Inner Daemons (Final Fantasy XV Fanfic)

Chapter XVI

The prince and his friends were traversing the woods around the Chocobo Post. After taking a detour to see the birds, as per Prompto's request, they were now tasked with hunting down a behemoth named Deadeye that'd been spooking the chocobos. It would definitely be a more difficult hunt, but they were getting pretty used to hunting monsters and daemons alike.

Though they all still had things in the backs of their minds. After they read about Insomnia's fall in the papers, the mood had dropped, and they grew worried for everyone in the city. They had discovered the truth from Cor - that King Regis was indeed dead, but they later got a call from Iris that confirmed her safety.

But there was still one person they had yet to hear anything about - Angelica. She hadn't contacted them and Iris hadn't seen her either, leading them to assume the worst. Noctis and Ignis were the most impacted by it, having known Angelica longer and been closer to her than the others. Even though Ignis hid it well, he was immensely afraid that the girl had been killed, and wished with all his might that he was wrong.

The sounds of trees falling and the low rumbles of a growling beast caught the attention of the four. They were close to the Nebulawood now, and Deadeye was nearby. The behemoth had noticed them and angrily charged toward them, growling and roaring. They all darted out of its way, summoning their weapons.

"Deadeye," Gladio said, noticing the broken horn and blind eye. "The name says it all."

"Focus on its right side where it's weakest!" Ignis shouted, making sure his team heard him.

Prompto hung back and began shooting. Noctis warped up to the beast's face and sliced his sword through its muzzle. Deadeye roared and swiped the prince down with its claws. Gladiolus and Ignis began focusing on its legs, dodging and attacking, hoping to knock the monster off its feet. With Prompto still shooting, Noctis started warping around the beast and slashing away at it.

Deadeye let out a pained and angry roar. It suddenly spun around, swiping its tail and knocking away its attackers. The behemoth then pounced on the nearest one, which was Noctis. The prince was pinned beneath Deadeye's claws, helpless as the beast snarled down at him.

"Noct!" his friends screamed, jumping up and getting ready to stop the monster.

But before anyone could move, Deadeye suddenly jerked its head up and looked off to the side. It grew silent briefly until the others could hear what the behemoth did. The sound of a vehicle, a motorcycle, to be precise, was becoming more and more audible. All looking in the direction of the sound, they caught sight of a blur of black and yellow. In the next instant, someone on a motorcycle sailed off a large rock and right over Deadeye.

"Angel!" the boys all yelled, recognizing the redhead on the bike.

After landing, Angelica spun the bike around, revving it up as Deadeye released Noctis and turned its full attention to her. It charged toward her and she rode straight toward it in return. Right as the behemoth raised its claws to attack, Angelica flung a throwing knife right into its left eye, blinding it and throwing off its aim. Angelica slung the bike to the side, successfully sliding right under the beast's claws.

Sliding off the bike, Angelica summoned her daggers and sliced them straight through Deadeye's stomach. The now blinded beast roared in pain and flailed about in an attempt to defend itself, crushing the motorcycle underfoot. But as soon as the girl slid out from under the monster, she leapt up onto the behemoth's shoulder and plunged a dagger straight into where an artery was located, then leapt away.

Deadeye immediately began to slow as it bled profusely from its throat. After a bit more struggling, the beast collapsed, its life fading. Angelica casually approached the beast and yanked her dagger free. She slung off the excess blood and retrieved her throwing knife before letting her weapons disperse into dozens of tiny crystals. She then took a moment to wince and clutch her arm, the sudden movements having painful consequences on her injuries.