Zodiac (Final Fantasy XV)

|•XLVIII•|

~3rd Person POV~

-Five Years Later-

At Meldacio, Ignis takes up a hunt and has unexpected help. When he meets with Dave, Gladio is chatting with the hunter about the sudden outbursts of Nagas near the Vesperpool. The shield waved to Ignis, ending his conversation with Dave.

"Glad y'all are here. Those damn Nagas are crawlin' everywhere. No vehicles can enter the Vesperpool from the south. Few of my boys have been killed tryin' to get here."

"We'll take care of the daemons," Gladio said.

Dave thanks the boys before tending to other business. The shield glances at Ignis and gestures to his truck. "C'mon, Iggy. We'll take my car." The duo hop in the vehicle, driving to the Vesperpool. "What've you been doin' for the last five years, Iggy?"

"The same as you, Gladio."

"Been visiting Zodia?"

"Every day. Cindy has divulged me of your visits."

Gladio's grin falls to a frown. "Yeah. I still need to apologize to her, but I want to properly do it. I won't be able to do that until Noct returns."

Ignis gazes out the window, watching the myriads of daemons prowl the darkness. "I must apologize, as well."

"You've been sickeningly sweet to her ever since you guys met. And you haven't had a single argument. What the hell could you be apologizing for?" Gladio glances at the strategists from the corner of his eye.

"Failing her."

Gladio slams on the brakes, causing their bodies to lurch forward. He stared at Ignis in disbelief. "You're kiddin', right?"

Confused, the royal advisor eyed the shield. He glared at the spectacled man, shaking his head. "You did not fail her. Where the hell is this comin' from?"

"I failed in protecting her," Ignis admits.

"Bullshit! You did protect her! Even she would be yelling at you for doubting yourself. I may not know Zodia like you do, but I can tell you she would be fuming right now if she heard what you said."

Ignis stares into Gladio's amber eyes with his emerald ones. He couldn't speak as he took the brute's words to heart. The tactician knew she would be more than fuming for blaming himself. He leaned back in his seat, running a hand through his hair. Gladio pushes his foot on the gas pedal with a sigh, slowly driving to their destination. With the new headlights from Cindy, the daemons refused to approach the car.

As Gladio pulled the truck over, Ignis broke the silence. "Apologies, Gladio."

"Like I said-you have nothing to apologize for. I'll make sure Zodia hears about this and she'll chew your ass out."

Ignis chuckled lightly. "I shall prepare for a tongue lashing when she returns."

Gladio pats him on the shoulder. "Let's go kick some daemon ass. It'll make you feel better."

They hop out of the truck, weapons at the ready. The hissing of the Nagas permeated the cool air, their tails flicking back and forth. "You ready?" Gladio asked.

"Let's."

Jumping into battle, the duo attacked in unison and targeted a single Naga. While they were able to handle the one, more Nagas appeared. Gladio clicked his tongue in annoyance, glaring at the daemons gathering around them. "Damn, there's too many." The man spun around to see where Ignis was. When he spotted the tactician, he noticed a Naga sneaking up behind him and had no time to call upon a zodiac. "Iggy, move!"