The wind blowing in her face, the crisp air of the Abalathia's Spine crackling around them with powers both mundane and extraordinary. The ruins seemed to pass in a blur below them, and for a moment, she could almost swear she'd heard a whisper amidst the roar her heart cried out with in unison. Could almost see whisps of blonde hair from the corner of her eye amidst the blue of the open sky; the white of her own hair and the great wyrm's majestic wings as they carried her ever faster. Could sense a light that was both so familiar and yet lost forever in the aetherial sea; a pillar bound.
"For those we have lost, for those we can yet save..."
The words seemed to echo in her heart, from a time when everything seemed to have become too much. When pangs of loss were too fresh, and hope seemed to flicker in and out as a candle's flame fighting to remain lit amidst the storm. Perhaps it was those words that stuck with her, nothing more. Yet she couldn't help but remember the long days and nights, tirelessly struggling, yet finding a moment's reprieve by the fire.
A fire that burned so brightly, made by young-but-proud hands. The smell of a stew boiling, the sound of a moogle snoring quietly beside her. That despite the tenseness in the air, she could almost swear she'd caught glimpse of a smile from the other three.
Smiles, that were not unlike what belonged to faces she could barely recall. Oh yes, she could remember well the days of her childhood. Of days spent beneath the stars, when home was what you could carry upon your back. Struggling with her pack before an elder laughed and plucked her from the ground as he hummed a song that now seemed to hum in the breeze. And even more so, how that humming ceased as a group of knights was spotted blocking the pass...
Koko shook free her mind of the image, not truly realizing a tear had fallen from her cheek and fallen to the back of the great wyrm. Indeed, she failed to realize she shed a tear to begin with, or that it had gotten his attention. The low gutteral roar that shook his entire form beneath her forced her to realize herself, a quiet word of reassurance uttered. Something that left a bitter taste in her mouth the moment it was said. One never truly recovers from something like what was witnessed all those summers ago, the bodies littering the grass and dirt that were once kith and kin, left for the vultures. From the anger, the thirst for vengeance, or even wanting to distance oneself from it altogether.
"Is aught amiss, friend?" the young lord called out over the beat of dragon's wings. "An injury, or...?"
"Forgive me. For a moment, I could almost sense..." Koko began, but shook her head as she reached up to dry her own tears. "I am well. Thank you for your concern."
After having to face down her own dark reflection, Koko had done her best to be honest with herself. That honesty also extended to those she trusted with her life. Alphinaud was too young, deserved to enjoy what little was left of his teenage years. She couldn't continue to show her own weakness in front of a young lad who fretted like a young maiden that she may not return from a battle with a primal. However much bitterness was left in her mouth over it.
"Mayhap such thoughts are best suited for after the battle," she pondered aloud. T'would not be best to envoke the cliche that often seemed to lead to the death of those who had--
Yet as she thought of it, her linkshell buzzed next to her horn. Blinking, she answered the call.
"Sister, where the hells are you?!" the voice on the other end demanded. "Don't tell me that great dragon swallowed you whole after everything we've been through. If you think for one. Minute. I would not journey to the seventh hell to drag you out, or 'borrow' your overcompensating sword to--!"
"Flying over Falcon's Nest, Sister," she interrupted, curtly. Yet for her tone, the relieved smile was unmistakable. "We'll be having company for supper, so don't forget to clean up the dining area."
"Oh, certainly! And mayhap you can not be late this time? I would hate to finish before you or our guests a-- I am talking to my sister, you overgrown godsforsaken lizard!"
Ah yes, the familar sound of something being roasted from within... She nearly allowed that cackle to escape her. "We'll be there soon, dear sister. Do save some for me?"
"Well, I suppose I could save you the main course..." Koko could almost hear Cotan's eyes roll in their sockets. "Look after that Sharlayan runt."
Ah, Cotan... Never change. With a shake of her head, she allowed the line go silent and leaned forward as the blasts of fire along the Steps of Faith in the distance became visible. There was a job to do. Anything else could be dealt with as time allowed. She owed a friend and comrade her undivided attention, after all. Complacency would be the end of her if she allowed it, and they had lost too much of late to lose another.
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umbralshadows) wrote2016-06-25 02:59 am
MAJOR 3.3 SPOILERS
"For those we have lost, for those we can yet save..."
The words seemed to echo in her heart, from a time when everything seemed to have become too much. When pangs of loss were too fresh, and hope seemed to flicker in and out as a candle's flame fighting to remain lit amidst the storm. Perhaps it was those words that stuck with her, nothing more. Yet she couldn't help but remember the long days and nights, tirelessly struggling, yet finding a moment's reprieve by the fire.
A fire that burned so brightly, made by young-but-proud hands. The smell of a stew boiling, the sound of a moogle snoring quietly beside her. That despite the tenseness in the air, she could almost swear she'd caught glimpse of a smile from the other three.
Smiles, that were not unlike what belonged to faces she could barely recall. Oh yes, she could remember well the days of her childhood. Of days spent beneath the stars, when home was what you could carry upon your back. Struggling with her pack before an elder laughed and plucked her from the ground as he hummed a song that now seemed to hum in the breeze. And even more so, how that humming ceased as a group of knights was spotted blocking the pass...
Koko shook free her mind of the image, not truly realizing a tear had fallen from her cheek and fallen to the back of the great wyrm. Indeed, she failed to realize she shed a tear to begin with, or that it had gotten his attention. The low gutteral roar that shook his entire form beneath her forced her to realize herself, a quiet word of reassurance uttered. Something that left a bitter taste in her mouth the moment it was said. One never truly recovers from something like what was witnessed all those summers ago, the bodies littering the grass and dirt that were once kith and kin, left for the vultures. From the anger, the thirst for vengeance, or even wanting to distance oneself from it altogether.
"Is aught amiss, friend?" the young lord called out over the beat of dragon's wings. "An injury, or...?"
"Forgive me. For a moment, I could almost sense..." Koko began, but shook her head as she reached up to dry her own tears. "I am well. Thank you for your concern."
After having to face down her own dark reflection, Koko had done her best to be honest with herself. That honesty also extended to those she trusted with her life. Alphinaud was too young, deserved to enjoy what little was left of his teenage years. She couldn't continue to show her own weakness in front of a young lad who fretted like a young maiden that she may not return from a battle with a primal. However much bitterness was left in her mouth over it.
"Mayhap such thoughts are best suited for after the battle," she pondered aloud. T'would not be best to envoke the cliche that often seemed to lead to the death of those who had--
Yet as she thought of it, her linkshell buzzed next to her horn. Blinking, she answered the call.
"Sister, where the hells are you?!" the voice on the other end demanded. "Don't tell me that great dragon swallowed you whole after everything we've been through. If you think for one. Minute. I would not journey to the seventh hell to drag you out, or 'borrow' your overcompensating sword to--!"
"Flying over Falcon's Nest, Sister," she interrupted, curtly. Yet for her tone, the relieved smile was unmistakable. "We'll be having company for supper, so don't forget to clean up the dining area."
"Oh, certainly! And mayhap you can not be late this time? I would hate to finish before you or our guests a-- I am talking to my sister, you overgrown godsforsaken lizard!"
Ah yes, the familar sound of something being roasted from within... She nearly allowed that cackle to escape her. "We'll be there soon, dear sister. Do save some for me?"
"Well, I suppose I could save you the main course..." Koko could almost hear Cotan's eyes roll in their sockets. "Look after that Sharlayan runt."
Ah, Cotan... Never change. With a shake of her head, she allowed the line go silent and leaned forward as the blasts of fire along the Steps of Faith in the distance became visible. There was a job to do. Anything else could be dealt with as time allowed. She owed a friend and comrade her undivided attention, after all. Complacency would be the end of her if she allowed it, and they had lost too much of late to lose another.
We will save you, Estinien.