Caius had spent most of the last day with Lumina and her family, after having been coaxed into going on this cruise with them. With his power, he had been able to buy Lumina a little time without fear of the scourged parasite spreading to others, giving her a well-needed reprieve after all this time. But this sudden surprise trip came with some ramifications, ones that rang in his head even now.

The intention had been for him to return to Sonora and meet her, waiting with her and keeping tabs on her until Noctis and his retinue had recovered from their escape from Sonora. Once they had, he would find a means to bring her to a secure location for them to meet, and Caius and Noctis would work together to try and drive the parasite out. However, with this trip… Going back to Sonora was likely no longer necessary. Noctis and Prompto had arrived in Provo safely, and would likely be ready to go by the time they returned. Which meant…

The last fight with this parasite was upon them. Caius had little doubt that upon being expunged it would attack, and he and Noctis would both likely be drained, as would Lumina. They had no idea how powerful it would be, and that was if they even succeeded… Alex’s words still tormented him, even if that fool had no idea what was going on. What if it did kill Lumina?

This trip was supposed to be a chance to relieve stress for them all, and for Caius to try and learn to relax, with no responsibilities to be found out here for him to shoulder. But it may also be the last bit of time he would get to spend with Lumina. Either before everything went to -shit- or…

He didn’t like to think about the alternative. Opening pandora’s box was just if they were lucky. Either way, things were about to change. And Caius was quite happy to spend all this time with Lumina and her family before everything goes crazy, even if he was still having a hard time with letting his hair down. Trying to relax seemed almost as exhausting as working, and he had to be reminded to stop stressing about work at every turn. Celes could handle it, he knew. She was far more capable as a leader than he was. But it didn’t keep him from worrying. But at the end of the day, it was agreed that the Dragonblades’ objectives could be left in Celes’ care for the time being. The potential fate of hundreds of lives, should that parasite take Lumina over or get loose… This was Caius’ job. They had two people in command for a reason. She would do her job… It was up to Caius to do his.

With the power of kings, he was one of the few who could.

But as much as he had enjoyed this time with Lumina, there was one thing he understood. While the Farron family had essentially adopted him as their own, at the end of the day, those were her sisters, and he was still just the “prospective boyfriend”, as they called him. And Lumina deserved to have a little quality time with just her sisters on this trip before they returned. He’d already had adequate alone time with her, now it was her siblings’ turn.

So Caius had ensured that would happen by signing up for this activity drawing. Now she didn’t have to worry about him, and could enjoy that much-needed sister bonding time. While he was out doing… Something. That something being... This? Sea-flying, or whatever fancy term they called it. It was basically just flying, right? He’d done this before. Atop a dragon however, not via… Whatever this was. Ok, maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. Though the thought of their vessel falling stirred some bad memories about the Kraken attack… But, Caius reassured himself, he doubted they would go that far from the ship. It wouldn’t be like last time.

However, any thought of this being normal or routine was stunted the second he was seated alongside a man with a single large wing on his back, who had started arguing with the staff over the lifejackets. Caius was dressed in the sole t-shirt and shorts he owned, courtesy of the ship’s gift shop, with no wings to speak of. So he had no problems with getting it attached. But this guy… Well, he supposed at least with wings--er, a wing, there wouldn’t be any trouble if there was an accident? But he couldn’t shake the feeling this creepy-looking guy was familiar somehow. Not wanting the fellow to think he was judging over the wing, however, he had averted his gaze and kept from staring.

Until the man spoke to him. Citing himself as having been involved in that horrible manor incident. Well, that made sense. Hadn’t he seen this guy skulking around there for a hot minute? Why had he been doing that, he had to wonder-

“Actually, I wasn’t sure who made it out alive after I burned the place down, so good for you on surviving. Anyway, I’m Genesis. Charmed, probably.”

That was why.

Caius stared back at him blankly for a moment, blinking a few times as he struggled to process what “Genesis” had just said. And the fact he was sitting beside an arson-happy psychopath while about to be sent high into the air. What… Did he even say to that? How in Lucis’ name was he supposed to respond? An arsonist had just admitted to arson in front of him, he should probably handle this. But here, with innocents right there? Innocents he was already angry with?

No, this was not the time. He had to handle this with care, get through this activity, and ensure he didn’t put the other passengers in danger. He could prioritize his capture later, when innocents were safe, or if he did act, deal with it quickly.

There went any chance of him actually relaxing.

At least if it did come to a fight, the fireworks would alert the Farron sisters right away. Of course, then Lumina wouldn’t let him out of her sight for awhile. Definitely not for the rest of this trip. So if possible, he really should proceed cautiously.

“Caius,” he answered his greeting with his own, keeping a calm composure outwardly despite all that raged on within. “I uh. You have me at a loss, Ser Genesis. Why… Exactly, did you burn the manor? Would have had more time to rescue my comrades if you didn’t.”

And maybe he would have met Lumina all that time ago, and been able to help her back then. But he had prioritized Celes and Faris’ safety over all else in the wake of the fire. He had already apologized profusely to Lumina when he did meet her proper and learned about what they were doing to her down there, and she hadn’t taken offense. Still…

All of this was a problem. Potentially a very big problem. Was he in danger of dealing with someone who could kill the crew right here, maybe torch the ship itself? That would put everyone on board, including Lumina, Claire and Serah, in danger. Caius refused to allow that. So for now, the best thing he could do was gather intel. And gather intel he did, as this Genesis not only openly admitted to setting the manor on fire, but why. Apparently he wasn't entirely an arsonist, just... Someone who had accidentally set the manor on fire. And didn't regret doing it at all. Even seemed to think it was for the best.

He didn't know if that was any better. Because it sure didn't feel like it was. "That's a tactical error, not considering your surroundings when using magic. Especially elemental magic," Caius mused aloud, unsure why he was telling a maniac that his tactics in trying to murder a man were wrong. Force of habit, maybe? But he supposed he could make use of it, since he had already blurted it out. Maybe even figure out how to tone down the man's capacity for uncontrolled destruction. "Yes, I recognize the man you describe. Likely committed the murder himself, if I was to guess. Abducted the body too, it was weird. But had debris, or burning debris fallen atop you, enough of it may have been enough to keep you from escaping in time. Or ruined that nice jacket you had," Caius reasoned, not sure if objective logic would do any good. But Genesis had shown no real regard for anyone's well-being. So purely objective may be the only language he would understand. "Even without care for the well-being of others present, preventing collateral damage to your immediate environment can be best for your own interests. He could teleport, setting the place aflame only benefited him."

He couldn't blame him for attacking that streak hair guy, but did he really have to use fire magic in a clearly very flammable place? It was clear he didn't care, and even his half-hearted apology rang hollow. "I got them out. The one I couldn't save was a stranger, got out on her own. Now we're dating, strangest thing" Caius remarked offhand, not even bothering to get offended at how flippant he was about it. Caius knew his kind too well at this point. People like him were why he had grown to distrust people growing up. It was useless to appeal to their humanity or sense of compassion when they didn't have any. Which was why Caius didn't even react when he said he would have killed the host anyway.

He was getting far too desensitized. It was a problem. "Doesn't seem worth the trouble to kill someone for that" was all that got out of him as they were brought up, and just as he feared, they were indeed partnered up. Perhaps for the best. If he snapped and lashed out over something trivial, Caius could summon his weapon and take him out. Though the one thing he didn't understand was Genesis' next statement.

"Is that a passage from somewhere? It sounds interesting" Caius inquired as he stepped up to the parasails. If he kept him talking, at least it might lessen his threat levels for a minute. And the passage did sound neat. Caius was still learning more about literature in Zephon.

Part of Caius' subconscious asked itself: Why didn't he try to appeal to Genesis' humanity? Surely there had to be something in there. Something that he could tug on to get him to cease his ways and embrace some level of inner compassion. But that was where reality stepped in. Because Caius knew one thing just from talking to this Genesis.

He would be wasting his breath.

This was the kind of person that the redhead was. It wasn't a new thing to Caius, far from it actually. The brigands that had taken his family from him, their employer Cortez, the Original Sin bandits, Kuja, Sephiroth, Emet Selch, Ardyn... Alex. They all had that in common. Trying to appeal to their humanity was a wasted effort. Caius had accepted that as fact. Genesis joined a growing list, and his response further confirmed that theory.

Though speaking of Sephiroth, it seemed he had encountered another one of his buddies. Caius' breath hitched when he heard the name spoken with such familiar tone.

"Served a king. Kingsglaive -- special forces unit, essentially."

Not far from SOLDIERs, really. Not that Caius knew. What he did know however, was from Angeal that Sephiroth had once had a group of friends. But judging by the destruction in Provo, and that Angeal had previously turned into a monster that one time and flown away... He supposed it made sense that another of Sephiroth's friends would be unhinged in some way. He was differently unhinged from Angeal, however. Angeal still held some of his humanity. This one? He wasn't so sure.

Caius didn't really want to know what Genesis was inferring about the corpse. He didn't know what Emet had done with it, and he wasn't that curious. What was done, was done. They would deal with it later if they had to.

"Might not be fancy enough for your taste -- may put the gil towards the honeymoon instead. She seems to enjoy trips like this."

Was that a bit of cheek? Caius wasn't exactly Genesis' biggest fan right now, but talking about Lumina did put him in a better mood at least. He wasn't sure if "just missing each other in the middle of a burning manor" was something to bond over, but debating semantics seemed pointless. Though Caius wasn't sure how he had managed to keep a straight face while even entertaining the thought of marrying Lumina.

Thoughts for another day. Caius watched curiously as they were strapped onto the thing. Being strapped onto said thing alongside a pyromaniac psychopath was not his idea of a vacation, but if anyone was going to keep Genesis in check, he supposed, it was him. Though apparently he had said something that stirred the man's interest, as Genesis suddenly perked up a great deal when Caius asked about the poem. "A poem from your world, and a play as well? Interesting," Caius mused aloud. "I've only seen a play once, by request of one of the trope I saved on the road. It was... Nice. I shall give LOVELESS a try whenever you finish that play."

Genesis had a weird response to being asked if he was ready, and Caius didn't really understand it. Was that also from the poem? Weird time for it, but...

Caius made a motion with his hand to indicate he was ready.

"I am a touch inexperienced in interpreting poetry, never had time. What is LOVELESS about?"

Famous last words, as the boat below would start up, and Caius grit his teeth...

“He saved my life, so I pledged mine" was his answer. Simple, blunt, but clear and easy to understand. It seemed Genesis, too, was a soldier. Probably not much of one, though -- considering, well. Everything. He claimed he didn't serve anyone worth remembering. If he was from Sephiroth's world, then by Yuffie and Cloud's explanation, and Angeal's testimony... That would make him part of Shinra, wouldn't it? The pieces were starting to come together, and if Shinra was exactly like Sonora's government as much as others had claimed, it wasn't a surprise they had kept a sociopath like Genesis in their employ.

Caius received a surprising approval from Genesis regarding his thought to spend more on a honeymoon. It had been an offhand joke, but the idea actually sounded appealing considering how excited Lumina had been to come here. Doing something like this as a honeymoon instead of a big and expensive wedding, when Caius wasn't all that religious towards a big party to begin with, sounded nice. Suppose that depended on how Lumina saw it, though... If they ever got there.

Plenty of obstacles to get through first, before they talked about getting married. Then Caius had to duck a bit when Genesis shifted so suddenly and in a way that made Caius worry he might be about to attack. Instead, apparently Caius had accidentally activated the man's hyperfixation. He was... Actually offering him a copy? That actually sounded kind of nice. But he was so taken aback that all he could really do was nod his head in agreement. Sure, there was no harm in giving it a read. At worst he just wouldn't find it appealing, but he did like stories of friends going into battle together. How many times now had he told the tale of the Chosen King of Lucis?

Caius found himself holding his breath however, when he began to take off. It was strange being lifted like this without Vordun to hold onto, and Caius found himself inwardly panicking a little bit without his source of comfort. It was one thing when he propelled himself into the air, but this was out of his control. Caius had to remind himself that if need be, he could warp out of this and take control of his descent. He -was- in control, if he needed to take it. But as they continued to rise up, and the feeling of his hair whipping back as the wind hit his face began to feel familiar, he began to feel much calmer.

The view was actually... Appealing, wasn't it? This was the world he had dreamed of when he had fought for Eos' freedom from darkness. But he scarcely took time to take in what he had... Perhaps because it wasn't the same world as the one he had fought for. Still, he had fought to keep this world as beautiful and free as it was now, too, hadn't he? Perhaps this was his Lucis now. And he needed to accept and embrace that...

At some point Caius realized Genesis had been speaking the entire time. Honestly, he felt kind of bad that he hadn't been listening, but he looked over at Genesis a moment to try and show he was paying attention, even if he hadn't been at first. And then tried to multi-task viewing the scenery and listening to his impassioned description of LOVELESS. Was this how Caius sounded when he got into a subject and talked a lot? Maybe he needed to tone that down...

Caius had started paying attention around the time he mentioned some kind of gift of the goddess, which sounded... Interesting? Could he ask about the goddess, or would that make him mad if he'd mentioned her before? What kind of gift did the goddess have? And apparently the final act was... Lost? Caius' head snapped to look at him a moment, squinting at that mention. He was very passionate about something unfinished, wasn't he?

"Does the play ever try to make an interpretation of the final act and ending?" Caius inquired curiously. Just from an objective perspective, it was bizarre to him that something which didn't even have its final act could have such a cult following. "Or does it just end on a cliffhanger that will never be addressed?"

That sounded... Unsatisfying. Or was that its draw? The allure of something mysterious that they could never have?