An opportunity had finally risen to see him fully in his element. So relaxed and seemingly nonchalant in the face of battle. He looked at his enemies, grinning from ear to ear, each hit of his feeling personal, as well as satisfactory. For every scar, a new body laid on the ground, mutilated to the point of no recognition, never losing his momentum. The face his enemies saw was not the one that most recognize Ethys for. The serious and cold faced Viera was no longer there - replaced by someone only his brother could even remotely recognize as his own - a maniacal murderer who wasted not even a moment to cause further chaos and bloodshed. Each time he felt the drop of blood on his face, it fueled him to charge and strike even harder than before. He knew that this was it, this was his freedom, and he rejoiced in it.
But that would only last for so long before his mind would begin to go astray. As he stood on the pile of disembodied flesh of those who dared threaten or attempt to hurt him or his brother, all the blood, fire and ash surrounding him, it was as if he was back in Garlemald again, the bodies resembling the soldiers that once had control over them both, all which had died by his hand. The more he looked around the more he would remember. One memory after another, suddenly the calm and steady warrior was losing his balance, his headaches eating at him once again, making him unable to see anything but black for a while.
Flashes of all too familiar imagery of his and his brother’s shared past would begin to resurface in his mind and, like a sudden influx of polarizing thoughts that he could neither control or fight, he would then be filled with…Emotion.
Laughter.
Uncontrollable laughter. How quickly his behavior changed. The pure joy he felt seeing them all rounded up on the ground and knowing that not even a singular person would be able to mourn them, he could almost make himself scream at the top of his lungs from how difficult it was to contain his cackles - and yet it was accompanied by so much sorrow.
Hearing distorted screams and cries of Neo in his head, the Garleans' mocking chuckles next to their nauseating machinery that he so feared, and even his own voice - it was no longer recognizable what the man was feeling, tears falling on the ground as he kept laughing endlessly. Caught in a fit of mania, Ethys could barely hold it together as his emotions devoured him mercilessly.
"It's not enough", he thought to himself. It never was. "Garlemald will burn", but no matter how many people die, Garlean or not, it never truly fulfilled him and always left him starving and aching for more.
After taking so many lives of those who stood against him and his brother and taking them all out with such ease no less, it's almost as if the comedy was writing itself once he began stumbling due to… What, exactly?
Ethys, a Viera powerful enough to squash a person’s head with just his bare hand, is losing to… Feelings…? Hysterical, yet infuriating.
● ● ●
His thoughts would then shift towards Neo - his anger turning to regret, wishing that he could have done better for his brother, but obeying the Garleans was not in his nature. All he needed was to see Neo’s eyes overwhelmed with tears and he would be reminded that he had one reason to still be alive, to not be tamed. Perhaps that spark was the reason they managed to escape, but Ethys never saw it that way. No, he always saw himself as a problem Neo had to solve - A failure of a brother, as he couldn’t even protect him as much as he hoped to do.
And so, even memories that gave him a satisfactory answer back then were not good enough anymore. The little bit of hope in him was slowly seeping out and escaping, leaving him with hatred in his heart.
With each passing moment the thoughts would become more devoid of any sense of rationality. He would even find himself regretting his own birth, as obscure as that thought may be. He would keep digging further and further, searching for any solution or at least a conclusion to his thoughts, anything at all that would help him soothe his mind knowing that the choice he would make would be one that both he and Neo would be okay with, no matter how horrible or difficult. Even if it was his own death, he just wanted to know. Yet the answer never came, and he was stuck circling around the same memories, thoughts and feelings; and then, once again, he began to tremble the same way he did back when the two of them were still prisoners. His smile still accompanied him faintly, but what Ethys felt was far from anything resembling even a hint of happiness.
His eyes stared blankly at the ground, his body immovable - but just before he would lose himself completely, Neo would arrive not a moment too late, ready to do what he always did - stop his little brother’s head from hurting him any further.
“It is enough, it is okay. Focus on my heartbeat, I’m here. I’m here.”
He heard his brother's soft whispers, repeating over and over again, and slowly, the gloom exited his mind enough to acknowledge Neo's presence, his hatred for the world replaced with his love for his older brother, the one he cherished so dearly. His words are comforting, his touch so loving, reminding him of the times when he was so small, Neo often chose to hold him in his arms. All of it made him feel so overwhelmed that he simply could not stand anymore and let himself fall into his brother’s arms - let himself feel, his sobs and weeps reminiscent of those he made when he was just a child. As he continued to tremble, Neo spared no moment to continue calming him down, occasionally petting his head, each of his motions so gentle and caring, as he knew very well what Ethys was going through.
Finally, as he began to gain some sense and control over his body again, Ethys lifted his arms to hug his brother, and after some moments passed, he was able to gather enough strength to say something he always wanted him to hear. A simple phrase, one that Neo would always remember:
"Thank you, and I’m sorry."
Everything will burn, Neo promised himself. Everything.
The guilt eating him up from the inside had its own voice by now, and he has learned how to tune it out. But this one particular whisper always hit him where it hurt the most.
He is already ash.
He looked at Ethys tossing and turning in his sleep, new scars adorning his skin and serving as burning reminders of his failure to protect him; his failure as an older brother. This time, patience resulted in naught but punishment for reluctance. But that, also, paved a new path in his mind. One he dared not take before - but all laws have been broken so far, so why shouldn't this one be broken too?
The proud monk sighed heavily, turning to the wall connecting the cell left to their own, and knocked thrice.
"So you have decided to give it a try?" a deep voice replied to that signal; even though it was but a whisper, it resonated within the walls like approaching thunder.
"Indeed I have," Viera's voice sounded younger than the other one; almost boyish. But there was a certain note to it, a certain weight in the way every word was spoken, that showed it was used for years and years more than one would think.
"You have the stone?", the other voice said; and Neo looked at the white gem imbued with a symbol of a wooden staff resting gently in the palm of his hand.
"I do," he said, after a slight pause; to which the voice replied: "Well then. Let us start."
● ● ●
One could not just change the job stone you are attuned to. As with everything else, it came with a price. However, the art of white magic was able to help him bridge that gap, even though his own aether suffered; for white magic he was drawing aether from the land itself. Give and take, take and give; a little bit of his life, for a power that could heal them and ensure they could survive any ordeal. It was only fair.
The white mage has helped him learn how to heal himself and how to attune to the aether of the world itself; something he knew only briefly before. Thankfully, when Garleans were sending him on missions, he would often choose the albino Hrothgar to accompany him, as they thought Neo could only fight. After all, they thought he was a monk, a simple martial artist - and they did not know much about the way aether worked.
It was on one of these missions where he first dreamt of lilies.
He was laying in a valley full of white flowers, staring up at an endless expanse of cloudless sky; the sun nearly blinding him. The mountains rose to the sky steep enough so that he knew he could not climb them, and, when he got up to inspect his surroundings more, the valley seemingly had no exit.
Time may have passed, or may have not - but the sun started setting, and the sky burnt orange and red, like a fire spreading through the dry fields after a hot summer. Mesmerized by the sight, he barely noticed that the lilies started changing their color. It was only a blink before he woke up that he realized that they went from pure white to blood red.
Opening his eyes and seeing that he is yet again in the tent where he went to sleep, Neo stretched, lost in his thoughts.
Lifting up the piece of fabric separating him from the outside, he was greeted by the sight of a lit fire, with a cauldron already set over it, with something in it bubbling and giving off a mouthwatering scent.
"Slept well?", the Hrothgar asked, lowering his glasses. He was sitting next to the fire, with the book he was reading now resting open in his lap. The expression of concern washed over his face briefly, only to be replaced with an inquisitive look. "I'd say not, judging by your expression."
"I... had the strangest dream," Neo sat down next to the man. "I woke up in a valley full of white lilies, with no escape route. But I... did not feel trapped. I felt..." his ears twitched at the very thought of saying this, "... at peace." At this point, he started braiding his hair - a morning ritual he kept from the days long gone.
"Ah," the man next to him did not seem surprised in the slightest. Quite the opposite - he looked relieved.
"Darko, do you know something about this?", Neo looked into Hrothgar's red eyes - which, he just now realized, were the same color of those lilies at sunset. Finishing up one of the braids, he clasped his hands and rested his chin on top of his intertwined fingers.
Darko took the book from his lap, using a leaf to note where he left off, and put it next to him. "Oh, I do. Dear Neo... White magic can bring both solace and misery. Do tell me one thing before I go on - have you seen the red lilies?", he moved and crossed his legs, leaving both of his hands in his lap, his eyes inspecting Neo's face.
Neo, of course, did not show emotion - he has long ago forgotten how to be candid - but he did answer: "Yes. At the very end."
"Well, well, well... I think we are both ready to think of an escape now."
● ● ●
Darko disappeared not long after that conversation. No one knew what happened, and the Garleans surely would not divulge any details. But Neo knew that the first step had been taken. However, doing every mission without a monk job stone did take a toll on his body, as it needed the extra push of those ancestral techniques stored in the stone to execute the level of skill they expected of him. Without them, Neo knew that they had very little time to carry out whatever plan he could think of.
And then, they broke Ethys.
One time too many a hit, a scar, an insult... And he was shaped just into what the Garleans wanted - a mindless murdering machine. With nothing but bloodlust driving him, keeping him alive, Neo's little brother was reduced to animal instincts, losing almost every bit of humanity he had.
But those animal instincts told him to keep close to Neo and listen to him; so Neo has been carefully using that to help Ethys hold onto whatever little bit of sanity was left in his head. Nights after missions, where his little brother returned covered in blood and full of new scars, were spent reminiscing of the life before this; of their childhood and teenage years; of the light that still shines behind the bars of the prison they were locked in.
And nights where Neo was alone, he was biding his time and planning the escape. One thing he knew is that they, for sure, would have to leave their humanity behind. Because if they wanted to escape without anyone knowing, everyone in this complex would have to die.
Including other prisoners.
Knowing that did not make it any easier, but as time passed and he saw Ethys fall deeper and deeper into the red abyss, his resolve only hardened. Every mission he was sent on was dealt with as quickly as possible - Garleans thought the targets were dead, and the targets were given a chance to keep living in return for a favor that Neo could call in at any time.
● ● ●
There was another Viera in this complex; Andromedas was what he called himself. Neo used him to keep an eye on Ethys when he could not, as the bard was particularly infatuated with bloodshed and carnage; gladly following and supporting Ethys on any mission the Garleans sent them to. He also had this habit of making every battle and adrenaline high into a song - which was not particularly weird for, well, a bard.
Neo's efficiency and will to listen to Garleans left him with a lot of time for himself, and a lot of time to hone his skills as a white mage. In time, he managed to heal every scar on his body and repair all damage Garleans have left on his insides. Although it was not in accordance with the beliefs of white mages, he took aether from the land - it had to be done so his internal aetherial balance could be restored. All of this would matter in the grand scheme of things so, over time, he stopped worrying about details.
If any lives were to be lost, it is a necessary cost to pay. If any innocents were to die, it is a necessary cost to pay. It is a burden he will bear, alone. If it is a price to pay for his brother and him to leave that place alive, it is not too high. No price would be too high for that.
So, he called in a favor. He told Ethys that he has a plan and that he only should wait. Any day now, the plan will be set in motion. He watched his brother wait, go on missions, kill, lose control, come back to him, and cry in his sleep; wait, kill, return; wait, kill, return; wait... And, one day, Ethys was fed up.
● ● ●
Hallway echoed with sounds of metal meeting the flesh, screaming and cracking of bones broken over and over again. Neo knew the last mission Ethys was on went awry the moment they put his brother in solitary confinement, but he didn’t anticipate such a rebuttal. He knew they were valuable assets, not something they’d want to lose - but the loss won’t put a strain on their forces, regardless. After all, the Alaudae always had a fresh supply of recruits from all the prisoners the Empire had taken.
After the initial rampage, the guards passed by quickly, dragging the black-haired Viera by his ears and legs; and Neo couldn’t help but shudder. He knew what’s to come - they went through enough together that he felt Ethys’s pain as his own, and vice versa.
Hours passed. Sitting in the corner furthest away from the entrance, Neo hugged his knees and rocked forward and back, trying to shut out the screams of despair coming from chambers too close to his cell. Enveloped in darkness, the Viera felt loneliness and emptiness overwhelming him, in a way that never happened before. Ethys was tortured before, yes. And he was sitting in this same corner when that happened, doing the same old motion, trying to cradle himself as if he were in his mother’s arms, seeking the basest of solace he knew every time it happened. But this time it felt as if… He will be truly alone again.
When the door to their cell opened and they threw Ethys’s body inside, he immediately felt what’s wrong - the spark of life was dying, waning before his eyes as surely as the sun sets and the night comes. He knew, he knew from the bottom of his heart, and from every word he ever heard from Darko’s lips, that there’s no saving him. But…
He was his brother. His other half, and the only one he had in this world.
So he grabbed the job crystal in his left hand, nails digging deep into his skin, cutting it apart and adding more blood to the pool on the floor.
He will not let this be his brother’s end.
He drew on all the aether of nature he could sense - he pulled as much as he could and siphoned it all into Ethys’s broken body; the wounds healed, but the flame… barely flickered.
Neo gripped the crystal with all his might, his long nails reaching the bone, blood flowing freely, and pressed that hand above his brother’s heart. Their blood mixed together and he focused on fanning the flames - letting his own blood and aether enter the body of the broken man, making them flow and mimic the life that was waning.
There was no light, for this spell was anything but white. The only color he could see was red, like the lilies burning in the sunset, and he focused on that.
If this magic can break a man so easily with stone and air, with fire and water he will make him anew.
As long as the fire of his brother’s soul is burning, he will be the unstoppable current that halts natural progress and then reverses it. No matter the price.
He felt his arm burning, falling apart - his skin was peeling from the tips of his fingers, then hands, and the entirety of the forearm. The flesh soon followed, flaying in pieces and disappearing into red dust that scattered all around them. A passing thought about red lilies’ petals passed through his mind, but it was short lived - once his bones started disappearing, he did all he could to shape the blood that was flowing through the exposed flesh, bending it to his will, stopping the flow and using it to keep the stone between them.
Consciousness fading, he focused on the magic still and...
Moments after, he fell down.
The thing he woke up to was his brother’s heavy, pained breathing. And there was no sound sweeter than that.
● ● ●
Some time passed before Neo could gather the strength to do anything but sit and watch his brother lay on the floor. He tried to make that as comfortable as possible, but even dragging a pillow under Ethys’s head has left him breathless. Every movement was hard now that his left arm was but a stump, with everything under the elbow gone and the rest being a painful mass of overly sensitive muscles and tendons.
He thought of laying down and resting a bit more, and that very thought was irresistible. So, he dragged his body to the bed and let the darkness take him. It was not often that sleep came easily to him, so, even in these circumstances, he welcomed it with open arms. He fell asleep tightly holding the rosewood branch he was permitted to keep, as none of Garleans thought he would have any use of it; and let the aether flow and heal him while he rested.
When he opened his eyes, Ethys was not there. Only the pool of blood remained, the door quickly shut…
And he heard his brother howling in desperation.
Again.
That sound was what spurred him into action. He took one of his braids and removed a pearl he kept at its end as an accessory. He uncased it, revealing a linkpearl hidden inside - after some fiddling to place it into his ear, he whispered a few words and the last step of his plan was set in motion.
● ● ●
The whistle of a bird signaled that the shipment of ceruleum tanks he ordered was waiting just outside the complex they were in. Neo grabbed the bars of his cell door and yelled…
“WAITING’S OVER!”
For a moment, it was as if the world stood still. Guards were taken aback by him making noise, especially unprompted - and all they could do was look at him in surprise. After these brief seconds of shock have passed...
There was no more silence.
Ethys has broken the walls of the torture chamber he was in, grabbed one of the bars to use as an improvised lance, ran to Neo’s cell and ripped the door right out of the goddamn wall. He finally could go on a rampage, and the months and years of waiting showed themselves in the chaotic cruelty he exhibited in battle.
Meanwhile, Neo was fiddling with his linkpearl. Not soon after, explosions shook the opposite side of the complex. That was when Neo took the rosewood branch from the bed, where he left it, and became the light that blinds - drawing on every last bit of aether he had to continuously cast spells, keeping his brother alive and his enemies confused. Together, they wreaked havoc. As their part of the complex was mostly empty, there were not many guards, especially not after last night’s event. Easily overpowering them, the pair of brothers reached the only other occupied cell - the one Andromedas was in. He was already at the bars, drinking in the battle happening before his very eyes, ears perked up and a smile almost breaking his face in two.
"Will you die with us, or here?" Neo asked, knowing the answer. Andromedas moved away from the bars of the cell and Ethys ripped out the door with his bare hands.
"Let's go." Ethys growled deeply, trembling, trying to control the bloodlust. "Let us go!", he yelled, yet again, while Andromedas was staring at him in awe.
The rest was a blur - a mix of exhaustion and adrenaline kept him going blindly forward, equally blinding his enemies. As they reached the middle of the complex, where the only entrance was, they saw the smoke had already seeped its way there; and most of the guards left their stations to deal with the distraction in the other wing of the building. As for the ones which did not, they died to Ethys's lance as soon as they were seen.
And, just like that, they were free.
● ● ●
All people knew of this incident was that the whole complex went up in flames; leaving naught but ash. The group made sure to not leave any survivors; as the people delivering the ceruleum tanks were just hired hands.
Necessary sacrifices, all of them.
And now, their existence was known only to a few ones whose lives were spared by Neo; and he made sure that they know it must stay that way.
Darko got them places in a free company in Thanalan, a desert city-state so painfully, yet sweetly, reminiscent of Dalmasca of their childhood. But that Dalmasca was long gone - twenty years is a lot, even for a Viera, and he knew better than to dwell on the past.
Before settling down, however, he paid visits to families of some prisoners, delivering the news of their death and gathering information on the state of Eorzea. Of course, he ensured his ears nor face were ever visible; the only thing they could discern was his honey-sweet voice, making them want to give him everything he asked for. And they did.
Then, he went to the people who owed him favors. Not all of them, of course - you can never know when you may need a favor from someone. But it was just enough of them to gather funds and get a house in Goblet to open a... tavern.
Because, you see, spending almost twenty years as a conscript, forced to kill and facing the possibility of death every day, changes you. So, he decided opening an innocent little tavern where people could gather and have fun would be a perfect front for them to keep doing what they are now doing the best.
Andromedas was their resident bard, singing both the popular and original songs; mingling with patrons, and gathering information in pauses between performances. Neo was the bartender, putting his rusty knowledge of alchemy to use once again; ensuring everyone would feel at home during the hours they were open. And Ethys was the bodyguard, ensuring everything is all perfectly nice and sweet and legal; and that everyone is happy and enjoying themselves.
However, there were times when Neo would get a request from a patron, and Ethys would disappear for an hour or two; returning with a smile on his face and a little bit breathless and flushed. Or, when Clan Centurio was hosting big hunts, Neo and Andromedas would join them to learn about Eorzea further, and to get more contacts to help them with other types of work.
The tavern became known as the best place to spend time if you are an outcast, as no one could touch you; or if you had a request you think no one else could fulfill. But the latter was only known to people in certain circles, and they knew that every request had its price in gil... or favors, if you could not afford the gold.
However, after returning to Thanalan, Darko has disappeared from Neo's life. He could not know whether it was because his methods conflicted with Hrothgar's views; or whether the man had decided to help other conscripts he knew; or, perhaps, he decided to join the battle on the Bozjan front? None of that mattered, though.
All of the sins Neo has committed have served their purpose and they finally had their place, and the place had its name.
Under the Crimson Moon.
It was their own hideout, where they were finally free.
