Chronicles Three: Reluctance

"Wait…No…No way!" Noctis said, nearly yelling as he thought of said possibility.

Regis held up a fist, saying, "Yes! I'm about to be a grandfather!"

"H-hey now! Um, she hasn't confirmed that!" Noct said, becoming nervous.

"Nor has she denied it. Seriously, this is all similar to how Aulea carried you," Regis said, happy at the possibility of being a grandfather…though deceased.

Noct's mind reeled at the thought. If that dream was true, then…he was going to be a dad soon. And the line of Lucis-Caelum would continue. But, he hadn't a clue how to be one.

"And that's where the lineage of kings and queens come in. You have my advice and those of your forebearers," Regis told him.

"Eh, I don't know if I want their advice…" Noct said.

Regis seemed offended and muttered, "Why I never…"

"I didn't mean you, Dad," Noct said.

May 15th, Citadel's old training room…

"So? So? So?" Cato asked.

"So, what?" Regina asked.

"So, are we going to your dance recital?" the blonde asked, hyper as usual.

The dark-haired teen in Goth Lolita sighed. She was hoping to become a dancer or cook or something normal. But after that fiasco a few weeks ago with Parliament and her officially being declared the heir to the throne, Regina was not allowed to return to dance classes. She was told by Minister Lukahn that she would need to prepare to take over Lucis after her father's imminent demise. But why? Why would she take over when everyone thought that the Lucis Caelums were a do-nothing royal family?

That and she was certain everyone thought she was a bad omen as her fire powers were reminiscent of the traitor to the Six: Ifrit. But Noctis always called her the "sun fire goddess", mostly to keep her from thinking she was anything like the old Infernian. But it didn't work most days and she always thought of herself as…

"You know that Parliament kicked her out of her class," Luca said, the short, dark-skinned teen in pink sitting on the floor.

Leaning on one of the columns, Regina sighed as she had told her father that she didn't want to rule Lucis. But instead, he ignored her and made her officially the heir. Maybe he started to become feebleminded, just as Parliament said. And if that was the case, then she would never be able to live out her dreams and instead be a useless pawn for politicians.

"Well, don't sweat it. We can make our own dance recital," Robin, Regina's good friend and dance partner…or former dance partner, said.

Stella, looking at an old portrait of their grandfather, Regis, turned to the group and signed, "Anyone noticed that Dad's starting to look different?"

"Uh, what?" Luca asked.

"He looks pretty much the same to me, just a lot skinnier…and pale…and…" Cato said while signing.

"I think we get it, Cato," Robin said, knowing Cato and his constantly going on tangents.

The teen in glasses sighed and Regina said, "He's looked like that since he woke up from the incident…three years ago. And besides, he's not trying to get any better."

"Yes, he is. I saw him eat a whole steak yesterday," Cato said.

Wait, what? Her dad wasn't able to eat large amounts of food anymore and resorted to having fish and soup.

"Maybe that was a fluke or something. If he was getting better, he wouldn't have told everyone to take me out of dance classes and…" Regina said.

"That wasn't him. That was Parliament," Robin corrected.

The dark-haired teen sighed. They just didn't get it. Their dad isn't trying to get better and put her in charge of a kingdom that hated them. So, why?

The doors to the training room opened and it was Ignis. With a concerned expression, he told the five, "There you are. I didn't think you all would be in here."

"Well, we are. What do you want, Uncle Iggy?" Regina said rather harshly.

Cato and Stella shook their heads, knowing their sister was still lashing out. So much for wanting to turn over a new leaf with the rudeness…

"Your father wishes to see you, Regina. And I'm sure that you all should be studying for your end-of-year exams," Ignis said, remembering that the schools hadn't closed for the year.

Regina rolled her eyes not, wanting to go. Robin nudged her and said, "Go on. It's not like you got anything else to do."

With a sigh, the brooding teen left, following her uncle Ignis.

"Well, I can't say that the Oracle-Queen can potentially die, can I?" Minister Tot muttered.

"No, you can't…" Ignis told him.

"No one should say anything until we find out what's going on. I'm sure His Majesty would want it that way," Cor said.

Prompto and Gladio, also in attendance, were texting Cindy, Aranea, and Iris about what was happening. Ignis warned them not to say too much as they still didn't have any updates on Lunafreya's condition. As Prompto talked with Cindy, the mechanic gave her best wishes and prayed for the best.

"What do we do? What can we do?" Minister Tot mumbled, pacing about.

"You can't do anything."

Dr. Gainsborough appeared, looking disappointed. She looked to Minister Tot and said, "If you're holding a press conference, I'll speak on what happened."

"What do you mean?" Prompto asked.

"I suggest that you go and speak with the King. He'll need your support," Dr. Gainsborough said.

Ignis, not liking what he was hearing, asked, "What is going on? What has happened?"

The doctor sighed and told them, "The…surgery was successful. But…"

"But what?" Gladio asked.

The council suddenly felt as if they were in a dream. The doctor had told them about Lunafreya and what happened. The only words that Ignis could get through were "blood loss", "far too much" and "comatose." Prompto heard "triplets", "premature" and "NICU". Gladiolus heard "depressed", "out of it" and "needs help."

Without thinking, the trio rushed for the NICU, only to slide to a halt as they saw Noctis standing outside, staring through the window. Behind it were specialized cribs, connected to machines and provided infants born premature or diseases with support. A few babies were inside, but three of them had Noctis' attention.

Gladio and the others looked, with Prompto telling Ignis of their appearance. The trio were small, very small and each baby looked to be around four pounds. Pale and connected to tubes and machines with nodes and wires, the babies looked like they were having trouble breathing.

"Noct…you alright?" Gladio asked.

Noctis said nothing, continuing to stare at the struggling infants. Prompto, wanting to help, said, "We'll support you any way we can, buddy."

In a near whisper, Noctis told them, "Luna's…in a coma..."

"Yes, we know. Dr. Gainsborough told us. She and Minister Tot are going to have a press conference," Ignis said.

Noctis said nothing and Gladio placed a hand on his shoulder. Trying to continue his support as his Shield, he said to the King, "She'll be fine. We'll help anyway we can."

"Help with what…?" Noctis said, sounding depressed.

"With the infants. You and Lunafreya will…" Ignis started.

"'Be fine'? Yeah right…How can I…How can we…? They're so small and Luna's…" Noct said, sounding panicked in his near whispers.

"She'll be fine. She'll wake up and we'll help you with the kids in the meantime," Gladio told him.

Noct didn't look that reassured and he continued his stare at the triplets. He sighed, looking incredibly traumatized. None of them blamed him though as his wife and children were in ICU and the wife fell into a coma. That and he was still responsible for the country's rebuild. But he didn't have to do everything alone. That was what his friends, aides, and country was for. He had support from many places, but Noct didn't see that.

"Noct. We'll help you. Luna's gonna wake up and the babies will be out of the NICU, just you wait," Prompto said.

The Lucian King still said nothing and Ignis said, "Well, I'll make sure that, nutrition-wise, the queen and the children will be on the mend. Perhaps introduce vegetables in their diet at an early age."

Noct looked at him, glaring at Ignis. Prompto grinned, seeing that their buddy was coming back. So, he added, "Dude, the babies eating beans at three months…"

"While their dad's dissectin' his food," Gladio said.

A smirk on Noct's face and he said, "Pretty sure I'll just see the beans on the ceiling."

Happy to see his best friend out of melancholy, Prompto told him, "See? We're gonna help you in any way we can. So, don't worry. Luna will be fine."

Noct sighed and muttered, "Thanks. You guys are great…"

Noctis woke up, falling asleep again as he waited for Regina to enter his office. His dream was another vivid one. It was of his other self, learning of Lunafreya falling into a coma from the traumatic births of his children. His Luna almost fell into a coma, as she lost a lot of blood while trying to birth the triplets. He was grateful that she didn't die, but the other Noctis nearly lost his wife.

Shaking his head, trying to rid himself of the dizziness that came from waking up, Noctis heard the door open and saw Regina. Still dressed in her usual black Lolita dress and looking like a Gothic doll, Regina looked annoyed and asked, "Yes?"

"In a bad mood today, Regi?" Noctis said, looking down at some files he had Cor find.

Regina huffed, plopping down in a nearby chair and Noctis opened the first of the files. It was a list of the first 20 rulers of Lucis, with Ardyn added after his redemption. Sighing, Regina asked, "So, what's all this? You're gonna make me study all summer? You've already taken what I love to do, dancing. What else are you…?"

"I didn't…Never mind…" Noctis said, remembering trying to explain anything to Regi while she was ranting was useless.

"Huh? Why is Uncle Ardyn's name…?" Regi said.

She saw that Noctis officially changed the family line with both Ardyn and Somnus Lucis Caelum as the "Founder Kings". They were, but Somnus betrayed Ardyn long ago, causing the fiasco that was the Scourge and falling into Bahamut's machinations. But after the brothers banded together with Noctis and the others to stop the Draconian, the two went on the path of forgiveness and redemption in the afterlife.

"So, why am I learning about the Kings and Queens again?" Regina asked.

"I tried to get answers as to why Parliament declared you as heir without my input but got stonewalled. Ignis tried, but still no answers. And since no one's trying to answer any questions and…well…" Noctis said, not comfortable talking about his condition.

"So, I gotta start learning how to run things after you're gone. Okay, whatever…But how does learning about all these past rulers gonna help?" Regina muttered.

She looked at the files and said, "'Ardyn Lucis Caelum: the Redeemed, Somnus Lucis Caelum: the Mystic…the founder kings of Lucis.' Seriously, why am I looking at this again? None of this is gonna help with present-day problems, Dad."

Noctis said nothing as he checked on reports of the goings-on in Insomnia. Regina continued reading seeing the names "Magnus Lucis Caelum: the Great", "Liberalis Lucis Caelum: the Noble", "Crepera Lucis Caelum: the Rogue." Upon seeing the Rogue's name, Regina perked up and asked, "Isn't she the first Queen?"

"Yes, and she lived in a time when a female ruler was unheard of. Learned about her after rediscovering her tomb in the Malmalam Thicket," Noctis said as he continued reading.

Regina looked back at the file, seeing the next page and the several rulers on it. Noctis had a small smirk on his face, content that he was spending some time with the eldest of his children. For the past few years, she avoided him as she blamed him for Luna's death. He chalked it up to her being angry at losing her mother in such a violent way and she barely spent time with him. Cato and Stella stayed as much as they could in between school and part-time jobs they took up. But when Cato spent time with his father, he practically hovered over him like a helicopter. And Stella, she wasn't any better and had terrible bedside manners.

"Stel's not that bad," Regina said, reading his thoughts.

"She nearly choked me to death trying to spoon-feed me soup. For someone who wanted to be in a medical profession, she was borderline murderous," Noctis told her.

Regi shook her head and said, "That was because you weren't eating and getting too skinny, too fast."

"But force-feeding a patient…? I'm sure that's not in any nursing handbook," Noctis retorted.

His daughter gave a small laugh and Noctis was happy to hear it. Maybe she would forgive him for…

Another migraine and Regina asked, "Another headache?"

Noctis couldn't answer as it felt like his head was about to split in two. His vision turned red and he collapsed, striking his head on the desk.

Regina's eyes widened, seeing her father pass out in front of her. When he struck his head on the desk, Regina screamed and some Glaives came barreling into the room. Gladio arrived and said, "Not again."

"W-we-we were just talking and…" Regina said.

Gladiolus had the Glaives carry their king back to bed and he turned to Regina. Shaking as she had many intrusive and negative thoughts running through her mind, Regina dared not move from her seat. Gladio placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "It's not your fault. Noct's been sick for a while and…"

"He…He's not getting better and is going to die soon…right?" Regina muttered.

"…Yeah. It's hard to see him like this, but…" Gladio told her.

He started for the door and said, "It's your choice, y'know. But…"

Regina looked at him and he said, "As a Shield, I need to know if I got someone to protect. Same with Riku, y'know."

Gladio turned to look at the teen and asked, "Do I got a liege to protect after Noct's gone? Or do I gotta turn in a resume somewhere else?"

"Um…can I get back with you? Just…just give me some time…okay?" Regina said, remembering her uncle's penchant for impatience.

Lunafreya, after Prompto tracked down the black dragon the hunters said was haunting the Nebulawood, arrived just as the blonde gunner dodged a salvo of fireballs. The large dragon thrashed about in the open tree line, threatening to set the entire forest on fire and possibly blow up the old armory in the woods. Joined by Aranea Highwind, the dragoon and former Niflheim commodore, pulled Luna behind a boulder and saw the sight.

The dragon, with scales as black as night, roared viciously as Prompto ducked behind some boulders. Lunafreya stepped out of her hiding spot and called out to the dragon again, but its roars were deafening.

Holding her trident close and locking eyes with the beast, she saw the fire-red eyes of the dragon. There was madness as well as powerful hatred and rage. As if it was completely blinded by all three. Its appearance looked like something from one of the games Prompto and Noctis used to play. What was it, "Daemon Hunter"?

Another roar followed by a snarl and Luna said, "Please, stop! Stop attacking! It is I, Lunafreya!"

The dragon rose and was about to crush her when Aranea came crashing down, slamming the Stoss Spear into the back of its head. The beast reeled, not able to tell what happened, and fell. Luna teleported out of the way, next to Prompto in his hiding spot. Aranea, looking smug, said, "You did say if anything like this happened, I could beat the crap outta ya."

Noctis jolted awake, finding himself back in bed and a wave of pain overtook him. Dizziness soon followed by nausea and he hadn't a clue what was happening. Another dream, this time very vivid and about Luna, came to him and he wondered what it meant. There weren't any dragons anymore in Lucis, not after the destruction of Bahamut, who was the last of his kind…if you didn't count him as the God of War.

Slowly reopening his eyes, Noctis looked around the room and saw the place was very dark. He blacked out again after having Regina enter his office. She was supposed to start learning about the past rulers to get inspiration. But instead, he passed out and possibly scared her. He doubted that she cared about his well-being after what happened to Lu…

Another migraine and Noctis wondered if he would ever be rid of them before he died. The very thought of that sparked what felt like anger and the man hadn't felt that way since Bahamut lied to him about his role. Groaning, as he felt worse than his new usual, Noctis sat up and tried to get his bearings.

The nearby clock read "3:00 AM" and he sighed. He was losing his days, passing out and being unconscious for hours. Sure, the doctors told him that his condition would worsen. But he had to prepare Regina for the worst. So, sleeping the remainder of his life away was not the way he wanted to go.

"The remainder of my…my…" Noctis muttered, trying not to think about it.

Why him? Why did he have to…? What did he do to deserve such a fate?

First, Noctis thought, he had lost Luna when all she was trying to do was find a cure for his malady. Then, he lost the trust he had in his children. Despite their hovering over him, Noctis believed he lost Cato and Stella's trust along with Regina's. And then there were the injuries followed by illness after the Ravatough incident. He hadn't recovered even after three years. He only expected to heal for a few months after the loss of his powers, like a normal person.

Then Lucis started to turn on him with Parliament appointing Ignis as regent and them forcing Regina to become queen. And the polls that were in the news about him, with most believing that Noctis should step down and fade away quietly. Most apparently believed the same as Regina, that it was all his fault Luna was gone.

And then, Dr. Gainsborough informed him that he was dying and that he had at most a few months left. Ignis and Minister Lukahn tried to keep that from him, apparently to let him live out the rest of his days without worry. He understood why they tried to keep it from him, but Noctis resented that they hid his slowly dying from him.

Was this all because of Bahamut? Did he hate Noctis that much for ruining his plans? It wasn't his fault that the world was infected with the Scourge. So, why was he destined to clean up the mess he and Ifrit made when they could've worked together with Noctis and his friends to rid the world of it? And Bahamut didn't have to turn on them for trying to find another way to destroy the darkness. If anything, he brought upon…

A sharp pain and Noctis grabbed his chest. His heart suddenly started racing and it felt like it was about to explode. Panicking, the man looked around and tried to call for help, but he couldn't catch his breath. Was his heart about to give out?

His phone was nowhere to be found and he didn't have telepathy anymore due to lack of powers. A tired feeling and the man fell back onto his pillows. The pain didn't subside and only grew worse, but he was unable to sit back up.

'Is this how I'm going out…?' Noctis thought.

The tiredness overwhelmed him and Noctis closed his eyes, feeling regret as he couldn't keep his promise. Everything faded into darkness as Noctis could hear someone screaming.

"Noct? NOCT!" Gladio shouted.

He had a horrible feeling and bolted from his room in the Citadel's northwestern tower and 17th floor. He was joined by Ignis and the triplets, who all had the same feeling. Instead of waiting for the elevator, the group took the stairs, bolting up to the 19th floor.

Arriving at Noctis' room, the King's Shield broke down the door and saw his liege unmoving in bed, his hand on his chest. There was a sudden flash of blue and the room was engulfed in powerful light. Gladio summoned his shield to protect everyone and the triplets summoned a barrier. The blast was so powerful that it shattered the barrier and shield and sent the group flying into nearby walls. The tower crumbled and anyone left in the area was caught in the collapse.

Oh no…Well, this isn't good. Did Noctis and the others…die? If that's the case, then this would be one of the shortest fics I've ever written. But since it's not, we'll find out what happened next chapter.

Review, please?

-miano53