Chapter 32: Refrain
{North Courtyard of the Citadel: May 12th 2007, 7:04am}
"Again!" Marshal Leonis stated sharply as he watched the boy before him.
Noctis warped by him, nailing one of the dummies that were set up directly in the jugular before warping away with a cartwheel, landing in a crouch before taking in a series of deep breaths, finding himself surprisingly exhausted in the heat of the summer as sweat slipped down the side of his face. Marshal Leonis had decided today, at sunrise to put him through a string of serious drills that taught him new skills, and also refreshed him on some older ones; however, he had been going at it for over an hour straight now and was starting to feel some of the side-effects of warping as he took in a deep breath once more shaking his hair out as he stood straight. The deep-gray t-shirt and black half-legged pants he wore were made of a special type of material – the same that the Crownsguard uniforms were made from – which meant they were light, but durable and breathable, which he was currently thankful for.
"Once more Noctis, in a real fight you won't have time to take a break unless you were hidden. You must strike down as many enemies at once as possible. Do it again!" he ordered.
"Yes sir…." Noctis warped by him, striking a series of the dummies in a continuous motion while Clarus lingered a bit behind the two in the shade as Marshal Leonis came towards him, contemplating what they were seeing as the boy struck another one in a vital area, taking the knife out before warping away, using one of the dummies as a spring-board of sorts.
"It would see the words that King Regis said to the Prince is causing the boy quite the problem," stated General Clarus as he observed the boy's movements.
"No, not a problem: it pissed him off that he has no choice but to submit. And hearing King Regis state this did nothing but solidify what he already knew deep down." the General eyed the boy.
"Then explain this…." He said while pointing towards the sixteen-year-old as he warped directly into one of the dummies and removed its head with the dagger.
"He's got some fire in him now…" General Clarus shook his head.
"I wouldn't call that fire, I'd call that malice," he stated.
"No, if you want malice…give him moving targets…" the General rose an eyebrow.
"Moving…targets?" Marshal Leonis rose his hand and then headed over to a system that he'd set up in the training field that was the north courtyard.
"Noctis! Time to use your summoning alongside your warps: put your training to good use. You have five minutes to eliminate these targets," he ordered as the boy vanished the dagger, somewhat surprising the General before the boy saw the first target appear and Noctis summoned the Airstep sword.
In a matter of seconds he was across the field and taking down the target before turning to the next one as if his life depended upon it while the General watched the boy transition between the Airstep sword, his two daggers, and the Engine blade while destroying the targets as swiftly and accurately as possible. General Clarus would admit that Noctis had become skilled with a weapon; however, there were a few key details pertaining to his behavior that struck him as odd. He had shown nothing more than a chilled glance to his father this morning, and then had gone straight to training where for the last hour he had taken out his targets as if the person had been a contributor to the things that were happening to his homeland: as if one of the dummies had been a member of the Empire.
"He's quite the fighter," stated General Clarus.
"Yes, no need to be worried about him causing any problems on the field." The man nodded.
"True, but he's going through a lot of pains right now. Not to mention, they've only had the opportunity to be out in the field once…I'm certain that the others aren't prepared for the adventure that'll lay ahead of them," he said.
"Clarus, I'm sure that everything will be fine…" the timer ended and Marshal Leonis nodded, walking towards the boy who was crouched over, heaving in deep breaths as he tried to recover from the session.
"You did well, how are you feeling?" he asked.
"Tired…" Marshal Leonis nodded before sighing.
"Noctis…is something wrong?" asked General Clarus.
"No…I just…tch…" he looked to the side, gritting his teeth as he took in a deep breath, going against what he wished to say.
"You can tell us, I hope you know," Marshal Leonis said.
"It's…not right….what he's chosen to do…" the two slowly nodded.
"None of us quite agree with what he has elected to do; however, we do feel as though it is something we couldn't alter and whatever outcomes are there would have happened regardless of his Majesty's choices," stated General Clarus.
"I don't know about that…" Marshal Leonis glanced down.
"Well, what do you honestly feel about this?" he inquired, hoping to hear the boy's opinion but those chances were dashed when the boy took in a deep breath and shook his head.
"He's the King. He made his decree….despite the suffering it may cause to others. That's fine….he's the King…that's his job…mine's just to follow blindly and do all that he and others require of me without questioning…" Noctis heard Cari whine in discontent of the idea nearby him.
"Noctis, you know…" the boy shook his head vehemently.
"But I just…can't!" he stated, finding himself certain of the words he had just stated.
"Then, what will you plan to do? In what way will you change this for how you wish it to be?" Noctis took in a steady breath, and then looked to the two men.
"I'll go to Altissia…and I will marry Luna…." The two nodded.
"That would be a good thing I think. The two of you are a good match," stated General Clarus.
"But not for the sake of this peace treaty…or for the whims of the King of Lucis, nor the Emperor of Nifilheim…" Marshal Leonis looked to the boy in questioning, but said nothing as he took in another deep breath.
"I'll go to rescue her. I'm not going to let her stay their prisoner anymore. Once we're married, Luna will come back here with me and we will find a way to stop the control of the Empire. We'll take Lucis and the rest of Eos from their clutches," he stated. General Clarus hummed.
"You're brave, and certain of your choices. I do not even have to question that; however, I do wonder…are you willing to face the consequences of not complying with those who would oppose us?" Noctis shook his head.
"I'm still young, I don't have a lot of assurance on that matter, but…I think...no…I'm certain that when that time comes I'll know what to do," he stated as General Clarus smiled.
"Then, I am certain that when the time does indeed come, under your rule as King: we can find a way to change our world's fate." Noctis smiled a bit.
"I think so too…but…am I done Marshal Leonis? I need to finish packing up. Tomorrow is the last day," he said.
"Yes, go on." The boy nodded and started walking towards the exit of the courtyard before General Clarus looked to the Marshal.
"He's something else, I will grant him that," he stated.
"In many ways, he's like his parents." The General laughed.
"True….that he is…"
{Citadel Garage Area: 10:01am}
"Here's the last of the bags Gladio!" called Prompto as he hefted a large black duffel-bag over and into the trunk of the Regalia. The dark-haired, muscular man turned to the skinny blonde and grabbed the bag from him as they finished with their packing.
"Good, that means we can relax a bit and make sure Noct has everything." Ignis fixed his glasses and then looked to them.
"We best not forget to pick up our fatigues whilst we are preparing for our departure," stated Ignis as he looked at the other two.
"Ah, yea we better remember that…" Prompto sighed a bit as he looked to his friends.
"Right, now. Prompto? Do you have the required provisions?" Ignis inquired.
"You bet'cha! I have exactly what we need. No worries there…" Prompto assured him and Gladio sighed.
"Besides, if Noctis has the Royal Crest on him, that'll handle enough if we run into any trouble," Gladio pointed out.
"True, but we cannot count on Noct's lineage to back us up if we were to run into trouble and require funds of some sorts…" Prompto thought for a moment.
"What about those hunting jobs? I'm sure we could handle those," he mentioned as the other two looked to him.
"Doing those jobs wouldn't be a bad idea…" Gladio frowned as he stared at the two blondes before him.
"If it were just the three of us, it wouldn't be a bad idea. However, with Noctis along for the ride…" Ignis turned to him.
"Do you believe that Noctis cannot handle himself?" he probed.
"Look, he's got combat skills, sure, but how do we…."
"Prompto, Ignis, Gladiolus!" called Marshal Leonis as he walked up to them.
"Marshal, how are you this morning?" the man smiled.
"I'm well Ignis; however, I'm here for other reasons than mere pleasantries," he stated.
"Oh? Is something wrong?" the Marshal shook his head.
"No, I don't believe so. There is something I need to inform the three of you about though," he stated.
"Fire away…" Prompto looked to the Marshal who nodded.
"As you know, I have been granting the Prince specialized training for several years now and until now…I believe none of you know why," he stated.
"No, I'm afraid we've heard rumors about magic training, but nothing more." The man shook his head.
"His familiar takes care of his magic training. However, the training I focus on is related to a special ability that he possesses. It allows him to move through space at a quick speed and reappear or warp himself into another area so long as he uses a weapon to give him a point to focus upon. In addition to that he can summon multiple weaponry and phase through objects during a warp or with enough focus…" Gladio shook his head.
"Sounds like magic to me," he stated.
"In a sense, it is….but it's far greater and he does have other talents." Ignis frowned.
"Why did you find it a requirement to inform us of it now?" he quizzed.
"Because, as it stands…the four of you must go into this adventure prepared to work as one unit. I only wish we had more time to prepare all of you." Prompto smiled.
"Awh, we'll be fine. Maybe we can get Noct to show us these powers he's got so we know what we're facing," he stated.
"I hope you won't be too spooked by them. They are fairly dangerous though, but I'll allow him to inform you on that matter. I will see you at the gates tomorrow." With that the Marshal walked away and the others looked to one another.
"What do you think about what he told us?" asked Gladio.
"I believe we'll have to speak to Noct." Prompto nodded.
"Yea, I can deal with that," he said. Ignis nodded and looked to the other two and they considered what to do next with their time.
{Prince's Room: 11:30am}
Noctis sighed as he tugged on a plain blue t-shirt, standing in his room, after a shower that thankfully relieved the sharp pain that had developed in his head on his way up to his room earlier. Now, he just wanted to finish packing a few spare changes of clothes – per Ignis's advice – and relaxing the rest of the evening. They were supposed to leave tomorrow a little before noon, which thankfully gave Noctis plenty of time to have a quick session with Cari who naturally, would be accompanying Noctis on the journey. However, they had been practicing on a few new spells that he needed to go over once more, but for now, he was keener on resting and finishing his preparations for the following day. Sighing, Noctis flopped back against his bed, closing his eyes slightly while the cool breeze from the window came in.
"Ruhh…" midnight-blue eyes turned to the white fennec-fox that sat beside him.
"Hey Cari, what are you up too?" he asked.
"Same old, same old. What are you doing?" he sighed.
"Nothing really….waiting I guess…" Cari tilted her head a bit, the collar on her showing the Caelum Family Crest.
"Waiting? For what?"
"Can you talk normally? I've still kinda got a headache," he stated.
"Sorry, you gonna be okay?" Noctis nodded a bit.
"Yea, I guess so…" he muttered.
"So…what are ya waitin' for?" she asked.
"Things to get started….it's starting to get boring…" she sneezed.
"Boring? How on early could all this be boring?" she inquired.
"Well…for starters…I kinda…wanna get out of the city….I want to see Luna…" the Carbuncle took in a deep breath.
"So, you're ready for everything to begin?" Cari asked him.
"I guess…sometimes I kind of wanna just…get over the wall of the Citadel, run through the streets, and then go straight out as far as I can get…" his familiar squeaked.
"It won't do you any good to warp your way towards the top of the walls….remember last time?" she probed.
Noctis rolled his eyes as he recalled the rather embarrassing moment of warping – or at the very least, trying to warp – his way towards the wall from the top of his balcony when he had just starting to figure out about his powers and had decided to see if he could escape the Citadel to practice in the park near the place. It had failed when he'd missed his destination, only to run him into a torch holster which caught his boot straps and laces, causing him to hang upside down while the guards gathered and soon General Clarus, Marshal Leonis, and his father had come and gotten him down before unfortunately for Noctis: his powers were discovered. And then his training with Marshal Leonis in addition to being in trouble only because he wasn't supposed to go outside the castle except for school – which he had graduated from earlier than he was supposed to – or special occasions in which he needed to have a retainer with him. Cari chirped, causing Noctis to look towards her as he groaned.
"Don't remind me…"
"Well, it has been almost four years….maybe they forgot?" the boy growled in frustration.
"I haven't tried warping outside of training," he admitted to the Carbuncle while she remained settled beside him.
"Maybe you should put it to more practice…after all…who knows when you'll need to use it in combat on the road. Seeing as your marriage to Princess Lunafreya Nox Fleuret is part of the ceasefire treaty." The sixteen-year-old frowned a bit.
"Are you going to pick at me about that too? Nyx and the others already took their pokes, you want in too?" he asked.
"Hmm…nope. I don't see the point in jabbing you about being engaged to a girl you've loved since you were children." Noctis sighed.
"It's…a bit more complicated than just being in love with her. Cari, we haven't seen each other in seven years…not to mention Lucis has been at odds with Tenebrae since then," he explained to her.
"So? What's wrong with being in love? Love is a grand, remarkable thing that should never be taken lightly Noctis. Besides, love can save lives." The teenager sighed in defeat as he glanced to his familiar.
"Luna is the Oracle….she's got so much on her already…and being labelled as a future Queen as well as the Oracle? It's…a lot to ask of someone who's only two years older than me." Cari purred a bit as she moved and rubbed up against the boy and nuzzled her nose against the pulse point upon his throat.
"What do you think? Can she be your Queen? The Oracle, and even the mother of your children when the time comes?" the boy felt warmth rise to his cheeks at the statement before he pulled a pillow over his face.
"Cari, stop talking about things that haven't happened yet…it's kind of annoying…" the Carbuncle made a noise that sounded like a laugh.
"Awh! That's positively adorable! You're all flustered about being able to marry the Princess of Light and have a family with her! The two of you will have the most adorable children!" the Carbuncle's voice rang in Noctis's ears with a teasing tone that caused his blush to darken as he narrowed his eyes at her.
"Knock it off! Stop teasing me over this kind of stuff Cari! You're supposed to be my familiar, not my annoying navigation pixie that won't stop chattering!" he stated.
"I am not a pixie! I am a Carbuncle! There is a difference. I sometimes wonder how sharp you are Noct. Anyhow, would you like to do a little practice before you hit the open road tomorrow morning?" a frown graced the boy's features.
"Fine, just no more of that annoying picking! I thought you said you weren't going to do that?" Cari chirped as she jumped off the bed and onto the floor where she walked in an almost skipping fashion.
"I changed my mind…"
"You're a Daemon….aren't you?" he asked as he flipped his legs over himself to land on the other side of the bed.
"Nah, just your little furry friend!" the Prince of Lucis frowned.
"More like fluffy thorn in my side…." Cari jumped, landing beside him before scurrying to curl up into his lap.
"You'll be fine. Now, come on…to the training hall before you get all sulky again…."
"Whatever, fluff-ball. I don't see why…." A knock came at the door.
"Were you expecting a visitor?"
"Noctis? May I come in?" asked the voice of Marshal Leonis.
"Oh! Sure!" the Marshal entered the room, looking at the Lucian Prince and then to the fennec-fox creature who was settled into his lap.
"Well, I haven't seen her in a while," he stated as he shut the door and Noctis sighed as he watched the Marshal come forward and hold his hand out to Cari, who licked his fingers.
"Yea, she'll be going with me…" the Marshal smiled before looking to the boy.
"Noctis, I came to inform you of something that I think you need to know, about your abilities," he said as Noctis looked to him, scratching Cari behind the ears as he did so.
"What about them?" the man sighed as he stood straight.
"I informed your teammates about them firstly." Noctis paused in scratching his Familiar's ears.
"Why would you tell them about that?! They'll want me to show them!" he said.
"Maybe you should! Perhaps the time has come for no further secrets. Especially with those you trust with your life!" Noctis looked down.
"I'm not prepared for that yet…I'm not ready to show them these kinds of things…their still strange to me…I can't just up and show them…." Marshal Leonis nodded.
"That's fine, but they do know now so prepare yourself for a few questions," he told him.
"Is that all you wanted to tell me?" the man shook his head.
"No, there is one more important thing about this and I must urge you to heed it," the Marshal said as he placed his hands upon the boy's shoulders.
"What's that?" the man looked into midnight-blue eyes.
"Noctis, when you are out on the field and you have to use this warp ability you have to make sure that no one is too close to you. Remember the formation runs I taught the four of you last year and when we used them for battle formations when out in the field as well?" he inquired.
"Yea, I remember…Prompto hated them." The Marshal nodded.
"Maintain those formations, do your best to not be too close to people when you warp," he stated.
"Why?" the man took in a deep breath.
"Because, if you by some chance hit them, they could get hurt, or it's possible that if you were to warp with someone other than Cari…." The boy knitted his eyebrows just a bit and then the boy's eyes grew wide.
"Do you mean that…." Marshal Leonis nodded.
"It could kill them with how little control you still possess over it," he answered as Noctis rested his hands upon Cari.
"Okay….thank you for….telling me that, Marshal Leonis…" the man took in a deep breath.
"Noctis, please don't let this rattle your confidence. Just remember to keep yourself strong when it comes to this. Promise me you'll do well, and remain strong…please?" he asked as the boy met his gaze.
"He's unwavering, even though he's a bit spooked, he's steadfast in his choices….he'll do fine…."
"I promise, I'll be careful…"
"Thank you, Noctis," he stated.
{…..}
Chase the sky into the ocean….
{…..}
Author's Note: We are one chapter shy of ending this story, and now I will let you know how the Final Fantasy XV stories will be set up. As you know, this story was completed before being put up; therefore, you should expect that with the next two phases of the stories. The story coming up from this is going to be around a 100 chapters unless I can get it to be smaller, it'll depend on how the events fall. I hope you guys have been enjoying the story, and I will look forward to your reviews, as always.
Sincerely,
ShadowDragon94.