Feeling the Fear

No matter the strength of the enemy before them or the ferocity of the foe they might face, adventurers never give up the fight. But even these tireless individuals have found certain terrors that send the cold chill of fear down their spines.

So what does it take to scare an adventurer? I set out to find the answer.

"Anything that causes pain and boards a ship, I fear," said a Mithra named Kizzy.

Kizzy and Wasenshi, both of whom I met in the port town of Selbina, told of their experiences being attacked by Sea Monks. "Sea Monks seem to hate land monks like me," said Wasenshi, a Hume.

Not long from their first adventure, this pair finds terror in the prospect of boarding a boat that offers no place to run.

Skilled beastmaster Shimaneco travels deep into mountain ranges or caves for days at a time to fish, hunt, or look for materials.

Her most frightening experience came when she caught the scent of a particularly nasty beast. Terror struck when she reached into her pack and discovered she was out of the broth she needed to call her pet.

It was the dread of knowing that she would face an opponent she had no hope of defeating. Just imagining such a situation makes my palms sweat.

A paladin named Zenai said, "Monsters that are taller than me, I usually fear. But an unbalanced party is my biggest fear."

For someone who has offered to bear the brunt of the damage dealt by monsters, having a comrade fall must be the most galling thing imaginable.

But adventurers can have hair-raising experiences even in the safety of large cities.

"I had just acquired a very valuable item. But when I put it up for sale at the auction house, I found that the price had plummeted," said an adventurer named Onji.

"I meant to have the delivery service send something to a friend, but I wrote the recipient's name wrong and wound up sending it to someone I'd never met. I dashed back to retrieve it when I realized what I'd done," said Bouz.

"I had just begrudgingly paid an exorbitant amount for a chocobo, but as soon as I got outside the city gates, I heard a call for help. I'm a white mage, so I couldn't refuse," said Jackrovin.

If you're an adventurer, you've probably had a similar experience that made your blood run cold.

Maybe your life was on the line or maybe it was just a silly mistake. Adventurers encounter a cornucopia of terrors, but those that I spoke to had one thing in common: they spoke as if they had enjoyed the experience.

They are surely aware that conquering fear, instead of running from it, is the key to growing as a person. This is the adventurer's way of life.

"The bigger the fear, the greater the feeling of achievement in conquering it," said a red mage, smiling awkwardly.

His name is Yas. He likes traveling on his own to remote places, so he's seen his fair share of peril.

He told me a story about forming an alliance to tackle a mission and taking on a leadership role.

There's a lot of pressure on a leader. Pressure to ensure that the group has the correct information, that the parties are communicating properly, that everyone is ready, and that nobody falls in battle. This pressure was the most frightening thing he had ever experienced.

But he persevered and led the group to the successful completion of the mission. On their return to the city, Yas's companions rewarded him with praise and adulation. And that remains one of the most satisfying things he has ever experienced.

Adventurers battle against a wide variety of fears in the war to improve themselves.

My own worst fear is deadlines. Thankfully, I had a great number of interesting and humorous stories, so I didn't have to worry too much. This time...