Hey, I just remembered; there was another fanfic project of mine I tried to write in the past, then quickly abandoned.
It was 2007. I was 21. I wanted to do a novelization of a video game. Of course, that's not a new concept; those have been around forever, especially considering that there are actual novels based off games sold in bookstores now. Mine would be no exception. Of course, I wouldn't include every single scene from the game; I was going to cut unimportant boss fights out, maybe trim a cutscene here and there, maybe drop a minor character, but I really planned it; I planned to write a novel of a stat-based RPG I liked.
A game you know as Final Fantasy 4.
This, being Final Fantasy, deserved the epic treatment. I wrote it the same way I wrote my (now abandoned) Sonic fanfic. I wrote a prologue, I started the first chapter . . . and then I got Writer's Block. I thought I could do FF4, since it's much more basic than the later FF games, (you try writing a novelization of Final Fantasy 10. Go on. I'll wait.) but even FF4 was too complex for my liking. Still, I tried.
And so, as a treat for you, I'm going to present what little I did print up. Feel free to pick up where I left off, if you dare.
* * *
Final Fantasy 4, the novel version, by xm0123.
Author's note: This is a fanfiction based off Final Fantasy 4. Chances are, I can't ever publish this, since I'm basically converting a copyrighted videogame to novel format. This is just writing practice. Now, as for, "Why FF4?" FF4 has what is probably the most epic premise for a videogame ever. It is the oldest game I know of that tells a good dramatic story. Although I love the actual gameplay of FF4, it is the storyline that sticks in my mind the greatest. True, FF6, FF9, and FF10 have better characterizations, and FF8, FF9, and FF10 have better dialogue than FF4, but I believe FF4 has arguably the best plot in the franchise. Also, FF4's story is much simpler than that of most other FF games, so that's
less work for me. Some scenes are cut out from the game, such as minor boss fights, and stuff that only happens in games, and will focus more on the storytelling. After all, you don't wanna read, "Cecil and his companions walked back and forth just outside of Mysidia, battling monsters for gil and combat experience." do you? Now then, watch as I try to convert a game into a novel.
Prologue: The Dark Knight of Baron.
On a planet that was blue as water and green as grass, there stood a village. It was a small village populated by simple townsfolk, although most of them could wield the arcane art that is magic. For many years, this village was undisturbed by the outside world. Then, on a seemingly ordinary day, a day with a bright, cloudless sky, a young boy, traveling with his mother, looked up into the sky, and saw some things flying. They were unlike anything he had ever seen. They were not birds, and they were not dragons either. He said, "Mommy, what are those?"
"Those" were massive ships; ships not bound to water, but rather ships that travel through the air with massive propellers. They landed outside this village that was populated by wizards, sorcerers, and sorceresses. Men poured out of the airships. They were soldiers of war, wearing bright red suits of armor and yellow helmets. These men carried sharpened swords, anxious to draw blood. The people in the village were not prepared for war, for they wore cloaks, not armor. None of the townspeople had swords. Some may've carried daggers, but it didn't manner, for the soldiers in red were flooding the town, cutting down the villagers like they were sheep. Men, women, boys, and girls were reduced to mangled, bloody corpses within a manner of seconds. A few of the sorcerers tried to fight back with magic, but were killed by the swordsmen before they could get a spell off.
Amidst all the chaos, another man stepped out of one of the airships. He too was wearing a suit of armor, but his was not a bright combination of red and yellow, but rather a subdued midnight blue from head to toe. His helmet covered his entire head, his face could not be seen. He, like the other soldiers, drew a sword, but his blade was not shiny silver, but was charcoal black. He marched into the village, heading straight for what looked like the town center. A villager stood in his way, conjured a fireball in his hands, and shouted, "Be gone, Dark Knight!" The sorcerer's fireball flew at the dark knight with blinding speed. The magic fireball hit the dark knight, but he stood unfazed, as if nothing happened. He pointed his sword at the villager. Waves of black energy shot out of the point of his blade, and sliced the villager into pieces, killing him instantly. The man in dark armor continued marching, while the other soldiers were finishing off any stray survivors.
Somewhere nearby was a room made of crystal. The walls were made from a crystalline material. In this room, high above a pedestal, there floated a crystal, translucent, and radiant. Three figures stood in front of the crystal. One who wore a blue robe, a pointy hat, and a nondescript face save for beady yellow eyes. Another wore a white robe with a red hood. The third wore a black robe and sported a beard. The bearded man said, "We cannot allow the Crystal to fall into the hands of Baron!" Just then, the soldiers in red marched in. The three figures readied magic, but were quickly knocked down by the armored soldiers. Just then, the dark knight came in. He went straight for the crystal. The bearded man, wounded, and on the floor, pleaded, "Please, for our sake, don't take the Crystal!" The dark knight kicked the side of the man's face. The knight beheld the crystal in his hands. He turned to face the soldiers and addressed, "We have gotten what we came for. Return to the airships!" "SIR!" The soldiers yelled in unison. The invaders went back into the airships. The vessels had started up their engines, and lifted into the air, and flew away, leaving behind a pool of blood and a cemetery's worth of corpses. "Those" brought about the death of the little boy, his mother, and the many peoples of the kingdom of Mysidia that day.
Chapter 1: Dissenter in the ranks.
Five airships were flying. Many men were on the airships. The commander of these men, Cecil Harvey, was standing on the deck of one of these airships. Cecil was easily recognizable, for he was the one in dark armor. A soldier went up to Cecil to deliver a report, "Sir Cecil, we will be arriving at Baron shortly." "Very good." Cecil said back. The dark knight seemed to be lost in his thoughts, for he wasn't looking at anyone in the eye. Other soldiers began talking amongst themselves, "Did we really have to kill so many defenseless people?" One asked. Another man said, "And why does His Majesty desire the crystals so much? It's like he's driven mad with possessing the crystals."
And . . . that's as far as I got. Two years later, and I have yet to add anything else. I did actually write up chapter titles for the next four chapters, for I was somewhat organized.
Chapter 2: The Catastrophe at Mist.
Hmm, I wonder what that chapter could be about?
Chapter 3: The Prince and the Father-in-law.
Say, that's not who I think it is, is it? (No, I was never planning to have Tellah call Edward a "Spoony Bard!" I probably was just gonna have him call him a "Stupid bard!" because, well, Spoony as a term has fallen out of favor amongst English speaking people recently.)
Chapter 4: Battle at Fabul.
Title says it all.
Chapter 5: Redemption.
Oh, this must be the part when Cecil becomes a Jed- er, I meant a paladin, heh heh!
But that's as much as I wrote, nothing beyond that. Bummer. If any FF game deserves more praise, any FF game besides FF9 anyways, it's FF4.
So, my latest project, the crossover between my original series and something that isn't my original series, that other series can't be FF4. And it can't be Chobits either, now that I think about it. What could it be? I'll bet you'll go mad just trying to figure out.
