The Hermit Ramuh


 * From Vana'diel Tribune volume 11 (April 3, 2003). Translated from Japanese.

In the eastern portion of the Buburimu Peninsula by the shores of the Gugru Sea was a nation with highly advanced technology.

Unrivaled in its power, its influence in the region was great, and the fact that the nation's power lied heavily in tools and vehicles powered by lightning was known to all its citizens. The one who had invented all of this was known as the Sage Ramuh.

It was said that his great wisdom--having the reputation of being deeper than the ocean itself--came from the knowledge he gained from his reading of tomes from all corners of the world, published throughout the ages. All of his countrymen deeply trusted him, carefully lending their ears to his words.

However, one day, something unusual occurred. One of Ramuh's measurement tools predicted the occurrence of a single terrifying event--the city would be battered and destroyed by earthquakes and tidal waves.

He checked and re-checked the instrument's systems, yet the results it produced remained the same. Furthermore, it signaled that these events would occur in 3 days time.

Ramuh's sudden announcement evoked a great stir amongst the citizenry. However, as they had lived such a peaceful days in an era of great prosperity, suddenly believing in Ramuh's apocalyptic predictions was a near impossibility.

3 days later, when the earthquakes that had been predicted by Ramuh actually occurred, only a few hundred people sought shelter on high ground to avoid the disaster. Many lives were lost.

Suspicion grew in the hearts of those who had barely survived the disaster. Rather than being consumed by unhappiness and grief for lost loved ones, they became unreasonably furious. In truth, they perhaps were seeking an easy scapegoat.

"Ramuh…… the one who 'predicted' these earthquakes. Could he very well be the one who caused them?"

Their misgivings towards Ramuh later erupted into a sense of paranoia, and many a dreadful rumor was whispered about the old sage amongst them. Even in their looks, he could tell that their profound respect for him was replaced by morbid fear and vicious animosity.

One day, when Ramuh was pelted with rocks by a youth who had lost his parents in the tsunami, he made the decision to leave the country, his patience exhausted.

Ramuh packed up his vast libraries into a single ship, and rowed to an uninhabited island near the coast under the cover of the moonless night…

Several decades later, many of the tools and vessels he invented stopped working. The root of this dilemma was that their simple maintenance had been completely ignored by the citizenry.

Around that time, the Beastman Empire noticed that the nation's influence had begun to severely weaken. Seeing this time as a fortunate opportunity, they sent a great fleet of warships to invade the city.

However, the technologies with which the ocean nation desired to stop the beastman fleet from landing no longer remained.

No-- indeed, there was in fact one option left: to call back the great sage Ramuh, the very man who they had expelled so disdainfully.

Ramuh refused the pleas of the envoys that visited him countless times, but he later acquiesced. This was due mostly to the fact that one of the men who begged for his assistance was the same youth that had pelted him with stones so many years ago.

Standing at the vast cape where the Beastman fleet held its ground, Ramuh waved back and forth the Staff of Olduum he had obtained some years ago.

As he completed the motion, flashes of lightning burst forth and one after another, the enemy boats erupted into flames.

Having lost many of their troops, the imperial fleet quickly gathered its remaining soldiers and fled away from the area in pandemonium.

Drunk with the sweet wine of victory, the people praised Ramuh's sagacity. However, their display of appreciation was no more than an act.

The lightning that gushed forth from Ramuh's staff. That destructive power alone was enough to arouse fear in their meek hearts.

It was not long before the people of this nation began to wonder when the time when Ramuh would direct his staff towards they themselves would come, and again they held tight to suspicion and mistrust. Of course, they refrained from such violence as throwing rocks, however, the scornful looks they directed to Ramuh were entirely of the same nature as before.

As Ramuh let out a sigh of lament, he turned back to his home, never to show himself again to the world.

The greatly weakened nation eventually collapsed. However, those who remained in the region came to consider the place where Ramuh appeared as a place of emotional support, and thus soon came to pray in thanks for his heroic actions.

The goddess, having seen the history of the ocean country since its beginnings, took pity on the wanderers and called Ramuh to the heavens.

May the people of this earth always be able to feel that Ramuh is nearby, watching over them…

Note: Olduum is the brighest star in the Ramuh constellation in Vana'diel's sky. It is a purple-colored star. Olduum is also the name of a fallen civilization which plays a role in the Treasures of Aht Urhgan storyline.