Everything was accomplished with the utmost efficiency; he expected no less from Her Highness. By the time they had arrived at the throne room in the morning—a little bedraggled and with Ignis cursing himself for sleeping so late (indeed, for sleeping at all when Princess Reina had not so much as a minute)—the entirety of the Lucian ruling council, His Majesty, Princess Reina, and Marshal Leonis were all present. Grand company.
They were meant to sit in on the treaty signing—or whatever was to come to pass in its stead—but plans changed rapidly. The rush of a morning blurred into a rush of an afternoon and a rush to the crystal chamber. While it seemed unlikely that the imperials would strike before everyone was assembled in the treaty chamber, time was of the essence.
Outside the reinforced doors to the crystal antechamber, they met with a small army of Crownsguards and all that remained of the Kingsglaive—some few dozen. It appeared excessive. But Reina knew what she was doing. If so many were assigned to guard the crystal, the threat was far greater than he had imagined.
Brief introductions were exchanged—Ignis had met the new captain of the Kingsglaive in passing, but had not previously connected the face and name—and they settled in for a tense wait. Everyone counted the minutes until the signing commenced and held their breath as updates came crackling over the Crownsguards' radio. Not long after that, Marshal Leonis and Princess Reina joined them. So the plans had changer further, even after Ignis and the others had departed. But if Reina was here, rather than at the signing, then she must have expected a massive force of imperials coming for the crystal.
The only explanation she gave for their presence was, "It is likely that the traitor Glaives will attack us; if any of you have qualms against killing your former comrades, speak now. But know that, before I intervened, they killed every last one of you, save Ulric and Ostium."
Throughout the hall, the Glaives stood firm. There was a hardened resolve about them. Though little had been explained about what exactly had come to pass with the Kingsglaive, the remaining soldiers seemed unlikely to forgive their traitorous brethren any time in the near future.
Reina stood at the front, flanked by the Kingsglaives and Cor. The Crownsguards stood behind them, and all the way behind, with their backs to the crystal chamber, Ignis stood with Noct, Gladio, and Prompto—the last line of defense. It seemed unlikely that they would even engage in combat. Best that the prince be as far removed from the front as possible. The princess should have stood with them, but, given her display the night before with the daemons, Ignis had very few concerns for her safety. She would be fine up front.
It wasn't much longer that they waited, after that.
The blast came first, echoing from around the curve of the hall and down the stairs. A cloud of smoke billowed after. It seemed the imperials had blasted straight through the outer door without trying to handle. It hadn't been locked.
The sound of armored footfalls preceded the imperial soldiers masquerading as Aldercapt's honor guard. Shots ricocheted off the walls and Ignis stepped in front of Noctis, knives drawn and at the ready.
"Glaives—take them down." Reina lifted her hands and a shield sprang up before her; the next round of bullets shattered harmlessly against her magic. "Crownsguards—hold your position."
Her barrier dropped and a dozen blue streaks shot past Reina's shoulders. Each one ended in a dagger, which struck an imperial. By the time the Glaives had re-appeared to pull their blades from the bodies, Reina's shield was back in place.
More imperials flooded the hall to take the place of their fallen comrades. With this next wave came familiar, dark-clad figures still wearing the Kingsglaive crest. Traitors. They were unworthy of His Majesty's mark. They dove into combat, Glaive versus Glaive, while the imperials crept closer.
Noctis shifted his weight and his grip on his sword. "I wanna kill some Nifs, Rei!"
"Time for that later!" She shouted back without turning.
The traitor Glaives outnumbered the loyal ones. They used every ounce of training and teamwork they had learned under His Majesty's employ and turned it against him, moving as a whole and doubling or tripling up as often as they were able.
But they no longer held the king's magic.
Perhaps the loyal Glaives had the inferior numbers, but their opponents' blades passed harmlessly through air as they phased out of the way more often than not, and when steel did connect, it was with the shimmering magic of a solid barrier. Thunder cracked and lightning leapt from Glaive to treacherous Glaive before they could withdraw. Fire blasted from outstretched hands and left the treasoners scorched and screaming.
While the Glaives were so occupied with their once-allies, the imperials tested the strength of Reina's barrier.
"Crownsguards—fire at will!" She dropped the shield.
Or at least, he thought she had. But though the ranks of Crownsguards leveled their weapons and took down half a dozen imperials before the the Nifs thought to retreat for cover, imperial bullets cracked against magic and fell harmlessly to the floor—in spite of that, Ignis could see no indication of a barrier, save when the bullets struck it.
"Your Highness!" Captain Ulric plunged his knife into a traitor-Glaive and turned to shout over his shoulder. "Lookout reports the imperial fleet is nearly overhead."
"Noted, Captain."
The imperials adjusted their strategy, using the curve of the hall as shelter from the Crownsguards' fire. Reina ordered them to stand their ground. She remained rooted to the spot, throwing up barriers to protect those behind her as necessary, but even from so far behind, Ignis could see the tension growing in her back and shoulders.
"Where is he?" She asked Cor. "If Drautos was going after the crystal, he would be here by now."
Cor shook his head. He asked for a visual on the former Glaive captain over his radio and, apparently, received an unsatisfactory response.
"I'm going," she said.
"Your Highness, if he comes here—"
"Then you and the Glaive will hold him off until I return," she cut him off. "Ulric! I need a shield in front of the Crownsguards."
The captain was beside her in a literal flash of blue light, building a barrier behind hers.
"Protect the crystal with your life," she said to him. "Cor—"
"I belong at your side, Your Highness."
"You will only slow me down and I need you here in case he comes." She didn't give him the chance to argue further; she warped down the hall, through a hail of gunfire, past the clash of Glaives, and out of sight.
Imperial bullets shattered on Captain Ulric's barrier. And, while the marshal swore loudly, Ignis heard over the Crownsguard radio:
"Marshal! General Glauca is in the treaty room—repeat: he is in the treaty room."