#leviathan ffiv

[estinininininen]

*takes deep breath* first fanfiction posted online in nearly twenty years. Final Fantasy IV, i dunno how many words, probably around 2000? unbeta'd. just after the sealed cavern debacle. Cursing and referenced violence. Edge POV, but it's actually about Cecil, Kain, and Rydia:

-

Kain's betrayal has split them into pairs: Cecil and Rosa, and Edge and Rydia. They each stare at the others as if they have gone mad.

"He's not usually mean, or, or, or cruel like this! You've known him for long enough to see that!" Rosa says.

"I don't know him at all," Edge says. "Bastard always hid his eyes and never talked to us!"

"He was struggling against the spell," Cecil says. "He didn't mean to do this. I'm sure of it."

This pauses the argument, because Cecil is the only one sitting hunched over, resting to recover from blood loss. Edge stares down at him. He feels his face twisting with many emotions that will be obvious even behind the veil. Pity, anger, disbelief.

Quiet until now, Rydia pipes up. "He's not like you, Cecil. He's not good deep down."

Rosa turns away and does not try to hide or stop her tears. Cecil huffs at Rydia, for a moment almost like an indulgent parent unable to scold a child, instead of the focused holy warrior Edge has grown to rely on. Considering what little he knows of Cecil and Rydia, the thought of him patronizing her, on behalf of this Kain guy, for a moment it makes Edge want to - want to smack Cecil, or bundle Rydia in his cloak and take her away. Snatch that holy headband right of his pretty face and huck it in the lava.

There is some great sin hovering over him and Rydia, and also Kain, Edge knows. None have answered when Edge questioned what it is, what Cecil did to her, how Kain fit into it. Rosa deferred to them. Each said what amounted to, That's for the others to share when they're ready, and even if Edge weren't a ninja he'd know that was a desperate trick to hide from the problem. It was only a step removed from "Ask your mother," and then being told "Ask your father."

Edge had wanted to ask the Eidolons. He was going to, but then he saw how Queen Asura and King Leviathan looked down at the two Baron men, bowed low and motionless before them, far longer than necessary. He decided not to, and told himself it was for diplomatic reasons, not wanting to test the new connections between Eblan, Baron and the Summons. It was not because he was scared reopening that wound would get him or the two fools blown to bits. Not at all.

Into the puckered silence, Rydia says, "Well, he's not. Kain's not a good person. I haven't forgotten what he . . . what he said to you at Mist."

Cecil's head snaps up. "What?"

"He threatened you," Rydia said, whispering. Her eyes are looking at Cecil and also at some distant memory. "He threatened you, he told you to kill me, and it was before he was under Golbez' thrall."

Rosa turns back to them, jaw dropping. Edge is certain he's done the same, but he's a terrible politician and can't hold his face so he's not sure.

"I was seven," Rydia says. "I was a child, and you were the one who did the right thing, and Kain wasn't going to so, so I don't, I don't want to hurt you or Rosa but he is not a good person-"

"Rydia!" Cecil says. "Rydia, no, that's not right-"

"I had ears, Cecil," Rydia says. "I was seven but I could hear you." She curls her fists at her side. Rydia is not actually quick to anger, Edge realizes. All the bantering and frustration she has with the prince of Eblan is nothing compared to how furious she is now. She is just as quiet when ready to kill.

But Cecil is still going on. "That's not what happened. No. No!" He shakes his head. "He was threatening me," he says.

Total silence falls.

"He was threatening me," Cecil says, and hangs his head.

"What?" Rydia says.

"What?" Rosa says.

Cecil looks up, open his mouth, then checks himself, slaps his hand on the ground, and looks back down.

"Will someone please explain to me what the hell happened at Mist?" Edge says.

Rydia's brow furrows into little lines that even in the strange moment Edge can't help but find cute. He is not prepared for what Rydia says next. "Kain and Cecil killed my mum's Eidolon, which killed her," she says.

Edge looks toward Rosa, who does not seem surprised.

Cecil sighs. "We were ordered by Cagnazzo, pretending to be King Odin, to open the way to Mist and deliver a package. He ordered us not to open it until we arrived and presented it to the town leaders for all to see. It was a bomb ring, and Golbez must have been watching us for the moment to set it off."

Cecil is good at compartmentalizing and military summaries, but Edge see this is hard for him. He rocks backwards and looks up at the stone ceiling of the cave entrance. "The first blast ignited almost the whole town, and then living bomb monsters came out of the ring and began hunting down the survivors. Kain and I were safe in a small circle near the ring, but smoke was going to kill us if we stayed or tried to help anybody. So we ran."

Edge looks towards Rosa again. It is still knowledge she has heard before. Rydia's face is like glass, still and smooth but ready to shatter at a moment.

Cecil continues. "On the edge of the village we heard a girl crying next to a dead body. Bombs were still flying behind us, and people who left the town were chased down. I think the only reason Kain and I lived still was because of the ring protecting us from its effects - but I don't know. I will keep guesswork for later. The girl cried that her m, her moth-"

Cecil swallowed and lowered his face to wipe his eyes with one hand.

Rydia spoke. "I told you she died because someone had killed her summon."

Edge fears for a moment the paladin has cracked, because Cecil laughs. "Well, you were saying that to - to anyone who passed by, more like. It's really been ten years for you, hasn't it? Rydia, I'm sorry, it's not been so long for me, and I can still-"

"Keep it together, man," Edge says. He thinks this was the right thing to say, it's not right for Cecil to need comfort from Rydia, but Rydia's focus for the first time snaps to Edge and almost burns a hole right through his skull. He withdraws. Rosa sits down next to Cecil and puts her hand in his.

"Tell me what you mean by Kain threatened you," Rydia says.

Cecil says, "Kain said we needed to kill you. The king wanted you dead. And he drew his lance. That's what you remember?"

"Yes," Rydia whispers.

"I was between you and Kain. He was preparing to attack me if I listened to him and tried to hurt you."

Rosa gasps and says, "You wouldn't have done that, Kain knew that-"

Cecil cut her off. "No, he didn't know that. When it came down to it, I was a dark knight who had just come back from kill- . . . from murdering civilians in Mysidia and stealing their crystal. I had told Kain and everyone I saw in Baron that I felt it was wrong but I had still done it."

Cecil stops and Edge knows he is about to roll around in his guilt like a pig in mud, but the story is not done. Rydia cuts off Cecil's reverie. "You pushed Kain back," she says. "Away from me."

"I pushed Kain back and said I wouldn't hurt a child. Kain said that he thought I'd say that. I don't think you heard that. Kain's an ass, I'm not denying that, but he thinks quick. The fire was there, bombs were flying, and you seemed ready to bolt. If he wanted to save you, Rydia, he couldn't wait for me to figure out my loyalties. I had the bomb ring."

Rydia exhales through her nose. "And you hadn't realized yet this was what Cagnazzo intended."

"Until Kain said so. If I . . . if I had been alone and saved you . . . Well, I wouldn't have made it that far, Kain is the only reason I . . . but if I had been alone, and thought, halfway through returning to Baron, 'I can't come back with this child' . . . I'm not sure what I would have done . . . "

Edge snaps.

"You silver-haired bastard," he snarls. "You would have killed her?"

He will not forget Cecil's expression for a long time. "The king was the only father I had ever known," he says. "I didn't think I would ever kill people begging me to just leave, but I did. I already had. For him."

"You are fucked in the head," Edge says.

"Yes," Cecil says.

"I knew you were the dark knight that attacked Mysidia, but wow. And what, you think a different guy who says he's your father cancels out this shit? Wipes the slate clean?"

"No," Cecil says.

"Would you do whatever I asked if I said I was your father?" Edge says.

"Edge," Rydia says. "It's between me and Cecil."

Edge continues, because he can't stop the fire building behind his eyes, and if he doesn't speak it will come out as something even worse. "Holy dipshit," he says.

"Right," Cecil says.

"Edge!" Rydia says. "Shut up and leave him alone. This is the part I've worked out with him already. Numerous times. You're not my, my protector or whatever it is you're trying now," she says.

"What? You think that - that I'm trying to - ? That is the last thing on my mind," Edge says. "There's too much at stake, here, way more than I realized when I first met you lot, and it turns out the man I've been trusting, everyone's been trusting, to stop Golbez is an asshole who couldn't figure out it's wrong to kill a child without his even bigger asshole friend pointing it out?"

"Edge, you're not listening. He did figure it out," Rydia said. "Wait, no, I mean, he didn't really need to ask that question. Of course he didn't. He's Cecil. Have you met him? Haven't you noticed he gets upset if he has to kill a bug?"

Cecil opens his mouth to say something. Rosa hushes him.

Edge's calm center of ninja training is gone. He is gone. His parents are dead, Eblan is in ruins, and Golbez has all but won. He has found emotional limits he didn't know he had and smashed through them like a rampaging chocobo. He yells, "Well I am definitely not flirting with you just because I'm a little concerned! That the man! Who ruined your life! Is here and you don't seem to care-"

"He did ruin my life," Rydia says, as if talking to a child. "And then he saved it." Then she crossed her arms and stared Edge down.

"Rydi-" Cecil says.

"Cecil," Rosa says, in the tensest tone Edge has heard yet from the white mage. Edge sneers down at her. "Well I'm glad someone has him on a leash," he says, and turns to leave the sealed cave.

"Where are you going?" Cecil asks.

"Fuck you!" Edge says. He starts walking. But he feels, dripping at the back of his anger, something like beginning awareness he has . . . not overreacted, but overstepped some boundary with Rydia. He will not call it a "mistake," yet.

"Edge," Rydia calls out to him. "Don't go far."

-------------------------------------------

Rydia shakes her head after Edge leaves. "What a . . . What a baby. I don't know the word for it."

"He'll calm down," Rosa says. "I think."

They are silent for too long, and it is jarring when Rosa speaks again. "Do you want me to step outside?" she says. "If you two need to speak?"

Rydia looks at Cecil. "I don't think so, no," she says. "I love you, Rosa," she adds. It is Rydia's way to be open and calm with her feelings, and say them when they occur to her, more Eidolon than human in manners. Rosa is still startled enough that she doesn't say anything besides, "Oh, I uh, I love you too, Rydia."

The weight that Cecil always presses down on himself to move forward has come back. "We shouldn't spend too much time here. The wound has closed and the potion helped the bloodloss. I can recover on the Falcon now."

"Don't push yourself," Rosa says.

"We must tell King Giott. We have all but lost," he says.

"I can't believe that about Kain," Rydia says. "You really think that, that he decided he was going to fight you that quick?"

"Ah," Cecil says, as he shifts to stand up. He presses a hand to the wall. He feels much older than just turned twenty-one. In hindsight, Kain being ready to fling himself against Cecil at a moment's notice looks bad. His thoughts swim. He is not sure if he has improved Rydia's opinion of Kain at all now.

"I wish you had told me earlier," Rydia says. "I would have forgiven him, if he asked. And now he's gone . . ."

Dancing under the stones of their feet, deeper than the foundations of the earth, is the ever-present knowledge Rydia has not said the words "I forgive you" to Cecil yet. Or maybe that is just him. He hopes Rydia has not assumed he already knew if she does or not. He has not asked her.

After today he is not sure he can.

[videogamegeek12345]

going back to the land of the feymarch is honestly really funny. every single npc there is just like "oh, hey rydia! nice to see you again!" or "rydia, is that you? who are all these losers you're with?" or "rydia, you're back! please don't leave!" or "rydia, rydia rydia".

except for like, two people, who told me "man, monsters are really acting out of turn in your world" to which i was like, "yeah, they really are, huh?" and the other person who was like "this is the library. maybe you should go study," to which i was like "DAMNNN that's CRAZY" but to be fair the king and queen were down there and i was looking for them so maybe that was some sort of code???

idk i'm mostly joking but i do think it's nice how rydia got to be a part of this community since cecil and kain kind of blew up her original one. like she gets all of these people to recognize her and be excited for her return to their village and whatnot.

[freya-crescent-ix]

Freya Crescent fighting Leviathan from Final Fantasy IV in Final Fantasy Record Keeper.

[zottower]

I really wanted to know what happened to the characters after the shipwreck after Leviathan's attack. Was it only destiny that separated Yang, Edward and Cecil, and scattered the team on different continents ? Or did someone help destiny ? Maybe the eidolons had something to do with it ? To me there was an inconsistency in the scenario. I was frustrated ... and I asked Jenneh to fix it ! This one-shot is full of imagination, of sea poetry, of epic action. I just love it, and I hope I'm not the only one who will enjoy being lulled by this wonderful tale.

New Story: Asura's Call

I recently had the pleasure to collaborate with @zottower to create this wonderful story. Please enjoy:

“The mortals are teetering on a dangerous precipice,” Asura told her children, her angry face rotating forward to speak. “Their world will be consumed by hatred if we do nothing.”

“But we cannot intervene,” protested Bismarck. “We have not been summoned to act on their behalf.”

“I have summoned you,” Asura said with a mother’s righteous authority, her angry face frowning deeply. “Is that not enough?”

[st-highwind]

I think I've finally got my ducks in a row, so I think it's time for an official post about my ffiv oc: Thrush Yarrow, they/them.

Approx. 1200 words of exposition below.

Thrush was born in Troia with the purpose of becoming an epopt. Their family was rather high in the ranks, with Thrush having an older sister in epopt training as well-- she succeeded and will assume the position once a current epopt is prepared to concede.

After several years and witnessing several mercantile and ambassadorial visits from nations such as Damcyan and Baron, a distaste began to develop for the position Thrush was preparing to ascend to. Soon after the turn of their seventeenth year, Thrush fled Troia on a black chocobo in the silence of the night.

The following years were spent honing their battle skills with a scythe in the forests of Baron and the Mist Valley. While their ability to use magic left them, they transformed the ability to harness mana into a trick they call Harvesting. They reap MP from their enemies and sow it into themselves or an ally. (Basically, their whole unique skill is Osmose but significantly better. Post lunar-trial, the Reap ability becomes Harvest, and they can absorb both HP and MP from an enemy to disperse to themself or an ally. Their ultimate weapon, acquired in the Lunar Subterrane, is called the Great Reaper: it has a chance to use Death on any enemy and boasts a high crit rate.)

They first encounter Cecil in passing after the collapse of the Mist Valley. They drag Rydia and Cecil to safety and, while on the way to Kaipo to retrieve help, they encounter Rosa, ill with desert fever, who they then carry to Kaipo. Ultimately, Thrush is spat out of the antlion's den as Edward reaches in to retrieve a Sand Pearl, and joins the party for the battle. They remain until they, too, are lost when Leviathan capsizes the party's ship as they sail for Baron.

The black chocobo Thrush fled Troia on spots them floating along the shores of their homeland. To Thrush's chagrin, they and Edward are taken in by the Troian castle while their wounds heal. Thrush still slips away in the night to hide from their familial ties and loathed past, but not before they are confronted by their sister, now a full epopt, for abandoning the family and Troia, calling them cowardly and traitorous.

Once Cecil, clad in the armor of a Paladin, reaches Troia alongside Yang, Cid, and Tellah, the Lodestone Cavern seems dreadful. Tellah's limited MP and the loss of Cecil's powerhouse swordfighting make for a daunting task. Lo and behold, however, Thrush Yarrow sits in the Chocobo Village with a brand new scythe-- the gemstone blade is razor-sharp and is not hampered by the magnetic pull of the cavern. Once they reunite with Cecil in the Chocobo Village, Thrush remains with the party for the rest of the game.

Thrush is quiet, observant, and spirited-- a glass cannon. They're deft and lethal, however their HP and Def aren't as potent as other party members. They're very strong against magic and have a high crit rate, and after a bit of toughening up, Thrush makes hard battles a bit easier with the help of their Reap ability.

Now, onto the Highwind path. Thrush's first encounter with Kain is while he's under Golbez's control, when he leads the enemy siege on Fabul. After seeing Rosa captured and Cecil's consequent emotional agony, they can't help but to ask questions. Cecil and young Rydia answer as best they can, and Thrush's morbid curiosity only grows. It lingers as the party treks through the Tower of Zot and bests Barbariccia-- now truly introducing Kain and Thrush to one another for the first time.

Kain is, of course, in love with Rosa. Zemus' grasp on him is on the roots of jealousy he has towards Cecil. He is plagued by guilt and motivated by vengeance for his honor and to redeem himself for the harm he has caused others, despite forgiveness from those closest to him. Taciturn, introspective, and steadfast, he directs all of his energy towards helping Cecil defeat Golbez/Zemus. Thrush deeply admires his strength and resolve. They're drawn to his dissatisfaction in his actions, the innate disgust with his own wants-- they empathize. A connection is built between them as they train together, travel together with the party, and share idle conversation during long night watches-- a pair of insomniacs.

Thrush understands they're developing feelings for the dragoon, and they understand that the timing is very inconvenient, given they've just breached earth's surface and crash-landed in the Underworld. They don't dare act on any of their heart's desires. There's no time, no place. Given the circumstances, Thrush is quite certain their feelings are unrequited. For a some while, they are. Kain harbors nothing but camaraderie until they're together scouring the remains of Eblan Castle and fighting Rubicante side-by-side. Until Kain sees Thrush shares in his melancholy, until he sees them bathed in the pale light of the two moons, until they slip the gauntlet off his hand and grace him with the comfort in the touch of hands alone.

This makes the scene in the Sealed Cavern all the more angsty, all the more delectable.

Kain's footsteps stagger and his clawed gauntlets grasp at the fins protruding from his helmet. Golbez' voice rattles along the walls of the cavern and the dragoon falls to his knees, lance dug into the dirt to keep him upright. I'm alright, he grunts through gritted teeth, I'm no longer under his control! Cecil's hands are on his shoulders, holding him steady and encouraging his strength, Thrush beside him and shaking with anxiousness. In a blink Rosa is casting Cura and healing the lance wound marring Cecil's side, Rydia is holding Edge back from storming out of the cavern exposed and leaving the rest of the party more vulnerable than they already are, and Thrush is paralyzed in heartache, betrayal, and distraught sadness.

I don't have any details thought out in full for the reunion within and after the collapse of the Giant of Babil. Of course it's packed with emotional tension and angst-- Kain, all of his emotions surging back to him in a tsunami of regret and fervor, Thrush, still cradling a bleeding heart and the sting of deception, both yearning for one another and for redemption of the self. I know it hurts, I know that they make a promise to one another before ascending to the moon in the Lunar Whale, and I know their presence lingers in one another's Lunar Trials. I'll make a separate post for Thrush's Lunar Trial.

Well, that's Thrush! I, of course, initially created Thrush as means of a self-insert to interact (cough cough) with Kain. I know I don't want their presence to take away from Kain's own development even across several games-- I don't want them to become his sole motivator. I want them to be a source of comfort, companionship, and security. As the time has passed and Thrush developed, they are no longer a total self-insert and instead a true original character with motives and methods different from my own. They're now more of a vehicle for me to move through the world of ffiv since I cannot physically do it myself, lol. I love them dearly. As a matter of fact, learning to mod my emulator to add in Thrush and create a homebrew of the game is on my bucket list. Please let me know what you think.

[jieanette]

So I recently played FFIV and I just need a moment to talk about how much Cecil had been through in this game so far

((spoilers for FFIV, tagged it so you guys are free to block it))

Rn I'm on my way to Mt. Ordeals (Cecil's persona arc lmao) so I don't know how much he's gonna go through later on.

1. Cecil had to face guilt for slaughtering the Mysidians to get the crystal as ordered by his king, and when he questioned the king he got immediately demoted.

2. He then had to leave for a mission for the king and realized that mission was to literally commit genocide against a whole village and had to realise the fact that he just killed a child's mom and that child now hates him. Now that's a toughie

3. Find out that his crush/lover (Rosa) got herself desert fever, and while going to find the cure he discovered he got replaced by some guy (Golbez) and that he destroyed an entire kingdom.

4. AFTER he healed Rosa he then finds out that he was considered dead in the eyes of Baron.

5. Tries to do the right thing by warning the other kingdoms about Baron taking the crystals but failed. And to add that, Cecil finds out that his best friend, Kain, betrayed him and fought him (got his ass beat). Rosa gets kidnapped by Golbez soon after

6. Tries to go back to Baron to get answers but gets dragged into a whirlpool by Leviathan. Got himself stranded and had to seek refuge in a town called Mysidia. Yup, the same Mysidia where he murdered people.

7. Now everyone there (understandably) hates him. Dude gets turned into various animals and is being treated like a devil.

And that's all the things I've seen so far.

...Cecil, are you doing alright over there?

[annaminijayan3dblog]

Academic Blog 3

I’d like to use what we learned about gender theories and the male gaze from our lectures to analyse the character Rydia from Final Fantasy IV (1991). Games have often represented women in problematic ways, usually by hypersexualising them. This makes it difficult for players who identify as women to relate to the characters resulting in a decrease in the female player base.

The character Rydia is a summoner character who is initially introduced as a little girl from the village of Mist. As a child, she wears a yellow skirt over a bodysuit accompanied by a cape. After her village is set on fire and the Mist Dragon is killed, Rydia is left orphaned. Although she resents the main character Cecil and his companion Kain for accidentally being the cause of this unfortunate incident, she joins their party after they gain her trust. During their journey together, Rydia gets swallowed by Leviathan and is assumed dead.

Espritduo (n.d) FFIV-amano_rydiachild.jpg

Later in the story, Rydia is revealed to have been alive. She was taken to the Feymarch where she developed her black magic. Although she was only gone for a short time, she had grown into a young woman due to time moving faster there. She rejoins the party when she saves Cecil and his party from the shadow dragon by summoning the mist dragon. At this point in the story, she seems truly free from her resentment towards Cecil and is only focused on her noble goal to protect the world from Golbez and his dark forces. This version of Rydia is seen wearing a green leotard with low cleavage and slits on the sides exposing her hips. She also had long green sleeves, knee-high green and gold boots, and a long green cape. Yet these aspects of her design did not make her hypersexualized design any less obvious.

DrakeyC (n.d) RydiaDS.png

Rydia can be considered the most powerful summoner and one of the most prominent characters in the game. Although she is an active member on the battlefield with other members of the party, she is not seen wearing a suit of armour like her male companions. Even a strong character like Rydia with a tragic backstory and character development is reduced to a pleasing appearance for males in the game. As Gill wrote, “In today's media it is possession of a 'sexy body' that is presented as women's key (if not sole) source of identity. The body is presented simultaneously as women's source of power and as always already unruly and requiring constant monitoring, surveillance, discipline and remodelling (and consumer spending) in order to conform to ever narrower judgments of female attractiveness.” (Gill, 2007) Many female characters who have the potential to be as good as the main characters have been reduced to objects for the male gaze. Even in her design as a child, her skirt does not fully cover her lower body which can be quite problematic.

It is my responsibility as a games artist to represent everyone in a proper way that does not lead to an ‘enfreakment’ of the characters. Sengun, Mawhorter, Bowie-Wilson, Audeh, Kwak, and Harrell (2022) define virtual enfreakment as the ‘grotesque amplification of identity attributes based on cultural, ethnic, and gender prejudices, which objectifies and demeans some groups for the pleasure and consumption of others.’ Female characters are often depicted as support characters and their designs often appear very sexist. Although Rydia is a powerful character, there is an instance in the story where she is asked by the main character Cecil, to stay behind with the other women due to the reason that it’s not safe. This perpetuates the negative idea that women are weak. ‘Feminist literature on virtual environments and games has also described the

harmful effects of stereotyping and erasure in detail, and how even when female protagonists are included in games, their roles are often limited.’ (Sengun, Mawhorter, Bowie-Wilson, Audeh, Kwak, Harrell, 2022, p.3). In my practice, I would like to make female characters who are not sidelined and design them in a way that brings out their personality and experiences.

References

DrakeyC (n.d) RydiaDS.png, Final Fantasy Wiki. Available at: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Rydia?file=RydiaDS.png [Accessed: 4 December 2023]

Espritduo (n.d) FFIV-amano_rydiachild.jpg, Final Fantasy Wiki. Available at: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Rydia?file=FFIV-amano_rydiachild.jpg [Accessed: 4 December 2023]

Gill, R. (2007) Gender and the Media. [Accessed: 4 December 2023]

[orionwynnter669]

UNPOPULAR NSFW OBEY ME OPINIONS

I'm joking ofc. Idk if these are really unpopular opinions, but they're my opinions. But anyway yeah NSFW below the cut 18+ minors gtfo dni pls and ty

Lucifer

Tbh I wouldn't even consider fucking him if it weren't for the bdsm.

The only one I'd ever call Daddy

I want him to call me good boy while he rearranges my insides.

Mammon

Is a switch

Goes from arrogant top to whiney bottom.

Is the only reason I developed into a switch

He makes me wanna make him beg

Could call me "My Precious" to be sweet and I'd bust out laughing, LOTR got me by the nonexistent balls I'm sorry.

Leviathan

If it's not the hc where he's got two dicks in his demon form then I don't want it.

You can try convincing me he's a sub.

I won't believe you.

It may take a lot to build his confidence enough to get him going

But once he's going you won't be able to walk straight for a month

Definitely a fan of those fics where you cockwarm him while he's playing FFIV

DP Monster Fucker right here.

Satan

I'm more of a dog person when it comes to pet names, but I'd let him call me kitten unironically and get away with it.

Discord mod mf

Would probably use the same pet names as Lucifer. I know it, you know it, if either one of us say that to his face he'll probably explode.

Also only wanna fuck him for the bdsm

Asmodeus

You already know. Kinkiest mf on the list. Knows everything and every position. Could go on for hours, make you cum countless times, and not even be done with foreplay.

He'd make me feel so good about myself and my body, knocking out every one of my insecurities. The idea of it is just so soft and wholesome.

I'd learn to love my body while he's busy leaving his marks all over it

And the aftercare is *mwah*, chef's kiss

Beelzebub

My favorite. A fucking unit. Man works out and it shows.

No it's not just because I have a size kink be quiet

The only one I'd let eat me out

And yes as he does you bet your ass I'm over there droolin on his cock.

Adorable in the streets, fucking menace in the sheets

I can go on for hours but I don't want to be too blatant with my favoritism. I'll save that for a different post

Belphie

I want to be clear. I don't like degradation.

That said, he can call me a slutty whore and I'd let him get away with it.

The only one I'd let be mean to me

Threesomes with Beel are a major plus

Literal cuddle fuck

Diavolo

Now this one

This one is because I have a size kink

I don't care about royalty or any of that

I'm mainly just curious to see how much his cock would bulge out my stomach

Barbatos

This man can do whatever he wants to me I don't even care

He's incredibly intimidating, but also so fuckin fine

I'd be scared and horny at the same time ngl

Would treat you like royalty by day

Would treat you like a fuck toy by night

Solomon

I don't remember where I saw it.

I don't remember when I saw it.

But I saw someone make fan art of him summoning tentacles.

That's really all I needed tbh

Man's freaky in ways I can't even imagine

Simeon

He's hot. Absolutely.

But I would not fuck him

I will simp to high heavens, but I won't fuck him.

Unless he's into it then idk it could go anywhere tbh

[diaxyz]

Happy 26th anniversary to FFIV! <3  You can find the B/W version of these and others sketches in my FF sketchbook “Waltz for the Moon :) <3 http://diaxyz.tumblr.com/post/162481600227/finally-waltzforthemoon-is-here-o-one-of

[kurararambles]

Inktober #4: The Last Summoner (FFIV)

Lately I’ve been playing this game, and so far Rydia and Kain have my favorite character designs. I wanted to draw her with Leviathan, but I don’t really remember how he looks like, and my phone wasn’t cooperating, so he looks more like a mix of Leviathan and the mist dragon.

[estinininininen]

okay ffiv has obvious themes like brotherhood and forgiveness but so so so many separate parts of ffiv suddenly snap together beautifully if you take the theme of parents and in loco parentis: adoption, guardianship, teachers. people taking responsibility for those younger or weaker. not fully as parents necessarily but what they need in that moment. and how they and the protectee address it when they fail at that duty.

the king, cecil, and kain. cecil remembering the bodies of pacifist mysidians and realizing that's not why he became a dark knight. cid has his own daughter but finds time to check in on cecil, unmoored from his royal foster dad. kain wanting to feel closer to his birth father. rydia's existence. tellah and anna. cecil and rydia, who have lost everything they can protect except rosa, not knowing how to help edward make this realization in his own grief, only how to hurt or belittle him. rosa mentoring rydia to learn fire is honestly rosa's strongest characterization moment outside of kain and cecil drama hours. yang looking over the bodies of the junior monks he was teaching. yang jumping in after rydia without hesitating. leviathan we learn later taking in rydia. cecil returning to mysidia. cecil looking down at palom and porom saying i'm sorry you want literal children to climb the holycursed zombie mountain?

i kinda like to think that was the first test and cecil didn't even realize. if he hadn't spoken up about how weird it seems sending kids well maybe he's just faking being contrite and following his own moral compass now because if you don't know palom and porom can nuke half the mountain on their own that would be extremely weird. ah yes, the elder says, moving his hand under the desk from the 'eject' button. don't worry about these two they'll be fine. :) cecil quickly realizing the two brats are all but carrying him up the mountain he thought he needed to protect them from.

that is all just the first act

except for kain's whole thing boiling over under the "brotherhood/jealousy" theme, moments that fall outside "guardianship" are i think generally less memorable, or if not set up well feel forced to me, like plain readings of the love triangle, yang and cid's sacrifices (versus palom and porom's, ouch), cecil not explaining adequately why rosa and rydia need to stay behind aside from not wanting the girlies on his implied suicide run. i'm sure i'm also forcing this interpretation a bit

[machoestofmen]

Ogopogo

I run a lot of games in my own Final Fantasy x Pathfinder setting, and amongst the NPCs is a sea serpent, named and designed after the Leviathan palette swap from FFIV. For my setting’s lore, she’s the same species as Leviathan himself, but she is far younger; she has a few thousand years to go before she attains godhood like him, and she’s only forty feet compared to his quarter-mile length.

However, she is good friends with a pirate captain named Jackie Killigrew, who keeps her crew in line when it comes to the sheer amount of jewelry Ogopogo has on her. Jackie lets her wear a solid third of the jewels they all get, in terms of value, and while the crew complains, they don’t act on it. After all, what are some sailors gonna do against a marine dragon that has steel-hard scales, spits water twice as hard as a fire hose, and has some control over the tides?

[wordlesslyjenneh]

Some thoughts on mind control

After reading @bettycrockersspoon latest chapter of the anthology, Devil’s Road (which you should go read right now!) it got me really thinking of the different types of mind control and manipulation we see in FFIV, and how their effectiveness reflects the type of person each victim is.

End game spoilers for Final Fantasy IV:

Starting with Kain, the first mind control reveal. Tellah’s use of Meteor temporarily weakens Golbez and interrupts his link to Kain, which suggests it’s a spell that Golbez maintains, at least passively if not actively. Although Kain admits he had at least autonomy while under Golbez’s control, it’s not defined how or how much.

When Cecil tells Kain that it wasn’t his fault because Kain was under Golbez’s spell, Kain tells Cecil, “But... a part of me inside was awake and yet... I just stood by and watched.” (GBA version) and then to Rosa, “Not all of what I did was because of Golbez's spell. I just wanted to keep you...to keep you by my side.” (DS version).

I believe Kain was tempted into his mind control by promises of finally defeating Cecil and proving to Rosa that Kain is the superior choice. He tells her, “…you'll see soon enough that I am superior to Cecil.” (Gba) and “I am more than Cecil will ever be. You'll see that soon enough.” and seems to think this will actually work.

Kain’s second round of mind control is less subtle; Golbez is actively pulling strings and directly controlling Kain, despite Kain’s attempt to resist. However, is he still tempted by what Golbez has to offer? If Kain brings Golbez the last Crystal, what more could Golbez dangle as bait? It’s interesting to ponder.

Now Yang, our second victim of mind influence. Did Yang truly have amnesia from the shipwreck and was convinced by Baron/Golbez to join? In the Baron Inn, Yang and other guards are being rowdy, and the villagers complain about their behavior, so much so that the innkeeper gives you a free night for taking care of them. That doesn’t seem like Yang’s character at all.

Yang claims he “remembers little” after Leviathan’s attack but my theory is that he has chosen not to remember. I think Golbez influenced his amnesia in a way that made Yang vulnerable to suggestion; it is easy to do something awful if someone with authority is telling you to do it. (See the Milgram Experiment for a real-life example).

Remembering his actions while working for Baron forces Yang to realize he is a man capable of darkness. I don’t think Golbez had any meaningful “control” over Yang in the same way he did Kain, but Yang wants to forget: losing all the monks to monsters at Mount Hobbs; the siege of Fabul and the horror of facing both Baron soldiers and monsters; and not being able to save Rydia from Leviathan. These are all Yang’s failures, and they must weigh heavily on him. Enough to embrace amnesia? Perhaps.

Finally, Golbez, who inspired all this rambling. What version of influence did Zemus have over Golbez? In the DS version during Golbez’s flashback, we see Zemus offering Theodor what he wants – to be rid of baby Cecil, who had just killed his beloved mother. Made vulnerable by his grief, Zemus encourages Theodor’s hatred of Cecil while belittling Theodor, and then gives him permission to abandon his brother. It bears some similarities to how Kain is controlled/influenced, having some control but being unable to stop themselves from doing the terrible acts.

However, Golbez does not seem to remember who he is, as Yang. FuSoYa commands Golbez, “You have to look deep inside yourself!  You have to realize who you really are!” (GBA) and then casts a spell. Does the spell make Golbez remember what he had forgotten, or did it interrupt Zemus’ influence enough for Golbez to remember on his own? The difference matters.

If the spell only brought back Golbez’s memories, that means Golbez interrupted/started resisting Zemus’ control once he remembered. Golbez continues to hear Zemus in his mind but chooses to ignore it as he and FuSoYa venture to Zemus’ prison at the core.

If the spell interrupts Zemus’ control, then Zemus was actively blocking memories and Golbez now remembers who he is because of that interruption. I think this is less likely because I don’t think FuSoYa has that kind of power to stop one of Zemus’ spells.

The descent into the core is dangerous, especially for those susceptible to darkness. When you first enter the Lunar Subterrane, Kain’s thought bubbles wonder, “This wave of hate—does it emanate from Zemus?” Edge also seems to sense something from Zemus (which could be a post in of itself!) but the others do not feel it.

How would have Golbez experienced the Lunar Subterrane? Would Zemus’ influence have been more intense because of Golbez’s inner darkness and how enmeshed Golbez and Zemus were? Did Golbez fight every step of the way to keep himself from falling under Zemus’ control again? I think so.

Ultimately, I think it’s a combination of both the desire to forget and Zemus’ corrupting influence encouraging him to hate that turned Theodor into Golbez. As a half Lunarian, Golbez is both more powerful than the average human, but also far more vulnerable to Zemus. Golbez chooses to hate and forget because it is easier than facing the truth of his childhood trauma: sometimes bad things just happen and there’s no one to blame.

All of this is to say I really want to give Golbez a big hug because I think he especially needs it. Again, go read BCS’ Devil’s Road! I read it in the morning and spent all day thinking about it, hence this ridiculous essay.

Thoughts? I’d love to hear them!

[st-highwind]

Your point in the tags is something I’ve thought of for years!! The shadow dragon Golbez calls forth isn’t an eidolon since, after returning Rydia & the Mist Dragon eidolon defeat it, Golbez doesn’t die. If Golbez could also summon eidolons it certainly would’ve instead be mentioned by Fusoya, Leviathan, Bahamut certainly, but I digress.

There are plenty of dragon enemies late-game in ffiv. Mechs in the Giant of Babil, PLENTY in the lunar subterrane. The distinct lack of wyverns, however— that’s what piques my interest.

Watching a playthrough of ffii again and relearning that the dragoons had the ability to speak the language of wyverns... and despite there being a distinct lack of wyverns in ffiv, i can't help but wonder if kain was too young to remember learning wyvern tongue from his father or any of the other dragoons. in my mind, it's generational, latent knowledge, only emerging at the proper time.

[magpiejay1234]

Defeated the main storyline with Zeromus, now I got stuck at Lunar Ruins because I missed the save point. Oh well. Further thoughts on FF4 GBA

*Cave of Trials is definitely a later addition, not because it literally is an addiiton for this version of the game, but it is also antithetical to the Sakaguchi approach. Not the bosses for the ultimate-ish weapons of the additional player characters. Specifically, there are 7 levels of this dungeon. In all other dungeons in the original version of the game, you only have 5-6 at the very worst, except for the Lunar dungeons.

Nonetheless, it was very enjoyable, and I managed to grind better here than on Lunar surface, which was quite harsh. I still used the “canonical” party of Edge, Kain, Rydia, Cecil and Rosa because the IGN walkthrough recommeded it as such, though.

*Of all of the ultimate-ish weapons, the one that surprised me most was Triton’s Dagger. I didn’t know Palom could use daggers, though considering both FFI Ninjas and Edge can use Black Magic, it makes sense.

The Triton part of the dagger is also interesting since Palom cannot use water magic, but it is meant to reference his final scene with an unnamed girl (Leonora, according to the After Years). Of course the After Years made them a couple essentially, of course.

*It feels weird to see King Giott and Luca in both the Mysidia Tower and the final celebration for Cecil’s wedding. Other NPCs, particularly those in Troia don’t show up. Granted, Luca will eventually become an actual playable character in The After Years, but it is interesting to see how SE decided to squeeze the ending for more creating more content. Again, very anti-Sakaguchi, but also very Pokémon/Digimon/Yu-Gi-Oh!.

*And Zemus, as many people pointed out, you either believe he is a Diablus ex Machina, or a moral anvil to hammer in the “Fascism is bad” theme. Granted, for a JRPG series, FF’s anti-fascistic streak is actually unique, since most other Japanese media tends to be very pro-fash (you can look around Tumblr to see why, or just read early AoT criticism).

I’m more weirded out by his design. He doesn’t have legs, and according to the Yoshitaka Amano artwork of Fusoya, neither does he. But in the DS version, Kluya clearly does. From what I can understand, the Lunarians in the original game were meant to be more like a mixture of Asian dragons and comets, and both Fusoya and Zemus fit the bill. But Kluya is just a dude with animé blue hair.

Speaking of Kluya, the original translation seems to imply Kluya has been on earth for at least a few centuries, and having many progeny. But in the DS version, it is implied he had a traditional marriage with Cecilia, and only two kids, after centuries of wandering. I’m not sure if I like this later reinterpretation, because it makes me feel Kluya only found value in humanity after finding a chick who looks like a Lunarian. IDK.

*Going with the crystal retcon in The After Years, the Lunar crystals have not only kept Zemus at bay for so long, but they also actively help your party. So yeah, I don’t think the retcon works as well as I previously thought it did.

*The game obviously has a lot of Judeo-Christian symbolism in addition to the Star Wars references. Some of these are clearly deliberate. Others are NGE-levels of visual and textual flair. I planned to do a deep dive ages ago, but there might be a lot missing stuff from the later versions I might miss. So if I do a post like that, it will be less of a compendium and more of an overview.

*For the endings of each character:

**Tellah surprisingly shows up at the final battle, which wasn’t something I expected. The final battle overall obviously inspired the final battle against Giygas with all characters praying for your success and recovering your party.

*Edward actually lives up to being a good king after his father’s death. Edge doesn’t, because he is very horny. 

*Yang being the King of Fabul after the king’s abdication feels weird, because I don’t think it was set up really well.

*Cid is still stuck at Baron. I thought he would be a bridge between Dwarves and regular people, but I guess the dwarves already have the village of Agart. I didn’t notice that he was the best man in Rosa and Cecil’s wedding, which is cute.

*Porom is the one that instigates people in Mysidia to pray for Cecil and the gang, which is interesting. I guess Sakaguchi and Takashi Togita (co-writer of the game) really liked the character. 

Palom, as mentioned above, becomes a chad at the age of 5 somehow (Leonora at the point of this game is apparently 7, even though her sprite is clearly shorter. Again, Palom is a chad.) With him, I always think of him as a Bumblebee-type character, a character designed for the younger children in the audience to relate to. Games after FFIV would keep this tradition, but it feels weird to see here since Palom would become an edgelord like Edge in The After Years (despite technically following on Tellah’s footsteps.)

*Rydia remains with her new adoptive family. But I feel weirded out by Leviathan’s comments regarding Rydia’s beauty. This wouldn’t pass by censors in this day and age.

*Of course, Cecil and Theodor’s(aka. Golbez) closures are meant to parallel Kluya and Fusoya. Theodor ultimately decides to go into cryogonic sleep with his uncle (The After Years would put a kibosh on that, though), and Cecil takes on his biological father’s morals while taking his adoptive father’s role as the King of Baron. Symbolism aside, I really like this. Cecil was a character in need of a cause, and Theodor was a character in need of a connection with his past. 

Not to mention, if he decides to return after the all the shit he done under Zemus’s influence, he will be crucified by at least 50 people. So there’s that as well.

*I’m still stuck at Lunar Ruins, but I really like the face on the moon joke. Speaking of the moon, I wonder if the humanoid enemies in the Lunar Subterrane inspired the Maenad in the After Years. Anyway, that’s for another time.

[elfyourmother]

@cheshirepirouette re: your tags on the Sophia gifset, if you need somebody else’s permission (and you don’t lol but) please please go ham

Cutting for yammering at length on how I do Triad summoning (and summoning in general) in my verse

I’ve added a ridiculous amount of jerry rigged lore with Summoner for Gisele just because I’m just really dissatisfied with the hand waving they did to explain how fucked this Job is in terms of flavor. I know I’m always going on about what an FF oldhead I am but with other Jobs in this game IMO they managed to capture the feel of the Job in how it plays (even broken ass unfun Monk at least feels like an FF Monk), but Summoner “feels” like Bahamut flavored Affliction Warlock to me the way it plays and not anything like a traditional Final Fantasy Summoner.

It feelsbadman and I mean I try to give them the benefit of the doubt because the central conceit of Summons being Bad in this setting means they kinda painted themselves into a corner for how the WoL could ostensibly be a Summoner. The thing is, the egi deal was a really clever solution to that problem but they just don’t utilize it enough. As a fan who literally grew up with the series it felt fucking awful to literally be told i only get 4 summons 1 of which isn’t even a traditional/iconic summon, the opposite of the “you get to be a Final Fantasy hero!” experience that defines this game to me. Tf you mean I can’t summon Ramuh or Leviathan in an FF game??? Cait fuckin Sith could summon Leviathan if you slapped the materia on him, ffs, but WoL can’t???

Granted getting Phoenix helped this a lot, for me, but with no Job quests in ShB we got no actual story or lore or exploration of that (and don’t get me started on the level 80 trash we got) it was bizarre from a story cohesion standpoint and if you never ran Coils—as a lot of newer players haven’t—you literally get no explanation in game for why you can suddenly do that

anyway Gisele can summon Egis of every Primal she’s ever faced because I said so. But I am 100% ok with that and believe it’s lore compliant no matter the mechanics-induced hand waving, because I am always erring on the side of WoL Exceptionalism. It’s my guiding principle when it comes to “is it feasible for Gisele to be able to do this?” questions in large part because the game lore is practically built on it in general, but specifically in the Summoner Job quests when you’re training the newbies it’s stated outright that WoL’s command of Allagan summoning is light years beyond the recruits. But for instance as one example Gisele and Ysayle both summon Lakshmi-Egi and I have her as defensive in nature, she heals just like her Esper did in FFVI

So that said I don’t see why Warring Triad trances would be off the table, it’s been a long time since I leveled SMN but iirc we know that Dreadwyrm Trance is a thing because Bahamut’s essence is just too fucking powerful to draw out like a standard egi and the trance thing is the answer to that. The Triad are Elder Primals on Bahamut’s power level so I don’t see why not, a WoL who fought them would have been drenched in that and the whole point of that storyline was their power was seeping out and they needed killing so. Yeah. That’s how I justified it.

FTR Gisele can trance all three of them and in fact Goddess Tranced right into summoning Demi-Sophia at one point during the Elidibus fight. I lean toward her using Goddess most just because the concept of Balance is one of Gisele’s major character themes and it’s ridiculously fitting for her imo.

In some old old shared FF multiverse stuff I did, I created these Amazon tribes who were the ancestors of the Troians in FFIV and their shamanesses would essentially “summon” by being horsed by the summons (I treated them as spirits in this). Every tribe had their guardian spirit, and that was the summon their shamaness would call down. While possessed, they would show physical signs for the duration—Bahamut’s shamaness would get fangs and wings for instance. Shiva’s would get blue skin, etc.

I know that Dreadwyrm Trance doesn’t technically work the same way but that’s how I’ve basically interpreted it and the other trances I use in my work and I call back to this idea by having Gisele bear physical signs of the trance—Bahamut gives her wings! (It’s how she saved Ysayle) And so does Phoenix. At minimum she gets some kind of funky cool aura. Because Rule of Cool.