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]

Unbonded, sexless boyfriends. That was what Noctis and Prompto were. Although the 'sexless' part wasn't exactly true - sure they had kept to their promise to each other not to mate until they were officially able to bond. But that didn't mean they hadn't gotten creative in the bedroom. Sure, Prom had never put his cock inside Noct's ass, but he had gotten his hands and mouth on just about every inch of Noct's body.

It wasn't a traditional alpha/omega dynamic in any sense of the word, but when had anything about them been 'traditional'?

It worked for them. Prom was happy. He was in love. He was doing well in college and had passed his Crownsguard training with ease. He still wasn't as good with a sword or polearm as many of the Crownsguard, and he was still banned from using magic flasks unless it was an emergency. But firearms? He was a natural. The best the Citadel had ever seen.

There had even been rumblings and whispers that Cor wanted to train Prompto up further to be his successor when the day finally came for him to retire. Pft. Retire? He was the Immortal!

Prompto had had an uneasiness in the pit of his stomach all day. His inner alpha had been bristling. And when they got the alert he was furious at himself for ignoring the feeling.

Panic, fear and anger burned through his veins. He was already on his feet and making a mad run for the garden. "I need a visual on Rosebud!! Who has eyes on Rosebud?!?! Tell me someone has eyes on him!!!" He seethed over the Comms device.

The area was chaos. There was no way Prom could get a clear path so detoured to a nearby tall building. If he could get the high ground he could potentially snipe any Imperial troops.

"Somebody get me a fucking visual on Rosebud!!!!"

[starless_sky]

Noct called it "diet sex" but it worked. It kept him sane during his heats and he hadn't withered away into psychosis. He was stronger than ever just waiting until he could be with Prompto properly. When they got married Noct was going to dress up in lace or shear or whatever Prompto liked the most. It might be stupid to dress sexy when Prompto's seen his body but he wanted to be special. He wanted to savor finally losing his virginity.

That fantasy alone was why he worked hard. He was doing well in school, he was in love, he was getting farther in his political career. Things were looking up. Prompto was doing great too! Not many people in Lucis could handle firearms. Most were comfortable with a blade. This made Prompto a rare and powerful soldier which gave him more opportunities than most to be in training and legit missions.

It's why Cor noticed him. He was incredible. He had a good head on his shoulders and he had a hell of a lot of self control for an alpha. That was vital to being a leader. Cor would tell those close to him that he didn't like his nickname and he hadn't earned it in his own eyes. He wanted to be replaced by someone who was also realistic, dedicated, and who didn't have an ego. Prompto was a natural choice. Especially if he proved to be a hotheat who took on the world alone like a certain young Marshal.

The emergency came. People were moving in all directions in an organized chaos. In minutes, roads surrounding the garden were closed, citizens evacuated, and Crown City Police cruisers assembled on site.

The citadel comms dispatcher was startled by Prompto's voice. She had to remember that it even was Prompto. He sounded so different and through the phone he was aggressive. She may have withered in person with him.

"The damn Nifs have it blocked off. Wait-- Argentum, where are you going? You might be the visual. What can you see!?"

As Prompto ascended to his perch, the visual he demanded came on the jumbotron in front of him. A feed of the center of the garden, of Noctis in the center of the field, forcing the soldiers back with his ice magic. A petite omega prince in Armani against a dozen fully armed soldiers.

It wasn't exactly a fair fight but it wasn't unfair either. Noctis had magic and from Prompto's vantage point it was easy to spot bright flashes of light Noct made when he cast spells. He was stopping the bullets shot at him with a wall of ice and he gave as good as he got. He was still alone and the soldiers were getting into formation. They were going to use a pincer attack and get him from both sides.

They slowed down when one newcomer entered the garden. A single man came into the field, walking with his hand over his head holding something. A grenade? No, a detonation trigger.

"That's enough, Highness... Beautiful city you have here. You want to keep it pretty? Don't make me do anything you might regret." Noctis paused but didn't relax.

"How the hell did you get in here!?" he barked

"We've got friends all over the world, highness. Do you know who your friends are?" the guy chuckled. Noct grit his teeth.

On the comms, the dispatcher was calling out "Argentum! What do you see!?"

[real_life_rpg]

A lot of people in the Crownsguard often forgot that Prompto was an alpha. He didn't act like an alpha most of the time. He didn't posture or threaten. He was laidback, funny, and easy-going. At least until it came down to the serious stuff. He hated missions outside of the Wall. Hated being away from Noctis for any length of time. But he always acted as a true professional. Luckily, missions outside of the Wall were rarer for Crownsguard than they were for the Kingsglaive.

No mission he had embarked on so far could possibly have prepared him for this. Every ounce of training was supposed to prepare him for this very possibility, but the theoretical endangerment of the Prince and the real endangerment of the Prince were two very different things.

Rage bubbled under his skin. How dare the Empire target the Prince. His Omega.

Prompto pulled his sniper rifle from the Armiger and stared down the sights to get a better view. Fuck. Soldiers moving in from both sides. Not even a master marksman could take troops out from both sides in one shot - not without risking hitting Noctis in the process at least. And he knew he likely only had one chance.

"Rosebud is surrounded. Pincer attack. We need some Glaives there now!!" He watched the newcomer, readied his gun to take the shot before pausing as the trigger caught his eye. Fuck. He couldn't tell from his current vantage point what kind of explosive it was rigged up to. It may be the kind that goes off when the user stops holding it, when they're shot in the head, say. In which case Prompto making his shot would be a death sentence for Noct and those in the blast radius.

"... Incendiary device... six o'clock," he said over the comms, trying to keep the shakiness out of his voice. "Marshall? Your orders?"

[starless_sky]

Another reason why Prompto was great at his work. People underestimated him and gave him the element of surprise. Enemies often came to him in disadvantageous conditions, thinking he was small prey only to find themselves on the wrong side of a surprise Alpha with a gun. Cor noticed that, planned more than one mission around that very gimick. It worked wonders, the Marshal loved it.

Noct kind of hated when Prompto had to leave but he welcomed him back to the city the best way he could. With a hot meal, a warm bed, and as much of his body he could give to Prompto.

Noct had no idea he was being watched so closely. He knew the glaives and the guard had to be moving but he was busy keeping this from going to shit and to shit it was going. Quickly.

Cor chimed in over the comms. 'Do not fire until we can identify the type of device, Argentum. Keep visual on him. Rosebud knows to fall back, clear a place in the perimeter for ground units to recover him.'.

Noct knew enough tactics to know the only way out of a pincer attack was to retreat. Cor had drilled that into him but there was a problem. His citizens were behind him and they were injured and that didn't stop them. One of the survivors rushed up, screaming.

"You Nif bastards get the hell out of my town! You're not taking my prince!" a woman yelled. She was gunned down before she made it to Noctis, her bloodied shattered head landed on the ground at his feet. He winced at the blood spatter.

"Anyone else want to be brave!?" the soldier yelled across the garden. Noctis growled.

"You're gonna pay for that...You're not gonna kill any more of my people!" he knew he had to leave. He knew he had to escape, Cor would be expecting it. He was outnumbered but he had to get his people a chance to leave. This wasn't just about him so he made another ice wall, one blocking the survivors from the soldiers.

"I didn't want to highness, she ran at me! It was self-defense. Honest." the soldier crossed his heart. "Foolish woman, what did she think she was going to do other than get herself killed?"

"What do you want?"

"Oh nothing, just to press this little button here." his thumb stood out, away from the red trigger on the device in his hand. "I just want to see what it does. The lab boys worked so hard on it at home. I gotta make sure it tests well. You'd be impressed your highness, it took so long to set this up. City-wide perimeter... all with a push of a button." the soldier used his free hand to gesture "Fwoosh." and he laughed.

Noct's eyes didn't leave the trigger in the soldier's hand. He swallowed. How could this happen? He knew of splinters of people in Insomnia who were suspected of being spies or who had been killed and replaced with Nif dopplegangers for years but this? To plant explosives all around the city? How had they missed that? How long had it taken?

He knew what was right, what was stupid, and what he had to do. This guy clearly had the advantage.

Cor came in over the comms

Argentum, shoot him. Now.

"I will go with you." Noctis said at the same time. "If you leave my people alone. It's me you want, right?"

"We-ell look at that, a reasonable prince after all. Or is it true what they say about Lucian omegas being easy?"

[real_life_rpg]

Prompto really wished he could hear what was being said. Even through his scope he couldn't see Noct's lips clear enough to lipread and he didn't have a view of the other guy's face. Fuck.

His stomach twisted at the sight of the bloodied, severed head. He could only imagine what was going through his omega's head.

Shoot him now, Cor said. Ha. Like it was an easy shot. Like Prom didn't risk catching the person he loved most in the world in the crossfire.

Fuck. He aimed his gun again, steadied his sight on his target. As his finger started to squeeze the trigger he felt a blinding white pain radiate through his shoulder.

It took a moment for his brain to register what was happening. For his brain to register that oh... he's just been shot.

He tried to push through the pain, tried to lift his gun again to make the shot, but his shoulder protested the movement, screamed in white hot pain. He needed to make the shot, needed to get Noct to safety. Had to protect his omega.

A second shot rang out, ripping through his skin. He had no choice but to duck for cover. "Quicksilver compromised," he admitted over the Comms, feeling like a failure.

[starless_sky]

They'd placed people all over, dressed as civilians, pretending to run away in the chaos only to scout out people like Prompto.

The camera feed was still going, the jumbotron could not play the sound but the camera was recording, the news station would play it. Prompto could listen to every word later and know that despite his injuries, this wasn't something he could help.

Quicksilver, what's your position? Talk to me. Do you have potions on you? I'm sending extraction for you.. Cor demanded over the comms, he sounded cool, if urgent, but underneath he worried he just lost his protege. As this went on, several runners headed up the tower Prompto had gone to, searching for him. They had a stock of potions Noctis had made for the team which ought to help tide his wounds over until he got to a doctor.


On the ground Noct watched as the soldier pressed the button on his activator.

"No! I already gave myself over to you! Why!?" but....nothing happened. It was silent. Noctis blinked in confusion. Was it a hoax? Was there something wrong?

The soldiers weren't bothered, in fact the one with the trigger was chuckling as he tossed it to one of his men.

"Very good then, prince. Come on." he approached, Noctis stepped back. The solder grabbed his arm. "Oh no, you gave your word... and you'll go without a fuss, doll."

Noctis grunted, calling upon his armiger. Only, nothing happened. No blue light or hovering weapons to choose from. He tried again and nothing.

"What-- what did you do-"

"Just made our commute a little easier. Seemed neater this way. Oh, were you expecting fireworks? Come on." and without his magic, without his weapons, even without the ability to warp. Noctis is helpless to avoid being carried off by a dozen armored men. Into their vehicle and out of whatever rathole they entered the city with.

It was over.

The guard came for Prompto, an emergency team ready to either work on him on the spot or carry him to medical. Yet, sound or no sound. The city of Insomnia just witnessed their prince be taken away.

[real_life_rpg]

Prompto tried to call a potion forth from the Armiger only to come up empty-handed - no flash of crystalline blue and no potion. Fuck. That... That wasn't good.

He leaned back against the balcony wall and sucked in some much needed breaths. Cor should be focusing his attention on Noct, not trying to extract Prom, and Prom told him so much, even if he was risking being insubordinate to a superior officer.

Removing his glove, Prom bit down on it hard, before digging his fingers in the bloody wounds on his shoulder to dig out the bullets. Should he have waited for a team of medical professionals? Sure. Did he? No.

The bullets he pulled out of himself surprised him to say the least. Even covered in blood, Prom could tell they were Lucian Military Issued. Had he been caught in the crossfire? No. Surely not. The shots were too clean. Too accurate. S turncoat maybe? Or an infiltrator? A rat in their midsts. He pocketed the bullets in order to bring it up to Cor later.

What followed was a blur. Prom barely remembered anyone working on his shoulder, but the bandages suggested they had. All he knew was the prince was gone and the Citadel was in chaos.

He tried to listen as people discussed plans of action. But so far none of the plans seemed to be 'go get Noct', which was the only thing Prompto could think about.

When he finally got a moment alone with Cor he slid the bullets across the table to him, hoping he would understand.

"I am going to kill every damn Nif I get my hands on until I get Noct back," he growled. It would be easy to think he was just talking shit, words of anger but his tone suggested he was very, very serious.

[starless_sky]

It was all over the city and the purlieus now. Noct would beat out every headline in every paper tomorrow. The crownsguard had the news clip playing on repeat. Prompto could get his fill of watching Noctis be taken by foreign invaders.

Cor was busy as hell trying to piece together what happened and what happens next.

He already suspected there were double agents in their midst but Prompto confirmed it. He'd have ballistics look at them to confirm just which gun fired them.

"You won't get far in that state." Cor wouldn't argue but he would tell the truth. "If you die out there you're useless to the prince and the king."

Cor knew Prompto was an alpha. He also picked up on Prompto's scent some mornings after he'd been at Noct's. He knew the kid was into the prince. He was mostly sure they had a relationship.

"This is delicate. You rest. I'll write the mission plans. You don't leave until it's finished, you're cleared for duty, and we've had a debriefing."

[real_life_rpg]

Prompto had nothing but the utmost respect for Cor. The man was a living legend. And maybe some of that hero worship Prompto had felt in his youth had bled through into his adult life. That said, the planning was taking far too long for Prompto's liking. Noct was alone, scared and vulnerable. He needed to bring his omega home safely.

"Marshal... Noct is an unbonded royal omega. You know as well as I do that the Empire haven't just invited him around for a chat over tea." Just the thought of anyone trying to put their hands on Noct was enough to fuel Prompto's rage.

"My bet is that they are going to breed him, get an heir of royal blood, connected to the Crystal and then all hell will break loose." Prompto growled in frustration. "He's so close to his heat too." Not that Prom kept track or anything or had it marked out on an app on his phone just like Noct and Ignis did.

Every moment they wasted planning and plotting the further Noct got from them. Prompto knew it was a delicate operation but he couldn't sit idly by when his omega was in danger.

[starless_sky]

"You and everyone else, Argentum. I've heard it all day. Macabre as it is, and I'm not saying you're wrong but it doesn't get us closer to a plan. Rushing in there blind is only going to get us killed. I'm gathering intel."

That was the final word on it until he decided otherwise. Prompto was allowed to be upset but that didn't re-write the laws of prudent war planning.

Prompto gave himself away at the end.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that, Argentum. You've been helping the prince with his heats? but that too doesn't give you permission to override my plan. I expect you to stay here and rest until we have it worked out. Is that understood?"

He still had pieces to consider, he was sniffing out just how many turncoats and spies they had, this was a multi level operation and perhaps the most difficult of his career.

[real_life_rpg]

Prompto couldn't help the growl that rumbled out of him. While they were sitting around planning and gathering intel, Noct was Six knows where, being treated Six knows how. He grit his teeth, his hands curling into fists at his sides. "Understood, Sir," he half-snarled before he stomped away.

He tried to distract himself. Helped with the wounded where he could, helped distribute supplies. All the while his inner alpha was growing more and more frustrated.

Changing out his soiled bandage for a fresh one, he downed a couple of painkillers and tossed the rest into a backpack along with a couple of potions, an elixir, a phoenix down and some rations. Next, he shoved clean clothes into the bag.

He made his way to the underground parking lot and started to load up one of the off-road vehicles. His bag, camping gear, weapons. His favourite pistol was locked away in the Armiger, but he would make do with a Crown-issued basic one, as well as his rifle.

He couldn't just sit idly by while Cor brainstormed. He just needed to get beyond the Wall, past the checkpoint. From there he could make his way towards Gralea - no doubt that would be where the Empire had taken Noctis. He just had to get out of the City before Cor noticed.

[starless_sky]

It wasn't even hard to get out of the city once Prompto got out of the citadel. It was easy to be waylayed by recruits or medics wanting to help but everyone had been leaving Prompto alone. Cor had been seen talking to him so most people assumed he had some sort of mission. No questions asked. They even let him out of the garage. The poor boys down there hadn't heard from Cor so it seemed legit.

Of course, once Cor noticed he was gone he'd be furious but by then it would be too hard to track Prompto without drawning further attention. Or at least it better be that way if Prom didn't want the wrath of the immortal on his ass.

Prompto may find that once he was outside the Wall? His armiger was back. The device the terrorists used was only along the city perimeter. Regis had direct access to the crystal, he was immune to the attack but Noctis, the glaives, the crownsguard... they were all naked in the dark.

Strangely enough, not all the Imperial military stopped him either. They knew they had inside men but they didn't all have debriefs on each individual. They saw a lone Crown City military vehicle and assumed it was one of their own. This was the perfect time to disappear into the chaos. Any longer and they would be organized and more suspicious.

The road blocks were not yet up, though the empire was building them as they moved out of the country. There were several exit routes. Some were driving across the nation, locking it down as they went. Some were headed south to join troops in Accordo. Some were headed on ships to travel across the Allural Deep.

The prince was long gone but they were all looking forward to a break and some much-needed rest.

[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?"