Trials of Mana (Nintendo Cinematic Universe)

Trials of Mana is a Japanese graphic novel.
==Summary==
Three heroes attempt to claim the legendary Mana Sword to prevent the Benevodons from being unleashed and destroying the world.
==Characters==
Japanese Voice 	English Voice 	Character 	Description
Takuya Eguchi 	Jacob Barrens 	Duran 	As an orphaned mercenary swordsman of the Grasslands Kingdom of Valsena who proudly serves his king, the wise Richard. Duran and his little sister Wendy were raised by their aunt Stella after Duran's mother died from a long-term illness and their father was lost in battle with the Dragon Emperor. One night, Duran is on guard duty at the castle of Valsena when the Crimson Lotus Wizard attacks the castle. Duran is left for dead after confronting him, and after making his recovery, he vows to become the best swordsman in the world and to exact his revenge.
Rumi Okubo 	Sarah Miller-Crews 	Angela 	The only princess of the ice-covered Magic Kingdom of Altena. Her mother, Valda, the Queen of Reason, uses her magic to keep the Altenish citadel in a perpetual spring. However, like her country, Valda is cold and unfeeling towards her daughter, who has become lonely and selfish as a result of her upbringing. The Queen's spell weakens as Mana starts to fade. So that her spell may continue, and Altena does not freeze over, she, with her assistant the Crimson Lotus Wizard, decides to invade other nations to claim their Mana Stones. Once done, she would sacrifice her daughter to the ancient spell which would unlock the power of Mana kept in the Stones, opening the way to the infinite power held in the Sword of Mana. After Angela is told this, she flees Altena.
Ryota Osaka 	TJ Rhoads 	Kevin 	The inarticulate prince of Ferolia. He is the son of Gauser, king of the Beastmen, and a human mother. Sick of the treatment of his people by "normal" humans, the Beast King's desired revenge is made all the more possible by the appearance of the mysterious "Man who devours death", who places his dark magic at Gauser's "beck and call". He shows his abilities by making Kevin's beloved wolf-pup orphan friend, Karl, rise up and attacks him while both are out in the Moonlight Forest. Forced to defend himself, Kevin's werewolf abilities are awakened; unfortunately, they come at the cost of Karl's life. After seeing that the Beast King is sending an invasion force to overthrow the humans' precious Holy City Wendel, Kevin overhears the Beast King congratulate the Deathjester on his spell. Enraged, he confronts the Beast King and is quite literally thrown out of the castle. He declares the Beast King is not his father and states his desire to find his mother and some way to revive Karl.
Sumire Morohoshi	Alana Marie Cheuvront	Charlotte 	The "famous beauty of Wendel", is the granddaughter of the Priest of Light. Orphaned by her parents, the human cleric Leroy and the elf Shayla, she is looked after by a fellow cleric, Heath. Feeling an evil influence in the nearby Jadd Stronghold, the Priest of Light sends Heath to investigate; however, Charlotte overhears this conversation and, feeling a strange apprehension, sneaks out of Wendel. She arrives just in time to see the Deathjester abducting Heath. Afterward, Charlotte decides she must save him. In the fan translation, she is known as Carlie. Of the heroes, she is the only one with a speech impediment.
Yuki Ono 	Alejandro Saab 	Hawkeye 	A member of a guild of noble thieves based in the desert Sand Fortress of Nevarl. The guild's leader, Lord Flamekhan, suddenly and uncharacteristically declares Nevarl to be a Kingdom. Surprised by this, Hawkeye discusses the matter with his friends, Flamekhan's children, Jessica and Eagle. Hawkeye and Eagle decide to confront Flamekhan about it, only to find that he is in the middle of a meeting with his assistant, the witch Isabella, who turns out to be pulling Flamekhan's strings. Isabella (later revealed to be named "Bigieu") casts a spell on Eagle to make him attack Hawkeye, who injures Eagle gravely in self-defense. However, Isabella finishes Eagle off with a spell and puts all the blame on Hawkeye. He is imprisoned and is awaiting his execution when Isabella informs him that she has given Jessica a cursed necklace; should Hawkeye tell anyone the truth, she will be choked by it. Luckily, he makes an escape.
Mikako Komatsu 	Brittany Cox 	Reisz 	The princess of the mountainous Wind Kingdom of Laurent and captain of its Amazon army. After her mother, Minerva, dies while giving birth to her younger brother, Elliott, Riesz vows to take care of him. However, two mysterious ninjas from Nevarl, Bill and Ben, trick Elliott into turning off Laurent's protective winds and promptly kidnap him. With the winds gone, Nevarl attacks Laurent with a cloud of sleeping powder and kills its king, Joster. Devastated, Riesz makes her escape.
? 	? 	Lightgazer 	The Benevodon of Light.
? 	? 	Mispolm 	The Benevodon of Wood.
? 	? 	Dangaard 	The Benevodon of Wind.
? 	? 	Xan Be 	The Benevodon of Fire.
? 	? 	Dolan 	The Benevodon of the Moon.
? 	? 	Land Umber 	The Benevodon of Earth.
? 	? 	Fiegmund 	The Benevodon of Water.
? 	? 	Zable Fahr 	The Benevodon of Darkness.
? 	? 	Valda 	The queen of Altena, known as the true queen and Angela's mother. Though she uses her powers to keep her kingdom safe from its freezing temperature, she seems to have become heartless. She directs her kingdom to make war on its own ally Valsena, and attempts to use her own daughter as a sacrifice to awaken the mana stones. It is revealed late in the game that she was under a spell the whole time, being manipulated by the Crimson Wizard.
? 	? 	Machine Golem 	Unlike the other two factions, the Dragon Lord's manipulated kingdom does not have a minor antagonist character. Instead, Altena has an army of Machine Golems: the latest in magic technology warfare.
Yuichi Nakamura 	? 	Crimson Wizard	The Dragon Lord's main servant. He was once an ordinary human, but possessed no ability for magic until the Dragon Lord offered to make him the most powerful wizard alive in exchange for half his life. After suffering defeat, he loses his will to live and commits suicide.
? 	? 	Loki 	The Dragon Emperor's other servant, who is actually Duran's father Loki, though this is only revealed if Duran is in the party when he is fought. Loki was believed to have died fighting the Dragon Emperor, but the Dragon Emperor saw a use for the powerful warrior and revived him as his servant. Although the Darkshine Knight retained his memories from living as Loki, he was fanatically loyal to the Dragon Emperor. After the Darkshine Knight dies, he is released from the control that the Dragon Emperor had over him, and tells the heroes that he has faith in their power to stop the Dragon Emperor. If Duran or Angela aren't the main characters, then the Darkshine Knight still reveals that the Dragon Emperor revived him before dying and that the Dragon Emperor's power is what kept him alive.
Anri Katsu 	Christian Rummel 	Dragon Lord 	Duran and Angela's main enemy. Of the three possible main villains, the Dragon Emperor's past is the least developed. His origin isn't stated; the most that seem to be known is that he is the leader of a clan of dragons. A coalition was led against him by Prince Richard and Loki. At the cost of Loki's life, the Dragon Emperor was defeated, but he managed to resurrect himself by using half of the crimson wizard's life and resurrected Loki as the Darkshine Knight. The Dragon Lord's intent is to transform the world into a world of utter chaos with him standing above all.
? 	? 	Gauser 	The King of Ferolia, and Kevin's father. He appears to be a ruthless conqueror, starting a war against humanity and torturing his only son by manipulating him into killing his only friend (and rewarding Goremand for setting it up by letting him join his army). In reality, unlike his counterparts, Gauser is not being manipulated by Goremand. He started his war to try and unite his people against human oppression and went along with Goremand's actions because it was in line with his true goal: to make his son walk the path of the warrior. In the end, the two make peace with his father happy his son has shown resolve and will be a bridge for the divide between human and beastman.
? 	? 	Ludgar 	A beast guard who was chosen by Gauser to be the leader of the invasion of Jadd and Wendel. He is openly hostile to Kevin. Ludgar has complex reasons for his hatred of the prince. This will cause a bonding moment between the two, before Ludgar dies. Lumina the moon spirit, having watched the events, manages to reincarnate Ludgar as a baby. Kevin promises they will meet and fight again.
Tomokazu Sugita 	? 	Goremand 	The main servant of the Masked Mage. His origins are unknown. He displays the ability to eat souls, hence his Japanese/official translated name. He is helping the Masked Mage because the resulting death will keep him fed for eternity. Early on, he abducts Heath and hands him over to the Masked Mage as a servant. Unlike the other villains, he seems to survive when the Masked Mage is not the main villain. What happens to the Deathjester after that is unknown.
? 	? 	Heath 	The other servant of the Masked Mage. Heath is the son of the Masked Mage and previously a friend and brother figure to Charlotte. At the start of the plot, he goes out to try to investigate the disturbances with Mana and to try and save his father from his own darkness, but was abducted by the Deathjester and turned evil. Heath eventually sacrifices his life to cure the Priest of Light's illness and is later revived by the Mana Goddess.
Taketora 	? 	Masked Mage 	Kevin and Charlotte's main enemy. He was once a human named Belgar, who, in addition to acting as the Holy City Wendel's Oracle of Shadows, was also a priest renowned for his skill in healing. One day, he found a disease that could not be cured with light magic and began using dark magic to find a cure, but the victim died before he found it. Belgar continued dabbling in dark magic and eventually discovered a spell that could revive the dead. Soon afterward, he challenged the Priest of Light but was defeated and exiled. During this time, Belgar became corrupted by the dark magic and became the Masked Mage, developing a strong hatred for the living. He intended to gain the power to exact his revenge. At some point, he recruited the Deathjester. The Masked Mage's son, Heath, tried to stop him but was corrupted and became his father's strongest servant.
? 	? 	Flamekhan 	The leader of the Nevarl chivalrous thieves group, Eagle and Jessica's father, and Hawkeye's adopted father. Flamekhan seemingly turns Nevarl on its head by declaring they will conquer Laurent and become a kingdom. It becomes clear early on, however, he is being controlled by Belladonna. At the end of the game, he is restored and vows to honor his deceased son by helping the desert grow into a new paradise in the now mana-less era.
? 	? 	Bil 	An agent of Nevarl who have become corrupted by the power given to him by Belladonna. Bill and Ben tricked Elliot into opening Laurent's defenses to Nevarl at the beginning of Reisz's path. They were once Hawkeye's friends and he attempts to reason with them, only to find they are too far gone. Belladonna ended up using their souls to activate the firestone.
? 	? 	Ben 	An agent of Nevarl who have become corrupted by the power given to him by Belladonna. Bill and Ben tricked Elliot into opening Laurent's defenses to Nevarl at the beginning of Reisz's path. They were once Hawkeye's friends and he attempts to reason with them, only to find they are too far gone. Belladonna ended up using their souls to activate the firestone.
Yoshino Nanjo 	Adrienne Arno 	Belladonna 	The right-hand servant of the Dark Majesty, she is also implied to have romantic feelings for him, especially during her death scene; how she met him is never stated. Belladonna's sole intent is following the will of the Dark Majesty, but she notes that he "lost his soul" when he became a demon, and she hoped to "bring his soul back". Despite this devotion, the Majesty has never displayed any sign of caring for her and considers her expendable. A notable event only occurs if the main characters are not Hawkeye or Riesz: after the Dark Majesty is killed by the main villain, Belladonna kills Malocchio off-screen and releases Elliot before killing herself, seeing no reason to live without the Dark Majesty.
? 	? 	Malocchio 	The Dark Majesty's other main servant. Malocchio is a vampire-like entity (and is harmed by Charlotte's Turn Undead spell as a Bishop). His origins are unclear, but he is likely a demon from the underworld. He is fought and killed by the characters if Hawkeye or Riesz are the main characters; otherwise, he is killed by a grieving Belladonna after the remains of the Dark Majesty's body are destroyed.
? 	? 	Dark Majesty 	Hawkeye and Riesz's main enemy. He was once a human, though his original human name is never given. He was the prince of the "Kingdom of Light", but for unexplained reasons was both hated and feared by his people. The demons of the underworld offered to make him their leader in order to obtain revenge; the prince accepted and soon destroyed his former kingdom. He does not have a body of his own, but instead acts by possessing the body of Riesz's younger brother Elliot. His aim is to merge the human world with the underworld so that he can rule both, and he even displays a desire for the demons to be worshipped in place of the Mana Goddess.
==Plot Elements== 
*The story begins in a different place for each hero.
*With the exception of Charlotte, each hero is soon told (or otherwise decidex) to seek the advice of the Priest of Light in the Holy City Wendel. They arrive at the city of Jadd soon after the Beastmen have invaded. Due to the Beastmen's werewolf powers, they are able to make an escape by night.
*The main heroes—now including Charlotte—on the way to Wendel stays overnight in Astoria where they are woken by a bright light. Following it, it reveals itself to be a Faerie from the Sanctuary of Mana, exhausted by her journey.
*Out of desperation, the Faerie chooses one of the main heroes to be her host and tells them to get to Wendel. There, while they explain their grievances to the Priest of Light, the Faerie interrupts and explains that the Mana Tree is dying, and that the Sanctuary is in danger.
*The Priest explains that if the Tree dies, the Benevodons will reawaken and destroy the world. He goes on to explain further that, because the Faerie has chosen one of the main heroes as its host, they must travel to the Sanctuary to draw the Sword of Mana from the foot of the Mana Tree. They can then restore peace to the world, and have their wishes granted by the Mana Goddess if the sword is drawn before the Tree dies.
*A great deal of power is needed to open the gate to the Sanctuary.
*The Faerie does not have the strength to do it, and the ancient spell which would do so by unlocking the power in the Mana Stones also takes the caster's life.
*The Stones' guarding elemental spirits, however, will to be able to open the gate if their powers are combined.
*After journeying across the world to get the spirits, meeting the other members of the party, thwarting the invasion attempts of Nevarl and Altena, discovering the powers of the Fire and Water Mana Stones, and learning the disappearance of the Mana Stone of Darkness along the way, the main heroes try to open the gate to the Sanctuary of Mana with the spirits' assistance. The first attempt fails, but the second succeeds; the Faerie realizes that it was opened because someone else released the power from all the Mana Stones.
*The heroes travel into the Sanctuary and they claim the Mana Sword.
*It is then discovered that the main heroes' adversaries—the Crimson Wizard and the Darkshine Knight for Angela and Duran; Malocchio and Isabella for Riesz and Hawkeye; or Goremand and a mind-controlled Heath, for Kevin and Charlotte—have defeated the other two sets of primary enemies.
*The remaining adversaries capture the Faerie and will only release her in exchange for the Mana Sword. The trade is made, and once the enemy receives the Sword, the Mana Stones shatter and the Benevodons are released.
*The heroes must then defeat the Benevodons before they can gather and destroy the world. However, after doing this they realize killing the Benevodons has given more power to their main enemies, who their personal enemies were working for—the Dragon Lord for Duran and Angela, the Dark Majesty for Hawkeye and Riesz, and the Masked Mage for Kevin and Charlotte.
*The already powerful villains absorb the power of the Sword of Mana and the Benevodons in order to become a god but are halted by the Mana Goddess blocking some of its power.
*After defeating the villain's minions, the heroes go and defeat their main enemy, but are unable to stop him from destroying the Mana Tree and eliminating all Mana from the world.
*The Faerie then fuses with what is left of the Mana Tree; she will be reborn as the Mana Goddess in a thousand years, but until then Mana will not exist in the world.
*As the story ends, the heroes go back to their homelands.
==Notes==
*Set within the Nintendo Cinematic Universe.
**Part of the Galeem Saga.
*Based on Trials of Mana.
*Co-Produced by Square Enix.
Category:Nintendo Cinematic Universe
Category:Nintendo Cinematic Universe graphic novels
Category:MrWii000's Ideas