~(Y/n)'s POV~

"Are you positive you wish to do this?" Ignis asked, worry laced through his voice. I nod and turn to face him and the others. "Yes, I know Noctis needs all the royal arms. If what Cor said is correct, then my mark should be able to open a pathway to the royal tomb."

"But, what about your health?" Noctis asked with a guilty expression. I smile to reassure him. "Noct, I know the risks of opening these ancient ruins. If I feel unwell, I won't leave you all in the dark."

Deep down, I was burying the deepest secret. Cor had warned me of what would really happen while the others were asleep. Deciding to keep that information hidden, I forced a fake smile. Luckily, no one noticed my lie.

"You're a tough one, (Y/n)," Gladio said while smirking at me.

"Yeah, I'm kinda jealous of Iggy," Prompto joined in. I laugh a little at the blonde's jealousy. Without further delay, I face the doors that lead to the ancient ruins. Taking a deep breath, I place my hand on the doors and concentrate all my power into the mark on my back.

(A/n: What the mark looks like.)

The mark pulsates and creates a faint burning sensation. A bright light catches my attention, drawing my eyes to the doors. The same wolf symbol that decorated my back began to glow on the doors to the ancient ruins. The sound of rumbling resounded as the doors slowly began to open. With a sigh, I take a step back. Feeling a bit weak, I wasn't paying attention and almost tripped over my own feet. Before I could fall, two arms wrapped around me and steadied my body.

"Thank you, Ignis," I said softly.

"We do not have to do this," he whispers, his arms tightening around me. Concern passed through his emerald eyes as he gazed down at me. "No, we must. This will help Noctis' ascension as the rightful King." His arms around me tightened even more at my words. Seeing him like this will make the truth even harder to tell. Guilt built up in my chest as Ignis guided me into the ruins. The others were already ahead, scoping out the new area.

"I don't see another way to go," Prompto said.

"Nothing here," Noctis proclaims as he returned from checking the back of the chamber. Though the ruins were in shambles, very little light shone through the crumbled parts of the old structure.

"There's no way the marshal could be wrong about the location of a royal tomb," Gladio spoke up. Feeling as if we were missing something, I checked the first thing that caught my eye-- a strange carving in the stone floor, located in the middle of the chamber. I kneeled and traced the carving with my fingers.

"It's the same symbol on my mother's necklace," I whisper to myself. My hand unconsciously traveled to my neck where the beautiful memento hung. When I tried to grab the necklace, I couldn't feel anything. I gasped, pulling my hands away from my neck. My eyes widened as I saw my hands. Both were transparent and slowly fading away.

"(Y/n), are you alright?" Ignis' worried voice broke through my thoughts. I nod and quickly hide my hands. "Y-yeah, I think I found a way," I announce. Before any of them could see my hands, I placed my hands on the carving and used more of my powers. Once the bright light was gone, a stairwell leading deeper into the ruins appeared.

"Oh, yay... we get to go deeper..." Prompto whines. Noctis and Gladio stared into the darkness. None of us could see the end of the mysterious stairwell. It was swallowed by darkness as it curled around a pillar. "We're not gonna find the royal tomb if we just hang out up here all day," Noctis said.

When I tried to stand, an excruciating pain shot through my body. My body shook as the waves of pain shot through every inch of my body. Ignis was immediately at my side and supported me. When Ignis touched my bare skin, the pain suddenly vanished. "Are you okay, (Y/n)?" Prompto asked.

"I-I'm fine. I was suddenly in pain, but when Ignis touched me, it vanished," I respond. Noctis and Gladio gave me concerned glances as Ignis helped me up. "If this is risking your life, we'll stop," Noctis said. I shook my head and gazed at the prince.

"No, let's keep going. I'm sure we're close," I state. They all were reluctant to go deeper, but I pushed them with a sweet smile. Ignis supported my weak body while we walked down the stairwell. "I hate this," Prompto comments as we delve deeper into the shadows.

"You're not the only one, buddy," Noctis said.

We reach the end of the stairwell and were ambushed by a horde of Imps. "Stay back. We'll take care of this," Ignis said, letting go of me. I nod and watch as the four of them jump into battle. During the midst of battle, my body suddenly felt lighter. Looking down, I saw my arms were completely gone and my legs were beginning to vanish. "So, Cor wasn't lying when he said I would vanish from this world..."

Small pieces of my body began to shatter into pure white crystals. Parts of my torso and face were already falling apart. I went back to watching the battle and saw they were almost victorious. Memories passed through my mind as my body began to deteriorate. Tears cascaded down my cheeks as I remembered all the wonderful times I spent with Ignis. When we met, our first date, and our first kiss were more vibrant than the other memories. As I cried, more parts of my body shattered and my legs completely vanished.

"Hey, look, we found it!" Prompto cheers, pointing to the royal tomb. Seeing their happy faces one more time was enough for me to be happy. "Couldn't have done it without (Y/n)," Gladio said. When the bodyguard said my name, all eyes and smiles fell on me. But once they saw my state, their expressions dramatically changed. Their eyes went wide and their smiles disappeared.

"(Y-Y/n)?" Noctis manages to call my name. Out of all of them, Ignis wore the most painful expression. "I'm glad... we were able to find it," I said, tears falling from my eyes. "W-what's going on?" Prompto asked.

"This... is the price of using my magic to enhance my mark's power. Cor told me it would happen, but... I didn't expect it to happen so fast."

"Why did you not tell us?" Ignis asked, his voice full of hurt.

"Because... you would call off the search for the royal tomb. You all are too kind. That's why I kept it a secret. I hope one day... you'll forgive me."

~3rd Person POV~

No one could speak. Everyone watched the white crystals from (Y/n)'s body shatter. She directed her whole attention to her lover and stared into his emerald eyes with her (e/c) ones. She gave him one last smile and said, "I love you."

Ignis felt his heart shatter and ran to her. He reached out for her, but when he tried to wrap his arms around her, she was gone. The only thing he was able to grab was her mother's necklace.

White crystals surrounded him as he fell to his knees in despair. He reached out to grab one of the crystals, but it only shattered at his touch. Ignis held the necklace close to his chest, in hopes all that had happened was just a nightmare. Sadly, Ignis knew he was in the real world and (Y/n) was gone.