How the hell did he wind up here, and where was here, anyway? Gladio's eyes opened only to find himself heavily bound by thick chains - bonds which he usually would have been able to break like a tree branch, had it not been reinforced with magic.

Last thing he remembered, he had gotten a phone call from Ignis saying that Nyxia was kidnapped by necromancers. He hadn't even known that she left the hotel room until that rude awakening. Yet, when he was instructed to meet the others as the palace, he knew something wasn't right there. Something seemed really off, like someone had been expecting them.

The trio met up somewhere in the palace; he couldn't even remember exactly. His head was still throbbing, as if he had a bad hangover.

He remembered seeing Ardyn. Somehow, it all felt like a bad dream, but he wasn't an idiot. Gladio then remembered what he had discovered. Nyxia had a much more complicated past than he expected, and she had darker secrets than he had bargained for.

She lied to him - to all of them. A past love with Ardyn was a big secret to hide, no matter that he had been presumed dead. It pissed him off, made his blood run like angry lava as he pulled at his restraints.

Then, he forced himself to tone it down and look at the room around him. He couldn't recall being in this part of the palace. There were no windows, and the four, stone walls around him seemed fairly close. Behind him, though he struggled to see, he thought he saw bars. Was he in a cell?

Flickering torches illuminated the chamber outside, giving him just enough room to barely see what was around him. There really was nothing more. Ardyn must have put him here after rendering him unconscious. And Ignis and Prompto... were they alright?

There was no telling how long he had been here. Hours? Days?

"That son of a bitch!" he growled, struggling for a few moments longer. Yet, he couldn't determine what angered him more - the fact that Ardyn was back, or the fact that he had an intimate history with Nyxia before he came along.

Gladiolus had never been the jealous type. Usually, women just came and went. Not that he always slept around; in fact, he did that a lot less often than most would expect. He was a flirt a lot more than he was a sleaze that slept around. While women were beautiful, they also deserved respect.

Well, now he just felt like an asshole. For the longest time, that was not how he had treated Nyxia. She reminded him a lot of Noct, before he matured to be a king. She was stubborn. She was a hassle. She drove him mad and constantly reminded him to watch his temper.

But damnit, did she know how to drive a stick in bed.

"That she does." The familiar voice that stirred behind him caused Gladio's blood pressure to instantly rise. If he had any chance of getting out of these chains, he would strangle that bastard as long as he possibly could, and make his death as slow and as painful as possible.

"What did you do with the others!?"

He heard footsteps behind him, on the opposite side of the bars, but he couldn't see Ardyn, no matter how much he tried to turn his head. He couldn't even catch him in his peripheral vision.

"Ignis and Prompto are alive and well, and they're probably headed back this way to come save you."

Gladio never knew the man to be a liar, though he was very deceitful in other ways. If this was true, he was certain Ardyn would set up some sort of trap to play with them.

"Dear Queen Nyxia, however... she is beyond saving."

Queen? What had happened while he was out?

As if sensing his confusion, Ardyn continued. "Your poor dove has been through so much loss these past couple of days. And since you weren't around to comfort her, I merely picked up the torch."

Gladio's fists clenched. Cingarus and Natalia...were they both dead?

"Especially since you are the one that killed the king."

"Liar! You're insane-" Instantly, he understood what this meant. Ardyn made it look like Gladio was the one to kill Cingarus. He might have been unconscious for two days, but he wasn't a fool.

"What did you do to her?" he demanded, forcing himself to clear his head.

Then, two arms enclosed him within the chair. Ardyn stood in front of him like a flash of lightning, his face half-masked by his fedora. "Oh, she's just upstairs, sitting her throne. I ensured that." The smirk he wore made him only want to punch him harder.

"The moment I get out of here, I will end you."

"I'd like to see you try, lover boy."

Ardyn laughed, and he shoved his foot into the chair, sending it back into the bars. Gladio's head jerked forward then back, and a case of whiplash washed over him.

"He still shows worry for her well-being. How precious." Then, behind him, an array of bright, red armiger weapons floated in the air. "I might have to beat that out of you, and keep beating you until there is nothing left."

Gladio glared fire at him, and as he fought again at the enchanted chains, he could only take the royal arms, as if he was Ardyn's practice target. Each sharp point of each blade and arrow that landed into his torso, and though he didn't bleed, it felt like the real thing. Ardyn enjoyed every minute of it, but he would never be given the satisfaction of hearing any sounds of pain - not even an audible wince.

They only kept coming, and it felt like a good, five minutes had passed before Ardyn ceased fire. His entire body ached. Getting stabbed a hundred times kinda did that to a person. He slowly lifted his head, and for a moment, thought he saw frustration in The Accursed's eyes.

"We have an abundance of time to break you down." He walked out of the cell, passing through the bars as if he was a ghost. "Get yourself comfortable, Gladio. It will be a long stay."

Eventually, the footsteps sounded into silence, and all he could hear was a painful ringing in his ears. He dropped his head, exhausted, but in far too much pain to sleep.

Ignis. Prompto. Where are you guys? He saved his winces for now, for when he was alone. As he tried to shift his body, he growled lowly at the pain.

Xia...

He didn't want to say it out loud, but Ardyn was right. He was worried about her. If she was queen, then she lost both her mother and father. He knew that had to hurt a lot. He had seen loss, even witnessed it for himself in the past. Perhaps he dealt with it better than others, but even when Noctis had given his life, and the rays of the first sun after the Starscourge had risen over the trees, Gladio wasn't tearless.

Nyxia was a tough girl, but she felt pain just like everyone else.

Finally, Gladio's eyes closed, and he dreamed for the first time in a long while. He could feel the sea breeze of Galdin Quay as he walked on the dock.

On the sand, he saw her, sunbathing on a towel with her back towards the sky. She sported a black bikini, which blended in with her raven hair. Between her and the sand was a crimson towel.

The waves were a little choppy, but otherwise, the weather felt beautiful. He could hear the gulls calling, and he could even smell lobster steaming.

He headed down the steps, his boots sinking slightly into the sand as he would walk towards Nyxia. She seemed oblicious that he was even there, but very soon, he found himself distracted. To his left, where he saw another dock reaching out over the water, he saw a figure with shorter, black hair. He held a fishing pole, and seemed to be reeling in a large catch.

As if it was normal to see hia long-gone friend, Gladio headed for that direction instead to see what fish was on the line. However, in the distance, the water began to rise. Rapidly, the skies darkened, and the sea became a wall crumbling towards the shore.

"NOCT!" he yelled, but as the water crashed onto the dock, it took half of it, as well as the man that stood on it.

Gladio froze, then turned to where he had seen Nyxia. She was gone, too, but a red towel could be seen floating on the calming water before it would sink.