Character Paths

[Symmetry]

I created a separate thread for this to make things easy. Since we're going to be branching out into several groups for subplots, we're going to have to choose how to divide ourselves up. This thread is for discussing where you plan on taking your character(s). You don't have to reveal all your secrets you plan on disclosing at some point, just a simple overview or some ideas will do.

If you think X & Y characters would get along or have some reason to be stuck together, then talk about it here.

[ZeaLitY]

1. Roget Parrion

Roget will become more sensitive to the matters of Project ZEAL as it goes on; he will not undergo major changes until the last couple subplots. He will eventually fall in love with Nasreen Ferdows. When she refuses her orders, he is asked to try and escape with her, but refuses. He comes to regret this, and it racks him daily until he unites with her towards the end.

2. Juan Z. Gerard

Juan will be in and out of the End of Time, having personal training with Spekkio. He will begin to cultivate his magic potential alongside his martial arts artlessness. He'll occasionally stroll back to Keystone to deal with matters of his homelife and make decisions. He'll eventually take a liking to Rashelle Tujaas, who charges him with the courage he needs to forge his own path in life. When she is abducted, Juan sort of subscribes to the dark side for awhile, eventually recovering her alone as she is taken to a place in Keystone to jog her memory. The two will eventually return to 1023 A.D., as Rashelle died in the original timeline anyway.

3. Nasreen Ferdows

Nasreen will be pushed with each subplot farther into Project ZEAL due to her immense shadow magic capability due to a genetic freak mutation. She will eventually, as in the last couple subplots, be assigned to assassinate outright one of the heroes via major temporal distortions, but the thought of Roget will prevent her from doing such a thing. At this point, the element that stopped her, Roget, will refuse to leave the Project in an attempt to escape. However, he activates the Project ZEAL Gate for her, allowing her to escape; she flies a subplot with Gaspar's heroes, but is recaptured. She is liberated before the final fight.

4. Rashelle Tujaas

Rashelle will be one of Gaspar's confidants, as her tactical expertise will be critical in avoiding Nanashi confrontations and planning missions. She will be paired with Juan to balance out skill; while the two disagree on most things at first, they learn much from each other. Rashelle becomes more introspective due to Juan's influence, and begins to admire him. Rashelle is constantly bothered by the fact that she should have died, and that her evolution as a human being on Gaspar's assignments is making her not wish to return to the 1400s and continue her past life. At one point, Rashelle will be kidnapped by the Nanashi and undergo a rigorous interrogation. Juan will proceed to unlock his darker side, and when the Nanashi take Rashelle to her former home to jog her memory and abuse her family, Juan will personally seek them out on the authority of Gaspar and fight for her. She will eventually leave with him for 1023 A.D., realizing that she must match the courage she's given him to find his own path in life.

[V_Translanka]

1. Glenn "Kaeru"

After being left behind by Gil & Flea, Glenn will be, in essence, looking over Gaspar's shoulder as more information on the ZEALians comes in. He sees this as his purpose, seeing as ZEAL interfered, manipulated, and eventually destroyed his home timeline. Being one of the first of Gaspar's Heroes, he will perhaps obtain some advanced Magical knowledge from Spekkio. He will eventually travel back to the Middle Ages to further research on Gaspar's findings of ZEALian interference there because he most knows about the time and places (even though there are differences between his Middle Ages and the old & new Toma Keystone Middle Ages).

2. Gil "Magus" Zeal

After being imprisoned by the ZEALians, Gil will be party to the Prison Break. Afterwards, he will continue with the others in the new Toma Keystone until they reach the End of Time. Upon reuniting with Marcy & Elle and saying farewell to Kaeru, Gil, Marcy & Elle will do one of two things which will bring them out of the ZEAL Project forever...1. Stay in the background of the End of Time doing nothing until it's safe to travel to Keystone again or 2. Enter a door in the vast expanse of the End of Time that Gaspar has never been able to open and back into Magness.

3. Flea

After being imprisoned by the ZEALians, Flea will be party to the Prison Break, where she will dutifully sacrifice herself for the good of the rest of the party...

4. Marcy & Elle "Lucca" Ashtear

They'll stay in the End of Time for a while, not doing much, and when Gil makes it back, they'll follow him like the lost little puppies they are.

5. Hunter Deschain

After coming into contact with the Frozen Flame (which thusly disappears in what appears to be the flash of a Gate) in El Nido 1025AD, Hunter's upper body strength is vastly increased and Gaspar eventually chooses the demi-human to join his group of heroes not only because of his contact with the FF, but because of a forgotten prize Hunter has been carrying around with him for some time. He will be tormented by the companionship of Amy.

6. Amy Gillian

After coming into contact with the Frozen Flame (which thusly disappears in what appears to be the flash of a Gate) in El Nido 1025AD, Amy's lower body strength is vastly increased and Gaspar eventually chooses her to join his group of heroes. Where-ever Hunter goes, she will tag along.

[Claado Shou]

Without giving up too much of the storyline I have in mind, here's my second character.

Serian Rendath
Serian is from the 2300 A.D. ravaged by Lavos, one of a group of survivors known as the Tyrans.  They were mutated genetically due to the debris from Lavos' shell, becoming vastly more intuitive and slightly physically deformed.  After their supplies in the war against the Lavos spawns have started to run out, Serian is sent to the mainland to try and garner equipment, but he is attacked by a Lavos spawn there.  Miraculously, he is able to defeat the beast, and Gaspar sees this show of power, transporting him to the End of Time to fight against ZEAL.

I'll need ZeaLitY's help on this one, since he controls Gaspar, but I don't think that'll be a problem.

[1stoftheLast]

Jack Nova

In the begining Jack doesn't want to be a part of the Zeal Project and asks that he be sent back to his own time to think things over.  He quickly realizes that he needs to be a part of the project, because he can't stop thinking about what he's seen and because by contrast, village life seems so bland.  Later he begins to to think that he needs to save the rest of his village from thier dull existence.

However, he is shuned when he displays some rudimentary magic to them during an attempt to display to them the kind of life they can be leading.  So he leaves home for good vowing never to return.  At the end of the story after peace is made with the Zealians of the Zeal dimension, Jack is the lone dissenter, and he travels to the Zeal timeline as a sort of a wandering profit in the hopes that he can lead the earthbounds in a rebellion.

[Radical_Dreamer]

Argus Dorian

Participant in ZEAL's dimensional experiments, until he personally witnesses the destruction of a dimension brought by ZEAL's meddling. Sabotagoes one of ZEAL's next experiments, and is thrown in prison, with his magic severly limited.

After participating in the jail break, he is brought to the End of Time where he gladly joins the efforts to thwart ZEAL's experiments in Keystone, and the dimensional experiment project altogether. He fights to the end, whether it's his or ZEALs.

If he can get his hands on a Dreamstone object of sufficient power (not sure if this is going to happen sometime down the line in the story or not yet) he might be able to permenantly break the seals. The Masamune or the Mammon Machine may be of use in this endeavor.

I think it's a bit early in the story to really plan much more (or in much more detail than that). I also don't know how the relationships between the characters are gonna work out, that'll have to be discussed between the authors.

[Symmetry]

You don't have to be certain of everything you post here - in fact, please use the thread to kick around ideas you've got because they might line up nicely with someone else's plans. (Or clash, for that matter.)

However, he is shuned when he displays some rudimentary magic to them during an attempt to display to them the kind of life they can be leading. So he leaves home for good vowing never to return. At the end of the story after peace is made with the Zealians of the Zeal dimension, Jack is the lone dissenter, and he travels to the Zeal timeline as a sort of a wandering profit in the hopes that he can lead the earthbounds in a rebellion.

I really like this idea - the Keystonians are going to join up with some Zealians eventually, but that doesn't mean all the results are going to be pretty.


Naomi Maruyama - At some point in the near future, Naomi will be kidnapped by agents of the Council to force her mother into doing their bidding. The capitivty will be short lived, however, for Gaspar's Chosen will stumble upon her in their travels. Naomi will insist upon following her rescuers, but whether they will trust her remains unclear.

Sessimine Maruyama - Sessimine's connections to the royal family will arouse the suspicion of the the Council, leading to the abduction of her daughter. In compliance with the the Council's demands, she will most likely travel to Keystone in search of a rogue temporal scholar who recently eluded their grasp. However, Sessimine's main focus throughout the story will be the Crown v Council subplot.

[Leebot]

Well, I'm leaving my characters' futures pretty open-ended, in anticipation of forming ties with other characters.

Relationship-wise:

Sigma - She'll be very lost and confused for a while, and eager (almost desperate) to form bonds with others. She'll likely develop a degree of hero worship towards Argus (and maybe Gil) thanks to his impending rescue of her.

Backer - He's had trouble with relationships in the past--a lot of trouble. He's apprehensive about approaching others, and is often found to be intimidating, so others rarely approach him. Maybe he'll have some luck once he gains the trust of others. Maybe not.

Storyline-wise:

Sigma - Absolutely nothing planned.

Backer - I've got a big post for him coming up soon (and I do mean big). It should show a bit more how he acts and thinks. For most of this story, he'll be on a quest for purpose. He's a very tortured soul, and may go to surprizing lengths in his quest for a quest. At the end of this story, if he hasn't found purpose, I plan to have him "throw himself to the winds" in desperation (jump into a phenomena which will send him to a random dimension, leaving his fate to chance).

[V_Translanka]

Serian is from the 2300 A.D. ravaged by Lavos, one of a group of survivors known as the Tyrans.

So, wait...how is that? Lavos exists again? Is this a supposed result of the new Toma Timeline? I never thought the Rainbow Shell was that important...but...how does that happen? Or is this 2300 in another timeline apart from either Keystone...?

At the end of the story after peace is made with the Zealians of the Zeal dimension, Jack is the lone dissenter, and he travels to the Zeal timeline as a sort of a wandering profit in the hopes that he can lead the earthbounds in a rebellion.

Would that be allowed? Seems like that would still be a big mess to the Keystone...or wait, you mean the ZEAL dimension is where Jack travels to, not just Keystone's Zeal Era...? That's probably right...makes more sense...

She'll (Sigma) likely develop a degree of hero worship towards Argus (and maybe Gil) thanks to his impending rescue of her.

Probably not in regards to Gil...He's still basically Magus, although only a wee-bit softer...From what you've described of Sigma in the beginning, I don't see either of them liking each other much...Gil will go along with her being there, but I see it as more because of Argus and because he needs the both of them to get back to the End of Time. Gil (and Magus for that matter) doesn't normally like anyone who doesn't earn his respect first, normally through some kind of show-of-power and/or courage...Sigma so far doesn't seem like the type that Gil would like...I imagine quite a kooky relationship happening between the trio...

Speaking of Argus, I definately believe he's the sort Gil would respect. It's very likely that Gil will give up his Pendant for Argus' use (if not forever, at least for the Prison Break and up until they reach the EoT again)...although it is not a powered-up version now that I think of it...Would it be enough to significantly give Argus his special Temporal persuasion? I'm guessing it will still be limited, even with Gil's Pendant...Perhaps they will realize that the Pendant isn't glowing much at all...perhaps just faintly, and will wonder whether or not it will accomplish anything, much less a Jail Break & a Dimensional portal...

*DUN DUN DUN*

Can you say suspense?

I can't...seew...spents...I'm a tard!

[Leebot]

V_Translanka:

I'm working on what to do to continue Backer's story, and reading a couple of your posts gave me an idea.

Interesting, I had planned for my other two people (Hunter & Amy) to be around those same places (most likely El Nido) in 1025AD, although I could change the year easily enough to cram in the whole lot of them...I really like the character of Backer...

I've decided that Hunter & Amy are going to have a brief contact with the FF...It's going to change them somewhat...Giving them both a kind of red barnacle-crusty growths on their arms & legs (respectively, not both) which will give them increased strength in those extremities (along with a general inlargement of said body-parts), but may (or may not) cause some impairments later...because they (the growths, not their body-parts) will continue to grow...

In Backer's search for purpose, he may come across rumors of an artifact that provides great power and insight: the Frozen Flame (see the quotes of the CC characters to see how it gives insight). For purpose of gaining insight, he goes off searching for the Frozen Flame (which will probably be found in the ruins of Terra Tower). Wherever it is that he finds it, he runs into Hunter and Amy. His experience with the Frozen Flame gives him (among other info) the information that a quest awaits him at the End of Time. He then uses the FF to open a portal there.

The evil(ish) nature of the FF will make this a lot more complicated in actuality, but I plan to have the unique nature of Backer's mind provide him with the needed edge. How does this sound?

[Symmetry]

Dun - [To avoid cluttering up the story thread any further.]

Getting to the EoT can really be as simple as having Gaspar summon Jai personally. In fact, that's more or less how I envisioned everyone getting there. Creating special circumstances for everyone to wind up there would just complicate the scenario and open up potentially problematic issues - a simple gate is all you need.

If you can come up with a more complex route for winding up at the End of Time, feel free to do so - but don't feel as if you have to conjure up something fancy to get there.

[Dunsparce]

Okay. that works.

[V_Translanka]

Uh...well now...Where would the FF be? I had it in El Nido still...Because of the changes not only by ZEAL, but also because of the Ideal Timeline...I figured it'd just be wherever...I had intended Hunter & Amy, more or less, to stumble upon it either in some cavern or some such...

I figured the whole bunch though, Gil & Argus, Hunter & Amy and Backer would all eventually meet...I just couldn't think up the right circumstances...Plus, how would knowledge that the FF gives insight be gained, when it barely seems that it's given in Chono Cross...?

I was thinking...Wasn't it one of the Tears that changed Serge? What was up with that....Damnation if my knowledge of the Cross-world is limited!

[Symmetry]

I figured the whole bunch though, Gil & Argus, Hunter & Amy and Backer would all eventually meet...I just couldn't think up the right circumstances...Plus, how would knowledge that the FF gives insight be gained, when it barely seems that it's given in Chono Cross...?

I was wondering the same thing. I don't know how the Frozen Flame could tell Backer there was a quest waiting for him at the End of Time - but it occurs to me that perhaps the Frozen Flame might open up a gate to the EoT as a way of trying to fulfill Backer's desire to find purpose. Then the three of them could meet Gaspar, who fills them in on what's going down.

Or did I just recycle your idea and spit it back out in different terms?

[Leebot]

Well, its not solely the Frozen Flame that does this for Backer, it just enables intervention of... well, that would be telling. Let's just say it isn't just a huge fortunate coincidence that the brain damage Backer suffered turned out as it did (as in, providing a functional, but inhuman mind as opposed to insanity or simply death), and the same factor's coming into play here. If I do the post like this, you'll be able to glean a bit more.

I guess the Frozen Flame probably wouldn't be found in Terra Tower as it wouldn't come to be in the ideal dimension. It would probably be in the Sea of Eden, in Chronopolis. Which raises the question of what happened to Chronopolis in the ideal dimension. Maybe we could just say that the dimensional reset button also caused its time bubble to go back to the future, and only an empty sea remains there.