So this took a while once more, even though I really wanted to post sooner. I defended my dissertation (the thesis I kept on mentioning) and am literally weeks away from being down with school for maybe the rest of my life – unless I become a professor lol

On another note, my mother is very very ill and it has been another ordeal on top of everything else. I'm hoping things can go for the better, but in short, it explains my recent difficulties at writing. At one point, any romance simply made me want to cry and let's not talk about family feels. But I'm hoping I can be back with a few chapters. We pick up right where we left off, with Gladiolus, Luna and Prompto resting in one room, Noctis on his own and no raviris to be expected this time, going to ignea as well as a short family moment. Thank you for still reading or for picking up this monstrous story. I'll keep the chapters coming. Only 14 to go after this!

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Unexpected

Chapter 100 – Endless mirrors

Gladiolus woke up slowly. He was thankful for the absence of nightmares, and his first thought was to check his phone in case Crowe had written or sent more pictures. She hadn't of course, she needed to get rest whenever their boy was sleeping. The thought still made him feel fuzzy inside. Looking up, he frowned. Prompto was sitting on his own bed, back against the wall, Luna huddled close to him. Which was not how he remembered the sleeping agreement to be.

"Luna?" Noctis's voice called from above his shoulder. Whipping around, Gladio saw his King's face popping out of the wall. "What the hell is going on here?!" Noctis insisted.

Gladiolus leaped to catch him by the shoulders as he finished phasing into the room, the two blonds stirring up as the bed creaked.

"Noctis!"

"Am I that scary now?" he managed, grabbing at his face as though to check whether fangs were growing out of his mouth or not. His whole frame was shaking, but there was a twinkle of red in his eyes that alarmed his Shield.

"Oh cut the shit, Noct," Gladio shot back. "Everyone's shaken, not just the queen or your puny ass."

"But…!"

Luna got to her feet, her voice hoarse as she held a clenched fist against her chest. "I couldn't sleep, I wasn't running away, Noct. I wouldn't just..." she couldn't manage more words.

Prompto shot a glare at his friend, who seemed ready to phase out of Gladio's hold. Why was there always a rush in everything they did? Why did Noctis have to stretch himself so thin?

"Are you hearing her? Are you hearing the stuff you're making her say?!" Gladio cursed.

"I know I'm a monster by now, but I didn't ask for it!" Noctis opposed, voice hacking off as he dropped his hands by his sides.

Luna held her head in one hand, her eyes hurting from the new tears. This was exactly what she had feared would happen. And yet she couldn't find her voice.

"Dude…" Prompto sighed.

"No one called you a monster," Gladio said, giving his back a rough pat. "What I'm saying is that if you're going to get angry at someone, take it out on the MTs, not us. Not your wife."

Noctis's shoulders dropped, eyes looking down at his hands, which were keeping him upright as he knelt on that stupid bed. Gladio was basically hugging him now instead of holding him down. And all he could acknowledge was that his own Shield was treating him like a time bomb. And he was right to do so.

"I don't want to be like this. I don't want to use the armiger again. I wish I could just trash my father's ring and… Shut down all the godsdamn voices still in my head..."

"Oh Noct, Noct, no, we can still…"

Luna crossed the room, tentatively reaching for his shoulders. She half expected Noctis to warp himself up and grab her, but he hid his face against his hands instead. Gladio shuffled to the side to give them space, and through the pressure keeping her chest so tight, Luna found the air she needed to speak.

"Dear Noctis, I'm not losing you to some sick gods' games. I love you."

He trembled but didn't dare to look up. What if the crystal said something again? What if Ifrit interfered? Why couldn't their lives be theirs and theirs alone?

Luna rubbed his back, repeating his name softly. He could hear that she'd cried for most of the night in her voice. It hurt to think his arms weren't comforting enough to her, but those thoughts were dangerous.

"Luna, I… I'm really sorry."

"We just need to get away from this place," she managed.

It felt like a soft lie, a pretense that she would feel better once outside. There were so many questions he wanted to ask her, but those had to be wrong too.

"I'll do my best," he whispered.

"We're in this together," she reminded him, stroking his hair.

"It's like I can't remember how it felt to not be scared," he confessed.

Those words resonated with her, with every one of the people standing in this room to be fair, but Luna was the one holding him. She pulled him up to hug him properly, letting him hide his face against her chest, letting him apologize some more as more tears and sobs racked his body.

Prompto and Gladio felt like intruders on the scene, the King's Shield sitting down with Prompto on the other side of the room to give the royal couple a semblance of privacy. The sobs passed, turning to sniffling and light hiccups, followed by rocky apologies.

"Dear Noctis…"

"You don't have to force yourself, Luna, if…"

"I am not forcing anything. I was beyond shaken last night, and I might reach that stage again in the future, but that won't ever stop me from loving you, Noct."

He felt ready to collapse into more tears, but his eyes couldn't shed any more at the moment and his chest was far too tight and sore as it was. She used her light on him, easing some of the pain, though she sensed darkness left in him. The fear came back, but she forced it back down. As he pulled back enough to get a better look at her, he realized how damp her dress was and couldn't help apologizing some more.

"Enough of that, dear. I can get changed. And if I want to get away from here faster, I'd better hurry so we can get on with the business we have left in this dreadful place…"

"Amen to that," Prompto whispered.

There was an awkward silence, then more apologizing yet again, Gladio groaning something about wanting to check on his sister. Noctis escorted Luna back to the room they were supposed to share, giving her space to get changed, gingerly taking her hand in his when she stepped back into the hallway.

"Feeling better?" she asked.

"A bit. What about you?"

"I'm okay. At least, as okay as I can be here."

"I'm really sorry," Noctis sighed.

He exchanged a brief look with Prompto, who was waiting with his back against the metal wall across the hall, trying to look occupied with his phone. Luna noted that the screen was black and nudged Noctis in the side.

"You don't owe me that many apologies," she told him.

Noctis blinked at her, flushing.

"I… I wasn't jealous, I…"

She shook her head at him and he swallowed, gazing up at Prompto.

"I'm sorry, Prompto. You've been having it way worse than me and…"

His friend held his hands up to stop him.

"It's okay. It's my fault we even have to stick around to begin with," the gunman protested.

"Prom…"

"I don't want to stay here any longer than Luna does. And I'm still trying to wrap my head around Cindy's news…"

Noctis remembered the two times he'd made her cry, his throat tightening.

"She was very worried about you. We all were, but I hadn't realized…"

"Man, if you don't stop, I'll be the one crying for hours," Prompto confessed, scratching at the back of his head.

"If you need it, we'll be here to hold you up, okay?" Luna interfered.

"Yeah, at this rate, I'd be worried if you didn't need a good cry too," Noctis added.

Gladio stepped back into the hallway, surprisingly quiet in his motions.

"Everything good?" Prompto asked him, clearly jumping on this occasion to forget all his reasons to be sad.

The Shield nodded, closing the door shut behind him.

"They're sleeping like babies in there. Never thought I'd compare your crazy brother to a baby, princess, but for once in my life, I don't want to beat him black and blue," Gladio joked.

"We should let them rest. Should I send Iris a text or…?"

"I left them a note," Gladio said. "We can do whatever exploration needs to be done. You're certain the defenses of this place are down?" he asked Prompto.

"I can never be certain with my father. But my top priorities right now are the kids trapped down there. You guys don't have to tag along, you must all be tired."

"You've been on your own for long enough," Noctis protested. "We're in this with you now."

Prompto swallowed, holding himself without thinking.

"Come on, bird hair, if you need a hug, you only need to ask," Gladio said, giving him a light push.

"I… I won't say no." he managed.

Noctis heard the words he didn't dare to say out loud, how he was scared to break down, but Gladio had already engulfed their friend into a bear hug. He motioned for Noctis and Luna to join in and they did without further encouragement. For a moment, Noctis found himself wishing Ignis was here. They would be terribly squeezed and he knew his advisor would be uncomfortable, but now that he'd pictured it, he was eager to get back to Altissia if only for all his friends to be reunited.

After doing so much of this trip together, having one of them missing for an extended period of time felt wrong. He squeezed Prompto closer, sensing a shiver running down his back and muttering more apologies. They stayed like this for what felt for a long time, until Prompto joked about lack of air, parting with fragile smiles and a laugh stuck in the back of their throat. It felt a bit out of place to laugh in this dark hallway, with the pictures of daemons and blood still fresh under their eyelids. But they were almost back together now, almost whole again.

"Can we get food around here?" Gladio asked, clapping his stomach absent-mindedly.

"Oh, there's bound to be rations. Let's see here."

Prompto was the perfect guide in the maze of corridors and stairs, despite the sad reasons for his knowledge of the place. He kept his wrist exposed to use the barcode on the few locked doors they met and after breaking fast, they ventured to one of the control rooms. Prompto typed away on a few computers to check maps and security systems, unlocking some, leaving most of the stuff untouched.

"I bet Ravus will be able to crack all of this. Should we try to find him a new prosthetic?" he suggested.

"That'd be quite useful. Though I don't imagine my brother will want to use anything made by Verstael if he can avoid it…"

"We can't really ask Cindy to come over here with materials, can we?" Gladio said as a joke, biting his tongue as soon as it was out.

Prompto saw the apologetic looks they were all giving him and gave a shrug.

"If she wants to fly over, I know nothing will stop her. Might be selfish, but I'd be happy to see her."

"Nothing selfish about that. She didn't agree to a video call, did she?" Luna asked.

"Why, is she already showing that much?"

"She is, but only because she's a thin thing to begin with. I don't think any of us has pictures," Luna said.

"It'd be very weird if you did. I mean, you know… Since she barely lets me take any pictures of her."

"Still got that bodyshot," Luna teased. "I can't have her drink, but we can surely organize something to have more pics of your lady."

"I wouldn't mind getting another look at that bodyshot thing," Gladio interjected.

"Oh you can fuck off," Noctis chided him.

"Enough guys," Prompto laughed. "I'll enroll Luna's help to organize a photoshoot for my girlfriend when things are back to normal. Now, I think I know where my… other clones are kept. It won't be pleasant, but we can check on them and have a better idea of how we can get them out of here."

Gladio heaved a sigh.

"How are old are they?"

Prompto clicked on a few files and scroll through them, his back tensing up a little more.

"Physically, between 12 and 14. Mentally, it seems to be anyone's guess. They… For fuck's sake. They've never been out of their tubes yet."

"What? What tube?"

"That's where he grows us," Prompto tried to explain, hands turning into fists as he pulled his eyes away from the screen. "It's like a robot mother, nutrients, accelerated growth, an incubator of sorts."

Noctis put one hand on his shoulder, unsure how else to show his support.

"So they're still incubating? They've… never breathed on their own?"

"That's right…"

"Wouldn't it be dangerous to get them out then?" Gladio asked.

Luna listened, paling a little more with every word. How lonely could it be to be trapped in a glass cage for your entire existence? Were they going to suggest leaving those children there?

"I don't know. But I feel like they should at least get a choice."

"Let's go then," Noctis said, sounding more confident than he felt.

It was a somber trip down more stairs and through artificially lighted rooms. On a few occasions, Prompto peeked into rooms instead of simply walking in, coming back looking paler and greener.

"Dude, maybe it'd be better if you'd…" Noctis started.

"Please don't say it. If I walk back out, I don't know if I can come back again."

Luna wanted to ask him if he saw any creature in pain in those rooms he wouldn't let them look at, but the words remained stuck in her throat. She should have tried to use her magic to fix or at least ease the suffering of whatever side project Verstael had been pursuing. They were forced to cross a lab with glass walls, bubbles shifting in brown gray water which contained countless plastic pockets. Each were labeled with numbers and held either a body part or some sort of organ. It looked like a surreal sea garden of flesh and Gladio was the first to barf among them. Noctis and Luna only held themselves together until they were out of the room, on the other side of the lab.

"I'm sorry guys," Prompto managed, face greener than ever.

"Please, no more apologies today," Luna pleaded.

They went through a few archives, fighting off random MTs here and there, but at this stage, it was nothing they couldn't handle.

"How big is this fucking place?" Gladio wondered out loud.

"It goes deep," Prompto supplied. "Way too deep."

He was glad to call a stop at the embryo lab. It was a much larger room than most, the high ceiling covered with metallic tubes. Four lines of glass cylinders were the centerpiece of the room. The rows lining the walls had adult Promptos sleeping in, each at a different stage of decay. One of them was missing an arm, another one's face was a purplish maze of glowing veins. Noctis cursed, shocked to see the way his friend hurried forward. His shoulders were shaking lightly and his hands were clenching and unclenching.

One of the tubes was broken and another was fully black, Noctis realizing he was looking at a swollen mass of flesh after blinking a few times. Luna raised one hand to her face, as though she wanted to cover her eyes. She hurried to stand by Prompto's side instead, hoping she could confer some sort of comfort.

"My father always was a sick fuck…" Prompto whispered.

His eyes focused on the four tubes in the middle of the room, each housing a younger version of himself. They appeared to be 12 to 13 years old, each of them too pale for comfort, looking scrawny as they floated. Their eyes were closed but their eyelids shifted slightly, which seem to hint at being quite alive unlike most of the other clones. The third one appeared to be in bad shape, with a mark running across the center of his chest, an extra tube going under the skin of his left wrist. At the middle of their tube, a screen showed their vitals as well as various measures, some related to cognitive functions. The third boy's vitals were lower than the other three. One of the series of numbers was going down and Prompto couldn't help worrying, until he realized it was a countdown. He squinted, peering close.

Till release. was written in small print under each countdown. The number of hours was so large, it translated into years.

"Mad man. How are we supposed to communicate with them…"

Noctis forced himself to walk toward the cluster of computer consoles in a corner, catching a glimpse of what was at the bottom of a tube he'd thought empty and felt instant regrets. His eyes went back to the computer, which buzzed quietly. He shook the mouse once and the screens switched back up, showing a few security feeds, most of which seemed focused on the robot gorilla he'd faced with Gladio earlier. Prompto came over to help him out and dug out the files for his brothers.

There were over 40 of them, which worried Prompto at first. After a while, he found the four boys and his shoulders sagged further.

"What's wrong?" Gladio asked.

"It says one of them is as good as dead as it is. Machine failure and he was without oxygen for too long." Prompto flinched as he read some more and Noctis put one hand on his shoulder, catching the words "spare parts" from Prompto.

"Gods…"

Luna held herself tighter, wishing she could heal any of these clones. Thinking of them as clones felt wrong. As though it didn't make them full-fledged persons.

Prompto started typing on a keyboard and a light flickered from the corner of the room, having Gladio turning sharply in alarm.

A speaker chanted with static, preceding two voices.

"Who's there?"

"We haven't received any directive in 10 hours."

Prompto cursed, wondering if any of the clones were allowed to sleep while inside their feeding and growing tubes.

Did any of you ever speak with an Otto?

He was afraid presenting himself as Zero would rub them off the wrong way, but Otto-2 hadn't known of their existence despite spending much more time around Verstael.

"What is an Otto?" the children's voice asked.

Never mind, Prompto typed. I'm Prompto Argentum. In a sense, I'm your older brother.

"An older model?"

You could say that.

Prompto's friends moved up to the screen so they could follow his end of the discussion.

"There were intruders, but V called us away after one of them changed."

What do you think of V? Prompto asked. Of being here?

"Strange questions. We're not ready to be out yet."

"V says we need to mature for a few more years."

"In the simulations, the lights look very sharp and painful. And V says the world is cold."

But the sun can be warm. I've been outside. It's hard and it's difficult, but there are a lot of people and a bunch of crazy things too. I've snapped a ton of pictures myself.

He wondered what they could have seen from the world yet. Had Verstael taught them properly, or only what he judged useful for whatever purpose he had lined up for them?

"Why the questions? Why are you talking to us? Only V ever spoke with us, and it was usually brief, the questions only happened when one of us felt… sick."

The hesitation upon picking the word and the hint of fear wasn't lost on any of the adults in the room. Prompto looked back to the third boy.

I don't know how to say this, guys. I don't even know your names.

"We're 33, 35 and 37," the three voices spoke each in turn.

Gladio cursed into his beard, fists clenching by his sides.

Okay. Well, I have some news. V has… passed away.

He wondered how they could have remained unaware of it, but the silence that followed spoke volumes. Then much to his shock, one of the young teenage clones opened his eyes from inside his tube. They were more aware of their physical situation than he'd first thought.

"He was supposed to be around for… for forever, basically, right 33?"

"There are other people with Prompto. They're blurry and we can't access the cameras in here."

That voice had to come from 37, Prompto had finally noticed the number engraved on the glass of his tube and could see him blinking hard at them.

"You shouldn't look at them."

"You killed the creator, didn't you?"

Not me. No one in this room did it, Prompto typed, feeling better for the fact it was true. We could say one of his experiences took a… very wrong turn.

The fact he'd intended to kill him was entirely different. He wondered if they had access to the files where Verstael had noted what he'd done to 15. His hands started to shake and he quickly typed some more.

"So what, you're the contingency plan for us?" 37 asked.

"I don't want to go out. I don't want to be cold."

"Stop being a baby, 35."

"People can die from cold!"

I'm here to see what would be best for you three, Prompto sent. I have lived away from here for a long time, outside. I'm worried about the maintenance of this place with Verstael gone.

"Oh…"

"Dying inside must be worse than outside, I keep on telling you 36 shouldn't have had…"

"We know! Stop letting them know too. Just because he says he's our brother doesn't make him one of us. The creator never considered us like brothers."

37 moved inside the tube, hitting the glass in front of him hard, Prompto biting his tongue as he jumped from the sudden sound. Behind him, his friends were all silent, yet the knowledge they were here comforted him. He wasn't alone anymore. Maybe he wouldn't have to be alone again.

"I checked and he has the barcode to access everything. He's grown up too. He's out, 33."

I'd like to get you all out if I can, but when the time is right, Prompto added, finding his fingers were surer and he had to backtrack less on his words. There are still daemons outside, as well as the blight. My friends aim to cleanse the blight from Niffelheim. Make the world a touch safer.

"What does cleansing mean?" 33 asked.

"Oh boy," Noctis sighed.

It was a long and painful exchange, but after a few more back and forths, the three kids agreed that dying was the last thing they wanted to learn about. They could connect to a few things while inside their tubes, to follow maintenance and some of the cameras from the base, but they could only run a specific set of robot to interact with the lab and they couldn't get past any firewalls set by Verstael. Prompto was not bad at cracking those, but he was worried that stripping the entire lab from its defense could lead to other problems. He couldn't leave these kids defenseless.

In the end, they agreed to work together. The program keeping them fed and breathing inside the tubes was set for a few more years and judging by the numbers, the reserves wouldn't run out before at least three years.

Six months should be enough time. I can link my phone to this base and run a few tests, see if we can keep a line open.

"As long as we don't die. Does walking hurt? It was quite hard inside the robots."

Gladio made a comment about wrong priorities and how atrophied the boys looked. Noctis would have to gather a whole team to look after those three kids. Luna squeezed Prompto's shoulders as he patiently answered their questions, determined to give them proper attention after their time spent here, floating in blurry tubes, incapable of interacting in any corporeal manner.

They walked back to the hallway where they had left Ravus and Iris a few hours later, after picking up some supplies. It was time that they worried about the next step on their journey. Noctis's phone rang, making them all jump, and he was surprised to see Cindy's name on the screen. He put her on speaker.

"I thought ya guys could use a ride to the empire, so I got a surprise for you, ya majesty."

…

Ever since the birth of Marius, Aranea couldn't go more than a few hours a day without checking on her best friend. Ignis was always happy to oblige her in taking her back to Crowe's room. He had basically memorized the way there and was growing a little better at evading the nurses and patients walking through the corridors each day. They all greeted him and for the first day, Ignis had the impression he could sense their smile or small bows of greeting as they passed one another.

He didn't dare ask Aranea about it. It seemed like a better way to appraise his world than his usual.

They carefully walked into the room, Ignis catching the soft lull of baby Marius sleeping, as well as the slightly faster respiration of Crowe.

"Hi," Aranea greeted her friend, keeping her voice low.

"Glad to see you two," Crowe said back. "You look sharp, Ignis. I swear, this baby doesn't need you wearing a tie."

"Maybe he doesn't, but I like pulling on it to get kisses," Aranea shot back.

"Oh, I see now."

"If you ladies intend to make fun of me, I can leave and come back later."

"Oh no, you don't, you've been working your ass off every moment you can."

"Of course, count on him to still find work at a time like this. I would offer help, but I'm still exhausted."

"No worry, Crowe," Ignis reassured her. "I've only been checking on Cor and Libertus to see how things are in Lucis. By the way, Libertus cannot talk about anything not related to Marius unless I get Cor on the line."

"I fear he might try to spoil my baby rotten as soon as he sees him in person."

"I think everyone in our crew will want to spoil your little boy. He sounds so peaceful when he sleeps."

Marius had a strong pair of lungs on him and no fear to use them as it turned out. Crowe almost wanted to send an audio clip to Gladio without a warning. She'd been woken up from a nap with such a start twice already. And it seemed that it was all her future would be about.

"Did you have breakfast already? Should we take you out for a picnic?"

"I don't quite want to move, but I heard I should try and get some sunlight in. I just need to get dressed."

Ignis felt the initial urge to look away, although there really was no need. He still turned around, for good measure.

"Hopefully your good influence can rub off on the boy before his father turns him into a full-on rascal," Aranea noted.

"Oh come on now. Gladio is a moderate rascal."

Crowe laughed even more than Aranea and the trio moved out, Aranea happy to hold Marius in her arms while Crowe settled to link an arm with Ignis as he pushed Aranea's wheelchair.

At times like this, Ignis wasn't mad to be stuck behind. He wished he could be out there to look after Noctis and keep Gladio in check and make sure Prompto would ingest actual food despite how much his nerves had to be acting up. It was hard to get news from all three of them right now, since he was still figuring out the text reading apps on his phone. He was so worried of something confidential getting out in the open.

But right now, he was happy to be able to support both Aranea and Crowe. From walking side by side with her, he could tell she was still recovering from the delivery. To think Aranea still considered going through that herself. He had to fight against the need to kiss her head, settling for squeezing her shoulder. She hummed her approval, another of those cues she was learning to give him since he could catch her smiles. His heart felt warmer at the thought she was smiling. He knew those had been rare in the past few months, and not only because he couldn't see them.

The air outside was crisp, but Marius had been dressed warmly and blinked at the sun, Aranea cooing and rocking him gently between her arms. The sounds she made were endearing and Ignis couldn't remember a time when he'd heard them before. Then Crowe asked for the baby back and both women started chatting about the latest movie they'd seen. Crowe had started watching a couple of tv shows, but Aranea preferred movies since it was hard for her to catch every episode of whichever soap was playing. She had so many rehabilitation sessions, she never had free time at the same hour every day.

They shared a simple meal, sandwiches Ignis had actually prepared himself, with one earthy salad. He had made friends with a couple of people in the kitchen and they were slowly coaching him on cooking without hurting himself. He would need his own kitchen space eventually, but it was progress nevertheless.

Time went by too quickly as it always did around Crowe and it was time to take Aranea to her next set of exercises. She wanted to push it to walk around Altissia and Ignis had agreed to follow along. He was always happy to catch her and let her settle and find her balance between his arms and she had decided it was part of the treatment she needed. They took Crowe back to her room, and Ignis even accepted to set Marius back in his bassinet. During the first few days, the very idea of holding the baby almost sent him in a panic, but both Crowe and Aranea had insisted he would do fine.

So far he had. He felt bad for getting to hold the baby before Gladio did in truth.

"You're getting better at keeping your calm," Aranea noted as they reached their room.

They would store the wheelchair and go out for a short walk, under a kilometer or so. They took the elevator down. Stairs were an ordeal yet and Aranea was careful to avoid any form of steepness if she could. Her shoes were far from pretty, but they absorbed most of the shock that came from balancing on metal prosthesis replacing bones and made little sound against the ground. She took the arm Ignis offered her to step out of the elevator and across the hall that led to the outdoors.

"It's already looking dark," she observed.

"Strange. It was supposed to be sunny all day long."

"Well, rain can't hurt. Let's see how far I can go." She stepped away from him, Ignis trailing behind closely. After the first ten steps, she reached for him, sighing in relief as he caught her arm.

"How's the pain?" he asked her.

"It's hard to rebuild those muscles," she tried, refusing to acknowledge how much it hurt right away.

The painkillers she'd been given didn't quite work, but she was willing to push through it.

"Lean on me a bit. Help your blind boyfriend around."

"Just don't paw at me too much."

"Out in the open? I would never."

She cupped his ass in answer and he mocked shock, stroking the curve of her hip at little further than decency allowed.

"Maybe I should worry about what your influence could do to Marius actually."

"If that's the case, we should keep you away from him, my dear."

She laughed and poked him in the ribs but didn't press her pretend indignation any further. She was happy to enjoy a walk with him in what felt the first time in a very long while. When last had it been in an actual city with people alive in it? Back in Insomnia before her fall down the cliffs?

She leaned her head against his arm, unable to reach his shoulder. She wondered if asking for longer prosthesis would make her life harder, but it seemed like a pity to be stuck small and unable to reach him without standing on the tip of her toes.

They took a gondola ride to make it across the water, Ignis finding it more nervewracking than romantic considering his last memories of being near water with Aranea. She wanted a drink at the pub and it was the only way to get there and to be fair, the drink relaxed him a touch. The pub itself was noisy, but it was easy enough to grab another gondola and Aranea led them to a small park. They sat together on the grass, Ignis shocked to find a spot with actual grass in Altissia. Everything seemed to be stones around here.

"This is definitely your longest walk around town yet," he observed.

"I think I just want all the fresh air I can get today."

He opened his mouth to answer in kind, but a shift in the air froze him up. The hair on the back of his neck stood up while a shiver ran down his spine. Aranea gasped, spotting what had ellicited his reaction. As though he'd sensed them.

The sky was darker than ever, the clouds actually made up of horribly familiar creatures. A new swarm of daemons. Far too close for comfort already.

"Tell me you have a weapon on you," she asked.

"Polearm. But we should try to take cover."

He hurried to his feet to help her up, Aranea cursing as she felt a fresh wave of weakness in her limbs.

"We might be better off hiding somewhere…" she sighed.

"Be my eyes," he pleaded, summoning the polearm and offering it to her, keeping an arm around her waist to support her.

People were running down the streets and rushing to their homes or any sort of shelter. They had to cross the park and go down a handful of stairs that left Aranea reeling, especially after she'd almost tripped on her feet, Ignis somehow catching her.

"I got you," he assured her.

"Please, stop saying that whenever we get in situations like this. We're headed eastward. Hopefully we don't have to break a door to get in."

The house she'd spotted had small windows, which she considered a blessing right now. The daemons were coming in fast, diving from the sky and if her legs hadn't blown up before, she would leap right up to meet them. Instead, she kept herself upright, glad for Ignis's support, sorry to not have better ways of telling him to duck his head or lean to the left. She hadn't even tried to run yet but here she was and the reverberation of every step resonated up to her teeth. She wanted to drop to her side and crawl into a corner in the hope she could hide but they were two of them and she couldn't shield Ignis with her body, she wouldn't let him be hurt again.

Her heart drummed in her chest at the thought of losing any other part of him.

She held the polearm in one hand, pushing against the door she'd picked with the other, Ignis's helping her. The door was locked but with just some thumping, it was pulled open, the pair hurrying inside and pushing the door closed behind them.

"I'm sorry," Aranea managed, Ignis pulling her into a tight embrace in case the people inside could prove a danger. Her thighs were on fire and she was afraid to look down and see blood trickling down her legs. She checked quickly, but there was no blood, her pants wouldn't let her see it and maybe nothing had torn

A small family stared at them, shellshocked and as they stood quiet, the first screech reached the street.

"It's not even night yet," the father said.

Ignis sighed, hoping Crowe was safe and that Cindy had flown early enough to avoid the swarm.

To be continued …

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

I bet you can guess what Cindy's surprise is by now. I'll do my best to bring up the next chapter soon. Life should calm down for me mid February, that's when I hand over the final version of my dissertation. I cannot wait!

As always, reviews give me life 😊