A Future Unwound
By Airship Canon
Warning: Reader Discretion is advised!The following contains themes of subverted Infant immortality, badass, complete monster and a few other things. Information is spotty proceed with caution. Dis has been claimed.
Chapter 1: A Still Night
The assassin breathed strongly, but kept his mouth closed, and his respiration silent. He knew this would be a tough mission- and the stakes couldn't be higher. Failure didn't merely mean death for him, it meant open war. The slightest word of his mission, and his entire nation would face a military conflict at a time where it could ill afford it, and he knew it. Not only that, but the survival of his target would mean disaster- a sure defeat would befall the people of his country where the target allowed to live. His mission entailed a kill that would prevent a disaster.
His mission was relatively simple, on paper: Break into this castle, and kill his target while the majority of its occupants slept- a standard fair for an assassin. And for him, it was that simple, but even so, he knew that he couldn't risk anything. His eyes scanned the edges of the castle grounds, ever wary of guards, as even the slightest detection could lead to failure. He knew the layout of the castle well- thru infiltrations allowed by various disguises, he had seen the majority of the castle by daylight, without arousing even the slightest suspicion. This knowledge also came with another point to him: he knew full well, that most entrances to the castle proper, where his target slept, would be covered- and pretty much suicide to attempt to pass— and it'd take much skill to enter through other means, namely skill in climbing.
He quickly ducked down in the flowerbed where he lay as he spotted a pair of guards patrolling the grounds. Basic soldiers- they wouldn't be difficult opponents, but at the same time, he'd rather not be spotted at all- either he'd have to kill them simultaneously, or just not be seen. A quick thought lead him to try for the second option, holding his breath as they passed. The two didn't even catch on— they kept walking, ignoring the assassin. He quickly got up and darted across the courtyard, pressing his back against the wall. He tucked his head around the corner, keeping his eyes open for guards, letting out a silent sigh of relief when he realized they hadn't spotted him.
"One way to go from here…" He muttered to himself, and looking upwards. He pressed his fingers into the fine edges of the brick, getting a quick feel for the castle's walls, and then released, turning and running- his feet catching the edges of the stone. He caught a small edge and pulled his weight upwards. It was a long way to the roof the castle, but compared to his rigorous training, this was nothing. He threw a quick glance downward: no guards. However, he knew that due to the threat of an aerial attack, by it from wyvern or pegasus, the roof would be guarded— yet that was his only hope of entry. The assassin continued his climb- reaching ever higher, wary that a single slip would mean his death, and worse, his detection. Hand over hand, and foot over foot, he ascended, carefully, and periodically scanning the his surroundings, and shifting his position to avoid sight. He was given certain advantages in the cloudy night, but his approach still had to be completely undetected.
His breath grew heavy as he neared the roof of the castle. He'd have a fight, and failure on his hands if he did this wrong- so he tensed as he looked onto the walk way, edging himself against the tall tower that would be his point of entry and the fortified walk way along the edge of the castle. He again took in a breath and held it as a guard approached the walkway- a lone archer, a quick kill for the assassin. As the archer made his patrol- crossing near the assassin, he was quickly grabbed. The Assassin deployed a blade hidden in his sleeve and stabbed the archer, and using a swift motion pulled him over the rampart, slamming him into the wall, and tossing him downwards, where he fell into a tree far below. After killing the guard, the assassin quickly pulled himself over the rampart, and ducked low behind a fortification to evade another archer, who had gotten too close. Again, the assassin went for the kill, drawing a sword swiftly, and stabbing the patrolling archer- and forcing the man's mouth shut to silence any cries that could give him away, then tossing his body off the side of the castle. Two dead guards, and nary a soul knew he was there. The assassin scanned the roof- the other guards hadn't left their posts, they were blissfully unaware that he was even present. He then turned to the tower- the door was sure to be unguarded and unlocked- there would be a guard stationed at the entrances to castle proper, once he was off the roof, but merely gaining entry to the castle was his only concern for the time being.
He quickly lifted a bolt and opened the castle door and slipped inside, shutting the door silently. He was finally inside the castle, which gave him a moment's breath as he silently started making his way down the stairs. Having done enough espionage already, he was familiar enough with the castle's inner layout, and knew his exit would be the first light he saw: this tower had three exits, one to the third floor of the castle, which is where he was headed, one to the cellars below, and one to the roof from whence he came. His target, he assumed, to be sleeping soundly in a bedroom on the second floor, and the only way to access the royal bedrooms was through a guarded passage way on the third floor- a convoluted system, obviously set up to protect the occupants against people like him. However, with the tower's access to the third floor, things were almost too convenient.
He crept up on the doorway, knowing full well there would be a guard on the side. His previous entries to the castle showed him this much, but at the same time things may be different at night. He silenced his breath as he poked his head out slightly, just catching a glimpse of the surroundings. The castle was dark- many of the lighting fixtures were extinguished, and there was only a lone guard by the door to the tower. Realizing the guard's position and his own, the assassin quickly moved to change sides of the door where he stood. He then took a pebble from a sack and tossed it down the stairwell to attract the guard's attention. Be it foolishness, curiosity or a drilled training, the guard turned to investigate the noise. "It's probably a m—" The assassin quickly caught the guard in a hold, strangling him to keep him from speaking any more, and driving a blade into his chest. He pulled the guard into the shadows- the guard's body slumped over dead.
"Three kills…" The assassin muttered as he darted out into the main hall, keeping to the shadows and timing his movements- he couldn't be seen and he couldn't be heard: the slightest detection meant failure- his masters could live with detection after the mission, where the worst would be a war if chaos didn't take the enemy first, but before it- facing a war and the disaster at the same time, was simply unacceptable. He kept to areas where even the most attentive of the castle's guards would fail to look, but every step weighed against him. The two deaths outside wouldn't go unnoticed forever, and the guard in the tower would surely be spotted sooner rather than later, so time weighed against him.
Two guards. Two men, armored, and armed with silver lances stood at the stairwell to the royals' bedrooms where his target was asleep, blissfully unaware that death approached. He calculated in his mind how he'd approach- both guards had to die, simultaneously because their first response would be to alert the castle, and their bodies couldn't be seen— missing guards may give him away, but nowhere near as quick as a pair of corpses. An idea hit him, with which he quickly gained a smirk, as he began climbing to the ornate ledge that hung over the entrance to the stairwell. "Two for one." He said dropping, his blades quickly cleaving into the heads of his victims. The guards started to slump back, dead, and the assassin caught their weapons. He slid them back to the covered windows, and used a rope he had brought to hoist them upwards, hidden perfectly behind the curtains.
Now nothing stood between him and his target, and the way things were going, nothing would stop him, neither in his mission, nor his escape. He walked slowly, surely, and ever silently, scanning constantly. This corridor would likely have no guards, but was heavily visible from the main hall, which made evasion paramount. The assassin kept checking to the sides, his eyes watching the guards in the main hall, making sure every move he made went undetected. He nodded as he approached the third door- the door to his target's bedroom. Making one last, swift check, he opened the door, and slipped in. No one had seen him. Shutting the door behind him, he lowered his hood.
The room was slightly messy- a few odds and ends strewn about. The windows were barred and curtains with the brand of his order's foes hung over them. Being careful to not step on any of the loose objects, he made his way to his target's bedside, and looked down at her. He shook his head- there she was, the woman who'd bring his master much irritation, and a disaster upon his people were she allowed to live. She was but a child, and completely defenseless- in contrary to the warrior she would be.
"Princess Lucina. You are an affront to my master, my Lord Grima. And on this night, you shall be undone." The assassin said as he looked into the sleeping child's face. "Requiescat in pace!" He said, before plunging his blade into the child's chest. She let out a pained scream momentarily before her body went limp, her blood staining her blue bedsheets, as the assassin's blade retracted.
The door flung open immediately, prompting the assassin to turn around. "GODS! SOMEONE IS IN PRINCESS LUCINA'S ROOM!" A woman, one of the castle's maids cried, as her eyes met the assassin's. The assassin bolted- he ran straight towards the woman, kicking her. She fell backwards, falling helplessly over the railing.
"ASSASSIN!" A guard cried out. "Stop him!" Three soldiers ran up the stairs, leaving the assassin's sight, but he knew that he'd see them again before his escape was done— but he knew then, his mission was done, and that woman had already given him away. He had little time to finish her, even with knowledge she'd know he's Plegian, and that meant the moment word reached Prince Chrom's ear, it'd be full scale war, but without the foreseer, there would be little that could stop the events set forth.
A few days later, Outside Valm Castle, evening.
"Prince Chrom!" A messenger exclaimed, landing from her Pegasus.
"A messenger from the Capital? What news do you bring…?" Chrom asked quizzically.
"Dire news, I'm afraid…" The messenger said, looking downwards. "Prince Chrom… your daughter— Princess Lucina… is dead."
Chrom's eyes went wide from shock. "What-!? No.. that… why!? Gods… Why!?"
Author's Note: I blame GameFAQs for this fanfic bait...