Plains of the Sun
We left Yanxia as the first lights crept over the mountains, travelling across the coast of the Ruby Sea until we reached the path that would lead us further inland and into the Azim Steppe.
I still remember the surprise I felt at seeing this great emptiness of grassy plains, its inhabitants beholden only to themselves and their gods.
Finding Hien seemed almost impossible at first but ended up rather simple.
Well, by our standards anyway.
A vast, almost endless, sea of green stretched out as far as the eye could see, flowing gently back and forth in emerald waves as a gentle wind blew across it. Above their heads, the sun shone brightly, wrapping them in a pleasant warmth that she knew could turn harsh in an instant with just a small shift in weather.
Primal and untamed, these lands were not made to be inhabited, S'eni could tell. And yet, the nomadic tribes that lived here had not only managed to survive these conditions but also thrive in them.
It was something that deserved respect.
But as fascinating as the scenery was, her eyes were soon drawn to the man seated near the edge of the hillside that overlooked Reunion, legs crossed and shoulders relaxed. To the left of him laid his sheathed blade.
For a moment, it almost looked like he didn't notice as they approached him. Only a subtle shift of his head, making his messy ponytail dance a little, served as proof that he was indeed acknowledging their presence.
"Oh merciful Kami!" Gosetsu exclaimed. "My lord Hien!"
As soon as he had said those words, the old Samurai dropped to his knee alongside Yugiri.
"Ah, you arrived sooner than anticipated," Lord Hien said, taking hold of his sword and turning it in his hands. "So...my blade—"
He unsheathed it. "—or my head? Which do my people want of me?"
"The people of Yanxia remain loyal to Doma. I have seen the fire in their eyes. They are ready to fight," Yugiri said, not taking her eyes off the ground underneath them. "Return with us, my lord, and lead them to freedom."
"Then nothing less than liberty will suffice? A pity. It will certainly be more difficult than to deliver my head," he said and sheathed his blade again. "But if my people wish to pursue an impossible dream, then how could I deny them?"
Slapping his thigh, he quickly rose to his feet and turned around.
"Yugiri! Gosetsu!" his eyes turned towards Lyse and S'eni. "And...uh..."
"The Scions of the Seventh Dawn, my lord," Yugiri explained. "True friends that offered their help when we fled to Eorzea and journeyed across the sea to fight alongside us against the Empire. Their many deeds have made them heroes—"
"I understand, you don't need to say anymore," Hien interrupted her, a small chuckle escaping him. The Doman prince then looked between the two of them. "May I ask your names?"
"I'm Lyse."
"And I'm S'eni," she added.
"I have seen you help Cirina, S'eni. I owe her a great debt, so for that you have my thanks," he said and bowed his head. "There is no doubting your strength nor character. It will be an honor to fight alongside you."
"It was nothing," S'eni said, shaking her head.
"S'eni here has made it her calling to help people, you know?" Lyse explained to him with a chuckle. "Isn't that right?"
Not being able to refute that, she shrugged. Compulsive behaviour for sure...
"Now." Hien returned his attention to his two retainers and smiled. "Rise, my friends, and tell me about the situation in Doma."
Doing as they were told, Yugiri and Gosetsu explained what had happened ever since their journey across the Ruby Sea, with Hien listening intently to their every word.
Once they were done, he nodded before addressing Yugiri.
"You heard my decision. I want you to return to Yanxia and prepare our forces for my return. As for our guests..." he looked towards Lyse and her. "I would ask for you to remain here with me. I believe you will be of great help in the coming days."
"As you command, my lord, but..." the Shinobi's brow creased in confusion. "How much longer do you intend to stay?"
"Oh, only until I have won the Naadam," he replied, crossing his arms in front of his chest with a confident little grin. "I plan to return with a Xaela army."
S'eni's eyebrows shot up in surprise. This, she hadn't seen coming at all.
The Mol, as she was told, were one of the fifty tribes that roamed the Azim Steppe. Being a rather small one, they were content with their humble lot in life, spending most of their days hunting, gathering and taking care of their tiny herd of sheep; their few horses and even fewer of these giant birds that they call Yol.
It was little surprise that Mol Ilho, their chosen home for this time of year, was little more than a few yurts. Situated far north from Reunion, it was nestled between the side of a mountain and a series of rocks that served as a natural barrier against the predators that called these plains their homes just like the Au Ra of the Xaela did.
And if it wasn't for their gods decreeing that the Mol should take part in this year's Naadam, S'eni was very sure they would simply continue as they always had.
Under normal circumstances, they would not stand the slimmest chance to win this battle ritual. Which was precisely the reason they would fight alongside them.
In a bid to repay his debt to the Mol, as well as convincing the rest of the Xaela to follow him into battle, Hien wished to lead them to victory. An offer that, after initial protests, had been graciously accepted by the tribe's Khatun, Temulun.
A frown formed on S'eni's features as she looked up at the passing clouds in the sky, the words that the older woman had spoken to her echoing in the back of her mind.
"A singular radiance. Shimmering. Like a jewel of the Dusk Mother, blinding in its brilliance. Stars flicker and flock to you. Before such gathered light, even the secrets of the gods may be laid bare," she had said, looking her deep in the eye. "Some are fated to rise in grace and glory. Others to falter and fade, though not from memory. Both will be your strength and salvation when the end approaches. Cherish the stars and the light they bring you in the dark. For you are a traveler, are you not?"
She had to introduce her to Urianger when this was over. They both would get along famously with how they presented her with cryptic words whose meaning eluded her.
The sound of laughter pulled her out of her musings and made her look to the left. A smile formed on her lips when she spotted Lyse, playing with the children of the Mol, who had quickly taken a shine to her.
It was good seeing Lyse in high spirits. Ever since Papalymo's death, there had always been a shadow that seemed to surround her, having only gotten worse since their defeat at Rhalgr's Reach. Their training together had made it a little better, but it was only now, surrounded by these children as they played a little Xaela game, that she seemed to be herself again.
A voice drew her attention away from them and she glanced over her shoulder to see someone come out of the yurt behind her, holding multiple leather pouches stacked on top of one another. And from the looks of it, was about to drop them too.
All but jumping to her feet, S'eni bridged the gap just in time for this carefully struck balance to be broken and placed her hand on top of the stack.
"Careful there," she said. "Here, let me help you."
Taking two pouches, the face of the one carrying it revealed itself to S'eni. It was Cirina, the Khatun's granddaughter and the one that had led them to Hien earlier today.
"Thank you," the young Au Ra said, blowing a loose strand of red hair out of her eyes.
"The beverage for the feast?" she asked.
"Hmm?" the other woman looked at her questioningly and she shook one of the pouches, creating a sloshing sound. "Oh! Yes, it's just milk though. Warmed up it tastes delicious and will keep the chill away at night. We also make milk tea with it."
"From your sheep I take it?"
Cirina shook her head. "Our mares."
"Oh..." S'eni glanced down at them.
"Is that...a problem?"
"Oh, no no! Don't worry," S'eni assured her with a smile. "I just can't say I ever had horse milk before. So where do you need them?"
"Follow me."
As she was led by the young Au Ra, she found herself halting in her tracks for a moment and looking out at the horizon. "Hey, Cirina?"
"Yes?"
"What's that?" She pointed towards a bowl-shaped structure far to the south, looking colossal even from this distance. Pillars of stone protruded from the ground around it, giving it the look of a goblet held in a gigantic hand. "I've already noticed it back when we arrived in Reunion, but I never got to ask."
"That's the Dawn Throne," Cirina said after looking towards where she was pointing. "It's a sacred place where only those that have claimed victory in the Naadam are allowed to reside. These past few years that have been the Oronir."
"Hmm, I see. So the winner is allowed to settle down for a year then?" S'eni asked as they began to walk once more.
"In essence. Though there have been times where the winning tribe has waived this right."
Arriving at what seemed to be the center of Mol Ilho, she spotted the cooking fire that had been erected there. The slightly grassy smell told her, that the fruits of their labor were being put to good use.
"You can put them down here," Cirina said, placing her pouches on the ground next to the fire.
After doing so, S'eni watched the young woman remove the lid from the large pot above the fire and look upon its contents before reaching into a nearby bag and pulling out a bundle of herbs.
"Need some help?" she asked as Cirina placed them on a flat stone and pulled out a knife.
"That's kind of you, but you did enough already. You should rest for your trial," the other woman replied.
"Chopping some herbs isn't going to knock the wind out of me." S'eni winked. "And I doubt I would stand much of a chance tomorrow if it did."
Cirina chewed her bottom lip for a moment, then nodded. "Very well, then I will accept your kind offer."
Taking the knife that the Au Ra handed to her, S'eni knelt in front of the stone while Cirina went to attend the pot. She arranged the herbs, holding them in place with her other hand, and began chopping.
"You're very good at this."
"Well, when you grow up in a village, you learn how to do your chores," she said.
"What was it like, if you don't mind me asking?"
"Not too different from how you live actually. Though, unlike the Xaela, we're not nomadic," S'eni explained. "I lived on an island, far out on the sea. Each day, my sisters and I would go out to the sea to fish or take care of the crops we could grow on our soil. Obviously cooking was also something each of us had to do."
After she was done cutting, she scraped the herbs into a small bowl that she handed to Cirina.
"Some more?" she asked, hand already halfway to the bag.
"Hmm. Just a tiny bit."
"Alright." Taking a small bundle, she placed it on the stone and resumed cutting. Both fell silent for a moment, focusing on what they were doing instead. It was only when she handed Cirina the refilled bowl, that S'eni spoke up again. "You know, this reminds me of another Xaela I knew. Back then the only other Au Ra I had met was Yugiri, so I was pretty surprised when she showed up."
It was only after Idyllshire had grown, that she met more of them, having come from far and wide to seek work and a new home in this blossoming city.
And from what Krile had once told her, there were even some Au Ra all the way back in Sharlayan!
"What was she like?" Cirina asked, gently stirring their food.
"Intelligent, and very kind." S'eni smiled when memories of Mide talking with Roundrox surfaced in her mind. "But with a large burden resting on her shoulders."
Putting the knife away, she looked up at the sky. "She only vaguely talked about where she was from, but I realize now that she was talking about the Azim Steppe."
"Do you know which tribe she belonged to?"
What was the name the legend had mentioned again?
"I think it was...Hotgo." The gasp that escaped Cirina made S'eni turn her gaze towards her. "What is it?"
The young Au Ra had stopped stirring and stared into the pot for a few seconds before turning her head to return her look. "The Hotgo tribe...doesn't exist anymore. They were attacked by the Dotharl a few years ago and killed to the last."
S'eni could only stare at her upon this revelation.
"Your friend must have left them just shortly before it happened."
She didn't know how to feel about that. Mide had sacrificed herself to stop Alexander and be together with the person she loved most, frozen in time. The irony of it all, that they were destined to be the first of the Hotgo, when they were also possibly the last, left a slightly bitter taste behind.
"Yeah...I suppose she did."
At least she could take solace in the fact that Mide and Dayan would lead a good life.
S'eni watched the Au Ra while she cooked, switching the topic to a more cheerful one while trying to tickle a few hints about what this so-called trial entailed, but found her to be surprisingly tight-lipped about the topic. After a while, Cirina turned towards her with a smile that told her that dinner was ready.
"Would you be so kind to tell Hien and the others?" she asked.
"Sure."
As she headed over to where she had last seen her friends, she turned her eyes back towards the horizon, where the sun was slowly descending behind the wide mountain range, wrapping the endless sea of grass in gold.
It was a beautiful sight that could almost make one forget that this was a land where man had best tread carefully—
She turned away from the sight.
—and where only the strong survived.
I always figured that it must be quite the kick in the teeth to learn that the Hotgo tribe got wiped out after doing the Alexander storyline.