Elpis wakes to an unfamiliar warmth. Her clothes cling to her body as a wave rolls over her legs, and she can feel wet sand clinging to her skin. Groaning, she rolls over.
"El." Ardyn's voice is quietly urgent as he touches her shoulder. "Wake up."
"No," she says, wishing he would extinguish the firelight that's burning beyond her closed eyes.
Laughing, Ardyn wipes away some of the hair that's stuck to her face. "Trust me, you'll want to see this."
Wincing, Elpis slowly opens her eyes. Ardyn stands over her, a strange halo of light behind his head. Briefly she panics that something's wrong with her eyesight, as the sky isn't the right color, a bright blue with spots of white.
And then she sits upright with a gasp, ignoring the wave of dizziness that hits her as she looks out at the ocean.
The ocean that's shining in the bright sunlight.
"Oh my gods," she whispers, tears forming in her eyes. "Ardyn, you did it. It-the sun. It's the sun!"
"We did it," Ardyn corrects. And then, with a wild laugh, he picks her up and spins her around once more until he loses his footing and they fall back onto the sand. She kisses him deeply before standing and running to the water. It splashes up along her knees, blissfully warm and bright in the sunlight. Ardyn joins her and, as if they were children again, they have a contest to see who can splash the other the most.
After a time, they find their way back to the beach and sit, looking out at the ocean. Elpis sighs, a long forgotten feeling of contentment settling in her bones.
"It doesn't seem real," she says. She thinks of Charis and her daughter, the child born in darkness and who has grown up only ever knowing the night. She thinks of all the children born in the Long Night who are now seeing daylight for the first time in their lives. She thinks of her own daughter who will only know of the Long Night from stories.
"It doesn't," Ardyn agrees, digging through the sand idly. "I regret waiting as long as I did to do anything about it."
"We could only do as the gods bade us," Elpis says, leaning into his side and resting her head on his shoulder.
Yet a part of her agrees with him. Why had they waited so long? It makes no sense to her now that she thinks back on it. Then she disregards the thought. The past was the past and she could do nothing about it now.
"How are you feeling?" she asks.
"Considering only a few hours ago I was nearly killed by the gods while they gave us their blessings? Quite well, actually." He kisses her temple. "What of yourself?"
"The same."
Elpis studies his face. The Scourge lives inside his body now, locked away, but he's able to stand in the light without any discomfort. The blood vessels in his eyes have healed already. Save for the sun in the sky, there's no hint of what they went through.
He catches her staring and smirks. "Admiring my beauty, El?"
"Something like that."
Why had she doubted that Bahamut would keep his word?
Ardyn stops digging in the sand and picks up an intact seashell. It's small and pale white with faint pink lines in the grooves. After a moment, he hands it to Elpis.
"Elpis," he says, his tone serious. "Do me the honor of becoming my wife?"
She raises an eyebrow as she takes the shell from him. "Silly man," she says fondly. "Of course I will."
A broad smile breaks out over Ardyn's face and he pulls her into another kiss. For the first time in years, Elpis feels as if everything is right in the world once more. And it was all because of the man she would soon call her husband.
After a rather humiliating and hilarious attempt at fishing and a meal of roasted fish, Elpis and Ardyn prepare to leave. Aquila has been hiding in the trees and, if either of them tried to lure him out, gave them a look that plainly said they were out of their minds.
With Ardyn's help, Elpis hoists herself up into Aquila's battered sadle. Ardyn sits behind her once more, and together, they both look out at the ocean one last time. Angelgard sits in the distance, showing no sign of what transpired a short time ago.
For some reason, the prison flashes through her mind. Shivering, Elpis turns away. "Back to Solheim, then."
Ardyn nods. "Back to Solheim, to take our crowns."
"Did you mean what you said, about how you didn't care if you became a King or not?"
"I did," Ardyn says. "Come now, El. You didn't think my ego was quite that large, did you? It never entered my mind to declare myself King." He shrugs a shoulder. "And honestly, I'm still... getting used to the idea. Leadership isn't something that I particularly enjoy. I lead an army during the War, and it soured me on that particular aspect of leading.
"But," he continues, "when the gods themselves say to take up a crown, I can't exactly deny them, can I? Besides, you and I could do real good for Eos on our thrones. Far more good than leading an army ever did."
She leans against his back and stares up at the treetops as they pass under them. "If you had a choice, would you rather remain a healer?"
"Yes," Ardyn says without hesitation. "And if I were going this alone, I would be more reluctant than I am. But I have you to be my Queen, and I'll have Somnus, and Adeo and Deus, and Crescentia. They'll help us through this." He kisses the back of her head. "You'll make a magnificent Queen."
Elpis smiles. "And you'll make a good, kind King."
Together, they made their long way back to the kingdom that awaited them.
"Som, it's them! They're back!"
Crescentia's voice carries on the wind and greets them as they walk through the gate of the Lower City. Her white dress billows out around her as she runs to them, blonde hair flying behind her, her grin wide. Somnus appears from behind the gate wall. When he sees his brother, his entire face lights up and he can't stop the smile that breaks on his face.
"Ardyn!" He rushes over and nearly topples his elder brother over as he hugs him. Ardyn laughs and hugs him back, patting his back, while Crescentia hugs Elpis.
"You did it," Crescentia says, awe in her voice. "You really did it."
"And all it took was getting stabbed in the heart a few times by Bahamut," Ardyn says. Crescentia blanches while Somnus jerks away from his brother in shock.
"What?"
Elpis pats Ardyn's shoulder. "Didn't I say we should keep some of the details to ourselves? This is why."
In the distance, she hears Adeo shout their names, and soon he and Deus join their little party. Adeo lifts Ardyn off the ground with his hug, which causes Elpis to break into uncontrollable laughter at Ardyn's alarmed expression. Deus merely smiles and bows his head respectfully to Elpis.
"I expect the full story, you know," he says while the others crowd around Ardyn. "It's not every day I get to hear the story of someone going through the rites and forging a covenant with the gods firsthand. It'll make a good addition to the library."
Elpis grimaces. "It'll be an awfully bloody tale."
"All the good ones are."
Since she cannot agree with him, she merely smiles. Somnus breaks away from the others and approaches her. In his blue eyes, she sees new respect as he regards her.
"Thank you for bringing him back," Somnus says, holding a hand out to her. Elpis takes it with some surprise.
"Not bad for a heretic, hm?"
Somnus laughs quietly and shakes his head. "No, not bad at all. I suppose I should get used to calling you sister?"
"Damn right."
Crescentia tugs at the sleeve of Elpis' dress and nods her head to indicate something beyond the walls of the Lower City. "Look," she says. "The people of Solheim are waiting for their saviors."
"Oh, dear," Elpis says with a forced smile. "They really didn't have to come out to see us-"
Ardyn puts his arm around her shoulders. "Nonsense, El. You didn't think we'd get back and everyone would act as if nothing had happened?"
"No, but..."
He shares a look with the others and, one by one, they nod and leave, helping to unpack the few things remaining on Aquila's saddle. Ardyn takes Elpis' hands in his and gazes down at her adoringly.
"We don't have to if you truly wish it," he says. "But I'll be with you the entire time. Come now, don't you want to be heralded as the great Oracle you are by your people?"
"It just seems a bit... I don't know. Arrogant?"
He strokes her cheek with a finger. "It will only be until we get home. Then we can shut our door and be alone for as long as you like." He raises an eyebrow suggestively. "And I can worship you in private then."
Elpis can feel the blush on her cheeks. Gods, she's far past her thirty-fifth turn of the sun, and yet he still makes her blush like a young girl. Biting back a smile, she nods and stands on tiptoe to kiss Ardyn.
"There's my girl," he says, and leads her over to Aquila. Already, the cacophony of voices from the gathering crowd is deafening. Children run up to them both and squeal in delight as Ardyn picks them up and throws them in the air before catching them. He seats some of them on Aquila's back and lets them ride the chocobo into the city.
Elpis, meanwhile, cannot look away from the buildings. In the Long Night, the colors had been hard to see, no matter how brightly they dyed the fabric. In the light of day, the banners hanging from the houses almost seem to glow. Her city is bathed in dizzying color and she revels in it. It reminds her of the desert, how at first glance it could look as if it held only one or two colors, but looked at from far away and it became an array of hues, like an artist had dropped all their paints on the land. And if one looked closer, they could find hidden treasures in the golden grains.
People crowd around them, reaching out their hands to touch her and Ardyn. Knowing how it would look if she shied away, Elpis allows it, even as her discomfort at being touched by so many people grows. Delphina emerges from the crowd and runs up to her, throwing her arms around her shoulders. Laughing in surprise, Elpis hugs her back.
At some point, the children get down from Aquila, and Ardyn takes up the saddle again. He holds a hand out to Elpis but she shakes her head, motioning for him to go on without her. She's heartily sick of being in the saddle, frankly, and wishes only to enjoy the heat of the ground beneath her feet. She follows along behind Aquila and watches as the people-their people-cheer for him.
No, not just for him. For her as well.
Elpis tips her face back until she feels the sun's rays on her skin and smiles.
Thank you, gods. Thank you for forgiving my doubt. Thank you for leading Ardyn into his destiny as king.
"People of Solheim!" Somnus shouts from atop a stack of boxes. "I give you your King and Queen: Ardyn and Elpis Lucis Caelum!"
A roar goes up as the people cheer, so loud Elpis can feel it vibrating in her chest. Someone begins playing music and Delphina is the first to dance, taking the hands of the jewelry girl and leading her into a clearing.
Despite Ardyn's promise, neither one of them end up being able to escape the celebration until near nightfall. They join in the dancing and receive thanks from so many people that Elpis soon loses count. A feast is prepared and the whole of Solheim joins in and toast to their new beginning. The terrors of Ifrit's Betrayal and the War and the Scourge, while still lingering at the edges, are forgotten for a time in light of the people's joy.
Even as the night falls, the celebration does not let up. People are no longer terrified of the shadows. The daemons will haunt them no more.
Ardyn finds her dozing at the feast table they'd hastily erected, head propped up on her hand. Elpis mumbles as he picks her up like a bride and carries her away.
"I would say something about being able to walk on my own," she says tiredly, "but no. This is nice. Don't put me down."
"I shan't, as my Queen commands," Ardyn says. Soon they're in the familiar surroundings of their home.
Elpis lifts her head from his shoulder and gazes around at the humble house. "I suppose we won't be living here much longer, will we?" she says. "Kings and Queens live in castles."
Ardyn nudges open the door to their bedroom with his foot, then closes it the same way once they're inside. "We've no castle yet," he says as he gingerly sets them both down on their pallet. Once she's resting against his chest, he begins unpinning the headscarf from her hair. "So pay no mind to your heartache. We'll be here for a while. I've no wish to live in a grand castle while there are others who still have no roofs over their heads. We'll rebuild the rest of Solheim first, and then focus on ourselves."
"How perfectly noble of you."
Ardyn grins and begins unlacing her dress. She's long since stopped wearing her armor, as there's no longer any need. The few predators that remain in Eos don't require her to wear it anymore. He undresses her until she's in her shift, then takes up a brush and begins combing her hair.
"I was wondering, actually," he says at length, "if we should rebuild Solheim."
"Hmm?"
"There are too many memories here," he says. Then, his voice turning quiet, he says, "There are too many nightmares here. We should look to a land that doesn't bear the scars of the gods' wrath. Somewhere new.
"And," he continues, "without the sins of my parents."
Elpis considers his words. "A new kingdom of light," she says thoughtfully. "I think I like the sound of it."
He sets her hair over one shoulder and nuzzles the back of her neck, breathing her in deeply. "We've time to think about it.
"True," she says. She turns and helps him undress and wash up for the night. Then, together, they curl up underneath their blanket, weariness weighing their limbs down, the knowledge of what they still have left to accomplish set aside to worry over later.
"Thank you, Elpis," Ardyn whispers into her hair. "I couldn't have done any of this without you."
"Yes you could," she murmurs sleepily. "It was your destiny to be King."
Ardyn's arm tightens around her waist. "You're my destiny."
She falls asleep before she can reply, a small smile on her lips.
When she wakes, Ardyn is sitting at their bedroom window, looking out. He seems so lost in thought that she dare not distract him. Instead she merely drinks him in, studying every line of his body, the sound of his breathing, taking in the simple fact that he's alive. After a time Elpis finally gets up and they prepare for the day together.
To the Chosen Ones, this voice is heard.
Elpis stops in the process of pinning her headscarf. She looks to Ardyn and sees her surprise mirrored on his face.
When dawn breaks, go to the place where once fire reigned in Solheim, Shiva says. Beyond the doors does Eos await you. The Crystal will complete your Ascension and crown you King and Oracle.
They wait, but Shiva is apparently not going to be more forthcoming. Elpis gives Ardyn a confused look. "The Crystal?"
He shrugs helplessly. "I'd heard that there was something like that in Ifrit's castle," he says. "But no one human has ever seen it, and no one went looking for it after the War. Frankly, I'd assumed it was a metaphor for something."
"Eos awaits us," Elpis repeats slowly. "As in... our star itself? A physical manifestation of it?"
Ardyn shrugs again. "At this point, I'm not surprised."
"Mm," Elpis says with a resigned smile. "Neither am I, honestly."
"And as long as neither one of us is stabbed again, I'd say I'm looking forward to this," Ardyn says, placing his arm over her shoulders and leading her out of their bedroom. They both almost trip over Adeo, who seems not to have made it to his own bed and instead made the floor his pallet. Elpis can hear Somnus snoring from his room and tries hard not to giggle.
Deus, meanwhile, is already making them breakfast. Soon everyone wakes up and joins them, and their house is once again filled with the laughter of her tribe. When Ardyn tells them of Shiva's words, everyone immediately volunteers to go with them.
"And don't bother trying to say no," Adeo says. "You'd have better luck getting Somnus to willingly eat a vegetable."
Somnus shrugs unrepentantly. "He's right."
Elpis snorts and shares a smile with Ardyn. How lucky we are, she thinks, to have such friends. To have people who love us so dearly.
As the sky begins to lighten, Elpis puts on a orange and red dress with bright green embroidery. It's the last one she has from her life in the desert. It feels right to wear it now, as she goes to meet her future. Ardyn, meanwhile, dresses once against in his healer's robe.
"I don't want to forget how I started," he says when he catches her curious look. "I began as a healer, and no matter if I wear a crown or not, I'll always be one."
Near bursting with pride, she wraps her arms around his shoulders and kisses him. "When this is done," she says lowly against his mouth, "I'm going to drag you back here and have you all to myself." To emphasize her point, she bites his bottom lip and pulls at it gently.
He groans and pulls away. "Keep that up and we won't make it to the castle today."
"That would be a pity."
"Not really."
"You two are revolting," Somnus says from the open doorway. "This is almost as bad as the time you came out without a tunic on and showed off the marks she left on you. Proudly. That will be in my head for the rest of my life."
Grinning, Ardyn claps a hand on his shoulder affectionately. "Wait until you've a wife, Somnus," he says. "You'll be the same."
"Gods, I pray not." He's smiling as he says it, though.
Once everyone is ready, she and Ardyn lead the way into the Old City. A few people tag along, and then, somehow, word spreads of what they're about to do. A crowd soon gathers, following them into the Old City. Elpis even catches sight of Sollemnia and Therasia in the crowd. Elpis takes Ardyn's hand and they hold on to each other as they come upon the old castle. Unlike the bright buildings in the new city, the remains of Ifrit's palace are black with fire.
Yet she cannot deny that the air itself feels... different. As it did when Bahamut and the others appeared on Angelgard. Heavier. Whatever lies in the castle is not the same as the gods.
Crescentia clasps her hand nervously. "I'm not sure, but I feel as if something's pulling me here."
Elpis pauses and casts a glance at her. Now that she thinks on it, she has no idea if Crescentia's powers still remain. Since she's the Chosen Oracle, did that mean Bahamut stripped Crescentia of her abilities?
Now is not the time to ask. Instead she merely nods and gives Crescentia a smile. "Then you must answer the call."
"If there's anything we've learned in the last few months," Ardyn says, "it's not to ignore the gods."
Somnus' expression in withdrawn, his hand on the hilt of his sword, as he gazes up at the castle. Ardyn notices and places a hand on his shoulder once more. "Are you well, brother?"
Somnus smiles briefly. "There aren't many happy memories here," he says. "Maybe today we'll get to make one, though."
"Unusually optimistic," Deus notes, his voice deadpan.
"Shut up."
Laughing, they all head into the palace. No one else follows, though the crowd waits at the bottom of the stairs. Soon enough Ardyn takes up the front of the line, Adeo following closely behind he and Elpis, as they're one of the few people with knowledge of the castle's layout. Elpis' eyes slowly adjust to the dark, cut through with only a few beams of sunlight.
She jumps in horror as she realizes a skeleton lay in front of her. "Gods above," she whispers, and sends a prayer for the poor soul.
Grim, Somnus steps around it. "No one came here afterwards to search for bodies," he says.
"It probably won't be the last one we see," Adeo says.
"Oh," Crescentia says quietly, her face white as she avoids another skeleton. "I hadn't realized... how awful."
Ardyn squeezes Elpis' hand and leans in to murmur to her. "We'll be free of here soon enough," he says. "Stay strong, my Queen."
Nodding, Elpis averts her gaze from the floor, though she feels like a coward for doing so. She cannot stand to see the forgotten remains of people who never returned home, and whom were left behind by their loved ones out of fear. Her heart cannot take it.
"You're right," she says to Ardyn. "We should build elsewhere." She does not want her future home erected on the ashes of the murdered.
They head further into the castle, until it seems as if they come into the very center of it. Inexplicably, a doorway stands before them, completely unharmed by fire. A heavy coating of dust covers it, but the metal still shines. Elpis can make out the symbol of Solheim etched into the doors.
The air becomes denser. Ardyn holds a hand out to the doors, then stops. "This is it."
After a moment, Adeo says, "Are you waiting for an invitation or something?"
"And there goes our grand, sacred moment," Deus says. "Look, there it goes, out that hole in the wall. Swift as you please."
"You're not helping," Somnus says with barely restrained laughter.
Ardyn shares a look with Elpis. Together, they approach the doors and push them open. The metal scratches along the stone floor, letting out a teeth-grindingly high pitched cry.
"I really hope there aren't any ghosts here," Crescentia says. "That would have woken them all up."
"I'll protect you if there are," Somnus says.
"Who's revolting now, Som?" Ardyn says, then falls silent as he looks into the chamber.
Before them, high up on a pedestal, a Crystal floats in the air. Soft, cold blue light emanates from it. A sharp dagger of pain goes through Elpis' mind as she stares at it and she restrains herself from wincing. A deep sense of unease rises in her chest. The same sense of foreboding that she felt when she looked upon the prison of Angelgard.
Why? she wonders. This is where she's meant to be. Why does the Crystal inspire a sort of fear in her?
Without giving voice to her thoughts, she follows Ardyn down the center of the room, up to the Crystal. The others keep a respectful distance behind them. As they come to stand before the Crystal, its light brightens slightly.
Gods' Chosen Ones, a voice says. Elpis recognizes it as Bahamut's. Only this time, the mere sound of his voice isn't bringing her to her knees. Step forth and be deemed worthy by Eos. Become the Crystal's Chosen.
Ardyn hesitates, and in that hesitation, Elpis knows he's thinking the same thing she is: Weren't they already Chosen?
They have doubts. The voice that speaks now is neither male nor female, neither high nor low, nor old or young; it is all of these things at once. Behind them, Crescentia gasps, and Elpis realizes she at least can hear the Crystal as well.
Come, the Crystal says. Let my light illuminate your souls, that I may find you worthy to lead the new world, that I may grant you the powers to protect me from the darkness.
"But..." Elpis stops. Then shakes her head. "The darkness is gone. The Scourge is gone."
Is it?
Without warning, the Crystal flares to life, shining its blue light on them both. Beside her, Elpis feels Ardyn tense-
And then he lets out a horrifying scream. His hands go to his head as he falls to his knees. Somnus shouts his brother's name, but it's lost under the Crystal's voice.
Fool, it says. You were given your powers to heal the Scourge, but you chose to take the daemons into your own soul. You thought you were noble in your suffering for those you healed. And now you are the Scourge itself.
"Stop," Elpis says, having come to kneel beside Ardyn. "Stop it, please."
Silence! Look upon your lover, Oracle, and see him for what he has become.
Shaking, Ardyn lets his hands fall from his face. Elpis recoils in shock as the familiar Miasma rises around him, as he breathes out the very stuff. The Scourge trails from his eyes and a corner of his mouth, as if his body is a bowl that's been overfilled. Dark veins show underneath his deathly white skin. His sclera are pitch black and shining, and the amber eyes that she loves so much glow yellow.
Ardyn is not a daemon. He is the Scourge.
"Ardyn?" Somnus says quietly, his face stricken.
"What the hell is going on?" Adeo asks, his sword drawn, though there is no clear enemy for him to strike. Crescentia's hands have gone to her mouth in horror.
"But that-that was the price," Elpis stammers. She stands in front of Ardyn, as if to protect him from the Crystal. "Bahamut said Ardyn would be the cage and I the key. We agreed to this."
I will never allow one so impure of body and spirit and mind to take up a sword in my name. I will not allow him to have my power.
"Then don't," Elpis says frantically. "Don't give him your power. Let someone else be your protector and king. Just, please-"
"El," he says, his voice a mere husk of what it was, "don't."
Shaking, he stands once more. His hand clutches the fabric at his chest, as if he could claw his way to his own heart. He looks up at the Crystal desperately, terrified, and then twitches. He shakes his head, a low snarl escaping him.
Gods, Elpis thinks. Gods, please, help us. Help us.
They do not answer.
His very body is corrupted, the Crystal says. I would have chosen you, Ardyn Lucis Caelum, to be King.
"This is madness," Somnus says, coming up beside his brother. "He did what he did to save us. How can you punish him for that?"
I am not punishing him, the Crystal says. In fact, I offer salvation.
Ardyn seems to return to his right mind, and he looks up at the Crystal with so much hope it breaks Elpis' heart. "Salvation?"
Your Oracle once bore the Scourge as well, the Crystal says. Ardyn jerks in surprise and looks at her in horror. Though she carries it no longer. If you wish to rid me of this plague for good, O King, give unto her the Scourge. Let her be changed by it as you have been. And then cut out her heart.
"My gods," Crescentia whimpers.
"What?" Ardyn stares up at the Crystal as if he can no longer understand it.
"Fine," Elpis says, holding out an arm in front of him to protect him. "I'll do it."
It is not your choice! If Ardyn wishes to be King and wishes his life to be spared, if he wishes to wield my power and pass it down through his line, then this is the price. Bahamut told you there cannot be anything received without something given in return, child. This is what must be given now: the life of your Oracle, that your people will be spared the Scourge.
Slowly, Ardyn turns to look at her. His eyes roam her face, her body, and in the silence, she can tell he's thinking of every moment they've spent together. Of every moment they would have spent together. The daughter and unborn child they wait for. The life they would have had, spent in the sun.
"Please," Elpis says quietly, urgently. "Please, don't."
She's not begging him to refuse. She's begging him to agree. Because she knows what his decision is before he even says it.
Ardyn takes one last look at her before turning to the Crystal. "No."
"Ardyn!" Somnus shouts, only to be held back by Adeo.
Impudent fool! the Crystal rages. Unwilling to sacrifice one woman for the sake of the world? You are no King!
"No," Ardyn says wearily. "I'm not. I'm a healer. And this one woman is worth more to me than the entire world over. She is my world." Then, slowly, a cruel grin breaks out on his face. He lifts his arms out to his sides. "How does it feel, Eos? To know that you are worth less than one shortlived human? That I could deny you so easily, as you have denied me?"
The light grows brighter until it blinds Elpis. Exist as the Scourge you once fought so valiantly to destroy, then, O Healer of Solheim, the Crystal says. You shall never know peace until you die, Accursed.
Before she can react, Elpis feels something tear inside her soul. Screaming, she falls to the floor, as the powers that the gods granted her are ripped from her smallest cells. She can feel the Divine Light leave her spirit.
There are others who will take up your crown, the Crystal says. They are before you now. Somnus Lucis Caelum: I proclaim you my new Chosen King.
"What?" Elpis hears Ardyn say. "No."
Elpis slowly gets to her knees, forcing her body to do as she says. Every single muscle hurts and her strength has utterly left her. But Ardyn still needs her.
"I..." Somnus says, at a loss.
I see you are a good man, a noble man, of strong heart, the Crystal says. Untouched by the Scourge. Tell me, Chosen, will you kill your brother to rid your kingdom of his plague?
Somnus swallows thickly, staring up at the Crystal with wide, horrified eyes. Then, slowly, he says, "You cannot cure him on your own?"
No. The Scourge will remain in his soul forevermore.
"I don't... understand. I don't understand why you can't help him." Somnus shakes his head, looking so much like a scared little boy that Elpis' heart aches for him. "How can I kill him?"
A King must always make sacrifices, the Crystal says. Even those of his own blood. He is not your brother any longer.
Laughing weakly, Ardyn turns until he sees Somnus. "You've always been jealous," he says. "Don't deny it, Somnus. Ever since we were children. You hated being in my shadow, didn't you? Hated that I was Chosen while you, in all your piety, were ignored?"
"Stop it," Somnus says. "Of course I was jealous. But that doesn't mean I want you dead, you idiot."
Choose, Somnus!
"Stop it!" Crescentia cries.
Will you be the Light to his eternal Darkness?
"I'm growing bored with this," Ardyn says. He looks at Elpis, and for a moment, the hatred on his face cracks. Then it returns and he faces the Crystal. "And you have hurt Elpis."
"Ardyn, don't," Elpis says, getting one foot under her. She has to stop this. She has to stop him. Even if her body feels no more consequential than a feather on the air.
With a flick of his hands, his Armiger appears, doused in bright red. "Allow me to spare you the choice, Somnus," he sneers, "and destroy the Crystal instead."
"No!" Somnus runs forward, sword out. The clang as his blade meets Ardyn's echoes throughout the chamber.
"Hah!" Ardyn laughs, pushing him back. "So you'll be a King after all?" He fends off a strike from Adeo, a wild grin on his face. "It looks as if you have a shield to protect you, O King!"
Growling, Somnus raises his sword. It hits the metal of Elpis' stave and sparks fly from it. She shoves him away, knees trembling, and takes up a place in front of Ardyn.
You have chosen your sides, the Crystal notes. What is your answer, Somnus?
Somnus stares at Ardyn for what seems to Elpis like an eternity. The darkness in Ardyn's voice cracks minutely as he says, "Som."
Resolve hardens Somnus' features. In a clear voice, he says, "I accept."
Glass breaks as swords glowing with blue light appear in the air around Somnus. Elpis takes a step back until she runs into Ardyn, who puts a hand on her waist.
No, Elpis thinks as she takes in the scene. No, no, no. Somnus is advancing on them reluctantly, with Adeo close behind. Deus is protecting Crescentia, but Elpis knows he's a capable fighter as well.
And they have all taken up against Ardyn.
Against Somnus, she knows she could win. But against two, even three? She has no chance.
She hears a click behind her and then a burst of air as an arrow flies past her. It strikes Adeo in the shoulder. Ardyn, smiling, lets go of the crossbow and lets it return to its place in his Armiger.
With an enraged roar, Somnus rushes them. Elpis hits his knee with her stave and then aims a hit to his face. His unharmed leg swings out and takes her feet out from under her before her stave can connect and she hits the hard stone with a yelp. Then, above her, Ardyn's sword comes down. Somnus barely dodges, his cloak catching the blade and tearing. Ardyn's blade strikes the stone instead.
Then he raises a hand and, in his palm, a roiling mass of darkness appears. "It seems I've a few new tricks," he notes casually. "Let's see what they do, shall we?"
He throws the darkness and it hits Somnus in the chest and sends him flying through the air. A piece separates from the main body and hits Deus as he runs towards them. Elpis stands and presses a hand to Ardyn's chest to keep him from getting closer.
Ardyn looks down at her. "El? I-agh," he groans, and slowly, the Scourge's marks fade from him. His sclera turn white once more and his skin becomes warm. He looks down at his hand, then up at Somnus. "Som..."
"We have to leave," Elpis says, grabbing his wrist tightly. "We have to run. Now!"
Without argument, Ardyn follows her as she runs past the others. Crescentia calls after her, but Elpis ignores it. They are not safe there. They are not safe from their loved ones.
They may never be safe again.
Somnus stands as Elpis and Ardyn disappear into the shadows of the castle. Feet away, Deus helps Adeo to his feet. Crescentia stands in silence, tears rolling down her cheeks.
I am sorry, the Crystal says. I know I ask much of you.
"Sacrifices must be made," Somnus says blankly. It's safer to be blank. Safer to be numb, so he cannot face the horror of what happened just yet. A coward's way out, but he cannot help it.
"Som," Crescentia says, approaching him. "Are you really going to kill Ardyn?"
Somnus regards his sword grimly. His knee throbs where Elpis hit it, though he knows she would have broken it if she thought it necessary. She had no desire to fight him just as he had none to fight her. Slowly, he sheathes his sword and looks to the Crystal.
"I'd rather my brother be dead than cursed," Somnus says. "If I must do kill him so he can find peace, then I will. Not because I want a crown, or mystical powers. I would choose Ardyn over those any day. But the Crystal is right: That thing is not my brother any longer."
His words are met with silence until Deus says, "Then we hunt them down?"
"No," Somnus says. "I hunt them down. I will not ask you three to bear this burden with me. Please, let me see to it myself."
"What of Elpis?" Crescentia asks fretfully.
He winces, and feels the first cracks appear in his heart. They'd had their differences over the years. Yet he had come to respect her, in a way, and what was more, he liked the way Ardyn was with her. She was right that he had been jealous once, but he'd outgrown it. He did not want to see her suffer. He would have called her sister.
"She won't let us harm Ardyn without a fight," Adeo says slowly, as the realization sinks in for all of them.
"Let us pray she sees sense instead," Somnus says, even as he knows it to be a false hope. "Maybe she'll see that Ardyn will suffer if he lives this way."
Crescentia shakes her head. "You'd be asking her to rip her own heart out."
"What other course do I have?" Somnus snaps. "Kill her as well?"
They all stare at him as he realizes that, yes. It may very well come to that. He may very well have to stain his hands with the blood of not only his brother, but the woman his brother loved.
Gods, please, Somnus prays. Give me the strength to see this through. Give me the strength to run my blade through Ardyn's heart so that he'll find peace in the beyond.
And do not let it come to that with Elpis.
Elpis hands Ardyn a bowl of stew as she sits next to him. "Here. You need to eat."
Listlessly, he waves it away. "I'm not hungry."
Helpless, Elpis merely sets it down between them and eats her own dinner. They've been on the run for a fortnight now, hiding in the forests and wetlands that surround Solheim. Every now and then, a group from Solheim comes perilously close to finding them. Elpis has little doubt that they do not mean them well should they be found.
Blessed to hunted in just a fortnight, Elpis thinks. Was this our destiny all along?
As the days passed, she'd done her best to take care of Ardyn. Except he seems to need no care at all. He no longer eats, and when she's woken in the night, it's to find him wide awake. The stubble on his jaw has not grown at all. She's not ready to confront what it all means yet.
Elpis prods at their camp fire with a stick. "When night falls, I'll look at the stars and see where we are, and how much farther it'll be until we reach the desert. Once we're there, I'll beg my mother and Charis to hide us." She sighs. "I have to hope Somnus doesn't remember the way there. Or won't have someone guide him."
Ardyn stirs minutely, his gaze on the flames. Light, at least, does not seem to hurt him as it did the daemons. "He will find us eventually."
"Maybe."
"There's no 'maybe' about it, El," he says, and he sounds exhausted down to his very bones. "We'll be running for the rest of our lives."
"Well, what do you want me to do?" Elpis snaps wearily. "Give up?"
Ardyn finally meets her gaze. She shakes her head before he can get a word out. "No. Don't you dare say it, Ardyn."
The corner of his mouth twitches upwards in an echo of his old smile. "I didn't say anything."
"Keep it that way."
Slowly, he takes her hand in his and she shivers. He hasn't purposefully touched her since they ran from the Crystal. He seems to be too afraid to do so. Words cannot express how deeply she misses his touch.
"You don't have to stay with me," he says, catching her offguard. "You can leave me behind and live the rest of your life in peace."
"How the hell would I be able to know peace if I left you?" Elpis says, her voice fierce. "Don't talk to me if you're just going to suggest stupid, worthless, idiotic-"
She breaks down in tears, hiding her face in her palms. She hears movement beside her and then feels Ardyn's arms encircle her, pulling her close. She buries her face into his chest.
"I'm sorry," Ardyn says. "You're right. I should have known better than to suggest it."
"That's right," she mumbles pitifully against his chest. As quickly as the tears came, rage soon replaces them. "Was this their plan all along? Was this our destiny?"
"I don't know, El," Ardyn says distantly. "I don't know what the gods are thinking anymore. Maybe they had one plan, and the Crystal had another."
"It's been two weeks since the Crystal rejected us," Elpis says. "I have prayed again and again and I have heard nothing from them! Why have they abandoned us now?"
"I don't know," Ardyn repeats, and only when she hears the weariness in his voice does she stop. He strokes her hair slowly. "I'm sorry."
"It's not your fault," Elpis says. "You're the one who's been wronged."
"We both have." Ardyn sighs and kisses the top of her head. "At least I have you in my damnation."
"Don't talk like that," she says, gripping his tunic. "You aren't damned. And you'll always have me."
Ardyn smiles, but it's such a sad smile that Elpis immediately knows something is wrong. "I know I will. And I cannot thank you enough for that."
Uncertain how to respond, Elpis merely studies him, trying to figure out what he isn't telling her. It isn't until she feels the sleep weighing her limbs down that she looks at the stew with a dawning horror.
"You didn't," she says, looking up at Ardyn.
Ardyn cups her chin and tilts her head further back, then kisses her sweetly. When he pulls away, his expression is sad - but resolute. "I pray you'll forgive me one day, El. But this is no life for you, and it is not a life for me, either. I will not be the Accursed. The only way to do that is to die." He strokes her cheek. "You would never allow that."
"Ardyn-" She tries to move, but her body is quickly becoming heavier, in contrast to her growing panic.
"Shh," he says as he stands, leaving her on the ground. He takes his healer's robe and drapes it over her body. "You'll wake in a day or two. I know my potions."
Elpis reaches a hand out to him. It falls to the dirt with a heavy thump. Against her will, her eyes begin to droop shut. "Ardyn..."
"I love you, Elpis. Never forget that. You've been the light in my darkness all these years."
Ardyn turns his back on her and walks away. It is the last she sees of him before his drugged sleep claims her.
The walls of Solheim's Lower City greet him impassively. A guard near the gate sees him and shouts, pulling his sword free of his sheath.
Kill him, the voices whisper in his mind. Turn him. There are so many voices in his head now that sometimes he doesn't know which is his own.
Ardyn continues walking. He approaches the gate with both hands up in defeat. "I come in peace," he says. "I wish to speak to my brother."
The guards look at each other. "Fine," one says. "We'll take you to the King."
Ardyn smiles humorlessly. Somnus certainly wasted no time, did he? His smile fades quickly. He would have protected Somnus from the burden of a crown, from the burden of any of this, if he'd could.
The guards escort him through the streets of Solheim. All around him, the people he's known his entire life stop and stare, while ones he's only known for a few years do the same. Therasia glares at him from her open doorway, arms crossed over her chest. Others murmur to each other. How fast the tide can turn, Ardyn reflects, when divine beings declare you a monster. It is only then he begins to feel his anger stir.
They come to his old home. Word must have reached Somnus early, for he stands outside the house, his expression grim. Crescentia stands behind him, biting her lip.
"King Somnus," Ardyn says when he comes to a stop. He raises an eyebrow. "It makes you sound like a pompous ass."
If things were normal, Somnus would have laughed. He might have even agreed with Ardyn. But this new King Somnus merely deepens his frown.
"I know you aren't my brother," he says, "so don't act like him. You shame his memory."
"Ah," Ardyn says slowly. "Is that how you've reconciled yourself to this? You've told yourself that I'm only something wearing your brother's form?" He shrugs with a slow grin. "I must commend myself on choosing such a fine form, then."
"Silence," Somnus says, hand going to his sword hilt.
"Ah, ah," Ardyn says. "I'm not here to fight, Som. I'm here to give myself over."
Somnus waits, brow furrowed.
"I won't fight you. I won't fight destiny," Ardyn says. "The Crystal has declared me a dead man. Let's make it so, Somnus. Help me find peace."
Crescentia steps forward, looking behind him. "Where's Elpis?"
Ardyn keeps his face straight. "She let me go. She was disgusted by what I've turned into."
To further his point, he lets go of the darkness just under his skin, and lets the whole of Solheim see what he has become. People gasp, some even shriek, and everyone save Somnus and Crescentia back away as the Miasma rises around him.
"Who can blame her?" Ardyn asks, grinning. "Not even our mother could love this visage, wouldn't you say?"
If he was hoping to feel any triumph at goading Somnus, he's sorely disappointed. His brother just looks at him sadly. Stop, Ardyn thinks. Enough with the sadness and the pity and the despair. Hate me, you damn fool. Make it easier for yourself. Hate me and stop my heart and then forget about me and live your life.
"All right," Somnus finally says. "We'll go to the castle. We'll... we'll have it done there."
Calm washes over him, even as the voices inside his head shriek with fury. This is right, Ardyn tells himself. This is his destiny. He will die, Eos will be saved, and one by one, everyone who ever knew him will move on.
Even Elpis. His bright, shining sun will go on to share her light with another. She'll live the life she's meant to, and he will be only a memory. A painful one, maybe, but a memory all the same.
Smiling, Ardyn turns his face to the sunlight. "Let it be done."
As they did a fortnight ago, the people follow them to Ifrit's castle. They give Ardyn and his Scourge a wide berth. He mounts the steps with Somnus, his friends following behind.
The brothers stand and regard each other. Ardyn wonders when Somnus' face grew to be lined, when his jawline became so sharp and defined. Where is the little brother he loved and protected? For all that Ardyn hates the gods for what they have done to Elpis, he hates what they have done to Somnus just as much.
"I'm sorry," Somnus says at last, voice cracking.
"Don't be, little brother," Ardyn says with an easy smile. He lifts his arms. "It's destiny."
With that, he turns to face the crowd and gets on his knees. There's no place for him to set his head, so he'll have to face his death whilst looking out at the people he saved. The people who look upon him with fear now.
I must admit, Ardyn thinks as he hears Somnus unsheathe his sword, the gods know how to play one hell of a trick.
"The Crystal has deemed this man, Ardyn, the Accursed, who is the Scourge in physical form, to be killed," Somnus says out to the crowd. "As your King, I will ask no other to stain their hands. As his brother, I will not dishonor him by taking the coward's way out. I will fulfill the Crystal's wish and... and execute him myself. May the gods have mercy upon his soul and mine."
Ardyn smiles and glances back at Somnus. "Well done, Som."
When he turns back, however, motion catches his eye. His heart, or whatever remains of it, drops into his stomach.
"No!" Elpis cries, shoving her way through the crowd. She looks like a half-wild thing, leaves in her hair, dirt on her clothes. "Please, no!"
"Somnus," Adeo says, waiting for a command.
"Som," Ardyn says, keeping his gaze on Elpis, "don't let her see this. Please. I beg of you."
Elpis reaches the steps leading up to them. Somnus must give Adeo some sign, for the big man is soon upon her, grabbing up her arms and hauling her away from them. She shrieks with unfettered rage, kicking her legs to free herself. They glance off Adeo meaninglessly.
He's hurting her, the voices in his head writhe. Hurt him back. Kill him. Kill him.
Ardyn keeps himself on his knees and closes his eyes, to spare himself the sight of Elpis as she fights for him.
"Do it, Somnus," he whispers. He feels the wind in his hair and the sun on his face and calls up the dearest memories he has: Somnus as a child, brandishing a wooden sword, gaps in his smile where he'd lost teeth. He remembers each and every person he ever saved. And then, he pictures Elpis. On the beach, the sun shining down on her, glowing in her hair. The shell he proposed with in her hand as she smiles brilliantly at him.
He hears the swing of the sword and knows nothing more.
Ardyn's blood sprays on her face as his head lands with a sickening thud on the stones.
Elpis goes limp. She cannot seem to look away from the bloodied stump where Ardyn's head once rested. At some point, Adeo must let her go, because she feels something warm sinking into her shoes.
She looks down. Ardyn's blood is pooling at her feet.
With a raw, wordless scream, she balls up her fists and makes to run towards Somnus-only to slip in Ardyn's blood, crashing to the stone platform. All the fight leaves her in that one fall. A ragged sob heaves itself from her chest. She wails as she lies in Ardyn's cooling blood, until she feels hands under her arms.
Deus lifts her to her feet and Crescentia pulls one of her arms around her shoulders. Together, they carry her off, away from the dead body that was once her husband, away from the brother who must clean his blood from his blade, away from the people who owe him their lives.
Elpis hates them all.
"Are you all right?" Adeo asks as Somnus leans against an alley wall.
Somnus vomits in response. He empties his stomach until he's left retching nothing but air. Tears stream down his face, and he's certain he'll never feel whole again.
"I just killed my brother," he sobs. "And Elpis' face-gods, Adeo. How do I go on?"
Adeo puts a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have a choice."
Somnus falls to his knees, buries his face in his hands, and cries until his throat aches.
"Elpis?" Crescentia's voice seems far away. "I brought you some breakfast."
A plate full of food is set before her. Elpis stares at it, then looks back out the window. "I'm not hungry."
"I know," Crescentia says, "but try to eat anyway? It's been a few days. You need your strength."
"I can't."
Crescentia sits across from her, blue eyes worried. "I'm so sorry," she says. "Ardyn wouldn't want you to hurt yourself like this, though. Especially not for so many months."
Slowly, Elpis turns until her glare lands on Crescentia. "Don't," she hisses, "you dare tell me what he would and wouldn't want."
An uneasy silence falls between them. If she weren't in such an unforgiving mood, Elpis would feel sorry for Crescentia. But every time she closes her eyes, she sees Ardyn's headless body in front of her, feels his blood drying on her skin, and she curses them all over again. How can she explain what it's like to walk the world now that Ardyn is gone from it? How can she explain that she watches the world continue on outside her window as if her own hasn't ended and loathes every single person sees?
"Um," Crescentia says uncertainly, "I thought you'd want to know... they-they buried Ardyn after his-well. If you wanted to, um, see his tomb, I could take you there."
Elpis considers this. Did she want to see it? Frankly, she's surprised Somnus even thought to put up a tomb for his brother, the Accursed. It wouldn't be a tomb befitting a healer or a king, but it would be something.
At length, she nods once and stands. "Let's go."
"Now?"
"Yes, now." Elpis resists the urge to glare once more. It takes too much effort, honestly.
"Ah, um, r-right."
Crescentia leads the way out of the house, where Elpis has been confronted with memories of Ardyn at every turn. She's even slept with some of the clothes he'd left behind. One day, they'll no longer smell like him, and Elpis doesn't know what she'll do when that happens.
They leave the Lower City and head into the forest. A cave soon greets them and Crescentia comes to a sudden stop, Elpis nearly running into her.
Somnus stands before the cave. When he hears them, he turns and his expression tightens. "Crescentia. Elpis."
Elpis cannot look at him without wanting to throw up or punch him or both. She averts her gaze. Somnus approaches Crescentia and pulls her aside. "I thought I told you not to bring her here, ever."
"Som, she needs closure-"
"I understand that-"
"Do you? Because you haven't explained to me why she can't be here."
"It's complicated."
Crescentia crosses her arms over her chest. "Then make it uncomplicated for me, Somnus."
Elpis listens with a vague curiousity. Why does Somnus not want her to see Ardyn's grave? Her need to see it was not great until she hears how fervently he argues against it.
Quietly, Elpis walks past them while they're debating. Even in her bright dress and Ardyn's white robe, she knows how to go unnoticed. At the mouth of the cave, she pauses to call forth light, then stops when nothing happens.
Right, she thinks. My powers are gone. A surprising sense of loss hits her. She never thought she would grow so used to her powers that she would mourn them when they were gone. She will just have to do this the old fashioned way, then, and waits for her eyes to adjust to the darkness inside.
Hand trailing on the cave wall to help her stay upright, Elpis squints until she sees the back of the cave. Then she blinks, and looks again, but what she saw the first time holds true:
The tomb is empty. There's not even a marker to show where his grave should be. When she looks closer, Elpis sees that the dirt is undisturbed. No one has been digging any graves here.
"Elpis!" Somnus' voice makes her turn on her heel, pinning him with her stare.
"Where is it?" she asks, her voice carrying a dangerous note. "Where is his grave? It's not here."
"What?" Crescentia peers past her, then gasps. "It's empty."
Clenching his jaw, Somnus looks away from her. "This is... a fake tombsite. We couldn't risk people coming and desecrating it because of what he... became."
Elpis glares. "You're a worse liar than I am. Where is it?"
"Enough!" Somnus steps away from her, matching her glare with his own. "I would have no reason to lie about this, especially not to you. Now both of you, leave here."
A twinge of pain bursts into being behind her eyes, and Elpis sees the Angelgard prison once more. She rubs her temple, trying to shake the pain off.
I don't understand, she thinks. I don't have my powers any more, so this can't be a vision. Is it?
"Are you well?" Somnus asks, and to his credit, he sounds truly concerned.
Calm falls over her. Elpis stares at the empty tomb and once more feels the strings of fate pulling her in a different direction.
"I'm fine," she says numbly. And then she leaves without another word to either of them.
Aquila gives a halfhearted kweh when she arrives with some seeds. Elpis blinks back tears as she pets his head. "I know," she says quietly as Aquila eats. "I miss him, too. And I'm sorry to ask you to take a journey while you're grieving, but this is important. So please. Take me one last time to the Isle where the gods sat."
She prepares him for a ride and gives him one last encouraging pat after she mounts. Then, with a flick of the reins, they're off.
Elpis had hoped to never see the Isle of Angelgard ever again.
Aquila evidently feels the same, as the poor chocobo throws a tantrum when she tries to bring him closer to the water. Finally giving up, she leaves him with a kindly old woman who coos over his rare coloring. Aquila preens under her attention, causing Elpis to smile for the first time in months.
"You may keep him, if you wish," Elpis tells the woman. "I'll have no need of him after today."
The old woman blinks in surprise. "Are you certain? You seem awfully close."
"We've been through much together," Elpis says. "Which is why he now deserves a good retirement, and to get as fat as he can stand." She presses her face to Aquila's beak one last time and says goodbye.
Whatever she finds at Angelgard-and she still doesn't know what that might be-Elpis intends to leave for the desert afterwards. A part of her wishes she had never left in the first place. The outsider's world has only broken her, in the end.
She haggles with a gentleman about borrowing a boat and soon she's on her way. She has no desire to linger on the beach any longer than she must. She still carries the seashell with her, safe in her purse, though she's not looked at it for months. She does so now, while the gentleman rows her to the Isle.
What will I find at Angelgard, Ardyn? she wonders. Your true grave? Or am I on a wild chocobo chase to nothing?
"Y'know," the man rowing the boat says. Elpis did not catch his name. "Buddy of mine says a few months back-damn, maybe six or so by now-he saw people rowing out to the Isle in the middle of the damn night. He didn't stop 'em or nothing, just watched. Said it was some dark haired guy and some others."
All at once, she's alert. "Really? Did he say anything else?"
"Nah," the man says. "Just that they rowed out there, then a few hours later rowed back. Some of the people were cryin', I think. Never saw neither hide nor hair of 'em myself. I was sleepin' like normal folk do at night."
Elpis puts the shell back into her purse and turns to look at the Isle. Why had Somnus not told her this was where he'd buried Ardyn? And why had he chosen Angelgard, of all places? Was it because of what they'd gone through here?
When they hit the land, Elpis thanks the man and pays him extra to wait for her. Then she begins her search.
A search that winds up with nothing. She can see no gravemarkers or hastily erected tombs. Since the Isle isn't large enough to require an hours long search, for a moment, Elpis is at a loss.
Until the familiar sense of foreboding sinks its teeth into her. Slowly, she turns until she sees the stone prison.
No, she thinks incredulously. The staves are still cold and mundane when she touches one. No magic has been set into them of late. She lingers outside the entrance. It's the last place she's yet to look. And she knows, logically, it makes sense. No one will ever use it for a prison again, so to remake it as a tomb shouldn't fill her with so much dread.
Hesitantly, Elpis steps into the prison. Steps descending down below the ground await her, and she has to waste precious minutes finding a good chunk of driftwood and setting it alight so she doesn't fall and break her neck.
How long she searches in the darkness, she doesn't know. Every now and then she hears the scritching and scattering of feet around her, but when she looks, nothing is there. Finally, after what seems like hours of being lost in the darkness, Elpis comes upon one final door.
Does anyone truly hate him enough to require this much secrecy? Elpis wonders.
And then she hears the breathing. She freezes. It's just an animal, she thinks. She steps forward all the same, torch held high, until she's in the room.
The first thing she sees are chains. They hang from the wall, held taut by something. She follows them down-
-And gives a strangled gasp when she sees Ardyn hanging from them.
"Oh my gods," she stammers. "Ardyn."
He stirs, lifting his head slowly, wincing against the light. "El?"
She drops the torch and runs to him, tripping over stones in her haste. When she reaches him, she grasps his face, stunned to find him warm to the touch. His neck shows no signs of his beheading.
"You're alive," Elpis breathes. Ardyn slowly blinks down at her, incomprehension clear in his amber eyes. She presses a hand to his chest-and stops.
He has no heartbeat.
"El," he says, his voice a hoarse whisper. "You shouldn't be here."
Elpis, too stunned by the silence in his chest, cannot immediately reply. Then she sees a piece of metal sticking out from his ribs. With a sickening lurch, she realizes it's attached to the chains. Each chain ends in a hook, and each chain has been speared through his flesh.
"Who did this to you?" she asks with unconcealed rage.
"It doesn't matter-"
"Like hell it doesn't!" Elpis reaches for the chain that's speared through his palm, only for the metal to burn her hand when she touches it. With a shocked cry, she lets go. The skin on her palm blisters. "What...?"
"The power of the Oracle."
Elpis spins around to see Somnus standing in the doorway. Ardyn lets out a low hiss behind her. Somnus steps inside slowly, his mouth set in a grim line.
"I never wanted you to see this, Elpis." Somnus shakes his head in exasperation. "Gods, why couldn't you have stayed in Solheim? I knew as soon as you left the cave that you would go looking for him."
"You did this?"
"I had to," Somnus says, his blue eyes haunted. "Ardyn... he reappeared in Solheim, after his execution. I had to kill him again. And again, he returned. The Crystal tells me this is his fate now. The Scourge itself is keeping him alive. There's been a new prophecy. The Scourge cannot be banished until the True King wields the light of the Crystal."
Elpis slowly shakes her head. "You're speaking madness."
"I speak truth," Somnus says, his tone defeated. "I am the Founder King, but I am not the True King. I cannot save my brother." He spreads his hands helplessly. "What else am I to do, Elpis? He cannot wander Eos, not as he is. He will bring the Scourge with him wherever he goes. Crescentia has been Chosen by Bahamut to be Oracle now, and she has placed powerful spells on his chains to keep him here until such time as the True King ascends and can save us all."
"The Crystal said this? The same Crystal that deemed your brother corrupted because he saved everyone?" Elpis demands.
Somnus shuts his eyes and looks as if he wish he could sleep for an eternity. "Please, Elpis. See reason."
Ardyn laughs quietly behind her. "He's always wanted me gone," he says. "How fortunate he has his beloved Crystal to choose him and grant him powers."
"Don't start that again," Somnus says.
"Free him," Elpis says. "We cannot leave him like this. There has to be another way."
"There isn't!"
"El," Ardyn says, his voice returning to its normal cadence. "El, please, listen to me. You have to leave. Do as Somnus says. I can feel it, Elpis-don't you understand? I can hear it in my head. It's telling me to kill Somnus. And I want to," Ardyn says, voice cracking. "I want to kill him. I want to turn him into a daemon. I'm not the man you knew."
"No," Elpis says, pulling her stave from her back. "I don't believe you."
Somnus' hand goes to his sword. "Elpis," he pleads. "Please. Listen to Ardyn. Come away from here."
She sees the paths before her so clearly, she does not need a Messenger to tell her they're there. In one path, she does as Ardyn says and leaves him behind forever, condemning him to be chained to the walls of Angelgard until some foretold King comes to kill him for good. She buries the secret deep within her for the rest of her life. She returns to the desert, returns to her family, and tries to live the life of a forsaken Chosen. She will be an aunt to her niece, to however many other children Charis will bear. There will be those who wish for her to marry, to move on, but she never will. She will always be a soul that has been cleaved in half, and the other part of her will always be here in this prison.
The other path ends with Somnus's death. Would Ardyn ever forgive her for it?
"El," Ardyn says in a panic, "no!"
With a yell, Elpis launches herself off the stone platform and charges Somnus. He dodges the swing of her stave and spins away from her, hand reaching down to the ground to fling sand into her face when she turns. Blinded, she can do nothing as Somnus slams into her and knocks her stave from her hand. It clatters to the ground as she's pushed against the wall, Somnus' arm across her shoulders.
"Stop this!" Somnus says.
Beyond them, a low growl shivers through the air. They both look to see that Ardyn is struggling against his chains, his Scourge form revealed once more. Black liquid runs from the wounds in his body and the chains glow as he pulls on them.
"Leave her," Ardyn snarls, his voice a mangled mockery of what it once was. "Don't touch her."
She uses Somnus' distraction to take up a stone she pries loose from the wall. He moves his head out of the way of her strike, the rock hitting his shoulder instead, but it's enough to make him let her go. Elpis kicks him away from her, using the wall as leverage, then runs for her stave, picking it up once more.
Somnus has his sword out, but he holds his free hand out to her. "Stop this, Elpis."
"Free him and I will."
"Free me!" Ardyn roars.
Elpis swings her stave out once more, but instead of aiming for his body, she aims for his wrist. It connects with a crack and Somnus yells as his sword drops. Clutching his wrist, Somnus steps away, leaving an opening for Elpis to rush in and take up his sword.
Yelling, Elpis swings the blade at the chain nearest her. Light explodes from the metal when they connect and she feels herself thrown back, landing on Somnus. Ardyn screams in pain.
The power of the Oracle, Elpis thinks as she gets back to her feet. Somnus grabs her wrist and twists until it pops, the sword falling from her grasp. Elpis scrambles away before he can recover, holding her arm to her chest. She leans against the wall, breathing heavily, hair falling into her eyes.
"Elpis," Ardyn says, still straining against his bindings. His black blood-his Scourge-drips down onto the floor below him with thick plops. He shakes his head with a whine, blinking his eyes rapidly. "No, stop-"
"I can't," Elpis says, "not until you're free."
With that, she pulls a dagger free from her boot and rushes Somnus once again. And yet, she knows she's made a mistake as soon as she engages him once more. Her hand hurts too much, and there's not enough light in the cell, and they're too close, and a dagger against a sword is stupidly laughable.
It's no real surprise when Somnus finds his opening and, ever the warrior only wanting the fighting to stop, takes it without thinking.
It's not a surprise when his blade finds it mark true and runs through her chest.
That doesn't stop it from hurting.
Somnus, horrified, pulls his sword free with a sick squelch. Elpis falls, first to her knees, then to her back, her gaze up on the ceiling. Distantly, she hears Ardyn screaming. With a weak hand, she touches the wound in her chest, noting how much blood is flowing from it. Not just from it, but into her lungs and throat as well.
This was the path she hadn't seen minutes before: The one that ends with her death, not Somnus'.
Ardyn, she thinks as her vision goes hazy, Aurea. Please forgive me. Ardyn. Dearest Ardyn.
Miles away, in a hot desert, Charis pauses in her conversation with her husband. Her mother stills beside her, and as one, they both look to the sky.
And, as one, they both begin to cry.
Somnus, hand to his mouth, steps away from Elpis' body. His sword clangs against the stone as he drops to his knees. Beside him, Ardyn rages, the Miasma flowing around him, dying when it hits the Oracle's light.
Elpis stares up at the ceiling, eyes unseeing in death. Her blood mingles with the sand.
Gods, Somnus thinks. Was this my destiny? Was this all our destinies?
He has never hated fate more.
And that is how my story ends. At least, my physical body's story.
Come, now. You didn't think I would let something like death stop me, did you?
I will not step forth into the beyond without Ardyn. One day, a True King will rise, and Ardyn will be freed from his chains. He will need someone to free him from those chains, though.
A few thousand years should be long enough for me to weaken them so that someone can set him free.
I will see the end of the gods before I pass on. I will see the end of fate.
I will see Ardyn cleansed of the Scourge and, together, we will both find peace at last.
I am only sorry others must suffer for this to happen.
So, here I wait, in Ardyn's prison. I will watch over him always. We will wait in the darkness together for our True King.
I wait for you, Noctis. I wait for you to fulfill the prophecy and reunite me with my husband.
Please forgive me, that I wasn't able to spare you the same heartbreak.
Just a little while longer, Ardyn, my love. The darkness will not hold you forever. You will have your sun again, I swear it.
NOTES: And so we come to the end of the story. Well. Maybe.
I said in the notes for chapter one that Elpis' name held a clue as to who I'd be basing her character. "Maelen" is a version of the Basque name "Maialen" that I played around with until I felt it fit the sound of the other names in Solheim/Eos. Maialen itself is the Basque version of the name "Magdalene." Mary Magdalene, of course, was Jesus' closest disciple, the Apostle to the Apostles. I won't get into whether or not they were married, but for my story, I decided to make Elpis and Ardyn romantically involved to complete the circular feeling of their story. (And also because I'm a big, hopeless, gushy romantic at heart.) Just like some stories say Jesus cast "seven devils" out of Mary Magdalene, Ardyn heals seven people of the Scourge in Elpis' tribe.
Elpis, meanwhile, is the Greek name for "hope". It was the last spirit left in the box that Pandora opened.
As far as the chains Ardyn's imprisoned with go, I figured there had to be some magic involved that kept him there. Otherwise he could have just freed himself and walked away. Therefore, I had the chains magicked. (And no, Crescentia was not aware of Ardyn's true fate. Somnus had her bless the chains in Solheim. Only Somnus, Adeo, and Deus know of Ardyn's true whereabouts.)
However, there is another aspect playing into Ardyn's imprisonment as well. When I first read that he had been crucified and imprisoned, it brought to mind the story of Loki and Sigyn and their Ordeal in the Cave. If you glance at my other fics (or even know me on twitter or tumblr) you know that Loki and, especially Sigyn, are dear to my heart. Thus I drew some inspiration from the Ordeal in terms of Elpis and Ardyn: After Elpis dies, her spirit stays behind in the prison with him, as Sigyn chose to stay with Loki, protecting him and loosening the blessings that keep him chained. When Ardyn is freed, much like Loki, he goes about to fulfill a prophecy and bring about the end of the world, or at the very least, an end to the age of gods.
As for Elpis' death... well. I always intended to kill her from the start of the story, especially given a line Ardyn says to Noctis during the final battle:
"When your beloved died... you lie watching, powerless to stop it!"
Since everything Ardyn says is either projection or has a second meaning entirely, it's pretty much a given that the things he's saying to Noctis hold some weight to him as well. Frankly, even though I toyed around with ideas to see if her death was avoidable, it was pretty much inevitable. There was no way she would leave Ardyn in the prison and, just as Mary Magdalene was the first to find Jesus' tomb empty, once she knew his body wasn't where it was supposed to be, she wouldn't give up until she found it. I also planned for Somnus to be the one to kill her. Not because he's evil, but because I wanted my anti-destiny message to be brutal and make everyone cry.
Now that I've hopefully accomplished that, the playlist for this chapter:
1. Empire by Of Monsters and Men
2. Way Down We Go by Kaleo
3. Kingdom Come by The Civil Wars
4. Thousand Eyes by Of Monsters and Men
While we've come to the end of Elpis' story, there are a few things that still need to be tied up. So I hope I'll see you back here soon. Thanks for sticking with it this far.