Final Fantasy XIV: Dreaded Symphony

Lament Thy Eye

29th Sun 
Second Astral Moon 
8:12 AM
Ishgard 

Brimstone covered bodies lay in the streets of the Holy See as countless dragons swept through the darkened Ishgard skies. Blood curdling screams were penned by the sounds of blazing cinder-scorching homes, civilians, and knights alike as the shadow of a draconian invasion loomed overhead. With Lucia behind enemy lines and Estinien traversing The Aery, Ser Aymeric thought to base a course of action around the likes of Garlond Ironworks, buying them enough time to prepare the Anima Weapon. However, with dragon and man falling on each side, it became clear before long that Aymeric was sending his soldiers into a battle they couldn't win. Regardless, he couldn't back down. Not until their trump card was ready for deployment could Aymeric even fathom the thought of slowing down, placing the entirety of Ishgard upon the backs of the world's greatest engineers. He had to trust them.

"Stow your fears and move accordingly to those before you! Your objective is to buy time! Do not falter if given the chance to push back!"

He'd bark at his soldiers, vision crowded by the blockade of shields at his defense. It was those very shields that would keep the Lord Commander free of any oncoming fire, and as the platoons of Temple Knights grew in size with each deployed to a specific station, Aymeric watched as the clocktower that stood over Foundation crumbled onto itself with smoke and debris following its collapse. All he could think of were unanswered questions in that very moment;

Why were they attacking now?

What caused them to form their invasion so quickly?

Something had either provoked or summoned the dragons to the Holy See, and whatever it was, it was a force that knew that Ishgard wasn't prepared for the attack. And yet, Aymeric didn't falter. No matter what, he had to stand for Ishgard. He had to fight. No matter what it took. 

"Your eminence!" 

A sudden voice would call out to him through the smoke. As if she was cued to arrive at the time of the invasion, Lucia was behind Aymeric with her shield aimed skyward to block a falling bar of wood that would have otherwise impaled the man. Alongside her stood Eniro, Cyprus, and Ravna-the latter carrying the body of an unconscious Temple Knight while the former two had their weapons at the ready. Eniro was looking to fight while Cyprus thought to protect; oddly enough, those very intentions being the forte of either man. 

"Thank the Twelve...We must repel the attack long enough for Cid and his liege to ready their weapon! Split up and focus on saving lives! Only kill if you must and save what energy you can for a final struggle if need be!"

Nods were traded before the group dispersed, their goal now amongst the same as the Temple Knights as they gathered and tended to any civilians that they found alive. Meanwhile, the remaining heroes who had passed themselves through Foundation had opted to bring their attention to the Pillars; Hirsoch, Strun, Stryker and Alphinaud taking a more controlled approach rather than a sporadic one in the heat of the invasion. Their plan was to hold off as many dragons as they could from crossing into Foundation, and without Cyprus's shield or Ravna's strength to accommodate for their lack of numbers, the group found themselves on the reviewing end of a plethora of winged monsters that wanted nothing more than to tear them limb from limb. They had one shot to make this work, and until Cid and his group were ready to deploy the Anima Weapon, that shot had to be prolonged for as long as the group could find the strength in themselves to stand. Little did they know, however, that they were on borrowed time. 

For Nidhogg wasn't long behind the ensuing onslaught.

Ironworks Workshop