Escape from Castrum Meridianum

Morgaine walked through the halls of Castrum Meridianum, doing her best to go about her day as usual, cleaning every room from top to bottom. A job that wasn't needed most of the time, but she was tasked to do it nonetheless. A better job, she supposed, than to be a conscript in the army. For a mercy, they did not force her when she refused to fight.But being a maid did have its advantages. She was allowed access to many locations in the castrum most prisoners would never be allowed. Through this, she had the benefit of overhearing many conversations which, through her connections, she could relay back to the Ala Mhigan resistance.But today was different. Today she struggled to focus on her work. Word from one of her contacts let her know that there was to be a mission to break into the Castrum and free the prisoners. Could this really be the day she finally escapes? Fifteen years and she had nearly lost hope.All there was to do now was go about her day, and wait. Any patience she had learned while under the rule of the Garleans was gone. She could see Ala Mhigo again. Perhaps see her father again. The look of fear on his face the day before the battle of Carteneau was one she couldn’t forget. At the time, she had worried that would be the last time she saw him, and now…Don’t think about that. He’s alive, he is all right. Gaius told you that.Why she trusted Gaius van Baelsar’s word about anything, she didn’t know. The Black Wolf, conqueror of Ala Mhigo, was everything she hated. Everything about him was vile, there was even rumor that he was pulling the strings during the Mad King’s tyrannical rule. She could never forgive him for all he had done.And yet… she trusted him. Five years ago, after the Calamity and the death of Nael van Darnus, she was put under the direct supervision of Gaius. That was when she decided to use her position to her advantage. Gaius checked on her often. She had the opportunity to gather information from the viceroy of Ala Mhigo, and she was going to take it, by whatever means necessary.What she wasn’t expecting was to go from seducing him to ending up in an actual courtship with him. He was kind, he seemed to genuinely care for her and respect her, but she reminded herself it only seemed that way.So lost in her thoughts, she nearly ran into the shortest imperial soldier she had ever seen. While she had always known to be respectful to Garlean soldiers, she couldn’t bring herself to respect any non-Garlean imperial. Traitors to their homes, all of them.“Aren’t you a little short for an imperial?” She quippedThe soldier did not seem phased by her insult.“Morgaine Aldynn?” The soldier asked“Yes.” Morgaine stated flatly.“Come with me.” He commanded. Morgaine frowned, but followed him. There was only so much disrespect she could get away with.They passed by soldiers who seemed to pay them no mind, and down an empty hallway. The soldier looked around and then turned to face Morgaine. She tensed, expecting him to assault her, which commonly happened when she would mouth off to the conscripts. The Garleans never cared about what one savage did to another.But instead, the lalafell took off his helmet.“I’m Vice Marshall Pipin Tarupin of the Immortal Flames. It’s nice to finally meet you, Morgaine.”A glimmer of a smile tugged at Morgaine’s lips, not only was there a rescue party, but one planned by General Raubahn Aldynn. She had dreamt of this for years.“Let’s get you out of here.” Pipin put his helmet back on. Before she could protest, he added “My men are getting the rest of the prisoners,” Morgaine nodded and followed him.“There’s five more they won’t find. They’re in Gaius van Baelsar’s residence, I will guide you there.” Morgaine said, and directed him through the Castrum to the residential area, reaching Gaius’ home. Morgaine opened the door and went inside, Pipin following.“Mum?” Came a voice, as an adolescent Au Ra boy walked in. “You’re home early. Did something happen?”“In a way. Can you find your brothers and sisters and tell them to pack their things?” Morgaine did her best to keep her voice calm and comforting despite her excitement.“What? Why?”“We’re leaving”“I don’t understand. Are we under attack?” The boy asked“No. We are finally getting out of here.”The boy looked confused.“Pipin has come to rescue us.”“Rescue us? From what? Is dad safe? Does he know about this?”“No, Alfonse…” Morgaine began, as four more Auri children came into the room. “We’re prisoners here. The Garleans took us from our homes and tried to convince us this was better.”“What…? That’s not true!” The elder of the two girls spoke up. “Father rescued us off the street, we owe him our lives!”“A real father wouldn’t expect you to owe him anything.” Morgaine said, staying calm. “Your father is not a good man. He has been conquering lands, taking prisoners of war, killing countless people. I know this is all confusing, I swear I will explain more once we get to safety, but we need to go now”The children didn’t move. Morgaine’s heart sank.“Mum….” the youngest spoke up “you do love daddy, don’t you?”“No… I’m sorry Allie, I was doing what I had to to keep us safe.” Morgaine looked around at the children “I know this is difficult to hear, but it will all make sense soon.”Morgaine reached out a comforting hand to take Allie’s, but it was smacked away by Alfonse.“So you’ve been lying to us all this time? Playing us all for fools!” Another boy chimed in.“No, no, not you!” Morgaine said, the calmness in her voice beginning to waver“Just your fiancé!” A boy with blue hair shouted.Morgaine's glance darted to Pipin, then back to the children.“How can we trust anything you have ever told us?! You’ve been working with the enemy this entire time!” Alfonse said, anger in his voice. Before Morgaine could attempt to defend herself, an alarm sounded outside. Pipin’s men had been found.Morgaine pleaded once more with her children.“Please. Please come with me. You will see, it will all make sense! Your father won’t hurt you anymore, we will all be safe.”“Morgaine, we have to go!” Pipin said urgently.Morgaine looked around at the children. Allie started to cry.“Please, mama, please tell them that’s not true! I know you love daddy, I know you wouldn’t do this!” She pleaded.“You’ll see, if you come with me, you’ll understand, you will be safe!”Waiting for her response seemed like an eternity. Allie took a step toward Morgaine, but then her hand was roughly grabbed by her older sister, being pulled to the next room, the other two boys following behind until Alfonse was all that was left.“The next time we meet, it shall be as enemies.” and with that, he left.Morgaine felt as though she couldn’t move.“We have to go!” Pipin repeated, grabbing her hand and pulling her out of the house. “I’m sorry…”Morgaine didn’t say another word as they left the Castrum, finally making it to safety outside the walls. They stopped for a moment to catch their breath, Morgaine finally breaking the silence.“I realize this might be a futile request,” she began, “but I ask that you do not mention any of what you saw to my father…”Pipin stared at her, confused.“He would want to help you get your children back!”“I know… but they do not want to leave… and I cannot force them.” Morgaine said, staring at the ground, “they are smart kids… one day they will realize the truth, and when that day comes, I will be there for them.”Pipin nodded with a sigh “I will not tell a soul. Now come, we need to reach the rendezvous point.”Morgaine followed him for nearly a malm until they reached a group of caravans surrounded by people. It seemed more of the prisoners got out than they expected. As they approached, Morgaine saw the unmistakable figure of a man she had not seen in ages. Her eyes widened and she ran up ahead.“ILBERD!” She shouted, and the man turned, a wide smile spread over his face before Morgaine tackled him in a hug.“Hey, sprout!! Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes! I knew those Garlean bastards couldn’t bring down Zehra Aldynn’s daughter!” Morgaine couldn’t help but smile at Ilberd’s words. He finally put her down, looking her over, running his thumb across a few bruises on her face left from an encounter she would rather forget. “What in the seven hells did they do to you…?”“It doesn’t matter now!” She exclaimed. “I’m out of there, and we’re all safe!”“Right! Back to Ul’dah!” With the caravans full of people, they headed out through Thanalan.Morgaine stayed silent for much of the trip, trying to wrap her head around the situation she now found herself in. She was in a caravan outside of Garlean rule, sitting across from a man she never thought she would see again.“I have to say, Uncle Ilberd, I never expected you would be a member of another country’s army.”“I’m not. But when Pipin came to me with this insane plan, I couldn’t stay behind, I had to come get ya.” Ilberd grinned. Morgaine looked at Pipin, confused.“This wasn’t a mission sanctioned by the Immortal Flames. I planned this on my own” Pipin answered Morgaine’s unspoken question.“So my father…”“Doesn’t know yet, it will be a surprise!”“Might give the man a damn heart attack” Ilberd chuckled, “but it will be good to see the look on his face”“Had there been anything tying this mission to the immortal flames, it could be seen as a declaration of war by Ul’dah” Pipin continued to explain. “But thankfully we were careful to be sure there was no evidence that could link us.”“That does make sense” said Morgaine, looking out of the wagon at the deserts of Thanalan.“Here, let me get that for you. Doubt you want any of that Garlean garbage.” Ilberd reached out toward a decorative pin in her hair. Morgaine quickly moved her hand to grab the pin before he could, putting it in her pocket without a word. Ilberd pulled his hand away, concerned, but didn’t question further.The trip took a few days, during which Morgaine was able to change into clothes that were not her uniform. She made sure to keep her hair pin somewhere safe. The one piece she had to remember her children by. Looking at it, she supposed the design was very Garlean. She was thankful Ilberd didn’t ask her where it had come from.“The General has told me all about you” a voice broke her out of her thoughts. Morgaine quickly hid the hairpin, but relaxed when she realized it was Pipin speaking.“I hope that is a good thing” Morgaine smirked slightly.“It was nothing but praise. And stories about your childhood.” Pipin responded.“He’s been telling his soldiers embarrassing stories about me?” Morgaine asked, mortified. Pipin laughed.“He’s very proud of you, and I think talking about you gave him hope that he would one day see you again.”Morgaine smiled softly, then looked up as the carriage dropped them off just outside the city of Ul’dah. She could feel her heart racing. She wasn’t sure why she was so nervous. Her father would be glad to see her, she knew that much. Perhaps she feared she would not live up to his expectations…“With Pipin here, we shouldn’t have a problem with the Brass Blades” Ilberd said, standing at her side.“It’s not as easy as that, but don’t worry, I’ll handle everything. You two go in, I’ll catch up.” Pipin said, walking over to a few of the guards. Ilberd and Morgaine headed into the city. The look a Brass Blade gave Ilberd did not go unnoticed by Morgaine. It was one she had seen many an imperial give the prisoners. She tried not to be disheartened.“Ul’dah’s not without its faults.” Ilberd said. How he always knew what she was thinking, she didn’t know. “It’s got plenty of ‘em. The bloody Monetarists only care about their coin, and their dealings outside these walls is about trade and profit, which, as you can guess, doesn’t leave Raubahn much room to deal with the real threats outside our borders, or give aid to those who need it.”“Guess that was too much to hope for” Morgaine sighed. “But I have no such restrictions. I will do what I can to help.”“I knew you would, lass.” Ilberd said as he ruffled her hair. “Some things never change.”“But a lot do.” Morgaine said after a moment, voicing her concerns. “I was twelve the last time you and father saw me. I have changed. I’m not at all the girl you remember.”Ilberd’s smile faltered.“I know that, sprout.” Ilberd reassured her, “But theres some things that will never change. Your spirit for one. Those Garlean bastards didn’t break that. Don’t reckon they could’ve”“I don’t want to disappoint him”“You will. We all do. That won’t mean anything though. You’re alive, thats what matters. We’ll figure out the rest later.”Morgaine looked up to see his reassuring smirk just as Pipin ran over to them.“We’re all set.” he said “Seems as though the General is in a meeting with the Sultana. We shall head toward the Fragrant Chamber to meet him once he is done. It will give you a chance to attune to the aetherytes.”He lead them through Ul’dah, giving Morgaine a tour of sorts, though Pipin chuckled as he said Raubahn would likely want to give her a much more detailed tour once he saw her.“All right. You stay here,” Ilberd said with a grin as they entered the Chamber of Rule, “I’ll bring him to you.” and without another word, he headed up the stairs.Morgaine smiled at Pipin, though she was sure if she were to say something, her rapidly beating heart would jump out of her throat. He seemed as nervous as she did, though she couldn’t figure out why.The beating felt like it stopped as she heard the unmistakable sound of Raubahn’s voice.“Ilberd! What brings you here?”“Just checking up on an old friend. Figured I’d come by with a gift of sorts.”“A gift?” Raubahn repeated, a tone of suspicion in his voice. “What sort of gift?”Ilberd chuckled.“You ask that as though you expect something horrid! Have I ever steered you wrong?”“I doubt you wish for me to answer that truthfully.” Raubahn teased, but he followed his friend nonetheless.Morgaine felt the sudden urge to run. She didn’t know what to say. What was there to say? Hello? Long time no see? The footsteps were getting closer and closer until she saw Raubahn out of the corner of her eye walking down the steps. She took a deep breath and rounded the corner to meet him.Raubahn’s eyes widened and he stumbled slightly. No words left his mouth.“I'm home, papa…” Morgaine said, tears burning her eyes.Raubahn closed the distance between them immediately, and pulled her into a tight embrace, holding her as though he could never let her go again.She made it out.

A Realm Reborn

• Escaping the Castrum

Heavensward

• Before the Flood

Stormblood

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Shadowbringers

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Endwalker

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Dawntrail

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The Story of Zehra and Benoit

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Life in Coldhearth

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In Norvrandt

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Dying is Easy...

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Before the Flood