Death unto Dawn
Sharlayan's refusal to help, much as I'm loathe to admit, was entirely consistent with their historic position, dating back to the very founding days after the Sixth Umbral Calamity. But this time it was obvious the Forum was hiding something, that much was clear. Just what exactly it was, neither of us could tell, and Krile alone would not be enough to investigate the matter. Thus it was agreed that we all would join her as soon as we were able to.
Of course, as it happened so many times, grave tidings arrived soon after: the Telophoroi had been sighted marching west through Xelphatol and Coerthas, their goal...
...Carteneau. The place where it had all ended five years ago, and also where it had begun in a way. Maybe it was a quirk of fate, but for some unfathomable reason, she always seemed to find her way back here. Her eyes wandered up to the sky, where thick clouds were covering the night's sky, just like on the night where the forces of Eorzea had clashed with the remnants of the VIIth Legion. Only now, it was the Telophoroi and their horde of tempered awaiting them. Whatever it was they were seeking there, it couldn't be good.
Lowering her gaze once more, she instead looked at Alphinaud next to her, leaning against the railing of the Bonanza while staring out into the distance. His face held an expression of grim determination, and there was no doubt in S'eni's mind that he was thinking about the words that Arenvald had spoken to him.
"There!" he said after a moment, pointing up ahead across the ravaged landscape where the fires of battle were raging. The young man then looked at her and they shared a nod, before joining Alisaie and G'raha. Within minutes, the Bonanza arrived at the battlefield and they disembarked at a nearby Twin Adder fort, where Y'shtola and the others were waiting for them.
Upon joining their friends, a brief moment of silence passed between, broken only by the fighting going on just beyond the sturdy palisade.
"As you will undoubtedly know already, Sharlayan has refused our call for aid, making it all the more difficult to discern the Telophoroi's designs in the coming days," Alphinaud said. "And now we are faced with the full force of our adversary. A difficult time in which all we can do is to give it our all and hope for the best. We can still tip the balance in Eorzea's favor."
"Of course." Thancred smiled. "We will do what we always do: deal with the ones our allies can't. And given your expression, I would say you are more than ready. Could it be that you've dispelled your lingering doubts, Alphinaud?"
"I will always doubt myself. But instead of blaming myself for past regrets, I have chosen to look ahead. As my friends have kindly reminded me, I have come this far, and that must count for something."
"Gods be good, Alphinaud! That's what we've been trying to tell you all along," Alisaie said with a chuckle.
"For one so bright, he can be remarkably dim at times. But I suppose that is just how Alphinaud is," Estinien commented.
Alphinaud just smiled.
"Then it's time for us to join the battle, my friends," G'raha said, punching his palm. "Our enemy awaits!"
Alisaie nodded. "I'll do what I can to cure the tempered, but they'll have to be incapacitated first."
"Have care, my friends, for none can say wherefore our foe did choose this fateful field to be our battleground," Urianger said. "Whatever may transpire, pray grant him not the pleasure of deterring you."
They all shared a nod, then rushed out to join the fray.
Almost immediately after leaving the fort, their linkpearls let out a collective chime and they raised their hands to their ears.
"Listen well, friends. The Telophoroi are sweeping across Carteneau," Kan-E-Senna's voice said.
"What about Fandaniel?" S'eni asked.
"He was seen briefly sighted above the battlefield, but has since vanished," Merlwyb replied.
"Thus far, the movements of the lunar primals have proven difficult to predict. Even when poised to ambush our troops, they instead withdraw for some unknown reason..." Hien's voice joined the conversation, soon followed by Raubahn.
"Whatever the Telophoroi's plan may be, the primals are our primary targets," he ordered.
"Understood!" Alphinaud said. "They won't elude us for long!"
"We've got company!" Thancred then shouted, his hand going to the Gunblade on his back as he whirled towards the group of enemies rushing towards them.
"We can't allow ourselves to be stalled here!" Snapping his book open, the young Elezen summoned forth his trusty Carbuncle before hurling a spell forward, knocking two legionaries to the ground.
Maybe it was due to their tempered state, but it became swiftly apparent that despite being outnumbered, they were more than a match for their adversaries, striking them down with relative ease. What they lacked in comparative skills though, they made up for with sheer force as when one soldier fell, there were already two more to replace them. And that wasn't even counting the amount of Magitek weaponry they were also fielding.
With a cry, S'eni lunged at an approaching Magitek Reaper, kicking against its hull and making it lose its balance just as it was about to fire its cannon, causing it to hit one of the Armored Weapons. She backed away from the heat, looking about for her next enemy, when her back bumped against a familiar presence.
"Well, well, fancy meeting you here, Master Matoya," she said, a little smirk playing on her lips at the huff she received in return.
"Why, one might actually believe we are not fighting for our lives here," Y'shtola replied dryly, swinging her staff and sending lightning flying towards an approaching Sky Armor, making spin around and hurl off its pilot before exploding in a cloud of black smoke.
"Oh believe me—" dodging underneath the swipe of a sword, she slammed her palm against its owner's chest, tossing him backwards into a group of his comrades. "—I'm very much aware. Doesn't mean we can't raise our spirits a little while we're at it."
"Perhaps you should rather focus your attention on that Colossus there instead."
She looked to the side where, indeed, a Magitek Colossus was stomping towards them, its gigantic sword poised to strike. Opening the Chakras in her arms, she brought her palms together and released a ball of aether. It hit the Colossus squarely in the chest, ripping out large chunks of its hull and revealing the now broken machinery deep within. It took a few more steps forward, then fell sideways as it shut down.
"Thanks," S'eni said. "Think you can handle these?"
She nodded towards a group of tempered beastmen that came running.
"Hmm. One more and it might prove difficult."
"Then allow me to take care of that one."
"Far be it from me to interrupt," Thancred cut it, pulling the trigger of his Gunblade and creating a barrier to shield himself from a small barrage of bullets. "But I believe we might have to come up with something or else we're going to be stuck here!"
"Very well. Urianger, assist me!" Y'shtola called out. The Elezen nodded and spread out his arms simultaneously with her to create a dome of aether to keep the enemy at bay for the time being.
"If this persists we will never be able to find the primals," Alphinaud said.
"Then allow me to keep them occupied while the rest of you seek them!" G'raha replied as he placed his staff on his back and conjured up a magical sword and shield.
"Are you sure you can handle them on your own?" S'eni asked but Alisaie was quick to respond.
"Don't worry, I'll stay with him and try to cure some of the tempered!"
"Let us divide our forces that we may locate the primals more swiftly," Urianger suggested. "Thancred, Y'shtola, and I shall head east..."
"Then S'eni, Alphinaud, and I will head west," Estinien stated.
Y'shtola nodded. "Let us create an opening then. Urianger, on three. One. Two. Three!"
Together, they let the barrier explode outward, pushing their enemy back enough for them to break through.
"We're counting on you!" G'raha shouted and rushed forward with Alisaie.
"Come, follow me!" Spinning his lance, Estinien began to sprint westward, Alphinaud hot on his heels. S'eni made to follow them, but stopped herself to look at Y'shtola as she made to head east.
"Shtola?"
The other Miqo'te halted and looked over her shoulder. "Yes?"
"Love you." She winked.
Y'shtola gave her a look of disbelief, then shook her head with a sigh. "Really? Now?"
S'eni just giggled and began to sprint after Alphinaud and Estinien.
The battle raged as far as the eye could see, the clash of weapons pervading the air as they ran across the open field, always on the lookout for their quarry. But wherever they looked, there was no sight of any of them. As if they were hiding themselves.
Where in the hells are they? She wondered, but her thoughts were quickly interrupted by a group of tempered Ixal running towards them. Speeding up, she rushed ahead and for a brief second, her body was engulfed in light, changing her himation into black, sleeveless robes and covering her eyes with a similarly colored blindfold. The staff appeared in her hand, a nebula-like, deep orange aura surrounding its tip the moment her grip tightened. S'eni spun it around, before swinging it to the right, sending out a wave of cold air that froze the Ixals in place.
"Picked up a few tricks since we last saw each other, eh?" Estinien asked while they passed by their now incapacitated enemies.
"More than a few," S'eni replied lightly as she shifted back into her regular clothes.
After a few more minutes of running around, they stopped. Alphinaud looked about while catching his breath. "I don't see any primals..."
The Dragoon nodded. "Yes. Something's not right..." he said and grabbed his lance more tightly.
Almost as soon as the words had left his mouth, a glyph appeared in the sky above the Allagan Heliodrome near their position, followed by a chiming on their linkpearls.
"Are you seeing this as well?" Y'shtola asked.
"The glyph? Yes, it...almost looks like it's marking something," Alisaie replied on her end.
"Ever since I am able to see aetheric currents, I have never thoroughly examined those of Carteneau. But now that I am here, things have become clear and what I'm seeing is similar in nature to what I once saw in the Azim Steppe, only greater in scale. Far greater."
S'eni's eyes widened. "Wait, are you saying—!?"
"Yes. These...glyphs reach far into the aetheric confluence underneath Carteneau and...I believe I know their purpose."
"Tell us," she said.
"Should the lunar primals destroy them, it would spark a chain reaction that would obliterate the confluence entirely. The resultant disruption to the flow of aether would sow chaos among the elements, prompting earthquakes, floods, and tempests large enough to lay waste to the realm."
Shit... Removing her finger from her linkpearl, S'eni turned her gaze towards the glyph. Then that's where the primals were headed. She looked at her two companions. "Let's go!"
They hurried over to the Heliodrome, any enemy they encountered on the way became nothing more than background noise. A terrible roar went through the air and the ground began to shake underneath their feet when a large form landed nearby, sending a group of unsuspecting fighters flying from the impact before continuing onward in the same direction they were headed.
"Lunar Ifrit," she heard Alphinaud breathe out as the primal began to climb up the hill. "...the one that Arenvald and Fordola encountered."
"We'll stop him!"
Rushing up the wooden walkways, they made it just in time for Ifrit to finish his ascent as well. Like Lunar Bahamut before him, his appearance too was different, his thick skin the color of coal instead and his horns held that same ominous purple glow as the twisted elder primal. His eyes, too, were different, lacking the intelligence she had seen in past encounters with the fiery primal, marking him as nothing more as a slave to Fandaniel's will.
And now those very same eyes turned towards them, his objective momentarily forgotten in favor of those that would keep him from it. Flames spurted forth from his maw as S'eni raised her arms. A moment passed with neither side doing anything, then—
"Get him!"
—she vanished from sight, appearing right in front of Lunar Ifrit again and unleashing a flurry of blows upon him, every strike releasing such force that it made his giant body shake. Ducking away from a swipe of his claw, she whirled around to slam her heel into the side of his head. The force of the kick made him stagger to the side, leaving him wide open to Alphinaud's Broil spell.
An ear splitting howl of pain escaped Ifrit as Estinien's lance pierced the leathery skin of his back. They danced around for a few seconds until the primal managed to get a hold of her friend and tossed him towards them. In an amazing feat of acrobatics befitting the Azure Dragoon, he twisted around midair and landed back on his feet.
"Watch out!" Estinien cried as soon as he had hit the ground, dashing towards Alphinaud and picking him up, before jumping high into the air. Noticing it as well, S'eni followed suit, just in time to avoid the blanket of flames spreading out of Lunar Ifrit and covering the entire ground. "Be on your guard!"
"Don't have to tell me that," S'eni growled and dove back towards Ifrit, performing a somersault to bring down her heel upon his head like an axe. A loud crack went through the air as one of his horns shattered from the impact, causing the flames to puff out of existence. Landing on the ground nearby, Estinien released Alphinaud once more and jumped forth to join her.
With Alphinaud's support, they managed to slowly but surely press the primal away from the confluence and towards the edge of the platform, chipping away at him until the temperature around them began to rise in a familiar, tell-tale way. "Here it comes!" she warned and jumped backwards to Alphinaud.
One by one, multiple fiery spikes grew out of the ground around them while Lunar Ifrit began to rise into the air.
"Those things don't bode well," she heard Estinien say.
"They empower and protect him from harm," she explained. "We need to destroy them before—"
More of them rose from the ground, practically covering the entire Heliodrome.
"—Oh you've got to be kidding me!"
"He seeks to destroy the confluence and us alongside it!" Alphinaud exclaimed.
"Hmm, impressive. But I have a few tricks up my sleeve as well." Flipping backwards, Estinien landed a few feet away from them and raised his lance. "Let us hear your roar...Nidhogg!"
A deep red aura began to surround him, coiling itself around the weapon in his hand like a hungry serpent. With a loud roar, the aura exploded outward to reveal eight identical copies of Estinien forming a circle around him. Within the blink of an eye, they jumped into the air to rain down a hail of attacks that took out most of the spikes, leaving only a few left. Then, in one fell swoop, they met the same fate as the other pillars.
"Alphinaud, now!" S'eni called out and the young man summoned forth a barrier to shield themselves and the confluence from the hellfire unleashed upon them. He struggled against the sheer ferocity of the fire, but managed to hold out long enough until the attack had subsided before dropping it once more and hurling spell after spell towards the primal.
With his apparent trump card having been taken away, Lunar Ifrit became little more than a savage animal. Blindly, he struck out towards them in an effort to simply get rid of his obstacles so that he might yet fulfill his purpose, but to no avail. It was time to put an end to this.
"Estinien!" she called out, then vanished from sight.
"Already ahead of you, partner!" Pulling his arm back, the red aura surrounded his lance once more and he tossed it towards the twisted primal, who narrowly dodged the attack.
Good.
Appearing behind Ifrit, S'eni jumped into the air and snatched up Estinien's lance, using the momentum to spin around to face the primal. The red glow around the weapon intensified as she grabbed it tight and pulled her arm back with gritted teeth.
"It's over!" she shouted and threw the lance with such a force that it caused the sound to cease for a brief moment, only returning when the lance had buried itself into the ground in front of the primal a second later. Lunar Ifrit stood frozen in place, his claw slowly inching towards the giant hole in his torso in disbelief. He took a few last breaths, then collapsed on the ground where he dispersed into aether.
After landing, S'eni jogged over to Alphinaud and Estinien, looking out towards the battlefield below them. It looked like the fighting was beginning to die down. They shared a silent nod and started making their way down to join the others, when something from out of the corner of her eyes made her stop.
A robed figure floating high up over the battlefield; Fandaniel.
"What a shame, another failure!" he shouted when their eyes met across the distance. "You are stubborn, I will give you that. And here I just wished to accelerate my plans. Not that this changes anything. It is only a matter of time anyway."
He vanished.
Exhaling through her nose, S'eni cast her gaze across the area, where the fighting had now truly come to an end, and headed down to join her friends. She found Alphinaud not far away from the Heliodrome, kneeling over a gravely wounded Garlean soldier and trying to heal him. After a moment, the soldier began to stir, raising his hand slowly into the air as if to grasp something.
"Glory be...to...Garlemald..." he breathed out before what little strength had been left faded and he slumped back. Dead. Stopping his spell, the young Elezen grit his teeth and punched the ground.
"Alphinaud..." she said with a frown, but he didn't reply, remaining silent until his sister had joined them.
"Alisaie, how are the tempered?" he asked.
"We've treated as many as we could," Alisiae replied, her eyes downcast. "But...some of them were beyond help..."
He rose to his feet and looked about the battlefield, watching as the wounded and tempered were treated by their allies, while those to which all help had come too late for were silently taken care of. It would be hours before the full extent of the losses would be known. The sound of heavy footsteps drew their attention away from the sight towards an Amalj'aa warrior approaching them, joined by an Ixal and Ananta.
"You look tired, brave Scions," he said, his voice deep and rumbling. "Though not all of our brethren could be saved, many have regained their minds and are back with their tribes. You have fought for them like they were your own, and for that we are grateful. So please, hold your heads high."
As he spoke, their friends and many more joined, the looks in their eyes silently affirming his words. Alisaie sighed. "I have much to learn yet, but I won't give up," she said, the corners of her lips rising ever so slightly. "Thank you for your kind words. They mean a lot."
Alphinaud's lips formed a thin line. "The victory we achieved today came at a great cost, but I will not give up. I will stay strong and press on!" He turned his head to look at S'eni. "We all will, right?"
She smiled and stepped forward, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder and giving it a squeeze. "One step at a time, until victory is ours."
"Indeed."
A sudden gust of wind blew over the battlefield, offering a blissful reprieve from the heat, and S'eni found her gaze turning skyward. Little by little, the thick clouds that had covered the entire horizon began to part and revealed the moon's full form, shining bright as if Menphina herself was signaling the end of the battle. But she knew that wasn't the case; it was signaling the beginning—
Narrowing her eyes, she balled her hands into fists.
—the beginning of the end.
[Shadowbringers intensifies]
Still a little bit more to go though until we truly wave Shadowbringers goodbye.