venat-xiv

[venat-xiv]

FFXIVWrite Day 2: Horizon

Izumi hadn’t slept that night, on the eve of her departure. She heard the rest of her group’s tossing and turning slowly turn to a chorus of snoring, and she pushed her way out of her tent. No one awake, it seemed. The raen woman wasn’t exactly acquainted with stealth, but she didn’t have much of another option than to try the quiet approach. If she didn’t leave now, she might never. She was already so far from the village she’d grown up in–just like her family, she thought–but if she was brought along to another continent? There was no chance of reuniting with her family.

These thoughts raced through her mind as she quietly retrieved her canvas bag, stuffed with plenty of standard-issue rations and a couple of personal effects she’d hidden away in the bag along the journey. The rations would last her through a few days, and she needed coin if she wanted to buy any food at Reunion. Izumi carefully searched the bags of her companions, stealing a few coins & a compass that was stolen from her. Justice, in a roundabout sort of way, she thought.

She froze. A rustling in the captain’s tent…then, nothing. Like as not, moving in her sleep. Izumi tried to shove down the feeling of guilt rising in her stomach. Why should she feel guilt? She’d been coerced into joining the expedition, never wanted to come along! Yet…there was still that small part of her, the thought gnawing at her mind. In a twisted, terrible sense, she’d come to…not love, but appreciate the presence of her…

Izumi couldn’t think of the right word. Captor didn’t quite match up with her feelings. Neither did companion or friend. Regardless…she didn’t want to second-guess her choice to leave. She had always wanted to travel the world, but on no one else’s terms but her own. Not her family’s, and sure as hell not the expedition team’s.

With that, Izumi laced up her boots, slung her bag over her shoulder, and hooked her scabbard to her belt. She cast her gaze westward, towards the horizon. Izumi took a deep breath and began to run as fast as her legs could carry her. Towards the horizon, and towards her freedom.

[venat-xiv]

FFXIVWrite Day 1: Steer

“Good gods, what are ye luggin’ around in these, Gaia? Bricks?” Lucinne mock-questioned as she lifted up the two suitcases to toss them haphazardly in the passenger seat. “Stuff,” said the girl, carefully climbing into the skyslipper’s back seat. The Warrior of Darkness stepped over to the driver-side door and was about to jump in before Ryne spoke up.

“Excuse me, but could I drive the skyslipper today?”

Lucinne stared at her. “You…know how to drive one of these things?” Ryne paused, running a hand through her carefully-brushed hair. “Um, no, but…it’s not that hard, is it? I’ve seen you and Thancred do it.”

Gaia looked at Ryne with a sarcastic expression. “Yes, but they ride on birds and ships all the time. You don’t.” Cinne raised a hand to shush Gaia, before vaulting over the side of the vehicle and landing comfortably in the backseat next to her.

“Hard to crash out here, what with the ‘slipper floating over mostly flat ground,” Lucinne reasoned. “Worst case, I can correct our course if something goes amiss. Sound good?”

Ryne whispered a quiet “yesss” under her breath as she climbed into the skyslipper. Gaia rolled her eyes and let out a groan as she propped her chin up on her hand, allowing her arm to rest on the door. “If you manage to crash, once we get back to civilization, I’m never going to speak to you again.”

The once-oracle Ryne looked worried for a moment before Gaia quickly added an “I’m kidding,” onto her threat. “You’d better be! But I won’t crash. Lucinne will make sure of that. Right?”

As if to jokingly counter her question, Lucinne was already leaning back in her spot next to Gaia, hands up behind her head. “Oh—yes, of course. Map’s in the glove box, by the way.”

Ryne fumbled around in the compartment, but eventually found a faded map with several annotations added by the practiced hand of Thancred and the mostly legible scrawl of Lucinne.

“Right, then…” Ryne murmured, passing the map to Gaia. “To Eden!” she cried, raising a hand triumphantly. Cinne watched on with a grin as Ryne paused awkwardly.

“Might need these,” the Warrior teased, tossing her a keyring. “To Eden,” Gaia added, much more quietly as she stifled a laugh.

[venat-xiv]

Alisaie should get to say fuck at least once per expansion