Zodiac (Final Fantasy XV)

|•XLVI•|

~Zodia's POV~

The central elevator carried us directly to the Crystal. The only person who was standing next to it was Ardyn. We all froze in our tracks, staring at the chancellor as he turned to face us with a smug grin. He gestures nonchalantly at the Crystal and begins to walk away. Gladiolus swings his sword through Ardyn's head, releasing a puff of dark smoke from where the blade strikes. The chancellor falls back a little, but maintains his balance and holds onto his hat to keep it from falling off his head. He then continues walking away. Prompto shoots Ardyn in the back before he can take more than a couple of steps, releasing another puff of dark smoke and hurling his body onto the floor. Ardyn's hat rolls away and lays still for several seconds before his hand suddenly reaches down to collect it and place it back on his head. Once more unharmed, Ardyn is again standing. He smiles at Ignis and me, revealing corrupted daemonic features as he does.

Gasping, I took a step back as he approached me. Ignis summoned his daggers, standing in the chancellor's way. Ardyn stopped, his daemonic eyes trained on Ignis. "Do be careful on your way out. It is not only Noctis you must fret over." His eyes darted to mine, the warning directed towards me. With those final words, Ardyn vanished.

"What do we do?" Prompto asked dejectedly.

"We return to Lucis," Ignis said.

"Yes, we should return," I concur.

"Why are you both giving up so easily?" Gladio growls.

"Gladio, Noctis has been absorbed into the Crystal. When he is ready, he will return as the rightful King," I inform.

"How do you know?" Prompto asked.

"While in the Celestial Court, Scorpio passed on the information. I asked if there was anything I could do, but... I'm sorry." Tears cascaded down my cheeks. I bit my bottom lip, trying to stop it from quivering. In silence, Ignis cupped my cheeks and wiped away the tears.

"Let's get the hell outta here," Gladio grumbles, passing us without even sparing a glance. I felt horrible from keeping such a secret from them. Ignis senses my feelings, turning my face upwards to meet his gaze. "You are not to blame."

"I just hope Gladio will forgive me," I admit meekly.

"Nah, don't worry about it, Zo. Just give him time to cool down," Prompto said.

"Yeah, you're right. Let's get out of here. I'm sick of this place." Ignis gently kissed my cheek before we followed after Gladio.

Exiting the Keep, we walked down the train tracks. No daemons surprised us as we tried to think of a way out of Gralea. Half an hour later, we heard an imperial airship close by. We summoned our weapons when it came into view. The hatch opened, revealing a familiar face.

"Need a lift?" Aranea grinned down at us.

"Perfect timing," Gladio comments.

"Hop aboard," she said.

We board the airship, taking off the moment the hatch is sealed. Aranea stood before us with a smile. "Glad to see you both are safe. Now you're missin' another one." We fell silent, looking away from Aranea. She picked up on our demeanor and changed the subject. "Anyways, where to?"

"Cape Caem. We've acquaintances there," Ignis answers.

"Cape Caem it is."

An hour later, we arrive at our destination. As the airship landed and we jumped off, the door to the house opened and everyone ran out. Luna hugged me gently as she whispered in my ear. "Thank you."

"I'm glad you're alright. About Noctis-"

"Do not fret, Zodia. I have heard all from Aquarius."

"Aquarius?"