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Act 1: Calamity's Beginning | Chapter 2
"Mhm," Chrom licked his lips before tearing off another large chunk of burned meat and chewed slowly, and by the look on his face was savouring the taste. "It's been too long since I last had bear meat. It's delicious—" He broke off as he noticed his younger sister sitting next to him, a pout on her face and her arms crossed crossly, giving the meat in front of her a dirty look. "What's wrong, Lissa? Dig in, it's good."
"I'll pass." Lissa crunched her nose in distaste. "Gods, why couldn't you spear us an animal that normal people eat for once? I mean, c'mon! Who eats bear?" When Chrom pointed at himself, Lissa groaned. "Someone other than you. You're messing with the food chain big time, Chrom!"
He shrugged apathetically as Lissa turned to Robin for assistance. "Right, Robin? Er...Robin?" Said male was currently stuffing his face with more than he should've been doing at once and at the sound of Lissa saying his name his head snapped up to stare at her questioningly, an odd sound managing to escape from his over-stuffed mouth. Lissa giggled at the sight of his bulging cheeks right before she sighed in exasperation, turning away and mumbling, "And him. I suppose someone would enjoy just about anything after not eating for days…" She was cut off by the sound of harsh gagging.
"Grk!" Robin's eyes bulged as a particular large chunk of meat got lodged in his throat and he began coughing. Chrom reached over and thumped his back in an attempt to dislodge it as he said, "Just eat it, Lissa. Meat is meat and right now, it's the only food we have. I like bear and if the chance comes, I'mma take it."
She poked the meat with a fingernail hesitantly and scrunched up her nose even more. "Since when does meat smell like old boots!? Wait, I take that back—Old boots smell better!"
Robin coughed quite violently, a piece of meat flying out of his mouth to splat on the dirt in front of him. "Thank you," he rasped to Chrom after the hacking subsided.
"You're welcome. This is why you don't scarf down your food so," Chrom chuckled. Robin just stared, a look practically asking excuse me? etched on his face. He couldn't help it that he seemed to not have had food for what was probably days before he woke up in a field.
"Milady, every experience makes us stronger. Even those we don't enjoy," Frederick spoke up from directly across the blazing fire. Diverting his attention, Robin noticed that he didn't have any food in his hands either and rolled his eyes.
"Really?" Lissa quirked her eyebrows, her lips pulling into frown. "Then why don't I see you eating, Frederick?"
He chuckled dryly, "Oh...I'm not hungry. I...I had a large lunch! Yes quite!"
Robin rolled his eyes again and muttered under his breath, "Where can I go to be an accomplished liar like you?" Meanwhile Lissa had jumped up and shouted, "Yeah, right, Frederick!" and effectively drowned out Robin's comment. Which was something he was grateful for, because the next things out of his mouth were things that he was positive Frederick would impale him for.
Chrom yawned quietly as he raised his arms above his head, stretching as the night wore on. He was on first watch tonight. His dark grey eyes flickered over the sleeping forms scattered on the ground. Lissa was curled up in a ball next to him, a dark blanket draped over her. She had just fallen asleep right there next to him and he decided that he didn't necessarily care—which was why she was still there instead of closer to the dying fire. Frederick was laying on his back still dressed in armour and was snoring softly. He had forgone a blanket. And the third form was Robin who's head was resting on his strange coat and his limbs splayed out like he had just fallen. He hadn't wanted a blanket either, insisting that the night was warm enough. A few times he would mumble and flip over, adopting a new haphazard position but otherwise stayed asleep.
The blue haired man gave another yawn before leaning back against the tree trunk; all was well and silent, except for Frederick's snores—Wait. Silent? It was a bit too silent.
"...Huh?" His brow furrowed as he sat up straighter, eyes flickering between one shadow and another. There were no noises of animals in the undergrowth and the night birds have all but gone silent. The air was still and it felt as if everything was holding its breath. Silently as he could, he climbed to his feet groaning softly as he stretched tired muscles.
"Chrom?" A tired girl's voice asked before a loud yawn was heard. "What's wrong?"
Chrom's eyes shot down to his sister who was sitting up and rubbing her eyes. He had tried not to wake her up but it appeared he had failed miserably. "Sorry," he apologised in a low voice, "Something is amiss, but I didn't mean to wake you…"
Lissa lowered her voice in consideration for the two sleeping forms, neither of whom had stirred. "Define something."
"I'm...not sure," he admitted finally after a few moments of careful thought. "But I'm going to check around here."
Lissa was on her feet in an instant. "Not by yourself, you won't. I'm coming too."
Her brother refrained from rolling his eyes and groaning in irritation. Lissa was one of those annoying people who was awake in an instant and insisted on coming on something that probably would end up pointless. Lissa was staring at him sharply, her hands on her hips as she waited for Chrom to tell her no...Again.
"Fine," he sighed, running a hand through his hair. Even if he said no, she would still tag along. The eeriness of the whole forest unsettled him enough to be grateful for the company. "...Thanks, Lissa." Lissa offered a huge grin at her brother's back as he started off into the shadows, she following quite close on his heels.
Lissa shivered, gripping her brother's arm tightly as her shining blue eyes flickered all around them. Moonlight shone through the gaps of the trees. "It sure is dark…And quiet. I've never been in a forest like this before. Where did all the animals go?"
That's because they're not here.
Chrom narrowed his eyes, his hand drifting to the hilt of his divine blade but otherwise remained silent as he peered into the dense foliage around them. Something was terribly, terribly wrong here. The absence of animals was unnerving by itself but the air felt wrong and the hairs on his neck were prickling with unease.
A large rumbling was heard just before the ground started to shake beneath them. Lissa screeched Chrom's name as she held on for dear life, her shrieking drowning out Chrom's curses. The sound of trees crashing down was echoed all around them, new patches on moonlight shining through.
"Lissa," Chrom said seriously, clamping a hand over his sister's mouth as he wrenched his other arm from her vise-like grip. His voice was calmer than what he felt. "Run."
She looked up at him in confusion.
"I mean it! Go!" He growled, shoving his sister back in the direction they had come. Lissa sprinted off like a madman, leaping or scrambling over objects in her way. Chrom quickly overtook her but didn't remain far ahead of her out of frightened concern, only stopping briefly to help her up as she tripped and fell flat on her face. Behind them the ground opened up with a sharp burst of flame and lava, flooding the basin of the area as balls of flame fell down from the sky and caught more trees on fire. The fire took quickly as smoke filled the area. Out of the corner of his eye, Chrom spotted a gap not that far ahead on him, that led out of the basin that they had wandered into.
"Lissa!" Chrom yelled. "This way!"
He sprang into a gap and Lissa fell in after him. They stood shakily to their feet after sprawling, the adrenaline fading as they took deep breaths in an attempt to regain their breath. A frown crossed Chrom's features as he stared at the fire in the distance. Earthquakes were not supposed to happen in this part of Ylisse, so close to Ylisstol; they were more common near the border that separated Ylisse from Plegia. And never had he seen fire spout from the ground like that. Meanwhile, Lissa had turned away from the destruction and was staring up at the night sky.
"Chrom…? What is that?" She asked hesitantly, pointing up at the sky. Chrom whirled, quirking an eyebrow in confusion and followed her pointing finger. High above them, particles of light were quickly converging into one mass and with a loud clap, it exploded. Just as quickly as it had exploded, the light faded away to reveal a slit in the dark sky that opened like an eye with crystals as eyelashes. Surrounding the odd phenomenon was a multitude of strange symbols, adding to the suspicion that indeed, this was a magic. A magic that Chrom nor Lissa has ever seen before. A bright light filled the blackened iris…
And almost like tears, something fell out of the middle of it, headfirst towards the ground. No, not one something. Two, three, multiple somethings. They fell with a sickening thud to the forest floor not so far away from the two siblings.
Chrom narrowed his eyes, drawing his sword, as the forms slowly rose to their feet whilst bending unnaturally, four glowing red eyes peering out at them. The red pinpricks of light leering at him as they drew closer gave him an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. He gently shoved his younger sister behind him with a quiet growl.
"Stay back," he warned his sister briefly before charging at the form closest to him. An axe was raised above its head as it suddenly rushed at him swinging for his head. He ducked and slashed the attacker across his midsection, felling him instantly.
Chrom stood up straight and turned back to kill the other attacker when he stopped in his tracks, watching in horror as the person he thought he had just killed craned his neck all the way around to stare at the swordsman with baleful eyes. Neither moved for a moment before the unknown creature attacked him again faster than Chrom had given it credit for. Blocking the blow hurriedly with a harsh clang of steel against steel, he shoved the creature back hard with a growl and while it was off balance, leapt at it and drove the point of Falchion between its shoulder blades. The creature twitched and burst into a purple cloud of mist that quickly dissipated.
He stared at the spot where the creature had disappeared, breathing heavily. What was that thing? He had never encountered a being such as that within his nineteen years of living and nor had he ever heard any stories of warriors such as these, warriors with grey skin and red eyes, breathing violet mist—
A shrill scream broke off Chrom's train of thought and immediately his head snapped up as he yanked his sword out of the ground. Lissa!
Backed up against a boulder, the blonde pig tailed girl was gripping her stave with both hands so hard her knuckles were white as she held it in front of her as some kind of barrier between her and the approaching enemy. The assailant had his own axe raised above his head, the metal glinting sickeningly in the moonlight.
Chrom swore, his stomach dropping as he realised he was too far away to save his sister in time.
He hated himself for the fact that he had forgotten about the other enemy.
He knew he was too late.
The axe was starting to fall.
But he still ran at her anyway, praying to the gods that he would somehow reach her in time.
In a blink of an eye and almost an answer to his prayers, a form was interposed between the axe toting assailant and the cowering Lissa. Metal clanging against metal rang out through the clearing a second time, and Chrom was shocked to see a lithe man holding back the axe with a broadsword braced against his shoulders.
Where had he come from…? Strange things were just popping into his life today, it seemed. First Robin, and now this.
Blue hair flashed dully as the newcomer turned his head towards the frozen Chrom. A shadow covered half of his face, effectively disguising his identity and his expression save his mouth that was pressed into a grimace as he trembled underneath the pressing weight on his back. Upon noticing the other swordsman standing there with a dumbstruck look and not moving, he snapped, "Help!"
Chrom nodded, needing no further prompting and charged at the trio, his sword held parallel to the ground. Upon nearing them and slashing horizontally once again, the other swordsman twisted and rose, slashing his own sword across the midsection as well. With a sharp hiss of air the unknown assailant burst into vapour just as the first one had.
The other man, now facing away from the siblings, turned slightly as he sheathed his sword, revealing a dark blue ornate mask with slits for eyes pulled down over the top half of his face and his lips now turned down into a frown. His hand shifted, angling his sword hilt into a position that his body blocked it.
Lissa placed a hand on her chest, breathing heavily and her pale face regaining its colour back quickly.
Chrom steadied and straightened himself, holding his sword point down to the forest floor. He felt no danger from this stranger, but it helped to be cautious. He had thought that about the last stranger and it ended up being a man who accidentally almost hit him with destructive magic. "Quite an entrance," he said lowly, his eyes narrowing slightly and flickering between the mask and the shifted sword. He hadn't missed the small movement, but couldn't figure out what the man's deal was. "What's your name?"
The man's mouth pressed even more thinly and remained silent for so long that both Lissa and Chrom thought he wouldn't even bother to answer when the man mumbled something. Chrom frowned, leaning forward a little.
"I'm sorry, what—" The rest of his statement was cut off by the clatter of hooves and Frederick shouting: "Milord! Milady! Are you hurt?"
Lissa's head snapped towards the sound and she gave another sigh of relief as she spotted Frederick and Robin both seated atop a horse not that far away from the trio. They both looked disturbed, she noticed. With a pained groan, Robin slid off from behind the knight and landed on the ground awkwardly.
"I am never riding one of those things aga—Whoa." He stuttered to a halt, face paling and his eyes widening as he finally took notice that in fact, the four—no, the five of them were surrounded by unknown assailants. He also didn't stop to ponder about why Chrom had somehow picked up yet another stranger. "What the hell is that?" Are such horrific creatures common here? If they were, he completely understood why the Shepherds existed, he thought as he withdrew his sword quickly.
The warriors surrounding them were shifting and getting over their apparent confusion, silver flashing in the moonlight all around. Strange groaning noises were starting to sound, filling the whole forest. It was fear inducing, the sound grating in their ears.
With a quiet growl, Chrom leveled his sword once more, Falchion reassuring in his grip. Even if he didn't know what these things were, the thought of him being able to kill them was satisfying enough. "They're not from Ylisse, I can tell you that much, Robin. Now, we don't know what-"
"You killed their leader," the unknown man said suddenly, cutting across Chrom and turning his head fully to face him. "They will be easier to defeat, good sir."
Chrom shot the man a look. Those last two weren't the easiest to defeat, and he doubted that the rest of them would be either.
Frederick raised an eyebrow, suspicion lacing his voice as he said, "You seem to know exactly what these things are." When the man gave a short nod in response, Frederick seemed as if he was going to give a follow up question when a loud, gruff yell was heard.
"Captain Chrom!"
Robin and everyone else's head snapped towards the sound. Even the strange creatures paused, surprised at this new possible threat. Robin could see metal flashing above even the enemy's. It seemed further back, however.
"All right then," the man continued screaming, and a loud groan, then thump was heard. A clatter of hooves gave Robin the impression that the man was a cavalier as well. "Which one of you freaks want to taste my lance first?! I know the perfect place: shoved up your ass!"
Robin gave a small grin upon hearing those words. This was obviously an ally, and whoever this guy was he was sounding exactly like the type of guy Robin would like.
"Hold, milady!" A new man spoke up, his voice oddly French sounding and eloquent. "Life may be long, although not so long in this predicament, but attraction is fleeting! Would you leave me in your sweet dust? Leave the war to warriors, dear birb! A beauty such as you need only wage love."
This guy sounds completely off his rocker, Robin deadpanned.
"Who the hell are you?" The other man snapped loudly.
"Ah! So you're intrigued by me. Of course you are—it's only natural. I am myth and legend! I am he who strides across history's greatest stage! The man who puts the arch in archer! I am—"
"Shut up. We don't have the time for this!"
"No, but wait, dear maiden! I'm not done!"
"You will be when I plant my foot through your face."
This is pointless as hell.
Robin nudged Chrom's arm to get his attention from this...display and then motioned towards the enemy which, unfortunately looked to be a lot more than what he had originally seen. He could also see more clearly, everything starting to be dyed in a dull orange and the scent of smoke wafted over the cool night breeze.
Well. Shit. The fire's spreading. We need to hurry.
"Frederick, go to the men over there and help them. Attack around the back," Robin ordered, making a shooing motion the best he could without losing grip on his sword. "Lissa, stay back, don't die, and Chrom and I will go through the front. Exercise caution, we don't know how these things fight. They may look slow, but I highly doubt they are."
They all nodded and sprang into action.
"Oh crap," Robin squeaked as Frederick (still in pristine armour that irked Robin as he was covered in dirt and blood) and the other newly gather companions staggered over to the rest of the group amidst the purple dust drifting off into the wind. Lissa, despite having received a few wounds of her own before Robin had rushed to her side, was healing the others.
"What is it?" Confusion laced Chrom's voice as he paused from wiping off decayed skin from his blade. Lissa kept her attention focused on Robin's arm where he had received a nasty gash from an axe he didn't quite notice in time. "Did we not get them all?"
"I thought the archer dude really was kidding. That really is a woman."
Chrom and Lissa's eyes widened simultaneously right before Chrom doubled over, his shoulders shaking with laughter. Robin didn't find it as funny, at that point he was thinking of a way to avoid the immediate death that was about to befall him.
"Shh, shut up!" He hissed frantically, slapping Chrom's shoulder pauldron. That only made the sword-carrying Ylissean laugh harder.
Lissa in turn slapped Robin's shoulder and ordered, "Stop moving already." He obeyed.
"What's so funny?" the woman clad in red asked as she paused in front Chrom, crossing her arms across her armoured chest. "I knew I shouldn't have left you, damn it," her voice deepened in a pretty accurate imitation of Chrom's and she continued, "'It'll be easy, Sully. Just a small mission.' Small mission, my ass."
The man grinned at her. "You came just in time, Sully," he said, sheathing his sword in a flourish.
She grunted, her head turning towards the white haired man seated on the ground. "Who the hell is he?"
"Robin—" said man started as Chrom said, "Our new tactician."
Sully grunted again as Frederick stepped forward, holding out a hand to interrupt the conversation. All eyes turned to him, including the masked man who just turned his whole head to face him. "It seems as if all the creatures are defeated. This young man," he gestured, "took care of the others."
The masked man didn't move, nor acknowledge the fact. He simply stood there, resembling a statue.
Dropping her patient's arm, Lissa approached the man carefully, her head titled almost curiously and holding her healer's staff behind her back. "Uh...I never got to thank you...for before, I mean. So...thank you. You were very brave."
Still, the man remained silent and unmovable.
"You saved my sister's life. My name is Chrom. Might I ask yours?"
The man's thin mouth pressed together even more firmly then Robin thought was possible. He looked as if he was reluctant to answer, but finally he said, "Marth. You may call me Marth."
Robin gave a small snort. Not much for conversation, is he?
Chrom looked surprised. "Marth? After the heroic king of old? You certainly fight like a hero. Where did you learn your way with a sword?"
A sword that Robin noticed the man—Marth—kept at an angle as if he didn't want anyone to see it.
"I'm not here to talk about me," Marth spat suddenly. "This world teeters on the brink of a calamity. Of what you saw tonight, this is merely a prelude of what is yet to come. You have been warned."
"I don't get it," said Lissa, her bright blue eyes wide as she stared questioningly up at the masked man. "What's teetering on the edge of what now?"
Marth remained quiet, his lips still pursed. But he acknowledged that Lissa had spoken by the way his head dipped to the side and his head was turned towards her briefly before spinning sharply on his heel and quickly disappearing into the darkness of the surrounding trees. Robin watched him go a moment before turning back to Chrom and Lissa.
"Odd" was his only comment, to which they both nodded in agreement.
Frederick grunted. "We'll hear his name again, I wager. It appears his skills lies elsewhere anyway. However, I am more concerned about the capital. We should make haste, lest we arrive too late."
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A/N: This is literal shit ngl
And I've decided that I'll try to write a chapter a month. Every 7th, a day or so off, anyway.
I also realise that this is a bit forward of me, but I would appreciate feedback and critique. I feel this is the best way for me to grow as a writer, or to finally realise that I'm not very good at this lmao
- Kaito -
