This is it guys, last chapter of part one in this series. Thanks so much for being a part of this journey with me and I hope you all follow me into the next story.
So this chapter's title is another Alan Menken masterpiece, from the score of the disney film The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Very dramatic and beautiful.
I also had to sit through the painful opening of Kingsglaive to get the beginning of the chapter just right. There was a lot of tears.
As always my tumblr is cherryblossomcheesecake, and I'm open for requests.

WORDS: 1,424
UPDATED: 07.15.17

Sanctuary - Alan Menken

The soldiers came first, raining down through the treetops like autumn leaves. Nobles fled in all directions, scrambling to get away from soldiers who began to charge, guns raised and firing mindlessly.

The screams of terror only increased as a soldier in large armour began to cut down any of the royal guard that stood in between him and the royal families. People were gunned down regardless of who they were, simple servants were lying dead on the ground next to the nobles they served. I could see my father racing forward, his gaze locked with mine as he fought to reach me.

The soldier leading the assault darted across the meadow at an unnatural speed, cutting down any person he passed. I clung to Noctis' hand as he drew closer and closer to my father's figure, screaming in terror as the sword rose above him.

I struggled against Luna's tight grip on my shoulders, eyes wide as I watched in horror. My screams turned hoarse as Aetius' body hit the ground, my knees giving out from under me.

The meadow was quickly set on fire, the magitek soldiers burning the people along with the courtyard. Queen Sylva stood between her son and a soldier, allowing the magitek's flames to envelope her in order to protect her son. The soldier leading the attack made the burning queen his next target, his massive blade finding it's way into her body, ending her life sooner than the flames would. I could hear Ravus screaming, but it was as if my ears had been filled with cotton.

Luna tried to get Noctis and I to the king and the remains of his guard, herding my shell-shocked body forward as the prince clutched my arm. King Regis was only steps away when the soldier attacked him, his sword cutting the king across his back. I could hear Noctis' gasp, his hand tightening on my arm as we watched his father meet the soldier's sword with his own.

The king's armiger appeared in an explosion of crystal light, pushing back the soldier and sending him across the courtyard. Noctis released my arm, sliding himself forward in his chair, allowing his father to lift him up into his arms. A remaining member of the crownsguard scooped me up as well, neither of the older men risking my legs possibly giving out during our escape.

We fled down the path from the courtyard, heading to the cars that awaited the arrival of the king and his son. Noctis and I being carried, while Luna allowed king Regis to pull her along. From my view over the crownsguard's shoulder, I could see the approaching soldiers of the empire, chasing after us relentlessly. I watched as Luna glanced over her shoulder before meeting my eyes, giving me an apologetic look as her blue eyes filled with tears.

I screamed as the blonde princess slipped her hand from the king's grasp, coming to a halt as Regis and the crownsguard continued running. The king only faltered in his step for a moment, looking back at the princess before adjusting his grip on his son and running at a faster pace.

Noctis joined me in my screams for the Tenebraean princess, the dark haired boy reaching out to the blonde as the empire's soldiers engulfed her and obscured her from sight. I fought against the grip of the crownsguard until I was dumped unceremoniously in the back of a car, Noctis crying beside me. The prince curled up into my side as he sobbed himself to sleep, the car speeding it's way out of Tenebrae.

We didn't stop any where until we were deep within the territories of Lucis once more, the time lost to me as I stared off in shock. Noctis had his head in my lap, sleeping fitfully. The royal company stopped at an outpost only to top off the gas tanks of the cars and mend any wounds sustained during the escape from Tenebrae.

I could only shake my head in the negative when the king's shield asked if I was hurt, threading my fingers in Noctis' soot-covered hair to soothe the boy's whimpers as he dreamed.

The continuous movement of the car lulled me into a fitful slumber, my dreams plagued by the dead in Tenebrae. All those people, the queen, my father, all shouting it was my fault. Telling me that I knew this was gonna happen, and it was my fault.

This trend continued for the entire journey back to Insomnia, me staring into space during the day, and the dead haunting me at night.

My mother was there at the Citadel, waiting for us on the steps. Her thin figure was dressed entirely in white, a stark contrast to the other members of the Citadel staff, dressed in royal black. Myung-Hee's teary eyes sought out Aetius in the group of remaining crownsguard, letting out a choked sound when his face was not among them.

The king's shield carried me to her, allowing her to swoop me up in her thin arms, offering his condolences as I cried into the shoulder of her mourning hanbok. Myung-Hee craddled me tightly to her chest, sobbing into my hair as if we were the only ones in the courtyard.

Myung-Hee and I didn't leave the apartment for a week before she began packing up our belongings. She packed away books and photos into boxes, shedding silent tears as she sealed away Aetius' clothing. Our home slowly became bare of all life, the boxes of our belongings locked away in storage lockers along with pieces of furniture and family heirlooms.

The day my mother told me to start packing up my clothes was the day she resigned from her position at the citadel.

Myung-Hee sat me down on my bed that evening, pain in her eyes as she explained what was happening.

"I'm moving us back to Goryeo, Soo… There's too many memories here for me to raise you in Lucis. I've arranged passage for us to travel from Galdin Quay on a trading ship that's leaving for Goryeo at the end of the week. His Majesty has already sent the council word of our arrival." she told me quietly, her hair piled carelessly on top of her head as she sat on the couch in nothing but her silk robe. I stared at her silently, trying to process what she just told me.

"Soo?" Myung-Hee asked in a hushed voice, her hand reaching out to rest on mine.

"Do I get to say goodbye to Noctis?" I questioned, pulling my hand away from her grasp to pick at my sleeve.

"Oh, of course… You'll be able to do that the day we leave for Galdin…" she replied, placing her hand back in her lap, watching me as I stood up quietly and retreated into my room.

"What do you mean you're leaving?" Noctis exclaimed in horror, sitting on the couch in his bed room.

I sat next to him, avoiding his gaze as my hands grasped the white fabric of my skirt.

"My mother is taking me out of Lucis, she wants to return to Goryeo since being here without my father hurts too much… I've come to say goodbye, since we leave for Galdin today." I told the boy, my voice void of emotion.

The room was silent before the prince whispered quietly, "'The Gods themselves would have to order me from your side if you do not do it yourself, Noctis…' that's what you said to me and now you're breaking that promise?"

"I'm sorry, it's not my choice, Noctis." I replied, my voice slowly becoming thick with tears, "I'll write to you when I can…"

The prince's tear fell freely down his face as he nodded, embracing me as he cried into my shoulder.

We stayed curled up together until my mother arrived to collect me, the king having to hold his son back as I left him on the couch. Tears fell faster as the boy sobbed loudly, his blue eyes swimming with sadness. I watched Noctis cry out for me as the double doors closed behind Myung-Hee and I, hiding Noctis from sight while my mother lead me through the Citadel for the last time.

Down the steps of the citadel we went and I was guided into a crown-provided car. The citadel grew smaller by the second as the driver put more distance between us and Noctis, heading for the border gate of the city.

Thanks so much for reading and keep an eye out in August for the sequal, God & His Priests & His Kings! Please review/fave/follow, and follow me to get notifications for when the sequal is released!