Rain pelted against the pavement, slithering towards the earth like hungry serpents. A young man sauntered his way to the crowd of soldiers.
A flash of lightning lit up the stormy sky for a split second, followed by a roar of thunder.
Eyes flashed red; hoards of bullets flew at the lonely figure.
Vulfon gulped silently. Joining this war wasn't a pleasant idea to him anymore.
To hell with honour...
The soldiers gasped; their thoughts drowned in pandemonium as the bullets they shot at the enemy pelted back towards them with greater force, piercing through their wet armour and into their skin.
"Noctis, it is time that I tell you the myth of Somnus," Queen Yvonne placed her son on her lap, something she would avoid to do if not alone.
"But Mama, you didn't answer my question," the boy said petulantly. He folded his arm across his chest, sapphire eyes flickering with incense.
Yvonne lowered her gaze to the floor. She will have to dismiss the boy's governess permanently. That rancorous hag had no right to educate an eight year old prince with political matters.
"Right Lord Noctis, I think I have forgotten what question you asked. Please repeat it for me?" Yvonne asked rather sharply. She barely remembered what her son's innocence was like before this arrogant behaviour he picked up from his governess.
"How come all the countries that practice Black Arts do not like the pagan countries in Ivalice?" the little prince replied. Yvonne grimaced with disgust. Her son was hardly to her liking anymore.
"Tell me Mama," Noctis said with a smirk, cupping her chin with his small hand, his eyes beheld malice.
"He disappeared!" a soldier gasped. Some clutched their handguns tightly. A siren was blown to call in the tanks.
Another spark of lightning blinded them for a few seconds but this time it came from metal crashing against armour.
Screams of agony washed through the crowd like a wave of misery. Limbs and organs were flung across the bloody battlefield.
"Holy Occuria..."Vulfon stammered. His body trembled involuntarily and it wasn't from the cold. The frightened man jumped into a trench and watched the tanks making their way into this futile struggle.
Who would have thought that the Prince of Caelum would come to this battle without an army? It struck Vulfon now how much stronger Caelum was over Archades. They practiced Black Arts after all.
The prince walked over corpses; his face contained no hint of emotion. An arm extended to the right and a large sword appeared in his grip.
Vulfon's lips parted in astonishment when he heard the sword holler like the engine of a vehicle.
The young prince disappeared from sight once again. He re-emerged behind one of the tanks. Atoms of glowing energy slowly formed a sphere on his palm. The ball of gleaming energy swelled into the size of an average man.
The roof of the tank opened as a soldier struggled to escape.
Vulfon closed his eyes shut. Bright light irritated his eyes behind his eyelids. More screams followed after that. The scent of rust, copper and oxides filled his nostrils.
"Come on Mama, tell me," Noctis grinned. Yvonne slapped his hand away.
"They do not worship Etro, rather, they prefer a mere stone but we know that the Fabula Nova crystal is the true crystal chosen by goddess Etro. Not nethicite and certainly not magicite but these pagan countries –"
"Is Archades a pagan country? The one Papa is always at war with?" the boy interrupted. Yvonne looked away and fiddled with the hem of her sleeve.
"This is far too much information for a little boy to know..."She murmured to herself.
"Where is your brother, Noctis?" Yvonne inquired, forcing a change in subject. Her eyes followed Noctis' gaze: Cobwebs...The boy had taken interest in insects lately.
"I don't know." He made his way towards the cobwebs and picked the large black spider residing on it. The spider attempted to slide away with more web but the boy held it's abdomen between two fingers and giggled at the way it wriggled it's legs frantically.
Tears streamed from his eyes as memories of his comrades flooded his mind. Vulfon stifled a sob. His friends were dead yet here he was, hiding like a coward.
He peeked at the prince who stood forlornly among dead bodies and blood-stained debris. He showed no trace of regret for the massacre he had performed.
Hot liquid oozed from Vulfon's nose. His skin tingled with the contact. Vulfon strived to hold his breath from sneezing. A pale blue tinge danced across his cheeks.
"AH-CHOO!"
The prince's shoulders lifted slightly. His head turned to face Vulfon over his shoulder.
The last soldier squealed with trepidation when he met the other man's repulsive glare.
The prince's eyes were as red as the blood that stained his hands. His lips slowly curved into a mirthless smile. He undulated towards the soldier.
Vulfon joined his hands together and implored to the Prince of Caelum to have mercy.
"What do you mean you do not know? You were playing with him an hour ago," Yvonne yelled. Her heart rummaged in her ribcage. The air was foreboding.
"I locked him in the old prayer room with the ghosts."
Slim fingers pinched the fleshy body of the spider. Noctis glanced at his mother and flashed a wide smile.
He held up his fingers to display the thick black and red slime. Yvonne clasped one hand over her mouth.
"You monster! How could you!"
"The only person I show mercy to..."
The ripping of flesh echoed throughout the battlefield. The prince threw aside the remains of a headless body.
"Is No-One."
The sun scorched the deserts of Dalmasca.
King Raminas joined the Lords of the Councils and his most trusted Knights at the private bathe-house.
"Good day to you, Your Highness," A man nearing of middle age entered the pool beside Raminas. The king strained a smile, his face as wrinkled as an old cloth.
"Good day Basch. Any news from Gabranth that I should be aware of?"
Basch cleared his throat. Raminas cleared his eyes. He was grateful of Basch's loyalty but sometimes, the man's naive modesty would irritate him.
"Well, a small Archadian army that were camped near Tenebrae were ambushed last night by a Prince of Caelum."
Raminas sighed and ordered a servant to pour more hot water into the pool. Basch awaited an answer, his eyes full of desperation but the King loved it when a modest man waited anxiously for a reply.
"Which of the princes, may I ask?" Raminas pondered over this information, digesting the news into his mind.
"Lord Noctis once again, he warned Archades not to touch Tenebrae. The most likely reason for the sudden ambush, I believe, is because his fiancée is the Princess of Tenebrae."
"You are absolutely right Basch. The princess of Tenebrae, I heard, has beauty that drove the prince to madness," Raminas smiled as he recalled the first time he met his wife. Those were good times...
"But, Your Majesty, listen, a few citizens were victims of the savage massacre. We have to prepare ourselves in case Archades and Caelum decide to use Dalmasca as a battlefield. Archades has already destroyed Landis and Nabradia because of rash decisions and nethicite."
"Sir Basch, slow down, please!"
Raminas slipped out of the water. A servant draped a silk robe over him and handed the King a clean, white towel for his hair.
"I have full faith in my Dalmascan soldiers. They will defend our country if such a time would come. For now, think about this, Caelum is close to the Rozzarian Empire. If we betroth my daughter to one of the members of the Rozzarian court, then they could protect us from this war."
"But, Your Majesty, is not better to betroth our Princess to one of -"
"Enough Basch, I am not in the mood for irrational discussions." The King strolled out of the bathe-house, muttering about annoying Knights.
Basch sighed with worry. He picked on his prickly beard and gazed into the distance wistfully.
He only wanted to make sure that the King of Dalmasca doesn't end up a King of Fools.
Author's Notes: Many thanks to Kazzler, my Beta Reader for this story! She's so awesome. More chapters coming soon, possibly on a weekly basis. :D