#Information on Battle for Ala Mhigo

[lcstkey]

Battle for Ala Mhigo

Despite her personal doubts regarding her recovery and ability to fight, Selena participates in the fight for Ala Mhigo in the background.

She does this to atone for her lie, i.e. using Ala Mhigo's tragedy to paint a false past. Even though it began as a preconception, she had never corrected and even accepted it as a truth.

The keybearer emphasizes with the Ala Mhigans and wanted to help them reclaim their home since she never had a chance to protect her own.

She will utilize the keyblade's power, including its ability to unlock the locked doors to help the Allied and Resistance forces enter other parts of the city and make for the castle. Selena will be an absolute nuisance to the Imperials in that regard.

Thankfully, the keybearer would never need to utilize the forms of Sonnelion or Eblis in this battle. She doesn't lose control over her magic and darkness.

Selena will not be part of the main party with the Warrior of Light who will eventually fight with Zenos. In this scenario, the second main battle with Aulus mal Asina would have ruined all of the progress she has made.

The keybearer would have froze up during the soul extraction phase and not recover her physical body in time. Even if she did somehow manage recover in time, the experience would have incapacitated her and she would be unable to focus on the fight from that point on.

[valena-nedela]

FFXIV Healer Glamour: "The Crimson Scholar"

The way she fights intrigues me. It's not like I was just watching her or anything! Not just, anyway... I think being able to rely on another's physical strength would serve me well. And it's not as though summoning a battle partner is unfamiliar to me, but I need to know more before attempting it with a voidsent. I've returned to Lapis Manalis to— Wait, what's that further in?

Lesser voidsent, but not something I can just brush aside, either. Though the battle becomes rather frantic at times, between Eos and my shields I pull through. Not that I find any sign of a voidgate, or any clues as to the actual methods involved in the voidsent pact. Time for a visit to the library.

I've been looking through these stacks for hours with little to show for it. I shouldn't be surprised. My impression of Idyllshire is that it was chaotic even before the Sharlayans abandoned it. Years of looting and the monsters that overrun Gubal on occasion have done it few favors. I'll have to go further in.

I can feel voidsent from here. Come out, Eos, we have work to do.

Minor voidsent, petty soulkin, and overgrown vilekin. They pose no real threat to me, but that doesn't mean I'll be showing them mercy. What if they damage the books?

Ah, precisely the manner of tome I was looking for. And it has been possessed by a voidsent and expanded to a massive size by the pressure of its æther. Of course. How else would my evening go?

I'm not teleporting back to Ala Mhigo with this thing. Lyse and Naago would make me go to bed and I don't want to put studying this tome off. I'll be making use of Narumi's house in Limsa Lominsa. I don't think she'll mind another book in the attic. Just a moment of rest before I unseal the tome and determine the state of it.

Well, that's better, but...

(Valena does her best to push herself to work through the night to answer her questions about the Garlean Reapers. In the end, she passes out on Narumi's sofa and has to accept defeat and go to bed in the room she still keeps in her friend's house - the very rare event of sleeping in a real bed without one of her girlfriends forcing her.)

(Tomorrow she will conclude the book is of no help, and leave it there for Narumi to deal with, instead planning to make a trip to Ul'dah to visit the Thaumaturges and see if they have any information on this unusual voidsent arrangement. However, a chance encounter in an alley behind Sapphire Avenue will lead her to much more direct answers.)

Went a lot more in depth with this story time. And though this is my headcanon for how Valena was introduced to the Reaper job, leveling Reaper was actually one of the first things I did in Endwalker, and I had the "similar to the reaper arts you wield" lines in my cutscenes.

As for the glam itself, it has gone through multiple versions, and I've worn some variation of it since... around level 65, since my oldest screenshots are from during Azim Steppe MSQ.

And as I said in the EC post, the name was mostly a reference to Maoyū: Maō Yūsha, so even though I do mostly wear it on SCH, it is an all-healer glam.

The prior incarnation of the look.

The oldest clear shot I have of the general look, during a pre-EW Prae run.

[jefarawol]

"It's going to sound completely crazy but bare with us." Alphinaud stood before her. "I'm listening." She looked at him, as he took a breath. "The Reach is undermanned and wont withstand another attack. They need time and resources to help build it back up to what it was. But there is a risk that the Garlean Crown Prince might make another attack."

Jara hissed lightly at the mention of the beast who had maimed her. "Easy lánya," she felt a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We've come up with a plan to distract the empire long enough so that the Alliance can send back up and get the Ala Mhigans back where they need to be." "Go on..." "What do you know of Prince Zenos?"

Again she bristled. She swallowed hard. "Only what I saw in battle," she spoke through her teeth. "Metal beast with blades that can cut through even the strongest steel." "What about his military role?" "He is a legatus is he not?" Barham chipped in behind them. "You're correct. He is also the Viceroy of Ala Mhigo and one other place." "Oh?" Jefara wondered where he was going with this, realizing now how very little she knew about the inner workings of the Garlean Empire.

All of the Scions present looked between Jefara and Barham, a nervous energy starting to build around them. “Doma...” Alisaie finally filled the brewing tension. “Doma...” Jefara repeated. Her thoughts instantly turned to Yugiri and Gosetsu, and to his parting gift. “You want to go to Doma?!” “Yes.” Alphinaud picked back up. “Turn the enemies gaze eastward, find our friends and offer ourselves to the Doman Liberation.” “Then afterwards,” Alisaie hummed excitedly. “We thought we could find your home.” Jefara turned to Barham who remained in his position leaning against the wall. his face was full of conflicting emotions, all of which Jefara could feel in herself. “Apa...?” She stood. “If we do this... We can...“ “Yes lánya,” He came forward to meet her, taking her hand softly. He cupped her face with his hand stroking her cheek with his thumb. “We can return home.” “We’ve already began to make arrangements,” Alphinaud beamed. “We are to meet Tataru in Limsa as soon as you are ready too.”

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

We were both floored by the anticipation of returning home, so without delay we packed what little we had and hurried to Limsa Lominsa. Tataru had already had the forethought to have our other things we might need brought from the Rising stones. I still had some unease, even as I smelt the salt air in my lungs. What would it be like to see my family again, to bring my apa home after all this time?

The journey was not going to be short, according the the Captain that Tataru had managed to secure helping us. He informed us that we would begin the journey in a few days, enough time for us all to finish preparing and make ready.

[snowflowers-ffxiv]

FFxivWrite2024 - #4: Reticent

adjective

— inclined to be silent or uncommunicative in speech ; reserved

— restrained in expression, presentation, or appearance

— reluctant

This exposes more than what she used to.

With her back to the mirror, but she did not need to see her reflection to know. They exposed less of her body than than the dancer’s casque she’d worn during her sole performance in Costa del Sol, but her style of dress has been, for as long as she could remember, was quite reticent. Sturdy and practical for adventuring, with a particular focus on the effectiveness with which it conducted aether, with select accessories and dyed a dark blue for a personal touch. This outfit, in theory, was not much different…

Except in how much skin they were showing.

It only made her think of the circumstances that made a new set of adventuring attire a necessity. The clothes Tataru had made for her when the Scions set out to liberate Ala Mhigo had regrettably been left behind in Eulmore when she and Alphinaud had to flee the city of final pleasures. While her young friend gained access for his painting skills, Estrild had instead been required to rely on her physical attributes to do the same. The Beehive, as she was told while looking around Gatetown, was always in search for pretty new faces to replace the old. In truth, she considered the loss more than worth it if it meant she’d been able to escape before she’d been required to play the part of a honeybee in truth—though she doubted Tataru would think the same.

If she had to be honest to herself… it was almost a relief that she’d lost them. The clothes she had donned as a commitment to her duty, her title as a the Warrior of Light. She’d worn them for a very long time and the familiarity of them had become a constant, almost a comfort, in the battles that raged one after another as the world around her shifted and changed with the fires of revolution.

But change doesn’t have to be a bad thing.

She took a breath and turned around. Estrild had doubts when she first unwrapped the package that had been delivered to her room in the Pendants, immediately taking note of the bared shoulders and though she liked the uneven cut of the skirt, had wondered if the front was maybe a little too short, but when she lookied at herself actually wearing the dress, she found herself… liking what she saw.

A knock on her door interrupted her musings. Estrild gave her reflection one last look-over before opening it.

The Crystal Exarch was on the other side and for someone whose face was half-hidden, his expression in that very moment was shockingly easy to read from his stunned silence and half-open mouth. And there were not many explanations for such a reaction.

She was not unfamiliar with being leered at. Her limited time in Eulmore had served as fine a refresher as any, so perhaps her standards for unwanted stares were much lower in this moment than usual. Enough to be willing to overlook this slip in propriety. Once.

“Lord Exarch,” she greeted formally. “What brings you here?”

That shook him out of his stupor quickly enough. With the smallest hint of what seemed to be a blush on the parts of his cheek that was not yet crystal, the Exarch cleared his throat and said, “I was just coming to inform you that Cassard is ready to depart and is just waiting on you to join him at the Amaro Launch when you are ready.”

Ah. That was good. Alisaie was still waiting and Estrild knew she had a few amends to make with her young friend.

“I see. Allow me a moment to get my things and I will be on my way.”

The Exarch nodded once. Estrild backtracked into her room to quickly take her cane—which she thankfully was able to save it from suffering same the fate as the rest of her gear by entrusting it to Feo Ul—and pack of her adventuring essentials before stepping out into the Pendant’s hallway with her mysterious host.

There was an awkward pause, before the Exarch cleared his throat again and said, “Full glad am I the Mean was able to finish your order in time. I would hate sending you into unfamiliar territory without being properly equipped. The skills of craftsmen and women in Facet of Crafting are the best the Crystarium has to offer. Their work will not disappoint you while on the field, I assure you.”

“I would like to stop by the Mean before we depart. To give them my thanks” She’d made sure to be very generous with her payment for the rush order, but it was only right to thank them in-person regardless.

The Exarch’s lips curled into a small smile. “They will be pleased to receive then, I am sure.”

[purple-link]

Alisaie and Purple Link

FFXIV Write 2024 Story Entry

Spoiler: Story takes place after WoL reaches Garlemald in Endwalker, but but before the Tower of Babil dungeon. Story will be largely sfw, but will adhere to FFXIV's level of mature storytelling.

Chapter 19: Taken

Purple Link’s eyes shot open.

He wondered where he was. It was vaguely familiar…

The twanging of friendly strings and hollers of soldiers practicing informed him he was in one of the camps for Ala Mhigo. Judging by the tapestry and stone carvings, it appeared to be none other than Rhalgr’s Reach.

The headquarters of the Ala Mhigan resistance group was a huge hovel, the master tent currently being helmed by the tanned miqo’te leader of the resistance, M’naago Rahz.

Protected by all sides from Garlean military, which had been a threat up until recently, people could safely craft supplies, cook food, and practice their battle skills.

Standing above all was the visage of Rhalgr himself, hand outstretched. The god of destruction was an icon for what had been, until now, an endless war.

These days, their need was on the dry end, and most of the resistance's want for legislation was being taken up by those living in Ala Mhigo itself.

Not that Purple Link needed to go outside, to be reminded of it. Stuck lying in The Barber, the settlement's triage unit, he was more than content staring up into the canopy of the bed.

He remembered the time he sparred with Lyse before the big finale, the destruction of Zenos, or so he thought.

His body was resurrected with help by Ascians, the mages powerful enough to manipulate aether as if they were the gods, or Hydaelyn, themselves.

He put his palms over his eyes.

…What was he doing here? Didn't he have better things to do than to lie in a bed halfway across the world, where he was needed?

He vaguely remembered a trident, before a cough brought him back to reality.

Sitting up, he discovered he wasn’t wearing his glasses. He could see well enough to recognize where he was, but Alisaie was as blurry as a lake’s surface, the moon’s reflection broken by the water’s ripples.

His hand outstretched, he found his spectacles on the side-table. He felt himself for injuries.

…He remembered a lightning attack. He had taken several before, not the least of which was the massive electricity-aligned primal, Ramuh.

That must have been what was at the foundation of the attack. He wasn’t expecting such a blowback.

His shoulder was cricking. He wondered if he had it dislocated, before he was healed.

“I said, ‘ahem?’” said Alisaie, irritably, holding her right hand out.

Her left hand was busy holding the floating foci out. She seemed to be impatiently waiting for Purple Link to wake.

“The healers have done all they can,” said Alisaie, levelly, trying to keep herself calm, “And the potions seemed to have done their trick. Our Lupin friend is stable.”

Purple Link shuffled slowly, and painfully, out of the bed. He was standing over the Wolf Burglar, who was lying on his back, his tail lightly twitching. He was unconscious.

In the middle of his belly was what he assumed was the wound from the spear attack.

Thankfully, it had been closed, and the fur over it had mostly grown back. However, the Wolf Burglar seemed to be taking a while to wake.

“Orella has performed her utmost,” said Alisaie, “I’m giving it as much as I can to push him over into full health. But a hand would make his recovery faster.”

Purple Link felt awkward. Not that he wasn’t ready to jump in, but looking at her from the back-right, you could be forgiven for thinking now might have been an excellent time not to disturb her.

Was she waiting for an apology?

Was it his fault?

Certainly, throwing his weapon to the ground and rushing at the Lupin leader wasn’t exactly the smartest thing he could have done.

Then again, meeting people like Zenos sometimes made him so that he couldn’t control his anger. All he could see was red, and much like the bull, he couldn’t…

“My rapier!” he said, patting his sides. It was still there.

“You’re godsdamn lucky your weapons travel with you when you use the aetheryte, regardless of whether or not they're in your hands” said Alisaie, archly, “Otherwise, you’d have to find another stick to beat a person senseless with.

"Or would you rather prefer to use your claws?”

Purple Link sat next to Alisaie, looking ashamed. He had his foci out, an egg-shaped object that opened up to a huge red ruby in the middle and an angelic crystal at the top.

But his apprehension stayed his hand, for fear that his actions might bungle the outcome.

Like it already had, he felt.

“I’m sorry,” said Purple Link. Alisaie held back a choking sound, gritting her teeth.

“‘I’m sorry’ is not going to cut it this time,” said Alisaie, “We’ve had to cut our travels in the Azim Steppe short, we haven’t even started looking for the location of the ceremony.

"It is now four days out, instead of the week, and I've had to wait for you both to awaken.

“And on top of all that,” said Alisaie, narrowing her eyes, “My brother was taken, still in the paws of those bandits.”

Purple Link couldn’t add a thing to say. If she was saying this was all his fault, he was certainly feeling it. All his composure was lost in a swift lunge.

“...I really am a savage…” said Purple Link, weakly. Alisaie rolled her eyes and stopped healing for a second.

“What you are,” said Alisaie, “is a numpty.”

“Alisaie-” said Purple Link, protesting.

“No, I don’t want to hear it!” said Alisaie, “You think, just because you’re the Warrior of Light, you have the right to make every decision you can, to try to protect the people you love, to protect the city you love so much!”

Purple Link started in shock.

“But in this bubble you wrap around yourself, you don’t let others in, and by doing so, you become distant and bitter.

“If you ever had a altruistic bone in your body,” said Alisaie, “We wouldn’t even be here.”

Purple Link furrowed his brow, looked at the Wolf Burglar, and then sighed. He put his paw over the prone Wolf Burglar and started to cast Vercure.

“Why don’t you say this to him?” said Purple Link, making Alisaie react a little nervously. She hadn’t expected that answer. She huffed and looked away, blushing.

“Because he’s unconscious,” said Alisaie, “Can’t do very much with a knocked-out Lupin.”

“That’s not who I’m talking about,” said Purple Link.

Alisaie grimaced, strained in thought, before she put her hand out again and began to heal the wolf alongside the purple Hrothgar.

“I don’t know,” said Alisaie, “Maybe it’s because I’m hoping he’ll figure it out in time. I just wish…”

“He would listen?” finished Purple Link, “I think I can relate to that.”

“Purple,” said Alisaie, “You’re not my father.”

“Yeah?” said Purple Link.

Alisaie took a deep breath and sighed, hoping what she was about to say didn’t sound like a stretch.

“...I kind of wish you were,” said Alisaie, “Would make things easier.”

“Confirmation bias,” said Purple Link, “We’re not here to make people agree with us. We’re here to save them.”

Alisaie began to smile. As she did so, her healing aether began to increase.

“I love my father,” said Alisaie, “He’s very considerate, and while he can be strict, he does as much with a gentle guiding hand. His rationale is razor sharp, and very intelligent, and I couldn’t be happier to be his daughter.

“But Alphinaud’s and my idealism,” said Alisaie, “makes it very hard to wait for a better outcome.

"As for me, I’d rather be out in the field. I try my hardest, to be the best for the group, even though I can never match up to your skill–”

“Not yet,” said Purple Link.

“I wish I could just say, ‘please don’t fight, we can learn from one another,’” said Alisaie, “But Alphinaud does it much better, and with much fewer words.”

Something inside both of them signified that the healing had taken completely for the Lupin, and they shut it off at the same time. Alisaie put her hands together, holding them delicately.

“Which is why I find it a struggle,” said Alisaie, “to understand where you’re coming from.”

Purple Link couldn’t argue. He didn’t want to.

“You act so much like him. Sometimes, it’s uncanny,” said Alisaie, “I don’t want you to act like my father, and yet, you put yourself in danger, act recklessly, and then, when a moment arrives where your actions are called into question, you act defensive, and become hostile.

“Thing is, you’ve never acted like that before,” said Alisaie, “And it wasn’t just that you had a job to do, that it kept you so busy.”

“Am I a burden?” asked Purple Link, and Alisaie shook her head, in protest.

“Not at all!” said Alisaie, “You’re as dependable a friend as I could have ever asked for. All you wanted to do, for the longest time, is eagerly jump into every battle, as if it were a game.

“You and I, we’re a lot alike,” said Alisaie, “If I could just take down a set number of cactuars, and bring back the juices for the culinarians, to make a potion for the alchemists, I’d do it in a heartbeat.

"Asking someone to bear the burden of diplomacy, on the edge of a international war, on the other hand, seems a lot to ask of someone in short order.”

She looked up at Purple Link.

“The truth of the matter is,” said Alisaie, “I should be the one apologizing to you–”

“No!” said Purple Link, his ears going back in fear, “Don’t apologize!”

“But you’ve earned it–!”

“No, I have not!” said Purple Link, “I have not earned any of this! That’s the whole point!”

He took a deep breath, and looked at the Wolf Burglar, who was beginning to rouse.

“I haven’t told you about my past,” said Purple Link, “From before I arrived at Eorzea. I think it’s time I told you the truth…”

To be continued...

[redmoonwanderer]

FFXIV Write 2024, Day 19 Prompt: Taken Continuation to “Late,” and a prequel piece for “Channel” and “Vicissitudes,” but can probably read independently.

G’raha is quick to leave Idyllshire after meeting Zhloe and learning that Qhol’a hadn’t been around for some time despite usually making time for the orphanage. He is likewise quick to realise that he doesn’t really know where to begin his search. Trying to contact him through linkshell does nothing, his calls never answered, which alone bodes ill news in the horizon.

He knows Qhol’a hasn’t been seen by anyone for a while, made clear by his visits to many inns and taverns, and trying to find the last place he was at would be difficult, since the man had the habit of constantly travelling from place to place.

He does remember Qhol’a saying he’d been thinking about visiting home at some point, but they’ve never really talked about where his home is. He only knows he’s Gyr Abanian, but that could be anywhere from the small migrating communities to Ala Mhigo, and that’s a lot of land to cover for one person.

Which is how he finds himself looking for Thancred, instead. Everyone knows Thancred and Qhol’a know a fair bit about each other, and while Alisaie would be a good bet, as well, Thancred’s specific skills might be better suited for joining him in his search for their missing friend.

Finding the man proves only that much easier than finding clues of Qhol’a. He eventually catches up to him in Limsa Lominsa, where he explains that Qhol’a hasn’t been seen or heard of for a long time, and that there’s a chance he’s in trouble.

Thancred listens, and tells G’raha what he thinks is a vital piece of information. “When I last saw him, there were rumours about Imperials brewing trouble near Baelsar’s Wall. People in Gridania were worried, and he seemed equally so. His family lives in the area, so it is possible he travelled there to make sure they’re alright.”

Before G’raha can ask him to join him, Thancred is already on his feet and telling him to come with.

Somewhere along the way they pick up Estinien like one picks up a stray animal they grow fond of over the years. G’raha does appreciate the help, in case they need to do battle, because the veteran of the Dragonsong War can be trusted to strike true, and that’s just the sort of an ally he would want by his side. He thinks he joins because he’s bored, but there’s no denying he’s Qhol’a’s friend just as the rest of them are.

They go by way of Gridania, where they learn that the activity on the other side has since calmed.

“That doesn’t sound good,” Estinien comments when the unsuspecting Gridanian has waved them goodbye and gone on her merry way.

“No, it doesn’t,” agrees Thancred, and they don’t need to spend time thinking on whether to gather more information, ask for more help, or just go.

Since the Wall is no longer occupied by the enemy, crossing is easy. They ask around more at Castrum Oriens, where they learn that Qhol’a did come through some time ago. He, much like them, had been interested in what the Imperials had been up to, and then taken off. “Guess he dealt with that, they haven’t been a nuisance since soon after,” the Serpent tells them.

No one needs to say that really doesn’t sound good for their friend.

In the wilderness of the Fringes they spend two days trying to find any trace of their friend, and at dusk, it’s Estinien who calls the other two to let them know he might have something.

The scorched ground on which they find the dragoon standing is the best lead they have, and a telling one, at that. It doesn’t take much looking around before they get an idea for what happened: someone who knew had weaved an intricate trap that with right deeds and information drew Qhol’a back where his people were. While they can’t tell exactly what happened, only that there was a battle and it was not kind, G’raha can sense something wrong with the aether in the area. Twisted and knotted, though slowly beginning to right itself.

Whoever was here was good at what they were doing, but not perfect. It’s like whoever was here was in a rush to leave, because there had been no attempt at hiding the tracks left behind, and that much they deduced after going the area to make sure they weren’t being fooled.

Despite the late hour, they make the wordless decision that they must push on.

G’raha just hopes it’s not another trap, this time set for the three of them.

[semi-imaginary-place]

ffxiv the sorrows of werlyt

ewww the gaius redemption arc continues. new writers be like "he not actually that bad" just ignore that he's a war mongering fascist that upheld and implemented a brutal colonization and occupation that included slavery, systemic rape, and general crimes against humanity for decades. Zenos too but that was for far shorter a time period and this doesn't excuse zenos but it didn't seem like he did all that much governing whereas gaius fully believed in the garlean empire.

that's an eva. like eva's were special in the mecha genre for not being robots but cyborgs and these ones are too

also gonna say the ost at the alliance base is unnerving it's an off key rendition of the ala mhigo/stormblood theme

ewww the gaius redemption arc continues. ugg it's sickening military indoctrination. reminds me of those american christians who adopt native children for the sake of "showing them proper path" and "making them good christians" as their mission states. literal cultural genocide baked into a religion. let's not forget they're probably orphaned because of the empire. but awww look at how gaius is actually a good person all along, he's a dad look how sympathetic and good he is /s

and they made livia one of his adopted orphans. you know livia the one obsessed with him and who he's implied to have sex with. the new writers sure wish they could take that back huh

uh cid your ultima isn't going to horribly mutate the pilot too is it?

huh terncliff. not seeing a lot of garlean "enhancements" in the archtecture i hope i can come back here

this quesline is really good too the tragedy of the sibling sacrificing themselves for an empire that will only exploit them. just take out daddy gaius and this would be perfect.

so they're combining sacrifice pilot with legatus battle data with an eikon

what is this cutscene. sweaty dude being an ass and chugging unrefrigerated milk. wow work place abuse you should unionize

why would they transport the emerald weapon all the way to la noscea or the rhotano sea. we are to the east of eorzea, they would have to take a ship all the way around the continent to the western edge of eorzea. also i did tell everyone in arr to permanently get rid of those eorzean castrums. i told them.

and they exploit that very desire to feed you into the meat grinder. same as with foldora

maybe because they never respected you as people to begin with

the sheer hypocrisy how much of that went on under his rule. and the writers are probably going to go "but he didn't know!" "he's changed!" which then just makes him incompetent.

bad reasoning but when you're in it it's hard to see clearly. only 3 things would have stopped valens. someone higher up shifting his position which given the mess garlemald is wouldn't happen. an enemy (us) kills him. or he kills so many people it becomes a heachache for greater HR to replace them which is also unlikely to happen

have you considered assassination. like poisoning his milk. or shooting him i mean there were 3 children to defend him and he was out of his armor you totally could have killed him. but again it's difficult to consider these things when you are deep under the established power structure,

that plan is so bad all it does is help the established garlemald power structure perpetuate itself. you are giving up your lives for less than nothing

should really stick that branding iron on his face but ah it's hard when you are alone acting out against a much bigger system. that's a kid again the man who has absolute power over them

oof don't lie on your back that'll make it worse

uh actually that list of names is like pretty sensitive information. publically releasing info immediately, I suppose it could be good and th pc has the authority to do whatever they want but uh be careful about that type of stuff

oh yeah and for all this papa gaius stuff. he left. deadbeat.

interesting that the siblings say they volunteered but are counted among the conscripts.

so the vii's gem weapon series was designed to consume the pilot who are non pureblood garleans. but i distinctly remember that the prototype that estinien fought had a hyur with the garlean 3rd eye embedded into the back and that the experiments under zenos also used garlean cyborgs abominations

this is true only because theodoric and zenos are out there people. but i remember in stormblood and arr people not liking the black wolf. so the reconning of oh he's not bad actually ew. the new writers are trying so so hard to rewrite gaius and never having been that bad.

ah yes throw off the shackles to put the biggest garlean defector in charge. i get the writers are doing this for gaius' character arc, but he's not even from here nor ever actually lived among the people. where's my local representation.

the writers really are just whitewashing him with "no he was never bad, actually" ah yes a successful second time because the first time was so successful

"for the freedom of Werlyt" the siblings say, all you did was feed the machine of it's occupation

ooooh guuurrrrll you should know he doesn't honor agreements with "savages" unless you have a failsafe and a way to cheat him you shouldn't be entering into agreements. we'll see what she has planned. interesting Allie seems to have bought into Valen's lies, why else try and negotiate citizenship and self rule for werlyt. where has her brother well actually that's ambiguous. early on their dialogue seemed to imply they wanted to prove themselves to garlemald through military achievement. but the more recent dialogue suggested threatening war as leverage for werlyt or possibly even rebellion against garlemald. or is she just using it as an opener to stoke his ego and emperor ambitions?

and her tear started overmind, not oversoul and the eva sorry diamond weapon broke free of it's control measures and deactivation signal

remember the old days when the writers use to use () to show thoughts instead of the new text box format

ug valens is still alive. he should just be dead from the diamond attack

yeah he got fused it. it really is an eva soul of the mom and everything. the sexist thing they could have done with his character.

the balloon popping sound effect!

i would have preferred allie or the siblings be continuing characters instead of gaius. instead they died for his character arc. wow this batch of devs are gaius simps. imagine how cool it'd be to have a party member that's also a big robot cyborg monster thing. i would have loved a storyarc about alphonse living after this

also you can tell the writers who put gaius and his two followers back into the story were different than the ones who wrote this storyline. because severa and valdeaulin both have history with the empire and reason to be invested in werlyt and terncliff but they have little reason to be hunting ascians. this story has little to do with hunting ascians which was gaius' new life goal when we met him in stormblood. like in sb severa was portrayed as very loyal towards gaius but her backstory doesn't really give that strong a motivation.

their "sacrifices" only helped give the empire more bodies, their deaths didn't help terncliff one bit.

lost opportunity but this totally could have been another cid arc. let's be real the whole end of 2.0 was Cid's story we were just there for the ride. remember how cid said gaius was like a father to him. in the storyline all about gaius being a dad, cid and gaius barely have meaningful interaction, which itself could have been interesting. sorrows of werlyt is a well written story one of the best in ffxiv so far, it's a shame i hate it.

oh meli... uh names... dyed her hair red that was confusing me

ah and of course the siblings were orphaned by the epidemic instead of making gaius responsible for ordering their murder which would have been more interesting and realistic given what we've seen in the other garlean occupied territories.

[matrixdragon]

Rumor Chasing

(On Our Fates Alight tie in fic. Masterpost here. Set in the aftermath of this story)

"Imperials, this close to Ul'dah? Nonsense!"

"My source is reliable."

"Your source is a Brass Blade that will say anything for more ale."

"A Brass Blade that knows he'll be cut off if his information isn't good."

Sitting at a side table, Alice idly stirred the watery mix the tavern had the gall to call a stew, giving no sign she was listening to the pair of lalafells behind her. After all, why pay for information when those that had just couldn't help but spread it for free?

"Okay then, let's hear it."

"It was south of Horizon. People heard explosions, and when the Blades responded, they found an entire imperial squad, with magitek armor backing them up. And believe it or not, they were equipped for Eikon hunting."

Soaking a piece of bread in the stew, Alice considered that. The Empire did like to ambush Dominants in locations where their victims had assumed they would be safe, in an effort to catch them off guard or prevent them from fusing their full power for fear of collateral damage. By that logic, Horizon made sense. But at the same time, operating that close to Ul’dah would require considerable effort to get both the men and equipment in undetected, and risked drawing the personal attention of Raubahn, a man whose hatred of the Garleans was almost as famous as his skill on the battlefield. Who could possibly be so valuable that they were worth the cost?

Even as she asked herself that, a chill ran down her tail. Hydaelyn. Everything Alice had been able to find suggested that the Mothercrystals Dominant was based somewhere in Thanalan, possibly even the capital itself. The Garleans were fanantical enough that their campaign against Eikons in all their various forms would surely target even her. Hellfire, they’d likely consider her a more valuable target, and one that justified drawing the attention of the Bull of Ala Mhigo.

"Okay, they were Eikon hunting. I certainly haven't heard of any Eikons around Horizon," the second lalafell pointed out, her voice clearly still skeptical.

"They must have been passing through. Or they were running already and that's where the Imperials caught up with them. Not like we can ask them. Apparently they got away just before the Blades arrived. Probably used the chance to put as much distance between them and Horizon as possible. Still, they killed a few of the bastards first."

"Well, no one's going to complain about that," the second lalafell admitted.

"No one we care about, anyway."

Taking a bite out of her bread, Alice pondered the matter in regards to her plans. Thankfully, she hadn't even semi-primed since coming to this continent, which should help keep any hunters off her trail. She could likely continue on to Ul'dah without issue or fear of detection.

At the same time, Horizon wasn't a huge detour, and she might find some useful information, either on the Dominant or their hunters…

***

Finding the site of the battle was even easier than she had expected. It had taken place along the main road out of Horizon, not even a side path like she'd originally assumed upon hearing about it. And to her amusement, she wasn't the only person visiting the site.

"Good day to you sir," she called out as she brought her Chocobo to a halt. “Might I assume the Blades have taken anything valuable already?”

Laughing, the highlander man stood up from where he’d been studying a half destroyed boulder. "That is what they do best, aye," he said. "Still, they were sloppy about it, as usual. There's a few interesting items of note.”

Dismounting, Alice gave the man a smile. "You have my interest."

In response, he gave her a thoughtful look. "Dalamascan?" She nodded, her own expression curious, and he shrugged slightly. "Thought I recognised the accent. From imperial conscripts back home."

"Funny, I was about to say the same thing about you sounding a lot like the Ala Mhigan conscripts the Garleans send our way.” The pair stared at each other for a moment, before Alice chuckled bitterly. "Fucking Garleans."

"True enough," he agreed, his own smile just as bitter. "Name's Ilberd."

“Alice,” she replied. The man paused for a moment, looking thoughtful.

“Romanova?” Raising an eyebrow, she nodded, and his smile turned more respectful. “I heard your name from some old comrades of mine that you helped out in Quarrymill. Fellow by the name of Gallien?”

“I remember him,” the woman said, relaxing somewhat. “Good man, if a little too willing to consider himself a burden. He’s recovering alright?”

“Last I saw. Lad needs to take his darn medicine, but he’s the stubborn sort. Still, Meffrid’s keeping an eye on him. Thanks for helping him. Not like the Gridanians were going to do anything,” he muttered.

“Happy to help. So, what’d you find?” Ilberd gestured at a boulder alongside the edge of the road, which was blacked and cracked in ways familiar to the woman. “Well, that confirms the story I heard in Drybone. Merchant claimed there was magitek armor involved, and that is almost certainly from a Reapers main cannon.” Running a finger along the rock, she considered the ash smudge it left behind. “One of the more recent models as well, I think.”

“I wasn’t sure about how new it might have been,” Illberd conceded. “But it would fit with something else I found.” He held up a fragment of armor plating, one Alice recognised as being from the knee joint on a Reaper. Curiously though, it was pure white, with a piece of gold trim, completely unlike the standard black used by virtually all the Reapers produced by the Garlean Empire.

Looking at it, Alice felt her stomach churn. There was only one Reaper she knew of that was customized along those lines. “The White Devil.”

“Personal Reaper of Livia sas Junius,” he agreed.

“Well shit. What the hell is that bitch doing in Eorzea?” She was almost instantly shaking her head. “Hunting someone obviously. But there’s a lot of people here that would love the opportunity to take her out. Who could be so valuable that van Baelsar would risk her this deep in enemy territory? ”

“Maybe no one,” Ilberd replied, rubbing his chin. “I heard an interesting rumor a little while back. Didn’t think much of it at the time, but maybe… Supposedly, old man Gaius is angry with her over something. My source claimed she’d been stripped of some of her authority and maybe even barred from seeing Gaius personally.”

Alice couldn’t help but snort in amusement. “Oh, if that were true, she’d be screaming.”

“Oh, you’ve heard of her little infatuation with her commander?” the man grinned.

“Yes, the Dalamascan gossip ring is well aware of her daddy kink,” she replied, forcing him to fight back a sudden bark of laughter. “But if your contact was telling the truth… She’s here to try and win her way back into his good graces.” Studying a dried blood splatter in the dirt, she rubbed her nose thoughtfully. “I wonder if we can use that.”

“We’d need numbers. Men we could trust,” Illberd mused. 

“And a better idea of who she’s after. I don’t suppose you found anything that may reveal the Eikon she attacked?” He shook his head and the woman scowled, then shook her head. “Well,  you were lucky to even find that plating. We can hardly expect all the answers at once.” She very carefully did not mention the traces of light-aspected aether in the air. Her ability to see that was granted by Agrias after all, and she wasn’t going to share that with someone she just met, no matter how friendly and helpful he was being.

[miss-littevi]

And don't ask me why I love you It's obvious your tenderness Is what I need to make me A better woman to myself To myself, myself You're gonna save me from myself

(Christina Aguilera ~ Save Me From Myself)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ After Ala Mhigo was liberated, Yorina returned to Ishgard to spend some well-deserved days off and hopefully gather new strength after the battle against Shinryu. Yorina and Aymeric were already a couple before she left for Kugane - they even got secretly engaged after a hasty proposal on the morning she had to leave unexpectedly - and since their feelings for each other were still the same after the long months of being apart, there was no question that she would return with him.

A few weeks later, they decided to make the engagement public, and Count Edmont was the first person they informed before the whole city heard about it

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ rather old screenshots from Nov 2019 - aka the time when I discovered gpose and shaders. Stil like the pictures and since I abandoned the other place where I posted before, here they are <3

[nerdsleaze]

FINAL FANTASY® XIV Online’s Patch 6.4: “The Dark Throne” will launch on Tuesday, May 23, 2023.

Players will be able to enjoy new main scenario quests, a new raid dungeon, new trial, and more. Information was also shared on other updates as part of Patch 6.4, including Crystalline Conflict and Frontline PvP updates, a number of Island Sanctuary updates including the ability to place outdoor furnishings, and an overview of the next Variant and Criterion dungeons launching separately with Patch 6.45.   Here's Final Fantasy XIV The Dark Throne Trailer

Further details on Patch 6.4 can be found below: 

New Main Scenario Quests – The next chapter in the story of the Warrior of Light.

New Raid Dungeon: Pandæmonium: Anabaseios – The final instalment of the Pandæmonium raid series.

New Dungeon – New challenges await in the Aetherfont.

New Trial: The Voidcast Dais – A challenging new battle against Golbez at both Normal and Extreme difficulties.

New Unreal Trial – Fight in Containment Bay Z1T9 (Unreal) against the mighty Zurvan.

New Side Story Quests – Tataru’s Grand Endeavour continues.

Duty Support System Update – Support for several Stormblood™ main scenario dungeons (The Sirensong Sea, Bardam’s Mettle, Doma Castle, Castrum Abania and Ala Mhigo) will be added, meaning they can be completed solo, alongside a party of NPC allies.

Ocean Fishing Update – Explore the new route towards Kugane.

Island Sanctuary Updates – New sanctuary ranks and items to gather, construction plots, craftable items, crops, animals, and the ability to place outdoor furnishings near structures, and more.

Player Versus Player Updates:

Crystalline Conflict – PvP Series 4 begins alongside Season 7 of Crystalline Conflict.

Frontline – Adjustments made to the rules of the Fields of Glory (Shatter), and the inclusion of an optional new UI element making it easier to track the score and remaining match time.

Miscellaneous Updates – Various updates including the introduction of a new Allagan tomestone currency, user interface updates to display job icons in the chat log and on player nameplates, the ability to glamour scholar faeries, several quality-of-life improvements, and more.

[meowww-ffxiv]

Trying to figure out Yukinko's personality so he will stick.

.

-- I'll go all in on the "he was in Garlemald's mainland conscripted as an assassin for over a decade", where he mostly just killed Varis's political rivals. It was the conditions that he was held under that... [Mickey Mouse Clubhouse voice] Remember this for later.

-- By ARR's beginning, Yukinko was at least much less depressed because he'd spent 9-10 years fighting the Empire. He was axiliary in the effort to prevent Dalamud's fall, which...obviously did not succeed.

Yukinko kind of already knew it was probably too late to stop Dalamud when that thing started being visible to the naked eye at the end of 1.0, but by then it felt wrong to leave the Eorzeans to their fates. So he stayed, fought at the Battle of Carteneau, and then. Yeah.

-- gif of white man blinking + "5 years later" text

-- Yukinko after finding out it'd been half a decade and he didn't remember SHIT, but at least the contacts he could reach all confirmed he'd disappeared and they thought he just died, meaning he wasn't out there being an amnesiac murderhobo probably: ...I guess. Moving on.

-- Though he wouldn't call himself someone with "political acumen", Yukinko was capable of making reasonable cause-and-effect judgment.

In his time in Gridania, he could immediately tell that this city wasn't gonna do SHIT even if Ala Mhigo could tear down Baelsar's Wall and open the passage between themselves and Eorzea proper. Not to mention Ala Mhigo had a history of fighting the Gridanians.

He rebuffed his younger associates' hope that they could help Ala Mhigo directly at this time outside of running messages and gathering intel, but softened when they begged him to see what he could do since it seemed he was getting famous.

Well, Yukinko had certainly, through some weird circumstances, gotten into the good graces of the Seedseer. But he'd also done them MSQ quests and knew that she really had no soldiers to spare, even if Gridanians felt like helping out. Which they fucking didn't.

So what COULD he do?

-- He mulled that over while letting the wind of fate blow him all across Eorzea. Getting recruited by the Scions of the Seventh Dawn was kind of an out-of-nowhere thing, but Yukinko did remember the Circle of Knowing tried very hard to stop Dalamud's descent as well.

His original deal with them was an exchange of information. Yukinko saw a way to earn both fame and acclaim in facing and investigating eikons -- those things spoken about with such fear and disgust in Garlemald's heartland. And the Scions really did have some nice perks. Such as money.

Thancred judged him to be a pragmatic and direct person, someone who didn't like small talk but was an excellent listener, and conducted questioning very carefully. Yukinko's reports were also thorough and succinct, like he was used to writing them. Or fitting a lot of information on very small paper...

-- Y'shtola explaining a primal to Yukinko.

Yukinko: It is made out of pure aether?

Y'shtola: Indeed, and often of one elemental aspect.

Yukinko: Does it have organs?

Y'shtola: I do not believe so. They shouldn't have something as complex as we do, at least.

Yukiko: Then it is akin to a dense mass of aether. Like a brick. 🤔

Y'shtola: It is exactly that.

Yukinko: Had Sharlayan ever developed tools or means to disperse dense aether masses like that?

Y'shtola: Unfortunately, no. Old Sharlayan is...not interested in the circumstances of their neighbors.

Yukinko: I see. Sheer force will suffice to banish one, but how much...

Y'shtola: Precisely. Therein lies the danger of a successful primal summoning.

-- Before getting possessed, Thancred hooked Yukinko up with the rogues' guild in Limsa Lominsa since Yukinko was interested about information gathering at a port town. So whee ninja levels later.

[the-rogue-mockingjay]

19 and 32 for the couple asks?

ehehehe these are so fun, thanks fren!!!! ❤️

19. Are they okay with public displays of affection? Do they like them?

Little things, yeah! Post-Endwalker, in professional settings she prefers to be next to him even if that technically breaks protocol (like how in Ala Mhigo meetings the Scions will be on one side of the table and the Alliance leaders on the other) and quick lil hello/goodbye kisses become habit after a while. They also often will go wandering around Ishgard or Sharlayan or wherever walking hand in hand. In general, they just like to be in the same space. It's reassuring for them. And fun, lol

32. How do their friends react to finding out they're a couple? Do they have lots of mutual friends? Did their friends know, perhaps before they themselves did?

Yeah funny thing, this. 😂 Aymeric falls in love with her sometime during Dragonsong, and it's far from a secret; Lucia picked up on it before Aymeric himself did, I think. His ability to hide his emotions goes out the window where O'ravi's concerned. Lucky(?) for him though, she is ridiculously oblivious to such things- she's unaware of Aymeric's affection for her until Thancred points it out to her and she. Doesn't know what to do with that information 😂😶 For her part, O'ravi's feelings for him don't become romantic until maybe a week after the battle in Ala Mhigo/the Royal Menagerie and all that.

By that point, literally everyone knows they're in love, and O'ravi and Aymeric both know their feelings are requited, but they just. Dance around the topic for literal years, because- hm I think it's best summed up in this line from ENW: "More terrible still is the attrition wrought upon thy companions, as they are swept up in the storm of thine existence." O'ravi is terrified that the clusterfuck that is her life will be Aymeric's death sentence, as surely as it killed Haurchefant and Ysayle. And Aymeric is mindful of that fear, he doesn't want to exacerbate it. They say that they're happy to just be friends but really.....they're pining miserably for YEARS.

O'ravi spends 99% of Endwalker convinced that she's going to die, and idk where you're at in the story atm so I won't throw down any spoilers but eventually things happen that make her decide "you know what? if I die today I'm going to regret never taking this chance", so their first kiss is literally 10 seconds before she charges off into incredible danger and the Scions are watching this like "fricking FINALLY!!" but poor Aymeric is left standing there blue screening and suffering 800 emotions at once 🥲

Ultimately, O'ravi and Aymeric don't become officially A Thing™️ until a couple few weeks after Ultima Thule, and I don't have an exact timeline thrown together but at this point it's been like 3-5 years of them just yearning and talking circles around the idea of a relationship???? The Scions - Alisaie and Krile in particular I think - tease them about it, but in general everyone's just glad Ishgard's worst workaholics finally have a reason to stop neglecting their personal lives FFJSKDJSKD

(And by bullying Aymeric about this, Estinien can finally get payback for Aymeric bullying him about his terrible money skills 🤣)

[the ask game]

[eorzean-capitalist]

What Stirs the Heart

Life was cold.

That was the first lesson the heir apparent of Garlemald remembered grasping. He could not remember his age at the time. Six. Perhaps seven by then. Old enough.

By then routine settled in. Servants who tended to him when he woke. Tutors who occupied his mornings and afternoons. Meals at exact intervals, three daily. They moved like mammets, silent and cold as the snowy landscape outside the windows to his rooms.

Rare were the sightings of his father, who regaled others with his presence but not his only son. The child whose mother’s ashes were whisked away by a brisk breeze before he was old enough to retain even a memory of her. They replaced her with governesses, who came and went as the pressures of palatial life took their toll. Their faces blended together in an amalgamation of generic smiles and equally stunned horror.

The prince, they would say, was an unnerving child. To gaze into his eyes was to see nothing but the brisk, bone chilling winds of Garlemald. But to cross him, one would see the lightning flash. He took a finger once. An earlobe another time. Swift as they fled, they were replaced. And not a word of discipline about it.

This, he learned, was simply how the world worked. He studied, traded thoughts with philosophers. Smiled that unnerving smile of his as they fell hush at the fatalistic school of thought he had adopted. He honed his body with any weapon worth learning. Everything is transactional, he understood. A handshake, an exchange of gil or information. Nothing warm in the cold feeling of coin in your hand, or a clammy handshake with a questionable tradesman.

Adolescence was no storm of hormones. Sex, alcohol, none of it held more than a fleeting interest. Merely sating physical needs, but nothing to stimulate the soul. Nothing to burn bright enough to warm him. Doma. Ala Mhigo. No matter how pleasant the temperature, it might as well have been the depths of a Garlean winter.

Nothing stimulated him except battle. Nothing stirred his blood like combat against a worthy opponent. In his teens, he trained until he beat his teachers bloody. Then dispatched them as one might cast aside a broken blade. The Doman rebellion gave him a taste for combat. Hardly twenty and one and he faced trained samurai, ninjas, warriors of repute. And they had fallen like rows of corn stalks, harvested by his blades. Barely a fleeting moment of true, glorious heat flushed his cheeks.

And then it was gone, just like that. The cold seeped back into his bones and curled around his heart like an old lover. But he understood, in that moment, what that heat felt like, and he craved more.

Then came the light. An elezen man, with skin like charcoal and eyes as blue as processed ceruleum. Their first meeting disappointed, but he sensed the potential. A blow that should have killed easily, merely wounded, and broke his favorite katana. Their eyes locked. He read the man’s gaze, the rage and anger and determination furrowing the man’s brow.

His heart… fluttered.

A curious thing, those first beats. Those first stirrings of his heart, the blood pumping warm in his veins. And oh, too fleeting. It confused him. A dozen, nay a hundred times he had witnessed that expression on the faces of other fighters. Usually just before death claimed them, or one last stroke from his blade. None of them had given him so much as pause. They were no more than broken toys, to be replaced by new ones eventually.

But not this man, who glared at him with gritted teeth. A rivulet of blood darted down his forehead, still lying there prone. He carried two other blades with him. A single stroke with one of them would have ended the man’s life easily.

Yet, all Zenos could do was stare at him.

He retreated. Casting aside his broken sword and leaving the battlefield. This was a new development, and it required time to ponder. To put it in perspective as he had so many other moments in his life. He heard Fordola’s confused squawk as he walked away.

In the intervening days, he examined this new sensation. Turned it over in his mind as if he could puzzle it out and unlock the secrets of it as he had so many other mundane emotions. Those eyes, full of rage and anger, haunted his dreams. Who was this savage? What about him intrigued the prince of Garlemald so?

Most importantly, how could he recapture, experience that moment? What would stir his heart to beat again as erratically as that?

Their second meeting answered that question. The savage came at him again in an ambush. Stronger, this time. His blows packed a punch, his lance stung. Zenos felt that warmth with each blow they traded, felt it filling him as it never had before. Till he felt himself combusting from inside, brimming over with a passion he had never experienced before in all his twenty and six years.

Zenos never claimed to know love. A father who had no time for him. A mother who died shortly after his birth. A host of servants who treated him as a duty. Soldiers and citizens who feared him. No one loved him, and in turn he had no idea how to love anyone else.

But in that moment, he knew. Love was the rush of heat, searing him. Love was the light that glittered in the Doman twilight. Love was the way the other man pressed his attacks, doggedly trading blows even when pushed back time and again.

Love was this man. This savage stranger.

And Zenos would stop at nothing to have him.

[autumnslance]

Prompt #28: Vainglory

((Revised on Ao3))

She wasn’t at all what Jullus had expected.

He hadn’t even realized that’s who she was, when she was sent as a hostage by the Eorzeans. Just a quiet, unassuming woman, a mercenary by her lack of uniform but obvious weaponry and demeanor; it wasn’t hard to catch the quiet confidence and competence.

And she had been a more than worthy guardian on the way back to Tertium; her skills with her slim blade were dazzling on display. She had always given a few ticks to gauge the creatures that attacked them, he noticed, gray eyes sweeping over the mutated forms before clouding in resignation to strike, swift and clean, ending their suffering.

It wasn’t until returning to the station that Jullus realized who she was. When Lord Quintus’s eyes widened slightly and he had stiffened, and then named her.

Aeryn Striker. The Champion of Eorzea. The Liberator of Doma and Ala Mhigo. The Savior of the Savages. The Warrior of Light.

She had simply stood between the twins, hands loosely clasped before her, face impassive as she met the Legatus’s gaze. Her expression had grown cooler and more stoney as he spoke, and Jullus was certain she bit the inside of her lip at least once, but she said nothing.

She was given free rein of the camp, but so long as they had the collared twins, she wouldn’t go far. The oddest part was how she had frowned at the special treatment the Legatus granted in not putting a collar on her, knowing she could best any of his men.

“I wouldn’t have hurt them,” she said quietly to Jullus as they left the command car. “We came voluntarily.”

Oddly, he believed her.

Jullus watched a former soldier of the doomed XIVth recognize her and spit invectives. Aeryn merely listened to the rant, her expression one of remembered pain and sadness. When she turned away, her eyes reminded him of rain clouds preparing to shed their burden. But she took a deep breath and moved on to the next person, asking who they were, if there was anything they needed, how could she help.

She was gathering information, he was certain. And yet…

“What do you think of her?” Lord Quintus asked, when Jullus reported, both to tell his commander of the prisoners’ activities, and of their offer.

He had not yet answered Jullus on the Eorzeans’ claim to give them ceruleum and supplies for the ill, the injured, the starving civilians and soldiers in Tertium. Instead, Lord Quintus leaned against a wall and watched out a window.

“She…is not what I expected, from the stories,” Jullus said. “I have seen her fight, and she is very good, but not…”

“A cackling blood soaked butcher cutting through enemies like paper?”

“N-no, sir. And there are some here who recognize her, from various campaigns, but…She does not lord her victories over them. She seems…sorry, if anything.”

“A show of modesty, perhaps,” Lord Quintus said. “She could kill every man and woman here with little thought. But then, they had said she killed Gaius van Baelsar—though he turned out to be alive, and a traitor now as well. Perhaps something she did to him in that battle; she is a mage of renown. Keep a careful eye, Jullus.”

“Yessir.”

He expected Lord Quintus to deny the Eorzeans’ offer, and to order him to seek out ceruleum in the city, though they both knew there was little left.

Jullus took Aeryn and the twins to search. It was fruitless and frustrating and damned cold.

He didn’t expect the women to jump into the freezing, brackish water of the pond, though.

Before she did, Aeryn passed him a few items; seeds, medicine…and a teddy bear. “What’s this?”

“There’s a sick little girl; her father asked me to try to find food for her while out here,” Aeryn said. “Found a few other things, too, that hopefully will make her feel better.”

He looked down at the toy she had found. It was rumpled and dirty, but still soft; a little cleaning would make it suitable for a sick child. He stared at it as Aeryn and Alisaie rummaged in the water, until Aeryn found the hatch and the container of ceruleum.

They cheered as if it were a great victory, even as they teased one another like sisters would, their friendly rivalry continuing. Alphinaud had to scold them to get the bloody hells out of the water already before they froze.

They were simply…normal people, all of them, these Scions of the Seventh Dawn, and their champion. Aeryn—teeth chattering, fingers a tad blue, took her collection of found items back from Jullus as Alphinaud fussed over his sister, who was using magic to start the fire.

“Thank you,” Aeryn said to him through her shivering. She smiled. “Her father will be glad to know you helped, I think.”

“I only held it—”

“Sometimes, that’s enough,” she said. Alisaie called to her, and Aeryn turned to warm herself at the now-roaring fire.

Jullus looked down at the ceruleum canister in his hand, exchanged for the teddy bear.

Not what he had expected from these people at all.

[voidsentprinces]

Also I refer to Shadowbringers being the climax of the story and Endwalker being the victory lap because narratively Emet is sort of our nemesis. He founds the Garlean Empire which births Nael and brings about the the Seventh Umbral Calamity, brings forth Gaius and Lahabrea and the Ultima Weapon for A Realm Reborn, conquers Ala Mhigo leading to Ilberd’s actions from Post ARR through Post Heavensward, conquered Doma and is the grandsire of Zenos for the events of Stormblood, and is the narrative device Ishikawa uses to express the lore behind our unknown past, bringing forth information for the time of Ancients, the true nature of Zodiark and Hydaelyn. He gives us the information that turned the Ascians into Saturday Morning Cartoon villains into humanized characters. Us fusing with Ardbert and facing him feels like a climax when “Shadowbringers” begins playing and reflects the conflict between the both of us. “One brings shadow, one brings the light, two toned echoes tumbling through time, three score wasted, ten casted aside, four-fold knowing, no end in sight.” And while aiding us through Elidibus fight. He narrates our journey through Endwalker and aids us at the tail end before going away forever like a brief moment of the bad guy joins forces with us when there is a bigger fish to fry.

The path from Sharlayan through the fight with Zodiark feels rushed and feels like if they could extended 5.X - a 5.10 process, the battle with Zodiark would of been the prelude to Endwalker where we handle the rest of the Final Days. The fight Endwalker is the falling action. He get time to visit all those who aided us in our journey, we face Garlemald where they go from killable trash mob to actual characters, we learn of Hydaelyn’s design for the Moon and Loporitts, we sort of travel here and there barely fighting battles as we deal with the first wave of the Final Days in Thavnair. But immediately set off to Elpis before returning to the end of the universe of Ultima Thule. We get varied goodbye moments with those we befriended along the way. And when the second phase of Endsinger kicks in, its very much a “Roll the credits” on our long journey. Even the battle with Zenos feels like an after thought, one last thing to put to bed before we start a new. The stakes weren’t particularly high, Meteion very much felt like, “Lets give the apocalypse a face for you to punch and somehow connect with.” A kind of villain behind the villains that only had an expansion to have the light. The Superboss hanging around the hideout of the final boss in an early Final Fantasy installment.

We knew the Ascians. We fought the Ascians from the very inception of FFXIV and 5.0 - 5.3 felt like we dealt with the Ascians fully. Even Eden is about closing out two Ascians involved in the First’s destruction. 5.4 - 6.0 feels like, tie up the lose ends. Find hope in the friends you met along the way. Learn more the eldest of Primals and their respective sources. Hell, have one final chat with Elidibus without pomp and circumstance. Have a heart to heart with the Emissary for the first and last time ever. The post patches of Endwalker still feel like that, here is the story of Lahabrea you didn’t get to see. Here are the Twelve you’ve ever only heard about in passing. Here is Igeyorhm’s and by extension, the Ascian’s greatest failure, the Thirteenth Shard, the Void and what is going on in there. Lets tie up all these loose ends so by 6.4 we can begin anew truly.

Shadowbringers is where it all came to a head. Endwalker was picking up the left overs and tying it off to begin a new. Emet-Selch and Elidibus are our nemesis in a sense. The Endsinger is the exhilarating, world has slowed down so seconds feel like hours, final run around all bases to savor the victory of a Homerun. Complete with a victory song.

But thats just me.

A TEST OF YOUR REFLEXES!

[e-dragoons]

“You’re too damaged for anyone to love.”

i decided for this prompt to finish an older piece i've had kicking around for a while, so this is a bit long!

spoilers for stormblood.

cw: abuse, gaslighting, imprisonment, self-hatred, hate sex, choking (i've never shared something like this before so uhh yeah ;; )

this is a dark AU where lehna was taken by garlemald and then conscripted into the imperial army not long after her sister/best friend zara left their village in the forest to become the warrior of light. it is quite dark, so please be warned.

“The Warrior of Light killed a primal just because he killed one of her friends.”

Lehna clenched her fists, sticking to cleaning her boots as she tried to drown out the conversation being had next to her.

“Not just a primal,” another conscript said. “Apparently he was Ishgard’s Archbishop.”

Their next thoughts went unsaid, but Lehna could hear them lingering in the air. Maybe she’ll save us next.

Lehna had heard so many stories about Zara’s adventures that she was certain at least some of them had to be true. Part of her was happy that she had found her place in the world after feeling like she did not belong–most of her, if Lehna was truly being honest with herself. But there were some thoughts she could not avoid no matter how hard she tried to suppress them.

She never came for you.

“Jacaan.”

Lehna looked up, keeping her face blank as she stared at the commander, but refused to answer the way he wanted her to, earning herself a hand to the face. She did not flinch, instead continuing to stare at her commander, who sighed as he said, “The viceroy would like to see you.”

The immediate area fell silent.

Had she finally done enough to warrant some sort of cruel punishment from her captors? Would they finally allow her to lay down her lance and stop making innocent people afraid of her?

No. They did not send conscripts to the viceroy for things that could easily be handled by the commanding officers.

Despite the lump in her throat, Lehna would not allow her fear to show on her face. So instead, she stood up and holstered her lance, keeping her back straight as she followed her commanding officer down the camp and into Ala Mhigo, where Zenos yae Galvus awaited her.

xxx

He sat lazily on a throne, but his gaze was fixed immediately upon her. 

Do not waver. You will die before you bend your knee.

She had seen his face before, of course–but she’d always been stricken by how beautiful he was with his golden hair and piercing blue eyes. But that beauty hid something so sinister and cruel that only a complete fool would risk getting too close. 

“Leave us.”

Her commander seemed to start, but he obeyed with a simple salute. As the door clicked shut behind him, a faint echo filling the mostly empty room, it finally dawned upon her that she was alone with him. 

Zenos stared at her, and she stared right back, meeting his gaze head on.

He smirked.

“You have the Echo,” he said simply.

Echo?

She kept her face neutral despite her confusion, knowing how much powerful men loved to hear themselves speak.

“The very same power that allows your people’s Warrior of Light to slay eikons.”

Zara.

Immediately, she knew. Her visions of the past that would sometimes come upon her without warning, started by the visions of a starshower. How that was related to primals, Lehna did not know–but it was a piece of information she tucked away for later. 

Zenos continued to stare at her for several long, silent moments.

“You have been with us for several months now. Despite your skill in battle, you are one of the most unruly conscripts we’ve seen. Why?”

“Fuck you,” she spat back, consequences be damned. She would not give him the answers he sought. 

Zenos laughed at that. “I’ve done my research, of course. That Warrior of Light… she is like a sister to you, is she not?”

Lehna’s breath caught in her throat. 

“It is unfortunate that she seems to have no interest in coming to help you. It would make killing her so much easier.”

She could tell by the flash of amusement on his face that he knew he’d stricken a nerve–her mask had slipped for a moment, and he had seen right through her. Now there was nothing left to do but wait for him to sink his teeth in deeper.

“You are no longer on the front lines with the cannon fodder. From now on, you are to remain by my side. Your Echo belongs to me until I decide otherwise. And I am sure we will make good use of your primal urges, my beast.”

xxx

Lehna gripped the paper in her hand, clutching hard enough to crumple it in her fist. 

The Scions of the Seventh Dawn.

“Why are you showing me this?” 

It was a small relief to not be killing people every day, Lehna had to admit. She had her own bedroom and ate the same fancy meals the Garlean upper class did, despite all of the nasty looks they gave to her as she sat to the right of Zenos at the table. But she was not looking forward to the things Zenos would make her do in the near future–the people he would demand she hunt down and kill for him. There would be no chance at escaping him, and Zenos did not accept failure.

He wouldn’t kill her, either.

Zenos tilted his head at her. “I thought it was obvious, my beast. I must admit I have grown fond of your presence–most are too afraid to bite back. It’s refreshing. I thought you would want to hear news of your Warrior.” And the friends she picked over you.

“I don’t care.”

“I think you do.” Zenos brushed a hand across her cheek and she refused to flinch, staring him down once again. “I think you’re tired of waiting for her to decide that you are worth saving.”

And she was.

Lehna was so incredibly tired of hearing about all of the things Zara was doing to save the world–all of the things she was doing for everyone else while Lehna was left to rot an Ala Mhigo under the thumb of its cruel viceroy. Had Zara even tried to figure out where she was after their clan was attacked?

And both Lehna and Zenos knew that she would not last much longer on the feeble remnants of her hope.

“Would she even forgive you for the things that you’ve done?”

I don’t know.

Lehna’s own thoughts caught her off-guard–this was something she had avoided thinking about as much as she could. Even if it had been for her own survival and for the survival of as many people as Lehna could possibly save… that did not make the things she did okay. It would not bring comfort to the loved ones of those Lehna had murdered to know that she was trying to save her own neck. To avoid a beating, or worse in some cases.

At least Zenos did not hit her like her commanding officers used to.

“We are the same,” he said simply. “No one would care enough to come for me, either.”

Lehna hated the way those words made her fingers tremble, aching to reach out and comfort him. This man–this monster–who had done so many terrible things did not deserve her sympathy or her affection. 

And yet. “You really like the sound of your own voice,” she said coolly. “Can I leave now?”

Zenos raised an eyebrow but dipped his chin down, dismissing her.

xxx

Another slain enemy.

The newspaper had been stuck to her usual training dummy when she had arrived in the room, and Zenos did not even look at her as she picked it up to skim the article. The Scions of the Seventh Dawn would attempt to liberate Doma soon, she was certain–Zara heading their crusade as the Warrior of Light. It also mentioned something about her having a suspicious relationship Ser Aymeric de Borel.

She tossed the paper aside and sat down, picking up her lance.

“Your friend is certainly starting to cause an uproar, my beast.”

“Good.”

Zenos had made her research the Scions of the Seventh Dawn to the best of her ability–their organization not as secret as it had once been. She’d memorized several of their names and their roles within the group, easy enough to figure out given their public records from when many of them achieved Archon status. Lehna had even learned more about Ser Aymeric himself, now leading the people of Ishgard in their restoration efforts at the end of the Dragonsong War.

They all seemed like incredible people with incredible talent, and Lehna was glad that they fought by Zara’s side–something she would never be able to say for herself, her own strengths barely enough to keep her coasting along at Zenos’ pet.

Lehna wanted to scream. 

Instead, she thrust her spear into the training dummy, the sound of wood splintering cracking through the room.

Despite this, she kept at it, attacking it with everything she had until it was nothing but splintered remains on the floor in front of her.

She forgot about you. She doesn’t care. She never cared. She left and she never looked back.

As she went to throw herself into another attack, someone grabbed her lance and she twisted around, not in the mood for whatever games her fellow soldiers had for her today.

But it was not another soldier that held her back, it was Zenos himself, his eyes full of some kind of sick delight. 

“Let me feel your anger,” he said.

Lehna let out a cry and yanked her lance from his grasp, flipping backwards before rushing forward again with a leap, Zenos only barely managing to block her with one of his own blades. 

“That’s it,” he said. “Again.”

This time, he swung his blade upward in an attempt to knock her off balance, but she used the movement against him, using the opening in his defenses to kick the side of his knee. Zenos had been ready for that, though, and he took the brunt of the hit without stumbling, slamming his blade back down. Lehna barely had time to move out of the way, his blade grazing her cheek as she flipped backward, giving herself a moment to gather her strength before leaping upward and diving back down with enough force to knock both of them to the ground, Lehna sitting on his chest with the tip of her lance aimed at his throat. 

And in that moment, something within her truly broke.

Before Zenos threw her off of his chest, she dropped her lance next to her, the clatter echoing throughout the room. 

She pressed her lips to his before she could think too much to stop herself.

Even monsters could taste sweet.

Zenos’ hands went to her hair, pulling hard enough to hurt. He bit her bottom lip and Lehna was almost positive she tasted blood.

He was not gentle or soft, and he did not stop to give her any indication that he cared. But that is exactly what she had needed from him, and she offered the same to him–her teeth knocking against his as her nails clawed down his skin. She wrapped her hands around his neck and squeezed, pulling away just long enough to wonder if she could kill him before letting go, red hand prints marring the skin where her hands had gripped his throat.

We’re both monsters.

Zenos lifted her up and pressed her back into a wall, yanking both of their trousers down just enough to expose them both before shoving himself into her without warning. Her eyes teared up for a moment, but she eventually found herself moaning as her body adjusted, trying not to think about how she felt whole for the first time in months.

His thrusts grew erratic and she sucked on his neck, hoping to leave her mark there. 

Zenos was a monster, but so was she. 

She was far too damaged for anyone else to love.