Gallian Squad 7: Hello readers, welcome to the next chapter of the story!
Severa: Well, that was quick. I thought you'd have more important things to do than write some dumb story like, oh I don't know, STUDY!
Owain: Peace Severa, if he didn't write of our exploits then how would our grand legend spread to the starving masses?
Severa: I don't see how all of three reviews and a couple hundred views counts as the starving masses on this site you geek!
Owain: Hey, what are you getting at you…
7:*Holds up fog horn* I SWEAR IF YOU TWO SAY ONE MORE WORD I"LL PLAY THE WILLIAM TELL OVERTURE ON THIS THING!
Severa and Owain: *Glower at each other* …Fine *Walk to opposite sides of the stage*
7: Sheesh, they're so spooled up about working together. Anyway, on with the chapter! As always, I own nothing except the story.
Waking Up (Sudden Shifts)
"…And what do you suppose we do?" Robin vaguely recognized the voice of a young man, his tone calm and deep.
"I don't know, something… I mean, we can't just leave him facedown in the dirt, right?" The next voice was different, and younger. Most likely a girl.
By this point, Robin could feel his eyes begin to open and sensation return to his limbs. He rolled over with a groan and beheld his rescuers.
The first thing Robin noticed was the man's shock of deep blue hair. His eyes were the same, compassion and steel shining in cerulean pools, the eyes of a leader. There was a girl hovering near him too. Two golden blond pigtails framed the side of her head, adorned with an auric headband and a bonnet. Her eyes were light blue, sparked with curiosity as she gazed at his groggy form.
The two ceased talking after hearing his groan and, seeing the man wake up, went to greet him.
"Hey there stranger!" Greeted the girl, voice subdued. "What you doin' there, huh?"
"There are better places to sleep than on the ground. You know that, right? "Asked the man as he reached down to help Robin to his feet.
"Yes there are, but thank you, Chrom." The name came unbidden to Robin's lips, an easy reflex.
"Ah, then you know who I am?" Chrom asked Robin, nonplussed by Robin's knowledge.
"Well, no, not really… I'm sorry, but can you tell me where I am? I can't seem to remember." Robin scratched his head as he glanced around.
"Ha, you claim to know who my lord is yet not know where you are? Someone pay this actor; he plays quite the fool." This quip came from a man that Robin had not yet seen. When he turned to look, he quailed.
Easily a foot taller than him, the man had wavy brown hair and a stoic face, the look of a consummate professional. Adding to his stern demeanor was heavy riding army, which encased everything short of his legs and face. He cut an imposing figure.
Now that Robin had his wits about him, he noticed they were all dressed for war. Chrom wore a lightly armored suit of chainmail underneath a blue shirt and pants, the metal clinking as he moved. A cloth and elaborate shoulder guard covered his right shoulder and a white cape was slung over his back. Chrom watched Robin look around, his palm on the hilt of an ornate longsword sheathed at his belt.
The blonde girl wore a more modest set. It was mostly cloth with thick leather crossing her torso and a large metal-banded skirt about her legs. Robin found it peculiar, the idea of wearing such bright yellow to a fight.
"I assure you, Sir, that I truly mean that I have no idea where I am. I have no idea how I got here nor any memory before this moment. The only thing I know is my name, Robin." Robin answered the knight's question and introduced himself.
"Oh! I heard of that before, it's called amnesia!" The girl exclaimed. Robin filed away the information in case he needed to name his condition later.
"It's called a load of wyvern dung, Lady Lissa, and I'd prefer if you didn't stand so close to this… Robin," the knight replied, giving Robin an icy glare.
Robin's hands shot up. "Believe me, Sir Knight, if I knew who I was and what I was doing before you found me I would tell you everything! But… I honestly cannot remember."
"Enough, Frederick!" Chrom barked at the knight, "What if he is who he says? We can't just leave him here. What sort of Shepherds would we be if we abandoned those in need?"
"Just the same, milord. I simply must recommend the appropriate level of caution." Frederick turned to Robin, "I have every want to trust you stranger, but times have been dangerous of late and at least one of us must be cautious." He nodded towards an armored horse bearing a lance. The deadly blade gleamed in the sun.
"Enough," Chrom commanded with a weary sigh. "We'll take him to Southtown and sort him out there. Will that satisfy you, Frederick the Wary?"
"Very well, milord," the great knight turned to mount his mighty steed and spurred it forward. The other three followed on foot.
"Am I to be your prisoner, locked away upon arrival to this Southtown?" Robin asked Chrom cautiously.
Chrom grinned at him before replying. "Don't worry, if we find you're no enemy of Ylisse, you'll be free to go."
Ylisse.
The word echoed in his head like bells. Where had he heard that before? It sounded so familiar, but he really couldn't think of it.
Robin walked behind Lissa, and for the first time his eyes were drawn to a staff slung on her back, a jewel nestled in its head.
"Excuse me, Lissa was it?"
The girl nodded, a friendly smile crossing her face. "That's me! Did you need something, feel ill?"
Robin shook his head, "No, I was just curious about your staff."
Lissa blinked before stopping and pulling the staff from her back, grunting when it caught on lose strap. After a moment of yanking at it, Lissa pulled it free and plonked the staff into the earth.
"This is a healing staff. I'm learning to be a healer, and I can't do much yet, but I try my best!"
Robin frowned, yelping when he felt something land on his face. After he calmed his blush and Lissa stopped laughing, he continued, "So, how does it work?"
Lissa shot a smug look towards Frederick's back before pointing at the gem. "You see, I reach into my magic pool and make it flow into the jewel. The gem channels the energy, the magic flows into the injuries and they're healed right up!"
Robin gaped, "That's… does it?"
Lissa giggled, a sound akin to chimes in the wind. "Yes. The staffs are made by the priests and clerics of Naga, each one carrying the blessing of the Goddess. Mind, the gem can only work so many times and they're hard to produce. Can't tell you how many times I was scolded for using one on minor injuries."
Robin nodded, his fractured memory dredging up an image of howling wolves born of a book, "Are there other things that can channel magic?"
Lissa almost spoke before Chrom's laugh reached them. "If anything proves you have amnesia, it's forgetting about tomes."
Robin frowned again, suddenly aware of a square weight in his cloak. "Tomes?"
Chrom nodded, "They're a type of book that's been enchanted to channel magic for battle. Some conjure fire, some lightning, and some wind. There's a subset that use thaumaturgy when magic is channeled into them, but they're rare."
Robin filed that away too. He was glad that his scarce memories still told him what magic was, but it seemed he had much still to learn, "Um, one last question, about the tomes."
Chrom motioned for him to speak.
"Well… can the conjured elements take different shapes?"
Chrom and Lissa shared curious glances, a silent 'don't look at me' shared between them. Lissa lost the staring contest and answered, "Well… You'd be better served asking a veteran mage. They know more about combat magic than we do."
Frederick finally joined the conversation. "If he should be found innocent, may I remind. Now, if everyone would be so kind as to move along?"
Chrom and Lissa started forward, the conversation quickly forgotten amongst the rolling green hills. Robin kept his mind on the tomes as he followed, curiosity eating away at him.
There's nothing I can do, he finally decided with a sigh. If I'm right, then I can use magic, and that weight in my coat is a tome. But… can I make those wolves?
Robin cleared his mind, jogging to catch up to the others. They were still a ways from their destination. He had plenty of time to think.
Time passed like an unwinding clock as they walked. They continued for a few leagues, stopping for a rest just before Southtown's walls.
"Whelp, we're nearly there. How are you holding up, my delicate little sister?" Chrom teased Lissa who pouted at him.
"I am NOT delicate!" she yelled for the fifth time that day.
Robin had used their walk to observe them. Chrom and Lissa were siblings, Frederick acted as a guardian of sorts. Used to their banter by this point, Robin chuckled at Lissa's comical expression. Then he saw Frederick's chin pointed sharply upward and his smile faded. The tainted stench of burning wood flooded his senses and he turned toward Southtown, modest homes just visible over the ridge.
Lissa, who had since gone to the top of the hill, gasped and shouted, "Chrom, the town's being attacked!"
Chrom and Frederick quickly joined her on the ridge, Robin scrambled to keep up with them. What he saw below was a nightmare. The town roiled in flame and screams filled the air as people ran for their lives or were callously cut down.
"Chrom, we have to help them!" Lissa shouted at her brother.
Chrom nodded, hand falling to his blade. "Damn bandits," he muttered, looking to Frederick
"Milord, what about him?" The knight asked, pointing to Robin.
"Unless he's on fire too, it can wait!" Chrom rushed to the town with his sister close behind, drawing his sword as he went. Robin watched them disappear into the smoke, adrenaline tainting his mind with nausea.
"Aptly put, milord" Frederick muttered before spurring his horse after the siblings. Robin was left alone with his thoughts.
Hm. If I wanted to, I could run into the forest and disappear into obscurity.
His body turned to face the trees, but he didn't move.
But, if I do, then both the townspeople and my saviors are likely to die. And, if by some chance, they survive, I'll be hunted down. Well, when I put it that way, looks like pragmatism and my conscious agree.
His heart hammered at the decision, but Robin drew the iron sword at his waist and charged into the town.
At first, Robin only saw corpses. Villagers were the majority, but he saw bandits too, holes punched through them or innards splashed on the ground.
Frederick and Chrom, Robin thought as he moved through the carnage. He froze when a whistle pierced his ears.
Instinct took over and Robin rolled to his left, dodging the two axe heads that buried themselves where he'd been standing. With a twirl, he swung for the closest attacker. Unprepared for this show of resistance, the first bandit was decapitated with a wet tear. Robin channeled his magic on instinct and fired a bolt of lightning at the other bandit. His arm vanished and he collapsed, blood burbling onto the stained road.
Robin stared at the carnage. I… really do not like how easy that was. I may not know much, but that was instinct. Was I a soldier before this? Do soldiers train in magic and arms? Or, are bandits just weak and I have the same bloodlust as an average man?
Robin shook the questions from his mind. He needed to find Chrom and the others before they got killed. Something told him that there were many more bandits where the two he'd slain came from.
He ran through the town, following sounds of conflict while killing any bandit he came across. More than a few villagers owed him their lives, but he'd yet to see Chrom or the others. Hearing metal crash into metal, he turned into the town square.
There were Chrom and Frederick, but he couldn't find Lissa. Then again, Robin couldn't worry about her with almost a dozen bandits trying to trap Chrom and Frederick. Thankfully, the bandits were so focused on Frederick riding around them that Robin went unnoticed.
Pulling out his tome, Robin concentrated and tried to shape the lightning like one of his memories. It didn't work as planned. He was trying to conjure a pack of wolves to rush the bandits and rip them asunder before exploding, but all he got were a trio of lightning orbs exploding among the bandits and scattering the men.
Ok then. I'm guessing I need a good deal more practice before I can do something like that. Besides, that practically killed the tome. Sword time.
Robin drew his blade and charged toward Chrom. Another bandit tried to stop him, but Robin parried the blade and smoothly impaled him. Casting the dying man aside, Robin finally saw Chrom in action.
Chrom in a fight was hard to describe. His strikes had a great deal of force behind them, but they flowed into each other smoothly. He also seemed to forgo defense when he pressed his attack, but his actions were decisive. In one instance, he smoothly opened a bandit from shoulder to hip before cracking another into the ground with a punch. Then, he smacked a blow aside before parrying another strike.
Savage beauty, that was the only way it could be described.
Snapping back to reality, Robin ran to join Chrom, stabbing one of the bandits bearing down on him. Only three remained after the electric blasts. This remainder was cleaned out in short order.
Chrom regarded Robin, surprised to see him there. "You didn't run?"
Robin almost laughed, "Weren't you the one spouting my innocence?"
Chrom shook his head. "I never doubted you. I just didn't expect you to know how to fight."
Robin glanced around, looking for any other bandits. "Neither did I. Frankly, I'm winging it, but I'll help however I can."
Chrom glanced behind Robin and sighed, "It's appreciated, friend, but Frederick has this well in hand."
Robin turned to see and agreed, a hint of trepidation entering his mind.
Frederick was charging in and out of the remaining bandits, aiming to split them into ever smaller groups. Any that tried to attack him met their ends on his lance, his slices quick and efficient. Every bandit that tried to flee was quickly run down, sickening cracks rending the air.
Soon, only one trembling bandit in a fur coat was left. Robin couldn't hear any words, even in the nearly empty plaza, but the bandit was obviously begging for his life. Frederick wasn't half that merciful.
A moment later, the bandit had a hole where his heart was and Frederick spurred his horse to join Chrom and Robin.
The two made for quite a contrast. Chrom was powerful and dexterous, but he was, dare Robin say it, a little flamboyant in his attacks. Frederick, on the other hand, was all efficiency, not a single movement wasted as he delivered death to those threatening his charges.
Speaking of charges, Robin finally found Lissa. She was curled behind Frederick, eyes squeezed shut while her hands gripped Frederick hard.
Poor girl. I doubt she's ever been in a battle, let alone one with so many casualties. I suppose I should feel lucky I'm not in the same state.
Chrom asked, "Is that all of them?"
"No, milord, the leader remains." Frederick pointed across the bridge to a large figure.
From their vantage, Robin could see the leather wrapped around the man's frame and the great axe he hefted over his shoulder. His movements were smooth too, like a veteran at ease with his work
"Chrom, listen, that man is skilled, more so than the others. Underestimating him will get us killed," Robin cautioned. Chrom and Frederick turned to him in surprise.
"How do you know this, Robin?" Chrom asked.
Robin scrunched up his face, trying to think up an explanation for what he could see.
"I don't know. I can kind of… see the battlefield. I can see strengths, weaknesses, weapons. I must have studied this somewhere …"
Frederick almost spoke, but a meek voice interrupted, "So… you can do tactics?"
Robin glanced at Lissa, who was shaking. A warm smile bloomed on his face, "I guess so!"
Her eyes regained some of their former light, "Cool! So, you can use swords, magic, and tactics! You're like a… horse that can balance on a ball and juggle!"
Chrom chuckled at Robin's dumbstruck face, "An apt comparison, Lissa. Happily, none of us have any injuries. We'll take care of the leader before sorting out the town, ok?"
Lissa nodded. Frederick placed himself between Robin and Chrom and Robin almost rolled his eyes.
"Ok, advance slowly and keep an eye out for surprises."
Frederick snorted, "I always do."
Robin shook his head and they advanced. Frederick went a bit ahead, his heavy armor providing better protection. The man across the bridge shuffled and an axe flew toward them. Robin shifted so the axe only sliced his cheek as it went by, burning a shallow cut.
Their leader laughed. "Come on little sheepies, it's time to pay for slaughtering my boys!" He crowed before charging at Chrom. But, the swing was slow, Chrom already knowing how to react.
Blocking the incoming axe strike with the flat of his blade, he pushed the man away. Robin fired three bolts of thunder from his withered tome, but the bandit was not kind enough to stand still.
"Ha! Is that all you got little sheep? No wonder your kingdom's in such dire straits!" He laughed before charging at the two again, unaware of the charging knight who had circled behind him
"Pick a god and pray," Frederick suggested as he brought his lance to bear. His bland voice betrayed his focused gaze, not once looking away as he skewered the surprised bandit.
"Damn you… Ylisseans… You'll… pay for… this..." the bandit managed to spit before his soul left him.
Chrom stared at the corpse for a moment before turning to Robin, "I thought you said he was skilled?"
Robin shrugged, "I said thinking he was like the others would get you killed. I never said he was anywhere near your level."
Chrom snorted, "A clever tongue. But we have a town to put back together. Will you stay with us, even it means dealing with Frederick?"
Robin thought for a moment before sighing, "At this point, you, Frederick, and Lissa are the only people I know. I'll stick around."
Chrom nodded before he led them into town, the villagers returning to rebuild their lives.
They pieced the town back together quickly, the damage minimal compared to what they feared. A feast was offered to the heroes, which was politely declined despite Lissa's complaints. As the sun began to descend, they left Southtown. Barely twenty minutes later, Chrom made an interesting proposal to Robin
"Would you like to be a Shepherd, Robin? We could certainly use your help defending people like the villagers today."
Robin barely had to think about it. He'd been doing his thinking while helping the townspeople after all, and decided that, while Frederick was overbearing, he wouldn't leave newfound friends. He wouldn't leave the only stable ground, the only foundation he had for memory.
"I would be honored to join, Chrom."
Regardless of what storms came, the Shepherds and their recruit would see it through, even as their greatest challenge grew in the distance.
Ch 2 end
Holy mackerel that was long, yet fun, to write!
Also, I'd like to thank my first reviewer on this story, Goodralisk, for the review and positive reinforcement. Thanks, friend!
Now, it's late as I finish writing and I'm tired so Sev, can you sign off for us?
Severa: Ugh, fine *ahem* Thank you all for reading and don't forget to follow, favorite, and most importantly review! See you next time!
Please review, see you next time!