Gulool Ja Ja's Legacy: A FFXIV DT Rewrite + Expansion Concepts [Fanfiction]

Ch10: Clues

"Yes, Mistress Baldesion," G'raha Tia quipped as he pulled out a spare energy core for the Sharlayan mammet.

A bit of fiddling, and the mammet came to life.

"I was assigned the task of investigating the reason for the connection between the 'Golden City' and our world by Galuf Baldesion. My trail led me to this ruined castle town, supposedly a bustling place prior to what the Alexandrians deemed as their 'final' moments."

"Strangely, the other robotic entities here carry partial memories of the 'final' moments. I have come to learn that the Alexandrians carelessly began a war against Lindblum against their Queen's wishes."

"At the time, the group known as The Preservation had already developed much influence, with the support of a tribe of lalafells named the Milalla. In the fragmented memories of the robotic entities, the Milalla had magic and technology that could accomplish wondrous feats-- The Preservation had long informed the population that even the most catastrophic events could be avoided with the Milalla's assistance."

Further data presented itself, providing Krile with a more detailed account of the mammet's investigations.

"My parents... they must have been of the Milalla tribe," Krile concluded.

"Indeed. And yet again, the Preservation's hand can be seen," G'raha Tia noted.

"The Preservation..." Otis tilted his metal head. "The Preservation... I struggle to recall much, other than that their influence in Alexandria was growing. The public certainly felt, at a certain point, that their influence had grown too much. Otherwise... I know for certain it is them who tested my placement in this metal body..."

Apprehension filled the air. The Preservation was increasingly prominent, yet remained behind a veil.

"Lindblum, Alexandria..." Wuk Lamat muttered. "They should not exist here."

Of course, many members of the scion were already quite certain that Alexandria did not belong to the source, and was some shard that had been connected physically through some unseen means.

The Sharlayan mammet began to writhe, its systems short circuiting before their eyes.

"What?!" Otis leapt in fear. "Will this, too, be my end?!"

Krile giggled, amused by Otis' fear.

"Hardly," she eventually reassured Otis after calming herself down. "These mammets are designed to function and recharge on magic, and the lightning aether prevalent in your world has caused permanent problems within the mammet. Your metallic body shows no sign of such malfunctions. Are there any regions that have other collections of... robotic entities such as yourself?"

"Yes!" Otis replied. "Further to the south, there is a region that has been flooded only tens of years ago..."

"Thank you!" Krile curtsied in gratitude.

They would soon reach the flooded region, a ruined residential area at a lower elevation. Krile's mammet sensory device soon began flashing-- its beeping had been disabled by Krile earlier.

They were soon directed to a building by the device. Krile pointed it in various directions, attempting to identify the exact position of the third mammet.

"It seems to be in a basement somewhere underwater," she concluded. How troublesome.

"Do you mind?" The one Krile turned to was, naturally, the Warrior of Light. "You can breathe underwater for perpetuity, right?"

The Warrior of Light could only nod. They determined the location of the basement by exploring the surrounding ruined houses of a past ancient era, and soon found a flooded pathway.

The Warrior of Light, upon diving into said basement, made an astonishing discovery. For the basement turned out to be the base of a secretive operative! There were many hidden mechanisms, fake walls, among other environmental disguises. It was only after some time that the Warrior of Light figured out a path through, surfacing into a secure room that had somehow managed to retain some air.

And there, before the Warrior of Light, were various tools of a spy operative, alongside a broken down Sharlayan mammet.

The Warrior of Light attempted to investigate this secretive room for clues. Unfortunately, too much time had passed, and most of the material in the room had turned into dust. The Warrior of Light could only pick up the mammet and return to the others.

G'raha Tia once again activated the mammet with a spare core.

"Information was received from another mammet regarding The Preservation, and the two lalafells that delivered a child to Galuf Baldesion. Investigation parameters were adjusted to focus on The Preservation's claims of the capability of avoiding all catastrophes."

"My investigation led me to an operative named Fiona, who was happy to have my assistance. In investigating the clues, we discovered the two lalafells to be of the Milalla tribe. Fiona successfully fooled The Preservation and we were able to enter through pathways for critical information."

"We discovered that the Milalla was of the Source, and had entered this shard through interdimensional travel. Fiona, after spending years serving The Preservation with loyalty, eventually infiltrated the highest inner circle. It was then that we came upon a remarkable discovery. The device of said interdimensional travel had somehow fallen into the Milalla's hands, and it carried the symbol of Azem!"

The mammet projected an image of the very device, stunning the Warrior of Light, Krile, and G'raha Tia.

"A device created by the original Azem in an ancient era..." The Warrior of Light was naturally the most shaken one, knowing details that others only had secondhand knowledge of.