First mission: The Chaos Shrine
~Masterlist~
Thanks to @whumperofworlds I had the opportunity to start playing Final Fantasy 1, so here's a story with the OCs I created in the game. I think there's a lot of potential here and I couldn't resist the inspiration! (You don't need to know anything about the game to enjoy the story).
CW: Multiple whumpees, lady whumpee, kidnapping, bound and gagged, used as bait, hostage situation, fantasy typical violence, canon villain death.
The Chaos Shrine was a massive, crumbling stone fortress, one that no one could quite explain how it was still standing after so many years of abandonment. Its open gate yawned like a gaping maw, threatening to swallow whole and never return anyone who dared venture into its labyrinth of darkness. A dense mist clung perpetually to its towering spires, and the air grew heavier and colder the closer one got.
The entire place was a red flag visible from miles away. No one in the Kingdom of Cornelia would dare set foot anywhere near it.
And yet, that was exactly where Jasper’s team—Jasper, Pyrite, Selenite, and Cinnabar—was headed.
“Don’t worry, Your Majesty. We’ll save the princess and bring her back safe and sound!”
Jasper walked at the front, as always, leading the group toward the looming stone structure. After several minutes of fighting their way through goblins and wild wolves in the forest, they had finally reached the place where they hoped to find Princess Sara—and where they would undoubtedly face Garland, the dangerous rogue knight who had kidnapped her.
“Alright, team,” Jasper said, turning to them with his hands on his hips. “This is our first real important mission: rescuing the princess. If we succeed, the king promised to rebuild the northern bridge, and we’ll be able to continue our journey.”
“And hopefully he’ll pay us well, too,” Pyrite added. The thief twirled his knife as a sly grin spread across his lips.
“I still don’t get why we have to do this,” Cinnabar muttered under his breath. His wide-brimmed red hat hid his face, but everyone could picture the eye-roll and pouting. “It’s not like we’re even from this kingdom or anything. We were just passing through…”
“How can you say that, Cinnabar?” Jasper asked, not in a scolding tone, just genuinely baffled. He stepped closer to the young red mage with an almost comically pitiful puppy-eyes expression that clashed with his tall, broad frame. “We’re here to help people, and that princess needs us!”
“Jasper’s right!” Selenite, the small white mage, chimed in. “We can’t just keep going, knowing a poor innocent princess is suffering unjustly.”
Faced with the pleading eyes of the warrior and the white mage, Cinnabar let out a long, resigned sigh.
“Fine,” he said. “But only because it’s obvious no one in that useless kingdom can do it, and I’m not letting the princess suffer because of that.”
Jasper and Selenite celebrated with a high-five, while Pyrite watched the group with a quiet, fond smile.
“Alright, let’s go in.”
The Chaos Shrine turned out to be much larger than they had imagined. It was dark and suffocating. The ghostly torches lining the halls barely cut through the fog and did nothing to warm freezing air. Visibility was limited to just a few steps ahead.
Finding the princess was going to be an undoubtedly difficult task, especially with the constant and unwarned monster ambushes forcing them to fight or flee just to survive. These creatures were far stronger and more aggressive than the ones in the forest, and it didn’t take long before the group was exhausted.
“Let’s take a break and set up camp,” Pyrite said after they narrowly escaped a pack of wargs. “Start a fire and set up the tent. I’ll take first watch.”
“B-but we haven’t found the princess yet!” Jasper protested.
Pyrite draped an arm around the warrior’s shoulders and gently pulled him aside. When he spoke his voice was calm, but firm, carrying that tone that reminded everyone that, even if he wasn’t the leader, he was still the oldest in the group.
“Jas, I know you want to save the princess and complete our first big mission as soon as possible. I do too. But this place is worse than we expected. The others are exhausted and hurt from running and fighting, and need to recover their mana. I know you might still have energy left to fight—you’re the toughest of all of us—but they don’t. And we can’t afford to lose our mages, our only healers.”
Even though it wasn’t a scolding, Jasper couldn’t help to look down, ashamed.
“Let’s rest,” Pyrite continued. “We’ll keep searching tomorrow.”
“…Alright.”
They camped, and the next day they continued their search. Just like before, they found no sign of the princess—only more monsters, more battles and more exhaustion. Their supplies and potions begin running low. No one said it out loud, but the team was growing desperate.
By the third day, the tension was impossible to ignore.
Anxiety kept Jasper from sleeping. Eventually, he gave up and got up. Pyrite stood nearby, his back to him, keeping watch.
“Hey,” the warrior said softly so as not to wake the mages, sitting down beside the thief.
“Hey,” the other replied without turning around. Dark circles framed his eyes, and in his hands he held a piece of wood they had found lying around, shaping it into a stake with his knife.
They sat in silence for a while.
“We’re not getting anywhere,” Pyrite said at last. “I think we should go back to town and come up with a better plan.”
Jasper wanted to argue. To say they were close, that he could feel it, that his gut told him so. But looking at Pyrite, at how tired he was… he stopped himself. He knew Selenite and Cinnabar were just as worn out. He didn’t want his friends to suffer, but he also didn’t want to delay the mission any longer. Princess Sara was still out there, in danger.
Making a risky decision, he stood up.
“I’m… going to step out and stretch my legs for a bit,” he said.
Pyrite glanced at him. “Then why are you taking your sword?”
“In case of monsters. Obviously,” Jasper said, far too quickly. People said he was a terrible liar, and he knew it. Lying always made him nervous. “I’ll just… take a quick look around. I know my way back, don’t worry.”
The thief’s expression of disbelief needed no words, but after a few seconds, he let out a tired sigh.
“Alright. Don’t go too far.”
Jasper gave him a determined smile and nodded before leaving the small stone room they had set up as their camp.
The shrine was silent. The warrior gripped the hilt of his weapon tightly, all his senses on high alert. Every flutter, every breath, every foreign footstep echoing through the corridors made his hair stand on end—but he kept moving forward nonetheless. If he could find Princess Sara, he could spare his team the trouble and they could all return to town sooner. They had already explored most of the shrine, anyway, so what was the harm in checking the rest?
He walked for several minutes until he found a large double metal door he had never seen before. Unlike the others they had encountered, this one was unlocked.
Inside was a vast hall filled with broken stone columns. Bats shrieked from the beams int the ceiling. At the center stood a stone altar, upon which rested a dark crystal sphere. However, what truly caught his attention were the quiet sobs coming from behind it.
Without a second thought, Jasper moved toward the sound, discovering a girl with long pink hair, her dress dusty and torn at the edges. She was tied up, and a cloth gag covered her mouth. When she saw him, she stopped crying and jolted in surprise.
“Hey, it’s okay,” Jasper said gently, giving her the kindest smile he could manage. “Your father sent us to save you. Are you Princess Sara?”
A bit calmer now, the girl nodded, a glimmer of hope flickering in her eyes.
“Alright, okay, I’m going to get you out of here.”
Jasper had just begun cutting the rope binding the princess’s ankles when suddenly she started shouting, staring at him with urgent eyes.
“Mmmnph! Mmmnph!”
“It’s okay, I’ve got it, I’m working on it” he said. “It’s just—there’s a lot of rope here, and it’s not that easy to cut…”
She kept shouting and shook her head frantically. Confused, Jasper pulled the gag from her mouth.
“Watch out, behind you!” she cried.
A chill ran down his spine as the warrior turned around.
And then something hard slammed into the side of his head.
The world spun and he hit the ground hard, dazed. Something warm and metallic scent began trickling from his temple. Slow, heavy footsteps echoed through the stone chamber as they approached.
“Well, what do we have here?” a deep male voice said. “One of the king’s little pets?”
Jasper tried to push himself up onto his hands and knees, but a second blow knocked him flat against the ground again.
“Looks like I’m going to have some fun with you.”
A third strike stole his consciousness completely.
Jasper woke to a pounding headache. Dried blood clung to one side of his face, while his other cheek lay pressed against the cold stone floor. He tried to push himself up, but his limbs refused to cooperate. It didn’t take long to realize why—thick ropes were wound tightly around his torso and legs, binding his ankles and pinning his wrists behind his back. His armor was gone, and his sword was nowhere in sight.
A muffled, frightened sound made him turn his head to the right. There, not far from him, he spotted the princess, bound and gagged again. When she saw he was awake, the panic in her eyes softened, if only a little.
“So this is what the king sends instead of meeting my demands?”
The voice echoed through the chamber, accompanied by the slow, deliberate sound of footsteps. A tall figure soon emerged from the shadows, clad in gleaming silver armor. His face was concealed behind a horned helmet and a wide purple cape draped over his shoulders.
Garland.
The villain stopped in front of Jasper, looming over him with quiet menace.
“How many others came with you?” he asked.
The young warrior’s heart began to race. He strained against the ropes, but they held fast. If he could just reach the dagger hidden in his boot, maybe he could escape and warn the others—but not like this. Not now. He wouldn’t risk putting them in greater danger than he already had.
“I came alone,” he said.
Unfortunately, Jasper had never been a convincing liar. Garland simply clicked his tongue.
“Let me guess,” he went on. “There are four of you… and at least one is a mage, isn’t that right?”
“No,” Jasper answered, too quickly.
A low laugh rumbled from deep within the man’s chest.
“Well, since the king doesn’t seem to care enough about his daughter to meet my demands or come himself, perhaps having you here will encourage your little group to… persuade the king on my behalf.”
Even with his face hidden, the malice in Garland’s grin was unmistakable in his voice.
“They would never do that!” Jasper shouted, struggling again his restrains with renewed force.
Garland crouched beside him, seizing a fistful of his hair and yanking his head back until their faces were inches apart.
“Oh, I think they will,” he said mockingly. “Now then… would you be so kind as to scream for me?”
“What? Like this? AAAAHHH—AKH!”
A cloth was shoved roughly into Jasper’s mouth. Before he could had the chance to spit it out, a thick strip of fabric was pressed over his lips and tied tight behind his neck.
“Now… would you care to try that again?”
“Mmmnph!”
His cries were reduced to helpless, muffled sounds behind the gag. Garland let out a satisfied chuckle.
“Good. Now all that remains is to wait for your friends to walk straight into my trap. I’ll make sure to ease their path—I wouldn’t want them worrying too much about you just yet.”
Jasper’s stomach dropped. No… had he just led his team into even greater danger? Guilt quickly surged through him, rising like a tide he couldn’t hold back. Tears stung his eyes. No—he couldn’t let that happen. They couldn’t allow this wicked villain, this monster, to manipulate them into doing his bidding. The smartest course would be exactly what Pyrite had said: return to town, speak with the king, and gather reinforcements. Together, they might stand a chance of defeating this traitor and saving the princess.
As for him… he had failed. As an adventurer. As a leader. His team didn’t deserve to suffer for his mistakes. As long as they remained safe… then whatever happened to him didn’t matter.
After all… this was his fault.
🗡️💰🪄⚡
Pyrite knew something was wrong.
Call it experience, a gut feeling, or simply common sense—the fact that Jasper still hadn’t returned was a bad sign. He doubted he had gotten lost, so the only real possibilities were that a monster had attacked him and he was injured… or that he was dead, left to rot somewhere in a dark corridor. He didn’t like either option, but he desperately hoped it wasn’t the latter.
“We have to go look for him,” he said firmly.
“And how exactly are we supposed to find him?” Cinnabar asked, crossing his arms. “This place is enormous. We haven’t even managed to find the princess yet.”
Pyrite paused to think for a moment. They weren’t in any condition to fight without their warrior, but he also couldn’t bring himself to abandon his leader and friend.
“We search for a while. No fighting monsters, we run if we see any. If we don’t find him within half an hour, we leave and head back to Cornelia to resupply and get reinforcements. It’s what Jasper would want.”
Because he’s alive. I know he is, he thought.
Selenite looked utterly distressed. Her lips were pressed into a thin line, and she gripped her staff far too tightly. Cinnabar kept his usual neutral expression, but Pyrite knew him well enough to notice the slight twitch of his left eyebrow—it meant he was anxious, maybe even scared. And honestly, he couldn’t blame them. He felt the same way.
“Alright. Let’s move.”
They stepped out of the small stone chamber, and after only a few meters, they noticed something strange. Since entering the Chaos Shrine, the torches had always burned with a pale, ghostly yellow flame, but now some of them flickered with a deep, unnatural purple fire, as if deliberately guiding them in a specific direction.
“I don’t like this,” Cinnabar muttered.
Pyrite didn’t like it either, but it was the only lead they had.
“Let’s follow them.”
The trio moved along the path marked by the purple torches until they reached an area they had never explored before. There, embedded in the wall, stood a pair of massive metal double doors. Without hesitation, they pushed them open.
Beyond them lay a vast chamber swallowed almost entirely by darkness. The only thing clearly visible was a tall figure clad in intricate metal armor, a horned helmet resting atop his head, and a cape that matched the color of the flames.
“So… we finally meet, Warriors of Light.”
His voice dripped with mockery. Pyrite felt his blood run cold.
“Garland…” he murmured under his breath.
The villain seemed to hear him, because he let out a low, amused laugh.
“I hear you’ve been searching for something. Perhaps I found it first?”
Suddenly, the shadows in the room seemed to recede, revealing a wide hall filled with broken stone columns. Farther ahead stood what appeared to be a stone altar, atop which rested a dark crystal sphere—and before it, lying on the ground, were two human figures, both bound and gagged.
The first was a young woman. From her long pink hair and the elegant dress she wore, Pyrite assumed she must be the kidnapped princess. But the second…
“Jasper!”
Selenite’s worried cry echoed across the chamber. The white mage tried to run toward her friend, but Jasper’s muffled shout stopped her in her tracks.
“Mnph!”
Dried blood streaked Jasper’s face. Without his armor, he somehow looked smaller, more vulnerable. His wide, terrified eyes were locked on his friends as he shook his head frantically.
Selenite’s expression shifted from fear to fury.
“Let them go!” she shouted, pointing her staff at the armored knight.
“I will,” Garland replied confidently, “once you convince the King of Cornelia to hand over his kingdom.”
So that was the trap.
Pyrite didn’t know how Garland had managed to capture Jasper, but that alone proved just how dangerous he truly was. They wouldn’t give in to his demands, but neither would he abandon his friend to a madman.
“Let’s have a duel,” the thief said, drawing his sword. “If you win, we’ll convince the king to surrender the kingdom without resistance.”
“Mmmph! Mmngh!”
Both the princess and Jasper cried out, struggling desperately as panic filled their expressions.
“A three-against-one fight seems a bit unfair,” Garland said as he unsheathed his own blade.
“You’ll fight me,” Pyrite replied. “One on one. A fair duel.”
There was a brief, tense silence.
“Very well,” Garland said at last. “I accept.”
In the blink of an eye, Garland lunged forward with a direct thrust aimed at Pyrite’s chest. The thief managed to deflect the strike, and soon their blades were clashing in rapid succession. Selenite tried to seize the opportunity to rush forward and free Jasper, but suddenly a swarm of bats poured from the darkness above and attacked her.
“Watch out!” Cinnabar shouted, firing a bolt of lightning that struck one of the creatures midair.
“Thanks!” she called back, fending them off with her staff.
Meanwhile, Jasper could only watch as his friends were attacked, completely unable to help. He felt so, so useless. All of this had happened because of him!
But he refused to just lie there in despair. Swallowing his tears, he struggled again, trying to reach the knife hidden in his boot. The ropes had rubbed his wrists raw, but he kept twisting and straining, getting nowhere. His frustration only grew.
Then, a soft whimper caught his attention. He turned his head and saw Princess Sara slowly crawling toward him. At first, he didn’t understand what she was doing, until she began fumbling around his boot with her hands. Then it clicked. She was trying to help him by reaching the hidden knife.
After a moment, the princess managed to pull out the small dagger. Jasper shifted just enough to grab it between his fingers and began sawing through the ropes as quickly as he could.
Meanwhile, Pyrite continued his duel against the evil knight. The thief was a skilled fighter, but Garland was undeniably formidable, delivering powerful blows that would have been fatal if Pyrite hadn’t been agile enough to evade them—or lucky enough to survive. He could hear Selenite and Cinnabar fighting nearby. He wanted to look, to make sure they were safe, but he didn’t dare. One moment of distraction could cost him everything.
His arms began to ache, and his breathing grew heavier. He was getting tired, but Garland showed no sign of slowing, pressing the attack with relentless ferocity and giving him no chance to recover. His grip on his sword faltered, and suddenly a heavy strike knocked the weapon from his hands. It clattered loudly against the stone floor as his enemy’s blade leveled straight at his heart.
“You’ve lost,” Garland declared.
“Hey, you!”
Everyone turned toward the new voice. In front of the altar, now free from their bonds and holding a knife and a sword in their hands, stood Princess Sara and Jasper.
“Hey, clown! Why don’t you fight me if you’re so eager?” Jasper shouted, stepping forward to place himself between Pyrite and the enemy.
“If you’re so eager to die,” Garland said coldly, “then I’ll grant your wish.”
Once again, the clash of steel filled the room, but this time something had clearly changed. Jasper dodged a thrust and drove his blade straight into his enemy’s chest. Blood spilled over the silver armor and dripped onto the floor.
“I-Impossible…” Garland stammered, before collapsing to the ground, never to rise again.
Jasper let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. He staggered backward and would have fallen if Pyrite and the princess hadn’t caught him.
“I’ve got you, buddy,” the thief said, steadying him.
The bat monsters scattered, and Selenite and Cinnabar rushed to his side.
“Jasper!” the white mage cried, throwing her arms around him. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” he said softly, returning the embrace.
“You saved me,” Princess Sara said, looking at the four adventurers. “Words will never be enough to thank you.”
“You helped too, Your Highness,” Jasper replied with a small smile. “We couldn’t have done it without you.”
And so, the Warriors of Light and the princess made their way back together, safe and sound, to the palace.
Any D&D-style ideas for torturing my children are welcome. Thanks for reading!!!