The Plague of Men
Shallow breaths squeezed out of his throat. Each puff of air sent stabbing pains throughout his chest. Holding his bloodied hand, he no longer felt the pain of the digits that had been severed. Blood stung his eyes, staining the world red. Or perhaps it was the blood moon casting her rays across the land. Dark clouds passed by, occasionally throwing a black veil over her. Heavy footsteps echoed through the air as metal clicked against the rocky terrain. From his kneeling position he stared up at the armored man standing over him. The warrior's sword dripped with fresh blood – his blood! Bitterness clenched his heart as rage flooded his soul.
"Do pray tell, Little Brother," he taunted the warrior. "How long have you been planning for this day? To steal my birthright?"
Because of the shadow cast by the helmet, he could not gauge the emotions in his attacker's eyes. Eyes that once held love for him. Eyes that over time grew green with envy. Eyes that now resented him. Yet the man shook his head…sorrowfully…no, not sorrow. He was being looked upon with pity.
"You brought this fate upon yourself, Ardyn. You had been warned. The Crystal had prophesized this day yet you had done nothing to atone for your sins and cleanse your soul of the evil culminating in your heart."
"Sins?!" Incredulousness contorted his features but quickly gave way to pain as the sudden outburst squeezed the air out of his lungs.
"How dare you?!" Ardyn hoarsely choked out. "How is it a sin to heal the inflicted? I dedicated myself to save the many. I gave my body to house their daemons!"
"And look where it all led to!" The soldier cut in. "You became obsessed. You neglected your own family and your subjects. You spent all of your time hunting down the daemons that nothing else mattered to you. You had a kingdom to care for but how could you when we never present? When the drought destroyed our crops and the people starved, where were you? When the pestilence that followed gripped the people, why did you not heal them?"
"And who would have been left to save if the daemons were to take over? Do you not understand? If the daemons rise there would be no one to protect?"
"And when you finally succumb to the Starscourge, who would protect us from you?"
The warrior peered down at the ring resting in his palm. The little white crystal contrasted against the black metal. The power radiating from the ring sent pulses through his body. Ardyn gazed into his brother's lustful eyes as the ring tempted him.
"You are not fit to wear that ring," Ardyn taunted. "The power will be too great for you; it'll destroy you. Only the chosen can wield its powers and those of our forefathers."
Signaling an end to the conversation the younger man turned his back and proceeded to walk away. Wrath swelled in Ardyn's heart at the insult. His body shook with fury…or shock due to the blood loss.
"How dare you, Noctis?! You are not worthy to bear the ring! The Crystal entrusted its powers to the Lucis Caelum bloodline. Not a half-breed like you who does not even bear our family name but that of your whore of a mother. You are no king!"
Noctis stopped in his path. Halfway turning he locked eyes with Ardyn, shooting him a warning glare.
"Brother, please, I have chosen to spare your life in exchange for your banishment. You must accept this fate for the Crystal had deemed you unfit to bear this responsibility. You have set the course that will only lead you down the path of destruction. This is your salvation. I do not understand why you will not accept the will of the divine. Have your lust for power led you so far astray?"
A low guttural growl reverberated in his throat like that of a guard dog warning a trespasser. Then menacing laughter overcame him as his chortles rang throughout the air.
"Fine, if you will not return what is rightfully mine, then I am left with no choice but to retrieve it myself."
Green eyes transformed into coal black orbs. His skin paled almost giving the appearance of a walking corpse. Spinning around him, phantom blades appeared, creating a protective shield while giving him numerous options of weapons to wield. Noctis sighed sadly as he slipped the ring onto his middle finger. To an outsider one would think the acquisition of the ring's power yielded instantaneous results. However having once possessed the ring, Ardyn new better. The ethereal world operated on a different plane. What lasted seconds in the mortal realm could last minutes or even hours in the divines' realm. In those few short seconds, the ring had judged and accepted Noctis as the new King of Lucis. Releasing a battle cry, Ardyn grabbed one of the swords and threw it at Noctis. After warping within range of his target, Ardyn swung his sword but connected with an invisible barrier.
"Fight me, you coward," Ardyn demanded, his voice sounding more demonic than human. "Do not hide behind the wall."
Ardyn swung again but the blade still ricocheted off the barrier. The force of the impact spun him around. With his back turned, Ardyn could not brace for the surging pain that shot throughout his body. Ardyn fell to the ground with a hard thud. From the corner of his eye he spied electrical currents running throughout his arm. Fury blinded Ardyn as he picked his sword back up so he could warp back at his enemy. However after he flung his arm back something prevented him from swinging his arm forward. He turned to find a giant ice blue woman firmly gripping his blade. Instantly ice crystals formed around the blade and swiftly engulfed the rest of the sword along with his arm, locking both in a crystalline prison.
"And so Shiva too has turned her back on me. Have all of The Six judged me so?"
"The fallen one has become a stain on humanity. While he was a vessel to contain the scourge the burden has rendered him as the accursed plague from which eternal darkness will descend. The King of Light has been chosen to cleanse Eos of the scourge."
Ardyn watched as the crystals built a frigid fortress around him. Then he shifted his glare at Noctis. His eyes caught the ring glowing a bright purple, ready to seal his fate.
"Know this, Noctis Izunia," Ardyn's voice screeched inhumanly. "Your blood will house false kings. Go ahead and steal my blood rite but know that I curse thy name and all sons that will follow. Seal this tomb but it will all be for naught for I will break these chains. At night the daemons shall do my bidding until the day The Chosen ascends the throne."
As the ice consumed his body and crawled up the back of his head, Ardyn continued his derisive rant before the ice began concealing his face. Ardyn smirked wickedly as he uttered his final curse, "Shall the day come that The Chosen takes the throne however, then too shall your bloodline parish. For in order to lift the veil of eternal night the vessel of light must be sacrificed. And should he fail to accomplish this, well, I suppose that matters not the road to your family's doom."
Malevolent cackles echoed even after the ice fully encapsulated Ardyn. Noctis approached the large crystal and placed his hand on it. The ring released a purple aura, sealing the tomb. A solitary tear fell down his cheek as Noctis bid farewell to his older brother.
"Your majesty?"
Noctis turned and stared at the astral, still baffled by her sudden appearance. While he knew Ardyn had the ability to communicate with the astrals, Noctis was at a loss as to how exactly Shiva was summoned.
"Will Ardyn's curse come to pass?" The concerned question was all he could muster in that moment.
Shiva's commanding features softened to a more motherly countenance. "It shall. The Accursed is strong and though contained for the time being his liege shall roam free. Through them he will gather strength. As the plague continues to consume more of humanity his powers too shall grow with the affliction. This tomb is but temporary."
The newly crowned king turned his head to the sky as the blood moon began her descent, chased away by the rising sun. A group of soldiers approached him and dropped to one knee, awaiting for his first orders.
"You two," Noctis pointed to two brothers, formerly Ardyn's personal guards. The Amicitia family was stoutly loyal to the Lucis Caelum house, but on some miracle their compassion for the people outweighed their loyalty to Ardyn. "Take that crystal to the northern lands where the snow never ceases. There shall his tomb lay though unmarked. From here on shall his name be forgotten and lost onto the artic winds. The nightly terrors are more than enough to remind us of the curse he had raught."
After the brothers uttered their "yes, your majesty" they were given leave to complete their mission. Turning to face the new dawn, the sun greeted Noctis with warm kisses against his skin.
Oh, Brother, I had not wished for events to come to pass as such. The Crystal beckoned me, warning of your descent into your personal hell – a hell you helped to unleash onto the world. Fear not, Brother, the light will overcome your darkness. I, along with the will of the Lucii, will see to it.