nightelf37: I own only the following; the made-up last names of the characters, my rendition of the Tactician (Mark and Kat), as well as anything that doesn't actually happen in the game.

Passing through Araphen and Khathelet, Lyn and her friends arrive in Caelin. However, Caelin is now under the rule of Lord Lundgren. Lundgren's henchmen lay in wait to assassinate Lyn. They wait for her approach and ready a special weapon.

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Chapter 8: Vortex of Strategy

Lyndis's Legion was on a direct course to Castle Caelin, but they still had two days until they would reach it. Lyn had been silent for the last day or so, pondering on her situation. Mark and Kat on the other hand were pondering strategies in the event knights from Caelin decide to fight them. After a while, the travelers briefly stopped to take a break next to an armory. They had finally arrived in Caelin. Lyn held Mark's hand, easy since they were on the same horse, then took a look back where they had come from.

"Look, Mark!" She pointed behind them. "The mountains seem so far away now. We've come such a long way…" Lyn smiled to herself, then let go of the older tactician's hand as Sain approached them.

"Milady Lyndis! Mark! We can't be very far from the castle now!" he said.

Kent rode up next to him. "By my reckoning, we can reach Castle Caelin in two days, if we hurry."

"Two more days… Hold on, Grandfather. Please…" Lyn closed her eyes, looking sad.

In an attempt to cheer her up, Mark pleaded, "Please don't despair, Lyn. Lest it spread to the rest of the Legion."

Coming from a joy flight, Florina descended next to them as she said, "Cheer up, Lyn. If they see you looking so sad, the entire company will lose heart."

"Mark… Florina… You're right. There's nothing to be gained by worrying. We just have to press onward."

Florina beamed a smile. "That's the spirit!"

Just then, Nils, who was seated with Florina and Kat, began holding his head, almost as if he had a headache. "Lyn… Danger approaches…"

Mark let go of Lyn as he said that. "What did you say?"

Sain looked around a bit, "I don't see anything. Are you sure?"

"I feel it too," Ninian spoke up from behind Kent. "I'm sure of it. Ah!" She picked up her head, then urgently spoke. "Milady, don't move!"

"Hm?" All of a sudden, a large arrow pierced the grass right next to Wanderer. This spooked the four horses, knocking off Kat, Ninian, Mark, Nils and Matthew off, though the ones at the reins were quick to calm them down before thy could trample the ones from behind.

Once Wanderer was calmed, Lyn took a look at the large arrow. "What in… Where did this bolt come from?"

Kent gaped, then recollected himself. "They have a ballista!"

Sain gave a frown. "Lord Lundgren is getting serious. Deploying siege engines is no mean feat."

"What is a ballista?" Lyn asked. From the ruckus, the rest of the Legion caught up.

"It's a weapon designed for long-distance attacks," Kent explained. "Only archers can use them, but they can be devastating."

"Florina! You must stay aground!" Sain warned the Pegasus Knight. "Do not take to the air! The ballista would target you in an instant!"

"Eeek!" she shuddered, then buried her head into Huey's mane.

"Is there a way to combat it?" Lyn asked.

"The safest course is to use someone with good defense as bait, so the enemy wastes arrows," Kent said.

"That or someone with very good dodging," added Kat.

Sain grinned as he finished, "Then you can walk up and knock the fool on the head."

Lyn turned to their Archer. "Wil, can you use a ballista?"

"I've never tried, but… It's just a really big bow, right? I should be able to figure it out."

"All we can ask is that you try…"

"I'll be surprised if you do," commented Mark. "I've seen ballistae up close, and the way they're operated is distinctly different from a bow."

Just then, after dusting himself off, Matthew approached him and Lyn. "Ah, Lady Lyndis! Mark! I have some minor… business… to attend to. I'm unable to join you."

"You're off to get intel?" guessed Kat.

"You got it."

"Allow me to come with you, Matthew," proposed Mark, then turned to face his sister. "Kat, can you take command?"

"What?!"

"Somebody needs to keep a close eye on him—" he thumbed at the Thief. "—and I'd rather not risk you."

"You think I'm ready?"

"If it makes you feel better, work with Lyn." Mark then ruffled his sister's hair. "I believe in you."

"I'm not sure." Kat rubbed her nape. "This battle is pretty important."

"Every battle is important, Kat. Good luck." With that, he ran off with Matthew to the nearby town.

Once they were gone, the younger tactician started thinking. After a while, her plan was in action. "All right. Everybody save the knights and Rath, tie your horses' reins to the nearby armory. Ninian, stand by there as well. Sain, buy some spare weapons in the armory." She handed him enough gold pieces. "The rest, let's try and be quick as possible."

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"What are you curs waiting for?" she heard their commander cry out. "They're nothing but fleas! Call up for reinforcements, and rush 'em!"

Despite her age, Kat knew what she was doing, her voice commanding as much authority as her brother's, especially after such commands saved their skins more than a few times. By now, the ballista was seized, but there weren't many bolts left for Wil to use.

At present, the two Cavaliers, Lyn, and Dorcas were blocking the bridge as Rath, Erk, and Lucius provided support fire. As usual, Serra was keeping them in optimal shape with Kat's directives getting the Cleric's targets to her, with Nils's music boosting them further despite its dissonance given what they're doing (at least that's how Kat saw it). With the ballista out of the enemy's control, Florina was able to pitch in, too.

After a while, the resistance on the bridge ceased for a while and the commander could be seen in the distance, which Kat's Scan spell identified as Yogi. He was a blue-green armored Knight with a thick brown mustache visible underneath his helmet. Being knights from Caelin, it should've been no surprise that Kent and Sain might've recognized him, which they did.

"Yogi… What…" gasped the red Cavalier.

"What's wrong Kent?" The green one asked before he was pointed at the enemy Knight commanding what troops he had left to attack. "Kent, he's the enemy now. We must attack, for he isn't holding back, and neither must we."

It was strange to hear the skirt-chaser as the voice of reason, but he was right. This was war, and sometimes you find yourselves on the wrong side. As the Legion reached the armored Knight, Wil at this point managed to calculate the trajectory he needed to have for his ballista bolt to attack Yogi. The bolt was launched, but a sudden breeze turned it from a potential one-hit kill through the armor into a graze at the leg.

"Curses!" he swore. "The ballista must have been taken… What's going on here? Somebody get the girl!"

With his preoccupation for reinforcements, he almost didn't notice the smaller arrow coming from Rath. It grazed his helmet, which distracted him further, preventing him from dodging or deflecting Florina's skewer. Thankfully, her lance was a tougher one, even if it's a little heavy for her.

Coughing up blood, Yogi garbled, "Lord Lundgren… I've failed you… I pray you hurry… with those reinforcements… you promised." After that, he was gone from the world of the living.

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"Is it over?" Lyn asked as the last of the foe fell to Kent's sword.

The red Cavalier looked around before confirming it. "Yes. I see no more enemy soldiers. However, something is bothering me."

"What is it?" Lyn and Kat queried at the same time. The latter also ordered the rest to fetch their horses from the armory.

"I noticed it during the fighting. Our opponents… They were soldiers of Caelin. I even recognized some of those we fought. I trained with many of them… And yet they attacked us without hesitation."

"They're black-hearted traitors who've joined Lord Lundgren," Sain concluded. "Good riddance, I say. It also means less resistance at the castle."

"I hope you're right…"

Lyn smiled, then turned to the siblings. "I'm just glad Nils and Ninian were with us. If that first shot had hit me, I might not have survived."

Ninian bowed, and then smiled sadly, even though she was happy. "We are honored to have served you well."

Nils grinned with a smile ear to ear. "We won't let you down!"

Lyn gave a laugh. "I know. I'm relying on you."

Just then, Matthew came rushing back, Mark right behind him with a special kind of sword called a lancereaver in his hands. Upon seeing the resolution of the battle, the Thief let out a whistle while the tactician couldn't help but be impressed.

"What's this? You dealt with the ballista, too? Nicely done!" commented Matthew.

"You did really well, Kat and Lyn."

"Actually, your sister did most of the planning. She's as good as you are," the plainswoman replied, then eyed the Thief suspiciously. "Matthew, where were you during all this?"

This was returned with a grin from the Thief. "I went to the village to sniff about for information. I got some interesting news for my trouble, too."

"Let's hear it!"

Matthew gave a serious look as he spoke. "First, about Marquess Caelin's illness. He really is unwell. He's been abed for nigh on three months."

"Oh, no… Grandfather…" Lyn looked down at the grass in sorrow.

"I heard an interesting rumor about his condition, though. The people believe that someone's been poisoning the marquess…"

And with that, her head was up and facing Matthew again. "He's being poisoned?"

"And this someone… Well, everyone's too afraid to mention a name. However, they say that, as soon as the marquess took ill, a certain noble took control of the castle as though it were his own. I fed a hungry innkeeper some coin, and he fed me a name. The marquess of Caelin's own brother, Lord Lundgren."

Lyn, deeply agitated, asked, "How can this be? How can they allow him to get away with this? The villagers know he's the one poisoning my grandfather, and yet, no one raises a hand against him? Why?"

"They are afraid, and they lack proof," Kent explained. "The whisperings of the common people means nothing."

"That's the truth of it," agreed Matthew. "And of the marquess's loyal retainers who might have lent credence to these rumors, there is no sign."

Lyn, unable to bear anymore of this, fought hard to hold back her emotions. "Are you saying they've been silenced?"

"It's a fair assumption." Matthew answered.

"This is beyond believing," said Kent.

"The worst news is yet to come."

"What?" gasped Sain. "There's more?"

"An imposter's appeared, claiming to be the marquess's granddaughter. At least, that's the story Lundgren's telling to all who'll listen."

"What does that mean?" Lyn asked.

"I know where this is going," snarked Mark.

"It means that people are waiting for two traitorous knights and a baseborn child to appear and lay claim to Castle Caelin."

Sain, appalled at the possibility of him and Kent being branded traitors, got upset. "But… But that… It can't be!"

"Traitors? Us? Ridiculous!" his partner agreed.

Lyn sunk into disbelief. "He says… I'm an imposter?"

"Don't you have anything that proves your lineage?" asked Matthew.

"When my mother joined the Lorca, she brought nothing of Lycia with her."

"Milady, Marquess Araphen himself remarked at your resemblance to Lady Madelyn!" Sain offered. "Your face is your proof!"

"If only things were that simple," replied Kat. "But things are never easy."

"They'll say we found a look-alike somewhere…" Kent countermanded his partner's argument. "We're seen as betrayers of our knightly vows. Our word means nothing. No, our only hope is to see Marquess Caelin himself."

"We must hurry. If not, my grandfather…" Lyn was struggling not to cry. "I must see him! With my last breath if need be."

"But we must formulate some manner of plan!" Matthew argued. "Even if we set out for the castle, the troops patrolling the area will cause no end of problems. You have been branded as oath breakers, after all."

The company remained silent for a good while before Lyn came up with something. "I've got it! Eliwood… He seemed sympathetic to our plight. He should still be in Khathelet. If we can talk to him, he might help us!"

"Hey, that's a nice idea, Lyn!" gasped Mark

Kent beamed in encouragement as well. "Of course! A sound idea!"

As did Sain. "Let's hurry!"

"Yes! Back to Kathelet!"

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X Yogi
A Knight under orders from Lundgren. He was in charge of a battalion to stop us, relying on the power of his sole ballista unit to do so. But we proved better.

nightelf37: And that's it. Short, huh? Anyway, next chapter will not only add Wallace, but add a little mysticism with promotional items. Yes, they're in-game, but I thought it'd be nice to try what others hadn't tried. See ya on Third!