Double feature today because it's the first day of posting.
Primal Consequence
Ifrit. The Lord of the Inferno.
I only saw him once, and thankfully not even remarkably close enough that his influence could spread to me. But she? She danced with that beast more than I care to count.
And even though she herself was immune to the Primal's influence over mortals, that very first encounter still left its mark on her.
The sound of wood creaking and groaning echoed through the halls of the Waking Sands, occasionally accompanied by a shout as fists and feet mercilessly pounded on a singular training dummy, straining the screws that attached it to the stone floor with every blow.
Sweat glistened on S'eni's brow and she brushed it away with the palm of a glove-covered hand before resuming her assault. Her body felt hot, muscles aching under the intensity of her training. She could already picture Chuchuto's scolding, telling her that she was overexerting herself.
She was probably right about it too, but it helped her think.
And there was a lot she had to think about.
"Whether she intended to or not, Minfilia neglected to tell you something. Something I think would be best you heard from one of us," she heard Thancred's words echo in her mind.
A punch shook the dummy.
"It concerns the tempered abductees that were rescued...I'm sorry to report that all are to be put to death, the Flames with whom you were imprisoned included."
Another punch.
"Needless to say, this information must not be made known to the public."
And another.
"I swear to you we wouldn't do this if there were any other recourse, but once a man is tempered, he is tempered for life. His very existence lends strength to the primal whom he cannot choose but to worship."
A kick.
"And so we Scions continue our fight, that no more innocents need to be sacrificed. I hope that you'll continue to stand with us, S'eni."
With a shout, she grabbed the dummy's 'head' and slammed her fist into it.
Face obscured by a helmet. Fingers digging painfully into its side.
Walk free...
An anguished cry, followed by a gurgling sound.
Walk free...
Empty eyes staring back through the cracked steel, blood dripping down the sharp blades embedded inside the lifeless skull.
Walk free...
A sickening sound as the claw was removed; the corpse collapsing on its own weight.
Another soldier, a rifle, a gunshot.
Believe...
With a start, S'eni let go of the dummy, stumbling away from it. Her hand shot up, cupping her forehead as her feet somehow managed to carry her to one of the benches before collapsing on top of it.
Another one, she thought as the pain that accompanied her visions was slowly subsiding.
Was it a bad sign that she was starting to get used to it?
Probably...
Removing her hand, she let out a weary sigh. This whole situation with Ifrit had seriously drained her.
But she supposed Thancred was right, there was only one way and that was to continue forward and fight.
Her eyes dropped down to her gloved hands, little droplets of sweat drying on the well-worn leather. She turned them around, looking at the plates grafted on them, taking in every little scratch and dent on the dull metal.
The leather scrunched a little as she balled her hand into a fist.
They had served her well, helping her take down even the likes of a primal.
Of course, she thought. The power of the Echo might have done its part too.
It certainly had helped her not become a thrall to one.
Another sigh escaped her and she let her shoulders slump as she made to rise to her feet, her head turning left—
"Hello there!"
-only to nearly jump out of her skin, tail and ears shooting up straight at the appearance of a grinning face, half-obscured by a protective mask that covered her eyes.
"Y-Yda!?" S'eni exclaimed. Where in the Seven Hells did she come from?!
"You remembered my name!" was the other woman's reply, her grin growing even wider; if that was even possible at all.
"How long have you been sitting there?" she practically demanded, hand placing itself on top of her chest to calm her beating heart.
"Since you were laying in on that dummy." Yda pointed at the one in question.
"Oh..." she must have been so absorbed in her thoughts that she hadn't noticed her entry. That also meant she saw her having another vision. A sort of awkward silence set in between them, with S'eni staring at her, while Yda was still grinning. "So, uh..."
"You're a member of Ul'dah's pugilist guild, right?" she was asked before being able to address the Adamantoise in the room.
S'eni found herself blinking rapidly. So she wasn't going to ask about her little episode just now?
Fine by me.
"...I am." S'eni nodded slowly.
"That's incredible!" Yda leaned towards her and she found herself backing away a little as she found her personal space sorely invaded. "So that means you're studying under the Holyfist, right?"
"Yes."
Well, as much as she could with things being as they were with the old man. But that was a worry for another day.
"No wonder you're so skilled. He's a legend!"
S'eni couldn't help the chuckle escaping her. The only thing he was probably legendary for these days were his skirt-chasing ways.
Pointing at the weapons hanging at either side of the other woman's hips, she said: "And you're a pugilist as well."
"Uh-huh!"
"I didn't know Sharlayan trained in the arts as well. But I guess I should've known that the place famous for knowledge would also have studies on how to beat someone up."
"Yeah, something like that!" Yda said, a note of...something she couldn't place entering her voice for barely a second before returning to her usual cheer. "But anyway, it's no wonder you beat Ifrit as soundly as you did with the Holyfist as your teacher."
At the mention of the fiery primal, S'eni's expression darkened. It didn't escape Yda's notice, who tilted her head in question. "Something wrong?"
S'eni shook her head, then just sighed and let herself slump back against the wall. Who was she even kidding?
"This whole thing with Ifrit...it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. I may have beaten him, but innocents are still being put to the sword. I know it's not my fault, but I still wish I could have done something," she finally admitted, eyes landing on the floor. "It's silly, I know."
"It's not silly at all," Yda said, that strange tone back in her voice. "Sometimes things are beyond our control..."
She was just about to reply, when the other woman suddenly rose to her feet and stepped in front of her, holding out her hand. S'eni looked at it, cocking an eyebrow, before turning her gaze upward.
"You need to unwind, don't you? Come, I'll help you!"
She looked at the other woman, taking note of the sincerity in her voice, and couldn't help the smile forming on her lips. With a nod, she reached out and grasped Yda's hand.
"Alright. What do you have in mind?" S'eni asked after she was pulled to her feet.
"Oh, you're going to like this," Yda replied with an eager grin. "You and I are going to beat each other up!"
"Eh?"
S'eni breathed evenly, her eyes closed as she stretched her arms forward then over her head, arching her back with a satisfied grunt before letting them flop down to her sides. She then started to hop, focusing her weight on the balls of her feet while she did so.
Opening her eyes, she looked towards Yda, who was doing her own little warm-up regiment, mostly consisting of squats.
Once both of them were sufficiently warmed up, they walked towards one another with slow and precise steps; neither giving themselves away to the other.
It was as they only stood a few feet apart that S'eni spoke up.
"Not to complain," she said, taking on a firm stance, her fists raised and ready. "But why are we outside?"
They were standing in the yard in front of the Waking Sands, the sound of the waves coming from the nearby sea and the people further up mixing in the background. Their weapons lay discarded near the building's steps, both having agreed that it would be best to train without them. Nothing giving them an edge; just pure skill.
"More space," she said simply. "And the last time I broke something Papalymo never let me hear the end of it."
S'eni watched Yda as she brought her arms up, doing a little flourish not unlike that of a dancer in a graceful manner almost uncharacteristic for the other woman, before snapping into a firm stance herself.
Her eyes narrowed as she scanned her opponent. Yda was about half a head taller than her, something that would give her a slight edge over her. Their skills, she surmised, were roughly on the same level, but one could never know what ace someone could have up their sleeve.
Both of them exhaled, and the battle began.
Yda was the first to strike, aiming a punch at her face that S'eni slapped aside, followed by an upward angled elbow strike that she side-stepped. Using the momentum from the near-miss, the other woman whirled around to hit her in the stomach. S'eni managed to catch the fist, twist the arm upward and slam her shoulder into Yda. The other woman stumbled backwards but managed to catch herself and kick at her.
S'eni snaked her left arm around the other's leg, holding her firmly in place, and started to push forward to force her onto the ground.
"Got you!" Yda shouted as she jumped and twisted herself in the air to hit S'eni squarely in the face with a plated boot, sending them both tumbling to the ground.
That...hurt! S'eni pushed herself off the ground, wiping at her lip to inspect it for blood, before facing Yda once more, who had gotten back on her feet as well.
With a grin, the other woman beckoned her forward. The corners of S'eni's lips quirked upward to mirror the expression.
This was going to be fun.
Now it was S'eni's turn to attack. She threw a left punch that was swiftly blocked, then whirled around in an attempt to slam her right fist into the side of Yda's head, only to meet thin air as the other woman bend backwards. Catching her off guard, Yda shot forward with a punch of her own.
Quickly, S'eni found herself on the defensive again, dodging and blocking as many blows that she could while trying to ignore the few smaller ones that managed to grace her. Closing her eyes, she focused on nothing but the woman in front of her, moving through the forms that she had been taught until she started to once again keep up with the increasing speed of Yda's blows.
There!
S'eni stepped sideways, her hand shooting up to grab Yda's wrist as she tried to strike at her, and immediately slammed her elbow into her chest then upward against her chin. The other pugilist's head snapped back, leaving her open for S'eni to grab her other arm. She crossed it with the one she was still holding and pushed them down to unbalance Yda.
Without letting her recover, S'eni attacked her with a flurry of light blows to the chest, before striking her in the face with her open palm. The force of the blow knocked her a few feet away.
Yda's hand went up to her face, which was already starting to turn red where she had been hit, then returned her attention to S'eni, who shuffled a little in place and brushed her thumb against her nose in a taunting manner.
"Already done?"
"Oooh, I'm only getting started!" Yda replied with a wide grin, palming her fist.
They stared at one another for a few seconds before rushing forward.
The sounds of their battle echoed throughout Vesper Bay, catching the attention of some of the inhabitants who were curious as to what the source of all this racket was. Over time the crowd grew larger and larger until it felt like the whole town had amassed there to spectate.
One clever little Lalafel merchant even started a betting pool for the Masked Avenger and the Miqo'te Master.
But the two paid them no mind, their focus solely resting on one another as they gave no quarter.
Yda leaped at her, rotating her hips to aim a kick at her head that S'eni ducked out under. The momentum of the attack made her spin in the air as she fell, enabling her to roll off the ground and launch herself legs first towards S'eni. She brought her arms up, but the sheer force still sent her flying.
Shifting her weight as best as she could, S'eni rolled backwards into a somersault before landing on the ground, feet wide apart and her weight resting on her hand.
Not wasting any time, S'eni dashed forward, attacking Yda with a series of punches that were each slapped aside, but left the other women wide open for the foot that was hooking itself behind her leg and pulled it out from underneath her.
Yda let out a surprised yelp as she fell onto her back, staring up as S'eni raised her leg to bring it down on her. With the reflexes of a Coeurl, the other woman kicked her leg out and slammed it into S'eni.
With a cry, S'eni fell face first—
"Oof!"
—right onto Yda's stomach, knocking the wind out of her.
They remained lying on the ground for a bit, and the onlookers were starting to chatter amongst themselves what that meant for their bets, until S'eni's shoulders started to shake, followed by muffled laughter.
Yda soon joined in and S'eni pushed herself off to lie down on the ground. Above them, the sky was a clear blue, not a single cloud marring the beautiful view.
And for the first time since Thancred had told her the news, S'eni felt lighter.
"Yda..." she said after her laughter subsided. "Thank you. I needed that."
"Don't mention it," Yda replied, raising her hand in a thumbs up, before letting it slump back down.
The two women stared up at the clear sky as tiny footsteps started to approach them and their view was soon blocked by the upside-down face of Papalymo as he glared down at them.
"Hello Papalymo," Yda said with a grin on her lips while S'eni gave him a friendly wave.
"Are you two quite finished?" he asked. He hmpfed when both of them simultaneously nodded. "Good. Then get back inside! Minfilia wishes to speak with us."
"Tell her we'll be there shortly," S'eni said and pushed herself into a sitting position.
With a final shake of his head and a snort, he turned on his heel and made his way back to the entrance of the Waking Sands, muttering: "By the twelve, why do I always have to deal with this?"
Watching the Lalafel as he left, S'eni rose back to her feet and dusted herself off before holding out her hand to help Yda up.
"You know," S'eni said as they headed back inside. "We really should do this again someday."
"I'm already looking forward to it!"
The crowd, realizing that the fight truly was over, started to disperse and go back to what they were doing before all of this.
"And what about our money?"