The Darkness's Comfort

Chapter 1 - Reunion

Sasaki fell to her knees, each breath heavy and accompanied by a stinging pain. She'd lost too much blood, expended too much mana. She could hardly move. She pressed the base of her staff into the soil and tried to push herself up, but couldn't muster the strength.

A good thirty meters in front of her towered a hulking Garlean machina. Blood-red armor covered thick limbs resembling ancient, gnarled trees. Long, curved blades protruded from its shoulders. Its legs ended in hooves, its arms in hooked swords.

Swirling red light surrounded its torso as it charged up energy. It held its right hand out to the side, the blades on its fingers extended five times in length, glowing with the same power.

Sasaki thought back to half an hour ago. Her friends had asked her, "Can we trust you to deal with the Ruby Weapon?"

"I'll do my best," she'd promised.

All the other times, all the primals she'd fought, things had somehow worked out. But, she supposed her luck had to run out eventually. She wouldn't be making it through this. She only hoped she'd at least bought enough time.

The Ruby Weapon charged forward, planted its left foot in the ground in front of Sasaki hard enough to shake the earth, and swiped down with its claws. Sasaki forced her eyes shut. Metal clashed against metal, and something fell into Sasaki's lap.

"Elixir," a smooth, feminine voice said. A nostalgic voice, one Sasaki's mind had almost forgotten.

Sasaki opened her eyes. In her lap sat a stoppered glass bottle full of a pink liquid. She looked up. The Ruby Weapon jumped backwards away from a miqo'te standing between the two combatants.

The miqo'te wore a sleeveless top that draped down to her ankles, black fabric over top of red. In her hands she wielded a katana, like the samurai from the East. Her black hair had been cropped just above her shoulders.

The miqo'te glanced back, staring at Sasaki, one eye blue and the other yellow. Tears started to form in the corners of Sasaki's eyes.

"I'll take point," the woman said, voice calm, but commanding. "Support me when you can, Sasa."

"Erzhi!"

The miqo'te grinned, then dashed towards the Ruby Weapon, keeping on the offensive. The woman had such confidence. It rubbed off on Sasaki. She pulled the cork from the elixir and drank, the taste a mix of bitter and sweet. Her energy returned, the majority of her wounds closing.

Sasaki fell back into a supportive role. She saved her mana for healing, giving up on all offense. If they couldn't defeat it, Sasaki at least wanted them to survive. It would be too cruel for them to die there after being reunited.

Erzhi kept the machina on the back foot with decisive, accurate slashes. Erzhi had always been pretty strong, but she had only gotten stronger in the years they'd spent apart. Even though people relied on Sasaki and called her the Warrior of Light, Erzhi's strength was clearly several levels beyond her own.

The battle raged on for what felt like an hour, but in reality was probably more like ten minutes. Erzhi leapt onto the Ruby Weapon's chest as it charged forward and shoved her katana in between the plates of armour, twisting and dragging the blade through its internals.

The machine started to convulse and spark. Green and yellow light danced around its body. The miqo'te jumped off and ran towards Sasaki. Relief washed over Sasaki's body, but Erzhi's face held only concern.

The miqo'te scooped up Sasaki and hugged her tight as the Ruby Weapon exploded, sending the pair flying through the air. They crashed onto the earth several feet away, and darkness enveloped Sasaki.

Sasaki woke up in a cot in a tent somewhere. A fellow lalafell beside her, dressed in a yellow coat with curly brown hair, greeted her immediately. "Oh, thank god, you're awake!"

Sasaki tried to sit up. Her head screamed in pain. She pressed her forehead into her hand, her blonde hair falling around her face.

"Lie down, you can rest," Krile said. "The Garleans are retreating for now. You defeating that Ruby Weapon has shattered their morale!"

"No, that wasn't..." Sasaki's eyes widened. "The other woman, is she okay?"

Krile tilted her head. "What other woman? We found you, passed out, next to the remains of the Ruby Weapon. There was no one else around, living or otherwise."

Sasaki sighed. "I've been looking for her ever since I arrived in Eorzea. She's around here. I have to go find her."

Sasaki tried to get out of bed, but Krile pushed her down. "No, you need to rest. If you describe her to me, I'll go look for her on your behalf."

Sasaki closed her eyes and resigned herself to bed. Krile was right, of course. "A miqo'te with black hair and blue eyes. Moon. She was using a katana." Sasaki thought back to the battle. "No, wait, one of her eyes is yellow, now."

Krile's eyes widened. "You couldn't possibly mean —"

"Hey," the guard outside the tent barked. "They aren't accepting visitors here."

"They'll make an exception," a woman replied. Krile and Sasaki both stared at the flap leading to the outside.

"Hey, you can't —"

An arm pushed the flap aside. A cloaked figure stepped in and dropped her hood.

"Erzhi!" Sasaki and Krile cried in unison.

Sasaki could still remember the day they'd parted, more than three years prior. Back when they still lived in Othard. Erzhi had wanted out, away from the Garleans, and had found a ship to take her. Sasaki hadn't wanted to leave her family behind.

"I'll come after you," Sasaki had promised.

"I'll be waiting for you," Erzhi had promised in return.

And now, they'd finally reunited. Erzhi locked eyes with Sasaki, dashed forward, planted a knee on the bed, and leaned towards the lalafell. Sasaki raised her arms and wrapped them around Erzhi's neck. The miqo'te placed one hand beside Sasaki and the other on Sasaki's back, holding her steady as their lips desperately met.

Krile let out a "whoa" and took a step back. Erzhi broke the kiss and glanced at Krile. "Oh, sorry. I couldn't resist."

"Ah, no, it's fine, just, um, you two know each other?"

Erzhi and Sasaki both nodded. Erzhi took Sasaki's left hand in her own left hand, lifting them to display the matching rings on their fingers. "We're married."

"Oh!" Krile cleared her throat. "Right then. Should I... leave you two alone for the night?"

Erzhi and Sasaki nodded in unison.

"I'll bring the others by tomorrow morning," Krile said, quickly heading towards the exit. "Rest well, Warriors. And, be careful. Sasaki is injured."

"I'll take good care of her," Erzhi promised. "Let's talk properly tomorrow."

"It's good to see you're safe," Krile said before leaving the reunited lovers alone.