[Beyond the Sun]

On the last day of September, Blackmutoh and I hit level 70. We made a promise that sometime in October, we would attain level 75. When midnight, October 31st arrived, it found us only level 74 with 15,000-ish EXP to go. Unfortunately, it also found Blackmutoh with a level 36 BLM subjob and he refused to level to 75 while gimped. Thus, he began to seek parties with his BLM and struggle in vain to hit 37.

I went to bed.

At 3:00am I woke up with my alarm clock blaring. “Reeroo!” was the first thought that popped into my head. Eagerly, I logged onto FFXI and waited for her.

Soon, she was there, bounding right up to her Elvaan (yep, that’s me), and hopping enthusiastically into my lap. I was whole again.

We talked for a while and, finding that Blackmutoh had given up and logged out, and that Darkpath was occupied, we opted to call off static and I’d powerlevel her Level 5 Beastmaster. To Ghelsba Outpost we went! She was so tiny! Just look!

We got her 5 levels in 2 hours… from 5 to 10. I got very sleepy though and was forced to say goodnight. I collapsed into bed and awoke at 9am with a start. Rushing into the shower and hastily getting dressed, I felt my excitement building. Today was the day. No, not Halloween. Yes, Halloween is my favorite holiday, but this was even more important… more vital… more significant.

This way the day Final Fantasy XII launched in America.

I arrived at GameStop and claimed my Collector’s Edition game with its cool metal case, and my Limited Edition BradyGames guide, which I doubt I’ll ever use… I just collect them. ^^ I was a bit hungry, so I hit Quizno’s and had a Prime Rib & Peppercorn sandwich, and headed back home.

When I arrived, Blackmutoh was logged onto the game and asked me to call him. I did so and found that he was partying with BLM. I proceeded to play the intro of FFXII and feel quite impressed with Square-Enix’s latest accomplishment. However, before I could really get involved in it, Blackmutoh leveled up to 37!

Time to party! …or was it?

No WHMs were seeking! And the only possible healer was a Japanese SMN who was AFK anyway! orz

But lo and behold, as we stood there wondering what to do… the undead swarm began to march towards Al Zahbi. We rushed to the bastion to defend the Astral Candescence. My second ever Level 6 besieged. ^^

So we get 1080 exp when we win, and begin trying to form a party. Now get this… Blackmutoh and I have been staticing since before level 60… we’ve tried hard to keep our exp points close and always delighted in leveling up at the same time. I was 8 exp ahead of him, and then I died and got an R3, so I was roughly 200 behind him. I soloed to catch up in Kuftal Tunnel and figured I was back near where I was before I died, so I stopped.

Our experience was now IDENTICAL. For the first time ever.

We formed a party… dealt with an intentionally DCing NIN, A JP SMN Main Healer, and some asshole Samurai… but finally, it happened.

I equipped my Walahra Turban and began working on my buffer. I didn’t quite get a full buffer before the party disbanded. I then visited the Nomad Moogle near Maat and got the key item for Meriting. The Promise was kept. And now… finally… I’m going to play Final Fantasy XII.

御休み為さい！