At the sight of the Regalia Cloud felt a longing for Fenrir. Noctis got the call that it had been towed and delivered to Cindy. So they made their way over to the shop on chocobo.
"What are the specs on her?" Cloud asked the group, excitement filling him.
"Er..." Noctis was confused.
"Cindy would know better to answer that question." Prompto laughed at the prince's tongue tied answer.
"Hey there prince!" She called out, waving. She noticed the extra and smiled. "And who's this charming young man?"
"Cloud. So you're the mechanic?" Soon they were immersed in the talk of mechanics. Cindy was really excited to meet someone who knew the works of a vehicle. The four boys watched with amusement. They hadn't seen Cloud so openly interested in something.
"You seem to know your way around. Tell you what, I've been looking for some help around here. Think you can fill in for a short while?"
"Can I?" Cloud beamed. His eyes lit up like a kid at Christmas.
"That is, if the prince over here is all right with letting you go for a while." Cindy looked at Noctis expectantly.
"Well..." He looked at Cloud, seeing the excitement in his eyes. Something about his eyes made it impossible for him to say no. "I don't mind. He's good at fighting, too. So any problems with monsters and he can take care of it."
"It's a win win for all of us. I like it. Let me go bring the news to old pops."
The old man wasn't having it at first.
"How do we know he won't make a mess of things? For all we know his talk would be just nothing but talk, no real talent. Besides, we don't even know him!"
"But he's a good friend of the prince! Anyone with him is good company."
"Nope. Not changing my mind girl."
"Excuse me, but isn't it too early judge someone's talent without even seeing their work first hand?" Ignis planted the seed. It got them thinking.
After a moment the old man sighed.
"You're restoring an old piece of junk. You're welcome to use all the tools here, but no help whatsoever from Cindy, myself or the boys." He lead them to a car with a cloth cover on it. His hand pulled the cover off to reveal an old rusted car that badly needed some tlc.
"How long?" Cloud liked a challenge, but this was going to take some heavy duty work.
"You got a week. And your time is starting now." The old man said as he wandered off.
"You sure you can do this, buddy?" Prompto knew this was a lot to ask for a test run.
"I got this. You guys can stick around and watch or do your own thing." Cloud set his sword against a wall, along with his shoulder guard. He traded his gloves with more suitable ones for the job.
"Let's go take care of some hunts while we're in the area." Gladio suggested. He wasn't interested in watching the slow work of a mechanic.
"Okay." Noctis agreed, even though a part of him really wanted to watch Cloud in his element.
The way the blonde worked was tireless. He took his time with the steps needed, and even then the time was considered fast. With each passing day everyone awoke with amazement to see how far Cloud had made.
The rust was gone on the evening of the second day. Day three was going over which parts needed to be scrapped and replaced or restored. He scavenged for spare parts either in the shop or run down vehicles beyond restoration.
Day four was assembling all of the pieces together. This continued onto the fifth day. It began to look like Cloud wasn't going to make the deadline. For this the blonde decided to work well into the night. In the end he didn't turn in for the night and pulled an all nighter.
The morning of the sixth day everyone awoke to a completed project. The beautiful sky blue car sat proudly in all her glory. Cindy ran to it with excitement, looking over every detail. She was careful not to touch the still drying paint. Noctis couldn't stop staring.
He looked around to find the man responsible. His eyes caught sight of Cloud passed out against the wall. Noctis made his way over. The old man intercepted, shaking his head.
"Let the poor lad sleep. I heard him in the early hours of dawn working. I'd say it's barely been an hour since he passed out."
"So what do you say Papa? Will you let him be part of the shop for a while?" Cindy grinned, she was more than stoked.
"He's certainly outdone himself. Perhaps I shouldn't have been so quick to judge."
They all studied the vehicle. The details were well thought out. Cloud had poured his heart into the project. The result was beyond spectacular.
A few hours later Noctis and his friends returned from a hunt. They all dispersed to take a breather. Noctis decided to check on Cloud. He found him where he last saw him. He blinked when he noticed how the blonde swordsman's face was contorted in pain, as if he were trapped in a nightmare.
"Cloud?" Noctis knelt beside him. Without thinking he reached for the blonde's arm.
In an instant he was transported into the dream. No, when Noctis looked around he realized it was a nightmare. All around at his feet were bodies. Some were cut in pieces. Some stabbed all over. Noctis had to resist the urge to vomit at the horrors.
They all appeared to be fighters. A strange union of allies. A man with a gun for an arm. A girl with long hair and fighting gloves adorned her hands. A red feline, and oddly a robotic black and white one next to him in pieces. Another girl with a ninja star just out of reach of her small hand. Beyond them an airship was burning. Collapsed in front of if was a decapitated man.
Noctis forced himself to move. He heard the sounds of fighting. Swords clashing and occasional gunshots. Noctis followed the sounds. The air smelled of burning flesh and blood mixed with the tang of metal. Or perhaps that was the coppery smell of blood. Noctis didn't care, he was more focused in his search.
He came upon a clearing in the mass destruction. Noctis stopped, taking in the sight. Cloud was injured, bleeding all over with stab wounds and cuts. One of his legs was on the verge of collapsing. Yet he still fought on. At his side was a man with red cape. Occasionally he would help support Cloud on his feet to keep him steady.
Their opponent was a man with long silver hair. Green feline eyes burned with hatred. The movement of his long sword was too fast for Noctis to follow. The blade sang as it swung, the only warning it gave off before it struck.
Suddenly Cloud staggers to one knee. He was gasping loudly, doubling over in pain. The sword took its chance and aimed for his heart.
"No!" Noctis ran forward.
Stepping to shield Cloud was the cloaked man. When the blade withdrew the man who sacrificed himself slumped over dead.
"Vincent!" Cloud wailed.
Green eyes turned to Noctis. The prince froze. What's happening? Wasn't this a dream? If it was, then how was the enemy interacting with him?
"You... You shouldn't be here." Cloud steadied himself, miraculously fine despite the wounds. Noctis stared, bewildered. The blonde could see him too.
"How...?" He couldn't really form the rest of his question.
"I'll explain later." Cloud grabbed the prince's arm. He turned to stare up at his enemy with renewed hope. "You're nothing but a memory. A nightmare."
Time stood still, frozen in place. The silver haired man glared silently.
"I will never be a memory." He disappeared, leaving behind black feathers.
Free from the vision Cloud and Noctis jerked awake.