Today was the solstice sunset, the one that came later in the year – the single longest sunset to annually occur. He had made himself a tradition to come on this day to one particular spot on the Forgotten Continent, far and away from any semblance of society. Here, where the decrepit ripples of dead Terra had most savagely imposed over the world. Alone left of Gaia that still thrived here were all wild, wily things -- some beastly ruminants, many reptiles, households worth of cats, cactuars, and scrub bush-- and the prize of them all, the corals, off the coast. The beautiful corals, piled like a mountain of bones.

He had flown in and disembarked on a dead plain, leaving the dragon to its own devices – it would come for him when he returned. They had a routine, after all, and he was simple to spot amid the barrens.

He preferred to walk the rest of the way. It was more exertion than he regularly cared to submit to, nowadays, but a tradition was a tradition, and it was one that was all and only his – one he had kept up with for... a good ten years now? Give or take. He didn’t actually remember at all how many times, unless he went through the trouble of doing math with other events, because when he thought about this day, what he was here for – the memory was nigh continuous.



A single, uninterrupted moment... that sometimes, to his pleasure, he was able to resume again. Eternity, in minutes. A perfect vision he would never allow to be tarnished.



Cracked dirt, crumbling brush, arid desiccation – the pathetic state of this continent was temporarily a boon. The marks of his past passage became easier to follow each year. He knew know where to step firmly, where to rush – the journey itself was almost fun. He knew he was close when the sound of waves against the jagged coast had grown into a bestial roar.



One day he will have carved it into a footpath, all by himself.



He crested the final hill and had to shield his eyes, after spending so long watching his feet. He settled into place quickly. Pulled his legs up to his chest, linked his hands wrapped comfortably around them. He could feel his unseen tail sweeping about, knocking around the loose dust. He’d need a bath an hour long, but it was already all worth it.



His solstice sunset had already began, and it glittered wondrously out upon the ocean. A perfect hem of outcroppings of rock to either side, and the crash of waves, droning so loud that he could lose to it all of his thoughts…



Never had he found a place more worthy of spending this sole, longest sunset of the year. The tensions of his position, the worries and intrigues of his plans… all of it melted away from his mind in slow pieces. They were like granules of sugar disappearing into water.



Here was something that was all and only ever his, about no one higher, nothing greater than he.

A young man sat on a patch of dirt, drinking in the minute changes of the sky, the growing chill of the air and the wind… tasting salt-ridden air, thinking of nothing but his senses. Finally, stiff and shivering a little in the early night, he unfurled, stretched with a little pain, and began to slink home.


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you don't need to understand the source material to understand this piece. it's a melancholic story about delusions of eternity in our lifetimes.. and of rare moments of peace amid the chaos.

#kuja #fanfic #fanfiction #finalfantasy9