"How goes the search?"
Ravus looked up at the castle, "Sadly, it doesn't. Something tells me she wouldn't be in Altissia."
Aranea sighed, "Let's get real here, Ravus."
"Uh, alright."
"What if she's dead?"
The question cut through him like a heated knife; he hadn't dealt with the possibility. Instantly, his mind filled with images of funerary flowers, caskets and tombstones and he tried to run away from the thoughts, unsuccessfully.
"Stop."
"I don't want to think it eith—"
Ravus shut his eyes, "Then don't." He hung up the phone, gripping it tightly in an effort not to launch it across the room.
'If she's dead…,' Ravus thought, 'then that'd have been two upsets in one fell swoop…'
x
"Allow me to apologize once more," Ignis said, making a left turn in the Regalia. "That cannot be a comfortable arrangement."
Amara managed a smile, "It's fine."
"If you're good, I'm great." Gladiolus cracked, gripping her waist. "Hold on."
Ignis nodded, "I can appreciate your tolerance."
"You two sure are cozy!" Prompto laughed.
Iris giggled, "You just wish it could be you, Prompto."
"Don't worry," Noctis chuckled, "we're almost there."
"I'm just glad we're back on the road," Amara said.
Prompto nodded, "Yeah, that base wasn't a fun detour… that dragoon was vicious."
The young man had her interest, "They've got dragoons, too? I don't mess with them."
"Yeah, I see why," Prompto said. "But it was just one and she talked about not fighting after hours… whatever that meant."
'Aranea's here?', Amara thought, 'Was she looking for me..?'
"The Imperial army is strange," Amara said, spying a light house not too far off, "that dragoon sounds no different."
Gladiolus scoffed, "You can say that again."
Ignis pulled the car to left and slowed to a stop. "We've arrived."
After the group got out, they were on their way up the path, with the smell of sea salt permeating the air. Amara took in the scenery, as she'd never been to a beach and put it on her list of things to do. Farther along, she spotted Cindy and once the group reached her, her usual warmth entangled all it encountered.
"Howdy!" Cindy exclaimed. "Been workin' on your boat and it's in need of some fixin'."
Ignis crossed his arms, "Expected."
"An overhaul?" Gladiolus asked.
"Well, kinda sorta. Some parts need replacin' and others need tinkerin'. Don't worry though, it'll be tip top soon enough!"
Noctis stood with his arm akimbo, "What's holding us back?"
"Well, the youngin' told me about a material the boat needs. S'called mythril." Cindy went on, leading them up the path. "He'll be able to tell you more about it than I can, so it's best you ask him."
'Mythril? Father wanted to buy some of that,' Amara thought, 'I thought it didn't exist.'
They walked along the steps in their own conversations, wondering about the mysterious mythril and where their journey would take them next.
Cindy glanced over at Amara, "Glad to see you up on your feet, miss thing."
Amara smiled, "Thanks again."
"No problem." Cindy replied.
"Prince Noctis!" Talcott exclaimed.
The prince ruffled the child's hair and gave him a hug, "How ya been?"
"Good! But, I'm supposed to tell you about the mythril!" He went on. "Remember the waterfall? In grandpa's notebook, it said there were some ruins north of there that's supposed to have it."
"Thanks, again!" Noctis exclaimed, "You're always helping out."
Talcott beamed, "I'm glad I could!"
"Hey, uh..." Gladiolus said, tapping Noctis on the shoulder. The two stepped off to the side, leaving the rest to their own devices.
"This trip," Amara started, "am I sidelined again?"
Ignis' eyebrows raised, "Tired of sitting them out? I will ask Noct how he feels regarding the matter, as I imagine doing nothing could get boring."
"Besides that, I'm not a cripple."
Ignis eyed her injuries, "Surely not, but you are crippled."
"It's clearly a mining expedition," Ignis chuckled at the retort, "so, it doesn't seem there will be a need for any sort of fighting."
"But if there is?"
Amara shrugged, "Like I said before, I can still hold my own."
"Oh, the ores will find such a formidable opponent in you, my dear." Ignis laughed.
xx
Several days later…
"Like clockwork," Noctis said, returning back to the campsite, the moon illuminating his smile.
Amara finished her Cup Noodle, "Hm?"
"Turns out our Imperial guardian helped us out… just like we expected," Noctis sat down on the ground. "We've got a way into the ruins."
Amara nodded, "I was unaware it wasn't through the front door."
"Well, it is… but it only opens at night."
"Like a fairytale."
Noctis laughed, "Yeah."
Ignis eyed her food, "This is what you had to eat without me? I feel flattered."
"You can cook?" Amara asked.
"Of course! Besides that I come up with new recipes on occasion." Ignis went on. "It's an art one has to take care to learn the subtle nuances of."
Noctis looked over at Prompto's sleeping figure, "How long's he been out?"
"Since you guys left." Amara said, putting her cup down. "But what's this about an Imperial guardian? Sounds a bit odd, considering..."
"Chancellor Izunia," Ignis said. "He's helped us several times, of course his motives remain unclear… my mind leans towards the self-serving."
Amara's eyes widened, "I would agree."
'If he's here maybe I can get help from him,' Amara thought, 'but his helping the prince, doesn't sound right. Why go against the Empire's interests?'
"Yeah, weird guy," Noctis remarked, shaking Prompto awake. "But we've gotta get going, otherwise we'll end up stuck in some smelly ruins."
Prompto yawned and stretched, "Huh? Mornin'..." he mumbled.
"Time to go, Prompto." Ignis stood up, nudging the man with his shoe. "No time to waste."
"Iggy go away," Prompto yawned, sitting up. "Huh? Wow, it's night time again?"
Amara laughed, "You're a heavy sleeper, but you haven't slept that long. It's still the same day."
"Oh, so we're here!" He exclaimed, standing up. "The grimey grove… the groovy grotto. It's about time, so are we off?"
Noctis chuckled, "Yeah, just waiting for you."
"Well, let's go!"
Amara stood up with her sword in tow, joining the trio of brothers. They walked through the muddy waters, remarking upon it's cool temperature and the menacing sahagins that were rumored to populate them and finally arrived at the ruins. Amara was surprised to see Imperial soldiers stationed about, but Ardyn was nowhere to be seen. However, a familiar form was.
Aranea's back was to the quartet, as she carried on a conversation with Biggs and Wedge.
"At least they're paying us overtime, right?" Aranea laughed.
"Hey, boss," Biggs pointed.
The dragoon turned around to see the known faces of the boys, along with one more. Her eyes shot open, her mouth dropped and for once in a long time, she was speechless. It was almost as if she'd seen a ghost.
Before she could remark upon the discovery, Amara glanced quickly at her entourage and shot the dragoon a look. Aranea understood, but her speechlessness continued.
"What's the matter?" Noctis asked.
Aranea looked over at him, "Nada. Let's get going… don't trip." She turned on her heel and walked up the stairs, leaving in her wake a stunned Biggs and Wedge. Because Aranea didn't greet Amara, they saw fit not to either, a loyal trait Amara was all too grateful for.
'That was close…,' Amara thought, 'she looked frightened, though. What's… happened since I was gone?'
