Crown King: Return of The Labyrinth | ✓

Chapter 25: The Tower

Nyx had no idea when these daemons would ever run out—the more the Kingsglaive dispatched a number of them, the monsters' race would multiply further. After an encounter with a serpentine creature with the head of a lion that came slithering towards him, he had enough of the dripping blood of the daemon after he sliced off its head, the black liquid staining his shirt.

     He looked around, the grim sky staring down at them as it showered its tears on the muddy ground. Screams erupted out of nowhere, mixed by a distinct set of unruly wails coming from the daemons. It was pointless, knowing that whatever they did to save as many as they could, the unjust deaths were inevitable for they had not expected a daemon attack.

     Nyx was just about to head back into the palace, the only place he knew was yet safe, but then he felt his stomach churning and his head pounding when something hard collided against the back of his head, sending himself flying through midair and hitting the ground, bits of mud splashing around him. He groaned and forced his eyes open. His vision felt steamy; the walls of the Crown Palace looked like a piece of dark block to him now when a winged creature blocked his view. Everything was a blur and none of his limbs seemed to move voluntarily, the thought of hearing a crack as he landed a while ago making him swear mentally.

     The daemon growled and came lunging down on Nyx but was knocked off by a jet of blue light coming from nowhere. It hissed momentarily and vaporized into smoke, the scent of acid filling the air. Nyx looked around; he caught a glimpse of a hooded glaive from a distance, waving her arms, yelling "WATCH IT!" before sprinting into action again. He felt grateful that he was still alive. He scrambled to his feet, feeling the rain wetting him as he gazed to toward the towering castle enclosed by a translucent blue dome of shield, thus protected from any acts of evil.

     His eyes flicked toward the highest among the palace—its height overcasted the rest, a small window situated at the topmost of the tower. Something flashes within for a split second, and he felt like he must run after it. It felt familiar to him, yet he wasn't sure what it was.

     Against the heavy pouring of the rain and the deafening chorus of screams, yells and screeches, Nyx shut off his mind and closed his eyes, warping towards the Tower of Catacombs. Everything seemed to change: the splattering of rain became distant, along with the inhumane noise. He no longer felt unsafe as he stood in the middle of a circular room, except that the fact that the shadowed walls and the chilling floor beneath him made him unnerved. He looked around. He had never gone to this tower; only the Crown King did.

     And then it dawned into him.

     The night before Noctis disappeared, he was informed that the king was off to see the late King Regis, right here. Nyx remembered. The Tower of Catacombs was where Noctis last went to so that just might mean. . .

     He must be here, Nyx thought as he looked around. But this feels strange. The room itself did not have any type passageway leading downstairs but the sole window. Moreover, the walls showed no signs of the dead. Nyx could not sense anything but the eerie breeze entering and circulating the room for a while and then escaping out the window. Maybe he's not here, Nyx thought, wheeling around to step onto the windowsill.

     Creak.

     Nyx turned his head over his shoulder. Something within the shadows seemed to fidget. He stepped off and strode across the room towards the moving figure, hidden by the darkness as he spread his palm, heat rising inside him. A ball of light radiated from within and illumined the object. There was a wooded trunk laid against the wall, so Nyx bent down to examine it. The lid was budging, somewhat trying itself to open but it would not.