The story of The Last Story is about a young man named Zael and his group of mercenaries, led by Dagran. It is told in chapters, like a book.
The Story from the Instruction Booklet
Sparks flew. The shrill shriek of metal on metal echoed as blades clashed. The explosive sound of arcane arts resonated as destruction rained down.
It was a battlefield...
A group of mercenaries were fighting some Reptids, a warlike species of grotesque appearance. They screeched to one another in their bizarre tongue and continued to attack without mercy.
But the mercenaries would not be outdone so easily. They fought back against the Reptids with coordinated attacks of steel and magic, each taking advantage of their unique skills.
After a brutal battle, the mercenaries cautiously advanced to an ancient stone bridge which spanned a deep chasm. Suddenly a strong wind blew through the cavern. Strange flecks of light began to dance and swirl in the currents of the air.
"It's beautiful..."
However, those flecks of light were the remains of a world that was slowly dying.
As the land lost its vigour, it had begun to calcify and then crumble away. No one understood why this was happening, but as long as nature died along with the land, the prospects for humanity looked bleak.
The mercenaries made their way back to the realm of men.
Nestled in verdant, rolling hills there lay a massive city. In it, great throngs of people traded and bartered among the rows of densely packed houses and buildings. Rising above it all, one could see a magnificent castle of shimmering white stone. This could be nowhere but Lazulis Island.
The island lay at the entrance of an inlet at the southern-most tip of the Empire. In the distant past, a great mage of the House of Arganon built a weapon of gigantic proportions - the Lazulis Cannon. From that point, the island became renowned as a fortress which protected the Empire.
As the nobles began a futile and never-ending struggle for power, and the entire Empire began to suffer from the mysterious blight, Lazulis Island served as a bulwark for the Empire. The island afforded protection from foreign invaders and in return, songs were sung about the most peaceful and flourishing place in the Empire.
In a tavern in the middle of Lazulis City, the mercenaries gathered to make merry after a successful mission. Yet beneath it all their unfilled dreams and ambitions remained. Each of them yearned to escape from the desperation and inner turmoil they had faced for so long. In an age where hope was all that many had, they sought that precious something that would give their lives meaning. [video=youtube;NLc4i3Iuq2s]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLc4i3Iuq2s&feature=fvwrel[/video][video=youtube;9PARTewm44M]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PARTewm44M&feature=related[/video]