Now, this is where I really started being satisfied with this story. From now on, it will get a bit darker, just like in the game, and the chapters longer ;)
"You know what I really hate about this whole thing?" Iris asked Prompto, both leaning against a wall outside the First Secretary's office.
"Uhm, not knowing what's going on in there?" he replied with another question, pointing at the door behind which Noctis was discussing terms with Camelia.
"Apart from that" Iris said "What I really hate is not being able to help you guys in battle".
Prompto stared at her in surprise and crossed his arms "What're you talkin' about? You've saved our butts more times that I can count". His statement made her smile, but she couldn't help but think that wasn't enough.
"Maybe. But that was the Quicksilver. I can't simply hide every time we're in danger. What if something happens to any of you? I want to be able to assist you".
"Don't be foolish, Iris. We've been doin' just fine, right?" Prompto tried to comfort her with a grin.
"It may not be enough, one day" Iris continued more determinedly, before turning to face Prompto "Teach me".
Iris could see the gunslinger's eyes widen in shock and surprise.
"Me?! Why don't you ask your brother? He's a much better fighter than I am!" he replied agitatedly.
"Gladio?" Iris turned to look at her brother, who had been reading a book in silence, though she could tell he had been listening intently.
The big man sighed heavily and snapped the book close.
"Maybe you're right, Ir" he said "But if you want my honest opinion, you're not really cut for the physical job. You lack the mass". Gladio eyed her petite form.
Iris raised an eyebrow, an offended expression on her face.
"However" her brother continued "this doesn't mean you can't handle a weapon suited for you".
"What do you mean?" Iris asked, not understanding.
"I mean, you may not be cut to swing a sword or an axe, but a lighter weapon should do".
Iris thought for a moment: light weapons… light weapons.
"Like a gun?" she asked after a moment of silence. She felt Prompto's gaze on her.
"Maybe not" Gladio retorted "We've already got a gunslinger in our party, and don't need more troublemakers".
"Aw c'mon man, really?!" Prompto exclaimed offended, but Gladio chuckled softly.
"Why don't you try with bow and arrow? I remember you were quite good at that as a kid" Gladio suggested.
Iris fell silence again, pondering what her brother had just said. She could indeed recall the countless hours she had spent in the backyard of their house, trying to learn the noble art of archery with the help of her uncle who had been working at the Citadel as a bowman.
She hadn't practiced in a long while, but at least she knew the basics and mentally slapped herself for not thinking about that before.
"That's an excellent idea" she said softly.
"Then grab some gils and go find one" Gladio smiled "We'll meet up outside the hotel as soon as Noctis is done".
"What about Iggy?" Prompto asked.
"He's buying some supplies, maybe you'll bump into him" the muscular man replied, opening his book once more "Do me a favor and go with my sis, will ya Prompto? She has a tendency to get lost." Gladio seemed to think for a moment "Even though you're just as hopeless".
"Two compliments in less than ten minutes, dude. Must be my lucky day" Prompto said sarcastically "Whenever you're ready, Ir".
Iris and Prompto were in a shop browsing the different types of weapon for sale. They had a great variety of swords, greatswords, crossbows, polearms, shields and guns, but not so many bows. Iris suspected very few hunters used it nowadays.
"I like this one" Iris said, picking up a beautifully decorated, long bow. It came equipped with a laser scope for a better aiming, and a rubber hilt. It was black in color, which would suit the Lucian colors, and felt right in her hands "Yeah, I think this is the one".
"That's definitely a cool one!" Prompto exclaimed enthusiastically "Quite expensive though…"
"I've been saving up money" Iris shrugged her shoulders and went to the cashier. She collected some arrows on her way to the cash-out and handed the money over to the vendor.
That was enough to leave her broke, but she could care less: she had finally purchased her first weapon! Not one she had borrowed, but her own, personal one. She couldn't stop taking in every detail that she had missed in the shop, from the carved runes on its surface to the thickness of the line.
"You're in love" Prompto said matter-of-factly, and Iris jumped in shock.
"Wh-what?" she stuttered, blushing furiously.
"With the bow" he continued, pointing at her new weapon.
"Oh... yeah, I guess I am" Iris replied embarrassed. Her heart had started hammering faster at Prompto's words, and she almost wanted to kick herself for letting it show.
"Do you think Noct is done now? It's been a while" Prompto didn't seem to notice Iris's change of behavior, but was intently staring at the darkening sky.
"I do hope so" she replied once she had made sure she could speak again "It's getting late".
"Here you are!"
A third voice joined their conversation, and both Prompto and Iris turned to greet Ignis, walking fast toward them.
"I've been looking for you. Gladio told me you went to buy yourself a weapon, Iris. And I see you found the one for you" the spectacled man said proudly "I just wanted to inform you that Noctis is on his way to the hotel. The meeting is over, and he will be briefing us regarding the actions to be taken".
Ignis pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose "You two may obviously continue with whatever you were doing, but I suggest you head back to our room too. I have a feeling this is going to be important".
"Right" Prompto agreed "We're coming".
The three of them walked all the way back to the hotel and up the stairs, before Ignis knocked on Noctis's door.
"Come in".
The prince and Gladio were sitting on two leather armchairs, waiting for the rest of the party to join.
"So" Noctis began once everyone had found a seat "Seems like Camelia is willing to protect Luna while she performs the rite. However, she expects us to return the favor".
"Understandably" Ignis nodded "What is it?"
"She wants to evacuate the whole city before the Hydraen awakens. She believes the Empire will try to put up a fight in the meantime, causing havoc. I said you guys can take care of that" Noctis explained, staring at his friends almost apologetically, before adding "Hope you don't mind".
"O' course we don't, buddy! That's our job" Prompto said cheerfully.
"True. Remember that, as a King, you will have to take your decisions based on the best profit for you, not on our well-being" Ignis agreed.
"How can you say that? You're my best friends!" Noctis protested, but Gladio shook his head.
"Iggy's right. We may be your friends, but we are first and foremost Crownsguards. It is our duty to serve our King and respect his decision, no matter what".
"It's gonna be fine" Prompto continued with a smile "And Iris's got a weapon too now, so the Empire stands no chance!"
Noctis looked at Iris as if seeking for a confirmation, and she nodded proudly, summoning her shiny bow.
"Wow!" the prince exclaimed in awe "You're gonna give 'em a lesson, arentcha Ir?"
"Just say the word, and I'ma gonna kick their sorry butts" she replied, and everyone laughed.
"It's going to be a long day, tomorrow" Ignis said "How do you want to do this, Noct?"
"Well, I thought you guys could hide somewhere while Luna makes her speech. When she proceeds to perform the rite, we expect the Empire to strike. At that point, make sure all the evacuation points are being used. We must ensure a constant flow of people. Camelia will take care of the boats which will take the citizens away from danger" Noctis presented his plan to the others, who mentally took note of every detail.
"And please, take care all of you. Leviathan may prove a formidable foe, and the presence of the Empire won't be of any help, so stay alert" Noctis concluded, worry evident in his deep blue eyes.
"Don't worry about us, we can take care of ourselves. Make sure you obtain the Hydraen's power and we'll fix the rest" Gladio said confidently.
After discussing their strategy, they decided it was best to go to bed. Iris couldn't deny the fact she was feeling utterly nervous, and she never liked it when she felt that way: it felt as if something would go wrong. But that couldn't be, right? The gods were by their side, and she had the Quicksilver. She convinced herself everything would go as planned: Noctis would receive the Hydraen's blessing, the Empire would be defeated and the prince and the Oracle could finally pronounce their vows.
She pushed her thoughts of worry aside and went for the door.
"Hey, wait up!" Prompto suddenly shouted, grabbing his camera "Let's take a picture all together!"
"Really, Prom? Now?" Gladio snorted, but he was smiling.
The blonde set his camera on auto-mode and ran to position himself in front of it, kneeling on the floor and grinning widely. They all made funny faces, looking happier than ever despite the circumstances.
"Aha! That's totally awesome!" Prompto commented when he saw the picture of the five of them smiling, and giving the camera the victory sign "Let's take another one tomorrow to celebrate our victory!"
"What guarantees you we will?" Noct chuckled at his best friend's optimism.
"Well, 'cause we always do!"
It was impossible to sleep. Iris shifted position for the umpteenth time without finding relief. She simply lay wide awake and watched as the sun started rising.
The alarm would go off in two hours, and she decided she wouldn't be wasting any more time in bed. She stood up and changed into her Lucian clothes before heading for the door.
She went downstairs, the receptionist smiling warmly at her, and Iris began walking the much less busy streets of Altissia, enjoying its beauty at dawn.
She was trying to remember the way to a subway passage she had seen while wandering around with Prompto, and she was hoping to train a bit with her bow before the rite began.
She was just starting to remember the path to follow when she saw someone familiar sitting by a fountain. Her heart seemed to stop when she realized who that was.
"Prompto?" she asked in disbelief "What're you doing up so early?"
"Uh? Iris!" he said with a smile "Well, y'know, I woke up early and thought I could take advantage of the thing to take some shots of the city at dawn. What about you?"
"Couldn't sleep, to be honest" she shrugged her shoulders "So I thought I could train a little".
"Training session!" Prompto exclaimed enthusiastically "Want me to join?"
"Sure, you can be my dummy" she chuckled when Prompto pouted.
They arrived at the subway passage shortly after and, to Iris's relief, it was completely deserted. She doubted anyone would be coming anytime soon.
Iris summoned her bow and arrows while Prompto drew smileys on the wall, each in a different size and shape.
Iris stood in front of them, focusing as hard as she could and trying to remember what her uncle had taught her. She took hold of an arrow, positioned it and aimed at the largest smiley Prompto had drawn, applying just the right amount of pressure. The arrow landed in the smiley's left eye, and all Iris could hear was Prompto shouting happily.
"Nice one, Ir! You're a real talent!"
"Nah, just sheer luck" she said humbly, but couldn't hide her proud grin.
She kept practicing for several minutes, Prompto patiently watching and commenting at a particularly good shot.
"Let's try with a real fight" she said with a smirk "You against me".
"Wh-what?" Prompto was taken-aback and swallowed hard "I don't wanna hurt you"
"You won't, 'cause I won't let you" she retorted confidently, sounding a lot like her older brother.
"Ha!" Prompto smirked back, playfully rubbing the bridge of his nose "Challenge accepted, then!"
Iris proceeded to replace her iron arrows with plastic ones, and Prompto loaded his guns with soft balls. Both weapons would still hurt, but definitely wouldn't injure or kill.
"You ready?" he asked, his punk-like grin still plastered on his face.
"Always" she smirked back, and they began.
Prompto immediately pointed his gun at her, aiming for her dominant arm but Iris wouldn't let him win so easily. She quickly rolled to the side, preparing her arrow in the process and aiming back at him. Prompto wasn't expecting that move but managed to dodge her arrow just as it flew past him.
Taking advantage of his momentary unbalance, she proceeded to quickly fire another arrow at him and, this time, she successfully hit him on his left leg.
"Ouch!" he screamed in pain "That HURT!"
"My apologies!" Iris said, but couldn't hide her amusement and pride.
"I'll show ya!" Prompto exclaimed, backing away slightly. He lifted his gun and shot multiple rounds of bullets in quick succession. Iris rolled once more to the side, but Prompto kept shooting, following her movements.
One of the soft balls eventually found its way to her shoulder, and the girl fell to the stone floor.
"Oh my… are you ok?" Prompto ran toward her and bent over to check up on her.
The gunslinger's breath was suddenly cut off by an unexpected blow to his stomach. He doubled over, wrapping his arms around himself and kneeling down in pain, trying to catch his breath.
"Never show pity or concern for your opponent" Iris reprehended him "That was foolish of you".
She approached the blonde, offering him her hand and he took it, wincing in pain as he stood up.
"Did that hurt?" she asked, sounding much more worried now that she saw that Prompto wasn't simply overreacting "I've got a few potions with me".
"I-I'm fine" he said, one hand still placed on the sore spot "The heck did you do to me?"
"I hit you with the butt of my bow" she replied simply.
"That's SO unfair!" he complained.
"In war and love, anything is permitted" she smirked "How's it going?"
"It's getting better. Girl, you hit hard" he said "If you're gonna be half as good as you are now, this battle is gonna be a piece of cake".
Iris wasn't sure what she was feeling. She was grateful for having got the chance to practice a little earlier that morning, but at the same time she couldn't stop thinking that something could go terribly wrong.
She was walking alongside Ignis, Gladio and a much excited Prompto, heading to their hiding spot. It was relatively close to the main square where Lady Lunafreya would make her speech, and where Noctis was currently waiting, so the four of them could monitor the Empire's moves.
The Oracle was standing before hundreds of people, all staring at her in awe. Iris immediately located Noctis, who was unconsciously walking forward to take a better look at her wife-to-be.
Her heart was hammering fast in trepidation as she watched Luna begin her speech.
They simply waited until the Oracle was done and had walked away to start the rite. Ignis was the first to notice.
"Over there!" he exclaimed, pointing at the large warships in the sky, and took his phone to warn Noctis.
Most of the ships were flying towards the harbor, where Luna was already performing the rite to awaken the Hydraen, while a dozen of them landed nearby.
"It begins" Prompto said, summoning his gun.
"Let us commence the evacuation!" Ignis instructed "Prompto, you're coming with me to escort the citizens to the northernmost escape point, Iris and Gladio: you will be escorting the rest to the south".
"Gotcha" Gladio grabbed his sister's wrist and dragger her along, instructing the panicking citizens, who were beginning to understand they were in danger, to the arranged evacuation point.
The MTs were starting to shoot on the crowd, and Iris was doing her best to push the children and people in need of help forward, ensuring no one stayed behind for far too long.
"This way!" she was shouting at the top of her lungs "Keep moving, don't stop!"
She could hear Gladio doing the same, but the Empire was approaching fast.
"Take cover!" she shouted when they could no longer outrun the MTs.
Iris conjured her bow and fought back, finding cover behind a marble column. She could hear Gladio's greatsword being swung around, hitting the enemies hard as they dropped defeated to the ground.
"They're too many!" she heard him say in frustration. But he never stopped fighting.
Iris left her shelter and went to help Gladio, shooting arrows as fast as she could, aiming to kill.
"You're doin' pretty fine, lil' sis" her brother complimented with a smirk "I'm just not sure this'll be enough".
"We need to buy the citizens some time to escape, then we can go and help Noct" she replied, her arm getting stiff.
Luckily for them, the MTs were not very intelligent, and seemed to follow a specific pattern when attacking. Once they had learned what their moves were, it was easy to dodge their attacks and counter at the right moment.
Iris looked around to make sure no citizen had been left behind before rushing to the norther part of the city to check up on Prompto and Ignis.
Her heart was no longer thumping fast because of her fighting skills –she was almost enjoying it, actually- but she was extremely worried that something could happen to Noctis, Ignis or –her stomach twitched uncomfortably- to Prompto.
"The hell is that?" Gladio stopped in his tracks and was now looking up in the sky, where a terrible roar could be heard and an enormous shadow flew over the whole city.
"Leviathan" Iris whispered, her eyes wide with fear.
"We gotta get to Noct, fast!" Gladio shouted, and resumed his running.
"Ignis!" Iris saw the spectacled party member fighting all alone against what seemed like a whole army. He was swiftly dodging the attacks thrown at him, but had no chance to fight back.
"Iggy, where the hell is Prompto?" Gladio yelled, rushing to help his friend. Iris looked around to try and spot the familiar blonde, but couldn't see him anywhere. She felt sick at the thought of him being…
"He went on ahead, to help Noct" Ignis replied, clearly relieved that someone was there to assist him.
"And he left you all alone? I swear, when I put my hands on him…" Gladio rotated his sword and chopped five MTs in a row.
The fight was fierce, for it felt like the enemy soldiers were endless. Iris kept taking cover and counterattack until she heard a terrible scream, one that made the blood freeze in her veins.
"IGGY!"
It was Gladio. Iris couldn't help but turn around and watch Ignis being enveloped by a storm of soldiers. She immediately grabbed her Quicksilver and activated it. The enemy's attack on Ignis stopped instantly, but she knew something was not quite right. Her view was blocked by Gladio, kneeling before Ignis's limp body. Her mind went blank, refusing to accept what she was seeing.
"Iggy…?"
She stepped closer, her heart almost bursting in her chest, and felt properly sick when she saw Ignis's face.
"His eyes…" she stuttered in a state of pure shock "Wh-what did they do to his eyes?"
"He'll be fine" Gladio said, his voice strangely calm "He'll recover".
"I've got a potion" Iris said, handing the ampoule to Gladio with shaking hands. Her brother took it without looking at her and forced it down Ignis's throat. The injured man stirred and winced in pain, one hand automatically lifting to touch his wounds. Iris noticed how he couldn't manage to open his eyes, while blood was streaming profusely from the large wound on his face.
"I… I can't see anything" he said weakly. It hurt so much to see Ignis in such conditions: he was always the composed, calm and cold-blooded member of their team, but now all she could see on his face was fear and uncertainty.
"You'll be fine" Gladio repeated, sighing in relief when his friend spoke "Don't push yourself, now".
"Guys, the Quicksilver won't be holding much longer" Iris warned, watching as the field surrounding the MTs began crumbling. The stone itself had changed color, turning into a dull grey, which Iris had learned to associate to its moment of stutter after each use.
Gladio helped Ignis stand, and supported him all the way to the safest spot they could find.
"I swear to the Six, I will kill Prompto!" Gladio said through gritted teeth.
"Don't blame him" Ignis mumbled "Even if he had been there, this would've happened anyway. We both know it's true".
"But why did he leave you alone?" Gladio asked again, trying to find any possible excuse to blame the gunslinger. Anyone.
"Because I told him to. I told him to go ahead and protect Noct" Ignis said simply, feeling the walls to learn his surroundings.
"Hope they're alright" Iris whispered, glancing over the far-away harbor where she knew Noctis, Luna and Prompto were fighting the Hydraen.
"Dude, can you reach?" Prompto asked Noctis, while flying closer to the majestic sea monster.
"Yeah" the prince replied, teleporting on top of its head.
"Awesome!" Prompto shouted cheerfully at his friend's success, failing however to notice he was heading straight for the god's tail.
Leviathan swung it violently, hitting his flying harpoon and causing it to go crashing in the water below.
"No, no, NO!" he screamed, bracing for the impact.
And then all he felt was pain. Pain all over his body, while desperately trying to fight the waves enveloping him.
He did his best to ignore his screaming body while swimming back to the surface.
"You can't die now, Prompto! Just a little push, you're almost there!"
He inhaled oxygen like never before, feeling light-headed for the lack of it. He kept swimming back to the harbor, too weak to concentrate on anything else. He tried to think of his friends, of Noctis and Luna's wedding after all that had been taken care of, of Iris.
He hoped she was ok. He didn't think he would be so willing to swim back to safety if anything had happened to her…
He kept her smiling image in his head, the only thing that encouraged him to keep going.
He could still hear Noctis fighting the Leviathan above him, and inwardly cheered for that. At least, he was doing fine.
He wished he could do more to help the prince, but knew he was no royal and didn't possess the skills nor the powers to fight a god. This was Noctis's battle, and he needed to fight it on his own. However, he would still sacrifice himself if that meant saving his best friend's life.
Prompto slowly climbed a wall of rocks protruding from one side of the destroyed harbor, placing one arm around his aching waste once he had reached the top. He finally looked up and gasped when he saw Leviathan strike at Noctis, hitting him square in the chest and knocking him over. The prince fell for several feet before landing hard on the stone floor. He wasn't moving.
"NOOOOCT!" Prompto shouted like he had never shouted before, and tried to rush to his friend's side.
"Stop right there, soldier!"
Prompto turned around to look at the person who had grabbed his wrist, holding it so tightly he felt it going numb. It was Ardyn, smiling evilly at him.
"What did you just call me?" Prompto asked defiantly.
Ardyn simply chuckled before hitting him in the temple with the butt of his sword, and everything went black.
I just wanted to thank every single one of you who's reading this story, and particularly those who favorited/followed and reviewed :) I received two fantastic reviews from two guests, and I couldn't unfortunately reply to them directly. If you're reading this, THANK YOU! And to the guest who asked me if I'm going to keep this story faithful to the game, the answer is yes... and no. I will leave the events as told in the game until a certain point; then things may change ;) However, I cannot say more because I don't want to spoil too much: so stay tuned and enjoy! :D And yes, I will finish this story, simply because I already finished typing the ending as well as the sequel ^^
P.S. Let's see if anyone can guess where I got the inspiration for Prompto drawing smileys on the wall to practice on them xD It might be difficult, so I'll give you a hint: it's an awesome TV series from the UK.
Next Chapter: after the battle. Discrepancies between Gladio and Noct. On their way to Gralea, Prompto is chased by a furious Noctis, who pushes him off the train they're traveling on. The four friends decide to head to Gralea and rescue Prompto.