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Dust: An Elysian Tail Fan Fiction Code Challenge! *Now Closed – Updated with Winning Entries*

As the mysterious warrior, Dust, you must master the ancient Blade of Ahrah to battle dozens of enemies with an intuitive combat system, take on a variety of quests, discover powerful upgrades throughout the massive, open world, and uncover the story of an ancient civilization on the brink of extinction as you fight to uncover your own past. Fidget and your blade are all you have as you complete these quests and try to uncover the truth about your past. Fidget, your nimbat guardian who assists you throughout the game, keeps you on your toes and provides you with an extra boost of help during battle. What would your guardian be during these epic fights and what’s the story behind him or her? Click Read More to get the details on the rules and how you can win a copy of Dust: An Elysian Tail!

*Now Closed – Updated with Winning Entries*

 

 *Now Closed – Updated with Winning Entries*

 Congratulations to everyone who won! Please feel free to claim you entry in the comments below! Thanks to everyone who participated! 

1. My guardian would be my beloved Tuxedo Cat Missus Kitty. She would travel alongside me and have the ability to transform into any feral animal. One of her special powers is the ability to create hairballs and yarn balls at will that she skillfully uses as volatile projectiles. To revive her HP, I give her Fancy Feast and to make her transform, I give her Super Cat Nip. Although she doesn’t have the ability talk at all, she does meow at me very judgingly and hisses at me whenever she disapproves of my actions. I can also purchase upgrades to her claws so she can scratch and attack our enemies. Together we can survive anything that gets thrown us.

2. There have been some great duos over the years. Dust and Fidget. Milk and cookies. But, and I don’t mean to sound big headed here, none of them can compete with me and my guardian – Crilgarin. We first met when I was a bit worse for wear. On my travels I somehow ended up in deep in unfriendly territory. I was attacked by a  group of grotesque beings. Their huge number overwhelmed me, knocking me to the ground. Just as I thought all was lost I heard a huge roar, scaring off the beasts attacking me. I turned to see a wolfman stood in the darkness, teeth bared and claws raised. “Great – One thing after another” I thought to myself. I lay there on the floor for what seemed like a eternity waiting for this beast to finish me off. Then I heard a softly spoken voice “So….are you getting up at any point?” I immediately stood up and tried to comprehend what had just happened. He was a lot shorter than he initially looked. ”I thought you were a huge werewolf!” was the only thing I could think of saying. “A simple trick my friend! Do you really think they would have ran if they saw my true size?” I had heard of these creatures, but I thought they were nothing but myths – Guardians as I know now they’re called. As he headed back to the nearest town he turned to me and said “Looks like you could use some extra help on your travels!” I accepted his offer straight away, he did just save my life after all. The rest, as they say, is history – The combination of both our skills turned us into quite the pair.

3. I shouted in the distance to Ifrita, hoping she managed to keep herself out of trouble for the five minutes I was away. If I were to describe Ifrita, I’d say she has many similarities to a turtle. Tough exoskeleton, thick muscle tissue, walks on all fours, but what set her apart was her long neck and vicious teeth. Her head was shaped like a watermelon, and she had a enough razor sharp teeth to send a Great white shark running. I met her a year ago to this day, I had been injured in battle and she came to my rescue. I had never seen anything like her before and am so glad she stumbled upon me that day. Since then our friendship has turned into what some would call a “Brother-Sister relationship.” We look after one another and with the exception of me going to the bathroom “like now” were always by each others side. As I returned to the campsite I came upon her practicing her battle techniques. Her small size and long neck made her a very agile adversary. Her body resembled a turtle, but her speed was nothing close to turtle-like. At full speed she clocked in around 70 Mph ,“on a good day of course” . She was able to use her neck to coil around her victims and her hard body to knock them to the ground. When enemies she encountered where put into submission, her teeth took care of the rest. She’s a peaceful companion, often times using her menacing smile to ward away enemies opposed to ending their lives. However if that option ever became unrealistic, one might consider her to be quite vicious. She’s not a pet to me, she’s my friend, and together we will overcome any foe.

4. I fell to the floor as the group of assassins surprised me in the dark alleyway. One of them slashed at me with a sword and drew blood. I quickly recovered from the fall and began to run in the other direction. I couldn’t have predicted the attack, but what happened next was even more unpredictable. A large creature crashed through a near by building, taking two of the assassins down instantly, and with his brute strength, it wasn’t long before the third was knocked out with the rest of them. The large creature approached me, I wasn’t sure if he was friend or enemy, but I had lost so much blood at this point that I could barely move. The creature bent down  to me. I couldn’t believe my eyes, he had the appearance of a rhino! He seemed to be wearing karate gi, and I could make out swords by his side in the darkness. My amazement was cut short, as the giant creature belched in my face, and out of his mouth dropped a bottle with a red potion inside it. ”Drink it, you will need your strength for the journey we are about to embark on.” He spoke in a deep voice. ”How did you?” I muttered through big gulps of the drink. ”I have the ability to store items in my belly without digesting them, useful for travel.” ”Where are we going on this journey and what if I refuse to go?” I said, after realizing his first statement. ”I will explain on the way, but you must join me. I cannot leave your side, as I was assigned to be your guardian.” ”Well, I’m not sure how many assassin attacks I can survive, so it might be a good idea to keep you around!”

5. Anoshan–my bevelian guardian–is a creature of immense strength and wisdom. Being a bevelian he has many of the visual characteristics of a common moose, but with a more humanoid appearance. Anoshan’s massive antlers are a distinct garnet red color, and have tips sharp enough to pierce through metal armor. He also possesses a large ring through his nose that he was given after he completed the Trials of the Forest Warden for his tribe to signify that he was one of his people’s finest warriors. Anoshan does not speak my tongue–as his vocal chords cannot create the sounds–but he’s able to communicate with me through hand movements, and I have been able to learn what some of his guttural words mean. We met by chance as I was wandering through the Kildara Forest and saved him from a pack of bears. From that day on he has travelled with me to repay the debt he says he owes me. It’s been many years, and we have fought many fights, but he still believes he owes me more. In combat his main strength is his sheer size and power. He is able to overwhelm most opponents by rushing towards them with his antlers first–impaling enemies with the sharp points. When pushed to his limits Anoshan can unleash a mighty torrent of energy around him, stunning all nearby creatures. This power is very effective in letting me use my blade to slice through enemies with minimal resistance. Perhaps his greatest power is that of his mind. Anoshan has been alive longer than I, and sees the world through traveled eyes. He prefers meditation to combat, and doesn’t let enemies rile him into brash choices. Anoshan is not only my partner in travel, but also my closest friend.

6. Anyone who tells you that having a guardian is great is full of it. My guardian Draggle, is one lazy guardian. He sleeps all the time and I don’t even want to get into the copious amounts of food he eats. The only good thing that results from that is the stinking cloud he’s able to emit to ward off any enemies in the immediate vicinity. Trust me you don’t want to be around when that happens. Draggle’s sloppy appearance is an accurate picture of his true nature. His longish hair covers his eyes and I wonder how he can move around without bumping into something.  I sometimes wonder why I bring him into a fight with me. He’s not very agile or quick. I will say that he knows how to take a hit though. Actually you could probably take pot shots at him all day he would barely notice. Due to his enormous size, he is an extremely strong. So strong he could crush me if I ever got on his bad side. I don’t think that will happen unless I run out of money to buy him food. I will say that Draggle is extremely loyal. He always has my back so I guess that makes him an ideal guardian to me.

7. Our swords clashed, he was a worthy adversary to say the least. I was starting to wonder where Alenhal flew off to, considering I was on the verge of defeat. Suddenly a flash of light zoomed past me and I knew what was about to take place. Alenhals about the size of a peanut, and his typical attack methods usually involve him flying at bullet like speeds in circles around the enemy, creating a whirlwind type effect that shakes any weapons, armor, and items the opponent may have at hand to the ground. He came into my sight and before I knew it, he was doing just that. His small size made him hard to detect, which helped when needing to spy on opposing forces or during the orchestration of sneak attacks. We met in the woods about 4 months ago, our first encounter was hardly friendly. I found myself trapped inside his whirlwind, he asked me what I was doing in that part of the woods. It was only the second time I had ventured there. Rumors had been spreading of evil necromancy taking place to the east. Rumor had it that these magical forces would bring down our civilization, and I could not stand for that. I’m still grateful that my small, gold winged friend understood English. He slowed down, releasing me from the whirlwind, and replied to me telling me of a staff that could be used to defeat the necromancers. We discussed the battle plans we had revised prior to our journey. Around the same time, in the middle of our discussion , we realized that we needed each other more than we needed our previous plans. From there on out its been about finding peace in a land where it was lost so long ago.

8. Showing his resolve, Olve immediately leapt at my side into the battle against the foul beasts of Falana. Olve wanted to show me that even a gyrobot as small in stature as he would have the ability to evolve his skills. He saw this fight as a great opportunity to prove this point. The huge troll lunged at Olve, nearly splitting him in two with his giant battleaxe. Olve deftly maneuvered to dodge the troll’s swing, the gyroscope on top of Olve’s head began to revolve, as I slashed a pair of slimy zombies, putting them out of their own misery. The troll became even more enraged after Olve fired his laserbeam to dissolve his weapon.  This hardly made him less of a threat, as the troll had switched targets. Unbeknownst to me, he had now directed his rage squarely at my back. Olve switched options on his laser to his newest upgrade and quickly fired; the impact on the enemy caused him to devolve into a tiny, albeit very stinky, toad. At this moment, I remembered why I had decided to involve myself with Olve to solve the dire situation in Falana. It was because I knew how great of a guardian Olve was, but even more so, how great of a friend.

9. He never shuts up. In fact, I’ve twice considered trying to ditch him and face battle alone rather than listen to him chatter nonstop. But I didn’t, because he is my guardian, and he’s always there for me, even when I don’t want him to be. Plus, without him, I am aimless – where am I headed? Why am I headed there? Am I who I think I am, or am I something more? He knows, and despite talking from sunrise through sunset until the campfire is a memory of glowing embers, these are the only subjects of which he does not speak. Luckily, he has uses in combat. Unable to quiet himself in a dull moment, in the heat of battle when his nerves get the best of him, his mouth is a waterfall flowing with mountain snowmelt, roaring and pounding on the eardrums of friend and foe alike. Having been accustomed to his incessant prattle, I am able to tune him out, but not my enemies. They shriek at him, unable to focus, and even chase him about only to have him vanish and reappear elsewhere on the battlefield, gibbering furiously. Confused and distracted, they don’t stand a chance against my blade. And his teleportation isn’t just a parlor trick, either. He saved my life once when a deaf assassin snuck up on us and I was not near my sword. If he hadn’t sense the nearby danger and teleported us over to my sword, my story could have been over some time ago. But that’s exactly what you’d expect from a guardian.

10. His name is Bentles. He resembles a small flying pink ball, held aloft by a pair of delicate-looking wings. His face is dominated by two huge and friendly eyes. Bentles uses his deceivingly cute and innocent looks to distract and captivate enemies, who can’t help being drawn to his seemingly helpless appearance. While such strangers are preoccupied, he uses his magic to cloak the main hero’s approach. The hero’s footsteps fall silently, and although the hero is not quite invisible, nobody seems to see him anyway. They all notice something out of the corner of their eyes, and then it’s gone. That’s when Bentles feels happy and safe. Anger or scare him though, and he quickly grows in size, darkens in color, and his face turns into a terrifying grimace. To protect himself, Bentles can stun enemies – root them to the spot and imbue them with indescribable fear at the same time. That allows Bentles – and frequently the hero – to even the odds, or flee, if necessary.

>Submit a fan fiction piece in 300 words or less that describes what your guardian would be if in battle! What would their powers be? What do they look like? Do they talk? Fly?

>Contest length – 11:00 AM PST – 2:00 PM PST

> The top 10 entries submitted win a Dust: An Elysian Tail code

>Submit your entries to PlayXBLA@Microsoft.com

Here’s what Fidget looks like!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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