Amidst the Peaks
With Thancred slipping behind enemy lines to search for Krile, it fell upon us to create a distraction for him to use. And what a distraction it was.
Soon after our return, we managed to win a decisive victory at Castellum Velodyna, forcing the Empire to retreat and leave the Fringes in our hands. Things turned complicated when one of the Ananta tribes, the Qalyana, summoned forth their primal in response to the death of the broodmother's daughter, but I think at this point it goes without saying that our dear Warrior of Light had the situation well in hand.
While we were taking care of that, the good fortune that had struck our campaign continued, as the Alliance and Resistance had taken Ala Ghiri in the meantime with not a single life lost.
...If only it had continued that way.
Laughter echoed towards S'eni as she walked out of an alley nestled between two buildings and she spotted a small group consisting of Alliance and Resistance troops sitting nearby, trading jokes with one another.
She watched them for a moment, occasionally chuckling when one of them told an especially funny joke, before moving on.
It was good to see that spirits were high, especially after the catastrophic defeat they had suffered at Rhalgr's Reach. The liberation of Doma and the victory at Castellum Velodyna had done wonders for everyone's morale.
And now with Ala Ghiri in their hands, they had acquired a strategic base of operations on the only route leading towards the Lochs and within them, Ala Mhigo.
Nestled against the cliffs of Wightrock, the former trade hub was surrounded by a thick wall that had originally been built to protect its citizens from the dangerous wildlife. Now that very same wall made it an ideal place to hunker down and defend from any attackers, something the Garleans had known quite well from their years of occupation.
Which made it all the more strange that they had chosen to abandon it without as much of a fight.
But as Raubahn had said, one didn't look a gift Chocobo in the beak, and there were no signs of traps nor sabotage in the town proper.
Still, he didn't wish to sit idle either and thus had, almost as soon as she and the others had arrived, taken to the field once more. Their target: Specula Imperatoris.
S'eni stopped to look upon the large watchtowers looming in the north, overlooking almost all of Gyr Abania.
If all was going according to plan, the assault would begin within the hour. Not that she would be taking part in it, as her orders had been explicitly clear.
Stay behind in reserve and take out any troops that might be dispatched in response. So effectively guard duty.
She knew it was the Flame General's way of making sure she was getting enough rest after all she had done up to this point, but it still annoyed her a little that she had to remain in Ala Ghiri while Lyse and Alphinaud were heading into battle.
Oh well. Nothing for it I suppose, S'eni thought with a sigh of resignation and continued on her walk. Maybe she could find herself a quiet corner and call Y'shtola to pass the time...
While mulling over the possibility of a chat with her lover, she didn't register the sound of soft steps as they approached her from behind.
Only when she felt fingers brushing against her right arm did she move to whirl around, but it was already too late by then as her arm was swiftly encircled by another and she was about to curse her lack of attention when a voice, like honey, spoke up next to her ear.
"Oh my, such strong arms," the person, a woman, said and began to run her other hand across the limb in question. "You must be an exceptional warrior..."
Turning her head in the direction of the woman, she found a pretty Miqo'te attached to her arm, a smile on her painted lips. S'eni blinked once and, not sensing any danger, slowly gave her a friendly smile in return.
The floral scent of perfume invaded her nostrils as she opened her mouth to speak. "Can I help you?"
"Hm." The other Miqo'te hummed and looked her up and down. "I'm sure there's a lot you can help me with."
Before S'eni could answer, another Miqo'te appeared seemingly out of nowhere and looped an arm through her other one.
"Oh my, what have we here...?" Two fingers came to rest underneath S'eni's chin and guided her head towards another pretty face framed by long brown hair with wine-colored tips. "Such a pretty face. We rarely get those around these parts."
S'eni's ears perked up at that. Wait a minute, are they...
"Tell you what, I'll make you an especially good price."
...Yes, they are...
The Miqo'te to her right gasped at those words. "No fair, Ghonako. I saw her first!"
"You shouldn't have dragged your feet then," the one on her left replied and pressed herself against S'eni, her arm coming to rest in between an ample bosom.
"Oh no no no. First come, first serve!" the one to her right followed suit. The two prostitutes then began glaring at one another and tried to pull her in one direction or the other.
They did so for a few seconds before facing S'eni. "Let's have her decide then."
Their hands sliding seductively down her arms, they held one of S'eni's hands each as they stepped in front of her, giving her a seductive look through half-lidded eyes.
She looked between the two of them and let out a silent breath of relief for the chance to straighten this out.
"Listen, I'm really flattered," she said. "But I'm—"
"Not interested," another voice chimed in.
Almost at the same time, the three of them turned their heads to S'eni's left and found none other than Alisaie standing there, hands planted firmly on her hips and eyebrows furrowed.
"Well well, another pretty face. But I'm afraid you're a little too young for what we have to offer," the one called Ghonako said and waved her hand in a dismissive manner. "Come back in a few years, little one."
The other one giggled at that.
Uh oh... S'eni thought as she watched as Alisaie gritted her teeth and a look of righteous indignation entered her eyes. That was the wrong thing to say.
"I said—" The young Elezen took a step forward. "—she is not—" her hands balled into shaking fists. "—interested!"
By the time Alisaie had nearly reached them, it seemed to dawn on the two that they might have pissed off the wrong person and scurried off, but not before one of them sent S'eni a little wink.
She watched as they escaped down an alley, then turned to look at Alisaie who had come to a stop next to her, and glared after them.
"The nerve of some people." The younger woman huffed and crossed her arms in front of her chest.
"Now now, calm down," S'eni tried to placate her. "No harm done here."
Alisae looked at her for a moment before shaking her head with a sigh. "You're too nice, you know that?"
"I'll have you know I was about to tell them no myself," she said.
S'eni was just glad her young friend interrupted them when she did instead of a few seconds later or else she might have found herself in that awkward predicament of explaining what she meant with "But I'm already taken". Krile finding out about Y'shtola and her by accident was enough.
"Didn't look like they were the type to take no for an answer..."
"Oh come now." She frowned. "Girls got to make a living somehow and I doubt 20 years of occupation left them with a lot of options."
Another, softer, sigh escaped Alisaie. "Yes, I suppose you're right."
"So, did you just chance upon me, or were you looking for me?" S'eni asked, the corners of her lips curling into a smile.
"Actually, I was," the younger woman replied. "Arenvald wanted to coordinate our search of the surrounding area."
"Alright, then let's not keep him waiting."
They found their fellow Scion in the center of town together with his two companions, V'mah Tia and J'moldva. The latter was leaning on her spear, while the former was sitting on the steps leading to Ala Ghiri's Aetheryte and sharpening his blade.
Upon noticing their approach, Arenvald raised his hand in greeting. "Ah, you've found her."
"Yes. Interacting with some of the locals," Alisaie replied.
"I see. I suppose it's a good way to earn the people's trust."
S'eni had to force herself not to grin at how far off the mark he was, but only partly succeeded, so she walked up and gave his armored arm a playful slap.
"So what have you three been up to?"
His green eyes looked at her past his blond bangs and he smiled.
"Searching for stragglers mostly. Nothing as grand as you defeating another primal," he replied.
"Looks like we're all looking for them today. Who knows? Maybe you'll be the one slaying primals tomorrow. Arenvald the Warrior of Light," she said and gave him a little nudge. "You're already wearing the shiny armor."
A chuckle escaped him. "I think I'll pass."
"Well, shall we begin now that we're all here?" Alisaie asked.
The five of them huddled together and Arenvald pulled out a rather detailed map of the Peaks. Though on closer inspection, she noticed that it was an older one, from before the occupation.
"We have a large area to cover," Arenvald said and circled the area of Wightrock.
"And a lot of spots to hide," S'eni pointed out.
"Exactly. It's why I think it would be best if we split up."
"Hm. One group searches to the west and the other to the north." the young Elezen suggested.
Arenvald nodded. "V'mah, J'moldva and I will head west."
"Then Alisaie and I will go north. Sounds like a plan."
After discussing what they should do if either group ran into unexpected trouble, they headed out.
"He's grown quite a bit, don't you think?" S'eni asked Alisaie after they had split off, watching the young man and his companions for a moment before turning her gaze up ahead.
"I'm afraid I don't know him as well as you do, so I can't judge," the younger woman replied. "The few times I spoke to him before were when I was paying Urianger a visit at the Waking Sands."
"You should have seen him when he first joined the Scions. A kid that didn't know his place in the world and utterly confused because of the powers he had just awoken to." She still remembered how two of the senior members at the time, A'aba Tia and Aulie, had taken him under their wings. Their deaths at the hands of the Garleans some time later had been hard on him, but if they were here now, they couldn't be more proud of him, she was sure.
"I will take your word for it then." Alisaie smiled.
While the lands north of the Razor Mountains were arid and dry, there were still little signs of greenery here and there, and even flowers sprouting from the ground. Everything south from them though was dry, dusty, and mostly dead. Yet the people living here had carved an existence for themselves, just how the Xaela had done on the Azim Steppe, and that deserved deep respect.
As they wandered this area, they kept their eyes peeled. Every little noise could mean an ambush by Garlean troops. But so far, all they encountered was the local wildlife that called these mountains their home.
"At this point—" Alisaie said and a rock shot forward from her magical focus, slamming into the Pantera that had attacked them and felling the beast, shattering its huge tusks in the process. "—I believe they have been eaten."
"Now wouldn't that be something." S'eni walked over to it and knelt to pick up one of the broken canines, looking it over for a moment before tossing it away. "No, I don't think we're that lucky."
"One can still hope..." her friend then grew quiet, making her glance over her shoulder to see Alisaie look northeast.
"Worried?" she asked.
"A little perhaps. But both Lyse and my dear brother are strong, and they have each other to rely on." Alisaie tapped her foot a few times. "Bah! This is getting us nowhere. I say we split up to try and cover more ground!"
Giving S'eni not even the time to respond, the young Elezen marched off, leaving her to only chuckle and shake her head.
Guess she's more worried than she claims. She thought and rose to her feet to continue on her way.
A while passed with nothing happening at all aside from another Pantera trying, and failing, to make her into its meal, and she was just about to turn around to go look for Alisaie when a sound made her ears perk up.
Voices.
Her hearing wasn't as keen as M'naago's, but she was beginning to learn, and if she wasn't wrong then they were coming from...
There!
Using the rocky terrain as cover, she followed the voices until she found their owners, two Garlean soldiers, on top of a nearby hill and looking out into the distance.
And as luck would have it, facing directly away from her.
"Can you tell me why exactly we just up and left Ala Ghiri?" she heard one of them ask.
"All I know is that it was orders from the Legatus himself," the other replied.
"And now we're stuck out here." He tsked. "Shame. The place had some upsides to it."
"Oh please, you're just annoyed because you actually have to work instead of whoring around. Now keep your eyes peeled!"
"Whatever."
While they were busy talking, S'eni used the chance to sneak up to the hill and take cover behind a rock just a few steps behind them.
"Say, what do you think of that woman?" the one that was obviously not keen to being out here asked after a bit of silence, taking a few steps forward.
A sigh. "Which woman?"
"You know. The Ala Mhigan."
"Fordola?" a moment passed before the legionary shrugged. "She and her Skulls seem like good attack dogs."
"Yeah. A feisty one. Makes you wonder if she could put that energy to use elsewhere."
"I swear you're such a needy bastard."
The first one let out a dirty laugh and moved closer to the edge. "Hey, can't blame a guy for wondering. There's just something about that attitude of hers...makes you want to put her in her place."
He then began to list all sorts of things that he wanted to subject her to, making S'eni's face contort in disgust. But it kept his comrade distracted long enough for her to sneak up on him, push him to the ground and slam her fist into the base of his skull. He instantly went limp.
Leaving him lying there, she proceeded to sneak up to the remaining one.
"I'm telling you, all that she needs is for someone—"
He turned around and found himself face to face with her.
"—break her in?"
His eyes widened in shock but it was already too late as she struck him in the chest in rapid succession, each blow accompanied by a crack, before kicking him over the edge.
She jumped down after him and walked over to where he was lying. He stared up at her, his blood-covered lips parted and chest rising and falling unevenly as he tried to breathe.
Kneeling, she gave him the finishing blow.
S'eni looked around and strained her ears for a moment to see if anyone might have been nearby to hear this exchange, then breathed out through her nose when everything was quiet.
Well, that's that...
Rising back up, she began to head eastward in the direction that Alisaie had left in earlier. It didn't take too long to find the younger woman, standing over a pair of slain legionaries.
"Ah, S'eni. Give me a moment," she said as she saw her approaching, a finger on the linkpearl in her left ear. "Can you repeat that? Yes...Understood, keep me informed."
"I guess Arenvald and the others found some Garleans too?" S'eni asked after the call ended.
"That too, but this was actually about something else. Remember the pair that's been spying on us since the Fringes?"
"Yeah. A Hyur and Lalafel, right?" The pair had been tailing their forces for a while now, but even from the distance they were keeping all the time, it was easy to spot the imperial uniforms they were wearing.
So far they hadn't tried anything funny, but that could always change.
"Yes. I told him to keep an eye on them for now. For all we know they might be saboteurs."
"Maybe," S'eni said, but she had the feeling something else was going on here.
"Anyway." Alisaie shook her head. "How about you? Any troubles?"
"Just a pair of legionaries. They've been dealt with."
"Good. Then I suppose our troops' flank should be secure. Now, all we—"
A large explosion echoed through the air and they both whirled around just in time to see Specula Imperatoris' main tower collapse.
"Oh no!" Alisaie exclaimed, her hand going for the linkpearl once more. A brief moment passed before she let go again with a frustrated sound. "I can't get through. I don't know if we're being jammed or—we have to go. They need our help!"
Not waiting for her response, the Elezen broke into a sprint.
"Alisaie, wait!" S'eni shouted and ran after her. As she followed her friend, her eyes came to rest upon what remained of the tower as smoke began to rise high into the air. She grit her teeth, steeling herself for what was to come.
War always came with a cost, and the price of freedom was steep...