48Chapter One: Falling from the Void
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy XII or any FFXII characters. I do, however, own my OC (Celeste von Valen).
Darkness completely enveloped me, and I blindly groped around in hopes that my hands might bump something. Unfortunately, my efforts were utterly fruitless. It seemed that this dark space was entirely empty, devoid of even the tiniest glimmer of light. The abyss of darkness stretched on for what felt like forever, and there was no escape in sight.
I bowed my head, racking my brain for any sort of clue as to where I could possibly be. The last thing I could remember was being in the car with my mother. Before that? Nothing, really. It was all very hazy. After that? Well, there was literally nothing in the vacuum of space that I was currently occupying. It felt like I was just floating there, suspended by some unknown force.
"Where am I?" I whispered. That was the only question I had at the moment, and I hoped it was going to be answered soon.
Although my ears had just suffered at the hands of the deafening silence, I could hear a faint buzzing noise crackling in the air. This noise very quickly reached a crescendo, blasting voices through the thick atmosphere. The voices sounded vaguely familiar, like I had heard them millions of times beforehand. However, I just could not put my finger on it. It was as if there was a heavy fog clouding my mind, preventing me from recalling any details of my life. After straining to remember, I felt extremely dazed and dizzy. Slowly, but surely, a dull ache began to spread from my head to my toes.
Suddenly, an extremely sharp pain pierced the dull ache. My head felt like it was about to explode from the immense pressure it was now enduring. A burning sensation, which had crept up on me unsuspectingly, wrapped itself around me as it swept across my body. I clenched my teeth in pain, scraping them together in agony. I could feel the painful ragged breaths entering and exiting my body as I curled up into a ball. As I forced my eyes open, I let out an excruciating scream that could have been heard many miles away. The pain was intense, and I could feel my consciousness slipping away.
.
.
The black void abruptly flooded with light, blinding me before putting me into a state of shock. Then, out of nowhere, it was like someone had pulled the lever on a trap door. My body was now falling at an increasing speed. Through blurred eyes, I could barely make out land and sea below me. Fear paralyzed me, and I began to cry. My short life was now going to come to an end, before I ever had the chance to graduate college and build my life. I hadn't even been in love with a real person before, and I would never have the chance.
One glance below was enough for me to realize that I was not going to survive. Honestly, as confused as I was, I didn't really care what happened to me. My body was plummeting at a fast rate, and nothing could stop me. I felt like a comet, rocketing towards the planet.
As I fell through the atmosphere at an increasing rate to my death, I asked myself when I was going to start seeing my life flash before my eyes. The only thing flashing before my watering eyes was the land below as I twisted and turned in mid-air.
If your life doesn't flash before your eyes, does that mean you're going to live?
The land below me began to look more and more familiar. The continent held a large desert, a vast ocean, grassy plains, a few large cities, and even snowy mountains. I squinted as I tried to focus on the cities. From my current altitude in the sky, I could start to make out buildings. I racked my brain once more. Why was this place so familiar?
I could start to see people, although they were the size of ants from my height. The impending doom was setting in again, and I closed my eyes while I was waited for the inevitable impact.
I could feel my acceleration slowing. How was that even possible? What in the world was going on?
Gradually, my speed slowed down to where I was drifting like a feather, ever so light and gentle. I heard shouts from below, but my body locked. I couldn't move a muscle, but I was still drifting.
Eventually my butt gently touched the ground, and there I rested, waiting for some stranger to help me up. My eyes darted from the people to the buildings to other surroundings.
"I've been here before," I quietly whispered to myself.
I waited for someone to help me, but there was no one who was willing to lend a hand; they were just gathering around me, talking amongst themselves.
I could hear comments like, "Is she alive?"
"Maybe she's an angel?"
"Did she fall from an airship?"
"Where do you think she came from?"
"Her clothes look like they came from around here. Maybe she lives here in Rabanastre?"
I gasped breath back into my lungs, and everybody around me jumped back in surprise.
My mind began to process what had just been said.
Airship..? Rabanastre..?
The fog around my mind quickly began to lift.
'Rabanastre?! You have got to be kidding me! I cannot be in Ivalice! That's preposterous! Absolutely coo-coo! Mad! Absurd! Bonkers!'
My eyes rapidly darted back and forth with every word I yelled in my head, and I looked at the faces of the people around me.
'I must be in a crazy house! But, wait. How do you explain what just happened? I didn't die from falling. I floated… Something is clearly wrong here! I must be dreaming! But, this feels so real…'
As I talked in my head, I touched the cobblestone beneath me and I grabbed my clothes in my hand, rubbing the fabric between my fingertips. While I was caressing the fabric, the crowd began to part.
A blond head approached me, and as I looked to see their face, I screamed. All the people around me jumped and scattered like roaches, causing the familiar blond to put a hand over my mouth.
"Shhh! What do you think you're doing?! If the Imperials find you, it won't be pretty!"
My eyes widened. I could feel his rough hand on my face, and my eyes darted around from his hair, to his eyes, to his face. Sure enough, I was without a doubt looking at Vaan.
