Traveler

The Auri gals were sprinting down the entrance of the docks, where a large group of people were being welcomed onto the ship. Roll and Azlyn heaved sighs of relief as they reached the end of the boarding group. 

It was a quick process, as they only had about twenty four people on this voyage. When Roll  and Azlyn got onboard, the older Au Ra with short white hair pulled Azlyn to the rear of the ship. 

“We’ll use my supply; it’s a good thing I stocked this afternoon before we left Limsa Lominsa.” She pulled out her stool, tackle box, and she quickly prepared their setup. Azlyn watched as her cousin expertly worked, and after a minute her cousin smiled. “Get your chair ready, no one will tamper with our stuff. Most of the fishers are pretty good about sticking to their areas.”

Azlyn looked over the large ship, as the fishing vessel started to push off the docks. The waves rocked and swayed against the hull. With clear skies, and a beautiful landscape of a sun setting in the western sky. She could feel her clothes get colder as the weather shifted. 

“I suppose it’s a good thing I didn’t think you’d up and run!” A Hyur male approached them with his fishing gear in his arms. He gave Azlyn a side smirk. “Setting up here?” 

Roll looked up from her tackle box to see him. “Oh. Heh.” She shook her head before gesturing to her open side. “You must be the guy my cousin invited. I should have known it was you Oz.” 

Azlyn blinked between them. “You two do know each other?” 

Ozwin Cotter started to laugh, setting his seat down where Roll suggested. He placed his tackle box between him and Roll, explaining with a bit of mirth. “We’re old fishing buddies—when you said Roll’s name before I wanted to laugh so hard.” 

Azlyn crossed her arms. “But you did?” 

The Midlander Hyur chuckled. “Not loudly.” He turned to Roll. “I thought you said your cousin was off studyin’ in some ritzy scholarly place?” 

Roll checked the integrity of her fishing line and lures. “Azlyn’s been journeying for sometime. Traveling all of Eorzea.” 

Azlyn walked over to her stool, sitting down to continue their chat. “It’s been about five years.”

“Five years!” Oswin exclaimed to her before shaking his head. “That’s a long time to be away from home little Au Ra.” 

“Careful Oz, my cousin is prone to bite.” Roll warned.

Ozwin chuckled, he looked over to her with an apologetic look. “My apologies. I wasn’t insulting your height.” 

Azlyn turned red. “I don’t bite Roll,” She shook her head, before she looked to Oswin. His green eyes were shining with curiosity, “however I do maim.” She acquiesced. “Have you lived in Limsa Lominsa all your life Oswin? You look like you’ve been raised close by the sea.” 

The man chuckled, “You could say that. Born and raised in Limsa Lominsa.” 

The Au Ra smiled back to him. “What do you do for work? I can’t imagine you’re a fisher full time?” 

Ozwin’s eyes hardened, before turning to her cousin. “You’re right, she is prone to bite.” 

Roll smirked. “Told you.” 

Azlyn blinked haphazardly between their peculiar interaction. “I’m sorry. Was that not something I should ask?” 

The Midlander Hyur started to check his fishing line, amusing himself with the rod. “I’ll allow you a pass since we’re not that well associated—however my work—as you’ve asked, is not a discussion topic.” 

“You’re so kind.” Roll replied, before looking to her cousin. “I watched this guy snap the wrist of another guy who asked a similar question.” 

Her purple eyes widened a smidge. Although given Limsa Lominsa’s shiny reputation for piracy and cutthroats, it wasn’t too out of the ordinary.  

“Don’t scare her.” Ozwin leaned his pole up against the rail. “He kept pestering me about it. Needed to teach him a lesson. Nothing the conjurer’s at the Maelstrom couldn’t handle.” 

Azlyn scoffed. “I’ve seen scarier—honest.” All she needed to remember was the burning embers dripping from the maw of Ifrit. 

Ozwin laughed loud, his sound was surrounded by the seagulls flying overhead. The ship hadn’t reached their destination quite yet. “Shouldn’t meet me in a dark alley then.” 

“Huh?” Azlyn couldn’t quite catch that. 

Roll chuckled. “Heh.” 

Oswin whistled. “I heard we’re going to Galadion Bay first, and then over to the Southern Merithan Sea, and ending by the Rhotano Sea.” He spoke once more, diverting the conversation or covering up what he’d previously stated. “You can see Costa Del Sol from one of our destinations. A lovely area—if you like that sort of thing.” 

“I can’t wait to see it. I’ve never been over on that side of Vylbrand.” Azlyn replied calmly. She already could feel the ship picking up speed as it coasted further and further away from the docks.  

The voyage so far was a pleasant one. Azlyn, Roll, and Ozwin chatted about miscellaneous things on what types baits work best in certain areas to the biggest fish they’ve caught. Azlyn realized from the conversation itself, both Ozwin and Roll dominated as the conversationalists. It seemed to be their passion in which they both shared.

The deckhand of the ship started to call out to the fishers all around. “Last call before Galadion Bay! If you need to buy bait or supplies, our merchant on deck will supply all your fishing needs!”

Azlyn smiled to Roll and Ozwin. “Do we need anything?”

Ozwin shook his head, “Between the two of us we should be fine for bait. Roll are you sharing with Azlyn?”

Roll turned her tackle box to her cousin. “Yes. Azlyn, you’re going to want to use plump worm for this first area. The ship will stay here for ten minutes, and then we’ll be traveling into the Rhotano sea.”

The girl nodded her head. “O-okay!”

Ozwin propped his feet up on the rail and leaned back comfortably in his reclined chair of straw. Azlyn’s and Rolls were simple stools, but his was more of a custom model. “As a friendly word of advice Azlyn, typically you don’t want to buy your bait on the boat. They rocket the prices out on the sea because they know it’s something the fisher’s need. Just something to be aware about.” He flashed a toothy grin. “How’s Gridania treating you Roll? Nothing too exciting in the woods?”

Roll shrugged. “It’s peaceful when I don’t have to deal with the Ixal.”

The Hyur let out a long sigh. “That’s why I didn’t join the Maelstrom. If you just stay low and do the bare minimum, you don’t have to do the big jobs like dealing with primals or their crazy, worshipping people.”

“You just like being your own person.” Roll commented, as she watched the ship slowly careening to a slow crawl. They were about to reach their fishing spot. “Being a Captain has it’s perks though. My Free Company was approved almost immediately.” She boasted happily. “Now I can start building my own ship—won’t have to purchase ocean passes and can fish alllllll day.”

Ozwin waited to respond, as he noticed Azlyn leaned forward, her elbows on her knees. “Is that why you wanted a workshop?”

Roll nodded to her. “Indeed. We just need a couple more people that can actually contribute something.”

“Hey!” Azlyn retorted. “I can contribute!”

“Can you work with ore?”

Azlyn frowned. “…no.”

“Can you work with leather or cloth?”

“No.”

Roll shook her head. “Can’t you do anything? All you’re good for is your book smarts and your copious amount of dead languages.”

“Hey!” Azlyn yelled, before she crossed her arms. She pouted to the side, counting off her fingers as she listed what she could do. “I-I can cook… garden… make low-level armor.”

Ozwin laughed at the two of them bickering. He was trying his best not to interrupt the cordiality. “What is the purpose of your Free Company—beside the workshop? Is there a specific quota that each member has to achieve in a week, or running out to adventure in dungeons constantly?”

Azlyn stuck her tongue to her cousin, and then looked to Ozwin. “It’s called Fated! There’s no real requirement. We just—do whatever we want.”

Roll smiled, “Yeah, follow our own paths of fate—or whatever belief you might follow. As the Company Lead, it makes my job a whole lot easier if it’s laidback and chill.”

“Huh.” He seemed mildly impressed by the idea. “Fated. It has a nice ring to it.”

“Doesn’t it?” Roll agreed, picking up her rod. “Alright, less chatting. It’s time to fish!” The ship had finally crawled to a stop, and the Captain of the vessel started yelling out to the entire deck.

“Alright you landlubbers! We have fifteen minutes here at Galadion Bay, so fish to your hearts content!”

Azlyn lifted her rod from the rail, pulling a plump worm out from the tackle box. She was slower compared to her two friends who had already cast their lines. When she finally cast, she sat for a good two to three minutes—and then felt a tug. She waited for the rod to pull, remembering the sensation of when a fish got hooked. What she pulled out was a piece of kelp.

Beside her, Ozwin had already plucked out a decent sized fish with a gaping mouth. He smirked, turning the fish to Roll. He let the jowls flop as he spoke. “Look at me, I’m a fish.” He then turned to one of the weighing scales by their feet, so that he could get the weight of the fish. “12.2 pounds. Nice.”

“Heh.” Her cousin felt her line get pulled.

Ozwin went to record his fish in his small, black journal before letting it go back into the ocean. He reset his bait and cast once more.

Roll caught a smaller looking fish, with a rounder body and small gaping mouth. She expertly grabbed the fish off her line, making sure not to hurt it anymore. She recorded the type of fish, doing the same thing that Ozwin had with the scale, and jotted the notes in her own journal. She then let it back into the ocean.

Azlyn looked to the two. “Is there a reason why you’re writing down the weight and type of fish?”

The two of them looked to her. “At the end of the voyage, they count your total catches and tally up points. The person with the highest points gets pretty cool prizes.” Ozwin explained, and felt his line get tugged. “Sometimes you get special fish—which triggers—a spectral current—” He struggled with his line, as he flexed his muscles to haul his catch up to the ship.

Roll smiled. “That’s how I received the automaton Major.”

With their explanations, she started to see why some of these fishers were super intense where they fished. Some were relaxed like her cousin Roll, but there were others who looked ready to kill, with their eyes locked on the prize—so to speak.

Azlyn grabbed another plump worm from Roll’s tackle box and tossed it into the ocean. “It’s a fun voyage. I don’t mind if I don’t win anything.”

“Probably won’t if you keep catching kelp.” Roll pulled out another fish she’d caught. “Ooh, this one is nice.” She went to weigh it and jot the notes of the fish down.

Ozwin was still struggling with his haul.

“Y-you okay there?” Azlyn asked, and he looked to Roll.

“T-this is a big one. We might actually get a spectral current.” He was grinning from ear to ear. “Help a brother out, would ya?”

Roll redrawn her line, as she stood up to help pull the catch in. Slowly the two were able to get the gigantic fish over the size—and a strange aetherial current burst from the waves. Azlyn watched in amazement as both Ozwin and Roll clapped a solid high-five. “Nice!”

She could practically see through the fish—like it was almost translucent. A pretty rainbow hue sparkled off its large body, fin, and flappers. The Captain came running over to inspect the catch. “That there’s a beauty! Keep fishing! We have another five minutes left!” The Captain took the spectral fish away, congratulating Ozwin on the rare catch.

Roll gave him a thumbs up. “You might win if no one else catches anything that big.” She went back to the rail where she stuff was. She cast her line into the sea.

“Pure luck.” He pointed over to Azlyn’s rod. “Azlyn, you’ve caught something.”

Since she was distracted by what happened, she panicked. Yanking her line back, she watched as the hook flew over the rail and dropped a heavy glass bottom in her lap. The way it landed definitively hurt, and she knew it would bruise later. “Owwwww.”

Ozwin whistled. “Kelp—a glass bottle with mysterious paper inside—Azlyn your luck with fishing is terrible.”

Roll looked at the bottle. “Could be a treasure map.”

Azlyn blinked. “A treasure map?”

The male of their group snapped his fingers. “It could possibly be one of the many lost timeworm maps. You could sell those for quite a bit of gold. Treasure hunters love those types of things.”

She lifted the bottle up for inspection, before deciding to put it away in her bag for now. The trio continued to fish until it was time for their vessel to continue forth onto its next destination. Azlyn had a better time catching fish in the Rhotano Sea—and after Roll and Ozwin pointed it out, could finally see why Costa Del Sol was considered a paradise. 

Vastly large beaches, wooden piers that extended out into the sea with impeccable vacation buildings. She’d never seen anything like it. The lounge beach chairs had multiple groups of people relaxing and socializing around. She could even see on the beach a bonfire where people were dancing to the soft hum of musical instruments in the air.

It was like a small piece of paradise that probably didn’t even know the full extent of the Calamity. She spied further north, seeing the large black building with red lights in the far side. And she spied something like a waterfall beyond the coves.

“A Garlean outpost?”

Ozwin pulled his rod out from the sea. The time to fish had just ended at this location. “Yes. That would be Castrum Occidens. You can see Castrum Marinum over there.” He pointed over in the far east, toward Thanlan’s coastal wall and a large floating stronghold. Similar in fortitude to Castrum Occidens, it looked ominous with it’s circling red and white lights.

Roll cleaned up their fishing area as she spoke. “I avoid Agelyss River when I can. It’s hard enough to sneak by the imperials when you just want to fish.” She sighed. “Well, how’d you like Ocean fishing Azlyn? Was it fun?” Her cousin changed the conversation away from the imperials.

“I had fun!” Azlyn chuckled, as the dark night sky was illuminated with the bright stars. There wasn’t a huge cloud coverage, so it made it a pretty enjoyable sight. “I’d want to fish with people I know though. I am pretty clueless to this type of stuff.” Her luck with fishing caught her two-baby fish, several bulks of kelp, and two bottles with papers inside.

Ozwin smiled. “I had a blast hanging out with you two. I needed a break from the drama.” He stretched back in his chair, looking up at the sky. He turned to look at the Auri. “Ready for the Southern Straits? We’ll need Krill for this area.”

The two nodded, as Roll brought out the specific bait they’d use. “I think I bought too much Ragworm. I should have looked at the itinerary.” She shook her head, “Suppose the wild life will enjoy it.”

Azlyn leaned her back against the rail, wanting to stretch her legs out from sitting most of the voyage. The sea breeze rustled through her wind-swept curls. She basked in the crisp, cool weather.

“I don’t think I’m going to win tonight.” Ozwin finally sighed, “I overheard a group of fishers on the Aft caught a 200.9 pound spectral monstrosity. Mine was only 143.4 pounds.”

Roll snapped her fingers. “So close, maybe next time.”

Ozwin laughed. “Definitely.”

The vessel proceeded without a hitch, as the fishers started to unwind after their hour to hour and a half trip. By the time they got back to Limsa Lominsa’s dock, it was 9:00PM. The buzzing of a linkpearl call could be heard as they started to clean up their area to begin debarkation of the vessel.

Azlyn automatically hit her linkpearl, expecting it to be hers—only no one responded. She blinked before her cousin tapped on her own Linkpearl.

“Roll speaking—ah, Kida. You two get to Ul’dah safe and sound? No, I don’t really care if she joins or not. Did I say I didn’t like her? No, It’s fine. She was a valuable ally. Just weird. They paid you? Great, we can put that money in the company chest…. wait—what?” Roll stopped talking as she let a long sigh out. “Okay, okay, okay—hold on one second. What do you mean there’s a plot for sale? How much?”

Azlyn quirked her head at the conversation that she could only hear one side of. Ozwin opened one of his eyes to Roll eavesdropping as well.

“It’s not that I’m opposed to the Goblet’s district. How many rooms?” She waited. “Wait, how big of a workshop? Forge my signature. We can figure it out later tonight.” Roll nodded her head a few times, and then she ended the call. She then crossed her arms, lost in a deep thought.

Azlyn tried to poke her head into view of her cousin’s downward glance. “What did Kida want?”

Roll blinked her golden, almond shaped eyes. “Oh. Koroko Koko joined our Free Company—we got paid a decent amount of money, Kida and Koroko Koko bought a house, and they will have dinner waiting for us in Ul’dah.”

“Wait? A house? Isn’t that expensive?” Azlyn gaped in horror.

Roll sighed. “Kida was the one who bought it. She’s rolling in coin from all her mining.”

Ozwin clapped three solid times on his hands. “It must be nice to have a place to call your own!”

Azlyn spoke still with a bit of disbelief. “Hold on, did you say Koroko Koko joined Fated?”

Roll nodded. “And that they’ll have dinner waiting for us. Did those slugs from before burst acid in your ears?”

“Wow.” Her cousin pouted. “You’re in a mood Roll.”

She smiled back to Azlyn. “I’m actually pretty excited. It’s a two-story house with a giant workshop attached to the back of the property. There are several rooms that can be used for living quarters or for whatever we fancy.  There’s also a decent sized chocobo stable.”

Ozwin laughed.

Roll’s legs were bouncing in excitement as she sat on her stool. “We actually have a workshop. A workshop where I can work, craft, build—” She blissfully sighed to herself.

“Won’t this all cost a bit of money Roll?” Azlyn asked with a bit of concern. Her cousin, meanwhile, waved it off.

“It’s fine—I have quite a bit of savings.”

“Azlyn, do you mind if I ask you a personal question?” Ozwin looked to her with a smirk.

“I don’t mind. What’s up?” She sighed from her cousin’s response.

He pulled himself up from his seat. “Do you have money problems?”

Roll immediately perked. “She’s dirt poor.”

He understood almost immediately. “Ahhh—so I was right.”

Azlyn flushed a crimson red. “I live frugally!”

“Nah, nothing wrong with that. I just wondered why you were horrified at the cost of a house, and then being concerned with the cost of building. You were also reusing your lure from earlier today, so the thought of: ‘she must be poor’, came to mind.” Ozwin chuckled, explaining his speculation on how he came to that conclusion. “Let me guess, you get taken advantage of quite easily.”

Roll pointed to him. “Yes! She spent 40 gold coins for four canteens of water!”

Ozwin gaped in horror at that. “She’s that bad with money?!”

Azlyn looked away from the two of them. She was pouting once more. “Look—just because I’m a trusting person doesn’t mean I’m bad with finances. I have been traveling on my own for over five years now—I’m not dead on the side of the road. Or begging for coins.”

“But you also can’t say no to work.” Roll pointed out. “So, you make up what you lose in the extra work you do.”

Ozwin nodded his head. “I can’t even begin to fathom the money you’ve potentially lost. I don’t even want to think about it. Okay, no, I can’t sit by and let that happen. Roll, you want an additional body in your company?”

Roll looked to Ozwin. “I don’t mind—what can you offer?”

“First I can help your cousin be less gullible.” He then flexed his muscle arm. “Oh, and I can process ore, craft weapons, and other cool junk.”

This immediately brought Roll’s attention to him. “Done. Welcome to Fated.”

Azlyn blanked out at the immediate approval. “Wait a minute!”

Ozwin laughed, “Too late, company leader approved it. I can still do whatever the hell I want right?”

Roll shrugged. “As long as you want to help with crafting for the workshop on the ongoing projects, I don’t care at all.”

The Midlander Hyur smirked. “Nice! And we can go fishing anytime.” He reached out a hand to Roll, who smacked it back with a resolute clap.

“Fishing adventures and making cool stuff!” Roll cheered.

Azlyn turned around as she leaned her arms on the rail. “Holy cow. Was it really that simple a process to invite people?” She mused to herself, shaking her head.

When the three of them were off the ship, Ozwin stretched his arms up into the sky. He towered over the two Auri in their group with ease, as he was around six foot two. “Alright, so we’re off to Ul’dah?”

Roll nodded, “First we should sell whatever live bait we won’t use in the next two days.”

Ozwin agreed. “I know a good merchant. Follow me you two.” He led them down the lane to Hawker’s Alley, where they bustled through the slightly busy zone. Even late at night this place had quite the crowd looking at last minute deals.

Roll spoke with one of the merchants to sell their unwanted bait and other miscellaneous items. Azlyn decided to browse through some of the collections on display. As she was viewing one of the vendors, she felt a presence draw up from behind her. She looked over her shoulder, seeing no one there—only to hear a grunt of pain on her other side. Turning to the source, she found Ozwin had a tight grip on a robed male hume’s wrist that had been caught relatively close to her waist belt. The male struggled against his grip, but Oswin didn’t budge.

“Get lost. She’s with me.” Ozwin threatened, his voice was a low rumble. Almost inaudible to most of the people nearby.

The young hume widened his eyes, as if he somehow recognized him. And almost hurriedly, he was released from Ozwin’s grasp. The boy with the robes started sprinting through the crowd, away from them. Before Azlyn could put a face to the kid, Ozwin gave her a quick smile.

“Roll’s all done. Let’s go check out our new place.”

Azlyn blinked. “Right.” She couldn’t shake the hardened look on his face when he threatened that kid, but she felt that he’d prevented something bad from happening to her. “Uh—thank you?”

He smirked, a lazed expression gracing his face as he directed them over to Roll. “For what?”

She had the feeling this was something she shouldn’t press further into. Giving him a smile, she shook her head. “It’s nothing.” She waved to her cousin, before all three of them decided to teleport to the Steps of Nald in Ul’dah.