There was a single tense moment of silence as the news sank in before Gladio snapped, "Then what the hell are we waiting for? We have to go save them!"
Ignis retorted sharply, "We cannot!" His eyes roamed from the listless Noct to the still pale Lunafreya and back again, worry lining his face and making him tense.
Gladio was about to snap something back when Noctis spoke softly, "We're going to save them." His voice might have been soft but it was determined and when Noctis lifted his head to look at the people surroundings him his eyes were hard and clearly showed his anger.
Noct pushed himself up looked at the four Glaives, noting their exhausted posture and his own tiredness. He turned to Ignis, "We'll need a good strategy if we're going to pull this off and we need information. How far is the base from here?"
Ignis took out a map, laid it on the table and pointed out their current location and the area he assumed the base stood. "If the base Nyx is referring to is the one here than it would take us about two and a half hours by chocobo."
Noct nodded, "Alright. I haven't slept because of what Ardyn told me and those four haven't either. Let's rest for a few hours and we'll head out mid afternoon-ish so we get to the base by nightfall." Noct raised his head then blinked in surprise. Everyone was staring at him.
Luna asked with some confusion, "Noctis, who is Ardyn?" Prompto nodded by her side.
Noct blinked, just as confused, "Didn't we tell you about the man Prompto met the day after the attack? The guy looks exactly like that creepy Chancellor, and claims to be a Lucis Caelum? He can certainly use the Royal Arms…" he trailed off hesitantly as Gladio stalked up to him.
His Shield looked furious and growled, face an inch away from Noctis', "Are you telling us that an intruder got into camp and you didn't wake us up!"
Noctis stepped back, "I tried! But no one woke up and he just wanted to talk."
His three boyfriends and Luna tensed up at his words. Ignis took a slow deep breath before he spoke, voice fearfully calm and composed, "Perhaps a full explanation of the night's events might be advisable before the five of you retire to rest?"
Noctis nodded slowly and told them about the conversation he had with his supposed relative. Ignis set about making some coffee as he listened carefully and asked a few questions. Gladio had tensed up considerably when Noct had recounted how he screamed for them, and Prompto moved closer to the man to run a soothing hand over his arm in comfort.
Nyx rubbed a hand over his face as he took in the news that there was a second Niflheim Chancellor who could use the Lucis Caelum's Royal Arms, was badly infected by the Scourge and was helping them out for some reason. He glanced at the other three Glaives and was glad to see the same tired confusion on all of them. He turned back and stated in a deadpan voice, "Okay, I'm officially too tired to deal with this right now. I say the five of us hit the hay and leave the others to figure what this all means."
Noct grinned and stifled a yawn, "Sounds like a plan, Nyx. Ignis can wake us up later." He didn't wait for an answer as he headed straight for his tent. Nyx grinned and tugged Luna into a hug, and planted a kiss on her temple before he, Pelna, and Libs headed to their tent with Crowe heading towards her own.
It left Ignis, Gladio, Prompto and Lunafreya awake to figure out what to do with both Ardyn's interference and their goal of rescuing Cor, Iris and Ravus from Niflheim's grasp. Ignis finished his first cup of coffee and poured himself a second one before asking, "Can one of you help me make breakfast and check what they managed to bring back?"
Luna nodded and headed towards the cooler with Ignis, leaving Gladio and Prompto to find something to do while they waited for breakfast to be done. Gladio sighed and mumbled, "Going for a run" before he left the haven.
Prompto watched the tense man jog away and sighed sadly. He was worried about everyone. Ravus had been in the hands of Niflheim for close to two weeks now, and who knew what he had been subjected to? Prompto bit his lip as he took out his phone to play some King's Knight to pass the time.
As he mindlessly tapped the screen, Prompto wondered what he could do to help. He remembered the awful nightmares Ravus had suffered for a couple of years after arriving in Insomnia. Getting the plushies had helping the older boy quite a bit but Prompto doubted the stuffed toys were still intact.
Prompto jumped up as a wonderful idea struck him and he hurried over to their tent. He carefully checked to make sure Noct was asleep before starting to rustle through Ignis' bag in search of what he would need. Sewing kit, some ripped clothes that Ignis had deemed unsalvageable, some shiny bits - Prompto made a mental note to find some lavender flowers on their way to the base.
With his arms full, Prompto wiggled out of the tent and made his way to the edge of the haven. He carefully placed his prizes on the rocks, placing the different fabrics side by side as he mentally prepared his to-do list.
First thing to do was measure and trace the different shapes he would need, then Prompto double checked his calculations and started cutting the pieces carefully. Each separate piece was then pinned together as he wanted and he grinned in gleeful pride at the way it looked.
A cold nose touching his cheek startled Prompto out of his concentration and he turned to see Umbra and Pryna looking at him with wide eyes. Pryna barked once before lowering her muzzle to the ground. Prompto followed the movement and grinned, the dogs had brought him a gift and it was the last missing piece to make it perfect.
Prompto rewarded them both with scratches and a few kisses before plunging back into his creation. He winced every time the needle pricked him but pushed onwards, determined to make them while he had the time. (He also didn't want to be stuck doing nothing and feeling useless.)
ˮPrompto, breakfast is ready.ˮ Ignis' voice called out and Propto waved an acknowledgement, intent on finishing the last few stitches for a seam. A warm hand dropped on his shoulder and Ignis peeked at the pieces of fabrics scattered around the area. "I see you've been busy, love. Come eat and I'll help you afterwards if you'd like.ˮ
Prompto leaned back into Ignis' warmth and nodded as he carefully put down what he was working on and ensured it wouldn't get blown away by the wind. He got up carefully, wincing as his legs protested their prolonged position; and blinked in surprised as he noticed Gladio was back and the sun was a lot warmer than he remembered.
Ignis chuckled and carefully guided Prompto over to a seat, Umbra and Pryna already devouring the bacon and fat Ignis had given them by the fire. Gladio looked a lot more relaxed and focused, reaching out to ruffle Prompto's hair as he passed by. Luna was quick to hand him a plate with pancakes, bacon and eggs as soon as he sat down.
The four of them ate in companionable silence, broken occasionally by one of the dogs barking or begging for scraps. Gladio collected the plates and cups to wash as Prompto headed back to his project with Ignis in tow. The inexperienced sempster quickly explained what he was trying to do before going back to his work.
When Noctis woke up, the sun was just past its zenith and he was starving. He stretched with a groan before stumbling out of the tent, still slowly waking up. He took a few steps towards his usual chair only to stop, blink and stare at the two things already seated there.
Noct whistled as he picked them up and examined them: the faint smell of lavender, chamomile and something familiar that he couldn't name. He glanced over at the grinning and excited Prompto. "Did you make these?ˮ Prompto nodded. "They're definitely smaller than the ones Ravus had back home, but I'm sure having Mini Carbuncle Plushie and Mini Iron Giant Plushie when we save him will help a lot.ˮ
Prompto grinned happily and was about to reply when a rough voice came from the Glaives tent, ˮIs there enough food for everyone? I'm starving!ˮ Nyx walked out of the shared tent wearing only his boxers; Libertus growled and tried to drag him back in with no success.
The four men and Lunafreya grinned at the sight, Luna going to meet Nyx and push him back into the tent to get dressed with an amused grin. "Get dressed and then you can eat, you silly man!ˮ She laughed as he whined about wearing clothes right after waking up; but between her, Libs and an exasperated Pelna, they managed to get Nyx dressed before allowing him back out.
Crowe shook her head as she went to join Ignis by the table. "At least he wasn't naked this time.ˮ She grabbed the pot of coffee and poured herself a cup, "So other than the Kid over there, what have you been doing while we slept?ˮ
Ignis pointed her at a seat, ˮI assume you are talking about our plan for taking over Cleigne's base, correct?ˮ The magic specialist nodded as she dropped to her chair and waited, the others taking their own seats slowly.
Ignis didn't say anything until he had served everyone and sat down himself, ˮI was able to review what I knew about the base. It was made a good 20 years ago when Niflheim started their advance into Lucis. It was retaken after Sylva caused her brand of chaos within Niflheim ranks, then abandoned when Niflheim reinstated their advances into Lucian territory.ˮ
He took a bite of his food before continuing, ˮFortunately, King Regis had enough foresight to consider Niflheim using the base once more after their renewed effort and, from what I remember, had most of the bases modified to include secret entrances as well as several master keys implemented into their system. We should be able to use these to enter unnoticed under the cover of night and disarm any alarms set up.ˮ
Pelna grinned as he devoured his lunch/breakfast. "I remember reading those files. I think I have a copy of all the master keys on my phone.ˮ He dropped his plate on his knees and took out his phone to check. He nodded quickly, ˮYup, I got them right here. If I can get to the central monitoring room, I can take over their system using these and tell you exactly where to go.ˮ
Ignis nodded, pleased by the information. By his side Gladio spoke up, "There's no way the monitoring or control room is going to be close to where they keep prisoners. We'll need to split up to cover more ground quickly. Even if the alarms get disabled, the place is going to be crawling with Niffs and the longer we stay in there, the more dangerous it's going to be."
Gladio's comment plunged the group into silence for a few moments before Luna sighed and declared forcefully, "Regardless of how we split up, I'm going after Ravus." She ignored the outcries from Nyx and Noctis, got up to put her plate away, and started taking down her tent.
Prompto chuckled, "Luna's right, you know. I want to save everyone but I'll go after Cor first since Luna has Ray-Ray. I'm sure Gladio wants to go after Iris first too." He glanced at the awkward nod Gladio gave, and got up to follow Luna's example. "We can figure out how to split the teams while we head over there."
Prompto's cheery words ended the conversation as each person slowly finished eating and started dismantling the camp and storing it within Noct's magic. They still had a while before night time, but getting to the base early would allow them to find a safe spot to camp out for the night and to find any secret entrances left by the Glaives when they retreated from the area.
Noctis was the last to mount his chocobo, having helped Ignis check the grounds for anything that might have been left behind. Casting one last glance behind, he nodded to Libertus who had volunteered to act as a scout for their small group as a precaution. The glaive returned the nod and dragged his hand in front of him, magic trailing behind as the air wavered and Libertus faded out of sight.
Dust rose from the ground with every step of the now invisible chocobo and his rider, the trail disappearing toward their destination in a flurry. The rest of them waited a few additional minutes before following after Libertus; Noctis and Luna in the center with the others spread around them in a protective circle.
"Ignis, what do you know about the layout of the base?" asked Luna after about an hour of riding quietly together. They had seen a few airships, but no soldiers or patrols.
Ignis moved his chocobo closer to her before answering her question. "Most of Niflheim's bases have a similar layout. Each base has anywhere from 3-7 buildings surrounded by a thick outer wall with only one way in or out. There is always a building for communications, one serving as a barrack for their human soldiers, and one that serves as mess hall and offices for the higher ranking officers."
Luna nodded, "Then the rest of the buildings would depend on the purpose of the base itself?"
Ignis nodded, seeing from the corner of his eye that the rest of their group were listening in. "Indeed. I would imagine that this would have been one of their bigger bases, or that they might have expanded it if they are using it for prisoners and intelligence gathering."
Gladio grumbled, "So we have no idea of how the place looks or where anything is." He snorted. "This is going to be a pain."
Crowe grinned. "You say it like it's the first time you or your boyfriends have ever gone into a Nif base without knowing what was inside."
Prompto sighed, "We had Uncle with us though…" The conversation came to a stop at the painful reminder and Noctis reached out to squeeze Prompto's hand softly.
They rode in silence for a while longer until Libertus came into view, looking worried as he stared at something the rest of them couldn't see yet. Noct pressed his chocobo a bit faster and pulled it to stop beside Libertus. He followed the Glaive's stare and bit back a swear.
Noct could see the base, well fortified at the top of a small hill, peeking over the thin spread of trees. He could also see the dozens of airships scattered across the road and surrounding areas, the many MTs and human soldiers patrolling the area in a wide circle. Makeshift barracks were set up for almost a quarter of a mile around the base with camps fires burning and roadblocks preventing anyone from nearing the base unnoticed.
The base itself was nothing like what anyone had expected; there was a second wall surrounding the first one, just as thick and with just as many soldiers guarding it. A windowless tower of cement and metal rose from the middle of the base, with 3 smaller identical tours surrounding it and connected by some kind of bridge.
Nyx swore as he took in the expanded size of the Niflheim base. "Ifrit's balls! How the hell did they manage to get this built in less than two weeks?" No one answers him as they contemplated how much harder their rescue mission had just become.