Immortal Poison (FFXV)

Chapter 10

Ruby climbed into the airship just as the door was closing, and was greeted by two Magitek troops aiming their guns at her. She glared at Celio, who held the screaming baby in his arms.
"Don't shoot!" Calix commanded.
"You don't give the orders. Here. Shut him up." Celio passed Prompto to Calix.
    Ruby shoved the guns aside, summoned her mace, and struck down both MT's. She took two steps towards Celio, ready to swing at him, when he summoned his gun and aimed it at Prompto.
     "No!!" She shrieked in horror, dropping her mace.
      "Good girl." He smirked, turning the gun on her.
      "Don't kill her!" Calix begged. "She can help us."
      "Don't give me that shit. And would you shut him up already!"
      "Let me do it!...I can do it." Ruby said. She crouched down, holding one hand up, summoned her guns one at a time, and rested them beside her mace. She then stood.
      Calix took a step forward. "Trust me. We're going to need her."
      Celio scoffed, turning his gun away. "Fine. Hurry the hell up."
     Ruby approached Calix, took Prompto into her arms, and gently rocked him back and forth. "Shhh. Shhh. It's all right now. I've got you, my little Prompto."
      She began to hum a sweet lullaby, gently pressing her cheek against his head, before she turned to kiss it. Prompto's crying began to die down, as she slowly began to sway her body back and forth. His tiny hands clung to her shirt as tightly as they could. His eyes became heavy, and he fought the urge to fall asleep, but her soothing voice and comforting arms only increased the difficulty. Prompto had fallen asleep, and Ruby smiled warmly, kissing the top of his head.
     Her voice was angelic, melting Calix's heart with a song he'd heard endlessly growing up. Once she stopped, he stood between her and Celio.
     "Start talking." Celio demanded.
     "She can get us the key, completely undetected. It'll be a quick, easy, and clean job." Calix explained.
      "You sound so sure of yourself." Celio stated.
      "Ruby is one of the best spies in Lucis. Probably in the whole damn world. Anyone who would kill her over recruiting her, is a fool." Calix spoke with a great amount of confidence. "...And if you have her...that's a stab at Cor Leonis."
      Celio smirked. "I like the sound of that. And it seems she'll cooperate as long as we have the kid." 
     "What's your deal, though? I take it you don't have kids, or have never worked with kids."
     "Well, doll-face-" Celio began.
     "Don't call me that." Ruby shot back.
     "...Right. Ruby. For your information, I have a son who's around the same age as the baby you're so fond of. His name's Loqi."
Calix turned to face Ruby. "Can we trust that you'll cooperate? I may not be able to stop him next time."
"There won't be a next time. I need more information than just finding a key. Where are we going? What's it for?" Ruby demanded.
"We're going to Altissia. I will explain the rest when we get there, I promise." Calix said. "Also...I need your phone. Can't have you contacting anyone."
"Fine." She casually took her phone out of her pocket and handed it to Calix. "And I need either your jacket or your shirt. Preferably your shirt."
Calix blushed. "What? Why?"
"Because your idiot friend here stole the baby without his bag. He needs to be changed."
"Please don't do this."
"I'll rip it off of you, and then shove this diaper in your face if you don't cooperate. You have three seconds."
Calix's eyes widened, and he quickly removed his jacket.

Some hours later, they had arrived in Altissia, and resided in the penthouse that Celio owned. It was very spacious, and obvious that he didn't spend too much time there. Probably just bought it for show, because he has money. Pathetic. Calix, carrying shopping bags, escorted Ruby to the guest room, where she finally put a diaper and dry clothes on Prompto.
"You two can stay in here." Calix said.
Ruby closed the door, leaving Prompto asleep in the middle of the bed. "How could you work for the enemy, Calix? What the hell is wrong with you?"
"...I have my reasons."
She folded her arms. "Tell me. You can't possibly think I'll let you set foot in Lucis after this shit."
"It's for the crystal. Another crystal."
"...So they were your notes?"
"You have them?"
"No. I must've forgotten them when I was busy saving the baby your friend kidnapped."
"He's not my friend, and they weren't my notes." Calix sat at the edge of the bed. "The key that I mentioned earlier...it's supposed to unlock the door to an ancient tomb in Niflheim. That's where the second crystal is. If the Nif's get their hands on it, combined with their powerful Magitek army, Lucis would be in a lot of trouble."
What Calix was saying made sense, but she didn't fully trust him. The notes were in her pocket, while her notebook was with her friends. She glanced over at Prompto. Protecting him was her priority, and she knew that finding that key, meant leaving him alone with Calix and Celio. For now, I'll cooperate. They won't have the key for long.
"...Where is the key?"
Calix stood up. "Supposedly it's hidden somewhere within the secretary's estate."
"Since it's for an ancient tomb, my guess is that it's buried somewhere beneath it." She assumed.
"And it's late...so it might be best if we get this done tonight." He held her shoulders and gave them a gentle squeeze. "Then we can ditch Celio and go get the crystal."
Ruby shot a slightly disgusted look at one of his hands. His feelings for her had always been obvious, and she wished that he would just let them go. Much like Cor, Ruby had distanced herself from Calix. His eyes often wandered where they shouldn't, he had little respect for her personal space, and no respect for her relationship with Cor.
      His Caress on her shoulders fed her desire to give him a hard beating; but I can't do that now. She wanted to get that key, and needed Calix to be the one to look after Prompto while she was away. First, I need my phone.
    "I think I'm starting to like this...turn of events. You and I should work together more often. This sneaky side of you is so..." She exhaled sharply.
On her tiptoes, she pulled his head closer and whispered in his ear. His cheeks began to burn as she held the zipper of his jacket, slowly dragging it down and then back up. His hands traveled down to her hips, and he pulled her closer, but she immediately pulled away, discreetly placing her phone into her back pocket.
"Slow it down, you wild animal. The job's not done yet." She snickered. "And I still have to get ready."
Calix sighed. "All right, you win. Don't be long."
Ruby smiled, keeping her eyes on him as he left the room. After closing and locking the door, she cringed and brushed her hands against her hips and shoulders. That is the first and last time that will ever happen. She approached the bed, covered Prompto with a small blanket, and then kissed his chubby cheek.
"I'll be back soon. Okay? I promise." She whispered before kissing his cheek again.

Cor stood leaning against the back wall for the remaining hours of the train ride to Cartanica. The others were silent, even as they all stood against the railing at the station for an hour.
     Jasper sighed. "...I'm sure they're fine."
     "I know they're fine." Cor said calmly.
     Artemis' eyebrows rose. "How are you so calm right now?"
     "She did what any of us would've done in that position. I just want to know where they're going. Celio said something about going to Altissia, but he could be bringing the baby back to the facility." Cor explained.
"No matter where we go, if we're wrong, it'll be a long time before we see them again." Amethyst added.
"Are we splitting up?" Artemis asked.
"You think he wants to be the one who ends up going the wrong way?" Jasper folded his arms.
"Don't make this personal." Cor said, even though he agreed with Jasper. "Splitting up would be the better option in this situation, but it could be a while before the train is running again."
He checked his phone just a few seconds after it started to ring, and then he stepped away from the group to take the call.
"Ruby?"
"Altissia." Ruby whispered. "Calix is here too."
"Got it..." He sighed, motioning for the others to follow as he started walking. "...Ruby..."
"I know... We'll see you soon. I've got some work to do. I'll explain when I call you back later."
       "All right. We're on our way." They stayed on the phone a few seconds more, and then ended the call.
"What'd she say?" Jasper asked.
"They're in Altissia." Cor answered.

Ruby tossed a smoke bomb into an opened window of the secretary's estate. It wasn't long before the smoke detector and the sprinklers went off. She closed her eyes and exhaled pleasantly, letting her hair fall over her right eye, and then put her hood up. She climbed through the window and stood at the side of the room, hidden within the smoke.
     Two security guards rushed in. One picked up the dying smoke bomb, while the other turned off the sprinklers and smoke alarm. After knocking them out, she searched one guard and took his keys. She then climbed out of the window and scaled her way around the building until she found an outdoor fuse box. She shut it down, blacking out the entire estate, and disabling the cameras.