Final Fantasy XIV: Tower's Shadow

Scaling History (2nd Half/Season 1 Finale)

Xande's Throne
Top of the Crystal Tower 

Once arrived at the tower's plateau, the group of four were faced by the man who started this entire crisis; Admes sat upon the throne of Emperor Xande, looking quite bored despite the smoke filling the sky and the smell of ash eroding the air. He opened his eyes as the heroes came closer, opting to take his time getting out of the throne as he grabbed his repeater from its holster. No words were exchanged between the five for a time. Not until Admes grew tired of waiting and spoke first.

"Here we are. The apex of my work as an Allagan scientist. The final nail in the coffin that will seal all of our history within this relic. I find it ironic, personally, how the likes of you are able to overcome hurdle after hurdle and not stumble once. It wasn't because you wanted to, either. I know that from experience. It was because you had too. Because no one else was strong enough."

He opened the chamber of his weapon and began to load it nonchalantly, not paying any mind to the group ahead of him equipping their weapons as well.

"I am sick and tired of this belief that I am the one at fault. What you don't realize is that It all boils down to superficial nonsense that you use to justify the act of taking what someone else lost. This constitutes my goal. The reason I'm doing this. To restore the history that you Eorzeans locked away within the Crystal Tower."

G'raha Tia stepped forward once Admes spoke his piece, feeling his blood beginning to boil from within.

"What are you talking about!? Causing mass destruction out of desperation to preserve is only taking away what we have for your own benefit! You-"

"Shut it, half-blood!"

Raha would have walked up to Admes and punched him right there if it weren't for Eniro grabbing his tail to hold him back.

"I worked on this tower, many, many years before the continent of Eorzea was even established. I survived the Calamity then by sealing myself in it, and because of that, I lived and I waited for the right moment to awaken to take back what's mine. You Eorzeans took the very building blocks of your own history and shackled it within this damned relic. But it doesn't matter to any of you, does it? Because I took Kan-E-Senna and forced Alenka to destroy Revenant's Toll, what I want and my reasoning is rendered null. I'm the villain, right? I'm the villain when you all have taken what was rightfully someone else's time and time again. Right?!"

There was silence yet again for a time. 

"...There is a saying that goes along the lines of "There are always two sides to every story." Well..."

Admes chuckled in dark and grim tone, readying himself for the battle ahead as Dariya, Eniro, Cyprus and G'raha Tia all took on their stances beside each other. 

"Let us see who will live to tell their tale."

With the war lines drawn and both parties holding nothing back, Admes sprung forward with an array of pillars shooting up from underneath him. Dariya made the first attempt to strike back as he did so, tossing her chakrams past the man with the intention to cut away at the pillars that came through the ground. Cyprus meanwhile intercepted his lunge with his shield, both of them trading expressions of malice before beginning to clash one on one. The Paladin went for a more direct approach with his fighting, attempting multiple jabs and slashes that were blocked by Admes's gun and reciprocated throughout. Neither one of them could hit the other, but Cyprus managed to hold the Allagan's attention long enough for Eniro to get involved. The boy used his speed to enter the thick of the battle, bouncing his way off of a plethora of pillars and slicing at Admes from above once in range. This slice was however reflected by a pillar that came up from the ground, managing to block Eniro's strike and giving Admes enough room to begin moving himself. G'raha spent this time charging a powerful arrow off to the side, deciding that if this was to end, then it had to end in a move that could take out Admes in one fell swoop.