The sound of footsteps seemed to be all that filled the vacant desert air. They were slow and tired footsteps, but ones not just from exhaustion. No, these footsteps felt to belong to those of the emotionally hollow, drained of whatever life might exist inside the husks of the three human shells. These three wandered just outside of the checkpoint that led to the ruins of what used to be their home—Insomnia. There is where the tragic event transpired. It gave hope to the rest of the world to live another day but at what, the trio questioned, did it cost them?

"Perhaps," Ignis suggested, "we should consider taking a break."

It was the first thing that any of the three spoke ever since they watched their friend Noctic make the ultimate sacrifice to give the world back its daylight. To the suggestion, all that Gladiolus and Prompto could do was grunt and nod.

The three trudged their way slowly up a nearby hill, the sound of dirt shuffling against leather replacing the solid footsteps on pavement, to a campsite. As the three perched on the cliff of the camp, looking out back onto the road that led their friend to his demise, they said nothing. Instead, each man was thinking through the past day. All three of them immediately went to one thought:

How could they get their friend back?

As if on cue, Ignis spoke again. "I suppose we should get this all sorted out while we still can, yes?"

"I'm not giving up on the idea." Gladiolus finally felt words free their way from his lips. "Noct can't just be dead."

"There are absolutes in this world, Gladio." Ignis retorted sharply. "We could study over writings for decades and find nothing. No scholar in the history of man has found a way to prevent something as permanent as death."

"Then how do you explain-"

"Phoenix Downs? I was afraid you might consider that. You see, Phoenix Downs are there to revitalize the soul after a near brush with death. Us using them in battle was no different—other than restoring our stamina as well—than a doctor using a defibrillator on a patient."

Gladio fell silent once again, mulling over the thoughts in his head again until they finally breached. "So what?! You're suggesting we just give up on Noct?!"

"What I'm suggesting is that we do our best to carry out Noct's legacy." Ignis, although unable to see his muscular friend, turned his head towards him. "I understand you want nothing more than to be able to bring our friend back. Believe me when I say I'd love to do the same, but we need to think clearly about this Gladio."

"He's…really gone, huh?"

The two older members of the group turned their heads turned towards the voice, finding their younger compatriot, who remained silent up until this point, talking once more. Although the voice wasn't the usual happy-go-lucky tone that Prompto had taken to adopting in the past. This was the dull and unenergetic voice of a broken man.

"I...I just can't believe…" Prompto shook his head as his deadshot eyes stared into the ground below. "He's…Noct's…dead." The blonde man felt himself gag on that last word.

"Prompto," began Ignis. "I know this must be terrible to accept, but I'm afraid-"

"Why did he have to die?!" For the first time since they camped in what they could only assume was the previous evening when their friend was still alive, Prompto felt tears begin to swell in his eyes. "He didn't deserve to die!"

Ignis, although disheartened by Prompto's tears, did his best to comfort him. "Prompto, we all know that this was Noct's destiny to-"

"Goddamit, what kind of destiny is that?!" Prompto turned towards his blind friend in anger. "What kind of destiny should decide who lives and dies?!"

"The same destiny that brought us together to become not only his royal retainers, but his friends!" Ignis was perturbed by Prompto's rudeness (he didn't enjoy being cut-off mid-sentence, especially twice), although he understood why he was acting this way. "The sooner you are able to recognize and accept that Noct has willingly followed the path that he was destined to do, the sooner we can press forward with other important matters!" Although his comments were directed at Prompto, Gladio couldn't help but feel like he was also being targeted. Ignis only confirmed the buff man's thought when he tacked on, "Don't either of you sully the sacrifice that Noctis made for this world."

Gladio scoffed. "Big talk coming from a man who couldn't even look us in the eye to tell us that if he wanted."

Ignis shook his head at Gladio's sour words. "Resorting to insulting my disability will not sway my stance. If anything, it only reaffirms me to hold my position because neither of you two are in the right mind to think for the future."

"How can you be so coldhearted Iggy?!" Prompto pleaded. "Our friend died and you're acting like it's just business as usual!"

"Because it's my job." Ignis' tone dropped an octave and went stiff, catching Gladio and Prompto off-guard. "Do you really believe that I want to move on?" He took off his sunglasses and set them to the side to rub his eyes, strictly out of habit for any agitation that he was facing. "As much as I would like to just drop everything and do what I can for Noct as my friend, doing so would be a disrespect to him and my job." Ignis stopped rubbing his eyes and tapped his hand around for his glasses, finding them and putting them in his inner jacket pocket. "You are all like brothers to me, but we all know our duties and we all know we must fulfill them to the bitter end."

Prompto's head turned back towards the earth. "I get what you're saying Iggy, but I don't know if Gladio and I have it in us to just move on. I mean, Noct was my best friend and I basically led him to a slaughterhouse."

"I'm not expecting either of you two to be able to fully accept what has happened and move on immediately." Ignis admitted. "I just require that you let me know when you are so you can assist me."

Gladio raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Assist you with what exactly?"

"Think about it: the royal line has ended and the kingdom, as a whole, has fallen. The populous is going to need guidance."

Prompto was puzzled. "And how do we do that?"

Ignis cleared his throat. "We need to face the bleak truth that a large part of the population met unfortunate ends during those ten years of darkness. If I were a betting man I would wager only thirty-five percent of the population remains."

"And most of them are in Lestallum or Altissa." Gladio remarked.

Ignis held up his left hand, index finger pointed upwards. "And therein lies the problem. We need to be able to relocate people to have them properly settle back into the everyday life that they led ten years earlier. Unfortunately, we can't really do that unless we garner the public's trust."

Prompto, still puzzled, turned to his friend. "I feel like there's more to this than you're tellin' us."

"Alas, you're correct." Ignis admitted. "This grand idea has been something that I've been workshopping with Cor for the past three years."

"Three years?!" Gladio, bewildered, got up from where he was sitting to look down on his friend. "You've been holding a plan from us for three years?!"

Ignis just sighed. "Yes. It was mostly due to my concerns that you and Prompto wouldn't accept the idea."

Prompto stood up with his buff friend. "Oh yeah?! And why's that?!"

"Because this plan was always a plan that revolved around Noct's death." Ignis confessed. "Cor and I knew of the prophecy and what it meant when Noct would eventually make his return. Of course, from what I can gather, you two also knew what his destiny held in store for him." Ignis paused briefly, trying to find the words that usually came naturally to aid him. "Despite your knowing, I knew the two of you would not accept a plan like this. Up until the point he was no longer with us, you two believed—no, perhaps we all chose to believe—that there was a way for our dear friend to twist his destiny by the arm and come out the victor and champion to lead his kingdom anew." Ignis felt tears begin to form in his left eye. "Now we see that that isn't the case."

A silence fell upon the trio. Unfortunately, Ignis' words rang true and they cut deep. Gladio was understandably unsure how to respond, opting to grit his teeth instead. Prompto couldn't help but think back to his best friend again, knowing that just the fact that he was thinking about the prince was proving Ignis right. For Ignis, though, it was all different: he wishes he wasn't right. In those moments before Noctis' battle with Ardyn, a part of him believed that perhaps there would be a way for him and his brethren to change his dear friend's fate. It was that moment of naivety that would be Ignis' downfall, reverting him back down to the emotionally primal man he forged himself into during those ten years of darkness.

"So," Prompto began unexpectedly, "what's the plan you were talkin' about? I mean, the power of the Crystal isn't a thing anymore, right? Not to mention that the Empire kinda caved in on itself, from what I've been hearing."

Ignis cleared his throat, bringing himself out of his daze. "Correct. Because of all of these factors, we need to establish a new government."

Gladio's eyes went wide. "I knew that it had to be big Iggy, but I didn't expect a plan that big." Prompto said nothing. Ignis let a small smile show.

"Yet neither of you two seemed that shocked about it." Ignis mused. Prompto showed a very toothy smile.

"Can you blame us?" Prompto scratched the back of his head. "Having someone like you at the helm of a plan that's been in the works for over three years sounds like one hell of a doozy."

"I'd honestly been more surprised if it wasn't somethin' this big." Gladio stated, although his expression still didn't match what he had said. It didn't matter to him; not like Ignis could tell anyway.

"No matter. I'll explain the finer details later." Ignis stood up from his ledge, gathering his cane in one hand to guide him not to fall off the side. "Just know that Prompto will oversee things such as public relations and relocating, Gladio and Aranea will be tasked with raising a protective force of some form, and Cor and I will be trying to gather the people we see fit to help us run this damned thing."

"You got Aranea to help out?" Prompto asked.

"Well, she will once I get in contact with her and explain our whole ordeal."

Gladio chuckled. "Not like you to be so unprepared. Sure you ain't just lookin' for an excuse to talk to her?"

Ignis donned his best look of confusion. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Yeesh, a decade later and you still gotta muddle around with that crap Iggy?" Prompto shook his head. "How are our descendants gonna feel knowing that our army was founded because one of the forefathers had to look for an excuse to talk to a girl?"

Ignis adjusted his collar, a slight flush of red approaching his face. "There will be no such thing known because that will not be going down in the history books. Aranea and I's relationship is strictly professional."

"Uh-huh. I'm sure." Gladio rolled his eyes, spouting to his blind friend in his most sarcastic tone. He turned and started walking away. "I really wish you two would just get a room already."

"Tell me about it, right?" Prompto turned and followed his friend in stride, letting out a small laugh.

Ignis just sighed and muttered under his breath. "Noct, I can't believe that these are the two you've left me to work with." He reached into his jacket and grabbed his sunglasses again, putting them on and adjusting them to fit squarely on his face. "Well, may the Six be with us, I suppose. We're making our way to Hammerhead, yes?"

"You know that doofus here wouldn't let us go by it without stopping." Gladio playfully shoved Prompto. "Besides, we could probably convince Cindy to lend us a car."

"Then let us set off." Ignis said with a smile, sunshine radiating down on the three.

And that they did, making their way down to the road. The desert was hot and muggy, but there was no empty air for the sounds of footsteps to fill. No, the air was too occupied this time with the voices of the three friends, jubilant and loud.

I'm gonna be honest: I wrote this because I listened to Stand By Me one too many times on Sunday. Not a very long one-shot, just a take on how I thought the three amigos would be handling the whole mess after Noct's apparent death. Still! Any feedback is appreciated and even if I don't respond to any reviews or anything, I do read every one of them, regardless of support or critiques!

Thanks for reading! -CommanderGalen/Teach