Lore:Destiny's Call

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

Synopsis

Unlikely Beginnings

A seventeen year old boy by the name of Benji Powell was offered a chance to travel to the world of Spira by one of a group of beings known as the "fayth," spirits who existed for the sole purpose of dreaming in order to maintain a city destroyed a thousand years ago. Known as Zanarkand, the city was once a bustling, lively metropolis, until a creature known as Sin, a large whale-like being crafted from souls of the dead, destroyed the city and its inhabitants. A young boy named Tidus who lived in the Zanarkand of the past survived, along with his mentor Auron, a warrior monk, and together, with Ben, traveled to the Spira of a thousand years in the future. The two younger boys ended up in a place known as Baaj Temple, where they were nearly killed twice before being saved by a young Al Bhed girl named Rikku. She took them aboard her ship in order to enlist their help in raising an airship from the bottom of the sea, but they were lost to the waters once more when Sin arrived and attacked the ship.

The Summoner's Path

The two then ended up on Besaid Island, meeting up with several more faces. Among them was Wakka, the captain of the Besaid Aurochs blitzball team, a sport resembling a mix of soccer and football but played underwater; Yuna, a summoner who had lived on the island for most of her life; Lulu, Yuna's close friend and one of her guardians, and Kimahri, a lion-like creature known as a Ronso from a place called Mount Gagazet. Summoners such as Yuna traveled far and wide to gain enough power to destroy Sin, at least for a time. They did this by calling upon creatures known as Aeons, spirits with tremendous power often linked to an element of nature. Guardians protected the summoner until they reached Zanarkand and a place called the Hall of the Final Summoning, where the summoner and a chosen guardian would sacrifice themselves to destroy Sin and bring a period called the Calm. The Calm lasted for ten years until Sin rose from the dead anew and began to terrorize the world once more.

Spira taught people to believe in Yevon, a religion named after, supposedly, the first and greatest summoner of all. It stated that until mankind achieved purity, Sin could only be defeated by summoners and their guardians. The religion also forbid the use of machina, or machines, by people. When Ben and Yuna reached the temple, the fayth appeared to him alone, stating that one of the reasons he was offered the chance to come was that he was a mortal with the potential to become a summoner with time and training. He entered the Chamber of the Fayth and prayed to the fayth there, obtaining his first aeon: Valefor.

After meeting up with Wakka, Yuna, Lulu, and Kimahri, the group set off on their travels, leaving Besaid Island and traveling to Kilika Island, which was ravaged in an attack by Sin as they arrived. Yuna performed a dance called the Sending, a spiritual dance that sent the souls of the departed peacefully to the Farplane, or afterlife. The group soon after left Kilika Island, headed to Kilika Temple. There, they met several members of a blitzball team known as the Luca Goers, as well as a fellow summoner named Dona and her guardian, Barthello. Yuna and Ben passed through the temple's Cloister of Trials, a maze-like part of the temple designed to test summoners and their guardians. Praying to the fayth of Kilika Temple, the two summoners acquired Ifrit, the Aeon of fire.

The next stop on their journey was Luca, home to a large blitzball stadium and one of the biggest cities that existed, next to the city of Bevelle. The group encountered Maester Mika, an elderly man who was celebrating fifty years in office as Maester, as well as Maester Seymour, a half-human half-Guado being. Ben took a dislike to Seymour instantly, for reasons known only to himself. Later, during the blitzball championship scheduled to be held in honor of Maester Mika, Yuna was kidnapped by a group of Al Bhed and then rescued by Tidus and Lulu, with help from Ben. Ben was then asked to become Yuna's guardian, which he accepted.

After the game, however, is when disaster struck. Sneaking into the stadium, Ben discovered that Seymour was planning to set fiends loose on the stadium. He wasn't able to stop the Maester in time, and instead ended up helping the group, along with the newly-arrived Auron, to destroy the fiends in the stadium. Auron joined the group as Yuna's guardian, and the group left Luca shortly afterward, heading down a long road called the Mi'ihen Highroad. They traveled the road until they arrived at a beach, where a large group of soldiers and machina were gathered in an attack known as Operation Mi'ihen to attempt to destroy Sin. The plan failed, however, leaving many dead and Sin still alive. The group left shortly after, headed to the nearby Djose Temple.

The group arrived at Djose Temple, taking a much-needed and deserved break for the night after Yuna and Ben acquired their third Aeon, the lightning-based Ixion. Early the next morning, they left the temple and headed down a path called the Moonflow, a waterside trail that would have to be traversed in part by means of a shoopuf, a large elephant-like creature that carried a compartment on its back for travelers. During the ride across the Moonflow, Yuna was nearly abducted again by the Al Bhed, but was saved by Tidus, Wakka, and Ben, who destroyed the offending machina. Afterward, the party met up with Rikku, who also joined the group as one of Yuna's guardians.

Revelations

Now with a party of eight, the group entered a small town known as Guadosalam, built within the trunk of a gigantic tree. Inside Guadosalam, they found an entrance to the realm of the Farplane, as well as the mansion of Maester Seymour. After a talk with the Maester, the group departed and passed through the Thunder Plains to Macalania Forest, then through the forest to Macalania Temple. At Macalania Temple, Yuna and Ben acquired the Aeon of ice, Shiva, before confronting Maester Seymour about his crimes at Luca and elsewhere. Ben challenged the Maester in a one-on-one fight, defeating his aeon, Anima, and killing the Maester. The group was chased all the way back to Macalania Forest, where they rested to plan their next move.

The party eventually made their way to the city of Bevelle, where Yuna and Ben acquired the Aeon of Bevelle Temple, Bahamut. Shortly after this, they confronted a now-unsent Seymour once again, defeating him after a pitched battle. The group then departed Bevelle, heading back to Macalania Forest and traveling along another route to reach the vast plain known as the Calm Lands, the sight of an epic battle with Sin in ages past. Fighting their way through attempted capture and fiends alike, the group climbed the steep hills of Mount Gagazet, finally arriving at a plateau overlooking Zanarkand. Seymour once again made his presence known, but was driven back a third time by the party's efforts.

Descending into Zanarkand, the party worked their way through the Chamber of the Fayth and through the temple, coming across Lady Yunalesca, an unsent summoner tasked with granting summoners the ability to use the Final Summoning, sacrificing themselves to destroy Sin. The group refused this idea, however, and defeated Yunalesca, releasing her soul to the Farplane. They then traveled back to Bevelle to meet with Maester Mika, but found the fayth instead. Yuna, Ben, and Tidus met with the fayth, discovering that the true way to defeat Sin was not to defeat Sin itself, but rather the one summoning Sin - Yu Yevon.

Finale

The party devised a plan to lure Sin into the open, then attacked the creature with all their might. It took much time and effort, but the beast finally succumbed in part, falling to the ground at Bevelle as the party entered into the dimension inside of the enormous creature. Inside, they found a maze of paths and a ruined city, along with the unsent Maester Seymour. This time, the Maester was defeated and sent, his soul released to the Farplane for eternity. Continuing on, the party made their way to the site of the final confrontation with Yu Yevon - an arena floating above a cityscape resembling the city of Zanarkand. It was there that the party defeated Yu Yevon, putting an end to Sin once and for all. Auron was revealed to have actually been an unsent, and was sent to the Farplane by Yuna. Tidus also vanished, revealed to be nothing but a dream of the fayth, much like his beloved city of Zanarkand.

As Yuna made a speech at Bevelle, Ben departed for his home world once again, his journey at an end for the time being.

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, Destiny's Call

• Final Fantasy X To Zanarkand Once Again OC Remix - Russell Cox, OverClocked Remix

Chapters 1-15

Chapter 13

• Ben’s Theme: Numb - Linkin Park, Meteora

Chapters 16-31

Chapter 24

• Ben vs. Seymour, Part 1: Liberi Fatali - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy VIII
• Ben vs. Anima: Premonition - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy VIII
• Ben vs. Seymour, Part 2: Numb - Linkin Park, Meteora

Chapter 27

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

Chapter 29

• Battle with Seymour (Second): Premonition - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy VIII

Chapter 31

• Confessing to Rikku: Where I Belong - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy VIII

Chapters 32-42

Chapter 32

• Battle with Defender X: Black Omen - Yasunori Mitsuda, Chrono Trigger

Chapter 33

• Kimahri vs. Biran and Yenke: Influence of Truth Appearance - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time

Chapter 34

• Battle with Seymour (Third): Cutting Edge of Notion - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time

Chapter 35

• Battle with Sanctuary Keeper: March For Glory - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time

Chapter 36

• Arriving at Zanarkand: To Zanarkand - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X
• Recording Yuna’s Sphere: Yuna’s Theme - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X

Chapter 37

• Battle with Spectral Keeper: Path of Repentance - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X

Chapter 38

• Battle with Yunalesca, Part 1: Frightened Eyes - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
• Battle with Yunalesca, Part 2: Malicious Fingers - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
• Battle with Yunalesca, Part 3: The Deceased Laugh - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X

Chapter 40

• Approaching Sin: The Stage is Set - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy VIII
• Battle with Sin, Part 1: The Divine Spirit of Language - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
• Battle with Sin, Part 2: More Complicated - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
• Tidus and Yuna Talk: The Oath - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy VIII
• Battle with Sin, Part 3: Beyond The One - Motoi Sakuraba, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time; Maybe I’m A Lion - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy VIII

Chapter 41

• Inside Sin: Only A Plank Between One and Perdition - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy VIII
• Battle with Seymour (Final): Seymour Battle - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X

Chapter 42

• Battle with Jecht: Otherworld - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X
• Jecht’s Farewell: Someday The Dream Will End - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X
• Battle with Aeons: Summoned Beast Battle - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X
• Battle with Yu Yevon: Decisive Battle - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X

Ending Theme, Destiny's Call

• Passion ~after the battle~ - Utada Hikaru, Kingdom Hearts II

Destiny's Call: Chronicles of the Chosen

Destiny's Call: Chronicles of the Chosen is a revision to Destiny's Call, and makes minor changes and additions to the canon world of Clouded Horizons. The overall plot of the story has not and will not deviate extensively, but events will be changed and added to make the plot more realistic and coherent, and scenes will also be edited for more description and other details.

Synopsis

See above for the synopsis of Chronicles of the Chosen.

Soundtrack

Chronicles of the Chosen has a different and more extended soundtrack than its precursor did, and will be listed here.

Opening Theme, Chronicles

• Final Fantasy X To Zanarkand Once Again OC Remix - Russell Cox, OverClocked Remix

Chapters 1-15

Chapter 2

• Escaping Zanarkand: Hurry! - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X

Chapter 3

• Ben's Theme: Soul Blazer Tears for a Moonlit Knight OC Remix - Israfel, OverClocked Remix

Chapter 5

• Arrival At The Island: Besaid Island - Nobuo Uematsu, Final Fantasy X
• Ben's Battle Theme: Sinister Sundown - Yoko Shimomura, Kingdom Hearts II