Hi again, everyone! School and Basketball are starting up again, so updates will probably become less and less frequent, I'm afraid. Good news, for you at least, is that Basketball season is over at the beginning of February and I play no springs sports. I will probably get a job, but that is much less time consuming. Anyway, my personal life aside, here is the update.
Chapter 7
"I know, I know, but it is just so hard…" Elincia sobbed into Geoffrey's shoulder. Elincia had been horror-struck upon seeing the death of the capital of Crimea, the death of her kingdom. Geoffrey had been trying to contain her uncontrollable sobs for the past couple of days of walking, but they proved to be very stubborn. And the mercenaries and everyone else in the company was forced to move at a extraordinarily slow pace while waiting for her to regain her composure, as she was fighting to do right now.
It must be very hard on her, though, Ike thought as he delved into the memory of what had happened just couple of days ago. Ike had expected to lose all along; The Zadonian army had more men, better weapons, more experience, and overall outmatched the forces of Tellius. But never had he expected it to be that bad.
In the matter of one otherwise peaceful afternoon, just a couple of hours, the forces of Zadonia had successfully wiped out about one third of all of Tellius' forces. Well, maybe not. Ike wasn't sure if the close to forty thousand men now encased in the giant glacier that once was Melior were still alive or not. Probably not, but even if they were, they are not fighting again in this war, that's for sure. Not until somebody found a way to get rid of the ice.
And for what? All those men either dead or stuck in a glacier had only been able to kill about one thousand Zadonian soldiers. Not even a dent in the massive force that they had sent over to Tellius.
"Now what?" Ike had made his way over to Soren while Geoffrey continued to console Elincia.
"Elincia again." Soren replied
Ike huffed. He knew this was hard on her, but this was getting ridiculous. If they didn't start moving, they would be next. And Elincia always seemed passive and reserved during the conflict with Ashnard; as if nothing affected her. The fall of one's kingdom can change a lot, as it turns out.
So the small force dropped their belongings for what seemed like the millionth time and got themselves comfortable. Thus far, it could take up to an hour to console Elincia before she was at the point where she could move again.
Ike was preparing himself for the worst. In fact, he was about to take a nap in a nearby patch of grass. But he got distracted before he could lie down.
"General Ike, can I have a word?" It was Tauroneo.
"Sure, Tauroneo, what is it?" Ike said, a little annoyed.
"Ike, I've been speaking with Jill, Zihark, and Haar, and we have come to a conclusion."
"That is?" Ike asked, confused.
"Well, I know we were headed for Begnion. I think that is a great idea. We will be much safer there. But I have come to the realization that my remaining troops in Daein will be in the dark. And we have such a small force there, they would be no match for Zadonia. General, will you come with me, Jill, Zihark and Haar to get the rest of Daein's troops, and bring them to Begnion thereafter?"
"Yeah, that probably should be done. But why do you need me to come?" Ike asked quizzically.
"Forgive me, General, but many of my troops…let's say…have hard feelings toward you after the war." Tauroneo said, searching for the right word.
"Well, I imagine they would. Frankly, I'd be dumbfounded if they weren't. I did destroy most of Daein's forces, and left much of your land in ruin."
"Crimea did send a lot of money to make up for the damaged land though." Tauroneo pointed out.
"Still, I don't know if that is a good idea. Being killed by my enemy I can bear. But I don't know if I could stand being killed by my allies…"
"Don't worry, Ike, none of them hate you that much. I think it would be good if they got to know you. So that they can come to realize that you are not a bad guy before they are forced to fight by your command."
"But what about the force you sent to Crimea?" Ike asked. "They seemed to follow my commands without question. Why is the rest of your force any different?"
"Well, Ike, I must admit, I hand-picked soldiers to go to Crimea based solely on their thoughts regarding you and Crimea."
"Wait, so you gave us all the Crimea-lovers, and left all the Ike-haters behind?"
"I'm ashamed to admit it, but yes."
"That is nothing to be ashamed of, Tauroneo. It was probably for the better…" Ike said thoughtfully. "But is it all right if I think about a decision first?"
"Yeah, sure." Tauroneo said. "Just tell me when you come up with a decision." And then Tauroneo turned on his heel and left, meeting up Zihark next to a nearby stream.
Meanwhile, a certain black-haired mage eyed the silver general leave suspiciously. As soon as Tauroneo was gone, Soren had his turn to talk with Ike.
"Ike, what was that about? What did Tauroneo want?"
"Soren, for goddesses' sake, sometimes you act like you're my mother." Ike replied grinning.
"I know, I'm sorry…"
"You don't need to apologize, Soren, I was just joking. Actually, I'm pretty glad I have somebody who watches my back. And makes sure that I don't do anything stupid."
"Yeah, without me, the latter would occur quite frequently…"
Ike shared a laugh with Soren. "You got that right; I'm always at a loss when it comes to tactics. My preferred tactic is my sword." He said grinning.
"Well, it's a good thing you have me, then. Now, care to tell me what happened?"
"Tauroneo wants me to go with him to Daein." Ike replied seriously.
"Why?"
"He still has half his force there, and he wants to mobilize them to Begnion." Ike replied.
"Actually, I was going to suggest the same thing. Though, I wasn't going to suggest that you go."
"Tauroneo says he wants his force to know that I am not a bad guy. He wants to build up their trust in me."
"Well, that is a good idea…But I don't know if it will work."
"I know. But it may be worth the risk. I don't know, I haven't given him my decision yet. I was going to sleep on it."
"Well, just remember Ike, their hate of Laguz runs deep. What if their hate of you is that deep?"
"I don't know about that, Soren." Ike replied doubtfully. "I don't know if Daeins could hate anything as much as they hate Laguz.
"Well, still, just watch out for yourself." Soren said cautiously. "And I meant to ask you earlier, what of the enemy commander? What is he like?"
"Oh, well, he didn't look that imposing, to tell you the truth. He was about four inches shorter than I am and he is not that strong. I would have killed him in a duel in a minute if it weren't for his strength in the magics."
"So, we got a first-class mage on our hands, huh?"
"Well, according to what Amaros said, they have two." Ike corrected.
"Two?" Soren asked quizzically.
"Yeah, he claimed that one of his generals is a better mage than he is."
"That's not good. Did you see either of them cast anything? How powerful are they?"
"Well, I guess you know who it was that cast the spell to encase Melior in ice?"
"I had my assumption, yes."
"Other than that, Amaros only cast one other spell. A wind spell."
"Was it powerful?" Soren asked again.
"Well, yes, but I've seen you cast a wind spell just as powerful. What really set me off was the fact that he could cast spells without a tome."
"He didn't use a tome?" Soren asked in disbelief.
"No." Ike replied. "He had his sword in one hand and cast the spell with the other, no tome in sight. And he is quick to cast a spell. One moment I was aiming a slash at him, the next I was being blasted back five feet."
"Excuse me." Soren said, stalking off.
Ike watched as Soren walked away and sat down on a nearby tree stump. He pulled out a book from his bag and began to read. Ike had always wondered what it was Soren read in those things.
Well, Elinica was still incapacitated with sobs, so they still weren't going anywhere, even with all the time he killed with talking. And probably not enough time to take a quick nap either. Close by, Ike saw Mist standing alone.
"Hey Mist." He said walking over to her and putting his arm around her.
"Ike, I'm taken!" She replied grinning, slapping him playfully on the chest.
"I know, I just need a place to rest my arm and you are the perfect height." He said smirking, earning another slap.
"Speaking of the lucky man," Ike continued. "Where is Boyd? I haven't seen him in a while."
Mist signaled to her left. There was Boyd, sleeping on the ground. He had previously been blocked from Ike's vision by a tree. "Pretty lazy, huh?"
"Well, you must be calling me lazy, then, because I was going to do the same thing. Except I was disrupted."
"So you come torment your little sister instead?"
"What better thing is there to do?" Ike replied innocently. Mist slapped him again.
Taking his arm off her, Ike asked seriously, "How are you holding up?"
After a little thought, Mist replied, "Better than Elincia."
"Well, that's a given." Ike said grinning. "Could you be more vague?"
"Well, you know, after what I was told about Zadonia, I expected to lose, so I had time to prepare for the inevitable. But I guess I always just assumed that Crimea would find a way to pull it off. Now that I have seen the sheer dominance Zadonia has over us, I'm not so sure anymore…"
"I know what you mean." Ike replied. "I used to think that Crimea was invincible. But if there is a way to hold Zadonia at bay, you can believe that I will find it."
"But I'm not so sure there is a way…" Mist said dismally.
Ike looked over and saw Geoffrey still struggling to console Elincia. "Well, at least we can count on plenty of time to search."
'This is just too easy.'Amaros thought, smirking to himself. Only a few days had passed since Crimea had fallen and began their conquest southward. Currently, they were fighting a small, weak force of beasts at the Crimea and Gallia border. They must have been somehow tipped that they were the next target, for they were standing there when the army arrived. But still, they proved no threat, and soon, they should be on the move again.
"Come on, Amaros, let me fight!" General Darod urged.
One of Amaros' three generals, Darod was menacing, to say the least. About seven feet tall, Darod had a big, muscular body and an axe big enough to make anybody scared.
"No." Amaros replied indifferently. "Not yet. But believe me, you will have your chance."
"But everyone is getting killed now! Wait too long and there will be nobody left for me to kill!"
"Listen, Darod, I've got something special in store for you. Just be patient. By the time this is over, you will have many kills."
"When? Commander, the way this is going so far, this war will be over within the month."
"Shut up, Darod! I will tell you your mission when we take Gallia!" Amaros huffed. The big brute was persistent; he had to give him that.
Around sundown of the second day, the company finally found some good fortune to smile about. On the side of the road they had been traveling on stood an abandoned fort. It was very big, but on the inside it wasn't very pleasant. Definitely better than the cold, hard ground outside, though. There were even enough rooms for everyone to get a room to themselves.
The kitchen proved to be in adequate shape, and Oscar was able to cook up some dinner. The food was good, as always, but the normal chatter that filled the room during a pleasant dinner was absent. Everyone sat in silence, some of the group not even eating, but staring down at it gloomily.
Ike was one of those many. He didn't have much of an appetite, not since he knew of the destruction that Zadonia would bring to the land of Tellius. Everyone at the dinner table had been affected. The once light-hearted Ranulf had become gloomy. The cheery and optimistic Mia had quiet and somber. And Mist, who always talked so much it sometimes got annoying, had probably spoke all of about ten sentences in the past two days.
But the most affected, other than Elincia, had been Lethe. She hadn't been caught saying a word since the battle and had resorted to being by herself at all times. Even during the march out of Crimea, she sulked by herself at the back of the pack. A couple of times, Ranulf had gone back to try to talk to her, but each he got back and said, "Don't go back there, she is not in a good mood." Nobody wanted to delve any farther than that, and decided to let her walk alone.
And the worst part was that she was still avoiding Ike. He wanted to know why she did it, but she would not speak to him. But he had not forced her to talk. That would do nothing but vanquish any trust she had in him.
And tonight was no different for Lethe. She was nowhere in sight, probably eating alone in her room.
After a few more minutes of staring at his food without ever touching it, Ike politely and quietly excused himself from the table and returned to his room.
'Why, Goddesses? Why start another war? We just got out of one; we don't need another. What did we do to deserve this?'
It walked over to his window and looked out it. It was like the Goddesses were taunting them, creating such a beautiful sunset in the midst of such destruction.
He continued to look out the window even after the sun disappeared on the other side of the horizon and the rest of the mercenaries headed to their room as well. He was so tuned into the scene before him that he had not even heard his door open and close.
Sighing, Ike turned around to get ready for what would probably be another sleepless night. But instead, he found himself almost face to face with Lethe.
"Lethe!" Ike exclaimed. "We missed you at dinner."
Ignoring this, Lethe said, "Ike, I-I'm ready to talk."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"You don't have to say anything, you know. And I will promise you that I will not say a word to anybody." Ike said reassuringly.
"I-I know. But this is just something I have to get off my chest."
"All right, Lethe, if you are sure. Just remember, whatever you tell me I will not hold against you. I will not think any differently of you."
"It's true, Ike. Everything he said. I betrayed you. I betrayed Crimea." Lethe confessed.
"I see. Well, I stand by my word. I will not hold this against you, nor will I tell anybody, unless you wish it. But I just have to know, Lethe. Why? Do you hate Crimea? Do you hate me?" Ike asked.
"No, never! Well, I thought I did, at the time…But Ike," She continued, half sobbing. "I made a huge mistake! As infuriating you may be, I could never hate you."
Ike couldn't help but smirk at this. "Coming from you, I'll take that as a complement. What did you tell them?" He asked indifferently, hoping to make it seem like it was not a big deal.
Lethe looked down at her feet, too ashamed to respond.
"I'm sorry, Lethe," Ike consoled. "I know this must be hard on you. But I have to know what the enemy knows, so that I can prepare."
"I told them everything! Your fighting habits, your friends names and looks, the location of the fort…They asked for information about you and I told them I everything I knew." She said, on the verge of tears.
Ike could tell she was deeply remorseful, and she wanted a shot at redemption. But she had screwed up big time. Now the enemy has all this information about him, and Ike still, essentially, had no idea who was attacking Tellius.
Ike laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It's alright, Lethe. We'll get through this."
Lethe then lost it. Taking a step forward, she wrapped her arms around him and cried into his shoulder. Like a lost and confused son clings to his mother, Lethe clung to him and cried her regret away.
Ike returned the consoling hug, not knowing what to do except pat her on the back and murmur 'It's alright,' every few seconds.
He hated to see her like this. Ever since he had first met Lethe, she had been emotionally tough, at least, on the outside, that's what it looked like. She never let anything that was affecting her show. But this must be one obstacle that proved to be too great, even for her.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, Lethe began to regain her composure.
"All better?"
"I think so." She muttered into his shoulder, she clutching onto him with surprising force.
"One last question, Lethe. Why did you stop? From what that Amaros said, you stopped relaying information. What made you stop?"
"You." She said simply.
"Me?" Ike asked, puzzled. "But I just now found out. How could I have told you to stop?"
"Not like that!" She huffed. Finally finding the strength to pull away, she took a step backwards, out of his embrace. "What I mean is; you inspired me to stop."
"How so?"
"After that little battle we had with the weak army, back at the fort, I realized the selflessness with which you were fighting. I saw that you cared more for your sister and the rest of us than your own well-being. And that was also when I noticed the totally selfish act I was committing."
"And that's when you stopped?"
"Yes."
"Well, I'm proud of you, Lethe. You turned away from temptation while you still could. Who knows what could have happened…"
"Yeah, well," Lethe said, not wanting to stay on that topic. "I'm getting pretty tired."
Ike yawned. The thought of a nice, warm bed did sound inviting…
Lethe opened the door to leave. But before leaving she said, "And Ike?"
"Yes?"
"You tell anybody about what happened in here and considered yourself dead." She closed the door upon saying that.
Ah, Lethe's pride. Always a tricky obstacle that got in the way of everything she did.
But, perhaps by some instinct, Ike was thinking that she was not talking about what she did particularly, but rather, what they did, together…
"King, we must get out of here! The palace is being overwhelmed!"
Warning roars from Gallia's beasts could be heard for miles as the Zadonian army marched for the palace. The beasts may fight differently than all the enemies that Zadonia's forces were used to, but the sheer numbers of the assault left Gallia defenseless.
"King, we must leave, now!" Giffca repeated.
King Caineghis finally began to stir and took aware of his surroundings. It still looked to be in the early hours of the morning, as the sun hadn't even emerged from behind the horizon yet.
"King, we're under attack! We need to get out of here!" Giffca urged once more.
"What are you talking about?" Caineghis asked, irked that he had been woken up so early.
"Zadonia is upon us, my Liege! We must get out of here!"
Caineghis needed no further explanation. He got up out of bed, grabbed a few essentials, and then bolted out the door with Giffca.
"To where?" The King asked.
"Goldoa." Giffca replied. In unison, both Giffca and Caineghis transformed into their beast forms and began to run with the thousands of other Laguz on their move toward the great dragon nation.
The group packed up and left the old, abandoned fort early the next morning. Ike wanted to reach the Great Bridge to Daein within two days, if at all possible, where he had decided to part ways.
While at the fort, Ike had decided to go with Tauroneo to Daein to get the troops. Tauroneo claimed that the trip shouldn't add but about a week or so. But with the speed at which Zadonia was advancing, Zadonia might beat them to Sienne, capital of Begnion.
Elincia was starting to come along. Her little intermissions were becoming much less frequent and much shorter as well. She was still quiet and reserved, but she was making great progress.
Lethe, too, was on the road to getting better. She no longer stalked off at the back of the pack, though she, like Elincia, still did not converse with too many people. She didn't insult anybody that much anymore. Though Ike knew that was the best she could do. Insulting is just a part of Lethe being Lethe.
And altogether, the company was doing alright, considering what had happened. They were not optimistic about the war, but they certainly weren't pessimistic anymore. There was at least some hope there.
Apart from Soren and Tauroneo, Ike had yet to tell anybody that he was going to leave them for a little while. He knew to hear that would crush any hope they have regain.
But he would have to tell them soon. The company had just stopped to eat and rest for the night, and, perhaps by tomorrow evening, they would reach the bridge separates Crimea and Begnion. The group planned to head south from there, but Ike was going to have to cross it.
Ike looked around and smiled to himself. If it weren't for all the extra people and the unfamiliar setting, Ike would have thought it was just another mercenary cookout outside their fort. They had gotten many fires going, the only source of light in the otherwise pitch black night.
Groups of around five huddled around each of the fires, eating some fruit Soren and Oscar and few other helping hands had scavenged from the woods.
As everyone finished up their meals, one by one, they began to go to bed. Ike himself thought that he was the last to go to bed. He had stayed up for quite a long time, just thinking.
He still wasn't really tired, but he decided he'd try to get some shut-eye. That is, until he noticed that someone else was still up. Nearby, Ike saw Ranulf sitting down, leaning on a tree trunk.
"Something wrong, Ranulf?" Ike asked quietly, so that he would not wake anybody up.
Ranulf shook his head, continuing to stare into space.
"What's up?" Ike asked, concerned.
"Nothing. Just thinking."
"Me too. What about?"
Ranulf waited a moment before answering. "Ike?"
"Yeah?"
"What do you think happens after this?" Ranulf asked mysteriously.
"What do you mean?" Ike replied, puzzled.
"What happens when we pass on? Where do we go? Is there anywhere to go?"
Ike had to think about that one. "I don't know. I'm sure the goddesses have a plan for us, but other than that…"
Judging from the expression of Ranulf's face, illuminated by the light of the fire, that was the same conclusion he had come to. He sighed and looked up at the sky for inspiration.
Ike too looked up at the sky. It was a cloudless night and millions of stars glittered in the dark. "Why? You don't plan on dying on me, do you?"
"Well, just with this whole war, it's just matter of time. They are just too strong, too numerous, too dominating. We should just surrender now. It would save lives and our dignity." Ranulf said dismally.
"Don't give up yet, Ranulf! I need you."
"I know." Ranulf sighed. "I know. I'm not giving up yet. Just rationalizing. Forget I said anything, Ike.
Silence ensued. "What were you thinking about, Ike?" Ranulf asked, breaking the silence.
"You know I would never leave you or anybody in this company, right?"
"Yeah, of course." Ranulf responded. "I have never seen you put anything before yourself before. Why do you ask?"
"It's nothing." Ike sighed. "I'm just trying to figure out a way that I can convince everyone that before I change up the plans a little."
"'Change up the plans'? What are you talking about?"
"Don't tell anybody yet, Ranulf, because nobody else knows. I'm going with Tauroneo to pick up the rest of Daein's troops. It will add at least a week on my journey to Sienne."
"I see. Well, just tell everyone the truth." Ranulf suggested. "They'll believe you."
"I don't know, Ranulf. All this uncertainty of the war we are in has made everyone tense. They might not believe a word I say, thinking it is just a ploy to keep myself alive at the expense of their lives."
"Well, even so," Ranulf continued, realizing the predicament Ike was in. "Let a couple of them not believe you. So what? I believe you. Almost everyone will believe you. And the rest will believe you when you arrive at Sienne."
"I know. But it is just disheartening that some of them might not have faith in me or in our chances to win this war."
"You've gotten through worse, Ike, and you can get through this. Show everyone that you deserve their trust."
"Yeah, I know…" Ike said, sighing.
"When you're off in Daein, just remember that I still believe in you."
"Thanks, Ranulf." Ike said sincerely.
"Don't mention." It was getting very late, Ranulf soon noticed. "Perhaps we should try to get some shut-eye?"
"Sounds good to me."
But as hard as the two tried to get some rest, neither was able to sleep a wink that night.
The company had reached the bridge in the waning hours of the next evening, as Ike had predicted. It was time to tell everyone, no matter how much Ike would dislike the anticipated reactions.
Ike walked up to Tauroneo before he was going to make his announcement. "Bear with me, Tauroneo. I haven't told them yet."
The silver general watched Ike make his way to the front of the group, chuckling to himself. He himself knew that a couple of Ike's friends were known to overreact, and he could understand the apprehension he must be going through.
"Alright, if you all could stop and listen for a minute, I have something to say." Ike announced, waiting for the chatter to die down.
"What's the hold up, boss?" Mia asked.
"Yeah, Ike," Boyd added, grinning. "I thought you wanted us to get to Begnion sooner rather than later."
"Change of plans." Ike replied, silencing any and all questions that were popping up.
"What do you mean?" Mist asked fearfully.
"Wait, let me rephrase that. You all have the same plan, but Tauroneo, Jill, Haar, Zihark, and I will have a major change."
"What, are you leaving us?" Shinon asked angrily. "After all we have done? You're giving up now?"
"I am going with Tauroneo to Daein to recruit the rest of their troops. I will then meet up with you in Sienne." Ike announced hesitantly.
As Ranulf had predicted, most everybody seemed to believe him, judging by the looks on their faces. But a few did not seem as believing.
"That's weak, Ike." Geoffrey said, irked.
"Yeah," Shinon agreed. "How could you leave us?"
"Well, if you just want to save your own hide, go ahead and get out of my sight." Geoffrey added.
"Cut him some slack, you two." Soren put in. "Have you ever seen Ike back down from a challenge? No? That's because he never flees just because the going is getting rough. He is, and always will be, loyal to us." Ike smiled over at Soren gratefully.
"Ready?" Ike heard Tauroneo whisper in his ear.
"One more thing." Ike replied. He did not want to burden himself with good-byes for all his friends; that would be too unbearable. But there was one thing that he wanted to say to the princess of Crimea to, if anything, give her hope.
"Elincia, may I have a word with you privately?" Ike asked humbly.
Geoffrey, who had been standing next to the princess, took a defensive step in front of Elincia.
"Back off! Elincia has nothing to say to those who betray her country!" He said angrily.
"Stop it, Geoffrey." Elincia said, walking away from the group and toward the woods on the side of the path and beckoning Ike to follow.
Geoffrey was about to take a step toward stopping Ike from talking to Elincia, but he was held up by his sister's hand on his shoulder.
"Let them go." Lucia said.
"What are you doing Lucia?" Geoffrey asked angrily. "I need to protect Elincia!"
"Geoffrey, stop it. You know as well as I do that Ike is not going to desert us."
"But Lucia, you heard him yourself! He's leaving us!"
"Ike does not lie, Geoffrey. He is in command of all of Crimea's forces, plus all the ones that were given to him by Gallia, Phoenicis, Begnion, and Daein. These are just troops that Daein is giving him, and he is going to mobilize them to Sienne."
Geoffrey did not answer, but continued to eye Ike suspiciously.
Meanwhile, Elincia finally thought that they were far enough away to avoid anybody from hearing them. "What is it, Ike?"
"Elincia, I'll be brief with this." Ike started. "I will find a way to save your kingdom."
"No, Ike, you have done so much already…"
"If Crimea is not under your control, then apparently I have not done enough. Look, Elincia, I don't know what is going to happen in the next couple of weeks, but I do want you to know that I will be doing everything in my ability to help save Crimea." He finished, putting a supportive hand on her shoulder.
"My lord Ike, you don't know how much that means to me." Elincia said, putting her hand on top of his hand.
Ike smiled a genuine smile. "Just letting you know that I will stop at nothing to save Crimea." He grabbed her hand from on top of his hand and brought it to his lips. "Thank you, my Princess."
"Thank you, my Lord Ike." She said as he began to walk off.
"Ready yet?" Tauroneo asked teasingly as Ike returned.
"Yep, let's get this over with."