Silence...
The silence was deafening. I hated it. It reminded me of how alone I was. Sitting on this throne slowly losing consciousness. The silence left me alone with only my thoughts to keep me company. Thoughts that I wish would leave me.
After everything that's happened to me I... I suppose it's no surprise that I would wish for this. After everyone that gave their lives.
'And all for my sake.' I think. I feel my eyes getting heavy. Every blink has the promise of sleep. I'm not sure why, but I don't truly resist. I let my eyes stay closed as I lean against my hand. I open my eyes once more only slightly as I look across the throne room at the corpse of Arden.
I wished nothing more than to make him suffer. Everything that happened to me and my kingdom was by his design. He even corrupted the crystal my family was sworn to protect. Using it as a catalyst for the starscourge. All for his revenge against etro for cursing him to immortality. Yet I never even got to touch him with my blade. I was already far to weak after banishing the darkness to fight. Instead I The only thing I could do, gave him exactly what he wanted. Freeing his soul with the last of my light.
My mind feels like it's rolling before consciousness finally leaves me. I close my eyes for the last time. I no longer have any awareness of what I'm feeling. My senses no longer of use. Smell, taste, sound, touch... wait.
'Why do I feel wet?' My head was still rolling and my senses a mess, but my clothes definitely feel wet. And I might be laying on the ground. The second thing that returns to me is the sound. It sounds like a heavy downpour. Now that I put it together, I can feel rain hitting me as I lay on the ground. As I lay there, my strength surprising me by slowly returning, I realized that I had to be still alive somehow. It feels all too real for this possibly be the afterlife. At least I assume. I continue to lay there until a large rain drop plops me in the eye.
I rub my eye before slowly sit up using my hands to support me. When I finally open my eyes I'm confused by what I see. The first thing I notice was the wide open space I was in. But the second thing I noticed is what caught my eye. At the edge of the open space were many, many swords all planted into the ground. As I looked around I saw that the swords outlined the area all the way around. Along the ring were pillars as well.
I push myself up off the ground before toppling back over. I groaned in annoyance before trying again. This time slowly I push up from my laying position and succeed in standing. Standing being a generous word as it feels like the slightest breeze can push me over.
After gathering myself I begin walking slowly towards the swords nearest to me. My strength begins returning quicker now. I reach the swords and study them. They all look relatively different just with slight similarities. I look up the pillars and a realization strikes me. 'Those aren't pillars, they are... swords?' I bring my attention back to the smaller swords.
I reach out for the nearest one with my magic in an attempt to add it to my Arsenal but it reacts in a manner that I wasn't expecting. Rather than turning into a foggy crystal white before disappearing, it turns an sharp crystal blue before returning back to is original state. 'What was that?' I question. 'That felt like light.' I realize. I reach deep into myself but find the power of light I once had is gone. My strength and magic may be returning, but the light is gone.
'But this sword. What is this?' I question. I have countless weapons in my Arsenal collected throughout my journey, but none hold any power like what I just felt. I study it. It looks like a normal short sword but it's completely silver, and both sides of its blade is serrated. I walk forward before grabbing the blade by the hilt.
The blade flashes a brilliant blue. I'm knocked back by some invisible force barely managing to keep myself from falling down again.
The blade floats in the air, I could see a ghostly figure holding it with both hands, his eyes peering into my soul, searching for something. It reminded me of the dead people I started seeing after my near death experience. Finding what he was looking for, he released the blade from his hands before it flew at me and disappeared into my chest.
Something tells me that it wasn't supposed to be as painful as it was. This time I was in fact knocked to the ground, writhing in agony for what seemed like hours. When the pain finally disappeared I was left disoriented but I could feel the power of light return to me, the blade attached to my soul a beacon inside of me.
'I shall allow you to wield my glave. My Kingly Heir you may not be, but you will need this power none the less.' I heard from what felt like everywhere at once. 'Great, voices in my head again.' I think sarcastically. As I lay there recuperating, the rain slowly begins to die down. When It finally stops I decide to rise to my feet.
With some hesitation I summon the blade. The blade somewhat hurts to hold but I can feel the power behind it. I let it disappear before looking at the rest of the weapons throughout the area. "Yeah, not worth doing that again." I say aloud to myself. I see a path that cuts between the swords and being following it.
It leads me to a rocky shore, and only then do I realize I'm on a small island. I see the mainland not to far from here. I disappeared from where I was standing, the only thing remaining was some floating crystals before they too disappeared.
I Instantly reappeared on a rock some distance from the spot I was just standing. I travel like this for some time, not because I had to do it many times but because I had to spend time recuperating between each warp. I warp from rock to rock protruding from the water until finally, I reach the shore. Nearby I see what looks like a small boat dock and a resort. I begin walking along the sandy shore, the ground still wet from the rain, causing my boots to sink with every step.
Upon reaching the docks I walk up to a vender nearby who clearly sells weapons. "Hey, you looking to buy or sell?" He asks me. It's then that I realize that I actually don't have any money.
'I'll fix that later.' I think to myself before I ask him, "Actually I was wondering if you could tell me where I was?"
"Well you are in Galdin Quay." He tells me. 'Lucis then?' I think to myself. My confusion must have shown on my face as I looked around. "Guess you've never been here before?" He asks.
"Well actually I have, although it looks different than I remember." I answer honestly. I continue noting the differences. The resort looked new but the hill looked similar to how I remembered it. I turn back to the man before thanking him and walking towards the resort itself. I walk on the long dock before finally reaching the resort.
"Welcome to Galdin Quay." A server says and I thank him as I walk past him, towards the desk. Upon reaching the desk I grab the attention of the server behind the counter.
Upon noticing me she turns around. "Oh hello!" She says enthusiastically. "What can I do for you?" She asks..
"Hi. I seem to have misplaced my money and I was wondering if you have any hunts available in the area?" I ask. She looks towards a clipboard she has on the desk before turning back to me.
"I'm sorry, all of our hunts have been turned in already." She tells me. "If I remember correctly, they were completed by 4 young men all wearing black clothes much like yourself." She said sounding sincerely sorry for my situation. "If there's anything else I can do for you, just let me know." She tells me before turning back to the grill.
"Great." I sarcastically say aloud. "No money and no work."
"Need me to pull you out of a pinch again?" A man says behind me. I turn around and see a man with white/silver spiked up hair. He was wearing a light gray waistcoat under a dark blazer with black lapels along with black jeans.
When his eyes meet mine he seem slightly taken back. "Whoa. What happened to your ey-" he starts to say before I cut him off.
"Do I know you?" I ask somewhat rudely but straight to the point. While I'm not exactly in a rush I'm also not willing to waste daylight. The surprise of his face seems to disappear as he begins studying me for several seconds.
"I guess not, your whole demeanor is different than his too. But enough about that, I hear you are in need of money and I got a job that might need a fighters blade, if you understand what I'm saying." He casually explains.
"You mean to say its potentially dangerous." I state rather than ask. His eyes light up when I don't seem put off by that fact.
"Precisely." He says before begin to explain. "You see I am in need of a rare gemstone that happens to be surrounded by a bunch of Rubyshears. If you can get me the gems I will handsomely pay you depending on how much you can bring me. I'll even pay for a night here as a reward."
I contemplate it for several seconds before looking towards the sun. 'Almost 6 o'clock. I've got time.' I think to myself. "Sure. Just tell me where to find it." I say to him.
"Alright! Straight to it and no questions asked. Your my kinda guy." He says enthusiastically. "Now let me see your map." He says as he pulls out a pen.
"I don't have one." I tell him. He looks at me strangely before pulling one out of his back pocket.
"Alright I let you borrow mine, and if you do this for me, it's yours to keep." He tells me. He circles the spot on it and hands it to me. "Good luck." He tells me before walking off. I walk off back to the shore before looking at them map. I notice that it looks... off somehow. The names of the places are mostly the same as I remember but the map itself looks unfamiliar.
'Insomnia too.' I notice. 'I suppose tomorrow I should head there in search for answers.' I think to myself. I see the area at the bottom circled by... the man. I never did get his name I realize. I beginning moving along the shore for about half an hour before seeing them.
'Rubyshears. About 10 of them.' I count. Their red shell showed the reasoning behind their name. I pick up the pace into a jog before breaking into a full sprint. They turn to me noticing my presence.
The nearest one charges me and pulls back one of its claws for a swipe. It never gets the chance as a sword materializes in my hand before becoming lodged in its head. My ultima sword disappears as I jump over the crab as it falls down dead.
I summon the sword into my hand before throwing it at the next crab. I warp to the sword pushing the blade into its head much like the other one. As it falls down dead I shuffle to the side as a claw strikes the ground where I once stood. I summon a large battle axe gripped with both my hands on it before spinning 180 degrees while swinging it.
The axe slams into the side of the crab breaking through its shell like paper. I let the axe disappears as I summon a dagger. I throw it at another nearby crab. The blade loges itself in the crabs shell but not enough to kill it. I warp to it flipping and kicking the handle of the blade forcing it the rest of the way into its shell killing it.
A crab jumps through the air and was going to crash into me, if it wasn't for the shield that materialized mid air stopping it in its tracks. I summon a spear and throw it at the crab as it fell to the ground.
I charge at the crab, the shield dematerializing and reappearing on my arm. I slam the shield into the crab breaking it's shell and crushing it's insides from the force.
Another crab charges at me and I put the shield up in defense. I hold my ground at it slams into me and attempts to grab me with its claws. I let go of the shield but it doesn't move from the spot as if held up but some invisible force. A greatsword appears in my hand and the shield disappeareds. The crab falls forward straight into my swung sword. The crab gets knocked back dead from the force.
I disappeared from the spot as another crab lands where I was standing. Reappearing above it, I summon two tridents and bring them down lodging themselves deep into the shell of the crab killing it.
Another crab jumps at me from where I stood on its dead ally. I roll backwards off of the dead crab and the other one sails over me. Pointing my hand out towards the trident, an invisible force once again takes hold of my weapons. They dislodge themselves before flying towards the crab as I flick my arm towards it. The two spears kill the crab instantly before disappearing.
I see the last two crabs watching nearby. And I summon an ice sword. Throwing it at one of the crabs, it stabs into the side of it, freezing the crab in place with better results than expected. 'Weak to ice. Should have guessed.' I note internally
The other crab charges me before stopping short and beings taking swings at me that I dodge with a simple side steps and turns. When it goes to attack with both claws I counter, summoning a mace that I use to shatter it's entire shell in one powerful swing. I drag the mace with me to the frozen crab before bringing in down in powerful swing killing the last crab.
My sword and mace dematerialize as I begin walking towards a nearby rock that looks to have red gems showing on its sides. I Break off all the pieces on the exterior but it's not nearly as much as I'd like.
I summon my mace again and and with one strong swing slam it into the rock, breaking into into large pieces. "Much better." I say aloud to myself. I find much larger clumps of the red stone. After collecting a sizable amount I head back to the resort, reaching it just as the sun went down.
I find the man sitting on a bench looking at something on his phone. When I dropped the pile of stones at his feet he looked at me with awe on his face. "Wow. I'm impressed. I thought you might be insane when you went out there just as it was getting dark. But looks like you made it back and with more than I expected." He tells me.
"And my payment?" I ask. He looks at the rocks before picking one up and analyzing it. He puts it down before handing me a hotel key and a bag of Gil.
"There's your room as promised and 5000 Gil. I will have to measure how much you got here before being able to give you proper payment. I honestly didn't expect you to get this much but I'm not the kinda guy to rip someone off. You go get yourself some good rest and I will bring you the rest of your money in the morning." He tells me as he begins examining the stones one by one.
When I get to the hotel room I peal off my clothes, throwing them into the washer/dryer, before falling into a deep slumber.
Mirrored Fate
"To crown the King of Light, is the calling of the crystal." A voice of a young girl said. I was in a room that seemed familiar. On the wall above a bed was a painting of a young boy dressed in black and a young girl dressed in white playing with two dogs. I saw what looked like a wedding dress to my right as I walked to the window of the room. "Only the true king anointed by the Crystal can purge our star of it scourge." The voice said as I looked out upon what looked like violent storm clouds.
I was driving a car as imperial ships shot at me. I ignored them as I continued driving. As I was driving something caught my eye and it was a white dog. spent a second too long staring at it as when I looked back to the road I realized I was about to crash. I overcorrected sending the car in a roll down the road throwing me into the air.
The young girl, now all grown up stumbled back into a rock, holding a trident. "Noctis!" She yelled out. She ducked down under the swing of a sword as it lodged itself into a the rock. She swung her trident but it was blocked by the same sword before she was struck in the face by a fist.
"Luna!" I yelled as I shot up from inside my sleeping bag. I'm covered in sweat and my breathing heavy. I barely register someone calling if I was alright from outside. The tent flap opens and I see a familiar face and blond hair show in the opening.
"Noct? Buddy, ...You alright?" He asks me. I quickly look around and remember where I am.
"Um- yeah. Just a dream." I tell him. But he just continues to stare at me worriedly.
"I'm fine Promto. I swear." I say in an attempt to reassure him.
"Told you we shouldn't have let him sleep so long. King of Insomnia has quite the opposite of Insomnia." I hear the deep voice of Gladiolus joke from outside.
"Well I thought he could use it after what we've been through recently. Besides, we are supposed to meet up with Cor later to attack the barricade so he will need his strength." I hear my trusted advisor Ignis explain.
I huff as I start putting my clothes on. "Will you stop talking about me like I'm not here?" I pleaded jokingly.
Gladiolus laugh before replying, "Is that a request or is that a royal order?" He asks
I feel myself smile. My dream all but forgotten. "Royal order." I replied before climbing out of the tent.
"Then we shall make it so." Ignis said while still continuing to work on breakfast.
"Sound like an abuse of powers to me." Promoto said as he plopped down into one of the camp chairs.
The three of them chuckle at my expense. Despite that the smile never leaves my face. I stand up and stretch as I get the last of the sleep out of me. "Well, Good morning fellas."
Mirrored Fate
huff huff* My heavy breathing and the sound of my boots hitting the ground are the only sounds that I can register as I walk the long expanse through the Desert to insomnia. Never have I cursed my love for the color black more than now.
My jacket was hanging over my shoulder but I definitely wasn't going to take off my shirt. I began walking around 6 after some breakfast and getting my money, an extra 8000 Gil from... "Damit. I forgot to ask his name again." I say aloud.
That was 4 hours ago. But as I walk this long road from the resort to the closest outpost on the map I must admit, I felt lonely.
Throughout my entire journey, start to finish I was never alone like I was now. I always had at least one of my friends with me for company. And while all we would probably be doing at the moment is bickering, I would still prefer it over this. I would even take a strangers company over having the Regalia at this point.
"What am I even going to do when I get to insomnia? What am I looking for?" I ask aloud. Of course I didn't expect an answer from anyone.
I spent another two hours walking before finally reaching The Longwythe rest area. Again it looked different from what I remember, but with the sun being at its peak at this point I didn't spend much time looking around before heading into the Crows Diner.
I ordered a large drink and a meal. But I wasn't just sitting there eating. I was also listening. "Do you think it's true?" I hear a man ask another. The man snorts.
"Of course not. It's just imperial propaganda. Because from what I heard that the Prince was seen in Galdin Quay during the attack." He said.
'How would that news beat me here?' I thought to myself. But more importantly. 'What attack does he speak of? Insomnia?'
I was going to continue listening but... I noticed I felt something strange. I could feel it on the tip of my mind and soul. Some familiar feeling was beginning to wash over me. It continued to grow before finally peaking. I quickly realized that it was the power of light. I looked around but I saw nothing out of the ordinary. After several minutes I felt the feeling beginning to weaken. I had to investigate now or I would never figure out what it was.
I left a tip on the counter and walked out of the dinner. As I looked around I searched for anything out of the ordinary but came up empty. The feeling continued to get weaker when I was able to figure out the direction it was disappearing to. I could feel it to the West. I looked out that way but couldn't see anything.
I pulled out my map to see where the road leads. 'Away from Insomnia.' I thought to myself. I continued contemplating the best course of action, but as I felt the light slowly but surely getting smaller, I came to a decision.
I began a strong jog down the road hoping to catch up to whatever it was giving me this feeling.
Mirrored Fate
As I walked through the recently opened barricade I came to a stop. I saw my dear companion Umbra running towards me with a message from Noctis. Along with him was Pryna all the way from home. Despite everything that's happened I couldn't help but feel exited to see his reply.
I ran forward to meet them. The clicking of my heals coming to a stop when they reach me. I rub them affectionately before grabbing the book umbra carries. I look at it sadly before opening it.
"Finally going to see you after all these years." Was written in Noct's handwriting.
I found myself fighting tears. We wouldn't be able to see each other. The covenants would probably kill me before we could meet. I could only hope our paths cross before that point. I noticed I wasn't alone. I looked up to see Gentiana standing behind them. I stood, before showing her the Ring I held in my safekeeping. She nodded to me. I close my hand before putting the ring away.
Suddenly her brows scrunch as if she was confused by something, before she opens her eyes. A smile appears on her face. "It appears that fate has favored your wishes." she says. It's only as she suddenly disappears that I realize she not looking at me but past me.
I hear boots hitting the ground behind me. I quickly turn my head and who I see practically makes my heart burst from my chest. He comes to a quick stop just a few feet away.
"Noctis?!" I ask, desperate for this to be real. His face seems confused but he gives me a hesitant nod and it's all the confirmation I need. I run towards him, tears in my eyes. When I reach him I pull him into a hug. I stand there letting the tears fall freely onto his shoulder as I hold him as if he would disappear.
After several moments he hesitantly wraps his arms around me pulling me into a hug. We stand there for several moments, his arm rubbing my back comfortingly.
I bring some space between us before reaching into my pocket and pulling out the Ring Of Lucii. "Your Father, before he passed, tasked me with getting the Ring to you." I keep my eyes on the Ring as he doesn't move for a painstakingly long time.
"So my father has passed?" He asks in an almost monotone voice. I simply nod. I feel one of his hands leave my back before he grabs the Ring. He finches as he picks it up. I had a similar feeling of pain shoot through me when I received it. He turns in his around gloved hand, examining for several long moments before putting it in his pocket. "Thank you." He say to me.
"I got your message." I tell him excitedly. I couldn't shake the giddiness I felt. "I guess we got to see each other even sooner than ether of us expected." I say.
He seems to pause, Before saying something that made me freeze. "I'm sorry, but I don't know what it is you talking about."
I looked up at him. "The message that umbra deli-" It felt like my heart stopped. His face was the same but definitely different, his hair was too dark, and his eyes. His Blood Red eyes were a stark contrast to the Crystal Blue that I was expecting.
Fear grabbed hold of every fiber of my being.
'This isn't Noctis.'
Sensing my fear Pryna and Umbra begin growling at the man from behind me.
'This isn't Noctis.'
I feel a strong breeze and with it an icy chill that drops the temperature to the point I can see his breathing.
'This isn't Noctis... and I just gave him the Ring.'
He begins to say something "What's wr-?" But I don't let him finish as I finally move. I knee him in the groin. His other hand falls off me, and I quickly begin backing away from the imposter.
"Hey wait! I d-" he starts but no sooner does Umbra jump at him in an attempt to protect me from him. A shield appears in a similar but distinctly different Fashion than I've seen before. Umbra slams into the shield with force that no normal dog could have. The shield bends but doesn't break. He throws the shield and the dog behind him before turning and dodging Prynas similar strike.
The dogs both back off as a strong wind begins circling around him the temperature dropping even more so then before. I see frost begin forming on him and soon that frost begins to turn to full blown ice. He looks around his eyes analyzing the situation. "The Glacian?" He asks.
He brings his hands together and they suddenly start glowing red before the glow disappears. He points his open palms outward with great difficulty as the ice was beginning to freeze him in place.
"Firaga!"
Suddenly a blast of fire that near completely cancelled out the cold swept the area. Instantly melting the ice. But as soon as it was gone the wind picked up again. He looked around wildly attempting a plan before his eyes landed on me. "They protect her?" He whispers. He stares at me as frost once again begins forming on his clothes. I see his eyes harden for what he prepares to do.
"Then that means..." he points an open hand towards me, his red eyes began to glow an even darker red. Suddenly I was surrounded by many different weapons all pointed at me.
"Shiva!!! Stop this or her blood will be on your hands!!!" He yells out. The wind instantly came to a stop. Everything seemed to freeze in place. The only movements were our breathing.
I looked to the left and saw Gentiana standing a short distance away from me and the swords.
"You are not in control of this situation. All it would take for me to freeze you to death would be a touch of my finger." She says to him.
"Gentiana? Your the Glacian?!" I ask the surprise clear in my voice. 'Later.' I hear her voice in my head.
He flexs his fingers and suddenly all the blades have moved closer and are now pushing against my skin. Some even breaking through, little bits of red blood showing on my white clothes. "And all it would take is for me to flex mine." His voice says darkly.
"What is it you want?" I finally ask.
He looks back to me. "Simple." His fingers relaxed and the glow of his eyes vanished. The weapons disappeared from around me. I released a breath I didn't know I was holding. "I wish to talk. I don't mean any harm." He explains.
I catch my breath before stealing myself. "If that is true, then give me back the Ring." I tell him.
His eyes show some surprise but were glued on me as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the Ring. "The whispers in my head we're getting annoying anyway." He tell me before he casually flicks the Ring to me as if it was just a piece of jewelry.
'He can hear the voices of the kings? That means he is truly a Caelum.' I think to myself. But the only Caelums left are Noctis and...
"Are you... the Accursed?" I ask, making sure to show no fear in my voice.
"He is not." Gentiana answers for him. I look to her before back to him.
"Then who are you?" I finally ask.
"Well you already seem to know my name but I will tell you anyway. I am Noctis Lucis Caelum. King of Lucis." He answers somewhat arrogantly. "Now, if you would be so kind as to give your name?"
"Lunafreya Nox Fleuret. Oracle Tenebrae." I answered. "Nox Fleuret?" He asks quickly. I simply nod my head.
"You wouldn't happen to have a sister named Stella would you?" He asks somewhat hopeful. I simply shake my head. He sighes before asking another question. "What about a brother named Ravus?" He asks.
"Yes actually." I tell him. He rolls his eyes before muttering some curse under his breath. "Your not Noctis." I say. He looks back at me.
"Noctis and I have know each other sense we were children. And while we haven't seen each other since then, we've kept in contact over the years." I explain. He crosses his arms and closes his eyes thinking.
Several ghostly weapons started forming around him. I could see soul crystals floating in the air around him. "I assure you, I'm who I say I am." He tells me. The weapons disappear. "But I do find it disturbing to know that there's another me running around." He told me honestly.
"... but, I don't know how I got here and you seem like the best chance I have at finding answers." He said somberly. My eyes widen in surprise at what he was implying. "So if you would let me, I would like to accompany you lady Oracle." He told me.
I look at Gentiana. From her passive posture I can tell she expects me to make this decision. I turn back to him. "Alright then. I will allow you to accompany me as I forge the covenants."