Everheart: Prologue

Months ago...

Night had since fallen on the city of Ul'dah, and the great stone city now softly glowed, a gem in the night, as the light of the city's torches and sconces danced and flickered all along the carved walls and paved streets.  Thadthadius Castle slowly roamed the interior corridors of the city, his lion tail swishing about as he was lost in his thoughts.

He thought about the last time he had been in Gridania, on a night not unlike this one, with a calm warmth hanging in the air.  He thought of a grand tavern, filled with rowdy and cheery adventurers, craftsmen and citizens of the great forest city.  He thought of an excellent plate of grilled squirrel steak, and that malty beer that was the house specialty.  

Then he thought of the girl who loved that beer so much, letting out a sullen sigh as he leaned against the stone wall.  

Ginal... I wish that night had gone better... I'm sorry I didn't read you right.  I'm sorry I took you by surprise.  Once I'm done with this job, I'm going back to Gridania to get everything cleared up.

The lion-tailed miqo'te nodded to himself with a slight smile, feeling his confidence bolstered a bit.  He continued his way through the sprawling corridor, passing roegadyn miners bragging about their grand hauls, and some lalafell merchant man trying to peddle cloth flowers.  The hallway gave way to the cavernous indoor courtyard that was the Gold Court, and Thadthadius paused to look about the enormous room.  He admired the grand, intricately carved fountain that hung over the center of the court, its water pouring into the illuminated pool in the center of the floor.

As the purple eyed young man lowered his gaze, a bright and heartfelt smile filled his face, for there standing in the light of the fountain, stood Ginal.  Dressed a lovely, colorful yukata robe that showed off those gorgeous legs he remembered, she looked in that moment to be both classically beautiful, and dreamily sexy.

He opened his mouth to call her name, but stopped suddenly as the world around Ginal finally came into focus.  The red haired miqo'te woman was not alone at the side of the fountain.  She was wrapped in the embrace of an auburn haired hyur woman, and Thadthadius could only stare in shock as he watched their lips entwine in a kiss that was stunningly passionate, and still strangely heartwarming in the love it seemed to radiate.

Feeling his heart in his throat, Thadthadius stumbled backwards into the corridor he came from, and slumped against the wall.  His head spun and his eyes pooled, a whimper escaping him.

But... I love you...

He thought he saw a passerby begin to reach out to him, but decide against it.  His vision was so blurred from the tears though, it was hard to be sure.  The ache taking hold of his heart was a more profound pain than when his eye was scarred, and his mind raced desperately to make sense of what he just saw.  Try as he might,  the coat clad summoner could not think straight.  All he could concentrate on was the overwhelming misery that gripped his heart.

Thadthadius shakily rose to his feet and slowly stumbled his way through the corridor, his destination forgotten.

As the summoner aimlessly made his way along the city's streets, he continued to pour over his memories of Ginal.  He felt utterly defeated, and no matter how much he thought about what he witnessed, he could make no sense of it.

Things had been going so well.

The thought whispered though his mind, and he nodded in agreement. 

She clearly wanted to be closer. 

Again he nodded, frowning at the circumstances. 

She was as good as yours...

Thadthadius furrowed his brow in frustration.  He knew it was true.  He may not have known Ginal for more than a few weeks, but the signs were all there.  Her nervous hesitation, the glancing away, and the constant flirting.  Ginal was most definitely as good as his woman.  Which meant...

The hyur stole her from you.

The summoner stopped short as the thought angrily whispered through his mind.  It was the only explanation.

Ginal was yours, and the hyur stole her.  Deceived her and took her away.

With an angry growl, he slammed his fist into a stine stone pillar, but the adrenaline beginning to surge through his body dulled the pain.  Thadthadius knew what needed to be done.

Take back what is yours!

The miqo'te man growled through clenched teeth, seething at the thoughts that were dominating his mind.

But be wary.  Selah Phocina is strong.  

"Selah...Phocina."  Thadthadius nearly spat the name as he repeated his thoughts.

He stood tall and looked back in the dirdction of the Gold Court.  He knew what must be done.  The summoner would take the necessary time to sharpen his skills, then he would return.

And Selah Phocina would pay.

Current day...

In a cabin, by a spring, overlooking a cliff, all sat still and quiet.  Within the cabin, aether began to gather in a swirl of light and color, the force of which tore books from their shelves onto the floor.  The swirl of aether stretched and grew, as two long limbs formed on the underside of the gathered energy, followed by two more extending from near the top.  As the light from the gathered mass of aether faded, a figure stood within the cabin, an elezen woman of long, dark hair, slender frame, and calm eyes.  Clad in a low cut, silken white dress that flowed to her feet, the elezen moved with a deliberate grace toward a rectangular table that sat in the middle of the cabin.

Another mass of aether began to swirl and form behind the woman, its winds dancing with her skirt.  From this mass of energy coalesced the imposing form of a hulking amalj'aa.  Adorned with shining steel plates of armor on his waist, forearms, ankles, and as a sash across his chest, the beast man only barely fit into the limited space of the cabin.  With heavy footfall, he made his way to the end of the table opposite the elezen woman.

"The game does not go in our favor." the beast man growled.

"No, it does not." the woman in white agreed.

With a wave of her hand over the table's surface, two cards appeared in the center, one displaying an image of a sapphire, the other an emerald.  A stack of additional cards appeared within immediate reach of both the cabin's occupants, and the elezen cast a gentle smile upon her companion.

"There are, however, still more challenges to play against them." her soft voice gently echoed.

The amalj'aa nodded with a determined scowl, drawing the top card of his deck and laying it underneath the sapphire.  He turned it over to reveal the image of a long green and gold coat.

"I play the summoner against Amani." the beast man's heavy bass of a voice rumbled.

In the calm of another night in the Mist of La Noscea, a cozy but we'll arranged room is wrapped in the soft illumination of a handful of candles.   Dressed down to simple camisoles and panties, Ginal and Selah lie cuddled in bed, the miqo'te wrapped in her hyur's arms.  They nuzzled and kissed, and lay content with each other in this simple moment.  The auburn haired hyur smiled at her lover through a lingering gaze. 

"Rest well, my Serafine Kitten."

A confusion filled Ginal's eyes as stared at the dragoon.

"What did you call me?"

Selah blinked at the question, searching her mind for the immediate memory.

"I called you my Ginal Kitten... That is still acceptable?"

The miqo'te redhead frowned at the odd misunderstanding, but shrugged it off and kissed her beloved once more.

"Only for you, and only for always." She purred through the words.

Within moments, the lovers were slumbering peacefully.