Requiem Catte

Al Bhed Crimelord

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Status: UnsentAge: 30Race: Miqo'te, ¼ Al BhedHomeland: Bikanel, SpiraOrientation: Gay

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The Coven:

The Silver Spire is Reks' old Free Company home, those within were important to him, learn about them below.

Clover:

Leader of the Coven, aside from M'dra, Clover is the one he trusts most, she knows his entire situation. He is pretty certain Clover is dead, the anger and sorrow in his heart leached out during the final battle with Yu'nan."You're really gone... Aren't you..? I don't want to believe you're gone... Why can't the good ones just... survive?"

M'dra:

M'dra was a mentor to Reks and someone that Reks greatly trusted and believed in. In recent events he helped Yendry clear M'dra's name and save her from certain doom with the rest of the Coven."I'm thankful to have had a mentor like you. You may be a tough cookie M'dra, but you've a soft spot, thanks for looking out for me."

W'khael:

Reks once felt a kinship with W'khael, he helped him escape from the fire in the Coven's house and provided some comfort to him when his Familiar died in the fire. Aside from W'khael checking up on Reks once, his kinship came to an end when he left the Coven."327 sins... I'll never forget that."

Yendry:

A trusted friend, they've spent many a time reminiscing over Reks' past and vice-versa, learning more about each other. Reks would depend on Yendry in a time of need. Reks lost connection to Yendry after he slipped away from the Coven and left it behind."I can only imagine the pains you've suffered, but I'm glad you shared your story with me. You're certainly stronger than I will ever be."

S'ami:

Reks unfortunately hasn't had much interaction with S'ami but he noticed her often upbeat mood and once felt some joy around her."I'm sorry for what happened to Sibyl, they didn't deserve that, you didn't deserve to lose the one you loved. Yu'nan has paid with his life, at least one injustice has been fixed."

James:

A trusted friend, James helped him with the Memory Sphere Projection Device, and they had a deep conversation about their pasts. The Device was lost to the fire that consumed the Coven's home. Reks lost touch with James when he left the Coven behind."Why do such horrible things happen to such wonderful people? I think you and Alender would have had such a wonderful life together were you given the chance..."

Garthok:

Reks helped Garthok with a problem once upon a time, but he hasn't had much interaction with him, he considered him at least a friend."You have quite a temper at times... don't let it consume you, friend."

Mjrn:

A friend, he has gone with Mjrn to her homeland and learned of her past, and in exchange given tidbits of information about his past."I'm sorry about what happened to your sister... don't beat yourself up over it too much, doing that can only lead to worse feelings."

Remnant:

A Mysterious boy from Reks' Memory, he saw him once at the Sorting Ceremony at the Coven, but that was the last he ever saw of him."Who... Are you...? Why Can't I remember your name..? Your face...? Did I... Did I hurt you...? You... loved me, didn't you? Why couldn't I love you back? Would you have protected me from all this pain..? Forgive me..."

The Haven

After returning to life he wandered the lands until he found a group that called themselves the Haven. Without the threat of the ascians to worry about anymore he's taken refuge here, doing his best to recover from the scars of his past and find new meaning in life.

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Story

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-Life Before Eorzea-

Reks is originally from Home in the deserts of Bikanel, being part Al Bhed, as such he is fluent in the language. He never knew his parents, only heard stories of them and how they were killed by fiends while they were on a pilgrimage, protecting a Summoner. His Mother was Al Bhed, but his father was not, his father was a Viera, one of the lesser known species in Spira. Growing up he heard tales of how his mother and father met while his Father was in training to be a Guardian. His Mother, being Al Bhed, was against the teachings of Yu-Yevon and did her best to dissuade the man she had fallen in love with from becoming a guardian. After a time she saw it was a fruitless venture and instead began the training to be a guardian alongside with him, so that she could protect him on the pilgrimage alongside the summoner. From the stories he grew up hearing his father was well-liked by many in Spira and his mother was adored by the Al Bhed people. They had Reks just a few months before they departed on the pilgrimage, it was during this time that Reks’ Mother and Father took a short leave to travel to Home to entrust their newborn son with an old family friend, Cid.Even though Reks grew up along-side Rikku and Brother, from an early age he understood they were not siblings by blood. His physical differences compared to them as well created an unspoken barrier of sorts and so he was never really that close to them, prefering to be left to his own devices. When he was still pretty young he decided to live on his own in Home and take his chances day by day. In his younger years he was a bit of a troublemaker, always making a fuss and causing chaos. He led a group that would often cause mischief around Home. He was once in love with his right hand man, Tnays, and their relationship was no secret to the group.One day when they were in their rounds of making mischief they were caught. The Al Bhed Elders questioned the youngsters, and everyone of course denied their blame. The Elders warned that if no one would tell the truth they would all be punished and sent to wander the desert for a week. Tnays was heavily pressured by his family and so he turned Reks in as the head honcho of the group. Reks was sent by the Elders to wander the desert for a week as punishment, and since he was the only one turned in he took the punishment alone. It is because of this betrayal that he doesn't let others get too close and is very wary when it comes to matters of the heart. As he wandered the desert of Bikanel he came across many fiends, and had many close encounters. One encounter left a scar on his face under his left eye. When he returned from his punishment Tnays did his best to make it up to him, but Reks felt betrayed and would have nothing to do with him or the old group.Although he was raised to believe the pilgrimage was wrong he didn't quite share the same feelings about it as most Al Bhed do. He believed that even if the pilgrimage was the wrong way to defeat Sin, Summoners still needed to be protected, and perhaps persuaded gently to find another solution. He was also encouraged by the stories of his Father and Mother to follow in their footsteps as a Guardian. To most it was a foolhardy venture and thought, but to him it was closure in a sense, a way for him to feel some kind of kinship with the Mother and Father he never knew.

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-Adventures in Spira-

At his coming of age ceremony at 16 he set forth to travel Spira and learn what it would take to become a guardian, by this time he had mellowed out quite a bit and was no longer the troublemaker he had once been. Reks traveled throughout the Calm lands, eventually finding his way to Mt. Gagazet. He spent a short time amongst the Ronso, learning their fighting style before moving on in his travels. He eventually found his way to Bevelle where he decided to become the Guardian to Lady Summoner Ayaluna. Lady Summoner Ayaluna was the daughter of a very rich family in Bevelle, a family who was very well acquainted with the Grand Maesters.Reks spent a few years training in Bevelle before him and his Summoner set forth on their Pilgrimage. One day on their journey Reks was a little careless and accidentally responded to a question he was asked by Ayaluna in Al Bhed. Flustered and now afraid that he may lose his Guardianship he tried to hide the fact that he was Al Bhed. He failed in his efforts, but to his luck his Summoner did not care that he was of Al Bhed descent. Lady Summoner Ayaluna wanted to learn more about her guardian, Reks, and the customs of his people after learning that he was Al Bhed. Reks had a very different view of the teachings of Yu Yevon than most guardians did due to his upbringing, which he gladly shared with his summoner. He told her the reasons he became a Guardian, the stories he was told about his Mother and Father, and even about some of the customs of his people.Due to his perspective on things it began to sway Lady Summoner Ayaluna’s opinions and beliefs on the pilgrimage. Lady Summoner Ayaluna often wrote letters to her family and the shift in her beliefs became more and more apparent with each letter. They made their way to the south, towards the temple at Djose, heading farther and farther south over the spanning months.It was on their return to the north that they had an unfortunate encounter with Sin at Macalania Lake. Sin only appeared briefly, leaving a horde of Sin Spawn in its wake. With no options left to them but to fight off the Sin Spawn, both Reks and his Summoner engaged the Sin Spawn in battle, attempting to fight their way through so they could continue their pilgrimage and escape with their lives. The Sin Spawn however were too strong, and amidst the fighting Summoner Ayaluna was slain.After the remaining Sin Spawn had been slain Reks, filled with grief, returned to Bevelle to return the remnants of Lady Summoner Ayaluna’s belongings to her family. The family was in such grief at the loss of their daughter that they sought counsel with the Grand Maesters, believing that Reks' Ideologies were the reason that their daughter had been slain. Reks was brought to trial before the Grand Maesters and was sentenced to exile, after all, such dangerous ideologies were a threat to the pilgrimage, and the Maesters would not allow Reks to poison the mind of another Summoner. As punishment for allowing his Summoner to die he was chained to the mast of a ship and sent adrift. In the vast Oceans of Spira Sin appeared once more. Sin moved ever closer to Reks’ ship, unable to escape he resigned and accepted his fate.

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-A Strange New Land, Eorzea-

Everything went black and when he awoke he found himself washed up on the coast of a strange land. The inhabitants called the seaside village Costa Del Sol. After recovering and learning of this new land he set forth, eventually finding his way to the Capitol Limsa Lominsa. He formed his own Free Company, the Zanarkand Mages, in the hopes that he could find others from his homeland, Spira, and find some way to return home. He vowed that he would never again fail those he was charged to protect. He feels he has much to prove, and to fill the void of his past failures he has taken on the hobbies of crafting and cooking.Reks has had a difficult time adjusting to life in Eorzea, the different customs and the fighting styles proved to be difficult. He studied the fighting style of the Red Mages, somehow it reminded him of some of the Ronso techniques he learned on Mt. Gagazet. He believes in the art of balance, so he also learned to be a Paladin and Astrologian, believing that these skills would make him a well rounded Guardian in his new world. He also spent time amongst the Black Mages, learning the dark and powerful arts.After 3-4 years of adjusting to life in Eorzea, he feels a little more at home, though he truly longs to return to his ancestral home on Bikanel. He feels a great kinship towards the other Spirans under his charge and will do whatever it takes to help get them back home, even if that means working with the Ascians, who have promised to help him find a way back home. He keeps it a secret that he helps the Ascians in their goals, albeit he does not agree with their end game. He does what he does for the greater benefit of the other Spirans.After a substantial round of raising funds he has finally managed to open up his own Cafe, the Espresso Bun Boy Cafe. He used his skills as a crafter to design the layout and build the Cafe himself. He opens the Cafe from time to time to give travelers a place to stop, relax, and enjoy themselves before returning to their daily lives. He also uses it as a hub for information gathering, after all, travelers tend to loose their tongues when they are relaxing, and sometimes that information he overhears gives him a lead into finding a way back home.Due to circumstances and the other Spirans learning of his Ascian associations his FC disbanded and most of the Spirans went their separate ways. With no one left to fight for he turned his attentions to his Cafe. He still looks for a way to return home, but his resolve to do so is not as strong as it once was.

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Screenshots

Memory Spheres
_{Arc 1}

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• -The Summoner-
• -The Nightmare-
• - The Familiar-
• -The Necklace-
• -M'dra-
• -James-
• -The Dream-
• -Yendry-
• -Reminisce-
• -Pendulum-
• -W'khael-
• -Sola Cordis-
• -The Lonely Path-
• -All Things End-

Tnays and Reks:
A Doomed Love Story

In the early teen years of Reks’ life he met a boy by the name of Tnays, who was the grandson of one of the Elders of Home. First impressions were not exactly the best between these two. After all, Reks’ dressed like a street rat and Tnays wore more elaborate clothing, which clearly painted the difference in class between the two. It occured one day when Tnays was wandering through the marketplace of Home, searching for a gift for his sister Ruba. Reks had eyed his target carefully, if he could pilfer some coins off the rich looking kid he might be able to make it through the next few weeks without much difficulty. He made his way into the crowd, slowly making his way closer to the taller Al Bhed boy. The coin purse around the boys belt was exposed, ‘Such an easy pay day’ Reks thought to himself. When he was close enough and while the boy was distracted he carefully cut the coin purse from the boy’s belt and started to make his sneaky get away. Unfortunately for him the boy had sensed the lost weight much quicker than anticipated and turned quickly, firmly gripping Reks’ shoulder before he was out of reach. Reks turned around and had a look of panic as he realized his mark had already made him. He quickly whirled around to break the other’s hold on him before dashing off through the crowd. The other boy had not expected such a quick reaction and it took him a moment before he began his pursuit, “Rao! Kad pylg rana!” (“Hey! Get back here!”) he shouted. Reks dodged and weaved through the crowd, doing his best to lose his pursuer.After he was certain he had lost his pursuer he walked into an empty alleyway and started counting the gold pieces, chuckling to himself with glee, “E's cad vun faagc!” (“I’m set for weeks!”) he stated as he counted through his bounty. His blood ran cold as he bumped into someone, and upon looking up he realized it was his mark. “Ur cred…” (“Oh shit…”) The other boy looked a bit peeved and pointed to the coins in Reks’ hand, “E drehg oui ryja cusadrehk dryd pamuhkc du sa?” (“I think you have something that belongs to me?”) Reks’ Ears flattened on his head as he realized he’d have to give back the coins, which meant he might go hungry this week. “C-cunno…” (“S-sorry…”) He deliberately handed the coin purse and all the coins he had taken back to the other then turned to leave with a sigh. He felt a pang of hunger, a reminder of his circumstances. The taller boy heard Reks’ stomach rumble and suddenly realized the reason for the theft. He reached out once more and gripped Reks’ shoulder firmly, "Oui'na rihkno..? Lusa, E'mm dnayd oui du y saym." ("You're hungry..? Come, I'll treat you to a meal.") At first Reks was going to protest, but another pang of hunger told him to swallow his pride and accept the others generosity. The other was already being way too nice, first to not reprimand him harshly, and now to be treating him to a meal? Reks felt his cheeks light up a bit as he followed the other back into the market. “E's Tnays po dra fyo." (“I’m Tnays by the way.”) the other said to Reks as he bought him a roll-like bun that had meat inside. Reks was quick to start eating the food he was given, “E’s Reks.” (“I’m Reks.”) he said between mouthfuls. From that moment Tnays became more involved in Reks life, over time the two became inseparable. As it happened Reks would find ways to drag Tnays into his mischief runs. Tnays always cautioned him that one day he might get caught, but Reks paid the warnings no mind.In the back of his mind Reks had always had an odd admiration for Tnays but one day he discovered that it was more than just admiration he felt. Reks had wondered for a while if maybe Tnays felt the same, he could swear the older, taller boy was flirting with him at times, but he wasn’t certain. Tnays and Reks would often go to a cliffside not far from Home, to gaze up at the stars, sometimes the whole group of Reks’ Bandits would come along, but every so often it was just Tnays and Reks. The two sat there gazing at the stars when Reks sat up, “Tnays… ec drana yhouha dryd oui byndelimynmo mega?" (“Tnays… is there anyone that you particularly like?") He asked almost a little too bluntly. Tnays sat up and looked over at Reks, a slight blush creeping onto his face, "Fryd pnuikrd drec ib..? Famm, drana ec cusauha E mega... pid E tuipd drao't ajan hudela, drao'na geht uv upmejeuic." ("What brought this up..? Well, there is someone I like... but I doubt they'd ever notice, they're kind of oblivious.")With that information Reks felt a bit jealous, so there was someone Tnays liked, but it couldn’t possibly be him could it? Reks frowned a bit, "Oui cruimt luhvacc du dras, E's cina drao't dnayd oui famm, yd maycd drao paddan un drao'mm ryja sa du yhcfan du!" ("You should confess to them, I'm sure they'd treat you well, at least they better or they'll have me to answer to!") Tnays took note of how sad Reks was, ‘you poor adorable idiot…’ he thought as he placed a hand on Reks cheek. "Ymnekrd drah, Reks, E's eh muja fedr oui, femm oui pa so puovneaht?" ("Alright then, Reks, I'm in love with you, will you be my boyfriend?") Reks felt his world stop, did he just hear that properly? Did Tnays really just ask him out? Reks’ eyes widened, he had been asked out, "E... oui muja sa? E... drehg E muja oui duu, Tnays, cu oac." ("I... you love me? I... think I love you too, Tnays, so yes.") With that Tnays leaned in and gave Reks his first kiss.Over time the two grew even closer, they constantly talked about their future together, making silly plans for their lives together. One night when the two were alone on the cliffside Reks gazed out into the vast desert, "E fyhd du dnyjam dra funmt uha tyo Tnays, yht E fyhd oui du lusa fedr sa. Fa'mm aqbmuna dra funmt paouht uin funmt yht syga y Rusa uv uin ufh, tacbeda dra uttc." ("I want to travel the world one day Tnays, and I want you to come with me. We'll explore the world beyond our world and make a Home of our own, despite the odds.") Tnays gazed over to Reks, a half smile on his face, "Ed tuac cuiht mega y mujamo tnays, Tayn Uha." ("It does sound like a lovely dream, Dear One.") The two slept in each other's arms that night, without much care in the world. They had a dream for tomorrow, a plan, a promise to never betray the other. For them everything was bright and simple, but fate had another plan.A few days later Reks gathered Tnays and the rest of his rag tag team of bandits, "Ymnekrd kioc, dutyo, fa bimm uvv uin pekkacd cluna, fa'na kuehk du chayg ehdu dra Amtan'c Xiyndan yht nup dra amtanc pmeht!" ("Alright guys, today, we pull off our biggest score, we're going to sneak into the Elder's Quarter and rob the elders blind!"). It had been a plan for the longest of times, even though Tnays had his reservations he wanted to support his partner’s decisions and plans. Reks went over the plans once more and then everyone went about to put the plan into motion. The plan was supposed to be simple, sneak into the Quarter, split up and gather valuables then make their escape. The only flaw in their plan? Their plans had already been discovered.Tnays had been pressured by his family to break his ties with Reks and his bandits, and through their pressure he had let it slip about the plan to rob the Elder’s Quarter. As Reks and his group entered the quarter it seemed un-guarded, perfect! They split up to gather their loot, even Tnays did his part, at the request of the elder’s so as to not seem suspicious. When the group met back up with their loot in hand they were suddenly surrounded by the Elder’s guards. Reks jumped with panic, How!? How had his plans been uncovered? Soon after the Elders approached the group with looks of dismay, "Huf frelr uha uv oui ec dra maytan uv drec knuib uv dreajac yht pyhtedc? Ev hu uha ryhtc res ujan oui'mm ymm pa aqemat du fyhtan dra tacand vun y faag yc bihecrsahd vun ouin lnesa rana." ("Now which one of you is the leader of this group of thieves and bandits? If no one hands him over you'll all be exiled to wander the desert for a week as punishment for your crime here.")For a moment no one spoke, Reks had instructed them well, if they were ever caught they would all bear the punishment, one for all and all for one. Reks smirked softly at the continued silence and then, to his horror, Tnays stepped forward. All Tnays could do was point right at Reks, he didn’t look, and he didn’t speak. Reks was confused at first, and then heartbroken. Tnays had just betrayed him, the love of his life, how could he? One of the Elders stepped forward and nodded "E caa, dra nacd uv oui yna vnaa du ku, Pid oui, Reks, crymm fyhtan dra tacand vun y faag, syo drec pa y maccuh du oui." ("I see, the rest of you are free to go, But you, Reks, shall wander the desert for a week, may this be a lesson to you." ) The Elder’s guards grabbed Reks firmly and started to drag him to the gates of Home, his sentence was to start immediately. Tnays turned in panic to the Elders as they carried Reks away, "Fyed! Drec fych'd dra taym, oui cyet ra't zicd kad y cdanh dymgehk du drah namaycat!" ("Wait! This wasn't the deal, you said he'd just get a stern talking to then released!") The elders shook their heads, one of them speaking up to Tnays, "Ev fa tet dryd ra't hajan maynh, ra'c rynt-raytat, drec ec dra uhmo fyo du daylr res." ("If we did that he'd never learn, he's hard-headed, this is the only way to teach him.")Reks was forced into the desert with nothing but a flask of water, the clothes on his back and a small knife. From there the story is simple. He endured much harshness in his week in exile, but he found the strength to survive. His heart was mangled and broken, he could no longer trust Tnays, and despite the boy's attempts to reconcile, Reks would never let him get close enough to properly apologize. It was only a year after these events that Reks, at his coming of age ceremony, left behind Home to travel Spira in his journey to become a Guardian.Sweat travelled down his forehead as he sat up in a panic, the past often troubled him in his dreams. He missed Tnays, it was hard for him to have to get up day after day with the consuming thoughts of loneliness. His breath was panicked and he realized he’d been crying. He looked around the room, trying to bring himself back to the present. Where was he now? ‘Eorzea, the coven’s house, that’s right, I’m far from Home…’ He sighed to himself as he looked at the book on Aether on the bed next to him. He had fallen asleep mid-research and dreamt of his time with Tnays. Oh how he wished he wasn’t alone in this moment. His past had such darkness to it, all he could do now is hope his future could turn out with better results than his past. He was tired of losing people close to him and tired of being unable to really trust anyone with his heart. "Uha tyo E'mm pa Rusa yht vnaa..." ("One day I'll be Home and free...")_Fin

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• - Tnays & Reks -
• -The Nightmare-
• - The Familiar -
• -The Necklace-
• -M'dra-
• -James-
• -The Dream-
• -Yendry-
• -Reminisce-
• -Pendulum-
• -W'khael-
• -Sola Cordis-
• -The Lonely Path-
• -All Things End-

The Summoner: Tragedy Best Forgotten

When Reks had first washed up on the shores of Costa Del Sol memory spheres of his had also washed up. The Grand Maesters had put the spheres on the ship to help hide damning evidence. It made some sense that they too had been teleported to this world. Reks was pacing his room in the Coven's estate. A few Memory Spheres sat on the table, until recently the memory spheres had been useless, as if they couldn't activate in this world. But after a fair amount of research into Allagan devices Reks had managed to tinker with an Allagan device altering the technology so that it would allow him to attach and use the memory spheres. He took one of the spheres and attached it to the Allagan device starting it up, it took a moment but shortly images began to display.Reks sat down at the table, watching the scene unfolding before him. A voice rang through the air, sending a shiver down his spine, 'Ayaluna…' "So, what is Home like? Those of us from the mainland hear that it's like a hub of thieves and Machina users." a younger looking Reks shook his head, "I mean in some regards it could be seen that way, but it's more than that. It's like Machina Heaven, so many cool innovations and Machina get created in Home. The people that live there believe that we can defeat Sin through advancements in Machina technology, we want Sin gone too." He took a moment to draw on his memories of Home, "Just like here with Yevon followers we have a class system of sorts. The Elders have a Quarter in the inner parts of Home, the Elders are like the Grand Maesters in comparison. The farther out from Home you live the more poor you are. I lived in the slums on the outskirts of Home, where the marketplace is." It was hard for a younger Reks to comprehend that a follower of Yevon, let alone his Summoner, was so open minded to hearing about his Al Bhed heritage. He went on to explain the smaller details of Home, the foods, the way they survived the intense desert that surrounded Home, and the fiends. The machine whirred softly and the Memory Sphere went dark, it must have been at the end of it's recording.Reks sighed softly, recalling such fond memories was difficult for him. Lady Summoner Ayaluna had been a dear friend to him. He detached the Memory Sphere and attached a new sphere, once more starting the machine to see what moment this sphere held. Reks froze as scenes of Macalania Lake appeared. "No, no, I don't want to see this!" He muttered as he tried desperately to remove the sphere, but it appeared once the machine was working it had to play out. He frowned as he saw himself enjoying a moment of reprieve at the lake with Ayaluna. Suddenly the Pyreflies started to appear, they were truly beautiful, but often a warning of what was to come. If Reks had been more aware back then could he have saved her?"The Pyreflies add to the beauty of this place" Reks stated to Ayaluna. "They definitely do. We need to find you a good man one day, this would be a good place to take a lover, don't you think?" Reks nodded softly, he must have been thinking of Tnays. To interrupt their blissfully innocent moment Sin arose from the lake, absorbing the Pyreflies. Reks recoiled and fell down on his rump, staring at the beast before him and Ayaluna.Sin roared into the cool night air shaking wildly, as Sin Scales started to fall all around them, Reks got up off the ground but stood frozen, taking precious moments to draw his sword. Ayaluna stood a fair distance away clutching her staff. Reks noticed some of the scales were larger and it made him panic, 'Sinspawn…' he thought. Sinspawn were larger, stronger and more aggressive than the regular Sin monsters. Sin soon submersed back below the surface of the lake, a wave of comfort washed over Reks, at least they wouldn't have to fight Sin itself here.Shortly after Sin departed the scales started to activate. "Here they come, stay behind me!" He cautioned Ayaluna. Ayaluna rushed to his side and the battle for their lives began. Ayaluna Summoned forth her Aeons to assist in the battle, but one by one the Aeons were overwhelmed. Reks hacked and slashed his sword at the nearest Sin Spawn. One of the larger Sin Spawn drew his focus as it began it’s attack against him, it was in this moment that he truly realized just how dire their situation had become. The Sin Spawn that had drawn his focus was a large Lizard-like beast that had long claws and sharp spikes protruding from it’s back, if he made one wrong move he’d be skewered alive. The battle felt as if it had lasted an eternity, how much more could they endure? His muscles were tiring after each blow and he noticed his movements were slowing down, ‘This is bad, really bad… I have to…’ his thoughts were cut short as he realized that the Sin Spawn he was fighting suddenly vanished before his eyes, ‘Invisibility!?” As if to confirm his deepest fears the monster reappeared next to Ayaluna, it’s razor-sharp claws already in a downward thrust. “Ayalunaaaaa!” He screamed as he dashed forward, but he was already too late. The Summoner gazed up in horror as she realized what was about to happen.Time slowed to a crawl, the Memory Sphere seemed to have been corrupted in some aspect, or perhaps it was the Allagan Device that was displaying the memory as Reks had felt it to be in that moment. For a brief moment Ayaluna turned and looked to her Guardian, the faintest of smiles crawling on to her face, it looked sad and bore an apology. The smile spoke as if to say ‘I’m sorry our journey ends here my dear friend…’ Time sped back up as the Summoner was cleaved into pieces, as blood, viscera and body parts scattered across the ground.“Nooooooooooooooo!” Reks had screamed, the embodiment of Rage and Sorrow penetrating the air. Reks had gotten a second burst of energy and in his Rage he cut down the beast that had slain his Summoner and whatever Sin Spawn remained. He collapsed to his knees next to the top half of his deceased Summoner, pulling her lifeless body close and clinging to it, tears rolling down his face, “Not like this damnit, not like this! Not here! Damnit!” The Memory Sphere went blank as it reached its end and the Allagan device powered down.Reks stared into space, tears streaming down his face, “I could have saved her… I could have… Kut Tyshed (God Damnit)!” Reks gripped the table and overturned it, sending the rest of the loose Memory Spheres scattering to the ground. The noise of the table and spheres crashing to the ground was sure to draw attention, but at this moment he didn’t care. He sat against the wall, curling into a ball, “I’m so sorry Ayaluna… Please forgive me.. I’m so sorry…” The trauma of the memory had him lost in darker thoughts. The Sphere was a reminder to him that beautiful moments could turn to tragedy in a heartbeat.Is that why he kept to himself for so long? Tnays had ruined his trust for people and he could never bring himself to get too close to someone else in a romantic sense, but the loss of Ayaluna had taught him just how cruel reality was, that people die in the moments that we hesitate. He had a deep fear of losing anyone who he got close to, after all, that was his experiences with people who got too close, they either died, or betrayed him._Fin

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The Nightmare

He opened his eyes to an endless darkness. He tried to look around, but there was nothing, absolutely nothing, other than the pitch black that surrounded him. A voice calls out in the distance, far away and echoing. “Reks? Reks where are you? I can’t see a thing.” There was a hint of fear, but the voice was undoubtedly that of Ayaluna. A pang strikes him, but he isn't sure why. Her voice calls out again, more frantic and unsteady this time, almost as if she were running. “Reks! Reks please just show yourself! Reks, I-” her voice is cut off suddenly with a scream. Then there is silence. He got up, unaware that he was even lying down, and began to call out, but no one answered. He began to run, but to no avail. The endless, lonely darkness is everywhere. Reks stopped, looking around, and frantically, he called out for different Coven members, to Ayaluna, to Tnays even. But again, no one answers. There is only silence, and no one here in this eerie void. He kept running.Eventually, in the distance, there’s a light. He ran faster, and the light got bigger and bigger until he saw that it was a pale green door. The Coven door! He wrenches it open and runs through. As he steps into the cottage, he noticed that something felt wrong. Where it should be warm, kind, and welcoming, it is cold, abandoned, and quiet. He called out for someone, anyone, but nothing. And then… he heard it. A sound. A choked, awful sound coming from the basement. He rushed down the stairs, rounding the corner sharply, but what he saw makes him stop in his tracks. Every Coven member, everyone from his past, everyone he's ever cared for is lying on the bloodied basement floor, motionlessly draped over planters, or even half-hanging off the stage. Tnays, however, is sitting on one of the couches, blood soaking through the cushions from the gaping wound in his neck. Once more, he calls out to Reks with a horrid, croaking noise. Reks ran to him, the floor wet and red beneath him, and he desperately tried to cover the wound to stop the bleeding, but the blood won’t stop. Shakily, Tnays points behind him. He turned to see a great void where there was once the Coven’s bar, and… something moving within. It takes him a moment, but he recognizes the figures inside the void as the members of his former gang. The ones he once called friends – family, even. And the Elders were there too! All of the people from his past stand just within the void with their backs to him.The way home. Forgetting Tnays, he ran to the void, but it closes just as his fingertips touch the cold air surrounding it, leaving nothing but him and his dying lover. The one who betrayed him. He turned and ran back to Tnays. Reks pleaded with him to stay, to hold on, to not leave him all alone in this terrifying new world. But as he looked into his eyes, the life drains from them like the blood seeping through his fingers.A cold drenched sweat was what Reks awoke to, his eyes felt weary and his cheeks felt wet from tears. An overwhelming dread weighed on his heart as he struggled to shake the horrid vision from his mind. Was he awake now? Was what he had seen truly just a nightmare..? Or had these events truly happened. He made his way cautiously out to the Main room of the Coven's house, hoping to find someone to confirm it had just been a nightmare..._Fin

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Kyma, The Familiar

After Reks had dismissed himself from the meeting at the Coven he went straight to his Cafe as he was instructed by the voice on the other end of the linkshell. When he arrived he frowned as a letter in familiar handwriting had been left in his mailbox. He knew exactly who it was from and knew it meant he was to be sent on an errand. He sighed softly to himself and opened the sealed letter, to reveal what his target was. The instructions were for him to steal an artifact in Ok’Zundu, the Vanu Vanu village, in the Sea of Clouds. The object apparently contained an abnormal amount of Aether that the Vanu Vanu were unaware of, “Makes sense why they’d want something like this.” As with all his communiques from his Ascian contacts he muttered a spell under his breath and set the letter aflame. Reks was not particularly gifted in the arts of magick but he did know a few simple spells that came in hand from time to time. Overall his specialty with magick was to Imbue the machinery and weaponry he tinkered with and made himself with magickal attributes. Getting to the Vanu Vanu village was not difficult for him to do, it was quite a fast ride by airship. Finding a crew with a smaller airship was not too difficult, but convincing them to keep his business secret was a little more difficult. He had paid for the uncharted airship to wait for him just outside the Vanu Vanu village and be ready for a speedy getaway should things go awry. He had also bribed the crew a substantial sum to maintain their silence about his venture, the last thing he needed was the prying eyes of the Warriors of Light or some other governmental officials looking into the matter.It was about mid-day by the time he found himself at the drop off location outside the village. Upon entering the village he did his best to remain hidden. If he was discovered it would be that much harder to accomplish his task. He made his way to the Chieftain's house, where the object was said to be. Luckily for him the Chieftain's hut was rather exposed and the Chieftain himself was nowhere to be seen, “Must be out on official business, this makes my job easier.” he stated. The Vanu Vanu did not think outsiders would take any interest in their artifacts so the hut itself remained unguarded. It was as if the stars were aligning to make Reks’ task as easy as possible, a welcome change of pace. He carried with him a short staff, which had been made to the specifications of the object he was meant to steal, a replica to replace the original. It didn’t take him very long to find what he was looking for when he searched the hut. He carefully swapped the staves, placing the replica on the pedestal and sneaking out of the hut before he could have the chance to be seen. Leaving the village was a bit more of a task then entering had been but he managed to sneak away undetected, a perfect score. When he was a fair distance away from the Village he pulled out a purple crystal, that was just small enough to fit in his hand. The Ascians had given the crystal to him when he made his contract with them, it would summon a portal that he would use to hand over any relics or items that the Ascians required for their schemes. He made a soft sigh as the dark portal opened before him and he unceremoniously tossed the staff into the portal. A few moments later the portal shut, which meant he was done with his task.On his way back to the airship, He heard the howling and screeching of what sounded like a cat. His ears perked up as he investigated the noise. A rather large Sanuwa was hovering over what looked like a little Gaelikitten. The Gaelikitten’s wing device it wore seemed busted, the Sanuwa must have broken it and was about to claim the poor creature as a midday snack. The lesson earlier on familiars suddenly popped into his mind, he had forgotten how exactly the bond was to be formed, but a Gaelikitten would make a wonderful familiar. As the winged snake-like creature was about to eat the terrified Gaelikitten Reks swooped in and kicked the creature, forcing it to the side and miss its lunge. Reks pulled out his Machina Revolver and started firing off some imbued rounds at the creature. It’s shrieks of pain filled the air and it didn’t take much more for it to become dis-interested in the two and scampered off for its own safety. Reks approached the Gaelikitten which hissed at him with every step he took towards it. He kneeled down by the Gaelikitten and reached for it. The Gaelikitten hissed loudly and bit into Reks’ arm, it’s claws also digging into his arm. Reks winced in pain but did his best to ignore it as he set to work on repairing the Gaelikitten’s wing, muttering some spell under his breath to imbue the wings with increased flying speed and durability once the repair was done. He pulled his arm away which the Gaelikitten reluctantly let go of. The Gaelikitten looked up at Reks in confusion, was the being not going to eat it? It took a few moments before the Gaelikitten realized that the broken wing had been repaired, “Mew?”Reks smiled down at the little creature, who seemed to be in awe that the wing was now repaired. The Gaelikitten took flight to test out the mechanical wings and almost flew away. After a few moments the Gaelikitten hovered in place then returned to Reks, who was still kneeling. The Gaelikitten approached cautiously, gently pawing at the bite and scratch marks that it had left on his arm. It seemed apologetic for it’s behavior, after the kindness Reks had shown to it, ‘Maybe not all beings are bad…’ it thought. Reks smiled down at the little creature, “Well then, how would you like to be my Familiar little guy?” The Gaelikitten turned it’s head as if it were pondering and then gave a soft “Mew” of acceptance. Reks seemed delighted at the creature's response, “Alright then! From now on I’m going to call you Kyma, in Al Bhed it means Gale.” he explained to the creature, who seemed to somewhat understand him. Kyma crawled up Reks’ arm gently, perching on his shoulder. The two of them returned to the airship that Reks had hired and it wasn’t long until they were on their way back to Ul’Dah. Reks gently patted Kyma’s head, scratching the back of the neck gently. Kyma purred softly, ‘Maybe hanging around with this being won’t be so bad after all, and who knows, maybe I’ll see new sites in this world by traveling with him.’ it thought._Fin

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The Necklace

Reks sat on the beach after the Coven’s encounter with the monster in the cave, if there was one good thing to come out of that encounter it was the Memory Sphere he held in his hands. Despite being water logged the device still worked. Yendry, one of the Coven’s members, had agreed to watch the sphere with him, to see which memory it contained. He had taken a short moment to tinker with the device to auto-translate the Al Bhed into Eorzean Common, so that Yendry could understand.As he tapped away at the settings the device whirred to life and began to project the scene: Reks sat on the edge of a cliffside, it had become a special place for Tnays and himself. Today happened to be his Birthday, he never made much fuss about it, to him it was not a day worth celebrating. Tnays walked in from out of view and sat next to Reks on the cliffside, “Hey there!” he said softly, giving Reks a gentle peck on the cheek. “So this is where you’ve been hiding out…” Reks had flinched softly at Tnays making his presence known, but smiled when his beloved had kissed him on the cheek. “Well, you know me! I can’t stand to be around too many people on this day… I’d much rather spend the day to my own devices.” He paused, realizing how that might come across as him not wanting Tnays there and he panicked, “Of course that doesn’t mean I don’t want you to be here! Honestly, spending the day with you is all I really want or need on my birthday.”The words made Tnays blush, hearing from his partner that spending time with him was wanted and needed was adorable, truly Reks could be charming and romantic in his own way. He wrapped his arm around Reks and gazed out into the distance, watching the sun set. The two had been together now for a little over a year and their bond had grown so strong. Even though they were young, Tnays had determined already that he wanted to marry Reks and stay with him for life. The silence was broken by Reks, who turned to look at Tnays, “So what have you been up to today, Dear One?” Tnays smiled softly, “Oh, was just doing a bit of shopping, had to get Ruba a birthday gift, you know?” It was such an odd coincidence that the day the two had met was on Ruba’s Birthday, she and Reks shared a birthday, though Ruba was younger.Reks thought for a moment, “Sounds eventful, I know Ruba can be a bit picky.” He then paused and looked a little more seriously at Tnays, “You better not have gotten me something! You know how I hate gifts…” It was true, Reks was very stubborn about accepting gifts, for him it was a pride thing. He would rather lavish his lover with gifts and treat them well, while all he really wanted was to spend time with his love. Tnays gave a sheepish smirk and stood up, extending a hand to Reks to help him up. “W-well, I did get you something, you’ll like it I’m sure.” Reks sighed softly and took Tnays’ hand to stand. He pulled out something wrapped and tied in leather, it was small, but by how it was wrapped in the leather surely it must have been expensive or important.Reks frowned and gazed at Tnays, “Tnays…” he was cut short by Tnays, “Just open it.” he said with a smile. Reks begrudgingly untied the string and unfolded the leather to reveal a crystalline necklace. He lost his breath for a moment, realizing what the necklace was. In Al Bhed tradition, it was usually the females who proposed to the man of their choosing. They would buy or make a necklace out of crystal and give it to their partner, their partner would then go out into the desert and hunt down one of the mightiest of beasts in the desert, a Zu. It was customary for the partner to kill a Zu, bring back it’s meat for the tribe and use the talons of the Zu to fashion their partner a necklace made of bone, to accept their proposal. It baffled Reks for a moment, since first off, Tnays was the dominant partner in their relationship, but as he thought on it, it did make more sense since Reks was more of a hunter than Tnays. Secondly, this was an obvious admission that Tnays wanted to marry Reks. Reks looked as baffled as he felt, looking up at Tnays, “T-this.. Tnays… I, are you sure?”Tnays simply smiled at Reks and took the necklace, putting it on Reks carefully, “Of course I’m sure, and you don’t have to answer right now, but know, I want to marry you one day Reks, spend my life with you.” The admission made Reks’ cheeks light up in a bright shade of red, after Tnays put the necklace around him he kissed the other on the lips, hugging his lover tight. “I love you, Tnays.” he said softly after breaking the kiss. “You really didn’t have to get me anything, you know.. I would have been plenty happy just spending the rest of my day with you.” Tnays hugged Reks tight, “I know, but I wanted to get you this. I love you, Reks.” The two held each other and gazed out at the setting sun.With that the Memory Sphere whirred and the memory stopped, Reks had some tears formed in his eyes. He pulled out the necklace that was still around his neck, “As you saw, Tnays gave this to me on my birthday… I’ve kept it even since then, even after he betrayed me I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of it.” He went on to explain to Yendry the customs of marriage to his people, and what it entailed. There was a pang of sorrow in his heart, he missed Tnays, he missed having someone to love, someone who also loved him. Once again he was reminded just how alone he was in this world. It left him with a bitter feeling. Sure having friends was nice, and certainly helped the pain, but there was something that only a partner could give him, a level of love that a friend just couldn’t provide.He sighed softly as he stored the Memory Sphere in his leather bag and left Yendry to continue wandering the beach. The beach of the Mist housing district reminded him of the Beach at Costa Del Sol, where he first washed up. “Maybe I can find someone in this world to fill the void in my heart.. Maybe…”_Fin

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M'dra: Facing Evil in the Mind

Reks paced back and forth in the Coven's main hall with a book on Aether in one hand, the other hand carefully tracing the line he was reading so as not to lose his place. Even though it had been a few days and he had been down into the basement once already, accompanied by a few others from the Coven, he still had a fear of the basement that had been left in the wake of the Nightmare. With each session of pacing he dared himself to take one extra step closer to the basement, sometimes he would succeed and other times his fear would grow too great, causing him to turn around and avoid taking the extra step. On the bright side he was at least sleeping a bit better now, and was no longer as grumpy as he had been in the days prior with his lack of sleep. As he eyed over the sentences and paragraphs in the book, a particular passage struck him as interesting. From his understanding, Aether was the source of magic and life in this world, but in other realms it was referred to as different things, the Viera referred to the phenomena as Mist. It was this understanding that caused him to ponder, "Is Aether then like the Pyreflies in our world? I know that the Pyreflies are linked to the Aeons and to the life force of our world... I wonder if this energy could be manipulated to open a portal back to Spira." He pondered aloud, not aware that he had done so and also not aware that someone might be listening in on his conversation with himself. He looked up from the book to notice that he was near the stairs to the basement and he leapt back in an involuntary fit of panic, his heart beating ever so slightly faster. "When will I get over this stupid fear? It was just a dream..."There was a sudden loud knock on the cottage door followed by a brief pause. However before any one could reach the door it swung open wide, and in flew a bat. "Anubis! Get back here!" M'dra's voice echoed through the house as the Miqo'te stepped into the room, her heels clicking loud against the wood floor. She reached out a clawed hand, capturing the small bat in her grasp. "I need you to stay with me." She said sternly, tucking the bat into her hood. M'dra's light blue eyes swept the cottage's main room before settling on Reks. She looked a bit surprised. "Oh! Hello." She said plainly.Reks had been knocked from his train of thought when he heard the knock on the door. When the door swung open and the bat flew in he dropped the book and backed up against the wall in shock. He felt a bit more calm when M'dra entered the room moments later, "Ah, M'dra, what brings you here today?" he asked as his ears perked up, waiting for the answer.M'dra gave Reks a curt smile but paused at his expression. "I've stopped by to drop something off for Miss Numi. Are you alright? You look as though you've seen a ghost." She strode across the room, taking a seat in one of the provided chairs with her legs crossed. The little bat in her hood could be seen clinging to M'dra's hair, stark against her white braids. Her eyes bore into the younger Miqo'te, waiting expectantly.Reks knew that hiding things from M'dra was probably a mistake, she had eyes that pierced the soul and after the last time he tried to lie to her... he didn't want to make that mistake with information that was trivial at best. "Ah, well... The Nightmare is still kind of getting to me, I still can't really go near the basement without my body going through a panic response." he admitted, trying to avoid eye contact with M'dra to the best of his ability.M'dra stared at him for a moment, her expression unwavering as she slowly blinked. "I see," she began, sitting up straighter as if to hear him better. "It has been some time since these nightmares occurred, yes? Have you spoken to your fellow Coven members? Have any of them struggled as much with their nightmares as you have? Have you had any other nightmares sense then?" Her questions came out almost as a barrage, and her ears flicked at the final question. She seemed more curious than chiding.Reks hadn't found himself particularly close to any of the other Coven members, he hadn't had many one on one interactions with them outside of group interactions. The few one on one interactions he'd had he used to his advantage to learn more about them, he had avoided talking about his Nightmares and he hadn't asked any of the others about theirs. "I... haven't really asked anyone, and no one seems to really be suffering all that much from their Nightmares anymore, or if they are I'm not good at detecting it. I haven't had any new Nightmares per se, just the old one popping up in waves here and there, little snippets of it anyway." He sighed softly as he looked towards the basement. There was a brief flash in his mind of Tnay's body in the basement and his ears flattened, he frowned as well as he looked away from the basement to break the connection to the waking Nightmare.M'dra sighed deeply, her ears pinning back a bit as she leaned back again. "I see. Well, I'm not very good with matters of the mind but you can...talk to me about it. If you need to." She motioned to the chair across from her with a waive of her hand, indicating the other Miqo'te should take a seat. "It's not good to keep things bottled up. And if you are still haunted by these images in such a way that they affect your day to day activates then something is clearly wrong. Besides, of all rooms and spaces in this accursed house, the basement has seen the least of the horrors this Coven has faced."Reks walked over to the chair and took a seat, "I'm not so sure how much talking about it would help." He sighed as he once again gazed towards the basement, getting an unsettling feeling as he did so, "The basement may have seen the least of the horrors, but every time I look or go near it I get the feeling that something very wrong either has or will happen there. It could just be my Nightmare manipulating my perception, but even before the Nightmare the basement made me feel a little uneasy." He looked away from the basement and gazed down at a necklace that he was wearing over top of his shirt. Usually he had it hidden underneath his shirt but since he found the Memory Sphere on the beach he had worn it over the top of his shirt. That memory of the day he spent with Tnay's so long ago was still fresh in his mind.M'dra affixed him with another one of her icy stares for a moment before her eyes drifted to the necklace and her expression softened. "A gift from a friend of yours?" She asked, her tone was light this time.Reks smiled absentmindedly as he gripped the necklace, "It was a Birthday gift from Tnay's. It was actually, technically a proposal. We Al Bhed have a few different marriage customs. These necklaces are crafted specially from rare materials, usually Al Bhedian women give them to the man they've chosen as a partner. It's usually customary for the man to carve a ring from a Zu talon, one that he's slain in battle, if they accept the proposal. Tnay's knew I always had a preference for necklaces so..." he trailed off, sighing softly as his mind wandered back to the image of his corpse in the basement from the Nightmare.M'dra seemed rather engrossed as he explained the marriage customs of his world. Her ears were pointed forward and her eyes were wider than normal. "Curious!" She said in a voice just above a whisper. She leaned forward again, shifting as if to stand. "You'll really have to tell me more about your world. I find it quite interesting and I would love to hear more about it." At this she stood fully, and made her way over to him. "But in the meantime, let's take care of this little issue with the basement, yes?" By now she was towering over Reks, with her hand extended to him so that he might take it.Reks' ears perked up in confusion as he noticed M'dra standing next to him, "B-but..." he began but he took her hand and stood as well. He felt that arguing against it would be a fruitless venture, M'dra seemed to be the no-nonsense type. Quite frankly he would rather take on a flock of Zu than to go anywhere near the basement.M'dra gave him a smile that was more disarming than sweet as she pulled Reks out of his seat with stunning strength. "No buts!" She said sternly as she turned and began to make her way to the basement door. She stopped suddenly though and reached into her hood, pulling out Anubis the bat and holding him out to Reks on the palm of her hand. The bat was rather tiny as it clung to M'dras hand, looking up at Reks with a small face. "Here, a friend. To comfort you."Reks was amazed at M'dra's strength, he made a mental note never to get into a fight with her, he had a feeling he would lose brutally. He gazed down at the bat with a curious look and put out his hand to let the bat climb onto his hand, "Anubis, is it?" he asked looking from the bat and up to M'dra.The tiny bat slowly and unsteadily crawled into the palm of Reks' hand. M'dra nodded, "Yes, he is the offspring of my familiar. For a moment a sad look crossed M'dras face but she turned away. "He is still young and will hang in your hair. Now, come with me." She was stern in her words as she made her way over to the entrance of the basement, affixing him with one of her icey gazes.Reks had noticed the sad look on M'dras face but chose not to pursue the reason behind it. He looked down at the bat and moved it up to his hair braid near his ear, allowing the bat to cling to it. After the bat had clung to his hair he followed after M'dra, he was cautious in his approach to the basement. The dark feeling he felt near the basement returned and he frowned with each step he took towards it. 'Dealing with Ascians is less terrifying than the feeling I get from this basement...'he thought to himself.M'dra placed a gentle hand on his upper back and half pushed half guided him down the basement stairs. She moved slowly so that neither of them could trip and get hurt and as she made it to the bottom she made sure that the lights were all on, allowing the room to become VERY well lit. She then turned back to him, gauging his expression wordlessly.This was the farthest into the basement Reks had gone since the day just after when he got drunk in the Basement. His heart rate had become very fast paced and every fiber of his being was telling him to turn around and bolt back up the stairs, despite how normal it looked. He had a look of wild panic in his eyes and was in clear distress. His breathing had slowed down, he felt like the air itself was heavy and to him it reeked of the familiar copper scent of blood. 'It's only a Nightmare...' he repeated over and over in his mind, trying, but failing, to calm himself.M'dra rested a firm hand on his shoulder as she stood beside him. She was silent for a moment, allowing Reks to attempt to wrestle with his emotions. Seeing how he was failing, she spoke up. "It was only a nightmare." She began calmly, her grip on his shoulder tightening. "First take deep breaths, then stare. Stare at it and tell the thing you fear that it is not scary. Tell it it's not worth your energy."Reks attempted to take deep breaths as M'dra instructed, and thought to himself, 'it's not scary...' He gazed around the basement, doing his best to wrestle with his panic. Suddenly the world around him swirled into blackness as he was ripped away to a place deep within his own mind. It was the same darkness he had encountered at the start of his Nightmare. "It's not scary!" he shouted out into the empty void. “Reks? Reks where are you? I can’t see a thing." His Nightmare was playing out from start to finish it seemed, "Ayaluna!? Where are you!?" A long drawn out silence and then he heard Ayaluna's voice again “Reks! Reks please just show yourself! Reks, I-” it was cut short, just like in the Nightmare. He ran in the emptiness, desperately searching for Ayaluna, "Clover! Garthok! Yendry!? Is anyone there!?" There was a sinister laugh in the darkness, something that had not been in the Nightmare, "All gone... They're all gone. You let them die.. You are the cause of their demise. You failed them." Reks spun around in panic searching for the voice, "N-no... that's not true!" As Reks stood there in the basement next to M'dra he seemed to be lost in some sort of trance, though everything he said in his trance he said in the waking world, giving M'dra some clues as to what was happening in his mind. His eyes were glazed over as if something was veiling his sight to the real world.M'dra gave Reks a firm but painless smack to the back of his head. "Snap out of it! It's not real and it can't hurt you if you don't give it the power to!" Her voice cut through the silence like a knife. Anubis quivered in his spot next in Reks' hairReks heard M'dra's voice but he was still locked into the waking Nightmare in his mind. "M-M'dra?" Another sinister laugh greeted him "She can't protect you in here. Come now... save them if you can..." Whatever Evil was lurking in the darkness was taunting him, luring him forward. So he ran deeper into the darkness until he saw a light. As the light grew he saw the Coven door, he ran full speed bursting into the coven. The usual warmth of the Coven was absent, it was cold and sinister. Then came the awful choking noise from the basement he had heard in his dream, "Shit... am I already too late!?" He sprinted for the stairs, nearly leaping down the set of stairs and crashing to the basement floor. The awful scent of copper filled the air and when he looked up he saw the very thing he feared he would see. The bodies of the Coven members strewn about the floor, hanging over planters, even the stage. "N-no... this isn't real! They're not dead! T-this can't be real." Tears streamed down his face, both in the Waking Nightmare and in the real world. A shadowy figure emerged from a portal, similar to the portals he had seen the Ascians use, "You did this. Your very presence here is a curse! You brought this demise with you!" Reks shook his head at the figure, "N-no, I didn't want t-this.. I just... I just wanted to find a way home!" The shadow figure got closer and closer to Reks "You cost them their lives! Just like you Cost Ayaluna her life! Death follows you, it devours any who get too close!" "S-shut up! That's not True! This isn't real.. You're not real!" The figure laughed again, "Oh, I am very real. I am here to remind you, you cannot escape your crimes!" "S-shut up!" Reks grabbed a knife from a nearby table and struck at the shadow figure's neck. Blood spurt forth as the shadows vanished and Tnays stood before him, the wound to his neck bleeding profusely. Tnays fell back onto the couch in the position he had been in the Nightmare, "I... I did this..""Reks..?" M'dra's voice came from behind him, her voice sounded hollow and confused. She stared at him, "Rek's what is this?" Her voice was more stern this time. Echoing across the darkness.

Reks looked around, hearing M'dra's voice again, could she see this? "M'dra? Is that you!?" Another larger portal opened up behind Reks, where the bar was. Tnays who sat on the couch dying pointed to the portal and Reks spun around, greeted by Elidibus one of his Ascian contacts, "As promised... here is your way home." the Ascian said in soft and alluring tones, past Elidibus were people Reks knew from Home, waiting for him back in Spira. Reks looked angry and he clenched the knife in his hand, "This was not part of the deal! I never said I would kill anyone!" His voice was filled with unbridled rage. "Oh Reks, you knew all along what our plans were... the death of these few is nothing compared to what you've been helping us achieve, but I am bound by my word. You've done enough so, here is your way Home. Take it before I change my mind." Reks charged forward aiming the knife at the Ascian, "Go to hell!" the Ascian and the portal disappeared just in time, leaving Reks' knife to hit and knock over a bottle of alcohol that rested on the bar counter. Reks trembled and turned back to Tnays, who lay dying on the couch, he ran to his old lover and gripped his hand gently, "I never wanted this... This was never supposed to happen..." A dark aura surrounded Tnays and the other dead coven members, and they all stood, like broken marionettes, shambling towards him, "You did this to us... You killed us... You killed us!" Tnays stood over Reks who was kneeling and in tears, "How could I ever love someone as evil as you...?" "This isn't real! None of this is real! I won't let this happen! I can't.. I can't let this happen..." A wave of energy burst forward from Reks and the Waking Nightmare around him began to shatter and collapse. Reks snapped back to reality and fell to his knees, feeling wiped out by the event. The scent of blood was gone, and the the dark images no longer lingered.M'dra's eyes were wide with confusion, and even more so with anger. What is this?! she wondered to herself. With a huff she reached towards the young Miqo'te and grasped him by the shirt color and showing that surprising strength again she pulled him down to the floor. "Reks!" She hissed, trying to snap him out of it. She towered over him now, her features distorted in angerReks completely broke out of the Waking Nightmare, when M'dra pulled him to the floor. His eyes looked almost dead, fighting his own demons and guilt in the Waking Nightmare had cost him a lot of energy both mental and physically. He looked up at M'dra with eyes that seemed lost and broken, his ears were flat against his head as he trembled, still trying to recover from seeing such horrors again. "I..." he failed to say anything more. She had to have seen everything, how could he possibly begin to explain? He wouldn't blame her if she killed him out of rage here and now, the things he had done in the name of finding a way home... he felt he almost deserved death as punishment for his crimes. Though one thing had remained true, he had never directly killed anyone himself.M'dra stood over Reks. She was seething in rage though her confusion and the fact that Anubis was still affixed to his head aided her in holding back from socking the boy square in the mouth. Her features were a fearsome sight, and her blue eyes almost seemed to glow. Her chest rose and fell rapidly as she stood over him, before she finally broke the long silence. "Care to explain? Reks Syph?" Her voice came out as a hiss, barley above a whisper.Reks sighed softly to himself as he took a moment to compose his thoughts, "When I first came to this world... The Ascians must have sensed my arrival, a shift in energy seeing as I'm not from this world.." He paused trying to gather everything together as accurately as he could, "It wasn't long before they found me, and promised me a way home if I helped them. At the time it seemed like a more than even trade.. I'd bring them relics and oddities they requested and they would look into finding a way to get me back to Spira..." He frowned even deeper and took a short breath before continuing. "It wasn't until much later that I learned just how bad the Ascians really were.. that was around the time that me and the other Spirans parted ways, when they learned of my connections..." He shook his head softly, looking away, "Ever since then I've been trying to just rely on my own research, but... breaking my ties to the Ascians is not as easy as I had hoped, they have too much to hold over me.."M'dra was surprised at her self restraint. Had she been ten years younger she probably would have already killed the boy, or at least made him wish she had. She stared him down, took a deep breath and spoke in what she hoped was an even tone. "You work. With. The. ASCIANS?! Are you daft?! Boy!?" She didnt realize she had grabbed him by the shirt collar, her face inches from his. "Do you even realize how bloody dangerous that is?! And you would put yourself and this coven. My family, in danger?! Do you have a death wish Reks Syph?!"Reks could feel the anger and rage in M'dra's voice and he couldn't really blame her, "I've been trying to find a way out for a while now.. The last thing I want to do is put everyone in danger." he muttered softly, "At the time it just seemed like the best way to find a way Home..." he almost seemed like a record stuck on repeat. He couldn't defend his actions but he hoped maybe M'dra could understand.M'dra stared daggers at the boy, her fist curled tightly for a moment before she finally took a deep calming breath, the hairs on her tail flattened. "I don't even know what to say. I don't know what to even do for you, Reks Syph." She looked down at him, her ears pinned back against her head. She released him, and turned to lean against the wall sliding down it till she rested beside him. "How on earth does one get out of such a situation? Hm? It's not so easy to kill an Ascian. Shall we fake your death?" That last bit was said in a dry, humorous tone.Reks sighed softly, "I've been trying to think of ways to break my ties with the Ascians, but it might actually be of some benefit to remain under their charge, I might be able to glean some information. Ascians are not so easily fooled so... faking my death might not work." He buried his head between his legs, he was in such an unfortunate situation and didn't know what to do.M'dra gave him a look as though he had suddenly grown two heads. "I would not recommend working with them. But, I also see no other way out for you. What is it they are holding over you?”Reks sighed again, looking back up and over to M'dra, "They mostly just have me steal relics and objects that supposedly contain abnormal amounts of Aether, I'm not really sure why they want them, that's part of the reason I've been researching Aether, amongst other reasons." He contemplated his situation, "Perhaps if I find a way to sabotage the items they have me target, it might set them back in their plans without making things too suspicious. Originally the deal was that I would bring them the objects while they researched a way to form a gateway to my world which I would be able to pass through. The hold on me is that if I break my contract they'll kill the other Spirans that are trapped here..." He took a unsteady breath before continuing, "When the other Spirans learned I was working with the Ascians they didn't understand my motives and why I had been so quiet about the information... I was just trying to protect them all and not give the Ascians more ammunition to use against me."M’dra’s ears flattened against her head again. “I see, I do agree attempting to sabotage them may work. But it’s risky. Anything involving the Ascians is risky.” She shot him another stern look but there was something more behind it; worry. M’dra rose to her feet, offering her hand to Reks to help him up. “You know I must bring this up with Clover, yes? I may not be a part of this Coven but my loyalty is always to her. Perhaps we can come up with some way to help you but...I’m not sure. I can’t make any promises. You are a fool Reks Syph, but we won’t leave without aid.”Reks took M'dra's hand and rose to his feet, "I'm certain Clover won't be happy about this..." He shook his head and pondered for a moment, "I won't let anything happen to the members of the Coven because of me, that much you can be assured of. I'd sooner dive into the very bowels of the Void than let my own bad decisions cause trouble for the Coven..." He looked around the basement, an uneasy feeling washing over him, "There's something new that bothers me, Why the Ascian even showed up in my Nightmare this time, ordinarily I might dismiss it as my own inner guilt making itself known, but I do wonder if maybe the Ascians or some other force is messing with my mind?"M’dra gave a dry smile. “Clover is far more merciful than I am. Had Lain and I been I charge of the Coven you’d be strung by your toes I’m sure. No doubt, she will wish to speak with you. Soon. I trust you won’t bring trouble to the Coven.” M’dra frowned at his words, she turned away a bit, tapping her chin with a delicate claw. “I won’t deny that, that is quite odd. That fact I could be made aware of what you were experiencing too. Something’s been off since the Nightmares. Something is off with all of your Aether. All of you had strange readings, save for Sibyl. I can’t figure it out. It was as though a shadow was cast over your Aether. But it’s gone now.” She looked back up at him. “Or so I hope it is. Still, there’s reason to worry.” M’dra sighed heavily, “As if there were already not reason enough.”Reks thought for a moment, his ears twitching as he pondered over things, "In the Waking Nightmare I definitely got the feeling as though some other source or being was pulling the strings, manipulating the dream, I too think that it is a bit odd that you were able to see into my dream, the darkness that once fell over me seems to have dissipated, but I still get an uneasy feeling about this basement." He looked around the basement again, "the strong scent of blood is gone, but there's still a hint of it in the air, I just can't tell if it's blood already spilled, or blood soon to be spilt."M’dra cast a gaze over the basement as she scented the air. “I sure hope there is no more blood to be spilt. I would die if it meant that the lives of these people could finally be spared of all this suffering.” She turned back to him again. “Tell me, you have heard of the darkness that has befallen this place. Why stay?”Reks thought for a moment before answering, any normal person might have looked at the situation and run for the hills. But Reks was not any normal person, he was a guardian, and guardians protected those around them. "I think it's in my nature, because I was a guardian I feel it is my obligation or duty to help, and protect people if I can." He paused thinking more on the matter, "besides that, I feel like I was brought here for a reason, I think this is right where I need to be."M’dra cross her arms for and smiled. “Well, glad you’re just as crazy as the rest of us. And I’m glad you are no longer so afflicted by the basement. It really is a fun place to be!” She tilted her head to the bar and seating areas. “So many fun memories here...”Reks half smiled, "I suppose I am rather crazy. The air does feel a lot lighter now, maybe I can actually get some decent sleep now too, I hadn't been sleeping as good ever since the nightmares." He admitted. It was strange to him how calm the basement felt now compared to just a few hours earlier.M’dra smiled warmly at him. “I am glad to hear it. And truly should you ever struggle to sleep Clover or Yendry could concoct something to help you sleep better.”Reks nodded to M'dra, "I don't think I'll have too much trouble sleeping now, but I'll keep that in mind." He reached up and gently petted the bat that was still clung to his hair, making sure not to disturb the creature too much.Anubis gave a small squeak, but made no effort to move. M’dra nodded. “Good.” She looked over him a moment, her eyes sharp. “I should take my leave. I’ll speak with Clover in the coming days. I promise you she will be more worried than anything. Then maybe we can think of something.” She held out her hand. “I’m afraid I must take Anubis back now.”Reks frowned for a moment but didn't protest, carefully giving Anubis back to M'dra. "I'll do my best to stay out of trouble..." He stated, gazing back to the couch where Tnays' body had been in his Nightmare. He had much to recover from and much to attone for, he only hoped he could make things right._Fin

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James: Repairing and Testing the Device

James woke up tired. Throughout the night, his dreams had plagued him with the scent of bluebells, ringing laughter, and slashes of red, so rest, when it even came to him, hadn’t been so easy. And so, this morning had been filled with tired armor-putting-on, only to flop back on the couch he slept on in Yendry’s room to consume lots (lots) of the caffeinated tea she had in her kitchen. He knew that this particular blend was a recipe of Alender’s own creation, and though he’d never been told exactly what was in it, it really did wonders to calm him down after nightmares like those. Taking another sip, he idly wondered what he’d do today.Reks tinkered with his Memory Sphere Projection Device, it was almost like a table of sorts he had been tinkering with for the past few days now. No one in the Coven had seen the device yet since no one had really dropped by his room, though with Aura sneaking around as she often did he suspected maybe Aura had caught a glimpse of it. He was working on a section underneath the table and used a wrench to loosen some bolts, instantly regretting it as he realized the heavy metal piece the bolts held up was going to fall on top of him. As if on cue the metal piece dropped from the bottom of the device and hit him in the stomach. He recoiled in pain and curled into a ball, clenching his stomach, "Gods damnit, this would be so much easier if I had someone to help me..." He scooted out from underneath the Table-like device and stood up. His hair was a bit of a mess and his hands were covered in a grease-like substance. He grabbed a nearby rag to wipe off some of the fresh grease-like liquid before moving his goggles up. "I wonder if I could con Yendry into helping me with this... she's at least seen one of my Memory Spheres before, so she might understand my concept for this better than some of the others." He put down the rag before heading out into the hallway, walking to Yendry's room. He knocked politely on the door and waited, hoping that someone was home.A knock on the door startled James out of his thoughts. Was it Clover? Had someone else died? James sighed. Well, he supposed, since Yendry had left to go to the market two months ago that he’d have to be the one to face the music and see who it was. James downed the rest of his tea and stood, making sure his sword was at his side just in case it wasn’t someone he knew. He straightened his armor, the form-fitting black metal shining with fresh polish, and in two quick strides, he was at the door. James wrapped one hand around the silver hilt by his side, wrapped the other around the door handle, and yanked the door open only to face- “Ah! Hello. Reks, was it?”Reks was a bit startled at the speed at which the door opened. He hadn't expected James to be standing before him, "O-oh, uh James, right? Hi, yes, I'm Reks!" He paused for a moment and then peered into the room, wondering if Yendry was around, "Is uh, Yendry around today or is she out on business?" he asked. His ears twitched, he was always a bit awkward around newer people, and even though he had met James in passing they hadn't formally met. He would have extended his hand for a handshake, but seeing that there were still traces of grease on his hands he had decided against it.James gave the startled Miqo’to a quick up and down. He had grease on his hands and looked a bit frazzled as he spoke, but the latter could’ve just been due to the fact that they’d never really met before. “No, she’s out on business, I’m afraid. Could I help you with something?”Reks smiled awkwardly at James and looked down the hallway for a brief moment before looking back, "Ah yes... well, if you don't mind actually I'm working on something in my room and could use an extra set of hands so as to avoid injury." He thought for a moment, this might actually be an opportune moment to get to know James a bit better, he would use it to his advantage. He suddenly realized that his goggles were up instead of fixed over his eyes and a slight panic set in. He fixed it and pulled the goggles back into place, hiding his Al Bhed eyes from the Hyur standing before him.James gave Reks a mildly confused look at the way he hastily fixed his goggles over his eyes. Huh. Mildly concerning, but maybe he could use this opportunity to get to know the miqo’te a bit better. They’d really only gotten to speak at the library, and even then it had just been passing, so this could be the perfect chance to learn more about the man who sometimes started speaking a different language. “Sure, I could help. Would you like to lead the way?”Reks gave a simple nod and started walking down the hallway to his room, "I appreciate it, working on this project will be much simpler with an extra set of hands." His room was clean, aside from the workspace around the Table-like device. Trophies from his various battles adorned the room. Kyma, his familiar, was asleep on the bed as per usual. He left the door open for James and then got down on the ground on his back, scooting underneath the table-like device, "So this is uh... well, it basically projects images.." he trailed off, not sure how much detail he should go into right away. A book on Aetherial Manipulation could be seen on top of the table, opened to a page half way into the book. "When you're ready join me under the table." he said, as he reached for a few of his tools nearby, making sure to also grab an extra set of goggles from his toolbag a few inches away.James followed after Reks and walked in through the open door once they came to a stop. And once he entered, he could help but look at all of the trophies in awe. Even through the clutter around Reks’ workspace, the space was quite impressive. Being a paladin, he didn’t necessarily get trophies other than having to buy new armor, but maybe he’d have to buy something shiny just to feel better about himself now. James walked over to where Reks had gone under the table. “So! How am I helping? You said you needed an extra pair of hands?”Reks scooted out far enough to reach his arm out with the goggles, "you might need these, should help keep any falling debris from getting in your eyes. A piece of the machine fell on me earlier, so if you could hold up and remove the pieces as i unbolt them this should go a lot more smoothly!" He shouted loud enough for the other to hear him, there was a soft hum underneath the machine, which made it a bit muffled when he spoke.James nodded and grabbed the goggles from Reks. They appeared to be similar to the ones Reks was wearing, so he would take him at his word that no machinery would come flying at him and stab through the lenses. James slipped the goggle strap over his dark hair and tugged the glass over his light eyes. Then, he got to work. As Reks has suggested, James held up the machine and waited for Reks to begin unbolting.Reks started unbolting yet another panel, he needed to configure and mess with the circuitry and wires that lay hidden behind the panels. "So uh, I noticed how hard it was on you when we had to examine Alender's bones... I take it he was someone special to you?" He questioned. It was perhaps a bit soon to approach the grim topic, but he was genuinely curious. One, two, three, four, in no time the panel was free of the bolts and ready to be removed. He made a sigh of relief, glad that James was there to hold the panel in place, preventing it from falling on his face.James went stiff as the metal he was holding. He supposed the other was just trying to make conversation, but... James sighed. Well, it definitely hurt to answer, but he supposed that talking about trauma was therapeutic, right? He cleared his throat, even though the noise was lost in the whirring of the machine. “Yes, he was my... friend. My closest friend.”Reks noticed the hesitation in James’ voice when he described Alender as his friend and he frowned, "Oh come now, he was clearly more than that to you... It's not difficult to see how torn you are by the events that took place." Reks’ voice was calm, maybe a bit blunt, but soft and understanding. He turned his head to glance at James, a soft smile now on his face. "I can understand how hard it must be on you." He said as he began messing with the now exposed wires that had been hidden behind the panel.James opened his mouth but no sound came out. He was kind of hoping that an answer would just come out for him, and when it did not he chuckled awkwardly. “That obvious, huh?” He sighed. “We never really got the chance to be ‘more’, but...” Talking was therapeutic, he reminded himself. “It just hurts, you know? I... I sent him a letter telling him how I wanted to talk to him in person about... well, about how I felt, and... Well, that was the morning he...” He smacked his head into the metal he was holding up. Why was this so hard? “He never got to read it.”Reks could feel the emotion in James' voice and he could help but feel sad, they had never gotten to be more? That sounded so painful. "It's obvious to me, but then again I have a habit of noticing things others might not sometimes." He paused, recoiling from a light shocking sensation he got by messing with the wrong wire, hazards of messing with machinery. "I can see how painful that must be... It seems more harsh than something like unrequited love. I'm sure the two of you would have been very happy together..." He frowned, was that the right choice of words? The last thing he wanted to do was make James even more sad. He wiggled a few wires loose and plugged them into alternate connecting points, re-designating the flow of the currents that powered the machine, "I promise we'll find whoever did it and get justice for all the victims."James nodded. After so long of not speaking about this to anybody, it was painful, but.., kind of nice to finally tell someone how he was feeling. He’d always wanted to talk to Yen about the things he’d been feeling, but he worried about upsetting her. And she had her own emotional turmoil to work through. “Thank you for your words. I often wonder how we would’ve been, had we gotten together romantically. He had his magically enhanced tea shop, but he’d always dreamt of being a poet. I dare say he might’ve come on the road with me and become my traveling bard.” James laughed at the mental image of Alender with a lute in hand, singing his admittedly sappy poetry.Reks chuckled at James' words, it sounded a bit sappy, but beautiful. "I think the two of you would have had a wonderful adventure together." He felt a pang of sorrow in his heart as he thought of Tnays, had things gone differently, would Tnays have gone with him as he trained to be a Guardian? Would Tnays have stayed by his side? Had Tnays not betrayed him... Would they be together here, now? His eyes began to tear up which fogged up his goggles, causing him to rub at his eyes with his arm, "Ah, I think some grease must have made it past the goggles" he lied, trying to play it off to cover his own pain.James smiled, but it became unsure when Reks started rubbing at his eyes. He very well could’ve just gotten grease on his goggles, but... “Do you...perhaps have a similar story of loss?”Reks paused, sighing to himself, it seems he wasn't as good at veiling his feelings as he thought. "Similar, but not quite as tragic in some ways. His name was Tnays, he was my first love. We were young , but very much in love. He did something that... Caused me to feel betrayed, I spent a week wandering the Bikanel Desert and got wounded because of what he did." He felt crestfallen, as if the tragic undertones of his past were playing a broken record in his mind that spoke to his own trauma. He shifted uncomfortably and looked to James, "I was thinking.. if things had not gone the way they did, would he still be by my side? To help me carry the weight of my burdens..? My exile, the loss of my summoner.. would he still be here if things had not gone the way they did as I slowly became a more broken individual?" He questioned. He missed Tnays, why else would he be tinkering with this infernal machine to try and go home?James sighed. That sounded...horrible. He couldn’t even imagine Alender betraying him. He couldn’t imagine anyone betraying him... That must’ve been awful. “I’m sorry. I’m not great at comforting people, but I can only imagine that he would be.” Though... “But you said he betrayed you, so do you really want someone like that by your side? Why not find someone worthy of your trust?” Was that harsh? That sounded harsh.Reks sighed softly, that's the thought process that had driven him so far from Tnays, "When I look back on it, we were young, and I don't think he really had much choice... But I did think that for so long, and it's led me to be distrustful of people when it comes to my heart..." He frowned a bit more recalling the nightmares, "Ever since the nightmares... I have to at least go back to Spira to make sure he's still alive, that he's.. at least doing well for himself. Even if there's nothing left for me there I can't leave things as I left them." He froze slightly as he realized his mistake in his word choices in the conversation, Bikanel Desert, Spira, these were not places known to the geography of this world. He silently hoped James hadn't noticed the slip up. He was lonely in his own way, despite having friends again he was lonely. Loneliness is like a silent killer in it's own right, it kills the emotions and silently assassinates the heart. He continued to mess with the wiring, signaling for James to hold the panel back in place once he was done so he could re-bolt it and move on to the next panel.James noticed the slip up. As James held the panel up so that Reks could re-bolt it, he pursed his lips. Spira... Hm. And the Bikanel Desert? Double hm. “I understand that. If nothing else, closure is important. But, uh... might I ask where you’re from? I don’t recognize the places you mentioned. Granted, I’m not much of a geographer, but I’ve been around enough to not really know what that is?”

A lump formed in Reks' throat, 'Idiot!' he thought to himself for making the slip up. It took him a moment to regain his composure as he began to bolt the panel back in place. "I uh, I'm from Spira... It's a different world." He paused, figuring it may as well be best to just tell him everything, "After things with Tnays I left Home, which is the place we Al Bhed are from... And went abroad to become a Guardian. We have a monster in our world called Sin, the Summoners make a pilgrimage to vanquish Sin every time he is reborn and the Guardians protect the Summoner.." he could feel his heart getting heavy as he thought of Lady Ayaluna. Once the panel was back in place he scooted further into a new panel and motioned for James to get ready to hold the panel as he unbolted it. "Lady Ayaluna was my summoner... And I failed to protect her on the pilgrimage... So I was exiled and sent adrift out to sea. It was in the ocean that I encountered Sin. Next thing I know I woke up in this world." He sighed as he began to feel a round of doubt surge forth, would his idea actually work? "The device I'm working on currently is the Memory Sphere Projection Device, Memory Spheres contain our memories in our world, I'm trying to alter this device and use Aetherial Manipulation techniques to travel back to Spira using this device.."A Memory Sphere Projection device? To...get back to another world? Wow, that wasn’t quite where he was expecting this conversation to go. “Okay okay, wait, so you don’t even know how you got here? Just that you were in the sea, encountered a creature, and then... then you were here? Am I hearing that right?”Reks looked to James, when he put it like that it did sound a bit insane. "Well... In a nutshell, yes. People who get too close to Sin have a tendency to have things happen to them, so it wouldn't surprise me that Sin sent me here. I woke up washed up on the shores of Costa Del Sol." He thought for a moment, "Sin is very powerful, so the energy that it used to send me here was probably on the magnitude of a calamity event here. I think if I focus the energy in this device properly, I can go back to Spira, perhaps only temporarily, but at least long enough to tie up Loose ends. After talking to Aya she said it would require a lot of energy to send me back home." His head was spinning, he wasn't sure how to explain how he got here. He removed the next panel and started messing with the wiring, "Drec kuac rana.. yht drec cruimt ku rana..." He muttered in Al Bhed, not realizing he had started speaking in his native tongue.James’ eyes widened when Reks broke into some strange language. Was that his native language? He wanted to ask, but it didn’t even seem like the man realized that he had stopped speaking in the common tongue. He also wanted to ask... “This ‘Sin’ doesn’t possibly have the ability to turn time back, does it? Say... about five years?” James honestly probably shouldn’t have spoken. It wasn’t too smart to go on a wild goose chase for some creature that might be able to do what he wanted. Especially when that creature was in a completely different world. Wishful thinking, he supposed, but it was an interesting idea to entertain. Besides, he’d promised and been promised that they’d avenge their loved ones without the use of some magical creature, but... still. He was curious.Reks thought very carefully and he thought of Rose, not the Coven's Rose, but a Ancient Spiran coincidentally also named Rose he had met, "Well... it may be possible that Sin can mess with time, back when I ran my own Free Company we had a Spiran named Rose, she was from Ancient Spira, a time way before mine, yet she was sent here as well. But if you're thinking what I think you are it would be unwise to pursue Sin to change a timeline, there's no guarantee that Sin could send you back to a specific time, or even to the same world." He didn't want to come off as sounding too harsh, so he had softened his tone, but made sure his point stuck. He re-plugged a few wires and connectors in the exposed panel, once he was finished he once again signaled to James to hold the panel back in place, there was one more panel he needed to work with to see if his idea was going to work or not. "If I ever start speaking in a weird tongue you don't understand, it's probably Al Bhed, sometimes I don't even know I switch over to the language." he explained. He shifted a bit and looked back to James, "I think you guys would like Spira, it has a lot of beautiful places... if I can establish a way to get there and back without destroying the world maybe I can take you guys for a visit." he mused.James nodded in thought. “Yes, I’d thought the same, unfortunately. Perhaps there’s some other time solution I could look into, but... But no, you’re right. I shouldn’t mess with this.” Instead of continuing to dwell, James did as he was directed and held the panel back in place. “Yes, Spira sounds quite unique. Though, once you create your, uh...portal? What is your plan after that? Do you plant to create a one way trip or a standing doorway?”Reks thought on it for a moment before responding, "Honestly, I'm not truly sure, there's not much waiting for me back in Spira, I'm an Exile. Besides I made a promise to help avenge the previous coven members, didn't I?" Once the panel was back in place he moved to the last panel, starting to undo it so he could finish his tinkering. Though... what if Tnays was fine and wanted him to stay..? what would he do? he pushed the question aside, unsure of what he would do.James tilted his head at the man who seemed to be deep in thought. “You did promise that, yes... After we figure out who’s doing this and put a stop to it, do you plan to stay with us? Or perhaps... see if you can rebuild your life in Spira?”Reks frowned, focusing more on the final circuitry of the last panel, "I... don't know... I guess I'll make the decision when we get there." As he moved around the wires he noticed that this panel held the core, and near the core there was a slot that was shaped just like his necklace. 'Odd...' he thought to himself. He would remember that it was there in the future in case he needed to use it for something.James frowned when he noticed Reks pause upon seeing something. “Everything okay? Didn’t shock yourself, did you?”Reks looked back at James, "Oh, no, I'm alright, just saw something intriguing with the Core is all, it has a slot for something. I might have to research it a bit more before I can tell what it's for." he replied.James nodded, his frown easing. “Ahh, I see. Well, keep me updated on that. Sounds interesting.” James laughed. “Actually, everything you’re doing sounds interesting.”Reks finished moving around the wires and signaled for James to help him put back the last panel, "I'll be sure to let you know what I find out." After the panel was put back he scooted out from under the table and urged James to do the same. He stood up and stretched his arms, they had gotten a little stiff from being under the table so long. "Now all that's left to do is reprogram the device real quick and give it a test run..." He tapped away at the control panel and started the sequence for it to boot up a Memory Sphere Projection. The device spun to life, a memory Sphere of Home being displayed, but something was different. The MSPD seemed to spark and flash as Aether, which could be visibly seen, began to get pulled from the air, creating a Sparking blue ball that continued to grow. The ball was translucent, much like the projection, and as it grew the air around them began to feel heavy, as if the life force around them was being used to fuel the device. Reks' eyes widened and excitement grew on his face, "I think I've done it!" he shouted excitedly. He reached forward to touch what he assumed must be the Portal to Home, and gazed in awe as his hand began to dematerialize within the portal, as if it were being transported. Suddenly the machine sparked and the portal grew small, causing Reks' hand to re-materialize. The energy from the now unstable miniature portal burst outward sending him flying into the wall. With that the device went silent and the projection stopped.Many things seemed to happen all at once when a portal opened, sparked horridly, and shot Reks into a wall opposite the machine. As the whirring of the machine went silent, the lights going dark, James panicked a bit and ran over to the side of the room where the man had been thrown. “Reks! Gods, are you alright? Oh, please be alright... I don’t think there’s any more room in the front yard, so please don’t be dead!” James gripped the man’s arm and hoped that he was alive enough to grip his in return in order to make it back to his feet.Reks coughed, the force of the impact giving him a severe headache and for a moment he flashed in and out of consciousness. When James gripped his arm he squeezed back, pulling himself back to his feet. He staggered for a moment before he looked towards the device, enthusiasm and excitement returning, "It works! I have to make some adjustments obviously, but for a moment a small portal was created!" He couldn't contain his glee, he hugged James out of pure excitement, but quickly pulled away when he realized it. "A-ah, sorry! Just really excited, it's progress." His ears twitched as he looked around the room, noticing that the lights had gone out, the only light source being the soft glow of the MSPD.James huffed out a laugh when Reks hugged him, and he patted him on the shoulder once he’d let go. “It’s fine. You’ve accomplished something monumental! Even if the calculations weren’t exact this time, who’s to say they won’t be next time? Congratulations, my friend!”Reks smiled at James then looked back to the device, "I really appreciate your help James, couldn't have done it without ya! Listen, if you ever need to talk about anything don't hesitate to come to me alright?" He paused, thinking of his Ascian problem, "I know sometimes some things can be hard to open up about... And it's especially hard when the others around you have their own traumas to deal with, but I'm always here to listen ya know!" Since coming to the Coven Reks was learning what it meant to have friends again. In a world that had practically abandoned him it was tough to let people get close. He now considered James a friend, one day maybe he'd be able to tell him about his Ascian Dilema, but not today. The friendship was still young, and at this stage fragile, divulging too much information right now could turn James against him, and he didn't want that.James was slightly taken aback at the offer. No one had really ever offered this kind of thing before, but...but maybe it could be a good thing to tame him up on it some time. It could never be a bad thing to talk through your emotions with someone. Well, unless that someone was the killer, which would be bad, but he doubted it. Reks didn’t have any reason to kill them, after all. That he knew of, at least. Oof, that would suck if- James took a deep breath to cleanse his thoughts, and smiled at the miqo’te in front of him. “Thank you, Reks. I may just take you up on that. Ah, and of course, the same offer is on the table for you as well! Come by and see me anytime if you need someone to hold up sheet metal or if...well, if you just want to talk.”Reks smiled at James again, his ears perking up with delight, "Thanks James! If I feel the need I'll be sure to find you." he stretched again, his muscles feeling a bit sore from the impact into the wall, "I'll be feeling that one for a while." He muttered mostly to himself.
James smiled sympathetically at Reks as he turned toward the door. They’d have to get together some other time to talk, or just enjoy each other’s company. Just with less injury than this time, hopefully. “I’m gonna head back to Yen’s room. You know, just open some windows and take in the nice day, eh...from inside.” James laughed, resting his hand on the doorframe. “Well, let me know if you need some pain relief tea. You know where to find me!” And then opened the door. With Yendry’s room in mind, James strode through the threshold of Reks’ room and immediately stepped on the smooth white tile of Yendry’s floor. He looked back and gave one last wave before he shut the door and allowed himself to decompress. Ahh, it was nice to be back in this bright, windowed room. Making good on what he’d told Reks, James got to work on opening several of the windows around the room so that he could breathe a bit clearer. It hadn’t been easy talking as openly as they had, but it had definitely been worth it to air all of that out. Now that he knew he could talk to Reks about anything, James pondered maybe talking to him about... James shook his head, a smile on his face as he opened the last window. Perhaps he’d talk about it later. He sighed, just letting the sun shine on his tanned skin for several long moments as he allowed himself this simple happiness. Perhaps later, he thought. Much, much later._Fin

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The Shared Dream

It was hot, the sand beneath your feet made you sink a little with each step. It must have been mid-day by the position of the sun and heat of the day. You look back behind you to see the place called 'Home' vanishing from view. You could feel a great amount of spite and betrayal in your heart as you wandered further into a place you knew to be called the Bikanel Desert. Time seemed to pass quickly around you as you got farther and farther away. With the sun beginning to set you found a boulder in the desert surrounded by scrap bones that were sunbleached and had been there for quite some time. You managed to start a fire with some of the provisions you had been sent out with. A week of exile? Your ears twitch at the sound of something prowling in the dark.Suddenly feeling as though you are being hunted you grab the dagger sheathed at your waist and prepare to defend yourself. A trio of sand wolves wandered out into the firelight, teeth barred and growling. The first leaps at you but you manage to dodge, hitting it with your dagger as it leaps past. The second wastes no time in leaping into action, bulldozing at you and knocking you off your feet. The third takes this opportunity to leap on you, biting and gnashing at you as you struggle to throw it off of yourself. One of its teeth gnashes against your face opening a slash wound between the eyes in a diagonal pattern. The other two wolves seem to be waiting to the bigger wolf to finish you off. You break a hand free and plunge the dagger into the wolf multiple times. It's howls of pain pierce the night air. It recoils and draws back, but not before a claw slashes you across the face, leaving another diagonal slash, creating an X wound. Limping and beaten the bigger wolf withdraws for it's life, the smaller two following after it once realizing that they had been defeated.Red is all you see as the blood drips down your face and into your eyes, the searing pain from the wound causing you much distress. You rip some cloth from your shirt to stop the bleeding, it would definitely take you a while before this wound healed. You lay on the sand staring up at the night sky, as tears mixed with blood dripped down the sides of your face. In your native Al Bhed tongue you spoke to the empty, cool night air, "I thought he loved me… how could he betray me like this..? Especially after practically proposing to me…" you sniffle and sob, the isolation had allowed you a moment to be vulnerable, not the headstrong, tough guy you often portrayed to your crew. You let the tears flow freely, feeling a deep loneliness in your heart, wishing that Tnays were next to you, to hold your hand and gaze up at the night stars with you. It isn't long before exhaustion claims you and you fall asleep._Fin

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Yendry: Clinging To Memories

Reks was cleaning up the tables in the Café, the night before had been very busy as always. He was in the process of making some tea to sort of relax while he cleaned the area. "Such a wonderful night, and the performance last night went well!" he patted himself mentally on the back, he had left the doors to the Café unlocked, he had a bad habit of doing that.The air was cold and crisp this fine morning as Yendry walked to Reks’ cafe. He’d closed late last night, and being the good friend she was, Yendry had decided to bring over some of Alender‘s special loose leaf tea to help him relax a bit. Running a cafe must be stressful, she knew, so there was nothing better than a nice, hot cup of tea! “Reks!” Yendry called as she opened the door to the cafe. “I have a thing for you!”Reks heard his name called out and he panicked a little bit, dropping the broom in his hand. His ears twitched slightly and he looked towards the door to see Yendry, "Oh! Yendry, it's just you... You have a thing for me?" he asked. He picked the broom back up and leaned it against the wall, curious as to what Yendry had brought him.Yendry chuckled and hopped over to the man. “I do!” Yendry handed the bag of loose leaf tea to Reks and grinned. “I thought you’d been a little stressed with how the cafe’s doing, so I brought you some of Alender’s secret tea! It’s, uh... stress relief!”Reks took the bag and smiled, what a thoughtful gift. "What perfect timing! I was just boiling some water to make some tea!" He walked over to the kitchen section and removed the boiling water from the burner, "Care to join me? Also, is there any special way this is prepared?" Ah yes, Alender, James' deceased lover... he'd be sure to ask more about the man, he was.. Yendry's brother wasn't he? He thought for a moment, his ears twitching again as he was lost in thought.“Not really,” she replied. “You just brew it in hot water for as long as you want for as strong as you want, and it’s good to go!” Yendry grabbed two cups from a counter and slid them over before grabbing two infusers for the tea. When they were both filled with enough of the tea mixture, Yendry set them in the cups and let Reks pour the hot water over them. As the tea steeped, Yendry leaned against the counter, smiling as the lovely aroma filled the air and blended with the smell of the cafe. The cafe had a wonderful blend of smells in the way that it was almost embedded in the walls, the furniture, the floor... Finally, after several minutes of silence, the tea was done and cooled. Yendry picked up her teacup and blew a light breath over the steaming cup and took a sip. Yendry hummed as the earthy flavor danced over her tongue, her mind dizzying quickly as the leaves and magick blended together in her mind.Reks had prepared the tea and let his steep a fair while before he took a sip himself. It was more of an Earthy tea than he was used to but it quickly soothed his mind of the worries he'd had lately. He felt a bit dizzy, after a few moments, almost as if something in the tea was dulling his senses. "What's in this tea by the way? It's much more relaxing than I had anticipated." The past week had been a bit hectic for him, the previous night's service was busy and he was down a manager. Not to mention with Zenth having quit and Tobi mysteriously bailing on him without notice it had made him a bit stressed. At least he had absolved M'dra of her guilt, which had lessened the stress at least.Yendry chuckled into her cup as she took another sip. Alender has spent years perfecting this recipe, so sharing it was the least she could do. Even if the answer was, uh... “Well! It’s mostly green tea leaves mixed with some earl grey and chai, but it also has a few, uh.. Mary leaves? The uh... extreme... muscle relaxant. And mild hallucinogen.”Reks mentally took notes about what was in the tea, he'd ask Yendry for portions later. "That makes sense as to why it's so Earthy, wait... Mary leaves?" Mild hallucinogen!? Well, there was no going back now. He took another sip, he was starting to feel very relaxed. "Alender really put a lot of time into making this, didn't he?" He knew just enough about plants to know which combos for alcohol were good, but tea was a whole other realm. With tea you had to be more precise, and had to really know the herbs you were working with, elsewise something could end up going terribly wrong.Yendry nodded. She remembered the days and nights and weeks and months that Alender would disappear into his room to experiment with different flavors and herbal combinations until they had their desired results. She remembered how his silver eyes would be glowing gold when she would check on him, the healing magic funneling into the finished packages of tea. “Yeah... I remember all the times when he would have us taste-test the finished tea. Ugh. They were always so good. I’ve got his recipes, but food and drink are always a little better when they’re prepared by the original creator...”"Did he keep exact measurements for his recipes?" Reks asked. He sat down at the table, no longer trusting his legs to keep him up with how relaxed he was becoming. "Alender must have really loved James, huh? I heard from James that they never really got to be together... It's tragic.. What about you Yendry? I feel like there's so much I don't know about any of you.." there was a twinge of guilt in his voice, guilt that it had taken him so long to learn more about them.Yendry nodded. She'd kept those recipes in a box of some of his things for as long as he'd been gone. She'd spent weeks perfecting the recipes as he didn, just to make sure that they never stopped being made. That his dream of being "The best tea-person ever, Yen! E-ver! Wouldn't that be cool?!" never faded. Then she paused. Who had told him about...? "Ah..." Was it appropriate to talk about the two of them? Well... She wished Alender was here, but he wasn't, and James had gone on another long walk the night before and had apparently stayed out all night, so he was passed out on her couch and couldn't stop her. Besides, she was still quite angry with him for the whole 'Oh, right, didn't I tell you I stole from the Ul'dah library?' so... "Yes. He did. He told me that he loved James shortly before, um... b-before. We..." She sighed heavily, sipping her tea a little less gentle than she had been. "We had a fight the night before. Ally wanted to leave the Coven. Travel, maybe drag James with him... I... told him fine. That if he wanted to see the world, fine, go. He got all huffy and walked out. He came back super early, but we didn't talk. And then he went out on a walk to talk to Okiku early that day - they were best friends, y'know - and they just... didn't come back. So, we went to the Goblet pools to cool off, because it was summer, and M'dra... ugh, M'dra came by and had to tell us that they'd been found in the back alleys of the city, and..." Yendry shook her head, draining half the cup in one go and feeling really fuzzy all of a sudden. "And, that was an awful day. But then I got back to the Coven feeling super numb and cold and horrible because obviously, and I accidentally summoned the door to his room instead of mine, and..." Still sealed with bluebells carefully pressed into the drop of white wax. "And... There was a letter on his desk, unopened, so..." She didn’t want to pry, but she had to know. "So I opened it-"-with shaking hands, gently pulling on the wax so as not to break it, but rather pull it from the paper. With a deep breath, she opened it. My dearest Alender This heat wave over our city has certainly taken days of work from me, though I suppose I would not be fit to work otherwise with my leg in its current state. Other than my rather bothersome injury, I am in good health, and I hope you are as well. Maxine and Jacob are also doing quite well, thank you for asking. I still cannot believe that my brother and his fiancé are to be married in under a month. It seems as if it were only yesterday that he was gathering the courage to ask for her hand in courtship, and I wish them the best in their future, as you did. In all honesty, I must confess that seeing my brother beginning his new life with Maxine has made me wish to tell you something that I should have long ago. I fear, however, that I have too much to say over a simple piece of paper, and while I could certainly just send two, I suddenly find it quite silly that we send letters when we only live on opposite sides of Ul’dah. I hope it is not too presumptuous to say so, but I find myself wishing that we could speak of this in person. Perhaps, due to your own orders of bed rest for myself, you could come to visit? I look forward to your reply, but knowing you, you’ll probably just show up on my doorstep as soon as you get this. Always yours James Yendry slid to the floor, the letter fluttering to the ground beside her. Slowly, she curled into a ball, pressing her face into her crossed arms over her knees. Silently, she wept. And quietly, alone in the room of her fallen brother, she allowed herself to grieve. Yendry hastily wiped a tear away with the back of her sweater sleeve, drinking some more of the hastily-draining tea to soothe her throat after her story.“And yeah. I... I was in so much grief that I forgot to tell James for, like, two months. And by then, Rose had been murdered, and I... I got super addicted to alcohol, and.... Ugh.”Reks listened to Yendry's tale carefully, sipping on the tea as he did so. "Ah yes.. I believe James had mentioned that Alender wanted to travel... Why did you fight exactly? Were you just worried for his well-being or was there something else?" Tact? Reks had none. That little voice that told him not to ask certain things? He didn't have it. If something made him curious he just asked, that was his way. He listened about the letter, "So James wanted to confess in person? and that must have been when... You all have had things so rough, it seems beyond cruel." He could feel tears forming in his eyes. He sipped on more of the tea, his mind continued to phase out as he consumed more of the tea. "So you and Rose were.. a thing?" It was as if a lightbulb went off in his head, "So that's why you don't drink! That makes sense now.. now I understand your distaste for the stuff." He thought of his homeland, "Did I ever tell you about my Summoner, Yendry? I know I told you about Tnays, you watched the Memory Sphere with me on the beach... but I can't recall if I ever talked about my summoner.." the great thing about being either under the influence of alcohol or hallucinogenic teas was that the mind felt more free and open to talking about tough topics that would normally be difficult to talk about.Yendry leaned heavily into the counter, allowing the remaining tea to warm her hands. Well… They had… well, they had mainly fought because- “He wanted to leave the Coven, and… Well that was our life. My life. Not his, I-I realize that now. I guess I was just worried that he’d leave us and run off and… get killed.” Yendry huffed into another sip. “Seems silly now that he would’ve actually been safer if he’d left.” At another question, she flashed the wedding ring on her opposite hand. “Yes, we were a thing. I met her in Gridania, and we just… Well, we just knew. We were teenagers when we met and were barely adults when we got married. We… We weren’t even married a year. And yes, that's why I don't drink.” Suddenly, Yendry felt her curiosity spike over her sorrow. “No, I don’t believe you’ve told me about your summoner.”Reks nodded softly, "He just wanted to live his own life.. I hope you don't beat yourself up over these things still?" There was a hint of concern in his voice. When he saw the wedding ring he gasped softly, they had been married even! "I'm sorry that happened, Yendry... I can only imagine how hard that must have been." His ear twitched, Yendry had shared about some of her pain, it was his turn. "Back after I left Home to become a Guardian I wound up in Bevelle, which is like a Capital city, I trained there to be a Guardian and was chosen by Lady Ayaluna to be her Guardian. She was a kind soul, always curious about the world outside of Bevelle, she wanted to know about the other cultures and ways of life." He paused recalling all the moments he'd spent with her, "Once she found out I was Al Bhed, she wanted to know more about how we lived, all the things we believed and why we believed as we did. We Al Bhed were usually hated by those of the Yevon faith, so I'm glad she wasn't like the others." He took a large sip of the tea, as he continued his tale, "One day we came to Macalania Lake... and that's where Sin appeared. Monsters fell off of Sin, there were so many of them.. As a Guardian, our whole job is to protect our Summoners, give up our own lives to protect theirs if need be... A monster got past me and... tore her apart in front of my eyes." He looked like he could start crying at any moment, but he held it in, "I failed in my duty to protect my Summoner. It's because of that, that I have to do everything in my power to protect those that I can." He sighed to himself, "After her death I returned to Bevelle to deliver her belongings to the family, I was summoned before the Grand Maesters, and I was exiled. Tied to a ship and sent off to sea, my run-in with Sin out in the ocean is what brought me to this world."Yendry put her arm out to touch Reks’ shoulder. She… She couldn’t even imagine watching someone so close to you die in such a horrific way. “I’m so sorry, Reks. I don’t know exactly how you feel, but I… I was the one who found Rose. She had still been alive. Barely. Not even really there, just…” Yendry shook her head, willing the tears down. “may I ask… What is Sin? What does it do? You said it sent you to this world? Is… Is that what it does? A portal of sorts?”Reks smiled softly, he realized how painful it must have been, to find Rose as she did. Why did such painful things happen to such good people? He thought of Sin and frowned, "Sin is like a giant monster, if I had to think of a being in your world who might resemble Sin I'd have to say... That whale-like primal.. what's it called? Bismarck?" He paused for a breath before continuing, "Sin brings death and destruction to my world. The Yevoners, where the Guardians and Summoners derive from hate us Al Bhed because we use Machina, and they believe Machina is the reason that Sin keeps coming back." He thought for a moment on the last part of her question, "Sin gives off a toxin when you get close, people who have gotten close and escaped are said to have gone mad from the toxin. I'm not exactly sure how Sin sent me here, as I got closer to Sin my head got very fuzzy and I think I black out when my boat collided with it. There's still much unknown about Sin really."Yendry nodded, her mind absorbing everything he was saying. This... This was fascinating. She had so many questions! But could they even be answered if no one knew the answer to them? If there was so much people still didn’t know about Sin, she doubted her answers would come easily. “I see...” Yendry sipped down the remainder of her tea and set the cup down gently on the counter. She wondered if she should make more with the remainder of the tea leaves. Suddenly, she laughed. “Wouldn’t it be interesting if this was all in your head? That you’re just hallucinating from the toxins or something?”Reks froze mid-sip of his tea, to think of what Yendry had just said, he had never thought that to be a possibility. He set the tea down for a moment, "In some ways I should hope not, while the trials of this world have been many... it has been nice being able to call you guys in the Coven my friends. In other ways it would almost be comforting, to just be wandering about my homeland as a mad man." He picked the tea back up and took another sip, "Sin has these scales, when they drop off of him you find out they're actually monsters that have attached themselves to Sin, that's what happened at Macalania Lake, there were so many that dropped..." he frowned, thinking of his summoner was rough, but over time he'd gotten a little more used to talking about it with some people.

"I see. That..." Was terrifying? Horrible? Absolutely nightmare inducing? "...really sucks." Yendry leaned heavily against the counter, a somber smile on her lips, but a smile nonetheless. "And I'd like to think we're friends, yes. I'd hate if this were all fake considering how close we've gotten. And besides, who would I drink tea with if this were all a dream? James?" Yendry laughed, unable to help herself. "Jim doesn't really like this tea, no matter how much he pretends he does. He doesn't really like getting all loopy, and this tuff tends to make him suuuper tired. I think he likes being in control of himself, but it might just be that he doesn't like anything that makes him want to fall asleep. Y'know? I dunno."Reks drank the last bit of his tea, setting down the empty cup on the table. "I would also hate it if none of this were real." He pondered a bit, "If he doesn't like falling asleep... he must have nightmares? I know when I suffered through the Nightmares a while back, after the things I saw I didn't want to fall asleep for fear of falling back into that nightmare." He felt genuinely bad for both Yendry and James, they didn't deserve to have such painful experiences hanging over them, none of the Coven members really did. "I rather like the tea... in fact, I'd like to sell the tea here at the Café if you don't mind? I think it would be a good way to honour Alender, allowing others to taste a tea he worked so hard and so long to perfect."Yendry nodded. She’d always known that his nightmares were something terrible, what with the fact that he slept on her couch. Most nights he'd wake up screaming, whimpering, shaking, snapping upright from where he had previously lied down, a name on his lips and a haze of something akin to terror and desperation glazing over his crystal blue eyes. He’d never told her what he saw, simply shutting down and burying his face in his hands whenever she tried to ask what plagued him. What made him cry when he thought she’d fallen back into slumber. Yendry hummed, wishing she had more tea to stall her thoughts, but it was no matter. Firsthand, quite recently, she witnessed what James’ mind tortured him with. Yu’nan’s tea had melded the minds of those who drank it for days after, and once her eyes had shut for the night after that oddly hallucinogenic day, she was finally able to witness how James was unable to move as his face falls in horror, blood spilling from a straight line that appears across his throat. How night after night, he was forced to watch him collapse, holding his throat to keep the blood from escaping, and the ground turned to sand once more. How he would sink, slowly this time, unable to do anything for the drowning angel. You fight, you struggle, you should’ve been there to help him- Yendry clenched her eyes shut and tried to rid herself of the claws around his heart, the deep, deep anger and hatred he felt towards someone that she was forced to feel with him for days after drinking that tea. Muddled, she heard Reks asked her a question. “What? Oh, um, yes. Of course. I’ll get you a copy of the recipe when I head back to the Coven.” Yendry looked at the clock. She’d been here an hour already? She had to get to the market before they sold all the good apples! “I assume you have to open soon, yes?”Reks looked towards the clock, suddenly realizing that the Café would be opening soon and that at any minute his workers would be arriving, "Oh! Time sure does fly! Yes, I should finish cleaning and get ready to open the café." Spending the brief hour with Yendry was nice, it was nice to reminisce over the past a bit, getting to know her on a more personal level. The past was difficult to talk about, but knowing he wasn't the only one with such a dark past make him feel just a bit better about things. "Yendry... do take care of yourself, yes?" He smiled softly, a kinship had been formed with her, maybe one day he'd be able to tell her about darker things that still trouble him.Yendry nodded to him and smiled genuinely. It was really nice to be able to get some of this out and talk so sincerely. As she walked to the door and opened it, she stepped outside, the crisp air now a cool breeze against shining sun. "You too." And then she was off.Reks sighed to himself and collected the cups, putting them in the sink to wash them later. He gripped his head, almost in pain as flashes of the dream they had seen when sharing the tea came into his mind, W'khaels dream. He had had flashes of other dreams, but W'khael's in particular had been most prevalent. He frowned a bit, looking to his hands. A flash and he saw them covered in blood, it disturbed him a bit but then he reminded himself... it was only a flash of the dream. Perhaps it would be wise for him to seek out W'khael and talk to him about it? Surely the experience must have been troubling for the Miqo'te to go through. His thought was interrupted as the Café door opened and one of his employees stepped in. Time to get to work, no rest for the wicked. No rest indeed._Fin

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Reminisce, He Who Was Lost

Reks paced down the streets of Ul’Dah, the scorching sun beating down upon him. It was a bit odd to find him in the city not conducting some sort of Trade deals for his Café. His lute hung over his shoulder, lately he had taken up and grown a liking to playing the instrument at his Café. The melody of the music that formed from it was therapeutic to him, it gave him a sense of calm, something he had long been without.The events that had transpired in the recent days gave him pause, and had put much disquiet in his heart. So much had happened, his friendship, or what little of it that remained, with Jaune had completely disintegrated, Kyma had died in the house fire… So much loss and empty was left in the wake of the events.He sighed softly and wiped some sweat from his brow, today was a rather hot day. The plaza was bustling with activity, travelers of all races coming and going on the way to their destinations. Ul’Dah was often so busy, it was rare for the people of the city-state to stop and admire the things around them. He found a less trafficked area and pulled out his lute, strumming a few notes on the stringed instrument.A young Miqo'te child standing by his mother heard the notes and pulled towards the sound, “Mommy, mommy! There’s a bard over there, can we go listen, pleeeeeease?” The mother seemed distracted, engaging in conversation with a merchant. The child didn’t really wait for a response and wandered his way over to where Reks was sitting.Reks ears twitched as he noticed the child approach. The child gasped in awe upon noticing Reks’ blindfold, “Mister, mister, how can you play without being able to see?” the curious Miqo’te child asked. Reks gave a soft smile, “Practice, as with all things, practice.” he replied. Reks looked to the Miqo’te child, his ears twitching again, “Would you like to hear a song from my homeland?” he asked. The child nearly squealed with delight, “Oh, yes please mister!”Reks began to strum the notes, playing a familiar tune from his homeland, the notes he played were peaceful and gave off a sense of comfort. As he played the tune from his homeland some passersby stopped to listen to the calm, yet tragic tune. He closed his eyes and let the muscle memory kick in for him to continue playing the song. As the notes rang out in harmony, the world in his mind began to change. The sounds of Ul’Dah faded away, replaced by the sounds of Al Bhed Home.As he blinked open his eyes he saw his home, but everything had an odd static to it, as if he were watching a memory sphere. He wandered around the nearly empty streets of Home, a few familiar faces passing him by. It seemed to be near the end of the day, and it must have been close to the ending of the year because the air was cold. He came to a familiar alleyway and gazed down it to see a younger version of himself, and… another boy leaning up against him, younger Reks’ tail was wrapped around the other boy. ‘Who… are you? You’re not Tnays?’ he questioned in his mind. He walked a bit closer, examining the younger boy carefully, “$%#@#$... Yna oui vaamehk ymnekrd? Fyns ahuikr?" (“$%#@#$... Are you feeling alright? Warm enough?”) the younger version of himself spoke to the other. The name was garbled, as if some subconscious entity had blocked it from his mind. The boy looked up, his face was fuzzy, another memory block perhaps? “Oac.. dryhg oui, Reks.” (“Yes.. thank you, Reks.”). The younger version of Reks pulled the other boy closer to him, “Tuh’d funno $%#@#$ E femm bnudald oui.” (“Don’t worry $%#@#$ I will protect you.”)Reks stared at the younger boys, confusion wearing on his mind, why did he not remember this other boy? Who was he? Why did his heart… hurt so much? Time seemed to speed up and he was now looking at an older Reks, and the boy was older as well. The other boy seemed fidgety in a way, but looked much more healthy than he had been prior, “Rao, Reks! E fyc drehgehk… S-syopa dusunnuf fa luimt… ku uid du drec luum cbud E vuiht, o-o’ghuf, zicd dra dfu uv ic!” (“Hey, Reks! I was thinking… M-maybe tomorrow we could… go out to this cool spot I found, y-y’know, just the two of us!”) The older Reks turned to look at the boy, a bit stunned, “Ur! Cunno, pid E yr… E ryja y tyda drah, E’ja paah sayhehk du damm oui, E sad drec fuhtanvim kio… rec hysa’c Tnays!” (“Oh! Sorry, but I ah… I have a date then, I’ve been meaning to tell you, I met this wonderful guy… his name’s Tnays!”)Though a majority of the boy’s face was distorted, the look of defeat and disappointment was unmistakable. Reks felt a pang of guilt in his heart, had he… hurt someone? Time sped up again, though this time it wasn’t nearly as far of a jump. The boy was crying, the Teenage Reks standing nearby, "Fro tet oui lruuca res? Frah... E fyc ymfyoc rana, fych'd E!? Fryd tuac ra ryja dryd E tuh'd? E muja oui, Reks!” ("Why did you choose him? When... I was always here, wasn't I!? What does he have that I don't? I love you, Reks!”). Teenage Reks frowned, looking weary and unsure, "E's cunno $%#@#$, E zicd tuh'd vaam dra cysa ypuid oui, E... lyh'd vaam dra cysa fyo ypuid oui..." ("I'm sorry $%#@#$, I just don't feel the same about you, I... can't feel the same way about you..."). "E'mm zicd ku drah! Oui lyh meja rybbemo ajan yvdan yht E'mm zicd... Tecybbayn!" ("I'll just go then! You can live happily ever after and I'll just... Disappear!") The boy ran away after that, tears streaming from his eyes. A distraught, younger Reks, reaching out for the boy but not engaging in a pursuit. The scenery faded away and the sounds of Ul’Dah began to return. He was nearing the end of his song. His blindfold was a bit damp, and some tears were even streaming through, dripping down his cheeks.The song ended and the small crowd that had gathered applauded. Only the young child seemed to realize that Reks was crying, “Are you ok mister?” the child asked. Reks wiped away the remnant of the tears, “Ah, yes, I just… remembered someone I probably shouldn’t have forgotten is all…”_Fin

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Pendulum Heart:
I Am Al Bhed

Reks sighed to himself, the air around him felt cold even though it was a warm day. He stared off into the ocean, a feeling of dread and despair enveloping him. Lucifer had already gone for the day, their time together had been short, much shorter than he had liked. Why was he so good at hiding his pain? He had wanted to just spend the night with Lucifer, forget his drama with Kat and the events going on in the Coven. He wanted to forget the fact that Jazz had quit, he felt like his world was caving in, like the world around him was choking the life out of him and doing everything it could to destroy what little remained of his already fragile heart. He watched the waves wash in and draw back out, it was almost hypnotic.Was it wrong of him to want Lucifer to spend more time with him? Was he just too needy? He sighed again, his eyes felt weary, sleep had been rough for him lately. His ears twitched as he drifted into his memories. Flashes of that boy from his youth kept popping into his head, who was he? Intrusive thoughts began to bombard his mind and his ears flattened on his head, ’Clover is dead, you couldn’t save her, you’re useless and pathetic!’ “But.. I did all that I could, and we still brought Yu’nan to justice!” ’Your employees keep leaving left and right, you’re a pathetic excuse of a boss!’ “It’s not all my fault though…” ’And Lucifer… he’s leaving you too!’ “He’s just… busy, I…”Tears began to well up in his eyes as he began to cave to his darker thoughts, ’Sure, sure, busy. What makes you think he loves you? He barely knows you! He could find better, less damaged, someone more worthy of his heart than you!’ “T-that… that’s not… he cares about me, he… he cares, doesn’t he..?” ’Bah! You could die tomorrow and he wouldn’t be phased! You mean nothing to the people in this world, nothing! You are nothing but a blight on this world! A failure as a Guardian! You couldn’t even save Kyma!’ “I… I did my best though, I tried, I tried so hard… I fought so hard to make things right… I, you’re right… They don’t need me... “ There was an empty and defeated look in his eyes as the tears fell, freely and silently, “I’m just a danger to everyone, my very existence is… just a burden to them.”The sound of the waves rang so loudly in his ears, drowning out all the other sounds around him. “If I disappear, they’ll all be safe, right? If I fade the Ascians won’t be a danger to them anymore, and… I’ve already helped bring the killer to justice, so there’s no more need for me… Lucifer… he could do so much better than me, I’m sure…” His heart was so lost and empty, breaking at every point. So many of his past love flames had damaged him bit by bit. He grabbed the necklace under his shirt that Tnays had given him so long ago, “I don’t even know what you saw in me… but I’m sure you’ve moved on, found somebody better… lived a life happy and loved, a life I never deserved.”Jaune flashed into his mind, and he felt a deep pain in his heart, “I’m only worth getting used by people like you, no one could ever truly love me, right..? No matter how hard I fight it’s just never enough for anyone, I can’t keep going… I don’t want to keep going like this.” In this moment he wished more than anything that Lucifer was there to hold him and chase away his dark thoughts. He was alone, he was always alone. Nothing he did ever went right, he was so broken and empty inside, A smile crept onto his face, quivering from the sorrow, “They don’t need someone useless like me. I just get in the way and… they all could find someone better than me so… Lucifer deserves someone much better than me…”There was so much self doubt, his own mind had become a traitor to him, tearing him further into despair. Even if he knew none of it was true, he could not help giving in to the dark thoughts. Depression was a monster that was stronger than any physical beast. A physical beast could be shot at, attacked, killed. Depression not so, it was something that needed special treatment to kill. Reks felt alone and that lonely feeling made it hard for him to reach out, hard to speak up and let anyone know that he was suffering. He was a Guardian, his duty was to protect others, his duty was to keep others safe no matter what, at the cost of his own life if need be. There was no one to protect him, there could be no one, he had to take care of things himself.“I Am Al Bhed, I am a Guardian. My duty is to protect others even at the cost of my life. I must make my people proud of me, and give a good name to the Al Bhed people. I must always bring honor to my family name, bring honor to my people. I must make… Tnays proud to have known me…” He thought of his homeland, the desert winds and the comfort he had once known. Back then there was somebody else, wasn’t there? Before Tnays there was somebody he looked out for, someone who he was close to. Why could he not remember his name or face?He looked up, ears still flat on his head as the sorrow ate away at him, “I am Al Bhed, and I will do what I must to protect the rest of them, even if it leads to my death… they’ll understand. They’ll be proud of me yet, for carrying this pain all on my own and fighting so hard to protect them. Maybe even Lucifer will have been proud of me… My people will be proud of me, sacrificing myself for the greater good… I am Al Bhed, I am a Guardian. I protect others… I don’t need anyone to protect me...” his voice trailed off as he gazed sadly at the sea.Perhaps it would have been better that he drowned, that he never came to this world and his story ended so much earlier. He would do his best to keep things together just a little longer, but how much more time could he really buy? He really didn’t have much time left he felt. He was running out of options, something would have to be done soon. The longer he delayed, the more danger he put people in, the Ascians had to be dealt with, before it was too late._Fin