fragments

• gallery

explore

unless otherwise credited, all images in this gallery are taken by yours truly i only have ownership over my own original characters; all other ocs are pictured with the permission of their respective creators..

ㅤㅤ^sfwㅤ^{▌ㅤ non canon}ㅤ

ㅤㅤ^sfwㅤ^{▌ㅤ non canon}ㅤ

ㅤㅤ^nsfwㅤ^{▌ㅤ non canon}ㅤ

ㅤㅤ^nsfwㅤ^{▌ㅤ non canon}ㅤ

ㅤㅤ^nsfwㅤ^{▌ㅤ non canon}ㅤ

ㅤㅤ^sfwㅤ^{▌ㅤ canon}ㅤ

ㅤㅤ^sfwㅤ^{▌ㅤ non canon}ㅤ

ㅤㅤ^nsfwㅤ^{▌ㅤ non canon}ㅤ

ㅤㅤ^sfwㅤ^{▌ㅤ non canon}ㅤ

ㅤㅤ^nsfwㅤ^{▌ㅤ private}ㅤ

• Chevron Up

• Chevron Left

^{ㅤclick to explore the chapters of alessa's storyㅤ}

ㅤalessa's norvrandt arcㅤ

This is part of a series of short stories that are canon to Alessa's story. These were originally written as a set-up to one of the RP collaborations that I had been the most excited about. As my partner's character was based in Novrandt, I wanted to shape Alessa's story to properly blend into hers.Alessa will also eventually have an Eorzean arc that would most likely happen in the future after these events had transpired. This is to enable me to write with people whose characters are based on Hydaelyn. Regardless, these will still given an insight to Alessa's origins, so hopefully they're worth a read!

• Chevron Up

It was all so bright. Too bright.

She felt her body lifting, floating into weightlessness as the world swirled around her. Images swirling around her like a kaleidoscopic whirlpool as she felt her heart racing in her chest as quickly as the wing of a hummingbird. Gasping for air, her fingers curled into claws as her eyes darted around, trying to find something, anything, to anchor herself to.

"Alessa."

Is that my name? She wondered as she tumbled through the ethereal mist. Blinking rapidly, she tried to remember, but found that she couldn't.

"I will kill you if you leave."ㅤㅤ

"When you wake, you shall have all the pretty little horses"ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ

"I will kill everyone you love."

"Go to sleep, my little baby."ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ"Alessa. It means 'defender'."ㅤㅤ

No. No. She raised her hands, covering her ears as she screamed voicelessly into the void. These shadows are too noisy. She felt herself spiralling downwards, her form growing faint around the edges, almost as if she was dissipating into the mist. She gasped, writhing out in desperation. She squeezed her eyes shut, but the visions continued playing behind her lids. Mocking her, taunting her. She felt herself falling,
ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤfalling,
ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤfalling -

ㅤㅤsoundtrackㅤㅤ

play_arrowpause

Song of the Sea

Ashley Serena

^{ㅤI had this song playing on loop while writing this fragment of Alessa's story.ㅤ}

• Chevron Up

• Chevron Up

ㅤ
ㅤ_❝ㅤ

a goddess of the land & sea

Alessa had only read about it in the illustrated books Laila had specially procured for her when she'd first come to stay at her court. She'd often dreamed that she'd find a patron who was an adventurer, someone who would take her beyond the colorful walls of Radz-at-han to venture out beyond the shores of . But even in her wildest dreams, she had not heard the song of the ocean- the ebb and flow of the waves, the distant cry of a sea bird.As her toes brushed against a soft velvet material, Alessa was broken out of her trance, gasping as she saw her travel pack. Her clothes lay strewn across the beach, and she hurried to gather them up. Shaking the sand off as she folded them and placed them back into her pack, she found the cracked remnants of the wooden box that Laila claimed she'd had on her as a child. Falling to her knees, she ran her fingers over the intricate patterns carved into the wood. The workmanship was astounding as it featured the silhouette of a woman dancing against the backdrop of a moonlit ocean, while tendrils of a forest encompassed the scene."A goddess of the land and sea," Alessa couldn't help musing as she gathered the shards, careful to avoid the splinters. As she wrapped a shawl over the broken box, a horrified thought entered her head.

Where was the bullet?

Rummaging through her pack, Alessa frantically searched for the silver bullet she'd retrieved from Laila's chest. The only clue she had to the murderer's identity. "It can't be gone, it cant," she whispered in desperation. How else would she avenge the death of the only person she could remember loving? How else could she find the monster that destroyed something she held so dear, casting it aside like it was nothing? Twin cores of hatred and despair cascaded through her. She hadn't been strong enough to kill him. Not yet, but she would be one day.She just had to be able to find him.As she dug into her pack, something glittery dropped out. Bending over to pick it up, Alessa's mind was momentarily emptied of her vengeful thoughts. She picked up the silver necklace that had fallen, drawing it up to her eyes for a closer look as the crystal pendant twinkled in the sun. Though the design was simple, the crystal pendant was hauntingly beautiful. Its blue surface had a soft, subtle glow that caught the sun rays and reflected them in iridescent hues. Even with her familiarity with Laila's extensive jewelry collection, Alessa had never seen anything like it. She felt a warmth spread through her extremities as she brushed a finger over the smooth surface.

ㅤ_❝ㅤ

She hadn't been strong enough to kill him. Not yet, but she would be one day.

She just had to be able to find him.

• Chevron Up

• Chevron Up

• Chevron Left

^{ㅤclick to explore the chapters of alessa's storyㅤ}

ㅤalessa's norvrandt arcㅤ

This is part of a series of short stories that are canon to Alessa's story. These were originally written as a set-up to one of the RP collaborations that I had been the most excited about. As my partner's character was based in Novrandt, I wanted to shape Alessa's story to properly blend into hers.Alessa will also eventually have an Eorzean arc that would most likely happen in the future after these events had transpired. This is to enable me to write with people whose characters are based on Hydaelyn. Regardless, these will still given an insight to Alessa's origins, so hopefully they're worth a read!

• Chevron Up

the aftermath of laila's passing

Alessa read the letter with dry eyes. And when she was done, she read it again.And again.And again.Reading, but not fully comprehending.She sat there for hours. Or it could have been minutes. Truly, she could not tell. Each heartbeat felt like a sledgehammer blow that was intense in its sharpness, eternal in its pain. Her fingers laced through the silken strands of Laila's hair, the idle action causing wafts of honeyed amber perfume to waft softly in the air, an oasis of solace against the metallic assault of blood.

Hush-a-bye, don't you cry
go to sleep, my little baby

Alessa drew a finger across Laila's lush lips, now deathly pale beneath the lip paint she'd applied this morning. The world had always seen them as a testament to the Viera's sexual prowess. Lips that fell warriors and warlords to their knees with just a single smile. Yet, to Alessa, all she could remember were these same lips singing a lullaby to a child curled up in the darkness just to keep the nightmares at bay. She'd been way too old for lullabies, but that never stopped Laila from holding her close, and singing till dawn broke the shadows that haunted her dreams.

ㅤㅤsoundtrackㅤㅤ

play_arrowpause

Alessa's Lullaby - Hush-a-Bye

Ashley Serena

^{ㅤi imagine laila and alessa singing this together someday, somewhere.ㅤ}

• Chevron Up

ㅤ
ㅤ_❝ㅤ

what if it was all just another lie?

What if it was just another lie?Still, before she could fully form the thought, she had gotten up on her feet, gathering up the precious items Laila had set aside for her, neatly packing them in a travelling satchel. The deeds, her wooden box, a velvet pouch of jewelry and gold pieces, several sets of her favorite outfits. Feeling as detached from her actions as a marionette, Alessa slipped the blood stained bullet she had removed from Laila's corpse into the velvet pouch.

Her corpse.

Alessa bit down savagely on her bottom lip, trying to choke down the sudden sob that surged through her and was now fighting to emerge from her throat. The taste of blood was bitter in her mouth. Raising her hand to her hair, she undid her headdress, allowing her long, white hair to drape over her shoulder, flowing down her back like a silken waterfall. Reaching down, she picked up the dagger from its sheath around her thigh and raised it to her neck. Squeezing her eyes shut, she slashed the dagger backwards, feeling the blade whisk swiftly past as if it were cutting through butter.The midnight wind tickled her neck as she felt a sudden, foreign lightness. Picking a ribbon up off the table, Alessa tied a knot around her fallen hair and gently placed it upon Laila's chest.The metallic sound of blades being drawn. Eager voices getting louder as foot steps approached.

• Chevron Up

However, the words would not take shape. Only a wild shriek, both guttural and sharp in its madness, emerged from her lips.Alessa reached in her belt for her daggers, and threw them into the blazing inferno. Even in her blinding fury, she felt a icy calm in her chest that told her that her aim would be true. In all her years, she had never missed a target.But even as the weapons sliced through the air, there was no satisfying squelch of metal meeting flesh. Alessa barely had time to squint through the flames before she saw a bright object flying towards her at a blinding speed. Gasping, she looked down to see her own dagger lodged in her shoulder."What.."She bit back a shriek of defiance. How could he have not only have avoided, but also deflected her throw? A blur of silver made her look up in horror as she saw the other dagger flying right towards her chest. Flipping back, she threw herself off the ledge just in time to feel the blade slice past her arm, ripping open a gash as her blood spilled out. As she fell, Alessa's hands clutched at her pack, bracing herself for a fall that she knew would be incapacitating if not fatal. She felt wooden splinters pierce her fingers even as they brushed against something cool and smooth. A stone? But what could it -Alessa's scream cut off as a blinding pain ricocheted through her body for a second before the darkness took her.

ㅤ_❝ㅤ

She needed him to hear her, hear her. She needed him to know her hatred.

She needed him to fear.

• next chapter

• Chevron Up

• Chevron Left

^{ㅤclick to explore the chapters of alessa's storyㅤ}

ㅤalessa's norvrandt arcㅤ

This is part of a series of short stories that are canon to Alessa's story. These were originally written as a set-up to one of the RP collaborations that I had been the most excited about. As my partner's character was based in Novrandt, I wanted to shape Alessa's story to properly blend into hers.Alessa will also eventually have an Eorzean arc that would most likely happen in the future after these events had transpired. This is to enable me to write with people whose characters are based on Hydaelyn. Regardless, these will still given an insight to Alessa's origins, so hopefully they're worth a read!

• Chevron Up

a letter to Alessa written by Laila.

My Alessa,If you get to read this, it probably means that I'm no longer with you. I am so sorry. I always meant to tell you this in person. Sometimes, I look at you, grown woman that you have become, and I still see you as that tiny child who carried such fire and sadness in her eyes.But this is no time to reminisce.I am a spy for the Shinobi, and I have been working undercover for them since I turned 13. Through my time as a Ta'Waif, I've been dealing in secrets; gathering information from drunk patrons in lieu of gold. I always planned to tell you, in fact; warrior soul that you are, I had thought to recruit you. My Alessa, defender of the weak. You would have been perfect for our cause. But, the life of a spy is fraught with danger, and you already carried more on your shoulders than any child ever should. I was waiting for the perfect time; but time is no one's servant, and it makes fools of us all.Alessa, your life is in peril. I have always kept an eye out for information about your background. And while doing so, I stumbled upon the makings of a plan by an organization, only known as Celatum. They mean to capture you, and you must not let them. I say this not just because you are the heart of my heart, but because countless innocents will suffer should their plan prevail. I wish I had more information for you, but in all my years as a spy, I've never seen anything that has frightened me this much. This is a highly meticulous scheme that has been in the works for years, possibly before you were born. I wish I could say with certainty what organization or individual is behind this, but I fear false leads and conjectures would cause more damage than good.

ㅤ_❝ㅤ

I was waiting for the perfect time; but time is no one's servant, and it makes fools of us all.

ㅤ_❝ㅤ

But always remember. You are the best and brightest, a true warrior. You will not break.

You must leave Thavnair at once. Take all the deeds and bonds in my drawer; these should allow you to lead a comfortable life until you find a safe place to set up your new life. I know you've spurned all inclinations to find out about your childhood, but I've had people look into the wooden box you had in possession as a child. It is made of the wood of a rare tree that only grows in Othard. You must board the merchant ship to Kugane. Not only will you be far from those who bear you ill here, you would stand the best chance of discovering your roots. I have contacts there, allies who will help you. They will know to look out for you.I am heartbroken to leave you like this, my oasis, my baby. But always remember. You are the best and brightest, a true warrior. You will not break. Be safe, and whatever you do: live; love. Be safe, and happy.
I have loved you always, and always will I love you.

Yours, ㅤㅤㅤㅤ
Lailaㅤㅤㅤ

• next chapter

• Chevron Up