Chapter 9: A Shadow of a Doubt

"Captain Michael, Begnion troops have been spotted crossing the Daein border." A Daein messenger from the border guards made his report.

"Now, of all times? Alert the Four Riders, you fools!" Michael shouted.

Unlike several of Danomill's original loyalists, Michael returned to serve under the royal army. He admitted his faults as a former warrior under Danomill, and Gawain had him pardoned. No matter how many times Bryce argued over the matter, he could not convince the king to not restore Michael's rank. Realizing that the 'glorious' Gawain got all the attention, Bryce decided to shut up.

Michael, realizing that the messenger might take forever, decided to get on a horse and ride to Naevassa himself. After all, if you want something done, you must do it yourself.

After a three hour ride, the Captain arrived at Nevassa. "Ah, Michael, thank you for the heads up. We will prepare countermeasures shortly." Gawain smiled.

"Shortly? Are you insane? Begnion already took its sweet time when we were in a civil war. Now, realizing that it was too late, it decided to assault us now! We must strike as soon as possible, or Daein will be finished!" Michael yelled.

"Tauroneo?" Gawain turned to his friend.

"He has a point." Tauroneo stroked his beard.

"Very well." Gawain spoke. He went to see the King.

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"So you say that Begnion has entered the border? Then we must strike them immediately! General Gawain, I give you the complete authority in this matter. You are now the Supreme Commander, my voice for the army. Whatever you order our troops to do, those orders will be equivalent to mine." Aeolus spoke.

"Your majesty, you can be certain that the Begnion advance will be finished." Gawain bowed his head and walked out.

He left the room to find Tauroneo and Michael staring at him with crossed arms. Bryce refused to be anywhere near Michael, and Julia was busy buying more arrows for her bows, so only those two were able to meet him.

"So, General, what's the plan?" Michael asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Tauroneo?" Gawain glanced at his friend.

"You're asking me to plan for you?"

"Course, aren't you the smart one?"

"Not exactly..."

"Don't be so humble! Your plans held off Danomill. Come help Daein in its time of need, Steadfast Rider." Gawain smirked.

"You really know me too well." Tauroneo sighed and went to his quarters.

"And hurry up, sir, or we're going to be bait for those Begnion brutes!" Michael barked at him.

"Michael, I appreciate your enthusiasm, but please don't assume that you still outrank the General." Gawain glared at him.

"Very well, fine, keep your soft dealings with one another. No wonder why Bryce is so pathetically weak for a Steadfast Rider! You're too soft on him! You don't give him the change to grow and become someone worthy. Rather, by giving him frequent, pointless, idiotic praises, you inspire him to stay weak and pathetic. I'm going to my quarters. I can't stand it when my commanding officers are so incompetent." Michael rolled his eyes and walked off.

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"Zelgius, remember that this is your time to shine." Oliver chortled.

"My good Duke, I will crush the enemies tonight. Though I am only the rank of Colonel, you can be sure that my victory will excel many of the successes of my superiors." Zelgius smiled.

The two Begnion officers were closing in on the Daein town of Illiet. Defending Illiet was a General named Hafedd, and this General was well known for his good service to his nation. He was not one of Danomill's flock, and he had helped Gawain in the Battle of Naevassa. He was one of the Halberdiers who dealt with the advancing Seperatist army head-on. His skill was quite amazing, for unlike his comrades beside him, Hafedd lived through the enemy advance and was able to deal enough damage to force them to retreat.

With Hafedd defending the town, taking it would not be an easy task, but Zelgius was confident that he would be able to best Hafedd in hand to hand combat. After all, at only fifteen years old, Zelgius had already achieved the rank of Colonel, and had slaughtered more than 300 enemy kills. Of course, he had also taken the lives of several civilians, but those facts aren't really discussed in the secretive and powerful Begnion army.

The Begnion task force, 4,800 strong, engaged the 3,760 Daein defenders in the town. With such closely matched forces, and two talented commanders on either side, the outcome of the battle did not seem so certain.

General Hafedd and Colonel Zelgius met with both armies in their respective formations. "Enemy commander, you are advised to leave this premise immediately. We warriors of Daein do not take threats or invasions lightly, and you will face heavy casualties. If you were wise, you would cease your advance and retreat immediately. As an honorable General of Daein, I swear that I will not pursue you in the event that you do retreat immediately." Hafedd shouted.

"General Hafedd, I know all about you. You were the brave warrior who held your own against a horde of Enemy troops. You would be a worthy opponent, and I am honored to have the right to slice off your head." Zelgius laughed in response.

"Men, brace yourselves! They're going to charge!" Hafedd yelled behind him, hoping that his words were not portents of what was to come.

Unfortunately for the Daein General, they were. Zelgius raised his sword, and pointed it right at the Daein lines. Immediately, 2,000 of Begnion's finest calvary rushed upon their entrenched foes. Hafedd immediately ordered his archers to fire at will, while his pikemen raised their spears and braced themselves for the charge.

The Daein archer's arrows hit home, and twenty calvary riders fell the moment the Begnion calvary entered firing range. Their live horses, however, continued to rush towards the Daein forces. After all, having several fellow horses rushing at your back, without the possibility of slowing down or moving aside on your behalf, would make a horse willing to rush blindly even though its rider was dead.

Once they were close enough, the surviving riders (which, unfortunately for their Daein foes, were the majority) drew their blades and prepared to strike. The Daein pikemen thrust forward, impaling and killing several horses. These dead horses and riders were actually forming a gruesome wall, protecting the live riders and horses from being hit by arrows or impaled by spears. Zelgius ordered his riders to take a vital risk by having them leap over the Daein pikemen and strike them from behind.

The Begnion calvary leapt over the entrenched Daein forces and began cutting down snipers and pikemen left and right. Hafedd soon realized that his foes were quite serious in their desire to destroy the Daein army. However, Hafedd was no fool.

The Begnion calvary soon realized that there were only 400 archers shooting at them, and 40 pikemen lying in wait in the trench. Thus, the vast majority of the Daein army was still alive, while at least forty Begnion horses and about 780 Begnion riders were dead.

Immediately after the Begnion calvary breached his line, Hafedd ordered his mages to deal with them. The fire and thunder equipped mages quickly fried their foes with flames and electric bolts, while the wind mages ripped the survivors apart with terrible gales. This magical barrage alone killed a thousand men.

Zelgius lost almost ninety percent of his veteran calvary because of Hafedd's ingenious trap, and immediately ordered the Begnion calvary to retreat. The survivors, numbering over 200, fled for their dear lives, while Hafedd's mages and sages continued to pelt them with spells, killing about thirty before the remainder returned to the Begnion lines.

Zelgius ordered his forces to regroup, while Hafedd had his troops reinforce their front lines and prepare for another attack.

In all, 380 Daein archers and pikemen and 1,810 Begnion calvary riders lost their lives in the first day of conflict. Clearly, Daein was having the advantage at this point in the battle. In fact, the Daein defenders actually outnumbered their Begnion attackers, by a slight margin, of course.

Hafedd decided to follow up his victory early the next day. At 2 AM, he ordered 500 Daein infantry units to perform a strike on the Begnion defensive line. This was meant as a diversion to allow the Daein calvary to attack the Begnion artillery that was being set up to lay siege to Illiet.

The infantry units did their duty. These brave warriors attacked the Begnion encampment while their allies attacked the Begnion artillery. Of the 35 catapults that were being prepared, 20 were destroyed and many of the artillery staff were slaughtered. Only four calvary riders and only 1 horse lost their lives in the attack. As for those infantry units, unfortunately, 478 of them gave their lives, taking down 468 of their Begnion counterparts with them. The survivors quickly regrouped back at Hafedd's base.

Now, the Daein army outnumbered the Begnion army by a greater margin than before, and the threat of the enemy artillery was lessened greatly. Much of the surviving artillery lacked its respective staff to guide it, so Zelgius was forced to convert several squads of infantry units to artillery staff members, for he wanted to focus his assault on Illiet with artillery, not infantry.

Thus, the next morning began with Zelgius stepping forward alone, to speak with Hafedd, alone. The two warriors met in person before their prepared armies at 10 AM. Zelgius wished to challenge Hafedd to a duel.

Unfortunately, Hafedd was extremely confident. He had soundly defeated the Begnion army in two sorties, and had turned his position from a highly disadvantageous one to an opportunistic one. The General was eager to best Zelgius in a duel, and thus cut the Begnion morale in half. Since the Begnion morale was already quite low for an attacking army, Hafedd was pretty sure that a victory in a duel would lead to the complete destruction of the invading force.

But, like many before him, Hafedd's confidence was premature. He had failed to realize who his opponent would be! Zelgius raised his blade and challenged Hafedd, and the General raised his spear and answered the call. Both warriors prepared for battle!

As a greeting move, Zelgius went first. He charged and tried to hack Hafedd's arm with his sword. (1) But Hafedd was used to enemies with swords, and Zelgius's attack was a common shock tactic. Thus, Hafedd effortlessly dodged the strike and countered with his spear, striking Zelgius on the chest.

Zelgius stepped back a few steps, and switched Ragnell for a silver spear. After all, the trinity of weapons tactic dictated that swords have a disadvantage against spears. Zelgius raised the spear and began to swing it at Hafedd.

Hafedd, however, flew forward, grabbed the spear, and yanked it out of Zelgius's hand. Zelgius, holding it with only one hand, could not grip on his spear tight enough for it not to be stolen. Thus, after snatching Zelgius's spear, Hafedd threw it some distance away, and raised his own spear, grabbing it with two hands and tightening his grip.

Zelgius readied Ragnell and stepped forward. Hafedd raised the spear and charged, but Zelgius was not afraid. Rather, Zelgius ran forward, grabbed the spear, and though he could not yank it out of Hafedd's hands, he pulled forward, propelling himself towards Hafedd. He raised Ragnell, and slashed downward...

The forward propulsion allowed Zelgius to get close enough for his sword to strike Hafedd, yet it was also so close that Hafedd could not get his spear to strike back fast enough. Thus, Zelgius struck Hafedd with Ragnell right on his helmet. As Hafedd was reeling from the blow, Zelgius used Luna!

The warrior glowed with an eerie blue light, and, swinging his blade, Zelgius slashed downwards and hacked at Hafedd's body. Hafedd screamed and went down, making Zelgius the winner.

The shocked Daein troops immediately began to panic, and their morale plummeted to an all time low. A few Daein riders surged forward and grabbed their general. One of the Daein officers shouted: "Everyone, even if we die today, we die as heroes! FOR DAEIN!"

"FOR DAEIN!" The warriors of Daein screamed. They immediately engaged their Begnion counterparts, slaying large quantities of them. Many troops from both sides lost their lives in the coming retaliation assaults by the Daein forces.

The riders carrying and escorting Hafedd decided to retreat to Nevassa, where they could inform the four riders of the situation. As they fled, they watched as their brave comrades behind them were giving their lives and taking enemy lives for the good of Daein. A few hours after Hafedd evacuated his base, the base was taken by the few surviving Begnion soldiers. Only around 400 Begnion troops survived, out of an army of 4,800. More than 250 Daein troops were able to escape and regroup back at the capital. Though Daein was defeated here, the cost of victory was quite pricey for the Begnion Imperial Army.

Returning to base, Hafedd made his report, and Gawain realized that this Zelgius fellow was quite strong indeed. Lifting Urvan, he yelled: "Men of Daein, be thee Seperatist or Loyalist, you have the obligation to fight and die for your nation. Today, a powerful foe had defeated one of our veteran champions, and thus we have quite an arduous task ahead. But those Begnion scoundrels should remember one important fact: We are Daein soldiers, and we will not succumb to any threat! We shall prevail, and destroy these miserable Begnion troops. Join me, comrades, and we will purge Daein of these foul Begnion ruffians. TO ARMS! TO ARMS!"

The Daein army cheered and immediately prepared itself. Soon, 14,000 Daein warriors left Nevassa, heading straight for Illiet.

In Illiet, Oliver gave Zelgius 8,400 troops, and had him promoted to the rank of General for his victory over General Hafedd. Thus, Zelgius had around 8,800 soldiers in his base. The warrior was about to prepare himself to attack, but soon, his scouts reported that they were under attack!

Among the warriors in Gawain's unit, there was a man named Kasatai. Tauroneo had entrusted him with guarding the main gate of Nevassa when the Separatists were trying to break in. As a General, he was quite swift, though his armor was heavy. This was a warrior who had a chance of avenging Hafedd.

Soon, Gawain of the Four Riders and General Zelgius of Begnion met face to face. "So you are the lad who defeated my comrade Hafedd. I am eager to face you in battle!" Gawain laughed. "Gawain the Invincible. Your name is quite well known among your foes. Had I known I would be facing such an opponent today, I would have polished my armor and cleaned my sword. But, I guess Ashera did not give me such a chance. No matter, after you are defeated, I'll be able to clean my blade afterwards." Zelgius smiled.

"Don't get too proud, Boy. You should have learned from Hafedd's defeat!" Gawain sneered. "Learned what, that a Daein veteran can be beaten by a boy? Yes, I learned much from that battle, Gawain of Daein, and I will teach you that lesson today!" Zelgius raised Ragnell.

"If I were strong enough, I'd be strangling that pup!" Bryce snarled from base camp. Tauroneo eyed his friend with interest: "When Julia is not involved, Bryce will gladly stand beside Gawain, but put Julia in the picture, and Gawain is the first person Bryce will kill." He observed.

"Gawain will win. That boy is much too arrogant for his own good." Julia observed grimly. "Exactly. I'm sure the Invincible will teach this lad a lesson." Bryce smiled at her. Julia secretly felt quite uncomfortable.

Zelgius started by swinging Ragnell at Gawain. The warrior responded with a single swish of Urvan, knocking Zelgius off balance. Zelgius staggered back and Gawain followed up with a blow to the head. Zelgius continued finding it difficult to hit Gawain, even though swords had an advantage over axes (again, based on the trinity of weapons).

Zelgius got angry and prepared to use Luna, while Gawain countered with a different kind of skill. This skill involved combining the two legendary skills: Luna and Sol. Sol was a skill that temporarily allowed the user to drain life energy from a foe, while Luna was a skill that increased the power of the user tremendously for a short time. Combining the two skills, one was aloud to heal at the enemy's expense and follow up with a mighty blow afterwards. The skill that Gawain was using was known as Aether!

Luna hit home, making Gawain wince, but Aether smashed into Zelgius, and Gawain was able to heal much of his wound. Aether's Luna attack actually cracked parts of Zelgius's armor, and the Begnion general went down. The Begnion troops began to panic, and Bryce, Tauroneo, and Julia began to 'mop them up.' With the help of the Illiet locals and militia, the Begnion troops were routed and forced out of the town. Many of them were killed, leaving about 2,400 survivors who fled for their dear lives.

Tauroneo ordered the Daein calvary to pursue these survivors out of Daein, and thus, Zelgius was a prisoner.

But before he could be taken into custody, Zelgius collapsed on his hands and knees before Gawain. "General, I am indebted to you. You are the master, and I am the lowly fly who tried to take your glory. Please accept me as your servant, and when I prove myself worthy, teach me some of your skill. I am certain that you desire one who can continue your legacy, and though I am an unworthy wretch, I will work arduously until you deem me worthy enough to learn a portion of your skill." Zelgius continued to bow there, and Gawain nodded.

"I have a fiancee, and at some time, we will have a child. If he is a boy, then I will probably have him continue his father's legacy, but I think that there is no harm to having a warrior watch after my son after I am gone. Very well, I accept your proposal. Get up, Zelgius." Gawain smirked.

With that, Zelgius became Gawain's personal servant, though Bryce was quite uncomfortable about the plan.

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(Mind you, the events depicted between the two scene separators here merely explain how this plot intertwines with the rest of the story. Tauroneo is not relating this information to Ike, for he himself does not know that this actually happened. Had Tauroneo known, the General would probably have helped escort Gawain and Elena out of Daein and into Gallia.)

Ever since she entered the Daein border, Elena was curious about what was in this nation. She went on a personal tour, thus making it difficult for her to help Gawain and his friends on the battlefield. She had come to Nevassa a couple times and had met Julia, but Elena, curious as ever, still set out on her journey across Daein.

As she was traveling, Elena found something in Daein that shocked her gravely.

At Palmeni Temple, Elena found that a Heron girl was imprisoned there. (2.) She was quite shocked upon finding her, but Elena tried her best to be cordial to the unfortunate heron. The two became friends, even though they shared no common language. Elena learned that this Heron girl was named Lillia, and she had lost her homeland during the Serenes Massacre. Elena deduced that Apostle Misaha must have died, for such an event would not have happened if she were alive. After some time, Lillia trusted Elena enough to teach her an important song, a song that would help keep a terrible god from being released from a medallion. This medallion, of course, was in Lillia's possession, and Elena warily took the medallion and swore to Lillia that she would protect it.

Shortly afterwards, the two friends were forced to part, and, in secret, Elena went to visit Gawain, and told him everything. The warrior heard the tale, and was wondering exactly where he could help Elena hide the medallion, but no safe haven showed itself. Soon, King Aeolus requested Gawain to attack Begnion, and Gawain believed that somewhere beyond Begnion, he could find their safe haven.

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Gathering arms, the warriors of Daein prepared to march into Begnion. Strangely, Gawain seemed like he was preoccupied with some matter, but neither Bryce nor Tauroneo nor Julia wished to disturb him. Soon, the Daein army entered the Begnion border, and the tables would be turned. Now Daein was the aggressor, and Begnion was the defender. The tidings of war were quite uneasy indeed.

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1. Note: Zelgius is wielding Ragnell. He will later find Alondite, and that will be his trademark weapon.

2. Gasp! Who imprisoned Lillia, was it Aeolus, or was it Ashnard?!