Grudges

The night had finally fell upon the lands of Exzodia, the sky becoming a twinkling canvas for the many stars to shine brightly. I stood outside against the rail of the porch of our house, reflecting on everything up until this point of my life.

Seconds stretched into minutes while in the maze of my own thoughts, scrambling with questions I already knew the answers to. It was never a matter of if I was ready, but when and how could I truly deal with Lament.

"Nox?" Luciel spoke from behind, walking toward me and standing beside me. "You're still outside? Is everything okay?"

I continued to gaze up at the starry sky above, the gentle breeze causing my hair to flow in calm waves. "I'm just thinking...about the day I have to return home. After all, I am the Ruler of Exzodia now and it's been years since we survived Her attack."

"I can tell the other houses look down upon me, they respect me but don't honor my name like they did with Zachary or even the previous royals that sat upon the throne before me. Everyone sees only the Prince of Exzodia or the corrupt pieces of Lament within," I continued, shifting my gaze to meet Luciel's.

Luciel gently placed her hand upon my back, moving to stand closer to me and rested her head upon my shoulder. "Just ignore them for now. They don't know what you've been through, nor could they truly understand."

"I know, but it's just..." I began, letting out a soft sigh and looked out into the distance once more. "...I don't want them to see me as weak, incapable of ruling the throne. Yet...none of them has seen the wasteland my land has become..."

Luciel exhaled softly through her nose, looking out into the distance as well. "I get what you mean...and I guess you should just go out there and prove to them you are capable. You learned from the best remember?"

I smiled at Luciel's gentle uplifting and looked down at her, meeting her assuring gaze with a soft chuckle. "Yeah, I know..."

Luciel giggled softly and lifted herself upon her toes to gently kiss my cheek, her hands gently holding my arm. "As long as you know..~ C'mon, Fleur and Effie are waiting for you."

"Waiting for me? For what?" I asked, following behind Luciel as she began pulling me back inside the house.

"They wanted to play a game! The night has just started, so we have some time to have some fun. Unless, you're too tired to play with us?" Luciel beamed, taking me downstairs into the game room.

"Hm, I'm not tired at all. I guess I could join you all for a few games," I said, following behind Luciel with my hand in her.

Once we reached the basement's game room, I could hear the sound of lively dance music being played on the big speakers. The lights flashed in colorful strobes, Fleur, Effie, and Looni all dancing to the music with bright smiles and laughs.

I walked forward, watching the girls jump up and down while chanting "hey", the three of them clearly drawn to the beat. As the beat switched, I watched as Effie pop locked to the song while Fleur and Looni cheered her on, feeding into Effie's high.

"Hold on, let me cook!" Effie laughed, showing off her footwork before turning around and squeaking at the sight of me, instinctively ducking down to prevent herself from behind seen.

Fleur bursted out into laughter at Effie's embarrassment, picking up the remote to turn the music down. "Calm down, Effie. It's just Nox and Luciel."

I let out an amused chuckle at Effie's reaction, shaking my head and walking forward to see what they were listening to. "Cerebral? I hear they are one of the best artists in the world right now."

"You know Cerebral?!" Fleur gasped, hurrying to me and grabbing the sleeve of my shirt.

"What? You think because I'm a Prince all I do is listen to classical music like the rest of these royals? I was practically raised by my Foster Family, I know Cerebral," I said, amused by Fleur's fangirlish demeanor at the topic of her favorite artist.

"Yes! Yes!" Fleur laughed, hopping around the room with glee that I actually listened to her favorite artist.

I smiled at Fleur's sweet excitement, her joy brightening up parts of my spirit. I looked down at Fleur's phone to check her playlist, noticing the next song was one of Cerebral's newest tracks. "Have you listened to the newest track yet?"

"No, not yet. We were just about to listen to it together, so you and Luci arrived at the perfect time!" Fleur answered, skipping over to me and leaned down to play the next song.

The music began to play upon the speakers, the synths and pads filling the room with a mystical and surreal sound. The arps and bass began to play, the room now filled with even more energy then the drop played, the girls each filled with energy and danced with the music.

I watched as the music took the three to another realm, each of them looking so...free with their movements. Without knowing, my foot tapped to the beat, their own vibe merging with my own and pulling me into their powerful orbit.

"C'mon, Nox!~ I know you can dance as well, we used to dance all the time!" Luciel shined bright, taking my hand and pulling me onto the dance floor with her.

"Yeah, let's see some moves, Noxie!~" Effie cheered, bouncing up and down with anticipation.

I looked at the three girls with my arms crossed in a reserved demeanor, seeing their expectant gazes and closed my eyes. I let out a soft sigh and uncrossed my arms, loosening myself up a bit and listening to their growing chants.

"Go, Noxie!~ Go, Noxie!~" The girls chanted, each of them bouncing up and down with energy as they watched me prepare to dance.

I began to dance as they cheered, my moves stiff and awkward at first but they didn't care, they cheered louder and began hyping me up even more. Slowly, my moves began to loosen, my old talents returning to me and my rhythm coming back in full.

The girls danced along with me as the second drop came, the entire room filled with a vibe I wouldn't quite explain. The lights flashed in beautiful strobes, our butterflies fluttering around the room with graceful movements, matching our energy.

The song soon ended and Effie fell upon me with a cheerful laugh, holding onto me for support with soft giggles. I held onto her as well, looking down at her with a soft chuckle and watched as she looked up at me with a bright smile.

"You dance so well! I nearly forgot that it was you on the floor for a moment," Effie praised, standing up straight with a light giggle, her eyes shining with admiration.

"I nearly forgot myself for a moment honestly... It's been years since I last danced so freely. It felt amazing honestly," I said, my heart still pumping with a hidden pure adrenaline, each nerve in my body racing with energy.

"That's what we call freedom. To just be able dance and sing, it's so fulfilling. Not as much as gardening and playing with cute cats around the neighborhood, but still the same thing!" Fleur said, turning down the music once more with a satisfied hum.

"True to that...ahh, that reminds me! What were those games we were talking about playing earlier?" Luciel asked, turning to Fleur and Effie for a reminder.

"Oh yeah! We have a few video games shipped straight from Destiny Islands and New America, we also have Karaoke, Move Revolution, and Twister—"

"Twister?!" Effie asked with excitement, releasing her hold on me then pumped her fist with determination. "You're all going down! No one is more flexible than me, the Super Kunoichi Effie!"

"Yeah, yeah, calm it down missy~ We haven't even started the games yet," Fleur laughed, walking off to get everything set up for game night.

"Yeah, well when it happens then I'll take you all out!" Effie said, hurrying behind Fleur to help her set everything up.

I chuckled softly at the two as I made my way toward the couch to sit down, a soft grunt sounding in my throat as Luciel playfully sat upon my lap and sat back to get comfortable. I rolled my eyes at her boldness, wrapping my arm around her waist to keep her steady upon my lap while I scrolled on my phone.

While Fleur and Effie finished setting up for the games, an alarm began going off in the room, each of us pausing as we noticed the flashing red lights in the room. The large screen on the wall began to shift into static, the video feed of Gallet appearing upon the screen.

"Calling for Squad V. I repeat, calling for Squad V," Gallet began, his voice filled with urgency and importance.

"Ugh... seriously? Right now?" Fleur sighed softly, walking to the front and picking up the remote to press the red button to answer his call. "Fleur reporting, what's the issue?"

"Holy Resistance HC has called. There have been reports of Daemon sightings within Judge Prairie and a few of our units are trapped there. Specifically, Lieutenant Yang Ru," Gallet reported, his brow raising at the sound of Fleur's groan.

"Can't they just hide out and wait until the day time like we do? She is the direct reincarnation of the Ruler of Phlogiston, Liao Ru. She can't handle a few Daemons?" Fleur asked with a hint of sass, crossing her arms over her chest.

"C'mon, she's our Squad Lieutenant! We have to help her out! Plus, imagine the payout if we collect more data on the Daemons!" Effie bounce with determination, her eyes shimmering with excitement to go out in the night.

"Yeah, plus...Whatever rivalry you have with her can be hashed out by tonight. The word of Genesis says—"

"Yes, I know...'Those who bare grudges can not bare sight to the Gates of Beyond,'... However, my rivalry isn't because of a grudge. Fine, we'll go. Just send us the location and we'll be on our way," Fleur said, using one of her butterflies to manifest her sunglasses then put them on.

I watched as Fleur and Effiw made their way back upstairs to get ready for the mission, my mind wondering what the story between Fleur and Yang Ru was. Luciel got off my lap then extended her hand to me to get up, both of us following the girls upstairs.

My phone began to buzz in my hand, my screen lighting up and showing the mission given to us by the Holy Resistance. "He just sent it."

〘New Mission!〙

〘Client: Holy Resistance〙

〘Request: Defeat all Daemons!〙

〘Request Location: Libra Kingdom, Judge Prairie.〙

〘Reward: 4500 zodias〙

"Alright, let's get going. We don't want to leave them stranded," Luciel said, hurrying toward the front door and grabbed her coat from the coat rack.

I slipped my phone into my pocket and jogged behind Luciel out the front door, Effie and Fleur calling out to us from the car. Luciel and I quickly got in the car then Fleur drove off quickly, the wheels racing powerfully against the asphalt.

A woman swiftly dodged each thrust of an icy pitch fork from a corrupted woman with frostbitten skin, her eyes glowing red with pure despair. She evaded another thrust before countering with a fiery smash to the corrupt woman's face, sending her crashing backwards.

"Calling...Command Center," The woman panted, glancing around the prairie to find her and her squad surrounded by corrupt humanoid figures. "This is worse than it seems...these aren't Daemons. These are Laments. I don't know where they came from!"

"Lieutenant!" A male voice called out in deep panic, his body becoming horded by the frost laments.

"Ms. Yang Ru!" Another woman screamed from the ground, holding off a cursed sword aimed at her chest from a corrupt knight that mounted on top her.

Yang Ru glanced around her surroundings with a frustrated grunt, watching as her squad helplessly became out numbered. "Gallet, we need more support now! I don't know how much longer we can last on our own!"

Suddenly, our car came screeching around the prairie with a wide drift, my body becoming a dark blue silhouette and appearing toward the knight mounted upon the woman. I grabbed the corrupt knight by her hair and pulled her off, finishing her off by impaling her with my sword.

The man surrounded by frostbitten laments grunted as he struggled under their weight, but a barrage of Holy Bullets began sniping each lament one by one, bursting them into dark particles of energy. The man uncovered himself slowly, his eyes widening with relief as he noticed us.

I stood up straight and looked forward at Yang Ru, meeting her sunset colored eyes. She fixed her dark blue agent jacket with soft relief and began to approach me, placing her phone back upon her holster.

"You all came right on time honestly. At first, we were dealing with Daemons...but then those things began to appear," Yang Ru informed, looking over at her team and watching as Effie and Luciel helped with their recovery back to their units.

"Looks like you were dealing with the Mourning Type Laments. I've ran into a few of those when I was younger," I said, glancing at the laments surrounding us with their weapons cautiously ready in hand.

"Hmph... A Destined Prodigy and can't even live up to her name. And you desire the title of Head of Squad V? You can barely handle C Rank Laments," Fleur taunted as she approached, reloading her revolver with Holy Bullets.

Yang Ru scoffed softly at Fleur's snarky comment and turned to face her with equal sass. "Look who decided to join up. I guess you do take your job seriously now. Good to know you aren't kissing the crown's feet anymore."

"Jealous because he likes me over you? Not only am I a better sharpshooter, but a better maid to my Prince. You could never compare," Fleur hissed, her eyes flaring up with challenge behind her sunglasses.

"Alright, both of you cool it. The enemy isn't each other, but the Mourning around us. Let's focus on the task, and put the grieving around us to rest," I said, readying my sword to take down the laments around us.

Both women scoffed at each other then began to focus on the task at hand and got into their stances. The Mourning all began to rally, charging at us at once to strike us down and make us one of them.

The first corrupt knight dashed toward me, immediately recognizing my very essence and swung his sword down at me. His sword cut through my silhouette, catching him by surprise then be let out a monstrous groan as I cut him in two, causing him to disperse into dark energy particles.

'Strange...these Mourning are very weak, even for C Rank. Maybe there is a weaker Commander nearby,' I thought to myself, using another butterfly to warp out of danger of another attack.

Effie rode on the back of Looni, holding onto her leashes tightly as Looni struck down the Mourning in groups, each lament going down in one strike. "Huh?! These guys as super weak!"

"Yeah, they go down easily, but they come in large numbers! I don't know where they are coming from!" Yang Ru called out, flipping backwards to dodge a barrage of poisonous arrows from a Corrupt Archer in the distance.

Yang Ru dodged another volley of arrows before unholstering her dual pistols and began rapid firing at the archer, each bullet landing their mark. She manifested her fiery red butterflies around her, each one entering her pistols and reloading the magazine with full rounds.

"Nox! There might be a Commander around! Not a strong once since these go down easily!" Luciel called out to me, blocking a pitch fork with her scepter before using her butterflies to release a blast of magic around herself.

I ran toward one of the squad units and leaped upon the roof of the truck, scanning the battlefield for the Commander Type Lament. My gaze landed upon a woman with ivory skin donned in a white and black nun attire, ripped stocking, and long snow white hair, wielding a bayonet encased in holy and demonic energy.

See my influence..?

I am everywhere...

Noxius...

I grunted lightly and held my head as I heard Lament's taunting tone in my head, my vision growing slightly blurry and my ears beginning to ring. I shook my head lightly, regaining my vision and looking at the woman once again.

'She's the Commander...' I said mentally, calmly focusing my attention upon the Executioner ahead.

I glanced at the Plant Materia equipped upon my sword for a moment, remembering the feeling of Floria's power coursing through my body. I awakened the materia, yellow energy beginning to flow around my body, my butterflies shifting into a floral yellow color.

Using a burst of wind energy, I propelled myself toward the Commander with a powerful slash of my sword, but the woman sensed my attack and parried my slash. I landed on the ground and generated roots around my body, launching each of them toward her.

The woman smirked at my attack, manifesting a black angelic wing on the right side of her back and covered herself with her wing to block my attack. She giggled lightly as the force of my strikes pushed her back slightly, her defenses still as sturdy as when they arrived.

"Wow~ Lady Lament didn't tell me that her best creation was so reactive, and kinda cute," The Executioner said, twirling her bayonet around then got back into her stance.

"Hmph, so you're one of the more developed Commanders, taken you can actually form sentences. You seem complacent in your position. Who are you?" I interrogated, keeping my sword ready as well, my eyes scanning her every movements.

The Executioner hummed at my question, her cracked holy necklace jingling in the breeze of the prairie. "My name is Sister Dahlia, and I am very complacent. Lament, the Dark Lord of Grief, Mourning, and Lament, has given me a new purpose. A new life!"

"She can save us from our struggles! She isn't destroying the planet like the other Dark Lords! She is our savior from the pain this world has endured for countless generations! Why must you fight against her?" Dahlia asked, tilting her head with an eerie cuteness to her movements.

I glared at Dahlia with defiance, my floral energy spiralling around my body as I prepared myself for battle once more. "Because she took it all from me. Lament caused my pain, my grief...and I will take it all back one day. And it starts with you!"

Dahlia smirked as I dashed toward her with a wide swing of my sword, but she parried my attack with her bayonet then gracefully leaped backwards to create space. She pointed her weapon at me, Corrupt Berserkers rising from the ground, their bodies black silhouettes with fury red energy surrounding them.

The Corrupt Berserkers began to charge at me with furious war cries, each of them swinging their axes at me. Flashes of my past appeared in my mind, a familiar feeling coursing through my bones. I dodged and warped around their onslaught, striking each of them down in one strike.

"Crap..! They're ganging up on Nox!" Fleur called out, knocking one of the Corrupt Knights away with a swing of her arm then used all ten of her butterflies to manifest a massive railgun. "Move aside, and clear the way!"

Everyone looked over at Fleur, watching as she charged up a massive beam from her railgun, the lines of the gun shining brightly. With one pull of her trigger, she fired a massive beam of blessed energy toward the pile of Corrupt Berserkers.

The beam collided into the Berserkers and began to deflect to the sky, the light of the beam reflecting off my blast. My eyes began to shine an amber light and I let out a bellow as I lifted my blade, redirecting the powerful beam toward multiple Mourning and taking them down in one strike.

I spun around and launched my blade toward Dahlia then shot out my butterflies around me, each one latching upon a Mourning and sapping their energy with Nutrient Absorption. I chuckled darkly as I stared at Dahlia, my Butterflies all turning into seeds.

Dahlia deflected my sword with a heavy grunt then huffed heavily, her stance slightly weakening as the weight of my blade stunned her. Her heart thumped hard as she sensed a massive increase in my pool, her gaze slowly shifting toward me. 'His energy...just increased times 13!'

I looked at my hands as Nature Energy flowed throughout my body, my prowess raised to the highest as I used all 13 of my butterflies to become Nature Seeds. Nature green lightning crackled around my body, my eyes shifting into a leaf green hue.

"This form...feels exactly like my Sovereignty Stance. Floria, I feel your grace. Now allow me to use this grace, to send this lost soul into Eternal Rest," I said in an aloof tone, my Deep Roots slowly emerging from my lower back and spreading out with a powerful might.

Dahlia twirled her bayonet and aimed it at me, firing a barrage of demonic bullets toward me at high speeds, but my roots began deflecting them, acting as my automatic defenses. She grunted lightly and shook her head, thinking the first volley was a fluke.

The second wave of bullets flew toward me, but I was well prepared, my body flickering and appearing in front of Dahlia in the blink of an eye. Dahlia gasped in shock, her body unable to react fast enough for my onslaught.

I rained down a series of judgement upon her with every strike, knocking her away with a giant blow to her midsection with my root. I launched the second root after her, Effie descending down from Looni's back to rail grind along my root toward Dahlia.

"You're gonna get what's coming to you—" Effie began, lunging toward Dahlia and knocking her away with a bulleting front drop kick, her body becoming smoke and reappearing above Dahlia. "—and then some!"

Effie bellowed as she struck Dahlia's stomach with a concussive blow, a shockwave rushing around the area and crashing the ground. Effie rolled over to my sword and took it out of the ground then tossed it in the air.

I warped toward my sword in the air, catching it with both hands then activated all 13 of my Nature Seeds. I combined them all into one massive green orb of nature energy above my head. "This is the full power of your Nutrients! Gaia Bomb!"

I hurled the large orb down toward Dahlia, the orb's shadow completely engulfing her figure. Dahlia panicked immediately and pointed her bayonet at the Gaia Bomb, a figure with cyan hair flying up from the sky and cleanly slicing the orb of energy in two, the orb dispersing into nature particles.

The woman landed on the ground, her body clad in skeleton dragon armor, her great spear made from the very ribs of the ancient dragon she slayed. My heart nearly stopped at the sight of her, a memory flashing in my mind as I immediately recognized her.

"Flynn..?" I questioned in disbelief, my roots safely bringing me back down to the ground.

Dahlia laughed in slight disbelief at the sight of Flynn, scrambling to her feet in a hurry and cleared her throat. "Flynn! I'm glad the great Kingslayer has come to my aid!"

Flynn ignored Dahlia's comment and turned around to face me, her gaze meeting mine then she immediately readied her weapon. "Noxius, after two years of searching for you...now I can finally kill you for what you've done to our Fosters!"

I grunted heavily at her accusation, the day of our collapse playing in my head as if it happened yesterday. I couldn't speak, only stare at the woman I once knew as a cheerful, autumn haired girl.