A Fickle Existence

is a Quest in Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn.
==Journal==
==Objectives==
* Speak with Mosha-Moa.
* Search for the Mystel at the designated area.
* Speak with the blue-haired Mystel.
* Rescue the weakened wretch.
* Speak with Alphinaud.
* Speak with Tristol.
==Script==
script 	script
 	
Alphinaud 	Disapprove...? It frustrates me, certainly. That is only part of it, though. The whole situation makes me uneasy.
Alphinaud 	'Tis difficult to make a final judgment without first seeing the city's inner workings. Mayhap it is that uncertainty which always makes me feel so ill at ease here...
Alphinaud 	Not that it matters. However unjust this system seems to me, if these people claim to be content with their lot, it is hardly my place to criticize their choices.
Alphinaud 	But take that elderly lady you rescued─does it not seem that those who have chosen to forgo Eulmore's largesse are doomed to suffer for their independence?
Alphinaud 	In the end, they are all but forced to seek refuge in Gatetown. And so hamlets and fields across the island are left empty and untended, hastening the region's descent into ruin.
Alphinaud 	Nay, I am not convinced that Eulmore's generosity truly serves the best interests of Kholusia's people.
Alphinaud 	I am not so naive as to think there is some miraculous solution to all of this. Yet I cannot help but frown at the sight of hardworking villagers struggling to survive, even as the chosen few rejoice at being plucked from poverty by the hand of a capricious noble.
Alphinaud 	There has to be a better way. I will not know for sure, however, until I have taken those long-delayed steps through Eulmore's gates.
Alphinaud 	'Tis fortunate that you arrived when you did, [Player Name]. I have been working on a scheme to insinuate myself into the city, and if all goes to plan, it should soon come to fruition.
Alphinaud 	There is a beast tribe who makes its home in the seas surrounding the island. The Ondo, they are called, though you and I know them as Sahagin.
Alphinaud 	For the most part, they keep to themselves in their ocean grottoes, and rarely have dealings with land-dwellers.
Alphinaud 	But as Tataru took such great pains to impress upon me during our stay in Kugane, business favors the bold. And so I reached out to them.
Alphinaud 	I duly discovered that the Ondo are inordinately fond of land-grown produce─fresh fruits in particular. And when I offered to procure such goods for them, they promised to pay me in pearls.
Alphinaud 	An attractive business venture for any prospective investor, would you not agree? Surely even the most jaded Eulmoran lord would have time for a merchant who can make pearls from plums and pumpkins?
Alphinaud 	Yes, I've come a long way since my days of buying samurai swords without first negotiating a price!
Alphinaud 	My appointment with the Ondo is due to take place in a few hours. I just need to collect the produce and meet with them on the shore.
Alphinaud 	Might you help me make the exchange?
Alphinaud 	Excellent, I should be glad of your company.
Alphinaud 	First things first, then─we must pay a visit to Mosha-Moa, my supplier in Wright. Come, it is just to the northwest of here.
 	
Alphinaud 	This is Mosha-Moa, the farmer of whom I spoke.
 	
Moshamoa 	...Is there something I can do for you, friend?
Alphinaud 	Good day to you, Mosha-Moa. This is my associate, [Player Name]. We are here to collect the produce I purchased.
Moshamoa 	...Eh? I loaded your lackey up with the goods not long ago.
Alphinaud 	My lackey? I know of no such person!
Moshamoa 	Mystel lad, short blue hair? ...No? He said he'd come on your behalf, and since he seemed to know all the details, I just assumed...
Alphinaud 	Confound it. Someone must have been eavesdropping on our conversation...
Alphinaud 	If this charlatan was here not long ago, he cannot have gone far. We should split up and search the area. You find a vantage point on the south side of town, and I shall take the west!
 	
Moshamoa 	Forgive me, I had no cause to doubt the lad. Still, he shouldn't be hard to spot with that blue hair of his...
 	
Alphinaud 	[Player Name]! Any sign of him!?
Alphinaud 	...You've a keen eye. Let us move in, before he makes good his escape!
 	
Alphinaud 	Here! He's breathing, I think, though he won't last long without help.
 	
Alphinaud 	...That should take care of the worst of his injuries.
Tristol 	<cough> <splutter> Mercy... Mercy, I beg you...
Alphinaud 	Breathe easy, sir. No harm will come to you here.
Alphinaud 	The poor man is shivering. Pray keep an eye on him while I get a fire going.
Tristol 	I thought for certain I was d-dead. How am I ever to repay this kindness...?
Alphinaud 	We'll settle for the tale behind your current predicament. Why don't you begin by telling us your name?
Tristol 	Tristol. I was invited into Eulmore to work as an artist...
Tristol 	A wealthy couple took me in to paint pictures for them, but when my style proved contrary to their taste, they just as quickly turfed me out onto the street.
Tristol 	I was left penniless and patron-less─a grave sin in Lord Vauthry's city.
Tristol 	Within days, they had brought me before the man himself, and he asked me what I meant to do. Dejected as I was, I told him that I wished to leave...
Tristol 	Little did I know how soon he would grant me my wish! They flung me over the balustrade into the godsdamned ocean!
Alphinaud 	From up there!? How were you not dashed to pieces!?
Tristol 	Don't ask me. Luck, I suppose. Though if you hadn't found me when you did, it wouldn't have counted for much.
Alphinaud 	Monstrous... And the citizens condone such barbaric punishment!?
Tristol 	Oh, without a second thought. When Lord Vauthry passes judgment, no one so much as blinks, let alone argues.
Tristol 	In Eulmore, his word is law.
 	
Tristol 	Ah, that fire's chased the chill from my bones. Thank you again...
Alphinaud 	The more I hear about Eulmore, the more determined I am to see what waits within its walls.
Alphinaud 	I shall bend all my thoughts toward securing another way into the city. There must be something we can do...
Alphinaud 	But first, we should convey Tristol to the shelter of the village. Fire or no fire, he needs to be out of this chilly coastal air.
Tristol 	A way into the city...?
 	
Alphinaud 	I wonder what Tristol will do now...
 	
Tristol 	Pray accept my deepest gratitude. I owe you both my life.
Tristol 	And...if you'll permit me, I would assist you in your attempt to enter Eulmore─insofar as I am able, at any rate.
Tristol 	To be frank, the thought of sending my saviors into that awful place makes me sick to the stomach─but since it's plain you've set your minds on it...you should take this.
Tristol 	It's my favorite paintbrush.
Tristol 	The Eulmoran elite are never satisfied until they get exactly what they want, and if I'm not mistaken, the couple I mentioned will be looking for someone to replace me. If you make a show of owning such a well-used brush, you may be able to convince people you have a talent for painting.
Alphinaud 	Are you certain? This is your livelihood. We cannot deprive you of such a treasured possession...
Tristol 	I give it gladly after all you've done for me. Besides, I can't─ I...don't think I have the heart to paint anymore.
Tristol 	As to what I'll do instead...I honestly haven't decided. But I shan't stay long in this place─not with that city brooding over me. Nay, I'll move on to new lands and a new profession. And I'll keep you in my prayers from now until my dying day.
Quest complete.	Quest complete.
Category:Shadowbringers Main Scenario Quests in Final Fantasy XIV