Almost as if the entire base had been powered by an orgasm, the elevator hummed as her body slumped on top of his.

She always hated that feeling she got when the elevator would first begin to shift, where her stomach would feel funny, but down here on the floor with Ardyn, all she felt was ecstasy.

She watched the ripple of his back muscles as they both collided with the floor. The way his hair looked like wild, violet flame, tousled on his head.

She had tried to forget this bliss she felt with him once before, back when he was her world. Except, the world was nothing but destruction and darkness.

As the elevator finished its ascension, the lights flickered. Nyxia blinked, but as she did, there was no trace of Ardyn.

Again...

No trace, except for the warm seed that trickled from her sex. She adjusted her undergarments and smoothed her skirt over her upper legs before she exited the shaft.

Around her was a giant clearing, a catwalk takong her towards a round platform in the center of the area. The platform was enclosed, but the door to it was ajar. It was the room she saw on the security camera. And sure enough, the jeweled shuriken sat on the seat of the deceased emperor's throne.

She paced forward, knowing there was no turning back now. As she stood in front of the chair, she thought again about what she was doing, and why she was doing it. Her eyes closed, and she mused.

If it was the only way to bring back the light, what was she waiting for?

Nyxia's green eyes opened, and as she lifted her hand towards the air in front of her, it came to her, flying into her grip like a boomerang.

She had always worked so hard to try and make a difference in the world. Now, she had an opportunity to finally do something right.

With a deep breath, Nyxia ran one of the shuriken's sharp tips against her chest, drawing a downward gash towards her stomach. She cried out in pain as she did, and as the blood ran freely onto her shirt, its color began to change. The Gem fell to the floor, covered in black blood. The sorceress coughed and thrashed, fighting a pain that started deep within.

Then, it felt like claws were tearing into the cut, ripping her skin off and digging deeper into her body. The pain was overwhelming, and what more, her screams would be heard by no one but the welcoming daemons surrounding the citadel.

The pain only subsided after about ten minutes. She lied on the bloodied floor, breathing heavily as the cut seemed to gradually heal on its own. In time, she only felt fatigued. Perhaps a little strange, as though she drank one too many glasses of wine. Then, her body fell limp.

Nyxia would wake up with a start, though was surprised to find herself back in her own bed. She sat up, the curtains blowing gently in the night breeze. She checked her phone. 1:27am. There was also a text from Aranea.

Call me as soon as you wake up.

Had she brought her back to Curia? Nyxia, determined to get her answers, dialed Aranea. Two rings in, however, the phone made a sad noise that insisted its battery was too low to continue on. She growled irritably, locating the charger to plug it in.

While she waited for it to power up, she rose from the bed.

It would be a while before sunrise. Or was this whole thing a dream? She wasn't wearing the leather jacket and short skirt that she recalled sporting before. Nor did she see any blood, black or otherwise, nor as much as a scratch on her chest.

Had the whole thing really been nothing more than a figment of her imagination?

Or had Aranea helped clean her up while she was unconscious?

She climbed out of the bed, and the room was lit up by a clash of lightning from outside. The sound of rain pattering could be heard, but outside, it was nearly pitch-black.

Nyxia flipped the switch, but no light turned on. Curia was without power again.

She changed out of her nightgown, slipping into a pair of spandex pants, taking a moment to adjust the buckled straps on the outer thighs that covered a thin layer of black mesh. From her wardrobe, she drew out a tight, leather vest, zipping it up to her neck before she would slip into a pair of heeled, platform boots.

She used her fingers to comb her long hair on the way out. She wasn't even sure where she was going yet. Perhaps she would need to start up the generator before the daemons started coming.

However, as she passed by the throne hall, she came to a halt. Something didn't feel right. Something felt... evil, but like it was calling her to come inside.

But as Nyxia slowly walked into the vast room, it was evident that royalty did sit the throne, after all. As she came into the vast, dark room, she saw Ardyn perched on the chair at the top of the stairs, as if he knew she was coming, sitting where her father should have been.

At the foot of the stairs, her energy left her completely. Suddenly, she felt utterly drained, and her body fell to the floor. It was hard to breathe, like the air around her had thickened and poisoned itself. Ardyn remained where he was, but he acknowledged her.

"There she is. How I've missed my beautiful princess...now all grown up to be a queen."

Is this what it felt like to die? Nyxia couldn't be sure, but at this rate, perhaps death would be a blessing. She crawled up the stairs, collapsing a couple of times. As she reached his feet, Ardyn leaned over, pulling her up by her waist in such a way to rest her on his lap. Even still, she was far too lethargic to keep herself upright, let alone fight him off. It was as if his presence had sucked the life out of her.

His hands moved to either side of her face, and he pressed her forehead against his. There was a glow, not of a bright, yellow light, but instead of crimson. Yet, as the moments passed and the light would begin to fade, Nyxia felt invigorated. Even considering what he was, he could still be a healer.

"It must have been agonizing," he said, dipping his head down, where he would plant kisses along the center of her chest. "Yet, I knew you could push through it."

She didn't say anything. It was obvious that Nyxia wasn't having an easy time coming to terms with this. It definitely was no dream, which meant the sun would rise.

But that also meant she had indeed given herself to him back in Gralea.

"It's such a shame you did it all for naught."

Her chest tightened at his words. "What?" Nyxia stepped back suddenly, and as she did, Ardyn rose to his feet casually.

"I kept your seat warm for you, Your Majesty. It's going to be a long, cold night."

"You fucking monster! What did you do!?" she demanded as she charged at him. However, Nyxia threw herself forward, thrusting him back into the throne and bringing her sickle to his throat.

"I'm not the monster you think I am. I'm the monster you wanted me to be."

"You'd better start talking, and cut the riddles."

"Your sunrise won't be coming for at least another year." The appalled look she held had Ardyn laughing wickedly. "It might have come sooner, had you not been so brazen back in the elevator."

Nyxia felt her body run cold, as if liquid ice coursed through her veins suddenly. "You bastard... you tricked me!" She brought back the weapon, though as she sliced at him, he grabbed the blade with his bare hand.

"Ah, ah... Did you forget that it was you who begged for it?" Black, inky blood trickled down his wrist, but he didn't even seem to express pain. "I simply fulfilled your request."

"You knew it would happen this way..." she scowled furiously. How was she supposed to know there would be consequences, especially to this degree?

"But isn't it worth all that pleasure you endured?" he muttered, his other hand gliding up her abdomen. "How long has it been since we shared such a beautiful moment?"

"Stop it!" she yelled, and suddenly, her hands both snaked around his neck. He was likely still immortal, but she was hoping for at least a chance to choke the life out of him. Again, Ardyn only laughed.

"Go ahead, my pet. Unleash your anger! It will quicken your corruption." It took a moment for his words to reach her, then, Nyxia's grop loosened. She was screwed no matter what she did.

"What did you do to me..." Her voice sounded of defeat.

"Oh, no, no. That wasn't me," he insisted. "You chose to believe the gods showed you a vision of using blood and death magic to save Eos. That was your first mistake." He held up his index finger as if to emphasize his words. "Your second mistake was no different from mine. You willingly took in the darkness, and even with good intentions, with no idea of the consequences to follow."

"Bullshit! You never had good intentions!"

Ardyn grabbed her by the back of the neck and pulled her closer, his lips dangerously close to hers. "I did once," he said. "Even when you were mine, I wanted to protect you. Deep within, a tiny sliver of me might have even wanted to see you succeed, and to abandon my spite."

"Spite towards someone that stole your throne," she scoffed. "Yeah, right..."

"I can't possibly blame you now, though back then, I did, But I snapped." He snapped his fingers, giving her a look that was difficult to read. He seemed smug, but it felt forced, somehow. "I broke you like a twig, and I had nothing left to go back to. So, I met my fate...for a little while."

"You just couldn't stay dead," she scowled.

"Noctis told me only then could I know peace. But I already knew what that felt like..." His hand brushed over the side of her face. "...and I destroyed it." Nyxia's words were trapped in her throat. He hadn't expressed anything like this in a long time. She had been starting to think he couldn't feel love. She understood, but that only went so far.

"That doesn't legitimize anything."

"I did it because I didn't want to lose you again."

Nyxia looked at him in confusion and surprise. What did prolonging the darkness have to do with losing her? It had nothing to do...

She paused, recalling his words. "You chose to believe the gods showed you a vision..."

"You were the one who showed me the visions."

Ardyn gave her an impish smile. "On the contrary, you have Rubia to thank for that."

Rubia. It was still hard to keep in mind that she had been a mind trick all of this time, too. A succubus. One that didn't seem to care much about orders from Ardyn, though she wouldn't have doubted it for a second that Ardyn was still behind this trickery.

"Given a chance, you two could become fast friends."

"She's a monster, just like you..." Nyxia growled.

"And as you now know, we monsters can have nightmares, too."

Again, she cried out in anger, the sickle coming down a second time. Now, it landed into his shoulder. Ardyn growled, and his face altered, blackness accenting his face like streaks of blood. His eyes darkened, and his skin was significantly paler.

She had only seen him once like this before, the night when he had raped her and left her for good. Yet, this time, Nyxia was hurting emotionally, not physically...

"Stop it..." she choked out, and a glisten of a single tear could be seen on her cheek. "Stop making me believe you might be in there somewhere..."

He looked up at her from the chair, breathing heavily, his body twitching as if he was trying to fight the daemons inside of him. Then, the black streaks faded, and his skin darkened back to normality again. His body calmed, and he gently pulled her in, his lips brushing away the teardrop.

"You always had so much faith in me... Don't give up on me now."

To be honest, she also grew up a lot since then, but that didn't mean she didn't want to at least try. She'd give anything to see that side of him again.