Tournament - Balthier vs. Fran

[JohnnyChany]

 

 

Peace in Ivalice had always been a fragile thing. In the years following the fall of Vayne Solidor and the peace agreement that saved the entire world from being consumed by war and chaos, Queen Ashe of Dalmasca ruled with careful wisdom. The Sun-Cryst had been destroyed. The gods’ hands had loosened their grip over the dealings of man and Archadia no longer marched beneath the shadow of Judges and ambition.

But all who had endured it remembered it well and feared its return in a new form.

Deep beneath the Ozmone Plain, explorers unearthed something vast, an enormous crystal pulsing with mist, pale as moonlight and veined in cold blue fire. It did not blaze gold like the Sun-Cryst, but it was clearly just as powerful, if not more sol. They called it the Moon-Cryst.

It was too massive to move, too unstable to harness whole. Yet everyone knew that a shard, just one shard, could drown kingdoms in war. The crystal’s power called out to the greedy and power hungry.

Fortunately, there was only one blade on Ivalice capable of cutting the nethicite that constructed the crystal. The Treaty-Blade owned by the war-weary Queen Ashe.

She was skeptical of the restraint of other kingdoms and even members of her own court. She entrusted the mystical blade to those who desired nothing beyond the Wood, the Viera of Eruyt Village. Their dwelling was hidden in the depths of the Golmore Jungle and only accessible by other Viera. They had no thirst for dominion. No hunger for empire. Only harmony.

The blade had vanished into the forest and with it the threat of someone using it to weaponize the Moon-Cryst. Or so everyone thought.

In an old Archadian stronghold, the sky pirate, Balthier stepped across its broken stone floor. He moved with languid confidence with one hand rested near the grip of his gun.

He stopped at the sight of a gilded relic and brushed dust from it with a smirk on his face.

“Honestly,” he sighed. “After all that imperial posturing, this is the best Archadia leaves behind?”

He was uncharacteristically alone. His longtime partner in crime, Fran remained aboard the Stahl, repairing a damaged stabilizer after an unfortunate incident involving an overeager wyvern.

Balthier gazed over at a discarded medallion. It was curious. He thought of her more when she was absent than when she stood beside him.

“You’ve let your eyes betray your heart.”

She had said that in the Golmore Jungle a year prior. At the time she was referring to his thinly veiled unease around nethicite but the statement stuck with him. He knew Fran always saw through him, through the swaggering confidence, since the day they had met.

It was a mutual yearning for freedom and adventure that first brought them together. They forged an unbreakable bond that only grew stronger over time. However, it became clear to Baltheir after the fall of Vayne Solidor that his feelings for Fran had evolved further. I

In truth he had always been attracted to Fran, it was nearly impossible not to be, even in a large crowd she always stood out.

She stood taller than most citizens of Ivalice, over 7 foot if you included her ears.  Her long legs were and torso were encased in dark, intricate armor that left little to imagination yet carried an undeniable elegance. She had high cheekbones and soft lips that rarely smiled, but when she did it brought a joy to Balthier like nothing else could.

They always had fun understated flirtation with one another. But Balther was certain that would be the extent of it. How could it not be?

Fran had left her home, Eruyt Village, over fifty years ago. Fifty. When Balthier’s father was still a child. What could he be to her, truly? A companion. A diversion. A fleeting chapter in a long life.

Balthier smiled ruefully.

“Leading men,” he muttered to himself, “should know better than to pine.”

A voice rose out behind him.

“I hope I’m not interrupting.”

Balthier turned.

The man that stood in his sight appeared to be a jester without a kingdom. He wore a garish tunic of red and black. And over his face a golden mask. 

“Oh,” Balthier said dryly. “Archadia’s military tailoring has truly declined since the fall of the Judges.”

“I am not Archadian,” the stranger snapped.

“Pity. I was going to enjoy sticking it to the old empire one more time.”

The man bristled. “They call me the Psycho Pirate.”

Balthier blinked.

“…Of course they do.”

Balthier gestured at the costume. “You’ve a mask, a theatrical flair, and a questionable grasp of insignia placement. If you weren’t a pirate, I would assume you were a bounty hunter with a tragically pathetic self-chosen theme.”

The mask’s eyes flared. “I’m not an actual pirate. I am a dimensional traveler. I have crossed countless worlds, and now I am stranded here.”

“Unfortunate,” said Balthier. “But if you have come here looking for a tour guide for Ivalice. You have stumbled into the wrong place.”

“I’ve come for you,” Psycho Pirate declared.

Balthier grinned. “Ah, as usual it is about me, but that does leave me with some confusion. If you are here for me would that not make you a bounty hunter?”

“I only want to use you to get to her, the bunny woman!”

Balthier’s hand drifted to his gun. “Careful.”

“The Viera,” Psycho Pirate explained. “Her kind is resistant to my power. Stoic. Difficult to influence. But you…” 

The mask turned fully toward Balthier

“You are full of fear. Full of anger. Full of longing. So much suppressed emotion to feed off of.”

Balthier aimed his gun at Psycho Pirate. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Psycho Pirate laughed.

“You fear nethicite,” he whispered. “You are angry about what it did to your father and fear what it might do to your friends. You fear losing HER. You fear she does not love you.”

“Enough.”

The mask’s eyes burned as Psycho Pirate’s powers surged.

“I need the Treaty-Blade. The Moon-Cryst will yield to it. And you will convince her to take it from Eruyt Village and bring it to me.”

“I don’t take orders,” Balthier responded defiantly.

“You will crumble, and be crippled by your emotion,” Psycho Pirate exclaimed.

Emotion surged like wildfire with Balthier. Images flooded his mind, of Fran, of his time as a Judge, of his father, Cid, raving over nethicite and becoming less attached to the reality around him.

“You're nothing without her,” Psycho Pirate taunted. “And she will outlive you. You are temporary.”

The words struck deep. Something snapped inside Balthier. His resistance faltered.

“Yes,” he finally said. “She will eventually leave me in pain, but not before I cause her pain first.”

Psycho Pirate’s mask glowed brightly. “Bring me the blade.”

Minutes later, Fran looked up as Balthier boarded the Strahl.

“You are troubled,” she observed.

He brushed off the concern with charm. “Troubled? Please. I found nothing but dust and outdated décor.”

Her ears twitched.

“What is on your mind?” Fran asked.

“Only that Golmore Jungle might offer better prospects. Rare artifacts. Untouched ruins. And perhaps,” he added lightly, “a pleasant stroll through familiar territory.”

“Golmore…” Fran repeated with some concern.

But she trusted Balthier’s instincts. He had never led them astray before. So, they charted a course for the dense jungle. 

Once they arrived, they were immediately swarmed by nasty marlboros. They fought side by side and dispersed the dangerous monsters in short order. When the area was cleared, Balthier made his pitch.

“We should visit Eruyt Village.” Balthier suggested. “You should create the bridge.”

Fran stood still.

“You know I have said my final goodbyes to that place and have no desire to return.”

“Yeah, but we could really use their magic stones if we are to traverse the true depths of the Golmore Jungle,” Balthier replied.

Fran was stunned. “You would really ask this of me for possible acquisition of treasure?”

“Not just that,” insisted Balther. “I’ve been thinking, it’s time for you to build more than just the physical bridge. You could be a conduit between Viera and Hume. A symbol and example to help quell any rising tensions.”

“I do not care for such a pursuit,” Fran answered.

“Maybe you should,” Balthier countered quietly

She studied him for a moment.

“What happened in the stronghold?”

“Nothing.”

“You lie.”

Balthier’s calm composure fractured.

“I am not the one being dishonest,” he accused. “You think I don’t see it. You act like we will always be partners but that isn’t true. Eventually you will leave, leave me to die.”

Her voice lowered. “Is that what you believe?”

“Is it not true? A partnership of convenience can only last but so long. So, I’m taking the first shot.”

He lifted his gun.

“Open the path. Now.”

“And if I refuse?”

For a heartbeat neither moved.

Then they clashed. Balthier fought with reckless fury, every suppressed fear made manifest.

“You think I don’t feel?” he shouted. “You think I haven’t—”

He couldn’t finish the sentence.

Fran parried his attack

“This is not you,” she said.

“It is!” he declared. “The leading man taking control of his own narrative!”

She saw it then. She had assumed he was under some sort of mystical mind control. But this was deeper than that. It was the amplification of existing feelings buried deep within her partner.

“You love me,” Fran said quietly.

The words froze him. The look in Fran’s eyes further enraged him. They continued their fight. Fran’s stoic exterior remained but her mind began to wander with this revelation, even as she fought him.

“Hadn’t you best be off. That’s what a sky pirate does. You fly, don’t you?

”I suppose you’d better hang on then.”

It was an exchange they had after they had defeated Balthier’s father. The Sun-Cryst was pulsating at dangerous life-threatening levels and the mist it spewed had turned Fran into a liability. Yet still, Balthier had refused to leave her behind. It was something that Fran had thought about often, more than she would ever admit. She also thought about him carrying her through the deteriorating engine room of the sky fortress, Bahamut, as it crashed outside Rabanastre.

 His devotion was absolute even at the risk of his own life. Was this love? Fran was never sure. Such things were not priorities of the Viera, and only after living in the world of the Humes did Fran even begin to entertain the concept. 

Fran knew that she was not only fighting her longtime companion, but also the unspoken connection between them. They never had given it words before but perhaps now was the time. Just beating him in battle wouldn’t be enough. To save Balthier from this emotional manipulation, she would have to do the one thing she never had before, talk about her own feelings. A battle she was unsure she was equipped to fight.

[Callisto]

Learn More About
Balthier
Read more about Balthier at Wikipedia
Official Site: Square-Enix Links: Wikipedia Final Fantasy Wiki FF Insider

Fran
Read more about Fran at Wikipedia
Official Site: Square-Enix Links: Wikipedia Final Fantasy Wiki Final Fantasy Insider

[Mercenaryblade]

I’m rooting for you Fran! 
 

Pretty creative fight idea

[Venom 2009]

I'm voting the bunny girl. 🐇 🐰

[Callisto]

Match Final Results

Member Ratings:
4.80 - Twogunkid
5.00 - Venom 2009
4.80 - Mercenaryblade
5.00 - Boratz

FPA Calculation:
4 Total Votes cast
19.60 Total Combined Score
19.60 / 4 = 4.90 Final Rating on the match

MATCH SCORE
Balthier: 3
Fran: 5