Day 48:

The waters rose. She stood in the midst of them, surrounded on all sides by the swelling sea as blue waters grew tumultuous and frothy. When her mother had trained her in the rituals that could awaken the Astrals and bind them in a covenant, neither of them had expected she would ever stand in combat against one. Even if she had stood at Noctis' side while he was tested, she wouldn't have been prepared for this. Leviathan was coming. She had no intention of hearing pleas or making bargains.

Standing alone on the altar, Luna was little more than a priestess preparing to face down an army. She couldn't do it. Not by herself. And if she failed, she would never see Noctis again. She would never have the chance to change the words she had said and earn back his respect.

"They flee like ants before the coming of rain."

In the growing crash of waves, she hadn't heard Ravus approach, but he was right behind her now. She wasn't alone. She didn't have to stand against the Hydraean by herself. She would have the one person who had always shielded her, even if he needed to turn his back to do it.

"They will never escape in time," he said.

"They have to try," she said.

"They have nowhere to run."

That was true, at least. Altissia was surrounded on all sides by the ocean. Fleeing on boats from the wrath of the Goddess of the Sea was a poor plan. Nearly as foolish as waking the Astrals and asking them nicely to leave.

"It was never going to work, was it?" Luna asked.

A wave crashed over the shrine. Ravus shielded her against impact and cold water splashed over both of them.

"No," he said. "Likely it would have come to this regardless. Did you believe I came with you for sightseeing?"

Luna pushed her sodden hair back from her face and tied it behind her head. "No, I suppose you wouldn't."

"Listen to me, Luna," he said, suddenly inches in front of her. "In Tenebrae I found truths written in the books Mother never let us touch. If the Astrals leave Eos, all of their magic will be undone—for weal and woe. But they do not have to leave willingly. Niflheim knew not how to destroy them. Shiva's body was left in the pass, but her soul remains in Gentiana. Cutting Leviathan down will do little good, unless you destroy her."

"What do you mean?"

"They are immortal. Bound by magic to Eos. But by magic they can be undone. Search for the ties that allow you to summon the Astrals. Use them to lead you to the source and sever their leads. Only then will Leviathan truly fall."

He meant to destroy Leviathan, well and truly. Forever.

Knowing that this was the alternative if her plans failed had not prepared her to face the truth. Could she truly sever a god from Eos and deprive them of an Astral?

The alternative was the death of all she knew and held dear.

She turned toward the roiling sea. And she straightened. "If we are going to destroy our family legacy, we may as well do it properly."

She reached out for her magic and called forth the Trident of the Oracle. A choice weapon in a battle against a sea serpent, but she would have felt more comfortable with a sliver of combat training. Doubtless Reina could have stood against the Hydraean without breaking a sweat. She wore a cloak of dark confidence that boasted she could bring the world crashing down around her if she was so inclined. But Luna was trained for diplomacy, not destruction. This wasn't the future her tutors had foreseen for her.

Ravus' blade hissed as it slid from his sheath. "Let the heavens rain down and justice be done unto them."

The power that had been swelling beneath the city, like a geyser threatening to burst, exploded up from the depths. A blue-green serpent, the color of the ocean waves, broke the surface of the water, sending a second wave crashing over the altar. Luna stood firm against it, bracing herself against impact and taking it as gracefully as she could.

:What mortal dares stand against the goddess of the sea?:

Leviathan's power washed over her: an invisible show of her strength meant to bring mortals to their knees before her. Luna's legs quivered. Her knees threatened to bend and her muscles ached suddenly and without cause.

But she refused to kneel.

"You are no god." Luna turned her face up toward the towering serpent and lifted her voice in defiance. "Humankind cries out for justice against those who have wronged them. And I am their messenger: their voice to the Astrals. Today I wield their weapon and pass judgement to those I was meant to revere. Today you face your crimes against humanity and see justice done."

A bellowing roar answered her words. It pounded in her ears and her chest. It rattled the stone pillars around them and rumbled through the platform beneath their feet.

:The blood of the Oracle dares defy the will of the gods? You speak of justice. All you will receive today is death. And you will die as you stand against me: alone, in a land not even your own.:

"The Oracle does not stand alone." Gentiana's voice seemed too quiet to carry, but it held a weight of its own. She appeared beside Luna as she always did: silent, placid, and unmoving. "The Glacian stands beside her. And though they may be worlds apart, the Line of Kings stands beside her as well. For united in purpose are the Caelums and the Nox Fleurets."

:Then you stand with the same transgressors who enslaved your beloved. Who even now pull his reins and call him to fight against his kin.:

"Just as he once would have, I stand with humankind," Gentiana said.

:If you stand with the mortals, you will fall with the mortals.:

"We will stand," Gentiana said. "But the Glacian knows: this time we will not fall."

Leviathan lunged for Gentiana. Teeth the size of Lunafreya's trident smashed into a wall of ice. And beside her stood her friend and companion: no longer a Messenger of the Gods, but the Glacian unveiled. She looked to Luna and smiled mutely. She nodded just once—the quiet, understanding nod that Luna so often saw from Gentiana—and she split until half a dozen Glacians swirled in the air, brewing a blizzard over the Hydraean as she tried to snap them out of the sky.

"So be it," Luna said. "Today we kill a god or die trying."

"I will not die for this." Ravus resettled his grip on his sword. "Someone in Lucis awaits my blade."

"And mine as well," Luna whispered. "I hope."

AN: Sooo my laptop was getting repaired on Monday and I never posted this chapter. Have a Wednesday chapter instead.