Lore:Eternal Requiem

Eternal Requiem is the name of the second story written by Benji Powell for the Clouded Horizons series, a self-insertion/novelization set in the Tenth Realm. It is the sequel to his first story, Destiny's Call.

Synopsis

Return to Action

Two weeks in Earth time later, the Fayth reappeared to Ben, giving him the chance to return to Spira to aid his friends once again. Eagerly accepting, Ben returned to the city of Luca to meet up with Yuna and Rikku, as well as a mysterious girl named Paine. The three are sphere hunters known as the Gullwings, now traveling the world over in search of old spheres and clues to Spira's past. When he did, the group was confronted by a trio of rival sphere hunters - Leblanc, Logos, and Ormi, comprising the Leblanc Syndicate. After reclaiming Yuna's Songstress dressphere and Garment Grid, a device that allows the wearer to take on different powers in battle, the group took off aboard the airship Celsius, headed for Mount Gagazet and Ben's first mission as a sphere hunter.

On Mount Gagazet, the group was confronted numerous times by Leblanc, Logos, and Ormi, as well as a large spider-like creature guarding the sphere. After destroying it, the group managed to snag the sphere away from Leblanc's goons and head back to the Celsius. The group then headed to Besaid Island, investigating reports of another sphere there. After finding the sphere on Besaid Island, Ben investigated another lead on the island solo, but instead found himself confronted with a boy named Darius DeValle The two found themselves fighting for control of the sphere, with Ben gaining the upper hand after a bit, but as Darius left, Ben discovered that there was no sphere to be found. Disappointed, he returned to the airship as they left the island once again.

Travels and Confrontation

The group traveled for quite some time, going all over Spira and acquiring several spheres, which contained bits and pieces of strange events that made no sense to the group. They met up with several important leaders in Spira, including Mevyn Nooj, the leader of the Youth League; Praetor Baralai, the new leader of Bevelle; and Gippal, the leader of the Machine Faction. Eventually, they discovered that an unsent named Shuyin was attempting to revive a construct called Vegnagun, a massive demonesque machina that was said to be capable of destroying Sin. It was also discovered that his lover, Lenne, had sealed her memories inside of Yuna's Songstress dressphere, and had resided there for a thousand years. During this time, Darius also gained possession of an artifact called the Sphere of the Fayth, leaving the Gullwings now with two threats on their hands. As the group traveled to the various temples of Spira, Darius used the Aeons from the temples to try and stop the group, utilizing the Sphere of the Fayth to control them.

After outwitting and outfighting them at every turn, Darius found himself confronted with all four of the Gullwings on the Thunder Plains after a concert held by Yuna. The combined efforts of the party, utilizing all of their most powerful dresspheres and skills, still wasn't enough to take down Darius, but he left shortly after the fight, his work apparently done in Spira. Almost immediately after that, an old face revealed themselves to the group in the form of Auron, sent back to Spira by the fayth for reasons known only to the both of them. Auron stayed with the group for a short time, before leaving in the night. The group then decided to travel back to Besaid Temple and enter the Farplane in order to stop Shuyin.

Finale

On the Farplane, the group fought the rest of the Aeons they once called allies, before arriving at the heart of the Farplane, where Vegnagun lay. Leblanc's group, as well as the three leaders showed up to help, with even Auron rejoining the party for the final fight. After a tense confrontation, the group succeeded in disabling Vegnagun and defeating Shuyin, letting his and Lenne's spirit rest together at last.

Once back on the surface, however, Ben talked with the fayth about a favor - return Shuyin and Lenne to life, if they wished to come back. He felt that they deserved the chance to live a normal life. The duo apparently agreed, and Ben met them at Bevelle, bringing them aboard the airship. Tidus also returned, with his love for Yuna overriding all else to bring them back together. Ben, in a change of heart from his last adventure, decided to remain in Spira for six months to train for an upcoming fighting tournament, the first annual Spiran Fighters Association Grand Championship.

Soundtrack

In a nod to stories by other authors, Ben used themes in his story for dramatic effect. A list of the themes used is as followed:

Opening Theme, Eternal Requiem

• Chrono Trigger Black Wind Rising OC Remix - Star Salzman, OverClocked Remix

Chapters 1-10

Chapter 1

• Opening Concert: Real Emotion - h-wonder, Jade from Sweetbox, Final Fantasy X-2
• Battle with Leblanc (First): YuRiPa Battle 1 - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2
• Yuna Appears: Yuna’s Theme - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2
• Battle with Leblanc (Second): YuRiPa Battle 2 - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2

Chapter 3

• Ben’s Theme: Sandstorm - Darude, Before the Storm

Chapter 5

• Battle with Guardian Beast: YuRiPa Battle 2 - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2

Chapter 6

• Battle with High Priest: Sandstorm - Darude, Before the Storm
• Battle with YSLS-Zero: YuRiPa Battle 1 - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2

Chapter 9

• Battle with Logos and Ormi: I’ll Give You Something Hot - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2

Chapters 11-21

Chapter 12

• Battle with Logos: Hunter’s Chance - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy IX

Chapter 13

• Ben vs. Ormi: I’ll Give You Something Hot - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2

Chapter 14

• Sneaking Into Chateau Leblanc: Infiltration - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2
• Battle with Leblanc, Logos, Ormi: I’ll Give You Something Hot - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2

Chapter 15

• Battle with Bahamut: Summoned Beast Battle - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X

Chapter 16

• Ben vs. Darius: Otherworld - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X

Chapter 19

• Battle with Yojimbo: Don’t Be Afraid - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy VIII

Chapter 20

• Battle with Garik: Force Your Way - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy VIII

Chapter 21

• Battle with Valefor: Confidence in the Domination - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time

Chapters 22-32

Chapter 22

• Battle with Ifrit: Primal Eyes - Yoko Shimomura, Parasite Eve

Chapter 23

• Battle with Ixion: Influence of Truth Appearance - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time

Chapter 25

• Battle with Zalamander: Enemy Attack - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X
• 1000 Words Concert: 1000 Words (FFX-2 Mix) - Jade from Sweetbox, Final Fantasy X-2

Chapter 26

• Battle with Darius: Powerbroker - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time

Chapter 27

• Battle with Nooj, Gippal, Baralai: The Deceased Laugh - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X

Chapter 28

• Traversing the Farplane: Abyss of the Farplane - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2
• Battle with Shiva: Cutting Edge of Notion - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time

Chapter 29

• Battle with the Magus Sisters: Beyond The One - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
• Battle with Anima: Dark Messenger - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy IX

Chapter 31

• Yuna’s Feelings: Yuna’s Ballad - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2
• Preparing: Yuna’s Theme - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2
• Vegnagun Awakens: Vegnagun Starting - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2
• Pathway to Conflict: Clash - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2
• Battle with Vegnagun (Torso): Struggle To The Death - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2
• Battle with Vegnagun (Head): Destruction - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2

Chapter 32

• Battle with Shuyin: The True Nature of All - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
• Reuniting: Ending ~Until The Day We Meet Again~ - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi; Final Fantasy X-2

Ending Theme, Eternal Requiem

• Wind Crest ~The Three Trails~ - Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi, Shingo Ogata; Final Fantasy X-2 Piano Collections

Eternal Requiem: Silent Symphony

Eternal Requiem: Silent Symphony is a revision of the original story, Eternal Requiem, which will make changes and additions to the canon world of Clouded Horizons. Currently, the project has not been released, but the first chapter is under development.