The moment the sun hid behind the horizon, found one Wuk Lamat leaning against the railing. Her posture stiff and hands clenched tightly over the metal bar, made most sailors that passed behind think she was enjoying the last rays of sunlight bathing the waves. Not that they had much time to think about that, rushing across the wobbly deck to fold the sails before they run out of the last light. Alphinaud and Alisaie Levellieur – so-called Elzen – would probably have a better idea, but they seemed consumed with a quiet chat by the entrance leading below deck. Elene'shpya… No, Erenville – as her childhood friend called himself now – disappeared in himself only known direction – somehow – after again berating Lamat about her manners.
She didn't mind that, honestly tired of his trades… and focused on fighting nausea. Closing her green eyes – while hiding the view of the waves all around them – made her stomach flip unpleasantly, so she stubbornly kept her eyes open, glaring toward the disappearing sunlight.
She thought with longing toward the feeling of the steady ground under her boots and prayed to whatever god would be willing to listen for the swift end to her self-imposed torment. Self-imposed, because just a bell before the soft-spoken Alphinaud again discreetly offered to help her issue, and Lamat declined it with wobbly laughter.
She could see in their identical eyes—Alphinaud's and Alisaie's—that they thought her stubbornness was silly at the very least, but in her head, admitting to weakness sounded far worse.
How did Koana last through this? She sighed internally, swallowing around the bile, raising at the back of her throat with the slightest movement of the surface below her feet. As excited as her older brother seemed about everything he had seen and experienced during his studies in Old Sharlayan, she never even thought about asking of his travel to and from city of scholars.
Not that she didn't understand… to some degree, at least. The innovations Koana brought back and implemented in their lands were precise reasons why he was so far ahead of her in the contest for their father's throne! The merchant and crafter about Tulliyollal especially wanted her brother to take over, excited for whatever else his rule would improve.
Her other brother, Zoraal Ja, was not only the true son of Gugool Ja Ja—the miracle child—but also held the full support of the warriors in their city for his fighting prowess and others who turned their thoughts toward contest. She wholeheartedly believed he couldn't be allowed to take the throne, as he would undoubtedly toss their peaceful land in turmoil—ruining their sire's legacy!
And, of course, there was also the fourth claimant – Bakool Ja Ja – a boisterous brute who won the right to participate in the tournament her father held to keep the rite of succession fair. While the two-headed jerk had other Mamool Ja think him as the only good choice, he tormented her every time she had the misfortune of meeting him on the streets of Tulliyollal.
Erenville's arrival and stories from the faraway land seemed like a blessing, that's for sure! Surely, even with her poor chances, having the support of the so-called 'hero' known all over the Three Great Continents had to help her… right?
T'senri Tia – or Senri, as apparently everyone else called him – was a strange one for a Hhetsarro, to be sure. Or Miqo'te, as Erenville called them.
During their trip to Old Sharlayan (that was also a nightmare for her), she was barely able to focus on Erenville's warnings about the different customs ruling on the other side of the ocean. Honestly, Lamat barely remembered much of it, but she bravely put up a front to cover it up. When they finally arrived at dry land, she was distracted and impressed by Old Sharlayan's people and the marvelous architecture, too! Everyone and everything there looked so clean and pretty it wasn't unlike the feeling like she set her foot in a wholly different world!
She was so overwhelmed with excitement of it, with sights, smells and sounds, colors and even the constant breeze wafting over the island… Lamat was pretty certain that now she understood better Koana's deep appreciation for the time he spent there. It was an experience she was sure she would think of for a long time… no matter how impatiently she wanted to get back home.
Then came the arranged by Erenville meeting with the hero of those lands and Wuk Lamat was pretty taken aback by T'senri. Or Senri, because for the life of her she couldn't understand why add a letter to his name that made saying it so uncomfortable. She thought that Erenville mentioned something about it, but trip to Old Sharlayan was a haze of nausea in her mind and she couldn't remember. Initially she guessed that 'Senri' was a form of endearment (like Lamaty'i for her), but then on a various occasions she heard his friends address him as 'Sen' – with fondness that was more fitting for an endearment… and it honestly confused her.
Like many things about him, too.
The hunt in Isle of Haam – if she remembered the name correctly – at least more than proven Erenville's stories why most of the people over there recognized Senri as the 'Warrior.' Even lacking much experience as she was, Lamat would have to be blind not appreciate his undeniable skill with sword and shield! Then she was utterly confused and blown away when witnessing the speed and prowess with which he seemingly effortlessly shifted weapons mid-battle! She had never seen anyone fighting in such manner before – especially knowing how much aether – or magic, as she preferred to call it – it took to summon and unsummon blades! And Senri did so without batting an eyelash – as did the red Raha.
Watching those two fight – the undeniable confidence and trust – was something else. She caught herself wondering during that trek if they could somehow read each other's minds – because the synchronization between them was wholly unreal! While Senri was master of melee, Raha seemingly excelled at magic – both healing and offensive – and they turned that fight with monsters they found into a joke. Honestly, she couldn't help the impression that even as impressive as it was to see, they were both still holding back – making her even more determined to cover her fear.
Truth be told, Lamat never before even seen a monster, must less fought against one! That huge colibre… was terrifying! One moment during that last fight she was certain that all her efforts were doomed the moment it used magic to bind her in chains! And she was both grateful and even more baffled when breath later she was freed and shoved out of the way of blast of aether… but it also made her ashamed that she needed a rescue in the first place.
How could she hope to win against her brothers when she struggled with facing something that for Senri and Raha looked like walk in a park? Though not by much – shockingly enough – Senri was shorter than her. Raha even more so, by a lot. Though both undeniably fit and muscular for Hhetsarro, at glance one would find them hardly a match against Mamool Ja Ja – for example. They moved in a battle with a precision that spoke both of experience and skill, no doubt about that, but…
Who am I kidding? She grimaced toward the waves, slightly hunching over the railing. They – each or both – would be a far more better fit to rule than me!
It was dawning on her, the more she thought of it, how sheltered she was before this whole trip. Sure, people of Tulliyollal were always nice to her – the youngest daughter of Dawnservant – and swarmed her whenever she left her father's palace, but that visit in Old Sharlayan and meeting the hero of the Three Great Continents proved to be an eye-opener in more ways than she could anticipate.
Now, numbly staring at the waves and trying not to embarrass herself, she couldn't help but wonder how many times growing up she involuntarily insulted the people whom her sire ruled. She was so used to blurting out the first thing that came to mind, she never even considered it as something rude. The merchants, crafters and others laughed along her jokes and antics, but how much of it was real…?
Lamat couldn't help but think about that, ever since her thoughtless comment killed the light behind Senri's pale eyes. It's not like she intended to say something rude – as Erenville berated her furiously afterwards – about his relationship with Raha. She really didn't! It just slipped her stupid snout because looking at them, their presence, strength and skill… it did seem like a waste.
Not to mention that the idea of two males being together that way… baffled her. How was that even supposed to work? And wondering about the 'hows' she said what she did without thinking, and…
GODS, but never before she had seen Erenville that angry! She was mostly confused, and taken aback, when despite never losing his smile, Senri's pale blue eyes lost any hint of warmth they had earlier. Became chilled like a glacier, more like! Then as soon as he excused himself and left her alone with Erenville… none of his previous tirades – she barely paid attention to – stung as much. Perhaps because this time he seemed as cold as Senri's eyes – sight she couldn't get out of her head – in a painful detail letting her know precisely how rude and cruel was her comment.
And how could she disagree? The more she thought about it, the more embarrassing it felt. Because other than stories about his many deeds, what did she even know about Senri? Or Raha? Nothing! She didn't even try to get to know them! The short time she spent in Old Sharlayan after they agreed to help her bid for the throne, she barely even seen them! Not that she cared, overwhelmed with the city and its people, but now thinking of it deeper… Didn't she see more than a few people of the same sex holding hands in that park they called Tranquility? Sitting together and whispering on the benches, at a distance far shorter than usual between friends?
She still couldn't understand the 'how?' but – as Erenville said with the hardest pressure – what business it was for her? Senri and Raha were both adult men, in a committed relationship with each other – a fact apparently very well-known about the Three Great Continents – and what she blurted out was there considered something very hurtful…
And as day passed, and that icy chill accompanied now Senri's eyes during their every encounter on the deck, she cringed at her own stupidity. Spending more days watching them, together and with their friends, watching the undeniable looks filled with feeling a few people were lucky to find, only made her feel more ashamed. That, accompanied by the constant nausea, made this trip even more horrible than the previous one… But at some level, Lamat couldn't help but think she deserved it.
Days and nights before that storm she helplessly wondered how to apologize for what she said. But never being in such a situation before, she had now idea how. Everything she could put together in her head even for her sounded unfit. Erenville's suggestion to sincerely admit how sorry she felt, seemed like far too simple words.
Then that miserable storm rolled about, and…
Lamat sighed, hanging her head and lying her ears flat as her tail curled with discomfort. How sick she got during that violent storm seemed like nothing compared with how terrible sank her stomach when she heard that Senri collapsed for an unknown reason. She hard barely a glimpse of the terror present of Raha's face when he rushed past her spot – while she didn't know why – but now she was certain that that sight will haunt her. With the chaos that followed, she was grateful that Senri's father, Ares, ahead decided to join them. With barely few words – in his wonderfully musical voice – he made the panicked sailor focus on manning the ship. Even the shield Senri raised - furiously cracking with lightning – didn't seem that scary when he told them to not be afraid (but jeep away from it, obviously).
Admittedly, she had never heard Erenville mention the people to whom Ares apparently belonged. But again, she now sorely regretted not listening more carefully to his lecture on the way to Old Sharlayan! Alphinaud, who despite his very young appearance proved to be an extremely knowledgeable and eloquent young man (she was honestly shocked to hear that he and his twin sister were her age!), thankfully right past the storm and when the waves calmed, chose to enlighten them. Because Erenville also seemed quite surprised to hear that Ares wasn't – as they thought – of race in Eorzea called Huyr. His pretty but extremely bright eyes, as Alphinaud stated calmly, marked Ares as the representative of the Ancients. A race of powerful beings that proceed the Allagan Empire – even she heard of – who awhile ago woken up from a collective slumber. That seeming cataclysm that two years ago spread over their lands – Tural was thankfully spared – they called now Final Days (and the ominous name sent unpleasant shivers down her spine!) was what woke said people.
Most of them, anyway, as Alphinaud added that Ares was already awake by then – for obvious reasons. Apparently, it had something to do with siring Senri precisely to be the one to stop said Cataclysm – if that part confused her a little. But perhaps that also quite explained the undeniable power Senri commanded! She wasn't even that surprised that when asked about Raha, Alphinaud, after a moment of hesitation, admitted that yes, he also was in an extremely similar situation to Senri, of the teen-looking Elzen refused to speak any more of it. And she prodded, admittedly, involuntarily fascinated with that tale.
Enough that that nearly subdued her nausea… at least for some time.
Today, as the sea calmed, Lamat promised herself that as soon as she's going to see Senri, she'll sincerely ask his forgiveness for her thoughtless comment. If so far that wasn't possible because – as Alisaie said after showing up on deck yesterday and missing her earlier bright-eyed companion – everyone was expected to stay clear of the cabin Senri and Raha shared – and the reason behind Lamat's 'slip.' Alisaie very sternly insisted on that too, citing that Raha – busy healing his husband – needed peace and quiet to focus. Asked about the young-looking Ancient that accompanied her earlier (as apparently called in by Ares and who, with an unmatched calm and barely a flick of his fingers, shielded each of them from the stunning storm of elements that had broken out before dawn yesterday), the girl clammed up, waving off any following questions.
Before that, Lamat witnessed another bright-eyed Ancient, Alphinaud was so relieved to see, and his miraculous appearance on the deck. While the man with shoulder-length white hair and those bright irises in shade of molten gold, simply materialized among the cloud of purplish flash, Alphinaud later gingerly added that that was part of unique magic their people were privileged to. And he very pointedly cautioned them and those sailors who witnessed it against mentioning that – their appearance and magic – toward others when they arrive in Tulliyollal.
While immortal and – as he said – powerful beyond anything they could imagine, there were very few of the Ancients left, and those who didn't wish to be dragged into conflicts mortals were prone to. Alisaie, to that point listening to her brother's lecture silently, then added that while the important figures in their lands knew of that unique race – like heads of the so-called Eorzean Alliance – it's considered an expression of their thanks for saving their star to avoid expanding the knowledge about the Ancients. And tossing her twin an intriguing side-eye, she added to never, ever risk angering someone she called Damon – an apparent leader of those surviving individuals and someone she called terrifyingly powerful. She very carefully added that they should carefully watch their words and manners around Raha – in particular – and that, in addition to her tone, convinced Lamat that if Senri was the son of Ares, perhaps Raha was Damon's?
It also made her feel even worse about what she said, in a way. Because though she had a poor idea about their circumstances and story, both being some kind of descendants to such a manner of beings…? Being honest, being the daughter of Dawnservant – formidable yet mortal – plenty of times made her feel isolated. Other than Koana, who was in exactly the same situation, most of their fathers' subjects acted around them reverently. Her brother told her that was why during his studies few years back he carefully concealed his identity as the so-called prince of Tural. Wanting to experience Old Sharlayan as any other of its students, he later commented as the best decisions he could have made – if his smile seemed slightly strained as he said that. Zoraal Ja, older than them, openly scorned her and Koana for the fact that Gugool Ja Ja adopted them, and she knew for a fact that many of those who admired him, agreed that the throne should automatically fall to Dawnservant's natural heir. Especially considering how miraculous was for the two-headed Mamool Ja to sire one in the first place!
And that all the while, at least Koana had a clear vision of what he wanted to achieve if he won the throne! Sure, she thought that he should be far more considerate toward their people's ways and traditions – which was pretty much why she chose to compete against his claim, but he did have their subjects – what he believed – best interest at heart.
And she, Wuk Lamat, the Third Promise of Tulliyollal…?
So far, she not only had no idea what she would do if she – by some unfathomable miracle – won, but other than that, she wanted their people to continue to live peacefully. All she wanted was to preserve their happiness and honor her sire's legacy…
…and so far, the only thing she achieved was thoughtlessly insulting the man who so graciously accepted her request for help! She asked Senri to support her claim to the throne – because of his fame and undeniable skill – but she didn't even take the time to learn anything of substance about him! Like a last fool, she requested that brief hunt as the way to get to know him instead of sitting down and actually paying attention for once.
And now, if he doesn't get better? Neither of his friends was willing to explain what happened to make the Hhetsarro collapse so suddenly, with Alisaie only waving of her questions. Krile, who only briefly appeared to get bleary-eyed and greening when that storm of elements raged around them, later cagily shrugged it off as a residual influence of that ominous-sounding Cataclysm. After that baffling waves of fire, ice, water, and lightning swept over the shields created by young Themis, she – Krile – thanked the Ancient very sincerely and disappeared somewhere below deck for a good while. Lamat hadn't seen the short Lalafel since then, but she was also quite consumed with the darkest thoughts.
She felt sorry for herself, basically, and she hated that. Erenville's suggestion no longer sounded that simple, when a fear stuck her that Senri – who perhaps by his lineage was somehow more susceptible to whatever happened – might pass without her ever having an occasion to apologize. Without her ever having a real chance to understand him or his relationship with redheaded Raha – she insulted so carelessly.
Even Erenville, since that lecture, was so uncommonly cold and distant – far more than ever before, even for his standoffish ways – and that also stung! Even knowing that she hadn't meant to cause harm, he very clearly made it obvious that he would not forgive her big mouth – as he usually did – unless she properly apologized to the Warrior.
Lamat sighed heavily and leaned harder against the railing, drowning in dark thoughts. Perhaps she could blame on that – or that nagging nausea – that she completely missed the sound of nearing her steps despite her otherwise sensitive hearing. She remained completely oblivious to the presence behind her back – despite the unsettling and ominous silence that followed few gasps – ruling over the deck. All the while until someone very loudly cleared their throat and the sudden sound made her tail nearly shoot in the air!
She spun around with surprise – shock, more like – and blinked. Then she looked up, and her jaw literally dropped.
Mostly because she had never experienced the true terror that squeezed her throat into a vise when her green eyes met the inhumane – literally – fury behind the unnaturally bright cyan eyes. She leaned in instinctively until the railing dug in her back, while the world around her seemed to freeze as if expecting the very air to break under the pressure of aether radiating from this newest Ancient who looked scarily similar to Raha.
Because one look at that undeniably similar face told her all she needed to know about who this had to be.
"So, you think yourself important enough to insult my boys?" The smirk – sharp and cutting like a razor – seemed far too sweet with combination to those eyes.
"I…" was the only thing she managed to push out of her squeezed chest, honestly too terrified to breathe.
"Damon, easy," sounded from the side, and her gaze involuntarily swiveled toward a completely neutral expression on Ares's beautiful face. Eyes – too bright but sky-blue – now looked far more similar to Senri's with filling them biting frost. He smiled at her, but it was an expression that lacked any emotion and seemed as scary as the redhead's undeniable fury. And only looking toward him made her fully aware of… something making the air around Damon seem nearly charged. She had no idea with what, poor knowledge as she had about magic in general, but she had a feeling that it couldn't be good when her eyes snapped back toward the redhead. She didn't have a choice when he leaned over her and wrapped his right hand around her chin, forcing her to look into the cyan fire filling his bright eyes.
"You owe your next breath, mortal, to the fact Ares dislikes the idea of killing you for ignorance," he purred while that smirk never left his beautiful face. "And as much as I disagree… I promised not to eviscerate you, Wuk Lamat. Not yet. So, please, live and give me an excuse to teach you about torment your limited mortal mind can't imagine, hm? I will be waiting, I promise you that."
He let go of her face with a disgusted huff and then stalked off toward Alphinaud and Alisaie, who seemed frozen and gawking in their spots.
"The only warning you get," her eyes swiveled at the sound toward Ares's frostbitten eyes when he bared his teeth at her in something that looked more like a snarl than a grin. "Is that he never bluffs, mortal. As for me…" he leaned over her on a hand he braced against the railing beside her hip. "…hurt my son again, and I'll make you peel off your fur with dull knife ilm by ilm, okay? And that if I'm feeling generous," he growled softly in a sound that slithered down her spine, then pushed off and without another look at her, followed the redhead.
The air stuck in her lungs escaped her with a choked gasp, even as she couldn't take her horrified eyes off those two impossibly tall men long after both, alongside young Scions, disappeared below deck. It took much, much longer than that for her furious heartbeat to calm down.
It was completely dark, with bright stars flickering overhead before her frozen limbs allowed her to drop onto the wooden deck and wonder why exactly it felt as if death was far preferable to the promise of pain behind cyan flames.
Enough said, her very first encounter with Damon probably went as badly as it possibly could. If only much, much later she had learned how lucky she was to survive it with her mind and body intact.