Locked to Real_life_rpg

[starless_sky]

Things had been going well in Noct's life ever since he got a boyfriend. It wasn't what most people thought of when that word was used. He was still a virgin and while that was a bitter pill, it was better than being a virgin with no prospects. He had Prompto and they had a promise. Now they waited his father out. Eventually his dad would hand over the throne to him and retire, or worse, pass away. He didn't want to think about that but... it was how his family had worked since the beginning of the nation. Regis was a stubborn old alpha to boot.

 

Noct had been working more in the citadel, attending more meetings, talking to more people, doing his own Working Royal stuff which he had previously shrugged off with the excuse that he was in school. It got Ignis' attention as well as his father's which hopefully would work in his favor in the future. 

 

He had to get the public, the advisors, and the counsel on his side, or at the very least he had to get to where they couldn't oppose him when he took the throne. That meant he was building alliances now so years in the future, whenever he took the throne, he will have built a place for Prompto by his side. A nest of sorts. If that isn't the most omega way to think about it... a nest. 

 

It's what brought him to work most days. Today he was at a public garden maintained by the royal family. He was meeting with some of his citizens, many of them social workers and outreach professionals for the poor and underprivileged. A perfectly banal sort of day. 

 

It wouldn't stay that way. He was trusted enough to handle this on his own so he was attending with his civilians with minimal security. He was within a stone's throw of the citadel after all. It's what the Nifs were counting on. 

 

Some time later there was a great boom and then a siren sounded in the training yard. A voice pinged each glaive and crownsgaurd with earpieces, delivering several codes, each referring to a scenario. This event had several codes; Active shooters, fire, multiple casualties, and a note that Rosebud was not secure. Rosebud was among hostiles. 

 

Rosebud was Noctis' security code the crownsguard and glaives used. Not that he knew that. 

 

Things went to shit real quick and to help it along, there had been a small camera crew playing Noct's talk with the social workers he was with. One channel was broadcasting it from the nearby jumbotron and the chaos unfolded. Noct was talking, suddenly there was an explosion, screaming, fire, gunfire could be heard. Nif soldiers appeared on screen. In seconds it was happening. Other screens around Insomnia began showing the footage. 

 

One could hear the explosions and guns in real time, not from the screen but from the park itself a block over. 

 

Comments

[real_life_rpg]

Prompto's heart hammered in his chest, he white-knuckled the steering wheel as he made his way through the city. He constantly expected to be stopped, so it was a huge relief to make it to the outskirts of the city unscathed.

That telltale crackle of magic energy assured him that his connection to the Armiger had been restored. He just hoped that these two little successes weren't the calm before the storm, so to speak.

He couldn't believe he had actually made it outside of the city without being stopped by Cor. A miracle, really. Maybe the Six were looking out for him. He knew Cor would be angry as hell when he found out. Hell, he'd probably be kicked out of the Crownsguard or locked in a dungeon, but he had to try to get to Noct, no matter what it cost him.

Prompto hadn't really considered his plan beyond escaping the city and rescuing Noct. He pulled over on the roadside and pulled out a map of the world. If only he had one of the dropships the Imperial Empire had, he could fly directly to Niflheim. Alas, he didn't, so he would have to find an alternate route. Looking at the map, he decided his best bet was probably to head for Galdin Quay and catch a boat.

If he put his foot down and didn't stop other than for gas, he could make the Quay in pretty good time. Hopefully before nightfall, before the daemons could come out to play. Camping at a Haven would only cost him more time and put him further behind Noct.

He tossed the map onto the passenger seat, cracked open a can of Ebony, blasted the radio and slammed his foot down on the accelerator. Galdin, look out. Prompto was on his way!

[starless_sky]

What a way to have a road trip. At least the music was good, the traffic was clear, the sun was bright. Noct had no idea he had such drama in his wake. He had other concerns at the moment. Mostly staying alive and staying unharmed.

Cor's anger might calm down by the time they meet again. By the time Cor organized a plan and was debriefing was the time he noticed a certain Quicksilver wasn't among them. The way he was headed, Prompto was leaving the area the glaives would sweep faster than they could think to look for him. Most of them assumed he would follow the caravans of soldiers heading west.

As it was, Galdin Quay was beautiful as ever, especially at night. The perfect romantic getaway, the best one in Lucis, second only to Altissia. It was sparsley populated other than the soldiers. It wasn't a weekend and it wasn't a typical vacation month. The place was almost entirely Nifs leaving for Gralea so Prompto need only walk with purpose and the locals wouldn't look at him twice.

One of the Nifs on the docks had something to say, howerver.

"Hey, you, what troup are you with? I don't remember you coming in with us?" a team captain. "Where's your tags?"

[real_life_rpg]

Prompto made it to Galdin in record time. He shoved what little camping gear he had into the Armiger, but not his guns or his bag - just incase he lost access to it again.

The place was swarming with Imperials. Prompto took a deep breath. He could do this. Just act casual, don't be suspicious. All he had to do was keep his head down and get on the boat. Simple.

Well, not so simple. He should have expected his luck to run out at some point. He looked at the team captain, trying not to let his panic show. "I uh, I didn't come in with you guys. The um, the boss has had me in the Capital for awhile. Undercover. Those dumb Lucians had no clue! It'll be so good to get back to the Heartland. Didn't think I'd say this, but I miss the cold and the snow. Been stuck here so long." It was a fine line - talk enough to sound convincing, but not too much that he rambles and raised suspicion. Hopefully his talking would be enough to make the other forget about his tags.

"Any word on the target? Secured and on route to Gralea?"

[starless_sky]

The team lead looked suspicious. The guy's garb was all Lucian, but he knew that face... he thought about it. Where had he seen him before...?

His thoughts were interrupted by a soldier behind him.

"There's plenty of room on the boat. Half of our squad got reassigned to road blocks. Just count yourself lucky. How long you been in this shithole?" he laughed. "Too bloody long if you miss the cold. I get it though. I did two tours in Tenebrae and one in Accordo and I wanted to dive in the snow so bad when I got home. I laid in it til the wife forced me into a hot bath."

World weary men who were just doing their jobs.

"Oh yeah, the prince. Heh, he's on Zegnautus, he got the fast track back to the homeland. They'll arrive in a few hours." he leaned over. "Did you ever see him up close? He's a fine piece of ass I hear."

The captain groaned and waved them both off.

"Enough chatter, get to your bunks, we leave in an hour. No ordering drinks, don't get comfortable!"

[real_life_rpg]

"A year. Captain has had me in deep. I'm looking forward to seeing home." Prompto couldn't let himself think too hard about how some of these men had families back home waiting for them, that they were just humans doing their jobs, making a living to support their families. Had the Imperial troops stopped to think about the families of the people they had gunned down in the attack? Probably not.

No. He had to think of these men in exactly the same way he thought about the creepy MTs that travelled with them. Creepy ass robots or whatever the hell they were. Evil killing machines.

He had to stop himself from bristling, hearing Noct talked about like that, like he was a piece of meat to devour. He fought hard to keep his scent in check. He wouldn't to his omega any favours by letting his alpha instincts get the better of him right now.

Instead, he laughed it off. "Yeah, I seen him. Pretty little omega. Bet he looks good stuffed full of huge alpha cock, begging for it. Shame the Emperor isn't likely to give us all a go," he said, sounding every bit like the alpha assholes he despised.

He headed on board and dropped on to a bunk with a good view of the room, good sight on the doorway.

Dropping his bag and guns beside him, he let out a sigh. One step closer to Noct.

[starless_sky]

They were just people but mostly people who were desensitized to violence and who would gang rape Noctis without a second thought if he were among them. They were only as good as they were forced to be. Nothing like Prompto with his self-restraint and respect.

The MTs weren't well regarded among their ranks but they didn't notice the similarities between them.

Prompto's impression of a pig goes over well. The guys laugh at it. "I bet he'd be a sight. Fuckin' shame, would love to spend the trip across the sea with him in the bunks, eh?? I know, we do all the work and some rich noble who never lifts a finger for us is going to get him."

"I dunno, might be military, I heard it was going to be Uldor."
"Nah, I bet it'll be Tumelt."
"No way, he's too low ranking. I put my gil on Glauca."
"Fuck it might be all of them, you know how omegas get, heheheh." they all chuckle and start swapping stories of various war crimes they've committed.

Get used to it Prompto, this is the rest of the voyage. Well, the guys are nice otherwise. They play cards and shoot the shit. They'll oil their weapons and trade shifts sleeping and keeping watch. Not terrible in some circumstances.

The seas are fairly rough and some get sick on the way but the trip is over safely, nobody gets hurt. The air changes even inside the cabin as they get closer. A few iceberg warning sirens go off.

They dock in a military barracks, drilled straight into the mountain that makes up the crater Gralea is in. One of the men slaps Prompto and point to a dark set of wings in the sky.

"Eyy lookit that, they put that in place after you were stationed overseas. Zegnautus got her perch! She can see over the capital city now. Isn't she a beaut?"

[real_life_rpg]

The more the men spoke, the more Prompto wanted to put a bullet in each and every one of their heads. He managed to restrain himself. Best behaviour. He was doing this for Noctis. He couldn't let himself get swept up in his big alpha feels and thirst for revenge. He had to play nice with these assholes.

Prompto kept himself to himself for most of the journey. Joined in with the chat occasionally, just to give the illusion of being one of the boys. He checked, double-checked and triple-checked that he had switched his comm device off - just in case. He made sure his guns were in good condition.

He didn't really know what his plan was once he reached Gralea. So far he had been winging it. Get to the Keep. Rescue Noct. It was a solid plan - except for y'know, all the lacking details.

He looked up at Zegnautus and gave a low whistle. "She's certainly something, alright." An impenetrable fortress hovering over Gralea. No biggie... just possibly the most dangerous and well-defended place in all of Eos. Fuck. Maybe he should have thought this through more. Maybe he should have waited for Cor's plan.

"Will we be heading to the Keep for debriefing? Glauca's gotta want to thank us for a job well done, right?"

[starless_sky]

Some of the men chuckled.

"Easy there big guy. I know you're excited to see the keep but us peons don't enter it. Nah we get to watch it all from the screens here on the ground."

"Gotta love the grunt life."

"You know... There's a way to get there. You gotta have duty guarding the elevator up into it though. That's only for the real teachers pets and incompetents. They don't send us overseas boys there. We're too useful."

The guys laugh.

"We can fly stand under it. You'll love it, brother." one of them clapped Prompto on the back.

"Let's go! We'll show you the back way. Fuck the debrief."

[real_life_rpg]

Blend in. Mingle. Keep up the pretence, Prompto reminded himself. He wanted nothing more than to bail on these assholes and find his own way into the Keep, but that would draw unwanted attention towards him. He could do this. He could pal around with these monsters playing toy soldiers for a little while longer.

"Right! Fuck the debrief. Though, when General Glauca comes for our heads, I'm making you guys clean up the blood!" He joked with a laugh as he fell into step with his 'comrades'.

He's got this!

[starless_sky]

Yeah, pretend to be a heartless, soulless, killing machine. Show your true rat bastard colors, Prom.

Only... he couldn't. Prompto had a pure heart and a bright soul. It was obvious from the get-go to the truly war-weary Nifs. There was no hiding that smile, that laugh that didn't sound hollow, the smile that was earnest. The fact he didn't make enough jokes about the prince.

So they lead him a long way away from the others. Out to a frozen balcony overlooking an edge of the mountain. Gorgeous view if it weren't so precarious. One slip even on the balcony would send you plummeting down the mountain into ice so cold it would freeze any victim who didn't die on impact.

"General Glauca don't debrief us, he don't talk to any of us directly, Lucian scum. You ought to know that much."

"What are you, a spy? Don't tell me you're the best they got."

"You really think we bought it eh? Heh, we just wanted some brownie points from the captain, s'why we let you live this long. Why not tell us...what are the Lucians planning to retaliate with?"

"Go on, talk, or we can throw you over the edge."

[real_life_rpg]

He hasn't got this.

Fuck. Prompto had totally underestimated these jerks. He had rushed in blind just like Cor had warned him not to. Great. He was going to die a terrible death. Noct was going to be bred by whatever filthy member of the Empire got their hands on him. And Cor, smug bastard, had been right all along.

No. He couldn't die here. He had to save Noct.

His omega needed him. His. Omega.

"'What am I?'" Prompto asked, half-laughing, half-growling. "I'll tell you exactly what I am..." His growl grew deeper, rumbling deep in his chest. "I'm an alpha. And you sons-of-bitches took my omega." That was the only warning the soldiers got before Prom attacked. The first soldier didn't even have a chance to react before Prompto had his head in his hands. With one swift twist, he snapped the man's neck cleanly.

[starless_sky]

Or does he?

The soldiers were certain they had a pathetic beta cuck who didn't know his head from his ass so Prompto had the element of surprise when he snapped the neck of the first one. One of them cried out for his friend and pulled his knife out, meaning to stab Prompto to death with it. Or cut his throat, whichever was easier.

Cor wouldn't be smug at all if Prompto died here. He would be angry and under that he would be heartbroken. He liked the kid, kind of like the son he never had.

"So you already know what that bastard prince is like in bed, huh? I knew he was a little whore." one of the remaining soldiers snarled. He was trying to get Prompto angry to make him do something stupid. "I bet he's a good fuck, tell us about it, then we can go to the keep and show him what a real alpha feels like."

One of them pulled out a gun, aiming for Prompto but he was standing on ice, slippery enough he didn't dare move his feet.

[real_life_rpg]

It wasn't the first time Prompto's sunshine personality had hidden the fact he was an alpha from people. And right now, it had probably just saved his life. The element of surprise was a wonderful thing. Prompto saw the knife blade as it caught the light. He grabbed the soldier's wrist and twisted, shoving the man's own blade into his gut. It wasn't as clean as snapping a neck, but almost as effective. Even as the man choked on his own blood.

"Hm. No. I don't think I will. I think I'll keep that to myself. So you can all go to hell without the knowledge of just how good he is. How he takes my cock like a champ. You pathetic alphas couldn't even hope to compare." He hated talking about Noctis like that - especially since they hadn't had sex. But, desperate times called for desperate measures.

He eyed the gun and then eyed the ice. Pulling out his own gun, he shot the man's foot. That got the bastard to move. It'd be such a shame if he plummeted to his death... oh wait, no it wouldn't. Prom shot the man's foot again, causing him to take another slippery sliding step, and another until he lost his balance and went over the edge.

He turned his gun on the last one. "Can you get me into the Keep?"

[starless_sky]

It devolved so fast. They didn't expect this kind of resistance, was Lucis...better than them at subterfuge? It couldn't be...but one by one they were gone until the last.

It wasn't necessarily a lie. Noct did take Prompto's cock like a champ, just not in the baby hole. Not... yet at least. It wasn't like any of these clowns were going to live to spread the rumors.

The guy on the ice yelped out then gasped before falling to his death. Didn't even scream. The one choking on his own blood tried and failed to grab Prompto and fell, slid on the same ice, over to the hand rails and underneath the bottom rung. Over the edge he flew, into the permafrost.

The last one had the good sense not to step on the ice patch.

"I can sound the alarm for you. That was some nice dancing, I'd love to see you take on the whole bunker. What do you say?"

"And if you win, none of us can take you up there. You can sit and stare at the keep like a little bitch here on the ground. So we can do this...or you can just go over the edge with the others."

[real_life_rpg]

Prompto looked as though he was mulling the options over. He tapped his gun against his thigh as he sucked his teeth. "What do I say? What do I say? I say... no. I say see you in hell." He lifted his gun and shot the man square in the forehead, only just avoiding getting blood splatter and brain matter on his boots.

Maybe he had just cut his own nose off to spite his face. But he would find his own way into the Keep. Somehow.

He turned on his comms device and patched through to Cor, hoping the range was good enough. "I know you're pissed at me. I'm fully prepared to accept whatever punishment you deem fit. But... please tell me you have intel on how to access a place called Zegnautus Keep?"

Prompto nudged the dead body with his foot towards the ledge, teeth chattering from the cold, voice breathless from the exertion.

[starless_sky]

The man was about to lunge at him when he got blasted instead. Should have seen that coming but he was gone. His blood froze to the floor, didn't even pool. However his uniform was unsoiled. Might be handy.

Sadly for Prompto, he was out of range and the signal was weak in this mountain. It's why Lucis didn't know the keep had a perch now, it's what made Gralea so hard to infiltrate. All the satelite military installations? Cor could help with, if they could talk. But Gralea was sadly his weakness.

"......."

Dead air was all he got back.

It's okay though, Prompto! That dead body has keycards! One of them goes to an armory.

[real_life_rpg]

Shit. Either he was out of range or Cor was that pissed off at him that he was leaving him to die in this frozen hellscape. He sighed and turned the comms back off. He sat down and took a moment to just try to gather his thoughts. He had made it this far. He couldn't give up now.

Moment of self-pity over, he picked himself up and dragged the body into an alley. He stripped the uniform from it - hardly an easy task in the freezing conditions. He wasn't sure whether rigor mortis was already setting in or if the guy was just literally freezing.

He stripped off his own uniform, and put the soldier's on in its place. He put his own uniform on the corpse. Hopefully, if the bodies where discovered, the Empire would think the Lucian was dead.

Rummaging through the pockets he found a keycard. Yes! Shiva bless him and keep him safe because he was about to bust a base!

The jerks had mentioned an elevator... All he had to do was get to it, ride it and he was practically home free. What could possibly go wrong?

He took the ammo the dead soldier had been carrying and made his way towards the eye of the bastard Empire storm. Time to see if the Keep was as impenetrable as the Empire liked to believe.

[starless_sky]

As angry as Cor could get, he wasn't that petty and Prompto was in for a severe tongue lashing, he would never let silence be his answer.

The poor body froze. Rigor mortis was too slow around here. If it wasn't evident, half of Niflheim's defense plan was the climate. Once Prompto could dress for that, it wasn't half bad in here. Especially once he was armed to the teeth.

So off to use the keycards and try not to get caught! There's a card and three doors, good Lucian, which shall it be?

One door...leads to an armory with basic guns, all below the level of what Prompto was used to at home. However there were a few new ones. A sagitta sniper rifle and a rapidus SMG submachine gun.

One door...leads to a security room with cameras and one bozo watching them all who asks 'did you bring coffee? Took you long enough' without looking behind him. He has feeds on the whole base. One screen shows the Zegnautus elevator. The pathway to which... following the screens... is through several large bunkers full of soldiers.

One door...leads to that path.

[real_life_rpg]

Oh man. Three doors always meant death, right? There were bound to be explosives behind one of them that would detonate when he opened it. That's what always happened in video games. Holding his breath, Prompto tried the first room. An armoury. Okay. Good. He stocked up on as many weapons as he could comfortably carry - still not trusting the Armiger - that would probably prove a wise move in the not-too-distant future.

Second door. Still no explosion. Good. Great. Going fab. He should feel guilty as he pulls out his pistol and shoots the man in the back of the head, but he doesn't. He shoved the man's chair and body aside, rolling it out of the way so he could get a good look of the screens.

Heh. Seemed like the assholes hadn't been lying about the bunkers full of soldiers. To stealth or to go in all guns blazing... that was the question. All his video game experience told him he sucked at stealth. Real life? He had no idea.

All guns blazing then...

He did his best to memorise the screens before heading for the third door. Still no explosions. Ha. Suck that, video game logic! Time to put his new shiny machine gun to the test. He opened fire, gunning down anyone who got in his way.

Future Prompto would have a lot of trauma to deal with. But right now, his focus was on finding Noct.

A few bunkers in, he happened across an Ebony vending machine. An. Ebony. Vending. Machine. Ignis would cream himself if he saw such a thing! He pushed a coin into the slot, grabbed a can and gulped it down. It bought him enough time to catch his breath before continuing on his way.

The human soldiers soon seemed to give way to the creepy as fuck MTs with their robotic faces and their juddering movements. If only Prom knew the truth about what they were. Still, the programmed death machines were quick with a weapon, and accurate. And didn't have that simple human flaw of fear. It made Prompto's job suddenly a whole lot harder.

By the time he reached the elevator, he was bloodied, exhausted and aching all over. His shoulder wound was burning like a bitch. It was getting more and more painful to lift his guns. But he had to push on. Noct needed him.

He slid the keycard into the slot by the elevator and... nothing. He tried again. Nothing. He rammed it in harder as though that would produce a different result. "Godsdamnit!!" He growled, punching the card reader, only for it to beep and the light to turn green. He didn't know it at the time, but it had just scanned his barcode on his wrist.

All that mattered was that he had access to the elevator. He stepped in and leaned against the wall as the door slid shut. "Hang in there, Noct... I'm coming."

[starless_sky]

Clearly the guy was more worried about his coffee break than watching the camera feed. Prompto had the uniform on and thus his strange behavior didn't tip him off but it should have. Didn't matter in the end, his skull emptied itself on the ground.

Noct and Prompto could process their trauma together.

For the time being, the base of Zegnautus' fortress was a shoot out. Or a massacre. The soldiers didn't expect company and Prompto would find them in varying degrees of rest. Some were working out, others were on phone calls home, some eating, others polishing weapons that were disassembled and unable to defend their lives. After all the blood splatter they'd all need to be cleaned again.

One room fell silent. Exhausted of all life other than Prompto. Empty magazines and spent shells littered the floor but there was still more than enough ammunition for Prompto to filtch off his victims in order to clear the next room. It was all being caught on camera. This would become remarkable footage along the Lucian guard.

The day that one man took down an empire for love.

The ebony vending machines wouldn't go unnoticed by a certain addicted Crownsguard. Noct night even make the case of trying to get them in Lucis once Niflheim is taken down.

The gauntlet wasn't going to get any easier as humans were traded for machines. Prompto's brothers, though neither could be expected to recognize each other in their state.

They put up more of a fight than the human soldiers and were resistant to bullets. Clearly the empire was pivoting to a new breed of soldier. Hope the kickback on that submachine gun didn't fuck up Prompto's shoulder too bad.

The elevator... Once Lucis takes the keep, Cor will learn what happened. He knew. He had been the one to bring Prompto out of the lab twenty years ago. Once this was over he'd explain it to him. Hopefully the kid didn't hate him for it.

The elevator moved fluidly into a dark, labyrinthine, metal prison. There was an armed party at the top waiting to open fire on him. Got an instant one of them hesitated, not sure if that's the one from the camera feed or one of their own.

He hesitates only a moment but it may decide how long his life is.

[real_life_rpg]

It would be a hell of a story to tell the grandkids one day - they'd probably need to gloss over the gorier details. Huh. Maybe one day people would tell tales about Prompto's daring adventure the way they talk about Cor the Immortal or Nyx the Hero. That would be something. Prompto wasn't thinking about the praise or the glory though. He had no grand visions of being a hero. He was simply an alpha truly, madly, deeply in love with his omega and prepared to do anything to get him back.

The fact that Noct was the Prince of the nation didn't even come into it.

He wasn't sure what he was expecting once he reached the top of the elevator. Honestly, he should have been expecting more armed soldiers. He let out a weary sigh as he stepped out. "Looks like the welcome party rolled out to greet me. Heyaz. Don't suppose you gentlemen could tell me where I could find the Prince of Lucis, could you?"

Suddenly all guns were pointed at him. "Huh. Guess that's a no? Okay..." They didn't even have a chance to squeeze their triggers before Prompto shredded them with the machine gun. Insomnia really needed to get some of these things in their armoury! The firepower was frighteningly insane. These things would tear apart a behemoth or a catoblepas in seconds.

Prompto searched the corpses for anything useful before stepping over them to carry on his way. "This place is insane..." He didn't have him camera with him, didn't even think to pack it. But he had his phone so he pulled it out to snap photos of anything that looked like it might be valuable intel. His main goal was finding Noctis though, so he wasn't going out of his way to gather intel, just anything that stood out as he made his way through each room.

Another access point beeped and turned green as he approached it. Huh, weird. But he wasn't going to question it. Every open door was a step closer to Noctis.

He found himself in a long, winding metal corridor. Seriously? Was the architect who designed this place on mushrooms when they designed this place? Still, it seemed quiet enough. Too quiet. Prom let his guard down too much and let out a yelp when a Magitek Axeman seemingly appeared from nowhere. "You gotta be kidding me!" Prom jumped backwards to try and put some space between himself and that deadly axe before opening fire on it.

[starless_sky]

The grandkids would love this story. The kids would know the fear of the gods from Noctis when he told this story if they'd been bad. Just wait til your father gets home. Prompto could easily become a legend for the ages. Prompto the alpha? Prompto the gunslinger? Prompto the lover? A man who toppled a tyrannical government for true love. It was the kind of story you passed down for generations. He could set an example for all the alphas out there.

Well, these people had a nation, a keep, and their jobs to defend. It didn't work out but they had to make the effort.

"Lucian scum, my brother was down there. I'm gonna fucking flay you alive!" said just before he was gunned down. These guns weren't half bad. Prompto could bring a few to the Lucian gunsmith and they could start making them. Even if they ate bullets like mad.

Look, mushrooms would have improved the layout of this place so much. It might have had some personality or fun or color. So far it's just cold, devoid of humanity, and littered with undead MTs. Like the axeman! Creepy as hell how it drags the axe once its body starts to come apart. Those glowing red eyes like a daemon. The inhuman scream when it dies and its soul leaves the metal shell.

Or was it strangely human?

The axeman goes down fast enough. It's a winding way through this place and there are plenty more of its brethren literally lying around, waiting to animate up off the floor and fight Prompto to the death. They were routine enough to take down, nothing new there. What might be of interest instead was what they defended. Yet another control room with screens and lots of buttons. Oh and people to remove if he wanted to use the console.

There was a way to unlock any door in the keep but for the technologically gifted Crownsguard there were some recordings. Some audio files of the prince if Prompto dared to listen to them. They were of Noctis and an unfamiliar voice. One was a sultry introduction, the stranger identified himself as Loqi Tummelt, and Noct refusing to speak until he grunted in pain, audibly being hit.

One was that same Loqi re-introducing himself.

"We got off to a poor start but let's get better acquainted. I'm going to be your alpha, young prince, I hope you understand that."

"Get away from me." Noctis' voice was low, borderline hostile.

"My dear, once my bite takes you'll be saying just the opposite. I think you'll tell me everything once we're united."

"I'm not telling you anything. Don't touch me.-- no. I said don't touch me!" Noct's voice rose in pitch. There's sounds of grunting, of fabric ripping, and of Loqi chuckling.

"Save your strength, my pet, you'll waste your energy before I even begin. I can't have an omega who can't last me through my ruts."

Noct makes a sound of disgust. Then a whimper. Then finally a sob. Loqi can be heard kissing his skin.

"No!! Prompto!!" and then an unfamiliar sound. Unfamiliar to a Nif at least. Noct's lightning magic crackled and the feed cut off.

A note on the console shows that the feed was physically destroyed and the prince was moved to another area of the keep under harsher surveillance. Loqi needed medical attention for burns.

[real_life_rpg]

MTs were a lot creepier in person than in military reports. Prom had assumed - the whole Guard and Glaive had assumed - that they were nothing more than robots - highly sophisticated robots, but robots nonetheless. Now? Prompto wasn't so sure. The scream would haunt his dreams every bit as much as the screams of the Nif troops would.

He cleared the room and took a breather.

Prompto's shoulder wounds had bled through their dressings. Plenty of new wounds joined them looking red, bloodied and angry. If he survived this, he was going to be a patchwork of bruises, even with the aid of a potion. Speaking of which, he still had the one he had packed. Ideally he should use the elixir, give himself a better chance of recovery, but he wanted to hold on to it for if... when he found Noct. Just in case.

He cracked the potion over the worst of his wounds, watching as the skin knitted back together in a magical glow. He would always be fascinated by potions. It truly was magic. He patched up the rest of his wounds as best as he could with whatever material he could find. It would do. It had to.

Prompto wasn't an idiot. He knew that the Empire most likely intended to breed Noct, to produce an heir with access to the Crystal and Lucian magic. But to know it and to hear actual audible evidence of another alpha putting their filthy hands on his precious omega... it caused his inner alpha to seethe even more. The rage bubbled, barely contained.

He recorded the audio onto his phone. Part of him never wanted anyone to hear it, to protect Noct's dignity. But he also knew it was probably vital evidence.

Loqi Tummelt. Prompto committed the name to memory. If he ever got his hands on the man, he would kill him. No ifs, and or buts.

Checking the console over for any other important information, Prom snapped a few more photos on his phone, and took a decent shot of a map.

Back into the fray. Who even needed a floating death maze this big?

"I'm coming, Noct," he said, his inner alpha still bristling under the surface. He wouldn't stop until he found his omega.

[starless_sky]

There were med kits littered around that could help patch him but alas, those wounds would ache until he was back in Lucis. He was both kind and wise to spare the elixir for Noctis. He wasn't in a good way, as Prompto would soon learn by means of ashley audio log.

There was another audio log for Prompto before he left.

This was a new voice. An older man, rough, grisled, spiteful. While he didn't introduce himself, this was Caligo Uldor. As heartless as he was renowned. His voice had been captured before by glaive and guard alike. They knew him.

There's a clicking and then it cuts to Caligo's soulless laughing

"Tummelt didn't have the balls to play with you like this. The ass wipe."

"..."

"You want something for the pain, highness? You want some water? I know you're thirsty, it's been so long. You just need to tell me what I want to know."

"Go to hell."

"Good." Caligo was genuinely pleased. There's a sound of a machine, of a drill, and of Noct screaming. The machine cuts off after several seconds. Noct's moaning in pain.

"It can all be over, Noctis. Just say the words and we're done. You can have water and painkillers. I'll make sure nobody visits you until the emperor comes."

"...you fuck yourself."

"Hahaha!! I love this game! I win either way... You don't have to give me information, prince. Cutting you up is the closest I get to going to the movies."

"You still need me alive."

"Yeah but I know you can take a beating now. You're tough for an unbred bitch. How about we get one of the other machines out? I want to see you really squirm."

"Ngh...no..."

But it didn't matter a different mechanical noise, a buzz saw? A tazer? Could be heard. Noct screamed and then groaned after it was over.

"Don't bore me kid or I'm going to start cutting things off."

"Just kill me, it's what you're going to do anyway."

"Would that I could but that's not in your plan baby doll. You're gonna live a long time with us. Now... We didn't try the angel rig did we? Let's get old fashioned. You want to stand up? Let's get you in it."

The feed cuts off.

The angel rig is noted on the map. In the cells. Though Prompto had more waves of soldiers to face to get there. Including both voices he heard recorded.

[real_life_rpg]

Prompto growled, the sound rumbling from deep down in his chest. He was going to gut every last Nif who had dared harm Noctis. Even those who had so much as breathed in his direction wrong. They picked the wrong omega to hurt. Every alpha instinct Prom had was screaming at him to find and protect his omega.

Uldor went on the mental list Prom was keeping. Right alongside Loqi. He recorded the audio onto his phone as evidence, saving it next to the first.

As tired and sore as Prom was, he knew he had to push on. He had to get to Noct. Who knew what else had been done to him since this audio had been recorded? Who knew what state mentally and physically Noctis would be in? He couldn't stop, not now. Not when he was so close.

"Hang on just a little longer, Noct. I'm on my way..." He murmured as he checked the map. The cells weren't far. He would reach Noct in no time...

... well, he would if he wasn't faced with more soldiers. This was ridiculous. How much more bloodshed did there need to be? Did these assholes not realise that Prompto would stop at nothing to get Noctis back. He wasted no time opening fire on them, gunning them down in a furious rage.

His gaze fell on Caligo. He recognised him from files back in the Citadel. That was the voice from the audio log. The one who had tortured Noct. An almost feral growl escaped Prompto as he charged at him. Shooting him would be too quick. Too painless. The bastard needed to suffer the way Noctis had suffered. Prompto lunged at him, sinking his teeth into the man's throat as he ripped it open, Flesh tore, blood spurted, but Prompto didn't care.