Answers pt. 2
The crypt of Xandes was draped in an aetherial glow as she knelt in front of the divine symbol of Thaliak, the Scholar. It was the last stop on her pilgrimage across Eorzea to pray to the Twelve for the salvation of the realm from the descending Dalamud.
Her eyes were closed, shielding them from the blinding light coming from the crystals in front of her.
It was meant to end with the death of Nael van Darnus, yet the red moon of Allag still descended upon them and according to Gaius the VIIth Legion, instead of breaking apart, had entrenched itself near Mor Dhona.
She didn't like to listen to the Black Wolf's words, but like had Y'shtola said to her when she told her about their meeting, he had no desire to see Eorzea destroyed; if only to conquer it himself.
And with her friend relaying this information to the leaders of the Alliance the battle was soon to begin.
As she finished her prayer, the crystals' light pulsed like the beating of a heart, before dimming to its natural glow. Opening her eyes, S'eni rose to her feet and stared at the sigil of Thaliak in front of her.
She just hoped the Twelve had heard her prayer.
Hearing the sounds of footsteps made her turn around and she saw Louisoix and Urianger approaching her. The older Archon raised his staff as it started to glow in the same almost blinding light as all the other sigils had done.
It didn't last long, and by the time S'eni had come to stop in front of them the glow was gone once again and Louisoix lowered the Tupsimati.
"The light of hope waxeth ever more bright..." Urianger said in that poetic way of his.
"Aah. I feel it! There can be no doubt; the gods are stirring." Louisoix looked around, closing his eyes for a moment before resting them on her. "Your presence is a boon to the realm, S'eni. Thanks to you, we may yet still prevail. All that remains now is for those in Eorzea to join as one in prayer. In doing so, the gods will surely descend."
"Master, forgive me mine impertinence," Urianger interrupted the older man. "But the VIIth legion yet stands betwixt us and our objective."
Louisoix looked at his student for a second, then back towards her. S'eni shrugged. She had been about to point that out as well.
"Gods forbid I forget that detail!" he nodded. "Aye, we must secure suitable grounds for the summoning, though I feat it means throwing the entire might of the alliance against the empire."
"So what happens next?" she asked.
"I will prepare to receive Dalamud, while Thancred and the other shall marshal the will of those that abide in this land and by the grace of the Twelve deliver Eorzea from her doom and into a new era of peace and prosperity."
Urianger turned to look at her, inclining his head, before speaking. "Dire though they seem upon first hearing, the words of Mezaya Thousand Eyes are, in sooth, a promise of salvation."
He walked past her and S'eni glanced over her shoulder to see him look at the sigil of Thaliak. "Yet whence that salvation wouldst come, no man could say. Only now, as the shadow of Dalamud loometh large, doth the truth wax plain to sight."
"What do you mean?"
"The valiant blades of which the seventh verse spoke betoken than thee and thy fellow adventurers," he replied. "Though heavens spew crimson flames, and hells seep black dooms, by thy hands shall Eorzea look upon a new dawn."
Turning around on his heel, the Elezen offered her a graceful bow before wordlessly taking his leave. She watched him go, his words echoing inside her mind.
By my hands, she thought and looked at them. When she had left her home, she never would have thought that she would ever face a Primal, much less defeat an imperial Legatus, and now she and her comrades were to usher in a new era for Eorzea?
It was quite a heavy burden.
Her musings were interrupted when Louisoix spoke once more. "Urianger speaks true. Like him, I harbor no fear for the preservation of Eorzea. Your presence alone serves as ample reassurance."
"Louisoix..." The older man gave her a kind smile and nodded.
"Where men go as one, there is life. And where there is life, there is cause for hope," he said in a kind, grandfatherly tone. "If I can but see you to a new future, I should want for nothing more."
She stared at him for a moment, before smiling herself. "Don't go dying on me now."
He laughed at her words. "Do not worry, I have no plans on dying just yet. I have two adorable grandchildren that I have to tell stories about the Warriors of Light after all."
His expression then turned serious and he motioned for her to walk with him.
"S'eni, as the others and I prepare for the hour of reckoning, you join forces with your comrades and the Alliance's troops at the summoning grounds on the southeastern expanse of Mor Dhona, and prepare to repel the VIIth imperial legion."
"Mhm." She nodded.
Once they had stepped out of Xandes crypt and into the open, Louisoix turned to look her in the eye. "Go well, S'eni. The blessing of the Twelve be upon you."
"And when this is over, the first round will be on me," she said, palming her fist.
That kind smile returned to his features. "I shall look forward to that."
S'eni ran across the battlefield, the sounds of combat and cries of pain echoing all around her. Explosions shook the ground as magitek armors and magic clashed against one another, condemning multiple poor souls to a fiery end.
Above them, looming ever closer, was Dalamud. It was now close enough that one could see the patterns that marked all Allagan technology, glowing an ominous blue as bits and pieces were coming off of it that descended all across the continent.
The smell of smoke and blood invaded her nostrils as she stared up at it.
How long is this going to take!? S'eni asked herself when the sounds of plated boots made her snap her attention to the legionary running towards her. Raising the claws she was holding in her hands, she blocked the blade coming at her.
She pushed him back with a cry, immediately going into the counter offense and swiping a claw across his throat. Blood gushed out of the wound, splattering her face and armor, but she had no time to lament her enemy's fate as one of his comrades came at her right after.
With trained reflexes, S'eni lowered herself to the ground and swiped the legs out from under him, plunging her other claw into his chest.
A cry made her glance over her shoulder to see another legionary run at her, his sword gleaming in the light of Dalamud as he prepared to bring it down on her. Pulling her weapon out of the corpse in front of her, S'eni managed to bring her hands up to block the strike, wedging the blade between the edges of her claws.
She struggled against him, gritting her teeth as he pushed down with all his might. With a cry she pushed back and managed to turn around, twisting the weapon out of his grip in the process and flinging it away. Completely open, he had no chance as she grabbed the side of his head and only managed a startled scream before she plunged the blades of her weapon through his helmet and into his skull.
His body twitched for a few seconds, lifeless eyes staring at her through the cracked helmet, before collapsing under his own weight as she removed her claw with a sickening sound. Dead like so many others on this cursed day.
Gods... S'eni closed her eyes for but a moment.
A mistake.
The sound of a gun going off made her whirl around, eyes opening wide, just in time for the bullet to penetrate her armor and enter her body in a small explosion of blood, knocking her to the ground.
Flaming hot pain shot through her, making her cry out, and she felt her blood gushing out of her wound like the water of one of Gridania's many springs.
Maybe it was the adrenaline coursing through her body, trying and failing to dull the pain, but somehow she managed to angle her head so she could look at the one that had shot her, the muzzle of his gun still smoking and once more taking aim at her to finish the job.
All of a sudden, a shield came spinning through the air, knocking against the rifleman and throwing off his aim at the last second, causing the bullet to bury itself into the ground next to her head.
A vision of curly red hair entered her vision, running towards the legionary and catching the shield as it flew through the air, before running him through with a sword.
"Get her out of here!" the woman shouted towards the other two that joined, a Lalafel woman with strawberry hair and an older Hyur, holding up her shield to protect them as they made their retreat.
She felt herself being lifted off the ground, watching as the Lalafel's hand was engulfed in flames before shooting a huge ball of fire into a group of Garlean troops heading their way.
"I've got ye!" S'eni heard him say while she was carried off to the spot their company had entrenched themselves near where Louisoix was still preparing the summoning.
"S'eni!" a voice called out as she was carefully placed on the ground, soon followed by kind brown eyes and full blonde hair. A hand moved to hover over her injury, shortly followed by the tell-tale glow of a cure spell.
As the spell did its work, S'eni cried out again, body twisting and turning as it tried to remove the foreign object nestled deep inside her flesh.
"Hold her still!" Two pairs of hands grabbed her, pushing her shoulders down to the ground. Another hand placed itself on her forehead, its warmth soothing.
Her cries were growing louder and louder as the pain intensified, seconds feeling like an agonizing eternity until they abruptly died down when the bullet was finally removed.
A wave of relief washed over her as the pain started to fade, being replaced by the pleasant warmth of healing magic, and she felt herself grow slack as it knitted her flesh back together.
"You're going to make it, S'eni."
A weak, bloody smile was her reply. Slowly, she felt her strength returning to her and pushed herself back up.
"Careful there," she heard her friend say.
"I'm fine! We need to push back the VIIth legion!" Jumping on a nearby rock she looked out towards the battle, where the Garleans were giving as good as they got. They needed to get the upper hand, and fast!
"There!" a member of their company shouted, pointing at Dalamud. The ominous blue glow was growing brighter by the second, and from one moment to the next a large piece came loose and fell right into the middle of the battlefield, sending a shockwave of dust across the flats that made them cover their eyes and nearly knocked her back down to the ground.
Pulling her arms away from her face, S'eni stared at the Allagan moon, eyes growing wide as the blue gave way to a fiery orange and—
"Gods forfend!"
—it started to fall apart and a pair of giant wings pushed their way through the top. Little by little, as if hatching from an egg, the form of a dragon revealed itself to them.
Everything was silent for a moment, both sides too shocked at this sudden turn of events, before the dragon opened its maw and let out an ear-piercing scream. What remained of Dalamud exploded, sending a rain of destruction in every direction that shook the very earth.
Screams echoed through the air as people on both sides started to run for their lives, trying to get as far away from this monstrosity as possible.
"No..." she could only look on in disbelief as this dragon, this Primal, flew across the sky at blinding speed, laying waste to everything around them.
"WATCH OUT!" the voice of one of her fellow adventurers called out as some of its fiery rays were heading directly towards them. They tried to get behind cover, but it was too late.
Or so it seemed, when just before they were hit, a bright blue dome of aetherial light surrounded them. Turning around in surprise, she saw Louisoix, the Tupsimati glowing in his hand, and grimacing in concentration as he tried to keep the barrier up for as long as possible.
But even for him, the sheer destructive energy was too much, and the dome shattered into a million pieces, the resulting shockwave knocking everyone back.
A loud growl pervaded the air and a gust of wind knocked the wind out of her as the dragon fully turned its attention on those that would dare to try to escape destruction.
It was at that moment when it happened.
To the east a giant pillar of light shot into the sky, piercing the very cloud, followed by another in the south and a third one in the west.
The Twelve!
The light gathered all around them, creating a storm of aether, and Louisoix raised his staff high into the air. The aether glowed, then took the shape of giant spears that shot towards the Primal.
It screamed as the spears formed a barrier around it, encasing it layer upon layer until it was surrounded by a sphere of pure magical energy.
Come on, come on! S'eni pleaded in her mind, scrambling back onto her feet as she saw each of the Twelve's symbols rise in the sky around the sphere. Clenching her hand, she prayed to Azeyma herself to get them out of this.
Their triumph was close at hand when suddenly the sphere exploded and the symbols of their gods dissipated into aether.
She dropped to her knees, watching as the flare of destruction the dragon used to break free grew larger and larger until it looked like the entire sky was burning. One of her comrades started to sob, and she too could feel hot tears starting to run down her face.
Everyone...I'm sorry... she apologized in her mind, hoping that at least Y'shtola and the others would survive. Heat licked at her skin as destruction crept closer and closer.
Papa...
A bright flash followed by a startled cry awoke her from her stupor, and she found herself surrounded by bright light. As she glanced over her shoulder she saw each of her comrades vanishing one by one until only she remained.
Eyes widening in realization, she looked up to see Louisoix, kneeling high above, resting on his staff while his outstretched hand weaved an arcane pattern. His eyes found hers, and S'eni could see the same kind smile he had given her earlier this day.
"If I can but see you to a new future, I should want for nothing more." She heard his words echo inside her mind and she stretched her hand out towards him.
"Louiso—"
And then, nothing.
The clearing was absolutely quiet, not a sound was heard bar the chirping of the birds flying through the sky, and the sun was shining brightly above.
A sudden flash and the sound of a body dropping to the ground disturbed this idyllic scenery, scaring away little animals that were partaking in nature's offerings nearby.
It became still for a moment, then a groan echoed through the air as cherry pink eyes were opened to glaring sunlight.
Shielding her eyes, S'eni slowly pushed herself off the ground, taking a look around.
Where was she?
She rose to her feet and almost fell back down as the world around her started spinning, and her hand gripped her head at the gods awful headache she was having. Breathing in and out, the world became a little less dizzy, and she took her first steps. Once she was sure that she was steady on her feet, she left the clearing.
S'eni found herself soon wandering through a veritable sea of trees that could only be the Black Shroud. How in the seven hells did she end up here?
But that wasn't important right now; she needed to find-
What did she need to find?
Water a voice in the back of her mind all but screamed and she only now realized how thirsty she was.
Luckily for her, a spring was soon found and she had to hold herself back from straight-up diving into it. Gathering as much water as she could, she greedily drank it all up, then dipped her hands back in. She repeated it a few more times until she felt her thirst quenched for the time being.
Releasing a sigh of relief, she looked down at her reflection inside the water and immediately frowned when she noticed that her face was covered in...something.
Taking a closer look, she startled backwards. Was that blood!?
Looking down at herself, she saw the armor she was wearing was covered in it as well. Her heart skipped a beat, before hammering up to her ears as panic started to overwhelm her. Why was she covered in blood!?
Breath growing wild and hands shaking, her fingers started to claw at the chest piece in a desperate attempt to get it off. After multiple tries, she finally managed to pry it off of her and tossed it as far away as possible.
Pain shot through her head, but she ignored it and instead dove back towards the spring, gathering water and rubbing it all over her face to get rid of the blood.
Images flashed inside her mind, of soldiers fighting and dying.
No no no no! She gathered more water, rubbed more fiercely. Need to get it off!
Of fire all around her.
Get it off!
Of a giant dragon looming above her.
Get it off!
Of a kind smile as the world was about to come to an end.
GET IT OFF!
The pain grew in intensity, her entire brain consumed by the flames inside her mind, and she grabbed the sides of her head. Crying out, S'eni's head snapped upward, her eyes wide and unfocused as more and more images flooded her mind, becoming a kaleidoscope of moments that spun around and around.
Around and around
Around and around.
Until finally, it exploded into millions of pieces, and the pain was gone.
...
...
...
S'eni blinked once, twice, before looking around. What was she doing here?
Her eyes landed on the spring in front of her. She stared at it for a moment, tilting her head to the side, before reaching out and gathering some of its water to drink. She wasn't particularly thirsty, but it couldn't hurt.
She still had some ways to go after all!
As she was wiping excess water from her mouth her ears perked when an unmistakable sound echoed forwards. The "wark!" of Chocobos.
Jumping to her feet, S'eni ran towards the sound and soon found herself on a road built between the trees. She looked around for the source of the noise and spotted a Chocobo carriage as it slowly travelled towards her.
"HEEEEEEYYYYY!" she shouted, jumping and waving her hands.
With some luck, she could catch a ride with. Honestly, she should have just bought a passage when she had arrived on the mainland.
That way she wouldn't have gotten lost on the way to Ul'dah!
The warm feeling of hands cupping her face was the first thing she felt as she came to, holding her like a mother would hold her child or a sister would hold a dear sibling, filling her with a sense of security.
Slowly, she opened her eyes, blinking a few times to focus her vision. The blurry silhouette hovering above gave way to Minfilia, looking down at her with concerned eyes.
"S'eni!" her friend exclaimed. "Thank the Twelve!'
"Minfilia..." S'eni replied, a smile slowly creeping onto her features. "...you grew your hair out."
A gasp escaped the other woman, and she removed one of her hands to cover her mouth. "Do you really-?"
"Remember?" she asked right back, getting a nod in return. "I do. How we met, the battle, everything."
Minfilia breathed out a laugh, brushing the tears away that started to pool in her eyes.
Using her elbows to prop herself up, she looked around. They were still on the platform, but Minfilia had been quick-thinking enough to pull her into a quiet corner, lest any of the soldiers gathered around might have spotted their new hero collapsed on the ground.
"Are you alright?" Minfilia asked as S'eni rose to her feet.
"I'm fine. Better than fine actually," she replied, looking at her friend as she stood up as well. Their eyes met for a moment before Minfilia looked away while biting her lip.
"I'm sorry...I-I didn't know what else to do..."
"It's alright, you're not at fault," S'eni said, taking a step towards her friend and placing a hand on her shoulder. "My memories were lost, hidden deep inside of me because I couldn't handle what happened, and it's only thanks to you that I remember now. Thank you, Minfilia."
After saying those words, she offered her friend an earnest smile. Minfilia returned the smile and moved in to hug her.
"Welcome back," the other woman said.
"It's good to be back." Closing her eyes, she moved to return the hug. She had been asleep, trapped in a dream of her own making; but she was back now and—
"Excuse me!" a voice called out, making them pull apart and look towards its source. It was a young officer of the Immortal Flames, standing to attention. "The assault is about to begin and General Raubahn wishes to speak with you."
—there was still much to be done. "Tell him I'm on my way."
The officer saluted her in the customary way of the Flames before marching off. S'eni turned towards Minfilia, giving her a little shrug.
"Duty calls," she said.
Minfilia giggled. "That it does."
"We'll catch up when this is over," S'eni promised and started to follow the officer, but stopped after only a few steps when her friend called after her and glanced over her shoulder.
"May the light guide you on your way."
S'eni looked at her for a moment before releasing a chuckle and sending her a wink. As she started to leave once again, she raised her hand in a wave. "I'll try to not damage Thancred's pretty face when I beat that Ascian out of him," she said, a grin splitting her face at the chuckle that escaped her friend.
Heading towards where Raubahn was waiting for her, S'eni nodded at a group of troops as they saluted her, then turned her gaze towards the Castrum in the distance.
"Live, adventurer, and we may well meet again," she heard the words Gaius had said to her five years ago echo inside her mind.
You got your wish, Gaius, even if you might not remember. But this has gone on for long enough.
It was time to end this.
So first off, this was initially one chapter, but I decided to make this a two parter for ease of reading for any of you that might be reading on mobile.
Alright, so this here was a little experiment. Dunno if I succeeded entirely, but I liked the idea. So one day when I was planning this thing out, I learned of the whole Legacy thing that players taking over their characters from 1.0 into ARR received, like the small difference in cutscenes, the fact that people bar Minfilia forgot about the Warrior of Light ect. It intruiged me, but obviously never having been a Legacy player myself, my experience with the story was slightly different. Then I got the idea into my head to essentially combine it and have her own memories be affected as well. I can't deny that I got majorly inspired by FF VII in that regard, but I guess that, in a way, is also very in the spirit of XIV, which likes to reference and reinvent/tweak themes from all over the franchise.
Anyway, I hope it's enjoyable for what it is, and don't worry. More to come.
Until then!