Popping in beforehand to say that from here on out, the story is going to start veering away (ever so slightly for now) from the canon/base game. It won't be too much of a change for now, just warning all of you that it has begun. I hope you're ready, cos this is gonna be a wild ride!

()()()()()()()()

-Chapter Nine- Of Pot Helmets and Voices-

As Chrom rubbed the spot on the back of his head where one of the stones Robin had hurled at him the day before, he looked ahead. Knowing that Ylisstol would be visible soon, he checked behind him to see how the rest of the Shepherds were doing. Robin, who still refused to meet his eyes, was riding alongside Lissa and Yana who both had smirks on their faces, while Frederick was diligently riding alongside his prince. Raye, as he had ended up doing in the week since they had left Ferox, was making sure that Sahria wasn't about to wonder off. The younger manakete had already delayed their journey twice when she had seen something off to the side and immediately gone to investigate. Now, however, she was under the close scrutiny of her mentor, which Chrom was immensely grateful for.

'Milord, what are your plans for once we reach Ylisstol?' Frederick asked then, turning the prince's focus back to the front.

'Meet with Emmeryn, report our success and then a nice, soothing bath,' Chrom sighed in contentment. 'I tell you, Frederick; it's going to be a massive relief to be able to just relax and enjoy a moment's peace to myself!'

'Hmm…yes, I did hear about what happened with you and Lady Robin,' the great knight commented, a slight frown on his face. 'Saw it as well.' He looked severely at his prince. 'Milord, how many times have I told you to always think before you speak? Perhaps I should have Lady Maribelle give you some more lessons on etiquette?'

A horrified look crossed Chrom's face at this suggestion. The only things worse than Frederick's Hour (and more) of Fitness Madness were etiquette lessons with the Shepherds' resident noble. She had a tendency to smack her unfortunate students over the head with a riding cane…or her staff…or anything else she could get her hands on.

'Er, no Frederick, I don't think that will be necessary!' Chrom quickly replied. 'I'll just apologise to Robin once she's cooled off and read a book on that stuff later.' Before the knight could reply, the prince continued, pointing ahead of them. 'Oh look, Ylisstol!'

The capitol of the Halidom was indeed now able to be seen in the distance. Chrom gladly led the way forwards, eager to put some distance between him and Frederick, if only to avoid any more mention of etiquette lessons.

()()()()()()()()

'So we are to receive reinforcements from Ferox?' Emmeryn sighed in relief, sinking back into her throne. 'Excellent work, brother; I will admit that I was slightly worried about not attending to this matter personally.'

Chrom had immediately went to see Emmeryn in the throne room once they'd arrived at the capitol and had caught her up on the events at Ferox.

'What, did you think I'd mess it up somehow?' Chrom joked now. Emmeryn raised an eyebrow at this, causing her brother to grin sheepishly. 'Yeah, ok...fair point...'

The Exalt shook her head in amusement. 'I'm just glad that you secured our alliance despite…yourself.'

'Well, as much as I'd like to claim responsibility for it, that honour really goes to Raye,' Chrom admitted. He then looked around and motioned to the manakete in question, who was standing to the side with Sahria.

Noticing that the attention was now on him, Raye stepped forward and bowed. 'It was no problem, your highness; merely doing my duty as a citizen of Ylisse.'

Emmeryn smiled before standing up and, much to the surprise of everyone in the room, knelt in front of Raye. 'It is I who should be bowing to you, my lord. It is an honour to have such an esteemed figure aiding us as you have thus far.'

Raye scratched his head awkwardly. 'Er…you don't have to give me such thanks, kid. I'm perfectly happy merely serving the crown.'

''Kid'?' Phila, Emmeryn's female version of Frederick and commander of the Ylissean Pegasus Knights, repeated in an annoyed voice.

'It is no trouble, Phila,' Emmeryn assured the knight, getting back to her feet. 'I'm sure that to someone as old as he is we are all but children.'

'You're not wrong there, your highness,' Raye muttered. He then cleared his throat and brought Sahria to the front. 'Speaking of manaketes, let me introduce my new apprentice, Sahria.'

Surprised, Emmeryn looked back at Chrom. 'I was not aware that you had another manakete under your command, not that she was Lord Raye's apprentice.'

'We…er…encountered her during a Risen attack,' Chrom explained. 'She saved Yana and Lissa by summoning some giant knight but then ran off after the battle was over. We then met her again at the Longfort where she saved my life from the captain of the guard.'

'Yeah, she might have destroyed part of their wall,' Raye put in, glaring slightly at Sahria, who stuck her tongue out at him. 'Seeing that she was pretty reckless, I've since decided to take her on as my apprentice and teach her the ways of our people.'

'And I'm sure that you will do a fine job, Lord Raye,' Emmeryn smiled.

'Ok, gonna stop you right there,' Raye said huffily. 'You call me 'Lord' one more time and I'll burn this castle to the ground.'

'Why you..!' Phila growled at this statement, but Emmeryn held up a hand.

'Apologies L…I mean Raye,' she said, bowing her head. 'It's just that manaketes such as yourself are considered holy beings in Ylisse. I did not mean to offend.'

Raye grunted. 'So long as you recognise and don't repeat that mistake.'

Sahria then piped up, asking, 'Hey, does that mean people are gonna worship me as well?'

'Not if I can help it!' Raye snapped. 'I think the humans deserve someone a little more mature than you to worship!'

'Hey, I can be mature!'

'Clearly you can't since you're arguing with me!' Raye replied, annoyed.

'You're a Jerkface, master!'

'And you're a child!'

'Well, you're also ugly!'

'Am not!'

'Are to!'

Yana quickly moved between the two manaketes, who had dangerous looks in their eyes. 'Please, if you're going to argue at least do it outside of the confines of the city!' she said sternly. 'Raye, stop being a hypocrite!' As the elder manakete spluttered in protest, the princess then turned to Sahria. 'And Sahria…I'm sure that you're not immature, so why don't you try and show Raye that you aren't?' As the two manaketes looked shamefaced down at the ground, Yana relaxed. 'There…now, shake hands you two.'

Sighing, the two manaketes stepped towards each other and, looking rather like two children who had been reprimanded by a parent, shook the other's hand.

'Sorry, Little Dragon…guess I let my temper get away from me again…' Raye grudgingly admitted.

'Maybe…and I'm sorry that I called you an ugly Jerkface…master…' Sahria replied. 'You're actually pretty good looking, if I'm gonna be honest.'

As the two manaketes grinned at each other, Yana sighed in relief. As she rejoined her siblings, Emmeryn laughed.

'I must say, I thought I'd seen everything!' she chuckled. 'But seeing a human step between two arguing manaketes and calm them…that was rather amusing to watch!' She smiled at Yana. 'You really are of the Exalted blood to be able to do that, Yana!'

Amidst the laughter that followed the Exalt's words, none of them registered at first that there was a knock on the door to the throne room. After the third knock, they noticed and Phila went to open the door.

On the other side was one of the palace guard, accompanied by a young man who looked to be around Lissa and Sahria's age.

'Yes, guardsman, what is it?' the commander of the Pegasus Knights asked.

'Apologies for interrupting, Lady Phila, but this young man has an urgent request for the Exalt,' the guard replied, gesturing to his companion.

'This may not be the best time…' Phila began, but was interrupted by Emmeryn who had heard the exchange.

'It's alright, Phila, I will hear what the man has to say,' she said and gestured for the guard to bring the man forward.

Once he was in front of the Exalt, the young man, more teenager, quickly bent his knee before speaking.

'Sorry for interruptin' yer important meeting, your worshipfulnesses,' the boy said, anxiously adjusting the pot that he was wearing for some reason on his head. 'My name's Donnel, though ma and me friends call me Donny…' Donnel frowned. 'I tell 'em not to keep callin' me that, tho, but they keep insistin' on…'

'Get to the point of your visit, please,' Phila snapped impatiently, causing the young man to jump and bow his head quickly.

'R…right, sorry ma'am,' he stammered. 'My reason fer comin' here was ta ask for help fer my village.'

'Have Risen attacked your village?' Emmeryn asked concerned.

Donnel shook his head. 'Nah, you worshipfulness…bandits!' A grimace crossed the boy's face. 'Led by one dastard of a man known as Roddick the Mountain!'

Chrom narrowed his eyes at the mention of the name of the bandit leader. 'Roddick the Mountain? He's one of Ylisse's most wanted!'

'Indeed, milord,' Frederick agreed. 'Roddick the Mountain has been responsible for many a razed village over the last three years and all attempts to bring him to justice have failed.' The knight grunted distastefully. 'The man unfortunately lives up to his title and is unmoving as a mountain.'

Chrom looked thoughtful as Frederick spoke, and when the knight was finished took his turn to speak. 'But then…none of the forces that have tried to bring him to heel have had two manaketes with them…'

All those present looked at the prince, then at the two manaketes in question. Raye exchanged glances with his apprentice before grinning.

'Sure, I think we're both up for wiping out a group of bandits!' he chuckled. 'What say you, apprentice of mine?'

Sahria responded by letting out a little giggle. 'Sounds like fun, master!' A grin then appeared on her face that sent chills up Chrom's spine. 'I wonder if they'll be as amusing to terrify as the Feroxi were?'

'Maybe this isn't such a good idea letting those two loose…' Chrom muttered under his breath.

()()()()()()()

Meanwhile, at the top of the Mila tree, a green haired woman was still wondering over the presence she had felt over a week ago. Finally, she suddenly stood up from where she had been sitting.

'I can't stand this, I have to know!' she muttered. Closing her eyes, she let out her thoughts before connecting to the one who she communed with. 'Mother…did you feel that as well?'

A moment passed before a soft, whispering voice echoed in the woman's mind. 'Yes, Tiki my child, I would have been hard pressed not to.'

'That was a divine dragon, wasn't it?' Tiki asked.

'Indeed…though it should not be possible…' the voice, which belonged to Naga the Divine Dragon, replied. 'All of my kin left the world of men a long time ago and I do not know of any that would have made the choice to stay.'

'Other than myself, you mean,' Tiki said, slightly bitterly.

'Tiki…you know why I did what I did…'

Naga's daughter sighed. 'Yes…I know…I'm sorry; you did it for my sake so I shouldn't be complaining about it.' Tiki then went silent for a moment before continuing. 'Maybe…maybe it was my big brother? The presence did feel…familiar somehow.' A hint of longing crept into her thoughts then.

'That too is impossible,' Naga replied, sadness now tinging her thoughts. 'Your brother died a long time ago during his battle with Grima.'

'But you said that you never saw him fall!' Tiki argued.

'Tiki…you know as well as I do how much your brother loved you,' Naga pointed out. 'If he had survived, he would have made sure to let you know.' The divine dragon let her words sink in for a moment before continuing. 'No, whoever that presence was it has to have been a hitherto unknown dragon, possibly one from another tribe.'

'But you agreed with me that it was a divine dragon!'

'I said POSSIBLY from another tribe,' Naga gently reminded Tiki. 'I do agree that it was most likely a divine dragon, I'm just keeping an open mind.'

Tiki was silent for a moment before coming to a decision. 'Either way, I should go an investigate this.'

'Why?'

'Because whoever it was has enough power to be felt by BOTH of us, from what I can only imagine was quite some distance away,' Tiki reasoned. 'Any dragon of that power may be of some aid to those who stand against Grima.'

'And you hope to recruit them to my Chosens' cause?'

'That or at the very least find out who it is,' Tiki replied. 'I'm sure that you are also as curious as I am, mother.'

'I will admit to some curiosity…' Naga sighed. 'Very well, do what you must, but be careful.'

I will mother. Thank you for trusting in my decision.'

'You know I always will…my beloved daughter…'

With that, Tiki cut off her connection with her mother and strode towards the edge of the Mila Tree. Taking out a dragonstone, she transformed into her draconic form and spread her wings, leaping into flight a moment later.

'Now…where are you, mysterious dragon?'

()()()()()()()()

'Tell me about your village, Donnel,' Robin asked of the pot wearing boy who was riding awkwardly on a borrowed horse beside her.

'Oh well, not much ta say, ma'am,' Donnel replied. 'Jus' spent our days tendin' to our crops and animals…yeah, that's about it.'

'Sounds pretty peaceful,' the tactician mused.

Donnel smiled. 'It has its moments that's fer sure, but for the most part I'd hafta agree!' A sad look appeared on the boy's face. 'Least it was till that dastard Roddick showed up…'

'Don't worry, we'll soon have them out of your hair,' Robin assured him. She nodded her head towards the two manaketes that were flying above them. 'After all, those two are probably armies in their own rights. Raye certainly is anyway.'

'Never thought I'd ever meet ONE manakete, know I've met two of 'em!' Donnel remarked, looking in awe once again at the sight of the airborne dragons. The boy had done that several times during the trip already.

After Donnel had succeeded in recruiting the Shepherds' assistance, the Ylisseans had wasted no time in moving out. Once again though, Maribelle had stayed behind, her father needing her help with her family's business, while Ricken had elected to also stay behind. Well…he had more been recruited by the surviving ladies of Rielet to show them around Ylisstol after they had finally been discharged from the city hospital, but judging from the nervous smile he had on his face the young mage certainly didn't mind. Stahl on the other hand was finally rejoining the Shepherds, although Kari had insisted on a goodbye hug from the green knight before he had left.

They had now been on the road for nearly a day and were making quick progress. Donnel predicted that they would arrive at his village within the next few hours, so the Shepherds had begun checking their weapons, and in the case of Vaike, making sure that they actually had them.

'See, told ya I wouldn't forget my axe this time around!' Vaike crowed victoriously as he brandished his axe.

Chrom shook his head at his friend's outburst before facing the front again. He then noticed the wisps of smoke that were rising into the air some distance away.

'Frederick…' he said and the knight nodded.

'I see it, milord,' he replied.

Chrom turned back to the Shepherds. 'Shepherds, double time!'

At his words, the Ylisseans urged their horses into gallops and they charged towards the source of the smoke. Overhead Raye and Sahria were also angling down towards the smoke.

As they burst out from the trees, the Shepherds saw to their horror the charred remains of a village, which they quickly realised was Donnel's judging from his reaction when he saw what was waiting for him.

'No…those dastards…!' the boy breathed, tears appearing in his eyes as he sank to his knees. 'They've gon' and burnt my village to the ground!'

The Shepherds looked around when as a man cried out. 'DONNEL!'

Donnel turned around and a relieved smile crossed his face as he raced forward to hug the other man, an older gentleman with wispy brown hair. 'PA! I'm glad ta see that yer alive!' He then looked around. 'Where's ma?'

Donnel's father looked sadly down at his son. 'The bandits 'ave taken all the women and holed up in the Farfort!'

'Dastards…' Donnel growled, a look of steel appearing momentarily in his young eyes. 'Don' worry, pa, me and the Shepherds are gonna go and get ma and the others back!'

'Shepherds…?' Donnel's father then noticed Chrom and his forces, as well as the two rather large dragons further behind them. 'You managed to get help?'

'Yeah, and they've got two humungous dragon folk with 'em!' Donnel replied happily, pointing in the manaketes' direction.

'I can see tha'!' the older man nodded. He then turned and bowed to the prince. 'I thank yer, your highness, fer comin' to our aid!'

'It's no problem, trust me,' Chrom said, waving away the man's gratitude. 'Roddick has been a thorn in the Halidom's side for years; I'll feel more comfortable once we've gotten rid of him.' He then gestured for the Shepherds to follow him. 'Come on, let's get to the Farfort! Raye, Sahria, it would probably be best for you two to change back into your human forms; don't want to alert the bandits to our presence just yet.'

As the two manaketes changed back, Donnel quickly ran after the Shepherds as they made their way to the Farfort.

'Wait, your highness!' he cried. 'Take me with ya!'

Chrom looked uncertainly at the young man. 'It might be better for you to stay behind, Donnel.'

The young man firmly shook his head. 'Nah, I want ta help! It's me ma's life on the line, and I want to make sure that I'm there to rescue her!'

'Can you fight?' Chrom asked doubtfully.

'Not…exactly….but jus' show me where to stick 'em and I'll get it done!' Donnel replied determinedly.

Chrom sighed. 'Do you even have a weapon?'

Donnel looked around before snapping off a long, thick branch. 'Now I do!'

'It's…it's a branch!' the prince protested.

Donnel grinned. 'Hit anyone over the head hard enough, even a branch can be a pretty darn good weapon!'

Robin smiled. 'He has a point, Chrom.' When the prince looked at her disbelievingly, the tactician shrugged. 'Oh, let him come along! It's clear that he'd follow us anyway, even if you said no.' Donnel nodded at her words. 'What's the harm in it? Extra hands make light work, after all!'

'And if you're that concerned about his well-being, then Donnel can join Kellam and I,' Yana spoke up. 'That way I'll be able to look after him.'

'Kellam…?' Chrom started, squinting once again at the mention of the 'invisible' knight. 'Dammit, man, you should have said that you were here!'

Yana rolled her eyes as Kellam sighed. 'He's been here from the beginning, you dolt!'

'Sure…fine, fine!' Chrom sighed in defeat. 'As long as you take care of him then I guess he can come along!'

Donnel cheered and gratefully nodded at Yana, who smiled back at him.

Robin then took that moment to group up the Shepherds again; Sumia would be paired up with Miriel for this battle, Virion with Sully this time, Stahl with Vaike, Lon'qu with Frederick, the two manaketes together, Kellam, Yana and Donnel, and herself, Chrom and Lissa as the last group.

'Right, anything you can tell me about the Farfort, Chrom?' Robin asked now that the groups had been sorted out.

'Used to be one of our more defensible forts back during the wars with Plegia,' Chrom replied, frowning as he tried to remember anything useful. 'I heard that it was never once conquered, but now that that war is long over it's gone into some disrepair.'

'I take it that the walls will be crumbled and weakened then?' Robin asked.

Donnel was the one to answer her question. 'The fort's weak in some place, ma'am, but enough of the walls are still standin' that it's still an imposin' place. Used to explore the fort when I was a kid, it's how I know.'

'Hmm…we should perhaps avoid a frontal assault in that case,' Robin mused. 'Donnel, are there any particular places that you remember being particularly weak?'

The villager thought for a moment before nodding. 'Yeah, the east side of the fort's so crumbled that I reckon even yer dragon folk could fit through it in their scary forms.'

'Then that's where we'll assault,' Robin declared. 'I suggest that Frederick and Stahl's teams take the front and clear the way while Sumia and Miriel attack them from the air. Sully, you and Virion will be attacking as a distraction; hopefully Virion's arrows will draw some of them off. If they do, Kellam, Yana and Donnel will back them up. Raye and Sahria…well, just cause as much chaos as you can. As for us, Chrom and Lissa, we'll be supporting the main group.' She looked around at the Shepherds. 'Are we all agreed on the plan?'

'Sound's good,' Sully nodded.

'My lady, I am sure that your strategy will not fail us!' Virion supplied gallantly.

'As long I get to roast bad guys, I'm cool with whatever,' Sahria piped up, causing Raye to sigh.

Chrom sighed. 'Fairly certain that means that we're all in agreement.' He then drew Falchion and pointed at the Longfort. 'Alright Shepherds, get into position and at my signal begin the attack!'

()()()()()()()()

Ox was enjoying a particularly long urination when an arrow came out of nowhere and struck him in the knee. As the bandit yelled out in pain, a mounted knight came charging out of nowhere and cut his head off as he went past.

In one smooth motion, the lean man that had been sitting behind the knight jumped off and landed in a crouch just behind another pair of nearby bandits. He stayed in that position for a moment before straightening as the two bodies fell to the ground, heads rolling clear as they hit the dirt.

'Huh…that actually does work…' Lon'qu mumbled to himself before smiling slightly to himself. 'Nice…'

He looked around when Stahl and Vaike arrived, the fighter jumping off of the knight's horse and joining the myrmidon on the ground.

'Heh, nice moves, but now it's time for class 'cos the Vaike has entered the building!' the muscle-brained man announced in a loud voice.

'Just don't go too crazy, Vaike,' Frederick said sternly as he pulled up his horse next to the three. 'And remember; there are hostages here.'

'Leave 'em to us, Fred!' Vaike replied, clapping Lon'qu on the back. 'The Vaike and this guy'll get those fine ladies outta here!'

'Don not hit me…' Lon'qu muttered.

They all turned around as Robin, Chrom and Lissa caught up with him.

'Okay, so there might have been less bandits than I thought,' Chrom remarked.

'These were probably just sentries, Chrom,' Robin pointed out. 'The majority of them are probably deeper inside.'

As she spoke, dragon Sahria landed on the other side of the wall and poked her head into the hole so that she could speak to the others.

'Hey, just thought you'd like to know that the rest of the bandits are being dealt with,' the young manakete reported. 'Donny's group has wiped out a fair number of them already and my master is tearing apart the west side of the fort; he said that he sensed some women in that part of it.'

'Well, that makes our task a little easier,' Chrom said with relief. 'Though I hope that Raye doesn't scare those women to death.'

The Shepherds then turned as a group of fifteen bandits came rushing towards them, shouting in anger.

As the bandits reached them, the Shepherds crossed weapons with them and a short melee ensued. Robin and Chrom combined to eliminate three, the tactician electrocuting two of them before they reached the prince while Chrom blocked and parried the attacks the bandit aimed at him before ducking under a horizontal strike aimed at his neck and, with an upward thrust, pierced the man through the chest.

Lon'qu looked calmly around at the four bandits that surrounded him. As the men leapt towards him the Feroxi swordsman somersaulted into the air and, when he was above them, spun so that he decapitated all four bandits in one circular strike.

Vaike on the other hand merely kept smashing his axe against his two opponents until he broke through their defences and caved their heads in.

'Ha, beat that, Chrom!' he crowed smugly. He was then tackled to the ground by Lon'qu as the swordsman saved him from an arrow to the head.

'Don't get distracted,' the Feroxi growled. 'I won't save you next time.'

'Bah, the Vaike woulda eaten that arrow up for breakfast!'

As the swordsman sighed, Frederick and Stahl combined to finish off the rest of the bandits. One tried to flee past them only to be cower back as Sahria, who had crawled through the large hole in the wall, snapped him up in her jaws and with a crunch ate the man whole.

'Huh…that was kinda gross…' she commented with a frown. 'Remind me never to do that again.'

She then stormed towards the two archers that were seriously considering their life choices at that moment and breathed fire on them, their agonized screams thankfully being cut short when the manakete stamped on them until they fell quiet.

As Sahria sniffed the burnt corpses curiously, Chrom and the others to stock of the situation.

'Anyone wounded?' the prince asked, looking around at his companions.

Seeing that Shepherds had managed to pull through with nothing more than some small scratches, he led the way deeper into the fort. A little way down a corridor, they met up with Donnel, Yana and Kellam.

'How are you guys holding up?' Chrom asked as they reached them.

'Not a scratch on us,' Yana smiled, hugging Lissa when the smaller girl threw her arms around her.

'Only 'cos Lady Yana did some tricky magic stuff!' Donnel spoke up, looking at the cleric with a great amount of respect and a little bit of awe.

Yana blushed at the young man's praise. 'Well, you also helped a lot, Donnel,' she replied. 'He killed at least four of the bandits himself, Chrom! I think we've got ourselves a hero in the making here!'

'Aw, shucks, Lady Yana…' the villager mumbled, looking down at his feet and shuffling them in embarrassment. 'Ya don't have to say tha'...Sir Kellam also helped…'

'I only did my duty…but you guys can't hear me, so whatever…' the knight sighed.

Yana sympathetically touched Kellam's armoured arm. 'I still appreciate it, Sir Kellam. Thank you for your hard work.'

'Yes, thank you for looking after them, Kellam,' Chrom said, squinting at the location that he assumed Kellam was standing. He then looked up as the large form of Raye burst out of the fort some distance away.

The Shepherds all instinctively ducked as a wave of power washed over them before a blinding light burst from the hovering dragon. Once again the three Exalted members of the group felt their marks grow warm, Robin's itching as well. A moment later the central part of the fort disintegrated as pillars of golden fire consumed it utterly.

With the destruction of the fort, Raye then winged his way towards the group and landed a few feet away from them. As the dust of his landing settled, the Shepherds saw to their relief that the manakete had rescued the captive village women before destroying the fort. Donnel was even more relieved when he saw that one of them was his mother.

'MA!' the young man shouted, sprinting forwards and hugging the woman fiercely once she had slid down Raye's wing and onto the ground.

'DONNEl!' the woman exclaimed, embracing her son tearfully. 'I thought I'd never see you again!'

'It's alright, ma, we promised pa that we'd rescue you and the others and we did!' Donnel lifter his head and smiled gratefully up at the manakete who, now that the rest of his passengers had also descended to the ground, had straightened and shuffled his wings.

'Think nothing of it, Donnel,' the manakete replied dismissively. 'It was a group effort.'

'Aw, come on master!' Sahria said cheerfully, hopping over to Raye and affectionately rubbing her snout against his flanks. 'You should learn to bask in the praise of others a little bit.'

'I think I'll leave that to the younger members of our party,' the older manakete grunted. 'I'm too old to really care about the satisfaction of job well done anymore.'

'Don't lie; you secretly love the attention, don'tcha?'

'No, I do not, now leave me alone!' Raye snapped, though the others saw the slight smile on his dragon face that he quickly covered up by coughing slightly.

Chrom chuckled. 'In any case, we should probably leave now and get these ladies back home to safety.'

The Shepherds nodded in agreement and soon began the journey back to the remains of Donnel's village. Behind them, the remains of the fort suddenly exploded, debris raining down but thankfully missing the Shepherds as they all turned to stare at Raye, who along with Sahria had returned to his human form. Those that looked back at the Farfort saw that only a huge crater was left where the once proud fort had stood.

'What?' the manakete shrugged. Raising an eyebrow at the looks that he received, he sighed. 'Alright, fine…I might have gotten a little carried away.' As Yana frowned at him, he grunted with annoyance. 'Okay, I promise not to use that particular spell near anyone we like! You happy?'

'What exactly was that?' Miriel asked curiously.

'Oh, just a little spell I came up with a few centuries ago. Used it to get rid of an annoying mountain that was ruining the view of where I wanted to live.'

Before Miriel could speak, Chrom cut her off, already knowing what the mage was about to ask.

'Raye, for the sake of my sanity, please never teach ANYONE that spell.'

()()()()()()()()

'What will you do know?' Chrom asked Donnel's father as the two men looked over the burnt remains of the raided village.

'Eh, we'll most likely all go our separate ways, your highness,' the village man shrugged. Seeing the concerned look on the prince's face, the man chuckled. 'Don' worry 'bout us, your highness; livin' out here one has ta always be prepared for this sorta thing.'

'Still…I wish there was some way we could help you…'

Donnel's father snorted. 'Ya already have, more than anyone has in a long time. Wipin' out Roddick and his bandits hasn't jus' helped us, it's also helped all those that live in the area.' He held out a hand to the prince, who shook it without hesitation. 'If we're talkin' about wishes, I wish there was some way we could repay ya, but well…'

Chrom smiled. 'There wouldn't have been any need to do that anyway, even if you're village had survived.'

The village man studied the prince. 'Ya know…whatever other people might think, you ain't your father,' he eventually said.

These words made Chrom silent for a moment before he grinned broadly and clapped a hand on the other man's shoulder. 'Thanks, I think I need to be reminded of that every so often,' he said gratefully. 'I will admit; I have always worried that some of my actions might make people think otherwise.'

'Well, you tell those people that I, and the rest of the people here, will always see you as YOU,' Donnel's father assured him firmly. 'The father don't make the son, after all.'

'Heh, you should become a member of my council,' Chrom joked.

'Ah, I fear that I would probably find that sorta stuff insufferable,' Donnel's father chuckled. 'Beggin' yer pardon, your highness, but most people in these parts don't think much of nobles generally.'

'I certainly understand that, believe me.'

As the two men laughed, Donnel rushed up to them, bowing to Chrom.

'Yes, Donnel?' the prince asked.

The younger man looked up, a hopeful look on his face. 'Please, your highness…take me with you!' he blurted out, catching Chrom off guard at the suddenness of his request.

'Er…well…I don't know if your parents would want that…' he said cautiously, looking at Donnel's father. Much to his surprise, the man was smiling.

Seeing the look, the man shrugged. 'Donnel's a man now, your highness; if he wants to go, let him accompany ya and your Shepherds.' He gestured sadly at the smouldering ruins behind them. 'Gods know that we can't really look after him for a while.'

'But…I thought that you said that people around here were always prepared for this sort of thing!'

'Doesn't mean that our kids have to be, your highness,' Donnel's father replied. 'If I'm gonna be honest…I always wanted Donny to have a better life than that of a farmer. Don't get me wrong, I loved having him around here, and he might've seemed like he was enjoyin' the farmer's life, but I could see that he was gettin' restless over the years.' He chuckled. 'The fact that he knew all that he did about the Farfort…I knew he tended to go explorin' there every so often, so I wasn't all that surprised when he offered to go with you to rescue his ma and the others.' He went to stand behind his son and put his hands on his shoulders. 'Truth be told, I'm proud of him and would appreciate it if you saw it good enough to train him up.'

Chrom was silent for a moment as he considered the surprisingly passionate words of Donnel's father. He then slowly nodded before smiling.

'If that's what you really want, then how about this; I officially conscript Donnel into the Ylissean army and put him under my command? That way, people won't think too much about it.' He looked slightly sternly at Donnel then, though he still smiled. 'You will have to train hard, you understand?'

Yes sir, I understand and I'm ready fer whatever you have for me!' Donnel replied immediately, adjusting the pot on his head and awkwardly saluting.

'Very well then…Donnel, welcome to the Shepherds!'

()()()()()()()()

And so, dear friends, the end of another chapter is upon us.

It occurred to me while I was writing this chapter that I never really explained why Yana is the only one who is able easily see and interact with Kellam. Simple answer; magic. Long answer, it's due to her abilities (i.e magic) that her eyes see that which is hidden from others. In all honesty though, it's really due to the fact that I was always a little sad about Kellam's ending and wanted him to have a more positive experience. And no, as much as I'd like it, this doesn't mean that Kellam is going to be paired with Yana. They'll develop a close working relationship over the course of the story, nothing more. Kellam's wife will be one of the regular Shepherds, while Yana's…well, I shall indulge a moment of coyness, if it's all the same to you.

Also, the first (slightly) big difference from the game has taken place; Tiki is coming. I really hope that Raye is prepared for a sister who misses her brother terribly.

Finally, I'd like to thank you for sticking with this for as long as you have. Feelings of appreciation being sent your way!

Ciao for now!