History Fanfic / OffTheLine

* NotMeThisTime: The destruction of the Eldar Tree mostly wasn't Rainstorm's fault.

* TheGhost: Zack's avatar in game is mentioned a lot by either people who know him or know him by reputation, but hasn't been appeared in the story.[[spoiler: That is until chapter 49.]]

* RealNameAsAnAlias: Sephiroth doesn't bother hiding who he is in-game[[spoiler:, although it used to be Alexandria before he was outed]]. Vincent goes by his real name because he was trapped before the game was even a concept and probably can't change his name.

* TheGhost: Loyal, the player avatar of Zack, is mentioned a lot by either people who know him or know him by reputation, but hasn't been appeared in the story.

* TreeTopTown: The whole town of Elder Tree is one village in one massive tree with bridges connecting to individual branches.

* PersonOfMassDestruction: Flower. Just by summoning Bahamut[[spoiler:, she killed over 500 players and destroyed the Eldar Tree.]] Just being near her makes things more breakable[[spoiler:; this is a side effect of being a Cetra.]]

* PersonOfMassDestruction: Flower. Just by summoning Bahamut [[spoiler: , she killed over 500 players and destroyed the Eldar Tree.]] Just being near her makes things more breakable [[spoiler: ; this is a side effect of being a Cetra.]]

* RealNameAsAnAlias: Sephiroth doesn't bother hiding who he is in game [[spoiler: , although it used to be Alexandria before he was outed]]. Vincent goes by his real name because he was trapped before the game was even a concept and probably can't change his name.

[[spoiler: ** Aerith even scolds Tseng for taking the game so seriously and for being so overprotective when she wants to have fun.]]

* TheWonka: Reeve is strange and kooky, but he's the creator of Terra Online, the head of Shinra's Urban Development[[spoiler: , and Cloud's new boss.]]

* TheWonka: Reeve is strange and kooky, but he's the creator of Terra Online, the head of Shinra's Urban Development [[spoiler: , and Cloud's new boss.]]

''[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/1295005/chapters/2686486 Off the Line]]'' by [[http://archiveofourown.org/users/esama/pseuds/esama esama]] is a ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' AlternateUniverse fanfic. Cloud gets a Virtual Reality Dream Console, a high-tech virtual reality video game console, [[MundaneUtility as a sleeping aid]] assigned by his regiment's physican for his sleeping problems.

* ADarkerMe: Cloud is a shy teenager in real-life, Rainstorm is an assertive BloodKnight and DeadpanSnarker who takes shit from no one.

** Rainstorm kills players higher leveled than him due him applying real world logic and physics onto the game, which most players don't.
** Rainstorm finds out that Vincent is a real person and not a boss nor a glitch after a few minutes of talking to him, which Cait Sith didn't know even after ten years of attempting to delete Vincent.
** When hired by [[spoiler:Reeve to work in Terra Online's Development team, he is able to do many things in the 'primordial soup' of the VRDC despite Reeve stating it takes months to years of training to be able to do the things Cloud was doing]].

* AndIMustScream: Vincent is trapped in a game where he can never sleep or let his guard down without risking being killed by players or the game's moderator and no one until Rainstorm had ever realized that he was a person. The reason his mind is such a wreck and he can't remember anything is because he never had the chance to rest, thus he couldn't properly process his memories.
* AngelFaceDemonFace: When Vincent was a boss mob, his head was circled with jagged horns and had claw-like hands with leathery wings. He was a EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette with visible veins on his skin with his hair covering his face, giving him a very demonic appearance. As a pet mob, he's nearly indistinguishable from a human besides his wings as he loses the horns, the veins, the paleness and his face is visible.
* AscendedFanboy: Cloud goes from newbie player [[spoiler: to joining the Terra Online development team and was personally scouted by the '''game's creator'''.]]
* AssholeVictim: a lot of Cloud's kills are people trying to kill him or sexually harass him.
* BadassAdorable: Cid as Naut. Naut is an adorable moogle who is a high level Machinist and Dragoon.
* BaitAndSwitch: When Bigshot discovers Rainstorm's [[GenderBender actual gender]] when he lets down his disguise, he keeps asking if Rainstorm's gay. He stubbornly refuses to let the subject die and or let Rainstorm change the subject. When Rainstorm admits that he's bisexual, Bigshot turns out to be supportive of Rainstorm's sexuality and gives him a BearHug to Rainstorm's relief.
* BarbieDollAnatomy: Cloud is thankful that avatars are not anatomically correct and his character is built like a doll or he would risking flashing other players.
* BeautifulAllAlong: The Demon of the Wastes is surprisingly good looking.

** Vincent became very devoted to Cloud when he protects him from Cait Sith and treated him as a person.

* BeneathTheMask: Cloud in real life is timid and unassuming while Rainstorm in Terra Online is assertive and brave. Cloud's body language shifts when he decides to "be Rainstorm" when standing up for himself.

** Vincent's is being made to do nothing while Rainstorm is attacked, he is outright offended when Rainstorm asks him not to fight so the former doesn't accidentally level up Rainstorm. He calms down when Rainstorm assures him that the ban only applies to monsters and not players. And that's nothing compared to when someone tries to hurt Rainstorm. [[spoiler: The destruction of the Elder Tree started when someone was badmouthing Rainstorm and made threatening motions. Vincent shot the guy which accidentally outed Rainstorm.]]

** When Rainstorm finds out that Vincent is a player and not a virus, Cait Sith does everything he can to make up his past actions to Vincent and Reeve plans to track down Vincent's comatose body.
** [[spoiler: Reeve then offers Cloud a Job at Shinra as a programmer just so then he could help with finding Vincent's body and improve Terra Online.]]
* BountyHunter: Countless of them are constantly chasing after Cloud/Rainstorm for his massive bounty which they need to kill and loot him to get. They are noted to be an opportunistic and unpleasant bunch who often hunt after lower level players instead of the more stronger players. Rainstorm kills them in order to either defend himself or just for sport.

* BullyHunter: [[spoiler: Rainstorm meets Flower went he defends her from perverts harassing her by killing them.]]
* BulletProofHumanShield: Justified [[spoiler: game mechanics make it impossible for attacks to kill party members so Rainstorm grabs a fallen bounty hunter to use as a shield to protect him from the other bounty hunters' attacks.]]
* BulletTime: Being on Haste makes time feel like its slowing to a crawl and everyone else moves slowly.

* ChainmailBikini: Any armor the Viera wear turns into this. Its impractically is lampshaded twice: when Rainstorm fights a monster he gets whipped in his vulnerable bare mid-section. Rainstorm kills a woman by piercing her heart when he steps on her because all she wore on her mid-section was a corset. Red XII notes that most Viera tend to be long-distance fighters like archers and mages which tend to negate the inherent disadvantage.

* CombatPragmatist: When Rainstorm fights, he aims for the throat and heart. And later on, he decides trick people into firing on each other, use people as meatshields and use/destroy the environment around him.

* ContinuingIsPainful: the practice of Corpse Camping, act of repeatedly killing a character which causes them to lose their levels, items and stats. Yuffie was corpse camped so badly that she went from level 42 to level 1.
* ContrivedCoincidence: Lampshaded by Sephiroth when he meets Rainstorm in the Wastes, just after talking to Zoto and Beloved about him.
* CovertPervert: While Vincent keeps a straight face and for the most part his affection for Rainstorm is kept chaste, but he definitely is affected by always having to be near a ShamelessFanserviceGuy. In his own thoughts, he expresses the desire to touch Rainstorm more intimately.
* CrutchCharacter: Out of boredom and to help their newbie friend, Treasure Princess and Red XIII give needed help, advice and status buffs. Although Red XIII avoids fighting so he won't be an EXP sponge.

* DeathIsCheap: Due to being a video game, characters are constantly getting killed.
* DesperatelyCravesAffection: Vincent craves positive physical contact because the only time he had any contact in the last 15 years was when people were trying to kill him. Thankfully, Rainstorm is patient and gives him affection while checking that he doesn't violate Vincent's comfort zone.
* DisproportionateRetribution: While Flower didn't like being robbed by Treasure Princess, she thought that the Overseers went too far by Corpse Camping Princess back to level 1.

* TheEasyWayOrTheHardWay: Nanaki tells Cloud that there's an easy way to deal with his bounty and infamy; let someone else kill him and start over. Naturally Rainstorm refuses despite how it would things easier for him.

** With Red XIII visibly talking to players everyone assumes that he's a hacker due to his unique appearance. These same players also logically assume that Vincent is a regular if high-leveled player.
* EveryoneCanSeeIt: Everyone in Rainstorm's party can see that Rainstorm and Vincent are a little affectionate to be considered platonic.
* ExpectingSomeoneTaller: People are always surprised that the [[RedBaron Viera Bastard]], the player who massacred many players, happens to be very {{Stripperiffic}}.
** Flower thought Rainstorm would be vicious and cruel person going by his reputation only to be surprised that he's actually an honorable and protective person.

** Yuffie/Treasure Princess lost her levels and her loot when she was corpse camped by the Overseers for robbing their darling. The Overseer's darling turns out to be Aerith/Flower.
** Sephiroth mentions trying to find the Demon of the Wastes since its the strongest and most elusive monster in the game. When Rainstorm tries hiding in the wastes, he stumbles on the monster's hiding spot, who turns out to be Vincent.

** Funnily enough, [[spoiler: Rainstorm considers the bounty on his head a good thing as this would do as the bounty is intended, but decided to get rid of Flower's bounty as well for good measure]].

* TheGhost: Loyal, the player avatar of Zack, is mentioned a lot by either people who know him or know him by reputation but hasn't been appeared in the story.
* {{GIFT}}: Players can be jerks in Terra Online. Red XIII got killed and robbed several times and Rainstorm and Flower get sexually harassed. They also pull this back, but causing other players grief and causing as much havoc as possible.

* GlamourFailure: [[spoiler: Vincent can see pass people's player avatars to see the actual person.]]

* HappinessInSlavery: Vincent is turned into Cloud's pet by Cait Sith due to him being unable to turn Vincent into a player. Vincent becoming pet is for the best since Vincent won't be constantly attacked by players and Cloud won't even consider exploiting him. For Vincent's part, he doesn't like being a pet but likes Cloud's affection and protection. Helps that Cloud is very respectful of Vincent's boundaries.

* HardWorkHardlyWorks: Zigzagged. Red XIII and Vincent can power level weaker players as long as the players are in their party. Yuffie takes this option to get her character's levels back, Cloud refuses because he doesn't want to be cheated out of the experience.
* HowDoIShootWeb: As a newbie, Cloud has little idea how the game worked.
* HumansAreSpecial: This is Reeve's reason why he's more fascinated by Rainstorm than Flower or Red XIII. While Flower and Red XIII are unique, being non-human means that anything he gets from them will be nothing more than a curiosity. Since Rainstorm is a normal human but has such strange instincts when it comes to VRDC, means it can be applicable to other people. [[spoiler: this leads Reeve to hire Cloud as a techie for Terra Online.]]
* IJustWantToBeFree: Vincent's biggest wish is to get out of his virtual reality and rejoin the real world.
* IdentityAmnesia: After 15 years of no sleep, the only thing Vincent remembers of his old life is his name, his marksmanship and that it is cold outside where his actual body lies.

* TheInsomniac: Vincent has not properly slept in 10-15 years due [[spoiler: to being physically and mentally]] trapped in Terra Online and his mental health has suffered from it. It's implied that he only slept when he was killed by other players.

* {{Irony}}: Despite being a [=ShinRa=] product with high-ranking guilds being full of [=ShinRa=] employees, a lot of Wutai citizens and Anti-Shinra organizations also play the game.
** Vincent in canon was sealed in a coffin and slept for many years. Here, Vincent hadn't properly slept for 15 years!

* ItAmusedMe: Naut, a high level Moogle armorer helps Rainstorm, Red XII and Treasure Princess defend themselves from bounty hunters because he thought it was funny. In fact, he had a blast messing with them.
* ItIsDehumanizing: The Demon of the Wastes is referred as an it and treated as a fascinating glitch AI.
* ItCanThink: Cait Sith is rather surprised that the Demon of the Wastes glitch can remember things, assess danger and make decisions. Only to find out to his horror that Vincent is not an it.
* JokeCharacter: the Viera Race were created as a fanservice joke about skimpy impractical armor.

* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: Reeve flat out calls Rainstorm a "video game protagonist" for his strange abilities, weird honor and the varied company he keeps.
* LethalJokeCharacter: Rainstorm proves to be one for the Viera Race. While his clothing is always impractical, he is crazy fast with great reflexes and balance due to his natural reflexes and racial bonus.
* LevelGrinding: The preferred and fairly quick way is to do quests. While one can level up by killing monsters or power level by having a high-level party member do the work for you.

* MindOverMatter: As it turns out, people could apply what they learned in Terra Online to real life as Terra Online uses real physics and players' actual physical capabilities. Cloud finds this out when he decides "to be Rainstorm" when defending himself from his bunkmates, who tried to beat him up over his resignation as a trooper.
* TheMissingNo: InUniverse with Vincent. Vincent is assumed to be a boss monster but is actually glitch character who turns out be a comatose prototype player that couldn't be removed from the game.
* MookHorrorShow: [[spoiler: The bounty hunters have the misfortune of being part of Rainstorm's experiment on friendly fire which consists of one man going against five players. That consists of said man skewering players on their teammates' weapons, using them as meat shields and killing them off one by one until they stopped resurrecting.]]

* MyselfMyAvatar: Vincent is still a victim of ShinRa's human experimentation and his comatose body was used to test out the VRDC and VR prototypes, trapping him in Terra Online since the very beginning.
* MythologyGag: The many races of Terra Online are actual ''Frachise/FinalFantasy'' races: the Viera, the Moogles, the Gria, the Miqu'ote, the Burmecian, the Ronsos and so on.
** The sword Cloud makes while [[spoiler: he is in the VRDC primordial soup with Reeve]] is the Fusion Sword.
* NeckSnap: Rainstorm delivers one to [[spoiler: Flower so he can get rid of her bounty]]
* NeedleInAStackOfNeedles: In order to visit a city without being attacked by bounty hunters, Rainstorm wears an enchanted choker that turns him female. Since Rainstorm stood out for being the only male Viera, it's pretty effective. [[spoiler: Until he reveals himself to a party of guys hitting on Flower thanks to Vincent one-shotting one of them when one of them threatens Rainstorm,]] then all hell breaks loose.
* NeverSleepAgain: Sleeping out in the open without a tent is an extremely bad idea as opportunistic players will kill you.
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Rainstorm helps Flower with people harassing her and as a result he gets a massive hit on himself by her overprotective handler.
* NoKillLikeOverkill: When Rainstorm and his friends come, the bodies will drop. Their tendency towards this leads Rainstorm to naming their guild Overkill.
* NoSelfBuffs: Inverted, the Ninja class' powerful and versatile buffs can't be used on anyone besides the caster. Treasure Princess however finds a loophole.

* NoodleIncident: the Fanocalypse of Alexandria.[[spoiler: It involves Sephiroth.]]
* ObliviouslyEvil: Cait Sith didn't mean to torment Vincent, he thought Vincent was a glitch!

* PersonaNonGrata: Rainstorm is unofficially banned from towns as bounty hunters come in droves when he steps in one. Especially Alexandria due to being Overseers' territory and their bounty on Rainstorm.
* PersonOfMassDestruction: Flower. Just by summoning Bahamut [[spoiler: she killed over 500 players and destroyed the Eldar Tree.]] Just being near her makes things more breakable, [[spoiler: this is a side effect of being a Cetra.]]
* PervertRevengeMode: When Rainstorm gets sexually harassed during his first visit to Albrook, he endures it until a woman gropes him. Rainstorm snaps and accidentally kills the woman. He then kills her guild when they try to kill him in retaliation...Then he kills the people that tried to join in the fight...Then he kills them when they resurrect, multiple times.
* PhraseCatcher: When Rainstorm meets new people, the first thing they'll ask is why is he half-naked?
* PlayerKilling: When Rainstorm comes, the body count will rise.
** Hell, his first incident earned him his RedBaron honorific [[MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail Rabbit of Caerbannog]].

* RaceAgainstTheClock: Rainstorm has to race to get in a tent or an inn before the ten minute countdown finishes or his avatar is stuck everywhere he is, defenseless.
* ReadTheFreakingManual: Cait Sith implies that Cloud should have looked at his character's equipment customization when he finds out that equipment becomes skimpy as a side-effect of being a Viera.
* RealMenWearPink: Angeal/Noble mostly enjoys the cooking and interior decorating elements of Terra Online, but is the third strongest player in the game.
* RealNameAsAnAlias: Sephiroth doesn't bother hiding who he is in game, [[spoiler: although it used to be Alexandria before he was outed.]] Vincent goes by his real name because he was trapped before the game was even a concept and probably can't change his name.

** [[spoiler: Cloud transforms the world of VRDC's primordial soup with a thought, big deal since it takes programers years of training to do what Cloud's doing.]]

** Rainstorm gets the [[MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail Rabbit of Caerbannog]] for breaking the record most player kills in within an hour and most kills as a low-level player.
** Rainstorm is also called the Viera Bastard in the Terra Online forums.

* [[ReluctantFanserviceGirl Reluctant Fanservice Boy]]: Cloud finds out the hard way how skimpy armor is made to look on Viera and he ''despises'' it. Every item he wears turns into jewelry or skimpy clothing.
* RoundhouseKick: Rainstorm does this to a bounty hunter trying to kill him, his [[CombatStiletto razor sharp heels]] slice the man's throat open.

* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: Reeve abuses his connections as Head of Urban Development to [[spoiler: contact Cloud to get him working for immediately, getting immediate discharge papers.]]

* SeriousBusiness:
** Subverted, no one takes the game all that seriously. Heck, Cloud got a bounty on his first day and he treats it more as a challenge. [[spoiler: Aerith even scolds Tseng for taking the game so seriously and for being so overprotective when she wants to have fun.]]

* ShipperOnDeck: Aerith thinks Rainstorm and Vincent are couple due to how they act around one another and thinks their relationship is adorable.

* SleepyHead: Vincent randomly falls asleep to his own detriment. He even fell asleep in the middle of flying!
* SlutShaming: A player sexually harassing Flower calls the [[GenderBender disguised]] Rainstorm when he sees Rainstorm's skimpy outfit while the latter is calling him out on his harassment.

* StopHavingFunGuys: Aerith accuses Tseng of being one, treating Terra Online as his information network as opposed to the game its supposed to be.

* SuspiciouslySpecificDenial: Beloved denies being a fanboy for Rainstorm despite him buying information about Rainstorm and constantly talking about him.
* TruceZone: Tifa/Sonata's bar, Seventh Heaven, is place that people from other guilds can eat and gather without worrying about being killed by other players. Which Sonata enforces with her fists.
* UnequalPairing: Vincent and Cloud are attracted to each other, but their relationship is unequal both ways. Vincent is an adult far older than he looks and is far stronger in both strength and skill while Cloud is a teenage newbie player. On the other hand, Cloud is advantaged in that he's only one that realizes Vincent is a person and is the reason Vincent has any safety in the game.
* UniquenessValue: Rainstorm sticks out as being the only male Viera.

* VocalDissonance: Naut is a cute moogle but he still has Cid's deep masculine voice and curses like a sailor.
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: Massive tons of it. Rainstorm kills players while they resurrect and Naut demonstrates how many other players suffer without killing them. Many low level players become bounty hunters to kill lower-leveled players for some quick gold.
* VideoGameCrueltyPunishment: Infamy is a status effect that makes it difficult for players to level up or get monster drops as deterrent for PlayerKilling. Cloud accumulates a ton of it when he causes the Albrook Newbie Massacre and half the destruction of the Elder Tree.
* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: Due to Terra Online's humanoid player base, Nanaki as Red XIII has constantly watch his back because he is constantly mistaken for a mob or a pet and killed.
** Due to him literally existing before the game, Vincent was assumed to be a [[TheMissingNo glitch character]] or SecretBoss because no one bothered to actually interact with him non-violently until Rainstorm.
* WomenAreWiser: Mena, Bigshot's real-in and in-game wife, quickly spots Rainstorm's trouble leveling up his skills. She points out that he's using the weapons recommended for his race, not the weapon he needs for himself. She recommends a heavier sword.
* TheWonka: Reeve is strange and kooky but he's the creator of Terra Online, the head of Shinra's Urban Development [[spoiler: and Cloud's new boss.]]

** Reeve mentions making in-game businesses run by players a new feature. Later, Tifa/Sonata is shown running her own bar in her guild house.

* NoodleIncident: the Fanocalypse of Alexandria.

* RealityEnsues: While Vincent is physically intact due to his supernatural abilities, 15 years of no sleeping has mentally tore him to shreds. Due to being unable to rest his mind, he pretty much loses his memories due to being process them. He's only able to remember his own name at the end of this.

** [[spoiler: Cloud transforms the world of VRDC's primordial soup with a thought, big deal since the programmers themselves to make commands to do half what Cloud's doing.]]

* BountyHunter: Countless of them are constantly chasing after Cloud/Rainstorm for his massive bounty which they need to kill and loot him to get. They are noted to be an opportunistic and unpleasant bunch who often hunt after lower level players instead of the more stronger players. Rainstorm would kill them in order to defend himself or for sport.

* BountyHunter: Countless of them are constantly chasing after Cloud for his bounty. He and his guild kill them for sport.

* AchievementsInIgnorance: Rainstorm's sthick is that he achieves a lot of things because he doesn't know any better as a new player:

* RoundhouseKick: Rainstorm does this to a bounty hunter trying to kill him, his [[CombatStilleto razor sharp heels]] slice the man's throat open.

* GlamourFailure: [[spoiler: Vincent can see pass people's player avatars to see the actual person.]]

* AscendedFanboy: Cloud goes from newbie player [[spoiler: joining the Terra Online development team and was personally scouted by the '''game's creator'''.]]

* BaitAndSwitch: When Bigshot discovers Rainstorm's [[GenderBender actual gender]] when he lets down his disguise, he keeps asking if Rainstorm's gay. He stubbornly refuses to the subject die and or let Rainstorm change the subject. When Rainstorm admits that he's bisexual, Bigshot turns out to be supportive of Rainstorm's sexuality and gives him a BearHug to Rainstorm's relief.

* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: Rainstorm and Red XII became fast friends because they were the first people that didn't harass them upon meeting them.

** Vincent is being made to do nothing while Rainstorm is attacked, he is outright offended when Rainstorm asks him not to fight so the former doesn't accidentally level up Rainstorm. He calms down when Rainstorm assures him that the ban only applies to monsters and not players. And that's nothing compared to when someone tries to hurt Rainstorm. [[spoiler: The destruction of the Elder Tree started when someone was badmouthing Rainstorm and made threatening motions.]]

* BigGood: Cait Sith, the AI created by Reeve, who serves as the moderator and head admin of the game. Reeve's creator of Cait Sith and of Terra Online serves as the Bigger Good.

* CombatPragmatist: When Rainstorm fights, he aims for the throat and heart. And later on decides trick people into firing on each other, use people as meatshields and use/destroy the environment,

* TheEasyWayOrTheHardWay: Nanaki tells Cloud that there's an easy way to deal with his bounty and infamy; let someone else kill him and start over.
* EntertaininglyWrong: Sephiroth thought Rainstorm deliberately went out of his way to break his kill record by investigating the massacre.

* IdentityAmnesia: After 15 years of no sleep, the only thing Vincent remembers of his old life is his name, his markmanship and that it is cold outside where his actual body lies.

** Vincent in canon sealed himself in a coffin and slept for many years. Here, Vincent hadn't properly slept for 15 years!

* KillSteal: So they don't get infamy from kill players, Princess and Red XII attack players but have Rainstorm finish them off.

* MindOverMatter
* TheMissingNo: InUniverse with Vincent. Vincent is assumed to be a boss monster but is actually a comatose prototype player that couldn't be removed from the game.

* MundaneUtility: VRDC was initially intended as a training aid before mass-marketed as a videogame console.

* MyselfMyAvatar: Vincent is still a victim of ShinRa's human experimentation and his comatose body was used to test out the VRDC prototype, trapping him in Terra Online since the very beginning.
* MythologyGag: The many races of Terra Online are actual ''Frachise/FinalFantasy'' races: the Viera, the Moogles, the Gria, the Miqu'ote, the Burmecian, the Rossos and so on.

* SupsciouslySpecificDenial: Beloved denies being a fanboy for Rainstorm despite him buying information about Rainstorm and constantly talking about him.

* VocalDissonance: Naut is a cute moogle but he still has Cid's deep masculine voice and curse like a sailor.

* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: Due to Terra Online's humanoid player base, Nanaki as Red XII has constantly watch his back because he is constantly mistaken for a mob or a pet and killed.
** Due to him literally existing before the game, Vincent was assumed to be a [[TheMissingNo glitch character]] because no one bothered to actually interact with him non-violently until Rainstorm.

* AchievementsInIgnorance: Rainstorm's sthick is that he achieves a lot of things because he doesn't any better as a new player:

* HumansAreSpecial: This is Reeve's reason why he's more fascinated by Rainstorm than Flower or Red XIII. While Flower and Red XIII are unique, being non-human means that anything he gets from them will be nothing more than a curiosity. Since Rainstorm is a normal human but has such strange instincts when it comes to VRDC, means it can be applicable to other people. [[spoiler: this leads Reeve to hire Cloud as a techie for Terra online.]]

* MookHorrorShow: [[spoiler: The bounty hunters have the misfortune of being part of Rainstorm's experiment on friendly fire which consists of one man going against five players. That consists of said man

* MundaneLuxury: Being able to sleep without fearing attack is something Vincent hadn't had in a long time and one of the things he enjoys in Cloud's protection.

* PersonOfMassDestruction: Flower. Just by summoning Bahamut [[spoiler: she killed over 500 players and destroyed the Eldar Tree.]] Just being near her makes things more breakable.
* PervertRevengeMode: When Rainstorm gets sexually harassed during his first visit to Albrook, he endures it until a woman gropes him. Rainstorm snaps and accidentally kills the woman. He then kills her guild when they try to kill him in retaliation...Then he kills the people that tried to join in the fight.

* BulletProofHumanShield: Justified [[spoiler: game mechanics make it impossible for attacks to kill party members so Rainstorm grabs a fallen bounty hunter to use as a shield to protect him from the bounty hunters' attacks.]]

* ContrivedCoincidence: Lampshaded by Sephiroth when he meets Rainstorm in the Wastes, just after talking to Zoto about him.

** Vincent is also one.

** With Red XIII visibly talking to players everyone assumes that he's a hacker due to his unique appearance.
* ExpectingSomeoneTaller: Everyone expects Rainstorm to be a lot more scarier before they actually meet him in person.

** Rainstorm and Flower become friends after they destroy a city together in an attempt to get away from harassers gone wrong.

* FrameUp: [[spoiler: Rainstorm is framed by Tseng for Aerith's destruction of the Elder Tree, putting a huge bounty on his head.]]

* {{GIFT}}: Players can be jerks in Terra Online. Red XII got killed and robbed several times and Rainstorm and Flower get sexually harassed. They also pull this back, but causing other players grief and causing as much havoc as possible.

* HardWorkHardlyWorks: Zigzagged. Red XII and Vincent can power level weaker players as long as the players are in their party. Yuffie takes this option to get her character's levels back, Cloud refuses because he doesn't want to be cheated out of the experience.

* HumansAreSpecial: This is Reeve's reason that he's more fascinated by Rainstorm than Flower or Red XIII. While Flower and Red XIII are unique, being non-human means that anything he gets from them will be nothing more than a curiosity. Since Rainstorm is a normal human but has such strange instincts when it comes to VRDC, means it can be applicable to other people. [[spoiler: this leads Reeve to hire Cloud as a techie for Terra online.]]
* IllGirl: Mena[[spoiler:/Myrna]] is one in real life, being so ill that she has no energy to leave her bed.

* AndIMustScream: Vincent is trapped in a game where he can never sleep or let his guard down without risking being killed by players or the game's moderater and no one until Rainstorm had ever realized that he was a person. The reason his mind is such a wreck and he can't remember anything is because he never had the chance to rest, thus he couldn't properly process his memories.
* AngelFaceDemonFace: When Vincent was a boss mob, his head was circled with jagged horns and had claw-like hands with leathery wings. He was a EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette with visible veins on his skin with his hair covering his face, giving him a very demonic appearance. As a pet mob, he's nearly indisguishable from a human besides his wings as he loses the horns, the veins, the paleness and his face is visible.

* AssholeVictim: a lot of Cloud's kills are people tryin to kill him or sexually harass him.

* BigGood: Cait Sith, the player character/AI of Reeve, who serves as the moderator and head admin of the game.

** Vincent is being made to do nothing while Rainstorm is attacked, he is outright offended when Rainstorm asks him not to fight so the former doesn't accidentally level up Rainstorm. He calms down when Rainstorm assures him that the ban only applies to monsters and not players. And that's nothing compared to when someone tries to hurt Rainstorm [[spoiler: the destruction of the Elder Tree started when someone was badmouthing Rainstorm and made threatening motions.]]

* ParanoiaFuel: VRDC picks up everything about their users, real names, identities, memories...No wonder Reeve makes sure that no one, not even his superiors, know how much VRDC actually picks up.

* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: Reeve falls out calls Rainstorm a "video game protagonist" for his strange abilities, weird honor and the varied company he keeps.

* BulletTime: Being on Haste makes Time feel like its slowing to a crawl and everyone else moves slowly.

* CombatPragmatist: When Rainstorm fights, he aims for the throat and heart, will trick people into firing on each other, use people as meatshields and use/destroy the environment,

* ContrivedCoincidence: Lampshaded by Sephiroth when he meets Rainstorm in the Wastes.

* CuteMonsterGirl: Treasure Princess is a Dria, a half-dragon half-girl.

* HumansAreSpecial: This is Reeve's reason that he's more fascinated by Rainstorm than Flower or Red XIII. While Flower and Red XIII are unique, being non-human means that anything he gets from them will be nothing more than a curiosity. Since Rainstorm is a normal human but has such strange instincts when it comes to VRDC, means it can be applicable to other people.

* MST3KMantra: InUniverse, when Bigshot complains the Eldar Tree is too big to even to be possible, Mena tells him it's just a game.

* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Rainstorm helps Flower with people harrassing her and as a result he gets a massive hit on himself by her overprotective handler.

* TreeTopTown: The whole town of Eldar Tree is one village in one massive tree with bridges connecting to individual branches.

* AscendedFanboy: Cloud goes from newbie player [[spoiler: joining the Gaia Online development team and was personally scouted by the '''game's creator'''.]]

** [[spoiler: Reeve then offers Cloud a Job at Shinra as a programmer just so then he could help with finding Vincent's body and improve Gaia Online.]]

* FamedInStory: Rainstorm is rather infamous in Gaia Online to the point that he has forums dedicated to him and leaderboards dedicated to his kills.

* ImColdSoCold: Whenever Vincent is killed, the only thing he remembers of the place he gets sent to is that it feels extremeley cold.
* TheInsomniac: Vincent has not properly slept in 10-15 years due [[spoiler: to being physically and mentally]] trapped in Gaia Online and his mental health has suffered from it. It's implied that he only slept when he was killed by other players.

** Sonata's bar, Seventh Heaven is the only place in Gaia Online that has hot chocolate.

* MythologyGag: The many races of Gaia Online are actual ''Frachise/FinalFantasy'' races: the Viera, the Moogles, the Gria, the Miqu'ote, the Burmecian, the Rossos and so on.

* TheWonka: Reeve is strange and kooky but he's the creator of Gaia Online, the head of Shinra's Urban Development [[spoiler: and Cloud's new boss.]]

* ContrivedConcidence: Lampshaded by Sephiroth when he meets Rainstorm in the Wastes.

* TheWonka: Reeve is strange and cooky

* HappinessInSlavery: Vincent is turned into Cloud's pet by Cait Sith due to him being unable to turn Vincent into a player. Vincent becoming pet is for the best since Vincent won't be constantly attacked by players and Cloud won't even consider exploiting him.

* InstantFanClub: Genesis/Beloved starts one in Rainstorm's honor after hearing his achievements.

* [[ReluctantFanserviceGirl Reluctant Fanservice Boy]]: Cloud hates how skimpy armor is on the Viera form.

* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: Reeve abuses his connections as Head of Urban Development to contact Cloud to get him working for immediately, getting immediate discharge papers.

* WomenAreWiser: Mena, Bigshot's real-in and in-game wife, quickly spots Rainstorm's trouble leveling up his skills. She points out that he's using the weapons recommended for his race, not the weapon he needs for himself. She recommends a heavier sword.

* ChainmailBikini: Any armor the Viera wear turns into this. Its impractically is lampshaded twice: when Rainstorm fights a monster he gets whipped in his vulnerable bare mid-section. Rainstorm kills a woman by piercing her heart when he steps on her because all she wore on her mid-section was a corset. Red XII notes that most Viera tend to be long-distance fighters like archers and mages which tend to negate the inheirent disadvantage.

* CovertPervert: While Vincent keeps a straight face and for the most part his affection for Rainstorm is kept chaste, but he definitely is affected by always having to be near a [[ShamelessFanserviceGirl Shameless Fanservice Boy]]. In his own thoughts, he expresses the desire to touch Rainstorm more intimately.

* KillStealing: So they don't get infamy from kill players, Princess and Red XII attack players but have Rainstorm finish them off.

* DesperatelyCravesAffection: Vincent craves positive physical contact after being alone for 15 years but doesn't know how to ask. Thankfully, Rainstorm is patient and gives him affection while checking that he doesn't violate Vincent's comfort zone.

* PersonaNonGrata: Rainstorm is unofficially banned from towns as bounty hunters come in droves when he steps in one.