Everheart: Chapter 23

I want my feather bed back.  And some squirrel sausage with gravy-drowned biscuits.  And coffee that isn't nearly frozen.  And a gods damned indoor toilet.

The lovers cuddled together against a somewhat smooth section of the cavern wall, their birds nearby in their own pile.  Ginal gazed out the cavern opening, to the dimly lit gray and white that seemed to stretch on endlessly in all directions.  The only things she could see that added variety were an occasional skeletal tree.  Her ears flattened in answer to the howling winds, nose wrinkled to match.

Glad we got in before that picked up.  Selah's right, Coerthas is awful.

The miqo'te smiled, though, as her attention drifted to the chocobos sleeping alongside each other.

"Peri and Din are getting along well." Ginal observed.  "Kinda cute, isn't it?"

Selah looked beyond tired, with bags under her eyes dark enough to be mistaken for bruises, and hair tossed and disheveled, leaving Ginal to imagine she didn't look any better.  The smile Selah offered was clearly forced, with eyes void of joy or affection that were barely even open.  Irrational, hot anger exploded in Ginal's heart, and before she realized what was happening, her expression had twisted into a hostile sneer.

"The hells is that for?" Selah demanded, her own brow furrowed and lips pursed.

Ginal looked away and slowly inhaled, then slowly released.  She repeated, wishing the sudden tension in her shoulders to subside, until, at last, it did.

Cool it, girl.  Don't blow up, not now.  Won't help anything, and you know it.

"Sorry..." Ginal meekly offered.  "It felt like you...didn't care about talking to me."

"No...I'm sorry, too." Selah offered.  "Guess this, ah...sleeping in shifts isn't doing us any good."

Selah's nose wrinkled with a sharp sniff, "What is that?"

"Me." Ginal sighed.  "Miqo'te musk, gets bad after a couple days."

And a hot bath, with bubbles and candles.

"Oh...hardly noticed."

"Good save."

With a gentle purr, Ginal placed an affectionate kiss on Selah's cheek, to which the hyur held her close and lovingly squeezed.  Selah rubbed her eyes as a drawn-out, loud yawn escaped her.  Again, she offered a smile, this one seeming less forced than the last, but still not quite heartfelt.  Ginal squeezed her hand before pointing to the blankets bundled nearby, offering the most loving smile she could muster.

"You're about to fall over.  You sleep, I'll watch."

Selah's gaze fell away from her beloved, her lips turned down.  "I'm sorry..."

"Don't be.  I'll just...I don't know, practice my sword form or something."

The gem-forged greatsword materialized in Ginal's hand as she slowly paced, a yawn of her own escaping.  The cave stretched on and on in jagged halls of gray and brown, twisting and sinking in just enough places to keep the miqo'te from staring straight through.  Her ears twitched as she strained to listen down the cavern, but all she heard was the wind, the birds, and Selah. 

Rumbling and an empty ache called from Ginal's stomach.  She retrieved a fist-sized chunk of the jerky from their bag, and felt a brief wave of nausea wash over her as the sharp, salty smell assaulted her nostrils. 

Gonna be eating this shit for a few more days, aren't we?  Gods, I'd almost rather go out into that mess to hunt.

"Selah?"

"Mm?"

"When we get back home, you're gonna make my favorite breakfast.  And rub my feet while I eat in bed."

"Mm."

Ginal allowed herself a playful grin at the thought, and looked over her beloved's sleeping form.  The rise and fall of Selah's chest was comforting in its hypnotic quality, but caused an ache in her heart.

Gotta finish this up so we can go back to sleeping in our own locked room again.  This just reeks.

Confusion.  Shock.  Heartache.  Sorrow.

This can't be right.  They can't truly want this!

"You expect me to do WHAT?!" Selah shouted. 

The Warrior sneered as he looked down upon even her elezen height.  His polished breastplate gleamed in the light of her torch as her long, sapphire toned coat danced with the evening breeze.  The sky was black with clouds, suggesting that even the moon was fearful of what may come. 

"Your union with Serafine, and the child you now carry, are forbidden!  You will end both!"

With fists balled and brow drawn together, Selah stepped close enough to put her face mere inches from The Warrior's.

"I will not."

His eyes narrowed upon her as a deep and guttural growl warned of danger.

"We gave you power, purpose and eternity, Amani!  The price was to be our champion, to serve our cause and submit to our will!  You will do as we command!"

Was I naught but a fool?  Have I been so blinded by having my beliefs validated, and being granted these powers, that I sold myself into servitude?  And now, to serve, I must lose...

Everything that matters.

Selah caressed her expanding belly, smiling lovingly.  She could feel the gentle rythym of the second heart, and winced at a small, jabbing pain from within as the child kicked.

I wonder, will you look like both of us?  Will your eyes be turquoise?  Will your ears be on top of your head, or on the side?  Will you have your miqo'te mother's tail?

Oh, Serafine...  My beautiful, emerald-eyed knight.  I never thought of having a child.  Never thought it would make me happy, but...  It may not be what I've dreamed of, but it just might be a good life.

I won't let them take it from us!

The gentle glow in Selah's eyes flared in intensity as she grit her teeth.  A staff of red-brown lacquered wood materialized from blue-white swirling light, a brilliantly glowing sapphire orb adorning the top of it.

"I renounce my service to you!" she shouted.  "You will not take away what I hold most dear!"

The Warrior snarled as an axe of shining silver appeared in his hand, teeth like daggers on threatening display.

"We should have known one who was not of our children would be deficient.  You will die for your defiance!"

An angry scream was Selah's only warning before orbs of flame flew from her palm.  The Warrior cleaved through one, and was struck off balance by the second.  Seizing the moment's advantage, aether gathered about the elezen's hand and orb, and was unleashed as a torrent of lighting from the heavens.  The Warrior cunvulsed as the electricity poured over his body, the soil around him now a series of small, singed craters.  Selah gazed upon The Warrior a cold, piercing hatred, and more aether gathered about her.  An inferno poured fourth from her hands, consuming The Warrior's frame and turning it to ash.

Droplets of sweat fell from her brow, eagerly swallowed by the dry, craggy ground.  She allowed herself a satisfied nod as her breath found its resting rythym.

That was...easier than I thought it might be.  Maybe the avatar lost strength in enhancing me.  Who cares, though?  Just glad to be rid of them.

The hairs on Selah's neck stood, as the unmistakable sensation of an unseen presence washed over her.  Gripping the staff, her eyes darted about the sunless landscape, her ears straining to hear anything of aid.  Strands of silver light swirled together before her, becoming a mass that stretched and coalesced into the towering and powerful form of The Warrior.

"Well...damn."

"Amani of the Sapphire Soul!" he bellowed, eyes alive with ire.  "You have betrayed your allegiance and stood against us in battle.  This, we do not forgive...or forget."

The amalj'aa'as form shimmered and exploded into ribbons of aether, illuminating the landscape as they scattered and dissipated.



Panicked and disoriented, Selah rose to her feet as she spun about.  Her heart thundered in her chest, skin sticky with a cold sweat.

Oh.  Right.  Another dream...memory...whatever.

The weight of the lance in her hands finally registered with her conscious mind, and she willed it to return to dormancy.  A slow inhale, a matching exhale, and calm slowly enveloped her.  A smile crossed her lips as she spied Ginal, slumped against the cavern wall and fast asleep.

Oh, Kitten...  You tried to put on the brave front, didn't you?

Selah found a seat by her beloved, and kissed her ear.  Her stomach twisted on itself as the images, sounds and sensations of the dream lingered in her mind.

To think, I was once...okay with being pregnant.  Or at least, it didn't feel so wrong.  But, that's not who I am in this life.  The idea is just...it feels wrong.  Like I'm betraying a part of myself.

Her shoulders drooped as she listened to Ginal's gentle snore.

I really hope it's not something you were counting on, Kitten.  Despite your anatomy, you're still a woman...and women don't sire children with other women.  I hope that part of you is what's dominant...I don't want to disappoint you.  I love you.

The wind continued to howl outside the tunnel, with snow and what looked like sleet pelting the ground with a frozen spite.  Selah retrieved a blanket to drape over Ginal, and sneered at the storm outside.

Coerthas was a verdant place before The Calamity, but at least this is a more accurate depiction of what it's like to live here.  A place that's cold, harsh and unrelenting toward those who don't belong.  I hate this place.  I don't want to spend a minute in Ishgard's borders longer than I have to.

Selah's eyes drifted to the bare legs shown by the slits of Ginal's dress, and allowed a smirk.  Her eyes tailed up the miqo'te's legs, to the bare tummy on display, and passed the tightly fit top that covered Ginal's bust.

I'm not convinced it's a practical outfit, my love, but I'll not deny that you know how to give a good show.  Maybe when this is over you can use this outfit in the dancing shows you always wanted to hold.  Not a man alive could resist throwing his gil at you...

Eyes gleaming with condescending intelligence.  Lips turned in a sardonic grin, framed in a meticulously trimmed goatee.

"Ah, Selah, now that I have eyes to look upon you again, I'm delighted to see how you've retained your beauty...and equally delighted to see how your taste in woman has only developed over time."

Geoffrey, you conniving, malicious bastard.  You keep your eyes off my girl, you hear me?  Or I'll gladly rip them from your sockets!

An explosive sigh, clenched fists, and an incensed snarl followed Selah's thoughts.  She halted her outburst, and shook her head free of the thoughts.  The tension faded from her shoulders as she found a seat by Ginal, a hand running through her own hair.

Grezel, why didn't you bring Ginal a nice, long skirt and a solid breastplate?

I'm getting tired of traveling by night.  I don't care how well I might see, this night-vision of mine washes out the world's color too damn much.  And it's so, FUCKING, cold!

As Peridot jostled beneath her, Ginal rolled her eyes as she noticed how her nipples were prominently on display beneath her top.

The one damn time I'm not turned on.  At least my wonder-bit has taken a queue from the cold.

The winds had stilled, and the sleet ceased to pelt the land, but snowflakes still slowly drifted from the ceaseless clouds above.   The caverns lay behind them, beyond a bend in the road, the jagged mouth no longer visible as the lovers and their mounts made their way down a miles-long slope.

"Where were we headed, again?" Ginal asked of her beloved.

"It's called Whitebrim." Selah answered.  "One of the fortress towns that serve as a border of sorts for the capital city."

"Will they have real food?"

"Mutton, probably."

"And coffee?"

Selah smirked, "Coffee beans wouldn't grow well in this climate.  I imagine it's something imported from Gridania anymore, so don't expect a huge supply available to civilians."

The hyur rolled her shoulders in a shrug, her brow drawn together in apology.  The miqo'te frowned, her shoulders slumped as a pang of disappointment moved through her heart.

"At least tell me we can rent a room with a fireplace and a bath?"

A shrug and a sigh were Selah's answer.  "Ishgardians were never known to be hospitable.  It's probably worse so since the changes of the Calamity."

Ginal's tail flicked in irritation as she returned her attention to the road ahead.  "This land is awful."

"Tell me about it, love.  You're not the only one who needs beauty sleep, and I imagine I've got bags under my eyes that do me no favors."

Offering a playful grin as Selah indicated the purple-black skin under her eyes, Ginal felt her heart sink for a moment.

If she's actually getting concerned for her looks for once, then maybe she's aware of how worn out this journey is making her look...

"I hardly noticed, darling."

"Good save." Selah replied with a wink.

The hardened snow cracked and shattered under the footfall of the chocobos, but were not the only sounds to fill the night.  Ginal strained her ears as the howls of wolves echoed in the distance.  Her gaze drifted in the direction of the noise, but all she saw were trees of dead and barren limbs, and the occasional stone jutting from underneath the snow and ice.

In the distance, a bright twinkling caught Ginal's eye.  As their birds continued to dash down the sloping hill, another twinkling joined the first, and then another.

"Lights!" she called out.  "Sweet Nophica's tits, there are lights in the distance!"

Selah's laughter was obviously in response to her outburst, but the miqo'te didn't feel even the slightest bit of embarrassment.

"At least tell me we can sleep and not fear death?"

"That, at least, even Ishgardians should not begrudge us."