Chapter 2: Santaruz and Laus: Mysteries and Rebellions

Tensions ran deep in Santaruz Castle. Marquess had summoned the mysterious Ephidel to his room. As the mystery man arrived, the red-faced Lord Helman furiously slammed his palm onto the table, then spat at the floor.

"Master Ephidel!" he yelled at the hooded figure, voice shaking. "What is the meaning of this?"

Ephidel rotated his head to the right forty-five degrees, a seeming look of confusion on his face. "Peace, Lord Helman," he said in a faraway voice. "Whatever is wrong?"

Lord Helman slammed his palm onto the table again. "Hmph!" he snorted. "You said you were just going to scare Eliwood!"

Ephidel smiled. "I did," he replied. "That's exactly what I did. What did I do wrong?" Face turning purple, Lord Helman raised his sword at the cloaked man.

"Your men almost fucking killed him!" he spat. "My patience has run out! I've decided that I must tell Eliwood everything and apologise."

Ephidel was not scared of Lord Helman. After all, he himself was one of the most powerful fighters in the world. How would he be scared of an old man. Hearing Lord Helman's threat, his eyes were reduced to slits.

"You would betray us, Lord Helman?" he asked in low and dangerous voice. Lord Helman, in his anger and lack of composure, did not notice the change in tone of the enigmatic man.

"I am tired of you and I'm tired of your stupid Black Fang!" he roared. "Now, get out of my castle! Your presence alone makes me vomit!"

Ephidel laughed on the inside. 'And just how do you plan on removing me, old man?' he thought. "Lord Helman," he said in a silky but deadly voice. "Is there nothing I can do to change your mind?"

"Nothing!" came the reply.

Ephidel sighed regretfully. "Lord Helman," his voice suddenly went cold. "Do you know what the code of the Black Fang is? While you are not a member, you still hold vital information. The code of the Fang says 'The punishment for traitors is death'. Since you are no longer willing to co-operate with us, you are no longer of any use to us. Goodbye."

Leaping toward the marquess, he moved with blinding speed, faster than the older man can see. "What?" gasped Lord Helman before Ephidel suddenly appeared right in front of him, his right hand curled into a claw.

"Die," whispered Ephidel before plunging the claw into Lord Helman's chest and puncturing his heart. Blood and screaming were everywhere.

"Boies!" called Ephidel. A rough-looking armour knight walked into the room. "That little fool Eliwood will be here soon, keep him away from the castle at all costs. I want that little lordling dead," he ordered.

"As you wish, my master," came the reply as Ephidel disappeared into thin air.

o0o

Walking into the capital of Santaruz, Eliwood, Hector and friends rushed straight towards the castle where Marquess Santaruz lived.

"Excuse me!" Eliwood called a guard who stood at the entrance to the castle. "We have to see Lord Helman," he said quickly. "Tell him that his old friend's son is here to see him."

Before the guard could react, however, a loud laugh was heard from behind him.

"That's not going to happen, laddie!" boomed a fat, rough-looking, green haired, green moustached armour knight. This man was Boies.

Eliwood was unfazed. "Who are you, may ask your honoured name?" he asked, which induced another loud laugh from Boies.

"Who am I?" he replied. "There's no need for a dead man to know my name. Boy, you should worry about yourself more. You'll be worm's meat before much longer, hahaha!"

Listening to the rude armour knight, Hector's temper rose.

"Hmph, you think so?" he snorted angrily. Picking up his axe, he pointed it at Boies. "Maybe my axe will change your mind." This instilled another wild laugh from the armour knight. "Ohohoho!" snickered Boies. "The cub thinks he's a wolf! Does your bite match its mark? Tell you what, if you make it to me alive, we'll find out, right? Get 'em boys!"

As he finished speaking, about twenty armed thugs sprang out from the gardens and leapt at Eliwood and his friends. Whirling into battle position, Eliwood unsheathed his sword and fought for his life. He rarely fought others, the only real fighting came from fighting bandits every few months with his father's knights, and from his bimonthly spar with Hector. Now, all of a sudden, in the space of about a day, he just got into two deadly skirmishes against well-trained assassins. Marcus stayed very close to Eliwood to protect him, while Oswin did the same for Hector, albeit without nearly as much effort. Hector got into brawls often on the streets of Ostia, so his fighting experience was quite abundant.

"Oswin!" called Hector. "Go and protect Eliwood, I can hold off these guys just fine!" He then rushed off to attack a few assassins at once. His fighting style contrasted Eliwood's. It was rather crude, but extremely aggressive, so it was very difficult to defend against. While against Eliwood, one might find it difficult to penetrate his defensive stances, against Hector, it would be extremely difficult to find time to counter-attack under the relentless assaults of his axe.

Matthew stayed around on the side, making sure Serra was not hurt by the assassins. He would jump around rather quickly, dodging most of the enemies' attacks, then rushing in and stabbing them with his dagger. Suddenly, he saw a familiar looking young Sacaen sword fighter. He wore a headband and had his black hair in a short ponytail. The sword fighter saw Matthew and attacked him unhesitantly. Unlike the assassins, the young sword fighter was extremely agile, not slower than Matthew.

"Wait a minute!" called Matthew as he dodged the sword fighter's attacks. "I know who you are, aren't you Guy?"

The one named Guy slowed down, but did not stop attacking. "I am, so what? Who do you think you are?" he asked. Matthew smiled as he dodged Guy's attacks.

"Have you forgotten who I am?" he questioned Guy. "Have you forgotten what happened at Caelin? Who was the one who saved you?"

Guy froze. "You..." he gasped. "You're Matthew?"

Guy was a Sacaen sword fighter who had left home. Without any money, he was forced to fight for various assassin groups to feed himself. About a year ago, Guy had run out of money. Starving and delirious, he had collapsed in Caelin near where Matthew had lived. Fortunately for him, Matthew found him lying unconscious and revived him, feeding him afterwards. Before Guy could thank him, however, Matthew had disappeared as he went into Lord Uther's service.

"I heard the people of Sacae are supposed to honourable," Matthew said. "Yet you are repaying kindess with evil, how will you have the face meet your clanspeople again? You're a disgrace!"

Guy threw his sword to the ground in fury. "Hey!" he called. "I need food to feed myself, don't I? I didn't realise it was you. I just got this job, now you're telling me to throw it away!"

Matthew laughed. "Hey, you owe me your life, buddy," he reminded Guy. "Tell you what, why don't you fight for us? I'm quite sure Lord Eliwood and Lord Hector would be quite happy to pay you in return for your services. That way, you can avoid being hungry while repaying the life debt you own me." Guy considered this for a few seconds and smiled.

"Alright then," he agreed. "I never liked these guys anyway." Picking up his sword, he rushed at the enemy. When the assassin group saw him attacking them, they were bewildered.

"What the hell are you doing?" asked an assassin. "You're working for us, aren't you?" Guy raised his sword and pointed it at them.

"Hmph," he snorted. "I don't need to work for thugs like you any more. The guys you're fighting offered me a much better deal. Besides, I owe my life to one of them anyway, while I owe you nothing. Goodbye." In a flash, he decapitated the assassins head before he finished speaking.

With Guy's help, Eliwood and his friends were able to reach Boies, who was standing at the main gate of the castle.

"You've done well to reach this far, laddie!" he called. Patience running thin, Eliwood and Hector raised their weapons at him.

"Where is Marquess Santaruz?" demanded Eliwood.

Boies snickered. "I imagine he's on his way to a better place, hehehehahaha!" he replied. Eliwood's heart dropped like a stone.

"Motherfucker!" he shouted as he leapt at the armour knight and slashing wildly. Calmly, Boies blocked his blows one by one. Hector moved in to help his friend. With his offensive fighting technique, Boies found it much harder to block. Getting a bit irritated, Boies moved out of the way and kicked Hector in the stomach, causing him to double over. Calming down slightly, Eliwood focussed his attacks and continued the assault on the armour knight. After about twenty exchanges, Boies' confidence started draining away. 'This kid is good,' he thought. He started going on the offensive, but quickly realised that he played straight into Eliwood's hands. Twirling his sword around Boies' spear, he quickly disarmed the armour knight, followed by a quick stab into the fat man's neck, killing him.

Wasting no time, Eliwood and Hector ran straight into the castle. "Lord Helman!" he called. No reply came. Anxiety gripped every organ of his body. He ran through castle repeating his call. As he passed the marquess' room, he heard a moan.

"Eliwood..." it whispered quietly. "Is that you?" Shivering at how weak the voice sounded, Eliwood rushed into the room.

"Lord Helman, what happened? Hang on!" he said with an uneven voice. Lord Helman's face was pale as chalk.

"I'm... sorry, Eliwood," he wheezed. "Your father... he..." He lost consciousness. Eliwood gasped.

"Do you know something, sir? What happened?" he pleaded. Lord Helman regained consciousness after about ten seconds.

"If I hadn't told Elbert... of Darin's plans... this would never have..." he whispered as he coughed up blood. "Go to Laus... Darin... Marquess Laus... knows all. I'm sorry, Eliwood, I can't... Beware... the Black Fang..." With this, he breathed his last and expired.

"It can't be," Eliwood whispered to no-one in particular, mind a blank, anything that he was thinking was zapped away by shock.

After about ten minutes of staring into space, Eliwood finally calmed down. "Blast!" grunted Hector. "What the hell is going on?" Eliwood sighed with regret.

"We have to go to Laus immediately," he finally said. "We have to speak to Marquess Laus and get answers." Hector was itching for action.

"Let's go now," he suggested. "I'm not sure how far we can go today, but I can't sit still with everything unresolved like this." Eliwood nodded in agreement.

As they were leaving, the stern looking man ran after to them. "Lord Hector, Lord Eliwood, wait!" he called. Catching his breath, he continued: "I'm the steward of Santaruz, with our lord gone, what are supposed to do?"

Hector paused and pondered it for a second. "First, you give Lord Helman a proper burial," he ordered. "After that, I'm sure the Lycian Council will have to meet. Send word to my brother about what has happened here, but stay here and defend the castle until receive further instructions." The steward nodded in acknowledgement.

"Yes sir," he replied. "May you have a safe trip, young masters." Picking up their belongings, Eliwood and Hector, along with their companions, set off for Laus.

o0o

After about four hours of travelling, it started getting dark. Deciding not to seek to much attention, Eliwood suggested that they camp about one kilometre outside a village. They had already exited Santaruz territory and had entered Caelin, the neighbouring nation.

"So this is Caelin," mused Hector as he looked around. "Do you think we'll need to present ourselves to Lord Hausen? The less attention we get the better." Eliwood shook his head.

"I don't see the need," he replied. "We're only passing through. I am quite curious on how Lyndis is doing, though..." As he saw Hector's confused look, he added: "Marquess Caelin's granddaughter". Hector slapped his own forehead as he remembered.

"Oh her," he recalled. "The missing heir who dealt with Lundgren last year, didn't you have something to do with that?" When Lyndis stopped her granduncle in the leadership dispute in the previous year, Eliwood helped make sure that Caelin's dispute was purely internal, persuading all other Lycian nations to not get involved in the affair. As a consequence, he missed his bimonthly spar with Hector by about a week, in which he was appointed to do.

"Is she a beauty?" asked Hector teasingly. Eliwood jerked his head in Hector's direction, eyes reduced to slits.

"A beauty?" he replied. "I don't know what to call her, I think it must be Sacaen heritage. She's... striking."

Laughing evilly, Hector continued teasing his friend. "Striking? Too bad we don't have time to see her, lover boy." Eliwood's face turned into a tomato.

"What? Lyndis and I... we are not..." he stammered, as Hector burst into laughter.

"You're not?" he prodded on. "Then why are you getting so worked up?"

Eliwood leapt at his best mate, trying to tackle him to the ground, while Hector jumped out of the way. "Fuck you, Hector!" he cursed loudly. "Don't make me angry!" Suddenly, their little tussle was interrupted by a frightened scream that came from about a few hundred metres away.

"Someone's being attacked," said Eliwood. "We need to go and help!" Following their lords' instructions, Marcus, Oswin and the others followed Eliwood and Hector to the direction of the scream. As they reached the source of the yell, they saw a rich looking merchant being harassed by about a dozen bandits.

"Noooooo!" yelled the merchant. "Someone help me, pleeease!"

The bandits that surrounded the merchant were like a pack of wolves around a trapped deer. "This stupid old fool kept us running in circles for hours!" growled one of the bandits. A taller man who appeared to be the leader of the bandits started playing around the man's belongings.

"Hey look at this," he snickered as he picked up an expensive looking bracelet. "This old fool is loaded." The rest of the bandits laughed heartily.

"Looks like our lucky day, hey Puzon?" smiled another bandit. The apparent leader named Puzon nodded. The merchant on the other hand, was outraged. "Let go of that!" he shouted. "That's mine!" A rather fat bandit hit him over the head, knocking to the ground.

"Shut up, you old buffoon," he growled. "Puzon, can I kill this simpleton?" Puzon looked at him with raised eyebrows. Shrugging, he replied: "Yeah, whatever, I can't see why not. Just do it quickly." Seeing as he was about to be killed, the merchant let out a horrified scream, running as fast as he could, but he had no way of escaping. Dropping to his knees, he burst into tears and begged for his life.

"Hey, release him!" ordered Eliwood. Puzon turned around to face him, while Hector raised his axe. "If you move quickly, we'll let you live," he told Puzon menacingly. However, the bandit leader was less than fazed.

"A pair of dandies like you?" he laughed. "Living off your parent's names, prancing about, this is what I think of you!" He spat on the ground in front of them. "Come on boys!" he called. "Don't hold back! Take out these stupid nobles!"

Whipping out their weapons, Eliwood and his group began to confront the bandits. Compared to the trained assailants that they fought twice that day, the bandits were amateurs. This is not mention that the group not including made up ten people, so they were not as outnumbered as they were against the assassins they fought earlier. Even though they were tired, they held a huge advantage over Puzon and his bandits, killing about half of them in about ten minutes.

"Shit!" called Puzon. "How the hell are these nobles so good? Alright, everyone, retreat! We can't win!" Turning around to Eliwood and Hector, he stuck his middle finger up at them. "I won't forget this!" he called. "I'll get my revenge, someday!" As he finished speaking, he sprinted as fast as he could away from them.

"You're not getting away, meanie!" called Rebecca as she loaded an arrow onto her bow. With a swift movement, she fired the arrow at the fleeing Puzon, piercing his skull and killing him instantly.

Seeing the lordlings chase away the bandits, the merchant was lost for words. "Are you injured?" asked Eliwood. The merchant smiled and shook his head. "Not... at all, your highness," he stammered. "I'm as fine as fine can be."

Eliwood let out a sigh of relief. "I'm glad to see that," he said. "We'll take our leave then. Let's go, Hector."

As he watched his saviours just turn around and leave, Merlinus felt extremely uncomfortable. "Wait a moment, please!" he called. "I haven't even thanked you for saving my life yet!" Stopping in their tracks, Eliwood and Hector turned around to face the man.

"Don't worry," dismissed Hector. "We have no use for a peddler's junk." The merchant was outraged. "A peddler? Me?" he gasped. Eliwood rammed his elbow into Hector, chastising him for being rude.

"Ahem!" coughed the merchant. "My name is Merlinus. You'll find no other travelling merchant whose goods compare with mine. Don't let your eyes fool, I'm actually quite prosperous."

This got the lordlings interested. "You're a merchant?" asked Hector with surprise. "Books and knives and all that? Ow!" Eliwood had elbowed him for being rude again. Merlinus did not seem to be too offended.

"By the way," he continued. "You two obviously come from highborn houses. Would you grant me the honour of your names?"

Eliwood replied: "I'm Eliwood, Marquess Pherae's son." Hector also introduced himself to Merlinus. Merlinus seemed delighted.

"Goodness!" he gasped. "Ostia and Pherae, the highest houses in all of Lycia! To be saved by lords such as yourselves, it is an honour beyond words!"

Hector snorted. "It's nice to be appreciated for a change, but you don't need to lick our asses like this," he smiled. "Lately, people just seem to want us dead. Tell me Merlinus, what are your plans from here-on in?"

Merlinus scratched his head. "I had planned to travel Lycia selling my merchandise," he explained. "But it may not be possible in such dangerous times." Hector nodded thoughtfully.

"If that's the case," he said. "Why don't you come along with us? Our travels aren't going to end soon, we'll gain more and more treasures as we go along, right? It might good to have someone managing our things." Merlinus jumped for joy, smiling from ear to ear.

"Hoho!" he laughed. "That is a splendid idea! Managing merchandise is my specialty!"

Eliwood was rather concerned. They were running into enough trouble as it is, dragging this rather frail merchant along was only leading him to disaster.

"Are you sure?" he asked as Merlinus nodded. "Of course, my lord," he confirmed. "To be honest, I've always dreamt of working for a noble house. To have my fondest wish granted in such a way, how could I not be happy? Lord Hector, Lord Eliwood, please take me in and keep me safe forever!" And so, Merlinus packed his belongings and followed Eliwood and Hector back to their camp.

After a few good hours of sleep, Eliwood and his group set off for Laus with apprehension.

o0o

In the castle of Marquess Laus, fear and tension gripped the atmosphere. "What?" spat Lord Darin, the marquess of Laus. "Are you certain? Pherae's heir is here?" His face was drained from a combination of late-night scheming and fear of exposure.

"Yes dad," answered a young man around the age of eighteen. It was Marquess Laus' son, Erik. "He's just beyond the big hill next to our castle. He won't be long to reach here." Lord Darin clutched his fists in fear and anger.

"Lord Ephidel!" he summoned. "What is the meaning of this? I thought you dealt with this mole already!" Ephidel seemed concerned and deep in thought as well.

"Hm," he mused. "Maybe Marquess Santaruz clung to life long enough for Eliwood and his friends to reach the castle. Maybe he held on just long enough to tell them something." Darin punched the wall. "You can't be serious!" he roared. "Our plan! It's all for naught now, isn't it?"

Ephidel was annoyed that Marquess Santaruz stayed long enough to expose Darin, but remained calm. 'I won't underestimate those rats any longer', he noted to self.

"Lord Darin," he said calmly. "There's no need to be alarmed. Even if young Eliwood knows of our schemes, Pherae no longer has any power. My master has made sure of that. All Eliwood could do is perhaps inform Marquess Ostia."

Darin shook his head. "Ostia would be ruinous," he growled. "Lord Uther may be young and new to the throne, but he's dangerous. That old bat Helman!" He slapped the table with his palm as he cursed Marquess Santaruz. "He was a coward to the very end! How could he betray us now, when we were so close? We only needed a little more time to complete our plans!"

Ephidel thought swiftly. "Then before Marquess Ostia becomes aware of any of this, you should kill them right here," he suggested. Darin weighed up his options, then nodded.

"Yes, you're right, Master Ephidel," he concurred. "We have a chance. They need to cross Laus to get to Ostia. We can still silence them! Call our finest troops! Kill them!"

Hearing his father give the orders for Eliwood and Hector's head, Erik was delighted. He used to go to school with the two lordlings, and they would always best him. Now that they were on his turf with his best troops surrounding them, his blood boiled.

"Father," he called eagerly. "Please, let me take the command." Darin turned around in surprise.

"Erik, are you sure?" he asked disbelievingly. Erik smiled mischievously.

"That clod Eliwood and I studied together in Ostia. He trusts people way too easily. When he sees me, he will lower his guard. When he does, we will kill him!"

Darin snickered. "That sounds like a good plan," he agreed. Ephidel, on the other hand, was apprehensive. He did not want to trust the boy. He had watched the boy practise his using spear, and thought that he was average at best. While Erik was indeed leading a rather considerable portion of the Laus army, he did not want to underestimate Eliwood and Hector any more.

"I beg your pardon, Lord Darin," he interrupted. "Are you sure that this isn't too much for him? If, by some unlucky chance that he fell, it would set you back a long way." Darin weighed up the risk versus the reward. 'Surely the chances of losing are negligible,' he thought.

"It should be fine, Master Ephidel," he finally replied. "While I know I am his father, Erik is quite clever. Snuffing out Pherae's little whelp should be no trouble at all." 'Which is precisely the reason you're blind to your son's incompetence', thought Ephidel with contempt.

"It's settled!" continued Darin happily. "It's up to you now, Erik, bring me the head of Pherae's young son!" Erik nodded his acknowledgement and set off to put on his military gear. 'This time, Eliwood, we'll see who is better. You will taste my lance!' he thought, licking his lips.

o0o

Making their way into Laus in two days of travel, Eliwood and Hector noticed a stark difference between it and Caelin. Trees and villages were burnt to the ground and were replaced with battle towers, stables and barracks.

"Look at all this," mumbled Hector. "They really are preparing for battle. What the hell is Marquess Laus scheming?" Turning around, he saw Eliwood wearing an anxious expression.

"You don't look like you want to go to the castle very much," he noticed.

Eliwood sighed. "If we want to find the truth, we might have to go to war," he commented. As someone who loved fighting, Hector did not mind having to go to war. Eliwood, on the other hand, hated fighting. He imagined the countless families who would be torn apart, simply because of the games that nobles played with each other. He only wished that conflicts could be resolved peacefully.

"Lord Eliwood!" Marcus called suddenly. "A knight has ridden forth from the castle!" Eliwood turned around to look to the horizon. Indeed, there were two black dots, a man and a horse, coming their way.

"Our scouts say it's Marquess Laus' son, Erik," reported Marcus.

Hector spat at the ground. "Bah! Why did it have to be that buffoon?" he cursed. "I'm leaving, Eliwood, that guy is a total fool. I'm going to go for a ride and survey our surroundings." Eliwood nodded in acknowledgement while telling Marcus to bring Erik to them.

"Hello, Eliwood!" called Erik. "It's been a long time!" Seeing Erik's welcoming expression, Eliwood suddenly tensed up. He had never been on good terms with Marquess Laus' son. Why then, would he act so friendly to him?

"Erik," he returned the greeting with a nod. "What is your business?" Erik was taken aback by surprise.

"My business?" he asked innocently. "Whatever do you mean? I heard that my old friend was here in Laus. I merely thought I'd ride out to greet you. So tell me, what brings you to our humble home of Laus? Are you on your way to Ostia?" Eliwood was not sure what Erik's plan was. While he did not like Erik, he was still his classmate and he wanted to avoid confrontation if possible.

"Why do you think that?" asked Eliwood, trying to extend the conversation and probe Erik's motives.

"Well, you were always such good friends with Hector," Erik continued, trying not to betray his intentions. "He and I never got along well. For a noble, his behaviour and manner of speech was crude, you would have thought he was a peasant at first glance. You're still friends with Hector, aren't you? When did you see him last? How do you communicate with him?"

Eliwood was getting suspicious of why Erik kept talking about Hector. "Erik..." he said after a few seconds of pause. "You're after something, aren't you? Everywhere I look, Laus is preparing for battle. What are you and you father planning? I will know the truth!" Erik felt a bit uncomfortable after being confronted like this, but recovered quickly. After all, he was the one who had Eliwood at his mercy.

"Hm, I had hoped to wait until you told me of Ostia, of whether you have spoken to the marquess or not," he snickered, as Eliwood shot him a confused look. "Hehehe, Eliwood, I have always hated you. You and Hector, always getting our teachers' praise, while I got thrown to the dust like an animal. Oh, how I've longed to smash you and your morality to pieces! I've dreamt so long for this day, and here it is at last!" He held his head high into the air and laughed.

Suddenly, a huge mound of dirt landed on Erik's back. "Too bad you won't live to see the end of it," growled a voice from behind him. Hector was marching towards him, eyes filled with hate.

"You!" roared Erik. Turning around to Eliwood, he suddenly looked scared. "You couldn't... have you spoken with Ostia already?"

Hector snorted with contempt. "Maybe we have, maybe we haven't," he replied. Turning to Eliwood, he spoke: "Eliwood, this mongrel has troops lying in ambush all around us. Laus old-timers, every one of them. We're in for one hell of a fight." Hearing Hector's warning, Erik remembered his reinforcements and regained his composure.

"That's right," he sneered. "There's little point in fighting. You're trapped! My forces will overwhelm you in a never-ending torrent of soldiers! Laus' elite knights are here as well. How long do you think you can last?" Laughing, Erik rode away back to the castle as his troops mobilised. Seeing his classmate's betrayal, Eliwood could only feel anger and a twinge of humiliation. "Craven cur!" he cursed.

Although Santaruz had sent a squad of around a hundred troops to protect Eliwood after their lord's death, the Laus army easily outnumbered them at least five to one.

"What the hell do we do?" Eliwood asked Marcus. 'What can we do?' thought Marcus. Without an answer, he raised his spear and directed it at the enemy.

"We are knights of Pherae," he declared. "These mice of Laus will never defeat us, their numbers are meaningless! Come on, Lord Eliwood, let's show them what we're made of!" Inspired by Marcus' call, Eliwood raised his sword and directed his troops.

"Alright, everyone!" he called. "We need to stick together! Hold onto defensive formations, but make sure to move forward! The only way to win this battle is to capture their leader, Erik!" The rest of the troops cheered as they moved forward to confront the Laus troops. At the side, Merlinus had set up a tent next to them, where he kept all the items that Eliwood and his friends used. Bartre and Rebecca were assigned to protect him.

In a village near the fighting, a purple-haired mage watched the battle unfold. Next to him, stood the village magistrate.

"Do you think we should help?" he asked courteously. The magistrate shook his head.

"As much as I hate Marquess Laus, it's just not possible," he sighed sadly. "My granddaughter was taken away by him, after all. While I would be glad to help you, I must consider the safety of the villagers. If we disobey the marquess and we end up losing, what would happen to us? I'm sorry, Sir Erk."

The one named Erk nodded in acknowledgement. "I understand. We'll seek our aid elsewhere," he said resolutely.

The magistrate shook his head again. "You'll find the same answer everywhere you go. Eventually, you'll have to do as the marquess orders. You would do well to tell your master the same thing."

Erk snorted. 'Coward,' he thought. 'Lord Pent would never except that. I should probably just join the ones that the army is attacking, we may find a way out.' Turning around to the magistrate, he bid his farewell.

While Eliwood and his troops were heavily outnumbered, they were fortunately helped by numerous incompetent Laus fighters. Although Marquess Laus was preparing for war, most of his troops were pulled from the ordinary people. Most of the soldiers were untrained, just given a spear and told to march to their deaths. Erik was also inexperienced in battle, so he did not give strategic commands. Using this to their advantage, Eliwood and his troops held their ground reasonably well. Suddenly, bolts of lightning flashed across the plains, knocking out numerous Laus soldiers. Looking around, Eliwood saw a serious, purple haired mage firing his magic at the Laus fighters while running towards him.

"Lord Eliwood, is it?" called Erk.

Eliwood nodded. "What is your honoured name, sir?" he asked.

Making it to their group, Erk replied: "No need for semantics with me, my lord, I'm Erk. I am here to escort someone back home, but Marquess Laus decided to trap her in the harbourside village. I was hoping I could join you to try and get her out of here."

Eliwood pondered for a second. "Yes, why not?" he finally replied. "Any help for us would greatly appreciated." Suddenly, from behind, a high pitched scream was heard.

"OH MI GOSH, ERK!" screeched Serra as she jumped onto Erk, hugging him. "It's been so looooong!" Erk's face turned bright red.

"Serra?" he asked, surprised. 'Oh lord, I thought I had finally gotten rid of her already. Why is she here?'

A year ago, Erk was charged with the task of escorting Serra to Ostia. However, they were ambushed by bandits and were subsequently saved by Lyn, who was on her way to Caelin to reunite with her grandfather. Joining Lyndis' Legion, they fought alongside her to reclaim Caelin from Lundgren. Serra's inability to shut up had driven Erk up the wall, and when he had completed his task of getting her to Ostia, he felt like a prisoner who was just let out of jail. He never expected that he would have go through that hell again.

"What are you doing here?" he asked her, holding back his urge to vomit. Serra smiled at him and slapped him on the back.

"I'm working for Lord Eliwood and Lord Hector," she replied. 'What did I do to deserve this', thought Erk. Hiding his annoyance, he ran off and attacked the enemy, leaving behind a very irritated Serra. "He didn't even speak to me, how rude!" she mouthed angrily.

In the harbourside village that Erk mentioned, a beautiful red-haired girl stood waiting at the gates.

"Priscilla!" called the main village prefect. "Has your escort arrived yet?" The girl named Priscilla turned around and shook her head.

"No," she replied sadly. "He left yesterday to search for a way out of here, I just hope that the Laus soldiers haven't captured him." The prefect sighed.

"His search must have been fruitless then," he lamented. "Marquess Laus had ordered that you are to be given no aid. There's really nothing any of us can do, I'm sorry." Priscilla shook her head.

"No, sir," she sighed. "Please don't apologise for my sake. I'm grateful that you continue to grant me asylum when you can easily hand me over to the marquess. Of course, if I simply went over to the castle and handed myself over, all of this will be over."

The prefect smiled at her. "Don't worry about that," he assured her. "None of us here like the marquess. He's just a lecherous old bastard. He threatens us and treats us like slaves. You see all these war preparations? We want nothing to do with them. We may be divided into territories, but we're all Lycians. Why does he want to start a war at home? None of this makes sense."

Priscilla was born into the House of Cornwell, a previous member of the Lycian League. Before Lord Uther became the marquess of Ostia, House Ostia had been corrupt. Wanting the destruction of House Cornwell, they accused the House of corruption, which triggered the rest of the Lycian nations to completely destroy it. To protect her, her parents adopted her to Count Caerleon of Etruria, Etruria being another country on the continent of Elibe. After hearing that her brother had possibly survived the destruction, she ventured with Erk to Lycia to try and find him. However, Lord Darin learnt about her and wanted to marry her. When Priscilla declined, Darin imprisoned her in Laus until she agrees to marry him. Erk had set off the day before to try and find help, but he had not returned.

Suddenly, panic tore through the village as bandits started marching in. Seeing that the Laus soldiers battle Eliwood and his troops, they decided to use the chaos to their advantage, pillaging villages and picking up the spoils of war. The villagers tried hard to defend their village, but after preparing for war, Marquess Laus left virtually nothing for his people. All hope seemed lost for the village when sky-blue bolts of lightning struck the bandits one by one, stunning them for the villagers to kill off.

"Lady Priscilla, are you alright?" called Erk. Before Priscilla could ask him anything, he explained: "I've joined Lord Eliwood's group and we are fighting against the Laus soldiers! This might be the best opportunity for you to escape!" Nodding in acknowledgement, Priscilla quickly followed Erk out of the village, thanking the prefect as she left.

Meanwhile, the battle between Eliwood's troops and the Laus army was grinding to frightening climax. Neither side was gaining any more ground than the other.

"Blast!" called Erik. "They're stronger than I expected! I want all the reinforcements available, and I want them now!" A soldier hurried off to report the news to Darin.

"What?" exclaimed Darin as he heard the news. "How are they still holding on? Ready the men." 'Why am I not surprised?' thought Ephidel, shaking his head.

"Unbelievable," he hissed with contempt. "These numbers cannot stop them." Swishing his cloak he turned to leave.

"It seems that conquering Lycia might have been too much for you after all," he added. "I must inform my master. The Black Fang will be leaving at once." Darin was gobsmacked.

"No!" he cried. "You... you can't abandon us, not at this stage!" Ephidel's eyes were reduced to slits. "Who was it that said Ostia must not learn of our plans?" he growled. "Wasn't it you, Lord Darin? The marquess of Laus himself? Look! The younger brother of Marquess Ostia is outside with Eliwood right now! Yet, you can't even take him out. I have no use for such an incompetent fool!"

Darin dropped to his knees. His entire plan depended on this man. "No, Master Ephidel," he begged. "Please! Just one more chance, I will not fail Lord Nergal!" Sighing in disdain, Ephidel turned around.

"Fine," he agreed. "Assemble your men, Lord Darin, we will regroup elsewhere." Darin could not believe his ears. "You don't mean..." he gasped. "My son, my home, am I to abandon them all?" "Would you fall in disgrace along with your son?" retorted Ephidel. "My master Lord Nergal is offering you the throne of all of Lycia, surely a few sacrifices are not too much to ask?" Darin dropped in head and weighed up his options. "You're right," he finally conceded. "My destiny is greater than this. I was born to be the king of Lycia!" Taking his elite troops, he left Castle Laus and marched away, leaving his son to battle Eliwood and Hector alone.