Memoirs of Adventure Creative Writing Contest (NA) - Official Entry Thread

[Lunairesol]

I write this to a friend. One who I have not met yet, but certainly has faced hardship. Gone through trials and pain. There are many things that keep an adventurer going. This story is to bring a smile to another hero's face.
The date escapes me, though it seems ages ago. Myself and my closest companion had overcome many obstacles together. Each of our enemies vanquished and we were awash in the glow of victory. Ahead of us loomed an enemy we had yet made our mark upon.
We gathered adventurers with promises that the battle would test their steel. Grit and fortitude would be required and these men and women six claimed to have it in bounds.
At the battlefield we strode forth, heads held high. We would endure, no matter the difficulty. This would be a tale told in minstrels’ ballads. As we charged forth, we could feel the rush in our blood. Adrenaline and vainglory.
Our foe was more swift and decisive than any that had met my blade before. Twas all I could do to keep on my feet. We fought on but were given no quarter. Each fell, injured or worse, our healers rushing to aid. There was only so much we could withstand. I recall taking several blows, but still trying. Whether out of stubborn pride or else, I attempted to fight on. Not willing for it to be in vain.
The taste of my blood was as vivid as the word on my friend’s mouth. Retreat. We were defeated.
One of the men we’d brought with us looked grim as we turned back.. As we discussed strategy, he gave his thoughts, quick to mention our failings. We were taken aback, and so he left. A few of us sent a call for another adventurer, but we had our doubts. Bitterness crept through us. Our hearts grew dark.
But then our bard cleared his throat. He began to sing a lively song. We all looked towards him. Despite what he had gone through, he insisted on keeping his grin.
At first, it had simply started with the bard, but soon others of us joined in. One of us began to parody the lyrics, and it caught on. My friend started to dance, and a few of the others joined. Our spirits were high, even though we had lost. After all, we still lived.
After much time, another decided to leave. With head hanging low, she dismissed herself. We knew, we understood. Though the first left us heartbroken, the second gave us strength. As we watched her, we had the resolve to make a decision. We would have to try alone. Deep in our heart of hearts, we knew we must try. Even if we lost again.
We walked into battle together. There was no bitterness. We tried, and though we failed, we were satisfied. Our hardship meant we could come back stronger. Though we separated, twas not with ill will. For we could have never left at all. We forged friendships through blood and steel. And as my friend and I made our way back home, we smiled.
For some, there is only winning. And I admit, it is nice. But those small moments make the journey worth continuing. Moments to bring a smile to a hero’s face.

(Noble barding)

[Cayotic]

Dearest Friend,

I can still recall the day we met a few years ago in near perfect detail. We were strangers. We had no mutual acquaintances. Yet, when we encountered one another I immediately felt drawn to a kindred spirit. We struck up a conversation, but not a single word was spoken. We use gesture after gesture to express our thoughts. At some points our actions were comical, others they were serious; but most importantly they were genuine and heartfelt. Though time has passed since our initial meeting, and we have since had many more conversations (some actually using spoken words) I still cherish the memory of our first meeting so fondly. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for all you have done to make me feel understood and accepted; though I am certain you would argue you had not done anything special.

Your Loving Lalafell Friend


*Desired Prize: Gaelicap*

[Kiwi-chan]

Valeria staggered into the Quicksand and dropped into a seat at the bar. Her armor was dented, and she could smell the monster slime sticking to her breastplate. Momodi set a cup of ale in front of her before bustling off to help some other patrons.

Valeria took off her helmet and stared into the cup of ale. She had survived an encounter with the primal Ifrit and been recruited by the Scions of the Seventh Dawn. She should be able to handle anything without running back here like a novice. She flinched when she felt someone touch her hand. She looked up into Momodi’s ruby eyes. "You all right?"

Valeria took a shaky breath and began taking off her gauntlets. "Momodi.. I don't think I can do this job. Everyone in the party expects to know exactly where to go in a place I've never been. I’m supposed to rush in and stand strong while some horror pummels or poisons me. I can’t...” She stopped halfway through taking off the second gauntlet, face scrunched up and holding back tears.

“Sometimes, when the road gets hard, it helps to think back to why you started in the first place. Why did you become a gladiator?”

“I.. I don’t really know. When I first came into Ul’dah, I saw them recruiting outside the Coliseum and figured I could do it.”

“And you have done well for yourself. I’ve seen many adventurers try to be a gladiator. Quite a few come back here after an hour with so many cactuar spines they can’t sit down.”

Momodi patted Valeria’s hand. “Don’t doubt your skill, Valeria. You have the talent to defend Eorzea. But maybe it’s time to try a different road. Have you ever considered trainin’ for a different role? Y’say you don’t much like being front and center in combat. How about off to the side in a support role? There are guilds out there who would love to have a skilled adventurer train with them for a spell.”

“I’m allowed to do that?”

“Oh, yes. I’ve seen plenty of folks do it when they find that their first guild wasn’t the best fit. Maybe you have the skill for healing. Many folks the wild rose picks have some skill in that area. Even if you don’t have the talent, the conjurer’s guild in Gridania is a good place to go to take a break from the rough adventurin’ life.”

“Conjuring.” Valeria echoed, turning it over in her mind as she finished taking off her gauntlets. Healing others instead of waiting to be healed while she felt her life drain away. Taking a step back from the battle to see the battlefield. Valeria felt a spark of hope. She wasn’t a total failure. Maybe there was a better road. “Yeah, maybe I’ll give that a try. Thank you, Momodi.”

Momodi smiled, opening her arms wide. “That’s what I’m here for.”

[bluebird earring]

[SylvaniaNaeuri]

"Anyone who's free right now should head to the Free Company house. We're gonna have a meet and greet!" came a bright, cheery voice from my link pearl. It seemed like my comm had been rather active lately. Shrugging my shoulders, I decided that a small break from adventuring was in order. Closing my eyes and concentrating, I called upon the aether, asking it to teleport me back to the familiar house in the Lavender Beds.

A slight gasp, and I took a moment to catch my breath as my eyes opened upon the large building, the bright sunlight illuminating the welcoming yard. Only recently had I been coming here, the home of my Free Company, fleeting memories of many moons quietly hunting monsters and taking up quests flickering in my conscious thought. Quickly were they brushed away as I moved through the yard, and then entered the building.

Waiting in the main hall were several of my company-mates, the first being the one who had ordered the command of gathering, a silver-haired Miqote standing on the stairs, harp in hand. She wasn't playing at the time, but she always seemed at the ready. I glanced around at the familiar faces whom I'd grown accustomed to, including the flashy grin of my adopted sister, Velstralia.

'Wow. There's quite a few people here,' I thought to myself, as I noticed several new faces that I hadn't seen before. The Miqo'te, Yun, apparently had a way with people, for they'd recruited so many in such a short span of time. The empty, quiet Company I'd become used to was now thriving and busy.

"Any requests?!" Yun suddenly chimed, a gentle strum of the harp calling everyone's attention. It felt.....like I was right at home, as the voices chimed individually, and music began to fill the air. I took a seat on the floor and smiled to myself, simply enjoying the moment, and looking upon my company-mates. This, I thought, was what community was.

It didn't take long for our Elezen friend, Leon, to call for a slight change of scenery.

"Everyone, to the hot tub!" he cried out. The group clamoured, and I chuckled to myself as each person changed into their respective swimwear. We made a beeline for the upstairs room where a nice dip in the hot tub waited for us all. I couldn't help but smile as the joking and random banter continued on for what felt like hours. Though, of course, it was only a matter of time before everyone would go about their seperate ways.

For one such as I, who spends so much time alone, moving at my own pace, it's moments like these that truly bring everything together. Moments of feeling as my heart resonates with others. When times are tough, or when I'm feeling unwell, I'm reminded that there are others who are there with me, those I can support, and those I can count on to be there when I need them.

This is my community. These are my company-mates and my friends. This is my Final Fantasy.

(If chosen, I would like the Scarf of Wondrous Wit as my prize.)

[Oki_Malqir]

Oki Malqir sat on the snowy ledge, just outside of Camp Dragonhead. She was huddled in her thick armor and robes, a glowing crystal giving off heat in front of her. This was one of the few times she took for herself. A shield, sporting a sigil of a red unicorn on a black field, sat propped in the snow next to her. Occasionally, she’d reach over and touch it, and smile.

She poured herself a warm drink, cupping her hands around it. After a sip, she quietly began to speak.

“Ah, my friend. I miss you.”

She brushed a hand through the snow, gathering her thoughts like snowflakes on her fur.

“I’ve been on a lot of adventures since you were last with me. I remember the last thing you told me. Smiling has been very hard, given all the heartache and pain I have witnessed since you left. I try, though. I try hard to find the good moments, the quiet when there aren’t demands on my time or on my person. Times when I’m not in immediate danger, or tracking down the next great evil, or running errands.

“I remember that it took a long time before the Scions saw me as something other than a tool - something to be used, repeatedly, until no longer needed. I wasn’t one of them. But you treated me as a friend. I wish you could have been with me in The Azim Steppe, when I helped battle for leadership with the tribes of Xaela, when we freed Doma from the Garlean Empire. I can imagine the look of triumph on your face, the feasting at Ala Mhigo. You would have loved being able to swim without holding your breath. You would especially have loved teasing Urianger and Alphinaud, as they doggy-paddled their way from shore to shore.

“I wonder if you knew how to swim.”

She sipped again and the steam worked to loosen the tears that had frozen on her face.

“I met the father of the Empire - an Ascian, if you can believe it. His name was Emet-Selch. He was an architect, a driving force for the empire’s conquering philosophy. But he was an Ascian.”

She shook her head. “I liked him. As odious as he was, I liked him. He had a purpose, drive. He didn’t just… decide to kill the worlds. He tried to live in them first. He made friends… made babies. He had lives, loved ones. He wasn’t just some maniacal fiend. He tried to find value in life that had taken away everything he had ever known.

“In the end, though, the choice was the recreation of a world long dead or the loss of everything and everyone. It was a loss none of us could countenance. He had to die.

“His last words, ‘Remember us.’ I thought my heart couldn’t get any heavier. But I shouldered Emet-Selch’s burden. I will remember him. I will remember his people, and why they died. I will remember their creations, their seemingly innocent nature.”

Oki heaved a heavy sigh, wiping tears from her face with the back of her glove. “I wonder, dear Haurchefant, if he would have found you worthier than he did the rest of us.”

(Bluebird earrings)

[VilleVitale]

Birds of A Feather

My fondest memories of Final Fantasy XIV have undoubtedly been those I’ve shared with others. The cooperative nature of the game has allowed me to foster new friendships alongside invite my old gaming friends on adventures across Eorzea and beyond. If I had to choose one moment that stood out to me the most, however, it would be my experience during the Moogle Treasure Trove.

After taking a three year break from the game, I had the insanely poor luck of returning during the very tail end of the event. Barring that, I made the questionably wise decision (dragging my best friend along) to grind for irregular tombstones of philosophy until we could earn cool mounts⁠—a great way to scrub the rust off my weapons and leap back into the fray!

This would mean running Castrum Meridianum/The Praetorium a collective seventeen times in two days. Sure, it would have been way easier to score the mount the usual way through Extreme runs, but if Final Fantasy XIV has taught me anything it’s to appreciate the experience.. and also the EXP (also, I was still on base game and wouldn’t reach the content for some time, shh).

By the end of the grind we had memorized the dialogue to a T (dOn’T eVeN tHiNk AbOuT dYiNg, YoU’rE tOo BlOoDy UsEfUl) and had witnessed everything from a half naked Godbert Manderville look-alike (so really, just Godbert Manderville) to the spelling of C-I-D’s name in waymarks out of fantastical adoration by those equally blessed to remember the cutscenes line for line. It’s these little things that make me appreciate the community’s sense of humor.. and hey, we did earn our matching white lanners! I could think of no nobler steed (barring my loyal chocobo, Chocola, of course) to accompany me during Heavensward!

(Noble Barding for Chocola <3)


Click image for larger size!

[AriaVitali]

To my dearest friend,

It has been much too long. I have just returned from a pilgrimage your House’s manservant had suggested I take. Before you begin teasing to how I am much too young to be enjoying such leisures, a woman by the name of Matoya had already chided me for such decisions.

Nonetheless, I write to voice my passions to you. To ever hold these memories close to my heart so that, when I am eventually returned to Hydalaeyn’s side, I am able to recount every detail of mine adventures to you beyond the Light. So pray forgive me for my musings, as I suspect you also wish of mine forgiveness that fateful day that you defended all that I was.

All that you saw that I could be.

If you allow me to speak plainly, I was frustrated. Why did you choose me to sacrifice yourself?

For days following, I wandered and dreaded the continuation of mine responsibilities. For the first time since offering myself - offering mine own name and who I was up to the Seventh Umbral Calamity - to bear the title of “adventurer” and, eventually, the "Warrior of Light", had I regretted my initial decision to embark on my journey of grandeur. For what was the point of attaining such noble titles if it were to be at the expense of those I loved?

It was when I had come to you to the place where we lay you to rest that I understood.

And what have you come to understand? You may ask, with that boyish laugh I remember you fondly for the day you renamed your- no, our encampment the Falling Snow.

I had come to understand the value of mine own life.

Long had I pitted myself against the face of death without much care, simply because it was a task only I can do. From the final stand at the Steps of Faith to standing at the opposite end of a Garlean prince’s blade to facing an Ascian with a mortal wound to the stomach in a world different from our own. Surely, I should have recognized it sooner. That which you had tried to help me realize before it was too late.

So, my friend, I tell you now: I do understand. And I thank you for keeping your promise, for standing with me at the end of the good fight when I felt it was barely enough. Thank you for being one that aided me in saving a dear friend’s life where I could do naught to save yours.

Please know, I will no longer take this life you had saved in vain. Your father, Lord Edmont, reminded me of it, as well - that wheresoever I go, your spirit is sure to follow.

However, it will give me utmost joy if you take your turn to rest, my friend. Rest and watch over me from the heavens, along with the Twelve. It will take me awhile to join you, but be patient, for I will have stories to recount once we meet again. Surely, those will take up the rest of our eternity.

For now, I will continue fighting the good fight. Along with those that believe in me the way you once did … and continue to do.

Your Friend,

The Warrior of Light

[Leunide]

When you handed me that deed, when you told me that little house on the hill was mine, I should simply have been grateful. After all, it was such a small thing to you. What’s several handfuls of coins to someone who could buy the realm over if they so choose?

But instead I felt more than just simple gratitude. To me, this wasn’t charity, it was more. You gave me a home to call my own, a place to rest my head after a long day’s journey. You gave me the freedom to express myself in a space fit just for me. You, who always had my back when I needed it, gave me something that made me feel welcome. I had a home, and with it, I had a family who would always make me feel welcome within it.

I always could have worked hard, earned the coin myself. But then it would not have been the same. This was a gift from someone very dear to me, and if the gift had been a simple thing to you, just some coins tossed my way, then know that to me it meant more than I can express. You showed me that you wanted me to stay, you showed me that I was someone you wanted to stick around, and you made me feel like someone was happy to see me here.

At night, when all have gone their separate ways, and the setting sun takes with it our last goodbyes, I find myself pacing the grounds of my estate. I step into the parlor and I gaze upon the stern faces among the many paintings, and as I do, I find myself smiling as I know tomorrow will return to me your wondrous personage once again. So long as I have this home, I know I am truly never alone. For, to me, this home is more than just a place to stay warm and dry, it’s a beautiful reminder that I have a family here, one who treat me like I truly belong. One who are always happy to see me come the morning after.

They say that home is where the heart is, that anywhere can be your home with the right company, but when you gave me the deed to this place, when you told me that this little house on the hill would be mine, I don’t think anyone would have truly realized just how true to life that old saying would become. Because so long as I have you here with me, I know that my heart truly is in the right place.

So thank you, to the one who found me a place to call my own, the one who made me feel like I was truly home.

(Item Desired: Scarf of Wondrous Wit)

[Silhouette98]

We all know the story of Shiva and Hrasvalgar, but there is another tale of love between dragon and man that very few people know.

Many years ago, a Dragoon came upon a fragile dragon egg in a far away land called Vana'Diel. Everyone she encountered said she should destroy this egg as it would bring nothing but destruction once hatched and grown, but in her heart the Dragoon had already bonded with the tiny life encased in that delicate shell. She kept it safe and warm until one day the baby with the dark eyes and blue scales tipped in yellow hatched. She decided to name him Himmelskralle, and from that day forward they never left each others side. They became inseparable, battling many a foe as they explored together. No matter how far they traveled from home they were never lonely because they always had each other. Time passed, and soon the Dragoon grew too old to fight. Thinking herself a burden to her friend she slipped away one starry night as Himmelskralle slept peacefully.

But sometimes even the Gods can take notice of an insignificant mortal and the bond she forged with a dragon. The Dragoon was re-born in a new land called Eorzea. As she grew up she trained with a lance and became an adventurer, all the while remembering her dragon. She earned the title the Azure Dragoon, and though she surpassed even that to become the Warrior of Light, her heart ached with loneliness for Himmelskralle. She traveled to Ishgard hoping her beloved friend would have been reborn as well. She searched everywhere from the frigid waters of Greytail Falls to the chocobo forests of the Dravanian Forelands but to no avail. It was then she met an unusual moogle named Mogzin who had dreams of rebuilding Bahrr Lehs. The Dragoon agreed to help. She was glad to be doing something other than fighting and she lost herself in her work. Before she knew it, they had begun to make real progress. The dirt was smoothed down flat, the heavy rocks removed. A stone wall began to take shape, and then a fountain. Eventually, the dragoon and the moogles completed the project.

It was then, standing back admiring a job well done that something twinkled out of the corner of her eye. Intrigued, she walked over and was stunned to discover a small wind-up dragonet being sold by a moogle. Lifting it carefully in trembling hands she saw the resemblance was uncanny. The black eyes shining. The blue scales tipped in yellow.

Legend has it, she still searches for her Himmelskralle. It is said that if ever in your own travels you meet the Azure Dragoon, you will see following behind her, her most prized possession. A simple toy in the shape of an old friend.

(Thank you for reading. If a winner, I would appreciate the Ahriman Choker prize)

[lunabane]

Luna held far too many memories of Eorzea and could never decide on which ones were her favorites. But if she had a choice, she would have to say sitting out on the snowy lands of Coerthas, recalling her tales with her best friend.

Maybe this was her way of coping with the fact that he was gone. She was happy to have a hand in murdering the bastards that killed him.

"You should've seen it my friend! Lakeland was a vision in violet with the Crystal Tower in the backdrop. It was so beautiful and once we brought back the night and the stars twinkled across the sky was a sight to behold to the people, who hadn't seen the night in over 100 years."

"I couldn't imagine that, and I doubt you could either. Though here in Coerthas the nights are a little lighter from the snow. But not being able to see the stars? Watching the moon as it crosses the sky? That seems so crazy, but to these people it was a reality. And I'm glad I got to give them their night back."

She looked over at the shield that rested next to the stone and began to trace the unicorn along it, tears beginning to gather in her brown eyes. "I miss you Haurchefant. When G'raha Tia first contacted me to possibly reverse time and unwrite history, my first thought was selfish, to undo your death."

She sighed. "Forgive me my friend. I may be a hero, but I am still a woman, with wishes and desires, selfish as they may be. And my wish is to have one more moment with my best friend."

She feels a presence at her side, a pressure brushing away a tear that she didn't realize had fallen down her cheek. When she looked up, nobody was there.

She wiped at her eyes as she stood.

"Please be at peace, my dearest friend. I will be ever looking forward, and do so with a smile, as you request. For a smile best suits a hero."