Deeper into the Nebulawood, the royal retinue was greeted by more fallen trees. They littered the sides of the somewhat narrow path while some proved to be obstacles blocking their way. They crawled over a few trees to proceed forward and eventually enter a clearing. A pack of voretooths who were nearby ran past them as they fled from the other direction.

"Whoa! Look at 'em go!" Prompto chanted as he watched the creatures flee without noticing them. He was amazed at seeing such dangerous beasts flee without fighting. "So, exactly how big are behemoths?"

"Roughly around 70 feet in size and typically weigh around 174 ton," (Y/n) answered.

"Oh, uh...that's a lot bigger than I thought. Maybe we should rethink this..."

"What, you chickening out?" Gladio inquired. "Don't understand why. You've fought big daemons before."

"Yeah, but none of them are able to shove me in their mouth!" Prompto wandered over towards the spirit amongst them. "Maybe you could scare it away, (Y/n)?"

"My spiritual form is small and fragile. How do you expect me to scare away a beast that's twenty times bigger than me?" She retorted.

"Aren't there some beasts out there that are frightened by smaller ones?"

"And you think a behemoth is one of them?"

"We could always test that theory."

She combed her (h/c) locks over her shoulders. "I'll think about it."

Continuing to make their way through the Nebulawood, the area becomes blanketed with mist. They soon make their way to an abandoned stone structure with an opening and passage through which they can crouch. Noctis begins to lead the way the moment they hear growling again.

"Noct!" Gladio grabs the prince and gently pulls him back before stepping forward. He turned back and held out his hand to indicate that he would take point himself instead of Noctis. The brute crouched down and entered the passage. He slowly and quietly makes his way forward a few feet, then turns back to motion for the others to follow. Noctis was the next to enter the passage followed by Ignis, (Y/n), and Prompto. As they crept forward, they could hear the occasional growl from the beast they were hunting.

They didn't make it halfway through the passage before Gladio stopped and turned to face them. "Hold up!" He ceased moving, eyes drifting upward towards one of the many holes in the metal structure that roofed the passageway.

With a growl, Deadeye comes into view through holes in the structure. Its right horn was missing and right eye was foggy. The skin around the eye was mauled and only a horrendous scar was left behind. Although it was blind on its right side, its nose wriggled as it sniffed the air. (Y/n) winced when realizing the beast smelt them, but couldn't see them due to its blindness in its right eye. Her heart was beginning to race due to her anxiety rising. She feared the behemoth would find them in the small crawlspace and crush them with its large form. She didn't realize she was holding her breath until she exhaled the moment the beast seemed to overlook their hiding spot and walk away.

With Deadeye gone for the moment, Gladio looks at his friends, holds up a finger, closes his right eye, and taps it with his finger. ""Deadeye"-the name says it all."

At the sudden sensation of feeling a hand over hers, (Y/n) looked down and saw she had unconsciously latched onto the sleeve of Ignis' suit jacket. He had placed his hand on hers when her grip tightened. Mumbling a small apology, she released his jacket. She then peered past the advisor to meet Gladio's gaze. "The beast knows something's amiss. We best make haste before it finds us here."

The shield nodded in agreement and motioned for them to follow. "Let's move."

A few seconds later, Deadeye wandered back into view. It was still sniffing the air and searching the area for them. (Y/n) kept the beast in her sights as they crawled forward. She tried to even her breathing and calm her racing heart, but it was difficult since the threat was only a few feet away.

It was only mere seconds later when Deadeye suddenly detected their presence. (Y/n) saw the beast heading straight for their hiding spot and lowered her body closer to the ground. The boys did the same just as the behemoth shoved its snout into the narrow passageway through one of the larger holes in the metal structure. It releases a thunderous roar, earning a shriek from Prompto.

(Y/n) prayed to the Astrals the behemoth would give up, but she gasped when it started to claw at the passageway. Noctis held out his hand to summon his sword so he could pierce the beast's snout, but he lowered his hand when hearing a familiar squeak from behind him. Looking over his shoulder, he saw (Y/n) had transformed and was crawling past Ignis. He wasn't sure what she was planning until she hopped on his back and flew out of one of the holes in the structure.

Deadeye took notice of her small form and ceased clawing at the passageway. It chased after her and they both disappeared into the fog. None of the boys could believe what she just did. They quickly exited the passageway and searched for any signs of the behemoth or the skvader.

"I-I can't believe (Y/n) just saved our skins," Prompto muttered in shock. "I hope she's okay."

"Her minute form will prove to be an advantage against a behemoth. So too will her flying ability. The beast can only jump to a certain height," Ignis stated. Although appearing calm on the surface, he was worried about her. She was a strong fighter, but even she had her limits just like the rest of them.

"We can't let her have all the fun," Noctis said. "Let's find this thing and kill it."

"It's weak on the right-no eye, no horn," Gladio responded.

"We'll stay in range until we can exploit its blind spot," the tactician added. "Let's do hope (Y/n) wears our target down before we have to engage."

Meanwhile in another part of the Nebulawood, the skvader was flying through the fog in an attempt to escape Deadeye. She was able to dodge its claws left and right before darting off deeper into the dense mist. The guardian was becoming exhausted from the persistent behemoth and took shelter in one of the trees it had yet to destroy. She curled her small form atop a branch to hide her presence. Her sapphire eyes radiated through the fog, but they weren't visible to the beast as it prowled the foggy area below.

From her perch, (Y/n) had a perfect view of Deadeye. She watched it search the fog for her, scraping its claws against some of the rock formations in the misty clearing. Its nose wriggled like earlier and she knew it was trying to sniff her out. However, it wasn't able to locate her. During their previous chase, she had spread her scent around the area to make herself harder to detect.

The behemoth roared in frustration before giving up the search. (Y/n) lifted her head and stood up, watching the beast closely as it seemed to head in a certain direction. Soaring from tree to tree, she followed Deadeye from a safe distance. When it hopped over a large rock formation and left the area, she continued her pursuit.

Exiting the foggy area, the skvader was more than joyous to see the sun again. The warm rays heated her white and black fur as she soared through the sky.

Coming across the skeletal ruins of what looked to be once a building, she watched Deadeye hop onto a cliff and lay down. It closed its eyes and seemed to fall asleep. Perching on top of the ruins, she stared at the behemoth as it slept. She figured this was its den and looked around the area. Oil drums lied around the ruins and a tattered windmill loomed across the way. Crawling through the ruins, she peered across the way and saw the boys on a cliffside. She didn't hesitate to fly over to them. Landing in front of them near the cliff, she reverted back to being human. "Deadeye's asleep. I suggest we attack."

"Nice to see you, too," Noctis sarcastically replied.

"At least you didn't become a snack and leave us to be the main course," Gladio added.

"Guess we can mark off behemoth from our list, huh?" Prompto smiled innocently at the girl.

She crossed her arms with a wry smile. "Your question from earlier is why I did what I did. Even though behemoths aren't scared of smaller creatures, they sure enjoy chasing them."

"We do appreciate what you did, (Y/n)," Ignis said. "Your quick wit prevented us from being mangled."

"I wouldn't have let any of us become chew toys."

Gladio rolled his shoulder, popping it in the process. "All right, time to take this thing down. Any ideas?"

"I do have one." (Y/n) turned her back to the boys and gestures to the oil drums scattered about below. "We could lure Deadeye to the oil drums and ignite them. That should do some heavy damage and there's more than one we can utilize."

"Lemme guess: you want me to trigger them," Noctis said.

"You've the elements at your disposal. Use those magic flasks you filled up a couple days ago."

"So do you."

"My specialty is ice. That won't help ignite oil."

Noctis looked away, slightly embarrassed that he forgot she didn't know any fire spells. Although guardians had direct connections to the mana of the world and could wield all the elements, they usually only mastered one type. "Right..." He scratched the back of his head.

"The rest of us will do our best to draw Deadeye to the oil drums. You just focus on igniting them."

"And what if we run out of oil drums before we've killed it?"

"Then we do it the old-fashion way: attack the beast head-on."

"Can't argue with that plan," Gladio commented.

"And it's the only one we have," Prompto added.

"I do believe it will suffice," Ignis spoke up.

"Then let's get this over with," Noctis sighed tiredly.

Entering Deadeye's lair, the royal retinue set the guardian's plan into motion. Noctis readied the magic flasks while the other boys summoned their weapons. (Y/n) held up her hand and conjured a large, sharp icicle. She flung it at the behemoth's head and rudely awoke it from its nap. Smirking, she watched as the beast roared and hopped down from its perch. Taking a few steps back, she put some distance between her and Deadeye in order for Noctis to ignite the first oil drum right underneath its belly. He aimed the flask at the oil drum and threw it the moment the beast charged forward.

The oil drum exploded and set Deadeye ablaze. The beast roared, jumping around wildly. It rammed into the second oil drum and the flames from its body ignited it, resulting in its body to be engulfed in fire.

"Aw, yeah! Two-for-one special!" Prompto cheered.

The group repeated the process over and over again until there were no more oil drums. Deadeye's skin was severely burned and large blisters were scattered across its body. Its other eyes was bloodied and the beast could no longer see anything. Its movements were slow and labored as it clung to the small life it had left in it. It tried to fight, but it was useless. It could only weakly swing its claws and tail a few more times before its body tipped over. It slammed into the ruins, knocking a few stone loose.

Seeing no point in dragging out Deadeye's suffering any longer, (Y/n) raised her hand and conjured a bow and a single arrow made from nothing but ice. She aimed the sharp, icy tip of the arrow at the space between the behemoth's eyes. Steadying her aim, she fired the arrow. It hit its mark and killed the beast. Its body slid down the side of the ruins before slamming against the ground, completely lifeless.

"Whoa!" Prompto ran over to the girl. His eyes examined the bow. "I knew you could make a sword from ice, but a bow too? That's pretty cool! Can you make anything else?"

(Y/n) glances at the boy's pistol before morphing the bow into an exact copy. "I can do guns, too."

Prompto, with her permission, took the ice pistol. He compared it to his and noticed the details were all there. He raised it into the air and pulled the trigger. He blinked in surprise when a bullet exited the barrel. "It even shoots bullets?!"

"That is what a gun does."

"But it's made of ice!"

"And so are the bullets."

Prompto dispelled his real pistol and pretended to aim with the ice handgun. He cackled as he continued to be in awe at her creation. Gladio, who still had his greatsword in hand, looked toward her. "You a magician?"

"It's a simple ice spell I like to call mimicry. With just enough concentration, I can fabricate an exact copy of a weapon using only ice," she explained. "Some functions are limited, but I mainly only use swords and bows. I can make guns, daggers, javelins, halberds... Pretty much any weapon as long as I have memorized a schematic."

Noctis watched the exuberant Prompto wave the ice pistol around. "I don't think you're getting that back."

"No need. It'll melt soon enough."

"Now then, shall we return to Wiz and inform him of Deadeye's vanquishing?" Ignis asked.

"Yes, please!" Prompto shouted. "Then we can ride the chocobos!"

Leaving the Nebulawood, the group returned to Wiz Chocobo Post. They spoke to the man himself and told him of Deadeye's defeat. Now, they could rent chocobos whenever they wanted. The moment Wiz told them the birds were at their disposal, Prompto grabbed Noctis and dragged him over to the pens. At the blonde's bubbly command, he rented five chocobos.

At Prompto's begging, they headed to the racetrack. Gladio, Ignis, and (Y/n) remained on the sidelines and watched Prompto and Noctis race. The two boys standing on either side of the spirit were making bets on who would win. The shield betted on the marksman while the advisor placed his gil on the prince.

When Noctis was the victor, Gladio forked over a small amount of gil to Ignis. (Y/n) glances between the two in confusion. "What's the point of betting when all our funds are combined?"

"Don't ruin the fun for us, munchkin," Gladio remarked. She shook her head with an eye roll.

"Hey, (Y/n)!" Noctis shouted, grabbing her attention. "You're next!"

She blinked owlishly. "Excuse me?"

"I wanna race you next!"

She really didn't want to race, but decided to indulge the prince. "All right." Her chocobo, which had (f/c) feathers, trotted over to the starting line as she joined Noctis. Prompto left with a defeated pout plastered on his face and stood with Gladio and Ignis.

As the girl was mounting her chocobo, the brute elbowed Ignis. "A thousand gil says Prince Charmless wins again."

"Truly a thoughtless bet," Ignis replied. "(Y/n) will be the victor."

"You just sayin' that because you're head-over-heels for her?"

"I place 3,000 gil on her due to her handling of a chocobo to be more precise than that of Noct."

The shield arched a brow. "And how do you know that?"

"By simply examining them," the advisor coolly replied. "(Y/n) has a sturdier grip and straight posture, allowing her to control her chocobo more effectively. On the other hand, Noct is slouched over and handles the rein of his bird loosely, which will result in less control."

"You're on, Iggy. We'll see who the victor will be and tell if your observation really is true. Who's got your bet, blondie?"

Prompto hummed in curiosity as he thought about Ignis' words. "I wanna bet on Noct, but maybe I should put some money down on (Y/n) instead. Iggy sounds really confident she'll win. I think I'll put 1,500 gil on (Y/n)."

Ignis slightly smirked. "Then the wager is set."

The three boys watched as the race between Noctis and (Y/n) began. The prince immediately took the lead and was ahead during the entire first lap, but he lost his lead in the middle of the second one. He tried to overtake the girl, but he couldn't. In the end, she was victorious.

Gladio was shocked at the outcome while Prompto cheered. Ignis' smirk festered as he adjusted his glasses. "I do believe Prompto and I are the victors of this wager, Gladio."

"Damn..." The brute mumbled, handing over a thousand gil. "Girl's got skill, I'll give her that."

After a couple more races and bets, they left the racetrack. Seeing as it was becoming nighttime, they decided to use some of the funds they earned from the hunt to rent the caravan. Noctis and Prompto were inside the trailer playing King's Knight on their phones. Gladio was sitting at one of the many tables located around the outpost reading his book. Ignis and (Y/n) were sitting at the table located outside the caravan, chatting away.

When they both fell silent after talking for nearly an hour straight, she asked him a question. "Iggy, are you familiar with a place called Costlemark?"

"If memory serves me, there is an ancient structure in the Duscae region known as the Costlemark Tower. It is rumored to be remnants of the ancient civilization known as Solheim," he answered. "What spurred such a question, (Y/n)?"

"On our way to Deadeye's den, I heard the voice again. Only a few words were clear and one of them was Costlemark."

"Is this something you wish to pursue?"

She nodded her head. "Yes. I know it's careless, but something tells me I need to listen."

"If you believe it so, then I shan't question it. I will discuss matters with the others on the morrow."

She smiled gently at him. "Thank you, Iggy."