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| Screen Shot of FFXIV |
Facing the
rising sun I watch Moji’s tiny armor clad body rustle through the olive green
plants that tower above her short pink hair. A perfectly round shield bounces
along her back as she bounds through masses of demure lemurs and aggressive
Gnarled Treants. Shades of peach and pink drift across the vast sky through the
branches and past moss covered logs. Her Coeurl kitten follows a few steps
behind occasionally stopping to roll around in piles of twigs and leaves or to
bat at a beetle.
In the
corner of the screen the messages scroll quickly past. Another ding. Another
spam message detailing the ways to buy gil or asking for an invite to a party.
I quickly pull the cursor over and blacklist the account before they can send
friend requests or another tell. A black keyboard is balanced on my knees, a
PS3 controller clutched in my hands, and a stool next to the chair is strewn
with a computer mouse a half empty bottle of water, and a chocolate bar.
Moji’s sword
gleams in the light of the rising sun when she lifts it above her to slash the
leathery shoulder of a boar. On its impact Moji steps back and jumps away from
him thrashing violently around. Holding the right trigger under my index finger
and bouncing between keys with my thumbs I bring her back to face him and her
shield swings around to crack against the boar, shoving hard and briefly
pausing his attacks. Her faded pink bob bounces as she runs towards his
steaming snout and thrusts her blade forward. The boar falls to the ground and
the blue meter slowly jumps back to full health.
A soft grey
tail tickles along my ankles and a cat curls up around my feet staring up at me
with bright yellow eyes until I scratch under his chin for a few moments.
Glancing back up to the screen I search through symbols on the map passing over
purple hordes and golden quests until I find a bright green mark that leads me
through cascading blue waterfalls and steep auburn rock and past small towns
with familiar faces. When Moji reaches Ul’ dah the cobblestone paths beneath
her clanking armored feet feel as fresh and gentle as the plush green grass of
Gridania. Her feet stop at the edge of the Aetheryte and I feel a rush of
relief. Set Home Point.
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