Another chapter already? It looks like winter break does wonder for my update speed :o
Comments are always welcome! :)
Future time: gateway to the past
The Gate had once been a part of a grand fortress, its name and purpose long lost to time. The remnants of the great structure lay scattered around the island, the broken walls and weathered stones jutting out of the ground like neglected gravestones. It was a fitting image considering the scores of Risen which shambled about among the ruins.
Even a place like this was thoroughly infected by Grima's spawn. It was only to be expected but Morgan couldn't help feeling incredibly frustrated as she dodged an arrow and sent a blast of Elfire at the offending archer. The fire spread to a nearby swordsman and both of them began to burn; Morgan hurried past their fading bodies and pressed forward, carefully making her way across the debris-filled ground. The Gate was merely yards away, its muted blue light beckoning them onward like a beacon of hope, yet there was an entire horde of Risen they to fight through first.
"Go go go!" Morgan yelled, partly to urge everyone on and partly in an effort to draw more attention to herself. She jumped onto a broken pillar and promptly ducked as an axe flew through the space where her head had been. "Elfire!" The Risen flew backwards and faded away.
"Here I come!" Wings flapped and Cynthia swooped down, twirling her lance in a way that logically should've been incapable of causing any damage but managed to strike two Risen in the head all the same. Several nearby Risen began to turn in her direction only to be incinerated by a burst of white crystalline fire. Nah pulled out of her dive and into a barrel roll to avoid a couple of spells before closing in again, flames spewing from her mouth.
"WITH ALL SPEED! PAAAAAAATH OF RADIAAAAAAAAAAANCE!"
Despite the situation Morgan grinned and looked over. Up ahead she could see Owain, Laurent, and Noire scrambling over the treacherous ground, Owain and Laurent clearing the way while Noire carefully picked off any Risen trying to rush them from behind. A short distance away from them were Lucina and Inigo, the royal siblings a flurry of blades as they flipped and spun through the undead horde.
With a roar an undead mage noticed her and raised a hand; Morgan dove off the pillar and rolled to avoid the sudden burst of thunder. She scrambled to her feet to find herself face to face with a Risen archer that somehow managed to look completely startled. Risen had facial expressions. Interesting.
"Hey!" Morgan wiggled her fingers and quickly ducked away; the next shot of thunder slammed into the archer and sent it flying. Glancing back at the mage, Morgan gave it a cheeky salute before hurrying off, ducking and dodging various weapons as she zigzagged through the battlefield. The mage followed her like a bloodhound, its spells knocking down its fellow Risen left and right as it attempted to hit her.
'Predictable.' Morgan danced to the side and watched a ball of lightning strike down the swordsman preparing to cut her in half. One of the things which made the Risen so deadly was their obsession - once they caught your scent they'd follow you to the ends of the world, not stopping until they caught you or were destroyed. A while ago Morgan had figured out how to turn this to her advantage, enabling her to preserve her tomes and energy while striking down enemies at the same time. It was a risky maneuver, certainly, but she was of the firm opinion that taking no risks was the same as getting nothing done at all.
She skidded around a broken wall and nearly tripped over a cowering taguel, who screeched and skittered backwards.
"Morgan!" Yarne yelped. "Ha...geez, you scared me!"
"Hey Yarne~!" Morgan grinned at him as she finally dispatched the mage, then struck down a pair of armored knights for good measure. "Ready to go, bun-bun?"
"Don't call me that!" Yarne sighed but took a deep breath and shook himself out, pawing the ground as he prepared to run. "H-how many are there? In front of the Gate, I mean."
"Mmm...I'd say a couple dozen or so. Easy peasy." Morgan grinned at Yarne's dismayed expression and tugged on one of his ears (so soft and fwuffy!) for luck before jumping into the fray again, Yarne reluctantly joining her after a moment's hesitation.
Lucina vaulted over a particularly large piece of debris and cut down a Risen about to launch a javelin at Brady as he healed a wound on Severa's leg, waiting until Severa was on her feet again before continuing her push towards the Gate. Inigo had dropped back to assist Kjelle, who'd been dangerously close to being cornered if Gerome hadn't jumped in at the last moment. Somewhere out of sight Lucina could hear Morgan yelling encouragements to someone, presumably Yarne if the constant reiterations of 'bunny' and 'bun-bun' were anything to go by. Through it all Lucina kept running, Falchion's blade flashing in the dim light as she drew closer and closer to her goal.
Nah fired one more breath before diving towards the ground as the battlefield became too cluttered for her to easily fire without fear of hitting an ally. She transformed and dropped onto a chunk of rock a few feet away from the Gate, looking around uncertainly.
"Go!" Lucina yelled, waving her on. "Do not wait, just go!"
The young manakete bit her lip and nodded, hurrying over to the portal. She stared at it for a long moment, took a deep breath, and jumped in.
Barely a few seconds later Owain arrived and struck a heroic pose, opening his mouth to begin his victory speech.
"BLOOD AND THUNDER, FOOL! WILL YOU JUST GO ALREADY?!" Noire marched up and unceremoniously kicked him into the portal before following him in. Laurent, who'd stopped to examine the engravings on the sides of the Gate, jumped at Noire's outburst and quickly hurried through the portal himself.
Four of her friends were safely through but the Risen had taken notice and were quickly hurrying towards the Gate. Lucina gritted her teeth and leapt forward, cutting down as many as she could. As much as they were trying to change the past, having the Risen arrive at an earlier time than they'd initially appeared was in no way a positive change. Despite her best efforts, however, a number of them managed to make it through the portal. With no more enemies between her and the Gate Lucina sheathed Falchion so she could run unimpeded and sprinted as fast as she could, barely even slowing as she crossed the portal and entered the time stream.
Present time: clearing in an infested forest
Lucina stabbed Falchion into the chest of a Risen swordsman, pulling it free just in time to block an axe swinging in from the side. She set her feet and shoved back, pushing the Risen off balance and separating its head from its shoulders. An arrow whistled over her head and she turned to the archer just in time to see it cut down by a female knight in red...Kjelle's mother. Behind her sat Laurent's father, the blue-haired noble - Virion, if Lucina's memory served - gracefully firing arrows at the Risen around them.
Lucina didn't have many memories of either one; Sully had often been busy either on patrol or training the castle knights while Virion was a rare visitor, having given priority to defending Rosanne and, after it had fallen, spent nearly all his time doing what he could to help Ylisse. For that reason she had chosen to fight with them, ignoring the ache in her chest that pulled her towards the figures on other side of the clearing. It had taken everything she had to act impassive earlier when confronted with her father and aunt; if she fought with them she would either lose concentration or worse, give herself away.
She dodged a spear and swung Falchion upwards, slicing the wooden shaft neatly in two. She released Falchion, sending the sword spiraling upwards; then she jumped over another spear thrust from behind, grabbed her sword, and swung it in a half circle. The two Risen spearmen disintegrated before they hit the ground.
She spun, Falchion raised as she looked for her next opponent, only to find only a clearing of humans. With the battle over Sully shoved Virion off her horse; the noble looked suitably chagrined as the two headed over to the other fighters.
Heart thumping in her chest, Lucina slowly followed.
"It seems all the creatures are vanquished," Frederick - Chrom's most loyal and steadfast knight, and father of the bravest taguel Lucina knew - said as she approached. He looked at her and nodded curtly, his expression one of suspicion warring with grudging respect. "This young man took care of the others."
Lucina bit her lip and forced herself to hold still as all eyes turned to her.
"Um..." Lissa tentatively stepped forward and smiled (Aunt Lissa's gentle smile had a way of making people believe, even if only for a moment, that everything will really be alright. Even after the sun was obscured behind a bloody red sky everyone knew it never truly went away until the day Lissa died). "I never got to thank you...for before. So...thank you. You were very brave."
"You saved my sister's life," Chrom said, and Lucina slowly forced herself to turn in his direction, though she kept her eyes fixed on the achingly familiar brand on her father's shoulder. She wasn't sure what she'd do if she saw her father's warm, friendly face - it was already difficult enough to hear his voice so calm and confident and unburdened by the weight of a long, arduous war. "My name is Chrom. Might I ask yours?"
"You may call me Marth," she said after a moment, carefully pitching her voice lower. There was a slight movement in the corner of her eye and she glanced over to see Robin (he'd been her tutor and a constant presence in her childhood, someone she admired almost as much as she looked up to her parents. When Lucina heard about her father's death at the hands of his closest friend she couldn't believe it, for Robin and Chrom had been like brothers and would never, ever turn on each other) studying her with a tilted head and narrowed eyes. Lucina quickly looked away and tried to make her expression as unreadable as possible; it was an undisputed fact that Robin, even at this young age, was a genius and master tactician. Gerome and Morgan were known for their quick minds and uncanny ability to read other people, traits they'd undoubtedly inherited from their father.
If Chrom noticed her discomfort and Robin's scrutiny he didn't say anything. "Marth? After the heroic king of old?" He raised an eyebrow and his eyes briefly flickered to her sword, though it was apparently too dark for him to make out any details as he didn't react to the presence of a second Falchion. "You certainly fight like a hero. Where did you learn your way with a sword?"
"I'm not here to talk about me," Lucina said curtly, hoping to divert the conversation away from her as soon as possible. "This world teeters at the brink of a horrible calamity. What you saw tonight was but a prelude. You have been warned." With that she turned and walked away, struggling to keep her stride even and not break into a run. Far behind her she could hear Lissa spluttering in confusion and Frederick talking quietly, but above all she could feel her father's eyes practically drilling into her back until she disappeared into the woods and out of their sight.
Letting out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, Lucina slumped against a tree and peeked around the trunk, watching as the Shepherds began to leave. She took a deep breath, relishing in the fresh air so untainted by the ashes of burnt flesh and disintegrated Risen, and allowed herself to smile.
This was only the beginning; there was still a long road ahead of her. But for now, at least, she could take a moment to simply relax and enjoy the first real success she'd had in a very long time.
