It is I, Cryptic, back with another fanfiction- this time Final Fantasy: XI. For those who don't know FFXI is an online game (MMORPG). But this story will be played out all behind the forth wall- the characters are real people who exist in Vana'diel (Vana'diel is the world where all/most of this takes place). For anyone who hasn't played FFXI and doesn't know anything about it I'd advise you to go look at Wikipedia.

And since I fail at describing what the main character is wearing right now, I'll tell you now: She's wearing the Mithra's starter set. I think they're called Mithran Gaiters?

Don't forget to review!

Chapter One: Inchoative Steps

There was no light. It was as if someone had wrapped their fist around the sun and smothered its fire and life. With no sun there was no light for the moon to reflect and all of the stars had been written over with black ink. It was only black, and even the black truly didn't exist- there was simply nothing.

The lack of being able to see nothing made her eventually wonder if she had simply gone blind. And what were the sounds coming to her ears? She could hear something- voices; whispered words that were too far away for her to hear. It was either that or just the roar of silence. Maybe it was just her own her mind playing petty tricks on her. She was deaf and blind in this place of no life; there was nothing. Except for… the cold.

It was underneath her. It was the single thing that reassured her that she did, in fact, exist. She curled herself against it to feel the brutal frost numb her veins and muscles until she could barely move. Soon she couldn't even feel the hard ice that was beneath her, forcing her to stand and walk around tiredly in little circles until she became too disoriented to take a single step forward. Then she would lie back down and feel the comfort of the cold stab needles through her skin. It was painful. It was the pain that promised her that she was real as time swept by at an unknown beat. She passed it by singing- anything to fill the void of silence that lingered around her.

But her songs grew weak, and as her voice grew weaker so did her strength. Sometimes she couldn't tell when she was awake or when she was dreaming. But at least her dreams had sight and sound and gave her relief from the silent hell she had been implanted in. Soon she didn't even have the energy to move herself. Unable to release the chill from herself the very cold that had brought her a hurtful comfort drowned itself away. There was a cold inside of her physical being and in her mind. It was as if something or someone was closing in on her. Whether it be some kind of an internal sense, instinct or simply paranoia was unknown to her. She only knew that there was something coming. Then she heard the voices again- the hushed murmurs that had lined the cracks of the floor before.

Breathing grew slower and the mind became weaker. She was completely and utterly numb but she felt pressure on her arms as long, thin fingers began to wind themselves around her limbs. Should she fight to stay here? Where had she been before? At this point she couldn't even remember- she didn't know where she was or how she had come to be in this place. But somehow, at one point, this frozen box had become her home.

Eyes opened, eyelashes fluttering and pressing against the floor. She could see nothing, but she could feel it. It was there. She could taste it in the air… feel it inside of her gut. It had finally come.

It was here.

She jumped a little when she woke up, eyes the color of gold revealed as eyelids pulled apart in a flash. She sat up with a start, ears erect and tail lifted to show that she was alert.

"Nothing's going to get you in Ronfaure."

She turned around to look at the back of the driver's head, a hand touching her lower aching back. "If we were to get attacked the knights of San d'Oria would come running, not to mention gutsy adventurers who are eager to attack anything promising. Just calm down and keep yourself quiet until we reach the city."

She rubbed her back and looked away, first at her feet and then at a box that was placed beside her. The back of the wagon was packed full of boxes and other things that had been neatly wrapped. She'd been allowed to hop in underneath the promise that she touched absolutely nothing and didn't make any noise. She'd done just this and had eventually laid down to fall asleep only to be haunted by an uneasy dream. It was almost as if it was a promise about something to come. But she wasn't someone who could understand the meaning of dreams or perform any fortune telling tricks, so she would just let it slip off to some other part of her consciousness. But there was one thing that she couldn't forget, and that was how sore her entire body was. The boards of the wagon were stiff and the road was far from smooth. She'd tried moving around but she was starting to think that if she had to spend another day inside of this thing that her tail was going to break off.

After a few more hours she'd laid back down on her side. Her ears twitched dully as she heard some voices but otherwise remained still. It was only when someone yanked her ankle that she jumped back up. She stared at the driver and he stared back, seemingly unamused. It was at that moment that she noticed that there was a lack of trees, the sound of birds, and the smell of… grass.

"We're here. Now get out of my wagon so I can unload my cargo."

"Thank you."

"C'mon, c'mon- out with you Mithra."

She sighed but did as she had been ordered and slid out of the cart and stepped out onto the street with her bare feet. She yawned and reached over her head for a stretch before looking around herself. Her ears stretched up and her tail twitched, black hair swishing as she looked from side to side.

The streets of San d'Oria had been made of stone, as were the surrounding buildings that were protected by the tall gates and walls that circled around the entire structure of the city. The trees stood just as tall and as proud as the Elvaan's did while they walked down the streets. Banners that displayed the crimson emblem of San d'Oria lined the roads and framed well against the light blue sky. Knights clad in their heavy armor stood at their stations while life prospered around them. The sunlight that poured down from the sky made the stones in the street practically glow. This city was well maintained, as the Elvaan couldn't possibly have it any other way. As she turned her head she saw shops set up everywhere with crowds of people gushing in a flow of heavy traffic. A small Elvaan boy with wispy silver hair ran by her, clutching a parcel in his hand. She turned her head to watch him go and then looked back at the display around her.

Now, this place was to be called her home. This thought settled inside of her mind while she rubbed her hands together. She could mentally sense the weight of the sword she had attached to her hip. She had that and her Mithran clothes, native to Windurst and not lining her with any specific type of a job. Her feet were half bare, heels and toes free to touch the ground while her waist and legs remained also uncovered from her loincloth and top. Her hair, unlike almost all other Mithra's, was a pure rich ebony black and grown out to where it dipped strait down to her waist and had ribbons at the top that held it back. The soft fur that grew on her body was the same milk chocolate color as the rest of her race. The eyes were a jewel-like golden, something that fit well considering that she was part feline. Compared to most of her people she was a bit short and would be easily consumed by the tall crowd of Elvaan's who easily towered over her.

Everything about this city was… majestic and had a sense of pride flowing through it. There was an old hum of strength in the stones that made it up and the confidence of it within the hearts and faces of the people who walked and built upon the stones to make their lives. Various people passed her by covered in armor and heavy weaponry and every so often a person clad in a robe either colored white or black would also walk by. Compared to all of them she was… nothing. Anticipation but worry that had been induced by intimidation was running through her and she found that her hands had been balled into fists. With an uneasy breath she looked down at her hands and relaxed them, attempting to ease the tension out from her body.

From here on out… she would live on her own and use this city as her home and shelter when she retreated from the surrounding woods after battles to sharpen her skills. Her eyes moved from her hands down to the weak blade that she had on her hip. She had gil- maybe enough to buy herself something to eat, but otherwise she had nothing aside from the clothes she wore and this pathetic excuse for a sword.

It was all that she had. It wasn't very much- practically worthless and selling any of it would probably earn her a piece of bread. She would have to use it not only for protection but also to make money so that she could at least feed herself. Where she would sleep tonight was still a question. She'd heard that the nights at this time of year in San d'Oria were warm enough. She drew a toe across the ground underneath her before sliding it forward. She paused, lips dried, as she pondered about what was going to happen next. There was so much that she had to do- and not very much time. But in order to start a fifty thousand mile journey a first step had to be taken, didn't it? However tiny it had to be the start of it began with just a single movement. With a sigh she stepped forward and was immediately pushed into the mass of people. With her complete and utter lack of height she couldn't actually see where she was going. Not that that mattered much considering that she didn't even have a map. She kept her pace up and tried to avoid being knocked over. With little space to move people couldn't be courteous even if they had wanted to be. The loud roar of the crowd practically made her dizzy; not to mention the rapid stomping and the clanking of armor. The crowd was dragging her away and she had to get out before she was whisked out too far. She forced her way out, hopping up onto some stairs and using the extra elevation to look around.

For the next few hours she wandered to and fro, trying to keep track of where she was going but eventually failing completely. People passed by too quickly for her to catch their attention and the guards were too busy with their own affairs to heed hers. Even though the buildings were distinct the streets seemed to be designed like some kind of a maze and she was finding that even when she tried to retrace her steps that she would go off into another direction. The sun was beginning to dip lower in the sky and the shadows from the tall walls around the city easily stretched over the roads and made everything darker. Already the crowds were thinning, people wanting to return to their homes before it became too dark and businesses closing. Soon, as she came to face the fact that she was fighting a losing battle, she slowed her steps and simply sat down on the side of her road to watch people walk by.

It was getting even darker. She stifled a sigh as she pushed herself back up and walked slowly down the street. Even though there was still some light in the sky the high walls blocked out any light and the torches only served to cast an eerie illumination and stretch shadows. Thankfully she wasn't afraid of the dark. Being a Mithra she had learned to depend on her hearing sometimes even more than her sight and she had endured enough to not be afraid of the shadows the flickered from the corners of her eyesight. As she walked she looked up, curiously gazing up at the stars whil-

"Eeh- aah!" She let out these startled words as she tripped strait over something that was on the side of the road. She hit the ground and smacked her chin on the hard stone streets before she pushed herself up and rubbed her hands. She turned around and, much to the Mithra's personal shock, saw an Elvaan male wearing a bright golden tunic tailored with strange designs laying behind her. She stared as he sat up, cracking an eye open to look at her blankly. Realizing that he must have been asleep she turned herself around to face him and held her hands up and immediately began to apologize. "Oh, ah- I'm really sorry about that, uh-?"

He looked at her, blinked, and rubbed his forehead. He slowly sat up and yawned, rubbing the small bridge between his eyes. "It's fine…" his eyes drifted upwards to the sky where he stared for a little bit before scratching the side of his head. "Sa'll ready night." He stood up and, despite the fact that she'd spent the entire day before trampled by ridiculously tall Elvaans, his height was extremely impressive. He yawned and dusted himself, then looked down at the Mithra who'd woken him up. "What's your name?"

"Name?" She repeated, brow furrowing as her tail wrapped itself anxiously around her waist.

"Mm."

"It's… Mirasaros."

Reviews would be lovely.

Watch out for chapter two.

Cryptic....