They idled.
Regis paced in spite of the pain in his knee and the ever-present exhaustion that hadn't shattered with the Wall. And each time he passed by the windows he saw Insomnia in chaos below.
He trusted Reina. He trusted her to do what needed to be done in the face of this threat. He tried to trust that she had made the correct decision by sparing his life and collapsing the Wall for a second time. But Gods damn it all, no matter how efficient she may have been, no matter how much magic she may have wielded, every king—or queen—needed allies. He had not protected Lucis all these years on his own, nor had his father before him, but that was precisely what she had been trying to do for the past two days.
"Have you the power of command over these Magitek soldiers?" Regis stopped abruptly and rounded on Ravus. "You sit idle while Insomnia falls. Do you stand with Lucis or not?"
Ravus scoffed. "I do not stand with Lucis."
"With my daughter, then," Regis said.
His lack of response indicated an affirmative.
"I know not what she has offered you in return for your service, but she will have difficulty following through if she does not survive until dawn."
"You imagine she is unfit for the challenge?" Ravus asked, mocking. "She has the Ring of the Lucii and more. No one could harm her."
"Save for herself," Regis said.
A pause. Hesitation? Or confusion?
He pressed on. "Do you truly believe the power within the ring comes without cost? Every ounce that she uses, she pays for with her own lifeblood. For every second that she uses its power—at this level—her life is one hour shorter. Even then, she can only give so much without pause. Heed me, Commander; if this threat to the city is not dispelled some other way, then Reina will use all of the strength in her body to see that it is."
Still, Ravus hesitated, and Regis could only guess what thoughts passed behind that steel face.
"What reason has she given you to stand with her?" Regis didn't truly expect an answer, but perhaps—
Though he remained silent, Ravus' eyes flicked toward Lunafreya, as if unconsciously.
So that was the dilemma: he wished to protect Luna and both paths endangered her life. If Regis lost his life, so, too, would Luna. Now Regis sought to assure him that if Reina died, so, too, would Luna. He stood on precious little bargaining ground. It seemed, in fact, less assured that Luna would be in danger if Reina was gone.
Nevertheless:
"If you cannot look after yourself in the city then Reina will die." Ravus stepped toward the lift, abruptly. "Open this."
Regis hastened to do so. Behind him, Luna also stepped forward.
Ravus rounded on her. "No. You will remain here."
"I cannot sit idle while Insomnia burns!" Luna said.
"You can and you will," Ravus said. "Perhaps you will beseech your precious Gods to send their aid and douse the fires."
The lift doors slid open. Ravus stepped in and Regis followed after him.
"Please…" She looked at Regis, pleading.
He understood the pain of helplessness. He also understood the need to protect.
"Be safe, my dear."
The elevator doors closed with Lunafreya locked safely—for the moment—on the top levels of the Citadel. Silence stretched awkwardly between Ravus and Regis as the lift descended. When they reached the ground floor, it was deserted: the Crownsguard sought the emperor while the MTs flooded the streets. From outside, they could hear screams punctuating the gunfire.
Ravus led the way. "Keep up, old man."
Regis held his tongue. Many years, indeed, it had been since someone thought to take that tone with him. But he had rather more pressing concerns than rank and respect. He followed. The metallic clank of his knee brace echoed through the empty halls with every step, punctuated by the click of his cane. The pain in his leg had long since passed from dull throb to sharp sting with every hint of pressure. If Reina had been with him, she would have had a choice word or two for his pacing.
Reina.
Gods, he hoped she was alright. He hoped he would have a chance to repair all of his mistakes.
They left the Citadel and found MTs just outside the doors, patrolling. The soldiers turned immediately, guns raised and glowing red eyes focused.
"Hold." Ravus stepped in front of him. "Lower your weapons; the king is mine."
It took a breath of time for them to comply and Regis didn't inhale until no guns were trained on him.
"How many are in the city?" Regis asked.
"Silence. If you prefer your tongue attached, you will keep it still," Ravus snapped.
A question he ought to have asked before: precisely how much did a Magitek soldier understand about its surroundings? Did it have the capability to report peculiar or suspicious behavior? Was it monitored at all times?
It was too late to ask now.
Ravus swept down the steps and Regis followed. The MTs at the Citadel doors trailed after, forming a line behind him. Their weapons remained at the ready.
They moved down the street into the square. Bodies littered the pavement among the barricades where the crowd had been standing during the signing. Some of them were MTs. Some of them were his people.
With each live Magitek soldier they passed, the force surrounding Regis grew. Clarus would have had a fit if he could have seen Regis now. Except Clarus remained in the treaty room and though he had been breathing when Regis left, there was no guarantee that he still lived. This was a path Regis had to walk without his faithful Shield and adviser. If they could spare lives and give the city a fighting chance, it would be worth it.
Giant Magitek machines prowled the streets, mechanical heads scanning their surroundings. MTs patrolled in groups throughout the city. And in every patch of shadow between streetlights, daemons spawned. The Crownsguards were gone—presumably following Cor's orders to hunt down the emperor—which left civilians running from daemons and imperials alike. Ravus turned his Magitek soldiers on each daemon that crossed their paths, which left the streets marginally safer.
Marginally.
Alas, they were still afoot, strolling the city street by street and picking up MTs as they passed. Insomnia was too large for one man to cover on foot in a single night. The venture seemed less worthwhile and more futile from up close.
They were in the heart of downtown Insomnia with a full hundred MTs under Ravus' command when lights soared overhead. First red—crashing into the skyscraper twenty stories above—then blue, close behind.
"Reina…" Regis breathed.
Ravus halted and followed his gaze. In the dark, with the whole building lifeless, they could see the flash of light when Reina called her elemancy and threw lightning. So Drautos still lived. That Magitek armor must have been the only reason he had stood so long against her. More importantly, Reina was alive.
And she hadn't forgotten about the Old Wall.
He could feel her magic hum in the air, first tugging at the strings to check their strength, then pulling hard enough to tear a dozen souls of Lucian monarchs from their deathless purgatory and thrust them back into the physical world.
The ground shook when the Conqueror woke no more than two blocks from them and pulled himself free from the stonework of Insomnia's foundation. Regis stumbled and Ravus—begrudgingly—caught his arm.
"Will they attack us?" Ravus asked.
That depended entirely on the manner of orders that Reina had given them.
"I think not," Regis said. "Though the same does not extend to your empty friends."
Ravus shoved him back onto his own two feet and diverted their course down a side street, away from the wakened statue of the Conqueror; that was the extent of the response he dignified Regis with. It did seem that they were moving with some particular intent. Precisely what that was, Regis could only guess. Ravus was certainly not going to share it with him.
AN: Hey everyone, just wanted to mention that Episode 3 of the Remnants audio drama is up on YouTube now. You can find it on our channel or copy the link from my profile. It took ages to finish this one because we ended up having to recast Reina between Episode 2 and 3, which added like a month to the timline. Hopefully things will move more smoothly now!