Final Fantasy Frontier 8 (Patreon)

"Wow, you became a Knight?" asked Zidane, hanging from the ceiling of their cabin by his ankles as he performed his usual exercise routine. He didn't get a lot of action during the 'heist,' so he needed to work off a bit of his excess energy before sleeping.

"I'm not sure how, but that seems to be the case..." replied Andrew, sitting nearby at a circular wooden table, propping up his forehead with his hand and elbow. His mind had cleared after separating from the Princess, but he still had no idea how circumstances led to him being appointed as her Knight.

"Maybe she fell for you?" proposed Zidane. "You know, love at first sight and all that. You're not a bad-looking fella. Not as handsome as me, mind you, but a solid eight, maybe even a nine out of ten."

"I highly doubt that..." groaned Andrew. But, at the same time, he felt it was one of the only explanations that made sense. She could also simply be using him, but the Garnet he knew wasn't like that. Most of the people Andrew had encountered were similar to their counterparts in the games, so Garnet should be kind, compassionate, and somewhat naive, choosing to see the best in people until circumstances forced her to change...

"Well, either way, you're one lucky guy," asserted Zidane, flipping from the ceiling and landing deftly on his feet. "I only got a glimpse of her, and she is every ounce the babealicious beauty people say she is. If I were in your position, rather than standing guard outside, I might sneak into her room to ensure she doesn't get cold, if you catch my drift."

Seeing Zidane wink, Andrew's expression formed into a deadpan as he flatly remarked, "I now understand why the Princess feels the need to have someone stand outside her room at night..."

"Hey, don't be like that," joked Zidane, joining Andrew at the table and casually popping the cork of a brandy bottle as he teased, "I'm not trying to pressure you into anything. But if the opportunity presents itself, make sure you follow through. You might not know this since you're all proper-like, but women prefer men of action. They also have just as many doubts as we do, if not more, so if she opens herself to you and you fail to act, it will bother her ten times as much as it bothers you. Keep that in mind."

Punctuating his brotherly advice, Zidane chugged nearly half the bottle of brandy in a single go. Truth be told, he was envious of Andrew. But, at the same time, he was glad Andrew had found a place for himself outside of Tantalus. None of them were bad people, but Andrew was different from the rest of their Troupe. Zidane didn't know what kind of life he led before losing his memories, but his 'need' to bathe and clean his teeth daily, not to mention his mannerisms, were more highborn than bottomfeeder...

"Here, let me pour you a drink," said Zidane. "Then, when you become a bigshot at the castle, you can invite me over and hook me up with one of those bottles they say cost more than a house."

"I doubt a Knight's pay is all that great," replied Andrew, allowing Zidane to pour him a glass before adding, "But you can be sure I won't forget my Tantalus roots. In fact, I'll probably need your help in the not-so-distant future, so try not to wander off once we reach the city..."

Raising his brows, Zidane asked, "My help? With what? Did the Princess tell you a secret or something...?"

Shaking his head, Andrew adopted a serious expression as he revealed, "I've been having...visions. I'm not sure how else to describe them, but I've been seeing images of places I've never been and enemies I've yet to face. This war that Alexandria is plotting...I believe powerful forces are pulling the strings from the shadows, forces powerful enough to shape or destroy the world. In my visions, you were one of the main people fighting to prevent its destruction. There was also a female Dragoon, a young boy with glowing eyes and a steepled hat, a little girl who played the flute and could summon powerful monsters, and a muscular thief with crimson hair and ashen skin..."

"Oh, wow," remarked Zidane, staring at Andrew with wide eyes as he added, "I actually recognize two of the people you're talking about. That female Dragoon should be Freya, and the thief with crimson hair has to be Amarant. I encountered the two on my journey a year or two ago. Neither was as skilled as me, but they're good enough to call themselves some of the strongest on the continent."

"You believe me...?" asked Andrew.

"Why wouldn't I...?" countered Zidane, pouring himself a glass and smiling as he teased, "We haven't known each other for very long, but I'd trust my back to you any day, Andrew. As you said in the past, we might not have the same blood running through our veins, but we're undoubtedly family. If you need me, I'll be there."

Though he did his best to appear stoic, Andrew could not prevent tears from forming in his eyes. Zidane saw them, but instead of teasing him like he usually would, he looked away and sipped from his glass, smiling as he muttered, "Careful, this alcohol has a bit of kick to it. The fumes will make your eyes water..."

Exhaling a dry chuckle, Andrew closed his eyes to prevent his tears from leaking out as he softly replied, "I've noticed..."

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Though he failed to rest properly, Andrew didn't feel tired as he headed to the Captain's quarters to pick up the Princess. His Insomniac helped, but the main reason for his lack of fatigue was his nervousness. He still didn't know why the Princess had chosen to appoint him as her Knight, so his walk to the Captain's quarters felt like showing up for a date with a girl he had a crush on since elementary school...

Fortunately for Andrew, his fairly obvious trepidation around her was one of the reasons Garnet felt comfortable around him. In her eyes, he was a lot like a lion that could claim her life with a single swipe of its paws, yet, from the moment she set sights on him, he acted nervous, courteous, and considerate toward her. She had also gotten to know a fair bit about him from Baku, so when he ascended the stairs to the Captain's quarters, she smiled and said, "You're early."

Rubbing the back of his head, a habit he had picked up from Zidane, Andrew explained, "I said 2-3 hours, but I felt it wouldn't be proper to keep you waiting for the full three..."

"Did you manage to get any rest...?" asked Garnet, rising to her feet and giving Andrew what he interpreted as a concerned once over.

"Not really," admitted Andrew. "But I'll be good to stand guard. I just had to speak with some of my mates from Tantalus since we might not be able to meet too often now that I've become your Knight."

"I see..." muttered Garnet, holding her hand up to her chest and grasping the fragmented crystal pendant dangling from her neck. She looked like she wanted to apologize, but before she could, Andrew waved his hand in front of him, assuring her, "It's not a big deal. Besides, they all understand that war is best prevented. I can't do much but protect you, but if that can help avert the war, it's only right that I give it my all."

Regaining her smile, Garnet released her grasp on her pendant and said, "Thank you. Sir Ashford's words are very reassuring."

"That's gonna take some getting used to..." muttered Andrew, causing Garnet to surprise him by asking, "Then, may I call you Andrew? I'm not overly fond of formalities, you see..."

"If that's what the Princess desires..." replied Andrew, immediately eating his words when Garnet countered, saying, "If I am to address you by your given name, I insist you do the same. Please, Andrew, call me Garnet. You have my permission as the Princess and future ruler of Alexandria."

Witnessing Andrew's and Garnet's interaction from the side, Baku couldn't remain silent any longer, his loud, boisterous laughter echoing through his quarters. Then, embarrassing both of them, he pretended to wipe a tear from his eye, humming, "Ah, to be young~" in a whimsical tone...

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Sitting outside the storage room with nothing to do, Andrew gazed at the ceiling, lost in thought. He knew for a fact that no one would come by to pester Garnet, not unless they wanted Baku to punch a hole through their gut, so he had between eight to ten hours to kill, investing part of his time in perusing his Menus, specifically the Correspondence and Link tabs.

As the name implied, Correspondence allowed Andrew to communicate with people across worlds, but only if they had been registered within his contact list. Andrew learned this by linking one of the worlds he had little to no desire to visit, Final Fantasy 8. The plot of that particular game was simply too convoluted for him to have any meaningful impact on the story without messing everything up. Thus, both to experience how linking worked and to see if the stories would play out according to the events he was familiar with, Andrew chose Final Fantasy 8 as his experimental test subject. He understood this wasn't exactly fair to the people living inside, but once he gained his footing in other worlds, he could always send aid to them retroactively.

In the process of conducting his experiment, Andrew was able to confirm several things about his system, its functions, and its limitations. First and foremost, when he entered a new world, his appearance remained largely the same. It would be updated to reflect the aesthetics of the new world, but his height, hair color, eye color, and even his weight remained exactly the same. He also kept all of his Abilities, but the system would change to reflect the mechanics of whichever world he was in. This was yet another reason he wanted to avoid Final Fantasy 8, as using their Guardian Forces to increase your strength meant sacrificing your long and eventually even your short-term memories.

*tok* *tok* *tok*

Startling Andrew from his system, a faint knocking sound emanated from behind him. He was sitting on the ground in front of the door, so when he heard it, he immediately leaped to his feet, calling out, "Did you need me for something, Prin—I mean, Garnet?"

Opening the door just enough to peer through the crack, Garnet caused Andrew's heart to skip a beat and subsequently accelerate when she asked, "Would you care to come inside? I'm having trouble sleeping, and a bit of conversation might help..."

"I mean...if that's what you want..." replied Andrew, smiling nervously as he scratched the back of his head. In response, Garnet opened the door wider, indicating for him to enter as she turned around and returned to the bed and bedding set that had been provided for her comfort.

Seeing Andrew try to sit on the floor, Garnet patted the space beside her on the bed, saying, "If we are to converse, I do not wish to talk down to you. You may sit here."

Though he had an impulse to run away, Andrew forced himself to stand

and sit on Garnet's bed, making sure to keep a bit of distance between them as he nervously inquired, "What did you want to talk about...?"

"Is it true you have amnesia?" asked Garnet, getting to the heart of what she was curious about.

Shaking his head, Andrew replied, "It's not complete amnesia, but I don't have any memories about my life in this world before a month ago. I just woke up in Lindblum one day, tracked down someone that looked like me, and the rest is history in the making..."

"Then, once I am crowned Queen, I pledge to help you and your brother, Zidane, learn the truth of your origin," declared Garnet, causing Andrew to lean away from her as she leaned closer with an eager, bright-eyed smile. Fortunately, she realized her mistake, fixing her posture and clearing her throat before changing the topic to literature and theater. She was a little disappointed to learn that Andrew wasn't even familiar with the works of Lord Afon, the writ responsible for I Want to be Your Canary, but her eyes lit up when he began pitching 'new' ideas, borrowed from the works of his past life...

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