#pryne caris

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"So..."

"Yeah..."

"Aether cannons?"

"At least two."

"And we're insulating with wood?"

"Indeed."

"'Raha, is this going to work?"

"If the Crystal Exarch and the Warrior of Darkness...Light? What exactly are you going by these days?"

"Hmm...I think I'm going by 'Chief of Staff.'"

G'raha chuckles and nudges Pryne with his shoulder, eliciting a slight smile.

"Alright then. If it's us, it will work. It has to."

Electricity hums in the heavy air.

"'Raha? I'm really glad you're here."

"...and I am glad to be here. I was too long in coming."

"It's ok." Pryne pinches her cheeks and reaches for a pencil. "Let's get to schematics. Do you have an idea of the weight for the aether crystal mounts?"

"Of course."

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whoops, posted on the wrong blog.

He's a smooth operator. A smooooothh operaaatorr. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRNcPbCJNJ8

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~*giRl's nIgHt!*~

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Normal day at the Halloween Factory.

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Ugh...my JPGS are too big. Well, here are some (relatively) spoiler free pictures from this year's All Saints' Wake. ...and here's Thom's run of the event!

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The Quest for "Goo Boy." Pryne Caris, 4/6/24 (?)

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It's been a bad day. Thank goodness for My Stupid Emotional Support Video Game.

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Two soldiers; One facing the past, The other facing the future.

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More SpoilerLiteTM thoughts with Pryne Caris

"I don't trust you, but ~*gUrL's NiTE!!*~"

"YOU LEAVE THAT LITTLE BOY ALONE!"

"Yes, G'raha. You are included in ~*gUrL's NiTE!!*~"

"I HAVE NEVER FELT SO EMOTIONAL ABOUT AN ELEVATOR COMPANY." "I'd like this game a lot more if I got to enjoy the cool new areas before a fascist lays waste to them. You know, those old WWII feels? 'They bombed The Drunken Pygg? It just opened!'"

"SOMEBODY HUG THAT BABYYY!"

"Alright, lady. I'm going to run a few circles around you, jump around a bit, just some normal response tests..." *controller cord falls out and I immediately freeze in place* "Hmm, perhaps those in glass houses..."

"Erenville has been so hard done by. Like, the pure levels of pain coming from this rabbit." "Erenville and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day."

"Seriously, he's been having a panic attack slash existential crisis for AT LEAST four days in game and just grits his teeth and says 'I'm fine." A toast to The Neurodiverse King, I guess..." "I wish you would tell me now, but...please. Take care of yourself, my Brother, until we can talk again." "I will, my...my Sister. I'm sure we will have much to talk about."

"I'M NOT CRYING YOU'RE CRYING."

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I am taking my sweet time with the MSQ and SQ (mostly because I have to, IRL vibes are ATROCIOUS), but I think I just got to a UNIONIZATION questline where I help a WHISTLE-BLOWER! Oh I am so excited!

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Strangers in a strange land...

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Ok. So hear me out...what if Thom survives by being transported to The First? ----- "'Thoma! Please!" "Mr. Exarch! You are far too cautious. As you can see, I've made it down the rail unscathed!" The Crystal Exarch sighs and places his cooler hand against his temples. This new guest is not unwelcome, but rather challenging. "Yes, but this is our commercial district. Our citizens need to pass down those stairs and might want for the use..." He sighs deeply, yet again." ...Of a railing." "...at 6 AM? Really, 'Raha?" The Crystal Exarch starts forward to cover Thom's mouth. Thom pulls up his board against his hands. G'raha starts to flush and spit.

"Thoma, no! These people...how, how do you know? They cannot discover...!" Thom taps the rough of the board against his lips, looking innocently at the stained glass ceiling. "That's a secret of us stick holders. You know I was a Lancer, then a Dragoon for a time. I knew a little of your exploits on Sharlayan...from my wife..." G'raha starts to look pale. He looks pleadingly up at Thom to not destroy his legacy; Minfilia's legacy on The First. Not to destroy what Pryne helped him to accomplish.

Thom pats G'raha on the back and hears a disturbing rattle. His brain spins out, "Not just too stony, also much too thin...damn this guy."

Thom clears his throat. "But miqo'te to mystel," They both soften and smile. G'raha starts to melt with relief, "I'm in for whatever Pryne is in for. Your secret is always safe with me." "Except at dawn, apparently." Thom chuckles at G'raha's admonishment. "Yes, with dawn comes the truth..."

Thom spreads his arms wide around them both, soaking in the sunrise.

"Say, do you want to learn how to ride this thing, O CRYSTAL EXARCH!" He shouts to the ends of Musica Universalis, as vendors creep towards their stands in the dim light. From Philline emerges a small hoot of approval. Hanji-Fae just chuckles. "Goodness no! I couldn't..." "Come on then!" Thom grabs the leader of The Crystarium by the midsection and places his feet firmly on the board. "I know you need a better way to get around than on foot. Let's figure this out, mystel to mystel, understood?" G'raha blushes for a moment. He suddenly can see what Pryne was saying when she looked at the stars around the Crystal Tower, seaching for Thom in the unfixed aether. "Understood." ---- MEANWHILE IN EITHERYS ---- "MS. CARIS!! PLEASE DO NOT SKATE INSIDE THE BAR!" "Oh, Vendingway. You are a stuffed shirt." "MS. CARIS. I DO NOT KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS. I JUST KNOW YOU ARE SPLITTING THE FLOORBOARDS!"

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What in the "Johnny Guitar?" [Pioneer Machinist Set from Tataru]

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Maybe this is the EDU in me, but all I've wanted to do since the Elpis arc is wrap the Scions around this child and keep her safe. I am so relieved to have finally gotten the chance to work towards her healing. I'm not sure if canon supports us finding Meteion in another time, but I sure hope so.

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I FINALLY BEAT VENAT. It was so demoralizing that I couldn't pass this dps check. I thought I was getting better! I tried four times last weekend and I finally just put it down and resigned myself to purchasing another story skip come 7.0. But Not. This. Time. I wanted to just idle away in a costume party tonight, but the venue got overstuffed while I engaged in a haunted hayride and maze. So I went home, farfed around with my glamour, and said "why not take a crazy chance; why not do a crazy dance?" And so I challenged Venat again. And I got 3/4ths of the way through on normal and ate a one-shot. And I challenged her again on Playhouse Disney mode...and I won? I know this means absolutely NOTHING to actual players of the game, but this was a HUGE accomplishment and catharsis for me. You see, my Dad's back home after two stints in the hospital, but he's not doing well. His screenings are clear, but he is not himself. It is hard to wrap your life around someone who has totally checked out of theirs. In spite of the fact that we are in an ideal situation, all kids living in the neighborhood or only minutes away, it is difficult. I can't control my Dad and what he thinks. What he thinks cuts me raw. But I can control my experience in this game. I can have a little victory now and then. As a treat. So I am raising a glass to Venat, my work kiddos who amuse me to no end, to the THREE SEPARATE PODCASTS who posted on Alzheimers/Dementia/ACI even though I DIDN'T EVEN SAY THAT ON THE PHONE!, and to a game that lets me have my way. By the way, my glamour is called "Walkin' in Elpis." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUh1DSIsUOY

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"Skies one could drown in..." IRL Pryne update. Dad got out of the hospital about a week ago...and went back nearly immediately because he kept falling. Between the ambulance call, getting him admitted, bringing his gear to the hospital, and checking in with his care team, we spent about 20-ish hours awake. If I hadn't woken up for my customary "biphasic sleep" cycle, I wouldn't have gotten the call from my Mom that something was really wrong. He's just...so depleted. He's not eating or sleeping enough to sustain, so they're keeping him there to monitor his habits and try and coax him back to something approaching "normal." The thought that is if we can get him regulated enough to fix his low blood pressure, low blood sugar, dehydration, that his behavioral struggles might finally abate. And what do I do when I have lots of idle time in a high-stress situation? ESCAPE "TO A DREAM WORLD OF MAGIC." - The Lonely Island. Speaking of a "lonely island," this time I was "Walkin' in [Elpis]," as I continually hummed to myself every time I equipped my Sophist's Robe glam. I finally got to meet Mommy Venat and Papa Emet-Selch and your pretty Uncle Hythlodaeus who works on Broadway and can't make it to the family reunion [true story]. Your favorite Cousin Hermes is all grown up and really cute, but you're not going to say that out loud to anyone because it seems like he's got enough on his plate without you embarrassing him. Meteion is the new baby of the family that your aunts and uncles insist you babysit because it's "good training" or some horsesh*t, but you don't mind that much because she's pretty entertaining for a little kid. This is all to say I'm having a really good time in Elpis, in spite of the well known foreboding vibes. I am, however, feeling a little stuck. I'm at 90 with my "DragOOOoooOOn" (sung to the tune of the old Yahoo theme), but my Bard and Machinist are just...not there yet. I'd hate to continue the MSQ and dump all that EXP into the toilet, but it might take a few days to catch up on my other jobs. None of this matters, because Venat just keeps kicking my butt like I poured Kool-Aid all over her brand-new kitchen tablecloth [true story]. This game and this blog have been an outlet. The relative anonymity and sense of kinship with the FFXIV community, although seemingly at cross purposes with each other, have been a huge help. The complexity and stigma surrounding my Dad's condition makes it hard to share with IRL support systems; to wit, I'm not sure anyone from my extended family knows. To be able to write about it here, RP in game, or just escape the situation for a few hours by watching cutscenes; it's really appreciated. Now...*sharp intake of breath*...time to grind because I DEFINITELY spent 250K Gil making a Southern Seas shirt to live my Best Jimmy Buffett Life (RIP).