Finally back home! I'm so happy to finally be able to play my videogames again! *-* But first, new chapter! :D
Iris had expected Ardyn to take them to some sort of top-secret Empire base, but he didn't. Instead, he dropped them at the Wiz Chocobo Post without asking anything in return. He simply smiled and bowed before leaving, though Iris didn't like at all the way he had been eying her during the flight, as if he knew her little secret.
However, they had a new problem now: the Regalia was gone. The Empire had taken it, and so they sat at a table and waited for Cindy to call back after gathering come clues.
Their chattering was interrupted by the arrival of Noctis's dog, Umbra, carrying a message from Luna. The two always communicated that way, so to avoid being tracked down by the Empire.
Luna had also sent them her Messenger, Gentiana, to lead them to the next godly power Noctis could obtain to fight the Empire.
And so, they all rented a Chocobo –Prompto particularly excited at the idea of riding one again- and set off toward the path shown by Gentiana.
The traveled all over the plains, one rune stone leading to another until they found themselves at the entrance of a dark cave. It was pouring down and thundering, the power of the Fulgurian calling for Noctis, and Iris decided to step inside the cave first as Prompto reluctantly joined the rest of the party: he simply hated dark and narrow places crawling with Daemons.
They carefully made their way through it, patiently listening to Prompto rambling about random things to keep himself distracted, and Iris thought they were doing pretty well and unscathed until she heard the gunslinger screaming behind her. They all summoned their weapons but the blonde was nowhere to be seen.
"Prompto!" they shouted in unison, looking everywhere for the poor photographer.
"Let's keep going" Ignis suggested "He must be somewhere along the way!"
They proceeded more quickly now, eager to save Prompto from whatever thing had taken him.
They needn't search long for the photographer could be seen running toward them from afar.
"She's here! She's here, guys!" he panicked.
"Calm down, Prom! Who're you talking about?" Noctis tried to get his friend to tell them more, but the blonde shook his head and pointed a finger in the direction where he was coming from.
They followed the path he had indicated, Iris sensing Prompto's distress growing with every step they took. She didn't know how or why she did it, but she suddenly found herself taking his hand in hers and smiled warmly at the very astonished photographer. He pulled away a few moments after, probably not to arise any suspicions with his other friends, but made sure to give her hand a gentle squeeze to show his appreciation.
When they arrived at a wide opening, a Daemon materialized before their eyes, Prompto shouting "See! I told you!"
It was one of the most terrifying things Iris had ever seen: the monster looked like a giant snake with a human head, the head of what once was a woman. Her eyes were veiled and vacant, her horrible grin revealing spiky teeth.
"My baby…" the monster hissed "Do you know where he is?"
"Eh?!" Prompto exclaimed in confusion.
"I know where he is!" Noctis shouted, earning himself the strangest of looks from the others. This proved to be a terrible mistake, however, when the Daemon hissed louder "So you took him!"
The snake attacked instantly with swift moves. Iris made sure she kept her distance, watching the battle from afar, her fingers curling around the stone in case she needed to use it quickly.
The snake began circling around Gladio until its tail engulfed him completely, pulling him into a deadly embrace. The muscular man could barely breathe now, his eyes screaming for help. Ignis, Prompto and Noctis tried their best to set him free, doubling their efforts. But Iris knew what to do: focusing as hard as she could, she called forth the power of the stone once more. The snake froze instantly, but not the five friends. It was as if the stone knew exactly who the target was, and who was to be left untouched by its almighty power.
Gladio broke free from the Daemon's grip with Ignis's help and doubled over to catch his breath.
"I owe you one, lil' sis" he said gratefully.
"Let's finish this thing off!" Prompto encouraged, very eager to take the monster down while it was frozen in time and space.
The spell broke with Noctis striking the last hit, ending the Daemon's misery.
"Bring back…my baby" the monster breathed before disappearing into darkness.
"What was she talking about?" Ignis asked.
"Somethin' about her baby" Gladio replied.
"If it's anything like her, I ain't going near it" Prompto felt a shiver run down his spine.
When they turned the next corner, they were greeted with the sight of the last rune stone. Upon touching it, Noctis finally received the well-deserved power of the Storm god.
It didn't take long until Noctis' phone started buzzing. It was Cindy, who had located the Regalia at an Imperial base named Aracheole Stronghold.
Noctis was eager to hop on his Chocobo and get his car back, but Ignis suggested their rested at a camp site close to the base first, in order to plan a strategy. After all, five could not take down an entire base crawling with fully armed soldiers.
"Even with Iris's stone, we would be in disadvantage, putting her into unwanted danger. The power of the Quicksilver only affects a limited area, which is ok when it comes to relatively small spaces, but not inside an Imperial base" Ignis had stated solemnly, and Gladio nodded approvingly at his friend's wisdom.
"What do we do then?" Prompto asked.
"We'll sneak in, create a diversion and run away with the Regalia" Ignis answered in his usual cool demeanor.
After eating their salmon and rice, the five companions decided they should rest until night, when they would strike. Iris could tell she was not used at all at running around all day and night, fighting monsters and barely stopping to catch her breath. No wonder her friends were so slim!
She slipped under her warm covers but, despite the fatigue she felt, she couldn't sleep. Her mind raced to the task lying ahead but, more importantly, to the memory of her hand deliberately grabbing Prompto's. When she noticed how shaken he was, she had wanted to comfort him, made clear he was not alone and they were all there to protect each other. But she couldn't deny how her heart had started thumping harder at the very touch with his warm skin.
She turned to face him, the little blond Chocobo, as they all called him when they wanted to tease him, but she thought the nickname was quite cute and suited his personality perfectly. She chuckled softly at the thought of a baby Chocobo with Prompto's face and his funny, unruly hair…
The boy was adorable, she admitted. From the way he always smiled warmly to anyone who would spend some minutes of their lives to look at the pictures he had taken, to the awkward way he would flirt with girls, to his joyful personality. It was impossible not to care for the young man, and she wondered how she had never really bothered to hang around with him more often back in Insomnia. She had been too busy buzzing around Noctis, giving all she had to him to even notice the efforts the blonde was putting into starting a conversation with her that didn't simply imply asking how they were doing. She recalled Noctis's words during her very first day at Insomnia High School.
"I think Prom's got a crush on you!" he had said with a large grin "He's always asking about you".
"Oh?" Iris had blushed, but wasn't really interested in that because she wasn't interested in Prompto Argentum. All she wanted was Noctis, and him only. Nothing else mattered.
And now, years later, here she was, lying beside the boy that had once had a crush on her, however small that was, and she thought of how it was too late now. He had moved on, his hopes set on Cindy.
She sighed heavily. She simply needed to admit that, between their little adventure at the Wiz Chocobo Post and the hours they spent together at Lestallum, she had somehow developed a crush on the blue-eyed photographer. He had managed to carve a place into her heart with his outgoing and happy demeanor. It was foolish to keep denying it. However, she decided she had had enough of falling for guys that were not cut for her, or that would not return her feelings. It was yet not too late to refrain herself from falling even further: all she needed to do was to keep her distance from him.
But how could she do that when the boy breathing softly beside her attracted her like the ocean to the full moon?
They were crouching behind a large container, safely hidden in the dark and watching the guards patrolling the area, studying their movements and proceeding cautiously on to the next area when appropriate.
However, their efforts were made in vain as Prompto accidentally brushed against a card reader with his elbow. A robotic voice broke through the silence of the night, and could be heard loud and clear from miles away. "Access denied".
The MTs tilted their heads towards their location, Prompto whispering a "Sorry!" before the unmistakable sounds of rushing feet could be heard marching on the ground.
"Nice work, Prompto" Gladio said with a hint of irritation in his voice, though Iris knew he had had enough of sneaking around. He was more of the fighter-type.
"I said sorry, c'mon!" the gunslinger repeated more vehemently, aiming at the approaching enemies.
They were obviously outnumbered. The guards seemed to be endless, and coming from every available door. More than once Iris had to dodge attacks being thrown at her, sometimes from her own friends too. The scarce lighting wasn't helping either.
"Ouch! What's the big idea?" Iris could hear Prompto's complaining voice.
"S-sorry, didn't mean to do that!" Noctis replied apologetically.
"Iris! A little help?" Gladio turned to his sister.
She immediately did as she was asked, the stone doing the rest.
But the more they eliminated the frozen enemies floating mid-air, the more came on the rescue.
"Noctis, let's focus on that generator over there! Destroying it might weaken the MTs!" Ignis ordered.
Iris could indeed see a large generator projecting a strange-looking red light over the base.
They quickly approached it while the enemies called forth heavier machinery to bring them down.
"Of all the places..." Prompto shouted in frustration "…are we really gonna die inside an Imperial base?"
"No one's gonna die tonight, Prom!" Noctis retorted firmly, and then called forth his own deadliest weapon: the power of the gods.
The Fulgurian appeared in the starred sky, hovering over their heads in all his glory. It happened in an instant, the sacred power wiping away all their opponents in one blow, and the base fell silent.
"This is…the power of the Six" Noctis said in awe.
"Dude…that…was… hardcore!" Prompto agreed, still shocked at what he had just witnessed.
"Let's get the Regalia and split" Gladio said.
They approached the car at the first lights of dawn, when they heard someone speak behind them.
A white-haired young man, with a long white coat and a dangerous-looking katana, was stepping slowly but confidently toward them. He kept his eyes filled with hatred on Noctis.
Ravus Nox Fleuret, Luna's brother and the Empire's high commander, didn't seem too willing to aid the prince in his quest. He was pointing his katana to his throat, but Gladio intervened in his defense, getting knocked out instantly.
Ravus venomously told Noctis how unworthy he considered the prince to be of Luna's sacrifice, for he didn't find him suitable as King.
Despite Gladio's repeated attempts to fight back, Ravus just seemed to skilled for them all. His menace was put to an end Ardyn who, for some reason, had intervened and decided to let them go unscathed.
They all climbed in the car, eager to put as much distance between them and the two dangerous men they were leaving behind.
Next Chapter: as the party returns to Lestallum, they learn some more bad news. Prompto comforts Iris. Iris becomes more and more aware of her feelings for Prompto, but why is he avoiding her now?