A War Reignited
As if things hadn't been bad enough, they had quickly taken a turn for the worse, as the seeds of chaos we had planted in the Garlean provinces had been quickly snuffed out like the flame of a candle.
On top of that, Alphinaud too had succumbed to the same condition that plagued my friends and returned to us by someone we had thought dead: Gaius van Baelsar.
But there was no time to ponder on that. With the opposition in the provinces removed, Emperor Varis quickly turned his sight westward, towards Ala Mhigo.
The Ghymlit Dark.
That was the name the people had given the land which served as the single land route between Aldenard and Ilsabard. A name quite fitting, as the mixture of the already harsh terrain and aetheroclimatic conditions had cast the entire area into perpetual darkness that only the bravest dared to cross.
To S'eni though, it felt oddly reminiscent of Carteneau, the sky covered by dark clouds as far as the eye could see, just like on that day. Closing her eyes, she could practically envision Dalamud looming above, closing in on them with every passing second and, if she concentrated hard enough, could even feel the heat of the flames on her skin.
But when she opened them again, all she could see were the trenches cutting through the landscape. And beyond them: the gathering forces of the Garlean Empire. Headed by none other than the Emperor himself.
War again, she thought. Though they technically never stopped being at war, there had been a short time of brevity for them which made it seem like peace was a solution.
However, the last bits of that hope had been crushed entirely by their recent parley with the man.
It hadn't been the first time that she had stood face to face with Varis zos Galvus. She still very much remembered her brief encounter with the man when they were searching for Azys Lla, but it was only today that she truly saw the depth of his character. Imposing, just like his son, but where Zenos was like a chained-up predator looking to sink his teeth in ever stronger prey, his father was much more methodical, having taken great pains to study the history of Eorzea to refute every single of their arguments.
Even their eyes were different, with Zenos' only ever lighting up when he had finally found the challenge he had been looking for, while Varis' held a fire in them, cold still, but burning nevertheless with the righteousness of his cause that didn't waver a single iota even as he told everyone gathered that the Empire was created by an Ascian's hand.
With a sigh, S'eni let herself lie back on the stony ground, grimacing a little as it dug into her back.
Things were only getting more complicated by the day.
She frowned.
Like Gaius suddenly returning to the living as well and hunting down Ascians. She hadn't first recognized the man as he carried Alphinaud's unconscious body towards, having never seen him without his helmet after all, but there had been no mistaking that voice.
S'eni didn't know how to feel about this, but for now there were more important things to worry about.
"Strange bedfellows indeed..." she murmured. Her ears perked up when they picked up the sound of footsteps and she brought her head back to see an upside-down Lyse approaching her.
"Ah, here you are," her friend greeted her, looking down at her with a smile when she came to a stop.
"Raubahn already looking for me?"
"Not yet, but it won't be much longer." the other woman sat down next to her and looked out into the distance. A sigh escaped her. "When will the bloodshed end, I wonder?"
"I don't know," S'eni replied, sitting back up. Her eyes landed on a Garlean airship in the distance. It was small, most likely delivering more troops that would join the battle.
"Yeah...I figured that..." Shaking her head, Lyse tore her eyes away from the sight and looked at her instead. "How are you feeling?"
She chuckled. "Believe it or not, but Master Matoya asked me the same thing."
"What, really?" her friend blinked in surprise. "Our Master Matoya?"
"I know, right. But—" she held a finger against her lips. "—I rather like my tail where it is."
They both burst into laughter and she could feel the past days' tension dissipate, if only a little.
"Honestly? I'm strangely alright," S'eni admitted. "I know I can't do anything for the others. I'm not some Sharlayan scholar. But I can fight and right now that gives me something to focus on."
A purpose.
After all, what good did it do worrying about Y'shtola and the others when there wasn't a home for them to return to in the first place?
"Oh, that's good," Lyse said and she could practically feel the waves of relief resonating from her, only to be replaced by nervousness as her shoulders slumped. "At least one of us is calm. You'd think after all these battles we've had I would've gotten used to it by now. But here I am, still getting jitters."
As if to underline her words, she held up a shaking hand for a few seconds, then let it drop into her lap once more. Lyse closed her eyes, taking a few deep breaths.
Just like S'eni had taught her.
"There, better!" her friend said after opening her eyes again, a look of determination in them. "At least a little anyway."
"Good to see my other lessons stuck," S'eni said with an amused smile forming on her lips.
"Couldn't just take your combat techniques after all."
"You could have. But I'd been very disappointed."
Lyse giggled and looked out into the distance again. "This isn't going to be like Ala Mhigo. Do you think we can do it?"
"No." Lyse turned her head towards S'eni. "I know we can."
"S'eni…"
She shook her head. "Call me Eni. I think by now you've more than earned that right."
Blue eyes widened for a few seconds before filling with a warmth that reached her lips and she gave her a nod. "Alright, Eni. Wow, that feels different."
"Yeah, well, don't wear it out." S'eni grinned.
Heavy footfalls made them glance over their shoulders towards the Resistance soldier hurrying towards them. Stopping a few steps away from them, he saluted before saying, "Commander Aldynn requests your presence, Lieutenant Gata!"
"I'll be right there." she rose to her feet and held out her hand to help Lyse up. "Good luck out there."
"You too!"
Heading back into camp, she quickly found Raubahn standing together with Hien and Alisaie, the latter giving her a nod as she joined.
"Lieutenant," the commander of the Ala Mhigan forces greeted her. "Now that you are here, let's proceed with your and Alisaie's orders."
"What would you have us do," the young Elezen asked calmly.
"The two of you are to join an irregular unit of adventurers and support the main host as we advance forward," he explained. "I talked with Lord Hien and he thinks it would be a good idea for you to accompany the Doman contingent."
Hien hummed in agreement. "They are strangers here, and your presence would do much to raise their spirits."
"We would be honored," Alisaie said and turned to look towards her. "Ready to frighten some Garleans?"
"You bet," she replied, punching her palm.
Raubahn laughed. "What I wouldn't give to join you, but my duties as field commander won't allow. I'll leave the front line in your hands."
Giving each of them a nod, the commander walked away to speak to the troops. Hien too parted with them to discuss further proceedings with Yugiri and the other Domans, leaving S'eni and Alisaie alone.
"Since the others can't be here, we'll have to fight twice as hard," the younger woman said after a moment of silence. "If Alphinaud wakes up and finds that the imperials have won, I would never hear the end of it."
They both chuckled, watching as the gathered troops began to cheer together with their leader before scattering off to their respective posts.
"It's strange…I thought I would be terrified. I should be terrified. But with you at our side, I can't help but feel that everything is going to be alright. So…" Alisaie's expression grew serious. "Don't you dare leave me alone. No matter what happens, we have to survive. Together."
Not waiting for a response, her friend held a fist out towards her.
S'eni looked at her. Really looked at her. Gone was the girl she had seen storming off on that day in Ul'dah, frustrated by the leadership of Eorzea and determined to find her own way separate from her brother, replaced by the woman in front of her, now willing to fight alongside those she had previously written off.
The corners of her lips curling into a smile, she reached out—
"Together," she promised.
—and bumped her fist against Alisaie's.
Little did she know that she had just said goodbye to another friend.