Chapter 9: Solace

{Dream World: Unknown….}

Noctis looked around the forest as he followed Cari through it towards the canyon area where they could continue to trek through his dreams and eventually escape it. However, the longer he spent time within this Dreamscape – as Cari called it – the more he started to recognize something being amiss. It was a feeling that was stuck in the back of his mind more so than the forefront of it, but he did get the feeling that something wasn't quite right. Cari wasn't the source of it, but out there within the forest a sort of energy was spiking, and following them the further they went. Taking in a deep breath, the nine-year-old looked to the Carbuncle and decided that it was far too quiet.

"Um….Cari? Do you know who it is that doesn't want me to wake up?" he asked. She looked down.

"Unfortunately, I don't know a lot about that. I do know that someone knows you're a serious threat to them and their plans so they're seeking to kill you off while they can, but….other than that I'm not sure…sorry Noct…." The boy looked down.

"You don't have to apologize…..but…I get it….this is a little frustrating huh?" Cari snorted.

"It's downright cumbersome is what it is…." The boy frowned.

"Cumbersome?" Cari turned to look to him.

"It means unmanageable, awkward, bulky, clumsy, or heavy….basically it's annoying," she explained.

"Thanks for the grammar lesson….." Cari flattened her ears out.

"You're a bit cheeky, you know that?" the boy shrugged.

"I wasn't aware that I was…." She sniffed the air.

A foul stench of burning tar and worn thread and paint filled the air, causing Cari's fur to bristle and the young Lucian Prince to tense as he considered what would have the Carbuncle so tense. Naturally, he supposed that as a Familiar, Cari would be hyper aware of what was around them and what could possibly pose a threat to them; therefore, when Cari went on alert, so did he as she pinned her ears back, and bushed her tail out while bearing her teeth and snarling as she shifted her gaze around.

"Cari?" the Carbuncle looked to Noctis.

"There's something dark here…..almost as dark as the thing that wants to keep you sleeping…." Noctis began to speak and then put his hand over his mouth and nose.

"Ick…..what's that smell? It's foul…." Cari's ears twitched to the left.

"We need to hurry to the water ways. They won't follow us past running water," she stated.

"Okay…."

"Keep up!"

In that second, the two of them were running as quickly as possible through the forest as he followed Cari closer towards the water and further from the threat she had detected. Normally, Noctis would inquire more about the situation, but he knew that while he was in this strange, and dangerous place, he needed to be quieter, more focused, and far more considerate of what obstacles stood in their way. In this world, he had to put his little bit of training to practice and do all he could to survive whatever it could throw his way alongside Cari, whom he felt deep within was trustworthy.

The sound of rushing water greeted his ears as he started towards the exit of the forest and the beginning of the canyon area where rich blue water ran in torrents through streams and into lakes. Noctis pushed forward with Cari and slid down the hill and rolled as he lost his footing before slamming into the creek as the cool water washed over him and a series of sharp burning sensations came across his arms and legs as he looked up at the tree-line and saw a series of shadows present and the sharp gleam of yellow eyes alongside a towering, spindly figure.

Taking in a deep breath, Noctis shot up and ran across the water and deeper into the canyon with Cari who chirped to alert him that they were still following as he looked to where she was heading and saw her dive into a cave before he followed, rolling as he entered the cave before they moved deeper within it as the creatures scurried past them while Cari came to stand before him as they hid in the shadows. A few minutes past and they went by them twice until finally, it fell silent and Cari turned her dark-brown eyes towards him as he started moving and suddenly hissed as a thick red line ran down his arm and soon another series of cuts started to bleed heavily upon his legs and cheek.

"Noctis, are you okay?" she asked.

"I guess I got pretty banged up when I rolled down that hill…." Cari looked to him, taking in his current state before nodding.

"I'll give you a hand…..stay still for a moment," she stated as she lit up in a red hue and cut a small back-flip. In moments the pain from the cuts vanished and the wounds healed while Noctis felt something settled around the top of his head, causing him to look up as he reached towards his head and felt a rough-cut band that felt like stone wrapped about his head.

"What is this?" Cari came up to him, nuzzling his hand as she wagged her tail a bit.

"My ability to heal is called Ruby Light. When I grant the blessing of my healing to my Master and it's used this circlet appears around their head. It's made of rough-cut ruby, like my horn…it marks you as my owner and allows me to heal you….but don't worry, it only appears when I use my ability on you, Noctis," she stated as she licked a small scrape on his knuckles.

"Thanks Cari…" he ran his fingers through her fur, causing her to make a purring sound as she laid her ears back.

"Any time…..but, we need to move….we've still got a ways to go…." Noctis looked around.

"Before we head out, can you tell me how we're going to get out of here?" he asked.

"What do you mean marshmallow?" the boy narrowed his eyes.

"I am not a marshmallow! I know I'm pale, but I don't burn that easily," he stated.

"Sure, and you also don't have a bad habit of sleeping on the floor even in the dead of winter?" Noctis felt a blush come across his face seeing as the only people who knew about that habit was his father and Marshal Leonis.

"So?!" he asked.

"You're so touchy! But I guess what you were talking about was what the catch is to leaving the Dreamscape?" he nodded.

"Yea….your making it sound pretty basic, but there's no way it can be that easy," he said.

Cari looked down at that as she considered what her master was stating. It was true, the facts she had been able to give him thus far did seem quite confusing; however, she was concerned with telling him too much and making it harder on the child than what was necessary. Still, she did have to consider that Noctis would already be forever changed by the trauma he had endured. While he may have seemed like his typical jovial, sweet-natured self around her: this was his dream-self. The part of him that was left from the scars he had been dealt. Because of that, the Noctis before her and the one that would return to the waking world could potentially be very different. For now though, Cari would have to wager a chance of seeing what he would be like when they dealt with their final challenge. Huffing, Cari looked to him.

"In order to get out, you need to find a golden crystal. Each one unlocks the doors to the different parts of these dreams. I know where the main crystal is for this segment of the Dreamscape, but we have the problem of finding the other ones and while it could be fairly easy, the obstacles could become dangerous, as you just saw," she explained.

"Okay, so….you know where the first one is so let's find it and unlock the door to the next segment, then we'll go from there." She snorted a bit, laying her ears back.

"You gotta realize though Noct….in order to get out….we have to beat the obstacles before whatever is tailing us gets ahead of us and does something to keep you here. I don't know the details, but I know that you're special Noctis, and because of that the person doing this to you will continue to strive for your demise until you can break that chain and stop it," Noctis nodded as she spoke and continued to pet her slightly.

"I think we'll be okay….Cari, we can do it….let's go." She snorted again and licked his hand.

"Okay, follow me."

Noctis followed Cari out of the cave and down a series of slopes and rises in the stones that were slick with water as they began to go deeper into the canyon while Noctis looked around and took in everything from the deep-blue sky, the sharp, clear water, the gentle breeze, and the sense of adventure being out in the wilderness. Something within him felt free when he wandered about this place, following Cari along as they sought out the first crystal to open the door. As unexplainable as it was, Noctis felt as if he could finally breathe whilst out in the wild of the forests, mountains, and rivers.

"It feels like there's a part of me that's been longing for this since I was really small…I wonder why…."

Cari chirped, telling him to hurry up as he climbed through a series of rocks and then heard a loud groan-like howl from above as rain poured down from the sky and a shadow nearly eclipsed the sun. Midnight-blue eyes looked up to the towering form of a gigantic water dragon that shot from the water of a lake and went high into the air and through the rings of stone before diving back into the water on the far side of them. The title wave crashed over the rocks, splashing him and Cari as it disappeared and he felt a smile of elation come to his features while he memorized the sight and the Carbuncle shook out her soaked fur. Cari laid her ears flat, a look of annoyance upon her features as she stared over in the direction of the water-serpent's departure while her Master looked onward in surprise.

"Noctis…" the boy looked towards Cari and laughed.

"You look like a drowned rat!" Cari growled.

"Another word, and I will bite you…" she warned.

"Fine….but…what was that?" he asked her this and Cari shook out again.

"I think that was one of the Gods, I think it was the Hydrian…" she started walking again and Noctis followed.

"It was massive…" she nodded.

"It's just an overgrown fish…." Noctis frowned.

"Aren't you afraid of them smiting you?" she ruffled her fur.

"No…I'm a Familiar…I'm outside of their jurisdiction," she stated in frustration.

"I'm not sure what to think of you….no one is out of the jurisdiction of a God…" she looked to him.

"Let me get this straight….you didn't know what the word cumbersome meant, but you know what jurisdiction means?" she asked.

"Yes…." Cari rolled her eyes.

"Gods….why am I surprised? You're the biggest trip I've ever met, I'll tell you that much Noct," she stated.

"What? It's not like I didn't know anything about computer software but knew what de-resolution meant." Cari flicked her ears as they continued walking.

"Do you know anything about software and computers?" Noctis grinned a bit.

"I may have taken apart one of the mainframe computers in the Citadel once….and put it back together before anyone realized what had happened…." she laid her ears out.

"Like I said….you're a trip…" he crossed his arms over his chest.

"And you're a talking fox," he stated.

"Nu-uh! I'm a Carbuncle! A Car-Bun-Cle! Not a fox! I don't do that whole sneaky backstabber thing…" he smiled as he looked at the little creature who had puffed out her tail.

"Okay, whatever you say fluff-ball," he said as he waved his hand and walked a bit ahead of her. Cari ran ahead of him.

"The crystal is just ahead of you if…." Before Cari could finish her sentence, Noctis walked directly into a floating, golden stone.

"Ouch!"

"Look in front of you…." Noctis groaned a bit as he rubbed his head and looked at the crystal with a glare.

"I thought dreams didn't hurt?!" he looked to Cari who came to stand beside him.

"Actually, a lot of dreams can cause physical damage. Be careful, you may give yourself a concussion…then what will you do?" she asked. He narrowed his eyes.

"Fine….I'll keep that in mind…" she smiled.

"You would think the cuts you got from the stone would have been a giveaway to that," she mentioned, Noctis splashed water on her.

"I'm a kid….I can be a little scatterbrained from time to time, okay? Drowned rat?" Cari hissed as she shook off.

"I'm a CARBUNCLE! NOT A DROWNED RAT!" she jumped on him and he smiled as he ran his hand through her fur.

"We found the first crystal, let's…" a scraping sound came from behind them.

"Noctis….we have a problem…"

Midnight-blue eyes turned to see a series of gleaming blue creatures behind them, looking more than prepared to strike as they sat there. They looked like emaciated dogs with long, spindly tails, sharp nails, teeth, and black sockets for eyes. Noctis's entire body became almost unnaturally stiff as he looked at the monsters behind them and did his best to even out his anxiety that started thrumming through his body. His heart-rate elevated, his skin became unnaturally pale, pupils dilated, and his blood felt almost as if it had gone cold as he realized that he was face to face with Daemons again. The orange glow of the sun slowly appeared and Cari tensed, bearing her teeth as she kept her gaze upon the monsters.

"No….No….not here! No!"

Against his better wishes, his body began to tremble in unrelenting terror as the images of the attack flashed through his mind while the sight of Felicia's lifeless eyes and blood soaked face became a focal point within his mind. Every part of him felt natural terror as he tried to sort out what to do in his mind that became too scattered to put the pieces together. A shaky breath left him as Cari jumped between him and the monsters while he tried to desperately keep himself together in the face of something he hadn't realized he was scared of. Cari growled and he took in another rattling breath as he continued to stare onward at the scene of the monsters as they began to circle them.

"Noctis, get the crystal and get out of here! Go on!" Cari called to him, and he jolted, wanting to move, but finding his legs unwilling to do so.

"I-I can't….move…" Cari tensed.

"We have to run….please….move!" she begged as she pinned her ears back.

"I….c-can't…."

Every fiber of his being panicked as he considered what they were facing as Cari prepared to strike against the monsters that had them cornered. She knew that Noctis hadn't been aware of his trauma whilst in this Dream World; however, to see it as it was now, she realized that his shock had developed into something far worse and that it had him frozen in absolute terror. Cari wanted to protect him, because he was kind, and sincere, because he was a good person, and stood a chance at making a great difference in the world: because he needed the chance to experience his life. Noctis was only nine-years-old and he had suffered already and she knew with this person trying to keep him asleep that he would suffer more, but there would be other remarkable things in his life if he was given the chance.

"And I'll make sure he gets that chance…to hell with this person…." Cari thought as one of the monsters edged towards Noctis.

"You won't touch my Master!" she snarled as she shot a wave of magic at the monster as it growled and snapped it's jaws at her Master.

"Cari!" the boy called to her as she was blind-sided by another monster and sharp claws sunk into her ribs, staining her white fur as she was knocked across the stone.

"R-Run…Noct…." Midnight-blue eyes stared onward in fear as two of the monsters turned to her and another two started towards him. Terror filled him once again as he fisted the gravel and dirt in his bare hands, fearful of what he would face now that he was cornered with no way out.

"No….I can't….I can't do this….please…wake up….wake up….wake up! Noctis! Wake up! It's a nightmare! Wake up!" he kept calling to himself as Cari yelped when the monster threw her aside again.

"CARI!"

Noctis's body spurred into motion in that instant. His body tensed into a crouch and he leaped forward, holding out a hand on instinct to brace himself when suddenly a weapon materialized in his grasp and he swung it forward. The curved guard of the top half around the grip went around into a style that looked almost like a gust of wind as it formed into the blade that was lined with sharp looking runes in an ancient dialect. Noctis swung out, slicing into one of the monsters as he rolled with the blade and took in a deep breath as he felt the metal of the weapon slice through the monster that had injured Cari. The splatter of the monster's blood rang in his ears as a roar from another came and he swung out, using the weapon that had come to him in order to destroy that which sought to harm him and someone he cared for.

"Come on!" he snarled at them, glaring at the monsters as he held the sword, preparing to strike again.

The monsters lunged at him and he sliced through them with a quick swing, knowing to not let his guard down for a second as the monsters continued to jump and lunge at him with the intent of sinking their teeth into his throat. A part of Noctis knew that his behavior wasn't normally so brutal; however, another, deeper part of him found himself at peace with this side of him: almost as if it was supposed to be there and he had ignored it for far too long. In an instant, he had taken to his few months of training and excelled it to the point that he felt as though each movement was natural and part of his being.

"Die!" he plunged the sword into the back of one of the monsters as finally the last two ran off as he took in a few staggering breaths, dragging the heavy sword along the ground as blood dripped from it and himself while he walked towards Cari before crouching on the ground, taking in deep seated breaths as he tried to get his bearings again alongside trying to gain control over his heart rate as Cari slowly looked up to him in questioning.

"Noctis?" her voice was a bit weak, but already her wounds had begun to heal as he laid the sword aside and went to pick her up.

"I'm sorry….I shouldn't have frozen up like that…." Noctis stated as she shook her head.

"No, you did fine….thank you for helping me…" Cari looked up into his face, meeting his gaze as she felt confusion go through her for a moment while Noctis gave her a look of relief.

"Are you going to be okay?" he asked.

"Yea, I'll be fine…Noct…did you get the crystal?" the boy shook his head as he slowly stood with her still in his arms before he grabbed the crystal and looked back towards her as she began to slowly move.

"We have it….now what?" Cari slowly turned to move and Noctis sat her down as she hobbled towards a pathway between the rocks.

"Follow me…..we'll get to the door this way. After we leave this segment though…I'm not sure where the crystal or door is located, but I can probably sniff it out," she stated.

"How come?" Cari gave him a quick look over.

"Because, they have a scent," she explained as he pocketed the crystal.

"Well….what does it smell like?" Cari turned her gaze directly to his own.

"The scents are a lot like yours….they smell like night air, stardust, and citrus of some kind mixed with lavender…." She told him as he rose an eyebrow.

"Stardust has a smell?" he asked her as she nodded.

"It kind of smells like the ocean…if I had to pinpoint it." Noctis sighed a bit.

"Those are some pretty odd scents," he said as they started walking.

"Yea, but it's nice, and it suits you…." He rose an eyebrow again.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, your name does mean night doesn't it? Besides, what does Avior mean?" Noctis glanced to the side and smiled just a fraction.

"Avior is a binary star in the southern constellation of Carina at an apparent magnitude of plus one point eighty-six and is one of the brightest stars in the sky…it's also known by another name: Epsilon Carinae." Cari frowned as best a Carbuncle could.

"So, who gave you the name of one of the brightest stars in the sky?" she probed.

"My mother…" Cari smiled.

"It suits you, like a said…" Noctis sighed.

"Yea, I guess…but let's go, okay Cari?" she nodded.

"Yep! Come on!" Noctis followed her and as they edged closer to the exit of this stage of the Dreams, Cari chose to not speak a word on how her newfound Master's normally sharp, blue eyes: were reddish silver.

{…}

Caught in all, the stars are hiding…..

{…}

Author's Note: There was a lot that happened in this chapter, but most of it was Noctis and Cari bonding while trying to avoid the insanity that comes with being trapped in a Dreamscape. There was some humor, and a few other things, but also we got to see some of Noctis's darker aspects.

Now, as for the entire thing about Noctis's middle name:

Avior or Epsilon Carinae, is a binary star on the southern constellation of Carina. It is exactly an apparent magnitude of plus one point eighty-six and is one of the brightest stars in the sky. However, it cannot be seen in the northern hemisphere.

Avior is also a Hebrew name that translates to: My father is Light.

The name Avior was granted to the star in the 1930s by the British Royal Airforce for her Majesty the Queen. But, the traditional Latin name: Epsilon Carinae, translates into: The False Cross, and is a asterism formed of Delta Velorum, Kappa Velorum, Iota Carinae and E Carinae.

That is the back story in astrology, history, and linguistics on the name Avior and as to why I gave Noctis that name….well, you'll just have to wait and find out; won't you?

Have an amazing day or night.

Sincerely,

ShadowDragon94.