Author's Note: This is another chapter I should apologise for. I know people get tired of me putting myself down (but seriously, you have to admit, that last chapter was one of my worse), and I'm hoping nobody thinks I do it for sympathy, I really don't. I honestly don't believe these chapters are that good, and I feel like I'm letting you all down a bit. In all honesty, when I first started writing on this site, I thought I was quite talented, but when I started reading the work of pretty much everybody else, I realised I was nowhere near their levels of writing, and actually not very good at all. That's entirely beside the point, because that last chapter was even worse than I usually write.

So, why am I apologising for this chapter? Because it gets even worse. Well, I actually think it's better than the last chapter, but I did something very stupid. You'd think I'd play it safe and write something I'm good at to make up for the last one.

I didn't. I did romance. The one thing it's been proven I cannot do, no matter how hard I try. But unfortunately it's important to this plot, so I had to do it. Sorry that this means you have another dire chapter full of my terrible romance, I know I'm truly terrible at writing it. But hopefully there are a few enjoyable bits in there, and it continues to set up the next bit of the plot.

CHAPTER 18

ARCADIA

Ship's Log 24: We're still in port at Seblina, but I've updated the log due to the latest installation of two new cannons, doubling our offensive firepower (saying something about what it used to be like). The ship has gone through many upgrades while we've been docked here, and has been totally refitted now. It might even manage to live up to Nadia's standards, and miss any comments on her behalf! It's certainly been reinforced, making it stronger than ever, while actually using lighter materials, so we are in fact faster now. Just a few more days, and we can finally get out to sea, it's been months since we docked and our money has severely dwindled. I for one can't wait to put Seblina behind me and get back out on the waves.

Two chocobos hauling a carriage pulled up outside of the entrance to Seblina. Half of the moon hung in the sky, glistening down on the desert. It was slightly cold, and it chilled the figure who emerged from carriage. She wrapped her arms around herself, shivering. She turned to the driver of the carriage.

"Thank you." She said with a formal curtsey.

"You will be alright to return on your own, won't you, milady?" Asked the driver. The woman paused, unsure.

"I am certain I will be." She decided, despite not being convinced. She had no idea how she would return. The driver looked slightly worried.

"For a bit extra, I can wait." He offered. The woman reached into a bag of gold, before deciding to hand the entire bag over.

"Take all of it, as I do not know how long I will be." She told him. The driver grinned enthusiastically at the money he had received.

"Yes ma'am!" He cried happily. The girl curtseyed again and disappeared into the town, shivering as she went.

The woman paused outside of the tavern, listening carefully. She could hear cheerful singing coming from within.

"Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me!" One of the voices was instantly recognisable, despite the cheerfulness, and slight drunkenness, which she had certainly not expected (and thought was impossible). "We pillage, we plunder, we rifle, and loot, drink up, me hearties, yo ho. We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot, Drink up me hearties, yo ho!" She cautiously swung open the door, and scanned the tavern, slightly worried. A huge group of people were gathered, singing, and at the centre of the group, five people, arms rested over each other's shoulders. On the outside were a small tarutaru and a mithra, and closer to the central figure was the woman she recognised as Nadia and what looked like a mithra without a tail. She instantly recognised the middle figure. She knew she shouldn't. She knew he was a stranger to her. But she could see his eyes, and hear his voice.

Olose and his crew were singing happily, sharing drinks, and having a good time with other merchants and pirates. They had built up quite a reputation after sinking a warship of Windurst, not to mention dealing with a sea horror, helping establish Norg and many other adventures. Crews from dozens of ships would track them down to hear their stories, and once they had all got sufficiently drunk they would start singing. Of course, Olose was just acting, unable to feel the affect of any alcohol, but he a lot of fun anyway.

Except this time he fell instantly silent in shock. He didn't see her, but caught her scent, over the smell of alcohol and the dozens of people packing out the tavern. And he recognised it instantly. For a moment he thought it was coincidence, just a similar scent, or a woman wearing the same perfume. It couldn't be her. He stood, and everything he suspected was confirmed.

Arcadia stood by the doorway.

He quickly stood, and ran through the crowd, pushing them aside, much to everybody's confusion. She saw him coming, and smiled uncontrollably. He grabbed her, hugging her tightly.

"What are you doing here?" He cried in a mixture of shock and joy. "I thought I-"

"I could not stay away." She said softly, fighting back tears. Olose smiled. "You have changed." She noted, trying to change the subject.

"It beats being dead." Olose smiled. "I've missed you so much."
"I know." She smiled. "I've missed you too."

"I've?" He repeated, a little surprised that she contracted her own words. Strict formality usually prevented her from doing that.

"What is it?" She asked slightly amused. Olose allowed himself a happy smile, so relieved to be in her presence.

"You can't be here." He sighed, his face straightening again. "It's too dangerous."

"Too dangerous?" She questioned. "It is only for one night. I had to see you again. I learnt that the Destiny was in repairs, and I knew that it was my one chance to find you and see you again. Nobody knows I have left, even if Abaj was still watching me there is no way he could know that I am here."

"How did you find out about the Destiny?" Olose asked, knowing that he had avoided contacting Arcadia in anyway, even mentioning the ship, to keep her safe.

"Money." She answered. "Luck. Paying the right people to find information for me." She paused. "I just wanted to see you again. For the first time, really. This new face of yours is odd."

"It's still me." Olose told her gently.

"There is one way I could check." Olose was slightly surprised as she rose up on her toes and kissed him gently. He looked down into her brown eyes, probing their depth as she broke away. She smiled. "Definitely the same person." She smiled. Olose was slightly surprised by her. It seemed an unusually brash thing for her to do. "I love you, you know." She said, suddenly and quite unexpectedly. Olose jolted back, a little surprised to hear it. Arcadia looked as if she would cry at this reaction. "I assume you do not feel the same way." She stated, judging by his reaction and only by snapping back into her strict formal stance did she manage to resist bursting into tears.

"No, no!" Olose said quickly. "Arcadia, I love you! I have from the moment I met you. I'm just a bodyguard, I could never say anything. I love you so much I left you behind to keep you safe."

"I do not want to be safe. I want to be with you." She stated. "No matter how dangerous it gets."

"No. Arcadia, that can't be done. One day, we can be together. But not now. Not until I'm convinced Abaj is no longer a threat." Olose explained. She looked at him tearfully.

"Just one night then?" She requested. Olose took her hand, still finding himself surprised at how soft and delicate it felt.

"One night." He smiled. "Want to meet the Destiny? Me and her have been through a lot together."

"I might get jealous." She joked, flashing a smile revealing her sparkling white teeth.

"Since when did you tell jokes like that?" Olose laughed, trying to catch up on what he had missed.

"Since I realised how much you meant to me." She answered sincerely. "Everything about you. The way you spoke, the way you behaved. The way you were always there for me." Olose's face dropped at the memories, and felt almost as if he was in a trance. As if this was just a resurfacing memory of a life he had left. One that he could never return too. Just Altana teasing him, offering him one small memory.

"Come on." He said as he began to leave the tavern. "I'll show you the ship." Arcadia smiled and followed him.

As soon as they stood outside of the dark tavern Olose saw her properly in the moonlight. She looked as beautiful as he remembered, her face was utterly unchanged (although she wore so much make-up, it was impossible to tell anyway). He was slightly surprised to see that she was dressed slightly more practically than normal. She had her hair tied back into a long ponytail instead of any ornate arrangement, wore high heeled boots instead of shoes and was dressed in a shorter black skirt and sleeveless top, which was considerably more pratical than what she used to wear. She still had expensive earrings hanging from her ears, an ornate and fancy looking diamond necklace and long red fingernails, and still didn't look like she'd survive on her own in the wild for more than five minutes, but at least it was an improvement.

Arcadia noticed Olose looked over her style of dress, and decided to comment.

"My father helped me dress for the occasion." She explained.

"I thought you said nobody knew you were here!" Olose quickly snapped, worried.

"He is as concerned about you as I am." She stated. "He cared for you a lot, because of how you protected me. He wanted to make sure you were safe, and figured out what I was doing. He offered me some more practical clothes so that I might blend into Norg slightly better." The boots, skirt and top were significantly less noticeable than her usual dresses, making her look more like a clueless city girl seeking transport than a very rich noblewoman searching for a friend, but the thick make-up and expensive jewels still made her look very out of place. At least nobody should figure out who she was, and thus who Olose was, and that's all that mattered. Olose was a little concerned that her father had figured out what she was doing, because if he had, so could Abaj. He swept such concerns aside and decided to enjoy the moment, knowing that it may never come again.

He led her, holding her hand, down to the Destiny, which was sat looking fairly out of place in the dry dock, with a construction tower beside it.

"Give it a few more days and it'll be back in the ocean." Olose said proudly, displaying the ship. Arcadia seemed a little under whelmed.

"I was expecting something a bit grander." She admitted.

"Hey, she's got personality." Olose defended.

"It does not look very stable." Arcadia peered at the bottom of the ship. It had even been scrubbed clean of its barnacles since it was raised into the dry dock.

"Oh, come on, you're beginning to sound like Nadia!" Olose laughed. "This little ship has been through a lot! Sunk a ship of Windurst, you know? That's why she's in refit. Got ripped to shreds."

"Windurst?" Arcadia exclaimed in surprise. "I do not think I shall ask." She mumbled to herself, sounding quite comical in her formal tones.

"Hey! They attacked us first!" Olose cried, and Arcadia laughed to herself.

"So, do I get to go on board?" She asked.

"Well, she isn't at sea at the moment, but you certainly can look around." Olose shrugged.

"I noticed." Arcadia told him with a smile.

"What?" Olose asked.

"I noticed that the ship is not at sea. I like to think I am fairly observant about those kind of things." She smiled again and Olose laughed slightly.

"I think I preferred it when you didn't have a sense of humour, I didn't feel so stupid." He said with a playful shrug. "C'mon, I'll show you around."

The two stood on the deck of the Destiny, which felt odd under Olose's feet, since it wasn't bobbing on the waves as it usually did. Arcadia looked up at the half moon, shining brightly in the sky.

"It must be so amazing, out at sea, looking out across the ocean with the moon shining down upon it." She said dreamily.

"It really is something." Olose smiled. "Although I have my issues with the moon." He joked.

"I understand." She paused. "Maybe I will get to see it one day." She said wishfully.

"When this is over, and we have no worries, I'll take you out to sea. I'll show you the ocean and the life I've lived. But until that point comes, it can never happen." He sighed. "I've made a log of our adventures, I wish I could give it to you, but if anybody found it-"

"I understand." She said gently. "I shall wait." She looked out to the ocean, just down the ramp from the dry dock. "It's so beautiful out there."

"It isn't easy you know." Olose tried to explain. "We've nearly met our end more than once." She brought a hand to his shoulder in concern. He laughed. "But you know, I'm immortal and all."

"So, what is the crew like?" Arcadia decided to ask, changing the subject so that she could avoid worrying about Olose.

"Nice. Phabrizoe can get a bit grumpy, but Nadia is complaining less. Both Suse and Trevia have tried to kill me before, but we're past that now. I've become a bit of an adopted father for Suse, she's very childish." Arcadia looked blank, not actually recognising most of the names. "When we can see each other again properly, I'll introduce you properly."

"This is stupid, is it not?" Arcadia mumbled. "Here we are, one night, one night in a thousand and that is all. It will just make it hurt more to be apart."

"Hey, I'd rather have a happy memory than none at all." Olose told her. "What's the point in living if we don't get happy memories from it?"

"But we cannot continue those memories-" Arcadia began, and Olose smiled.

"Everything comes to an end, Arcadia." He told her.

"Except you." She sniggered. "You're immortal."

"Or so I'm told." Olose laughed. The two stared at each other, silent for a moment.

"I wish this moment would never end." Arcadia sighed. Olose let out a breath.

"Okay." He stated. "Then it won't."

"What?" Arcadia asked, confused.

"It won't. I've had enough. Arcadia, we need to go our separate ways for a while, but this time we're working together. I need you to get everything you can on Abaj. What he's been doing lately, how he acts, what trade routes he uses. If you could track me down, you can find out about him." He explained.
"I do not understand." She told him, confused.

"No more running." Olose stated. "We stand and fight. You want this moment to last, then it'll last. It'll take a while, but if we can gather enough information, we can catch Abaj off guard."

"But he is immortal." Arcadia stated, frustrated.

"So am I." Grinned Olose. "I've had enough of this. This night, just being around you again, it's been the greatest experience of my life. And I'm not going to let Abaj ruin it any longer."

"But he defeated you last time!" Arcadia protested. "You wanted to protect me, now I want to protect you!"

"Not even Abaj can resist Destiny." Olose smiled. "He must use ships to get around. We'll find one time when the ship is understaffed. Even if it takes years, Abaj still doesn't know that I'm alive. As long as you can be subtle, he won't catch on. We'll get him back for what he did. And then we can be together forever." Arcadia nodded as a determined look flashed across her face.

"I will do what I can." She stated. "There will be no need for happy memories, we can be together until the day we die once Abaj is taken care of." Olose paused. For the first time, inevitability crossed his mind. Even if he was to win, and live with Arcadia, one day she would die, and he would live. The curse of immortality. His determination fizzled for a moment. "Olose?" She asked, concerned. He shook it off.

"It's nothing." He said. "Now, we can't keep this going any longer. It's too dangerous. I will see you again Arcadia, and Abaj will be dead!"

"We have the rest of the night." Arcadia reminded him. "Let us not cut that short."

"No, I suppose we shouldn't." Olose smiled.

It was Suse who finally asked the obvious question back in the tavern.

"So, who was that lady?" She asked Nadia, as she was the only one who seemed to know what was going on.

"Just someone from the Captain's past, that's all." Nadia forced a smile at the memories of their old life. "He'll be back soon."

"I wonder what those two arrrre doing together." Suse said naively, and it was Trevia who chuckled.

"Cute." She remarked. Suse looked confused. She suddenly gasped aloud.

"You don't think they'rrrre-" The others tried to maintain blank expressions. Suse looked shocked. Of course, there was no evidence of just what Suse thought they were doing, which Nadia found amusing.

" Don't worry. They're just talking." Nadia stated. "Hopefully not for too long. The Captain's past is…complicated." Nadia sighed. "It isn't something he should revisit."

"Perrrrhaps then, you should tell us why." Trevia suggested. "We deserrrrve to know." Nadia sighed. She knew Olose wouldn't like it, but he couldn't hide for ever.

She told the story and explained everything.

Just as Olose was counting on her doing so, as he knew the entire crew would have to unite to take Abaj down.

Author's Note: A few other things that I decided to put separately from my whining beforehand. Yes, I stole the song. I can't write songs, and certainly not sea shanties. Besides, it was a bit of fun. Also, you're probably wondering since when Seblina had a dry dock (or moreover probably thinking 'Wow! Vivli actually used a term that is semi-accurate!' considering how little I know about ships and sailing and things). Well, it's still 590 odd years before FFXI, so I can put that one down to Seblina changing over the years. At the moment it's supposed to be the most major port town in the whole of Vana'diel (since Norg is still under construction). And saying that 'dry dock' is semi accurate really shows how little I know about sailing (being what I can figure a very common term, and I still don't know if it's right or not!).

Oh, and as for what Arcadia and Olose were doing at the end? Well, I'm nice and innocent, nothing bad! Honest!

They were, urm, playing chess!

Anyway, sorry for the horrific romantic chapter. One day I'll learn how to write a good romance! (Probably after I actually get involved in romance!). But for now you have to put up with my terrible writing. Sorry! Hopefully the next chapter should improve things, going back to exciting action. Of course, ideas on paper often go wrong.

But just to keep interest, and to keep hope after two utterly dire chapters things are going to get better, here's a teaser:

"Bastok and San'd Oria go to war, their navies clashing at sea as the battle rages on land, and the Destiny is caught in the middle of it."

Sounds exciting huh? It'll probably go horribly wrong, but should be interesting (and, of course, reference this plot from this chapter, but the 'gather information' thing means that the crew of the Destiny have more adventures before they can tackle Abaj).