#she already feels SO BAD about Elidibus - I think out of all the people she's killed she felt the worst about him. | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

whitherliliesbloom · 3 years ago

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lights, camera, duty commenced!

[ ffxivwrite2021 ] ★ [ masterlist ] ★ [ prompt #14 - commend ]

[ illya, g’raha & emet ] ★ [ 2,263 words ] ★ [ actors au ] passing mention of some friend’s ocs and illyanaud

commend: praise formally or officially

behind the scenes of the critically acclaimed long running tv show, final fantasy fourteen, g’raha tia is (almost) inconsolable after he reads the final act’s script

The not-so everlasting light shining down feels radiant and warm, but not scorching. In the distance, one can hear the push and pull of the tides from the nearby lake, as well as the rustling of the purple hued leaves that hung and swayed ever so gently upon the trees. A light baby blue canvas with dusty cotton candy clouds crowns lakeland, painting the perfect, serene vista for an uneventful day of shooting.

Though, Illya has to remind herself, as she looks up at the peaceful sky, and sighs in contentment that she was in the completely wrong headspace. Even though the sky above was bright and undoubtedly beautiful on this fine afternoon, she knows that all it takes is for a little bit of compuer-generated television effects magic to turn the tranquil landscape into a scene of naught but utter devastation and war.

Think termination. Think termination. You’re in the middle of a large-scale battle between Elidibus and the people of Norvrandt. The tone’s supposed to be somber and tense. You’re the warrior of darkness. You got this!

“Oh.... How could this be...?”

Her train of thought is rudely interrupted by the sorrowful moping of her co-actor, and she has to resist the urge to chide him for dragging his early morning sulking all the way into the afternoon.

“G’raha, please...” the lalafellin sighs, though cannot help but to let a sliver of sympathy slip into her tone. “The next scene’s starting soon.”

“I know, I know... But...” the man heaves a heavy sigh, hanging his head low and letting his arms drop onto his lap so dramatically she’d almost thought that his flesh really was made of crystal and wasn’t just a product of the hard work of extremely talented make-up artists. “I can’t help it. I can’t believe that my poor crystal exarch is-”

Illya can say she at least empathizes - though perhaps not to the same extent. She’s been casted into roles of characters who would meet an unfortunate demise later, but to be fair, they weren’t often major characters within the narrative of the show or film she was playing a role in.

The crystal exarch on the other hand, has played a key role as one of the many recurring supporting casts in the show. He’d lingered in the background as early as the first season, and was, to G’raha’s jubilation, finally given a main role in the fourth season they were filming.

Only to be killed off in the final act - succumbing to the crystallization of his entire body, from head to toe, in the throne room of the crystal tower after the warrior of darkness’ battle with the ascian Elidibus. His death scene was to be an emotionally poignant one... and Illya herself has spent the last few days getting into the headspace of the protagonist - who would understandably be utterly devastated by the loss of a dear friend.

It didn’t help that the crystal exarch was a considerably popular character within the international community of fans - and his significant increase in screen time was due in part to fan demands... though that perhaps made his long foreshadowed death even more of a cruel irony.

And there was nobody in the world who was a bigger fan of the crystal exarch than the actor who played him himself. It wasn’t narcissistic either, in their line of work, it’s easy to get attached to the roles they play... even more so when they’ve hovered within the headspace of their character for as long as 6 years - she would know, Liliya Liya is as big a part of her as the crystal exarch is for G’raha now.

Thus, though she felt the urgent need to get G’raha back up on his feet in preparation for the remaining scenes on their schedule to film... she could not bring herself to so callously talk down his very real and personal attachment of a character he was meant to portray well anyways.

“Oh come now... you should’ve seen this coming.” with a swagger in his step and lazy grin plastered over his expression, Emet Selch strolls over to the pair.... far too comfortable within his own role that he was speaking with Hades’ signature slur in his speech even while out of character. The man has always noted just how similar he was to the god of the underworld, and Illya wouldn’t be surprised if he’d claimed to not even be acting in his scenes at all.

“I...” G’raha pouts, looking up at Emet as his ears flatten atop his head. “I guess I was in denial of it. I thought they would maybe subvert expectations... but-”

“But that wouldn’t be a very compelling story to tell, now would it?” The older man shrugs, and Illya regrets to think that she’s inclined to agree.

“I guess not..”

The robed miqo’te man sighs, and she notes with an amused raise of an eyebrow as his tail that had once been tucked tightly to his side was now swiveling from side to side and puffed up in annoyance.

“Still! They could at least let him go out with more of a bang! Maybe... after he has a solo action scene... or give him a kiss scene to make things more dramatic!”

“Is defeating the big bad and saving the heroine not dramatic enough for you, already?” Emet’s voice is in part mocking as it is exasperated, his arms thrown up to his shoulders in a shrug. “Also I hope you didn’t mean a kiss scene with Liliya.”

“W-what-?? I-” Illya’s mouth hangs agape.

“No! I wasn’t thinking anyone in particular, honest. Besides, she’s already caught in that love triangle subplot with the twins, isn’t she?”

At the mention of the topic, the lalafellin woman’s smile fades.

“D-don’t remind me of that. I’m really not looking forward to acting those scenes out.”

She’s already read the script for the fourth season in it’s entirety... and though she has incredible respect for the masterful writing and the wonderful character dynamics that has only gotten better with each passing season... she has never been... entirely comfortable with the romantic aspects of the scenes involving the elven twins. Scenes of the pair vying for her attention, scenes where she held hands and even got unsettingly close to kissing them...

Though, she will admit... her own uncertainty over her competence in filming those scenes are a result of her own, very personal emotions... something of which Emet Selch seemed to be more than aware of.

“Is it not because you harbor actual feelings for one of them? Would having scenes of you being close to him not be a blessing for you, then?”

The miffed glare Illya’s shoots up at Emet rivals moments of shadow possession Liliya experiences throughout the show, and he can only shrug with a cocky grin as her star-spangled swirl with indignation. Anger aside, heat is spreading across her cheeks in the form of a burning red hue that reaches the tips of her short, pointed ears.

Please stop.

Her expression spells out. She’s as annoyed as she her frightened about something.

Oh dear.

“Relax. Workplace romance here is nothing new.” His words only serve to worsen the already infuriated gleam in her blazing, shimmering eyes. “Mint certainly isn’t shy when it comes to showing she’s in a relationship with Estinien. Nor your friend Laurelis for that matter. She’s still keeping in touch with Haurchefant, no?”

Illya doesn’t say anything, but her silence and the paling of her complexion speaks louder than any words she can spill from her lips.

It’s precisely because he doesn’t know. So please, please shut your mouth.

He still cannot understand why on earth she would stay so adamant about keeping her feelings a secret anyway. For all he knows, the entire cast of actors... and the whole final fantasy crew for that matter, was fully aware of their pining - and Illya’s feelings towards her close co-worker and friend wasn’t unrequited either.

Just like in the show, the pair are completely oblivious to their attraction to one another... something he’ll just have to fix with his bare hands then...

But the matter is neither here nor there, and there was something of greater urgency to rectify now.

Emet Selch turns his gaze back down to G’raha, who has gone uncharacteristically quiet... and sensing his seriousness, Illya too diverts her attention back to the sulking redhead.

“You know... you’re a very talented actor. It’s so very rare to find someone who can capture the emotions and nuances of a character as well as you do.” Emet is the faster of them to speak, and Illya can barely believe the words she’s hearing leave his lips.

Compliments and praise, genuine ones at that, coming from one of the cast’s eldest, most experienced actor who is not only known to be critical when it comes to the art of acting - but is a certified acting coach himself? The monumental honor is not lost to G’raha, as his ears perk up and he whips his head up with widened ruby eyes to look at Emet.

“Death is difficult to portray - dare I say, almost impossible. After all, how can we, who have never experienced death... truly capture the sorrow and despair in it?”

Emet Selch pauses, drawing in a breath before he lifts his hand up to gesture at the pair before him.

“Which is why this is your biggest opportunity to showcase your talents, to move the audience with not just the story, but your very acting! The only thing we can do, as men and women of this field, is to act as vehicles and carry the emotions of the story into the hearts of the fans.”

The man finally sighs, shoulders falling and arms flopping lazily to his side, the sentimentality of the words he just spoke tasting bitter on his tongue.

“Besides, even in death there is a beauty. The crystal exarch lived his life fulfilled and having realized his wish at the end. I expect you to remember that when you eventually see him off.”

There’s a silence that hangs and festers in the air for a moment, before the fur on G’raha’s tail stands and his chest puffs up in a show of renewed determination.

“Y-you’re right, Emet! The crystal exarch dedicated his life to finding a way to save others... There is no better way to end his legacy than to see the world he’s protected for so long finally saved!”

Standing onto his feet, the miqo’te clenches his hands into fists and nods before casting a glance down at Illya.

“Illya! I will act my heart out to the best I can! I’ll act so hard that I’ll make you cry on set for sure!”

The corners of her lip tugs upwards into a wide smile, glowing as the afternoon sun basks down and reflects upon her snowy white hair and the blossoms of her amethyst eyes. Even with the black of the garments she wore and the eastern patterned ribbon that held the braid around her head in place, she was luminous and blinding in her radiant presence... not unlike the heroine of their story.

“Of course! And I’m sure the rest of the crystal exarch fan club will too when they watch that episode.”

“Illya, G’raha!” A pink haired lalafellin calls out to them from a distance away, her olive green eyes wide and excited as she waves her hands high above her head. A raven haired man stands just behind her, his dark blue eyes narrowed as he reviews the script in his hands intently. “We’re starting soon! Get over here!”

“Coming! Just give us a second!” G’raha waves back with a grin before turning back to look at Emet Selch with an apologetic, yet grateful bow, his relaxed tail swaying gently from side to side behind his back.

“Thank you, Emet. I won’t soon forget your encouragements. I’ll do my best and make sure to not let everyone down.”

“Yes, yes. Spare me the nauseating mush. I was just making sure you didn’t drag your co-actor down with your sulking.”

The elder man now glances at the starry eyed girl with amusement flashing through his expression, and Illya can already feel her earlier lighthearted elation fade as quickly as it came.

“By the way... I’m sure if you asked Yoshida properly.. he’d be willing to consider writing in a kiss scene with Liliya and-”

“If I were the warrior of darkness, I’d take my crescent moon cane and stab you with the end of it......”

------

Meanwhile, a little distance away from the trio, Kaye lets out a low hum as he reads and re-reads the words upon the small stacks of paper he held, expression doubtful and confused.

“You sure this is the script to Endwalker?”

“Yeah, I am! Alphinaud gave this copy and said that he got from miss Ishikawa directly! Apparently he’s playing another major role in the next season, which is why he got the script early as a heads up.”

“But... it says here that the crystal exarch gets reincarnated? Assuming that’s not gonna be changed... that means G’raha’s gonna be...”

Kaye’s head lifts and turns, eyes wide and brows furrowing in bemusement only to see an impish smile glimmer upon Lily’s face.

“Should we tell him?”

“Hm...? Nah... He’s gonna film the exarch’s death scene soon, right? I’m sure he’ll appreciate the little surprise later, anyways.”

#ffxivwrite #ffxivwrite2021 #ffxiv #final fantasy xiv #g'raha tia #emet selch #illya skawi #g'raha #kiwisffxivwrite2021 #fanfic #mine #I've only had this au for a day and I've already written a fill for it lmao #*pumps fist*

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maddiebiscuits · 4 years ago

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Personal Opinions on FFXIV Villains (in general order of appearance)

As a note, I will not be including any pre-A Realm Reborn villains (as I did not play the original Final Fantasy XIV) nor will I be including any one-off primals, raid bosses, etc. I will be trying to focus on villains as they appear in main or side storylines, in cut scenes, that have some over-arching influence on the story they participate in with something akin to a clear presence - Garleans, Ascians, and so on. Also SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS.

Rhitahtyn sas Arvina

Rhitahtyn gets the shaft out of Gaius’ three main players in A Realm Reborn. A conscript from a Empire-conquered land who rose to power and respect, directly honored by Gaius himself, and possessing an even temper and noble ambition really helped to level out Nero and Livia’s general nonsense. Unfortunately, Rhitahtyn is provided almost no screen-time, development or exploration, and as years have passed, his in-game 8-man trial can now be completed in a regular synced party in mere seconds. He deserved a lot better than what he got, yet remained too sidelined to really leave me feeling invested in wanting to see what sort of story this character could be used to tell.

Livia sas Junius

When first playing through A Realm Reborn my feelings on Livia were...tepid, but optimistic. Of Gaius’ three main players, Livia was easily the most active and ruthless, lacking the shady “long game” and self-serving ambitions of Nero or the more honorable, measured personality of Rhitahtyn. Suffice to say, the dawning (and then confirmed) realization that Livia’s sole motivation seeing the plan of the man she loved through to completion by any means, to the point of tunnel-visioned, murderous intent, was...disappointing. Add to that Livia was raised by Gaius in her backstory, the man being a father figure to her, and the romance motivation becomes even more unhinged (especially since it is largely considered to be a reciprocated romance, at least physically, by Gaius - barf)

Nero tol Scaeva

Nero has become a fan favourite character over the years, thanks to his continued development into Cid’s boyfriend foil rather than outright villain of the main storyline. This development was easy to spot early enough though, as it was clear Nero’s fealty to Gaius was largely self-serving. He didn’t care much about conquering Eorzea or felling primals/eikons - he just wanted to show that he possessed the brilliance to build weapons capable of doing so. His speech/squabble with Cid during the Praetorium sequence paints that picture even more clearly if the players missed the not-so-subtle implications for Nero’s character already. The man lived, breathed and seethed with inferiority when compared to Cid, and in the end he did ultimately prove his engineering mastery, even if the Warrior of Light took it (and him) down. Ultimately though, Nero serves as a much better supporting and “redeemed” character than a villain, so I do have to rank him pretty low.

Gaius van Baelsar

Aside from whatever...weird...thing was going on between him and Livia (again - barf), Gaius in A Realm Reborn was a pretty solid villain, with clear-cut motivations that I actually understood, and begrudgingly agreed with to a small extent. As legatus, Gaius was still the tyrannical arm of the Garlean Empire, but a level-headed one who was more interested with the purging of the primal/eikon threat from Eorzea than subjugating other peoples. Further development of this character into something of an anti-hero and glimpses of how other characters viewed him in flashbacks in later expansions ends up providing his A Realm Reborn rendition with more strength in retrospect. The heads of the three city-states deciding to accept Gaius off to willingly join the Empire is a pretty good sticking point for the validity of his plan as well. Ultima Weapon is...you know, pretty impossible for Ul’dah, Gridania and Limsa Lominsa to face down if they refuse, but more enticing is its ability to, indeed, single-handedly defeat primals/eikons - something the city-states desperately need at their disposal, having been plagued by such threats constantly, for years and years.

Gaius cuts a pretty direct swath to the truth of the Twelve as well - they’re no different than the primals/eikons he seeks to eradicate, and the more stock Eorzeans put into them, the more empowered they become should someone ever try to summon one, making Eorzeans no better than the beastmen and their ‘gods’. Join the Empire and have protection from such powers, and put faith into the leadership of man, versus that of fictional deities that can be given terrifying form...in the world of Final Fantasy XIV, that’s not a terrible proposition. But it would still subject thousands of people to the Empire’s tyranny, so even if Gaius has the oft-coveted ‘Point’ that most villains wish they had, he still must be stopped. Eorzea will simply find other ways to endure the primal/eikon threat rather than bend the knee, and I like that defiant angle the Warrior of Light represents to counter Gaius’ character. Also, Ascian meddling and Hydaelyn shenanigans, sure, but I don’t feel that takes away from the core conflict that Gaius presents. He was a good villain, and I’m happy to see him return and go through the motions of penance for his past deeds and aid the supporting cast now, elevating him even higher into a good character, in general.

Lahabrea

I admit I have a soft spot for Lahabrea, only because he seems to be a universal punching bag for heroes and villains alike in Final Fantasy XIV. He lacks the more subdued, long-term planning of Elidibus or the explored nuance and sympathy of Emet-Selch - he’s sort of the odd one out between the trifecta that make up the unsundered Ascians. Just a blindly-tempered zealot of Zodiark, seemingly more enthused by the ancient primal’s return than the promise of the world being set back to how it was before The Final Days. Even the other Ascians don’t seem to like Lahabrea that much - Elidibus seems keenly aware that Lahabrea has gone off the deep end, constantly needing reminders and wrangling-in to keep the plan in motion. But I will admit, he serves his purpose well enough, and the additional side-story that reveals that Lahabrea was a brilliant scholar unmatched in the Amaurotine field of ‘phantom creation’ was a nice touch to explain why he’s pretty dang good at getting people to try and summon primals and conjuring or corrupting monsters himself. By no effort of Square Enix themselves, I sort of feel bad for the guy. He really was just Doing His Best, and getting no respect for it. His end was also anti-climatic, but by the time it happened, there were far more interesting characters and stories to tell, and he was unnecessary - it was just better this way, Lahabrea.

Nabriales

This one-bit player served one substantial purpose, and it was to see an Ascian get obliterated permanently and thus provide the means and understanding to battle Ascians in the future. Except that the cost to do so was a throw-away villain, a throw-away damsel-in-distress 8-man trial, and turning Moenbrya, a character with a lot of potential to be great, into a throw-away character who has to make an untimely sacrifice because the script says so. Nabriales you’re boring, you’re bad, you’re a waste of time and your mutton chops are dumb as hell.

Ilberd Feare

You know what, I like this villain. I absolutely want to punch his face in, but I figure getting that sort of rise out of me on sight is intended, since, you know: villain. His motivations aren’t bad either, even if his methods are deplorable. The speech he gives at the very end of A Realm Reborn to rile up Raubahn is pretty effective too. Despite both being refugees of Ala Mhigo, Raubahn fought his way to wealth and status, and Ilberd was never afforded that chance, or at least never quite managed. Raubahn pledged himself more to Ul’dah and the Immortal Flames with his new privileges, however, and Ilberd was perhaps right to resent that, with Ala Mhigo still under the yoke of the Empire, and so many refugees left to flounder in The Black Shroud and Thanalan both, Raubahn seemingly unwilling to step in. Ilberd saw the opportunity to change the status quo and took it, and proceeded to rally others to reclaim Ala Mhigo. If the city-states would not help, then they would be forced to help, and for all his dirty tactics, punch-able face and Shinryu-summoning finale, Ilberd’s plan did work: he forced the hand of the city-states to fight against the Empire to reclaim Ala Mhigo, and did indeed remind Raubahn and other passive Ala Mhigans that there was still an important job to do. So, good job Ilberd. Gold star. Now perish.

Teledji Adeledji

I thought the politics at the very end of A Realm Reborn were intriguing, and Teledji’s heel-turn pretty fun, since of all the Monetarists, he seemed to be painted as the most reasonable. Though I found his game plan a bit...suspect. Yes, a poisoned goblet assassination attempt on the Sultana that he could frame on someone else, while usurping control of the Crystal Braves so he could make a bid for full Monetarist control of Ul’dah (with him at the helm) makes sense on paper, but I’m not sure why he sought to frame the Warrior of Light for it, and implicate the Scions either. While it’s true that the Warrior and the Scions would be an obstacle and want to investigate the death, and would prove tenacious foes, if you think about the scenario a bit more, it seems unnecessary. The Warrior and Scion efforts were likely going to start swinging towards Ishgard and the Dragonsong War, to better embellish the northern city-state’s relations with the Eorzean Alliance, nor are the Warrior or Scions people you’d want to make an enemy, especially with the Warrior being one of the only people who can defeat primals (a very active threat in Thanalan).

Framing Lolorito would have been a wiser idea, as he was already disliked and untrustworthy in the eyes of many, powerful and dangerous to compete with though he is. If Lolorito had been framed, Raubahn and the Scions may not have questioned it, and Teledji could have enjoyed planting himself in the eye of the power vacuum that was to come while the Warrior of Light focused their energy up north. Instead, Teledji bet on the wrong chocobo and paid dearly for it - his plan fell apart (and so did he) in more ways than he could anticipate, but on the whole? This was a pretty intriguing and entertaining storyline, I enjoyed it.

Lady Iceheart / Ysayle Dangoulain

I debated putting Ysayle on this list because by the first act of Heavensward, she’s not a villain - but, she certainly was in A Realm Reborn and going into Heavensward, so we might as well just keep representing how good Heavensward is and include her here. Aside from Minfillia, this is one of the only ever characters you meet early(ish) who shares The Echo with the Warrior of Light. Unlike Minfillia or the Warrior, though, Ysayle doesn’t really adhere to the call of Hydaelyn. Instead, her powers allowed her to hear and learn the truth of Ishgard’s history: that it was a lie, and that King Thordan broke the peace in a bid for power for Ishgard, turning Nidhogg to rage and setting the Dragonsong War into motion. Having witnessed Ishgard’s cruelty at a young age when her home was destroyed by snow and ice after the Seventh Umbral Calamity, and knowing what she knew and maintaining close bonds with dragons throughout her life, it’s sort of easy to see why Ysayle would be set upon the path she is. She wishes to end the war much like how Thordan does: ending it, with the dragons as the victors.

Her slap in the face is when she confronts Hraesvelgr though, her bid to sort of not only take the form of Saint Shiva but embody her memory being dismissed as a pale imitation. Saint Shiva wished for true peace, whereas Ysayle demands it through bloodshed - she realizes this, and changes her current course. This is why I debated to list her as a villain, because her gradual change into a supporting character and hero is a logical conclusion as she and Heavensward’s story develops. She starts a villain and dies a hero.

Igeyorhm

Full disclosure: I completely forgot this character existed. And I still don’t actually know why they exist. They’re a second to Lahabrea during the events of Heavensward, and is easily shut down by the Warrior of Light before being annihilated permanently by Thordan. Despite this, I don’t find their existence as offensive as Nabriales’, so...that counts for something.

Archbishop Thordan VII

When I first encountered Thordan (”pope grandpa”, if you will), I thought “oh, he’s evil”, because “church bad” isn’t exactly and uncommon trope and it’s apparent that Ishgard is a broken and unjust society, with this man sitting at the highest seat of power and consorting with Ascians. Yet to my surprise Thordan was...pretty reasonable. At least to start. He makes his audience with the Ascians known and seems unaffected by them and their schemes, is polite and cordial to the Warrior of Light...he doesn’t seem so bad. But the gut feeling remains, and slowly builds as Thordan’s true plan is revealed, becoming a primal-esque deity. And much like Nidhogg, I do get his motivations. Trying to broker peace with the dragons, to him, is just not going to happen - in fact, it’s insulting to ask dragons and Ishgardians both to make a bid for it, when so many people have died and live with the burden of hatred and grief. His solution is more direct: end the war entirely, by winning it for Ishgard.

After assuming his new form and powers, him and his Heavensward have the power to thwart any dragons that oppose them, perhaps even Nidhogg himself if the dreadwrym were to re-appear. Fueled by the generations’-worth of prayers from the Ishgardian population, Thordan was set on ending the war and ousting the dragons from the land, ushering in peace and prosperity. But the Ishgard he sought to protect and defend was built on a history spun of bloodshed and lies, and the dragons were not the true enemy and did not deserve to be put to the sword. Thordan’s plan would have worked in the way he envisioned it, and he made a good argument for it, even if it was ultimately wrong, and that’s a good villain.

Nidhogg

Having come to Final Fantasy XIV from World of Warcraft, a giant, scary black dragon that rants on and on about suffering and misery and pain and vengeance was something of a red flag for a Very Bad Story. Imagine my surprise when Nidhogg was given the screen-time to be properly fleshed out and explored, his motivations and hatred more sympathetically-human than his giant dragon body would have one believe, his presence menacing and well-paced, and his overall being representing the true, dark heart of the Dragonsong War: the cycle of hatred. For dragons, centuries are like days, and the pain Nidhogg feels is no less than what he felt when the Ishgardians brutally broke their pact. Because of this, with each re-emergence of him and his brood, the wheel of suffering turns anew, breathing new hate-filled life into the ongoing Dragonsong War, generation to generation. Time has no effect on his turmoil, and his existence ensures that no other Ishgardians will ever be able to move on from the war either, even as generations continue on.

I find Estinien being consumed by Nidhogg’s rage very thematic as well, Estinien truly embodying the countering hatred the Ishgardians feel towards the dragons, and it makes the final trial with Nidhogg bittersweet. He defeats Hraesvelgr, because as long as Nidhogg exists even the brightest hope for peace will be squashed under the cycle of malice and war. The Warrior of Light must put him down because he cannot be saved - but Estinien still can, and can choose to move on and pursue the peace that Nihogg strived to prevent and Ysayle died to see come to fruition. And he does, and it’s touching, and Heavensward is SO FUCKING GOOD I LOVE THIS EXPANSION.

Quickthinx Allthoughts

I don’t care much for timey-wimey storylines, but I found the Alexander plot easy enough to follow, and the timeloop it creates to be manageable. The truth about the Enigma Codex and the journal Quickthinx has isn’t exactly hard to figure out though once time travel becomes a part of the plot, and beyond beind a fun goblin with a cute kitty cat friend...there’s just not much in the way of compelling character writing here for this gobbo.

Diabolos

Big ancient demon is revived and wants to wreak havoc. Uninspiring, but its also not necessary for Diabolos to be anything more than what he is either. The heart of the Void Ark storyline is the tribulations of Cait Sith, the sky pirates and the history of the Mhachi, Diabolos just being an excuse to explore those characters and lore.

Regula van Hydrus

Regula deserved better damnit. This is the last Garlean villain with nuance and humanity before Stormblood turns everyone who is so much as associated with the Garlean Empire into a cartoonishly-evil, absolutely twisted, reprehensible confusing mess of a person.

Fordola rem Lupis

Stormblood has a lot of story, pacing and character problems. A lot. It has its moments and some people love this expansion, but I do not and its villains are a very large reason why that is. Fordola, for example, had the potential to be quite interesting. She was raised to believe in what her father did: that Gaius and the Empire were not all bad, and then watched her father die trying to protect her from angry, almost barbaric Ala Mhigans who decided that pelting a little girl with rocks because her parents were Empire-sympathizers and supporters was an okay thing to do (as the Garlean soldiers just watched on and let it happen without intervening because they didn’t feel like it - a fact that Fordola knows and remembers). You would think this event would have a sort of polarizing effect on her, feeling betrayed by both her people and the Empire her father believed in, feeling caught in the middle, in need of finding her identity and sense of self. Instead she...basically throws her entire stock in with the Empire, deciding that if she’s a good little soldier for the Empire, then Garleans will have to change their minds about Ala Mhigans and respect them because, see, look: an Ala Mhigan is a respected Garlean asset.

Except this backfires over, and over, her Ala Mhigan team nothing more than vicious dogs that never bite the hand that feeds them, turning their teeth on their own people instead. Fordola is constantly belittled and ridiculed for her heritage and even her gender by the Garleans, and at no point does she ever stop and go “wow maybe the Empire sucks hot ass and I’ve been terribly wrong about my motives this whole time”. And yet, no...Zenos offers her power in some magitek-aether experiment, she kills her own Skulls team, she finished the expansion jailed for her crimes, believing until the very end that the Garleans will win (they did not). She utilizes her anti-primal abilities once, and vanishes from the plot entirely, only to re-appear in a bad side-story where the Immortal Flames have her hooked up to some penalty-of-death submission collar so she doesn’t act out so they can use her synthetic Echo abilities to fight a re-summoned Ifrit.

Bad character, bad writing, and a waste of her new, game-changing anti-primal abilities.

Grynewaht pyr Arvina

This is such...a stupid character. His design, his voice and dialogue...I can’t tell what Grynewaht is supposed to be. Is he comedic relief? Because he’s not funny. Is he a character that you’re supposed to pity or despise? Because I felt nothing towards him. Is he supposed to be a rival? Because...no. I had to look up what his name was. The only thing I can clearly remember about him is that he was the final boss of the Doma Castle 4-man dungeon. That’s it. If you removed him from the plot entirely, nothing of value would be lost.

Yotsuyu goe Brutus

Between the two female villains of Stormblood, Yotsuyu is the more popular. It’s easy to see why: she has a cool design and a lot more screen-time and development, with a big 8-man trial to finish things off. But like Fordola, something is just off about her writing.

I don’t understand her motives or how she even came to feel the way she does about Doma, specificially. And anything bad that could happen to her, has happened to her. She suffered an abusive childhood under her adoptive parents, was sold off to an abusive husband, then sold off again to a brothel after her husband died to repay his debts. She later became a spy for the Garleans, rose in rank and was appointed acting viceroy of Doma, to keep the masses terrified and under her heel. At first, it seems pretty reasonable for her to turn against Doma, and lash out as she does on its people - her Doman upbringing left her used, abused and powerless, and with the Garleans she found power and strength. But this reading falls apart when you quickly realize that Doma was already occupied by the Garleans during the course of her upbringing, her family obedient to the Empire and her suffering just as much the fault of the Garleans. There’s an argument to also be made that not enough time was really spent portraying Doma as the disgusting place Yotsuyu sees it, as from the onset of Stormblood’s story journey into the Far East, Domans are only ever portrayed as a terrified, broken people, scared of the Garleans and Yotsuyu. I also don’t personally care for “character was abused, so now they’re sadistic and crazy” clichés either.

What does work well for Yotsuyu is the theme of power and control. Yotsuyu is a woman who lived a life not her own, weak and frail, until she obtained power. Now that she has it, her drive is to do anything to maintain it and survive - yet for some reason the story is written in such a way as to downplay this much stronger theme of her character, and play up this slightly confusing, all-consuming hatred for Doma instead. Her transformation into Tsukiyomi is also a bit odd (though decently thematic, with her ‘cold, uncaring and distant as the moon’ comparison), with not enough time paid to explore her understanding of Doman deities and why the mirror would trigger this change (and why would she even keep Doman deities in her mind, with her supposed hatred of Doma?)

I also take some issue with her “Tsuyu” arc, where she reverts back to the last time she was ever truly good or innocent, and has the personality of a child while still being an adult woman (and suffering amnesia). I find these infantilizing tropes pretty offensive, especially when Yotsuyu’s arc here is largely just to reinforce and reiterate what cartoonishly terrible people her family were, and provide Gosetsu with some development instead. Aside from killing Asahi and having a cathartic death herself, everything about Yotsuyu just baffles me. Every time I think I like something about her, athe bad writing twists it around.

Zenos yae Galvus

I don’t like Zenos, he’s a bad character, and I hate that Square Enix decided this limp-haired sullen-faced clown was going to be their poster-boy villain for Final Fantasy XIV.

What is the appeal of this character? Yeah, some people find him attractive. I don’t, but I also didn’t find Sephiroth attractive so, okay, whatever - like what you like I guess. But what else does Zenos have going on besides people seeming to think he’s their buff bishonen thicc daddy or whatever the kids are saying these days? His entire character can be summed up in one sentence:

“While the Warrior of Light was practicing empathy, Zenos studied The Blade.”

He’s a Garlean lordling with a bland and cold upbringing who likes katanas and blood sport. That’s it. He’s a sociopath, finding no joy or meaning in life for whatever reason: he just wants to collect Cool Swords and push his bizarre love-hate fight narrative on the Warrior of Light. Because they are opposites, you see: the Warrior of Light is a cardboard cut out of a Good Guy and Zenos is a cardboard cut out of a Bad Guy. He’s not even entertaining about it. He doesn’t want to watch the world burn, he just wants to fight the Warrior because the battle will make him Feel Something. Meanwhile, all I feel whenever I see him in-game, either in a cut-scene or when I’m locked in an unskippable “survive the drawn-out battle!” sequence with him, is a groan coming on. And sometimes villains who are evil just for the sake of it can be fun! But Zenos is not fun - he’s dull, he doesn’t get me hyped up for a fight...I feel nothing.

When he died after using his uber-synthetic Echo to possess Shinryu by taking his own life I thought, “well, at least that’s over” and I felt relieved. And then he came back, bigger and worse than ever! Yippee! I love confusing, unrelatable, boring villains who are recurring. Whatever Square Enix wants to do with Zenos, they need to hurry up and get it done. I care so little about him and just want to explore other stories and characters. I’m assuming he’s going to like, possess Zodiark or something, and then the Warrior will possess Hydaelyn, and there will be some big anime light fight showdown where Zodiark and Hydaelyn both shatter for good and Zenos dies and the Warrior lives another day and uuuugggghhh. How the hell did an expansion like Stormblood follow up Heavensward? Who let this happen?

Asahi sas Brutus

Bowl-cut twink hates his sister because he’s a Zenos fanboy and is angry Yotsuyu got all of Zenos’ attention instead of him. Filled with spite and piss, cartoonishly evil just like everyone associated with Yotsuyu or the Empire in Stormblood. Rest in pieces you little shit.

Varis zos Galvus

I’m lukewarm on Varis. He’s a better villain than Zenos, but that’s like saying a flat three-day-old glass of soda is better than sewage water. The bar is set very, very low. He’s ruthless, but not entirely unfair in his thought processes. Hell, he doesn’t even seem to like his own son (and really, if Zenos was my kid, I wouldn’t like him either). But Varis is a bit too...static, in my opinion. He doesn’t feel like a major player, and his batshit “let’s all just burn so the world resets and we can stick it to the Ascians” is pretty asinine and plays so transparently into the Ascian’s hands. I was originally bummed that Zenos killed him pretty unspectacularly, but...like with Lahabrea, it was probably better this way.

Omega

I don’t have much to say about this villain, really. The heart of the Omegascape storyline hinges on Cid, Nero, Alpha and the abstract concept of free will and accepting imperfection. It’s almost hard to say if Omega really is a villain, simply acting out a series of programs and statistics in a cold, robotic way, not really with malicious intent, so I think where Omega sort of shines is just as a being to build this sort of story off of, and provide a lot of fun boss fights as well.

Ran’jit

I had no strong opinions on Ran’jit for a long time, so I guess he improved for me as I now have An Opinion of him. He’s fine. He’s an okay villain. His Zenos-esque “survive the timer” encounters are annoying, but I find his persistence and presence more inspiring than any time crummy ol’ Zenos showed up. The biggest issue with Ran’jit is the lack of time devoted to developing him. This is a man who lost his home in the Flood of Light (which was the First’s equivalent to the Source’s Far East), and has essentially trained and raised numerous Minfillia reincarnations to battle Sin Eaters, just to watch these poor girls he saw as his own daughters die and die and die again. That cycle of loss would break down anyone, and make Vauthry’s postulations of paradise in Eulmore until the end finally comes appealing. Ran’jit pursues the Scions and Minfillia/Ryne not because he’s resolute in following orders, but because he just wants to bring this one psuedo-daughter back and keep her safe - something he could never do for the others who came and went in his tenure.

Naturally, this protectiveness leads to giving in to Vauthry’s nihilistic promises and stifles Minfillia/Ryne as a person. Thancred eventually learns to let the Minfillia he knew go so that Ryne could floruish into her own person - she was not ‘his’ Minfillia and it was terrible of him to ever impose that upon her. But where Thancred can move on and let Ryne develop into the wonderful person she is, Ran’jit cannot. And I’m disappointed this aspect of his character couldn’t be more at the forefront of his narrative.

Vauthry

If you ask me, this is more in line with how I figured Zenos might be. Vauthry lived a life or privilege and power, a child born of divine providence with no true regard for life, just his own desires. He’s spoiled and unreasonable, but his nihilism isn’t really nonsensical in the world of the First. All but a fraction of the world is destroyed, and Sin Eaters are a constant, devastating threat, so why not just relax in luxury, in the safety of Vauthry’s control over the monsters, and live in peace until the world truly ends? The battle against the Sin Eaters is exhausting and has no hope of victory anyway (until the Warrior of Light/Darkness arrives, that is). Even without the meol subplot, it makes sense why so many would flock to Eulmore once Vauthry takes over. Goofy as he can be, I do think Vauthry’s embodiment of just giving in to nihilism, hedonism and annihilation stands as a good thematic contrast to Shadowbringers strong themes of stubbornly striving for hope in even the darkest, bleakest hour. His trial is also fun and a slight swerve. All the Light Wardens up to that point had been monstrous, and Sin Eater transformations the thing of nightmares (Tesleen), so to see Vauthry take on the form of Innocence (ironically appropriate, as he truly believes he is blameless in all he has done) and become a golden-haired, angelic being of beauty - how he likely has always seen himself - is very entertaining, and defeating him feels great.

Emet-Selch / Solus zos Galvus / Hades

Ah yes. The Big One. Most people like Emet-Selch and his involvement in Shadowbringers. He’s sardonic, he’s entertaining, he’s honest, he’s explored, and he’s even sympathetic. The revelation of how Zodiark (and Hydaelyn) came to be, Amaurot and The Final Days is truly tragic. Emet and the rest of the Convocation were trying to save their world, and the cost was staggering - the lives of so many of their own, their minds, and eventually even their own world in the Amaurotine schism that followed. Being able to see a shadow of what Amaurot and its people were like really helps drive home the sorrow of it all, and Emet himself admits that he did try to learn to appreciate what the fragmented world had become. He’s also one of the most “successful” villains in Final Fantasy XIV - his intertwined association with death and masterful ability to raise up and lead empires like the ancient Allagans and modern Garleans to their self-destructing, Calamity-inducing downfalls (of which he was almost successful did with Varis and the Black Rose in the latter’s case) is pretty impressive as far as villainous plans and activity is concerned. Being forced to work alongside him in Shadowbringers because your goals are aligned while attempting to guard yourself from his inevitable schemes - which he’s pretty blunt about admitting he has - is an interesting way to develop him as a villain too. He spends most of Shadowbringers actually helping you rather than outright antagonizing you.

His conundrum is sympathetic as well, if not entirely relatable. If you had the ability to bring back your world, your friends and loved ones, at the cost of countless lives that are trivial in the grand scheme of the cosmos and start again, anew, in a better world that could repair and rebuild, would you do it? Tempered by Zodiark or not, Emet would, and while I don’t agree with him, I don’t entirely blame him either, for feeling how he does. Similar to Ran’jit and Vauthry too, Emet is nihilistic: he clings to something long-gone and will burn the current world down to get it back. To him, the Rejoining and Zodiark’s return is inevitable, and people like the Warrior of Light/Darkness are futile, frustating obstacles that cannot understand not only his plans, but just how he feels. They don’t remember what they lost. Emet does.

And yet in his final moments, Emet seems at peace. He seems to realize, as he is fading into oblivion, that the Warrior of Light/Darkness isn’t just the reincarnation of Azem, but what Azem believed in that made Azem part from the Convocation. Fractured life is still life, and Azem believed that the world and its beings was worth learning about, loving and protecting, capable of great things even when faced with insurmountable odds. The last act of good will Emet can do after requesting that the Warrior not forget about Amaurot, is to free the Warrior from Elidibus’ binds so that the last unsundered Ascian can be put to rest at last. It’s a very emotional throughline for Emet’s character, rather than a more logical one, but it works very, very well and really helps push Shadowbringers into that amazing high its story can get to.

Elidibus

I never liked Elidibus all that much for the longest time. It’s not that his character was “bad’, per se - he’s polite, diplomatic, and enigmatic, providing a much more leveled, intriguing villain to counter-act Lahabrea’s more active plays and cackling. But Elidibus’ long game always left me sort of wanting: I was never really sure what he was trying to accomplish expansion to expansion and how it related to the Rejoining that would bring about Zodiark. His plans also seemed to just regularly...fall through. Sending the Warriors of Darkness to antagonize the Warrior of Light in the Source ended up bringing about the halt of the Flood of Light on the First entirely. Picking up Zenos’ body and squashing Garlemald uprisings while nudging Varis to make and use the Black Rose was promptly halted by the true Zenos making an unspectacular return. I don’t know, I just feel like any plan Elidibus sets into motion gets stopped before it really gets started.

My opinion of him did change, however, during the course of the Shadowbringers expansion. Being the heart of Zodiark, manifesting as the First’s...uhh, first, Warrior of Light, summoning them from across the other shards to wreak havoc and empower himself, only to finally be put out of his misery not just be the true Warrior of Light/Darkness, but Emet-Selch’s last act of will and revealing that he had been an over-working, sad youth who just wanted to save the world he knew was...well, sad. And his first (and last) real gameplay with the various hero summonings was a pretty amazing set piece too, though it also tells me how devastating Elidibus could have been earlier on if he’d taken a more pro-active approach, access to the Crystal Tower notwithstanding.

Valens van Varro

Much like how I wanted to punch Ilberd, because Ilberd is a deplorable person but an effective villain with decent motivations, Valens is just...I just want to punch him, in general. He’s just Disgusting On Purpose. And since we still haven’t shaken Stormblood’s insistence that Garleans are Evil So Evil Oh My God Evil You Guys they’re trotted out a demented borderline sex-offender who forces his child wards to brand subjects who are out of line with red-hot irons. Valens is...entertaining, I guess, in that regard. And Valens does serve as an appropriate counter-part to Gaius in this storyline, the themes of which seem to largely deal with fatherhood and penance for past misdeeds. I just...really miss Garlean villains with nuance.

Fandaniel

Oh god damnit Asahi is back. Square Enix stop doing this, stop bringing back bad characters. Though it is unfair to say Fandaniel is anything like Asahi. Oh sure, he’s using Asahi’s body (and therefore the Brutus’ family inheritance to fund his machinations), he fawns over Zenos, and he’s cartoonishly evil, but at least this go around there’s a certain...goofy charm to it. Fandaniel is a sundered Ascian - he doesn’t care about the Rejoining or Zodiark, he’s aware that he’s a broken being and he is, quite frankly, loving it. He lays his intent out pretty plainly to the Warrior of Light/Darkness: he’s evil, he loves destruction, and he’s doing it because that’s just what he feels like doing. Don’t reason with him, don’t try to understand him, just fight back and cry about it. On some basic level I appreciate that brutal honesty, so much so that I’m comfortable writing my thoughts about him now because I don’t think they’re going to change. What you see is what you get with Fandaniel, and he’s just having such a good time. He’s a terribly-written villain but gosh darnit I just can’t bring myself to hate him.

#don't @ me zenos fans or i will always win need rolls on mount drops by one point in your queues #ffxiv

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starrysnowdrop · 4 years ago

Note

Hey there! I don't know how to write this so I hope you won't mind my awkward phrasing XD

I've see a lot of negative posts about the Sorrow of Werlyt Quest Line, some even pretty aggressive. Now I feel so bad for liking it, I love the Siblings and how Gaius turns out to be an actually somewhat good Dad. I like the fights a lot, especially the second one. Had massive fun with posing and fooling around. I also love how the Villain is just that, a mean bastard who deserves some stab wounds.

But now I'm desperately searching for other people who like this quest line. Long story short... I've just wanted to ask how you see the story arc 😔 sorry again for writing so much nonsense 💜

Hi sweetie, thank you so much for reaching out to me @xxcrowfeatherxx! Before I begin my essay long answer, thank you so much for the amazing ask!

First, please don’t feel bad for what you enjoy, or begin to think that your opinion is invalidated because some are really vocal about what they dislike. You are allowed to enjoy the Werlyt storyline despite the fact that there are some who dislike it. Also, please don’t take my opinions as gospel either. Regardless if my opinions are similar or contradict your own opinions, please go on enjoying the Werlyt content! With that being said, let’s get into it, shall we?

My Thoughts on The Sorrow of Werlyt Up to Patch 5.4

I think I will get the less controversial aspects of Werlyt out of the way and say I’m in LOVE with the fact that we are fighting the weapons from FFVII. VII is one of my favorite games in the FF series, so I have been hyped since Ruby Weapon was announced. I absolutely loved all of the weapons and their respective battles, with Ruby giving me utter chills with Nael van Darnus popping out of the weapon all gooey, then the absolutely EPIC Sapphire duty that is taken right out of my childhood fantasies of wanting to pilot a gundam! Emerald Weapon’s trial even on normal mode was so much fun, and it tested my ability to stay alive and dodge all the mechanics really well. And just seeing the VII weapon designs in full HD quality just makes me squeal with joy every time.

Now, for what you are probably waiting for me to comment on: the Werlyt story. Obviously since we haven’t seen it through to completion, I can only comment on how it’s going so far through 5.4, so my opinions may change down the road. That being said, I don’t hate the storyline, but it’s more in the execution of certain plot points that annoy me.

For example, I adore that we are exploring Gaius’ past and the reveal that he had more “adopted” children, as it shows the kind of person Gaius really is behind the armor so to speak. I don’t hate that the Raen kids are there, or that Gaius seems to be on his way to having a full redemption arc, unlike some more vocal people have said on Twitter recently. I’m actually all for a redeemed Gaius, I just hope they do it well, and not just brush over certain things... unfortunately it seems so far that they have.

Not sure if you’ve seen the meme going around, but after Severa explained her past to Gaius, he had full shocked Pikachu face, right? That bothers me, because how can he NOT know that a majority of pure blooded Garleans look down on other races as inferior? I mean, Cid knows, how can Gaius be all shocked about this? I understand that Gaius may not be aware of all the dealings going on in other legions, sure, but the overall ideals of the Garlean Empire even talk about “subjugating primitive peoples” (that’s an Emet quote by the way for the reference), so that sounds like half-assed writing to me. It seems to me that they are painting Gaius as if his biggest sin is being ignorant of the problem instead of him coming to terms with himself being part of said problem.

There’s also the huge issue of what sounds like victim blaming Livia sas Junius for how she turned out to be. Millisandia’s friend explains to you that Gaius always tried to keep Livia at arm’s length because she was getting obsessive over him and trying to keep the others from getting near him. Well, Livia was another of the “adopted” children as well, so if anyone is to blame here it’s Gaius, not Livia. Yeah, “keeping her at arm’s length” by making her his right hand! Talk about mixed signals here. If he knew something was up about Livia’s behavior, he should have done something about it to help the situation, instead of rewarding her for her devotion instead.

Also, others have brought up the point that the Werlyt storyline with Gaius and the Raen “adopted” children is sort of redundant when this has already been explored in Cid’s backstory, and I agree to a point, but not fully. The fact that Gaius takes in children and raises them like they were his own is not new to Gaius’ story certainly, as Cid tells the WoL that “He was there for me father, when you were not”, but it’s not explored that much more than that. And as we know, Cid defects and leaves Garlemald to fight for Eorzea instead of following Gaius. Therefore, it’s interesting that the Raen children look to Gaius as an example instead of what Cid did, so I actually like that we have been given more exploration into the backstories of these characters in this storyline.

There’s also the fact that people have been critical about Cid seemingly forgiving Gaius for everything he’s done and just brushing it all aside like it’s no big deal in this storyline. I guess people get that impression when Cid tells the WoL that when he saw Gaius again in Praetorium, he doesn’t know why he wasn’t that mad at him like he thought he would be. Now, I need to go back and screenshot this conversation just to be certain of the details, but the impression I got was that Cid had mixed emotions about Gaius, but he was willing to put it aside for the greater good (ie: defeating the Weapons that will kill all of Eorzea). Also, Gaius practically raised Cid himself, and in a lot of ways, Gaius was more of a father figure to Cid than Midas ever was. So does this make Cid’s feelings towards Gaius complicated? Absolutely! Gaius still feels like a father to him, so I believe Cid gets a pass for having mixed emotions about the whole situation. Not to mention that Gaius wasn’t the one that almost killed him... but anyway.

I haven’t talked too much about Valens yet, but he’s so creepy and freaks me out, and that’s a great thing! He’s definitely a change from our more sympathetic villains we’ve had lately with Emet and Elidibus, so I’m actually happy about that as well. I honestly can’t wait till that piece of shit dies!

I know I made this way longer than anyone probably cares to read, but I’m honored that you asked me for my thoughts on Werlyt and I’ll be happy to talk about it anytime with you! Once again, thank you so much for the ask!

#asks and replies #xxcrowfeatherxx #ffxiv spoilers #shadowbringers spoilers #sorrow of werlyt spoilers #sorrows of werlyt spoilers #patch 5.4 spoilers #5.4 spoilers #sorrow of werlyt #gaius van baelsar #gaius baelsar #cid nan garlond #cid garlond #once again thank you so much for the ask!!

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jenovahh · 3 years ago

Text

The Honey Pot - Ch. 29 - A Love Just as Sweet

“You’re sure you don’t need me to come help? No furniture you need to move?”

“I think you’re just looking for an excuse to ditch work, Ardbert.”

“You’re half right. I’m also looking for an excuse to come see my godchild as well.”

“Your godchild is at home with the babysitter, waiting for me to return from the grocery store.” You can’t help but giggle into the phone at Ardbert’s dramatic groan as you pick up a few rolanberries to put in your shopping cart. “You know you’re more than free to visit, Ardbert.” you grin, even if he cannot see it.

“I know, I know. But it’s hard work now being in charge of an entire luxury chauffeur service now that Varis is gone! I may be the boss, but I have employees to manage. Paychecks to write. Won’t you have pity on your poor friend? Won’t you pay for my ticket to Eorzea?” Ardbert bemoans, and already you can envision his melodramatic flare, unable to stop yourself from snorting at his antics.

“Maybe in a few years I’ll be ready to come back to Kugane.” you murmur softly, rolling an apple around in your hand.

“Always at your own pace, Honey.” Ardbert adds warmly, and it’s times like these you do miss your closest friend. “Even if you feel you can never return, I’ll never fault you for it. I’ll always do my best to come see you.”

You prepare to say something back when your phone beeps in your ear. Pulling it from your face, you see you have an incoming call. “Hey Ardbert, I’ll call back later. I’ve got an important call coming in.”

“No problem, talk to you later, Honey.”

Tapping on the screen, you transfer the call over, bringing your phone to your ear again as you continue to amble around the grocery store. “And what do you want?”

“Is that any way to greet a friend?” Cid scoffs, just as, if not more dramatic than Ardbert.

“It’s a way to greet this friend.” You laugh, nabbing some chips off the shelf. You were getting pretty low on snacks.

“I called to check in on you and also deliver some news. Are you busy?”

“I’m a full time mother, Cid. When am I not busy?” you joke, making your way to the meat department. “After all, my days are filled with diaper changes and games of peekaboo. Exciting stuff.”

“Boring, but peaceful.” Cid supplies, giving out his sage wisdom as usual. “But on a more serious note, is all well?”

Was all well?

It had been a year since your coming to Eorzea, landing yourself a fairly decent sized house in the Gridanian countryside. While off the grid, you were still afforded modern amenities, such as high speed internet and cable TV. Every so often you would have to work your way into the city to run a few errands, just like you are today. You would usually call up one of your trusted neighbors to come over and babysit to put some spare change in their pocket.

You had woken up in the hospital alone, feeling as if you had been hit by a truck while getting ran over by a train, and somehow managed to live. Merlwyb and Cid were the first to barge in your room at news you had woken from your sleep, having feared you would fall into a coma from the damage to your body, or even the damage to your mind.

There was hardly a day that either of them wasn’t at your side, working in shifts almost until Ardbert had even managed to convince them to squeeze in on the rotation. Ardbert’s presence helped break down the walls you had immediately put up upon waking, spending an entire night sobbing into his arms, finally allowing yourself to mourn everything you had lost.

With his help did you get yourself to therapy, Ardbert there with you every step of the way on the road to recovery.

When you reached a point where you felt stable enough to confront all that had happened, you had asked the three of them to tell you what had been going on since that day.

Cid and Merlwyb were quick to hold off the local news of misconstruing facts, Cid telling them to wait until he could get back to his home and compile all the evidence the public needed. The entire city was in an uproar, Varis’ most loyal followers spewing hate and lies to try and convince the public that everything was a ruse and that Cid was the one to cause the explosion at the research facility.

There seemed to be no hope in sight until an unsuspecting witness came to the front.

Gaius of all people had given his testimony, exposing every bit of collusion and dirty deals Varis had a hand in, debunking every lie that Varis had ever spewed, every promise he had intended to break. He had offered himself up for arrest for taking part in Varis’ crimes, even if he had been manipulated into thinking it was for the better of Kugane.

But with Varis gone, and his heir missing, what would happen to Galvus industries?

Cid would receive everything from the corporation, from shares to assets to the building itself. Cid, being the philanthropist he is, decided there was no use of him having so much extra wealth on top of what he already had, and decided to spend the rest of his days giving the money to charities and actually improving the city he now called home.

Said city of course let Lord Hien serve another term. Lord Hien, being an honest man, did not hide his taking part of your operation to stop Varis. With full transparency he informed the public of why he made the decisions he did, assuring them he had not taken out Varis for power, but had kept a tyrant from taking over their country.

When you ask what had become of Elidibus, everyone only stares at you in confusion. You try to describe him to the best of your ability, but all it seems to do is make people more concerned for your mental health by trying to make them remember someone who never existed. Hoping you had not gone off the deep end, it is only when you try to search for him on the internet do you realize his entire existence has been erased.

No notes of him being prime minister of Garlemald, no notes of him having a casual friendship with Vris. As if he had been a figment of your imagination.

Only when you reach for the back of your neck and feel the telltale pulse of your tattoo do you know it wasn’t all a dream.

Taking a deep breath, you finally answer Cid. “I...am well.”

“Good,” Cid breathes, and just hearing his voice makes you yearn for his company. You hope he’ll visit soon. “All good on funds? Need any extra change?”

“Cid, you already wire me nearly 500,000 gil a month; I couldn’t do anything else with more of it.” You grumble as you pick up some chicken breasts and place them in your basket.

“Hey, that money isn’t just for you. I know you want to keep baby Aldynn a secret, but he is still the rightful heir of the Galvus inheritance, and with me in charge of the funds I’ll ensure he gets it. The best time to start saving for college is now,”

“Cid.” you sigh, padding your way to prepare to checkout. Thankfully the lines aren’t too long this time of day. “Aldynn is barely a year old. I don’t have to start thinking about college for another decade and a half.”

“I know, I know…” Cid grumbles, and you can’t help but feel a little bad. Cid really did mean well, being every bit the overprotective uncle you knew he’d be. “I just worry. And I miss you.”

Smiling sadly, you begin to hand your items to the cashier to checkout. “I miss you too, Cid.”

“And better me to call you than Merlwyb, eh? You know we’re practically monitoring her bank account to make sure she hasn’t bought another round trip ticket to Eorzea.” Cid laughs, prompting you to snicker as you hand your payment to the cashier.

“I don’t know what she worries so much for...she really should work through her guilt…” you muse quietly, thanking the cashier as they help load your bags back into your basket.

“She will, in time. Granted, I'm sure the statue they are about to erect of Raubahn down at the police station will reopen some old wounds for a little bit.” Cid laments, both of you silent for a second. “You may be seeing her come over sooner than you’d like. Your statue,”

You stop in place as you glare angrily at the phone glued to the side of your face. “My statue?”

“Shit,” Cid curses under his breath. “Yeah, I fucked that one up. Sorry, Honey.” Cid apologizes, but you’re already fuming as you make your way out to the parking lot.

“I already said I didn’t want a statue! That Chief Raubahn was the only one who deserved it for his sacrifice!” You huff and puff, practically throwing your groceries into your trunk in frustration.

“I know, I know, but you know Merlwyb can be very convincing and very intimidating…” Cid winces as he tries to calm you down. “It’s just going to be a nice little statue in one of the parks, I promise. Merlwyb was prepared to give you an entire fountain--”

“Well thanks for making her show some restraint.” You drone sarcastically, slamming the trunk lid closed. You swear you were going to give that woman a piece of your mind. “Anyway, I appreciate the call Cid. I’m about to drive back home and cook dinner. Gotta send the babysitter on their way.”

“Of course, Honey. Take care.”

The call ends and you pull out of the parking lot, driving your humble car back out of the city. You took to Gridania almost immediately, the climate not too different from Kugane, though the entire country was packed with trees and native flora. You didn’t mind it though, having picked up gardening as a little side hobby as a result. You most likely wouldn’t try and go back into any line of work until baby Aldynn started going to school, which wouldn’t be for a few years yet.

Adjusting to an entirely new life hadn’t been easy, but you needed to just get away from everything. When you were fit to be released from the hospital after the whole ordeal, the outside of the hospital was packed with press, so much so that the only way out of there undetected was with Ardbert’s help since he wasn’t as prominent a figure as Cid or Merlwyb.

You were dodging letters and emails and phone calls every hour of every day it felt like, people badgering you about how you stayed undercover for so long, about how you had saved Merlwyb from being killed alongside Raubahn, about your supposed romance with the heir who had mysteriously gone missing--

It was Lyse and Y’Shtola’s idea that you leave Kugane.

You couldn’t have been any happier to finally reunite with them, the two of them crying their eyes out as they are finally allowed to see you, weeping about how they saw you on the news and how worried they were and for you to never leave their sight again.

You had thought to do just that, but even they could see your mental health continue to deteriorate. You couldn’t even leave your own apartment for fear of being recognized in public, unsure if people would question your “heroic deeds” or ask you things far too personal to answer. It was with their encouragement you got the idea to leave the country and start anew, and what better time to do so when you were halfway through your pregnancy? A pregnancy that against all odds, your unborn child had been just as strong as its parents.

Which, as hard as it was for you to admit, made you wonder if Aldynn would have some kind of freakish strength as he got older. No matter how many doctors checked you, after the sting operation, they said that both mother and baby were the perfect picture of health. While you were overjoyed that you would not have to deal with the trauma of a miscarriage, you can’t steer your mind from darker thoughts that your baby might have been the invincible weapon Varis had been hoping for.

Pulled from your thoughts as your phone rings, you activate the hands free calling, noticing it is your babysitter. “Hello, Zhloe. I know you’re probably eager to get home, I just left the grocery store a little while ago--”

“Oh don’t worry about it! Aldynn is safe with his father!”

Your heart stops.

“Excuse me?” you ask, voice tight but making sure to not lose your cool. While an adult, Zhloe was a very kindhearted, yet unfortunately naive individual. She lived with her younger sister down the road where they ran an animal sanctuary, the two of them orphaned when they were young but maintaining their good hearts regardless.

“Yes! I had left the house a little while ago, but a man knocked on the door. I asked who he was and he told me he was looking for you. I told him very nicely to go away at first because I thought he was a stranger, but when I got a good look at him through the window, I saw he looked just like Aldynn. I asked how he knew you, and he said he was Aldynn’s father.”

Your foot floors the gas before you can stop yourself. You had told her nothing of your past; for all you knew whatever stranger she let in your house could be out for revenge. “Zhloe, I hate to tell you this, but Aldynn’s father,”

“It’s okay, Ms. Honey, I won’t tell anybody! When I asked him questions about you, he answered all of them and that made me sure he wasn’t a stranger. I’ll admit, I had always wondered about Aldynn’s father, but it makes sense he was off in the military like he said. If you guys ever need a date night, just give me a call! He’s so handsome too...you really hit the jackpot!”

“Zhloe, wait--”

“I’m going to get dinner ready for me and Khloe. Have a good night!”

The phone call ends, and you decide not to try and call back to not worry the poor woman. She surely meant well, but you can’t stop your heart from leaping out of your chest as you turn onto the road that has you exit the city and leads to your countryside home.

It’s not possible, you keep telling yourself as you blaze down the street, passing cars like you’re in a street race. Could one of Varis’ old goons have found you, wanting revenge? Would they hold your baby hostage? It’s not possible, it’s not possible--

You’re practically drifting into the driveway of your home, kicking up dirt as you wrench the car to a stop, practically flailing as you kick the car door open. “Aldynn!” You cry. You can see the light on in his room upstairs. Your baby is in danger, he’s in danger--

Shoving the keys into the lock, you fling the door open, running down the entrance hallway and straight into the living room. Your living room is completely empty and you can see nobody in the kitchen or dining area. The house is quiet, not even the sound of your baby crying. Did they already get him? Is he gone--

“I would keep it down,” a voice calls from upstairs, “our son is sleeping.”

It’s not possible.

Halfway near tears, you numbly climb the stairs, afraid of what you might find.

You know that voice.

A single light fills the hallway from Aldynn’s room, and you hear not so much as a whimper from your babe. He knows he is safe, knows he is in no danger.

It’s not possible.

Reaching the doorway, Aldynn’s room is exactly as you left it, and so is your son. Not a hair out of place, his chubby face relaxed and asleep, entirely content in the muscular arms of the man who rocks him gently in his arms. With golden hair like your son’s adorning the man’s shoulders, there is no doubt of who is holding your child.

Blue eyes land upon you, twinkling with mirth. Pouty, pink lips pull into a taunting smile.

“Hello, my love.”

#FFXIV #ff14 #Final Fantasy XIV #zenos #zenos yae galvus #THP

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mrpinchy · 4 years ago

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5.3 MSQ IM VERY UPSETTI SPAGHETTI but in GOOD WAY

FINISHED 5.3 MSQ I went in soon as the servers came up and didn’t stop, went in completely blind from start to finish took about 7hrs? I HAVE A LOT OF FEELINGS

SPOILERS FOR EVERYTHING:

holy shit jesus christ OKOK

so first of all I cried A LOT like, way more than I expected and NOT JUST CUZ IT’S THE LAST PATCH OF AN EXCELLENT EXPANSION but cuz like, damn it hits hard man lol

so Leon is my WoL but he’s never been leveled/geared enough to do endgame UNTIL YESTERDAY when I caught him up on all the patch content (my main is Sig but he’s not my WoL). it was A LOT OF FUN to go through everything with the “right” character sorta speak, just a lot of really cool stuff idk how to explain it lol

HELPING THE LIL KIDS!!!!!! OH MY HEART also I noticed Tiqi-Rio had sunseeker eyes AND MOONKEEPER FANGS nicenicenicenicenicenice GOOD I WANNA SEE MORE OF THAT

so the FIRST Exarch fakeout death with Elidibus and him at the watchtower LIKE???? WHY YOU WANNA GIVE ME A HEART ATTACK SO EARLY omg but honestly seeing him so crystalized and struggling HURT ME A LOT baby boi BABY BOI NOO

going back to Amaurot so Elidibus can force you to kill the Scions soon as you get there WOW WHAT A DICK MOVE LMAO and then all the other characters they brought back like, even in the background it was really cool to see them in Amaurot????? idk I think some people will call it hammy or too referential? but fuck it I loved it LAY IT ON THICK, YOSHIP god it hurt me to kill Aymeric tho

holy goddamn I was so excited when Y’shtola ripped into Elidibus YEEES GET HIM but wow like, Elidibus is essentially a primal then idk AGAIN WE COME BACK TO THE THEORY THAT WoL IS A PRIMAL anyway

HEROE’S GAUNTLET I went in with Trust so I could take my time and it was the right choice, I LOOOOOOOVED seeing the role quest NPCs helping at the end -- I loved seeing all the NPCs helping you but especially them lol ESPECIALLY GIOTT FUCK YEEEEEEAH

god okay the SECOND Exarch fakeout death when Elidibus is like, hey I need your corpse die lol I WAS READY FOR THE PAIN and then jk jk jk OR IS IT

running up the tower with the Exarch, seeing/hearing how painful it was for him to keep up with his failing body, how he had to send you away without him.. OH MAN i cried YOU COULD FEEL HOW MUCH IT HURT HIM he was so close to having an adventure with WoL ;v; also liek... damn that ESPECIALLY hit, the whole “failing body can’t keep up with my dreams” thing HOOOO I KNOW THAT FEEEEEEEEL

went in completely blind with a random group for the Elidibus fight, I went WHM (im bad but semi-geared) and we only wiped twice!!! figured out we had to use tank LB midway and then healer LB towards the end LOTTA AOE HEALING

Emet-Selch’s shade giving us a boost during the fight, BOY MY GROUP WAS VERY UPSETTI in like a good way CUZ IT WAS VERY UPSETTING in a good way lmao emotionally everyone was just POINTING AND YELLING THERE HE IS!!!!

Exarch using the tower as a big auracite IM SO GLAD that was really cool to see, also like........ god idk but I cried A LOT when Elidibus turned into a little amaurotine kid all scared and alone just playing with the soul crystals and talking to himself, AND CRYING and and MY HEART EXPLODED goddamn i cried. he tried so hard for so long that he forgot what he was doing or why he was doing it, why he was suffering so much, and damn if that didnt hit hard. was Zodiark’s heart just a lonely kid all along

saying goodbye to the Exarch like I KNEW WE”D SEE HIM AGAIN but it still was Emotional, I felt so sad for Lyna especially SHE LOST HER GRANDPAAAA

Alisaie crying after Halric spoke ME TOO ALISAIE

holy shit Dulia Chaii’s parting words to Alphinaud WOW I CRIED A LOT and when he got choked up?? I CRY god the Chais love that baby boy so much IM SUFFERING

holy shit Seto............. ohhhhhhhh I cried SO MUCH

Thancred saying goodbye to Ryne and telling her how PROUD he is of her like damn that hit me right in the HEART goddamn

finally i must say

IM SO GLAD GRAHA IS A SCION NOW I KNEW IT WE ALL KNEW IT WOULD HAPPEN BUT IM STILL SO HAPPY AND EXCITED I YELLED SOOOOOO MUCH WHEN WoL STARTED RUNNING TOWARDS THE TOWER LIKE!!!!!! AND THEN WHEN THEY SHOW GRAHA AGAIN OHHH!! BABY BOOOOOOI!!! HERE COMES A SPECIAL BOOOOOOOOI!!!!!!!!!!!!

that whole cutscene with Alisaie at the table WAS VERY WELL ANIMATED the whole thing was noticably better animated than previous cutscenes I LOVED IT!!! IT WAS VERY GOOD!!!!!! also ALISAIE IS VERY GOOD!!!!!!!!!

ALSO I NOTICE that gwaha’s ears wiggle A LOT MORE im so GLAD thank u yoship

OH GOD I FORGOT ABOUT ALL THE GARLEMALD STUFF oh jesus CHRIST

FUCKIN

ASAHI?????????????????? OH GOD OH GOD

no idea who Fandaniel is (henceforth known as Fandango) but I ALREADY LIKE HIM A LOT he’s so animated (also this cutscene was very well animated GOOD JOB FFXIV TEAM YOU’RE DOIN GREAT HONEY) I sort of wondered if maybe part of Emet was like... around...?? cuz he reminded me of Emet with his flair for the dramatic but WOW I WAS NOT EXPECTING ASAHI UNDER THAT HOOD holy shit I yelled

also idk if unpopular opinion but I FUCKING LOVE ZENOS HE’S A SCARY PIECE OF SHIT AND IM TERRIFIED AND EXCITED

ALAS........... the final chapter......... it sounds like the next expansion is planned to be the FINAL EXPANSION and honestly.. Im so sad but also I Respect that decision. I respect that they want to end things in a good place, they dont want to “live long enough to become the villain” etc. and yeah it means FFXIV WILL DIE eventually but yknow, maybe that’s okay. even knowing the game will end i’m still so excited to play it all the way through, whatever it may be. I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO IT with all my heart and happiness

..im still SO EMOTIONAL lmao

#5.3 spoilers #ffxiv shadowbringers #ffxiv #shadowbringers

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karoiseka · 4 years ago

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#15 Ache

((Dialogue in the first part is snagged directly for the most part from the game, but the rest tis mine own. Pretty much just a re-hash of emotions and extra tid-bits of lore of what Karo was doing with all of this. This got a little more away from me that I thought, but I’m happy with it. ^_^ Obviously, MAJOR 5.3 spoilers!!!))

“I concede, I may have over-exerted myself,” G’raha gasped a little from the Tower’s floor where he had fallen after defeating Elidibus. Karo’s heart was racing--not only from the battle she had just finished, the adrenaline singing in her veins, but from the final goodbye of her--well, whatever Elidibus was to her now. Now, the one that held her heart was transforming before her very eyes into a part of the very Tower that was so instrumental to them both.

“Steady now, and listen. I told you before that I had a plan, and that when all was said and done, I would ask a favor of you.” The Bard maneuvered herself beside him, sitting him up and holding his now both crystal hands in her own that desperately were clutching the spirit vessel. “We have averted the Eight Umbral Calamity. Found a way for everyone to return to the Source, and… last but not least, we have secured the future of all the people of Norvrandt. We have won, my love.” He was squeezing her hands gently, eyes shining, even when gasping for breath as she could watch the crystal creeping over his body slowly. He reached up to run his fingers gently down her cheek, cupping her face and leaning against her forehead.

“So I hope you’ll forgive me this moment of selfishness. And… while I wouldn’t want you to feel obliged…” Karo snorted and cut him off with a kiss before letting him continue. He smiled against her lips and continued on, “Promise me you’ll take me on your next adventure. A journey. Together. That’s all I ask.” Karo’s voice caught in her throat as tears pricked the corners of her eyes.

“Raha--” her voice cracked as she took a deep breath. “Of course--you know that’s all I’ve wanted as well,” nuzzling his ears he sighed contentedly as she continued to try and hold back all the emotion she was feeling.

“If I were to tell you that this isn’t the end--that we will meet again--would you believe me?” His voice was soft, but insistent and confident that he spoke true despite what was in front of their eyes.

“I have to--” whispered almost too soft for him to hear, she nevertheless looked him in the eyes and nodded her agreement.

“Thank you.” He nodded once as well and released his hold of his shining star to pull his hood up one last time--though thankfully not hiding his face away from her. She scowled at the look, but stepped back to let him get to his feet, somehow knowing this was something he needed to do for himself. His spirit vessel, the brilliant red portion already glowing clutched in her hand, she watched and listened as he found a spot to stand. He knew this was it as the crystal crept up even further along him--robe and all.

“My love. With you, my mind and memories shall travel to the ends of the world and beyond. But in this place shall my body stand immovable. May it serve as an undying promise, not only to those who looked to me for leadership, but to any soul who has known despair, that hope is everlasting.” G’raha Tia planted his staff firmly, Xande’s throne towering behind him. One last time, Karo threw her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply, cupping the back of his head as they shared what they knew was one last moment here on the First. Stepping back finally she took a deep breath and held out the spirit vessel. It was time. As she looked down it started to glow, burning from the inside with an intense light and Aether she could practically feel. Sapphire eyes raced up to meet his ruby--now glossy as the husk smiled blankly as the crystal finally overtook him.

Her own feet planted barely two fulms from his own, she curled her entire upper body around the warm spirit vessel, holding it to her heart. It pulsed warmly against her as she took gulping breaths, trying to come to terms at least enough to step away. Not much longer, she could hear the frantic footfalls of her found family and shouts of her and G’raha’s names echoing from the doorway to the tower. The scions skidded to a stop behind her as they saw the Crystal Exarch--now the truest description of his name with the Warrior of Light and Darkness still at vigil in front of him. Thancred was the first of the Scions to let go of his shock, and went to Karoiseka, wrapping himself around her from behind. He could finally see the spirit vessel glowing in her grasp from his vantage and a deep sigh of relief escaped his lips.

“We’ve got you kitten--and you’ve got him.” Karo finally spun around and let her tears fall as she let Thancred hold her up as she sobbed into his jacket. Her heart ached, but she had to keep hope--that hope that he gave her that she cradled so carefully.

-------------------------------------------------------K

The bright stars of Amh Araeng beat down on Karo’s head. She had finished visiting with Alisaie and Haldric, and had hurried down to Nabaath Areng before Thancred and Ryne got there. She wanted to allow them their own time, but also had wanted to share the site of her last conversation with Mifillia with G’raha. Scouting from above she didn’t see the pair so she landed her borrowed Amaro in the shade of the flood. Alisaie had a good idea of giving Raha a last tour of the First--maybe take him to a place or two he hadn’t been before. He had always expressed interest in seeing the frozen wall of the flood up close, the sparkling wall looking almost like ice above the desert.

“Haldric is getting better,” Karo narrated to the crystal in her hand as she walked the platform where she had said goodbye. “The empty is not quite as empty, and people are feeling the joy of the night’s sky. Your hope is contagious even out here, m’love.” Kneeling at the center of the circle she said a prayer--for those they had lost and for those they could yet save. A smile danced across her lips as the wind whipped around her in a warm embrace, skittering off across the dunes. Time to take to the sky once more and head to Eulmore where Alphinaud was certain to be getting a teary goodbye.

-------------------------------------------------------K

Having said her own goodbyes to the Chai family and promised to see Alphy back in the Crystarium, she looked out onto the water from the cliff high above the city. It wasn’t far from the place she had found G’raha napping before storming Mt. Gulg and talked about the adventure that she was now starting with him.

“It’s a shame you came here really only to berate Vauthry. The city isn’t too bad now that they’re working on turning things around,” The sky was clear and Karo realized she was scanning the horizon for Ardbert’s home island. She could feel him laugh at her, knowing that it was well out of eye site range, yet tinged with a feeling of affection for thinking of him nonetheless. Turning, pretending to be miffed at her Warrior soul, she continued to chat with Raha. “You talked about riding the Eternal Wind here on this very cliff, and soon we shall fly across them back home. Then the true adventure will start,” her blue-black hair was being whipped by the wind making her crystal hair tassels chime as she clung to that hope as her soul pulsed in an embrace lending her strength to carry on. Beneath the waves she knew she had to dive before going to find Uriangier in the home of the pixies.

-------------------------------------------------------K

Waves crashing high above her head was the only sound in the depths besides her own footsteps echoing in Amaurot’s halls. Occasionally she’d see one of his shades gliding on to one purpose or another, but she let the star-lit trees and arches light a random path as she wove the streets aimlessly.

“You didn’t get to see much of the city, did you?” rhetorical as the question was, she knew that Emet--Hades--had kept his prize locked up away from where she could have stumbled across him before she turned into the Lightwarden he thought she would. It had been a near thing looking back, nearer than she liked admitting. Phantom hand on her shoulder, she could feel Ardbert’s solidarity with her. I told you I cast my lot with yours. We’re a team, hero- the whispered voice in her soul made her smile as she held Raha’s vessel to her heart once more. “We saved you though, Raha, and you saved me in return. I’ll paint a picture as vivid as can be when I spin this song for you, the one I have yet to write to remember than they once lived. We all have to remember....” and hope continued to blossom in her heart.

-------------------------------------------------------K

Flowers waltzed around the wide meadows of Il Mheg and Karo walked up the pathway to the castle. She had the sense to know whatever it was her Elezan friend had to say, that she probably wasn’t going to be in the mood for sight-seeing after. Instead she decided to visit her Branch and let her say goodbye to G’raha as well. The gigantic glowing wings of the castle sparkled in the sun and the stained glass windows glowed from within even in the middle of the day. The city below was so clear under the water it was hard to remember that it wasn’t occupied by more than fish and Fuath.

“Thank you for introducing me to Fe Ul,” a smile broke out thinking of how innocent that first meeting was in the markets of the Crystarium. “As much as I kept forgetting to call on them, they always had a knack of getting me out of some of the worst trouble here,” Karo’s thoughts went back to the watchtower and the suggestion to learn more of the Crystal Exarch from the people he led. “Gonna have to try and keep this quick before Uri wonders where we are.” With a theatrical spin and hope in her voice she shouted out to her Branch calling on them once more.

-------------------------------------------------------K

She had been right to do their goodbyes in Il Mheg before talking to Uriangier and Seto. In a daze of overwhelmed emotions she had wandered into Slitherbough, and like the magic she wielded, Y’shtola renewed her energy with her antics with Runar.. Wishing the Hrothgar good luck, Karo wandered to the swamps edge before diving in again. The ruins at the bottom of the lake were a good distraction for her historian, and she slowly pointed them out and their meanings one by one of the old Ronkan Empire. Excitement rejuvenated, she then took him to the Raval and took in the murals of Amaurot, Hydaelyn and Zodiark once more.

“Wish you could have heard all our shock when he dropped that piece of information on us,” her sarcastic laugh echoed through the caverns. “I think you saw enough of it when we relayed it back to you though, we couldn’t get back to the Tower fast enough.” With one last contemplative look at the murals, she gave a nod, hope filling her voice again.

“Alright, enough of that, back to Ahm Araeng, we need to find Thancred and Ryne. It’s time to go home.”

-------------------------------------------------------K

The Crystarium markets were abuzz as Karo picked up the trinket she had ordered from the jeweler. She could tell the people of the city knew something was going on with all the Scions back in town, and word about what had happened with their Exarch. There was just enough time for her to head back to her Pendants room and imbue it with the spell she had planned. The spell required her to sing, and so she pulled out her harp and sat down at the edge of the window and after activating the first part of the spell with a tendril of aether, started to sing. The song was one of hope, of the man from another world who had turned this new one into his home, caring for its people and leading them towards a better tomorrow. Singing with all her heart and soul the sun slowly drew across the sky as she continued with every song of hope and inspiration she could remember. Out of repertoire finally, she closed the second part of the spell and picked up the glowing pendant shaped like her harp. She packed up her bags, shouldering them and headed back to the Tower. Sneaking around the gathering, she headed up the stairs to the platform where she left her voice enveloping the crystalline form of the one who held her heart. Hope surrounded them both as the ache in her heart finally melted away, and she headed down to bring them all home at last.

#ffxiv #FFXIVWrite2020 #karoiseka #G'raha Tia #wol x g'raha tia #wol x exarch #5.3 spoilers #hoooooooooly #I can't believe I wrote this much for a single prompt #at least I finished tonight!#and got my screenshots #screenshots #revamp with emooooooootions #world tour with the crystal boi #insight from the karo #I like the thought of her leaving a part of herself with him there #long post!

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anchanted-one · 4 years ago

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FFXIV Write. Prompt 22. Argy Bargy

"In short, Zenos chased Lahabrea out of his real body and reclaimed it. The first thing he did upon achieving this is the murder of his own Father, Emperor Varis. There is now no one in the upper echelons of Garlemald who is even interested in the war. In short, it seems like the time has never been more perfect to break Garlean might for good."

"Which means that some within their ranks would feel pressed into upping the production of Black Rose!" Alphinaud whispered. His face looked like spoiled milk. "The Eighth Umbral Calamity... It is approaching a critical juncture."

"According to Estinien, Zenos killed Varis in retaliation for the Black Rose," Ryosen addressed his concern. "He does not want such cowardly actions interfering with his 'hunt'. He may not be trying to take over, but he will crush any who spoil his sport. In addition, he and Gaius Baelsar continue to destroy every lab and cache of the poison that comes to their attention."

"It is not like Elidibus to lose control," Emet Selch mused. "Perhaps my time is better spent correcting the consequences of his missteps."

"Perhaps he's losing his touch?" Ryosen offered. "Growing senile in his old age?"

That got under the normally level-headed Ascian's skin. Emet Selch's eyes narrowed with dislike and he jabbed a finger at Ryosen like as though it was a gun. "Brutes should stay silent unless it is their intent to broadcast their stupidity. Ascians do not age. We are immortal. Do you not even know what that means?" "You Ascians have had your fun for millennia," Ryosen said, voice oozing with contempt. "Treating us like worthless dogs with no right to live, culling us like pests and telling us that we deserve it. But now, four of your Red Masks have died within years of each other, including Lahabrea—one of the unbroken, or whatever it is you call yourselves—and Elidibus has had his rump handed to him by two of us 'lesser mortals' in a matter of days. Either you are growing weak, or we are worth more than you in your arrogance believe—in which case the entire reasoning for your Rejoinings is a lie. Which one is it, Emet Selch? Are you decaying, or are you wrong?"

"And you think it would all have been different without us?" the Ascian sneered. "Even without us to fan the flames, you start wars and commit atrocities too numerous for even one of my lifetimes can list."

"Indeed, such horrors! The Rejoinings, where you slaughter billions with merely a shadow of a hope that all that blood will please your god. Much less barbaric." Ryosen was contempt personified.

"I do not see you as truly alive," Emet Selch repeated his words from before. "Ergo I do not see killing you as murder."

"What remarkable logic," the Samurai laughed in his face. "I bet you can extend that definition to anyone and everyone when it suits you. How many cages full of people will you be butchering just because they think and live differently? Did you not do that already unleash that flawless reasoning to massacre your own kind, the ones who summoned Hydaelyn to counteract Zodiark?"

"That..." Emet Selch faltered. "That was different."

"I'm sure."

"Supposition is all you have to go by. You weren't there, yet it is my history. I have lived it."

"And you are caged in it. Look at you! Millennia gone, and it still haunts you, dictates your every last action. And your actions? You dare try to push the blame on us? Yes, we are flawed, yes we are bloodthirsty, but it is not our invention. All the tools of war—Magitek, the doomsday technology of Allag, even the blasted Primals... they all find their roots in you. If our conflicts are horrifically bloody, it is because of your meddling. Without you, the dust you have kicked up might eventually settle down one day. And if that proves impossible for us, it's because you opened Pandora's Box."

"Fine, fine." Emet Selch seemed to have grown bored by all of this, but Ryne could not help but feel like he was troubled. "You seem determined to blame us for all of your problems. By all means continue to do so if it comforts you. No matter what you do, your days are numbered."

With that, he finished his drink and left the room, waving nonchalantly as he did. "Well done!" Y'shtola clapped. "With luck he'll try something stupid in the Source and Zenos will slow him for us."

"I don't think he will be leaving us," Urianger said. "He sees us as the biggest threat to the Ascians, we who have foiled their plans at so many turns." "More fool he is, then!" Ryosen sat, massaging a flare up near his belly. Ryne looked at him concernedly. He had told them that Bishamonten's curse was broken, and the curse pains leaving him, but that wasn't what she saw. "When do you plan to move against Eulmore? The sooner we cast down this Don Vauthry the less time he will have to react to it."

"Are you... are you really okay to fight?" Ryne piped up. "Your curse has weakened but it has not entirely broken. Not yet."

He looked at her, his face softening. "And you must be Ryne? E'nisse has told me much about you." The twinkle in his eye as he beheld her brought a fierce joy fought with her indignation that he had brushed off her objection, but then he spoke again. "As Ryne says, I am better but not cured. If I may make a request, I would like to rest a few days. See if the pain leaves, if my curse really is gone or not."

"And if it doesn't?" Alphinaud asked.

"If it's not going to get better, then there's no sense in waiting anyway, and I will fight the battle that fate has called upon me to as I am, hoping that it will be enough. I guarantee that the curse stays dormant while I hold even a wooden sword. I will do my duty."

"That's what I am afraid of," Ryne said, but softly. She was keenly aware that Ryosen's summoning had been largely at her insistence. But now that it was done, she could see she had greatly underestimated the curse, if a weakened version was still as bad as what her Senses told her.

Please don't die, Father. Please.

#ffxiv #ffxivwrite #ffxivwrite2020 #ffxiv writing challenge

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efrmellifer · 4 years ago

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Bound

Etien had felt like a creature outside herself all night. It wasn’t a bad thing, nor a good thing. Just… something.

There was something amusing about how Estinien and Aymeric talked when she wasn’t around, what she got to hear of their conversations afterward (it was usually quite a bit, when they were all so close, but still).

And it was even more amusing when those little chats between them seemed to pique Estinien’s curiosity about things Aymeric mentioned.

And that was how Etien and Estinien ended up like this, her legs draped over his lap as she tried to coax information out of him.

“I can’t sate your curiosity if you’re reluctant to ask questions,” she said with a click of her tongue. “What did Aymeric tell you, and what did it make you want to know?”

“He said it was calming. I thought that beggared belief—who gets calm from being bound?”

Etien’s eyebrows lifted. “Aymeric, clearly. But what he’s told me is that it’s more about the trust. The giving up responsibility. I guess some people would call it control,” she said, scratching at her cheek, “but he’s still in control. I don’t tie him tight.” Now she giggled, shifting onto her hip slightly. “But he can sit back, and let me handle everything. A fitting reward, for a man who’s always responsible for handling everything in multiple arenas.”

“And he calms because of that?” Estinien asked, almost sounded like he still didn’t believe it.

“To my knowledge,” Etien replied with a shrug. “I personally think if I could get him to lie still long enough without tying him down, we would get the same results. But he needs an excuse.”

Estinien snorted. “Good old Aymeric.”

She agreed, murmuring the same just above a whisper.

Then she turned to Estinien again. “So do you want to try it? No is a perfectly sufficient answer.”

“Why not?” He mused.

She laughed a little as she pulled the slack of the rope a little tighter. “You keep squirming,” she noted, looking up at Estinien only briefly. “I don’t want to cut off your circulation. Please, stay still.”

It was a mix of ribbon and rope adorning him, so that Estinien looked more like an oversized parcel than a man undergoing an experiment regarding his pleasure.

But he liked the look on Etien’s face as she studied him.

“Thoughts?” he asked as she tipped her head this way and that.

“I was looking at the scars,” she admitted. “You have so many more than I do.”

“I have a few years on you,” he said, attempting to shrug, but finally appropriately incapacitated. “And from what I’ve always heard, you don’t scar because the healers are so busy bringing you back from the Fury’s grasp that they patch you up completely as a side effect.”

“Maybe so,” Etien mused, letting her fingers trail across her stomach, and then over a scar on Estinien’s shoulder.

“You have a scar on your nose,” he noted.

“Oh, that,” she sighed. “I thought it would have gone away by now.”

“A lot of them are supposed to fade, and then don’t,” Estinien commented.

“Are we talking about physical wounds now or emotional ones?” Etien asked him, coming to her knees in front of him, close enough that her words made his hair flutter.

“At end of the day, where does the difference lie?”

Etien had worried the whole time that the pressure and stillness of being bound would have gotten to Estinien, broken him down or riled him up until physical sensations, least of all pleasure, were the last thing on his mind.

But she had been wrong, luckily.

After, however, when she was unwrapping the ribbon and kissing over the grooves left by the rope—even when she’d tried to leave plenty of room, slipping her fingers next to his skin beforehand and all—that was when the breaking point was hit.

“You did so well, Estinien,” she’d cooed, kissing his shoulder as the rope left his bicep, stroking her fingers over his forearm as the ribbon fell away, “thank you for not squirming and for being patient.”

She’d taken the risk of kissing him on the lips after that, and she felt the emotion roll through him before she could hear it or see it.

He near to crumpled, almost sobbing as she pulled back.

“Estinien?” Etien asked, barely hitting the consonants, soft as down as she called to him.

“I am all right,” he replied.

“You don’t have to be,” she soothed, pulling him closer and stroking his hair. “If you aren’t sure that everything is completely well, you need not say so.”

She made more comforting noises—a shush that was almost a whistle for how airy and tonal it was, a humming coo that transformed into soothing words.

Sometimes, people commented—in jest or completely seriously—that Etien had magic in her voice, when she sang on the battlefield. But now, Estinien was inclined to believe it.

They lay there for a long time, her fingers trailing through his hair, her heart beating in his ear. He must have fallen asleep, because he didn’t know how long it was before Aymeric came in and Etien stirred as she woke, which made Estinien hazily aware of the world around him again.

He’d seen Aymeric bend, kissing Etien, then been slightly surprised by also receiving a brief kiss.

Aymeric slipped into bed, and the three of them went to sleep.

...for a time.

All three of them were plagued with nightmares in one form or another—possession, torture passing for interrogation, and just about everything that had happened to Etien since she left home, especially in the last year—did that, taking their toll on the mind, the pain nestling into a corner and every so often sticking a paw out to swipe at anything that passed by.

Estinien knew they happened, even to Etien. But he’d never seen it.

Not until he was thrown from her chest, which heaved with her every breath now as she tried to calm down.

“What was that?” he asked when he finally got his bearings.

“I thought I had left thoughts of the First behind,” she intoned, halfway between a groan and a wail, hands covering her eyes.

If the slight dipping and rising of her shoulders was any indication, she was crying now, now that the adrenaline was beginning to filter out.

She was home, in bed. But even as whatever pain or fear was starting to ebb away, it had still existed.

The sounds of her sniffling woke Aymeric, who immediately slipped a hand into hers, gently tugging it away from her eyes. “Etien, dearest,” he sighed into the dark. “Another nightmare?”

She nodded, a soft “mm-hmm” her reply.

Silently, Estinien watched the two of them start going through the routine. He wanted to reach out, to help, but didn’t know where or how to insert himself without getting underfoot. So he watched.

Aymeric sat up, gathering Etien into his arms. It was made abundantly clear how small she was when she was enveloped like this, tail limp and ears flat, curled up knees to chest in his lap.

It only made her victories more impressive. And her fears more understandable.

“Do you… would it help to talk about it?” Estinien asked. “Or should I leave for that?”

“What’s one more intimacy between us?” she asked, smiling, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Stay. Please.”

He scooted a little closer to the pair, watching Aymeric start to slightly rock, Etien’s eyelids sinking lower from the motion.

“Tell us, if you can,” Aymeric requested, voice low, smooth and comforting.

Etien nodded, swallowing. “I was dreaming about when Elidibus was testing me.”

“Testing you?”

“Yes. He said he wanted to assess my capabilities, and—well, he did just that. He certainly pushed me to the very limit of what I could handle.”

“In the dream?” Estinien asked.

“No,” this came out of her just a little raspy. “On the First. The dream was just the feelings washing over me again, little slices of the memories.” She sighed. “I might as well tell you about what actually happened, considering that was what had me shaken enough to dream myself into this state. The way it started was I… I saw Mother Miounne. That is, one of the Amaurotines was made to look like her. It took me by surprise to see, when hers was really the first friendly face I saw in Gridania. The first to meet me as Etien Mellifer, rather than… the identity I cast off, I suppose.”

The two men were silent, letting Etien work through the words she wanted at her own pace. Already, her eyes were welling, her pupils wide as if in fear, ringed in a teary, glassy green.

“And it grew worse from there. Seeing people who have been lost to us was one thing, as was fighting old foes. When it was the Scions, I could ignore it. But that ability was quickly spent. Especially when, as if he had reached in and pulled the fear directly out of the darkest part of my heart, you two were suddenly on the other side of my bow.”

Aymeric gasped.

“I couldn’t bear it, fighting you,” she told him, tears overflowing the banks of her eyelids, fresh streams hot on the tail of the first rivulets. “I remember now, the pain in my chest as I sobbed, nocking another arrow. It didn’t matter that they were cubii, I looked and it was you and I almost couldn’t do it. But what was I going to do, fail? Die?”

“Absolutely not,” Aymeric muttered, pulling her close again.

“And then there was the issue of reliving the end of the war,” Etien said with a heavy sigh.

“Well you cannot be afraid of Nidhogg,” Estinien commented, scooting closer again.

“I’m not afraid of Nidhogg,”she replied, gaze lifting to meet his.

“Oh. Aye, I see.”

“For whatever it’s worth, the cubii put up a valiant fight. I had no tears left to cry, heaving by the time I was finished with the test.”

Aymeric sucked his lower lip into his mouth, then let it go, the way he’d watched Etien do many a time. Estinien just looked between the two of them.

Aymeric positioned her so she was straddling his lap, laying her head against his chest, rubbing near the tip of her ear as he hummed softly. “Fret not, my dearest. Estinien and I yet live, thrilled to have you here with us, and prouder of you than ever, which is saying something. That must have taken an inhuman amount of courage.”

She sniffled, tears falling faster and still unbidden, as she pressed her face just below Aymeric’s shoulder.

“Shh, I have you, Etien. Nothing can hurt you, not while I’m here. And the same goes for Estinien. Isn’t that right?” he asked, with a flick of his eyes and a subtle tilt of his head, beckoning Estinien over wordlessly.

“It is,” he agreed, settling into a more comfortable seated position next to Aymeric and laying a hand on Etien’s back.

“Listen to my heartbeat, to my breathing,” Aymeric soothed a little more. She repositioned herself, sighing again. “Not to sound too much my father, but you have suffered too many indignities at the hands of Ascian influence,” he murmured. “But no more. Not now.”

He lay down, bringing her down with him, and beckoned for Estinien to join him with a quick gesture.

“Does Etien want--?”

“You could ask her,” Aymeric replied.

“May I join you?” Estinien asked.

Aymeric swept back Etien’s hair, searching her eyes, pupils wide and irises starkly green as a side effect of being bloodshot, for an answer.

She nodded, then turned to Estinien. “Please.”

Nodding, willing to do as she asked, he lay down beside the pair, trying to entangle himself with both of them, legs crossing with Aymeric’s, an arm thrown over Etien’s back.

He couldn’t think of anything to say. There was nothing to say, no way to make such a traumatic event fade from her mind. He sighed a little at the knowledge that even with all she had told him and Aymeric, it couldn’t have come close to living it.

And as she was the one with the Echo, they would never see what she had seen.

Maybe it was better that way.

All they could do was comfort one other after the dreams and pray—alongside the actions they took—that nothing like this, any of it, ever happened again.

And for now, sleep, secure in this loose embrace for three.

#fic #Estinyan #Wyrmelliferel #5.3 spoilers #kiiind of?#with a dash of spice and a dash of angst

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autumnslance · 5 years ago

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Lmao I got three I'm particularly curious about for you on the character meme. Thancred, Lahabrea, Igeyorhm. XD Feel free to do as many or as few as you'd like of course!

You asked for it. We’ll start with That Damned Rogue. The Ascians will be below.

This of course got long, so behind a cut it goes:

Thancred

First impression: I started in Gridania and took like 2 years to finish ARR 2.0, was already spoiled on the possession angle (I spoiled myself, no big), and had just @erickgage‘s affectionate joking summary of Thancred being the guy who shows up 5 minutes late with Starbucks to all the early battles. So I didn’t really get to meet the guy ‘til the Waking Sands.

And honestly, he was stereotypical generic bland anime prettyboy competent guy. His 1.0/ARR model is…just sorta there. He was a flirt, also generic as heck. Really didn’t register too much, until I finished 2.0 finally and then went hard on the MSQ through the patches and into HW and StB 4.0, when I finally caught up to content.

Impression now: Godsdammit.

My first replay through the game was on PunchyCat, starting in Ul’dah, which meant I got to meet Thancred much earlier. I was immediately amused by his nickname for Nanamo, and Papashan’s assessment of the witty Archon. I was more into the lore, getting the first lorebook and reading the short stories on the main site, and playing through all at once instead of piecemeal over months/years made things make more sense. Thancred hits a lot of tropes I commonly like in a lot of characters, so he jumped up to being a favorite.

Gunbreaker suits him as a tank job (thank goodness he can stop trying to tank warmachina as a rogue, ffs Thancred), and tanking in general suits him when it comes to fighting for those he cares about.

I’m interested in the ShB story mentioning why he wears white in all his gear iterations; I’d previously made a post about his color choices and that aspect of character design, but having a lore explanation for his affinity for that color was interesting. I didn’t think his HW model suited him, honestly; way too rough mountain man hobo. His model in ShB is closer to his ARR model, but different enough, and imbued now with actual character, that he’s a bit more visually interesting and while still pretty typical handsome anime protagonist in appearance; his true personality just comes through a lot more.

I’m still forever mad about the unintentional character ‘ship with Aeryn, tho. It took a 3rd playthrough for it to happen.

For myself, mind, when I got into playing and learned his canonical age, it was at the time the same difference between myself and my younger brother. My assessment of the Scion “family” with Thancred being the middle child (esp his behavior pre-HW) maybe helps that. I’m getting to a point, really, where I look at the characters under 35 and think “OMG disaster children, all of you.”

Favorite moment: Oh goodness. There’s some good ones.

‘How was I supposed to know all my girlfriends would track me down and show up at HQ all at the same time: a master class in how to not to deal with multiple paramours by Archon T. Waters.’

His dramatic reappearance and duel with Ardbert in HW 3.1.

Taking out his frustrations by soloing the Coerthas cyclops boss so we can get on with the Tournament and fight Raubahn. (Side Bonus: pre-tournament when he jokes about fighting for the other team to even up the odds, and then: “It looks to be a veritable who’s who of the Eorzean Alliance. The only question is: who came to watch and who came to fight? Hmm…Nanamo. Definitely Nanamo.”)

Making sure Urianger knew he was still part of the team post-Soul Surrender climax.

“All right, which one of you triggered the obvious trap?” Also learning he can hold his breath for 10 freaking minutes–but still gets to be jealous of the WoL, Lyse, and Alisaie for their kojin blessing.

That dramatic teamwork with Urianger to knock Ran’jit down the pit in Rak’tika.

That frickin’ Trolley duty and it’s aftermath with the completed checklist of anime death markers and then just sitting there battered and bleeding and smiling and then giving Ryne a name and a headpat and “You’re family.” Bastard.

Idea for a story: Have you seen my Ao3 account? *grumbles*

Unpopular opinion: While he likely used drinking as a bad coping mechanism at times in ARR’s patches, I doubt he ever really went to blackout, as losing control to that extent, after having been controlled and probably losing a lot of time while possessed, would be awful. We see him drink a few times, but I don’t think he is/was an alcoholic.

I also agree with @ahlis-xiv that his flirtatious persona was mostly adopted. While he probably does have a healthy libido and enjoys time with paramours (that Urianger keeps a handy list of), there’s a lot that’s likely exaggerated, allowed to be assumed, and otherwise used as a cover, given his specializations. It’s also noteworthy how he’s mostly acting the same even after being lost in the wilderness, right up until our foray into the Antitower. The wit/humor gets toned down a lot, but the flirting is cut out entirely after that. He still charms some ladies in the First, based on incidental dialogue, but that seems a general reaction to him being a handsome hero type rather than any intentional flirtatious act on his part.

Favorite relationship: Thancred and little sister types. I do wish we’d seen more of his relationship with Minfilia outside of informed moments and the short stories. I feel like he has a semi-older-brother relationship with Lyse, too, given their antics in the 2.0 patches (particularly the “Hoary’s fighting the WoL, come watch!” and Thancred not even considering how one of his girlfriends would see him sending Lyse to retrieve an item until after and going “oh yeah, whoops”). And now there’s Ryne, and she is totally running things if you watch their background conversations/body language. But that’s kind of where Thancred likes it; find a girl who needs a protective older brother and do what she asks and whatever she needs.

I do have a special place in my heart for the expanded broship with Urianger that Shadowbringers gave us, though. I’ve already spoken on that one.

Favorite headcanon: Everything people assume about how he spoils the nutkin. And really, focusing on taking care of and doting on a pet would be good therapy. Goodness knows he needs it.

Also I assume he and Hilda hooked up at least once during the HW patches. Part of that expectation and cover, sure, to immediately flirt with the pretty, tough, half-elezen guard captain. But also, he spent however long mostly alone, and then only with the Vath and a nutkin for company; the guy was probably touch-starved and lonely and just needing a connection to another person he could relate to (that wasn’t a bug).

Otherwise, again, have you seen my Ao3? Ugh. Damned snarky smart rogues…

————

Lahabrea

First impression: Laughing Organization XIII-wannabe is obvious villain. Wonder what their deal is.

Impression now: So much lost/wasted potential thanks to being stuck as the ARR villain when it was so hastily rewritten and acted, and so little was decided on the Ascians and their motivations yet. A lot of what we learn now retroactively makes him more interesting. The fact he was a workaholic who looked at the workaholic Scion and went “ah yes; that one will do, perfect” makes me laugh.

Favorite moment: I like his interactions with Elidibus. And I am actually fairly fond of his theatrical reveal in Praetorium about the Ultima Weapon, the Heart of Sabik, and casting Ultima.

Idea for a story: Maybe stuff while he’s possessing Thancred. Maybe stuff between then and the Reactor. I dunno; I’ve been enjoying a lot of others’ stories about our first Ascian antagonist.

Unpopular opinion: Dunno if this is unpopular, but some of the retroactive information is to excuse why he seemed so much less powerful than other, later Ascians, but I do think the Speaker could be quite devious and powerful, if he had better writing around him. He suffers for being from ARR.

Favorite relationship: I am not ashamed to admit I am a Lahabrea/Igeyorhm shipper and Hades Ex seems to agree with me so there.

Favorite headcanon: The Speaker likely also had a good singing voice. Another thing good about possessing a man whose primary cover was a bard–excuses to indulge that.

————

Igeyorhm

First impression: Wannabe-Organization XIII also hires women, cool. Wonder if she’ll get to do anything?

Impression now: I’m sad so much got cut from HW; as great as it was, a lot got left on the editing room floor and it shows in spots–particularly where the Ascians connect with the plot. We learn much about her retroactively as well, including how she worked for/with Lahabrea thanks to being the one to wreck the Thirteenth, and change Ascian policy on how to bring about Rejoinings. I still wanna know more about her.

Favorite moment: You beat the whale, good job–thanks, that’s my key now. It’s such a perfect dick move. Excellent timing and taunting.

Idea for a story: Maybe some of her inner thoughts working for/with Lahabrea. She was a raised up shard, so does that mean they found the scattered pieces of her original soul and force-merged them? I doubt it, since Emet-Selch mentions raising up those who are a piece of the previous office holder, but I wonder if it came with imbuing the new title-holder with some of those memories and knowledge. Perhaps she wonders if some of her interactions/feelings/whatever with Lahabrea are her own, or her tapping into her previous life’s memories. Something to think about, anyway.

Unpopular opinion: I dunno, she shoulda gotten to stick around longer? Or been allowed to do a lot more? Should have been much more of a presence in HW, but I don’t think that’s unpopular so much as unconsidered.

Favorite relationship: Lahabrea is really the only one she gets significant interactions with. Though I wonder about her interactions with the other few women in the Ascians.

Favorite headcanon: See above with the story ideas, really; she didn’t get a lot of time onscreen so there’s a lot of room to make things up, and retroactive info from ShB to make her more interesting, or at least her situation as an upraised Ascian.

#Final Fantasy XIV #Prompts #Thancred Waters #Lahabrea #Igeyorhm #Ascians #illegiblewords

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illegiblewords · 5 years ago

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Illegible FFXIV Story Status - UPDATED

I actually have a few stories finished, going, or in the wings at the moment for FFXIV! And people seem to like them which is very exciting and cool since it’s been a while since I was in an active fandom like this!

Normally I don’t do this kind of post but frankly I know what it’s like as a reader to be in that fidgety “WHEN ARE YOU DOING X” state haha, and I want to be considerate of that.

So I’m going to actually make a progress list this time. Also just a collection of stuff in case people are curious.

COMPLETE

From Umbra: This is the backstory for my main Warrior of Light, Cenric Asher. I essentially did a deep dive into lore for Thanalan, Ul’dah, and Nald’Thal because I love all of them to pieces and wanted to combine them to create a character who truly felt shaped by the environment. Cenric is probably delusional and thinks he’s the son of a god but most likely just has some Duskwight lineage and really bad luck.

Posturing: First story in a series of Emet-Selch/Female!Warrior of Light stories called Brief Our Moments, I literally wrote this as a personal challenge to see if I could do something romantic with an ambiguous WoL. It’s fluffy and has some humor. Warrior of Light is unnamed and only confirmed elezen so technically people can imagine their own Warrior if they feel like it. If you stop at this point in the series, The Dying Gasp has a kind of sweet undertone because the Warrior and Emet-Selch both get shown as sharing small kindnesses when they can get away with it.

Stillborn: Second story in a series of Emet-Selch/Female!Warrior of Light stories called Brief Our Moments, this is a continuation of my personal shipping challenge where I more or less went “okay but what would it take to get a kiss scene while being canon-compliant?” and discovered that the answer was angst. Can technically be read without Posturing but I wrote it with that story in-mind. Same deal on ambiguous Warrior of Light. If you stop at this point in the series The Dying Gasp is still bittersweet as per canon.

The Immortal Wound: Third story in a series of Emet-Selch/Female!Warrior of Light stories called Brief Our Moments, this the third part of my personal shipping challenge where I was all “m’kay so I know the price of a kiss what would it take to get a sex scene” and the answer was “blood sacrifice”. Very very angsty but also very very romance-y. Same deal as the previous two fics, you can technically read it all alone but I wrote it as a continuation. You can pretty much bypass The Dying Gasp with this one.

Stalemate: ANOTHER PERSONAL CHALLENGE SHIPFIC! I am a simple and easily distracted writer who occasionally needs to pause in outlining to tell more stories. This came into being for two reasons. 1) I saw someone say they wanted Warrior/Lahabrea shipfic and that’s something I’m perfectly happy to deliver 2) I saw another person lament the lack of M/M shipfics involving the Warrior of Light. I basically treat all the Ascians as bisexual anyway, so decided for Lahabrea I’d go with M/M. This is not a direct sequel to Eclipse but it is very much a spiritual successor in the sense that Eclipse can lend some context to the state Lahabrea is in here. Premise is that it’s not long after Haurchefant’s death and the Warrior of Light is both grieving and furious. Lahabrea, having not faced him since the Praetorium, takes advantage of this and antagonizes Hydaelyn’s chosen. Angst/Romance here, Warrior is unnamed but a midlander Dark Knight.

Appetite: I made a Vauthry fic for the 30 day prompt challenge. This was for “voracious” and it has cannibalism! Straight up horror story, I went stylistically trippy and played off some fun theories I saw with certain family dynamics.

Snuff: Another 30 day prompt challenge story, this one is basically a humor study on Lahabrea while he was infiltrating the Scions in Thancred’s body. He needs to go to bed. Tataru tries to tell him this and he ignores her. No one ignores Tataru and gets away with it.

Parched: And another 30 day prompt challenge fic, focusing on the Unsundered but mainly Elidibus. Humor, friendship, and bittersweetness here, basically none of them are functional people but the way Elidibus is non-functional is more subtle than the other two. Emet-Selch and Lahabrea conspire to get him smashed as a way to help with this. Pianos are involved.

Eclipse: Technically was also a 30 day prompt challenge fic. This one is from Nabriales’ point of view for the most part and explores his resentment and jealousy of the Unsundered as well as his specific animosity toward Lahabrea. It does not end well for Lahabrea. Angst and gen.

IN PROGRESS

Memento Mori: This is not online but I mentioned that I would be doing a sequel to The Immortal Wound and this is it! It is going to be very very big and AU and frankly the way I’m setting it up theoretically will allow me to adapt and keep weaving elements in as patch cycles progress. I have a lot of it mapped out already and did start the first chapter but I want to adjust certain bits in light of patch 5.1. I have some idea how I want it to end, but how will I get there? No idea. At this point I am caving and will be explicitly using my Warrior of Light Nivienne Leclair because 1) it is really difficult to keep he said/she said sounding clear and interesting even in shorter stories, let alone the monster this is bound to be 2) I have some fun references I want to make to the stories of Merlin and Nimue 3) at a certain point in a relationship you need to share backstories in explicit detail lol. So the last part (I think) for Brief Our Moments touches on the value of life as something fleeting and fragile.

Somnus: Elidibus-centric, this is essentially me slamming my hands on the table in a figurative sense and going “LET ME TELL YOU MY FEELINGS ABOUT DAD!ELIDIBUS.” It examines Elidibus’ dynamic with Unukalhai as well as the other two Unsundered, does a lot of backstory speculation, and explores difficulties all three of the Unsundered have with sleeping after the Terminus event. Technically Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, and kind of Family I guess? Worth noting that I’ve edited the bit that’s up since first posting in accordance with further information on canon. It’s probably AU anyway but oh well. I know more or less all the steps in this story, just have a bit of adjusting to account for my newer character interpretations. Plan to alternate it with Memento Mori.

Untitled Fem!WoL/Emet-Selch Shipfic Oneshot #1: Currently in cooldown mode from a medium-sized story, I put out requests for shipfic clichés as a fun scenario and got a request for Fem!WoL/Emet-Selch courtesy of @nipuni! I don’t know that I can do all of them given I wanna pop back to Memento Mori but two I think I can pull off haha.

Untitled Fem!WoL/Emet-Selch Shipfic Oneshot #2: Same deal as above lol, idk that I can do all of the prompts but two is pretty fair I think so gonna hit two!

Untitled Male!WoL/Lahabrea Shipfic Oneshot Sequel: This is an uncertain timing thing for me, basically I am a sucker for more optimistic endings when I can take them. If I can pull off a moderately small and optional goodish-end with the Dark Knight WoL from Stalemate, I don’t mind at all. And I do know how I’d do it. In case you haven’t noticed my impulse control is terrible and I have too many ideas for things.

Untitled Lahabrea/Emet-Selch Oneshot: Lmao this is literally “challenge accepted” for @strangefellows on an unambiguous, non-love triangle shipfic. Again, my impulse control is terrible. But I can totally do a oneshot for them.

Dead Language: Emet-Selch focused but follows the three Unsundered in the immediate aftermath of Terminus. I started this pretty early after Shadowbringers came out. At the time I knew where it was going, now I don’t and I might want to make a bunch of edits or even redo it depending. I still like bits of it, like the idea of Lahabrea obsessively reviewing his notes before summoning Zodiark so he doesn’t have to think about what’s going on around him.

With Good Intentions: A friendship fic, I decided to look at how Cenric specifically would relate to Emet-Selch because it stood out in an interesting way to me. It mostly has a bit of banter but I do have a planned direction and ending in mind that plays off the idea of conditional trust. Continues an idea I have with Cenric that he gets closest to people who treat him like he’s just a person, versus Warrior of Light.

Basically a good chunk of what I do is me going challenge accepted though lol. I honestly really love experimenting, and the whole “take X prompt and see what you can pull off” premise too. Right now I think I need to focus on what’s on my plate, but in-general I’m pretty happy to do requests!

#final fantasy xiv #final fantasy 14 #Shadowbringers #ffxiv #ff14 #also this is part of why i am so slow with reading lol #i am working and responsibilities and vidja games and writing a bunch #and i have the attention span of a goldfish

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vyrerus · 5 years ago

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5.2 Story Impressions

Spoilers ahead for 5.2 MSQ and Ruby Weapon sidequest.

Well, a new ultima weapon huh? How’d they pull that one with the heart thingie from the first one? I guess maybe with Proto-Ultima parts and such from Azys Lla? Like that capital ship is still there stranded, but I’m sure they sent some dropships back to the homeland, maybe?

Ah yes, I’m the only one who can stop it, despite knowing quite intimately that Estinien was capable of destroying its prototype single handedly. I bet if they’d get him to team up with Gaius and Raubahn, and idk, fucking pull Merlwyb and Mistbeard out of retirement... bring Kann-e-padjali lady and her brethren as healers. Yeah, you can get it down. It’s not like it can temper people. You don’t even gotta wrangle the new primal task force, hot highlander knight and Fordola or anything. Jeez!

Ok fine, I’ll fight the FF7 reference... AFTER I GO CHECK ON THE MSQ!

Ok, they’ve got the right rock now, they’re certain. The shape kinda reminds me of a Soulstone from Diablo 2. It’d be much more realistic to assume video games from the past influence video games of the future, but I like to think this is another shared cross-culture humanity tale, like The Flood. Soul stones man.

Hmm, Alisae is all, “I hope you don’t have to make a choice between fighting the ultimate weapon and helping out here.” Hmm, either it’s a one off plot joke or foreshadowing for whenever we get to fight Emerald Weapon. I’ll go with the latter.

Everybody mad that crystalline catboi ain’t been sleeping... but do ya think they’re also making him bathe? Does he even sweat and get stinky anymore, being half golem?

I wonder what the response was for, “Why not Alphinaud?” Hmm, maybe Mattoid can tell me.

Chap with an axe beat ya to it, huh? *flashback to Heavensward* Yeah, we in for some bullshit. I just hope this set of bullshit doesn’t involve Alisae getting shot with a poisoned arrow.

I kinda wish the WoL had called out the Ardbert puppet body for what it was, right then and there. If Elidibus couldn’t beat us in Zenos’s body, then he sure as hell can’t beat us with an i80 weapon. I know the masses are dumb, but c’mon, we’re the savior, and they all know that the bodies of the old First WoLs were stolen and Sin Eater’d, explain and relate it to that. Just drive the puss from the wound now. Oh jeez, of course we’re not going to do what we should do... it wasn’t in the script.

Huh, does the purple bun insinuate that the pink haired bun is dildoing herself with her staff and imagining that it’s the WoL >__> now I feel bad for not paying super hard attention to these Buns when I did the MSQ. I blame Emet Selch for stealing the show from every zone! Except like, Lakeland.

Hmm riddle of the Sphinx? But that’s not a Sphinx.. it’s a wolf, owl, snake thing...

Hmm was this ancient Bunny lady with the echo a WoL of the past or were they a person strong in the Echo raised to the station of an Ascian? Like did they help to create the Ronkan civilization? I have many questions!

Aww, Runar is sad... but also hey, this moment has a lotta meme potential if you’re perverted and shipping your WoL with Yshtola.

I thought you were supposed to be good at this... actually I never thought you were good at this. Like, the first time we met you said you didn’t mean any harm, but you lead me on a chase and attacked me with swarms of gargoyles ya white robed wimp! Get out of that body and fight me like a SORCERER OF ELD!

Ryne thinks the Tempest is otherworldly hehe. Cute kid. :)

Wheat is sharp? How I be feeling it through my full metal gauntlet? :O Holy shit what are the people’s stomachs like on The First?!

Uriangesus! Uh oh, his soul be straining... Thancred’s too. Oiiiii veiiiiiii

Awww, sad lonely immortal whale :( I wanna give him a hug.

I just got told to go quietly... but I don’t care enough about Ryne or think she’s cute enough to actually sway me... oh well, fishing trip with the other old men.

Aww man, another remix for Sastasha.

My friend said I should do this dungeon with Trusts, but I still don’t want to use Trusts.

Sea mobs and other shenanigans. Seems like a pretty cool place. Huh, the Sahagin are turning crystals into animals... seems like we’ve found the mother load. Should be able to get that rock to work right now!

Sahagin Queen is Thicc. I said this. I got no comms because of saying this. Q.Q

Hmm, so according to these holograms they had to do what they made the beastmen tribes do for the first rendition of Extreme primals back in the 2.1+ days. Does that mean these fellows who designed Hydaelyn designed her to specifically rip out Zodiark’s heart, as to not kill the original Elidibus( you know the whole, her attack enervate the target, sundering it rather than destroying it that Emet Selch was on about)? Hmm.... is the WoL the original Elidibus or Venat? Will Yshtola ever get his thing working, or does it only respond to the WoL?

Hmm ok, so we’re not technically tempered? but what is the blessing of light exactly then? And how does Elidibus expect these WoL Juniors to ever even want to kill us? Hmmmm, I don’t think they really thought this plot thread through.

Another silently nodding joke. Teehee.

Man, it may be because I’ve been awake for 26 hours due to work, and a meeting at 12, but it really feels like the game is telling me to take a break too! I guess RL me fits right in with all these busy body heroes after all!

I feel like it should be Cyella that shows up, but I understand they had to make it any of the NPCs because of the playerbase nature to only do one job/role and not do any of the sidequest. At least they let us pick!

Zenos having a dream while robed dude with Asaheeeee or whatever that little bimbo’s name was that was Yotsuyu’s half brother’s voice muses about what that means. Mutters stuff about Emet-selch. There were a lot of Emet-selch name drops this patch.

Ok, time to finally kill Ruby Weapon.

Oh, that was easier than expected, but I still got killed by the quicksand. Whoops.

Also holy shit, did the pilot go crunchy crunchy for that to happen?! I mean I love callbacks to Nael, but holy shit... will I still find out who the pilot was?

Aww, Au Ra orphans. Raens at that. Huh. Daddy van Baelsar... huh... well he is certainly manly enough.

When’s Cid gonna cough up blood?! I was worried for nothing!?

Ok time to do Eden... *looks at clock* nevermind. It’s time for work again. Being a functioning member of society while trying to maintain my some semblance of my hikikomori habits is hard. And my old raid lead has is already beating Savage without me now too. OTL Well, I’ll have more time to work on my Sarg character, so there’s that.

#FFXIV #Spoilers #Long post #Ruby weapon #5.2 #MSQ

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tuwasduwillst · 5 years ago

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Shadowbringers (pt 4/end)

This just has spoilers for everything, basically. :U I finished it and don’t feel like splitting stuff up because I have over 1k screenshots to go through...

Katana-bearing Centurion: Besides, there is but one hand that can make me whole again. My enemy... my friend...

He probably just says “friend” there in Japanese, but I don’t have my whole game switched, so I don’t get to know for sure. Good to know you’re still being weird, Zenos.

Don’t you smirk at me like that, mister.

Here’s Urianger being handsome, as usual

I hated fighting this old dude as Thancred.

1) I still can’t believe he can easily take out the WoL like he did

2) Stop making me be sword dudes!!

3) I get why they wanted people to see the dialogue here, but it was so slooooow and I died once near the end and had to do it all over again and ughhh, just go away

Ryne looks cute with her new hair and eyes, at least. :) Thancred is still a bad dad, but at least he’s doing better now... I guess.

Also, Urianger’s reaction to finding out that Thancred was paying attention to some of his talks about pixies was really good, haha.

...I wanna listen to Urianger give a pixie lecture...

Wow

This was something the game threw together when I asked it to pick recommended gear. It’s... some kind of look.

The Exarch/G’raha Tia is a qt. Y’know, I figured it was probably G’raha Tia, but I didn’t remember him being so short... and the lack of cat ears also made me doubt myself, haha.

I’m really glad I did the Crystal Tower stuff, though, because otherwise I’d... well, I’d still think that G’raha Tia/the Exarch is cute and like him a lot, but it wouldn’t have had the same impact.

I took a bunch of screenshots of Mikh’a. :U

& Emet-Selch, ofc

that one old dude: If you would pass me, you must endure all that I have learned on the battlefield... For I am a weapon forged in the fires of war!

~*oooh, I’m so scared of you and your tiny amount of health left*~

My MP doesn’t even have a dent in it, really. This is why I had such a hard time believing this dude could take out the WoL!! Even the first time we fought, I had tons of MP available to me and could’ve made a full recovery from being brought down to 1 HP. (...well, I have Benediction which is kind of cheating, but still.)

At least this was the last time I had to deal with him. He’s probably the worst thing about the expansion, which I guess I can deal with since the rest of it was so good.

Lots of really pretty screenshot opportunities in this expansion. c:

Mt. Gulg is something I thought was common to a bunch of FF games for some reason, but apparently it was in the original Final Fantasy, FFIX, and some random spin-off games. Weird.

How did Mikh’a hear him talking from that far away??

Emet-Selch has such a good design and you can tell that a lot of work was put into him. The expressions he makes, the way he stands and walks--it’s all unique to him and it makes him stand out a lot.

Even after everything that happened in the expansion, I’m really fond of him. They made the right move in having him kind of forge a more personal relationship with you/the WoL, because if he hadn’t been obnoxious in the background throughout most of the expansion it wouldn’t have been anywhere near as interesting/good as it ended up being.

I obviously chose to say that they were all Alphinaud’s assistants. :P

This little scene was so cute... lali-hos for everyone...

Crystal Exarch: Ugh! I would thank you not to shoot me!

I’m sorryyyyyy ; ~; You were there and I wanted to see what would happen!!!

Crystal Exarch: Ah heh... It may interest you to know that Mikh’a is a great hero in the land whence he hails. Some would say the greatest.

This little venture made me feel like I’d suddenly gotten married and adopted a child

(Which I’d be totally fine with, tbh.)

I loved this thing, actually!! I got to heal G’raha Tia, he healed me, we both healed our new tiny dwarf child, it was great.

I’m still using the Mogrod. I’m never going to stop using it. Give me another thing that has a flower and swirly rainbows all over and maybe I’ll switch weapons, but until then? No.

...unless there’s, like... a really, really pretty plant weapon, especially if it matches Mikh’a’s outfit... but I don’t think there is.

I got to put my bubble on them. :D

He’s so cuuuuuute. And Mikh’a clearly agrees with my thoughts on him, considering the expression on his face when he looks at him.

One of the reasons I keep Mikh’a wearing the WHM gear is because I really like the contrast I get--a lot of the major characters wear black, so it looks nice when they stand next to each other. :D

Katana-bearing Centurion: The whereabouts of my one true friend, however--they interest me greatly. I but hope the beasts of this “First” are providing him proper sport.

Zenos is so funny to me. He just pops up like “did someone mention my friend” while his dad and Elidibus are having a serious conversation.

Innocence has beautiful hair and if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes I’d never believe that he was Vauthry.

You can kind of see @tarifu in this screenshot! :D

You can definitely see her here--wait... why is half the party wearing dwarf beard outfits...

This is probably weird to say, but I genuinely like when characters I play in games like this suffer/are in pain. Not, like... constantly. I just like it when NPCs get to express concern and you aren’t some kind of unbreakable hero 24/7. >_>

Obviously I was going to say his name, who wouldn’t.

This made me cry!! I thought he was dead. :C

But thankfully Emet-Selch didn’t want him dead, so he did not die.

...why’d he even need a gun? Has he always had a gun?

I wish I could just float off into the sky after ruining everything and being a big jerk

sad kitty

I died when I came here with Jack and Mari because I didn’t realize I was being targeted by the boss until it was too late. :,)

I got to practice using my shield, though!! I’m not used to having one so I’m not super great at remembering it exists and using it; the tether thing is a good visual for “this specific person is going to be damaged soon and a shield would be Good”. ...unless everyone’s bunched up and I can’t tell who has it until it’s too late, I guess.

I know I’m level 80 now, but there’s still a lot I haven’t done and I’m still trying to figure out what the best way to do things is sometimes... I still need to mess with my hotbars and stuff, actually. I think I might switch some things around more than I already have, because some useful things aren’t as easy to use as they could/should be and I’ve been wanting to mess around with stuff for a while. The Trust dungeons should be a really good opportunity to test new configurations! Or the squad dungeons, I guess. :/a

I’m still not Ardbert’s biggest fan, but I don’t dislike him.

Poor Urianger, getting stuck with the role of the only other person to know the Exarch’s plans. :(

& then everyone died going to the bottom of the sea and the game ended

I got to help put dwarf helmets on sineaters :U

I also remembered that I have fancy wings now, wheee

I got a nice new outfit after doing my last Healer role quest! :D I like it a lot~ The whites are brighter than the last outfit, and the bit in back accommodates his tail much better than the corset did.

I might play around with mixing and matching some pieces once I get newer stuff, but for now this is what I’ve got! c:

...and I refuse to wear the hat. 100%. I’m not making Mikh’a look like a weird nun. :|

Amaurot was really good, even if being there mostly just made me sad. >_> The not-people were so cute and nice, though...

Big

The WoL hanging out on this giant bench is so cute.

I liked getting to talk to Emet-Selch’s friend. c: Well... kind of, anyway. Since it’s not really his friend...

tiny

Emet-Selch: I have broken bread with you, fought with you, grown ill, grown old! Sired children and yes, welcomed death’s sweet embrace.

I still don’t 100% understand how Ascians work, but I guess it’s canon that Emet-Selch fucks :/a

I regret typing that, I think, but it is apparently true

i think your fireplace has something wrong with it

Really though, this dungeon was excellent.

Alisaie decided that she wanted to LB right as one of the bosses was doing one of those “hide behind a rock Or You Will Die” things so she died & I accidentally walked right off the edge near the end of the last boss fight (oops), but other than that things went okay!

ardbert could you please clean your axe somehow before you point it at me like that. tia

This was a really neat moment :U

I’m not calling Emet-Selch Hades ever. Sorry, Emet-Selch.

I was kind of afraid to do this trial and almost waited until someone would be able to do it with me, but it really wasn’t that bad in the end!

...except for when I died five times to the same attack... orz It was that arm-sweeping one, too, so it’s not like it’s not obvious that it’s coming. My problem was that I kept getting Raised in bad places right before it happened, so he basically just kept smacking me down over and over again.

(Which was partially my fault, because I should’ve waited to accept the Raise until I knew it was safe to be alive, but... I don’t like leaving the other healer alone and I don’t want to just be lying there uselessly if I can avoid it.)

Fortunately(?) the party wiped due to something completely unrelated (a failed mechanic I had nothing to do with) and I didn’t die at all the second time around! So at least there was that.

I liked this bit in the dark. c:

I also liked when I got trapped in the bubble and didn’t have to do anything. Thanks, Emet-Selch!

Genuinely though, it was a nice little chance for me to calm the hell down because my anxiety was getting real bad before/during this fight. >_>

Poor dude. :c Obviously he’s responsible for some absolutely terrible things and I’m not going to try to deny that or anything, but he’s lived for so long and he’s had to deal with the loss of basically everyone he ever cared about for that whole time. He recreated that entire city and all of its people, that’s how much he cared.

Still no excuse for basically trying to kill all of the people he didn’t consider “real”! But also still sad, IMO.

This made me go “awww” out loud and start to tear up, haha...

I didn’t want to leave him ; ~;

Estinien said a full sentence here about how these guards were dead, too (in a way that implied he assumed that’s what they’d find), and the localization translated it as “hmph”. Kind of a weird choice there, but okay.

Zenos basically went Full Yandere since he killed his father just because he could potentially get in the way of his thing with the WoL, so... that’s something that’s going to have to be dealt with at some point.

I’m interested in seeing how things go, but I’m also a wee bit concerned that other people might get caught up in whatever this obsession is. I don’t want anyone to get hurt or killed because of Zenos’s yandere tendencies. :(

Elidibus is being Boring on the moon.

But who cares about that! I got to lead a Girl Scout meeting for my level 80 WHM quest.

Oh! Almost forgot about the story I got to tell the girls: “The tale of a man who crossed time and space to save the world... and me.”

I think the second one is about (original) Minfilia, maybe? :/a I wanted to tell them about G’raha Tia, though.

Aaaand that’s all I’ve done! \o/ I unlocked a new dungeon and I know there’s more than one post-80 dungeon, so I’ll probably check those out when I get a chance... but I finished the main stuff.

Which is kinda weird, because now I’m done again, haha... but I’ve got plenty of stuff to do before the next new stuff comes out. Especially since I discovered that Vamo alla Flamenco is the “dancer’s theme”, apparently. Need to dance ASAP >:O

#game: ffxiv

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starcunning · 6 years ago

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Catocala sappho

Happy Friday! A little while ago some friends and I did a fic exchange (mostly out of concern our tastes were too obscure and specific for Chocolate Box, so, there is that). I’ll be filling other requests from that set over time, but today’s offerings come from the Erebidae. Because people wanted more from that setting, I guess.

“Catocala sappho” takes place approximately concurrently with “Praxis inordinata” and “Acherontia atropos.”

[F/F][WOL (Lensha Hathaar)/Igeyorhm)][Queerplatonic relationship][That good good soulbonding thing][Just a lot of metaphors and metaphyics][A bad idea, though not as bad as any Kallisti’s ever had][ARR 2.56][Erebidae][2k words]

The mortal world reeks. She, in her absence, has forgotten this; there are more pleasant reminders than fetid water and mold, but such are the circumstances. It was the confluence of aether that alerted them, the surge of light energy—Hydaelyn intervened directly but rarely, and always this was a situation that merited investigation by one of their number.

It was supposed to have been Lahabrea. Igeyorhm realizes this the moment she sees Hydaelyn’s Champion alone in the darkness. He has crowed about it enough in the Chrysalis, preening with self-assurance despite the fact that it cost him his mortal vessel. Well, Lahabrea is not here, and Igeyorhm is not minded to await him.

“Lensha Hathaar,” she names the other woman. “You are not Lahabrea,” says the Warrior of Light.

She looks like a ghost, pale as moonlight in the dark of the sewer; the only tell that gives the lie to her ethereality is the dark water that stains her white robes. Igeyorhm can see the light that strains against the bounds of her mortal form—she is untethered from Her blessings, Igeyorhm surmises at once, but she is undimmed, and far brighter than the champions of the Thirteenth.

“I am not,” confirms Igeyorhm, “but your bargain was not with him alone, but all our party.” Igeyorhm extends a hand. Lensha looks at her a long moment, and takes it only after a period of introspection marked only by the dripping of water down the dank walls. There is no sound but the Miqo’te’s breathing and the rush of water, and then there is only the latter and the pair are gone.

Lensha does not accompany her to the Chrysalis when Igeyorhm makes her report. Lahabrea is there, though, and he is not happy.

“She was to be my project,” he snarls, intemperate as ever. “You have a project,” Igeyorhm reminds him. “Yes, and you were supposed to be helping me with that!” “I did,” Igeyorhm shrugs. “Ysayle Dangoulain has abandoned the purposes of Light and seeks to enact the will of her goddess, incarnate in her. She no longer needs me.” “I had been assured the situation with the Archbishop was well in hand,” agrees Elidibus, looking loftily down at them both. Igeyorhm is surprised he is not of Lahabrea’s party; both are of the Source, after all. But that has not always meant kinship, though Emet-Selch is similarly pliant to the Emissary’s whims. “Did you require my help in the city proper, Lahabrea? I would hate for you to disappoint us all,” Igeyorhm says. The frostiness of her tone leaves the again unquestionable. His choler rises. “I do not need a subordinate that seeks to usurp me,” he snaps. “Enough,” Elidibus says. “Igeyorhm, will you not surrender the Champion?” “Not to him; not willingly,” Igeyorhm says. “She knows him, and has reason to distrust. She has no greater reason to distrust me than any one of us, and I am between projects, as I mentioned. Iceheart was a success, was she not?” “For now,” Elidibus agrees. “Lahabrea. Are things proceeding in Ishgard?” “Yes,” says the Paragon, clearly annoyed at being backed so thoroughly into that corner. “Then Igeyorhm is right. You may ask Pashtarot to aid you, if you are so sorely pressed.” “I’ll take it under consideration,” Lahabrea says, clearly having already dismissed the idea. Elidibus dismisses him with a wave, his avian mask swinging about, regard settling on Igeyorhm once more. “Any other concerns of note?” “Where is Nabriales?” Igeyorhm asks. “I had not thought you so inclined to his presence,” the Emissary notes with lofty amusement. “Do not mistake me, I am glad enough not to see him here, but he had an identity established in Ul’dah. From my earliest inquiries, Hydaelyn intervened to save one of Her chosen after assassins were loosed upon a party she attended. Nabriales should have known of this. Nabriales should have spoken of this. Thus I must ask: where is Nabriales?” “Where indeed,” mutters Elidibus. “I have my suspicions, but I should return to Garlemald anon.” Elidibus’s lips press into a thin line of displeasure, and then he lifts a white-gloved hand, dismissing her to her new duties.

Lensha watches the Floating Isles with impassive eyes. She does not move, does not even flinch, when Igeyorhm materializes at her side. Her aether ripples; that is all. Its wan white humming tendrils stray a long way from her corporeal form; she is half out of her body, nearly a ghost in a living body. Igeyorhm was not aware she still had a heart, but something in her throbs with sympathy.

“You are back,” Lensha says, and there is no emotion attached to the notion. “I could have fled while you were gone.” “Yet you did not.” Lahabrea would have treated the situation with less subtlety; were he called away to Ishgard or elsewhere, he might have poisoned her and left her to sleep until his return. Deudalaphon would have called upon the Lessers to stand by and attend her. “You could be far away on wings of aether by now,” the Ascian of the Thirteenth notes. “Nowhere so far gone that you could not follow,” Lensha says. “This was your cohort’s doing.” “I had thought so, but Nabriales is absent, and not likely to be involved.” “Nabriales,” the Champion of Hydaelyn echoes. “I had been assured he was no longer a threat.” Her annoyance bristles, the spines of a great leviathan breaching the surface of placid waters. Like that fin, her emotions stretch, spread, and sink once more into the murk. “Would you know if he were dead?” “Eventually. Perhaps that explains his absence, though Elidibus did not seem to think so.” “And Lahabrea? I had been told he was not dead.” Igeyorhm smiles. She settles beside Hydaelyn’s Champion, who shies from her—not bodily, but her aether shrinks, withdraws, so that shadow does not touch light. “He is not,” Igeyorhm admits, “alas.”

Lensha turns then to look at her, fixing her with luminous eyes. They are the color of the First, flooded with light, even her pupils made bright by chatoyance. “Why you?” she asks. “It was thought that I was better suited for this particular assignation,” Igeyorhm says. “Lahabrea can be … volatile.” “And you are steadier,” Lensha says, tone flat with disbelief. Igeyorhm sifts through the reasoning in her mind: Lahabrea is stronger than she is, being of the Source, and put to better use elsewhere; Lahabrea is more objectionable. These things answer the question why not Lahabrea? but speak nothing on the matter of Why Igeyorhm? There is, of course, the simple fact that she arrived first; there is also the fact that she treated successfully with the champion of the Thirteenth. Too well, in fact. Igeyorhm puts the memory aside. It has been a long time since that place—and Shemhazai—became something other than what they once were.

She is seeking redemption in the eyes of Zodiark, she admits to herself. She must do now what had failed her before, and redeem herself thereby.

“Ah,” says Lensha. “So it’s penance.” Their aether has not intermingled; Igeyorhm can feel no such violation. “Your goddess told you this?” “People are not so difficult to figure out,” Lensha says, turning her face away. She delivers this judgment with disdain—with scorn, even—but Igeyorhm cannot find it written in the skeins of white that trail from the Warrior of Light’s body like a shroud. “What happened to the Thirteenth?” Igeyorhm looks to her, trying to discern cruelty in the shape of her mouth, the white folds of her gown, the twitching of her tail. Igeyorhm is familiar with every tell—with Mitron’s stolid judgment and Altima’s lofty superiority—and she looks for them in Hydaelyn’s Champion. There is nothing of the type written there. The question is merely the question, born of curiosity and not the desire to reopen old wounds. “It would be easier to show you,” Igeyorhm says, because even to unhostile ears it seems such a task to tell. “I cannot compel that,” Lensha says. “I can offer it to you,” the Ascian tells her, taking down her hood. Lensha nods. Her bright eyes rest upon the dark crystal that glimmers at Igeyorhm’s throat.

Igeyorhm reaches for her—not with hands or body, for the flesh is the merest nothing, but with all her being. Shadow brushes light for the first time and Lensha gasps. Igeyorhm hushes her, but she too is hesitant. “Your Goddess grants you insight,” Igeyorhm says, “and you pass the boundaries of another’s soul. Reflexively you have a way to return to yourself, something of your own being to anchor you. Focus on that now.” Lensha nods, placid as the pale moon, and Igeyorhm reaches for her once more. Lensha is so exposed, her aetherial being extending so far past the boundaries of the flesh; it is so easy for Igeyorhm to reach into her. She has practice, and with it, finesse; her darkness is not overwhelming, but trickles slowly into that vast whiteness. Similitude interlinks them, and they commingle slowly. There is more to Lensha than light and ghosts; her bitterness is the bitterness of brine. She is the sea and the tides, and Igeyorhm the storm that stirs the waves, darkness shot through with light in flashes that only illuminate the beauty of the tempest. Igeyorhm is not of the Source, and can never compete with the Source’s power, but she can bolster it, commune with it. It is and is not like mingling with Shemhazai, who was like the breath on her cheek. This is an intimacy so long foregone that for a moment Igeyorhm loses herself in it—and Lensha has a natural ability; without instruction she reaches for Igeyorhm. Moonlight through clouds, white spray on a black sea; water and wind and lightning whirl and combine in the stillness between them.

Then they are one landscape with two histories. The Champion of Light, sore-pressed and forgotten, bargaining her very being to save friends who may be dead anyway. The Champion of Darkness, too easily victorious, obliterating all she once loved.

The Thirteenth was her home and her heart and her doom, too ripe with umbral aether to ever be saved by the lantern-lights of Hydaelyn. All that had been was lost but its champions—one of them taken from that place by Elidibus, subordinate to the Emissary’s will. And the Warrior of Light that had failed to oppose her—the Warrior of Light whom she had loved, and defeated just the same—had been twisted by Calamity. Shemhazai could not recall the very concept of live, much less her beloved, and yet Igeyorhm had never been able to bring herself to eradicate this lingering trace of her failure. Sooner die than kill, and repent forever of her victory.

Lensha relinquished her hold upon her crystal, pouring the last of herself into this joining. Igeyorhm, too, let go; in the commingling of light and darkness the Martyr found compassion as deep and wide as the oceans. Sorrow like rain, tears like seawater; impossible to tell where one ended and the other began. Her purpose accomplished, Igeyorhm began to withdraw, remembering who she was—the place she had been born, the first time she heard her God’s voice, the oddities that set the Thirteenth Reflection apart from the Source it derived from.

Lensha did not move, did not reel away in turn, and it fell to Igeyorhm to rebuild herself, to sort her own being from Lensha’s so that the Champion of Hydaelyn could collect herself by process of elimination. With the last spark of darkness in a heart of light, Igeyorhm reached out for her, and saw there the trouble: Lensha’s identity was crafted of a thousand nos and no yeses. Hers was a being of negation, and Igeyorhm longed to weep, but she had long since forgotten.

Her tears were on the Warrior of Light’s cheeks anyway; Lensha’s pale aether hung unbound around her. Igeyorhm reached for her, setting a hand upon her shoulder and pulling her against her side. “It is overwhelming, I know,” Igeyorhm said gently. Lensha only blinked, as though oblivious to her own weeping, but she did not lift her head from the Ascian’s shoulder. Those silver eyes closed, and her tears dried.

Still, at the heart of her, Igeyorhm could taste the salt sorrow of the sea.

#wol/igeyorhm #lensha hathaar #original content #starcunning writes #fanservice friday #galaxy brain fanwork exchange #igeyorhm #hydaelyn trusts only the most idiotic cats with Her blessing #the erebidae expanded universe #erebidae

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