middleofsomewhere | Adventure On: Finale and Conclusion

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Adventure On: Finale and Conclusion

Blue

The Mountain

Once they get close enough everything is storm, ice swirls around them, stabbing them like knives. Winds seem to be actively pushing them away, no matter what direction they approach from. Still the crystal wolves walk on, heads down, paws silent, climbing upwards.

The higher they climb the colder it becomes. So cold that ice forms on eyelashes, that air seems to freeze as it leaves their mouths. So cold their chests hurt. They would not be wrong to assume that the only reason they can withstand this at all is because of the SCA around their wrist.

Ice tumbles down around them often, shaking the ground. The crystal wolves know the way and they keep going, steady on the path. They have spaced themselves out, to be in sight of all those who follow.

The Summit

As they finally reach the top of the mountain they reach a calm space, outside of the swirling storm. Domed across the summit is a fire cage, larger by far than any they have seen before. In the middle of the giant fire cage sits a dragon. White and blue, scales that look as if they were made of ice themselves. Their head was bowed, eyes closed but they are breathing, breath escaping in clouds of freezing mist that evaporated in the heat of the cage.

Around the cage itself are ice elementals, outside the storm these can be seen by the snow they whirl around inside them, each is about three feet tall but fly in a whirlwind as they attack. Like those in the storm they try and push people around and attack with shards of ice. These corrupted spirits seem to have no reason to their attacks, they are just as likely to push a combatant closer to the cage then they are towards the raging storm.

They can be fought, fire works well against them just as ice and cold magic works well against the fire cage itself.

A Sovereign Freed

Eventually the cage stops fighting, fading away into the snow before them. The crystal wolves spring forth, nuzzling at the dragon until they raise their head. Piercing blue eyes look over the group and the dragon bows their head once. They take a deep breath and breathe out over those assembled, cold fire washes over them, healing any hurts that they have, easing their fatigue som

The crystal wolves bow their heads too, a thank you. Aerlie flaps their wings, rising high into the air. Another breath of cold fire flies out around the area, clashing with the storm for a moment before overtaking it. Around the mountain the storm calms, the ice elementals stop and seem to sink into the snow or fade into the air. The mountain descends into a calmness.

The crystal wolves will approach all those who helped free them, nuzzling into their hands, a personal thank you before a shimmering gate opens for the adventurers to step through.

Red

Final Siege

It’s been a tiring three days of protecting the crystals from the creatures that sought their power. But now, as their power is fully recharged it is time to return them to the border. That is going to be a tougher job than getting them to the volcano’s heart in the first place!

They thrum with power and that power is a siren call to the creatures of the area, fire dogs, lizards, fire sprites. Just as the mountain attacked inside the heart, here the spirtes join with the rivers of lava to flood pathways, block routes, making it harder to cross already treacherous territory, or even driving them into traps of waiting fire dogs.

The heat is oppressive, heat from around them, heat from the crystals seems to sap the energy from those carrying them and so the duty is best shared.

Eventually though they arrive at the border, a mess of melted ice and frozen lava. Each of the crystals need to be replaced.

Restoring the Border

Replacing the crystals is a little more complicated than taking them was. Each one needs to fuse with the holder it sits in. It doesn’t take any skill, just someone to hold it in place for a moment whilst the two fuse together and the magic is channelled into the ground.

Holding a crystal in place is a little more difficult when being attacked by the creatures. The fire creatures keep up the attack until all of the crystals have been replaced.

The Land Repaired

When the last crystal is in place there is a ripple across the land. An invisible line, an ancient magic, connects the crystals, seperating the two lands. Ice recedes from lava and the melted snow refreezes. The borderlands of slush undergo transformation as the two elements separate from each other once more. A land of fire and a land of ice, with a pulsing magic separating the two.

The firedogs and lizards retreat, fire elementals calm and join with the lava streams once more. A shimmering gate opens.

Orange

An Important Message

The Huma birds have been carrying crystals and helping the harvesters, protecting them from the blighted birds and encouraging them to work hard.

But those returning to the floating islands on the afternoon of the eleventh day of Horseshoe come bearing black cloth bags in their talons, each has a scroll attached. The Huma birds will make it very clear they are to read the scroll first.

DO NOT OPEN THE BAG UNTIL NIGHT FALLS

Inside this bag are rare crystals. When they are exposed to the light of the sun they will cause the islands to sink back to the ground. After the sun has set tonight please distribute these evenly around the islands and then depart back down to the land below before sunrise. The lands natural magic will do the rest but we do not recommend being on the islands when they fall.

Thank you for your hard work.

The Adventurers Guild

With a long night ahead they may wish to rest for the remainder of the day.

Distributing the Crystals

If they do as they are asked then it will be a long night, there are many chunks of islands and a lot of crystals to distribute. The darkness makes it harder and the blighted birds seem even grumpier in the cover of darkness.

The wind sprites also are not resting and indeed seem delighted that playtime has been extended into the hours of night. Placing crystals is difficult when the Voidtreckers find themselves swept up into the air to dance around the trees.

Getting down by sunrise may be a little trickier than placing the crystals, especially if they have used up their flight potions, but hopefully there are enough people to help everyone get to safety.

Islands Fall

The sun rises, as the first rays of light hit the island they begin to vibrate, shudder. Then one by one they begin to fall, rapidly and chaotically. It is perhaps wise to not be anywhere near the crater as they do so.

They land in a crash of dust, which obscures the area. When the dust clears however they will see a perfect undamaged land. The pieces have fit back together, exactly where they should be, despite the chaos. The land is repaired and whole once more. Huma birds call excitedly as they dart through the air, their land restored.

A gate opens, for them to step through if they wish.

Purple

A Cure

It is day ten of Horseshoe when the first Huma birds fly into the village, they carry crystals either in bags in their talons or in their beaks.

The villagers clearly know what is going on for they welcome the birds and take the crystals thankfully. Anyone not currently fighting or purifying crystals is brought in to help distribute cures.

Actually curing someone is easy, it just requires the crystal to be touch an affected person or creature. The crystals are only good for one cure so those curing the blighted will be required to carry a few and run them to the villages.

Others can take crystals out into the woodland, looking for blighted animals to help.

A Final Fight

All but one of the golems have been found, defeated and restored. The final one has been elusive, not approaching the village or even the nearby woodlands.

The restored golems are back to standing vigil in each village, ready to deal with any attack that may occur.

But when an attack comes, it is not on a village, but on the shrine in the centre. A golem, three trolls and a host of animals, some blighted, some just angry. They attack in the early morning, the villages awoken by shouts and sounds of battle.

Luckily the blighted creatures can be healed, angry animals can perhaps be soothed. The trolls cannot be soothed though and will indeed try to rile up the animals again, to cause as much chaos as they can.

Peace Once More

Once the final golem is taken down, the crystal restored and the trolls defeated there is a quiet comes across the villages. Those who were blighted are cured, the golems are back in their place as guardians of the village and thanks to the adventurers the villages have gotten through this time with minimal damage.

The villagers thank the adventurers, tell them to come and visit whenever they are in the area. A gate opens, for any voidtreckers who wish to return to Royal Lake Hill.

Royal Lake Hill: All Teams!

They return to the tavern, each to the inn that they set off from. The town is a little busier now, more areas have recovered from the blight and it has brought more trade into the town. Everyone is still relatively elderly or young, non fighters. But the market is bustling, there is even a puppet show going on in the square.

Around midday a beeping of their SCA will show a dot on their map where the Voidtrecker Express has landed, not far out of town, and a message. You may remain here until sunset.

It is up to them whether they wish to return to the train or spend the rest of the day in the town. For those staying in town they will find word of their deeds have preceded them and they will find no end of young, wide eyed, budding adventurers ready to buy them a drink or two in exchange for stories.

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Is that...fluster? It's hard for Tidus to miss, as oblivious as he can be, when Inigo is taking that long to say anything. And he wonders what he's doing - about to make a joke? Laugh at his attempt? - but then he just answers him, naturally, and that makes Tidus all the more confused.

"Alright," he says with no less energy; putting down his bowl, hands on his knees as he stands. "What do you want? There anything you like?"

He doesn't know what there'll be, so- no listing anything off from him.

Don't mind Inigo here. He's using the precious time he has where he doesn't have to say anything since Tidus is talking to quickly inhale a breath and try to calm down his heart before things get too weird.

It's a decently succesful attempt. The colour left on his cheeks seems more appropriate for warmth caused by the fire next to them rather than true fluster by the time he speaks up again.

"Ah.. I'm not too picky." Look, even if Tidus is treating him all princely, Inigo has never been a very arrogant or difficult prince. This is just him. "Perhaps some wine? Or mead? They ought to have either of those here, right?"

Especially since this place reminds him a fair bit of Ylisse.

"Or beer, if there's nothing else."

"I'll go check it out." That's a usual Tidus response, and he only thinks to add in the beat that he starts to move, stops, turns his eyes back on Inigo and throws him a closed mouth grin.

"Prince Inigo."

And then he goes for a while, leaving Inigo to do whatever it is princes do when they're unsupervised. Naming the first two drinks--and gets two wines, despite the price that makes him hesitate.

But it's for Inigo, and it's a treat. When will they get another chance to do this?

...which is why when he comes back to their table, he happens to be carrying three mugs--three rather... biiig mugs, and he's managed to balance them to hold one between his hands, except-

"Uhhh, Inigo? Some help?"

help he can't move his hands or he'll drop the middle mug!!

Whatever it is princes do when they're unsupervised is definitely swallowing down some real weird feelings in this case. It's so weird, because he never cared for his title, never cared for being treated as anything other than Inigo, and yet something about this!! Something about this!

Thankfully Tidus being gone for a bit gives him all the time to calm down. Especially when Tidus returns in such a typical Tidus sort of way, trying to balance mugs like he's trying to perform some circus act here. At first it earns a curious glance from Inigo, but the moment he notices just why Tidus needs help, he's already standing up - just a tad too hastily, almost clumsily.

He grabs the bottom of the middle mug, then takes the handle of the left mug from Tidus with his other hand, putting those two down on the table and trusting the other guy to handle the last one.

Inigo's gaze is so genuinely surprised when he stares at the mugs, and a moment later his gaze raises back to Tidus's face.

"Wait, why did you get that many?" It's definitely not a protest! It doesn't even sound like it. It's just so-- is this a treat?

Phew! Drinks saved! And Tidus does really sigh in relief when Inigo picks up the mugs out of his hold, a "Thanks" given quick and easy. From the two mugs Inigo's grabbed, there's a wine and a mead--and the one that Tidus sets down is another wine, who is glad to be free of that responsibility.

"I wanna try mead!" There, that's his only reason, though it's one of the wines he's picking up first; shuffling the other so it's better facing Inigo. "We can share it. I was just curious - plus it's cheap."

So why not? But first he decides to try the wine! ...and it's red wine, gets a bit of a grimace at first, but then that sour taste settles quick enough on his tongue.

"Yep - that's sure wine."

Tidus wants to try mead. Well, that's.. so ordinary. Something about the drinks and Tidus's reactions to them makes it feel like they really are just travelers here. Regular ones, not ones that came from a flying void train full of angst.

It's why Inigo is trying to cherish the moment, make it last a bit longer by not drinking right away, but instead watching Tidus, his mouth leaning against his balled up hand.

A balled up hand that comes in very hand to partially hide his smile at Tidus's reaction to the drink. Cute.

"You should try the mead instead, it should be sweeter."

He then finally grabs the other mug of wine, drinking from it. There's less of a grimace with Inigo, despite him not having too much experience with this - but maybe it somehow naturally goes down more smoothly for him. In fact, it feels kind of refreshing. Like maybe this is exactly what he needed after this absolutely ridiculous mission week.

There's some kind of offence that Tidus knows to take at the mention of the mead being sweeter. Or that Tidus needs a sweeter drink, and he's frowning, closer to a pout, as he puts down the wine.

"It's not the taste that's the problem - I mean, red wines always have that weird bitter...--sharp taste! You know? I always forget it."

He just doesn't drink enough to remember anything!

But he'll pick up the mead regardless, even though there's a part of him that suddenly doesn't to like it, 'cause what would that say about him? Except that's dumb, it's stupid, so he brings it to his lips, takes in a sip. And...

"Wow." Double wow. His brow pulls in, puzzled for a sec. "That is sweet. Is that - honey?"

Really?

Tidus's protest certainly isn't enough to make the smile disappear off Inigo's face. Especially not when it's followed up by that reaction to the mead - exactly as Inigo thought it'd be.

"Yes, it's honey and water, I believe. And then they.." He pauses, before making a vague hand gesture with his free hand. "You know. Do stuff with it."

Don't ask him about the intricacies of brewing! Inigo has no idea. He only has two braincells.

"It's pretty good, isn't it? I haven't had it very often, but I like it."

Though he seems to like the wine just fine too, considering how he's just drinking that now.

You know. Do stuff with it. Wow, Tidus only has two braincells too, but he still throws a small amused look at Inigo for that. Like, really? They add alcohol, obviously.

"It's okay," Tidus decides, taking another sip. "You can get fruity drinks back in Zanarkand, but I never had anything this sweet."

But now that it's been established as being sweet...he puts it down, deciding to drink his wine first as he also takes the rest of his stew to sit on his lap.

"I didn't drink unless it was with the team or a date. I never saw the big deal - but it's nice as a change, once in a while."

Well, excuse him, mister Tidus, that Inigo doesn't know the word 'fermenting', okay!!

He listens to Tidus speak though, deciding to finish up his skewer as well between sips of wine. He's half-tempted to ask about the dates, but then decides that may just skew a little too close to the topic of Yuna, and promptly throws even the very idea of it away in his head.

"I haven't gone drinking much before either." Because there never was a chance for it. There weren't even really drinks left in the ruins of the future, and even in the past they had been much too busy with the war to sit down and enjoy a whole lot of drinks. But that's too depressing, so he keeps it to himself. "I like it though. The taste is pretty nice. Especially when you're drinking with a friend."

Fermenting what the f is that.

There's a slip of a genuine smile at the best way to drink, a second or so until Tidus gets the brilliant idea to make it more playful and add, "Especially when you're drinking with a prince?", and then he chuckles, take a mouthful of the meat that's collected at the bottom. He did slurp up a fair bit of the juice earlier!

"How 'bout we do this more on the train?" Ah. What an interruption to their poor attempt to forgetting about the train. But Tidus won't linger on that, closing his eyes an nodding his head. "We'll have a meal. Something different. We'll have a drink with it and... whatever! Just something special!"

Nobody said his great ideas had to be fully formed before he opened his mouth.

At least it's not a bad callback to the train. Out of all of the things Tidus could have said about it, this feels pretty innocent. If anything, it feels like a better suggestion than how anything in the past week on the train before they got sent out on the mission has been.

Drinking and eating together with Tidus beats talking at him from the other side of a door. By far.

"I'd like that." Genuinely so, judging by how Inigo smiles as he says it. He doesn't even care that the plan isn't very detailed. It involves Tidus and drinking and them having a moment to themselves, doesn't that sound like enough? "You'll get me pretty determined to turn out the most fun person you've ever gone drinking with though!"

"You won't have a lot of competition there," Tidus chuckles, shaking his head. He puts the bowl down, picking back up his drink. "I didn't go that often. It's not really my thing, you know? I saw the bad side of it often when I was young - not to be a downer." And he even shakes his head, puts up a hand just in case.

"It was a long time ago. Plus, we had more to do than drink in Zanarkand. I..."

He pauses, and if talking about his father's alcoholism didn't do it--Zanarkand does. His gaze lowering, the energy slipping some. For a few seconds, before Tidus tugs the smile back onto his face. Doesn't quite meet Inigo's eye.

"...I wish I could show you it. Or a place like it."

Somewhere real. Somewhere fun.

Somewhere that existed.

It's hard - no, impossible - to miss the way Tidus seems to skip a beat. How his energy lowers compared to a moment ago. And who can blame him? Weren't they exactly doing this here so they could avoid thinking too much of the train, thinking too much of home? And between the confession about seeing the bad side of it (Tidus's father, Inigo immediately wonders?) and the memories of a place he was suddenly forced out of to a new world, it's got to put Tidus into a rough spot mentally. Inigo can get that.

Which is why he knows he has to work extra hard for a moment here.

The first thing he does is more instinctive than anything else. He sees Tidus holding his mug with only one hand, so that means Inigo can reach out to grab a hold of the free hand, squeezing it tight.

The second thing is that he makes sure to smile. Widely. It's not too fake, since he can focus on the good side of this. Tidus's last suggestion - something Inigo definitely wants to do with the other.

The third is speaking up with confidence. With genuine happiness. "Then let's go to places like it!"

He won't suggest Zanarkand directly, in case he may touch on more sensitive issues. This feels safer.

"We're traveling around, aren't we? We're still going to see so many more places. And I'm pretty sure we're both aware you know much more about fun than me, so I'll be counting on you to show me the potential fun to be had in every single one of those places."

Because if this mission has taught him one thing, it's that he hates not having contact at all with Tidus for an entire mission. He never wants to do that again, if he can help it.

"I don't want to see all those places without my best friend by my side to see it all with me."

The way Inigo perks up is reminiscent. It reminds Tidus of another time, another place--or is that his own stupid self? Going and thinking about Zanarkand, wishing he could show Inigo it - like he did with Yuna?

'Let's go to Zanarkand! We can all fly there! Then we'll have a big party at my place!'

All the promises he made her, the way he hoped to make her feel better. Promises he made that he had no way of fulfilling. But he wanted to see her cheer up. All he cared about was making her smile.

It hurts his heart, and it's the opposite of what Inigo's trying to do. Tidus knows. He doesn't blame him. It's not his fault. It's why Tidus is smiling, looking down at the space between them; Inigo's hand holding his, until he takes it after the seconds of silence grows. Gripping it, using it to anchor him, to stop the rising emotion from swallowing him. From letting it get the better of him, when- when they came here to avoid all this.

No tears. Not now. Not here.

"Right." He speaks, breathy, and then really with no thought behind what he does, Tidus takes the wine and starts drinking it down. Gulping it, letting it wash down him with a heat, a gasp coming as he finishes and knocks the mug onto the table. "Alright!"

He's building up. Trying to. Focus!

"I wanna buy junk food!" Oh- "Wait! First, your flower!"

Now he turns to Inigo with determination, his grip on his hand having eased.

"Then we're going shopping!"

Inigo can't tell everything here. He doesn't know the extra pain in Tidus's heart, even though he can see the way the other acts. Inigo mostly thinks Tidus is still trying to cover up his pain from a moment ago, back when he seemed to stop for a moment. That he's doing what Inigo usually does - cover everything up with a smile as you sweep it under the rug.

So of course he's not going to call the other out on it. They're both trying to do the same thing here, right? No matter what scars they may bear on their souls right about now, they're just trying to do their best. Trying to keep going.

Even as Tidus just casually knocks back the rest of that wine. Inigo doesn't judge.

Nor does he let go of the hand. Instead he stares at his finished skewer, his mostly-finished wine, and stands up.

"Sounds like we're going to need all the time we have left here, so let's go." With Tidus's whole list of things to do. "Make sure to leave some gold for the food though, so we don't end up on some list of wanted criminals here."

"H-hey!"

Tidus doesn't startle immediately as Inigo stands, though he does look confused. That comes when he speaks of now going, and Tidus, knowing how much that wine cost that Inigo is about to leave, picks it up, holds it out.

"You're not gonna finish it?! --Then I will!"

No, he's not giving Inigo a chance to answer (actually, he gave him a good second or two!!) before he takes that to his mouth and proceeds to finish it off, unless Inigo takes it from him.

Downnnnn it goes...!

Is a good second or two really enough to answer though? Before Tidus takes to drinking that wine like a horse that's been travelling the desert for two weeks? Granted, it's not like Inigo minds - Tidus seems suddenly so into drinking all these drinks that he isn't about to stop him.

Though he can't help but gently tease, "Hey, let's make sure you can still walk on both of your feet properly while we go around town."

Surely two or three drinks won't do that much to Tidus just yet, but.. you never know. If Tidus really is trying to drown his thoughts out with alcohol, then Inigo isn't so sure if that's really a healthy coping mechanism.

(And he can know, he is king of unhealthy coping mechanisms.)

"Are you good now?"

Better question is, are they still holding hands this entire time? Either way, Tidus stands once the mug is emptied and back on the table, a weightless sensation already in his system as he rises to his feet. "Alright," he says, like he's ready to go now. And he is.

--except.

Except.

He turns around back to the table, picks up the mug of mead and makes it disappear in a glitter of sparkly gold. Waits a second or so before facing Inigo okay.

"Alright, now I'm ready."

Yes. Of course they're holding hands.

You think Inigo is going to let go of that hand now he's seized it unless it's absolutely necessary? There's no way. Now he's gotten Tidus's company again for the first time in what feels like so long, he doesn't just want to let go of it. He wants to keep the other close.

Even as he watches Tidus shove something into his Arms Band. He's seen it often enough that it's normal to Inigo right now, but there's still a bit of A Look when he notices what Tidus is taking along in particular.

"Really wanted to savour that one, huh?" Okay, now he may be teasing. But just slightly.

"I bought it," Tidus says, not sulkily, but proudly. Or somewhere along that vein of emotion.

Regardless, he'll be the one tugging on Inigo's hand if he doesn't come up to him to the counter to put down the coins, the wine and mead already paid for, so the meal getting a nice gold coin before they go out the door.

"Okay. Flower island first?"

He looks ready! He sounds determined! Here comes the best time of their lives!

Inigo gladly lets himself be tugged over, waiting patiently as Tidus attempts to put down the payment with one hand - no, he still isn't going to let go of it, this hand is his now - and then heading out with him.

He sucks in a deep breath of the fresh air. It feels different now, this place. Like everything somehow got a bit lighter now Inigo isn't wandering around with only constant doom and gloom on his shoulders.

"Sure." He smiles at Tidus. "How are we going to get there though?" MAYBE THE MAJOR PROBLEM WITH THIS PLAN.

"Well," he starts confidently,

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