Lore

The Power to Prevent

The first time Ayune snuck from her home, she had a deep bruise blossoming on her face and a panicked look in her eyes. She hardly had a location in mind, she just needed to get away. Her mother had struck her for the second time within the week, this time for complaining how cold it was in the basement. She was called ungrateful and told she should be happy they didn't throw her to the streets.The biting cold seeped to her bones and snow crept in her shoes as she ran. Her body gave up fast, and she collapsed to her knees yalms from the city gates. Her tears fell, the only warmth against her skin. Not able to bear the thought of going back, she wondered if it would simply be better to freeze.

"Siting around out here is how you wind up dead, kid." Spoke a voice, prompting Ayune to quickly wipe away her tears. She looked up to find a man, clad in armor dark as the night, staring down at her, a large sword strapped to his back. He offered a hand, and she took it, rising to her feet."Do you want the power to keep that from happening?" He asked, pressing a gloved hand to the bridge of her nose, the touch reigniting the pain. She stepped back and rose her hands to cover her nose, tears stinging the corners of her eyes. The ache in her nose refused to go away as her mind replayed all the times her mother struck her. Her gaze hardened, looking the man in the eyes, she nodded. "Yes."

From that night on, Ayune snuck out often to meet the man. He gave her a claymore, armor, and the will to fight. He taught her how to strike, how to parry, how to dodge. The two would practice until her whole body ached, and more still. It allowed her to finally feel as if she had some power of her own.But her mother's torment did not stop. And she did not have the will to strike the woman back. Beneath her mother's gaze, she felt weak. Fear would weigh down her body, causing her to do little more than tremble."What use is power if you haven't the mind to use it?" He asked her, and she had no answer to give.

It was happening again, as it always did. Words were falling out of the woman's mouth, but all Ayune heard was silence. It was always the same. Something about her being a burden, a failure, a monster. It all came back into focus when her mother raised her hand to strike. Ayune pulled a knife she had stolen from the kitchen the night before, plunging it into the woman's stomach before her hand could make contact. Insurmountable dread washed over her as she watched the front of her mother's dress redden. Without a word said, she ran from their home the same way she snuck out nightly, finding her teacher not far from the gates.Her training was finally over.

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Wavering Strength

Even when one has power, they can still feel powerless.That harsh reality was forced upon Ayune early in her adventuring days. It had nary been a year since she left home when she found herself integrated into a ragtag group of adventurers. She had met them when they just so happened to take the same job she did. She had been reluctant to accept their aid at first, insisting she could do it on her own, but the healer of the group—a hyurian girl named Cecilia—followed and annoyed Ayune the whole way until she finally gave in. "You are just what we needed!" The hyur cooed. "Someone to lead the charge while we cover the rest!"Ayune was introduced to the other members of the group; a miqo'te lad, H'zhet, with a knack for picking locks, and a roegadyn woman, Aermwyb, who was one hell of a shot. She was wary of them all at first, but the more jobs they completed together, the more she grew to trust them. She got used to Aermwyb mothering them all, Cecilia singing folk songs out of tune, and H'zhet telling all manner of tales. She got used to sitting around a fire with them, using their limited coin to all pile in one inn room, overcoming challenge after challenge.In the few months Ayune had known them, they all became her greatest friends—perhaps the first ones she'd ever truly had.

The day's job had been going without a hitch and the party's spirits were high. They were contracted to take out a small band of thieves that had been tormenting Gridanian locals. Within their hideout, they found five thieves. Outnumbered but not outmatched, the party was able to defeat them with only a few cuts suffered, leaving them to sift through all the stolen goods littering the hideout."Do you think the Serpents will notice if any of this is missing?" H'zhet asked, holding a pair of ruby earrings up to his ears, Cecilia laughing as he did. "We probably shouldn't take anything. It's—" There's a glint from the darkness before an arrow cuts through the shadows, plunging into Cecilia's shoulder."Cecilia!" Ayune wailed, moving to stand in front of her and the others. "Stay behind me, I'll protect you!" She raised her blade with gritted teeth."Serpents shoulda known better than to send some snot-nosed brats." A voice hissed. Shadows moved along the walls as torches were extinguished, bathing all in black.

Everything fell into chaos. The thieves were too quick for the novice adventurers, weaving in and out of the shadows before any of them could land a blow. Daggers would flash, slicing skin before disappearing again. They snuck past Ayune's guard again and again, filling her ears with her friends' screams.The scent of blood was heavy in the air when a torch was finally lit. The thieves were all dead, but at what cost?She stumbled over to the one form still breathing, dropping to her knees. "Hold on, please. I can fix this. I...I can...I..." Ayune balled her fists in the fabric of the miqo'te's tunic as his gaze grew ever more distant. "Just hold on a little longer. I can find a healer and we...we can..."She wasn't strong enough. Here, with her hands soaked in her friend's blood, that point was made ever clearer. She couldn't protect any of them.

With a mix of their blood and her own still staining her clothes, she pushed open the doors of the conjurer's guild, prompting several conjurers to run over. "Are you alright?! Do you need help?! What happened?!"The questions slung at her went unanswered, the words all mixing together in her mind. She collapsed to her knees, gaze cast downward. "I need to learn. Teach me. Let me join the guild. Let me...so that if I fail again, at least I can..." The guild members watched as the lalafell lost consciousness in the middle of their lobby.From that day forth, Ayune was accepted into the guild. She studied endlessly, never missing a day of training. Her friends' screams played on repeat in her ears whenever she rested, moving her to work ever harder. She won't fail anyone again. She can't.

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A Dance of Freedom

It was akin to love at first sight when Ayune first saw Troupe Falsiam perform.There were murmurs of the group the whole week leading up to their showing up in Limsa. She could take little more than a few steps before overhearing conversations of the pending performance. At first, she brushed it off as nothing more than your typical street show. But the more she heard throughout the week, the more her interest was peaked. With so much chatter, she assumed they were bound to be something special.Special only scratched the surface.

When the day arrived, she weaved her way to the front of the crowd. What instantly caught her eyes were the colors—lovely patterns of reds, blues, greens, and golds. Each dancer was outfitted in their own unique garb, yet matched harmoniously with their fellow dancers. They each had a pair of weapons which glimmered beautifully in the sunlight.When the music began, it was as if she was transported to another realm.The way they moved as if light as air, the way their very steps seemed to create song...it was unlike anything she had seen before. They made the very act of combat seem like an art, trading blows more graceful than she had ever seen.It lit a fire in her heart, and with every step they made, it burned ever hotter.

After the performance, she wasted little time approaching the troupe. She laid it on thick yet honestly with the compliments, relaying everything she felt with the excitement of a honeybee in a field of flowers. After nearly talking herself blue, she finally asked the leader if she could learn from them."I've a background in adventuring, and I even know somethings about dancing normally. If I was given the opportunity to learn from you, I'm sure I could help out and..." She rambled on, determined to convince them she was worthy. The leader cut her off mid ramble before accepting her into the troupe with little fuss, much to Ayune's surprise. After fighting tooth and nail most of her life to have some semblance of usefulness, it was a shock to be accepted so easily."T-Thank you! You...I'll make sure you don't regret this! I'll train every day and—"The troupe's leader merely nodded along to Ayune's words with a smile.

She took to the art quickly, much to the joy of her fellow troupe members. She attended every lesson with enthusiasm, never missing a beat.Within the dance, she found freedom: freedom from the shackles that bound her day to day. Her every move wasn't a shadow of the past, of her pain, and of her failures. Instead, it was something new. Something untainted.She could start anew, build herself from the ground up. She could find out who she truly is beneath the scars of her past.

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Welcome welcome~! I'm Cecil, but you may refer to me as whatever you see fit. My pronouns are they/them.
I am a long time roleplayer, however I am still behind when it comes to the XIV story (mid Dawntrail). I enjoy in character interactions while in game, but roleplays over Discord are alright as well!
You can catch me online most evenings.

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