Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Now: Ignis

Higher… he had to climb higher. His legs weren’t working properly. His body trembled with pain and weakness. But he couldn’t stop. He had to keep going, had to keep moving, had to get to Noct and the children.

He dragged himself further along the volcanic rock, pulling himself along with his elbows, gritting his teeth as his bruised ribs scraped along the ground. He could feel his legs now, after the shock of the fall. The left one hurt. The right one seemed alright. He started using it to push himself upward, taking some of the weight off his scraped elbows.

Heat rose around him. He was close to the lava flow now, close to the place where he’d last seen Noct and the children they’d come to the Rock of Ravatogh to rescue.

The rock beneath him was getting hotter. His elbows, knee, and ribs began to feel uncomfortable. He should try to get to his feet. But he wasn’t sure if he could.

One of his elbows slipped on some loose rock. His body skidded, stuttered, then slid several feet back down the rock, small stones cutting and jabbing. He protected his face with his gloved hands, but the rest of him took a beating.

A large boulder put an end to his descent. He slid hard against it, fresh pain blooming in his leg and side, forcing a cry from his lips. He quickly clenched his teeth and struggled to swallow down the pain, to take it, to let it wash over him without washing away his consciousness. Oh, but unconsciousness tempted him… to be free of this weight of weariness and pain…

“No,” he muttered, pushing himself up against the boulder, sitting and stretching his injured leg out in front of him. “Noct…” He looked up. He still had a long way to go. He felt a sob shudder its way up from his core, and he forced it back down, gritting his teeth and shaking his head. He leaned back against the rock, set his jaw, got his feet under him, dragging his left foot with his hand. Then he pushed, leveraging himself up against the rock.

Finally, he got to his feet, shaking and panting, light-headed, one hand pressed to his aching side, most of his weight distributed onto his right leg. He took a deep breath and started up the rock again, unsteady, but on his feet.

He had to get to Noct before it was too late.

Earlier that day: Noctis

“It’s so hot,” Noctis moaned as he slid into his seat in the Regalia.

“Then lose the jacket,” Gladio replied, sitting beside him and whipping a book out from under the seat in front of him.

Noctis rolled his eyes. “No thanks.”

“Don’t have the pecs for it?” Gladio teased.

“No, I just have… a sense of style,” Noctis countered.

Gladio chuckled.

Ignis and Prompto arrived, then, Ignis with a bag of groceries and Prompto waving his camera aloft.

“Get any good shots?” Noctis asked his chocobo-loving friend.

“Oh, yeah! The Rock of Ravatogh looks great from here!” He plopped into the front passenger seat. “Think you can drive a little closer, Iggy? I’d like another shot of all of us in front of it, different from the one we took yesterday.”

“That’s up to Noct,” Iggy replied, glancing at the royal in the rearview mirror. He passed the groceries back to Gladio, who nestled them between himself and Noctis.

Noctis shrugged. “Sure. Whatever.”

“Alright then. The Rock of Ravatogh it is. Again.”

Just before Iggy could put the car in gear, a teenage boy in tattered clothes came running up to the car, from the direction of the road they would take to the rock.

“Help!” the boy cried, waving his arms. “Someone please!”

Gladio grunted. “Why do I get the feeling that ‘someone’ will be us?”

Noctis sighed. “‘Cause it’s always us.”

The young man reached the Regalia and grabbed onto the side of Ignis’s door. His eyes were wild, his clothes singed and torn, his face bruised. From this close, Noctis could see that the kid was several years younger than he was, maybe thirteen or fourteen years old.

“Please, you have to help my friends! They’re up on the rock! Please!”

“Calm down. Deep breaths. Now tell us what happened,” Ignis prompted soothingly.

“We were--we were hiking--looking for treasure--Mal and Elsie and me--we were almost to the top--and this thing--this bird thing--it came at us--and we hid--and there were people--bad people, I think--we took off running--I--I--” He broke off in a sob, wiping his runny nose on the back of his torn sleeve. “I thought they were right behind me. I swear to the gods, I thought they were. But they weren’t. And I fell. And I didn’t have the strength to get back up there, so I came this way, looking for help. Please, please.” Tears painted clean lines down his dirty cheeks. “You’ve got to help them.”

Ignis met Noct’s eyes in the rearview mirror. “Noct?”

Noctis felt the suggestion in Ignis’s eyes, Ignis’s voice. He gave a short nod. “Yeah. We’ll help. Of course we’ll help.”

Now: Prompto

Prompto tended to like birds. They were cute, especially chocobos, like his good friend Fedge. But the big monster sleeping in the ravine of the Rock of Ravatogh was anything but cute. It was dangerous. And it just might have killed Ignis. Prompto couldn’t be sure.

Ignis had been with him for a moment, on the edge of a ledge, calling to Noctis, who had somehow managed to find the two missing kids, and they’d heard Noctis call back, and they'd caught a glimpse of Noct and the two kids, and they’d been so happy. And then a shadow had fallen over them, massive and cold, blocking out the sun. It was the bird, the zu.

“Get to Noct!” Ignis had yelled, and he’d taken off running, distracting the giant bird.

Prompto had taken a few shots at it, but it had focused on Ignis, and Ignis and the bird had disappeared around a corner, so Prompto had gone running, looking for Noctis. He and Noctis and the two scared kids had hidden where Noct had been before, waiting and watching for Ignis to return, but he hadn’t… and the zu had.

It was a crazy place to hide, Prompto thought, right behind a giant egg in a nest in the side of the rock, watching the enormous bird that slept a couple hundred yards away.

“Why hasn’t Iggy come back yet?” Prompto wondered aloud.

“He went that way.” The boy they’d come to rescue, Mal, pointed toward the direction in which Ignis had disappeared. “Toward the bad guys.”

“Bad guys?” Noctis asked, sounding as anxious as Prompto felt.

“Yeah, the guys in armor,” the girl, Elsie, confirmed. “They blocked the trail and trapped us here. They’re looking for someone.”

Noctis and Prompto met each other’s eyes.

“Imperials,” Noctis breathed.

“Oh no,” Prompto groaned.

Noctis moved closer to him, closer to the egg, away from the two teenagers who huddled together. “They’re probably looking for us.”

“Yeah.” Prompto winced. “Think they found Iggy?”

“That or maybe the bird…” Noctis shook his head and looked away, unable to finish the awful thought.

“And Gladio?” Prompto wondered. “What about Gladio?”

Not long ago: Gladio

Gladio had seen it all--Ignis’s desperate flight from the zu, his brave attempts to fight it and drive it back. He’d watched from a distance as Ignis ducked into a cavern the zu couldn’t fit into, watched with relief as the zu gave up on its quarry and flew away. But he hadn’t been able to call to his friend or signal to him in any way… because of the Nifs.

They were all over the side of the rock, combing the trails and caverns. He wondered how they’d missed them on their way up the rock and guessed that, in a moment of divine providence, he and Noct and the others had been circling the rock on the opposite side from the Imperials.

But now, the Imperials were in his way--magitek troopers tromping around, scanning the area, just missing him, just missing Ignis. He had to get to Ignis. He had to find out where Noct was and if anyone had found the two missing kids.

He maneuvered carefully across the rock, ducking behind boulders, dodging into cracks in the rock walls, hopping over flows of hot lava. It was tempting, so tempting, to take out a few magitek troopers. They were so close. But he didn’t have Noct’s warping ability, so he doubted a single-handed endeavor would work. He snuck around a pack of them, moving closer and closer to the place where he’d seen Iggy hide…

He rounded the corner of a rock wall and came face-to-face with an MT. He summoned his sword in an instant, slashing hard and fast, nearly splitting the enemy in two with his first blow. Somehow, the trooper survived; somehow, he signalled his closest fellows, and four more of them came running.

Gladio swore, finished off the trooper, and took a fighting stance. Two of the troopers got to him fast, and he parried their blows and struck back.

Before the other two could get to him, they turned, and he looked beyond them to see Ignis standing in clear sight, waving his arms.

“What the hell’s he doing?” Gladio muttered.

“Gladio!” Ignis called.

“Iggy, no!” Gladio shouted in reply as the magitek troopers turned toward the advisor.

“In plain sight! He’s hiding in plain sight!” Ignis yelled, summoning his daggers. “Safest and most dangerous place!”

“What are you talking about!?” Gladio hollered, running to catch up with the magitek troopers that were honed in on Ignis. A handful more of them had come running, and they were all moving in on Iggy.

“They’re with the ingredients!” Ignis called, dodging and slashing as the first few troopers reached him. “Ingredients for your noodles!”

Had Iggy lost his mind? What was he talking about?

Gladio didn’t have time to wonder. He took the legs out from under one of the troopers, then spun and chopped of his enemy’s head. He hurried to the next one, ducking as the trooper turned and swung at him.

Beyond his current foe, he could see the other troopers surrounding Ignis, pushing him back, toward the edge of the rock.

“Iggy! Hang on!” Gladio shouted, smashing into the closest trooper with his shoulder, then spinning to slice into his enemy with his sword.

“Gladio, think!” Ignis cried. “In Lestallum--you and Noct--” He spun to avoid the slash of a magitek assassin’s blade, then got behind the assassin, flipped, and stabbed his enemy in the back with both daggers. “You talked about dinner! That’s where he is--with the ingredients!”

Gladio still had no idea what Ignis was on about, and he struggled to get closer to his friend, fighting off another trooper. He was still several yards away, and Ignis had nowhere to go, his back against nothing but sky.

“Iggy! Hang on!” Gladio hollered again.

One of the troopers brandished a rifle and took aim.

“Iggy!” Gladio shouted.

The trooper fired. Ignis dodged--smoothly sidestepping the path of the bullet. But his new position put him in range of a nearby trooper’s polearm. This trooper swung his weapon, the shaft of it connecting hard with Ignis’s side. Ignis teetered backward, one foot kicked out over the edge of the rock, arms swinging as he fought to keep his balance on one foot, on the very edge of the rock.

“Nooooooo!” Gladio cried.

The trooper struck again, ramming the butt end of his polearm into Ignis’s ribs.

For a second, Ignis’s eyes went wide, panicked, fixed on Gladio. He seemed to hover against a background of blue sky and rolling rock. A short cry escaped his lips, echoing across the rock, and then he was gone.

Gladio shouted in wordless rage, barreling forward, sweeping his sword, tearing through the magitek troopers. He cut down two more, three more, four. The last, the one with the polearm, spun to face him. He blocked the trooper’s slash with his sword, then kicked the magitek soldier square in the chest, sending him flying off the cliff.

“Iggy!” Gladio dropped to his hands and knees, peering down. The rock wall was too craggy. There were too many cracks and ravines, surfaces that ran straight down, surfaces that slanted. He couldn’t see any sign of Ignis--or of the trooper he’d kicked off the side of the Rock of Ravatogh.

Gladio swore, rubbing his forehead. Why had Iggy done that? Why had he drawn the troopers’ attention? And what had he been going on about? Ingredients? Lestallum? Noodles?

It clicked, then, and Gladio jumped to his feet with a shout of, “Eggs!” He knew exactly where Noct was. He started excitedly up the trail… then remembered. Ignis. Now what should he do--go back for his definitely injured and maybe dead friend? Or do as Ignis had so cleverly urged him and rush to the side of Noctis, his sworn duty?

Chapter Text

Now: Ignis

Hot.

The side of the rock was so hot.

Steam jetted up between cracks in the rock, and Ignis could smell the lava--a hot, dark, crisp smell. Sweat dripped down his face. The lenses of his glasses kept fogging, and he kept cleaning them on his shirt, a shirt that was growing dirtier and sweatier by the second. At least he’d had the sense to leave his jacket in the Regalia; otherwise, he would surely have perished of heat stroke by now.

He staggered up the mountain, trying to maintain a straight line, the most efficient and quickest way to any destination, but his body refused to cooperate, and he weaved this way and that. Every time he stepped on his left foot, pain shot through his shin just under his knee, so he walked slowly, gingerly. His breath rasped in and out of his lungs, lungs that felt battered and bruised under the damaged cage of his ribs.

His unsteady left foot slipped on loose gravel, and he stumbled, falling forward onto his hands. Steam jetted up from the ground, and he yelped, flipping away from it, onto his back, cradling his now-burnt right forearm. He laid on his back for a moment, gasping, sweltering.

The sun burned down on him, and he covered his eyes with one hand. After a few moments, his back itched with heat, so he rolled over, got up on his knees, and tried to stand again. He swayed, dizzy, and collapsed back down.

Just give up, a voice whispered from some dark corner of his mind. You’re too banged up to be of any use to anyone.

Ignis set his jaw and shook his head. He had to get to Noct and the others. He hoped Gladio had taken his hint and figured out where Noct was. He hoped Prompto had gotten there fast. He hoped the magitek troopers hadn’t figured out his clue. How could they have? They hadn’t been there, hadn’t heard Noct and Gladio spending an inordinate amount of time discussing their various tastes in noodles.

And he knew that somehow, he would be needed. His strategic mind could help them sneak past or outflank the enemy. He could help them treat their wounds. He had news of import to relay to them, a warning.

A clatter and clank from somewhere up ahead of him warned him that he was not alone on this patch of rock.

He scooted behind the closest boulder, resting against it for a moment, then jerking himself upright when he nearly fell asleep. He peeked around it, listening, his body tense with readiness.

The magitek trooper--the one with the polearm, the one who had knocked him off the cliff--appeared up ahead, limping along, using his polearm as a cane, his armor clicking and clacking.

Ignis wanted to scream at the unfairness of it all. Here he was, banged up and bruised from being knocked off a cliff, trying to get back to the top, struggling with all he was worth, and who should be waiting for him--armed and alive-but the very magitek trooper who knocked him off the cliff in the first place. The irony was practically literary.

Sighing, resigned, Ignis pushed off the rock in a crouch, summoning his daggers. He tried to stay close to the rock wall to his left, tried to avoid crunchy gravel, as he crept up on his enemy.

Now: Noctis

“We can’t stay here,” Noctis decided, peeking around the giant eggs at the giant bird that had laid them. “If that thing tries to come back to the nest and check on her eggs--”

“--we’re lunch,” Prompto finished.

“Yeah. We can’t stay.”

“She seems to be napping pretty good.”

“Yeah, I’m jealous.” Noctis allowed himself a brief smile. “But she won’t stay napping forever.”

Prompto frowned. “Ignis might come back. This is where he saw you last.”

“I know, but he might be in trouble.” Noctis fidgeted with the hem of his jacket. “We can’t just stay here waiting for him to come rescue us when he might need us to rescue him.” The thought had been tearing at him for a while now. “I can’t just sit here and let him--” Die for me.

Prompto sighed. “I know.” He glanced behind them at the two kids who huddled together in the far corner of the nest. “What about them? I don’t think they’re fighters, Noct.”

“I know. We’ll have to protect them. They can’t stay here forever, either.”

Will the weight of responsibility always follow me?

“And what about Gladio?” Prompto wondered.

“Surely we’ll run into him. He can’t have gone far.” Noctis sighed and ran a hand through his raven-dark hair. “We never should have split up.”

“It sort of worked, though, didn’t it?” Prompto scratched the back of his head. “But then again… Who knows what would have happened if we had stayed together.”

Earlier that day: Noctis

“How far up this rock could those kids have gone?” Noctis stopped walking to catch his breath, tugging at the front of his shirt. He was already sweating.

“Their friend said they were nearly to the top when they were startled by the giant bird,” Ignis recalled.

“Aw, man! Come on!” Prompto exclaimed, throwing up his hands. “Kids these days, am I right?”

“At least when we get to the top, you can get some great shots of the landscape,” Gladio said, patting the little blond guy on the shoulder. “Come on. No time to waste.”

Noctis experienced a touch of envy at how unfazed Gladio seemed by the hike so far. The sun was hot, the rocks were hot, there was lava to avoid, spiracorns and reapertails to fight… so many reasons to complain. He wondered again how those kids had managed to make it so far up the rock. And he wondered where the Imperial troops might be hiding, waiting to jump out and ambush them.

“This was supposed to be a fun day,” Prompto muttered, hiking uphill beside him as he followed Gladio.

“Yeah…” Noctis glanced over his shoulder. “You coming, Ignis?”

“On my way!” Ignis jogged to catch up with them.

“When we get a little further, around this lava flow, we should probably split up,” Gladio called back down the rock. “We can cover more ground that way.”

“Alright!” Noctis replied.

“Supposed to be a fun day,” Prompto murmured again. “Oh well. Crownsguard to the rescue!”

Yesterday (a fun day): Prompto

“Come on, Noct! You’ve gotta smile!” Prompto urged, setting up the tripod of his camera just outside the Regalia.

“Again?” Noctis groaned.

“What? Afraid you’ll break the camera?” Gladio teased, shoving Noct’s shoulder.

“Afraid you will!” Noctis shot back, smacking Gladio’s hand.

Ignis stepped between them just before the teasing could turn into a tussle. “Come now, gentlemen. I believe Prompto has set the timer.” He took his position just where Prompto had wanted him.

“Thanks, Iggy!” Prompto beamed at his bespectacled friend and hurried to strike a pose in front of the others, crouching and throwing up a peace sign. He hoped Noctis and Gladio were behaving. The Rock of Ravatogh was positioned perfectly behind them, and the picture would be epic if they all cooperated.

The camera clicked.

“Alright!” Prompto straightened and sprinted to it. He quickly brought up the picture on the display, grinning with relief and pride. “Look!”

His friends crowded around him.

“Hey, that’s pretty good!” Noctis complimented.

“I know!”

Prompto was still grinning when they got back into the Regalia. It was going to be a great day. They had just taken an epic pic, with him posing with a peace sign in front, Noctis standing with his arms crossed, but smiling, Gladio clapping one hand on Noct’s shoulder and waving with the other, and Ignis standing with one hand on his hip, head tilted perfectly.

Now they were headed back into town for supplies and maybe to pick up a hunt for some extra cash.

“Woohoo!” Prompto whooped as Ignis steered them out onto the open highway. “I love a road trip!”

Now: Gladio

Praying to the gods that Ignis would be okay, Gladio continued up the path, toward the top, toward the place where they had first spotted the zu. The nest had to be up there somewhere--and Noctis would be in the nest, if Gladio had interpreted Ignis’s message correctly. Gladio pushed himself to hurry. Noctis could be in all kinds of trouble, and Iggy would need help fast if he were injured… which he surely would be after a fall like that.

The sun was beginning to sink from the middle of the sky. Sunset was still a few hours away, but Gladio didn’t relish the thought of being alone and exposed on this rock after nightfall. They’d seen a haven near the top, too, a good place to camp. They’d left all their gear in the Regalia, but once he had Noct, Prompto, and the kids in this safety of the haven, maybe Gladio would have time to run back down the rock, fetch Ignis, and fetch their camping gear.

A ladder loomed ahead, and he started up it, up the face of the rock, pushing ever onward.

Now: Ignis

Ignis waited until the magitek trooper paused at a fork in the trail, then sprang from the shadows of the left-hand wall, striking from behind with his daggers.

The trooper jolted, then spun, sweeping his polearm.

Ignis jumped over it, biting back a cry at the pain that shot up his leg when he landed. He leaned back, dodging another sweep of the polearm, then rolled under the reach of the weapon and jumped up, bringing one dagger up into his enemy’s neck and striking the trooper’s chest with the other.

The MT spasmed and jerked, but did not fall, swinging its polearm around behind Ignis and yanking it toward him, smashing Ignis between himself and the staff of the polearm. Pain in his ribs nearly crushed the air from Ignis’s lungs, but he somehow managed to keep his wits, slashing the trooper’s neck. The trooper’s grip on him weakened, and he tried to slip out from under it, but the trooper lashed out with a leg, tripping Ignis.

Ignis fell backward, taking the trooper down with him, yelping with pain as his enemy fell on top of him. Now, at least, he had his enemy’s weapon trapped beneath him. He brought up his daggers into his foe’s sides, and the trooper shuddered and went still on top of him, the polearm digging into his back, the trooper’s weight pressing down on his battered ribs.

Ignis wriggled out from under the MT and kicked away from him, collapsing onto his back, gasping and wincing.

The trooper spasmed, and Ignis got up to his knees fast, daggers at the ready, but his enemy went still again, and he sighed, shoulders slumping with relief. He took a few deep breaths, grimacing at the pain that shot through his ribs, then switched his daggers for his polearm, taking a page from the magitek trooper’s book and using it as a cane to lean on as he continued limping up the rock.

A cool wind blew briefly, mercifully across the rock, and Ignis stopped, leaning against the polearm and closing his eyes. He took a moment to catch his breath, then moved on as soon as the cool breeze passed, staggering his way up the rock.

Now: Gladio

He was being followed, Gladio was sure of it. He kept hearing something scrape along the rock behind him, kept hearing something click and clack. Magitek armor, he was convinced. They were following him. They knew who he was. They were hoping he would lead them to Noctis… which was exactly what he was doing. He stopped walking, and the muffled noises behind him stopped, too.

He couldn’t do this. He couldn’t allow them to discover Noct and Prompto and the kids. He had to lead them away, just as Iggy had led the zu away. He looked ahead to where the path forked. The path to the right led up, then down again, into the place where he thought the nest had to be. The path to the left narrowed and looped up behind the haven, circling the rock. He sighed and took the path to the left.

Now: Noctis

“Get down. There’s something up ahead.” Noctis motioned to Prompto and the two kids, who followed closely behind him. They had done well keeping up as Noctis and Prompto had led them up out of the ravine and back onto the trail. It had been tough, and they’d had to do some rock climbing, but they’d hung in there.

The buzzing noise echoed again, ominously, and Noctis glanced back to see the kids crouching on either side of Prompto, pale-faced and wide-eyed.

“I’m gonna go check it out,” Noctis said.

“Be careful, Noct,” Prompto warned, a hand on each kid’s shoulder.

Noctis nodded to him, then jogged further down the path, sword at the ready.

The buzzing was louder now, and he pressed himself up against the rock wall, sliding along it until he came to a corner. He peeked around the corner to see a cluster of killer wasps swarming and circling, blocking the path. He swore behind his teeth. Why did everything always have to be so hard?

He carefully retreated back up the path to where Prompto, Mal, and Elsie waited, withdrawing his sword.

“Well?” Prompto asked.

“Wasps. Big ones. Killer wasps.” He sighed, hands on his hips. “Of course.”

“Just our luck.” Prompto straightened and summoned his pistol. “What’s the plan?”

“There are four of them and two of us,” Noctis said, rubbing his chin.

“Four,” the boy, Mal, volunteered, standing and lifting his chin.

“Dude, you’re like twelve,” Prompto pointed out.

“My dad taught me how to box,” Mal argued.

“You don’t box killer wasps,” Prompto countered.

“I know a little spellcasting. And I have this,” Elsie chimed in, standing and tugging on a silver chain around her neck. She lifted it to reveal a glass flask dangling from it like a charm.

Noct’s eyebrows rose. “Whoa. Is that an--”

“Ice spell,” Elsie confirmed with a proud nod. “I always carry one.”

“We can definitely use that!” Prompto said excitedly.

“Hmm…” Noctis tapped his lower lip. “I think I’m coming up with a plan…”

“Do I get to box?” Mal asked.

Now: Ignis

Ignis fell. He wasn’t quite sure how it happened, if his polearm slipped or his injured leg or if his knees just gave out from exhaustion. He tried to catch himself with the weapon, but it skidded in a patch of gravel, and he hit the ground chin and chest first. Stars exploded in his vision, and his teeth clacked together. All the air rushed from his lungs in a painful burst.

Gasping, groaning, he got to his knees and doubled over, one hand clutching the polearm, the other pressed to his ribs. Gods, his left side hurt so badly. A jet of steam burst from the ground nearby, not close enough to burn him, thank the gods, but close enough to heat the air uncomfortably. He needed to keep moving.

But when he tried to pull himself up, his arms shook so badly that he had to stop, panting, his chest heaving painfully for oxygen that seemed reluctant to come.

Just give up. What are you doing? If you can’t even walk, you can’t help him. You can’t help them. You might as well lie down and wait to be rescued. You’re worthless to anyone right now.

The voice in his head was persistent… and it had a point.

Tempting, so tempting, to lie down and close his eyes…

Then a cry echoed from overhead, a shout of anger--a familiar one.

“Gladio.” Ignis looked up.

A couple hundred yards away, higher up the rock, Gladio battled a handful of magitek troopers. They had outflanked him and trapped him on a high, narrow path along the rock wall. He was fighting bravely, but the situation was dangerous indeed.

Locking a groan behind his teeth, Ignis clutched the polearm and hauled himself up off the ground. His muscles shivered and cramped in protest, but he soldiered on, dragging himself up the hill with the polearm, scanning the ridge for a vantage point from which to help Gladio.

Chapter Text

Now: Gladio

Gladio had been in some tight spots in his time serving as Noctis’s shield; he thought he might count this one as one of the tightest--literally. A couple of steps to the left would send him plummeting over the side of the rock. His right shoulder was pressed to the rock wall. Three magitek troopers were advancing on him from the front. Two had somehow managed to outflank him and were coming up the path behind him.

He dismissed his sword and summoned his shield. The narrow ledge left little room for swinging a sword, and he had a feeling he would have to block a lot of blows if he wanted to get off this rock alive.

The first trooper reached him, and he easily dispatched with the enemy, bashing him off the side of the cliff and onto the rock below. The next trooper attacked with more caution and skill, striking with a long, narrow blade, and Gladio kept his shield up, blocking rapid strikes. He glanced over his shoulder to see that the first trooper behind him was almost within striking distance.

“Ah!” He jumped back with a yelp as the blade of the MT in front of him slipped past his shield, slicing his left forearm. He dodged another slash and lunged forward with his shield, knocking the trooper off balance and into the one behind him, sending them sprawling precariously on the ledge, then he spun to face the attacker behind him.

This one came at him with daggers, fast and agile. He called on all his memories of sparring with Ignis to defend against this trooper, glad of the practice. The dagger-trooper drove him back, then Gladio countered, pushing back against his enemy, wielding the shield as both a defense and a weapon. He swung it hard to the left, smashing the trooper against the rock wall, grinning in triumph--

--until he saw the last MT raise a rifle and aim for his chest.

BANG!

Gladio dropped, and the bullet flew over his head, striking one of the troopers behind him and sending that one over the side of the ledge.

The gun-trooper took aim again.

Gladio raised his shield, hoping it would stop a bullet.

But there was no BANG, no explosion of gunfire.

Gladio waited.

Maybe it was a trick.

Something dropped to the ground with a clatter.

Cautiously, Gladio lowered his shield to see the magitek trooper on his knees, rifle dropping from his limp hands, a dagger imbedded in his chest.

The trooper collapsed backward, and the dagger vanished.

Gladio looked up, around, and down, finally locating Ignis standing many yards below the ledge, pointing and yelling. In his momentary daze, Gladio had no idea what he was saying.

“Gladio!”

The words finally broke through.

“Behind you!”

Gladio spun just in time to block a blow from the last trooper’s sword. With a roar of triumphant rage, he bashed the trooper backward and down, then brought his shield down into his enemy’s throat, crushing it.

“Yeah! That’s what I’m talking about!” he hollered, adrenaline pumping through his veins. He turned and called down the rock, “Hey, thanks, Iggy!”

Ignis saluted him, seemed about to call to him, then, abruptly, dropped to his knees.

“Iggy!” Gladio dismissed his shield and scrambled along the ledge, looking for the best way to get down from it, to get to his friend.

Now: Prompto

Around the corner from the angry wasps, Prompto leaned against the wall with Elsie, the small, red-haired girl with heart.

“You ready?” he asked her.

“Yeah.” She nodded eagerly.

He wasn’t sure if her eyes were wide with excitement or nervousness or maybe both. Probably both. He was feeling both, too.

Across the path, Noct crouched behind a boulder with Mal.

“Here. You hang onto this.” Noct summoned a javelin and handed it to the boy. “As soon as Elsie throws her magic, get her back behind this boulder, and hold this javelin in front of both of you. If a wasp comes at you, holler for us--and stab it if you can.”

“Okay. Okay.” The boy nodded rapidly.

“Good.” Noctis patted the kid’s shoulder, then looked across the path at Prompto.

Prompto thought Noct was probably thinking something along the lines of what he was thinking: How on Eos have we gotten ourselves into a situation where we have kids fighting monsters with us?

“Ready?” Noct asked.

“She’s ready,” Prompto confirmed.

“Okay, Elsie. Go!” Noctis ordered.

Elsie took a deep breath and slipped the flask from the chain around her neck. She raised her arm, stepped around the corner, and flung it with all her might. Prompto grabbed her and pulled her back around the corner as the spell shattered, ice exploding with a crash--and hopefully all over the wasps.

Prompto shoved Elsie into Mal’s waiting arms, then nodded to Noct. He and Noct rounded the corner in unison, stepping into the newly-frigid air where one wasp laid twitching on the ground, and the others buzzed low around it, buzzing angrily, their bulbous bodies caked with ice and, in some places, cut and torn by it.

“Good shot, Elsie!” Prompto yelled over his shoulder as he took aim at one of the wasps. He fired, striking it in the wing, sending it spiralling to the ground.

Noctis warped at one of the other wasps, striking it, slicing at its stinger.

Within a few seconds, both of their targets were down, leaving one wasp to go.

This wasp shook off the ice that coated its wings and soared up into the air. Prompto fired at it, but it dodged.

“Man! It’s fast! Watch out!” he called to Noctis.

“Got it!” Noctis grinned. “I’m faster!”

“Careful, man!” Prompto cautioned.

Whether or not Noct heard him, the raven-haired royal went blue-streaming up into the air after the wasp, striking it hard in its head.

“Woohoo!” Prompto yelled.

His excitement turned to fear as the wasp, not dead, spun in the air before Noctis could warp away, striking him in the shoulder with its stinger.

“Noooooct!” Prompto cried. He rushed forward, sliding along the ground to where Noct would fall.

Noctis tumbled to the ground on top of Prompto, seeming to be made of all knees and elbows.

“Dude, you okay?” Prompto asked, gently pushing Noctis off of him and scrambling to his knees.

“Ugh, Prompto?” Noctis knelt on the ground, holding his head between his hands.

“Oh no.” Prompto saw what was coming. It had happened to him not long ago. “Uh, Noct? I think you’re--”

“What? Where…? What’s going on?” Noctis suddenly shouted, jumping to his feet and swinging wildly with his sword.

“Whoa! Careful man!” Prompto dodged the sweeping blade, then remembered the last wasp. He looked around to see that it was flying overhead--flying directly toward where the kids were hiding.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Prompto aimed and fired.

The wasp stalled in the air, then dropped to the ground, wounded, but still alive. It crawled forward, crept along the ground, around the corner.

“Mal! Elsie! Look out!” Prompto shouted.

Something struck his back, hard, nearly knocking him off balance. He stumbled forward with an, “Oof!” then spun to see Noctis kick at him again.

“Hey! Noct! It’s me!” Prompto dodged a punch, then ducked the slashing engine blade.

“Where is he!?” Noctis shouted, wild-eyed. “What have you done with Prompto?”

Now: Gladio

Gladio scrambled down the narrow path, skidded in loose gravel, swore, and kept going. “Iggy!”

Ignis was still upright, still kneeling on the hard, hot ground, but he wasn’t looking up, wasn’t responding.

Not good. Not good.

Gladio finally got to him, dropping to his knees in front of him. “Iggy! Are you okay? You fell.”

“Indeed,” Ignis answered faintly. He held one hand pressed to his ribs on his left side. The other arm laid limply across his lap, a wide stretch of skin red and warped with an angry burn.

“Oh, man, Iggy…” Gladio tentatively touched the other man’s shoulder.

Ignis looked up, eyes weary, face dirty and sweaty, chin bruised. “Did you… Have you found them? Noct… and the others?”

“No.” Gladio shook his head. “I know where they are, though. I got your hint.” He smiled. “That was clever.”

“All in a day’s work,” Ignis murmured before groaning, bowing his head, clutching at his ribs.

“I led the imperials away from them,” Gladio explained.

“We have to get to them,” Ignis insisted. His whole body shuddered. “As soon as we can.”

“We will. But first I need to--”

“No, Gladio,” Ignis snapped, looking up again. “You don’t understand. We don’t have time.”

The hairs on the back of Gladio’s neck stood up. “What do you mean?”

“There are more of them, more imperials,” Ignis told him, reaching to clutch his arm. “I saw them, camped further down the trail, right after I fell. They didn’t see me, but they were organizing a search. They’ll be swarming up the rock any minute now, looking for us, looking for Noct.”

When he fell: Ignis

Ignis was an athlete, a trained fighter. He knew how to fall without hurting himself. But this time, he was falling with little control of how he fell or landed. The magitek trooper had knocked all the wind out of him with the blow from the polearm, and he was falling so far, so fast.

He hit a boulder first, and that hit--agonizing as it was--might have saved his life. His left leg caught on it, slowing his descent, angling him so that he fell not deep into a ravine or cavern, but against a steep rock slide, next to the lava flow. He slid on his already bruised left side first, then went flipping and rolling, then sliding again.

Finally, thank the gods, the friction of his body sliding against the rock beneath him slowed his descent, and he skidded to a stop, his feet mere inches from the lava flow.

He laid still for a moment, wheezing, coughing, unable to restrain a whimper of pain at the agony of damaged ribs. When he had recovered his wits sufficiently, he took stock of his position.

He had fallen and slid a ridiculously long way down the mountain, and now he laid in the shadow of a rock wall, with boulders all around him.

He tried to move, but his body, shocked by impact, did not respond.

Oh, gods, am I paralyzed?

Ignis gathered as much willpower as he could muster and pushed himself up on one elbow, pushed himself over on his back. That, at least, he could do, so he must not be entirely paralyzed, but pain clawed at his side, stealing his breath, making him dizzy, stealing his consciousness, forcing him to pass out.

He awoke later, not sure how long he had been unconscious, and he awoke to the sound of voices.

“--spotted their car--have it surrounded by guards now. Won’t be long before we find them.”

Footsteps, the clank of armor, the hum of machinery.

Imperials, he thought. More imperials on the rock.

“Someone said they came this way looking for children. Well, let no good deed go unpunished, I say.” The man laughed, and a couple other voices chimed in.

“We’ll find them, commander,” said another man. “My troopers are already scouring the rock, and I’ll send another team up as soon as I hear back from them.”

“Good. I’m returning to our camp now, soldier. I trust you’ll report to me whatever you find.”

“Of course, sir.”

They were so close. If he had fallen a few feet further down the path, out of the shadow of the rock and boulders, they would have seen him. He breathed a prayer of thanks to the gods and begged for one more miracle: Don’t let them find me. I have to warn Noct.

The imperial soldiers and magitek troopers milled about for a while longer, then the second man, who seemed to be second-in-command of these particular troops, led his men off in another direction, away from Ignis.

Ignis waited until he was sure they were out of sight and hearing range, then flipped back over on his stomach, biting his lip to keep from crying out at the pain jolting through his body. He looked up at the rock, considering how far he’d fallen and how far he’d have to climb…

Higher...he had to climb higher.

Chapter Text

Now: Prompto

“Noct, Noct, it’s me!” Prompto held up innocent hands. “It’s me, buddy, your old pal Prompto.”

Noct kept stalking toward him, eyes burning with a vengeful light, engine blade at the ready. “Where are they!? Where are the children!?”

“Uh… Behind me.” Prompto glanced over his shoulder to see that Mal and Elsie were, indeed, behind him and safe. The last wasp curled on the ground at their feet, dead, with Mal’s javelin sticking out of it. “They just killed some wasps with us, dude. I think they’ll make good hunters one day.”

“But where--” Noctis stopped walking shaking his head, then dismissing the engine blade to grab it with both hands. “Ugh, I can’t… I can’t think straight… I don’t know…”

“It’s toxin, killer wasp toxin,” Prompto tried to explain, wondering how the guys had put up with him when he had been stung. “You’re confused. It’ll have to wear off on his own.” He felt suddenly tired and frustrated. “We don’t have any potions with us. Again. Why do we keep assuming we can get through any mission without fifty potions in our pockets?”

“In the car,” Noct ground out between his teeth, bending over, hands on his knees. “The potions are in the car.”

“Right! Yes!” Prompto clapped his hands. “I think the toxin might be wearing off!”

“We need to get to the car.” Noctis turned to the wall and started wagging a finger at it. “Come on, Gladio. Let’s go to the car.”

“Uh… Dude? That’s a rock wall. That’s not Gladio. I mean, I can see the resemblance, but--”

Noctis spun so fast, Prompto didn’t even have time to gasp before the Lucian heir was on him, swinging his fists.

The sharpshooter grunted in pain, staggering back, when Noct’s fist connected with his jaw. And Noctis kept coming, punching, kicking, snarling.

Prompto blocked another punch to the face, crossing his arms in front of him. “Noct! Snap out of it, man! I don’t want to hurt you! Whoa!”

Noct launched his whole body at his friend, toppling them both to the rocky ground. Prompto got his knees up in time to block Noct’s knee jabbing at his groin, then rolled, grappling his friend, trying to hook a leg around him to pin him.

“What do we do?” Mal called.

“Just stay back!” Prompto called. “Stay--Ow!” He yelped as Noctis grabbed one of his hands and started bending his fingers backward. “Dude! Not fair!” He slid out from under Noct, rolled, then kicked his friend in the back with both legs.

Noctis sprawled on his face on the ground, and Prompto hopped to his feet.

“Stay down, man!” he urged.

But Noctis was up fast, warp striking at him, smashing a fist into his nose. Stars danced in Prompto’s vision, and he staggered back against the rock wall, gasping, tears springing unwanted to his eyes, clouding his vision. He reached up and felt hot blood running from his nose.

“Noct!” He dodged a punch, wincing in sympathy when Noct’s knuckles smashed into the wall. “Dude! Cut it out!”

Noct swung wildly at him, trying to backhand Prompto’s face, but his movements were undisciplined, sloppy, guided by mindless rage, and Prompto was able to duck and dodge.

When Noct stretched out his sword hand and started to summon his engine blade, Prompto knew he had to end the struggle now. Nose still smarting and bleeding, he threw himself at Noct, wrapping his arms around him, pinning Noct’s arms to his side and bringing him to the ground as gently as he could. Noctis struggled mightily, clawing at Prompto’s arms, but Prompto held on.

“I don’t want to have to knock you out, dude! Just be still!”

But Noct would not be still. He lurched, rolled, dragged Prompto under until his was on top of him, yanking his arms free, raising his fist and bringing it down, bashing Prompto in the cheek just under his eye.

“Noct, please! It’s me!” Prompto cried, struggling to grab Noct’s arms and keep them still.

Noctis drew back his fist for another mighty blow.

THWACK!

Noct’s head jerked to the side. His eyes rolled back and closed, and he slumped off of Prompto.

Prompto scrambled up to his knees, holding a hand to his nose, and looked up to see Mal standing there, javelin in hand.

The kid’s eyes were wide. “I didn’t--I didn’t kill him, did I?”

Prompto scooted to Noct’s side and touched his friend’s face. “No. He’s just knocked out. I think he’ll be alright.” He sighed and sat back on his butt. “Thanks, man.”

“You’re welcome.” Mal’s eyes fixed on Noct’s fallen form with mingled pride and regret.

“I hate killer wasps,” Prompto muttered.

Now: Ignis

“Gladio, you have to go.” His breath caught painfully, and Ignis winced, pressing a hand to his left side. “You have to warn Noct. There are too many of them for us to handle unprepared.”

Gladio nodded. “Right.” He clapped a hand on Ignis’s arm. “Let’s go.”

“No.” Ignis smiled sadly and shook his head. “I’m in no shape to ascend the rock. I was prepared to do so when I was the only one who could warn him, but now that you know--”

“Stop talking like that,” Gladio cut him off with a growl. “We’re going to Noct together.”

“Be reasonable,” Ignis snapped. “Look at me. I’ll only slow you down.”

“Then we’ll go slow.”

“Must you be so stubborn? Think of Noct. And Prompto. And those poor children. Gladio… You have to leave me behind.”

Gladio shook his head, jaw clenched.

“I can slow our enemy down. I can at least do that,” Ignis insisted.

“No,” Gladio answered hoarsely. “We’re going together, if I have to carry you.”

Ignis clenched his teeth, mind racing. He couldn’t let Gladio try to carry him up the rock. That would be madness. The MTs would catch up to them in no time, would easily overwhelm them and kill or capture them. Then the enemy would advance on Noct’s position and strike without warning. He shook his head. No. He couldn’t let that happen. But Gladio was not cooperating. He had to think of a way…

“Fine.” He heaved a dramatic sigh. “Let’s go.”

Gladio grinned crookedly and patted his shoulder. “I knew you’d see sense.” He stood and helped Ignis to his feet.

Ignis’s head spun as soon as he was upright. Every muscle in his body felt shaky. Every bone felt like mush… except for his ribs on the left side. Those felt like hot irons, knifing his lungs with every other breath.

“You look kinda pale, man,” Gladio said, frowning.

“Don’t be an imbecile. I told you I’m not in any shape to do this,” Ignis snapped, then sighed in remorse. “I apologize. That was… My tone was unkind.”

“To hell with tones. Let me carry you.” Gladio reached for him.

“No, no. I can walk with my polearm.” He summoned it, leaned on it immediately, taking weight off his left leg.

“Alright. Follow me.” Gladio turned and started walking back up the rock.

Ignis limped after him, teeth gritted, wondering if this would be the rest of his life--staggering his way up an interminable rock path, ever reaching, never grasping. The butt of the polearm skidded in gravel, sending a jolt of pain through his body. He coughed, kept going, kept putting one foot in front of the other, annoyed that Gladio kept looking back at him, trying to think of some way to force Gladio to leave him behind.

Steam hissed and uncoiled from cracks in the rock around them. The air was frightfully hot, threatening to steal what little breath Ignis could drag into his lungs. He could hear his own breathing now--rough and ragged and undignified. His world narrowed down to two goals: keep breathing and make sure Gladio gets to Noct.

Now: Gladio

Iggy wasn’t doing well. Anybody could see that. But Gladio wasn’t just anybody; he was Iggy’s friend. They had been friends for years now. They had been traveling together on the road for weeks now. If anybody knew the reserved advisor well, it was probably Gladio. Maybe Noct or Prompto, if they could get their minds off video games and focus on the real world for a while.

Gladio knew Ignis as well as anyone could know the man. So he thought he had a good idea of what Ignis might be thinking. He glanced back at him again, amazed the man was still upright, battered as he was by being knocked off a cliff. Maybe it would be best for both of them if Ignis just let go and passed out. Then he could rest. And then Gladio could carry him without worrying about the strategist strategizing a way to escape from Gladio and sacrifice himself fighting the MTs alone.

Ahead, a sheer rock wall rose toward the sky, and the path terminated at its base, leading to a metal ladder that looked a little rusty.

“Gladio,” Ignis panted as they halted beneath the ladder. “I’ll never make it up that ladder. You have to leave me behind.”

“Don’t sound so happy about it, Specs,” Gladio muttered, crossing his arms and gazing up at the ladder, wondering what he should do.

“Listen!” Ignis hissed. “Imperials! They’re close!”

Gladio went still, listening. Sure enough, he heard the tell-tale rattle of magitek armor rising up the rock, drawing near. He grabbed Ignis’s arm. “Come on!”

“Gladio, don’t be a fool!” Ignis snapped, snatching back his arm. “You have to find Noct and warn him, see if you can get him off this rock another way. There are too many of them.”

“I can’t leave you like this, Specs,” Gladio growled, his stomach twisting in knots.

Ignis grabbed the collar of his jacket and gave him a shake. “You’re a member of the Crownsguard,” the tactician whispered fiercely. “Your duty is to your king. Now get up that rock and see that Noct gets off it alive.”

Gladio ground his teeth, meeting Ignis’s intense stare with one of his own. He wanted so badly to be able to argue. He hated that Ignis was always right.

“Fine.” He covered Ignis’s hand with his own. “Fine. But try to stay alive. Noct will be disappointed in you if you don’t.”

Ignis gave him a little half smile. “No doubt. I’ll do my best.” He glanced over his shoulder, toward the clatter of MTs scaling the rock. “Now get out of here.”

Feeling terrible, feeling torn, Gladio gave Ignis’s shoulder a quick pat, then turned to climb the ladder.

Now: Noctis

The back of Noct’s head pounded, and he groaned, fighting against consciousness as it attempted to drag him into painful awareness. He rolled onto his side, drawing his knees up to his chest.

“Noct!”

Prompto.

“Hmm?” He kept his eyes shut. He had a feeling opening them would make his headache worse.

“Noct, do you recognize my voice?”

“Prompto.”

“Hey! That’s good! Do you remember what happened?”

Remember?

He thought hard, hard enough to make the headache worse… and what he remembered turned his stomach sour. He remembered fighting the wasps, remembered his and Prompto’s plan--a good one, he thought, Ignis would be proud of it. Then things got hazy. He remembered pain in his shoulder. He remembered confusion, anger, striking out, Prompto shouting at him, unstoppable rage, then blackness.

Gingerly, Noctis opened his eyes to see Prompto’s worried blue eyes peering down at him, two kids standing behind him. The boy was carrying a javelin. The girl was missing her scarf. And Prompto’s face was bruised, the bridge of his nose swollen.

“Prompto… What happened to your nose?”

“Funny you should ask.” Prompto grinned wryly. “You’ve got a pretty good haymaker, man.”

“Did I…?” Noctis sat up, dizzy, grimacing--both at the pain and at the thought of what he had done to one of his best friends.

“Don’t worry about it. Wasp toxin.” Prompto waved a dismissing hand.

“Sorry, Prompto.” Noctis reached toward his shoulder and felt extra fabric there, looked and saw Elsie’s scarf wrapped around his shoulder and upper arm. “Thanks for taking care of me, guys.”

“Think you’re okay to stand up?” Prompto offered a hand.

“Sure.” Noct took it and let his friend haul him to his feet. “Sorry again.”

“Nah. It’s fine,” Prompto insisted, but his bruised eye, jaw, and nose looked painful.

“How does a hotel sound tonight?” Noct suggested. “Complete with ice for your face.”

“Dude, that sounds so awesome.” Prompto glanced up at the sky, a sky from which the light was fading. “Still no sign of Ignis or Gladio. Think we should keep going, keep looking for them?”

Noctis stood akimbo and looked down the trail. “Haven’s that way.” He nodded toward it. “Let’s head to it. We’ll camp there for the night if we have to. Hopefully, we’ll find the others on the way. They probably know to try to meet us there.”

Chapter Text

Now: Ignis

Ignis hid in a crevice in the rock wall, sliding down against it, sitting carefully with his injured leg stretched out in front of him. He could see now that the leg was swollen just under the knee. He wondered if the bone was damaged; it felt like it might be. His burned arm scraped against the narrow wall of the crevice, and he sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth. Trying to soften the ragged noise of his breathing, he tilted his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.

Entirely against his will, Ignis lost his grip on consciousness.

He woke up with a start, annoyed with himself for being weak, and slid closer to the entrance of the crevice, peeking out to see a handful of MTs and an Imperial commander gathered at the base of the ladder Gladio had climbed.

“He’s definitely up there somewhere, the big one, Amicitia.” The commander pointed. “Go. Find him. Bring him back alive if you can, dead if you must.”

Ignis watched as five MTs stiffly ascended the ladder, perfectly in sync with each other, all focused on the goal of finding and capturing or destroying Gladio. Two MTs waited with the commander, a young man of average height with broad shoulders and slicked-back black hair. There were more MTs somewhere, he was sure, just not where he could see them from his hiding place.

“There was another man with him, but I didn’t see him climb the ladders. He must be nearby.” The commander stood akimbo, his gaze sweeping the rock, including the crevice where Ignis hid. “Find him and bring him to me.”

Ignis gritted his teeth and summoned his daggers, preparing himself for the inevitable. He rewarded the first MT to find him with a dagger to the face, sending his foe sprawling back.

Ignis pushed himself up to his feet and leaped out of the crack in the wall, slinging his other dagger straight into the MT’s throat. The MT tumbled backward and laid still. The other one moved toward him; he saw its approach from the corner of his eye and spun, summoning his daggers again, crossing them in front of him to block a blow from his enemy’s sword.

The impact of blade on blades was jarring. His left side spasmed with pain, and his left leg threatened to fold under him, but he forced his enemy’s blade back and up, then spun, crouched, and sent one dagger whirling through the air to lodge in the MT’s side. The MT stumbled, and Ignis stood, spun again, struck, slicing the MT across the back. The trooper collapsed next to his fellow, unmoving.

Pain crashed through Ignis’s frame, and he shuddered with it before steeling himself and turning to face the commander.

The commander clapped slowly, smiling. “A good showing! You must be the advisor, Scientia. I was told to watch out for you.”

Ignis drew back one dagger, ready to sling it, but the commander raised a long pistol, aiming it at Ignis’s chest.

“Think again, Scientia.” The commander continued to smile. “You’re outnumbered.” He whistled, and three more MTs strode up the rock. “And I have a gun. Your little no-name sharpshooter friend doesn’t seem to be with you, so you can’t say the same.” He cocked one dark brow. “You look a little worse for wear. Tangle with my first squad, did you? That would explain why they haven’t reported back.”

Ignis glared at the man, refusing to dignify his mockery with a reply.

The commander cocked his pistol and narrowed his eyes. “Where is he?”

Ignis lifted his chin, silent.

The commander waved his gun toward Ignis and glanced at the MTs. “Flank him. Hold him.”

Two of the troopers moved to either side of Ignis, grabbing his arms. The trooper to his right gripped his burned right arm roughly, metal-gloved fingers tearing at the burnt flesh, and Ignis sucked in a sharp breath.

The commander strode across the rock, coming close enough to shove his gun into Ignis’s chest. “I’ll ask again: Where is Noctis?”

Ignis locked his teeth together. Better to die than to answer.

“So… You choose a quick and honorable death, do you?” the commander guessed, lowering his gun, smiling again. His dark eyes swept over Ignis from head to toe and back again. “Noble of you. Loyal to the end. How nice.” His grin widened, big teeth gleaming white in his tanned face. “How nice for me. How very fun.” He took a step back, then lunged forward, bringing up his left arm to punch Ignis in the ribs.

Ignis gasped, eyes burning with involuntary tears of pain, as his already damaged ribs took further abuse. He barely had time to breathe before the imperial commander struck again and again, then slugged him hard in the stomach. His knees folded, feet slipping on the rock, but the MTs held him upright.

“Where is Noctis Lucis Caelum?” the commander demanded. His fist shot out again before Ignis could get another breath, pounding the air out of him. “Where is he?”

Ignis shook his head, barely able to manage that motion, barely able to breathe.

The commander flipped the pistol in his hand, gripping it by the barrel, then bent over and swung it, smashing the butt against Ignis’s wounded leg.

A cry of pain burst unbidden from Ignis’s lips, and he slumped against the MT to his left.

“Where is he?” the commander asked again.

Ignis caught enough breath to loose a short laugh. “You can’t possibly think I’ll tell you.”

The commander wrenched his right arm from the MT’s grasp, grabbing it around the burned portion, pinching and squeezing the injured skin until it felt as if it were being burned all over again. Ignis clenched his teeth around a scream he refused to let loose and shook his head.

“Drop him,” the commander ordered, keeping a tight grip on Ignis’s injured arm.

As soon as the MT’s grip loosened, Ignis crumpled to his knees, leaning forward on his left hand, gasping and hurting. The commander kept hold of his right arm, rubbing his thumb hard along the burn.

“You were a fool to stay at his side. You are a fool to remain loyal to him now. No one can withstand the might of the empire.” The commander’s voice was dangerously low and calm, heavy with conviction. He dropped Ignis’s arm and stepped back.

Ignis braced himself. His enemy’s boot swung hard and fast, catching him in the ribs and flipping him onto his back on the rock. A wet, violent cough burst from his lungs, and Ignis tasted something hot and metallic in his throat.

“Leave him,” the commander ordered, sounding disgusted. “We join the others in the search. This one won’t be getting up again.” He stood over Ignis and reached into his jacket, withdrawing a small, round object that glinted in the dying sunlight. “Ever seen one of these? Of course you haven’t. I invented it. It’s a bomb, a very powerful one. It’s strong enough to take out half of this rock. You see, I understand you, Scientia, because I’m like you, willing to die for my cause.” He smiled, dark eyes gleaming with a fanatic light. “Both of us might die for our causes today. If I can’t successfully capture, I am willing to blow up as much of this rock as I can to take him out with me.”

“No…” Ignis pushed himself up on one elbow, coughing, panting. “You can’t.”

“I will if I have to.” The commander shrugged. “What is my life compared to the glory of the empire?”

And what is my life compared to Noct’s?

Ignis lunged. With a last burst of strength, he threw himself at the imperial commander, but the MTs were on him fast, kicking him back down to land on his left side, pain knifing through his body.

The commander laughed softly. “It was a nice try, Scientia. I would wish you well… but, truly, I don’t. Come. Let us find our prey.” He turned his back on Ignis, tucking the bomb back into his jacket.

Ignis rolled onto his belly, head spinning, stomach roiling with nausea, and tried to push himself up on his knees, but his arms shook badly, and he collapsed with a sob of frustration.

The commander’s cold laughter faded as the man climbed the ladder, MTs clanking after him, leaving Ignis battered and hurt and alone.

Now: Prompto

The sky was mostly dark now, dark, dark blue, a fading gray light on the horizon the last remnant of day. Noctis, Prompto, and the two kids had reached the haven, but so far, there was no sign of Gladio or Ignis.

Mal and Elsie leaned together against a rock wall, sleeping. Mal still had a grip on the javelin Noct had given him, the one he’d used to slay the last killer wasp.

Prompto and Noct stood at the edge of the haven, looking down the path. Prompto fidgeted with the hem of his vest, tapping his foot, chewing on his lower lip.

“Has the bird moved yet?” Noctis asked quietly.

Prompto jogged across the haven to the other side, peering over the cliff to where the giant bird rested, head tucked under its wing. “Nope!”

Noct sighed. “Maybe we should have stayed with the eggs. What if Ignis and Gladio found another way to the nest and didn’t find us there?”

Prompto jogged back to Noct’s side. “They’d be able to guess we came here, right?”

“Maybe.” Noct went quiet, frowning, arms crossed.

Prompto tried to be quiet, too, but he couldn’t stop thinking, couldn’t stop moving, pacing back and forth, twirling his pistol. “Do you think they ran into the imperials?”

“Maybe.”

“I mean, Iggy and Gladio could handle a handful of imperials, right?”

“Yeah.”

“So no worries, right?”

“Right.”

“So why aren’t they back yet?”

Noctis glanced over his shoulder at Prompto, then looked past him to look at the kids. “If we didn’t have to stay with Mal and Elsie, we’d go after them.”

“I know, I just…” Prompto ran a hand through his hair. “Maybe I should go after them. I can sneak. I can be quiet. I’ll find out where they are, and I’ll be right back.”

“I don’t know…” Noct frowned. “We’re already split up. And I don’t think any of us should be alone on this rock after dark.”

Now: Ignis

He made it to the base of the ladder, dragging himself along on his elbows and one knee. He collapsed right under the ladder, one arm stretched out, hand gripping the bottom rung, wheezing. Breathing hurt badly now; his lungs felt full of glass. His throat was somehow both hoarse and wet, thick with something that tasted like metal. He did not want to think about it, but in the back of his mind, he knew it was blood.

If you keep going like this, you will die. You’re hurt inside. Your lungs are damaged. You’ll drown in your own blood if you insist on continuing this madness.

The voice in his head sounded so reasonable. It was reasonable. In general, internal voices aside, Ignis considered himself a reasonable person, a practical person; however, some things trumped reason. Loyalty trumped reason. Honor trumped reason. Noct trumped reason.

And so, groaning in agony, swallowing blood, body taut against the pain, Ignis dragged himself up onto his knees. He paused, leaning his head against the rungs of the ladder, forcing himself to breathe past the pain, gathering his strength.

He locked his fingers around the highest rung he could reach and pulled. His left side spasmed. He coughed, choked, swallowed, and dragged in a deep breath. He got his right knee under him, braced it against a lower run, pushed, pulled, got his left foot on a rung, pushed, pulled. He was on the ladder now, arms and legs trembling with the effort, lungs rattling and wheezing. The pain in his left leg had settled into a steady ache.

Higher… He had to climb higher.

Now: Gladio

The MT came at him, and Gladio dodged its strike, replying with the sharp edge of his sword and sending the trooper flying over the cliff. The next one came at him with a javelin, which he swept away with his sword.

The next two came at him at once, one with a sword, the other with a gun. He blocked a blow from the sword and tried to dodge the bullet. He was partially successful. The bullet missed anything vital, grazing the side of his neck, striking the rock wall and sending stone pellets flying.

Growling, Gladio kicked the MT with the sword backward, and the trooper went sprawling on the edge of the ledge. He jumped out of the way of the gunner’s next bullet, then slid along the ground, sprang up, and swung his sword, nearly cleaving the MT in two. He turned to face the one with the sword. Their blades clanged, sparking in the dark. His enemy came at him mercilessly, eyes glowing without a soul.

“Why won’t you guys just give up already!?” Gladio swore, blocking a heavy blow, then spun around behind his enemy and slashed down on the MT’s head, driving the trooper to the ground.

Gladio stood panting over the bodies of his foes, but he didn’t allow himself much time to rest. He had to keep going. He had to find Noct. As he hurried up the next ladder, he glanced behind him to see lights on the trail below. More imperials.

He hoped to the gods Ignis had avoided capture… or worse.

Now: Ignis

As Ignis got to the top of the ladder, his foot slipped. His heart leaped into his throat, fingers tightening convulsively around the last rung. Pulse pounding, he regained his footing on the ladder and push-pulled himself over the top, onto the next ledge, trembling and shaking like a leaf in a hurricane. He laid on the ground facedown, body heaving with heavy breaths, breaths that hurt like knives and tasted like blood.

Why are you doing this to yourself? Why must you suffer? How will you be of use anyway?

“The bomb,” Ignis murmured feverishly. “I know he has a bomb.”

And what are you going to do about that?

“Warn them. Save them.”

How?

It was indeed a dilemma. Even if he warned Noct and the others that the imperial commander had a bomb, the fanatical man could still set it off. And Ignis was moving so slowly, in fact, at this point, not moving at all, that he half expected half the Rock of Ravatogh to come crashing down on him at any moment in the inevitable explosion.

“Get up. Get up,” he muttered to himself, pushing himself up onto his hands and knees, coughing, shivering, spitting blood. He sat back on his heels, coddling his ribs, feeling their wrongness.

Despair washed over him, a dark and mighty tide, and he tilted his head back, panting, to gaze at the merciless night sky.

The sky…

A bird winged its way across the stars far, far away…

A bird…

Far away…

Something clicked in Ignis’s mind, an idea, a hope, something so far-fetched, it could never possibly work…

But what else did he have--what other option? What other plan?

He summoned his polearm, planted it firmly in the hard rock, and once again, dragged himself to his feet.

Chapter Text

Noctis

“Prompto! Someone’s coming! Take your position!” Noctis warned.

“Okay!” Prompto ducked down behind a boulder, summoning his pistol.

Noct hurried to where Mal and Elsie sat together leaning against the wall. He shook them gently. “Hey, you need to hide. Someone’s coming.”

The kids nodded, wide-eyed, and scrambled to hide behind another boulder near Prompto.

Noctis took his own position around the corner, flattening himself against the wall, engine blade in hand. He nodded to Prompto, who nodded back and took aim at the dark path.

The footsteps drew nearer, accompanied by harsh puffs of breath.

Noct lifted his sword, held it before him, gripped it with two hands, ready to strike.

“Wait!” Prompto hissed, holding up a hand. “I think it’s--!” He popped out from behind the boulder, grinning. “Gladio!”

Noctis’s knees went weak with relief, and he slumped against the wall for a moment before rounding the corner and dismissing his blade. He watched as Prompto and Gladio bumped fists in greeting.

“What happened to your face, Prom?” Gladio asked.

“Nothing. Just some wasps. Long story.”

“Sounds like it. The kids?”

“Safe.”

“Noct?”

Noctis moved closer, catching Gladio’s attention. “Well, well, well.” He crossed his arms in mock disapproval. “Look who’s late to the party.”

“I got held up.” Gladio shrugged, then winced, touching a nasty red line on his neck.

“You okay, man?” Prompto asked quickly.

“Yeah, just a scratch. Damn MTs are all over this rock.”

Noctis was afraid to ask the next question, but he had to do it. “What about Ignis? Have you seen him?”

Gladio made a face. “Yeah. He’s further down the rock.”

“What!? Why!?” Prompto demanded.

“He’s wounded, pretty badly. Got knocked off a cliff by an MT. I got to him, but more of them caught up with us. They’re everywhere.”

Noctis clenched his jaw, his disapproval no longer a joke. “And you left him? You just left him down there?”

“Hey, he insisted!” Gladio held up his hands. “He was hiding when I left him. He insisted I find you and warn you. So here I am. We need to get moving. We need to get off this rock now.”

Noct shook his head, stomach knotted with worry. “No. We can’t leave Ignis.”

Gladio took a step toward him, looming large. “I’m getting you off this mountain first. You and the kids. Then Prompto and I can come back for Iggy.”

“Whoa! Wait a minute!” Prompto protested. “Noct--”

“--doesn’t get a say so,” Gladio finished. “I’m his shield. I’m supposed to protect him.” He was talking to Prompto, but his eyes were narrowed on Noctis. “And if I say he gets off this rock, he gets off this rock. No questions asked.”

“That’s not how it works,” Noct argued. “You can’t just force me to go. I’m going back for Ignis. Prompto, stay here with the kids.”

“Hey, Noct--” Prompto started.

“Uh-uh.” Gladio’s big hand shot out and smacked into Noct’s chest, keeping him from stepping off the haven. “You’re not going that way.”

Noctis sighed heavily. “Dude, I’m going back for Ignis.”

“I’m going back for Ignis,” Gladio argued. “But first--”

“Noct!” Prompto shouted in warning.

Noctis tore his angry gaze from Gladio’s face to see an unfamiliar man standing in the middle of the trail below him. He stepped back from Gladio, summoning his sword in unison with Gladio summoning his larger one. Prompto stepped up beside him, pistol locked and loaded.

“How touching,” the man in imperial uniform declared, white teeth flashing in the dark. “Scientia would be so touched to hear you arguing over who gets to save him.”

“Where is he?” Noctis demanded. “Where is Ignis?”

“By now?” The man shrugged. “Probably dead or close to it. How long does it take a man’s lungs to fill up entirely with blood? I forget.”

“You bastard!” Gladio growled, stepping forward, sword before him.

The man laughed. “I’m no bastard. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Maron Withis, and I am a commander in the imperial army. And these--” He spread his arms wide, and MTs began pouring out of the shadows, flanking him on the path. “--are the troops at my command. I suggest you surrender, Prince Noctis, before the rest of your friends face a fate similar to Scientia’s.”

Ignis

His slow pace allowed Ignis time to think, time to plan his strategy for defeating two birds with one stone--or one bomb.

First, he would have to get the actual bird’s attention… without getting caught and eaten, which would be a challenge since he was moving slowly… although… getting snapped up quickly in a sharp beak would end this constant pain, this struggle to breathe, this…

Ignis shook his head, mentally shaking himself as well. This was no time for self pity. This was no time to allow pain and weariness to dictate his thoughts. He had to keep a clear head, had to come up with a plan--and fast, before Commander Crazy blew up the Rock of Ravatogh and everything in the world Ignis cared about with it.

The zu. How to get the zu’s attention without getting eaten?

Prompto

This wasn’t good.

This was so not good.

This was most definitely very bad.

Prompto sat on the cold, hard ground of the haven, shoulder to shoulder with Mal and Elsie, legs stretched out, arms pinned to his side by the heavy duty cables that looped around him and the kids, binding them together.

Gladio and Noctis were nearby, similarly bound together, back to back.

Commander Withis’s MTs had them surrounded, and the commander himself paced around them in circles, smirking and smug.

“This guy is the worst,” Prompto muttered, straining against his bonds.

“What’s he going to do to us?” Elsie whispered.

It burned Prompto up that this guy had captured the kids, too. Why not let them go? They weren’t part of Noct’s retinue. They were innocent, from wherever you were standing. But the imperials hadn’t cared about who was innocent in a long time, he thought.

“Don’t worry, Elsie,” he whispered back. “We’ll get out of this. We always find a way out of trouble. And plus, Ignis is still out there, and he’s the smart one.”

“But didn’t the commander say your friend was hurt pretty bad?” Mal pointed out.

Prompto’s chest clenched with worry. “Well, yeah, but… He’s Ignis. If anyone can get us out of this situation, Ignis can.”

Ignis

Going downhill had been much easier than going up, save for the painful jarring of his injured shinbone with every downward step. Now he had finally reached the valley and zu, and at last, he had his plan.

Ignis leaned against the wall, panting, blood in his nose, blood in his mouth, side cramping, tempted to rest. But he didn’t have time. That madman commander could decide to set off his bomb at any moment, and the whole rock was suspiciously quiet, as if it were waiting. The only noise he heard was the sibilant, rhythmic breathing of the zu.

He had run out of time to rest and run out of space to back out of his plan. Steeling himself, Ignis grabbed the flashlight on the front pocket of his shirt and aimed its beam directly at the zu. He cupped his hand around the light, focusing it, narrowing the beam on the giant bird’s closed eye. Under the beam, the eyelid flickered. The zu huffed out a heavy breath.

“Come on. Open your eyes. Come to the light,” Ignis murmured, bouncing the beam.

The bulging bird eye flicked open, pupil narrowing in the light. The zu hissed and fluffed herself off the stony ground, feathers ruffled with sleep, eyes narrowed on the beam of light.

Ignis aimed the light along the ground, and the zu followed it, just as he had hoped. He began backing up, back up the trail, toward the haven, where he had caught a glimpse of silhouettes, shadows against the glowing symbols marking the haven a safe place. Noct was there, and Gladio and Prompto and the children. And this madman, this fanatical imperial, and his troops.

If Ignis had anything to do with it, and any strength left in his body to get him there, the zu would soon be there, too.

Gladio

This Nif was crazy, Gladio thought, watching Commander Withis march around the haven, babbling on about destiny and the empire and sacrifice. He wondered if the man’s superiors realized this or if Withis had gone rogue. Crazy or not, he was the Nif who had captured them, bested them, and that stung--that a crazy man was the one to capture them.

“It’s not over yet,” Noctis muttered, as if reading Gladio’s mind. “We’re still alive. And he’s still talking.”

“Yeah. Wish he would shut up.”

“Maybe not. Maybe we can use that.”

“Huh. Now you sound like Ignis.”

“One of us needs to.”

“Well how can we use this crazy guy’s mouthiness, your royal smartness?”

“Distract him. Keep him talking. Gain ourselves enough time to escape.”

“Yeah, and how? They tied these cords pretty tight.”

“We’ll find a way.”

For the umpteenth time, Gladio strained against the cords, muscles bulging in his arms and neck. The cords dug into his skin, immovable, and he sighed, swearing.

“Can we slide them over our heads?” Noctis suggested.

“Maybe… if Commander Crazy and his MTs aren’t looking.” Hope surged anew through Gladio’s veins. “You’re skinny enough to wiggle down a little. If you can slip out, I can follow you. All we need is a moment’s distraction. They caught us off guard by surprise and strength of numbers, but if surprise is on our side--”

“Commander!”

The familiar voice rang like shattered glass over the rock.

Commander Withis turned toward it, toward the downward trail. The MTs turned in unison.

Gladio strained to see through the dark, strained to see Ignis, wondering how in the name of the gods his injured friend had made it up the rock alone.

Ignis stood in the center of the path, shoulders hunched and heaving with panting breaths. He held his flashlight, aiming its beam somewhere behind him in the dark.

“Well, well, well.” The commander clapped. “If it isn’t my old friend Scientia. I’m impressed you’ve made it this far.” He stepped down the trail, motioning for the MTs to remain behind. “And just what is it that you think to accomplish here, other than your own demise?”

“Yours, actually,” Ignis answered, advancing up the trail, limping, free hand pressed hard to his left side.

“You know I don’t care about that. I’m not threatened.” Withis looked back at his prisoners, grinning wickedly. “I will die… and they will die.” He turned his back on Ignis, apparently not seeing him as the threat Gladio knew he could be. He reached into his jacket and withdrew a round metal object. “When funeral bells ring for me, they will speak of my glorious death and my sacrifice for the empire. They will speak of the moment I gave my life to destroy Prince Noctis and his allies.”

“Gladio… What’s he got in his hand?” Noctis whispered.

“Something bad,” Gladio guessed.

Withis turned his back on them again, facing Ignis, holding the device aloft. “Look what you’ve done, Scientia. You’ve destroyed everything you live for.”

“I don’t think so,” Ignis replied calmly. He sidestepped off the path, faster than Gladio would have guessed he could with his injuries. He swung the beam of his flashlight forward and yelled, “Noct! Gladio! Prompto! Look out!”

The ground trembled with pounding footsteps, and a gust of heavy wind swept up the path.

Gladio hauled himself to his feet--and Noctis with him--throwing them both behind a boulder and hoping Prompto had the presence of mind to do the same thing.

Chapter Text

Ignis

The zu swept up the stony path, chasing the light that had awakened her, wings spread, majestic in size and power. Ignis leaned heavily against the rock wall and aimed his light directly at the imperial commander, letting it bounce off the metal of the commander’s bomb.

The commander’s eyes were wide, mouth opened in surprise and terror. He raised his gun and fired at the zu. His bullet clipped one of her wings, but she kept coming, loosing a deafening screech. Her wings battered the air, brushing the walls on either side of the trail, and her clawed feet lifted from the ground, stretching out, stretching toward the commander.

The zu’s feet closed around the man and lifted him up into the air.

“Higher,” Ignis urged, slumping against the cool rock wall. “Higher…” He looked across the haven, looked to see the MTs milling about in confusion.

Prompto and the two children huddled together low to the ground against a wall.

Gladio and Noctis were working their way out of the cords binding them together. Noctis slipped loose and summoned his engine blade, turning on the MTs.

The commander, aloft in the grip of the zu, screamed overhead.

“Noct!” Ignis shouted, and the shout cost him, summoned blood up from his damaged lungs. “Get down! Gladio! Get him down!”

The night sky exploded in a boom like thousands of crackles of thunder. Fire ripped through the dark, and a concussive force pushed violently down on the rock, shaking it, rattling loose stones, knocking a couple of MTs to their knees, sending one flying off the cliff entirely, pushing Ignis to slide down the wall, powerless to resist.

Noctis

Gladio grabbed Noctis by the back of his jacket and shoved him to the ground behind the boulder as the explosion ripped through the air overhead and shook the whole Rock of Ravatogh. Bits of roasted zu and hundreds of loose feathers rained down on the haven.

“Where’s--” Noct tried to lift his head.

“Stay down,” Gladio growled above him, holding him down with an iron grip.

“But--”

“Stay down!”

Noctis swore in frustration. He had to know what had happened to Ignis, to Prompto, to the kids.

“Prompto!” Gladio yelled, his voice drilling through Noctis’s eardrums.

“We’re okay!” Prompto called back. “Getting loose!”

“Watch out for the MTs!” Gladio hollered.

“Got it!”

Dust and debris swept across the haven on a mighty wind, and Noctis and Gladio coughed.

“Prompto, see if you can get to Ignis!” Noctis called.

“MTs are in the way!” came Prompto’s reply.

“Gladio--”

“Okay, okay. Let’s get ‘em.”

The pressure on Noct’s back let up, and he sprang to his feet alongside his shield. Another heavy breeze swept over the rock, clearing some of the dust, revealing the locations of the enemy troopers, and Noct and Gladio rushed forward with their swords.

Prompto

“Kids, stay back!” Prompto ordered them, drawing his pistol and turning toward the fight.

“Eww, there’s something sticky on me!” Elsie shrieked.

“Yuck, it’s dead zu pieces!” Mal cried, backing away from her.

“Get it off her, dude, and stay away from the MTs!”

Prompto cocked his pistol and rushed into the fray firing once, twice, and taking down one of the MTs. One of them came at him with a dagger, jabbing toward his side, but he dodged, kicked, fired, and sent the MT sprawling--sprawling, but not dead. The trooper came at him again, then Gladio was there, crushing the enemy with his massive sword.

“Thanks, dude.” Prompto fist bumped his muscular friend.

“Don’t mention it.” Gladio glanced around. “Noct? Is that all of them?”

“Yeah. I think we got ‘em all. I’m gonna look for Ignis.”

Ignis

He had done his job, and he had done it well, ridding the rock of its two greatest threats to Noct: the zu and the mad imperial commander.

Ignis slumped at the base of the rock wall, coughing in the dust that swirled around him. His left leg had gone numb, and the burn on his arm stung. It was his side that really hurt now, broken ribs knifing at his lungs with every breath. One of them must have broken through or at least nicked a lung, judging by the amount of blood that kept rising up in his throat and choking him. He swallowed another gush of it, swallowed thickly, then almost panicked when he couldn’t breathe for a moment. But the air came back--painfully--and he sighed and bowed his head.

He was tired, so tired, from ascending the rock, from fighting, from bleeding. And now he was cold. Funny how hot the rock could be during the day, how miserably hot, and then how cold it could be at night. The rock wall behind him might as well have been ice.

“Ignis!” Noct’s voice echoed down the path.

Ignis tried to call out to him, but failed, choking again, coughing harshly. He managed to lift a hand to wave his flashlight.

Noctis came running, dropping to his knees beside Ignis, and Ignis would have scolded him for scraping his knees on the rock… if he could have gotten enough breath to scold.

“Oh, man, Iggy…”

Ignis attempted a smile, then started to cough again. He brought the back of his hand to his mouth, blocking the cough, blocking the blood from Noct.

“Your arm…” Noctis gently touched his advisor’s arm, just below the burn. “Looks like it hurts.”

“Mmm.” Ignis nodded, swallowing fiercely, wincing at the taste. “Little bit. The children?”

“Are safe. Prompto’s taking care of them.” Noct smiled. “He seems to have taken to them.”

“Gladio?”

“Alright.”

“And you, Noct?” Ignis rasped.

“Fine. Thanks to you, I’m guessing. Did you know about the bomb?”

Ignis nodded.

Noctis laughed suddenly, wiping at his eyes. “You’re a miracle, Iggy. Do you know that? You’re a freakin miracle.”

Noctis

“Gladio!” Noctis called over his shoulder. “Come help me with Iggy!” He turned back to the strategist. “That was some of your best work, Specs. Now tell me what's hurting you.”

Ignis’s face was almost white in the light of Noctis’s flashlight. Thin rivulets of blood ran from his nose and one corner of his mouth, and his eyes were shadowed by dark rings. The burn on his arm was ugly and obvious, and Noct also noticed how stiffly he held his left leg and how he had a hand pressed to his side… not to mention the coughing and the stuttering breaths.

But his advisor smiled. “Lots.”

“I figured. We don’t have any potions with us--”

“--against my suggestions.”

“--but we’ll get you to the Regalia as fast as we can.”

“It’s guarded,” Ignis rasped. “Heard the commander--” He coughed, bringing a hand to his mouth, and the cough shook his whole body and shook a groan from him, too.

“Don’t worry, Iggy.” Noctis gently touched his friend’s shoulder. “We’ll get you patched up as soon as we can.”

Ignis just kept coughing, doubling over, and Noctis realized with horror that the tactician was coughing blood into his hand.

Gladio came running up, demanding, “Iggy, how the hell did you make it up this rock?”

But Ignis couldn’t answer; he was choking, wheezing, gasping, trying to breathe through the dreadful, wet coughs.

“Gladio, what do we--?”

“Keep him upright, Noct, support him so he can breathe,” Gladio ordered, kneeling beside him.

Noctis moved closer to Ignis, grabbing his shoulder and uninjured arm, holding him up. His stomach clenched with fear as Ignis slumped against him with a whimper and a strangled apology, wiping blood from his lips.

“Hey, no apologies, Specs. Gladio said you got knocked off a cliff.”

Ignis nodded against Noctis’s shoulder, finally not coughing, dragging in arrhythmic gulps of air.

Noct slid an arm behind his friend, supporting him, trying not to jostle or bump against any injury. “Broken ribs?”

Ignis nodded again.

“Hey! Where’s Iggy? Was the exploding bird his idea?” Prompto jogged down the trail to join his friends.

“Yeah. One of his best ones so far,” Noctis told him.

Prompto crouched in front of Ignis, studying him closely. “You okay, Iggy?”

“Tolerably,” Ignis rasped, “having been knocked off a cliff.”

“Aw, man! You’re the bomb!” Prompto reached out as if to give Ignis a fist bump or a pat on the arm, but seemed to think better of touching the injured man and withdrew his hand. “Hang in there. We’ll get you back to the Regalia and all our potions.”

“Your nose--” Ignis started, then coughed, his head tipping back against Noct’s shoulder.

Noctis and Prompto exchanged glances, and Noct was tempted to start apologizing all over again for Prompto’s bruised and swollen nose.

“Killer wasps again. I hate those things,” Prompto answered lightly.

“Ah.” Ignis closed his eyes with a soft grunt of pain.

“Iggy says the car is guarded,” Noctis told the others. “More MTs. I think we can handle them… but we’ve also got to get Ignis and the kids safely off the rock. Any ideas, guys?”

“I have an idea.”

Gladio and Prompto turned. Mal and Elsie were approaching them, almost shyly.

“Yeah, Mal?” Prompto asked, sounding proud of the kid.

“Yeah. Me and Elsie found some slides, really steep ones, near the big nest. We were too scared to try them after we got trapped here this morning, then the big bird was in the way, but we think they might lead to somewhere close to the bottom of the rock.” He and Elsie shared a smile. “But we’re not scared now. And if it will help you guys… then we’re all in.”

Chapter Text

Gladio

Ignis was somehow still conscious when they got to the “slide” the kids had mentioned--a long, narrow chute carved into the side of the rock, angling down and ending gods knew where. Gladio crouched at the top of the chute, setting Ignis down beside it, listening anxiously to the awful, wheezing sound of Ignis’s breaths. He sounded like a man drowning, and Gladio thought he probably was--drowning in blood from his damaged lungs.

If they didn’t get to the Regalia fast, Ignis would die.

If this stone slide ended in a steep drop or a lava flow, they would all die… except for maybe Noctis, who could warp to safety and maybe, just maybe, save one of them with him.

Gladio decided to make the decision Ignis would want him to make--the right decision. He stood, crossing his big arms over his chest.

“I’ll go first and make sure it’s safe. I’ll yell back up to you when I’m at the bottom.”

Noctis looked like he might argue, but Gladio narrowed his eyes on him and set his jaw, and Noct nodded.

“Alright. But be careful.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Gladio stood at the top of the chute and took a deep breath. Then he plopped down and pushed himself off.

The base of the chute was smoother than he’d thought, and within seconds, he was sliding so fast that everything around him was a blur. He let out a whoop of pleasure as he slid faster and faster, around a curve, over a bump, and then over the edge of the end of the chute, tumbling onto a ledge just a few feet down from the end of the chute. He hopped to his feet, exhilarated, and looked around. His exhilaration increased when he noticed familiar walls and curves of rock and the familiar stream of lava in the distance. He wasn’t far from the bottom of the rock.

He turned and cupped his hands around his mouth and bellowed, “I’m down! It’s safe!”

He hoped they could hear him from all the way at the top.

Prompto

Gladio’s voice came ringing back up the ramp, and Prompto jumped to his feet. “Guys! He made it! He made it down!”

“Good. Let’s get Ignis down.” Noctis knelt next to Ignis, who looked like he was already a ghost--pale, with blood on his face, dark circles around his eyes behind his glasses.

Prompto crouched on Ignis’s other side, looking across him at Noct, who looked just as worried as he felt. “Dude… We’re gonna have to be careful.”

“I know.” Noct’s eyes didn’t leave Ignis’s face.

Ignis stared somewhere beyond them, beyond the kids even, eyes glazed with pain, panting in soft, ragged breaths.

“Iggy?” Prompto asked quietly. “Can you hear me?”

“Prompto,” Ignis breathed.

“Yeah, Specs. It’s me. We’re gonna have to move you, okay?”

Ignis nodded faintly.

Prompto clenched his teeth and nodded to Noct, and they got their arms carefully under Ignis’s, dragging him closer to the top of the slide. Ignis groaned, clenching his bloody teeth.

“Sorry,” Prompto murmured.

Ignis didn’t answer, falling against him, limp and breathing hard.

“How are we gonna do this, Noct?”

“One of us needs to slide in front of him to cushion his fall. The other will need to steady him.” Noct looked over his shoulder at Elsie and Mal, who hovered quietly. “You two follow after we’re down, okay? Take care of each other.”

“We will,” Elsie said with a nod. “Like you guys do.”

That warmed Prompto’s heart, and he flashed the kids a grin before turning his attention back to Noct. “I’ll take point and break Iggy’s fall if I have to.”

“Okay. Let’s go.”

Prompto slid down the chute a couple of feet, then braced himself and reached back for Ignis’s legs, which he gently pulled around him, trying not to think about how Iggy stiffened up and groaned when Prompto touched his left leg. The blond sharpshooter could feel how swollen it was through Iggy’s trouser leg.

“Got him!”

Noct scooted down behind Ignis and leaned the tactician back against him. “Alright. Hang on, guys!”

“Woohoo! Let’s go!” Prompto dropped his feet from the walls of the slide, and immediately, he went flying down it, dragging Ignis and Noctis along behind him. He whooped again as they picked up speed and banked around a curve. This was great! If they weren’t racing death down the rock, he thought it might be one of his favorite road trip moments.

They finally went flying over the lip at the bottom--right into Gladio’s arms. With Gladio and Prompto bracing him and Noctis supporting him, Ignis was barely jolted by the landing, and Prompto turned and shifted in Gladio’s grasp to help gently lower Ignis to the ground.

“Ignis?” Noct asked as they crowded around their injured friend.

“That was… bracing,” Ignis panted with a slight smile. Then he started coughing again, and Gladio hurried to support him, drawing him back against his shoulder as Iggy continued to cough, spraying flecks of blood from his mouth. The coughs ended in a whimper that sounded almost like a sob.

Prompto didn’t think he could stand seeing Iggy cry. He jumped to his feet, his own eyes burning, and summoned his pistol. “I’ll scout ahead.” He waited until the kids were down safely and waved to them before jogging down the stony path.

Noctis

Noctis grabbed Ignis’s hand and squeezed it tight. “Hang in there, Specs. We’re almost to the car.”

With his other hand, Ignis grabbed a fistful of Gladio’s shirt, and he held on to Noct’s hand and Gladio’s shirt as he coughed again, choking on blood until Gladio lifted him higher and he could spit it out. After this round of coughing, he closed his eyes, breathing raggedly, desperately. A tear leaked from one eye, trickling down his face to mingle with the blood.

Noct and Gladio met eyes over their friend’s trembling form.

Noct squeezed Ignis’s hand, released it, and scrambled to his feet.

Gladio frowned. “Where are you going?”

“Keep him safe. Follow me at a distance,” Noctis ordered, summoning his engine blade.

“Noct--”

“That’s an order, Gladio!” Noctis snapped, rage and fear sharpening the edges of his voice.

Gladio clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes, but he nodded, looking back down at Ignis.

Noctis spun on his heel and hurried to catch up with Prompto, reaching to squeeze the sharpshooter’s bony shoulder.

“I’m sorry,” Prompto said, all in a rush, “I couldn’t stand it. I couldn’t--couldn’t watch that. It’s awful… He’s--”

“It’s okay,” Noct told him firmly. “We’re going to save him.”

“Yeah…”

“Don’t doubt it. We will.” Noctis was tempted to look back, to see if Gladio was following, to see if Ignis was still alive, but he knew looking back wouldn’t help anything now.

He and Prompto followed the trail down the rock, avoiding creatures that crawled in the shadows, hopping over slender rivers of lava, and finally making it to the bottom, to the rocky plains of Ravatogh. He could see the Regalia now, gleaming under a streetlight, flanked by four MTs.

“Ha. Just four of them.” Prompto spun his pistol to the ready. “Piece of cake.”

“Yeah. We’ve got this.”

“Got a plan?”

“What is it Iggy says?” Noctis gave his sword a twirl, smiling a vengeful smile. “Crush the opposition.”

“Noct--”

Noctis warped, striking the nearest MT square in the chest, then thrusting his sword through the trooper. As the trooper fell from his blade, he heard the crack of Prompto’s gunfire.

Vengeance was sweet.

Gladio

The sounds of battle echoed up the rock, but Gladio barely heard them. His ears were assaulted by the awful sound of Iggy’s struggle to breathe.

Ignis slumped against him, chest and stomach heaving with breaths, breaths that were hard for him, breaths that hurt him. He buried his face in Gladio’s shoulder, one hand pressed hard to his ribs, the other tangled in Gladio’s shirt.

“Just keep breathing, Iggy. I know it hurts. Just keep breathing,” Gladio soothed.

Ignis wheezed unsteadily in reply.

“You did so good back there.”

“Well,” Iggy corrected in a rasp.

“So good,” Gladio continued with a chuckle. “Man, the bird, the explosion… You saved our butts, big time. Again. And I don’t know how you made it up this rock on that leg, hurt like that. You’re a real tough guy, you know that?”

“Responsible,” Iggy corrected hoarsely.

“Yeah, that, too.”

“Can we--can we help?” a soft voice asked, and Gladio looked up to see the two kids standing nearby watching with wide, worried eyes. He had almost forgotten about them.

“No, I don’t think so. Not now.” Gladio glanced around the rock. “Just stay close. Probably dangerous out here at night.”

“We were stupid to come up here,” the boy lamented.

“Yeah,” Gladio agreed, “but you’re wiser now. You’ve learned a lesson.”

“We learned how to fight wasps, too,” the girl added.

“That’s a pretty good lesson. Don’t forget what you’ve learned.” He cocked an eyebrow at the boy. “You got a javelin?”

“Prince Noctis gave it to me,” the boy said with a nod.

“Get yourself and the girl off this rock,” Gladio told him. “Be careful. Avoid fights if you can. Get to Noct and Prompto. I’ll be right behind you.”

The boy nodded and took the girl’s hand, and they hurried off together in the dark.

Gladio looked down at Ignis, holding him tighter, frightened by the tremors running through the other man’s body. “Iggy?”

“Mmm.”

“We need to get moving. I don’t hear the fighting anymore.”

“Noct... “

“Took care of the situation, like a man,” Gladio said proudly.

Ignis smiled faintly, then frowned and groaned. Another violent cough shuddered through him, and he choked and tried to lurch out of Gladio’s grasp.

“Hey, easy, man. I’ve got ya.” Gladio held on tight.

“Gladio, I--” Ignis gave a sharp cry, fingers tightening convulsively around Gladio’s shirt. He coughed again, then turned his head and vomited blood all over the ground.

“Oh, man, Iggy…”

Ignis’s head tilted back against Gladio’s shoulder. Blood leaked from both corners of his mouth and down from his nose. He moaned pitifully, his eyes meeting Gladio’s for a moment, wide and panicked as he gasped for breath, then his eyes rolled back in his head and shut, and he went limp, his hand dropping from Gladio’s shirt.

“No, no, no! Come on, Iggy! Come on!” He got to his feet fast, hauling Ignis up in his arms. “Not again, Specs! Stay with me!”

As he started running down the rock, he had no idea if Ignis was still breathing or not.

Noctis

Noctis and Prompto met Elsie and Mal at the base of the rock.

“Get to the car and stay there,” Noct ordered them, pointing toward where the car was parked. “We’ll be back as soon as we can.”

The kids nodded to him and ran hand-in-hand toward the Regalia.

Noctis and Prompto started back up the path. They had only gone a dozen yards or so when they saw Gladio running toward them, carrying Ignis in his arms.

Noct’s heart jumped into his throat, and he started running. “Gladio!”

“Potions?” Gladio yelled.

“Yeah!”

They met beside a large boulder, and Gladio dropped to his knees, cradling Ignis against his chest.

“Oh, gods, Noct!” Prompto cried. “Is he--?”

“I don’t know!” Noct cut him off, kneeling, dropping potions all over the hard ground. He swore when one of the flasks shattered, setting loose a wasted steam of healing materials.

“Come on, Iggy! Open your eyes!” Gladio ground out, giving Ignis a shake.

The strategist was completely limp, arms and legs dangling, head tipped back. But he was alive. Noctis could see that from the deliberate, desperate rise and fall of his chest.

With shaking fingers, Noctis unbuttoned Ignis’s shirt, sickened at the sight of dark bruises all over Ignis’s ribcage, darkest and ugliest over his left side.

“Here! Here!” he cried, hands still shaking as he crushed a flask over the darkest bruises.

Ignis took a breath, rough, but deep.

Prompto leaned down and crushed another flask over Ignis’s chest.

Ignis coughed, and Noctis winced, but this time, no blood sprayed from the tactician’s lips.

Noctis administered a third potion to Ignis’s ribcage and watched in morbid fascination as the bones beneath the bruised skin shifted, then expanded as Ignis took a deeper, easier breath.

“It’s working,” Gladio rumbled.

“Thank the gods…” Noct touched Ignis’s shoulder.

“Here. I’ll get his leg.” Prompto knelt by Ignis’s feet and reached to crush a potion near Ignis’s knee.

Noctis gently lifted the strategist’s right arm and administered a potion to the burn on his forearm, satisfied to see its angry redness fade.

Ignis’s eyelids fluttered.

“Iggy?” Noct asked. “Can you hear me?”

Ignis worked his bloody lips, swallowed, then murmured hoarsely, “Noct?”

Noctis, Gladio, and Prompto sighed together in mutual relief. Prompto flung himself backward on the ground with a chuckle.

“We’re here, buddy. We’re all here. And we’re safe.” Noctis took Ignis’s hand.

“Gods…” Gladio bowed his head, adjusting his grip on Ignis, holding his friend closer.

“Group hug!” Prompto declared, springing up from the ground and flinging his skinny arms around the others, drawing them all close.

Ignis

He opened his eyes in darkness and took a careful, experimental breath. His lungs expanded easily. He laid a hand along his ribcage on the left side, pressing gingerly, and discovered some soreness, but nothing out of place.

Ignis sighed, his whole body relaxing with relief. He licked his lips and tasted neither blood nor sweat. He lifted his left leg and bent the knee. No pain. He ran his left hand along his right arm and found the skin to be smooth save for a little sliver that bumped up slightly.

He was alright.

His friends had saved him… his brothers.

He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed, looking around as his eyes adjusted to the darkness. He remembered now where he was--in the caravan near Verinas Mart. He could hear Gladio snoring from somewhere nearby.

Ignis took a deep breath and sighed, then laid back down.

He closed his eyes and dreamed of lush green forests, cool waters, and nothing resembling the Rock of Ravatogh.