A blue haired man charges forward while bellowing what Robin assumed was a battle cry and wildly began slashing at a lanky sorcerer. He was probably an entire foot taller than Chrom and looked like he hadn't lifted a weight since he was ten. Yet he was somehow able to dodge every slash of Chrom's blade like a ballerina, making it look like some sort of twisted dance number. Robin decided to end the nonsense with a steady blast of lightning lasers at the slender man.
He dodged her blast and Chrom stopped just short of it. The sorcerer was gone from the immediate vision, not helped by Robin wearing her hood. Still she managed to look up and found the sorcerer floating in midair despite the fact that she was sure that was cheating somehow. He held a large purple ball of dark magic above him which she'd also never seen anyone do before and threw it at Chrom whom was just as dumbfounded at this new set of circumstances as she was. Chrom managed to dodge and the Sorcerer landed, giving them a look that screamed "Bring it on." Well consider it brought.
Chrom and Robin stood about thirty feet from him now though neither were sure how the events led to that but that didn't matter much anymore. Chrom turned to her with a serious look on his face and grabbed her shoulder with his rough grip. "Alright, let's finish this Robin. Remember, you're a part of us no matter what some destiny says." He spoke with determination. Robin nodded simply and glared down the battlefield to the Sorcerer which was named Validar apparently. She didn't really need the rousing speech to want to punch that man in the face repeatedly however.
She joined forces with Chrom and the two of them charged down the distance to Validar, making sure to keep out of his spell's range. Despite moving around like crazy just recently, apparently that was just too much work to Validar now, so he planted himself right where he was and didn't move for the rest of the battle. Chrom drew the silver sword he seemed to have forgotten about just previously and with Robin's support, the two of them drew in to strike Validar down.
Despite all the trouble Chrom was having before just landing a hit on him before, the two of them had no trouble landing two solid hits while he missed like a bitch. Suffice it to say, Validar didn't last long.
Validar dropped to his knees, some sort of purple fire surrounding him as he damned them both to hell and tried one last sucker punch at Chrom. Thankfully, Robin was too fast for him and pushed Chrom out of the way and takes the hit instead. She dropped to the ground while Validar burned away or something. Chrom knelt beside Robin and helped her back to her feet.
"Hey, are you alright?" He asked. He glanced back to where Validar was, a confident smirk appearing on his face. "Well that's the end of him." Robin grunted, holding her temple suddenly. She was used to her head hurting, but never quite like this. And the red vision was a little concerning as well. And why did Chrom's voice suddenly make her feel angrier than usual?
"Hey, are you okay?" Chrom asked. Look at that concern. That hope. Robin could feel magic surging to her hand although she wasn't sure if it was of her own accord or not. Certainly she thought of shoving an electrical stake into the chest of many of her allies in jest before, but today just felt right to actually do it.
Another pulse of pain shot through her and her eyes saw more red. Nothing appeared clear. Veins started to slowly take over her vision and her head started swimming. She couldn't stay upright. Chrom grabbed her and she lashed out without even thinking. "Just hold on. UGH!" He grunted. Robin felt like she just punched him in the chest but when she saw him step back there was a clear stake of electricity sticking out of his heart.
Chrom stumbled backwards, letting out some pained chokes. He looked up at her, his eyes filled with confusion and betrayal. Yet he spoke so sweetly to her. "This is not...your fault..." He struggled to speak, blood no doubt starting to pool up around his lungs. Robin could only stare at him with what she hoped was a horrified expression. She looked down at her hand, still tingling with electricity.
"Promise me..." Chrom continued suddenly. "Promise me you'll escape from this place..." She could still see the red. His voice still filled her with such annoyance where it once soothed her. "Please...go..." He begged her to leave before falling forward. He may have made more noises...she may have been sobbing...but she couldn't hear any of that. Just Validar's laughter echoing in her head.
…
"AHH!" A shrill scream pierced through a void of nothing yet echoing in Robin's ears ceaselessly. She took a moment, clutching her chest with her hand and trying to stop her feverish breathing. Making sure she was really where she was. Not in the dragon's table. No Validar, and most importantly, no dead Chrom. In fact, she couldn't see anything, and yet that still filled her with more serenity than that horrid dream.
"A dream..." She breathed, slowing her beating heart. "It was only a dream..."
"No it wasn't." All at once she could feel her world shatter as the old wispy voice spoke to her through the darkness. Her eyes opened wider, a swirling blue vortex opening up around her, swallowing her up without mercy. She felt herself falling, faster and faster as colors rushed past her eyes, threatening to split her head even more than it already was. And then she hit the ground. Well...ground wasn't quite right. It wasn't solid, nor was it nothing. She couldn't feel herself floating and yet she couldn't say she was standing.
An ancient looking man stood in front of her draped in brown robes. He had a shiny bald head and dark shadows covered his eyes. His wrinkled hands stroked his snowy beard and he snickered like a child who just pulled a prank. "Well well, you seem confused." He spoke in a tired voice.
"Very..." Robin spoke cautiously, uncertain where this man's eyes were. Yet somehow she felt the need to cover up a bit more and zipped her cloak up. "Where am I? Why am I here? Where's Chrom? And who are you?"
"Easy, easy." The old man said. He held his hands out towards her to calm her down a bit. "I'm an old man. I'm not about to hurt you. In fact, quite the opposite. I want nothing more than to help you Robin."
"How do you know my name?" Robin demanded while she reached for a sword that she no longer had. He took my weapons? Robin pondered while she took a safety step back from the old man. She knew old men could be stronger than they looked very well.
"Easy." He repeated once again. He put his hands behind his back and started to pace around to Robin's backside. She was quick to catch him, turning with him to keep him in her sight. "Yes, you'll definitely do well. You don't know me, but I've been watching you quite closely. And if anyone is capable of saving this world, it's you. My name is Hubba. You may call me Master Hubba."
"How about Old Hubba?" Robin suggested, her arms crossed over her chest. "What a strange name anyways."
"No stranger than Robin." Hubba spoke with a sage like air to him. "To someone in some world, everyone's name would sound strange."
Robin perked a curious brow at him. "And what does that mean?" But Hubba refused to humor her question, laughing instead.
"Listen up kid, you're going to save this world. And I'm going to give you more than a fighting chance at that." He said. He pulled his hands from behind his back, now holding a black tome with a symbol she certainly didn't recognize. "This is called a Master Tome. Crafted from the divine Naga herself. It's yours now." The tome floated eerily into Robin's hands. She gave a curious frown, opening the book and turning the pages. Her lips pursed with intrigue. The book was filled with maps and people. Words that people spoke and all of it looked completely familiar.
"What is this?" She questioned Hubba, not tearing her eyes away from the tome. She could see a couple characters and maps that seemed completely new to her.
"Written within this book is information on all of your enemies, all of your allies, all of the battles you will take place in. While you may not see it yourself, your world is filled with probability. This book narrows it down for you and spells it out. Everything you'd ever need to know is in that book." Hubba explained like a child describing his favorite toy.
"So...it's like the script of the world?" Robin suggested.
"Your world, yes. You may find experiences a tad different here than you last remember. But that's not the best part. If you chant the inscription, then you can restart any battle you wish if things go sour for you." Hubba explained. "Which they will."
"What? How in the world does that work?" Robin asked, bemused at the old man. Hubba chuckles mysteriously and clasps his hands together.
"The gods work in mysterious ways." He said, quite pleased at keeping Robin in the dark.
"Gods...and I assume you're a god then?" She asked, finally closing the book and casting her gray eyes onto him.
"Heh, perhaps I am. It does have a nice ring to it." He said before waving his hand to her. "Questions for later. For now, it's time to meet Chrom." He then gave her a serious look, made all the more worse since she couldn't actually see his eyes. "Don't lose that book." He spoke gravely. Robin gasped, feeling herself falling again.
"Wait! I have so many questions!" Her screams fell on deaf ears however as she hit the ground. The actual ground and quickly passed out.
…
"Chrom...we have to do something." Robin would have groaned, but that would require breath and all the wind seemed gone from her lungs at the moment.
"Lissa?" She thought at the delicate voice speaking to her.
"Well what do you propose we do?" A much deeper, more commanding voice spoke. Robin could immediately feel her heart flutter. It couldn't be.
"Well...I don't know." Lissa replied to Chrom. Robin gathered as much strength as she could to force her eyes open, seeing the two figures standing over her. Especially the handsome visage of the prince. His short blue hair obscuring his face just a bit and his bright blue eyes widening in shock once he noticed Robin's eyes open.
Lissa's eyes lowered, relieved to find Robin was alive. She smiled delicately and Robin could feel a serenity wash over her. She wanted to cry. After so long of watching all of her comrades fall one by one around her, they were back.
"Well hello there." Chrom said with as serene a smile as Robin remembered during their first meeting. "There are better places to take a nap than in the middle of a field. Here, take my hand." He held his leather clad hand towards her and she grabbed it. He wrapped his fingers around her with a soft grip as he pulled her up and into his body.
Robin can feel the blood rushing to her cheeks immediately as their eyes locked for a moment. Chrom held her gaze, the smile never leaving his face until a strict man nearby cleared his throat. Robin pulled away from the prince, taking a deep breath. She had to remember where she was. To them, she wasn't anything but some strange beggar.
"That's quite enough of that." Said a man in pale blue armor. He had a long, serious face and was currently giving Robin a cautious glare.
"Peace Fredrick the Wary. What is your name, friend?" Chrom asked, making Fredrick sniff half way between offense and pride. Robin opened her mouth to introduce herself, but quickly remembered that she's not supposed to know who she was yet. Not wanting to go off script too much just yet, she decided to play along.
"I'm uh...I don't recall." Robin said sheepishly. She shrunk away from Fredrick, playing up the scared amnesiac role she was supposed to at this point. Fredrick scoffed at her simply.
"You truly expect us to believe that you cannot recall your own name?" He asked, pointing his nose down at her. Robin really did shrink away from his judgmental eyes when he stood over her, forgetting just how imposing of a man he was. Especially at the point she was at.
"Hey, I've heard of this before!" Lissa chirped, doing an excited dance at the prospect of adding something of worth to the conversation. "It's called amnesia!" Robin nodded and gestured towards Lissa.
"Listen to the girl." She said. She yelped when Fredrick got closer, the feeling of his armor touching her, the hard steel felt warm from standing in the sun all day long.
"How dare you speak to the pri-"
"Fredrick please. I really don't want to see someone like that wet herself right now." Chrom said. Fredrick merely nods and backs off of Robin. She breathes a sigh of relief, taking a moment to gather her sense again.
"Thank you Chrom." She said. She would have felt worse about calling Chrom by name, but she did the same when she first met them. Although she doesn't remember the first meeting being quite that terrifying.
"Huh?" Chrom asked, bemused. Fredrick shot Robin another suspicious glare. "How do you know my name?"
"I uh...I don't know. It just came to me." Robin said while Lissa even got in on the suspicion.
"Weird..." She said, her arms crossed while Fredrick did her one better.
"Quite. How is it that you don't know your own name, but recognize Chrom?" He asked. Robin felt herself move closer to Chrom as Fredrick looked ready to pounce on her again.
"I don't know, I just do. I don't control what I know and what I don't." She said. Fredrick looked ready to protest her, but Chrom waved his hand dismissively.
"Really it's not that strange to know me if you think about it." He said. Now it was Robin's turn to look confused. Something about this didn't feel quite right. It had been a while since she'd been in this situation, but she was still pretty sure this wasn't following the script. She was a bit concerned she already screwed up the world, but perhaps it was a bit too early to say that.
"Let's just take her to town. We can't leave her out here alone for bandits to find after all." Chrom said. Fredrick simply sighed, defeated.
"Fine. Town's not far. But I won't allow a Plegian spy into the halidome. I'm watching you." He warned. Robin just waved her hands innocently.
"No need to worry about me. Even if I was a spy, I don't remember being one. On account of amnesia." She said. Fredrick nodded slowly as the group started towards the town. Robin went ahead to walk beside Chrom, but Fredrick grabbed a hold of her.
"Oh no you don't." He said. Robin watched a massive armored horse make its way towards the group. Lissa gave it a pet on the muzzle before it stopped at Fredrick's side. He climbed onto it effortlessly and lifted Robin up onto it by her upper arm. She would have let out a cry of pain, but she just couldn't muster it as if her lungs were frozen from fear. She sat on the back of the horse while Fredrick, kept a hold of the silver lance sitting on the horse. He gave Robin a harsh look and nodded.
"Comfy?" He asked. Robin predictably shook her head to which he finally smiled. "Good." He rode up ahead of Chrom and Lissa. Robin looked back at them and they both waved at her with sympathetic smiles. Robin sighed and rested her still heavy head up against Fredrick, thinking of the day she became better than him. It was a glorious day indeed.
…
The settlement of Southtown was naturally peaceful, just as Robin remembered it. She got off the horse mercifully when Fredrick let her down while Chrom and Lissa quickly caught up to them. "We're getting close to Southtown." Chrom says. He smiled at Robin while Fredrick kept his eyes glued to her. Robin sighed in response, knowing precisely what was about to happen to this peaceful settlement.
"I suppose I should introduce us all now." Chrom continued as he walked towards Fredrick. "As stated before, this is Fredrick, the Shepard's deputy." As he said that, Fredrick did a curt nod from his horse. "And the delicate one is Lissa." He said, punctuating it with a pat on her head. Lissa pouted at her older brother, stamping her feet.
"I am not delicate." She said, harshly. Chrom didn't look impressed.
"You're a healer and the enemy needs only to look at you funny to kill you." He said, crossing his arms. Robin couldn't help but smirk as Lissa quickly pounded her fists on Chrom's chest. It didn't bother him at all, but it was funny to see. Once she gave Chrom a thorough beating, the turned away and crossed her arms with a most regal pout.
"How nice. My name is Robin. Funny, I...just remembered that." Robin said, stepping back as Fredrick gave her another glare.
"Oho, so now she remembers." He said, but Chrom didn't pay him any mind.
"Robin, huh? What a nice name. Strange that you remembered it now that we've reached the Halidome but, I'm sure it's nothing." He said. Fredrick grunted, pulling the reigns of his horse.
"Indeed." He said gruffly. Before anymore heat could come upon Robin however, Lissa interrupted just in time.
"Chrom! The village!" She exclaimed, pointing her finger towards an ominous plume of black smoke.
"Damn! Must be bandits. Shepherds, move out!" Chrom ordered.
"But what about her?" Fredrick asked, looking over at Robin.
"Unless she's on fire as well, then she can wait!" Chrom spoke in his demanding tone. Fredrick sighed in response.
"Aptly put, milord." He said and Lissa did her impatient dance.
"Come on, let's go already!" She cried. They all nod and ride ahead to Southtown.
Robin sighed, finally taking the time to pull out her master tome. She flipped to the first page, ignoring how far off script things went and made it to the map. Strange. Where there was once just a static image now sat a moving replica of the map. She could see the units all meandering about in the small confined space. The boss of the bandits sitting at the very top of the map and flanked by his little squad of weaklings.
She put her finger over the unit, suddenly getting a little overview of their stats which seemed a bit weird to her. Certainly you can't measure strength with a number. She also got a look at their weapons. Nothing special to be certain. Certainly nothing that can do little more than a scratch to Fredrick. Except for that mage. With a confident smirk, she checked to make sure her bronze sword and thunder tome were with her as well. She wasn't sure when she got them. Perhaps Hubba gave them to her before she left. This book would certainly come in handy. She chuckled to herself before chasing after them.
…
"We have to stop them! They're destroying everything!" Lissa shouts once they made it to the battlefield. Chrom grunted and gritted his teeth. The sight of his countrymen being put to the blade and their possessions destroyed filled him with that familiar sense of why he did this.
"Don't worry. These bandits will definitely be sorry they picked today to do this." He said. He was interrupted however when Robin made it to the scene just in time.
"Wait!" She shouts as she makes it to them. "I can help you."
"Robin!? Why did you follow us?" Chrom demanded to know. The situation was too dire for Fredrick to give her a glare at the moment. He looked much more impatient than anything else.
"I want to help. I'm armed so I can fight too!" Robin said, pulling her tome out. This genuinely shocked Fredrick, pulling him out of the moment for just one moment.
"How the hell did I miss that?" He pondered to himself.
"Maybe you're not quite as diligent as you thought." Robin answered. She normally knew better than to poke the Fredrick, but she just couldn't help it. Fredrick didn't get mad however. He just nodded slowly.
"Duly noted. I shall be much more thorough with you next time. Perhaps a strip search will be adequate." He said, firing his own smirk at Robin when she covered herself with the cloak.
"I...don't think that's necessary." She mumbled, knowing full well he'd be dedicated enough to do it.
"Bicker later." Chrom said, stepping between them. "If you can fight then we'd be happy to have you." He said. Fredrick didn't seem to share that sentiment.
"I don't think we really need-"
"I don't want to hear it right now Fredrick." Chrom hushed him quickly. "Now let's move!"
Fredrick sighed and looked to Robin. "Very well. Just stick close to the rear. That cloak doesn't look like it'd protect much when it's meeting a blade. Maybe stay with Lissa and keep enemies off of her." He said. Chrom nodded as well, seeming to agree with that. Fredrick then moved forward, glaring a Myrmidon down to lure him in.
Chrom admired Robin for a moment, noticing the tome she held. "Ah, so you know magic as well?" Robin nodded.
"I believe so, yes." She said. Chrom gave her a wary look, taking a pace away from her.
"You uh...believe so? I think I will be fighting a few paces away from you." He said while Robin grinned at him.
"Nah, I can control it just fine. So any magic from me will be quite intentional." She said simply. Chrom only stared at her, keeping his cautious stance from her.
"I don't know if that's calming of terrifying." He said. She smirked, walking behind Fredrick and nodding.
"Yes." She said. Lissa frowned at her, glancing to her brother whom merely shrugged.
"She doesn't seem dangerous so far." He said. It didn't do much, but it put Lissa a bit more at ease as she moved closer to Robin.
Fredrick's plan worked to perfection as the Myrmidon charged to the big man on the horse with the strong lance. He made a strike and did peanuts for damage while Fredrick merely obliterated the poor man. Robin couldn't help but feel a bit bad for him, but on other levels he deserved the lance shaped hole in his chest.
A barbarian moved into everyone's range and didn't accomplish anything else before Robin hit him with some lightning. He jerked back in electifying pain while Chrom launched forward with Falchion gleaming in the light before he brought it down onto the Barbarian's shoulder and cut down deep into his chest. The barbarian fell in a mess of blood and Chrom gained experience. Which was weird to Robin. She certainly never saw anything like that before.
The field was clear for now so decided to move towards the mage sitting at the corner of the platform. Chrom moved next to her and nodded slowly to her while Fredrick rode up behind Robin and Lissa stuck close to the back. The mage came in and hit Robin with the sharp gust of wind, managing to make her bleed a bit, but she was quick to fire back her own lightning at the mage and nailed him in the chest. While he was doubled over in pain, apparently Chrom didn't feel he had enough blood lust and charged in, taking the little man's head clean off. Robin chuckled quietly, the memories of how brutal the army was coming back to her.
"I'll move forward and draw the enemy out to us." Fredrick said, starting to move forward, but Robin stopped him.
"Hold on. Look, I can't really explain what I'm about to say but...I can see the enemies." She said. She got a dumbfounded look from the two men.
"Thanks for the update. Glad to know you're not blind and forgetful." Fredrick replied. Robin pouted at him and crossed her arms.
"No no, I mean...I can see the enemy's...life. Everything about them from how strong they are to what weapons they use to how much they can take." She elaborates. "And I happen to know that you'll murder everyone of them with that lance if you go fight them now. Except for the mages that will attack you out of range. And...well...Chrom and I would like to kill them instead." She said. She was sure this experience thing was important after all, and Fredrick certainly didn't get a lot from these enemies.
"Uh...is this true milord?" Fredrick asked, looking towards Chrom.
"Er...I don't know. I guess it would be nice. I do feel a bit stronger when I fight more often." He said. Lissa rolled her eyes at him.
"You just want to fight more." She said. Chrom grunted, though he didn't deny it.
"Well very well then. What do you propose I do, miss Robin?" Fredrick asked. Robin simply took out her bronze sword and handed it to him. "Oh, now I couldn't take your weapon Robin." She frowned at him and held up her tome.
"I'll be fine. Take it." She said, but Fredrick waved his hand at her.
"Oh, no no no. Really, I'll be fine with my lance." He said. Robin sighed, rubbing her chin.
"Stubborn monkey..." She grumbled under her breath. "Fine. Then just put your lance down and then let them-"
"You want me to disarm myself?" He asked incredulously.
"Yes." Robin deadpanned.
That's insane! The mere thought of rushing into battle without your weapon! Only an idiot would do that. Or Vaike. But I suppose the two are one in the same." He said, sniffing indignantly. Robin groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"For Naga's sake...fine, then I'll go lure them out myself. I ran the numbers. I'll be fine if I stand right here." She said, stepping onto a spot where a Myrmidon and a mage spotted her, but no one seemed to pay any attention to their buddies suddenly running off. Nor did Fredrick seem to disagree with this plan.
Robin sighed, peering into her master tome when they made it to her. She could see a percentage associated to both her and her enemy. The Myrmidon had a one hundred percent change of hitting it seemed and sure enough, he was far too fast for her to even hope to dodge. He got a good cut into her, but she would live and she took a decent chunk out of him in return.
The mage then moved in to strike her from afar with his thunder tome. His chances were the same as her's, eighty. She cried out in pain when the electricity hit her chest, but she quickly shook it off and flung her own ball at him. He saw it coming and daintily jumped away from it. Robin's eye twitched.
"Bravo, my lady. But the enemy is over there." Fredrick snarked. She didn't remember him being so snarky. It pissed her off. "Now if you'll excuse me." Fredrick continued, trotting over to the mage and gibbing him immediately. Chrom patted Robin's good shoulder before rushing in and taking the Myrmidon down to nearly dead. He was certainly feeling the pain, but he was fighting on. Robin grumbled and fried him the rest of the way with her lighting.
Lissa was quick to heal Robin up with her staff afterwards. Robin sighed as thankfully most of the rest of the group came after Chrom. He took a couple axes to the face while the mage took a shot at Fredrick as he couldn't reach Chrom. But the last barbarian to attack Chrom got a little more than he bargained for. Chrom stepped back and Robin could almost see the power shining from Chrom as he bellowed out a pre asskicking line.
"Your end has come!" He shouted before jumping clear across the battlefield and bisected the barbarian in a bloody mess. It was both gut wrenching and beautiful at the same time. Especially since he cut a barbarian in half with a rapier. That alone was worthy of praise. And that action got Chrom the last bit of experience. Robin looked at the master tome once again to watch as some of Chrom's stats actually went up one by one. His strength, skill, and speed to be more precise. She wasn't sure what it meant, but she was sure it was good.
Before long, there was only the boss left. Being a defeat the boss mission, he naturally did nothing as all of his men were murdered and the small group closed in on him. He had a hand axe which made attacking him safely slightly more problematic, but that didn't stop Chrom from charging in anyways. Robin looked at the master tome, taking note of the sixty five percent chance for Chrom to be hit. Though she was a bit worried about that five percent crit chance. But surely that was so low that it didn't even matter.
She shut the book and not even two seconds later heard someone hit the ground and Lissa scream. "Chrom! No, you can't die!" She cried as Chrom laid on the ground with his chest sliced open. Robin could feel her eyes twitch more with annoyance than with sadness. Normally seeing Chrom drowning in his own blood would have filled her with something more akin to sadness or anger, but seeing as it wasn't long since she already saw him in such a position, and knowing she could restart the battle, at any moment, she just felt a lingering sense of irritation.
"You've gotta be kidding me..." She mumbled
Meanwhile, Hubba watched the battle unfold from the outrealm gate and snickered as Robin restarted the battle. "Welcome to Fire Emblem, kid."