"This should be interesting."
Xander set his jaw and gripped Siegfried tighter as he watched the waves of Hoshidan reinforcements flood in. He had only just returned from a grisly assignment doled out by his father before being forced to fight again, and had little time to catch up with his sister, Corrin, since their last meeting at Castle Krackenburg.
They had opted to fight alongside one another, perhaps looking to make up for lost time. However, this may have been to their disadvantage, given what high profile targets they were. What Hoshidan wouldn't leap at having the glory of killing the Crown Prince of Nohr alongside his sister the Traitor Princess?
As such, the pair had been singled out and separated from the rest of the Nohrian forces, and were quickly facing the very real possibility of being completely surrounded. Xander silently cursed himself and his carelessness. Quickly cutting down his current foe, his eyes sought Corrin out on the battlefield.
She stood tall, Yato in hand, staring defiantly at the insurmountable force before her. She was not the same naïve princess that had chosen to follow them that fateful day. Gone was the hesitation in her strikes. Her movements were fluid, graceful, and precise. And, with more than a hint of pride, Xander noticed that at the core of her swordsmanship was the framework the two of them had built together on those frosty mornings at the Northern Fortress.
His thoughts snapped back to reality by the sound of an arrow whizzing past his ear. Xander growled and clenched his teeth.
Focusing power into Siegfried, the sacred sword crackled with black flames erupting from the hilt and engulfing the blade. Raising the blade skywards, a bolt of dark energy shot forth toward the sniper whose arrow nearly ended his life. The Hoshidan screamed then was silent, as all that remained of him was the patch of scorched earth where he once stood.
Sweat beaded Xander's forehead as he panted from exertion. Siegfried may be legendary, but Xander was just a man, and could only call the blade's dark power at a great physical cost to himself. Indeed, his entire life had been dedicated to training to prevent the sword from consuming him.
The immediate danger quelled, Xander's attention again turned to Corrin. He snapped the reins of his steed and raced to her side, parrying a heavy blow from an Oni Chieftain. Seizing the opportunity, she quickly sank her blade into her attacker, finishing him quickly and cleanly.
Corrin took a moment to wipe the sweat from her brow and looked up at her brother on his mount. His face was a combat-hardened mask; his eyes glittering from the flames of war. She looked back toward Hoshidans quickly outnumbering them. As capable as the two of them were as warriors, the situation was bleak.
"Brother! There are too many of them!" Corrin called out to Xander.
Retrieving his blade from the gut of his most recent engagement, Xander wheeled his steed around to face her.
"Surrender is no option, Little Princess," he replied tersely.
"Stay close to me. I'll keep you safe, I promise."
Xander's eyes met Corrin's as he said this, his gaze softening for a moment as his words settled in. But to his surprise, she shook her head.
"No, Brother. I'll need you to remain close to me. And promise me that no matter what happens-" She broke his gaze.
"- you continue to trust me."
Before Xander could question what she meant, a Hoshidan soldier's attack forced his attention away from her. The last thing he saw was Corrin reaching for the sparkling amulet around her neck.
His horse reared as he delivered a savage blow to a swordmaster. As he readied Siegfried once more, his mount suddenly reared again, spooked by the deep roar that echoed behind him. As he fought for control of his steed, Xander looked back and was nearly unseated in shock.
Corrin was gone.
In her place stood a dragon, though it was quite unlike anything Xander had ever seen as depicting a dragon. While large in stature, its form was slender and lithe, its silver scales catching the light of the midday sun. Antlers with wickedly sharp points sprouted seamlessly from its elegant head, and its wings snapped open as it leapt forward.
Regaining his mount, Xander could only stare in awe as the dragon tore into the swarm of enemies; each toss of its head and snap of its tail sowing destruction among their ranks.
Remembering himself, Xander kicked his steed into action and charge toward the shaken Hoshidan soldiers left in the dragon's bloody wake. They were quickly dispatched, as it was easy to take advantage of their terror to strike them down. Any attackers that survived the initial onslaught either fled or met their end on Siegfried's blade, finally opening a way back to their own army.
The dragon seemed to notice this, and began to gallop toward the Nohrian forces. Xander quickly followed suit, falling in line beside the silver beast. They loped alongside one another, hoofbeat echoing talonfall as questions burned inside Xander's head.
Hesitantly, Xander eyed the dragon once more, only to see it looking at him as they strode beside one another. He had to know.
"Corrin…?"
The dragon rumbled in an affirmative. In a voice that seemed to originate from inside his own head, he heard his Little Princess speak.
"Thank you for trusting me, Big Brother. I'll explain everything later, I promise."
Xander nodded and felt the small curl of smile on his lips as a wave of relief washed over him.
It was still her.
Nothing more was said as they rejoined their comrades. With Corrin and Xander leading them together once more, the Nohrian army swiftly cut down the Hoshidan force and ended the battle without casualty.
Morale was high, though the march back was a long one. Corrin, wove her way through her soldiers, sharing in cheers and thanking each one for their help, as was her way. However, this was only one of her intentions.
She nervously tucked an errant strand of hair behind a pointed ear before making her way over to Xander, who lead his weary steed on foot. Again, they found themselves side by side with silence hanging over them.
Corrin bit her lip. She had promised an explanation, but she was unsure of what to say or where to begin now that she was here next to him. An arm across her shoulders interrupted her thoughts. She looked up to see Xander softly smiling at her, the steel once in his eyes replaced with warmth.
"Xander, I-" Corrin stuttered.
"You're full of surprises, Little Princess," he remarked blithely.
Corrin scowled and looked away, her face dusted pink with embarrassment. Xander chuckled and gave her shoulder a squeeze.
"Don't worry yourself. It's been a tiring day. Explanations can wait until we've all had some rest," Xander reassured.
"What's important to me is that no matter how you may appear, my Little Princess is still there somewhere," he continued quietly.
Corrin returned the embrace, weaving her arm around Xander's torso and pulling him into her side.
"Don't fear, Brother. It's me through and through, fangs and all!" she teased.
Xander laughed warmly again.
"I am curious, however. This should be interesting."
FIN