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It's "Ephlesia", not "Elphesia" - only noticing that this read-through. Yes, I'm reading this a second time, it's MORE than that good! But yeah, small error there. ;P

I like this VERY much, well played making use of the fact that the life stones of Valen's dolls were supposedly fragments of the Dewprism, the microcosm of the universe, the ultimate power - it makes total sense that some other power-hungry bastard would hunt the dolls for their skull gems (if you get that reference, high five!), it would be almost like getting the Dewprism itself if he gathered enough. Mint herself had hoped to find "fragments of the Dewprism on the floor". Am I correct in thinking that this magician was trying to MAKE a relic since he couldn't find one, and he was using what was left of the greatest Aeon to try to do so since he wasn't an Aeon himself? VERY nice. X) Ruecian would've been safe, but Rue and Ruenis, almost ironically the two dolls who are still alive, have perfectly healthy life stones…which reminds me, you've never mentioned Ruenis…anyway, I'm surprised Valen himself never thought of someone doing that, he'd understand hunger for power better than anyone. Bottom line, I never would have thought to do this, but now that I've seen it done I almost feel like kicking myself for not thinking of it, it makes so much sense. XD I guess I had tunnel vision and was too focused on Valen. XD

And now I will sit back and hope you've gotten my reviews and might someday continue this. There are few things more tragic than a story left unfinished, and it's never too late, you know. ;)

*applauds while laughing* I could not possibly think of a better way to tell your readers that you're suffering from writers' block and need to take a break! XD I'm currently in the same position with a fic I'm writing right now…

Anyway, all I can say is that I like this story and fully trust you to know what to do when your writers' block passes (yes, I know you've published a few more chapters, but that was nearly six years ago and you're still not done, so I'm guessing you only managed to eke out a few more before getting totally blocked again, which is normal when you feel pressured). It happens to all writers, and there's no cure for it but time or stumbling across some inspiration by chance…In fact, it's what's kept me from writing my own sequel to the game for about thirteen years, so you've already done a LOT better than me! XD I like how you decided to focus on the Masters most of all, it's nice to see someone have empathy for people like them AND I've noticed that it helps reduce the issue of how to decide what is and isn't canon since there were two different stories in one game. You've got the characters down well, they don't seem too OOC for the situations you've put them in, and you have the seedlings of some fascinating plot twists in the greenhouse - just make sure to let them blossom on their own! ;D

I love this and trust you completely. I hope you didn't hurt yourself back when you wrote this or since, and I hope you come back someday. Remember, you can't force yourself to write when you don't feel like it, and you can't force yourself to stop writing when inspiration strikes, without some very negative results, so don't push yourself metaphorically or physically when trying to keep going because it won't help. Much love. :)

The poor doll! Not having the faintest idea what she's been dragged into…I LOVE THIS! :D

Ooh, Prima Doll has a sister! A REAL sister! XD I like what you're doing here! :D

Oh, okay, so they DO know stuff. Good, I'm glad you took that route. Much love! X)

*It's "P.P.S." - Post post script. I have a major pet peeve about that… :P

Moving on to the chapter, first of all, it's "gudon", not "guado"; and second - and here's the big thing - while I appreciate you giving the Masters backstories (and your reference to Elena's painfully annoying initial mistake about Rue), Kirielle said something to Ruecian about herself and the other Masters in the game that I could never forget: "Our lives would have ended in meaningless battles without you. You have even granted us names. You have freed us from our dismal fate." The second and third sentences have somewhat contradicted Karwyn and Narcius's stories, but I accept creative license as sufficient to stretch their possible meanings; however, while the second and third match the story you've given Kirielle perfectly, the first very clearly contradicts it. That said, I accept your apology. X3 Also, doesn't Karwyn know the nature of Rue and Ruecian, and Ruenis for that matter? He knows Rue and Ruecian were "brothers"…

On the other hand, I VERY much like how you seem to be headed for explaining some of the things in the game that were never really explained, such as the Chimeras in the Ghost Temple. I tend to do the same with my own game fanfics, but I never really thought about doing this; I look forward to seeing where you take it. :)

Here's what I don't get: Why is Maya helping? I thought Mint ran off to grab Rue and go while Maya was away on business, for the very simple reason that Maya would be about as enthusiastic about Mint getting a relic as the Masters seem to be…but hey, creative license. One Master per one former-protagonist, maybe? ;D

"Since when had Maya been able to figure out anything more complicated than a peanut butter sandwich?"

And with that, I have no choice but to Favorite this story. *applauds*

Hmm…It's true that Trap Master's traps usually involve things blowing up, and it was cool that you used the spike ball's origins here, but…I feel like you're losing sight of the fact that Trap Master is TRAP Master, not Bomb Master. Yeah? Meh, oh well, creative license I guess. No harm done. :)

I can't even figure out what you mean by "figure out what he was doing", so I guess no cookie for me. XD

You know, all three of the Masters can use magic…specialized magic, yes, but would they really be struggling THIS much? Narcius is Trap Master, I'd think he could trap animals to eat without much difficulty…and shouldn't magic be able to help Karwyn? Are they all really so focused on fighting that they know no healing magic whatsoever? I guess that's creative license, but I'm really hoping Karwyn doesn't die…

*applauds* Nicely done, nicely done! I'll be reading the rest of this when I have time! I'm so glad SOMEONE's thinking of Karwyn, Kirielle, and Narcius - it's THEIR turns to throw off the chains of fate and forge their own lives! X)

I like the extra realism you've added without breaking the game's style - and yes, I do feel that you've accomplished that here. I can still picture them rendered lovingly in their PS1 graphics, while adding the details you've described without them feeling out-of-place. Of course, that could just be my stubborn love of /everything/ about the game from its story to its soundtrack, but as a diehard fan, I declare that you have not offended in any way. :)

What I'm looking forward to most is seeing how you reconciled the two stories into one for this story's backstory, if that makes any sense…The game's feature of having two stories is the thing that makes writing a sequel story difficult, but I get the feeling from this chapter that you've got it covered. If I ever get around to writing my own sequel (which I've had fragments of in my head for more than half my life), I hope you won't mind me borrowing from you if I see something I think works especially well? ;D

I also notice that this is already long enough to qualify as a novel, not tagged as being completed, and hasn't been updated for almost six years…Sufficed to say, I really hope you get this review, author, and finish this at some point if you're so inclined (and I doubt that hope will change as I read on). Fans still lurk the interwebs! ;)

Cheers! :D

Please update soon, yo! This is definitely the best ToF fanfic out there so far!