Andromeda walked beside her father as he pulled the dead buck on a litter behind him. As they approached their village, she kept looking back at the carcass they were bringing with them, afraid that her binds would come undone and it would slip off.
Tying knots was all that she had been allowed to do; she simply followed along for everything else during the hunt. Andromeda was at the age to be allowed to kill the quarry, but whenever her parents were around to take her on hunts, they always put it off for the next time.
She kept her frustration to herself, since she didn't get a lot of time with her father. Both parents were usually away, plotting against the Empire's control of the land. They tried to keep it separate from the village to protect the children and elderly, but it was impossible when almost the whole village took part in the rebellion. Most of the children planned to join it when they were almost old enough—Andromeda included.
The village was normally bustling with activity because there was always a lot to do. As they came closer, they noticed everyone was standing around on the path to the south of the village. Andromeda's father walked past their cottage and to the crowd, continuing to drag the deer behind him.
Andromeda continued to walk beside him as the people let him through. A stranger had come to town, gilded in a silver and white uniform that she had only heard about. He rode upon a white chocobo, an especially rare sight in these parts of Tenebrae. Her father had once told her that white chocobos were specially bred for the royal family.
"So this is where you ended up." The stranger looked down at her father once he had approached. "Where are the other leaders?"
"Off fighting on the right side." Andromeda's father responded simply. Some of the villagers snickered.
The stranger sat up a little taller in his saddle. "I come with a letter from Queen Sylva. I trust you can deliver the message to your comrades."
At that, he reached into a pouch at his side and pulled out a piece of paper. Andromeda's father dropped the rope to the litter and went forward to take the letter. He turned to the crowd as he read it to himself first, then aloud to everyone present:
"'You fight valiantly and your hearts are true, but you must cease all activities of the rebellion for the good of all of Tenebrae. To defy the Empire is to invite their wrath on all of the people. I can no longer send aid nor support the rebellion. Your passion for Tenebrae is admirable; it is through such passion that Tenebrae continues to exist under Imperial rule. But if you continue to lash out at the Empire, know that I can no longer protect you.'"
The crowd was silent at the words. Andromeda found it confusing. How could the Queen allow someone so far away to rule the land? The rebellion made perfect sense to her; why didn't the Queen support it?
"The Queen has spoken. Call everyone home and cease your little war." The stranger surmised.
Andromeda's father faced him again with narrow eyes. "On whose behalf did you come? Tenebrae or Niflheim?"
There was a murmur among the gathered people. They no longer admired the white chocobo and the royal armor of the stranger.
"Niflheim would not have allowed that message to reach you." The stranger responded sharply. "They would have no problem with slaughtering you all. There is nothing the Queen can do to protect you now."
"You have no pride if you choose to side with the Empire, for that's what it means to join the Tenebraen military now." Andromeda's father countered. "The military is meant to protect the Oracle and the people, but how can it when the enemy controls it?"
"Tenebrae lost the war over 400 years ago." The stranger snapped, turning his chocobo to leave the village. "Stop living in the past. Your primitive fight will achieve nothing. You're only making it worse."
With a slight kick, the chocobo suddenly sped away on the dirt path. Andromeda quickly lost sight of it.
Her father continued to hold onto the letter. Everyone began to disperse, to go back to their business with some grumbling. After a moment of rereading the letter, Andromeda's father tucked it away in a pocket and picked up the rope again. She followed along back to their cottage.
"Why is the Queen against the land being freed?" She asked. "Why does she let Niflheim control the military?"
"She doesn't let them. The Empire does whatever it wants." Her father shook his head. "She's doing what is best for the people, but she's never been to the north side of the mountains. There are things about the land she doesn't know about. We fight for the land and the future: for an independent Tenebrae and the freedom of the Oracle. There is much more to the land than meets the eye—and we can't let Niflheim delve any further than they already have. So long as Insomnia still stands free, there is still hope."
"Andromeda."
She didn't realize she had been dreaming until the towering, shining white woman appeared before her and called her name. The goddess gave a small smile. The mournful look in her eyes suggested that she came with bad tidings.
She had told the four of them to go to Gralea to witness the last covenant Noctis had to forge. Andromeda and Luna had not seen it; they had split from Crowe and Aulea shortly before, but they weren't anywhere around to tell her whether it had been forged and Noctis was gone.
"What happened?" Andromeda asked as she remembered the last moments before she went unconscious. She briefly wondered if they had all been struck dead.
Etro's smile faltered. "The Crystal is shattered. I struck it before it could take Noctis."
There had been the sound of something shattering just before Andromeda lost consciousness. She also recalled a roaring that came afterwards. Still, she did not understand what the goddess meant by that. She had completely forgotten about the Crystal—wasn't it supposed to be in Insomnia? What did it mean now that it was broken?
"Bahamut and his Accursed went into a rage. I moved the four of you to safety, but since you were not together, your party was split in two." Etro explained without having to be prompted. "You are all at my Wells. Aulea and Crowe are in Lucis, at my Well north of the rift. You and Lunafreya are in Tenebrae. Reunite in Lucis. Avoid Ardyn. He could be anywhere."
Andromeda frowned. At least they weren't dead after all, and neither was Noctis. They managed to defy the prophecy, but something felt very wrong.
"Did it work?" She asked, though now she wasn't quite sure what the aim had been.
"In general, yes. Noctis and Lunafreya are still alive." Etro nodded. "But the dark days are here. Daemons prowl day and night, and they are stronger while the sun does not shine on the world. You will not be bothered while at my Well, yet you must not stay. Travel north until you find the old ruins of Solheim. There you will find something that will help you get to Lucis. Travel by water is too dangerous, and the ways by air are dwindling in this land."
She had always hinted that the dark days were unavoidable. Andromeda hadn't thought about what that could mean, although she could have taken a guess when the nights began to get longer. This sounded much worse than she had assumed.
"Would this have happened if Luna and Noctis had been sacrificed like Bahamut wanted?" She wondered.
"Yes." Etro said grimly, not liking that thought. No one would have, but Andromeda wanted to know. "But the world has a better chance of surviving with those two in it. The devastation would be much worse without them. There were some unseen outcomes to the Crystal's shattering as well. I believe they will help you all during these dark days."
She began to dim, the telltale sign that she was leaving and Andromeda was about to wake up. "Return to Lucis. Find Aulea and Crowe. Be careful."
It was dark, but Andromeda could tell she was in a forest somewhere. A small shelf of rock formed a jagged wall behind her, and a couple meters in front of her sat a small pool. Fireflies blinked about the area.
She sat up and noticed that she wasn't the only one there. Luna was sitting some distance away, brushing bits of dirt off herself. She smiled the same way Etro had: sad.
"Shall we get going then?" She stood regardless of what the answer would be.
Andromeda got to her feet and they left the serene pool. The forest seemed to get darker as they left, its trees massive and towering; they stood so tall that their tops could not be seen, and they blocked any sort of light above from reaching the ground. The largest ones had trunks as wide as the length of a bus. There had only been one place Andromeda had seen these trees: home.
Daemons could be heard not far off. She took her kukri out of its sheath on her lower back as a precaution.
The screams of daemons also unsettled Luna. She still had her spear, thankfully, yet did not take a guarded stance as they walked. She took subtle glances at their surroundings as she mentioned quietly, "The Crystal was said to be able to quell daemons and hold back the darkness."
If they were quiet, perhaps the daemons wouldn't notice them at all. Andromeda only continued to frown at Luna's words, not feeling much like talking. She had never truly met Noctis, but for Aulea and Luna's sake, she went along to prevent his death. Etro hadn't told them she was going to shatter the Crystal. Now things were perhaps even worse than what they would have been. Andromeda wondered if there had been yet another way.
The myth that moss grew on the north side of trees was just that—a myth. She had learned the truth within her first semester of college. But as they were going after a mythical artifact and had nothing else to go off of, Andromeda looked at the trees for moss, and at which side it grew on.
"Did she say how far to go?" Luna asked, obviously feeling the need to talk.
Andromeda shrugged. "No, just north. It could take months for us to search all of the north for this thing."
"I see." Luna frowned as well now. "Do you think Noctis escaped Gralea?"
"Etro said he was still alive."
"I suppose Gralea was not the place for us to meet. I hope Aulea had the opportunity to speak with him." The princess went on. "I also hope Ravus has finally found peace."
"I'm sorry about your brother." Andromeda said, although now she didn't particularly feel sympathetic. She was more worried about Aulea and Crowe. It was Ravus's fault they were split up across the world like this. She might have already expressed condolences to Luna already. She did recall that she and Crowe had promised to help if he was in trouble, but Ravus had been beyond help. Now there were more pressing concerns at hand. Andromeda wished Crowe were here in place of Luna.
"Thank you." Luna became quieter. "I had hoped that, since I had been brought back to life, Etro might do the same for him."
Andromeda scowled. "She only brought us back to life because she has a purpose for us to fulfill. She stole you away from Bahamut just to defy him and his prophecy. She doesn't give second chances freely."
Least of all to someone who didn't deserve it. She bit her tongue before she could continue on. It was foolish to pray to the goddess of death and beg for another person's life. Andromeda was glad that the goddess had refused Luna's prayers; Etro didn't favor her that much. Perhaps it was because she also knew of Bahamut's warning: the wayward Oracle would submit to her role again.
Luna finally stopped talking. They walked in silence, careful to steer clear of any noises that sounded like daemons. So far, they were left alone.
Without daylight, it was difficult to tell how long they had been walking. Soon the trees parted some as they approached large, squarish shapes. They were not ruins, but small houses. A few people stood guard around the perimeter of the small village. Few people stayed outside with everything going on, cautiously glancing at the exposed sky above and around buildings. Whoever was outside was quick to do their task and hurry back inside. At the appearance of two women in the village, their scurrying stopped.
"Who are you?" A man, armed with a simple javelin, demanded as he spotted Andromeda and Luna approaching. Some more people gathered, having heard his voice in the odd silence. Once the two women came close enough, he gaped at them.
The princess took the chance to step forward. She spoke loudly for all to hear, startling Andromeda next to her. "I am Lunafreya."
More people had come out of hiding when they noticed others gathering somewhere. The guard had been loud when he had addressed the two women, alerting anyone nearby. Luna had caught more of their attention by proclaiming who she was. Her face and voice were unmistakable, even in this deep and dark forest. Over a dozen people gathered before them altogether; this was a very small village. It was surprising to find a settlement in such a forest. Most of the crowd looked young or very old; very few were somewhere in the middle.
"Have you truly survived?" An older woman stepped forward for a closer look herself. The people seemed to be closing in on the two strangers.
Luna smiled and nodded. "Fortunately yes. I made a vow to fight the darkness, after all."
"And who are you?" The first man turned to Andromeda, no kinder thanks to the Oracle's presence.
"Andromeda." She introduced herself much more quietly. "What village is this?"
"Galthaeus."
She glanced around at the name, but recognized nothing. The last time she had been here, the village was in shambles: survivors of Niflheim's invasion lived in tents while they rebuilt their homes under Imperial supervision. There might have been a few frames built by the time Andromeda had woken after the attack, but she had been taken away before they made any more progress. Years later, she had tried to find the place on her own, but was captured by Ardyn. She had been told it was a ghost town after the attack. Now, she and Luna had stumbled upon it completely by accident.
Another old woman came forward out of the small crowd that gathered before the newcomers. The attention wasn't solely on Luna. The old woman looked over Andromeda.
"We knew a girl by that name." Her eyes gazed at the younger woman's bare arms, etched with scars. "She had scars just like those."
Andromeda smiled wryly. "These are her scars."
The old woman grinned at first, then shook her head. "You've come home just in time to leave it."
"What do you mean?"
"Haven't you noticed? We are in a never-ending night!" The old woman pointed out.
"All of Tenebrae is being evacuated." The first man explained. "The daemons are too many to hold off. We were told to go to Fenestala Manor—or, what remains of it."
"Let us help you." Luna spoke up again.
The people were surprisingly uneasy with that. They did not answer her right away. The hesitance caused her to frown in confusion. Her help had probably never been denied before.
"We have chosen to stay," The first man admitted after a quiet moment. "We cannot leave Tenebrae."
"You must—you have children and elders among you. If we are truly in an never-ending night, I cannot hold the hordes back. I am going to Lucis to meet with Prince Noctis. It's only together that we'll push back the darkness." Luna stood a little taller as she tried to convince them. Mention of the Lucian prince had no effect on these people. They remained planted where they were.
Andromeda crossed her arms, annoyed by the reluctance and Luna's weak argument. What she had found admirable as a child now seemed incredibly foolish. "The land is not the one in danger—the people are. The Empire is no more. They do not threaten the land any longer. No matter how long this night lasts, the land will still be here. But none of you will survive it if you stay. The Morrigals will go extinct if you choose to stay here. Even if you send the children, the way of life would be lost without adults there to teach them. Tenebrae will still be here when the night ends and everyone's allowed to return, but there won't be anyone to return here if you stay. You have a better chance of surviving in Lucis."
Her tone was harsher than Luna's, and it caused several people in the crowd to stir. Glances were exchanged as there was some murmuring.
"That was strongly put," The princess commented to Andromeda while the villagers discussed their options. "I knew you were a Morrigal when you told me your story, but I'm afraid I forgot it until now."
"I don't feel like one," Andromeda mumbled.
"Is the Empire truly gone?" Another man asked from the assembled crowd.
"It rotted from the inside," She replied.
Her choice of words seemed to especially please the village. Having been to Gralea to see it herself, that was how she understood what had happened. There hadn't been a massive battle where the rest of the world united against Niflheim; the Empire imploded, its core completely corrupted. Gralea had been overrun with daemons—a plague that was reaching this far north of the continent.
The woman before Andromeda glanced at the crowd, then the two women. "Well, while they debate, let's get you two something to eat. We are better hosts than this."
"Thank you," Luna smiled and bowed her head.
The old woman began to lead the two around the crowd. It dispersed as they left, many going to the largest house their small village had. Two other old women joined the first as they split from the crowd. It wasn't safe to be meeting outside like they were.
"We are happy to see you alive and well after all these years," The first woman mentioned to Andromeda as they walked. "We had always hoped you managed to escape, but we knew it was likely that you didn't."
Andromeda nodded, "It's been a long time. I was told Galthaus was gone."
"Not quite yet," The old woman sighed.
She led Andromeda and Luna to a smaller cottage. They were told to sit and wait at a table. The old women soon served them bread, meat, cheese, and tea. The two ate quietly. The old women engaged Luna in more conversation, but Andromeda didn't bother to pay attention. The taste of the bread and tea took Andromeda back many years; she hadn't experienced such tastes since she left here as a child. No where else in the world replicated the same flavors. She had nearly forgotten them.
Not far into their meal, a man entered the cottage. The village had made a rather quick decision. Then again, there weren't many people to begin with.
"We will go," The man announced, then turned to Luna. "We would appreciate your help, my Lady."
"Of course," Luna nodded to him.
The old women began thanking her, then telling her about the sickly villagers that would not be able to make the journey. Andromeda followed after her as they were led around the small village by the old women. Many of the villagers lingered outside, watching them go by while there was so much to do.
The first couple of houses had elderly with stiff joints that needed Luna's healing touch. Andromeda stood by for those, observing with the old women (and one or two nosy neighbors). Their attention was equally on Luna as she performed her magic, and Andromeda, her scars finally exposed for Galthaeus to see. The women picked up on her cold demeanor, and said very little.
The aches and pains were quick for Luna to deal with. The fourth stop was a hut the old women led her and Andromeda to was one of the last in the village along the road, with black runes drawn over the door. The windows were all covered from within.
"These ones need help most of all," One of the women said. "We don't mean to separate them, but the sickness is too dangerous to expose their families to. Your touch is the only cure, my Lady."
"I understand," Luna assured. The excuse didn't make Andromeda feel any better about the situation.
They entered into near darkness. It took a moment for their eyes to adjust to the dim lantern light within. Inside, the hut consisted of one large open room, and a bathroom attached as an afterthought. Most Morrigal villages were stuck in old ways, separated from the rest of the world, but they had all wholeheartedly embraced indoor plumbing.
Three beds were spaced out in the room. One was occupied while two people sat playing cards at a small table in the center of the room. The splotches were easy to see on their hands and faces. The card players startled at the sudden entrance of women, standing abruptly from their game. When they recognized Luna, they bowed, mumbling "my Lady"s sheepishly, ashamed of their current state.
"Please, relax and sit down," Luna smiled. "We're here to help you."
The man and woman took their seats again. The latter remained dumbfounded. "But we all heard you were dead, my Lady."
News of Luna's death at Altissia had reached even this far north, where so few people lived and preferred to do so away from the happenings of kings and Oracles. Luna paused for a moment, thinking of an answer. Andromeda was grateful that she understood to not tell the truth in this moment.
"There is still work for me to do," The princess finally said. "Who would like to go first?"
The two at the table looked at each other. The man quickly resigned. "You have it worse than me. I can handle it a little longer."
Luna approached the woman. Andromeda made to do so as well, but one of the old women grabbed her wrist.
"Give her space. You don't want to catch it," The woman chided.
"Andromeda," Luna looked to her, already holding the sick woman's hand. She wasn't going to heal Starscourge the way she had been raised to do. She knew of a better way now, with the crystals Andromeda carried in a bag at her side.
Pulling away from the old woman's grip with ease, Andromeda stood on the other side of the woman. She handed a crystal over to Luna, then took one for herself in one hand, taking the woman's other one in her left hand. Exchanging a brief glance with Luna, Andromeda focused on the Scourge they could both feel in the woman. Together, the two pulled it out of her. Andromeda kept an eye on Luna the whole time, making sure her crystal darkened with Scourge at the same rate that her own did. Luna was still new to this way of doing it; Andromeda worried that she would slip into her old way and corrupt herself.
The old women gasped as they watched both women perform the same miracle of healing someone of Starscourge, in a way that did not inflict the sickness upon themselves. Andromeda didn't worry too much about who these people were going to tell; by now, so many other people already knew about it. It would be too much for them to all rely on Luna. It was because Niflheim was gone and Luna now knew that Andromeda shared in her ability that made it okay to finally come out about it.
Two crystals were enough to heal the woman. On the side where Luna stood, her skin was clear and unblemished; on the side where Andromeda stood, where once had been Scourge was now twisted scarring on the side of her face and down her neck. Thankfully, her hand remained unaffected. She and the man were just as surprised to find out that Andromeda could heal them as well. It contradicted what they had been taught of the Scourge, that there was only one person who could heal them of it. Rather than listen to them both stutter, Andromeda immediately turned to the man with a clean crystal. Luna went to his other side after retrieving another crystal from her, and the two women resumed working, ignoring their spectators for the moment.
When they were finished with the man, who was left with similar scarring from Andromeda, they looked to the occupied bed. Its occupant had woken in the sudden commotion in the hut, but remained silent, watching with a mix of fear and irritability on his face.
"Be careful," The man mentioned. "He's much worse."
Luna nodded to him, then walked towards the bed. "I'm sorry you have suffered so long. We're going to help you."
The bed-ridden man still did not move. Andromeda realized his blackened arms were tied to the bedpost. She was reminded of her last visit to Tenebrae, when she had healed a woman in such a position.
"Right or left-handed?" She asked the gawkers.
They continued to gape. The cured woman stammered. "What do you mean?"
"Is he right or left-handed?" Andromeda had less patience than Luna, who was already at the bedside.
"I think left. At least I think I've seen him use it for most things."
Andromeda joined Luna then. "Go take the other side."
She did not argue, slightly less surprised than everyone else was to see the Oracle told what to do. Luna went around the bed to stand on the man's left side. Andromeda gave her a clean crystal then. The man's hands jerked a little in their bindings, but Andromeda grabbed his right hand, taking a crystal in her own. Luna followed her example, and they got right back to work.
Such a severe infection took longer to purge from someone, and more concentration. Andromeda swapped out their crystals twice more before they were finished, leaving only half of her stock clean. As she had presumed, the man's left side remained unblemished, but his right hand became stiff and the fingers gnarled. He was cured of Starscourge, yet he would have difficulty using his hand.
He struggled to stay awake once they were finished. Andromeda and Luna unbound his wrists, and his right hand remained slightly closed as it fell to his side. The latter noticed it.
"What happened?" She asked across the bed.
Andromeda didn't want to discuss their shared ability any more than she had to with Luna. She shook her head. "I'm not you."
She had a better way of healing people, but she was still an impostor. Those she healed would bear a mark from her for it—much like how she was so marked. She turned to the others while Luna tended to the man, urging him to rest.
"Is that all of them?" Andromeda asked bluntly.
"Yes," One of the old women confirmed. They all had an expression that she didn't understand, and wasn't sure she liked.
"Come, we can find you a place to rest," Another woman spoke up. She must have seen the exhaustion Andromeda and Luna now felt. Healing drained energy. They hadn't rested since waking up at Etro's well.
The man and women decided to stay in the sick house to watch over their bedridden companion. Luna took another moment to bid them farewell before she and Andromeda were led away by the three old women.
