Everything Changes (A FFxiv fanfic)

Encountering Hydaelyn

The conjurer breathed a sigh of relief as the mossless goobbue fell to the floor. As she walked over to inspect it, I heard a clattering behind me. I turned around. No one was there. Only a small blue crystal lying in the dirt. I picked it up, only to completely black out.

Hear.... Feel..... Think....

"Crystal bearer... I am Hydaelyn. All made one." There it was again. That voice from when I first started my adventure.

"A light there once was that shone throughout this realm... yet it hath since grown dim. And as it hath faltered, so hath Darkness risen up in it's stead, presaging an end to life." A crystal about as tall as me, floating in front of me. All around, the black and blue void.

"For the sake of all, I beseech thee: deliver us from this fate! The power to banish the darkness dwelleth in the crystals of light. Journey fourth and lay claim to them. By thy deeds shall the crystals reveal themselves to thee. Only believe, for the light liveth in thy heart." I turned to face a ginormous crystal, strings of light flying around it. As I started to follow the strings of light and fly rings around the crystal, everything started to get even brighter. I was waking up.

"Go now, my child, and shine thy Light on all creation."

My eyes slowly drifted open.

"Awake again, are we?" The miqo'te conjurer said. She turned back to the lifeless goobbue.

"Aha. The poor creature's fury was kindled with cruel forethought." She grabbed something which I could not yet see and walked over to me.

"See this blade? I found it in the goobbue's back. I have seen knives of this kind before—they are most commonly used for the cutting of rope." She said as she held a dagger in her hands.

"It would appear our culprits are seafaring men of some persuasion... piratical being the most probable. I confess, I was rather taken aback when you collapsed at the very moment of our victory. Mayhap a surfeit of aether? In any event, you seem much recovered from your sudden... affliction." The conjurer said. Still pretending to know what her every word meant, I told her about my experience.

"After I drifted off, I found myself in this large, bluish void. There were tons of small crystals surrounding one huge towering crystal. A voice spoke to me there... Hydaelyn." I said to the conjurer. She looked a bit surprised.

"I beg your pardon? A towering crystal? I'm sure I don't-Oh. Well, well... this has been a day of unexpected revelations." She stated before looking back toward the cave entrance.

"I must continue my investigation. In the meantime, I suggest you deliver this knife to your patron, along with a warning concerning the pirates' probable involvement in this murky business. The days ahead promise little rest I fear..." The conjurer started to walk away.

"May our paths cross again under the light of the Crystal." She said.

"Wait! I don't even know your-" I started, but she was already gone.

"Name. Ugh, never mind." I peered down at the knife. Then I pocketed it and started on my way back to Baderon.