#post hw

[dustedbooksandreadingnooks]

Many Titles- Some weigh heavier than others.

VERY MUCH inspired by @shadesofblades

Raw screens:

If i could stop needing to pose Kizuna on towers 50 feet from the ground that would be so cool

[crimsonfluidessence]

Prompt 25: Silver Lining

Just another day, like any other. Esredes was on his walk to work, and in a particular mood. His mind was wandering once more as he passed the Vault, to fantasies that faded far beyond reality. Imagine if the Warrior hadn't interfered until Nidhogg reared his ugly head. Imagine if Ysayle had killed the Archbishop, before he could take on his own transformation, and the two of them had dealt with Nidhogg. Esredes hadn't trusted Ishgard's people enough, perhaps even less than Ysayle herself. He was fully mentally prepared for having to subjugate Ishgard to get it to listen to them. But perhaps, as things had turned out, not nearly as many would have needed subjugation. Perhaps he wouldn't need to help manage a fragile, in chaos city-state that had been taken over, especially when so many of his own had nothing even close to management skills, perhaps a proper parley would've been possible. And yet, Esredes pulled himself back to reality and reminded himself, that was never quite the case. Peace had been agreed to, and that was it. Himself and all of his were only here on Ishgard's terms or else, and the rest simply had to be dealt with. Still he went through his days in anticipation of being fired for shining progressives who repeated his ideologies on Ishgard's side, or of his house burning down when he got home. Ah, what would life have been like if he wasn't a failure who couldn't match up to idiotic children with goddess powers? It was a question he asked himself here and there, swirling around with all the others, and in his head, timelines began to split off, mirrors into other worlds for him to glance into. In one, he saw himself back with his family in Thanalan. He lived under a new identity and kept quiet and to himself, always afraid of the Ishgardian government finding him out. He worked a simple job that had him feeling nothing, and though he hoped to earn his parents' forgiveness through it, things didn't really change. Esredes looked away from the mirror and towards the approaching door to his office, and opened it and went inside. He greeted the receptionist as always, then greeted Heilyn and Ferrant, quipped with Heilyn about the fact he would never brush his damn hair properly and it looked like ass or something stupid like that. Work went steady today- Esredes cozied himself up with a cup of white tea and busied himself writing some in depth notes on Dragon Blood observations to use as a reference. With how many people he had encountered here and there who would do any amount of dubious things to obtain such information, the casual scrawl on the paper gave no indication of awareness of this. Just another day, just another paper amongst many, cloaked in the tranquility of absurdity. Another mirror opened in Esredes' head as he worked. In this one, Esredes had gone through with one of his fleeting ideas and fled to the Far East when Ishgard rejoined the Alliance, and oh my, was he lost. Completely out of his depth, he had to fight off multiple people trying to mug him in Kugane until someone watched his latest skirmish and approached him. "You're good with a sword," the man said as Esredes shrunk back and kept his hand wrapped around its handle. "How would you like an opportunity to put it to the test?" And so Esredes watched himself hesitantly agree after sixty and a half questions to work for a Kugane lord as a bodyguard. It was a place to stay and decent pay, to stand around and observe everyone like a hawk. He got to know some people around the home and the streets of Kugane who looked upon him with respect, yet caught himself glancing over the sea even on a good day and remembering everything he left completely behind. Esredes got up to refill his tea, and the mirror closed. Soon after, Heilyn called him over to the office across the hall, and surprised him with a sweater- knit entirely by him in that periwinkle blue reminiscent of Shiva. So that he had more than one sweater, Heilyn said. Esredes smiled and thanked the man back, giving him a soft hug of gratitude. Ferrant was also his usual cheerful self today, asking after if Esredes was feeling all right and letting him know he appreciated him. All very routine, yet he never tired of it. At lunch hour, he had an appointment of the strangest sort, so he retrieved his coat and exited the building and made his way down to the Firmament. Esredes was in a little bit of hot water recently, having chased down a double agent to his people and getting in trouble after he was arrested for the act of vigilantism- as if that was the worst thing he had done while back in the city. And yet the head Inquisitor on the chase wrote to him and invited him out to lunch with his friend who also got involved with the chase. To know them both as a person, she claimed. He was completely lost as to the motivation, but Esredes could tell she was an Inquisitor who had an actual soul, a normal person's thought process. So he accepted and went on a picnic. She served arancini, an imitation recipe from the Far East. Elouan took most of the conversation as Esredes anticipated, and he didn't have to do much work as he listened to her and her bodyguard talk about how much they want to visit the Far East, and Elouan filled them in on his own travels. What a nice and unexpected little bubble in the veil of absurdity. Another mirror manifested during the picnic, and Esredes saw himself with his knees curled up, sitting on the ground in a pathetically tiny cell, and from the expression on his face alone, clearly having lost his mind. He flinched and ignored the mirror after his initial glance, focusing his attention on Elouan's babbling exclusively. When everything wrapped up and he returned for the second half of work, Esredes made a few discreet calls in his office to the network about arrangements for later. A little outing with an actually human Inquisitor was nice, but the man knew what he was, and there was always work to do. He took a break in the middle to move over to the Blue Room for an appointment. Clover's ward Teagan had begun seeing him in the past couple months, a woman rescued from life in a fighting ring in Ul'dah who was still perpetually trying to learn and adjust to life beyond. They always had good discussions, even after he put her to looking into the water. This time, to teach her about Ishgardian culture, he had ended up going into his own story up until everything fell. "How did you do it? Turn it around, I mean? It must have been hard, pulling yourself out of that... how did you manage?" She asked him after that. Esredes had to pause a moment to think about his answer. "I had to take it a day at a time. The other members of the camp were not unsupportive. They were concerned, they wish they knew what to say or do, but I was completely unreachable. So, for one thing, I'm someone who doesn't believe in meeting your death unless you have to. It's more productive to die so someone else lives than to simply off yourself. So every day, it was get from start to finish. There was a routine. Do your tasks, break for meals, read in your tent, avoid talking to anyone any longer than you had to. Keep doing this, and eventually you would either die, or something would happen that you were waiting for. Just, something to happen. It was all I really had besides keeping in mind my family- what if I missed something happening? Eventually, I realized these people were that, people. Who cared. Who did not want to kill me for being a knight as I thought. And I decided that, while I could've fled to Thanalan and tried to live as a normal person, I wanted to stay and make a difference, even a small one. Help people in my situation to be saved and survive, not perish to Ishgard, even if there was no chance of making a bigger difference by that point. And when Ysayle entered the picture, that changed everything, and the rest is history." "I think I can understand that... I, for one, am glad the sun continued to rise for you...that you were able to find reasons to keep going, ways to help people." She gave a small smile. "I bet you've made plenty of differences with all the folks you've helped along your journey. Cause it's not just the big ones that matter, yeah?""Well, had I not been concerned about the small child who was alone in the woods, we wouldn't be here, so yes. And that's what I enjoy about doing this on the side nowadays- the pleasure of seeing it affect individual people in real time. The way I ended up discussing it with another client, is you have to figure out the way to get out of the room. You're in a room, and you can get out and see what's beyond it, but you're just not ready to yet, you find yourself unable. Once you can manage to get out of the room and see what's beyond it, everything becomes a little easier." Teagan tilted her head at this. "A... room? So... you finding the drive to help others helped you open your 'room'?" "It helped me get out of it, yes. I realized I still had something to do and people cared. People really helped a lot, even though I was pushing them away. Just knowing they wanted me to feel better and believed in me as a person.... after everything else fell through, it was all I had." She nodded and smiled a little. "I'm glad you were able to find the door, and that you had people there to help you find the knob." She paused for a brief moment. "... Thank you for sharing your story with me, Esredes. It's been really eye-opening." And so the session concluded, and soon Esredes was back out into the world. First half of the day was over, and then it was time for the second. There was not a formal meeting happening with his people tonight, but instead a get together of sorts at Vette's more recently acquired mansion she had made into a space for all of them to convene safely. Esredes went to and from everybody, making sure everyone was doing well, holding conversations and watching everyone enjoy themselves with a faint smile on his face. He stepped into the bathroom at one point to do his business, and washed his hands after. He was confused why there was a second bathroom mirror for a moment until it began to show him another reality. Esredes stepped back from the sink and put a hand against the wall to his left, the other going over his heart. Reflected back at him in the mirror was a collection of all the people he knew and loved close together, with himself standing further away on the platform and forced to stare at them. A mass public execution. Esredes rushed out of the bathroom and slammed the door shut, pressing his entire body against the door and breathing in and out, in and out. It's not real. It's not real. "Esredes?" Came a gentle voice, as Vette approached the man. She had most definitely felt the spike in distress from the aetherial bond they shared. She asked about how he was doing and put a soft hand to his cheek. "I'm all right, really." Esredes said. "I just had... an unexpected wave of fear come over me." Vette was always in tune with how he felt. She helped him calm down the rest of the way, and then lead him back to the gathering. The anxiety soon faded, and replaced by it, a warm feeling heated the blood inside him. For the rest of the evening, Esredes continued to engage with his family, waves of laughter and elation surging and falling in with the tide. He only hoped that the droplets of gratitude leaking from his fingertips and voice washed over everyone attending like a cool rain on a summer's day, for as he closed his eyes and let each droplet of noise from their voices and words hit him, everything stood right into place where it belonged.

--- @thecalmnessandthestorms / @heartofthefury Heilyn, Ferrant, Sartorius (unnamed mention) @eternal-finis Lieuvanne (unnamed mention) @shieldbcund Elouan @punches-and-cream-puffs Teagan @syerraffxiv Vette

[crimsonfluidessence]

So quick poll time now that I’ve casually revealed this design: Who would let Shiva Esrey step on them?

It’s not exactly as hot

and it will absolutely hurt like hell

I actually made this design a year ago when Eden dropped because obvious inspiration is obvious and ohhh boy did it take a while. I spent a day taking screens with it that I am still proud of.

If I could art well enough I’d take this idea in a different direction but for in game limitations, it aint bad.

This is purely for fun and bad ending ideas because Bozja stuff suggests you can’t even turn into a primal without the echo without dying soon after, which lines up with my idea anyhow. I like to imagine this’d only happen in early post hw era where he gets too down and angry about the outcome of the war and calls upon the belief of his remaining people in hopes of selectively wiping out all those who will oppose the new age and being content to die in the process. But even without the depressing realities it’s just a fun design I am proud of and good lord everyone is simping for it help me--

[crimsonfluidessence]

While I’m working more on his Post HW onward office build, I decided I would do some common sitting poses I’ve written for him while he’s sitting in it. And they all look perfectly like he’s judging the shit out of you and I love it.

Also yes, he wears blue to work. Why? Because he’s a petty bitch who will do all the governmental work while wearing Shiva’s colors.

It’s totally blue for Ishgard, what are you talking about?

[crimsonfluidessence]

“The truth is you are looking at what is essentially a specter. Phasing in and out of existence, haunting the place where I once lived and died. I might be here this very second, but the next I may disappear once more forever. “

Casual screens I felt like taking of an early post HW era roleplay @heartofthefury and I were doing this week to kick off that part of his past arcs featuring his House of Lords employer in their first meeting! It’s all downhill from here. As usual.

[crimsonfluidessence]

"I believe that is all for business now," Ferrant said with a nod as he looked over the signature. The faintest hint of a little devious twinkle formed in his eyes at his next phrase. "Be sure to stop by and speak with Hildingr by the kitchens before you leave, however. Its about the time he is away from his shift, and should have something for you as a parting gift."

"A parting gift?" Esredes asked as he stood up. "Well, that is unexpected, but very well. I will do just that." He nodded. "Please take care for the rest of the day and those to come, Ferrant." And with that, he went to leave. ...And immediately went looking for the kitchens. That twinkle hadn't escaped his notice. What was down there?

At the table there was the Ala Mhigan man. Eating... some sort of pasty? He waved upon seeing Esredes approach, looking more relaxed than he had at the guard post. "'Ello there, Rosemond. Hope yer meeting went well."

Esredes, in turn, seems to have had the tension in his muscles escape from their first meeting, and he looked upon and approached Hildingr more simply and without as much hesitation, his eyes open in nature this time. "I think it did. Ferrant said there was something down here for me?"

"Ah that!" There's a box wrapped in a cloth at the table as well on second glance. "Our dear lord 'ad the chef's whip somethin' up for ya. Somethin' to do with tarts? An' oranges?" There was a wink on the last comment. It was exactly tarts and oranges. Orange tarts.

Esredes... raises quite the eyebrow as he opens the box and observes the contents. He blinks multiple times, looks at Hildingr, then the box, then back to him. "...How... did he know anything of my taste in food."

"Always been damned good at findin' the most obscure of details he 'as. Not surprised he figured tha' one out frankly. Hope they're good. I tend more towards the bitter kind myself. Cranberries an' the like. But to each their own, aye!" He chuckles a little at his own statements. As if there was some joke Esredes was missing. "Point is, Ferrant cares 'bout ya already, don't go forgettin' that too soon."

Esredes continued staring at the box while he talked. He couldn't figure out he was a knight commander, or a dragon, he didn't even know he could transform, but he could figure out he liked oranges. That made a lot of sense.

I think I’ve found the most hilarious, at least to me, orange meme joke so far. I just live for these kind of reactions out of him.

@heartofthefury

[crimsonfluidessence]

Prompt 14: Part

Today was the day. Esredes took longer to get out of his bed than usual. It was the last day he would sleep in it for the foreseeable future, and he wanted to take a moment to let himself sink down into the mattress, as if to silently thank it for all these years of its service. When he finally did get up, he got to work quickly. He picked up the two large messenger bags he had- to think these alone would be able to hold every material possession he owned. There really wasn’t that much to pack up- his clothes and duplicates of his sword took up the most room. Beyond that, it was mostly his little book collection and journal. Packing only took twenty minutes, including pauses. And then that was it. All these years of this tiny little room, behind him with one large decision. So often had he longed for something less depressing than this little space, but when it came down to leaving it behind…. oh, he really didn’t want to. But he forced himself out the open space, down the hall, and out onto the familiar path of the mountain. He trekked through the entirety of the camp slowly and leisurely, spending extended moments inside most of the spaces and absorbing the memories, all the good and the bad flowing through him like water in an icy river. Once this was done, he made his way back to the center of camp, gazing out at the vast view beyond the mountain. He almost couldn’t bring himself to leave… “Esredes,” came a voice from behind, causing him to turn around and come face to face with the same man who had talked to him when the war officially ended and he felt lost. “Why are you standing there with two very heavy looking bags on each shoulder?" “I’m leaving today.” He told the man. “I’ve finally made up my mind. I’m going back to Ishgard.” The man seemed a little shocked at this. “I know you’ve been spending the majority of most days in Ishgard for a couple weeks now, but I didn’t think you would make up your mind this quickly.” “Yeah, me neither. But I’ve been busy each day trying to arrange things, talk to people, test if I can really walk on the street without a problem, experiencing the place for what it is now and for what I remembered. So far, somehow, no problems. And I’ve searched nearly every part of the city. No wanted posters. They must have complied with my request to take them all down.” “Glad they’re doing the bare minimum after pardoning you.” “Right.” He responded. “But after all of that arranging and water testing… Look, I know I shouldn’t. But I thought about it, a lot. And… I don’t think a better option exists. The thing is, the new government asked me to help them out quietly for payment. Enough payment that I might be able to slowly rebuild from nothing. And while I could just become a mercenary or sellsword and wander to avoid Ishgard, I honestly don’t really want to. Last time I pretended to be a sellsword obviously didn’t go well, and that could be dredged back up. It won’t be something that really makes me feel alive. And any other kind of work is a fat chance. I don’t exactly have any credentials besides a stripped military title and being a rebellion commander for years upon end.” He let out a sigh. “The Far East is even worse. A fresh start in a land where I have nothing but my form and my sword to help me. And then there’s staying here… the most peaceful of all the options, but I would get restless. Part of me would love to stay, but I know I will feel unfulfilled doing nothing but hunting to survive and hearing the updates on Ishgard from the sidelines, forever just doomed to live in the wilderness as a nothing separated from civilization. …It’s a weird feeling.” He said. “I know Ishgard isn’t trying to get me to come back because they want me back. I know it’s just a move on their part so that I don’t do something dangerous with the information I have on them. But even just pretending that they think I deserve to be a legal person again is surreal.” “What if it is all a trap?” “If it’s a trap I am not ready for, that is that.” He said. “At this point, I don’t think it makes a difference if I die out here or in there. At least in there, there’s a chance there will be consequences for it.” He shrugged. “Like said, I know it’s not ideal. But we lost. There is no ideal option left for us. So I’ve resolved to play the game they ask of me, for now. They know they’re playing with fire, let’s see if they get burned or not, hm?” He offered the man a small smile. “Don’t worry. I won’t go into this without the ample number of shields and safeguards, and I will spend each day getting more. I can’t have them get the jump on me without making it a challenge.” “Well, if you’re saying this now… something really must have sparked you.” The man remarked. “You were so lost on that day before you got the announcement. Now you seem almost confident. Honestly, I am glad for you. I know I can’t change your mind, and I trust you to be careful and cautious. So if you’re truly prepared to go back… I expect you’re going to make the most of it.” Esredes smiled back. “Your confidence in me is appreciated.” Though it was not but a few moments later when another person emerged. And another, and another. Soon he was surrounded by people who asked first if the rumor was true, and then all took turns wishing him well in Ishgard. “If anyone tries to give you shit, tell me and I’ll move right next door to you, all right?” One person teased. “Please be well. We’re all counting on you, Esredes. You’ll make everyone proud.” “Try to enjoy what’s still there to enjoy. You deserve it after all that’s happened.” Esredes’ eyes almost welled up with tears. He had not been prepared for all this sentiment. “I… I don’t know what to say. Thank you, everyone. I promise I will visit frequently. I’m not truly disappearing on all of you.”

Once he finally took off, it was a lone wyvern in the sky carrying his bags with much more ease. The ride to near the gates of Ishgard felt like the loneliest one he ever took.

It wasn’t too late to turn back and remain in the sanctuary… but he pressed on and kept going until he arrived. Until he walked once more through the gates of Ishgard and across the bridge, an action he had repeated just enough times by now not to be afraid anymore.

Twenty minutes later, he was pushing his way into that empty house that was now legally his, as of a few days ago, thanks to a lot of borrowed money from noble allies. His own key and everything… Gods, it had been so long since he had a proper door like this. Locking the door behind him gave him a weird sense of glee.

As he set the bags down, he looked about the mostly empty room. All it had were the cabinets and kitchen appliances built into the wall. Empty, but it was an upgrade from his camp room. So much more space to work with, even though it reminded him nothing of his former manor. Now it would be up to him to figure out how to fill the rest of the space… gods, when was the last time he had to think about furniture? It was years ago when he moved the desk and wall rack into his camp room. That was it. He had never had to actually plan furnishing an entire space- even one as small as this- ever before. It was almost overwhelming him already… He unpacked as much as he could, and not soon after as he contemplated where to purchase a sleeping bag was there a knock on the door. Esredes opened the door and a smile came to his face observing the one behind it. It was an ally of his who had managed to remain within the walls all this time. “I heard someone was moving in,” they said. “Do you need help unpacking?” “I just finished what I could on my own. It wasn’t exactly a complex job. Don’t worry about helping with that.” “Wonderful, that means you’re free now. This is a cause for celebration, Esredes.” They said. “Come with me. I have plans. I’m going to give you a good welcome back to Ishgard night. We’re going out to experience the best this city has to offer, and it’s all on me.” “Isn’t being seen out with me going to incriminate you as a heretical accomplice…?” “They can’t do anything about it now. You now have an erased record, so my record of helping you is also erased. Trust me, don’t worry about that, Esredes. I never thought a day like this might happen, and I’m going to make the most of it.” And make the most of it they did. Esredes was promptly dragged out to all sorts of places; teahouses, a restaurant for both his lunch and his dinner, quiet scenic spaces to sit by the fountain at nighttime, and practically the entire length of the Crozier. By the time it was late at night and he was back at his new home- thankfully having managed to obtain the sleeping mat he needed earlier- he was exhausted from all the activity. Ah, what a change of pace from being barely able to walk over the bridge. What a change of pace from having to lock himself in a room to recompose himself after Aymeric had told him he was free to live in Ishgard again. Esredes proceeded upstairs and rolled the futon out, changing into his sleepwear and settling in without another moment’s hesitation. Yet even despite his exhaustion, it took him a while to fall asleep. The silence of the unfamiliar, empty space was incredibly loud, and his heart pounded with anticipation of something happening. It took a while of listening to for him to drown it all out, and focus on falling asleep. Welcome home, he told himself soon before the abyss finally took him.

[crimsonfluidessence]

Hey so major firmament spoilers but

Do you want to know how you make a Plat cry internally?

You hit her hard by acknowledging her lore area in game.

EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING I’VE HAD TO BE INSECURE ABOUT BECAUSE THERE WAS NO LORE. EVERYTHING I HAD TO HAVE THE SAME CONVERSATION WITH PEOPLE ABOUT SO MANY DAMN TIMES.

SQUARE ENIX JUST CAME IN AND ACKNOWLEDGED MY ENTIRE ROLEPLAY LIFE. EVERYTHING I’VE BEEN DOING, IS ACKNOWLEDGED THROUGH THIS QUEST LINE. I FINALLY HAVE LORE THAT TELLS ME MY INTERPRETATION OF HOW TO ROLEPLAY A HERETIC IN ISHGARD POST-HW IS PRETTY MUCH WHAT I THOUGHT.

YOU DON’T KNOW HOW HAPPY I AM RIGHT NOW.

YOU DON’T KNOW HOW AMAZING THIS FEELS.

I’M GOING TO SOB OUT ONTO A CARPET FOR THE NEXT FIVE DAYS.

Finally, I am completely certain of how to interpret everything. My character is valid. My friends’ characters who took this journey with me, or who I found in the process, are valid.

I’m valid.

We’re all valid.

Thank you so much, Square Enix. I was content to live in the nebula of lorelessness forever, but you’ve made my entire existence by including something that touches the heart of a random college girl who found a niche lore area convenient for her character.

I fucking love these quests, too. All of them. Bless Ehll Tol for being an amazing character, and bless poor Marcelloix who deserves better. So in the meantime, this will definitely help my RP moving forward and backward in its Post-Hw era! HERESY RIGHTS ARE SEMI REAL, EVERYBODY. WE’VE BEEN GIVEN THE SQUARE ENIX BLESSING TO KEEP DOING EXACTLY WHAT WE DO AND CHANGE PEOPLES’ MINDS ICLY WHILE KEEPING QUIET ABOUT OURSELVES.

I AM SO HAPPY I CAME TO THIS COMMUNITY AND DID WHAT I DID. FOR SO MANY REASONS. THIS ADDS BUT YET ANOTHER...