#the ronso horn

[mishyoona]

ffx-2 really said "i do what i want"

[greenmagic-oilspill]

Do Hrothgals have any horn options or is that just the one face option for the men?

[p-artsypants]

I Do...I Guess? (14) Bevelle

Ao3 | FF.net

“That is the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard,” Wakka stated callously. 

Yuna and Tidus both deflated, but knew if Yuna had been the one to reveal her plan, Wakka might not have been so harsh. 

“What are ya thinkin’ brudda?” He poked Tidus in the chest. “You two going at it alone?” 

“It’s incredibly risky,” Lulu added. “What if something were to happen to you?” 

“That’s why you guys would stay behind,” Tidus argued. “If Yuna and I go alone, and get thrown in prison, you can come bail us out, instead of all of us getting stuck!” 

“And how would you suggest we get to you?” Auron asked, his tone possessing a sense of calm, suggesting he wasn't as outraged by their plan as Lulu and Wakka. 

“What about the airships?” Yuna suggested, her gaze shifting to Rikku, “the ships under Home, do they work? Would your father help you all come and rescue us?” 

Rikku tapped her chin in thought, but hesitated when answering. “That certainly is an idea…”

Cid, who was nearby, and not invited to weigh-in on that particular part of the plan, chimed in, "Of course we'd come and rescue you!" 

“I think it would be more practical if you could get us all into Bevelle, so we don’t have to fight our way in and out. Escaping might be easier,” Lulu suggested. 

“So, you think we should storm the city?” asked Wakka. “Make Mika listen to us?” 

“I don’t know about that…” Rikku squeaked. “I think it would make us look really bad.” 

“Would you prefer us to all surrender?” Lulu spat. “If we can get Yuna to the Chamber of the Fayth, we won’t even have to speak to Mika.” 

“Ohhh,” Wakka nodded. “Now I see what you’re getting at.” 

Lulu turned to Auron, “what do you think, Sir Auron? Do you think we can get to the temple with the airships?” 

Auron was quiet for a long time, arms crossed and head bowed. Finally, he answered, “If we try to make a break for the temple, Yevon will shoot and kill us without a second thought. No. I think Tidus and Yuna’s plan is the better route.” 

“But—” Wakka protested. 

“We should all go then. I don’t like the idea of Yuna going alone.” 

“She won’t be going alone,” Tidus argued. 

“My statement stands.” 

Auron spoke up, commanding attention, “Have any of you ever talked to Mika? Ever had to go to trial with him?” 

By the silence and awkward shifting of feet no one had. 

“I can’t say their plan is a great one, but it offers the most amount of success. If we all go together, we’ll all be thrown into the dungeon. If Yuna goes, there may be a sliver of leniency since she is a Summoner. I find it likely that Mika will demand she stops her pilgrimage, but he may designate her as a church sanctioned Sender.” 

“So like…making her perform Sendings all over the place?” Tidus guessed. 

“Exactly.” 

Yuna shuddered. 

“Well, I’m not going to let that happen,” he declared, fists on his hips. 

“You have more to worry about. If you go, I can’t guarantee what will happen to you. Out of the guardians, you and I have the best chances of mercy. I have my connection to Lord Braska, though I suspect Yevon knows I’m an Unsent by now. They may just have me Sent. Since you are her husband, they may bestow Yuna’s punishment on you, too. By example, escorting her to the Sendings she is to perform.” 

“Which we’ll agree to,” Tidus offered, “but then actually make a break for Zanarkand?”

“Ideally, yes.” 

Tidus scoffed. “Sounds pretty simple to me.” 

“None of this is guaranteed. That’s just what I presume will happen,” Auron reiterated. 

“What’s the worst case scenario?” Tidus persisted to ask. 

“Execution.” 

“Well, damn.” 

“But we’ve got to try,” Yuna tried to reason. “The Fayth in Bevelle is simply too important to not attain. And the Ronso! I hadn’t even thought about it, but if we’re guilty in the eyes of Yevon, the Ronso won’t let us pass Gagazet!” 

“Kimahri can take care of them, right big guy?” Tidus elbowed the Ronso. 

“Kimahri runt of Ronso litter. Disgraced without horn. No respect from tribe.” 

“Oh…” 

“We’ll worry about that later,” Auron interjected. “Bevelle first. We’ll take the airships to the Calm Lands and wait outside the road to Bevelle. Tidus and Yuna will go alone, unarmed into the capital. After 48 hours, if they have not returned on their own, we will go rescue them. Agreed?” 

“Agreed,” said Rikku. 

Kimahri nodded. 

Wakka and Lulu hemmed and hawed, but eventually consented. 

“Alright!” Cid joined the group again. “We’ll get the ship all ready to go here in just a minute. Now, I’ll need a lock of hair from both of you.” He pointed at Yuna and Tidus. 

Tidus subconsciously touched his scalp. “Hair? What for?” 

“The ships are equipped with an ancient machina called a Sphere Oscillo-finder. How it works is a bit of a mystery, but if you tell it what to look for, it’ll find it. With a bit of hair, I should be able to track your whereabouts, makin’ the rescue a hell of a lot easier.” 

“Well that’s convenient,” Wakka muttered. 

“Alright! Let’s do this thing!” 

—-

Just as Auron said, the airship landed in the Calm Lands, and allowed Tidus and Yuna to disembark. 

“Your forty-eight hours starts now,” Lulu warned. “I won’t give you a minute more.” 

“Thank you.” Yuna bowed her head. “We’ll be alright.” 

Unarmed, Tidus and Yuna set off down the road, and within a half an hour, they encountered Bevelle guards. 

“Halt!” The guards brandished rifles at them. “Summoner Yuna, you are wanted by Yevon for the attempted murder of a Maester! Surrender now!”  

“Attempted…?” Tidus wondered under his breath. 

Yuna raised her hands timidly. “We come in peace. There is more to this story than meets the eye, and I would like to throw myself at Mika’s mercy.” 

“Where are your other guardians?” 

“In the wake of recent events, they have decided it best to distance themselves from me.” 

“Then hand over your weapons.” 

Tidus answered, “we come unarmed.” 

The guards frisked them, and found that yes, they were seemingly harmless. 

“Very well, we will escort you to the high court. May Yevon have mercy on your souls.” 

Tidus had a sarcastic answer at the tip on his tongue, but opted to hold it for now. 

They were ushered into the city, one guard at the rear, and one leading. As they approached, more guards joined until they were surrounded by six in total. 

Yuna took Tidus’ hand and held it tight. 

As they passed through town, folks started to take notice of them. Children were ushered away to safety as adults started hurling insults at them. 

People even threw garbage at them. 

Yuna held her head high, but she did sniffle a bit. 

“It’s going to be okay,” Tidus assured. “They’ll all owe you an apology when we’re done here.” 

“It’s so different than when I left,” she choked. “Back then, everyone was celebrating. And when Kimahri led me out of town, people were wishing me well. Some even gave me flowers.” After some consideration, she added. “I didn’t deserve that behavior either.” 

When they arrived at the High Court, covered in more rotten fruit than desired, they were escorted into a waiting room, still guarded by at least six warrior priests with guns. 

Thankfully, none of them were pointing the weapons directly at them, but they sure didn’t seem friendly. 

Before long, a new priest arrived. “Lord Mika will judge you now.” 

“Here we go,” Tidus gave her an encouraging nudge. 

The High Court was full of men of Yevon, all standing at attention. The room was vast, and had an eerie fog settled throughout. A balcony emblazoned with the symbol of Yevon looked over the room, and a large dark pit took up the center of the floor. 

Yuna was led up to a podium that floated over the pit, while Tidus was placed in a balcony at the side. 

A Ronso Maester addressed the room. “The High Court of Yevon is now in session. The sacred offices of this court seek nothing but absolute truth, in Yevon’s name. To those on trial: Believe in Yevon, and speak only the truth. Do you swear?” 

“I swear.” 

“Summoner Yuna, daughter of High Summoner Braska. You are accused of the murder of Maester Seymour Guado and the destruction of Macalania Temple. How do you plead?” 

“Not guilty, Your Grace.” 

Mika stood at the railing, gazing at her with old, suspicious eyes. “I have a witness that would say otherwise.” 

Seymour, in all his unholy terror, came forward and stood at Mika’s side. 

“S-S-Seymour!?” Yuna recoiled, backing up to the edge of the podium. 

“Surprised to see me again?” 

“You were crushed!” Tidus shouted. “We saw the Fayth kill you!” 

A nearby priest elbowed him in the gut, hard. “You are not on trial. You are to be silent.” 

Yuna composed herself, and raised her head. “This is all the more reason for me to plead my case. Lord Mika, things are not as they seem.” 

“Then, by all means, let me hear what you think happened.” 

Yuna took a deep breath and began, “Lord Jyscal appeared to me while I was visiting my parents in the Farplane. He looked unwell, even for someone who is dead. He instructed me to locate this sphere.” She removed it from her bag. “It’s evidence that Seymour killed his father.” 

“Yes, I am aware,” Mika said, far too calm. 

“What?!” Maester Kelk Ronso barked in indignation.

“What? You hadn’t heard?” Seymour smiled at him. 

Yuna began to tremble. “L-Lord Jyscal, he…he asked me to stop Seymour.” 

“And so you killed him,” Mika accused.

“Not even!” Tidus exclaimed again, only to get hit again. 

“We did nothing,” Yuna elaborated. “I simply sought Seymour out to talk, and to learn his side of the story. He summoned his Aeon against us in the temple of Macalania. Shiva saw this and became enraged. She destroyed her own temple, killing Seymour in the process. She protected us with a dome of ice, or else we would have perished as well.” She stood even taller, her resolve harding into steel. “Lord Mika, Seymour is dead. He is Unsent. He should not stand here beside you! Please, send him now!” 

“Send the dead to where they belong? Hmm…then you would have to send me as well.” 

“Lord Mika…?” 

A plume of Pyreflies emerged from Mika, revealing the horrible truth. 

“Oh no…” Tidus whispered in shock. 

“How…how can this be?” Yuna breathed. 

“Grand Maester Mika is a wise leader. Even in death, he is invaluable to Spira.” 

“This is…wrong. It’s so very wrong!” 

“Who are you to determine that?” Mika snipped. “You are merely a child. You had your role as summoner, and you have stepped out of it.” 

“I did what I thought was right, what anyone else would have done! Lord Jyscal—!” 

“Is not here. And he did not understand the wisdom in my continued reign after death. He was a traitor to Yevon, and his request to you was selfish.” 

Yuna lowered her head, shocked and dismayed.

“Where are your other guardians?” 

“They…they abandoned me.” 

“As they should. While I believe they are guilty as well, I will spare them from my punishment.” 

“This is bullshit!” Tidus growled. 

“Summoner Yuna, the glory in death for being a summoner to defeat Sin was not enough for you. You sought glory in life as well. You took justice into your own hands for selfish reasons and for your treachery, you must be punished.” 

Yuna covered her face with her hands.

“Lord Seymour, because you were the one that Yuna has committed atrocities against, I leave her punishment in your hands.” 

“Thank you, Your Eminence.” Seymour bowed his head. “Yuna, I will show you mercy, because you are a summoner. I will give you a choice.” 

“This can’t be good,” Tidus muttered. 

“I will allow you to continue on your Pilgrimage. It’s clear to me that your guardian, this son of Jecht, is the reason for your shortcomings.” 

“What?!” Tidus barked. 

“Therefore, you must decide. Either you will marry me, and he will simply be exiled. Or, you will continue your journey alone, and he will be executed.” 

“Again with this crap?!” Tidus yelled. “She’s already married to me, you slimeball!” 

“That is not a problem.” Mika smirked. “I can tell, you haven’t even consummated this marriage, have you?”

Tidus felt his face flush red in embarrassment and anger. “That’s none of your business!” 

“A true enough answer for me. By right as Grand Maester, I declare this marriage annulled.” 

“No!” Yuna protested. 

“You have your options, Summoner Yuna. And they are much more generous than I would be. Make your decision now.” 

Tidus gripped the railing and yelled, “don’t you dare marry him, Yuna! Don’t worry about me! Don’t try to save me! He’ll make you miserable!” 

Yuna didn’t respond, but seemed deep in thought. 

This only alarmed Tidus further. “He’s dead for Yevon’s sake! Don’t do it! I’m begging you!” 

She looked at him, eyes set in determination, but lip quivering with sadness. 

“Yuna!” 

“I’m sorry.” 

“Yuna!” 

“I’ve made up my mind. I will marry Seymour, to save Tidus.” 

“No!” 

“A wise choice,” said Mika. “The wedding will be two days from now. As for you, Tidus, you will be exiled…via Purifico.” 

“What?!” Yuna cried. “That’s not—that is not what we agreed on!” 

“You should have asked for more details, my dear.” 

Tidus seemed panicked at Yuna’s protest. Two guards grabbed his arms. “What’s going on? What did he say? What’s via Purifio?” 

“Tidus!” Yuna shouted over to him. “I’m sorry! I’m so so sorry!” 

Mika, calm as ever, stated, “May Yevon have mercy on your soul.” 

“Yuna? Yuna!” He wriggled and fought as the guards started to drag him away. 

“I’m sorry!” Yuna cried again, bracing against the podium as he was dragged away. “This is all my fault! I’m sorry! I love you!” 

That was the last he heard from her before losing sight of her. 

He wanted to shout back, to reassure her that he loved her too, but he was in shock. Shock from her declaration, and terrified by whatever was happening to him. 

Whatever it was certainly wasn’t good. 

“What’s via Purifio? I deserve to know!” He snapped at a guard.

“You don’t deserve to know anything, scum.” Then he gave a small chuckle. “But I’ll tell you, because I want to see the look on your face. Via Purifico is a labyrinth under Bevelle. It’s full of fiends and traps. If you find your way out, you can leave…but that’s highly unlikely.” 

“You’re all a bunch of psychos,” Tidus spat. 

“Says the guy that murdered a Maester.” 

“I didn’t do anything!” 

“Keep telling yourself that. It might get you to the Farplane.” 

Tidus fought, kicking and twisting to get free. But every time he’d get an arm free, he’d just get punched, stunned, and grappled again. 

Eventually, he was too bruised and tired to continue to fight. 

They dragged him away to the darkest, dankest park of the temple, where the air was thick with acrid settled incense. 

They stopped in front of a large, heavy door with an intricate machina lock on it. 

A guard standing at the side cranked a lever and the door groaned open. 

Inside was completely black. 

“Here!” A guard holding Tidus’ arm shoved a tiny knife into his hand. It was basically a pocket knife. “It’s only fair to give you a sporting chance.” 

Tidus looked at the pathetic blade and scoffed. “Gee, thanks.” 

“Go on.” They shoved him forward. 

He stumbled into the doorway, the floor illuminating dimly as he entered. 

“By the way,” the guard said, “if you can survive this, you’ll be free to go.” 

“Then you guys must not think I’ll survive.” 

“Well, let’s just say…” The door started to close. “No one has before.” 

The door shut with a clank and a hiss. There was no handle on the inside. 

“Bastards.” Tidus kicked the wall in front of him. 

Well, standing here and fuming wasn’t going to do any good. He turned and looked around. The path ahead glowed every ten feet or so with a teal light near the floor. The whole hall was made of metal. The path ahead went on for maybe fifty feet before splitting off. 

With the tiny knife in hand, Tidus started off, determined to be the first to beat this prison. 

As he approached the split, a projection lit up the wall. A Yevon priest, smiling with pride. 

“Congratulations! You’ve been Martyred for Yevon! An honor offered to very few! Your name will go down in history and your family will be well compensated.” 

“What the hell…?” 

“If you’re seeing this message, it means you still have your signet ring, and that means we’re not down with you yet.” 

Understanding dawned on him then, and he scrambled to find the ring left behind in Jyscal’s portrait. It was still in his pocket, and he put it on. 

“We apologize for the inconvenience of leaving this wretched place, but your exit can be found following the path to the left. The door will open as you approach. It will lead you to the emergency hallway to the offices, and your office will unlock as you approach. There, you will have your new name and instructions waiting for you. We’ll see you soon!” And the message ended. 

Tidus looked at the ring. “What a lucky break.” 

So he went to the left, noting that there were more lights this way. He also didn’t run into any fiends, which he was grateful for, as he didn’t know if he would survive the encounter with just that dinky little knife. 

As he went, a thought occurred to him and he mulled it over. What if Jyscal knew this would happen, and that’s why he left his ring? What if he knew that Mika would take Seymour’s side? 

So then what? Was their part in this over? Tidus would find a way to the temple to meet up with Yuna, and they’d escape to Zanarkand. That was a given. But what about Seymour and Mika? Would Yevon just be ruled by Unsents? 

There had to be more they could do, but it might all have to wait after Sin was defeated. After all, then Yuna would be High Summoner and immune to everything they could throw at her. 

Now if only he could figure out how to keep her from dying from the Final Summon. 

There had to be a loophole. Something that they were missing. Maybe the answer was in Zanarkand. 

…or maybe in Jyscal’s office. 

A panel on the wall glowed briefly, then disappeared to reveal a long hallway. After he stepped through, the panel glowed again and sealed the exit. 

Not that he wanted to stay in the labyrinth, of course. 

The hall was just as dimly-lit as the rest of the maze, but it only went straight. He followed it to the end, where a steep ramp with a weird machina keyboard awaited him. 

Confused, he stepped up to the keyboard, only for the floor beneath him to flash the same symbol as his ring. Then the new platform started rapidly moving up the slope. 

It climbed and climbed, going in a very wide spiral. There was a wall on both sides, so he wondered if the inside column had something else on the other side. 

The platform took him all the way to the very top, where there was a landing that split in two directions. Like a hotel, there were two arrows giving directions to where the rooms were, but instead of numbers, there were symbols, just like the one on the Sigil ring. 

Tidus followed the markers, turning down and down again, following the signs as less and less Sigils were shown. 

Finally, he came to the last hallway. The door on the very end was Jyscal’s office, and the door clicked as he approached. 

Carefully, he pushed it open, half-expecting Seymour to be in there. But it was empty. The desk had a thin layer of dust on the surface, evidence that no one had been here since Jyscal died. 

And if that was the case, it was unlikely anyone would come in today, so he had time to investigate. 

But where even to start? 

The bookshelves were packed, but as he went over them, he found little that was useful. Most were commentary books written by priests of Yevon, talking about an aspect of the religion in one form or another. Some were autobiographies of great figures. Some were historical accounts of Sin attacks. 

There was one old book, written by a guardian that had survived the run in with Sin. It was an account of their travels and everything up to the aftermath. It was rather thick, so he’d have to take it with him and read it on the road. 

He turned his attention to Jyscal’s desk, where a drawer of files were kept. 

Incident reports from the Farplane. Reports of spirits looking unwell or leaving. Who witnessed these events, and what steps were taken to cover it up. 

It seemed like Jyscal’s appearance was not uncommon at all. 

But these weren’t really helpful for saving Yuna. 

Tidus leaned back in the chair, swiveling side to side as he wondered what to do next. He had no idea how to get to the temple from here. 

Not to mention how hungry he was. 

He idly played with the ring on his finger, then came back to the thought that Jyscal had prepared for this. So if Jyscal had thought they would go to the Via Purifico, what was the likelihood he left something for them to escape—and where? 

Tidus felt around under the desk, only to find a letter stuck to the bottom. 

“Bingo!” He cheered. 

The letter was addressed to ‘My Friend’ and actually only contained a map. But the map was enough. It showed a secluded route to the Temple, which happened to pass by the kitchens! 

“Jyscal, you crazy old bastard.” Tidus gleefully chuckled. 

He folded the map up and put it in his pocket, and tucked the book into his overalls. 

Then he departed into the secret corridor he had just come out of. Ironically, the door to it was concealed behind a giant portrait of Mika. 

Using the faint floor light, he made his way sort of back the way he came, but changed directions before the lift. The map was easy to follow, luckily, as the twists and turns it had him take would have been confusing otherwise. 

He smelled the Kitchens before he arrived. He pressed his ear to the door marked with a steaming pot. There was no sound from inside. 

Carefully, he pulled the latch and pushed the secret door open. 

Thankfully, no one was inside. He stepped into the room, getting a whiff of the soup lightly boiling on the stove. 

It seemed that it was past lunch, but dinner prep hadn’t started yet. That gave him time to pillage for food without being detected. 

There was an empty canvas sack laying on some crates. He took it, and started filling it with bread, cheese, and whatever fruit and vegetables he could eat raw. A quick glance in the ice box revealed half a ham, presumably leftover from the dinner before. 

Stealing that would cause some disruption with the staff. People would point fingers, distrust sown and jobs at risk. 

He wrapped it up in cheese cloth and put it into his bag. 

That would be plenty, and hopefully some left over to share with the other guardians. 

He left the same way he came. This door was much more obvious than the one in Jyscal’s office. It was a cut out panel in the wall, with a large sign in red that read ‘Emergency Use Only.’ 

He stole away back into the shadowy corridor, latching the door behind him. Then, he was off to the Chamber of the Fayth. 

The path kept going. The map was several pages of directions, marking turns and symbols to look for. 

A few times, he worried he was going to be caught. As he passed secret doors to halls and other occupied rooms, he could hear people talking on the other side. The doors were thin, and didn’t dampen the sound. He tried to keep his steps light, and hopefully that would be enough. 

The last bit of the journey came with a warning. He had to leave the corridor and sneak his way to the Cloister of Trials. That could prove to be difficult, especially with his bag of snacks. 

He reached the end of the corridor, nearly parallel to where Jyscal’s office was. However, instead of a door to go through, there was a ladder. He put the edge of the sack between his teeth and climbed, going higher than first glance. 

The trap door at the top led him outside to a catwalk. To his left, the path led up to a staircase and then a rooftop plaza. The plaza was being patrolled by guards as other staff decorated with garland and flowers. 

This had to be where the wedding would happen. 

But hopefully, not before the other guardians came to the rescue! 

Was a marriage to an Unsent legally binding anyway?

Tidus carefully closed the trap door and crept the other way down the catwalk. 

This led to a tower, what looked like the center tower. Everything he was looking for had to be here! 

Inside was a spiral staircase, like the first one he encountered, but with no center column this time. The keypad on the wall illuminated as he neared and gave him the option for transportation to the Cloister of Trials. The platform lurched as he made his selection, and then began to hurry quickly down the stairs to the bottom. 

Tidus took out the map again as he rode the lift. Jyscal had even included the solution to the Trials, a boon in his race to not get discovered. He had really thought of everything. 

Well, almost. 

As Tidus turned the last page over, he frowned in concern. Jyscal hadn’t provided an escape. He had been so thorough in his directions, but no exit? 

Was there a second letter he missed? 

It was too late to go back now. The lift arrived at the Cloister of Trials. That was the only thing that stood between him and true sanctuary. 

With Jyscal’s notes in hand, the trials were conquered quickly, but they were just as tedious as ever. Then he stood before the Chamber of Fayth, and contemplated going in. Surely this room was just as safe, right? 

But to hell with Yevon and their rules. All of this was arbitrary! He approached the door, and it opened to him. 

The inside was not what he was expecting. A path to a dias with a glass dome surrounding it. Inside was the preserved body of a man, laying face down.

Suddenly, this didn’t seem like such a good idea anymore. The Fayth were technically still alive, right? 

The ghost of a child appeared suddenly, hovering over the body. He greeted Tidus with a pleasant yet mischievous smile. “You’re not a summoner.” 

“I—uh, well, no…” He rubbed the back of his head. “I’m waiting for a summoner. My summoner—er, my wife.” 

“Lady Yuna, right?” 

“Uh, yes! H-how did you know that?” 

“I’ve been watching you for a while, Tidus.” 

Tidus furrowed his brows, perplexed by this statement. But now that he mentioned it… “I thought you looked familiar. You’re from Zanarkand!” 

“In a way,” the Fayth offered. “What have you brought with you?” 

“Huh? Oh, I found some snacks.” 

The boy smiled. “Then sit and eat. You look weary.” 

He did, in fact, feel weary. A lot of walking, high anxiety, and emotional turmoil. It was all a lot. Tidus sat in front of the glass dome and took out a loaf of bread, tearing it with his hands. 

“So,” began the Fayth, “why are you here without Yuna? How did a summoner become separated from her guardian?” 

Tidus sighed. “It’s all Seymour’s fault.” 

The boy nodded. “Shiva told us what happened at her temple. We no longer recognize him as a summoner.” 

“It gets worse,” Tidus added. “We came to tell Mika all about it, but…he didn’t care. Seymour is up in the temple right now, as an Unsent, and Mika too. I don’t know how long he’s been dead for, but apparently he’s too ‘wise of a leader’ to retire. Messed up.” 

“Hmm. This does not bode well for Yevon.”

“Ya think?”

“But once Yuna defeats Sin, you can tell everyone the truth.” 

“Eh…maybe.” He then explained the trial, and how Yuna had been forced to decide between two awful punishments. 

“So she chose to marry Seymour while I was sent into exile, though it was Via Purifico or whatever. I mean, I’ve had enough time to think it over, and I think she did it so that I would have a chance to be rescued by the other guardians. But there’s a chance she won’t be saved in time. She might actually have to go through the wedding with Seymour.” 

“And Mika annulled yours?” 

“Yeah…” Tidus sneered. “Bastard.” 

The boy was quiet for a bit then, thinking. Then he said, “I understand your grief. But I cannot help but think this is all rather pointless in the grand scheme of things.” 

Tidus couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “Why? Because Yuna’s gonna die in the fight with Sin? That’s a reason for everyone to be cool with all this spouse switching bullshit? No way! Yuna deserves her happiness, and she shouldn’t have to suffer all the way to her death. Besides, I’m going to be the one that solves the Sin problem. We’re going to defeat it, and we’ll make sure he never comes back and save Yuna in the process. What do you say to that, Ghost Boy?” 

The Fayth smiled, patiently. “Such confidence. I hope you hold onto that. But I don’t think you will, when you know the truth.” 

Tidus furrowed his brow. “The truth? What truth? I thought I was on the same page as everyone else…” 

“You are. But this is your truth. Where you come from. The truth to your Zanarkand.” 

“My…Zanarkand?” he croaked. The more this kid spoke, the more dread he felt crawling up his spine. 

“Yes. You see, Tidus, the truth is…you don’t really exist.”

[crowdsourcedloner]

so one of my big hangups over Nailah right now is the lack of an ingame model for her, so this post will be talking about how i see her vague cloud self and ideas for how she could look as well as general female hrothgar rambles. (it’s long and all speculative and incredibly self indulgent)

okay so to start, i’m gonna reference this art (from the shadowbringers artbook)

this is, to my knowledge, one of the few images we have for femhroth, outside of the bozja mural seen in a STQ cutscene. it’s concept art for the queen we fight at the end of delubrum reginae, which is a female roegadyn in the final game (due to lack of female hroth models). there understandably isn’t a lot of detail to her, as the artist was probably more concerned with the queen’s throne doodads, but from what we can see she has a more humanoid face than male hroth have. is this intentional? is it just placeholder? why does this image interest me so much? well...

this is a female ronso from ffx. while ffxiv’s hrothgar are distinct from ronso, they were used as inspiration (one of the male faces has a horn option to call back to kimahri as well as the lost’s color palette being similar to ronso palettes). female ronso have less bestial faces than male ronso (to my eyes) and i expect this to carry over into ffxiv’s female hrothgar as well. do i like this hypothetical decision of less bestial femhroth? i don’t know. i don’t have much faith in the developers going through with a full monster girl. i do know that female au ra had a massive shift towards their current more petite appearance compared to some of their concepts (included in the heavensward artbook) and i wouldn’t be surprised if the developers wanted a more cutesy or conventionally attractive model for femhroth. i’m rooting for the more bestial model ideas personally, but i’ve made peace with the potential for something else. i’ll work with whatever they give me. a good example of the more bestial look i’m thinking of is karmaho’s work, check them out here. their scholar design is beautiful! another look that feels likely to me is the below image.

this is fanart of a genderbent kimahri (artist credit here). this image feels closest to what we’re getting for two (relatively arbitrary) reasons: her skin color and ear placement matches the queen in the shadowbringers concept art and she’s quite human compared to kimahri’s original design. the art is also just really cool and i wanted to show it to y’all.

so how does this tie into Nailah?

there is a pretty big difference between the two potentials for female hrothgar, which makes it weird to decide a face for her. i have a few color palettes i’m between though! and no matter what, she will have glorious fluffy hair. i’m not budging on that. her potential color palettes include genderbent kimahri (its so soft! and pretty! and her eyes work so well!) or something like a snow leopard (white fur with dark markings and striking blue/yellow eyes! monochrome color scheme my beloved!) or a dark blue concept (dark blue/purple skin with black hair and golden eyes! close to a panther!) or something like a pale calico (pale markings that you can barely see! she looks so gentle!) or... who knows! maybe the character creator will hit me with something new! there could be fur patterns that capture my imagination! until then, she’s just my vague cloud child of infinite possibilities and i love her.

[havethetouch]

“Cruel” - 2018/10

Snow leopards have a soft spot in my heart. Always. This one is a special one though because she is a snow leopard Ronso which is why she has a horn or rather... had. Her backstory is just... argh. Poor girl has to guard a temple all by herself temple gets attacked and destroyed and I assume she tried her best to defend it to no avail and still her people were like... casting her out of the community, banishing her and breaking her horn to mark her for her failure and I'm just.. that's so cruel and ever since I read Basinah's sheet a long time ago I wanted to draw her in that moment and it never worked out before now.

Anyway.. Basinah belongs to @zelendur

I am still very fond of Noodle you know?

[windupnamazu]

master's mend

ffxivwrite2021 #11: preaching to the choir

⮞ lunya and «balefire»—zaya, reese, hanami, rjoli. 664 words. ⮞ the 7th astral era ⮞ after exploring a dungeon, the gang gets a bit of respite.

preaching to the choir: to try to persuade people who already agree with you.

A blanket of dark clouds choked out the moonlight as they settled on the back porch of Buscarron's Druthers, surrounded by the sound of trickling water, the chirp of crickets, and the not-quite distant bustle of the patrons of the tavern just fulms away. Their main source of light for themselves was an oil lamp, held aloft as the soft swip of a needle swiftly pulling thread joined the midnight chorus.

"You need to take better care of yourself," Lunya grumbled, peering at her work intently in the lamplight. Zaya huffed out a lightning-tingle laugh that shook their entire body, jostling the torn part of their cylcas that she was trying to mend. The only way this could possibly end was with her accidentally jabbing them once or twice, but at least it was the better outcome of their latest foray into Amdapor Keep—if she never got almost crushed to death by wall-shaped voidsent on all four sides ever again, it'd be too soon.

To their credit, Zaya bobbed their head. I do, their sibling said and didn't actually say with one hand holding up the lamp for her. Maybe they meant, Yeah, but I like to punch things and I don't know what the word ranged means, which wasn't a promise of anything except future stitches of both the medical and fashion kind.

"We could say the same for you," Reese reminded her gently from the rocks. The Elezen kept vigil over the dark woods surrounding them, long legs dangling into the creek that ran behind the tavern as her gaze swept over the landscape carefully, pointed ears upright and alert. "For all of us."

There was a scoff as Hanami came around the corner, carrying a set of tankards in one hand and a tray ladened with cheese, sausage, roast beef, and bread in the other. The light of the lantern seemed to linger in between the dawn-white scales of her horns as she left sat cross-legged behind Lunya and Zaya, setting down their dinner by them.

"Wrong," Hanami said. "We do not worry about Rjoli."

"Aw, does that mean you actually worry about the rest of us?" Lunya cooed, cupping her cheeks in her hands and batting her eyelashes at her. In response, Hanami flung a chunk of cheese at the center of her forehead, which Lunya cheerily caught and stuffed into her mouth.

Reese laughed. "You're right, though." Said Hrothgar in question—or Ronso, he called himself, which must have been a regional dialect somewhere. Where, though, they weren't quite sure—was curled up at her side in a huge lump, taking a nap to restore his lost aether from flinging spells at voidsent and keeping the internal organs of the other three tallfolk of their party inside them. Faerie dust sparkled on his shoulders and in his mane, and he seemed content as he snored quietly, tail flicking over the rocks. "He's big and pink. You couldn't lose him in a crowd."

Zaya's nose wrinkled and they set down the lantern to sign.

"Ohhh," Reese said, eyes alight with understanding. "She meant it in the sense that he takes care of himself better than we do ourselves. ...Yeah, we could take a page from Rjoli's book."

"Whh," the Hro-nso whined in his sleep, wrinkling his nose and clutching tighter at the codex he was using as a pillow.

Reese soothingly pat his head. "Not literally."

"There," said Lunya in satisfaction, patting her handiwork with a smile as she finished her sewing. It would be easy to just pull the jagged edges of the tear in Zaya's cyclas into nothingness, but this was a lot more fun—bronze embroidery floss neatly zipped across the gap, dashing into a bolt of lightning by their thigh. "Don't go and undo my hard work by getting banged up again, 'kay?"

"I won't," signed Zaya with a toothy grin, and maybe this time there was a promise of it being for more than the sake of fashion.

[jadagul]

Oh my god, is the whole FFX Ronso subplot just a setup for the brick joke where they offer to build a statue of Yuna with a giant horn, as a call-back to the FF3 and FF5 summoner character designs?

[cantdance]

I will always be wondering why they made a race inspired by the ronso from ffx instead of just using the ronso. Like. Theyre cool and they already exist. Whyd you take the horns off them

[ainarosewood]

SeasWolWritingChallenge Day 7

@seaswolchallenge​ @ffxiv-writers​

Prompt: Revenant

"Sister!" Yvet turned to see to see Phyna striding toward her the Viis standing out in the Crystarium in the garb of her homeland. Turning toward her she cocked her head, "Is aught amiss Phyna you seem troubled?"

The other woman nodded her eyes troubled, "Ciuna tells me that there is trouble in the Wood, several of our patrols have been attacked by a mysterious creature in ruins.  Even Lanille doesn't know what is causing the wounds."

Yvet nodded, "You'd like me to see would you not?"

The other Viis gave a grim nod, "If you've the time Sister, I'm still gathering Viis to return home and while I worry for my Sister I...."

"Fear not, I will go to Fanow and see how I may aid." Yvet responded at her feet her Carbuncle Ktjn chimed in agreeance at her feet.

Relief filled the other woman’s features and she nodded, "Give my Sister my love,"

Yvet waved in acknowledgement before readying the teleport spell.  Moments later she found herself in the Fanow aetheryte plaza a heavy rain drenching the settlement.

Without hesitation she strode toward where she knew Almet would be as she approached she could see the older Viis's face set with concern.

Before her was an equally concerned Lanille the priestess frustrated overtly.  Approaching she gave a wave in greeting.  Almet gave her a warm smile but it was clear she was still upset.

"Phyna mentioned that several patrols were injured by a strange creature," Yvet stated

Lanille nodded, "Some of the wounds seem as if they could come from a Caracal however, I do not believe the beasts responsible due to the fact that the injuries are rimed with frost."

"And typically once would expect burns from the levin bolts the beasts command." Yvet stated.

Lanille nodded continuing, "Also in some of the cases there is little to no wounds but the afflicted are cold to the touch and their aether seems....drained."

At her feet Ktjn chimed Sounds like a voidsent....sister

Yvet looked down at the construct stating, "Those injuries yes, but the rime coated claws....no."

Looking at the other two Viis she asked, "Where have the majority of the attacks happened?"

Almet retrieved a map from the table nearby and pointed, "The K'mul Astropolis, specifically the Great Pyramid of Ux'ner.  All of the ones attacked were patrolling close to the Pyramid when the attacks occurred."

Yvet nodded, "I shall see if I can locate the beast drive it off if can or if I must destroy it,"

Almet looked concerned but nodded, "Be careful Sister, I know I shouldn't worry given that you are the Warrior of Darkness none the less..."

Yvet gave her a gentle smile, "I understand Sister fear not, I am not one to be reckless."

With that she pulled out the horn they had gifted her when she had defeated the Lightwarden.  She pressed it to her lips and sounded it.  From not far away came a piercing cry and the flap of wings.  

She turned as the blast of air announced the Jacculus's arrival that was tied to the horn.  It Chirped a greeting and nudged her.

Patting her neck she greeted her and then swung astride.  Beside her Ktjn leapt onto the hindquarters and balanced there as the bird tilted off the platform and aimed northwest.

In a matter of moments they alighted in front of the Pyramid and she sent the Jacculus on its way to await her call.  Looking down at Ktjn, "I think Anja would be more suited for this considering that we are dealing with something that uses ice aspected aether."

The carbuncle nodded and disappeared in a burst of aether.  A moment later Anja popped forth in another burst the heat of her body causing steam to form around her as the rain struck the ruby carbuncle."

Looking up at her she asked, I take it I will take point?

Yvet nodded, "I will follow, I know not what we are dealing with aside from it can wield ice aspected aether and drain a being of their aether."

Nodding the carbuncle strode through the gap in the roots that used to be the pyramid's door.  As Yvet followed her she felt a pang of sorry knowing the beauty the Pyramid once had.  She could remember what it looked like at the height of the Empire before the Wood reclaimed it.

As they entered the only sound to be heard was the patter of the carbuncle's paws and the steady drip of what rain made it through the gaps in the stone.  As they went deeper Yvet noticed an odd chill permeating the normally humid air.  Something had to be causing it, the question was what.  

As they entered one of the deeper chambers Anja paused then whirled slashing with a fiery claw at a creature that hissed and let out a haunting howl.

Yvet drew her tome and faced it feeling a pang of sorrow as she saw it in the glow of the stones that lit the pyramid.

It was gaunt, skin clinging to what was once thick muscle now just bones.  Its face was that of a Ronso a strange light filing its eyes.  Judging by its garb it had once been one of the living guardians of the Pyramid set to watch over those who were buried here.

Yvet closed her cerulean eyes in grief.  He had awoken because of her and she knew it.  Specifically when she Y'shtola and the Viis of Fanow opened the door that led to Tiuna's tomb.  In life he would have guarded it and it seemed as if he continued to do so after his demise.

"Brother," she said softly in Ronkan, "Your work is done, you may rest in Ox'Dalan's arms now.  There are others to continue your duty to the Archmage.  Please brother rest."

The only response she received was him stalking forward bony hand outstretched.  The room was so cold that her breath began to cloud in front of her.

Closing her eyes she nodded to Anja who charged forward once more slashing with fiery claws as she unleased several ruin spells striking the ancient guardian causing sever damage to its body.

Between her and the carbuncle they finally managed to down it and before them stood a spirit.  Once again Yvet appealed to him in Ronkan, "Brother please your duty is done, let the Viis who remain carry on for you, please take your rest."

He bowed his head in acknowledgement and then dispersed back into the aether.  Instantly the unnatural cold faded leaving only the standard cool of the depth of the Pyramid.

Sighing in relief she turned and made her way back to the surface.  Once again she called the Jacculus and mounted up.  As she launched into the sky she looked back at the ruins and said a soft prayer to Ox'Dalan asking him to see to it that no more guardians were disturbed from their eternal slumber and offering apologies for being responsible for this last ones.

[sword-and-lance]

25) copy/paste a few sentences or a short paragraph that you’re particularly proud of

((so this is technically off of Zarr’s sideblog, one of the few pieces I’ve ever written with them actually, but: ))

“Zarr.”

Flick.

Flick.

“Zarr.”

Flick.

“Zarr, stop pinging apple pips at her.”

The Ronso just turned her horned head, stared her best friend down without so much as blinking her cat-like crimson eyes…and very slowly, very deliberately flicked another pip off of her own palm at Izola.

“For shite sake,” Solveig hissed in exasperation, “you’re such a cat.”

Zarr just raised her brows a bit more and flicked yet another one with one clawed finger.

[antepenultimatefantasy]

FFX Playthrough Part 15

Climb Every Mountain! Cross Every Stream! Murder your Dead Husband for the Third Time Until you Find your Dream!

-This mountain is about as cold as the welcome we get

-Damn Yuna, showing some serious resolve! 

-Love Tidus and Rikku cheering in the back

-Ugh this moment is so good

-Lol

-Yuna seriously evolves into a superhero in such a short time

-But it’s still so believable 

-Biran and Yenke are such bros

-Awww but they’re happy that Kimahri’s able to fuck them up

-I would love to see the Yuna-with-a-horn statue

-The Ronso singing the Hymn of the Fayth is very ominous

-Like they know what they signed up for in saying that they would stop any pursuers from following us on the mountain

-Man, the tone of this game is way different now y’all

-The beginning was all “being a summoner is fun! Road trip!”

-And now it’s like “On your left you’ll see the graves of those five summoners, and up ahead is the restless spirit of another dead summoner who’s trapped on the mortal plane”

-Braska’s sphere to Yuna is sort of heartbreaking

-And all of his talk of choosing her own path, I wonder if he was really imploring her not to be a summoner

-Geez Lulu

-Yuna’s right there, girl

-And randomly on the mountain is a twinky merchant?

-Okay, sure, I guess

-CHILL, LULU

-It’s really not a good plan that Tidus and Rikku, who have one brain cell between them, are trying to figure out how to end a 1000-year cycle of death

-Like maybe ask Lulu?

-Ugh, Seymour’s back?

-Yuna, why don’t you just send him?

-You don’t have to listen to him talk about his Ronso genocide…

-Then he turns into…a zombie fish airship thing?

-Whatever it is, it’s very final fantasy

-Anyway, after we beat him, the beans are sorta spilled on Sin being Jecht

-Lol that’s what she said

-Everyone’s like “Wow, you’d kill your dad?” 

-And Tidus is like “I woulda done it even if he wasn’t Sin. So…”

-Well, that’s it. We short circuited Wakka

-So at the top of Gagazet is a wall of dead people

-That make Tidus have a really bad trip that he’s back in OG Zanarkand

-And it gets really trippy, Final Fantasy style

-Turns out Tidus and Jecht and all of the OG Zanarkand that he knew are just dreams

-But he needs to stop the Fayth from dreaming because they’re tired

-Ugh I totally know that feeling. You know when you take an afternoon nap and you feel like you’ve created and maintained an entire city and its inhabitants for 1,000 years?

-The worst

-This mountain cave is really cool, but wouldn’t it be like really cold?

-They’re just swimming around willy nilly

-So this mountain has “trials,” but it’s really more like carnival games

-Get the ball in the hole

-Swim in the correctly colored slots

-Eat a funnel cake in less than 10 seconds

-Wakka to Lulu:

-The Ronso are serious on the outside, but they really just want to have fun

-Auron tells us the OG diva, Yunalesca is waiting for us in Zanarkand and sending her beefiest boys to test us until we get there

-What a life

-Get it Yuna!

-Well I’m sure as soon we leave this cave nothing bad will happen or appear to fight us! 

[foxgirlbutt]

Hrothgar are just... so sexy. Big, strong, fluffy, horns. Bozja got so many sexy ronso 😍

[zarr-aurochs]

Prompt#9: Lush

((of course this was gonna be a Zarr fic :P

The First shard’s Solveig goes to find her friend.))

===

“Zarr?”

The Ronso, of course, heard their name and one heavy-furred ear swiveled automatically towards the sound. But they stayed on their knees in their personal garden, picking a dead spot out of the tree’s bark with a long nail and a frown. “Hm.” Well, at least that was just surface-level, they were relieved to see, and so they just flicked the piece well away. They rather liked that lemonette tree and would have been disappointed if it had been sick in some way.

“Zarr.”

Their ear flicked again, but they just crept through the lush greenery around them and towards the border hedge. They smiled faintly; they were still rather proud how round they had gotten the bushes between the hedges. It looked rather nice, and the plants themselves didn’t seem to mind at all--

“Zarr...?” 

Solveig’s voice was closer now, and when Zarr poked their head up, they nearly collided nose-to-nose with the Galdjent...much to the latter’s dismay, judging by how she yelped and jumped back a step or two with her prosthetic legs clanking in complaint at the motion.

“Oh, ah.” Zarr tilted their horned head. “...Sorry? Didn’t see you there.”

“I. I see that.” Solveig had regained her composure enough to dust herself off, wrinkling her nose as she shooed a bee away from her silver hair. “You’re like a cat, I swear--”

“They won’t hurt you if you don’t hurt them,” Zarr interrupted, nodding to the bee as it idly buzzed away. 

“They also still sting.”

“Not often!”

“Anyway,” Solveig continued, with the tired tone of someone already quite done with an argument, “never mind the bee lecture again--lunch is about done. You’ll miss it if you don’t get washed up.”

Zarr huffed through their nose, dusting their hands off on their canvas pants without thinking twice about the dirt and miscellaneous plant matter already there. “It’s not a lecture, it’s just important.”

“So it’s still a lecture...” But Solveig trailed off as Zarr’s attention was grabbed, and sharply, by a bright spot of color arcing overhead.

“Zarr. Please stop proving me right when I call you a cat.”

And that got Zarr to shake their head, snorting in annoyance. “Yeah, yeah...” But it had been years since they had seen that species, and they couldn’t help but feel a little fascinated by just how quickly some of Norvrandt was recovering, with the night returning. Even the garden--let alone the fields--was proof enough of that. Maybe there was still hope, after everything, even if they wouldn’t get back all they had lost--including their scattered clan.

They’d certainly be there to see it through, regardless. 

[finalfantasytrivia]

A Grand Horn on Her Head

POSSIBLE FFX AND FFX-2 SPOILER!

Depending on the player's actions in FFX-2, the Ronso may keep their promise from the previous game and build a statue of Yuna with a horn on her head. This symbolizes she is worthy of being a Ronso. What's interesting about it is that it alludes to other games in the series in which summoners tend to have horns.

Info and picture source: https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Yuna

https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Final_Fantasy_X-2_allusions

[the-evil-pizza]

Optional horns.

optional

horns

for Ronso

[videogamesincolor]

Instead of playable male Viera, Yoshida introduced the male-exclusive race Hrothgar. Modeled after the bestial Ronso from Final Fantasy X, the Hrothgar are thickly-muscled cat men, some of whom sport horns à la FFX’s Kimahri. While Final Fantasy lore features both female and male Ronso, in Final Fantasy XIV they will be a male-only race, included as a counterpart to the female-only Viera.

This is, frankly, some bullshit. First off, adhering to the lore only matters for the Viera? Players cannot be male Viera because of lore, but they also cannot be female Hrothgar because, what, it wouldn’t be fair to everybody who wanted to be a male Viera? Nonsense.

Secondly, Final Fantasy XIV already has a humanoid feline race in the Miqo’te. Ironically, when Final Fantasy XIV first launched back in 2010, the Miqo’te were a female gender-locked race, a counterpart to the male-only Roegadyn. After the game was shut down and rebooted as A Realm Reborn in 2013, male Miqo-te and female Roegadyn got added, thanks largely to fan outcry.