FFIII ds - Ch2 Fan Fiction

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Final Fantasy III - Chosen by the Crystal

The dark void surrounded Hatori and his mind went blank, as though he'd fallen within a deep trance. A mysterious voice unlike any he had ever heard, reached out to him from the back of his mind. "You have been chosen."

"Wh-who's that!? Who's there!?" Hatori yelped, still shaken by his near-death experience.

"Warrior from the land of darkness..." The voice continued, "You have been chosen as the bringer of hope."

Suddenly Hatori found himself back in the room where he had fought with the giant turtle. Though he couldn't see or hear anyone, he suddenly got the feeling that someone was calling to him. They bid him to step forward, so he obeyed. Crossing the bridge suspended in darkness, he reached a peculiar sight.

A marvelous, massive crystal loomed before him, floating majestically atop a grand staircase.

"Is this crystal... talking to me?" He said in awe.

"Darkness is threatening to engulf the world... When light is lost, the equilibrium will be no more."

"Wh-what are you talking about?" Hatori stuttered.

"There are others who share your destiny. You must seek them out. Once you find them, I will bestow upon you our last light... our last hope. Now, go!!" With these parting words, a bright light obscured the warriors vision.

"Woah! W-wait!!" Hatori cried out in his blindness. "I don't understand!!"

When the world around him started to come back into focus, Hatori found he was no longer in the room with the crystal, nor any part of the cave. He was in a green field, a place he recognized as somewhere just outside of Ur, the place where he grew up. He had played around this area many times as a boy. Why hadn't he ever seen that cave before?

"I'm back on the surface..." Hatori said sighing to himself. "What was that...? Light? Darkness? Our last hope? What was that all about?"

Dazed, Hatori desperately wanted someone to talk to about all this. He decided to go and visit his brother Merith. Well, technically they weren't related at all. However, they had been both taken in by Elder Topapa and Nina when they were babies. They grew up together. Even though the two were completely different, they were also the best of friends. Hatori had always considered Merith to be the smartest person he knew. He knew Merith would be willing to listen to anything Hatori had to say, but the question was would he believe him? More likely he'd think they were nothing but childish tall tales. Even Hatori wasn't sure if he believed himself. But something as crazy as all that, was beyond his simplistic imagination. It had to have been real.

* * * * *

The village of Ur was small, quiet, but comfortable. Often Hatori had wasted days dreaming about a life that was filled with adventure and heroic deeds. Perhaps the crystal, or whatever it was, had granted his boyish desires.

As soon as he entered the village boundaries, the voice of a young girl called out "Hatori!!" The child rushed up to greet him, clinging to his arm, like a little monkey. "Where've you been?"

"Nevermind that, have you seen Merith?" Hatori asked her.

"Oh, him." Molly said with the false-anger she always used whenever she didn't get her way. "He went somewhere with the others on the towards the corner of town. I wanted to go with them, but they wouldn't let me." She pouted. "I wonder what they're all talking about. But it doesn't matter, because you're here now. Come on Hatori, let's play!!"

"Not now, Molly." Hatori gently shook her off. "I've got to find Merith." The child frowned unhappily, causing Hatori to affectionately pat her on the head. "We'll play later, okay?"

"Shake on it."

Laughing heartily, Hatori took the child's tiny hand in his own, giving it a good gentle shake. Satisfied, Molly ran off to bother some other poor, unsuspecting villager.

An elderly man standing outside the Elder's house called to Hatori.

"For heaven's sake, what now?" Hatori muttered under his breath.

"Hatori, Elder Topapa was looking for you."

"I'm kind of busy right now, can't it wait?"

"Show a little respect, after all he's the one who..."

"...Took me in, fed me, clothed me... yeah, yeah, I get the picture. Fine, I guess I'll go see what he wants." Sighing with frustration, he quickly hopped through the door of the Elder's house.

Once inside, another old man, Elder Dahn greeted Hatori with a nod. There was something in the old man's eyes that seemed rather odd.

As if in answer the old man said "I can sense what has happened to you."

"What do you mean?" Hatori asked, wondering if the old man was psychic or senile.

"You must now heed the words of Elder Topapa." Was the only other answer the man would give.

"You have come, Hatori. So it is you who has been chosen... You must understand that your meeting with the crystal was not happenstance. It was the crystal's will. You have been chosen."

"So you know about it, too? Then I guess it wasn't a dream. But what do mean that I 'have been chosen'? Everyone keeps saying that."

"A long time ago, a traveler came to me carrying a newborn child. His face was covered in soot and his clothes were burnt to tatters. The child he carried in his arms... was you. To think, even as a newborn, you were already destined to be chosen by the crystal..."

"So, you're saying this crystal killed my parents, just so I could meet it? That doesn't seem very nice."

"Hatori," The Elder said, "Please, listen to me. You must now set forth on your journey. Take your power, the light you hold in your heart, and use it well!!"

"Yes, Elder." Hatori said nodding his head.

Seeing Nina staring at him patiently in the corner, he decided to speak to her. She seemed on the verge of tears. "So this day has finally come... I'm going to worry about you, so promise me you'll be careful!"

"I will." Hatori nodded, and then hugged his adopted mother goodbye, with final wave, he set off to look for Merith. If he truly had to leave the village, to search for the other 'chosen ones', he had to say goodbye to Merith. Even if they weren't related by blood, in Hatori's eyes, they were still considered brothers.

Remembering little Molly's words, Hatori ran to the far northeastern side of town. Merith spent much of his time there. He would sit quietly by the lake, reading a book or admiring the blessings of nature. But this time, he wasn't alone.

Three blond haired boys seemed to be arguing with him. Hatori crept closer to get within earshot. "Oh yeah?" One of the boys was saying snootily. "Ghosts don't exist? Then go there yourself and prove it!!"

"Ha!!" Another boy laughed mockingly. "You don't have the guts!! You're a coward!!"

Deciding he'd heard enough, Hatori casually approached them with a friendly wave. "Hey, Merith. What's going on?"

The three blonde boys (who were much younger and smaller than Hatori), each had expressions that were a mixture of shock and fear. "It's Hatori!!" One of them cried. "Let's get outta here."

Hatori watched them go with a smile of satisfaction on his face. But the smile quickly faded, when he realized Merith wasn't smiling with him.

Merith's sad, brown eyes were fixed shyly on the ground. Though it was common behavior for the quiet scholar to act this way around strangers, he usually provided a more friendliness towards Hatori.

Without a word, Merith quickly ran away, leaving Hatori calling after him. "Hey, wait, Merith!! You don't have to run away from me!!"

More concerned than anything, Hatori quickly ran after his brother.

* * * * *

After his break away, Merith paused just outside of town to catch his breath. He wasn't as athletic as the other boys. Running so fast had taken quite a large effort on his part, but he didn't want Hatori to see him. He didn't want to see anyone, not until he could prove those other boys wrong.

"I'm not a coward..." Merith said quietly to himself. "But I know I have to be stronger." A sudden look of determination crossed his face. "But I can't ask for Hatori's help... I'll show them!!" He then bravely exited Ur to stubbornly pursue a renewed sense of pride.

- Chapter End.