#Knight Thancred?

[yezielmoore]

20. Duel

Went with the battle of wills route, rather than actual duel because writing fight scenes is agonizing. Follows directly after the previous prompt (#19: Taken). I also tried to mesh some consecuences of introducing Honkai in XIV, but like, softcore. This is my indulgent AU, i'll leave the mass casualties to HI3.

But to give those that don't know HI3 a sense of scale and why Himeko puts herself at the same level as Hydaelyn. The 3rd Herrscher partial awakening was called an Eruption, it destroyed a bustling city and killed millions. The 2nd Herrscher awakening was called an Impact (Honkai Impact ey), she decimated Siberia and proceeded to destroy several other cities via meteors, killing around 50 million. Herrschers fuck around and everybody else finds out. Meanwhile, Himeko is the only source of honkai energy in Etherys and also sane(ish). And she hasn't awakened fully. yet.

~.~.~

In a space beyond physical reality, Himeko stood alone. Or floated. The void under her feet felt solid to her, probably because she expected it to be and not because it actually was solid.

A few paces in front of her was Thancred, floating like an abandoned ragdoll, finally free of that ascian parasite, but dying all the same. Pink geometric lines of corruption had already taken over his arms, soon the rest would follow and Thancred would be either a corpse or a zombie. Himeko knew that her presence in her current form was only killing him faster. She was also aware that he was past the point of rescue, even for the resources of her civilization.

The Himeko of before would have ended his suffering, halted the corruption before it could spread to others. The same way she had done it to dozens of others, innocent civilians, fellow valkyries… fallen students. Only death awaited the corrupted, such was the truth of her life. It was a grim duty, one she had taken upon her shoulders, much like the dying man in front of her had taken up a similar duty for their tempered.

It will only take a second. He’ll feel nothing. It will be a mercy.

The reality around her shifted, Himeko could feel the grasp of that higher being loosening. Soon they would be back… she would be back. The man in front of him would never make it there alive. He still breathed, but in truth he was already dead.

Himeko clenched her fists, the space around her distorting slightly by a wave of heat, like a mirage in a desert. No. She didn’t go to these fucking lengths, didn’t fucking lose the last of her humanity, only to fail. Himeko refused to watch helplessly as another friend lost his life, this time because of her. Her influence, her lack of control. Her sanity could not take that blow. Himeko refused to yield.

She was so, so sick of losing people.

Why though? They will die anyway. Fragile, useless things. 

So she turned around, finally facing the humongous Crystal that made up the body of the Mothercrystal. 

“Heal him.”

It wasn’t a petition. Himeko wasn’t a supplicant in front of her Goddess. She was her own worst nightmare, a nascent Herrscher, and unless this being of crystal decided to cut her investment short, before the transformation could finish, then this was the only time they would meet in such uneven ground.

Even on Earth, with all the knowledge they had, a Herrscher was a world-ending threat. Eorzea didn’t have a fraction of their technology and none of the knowledge, if the Mothercrystal said no and didn’t kill her here and now… 

…they could crush Her, melt that shiny surface into slag…

Himeko cut that thought before it could spiral into a Dark path. She wasn’t that far gone, she wasn’t.

“I know you can do it. You healed me and I was fucking dead. I know I was.”

Himeko wasn’t sure how she knew this, her memories from the period between her fight with Sirin and waking up in that boat were hazy and broken, like a fever dream, but even less clear (must be what happens when you’re brain dead, ha!). Despite her faulty memory, Himeko was absolutely certain she had met this goddess before; she had been dead or close enough. Looking back, there was only one time such a meeting could have taken place and only one reason for her to be alive now. 

“My child…”

“Don’t infantilize me!” It was only a lack of oxygen in this in-between place that prevented her surroundings from igniting into a firestorm that reflected her inner feelings. Himeko took a deep breath. Then another. “You may be older than me by orders of magnitude, but I’m not a child.”

Calm. She needed to be calm. Calm-er at least. Whether this being was a god or a God, violence wouldn’t get her the results she wanted. While setting the giant crystal on fire may satisfy her temporarily, in the end all she would have to show for that would be a dead friend, a divine enemy and the complete destruction of her humanity. Himeko knew this and she knew how to negotiate. She could be better, she would be better. 

Ever so slowly, the blaze around Himeko gentled and dimmed until it was a soft glow. Comforting campfire instead of destructive firestorm. 

“If you want-” Himeko stopped, breathed deeply one more time and cleared her throat before starting again. “If you want me to fulfill whatever deal we made, then I need you to save him. I need… I can’t do it alone…”

But you’re not alone. 

Himeko swallowed. “I can’t do it on my own,” she repeated. “Everybody knows the hero needs the power of friendship, you know,” she cracked a smile.

“You don’t… remember,” came the unexpected answer from the crystal.

“…no. I guess this is news to you too.”

There was a lull in the conversation then. Himeko shot a look at Thancred, but the man remained exactly where and how she left him. Not worse simply by virtue of existing in this half-way plane, a meeting point between reality and dream, between the physical and metaphysical. 

In all likelihood time didn’t even pass here, just like the floor didn’t exist, she perceived it because she expected it. 

She returned her attention to the Mothercrystal. Himeko could feel the weight of Her contemplation. This was a goddess that didn’t interfere with mortals, or so everybody said, and here Himeko was, half asking, half demanding Her interference. 

Everybody, she decided, was full of shit. Himeko's current situation was proof of godly meddling. 

In the end, after a long time and also no time at all, Hydaelyn’s voice echoed again.

“Bring him… closer.” She did. “You will be… the template…” 

Himeko opened her mouth. Closed it. In her urgency to find a solution that didn’t include murder, Himeko forgot to think what healing would entail. There was no HSN-46 in this world and no Schariac blood to make the god-killing spear. There was, however, Himeko, with all that entailed. 

“Just… don’t make him too much like me. We only need one ticking time bomb, yeah?” She joked weakly. Then pointed a thumb at her back. “The implants here, those should suffice. Probably,” she muttered.

“We shall… see.”

Himeko swallowed, but bravely walked into the light, Thancred safely in her arms. “Yeah, I was afraid of that.”

[moment-live]

Ishikawa wrote 'healer tank couple taking care of a young girl who is being hunted by the local corrupt government because of the circumstances of her birth' twice and I ate that shit up both times.

[graveweaver]

ffxiv keychains..... theres so many characters and i have to do a lot more LOL

also with the job stones, i know a lot of people do job stone stuff, so i was like "how can i make mine different?!" and opted for a cel-shaded sort of style.... i think i like it! my mom really likes them, she took the machinist to put on her work badge even though she doesnt know what it even is ahaha

[galehowl]

another unfinished wip from my "everyone's a rat now sorry" sketch dump

what are they talking about? Who tf knows

[yloiseconeillants]

when you set out to make some shards on the first for your wols and they turn out to be 1. npcs 2. dead before the wol arrives

[pangolinheart]

ASFDHAJFGH I love her SO much.

[ghastlyfantasy]

Okay but hear me out.. Thancred a handsome adventurer/knight sent on a mission to slay a ferocious dragon but nobody told him the dragon was drop dead gorgeous and realizes the dragon is /also/ 8ft of pure muscle and bloodlust........ ...

[motheatenscarf]

so much at once, Urianger getting closure for Moenbryda, the twins reconciling with they dad, fucking ASAHI coming back to be the worst one last time, but i did it, i'm here!!

LEGGO!!!

[grayson-wol]

My Thancred got his DK to 50. Did one of my favorite quests in game. Not a fan of playing DK but the quests are so good! Also my Thancred is sporting the HW look for now. I like to switch his hair every couple of days. <3

[akirakirxaa]

Rating: Teen

Fandom: Final Fantasy XIV

Relationship: Haurchefant Greystone/Warrior of Light

Tags: Character Death, Grief/Mourning, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Trauma, The Vault (Final Fantasy XIV) Spoilers

Summary: The Warrior of Light struggles to accept her failure in the Vault and grieves what could have been.

(Gposes depicting scenes from the fic under the break.)

"She leaned, forehead first, against the stone, the icy chill leeching into her skin, reflecting the frost settling around her heart. This is my fault."

"Akira dragged herself through the city towards the Brume. Even with her warm clothes, the cold pierced straight through to her bones."

"She turned her head to find the tiny figure of Midgardsormr perched on the footboard of the bed frame. She stared at him for several long moments before gritting her teeth, hands clenching into fists."

[ofdarklands]

warriors are the best tanks because i can concentrate in throwing sonic speed rocks at people instead of healing

[melissa-robin-ultros]

Started the Eden raids today!

Had to stop after Eden’s Verse since we need to make more progress in the MSQ, but it’s fun so far :)

[toadeyes-miqote]

You're breaking my street cred kid

"...Okay fine!!!! I did it for Jyak'a, for Thancred and Alisaie, Mostly I did it for Ryne who is not too different from me and was given a most unenviable job. And my brother in spirit I guess... Gotta hand it to that young missy though, if it weren't for her.... "

"His eyes sees much. Much to learn from him. There's someone who should have a turn as a Darkknight. Giving so much of himself away for others all the time. Some times I wonder if he knows not how to love himself... "

-------------------

__Surrogate daughter___ Thanks Sid. Takes an adoptive dad to know one. Wait I thought Minifilia is sister? Or this is a Sid POV thing that both Minifila and Ryne are daughters

Can the job mentor kids come play with the MSQ kids? Alphi needs to be socialised with kids his age

Every time Thancred goes into that self-depreciating spiel it made me wonder if his Lomnisan upbringing was the cause of it. That he gives so much of himself away.

Headcannon had it that

To only get sufficient food if he fills his quota of stolen purses and full team heist done well

To have maybe a little extra and some praise from his Lominsan master if items stolen turn out to worth more than expected

Same mentality was applied to Grandpa Lou since that his mindset by then. Unlearning is difficult even though Grandpa Lou tried.

Probably that's how he is with Minfillia and Ryne

He still does it even with WoL

Yes job mentor duo stop reminding me that I have a Thancred short to transcribe and poor guy needs a hug at some point.

Yup Bard and and Drak knight's journal entry do look different . spooky~~

-----------

Good Aymeric doing his job. I forgot whether or not Hylnyan mention the injustice to him or HW was practically a big enough farce to get him to do a crackdown on things when he could

[ffxivtranslations]

Why did Haurchefant have to die? Interview Translation

I translated part of an interview with Yoshi-P and the two main scenario writers of HW, Ishikawa and Oda. It's about Haurchefant's character arc and why he had to be sacrificed. At least Oda tried to save him, bless his heart!

Interviewer: In 2.x, Haurchefant appeared to be a cheerful character, but in 3.0 his role takes a serious turn. What was the reason for this change?

Ishikawa: In the 2.x series I was in charge of his dialogue as the Character Concept designer, but in 2.55 I felt I had properly written down his important points and position in society, so I could hand him over to Oda and Maehiro for 3.0. Because of this I don’t think anything changed about him from the start; how he cares about his friend, or his essence as a knight.

Oda: I agonised over Haurchefant’s fate right until the very end… over and over I suggested plots in which he might somehow survive.

Yoshi-P: Those plots were too contrived; I couldn’t approve them! LOL In depicting this war between humans and dragons, I thought it was wrong to only have the dragons’ side experience loss after loss and not have the humans make any sacrifices. So that’s why I told them to properly decide the fate of every character. The fate of every character should have been decided early in the development phase of Patch 2.3. So Haurchefant’s fate was decided by then too, right?

Oda: Yes, that’s right. That’s why in Patch 2.4 and 2.5, when I wrote all his un-voiced lines, I was already doing so conscious of the fact that he would die later on.

Yoshi-P: Haurchefant is a character that is not just loved by players, but also loved by the development team. But since we decided on the plot twist where he would become the Warrior of Light's shield, we were prepared for the worst. Because of that we were able to write the Patch 2.5 scene, in the Falling Snows, where he reaches out to the Warrior of Light in his time of need. I think that such a long build-up led to the deep emotional impact of Haurchefant’s final moments. In that way, I think the deciding his fate early on was connected to how much importance he had to the story.

Oda: However, seeing how warmly players reacted to him, I feared that having Haurchefant lose his life would cause some players to quit the game forever, and fought desperately against it to the end…

Yoshi-P: He kept giving me re-takes of the plot where Haurchefant is able to come back to life, and eventually I remember getting quite mad at him. At one point, the 3.0 ending ceremony scene had Haurchefant appear in a wheelchair and I yelled “Hey, isn’t that the same as Thancred in ARR?!”. I’m pretty sure I shouted at him LOL

[sapphire-scarletta-wol]

I just had this thought awhile ago and now I am curious to see what y'all would think.

Imagine a scenario where they have to fight the Wol with all their strength,maybe the Wol got possessed(again),lost control,or whatever final fantasy shenanigans would happen,which of them would have the best chance of defeating the Wol?

~~~~~~~

Edit: I forgot editing posts exist so imma just put this in here too

So I didn't expect this to blow up this BIG

But thank you to all the interactions even if it's just a poll,it's been fun reading all the tags and such!

I just want to give a little update thought on this as the tags and reblogs gave great points on all sides.

Mostly I was thinking of a situation where the Wol does not need to be killed,rather just pacified or beaten up enough to make them return to their normal self.

I still think raha is the strongest and best candidate for this,he has the CT on his side,an all rounder,knows the Wol incredibly well,has 300+ years of experience,has matured a lot as the exarch,mayhaps even be an 8th rejoined shard,made time travel and world hopping basically possible,and a handful of other powerful tricks and spells on his sleeve.

In the case of a situation of killing the Wol,I believe raha would have a much harder time as of course he would never ever want to do that ever and would rather die first than think of that so either estinien or y'shtola is the better candidate.

The answer also changes depending on the specific Wol one has

( in my case,sapphire is a monk and a dark knight,but is incredibly dense as lyse.she would be too fast for y'shtola to properly finish her spells though she is a lot smarter and could easier use tactics to confuse her,estinien could hold his own against her but would be defeated nonetheless.even with nidhoggs power we have defeated him once so when it comes to pure strength,Wol beats him. Lastly comes raha,he is incredibly smart and just as versatile with 3 classes to keep in pace with her,combine that with his intellect and he can form a plan while defending himself long enough to either deal enough damage to her or bring her back to normal.that or prolly have someone else do the final blow.)

I would like to formally apologize to alphinaud as it took him 1k votes for someone to finally vote him,I did not mean to bully you 😞

[headcanons-n-shit]

Hello

Your newest post reminded me i had an idea. The bois comforting wol who is having a nervous brakedown from all the stress. Bonus Ardbert.

I really like your stories. Especially the angsty ones.

(TAZ The Breakdown plays in the background)

(Mild shadowbringers spoilers)

Thancred literally (accidentally but still) disassociated so hard from the stress that he gave up his body to the bad guy for a bit. If anyone gets what youre going through, its probably going to be him. Hes not going to waste his time on empty platitudes: hes going to get you a glass of water, a warm blanket, and a hot meal, and let you cry it out on his shoulder for as long as you need to.

(And if that still doesnt help, well. Sex is still on the table. Its rarely a good idea, but hes all out of those.)

Urianger is probably breaking down with you lets be real. Every future my mans has ever read has included world-ending catastrophe, and, sure, youve thwarted it every time (usually with his help) but. What if this time you dont? What if this time you fail???? Its an unreasonable amount of stress for one man to be carrying. He probably does a fantastic amount of fantasy weed to cope and still all it takes is seeing you break down for him to also start blubber-crying.

Graha seems kind of detached and distant at first. "Shower water food" he commands you, in the voice of Lynas grandfather the Crystal Exarch, firm and uncompromising and impossible to disobey, and you might miss the way his voice and smile are strained. The way his hands clench and unclench at his sides. Hes never regretted turning back time to help you save two worlds, but. Its times like this that he wonders if he shouldnt try again to give you a happier ending.

Estinien is a firm hand on your shoulder, a steady shoulder to lean on, because he gets it. The feeling of being trapped in your own body, puppetted by powers so much greater than you can imagine, almost greater than you can comprehend... Youre breaking down for the both of you, honestly, because hes spent so long training the iron discipline to resist nidhoggs influence that he doesnt know how to anymore. This is. Cathartic. For the both of you tbh.

Aymeric wishes in this moment, more than anything, that he could just. Just be with you. Out on your journeys, giving you support by your side instead of from a distance. And he knows, he knows, that the support he gives you is important, that his ability to move nations in your favor has helped far more than any single sword at your side ever would. But he bears the weight of a nation while you bear the weight of a star, and that just. Doesnt seem fair to him.

Haurchefant knows that theres some things that hot chocolate cant fix but. Its a good starting place if nothing else. Something warm and sweet right now couldnt hurt, neither would a soft blanket and a roaring fire. He'll sit with you, bundled up together, and just listen if thats what you need. Or he can talk-- he has plenty of embarrassing stories about Artoirel that he hasnt shared yet. Either way, he'll happily help you wipe your tears away when youre done, and then drop a delicate kiss on your forehead.

Stand tall, he says. A smile better suits a hero.

Sidurgu is surprisingly good at this. Or, maybe not so surprising? Rielle is very mature for her age, but shes still a child. He probably does this whole song and dance every other week. And you feel a little bit like a child, the way he bullies you into the shower and then bundles you up in blankets and pushes food at you, but. Beneath the gruff words and scowl you can tell hes worried. Frustrated. This is exactly the kind of injustice that as a dark knight he swore he would fight, but hes just one man, there isnt much he can do about the desolation of the star. But he also needs you to know that he'll always be in your corner. Whether in this little way or if you need him to help you kill a god, he'll always come when you call.

BONUS

Ardbert has never felt so helpless in his life. He cant touch you, cant be a shoulder you can cry on. He cant even fetch you a glass of water. All he can do is stand there and watch as you break apart in your bed in the Pendants, and its. Its torture, worse than anything any ascian could ever conceive.

Still. He does what he can. And if all he can do is sit at your bedside, his hand hovering half-through yours in a mockery of touch while he tells you stories of his adventures, or friendship and triumph and happier times, well. Its the least he can do.