Title: and then there was one
A/N: For the FF15 Changing Fate Zine!
Summary: Libertus wasn't a coward. He might have been foolish, naïve, and a dozen other swear words for believing the Empire could change things and letting the enemy through the door, but he wasn't a coward. After all that happened, there was no way he could run back to Galahd.
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There were very, very few times that Libertus found Insomnia beautiful. It was a cluttered city, crammed to the brim with people and buildings. Day or night, there was a constant stream of sound, of angry horns and high-pitched laughter. For all that Insomnia was alive, it was never quiet, not in the way that Galahd was. There were no slow-running streams here, no frogs to serenade him to sleep. At home, the only lights at night were the moon and fireflies.
Still, it was safe here. Libertus had learned long ago that there were few things people wouldn't trade for a peace of mind. As piss-poor as the food here was, he could get used to it. As much as the guards cussed him, it was a better fate than death. And for all of his homesickness, he had his best friend and a little sister of sorts here.
"Libertus, get your slow ass up here already!" Crowe yelled from above.
Libertus frowned, staring at his plate. Well, she certainly was like a little sister, all right. Sometimes he wondered if she loved him at all, or just loved insulting him. Before she could yell at him again, he shouted back, "Hold your horses, I'm coming!"
"Bring a drink while you're at it," Nyx called out.
It was bad enough the locals treated him like a servant, he didn't need his friends doing the same. Libertus shot a dirty glare at the door leading to the roof. When he'd first gotten this flat, he'd thought he was lucky. If he'd realized how often Crowe and Nyx would eat dinner at his place, he'd have never signed the lease. Biting back an angry swear, he picked up two beers with his free hand and headed over to his friends.
As he stepped onto the roof, his eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness. Just ahead of him, perched on the edge of the roof, Nyx and Crowe chatted quietly. Their plates were beside them, forgotten, and Libertus wondered what they were talking about. Not another mission, he hoped—he never wanted to talk about the work outside of the job. As he approached them, Nyx looked over his shoulder. "I was starting to think you'd injured more than your leg."
"Don't be a smart ass." Rolling his eyes, Libertus tossed the beer can. Infuriatingly, Nyx caught it with ease. "Make some room."
"Didn't realize you were so fat," Crowe teased, shuffling to her left. Patting at the spot between her and Nyx, she smirked up at him. "All yours."
"I'll remember this the next time you're injured." With a groan, Libertus lowered himself. His plate wobbled precariously as he sank onto the roof. "Next time, we're eating out."
"Sure, I have to watch out for my elders." Crowe dodged his half-hearted swipe, laughing.
"Leave the old man alone," Nyx reprimanded. Whatever sternness he was aiming for was undermined by his laughter.
"We're the same age!" Libertus smacked Nyx. "Anyways, what were you talking about?"
"Nothing, really." Nyx shrugged, gesturing at the city sprawled out ahead of them. Hundreds of lights flickered on and off below them, various shops opening and closing as time passed. It looked almost like the fireflies at home. Almost. "For a city with shit food, it's not half bad to look at."
"You know, you keep saying shit food but never bother to cook actual Galahd food," Crowe pointed out. "When are you two planning on enlightening me?"
"I guess you're ready for some real food." Libertus wasn't a great cook, not by any stretch, but even a taste-blind amateur was better than the cooks here. "After you come back from your next mission, okay?"
"I'll make sure to get the healers ready," Nyx added, unhelpfully. He laughed as Libertus swiped at him now.
Still, Libertus had to give him a begrudging point. The city was beautiful, if only for the fact that they could have nights like this.
-x-
There were very, very few times that Libertus found Insomnia beautiful. And now he would never think that again. Shell shocked, he stood at the gates to the city and watched as his new home burned to the ground. It had been unbelievable when he'd raced through the darkness, guiding Nyx and Luna across the collapsing terrain. It was even more unbelievable now as the sun rose, revealing just how much the empire had destroyed the city. How much he had destroyed the city—unintentionally or not, he had lent his hand to this invasion.
God, he'd been stupid, thinking that for one minute the empire would have freed Galahd. The only thing they wanted was to watch everything burn. The only thing they'd leave behind was rubble. As the sun rose, Libertus forced himself to stare at the city and witness exactly what he'd wrought. Demons disappeared as the sun hit them, the giant guardian statues shattered into a thousand fragments now that their duty was over.
"It's over," he muttered, half to himself.
"No, unfortunately it is not," a quiet voice replied and Libertus snapped his head to find Luna standing next to him. He'd almost forgotten that she was still here, that there was at least one survivor in the city. She looked at him with tired eyes, exhaustion wearing her down to the bone. Dirt smudged her skin and it would be easy to think of her as another ragamuffin on the street and not the princess of a lost country. "This night might have ended, but there is a longer one ahead of us."
"Oh." What was he supposed to say in response to that? And what was that answer, anyways? Her words were so cryptic, he wasn't even sure that Crowe could have deciphered them.
Libertus covered his mouth. Crowe was dead. In the rush of everything, he'd almost forgotten that he hadn't just lost a city. Crowe was dead and Nyx—he took a step forward, already scanning the city. "I have to go get Nyx."
A cool hand grabbed his, stopping him in his tracks. Looking over his shoulder, he watched as Luna shook her head. Her eyes were so big and sad he almost didn't need to hear her speak to know what she was about to say. "I am afraid it's too late."
"How do you know?" he growled, yanking his hand free. Whirling around on her, he grabbed her shoulders. "What do you know?"
"Not enough," she admitted, her voice cracking. Luna wasn't looking at him, her gaze instead on the smouldering ruins behind him. "If only I could have prevented this. I wanted to save Nyx, to save the King, and instead all I managed to protect was this." She held out her palm, revealing a small ring.
The king's ring. He had seen what'd happened to Ravus. What must have happened to Nyx.
To the foolish, heroic Nyx.
"No…" Libertus uttered, staring at the ring.
"I am truly sorry." She closed her eyes.
"No!" he cried, collapsing to his knees. His hands slid down her arms, fingers digging into her skin, but she didn't cry out. "Nyx…he…"
Nyx was dead. Crowe was dead. Galahd was taken over and Insomnia destroyed. There were few things that Libertus could call his own and all of them were gone. Libertus wanted to cry. He wanted to yell. Losing his home had taught him a thing or two about loss but that didn't make it any less of a gut punch.
"Please, take care of yourself. He would have wanted that." Luna gently pried his hands loose, still giving him that sad smile.
What did you know about loss? he almost screamed, but even he'd heard of Tenebrae, of her mother's death. The empire was cruel to everyone, whether they were princesses or the most common of folks.
Gravel crunched underfoot as she slowly walked toward the city's gates. Whatever purpose had brought her to the city, she clearly hadn't finished achieving it yet. Despite her kind words, her expression had been determined. Libertus had seen that expression on Nyx and Crowe a thousand times. She was a woman with a mission.
And he…he had none. He didn't even have bodies to bury. All that he had was a wellspring of grief that threatened to bury him. Libertus forced it down, fighting back his tears. This wasn't the time or place to mourn. He glanced behind him again, at the crumbling city. Should he go back to Galahd, hoping for the off-chance that Nyx might have pulled the impossible? Should he just disappear quietly, fading away like thousands before him must have?
Or a third choice. He turned back to Luna, to her slowly shrinking figure. Nyx had given his life to protect her. And while Libertus could care less about royalty, he didn't want Nyx's final act to go to waste. Didn't want this night to have come to nothing. Crowe had died for this princess. Nyx had sacrificed himself for her.
The least Libertus could do was make sure she at least got to her destination in one piece. Scrambling to his feet, he jogged after her.
"Hey, Princess, wait up!"
And if he didn't have to deal with his grief now, well, that made it all the better.