What to do? Hm. What to do...
Yeah, he was lost. Why did the world have to be so freaking big now? He could swear it only took, like, fifteen minutes or something to cross the desert on foot in game, but now...he'd been walking for hours and hadn't seen a single landmark he recognized. Of course, it made sense that this reality would be larger. After all, the climate changes in the game were a bit extreme considering the map was only about ten miles across or something. In any case, he was dead lost with no water and food and still hours away till sunset in over a hundred degree weather. Jason would be in a world of hurt if he didn't find anyone out here.
The first thing Jason tried was the haven he had (foolishly) stormed from before, but he was much too late. They were gone. No trace of the four remained. He didn't blame them, per se, after what he said to Prompto, but it still sucked. He only vaguely knew where he was and despite growing up in a place like Texas, none of the hikes he endured in the southern sun quite prepared him for the long hours in a true desert. At least at home, he had never been stupid enough to wander around a pretty much empty region with no provisions and no plan. Or piss off the only guy willing to help him. Yeah, good move, Jason.
So, without people who knew the land to guide him, he made his way over to the closest road; that being the one he had been staring at while he sulked. It was several miles away, and even when he got to it, there were no cars to be found. So he walked.
Gravel and cracked concrete crunched underneath Jason's borrowed shoes, the fit too large–how could Ignis be slimmer than him and have bigger feet?–which left aching blisters on his heels. He sweat profusely in misery, just trying to keep walking in a straight line. Usually, it would have been smarter to wait until nightfall, when it wouldn't be so hot, but not in this world. Not in this place where daemons and monsters roamed the night just waiting for a weary traveler to wander into waiting jaws. No, though the wandering beasts of this desert were no walk in the park either, he would much rather fight a pack of wild dogs than a red giant.
A howl in the distance had Jason shivering despite the heat. He paused. Okay, so he would rather not have to fight anything at all.
After a wary scan of the empty horizon, Jason continued on. Man, he was effing thirsty. Not even his eternal optimism could soothe the dryness in his throat. He'd been out here for hours. Couldn't Prompto have left him a water bottle, or at least a goddam map–
Jason crouched down with a piteous moan, then when that wasn't enough, he smacked himself repeatedly on the head. "Jason, you are a freaking idiot." Of course he had a map, had he lost his senses completely? He dragged himself over to the side of the road and collapsed against a large rock.
With a flick of thought and an unconscious twitch of his thumbs, Jason pulled up the game menu. When he saw the MAP as the first item on the menu, he rolled his eyes at himself so hard they probably would have rolled right out of his head were this some silly cartoon. But since it wasn't he just gave himself a headache. Whatever.
Before he could select it though, a movement caught his eye to the right and he found himself looking at...himself. He didn't even notice before, when he was in Noct's body, but he was the only one in the 'party' now, so of course they wouldn't be there anymore. Whereas before, Noctis and his retinue would stand awkwardly like a criminal lineup staring into space and awaiting a gamer to select weapons or something, Jason saw only one man; a replica of himself, standing as if waiting in line or enduring some other boring task. But it didn't look quite like him. Brown eyes stared off into space beneath waved black hair, as usual. He stood as he normally would if made to wait; weight shifted to one hip and hands tucked into pants pockets. Even the way he tapped his heel impatiently every few seconds looked identical, but something seemed slightly...off. The best way he could describe it was...stylized, he guessed. Yes, despite the fact that the environment and people looked one hundred percent real now that he was in the game, the image of himself before him was most definitely altered, as if rendered by an artist.
It was unsettling, and brought forward too many questions about his actual existence to be comfortable. Shaking it off, Jason banished his shadow image and pulled the map forward.
What came up wasn't exactly what he remembered. For all the shape of the country seemed the same, it was vastly bigger with more landmarks; lakes and mountains and towns and roads...Many things were still the same, though, which was comforting. Like, there was the Rock of Ravatogh, Insomnia, and Galdin Quay, so he wasn't completely out of his depth. But geez, what used to take a few minutes now looked like it would take an entire day. Just his luck.
Prompto said that they could make it to Hammerhead before nightfall on foot, so Jason couldn't be too terribly far. He scanned the map closely, figuring out after a moment that he could zoom in and out if he turned his head just so (which probably had nothing to do with the position of his chin, but hey, it worked) and eventually found what he was looking for. Now, if only he knew where he was...After several minutes of scanning, he found the haven where he started and figured out he was about fifteen miles from his destination still. Juuust great. He was starving.
But hold on, he was thinking about this all wrong! He had the whole inventory at his disposal, after all. With a grin, he scanned through the supply list in the inventory and selected a bottle of blue stuff that looked like something drinkable, and closed the menu.
He blinked rapidly as the desert sun burned his eyes after the cool blues and blacks of the menu, and grunted when something cold and hard landed heavily on his lap. He regained his vision just long enough to see the remnants of blue sparks dissipate into nothing, leaving behind a cool blue bottle. With all the fervor of a parched man in the desert, Jason fell onto the blue bottle and drank it in three big gulps. He grimaced at the taste. Eughe. Sweet.
As he polished off the life-giving liquid, a thought gave him pause. Since the menu was essentially Noctis' arsenal, was he actually stealing supplies from the guys…?
A shout in the distance echoed off of the land around him, causing Jason to jerk to his feet, abandoning the bottle where it lay. Several silent moments passed, and the dark skinned man almost thought he had imagined it when it came again.
Along with the distinct howls of wild dogs.
"Help!"
A spike of adrenaline spurred Jason into a dead run, a surprising amount of energy coursing through his body. He had stopped at a bend, and when he rounded the shelf of rock that had blocked his view of the road, he met a terrifying sight.
One man–blond, average sized–huddled inside of a pale blue volkswagen. The car was in poor condition, smoking at the hood and tire flat, but that wasn't the most troubling part.
His car was surrounded by sabertusks.
Three of the twice-man-sized beasts surrounded the poor motorist, their skeletal frames ramming and scratching at the small car's frame, seeming to lack nothing in strength for all that they were thin as rails. Protrusions of bones spiked from their backs and deadly looking paws, and they used them to try to pry open the car like a can of tuna to get to their prey inside.
Jason had seen these beasts many times before, but never like this, never real. Terror tore through him, freezing him in place as one of the creatures turned in his direction, yellow, pupil-less eyes catching his own blown ones. With a jerk, Jason scrambled back, taking cover behind the rock shelf once more. The man's frantic screams and the squeal of bone across metal filled his senses.
Oh God, what was he going to do? That man needed help, but Jason–Jason had never fought anything like that before! He would be killed!
"Help, please! Anyone! Aaaagh!"
How did those guys fight these things every day without flinching?! He peaked around again only to jump badly as one of the sabertusks ripped the handle from one of the car doors. The man inside screamed in terror. Jason grabbed his hair and pulled hard. Fuck, fuck, fuck! That guy was going to be torn apart! A sabertusk jamming a long hooked claw into the door and beginning to pry it open finally spurred the man into action.
What the hell was he training for if he couldn't help even one person when it mattered?! With frantic hands, he practically physically summoned the menu. The cool music and silence surrounded him, but Jason didn't trust that time actually stopped, not until he could test it. He scrambled through the options and selected the first dagger-like weapon he could find, then closed it out with a frantic swipe of his hand. Reality inserted itself once more and Jason found himself holding a long knife in his hand, longer than what he was used to training with–he was more accustomed to easily hidden self defense weapons–and before he could lose his nerve, jumped from cover.
"Hey!" his first attempt came out as no more than a timid squeak. The second was louder. "Hey! You ugly bastards, over here!"
The reaction was instant. Three sets of soulless eyes locked onto Jason with fearsome snarls and it was all the man could do not to drop his weapon and run for the hills. But he held still, unwilling to leave the motorist behind. The dog wraiths turned as one unit to face the new threat, growls ripping from their throats. Jason figured he had but a few seconds to live and forced his limbs into a defensive stance, fighting every instinct he head to run, run, run.
Their first pass was nearly catastrophic. Almost faster than the otherworldly man could react, one of them leapt forward into a wild charge, whip-like tongue hanging from tusked maw. With a howl, Jason threw himself back, bringing his long dagger to bear and holding it stiff before him. The beast ran into it and screeched as it bit into its side. It stumbled away, wounded, but it was not alone. The two others attacked at the same time, and Jason, wide open, could not avoid them completely.
He twisted frantically, but still some claws tore into him, raking down his back and biting into his side as they passed, the beasts hitting hard and fast before pulling back out of range to circle. Adrenaline hid the pain from Jason's senses, but he could still see the blood running down his sides, Ignis' shirt ruined beyond repair by wicked claws. He shuddered to think about what the skin looked like beneath, but there was no time to check. With frantic gasps, he kept his eyes on the two remaining enemies, the third collapsed several meters away and not rising.
The creatures circled, snarling and biting at air, waiting for an opening, but Jason was trained well. He did not allow either from his sight, heart hammering a mile a minute and eyes blown wide with fear. His blade dripped with beast blood.
Finally, one lost its patience and charged. Jason dodged, feeling hot air close to his face from the beast's foul breath. He brought his dagger behind and swung wildly, hammering it into its side as hard as he could with a shout. It's scream of pain nearly deafened him as it tumbled to the ground behind, Jason scrambling around to face it.
It was a mistake.
When Jason turned, he lost track of the final beast, and it was on him in an instant. Adrenaline could not block the pain of massive jaws and needle teeth tearing into Jason's arm, and he went down with a cry, struggling with the weight of the sabertusk above him. It tore and twisted, snarling and holding firm with wicked teeth, and Jason could do little but scream and writhe in an attempt to throw off this relentless predator.
This is it, he thought senselessly, this is where I die. Taken out in some fictional place far from his home and by some random wild animal. Wasn't he brought here for a purpose? Was whatever force that brought him here just going to let him die in the middle of this godforsaken desert? Jason was never one to pray, never having believed in a god to begin with, but he prayed now. To whom or what, he didn't know, but pray he did.
Just when Jason believed it the end of the road, deafening cracks filled the air like thunder, the unmistakable sound of gunfire tearing through the beast above him. It jerked violently, fell still, then fell to the side, lifeless. For one wild moment, Jason stared in shock, believing that Prompto had come back to save him against all odds. But when he looked up, it was not the familiar blond that greeted him, but an old man.
Balding, over the hill but fit, the weathered man lowered his antique looking gun and holstered it inside of worn brown clothes. Without hesitation, the stranger rushed to Jason's side and crouched down, helping the younger man to a sitting position. Jason allowed the contact with a pained hiss, cradling his mangled arm to his bleeding sides. "Sure did a number on you," the stranger said dryly, concern in his eyes.
"Yeah, no kidding," Jason choked, voice shaking. "Thanks." He tried to move but collapsed back with a strangled cry.
"Whoa, easy there, kid. Here." Jason felt something cool pressed into his hand and he stared at it blankly. A crystal vial, filled with faint glowing light rested in his palm and after a split second, he recognized it. A potion. With a distinct feeling of unreality, he squeezed it and it shattered in his palm. Instantly, ice seemed to pour through his veins, burning his wounds painfully before the receding, leaving nothing but tickling in its wake.
"I'm afraid that won't do much for you other than slow the bleeding, just till we can get you to a town. It's the only one I had," he said gruffly, apologetically. Jason nodded, feeling his vision darken around the edges. He needed….he had to get to his own supply. He tried to summon the menu again, but he couldn't focus, pain blurring his sight. Come on, where were those ridiculous abilities when he needed them? He felt himself slipping away.
"Hey, none of that," the man said. "I need to know where I can take you. Do you live around here?"
"...Ham...ed" Jason tried, but it was getting increasingly difficult to move his lips.
"What was that?"
"Hammerhead," he gasped, and that seemed to do it. He passed out, falling blissfully into the darkness where pain could no longer reach him.
-o0o-
The icey, now familiar sensation of healing magic woke Jason some indiscernible time later. He groaned through the discomfort of the burn, but sighed in relief when it soothed his pain.
"Well, now, awake are we?" A cheerful voice filtered through the ringing in his ears. Black lashes fluttered as Jason forced open unwilling eyes, and a blurred vision of gold and red came into focus. The smiling face of a young woman greeted him, grease smudges spotting a tanned face. Something cold touched Jason's torso and he yelped in surprise. The girl giggled, short blond locks shaking with mirth. "Don't be frightened of little ol' me," she said, smiling. "I'm just getting all this blood off you, s'all."
True to her word, Jason glanced down his bare chest to see a rag in her work blackened fingers, the cloth already red with his dried blood. "D-ah! I'll do the rest, thanks," he stuttered, grabbing the cloth from her hand. Cindy, for who else could it be, raised her hands playfully in surrender before stepping back, knowing look on her face. Jason blushed, looking pointedly at her face only. It was one thing to see this vision of a woman in a videogame and appreciate the fan service, but quite another to face her in real life with a straight face.
Like everything else in this insane situation, Cindy didn't look quite like her rendered counterpart. For one, she was wearing more practical clothes (unfortunately); tight jeans and a full yellow jacked. Much more practical for garage work. Didn't stop her from showing off her impressive bust in a low cut tanktop, however, and with her bending over him like that, it was all Jason could to to remain polite. He looked anywhere but at her, finding himself inside Cid's garage, old Chevy look-alike on the jack and tools lying every which way. The garage doors were open, but blackness absorbed the light from the overhead fluorescents. Night then.
"What happened?" Jason asked, lifting the cloth to stare at his abdomen. Light white scars separated the tan of his skin, and he frowned. Wasn't the potion supposed to fully heal him? Wasn't that how those things worked? He inspected his arm and found the same faint marks.
As if reading his mind, Cindy shook her head sadly. "Sorry about the scars. Old man didn't get you here soon enough for the potions to heal you completely."
"Old man?" Jason questioned, shrugging lightly. At least they looked cool. And, you know, he was alive. That counted for something.
Cindy's face lit up and she shifted her weight dramatically. "Well, that'd be Dave! He found you fight'n off a bunch of sabertusks all on your own! What were you thinking?" she finished with a frown. "Where's your team?"
"My...team?"
"You know," Cindy waved her hand. "The boys you fight with? Hunters don't usually take on beasts alone!"
"Oh, right. Team." Looked like he'd been mistaken for a hunter. That was fine with him. "Actually, you might have seen them recently. Prompto and his friends?"
"Prompto?"
"Short blond guy, traveling with the prince?" Jason described, a bit amused. Poor dude was enamored with this woman, and she didn't even know his name. How sad.
Recognition lit her face. "Oh! He was one of the boys with the Regalia! You apart of their group?"
Jason paused before shrugging with a tilted head. That sounded as good as anything else. "You seen them?"
"'Fraid you just missed 'em. They left not an hour before you showed up."
Jason slumped back onto the hard bench he lied on with a disappointed huff. What was he supposed to do now? If he remembered right, they would be on the way to Galdin Quay, and if they left an hour before he showed up, which had to be mid afternoon, they would be long gone by now. He glanced out the garage into the pitch of the night. There was no way he could catch up with all of the daemons prowling…
"Aw, cheer up! I'm sure they'll be back around soon. There's only one shop in Eos that they trust to repair their car, after all."
Jason just shrugged. He could only hope. Something niggled in the back of his mind, something he knew he'd forgotten. But he was too tired to think straight. With a yawn, he levered himself up in a sitting position, grimacing at the pull of dried blood on his skin. He picked up the towel and continued to wipe himself down. "So what happened to that man in the car? Did he make it out okay?"
"The man with the '87 VW Bug?" Cindy asked, plopping herself beside him. "Yeah, he and his daughter are over at Takka's singin' your praises."
Wait, the car models were actually the same here? But another thing caught his attention. "What do you mean, daughter?"
The young woman's eyes sparkled as she regarded him. "Little girl no older'n ten. You saved 'em both and they're doing just fine." Oh. He hadn't seen her. Warmth suffused his chest, glad he hadn't run. That right there was the reason he trained in the first place. If Jason hadn't found a passion in the martial arts, he would have joined the police force just for situations like this.
"Whelp," Cindy said, pushing to her feet. "I'd better get to cooking my old man some dinner. If you're feeling up to it, you should head to Takka's and get some grub. The caravan over yonder's all yours tonight." She began walking towards the exit door in the back, and Jason just sat for a few seconds, admiring the view. Shaking himself, he stood as well to leave.
"Um," he said before Cindy could get too far. "Do you think I could borrow a shirt?" His was destroyed after all.
Cindy looked over her shoulder, giving him a slow scan up and down. Jason shivered, frozen like a deer in the headlights as if she had run her hands up and down him instead. A smile made its way to Cindy's face as Jason's heated. "I think I could rustle up something. I'll leave it in the caravan for you. Now git, Takka's not gunna be open for much longer."
Gaping, the young man stared after her long after the door had shut. Physically shaking himself, he grumbled beneath his breath something that sounded suspiciously like 'women' and made his way into the night. Prompto could have her. She was a little too forward for Jason's taste. He laughed to himself as he thought of Nat and how he would have responded to such an obvious come on, along with a heavy dose of homesickness. Sighing, Jason shivered hard in the cool night air, shoving his hands in his pockets as he trudged past the convenience store and towards the brightly lit restaurant on the other side. This station, at least, was identical to how he remembered it.
Bypassing Takka's restaurant with barely a glance of disinterest, he made his way over to the camper, exhaustion pulling his limbs insistently. After the day he'd had, one'd think Jason would be starving, but he couldn't really bring himself to feel hunger, thoughts turned inward towards troubling matters.
How was he going to find Prompto again? They could be halfway across the country by now, and Jason for the life of him couldn't remember what was supposed to happen next. It had been over two months since he played the beginning of the game, and he'd admittedly rushed through the first part. There were many events he remembered vividly, such as the covenants with the Astrals, Lunafreya's death, the ending, of course...What a downer that was. Maybe he was just too tired at the moment. If he could just sleep for a while, maybe in the morning he could come up with a game plan. Jason hastened his steps towards the camper, eager for a decent night's rest.
He never made it.
A deafening rumble rolled over the land like thunder, and the ground beneath him shook. Jason stumbled with a gasp, looking around wildly for the source of the earth crashing disturbance. He froze, staring into the horizon with horror, heart plummeting into his chest only to slam back up into his throat.
The people idly milling about in the store and Takka's all rushed out to join him in the lot. Gasps and cries raised from everyone as they all stared into the horizon. Cindy burst from the garage, an old man clutching her arm, and she covered her mouth with a quiet gasp, tears filling her eyes as the old man cursed loudly.
The horizon glowed red, the entire eastern hemisphere ablaze. Rumbles shook the earth and concussed the air, but it could not drown out the grief and fear of the people around Jason, nor the pounding of his heart. This was it, this was what Jason was failing to remember all this time. He never knew how it happened, only that it did, and that this very moment is what sets off the entire sequence of events that leads this world into darkness.
Far from where he stood, and heedless of him or the happenstances that brought him here to change it, Insomnia burned.
-o0o-
AN:
And so the drama begins. It's Final Fantasy, of course there would be drama! Were you expecting all sunshine and rainbows? Haha. Anyway, for the sake of this story, Jason was never interested in watching Kingsglaive, so he didn't know this was going to happen. Sucks to be him right now!
Next few chapters will be sad, and nobody's happy :( But! Gotta love FFXV for all of its silly moments too! Lots of those to come :D Also, Jason's methods are going to be...unorthodox. That's going to be so fun to write!
Lol, Cindy knows how to work those boys ;) Special Power: Sex Appeal activate!