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year 5, quarter 3
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Use your own eyes, and see for yourself which side I'm on.
She let Caius handle the situation.
Once he’d entered the room, Celes stood with her hand at her hip and her shoulder against the door. She still held her sword though she wasn’t equipped for much else. The stranger was suspicious -- possibly dangerous. After what she’d seen of Caius’ enemies, anyone asking for him specifically was a threat. She wouldn’t put it past any of them to lure him out with lies. Still, this one seemed different. Celes kept a close eye in case he made any movements against them.
Caius dutifully summoned his blade. The stranger recoiled in surprise, eyes shocked and then heated. Celes’ stomach rolled on instinct. She didn’t like the way he looked at him. She didn’t like that self-righteous glint to his eyes.
And then Caius dropped a name. She watched the stranger’s eyes change. Confusion, offense, and then…
Celes dropped her sword and shoved her hands together, magic blaring. Light burst from the stranger’s hand, materializing in a blade of his own that he brought against Caius in an instant. Caius returned in kind, aiming the barrel of his gun into the point of the man’s sword. Celes muttered her words in aggressive rhythm, and the air dropped twenty degrees, frost glinting in the air. It was a warning -- her warning. She knew well enough that magic wasn’t ideal in such cramped quarters, but it was more impressive than her sword. It was only a bluff if he stood down.
She held her magic steady, eyes cold and measured. The stranger wanted to talk about family names of all things. Did he have some kind of vendetta against Caius’ king? It didn’t matter. If he moved to attack, he’d get a bullet for his trouble, and he’d find himself frozen a second later. Maybe Celes would heal him. Maybe she wouldn’t, but that hardly mattered.
As Somnus brought his sword up to threaten Caius, the soldier’s features hardened, and he thrust his weapon forward to clash with Somnus’. It wasn’t altogether an unexpected move—Somnus had already guessed that the man was well-trained after all—but he hadn’t counted on the circular opening near the hilt that had ended up close to his face. It reminded him of the curious weapons that the guards in Sonora had used to fire explosive bits of metal, and it struck him with some amount of disgust that this was probably something similar. This man had actually mounted such an odd piece of weaponry on a sword? Somnus wasn’t sure whether to feel impressed or annoyed.
The blonde woman that he had initially spoken to emerged from the back as soon as their two swords clashed, and his eyes flickered to her in shock as she brought her hands together and the temperature in the room fell dramatically. He knew the feeling of a Blizzard spell enough to recognize it even before he saw the tiny frost crystals gathering in the air near her cupped hands, but there was no feeling of his own magic being drawn. Somehow, her magic was her own, or at least had a different source than him. Impossible.
Caius spoke in a firm voice, and Somnus’ eyes flickered back to him, expecting the threats that followed.
“I can blow your head off a lot faster than you can stab me. Drop your weapon before I prove that statement. Then we'll talk about your supposed family name."
Anger tightened Somnus’ throat until he was seething below the surface. It pulsed in his blood and whispered at him to force them to show respect. How dare they threaten him? Did they know so little of who he was? Perhaps they were both accomplished warriors, but that would stand to nothing if he chose to summon his armiger or wield the ring that rested on his finger. They deserved to be shown their place.
But then he wouldn’t get any answers on this mysterious imposter using the Lucis Caelum name.
Somnus laughed good-naturedly—it was one of his favorites when he was pretending to not be frothing with rage—and then he banished his sword and spread his arms in a reconciliatory manner. “Really, there’s no need for violence. I barely did anything, and how did you put it? Ah, yes. Blowing my head off. Do you always jump to ‘blowing people’s heads off’ so quickly?” He cast an eye around the front room of the guild. “Well, I suppose that’s how you attract business.”
Being a king required far more diplomacy and patience than Somnus actually possessed, but he found that he excelled at making small condescending comments while keeping up a façade of politeness. He had a feeling that he was going to enjoy that far more than he should here.
“My apologies for reacting so rashly, but you see, I am the only surviving member of the Lucis Caelum line who isn’t a child.” Somnus rested two fingers on his chin as he tilted his head to consider the pair in front of him. “So I suppose I took offense at the thought of someone profiting from my family’s name or spreading rumors to prop up a charlatan.” His lips twitched upwards into a slight smirk. “But surely you wouldn’t knowingly do anything like that, good sir.”
Caius honestly didn’t give a damn about Somnus’ babble. Nor his snide remarks in the midst of feigning politeness. Sure it made Caius only further disgusted with him considering how much it reminded him of what he grew up with. But Caius just needed him to drop the weapon so they could deal with this. He wasn’t fond of this imposter to the Lucis Caelum name trying to disparage his King, but Caius was more concerned about the practical things right now. Once Somnus’ sword disappeared, Caius let his blade linger a little bit longer before it finally disappeared as well. His guard did not drop though. If he could summon it, he could attack at any time with it. Caius refused to be caught unawares.
Caius cocked his head toward the nearby table, once Somnus was done spattering his bull, his jabs and his dim apologies. Motioning for him to sit, Caius took a seat on the other side of him. He looked to Celes and motioned her to the seat nearby. He wasn't taking risks with him again. If he felt him beginning to use his magic, he would call for them to attack together.
"I don't appreciate what you said to my co-leader" He spoke bluntly. "I'd say that you should treat her with respect... But she can handle herself. I wouldn't test her if I were you. She's my partner and my equal for a reason. And she's damn good at what she does."
With that, it was time to get down to business.
"Noctis Lucis Caelum" He repeated the name. Caius' eyes never left his. His expression remained of stone. Nothing more and nothing less. "The Chosen King. Disappeared for ten years after the deaths of King Regis Lucis Caelum and the Oracle Lunafreya Nox Fleuret, orchestrated by the monster Adagium. The Starscourge took hold of Lucis and the rest of the world, bringing daemons and an eternal night that made them even stronger. Civilizations fell, one by one, until the last of Lucis had no choice but to make a final stand in the Crown City of Insomnia.
Adagium and the Starscourge took everything from me when I was a kid. I spent my life fighting to survive until I came to Insomnia as an adult to put an end to it. Then he came. The Chosen King, blessed by the Crystal and the Gods themselves... Noctis, son of Regis, returned. When told I'd proven my prowess on the field, I was accepted by the Chosen King himself into the Kingsglaive, and granted the capability to use these abilities. I was there for the final assault, fighting our way to Insomia's center where Adagium sat, on a throne that he surely felt to be his own.
Noctis slew Adagium, and ended the Starscourge in Lucis. I spent two years as a Kingsglaive, helping to rebuild the Kingdom of Lucis and to exact the King's wish for a unified world. I was brought here after thwarting an assassination attempt on the King, and have been here for over a year since."
He paused a moment, tapping his fingers on the table as he thought of something.
"So you claim to be a Lucis Caelum. And the only surviving one at that... Here's my question, if you feel my story is truly of a man not of the bloodline. If Noctis isn't a Lucis Caelum, or the Chosen King..."
His gaze fiercened. But his tone didn't change. Not much, anyway. But it took a slightly more pointed, more blunt edge to it.
"Where the hell were you when Lucis needed you? Ten years. And nothing. Ten years, no help from our "rulers", no help from the gods... Just fending for ourselves. Until some guy who claimed to be the son of King Regis saved us all."
Caius didn’t seem impressed when Somnus changed course, but it didn’t really matter. He wasn’t there to make friends. He was only here for answers about how it was possible for someone to use Lucian magic when he had never granted it to them. If he learned more about this mysterious ‘Noctis’ who saw fit to use the Lucis Caelum name, then all the better for it.
Caius gestured for him to sit down on the other side of the desk, which indicated that this was going to be a long story. Somnus eyed the wooden chair dubiously, though he did finally cross the room towards it. He ensured that he sat before the blond pair had a chance to, crossing both arms and placing one leg over the other as he leaned back to await his answers. The king should always be seated first, after all.
Unfortunately, Caius seemed to want to lecture him before getting down to business. Somnus raised one eyebrow as his gaze flickered over to Celes instead. “I fail to understand why you’re offended. I said nothing to question her abilities. I merely inquired as to the social custom here,” he said impatiently. He disliked having to explain himself, and he hardly saw why it mattered anyway. Was this really the hill that the soldier wanted to die on? If so, then Somnus was happy to oblige.
Thankfully, Caius began his story after that, and Somnus frowned at the whirl of unfamiliar words that he was pelted with. Adagium. Lunafreya. King Regis. It was a fantastical tale about the world being swallowed by darkness before the savior Noctis appeared, and Somnus grew more and more frustrated the longer that the narrative continued. Astrals above, this man liked the sound of his own voice. Whatever glowing praise that Caius had for Noctis, the false king clearly had no idea how to properly train the members of his army to behave.
And yet...some parts of his story rang uncomfortably true. An unfamiliar Oracle with the last name of Fleuret. A capital city called ‘Insomnia’ that was startlingly close to his own name. The daemon threat growing until the Starscourge had overwhelmed Lucis and even the entirety of Eos. But the part that made Somnus straighten in interest was the specific title he used to describe Noctis. The Chosen King.
Somnus had told only a trusted few in his court about the words that the Draconian had uttered to him when he had touched the crystal to claim his crown. A common guard should have had no way of knowing.
Somnus had heard enough. Glancing down at the ring of the Lucii upon his finger, he rose to his feet and turned his back on the mercenary pair, touching one hand to his forehead as he weighed the ridiculous nature of what he now suspected. It seemed impossible, and yet he remembered Bahamut’s inhuman voice echoing around him as if the words had been seared into his soul.
“Even in death, you and your descendants will serve Lucis until the True King is born. He alone will have the power to conquer darkness and bring an end to the scourge upon our star.”
Somnus twisted the ring a bit too hard around his finger before he laughed and turned to face the two again with his trademark smirk. “You asked where I was in Lucis’ hour of need? It would seem that perhaps I was long dead.” He spread his arms and shrugged as if the concept of his own death didn’t bother him. It did. Greatly.
“After all, if your story is grounded in reality, then I haven’t the faintest idea of what you speak. You see, I am the king of Lucis, and I can promise you that not a single name you mentioned is in our history.”
Perhaps he really was talking to a guard--or Kingsglaive apparently--from Lucis’ future. It was an odd concept, though it did make him swell with pride that the country that he had formed appeared to have lasted so long. Not that Somnus had ever had any doubts that it would.
Still, one aspect of his story still bothered Somnus.
“This threat that brought Eos to its knees,” he mused. “What is Adagium? I fail to see how one monster could have so much power over the Starscourge unless it was the Infernian himself who was slain.”
Caius listened carefully to Somnus' responses to his story. It seemed he knew little about it. But perhaps surprisingly, Caius' fierce gaze calmed just a little when Somnus revealed he was a King of Lucis. Perhaps to others that would have come as a shock, but... Well, with what Caius had seen already, it wasn't already.
"Perhaps you were" He agreed, ignoring Somnus' posturing and hand motions in favor of retaining his calm, stoic stare. "Normally I would doubt your story, but you do hold the same abilities as I" He remarked as he motioned toward the ring on his finger. "And that is something I recognize, on your finger. From my initiation. The Ring of the Lucii, said to hold untold power."
What that power was, was not something Caius had seen as of yet. He wasn't sure if he wanted to. But the idea that this rude and posturing fellow possessed it bothered him. Who knows what he would do with it, if things did not agree with them in this world as they seemed to have not already Caius let out a breath. There was another reason too, to why he seemed to acknowledge his story as likely. "And I have met other Lucians from long past in my travels. Which would back up what you say, if you truly are a past King of Lucis."
The last question from Somnus was the most interesting one though. How could something have this much power over the scourge unless the Infernian was slain? How, indeed?
"Would you believe me if I told you that I've seen the Infernian?" He asked, looking him in the eyes. His question was spoken so calmly, so casually, so offhand that it might almost seem like he was joking. But he was dead serious. "I didn't fight him, mind. Don't know if I would have survived if I had. I was elsewhere in the city, fighting daemons to keep the way clear for Noctis to storm the citadel, just as the rest of the Kingsglaive were. But I could see him. He was towering, human-like yet monstrous, covered head to toe in flames. I watched from the corner of my eye while I fought as the King engaged him."
Deep down, Caius somewhat wished he'd been in that battle. The Infernian would have been quite the challenger indeed. Getting to fight alongside the Chosen King against one of the Astrals would have been... Well, it would have been something.
"The reason we were forced to engage him, is that Adagium, somehow, someway... Managed to corrupt and take control of the Infernian himself. And besieged him on us. The Chosen King was eventually able to take him down with the aid of the other Astrals, which was the last thing I saw of the... More important parts of the battle. The rest I only know from what I have heard secondhand."
With that, it came time for a question of his own. And Caius had a feeling he knew the answer to this question, but... He had to be sure.
"If I might ask a question of my own... What does His Highness call himself? Which King of Lucis from our history would you be?"
Final Fantasy VI
22
YEARS
Female
Complicated
Heterosexual
429 POSTS
Fin
Use your own eyes and see for yourself whose side I'm on!
Use your own eyes, and see for yourself which side I'm on.
The man switched. It happened in an instant -- one moment he held his sword steady, rage flaring in his eyes. The next, his expression was vacant of all but a hollow smile, and he was brushing the entire matter aside. Celes felt her eyes narrow. He was backing off from a fight he couldn’t win. The coward. She waited until he’d seated himself to cautiously lower her hands. Her magic dissipated in slow order. She didn’t trust him.
Celes glanced at Caius and then follows him, standing behind him like the extra blade she was. It wasn’t usually her position to intimidate. In fact, she’d often found that she had the opposite effect, but this was Caius’ fight and she knew went to let someone else take the wheel. She watched the man for any signs of violence. A twitch of his hand. A side glance to the door. Caius could handle the talking. She’d keep them both alive.
Which left her taken aback when the conversation shifted to her.
”What?” She blinked at Caius and then back at their guest. Had he heard that? Celes felt a familiar heat rise to her cheeks. ”Really, you don’t have to-” She could fight her own battles, and she didn’t need him involved. He said that she could handle himself, but simply bringing it up at all told her otherwise. ”Is this the best time?”
Thankfully the warning didn’t last long. If they’d talked about her any longer, she didn’t know how long she could have bit her tongue.
Celes let out a sigh of relief as their business continued. Caius went on in his usual Caius way. Too much talk. So much that it was nearly drowning, in fact, and Celes could have smirked her approval. Really, the man hadn’t known what he was getting into -- coming here and asking questions. The story he told was as familiar as it was meaningless. Celes had heard all the words before but still couldn’t quite connect them. This was a matter of his world, and his alone. All she could do was sympathize.
And all the stranger could do was listen. He frowned. His eyebrows furrowed, and then a strange kind of humor touched him. He laughed. ”It would seem that perhaps I was long dead.”
”Dead?” Celes gave him a strange look before glancing again to Caius. She’d heard of people who thought themselves dead. Zack for instance. She’d heard all kinds of claims, but this was one of the most absurd. She didn’t know why. A man coming back to life was just as impossible no matter how much time had passed, but the thought left her uneasy all the same.
’I can promise you that not a single name you mentioned is in our history.’
Celes pushed her hair behind her ear. The tone of the conversation had changed. There was some manner of understanding now though she couldn’t say that Caius was helping much with that. The dead king had asked his question, and Caius hadn’t answered it. Maybe Celes would have pointed it out if she’d had anything but contempt for the questioner.
What was this place? Did it really have control over time? What did it mean for any of them if it did?
Celes bit the inside of her cheek. Now wasn’t the time for anything but truth. This was a matter between their worlds, and she was only a bystander. Still, she couldn’t help but hold her breath. She felt that they’d both be rocked by the answer.
The woman standing behind Caius reacted to Somnus’ bitter proclamation of his own death with far more surprise than Caius himself did. She didn’t seem to like him much if her expression was anything to go by, but Somnus could understand that given the protective stance that she had assumed behind the man. It was a familiar one that guards often took behind Somnus himself, so he supposed that he could see her soldier training in full view now. With that in mind, he didn’t expect her to like him when she saw him as a threat to Caius. Truthfully, that was very astute of her, though he had no current plans to harm the man. Not when he was gaining the answers that he wanted.
Caius expressed that he believed his story due to the ring on his finger, and Somnus laughed under his breath as he glanced down at the trinket. “True, I suppose its power would have grown significantly by your time. However many generations of kings have passed by then.”
The one that he wore was certainly no heirloom yet, as it had been gifted to him by the Draconian during his coronation. It did hold great power and it allowed him to channel the crystal’s magic, but Somnus had always gotten the impression that its potency would grow with time as each of his descendants’ souls passed into it. Somnus didn’t relish the idea of being the first to join with the ring upon his death, but it had been the price of his throne. Bahamut had not phrased it as a choice, and Somnus would have paid absolutely anything for the crown. Had already paid everything else, as it were.
“And I have met other Lucians from long past in my travels. Which would back up what you say, if you truly are a past King of Lucis.”
Somnus raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Others are being gathered here? You are the first that I have met here from Eos, truthfully.” That piece of information struck him as more significant than anything else the future king’s guard had shared so far. What could possibly have the power to pull together people from throughout Lucis’ history into a different world? What was their goal? Regardless, Somnus intended to find out.
After Somnus had asked for further details on Adagium, Caius spun him a tale of the time that he had seen Ifrit’s destructive power, and in spite of himself, Somnus went a little still as he took the information in. “Then this...monster. Adagium. He raised Ifrit from his slumber and was able to subjugate a god to his will?” It was ludacris. It would have been laughable if the sheer brazen nature of the lie hadn’t lent itself credibility in its own right. Who would possibly make something like that up and expect to be believed?
“How is something like that possible?” Somnus mused, not really expecting Caius to have the answer. Truthfully, Bahamut had implied that his descendant--the True King--would face hardship as he sought to banish the scourge from the world, but Somnus hadn’t expected anything like what Caius described. It left him a little irked that the Draconian hadn’t felt the need to go into specifics. Gods truly were fickle creatures when it came to their dealings with humanity.
Caius asked for his name, and Somnus felt little need to refuse him, especially when the man finally called him by his proper title. Really, it took him long enough to use it.
“The first king, I suppose you’d call me. Assuming Lucis never splintered or changed forms,” he said with a faint smirk as he brushed a strand of dark hair back from his eyes. “Somnus Lucis Caelum. And I am pleased to hear that my kingdom flourished for so long.”
The "King" seemed flabbergasted by the information he had been given, but Caius wasn't all that surprised considering the circumstances. But Caius had purposely withheld from his initial question about Adagium until he could confirm his suspicions. It would color his response, after all, and if he wasn't who he thought he was - then he would need to explain his answer a little more differently. The story he'd told was to give background on the terrifying power of Adagium leading up to it. But eventually, it came. The answer he sought.
And Caius looked far from happy to hear it.
His expression hardened immediately, greeting Somnus with a piercing stare as his hands balled into fists on the table for just a moment. He managed to hold in his anger though, for the sake of professionalism and to do what he could to avoid a conflict. Even if, should be honest, he had every desire to stand up and shoot Somnus through the head here and now.
"Somnus. The Founder King" He spoke, once he had found he could keep his calm well enough. "I thought so."
He paused for a moment, pondering what was to be said next. He knew he was likely about to drop something heavy, and he couldn't help but wonder what the reaction would be. Shock? Possible violence? Or perhaps complete indifference to the fact he had doomed his own kingdom with his actions? He could still hear Aera's story in his head as he pondered it, his fingers unlacing and sliding across the table a bit in thought before he finally arrived with an answer.
"You see, Your Highness... There is a silver lining to all of this alternate time and space business. You get to meet people from other worlds, or even your own, but from other times... You get to learn pieces of history that you might not have learned otherwise. It could be because those pieces of history were forgotten... Or because some willed it forgotten. Either way, I've had quite the learning experience since I've been here."
His gaze moved back to Somnus, and he was very blunt with his answer.
"I know what you did, Somnus. I know what you did to take the throne" He spoke softly, yet he couldn't hide a mild irritation in his tone. "I want you to understand something. Your descendant became the King of ruins because of your actions. And I've lived half of my life in complete, utter hell... Because of you. And one other, of course... You two share the blame equally, in my view."
He took a deep breath, settling himself before he would elaborate in calm bluntness. He tilted his head slightly as he looked him dead in the eyes. The question that came next was rhetorical. Caius knew that he knew. His tone in turn was cold as ice.
"You might know Adagium by another alias... Does the name Ardyn mean anything to you?"
He reminds me of an angry, puffed cat. Just so mad. xD
The gods have spoken and I am king
Something in the soldier’s demeaner changed after Somnus introduced himself. It would have been a quick and obvious difference even if Somnus hadn’t been eyeing him closely this whole time. Caius had maintained a cordial expression until now, but that changed to a cold, flat stare almost as soon as the king’s name had passed his lips. Somnus noted the difference and quickly stood a little straighter, placing one hand over his ring in case he needed to use it. He was missing something. There was no reason that his name should arouse animosity in a random guard from so far in Lucis’ future. There was a key piece of information that Somnus was missing, and all he could do was wait for Caius to give it to him.
The answer came eventually, and it was one that made the king’s jaw clench in place.
“I know what you did to take the throne.”
“…Is that so?” Reading between the lines, it appeared that Caius had met someone who had been in the throne room on the day of his ascension. Truthfully, the number of people who had survived that experience had been relatively few between his and Ardyn’s battle and then the daemonic energy that his brother had unleashed on the place. And among the survivors, there were even fewer who Somnus thought would disparage his name, so he was honestly puzzled as to Caius’ source. Still, in the end, it didn’t matter. Somnus had never found the time for regret. A king had to be confident in his choices and continue on. He wouldn’t let anyone tell him otherwise—much less a stranger.
“What I did to take power? You seem to be under the impression that it wasn’t mine by right,” he said a bit irritably. “Or do you really imagine the astrals would have gifted me with a crown that I stole?” Aera had lied to him when she relayed her vision of the rightful king—Somnus had been certain of it, and the events that happened afterwards had only confirmed his suspicions. The crystal had rejected his brother, and while it hadn’t been his intention to slay Aera when she had leapt in front of his blade, their battle had been right in front of the crystal in full view of the gods. Surely the astrals would have intervened for their chosen Oracle unless she had strayed from their path. Not to mention that the Draconian had blessed him with the crystal’s magic with barely a mention of his actions. No, Somnus held little doubt that everything that he had done had been sanctioned by the gods.
Caius went on to blame him for the current state of Lucis, and Somnus raised an eyebrow as he wondered if the soldier had gone mad. “You would assign me half the blame for something that occurred thousands of years after my lifetime?” He asked, a touch of amusement to his voice this time. “I have to applaud you. You certainly are determined to hate me.”
It was so ridiculous that Somnus could no longer take this seriously. He smirked all the way through the man’s explanation that Adagium went by a different name once, right up until he finally dropped the man’s actual name.
The smirk dropped off Somnus’ face.
Ardyn? Certainly, his brother was dangerous and more monster than man at this point, but was Caius really trying to imply that the meek red-haired man was the one from his story? The one to control the Infernian and cover the world in darkness? And thousands of years in the future? It was laughable!
And yet.
And yet.
And yet…hadn’t he proven resistant to death? So resistant in fact, that he had been forced to seal him away when every manner of execution had failed? Somnus hadn’t set foot on the island since the day that Ardyn had been interred, and for all intents and purposes, he considered that his brother was dead. But if it were possible for a man to survive even a beheading, then suppose…just suppose that it were possible for the centuries and even the millennia to have no effect on him. What then?
Somnus was no longer certain of himself. Reeling back, he touched a hand to his forehead, rage and doubt racing through him equally until his anger won out. Even if it were all true, how was he to blame for any of it? Ardyn had made his own choices! His supposed immortality had nothing to do with Somnus! And who was Caius to blame him for any of it?
Somnus let out a dry laugh before reeling back on the soldier with a seething expression. “You think to provoke me with that name? My brother is dead, no matter what manner of monster may wear his flesh now. And I’ll not stand here and listen to your nonsense of a story. You sought to get a rise out of me? Congratulations.”
If Somnus were of the more vulgar persuasion, he thought that he might have informed Caius what he was free to go do with himself, but he unfortunately had a reputation to uphold. He did briefly contemplate killing the man for his insults, but that would likely prove to be more trouble than it was worth between his power of kings and whatever magic the blonde woman behind him was harboring. Anyway, the man was clearly looking for an excuse to fight. Far better to disappoint him instead.
Waving a hand in a clear dismissal, Somnus turned his back on the blond pair. He had been a fool to come. None of his guards were in this farce of a world, and he should have ignored the Lucian magic that he’d felt. Instead, he’d run after what he had hoped to be Gilgamesh like a lost puppy, and look where that had gotten him.
Well, Caius quite clearly had a pretty good reason to assign half the blame to Somnus considering what he had said following that. He only continued to stare him down, icy brown eyes keeping their piercing gaze as Somnus did as Somnus does. Somnus acted as though he were simply trying to get a rise out of him, which was untrue. Caius honestly couldn't wait for Somnus to leave. That stupid smirk leaving his face had been almost cathartic, but he didn't respond to it. Oh, Caius had already well and made up his mind about how he felt about "His Highness", and seeing that smirk of his die had brought him joy that he didn't think he was capable of feeling from seeing someone's mood change like that. But he had let him continue to prattle on until he rose to leave.
But after all the posturing, after all the smarmy remarks and dismissal of his claims, Caius couldn't help but leave him with one little detail that he had realized he'd neglected to mention. He might not care about what his actions had done, but there was one thing that he would care about... And that was his life.
Caius gingerly stood to his feet.
"Well, 'Your Highness' I hate to see you go, but..." He trailed off, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "If you happen to see Ardyn on your travels, spreading the Starscourge to the people of Provo and elsewhere... Tell him I said hi, could you? I'm sure he'll be quite happy to see his baby brother. You lot must have so much to catch up on."
Caius wasn't a spiteful man, but he couldn't contain his bite here. To be honest, as much as he detested Ardyn... He genuinely hoped the two of them found each other. And killed each other in the process. Knowing that would likely catch his attention though, he elaborated in short. He didn't deserve any elaboration, but he was a King of Lucis, even if he was the reason that Lucis had been founded on lies, deceit and erased history - something that had been a considerable blow to Caius' pride considering how passionate he had been in his service to the Crown.
Even if he had shed his Kingsglaive colors and moved on since coming to Zephon... Caius loved Lucis. Caius was passionate about his duty to Lucis, and his duty to the crown had become his life. Somnus' actions had sullied, dirtied and tainted the kingdom and crown that Caius had given so much to protect. And had unleashed the very thing that had reduced Lucis to ruin. That was something Caius would never be able to forgive.
"This world has, as I've said, brought back many who had left the world of the living... Unfortunately, that pissed off daemon you unleashed on us is one of them. He's hurt a lot of people here, not that you would care."
With that, Caius stretched out, cocking his head to Celes to indicate he was ready to return to duty.
"That's why we're here. This world's not ready for things like Ardyn... But the Dragonblades will be. King or no King."
