You may have noticed that my feature has been absent from the front-site for the last four months. Well believe me, it has been the longest and hardest four months of my life. My journey has taken me to hell and back, literally.
It isn’t long now until my final showdown with Dr Rydrum. Let me tell you, I’ve gotten strong, I’ve gotten smart, and now I’m ready. I’m ready for whatever he is going to throw at me. It feels at this point like I have the upper-hand almost. I know now what I must do, and the lives of everyone you know and love are in my hands now… I only hope I can keep this strength for the final fight.
If I had known that almost one year ago, a simple research project as a beginner freelance journalist would turn into such an adventure, I would never have believed it. But here I am, writing again about another magical Summon. This time, I think I know where Rydrum will be. He is traveling to the furthest desert ruins in search of the demon, Ifrit.
According to Arabic mythology Ifrit are a demon spirit and are a class of Jinn (Djinn, Djinni). The Jinn are creatures from the Qu’ran, who alongside humans and Angels make up the three sapient creations of God. They are described as being smokeless and made of scorching fire. They are also physical in nature, and can interact with people. The Jinn are not inherently evil, good, or neutral – they can be either of those things as they have free will, unlike Angels. The Jinn are said to have been made from smokeless fire, just as the humans were made from clay by Allah.
As a Jinn, the Ifrit is depicted as being huge with wings of fire. They are said to live in ruins, with human weapons having no power over them, but they are susceptible to magic which can be used to capture and enslave them for their own personal gain.
Thinking about Ifrit like this makes a lot of sense, in fact, in some of the earlier Final Fantasy titles, the summon is called ‘Jinn’ and he is also described as being a Djinn in the Dissidia logs. In Final Fantasy VIII, Ifrit is fought in the Fire Cavern as part of a trial. The Fire Cavern basically being a ruin and the whole reason behind going there is to ‘enslave’ Ifrit as a GF. Whilst physical attacks do damage to him (even if very little), it is only when Squall or Quistis summons Shiva that Ifrit is weakened. He also protests at her being summoned – especially as she deals such great damage to him.
Ifrit’s attack is called ‘Hellfire’ or is a similar variation, which has demon-esque qualities about it. ‘Hellfire’ sounds very powerful and dangerous and it also has connotations of the Devil, and Ifrit himself looks a lot like a devil. In Final Fantasy VIII, he has brown skin with red flame-like fur, a feline (lion) face, and large horns atop his head. In fact alongside Diablos, he is probably the most stereotypically demon-like GF in Final Fantasy VIII.
In Final Fantasy X, Ifrit appears to be more of a four legged creature as opposed to the Ifrit of Final Fantasy VIII who appeared to stand (or float) on two legs in a more humanoid fashion. Final Fantasy X's Ifrit also has more horns on his head and somewhat of a more canine (wolf) face.
Another totally different representation of Ifrit can be found in Final Fantasy IX where he takes on a completely different appearance to that of a Centaur, with cloven feet, furry legs, and a very human/lion upper half with curled ram-style horns. This Ifrit doesn’t wear shackles around his wrists… This is something which sets him miles and miles apart from some of his other game brothers.
Shackles have long since symbolised an idea and representation of slavery. A few versions of Ifrit are shown with shackles, and I think the most important examples of this are in Final Fantasy VIII and X. As discussed earlier, the Ifrit of VIII’s universe is basically fought down from the Fire Cavern to be enslaved as a GF by Squall and Quistis and in X, it is Yuna who prays in Kilika Temple for ownership of the Ifrit Fayth.
Even in Final Fantasy VII – Crisis Core, Ifrit is passed from one master to the next after being used by Genesis in battle, Ifrit is fought after his defeat so that he may be obtained and used in future by Zack.
Ifrit has some pretty badass appearances over the series of games, but I think one of the most visually stunning comes in his little appearance in Final Fantasy XIII where he plays a major role in the Pompa Sancta show in Nautilus. As he battles with Ramuh, he showcases his fiery strength and demon might in a terrifyingly superb show! If you happened to miss this, there is a link just below.
Like Shiva, Ifrit is truly an iconic slice of Final Fantasy – and the games just wouldn’t feel right without an appearance from him. He has been in every game since the start of the series bar Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II. He is surely a fan favourite summon. He is even featured in Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn as a powerful and dangerous Primal to be struck down! On defeating Primal Ifrit, the player is treated to some wonderful Fire Elemental equipment to use at their disposal.
Ifrit also got a lot of background lore in Final Fantasy XI - a whole little backstory in fact. 'Legend of the Avatar' tells the story of a warlord named Frit, who was a menace - and a bloodthirsty one at that. He conducted killing sprees all across the world and would end them by burning down villages. On one of his rampages, he came across a baby girl who looked at him with such love that he kept her for his own, naming her Falbub. He entrusted her to two servants, and watched over her as she grew up, but sadly some people would never forget the terror of Frit, and they murdered his beloved Falbub for revenge.
Frit then ascended to the top of a volcano whilst the souls of the dead where gathering during the solar eclipse. The ghosts of the people he had slain attacked Frit and turned him into a demon. Falbub as able to reach him, and was as unphased as ever by his demonic side. Frit begged to the gods that his life be exchanged for Falbub, and his wish was granted. But Falbub was unhappy on her own so her life was taken once more. The God Altana then took Frit and Falbub to the heavens, and thus the Ifrit constellation was created, with Falbub being the brightest and most beautiful star inside of it.
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November 10th
This was it. Finally I'd reached the ruins which were home to Ifrit. As I stepped through the entrance I immediately inhaled the stench of burning flesh and stale air all at once. It wasn't pleasant. What was more reassuring to me was that it looked as though the ruins had not been touched in some time. What was less reassuring was the crunch of bones beneath my feet, and when I looked down I was confronted with the horror of a carpet of skeletal corpses.
It was too late to go back and I had Leviathan. He would help me out in a tight spot, surely. He's not Shiva, but he could fill up this this ruin with an ocean before I could blink or even breathe if I truly willed him too. Having the summoning crystals in my bag seemed to calm my nerves a lot.
A blinking light caught my eye through the cracks in the wall, and I figured if anything, I should head towards it. The warmth radiating from the centre of that room was immense. It felt as though I'd crossed through a forcefield from being a cool and windy cave to suddenly being thrust into a burning desert on fire. A long rope bridge led down to an empty crater, where I could see the orange flaming crystal shining out to me like a beacon.
It wasn't to be smooth sailing though, as I approached closer to the crystal and reached out to grab it I felt the ground beneath me quake, and a deathly roar belolowed around the walls - echoing from each nook and cranny of rock back to me. For such a hot place I have never felt quite so frozen with fear in my whole life...
"You dare come here and expect to leave with your life....?" came a melodic whisper from out of nowhere, I couldn't see Ifrit anywhere but the room began to fill with pillars of black smoke and one of them blocked my exit. "I have no choice. I need your help." Somehow I had managed to muster the courage to shout back out to the Jinn. Then he appeared. His skin was brown but over it ran lines of glowing orange - as if his blood was lava and it was pulsing through his veins up to his skin, about to burn through it. "You ask for my help? Don't be stupid child" he replied mockingly as he crossed his hulking arms over his broad chest with his shining eyes fixed onto mine.
There was only one thing for it, I had to take out Leviathan so I reached into my bag and drew out the crystal and held it towards him. "You will help me!" I yelled and I watched as his arms dropped and he floated down closer to me. He slowly inspected the crystal in my palm. "You have the crystals... Yet it seems you are unaware of the shadow you have." He floated up to the top of the cave, into a hole in the ceiling and he was gone for some time yet I didn't once move. Maybe he was only gone for a few seconds, but it felt like hours. I felt like a baby bird about to be devoured by a hungry cat.
When he returned he looked straight at me, as if to see if I would flinch under his gaze, but I stood strong. "It's true then. Something is happening. You have one chance to tell me child, or like the last of your people you will become a snack."
"A man named Dr Rydrum is doing something with these crystals. He has some too, he's leading me to some kind of showdown and I wanted to get here before he did. Believe me, I'm doing you a favour. He is evil." I still had no idea what Rydrum's endgame was, but he sure had one. Maybe Ifrit knew more than I did.
"He's going to call The Old One. You're walking to your death, child. He's going to give you up to it as an offering. It's too late to turn back now, the ritual has already begun." The smoke cleared from around me, and it was like I felt a tight grip around my body loosen, and I could breathe again. "I don't want to be your slave, but to be a slave to The Old One is much worse. I will come with you."
He disappeared up into his hole again, and this time I heard booming sounds and rocks began to tumble down from the rocks that made up the ceiling. Where had he gone? This time he came from behind me, and in his hands was the most remarkable thing I've ever seen. "If you want to defeat The Old One, you'll need more than your summons, and more than even me. You're going to need a sword."
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That concludes this very late edition of Summon of the Month! Sadly there is no member interview this time, but do keep your eyes open for the next SoTM which is coming after a very small wait of two weeks! Who is this 'Old One' and what has he done to frighten Ifrit so much? And just WHAT is that remarkable object he's carrying? What does he mean about shadows... Stay tuned to find out in the big, finale conclusion to Summon of the Month!
12-06-2013, 11:10 AM
Night Fury
Yey! As you can see, this one has waaaay more narrative than I usually do, because in two weeks time I'm going to be finishing this series!
BUT NOOOOOO!!!
You may be crying inside over it being the end.... BUT! It isn't! There are still more Summons to write about - many that were going to be featured this time but I never got the chance sadly, so don't despair.... let's say it's been given the 'okay!' for a second season! In the meantime, please enjoy this! It took me a long time to finally get this done, so I really hope you enjoy it! I do these for you guys who have been reading since day 1 :D
