Chapter 3
The sky was dark, but the world around Velcia was lit with a gentle blue light. She spun around slowly, looking for any sort of landmark to help her get her bearings, but there was nothing to be seen save for a gentle ethereal glow.
Gradually, a white, shimmering light like a small star could be seen sparkling some distance ahead of her. It was difficult to understand how far away or how large it really was, but something in her heart felt drawn to it.
She approached it with caution and found that it was not far from her at all, and she nearly bumped into it. It floated in the air just higher than her waist, and Velcia could hear a very faint chiming sort of noise. She knelt down to take a closer look at it, and though it was still difficult to focus on she could see that it was not much larger than her thumb. Velcia found herself certain that this small light, whatever it was, was alive in some way; its heart was pure, but weak, and she found herself regarding it with some sense of companionship.
The air around her began to grow heavy and stale and she felt a creeping, ominous breeze blowing directly down all around her, bringing a biting cold with it. As this breeze began to abate, she could sense a powerful darkness forming behind her. She turned around and saw misty clouds of darkness erupting from the ground, with thicker globs of something decidedly more solid within that creaked and groaned as the form within grew higher and higher.
The repugnant forming darkness twirled, spiraled, and wove ever higher and an unmistakable silhouette could be seen towering above Velcia. She flung her hand out beside her, summoning her Keyblade as she watched the developing Darkside rear its head back and open its piercing yellow eyes with a roar.
"Not another one of these," Velcia said as she grit her teeth, holding her Key against her forearm and readying her free hand.
The Darkside almost immediately went on the attack, swinging its arms towards her. Velcia leaped backwards to avoid the wide swipe, then thrust her free hand forward and blew a sharp, chilling gust at the Darkside's craggy hand as it clawed at the ground. Ice crystals began to form across it, and Velcia quickly spun her Keyblade around in her hand and, taking advantage of its power, doubled down on the frigid barrage. Both hand and Key casting together, the ice crystals quickly formed a hard shell over the hand that trapped it against the ground.
The Darkside roared as it tried to pull free of the ice, and Velcia ran up its arm, leaping higher into the air to avoid an agitated swatting by the Darkside's free hand. As she reached the height of her jump, her Keyblade began to glow brightly with a holy light and she slammed her shining blade down upon its head. The Darkside shrieked terribly, bursting into puffs and mists of darkness.
Velcia stepped back slowly, panting softly as she watched the Darkness lose form and wisp away. Soon, a small pile of dark sludge was all that was left, and this appeared to be slowly seeping into the ground. Velcia grimaced at the sight of it, but then startled in surprise at the sound of a sudden, bell-like twinkling sound from behind her. She turned to look and saw the small light from before, bobbing with great difficulty as it floated towards her.
"Oh, is it… are you going somewhere?" she asked as it approached, quickly stepping aside as it floated past.
A sickly, thick popping sound burst out from nearby and Velcia could see the remainder of the dark goop still bubbling on the ground. It seemed as though it were regaining strength, though slowly, and her face twisted in disgust.
She stepped back cautiously, summoning her Keyblade, but stopped when she saw the small light come to a halt just over the dark glop. Her arm faltered, lowering slightly as she watched in confusion. Bits of the darkness started to reach up towards the light like thin tendrils, but as she strengthened her grip on her Keyblade Velcia realized that the Darkness was not reaching towards the light, but the light itself seemed to be pulling at the Darkness.
"No, no, you must stay away from it!" she cried out, stepping forward quickly to try to whisk the light to safety; but as she approached the light let out a weak chime and dropped down into the rancid muck.
Velcia gasped in horror and dropped to her knees, sticking her hands in the dark glop in a desperate attempt to rescue the small light. Her hands, slick now with the thick goo, could discern nothing of value inside the blob. She could still sense the star within, but her efforts to extract it were entirely futile. The once-malleable Darkness began to harden and she immediately removed her hands and began to frantically shake the sludge off as she watched the black pile with watering eyes.
The smooth surface of the goo rippled softly, and a series of bumps started to appear. Velcia leaned closer, hoping that one of these was the light making an attempt to escape. The small bumps on the surface began to stretch out, slowly growing in length before erupting out in the form of a hand that began to grasp wildly at her.
Velcia gasped and with a great kick of her legs leapt back and away from it, in the process launching herself off of her bed and causing her to smash against her bedroom wall. She rubbed her head tenderly as the dark room spun around her. Her heart was pounding and her breath was racing, but as her vision returned she realized that she was back in the trailer in New Crestholm. As her head cleared she stood up cautiously and sat back down on the side of the bed, shaking her head.
"It was only a nightmare… It has been a while since I've had one like that, I suppose it's to be expected when I battle the Heartless right before bed," she said with a sigh, the events of the dream racing through her mind. "That little light… it felt familiar. What could it mean?"
She stood up and came to the window, pulling aside the shade and looking outside. It was blindingly bright outside, but the sun was not anywhere near the horizon — it was nearer to noon. Velcia groaned softly. "I've kept them waiting for so long, I hope they're not mad at me."
Velcia had not had the energy or mindfulness to change her clothes, let alone shower, the previous night, and so the first thing she set herself to was finding the bathroom. Once located, she started the water for the shower and began to carefully remove her armor, clouds of dust falling out of the plating as she did. Her skin was thick with grime from the dust storm, and she winced at the sight of the many bruises across her body. She closed her eyes, holding her palms flat against each other. A green, magical energy began to swirl around them and as she pulled her hands apart she shivered at the sensation of the rejuvenating green mist that fell across her. Her bruises faded quickly, not disappearing entirely but dramatically lightening in color.
She took a quick shower after that, delighted to be free of the dirt coating she'd accumulated. Now feeling refreshed, she turned to her dirty battle dress. She arranged it across the floor carefully, nice and flat, and summoned her Keyblade, and rested the tip of her blade against them. A magic energy swirled out from it, activating a new spell that was infused deep within the garb. The magic energy began to churn and bubble across the entire outfit, dissolving the dirt and dust as it did. Velcia's eyes were wide with delight at the sight of this, and she picked up her tunic to inspect it eagerly.
"The Good Fairies are amazing! Their outfits are enchanted so thoughtfully," she said happily as she began to put the ensemble back on. Once finished, she quickly cleaned up the dust from across the floor and blew it out an open window. Thus satisfied, she finally made her way outside the trailer.
Velcia couldn't help but squint and blink as she adjusted to the bright sun, but found she greatly enjoyed the warmth of the day. With the light, she could now get a good look at the small city she'd stayed the night in. It was not what she expected, the many tall and ruined buildings that dominated the skyline seemed to be striking remnants of a greater city that once stood here. Surrounding her, on the outskirts of these ruins, was the real heart of New Crestholm: A series of smaller, new buildings of hasty construction or temporary nature, with many trailers and fortified tents making up the bulk of the habitations and businesses. This new little city seemed to be growing out from the remains of what came before it.
Despite its small size, the settlement was bustling with people. After bearing witness to the ghostly remains of Hammerhead, Velcia found herself reassured to see that some semblance of normal life seemed to remain in Leide, safely tucked away inside this magic haven where they were protected from both the monsters and the overwhelming storm that rolled across the land.
As she traversed the settlement, a complex medley of scents began to arrive. The first was the smokey scent of burning wood and charcoal, and indeed in several places ahead of her Velcia could see the tell-tale plumes rising into the sky. Tantalizing fragrances soon mixed in, savory meats, sweet buttered vegetables, and the aroma of many different types of bread began to call out for her. Velcia picked up speed and soon found herself walking through a gap between two vans into a large ring of vehicles, trailers, and small shacks; all of which sold food both pre-made or as basic products.
Across the way, past an inconsistent hodge-podge of tables, Velcia's attention was caught by a brightly colored van with what appeared to be a vividly green bird-like man painted on the side. She tilted her head towards it curiously for a moment, reading the proud font that identified the establishment as 'Crow-2-Go'. She took another look at the grinning visage of the mascot, and wondered now if this creature was instead a very man-like bird.
Regardless of the Crow's true nature, she could see that in front of this van were the very people she was searching for, and Velcia walked over quickly, calling out as she approached. "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting!"
The group turned towards her, and much to her relief they all seemed to be in a good mood and not at all put out by waiting for her.
A cheeky smirk came over Noctis' face. "Hey, you're finally awake."
"You're one to talk!" Gladiolus said, nudging him with his shoulder.
"Glass houses, Noct," Ignis said, nodding in agreement.
Noctis rolled his eyes. "Alright, fine, I get it."
Despite herself, Velcia couldn't help but giggle. "I hope that you all rested well."
"I sure did!" Prompto said enthusiastically. "And now I get some of Kenny's Fries for lunch! Best day ever!"
Ignis shook his head solemnly. "As much as I like Kenny's, I am still hopeful that we will be able to restock our supplies soon."
"Ah c'mon Iggy, greasy food isn't bad once in a while," Prompto told him.
"Once in a while, perhaps, but three days straight is a bit much," Ignis retorted.
"Nothing to be done about the supply lines until that Adamantoise is taken out," Gladiolus reminded them. "Either that or we need to find a way around the blockade."
Velcia had listened intently. "It sounds like quite a bit has changed since I was last here."
Noctis, now leaning against the side of the van, spoke up. "Yeah, these Heartless guys showed up a few weeks after you all left. Everything kinda went to hell after that."
"I'm so sorry to hear that, we had no idea until just a couple days ago!" Velcia told him sadly.
The man working inside the van called out in a bit of a nasally voice. "Hey guys, your food's ready!"
Prompto ran over to the window quickly, and Gladiolus shook his head. "We'll talk more about all that after we eat."
"Do you have any Gil to purchase some food?" Ignis asked Velcia, already pulling his wallet out from his pocket expectantly.
She shook her head. "No, I don't. I believe Hinata kept what Gil we had after our last visit here."
Ignis looked over towards the menu. "In that case, we would be more than happy to help cover your costs in the meantime," He said, motioning first towards Crow-2-Go, then sweeping his hand out more generally. "If anything here suits you."
Velcia bowed softly. "Thank you, I'll be happy with anything. I'm not particular."
"The rest of us are having a plate of the fries," Ignis told her, leaning in close and whispering "Though I am loath to admit it to Prompto, I do have a soft spot for them."
Velcia chuckled. "Very well then, I would love to try some as well."
Ignis ordered an extra plate of Kenny's Fries for Velcia. It wasn't a particularly long wait, but even still the rest of the group had just about finished with their own food by the time Velcia and Ignis made it to the table.
Prompto was quite energetic, and could not keep himself from speaking up quickly. "It's awesome to have you back. We haven't been able to message Hinata or anyone for a long time now, how'd all that stuff turn out? Did learning our magic help?"
His enthusiasm was infectious, and Velcia couldn't help but chuckle as she set down her small tray. "It did. I suppose there is quite a bit to catch you up on, but perhaps it would be better to tell you another time. It is quite a long story."
"Oh! Well, as long as it worked out I guess." he said, bobbing his head for a moment, then stopping abruptly. "So, all those new Daemons running around have actually been Heartless, huh? I wonder how they got here."
Gladio bumped him roughly with his shoulder. "She hasn't eaten yet, give her some time."
Velcia shook her head. "It's alright, I have been eager to talk with you all about it. We got a letter asking for help dealing with the Heartless."
"A letter? From who?" Noctis asked suspiciously, leaning forward on his elbows. "And we've had the Heartless running around for over a year, why now?"
Velcia reached down to her satchel and began opening it. "I'm not sure who sent it, they seemed to make a point to avoid specifying, really. But, from the sound of it, it seems that if the Heartless are not taken care of soon, all of Eos may fall."
The four boys straightened up a bit, looking around at each other trepidatiously. Gladiolus spoke up first, the dismissive tone in his voice feeling uncertain. "I know there's a lot of them, but I don't think they're in a spot yet where they could destroy the whole planet."
Velcia held out the letter for them, which Ignis took. Velcia sat quietly as Ignis read the letter out loud, noting several wordless glances being exchanged between them as he did.
"I think we can take a safe guess who sent that," Noctis said grimly, once Ignis had finished.
"It has Ardyn's stink all over it," Gladiolus agreed gruffly.
"Wait wait, since when was Ardyn in an alliance with one of the Astrals?" Prompto questioned.
"Don't know, but if any of that is true he must have found a way," Noctis replied.
"Hey, do you think he might be lying about that stuff? Maybe he's just trying to cause more trouble," Prompto said.
"We'll have to figure that out. What's this other stuff about Keyblades and Hearts, Velcia?" Gladiolus asked.
Velcia closed her eyes as she thought of how to explain it. "I don't entirely understand it myself yet, but the heart of a world is the source of energy for everything that exists there. When a world is tainted by Darkness, it can take hold of the hearts of both people and beasts when they die and form a Heartless. These Heartless seek to spread Darkness and grow more powerful, and one of the ways they do this is by finding the Heart of the World and devouring it. Once they do, the entire world falls to Darkness and crumbles away."
Gladiolus shook his head. "So monsters that die can turn into more Heartless? That sounds like a point towards your theory, Iggy," Gladiolus said grimly.
"Unsurprising, though not reassuring," Ignis replied. He caught the inquisitive look on Velcia's face, and explained promptly. "Since their arrival, the people of Eos have assumed these Heartless were a new breed of Daemon. I have been skeptical of this and theorized that they are something else entirely, as they seem to have many fundamental differences; but our understanding of them has been muddied by an apparent link between the two.
"As we've battled the Daemons over the last year, I've taken notice of the trend that the more Daemons we defeat in an area, the more of what we now know to be Heartless appear nearby. From what you've explained, it sounds like defeated Daemons may be reincarnating as Heartless."
"Might explain what's caused the trouble with the Adamantoise, too," Noctis posited.
Ignis closed his eyes, rubbing his chin as he thought. "Indeed. The dramatic shift in the behavior and abilities of the Adamantoise do seem to make a disturbing amount of sense, if we were to assume it's become a Heartless."
"Adamantoise?" Velcia asked curiously.
"It's a freaking huge mountain turtle. You saw what happened to Hammerhead, right? Adamantoise!" Prompto told her.
Ignis reached out, tapping a finger against the rough wooden table. "It's been primarily confined to the Leide Region, kept in check by the mountain ranges that seem too extreme for it to travel across. For the last eight months it's been wandering and destroying towns and settlements."
"It's also swarming with those Heartless guys," Prompto told her. "Even if we could get close again, it wouldn't do any good."
Velcia nodded. "It must be searching for the heart of the world. If the person who wrote the letter thinks the world is close to falling, I wonder if that means the Adamantoise is on the right track?"
"Could be. Could be Ardyn's just screwing with us, again," Noctis said with a conflicted sigh.
"Who is Ardyn? Would he really go through all that trouble?" Velcia asked.
Noctis scowled. "A bit of a pain in our ass, is who. We're still not really sure who he is or what he wants, other than that he knows a lot more than he should and he's involved with the Nifs in some way. He always pretends he's trying to help us, but whenever he shows up it's bad news."
"Whether he's being helpful or antagonistic seems up to whatever mood he wakes up in," Gladiolus said, crossing his arms with an annoyed groan. "He's not to be trusted."
Noctis sighed. "So what do you make of this, Ignis?"
"I admit I am skeptical about the possibility that Bahamut might intervene, but given how little we understand of the Astrals and the apparently very real existential threat that the Heartless pose to our world, it is not outside the realm of possibility. Given the circumstances, I don't believe we can afford to ignore the potential dangers," Ignis told him.
"Besides, we've been trying to figure out how to get rid of these Heartless anyways," Prompto told them. "We've been kept so busy by those guys, we haven't been able to stop the Nifs from just taking more and more territory."
"Yeah, actually, how are we supposed to make progress against these Heartless, anyway?" Noctis asked, turning to Velcia. "No matter how many we destroy, they always come right back."
Velcia nodded softly. "Yes, you need the power of a Keyblade to vanquish a Heartless for good. That's why they sent me."
"They?" Gladiolus asked with a raised eyebrow.
"My mentors, Keyblade Masters Yen Sid and Aqua. I've only come to have the power of a Keyblade recently, but they believed our best chances of avoiding the destruction of Eos depended on me being able to work with you four," Velcia told them.
"As if one war in Lucis wasn't bad enough," Gladiolus commented wryly. "Who are these Keyblade Masters, anyway? What stake do they have in what happens to Eos?"
"W-well, none, I suppose. We use our Keyblades to try to defend worlds from the Heartless so that they don't fall into darkness. There's not really anything in it for us," Velcia said.
"Last time you were here it was because your friend needed to learn more about our powers so she could stop some crazy chick. She was looking for something then," Gladiolus pointed out.
Velcia nodded. "Yes… that was under different circumstances. Neither of us was a Keyblade wielder then, but ultimately stopping Thaanix was important to helping prevent, or at least slow, the spread of darkness."
"It spread here just fine after that," Gladiolus said.
Velcia's cheeks paled as she sat up a little straighter. "I… I don't think…"
"Hey, it's not their fault, Gladi," Prompto intervened. "If this happens to so many other worlds, it was probably only a matter of time."
Gladiolus leaned back a little, crossing his arms once more. "Yeah, probably."
Velcia looked down at the wooden table, taking sad notice of her neglected fries. "Um, anyway, now that I do have a Keyblade, the powers it holds to vanquish the Heartless should be shared with anyone who battles alongside me. So if we can work together, I believe we will be able to make very effective progress against them."
Noctis nodded thoughtfully, glancing over towards the others and gleaning their opinions from their expressions. "Sounds good to me. We're pretty much out of other options."
Velcia took a deep breath. "If we can destroy enough of the more powerful Heartless, I should be able to locate the keyhole that protects the heart of your world. If we do that, then I can use my Keyblade to lock it up and reinforce it. It won't get rid of the Heartless entirely, but it should make it impossible for them to destroy Eos. Master Aqua says that after this, the remaining Heartless will often lose interest and leave of their own accord."
"If that is the case, then I propose we work towards dealing with the Adamantoise first," Ignis said thoughtfully.
"I'm not sure how we'd even get close to it," Noctis said.
"Not without an airship of some kind," Gladiolus said. "Too bad the one we stole from the Nifs before got destroyed."
Ignis nodded thoughtfully, hand on his chin. "And then we also need to find some sort of protection against the toxic clouds that now envelop it."
"Toxic clouds?" Velcia asked.
"To their credit, the Niflheim Army has worked diligently to try to stop the Adamantoise," Ignis started adjusting his glasses. "They did launch an offensive against it, but as soon as their attacks pierced the shell a toxic gas began to spew forth. The land underneath the Adamantoise is now impossible to traverse due to the massive dust storm and armies of Heartless that travel with it, and approach from the air is blocked by these clouds of toxic gas."
"Yeah, not to mention the fact that it's crawling with Heartless," Noctis added. "We've mostly been focused on trying to help people get away from it, then the Nifs went and built blockades preventing any travel out of Leide."
Velcia shook her head sadly. "I'm so sorry nobody came to help sooner. We might never have known if it weren't for that letter."
Ignis pushed his glasses back up. "You're here now. Let's finish our lunch, and work on the specifics of finding a path forward after that."
Prompto jumped up. "Hey wait a minute, wasn't Cindy having us collect parts off junked Magitek engines? Think she could build one for us?"
"Worth a try," Noctis said. "How about we go check with Cindy while these two eat, see what she has to say."
Velcia nodded sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I'll try to be quick."
"There is no need to rush yourself," Ignis told her as he dipped a pair of fries into the small cup of sauce. "Prompto and Cindy are not known for brief conversations."
Velcia nodded, but still dove into her food quickly. Even though the fries had mostly cooled off by this point, Velcia found them to be quite delicious and when she did eventually try the sauce she found that it complemented the fries nicely.
"That was very good!" Velcia said happily as she wiped her hands off on a small napkin.
Ignis nodded. "It is simple, but effective. I've come up with a similar sauce that I use with other recipes as well, if you'd like to try it some time."
"Oh, that would be great! I'd love to see what else can be made with this sort of taste," she told him.
"Quite a few things, in fact. I don't have all the ingredients to make it precisely the way I prefer, but I should be able to put together something adequate once we are able to restock," he explained as they stood up.
As they started to move, Velcia heard the faint sound of a roaring Darkside out in the distance, and quickly spun around to look for it. Ignis turned towards her, his eyebrow raised questioningly.
"Is something the matter?" he asked, seeing her eyes locked hawkishly on the horizon as she struggled to see past the buildings that blocked her sightlines.
"The Darksides… can you hear them?" Velcia asked quietly. "It sounds like there are many of them. I hope they aren't headed this way."
"Ah, the tall Heartless? I understand your concern, but I do not believe there is any cause for alarm. We will likely need to deal with them soon, but they are not currently a threat to New Crestholm," he explained, but, noting the look of concern still on her face, he continued. "There have been quite a number of them in the valley that runs between New Crestholm and Viewbliss for several months now, and more occasionally seem to migrate down here chasing after travelers or Niflheim troops. However, we have never once observed any Heartless or Daemon so much as acknowledge the presence of anything inside a magic haven such as we currently reside in."
Velcia's shoulders loosened, a look of relief coming across her face. "So… everyone here is safe for now, then. How curious that neither type of creature of Darkness would try to attack such a powerful source of light."
"It is a blessing we do not fully understand, but it does seem that these havens are in essence a total blindspot for their senses. We have seen Daemons path around such barriers, but no differently so than a wild animal may try to avoid a deep pit," Ignis said.
After taking one final look between the buildings, Velcia finally allowed herself to set her worry aside fully. "That is quite a wonderful blessing to have available to you."
Ignis simply nodded in agreement, and the two began to make their way towards one of the ruined buildings near the edge of the old city. It was a tall structure, though not so tall now as it once was; the top two-thirds of it now shattered and strewn across the ground. At the base of the tower there were several gently-descending ramps that led to rolling gates which blocked off access to the old parking garage that lay beneath the building.
Once it was clear that this derelict structure was their destination, Velcia stood still and looked up at it with no small degree of hesitation. "Is this really where we are meant to go?" she asked, eyes now following the spray of rubble and chunks of concrete and rebar that were strewn around them.
"Indeed. Though the tower has been mostly destroyed, the foundation stands firm. Cindy's new shop is in the space that used to serve as the underground parking garage, and it is quite safe. You need not be concerned about the building's structural integrity," he assured her.
Velcia nodded, and began to follow him down a ramp to a smaller door on the side of the rolling gate. "Do you believe Cindy will be able to build a machine that can help us?"
"If anyone can, it would be either her or her grandfather. Though, if experience has taught me anything, she'll likely be sending us on errands to gather parts for her soon enough," Ignis chuckled knowingly.
He opened the door, and as they stepped inside they could hear the chatter of their friends quite clearly. Cindy's voice was the loudest of all, and she sounded greatly amused.
"Well, I just dun think that's possible, Prompto!" she said surely.
"Aww, man!" Prompto sighed dejectedly.
Ignis pushed his lenses up, mouth twisting in disappointment. "Ah, bad news for our request then, I take it?"
Cindy and the boys turned to see them, Cindy waving happily. "Well howdy! Glad you dropped by, Iggy. And it's right good t' see you again as well, Miss Velcia!"
Velcia smiled warmly and waved back. "Hello! It has been a while."
"Sure has. Now, Ignis, I think I may be able to help out with what y'all need to go take a crack at that Adamantoise, so you don't gotta worry a thing about that. Prompto here was just moaning about some other hare-brain idea he had," Cindy said with a laugh.
Prompto took a dramatic step back in feigned shock. "Hare-brained?! Chocobo are birds you know!"
"E'eryone knows that, Prompto, but it don't mean I can build a contraption that'll let 'em fly!" Cindy said, tapping her foot.
Prompto groaned sadly. "Someday, guys, someday."
Noctis shook his head with a faint smirk, then spoke up. "So what sort of parts do you need us to pick up for you, Cindy?"
Velcia glanced wordlessly over to Ignis, who gave her a knowing nod.
Cindy's smile grew ever wider. "Well! Y'all are just right used to the way this works by now, ain'tcha? Y'already gathered most of what I need from the wreckage of those other Magitek engines already, only thing is most of 'em parts won't work without a proper Magitek power core."
"That… may be a problem," Ignis said.
"Yeah, those have always been busted every time we try to salvage one of those wrecks," Gladiolus said. "They probably have some sort of self-destruct to keep people just like us from takin' 'em."
"Well you ain't gettin' anywhere without one," Cindy said, shaking her head. "You may have better luck if you could harvest one from a Magitek Engine that ain't been blown to kingdom come."
"It'll be tricky to assault one of those things in the air," Noctis said thoughtfully. "We could try to force our way in and take it over while it's dropping troops."
Gladiolus shook his head. "If you haven't forgotten, Noct, last time we tried to do that they initiated the auto-destruct remotely, with us still inside."
"I thought that was just your excuse for your terrible piloting," Noctis teased.
"Very funny, Noct," Gladiolus retorted, in a tone that conveyed that it was not, in fact, funny.
Ignis spoke up. "Magitek Airships touch down at Viewbliss quite regularly. I'd expect they should have the supplies there to perform maintenance on their craft. Perhaps we could find a working power core there."
"You want to try to bust our way into a fortified Nif outpost on the off chance they'll have a free power core?" Gladiolus asked with a raised eyebrow. "You know how much they've beefed up their security."
"Perhaps infiltration would work better than outright assault," Ignis mused, shaking his head decidedly. "If just one or two of us could sneak inside, the others could cause a distraction out front to keep their attention looking outwards."
Noctis nodded slowly. "Yeah, I think that should work."
"Not a bad plan, Iggy," Gladiolus said with a nod of approval. "So who do we send inside?"
"Noct's Warp Strike gives him an excellent mode of stealth, and should make it quite easy for him to escape if discovered. Who do you think should accompany you, Noct?" Ignis asked.
"Whoever can keep quiet and tell me which part it is we're looking for," Noctis said with a shrug.
Cindy spoke up. "I don't reckon it should be too hard to identify them. They're usually kept in places that are easy to access fer maintenance, and seem like they're hooked up to just about every dern thing inside. What with being Magitek, they use a might powerful magic energy to power the whole machine. Heck, even the ol' broken cores I got layin' around are filthy with it, just not enough to be useful."
Velcia perked up, and stepped forward with her hands held eagerly before her. "Magic? I should be able to help with that. May I see one of the broken ones?"
"Sure thing, jus' gimme a sec," Cindy said, running off to go look for one. Velcia watched her go, noting now that the room they were currently in was one of many smaller spaces that had been created in the enormous garage. Cindy and her grandfather Cid had built many walls between the thick pillars supporting the remains of the structure above, and these divisions served to help organize the space. Velcia could only just see over the tops of these brick-built dividing walls, but saw now that the total space must be vastly more enormous than she could see from her current room. There were several doors and openings nearby, leading to any number of places that Velcia could only assume were filled with more machines and parts.
As she pondered this, the boys turned towards each other in a small circle, Ignis speaking up first. "So, Noctis and Velcia sneak inside the outpost and search for a power core, and the three of us draw their attention outside?"
Noctis nodded. "Fine with me. Vel, do you remember how to Warp Strike?"
Velcia's mouth scrunched into an embarrassed grin as she turned towards them. "I do remember many of the basics, but I admit I haven't practiced it. My accuracy with my throws is… well, it's simply terrible," she admitted.
"Well, you picked it all up pretty quick last time you were here. Guess we'll just have to practice a bit to get you up to speed," Noctis said, shaking his head.
With heavy, plodding steps, Cindy returned holding a large but broken device that was nearly the size of her torso. She dropped it suddenly on the table with a heavy thud, and Velcia found herself quite impressed at how easily a girl as slender as Cindy had managed to carry such a heavy component.
Cindy rubbed her hands together, wiping away small clouds of rusty-looking dust. "Well, there she is. You find one of these that actually works, I think I can get a flyin' machine built for y'all."
The device radiated with the weak remnants of whatever magic it had held before, and Velcia stepped forward towards it and gingerly pressed her fingertips against the rusted metal shroud. A dark, chilling sensation rushed through her fingers and sent shivers across her body. The power core was unmistakably a source of dark magic, but not a type she found herself familiar with.
"The magic that remains in this is weak, but it feels very unique. If there are devices that have this sort of magic in a much higher concentration, I don't think I will have too difficult of a time sensing them once we get close," Velcia said, retracting her fingers and rubbing her hands together to warm them.
Gladiolus bobbed his head approvingly. "Great, that settles that then. Now we just have to deal with those monsters between us and Viewbliss."
Noctis winced. "Right, almost forgot about those guys."
"Might I suggest we make taking care of the Heartless our priority for this afternoon, and save the excursion to Viewbliss for tomorrow," Ignis recommended, to a hearty approval from the others.
Gladiolus turned to Velcia. "You said you have a weapon of some sort that can destroy these Heartless guys for good, right? Maybe we can actually get rid of them now instead of just driving them off for a bit."
Velcia backed up a step, holding her hand out and summoning her Keyblade. As they all looked at it, she explained. "Yes, the magic in my Keyblade is exactly what you need to destroy a Heartless for good, and from what my Masters taught me, the connections in our hearts should share that power with all of you when we fight together."
"Ah, that's so cool!" Prompto said, bobbing up and down as he inspected the Keyblade.
"Guess that's why you decided to take on seven of those guys last night, huh?" Noctis asked.
"I… I didn't know how many there were," Velcia said with a sigh. "After I fought off the pair attacking Viewbliss, I assumed the group outside New Crestholm was trying to destroy this place as well. It was too dark to see how many there were, but I didn't think it would be an option to simply bypass them."
Prompto's eyes widened. "Woah, you fought two other big guys before you got here?"
"Yes, there were quite a lot of monsters attacking the wall at Viewbliss. Two Darksides, a large Daemon, and many, many smaller beasts as well. I did my best to help destroy the larger threats, but once they were gone the defenders on Viewbliss turned their guns on me," Velcia said sadly, shaking her head in confusion.
"Ingrateful bastards," Gladiolus said gruffly.
"And yet, so very true to form for them," Ignis commented.
Velcia bowed softly towards Noctis. "I was very thankful you arrived when you did, I was quite exhausted from my travels and my magic was wearing thin."
"Those big pillars of light are what you fall back on when you're almost out of power?" Noctis asked, a hint of surprise in his voice. "No wonder you just dove right in."
"That… no, I had to use a potion to recover enough energy for that. I was hoping it would be enough to finish the fight in one final push but, as you saw, it was not," Velcia explained.
"Well, the five of us working together should be able to provide an effective front against them," Ignis said, turning back towards Cindy now, who was listening in amazement. "Thank you for offering your assistance with our latest endeavor. With any luck, we should be able to provide a power core shortly."
"Are you kiddin'? I've been gettin' more and more excited about puttin' one of these kinda machines together for months now. If y'all can get me a Magitek core to power one, I'll even pilot it for ya," Cindy said with an enthusiastic bounce.
Noctis flapped a hand towards her dismissively. "Let's figure out who has to pilot it once it actually exists."
"Fair 'nuff!" Cindy said.
"Well Noct, you ready to go scope out our hunt for the day?" Gladiolus asked with an excited smirk.
"Yeah, it'll be… fun," Noctis replied, leading the way towards the exit.
Cindy waved. "Y'all take care now!"
"See ya Cindy!" Prompto shouted back.
"Thank you for your help!" Velcia replied, with a small wave goodbye.
The group stepped out into the sunlight, each of them taking in the warm air as they did.
Prompto took one last look down at the garage as the door swung shut, sighing deeply before turning back towards his friends. "So Gladio, what are we hunting today?"
"Someone wasn't paying attention," Noctis chuckled with a smirk.
"Oh, he was paying attention to something," Gladiolus said, bumping Prompto with his shoulder.
Prompto's face reddened slightly. "Y-yeah, thinking about all the great photo ops we've got coming up! Come on, let's go take care of this hunt so Iggy can cook it up for us!"
Ignis shook his head, a wry smile across his face as the others snickered quietly. Prompto, too engrossed in his own thoughts, ran far ahead of them so as to make sure the topic was dropped. Velcia couldn't help but chuckle at this, and Ignis leaned sideways towards her. "I am quite tempted to play with this particular misunderstanding later," he told her quietly.
Velcia, lips pursed in amused anticipation, nodded in agreement.
After some stocking and preparation, the group made their way right up to the edge of the magic field that protected New Crestholm. Out in the distance a ruined structure could be seen, once a temporary checkpoint set up by the Niflheim Empire around the time they began to lay siege to the great city of Insomnia. Now there was very little left of this set of structures, and what remained was becoming further destroyed by the five Darksides who milled about aimlessly.
Velcia looked thoughtfully at the ruined checkpoint for a few moments. "I can't help but feel I've seen this place before," she said out loud.
Noctis came up beside her, crossing his arms. "That's where we first saw you and Hinata," he said.
"Oh!" Velcia exclaimed, her eyes widening as she looked back down at it. "Oh, yes, I remember now… That was when Hinata was shot, and Prompto and Ignis brought us to Hammerhead."
Gladiolus chuckled. "Heh. Forgot about that."
"Man, I didn't," Prompto said, waving his hands excitedly. "It was the day I learned aliens are real!"
"Something like that," Ignis said, shaking his head. "Now, to the task at hand…"
Gladiolus squinted as he surveyed the crowd of Heartless ahead, watching the Shadows clamber over and around what was left of the buildings. "I only see five of the big guys, but there's a lot of those little ones."
Prompto inspected his guns, glanced over at them. "You think we can take out all five of those guys?"
"Without having to worry about Daemons this should be our best chance," Ignis said surely, pulling his gloves more tightly onto his hands.
"Don't forget there's five of us, too," Gladiolus reminded him as he hefted the flat of his large sword onto his shoulder.
"How should we handle this one, Iggy?" Noctis asked.
"I suggest we refer to Miss Velcia's expertise, for starters. She's managed to destroy several of these monsters on her own," Ignis said, casting a curious sideways glance to her.
Velcia fell into a momentary, uncomfortable silence as the four turned towards her expectantly, but she cleared her throat and began. "Well, their arm attacks are powerful but quite slow. If you can goad them into swinging at the ground you should be able to get a quick counter-attack. Master Aqua taught me that, if you are nimble enough, it is possible to attack their wrists. This is something of a weak point for them, and often leads to knocking them off-balance or stunning them."
"Oh, she's good!" Prompto said, bouncing from one foot to the other in eager anticipation. "What else?"
"The other thing to keep in mind is that if you stay too far away, they may drop to their knees to fire balls of dark magic at you. These are very strong as well, but if you can close the gap quickly enough to attack them directly before they get the chance to stand back up, you can catch them off-guard with little they can do to fight back for a few moments," Velcia explained.
"Noct shouldn't have any problems closing gaps," Gladiolus said with a smirk. "I almost feel sorry for these guys."
Ignis pushed his glasses up, nodding surely. "Right. Noct, you and I ought to use some Elemancy potions to control the crowds of smaller monsters. Prompto, Gladio, you two focus primarily on the monsters closest to the Darksides to make room for Noct and Velcia to focus on attacking their weak points. I'll assist both groups as required."
Velcia nodded, feeling very impressed by his quick planning. "If I may," she asked quickly, "What are your Elemancy potions?"
"Noct is able to condense vast amounts of elemental magic into a vial, that we are able to release as we wish. These are not precise attacks such as you use, but rather leave a lingering, overwhelming energy over a large area," Ignis told her.
"It looks scary, but don't worry about staying away from it," Prompto chimed in. "Noct's figured out a way to make sure the magic doesn't affect us. She should be safe too, right Noct?"
Noctis looked over at Velcia, shaking his finger with a thoughtful look. "Right, good call Prompt. Hold on a second, Vel," he said, snapping his fingers. In a puff of blue mist, a small charm appeared in his hand which he promptly offered to her. "Here, keep this on you. It'll keep you safe from our magic."
Velcia took the charm graciously and bowed. "Thank you," she said. The magic in the charm felt subtle and passive, but quite familiar to her. She was becoming quite accustomed now with the sensations of Lucian enchantments.
Readying their weapons, the group stepped outside the magical barrier of the Haven and began to make their way down the road towards the remnants of the old blockade. The Heartless paid no notice at first, but began to sense them as they approached and turned attentively towards them, with a growing chorus of screeches.
The Darksides slowly turned towards them as the smaller Heartless began to make a mad dash for them. Noctis and Ignis stepped decisively into the forefront, each throwing a glass vial ahead of the incoming crowds. A deafening crack of thunder broke out as the vials exploded in a blinding flare, and suddenly the ground ahead of them was engulfed in a sea of flames. Bolts of lightning danced along the ground, arcing up into the air and raining down on the Heartless nearby.
Gladiolus raised his large blade and, unperturbed, stepped into the flames and made his way towards the more resilient Heartless to begin hacking them to pieces. Velcia watched uneasily as the others pressed on through the magical maelstrom, but took a deep breath and followed along.
Though surrounded by walls of fire, Velcia found she could hardly even feel the heat. An encouraged grin broke across her face, and she raced ahead to join in on the assault.
Noctis threw his sword ahead, teleporting to it in a Warp Strike attack on one of the Darkside's knees. The beast roared and stepped back to try to smash him with its foot, but in a series of streaking blurs the King of Lucis had already found new prey elsewhere.
With a quick burst of wind magic, Velcia launched herself into the sky towards the nearest Darkside, pelting it with pearls of light. Another quick burst of magic softened her fall, and she quickly jumped aside as the Darkside's hand tried to slam down on her. She dropped low and slid past the arm, and began to slash at the beast's wrist with her Keyblade.
The monster began to stumble down, and Ignis called out. "Gladio, the legs!"
Gladiolus, who'd been swinging at some Shadow Heartless nearby, dashed over and took a wide, heavy swing and the back of the Darkside's ankles. The great beast bellowed as it lost its footing and crashed down onto its knees, propping itself up with its left hand. A deep, hissing rumble came from the beast as it seethed in rage.
"Well well, look who's in range!" Prompto called out, unleashing a barrage from his guns at the fallen Darkside's face. Velcia quickly found her footing beside him, joining in the attack with streams of lightning from the tip of her Keyblade. The struggling Darkside cried out with a furious roar as it was torn apart and burnt, and exploded into a burst of dark mist.
The other Darksides took notice, two of them now turning angrily towards Noctis who was trying to clear out some of the smaller Heartless around him. One of them took a wide swing at Noctis, which he caught just in time to leap over it; but as he was in the air he saw the other Darkside's arm coming down right on top of him.
With an annoyed grunt, Noctis threw his blade forward as hard as he could. It flew through the heart-shaped hole in the Darkside's abdomen with a shriek, and just in time Noctis warped out of harm's way, grabbing the blade with a spin as he reappeared behind the Darkside. As he fell towards the ground he threw the blade once again, this time lodging it in the back of the Darkside's head. He warped to his blade, taking it out and slashing at the beast before quickly warping back to the ground.
The smaller Heartless on the ground had been eagerly awaiting his return, and his sharp eyes took stock of them. "Ignis, control!" he shouted.
From where he stood, Ignis could not see directly where Noctis was, but heaved an Elemancy potion high into the air. Noctis saw it, and with a deft throw of his blade warped up beside the flying vial, sending it crashing down into the ground with a quick spin kick. Another great sea of fire flashed out across the earth, incinerating the group of Heartless and buying some new breathing room.
Two other Darksides had taken a position more removed from the fray, resting on their knees and firing dark orbs from behind another faction of smaller Heartless. Gladiolus, who was blocking these attacks with his shield, called out to Ignis. "Noct's tied up, who else can get the guys launching these?"
In a flurry of swings, Ignis skewered through a Shadow Heartless with his lance before quickly assessing the situation. "Prompto, clear a path for Velcia!"
Prompto nodded excitedly, a cocky grin on his face. He flicked open the chambers on his guns, quick-loading a special ammunition as he whistled a short but distinct tune. He fired, the bullets piercing down a row of Heartless with a powerful gust of wind and knocking down several others. Velcia immediately took advantage of the opening and dashed through towards the nearest Darkside. As she came close she spun around, once again launching herself into the air with a burst of wind magic. As she neared the apex of her jump, she raised her Keyblade high and it began to glow with a powerful magic. Lightning crashed down from the sky, stunning the Darkside. Velcia landed, and swung her glowing Keyblade in an uppercut motion as a powerful beam of light erupted from the ground underneath the large beast.
The Darkside let out a primal roar as it disintegrated in the blast. Velcia, exhausted, dropped down to one knee, propping herself up on her Keyblade as she panted and struggled to stand back up.
The other Darkside, which was not at all pleased at what it had seen, turned towards her and began to prepare to stomp her while she was incapacitated.
Velcia looked up and saw the raised foot, a flicker of worry across her face as she fought to stand back up. There was a sudden, metallic thunk from the ground beside her, and in a flash Noctis appeared and grabbed her hand, pulling her up to her feet quickly. "Well, don't stick around!"
Noctis pulled her quickly aside, the two just barely avoiding the incoming stomp. "Come on, use the Warp Strike to get out of here!" Noctis said.
Velcia nodded, and they both threw their blades into the distance with reckless abandon. With the Darkside's foot once again descending upon them, anywhere else was preferable to their current location.
True to Velcia's word, her throw was quite poor and once she warped to her Keyblade she found herself stumbling into a small group of Shadows, who were quite eager to make a meal out of her mistake. She grit her teeth and readied her blade, but a quick series of blue streaks criss-crossed through the horde as Noctis quickly dispatched them before moving on elsewhere.
Velcia stood up, catching her breath as Gladiolus mowed through a group of Heartless and made his way to her.
"You alright?" he asked.
"I am," she replied. "Just a bit winded from casting so many heavy spells."
"Don't overdo it," Gladiolus warned her. "There are five of us and we're making good progress, remember to pace yourself."
Velcia nodded, taking a deep breath as she watched Gladiolus return to the fray. A quick moment's meditation brought a refreshing renewal to her, and looking out at the battle she noticed that the Darkside she'd only just escaped was now focusing on Ignis. Though he was quite effectively stepping aside from its attacks, he was having some difficulty making an effective counter-offensive of his own.
The Darkside slammed a hand down towards Ignis, and as it crashed futilely into the earth Velcia arrived to support him. "I'm here to help!" she said.
Ignis nodded. "Perfect. Let's take decisive advantage of this opportunity, then," he said, another Elemancy vial appearing in his hand in a burst of blue mist. Wasting no time, he threw this at the Darkside's grounded hand; and with a deafening crack a wave of sub-zero frost rolled out from it. The Darkside's arm was frozen in place from its hand up nearly to its shoulder, and it let out a furious shout as it struggled to break free.
Velcia spun her Keyblade around in her hand, pointing it towards the Darkside before releasing a beam of Light magic upon it. The beast howled again, the lingering frost of the Elemancy potion creeping into the gashes and bursting into ice crystals, sending exploding chunks of darkness flying from the enraged beast. It gave one last extraordinary tug to free itself, the frozen arm ripping from its body with a sickening sound.
Velcia and Ignis stepped back as they watched the obstinate Darkside rear its head, but before anyone could determine their next move a blue blur of magic shot overhead with a shriek, and Noctis appeared with his sword embedded hilt-deep in the Darkside's face. The beast gurgled as it stumbled back down to the ground, the darkness of its form melting away as it did.
Noctis landed on the ground beside them, and the three looked around to take a quick stock of the situation. The smaller Heartless were mostly gone by now and overall the group had taken out three of the Darksides, leaving only two still to deal with.
Though exhausted, Velcia found the good progress bolstered her spirits and she was ready to make the last push.
Noctis glanced over to Velcia. "Can you follow my Warp Strikes?"
"You mean warp with you to your sword?" she asked curiously.
"Yeah," he said, taking a slow step forward.
Velcia stepped beside him, bracing her Keyblade against her arm. "I believe I can."
Noctis nodded with a smirk "Good. Ignis, instructions!"
Ignis nodded and quickly assessed the approaching Darksides, and began pointing his hand; each location he pointed to began to glow with a faint blue marker magic as Noctis and Velcia broke into a run towards the targeted Heartless.
"You're up, Noct!" Ignis called out.
"Get ready, Vel!" Noctis shouted, throwing his blade at the nearest marker point.
Noctis warped and grabbed the blade, slashing the Darkside with a quick spin before immediately moving on to the next point. Right as he flashed out of an area, Velcia would appear and strike with her Keyblade, which glowed white-hot with Holy Light.
The series of shrieks, howls, flashes, and deep roars lasted only a few seconds as Noctis and Velcia chained together a set of over a dozen blindingly fast blows across both Darksides, with the last one ending at one of the monster's heads. Velcia warped to this location and, seeing her vantage point, swung her Keyblade down from over her head and crashed it against the beast.
Noctis quickly threw his blade to the ground, warping well out of range of the shrieking Darkside as it fell to the ground in several bursting plumes of fire. Velcia, finding herself about to be in free-fall, reached out her arm and connected to the last waning wisps of Noctis's magic and warped beside him, rolling along the ground from her momentum as she did.
Velcia stood up slowly, breath heaving as she adjusted her grip on her Keyblade and prepared for the next offensive, but saw Noctis leaning against a nearby boulder looking as relaxed as could be. He caught her confused glance and nodded towards the others, and she turned to see they had things well under control.
Gladiolus hacked at the ankles of the remaining Darkside, which was struggling to so much as move as its head was pelted by Prompto's guns and Ignis's throwing daggers.
With a roar, Gladiolus leaped up and struck a heavy blow that caught the opening in the Darkside's abdomen, bisecting the terrible Heartless and causing it to explode into a thick cloud of darkness.
Velcia turned back to Noctis with a relieved smile and, despite his somewhat cocky expression, he too seemed to be quite thankful the battle was finished. The five began to reconvene, exhausted but proud of their performance.
"Aw yeah, and we're all still alive!" Prompto cheered. "That wasn't so bad, huh guys?"
Gladiolus nodded. "It was a tough fight, but well worth the trouble. It's good to know those guys are gone permanently now."
Ignis nodded, running his hand through his hair. "Indeed, the passage from New Crestholm should be much safer now. We will have far less to worry about tomorrow when we venture out to find the power core."
"Speaking of," Noctis said, patting Velcia on the shoulder. "If you can follow my Warp Strikes, you don't have to worry about your terrible throws. It'll be easy for us to sneak into Viewbliss together."
Velcia blinked in surprise at his blunt, nonchalant criticism, but couldn't help but chuckle. "That is quite fortunate for me," she conceded.
Prompto, glistening with sweat, rubbed his hand across his rumbling stomach. "Guys, you're not going to believe this, but… I'm hungry again."
"I believe it alright," Gladiolus said, his own stomach growling.
"How about it, Specs? Any ideas for dinner?" Noctis asked, a twinkle of mischief in his eye that Ignis instantly caught on to.
Ignis surveyed the battleground, shaking his head in feigned disappointment as the last of the darkness melted away. He turned towards Prompto with a pained sigh. "Unfortunately Prompto, there appears to be nothing left of our hunt for me to collect for your dinner. I do hope you won't be too disappointed," Ignis said with the utmost sincerity.
Prompto froze suddenly, face scrunching up in confusion. "What? Why would I want to… oh! Man, I didn't know we were going after Darksides when I said that!"
Noctis shook his head. "And that's why you should pay attention."
"Fine, fine, I got it," Prompto said with a resigned sigh.
"Time to head back to New Crestholm for the night, then?" Ignis asked.
Noctis nodded. "Yeah, I don't think there's anything left for us to do out here tonight."
Velcia nodded and looked around. They'd destroyed quite a few Heartless, and though she was tired she was quite thankful they'd managed to succeed. As the boys began walking back to New Crestholm, she turned and took one last look north towards Viewbliss. The tall, imposing walls stood strong. Out in the distance past them she could see a thick, swirling maelstrom of dust. The battle today was over, but there was quite a bit of work left to do.