BOOK 2: THE TALE OF THE CHOSEN KING
CHAPTER 31 – THE OLD WALL
Noctis stood in the middle of the main road, looking at the gates of the Citadel. Ten years prior he had set on a trip, leaving his father at the stairs of the Palace. He could have never guessed it would be the last time they would see each other.
Now, dark clouds gathered above them, and the Citadel was surrounded by a red barrier. It probably fed from Ardyn's life-force, the same way the Wall fed from the Lucian kings. But Ardyn was immortal, which meant that it could stand unmoving forevermore. But, as Ignis had pointed out, "one problem at a time". First they would have to deal with the enormous, dark form sleeping before the gates.
The beast, whatever it was, could have dwarfed the Behemoth they had killed at the overlook some days prior. They had to proceed with caution.
But, stealthy as they intended to be, the daemon had a keen ear, or it was already waiting for them. It had heard them, and quickly stood on its feet. From all the grotesque mockeries of life, this one had taken the form of a giant, three-headed hound. Its skin was covered with hardened plates and underneath glowed in red and orange the fire power it used to attack its enemies.
A Cerberus.
"Must be Ardyn's little pet," Gladio said, readying his sword and shield.
"We can only hope it's bark is worse than its bite," Ignis joked, already preparing an ice spell at Noctis' word.
"Hope it's ready… we bite back," Noctis quipped, as he set himself on a fighting stance.
The scaly skin was hard as tempered steel, and the friends had to target the skin in between the joints. The monster jumped on top of the Citadel's walls to have the higher ground, but Noctis warped towards it as Prompto fired to cover him. He nailed his sword on the left head, and slashed at the neck once he got a sure grip on the hardened hide. The middle head tried biting at him, but he parried, making the muzzle propel him upwards. He warped again, this time targeting the middle head, which he slashed at without mercy. The Cerberus shook its head violently, throwing Noctis away, but he warped a third time, landing this time below the heads, and in the beast's chest.
He nailed his blade on the place where necks and chest joined, and the Cerberus howled in pain, losing its grip on the wall and falling to the ground.
The four friends used that moment to attack at the same time, using all the powerful techniques they had learned through the years.
The Cerberus shook them away, despite its wounds, and magma began dripping from its maws. It vomited fire and a fiery wall surrounded them all.
"Is it too late to ask Ardyn to call off his dog?" Prompto yelled over the roaring flames.
"I'm afraid it is," Ignis yelled back.
The beast roared, ready to pounce. Something moved to Noctis' right field of vision. A warrior had jumped over the flames and slashed at the middle head with his katana.
"Marshal!"
"Mind if this old soldier joins you?" Cor asked, standing at Noctis' side.
"Not at all!" the King said.
"Good. You may be down, but you're not out. Get ready for round two!"
The Cerberus had become more vicious, and climbed again the wall to jump over the warriors. Noctis repeated the same strategy, making the beast fall to the ground, where Cor and the rest unleashed all their techniques. The daemon got to its feet again, spewing fire and trying to bite at them, but after several attempts, Gladio could finally deliver a devastating slash at the monster's legs, making it fall for what appeared to be the last time.
"Watch out!"
With one last effort, the daemon launched a fireball towards Noctis. They had relaxed but for a few seconds and lowered their guards, except for Cor, who jumped before the King to protect him.
"Marshal!"
The beast's red eyes finally went off and the three heads lain limp on the tarmac, but the friends hurried to help Cor.
"Hey, you all right?" Gladio asked.
"Looks like even the Immortal has his limits…" Cor chuckled. He was badly injured by the magic fire. "I've failed you, Highness…"
His words chocked up in a fit of coughing.
"No, you haven't," Noctis said, readying a potion.
Cor grabbed him by the shoulder and looked into his eyes.
"It has been… the highest honor… to serve the two finest kings… Lucis has ever known."
"And I am honored to have fought at your side, marshal," the King responded.
"Perhaps we'll meet again… at daybreak."
Noctis broke the potion flask, letting the magic-imbued liquid cure the Marshal's wounds. After that, the three friends took Cor with them and accompanied him to a nearby refuge where he would wait, either for reinforcements, or until it was safe to return to the camp.
Returning to the Citadel, they saw that the pet was dealt with, but the Wall still stood.
"Looks like there's no way past the Wall…" said Prompto.
Something roared behind them. Turning around, they saw many daemons spawning and going in their direction. It would be a matter of minutes before they were cornered.
"There's way too many of them," Prompto yelled.
"And no way outta this, either," Gladio admitted.
"Still…" said Noctis, looking at the monsters and readying his sword. "We can't just give up now."
He then felt something behind him.
Between them and the Citadel, a white-golden, humanoid form had appeared. When the glow diminished, they saw the white dress and the Trident of the Oracle.
"Luna?"
"Gods above," her ghostly form intoned in a firm voice. "Hear my plea: lend the Chosen King your strength, that he might save our Star from darkness' blight!"
"The lady's words have reached the heavens," said Gentiana, appearing at her side. "By the will of the Oracle and the grace of the gods, a path for the King is made."
Gentiana disappeared in a flash of blue light. At that moment, lightning struck from above: Ramuh launched his power against the approaching daemons, striking them down until only ashes remained. A snowstorm hit the wall and froze it solid as Shiva's avatars danced around the Citadel. Waves crashed against it as Leviathan coiled around the Wall and tried to crush it with a deafening roar. Cracks started appearing then and Titan, with a punch that shattered the ice out of it, weakened it even more.
They saw a giant creature flying overhead. It was Bahamut, whose armor glimmered in gold and azure and red. The dragon god invoked his swords, which formed a circle in the shape of a sun and, from that circle, a ray of light appeared, completely shattering the Wall.
Gladio was taken by the Six's display, and Prompto described every detail to Ignis. Noctis, however, had his eyes fixed on Luna's spirit. Blue sylleblossom petals fell around them, and she looked as radiant as she did that fateful day in Altissia.
"Luna… thank you," he simply said.
"The fate of our Star rests with you now, my King," she said with a bow and a smile.
He stepped forward, but checked himself. He knew she was an apparition, and would disappear as soon as he tried to touch her. It was she, this time, the one who walked towards him, her hand outstretched. He mirrored her gesture, but she was gone just as their fingers were about to touch, disappearing in a flash of golden light. Noctis opened his hand to see a single sylleblossom petal.
"Talk about divine intervention," Gladio quipped.
"Feels good to know the gods are fighting on our side," Prompto said.
"And the've entrusted the future to you, Noct," Ignis pointed out.
"Yeah," the King said, his resolve renewed. "Woulnd't want to let 'em down now."
The ironworks door was unlocked. The plaza lain ahead.
"What kinda guy do you suppose the Founder King was?" Prompto mused all of a sudden.
"A rather special one, I assume," said Ignis, who had studied the ancient scrolls. "He was the first on his line to be selected as the Crystal's sworn protector."
"Just think," Gladio pointed out. "It could have been Ardyn atop that throne."
"He and I may be born of the same blood, but I don't care. That won't stop me from bringing him to justice."
Despite the destruction of Insomnia, the Citadel was strangely intact. The lamps were lit and the plaza was devoid of any debris or any daemon.
Ardyn was waiting for them at the foot of the stairs.
"Ifrit, the Infernian," he declaimed. "He doesn't share the Glacian's fondness for mankind. But you can expect a… warm welcome. I shall await you… above."
Flames erupted around the plaza as Ardyn slowly climbed the stairs back to the Palace. A giant throne appeared where Ifrit, the Infernian, sat.
"Stay cool… he's gonna bring the heat," Noctis warned his friends.
They tried to approach the Infernian, but he raised his left hand, blackened with the Scourge, and fires appeared at their feet. Noctis was the only one who couldn't dodge that attack and rolled down on the ground, trying to put off the fires on his vestments. He felt someone trying to help him by slapping the flames away.
"Stay down," he heard Prompto. "We'll keep him busy."
He scrambled to his feet and limped away.
"Noct!" Ignis called for him. "Over here! Quickly, before he strikes again!"
His retainer beckoned him to take refuge behind some stone benches. He felt two hands grabbing his waist and dragging him: it was Gladio.
"Here it comes!" Prompto yelled, skidding to reach them.
Gladio covered them with his own body as a wave of infernal heat erupted above them. When it stopped, both Gladio and Prompto jumped out of the parapet and started attacking. Ignis broke a potion for Noctis, and his burns were sealed.
"Let's go!" said Noctis.
"No room for error," Ignis responded.
The flames licked and danced before the Infernian while he sat on the throne, but not even that could guard him from Noctis' warping, Prompto's guns, Ignis' magic and Gladio's sword. It came a moment when Ifrit stood up and grabbed his curved sword. Then a giant sword fell on the battlefield and Bahamut soared through the sky. The Draconian invoked his glaives, which fell on the battlefield, cleaving at the ground while Ifrit dodged them nimbly. Then Bahamut himself lunged at the Infernian.
As the two swords clashed, Noctis saw the opportunity and warped at Ifrit, slashing at him and cutting one of his horns.
The Infernian roared and covered himself in flames.
"So even that wasn't enough?" Gladio said.
"It's turned for the worse," Ignis prepared his ice spells.
"Out of the frying pan, dot, dot, dot?" Prompto ran around, trying to stay away from the flames while he sought an opening to fire.
"We need to put this thing out!" Noctis yelled before warping again.
They kept attacking. Ifrit had become desperate at that point, despite his display of strength, leaving too many opening for them. Ignis' magic ravaged his defenses, and Prompto's nonstop attacks distracted him enough for Gladio and Noctis to pound at him.
Noctis' head throbbed as he felt Gentiana's voice, urging to summon her. He did so, and Shiva's avatars appeared, dancing around the Infernian, and transforming into a blizzard which covered the entire plaza with snow and ice.
Ifrit ran towards Noctis and the remaining form of Shiva standing at his side, seeking to cleave at them both, but the storm slowed down his movements as frostbite covered his body. Shiva finally flew towards him and, with a final kiss, dissolved his form into snow dust.
Rest, my love. May your soul know peace at last.
The Infernian gone, Noctis gathered his friends and discarded the pauldrons of his attire, burnt beyond recognition.
King of Kings, the grace of the gods is with you always.
The words of Gentiana echoed in his mind. He was one step closer.
"I made a promise," he said, looking at the stairs to the Palace. "One that I intend to keep."
They treated their wounds and climbed the stairs. Opening the doors, they saw that the entrance hall was intact.
"That was a most impressive performance," they heard Ardyn's voice.
"You thought that was good? Wait 'til you see what we've got in store for you," Noctis threatened.
The doors closed behind them and the room was flooded with darkness.
"I'm giddy with anticipation! But I'm afraid you've one more Wall to break through first," the room lighted up again, and they saw that a blue mist had invaded it. "The Old Wall… the Kings of Yore."
A gigantic figure appeared before them. It was the Fierce, a king famed by his brutality in battle. He wielded a club, and no enemy could escape with his life.
"Oh, what fun it will be to watch those I revile most tear each other apart."
"Come forth, O chosen…" the Fierce challenged, black mist oozing out of his armor.
"I thought the kings of old were on our side!" Noctis said, dodging the club. "I don't feel right fighting them."
"Sorry to say, but I don't think you have a choice," said Gladio. "Let's go!"
The Fierce let out a war cry and lunged at them. His gigantic club fell where they had been standing but a moment prior, and left a crater several feet deep.
"The three of us must keep Noct safe at all costs!" Ignis yelled, protecting his face from the shards of marble flying in every direction.
"Don't worry about me!"
"You're the whole reason we're here," said Gladio. "Just let us help!"
Noctis tried parrying the club's swinging movement, but it knocked him back. He saved his falling by warping away from the statue's reach. The Fierce was a powerful foe, but also a slow one. By warping in and out of his reach, Noctis could break his concentration enough for the others to wound it.
Gladio shouted a warning, but it was too late. Noctis had started a warp-strike at the same moment the Fierce had casted a spell of gravity. The King felt pulled into the spell area; it was brief, however, but enough to leave him exposed. He saw the club falling over him, but the next moment Gladio's greatsword intercepted the blow. Noctis warped away, and let his friend get away from the Fierce as quickly as possible.
Now the statue had imbued his weapon with dark energy, and his attacks became dangerously faster. His whole armor glowed with dark energy, as miasma poured from every joint.
"He's looking fiercer than before!" Prompto yelled.
"Let's see if he finally starts living up to his name," Gladio growled with a ferocious smile, readying himself for the onslaught.
The Fierce had turned himself into a whirlwind of darkness, destroying everything in his path. The friends had to dodge, not only the club each time the statue attacked them, but also the flying pieces of marble and wood from the destroyed columns and furniture.
Noctis kept up attacking and retreating, but suddenly, after he had delivered some hits, the Fierce wasn't there anymore, and the King's sword slashed in the air.
"Look out!" he heard Prompto yelling.
The warping ability was inherent in every king of Lucis, but the Fierce barely every used it, so proud he had always been of his raw prowess in battle. But now he faced a different foe, and he resorted to every resource he had at hand.
The Fierce had warped to the ceiling to then fall, wielding his club two-handed, towards Noctis. The young King rolled away but had to warp at the last second to avoid being crushed. The statue sunk the club on the floor even deeper than previous times, and Noctis used the split second it took the Fierce to free his weapon to warp-strike him back.
The statue staggered for the first time and swung his club towards Noctis, letting the weapon go all the way around him. The Fierce imbued his club with dark energy and grabbed it with both hands, letting the momentum carry him on a whirlwind attack. The four friends scattered as quickly as they could, waiting for their adversary to spend his energy.
Once the statue stopped, Noctis warp-struck it again, and this time the Fierce fell on his knees. Gladio gave a signal, and they all concentrated their strongest attacks on their rival. But he hadn't earned his moniker for nothing. In a few moments, despite his wounds, he was on his feet again.
Noctis had no other choice: He summoned the Arminger, and commanded the weapons to attack the statue, as his friends also attacked with everything they had.
Now the Fierce was on his last legs, but still he used his remaining strength to deliver an overwhelming attack with his club towards Noctis, but Gladio, summoning his shield, parried it.
"I've served as your Shield through thick and thin," he grunted to Noctis as he deflected the club. "No matter what, I've got your back… now and always!"
Summoning Cor's old katana in place of the shield, he rushed ahead, cutting with both swords through the armor of the King of Old.
The Fierce fell to the ground and, as the miasma poured out of the armor's joints, a voice boomed in the room.
"Forgive me… my mind was not my own…" the Fierce said, as his body disappeared in a flash of light.
Gladio also fell to his knees, trying to catch his breath.
"You okay?" Noctis asked him.
"Yeah…" he huffed with a wide grin. "This Shield's a little sturdier than he looks. We'd better keep moving. C'mon."
Despite Gladio's protests, Noctis knew best and broke a potion for his friend.
The miasma in the hall had lifted, and they could proceed to the elevators. All of them were out of order, except for one: that which would lead them straight to the government wing. They took it, and ironized about Ardyn expecting company and keeping the whole Palace in pristine condition.
The expected to come out to a hallway but, instead, they saw themselves in a darkened room with columns surrounding what looked like a dimly lit arena.
"Welcome… O Chosen…" a voice reverberated around them.
Ahead, in the middle of a circular space between two columns, a giant statue gave its back to the warriors. It turned slowly, and they saw that it was the statue of the Rogue, the Queen who governed from the shadows after both his father and brother perished, and until her heir was ready to take the throne. She had a graceful figure and, instead of a helmet, her face was covered in a porcelain mask, and her headdress simulated the horns of the Dragon God.
Unlike their previous rival, the Rogue used speed and illusions to confound her enemies, and wielded her giant shuriken with as much ease as a sword.
If with the Fierce they had to let him perform his attacks without approaching him, the Rogue couldn't be left to move as she pleased, least she would vanish on thin air.
She had an astonishing speed, and when Gladio tried to slash at her with his sword, she warped out of sight, leaving behind a ghostly image which exploded in the Shield's face.
"Where are you!" he roared, looking around them. "Show yourself!"
But from the shadows they could only heard her chuckling.
"I see you…"
Noctis heard those words being whispered in his ear, and before he could react, he felt a kick on his back which threw him to the ground. He rolled away instinctively and warped to one of the columns. Ignis, being nimbler than Gladio, could wound the Rogue with his spear, but she was too quick even for him.
Only Prompto could keep up with her once she reappeared. The gunslinger kept firing at her, almost never missing a shot, even as the Rogue moved around the "arena" as if she danced around the warriors.
His bullets began to have an effect on the combat, in that each time she tried targeting Gladio, the slowest of them, Prompto broke her concentration enough to let the Shield dodge most of the times. But the rest of times Gladio had to parry her attacks and a few times her shuriken drew blood from him.
Because his extraordinary resistance, Gladio didn't notice that her weapon was laced with poison, until he tried parrying again and the world swam before him. Noctis warp-struck her and yelled a command to Ignis, but Gladio's hearing had become muffled as his knees hit the floor. He felt, as if through a very thick fabric, a hand cupping his face and making him drink something. It burnt his insides, but soon he could see and hear again.
"Poison," said Ignis, while Noctis kept her occupied. "Best to avoid her blades."
"Yeah, easy thing."
They heard Noctis cursing: The rogue had made herself invisible.
"Over there!" Prompto screamed.
Noctis dodged just in time before the Rogue could ambush him. He used the same trick as with the Fierce, to warp in and out of her reach before she could react, but this time timing was essential.
Between Ignis and Noctis, with Prompto in the distance, they could keep her busy enough to prevent her from disappearing, with Gladio happily lending a hand now that his friends kept her engaged. Nevertheless, a single, slightly out of sync movement let her enough time to flee to the shadows. From there, her shuriken flew, tracing deadly paths between them.
"Where'd she go?" Gladio grunted.
But his sword was already spinning, slashing at the Rogue at the very moment she was about to stab him in the back. She recoiled, staggering, and prepared to flee, when Noctis and Ignis struck her in a combined attack.
The Rogue growled, as a purplish light began to emanate from her armor. She stopped warping away from the battle area, but her attacks became stronger and more vicious, targeting Prompto this time.
The gunslinger was waiting for her, though, and switched her pistols for his machinegun. Bullets seemed to affect her more than blades, but she still pushed on to slash at Prompto, who dodged her attacks with ease. Noctis kept warping and attacking her, even when she started fleeing again to the darkness.
"You can't fool me!" Prompto yelled, shooting at the darkness.
His bullets found their target, because the other three hear the sound of metal and the Rogue grunting with each salvo.
She came out of hiding again, brandishing her shuriken, with a reckless fury born out of her rage at being outwitted by that small human.
Prompto's aim never faltered. As soon as he saw her coming out of the surrounding darkness, he switched to a flare gun and fired above them. The flash of light in the dimly-lit battle ground made her wince and stop on her track for a moment. She took but a moment to recover, but it was enough for Prompto to charge against her.
Cartwheeling, he kicked the shuriken out of her hand.
"I owe Noct everything…"
The weapon spun in the air and fell on his hand.
"…for standing by me always."
With a dexterous swept of his arm, he threw the weapon at the Rogue, stabbing her in the chest. While the statue reeled, trying to regain her footing when she pulled her weapon out of her body, Prompto summoned his pistols.
"And now… it's my turn to stand by him!"
Swift as lightning, he aimed and shot three times, each one hitting the wound on her chest, and each one causing an explosion of dark magic and miasma.
The graceful form of the Rogue fell to the ground, defeated, and the four friends were engulfed by a white light. When it dissipated, they were no longer in that strange space, but in the corridor outside the elevator.
"Go forth, Chosen King… Restore the Light…"
Such were the words they heard fading away, as if the wind was already taking them with it.
Gladio slumped against one of the walls while Prompto knelt, trying to regain his breath.
"Take it easy," Noctis told his blond friend.
"What kind of friend would I be if I took it easy when you're in trouble?" he answered with a smirk. "I'll be fine. Let's keep moving."
However, Noctis insisted on resting a few minutes. During that time, both he and Ignis scanned the nearby corridors in search of any daemonic presence.
"Seems like he keeps the Palace clear of any daemon," Ignis commented.
"Heh, the bastard fills the world with daemons but won't allow them at home," Gladio huffed.
"Let's go and give him what he deserves," said Noctis.
Following the corridors, they realized that Ardyn had traced a path for them, sealing all the doors they weren't supposed to cross and only opening the ones which, as Noctis remembered, led to the throne room.
Noctis felt a pang, remembering how he used to run along those corridors when he was a child, always under Ignis' watchful eye.
They would reach the antechamber for the Throne Room after the last turn to the left. The young King remembered that place with mixed feelings. The paintings adorning the walls had always fascinated him as a child. Eos' mythology had been something obscure and mysterious to his young, impressionable mind. It hadn't been until he traveled to Tenebrae that Luna taught him what he needed to know.
His father never talked about the paintings, not even after Noctis' ordeal and healing; not even when the child held the copy of the Cosmogony book open before him, and pointed out to his father the similarities between the writings and the images hung at that room.
And there were times, late at night, when King Regis, thinking himself alone, would spend a long time standing before a particular painting, the one depicting the coming of the Chosen One. Noctis knew of that habit but never asked, being already too old to be mystified by the old myths, but one day his curiosity got the better of him and he snuck into the room.
His father stood like a statue before the picture, shedding silent tears and murmuring something. Noctis felt so disconcerted when he saw his father like that. Regis had always shown a benevolent and jolly disposition before his son, save for the times when he had to be stern. Seeing him openly crying was more than unsettling for his son, who could only picture his father with nothing less than a good-natured expression.
After a while, Regis wiped away his tears and went back to his room. Noctis didn't move from his hiding place until he heard the heavy doors closing, and went to examine the painting. There was nothing terrible or sad about it: Four men, one of them receiving a blessing from a winged female figure while the Gods stood watching and keeping the daemons at bay.
Now, more than ten years later, Noctis thought he understood why his father cried that night, why he refused to discuss anything concerning the Cosmogony, and why his expression became melancholic each time his son asked about it all.
After his long sleep, Noctis was sure that the Crystal had revealed his father all the truth before it all began. It was a thought that wouldn't leave him, that his father had been bound by Destiny, unable to reveal anything to anyone, not even his own son. Because Noctis knew that, had he known the truth, he would have rebelled, maybe ruining any opportunity the world against the Scourge.
Their steps resonated through the long hall of black marble. Noctis' heart raced. With each step he was closer to his destiny, but his only concern was not to fail, for his friends, and for those who had died so he could be there at the Palace at that moment.
The heavy doors to the antechamber opened. There was another giant armor waiting for them there. Noctis readied his sword in an instant, recognizing the armor as that of Somnus, the Founder King.
Noctis frowned and doubted for a moment, though, when he noticed the jerking movements of Somnus. Dark energy oozed from his armor, as with his companions before; this time, however, the Founder King seemed to be the only one to retain a faint sense of self which tried to resist the Scourge.
The armor glowed with a purplish color as the Founder King roared and charged towards them. The slashes from his sword were strong enough to send Gladio tumbling backwards when he tried parrying.
"This one's more powerful than the last!" Ignis warned.
"Then I guess we're in for one hell of a fight," Noctis snarled as he dodged the blade.
The young King had to calculate his own movements very carefully. The Founder King, despite not being as powerful as the Fierce, and not as swift as the Rogue, had been in life a graceful swordsman and a dexterous magic user. The Scourge only amplified those traits, making him the deadliest of the Kings of Yore.
Ignis issued instructions when he had compiled enough information about Somnus' fighting style. They all attacked at the same time, not giving the statue neither time nor room to warp out of their reach. They could wear him down until the armor glowed more intensely. Noctis jumped backwards, and warned the others to do the same.
There was an explosion of dark energy which threw them backwards. Somnus' sword traced a circle over the founder King's head, and he let it fall like a hammer over Noctis. The young King parried with his own sword, but he gasped when the blow made his shoulders feel as if they were being torn down.
Prompto shoot a flare towards the statue's back; its flash distracted Somnus for a moment, enough for Ignis to pass a potion to Noctis, who felt his hands suddenly losing strength. Gladio joined the fray as soon as the statue lowered his guard, and both Noctis and Ignis attacked when Somnus defended himself from Gladio's onslaught.
The Founder King spin on his heels, bringing his blade in a circle, and advanced like a whirlwind, much like the Fierce had done earlier. Noctis dodged the first wave, but the second time the blade slashed him across his back. Wincing, he warped towards one of the columns to regain his energy, to then warp-strike as their adversary was occupied with Gladio and Ignis. Noctis slashed furiously at the armor before warping away at a safe distance, where Prompto stood, still firing his machinegun.
Ignis followed suit, yelling at Gladio that they had to regroup. The Mystic didn't follow them immediately, though, and when Ignis opened a potion to heal Noctis, the young King saw that their adversary was losing strength.
The next assault was more ruthless, with Somnus using dark magic to power up his attacks and cast spells. The four friends used the same strategy of causing a distraction and then attacking all at the same time, but it was being less and less effective the more the battle dragged on.
Noctis felt his mental strength draining, and Ignis sense it too. Thankfully, the long battle had served him to obtain enough data about their enemy's weak points.
"Leave this to me!" the retainer told the King, before the later could warp one last time.
Ignis could not see, but could sense movement and hear it. From what he had studied about the Mystic, and his current combat experience, Ignis knew that the Founder King had been a much disciplined warrior in life, and that such habit carried on in death, and that also meant that his movements could be predicted.
He prepared a multi-spell grenade, waited for the exact moment when their enemy lifted his sword, and threw it. The projectiles hit several points in the armor, that Ignis was sure were key points. Somnus grunted and doubled down, kneeling. The retainer then imbued his daggers with fire magic, and joined his companions in a combined attack, but this time, when the magic in the daggers waned, Ignis switched to his lance and jumped, cleaving the spear on the armor in the fall.
Somnus focused on him.
"I will see that nothing stands in Noct's way!" Ignis declared, a magic grenade in his hand.
The Founder King lifted his blade with both hands. Ignis sidestepped the first slash, and the second, and before the giant blade went for a thrust, the retainer threw his grenade, which hit the statue square in the chest.
"And I will do whatever it takes… no matter the cost!"
Somnus recoiled, visibly weakened, but wielded his blade again and slashed downguards. Ignis, spear in hand, was quick as a viper, and used the brief opening the Mystic had offered to stab at the armor several times.
The founder King knelt, seemingly in defeat. His armor glowed more strongly as he got up. With a scream, he slashed at the air around him, and the blade caused a wave of light to engulf the whole room.
When they could open their eyes, the walls had disappeared, and what remained of the room was surrounded by a vortex of magic energy.
"Brace yourselves!" Ignis yelled.
In that place, the Founder King had renewed energies, and this time his focus was on Ignis.
The retainer dodged each attack with ease, but this time Somnus paired his magic with his blade.
Ignis still could detect the weak points on the Founder King's armor, and exploited them as much as he could.
The fight became desperate for both sides. Somnus seemed to be losing energy once more after Noctis warp-struck him, but he recovered and charged towards the young King, brandishing his blade with both hands.
"Not on my watch!" Gladio screamed, rushing to parry the Mystic's blade with his shield. This time the blow didn't make him budge, and he knew Somnus was at the end of his tether.
With a push, Gladio shoved the blade away. From behind him, Prompto used the shield as cover to shoot a salvo, hitting in the exact same points Ignis had targeted.
The retainer ran towards Gladio, who waited for him to jump on his hands, propelling his friends upwards with all his strength. Ignis summoned his spear while on the air, stabbing Somnus in the chest as he fell, and jumping back and away.
"Go, Noct!" he yelled.
Noctis warp-struck the Mystic four times, finally defeating the Mystic, the most powerful of the Kings of Yore. The armor knelt, defeated.
"Hate to break it to you," Noctis said. "But you're outnumbered."
The illusion was broken, and they were in the antechamber again.
"You have done well…" the Mystic said, as his body disappeared in a flash of blue light, now free from the Scourge. "Hear me, Chosen King. The time had come to fulfill your calling and dispel the darkness from our world. Go forth. Restore the Light… and free my brother from his curse."
Noctis slowed down his breathing. Ardyn would be the last obstacle.
"I hope we can do it," Prompto murmured.
"With you guys at my side…" Noctis said, turning around to look at his friends. "I know I will be ready for anything."
xxxxXX-0-XXxxxx
They didn't enter the throne room immediately. The Citadel was devoid of any daemons, ironically, and the four friends spent some time in the antechamber, resting and treating their wounds.
Noctis stood before the Savior's mural one last time, as his father had done so many years back, and mused aloud what could have been like for Ardyn to spend an eternity alone. In his heart, he remembered the remarks that man had thrown at him while they played cat and mouse at Zegnautus Keep.
It must be great having friends.
What had really happened to Ardyn? Did the whole world turn on him all of a sudden? Or, was it like a destructive madman who denounces the ones locking him up as unfair?
"I'm the only one who can deliver him from his misery," Noctis thought, not without pity.
Prompto called for them: he had discovered a small graffiti on one of the paintings. The King felt his cheeks reddening, but Ignis chuckled gently, remembering a young Prince who took to himself to "enhance" the grim paintings with his crayons, and the retainer who had to try and fix it afterwards.
When they were well rested, they gathered one last time before confronting Ardyn. Noctis, all of a sudden, asked Prompto for one of the photos, to take it with him.
Understanding his intentions, his friend lent him the stack. Shuffling through them brought many memories to him, both pleasant and uncomfortable. And some of them strengthened his resolve to end the Scourge once and for all.
Choosing one was very difficult, since each one of them symbolized a moment he didn't want to forget, but in the end he picked the family photo they took at Cape Caem, before they set sail to Altissia, and before the whole world plunged into chaos.
Smiling, he caressed the picture. He had no doubt that both Iris and Talcott would help build a world where everyone could be happy.
That was enough for him.
