Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 2 has been edited and reposted.

Chapter 3

Ichigo hovered behind them, watching their backs, as the four natives stared out at the city in horrified shock. Karakura had never taken a lot of damage in the wars, thankfully, but it had come close. His fights with various Arrancar had done their share of damage but the town had been substituted with a fake for the main battle and he had made sure to remove Aizen from the real town for their last showdown. More damage had been done by the Quincy, but they hadn't been interested in human fatalities, thankfully, so most of the fighting had happened in Soul Society and Hueco Mundo. His family home and Geta-boshi's shop had taken the most damage of the years.

This…this was beyond anything he had ever seen and made him very happy Hollows didn't exist in the world, otherwise he would be swamped clearing the city of those who hadn't made it out. He wasn't sure what kind of afterlife there was in this world, but it seemed souls automatically moved on, no matter the circumstance, or those who sent them on could hide from him.

Whatever was going to happen, they would be in the thick of it. Noctis was now King of Lucis…or something, depended on how the rules of inheritance for Royals worked. Did he have to be crowned in a certain manner? Specific place? Or did it just happen automatically? Either way, the Empire had to kill him, or he would be a rallying point for any Lucian who wanted the Empire out of their country. 'Magic' came from the Royal line and from the Oracle. They dying Glaive had said the Oracle had made it out of Insomnia alive, with the King's Ring for Noctis, despite both her and the Prince being reported as dead. Likely, both of them were important and would need to be kept safe. Hopefully the Glaive with her would guard the Oracle, he'd need to find a reason to stick with the guys.

The Prince's phone rang, and it was easy to hear his relief at speaking with whoever it was. He didn't try to listen in since it was likely private, watching back the way they had come. "We've got company," he called softly.

Gladio moved up beside him to look back through the narrow gorge. "MT's. Shouldn't be too hard." He glanced at Ichigo's visible blade. "Close combat I'm guessing."

Ichigo nodded, not like he could toss around the few Kidō he knew, not unless it really came down to life or death, not until he knew them better. His skills would likely be seen as 'magic' and since that seemed limited to certain families, being seen using it would end in way too many questions he wasn't ready to answer yet. "Snipers," he pointed up and Gladio nodded, moving back to make sure the others knew. He blinked as Noctis suddenly appeared in front of one of the snipers, cutting it down before he vanished in a blue light to get the next. It wasn't anything like Shunpo or even Hirenkyaku, it seemed closer to actual teleportation, using the blade as something to guide it. Ichigo drew his blade and leapt in to handle some axemen.

MT's were weird, they felt like daemons, but also different, less wild. They moved kinda like the zombies in an old movie and were apparently incredibly dumb. He could get them to take each other out easily enough. He ducked slightly at the sound of gunshots, but a brief glance showed it was Prompto shooting the MT's and his aim was really good. They made their way back to the car, thankfully it was unnoticed since Ichigo had parked it up under an overhanging bit of debris. Once they were all in, he drove off as quickly as he could.

"Don't suppose the Crownsguard is still active?" Gladio spoke up after a few minutes.

"Wouldn't count on it, not with the marshal out here," Ignis answered.

"I wonder how things are in the city…" Prompto whispered and Ichigo saw Ignis place a hand on his leg in the rear-view mirror.

"There should be reports before long."

"Yeah, something this big can't go ignored."

"And what about us? What do we do?" Prompto asked and Ichigo felt for how lost he sounded.

"Where to?" he asked, glancing back to make sure they weren't being pursued, maybe figuring out a destination would take their minds off what they'd seen of the city.

"Hammerhead," Noctis answered, finally speaking. "Cor said he'll meet us there."

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Ignis observed Ichigo as he drove. He had done very well in the brief fight, then again, he was a Hunter. He'd caught a look at his tags, he was fairly certain they listed him as fourth rank, well above their own beginning rank. He was good at keeping a clear head, keeping them all moving while ensuring they kept rested and fed. He doubted he could have dealt with the meals over the last day. He was beginning to feel steadier now thankfully.

No, Noctis and Prompto were the real worries now. Noctis was shutting down behind his anger, and, other than the fight, Prompto seemed one step away from emotional collapse. That was not good, they were fugitives now, they could not afford to have any member of the group as a weak link. He just didn't know how to help either of them.

Gladio suddenly shifted around in the front, pulling out his phone to read something, a message? Had Lord Amicitia survived? Surely Cor would have mentioned that so perhaps it meant young Iris had made it out. "Got a message from my sister: she's with refugees bound for Lestallum," he finally told them.

"Well, at least Iris is okay," Prompto offered shakily.

"Yeah. Doesn't sound like everyone else was so lucky, though," Gladio put his phone away. "Heard from your parents Prom?"

"No…I'm not sure if they were in the city or not," he admitted softly. Once again Ignis felt the desire to introduce the elder Argentum's to his best knives. How could such people raise such a caring, giving, son?

"We'd best make haste. Noct won't be dead forever," he spoke up to keep any questions being asked of the younger man. Their driver remained silent, letting them talk among themselves, they could almost forget he was there, and it was nice that he was not trying to impose himself upon them.

Ichigo pulled off the road to park beside the pumps and they piled out as Cindy approached, everyone quickly becoming wet since the rain had picked up again.

"Hey," Gladio called out in greeting and she nodded.

"Glad y'all made it. No weather for drivin', that's for sure," she glanced up at the dark clouds.

"Our thanks," Ignis managed a small smile as she looked them over, he doubted they looked very good.

"Who's your friend?" She asked, eyeing Ichigo.

"Cindy Aurum, this is Ichigo Kurosaki, a hunter from Galdin. He was kind enough to handle driving after…" Ignis trailed off, ashamed that he had been too badly shaken to be trusted behind the wheel.

"Well nice ta meet you," she smiled and Ichigo nodded.

"Likewise."

"Where's Cor?" Noctis demanded before anything else could be said.

"Left to see to business, and left y'all a message with Paw-paw," thankfully Cindy took it in stride, understanding in her eyes.

"Yeah?"

"Boss ain't sat still one second since he heard y'all were comin'."

They began to follow her and Ichigo hesitated, but Ignis turned to him and motioned for him to follow. It was unlikely anything classified would be said and the Hunters would be needed with the other forces either wiped out or depleted.

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Cid watched the boys enter the garage, pushing his own grief back as best he could. At least Cor had made it out of the mess alive, but none of them had ever wanted to outlive Reggie. He should have known there was something more wrong when he'd called asking him to keep an eye on the boy, but he'd accepted it as stress from the upcoming Treaty.

There was a stranger with them, but light glinted off the chain around his neck, and Cid wondered where and why they'd picked up a Hunter. He looked about the same age as the boys…but his eyes and the way he moved said he was older…or just a lot more experienced. He was confident, eyes assessing everything, but it was different to Clarus' boys' confidence, this was the type that came from real experience. Good, they could use someone who knew the territory and how things worked outside of the city.

Reggie's boy…. he looked like he was barely hangin' on. He knew why he'd been raised the way he had, and in theory it had been kind, but now… he was never meant to shoulder the responsibilities of King so young, then again no one ever planned to die when they did. He'd have to grow up fast now or he'd end up dead quick and with him all hope of defeating the Empire.

"Crystal and the king's ring—what they been after all along…" he offered.

"So all talk of peace was merely a pretext." The too serious young man thought out loud and Cid nodded.

"They played my father for a fool," Noctis spat angrily and Cid glared at him. He understood the anger, but he wouldn't let him aim it at his Father.

"Don't kid yourself. Reggie wasn't born yesterday. Lucis got dealt a losin' hand, and your old man played it the best he could. He saw this comin' a mile away, and he wasn't gonna go down without a fight. In the end, though… Well, it just wasn't enough," he finished quietly, glancing at the photo taken in happier times. "I can't even remember the last time I saw Reggie. Feels like a lifetime ago," he whispered before leaving the room. It didn't take them long to follow him outside where the rain had stopped again. "Cor left a message; said he'll wait for ya in the tombs. They're to the northwest of here, just a short ways past the outpost. Find that first." He dropped into his chair and grabbed a beer, remembering their own road trip so many years ago. He should call Weskham, make sure he'd heard the news and knew that Cor had made it.

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Ichigo listened and observed, seeing the grief in the old man and feeling for him. Sounded like he'd been very close to the King at one point. He wondered why they hadn't seen each other in so long and hoped they had least ended things on good terms, it didn't stop the grief, but it did help some in dealing with it.

"Ichigo, a word?" Ignis called and Ichigo joined him.

"What is it?"

"We owe you thanks for all of your aid and I regret we cannot offer to drive you back to Galdin."

"Don't worry about it," Ichigo denied, shaking his head. "I'm happy to help."

"Still…"

"Ignis, I mean it. You needed help so I helped," Ichigo stated firmly, how was he going to arrange to tag along further though?

"Thank you. I fear things will become more dangerous now. While the Empire has left the Hunters alone before, they may not now. Not when the Hunters came out of Royal forces once."

"We perform a pretty necessary service though, I'd guess they'll watch us but not act unless it looks like we're banding together for more than tackling really tough jobs," Ichigo offered, it would make no sense to target them and then be forced to commit forces to take over their duties. It was part of why Soul Society had accepted the Arrancar taking control of Hueco Mundo, it was better to have them in some form of control than to go in, kill them, and then attempt to control the place themselves. Without some form of order, the amount of incursions into the Living World would have been astronomical.

"I hope you are right," Ignis adjusted his glasses, reminding Ichigo of Uryū.

"It'll take another day or two to reach the outpost, you won't get much further today," he pointed out. "Imperial presence will be very heavy here too due to how close the city is, having an extra fighter on hand could help."

Ignis looked at him. "You are offering to come even further from your home?"

"I don't have a home," Ichigo answered. "Not for a long time now. Besides, it's a Hunter outpost, I can find someone there to either get a lift back to Galdin from or find out if there's somewhere else I'm more needed."

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Ignis considered his offer. Should they need to fight, his aid would be very welcome, as he had far more real experience than any of them. In a way, that concerned him, running into Ichigo and all the help he had given them, was almost too good to be true. He had obviously been known and trusted in Galdin Quay though. He looked to where Noctis and Prompto stood, Gladio in the store ensuring they were well stocked. The blonde looked a little calmer now which was good but Noctis was still very closed off. Would Ichigo's presence threaten his Prince…no King, in any way? Something told him that it was the opposite.

He looked back at Ichigo and nodded. "Thank you."

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Prompto crawled out of the tent, unable to sleep and not wanting to wake the others up. He hesitated when he saw Ichigo stretched out beside the fire, he'd forgotten he was there. Then he sat up and looked towards where Prompto was standing.

"Prompto?" Ichigo called in concern and it was weird, someone he barely knew was concerned about him.

"Uh…sorry, go back to sleep, just gotta…" he pointed at the area they had marked off for personal use and Ichigo nodded so Prompto moved off to handle that.

He stared out into the darkness, refusing to look in the direction he knew Insomnia was, not wanting to know if the city was still burning. He didn't remember living anywhere but the city and now it was all gone…all because of the Empire and he found he was fidgeting with his wristband, forcing himself to let go of it. Now, more than ever, he had to keep it hidden. Not that he knew what it meant, but he doubted it was anything good.

He shook off his thoughts and head back, seeing Ichigo was now sitting beside the fire. He hesitated, not really wanting to go back into the tent yet. Ichigo obviously saw him and waved him over, handing him a mug as he sat.

"You sure you're okay?" the Hunter asked, and Prompto shrugged. "Worried about your family?" he asked gently.

"I don't even know if they were in the city," he admitted, drinking the tea. "They, uh, travel a lot for work."

"I'm sorry."

He shrugged again. "Do you...have a family?"

Ichigo glanced at him and then back at the fire. "Mom died when I was eight, leaving Dad, me and my younger twin sisters. They were four years younger than me. They died in attack a few years ago," he explained softly.

"I'm sorry," Prompto cringed, why had he asked.

"Not your fault," Ichigo responded. "You should get some sleep; we'll reach the outpost tomorrow."

I can't sleep," he muttered and then he felt something drop over his shoulders. He reached up and felt the material of Ichigo's jacket, looking over at him.

"Try," the Hunter told him, tugging him into lying down next to the fire.

He had been trying…every time he closed his eyes, he saw the city burning, he didn't….

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Ichigo watched as Prompto's eyes closed, his breathing deepening as his body relaxed in sleep. He'd cheated but the kid needed a good night's sleep, who knew what they would be doing with this Cor at the outpost. And at least he wasn't going to be fighting a spirit in his head while out or anything. Shinji had been far more obvious when he knocked him out though. Ichigo could go without sleep for quite a while but these boys were fully human, raised in the safety of the city. It would take time for them to adjust to life in the rest of Lucis.

He lay down beside the blonde, sharing his pack pillow with him, just because he could go without sleep didn't mean he would unless necessary. It was always best to sleep when he could, in case he ended up having to go without later. He wondered if Ignis would accept that he was willing to help them beyond tomorrow as he seemed to be the one to make several of the decisions for the group, despite Noctis being the Royal.

TBC…