Work Text
This was a mistake.Loqi watched as the hunters who usually traveled with him fell. Demons overwhelming them by sheer number. He was doing his best with those that came after him and managed to help those nearest to him. But he couldn’t be everywhere at once.Dahlia was down. Seth hadn’t gotten back up for at least three minutes, and he could only hope he wasn’t dead. Nate was protecting both the medics, Leah and Gabriel, who were doing their best to patch up a number of others who’d fallen. And across from him, he had seen a killing blow delivered to Syble when she’d thrown herself in front of a bomb that had almost taken out Fletcher. Which left him officially in charge.For a moment, it felt like time slowed down around him. The route they had been trying to clear had been cracked beyond repair, the pavement torn asunder by both blades and blasts. His eyes looked over those that were still standing. Some he didn’t know, sent as reinforcements to shore up their group as their numbers dwindled. Others he’d been with since he first started going out from Lestallum. There was Evan, fighting mightily against an Aramusha, barely holding it together. Ren who was trying to clear a path through the demons that had blocked them off from a retreat route. And there was Mira, sweet Mira. Didn’t she have a child waiting for her?He took a breath and the sounds of battle caught back up to him, and time snapped back into place. Quickly he looked over the demons and decided that the route was a lost cause, and instead they all should be focused on the way they came.“We need to fall back! Focus on clearing a route behind us to get back to the nearest trucks!”People called out in response, acknowledging him. It was close, but they managed to pull it together long enough to clear a path and hold it as he’d asked. But now even more of their number were down, and there weren’t enough still in the fight to hold it for very long. Their window for getting out a live was closing fast.“Medics and injured first!” He shouted.They all hurried to comply, and he joined them, holding demons off their back by himself for the most part. He couldn’t catch his breath, and his arms had long ago begun to shake. Thankfully though, the injured had finished loading into the trucks. With a small sigh of relief, he turned away and called out his next order.“Everyone not hurt, escort the truck back to the nearest settlement!”“Loqi, the demons will be on us before we could get clear of the group,” said Evan, also out of breath and slightly wheezing. Loqi briefly wondered if he’d broken a rib.He swallowed then, and turned away considering. He knew he was right. The moment they started the engines would be the moment the demons attacked their only method of escaping. It was the noise they’d be attracted to. Otherwise the headlights would keep them back. Another sigh left him, as his heart rate sped up. His shaking hand tightened on the hilt of his sword as he made his choice.“Evan, they’re in your hands now.”“What?”Before anyone could stop him, he dashed away, sliding underneath the swing of a red giant, and kept going.“Loqi! Come back!” He heard him call.“Get them out of here!” He answered.When he was far enough away, he brought out a whistle, the metal blackened and looking at it could give one the shivers if they did so for too long. A beast whistle is what they had been called once. A remnant of old magic that was still occasionally found around Eos. He’d had this one since he was a child, given to him by his father. He gave himself only a moment to breath, and then blew into it.In front of him, the group of demons seemed to pause where they were, like the whistle had paralyzed them. If only. After a beat they all turned toward him and began coming closer. Underneath their footsteps, he could hear the engine of the trucks roaring to life, and frantic voices arguing.“Go!” He shouted at the top of his lungs, unsure that they would hear him.It was then the first creature attacked. A Yojimbo who’d been the closest to him. He swung his blade in a downward arch, and Loqi jumped out of the way. He wouldn’t retaliate just yet. No.But then he heard what he was waiting for. The cars were moving. They’d done as he’d asked. Some of the creature’s attention had wavered from him, but blowing the whistle again took care of that. Another nervous swallow and then he was alone. It was fine, he told himself. He saved a lot more people than what would have survived if he insisted they fight. The road was unsalvageable anyways. And this way, most of their group made it back. Most.…He really hoped that Aranea wasn’t in town. She… She might cry if he died and she had only been minutes away in her ship. And he didn’t want that. But from the looks of things… There were three red giants, two aramusha, a number of bombs, some yojimbo as well some goblins. And more would be on their way considering he had to blow the blasted whistle twice.Finally, after taking full stock of the situation, a sigh left him, and he prepared himself once more.He knew he’d die here today. But he refused to go down without a fight. He owed that to Aranea at the very least.~Aranea had arrived back in Lestallum just in time for a certain pipesqueak’s birthday, but of course he went out on a mission. He’d probably forgotten again. He’d been doing that every year since he was 16. But it was no matter. It just gave her and Wedge time to find a few people who’d be willing to celebrate with them. Prompto would be down she knew. Ever since their time in Gralea he’d been willing to help her with most things. And he’d been quick to take to the ex-brigadier, occasionally asking about some of the traditions from home. More than once did he manage to get Loqi to smile with his questions. She knew they’d get along. And perhaps have been friends as kids if they hadn’t been on opposing sides of the war.And with Prompto would come the other bits of the boy band that was made of retainers to the prince. They were amicable with Loqi, following Prompto’s lead. Cor would also be easy to convince. All his kids in one place after all. The thought made her snort with laughter as she walked through the streets. But then, she paused in her step, a frown appearing on her face. Something…was off suddenly.She couldn’t place what was wrong. It began as just a twinge on the back of her neck, like something had brushed her there, the slightest breeze, maybe, and she could still feel the half-remembered touch. Her hand went up to the back of her neck and she rubbed there, thinking that maybe it was the time spent hunched over paperwork and doing reports that had caused it. Or a stray strand of hair. In time it would go away she thought. And with that thought, she rolled her shoulders and continued with her day.By lunchtime though, the feeling had worsened to an outright pinch. Like someone had snuck up on her and pinched her neck to startle her, yet had forgotten to let go. It made her mood sour and her expression thunderous. She’d even had Bigg’s pop her back, squeezing her in a bear hug until she heard the length of her spine sound off to try and correct it. But it hadn’t helped. Certainly, she felt more relaxed, but her neck still held that feeling.She was fretting about it, trying to figure out what was bothering her in such a way. The feeling was also…familiar in a way. But she couldn’t place it either. It was then, just by chance, she walked around a corner and nearly ran into both Biggs and Wedge.“Whoa, hi there boss.”“Sorry didn’t see ya.”They spoke at the same time, with Wedge steadying her on her feet while Biggs steadied Wedge. She looked up at them and was about to snap at them for the annoyance, though they wouldn’t have deserved it. She hadn’t been watching either. But then, seeing them both in the same place, it felt like someone had dumped ice down her back. She went ridged, her eyes widened. She remembered the feeling, or something like it.‘We’d know.’The feeling…But the pair were before her, and she reached out, putting her hands on one of their shoulders each and squeezing. Both of them were troubled at her expression, trying to get her attention and ask what was wrong. They didn’t have any luck though. She was too deep in thought. Her eyes searched the ground as if the answers were there in the dirt somewhere, trying to figure out why she could feel something off when both of them were in front of her. They were the only ones she gave a damn about, so why…?The feeling worsened.Her head snapped around and looked toward the gates of the city upon hearing them in the distance.A choked sound left her throat upon realizing what was causing the feeling, and she spun on heel and began striding away.“H-hey! Wait! Aranea!”“Somethings wrong with Loqi.” She stated, not bothering to turn around.Behind her, the two men looked at each other, and immediately fell into step behind her, matching her pace step for step after catching up to her. Hearing them behind her brought her a measure of comfort. But not enough to chase the feeling away. Upon arriving at the scene that was unfolding, she froze where she was and began searching for his face.Around them, there were familiar faces, people she knew cared about him. But most of them were injured or helping their injured comrades. Which meant no one had been free to watch Loqi’s back. She began to chew on the inside of her cheek, a nervous habit she’d had since her youth, and then snapped her fingers.“Biggs, go ready the ship just in case. Wedge, help me look.”“You got it Lady A.” Biggs said, hurrying off as quickly as possible. Meanwhile he spoke into his lapel com, ordering the men there to get a jump on preparations before he arrived.“Right away.” Wedge hurried into some of the worst of it, rolling up his sleeves with a grim look on his face. He was a known medic for Aranea’s crew, and currently invaluable in this situation. They’d let him into groups they wouldn’t let her, due to his medical back ground. He might get held up helping out in one of the groups, but she couldn’t fault him that.She herself was walking around as well, peering into the back of trucks and searching among those who were uninjured. She knew the chances of him being there among their number was slim to none, but she’d had to look. Eventually, she saw the person who was in charge of everyone it seem, and walked up to them.He was young, with long black hair that was tied in a low ponytail. His eyes were a deep black, and every time he breathed she could catch the slightest of hitches in his breath. He looked like someone had pulled all the energy out of him, and that if he went to sleep he probably wouldn’t wake up for at least a week. She recognized the feeling, and wanted to recoil. It was like that for her first time leading her men, she recalled.But she also knew that Loqi was supposed to be second in command if Syble was downed.“You. What’s your name?” She demanded, seizing him by his shoulders.The man didn’t even looked surprised by this. “Evan. You’re Aranea right?”She nodded, used to people knowing her. “Yeah, listen, I’m looking for my…friend. Loqi?”She’d stumbled over the word and made a face at how is sounded coming out of her mouth. Oddly enough, it sounded too impersonal for what Loqi was to her. Meanwhile, a pained expression came over Evan’s face, and he opened his mouth only to close it again. Dread reared it’s head and latched onto her heart at the sight, and her hands slightly tightened on him.“Where?” She breathed out, unable to raise he voice like she’d wanted.“He…He ran off into the worst of it,” he began, not meeting her eyes. “He had a whistle. The demons followed him. He…he saved us all.”By the end of it, his voice was a whisper and Aranea could feel her emotions turn to steel. “How long ago.”“Not very long,” He answered simply, “it only took up about half an hour to get back.”Mentally she calculated the distance in her head, walking away quickly. She could be there in 7 minutes one they got the ship off the ground. He could last an hour, right? At the very least, she prayed to the astrals, that she had taught him enough survival skills for that.She pressed her own lapel communication and said, “Biggs, Status?”“Ship’s ready to fly boss. Just waiting for your order.”“Copy, Wedge?”It took a moment for him to reply, which she automatically assumed that he’d be staying behind, to help where he could. But then he said, “Finishing up here and I can be there in 3 minutes. If you’re going out there the other’s agreed, you should have a medic on hand.”“Copy. Meet me there. I’m going to see if Leonis is available.”“Right Lady A. Out.”“Out.” She said while walking, she nearly ran over a few people, while other leaped out of her way.The ladies of Lestallum allowed hunters, Crownsguard, and glaives alike to train on the bridge. That was her best bet for now. If Leonis wasn’t there, she’d simply leave on her own with who she had. But luck was with her today, as not only was Cor there, but the three boys were as well. And on top of that, three Glaives.“Hey, Leonis, emergency!” She called over, her voice slightly strained.He held up a hand to where the three were training and walked over as quick as he could.“Yes?”“Loqi’s taking on a hoard of demons alone.” She stated.Cor’s face didn’t change in the slightest, but he nodded which was all she needed, “Right then. We going? How far out is he?”“7 minutes once we reach the ship, but by that point he’ll have been out there an hour.”“Do we need others?”She nodded, “If they’re up for it. Might give us some trouble if it’s just us.”“We’ll meet you on the ship in a few then. I’ll see if they’re willing to go.”“Right then.” She nodded once more and then began walking back the way she came. But not before calling over her shoulder, “If you’re not there within 5 though, I’m leaving without you.”He held up his own hand in response as he walked back to his group.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Cor, from the moment he’d caught Aranea out of the corner of his eye, knew something had happened. Her face had been set into a dark frown, and she strode like her own life depended on reaching her destination. And now he knew why. He returned to the boys with a slight sigh and looked them over. All were pretty worn and tired, but functional. Which was the norm around here these days. Still, he wouldn’t force them to go, he decided, if they really felt they weren’t up to it.“What’s up?” Prompto asked as soon as he was in ear shot. He almost managed to hide his worry, but his eyes gave him away.“Need to go on a rescue mission. Might need others,” Cor said, keeping it vague. He didn’t want to worry Prompto further, he knew that he had a fondness for Loqi as well.“Oh… How many people need saving?” He asked, glancing at both Ignis and Gladio, likely checking to see if they were going to go. Prompto already had that determination in his eyes, and no doubt Gladio and Ignis would as well.“Just one.” Cor looked away and toward the horizon. “He… well, let’s just say the odds aren’t too good. But he distracted a whole fleet of demons and saved a lot of lives from what I hear. He deserves to come home if he’s still out there.”There was an odd note of pride in his voice that Ignis picked up on but said nothing about. “We’ll, we’re all available if you need help.”“Yeah! We can go!” Prompto added.“Head over to Aranea’s ship then.” Cor said.Rather than respond, the three began walking, nearly jogging really, and were soon out of sight.Cor, instead of following, went over to the three kingsglaive that had been nearby as well. When they caught sight of who was approaching them, the tallest woman elbowed the man that had been leaning against a railing and napping. The smallest of them, a girl that looked near Iris’s age, stood tall and offered him a salute before speaking. It surprised him slightly that he knew that face, but couldn’t recall from where.“Evening Marshal. Can we help you?” She said brightly, a smile on her face.The other two followed her lead once the man had woken up, and he nodded, “Rescue mission going out in five. We might be undermanned. Are you three available?”“Of course. Today was just a training day for us after all.” Replied the tall woman. The other two nodded their heads in agreement, following her lead. Now he recalled who they were. He couldn’t remember their official name, but rumor had been that they were some of the more gifted of the glaives, working as a unit inside their own unit. And none had questioned it, because of something from the homeland. A tradition of some sort. They were the kind of people who had been raised for war.But that was then. He was glad they had survived until now. Immediately they fell in behind him as he walked, easily keeping stride with him. Since they were here he began explaining what was going on. He trusted that Aranea was also doing the same for the others.“Right, it’s a simple mission. One person, middle of an open area, lots of demons. Our goal isn’t to clear the area, just to get him out. Any questions.”“No sir.” They all said at once. Which he expected. Not many glaives asked questions these days, only going where they needed to go, and often volunteering for the most dangerous missions. He wished that wasn’t seen as a positive thing these days. But the people as a whole had decided that most of the glaives were expendable, due to a few of their number betraying the king when Insomnia fell. Even though some of them were really good people.It didn’t take long for the group to arrive at the airship, which judging by the fact Aranea was pacing in front of the opened door, they’d arrived just in time. And in turn, upon hearing their footsteps, she stopped and looked up. The relief and annoyance flashed across her features in equal measures and she waved them over.“It’s about time! I was starting to think I’d have to leave you.” She paused upon catching sight of the glaives, and nodded her head toward them after looking them over. “I see you found a few more people.”“Indeed.”She looked like she was about to say something else, but stopped herself with a shake of her head. “We’ve waisted enough time. Let’s go. The boys are already on board.”Before anyone could reply, she turned on heel and made her way into the ship. They followed along quickly, just in case she really did plan on taking off the second she was inside.~It didn’t take long at all to find the location they described. For one, the signs of battle were everywhere. The road was torn asunder in numerous places. And there were demons everywhere still. From what the survivors had told Wedge, this was supposed to be a simple job. Easy enough to go there, clear it, and be back the same day. Clearly, it had been misclassed.“This… should have been a glaive assignment.” Came a voice from over her shoulder. “There’s no way hunters could have taken this route.”Aranea turned to look, and found that the youngest glaive was there, looking down into the demons as well. Instinctually Aranea reached out and put a hand on her shoulder, as if steadying her.“Geez kid, at least put your hand in one of the arm straps. Last thing we need is you falling out the back of the ship.”“I’m not a kid.” The young girl replied with a raised eyebrow and a sarcastic edge in her tone, “With all due respect ma’am, I’m a glaive. I can guarantee that falling is something of a specialty of ours.”This, despite the situation, caused Aranea to snort in amusement and decide that she liked her. Though there was really no hierarchy of command, people tended to treat her as an officer rather than a mercenary. So hearing her give her some slight sass back was refreshing.“Maybe so, but you still look like a kid.”This clearly got slightly under the girl’s skin, and she shot Aranea a petulant look. Before she could reply though, Cor cut in.“Any sign of him?” Called Cor from further inside the ship.Aranea shook her head, and replied, “None so far, but if he led them away from the rest he might be further out yet.”She then returned to watching out the back of the ship in silence, the young girl next to her also looking. Occasionally she’d call back to the other what demons were nearby, and describing the area. So they wouldn’t be going in blind. Clever kid. But then as the lights under the ship passed by an area, Aranea’s breath caught.They found him.“No.” She said, her voice barely escaping in a whisper.Loqi lay on the ground at the center of the light, unmoving. His sword lay only a slight distance away, as if he’d collapsed where he was. Around him was a frightening amount of blood, and from what she could see there were numerous cuts and gashes all over his body. What was most unnerving was how pale he was. Normally, his cheeks were the slightest bit rosy. But right now, his color was lifeless, and since his eyes were closed she thought the worst.“Leonis!” She called back, and then she quickly spoke into her communication pin, “Biggs, bring us down, now!” “Descending now.” He replied, and the ship paused in its movement and began to sink at a faster than normal pace.She didn’t wait for it to touch down though, she leapt out the back instead, drawing her lance from her back and aiming for a nearby bomb that was too close to him already. Taking it out was easy, but now that she was on the ground, the resulting crash drew the demons attention. She stood tall fully prepared to wipe them out if she had to. But then she saw three flashes from the back of the ship, and soon in a dazzling burst of the light, the three glaives were on the ground, weapons summoned.The woman with them began shouting orders, to secure a perimeter around Loqi so that the others had a place to land, and Wedge could assess his injuries. The other two immediately complied. The woman then disappeared in another flash of light, reappearing with her Shurikan sunk into one of the bomb’s sides, before vanishing and doing it again.Aranea, if this was another time and place, would have loved the chance to watch the three work. But as it was, she turned back to her own fight. Before her was a red giant, a dark miasma leaving it where there were deep cuts and stabs in its arms. Part of her felt proud, and also relieved. He did fight back. He didn’t just lay down and die.It was then that the giant swung its sword at her. Considering how slow they moved, it was a simple matter to dodge out of the way. In turn, she used the momentum to jump upwards, engaging her armor and flying up into the air, higher than humanly possible. The giant was then distracted when Prompto shot it from the back of the ship as they finally touched down, and she used that to her advantage. The energy core in her armor that had been bosting her up through the air turned off then, long enough for her to turn her lance downward toward the ground. She’d allowed it to take her higher than normal, due to knowing how tough a red giant’s exterior could be. Then it reengaged, but this time using gravity to pull her down toward the giant.The speed at which she fell, augmented by the gravity adjust from the core, always gave her a slight thrill. It wasn’t well known, but every time a Dragoon did this, they risked their life. Even with their training to withstand the high velocity impacts, every jump could result in death.But that was also the furthest thing from her mind at the moment. Right now, she was focused on the giant. It didn’t take long, and it wasn’t quick enough to get out of her way. With a loud boom she crashed into the giant, and it crumpled to the ground, her lance deeply embedded in its back. The landing was jarring, and it took her a moment to be able to breath again. But once she could she jumped backwards, back flipping off the giant’s back and bringing her lance along with her.The seconds he was back on the ground she dropped and slid in the dirt. She didn’t notice that a Yojimbo had been near where she had jumped.“What, you didn’t see what I did to your buddy there?” She said as she sprung to her feet, and drove the point forward.As she engaged the Yojimbo, the male glaive let out a low whistle. “She just took out the red giant by herself.”Behind him, the young girl was going toe to toe with an Aramusha. She dodged out of the way of every swing, no weapon in hand. Eventually, she lured it into a pattern, and then broke said pattern, summoning her mace, using her entire body to throw it into the air and crash down on its head. It was then that he jumped in, taking her place, and using his own katana to deliver a number of blows to its back while it was on the ground.“Did she? I only got to see her jump!” She replied as soon as she was back on the ground, “You think if I asked her she’d do it again?”However, before he could respond, it got back to its feet and retaliated. Both moved out of the way easily enough but were surprised when a flash of light flew between them, resulting in the remaining glaive reappearing in a burst of light, sinking her shuriken into the Aramusha and watching as it dissipated into the air. Once it was gone and she banished her weapon back to the ether, she turned around and faced her comrades.“Diaval!” The young girl called, sounding surprised.“Sawyer, Io, if you’re done messing around?” She said, looking the slightest bit annoyed.“We weren’t!” Sawyer defended, but Io said, “It’s not like we’re need anywhere else.”The pair looked at each other, realizing that they just contradicted each other. Diaval simply rolled her eyes. “Just kill the demons as soon as you get your hands on them, it doesn’t make sense to keep them alive like a cat plays with a mouse.”“Right, won’t happen again.” Io said. This time, Sawyer remained silent, but was frowning.“Don’t tell me what to do with my life.” Sawyer muttered when Diaval was out of earshot. But she contradicted her words as she complied, no longer goofing around with the demons, slaying them as they came with her mace.Between them and the rest of the group, most of the demon heard was considerably thinned out. Prompto had been watching Aranea’s back, shooting the demons when she needed someone to distract them. Cor in turn was watching his back, leaving most of the work to the glaives. Ignis and Glado were fighting a few Arachne who had been drawn by the noise. Ignis could hold his own these days, but Gladio stayed near him none the less.But there was no sign of an end to the demons. Perhaps it was Loqi’s blood they smelled, or maybe the effect of the whistle were still in play. Either way, for every demon they cut down it seemed like, there were two more in its place.But eventually there was a lull in the battle. Aranea gave herself time to breath, and was about to charge back in, but then there was a hand on her shoulder.“Aranea.”She turned and looked at Wedge. The corners of his mouth were turned down, and the fact he had used her first name told her all she needed to know.“No.” She said, her voice hard.“He’s lost too much blood. If we got here earlier…”“No! Wedge Kincaid you get back there and-” She was cut off by the sound of more red giants coming from the ground.Ignis and Gladio were on their last legs as well, the Archne having summoned too many tarantulas for them to handle. Prompto and Cor were also close to being overwhelmed, too many bombs and the like to keep up with. Even the glaives looked to be having trouble, no longer warping, and doing their best to try and keep the worst of the demons at a distance.“We have to go.”She heard him, but shook her head. “We are not leaving him.”“We have to Aranea! You know what happens to those who die after they’ve been around this many demons.” Wedge argued.“I’m not leaving Aar-…Loqi. I’m not leaving Loqi.” She tried to force her voice to sound steady, like her usually confident self. But it shook when she realized she nearly said her younger brother’s name.“We don’t have a choice.”“Then you go!” She stated, anger getting the better of her, turning to walk over to where Loqi lay, “I’ll stay.”“Sir!” Yelled Diaval over the sounds of demons and fighting, “We’re going to be overwhelmed shortly if we don’t get out of here now!”Behind her, Cor could see that she was right. The other two glaives were struggling with the demons that seemed to want to push forward. There were just too many. But then Sawyer made a slight squeaking sound, and warped over to the main group after signaling Io to follow.“Diaval, look over that way and tell me if that’s what I think it is?” She said as soon as she reappeared.Cor looked over at the same time she did and cursed.“Shit.” Diaval turned back to Cor, “Marshal, that’s a deathclaw.”“I can see that.”“We are in no way prepared to take one on.” She then added, “If we’re going to survive this, we need to go now. I’m assuming you know what those are capable of.”An angered sigh left him, but he managed to answer calmly, “Yes. I know.”He then turned to the other three, who’d finally broken out of their own skirmishes to rejoin the group as well. “You three, head back toward the ship and keep the path clear.”“What? Why?” Prompto asked immediately, glancing over at Loqi, and seeing him still on the ground. He knew then. If he wasn’t back on his feet by now… “Oh.”“Damn.” Gladio said under his breath, also catching sight of the man they were supposed to rescue.“Gladio?” Ignis asked, he already suspected what was going on, but part of him still wanted confirmation.Gladio’s jaw clenched before he spoke, and when he did it was stilted, as if he was trying to suppress anything he felt. “Loqi’s still down.”“Ah.” There it was. Both of them didn’t know him very well, and it had taken them awhile to trust him. But once they officially knew what he was like outside his life in the empire, they had realized he was actually pleasant to be around. Not to mention, they suspected Prompto had found in him one good tie to his heritage. He fully considered himself Lucian yes, but they knew he couldn’t help being curious about the regular workings of Niflheim.“You coming?” Asked Gladio as soon as he got the other two started toward it.“In a second.” Cor replied, and then made his way over to the three Mercenaries. Aranea, he knew, cared deeply for the young man. He didn't know their history, just that she fully considered him her family. He dreaded to think what it would take to get her to leave him.Behind him, not knowing what else to do, the three glaives followed.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“Aranea, you can’t stay behind!” Wedge had grabbed her wrist as she passed, which was enough of a shock for her to pause in her step. But then she whirled around with an expression that promised harm if he didn’t release her.“I can if I so choose.” She stated. In the back of her mind, she laughed at how hypocritical she was being. If the situation was reversed, she would have wanted Loqi to go. To leave her body to turn into dust or demon. But because it was him… She looked over at him and for a moment, she saw silver hair like hers instead of Loqi’s normal golden color. But then she blinked and he was back to how he normally looked. She inhaled sharply and Wedge tightened his grip on her, glancing behind them both briefly when Aranea wasn’t looking at him.Then, as if he knew what she had seen he turned back and whispered to her, “He’s already gone Aranea. This isn’t like with Aaron. He was already gone before we got here.”Hearing that did bring her back to the present, but she still shook him off with a glare. “I know that. You don’t think I know that?”She glanced at him once before saying, “Wedge, you’re in charge. I’m not leaving him.”She left it unsaid that she didn’t want to lose another brother.Before she could take a step forward though, she found someone wrapping their arms around her and pinning her arms to her sides. Whoever it was then simply lifted her off the ground, so she couldn’t get her feet under her.“I’m sorry, but you are.” Cor spoke from behind her. “You know he wouldn’t want you to stay.”“Cor! Put me down!” She shouted, starting to kick and straining her arms against his hold.Instead, he ignored her, and began walking backwards toward the ship.“Wedge, make sure everyone is one board.” He said in a neutral tone.“Damn you! I said put me down!” She yelled, starting to thrash as hard as she could. A few times, she could even feel her armor digging into his arms from her movements. It was then that she wished that she had remembered to put on her helmet before she’d jumped. The sharp spine on there would have prevented him from grabbing her in the first place. Soon enough, she was shouting insult after insult at Cor.Behind her, Cor only grit his teeth against the pain from where the sharp parts of her armor dug into him. And he didn’t try and defend himself from her verbal assault. In truth, he felt horrible about leaving Loqi’s body there. It didn’t seem right to leave someone who’d saved so many. But it never did. Looking at the young man that was laying there, he himself couldn’t help the urge to also stay. It wasn’t right for a hero to be left alone.But he didn’t get this far in life listening to that urge.So he half dragged half carried Aranea back to the ship, Wedge saying thank you to him as he passed by to help keep the path clear. In his arms, Aranea’s struggles turned more frantic the further away they got. She felt like her heart was just going to suddenly stop in her chest from how fast it was beating. She didn’t even notice when her insults turned into shouts.“Loqi! Gods damn you, get up!” she yelled, straining her voice, “Get up you bastard!”It took a lot, but finally Cor and her were on board.“Are we ready for take off?” he asked, still holding onto the raging Aranea, now visibly struggling to keep her under control. Inside the ship, Prompto looked like he wanted to help, but was unsure which one to help. Gladio, upon catching the look on his face, put a hand on his shoulder and shook his head.“Don’t even get near her right now.” He said, absolutely sure she would be planning revenge on Cor once this was all over.Ignis hummed in agreement. “Cor also would probably not appreciate anyone nearby.”The three looked onto the pair, both of them clearly struggling in different ways. One was struggling with being the one surviving, and from her reaction it was a place she had been before. The other, though more subtly, was struggling with the loss of a friend, a place he’d also been. They couldn’t see each other’s faces, but if they could, they’d both hold the same devastation in their eyes.Prompto, then, deeply wished that they would look at each other. From his talks with Loqi, he knew that they both meant a great deal to him, though he never stated it outright. Like Aranea, it had always been on his face. The way he’d light up when speaking about them, or to them. How some tension went out of his shoulders when they were around. He’d had the same effect on them. They smiled easier, and allowed some pieces of their personality to shine through when around him. He wondered who would make them smile now?“We… would be.” Biggs said to Cor through the intercoms, “But those glaives are still out there.”Cor risked a glance out the back of the ship just as Aranea swung her head backwards and into his face. He managed not to let go, though he did see stars for a moment from how hard she had struck him. Not for the first time did he remember that she was a warrior above all else. But sure enough, the three were still out there. They seemed to be discussing something rather animatedly as they fought.He wasn’t sure what it was, but then suddenly Diaval warped into the back of the ship.“Sir, we’re going to try something. But in case it doesn’t work, you guys might want to get this ship in the air.” She said, glance back and checking on her friends.“Tell him to let go of me!” Cut in Aranea before she could say anything else.Instead of ignoring her, like everyone had been doing, she shook her head. “If this works, you’ll want to be in the air.”Without waiting for whatever the Marshal has to say, she threw her shuriken back into the fray, and once again vanished.~Diaval reappeared beside her friends, hefting her star on her back. “Io, Sawyer. Are you guys ready?”They both nodded, though Sawyer didn’t look happy. “Are you absolutely sure Diaval?”“Positive. Someone has to test it right?” Diaval shrugged.Io on the other hand, sighed, “You realize if we pull this off, all the glaives will want to know how we did it right.”“Which is why it’s better to test it here, where it’s just us who’ll know what we did exactly.” Diaval reply, waving her hand, “Now come on, we don’t have a lot of time. There’s still a body, so it should work.”All three then vanished and threw their weapons toward Loqi. Upon reappearing, they immediately brought out a vial of ether, and crushed it in their hands. Usually, they wouldn’t want to use such a thing to replenish their magic unless the situation was dire. But this wouldn’t work without their magic being readily available.Once that was done, Io touched a small piece of cloth that had been hanging from his belt and then held out his hands. When he did so, a shield appeared around them. But it wasn’t the standard sized shield. Rather, it was one that encircled them all. He poured most of his magic into it, and the result was a stronger than normal shield. The effort to hold it was enormous, it was easy to see. His shoulders shook as if a great weight had been placed on them, and he began to breath harder.In turn, Sawyer also touched her own cloth that was hanging from her bracelet. She closed her eyes and breathed for a moment, and when she opened them, they glowed with an eerie light. Every time a demon got too close to the shield, she would throw out her hands, shooting lightning, ice, or fire from the tips of her fingers. A measure to keep the demons from straining Io’s shield too much. The Just took what they felt was owed from both magic and energy. The Pious was kinder by far, allowing her to use so much magic without much in return, other than the magic burns on her hands.With both of them in place, Diaval crouched down by Loqi, laying her own piece of cloth on his chest, and then took his hands in her own. Immediately she wanted to drop them from just how cold he was. His breath had long since stilled in his chest, but the fact he hadn’t vanished yet meant there was still traces of him there. Maybe enough to bring him back.The sigil she used was the sigil of king Regis, the newest of the Lucii. Using it always produced a feeling of melancholy in the user, as if the king himself was apologizing for the price you paid to bring someone back. She closed her eyes and then poured her magic through the sigil, and into Loqi. Immediately she could feel something latch onto her life force, and slowly it began draining it away, along with her magic. It started as a trickle, but quickly grew in size as more and more of herself poured into him.A gasp left her then, and she ended up hunching over him as suddenly she felt her heart almost stutter. Perhaps she was wrong, and he was too far gone. But she also didn’t believe that. She wanted to believe that this man, who had stayed behind to save people, deserved to come back.“Come on, come on…” She muttered, closing her eyes and then just simply searched with her magic.Eventually, she found what she was looking for. It was slight, but her magic latched onto it almost with triumph. Hidden deep down he was there, small tendrils of life still hiding away inside of him. Her eyes snapped open with another gasp, and she gave one last giant push with her magic, and watched as his open eyes opened the slightest bit, and he took in a breath of air. Most of his injuries were closed, and the really bad ones were clearly a lot better than they had been. If anything, he probably had a serious case of blood loss.“A-ara…nea?” He whispered with a barely there voice as he looked up at the shadow looming over him.“Sorry, wrong person. She’s in her ship.” She responded, a slight smile on her face.But then her eyes rolled up into her head and she passed out from the effort it had taken to bring him back.“Diaval!” Sawyer yelped upon seeing the woman fall over. A quick glance told her that she had been successful, and then she turned, “Io! She did it, are you ready?”“As I’ll ever be.” He replied through gritted teeth.They moved quickly then. Sawyer went over to where Loqi was, and lifted underneath his shoulders so she was cradling him against her chest. She also grabbed the sigil off him and pocketed it to give back to Diaval later. A slight hiss left her as she did so then, and when she saw her hands she groaned. They were absolutely burned, and she’d be useless for a few days while they healed. It wasn’t common knowledge, but magic burns couldn’t be healed by magic since that’s what had caused them in the first place.Sawyer then reached down into her boot and pulled out an engraved knife, it’s hilt wrapped in red cloth. She flipped it around so her held the blade in her hand, and readied herself to throw it.“Ready Io!”“Got it,” He said with a grin, “Going down in three, two, one!”He then dropped his hands and quickly dove to Diaval’s side, grabbing her the same way that Sawyer had. While he was doing that, Sawyer was already gone.She knew it would hurt to bring someone else into a warp with her, but she did it anyways, because Diaval had told her to. She threw her knife hard and waited until it was buried in the back of the ship, briefly saying a prayer that the dragon lady wouldn’t murder her for the damage. Then in a flash of light, she and Loqi disappeared. A slight scream left her when she reappeared dangling from the back, not expecting the sudden pain traveling up her arms from the burns.She had her other arm occupied with Loqi’s dead weight, keeping him locked to her chest as best she could. But she was shaking from the strain.“Someone better get back here before we fall!” She yelled upwards, anger in her tone. It was just her luck she felt her knife start slipping from the metal. “Oh great.”Thankfully, someone had heard her. Before she even realized it, a hand reached down, grabbing the back of her jacket and hoisting her up. A yelp left her, but soon enough she and Loqi were both in the ship and being lowered to the floor. She glanced up at who it was and found Iris’s older brother looming above them. And the only reason she knew that was because her eyes caught on the necklace he wore. Iris had one that matched, but she never wore it.She stared up at him for a few seconds, just processing that he managed to lift both her and Loqi without strain, before his expression change to one of slight concern. She had gone unusually quiet after all. Part of him was concerned that he might have startled her. Sometimes his face had that effect on people. Instead, she suddenly grinned at him.“Holy shit Iris wasn’t lying when she said her older brother might be strong enough to spar with us.” She stated, forgetting to thank him.He opened his mouth to ask how she knew Iris, but then there was the sound of another knife landing in the door of the ship and a tiny strained voice that said, “Help.”She turned her attention away from him then, and said, “Hey big guy, do me a solid and help my friends? I would but…”She glanced down at Loqi and then held up her hands, revealing the damage. “Kind of hurt myself.”“Yeah, no problem.” He replied. He was going to help anyways, but made a mental note to ask about his sister in ‘exchange’ for his help.The pair of adults was a little heavier to him, but not by much. Once they were all safe on the ship, the door began to close, and Cor finally released Aranea. She practically shoved him away the first chance she got, shooting him a murderous expression before striding over to where Loqi lay.Gladio quickly got out of the way, holding his palms up toward her, as if surrendering. Lucky for him she didn’t even acknowledge him. Sawyer on the other hand looked slightly panicked at the sight of a very angry looking woman coming toward her.“Oh geez, is this about the ship? We didn’t mean to damage it, but it was the only way to get out, and-“ She began to try and explain, but fell silent when Aranea only dropped into a crouch, her eyes on Loqi.His chest rose and fell, and he looked like he was asleep. He was still more pale than what was normal. But he was alive and breathing. That alone was worth everything.“He’ll be alright.” Io suddenly said, drawing Aranea’s gaze toward him, “Diaval’s a pretty strong mage. Pretty sure all he has to worry about is blood loss.”“How?” She asked, looking at the three.“A question for Diaval when she wakes up. We don’t know what she did.” He answered, a lie judging by the way his eye flickered away from hers for the slightest of seconds.But she let it go at that. She didn’t push for answers. They’d saved Loqi, and that was all that mattered to her.As soon as she was visibly calmed, the rest of the group started shuffling around and tried to figure out where to place both of the sleeping people. Loqi they didn’t want to jostle too much, and decided to put him across some of the seats in the back of the carrier, so someone could sit by his head and make sure he was doing okay. Aranea immediately took that spot the second that he had been settled in, running her hand through his hair absentmindedly after a while, as if to make sure he was there.Diaval on the other hand was laid on the floor, her head in Sawyers lap and Io standing, as if watching over them. She’d wake soon they figured, and she probably would have hated being watched by anyone but their group. Aside from that, they also just wanted to make sure she was okay. They worried that this might trigger another memory loss episode. Most glaives suffered a bit of memory loss, believed to be sort of a mass trauma from the city falling and the king’s magic being torn out of them. But Diaval on the other hand… It was better just to make sure she remembered them right when she woke up.Ignis was nearby them, sitting quietly in one of the chairs. But eventually, curiosity got the better of him. “Ah… Forgive me If I over step, but just what did you three do?”Io glanced over at Sawyer, who was staring right back at him with the same expression. Eventually, as if they had spoken without words, she shrugged. Io then pushed himself off the wall and went over to sit with Ignis, to explain about the sigils. Not many outside the glaive knew about them, but they figured that the king’s retainers should know. Perhaps one day it would help the king.Prompto on the other hand, upon seeing Io talking with Ignis, went over to speak with Sawyer, and help bandage her hands once she explained that magic couldn’t heal them. She could tell he was troubled by something and noticed he kept looking over toward Loqi. She thought she knew what it was, but wasn’t sure. So she leaned forward while he was busy with her hands until she was close enough to whisper to him.“You know a phoenix down wouldn’t have done what we did, right?”He visibly startled, and accidentally squeezed the hand he was still holding. This time, she managed not to make any pained sounds, though one of her eyes did twitch.She shook her head then and said, “If one would have worked, you know we would have just as readily offered one of our own.”“But… Aranea…” He then whispered back, since his back was facing everyone else’s he allowed his face to slip into a deeply sad expression.“I’m sure she knows.” Sawyer said, taking her hand back when he was finished and flexing her fingers. “And I’m sure she wouldn’t object to you being there with her.”“I…” He glanced over at Aranea and then back. He fell silent for a few moments, but then a small laugh left him, “Great, now I’m getting life advice from a grade schooler.”Sawyer’s face slipped into an offended expression as she loudly stated, “I am NOT a grade schooler!”The bright laugh that left Prompto as he stood was worth the joke about her age, and though her face didn’t show it, her eyes were pleased. He nodded his head at her, as if thanking her for her words. She brightly held up her now bandaged hands in response. She turned her attention back to Diaval, who was still asleep, but watched out of the corner of her eye.He approached cautiously, and said something she couldn’t hear. Aranea glanced at him, and then also spoke. She watched as the tension left his shoulders, and he sank to the floor on the other side of Aranea, keeping her company while they waited to get home. A small sigh left her, and a smile settled on her face. Today was a good day. They’d managed to save someone, and none of them died. That was a plus in her book.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Loqi was moved from the back of the carrier by the medics that greeted them upon returning to Lestallum. All in all, they had been gone an hour. So naturally people expected there to be some injuries. Loqi of course, due to his actions earlier that day, was given priority. The glaives explained that they’d managed to heal him enough to keep him alive, but that was it. It was also how they played off Diaval’s current state. Telling the medics she had hit stasis from healing him. While partially true, it was also a lie.But Aranea was willing to let it go at that. If they had a reason to hide what they did, she wasn’t going to be the one to rat them out. Not after what they’d done for her.She currently sat beside Loqi’s bed, waiting for him to wake up. It had been days since they’d come back, and she’d rarely left his side. Prompto stopped by for updates, and Ignis sent food along with him occasionally.He’d let her know that Diaval recovered, though she was a little disoriented for a while. He’d also told a pretty hilarious story about how she sort of acted like Noctis did when he’d been hit with confusion. Though it had clearly stressed her friends out when she’d warp into the air and drop randomly out of her warps. Sawyer was still waiting for her hands to heal and had become one of his favorite people to bother when he wasn’t doing anything. And if he was also spying for Gladio, who’d know? Io was working with Ignis to document the sigils that the glaives used, explaining that they were sort of a last resort due to what they cost the user.She never heard about Cor though. She hadn’t seen nor heard of him since they’d gotten back and the healers healed up his arms from where her armor had gotten him. A pang of remorse would always go through her at the memory, but she would shove the feeling down viciously. Part of her thought it served him right for daring to grab her. And she refused to even think of what the other part of her thought. (He didn’t deserve it. She could see that now. He was just doing what he thought was best.)So it came as a surprise when he came into the room while she was there. She had been resting her head on Loqi’s bed when she’d heard the footsteps. When she saw who it was, she slowly sat up from where she was and watched him with a wary look.“…I was going to come see him when you weren’t here, but…” He started, looking away from her and scratching the back of his head.She snorted in response, “I’m always here, right?”“Right.” He answered, still refusing to look at her.She sighed then, realizing he probably felt bad about keeping her from him. But rather than acknowledge those feelings, she gestured vaguely in his direction, “…How’s your arms?”He glanced up at her before looking back toward the window again, “They’re fine. Healed within a day.”“That’s good.” She grimaced at how stilted their conversation was. Before this, they had been something bordering on friends. Now it just felt like someone shot a puppy in the same room as them.After a few more unbearable moments of silence, she sighed, and got up from her seat.“Stay with him.” She said, gesturing to where she just was.“I… Are you sure?” Cor replied, looking at Aranea in the face fully this time.“Yeah.” She shrugged, “I haven’t checked in with Biggs and Wedge for a few days, and I need to see how repairs from those knifes are going.”She also thought that maybe, just for fun, she’d go terrify the small glaive. Considering how panicked she’d been about the ship. But she didn’t say that out loud.She then looked at Cor up and down, and he didn’t move. She then huffed and looked away, striding past him with nary a care in the world it seemed. But when she stopped beside him, and looked him in the eye, he knew the truth. It was her apology and her way of saying she still trusted him in one gesture. Leaving him with the man she considered her brother. (Part of him wondered if she would manage to tell him that after this.)Then she continued on, shutting the door behind her and leaving him alone.He didn’t expect a miracle to happen, but for the first hour he just sat there watching Loqi breath and hoping he’d wake. A woman came in during that time, one of the very few actually nurses left in the world, and injected more pain meds into his IV. Part of him hoped that since he’d been healed through magic means, that maybe his recovery time would be lessened. But even magic had its limits he guessed. Wedge had confided in him that Loqi had been stone cold when they’d gotten there, and that not even a phoenix down should have been able to bring him back. It had shaken the medic, seeing magic first hand like that. But Cor was left with questions.He wasn’t sure what those three had done, or just what magic had been strong enough to bring back the dead. Every time he tried to corner them to get answers, they’d managed to get away. One time even warping. Though, that one hadn’t been their fault. Diaval, as he’d learned her name was, was mildly confused after waking up and had warped into a wall. Io then had to go get her checked out by the medics, in case she’d given herself a concussion. In either case, they’d been cagy. He hadn’t even seen the tiny one at all.Which was probably the one he’d be able to scare into answers, judging by how she reacted to Aranea’s anger.A slight shift in movement from Loqi brought him out of his thoughts, and Cor looked him over. Some of the color had returned to his face. Which was good. Cor didn’t want the last memory of Loqi he had being him colorless and laying on the ground. The memory wasn’t a pleasant one, and he was glad that it definitely wouldn’t be the last. Since the first time he’d challenged Cor, to their current situation, it never occurred to Cor that Loqi might die first. Cor always assumed that he’d be the first to go, which was something of a shock considering his nickname.A sigh left him, and he heard Aranea’s boots coming back down the hall. Before she came into the room, he stood. He’d been planning on going to the door and greeting her there, but paused when he’d caught sight of Loqi’s face. Like Gladio, Ignis, and Prompto, he actually looked his age with his face relaxed. It was just another reminder that this world had taken a lot from them all. Time to enjoy their youth was something that had been stolen from the four. Five if you counted Noctis.Before Cor could stop himself, he reached out a hand and pushed Loqi’s hair out of his face. And then he simply let his hand rest there. He didn’t know why he did it, just that there was an almost overwhelming fondness for him sneaking up on Cor and relief that he was still there. Finally, with a sigh, he pulled his hand off and began to walk toward the door. Aranea opened it when he was halfway there, and as they passed each other, they heard a soft voice call from the bed.“Ow.”~Everything hurt and he immediately wanted to drop back into oblivion. He felt like he’d been stepped on, skewered, and then thrown off a cliff for good measure. It was the worst thing he’d ever felt, and he kind of felt like that was an accomplishment considering he’d taken a hit from Cor and survived. But then, at the thought of Cor his mind starting thinking of battles. Of fights. Demons and pain. Something…Something happened hadn’t it?He tried shifting where he was, but found that even the slightest movement made him want to recoil from whatever caused it. Considering that it was his own body, he couldn’t get very far. So he settled for the one thing he could do about it.Complain.“Ow.”His voice came out more like a wheeze, and just moving his jaw hurt. Holy astrals what had he done? It hadn’t had the effect he’d wanted, and only made him feel worse about the pain really. But then he heard a familiar voice, though it was softer than he’d ever heard it. Which wasn’t right. She should be yelling at him. (Why should she be yelling at him?) He tried focusing on the voice, and after a few moments managed to make out what she was saying.“Loqi, are you awake?”As soon as he was able to focus just that little bit, everything came rushing back at him and his mind immediately rejected everything again. The mission, the demons, the choice he made to stay. The pain. Everything in his mind started flaring up and panic sunk into his chest and gripped his heart. Aranea. If she was here she was in danger. The demons!With a gasp he forced his eyes open, and reached his arms up as if prepared to fight off something on top of him. He couldn’t see, and started swinging wildly, unable to focus his eyes. He would have sat up but suddenly it felt like he couldn’t breathe. He drew in breath after breath, but just couldn’t hold onto them. He needed to sit up, he needed to get out of here. Was that something in his arm? A knife? Was there a tonberry around on top of everything else? And where was Aranea, he’d heard her hadn’t he? He had to warn her that there were too many demons, she needed to…needed to…His hand began to claw at whatever was holding him down, and when that went nowhere, he reached for the knife in his arm. Maybe he could use it as a weapon. But before he could grab at it something else grabbed his wrists and pinned them at his sides. In response he shut his eyes, gritting his teeth and preparing for the worse though he still thrashed against whatever it was. He still couldn’t breath and there was a pressure on his chest. He tried moving his legs, but found that they weren’t cooperating just yet, barely managing to move and tangled in something.“…qi…yo…focus…oice…”What? He shook his head, as if trying to shake away whatever was making everything distant.“Com…Just…sten…safe.”His mind latched onto that last word, and slowly he started trying to come out of his panic.“That’s it…Just…cus.”His breathing began to settle, and his face began to relax slightly. He could feel the fight leaving him, and he didn’t know if that was a good or bad thing.“You’re doing good Loqi. Just follow my voice.”He managed to hear the full sentence and one of his hands twitched, slightly tugging against the hold on his wrist. It slightly tightened in response. He knew that voice, didn’t he? He could have sworn he did…“Loqi, you’re safe. Can you open your eyes?”It clicked in his head who it was, and he managed to stammer, “C-cor?”“Yeah, that’s right.” The man sounded like he was trying his best to remain calm, “Aranea’s here too.”“A-aranea?” He opened his eyes, though they still refused to focus. “There are demon’s Aranea.”“Perhaps it’s a side effect of the pain meds?” Cor whispered to Aranea, so he didn’t alarm Loqi further. Aranea only nodded her agreement, watch Loqi for any more changes.“No there’s not kiddo. Not here.” She said, and hearing her voice this time was a relief, “You’re back in Lestallum.”“Lestallum?” He said, looking over at a something human shaped next to his bed. There was silver on it, so he thought that might be Aranea. “What…?”He stared at her for a time, just trying to get his eyes to focus on her. And when he did, a sigh of relief left her upon seeing clarity return to his eyes. He then turned to look next to her, and saw Cor leaning over the bed. Oh. He was the one holding his wrists down. Loqi exhaled slowly and began to take in his surroundings. It wasn’t a hospital room. Those had been filled for ages now. But it clearly had been stripped bare. Probably one of the make shift rooms then. He also noted that the thing in his arm was an I.V. and that it could have been bad if he’d managed to rip that out.He then turned his attention back to the pair, and shook his head one last time, before saying, “What happened?”Aranea carefully removed her hands from his chest, which was how she’d managed to keep him from sitting up, and sunk into her chair, hands immediately going to cover her face as she exhaled slowly.“Gods Loqi, you scared the shit out of us.”Loqi frowned and then replied, “That doesn’t answer my question.”Cor, after taking his hands off Loqi’s wrists slowly, spoke this time. “You were on a mission that went bad. Really bad. You made them leave you behind.” “I…” Hearing it out loud made some details come back, but not much. It was muddied. He could remember…echos. And light. And a woman?Rather than say all that, he said, “Did I get stepped on by an iron giant? Because that’s what it feels like.”Aranea glared over at him from between her fingers, and he pretended not to notice her. She could tell when he was glossing over something.“No, there were no iron giants.” Cor stated before she could say anything, but then he almost cracked a smile when he added, “But it might have been a red one though.”Aranea switched her glare from Loqi over to Cor, who she promptly kicked. He didn’t even have the decency to grunt in pain. She hadn’t realized just how much of her energy had been depending on waiting for Loqi to wake up. Because now that he was awake, she was drained. Like, nearly going to fall over drained. Now that he was awake, it was like her body took that as permission to clock out.With an irritated grunt as she got to her feet, and snapped her head toward Loqi and said, “You. Me and you are going to have words once you’re better. I mean it.”She didn’t wait for him to respond and was gone in the blink of an eye. Loqi sighed and knew there would be no avoiding it. But at the same time, he didn’t care. He got to see her again at least. He was alive after all. That was better than nearly dying out in the middle of all those demons.“You know, if she didn’t have silver hair, I’m pretty sure you’d have turned her grey from this alone.” Cor suddenly said, breaking him out of his thoughts.He couldn’t help the small laugh that left him. He looked over at Cor, who had taken Aranea’s spot, and shrugged. Or tried to.“Maybe I am the reason her hair is sliver.” Loqi raised an eyebrow at Cor and added, “You never know, she could have been a brunette before she met me.”That managed to make Cor laugh as well. But it was short lived. Loqi remembered more and more of what happened, mentally tallying up how many times he’d been stabbed or clawed, and he’s now absolutely sure he’d been stepped on. And Cor, as observant as he was, could guess what Loqi was thinking about. And those thoughts turned the mood somber.Cor seemed to chew on his words before speaking, “She’s right though. You gave us all a scare.”“I survived, didn’t I? Just focus on that.” Loqi said flippantly, turning away despite the pain because he absolutely didn’t want to think about how he almost died.“But you didn’t.”“What?” Loqi froze where he was, confusion playing across his face out of sight of Cor.Cor, meanwhile, did his best to be unwavering, but the tiniest pause in his voice betrayed just how much he had scared them, “You died out there Loqi, just before we arrived.”It took Loqi a moment to process what he said, but when he did all he could say was, “Oh.”“Yeah. Oh.” Cor closed his eyes and leaned back in the chair and once again sent his thanks to the astrals for those glaives. “I know this’ll probably sound bizarre coming from me, but we need you alive. Don’t take risks like this again, Loqi.”At that, the frown on Loqi’s face deepened and he turned back around before he said, “If I’m in charge of a group, I’m going to make sure as many survive as possible.”“At the cost of your own life?” Cor said, reopening his eyes and fixing Loqi with a stare that told him exactly what he thought of that.Which was rich, coming from the immortal. “Tell me you wouldn’t do the same.”“…” Cor couldn’t, though he wished he could. So instead, he closed his eyes again and decided to ignore Loqi. Not the most mature thing to do, but considering it was ignore him or yell at him for making him worry, he chose the better route.“Hey.” Loqi said, trying to get Cor to speak. “You know I made the right call. If I hadn’t how many more would have died? I’d rather it was just me if it came to it.”This only seemed to push Cor further into his own head, which irritated Loqi further. Instead of trying to talk to him like a rational human, Loqi decided that he was going to go a find a more rational person to talk to. With a huff of frustration, he removed his covers quietly. Or rather, he was removing them slowly due to pain, and that being quiet was somewhat of an unexpected bonus. Then he forced his legs to the end of the bed and with all the will power he could muster, he stood up, doing his best to ignore the pain that was shooting all over his body right at that moment.He regretted it immediately, because even willpower couldn’t stop his legs from folding underneath him. He fully expected to fall to the floor and end up in more pain, but suddenly Cor was there, one arm wrapped around his waist tightly, and the other draping one of Loqi’s arms over his shoulder.“What do you think you’re doing??” This time there was anger in his voice, and a deep frown settled across he features.“Trying to leave, what’s it look like?” Loqi snapped back, trying to pull his arm out of Cor’s grip even though he knew if he did he’d fall. Call him stubborn.Cor rolled his eyes, a first that Loqi had ever seen, and then said, “You’re going to hurt yourself even worse is what you’re going to do. Now get back into the bed.”Loqi narrowed his eyes at Cor, as if wondering just how hard he could push his buttons. But then Cor made a decision for him and picked him up easily and placing him back on the bed in one swift movement. Unfortunately for Loqi, the fast movement resulted in him becoming extremely dizzy, and not really able to keep Cor from putting him back.“Right, forgot you’re not exactly in the right state of mind right now.”“You’re not in the right state of mind ever.” Loqi replied, slightly going cross-eyed as he once again struggled with focusing his vision.Another sigh left Cor, this time fond underneath the annoyance, and he said, “Go back to sleep Loqi. Maybe you’ll feel up to walking next time.”“Right.” As much as it bothered Loqi, he began to feel fuzzy headed. Perhaps Cor was right about sleeping. Though, he did his best to make a mental note that he was arguing with Cor.“I’m not letting this go by the way. I know I’m right.”“Sure Loqi.”It wasn’t long before Loqi’s burst of energy, now that he was awake, extinguished itself. He drifted off within minutes. Cor watched him for at least another half hour, wanting to make sure that he wouldn’t have any nightmares and that he was well and truly asleep. Then he pulled out his phone and called Monica, and began to ensure the Loqi, if he went out on a mission, was with either him, Aranea, or the three boys. But then, right before he hung up, he added the three glaives to that list.It was simple. He decided that he didn’t want Loqi to die. So he put him with people that were good at not dying and he should be alright. Right? He hoped so. With that, Cor himself leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes again, this time also going to sleep. For the first time since they’d gotten back, he could relax enough to do so.The demons hadn’t gotten Loqi, and the battle had been won. That was all that Cor had hoped for through this all.