iwillshieldhim | The World We Fought For [for fieryknowledge]

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The World We Fought For [for fieryknowledge]

It was oddly calm in those last moments, a peace that came over him as he fought purely on muscle memory against the massive giant trying to smash him. Somewhere behind him, he could hear Prompto, not just the sound of gun fire, but it sounded like he was screaming, over and over, as he fought. Wordless angry shouts that if he had the time to think, to care beyond second to second of just surviving, would have torn him apart. The sound of pain, of loss, of anger. He'd lost track of Ignis, always so silent, and he feared the worst. He tried to look anyway, find his love in the chaos. Make sure he was still-

Second to second, he shouldn't have looked away. The giant found its opening as Gladio's eyes scanned the wreckage, trying to spot Ignis in all of it. The fear in his heart settled when he spotted the other, still up, still fighting, even as the massive blade slammed under his guard and sent him flying to hit the ground hard. A spike of pain screamed in his shoulder, but he barely noticed.

They had turned their back on Noct to let him die, walking forward to their fates knowing they would do the same. All they had to do was hold on long enough, just long enough to let him truly become the Chosen King. Gladio had accepted what would come, and while he thought Ignis knew, in a way, he was content with this. He had protected Noct until the end. Ignis might still live.

The giant raised its blade, and try as he might, Gladio couldn't get his own blade to lift. It wouldn't be possible on that broken shoulder. He stared up at his death, then let out a breath. ...I kept my promise.

I love you, Iggy.

Let there be light.

It came across the skies like a needle thrust into the heart of the darkness itself, a shaft of light so brilliant and golden that it hurt the eyes. The giants roar hurt almost as much, stabbing into his head until he was forced to close his eyes.

unconscious

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That same Crystal had protected them for many years, allowing them a mostly peaceful youth and prosperous city to grow up in. It game them their own power and had allowed them a brief, shining moment of blissful connection that still stood out in Ignis' mind. The Crystal might be its own entity, but here and now, it would be used as a tool. A means to an end.

... hopefully.

"I do as well as the potion I used on you earlier. I believe he was using it to supplement his strength until he knew that Noctis would be ready to take on his duties. Unfortunately, the Empire had other plans and rushed that process along."

"Okay." Quiet. Prompto stared down at it for several long moments, honestly a little bit frightened. He remembered the moment they had activated that feeling inside of him. When his entire world had shook inside and out and made the world shine around him, brought everything into an incredible detail and notice. When Noct had looked at him and the whole world became him. He never had the courage to ask if Noct felt the same.

What Ignis hadn't done was tell Prompto how much of the potion he had tried.

So, Prompto being Prompto, put on his serious business face, put it up to his lips and took a swallow of the stuff.

Gladio almost had a heart attack when he saw Prompto jerk, bolting over and managing to save the damn vial even as he grabbed the blond, spitting out a curse as he looked into those blue eyes that suddenly had pupils no bigger than pinpricks.

Ignis didn't need his sight to tell him that something was wrong. He lurched forward in his chair and onto his feet before he could think, already damn near sprinting the short distance to the bed, an apology knotting up in his stomach as he reached out to try and help Gladio with Prompto.

He'd made the wrong call. He'd convinced him to do it and now-

Whispering the blonde's name, he reached out to card a hand through his hair, trying to get him back to the here and now.

For Prompto, he saw all of it. Or... some of it. He couldn't even name what he was seeing. He heard this strange slow beat in the air but nothing else, not even as he watched Ignis' and Gladio's lips move. There were glowing lines, brilliant and beautiful, shining between them, going from each of them...

He looked down, at the connections, heard the beat again. The connection between themselves and Noct, between each other, pulsing each time he heard the beat in the air. It felt like he was the only thing moving in real time as he reached down and grasped one of the connections between his fingers, even though physically his body didn't move at all.

Ignis would feel it, like something had grabbed a hold of something inside of him like a hand on his shoulder, even as Prompto was ramrod stiff in their hands and staring at nothing with wide eyes.

Oh, he felt it alright. It was enough to make his breath catch and his heart thrum a bit quicker. The hand in Prompto's hair trembled even as Ignis himself went still, his milky eye looking down on Prompto as if he could actually see him.

The contact was warm and calming and for a long moment, Ignis forgot to breathe. When he did, it was a slow exhale, Prompto's name still on his tongue even as his hand stayed where it was.

"... he sees it. I think he sees it."

"...the connections." Quiet, but Gladio's voice end the faintest tremor on the edge of it. It couldn't be. He remembered what he saw, the awe-inspiring, almost terrible look into the magic that allowed him to summon and dismiss his weapons, that had connected them all.

But Prompto tried to understand it. The connections. They looked bright and strong, so what was wrong? Details... look for the details. He focused on Noct.

Then he saw it. There weren't three connections going into him, the three of them one with him. There were four, but one didn't go anywhere. It sat intermingled with theirs, like a broken, frayed string. That was it that was it that was it. So he tried to call out to them, but nothing left him. IGGY! GLADIO!

So he grabbed both of their connections and pulled. Hard. Help me help him!

And there it was again, that tug that made his breath catch, then stop this time. There was desperation in that tug and the feeling of it was almost nauseating to Ignis. His stomach churned even as he absently reached for Gladio as it for both reassurance as well as a steadying presence.

His heart was thundering in his ears, the sound reduced down to some semblance of static even as his hand kept reaching and after a moment, he knew what for. He tried to gasp it out, his hand clasping on air as if that would be enough to call it to his hand.

On the third try, he managed to tell Gladio he needed the vial, even if he really had no idea why.

It felt like someone was grabbing a hold of his very soul and twisting it. Gladio's hand unconsciously tightened hard enough on Prompto that the younger man would later have a bruise, but it went from trying to figure out if Prompto was dying on that potion to hearing only the rush of his only blood, the world threatening to jerk itself out of place. Only the movement of Ignis' hand near the corner of his vision managed to get him to turn his head, but all he could see was Ignis looking like he was struggling to even breathe.

What in the hells was happening?!

When he saw what Ignis was reaching for, it took every ounce of him not to crush the thing and end whatever influence it was putting over all of them. Look what it was doing to Prompto and Ignis wanted it!? Yet it felt like something was crying out his name (Prompto? Or was he imagining it?) GLADIO! (Ignis?)

Prompto tugged again, but he couldn't tell if it was working. He knew he needed them, they had to fix that broken thread. Please!

Please! (Prompto!)

The vial slid into Ignis' hand, and Gladio wondered if he killed them both.

The sense of desperation was damn near choking in its intensity and Ignis felt his gut knot up even as his shaking hands closed around the vial. By now, it was painful to move thanks to the seized up muscles that were determined to keep him in place. Each inch he moved his arm was a victory and his brain screamed at Prompto to let go so he could breathe and move and think and-

Ever so slowly, he tried to uncap the vial enough, tried to push it toward Prompto but at that moment, he wasn't sure if Prompto could even think about moving. That left-

There was a beat in his head and the static increased as he tried to move the vial away from Noctis, so instead, he tipped it toward him and the noise started to fade. Making that sound fade away became all Ignis wanted to do. Instinct pushed him to silence the buzzing in his head so that's what he did. It took more effort than he had the energy for, but sure enough, his trembling hand moved just enough to find itself barely brushing against cool skin.

Noctis' skin-

It felt like years passing as Ignis used the fingers he could manage without losing the vial to part Noctis' slack lips and before he could think, he was tipping the vial toward his King, the viscous liquid sliding free of the vial.

All three of the people connected to Noctis would feel it as the substance started to spread like a wildfire through their King. It was as powerful as the moment they had been connected to him all those years ago, singing through them as a single, unwavering note. Prompto realized all at once, as four beats pulsed against the air, that he had been hearing his heart all of that time. The four beats slowed, slowed, until they all beat as the slowest.

Noctis'.

For Prompto, the vision started to waver. No. No! They had to finish this, they had to solve it before-

His fear spiked through the grip he had, which to Gladio felt like someone drove a nail through his forehead. He didn't even hear his own ragged sound of pain or feel the drop of blood that fell from his nose, but he reached out and wrapped his hand around Prompto's as if telling him to stop-

Ba dum. Ba dum.

The connections.

Gladio's other hand moved, wrapping around Ignis' that held the vial.

The connections shifted.

Everything slowed to a crawl and for a moment, Ignis felt the connections snap into place between the three of them, but what happened after left him drowning. That brilliant, piercing note left him as deaf as he was blind and that left him cut off from everything. Panic washed over him as he tried to twist his head, tried to clear out his ears, tried everything to feel his way through it all-

Gladio. He felt Gladio's hand on his and a whimper left his lips as he gave himself over to the shifting connections and the will of the Crystal and his King and his brothers. Anything-

Anything-

A breath.

Two.

Everything felt like it slowed to nothing. Prompto looked down at his hands touching the connections going to Ignis and Gladio. When had he blinked last? Ignis was pouring light into Noct, like colored like their connections.

He reached out and took some of the light pouring into Noct, the same as the stuff sitting at the core of his own being, smearing it across his fingers. Connections. Connected. He couldn't hear anything anymore.

He took the light, and pressed it to Ignis' lips, then Gladio's.

For Gladio, what had gone into darkness suddenly burst into light, and all at once he could see the connections again, like he had when he had tasted the potion. The light was everywhere on them, shining and brilliant as it sang from their cores to each other.

And all at once he realized he was looking at Prompto, who was looking back at him in total surprise.

Gladio?

Prompto?!

Prompto looked down at his fingertips, then laughed. It rang like crystal beads falling across the floor. He reached out, and this time, smeared it across Ignis' eyes.

For a long moment, he was lost in the dark even though the connections were still there. Then something- someone touched him and there was the drive to pull away, until light flickered into being. It wasn't exactly being able to see again, but he knew where he was. He knew that Prompto was smiling, heard that laugh as if each tone was a drop of light. He felt Gladio's skin against his and knew every minute furrow in his fingerprints. It wasn't sight, but it was a hypersensitivity that was as heady as it was terrifying.

The now empty vial slipped from his fingers to land beside Noct's head and he tipped his head as if he could see it fall.

How could he hear everything and nothing? Prompto didn't know, but it wasn't important. He could see it all, the light across Ignis' eyes and lips, showing Gladio's open mouth, how it made Noct shine. He reached out to Ignis and Gladio's combined fingers and brought them to where the broken connection sat, curling all of their fingers around it.

It was a question without words. How do we fix it?

Gladio looked down to his brother and King, the person he was supposed to protect. He had been prepared to give Noct his life, hadn't he? What made this any different? As he stared at the connections, he realized, slowly, something he hadn't before. The shining connections between himself, Prompto, and Ignis were... static. Like sunshine shimmering through glass. But the one between himself and Noct was different.

It was pulsing towards him. Away from Noct.

He took a hold of the connection he had with Noct, even as it felt like he was forcing a blade through his own gut, and without even truly understanding how or why of the what he was doing, he ripped it away.

Then, wondering if this was it all over again, he pressed the ragged ends of the connection together and watched as it latched together, like a rope braiding itself.

It wasn't enough, and he knew it, as it felt like water trickling out of him, leaving him growing colder.

Finally.

He understood.

The time of the Crystal was done. It had gone dormant the moment Noctis' last breath had passed his lips. For so long, the Crystal had lent itself to the Crowned family. The price was always a high one, but now, he understood why.

Noctis needed something else to tie himself to. A fresh connection to replace the one that was lost.

He looked up toward his King's face and his eyes didn't have to tell him that he looked like a young Regis. He just knew. There was a hint of pressure against Gladio's hand before he reached to copy his motion, shuddering as he tore free the connected between himself and Noctis only to coax it to reweave itself.

Prompto swore he felt it each time they did it, watched the light pour out of them towards Noct, like answering a call they hadn't known they were hearing. They did this all together, or they fell all together. This time, they didn't have to turn and let Noct die; they could do something about it.

He didn't even hesitate in his action, even as he wanted to cry out in the process of matching Gladio and Ignis. None of them realized that they were tearing apart their own souls to give a piece of it to Noct. Even if they had, it wouldn't have stopped them from doing it.

When the last of their connections was in place, it would make the memories of their original ties to the Crystal pale in comparison. Now, with the very last of its power left in Eos, it was literally making them all one.

The world blew out for the three above their King.

When it returned, they were standing (floating?) in an endless space, colored in light, where just beyond them floated a familiar figure, curled up into the fetal position, arms around his bent knees.

It was all instinct now. There was no real consciousness in their actions. This was the vow they'd made, given form and function and breath. It left Ignis chilled like he'd never be warm again, but the price wasn't too high and even if it was, he would pay it tenfold to give Noctis a chance.

This time, he could see it all. He could see how pale Noctis was thanks to the dark scruff of hair on his jaw. He could see that he was perfect and unblemished as if there'd been no battle fought just before. He could also see that there was no breath, no life there, save the faint shifting of the newly formed bonds they had with their King.

There was just a breath of hesitation before Ignis stepped closer, his hand reaching for his King. His brother. His beloved friend.

"It's time to wake up, Noctis. We're waiting for you."

"Come on, Princess. Time to get up." There was Gladio, right beside Ignis, and to Ignis' other side was Prompto, all of the hope in the world written on his face. Prompto had filled out, but the scars both took away and added to the edges of him.

"...I've been waiting for you." Prompto reached out, then finally, clasped his fingers over Noct's shoulder.

It was like some things never changed. Noct barely even shifted, his brows coming together. Gladio's laugh sounded like it hadn't in years, free, as he reached over and gave a double tap with the backs of his fingers to Noct's cheek. "Come on."

There was a lightness there that Ignis hadn't felt in years. Gladio's laugh was a warm balm to his chilled soul and Prompto's words eased that chill even more. Kneeling before Regis had been the paramount memory of his life, but this... this would eclipse it if they even could remember it once they woke up-

His hand settled on Noctis' forehead, then glided down to rest against his cheek like he'd done to comfort him when they'd been very young.

"The sun is up. Come see it-"

"...Ignis?" The voice wasn't the same as when he was a child, but the tone was so similar. Slowly, blue eyes crept open, and he looked up into the face of his brothers, all there, waiting for him to wake up. "Are you real? Is this another dream?"

A strong hand came to rest on Ignis', then tightened around. "I dreamed I found you all one last time."

The sleeping prince-

He knew that tone so well and he almost wept to hear it again. His hand pulled away, taking Noctis' with it as if to try and get him up and moving.

"No dream. We're here. All of us, but we can't stay here. You need to come back with us, to see the sun."

Then it had been a dream? He had slept for so long, so many dreams, that reality... he had lost the grip of it as well. The memory of sitting around a campfire with them again could have only been a dream. Was this, too?

Prompto smiled and reached down, taking Noct's other hand and tugging, and when they got him to his feet, Gladio slid an arm around him when he stumbled.

Noct let out a slow breath and found himself smiling. "Let's go see the sun."

And he woke up.

When had it all gone dark again? When they'd pulled Noctis to his feet? Just before? After? Ignis had no idea, but when he came to, he was in the dark once again. As they'd tried to coax Noctis back to them, his body had slumped to the bed where he still found himself, his hands already moving to see where he was.

He was exhausted, both physically as well as emotionally. It took a long few moments for him to remember exactly what had happened in that... elsewhere that they'd been but once he did, he sighed out Noctis' name as if he were afraid that there would be no answer yet again.

When he opened his eyes, the room was dark, yet.. he could feel someone around him. His someone's. He didn't need to see anything more to reach out and lay his hands on a knee and a thigh, but it was strange. It felt like only half of him was there, but the pain was gone.

The first sound he heard was Prompto's half laugh, half sob of his name. "Noct!" Before a hand laid against his cheek. Only then did he realize he could see, a little. Moonlight. It was Prompto set against moonlight.

"Hey." Quiet. The voice was the same they had heard only the night before (two nights? an eternity?) but for Prompto, it was everything he needed to hear right now.

"...we've been waiting for you to get up, sleepy-head," Prompto whispered, ignoring as tears traced down his cheeks.

Hearing that voice was such a relief. He sighed again as he let his head drop down to rest against the bed for a moment before he worked to push himself upright again. His back reminded him that it wasn't going to be as tolerant as usual, so he took it slowly. Pain or no, for now... everything was right in his world.

"You're late, Noctis. Keeping us waiting this long. Shameful."

Even as worn as he was, he couldn't keep the faint humor and relief from his voice.

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