Chapter 2 – Of Sword and Shield
His hair was brunette, a bit short, and quite messy. The kind you could see on most warriors in the country. His eyes were hazel and almost always scattered around skimming and hunting for irregularities in his surroundings. But not today. Today, they could barely focus on the muddy road in front of them. Oddly enough, he wore a dark brown cloak adorned with gold trims (the ones you usually see on a mage) over his mercenary outfit, effectively hiding the leather armors and pads from onlookers. Which again, very odd considering he didn't have any problem with showing the shield tied on his left hand and the steel sword secured on his hip. Alas, all of these details didn't matter right now, for he was bloodied all over.
"Hey! Hey you! You alright?"
He raised his head at the direction of the voice. Three figures were standing at a distance from him, one significantly bigger than the others. One of the silhouettes seemed to pace towards him. Great, another one. His right hand reached for his sword. Wait, why is the ground moving?
"How much longer?" A blonde girl asked, not exactly directing it to anyone in particular.
"Really Lissa? We've only been walking for an hour after the last stop." A man with blue hair answered, walking slightly faster in front of her. "And I'm pretty sure I told you we'll be going near the border today. Of course it's gonna be a long walk."
"Blergh!" The girl stuck her tongue out at him.
"Milady Lissa, please stay strong just a little bit more. At our current pace, we should be in Southtown in another fifteen to twenty minutes." Another man, larger than both siblings consoled her. He was walking slightly behind them, leading his horse by its reign.
"That's what you said half an hour ago!" She snarled, turning her head to face the heavily armored man. He just smiled at her comeback.
"Heads up you two." The blue-haired man warned, reaching for the sword on his hip. "Looks like party's starting early."
Lissa turned her head back to the road in front of her to see a man walking slowly towards them. He was slouching, and his steps were very unstable, almost like a drunkard walking. She squinted her eyes. "Chrom, wait! That man's injured!" She practically said, or more like, screamed at her brother.
"What?" Chrom sheathed his sword back and squinted his eyes as well. "Hey! Hey you! You alright?" He shouted.
Seeing the man was on the brink of falling down, the blunette started running towards the cloaked figure in the distance. Chrom flipped him on his back as soon as he reached him and checked for his injuries.
"Lissa, he needs you, now." He shouted to the blonde. By this time, Lissa had already reached the men. Her other companion closed behind her.
"Milord, milady, please be careful. That's a Plegian cloak. And of a high-ranking priest at that. He might be plotting this to get close to you to-"
"Oh chill out Freddie. We don't know if that's true. And besides, look at him. I don't think he'll be able to do anything right now." Lissa said to the bigger man, getting on her knees and started her healing.
"She's right Frederick. He's barely breathing. Why don't you come help me move him when Lissa finished. Southtown's not far from here. We should be able to get better treatment, or at the very least a room for him to rest."
"As you wish, milord."
Chrom looked at the man lying on the bed while Lissa attended to him.
"Well, he certainly had his fair share of fights I'd say." The young lord said, looking at the still-wet gash on the side of the brunette's gut, among others.
"Yes. Almost too much for one man." Frederick agreed.
Their sights broke when the door to the room opened revealing the village chief.
"Milords, the bandits! They're here!" He said with a huge frown on his face.
"Darn those dastards!" Chrom cursed. "Alright. Frederick, let's go. Lissa, you stay with him."
"Yes milord-"
"No!"
"What do you mean no?" The blunette asked the blonde. "What about him?" He added, pointing to the brunette lying on the bed.
"Unless one of you can use a staff, I don't see you two coming out of this unscratched. I'm coming as well." Lissa answered, wiping her hands. "And don't worry about him. Fortunately we were there just in time. He'll survive." She walked to the old man standing near the entrance. "I'm pretty sure he'll just sleep through all this, but keep an eye on him for us okay?"
The old man just nodded at her request.
*Sigh* "You're staying close to me, you got that?" Chrom instructed, ruffling his blue locks. "Let's go."
"Dear, are you out of your mind?" A woman's voice broke the silence of the room. Light wrinkles decorated her face, and patches of grey could be seen on her blonde hair. A small child was hugging her right leg. "You're not a young man anymore!" She raised her voice at her husband.
The village chief was now wearing a worn out leather armor. "I have to. We asked them to come and settle our bandit problem. I can't let them fight by themselves." The old man said, tapping the kite shield on his left arm, before strapping a steel sword on his hip.
"Don't be ridiculous! You're gonna get yourself killed!" She tried reasoning with him.
"Well, maybe I will, maybe I won't. But I have-" He was out of words when he felt a cold, metally sensation on his throat. It was only the flat part of a knife, but it did send shivers down his spine.
His wife was petrified at the unfolding scene.
"You know, if you want to die that badly, I'd be happy to help you." A voice colder than the steel on his neck pierced his ears from behind. "And… it's not nice playing with other people's belongings. Now, you have three seconds before your… granddaughter I presume?" The old man nodded slowly at the man's assumption. "Right, you have three seconds to tell we why am I here before she wished she just slept in for today."
"You were injured. Quit severely I might add. Luckily, Lord Chrom found you in time and brought you here for treatment." He said, surprisingly calm considering the situation.
"I see. And where is this Lord Chrom of yours now?"
"Bandits came when you were asleep. He went to meet them upfront."
"Bandits?" Both the village chief and his wife let out a sigh of relief when the thin metal piece distanced itself from his neck. He turned around to see their guest looking through a lightly opened window.
"Do you have a map?" He asked, still focusing on the scene outside.
The old woman just pointed at the rough sketching on the wall. The brown-haired man made his way to the 'painting'.
"I'm gonna need those back." He said, looking closely at the map in his hand.
"Y-yes, of course." The old man hastily untied the sword on his hip and the shield on his arm. He rested them against the bed. The younger man, bandaged abdomen and all, put on his outfit and picked up the arms.
"Ah, a perfect fit." He joked, gesturing himself to the family.
"Please sir. You can't be thinking out there in your condition."
"Why not? You think you have a better chance at them than me?" The brunette countered, looking directly at the older man. "I thought not." He smirked and made his way towards the old man. "Lock the door, barricade the entrance." He said, handing the knife from earlier to the village chief. "Use it wisely." The villager just nodded and took the knife from his hand.
"Milord, look out!" Frederick rushed in front of the two royals, shielding them from an incoming arrow. It hit him square in the chest and bounced off his thick armor. The great knight threw his javelin towards the archer, impaling him.
"Darn those dastards!" Chrom cursed. The three of them retreated towards the corner of a shop. "This isn't a usual raid. It's too organized." Chrom said, catching his breath while Lissa healed the cut on his left shoulder.
"Well, seeing they're not your run of the mill bandits, I agree. This is not a usual raid." A voice from behind them startled the trio. Chrom and Frederick readied their weapons for what's to come. The trio turned their heads to see the injured man from earlier was crouching behind them, complete with a sword and a shield in each hand. "I'm guessing you three are the ones that helped me, and for that, I thanked you, milords." He said, smiling.
"Peace, friend. There's no need for formalities. We saw an injured man, so we helped. Nothing more than that." Chrom said, when Lissa pinched his forearm out of the blue. Chrom cringed at the action. Looking at the cleric, he immediately knew what he had to do.
"Right, this is Lissa. She was the one that helped you. We just carried you here."
"Robin. My name's Robin." The brunette just nodded at the smiling blonde. "And as much as I'd like to know you better, I think we have a more pressing matter at hand.
"Yes, of course. You said they're not ordinary bandits, so what are they exactly?" Chrom asked.
"Well, for starters, they're actually soldiers, pretending to be bandits." Robin said, inching closer towards the Ylisseans.
"Now that you mention it, they did seemed to be more skillful than most. The kind you only get with rigorous training." Frederick finally broke his silence, but his eyes never strayed from the sword in Robin's hand.
Robin brought out the map he took earlier and placed in front of Chrom. "I might have a plan that could work, but I need to ask you something first." He raised his head and looked the blunette straight in the eyes.
"I ask you, Prince Chrom of Ylisse, next in line for the throne of the halidom, will you put your life and that of your subjects in the hands of a Plegian?"
The young lord looked at the brown-haired man in shock. So he's really a Plegian then? But why? Why is he so willing to let us know who he is? He stared straight into the man's deep, hazel eyes.
"If you're willing to trust three Ylissean strangers to the point of revealing your origin, then I shall do the same." Chrom said, gesturing his right hand at the man.
"Milord! Please reconsider. For all we know, this might be a ploy all along, and those are his men razing the village." Unsurprisingly, his most trusted steward cautioned him.
"That may be true, but do you see any other way out of this? We need all the help we can get now. And if this really is a trick, then we won't be much worse than we are now." The blunette answered, looking at the great knight.
Robin smiled and shook Chrom's hand. "Then it's settled. By this sword and shield, I promise you, you and your subjects will see the light of day tomorrow."
Chrom and Robin were crouching behind a fairly large cart, eyeing their surroundings. Robin had sent Frederick and Lissa to the other side of the village. A move that put both the lord and the great knight at ease.
"Three axes and a tome." Robin counted their enemies. "Shouldn't be too hard, assuming your steward can take care of their archers like we planned."
"Trust me. Frederick's the finest soldier you'll ever lay eyes upon."
"Here!"
"You're dead!"
"Find the other one!"
A commotion broke out from the other end. Robin just watched as the three fighters turned around and made their way towards the noise.
"I think that's our cue." The Plegian mouthed to the Ylissean prince and jumped out from their hiding place.
Robin zeroed in on the last of the unsuspecting trio. He arched his sword on the man's throat. With a fluid pull to the side, the fighter gagged and dropped to the ground, dying the area red.
"What the-" The fighter next to him shouted, turning his head and just looked at his friend whimpering on the ground. It took him a few seconds to realize what had happened. He gripped his axe and raised it above his head. He was ready to attack the brunette when a blue blur inserted itself between him and the man.
Utilizing the time the fighter took to get back his bearing, Chrom squeezed himself between his new friend and the attacker, just in time to parry his axe. Following his attack, the lord elbowed his throat. The man stopped in his spot, gasping for air. Chrom unleashed a diagonal slash onto the fighter, leaving a large, red line from his collarbone all the way to his gut. He followed his attack with a thrust to his chest.
"Take care of the other one." Robin said, making his way to the other target.
The mage. Robin raised his shield, anticipating an attack. And sure enough, the tome wielder shot a fireball at him. Robin did manage to block the ball of energy. But the force was enough to make him stop. He gritted his teeth as he felt a hole in his abdomen ripped apart. Damn it. He lunged forward and slammed the hefty slab of steel on the magician's face, sending him on his back. Robin sank his sword on the man's chest, finishing his part.
"You alright?" Chrom asked as he approached a kneeling Robin. He was holding an opened vulnerary in his left hand and pressuring his gut with his right. His sword was still sticking in the enemy's chest beside him.
"I'll be fine. The wound just reopened. Let's hurry. If your friends managed to finish their part, there should be another one left.
"How can you be so sure?" Chrom extended his hand towards the Plegian.
"Lucky guess?" Robin grabbed the lord's hand.
"Hah! That's all you got?" Frederick stared at the man standing in front of him. This one was different than the others. He used an axe that somehow can change its course and went back to its master when thrown. Plegian trickery! He thought, covering his exposed shin with his hand. Lissa was sticking close to him, trying her best to make herself smaller behind him. Her staff had broken.
"Whatcha gonna do now, knighty!" The brute taunted. "You know, that lass behind you reeked of noble blood. After I killed you, think I'll take her home. Ylissean nobles fetch a good price in Plegia…"
Frederick eyes widened, and his jaw went stiff hearing the man's words. Lissa was clinging to his back, shaking. The knight reached for his lance and pushed himself upwards. He failed.
"Pretty big words for a small man!" A shout echoed from behind them. Lissa turned around to see Robin walked towards them rather casually. She tried to smile but stopped when she realized something peculiar. He's alone. Why is he alone? Where's Chrom? Oh gods, don't tell me… She couldn't continue her thought.
"Ah, just the man I was looking for." The axe wielder retorted. "Robin the Traitor. You know, his majesty offered twenty thousand golds for your head. And just so we're clear, only for your head."
"Twenty grand? I'm flattered." Robin stopped beside the two crouching Ylisseans and subtly tapped his right foot two times.
Lissa somehow catched the gesture and furrowed her brows. Then it hit her. She looked to her right. A small smile crept up her face to see Chrom, crouching behind a tree in the fairly thick bush nearby.
"Seriously, do you really think he'll pay? This is Gangrel we're talking about."
"That's King Gangrel to you!" The man barked, "and it doesn't matter if he'd pay or not. Cutting that grin off your face's reward enough!" He threw his axe at the other Plegian.
The hand axe. The weapon of choice for a lot of Plegian brigands. Although there were many iterations over the years, varying in both size and design from region to region, all of them actually shared a common core structure. At a simple glance, it was a club with two metal blades on each side. Of course this is true for most axes. Upon further inspection, one could see that both blades were put together at a slight angle with each other. This difference was what made this particular axe wobbled when thrown. And if enough force was used, the axe should spin in the air and moved along a fixed trajectory to its target. A very good user could vary this trajectory by changing the way and the force used when throwing the axe, making it seemed like they were controlling the axe in mid-air. Some went as far as using blades of different weights and sizes to further vary the weapon's paths and range, adding to its versatility.
Left shoulder. Robin thought. He clenched his sword and retracted the left side of his body by one step. Just enough to give him space to maneuver. He parried the flying axe with his blade, throwing it off-balance. It dropped to the ground like a wyvern shot off the sky.
"Darn it!" The muscular Plegian reached for his other axe strapped on his back. He lunged towards Frederick and Lissa instead of Robin. He raised his hands, ready to strike the knight when a blue blur jumped in front of him.
Chrom slammed his sword at the axe in his hands. The momentum forced the man to turn sideways. The prince then rammed his right shoulder at him.
The 'bandit' met the ground with a loud thud. He clenched his axe, ready to throw it at the royal. He stopped and screamed when he felt a sharp pain stung his forearm. He shifted his gaze to see Robin's sword pinned his arm to the ground. "Damn you trait-"
His words were cut short when Chrom sunk his blade through his heart.
Robin sat down immediately after, sighing loudly.
"Wow! That was awesome! You two were completely in sync!" Lissa said excitedly, coming out from behind Frederick. "You okay Robin? You don't look so good."
Robin gave the blonde a look. He shifted the hem of his shirt, showing her what's underneath.
"Ugh, that looks bad. I'll go and see if the chief got any staff to spare. You guys just stay put."
Lissa did manage to get a spare staff from the village chief. The trio was healed to perfect health, or in Robin's case, movable condition.
"Right, now that that's over, I think a proper introduction is in order." The blue-headed Ylissean said. "As you already know, I'm Chrom, second-in-line to throne of Ylisse. That delicate one there is Lissa, my sister-"
"Hey! I am not delicate!"
"And this is Frederick, my most loyal and trusted friend."
Robin nodded to the great knight.
Frederick only stared at him.
"You have to forgive him, he's just cautious. Really, really cautious."
"Yeah, that's why his nickname's Frederick the Wary."
"A title I shall wear proudly, milady." Frederick said with an unchanged expression.
Robin just chuckled at the trio's banter. "It's fine. I won't trust me either. Anyway, I'm Robin." He said, extending his right hands towards Chrom. "Mercenary." He added, short.
Chrom took Robin's palm in his. "Now, if you don't mind, I want you to accompany us to the Capitol."
"So I'm going to be your prisoner now?"
"Depends." Frederick answered the Plegian instead of his lord. "We'll have to determine whether you'll pose any danger to the halidom first before we make any decision." His face was stoic as ever.
"Don't worry, you've showed me enough. We won't hurt you or anything. You have my word. Chrom assured the brunette. "And I can't say I'm not curious about your story."
Robin just sighed at their words. He gestured his hand towards the entrance of the village.
The four of them started their track back towards Ylisstol. Chrom was leading the way while Lissa chatted with the new addition to the group. Frederick was leading his horse in the back, keeping both eyes on the trio.
Welcome to my sorta sequel to my first fanfic. Don't worry, as this will be retelling of the game's events, you don't need to read that one if you don't want to.
I will be taking my liberties here and there, and skipped some scenes that I think aren't as important because if you're reading this, you probably already know how the story went. This is just what happened in my head.
As you can see in this chapter, the major change is that Robin never lose his memories, and he's just a mercenary with no magic whatsoever, with the exception of Ignis. Some of the characters might go OOC, so I apologize in advance if it's for the worst.
What else? Right. There will probably be little romance here even though I put Robin X Cordelia as the tag because I can't write romance. I'll try and put them here and there just not to make it feel rush, but don't expect too much.
And lastly, thank you for reading.