Umbral Plains, Argent D'Nur

Eleven months after Freya's arrival

"Scenario complete. Holographic enemies disengaged."

Freya sighed of relief as she the other cadets stood atop of the Gauntlet, an arctic training course that relied on one's speed, cooperation, mobility, and agility. In the outdoor arena, the cadets, armed in light power armor and wielding training shotguns, had just finished scaling a fortress-like structure whilst dealing with numerous hostile entities. Freya looked to see that only 7 cadets, including herself and Doomguy, were left standing.

The rest were scattered across the fortress, some of them wounded. Their combat armor was programed to give them a neural shock when they got hit by a holo-projectile or blade. Enough hits, and the wearer would be forced to the ground. It was something Freya herself had experienced a few times too many. In fact, this was the third time, out of almost a dozen and a half attempts, that she actually managed to make it to the top of the Gauntlet.

Valen himself approached the cadets. "You have certainly improved since you first ran the course. Now, return to your barracks. Celebrate your victories tonight, for tomorrow, you will have to prove yourselves once more."

"Yes, Commander!" all cadets replied in unison, except for Doomguy, of course, though that was expected nowadays.

With that, they were dismissed as they made their way back to the camp. Freya looked as some of the other cadets were helped back up to their feet. Many of them had not completed a single round of the Gauntlet. If they didn't shape up soon enough, they'd be sent to the arena of Sentinel Prime. Freya shuddered internally at the thought. She still bore the scars, both physical and mental, of her time there.

The barracks was a short and fortified gray structure in the midst of the plains. The cadets had been here for five weeks, and Freya was beginning to get tired of seeing the bland, cramped building once again, though after having spent over half a day running a training course in frigid weather, she was just glad to be indoors again.

The first room inside was the armory, where the cadets stored their training equipment. Freya walked up to her locker and began to stash her armor and weapons away. Before she closed it, she looked over her primary weapon, the combat shotgun she had been issued. The shotgun was yet another new experience Freya had picked up on D'Nur, as firearms had not been developed back on Gaia by anyone. It was one of the first new weapons she had learned to use, and though she still preferred melee weaponry, she acknowledged it as an effective tool.

Just then, one of the other cadets had opened his locker, which was right next to Freya's. The Dragon Knight noticed that this cadet actually looked very similar to Valen, except younger, less grizzled, and less scared with his hair tied back in a low ponytail

He turned towards her. "Good work out there, Outlander. I saw you took quite the beating during the first few rounds. Will you be okay?"

Freya looks back nods affirmatively. This was the first of the Argenta to actually show some form of concern towards her. "I've taken worse beating, but thank you. Who might you be?"

The cadet closes his locker. "Cestus, Son of Valen. I'm one of the newer recruits here. Transferred in from Exultia. I saw you and that other Outlander back in the arena a while back. You two seem to have attracted quite a few admirers."

"Your kind admire me for being a killer." Freya responds as she looks back towards her locker.

Cestus raises a brow. "Have you not killed people before you arrived on Argent D'Nur?"

"Indeed I have, but only when I absolutely had to. I had no problem using violence to protect those I love. The Deags, on the other hand, had me caged up like an animal mere hours after my arrival and forced me to participate in their death matches."

"And I'm not saying you deserved it. In fact, had I been in charge, I'd release you as soon as you proved yourself in combat." Cestus replies.

Freya paused for a moment before shutting her locker and turning back towards him, curiously. "Really? Most Argenta would say otherwise. What makes you so different?"

Cestus walks with her down the hall. "Don't tell anyone else this, but everyday, I see how fanatical my kind have become. Even before the Khan, our kind venerated the Wraiths, but back then, we valued religious tolerance, art, culture, and more. Ever since the Maykrs arrived, our kind have changed to become more zealous in our efforts as we span the universe, all under the watchful eye of the Maykrs. "

"You're saying the Argenta should go back."

Cestus nods. "Exactly. However, one man alone cannot change the world. So for now, I swear my life to the Night Sentinels. I don't have a choice. I'd be burned as a heretic otherwise, same as you and your friend."

Whilst they were on the topic, Freya and Cestus entered the main barracks, a large room which consisted of practically nothing but giant rectangular slabs of rock the Argenta called 'bunks'. Freya eventually spotted Doomguy himself, sitting down on his bunk. He did not look or speak towards anyone, keeping to himself. It had been 10 months since they met and Freya still didn't know much of him. In fact, he seemed to be speaking less and less.

"What do you know about him?" Cestus inquires. "He hasn't spoken much, outside of 'Rip and Tear'."

Freya sighs, "I don't really know much more myself. He hasn't spoken much, even back in the arena when he was the only one to talk to me. He rambled on about demons and monsters, and how he must kill them all. Something clearly happened to him. I'd like to find out more, but you've seen how he acts in the arena. I...don't think that would be wise."

"You'll get no argument from me." Cestus replies. "...say, we don't have much else to do right now. What is your planet like?"

Freya raises an eyebrow slightly. No one had inquired her about Gaia, other than the Khan Maykr, who only wanted information out of her, nothing more. "My planet? Well, it's a world with four continents, each with a different variety of environments, though few of us were even aware of the other continents until just recently."

"So, your kind inhabit the world?"

Freya nods. "Yes, but there are others. Humans are the dominant race on Gaia, at least on the Mist Continent. They are far more numerous than my kind. And there are a few other sapient species."

"Wow. So which one of them rules Gaia?"

Freya takes a seat on her bunk. The cold hard rock was surely uncomfortable, but over her months of training, Freya had learned to get used to it. "My people aren't as advanced as yours, Cestus. The Argenta can travel to other worlds, heal wounds in the blink of an eye, wield weaponry far beyond anything Gaia might have for the next few centuries. I did not even know what a 'gun' was until I arrived and was trained to use it."

Cestus widens his eyes. "Your people are less advanced than I originally thought. Any major factions?"

"As in Kingdoms? There are three where I am from: Burmecia, my hometown and that of my people, Alexandria, a military power and my nation's arch-rival, and Lindblum, a technologically advanced city that utilizes most airships on the planet. For many decades, we've been embroiled in petty feuds that result in wide-scale wars. Any truces we had in the past were broken rather recently. I can only hope our nations survived and are making amends, but I have no way of knowing for sure."

"If you didn't have anyway of leaving this Gaia, let along coming to D'Nur, then how exactly did you get here?"

Freya shrugs. "I honestly haven't got a clue. One minute, I was fighting for my life and then..."

"Do you want to tell me about it?"

"You want to know?" Freya inquires. "Are you sure you want to hear me out? It will take some time."

Cestus chuckles. "Well, Freya, we're both stuck in this barracks, and on this planet, for a while, so we might as well pass the time."

Freya smile slightly. "Very well. Have a seat. It's a rather long story..."

A/N: Guess who's not dead! Yeah, I've been really lacking this Summer, I know. I planned on writing up quite a few stories and ended up stumped. I figured I might as well continue Argent D'Nur while I think up something. Yes, I will be writing more in the future, but not anytime soon. I'm leaving on a road trip on August 10th, 2020 and won't be back until the 20th (I think? Might take longer), but once I get back. I'll hopefully write up some more stories.

Yeah, I didn't want to have Freya retell the entire story of Final Fantasy IX for us near the end there. One, because it would take too long and come out incredibly dull. Two, I don't wanna spoil it for anyone who may be interested in playing the game. I know most of you guys are probably DOOM fans, but I think it'd be best to play the game instead of having me tell you everything.

I will say, though, I am kinda stumped on where I want this story to go. I know I want to do all the Argent D'Nur stuff up until Doomguy (and now Freya) get trapped in hell (spoiler, I know, but I think you guys saw that one coming), but what happens after that? Should I go straight into Doom 2016 or have them pop up in the world of Final Fantasy IX and have the events occur in there? In all honesty, I am really proud of this fanfiction. It's the most well received of my stories (seriously, 1600 views as of right now? Thank you guys so much!) and I really don't want to let anyone down. Feel free to suggest anything in the reviews.

P.S. If you're curious, Cestus isn't the actual name of Valen's son in DOOM cannon. From what I know, he doesn't have a name right now, so I made something up, as well as a backstory. Just wanted to let you guys know to avoid any confusion.

Overall, stay safe and Rip and Tear, until it's done!