|
Final Fantasy XI Official Web Site
Allakhazam Final Fantasy XI
Linkshell Community
Vana'diel Atlas
Older Entries
|
As his eyes adjusted to the light, the adventurer realized that night time had descended in the forest. Still half asleep, he tried to stand up and walk around, but found his limbs to be uncooperative. His sore muscles made him wince from the pain, and although this helped to wake him up, it kept him from standing up. Eventually the adventurer noticed that he was alone inside the Jugner outpost. Neither the Royal Knight nor the capitaine were inside, and as he could not yet stand up, he decided to wait for their eventual return. As he worked through the pain to stretch his legs, he wondered where the capitaine had gone. He figured the Royal Knight had gone on patrol or something similar, or maybe had been relieved by another Royal Knight from San d’Oria.
But the capitaine had not appeared to be in great shape, and would have no need to step out of the outpost in her condition. The adventurer realized he was needlessly worrying about his friend, since from the very first time they met he realized she was a strong adventurer. Though it was somewhat emasculating, and he would never say this out loud, he had always looked up to her, as she was more determined than he ever was. Not only that, she had probably already traveled all over the known world, perhaps even a few unknown areas as well, and had probably amassed a large number of friends and acquaintances. And here he was, years into his adventuring life but feeling only half-committed.
The adventurer liked to imagine that he had come some way from his humble beginnings, but he knew the truth: he was doing the bare minimum to be considered an adventurer. As he began to loathe himself yet again, the feeling slowly returned to his legs, and he was finally able to stand up. At once his thoughts shifted again to the capitaine and he stepped towards the door erratically. The adventurer looked out the door, holding himself up with the door’s frame, but could not see very far past the two torches right outside the outpost. He went back inside and walked around some more to get the blood flowing, in preparation for going out into the forest. He anxiously glanced through the outpost door every time he went past, particularly as he knew that if he was left alone long enough his thoughts would start to drive him insane.
Suddenly, the adventurer heard some footsteps approaching the outpost, but before he could consider the identity of the intruder, he thought he heard a growl. His legs felt better now, so he decided to prepare an ambush for the prowler. His sword was already out of its sheath, and he remained in one of the corners of the outpost, deep in the shadows. The footsteps were much closer now, and he knew the intruder would be reaching the inside of the outpost in an instant. His hand grasped his sword even tighter, and he readied to land a powerful blow on the beast foolish enough to approach a San d’Orian outpost. A hand reached for the frame of the door, but before the adventurer raised his sword for the strike, he recognized the hand.
A dark leather glove covered the hand, yet the adventurer knew it was the capitaine’s hand. He quickly put his sword away as she entered the room, and it appeared that she had not noticed how close she came to receiving a blow from his sword. She had wrapped a long cape around her, perhaps because the temperature outside was chilly, but nevertheless her demeanor remained cheery. While both the adventurer and the capitaine did not speak much during the first few minutes of her return to the outpost, the ambience inside was not one of anxiety or uneasiness, but remained calm. At other times, the adventurer would not last very long sitting quietly, as he usually hid inside his own mind the whole time and became antsy and self-conscious.
But with the capitaine it had always been different. The adventurer remained relaxed despite the usual turmoil in his mind, even if he could not hide it from his face. As if she were able to read his mind, she was always able to tell when he was worried about something, and this time it was no different. As soon as he began to over-think things again, she asked him to relax as she could tell he was anxious about something. She promised him that if he stopped worrying and listened to her, she would tell him where she had gone, what she had done during her trip and, of more important concern to him, she presumed, why she had suddenly left. The adventurer’s silence signaled his agreement with her proposal, and he waited patiently while she began her tale.
The capitaine began by stating that she believed the adventurer was quite accomplished already, and did not require her help. In fact, during their early adventuring days, for the all-too-brief time when they were at equal terms in their training, the capitaine had looked up to him. That he made his way to Windurst on his own, however long it took, was quite an accomplishment. She realized then, seeing him blinded in the Sarutabaruta savannah, that he had a great determination driving him, as he continued to feel his way around even when weakened. Furthermore, when he enthusiastically embraced the new friendships he made in Windurst, she felt quite happy for him, if a little left out.
Yet that night, when the adventurer made clear that he did not want the distance between them to grow, the capitaine felt guilty for holding him back. That night, as he did not go back to the rental room, she stayed up thinking her side of things. If she was indeed holding him back, she needed to let him go on his own, but she was also scared that perhaps she was holding herself back. The adventuring bug had bit hears years before, but she still needed to see a lot of the world and perhaps worrying about him was a problem. She needed to make a clean break, for him as much as for herself. She figured that the experience would strengthen both of them, and the next morning as early as she could rode a chocobo out of Windurst.
At first the capitaine rode with no particular direction in mind, but she soon remembered that the Grand Duchy of Jeuno held great potential for rising adventurers like her. So she rode to Jeuno, and within a day found lodging in the city. Soon after, the pace of her life picked up. She was invited to parties of explorers like her, who wanted to see more of the world. As the capitaine explored and fought, she began to pick up loot and trinkets from every corner, materials for crafting all sorts of goods, and, most importantly, a host of new adventuring friends. Though she wanted to say that she was concerned with his status during that time, the truth was that she kept herself too busy to stop and think for very long at any time.
In fact, the capitaine’s injured right hand was a result of taking things a bit too fast. As she and some friends were taking down a rather nasty monster in a faraway land, she was ambushed by another beast who managed to burn her hand. Thought it was not a serious injury, she was incapacitated for a few days and had decided to slow down a bit, as much for recovering from her injury as for general rest. It was during one of her meandering trips between San d’Oria and Jeuno that the adventurer had managed to catch up to her, while she rested in the outpost. After she stopped talking, the adventurer sat there quietly, slowly letting her words sink in. The capitaine urged him to get out of his head and speak, or else she could not know what he thought.
As the adventurer began to speak, he still had some trouble organizing his thoughts. His first question was not about her, as he instead asked if she thought he had become self-sufficient enough during her absence. The capitaine did not hesitate to answer, saying that if he had managed to go to Windurst, back to San d’Oria, and proceeded to journey to Jeuno, he had indeed reached his goal. He then asked where she was living now, as he imagined she had moved out of the Kingdom of San d’Oria. Indeed, she had relocated to the Grand Duchy of Jeuno, although she frequently went back to San d’Oria. As she answered, the adventurer tried his best to hold back the resentment he felt. He wanted to know why she did not bother to let him know she was alright. But he knew the answer already, even if he did not like it.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|