Breathless, Lucina reached the summit of Mount Prism where she was greeted by Gerome.
"You'll perform the rite and the temple here?" Gerome questioned.
"Yes, if all goes well, Divine Dragon Naga will appear before me and grant my blade, Falchion, the power to defeat Grima" Lucina responded.
"Will it really work?" Brady inquired.
"I don't know. We only have four of the Gemstones with us" Noire remarked uneasily.
"I'm sorry, Lucina. It's all because we couldn't bring back our Gemstone" Inigo apologized.
"Indeed. Strictly speaking, there are five Gemstones required for the rite. But no matter how hard they looked, they never found the last one. No, you all did well. I'm sure that Lord Naga will reward our efforts." Lucina stated.
"You're right. All we can do now, is believe, no matter how small that hope may be" Inigo added.
"Yeah, that's all we have left to rely on" Owain commented.
"Found it! The temple for the rite is over there!" Nah exclaimed.
"Well then, from here I go alone" Lucina finished.
"Be careful, Lucina" Kjelle warned.
"I will" Lucina replied. Lucina entered the temple, only to hear nothing but silence. She unsheathed her Falchion and cut into the ground.
"This is where I will be judged ...O Divine Dragon Naga, we have shown our strength. However, no matter how much we prayed. You have never shown yourself to us. Are four Gemstones indeed not enough to go forth with the Rite? Yet, this is all we can do!" Lucina prayed. Lucina inhaled deeply before attempting to call forth Lord of the Manaketes, Lord Naga!
"O Divine Dragon Naga! We have shown our strength! When will you grant what we have wished for? Please lend your ear to our voices! Answer our prayers! Please answer me... Answer me, Lord Naga!" Lucina shouted. Suddenly, a white-hot flame erupted from the Falchion, and latched itself onto Lucina's body!
"AAAAGGHHHH" Lucina screamed. The flame was doused automatically as a silhouette of a woman began to appear.
"That flame just now... could it be-" She questioned before she was confronted by the Goddess Of The Manaketes, Lord Naga herself! Lucina gasped in awe as she stared into the eyes of the divine dragon!
"Hear me. Awakener" Naga whispered.
"Lord Naga!" Lucina shouted.
"If you are truly come with the desire to perform the awakening ritual, then the Binding Shield must be restored with the 5 Gemstones" Naga stated.
"Although we have scoured Ylisse and Valm for the 5 Gemstones, we only possess four Gemstones, rather than 5" Lucina sighed.
"Though your efforts are quite remarkable, I may not grant your wish as the Gemstones are not in place and the binding shield has not been restored" Naga concluded. Clutching the Falchion and incomplete Binding Shield (Fire Emblem), Lucina took a step towards the exit.
"But, there is one way to save this world" Naga claimed. Lucina intrigued, turned back to face Naga.
"You must travel to the past with my remaining power and stop Grima's resurrection and if it's possible, complete the rite of awakening there. I have already gotten information that two ancient leagues of heroes have been sent. I will open the Outrealm Gate the morning after the next full moon, be there if you would are to save the world" Naga explained. Full of hope, Lucina dashed from the temple to meet her comrades who were waiting for the rite to finish.
"Lucina, how did it go?" Inigo asked.
"As we thought, the rite of awakening cannot be completed with an incomplete set of gemstones" Lucina concluded.
"What? You mean… there's no way for us to win…!?" Brady asked.
"But with things like this… the world will be destroyed, and all we can do is watch" Severa cried.
"Brady, Severa, calm down. There should still be something we can do" Inigo consoled.
"Yes, Inigo's right. Lord Naga says she will entrust our destiny to our strong will. She said that even without the Rite of Awakening, there is still a way to save this world" Lucina remarked.
"S… So how do we do it?" Cynthia questioned.
"Everyone… please come back to the Ylisse of the past with me… to prevent Grima's return!" Lucina inquired. The Last Exalt gasped in shock as they listened to Lucina's method of saving the world.
"The past… what do you mean by that?" Brady asked.
"I'll explain the details later. Gerome and the others are still out there protecting the villages that remain, and I want them to hear it too. For now, we need to return to Ylisse as quickly as we can. I'm just not sure if everyone will agree to the plan" Lucina concluded.
"Lucina…" Inigo said.
"It'll be fine! Or at least, I'll follow you. Heh, now that it's the first time for our last of us, my sword hand twitches in anticipation" Owain agreed eagerly.
"We don't have a choice. I'll go too. Just make sure you give a better explanation later" Severa agreed.
few followers which didn't understand.
"Tch…" Brady complained.
"Brady, is something wrong?" Cynthia asked.
"Yeah… Well… I was just thinkin' about Lucina's plan" Brady confessed.
"Oh?" Cynthia asked.
"I feel like her plan to go to the past is stupid" Brady replied.
"Why is that?" Cynthia questioned.
"By going to the past, I feel like we are running away. Even if we do manage to defeat Grima there, we are still going to have to kill him here!" Brady objected. They left on horseback for Ylisse. When the exalt bypassed a mountain range, they felt a sort of "mystery" to what they felt as they crossed the mountains. Cynthia glanced near a fort in the mountains to find a tall, blonde haired man wearing red and equipped with a sort of "Golden Bow"
"Who's that?" Cynthia asked as she looked to Lucina.
"What person? Unless that's a risen, I don't feel like they will pose a threat" Lucina answered. Cynthia looked back at the mountains to find the place lifeless.
"He's gone!" Cynthia screamed.
"It's no problem, he probably saw us and left" Lucina sighed as she tried to ignore her little sister. After hours of riding on horseback, they had reached Ylisse Palace where they had entered for a conference about their strategy to defeat Grima.
"Everyone, thank you for gathering here in Ylisse Palace today! I have Lord Naga's own strategy to defeat Grima!" Lucina began. Sounds of confusion were heard within the members.
"Lord Naga's own strategy?" a shepherd asked.
"Ridiculous!" Another Shepherd replied.
"What would that be?" Gerome asked.
"Although the Rite of Awakening resulted in failure, Naga had provided me with a way to defeat Grima, through time travel" Lucina claimed.
"This is hogwash!" A shepherd shouted.
"Please, let Lucina speak!" Inigo retorted.
"Naga's ability to allow Humans to the past is confirmed as she has already sent two legions of ancient heroes to aid us in battle!" Lucina explained.
"So… We go to the past to kill Grima…?" Cynthia asked.
"No, we stop him from coming back to life and if it fails? We retry the rite of awakening one more!" Lucina strategized. The crowd gasped.
"I'm not sure who they are, but if they can help, we may be able to kill Grima" Lucina explained. The Shepherds cheered as they had found a way to subdue and attempt to kill Grima.
"Everyone, thank you for gathering here in Ylisse Palace today. This concludes my explanation" Lucina finished.
"The world of the past, is it. It's difficult to accept immediately, but it is deeply fascinating" Laurent thought out loud.
"D-deeply fascinating? Laurent, aren't you scared?" Noire cried.
"Are you scared, Noire?" Laurent asked.
"W-well, I'm… um…" Noire studdered.
"Well of course we're scared about THAT! First off, if we go to the past or whatever, aren't' I going to go extinct?" Yarne shrieked.
"I don't know about you personally, Yarne, but the Taguel sure will be gone from this era" Kjelle explained.
"Oh Kjelle… don't intimidate him. Going to the world of the past sounds so awesome!" Cynthia cheered. Jerome lightly growled and then sighed in relief.
"Hm? What's the matter? You went quiet all of a sudden" Cynthia asked.
"Stupid" Gerome spat.
"Huh?" Cynthia asked.
"Gerome…" Kjelle muttered.
"After we go back to the past, do you think we can return to the future? This plan doesn't seem like it'll go well. Gambling on that chance is too dangerous" Gerome argued.
"But that's…" Cynthia stuttered.
"I… feel the same way" Brady agreed.
"I kept quiet earlier because I don't agree either! If all of us go, what happens to the folks left?!" Brady shouted.
"I don't need to think about it. I'm staying here. If we fight and lose this world, that is our fate" Gerome concluded.
"Altering history is something that should not be done. Lucina, reconsider it" Gerome asked.
"Gerome… Brady… If you say you won't come… of course, I respect your opinion. But I have decided to go-even if I would be going alone… So, I will not reconsider. I'm sorry" Lucina finished.
"Um… Can I say something?" Nah asked.
"Nah, you aren't coming either?" Cynthia questioned.
"I'm not saying that I'm not coming! Just that… I'd like more time to think it through" Nah replied.
"Not everyone's a ditz like you!" Nah criticized.
"What was that!? I gave it plenty of thought!" Cynthia rebutted. The two continued to glare at each other until Lucina cut the silence.
"Can you two stop fighting?" Lucina requested. The two ignored their leader and continued.
"If you gave it plenty of thought, you wouldn't be treating it like a vacation" Nah argued.
"Gr… you are SO…" Cynthia growled.
"Both of you, please don't fight" Lucina asked once more.
"I'm not fighting. Cynthia's just trying to pick one" Nah replied as she kept her poker face.
"Please stop fighting! Please, for me. Now is not the time for a falling-out!" Lucina shouted.
"Sorry, Lucina…" Cynthia apologized.
"Sorry…" Nah added.
"I understand, you want more time to think. I don't mean to press you for an answer right now. According to Lord Naga, the Outrealm Gate opens the morning after the next full moon. That is, it appears we have three days' reprieve" Lucina finished.
"Only three days?" Cynthia asked.
"I've said it before, but respect your opinions. On the last night, I will listen to your conclusions. Until then, please think it over" Lucina concluded. Lucina had left the room to make their own decision on leaving for the past.
"Why can't you get it through your heads!? Haven't I said that we should DEFINITLY go?" Severa shouted.
"We're DEFINITELY not going" Kjelle argued.
"Hey, guys… quit getting' so fired up about it" Brady consoled.
"But Brady, each and every one of Severa's bunch have been telling us that!" Kjelle shouted.
"Can't you just leave it? Lucina said she'd respect our opinions. We're not going. They're going. Ain't that good enough?" Brady explained.
"No! We can't do that! For the people of this world, everyone of us ought to stay!" Kjelle argued.
"Hmph" Gerome sighed.
"I get that you guys can't just leave the people in this world behind. But if we go back in time and change the past, we'll change this to a peaceful future and save them all!" Owain reasoned.
"That's if all goes well! What happens to 'em if we fail? In a world without Lucina an' us, they'd just wind up dyin'…" Brady rebutted.
"Well, what are you all going to do in this world? Running to go to Plegia again to look at the last Gemstone?" Severa debated.
"No. We will pass our days protecting the people in the Villages, as we have been" Gerome refuted.
"Doing that won't resolve anything. Won't you come with all of us to the past? With all our might put together, I just know we'll be able to save the world" Inigo claimed.
"Besides, if we go over, we might be able to meet our parents" Cynthia claimed.
"Mere foolishness. The dead do not return. Even if we can meet the same beings in another world, those people are not our true parents" Gerome refuted.
"That's… I guess that's true, but…" Severa stuttered.
"Oh, I get it. In the end, the bunch of you want to go play at being a family with your parent's imposters" Kjelle accused.
"How am I wrong? Aren't you just children pining after your mom and dad?" Kjelle taunted.
"WHAT?!" Severa shouted. Severa slammed the table at which they were sitting at in anger.
"I dare you to say that again!" Severa shouted.
"Pontless. If you're going to fight, then do as you please" Gerome sighed.
"Gerome!" Brady asked.
"This talk has been a waste of time" Gerome sighed.
"Are you running away?" Inigo asked.
"Running away? You are the ones running away" Gerome refuted.
"You'd abandon this world, the people, your allies, and go to your false parents' side. You are the same as soldiers who flee from a hopeless battle. I had thought you could be usually so soft. But I didn't think you would sink so low. I'd feel better with you gone" Gerome criticized. Cynthia broke down into tears after Gerome's last word.
"How awful…" Cynthia cried.
"You… that's how you see us!?" Owain shouted.
"Hmph" Gerome sighed as he ignored his comrades.
"Wait Gerome. If you really meant what you just said, I have a problem with that" Inigo objected.
"So what are you going to do? Will you strike me?" Gerome taunted.
"If that's what it'd take to open your eyes, I would" Inigo argued.
"Then do as you please. After all, regardless if you've toiled here, so long as you go to the past everything will be as Naga says, isn't that right?" Gerome asked.
"Rrg! Why do you always talk like that!?" Inigo shouted as he readied a fist.
"Hey! Knock it off, Inigo!" Owain shouted back.
"You both need to calm down" Brady sighed. Gerome sighed as he prepared for impact.
"What's the matter? Aren't you going to hit me? Or are you too afraid of losing a friend?" Gerome taunted.
"Grr" Inigo growled.
"O gust of wind that cuts through the air, sharpen to blades to quell this quarrel. Excalibur!" Laurent chanted. The two knights flew into the wall stunned for a few seconds before standing.
"What are you doing?" Laurent asked as he closed his sacred tome.
"Laurent…" Inigo said as he looked at the hole in the building. Inigo looked at the hole to find a blonde-haired person wearing red.
"Who is that lady? Oh well, better focus first" Inigo thought.
"We were told by Lucina not to fight. Moreover, do you not see you must cool your heads?" Laurent scolded.
"Laurent! Hitting your ally with a bolt of magic…" Noire said as she was worried for her teammates.
"It is not a problem, Noire. I weakened its power considerably. If I had not done it, they would have continued to fight forever" Laurent explained.
"Hey, why are you fighting? Quit it, you guys" Yarne consoled.
"You should apologize right away!" Nah added.
"None of you know what's going on, so stay out of this and shut up!" Kjelle stammered.
"T-that's no way to talk to us…" Noire cried.
"If Severa and the rest apologize for earlier, I'm fine with doing that" Kjelle settled.
"Is that so. You were both involved in the argument, weren't you?" Laurent added.
"In that case! Everyone here, please apologize to each other. That way, it is fair for everyone" Laurent declared. In distress, they were all reluctant to apologize to their allies.
"What's the matter? Does no one intend to apologize?" Laurent asked.
"More than this world's existence, more than your allies' intensions, do you value your trivial stances so!?" Laurent scolded as he readied his Tome. He looked back at the group, and closed his book.
"I understand. Then this is as far as we go" Laurent sighed.
"Never fight alongside people like you. From now on, those of like minds may do however they please!" Laurent shouted.
"Um, hey, Laurent… isn't that a bit much?" Yarne stuttered. Noire began crying as she witnessed her comrades arguing and shouting.
"Noire…?" Yarne asked.
"It's awful… if we scatter apart under this tension, what's going to become of us? Aren't we here because we've always worked together until now? But… we'd break apart over this?" Noire asked. Nah began crying with Noire as she agreed with her.
"I don't want to admit it, but it turns out that this is as deep as our ties run" Nah cried. Suddenly, the ground began shaking!
"W-what's going on? The ground is -
"I-I can't keep my balance!" Nah cried. The group heard footsteps coming from the roof, but then subsided after the earthquake ended.
"I-Is it over" Brady asked as he got on his feet.
"I wonder why that earthquake happened…" Laurent wondered.
"No… That was no ordinary earthquake" Yarne said.
"But what were those footsteps?" Inigo asked.
"It's probably those damn Risens! They never stop coming!" Brady shouted.
"After the shaking settled down, the Risen cried out… This feeling… there are dozens… No, even more!" Yarne shouted.
"What did you say!? You mean, that earthquake was a bunch of risen coming to life!?" Severa asked as she tried to process this revelation. The group dashed from the Palace to find the village aflame! The villagers dashed about attempting to flee from the risen while avoiding the scorching flames. As the Exalt began their rescue. They ignored a certain Golden Archer.