#augh the worm in my brain is causing problems

[st-highwind]

Ramble, Bahamut Knight edition!

In my own little ffiv offshoot/au/whatever you wanna call it, I have different ideas for Kain. Ofc.

I politely and respectfully (against my will) dislike the Holy Dragoon getup. This idea initially stemmed from my dislike of the armor alone. However, the more I thought about it and as I actually played (and again, respectfully disliked) The After Years, the more the idea/concept developed.

Kain becoming a Holy Dragoon, to me, takes away from his whole spiel of “I didn’t kill off the dark parts of me, I just accepted them as part of me”. The gist of becoming a “Holy” anything is that the dark is completely purged, removed, eradicated— Kain explicitly does not “kill” his Dark Side, rather he absorbs it. The dark is there, but honed and harmonized. Of course, I don’t want this alteration or Bahamut’s involvement to detract from Kluya’s spirit recognizing Kain’s strength. I feel that that detail fiercely emphasized the bond Cecil and Kain share, for Cecil’s dead father to share power he’d once granted to his son to what I can only assume is another son figure for him. I do feel Kluya’s spirit’s involvement is a testimony to their brotherhood and devotion to one another.

I want to connect Kain to Bahamut, first and foremost. As the dragon god of the eidolons, Bahamut’s gotta know something or another about dragoons or, if we’re feeling pretentious, Mr. Highwind himself. Kain fights Lunar Bahamut during his Lunar Trial, and I want to build on that. A lot. Bahamut likely would’ve also known about the slaughter of dragoons and wyverns in the ffii storyline.

In my mind’s eye, I picture Kain defeating Dark Kain during his trial, Lunar Bahamut appearing and, upon its defeat, its scales flake off and the real Bahamut emerges like something of an odd cocoon. Hatching out of an egg, maybe. For symbolism.

(Alternatively, it would be neat for Bahamut to hatch out of an egg and parallel the last wyvern in ffii that baby Kain bonded with…but I digress)

Anyways, the real Bahamut appears in Kain’s trial. Ideally, Kain will have done a bit better in accepting the darker facets of his persona within my au given Thrush’s presence and therefore doesn’t feel the need to fuck off to Mt. Ordeals for ten years. Instead, Bahamut would appear at the end of Kain’s trial and, with Kluya’s lunarian spirit shrouding the room in some sort of magical aura, Bahamut commends Kain for his strength, resilience, and willpower. He offers to boost his strength and bestow upon him the capacity for black magic.

Kain, knowing the regality of the lunar dragon, kneels and accepts. Bahamut then inhales and unleashes a plume of flame onto the dragoon, enveloping him in a biblical cleansing flame. Once Bahamut’s breath flickers out, Kain stands in a brand new suit of armor with a new weapon fitting nicely in his hand.

“Now,” Bahamut begins, his draconic voice emanating from every corner of the room. “I declare you the Lance of Bahamut.”

Kain, as a Bahamut Knight, now possesses the ability to use black magic. He may not bolster tier 3 attack spells, and as a matter of fact, he might utilize black magic in the same way that Cecil uses white. They may lack the most useful spells that Rosa and Rydia harbor, but they make great backups and can still wail out physical damage. Kain, now with Abel’s Trident, finds that his Jump ability has been replaced with Dive Bomb, a skill that when used, adds a selected elemental charge to Kain’s jump while also increasing the damage output. He withstands magic attacks a bit better and is still a deadly quick fighter.

The development of Kain into a Bahamut Knight rather than the Holy Dragoon makes more sense in my mind as it truly does encapsulate the acceptance and control of his inner darks. It is the honing of the very facets of his persona and channeled into carving a path to his future and fully restoring his honor and dignity.

Idk. Thoughts?

[evieunordinary]

Augh so @kawaii-death-machine’s post about unO scenarios she daydreams about constantly has infected me with brain worms about what a hypothetical sibling of John would be like so...

Meet Judy Doe, John’s long-suffering younger sister. I'm about to turn canon into origami.

Power-wise? Taking from Avi's post again, she manipulates others' abilities. If Blyke shot a laser at her, she could spin it around and shoot it right back at him.

Judy wasn't a late bloomer like her brother which often led to her having to protect him (which in practice meant they both got beat up). When he first gained his powers, they trained with each other all the time. By the time John became king though, she'd withdrawn and started to avoid him.

After John's rampage at New Bostin, Judy found herself an outcast thanks to her ties to him, and when he got back from Keon's "program"? It was easier to fill out two Wellston application forms.

Watching her brother struggle while powerless and become a tyrant after made her grow disillusioned with the hierarchy early on, and honestly? She doesn't actually like fighting all the time (not including yelling at John). She avoids taking part in the school hierarchy, and claims she was specially ordered not to because of her family's history with the authorities.

She and John don't exactly get along, while they were close in the past, their relationship has long-since broken down. Their agreement at Wellston is "you stay out of my business, I stay out of yours."

She is by no means John-levels of fucked up, but has a very heavy complex around being the Good Kid. She doesn't get in trouble, she doesn't cause problems, she doesn't need help.

There's literally so much sibling angst here please god get these kids some family therapy.