TW: euthanasia, terminal illness, nightmare fuel, body horror.
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A Desert Crossing
-A new guide, Tesleen, will take me the rest of the way to Alisaie’s camp.
-The sand moles I fight off along the way are SO CUTE! Like little hippos.
-We reach a fairly desolate encampment, Journey’s Head. It’s full of those afflicted by… something. Tesleen seems reluctant to speak about it.
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Following in Her Footprints
-Alisaie is out on patrol. I find her kicking a sin eater’s butt.
-How was she able to attack the sin eater? I thought she was incorporeal. [Later edit: maybe the Scions were only incorporeal when the Exarch first summoned the, or maybe only some Scions.]
-She wants to go home… but more than that, she wants to prevent the Eighth Umbral Calamity, the Garlean joining. And that means staying here to fight the sin eaters.
-This desert is surrounded by a crystallized tidal wave of light. The remnants of the Calamity.
-Those overexposed to the Flood of Light either perish or become mindless abominations – Sin Eaters.
Does that mean no more sin eaters are being made? Or can they reproduce?
-Sin eaters are like zombies. They have an insatiable appetite for aether, and eat any living thing.
ALISAIE: “The stronger sin eaters can plant Light in us like seeds in soil, corrupting our aether, and triggering the birth of new monstrosities.” So that’s how they perpetuate.
-That’s the sickness Tesleen was talking about. Journey’s Head is full of light-infected people.
-The sin eater names are interesting. One is called Forgiven Cowardice. Puts me in mind of those FFXI Al’Taieu enemies like Absolute Virtue or the Jailer of Prudence.
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A Purchase of Fruit
-Back at the camp, I check on some of the patients. One in particular, Halric, is in bad shape.
-His eyes are blank, and his skin is hardening to plaster. He’ll soon become a sin eater.
-I accompany Alisaie on an errand in Mord Souq, to get a nectarine for Halric. His favorite. Aww.
-From the top of a watchtower, she points out a gap in the light crystal wall. The land beyond is an empty white nothingness. That’s what we saw the Warrior of Darkness ethereally trekking across.
-OH GOD, THE FRUIT SHE JUST BOUGHT. When a patient gets close to turning, the minders at Journey’s Head kill them as painlessly as possible.
She’s going to poison the nectarine, and help Halric go out while eating his favorite food.
The infirmary is basically a hospice where they comfort the infected and euthanize them before they turn. Bless the staff there. What a hard and necessary job.
And there are no consent issues here. All parties involved know this is the end of the road.
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The Time Left to Us
-Back to Journey’s Head… OH NO, I JUST GOT WHY THE CAMP WITH THE INFIRMARY IS CALLED JOURNEY’S HEAD. HFDJKLSFHDJKLSFHDS. It’s where the life’s journey of the infected comes to a head.
-Tesleen takes the nectarine. Won’t give it to Halric just yet, but soon.
-She’s worked here her whole life. Even saw her mother go out here. It wracked her with grief, but gave her relief too to know her passing was peaceful. Better than becoming a sin eater.
“It’s never easy, ending a life you’ve cared for. Even when you believe they go on to a better place. I often find myself wishing the Warrior of Darkness would come and do that part for me.” ???
-The WoD is a fairy tale angel of mercy. Hard comfort, but comfort nonetheless.
“Warrior of Darkness, servant of death,
Take care of our souls at our dying breath.
Let sinners and eaters of sin go with thee
That all may return to the sunless sea.”
-This expansion’s advertising has been all about, “Become the Warrior of Darkness.” It sounded badass. This sure changes the tone.
-Suddenly, all the patients look up to the sky.
“They’re coming.” Shit shit shit. Sin eater invasion time.
-And Halric’s gone. God, we’re gonna have to fight him, aren’t we?
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The Time Left to Us
-We’re searching for Halric, who probably left the camp and transformed into a sin eater.
-One especially nasty sin eater flies overhead. I recognize her from the trailer. She’s an alabaster angel type. Alisaie and I pursue.
-Halric is with her. The angel raises her sword at Halric… [Later edit: Why? To finish the sin eater conversion? I thought it would happen naturally.]
-Tesleen comes from NOWHERE and cuts the sin eater’s wing.
FHJKLFHDSJKL FUCK FUCK NO, THE SIN EATER STABS TESLEEN FHDJKLDHSL
-With her dying breath, “she reaches to Halric. “No one should die in pain… Mother, mother…”
Light erupts in Tesleen’s chest. She screams in agony. This is so hard to watch.
-THIS IS ABSOLUTE NIGHTMARE FUEL AS SHE TRANSFORMS.
It starts with a rising scream. Her jaw distends, and white liquid bleeds from her eyes.
She turns blindingly white, forming a feathered cocoon.
It splits open. We hear her wretching and coughing as she rapidly gestates. She’s become a gangly monstrosity.
It makes it worse that she is aware of her new hungers and drives even in this new form.
-The angel that stabbed her and was going to stab Halric flies off.
TESLEEN: “Forgive me, Alisaie!” She flies off too.
FHJKLSFHDSJKL JESUS JESUS THAT SEGMENT WAS ONE OF THE SCARIEST THINGS AND MOST DISTURBING THINGS IN THE ENTIRE GAME
[Later edit: Let’s not be shy. This is one of the scariest and most disturbing things in the entire series.]
Tesleen’s probably going to be a dungeon boss, too.
-Back at camp, the others carers are devastated. Tesleen was all about saying proper goodbyes and giving people painless deaths. Now she has to suffer in agony as a sin eater.
-Halric is still here in camp. Staring up at the sky. Is he emotionless at this point or does he just look that way? It could be an “I have no mouth and I must scream” situation.
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Tears on the Sand
-Alisaie is done here. Done being a guardswoman.
“This damned Light, building without cease.. it’s the reason we can’t save those corrupted by the eaters.”
Sounds like she’s going to go after the source.
-Yeah, she’s ready to use her skills more proactively. Back to the Crystarium.
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Random Stuff Around Eorzea
Some great player names:
Manbane Thebaneofman
Im Helping
Spity Pants
Juxta Position
Subaru Impreza
Ruby Weapon
Ultimate Guy
And the winner, Nestle Swolehouse. THE BUFFEST COOKIE.
-Strawberry Kitkat. This opened a whole can of worms for me when my friend told me that Japanese Kit Kat flavors are a thing. Check out some of these:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kit_Kats_in_Japan
Some of my favorite flavors are “Melon and Cheese,” “Soy Flour,” “Butter,” and “Cough Drop.”
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Next time: Finding Alphinaud.
