( Fate was not yet finished with her. )

Serah's not had much reason to use the network, as of late, but it's the only thing she has, forcing what's left of her will to hold the rune tightly in one hand - and it's this voice the Havens hear, broadcast to all.]

Only the beginning
A world abandoned by it's pillars will fall
Unsustained, will be torn asunder
All shall fade
All shall

But not this time

[The vision alters. From the worst to the most hopeful. Most wanted.]

Crack in the barrier
The endless walk to the dragon's nest
At the end you may convince them
Convince them not to end
Convince them
Convince

And you will see
[What will be seen isn't to be foretold as Serah is released from the prophecy. Her grip on the rune slackens as she falls out of consciousness in the midday sun...

But she's not left alone in the sand to burn.

Two dark skinned women with blonde hair - certainly not there moments before - stand beside her, their own rune in hand...]

[So Drift and Wing have kind of been off-radar for the last few days, because, well...wedding and honeymoon and, yeah, well...things.

[And Drift, aka Mr Socially Awkward, isn't one to pop up on the network for no reason. So excuse him posting this at unGODly early in the morning, when he thinks--probably wrongly--Wing is asleep.]

So. This honeymoon thing. Does it normally, you know, have, uh, hallucinations?

[At least he thinks they're hallucinations? Because he doesn't feel like a small zippy thing in the sky.]

And. Uh. Weird behavior? Like...weird-weird.

[ private text; Asuna ]

[ Why hello, commander! It's been a while, hasn't it? Let's cut right to the chase. ]

There is something of significant urgency that I wish to discuss with you, if possible.

[ Dun, dun, dunnnnnn. ]

[ /private ]

[ private text; Leonie ]

[ Since he's been out and about for the past days, he needs to check up on her. Of course there is always the times he sneaks into her room and sees if she's doing alright, maybe if she's sleeping he pets her hair gently but he actually missed talking to her. ]

Status report. [ Wait, that... is not right, let's try again. ] Still under the covers?

[ /private ]

[ private video; Nai ]

[ This might as well be just another video among the ones Shadow is trying to get used to send at least once a day to his little friend whenever he's not around. He's so tired of making Nai sad all the time. He also always seems to have problems saying anything at first... A usual, he stares at the screen for a moment and then... ]

Nai.

[ That works. ]

[ /private ]

[ Seahaven ]

[ It had been only a matter of time for Shadow to give into his worries, it had been nothing but a couple of days after his last conversation with Mikado that he started appearing around Seahaven more and more often, everyday since then. Sometimes in the mornings or middays, but almost always at night. He would stay for hours at the same spot, or merely a few minutes when he didn't find what he was looking for. Or, who he was looking for...

Since he was almost certainly sure that Mikado wouldn't approve that he had been keeping an eye on him ever since, Shadow made sure stay as hidden as possible, true to his namesake. He couldn't risk Mikado's pain-in-the-ass-fire-lizard to spot him, he was already sure his friend would have noticed he had broken into his home (for the 4565 time) to retrieve the weapon he had given him several months ago. But even someone like him was bound to call the attention of someone else if he kept using his flashy powers to teleport around the town wherever it was needed. ]

[Kain yawns. He definitely doesn't look well-rested, with dark circles under his bloodshot eyes. Nope, not in such a great state here, but he can pretend otherwise. Throughout all of his talking, he keeps half-closing his eyes, then snapping them just as suddenly open again, trying to force himself to stay awake. Sleep means terrible things, things he can't even tell Terra about. Indeed, he's been faking sleep and otherwise hiding this from her... at least so far.]

It's been a while since I've heard of any new threats... yet even the dragons hinted at more to come...

Has anyone seen anything else happen as a result of those earlier disturbances? Have any more lands disappeared since?

[It could almost be a typical Nos Astra scene.  Almost.  But Nos Astra isn't Omega so it isn't a place of violence out in the open for all and sundry, petty fights breaking out over seemingly nothing.  Petty might be putting it mildly.  There have been stories for days now of such outbursts, not from anger all the time but fear, vicious and feral, stripping all sense from anyone afflicted as asari, volus, turian, krogan, salarian and anyone else unlucky to be caught in it lose their minds.  They scream, they attack phantoms or anything that gets close but strangely, not a single doctor can explain it.

But it all sounds so like the troubles visited upon the seas months ago, doesn't it?  An outburst that makes no sense and leaves only destruction in its wake.  Or perhaps the stories of people vanishing and screaming in the dark some months ago including reports from Nos Astra, all implicating a young woman with long black hair and a house in the middle of nowhere that just felt wrong.  And it seems few havens have been free of nightmares lately, not since the earthquakes.

It doesn't take a genius to put it together really, not when a call to take part in a ritual was put forth but eventually the rune is lifted and turned, Leonie string back with a cruel smile and frenzied bloodshot eyes.  Exhaustion and something more, something not entirely natural have turned her skin ashen and created huge dark bruises beneath those wild eyes.  This is not the perfectly presented creature that usually addresses the rune.  This almost isn't even Leonie.]

I hope you're all enjoying the show, perhaps you might like to come join me for a preview before it spreads.  I am in such a wonderful mood I will even indulge you personally.

[As if to demonstrate - but the motions are jerky, too like a puppet that's trying to fight back - her hand reaches out to a nearby asari mercenary watching with a smirk until suddenly she's shaking and howling as though she's being tortured.]

Au revoir, mes chers.

[Asuna appears on the screen, looking pleased. She's wearing the militia uniform again, and is leaning back against the chair, hands crossed. It's clearly in the militia headquarters in Seahaven.]

Good afternoon, everyone! Since spring's settling in... I thought it might be nice to have a market fair in Seahaven. We'll need a bit of time to organize everything, but I think it should be workable.

I'll try to cook a few things for it, too. We might need some booths--ah, and if anyone has anything they're looking to sell...

[It risks becoming a garage sale, but that never hurt.]

[A fire burns brightly behind Leonie when the the rune is activated, the witch all in black, a flush on her pale cheeks from the flames. She's smiling but most should know by now that her smiles are never friendly and she looks almost wild, her eyes too bright as she leans forward, a shadow swallowing the screen.]

People of the Havens, we have gone too long without answers! We have suffered enough at the whims of dragons and all the other things they allow here and do not protect us from, dragons who claim to offer a salvation that slips from our grasp! How many lost their homes in the recent calamity? How many lost their lives to pirates and to Einar's madness? [Her voice rings out - familiar to some in more ways than one. Who recalls a night of poor sleep and terrible phantoms, this voice a soft whisper, sharp, insistent, somehow at their ear?] We have gone too long waiting for our captors to speak comfort to us and I say it is time we cast them from our shoulders. Join with me! Lend me but your will to take command of your fate if but for one moment, let us lift their weight from our backs, they are so heavy!

[At last she draws breath, her eyes so very wide and Persephone wheels through the air, her cries just as frenzied.]

They are so heavy and I know that so many have been afraid for too long. Find your courage and meet me at this place, search for the light in the dark and summon up all your will, all your strength, all your blood and I will give you what dragons cannot.

[Before the message cuts out, a location on the map is shown, a midway point at the base of the southern continent and then Leonie is gone.]

[[ooc: And thus begins Leonie's plot! Leonie will not be replying but feel free to have your characters talk amongst themselves here but this log is where all the fun will be - regarding the nightmares, hop in, feel free to have heard rumours or to have suffered them (if you want to handwave just check in with me first!) because Leonie has not been nearly as subtle as normal in all of this. The ritual itself will happen on Thursday (GMT) and I'll put up a thread but if you'd like, you can have some mingle threads for people getting to the site before then and I'll throw the witch in.

Any questions, there's the ooc plot post, her permissions post or my ic/ooc inbox!]]

[Morning, Havens. Today you're greeted by an entirely non-magical elf, that staff is just for show. At least she's holding the rune the correct way this time, and there's a brief flicker of delight when she gets it to work and record. Excellent. Only took four attempts. Wait, let her just angle this....]

Hello, um. My name is Merrill. I don't wish to be a bother, but... this means of communication allows us to share information, doesn't it? So if I have some to give, I should contribute it, even if you're far away from where I am and it won't affect you as much as- sorry, I'm rambling.

[Merrill bites her lip, free hand tracing over her hair as she thinks of how to share the news in a more concise fashion.]

The thing is, we've- determined what places have gone entirely. A lot of places kept vanishing, but most of them came back. Some of them haven't. Gridania's vanished. It's just trees and the river, now, and it seems that Erenova and a place called the Deadlands have gone, too. It's likely it's the same in other places.

There's a lot of refugees out in the woods. Some of them made their way to Davenport or Baron, but there's just too many. There were so many who worked out of Gridania's guild... and even if it's gone, I don't think they want to move on from the woods their used to. I can understand that. Some people never returned, either, so... spirits are a bit low.

Anyway. I just thought I would let others know if they're looking for them. Oh, and one last question. [She moves back a few steps and lifts up a bundle of yellow... something. Scratch that, it's yellow and it's moving and it's alive! No wait, that's a kweh. It's a baby chocobo.] I found this little one not far out from the camp. I've tried to find his mother, but I've had no luck... the miqo'te mentioned he was a chocobo. It's fair to look after him, isn't it? Not that I'm sure of what he eats. If he eats at all. Or how big he's going to grow. [Guys help what are chocobos. She looks at the small chick in her hand for a few seconds longer.] I was saving this name, but, if you do stay with me... I think I'll call you Feathers.