Scenario:Rosetta - Island of the Rose Queen

Island of the Rose Queen

After many consecutive days of traveling, the crew decides to rest on a nearby island. They discover it is the same island Rosetta once ruled over as Rose Queen before and during the War. While Lyria and the others shop in town, Rosetta heads into the forest she once called home. There she unexpectedly recovers a dagger she had received five hundred years prior, prompting long-forgotten memories to resurface.

---

Much time has passed since (Captain) and company began their journey across the skies. Today finds them enjoying a breeze on deck.

Vyrn: Huh? (Captain), ain't that an island over there?

Lyria: Oh my gosh, it's overflowing with trees! Doesn't it remind you of Lumacie a little?

Vyrn: Should we land there and take a break? We've been flying for a couple days straight now.

Lyria: That's a good idea! We can eat a good meal and take a walk around the forest! What do you think, (Captain)?

Rosetta: So this is where everyone was.

Rosetta: Oh my, that island up ahead...

Rosetta's expression darkens as she takes in the island that the others had spotted.

Lyria: Do you recognize it? Was it somewhere you visited during your previous journey?

Rosetta: I didn't go there with (Captain)'s dad, no. I actually purposefully avoided it...

Vyrn: You did? Is it some kinda awful place then?

Rosetta: No, it's a pretty pleasant island, but...

Vyrn: If that's the case, did somethin' happen to you there before?

Rosetta: You could say that. I guess there's no more reason to hide the truth from you all.

Taking a deep breath, Rosetta looks at (Captain), then Vyrn, then Lyria.

Rosetta: I told you before how the forest I used to live in was burned and razed during the War, didn't I?

Lyria: We remember. You fell from the island, and when you woke up, you were with Yggdrasil in Lumacie, right?

Lyria: Oh... Do you mean to say that... this is the island that you fell from?

Rosetta: The very same. It was the one I was once bound to watch over.

Rosetta: (It's also filled with a lot of bad memories. Even though it was under the Astrals' orders, I still killed many skydwellers...)

Vyrn: Is that right... Sorry, we didn't mean to drag up bad memories...

Rosetta: It's okay. You didn't know. Besides, it's a past I have to make peace with someday.

Lyria: Still... Maybe we should pick a different island to take a break on.

Rosetta: What's this about a break?

Vyrn: We were talkin' about findin' a place to stretch our legs since we've been in the air a while now.

Rosetta: I see.

Lyria: But we still have supplies to last us until we run into another island, so we don't have to land here or anything...

Rosetta: I appreciate the thought, Lyria.

Rosetta: We can land here. It's not good to travel while we're tired.

Vyrn: You sure?

Rosetta: I'm positive. You never know—it could be an opportunity for me.

Rosetta: To face the past and move forward...

Despite the listless look in Rosetta's eyes, the Grandcypher heads toward the island.

Lyria: There's so many people here! I didn't realize there was such a busy town inside all the trees.

Vyrn: You sure said it. Nice place. Has more buildings than Lumacie does, I bet.

Rosetta: You're probably right. It really developed these past five hundred years...

Arms crossed, Rosetta observes the busy street.

Rosetta: (Five hundred years is a long time for skydwellers.)

Rosetta: (It's strange to see there's no scars left from the war... I've seen other places already healed, of course, but...)

Rosetta: (There's no one left here that would remember me, which is expected.)

Rosetta: (I shouldn't be so surprised that it feels like nothing happened—that it's a different place now.)

Lyria: ...

Lyria: This must be very hard for Rosetta...

Giving a subtle nod to Lyria, (Captain) approaches Rosetta and points toward the trees outside town.

1. Do you want to go into the forest?

Choose: Do you want to go into the forest?

Rosetta: To the forest? What for?

Vyrn: Sounds like a good idea to me. You used to live there, right?

Vyrn: I reckon the sights'll be more familiar back where you used to call home.

Rosetta: Maybe so. I guess it can't hurt to make the trip, at least.

Lyria: You should go ahead. We'll shop around a bit here first.

Rosetta: Thanks, Lyria. I appreciate the thoughtfulness.

Decision made, Rosetta makes her way into the forest alone.

Rosetta: It's very bright here...

Rosetta murmurs to herself, taking in the forest surroundings.

A decent amount of sunlight reaches the forest floor, thanks to the skydwellers trimming the greenery.

Rosetta: (The overgrowth made everything dark when I lived here.)

Rosetta: (I imagine that was the fault of primal beast Rose Queen ruling over this land...)

A wild rose—the symbol of Rose Queen—blooms at her feet.

As if trying to ascertain if the flower is a remnant of her prior rule, Rosetta reaches out to touch its crimson petals.

Forest Monster: Kwee?

Rosetta: What's this?

Forest Animal: Kwoon?

Rosetta: Everyone...

Rosetta: Right... At least the creatures living in this forest haven't changed at all.

Smiling warmly at monster and animal alike, Rosetta crouches down and lets them nuzzle her.

Rosetta: Ehehe, I see you're as friendly as ever.

Rosetta: So much has happened since I left, I'd almost forgotten you were my friends.

Forest Monster: Kwee!

Rosetta: You want to take me somewhere? All right, lead the way.

Rosetta: This is...

Following the forest creatures deeper into the woods, she finds herself at the base of a tree that stretches high into the sky.

Rosetta: You managed to survive the fire and grow to be big and strong.

She lays an affectionate hand on its hard trunk.

Rosetta: (It's a little too deep into the woods here for the skydwellers, so this area has remained fairly unchanged.)

Rosetta: I'm sorry I couldn't protect you back then, but I'm glad to see you've been doing well.

Rosetta: Hm? What was that?

As Rosetta spoke with the tree, a gentle breeze had blown by and caused something to drop from its branches.

She reaches down to discover a beautiful dagger decorated with a rose ornament.

Rosetta: Wait...

Rosetta: I remember this dagger! During the fighting...

Rosetta: I'm surprised you still have it. Did you keep it for me all this time?

The tree's branches and leaves rustle, as if to answer her question.

Rosetta: So it's been in your care. Did your branches protect it even from rust?

Rosetta: (I never ended up giving it to that child, since I completely forgot about it...)

The glittering blade summons memories from five hundred years ago, when Rosetta first received it.

Longing and regret, deeply buried within her heart, now resurface as she recalls the bitter defeat of that day.

Island of the Rose Queen: Scene 2

Rosetta relives memories from five hundred years prior. As the primal beast Rose Queen, she watched over the island and executed any skydwellers that defied her and the Astrals. One day, a young skydweller boy became lost in her forest. On a whim, Rosetta protected him and guided him to safety instead of executing him. For years, she watched over him each time he visited the forest, up until skydwellers across the skies joined forces in an open rebellion against the Astrals.

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Rosetta: The Astrals controlled the skies when I first came to this world.

Rosetta: As a primal beast, I was ordered by the Astrals to rule over an island and its skydwellers.

Rosetta: Like other primal beasts, I formed a pact with my island in order to bring out the full extent of my power.

Rosetta: The forest here was dark, already thick with trees and vegetation before I came, but the addition of my power blocked out even more of the light.

Rosetta: I ruled over the skydwellers from this black forest, using their fear of the dark and the unknown to my advantage.

Worker Bee: Bzz?

Rose Queen: Come to collect more rose nectar today? Wait just a moment.

Rose Queen: Here, the roses are in full bloom. Take as much as you can carry, and use it to make lovely honey.

Worker Bee: Bzz!

Rose Queen: Hehe...

???: There's a lot more roses around here than usual. She has to be nearby!

Rose Queen: (Is that a skydweller I hear? I assume they've come to fight me again.)

Skydweller: Found her! Evil witch, today is the day you fall! Freedom to the skies!

Rose Queen: How many more of you must die before you realize you have no chance of winning?

Rose Queen: My dear roses, drink the blood of these fools and bloom a bewitching crimson!

Skydweller: Argh...

Rosetta: Occasionally, skydwellers seeking to overthrow the Astrals' rule would enter my stronghold.

Rosetta: I pierced them all with the thorns of my roses, just as I was ordered to by my Astral masters.

Rosetta: I never had to expend any of my true strength. The skydwellers perished within moments, weak and fragile as they were.

Rose Queen: They know the difference in power between us, so why do they keep trying over and over again?

Rosetta: The average lifespan of a skydweller seemed extremely brief, especially in the eyes of a primal beast unaffected by the notion of death.

Rosetta: I couldn't understand why they would waste their already short lives trying to fight me.

Rosetta: At the time, I thought them foolish and weak—prideful despite their shortcomings too.

Docile Monster: Kwee, kwee!

Rose Queen: Come again to play? You really love being spoiled, don't you.

Rose Queen: It just so happens that I have some ripened rose hips. Are you hungry?

Docile Monster: Kwee, kwee!

Rose Queen: What is it?

Island Boy: Sob... Where am I?

Rosetta: On that day, I was frolicking with monsters in the afternoon like I always did.

Rosetta: The child was crying, walking towards me as he struggled through the brush.

Rose Queen: Either he's lost, or this is a trap from the skydwellers.

Rosetta: His eyes were dripping with so many tears that he didn't notice my presence.

Rosetta: If I went out to help him and it really was a trap, then my location would be revealed to anyone lying in wait.

Rosetta: I decided to hide among my rose hedges and observe for the time being.

Island Boy: Sniffle... I wanna go home... But I dunno which way to go...

Island Boy: I can't find a blue rose either... I need it to make my wish come true... Wahh... Waahhh!

Rose Queen: (A blue rose that makes wishes come true? I feel like I've heard a skydweller tell a story about that before.)

Rose Queen: (I suppose that's why this child is here. He has no idea that blue roses don't grow naturally, does he?)

Docile Monster: Kwee?

Island Boy: Eep! A monster! Ahhh, I'm sorry! Please don't eat me!

Island Boy: Ah!

Rose Queen: (Wow, he actually fell over because of a critter that small and cute.)

Rose Queen: (A living being as weak as him will easily die even without my interference.)

Rosetta: I kept my eyes peeled and found nobody else lurking nearby. The child was truly alone and lost.

Rosetta: The logical thing to do next would have been to deal with him. Even though he hadn't spotted me yet, he had come too close to my domain.

Rosetta: I should've eliminated him on the spot, and yet...

Rose Queen: Exhale...

Island Boy: Huh? The flowers are blooming?

Island Boy: Whoa! This is... the blue wish rose! Now I can see Mommy again!

Island Boy: But... I still don't know how to go home...

Island Boy: The trees... They're making a tunnel... Are they showing me the way back?

Docile Monster: Kwee, kwee!

Island Boy: Are you saying you wanna be my guide? Hold on, lemme pick a rose first!

Rose Queen: Hehe... Keep going straight, and you'll find the forest's exit.

Rosetta: I didn't know why I did it.

Rosetta: I only knew for certain that I had completely lost interest in killing a creature so utterly weak.

Rosetta: Even though he'd acquired the blue rose he wanted, the child continued to come back to the forest.

Wild Monster: Grrr...

Island Boy: Wah!

Rose Queen: What is he doing?

Rosetta: For some foolish reason, he put himself in danger despite his previous close call. I found myself unable to look the other way...

Island Boy: Huh? Why are all the roses suddenly blooming?

Wild Monster: Grawr?

Island Boy: Oh... It ran away.

Rosetta: It only took a little bit of power to show my presence and scare monsters away. I had to do it countless times after to keep him safe.

Rosetta: Had I developed an attachment to him? No, he was a skydweller. I was only doing it on a whim.

Rosetta: Perhaps observing him would reveal to me what the purpose of such a weak existence was...

Island Girl: Hey... We should turn around. The forest is pretty dangerous.

Island Boy: It'll be fine! The mother of the forest will protect us!

Island Girl: Who? Only the scary rose primal beast lives here.

Island Boy: Like I said, the forest has a mother! She's always here, watching over everything!

Island Boy: There's a secret place close by with a big fruit tree! Come on!

Island Girl: Wait for me!

Rose Queen: Hmm, is that a friend, or maybe something more?

Rose Queen: And what's this about a mother of the forest? I wonder what he would say if he knew who I really was.

Rose Queen: (Wait, since when do I care what he thinks?)

Rose Queen: Good grief, he isn't one of my trees or animal friends.

Rosetta: Time passes incredibly fast for skydwellers.

Rosetta: When I first saw him, he was small enough to hide in a bush, but in the blink of an eye, he had become an adult.

Island Man: The forest is peaceful as usual today.

Island Woman: Just like it's always been. The monsters still leave you alone too.

Island Man: Because the forest mother lives here.

Island Woman: You know, that mother you keep going on about... She has to be the one that's controlling—

Island Man: Let's not discuss that here. We came to relax, just the two of us, didn't we?

Island Woman: You're right. It's been a while since we've hung out together.

Island Woman: What did you want to talk to me about?

Island Man: Um... There's something I've been wanting to confess for a while now.

Island Woman: What is it?

Island Man: The truth is, I... I really lo... love...

Island Woman: Love what?

Island Man: Love showing my secret places to you! I found somewhere beautiful nearby! It's this way!

Island Woman: Geez... You'll have to be more brave than that when you gift your dagger.

Rose Queen: Hehe, young love is in the air, though it seems like it's not progressing much.

Rose Queen: (He grew up so fast... Now he's not far off from the age of the soldiers they sent my way before.)

Rose Queen: (But I'm still the same. I've never had a childhood to speak of, and I'll never age...)

Rose Queen: ...

Rose Queen: (What is this feeling? Something must be wrong with me...)

Skydweller 1: Have you heard the rumors? An island to the west has started a full-on rebellion against the Astrals.

Skydweller 2: Heard the same about an island to the north too. Guess the flames of war are spreadin'.

Rose Queen: (These voices must be coming from the forest entrance...)

Skydweller 1: Don't you think it's about time for us to pick up our swords too?

Skydweller 2: My old man died in these woods, you know... Thanks to that lousy primal beast livin' here!

Skydweller 1: As if we'll let her rule over us forever. We're taking back our island this time around!

Rose Queen: (Are the skydwellers really committing to an open rebellion?)

Rose Queen: (What's the point of starting a war you can't win?)

Rosetta: I was aware of the coming war, but thought it would be nothing more than a passing annoyance.

Rosetta: I never could have fathomed losing to the skydwellers I deemed weak and fragile.

Island of the Rose Queen: Scene 3

At the beginning of the War, Rosetta easily dealt with the rebellious skydwellers that came her way, but eventually their assaults grew to be effective. The day came when she was finally pushed back, and in the middle of her retreat, she came across the young man she had once watched over. Extremely injured, he addressed her as Mother Rosetta and barely had enough time to entrust her with a dagger before passing away. Rosetta hid the dagger in between some branches but was unable to retrieve it before the forest burned and she fell from the island.

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Rebel 1: Press forward! That primal beast is up ahead!

Rosetta: The fighting began—the largest war in history, as it would later be known.

Rosetta: My battlefield was the forest I'd always protected. The heavy boots of armed skydwellers soon trod through.

Rosetta: I unleashed my power against them in retaliation for the plants they trampled, the monsters they felled, and the destruction they brought to my home.

Rose Queen: I'll put you in your place! Pierce them, my roses!

Rebel 1: Augh...

Rebel 2: Hey, you all right? Damn it... You thorny monster!

Rose Queen: Haaaaaah!

Rebel 2: Tch... There's no end to 'em!

Rebel 2: Retreat! Pull back! Grab the wounded and make a break for it!

Rosetta: Helpless against the godlike powers of a primal beast, the skydwellers scattered like rats and ran for their lives.

Rosetta: They returned again and again afterward, hoping for a victory against all odds. I sent them packing every time.

Rosetta: I thought they would quickly realize their efforts were futile. After enough defeats, they'd fall into despair and go back to being obedient.

Rosetta: My expectations couldn't have been more wrong. Much like a mortal's rapid development from child to adult...

Rosetta: The skydwellers swiftly learned how to work together, gather knowledge, and develop new tactics.

Rosetta: By the time I noticed, it was too late.

Rebel 1: Get as much fire in there as you can! We'll burn through the wall of thorns!

Rebel 2: The east side's open! Push in through there!

Rose Queen: They broke through? Impossible!

Rosetta: As the sturdy walls of thorns and thickets protecting the forest were broken down, light began to seep into the darkness inside.

Rosetta: I couldn't believe it. These weak and fragile creatures were actually driving me into a corner.

Rose Queen: This is as far as you go. I won't let you take away our home—not from me, nor any of the creatures living here!

Rebel 2: More thorns! But who cares! This means we're making progress! Victory's in sight!

Rebel 1: That's right! Don't give up now! We'll show those Astrals to give us the respect we deserve and take back our home!

Rebels: Raaahh!

Rose Queen: ...!

Rosetta: The skydwellers' voices grew bolder with every passing day. No matter how many injuries they suffered, they picked themselves back up and tried again.

Rosetta: Every encouraging shout I heard was like a needle thrust into my heart... It turned out the one who'd fall into despair was me.

Rose Queen: How is this happening? They were supposed to be easily crushed, and yet... Why am I the one afraid?

Rose Queen: (No... This feeling in my chest isn't fear. It's cold, yet warm...)

Rose Queen: Am I... crying?

Rose Queen: (Oh... I'm envious of them... of the skydwellers...)

Rosetta: Unlike the mortals who could share their burdens and unite for a common cause, I was completely alone.

Rosetta: Loneliness was not an emotion needed for the role given to me, but somewhere along the way, I'd learned how to feel it.

Rosetta: If only I had a comrade too... But I was the only primal beast on my island.

Rose Queen: ...

Rebel 1: We've carved a way through! Push forward!

Rose Queen: ...!

Rosetta: Unable to withstand anymore, I ran for the heart of the forest.

Rose Queen: Huh?

???: Pant... Wheeze...

Rosetta: In front of me was a skydweller bleeding out on the ground.

Rosetta: There was no mistaking who he was—I had protected him since he was a young boy, after all.

Rosetta: Had he been hit by a comrade's bomb? Or did one of my roses pierce him through? Either way, he was at death's door...

Rose Queen: ...

Island Man: Who...

Island Man: Oh... I see, you're... Mother Rosetta, right?

Rose Queen: I don't remember having a name like that.

Island Man: Sorry, that's just what I... called you in my head...

Rose Queen: You knew who I was all along, didn't you? But you still thought of me as the mother of the forest.

Island Man: Because you're... kind...

Rose Queen: What?

Island Man: The blue wish rose... I wanted to meet my deceased mother, but...

Island Man: I found you instead... even if we never met face to face...

Rose Queen: I can't wrap my head around this. You know I'm an enemy of all skydwellers.

Island Man: No... Surely, in a different century, you—

Island Man: Cough, hack...

Rose Queen: ...

Rose Queen: I'm leaving.

Island Man: Wait... Take this...

Rosetta: With a bloodied hand, he held out a beautiful dagger decorated by an ornamental rose.

Rose Queen: What is this?

Island Man: It's... for...

Rosetta: Before he could finish his last words, he faded away.

Rose Dagger: ...

Rose Queen: It's a beautiful blade. Did he want me to give it to his beloved?

Rose Queen: I highly doubt it's intended for me.

Rose Queen: What was that?

Rebel 1: Grab more gunpowder! We're gonna burn this entire place to the ground!

Rose Queen: (They want to burn the whole forest? The flames... They're spreading!)

Rose Queen: I can't just stand here doing nothing!

Rosetta: Conjuring a bush of roses, I stuck the dagger in between its branches.

Rosetta: I'd worry about delivering the dagger to its intended owner later—assuming I should even bother in the first place.

Rosetta: In the end, I never came back for it, because that was the day I lost the forest to the skydwellers' flames...

Rosetta: ...

Rosetta: I'd almost forgotten that had happened, at least until I laid eyes on this again.

Rosetta stares at the captivating dagger in her hands as a gentle breeze blows by.

Rosetta: It wouldn't be right for me to hold onto it, but what else can I do?

Five hundred years have passed. The man's beloved is long gone, and no one is left that will remember her.

But Rosetta knows she can't leave the dagger there. With it in hand, she makes her way slowly back to town.