The King's Beloved

~ [Music Recommendation: "Suteki Da Ne" by Nobuo Uematsu - John Oeth version (Instrumental only) - available in Youtube or Spotify] ~ Please listen to it in loop while you read this part to experience the utmost beauty of this scene ~ T_T

~ Recap from previous chapter ~

"Eres, from today on forward, you shall carry the name 'Ignis'," Ignis declared. Suddenly, something glowing went out of his body - a small crystalized red flame. "This is 'Primo Igne' the seed of the Ignis guardians passed on from one to another. Now, I pass this unto you".

"NOOOOOOO!!! I will not accept it! No! Please, no! Hu hu hu!" Eres sobbed louder. "You have to live! You have to survive! Please!"

But Ignis proceeded with the ritual and sent the "Primo Igne" to Eres until it sank inside his body.

Then, Eres felt a surge of overwhelming power within him.

~ End of Recap ~

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" Eres shouted at the top of his lungs.

The immense power sinking in his young body was very painful and too much to bear … but the pain of losing his master was far greater. He continued to wail and cry with all his might.

"Caligo ...," now Ignis turned to him, "Please ... look after Eres. Treat him as your little brother".

Caligo's eyes widened. But he understood completely what he meant. Biting his lips, he nodded and bowed to him.

And lastly, Ignis turned to Elliot.

"My King … I see that you are weighing something great in your heart".

Elliot bowed his head and smiled bitterly.

"My King … in this life, you will be faced by the hardest choices. Choices … that may require sacrifices. I can see that your heart is very much willing to sacrifice your own self but sometimes, it is not ourself that needs to be sacrificed … instead, it will be something … or even someone we hold very dearly. And when that time comes, I hope you make the right decision".

Elliot sighed and wretched his face … as if a thousand needles pricked his heart. He understood completely what Ignis meant. Same goes for Rania.

Silence fell across the room … such deafening silence that lasted for a while.

It only stopped when Ignis started releasing the remaining of his spiritual energy.

"M-master! What are you doing?!" Eres was the first to respond.

"Ignis! Stop this! Don't -" Ducis followed, with tears now falling from his eyes.

Everyone's face grew pale again. The other guardians all tried to stop him as well.

"Why?!" Ducis asked in an exasperated voice. He was reminded of what Flora did a long time ago. "Flora … and now, you … Why do you keep on sacrificing yourselves too much?! Is there really no other way? I-Is this … sniff … sniff … is this really the Supreme's will?" He clenched his fist and hit it on the barrier. "Why must you leave like this?"

"I'm so sorry, Ducis … sorry, everyone," Ignis apologized as his body started to fade into nothingness. Like the light of the fireflies during summer, his spiritual energy surrounded him. It was a mixture of red, gold, and an orange tinge. It was beautiful to look at … only … why did such a view have to mean an eternal goodbye? And just like the fireflies ... his shine meant the end of him.

Tears flooded from everyone's faces. Rania, Elliot, Ducis, Eres, Luna … and all the other guardians. The whole room was filled with weeping and regret.

"I'm sorry I had to do this," Ignis continued, his voice growing weaker by the minute. "If I don't, I might turn into a monster," he tried to laugh it off, "and I don't want to leave as a monster. I don't want to hurt anyone of you here that I hold dear. And I don't want to burden anyone with having to kill me after".

"Noooo … hu hu hu hu hu … sniff … master, don't leave me".

"Eres … be strong and take heart. I may not be here physically but I will always be with you in spirit," Ignis comforted him. "Also …," he turned to Rania and Elliot, "When I'm gone … you should be able to purify the dark aura. It grows weaker without a host to cling unto … so you should be able to do it. Please, purify it for me so it won't affect anyone any longer".

"Of course!" Rania and Elliot chorused.

"I just hoped that … there was more we could have done for you," Rania sobbed. "If only … maybe … we were stronger. Or have more knowledge about this corruption".

"It does not do well to dwell in regrets, my dear. It's alright. You've done everything you possibly could".

Cries filled the room again. One by one, the guardians left their last message to Ignis while his body continued to slowly fade away. Their hearts ached so much seeing a co-guardian, who was like a brethren to all of them, die just like that. They all felt so helpless. They had all the powers in the world … a vast amount of spiritual energies … They were guardians! Chosen ones! Yet … none of them had the power to save his life. 

How utterly heartbreaking. Seeing an important person die right before your very eyes yet do nothing to stop it.

All they could do was watch … and cry in silence.

If only they could take the pain away … 

and maybe divide it amongst themselves …

Then, it wouldn't be that hard.

But just like what Ignis said … some things ought to end.

Whether we like them or not ...

And so, Ignis' light scattered all around the room, until … it shed it's last glow. With a smiling face, he left everyone … and this world.

Everyone cried harder and screamed their pain away afterwards. 

With trembling hands, and tear-stained faces, Rania and Elliot purified the dark aura that was left. Just as Ignis said, it grew weaker and they were able to vanquish it's last traces until they were no more.

Meanwhile, the pain in Eres' body subsided and the 'Primo Igne' had finally completely sunk inside him. Along with it, a great amount of energy rested in him. His eyes that were once bluish gray … turned golden … though, only one of them. Caligo went to his side to comfort and aid the little child. But Eres strengthened himself.

"Sniff … sniff …," he wiped his face full of tears, "M-master … sniff … said that … sniff … I should be strong … and take heart … sniff … So I shouldn't cry and mope around".

Caligo smiled bitterly and patted his head.

"Yes, you must be strong. You are now the new Ignis. You are his legacy".

"Yes!" Eres nodded enthusiastically. He slapped his face so hard that his cheeks turned red. "I must continue what he started. And I will make sure to see it until the end!"

Then, Eres turned to face Elliot. With his half golden, half bluish gray eyes, he looked at him intently - you could see the fire of passion in his eyes.

"Anointed King, let me take you to the temple so I may give you my blessings as the new guardian of fire!"

After saying this, Eres teleported Elliot to the real temple of Ignis, leaving Rania, Luna, Ducis, and the rest of the guardians behind. The real temple had the same burning marble stones as the one on Ignis' chambers. This time, Luna didn't need to interpret the words on its doors - Eres read it aloud for him to hear.

"When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me."

The door sprung open and the little boy led Elliot inside up to the innermost room where a large red crystal stood afloat in the air. They went near it and with a slightly trembling voice, Eres gave his blessing to Elliot.

"My name is Ignis,

And I am the Eighth Gate.

As the New Guardian of Fire,

In my heart, shines Sacrifice.

Thou hast been tested,

And evil, I found nought.

Therefore, thou shalt receiveth mine blessings.

I shalt be with thou,

And thou shalt be with me".

Once again, new powers surged inside Elliot. This time, it was so immense and thick that it reverberated to his very soul. A bitter smile could be seen from his face as the power sunk through the Zweihänder and unto him.

Sacrifice … what an extremely hard pill it was to take …

==================

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