(Y/n) presses a hand against her aching chest. This didn't go unnoticed by Death and she promptly asked, "What's wrong, Pestilence?"

"Earlier, the draugr stabbed me through the chest. Ever since then, I've been experiencing excruciating pain every now and then in my chest."

Death looked away from her sister in deep thought. "Could he have succeeded?"

"Who're you talking about, Death?"

The inky-haired girl shook her head. "Don't worry about it. I will look into this and hopefully have solid answers for what's happening to you. For now, I leave you in their care."

(Y/n) followed Death's gaze and saw Prompto and Gladio rushing toward them. Before she could say anything to her sister, she vanished. Steadying her body and pushing aside the pain, she greeted the two boys. "I'm glad you both are safe."

"We thought you and Iggy would've been together," Prompto said. When he noticed her pale complexion, his brows furrowed together in concern. "Are you feeling okay, (Y/n)?"

"You're not lookin' too good," Gladio added.

"I'm fine," she lied. "My exhaustion is catching up to me and I fear I won't be able to use my magic for a while. Regardless of my well-being, we must head to the altar."

"Way ahead of you, (Y/n)!" Prompto cheered. "Let's go!"

As Pestilence followed the boys, the sky above turned dark as storm clouds rolled in. She came to a sudden halt and stared up at the ominous clouds above as it began to rain. Before she could snap out of her daze, she felt a tug on her body and knew someone was summoning her. Heeding the call, she teleported to the orb's location and couldn't believe the sight that welcomed her.

At the Altar of the Tidemother, (Y/n) was surrounded by imperial forces with their guns aimed at her. Not too far away, she spotted an unconscious Noctis and Ignis being pinned down to the ground. Glancing behind her, she saw Ravus was being restrained by a few men cladded in imperial armor.

"Welcome, my dear," a smooth voice greeted her.

Turning back around, she came face to face with a grinning Ardyn. In his grasp was a single sharp dagger. She watched him as he circled her like a predator analyzing its prey. Taking a closer look, she noticed he held the summoning orb in his other hand. "You were the one to call upon me."

"Indeed," Ardyn replied. "Do you fancy the gift I've bestowed?" He spun the dagger around in his hand as he gestured to his chest, placing the orb in his pocket.

One of (Y/n)'s hands gravitated toward her own chest. She refused to show her emotions to the man and remained level-headed. "What gift, might I ask?"

"Your prey was the quintessential piece my scheme was missing. It proved to serve its purpose in the end."

"Answer the question," Pestilence demanded. Her eyes suddenly widened as an unbearable pain resonated from her chest. She cried out as the pain increased, causing her to fall to her knees. She gripped the fabric covering her chest and yanked on it as the one hand she was using to support her body gave out. Her body collapsed against the ground as she screamed at the top of lungs, unable to fight against the excruciating pain.

Ardyn kneeled beside the Horseman with a pleased grin. He grabbed a handful of her snowy locks and yanked, forcing her to look up at the sky. He dragged the tip of the dagger across her throat, piercing her flesh and causing blood to trickle from the shallow cut. He smiled in amusement as he watched the skin mend within seconds. "How fascinating."

"Unhand her!" Ignis shouted, struggling desperately against the men pinning him to the ground. He tried to summon his daggers, but the knee digging into his spine stopped him.

Ardyn looked over at the advisor for a few seconds before looking back at (Y/n). "Ah, love. Such a trivial and inutile emotion." He yanked on her hair again, smirking when he elicited a whimper from her. "Could an immortal truly be cherished? After all, his life is fleeting while you are cursed to roam this world for all eternity."

The pain died down inside (Y/n)'s chest and she was finally able to speak. "A m-monster like you knows nothing of love. Regardless of my immortality, I choose to love a mortal knowing the consequences. I will stand by his side and never betray him."

Ardyn chuckled at her proclamation. "An enchanting declaration indeed. However, you soon will be at my disposal." He releases her hair and stands up. "For the time being, I must apologize for my rashness."

Puzzled at what the chancellor meant, (Y/n) lifted her head. Her eyes widened when she came face to face with the muzzle of a pistol. The last thing she heard was Ignis' desperate cries before Ardyn pulled the trigger.

Forced to watch, Ignis' eyes widen in horror as the Horseman's body crumpled to the ground. He stared into her wide, lifeless eyes as blood oozed from the bullet hole in the middle of her forehead. Even though he knew she was immortal, a devastating feeling crashed over his being.

Helplessly, he watched as Ardyn commanded one of his men to throw Pestilence into the ocean. One man made his way over to the dead Horseman and delivered a few harsh kicks to the girl's side in order to roll her off the edge of the altar. Her body plunged into the water below, slowly sinking to the depths.

<-----------<<<<<

Darkness.

It's all (Y/n) could see as her body sunk deeper and deeper into the cold water of the ocean. Her memories as a mortal and immortal were jumbled inside her head. The images were dark and she couldn't find the slightest hint of any details to help her determine which life the memory was from. At one point, she thought she was hearing voices but that was impossible in her current state.

Eventually, the Horseman reaches the depths as her body rested against the sand layering the bottoms of the ocean. With no one to reach her, it seemed like her life was stuck in an endless loop of death as she could not expel the water from her lungs after the bullet wound mended. During the few seconds she regained consciousness after resurrecting, she was only greeted by pure darkness before dying. Over and over, the process repeated. She wasn't sure how much time had passed. For the first time after becoming a Horseman, she wanted to die. She desperately wanted the suffering to end. Her hopes and dreams were destroyed, obliterated into millions of pieces.

However, (Y/n)'s wish for death wouldn't be granted. Instead, the life returned to her eyes as she flew up and turned on her side, expelling the water from her lungs. She broke out into a coughing fit once all the water was gone. Grasping her throat, she winced when feeling how sore it was.

"You're finally awake," a voice said, sighing in relief.

Pestilence searches for the owner of the familiar voice and gasped in shock. "K-King Aeshema...?"

The daemon king smiled down at her as he kneeled beside her. He placed a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it gently. "I'm glad you're all right. It took me quite a while to find you."

The Horseman looked around and realized they were at the Altar of the Tidemother. With help from Aeshema, she was able to get back on her feet. "I've many questions to ask..."

"Please, ask away," he replied. "I know you must be rather disoriented right now." He escorted her over to a pile of debris and gestured for her to sit. He released her shoulder as she sat down and combed back the wet strands of hair that stuck to her face. He kneeled down in front of her, staring into her (e/c) eyes and waiting to answer any and all questions she had.

(Y/n) presses a hand against her aching head with a grimace. "How long...?"

"Several weeks, I'm afraid," Aeshema sighed. "Death, Famine, and War tried to search for you, but they could not locate you. Not even the summoning orb was sufficient enough to aid them. They arrived at my doorstep a couple weeks ago, begging me for help."

"What happened after I was shot?" Pestilence asked.

"An unforeseen outcome," the daemon king answered before going into details. He informed her of the death of Lady Lunafreya and how nights were becoming longer with each passing day. He also mentioned what Death and War had told him, informing (Y/n) of how Ignis used the Ring of the Lucii to protect Noctis and what price he had paid to wield such immense power.

"He's...blind?" She muttered sadly.

"Morosely, yes." A smile appeared on Aeshema's face. "But I know you've a remedy."

"I do," she responded. "But in order to create such a concoction, I must return to my garden in the Inner Sanctum."

The daemon king pushed himself up into a standing position and placed a hand on his hip. "Well then, you best make haste. With the draugr and grootslang eliminated, I grant you access back to the Inner Sanctum." He waved his hand around and created a portal. "Heal the one you love, Pestilence."

(Y/n) got to her feet and moved to stand in front of the portal. "I will, Your Majesty." She stepped through the portal and arrived back at the castle in the Inner Sanctum. Her bare feet padded against the marble floor as she made her way to the garden. Her entire being was still soaked, but she kept moving forward.

Arriving in the garden, Pestilence shuffled through the green grass and toward the beds of herbs and flowers she grew. Falling to her knees, she scanned over the vast array of herbs and flowers until locating what she needed to help Ignis. Unfortunately, the flower she needed to complete the remedy was dead. She grimaced at the sight, hanging her head with a heavy sigh. "It seems a trip to the Rock of Ravatogh will be needed."

"Thank the Six you're okay!"

(Y/n) turned her head and saw Famine running toward her. She stood up just in time to be hugged by her sister. "Famine, what're you...?"

"King Aeshema told me the good news before returning to Hell and I really wanted to see you. Since I've slain my prey, I was able to return and see you," she replied. "He also told me why you returned instead of joining Noctis and the others. You want to heal Ignis, yeah?"

The ivory-haired girl nodded. "Yes, but it seems I'll be needing to visit Ravatogh in order to complete the remedy."

"I'll go with you!" Famine chanted.

"All right. Then let's depart." (Y/n) stored the herbs in a glass vial before leaving the Inner Sanctum with Famine.

Due to Pestilence's weak state, it took them a couple days to reach the Rock of Ravatogh. The Horsemen stood at the base of the volcano, hopping off their steeds. They stared up at the landmark before casting their gazes to the darkening sky. "The days truly are growing shorter with the Oracle's presence no longer keeping the darkness at bay," (Y/n) commented.

"It is unsettling," Famine stated. "If Eos becomes engulfed in darkness, daemons will run rampant and King Aeshema will have to be on high alert."

"Indeed," she sighed. "The daemons will grow strong and possibly overthrow His Majesty. Who knows what consequences will stem from such a revolt."

"Humanity will be wiped out for sure."

"For now, let's focus on locating this flower. Thinking of the future will have to wait."

Famine nodded in agreement. "You're right. Let's go."

The two girls trekked up the Rock of Ravatogh. Due to the heat surrounding them, Pestilence's hair and clothes dried within minutes. As they fought against the monsters that called the volcano home, memories of (Y/n)'s first visit with the others played in her mind. She hadn't known the boys for long but found it enjoyable to travel with them. At the time, she nor the others thought a catastrophe would befall Altissia and cause an echo across all of Eos. It was like the butterfly effect-a butterfly flapping its wings in one part of the world causes a cataclysmic event in another part. If the butterfly had not flapped its wings, all would be peaceful and the natural order wouldn't be out of balance.

Standing on a cliff, the Horsemen peer down at a group of wyverns fast asleep. They snuck past them without alerting a single one. While ascending the steep slope, Famine asked, "How're you doing?"

"I'm fine," Pestilence answered.

"Are you sure?" The golden-haired girl questioned. "King Aeshema told me of the dark entity dwelling inside you."

(Y/n)'s eyes widen as she froze mid-climb. "Dark entity? What are you talking about, Famine?"

"He didn't tell you?" She groaned. "His Majesty detected a dark entity inside you after he saved you. He told me to make sure you didn't push yourself."

"Could this be the "gift" the chancellor mentioned?" The (e/c)-eyed girl mumbled to herself.

"He said he wasn't able to extract it and feared what is to befall you in the coming days."

"As I said, I'm fine," Pestilence remarks. "Whatever this "entity" is, I'm positive I'll find a way to rid myself of it."

"Okay," Famine said. "As long as you're okay and not pushing yourself, let's keep looking for that flower."

The two Horsemen arrive at Owlyss Haven. From their perch, they spotted a bundle of flowers sprouting from one of the many cracks on the volcano. They rushed over and picked one before returning to the haven and beginning to create the remedy.

With the herbs from the Inner Sanctum and the flower they just picked, Pestilence and Famine combined the two and created a pale blue paste. The snowy-haired girl checked its consistency, a smile appearing on her face after she examined it. "Perfect."

Famine looked away from the paste and toward her sister. "Do you even know where the others are?"

(Y/n) hung her head. "No..."

The golden-haired girl giggled. "It's a good thing I do!" She placed her hands on her hips with a smile. "They'll be arriving in Cartanica tomorrow. I've entrusted my summoning orb to Prompto for the time being so he could call upon me when they arrived. I'll take you with me."

"Speaking of summoning orbs, where is mine?" She asked. "Last I saw it, the chancellor had it."

"Not anymore. We returned it to Ignis after we couldn't use it to locate you." Her smile fell as she remembered the last time she saw the strategist. "He was devastated when we told him of our failed attempt to find you. He tried so many times to summon you, but you didn't answer his call. I can't believe you were trapped at the bottom of the ocean for so long..."

"It was horrible," (Y/n) mumbled. "For the first time in this life and my previous one, I wanted to die."

Famine walked over to her sister and hugged her tightly. "I'm just so happy you're okay. I can't thank King Aeshema enough for saving you."

"Neither can I." Pestilence reciprocates the hug.

The emerald-eyed girl pulled away and smiled at (Y/n). "All we have to do is reunite you with Ignis. He'll be so overjoyed to see you! Well...not exactly "see" you, but you know what I mean."

She giggled. "I do. How about we pay Lestallum a visit in the meantime?"

"Yes!" Famine nodded excitedly. "I've always wanted to visit!"

"Then our next stop is Lestallum."

The two Horsemen took the remedy and descended the Rock of Ravatogh, their next destination being Lestallum. As they rode on the back of Erra and Limos, they wondered what lied in store for them once they reconvened with the royal retinue the following day.