It’s great to see this Forum be a bit more alive after the time I’ve been here. It’s also nice to see the interest in literature. I seem to sound like your old english teacher or someone of that position, but I honestly do love writing. Some see it as large walls of text (tl;dr), but I see it was a form of art. I think one thing that all art has in common is expressing emotions. This can be seen in music, drawing, sculpting, and - yes you book haters - writing.
It’s a way of releasing that pent up creativity inside of me, not to mention how I feel certainly affects how I write. I had been inspired from playing Final Fantasy Tactics Advanced again, and thus this had been created. Although, I’m not sure on the title, I’ve gotten a bit of writing done.
I’d love to get some comments and especially some opinions or suggestions on my writing, your thoughts about it, and how I can improve. I am a firm believer in constructive criticism. Being a bit of a rock when it comes to taking offensive comments, I don’t really mind if you do have anything bad to say. After all, with every mistake you learn!
Enough with the ranting, here’s the first bit folks.
:!!: Note: I will assure you that this “chapter” does not have any Final Fantasy Tactics Advanced spoilers in them. There is a short scene with fighting, but it’s not overly detailed on the stabby part. :!!:
Chapter One
“Hey! Vin! Watch out! One o’ them brutes are behind you!â€
Twirling around, I swung my sword with some unknown strength from inside myself. It was as if the Great Wave off Kanagawa had been unleashed upon my grizzly foe. He reeled back and tripped over a fallen lance.
Why am I fighting? I asked myself. Right. It"s a long story.
As I pondered in the brutal warzone, an ally by the name of Xander dealt the final blow. I cringed and looked away as he sunk his sword into the deformed beast that had once been my enemy.
It was some humanoid creature, but it wasn’t really “humanâ€. Its back was hunched as it howled like a madman. It disregarded pain and was oblivious to the rest of the world as if its only goal in life was to kill those who it locked eyes with. They seemed to be around every corner, just wanting to get a stab me. They had gruesome looking claws, and oversized hands with seemed to be a cross of a bear’s paw and a human hand. Its body was covered in matted fur, but it wasn’t exactly your shirtless, idiotic, vampire-hating werewolf either.
“You gotta stay sharp bro,†Xander called out waving his hand in front of my face. “Finish ‘im before, or death’ll beat you to it.â€
Xander was a muscular, but athletic young man. His brown hair tied back by a red bandana and sweat dripped from his brow. He was the sword master of our small band of various characters, and he was one of the most respected. He could use anything from longswords to rapiers, and that gave him the edge in battle. He could just pick up a fallen sword and use it to its full potential.
It seems as if his magical skill with drawing out the inner power from swords seemed to work with us too. He always kept us laughing, throwing a sarcastic joke out here and there. He kept everyone going, and he’s probably the reason I’m still alive, but I’m still in shock about the whole thing.
“We’re done, Xander!†A female voice cut through my thoughts.
“Great. Let’s get back. We should rest for the day.â€
A chorus of cheers emerged from the battle weary crowd. Although, I’m sure you’re confused how this world of fantasy became my reality. Amherst, Massachusetts was where my story started.
Classes had just finished for the day. It wasn’t anything challenging in particular, I guess I never stood out anyways. Not being so proficient in literature, science, math, or history, I pursued a career in art. It’s leaded me to Amherst University. It’s a comfortable neighborhood and a nice community. I packed up my belongings and trudged behind the crowd of students leaving the room.
Suddenly, a hand slapped my shoulder in a friendly manner.
“‘Sup, Vin!â€
It was one of my few good friends in the area. His name was Joshua Orson, but he likes to keep his middle name a secret. We’re not just random classmates who just happened to connect, we’ve got a project of our own to finish.
It all started a few years back when I had been in high school. I had been an avid comic reader at the time. I read anything from Batman to Vampire Knight. It was probably the most time consuming pastime I had. Not to mention collecting the books themselves was a hobby. We had first met on Deviant Art and had watched each other. We weren’t big name artists or anything, we just happened to stumble upon each other’s work.
One day, we were discussing our future careers when “comics†came up. As he was interested in drawing them, we decided to try a collaboration of our own. The work turned out to be one of the best I had ever done, and we instantly decided to keep going. It had been a world of swords and shields, clashing countries, and somewhat sarcastic characters, and it just kept growing and growing. Soon, we got together often on Skype and had long conversations regarding our comic in the making.
Then we took the next step as we headed out to college. We both had ended up getting in Amherst University, and it was the perfect opportunity to work together outside of the computer. It was great to actually talk to Joshua in person, and can I tell you, we didn’t let each other down. To this day, we’re still working on our comic and we’ve gotten pretty far! Although we haven’t published anything, we’re hoping to get this on the shelves one day.
“Hey Josh,†I replied with a grin.
“I got some project to finish today. ‘Fraid I can’t come with you,†Joshua said staring at the floor. “Sorry to let you down, bro.â€
“No problem. I finished it early so I can get right to work.â€
“Thanks! See you later,†he called out as he took off, his scarf trailing behind him.
I grabbed my coat as well and headed out.
Another day had gone by in a flash, right before my eyes. The snow was gently piling up on the trees like a thin layer of white frosting. A car lazily chugged along the black asphalt road. The sky was dimming into a cloudy blue gray as night began to walk its way into Amherst. The wind blew, sending the end of my scarf fluttering. The street lamps flickered on and I squinted my eyes. As I walked into the spotlight, everything else seemed darker than before. It felt like being put in the spotlight, but it was far too quiet for my tastes. As if I were a failed comedy act, I looked down and walked along.
The trail of footprints behind me kept growing as I trudged on. Rubbing my hands together and shoving them back into my pocket, I looked back at the sky and kept going. The snow slowly shifted from white to a soft pink as I neared the store that had turned into my home. Suddenly, I felt something run into me.
“Oof,†I gasped as I felt cold snow seeping through my coat.
“You’re late, Vincent Walker,†a small red headed figure abruptly turned her gaze away from me.
She was so adorable and sweet. Her name was Margaret, but everyone called her Maple since Marge seemed a bit on the rough side. Maple was as sweet as her nickname suggested. I couldn’t help but blush from the cold and her smiling face.
“Where were you? I wanted to read your comics,†Maple’s large dull brown eyes became even larger.
“Classes just finished,†I replied.
“Well, it’s cold. Come in already. Are you going to stand there all day?†She asked mockingly.
I smiled and invited myself in; after all, part of this shop was my home anyways. The floorboards creaked as with every step we took, but the dancing light of the fireplace gave this small store a welcoming demeanor. Add on Mr. Noni, the owner, and you had the friendliest convenience store around. They sold their classic homemade Italian food and the usual foods and items you would expect to find here.
Little Maple skipped around the counter and went up the stairs. The smell of savory food filled the air. The stove’s heat radiated throughout the small living room. The news was airing on TV and a reporter was talking about another murder in a monotone voice. I passed by without a word in a nonchalant manner into my room. It wasn’t like anything interesting ever happened here.
“So,†Maple grinned. “What are you going to draw today?â€
“Let’s see.â€
The tools of my trade messily splayed out on my desk. Papers were everywhere, but color too. As I grabbed my pencil and a new sheet, I started to sketch out the page. The broken gray lines of graphite were strewn about the page as my hand swiftly moved. Barely focusing on the accuracy, I let my hand flow across the page. There, it left a trail of emotions, actions, and thoughts frozen in paper, until it would be erased.
After a good two hours worth of work, I was too tired to do anything else. Perhaps it was the comfortable heat of the cozy house that had made me doze off, but I could be wrong. My eyes had grown heavy and I just lay my head down. The last thing I remembered hearing before I surrendered to sleep was Maple’s small voice.
“I wish this fantasy could be real, Vin.â€