#au; AN OASIS IN THE CRIMSON WASTE { she ra } | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

draginhikari · 6 years

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Final Fantasy XIV: Azure and Crimson Section 2: Kari Azuresol, Light Reborn Chapter 3: Una’s Rage, Shadros’ Tragic Legacy

((Artwork featured in this chapter by @fyrielle))

Kari walked through the area of Ul’dah known as the Goblet, a residential area for adventurers that had decided to take up their home in Ul’dah. Kari sighed some as she walked, still exhausted from her confrontation with the Imperial Soldiers in Mor Dhona.

Kari grumbled and scratched at her armor, “I can’t believe how itchy this armor gets. How did Shadros wear this thing all the time?” She’d give anything to take the Paladin armor off right now. The problem was that the makeshift clothes she had made on the island, which were her only clothes underneath the armor for that matter, weren’t exactly designed for public decency. She only had enough material to make covering for her breasts and around her waist and that just barely covered. Not that Kari would be particularly bothered by wearing so little in public as she never gave much thought to how people look at her at least in regards to her femininity. The main thing that stopping her right now was she still trying to be discreet while in Ul’dah and even she knew walking around half-naked was likely not going to do much to allow her to accomplish her current goal.

Kari looked at her gil bag, “I guess I have a little bit left. Maybe I should do something about that.” She stopped by a merchant stand in the center of the Goblet. Kari looked around the merchant’s wares noticing a metallic blue colored Oasis Tunic, Dark blue pants, standard women’s undergarments and a pair of basic sandals. Kari told the merchant, “I’ll take these.” She would pay for them and put them in her bag intending to change into them once she could get some privacy.

As Kari left the Merchant’s wife spoke, “These young girls today…I can’t believe you were able to sell that shirt. Why would anyone wear something that gaudy looking?” The merchant shrugged, “Hey least we’re finally rid of the thing. I mean did ya see the armor she was wearing? It was even brighter than the shirt was.” Kari paid no heed to the merchant’s words, she really liked the shirt. No amount of blue was ever too much in Kari’s eyes. She continued down a side road finally coming upon the sight of the overgrown lawn of Shadros’ cottage. The cottage was tucked into the corner of one of the primary wards of the Goblet. It wasn’t the greatest lot in the world but Shadros wanted as much privacy as he could get. She could recall that he bought it sometime after the Operation Archon conflict but she couldn’t directly remember when. Kari looked up and down the lot before she stated, “Yes, this is the place. This is Shadros’ private cottage and if my memory serves right the coffer he left behind should also be there.” Kari sighed before saying, “Assuming Una didn’t do anything with it after Shadros left her like he did. I really hope it’s still there.”

Kari went up the door and attempted to open it. It appeared to be locked. She could only guess that Una locked it after she left. Kari thought for a moment, “I could probably break the door down but I really don’t think I want to make a scene yet.” Kari glanced over at a bush near the front door and began to reach into it. Kari put her hands through it and grumbled to herself, “I know Shadros put it in here somewhere.” After a few moment she got ahold of metal object deep inside of the bush, “Aha!” She pulled out a hidden key that Shadros had hid there for safe keeping. Kari would unlocked the door and slowly push it open causing the door to creak as it slid open. Kari walked into the house and glanced around. The house was left exactly the way it was the day Shadros had left it and was coated in a thin layer of dust. The bed was still unmade, Kari could only guess when Una awoke from her forced slumber she immediately dressed and went after Shadros. It appeared Una had not been back since. Kari caught sight of the Coffer and began to approach it as her vision suddenly blurred and she stumbled. Kari rubbed her temples, “I’m more exhausted then I thought. I guess since no one else is here this would be a good time to rest then I can deal with it in the morning.” Kari closed the door and grasped her Paladin Soul Crystal. The armor she wore would return to the crystal and she would be in her makeshift covering. Kari remembered that Shadros had installed a bath in the basement of the house. She went down into the basement discarding the makeshift clothes and moved over to the bath. Kari attempted to turn the water on, hoping it still work. To her relief it did. Kari took the time to clean herself up, spending quite a bit of time working the grime, dirt, and sand out of her long hair. Kari grumbled pulling on a section of her hair, “This long hair isn’t good for long distance travelling. I wonder if I should cut it off. Seems like such a waste though.” Kari would spent time scrubbing away at loose scales on her body. Though some sections broke away from her skin while doing so it didn’t matter. Au Ra scales always grew back and she had to maintain them to keep them from growing too much anyway. Chipping some off the damage or loose scales from time to time was simply easier than trying to manage them the normal way, which usually involved a lot of polishing and scrubbing. She stuck her tongue a moment as it always felt weird whenever she had to mess with her scales, “Blah, these white scales always seem to have something stuck to them. They always look dirty.” After Kari was satisfied with the look of her scales she exited the bath and dried herself off before putting her new clothes on. She glanced over her figure in a nearby mirror she had forgotten what she actually looked like in regular clothes giving the horrible shape of her previous outfit and the bulkiness of the Paladin armor. Kari grinned some “Hey, this is not too bad, I could get used to this.” Kari went upstairs and glanced at the bed pausing a moment. Kari’s right eye twitched as she came to a realization, “Wait, if Una left right away and hasn’t been back then these were the sheet that they…” Situation like this reminded Kari why being linked to Shadros wasn’t all that it was cracked up to be. Being in Shadros’ head was a scary place especially in this kind of circumstance. Kari had more or less completely blocked out Shadros’ affair with Una that night but looking at the bed brought the images back making Kari shutter. “Gross! Why would anyone agree to do something like that? I don’t get it,” Kari grumbled. Kari didn’t really get relationships of that nature and sex might as well had been an alien concept to her. Though Kari was not naïve enough to not know what sex was, she was completely uninterested in it. Kari carefully rolled up the sheets and threw them into one corner of the room. Before long the spares Shadros kept nearby had replaced the old ones. Only then did she lie down on the bed. Her eyes drifted to different sections of the house, everything seeming so familiar yet foreign to her at the same time. This examination did not last long as her thoughts vanished and she quickly succumbed to her exhaustion, falling asleep. Kari woke the next morning feeling fully charged and alive again. Kari emerged from the bed stretching her back and limbs out, letting out a satisfied moan as she did “Ah, that’s more like it! How long as it been since I got to sleep in a bed like that?” Kari went over to the sink wetting and running her hands through her hair to undo the night time tangles before grabbing a towel. She looked at the coffer as she was drying her hair. The hot desert air would finish the rest and Kari knew there was no reason to put it off any longer.

She knelt down before the coffer noticing several scuff marks along the lid “Una must have attempted to force the crate open before she left. I guess it’s a good thing she didn’t get to it.” Kari didn’t really expect anything foul from Una but in her desperation to find Shadros she may have done something hasty. Kari slid the key into the slot and unlocking the crate. Kari pushed the lid open letting it crash against the dresser behind the crate. The box was filled with various equipment ranging from combat gear to crafting tools. Most of the regular weapons looked to be in excellent shape. “Bows, axes, grimoire, staves. Sheesh, Shadros had quite a collection going didn’t he? Hm? What’s that?” She picked up a hammer that was used for blacksmithing work and it was in worse shape for wear.

Kari tilted her head some, “Sheesh Shadros, were you banging this against a wall or something? You can’t treated tools like these like your sword.” Kari noticed all the gathering and crafting tools had suffered a similar fate, “I guess I’ll need to fix or replace those later.” Kari had not been allowed to fight when she lived in Shadros’ village so she spent a lot of time in other disciplines while Shadros clearly had not. Warrior of Light or not, Shadros seemed to primarily excel when it came to battle but not much else. Kari then caught sight of a jewelry box that was tied to a large stack of letters. “Are those…?” Kari undid the tie dropping the letters before opening the box. She would see different shaped crystals, in different colors, and with different emblems on each, “Warrior, Monk, Dragoon, Ninja, Bard, Black Mage, Summoner, White Mage and Scholar. Yes, these are Shadros’ other soul crystals. They’re all here! How beautiful!” She knew that much like the Paladin Soul Crystal these crystals would grant her additional powers if she could learn how to use them. Kari, however, wasn’t sure how exactly she was going to do that. She noticed one of the letters was addressed to her specifically. She opened up the letter and read it over.

“Kari, if you are reading this then you have found a way into this crate and I already know what you’ve likely decided to do. After all, it was our dream to see the world and have adventurers together for as far as I can now remember. However, that is no longer possible, I can no longer stay by your side. However, you are not alone in this. There are many of those out there that helped me during my journey and they will be able to help you as well. The letters you have found in this crate are my last will and testimony. These will include recommendations to the various instructors, teachers, and allies I have had over my time as the Warrior of Light. Seek them out. Learn from as many of them as you can. You’re a fast learner and I know you can do it. –Shadros” Kari rubbed her eyes a moment with her arm trying to stop herself from crying, “Shadros…”

Meanwhile, for the first time in many weeks, Una had returned back to the Goblet. Una in a foul mood and even the usual merchants were avoiding the angry Miqo’te at the moment, “Nothing. Absolute nothing. I couldn’t find Shadros, I couldn’t even find that idiot shinobi, nor do I have a way to get into that god damn box. Damn it to all seven hells!” Una kept storming her way through the Goblet stopping at Shadros’ house. She only wanted to see if anything had changed and originally had no intention of going inside but the more she thought about that day the angrier she became. Una growls repeatedly running her hands through her hair, “How dare that idiot drug me like that!? After all I did for him this is the thanks I get!? I let him have sex with me and I let my guard down! How could I fall for such an obvious trick!? Damn you Shadros, damn you straight to hell!” Una stopped her rather vocal ravings before as her ears twitched as something caught her attention. It was faint but she could hear small sounds coming from inside of the house. Una glanced at the house seeing something moving through the window, “Could it be Shadros? Has he finally returned?” Una’s completely forgot her anger for a moment before quickly making her way to the door and opening it quickly, “Shadros!?” Kari froze a moment when she heard the door open behind her. Una watched the scene as she saw Shadros’ coffer had been opened but not by force, it had been actually unlocked. Una looked at Kari perplexed, “Who in the hell are you? Where’s Shadros?” Kari slowly stood up turning around to look at Una, this was an encounter Kari had been dreading for some time but knew it was likely inevitable. Una narrowed her gaze peering at the young Au Ra woman, “Wait, I know you. You… can’t be here! How are you here!?” Una hissed out recognizing the Kari’s appearance. This girl could only be Kari, the girl that Shadros had been seeking the entire time, “Kari, you’d best explain yourself right now! Where is Shadros!? What did you do to him!?” Una’s tail arched up as she made her demands.

Kari was taken aback by Una’s aggressive behavior waved her arms some, “Una, Shadros is…” She paused turning her gaze away deciding Una deserved to know the truth no matter how painful it would be, “Una, I’m sorry, Shadros can’t come back.” Una growled, “What are you saying!? Stop rambling and get to the point you scaly bitch!” Kari put her hand to her chest, “Shadros is dead, Una.”

Una frozen in place for a moment in utter shock, she began to shake as she screamed at Kari, “He’s dead!? That can’t be! That’s impossible! A Warrior of Light just can’t die like that! You’re lying to me! Stop trying to play me for a fool!”

Kari shook her head, “I’m standing proof of it. Shadros fought the Hymn Venom Order with everything he had. He beat them but in their last moment their leader unleashed their patron voidsent, Hymn Venom. He won by tricking the beast but he was so severely poisoned that he couldn’t escape. He used what little strength he had to release me from my curse and sent me away. The chamber collapsed due to the attack by said voidsent.” Kari looked down, “There was no way he could have gotten out of there alive. I wish I was lying… he gave absolutely everything. I’m sorry Una, I couldn’t stop him.” Una stumbled back holding her head. Tears began running down her face as she stumbled back and forth for a few moment before she let out a terrible scream that shook Kari to her very core as Una’s despair and anguish cut into Kari’s very soul. Una screamed but it began to shift into snarls as her gaze shifted back to Kari, Una’s eyes were filled with rage and hatred unlike anything Kari had ever seen, “You! This is all your fault!” Kari stepped back, “Pardon?”

Una screamed at her, “This is all your fault!” Kari’s eyes grew wide and she attempted to grab the Paladin Soul Crystal from the table but before she could invoke its power Una was already charging at her and punched Kari directly in the face. The suddenly attack caused the Paladin Soul Crystal to fly from Kari’s hands, bouncing off the floor, and slide under the bed.

Kari had very little time to process what had just happened as Una grabbed Kari by the shoulder pulling her forward and Una would slam her knee straight into Kari’s stomach. Kari cried out and gasped for air as she was struck.

Kari stumbled back grasping her stomach looking at Una, “P-Please… stop…”

Una growled, “Shut up!” Una extended her hand out in a claw position and slashed downward at Kari’s face. Kari brought one of arms up to protect her face which allowed Una to tear through the light sleeve of shirt and tore her skin slightly.

Kari winced and held her arm as the torn spot would slowly stain the shirt sleeve with blood from the fresh cuts on her arm, “Una, I don’t want to fight you, please! Shadros wouldn’t have wanted this please stop!” Una growled, “Don’t you dare talk to me about him!” Una quickly managed to grab Kari’s injured arm and though Kari made an effort to try to push Una back but Una was simply too fast for the inexperienced Kari to keep up with. Una yanked Kari’s arm tightly behind her back causing Kari to cry out once again. It felt like Una was trying to break her arm but wanted it to be as long and painful as possible. Una growled, “What’s the matter!? Does that hurt? You don’t even know pain! I’ve been used, betrayed, and abandoned! You have the nerve to tell me what I should think about Shadros!? It’s your fault he’s gone!” Una grabbed used her free hand to grab Kari by her horn and slammed her head into the tiled wall. Una did it several times putting cracks into the wall with Kari’s own skull. Kari made various sounds such as whimpers, grunts, and moans. Kari’s face was bleeding and heavily bruised at this point. Una growled, “Good thing you have such a hard head because I’m not done with you!” Una yanked Kari by her tail causing Kari to scream before Una swiftly kicking Kari in the back causing Kari to fall forward into the dining table causing it to fall over before Kari collapsed down to the ground. Kari stared at the floor. At this point Kari just wanted more than anything to just pass out and let this whole thing just be over with. Una, however, was uninterested in of granting Kari any such relief. Una put her foot down hard on Kari’s back putting weight down before she grabbed Kari arms pulling them backward causing Kari to scream out again as it felt like her arms were being pulled from their sockets. Una seemed entirely relentlessly and had no intention of doing anything but leaving Kari battered and broken. The pain was utterly unbearable at this point and Kari couldn’t take it anymore and just wanted it to stop. Kari lashed out by swinging her tail back sharply into Una’s back. Una hissed some as the attack stung causing her to let go of Kari’s arms. Kari whimpered and winced as she tried to regain the feeling in her arms. Una growled and kicked Kari again while she was on the ground, “Your absolutely pathetic… this… this is what Shadros died for? This weak, scaly pile of worthless shite! Everything about you makes me sick! Shadros abandoned me for the likes of you? I can’t believe this! You humiliate me simply by existing!” Una grabbed Kari by her horn before lifting her up enough to punch Kari hard in the stomach before letting go again. Kari gagged and sputtered some as she could no longer contain to the contents of her stomach and vomited on the floor mixing the vomit with blood dripping from her nose and mouth at this point. Kari could barely move from the position she was in at this point. Una grabbed her by the hair and pulled her up so Kari would meet her gaze again, “What’s the matter you scaly bitch? Had enough already you twisted freak? I’m not done with you! You understand? I will break you into pieces if I have to!” Kari gritted her teeth when Una called her a freak at this point the pain and Kari’s rage had reach a breaking point.

Kari could no longer tolerate the torture that Una was putting her through, “I’m not a freak! You bitch!” Kari’s hair was long enough that she was able to twist around get ahold of Una’s arm and bit into Una’s arm as hard as she could. Una hissed and let go of her hair backing away from looking at her arm as she was bleeding from the bite. Kari managed to get her second wind and managed to get up. Kari grabbed Una’s head before headbutting her with own scaled forehead hard enough to crack the scales on Kari’s forehead but it was worth it as the hardness of her skull scales was enough to cause Una quite a bit of pain and leave a pretty significant bruise on Una’s forehead. Kari wasn’t thinking at this point as she was enraged. All Kari was thinking was how much she wanted Una to hurt right now for torturing her for the last few minutes. With Una stunned Kari managed to regain enough momentum to give Una a solid hook to the face with her uninjured arm and a straight punch into her chest causing Una to gag and stumble back. Una growled, “You’re going to pay for that you little…” Una suddenly felt a sharp pain her stomach which seemed to stop Una right in her tracks, “No… not now. Not again!” Una had been experiencing the occasional stomach pain but this one was occurring at the worse possible time. Kari growled not noticing Una’s sudden stop, “You’re just a selfish bitch you know that! How dare you pretend that you’re the only one suffering! You know absolutely nothing about what I’ve been through!” Kari punched Una in the face again, “Do you think this makes me happy!? To know that Shadros is gone and now I’m all alone too! I will not sit here and be bullied by someone like you! Never again!” Kari knelt down and tackled Una knocked the two into the bed. A loud crack could be heard when the two landed as the frame cracked from force and weight of the two women.

Kari raised her arm planning to hit Una again when something made her stop. Kari now noticed Una was clutching her stomach. Kari frowned and realized she never hit Una in the stomach. Her attack couldn’t have possibility be causing her stomach pains. Una had her eyes tightly shut and could no longer seem to move.

Kari slowly reached down touching Una’s forehead, “Gods, she’s burning up! Now what do I do?” She quickly move off the bed reaching underneath it. Kari ignored the pain from her injuries for a moment managed to pull out the Paladin Soul Crystal from under the bed and restored herself to her armored state. It didn’t help relieve her injures at all and in fact just made them hurt worse. Kari simply knew it would it would be enough to give her some additional strength. Kari managed to pull Una onto her back and left the house with her. Una had passed out at this point and was no longer fighting against Kari. Kari would returned to streets of Ul’dah to seek out a Chirurgeon to help Una. Kari had no idea why she was straining herself so much to help someone that was physically torturing her mere minutes ago. It just didn’t feel right to Kari to leave Una fevered and helpless like that. Kari grumbled to herself, “How can one Miqo’te be so heavy?” Kari just took the situation one step at a time. Ignoring the stares from people as she carried Una through Ul’dah. Kari wondered for a moment why no one was even attempting to help out at all but then again the people in Ul’dah were not particular known for their charity towards others, most simply just stayed out of the way. Kari just shook her head and kept going finally encountered someone who directed her to the nearest Chirurgeon clinic. The Chirurgeon, an older Elezen gentlemen, had Una taken into the examination ward while a Lalafell Conjurer tended to Kari’s own injures. Kari’s injures were not severe and even as sore as she was she would probably recover in little time. Kari was just relieved that she was not as easy to break as she once was. Though Kari was free to go and could easily leave to avoid any further complication with Una. For some reason, Kari just couldn’t bring herself to leave until Una was awake.

A few hours would go by and the Chirurgeon would finally come out from the room, “Your friend is awake. We’re doing some final tests but she should be fine. You’re welcome to speak to her now if you wish.” Kari wrinkled her nose at the world ‘friend’ as that is the last thing she saw Una as right now. Kari would slowly stand and walk into the room. Una lying in the bed staring up at the ceiling she would not look at Kari. Though she likely knew Kari as there. Kari said, “You have no reason to listen to me but I’m going to say my piece anyway. I never asked for any of this to happen. The whole reason I showed myself that day at Tam-Tara Deepcroft is I was trying to get Shadros to stop seeking me. I wanted Shadros to move on with his life but despise my best efforts and yours we couldn’t stop him from making that decision. If you need to hate me for that, that’s your own decision. I don’t plan to stay here anyway.” Kari paused before continuing, “I am taking the contents of the coffer with me. I need those things in order to move forward with my own plans. However, everything else: the house, his possessions, and everything else is yours to do what you wish.” Una growled some sitting up looking at Kari, “So what? Is this supposed to be the part where we forgive each other and become good friends? Bite me, nothing has changed here. Everything about you disgusts me. Get out of my sight Kari I never want to see your scaly ass face around me ever again. I will never forgive you for what you’ve done.”

Kari turned away from Una and growled, “I’m not looking for forgiveness from you, and I don’t want it. You’re a vile and vindictive woman, Una. You physically tortured me to appease your anger and it’s absolutely pathetic. As far as I’m concerned, I now question what Shadros saw in you, but that doesn’t matter anymore. I’m giving you your part mostly as a peace offering because for whatever reason you were important to Shadros and I wish to honor that. I don’t want anything to do with you, so let’s just do our best to stay out of each other’s way from now on. I will continue where Shadros left off. You can do whatever the hell you want. Just stay out of my way.”

Una turned her head, “You, a Warrior of Light? Don’t make me laugh! You couldn’t even handle me. What makes you think you can do anything of the sort? You’re a delusional little girl who’s been handed power by someone far greater then you ever will be. The only thing I’ll do is watch you as you fail and laugh.”

Kari grasped her Paladin Soul Crystal taking the armored state again ignoring Una’s taunt, “Good bye Una. For Shadros’ sake I wish you the best, but I pray we never meet again.” Kari would leave the Chirurgeon’s office glancing up for a moment. She took a long and deep sigh before continued back towards the Goblet. Her only goal at this point was to retrieve the items in the Coffer and begin her journey as soon as possible. The sooner she healed and moved on from today’s events the better.

Una growled and slammed her fists down on the bed, “That little shite, I should have broken her legs! She thinks she can talk down to me like that? If I hadn’t gotten so damn sick out she wouldn’t be talking so tough right now!” The Chirurgeon came back into the examination room, “Ms. Rela I apologize for the wait, it’s good to see that you’re lively but you should settle down. Such outbursts aren’t good for someone of your condition.” Una growled some, “What condition? What are you rambling about? Speak plainly already.”

The Chirurgeon said, “Ahh… so you weren’t aware after all.” Una frowned at him, “Aware of what?” The Chirurgeon said, “Well, based on our tests you were sick due to your body adjusting to your condition. Ms. Rela you appear to be pregnant.”

Una expression shifted to shock and she grew more pale, “W-What did you just say? Pregnant!? That’s not possible, I’ve never been with a Male Miq’ote for over in year and even when I have I’ve never let one spurt inside me that for sure. Beside since I met… him....” She grew even paler as she came to realization, “… it can’t be…” The Chirurgeon could tell she needed time to process the situation and left her alone. Una gripped the sides of her head. She tried to recall the night she had slept with Shadros trying to remember how their tryst ended. Had she been so caught up that she had taken no precautions what so ever? Shadros wasn’t the only person she had ever slept with, as adventurers were known for their short live trysts, but unlike other encounter she didn’t recall any attempt to stop him from potentially impregnating her. No, she had let him go all the way with her without even thinking about it and she had not slept with anyone since meeting Shadros. Tears began to run down Una’s face as her shock soften into sorrow, “Shadros… it’s his… oh the twelve…” Una had good reason to be concerned children between Hyurs and Miqo’tes were very rare to begin with. Though biologically compatible with each other, the differences were enough that not only was it rare but there was potential for complications not only with pregnancy but very likely the child itself. Una put her hands over her face and began to sob. She was entirely alone. No Miqo’te tribe in Eorzea was going to accept her or the child, including members of her own family. As racial half-breed were rarely accepted in many places in Eorzea, this child would leave her as a black mark. Worse, she had few friends, very little resource, and the father of her unborn child was dead. Una sobbed, “Shadros, I don’t know what to do. I can’t do this alone. Why did you do this to me? Why did you leave me?” Una slid onto the bed wrapping her arms around herself as she cried harder than she ever had in her life. Midgardsormr had been observing the scene from a ledge of the window.

Midgardsormr spoke, mostly talking to himself as no one could hear him there, “Some mistakes are not easily erased. Nor the consequences of thy actions. Such is the cycle of mortal hubris. Thy Shade turned his back on everything for the sake of his own dark tendency and others would also pay his price. This child is no different.” Midgardsormr flew from the ledge flying above Kari too high for Kari to notice, “Will the mother’s chosen make such a reprehensible mistake herself? Or will she overcome thy Shade’s tragic legacy? Tis a story yet to be told.” Midgardsormr once against vanished in another burst of Aether. Kari stopped and looked up seeing the aetheral sparkles hovering down from above her. Kari tilted her head to the side for a moment assuming she was hearing things again before she continued on her way.

Section 2 - Chapter 2: Key to Conflict

Final Fantasy XIV: Azure and Crimson Complete

Section 2 - Chapter 4: First Quest? Kari is wearing what!?

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