnel wasn't completely empty. I fought a couple of monsters while trying to get switches all pressed and thrown. At one point, Dagger's Trance activated!....But it was for naught. Her Trance turns her Summon ability into an Eidolon ability, and as of this time, I couldn't summon anything (lack of MP and probably something story-ish). I managed to activate all the right switches, and this called up a "Gargant". This strange creature had a carriage dangling from it. (It was hanging from a pipe and the carriage was hanging underneath it.) The creature ran about in a circle around us and only stopped when some bait was lowered. As the group climbed aboard, Doctor Tot spoke briefly to Steiner. He told him not only to protect the Princess but to also try to think more for himself and not focus entirely on duty. He said that Dagger was still a tad naive. Steiner wasn't completely sure how to receive, but he promised to do his very best regardless. The group heads off into the strange tunnel.
     They don't make it too far though before the Gargant stops. The reason? Some giant snake-thing was in front of us, and the Gargant wasn't too keen on passing over it. BOSS BATTLE TIME! The monster in question was kinda strange looking, but it was menacing nonetheless. However, my team was able to make quick work of the monster...or would have if it hadn't run away like a damn chicken! With the monster's retreat, the Gargant continued on to Alexandria. As the trip came to a halt, the group found themselves in a strange underground area. Steiner was unsure if they were really in Alexandria, but Dagger said she recognized the place from something Doctor Tot had told her. The place was a stronghold used in the past to hold off invaders. However, they didn't get too far before falling into a giant trap, and out of nowhere pops up Zorn and Thorn. The group demands to be released, but Zorn and Thorn are only here to retrieve Dagger as ordered by Queen Brahne. Dagger wanted to see her anyways, but they acted like she was being taken in a most forceful manner. As I put it in my notes...*le gasp!* Now we switch back to Zidane and company.
     They all awaken in Burmecia. Hearing what was said from Kuja and Brahne, the four decide to head for Cleyra. It was just a short distance to this large swirling sandstorm cyclone though. The group wonders how they are going to get in when the sandstorm opens up briefly to let them pass inside. As it turns out (and for Kuja's little treehouse statment), there was a massive tree inside of the giant sandstorm. I slowly climb up the tree and have to do a few sand puzzles of sorts. They aren't so much puzzles as just switches I have to hit. Puzzle would mean I have to think about it...and you really don't have to. Anyways, nothing too important to really point out during my climb up the tree. I did learn some great new Blue Magic spells though! Matra Magic takes enemies down to 1 HP. Auto-Life casts a status that automatically revives party members. White Wind heals the entire party for an amount I'm unsure of. Moving right along, after a very long climb, I made it to the top where a small village sat. We were welcomed by a group of Burmecians (found out later they are technically called Cleyrans). They informed Freya that the King was expecting her, so she went off. We were offered a tour of their village, but Quina went off on his own in search of "yummy-yummies".
     It was your basic village of sorts...minus being up in a tree. (Of course, that's a basic village type for RPGs I believe!) They had a village market, there was an outcropping looking over the top of the storm, they even had a well and water source. It was explained that the storm's wind power is used to pump the water from the ground below and through the tree. I'm going too much into detail, so I'll try to keep the rest quick. After the tour, I explored as Zidane and did some shopping. Quina found out that there wasn't any yummy yummies to be found. Vivi was mistakened by a Burmecian as one of the Black Mages. I also learned a bit of the back history between the Burmecians and Cleyrans. Nothing too big to be worth mentioning really. The biggest thing we learned was the "How" of the sandstorm. It was created/established/magicked by a Magical Harp with a Magic stone (awful lot of Magic here...).
     As I was exploring, a Burmecian came to me for help. He said a kid was being attacked by this antlion monster. (It was mentioned during the tour. They have an antlion there for some reason.) I ran over quickly to help, and the rest of the group joined me. The kid in question was a certain Puck from the beginning of the game. Freya further identified him as PRINCE Puck of Burmecia! But then it was BOSS BATTLE TIME! Ah the Antlion! We haven't seen you around since Final Fantasy 4! He didn't offer too much of a challenge here though. I had a fully stocked and powerful team. I did my best to steal what I could, but he didn't really have any power moves. The biggest thing he had was a catch-all counter that mostly activated towards physical attacks. Outside of this, he really only used a spell or two and a special attack of Sandstorm. I dealt with him easily, and the battle was over before I knew it.
     As the battle clears, Puck thanks the group but runs off before saying a whole lot more. Vivi goes after him because he wants to talk with him. He mentions Puck as being his first friend. The rest of the group heads to the top of Cleyra to speak with the King of Burmecia, who is currently in the Cleyra chapel. With things going as they are, the Cleyrans want to strengthen the storm to stop any incoming problems. One small bit that is important to both cultures is the power of dance. Apparently, the Cleyrans have kept their dancing the most sacred and more magical than Burmecians. They plan to use their sacred magical dance to strengthen the storm. As they are preparing for this ritual of sorts, Zidane says to Freya that she has changed quite a bit. She claims that it has to do with failing to protect Burmecia, and that she wants to protect Cleyra now in order to fulfill Sir Fratley's wish for peace. She joins with the Cleyrans in performing their magical dance to the playing of the magical harp (with the magic stone of magicalness!...apologies). The dance performed reminds me of a river dance. As the song comes to an end, the strings on the magical harp snap. This definitely doesn't bode well, and I eat those words as things grow very much worse.
     A short cutscene shows the further ramifications of the bad luck. The magical sandstorm surrounding Cleyra comes to a full stop and leaves the tree exposed! OH NOES! (I had to add some emphasis...) The Cleyrans are very much freaking out, and we've been informed that this has NEVER happened to them before. (Hah!) Freya added in that there has never been a known time where Cleyra's sandstorm magic wasn't up. This...doesn't bode well. On top of this, someone just HAD to mention that they hoped nobody climbed up the trunk. Of course, before things can get any better, the game switches back to the other group.
     The first thing I see is Steiner and Marcus hanging in a jail cell in the middle of the air. It makes me think of a giant bell on a chain, and they are both stuck inside. Steiner is fairly angry about all of this, and Marcus is just disappointed that he got involved in the first place. He also mentions to Steiner that he's been betrayed by his own Queen. Steiner is somehow still inclined to believe that the Queen is somehow innocent.
     Switching to Dagger now! She's sitting in her room and wondering why her mother attacked Burmecia and arrested the group as she did. She realizes now that her mother has been acting quite strangely since her last birthday. She remembers a tall man appearing around that time as well (referring to Kuja). She believes everything changed around that time, and that's about the time that Doctor Tot left Alexandria. As she is thinking to herself, Zorn and Thorn enter inside to bring her to Queen Brahne. Dagger "resists" in a way, but it's not what I'd call true resisting. Anyways, she is taken to the Queen. The first thing Brahne asks her is where she has been. Getting right to the point, Dagger asks her mother why she attacked Burmecia. The Queen claimed that she only attacked Burmecia because they were planning to destroy Alexandria for some time. She couldn't possibly wait for this, so she took the initiative. She asks Dagger if she believes her. (The game lets me answer.) Of course, I don't believe her at all.
     The Queen wonders why I could possibly not believe her, and Kuja walks in at this time. He's talking all poetic like and puts Dagger to sleep with magic and such. The Queen looks over to the crazed Jesters and tells them to go prepare to extract the eidolons. Next thing I know, the two jesters are jumping all around an unconscious Dagger and speaking strange things. The only important thing mentioned around this time is something about Odin. Then the game switches back to Zidane and his group. Of course, they are still in full "oh crap" mode from the sandstorm stopping. Freya brings up the fact that the storm has never stopped in a thousand years! The group gets together and heads for the bottom of the tree to investigate. As they head down, they run into Alexandrian soldiers! I fought off several groups while heading for the bottom, but Freya feels like something is wrong. She mentions that the number is too few for a true invasion. Of course, I start to realize this as well, and then Puck comes running in. He informs us of the obvious...the town is being attacked!
     We run back up to the town to find Black Mages teleporting in. With a little luck and correct directioning, I am able to help a few villagers escape to the top of the village near their chapel. (Basically, I helped them choose the correct path to take at certain points.) As we all make it to the top, things seem okay, but then it seems I spoke too soon! A large group of Black Mages come in and surround the group. It doesn't look too good, but then a mysterious man (Sir Fratley) appears and slays all of the Black Mages single handed. Everybody goes inside, and Freya starts talking with Sir Fratley. She talks about missing him so much and asks where he has been all this time. She talks of searching high and low for any sign of him, but never finding anything up until seeing him now. Unfortunately, he says her name and informs her that this is the first time they have ever met. Freya wonders how of all things he could have possibly forgotten her. He does apologize for this, and Zidane jumps in and asks how he could have possibly forgotten his love. Freya asks Zidane to stop, but he questions her saying that she has been in search of him all this time.
     Around this time, the King of Burmecia steps in and asks Sir Fratley if he possibly remembers him. Of course, he answers no. They are all unsure of why this could possibly happen. Puck comes in and explains a few things. He says he found Fratley while searching the world over. Fratley didn't seem to remember Puck or who he (Fratley) was even. However, Fratley seemed to snap to it when he heard about the attack on Burmecia and the possible danger that Cleyra was in. Despite his memory loss, he seemed to recall being a dragon knight of Burmecia...and nothing else. Sir Fratley heads back out to clear up more of the enemy. Puck apologizes to Freya for bringing this sadness up on her and goes to chase after Sir Fratley. Zidane asks Freya if she wishes to follow after Fratley, but she is happy enough to know that he is at least still alive. Vivi and Quina finally join us around this point. Vivi goes up to Freya and asks why if she is crying. Freya is incredibly sad and finds it ironic to find him after all this time...only to find out he doesn't remember her at all. Then, out of nowhere, Beatrix shows up!
     Literally, like an strange ninja of sorts, Beatrix just flies in and steals the magical stone from the harp. She runs outside, and we all quickly give chase. Before running outside, I spoke with all of the villagers I saved. They were quite grateful and gave me a pile of good items. I then went outside to face Beatrix...AGAIN. BEATRIX BOSS BATTLE TIME! I'm not going to draw this out. It's another "plot" battle. I fought Beatrix with all my heart and soul, and then she ends us with her "Stock Break" attack. Gloating that we could never defeat her, she uses one of the Black Mages to teleport out. The group follows swiftly and takes advantage of the Black Mages to teleport after her. Quina skips out on this because he doesn't like heights. As the group is teleporting to the ship, bad stuff happens...Queen Brahne is seen using a strange material referred to as "Dark Matter". She uses it to summon Odin onto the scene. The next cutscene (pretty cool but quite depressing) shows Odin flying out of a giant evil warp of sorts. He charges at the Cleyra Tree and explodes it with his power. After that, he rides (flying actually) off to the side and disappears back into...wherever Eidolons go when they aren't being summoned I guess.
     After the explosion of the Cleyra Tree, the group is reappearing on a large airship (presumbibly the Queen's personal airship). They witnessed the destruction of Cleyra was they were going. It was questionable if anybody could have possibly survived this. Freya is the most affected by this of course, but they don't have long to think as they have to hide under a nearby staircase. Beatrix comes out of a nearby room and begins talking with herself. Despite her attitude just a while ago, she's actually quite sad about the situation. She feels the Queen went too far in destroying Cleyra. She doesn't understand why the Queen is making use of the Eidolons and Black Mages when her troops could have easily handled the situation. She's starting to feel like the Black Mages as well. She simply accepts the orders given to her and isn't allowed to have her own thoughts or will on any of it. Strangely enough, she mentions something about Steiner being right! (The real shocker here if you ask me.) The Queen calls her a moment later and she walks off. I follow behind her swiftly to learn more.
     Beatrix hands over the magical stone to the Queen, who refers to it as a "jewel" at this point. The Queen mentions something about lacking one more jewel and orders Beatrix to find it. Beatrix asks about what is going to be done with Dagger. Brahne says she has no more use for her now that the Eidolons have been extracted. She goes further to say that Dagger shall be executed for her crimes of stealing the jewel. Of course, everybody is quite surprised by this, especially Beatrix. The group stops listening at this point and want to beat Brahne back to Alexandria. They are unsure of how to do this though, but then Vivi gets an idea! He runs off and tells them to follow after him. He leads them back to the strange magical pods that they teleported in on. He figures that they can use them to get to Alexandria. Seeing as it is the only way, each of the three (remember, Quina is gone) hops into a pod and teleports off.
     Now we switch back to our group already at Alexandria. Steiner and Marcus are still sitting in their cell, but Marcus thinks he figured a way out! I start swinging the cell side-to-side. This takes a little bit as I have to time it with Marcus. Eventually, we succeed of course, and the cell smacks into one of the ledges. We make our daring escape and get outside of the dungeon. As we climb the final stairs, Marcus takes off to go help Blank. Steiner yells at him a bit as he runs off into the distance. Steiner feels alone, but this doesn't last long as Zidane and company suddenly teleport in right beside him. They start to run off, but Steiner yells why is everybody running off without him. The run back to inform him of what they just overheard. Steiner doesn't believe Zidane when he first says it, but Vivi and Freya both back Zidane up on this. (Just now realize that I keep switching first and third person...I apologize for this horrid afront, but I'm going to keep going!) As to make matters worse, Zidane mentions that they only have about 30 minutes until Brahne makes it in. So...now I'm timed. DELIGHTFUL!
     I start making my way out of the dungeon area when a couple guards start running after us. As we make it through to one area, Marcus appears to shut the gate right in front of them. He talks with Zidane briefly to explain that he's heading for the Evil Forest to cure Blank. As we part, I begin my search of the castle for Dagger. I run all over, but I'm not really sure where to go. While looking about, I run into the librairy. I've still got plenty of time, so I talk with the people there and search the librairy. While doing this, I happen upon a random event. It's a voice speaking to me from the bookshelf...It challenges me, and I gladly accept for SIDE BOSS BATTLE TIME! As it turns out, you have to specially prepare for this side battle of sorts. The boss is a giant monster book that does two things. It either physically attacks us by smacking us or throwing paper at us (for more damage than you'd think...), or it opens its pages to find nothing. The majority of the battle reminds me of the book monsters from Final Fantasy V. I didn't really find anything out on this try unfortunately. It killed me within just a couple of turns. So...RESTART!
     Lucky for me, I had saved not too long ago, so I mostly had to revisit small conversation scenes. I worked my way back around to this side boss, and this time...I looked up a guide! The guide told me a few things. The most important detail was to wait for something to change and do so in the back row. Heading back to the librairy, I challenged the boss again, but I was ready this time. Had I survived the last battle, I would have seen the true trick to it. After a while, the book opens up to a large blue-looking monster hiding in it. While he is out, I can actually deal a decent amount of damage to him, but he's only around for a handful of rounds before disappearing again. The trick is to strike when I can and wait for his next appearance. This would be insanely easy if I wasn't timed for the whole thing. Regardless of the special conditions, I managed to finish up the entire affair with about 13 minutes to spare. The reward for the battle was well worth the effort too. I missed out on stealing one item, but I got everything else. I also recieved a hefty amount of AP for this venture (can't remember exactly but it was at least 30!).
     After this ridiculous side battle, I made my way to the Queen's room. (Yeah, I already knew WHERE To go, but I had to find it.) Inside her room, it seems like there isn't anywhere to go. Of course, as with all castles, it contained a secret passageway. I went over to a candlestick (the classic!) and switched it over. This revealed a secret passage through the fireplace (another classic!). It lead downward into a secret dungeon. I walked down and found the strange chamber from before. (The chamber where Zorn and Thorn were extracting the Eidolons.) Once inside, the pair of Jesters came at us for BOSS BATTLE TIME! Compared to the book from before, this set of Jesters was no problem at all. All they did was bounce up and down and give each other spells. One would charge up a spell and give it to the other to cast it. As long as you hit the one recieveing the magic as he recieved it, that one would lose it. They managed to get a few spells off, but it didn't do enough damage to really matter. I finished them off with ease, and they ran off.
     I approached the currently unconcious Dagger. Things didn't look good, but she seemed to still be alive but out of it. Steiner blames himself for letting it happen, but Zidane says that he isn't innocent either. They don't take too long to feel bad though, and they pick up Dagger and start making to escape. As we come to the top, Zidane asks the group to wait for a moment. He sets Dagger down to let her rest briefly. Steiner is quite angry at the Queen for causing all of this. Zidane somehow blames himself, but he doesn't even know how to feel about everything right this moment. And then..Zorn and Thorn return, but they aren't alone! They bring Beatrix in with them. Yuuuup, BOSS BATTLE TIME BEATRIX STYLE DELUXE EDITION! Nothing special to say here, but she ends it differently...with Climhazzard! After the battle subsides, Zidane asks Beatrix about her duty to the Princess...and then motions to her current state. Beatrix examines her and realizes now that the Queen was quite truthful about her intentions. Steiner tries to say different, but Beatrix urges himt o accept the truth about the Queen like she has. Beatrix tries to apologize to Freya about Burmecia. Freya says that it is too late for any apologies, but there is still a chance to save Dagger. Using her white magic, Beatrix manages to revive Dagger.
     Dagger is revived, and everybody rejoices! However, the Queen steps in about this time. She is most definitely not happy about any of this. With her situation changed though, Beatrix steps in and helps the group to escape. Freya stays behind to help out Beatrix while the rest of the crew heads out the secret passage. I get to control Beatrix and her ridiculous power for a few battles! Despite Zorn and Thorn's fearsome looking monster, Beatrix is easily able to defeat the enemy with a single attack. For the next bit, I'm getting to switch back and forth between the two groups. Zidane's group is trying to quickly escape out the bottom. I run into a couple of enemies at this point, but they aren't too much to deal with. As I make it to the bottom, Steiner stops and asks himself what he is doing. Zidane tells Rusty to hurry it up, but Steiner plans to go back to help the two above. He asks Zidane to protect Dagger and get her to Doctor Tot. He then runs back up to assist Freya and Beatrix. Unfortunately for me, he was my main power house. The next couple of battles still go fairly easily, but they take a bit more time without Steiner's powerful attacks.
     Going back to Freya and Beatrix, they are currently dealing with several more of the same monster. (It looks like a giant dog of sorts.) They fight off another couple of them before Steiner reappears. He states that it is his duty to assist them and such, and he joins them for another battle. As that battle ends, I'm switched back to Zidane and company. They are about to escape when...they run into the same gated trap as Dagger and Steiner did before. (You would think she would have warned us...) Zorn and Thorn pop out to gloat at us, but they don't get too long. Blank and Marcus both rush in and take the two jesters out. With that done, Marcus flips a switch and lets us get out. Zidane thanks the two, and the group heads into Gargan Roo. We hop aboard the faithful Gargant and begin heading back to Treno. However, it isn't too long before the Gargant stops movie. Seems we have run into our snake friend again, or at least it would have appeared so. BOSS BATTLE TIME! This snake looks to be the same type, but it's obviously a more powerful one. (He has tusks!) He didn't prove too much of a challenge though, and I finished him off quite quickly. With him defeated, the Gargant begins to move again.
     Zidane thinks it is moving kinda slow and urges it to move faster. It does start moving faster, but then it starts moving too fast. They aren't sure what is going on until they notice something behind us...the snake monster is following us! The Gargant quickly picks up speed and rushes forward. Unfortunately, it is moving so fast that it flies right past the Treno stop. Next thing I know, a cutscene pops up. It is showing the first person view of the group flying through this small and winding tunnel. They do eventually come to an opening, but they are flung outward into a strange place...Enough about that! Time to find out the happenings at the Alexandria Castle.
     The game jumps to Zorn and Thorn at the castle. They mention some of the Queen's guests have appeared to speak with her. Of course, they aren't allowed to talk to her directly because she is angered with them. The guests come in, and we find out that she has hired a pair of bounty hunters to search for Dagger. She asks two things of them. She wants them to retrieve the necklace that Dagger has, and she wants them to eliminate Vivi. She believes him to be a malfunctioning Black Mage. One of the two bounty hunters asks about Zidane but doesn't really offer anything up aside from that. As the two bounty hunters head off, one of the soldiers approaches the Queen and mentions that the fleet at sea is ready to go. Then we jump back to Zidane's group
     The group wakes up at a place that Zidane identifies as Pinnacle Rock. He also says that they are nearby Lindblum. This means that they travelled quite a distance through the tunnel. Of course, they are all worried about Beatrix, Freya, and Steiner, but there isn't much they can do about now. As they are talking, a strange floating old man appears. He starts talking with the group, and Dagger identifies him as Ramuh, the Thunder God. (Learned it from a book.) He asks about the Eidolon that recently destroyed Cleyra. He says that an Eidolon will always follow a Summoner's orders, and so that it can't be considered good or evil, only the Summoner. Ramuh asks what they plan to do next, but he's mostly aiming this at Dagger. She isn't quite sure what to do next, but she wants to stop whatever her mother is planning. She asks for his help, and he offers it to her...if she can complete his challenge. He has placed five manifestations of himself around Pinnacle Rock, and he asks that we look about for them. Each one will tell us a piece of story, and at the end, we are to assemble this story properly. If we do it correctly, he promises to lend Dagger his power.
     However, the rest of this story is for another time! I find a nearby Moogle and save my game. Oh damn... I have made quite a post here. I didn't decide to add the images until I was about 3/4ths through this though. I've been awful text heavy lately though, so I decided it needed some color. Final Fantasy 9 is sure adding a lot of details to the going-ons of in-game, and I'm having a harder and harder time finding details that don't really need inclusion. Of course, I realize I could really crap it all down, but I like being able to give those who do read (all five of you) a good glimpse of what is happening. I mean...worst case, you could just go look at a wikipedia and get a general idea, but I think I can do better than wikipedia in that regard! Well, I've said enough for now, and I really should move on.
     I do apologize for the update being late though. I'm clearly the one to blame here, but things kept making the post get pushed back. I've had all the notes to do it ready to go for a couple of days now, but I kept getting interrupted while trying to type it up. The post editor didn't want to load up, and the power kept flashing on and off one night. Enough excuses though...I'll do my best to get these up snappier in the future. That's all for now, but stay tuned for a new post! I'm going to try and get more time in today and have enough to make another post by Sunday! Thanks for reading and stay tuned for the next episode of... RECURRING FANTASY THEATER! *insert classy music*


Ending Point - Pinnacle Rock
Current Party -

• Zidane - Level 18
• Vivi - Level 18
• Dagger - Level 12

Goals Accomplished - Made it through part of the South Gate. Upgraded Choco to a blue Chocobo. Located Burmecia, Realm of Eternal Rain. Found Queen Brahne there but lost to Beatrix. Met Kuja for the first time. Made it through the South Gate and to Treno. Obtained the Supersoft for Marcus. Used Gargan Roo to reach Alexandria but got caught. Made it to Cleyra and climbed the Cleyra Tree. Rescued Prince Puck from the Antlion. Tried to protect the Cleyra Tree from Alexandria but failed. As Steiner and Marcus, escaped Alexandria Castle dungeon. As Zidane and co, escaped Cleyra before its destruction and made it to Alexandria. Rescued Dagger from the Alexandria secret chambers. Defeated Beatrix and helped to change her mind. Escaped Alexandria while Beatrix, Freya, and Steiner fended off the enemy. Made it through Gargan Roo, but flew past Treno and ended up near Lindblum. Started the Ramuh Quest thinger.
Next Goals - Recruit Ramuh's help. Try to figure out our next course of action.

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

Day 62

Game - Final Fantasy 9, Day 62
Hours Played/Hours Total - 6-1/2 hrs / 10 hrs
Starting Point - Village of Dali.
Current Goal - Figure out the next step of our plan and make it to Lindblum.

What Happened - Oh dear, I started playing and played quite a darn bit this time. You should brace yourself for an extra long super post with lots of details to the max! I'm going to try and cut it down where I can, but quite a bit has happened in such little time. Onward to the post!
     As Zidane is waking up, he hears someone singing and figures that it is Dagger. However, he also finds that he is the only one in the room currently. After getting up, I start moving about and trying to locate the others. Through ATE (Active Time Events), I see that each of them is exploring the village in their own manner. Vivi is having a strange time with the locals while Dagger is trying her best to fit in. I find Vivi first and start talking with him. He keeps hearing a strange "Kweh" sound that Zidane identifies as a Chocobo. He tells Vivi to meet him back at the Inn shortly and walks away. While Zidane is walking away, Vivi is grabbed up by someone unseen.
     As I walk around a bit more, I take the time to refill my item inventory and purchase some new equipment. There isn't much new to buy in the village, so I quickly finish shopping. I finally happen upon Dagger while looking about, and she shows to be making progress on her blending in. He tells her to meet him at the Inn, and she heads in. Around this time, I find out that Steiner is quickly trying to scramble up a way to take Dagger back to Alexandria. He manages to find out that a cargo ship comes by fairly often, and he sets off to acquire it as a transport. Going back to Zidane and Dagger, they start talking about the strangeness around the village. There are hardly any adults around, and the farm that used to be in the village is completely gone and replaced by strange symbols in the field. While talking, they finally realize Vivi hasn't come back yet and set out to find him.
     While looking about, I returned to where I last saw him. Once there, Zidane heard the Chocobo sound again, but more importantly, he heard someone crying below. Upon further investigation, we found out it was Vivi. He said someone grabbed him and stuck him there. A bit of searching revealed a hatch that went underground. I went down to investigate, and that is when things started getting interesting. Overhearing a group talking, they were saying some strange things. They mentioned the Queen of Alexandria as being involved. On top of that, Dagger identified some strange barrels nearby that she recognized as some she had seen at the castle. Whatever reason they had brought Vivi down, they were about to get him ready to send like the rest. Further inside this strange underground place, I finally rescued Vivi who had been stuffed inside a box for some reason.
     With him along, we happened upon a large grouping of strange machines. They were somehow being powered by nearby Mist and spitting out some strange-looking eggs. Of course with Mist about, I started running into random monsters. While doing this, I found out the next Trance ability. Vivi's Trance changes him into a glowing and snazzy looking mage. While in his Trance form, he gains the ability of Dbl Black (Double Black). This allows him to cast two spells in a row. It can be any combination of spells too! (Thus making it different from the Double or Triple ability of FF8.) Following along, we found out that the eggs were hatching into...Black Mage dolls. This freaked Vivi out, and Dagger was scared and unsure of why her mother was making these. Before anything else could be said, they had to hide in a nearby machine. I don't know why they chose the machine, but I guess it was a hastily made decision. They get boxed up somehow, and the game jumps back to Steiner.
     Steiner went to a nearby platform to find out more about this cargo ship. The old man was the one he was directed to in learning about it. He seemed to be examining something there and said it seemed about ready. Steiner followed after him and demanded to know when the ship would be there. The old man said it was already here, and Steiner rushed out to find it. He quickly spotted it and tried to figure out a way to gain passage to Alexandria with it. As he is running towards it, a group of villagers are startled by his running at them. They run off with several of the barrels, and he looks at one of the remaining ones. After poking it with his sword, Zidane flies out of the top and tells him he almost stabbed Dagger! With the group reunited, they want to figure out where the airship is going. Steiner quickly lies and tells them it is heading for Lindblum. The group is questioning this a little, but then a new foe appears!
     Another Black Waltz flies in, and this time is it Black Waltz No. 2! Zidane mentions the encounter with the first Black Waltz, and No. 2 mentions something about taking the Princess back to Alexandria regardless of anything. Even when Steiner chimes in about wanting the same thing, the Black Waltz doesn't care and BOSS BATTLE TIME! Lucky for me, this battle is a group of four against a single guy. He did have some powerful spells backing him up, but it's not two on one like the last time. During this battle, I gain privy to Steiner's Trance! He changes into a full set of shiny and snazzy-looking armor and gains an immense power boost to his physical strike. (It was apparent but hard to tell mid-battle.) Outside of a few groupwide spells he cast, he never really did much damage. I managed to stay ahead of it all and beat him without a lot of effort. With his defeat, I was given a choice of going right now or resting at the Inn briefly. I decided to rest at the Inn real quick just in case. After that, the group went back out and was ready to go.
     As Steiner goes to "obtain" the ride to Lindblum, Zidane and everyone already knows he was lying about the ship's actual destination. However, Zidane is assured that he has a plan to get the ship heading towards Lindblum. The remaining three run and jump on the airship as it is starting to take off. They head inside to find out that the Black Mage dolls are running the ship. Vivi tries to communicate with them, but they all seem to just ignore him for now (depressing shot...). Zidane heads up top to check things out and enact his plan. When he gets up there, we find Steiner moping about. He thinks the ship took off without the Princess, but he is quickly enlightened when Zidane speaks up. Steiner claims that they are going to the castle, and that Zidane will be hanged for his crimes. Zidane just ignores Steiner and goes to turn the ship towards Lindblum. He takes ahold of the wheel and starts turning the airship around. However, this attracts the attention of the Black Mage dolls. They all come up top, but they are quickly overshadowed by something else...Black Waltz No. 3!
     The final and most powerful of the trio has shown himself to reclaim the Princess. He's not going to leave without her but plans to destroy all of us. Strangely enough, the Black Mages come to surround the group and namely Vivi. They don't directly say anything, but No. 3 seems to talk with them somehow. He does mention something about them protecting Vivi though... However, he doesn't really care about them and unleashes an attack on all of them. Next up is a fairly sad cutscene of all the Black Mage dolls flying about as the Black Waltz unleashes his attack. His attack flings many of them off the ship and ravages a good portion of it. The group is currently deciding what to do, but they realize they have to face him. Dagger stays behind to pilot the ship, and Zidane leaves the choice up to her if she wants to head for Alexandria or the South Gate. The rest of them charge out there to face Black Waltz No. 3. BOSS BATTLE TIME!
     As the battle opens, Vivi flies into Trance mode automatically, so I make use of his current Double Black magic to deal the damage on No. 3. He quickly proves that he is vastly more powerful than 2, or he certainly seems that way. It didn't help that I was lacking Dagger's white magic, and I kept the battle going for a bit though. I was trying to steal what I could off the bosses (I didn't realize it before this point, but enemies can have multiple items on them in this game!), but I had to hurry up and finish the Black Waltz off before he killed anybody. As the battle subsided, he somehow managed to shamble away in his broken state. The game shows that the jesters from the castle (named Zorn and Thorn) were right behind us. It turns out that they were the one who empowered the Black Waltz mages. They seem to be flying some sort of mini-airship, but they quickly abandon it as Black Waltz No. 3 comes back. Being partially damaged and crazy, he heads towards our group in the mini-airship.
     Back on the airship, Dagger has steered us towards the South Gate. So we head for Lindblum! But we aren't going to get there without a fight. Cue one of my favorite cutscenes! The group is quickly flying towards the South Gate (looks like a giant circular hole going through the mountains). The gates are quickly shutting, and No. 3 is in hot pursuit. His smaller ship appears to be quite fast, and he rapidly approaches us. As he comes around for an attack, Vivi (who was sadly starring at a remaining Black Mage hat) looks up at him and opens fire...with Fire! He awesomely blasts the Black Waltz and his ship out of the way. (Somehow doesn't destroy it though...) Both ships fly through the first gate with no problem, but they are approaching the second gate which is rapidly closing. The group manages to barely clear the gate, but the Black Waltz got unlucky. As they leave the gate, a large explosion flies outward and damages the gate. /end cutscene
     The game shows the airship flying slowly but surely towards a large castle. It briefly switches back to our crew who are talking after all this happening. Steiner has decided to cease his constant attempts to take the Princess back. He simply states that he remain by her to prtect her...until she decides to return to Alexandria. Vivi is the most shaken by all of this, and he asks everybody if they think he and the Black Mages are alike (namely the Black Waltz's right this moment). Zidane tries to help him feel better, but Steiner chimes in with the best line (a first for the moment). He wonders why Vivi even cares about it and thinks that he shouldn't care because he is his own person and a remarkable individual. Back to the rest of the world, Lindblum is a sight to behold. Lindblum Castle is insanely larger than Alexandria Castle. On top of this, the city is waaay more advanced. There are airships flying all over the area and all around the city. As we dock our airship, Steiner comments that airship dock could easily accommodate Queen Brahne's Airship. As we set down in Lindblum Grand Castle, we are questioned by a group of soldiers. Dagger announces herself as Princess Garnet of Alexandria and shows them her necklace as proof of her royalty. They call in someone, and he immediately identifies the item in question. Furthermore, he immediately recognizes Dagger and says that the Regent Cid (CID IS BACK BITCHES!) is expecting them. (Dun dun duuuuun!)
     I follow after this guy (some sort of high chancellor or something) and he explains the basic layout of the city. Lindblum is made up of three levels: a base level at the ground that leads outside, the mid-level is city where everything basically is, and the third and top level is restricted to Cid himself. We quickly ascend to the top floor to meet with Cid. As we enter the throne room, it's obvious something isn't right. Cid isn't seated in the large throne, and instead, there's a large oglop behind the throne. It approaches the group, and Steiner smacks it. It is quickly revealed that the oglop is actually Cid Fabool, Regent of Lindblum. He says he was assaulted one night, and his wife, Lady Hilda, was abducted. He says he already knows the situation at hand, but he believes the group needs some rest. He offers to let them stay at the castle and eat. Zidane heads off on his own to eat in town though. As he walks inside a familiar diner (If not mentioned yet, Zidane and Tantalus are based in Lindblum.), he takes back into his old habit. Zidane has quickly shown to be quite a ladies man. He tries to woo the waitress, but he is derailed by a strange woman in the diner. Zidane jokingly identifies her with several different names before admitting that he never forgets a pretty ladies' name. And thus...we are introduced to Freya, a Burmecian Dragon Knight. (Burmecians are rat-people.)

     Freya is definitely one of my favorite characters in FF9. Let's get back to the going-ons of course, only a few details are brought up about Freya for this part. Zidane asks her if she has managed to find her missing boyfriend, and she answers no to this. He also asked if she ever planned to return to Burmecia, and she says that there is nothing there left for her. Of course, he also wonders why she is in town. She answers that she is in town for for the Festival of the Hunt. Then the game jumps back to Dagger at the Castle.
     She is talking with "Uncle Cid" currently at the castle. He actually knows quite a bit about the current situation. He had promised the late King of Alexandria (who he was great friends with) to help Garnet/Dagger if the need should arise. He reveals that he was behind the kidnapping plan with Tantalus. He's good friends with Baku, and they had set it up for the travelling theater to make the kidnap. Had he tried anything more direct, it could have led to war. Dagger brings up the incident at the Village of Dali and talks about the Black Mages there. This does concern Cid somewhat, but he doesn't think Alexandria will ever attack as long as Lindblum has their airship force. While walking about, Cid reveals the truth about his current state. What actually happened....Lady Hilda used her magic to turn him into an Oglop after finding out about him messing around with another lady. She ran off with the newest airship he had made called the Hilda Garde. Apparently, it was specially made and could even run without the use of Mist. With the Hilda Garde gone, he was trying to work on a Hilda Garde 2, but his Oglop mind had left him unable to work or think nearly as well. Back to Zidane!
     Zidane wakes up in one of the cities's inns. He decides to go check out the Tantalus hideout to see if anyone had returned there yet. He offered Vivi to come with, but Vivi felt like exploring the town on his own. Right before heading out, the game informs me about the Synthesis system! (All of the tutorials are done with an ATE event involving two Moogles.) Basically, the Synthesis system is a modified version of FF8's weapon system. You can buy weapons like a normal FF title, but there is another way to obtain items this time! Basically, making use of old items and equipment, you can combine them to form new and better equipment. This means I shouldn't be selling anything since it can all easily be used as materials for Item Synthesis. The tutorial also lets me know that Lindblum has a Synthesis shop that I should go try out. I begin exploring all over. I do make a beeline for the shops though since I need to upgrade my equipment and restock on items.
     The unfortunate problem I ran into while buying things was that I didn't have a lot of money. I had to end up selling a few nonessential items to get what I wanted. A visit to the Synthesis shop proved quite beneficial, but it also showed that I needed more items and more money. I managed to get everything I wanted in the end though, but I did have to sell more items than I would have preferred. The benefit outweighed the cost so...whatever! Exploration of the town showed that there was quite a bit to see. The city even has airship taxis to travel between locations! (Snazzy!) As I explore, I'm made privy to the things going on with everybody else with ATE. Steiner is wandering around the city and completely lost. Vivi looks about and obtains a strange nut called a Kupo Nut. While walking about, I also learn more and more about this "Festival of the Hunt." Apparently, it's some incredibly old tradition where anyone able and willing fights off monsters in a sportsman-like manner. The winner is given the title of Master Hunter. Anyways, I finally make my way around to the Tantalus hideout in the Theater district, but I quickly find out that nobody is there.
     Zidane wonders if the group is all right, but he doesn't get too long to think. He's interrupted by a couple of kids that he knows. They ask about the group, but he says they are currently away. They also ask about the Princess at the castle (apparently everybody knows now). They run off in preparation to see the Festival though, and Zidane decides to return to the castle. Along the way, an ATE let's me know that the Tantalus group managed to escape the forest, and they are considering their next options. They want to save Blank, but they fear that anything they do might reawaken the forest. Unsure of what to do, they try to make do with what they have. I quickly made my way to the castle, and I had to sneak up to the third level to find Dagger. Once there, she's singing once again, and Zidane asks her about it. She isn't sure where she got the song, but she always sings it when she is feeling sad or lonely. Zidane tries to make a pass at her to get a date, but he fumbles pretty badly. (He says something about an airship ride which he offered to the waitress girl waay back there.) Dagger takes offense to this though, but he does have a backup. He asks for a date if he should win the Festival of the Hunt. She agrees to this but doesn't seem overly enthused. Before heading off, she does ask Zidane one thing. Had she not come willingly, what was their plan to capture her? He said they would have put her to sleep with Sleeping Weed. She asked if she could have some to help her sleep. Zidane didn't really want to give it to her, but he ends up giving her some.
     Jumping ahead a ways, the game throws me to the point where the festival is about to start. Zidane and Freya are planning to attend, and Zidane signed up Vivi to also take part in it. Vivi isn't super sure about it, but Zidane says he thinks he would do quite well with his magic. He also promises to set him up with a date with Dagger if he won. Vivi is unsure about this, but the contest is about to start. I head on down...and thus begins the Festival of the Hunt! Basically, I start in the Theater District and have fourteen minutes to kill whatever monsters I can. For this contest, I can see the monsters running about, but I only receive points on their defeat rather than money or experience. I run all about defeating the monsters I can, but my biggest goal is the boss monster available in all this. From a previous experience (and in-game things), I know there is one larger one that is worth a pile of points. After looking about, I happen upon a giant monster of a pig. It's trying to attack some kids, and Freya quickly hops in to join me for this battle. BOSS BATTLE TIME!
     Unfortunately for me, the clock is ticking. I don't really get any time to "enjoy" this battle so to speak. I have to quickly attack the monster and take his fat monster pig ass down! Lucky for me, I recently acquired some overly powerful swords and was using them for this challenge of sorts. It took a good chunk of my time (I think from the 7 minute mark to the 1 minute mark actually! AKA 6 minutes). The monster proved to be quite easy really. He wasn't able to get a lot of attacks out while we went crazy on him. (Throwing this in here now, Freya's extra abilities are Dragon and Jump. Dragon is some sort of spells and Jump is the general FF game Jump ability.) With the giant monster down, I was awarded 150 points! Considering most of the monsters only gave around 10 points, this put me in a healthy lead over everyone else. The contest quickly wrapped up, and I (Zidane) arose victorious. As for the Festival's prize, each person was allowed to choose their price. Freya asked for an add-on (accessory), Vivi asked for a card, and Zidane asked for money. So...I got a pile of money (GREAT TIMING...jerks). 5000 gil to be exact.
     Right as I was awarded the Master Hunter title, a Burmecian Soldier came running in. He had come all the way from Burmecia (obviously) to report that Alexandria was attacking them. It was also made known that the assailants at this time were strange figures wearing pointed hats, aka Black Mages. Cid plans to help out since he and the King were old friends. However, it is going to take time to mobilize the Lindblum troops. He also mentioned something about pulling their airships from the Alexandria border. This was still going to take take too long, so the group volunteers to go. Freya is the most determined to go, and Zidane plans to go with her. She objects at first, but he convinces her that he plans to go regardless. Vivi also wants to go as to find out more about these Black Mages. Dagger wants to come with as well. She believes that she should be able to convince her mother to stop whatever she is trying to do. Zidane doesn't want her to and explains that this is way too dangerous for her to get involved. She eventually concedes to his decision on the matter and drops it.
     Before heading off though, Cid tells the group to enjoy the Festival of the Hunt feast before leaving. Freya has mixed feelings about all of this, but Cid says that they should eat while they can since the journey will be long and hard. As the group is enjoying the massive feast, they all start feeling sleepy and pass out...except for Dagger and Steiner! Steiner thinks he has been poisoned though and apologizes for not testing the food for the Princess. Of course, she says that she didn't do anything to his. The two of them hurry off and make their own way. As the group comes to, Zidane realizes that she "poisoned" them with the sleeping weed he gave her earlier. They believe she is heading for Burmecia, so the group heads out and makes their way for Burmecia. There aren't any airships to spare at this moment, so we have to leave through the bottom level of Lindblum known as the Dragon's Gate. Our current destination is a cave known as Gizamaluke's Grotto. It will take us through the mountains and into Burmecia. Before heading that way though, I took the time to do a few side quests.
     This is the first time I've gotten any freedom to really explore, so I decide to really look around and do some stuff. I know there are two things I can do right now, so I head for the first of two locations Qu's Marsh. Qu's Marsh is home to a race of creatures known as the Qu clan. It is here that I meet the next character in the FF9 lineup...Quina!

I know for a fact that...Quina is not well liked. I'm cool with Quina myself because he/she is such a useful character. And yes, the game even goes with that identification of Quina's gender. There are times where the characters refer to him/her as she/he. Going back to the "how" Quina joined the group. I was walking along in Qu Marsh when I spotted Quina trying to catch frogs. I caught a frog myself and offered it to him. (Out of ease and typing, going to refer to Quina as a he.) As this happened, Quina's mentor came along and scolded him. He said that Quina would never learn about being a true gourmand if he didn't go out and try other foods. Quina spent too much time trying to catch and eat frogs. Master Quale (his mentor) admitted that eating frogs was a big thing to Qu's and helped them grow, but Quina needed to expand his horizons. After saying all this, he requests that Zidane take Quina along to help him grow. I agree of course and gain a new character for the journey.
     As for what Quina's job/class, he is the Blue Mage in this game. You gain new spells by "Eating" certain enemies. To Eat enemies, you have to get them down to 1/8th of their health. From previous experience, Quina has some of the best spells in the game. It takes a little time and effort to get them, but they are almost all worth it. I managed to get a few from the monsters in the swamp alone. Before I left though, I took a bit of time to do Quina's sidequest. While in any of the swamps in the game, you can catch frogs as Quina. They're fairly easy to catch, but it takes a lot of time and patience. After catching so many frogs, Master Quale shows up to praise Quina. He says that he is doing well in his training and rewards him with an item. I managed to catch enough frogs that I earned a couple of items. After clearing the swamp of frogs, I went ahead and left there. My next destination of interest is the Chocobo Forest. It's a small distance to walk, but this next sidequest is the biggest one in the game!
     Upon entering the Chocobo Forest, I'm greeted by a Moogle. He tries to introduce me to the Chocobo in front of him, but it runs off rather quickly. The Moogle hands me same Gyashl Greens and tells me to go out and call him. I leave the forest briefly and find some chocobo tracks. I use the Gyashl Greens to call the bird back, and he comes running. I ride him back into the forest, and the Moogle is glad to see we are getting along. He then offers to let us try out a little treasure hunt in the forest. Basically, he gives me a minute to run around the small forest area and try to dig up items with the chocobo. As I attempt to dig, the chocobo makes different sounds to inform me of how close I am to the item, aka a Hot and Cold system. Of course, that reveals why the name of the game and sidequest is Chocobo Hot & Cold. By playing the game successfully, I earn random items from the ground, points to buy things from the Moogle, and sometimes find these ancient tablets called Chocographs. The Chocographs are the real aim of this sidequest of course. They lead to amazing treasure chests on the world map. I found like 6 or 7 Chocographs in the forest before I was told that there wasn't anymore to be found. I won't go into anymore real details on this quest at the moment, but I ended up spending like 2-3 hours on it and got a large pile of great items and equipment.
     Feeling I had done enough for Chocobo Hot & Cold at this moment, I finally made my way around to the cave known as Gizamaluke's Grotto. Once there, I ran into more fallen Burmecian soldiers. We went further inside to find another soldier on the brink of death. Before he died off, he handed us a silver bell. The silver bell looked just like the one on the nearby door. When I went to the door, it asked if I wanted to ring the bell. Doing so cause the door's bell to ring as well and opened the door. Of course, this also shattered the bell I had in my hand. Going on through the door brought me into a large chamber where Black Mages were killing all of the Burmecian soldiers. As we tried to help out, we spotted Zorn and Thorn above us commanding the Black Mages. They sicked a group on us and ran off. The Black Mages were easily defeated but had fairly strong magical attacks. As I went around, I had to fight another pair of Black Mages and random monsters. The monsters weren't too bad, and I even got a glimpse at two more trances, Freya's Trance and Quina's Trance. Freya's Trance changes her Jump command into the Spear command. Basically, rather than just jump up and come down for a single attack, she flies up, flings spears all over the entire enemy party for several turns, and then finally slams down for a powered Jump attack. Quina's Trance changes his Eat command into the Cook command. All that does is make it easier to devour enemies. (In game terms, you can Cook them at 1/4th health as opposed to Eat-ing them at 1/8th health. It's useful nonetheless.) Using a silver bell I picked up, I worked my way around to a Burmecian soldier who gave me another bell. I used this to enter the next chamber.
     In here, I found a Moogle crying by a bell. She said that her husband was trapped underneath it, and she wanted our help getting him out. Before she said anything else, she ran over to Vivi and started smelling him. She mentioned the Kupo Nut that he had on his person. She requested it from him, and I let her have it. With the Kupo Nut, her husband busted out from underneath the bell (It was a pretty big bell...). The two run off into the back room, and I follow after them. Inside there, she thanks me for helping her husband. I use this time to save my game and heal my people with a tent. I set out to leave the room, and the husband comes after me to give me a Holy Bell. Before running back, he asks if we have anymore Kupo Nuts and also says that "I'm kupo for Kupo Nuts!" I laughed a little and went on. Using the Holy Bell, I'm able to continue past this room into the final chamber of the Gizamaluke Grotto. However, as I am going through, a soldier warns us that "Master Gizamaluke has gone mad" and also suggests that the strange jesters (Zorn and Thorn) are behind it. Before we can say or do anything, a large serpent monster (presumably Master Gizamaluke) leaps out of the water and attacks us for BOSS BATTLE TIME!
     Here we are with another Boss Battle on our hands. Gizamaluke isn't going to let us win without a stern fight of course. Luckily, I recruited Quina now and not later. The extra hand was helpful in keeping everybody up to full on health. I spent most of this battle trying to loot a set of items off of Gizamaluke. This went quite poorly despite one of Zidane's abilities that were supposed to "improve" his stealing chance. I could have ended the battle fairly quickly, but I was determined to get all three items. However, this was pushing me towards a losing slope as I did it. I had to keep at least two party members focused on healing and also trying to not attack and kill Gizamaluke. Vivi's Slow spell helped keep me in a better way for part of the battle, but it didn't last long enough (still fairly long though) to finish the battle up. I also didn't have access to Quina's Mighty Guard spell. I mean, I had the spell, but he didn't have enough MP to cast it (64 MP for ONE casting!). Eventually, after exhausting a lot of potions and hi-potions, I gave in and just started attacking Mr. Gizamaluke all out. With his defeat, he fell back into the water. With his defeat, we needed to hurry out of the Grotto and to Burmecia!
     However, the game felt it imperative to switch over to Steiner and Dagger after the battle. Steiner was seen approaching the South Gate (and therefore not where Zidane thought they were...I think). They talked about going up and through the South Gate. Once there, they mentioned a town of Treno and getting back to Alexandria. However, Steiner had to sneak the Princess by the front gate of this small sheltered fortress. He managed to sneak her in with a bag filled full of gyashl pickles (apparently smell super bad and only like by some people...like Steiner!). After getting past the guards, Steiner set the bag down in an alley and let Dagger out. The two needed to go up and through the South Gate. Apparently, there was a way to climb up and over the mountains by the South Gate. Dagger was determined to get home to her mother and try to talk her out of her actions. Unfortunately, I've got more than enough stuff typed up for this post, so I saved my game and stopped there for now.
     Woo! That is a heck of a lot of happenings of typing for only 6 and a half hours of play! (Remember that like 2 hours of that was Chocobo Hot & Cold.) I'm certainly progressing through FF9 now, but I'm definitely not making the pace I was hoping for. It's becoming tediously harder and longer to type these posts. More is happening in less time than the previous games, but I still enjoy it nonetheless. I've started making small notes as I play the game so as to not forget everything that happens. I'm still leaving out a lot of extra details, but many of those are either currently extra or will be revealed later when more relevant. I've actually had all the details to type out this post for like...3 or so days. I would have had it up by now, but it is a lot easier to play the game than to talk about it. Ah well, that's enough for now! Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time on Recurring Fantasy when we find out...what happens next!

Ending Point - Nearby the South Gate.
Current Party -

• Dagger - Level 7
• Steiner - Level 7

Goals Accomplished - Found out what was going on in the Village of Dali. Defeated Black Waltz No 2. Defeated Black Waltz No 3. Escaped the Black Waltz No 3 and made it to Lindblum. Explored the large city of Lindblum. Participated and won the Festival of the Hunt. Found and recruited Quina. Started the Chocobo Hot & Cold side quest. Made it to the Gizamaluke's Grotto. Defeated Gizamaluke and made it through Gizamaluke's Grotto.
Next Goals - Make it through South Gate and back to Alexandria (with Steiner and Dagger). Make it to Burmecia and try to help out (with Zidane and co).

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

Day 61

Game - Final Fantasy 9, Day 61
Hours Played/Hours Total - 3-1/2 hrs / 3-1/2 hrs
Starting Point - The beginning of Final Fantasy 9.
Current Goal - Start Final Fantasy 9. Beat Final Fantasy 9!

What Happened - It's that time again! Time to start a whole new adventure in the Final Fantasy world. For this time, I'm starting up on my current favorite title in the series. After 9, I've got 3 more titles in the series, and I have a bad feeling about what will happen after 10...But I'll get to that when it comes! For now, let's start up Final Fantasy 9!
     The first thing I'll say...I'm so glad to be back to pure fantasy! The first thing FF9 does for me is return the series to a more fantasy setting like the old titles. Nothing against the mix of fantasy with other elements, but this one goes for the old style similar to the first game and other early titles. The game opens with a video. It's a storm on an ocean and someone is trying to sail about with little success. Before it finishes up, I find out it is a dream by a beautiful woman. She looks out the window, and we see a large airship floating on what appears to be clouds. It flies towards the destination of a very large castle town...and Final Fantasy 9 appears on the screen. I'm taken inside the ship and given control of my first character. It's a regular looking person with a monkey tail. As he walks into the room, I gain control and start looking about. He talks about meeting the rest of the group there, and I light the candles in the middle of the room. A couple people quickly fall in and things get started. We start to talk when a half-man, half-dragon looking figure walks in for battle time! (Not quite a boss but will find that out soon)
     I already have a party of four here, but they all only have the Steal ability. Seems like I'm working with a group of thieves. I attack a couple the dragon man and find out it's just a head piece. It busts off and the battle ends. The man in the outfit congratulates them on a job well done defeating him, and they move into the next room to discuss their plans. The group heads in, and I follow quickly behind them after being introduced to the character...Zidane!

I head inside and find out even more details. The group is called Tantalus, and they are pretending to be a theater troupe in order to infiltrate the castle of the kingdom of Alexandria. Their ultimate goal is to kidnap the Princess of Alexandria, Garnet. They are doing the play for her 16th Birthday, and there is a plan to it all. Once there, the group will split into two teams. The first team of Marcus and Cinna (two of the bandits) will work the play while the second team of Blank and Zidane sneak around and kidnap the Princess. After discussing the plan, the game switches me to a different character on the ground.
     Now, I'm playing as what looks to be a strangely dressed Black Mage. I explore the town and find out a few details. He (assuming) is in town to see the play being put on. I walk around a bit and find all sorts of fallen items. After looking around, I report in to get my ticket stamped and find out...The Black Mage's ticket was a fake, and according to the ticket person, it wasn't the first fake. He feels bad for the little guy and gives him some playing cards. I go off to find my next point of interest when I run into a little rat kid. He has me play the lookout while he steals a nearby ladder. Before I follow after him, I run into a guy named Alleyway Jack. He shows me how to play the card game "Tetra Master."
     I'll be honest...It isn't great. Comparative to Triple Triad, it's a pretty crappy game. You set cards on a field and try to take other cards. It's the same concept, but the field is bigger and doesn't work quite the same. Cards can only attack other cards if its arrows are facing them. They might have to battle if arrows meet up between two cards. This results in a "What?" effect because the card stats don't appear to be anything and are not explained at all. I played 3-4 games and went about my business. Next up, time to find that rat kid.
     I quickly find him running into a building and follow after. We are about to climb up the ladder when I get trampled by a Moogle! Glad to see Moogles again. (Although to be fair, FF8 has moogles, but you can only spot them in the Chocobo Forest side quest that I skipped.) The Moogle there talks with a friend of his who is about to head off. I'm then told that I can save at the Moogle. The Moogles are the save point in FF9. On top of that, he asks that I help him deliver letters. They usually have a thing for it called Mognet, but that's not been going well. I take the letter and head up the ladder. I run after the rat kid, whose name is Puck, and I quickly find out the name of the mystery Black Mage is...Vivi! (My favorite FF9 character! Wooo!)

With our names told, the game continues on. We run along the rooftops, and I pick up some random items (on rooftops!?!). Turns out, the ladder was to help us reach over the castle walls. We go on inside to see the play, and the game switches again right as the play is beginning.
     The group is taking part in the play, and they all have a part. The play being done is a popular one in the kingdom called "I Want to Be Your Canary." Baku, the bandit leader, is playing the part of the king in the play while the rest of the group are miscellaneous other people (not sure and don't really care). They perform a battle on stage that I get to play as a real battle that is fake. The only points of interest in this is the temporary SFX ability where I can cast Pyro, Poly (Holy), and Medeo (Meteor). They don't do any damage, but it is funny that I have them. As the battle concludes, Zidane is set to run off in the play, and he gets into a sword fight with Blank. I get to perform this sword fight with button presses. If you do well enough (I did), you are rewarded with a pile of gil from the crowd and the Queen herself. I haven't mentioned her name yet...It is Queen Brahne, Queen of Alexandria. She is very fat and ugly. Moving right along, the two of them run off and start their part of the plan. They knock out a couple of guards and begin looking for the Princess. They don't have to go too far before running into a robed figure. She asks us to let her through, but upon further inspection, they discover it to be Princess Garnet! She runs past the two, and they give chase. Game switches again! (There are a lot of these...I'll do my best to make them separate!)
     The game jumps to a couple of the royal guards who are nearby Queen Brahne. A couple of strange jesters come up to speak with the Queen, and she is approached by the group. The woman is General Beatrix. The man in the odd armor of sorts is the Captain of the Knights of Pluto and our next party member. His name is...Steiner!

As Steiner, I was supposed to go around the castle and locate the Princess. She had left during the play and was currently missing. As I went to search, Steiner tried to address his troops the "Knights of Pluto" (Pluto is some legendary knight in-game...no real details beyond that though.). However, he quickly found out that his troops were nowhere to be found! The only two that reported were the ones whose armor was taken by Blank and Zidane. While looking around for the Princess, I also try to locate all of the missing knights as well. They are a weird and lazy bunch of guards. I find them all over the place, and only a few of them are actually looking like they are supposed to. Steiner wants his troops to be the best and to outdo Beatrix, but he knows that they aren't and is fairly disappointed in the lot. I manage to locate them all (9 total) and was rewarded for it by the last guard I found. After that, I happened upon the top of a tower and spotted Zidane chasing the Princess in the distance.
     The game jumps into another short cutscene where the Princess grabs a line and leaps off the top of the tower. Zidane follows after her, and the two of them land on the theater ship. Steiner tries the same idea, but he fails horribly and misses the target. Now back in control of Zidane, I quickly follow after the Princess who is now aboard the large theater ship. He finally corners her in a room, and she makes a request of him. She wishes that the group would kidnap her and take her away from the castle! This works out greatly for Zidane and company, but for her sake, he acts out accepting the offer. Just as they are talking, Steiner and group bust in to give chase. Zidane and Garnet (the Princess) manage to evade him with the help of Cinna. However, he catches up, and the group is forced to fight him briefly. This fight doesn't go too far though, and he strikes at Blank and destroys his disguise. However, Blank had a bit of a backup plan. As his disguise is destroyed, this unleashes a pile of insects called Oglops. While Steiner is distracted, Zidane and Garnet manage to slip away and head to the deck of the ship. Steiner quickly follows them, but the entire group find themselves on the stage of the currently live play.
     Unsure of what to do, the group starts to play along with the play. (Wowzers this feels confusing trying to explain XO) While the group is acting out their part, Vivi and Puck are spotted by some guards. They both try to evade the guards, and Puck leaves Vivi behind. At some point, Vivi makes his way onto the stage and sets Garnet on fire. Luckily, it only caught her robe on fire, but this reveals to everyone that she is very much there. The Tantalus group tries to make their escape with the airship, but they don't get too far. As they try to fly off, the Queen orders an attack on the ship. All sorts of cannons start firing massive spears with chains attached to stop the ship. To further add to this, a final large cannon fires off a strange cannonball. This quickly changes into...a Bomb! (The monster) It flies at us, and a battle ensues! However, Steiner is still convinced that he is going to take the Princess back, and he's still charging at us. The group is trying to warn him about the Bomb, but he doesn't believe them. As the Bomb reaches critical mass, he finally turns around...and the Bomb explodes. The next video looks like the airship has finally been destroyed, but the airship manages to limp out of the situation and away from the castle. It doesn't get too far before dipping below the misty cloudline...and crash landing in the forest below.
     Everybody awakens to find themselves all scattered about in a spooky forest known as...the Evil Forest. The airship is completely broken at this point, and they are just trying to get the fire put out. As everything finally gets settled, Zidane heads out to locate the missing Princess. The game then reveals a cool feature that is one of my favorites in FF9...Active Time Events! (Abbreviated ATE) These events are used to give a brief look into what is happening to other people in other places. It is usually a small glimpse and used to help fill in small holes or give insight into characters. Many of the ATE are quite funny in nature, but they are fairly interesting and well spread throughout the game. The biggest thing revealed by the current ATE is that Vivi and Garnet are in need of my help. I make my way into the forest and quickly meet up with them. As I find them, Garnet is being grabbed by some strange plant creature. Steiner also appears out of nowhere to help. Zidane and Steiner charge at it for BOSS BATTLE TIME SORTA!
     The first thing that happens is Zidane changing form. Steiner identifies this as "Trance." He says it is a powerful form that is activated by a surge of emotion. To translate into game terms and also explain, Trance is the "limit" system for FF9. It works off the same principle of FF7's limit break, but the end results is different. Basically, the meter builds as you are attacked (or during special battles), and eventually when you hit full, you go into Trance. This powers up the character in terms of strength and power, and you also gain access to a special command. For Zidane, it opens up a special set of super attacks under a command called Dyne. I would have used Dyne to lay the smack down on the plant, but unfortunately, Garnet was a target in all of this. I kept harassing the plant with attacks, but I also had to heal Garnet ever so often. The plant kept draining health off of her to heal itself. I managed to easily beat the plant, but then it ran off with the Princess in tow. As things can't possibly get worse, another plant leaps out and grabs Vivi! BOSS BATTLE TIME SORTA 2!
     This battle would almost go the same, but the key difference here is Vivi! Vivi doesn't just sit while the plant slowly drains him dry. He constantly casts Fire from his captured position on the plant. I have to throw him a few potions, but this plant monster goes down faster than the previous one. Outside of the battle, as the plant monster dies, he sprays Vivi and Steiner. Zidane rushes them both back to the airship wreckage to help them. As it turns out, the plant monster had planted seeds on them with the spray. Had they not received some of Blank's medicine, the plant seeds would eventually burst out of them. (I'm assuming in Alien-style.) Zidane tries to convince Baku to let him go rescue Garnet, but Baku doesn't want to risk his own people to go and get her. Zidane decides to head off anyways. Before going too far, he speaks with Vivi, who thanks him for helping. While talking, Zidane is thoroughly convinced that he needs to go rescue Garnet. However, Baku isn't about to let him go without a fight. I have a quick one-on-one fight against Baku and conquer him quickly! As the battle ends, Baku gives Zidane permission to go and smacks him as he walks away. Zidane mentions how that smack was a lot harder than any of his attacks.
     Before heading off, I visit both Steiner and Vivi. Steiner is eager to save the Princess, but he doesn't want Zidane involved at all. Zidane simply tells him that he is going to help regardless. The two then seek out Vivi, and they talk him into helping out. Steiner seems oddly impressed and humbled by Vivi. He calls him "Master Vivi" due to his incredible magical prowess. After that bit of talking, I gain two allies for my search of sorts. With the two extra members, finding Garnet should go pretty easy. As I am about to leave, Blank hands over more of his medicine to give to Garnet. I say farewell and head out. I walk about the Evil Forest and try to find her. I run into a couple of monsters here and there, but there was nothing to worry about. Also, Steiner talked with Vivi before we left and asked him to try something. Basically, Vivi can combine his magic with Steiner's sword for Sword Magic. It allows him to strike an enemy with a magically powered-up sword strike. This can have surprisingly awesome results, and the overall cost is fairly cheap (and done with Steiner's MP rather than Vivi's). Along the way, I meet another Moogle, exchange some mail, and head further in. I finally came upon the Princess, but she was behind some giant evil plant...BOSS BATTLE TIME! (For real this time!)
     Now, this would probably be the first TRUE Boss Battle of the game. It even has the actual Boss Battle music! Anyways, this battle quickly showed me that I was behind in levels...I was able to deal some decent damage, but it kept knocking my health levels waaay down. It killed all of the party members at least once during the battle. He kept doing a group-wide Thunder attack, and this either horribly drained people or clear knocked them out. Luckily, I had readily stocked up on all the items, so I was able to revive people. Just as things looked bad, Blank came in during the battle and helped out. Had I not wasted all my time healing and reviving, I could have had the giant monster plant beaten pretty quickly. With a couple uses of Vivi's Fire spell (only one I got currently...), I was able to deal some decent damage to the big guy. With the battle's conclusion, Steiner goes to grab Garnet. They administer Blank's medicine to her, but they don't get too long to rest. Suddenly, these giant rose-looking insects jump out of basically everywhere and charge at us. It looks pretty bad, so the group turns tail and runs out of there.
     I have to fight a few of them as I'm running off, but they are easily defeated. As I start to run out, the game jumps to a cutscene. The group of Vivi, Steiner carrying Garnet, Zidane, and Blank are running away from a massive army of the rose-looking insects. It seems as if the entire forest is chasing after us. (Zidane points this out briefly before the cutscene.) Things are starting to look bad, and one insect is about to leap on Zidane. However, Blank pushes Zidane out of the way, and before Zidane can turn to help him, the badness just keeps piling on. The forest around them starts turning to stone. The trees, the insects, and everything else starts petrifying. Before he goes, Blank tosses a map to Zidane. Zidane manages to barely clear the edge of the forest before the entrance turns completely to stone. The group decides to rest for the night seeing as they just barely got away. That...and Garnet is still out of it. Steiner is completely at odds with Zidane the entire time though. He's determined to take the Princess back to Alexandria, but Zidane calls him out asking what his plan is. Since he doesn't have one, Steiner goes along with everything for now.
     The group wakes up and decides to head to a cavern that Blank mentioned briefly before. Looking at the map given to me, it shows that the cavern is to the north of the forest. I spend a little time farming up some extra levels and money, but I quickly proceed to the caves. Upon entering, we find out that the caves in question are the Ice Caverns. Most of the group is well versed on the cave itself. Vivi mentions his grandpa telling him about the cave and how it leads up above the Mist. The Mist has been mentioned a few times before this, but I have neglected to include it. The "cloud line" I mentioned waaay back there was actually part of the Mist. Apparently, the Mist produces monsters as well (aka the Evil Forest monsters). That's enough about the Mist for now. Steiner compliments Vivi's grandpa as being a "scholar." Vivi does follow up that his grandpa recently passed away. After that bit of awkward exchange, the group enters the Ice Caverns and I make my way.
     The enemies at this point are kinda tough actually. Many of them are able to deal decent damage, so I'm having to keep constant with healing. Garnet brings white magic to the group, so I can rely on her for group healing. (Most of the spells in this game can be both single or multi targeted.) On top of this, Vivi brings the pain to the enemy with his black magic. Before going much further, I should cover the "Abilites" portion of the game. In FF9, the character's gain and learn abilities through their equipment. Nearly every piece of equipment can teach at least ONE ability. Abilities are separated into two types. (Forgive me if I call them the wrong name!) The first type is the action abilities. This covers special attacks like black magic, white magic, Zidane's skills, or Steiner's sword abilities. The second type is the passive abilities. This is where the real magic happens! Basically, passive abilities grant specific stats, boosts, special abilities, or guards based on the ability in question. There are abilities that boost your attack against a certain type, like Bug Killer or Beast Killer. Then there are abilities that do specific things like "Protect Girls" (self-explanatory). The best abilities are those that completely block of status effects! I didn't have any of those at this point though, but I plan to have them soon! Moving right along...
     As I continue through the cave, I found a couple spots of interest. Using Vivi's magic, the group melts through some hollow ice walls to access paths and extra treasure. Pretty cool stuff if you ask me. There was an interesting mechanic going on in the cave though. There are brief gusts of icy wind that blow throughout. If you wait for it, it will dissipate, but if you try to run through it, BAM! Enemy battle! Once again though, with Vivi's magic, many of these enemies present very little challenge to the group. Every chance I get though, I steal whatever I can off who I can. This provided me with a decent supply of potions and other items. It's especially nice since I couldn't hit any shops for the moment. I located a Moogle in one part of the cave and had to defrost him. Once done though, I saved my game and proceeded forward into a little scene. The group is moving through what appears to be a blizzard. The group starts passing out all over the place. Zidane is the last to go down, but he is awakened by a bell ringing. I head forward to find the owner of the bell. It's a strange-looking and large black mage with wings. His name says that he is Black Waltz #1. Zidane blames him for the blizzard, and the battle starts! BOSS BATTLE TIME!
     Before we get going, the Black Waltz summons up a giant sealion! Despite not sounding fearsome, it's actually quite big and monstrous looking. The crappy part in this battle is that I only have Zidane to fight them off. This battle actually took a couple of attempts. As soon as I killed one off (the Black Waltz every time), the Sealion would rush in and strike me down. It took my meter long enough to charge that he'd get in at least two if not three attacks before I could go. On top of this, I was trying to steal items off the both of them. In the end, I had to build up my Trance to finish them both off. I did have a hell of a time with it, but I finally came through. With his defeat, the blizzard lifted up. As I was about to leave, someone said something about the second and third ones coming to get the Princess back. I left to go and check on the group. With the coldness lifting, the group finally came to. Zidane didn't tell anybody about what happened though, and we joined back up and left the cave.
     As soon as we got outside, it was clear that we were above the Mist! In the distance, Zidane spotted a village that he recognized. The group figured it to be the next move since they were unsure of what to do otherwise. Before heading out though, Steiner and Zidane got back into it again. Steiner was bound and determined to get the Princess back to Alexandria. However, at this point, Garnet came out and said she wanted to leave the castle. She had no plans to go back, but before going on, Zidane suggested she change her name and try to act different as to not be recognized. She saw one of Zidane's daggers and asked him about it. He confirmed it was a Dagger, and she chose that name. So from hereon....Garnet is Dagger, and that's how I will refer to her. With all that solved, I continued to the village.
     The village is known as Dali. Before doing anything else, the group made their way to the Inn to rest for the night. They talked for a bit before turning in though. Dagger stated that she was planning to use the theater ship to make it to the country of Lindblum. She didn't give us a reason why she was heading there though. With this goal in mind, Zidane figures they will have to travel through the border at a place called the South Gate. As they started to talk again, they saw that Vivi had already fallen asleep on his bed. The group decided to turn in for the night, and so did I. I saved up and quit there.
     So...hell of a delay on this post! I've been trying my best to get it done, but I haven't made a lot of progress. There's a huge pile of text and talk-ary for not much time. I'm going to have to start condensing it even more than I already am. Oh well, I'll get it figured out. For now, the first day is done! I won't be able to finish it before October, but my current goal is mid-October anyways. Sorry for the long post, but stay tuned for another post in a couple of days! Thank you.

Ending Point - Village of Dali.
Current Party -

• Zidane - Level 7
• Vivi - Level 7
• Steiner - Level 7
• Dagger - Level 6

Goals Accomplished - Started Final Fantasy 9. Completed the plan to kidnap the Princess...sort of. Escaped the Evil Forest. Made it through the Ice Caverns. Made it to the Village of Dali.
Next Goals - Figure out the next step of our plan and make it to Lindblum.

~May the Crystals Guide Me~