# Chapter III

## Before the Storm

And thus, a heated escape, a beaten retreat and a dispirited march eventually led the posse back to the realms of the Halidom, only to find the destruction rising to unparalleled heights, and the count of life plummeting in response. Truly, there wasn't much flock left for the militia to "shepherd" now, only furthering the notion that their last resort had failed, and their struggle been futile.

That is, their struggle in this reality.

Robin hadn't found much time to overthink Anna's curt response after the disastrous venture to the mountain, but the brevity of its nature had left him with much to ponder now that that gruelling trial of constant vigilance had ended. Void of any particularly strong emotion save the fatigue that had beset him constantly ever since this all started, the tactician dryely beheld the campfire before him. The curtain of night had closed as quickly as it had announced itself, reminding him of the supposed time of year; winter, which he noted was just as depressing as the outlook of this nightmarish debacle. He felt his hand involuntarily tighten when the memories of previous winters came flooding back as his back tensed in response, but he had no mind for these empty flashbacks, and simply fixed his gaze on the ardent blaze, melting them away in its dance of flare and flame. Now it was just him and the light again, which outlines he intensely followed. He kept this up for a while, exactly up until something else broke his concentration, leading him to examine himself.

The strategy seemed to be working, something he sardonically noted was the only strategy that had been fruitful as of late. It was then when he noticed the same thing that had struck him before. A single gaze from behind the veil of flame and fire and further beyond that within of one of the supply convoys, which occasionally darted over his presence from its own place behind the linen burlap of the tent. He soon recognized the amber pair to be Anna's, who was, as he assumed at least, conversing with her provisioners, many of which now permanently part of her retinue. Usually it'd be weird to see fellow competitors working together like this with no pay, but not anymore, not now. After all, there's not much to sell in a world where the populace is more concerned with surviving another day rather than growing their wealth. It handicapped their rare ability to do business severely, but their management skills and quick wit would increase the effectiveness of the convoy considerably, and that task was something Robin would gladly expedite to others. Anything to lessen this eternal headache.

He threw a half-conscious gaze towards the tent again, only to find the cloth folding and the figure of the peddling Anna emerge. His eyes fluttered up to her chin, and she intercepted the gaze, taking the lock as an invitation and redirecting her path to meet his.

And as the redhead inquisitively approached, Robin abruptly broke off their gaze as a sudden throb of eldritch energy strong announced its presence, or rather that of the forces elsewhere. The immediate physical reaction forced the tactician to buckle over, cold sweats breaking out all over his body as he had to stabilize himself again with his hand.

'H-hey, Robin? You okay, hon'?' Was the instant reaction of Anna as her figure surfaced from within the dark and into the glow of the fire, trademark eyebrow furrowed in worry.

He had to audibly swallow and could only speak when he felt that his thoughts had been collected again.

' Y-yeah. I'm alright.. I uh- .. I felt something..' He responded, to which his counterpart only nodded. Clearly, he didn't want to disclose what, she could make out that much with her keen eyes, but what he didn't know was that the peddler could probably grasp the concept pretty well, more than he'd imagine.

What Robin had felt at that moment before she entered the premises was occurring regularly nowadays. At first, it had only manifested itself in the recurring nightmares and, indeed, his ever so pestilent bouts of amnesia. Ever since the ascension of his doppelganger and the rising of Grima, however, it became painfully apparent what these strange occurrences really eluded to: The bond these three entities of Robin, the Hierarch and the Dark Dragon shared: The Mark of Grima.

Nowadays, whenever the symbiosis of vessel and corruption flexed their magical muscles, signifying what probably was the fall of another kingdom and definitely the loss of countless lives, Robin would, as the leftover link in this trinity, feel the repercussions as well, these fluctuations in the arcane web only reminding him more of their souls and how they were intertwined. Always. The eternal stain of guilt and identity that would plague him for the rest of his fleeting life.

He wearily eyed Anna as the girl rubbed her cold hands together and warmed them on the fire (even if the sky of Ylisse was eternally infernal, the winter nights were still freezing). At least their pestering had stopped now. He hadn't felt the constant looming of the vice of Man, not since those two merged. The spot in his consciousness that Grima once occupied was left vacant. They didn't need him anymore, and so the calling had stopped.

' Good riddance. ' He concluded out loud, which spurred the vacant peddler to mingle as well. Silently, he watched her hop skip on her legs, dusting off the muddy ends of the attire and slowly making her way towards his side, after which she promptly plopped down on her hind.

' So, Tactician.. ' She began, twirling a lock of hair and crossing her legs. He frowned on her misleading innocence, preparing himself for her usual trickery. What he got instead was a total shift in behavior, a tonal warp to a serious note. He had only experienced this one other time with her.

'Do you remember our last conversation, Robin?' She asked, staring through the lank of her eyelashes.

'Yeah, I do.' He answered sincerely, knowing exactly what exchange she was referencing.

'Turns out the ending we got was the one we feared the most, huh?' He snarked, showing some of that former lip he used to emit. It made her grimace.

' No, not yet. It's not all over yet, we can still fix this, we can-'

' Win? ' Robin sarcastically spat out.

She didn't finish her sentence nor dignify him with a direct response, instead opting to silently look into the fire.

' All I'm saying is that hope isn't all out the window.. Yet. Though our chances are growing dangerously slim...'

At least that was something he could agree with. Avoiding further eye contact (not that it had been particularly present before), he morosely nodded as the scrap wood he fed the flames stood silent witness to his misery, harkening a quietude that clearly alluded to his desire to be left alone with his thoughts. And so she did, demonstrably cracking a shoulder muscle as she hopped to her feet, pacing back a bit as she readied herself to leave. The provision tent was calling, and though she wasn't one to be beckoned, that list of stock per person wasn't going to finish itself.

' How many did we lose yesterday anyway?' She blurted out thoughtlessly on her way back, immediately slapping a hand on her gasping mouth, pupils dilated.

' Oh Robin, I didn't- '

' No, it's fine. '. He assured her, leaning back and resting his frame on his backward arms. He sluggishly eyed the starry sky as the crisp burning of the fire smoldered by.

' I'd say... About one in four? Of the real scrappers at least... Yeah, that sounds about right. The death count would total to around 50, crippling our fighting force even more than it already has. Among the fighters we lost were also some important commanders; Cordelia and Cherche, Stahl.. Sully." He named them off mechanically, sometimes adding a 'missing in action' or 'critically wounded' as to connote the possibility of them surviving the ordeal, but mainly because he couldn't stop his conscience from leaking through the cracks of his heart. These were all individuals he had thought to have known intensely throughout the years, but now that they were gone he realized how little he truly ended up knowing about them. Mayhaps it was there where his biggest failure had occurred. Trusting in bonds he himself had neglected to maintain.

Ah well, nothing to do about it those now. It was too late to rectify. The dead were the dead, and their demise was the fuel that kept him going, renewing his vow to protect everyone, though the irony was that it was this same promise that led to their death in the first place. That little fact, however, was something that the Tactician yet to realize.

'Wait, wait.' Anna interjected as he was mouthing off, 'That doesn't add up, there are a lot more Shepherds missing who were here last time.' She went on to remark, scanning the musky camp quickly before arriving on a 'I can spot some of the original crew here, but the Feroxians and Valmese all seem to be missing.'

' That is correct. ' Was all he responded ' The Khans obviously felt obligated to travel back to their homeland, and I'm assuming Virion and Say'ri felt compelled in the same way.' He wondered how Virion would react if he found out his beloved (though the admiration was unrequited) Cherche had fallen, but chose not to utter such a dark thought, instead following it up with an only slightly brighter ' Who knows if they survived.'

The brusque remark elicited a light flicker behind her scarlet eyes, but their hue remained gentle. ' Well, at least the children are safe.. I spotted Inigo and Brady around the well, and Owain was somewhere around his mother's, Severa and Cynthia-

' There used to be more of us. ' Was the sudden remark that startled the both of them. So much so that they visibly recoiled in shock. Rearing their head in utter disbelief, they quickly confirmed the source of the voice to originate from behind them, though the figure that uttered it was close enough to the fire (now reduced to naught more but a smoldering burn) to have enjoyed her warmth. It was hard to make out because of the messy bangs covering the upper part of her face and the lower part stuck in her scarf, giving her speech a slight muffle, but this was all unimportant, as the trademark blue hair was enough to immediately validate the suspicions of the duo.

It had taken months of silence, futile trying and sore heartbreak, but Lucina had finally spoken again.

And it had completely taken them by surprise.

' L-lucina, you speak?' Robin exclaimed. But she ignored him.

' We travelled back in time with more children than the ones that ended up travelling with us in this age. Met up with one such child a while ago, back when I still donned the mask. He'd been send back three years prior to our arrival, nearly drove him insane... I told him I'd come pick him up again once my business had finished but.. '

She didn't need to finish that thought. All three knew what it entailed.

' How many did we miss? ' Anna inquired, giving Lucina an equally curious look, which the young Exalt returned grimly.

'Do you really want to know?'

Another sober remark, delivered with the monotone voice that surpassed even the serious tone she had normally maintained in its stoicism.

' Lady Anna, excuse me, but I have- oh!' The interruption came from Frederick, just walking into the luminescent glow himself. The orange light accentuated the many creaved and sharp lines of his cuirass, underlining its intimidating form all the way from the reinforced brace to the plated shins.

' Hello, Frederick. ' Lucina slowly worded as Anna gave him an acknowledging nod. But only the spoken message seemed to arrive, and Frederick's face lit up. Again, for the first time ever since this hell started, Robin saw someone act a bit more like their old selves, in this case the Great Knight smiling genuinely at the ones he pledged himself to, momentarily letting go of his own share of burdens and worries.

' Lady Lucina, you speak again.. How good to have you back.' He beamed.

' Hmm. How is aunt Lissa?' She asked, which in turn wiped the smirk right off his face and made the burdened frown return.

' Hasn't left her tent, as per usual. I've been trying to get her to eat but..'

' I understand.' Lucina responded. ' I'll go talk to her. Let's go.'

And with that the two left for the tent, leaving the duo of Robin and Anna to themselves.

' I should go too, Robin, try to get some sleep, alright? You're the big guy. They all rely on you.' She said softly.

' I know, I'll .. Try .. ' He smirked at how unconvincing that sounded, but the peddler just shrugged it off and gave him a nod. Turning around, she began making strides back to the provisions tent, with Robin getting up as well.

'Oh, and Anna?

...

..Have a good night.'