hugtopia_logs | those rebellious teenage years come a-calling

Entry tags:

!: noctis lucis caelum

those rebellious teenage years come a-calling

♥ Who: Noctis and Ardyn
♥ Where: Regis & Ardyn's place, woo
♥ When: /NONCOMMITTAL HAND WOBBLE, some time in September
♥ What: Some talking! About important things! AKA: "would you like to try a little blasphemy, as a treat"
♥ Rating: idk PG at least, probably

[It's well after his birthday - and post-afterglow of what a damn good day he'd had, because he'd wanted to ride that wave as long as he could without ruining it - that Noctis finally resolves himself to have a talk he'd been rather anxious about for... well, probably a few months now. It had started out as just a theorized thing between he and Pyra, something to work on in the background. But the truth is, if they really want to go for it - really, really make a solid effort - they'll need extra help. They'll need Ardyn on board. And he doesn't know what that means, he doesn't have a plan or a method or anything, but.

But.

He really wants to try, turns out.

And so, one particular afternoon when he knows Regis will be manning the potion shop, Noctis ventures over to the house and knocks on the door (rather than letting himself in, which might indicate things are more serious today). Should Ardyn open the door to invite him in, he'll be greeted by an awkward shuffle and an offered bottle of some of this really nice fruit wine from Shoremere, almost like an apology.]

Hey. You free for one of those talks?

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[He was about as fine with it as he was going to be, which was going to have to work.]

We can take up space in my room and I'll deal with the floor, gods know I've slept in worse places.

[ Noctis had asked if she could bring others into her crystal-- to which she had answered yes. Imagine her surprise when Noctis had replied by naming his very own uncle!

Not too long after that, she meets them at the (senior) Lucis Caelum household. ]

So... The plan is... what, again?

[ JUST. Double checking. She thinks she heard them right-- enter crystal, access remote memories, only together, and also with Ardyn's own knowledge and guidance. ]

We're looking for more memories, or clues, or whatever- in some ruins of Solheim. Ardyn said Aera knew about a ruin around Ravatogh, and I thought I saw something when I was up the mountain, and it's connected to the Astral War, which is when a lot of people think that the daemons first appeared. So it's a place to start.

[He gives her a light but meaningful nudge.]

I told him... about what we're trying to do. He's in.

Wholeheartedly, of course. I can't let my dearest nephew run about doing something reckless without me, that wouldn't be any fun whatsoever.

[we joke to cope in this house]

I don't know how much help I can be, but I'll do all that I'm able.

[ She looks from one to the other, the smile forming on her lips becoming hopeful, lighting up her eyes. That they're working together brings no small amount of joy to her (nonexistent) heart.

And, she rather likes the idea of them working for an alternative within the means and myths of their own world, rather than relying on an off-worlder, whether her or someone else. Because if no one is able to travel to someone else's world... at least they'll be able to return to their home with a solution native to it. ] It's worth a shot, I think.

[ She steps forward, lifting up a hand to gesture to the crystal that sits upon her chest. ] But, alright... Place your hand here, I'll make the connection with Noctis' crystal, I'll take the both of you in.

[Noctis takes out his communicator and sends a quick text to his father to give him the heads up - shenanigans at home, they're taking over the living room, everything is fine, nothing too specific - and gets them settled on the biggest couch. No sense in causing a ruckus and worrying his dad when he does inevitably come back, in case they're still at it and unconscious. He gives Ardyn a grin that is trying to be relaxed, but in truth, his bravado hides plenty of his own nerves. Delving into the crystal memories is always a little bit frightening.]

See you on the other side.

[He gives the crystal on his own chest an idle tap, ready to go.]

[Ardyn hesitated, the smile on his face turning uneasy. He was about as committed to this as he could be, but being confronted with it was still unsettling at best. Gods forbid he end up corrupting something without meaning to.]

[...But surely that wouldn't happen, right? Pyra knew what she was doing, and she wouldn't have offered if she found it dangerous. Which just left Ardyn to be worried about what something like this could theoretically do to his own head, as disorganized as it was already.]

[Not like there was any turning back now. He took a slow breath and gently touched the glowing crystal, looking for all the world like he was bracing himself for being thrown clear through the wall.]

[(Probably because he was.)]

[ What a nice couch they've all cozied up on!

The crystal upon her chest responds to the tap of his fingers with a gentle pulse of cool light. In a matter of seconds, he'll be somnolent, his consciousness temporarily taken into its realm. Concentrating further, she gathers her strength, building a tether of her crystal to the one spliced upon Noctis. Wispy, golden tendrils flow from her as a source, braiding in the air to form a lock between her and him. Lifting her hand, she reaches out and taps the smooth surface of his crystal, solidifying the bridge, and waits for Noctis to do the same with hers.

With the connection made, all three will be transported into a realm unique to Noctis, his personal soulscape.

Once her form manifests completely, she looks over to both of them, asking lightly: ]

Everyone make it in one piece?

[The journey into the crystal - or the crystal's memories, what have you - is always a little jarring, but having done it a handful of times now makes Noctis more immune to the effects. He glances around at the scenery (or lack thereof, what with the empty, sweeping blue void of nothingness around them) then focuses on Ardyn. Even though Pyra had said it would work, he can't help feeling surprised to see the other man here. It's the first time someone else has come along, after all.]

Looks like it. You okay?

I-I think so?

[Disoriented and more than a little nervous, sure, but anyone would be when floating in an empty blue void. Ardyn looked at his hands as if to be sure he was as close to 'really there' as things got in this situation, then raised his head to look around.]

What...is all of this?

This is… inside of Noctis’ soul— or a conceptual, subconscious representation of it. [ She looks at Noctis, giving him a small smile. ] It’s rather beautiful, I think. It reminds me of a nebula.

[Noct's brief returning smile is bashful, and he scuffs a hand self-consciously through his hair.]

It just looks like the inside of the crystal. Probably echoing all the stuff going on in there.

[What with him absorbing all the crystal has to offer- he has no way of knowing if it always looked like this, or if it's been affected and now echoed the changes occurring in him. It... doesn't technically matter, in the long run. What his soul looks like is only relevant when they come here, before the memories manifest themselves.]

It’s spectacular, of course, but… [Sincere as that was, Ardyn was starting to look like he was waiting for an explosion.] Maybe this was not the best idea. Are we sure I’m not…damaging something, just by being here? Are both of you feeling alright?

[Neither of them seemed concerned or even uncomfortable, but it wasn’t as though Ardyn could forget he was corruption given form.]

[ She doesn’t think it’ll be a problem— but that could simply be the part of her that’s not human assuming that she will be fine, or underestimating what scourge he does carry.

…It’ll be fine. Most likely. And if it’s not, they’ll figure things out. Besides, there’s something bigger they’re searching for, after all: an answer to help their world. ] Mm, I feel fine. It’s rather refreshing, in a way.

[ Yeah, “floating in an empty nebula of magic feels refreshing” is exactly what a crystal would say. ]

[Noctis glances sidelong at Ardyn, and it doesn't take him long to recognize his meaning, and the concern attached. He gives himself a moment to really feel it out, to see if he senses anything off with the added presence. It does feel different, but it had felt a little strange the first time Pyra had ventured here, purely by being what she is- a person, not an object, and thus not someone who ought to belong in a space for memories and energy-converted objects. It'd been a comfort to him then actually. To know his soul recognized her as a person and not a crystal or a manifestation of her magic.

The same applies here, and it feels strange again but offers the same sort of comfort. Ardyn is a person, not a corrupting energy or the scourge made flesh. It's almost as if his soul was here all along, like it belonged here or had been waiting for them. (Which is a bizzare thought, and a fleeting one he doesn't chase. The point is, him coming with them isn't a problem.)]

You're fine, [is at last his answer.] I'm supposed to bring you here eventually anyway, right? If the crystal couldn't handle it, that wouldn't be the original plan. You're not corrupting anything.

Well...that is true, isn't it? [He seemed to be nervously gauging the situation, glancing between them and uneasily rubbing the back of his neck. They did seem completely fine--if he thought about it, he probably would have noticed he didn't feel all that terrible himself.]

[After considering their answers for a moment, he dropped his hands to his side and opted instead to look around in quiet acceptance of the conclusion. As much as proximity to the Crystal was a worrying idea on several levels, he chose to trust that Pyra and Noctis knew what they were doing more than Ardyn did.]

Very well, but...just say something if that should change. For now, what are we to do from here?

From here… [ Her attention turns to Noctis. ] It’s a matter of accessing the memory, like pulling it from an archive.

[ Perhaps “archive” makes it sound more organized than it is, though, and so she adds: ] Searching for it will take some concentration.

Yeah. We've got a basis for it, we just... need to find it. We've been sort of playing it by ear, so this is one of the first times we'll be trying for something really specific. As long as it works the same way...

[He shrugs, then closes his eyes, focusing inwardly as he'd done before, to call out to the memories, passing through the wall-now-turned-curtain of his soul that previously sealed those memories away thanks to the help of Pyra's crystal. The weight of them welcomed him, but he wasn't overwhelmed by them, still cradled safely by the supporting beams of her power. It gives him the strength to look deeper, fixated on the guidelines he and Ardyn had managed to figure out during their conversation.

Ravatogh. Solheim ruins. The Astral War. Ifrit. What were those magitek fields meant to guard?

It takes a little while, the silence dragging on longer than it ever has before, but slowly the shades of grey and brown begin to bleed through the nebula around them, forming rocks, lumpy terrain, a path leading downwards from a gloomy hill. The golden rays of fading daylight burning out the blue to create a new sky. A stone structure pieces itself together, like fragments of a mirage building upwards. Stairs. Rusty ancient metal gates. A gap between segments, and pillars with motifs reminiscent of simple Solheim design. It's smaller than any other ruin any of them would have come across, deceptively simple, but it carries with it an air of... something hard to define. Significance? Urgency? Longing? Noct's brows furrow, trying to parse the wave of emotions that this memory brings to the surface. This place... wants to be found, yet at the same time it rejects their presence. It makes him want to recoil but his curiosity burns, almost painfully, calling him forward. There's a siren song in his blood. He needs to know what's inside.

The Chosen is here.

A Lucis Caelum has arrived.

Death is here but cannot leave. Walk without fear.

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...This is... [He opens his eyes at last, gazing up the set of stairs that awaits them, one hand pressed to his chest, trying to shake off that mixed feeling of urgency and dread.] I don't get it. This is just a memory, but it knows we're here.

[Throughout most of this unfolding, Ardyn simply braced himself in silence and waited. The shapeless blue began to change in a way that felt not quite right to him, and he elected to close his eyes rather than watch reality itself twist into another shape entirely. It seemed the lesser of two evils to see the end result instead of trying to comprehend the process itself.]

[And the end result, little more than rocky terrain and ancient ruins at sunset...left him completely awestruck. When was the last time he'd seen any part of Lucis at all, even in only memory? It was memory far more grounded than his own, and that was more than enough. He looked back down the path and then towards the skies as the other two adjusted, in silent fascination bordering on utter amazement.]

[...And then the moment was over, head whipping back toward Noctis in a blur of a long violet ponytail and a look of alarm.]

What do you mean it knows we're here?

[ So this is the Lucian sky at sunset… Like Ardyn, she’s enchanted as the landscape takes shape. When Noctis speaks, she gives an uncertain look towards Ardyn, then Noctis. ]

It’s… sentient?

[ She frowns, puzzled. He’d mention that the Eosian Crystal holds all the memories of their world, and now all of that is with him. So rather than being a static memory, it’s… Maybe sentient isn’t the world— but reactive? ]

I don't... think it's the building itself. More like the memory held something inside it, and it was waiting for me. [He pauses, chasing that feeling a little deeper, because it doesn't feel quite right. The words formulate slowly, and it's a moment before he can make sense of them. That darkness... a grim craving.

Ah. He looks at Ardyn.] Waiting for us. Like it's tied to the bloodline.

[That doesn't make much sense though, does it? Solheim far precedes the line of Lucis Caelum, as does the war of the Astrals. If this ruin was built by them, then whoever designed it had some kind of precognition, or it was changed after the fact when the gods got involved. (Or some other reasoning he can't think of, but that's what makes the most sense to him.)]

But that's... [Impossible, obviously. He'd followed the same line of thought, for all the sense it didn't make. But he wasn't about to argue with whatever it was Noctis felt from all of this, no matter how little he understood it.]

...well. Then we shouldn't keep it waiting much longer, should we?

[ If Noctis’ theory is right, then this place was built for them, and if this memory and these ruins are important to their world, then they should uncover what’s inside.

She’s comforted by the thought that if things are too much, they can leave any time…

(But with a memory that calls to him, would a fail safe even apply?) ]

I agree.

[ And with that, she will follow them up to the entrance of the ruins, expecting it to be some sort of shrine for its apparently smaller size. ]

Pretty sure it's going to make us wait, if it's anything like the rest of the Solheim ruins I know. They don't open until nightfall.

[Thankfully the memory had brought them here at dusk, otherwise it would have been a much longer wait. Sure enough, when they round the corner and crawl through the broken bars that would normally prevent entry, as expected there is no entrance, and the symbol on the wall is dull and 'off'. While they wait for the sun to fade away on the horizon, Noctis pokes around the ruined square near the symbol where he expects the entrance to appear, brushing dust off the etchings to find half-crumbled, fading text beneath. It's old, but still legible enough that he can make some sense of it.]

"Solheim training grounds"... "maniputation of time and space"... "Pitioss". I've never heard that name before.

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