A/N: So this is the first chapter of the sample version I published back in March (2017), just in case any of you have/ will read the sample version of Tempus I've made a few small changes here and there - an example of which could be that I changed a simple engraving from 'Imperial' to 'Magitek' instead, the reason for which I'll disclose at a later date.
Another - not so subtle - change is the name, I originally named this fanfiction 'Tempus', but due to fanfiction believing this to be spam, I decided to change the name to 'Contra Horologium' - meaning "against the clock" in Latin.
I'm really on the fence about having Noctis and friends search for the Royal Arms too, because while daemons still exist within this fanfiction, Ardyn's motives are somewhat different from that presented within the game, but in the event that I did want to include the Royal Arms, I've thought of and type up at least three ways of doing so later in the story (your thoughts and opinions as the reader will heavily influence my decisions). I had originally had Cor accompanying Noctis and friends to the Tomb of the Wise in this first chapter, but I was worried that this first chapter would seem more like reading the game play and opted to cut it (it's still saved to my computer if required though).
As mentioned within the sample version, this fanfiction will revolve around time and time-based influences but these will now be more present towards the end of the story. This fanfiction was something I envisioned while listening to Ardyn's Theme and was driving me crazy so I decided to write it up to get it off of my chest - I'm sorry in advance. I don't really know how else to describe it.
This chapter takes place after the attack on Insomnia during the treaty signing at the end of chapter one and after Noctis was able to contact Cor in the beginning of chapter two in the Final Fantasy XV game.
To those of you who are currently reading Naruto Uzumaki and the Nine Tails Jinchūriki, please don't worry I am currently writing up the next chapter.
Hope you guys enjoy,
~Fox
Summary: After the death of King Regis and the disappearance of Lady Lunafreya, Noctis embarks on a mission to reunite with the oracle and restore the Crystal and reclaim his throne. With help from his friends; Ignis, Gladiolus and Prompto, the young prince stumbles upon a more sinister plan.
Disclaimer: Final Fantasy XV, the character, scenes and themes belong to Square Enix and Hajime Tabata. Please support the official releases.
"– smoke about the Citadel had cleared, the king was found dead." The voice on the radio of the Regalia crackled as the announcement was broadcast all over the land of Lucis. "The current whereabouts of the Oracle; Lady Lunafreya Nox Flueret, and the Prince of Lucis; Noctis, are currently unknown – but both are presumed dead –"
"Turn it off." The blacked haired young man instructed from the backseat of the Regalia; shifting his gaze from the radio to the scenery that flashed past him. "I don't want to hear it anymore."
The blond who was sat in the front passenger seat threw a concerned glance over his shoulder at the prince before he silently leant forwards and turned the radio off.
An uncomfortable feeling settled over the four passengers as questions and much needed explanations hung unanswered in the air between them; the only sound to break the quietness was the noise of the Regalia's engine and the whistle of the wind in their ears as they sped along the north-bound road of Leide.
"How long's that been there?" The burly brunette asked; eying a large concrete structure set towards the east of the road.
The structure was surrounded by scaffolding – from the distance that they were currently located; Noctis could see small specks that vaguely resembled silhouetted people – large carrier engines hovered in the sky above the construction site; one or two occasionally landed within the walls of the building zone.
"What is it?" The blond asked curiously as he tried to focus his camera on the structure; he pressed the shuttered button and brought the camera back into his lap – where he examined the picture that he had taken on the LCD screen.
"Looks like an Imperial base," the final member of their group finally spoke; he was a sandy haired, bespectacled man who was often tasked with driving the Regalia during the daylight hours, "it's been there for over a quarter of a century, but I don't think it's been this active before. It's likely that we'll be seeing more of bases like this popping up in the area."
"Reckon it's worth scouting, Ignis?" The brunette asked the sandy haired man.
"To do so now would be unwise, we should keep our distance until we know what we're up against, Gladiolus." Ignis dismissed the brunette's suggestion. "Prompto put your seatbelt on before you hurt yourself." He added in a warning tone with a reproachful stare as the blond turned around in his chair to snap another shot of the concrete structure.
"Sorry Ignis." Prompto chuckled sheepishly as he settled back down in his seat and ruffled his hair sheepishly.
Noctis watched out of the corner of his eye as Gladiolus pulled out his mobile phone from his trouser pocket and dialled a number before pressing the phone to his ear – only to awkwardly return the phone to his pocket with a concerned expression. The brunette had repeated this action many times since they had left Galdin Quay earlier that morning.
The prince knew that Gladiolus had been trying tirelessly to contact his younger sister since they had heard the news of the Niflheim Empire's attack on the Crown City of Lucis during a treaty signing; the four friends had tried to regain access to Insomnia but quickly found that the road back to the Crown City had been barricaded and heavily monitored by Imperial soldiers. After finding an off road path and battling their way past more Imperial soldier, the group had found a clearing where they could easily see the Crown City, only to find that the rumours within all of the tabloids were true.
"This looks like the place." Ignis announced; pulling Noctis out of his stupor as the Regalia turned onto a dirt road that lead to a rundown looking outpost.
A static caravan stood on the outskirts of the outpost; nearby stood a wooden building – Noctis caught a glimpse of a large machine inside the building as Ignis slowly drove past – the outpost was sparsely populated but those who dwelled here seemed heavily equipped with weapons; upon closer inspection, Noctis could see that each person wore a silver chain around their necks and adorned heavy scars on their arms and faces.
"Hunters." Gladiolus grunted as he noticed the prince surveying the closest group. "I guess they've set this place up as a makeshift headquarters."
The ebony haired Lucian's eyes finally fell upon a familiar figure as Ignis made the Regalia slow to a halt.
"Cor!" Noctis flung his seatbelt off and darted out of the Regalia before Ignis had even turned the ignition off.
"Noct!" Ignis called out indignantly at the prince; but his warning fell on deaf ears.
The raven haired Lucian had half-jogged, half-marched towards a tall, middle aged man with short brown hair. The man turned at the sound of Noctis's voice; he wore a sombre expression and his lips pulled back into a frown as he surveyed the approaching prince.
"What the hell is going on?" Noctis struggled to keep his voice level. "What happened to the ceasefire and the peace treaty?"
"We were betrayed by the Niflheim Empire." Cor explained simply in a tone that matched his expression. "The treaty was nothing more than a ruse to attack Insomnia from within the Citadel;; they killed King Regis and took the Crystal."
Somehow, hearing Cor confirm the announcements that had been broadcast over the radio and within every newspaper throughout the kingdom made the scenario seem more real to Noctis. He closed his eyes and hung his head; the image of smoke billowing from the Crown City of Insomnia had burned onto his eyelids.
The raven haired Lucian heard the footsteps that belonged to Ignis, Gladiolus and Prompto falter to a halt somewhere just behind him.
"Tell me it's not true." Noctis murmured; keeping his eyes shut tightly.
"I'm sorry, Noctis." Came Cor's voice.
The marshal allowed silence to fall between them; no doubt giving the younger man time to process the information and to grieve, before he then cleared his throat to regain Noctis's attention.
"I know this is sudden, but I'd like to ask you something." Cor told the prince in a somewhat stiff tone. "I'm sure that you understand, given the circumstances –" the older man let his sentence trail off.
Noctis slowly lifted his head and opened his eyes to show Cor that he was listening.
"This was found on his majesty's person after his death." Cor told the young prince as he withdrew a silver, close-linked chain from the pocket of his leather jacket; he dangled the object in front of himself for Noctis to see.
"A pocket watch?" Noctis knitted his eyebrows in confusion while his eyes followed the small clock that swayed on the silver chain.
"There's an engraving on the back, does it mean anything to you?" Cor asked; allowing the pocket watch to gently drop into the palm of the prince's hand.
Noctis curiously turned the metal object over in his hand – instantly noticing that it was ice cold to touch – to see that the letters A.L.C had been carved into the watch in neat handwriting with a similar font beneath it that simply read 'Magitek'. The raven haired man carefully traced his thumb over the engraving; it was smooth – Noctis assumed that whoever had engraved the pocket watch must have been very skilled (and probably handsomely paid too). He turned it back over to study the pattern on the front; an intricate pattern that seemed familiar to Noctis adorned the metalwork – yet the ebony haired prince was unable to recall where he had seen such a design before. Noctis moved his thumb to the top of the watch and pushed a small button down; making the watch release a catch inside to allow the lid to flip open on its small hinges – the glass was cracked, the clock face remained still and no ticking could be heard from within in. On the inside of the lid was more engraving; this time it read 'Regis Lucis Caelum'.
The prince slowly closed the pocket watch with a small snap as he wore the stoic expression that usually adorned his features.
He glanced up to see that Cor had been observing him intently before he closed his fingers tightly around the watch; he was fairly certain that he could feel Ignis, Gladiolus and Prompto eying him with interest too.
"They're my mother's initials." Noctis finally spoke up again. "My father always carried around a pocket watch after her death, but he rarely ever let anyone else see it – not even me." The prince allowed himself to steal another glance at the silver instrument before he offered it back to the marshal.
Cor shook his head at the prince with a grim expression, "I think you should keep it. It has sentimental value to both you and your father, it's only right."
Noctis gave a small nod as he closed his fingers around the silver instrument and dropped into the pocket of his cargo trousers.
"There's something you should know," Cor informed the prince, "Lady Lunafreya is alive."
Relief course throughout Noctis's body; out of the corner of his eye, he saw Prompto glance around at Gladiolus and Ignis with a hopeful expression.
"That's great. We can –"
Cor held up a hand to silence the raven haired prince with a grim expression.
Noctis felt his heart plummet to his stomach as though it had been weighted down by a rock, "is she okay? She not still in Insomnia, is she?"
"No, she escaped with the help of King Regis and a member of the Kingsglaive called Nyx Ulric," the marshal explained hurriedly as he noted the panicked look in Noctis's eyes, "but no one knows what happened to her after she escaped from Insomnia, I was actually wondering if she had made contact with you."
"No, I haven't heard anything since we left Hammerhead for Galdin Quay."
"Lady Lunafreya isn't familiar with the land of Lucis; I doubt that she would travel alone." Ignis offered the ebony haired man reassurance as placed a comforting hand on Noctis's shoulder. "I don't think she would be too keen in staying in unfamiliar terrain either, not unless she had a reason to."
Noctis felt more relief; if the Kingsglaive member had helped her escaped from the Crown City then perhaps he had decided to stay with Lunafreya until they were able to reach safety – Noctis has recalled that his own shield; Gladiolus, had been a former member of the Kingsglaive and had a vague idea of the intense combative training that each member had to endure.
Cor nodded slowly at Ignis's words, "she might have returned to a place of significant meaning to her."
"Fenestala Manor in Tenebrae." Noctis murmured more to himself than the others.
"Wouldn't that be too dangerous?" Gladiolus pointed out. "She'll never make it back there with Niflheim soldiers swarming the place."
"Altissia!" Prompto piped up excitedly. "Luna knew you were headed to Altissia for the wedding, maybe she headed there too!"
"Accordo isn't within the influence of either Lucis or Niflheim – as long as we are able to find a route to Altissia without attracting the Empire's attention, we should be quite safe there." Ignis added thoughtfully. "With the influence of Lady Lunafreya and past relations with King Regis, we should be able to negotiate safe procedures with the first secretary."
Noctis cast his eyes towards the marshal.
"Sounds reasonable to me." Cor nodded slowly as he processed the information. "I am going to suggest that you try to keep a low profile for now – there's a possibility that the Empire think that both Lady Lunafreya and yourself died during the treaty signing, but that won't last long, they're going to figure out that you're alive out soon enough."
"Were there any others who escaped from the capital?" Gladiolus asked; concern lined his face.
"Of course, most refugees headed to Lestallum; your sister was among them." Cor told the muscular man. "She fled the Crown City with the Amicitia family butler and his grandson."
Gladiolus deflated visibly as he heaved a heavy sigh while muttering, "thank god for that," under his breath.
"Is there anything else we need to know?" Ignis asked the marshal.
"Just one more thing, among the refugees from Insomnia, some of them were members of the Kingsglaive – they aiding in the evacuation of the Crown City and a few of them engaged in combat with the Empire's soldiers." Cor explained.
"We could regroup with them and get information about the Empire's soldier." Prompto suggested as he turned towards the bespectacled. "That'll help us come up with defensive strategies, right Ignis?"
"That's not going to be possible." Cor grimaced to himself. "They're all dead."
"What?" Noctis, Gladiolus, Ignis and Prompto gasped in unison.
"I thought you said that they were among the refugees!" Noctis rounded on the marshal.
"And they were, but from what I've heard they've all become susceptible to a string of surprise attacks from the Empire's soldiers." Cor elaborated calmly. "Every single one of them throughout Lucis has been killed – including that glaive; Nyx Ulric."
"But then… who's with Luna?"
"Don't panic, Noct –" Ignis took step closer to the ebony haired man.
"How could I not?" Noctis shot at his bespectacled advisor. "Luna could be a prisoner of Niflheim again or she could be dead by now for all that we know –"
"I doubt that," Ignis replied coolly, "the announcements only reported that Lady Lunafreya was presumed dead, if anything had happened to her the Empire would've confirmed the broadcastings by now."
"It's possible that Lady Lunafreya disguised herself in with the refugees in Lestallum, maybe you should start your search there before you start making rash decisions." Cor suggested. "If anything, there's bound to be someone there who has seen her."
"What about you, Cor?" Noctis enquired; quirking an eyebrow at the older man.
"I'm staying here for a while; I've gathered some information from the Hunters here at Prairie Outpost, I'm going to scout the area for a while and see if I can find out more about these Imperial bases – activity around the bases seem to be increasing lately and not just here in Leide but all over Lucis, what I do know is that deamon activity at night has tripled wherever these bases are, so you better make sure that you're adequately armed and prepared for attacks." He informed the ebony haired man with a nod towards the concrete structure that Gladiolus had pointed out earlier. "I suspect that they're conducting some sort of experiment, I'll let you know if I find anything."
"So what's the plan?" Gladiolus asked; folding his arms across his chest as he stared expectantly at his friends.
"That's down to Noct." Ignis pointed out; casting the raven haired man a sideways glance.
Noctis cast his eyes about himself thoughtfully.
"We'll head to Lestallum, search for Lunafreya and gather more information – we can meet up with Iris while we're there." He told the group – with a small inclination of his head at Gladiolus. "Then we'll head for Altissia."
"If that's the path you chose, I have some last few words of advice for you, Noctis." Cor spoke up again. "If you're heading to Altissia, you should know that there's a secret dock beneath the lighthouse in Cape Caem. You'll find a boat that once belonged to your father there – it'll probably need fixing up though. There's no guarantee that the boats will be running from Galdin Quay any time soon – and if they do it'll be under the Empire's influence; they'll easily see through your plans – it'll be safer to depart from the dock in Cape Caem."