Chapter 8

"Go easy on the magic, Hero! You have people waiting for you back home!"

"I'm worth the wait!"

Cocky bastard. Pelna smirked as he watched his friend and teammate disappear into the dust cloud, towards the sea of monsters. "Show off," he muttered. Be careful, Hero. Just as Titus stated, the imperial forces of Niflheim attacked. This time, they brought backup.

Rockets flared, shots fired and vulturous creatures surged through the plains, mercilessly attacking every glaive along their path. Each glaive continued to warp and slash their way over the border wall, separating the peace of the Kingdom of Lucis and the dangerous battle of blood and power against the Niffs.

"We're not going to last much longer... CROWE!" Libertus growled, snapping Pelna out of this thoughts. He looked up towards the cliff where the mages perched, their hands in the air, focused.

"Just... a little more..." Crowe croaked. Dark clouds of debris and smoke formed in the orange sky, draping over the vast battlefield. "C'mon... c'mon..." The charcoal gusts began to morph into a cyclone, howling as it began to grow larger and more treacherous by the second. Lightning spears and fiery flames intertwined, bursting and striking through the chasm of the twister. "YES!" Crowe exclaimed, forcing her hood back. The tornado touched down, twisting with the flames and sparks of light, scourging through the plains.

The sun began to lower in the horizon.

"ALL GLAIVES FALL BACK!" Luche ordered. "REPEAT. ALL GLAIVES FALL BACK!" For some, it was too late. The fearsome tornado swept up everything and everyone within meters of its deadly path. Monsters shrieked and soldiers cried out as they were sucked into the deep abyss of the cyclone. Libertus and Nyx took cover behind destroyed structures of what was part of the border wall as the tornado continued on its path of destruction.

The Kingsglaive heaved heavy breaths as they tried to recover themselves from the bloodshed that occurred on the battlefield. Nyx glanced down at his gloved hand, gripping tightly on the dagger given to him by the person he promised to protect. You better come back. Her words echoed through his head.

Moments passed as the sun disappeared behind the mountains.

Within the twilight, a screech from a distance soared through the air. Crowe shifted her gaze to the direction of the pitch. Nyx released himself from the protection of the skeletal structure and followed suit, his eyes searching through the smoke and debris. Libertus raised himself from the ground and looked up towards the dark sky. The glaives froze.

Through the dust clouds came a massive creature, pulled over the land by magitek engines. "RELEASE THE DAEMON!"

The howling screech continued on as it was carried over the plains towards the border wall. Flames formed inside its mouth as the daemon was forcefully released onto the battlefield. Its various eyes glowed red as it trudged through the tornado, sucking in the debris and energy that the storm emitted.

DAMNIT! Crowe dropped to her knees and solemnly gazed towards the daemon as it charged towards the wall, against the twister. The tornado disappeared. You have to be kidding me...

The daemon's eyes continued to glow as it leaned forward, releasing a deep growl. Its back opened and separated, revealing two fiery orbs. The illuminated spheres burst as multiple missiles shot through the smoke, touched down and exploded on the plains, each missile inching towards the wall.

"We can't take down the daemon. I'm ordering a full retreat! Get back here alive! That's an order! For hearth and home!" Titus commanded. The glaives followed order and began to retreat.

The daemon continued on with its special attack, missiles bursting through its back, massively destroying everything they touch. The glaives continued to retreat, doing their best to dodge the boulders and debris encircling everywhere around them. Libertus stumbled and fell back. One missile whistled and exploded on the structure above him. Multiple rocks and boulders launched off. Libertus' eyes widened as one of the massive stones fell from above him, rolled and crushed his left leg beneath the solid rock. Libertus cried out in pain as he struggled to release himself from the large boulder to no avail.

"All units fall back to the extraction point. Support is inbound."

Libertus continued to try and push himself out. It was no use. He was trapped beneath the heavy boulder as other glaives continued to retreat. He released a loud cry. C'mon!

Nyx turned around as he heard Libertus' vociferation. He took cover behind one of the walls, glancing back as he saw his close friend struggling to free himself.

"Nyx! We have to get out of here!" Luche shouted. Nyx didn't appear to be listening as he continued to look back at Libertus. Luche grabbed his comrade by the collar and eyed him intently. "Nyx! We have orders!"

Nyx closed his eyes as he took a deep breath. ... HELP! NYX! "... Argh, that idiot!" The Hero released himself from Luche's grasp and warped through the dust clouds towards his trapped friend.

Luche shook his head and continued to retreat to the extraction point. He took one last look towards Nyx and Libertus as he heard a thunderous growl from behind him. All he could see was the penetrating eyes of Cerberus, hungrily charging towards his teammates. You both are idiots.


"... HELP! NYX!" Aeliana shot forward, beads of sweat trickling down her forehead. She took multiple deep breaths, in and out, as she slowly came to realize that she was in the safe confinement of her bedroom. Her shoulders fell after she took one last breath and shifted her gaze to the glowing moon outside of her window. Silence. Aelia pulled back her blanket and lifted herself out of her warm bed.

She slowly made her way towards her tall window, the moon casting her dark shadow on the tiled floor. She wrapped one arm tightly over her waist and softly placed her free hand over the cold glass of the window pane as she gazed over the illuminated city. I wonder if they're back yet. He promised he'd come back...

Aeliana closed her eyes and rested her forehead on the icy glass. Don't break your promise, Hero... A single tear streamed down her face and landed near her bare feet. The nightmares continued and she felt helpless. Right now, the glaives are risking every one of their lives at the border wall, just to keep the peace inside the kingdom. Niflheim is growing stronger and the Wall is getting weaker. Father is getting weaker.

Aelia lifted her head and continued to gaze at the sleepless city. What am I supposed to do? What can I do? The men in our bloodline, the Kings of Lucis... they are the ones who can naturally wield this magic... and yet why am I the one having these nightmares?

Aelia turned around and stepped towards her nightstand, lifting a photo of her brother and herself, taken just days after Noctis' 18th birthday. She traced the photo with her fingertips and took a deep breath.

~.~.~.~

"Noctis is the future King of this realm. With that being said, I will need your help, Aeliana."

"Of course, Father."

"I will need you to guide him... For when he takes the throne is when my time will pass and I will no longer be here."

"Leave it to you to be very cryptic, Father."

King Regis chuckled as he glanced at his daughter sitting in the decorative chair next to him. He placed a soft hand on top of Aelia's and gave her a gentle squeeze. "You and I both know that Noctis needs you."

"Noctis needs Ignis."

"And poor Ignis is working himself to the grave keeping your brother in line."

Aelia giggled. Noctis was crowned on this special day, his 18th birthday. The citizens of Insomnia celebrated in the Great Hall, cheering and strangely congratulating the young prince on his rite of passage. Knowing my little brother, he's hating every minute of this. She was right.

Noctis faked his smiles as he stood beside Ignis and Gladio in the corner of the bright ball room. Prompto cheerfully roamed about as he was officially tasked to take memorable photos of his friend's special celebration. Aelia smirked and shook her head. King Regis cleared his throat.

"I do mean it, Aeliana. Noctis looks up to you. To be quite honest, out of the two of you, I could rest easy knowing you were to take my place-"

"-Father-"

"-However," he raised his hand, "unfortunately that is not the case. The Lucian bloodline has been blessed with this magic... this power. Soon, Noctis will be blessed with it as well."

"... Soon?"

King Regis didn't answer. His hand remained on Aelia's. Silence ensued between the two of them as they watched the people of Insomnia celebrating their prince's big day.

"... Father," Aelia broke their silence. "I hardly call this magic a 'blessing.' Look at what it's doing to you. I can only imagine what it will do to Noctis."

"The power of the Crystal is protecting this Kingdom, Aeliana."

"Even so, is it worth it? Father, I'm not stupid. You're dying." Aelia retracted her hand and studiously stared at the King.

Her father gave another chuckle as Aeliana raised a slender eyebrow. After a moment, his expression grew serious as he turned back to his perplexed daughter. "Enough of that. I just need you to promise me, Aeliana, that you will be there for Noctis. He will need you."

"I don't know what for. I don't have that so called 'blessing.' Noctis can protect himself."

"You would be surprised," King Regis replied as he turned back towards the crowd. "Your mother was."

Aelia shot a look over to her father. "What-"

"Excuse me, daughter," King Regis interrupted as he slowly raised himself up from his throne. "I need to speak with Cor before it gets too late. You should go and converse with our guests. They love their princess as much as they do their King, if not more." With that, he made his way toward the crowd and disappeared.

~.~.~.~

To this day, Aeliana still had no clear understanding of what her father meant. Only Kings are blessed with the power to wield the Crystal's magic... right? She shook her head and brushed off the thought, as she did that night.

Aelia gently set the photo back down on her nightstand and glanced at her clock. The neon red numbers glared at her, reading 6:17 a.m. There's no use in going back to bed now. Aelia walked towards her closet and grabbed a pair of black leggings and a long gray sweater. They should be back by now... I hope. I need to see him.

Aeliana quickly got dressed and exited her bedroom, heading down the long hallway towards the entry of the Citadel. She made her way up to one of the guards stationed by the entryway and gave him a gentle smile. The guard bowed his head.

"... Do you happen to know if the Kingsglaive have returned yet?" She asked softly, as though she did not want anyone to hear her question, even when the hallway seemed vacant of any life except that of the guards.

"I have not been aware that they have, your majesty," the guard replied.

"I see... thank you," Aelia nodded as she started to walk past him towards the exit.

"Lady Aeliana... pardon, but you should not be going out there alone," the guard called after her as she turned her head around. "It is very late."

"Actually, it is very early," she winked. "I'm not heading too far from here. I just need some fresh air. The sun is coming up soon. I'll be back." After giving him a reassuring smile, Aelia walked out of the great doors and entered the city.

The guard continued to stand at attention, watching as the princess disappeared from his sight. I'm fired.


Aeliana released a deep breath as she stood in front of the familiar dark gray door once again. She raised her hand to knock, but quickly remembered that they had not returned to Insomnia as of yet. Aelia stepped back and contemplated.

~.~.~.~

"Here." Nyx dropped a small silver key in her hand.

"What's this for?" Aelia gave him a questionable look.

"If I'm not here and if you need another place to escape..."

Aelia blinked and widened her eyes. "Are you sure?"

Nyx gave a low chuckle. "Even if I wasn't, from what you showed me the past few nights, I wouldn't put it past you to break my lock and barge in anyway. At least this way, I wouldn't have to pay for my locks to be replaced."

Aelia laughed, her eyes shimmered as she linked her arm with her close friend's and rested her head on his stiffened shoulder. "... Thank you."

Nyx smiled and leaned his head on top of hers as they continued to gaze out into the horizon from their childhood hideout.

~.~.~.~

... Well, he did give me permission. She opened her hand and stared at the small silver key that unlocked Nyx's apartment. Aelia slowly inserted the key inside the lock, turned and opened the door.

Darkness. Aeliana felt around the side of the wall near the doorway for the light switch and flicked it on. Everything looked the same as when she was here last. She placed the silver key on top of the table next to her and closed the door. Aelia made her way towards the window, the area where his bulletin board rested. The same pictures and artwork were pinned to the board. She looked over to the letter from his sister and remembered what he told her the night before he left.

Selena. My sister. Sometimes I hear her screaming. She's calling out to me... just like she did the time when... she died.

Aeliana shivered. He finally told me his secret and all I did was say "I'm sorry." Father wants me to help Noctis, but I can't even help Nyx. She shifted her gaze to the photo of the two of them in the middle of the board. I couldn't do anything to help him, nonetheless help my own family. I feel so... useless.

Aeliana felt her eyes start to water as she lifted her head towards the ceiling. These nightmares... are prophecies. Whether or not anyone believes me, I know they are. They have to be. What am I going to do?

The door handle behind the princess slowly turned. Aeliana jerked around, startled. The heavy gray door opened, revealing an exhausted Nyx Ulric. His expression softened into surprise as he saw the princess standing in the middle of his apartment, her eyes glistening as they met with his. "... Aelia?"

"Nyx..." Aeliana whispered, releasing a few tears trickling down her warm red cheeks.

"Aeliana, what's wrong? Are you okay?" Nyx quickly shut the door, worried.

"Nyx..." Within seconds, Aeliana rushed towards her concerned friend. The distraught princess wrapped her arms around his neck, hanging on as tight as she possible could. After a short moment, Nyx relaxed and gently snaked his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to his chest. He ran his hand softly through her midnight hair and down her back, pulling her even closer to him. "Aelia, tell me what happened."

Aeliana didn't answer as she buried her head in his chest as the tears continued to flow freely down her rosy cheeks. Nyx didn't ask again.

What am I going to do...

I need you to help me know what to do.

The sun slowly rose over the Crown City as the princess and the glaive remained in the comfort each others embrace for what seemed like eternity.


Author's Note: I apologize again for the long break. I needed to tend to some personal matters. I do admit that this chapter is a bit short after such a hiatus, but I did want to get it out to all of you to ensure you guys I'm still working on this story :). The next chapter is in process. Until next time!