Time permitting, the next few chapters should be able to roll out pretty quickly here, as a reward for your patience. Thanks for reading!

Update:

I thought to add this: I've come up with a terrible flu and am still recovering. Between that and Uni, updates have pretty much halted. Once this sickness has cleared up, I'll try to get the next chapter posted as soon as possible. I'm about halfway through it at the moment. Thanks for reading and thanks for your patience!

Chapter Seven

Horrors of the Night

With a final twist, the last bolt was secured on the purple and white Magitek arm now attached to Ravus Nox Fleuret. With the deed done, he pushed the man working his arm aside and observed the clawed hand.

"Beautiful, is it not?"

The voice that spoke was aged, decrepit, and deep.

Ravus looked up to see the wrinkled visage of Verstael Besithia, smiling his iconic cruel smile. The man approached the former prince of Tenebrae and grabbed the arm, raising it to admire it himself. Ravus hissed and pulled the arm back.

"Do not touch me, Verstael," he said.

"So ungrateful, aren't you," Verstael said with a wheezing laugh. "And yet, it is we who have saved you."

"I did not require—"

"Please," Verstael interrupted. "If the infantry had not found you on the side of that road, moaning and crying out your sister's name, you would have died right there. Be grateful for our mercy. How was it, by the way?"

"What?" Ravus asked.

"The Diamond Weapon. My ultimate creation. Oh... if only I could have been there to witness it razing Insomnia myself."

"It was certainly a sight," came a droll and sickly-sweet voice.

The two looked at the entrance to the lab to see Ardyn Izunia standing, hand gripping the fedora atop his head. A smile creeped onto his face as naturally as the rising of the sun at dawn. Though one would be remiss to describe it as "happy."

"I imagine it would be, Chancellor," Verstael said.

"You have done wonders with Magitek," Ardyn enthused.

"All of it thanks to you, Chancellor Izunia," Verstael said. "Without you, the Magitek movement would be years behind."

"You humble me, minister," Ardyn replied with a bow.

Ravus scoffed. Everything about Ardyn always seemed so... false.

"High Commander Fleuret," Ardyn said to Ravus.

Ravus sat up in his metallic chair. "High commander?"

"Indeed," Ardyn said. "With the operation in Insomnia deemed largely successful, your loyalty to our empire has been proven. It was Emperor Aldercapt's insistence that you be made high commander. What an honor!"

"I... did not ask for this," Ravus muttered.

"Nor did you have to!" Ardyn replied. "Your commitment to our cause was clear enough evidence that you are... worthy of the role."

Something about the way he said that made Ravus believe none of it to be true. For what reason could they be making him high commander? Was this an attempt at some sort of humiliation?

"Well, then," Verstael said. "Perhaps now you can find your missing sister, eh?"

Ravus shot the Imperial Research Minister a venomous glare.

"Indeed," Ardyn said. "We can't have her roaming about now, can we? Ring in hand?" Ardyn looked at the clawed fingers of the Magitek arm. "Though I suppose you had the ring in hand once too, didn't you? Couldn't help yourself but to try it on, yes?"

Ardyn burst into laughter.

"I..." Ravus began.

"Worry not, Ravus," Ardyn cut in. "We can't blame you for trying. I'm sure any of us would have."

"Ah," Verstael began. "The things I could do with that ring. We might finally be able to open up that accursed Crystal and take a peek inside. If there rumors of what is contained within are true..."

"Let us not speculate," Ardyn said. "I came here because the emperor wishes us to meet with him to discuss our plans."

"Of course," Verstael replied. "The boy should be good to go now. We can come with."

"Wonderful," Ardyn replied with a deep, deep smile.

And so, the three gathered before the emperor at the height of the towering Zegnautus Keep in Gralea, the capital of the Empire. Standing beside Ravus, Ardyn, and Verstael was a young commander armored in black and gold Ravus recognized as Loqi, and another older commander next to him he recognized as Caligo. Behind the group of commanders was a woman armored in black Ravus had yet to speak with. All he knew was her name: Aranea Highwind. She looked sick of it all, all the time.

"So, the prince eludes death?" the emperor asked, sitting in his seat, leaning back, fingers drumming the arms of the chair. "And what of the elusive ring?"

"Lunafreya has absconded with it," Ravus replied.

Find and kill her," the emperor commanded. "The ring is the final piece."

The command boiled something within Ravus, but he did not let it affect his emotionless expression.

Verstael cleared his throat and cut it. "We may do well to take her alive. The Six wield power beyond our imagination. We have already learned much from Ifrit and if we could capture the others... Well, the prophesy would change in our favor, would it not? Imagine the power we could draw from them. The Oracle holds the key for the King. She could unlock many secrets, nay high commander?" Verstael shot a sneering grin at Ravus. "The imperial army is now at your disposal."

"A moot point, while the fugitives are still at large," Ravus replied. He turned to the emperor. "My men and I will continue our search for the prince and the Oracle."

The emperor, however, seemed elsewhere. In a dreamy voice, he said, "So glorious... My Crystal..."

The commanders exchanged nervous glances at the odd behavior, and Ardyn smiled at the back of the room.

The clouds were clear and the stars and the very distant swirls of galaxies was visible as Noctis traversed the flat and rough terrain of the Leide Region. His feet had become quite sore and he realized his boots were immensely uncomfortable as they marched on and on toward the outpost that seemed so close when he looked at the map. His phone was silenced, as it had been after the thirtieth call. He sent one text message hours ago of his intention, and had since ignored the pleas of his friends.

He wished he had the foresight to have brought some water along with him.

Noctis sighed, looking back at where he came from. The garage was so distant, he couldn't see it, yet when he looked ahead, he saw a glow of lights. The outpost? Perhaps.

This energized the prince, and he stretched his stride out as he continued his dreadful march.

After a moment, Noctis heard a strange rumble.

A metallic whine.

The earth at his feet started to shake and Noctis nearly fell back.

An earthquake?

As though to answer, he saw a strange glow in the corner of his eye. The prince turned and saw red and purple energy erupting from the ground. A black, oily mass spread into a wide circle and he heard a deep groan.

Something began to poke out of the blackness. It came out, long and rectangular. Another similar shape emerged beside it. And yet another. Noctis gasped when he realized they were fingers attached to a massive palm.

A large hand reached out and came down, pressing against the ground. The black mass expanded, and a gigantic creature rose from the blackness, groaning and moaning as metal being stretched and strained. As it rose fully out of the ground, its second arm emerged, pulling with it an absolutely massive blade that dwarfed Noctis's entire body.

It stood fully on two beefy legs and let out a roar as the black mass at its feet disappeared, replaced by the rough sand.

The beast, an unsightly giant of iron, looked at the prince and swung its massive sword above its head before swinging it down, crashing it against the ground. Pieces of hardened sandy earth rose up from the sheer impact of the blade.

"What in the name of Eos?" Noctis shouted.

Noctis lifted his hand, summoning the Engine Blade.

As he readied to fight, he wondered as to how he could possibly defeat a monster like this.

The Iron Giant let out another metallic whine as it reeled back its arm, readying to smash Noctis apart in a single blow. Noctis hurled his sword between the legs of the beast and vanished, in time for the blade to crater the ground where he had stood but a moment ago. With a roll, Noctis ended his warp with his blade in hand, aiming his weapon at the back of the great monstrosity.

He tossed the weapon at the monster and appeared behind its neck in a flash. Noctis swung the blade and then reeled as the weapon simply bounced off, sending painful vibrations through his arm. Before he could fall, the giant immediately spun, swinging its blade. Noctis reacted instinctively, raising his weapon in time to block the spinning slice, which sent him crashing to the ground.

He rolled for several feet, grunting and moaning.

He looked back at the beast, the giant letting out another metallic roar as it flailed its rusted weapon wildly. Noctis took a moment to observe the thing, a homunculus of twisted living steel with a horned helm. It appeared rusted and ancient, like it crawled from the depths of a thousand-year-old darkness. As he saw the black and red energy pulsating around it, he was reminded of the Behemoth in Insomnia, and Noctis realized he was facing a daemon.

For much of his life, he was told he was the chosen king of light. He was told he was to one day vanquish the darkness, and that included a beast such as this. And yet, this thing was so wildly beyond him it was almost hilarious. What possible chance could he hope to have against the remaining thrall of the darkness?

Noctis let out a solitary and hollow laugh as he struggled to return to his feet. He called the Engine Blade again, gripping it with both hands. As the giant came to meet his challenge, Noctis realized he needed to formulate a plan. He tossed the blade away from the beast, putting a good twenty feet between himself and the beast.

The giant stopped for a moment, letting out a low metallic groan.

"If I really am the chosen king," Noctis moaned, "then you're in for some pain, big guy."

The giant then stretched out its massive empty hand and Noctis tilted its head. Some kind of challenge?

A red glow appeared in the center of its palm, expanding and shrinking and expanding again and again until it became a massive pulsing orb of red and black electrical energy. Around it, the sand of the desert gradually began to raise, pulled to the pulsing energy. And then it reached Noctis, and the prince gritted his teeth as he started to feel himself sliding across the ground.

What the hell is this? he screamed in his mind.

The gravity altering magical energy drew him closer and closer, and Noctis felt himself lifting off his feet. He let out a scream of pain as the longer he resisted, the more he felt as though he was going to be torn in two.

Noctis's scream turned to a roar as he reached deep inside, calling on the blades of his ancestors again. The Royal Arms could save him now. He would use its power to vanquish his enemy as he had so many in Insomnia. The last gift of his father. The power of a King of Lucis.

But it didn't come. No matter how much he begged and screamed, the power didn't come. It refused him. He was not worthy. Cid was right after all. Noctis couldn't beat one daemon on his own, he stood not a chance against the empire.

He drew closer and closer to the orb.

With great effort, Noctis spun himself in the air. The act had drawn his effort away from keeping himself in place, and so he flew toward the orb much more quickly. He reeled back his arm and threw his sword, warping as far as it could go.

It wasn't far enough to escape the pull. So, he threw it again. And again. And again.

Finally, he rolled on the ground, having managed to warp just outside of the range of the orb. He stopped rolling on his back, staring up at the sky. He was drained, feeling every part of his mana reserve emptied by the multiple warps. The world was spinning, and so the heavens spiraled due to his dazed trance. As he looked up there, he wondered if his father was looking down at him now, shaking his head in utter disappointment at the failure his son turned out to be. The crackling and groaning energy of the orb came to an end. He heard heavy thudding as the beast slowly made its way to him.

Alone in the desert, tired and thirsty, after having lost his father and his home. After having abandoned his friends to pursue in his folly... Is this how it was to end? At the hands of a beast from Hell?

He looked over at the giant, who reeled back its arm again, ready to deliver the deathblow.

Then it stopped, groaning as it looked past the prince. Noctis turned his head and winced as he saw a bright light.

The end? Was this the light one saw before they died?

It was a bright, white circle and it expanded as it got closer. But then it separated; one light became two.

A faint sound followed after. One Noctis recognized. The roar of an engine.

The Iron Giant whined again and Noctis looked back over. It had started to drop its blade on the prince. Noctis, with great effort and a laborious wheeze, managed to roll just out of the way of the weapon, his body sent rolling further after it struck ground, pushed by the impact of the weapon.

Noctis looked over at the white, relishing in the familiar sight of the now clearly visible Regalia.

His three friends rushed out of the vehicle, weapons in hand. Noctis stumbled over to them, but fell before he could get close, hand outstretched desperately toward them.

Gladiolus let out a fierce battle cry as he charged past Noctis and came to a stop, raising a shield to protect his charge. Ignis and Prompto stood beside the prince, his retainer leaning down and placing a hand on him.

"Noctis!" Ignis cried. "Can you stand?"

Noctis grabbed his hand and struggled to return to his feet. Prompto released his gun and leaned down to help Ignis. They returned the prince to his feet, supporting him on their shoulders. Ignis reached into a pack at his hip and pulled out an energy drink.

"Touch it," he said.

Noctis moaned and brushed his fingers against it, pulling at a dwindled mana source to energize the drink. When it pulsed faintly, Ignis pulled the cork and poured it on the prince. He hadn't enough magical energy to completely power the drink, but there was enough there to revitalize him the slightest.

"Prompto," Ignis said. "We are going to take him to the car."

"Okay," Prompto replied with a nod.

The two slowly led Noctis to the Regalia.

Gladiolus let out a roar as he blocked a tall vertical slice from the Iron Giant with his shield. He shoved the blade aside, where it crashed against the ground. He took a moment to briefly look back to see if the others were secure in the car and then rushed away from the beast to join them.

Gladiolus jumped into the back seat and the car bounced underneath him.

"Let's get the hell out of here!" he shouted.

Ignis floored the pedal and the wheels grinded against the ground before the vehicle began to take off. A crackling, groaning pulse was heard. The Regalia's momentum came to a sudden stop.

"What the hell?" Prompto cried out.

They looked back to see the giant's hand outstretched, the pulsing gravity orb in its palm.

"Ignis! Get us out of here!" Gladiolus roared.

"My foot is as far down as it can go!" Ignis shouted back. "We hadn't time to build up enough momentum to escape this gravity pull!"

Prompto yelped. "We're going backwards!"

"Shoot the damn thing!" Gladiolus barked.

Prompto stood in the passenger's seat and pulled his gun from the air. He took aim and fired, but if the bullet connected, the beast gave no hint. He fired again and again to no avail.

"We might be screwed," Prompto moaned.

"If it pulls the car in," Gladiolus grunted, "there's no way we're gonna recover it this time! It was already a damn miracle the belt came so quickly!"

Ignis swung the steering wheel left and right, and the Regalia followed suit. It made no progress, still being drawn ever closer to the giant. They had mere minutes before it would be too late. Before that thing would cleave their car apart.

Then it came to an end. The pulsating stopped, followed shortly after by a loud crash. The Regalia shot forward a few feet until Ignis pressed the brake, bringing it to a screeching halt.

They looked back, in time to see the giant collapse.

The three exchanged confused glances before looking back at the creature. Something stood astride its back as the beast slowly began to dissipate into miasma. It leaped down, resting a long blade on its shoulder.

"No way..." Gladiolus muttered.

"Who is it?" Prompto asked.

"It's... Cor."

The three exited the car, leaving the knocked-out prince to recover in the back seat. They approached the marshal of the Crownsguard in utter awe at his ability.

"It does my eyes well to see you standing here," Cor said.

"How in the hell did you manage to kill that thing?" Gladiolus asked, starstruck.

"Enough time spent fighting the horrors of the night, and you'll start to see their weaknesses," Cor replied. "This blade is enhanced, infused by light many years ago by the king himself. It was made to kill daemons. Tell me, where is Noctis."

"Recovering," Ignis replied. "In the backseat of the Regalia. We managed to make it here in time to save him from the giant, but you came here in time to save the rest of us. We are in your debt, marshal."

"Nonsense," Cor replied, raising a hand. "I did nothing more or less than the duty I am required to perform."

"Either way," Prompto interjected. "It was undeniably hella awesome."

"Ain't that the truth," Gladiolus enthused.

Cor didn't entertain the praise. "There's a bed at the outpost nearby. Noctis can recover there."

The golden light of encroaching dusk pierced the distant horizon as the sun set. Noctis was in a forest of thin and dying trees. He was eight years old again and he looked down at his shrunken body, wondering how it was he had reversed age so dramatically.

Hello, Noctis, came a spectral voice. It was the same one he had heard the night of the party in Insomnia. Before it all came crashing down.

"Who are you?" Noctis asked, his voice light and unbroken by puberty.

In time, you'll see, the voice replied. It was faint, but female.

"Where am I?" he asked.

Asleep in the Fantasy, she replied. It is where I am too, awaiting the day I might wake again. Perhaps on that day, you may find me here, waiting for a prince to free me from sleep.

What does that mean?" Noctis asked.

The voice didn't reply.

When Noctis awoke, he gave a light moan, feeling the bones of his spine popping back into place as he slowly sat up. He was in a bed, but an unfamiliar one. All around him were large electrical generators, and the best he could tell, he was in a hut of some sort. He yawned and raised his arms, feeling their stiffness gradually relent. He felt like he had woken from some sort of coma, after having slept for the first time since Insomnia fell.

He looked around again, hoping for the familiar sight of his friends. Last he remembered, he had been dragged off by Ignis and Prompto before all went black. They weren't here.

He pulled the covers off of him and stepped out of the bed. On his feet, he stretched again. He felt like he hadn't moved in days. The entrance to the hut was covered by a thin tarp, and Noctis pushed it aside as he stepped outside.

The sun was high and all was bright on a cloudless Leide day. All around, he saw men and women garbed in brown gear moving busily about. One noticed him and approached.

"Awake at last, eh?" he asked.

"Huh?" was all Noctis could muster. His brain hadn't managed to awaken enough to process speech.

"Glad you're doing well, kid," the man replied. "Name's Dave. You're at the Hunter Outpost."

Noctis mustered an "Oh." Then it struck him. "Wait, the outpost? Is Cor...?"

"He's with your friends in that building over there." Dave pointed at a nearby flat-roofed building larger than all the others."

"My friends..."

Noctis rushed over to the building, at least as much as he could since his body was still in recover from sleep mode. He stumbled inside of the open-doored building and saw his three friends along with Cor and a woman Noctis recognized as Monica standing around a stone table.

When they noticed him, his friends eyes lit up.

Prompto rushed over, giving Noctis a hug.

"Ow!" Noctis moaned. Prompto quickly released his hold, giving a sheepish grin.

"Careful, Prompto," Ignis said. "He's still stiff."

"Glad to see you're awake, sleeping beauty," Gladiolus said.

"How long was I out?" Noctis asked.

"Three days," Gladiolus replied.

"Three... days..." It took Noctis's sleepy mind a moment to process this. Then he snapped more awake than he had been. "Three days! Are you joking? We have to—"

"In time," Cor said. "We'll get to that business soon. We have other concerns as well."

"Such as?" Noctis asked.

Monica walked over to Cor, pointing at a few pieces strewn across what appeared to be a map of Lucis.

"The empire has taken control of several old Lucian outposts from the old war," she said. "We're devising strategies as to how we are to deal with them. Several of those outposts are near sites of Royal Arms, as well as near the long-rumored locations of the Astrals."

"The... Astrals?" Noctis asked. "Wait, the Astral Astrals? Like the big old gods? They're around here somewhere?"

"We better hope so," Cor said. "I don't know if you're aware, but you are going to meet them eventually."

"Whaaat?" Noctis asked.

"Perhaps we shouldn't worry him with those details yet," Ignis replied. "For now, maybe we should pursue the outpost near here and secure that Royal Arm."

"Indeed," Cor replied. "Why don't you guys get yourself ready and meet me over there?"

"Of course, marshal," Ignis replied with a bow.

Noctis and his friends left the hut.

Outside, the three marched ahead of the prince, but Noctis stopped.

"Listen," he began. The three turned to look at him. "I... was stupid. I shouldn't have rushed ahead like that. And... I definitely shouldn't have treated you guys like that."

"It was pretty stupid," Gladiolus agreed. "We... understand though. Just don't do it again, yeah?"

Prompto walked over to his friend and gave him another hug, albeit a much lighter one. "We're here for you buddy. No need to be so emo, yeah?"

Noctis squeezed back.

"Yeah," he replied.

Prompto released his friend and patted his shoulders.

"We'll drive to the tomb," Ignis said. "Give you some more time to rest up."

On the outskirts of the outpost, the Regalia was parked and waiting. As Ignis made to enter the driver's seat, Noctis stopped him.

"I'll drive," he said. "You've done enough driving that I owe you the favor."

"Are you sure?" Ignis replied. "I am very okay with—"

"Trust me, I'll be fine."

Ignis produced the keys and handed it to Noctis. The prince smiled and unlocked the car with the fob.

He entered and took a seat on the comfortable black leather. He ran his hands along the steering wheel.

Then he was taken back. Back to his childhood, sitting on the lap of his father behind the wheel of the Regalia. This car was now the last gift he had given him. The last memory of the late King Regis, stabbed through the heart by the empire. And then...

Noctis felt himself growing short of breath. He began to panic, gulping for air that refused to enter his lungs. With a moan, he dove out of the car, rolling on the ground, tears suddenly welling in his eyes.

The cries of his friends were faint behind crushing white noise growing ever louder in his ears.

"Noct!" Ignis cried, supporting the prince.

"I..." Noctis began, through labored breathing. "I... can't... I can't... do... this..."

Ignis took the keys, and gripped Noctis by his shoulders.

"You don't have to," he whispered.

Noctis's breathing steadied, tears rolling hot down his cheek.

"I'm sorry," he moaned.

"It's okay," Ignis replied. "I'll drive until you're ready. It's okay. You'll be okay."

Noctis looked over at Gladiolus and Prompto. The shield held a hard and concerned stare, but Prompto's eyes were welled up with tears as well.

The prince felt shame. He felt weak. He felt defeated.

"I'll..." he began, looking down at his feet. "I'll get stronger. Then they'll pay."

Ignis pulled Noctis to his feet and gave him another pat on the shoulder.

"You ARE strong, Noctis," he said. "This isn't weakness."

Noctis nodded, and the four entered the car, with the prince sitting in the back beside Gladiolus as Ignis took the wheel and pulled the car away.