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A Time of Reflection

With the Final Days averted, and the Scions of the Seventh Dawn disbanded, Rabrandt found that he was aflush with free time. Given recent events in Garlemald, he was no longer a wanted man, his defection from the army having been expunged. No more a Warrior of Light, nor a fugitive, he took the time to return to his homeland and reflect on his unending journey.

His old home had long since been reduced to dust and rubble, but other nearby settlements had begun to be rebuilt and reestablished now that the Bozja resistance has become a government in true. It was there that he found accommodations for his visit. Holding the modern, truest incarnation of one of Gunnhildr’s Blades, he pondered this intersection of past, present, and future. With all that he had done, none would fault him if he retired from adventuring. Indeed, many would say that he and his fellow Scions had earned their chance to rest.

But like his fellows, he would not remain content with such a life… not for long. After all, the wanderlust that drove him to leave home and enlist as a young man still burned deep within his soul, even after all this time.

He had inherited the mantle of Azem the Traveller, and there were still places in this world and beyond that had yet to be explored. In the darkest caves and forgotten ruins of Etheirys were left secrets to uncover, truths yet come to light, and new more powerful foes to test his mettle against.

Etheirys had no more need for a hero or a Warrior of Light. And yet, even in times of peace, there’s always good work for an adventurer.

(Fun fact: Rabrandt is near-sighted, and requires glasses to read. When using his powers as a Dark Knight or Reaper, he forgoes glasses in case they get broken in the ensuing melee, but he’ll pull them out when off duty or on duty working as a mage.)

This piece from LittleBadWolf in February of 2022 was commissioned some time after I want finished the Endwalker campaign in Final Fantasy XIV. It still has the cardinal problem many of these pieces do, where they simple regurgitate the lore. But at this time it has a bit more personal flavor it incorporate more of Rabrandt’s personality, as I see him in my head.