The Sole Star (Final Fantasy XV Fanfic)

Chapter XV

"So, what did you think of the stars?" Prompto asked curiously, walking alongside the girl.

Lorelai flashed him a smile. "They were... pretty. I'd almost forgotten how beautiful the stars could be. It's been so long since I've really noticed them."

"Because of your nyctophobia?"

The girl nodded. "Yeah. Promise me you won't tell anyone. I don't want people to know just how weak I am."

He placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to stop. "Lorelai, you are far from weak. You're probably one of the strongest people I've ever met. But if it makes you feel better, I won't tell anyone." He smiled.

She smiled back. "Thank you, Prompto. Let's hurry. No telling how far these ruins go."

Now inside Steyliff Grove, the two friends found themselves venturing down dark corridors. The only lights were their own and the few that lined some of the walls. One of the rooms they entered housed skeletons. Lorelai and Prompto summoned their weapons. The daemons were easy to defeat, a single strong blow scattering their bones. But before the skeletons were all killed off, a reaper appeared. While Prompto shot the remaining skeletons, Lorelai clashed scythes with the reaper.

It repeatedly slashed at her, but she blocked its blows by twirling her scythe in front of her. She made it stumble back with her light and took the opportunity to slice its body in half, destroying it. She sighed, knowing the fight was over. But one last skeleton crept up behind her, ready to pounce. Before Prompto could warn her, the girl whirled around, kicking the skeleton's head off its body and slicing through it.

Prompto skipped over to her, a goofy grin on his lips. "Wow, and you call yourself weak! You did a great job!"

Lorelai giggled. "Thanks, but those were just small fries. Marco said that a powerful beast guards this place."

Prompto's grin instantly faded and his expression turned to one of worry. "H-How strong we talkin'?"

"I'm sure we can handle it," she replied, placing her hands on her hips. "It can't be any worse than the zu."

Prompto only nodded, unsure of her words. Without the others there to help, the guardian of Steyliff could prove too much for them. They continued through rooms and corridors, killing any daemons in their path, until they came to a large room with water covering the ceiling. They both leaned over the railing, gazing up at the sight. The water rippled and reflected a blue light that lit up the room.

"What the hell?" Prompto said in shock. "Is that... water... on the ceiling? Are we, like, underwater right now?"

Lorelai couldn't tear her eyes away. "No... there's no way. It couldn't be. Perhaps it's a form of magic made to look like water. I don't know, let's not sit here and think about it. We've got to get to the bottom." Lorelai looked down at the bottom floor way below.

Prompto followed her gaze. "Right!"

They continued onward, following the pathway around and back into dark corridors and rooms. The path was pretty linear but wound around back and forth, making it seem longer than it actually was. They finally came to multiple stone bridges. They approached one only for an iron giant to appear. Lorelai got ready to fight, but the bridge suddenly crumbled under the giant's weight. Lorelai let out a scream, finding herself falling with the daemon. But a hand quickly grabbed onto hers, keeping her from hitting the floor below where the iron giant fell.

"Don't worry, Lora, I've got you," Prompto told her, steadily pulling her up onto the walkway with him. The two sat there on the hard stone floor, Prompto still holding onto the girl's hand. "You okay?" he asked.