Chapter 26: Daily Activity
{Campsite: May 6th 2005, 6:02am}
A thunderous clap rang out from above, breaking the silence of the campsite in the early morning. Midnight-blue eyes opened blearily as the winds began to howl outside of the tent that Noctis shared with Prompto as the Lucian Prince crawled his way out of the sleeping bag and grabbed his boots and socks, putting them on before he stepped outside of the tent and looked around him as thunder once more roared overhead. The sky was nearly black, lightening causing the clouds to glow an eerie blue-white as he looked above him while the wind whipped around him steadily and then increased in a manner that caused him to shield himself momentarily, bringing his arms up to cover his eyes as he looked at the storm that was brewing in the distance.
"That doesn't look good…." A chirp caught his attention, causing him to turn around as he looked towards Cari.
"Noct! There was a huge attack on the border of Insomnia…the Kingsglaive were deployed there and the storm was caused by this gigantic Daemon! They had to use a storm spell in order to stop it from reaching the walls and past the ruins," the Carbuncle's words were urgent, and highly spooked as she told him this, and he momentarily felt panic lace through him.
"What should I do?" Cari looked around.
"Get to a sheltered area…." Noctis looked around him, trying to figure out where to go.
"Cari, search the area, I'll get the others prepared to pack up now. Keep in time how long we've got until it comes, and keep me posted. If you find anything that we can get into quickly away from this storm then direct me, got it?" she nodded.
"On it Noct!" With that the Carbuncle disappeared and Noctis turned to the tents, knowing by the speed of the winds and the clouds above that they had approximately five minutes or less to leave the area. Moving quickly, Noctis raced into the tent with Prompto and grabbed him, shaking him violently.
"Prompto! Get up! Prompto!" the boy called to the blonde who groaned as he tried to stay asleep. Noctis tisked as he reached to the other boy's side and pinched him, causing him to startle awake before looking towards the black-haired youth leaning over him.
"Man! What are you doing?" he asked.
"There's a really bad storm coming. Prompto, we gotta get Specks and Gladio up and get out of here!" Prompto sat up and started rolling up his sleeping back.
"I'll take care of this you go and get them up!" he stated.
"Got it…"
Noctis flew out of the tent and went directly into the one next to it, not taking a moment to try and get the two up. Ignis was the easiest to get up, shaking him lightly was all it took; however, with Gladio, Noctis had no choice but to kick him and then when he only groaned, Noctis found himself sitting upon the man shaking him as he did so before finally, the oldest of the four woke up, Noctis jerking him upwards as he did before he received a glare.
"What are you doing?" he asked in an irritated tone as he shoved the black-haired boy off of him.
"I'm trying to get your lazy ass up! We've got a really bad storm coming and you need to come help!" Noctis snapped as he crawled out of the tent and rushed to help as Gladio followed, looking towards the sky.
"What the fuck?! Where did that storm come from?" asked Gladio as he rushed to pack up the tent with Noctis's help while Prompto and Ignis did the rest.
"There was an attack on one of the borders yesterday afternoon, the Kingsglaive were deployed and they used a storm spell to hold back the Daemons and the Empire…"
Noctis's explanation was done at a high shout due to the wind picking up as they got to work, struggling to get everything packed away before the storm hit them. In a matter of moments though, the rain came down and the four of them rushed forward, being quick to put the things into the back of the jeep as Gladio started towards the vehicle Ignis moved quickly to check their camping gear before getting into the driver's seat while Prompto pushed the door open and shoved Noctis in before the boy could protest as the storm winds grew stronger, and they worked to quickly move out of its path.
"Where are we gonna go?" asked Prompto.
"We'll just have to drive until we find a means to get out of this storm!" Noctis looked around, trying to keep track upon the weather as the winds continued to rise, and the rain grew harder.
"This storm's gonna get to bad to drive in Specks!" Noctis called out to Ignis who nodded and started moving further down the road.
"We'll have to find a place that's sheltered. If we don't we'll be in big trouble…" Gladio looked around as they went down the road, seeing a turn off up ahead.
"Noct!" sharp blue eyes looked towards Cari as she reappeared by his side as he continued to watch the weather for Ignis while Prompto and Gladio kept an eye out for a safe haven and the road ways.
"What?" Prompto glanced towards him, but said nothing.
"Ahead on the left about a half mile down the road there's a cave on the left hand corner! It's deep enough that you guys can get in there and wait out this storm!" Cari's words left her and entered Noctis's mind as he took in a deep breath and looked to the others as the fork in the road started to draw closer.
"Specks! Turn up ahead on the left!" the others looked to Noctis at that.
"What?! That goes almost directly into the storm!" stated Ignis.
"Are you insane? We're not doing that!" Gladio narrowed his eyes and then looked to the boy who had settled his own glare upon him.
"We are taking the left road," Noctis stated sharply as Gladio shook his head.
"NO! We're not going upon some whim! Don't even attempt to think about it kid, we gotta get out of this storm and…." Noctis slammed his hands down upon the back seats, narrowing his gaze to the point that his sharp-blue eyes began to glow the same bright blue as when the sun would set as he grew closer to Gladio, baring his teeth at him in a menacing fashion.
"Take the left road ahead! This is an order from your Prince!" he snarled as Ignis felt an expression of shock cross his face before he turned towards the left, not wasting any time.
"What now Noct?" he asked.
"Go a half mile! There's a cave on the left hand corner…"
Noctis kept his eyes open and his mind alert as he started searching for the cave and soon enough, the cave started showing in a rock structure, allowing them to turn into the thicket of trees as Noctis leapt from the car and grabbed a randomized bag from the back of the jeep before rushing into the cave, throwing the items in as a terrifying howl rent the air from the winds. Prompto flew past the black-haired boy, looking at the storm as he grabbed the last item from the jeep and Gladio jerked him into the cave as a gust of wind came through that was so fierce it ripped several of the towering trees in front of them from their roots and caused them to crash to the ground.
The four teenagers moved deep into the cave, preparing for the worst outcome of the weather as the cave grew dark. Noctis looked around, knowing that the area was far too bleak for them to move further without proper light to see by. Taking in a deep breath, the boy focused his magic through his body as he had once before when dealing with Bezarus except this time, instead of feeling the encompassing chill of ice magic, he felt an enrapturing heat cross over him as he fisted his hand and then fire bloomed from his palm as he gently cradled it.
At the sudden light, the other three looked to him as he kept his hand lightly raised at his side with his fingers gently curled while Cari guided him on how to maintain the spell. Noctis had practiced magic with the Carbuncle often, and was currently working on several other spells; however, the ones he had the most skill with was ice based, electrical based, and healing spells, but he also was gaining rather good control over other spells; such as fire, reflection – a spell that acted as a crystalized or misted glass barrier – and the spell tempestatis which was the current cause of their situation. Taking in a deep breath, Noctis looked around the cave, crouching where he was as the other three stayed nearby him, using the fire cradled in his palm as a means to see what they were doing. Gladio looked out towards the edge of the cave where the horrific winds and rain could be visibly seen as trees creaked and groaned against the might of the wind. As he watched this, his mind went through the series of events that had lead them to the place they were at now, and as he did, his gaze settled upon the Prince of Lucis and his tired gaze as he stared at the fire in his grasp.
"How did you know the cave was here?" Gladio asked as Noctis glanced his way.
"I'd…um…rather not say…" the boy kept his hand where it was.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" dark-blue eyes glanced up at him.
"What are you asking me exactly?" a glare came his way.
"How the hell did you know about the cave? And what happened to cause this storm? What the fuck are you hiding?" Gladio snarled as he reached forward, grasping the boy by the front of his shirt as he looked into his eyes.
"I'm not hiding anything! What do you think I've done?" the two others looked onward at him in shock.
"You're keeping secrets kid, so I suggest you start talking," Gladio stated.
"I don't owe you any explanation! I knew about it, why does it matter if I don't explain it?" the dark-haired man grabbed him by his shirt tighter, causing him to nearly drop the fire in his grasp.
"Let go of him Gladio, you're over stepping your boundaries," Ignis stated as Gladio released his grasp upon the boy's shirt and remained as he was, glowering at the Lucian Prince with great distaste.
"Noct?" the boy glanced down a bit.
"Why is it so important to know how I knew about the storm? Or about the cave?" Noctis glanced to the side, and showed the gleam of the rough-cut ruby of Cari's earring.
"What is that?" Gladio asked as he reached forward, brushing the boy's hair aside slightly before looking at the object.
"It's just an earring, no big deal…" Ignis cleared his throat.
"An earring? Noctis, you cannot do such things! When did you get it? Were you with him Prompto? Why did you let him do such a thing? This is…." Noctis shot the blonde-haired man a dull expression.
"Ignis?" he asked.
"What?" the black-haired boy looked to him.
"Calm down, I've had this since I was nine….my familiar put it on me after I formed a contract with her," he explained. Ignis took in a deep breath, straightening his suit jacket, containing himself slightly.
"I apologize, composure is part of my strong suits, and I faltered just then." Gladio rose an eyebrow.
"Wait….familiar?" he questioned as Noctis nodded slowly.
"Yea…Specks knows about them, don't you?" Ignis nodded.
"Indeed I do…a familiar is a creature or spirit contracted to someone via a mark or object placed upon the contractor. Noctis's earring is the object and marking of his contract with his familiar, King Regis's partial crown he wears is his, and Queen Aulea had a necklace that she wore on occasion that bore a tiger's eye jewel. That necklace barred hers….as for others with these familiars, I cannot think of any…" Noctis smiled.
"Luna, she has two wolves: Umbra and Pryna," he answered.
"Ah yes, you mentioned them once…I wasn't aware that they were her familiars." He nodded slowly.
"Yea, they are…that's how they managed to get to me when she has a message for me," he informed the others as Gladio looked to the Prince.
"So, wait…how does this have to do with him knowing about this place and the storm?" Noctis looked to him.
"My familiar warned me….so let's leave it at that, shall we?" he asked.
"Fine, but you still owe me that match…." Noctis smirked a bit.
"Bring it on…"
"Prompto?" asked Ignis.
"Yea?" the blonde looked to him.
"Please remind me to prepare curatives, and something of high nutrition for these two hooligans," he stated.
"Uh….sure….no problem…" thunder echoed around them.
"Might we put that confrontation on hold?" Ignis inquired as Noctis blew on the fire he held in his hand a bit, letting it grow.
"No problem….going out in this storm is a bad idea…" Gladio nodded.
"Agreed…"
{Cave: 4:15pm}
At long last, the storm had passed, leaving a great mess in its wake. The storm had ripped up trees, overturning them throughout the path way, the area outside of the cave was a disaster, the ground turned to soft muck and water running in small streams down the hillside. Noctis pulled a backpack up onto his back as they started out of the cave, intending on heading back to the main campsite, knowing that they would be better off there now that the storm had passed. Gladio carried the camping equipment as if it was nothing while Prompto stood next to Noctis as the four of them started down the road, heading back towards the area where they could walk back towards the gates of Insomnia due to the fact that a tree had decided to land upon the jeep.
"When we get back to the campsite, care for that sparring match?" asked Gladio as Noctis glanced to him.
"Guess so…." Prompto looked to his friend.
"Thanks for keeping that fire burning the whole time we were in there," he said.
"No problem…." Noctis shook his head, shaking the water free from his damp hair.
"Are you tired? Noct?" Ignis questioned.
"A bit….using magic I'm not used to drains me…" Gladio sighed.
"Are you just trying to get out of that fight you promised me?" he inquired as Noctis glanced his way.
"Nope, I'm still kicking your ass…we just gotta get back…first…" the boy yawned, taking in a deep breath as he kept moving forward, taking note that the road they were heading onto was much more watery than it originally was.
"The roads are flooded," Prompto stated.
"Thanks captain obvious…." The blonde sighed.
"How deep is this?" Noctis asked as he stepped forward off the higher area and into the water that hid mid-calf on him.
"Whoa…pretty deep man…" Prompto looked around as he struggled against the current that had developed from the water levels.
"It would seem this is going to take us some time to navigate," Ignis stated as he looked ahead.
"Maybe we should stick to the high grounds?" Noctis glanced around, finding the stones that had been lined and scattered around the road now stood present above the thick tides of water.
Noctis looked onward at the path ahead of him and took in a steady breath as they continued to trek through the murky, muddy water, hoping to get to a slightly higher point as they worked along the road. As the four of them continued to walk, the sun grew a bit lower in the sky, casting a golden light upon the water and them as they continued to walk. As the sun began to set though, Noctis felt a creeping chill invade his body, a large part of him starting to panic as he considered what would lurk in the darkness now that they no longer had the protective seals around them. The notion of the Daemons that could be hiding out in the forest around them caused his heart rate to moderately spike, and his skin to prickle as he continued to trudge forward while the water began to grow shallower, and as they finally got out of the main slurry the four teenagers found themselves on the brink of night with no preparation for protection made.
"Noct? You okay man?" asked Prompto as he came towards the boy.
"Yea, let's just put a few wards down and call it a day before anything gets worse, okay?" the blonde nodded and Gladio smirked as he looked at the area around them.
"We'll have to work diligently and set up camp swiftly. Prompto, I leave the spells to you and Noct, Gladio and I shall take to the preparation of camp," Ignis stated.
"Okay, we got it…" Noctis was handed a piece of chalk to start on the eastern and southern zones of the protective seals; however, there was a problem with the chalk.
"Prompto?" he asked.
"Yea Noct? What's wrong?" the boy looked at the ground.
"This won't work on damp ground. We'll have to use something else," Noctis stated as he looked at the boy.
"What should we use?" the blonde looked around as Noctis looked at the ground.
"Well, we have two choices….either we can form it with rocks or….I can burn it into the ground," Noctis stated as he lit a flame within his palm again.
"Yea, we'll do that….but um…I don't know magic yet…" midnight blue eyes looked to him.
"Ask Marshal Leonis to put you through magic training between now and the next field session: you're gonna need it," Noctis told him as he looked to the eastern point and thought of the protection symbol before he used the flames to sear it into the ground, hoping it would hold if he did it at a hot enough temperature.
"Marshal Leonis taught you well." Cari spoke into his mind and Noctis nodded slowly.
"Yea, I know…."
"Hey Noct? I'll lay out the symbols if you'll burn them in," Prompto stated.
"That's fine…I'm done with the eastern mark."
As the two youngest of the group worked along the border of the campsite, Gladio finished setting up the tents, and Ignis began cooking as they considered the events of the day. Noctis had been the oddest of the events minus the terrible storm that had come in from the Kingsglaive apparently going toe to toe with a Daemon and the Nifilheim Empire. Noctis hummed a bit of a tune as he finished with the northern marker and then looked to Ignis before grabbing the same bucket as last night as he went over to the swollen lake before summoning his rod as he attached a lure and casted it into the waters.
Almost instantly feeling a tug on the line as he reeled in the fish and struggled against it as the others looked to him while he pulled once more and took in a steady breath before jerking upon the line once more as the fish gave in and he sighed in relief before using a hook gripper to pull the fish from the water. The small fourteen-year-old jerked it up onto the dock and sighed as he looked at the fish. It was a large one, big enough to feed the four of them perfectly for the evening, and probably weighed almost as much as he did.
"Yea, all ninety-eight pounds of you…" a giggle entered his mind and he frowned.
"Shut it Cari, or I'll use you as bait next time…"
"One of these days you'll not use fishing jokes around your allies, remember that Noct…"
"Yea, yea…um…" Noctis looked to Gladio who eyed the fish.
"You did good…let me help you get that to Iggy," Gladio stated as he helped the fourteen-year-old pick up the fish before lugging it over to Ignis who clapped his hands a bit.
"You're working together I see; splendid change of pace there…" Noctis and Gladio rolled their eyes at the same time.
"And you're in synch! Even better," said Prompto who was promptly socked in the arm by Noctis as he sat his portion of the fish onto the small fold-out table for Ignis to prepare it with.
"Keep it up and I'll throw you into the lake…" the blonde pouted.
"No fair Noct!" Gladio smiled.
"So, tomorrow is the last leg of this journey. We have two days left and regardless of the weather or whatever else decides to walk our way: I'm getting that match Prince Noctis," he said with a smug smirk upon his features as the petite fourteen-year-old narrowed his eyes.
"Fine, Rahma or not you get your stupid sparring match…." Ignis stirred a pot over the fire and looked to him.
"It is wise to stretch both the physical and mental muscles Noct. Might I suggest a bit of light reading before sleep?" the boy shook his head.
"Nope, tonight and until we leave it'll be star gazing. Got it?" Noctis stated with a smirk upon his face.
"Alright, then you can be our instructor on exploring the constellations." The black-haired teenager smiled a bit brighter at that.
"I think I can handle that," he said as he pulled out his knife and got to work on the fish.
"And that's my cue to hide. No blood for me thanks!" Prompto departed away from the sight of the fish at that while Noctis rolled his eyes and smiled, humming a tune as he began to decapitate and gut the fish.
"Nice to know some things are normal, even while out here…"
"Indeed," Ignis said as he stirred the pot once more while Noctis prepared for a rather lax evening after a less than lenient day.
{…}
Caught in all, the stars are hiding….
{…..}
Author's Note: Noctis and Gladio seem to be earning some respect for one another; that's nice. Now if only nature doesn't try to kill them again they should be good, and if the Nifs will just take a vacation: but they probably won't….ever. Well, tell me what you think of the chapter, and I hope everyone is having a good evening or day!
Sincerely,
ShadowDragon94.