Two-Sided Awakening
Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem nor anything belonging to them, that right belongs to Nintendo Systems. The only thing I own are my own original character/s and ideas I create for the story.
Author's Note: Please read and review so I know what I should work on, if you're going to say things such as how it shouldn't be following canon, then just don't bother, I'm going to be ignoring those reviews from now on. Well, here we are with the eleventh chapter of 'Two-Sided Awakening'.
Reviews -
Wyattohart8: Well... ( Let's just leave it at that shall we;) )
For those wanting to know how Blanc's name is pronounced it not pronounced like "Blank" but like "Bl-ahn".
(3rd Person POV)
"How's our stock and armoury looking? Were they refilled?" Robin asked while ticking away at a list in her hands.
"Indeed. They've been restocked, I saw to them personally," Frederick answered, his hands held behind his back with his feet shoulder-length apart.
"Thank you, Frederick," Robin nodded. "Has anyone seen to Blanc's weaponry? They should be particularly useful in this expedition."
Said white-haired man popped his head out of his room, who seemed to be in the middle or close to finishing ensuring all of his personal equipment was either kept with him or tucked away in his room. "All my stuffs with the armoury, I had Stahl assist me earlier so no need to worry about them," he replied as he closed his room.
"Great," Robin bobbed her head in thanks and checked off one last thing, "Now all we need is for everyone to get together."
"Well we still have another half hour or so before day breaks," Blanc shrugged as he nodded into the distance.
"I shall check if anyone else needs assistance, Robin, Blanc," Frederick inclined his head politely with a bow before walking away.
Robin watched him leave with a disheartened sigh, "Everyone's currently so high-strung and tense."
A pale brow rose. "You're surprised?"
Robin let out another sigh, "Not entirely… it's just that if we keep up like this we'll be broken before we even reach the negotiations."
"Well I can't exactly say that I blame them," Blanc responded as he leaned against the doorway, "I mean, Lissa seemed pretty bad last night along with some of the others, Maribelle's one of the shepherds. Add in the fact the Exalt herself is going to be negotiating, I'm surprised no one's already snapped."
Robin ran a hand through her hair with a snort, "It'll only be a matter of time before someone snaps."
"Two gold says it's you."
Robin gave him a look. "Really? Me? Must I remind you who snapped within the first day of staying with us?"
"Hey! You try being manhandled by a princess and a mage, both of whom are absurdly strong while dragging people!" Blanc pouted indignantly.
"Ha," Robin laughed, "Trust me I've been dragged too much to my liking, I know how strong Lissa is."
"Oh?" Blanc looked at her.
"Yeah, it was a couple of months ago back when I first joined, it was the first time I met the rest of the Shepherds actually," Robin recalled with a wistful smile. "Lissa grabbed me by the collar and bodily dragged me from the throne room all the way here, right in front of the Exalt."
"Sounds fun," Blanc robbed at her with a grin before wincing, "Also maybe a bit painful," he rubbed the back of his neck. "Just imagining the amount of chaffing you must've had sounds painful enough."
"Are you kidding? The sides of my neck were raw for a week! Imagine how it felt while we were walking to Ferox!" Robin said while looking at him dead in the eye before the both burst out laughing.
"Hahaha I'm sorry but just seeing you so serious about something like that," Blanc held his gut as laughs wracked his body. "It's just so cute! Like a tiny wolf cub…"
Robin cracked a grin at that.
"If the two of you are done laughing at my sister's expense, maybe we can head off?" a familiar voice interjected,
Chrom and Lissa approached the two, the smaller of the two pouting at Blanc and Robin who merely smiled sheepishly in return.
"Sorry about that Princess," Blanc apologised. "I was laughing at Miss, not you. Swear."
His words caused Robin's head to whip at him, "Really? That's your excuse?"
Blanc shrugged his shoulders, "Princess is a Princess, you're a tactician. Pretty sure I can handle you."
Robin rose an eyebrow at that and withdrew her trusty thunder tome, "You really want to test that?"
Blanc seemed nonplussed at her threatening gesture, "Need I remind you that if you miss you'll be setting the barracks on fire? Right when we need to leave?"
Robin hesitated.
"Remember the last time you tried to hit something with lightning and you missed?" Blanc questioned with a shit-eating grin causing Robin to reluctantly stow away her tome with a blush.
"You two done now? For real?" Chrom asked with a slight flush, the memory of an incident he'd much rather forget resurfacing "Or must I leave the two of you behind?"
Blanc and Robin looked at each other before looking back at him.
"We'll behave," they said in tandem.
"That's sort of creepy," Lissa muttered.
Chrom rolled his eyes but nodded in agreement.
"Well then! Is everyone set to go? It's going to be a long march through the western mountains till we reach the border after all."
Robin nodded and presented Chrom with her list which he was quick to scroll through. "Armoury and inventory were stocked courtesy of Frederick and our specialised weapons from Blanc are also stocked with the armoury equipment. Food surplus is also ready with our camp equipment," Robin rattled off. "We're ready to head out on your command."
Chrom smiled at her, "Thanks Robin, it's nice to be prepared. We'll be leaving soon so we should get everyone to meet soon."
Robin and Blanc nodded at his words.
A young boy with reddish hair hidden under a comical hat ran up to the quartet. "Captain! I'm all packed! When do we leave?!"
Chrom recoiled at the sight of the young mage. "Ricken? When did you-" he cut himself and closed his eyes before opening them and looking at him. "Ricken just go back inside, you're not old enough for this mission."
Ricken's face fell. "But, Captain!" he protested, "You know my skill with magic! You know I can handle myself!"
Chrom grimaces at his rebuttal. "Ricken it's not that I don't know your skill or how well-equipped you are. It's the simple fact you're so young, I don't want to be bringing someone like you to a march like this."
"Captain I know what I signed up for when I joined the Shepherds," Ricken shook his head. "I can handle this."
"It's no matter of whether you can or cannot handle, but a simple fact that I don't want you to have to handle what we do," Chrom pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. "Ricken, no one your age should have to be forced to kill."
"But Captain, I-"
"I said "no', Ricken!" he bellowed shutting the boy off. Taking a deep breathe he opened his eyes. "I said "no"." Chrom seemed to hold the weight of the world as he told the young boy.
Ricken looked at the ground guiltily.
"How old is he?"
"Huh?" Chrom looked at Blanc, confusion evident in his eyes.
"How old is he?" Blanc repeated.
"What do you me- no… you're not doing this again," Chrom crossed his arms in an X once he realised what Blanc was insinuating once more. "I was fine with Donnel, but I am not allowing Ricken to join us."
"Chrom… he's going to end up following us with or without our permission," Blanc bluntly replied causing the young boy to look at him in shock.
"Wha- how'd you know?!" he shrieked.
"You have the same stubborn look as I person I know, she wouldn't take no for an answer," Blanc replied before adding quietly, "Especially when it came to eating vegetables…"
Chrom looked down at the young mage. "Ricken…" he said slowly, "Is he right? Were you actually going to try and follow us."
Ricken tilted his head downwards in guilt, a silence surrounding the five. "Maybe…"
"Tch… dammit," Chrom cursed.
"Look Chrom, like he said, he's already one of the Shepherds. If he follows us, we have no control over his actions or what he may end up doing, but if we have him join us at least we'll be able to know where and what he's doing," Blanc reasoned with him.
"Fine…" Chrom finally let out a sigh causing Ricken to look up at him. "Ricken you can come but you'll be staying with Stahl and Sully for the duration of the march and in the rear-lines during negotiations. Am I clear?"
Ricken's grinning face was enough to light up a room… and probably light it on fire as well.
"Yes sir!" he said before toddling off with the pack on his back, looking almost akin to a turtle.
Chrom let out a long sigh and glared at Blanc. "I'm starting to get sick of how you're convincing me to let people join left and right."
Blanc gave him an unconvincingly innocent look, "Why Prince I have nary a clue what you mean. Ricken is as Shepherd after all, I was merely… ensuring all hands were on deck, so to speak."
Meanwhile Robin and Lissa were whispering to each other. "What do you think would happen if we let Blanc do the negotiations? He's pretty good with his words. You should've seen him talking to Emm," Lissa whispered causing Robin to look at her in wonder and a tinge of fear.
"Blanc? Negotiating?" Robin double checked with the spritely blonde. "The same man who dug a trench outside the barracks and had Chrom and Frederick chase you as you ran circles around them?"
Robin fake-shivered at the devastation the white-haired man would leave in his wake if he was left unchecked, much less negotiating between a king and the exalt. "Just thinking about it gives me shivers."
"Well after he did end up admitting he was close to passing out in fear," Lissa giggled, "We all thought he was really good at negotiating, just turned out he was so scared to say the wrong thing."
"I'm right here you know?" Blanc spoke up.
Lissa and Robin looked at each other, then back at him.
"We know."
(Two days later – Ylissean/Plegian Border)
"Two figures, north-east atop a vantage rock formation," Blanc reported as he walked alongside Emmeryn and Phila who were in turn a few paces further than Chrom, Lissa, and Robin. "One's wearing a crown so it's safe to assume that one's King Gangrel. The other figure I'm unsure of, female judging by her figure, in addition to having white-hair."
"Thank you Blanc for your services," Emmeryn thanked him to which he gave a slight nod and returned back a couple paces beside Robin.
"It sort of creeps me out how good your eyesight is," Robin remarked as he re-joined them.
"A small mercy but one I'm much rather inclined to keep," Blanc responded but kept his eyes locked on the two figured above.
It was a couple of minutes before they finished their approach in the middle of border valley, Gangrel and his companion overlooking the Exalt and Shepherds.
"Well well well, what'd we have here? The exalt herself, in all her radiance?" a slightly masculine voice called out from above.
"Gangrel…" Chrom growled out, his hand instinctively resting upon Falchion's hilt.
"Chrom…" Robin spoke warningly as Emmeryn looked back at them. With a pause Chrom dropped his hand but left it hanging close to his sword.
Gangrel continued and cackled, "I fear I'll soon have to shield my eyes! Bwahahaha!"
"King Gangrel," unflinchingly Emmeryn stepped forward and addressed him. "I've come to hear for myself the truth of this unfortunate incident between us."
Instead of Gangrel responding, it was his companion instead. "The truth? I can give you the truth," the woman beside the Mad King spat out.
Emmeryn, startled by her sudden interference, frowned, "Mayhaps milady might share her name with myself?"
"Aversa…" the now named Aversa replied after a moment of consideration, "My name is Aversa."
Emmeryn inclined her head ever-so slightly in thanks, "Vey well, Aversa. May I inquire as to whether Maribelle is unharmed?"
"Tch…" Gangrel's face scrunched up as her question. "That little blonde brat? Fret not I haven't touched nary a hair on her head your exaltedness." His words dripped laced with acid.
With a motion of his hand a Plegian soldier stepped out from one of the outcrops with Maribelle in hand, unharmed just as Gangrel had told.
"Maribelle!" Lissa shouted at the sight of her friend, "Are you alright?"
She didn't respond, instead choosing to stare at her feet.
"Maribelle?" Lissa whispered fearfully.
"What have you done to her Gangrel?" Emmeryn's tone was almost palpable with a hidden temper.
"ME!?" Gangrel yelled, his voice becoming almost feral before he took a deep breath and looked at the Exalt. "I've done nary a thing wrong your grace. This one merely knows what she's done wrong."
"What do you mean?" Emmeryn questioned.
Gangrel looked down at her in contempt, "Four days ago some of my soldiers were hunting down escaped convicts… they made their way past the border before finding them in Themis. Deciding to do this peacefully, they were sent under orders to negotiate a truce till the convicts were found and returned to Plegia."
Leaning forward Gangrel spat at her, "Do you know what happened the moment my men tried to negotiate? The moment WE stepped foot into the village of Themis?"
"Duke Themis slaughtered my men, sent me back their heads in a sack and spat in my face. The so called peaceful Ylisse is a hypocritical haven of liars." Gangrel crowed.
"Bullshit they did! You're lying!" Chrom yelled, his thin patience snapping at the Mad King's words.
"QUIET!" Gangrel roared.
Chrom faltered.
"YOU LITTLE PRINCELING KNOW NOT OF WHAT YOUR MEN DID TO ME AND MINE! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO JUDGE WHAT YOU HAVE NO UNDERSTANDING OF!" Gangrel bellowed, spittle flying in his rage, a blazing ire burning hot in his eyes.
"Gangrel! Peace!" Emmeryn tried placatingly, "Perhaps we can find a way to ascertain the truth of this unfortunate incident peacefully?"
"'Unfortunate'? That's what you'd call this?" The king's voice was almost a quiet whisper, but a whisper that was still heard. "One of your subjects, a duke at that, slaughtered a whole platoon of MY men when we tried to do things your way… but in the end you're no better than your father."
Emmeryn reeled back as if she'd been physically struck.
"I was there when my men were butchered like cattle Exalt," Gangrel said, "But of course… why would you believe me?"
Gangrel flicked his head at his soldier.
The soldier holding Maribelle walked her forward.
"If you want your 'truth'… then just ask."
With a swift hand Maribelle's binding were cut causing her to fall like a puppet cut of its strings. The only thing preventing her from falling was the fact that Lissa rushed forward to catch her.
"Mari?! Mari, are you, all right? Maribelle answer me!" Lissa pleaded almost frantically to her friend as the daughter of Duke Themis latched onto her and buried her face in Lissa's dress.
"Maribelle?" Emmeryn walked forward warily to the two and crouched beside them.
With a sniff she looked up at the Exalt with teary and puffy eyes.
"I'm sorry your Grace…" Maribelle whispered, "Everything he's said… it's all true."
For Emmeryn, it was as if the world had been pulled from beneath her feet and turned into an eternal darkness. "Oh Naga…" she whispered, "Did Duke Themis truly…?"
Maribelle merely nodded before burying her face back in Lissa dress.
With a heavy sigh she stood back up. "Thank you, Maribelle, you can return with the others now…"
"Thank you, Your Grace."
As the two walked off Emmeryn couldn't help but fell as if everything she'd worked so hard for was falling around her. With a weary heart she looked up at Gangrel who's been watching the scene with a disgusted look on his face.
(Blanc's POV)
"Thank you, Maribelle…." I watched as Emmeryn gave a gentle pat on the girl's back before motioning to us. "You can return to the others now…"
"Thank you, your Grace."
With a nod she and Lissa moved over to us causing some of the others to move forward and assist as Emmeryn looked forward.
"How utterly vomit-worthy," Gangrel drawled out. "Now then, have you found the truth behind this 'unfortunate incident' as you're so liable to call it?"
Emmeryn nodded with a grimace. "I have King Gangrel… and I'd like to apologize for the actions of my subject, i-"
"Your apologies mean nothing to me woman," Gangrel words were like swords, swift and cutting. "Your words can't bring back the lives of my men," he finished, his eyes ablaze before they dulled.
"With what's been done I'm well within my rights to finish this parley and move straight to razing each of your villages to the ground.
The muscles within my body tensed as I noticed soldiers moving slowly through the woodworks and overlaying rock formations, none with weapons drawn but still there nonetheless.
"I- you're right, nothing can bring back your men, and for the I apologize…" Emmeryn bowed, "Is there any way we'd be able to prevent a war between us however?"
Gangrel's eyes were almost like stone, dull and grey as he looked at her. "There are only two things in this world that would prevent war between us…"
"And that would be?"
"Your life…"
Everyone, especially Chrom drew their weapons. I myself drew one of my lances, wind gushing from the runes ready to pierce any that eve dared to aprroach. Emmeryn looked largely unconcerned but shook her head at us, a sign to put away our weapons. With a pause we were torn between indecision of whether to follow her orders or not.
In the end we sheathed our weapons letting them continue however unwilling we were.
"If my life would be enough to pacify you then I'd more than gladly give it to you," Emmeryn said unwaveringly shocking Chrom and Lissa.
"Sis!"
"Emm, you can't be serious about this?!" Chrom shouted.
The serene blonde looked at her siblings and smiled. "Chrom if my life will be what prevents a war between our nations than I would gladly give it for the sake of peace."
"Emmeryn," he growled, "You may be willing but I'm not!"
"Oh, will the both of you stop being so melodramatic and allow me to finish?" Gangrel drawled imperiously. "I do have a second option after all."
I took note of how his subordinate, Aversa, minutely tensed by his side.
"And what would be King Gangrel that you ask for, if it was not to be my life?" the Exalt asked quietly, looking away from Chrom and Lissa.
Gangrel's eyes dulled but his smile widened, showing his pearly white teeth.
"Give me the Fire Emblem and I'll spare Ylisse and its people," Gangrel proposed. "In exchange for the Fire Emblem, the bonds between our nations shall be considered to be… repaired... as it would be in full."
I watched him carefully for any signs of trickery. Something like this? An item for the lives of his men sounded to good to be true especially considering how heated he'd been about their deaths.
A distraction to throw us off guard maybe?
"Concentrate Blanc," Robin whispered behind my ear. "We need all hands on board, don't start thinking over other things."
I nodded and took in the border pass once again. My eyes were once more drawn to Aversa, her stance relaxed and languid compared to before.
The same feeling of unease I'd had ever since the topic of the Mad King was brought up lingered whenever I looked at the scantily clad dark-skinned, busty and ashen-haired woman. And not a good type of feeling either like the type one would have when thinking of that description.
Emmeryn inhaled sharply at his demands, "You would ask for one of Ylisse's royal treasures? But why?"
"Because I know the legend!" Gangrel's eyes were almost crazed, "The Fire Emblem is the key to having all one's wishes realised. I have desired for the years since I've known. YEARS!" he cackled. "…Yet tis' most woeful that my birthday comes and goes each year, yet still nothing from Ylisse… hehehe…" Gangrel's manic smile would be unsettling for most, but for me it just seemed strange.
His eyes were almost crazed.
But they definitely weren't.
Maybe I was looking for too much into everything, but everything he just said seemed scripted. Every word, every laugh, and every cackle he made was devoid of their commonly associated tones, instead replaced by an almost monotone inflection with merely a pale mirror of thier intended emotions as each syllable leaving his mouth.
Emmeryn looked up at him as if her face had been sewn from solid stone. "The Emblem's power is meant for a single purpose, King Gangrel: to save the world and its people at their hour of most desperate need. Would you claim a more noble wish?"
"I merely want what every Plegian wants – a grisly end for every last Ylissean! What could be a more noble cause than that!?" If it could have, Gangrel's mouth would've stretched even further.
No matter how much I felt of the matter, it felt almost unreal to hear those words spill from his mouth. To hear someone so casually talk about genocide would shock anyone to the core.
And I definitely was not withstanding.
"I'm sorry but did you just say your wish is to say every last one of my people dead?" Emmeryn asked horrified.
"Indeed," the Mad King nodded viciously. "Surely you've not forgotten what the previous Exalt had done to my people? Your father named us heathens for no reason other than that we were different!" Gangrel yelled, the fire in his eyes returning.
Gangrel's skin was slowly turning red, it's normal pallid tone being overcome with a heavy flush as he bellowed, "His so-called 'crusade' was a mere charlatan to butcher and massacre my people, the countless lives of my subjects and kin for the fact we were Plegian! All because of your father's arrogance and self-entitlement!"
Further in front I watched as Emmeryn grimaced with each word that flew from his mouth, Chrom's gloves squeaking as his fists balled, the leather straining beneath his slowly boiling anger.
With a weary sigh Emmeryn spoke. "King Gangrel, I've never been one to deny Ylisse's past wrongdoings. But I've sworn to never repeat those mistakes," she looked up at him determinedly. "Ours is now a realm of peace."
"Yours is haven of hypocrisy is what it is," Gangrel said blandly, his tone almost defeated. "You speak about peace yet your own men want a war."
"King Gangrel Plea-" Emmeryn tried once more to parley with him but even I could tell he'd had enough.
"No."
Gangrel cut her off.
"I've had enough of this. Hand over the Fire Emblem or there shall be war. This is my ultimatum, the Fire Emblem or the lives of your people." Gangrel spoke plainly, the harsh fire in his eyes replaced by near dull and glassy eyes, as if he was repeating rehearsed words.
Emmeryn looked torn between whether to save the lives of her people and prevent war or to lose the royal treasure.
Unfortunately, her choice was made for her.
"Enough of this charade," Aversa spoke up much to the shock of her king. "Men, attack!"
It was so abrupt that nearly everyone had no idea what to do once the soldiers skulking in the woodworks came rushing out.
"Shepherds to arms!" Chrom yelled, everyone bearing their armaments. I lashed out with my spear, quickly sending a soldier to the ground as the butt of my spear against the cranium of his helm.
"Wait! Everyone no harming the soldiers! Don't kill them!" Emmeryn pleaded among the chaos, but her words nonetheless registering and making the fight infinitely harder.
"Everyone, to the Exalt!" Robin yelled amidst the sudden flurry of weaponry, sparks and steel. I gave her a brief nod before blocking an incoming axe with the flathead of my spear, parrying the axe aside sending it and its wielder flying to the side.
"Robin…" Chrom growled as we circled around his sister, soldiers surrounding us slowly. "What's the plan?"
"We need to get back to Ylisse as fast as we can, would you be able to work around that?" I shouted as another axe tried to make its way through, my spear managing to stop it but not before it cleaved its way through the shaft. "Tch…" I clicked my tongue and discarded the headless portion but kept the spearheaded side.
"There are multiple exits away from here to the north, we need to get through their soldiers to make it through though," Robin quickly said.
Roars broke off into the air to the north, the same area Robin aforementioned.
"Thing is I'm pretty sure they've brought wyvern riders along with them," she finished.
"Plan, Robin!" Chrom grunted as he knocked out a soldier, the other shepherds doing the same, ensuring not to injure the Plegians too much.
"Phila!" Robin shouted at the Pegasus commander, "Take Emmeryn and get her out of here to the east and get to the border patrol as fast as you can! We're sitting ducks if we keep her here!"
"Aye!" Phila saluted and quickly landed beside Emmeryn.
"Wai-" Emmeryn tried.
"Lady Emmeryn I apologize but we don't exactly have the time to stand on words, you need to leave now!" I shouted at her, my spearhead slowly being whittled away with each approaching soldier.
Chrom looked over to his sister, "Emm, please."
"Very well," she gave up. "Stay safe everyone."
We nodded.
With a spur Phila was airborne with Emmeryn.
"What now Robin?" Chrom asked as he slashed at a myrmidon, their swords clashing for a moment before Falchion twisted in his hands and slid along the length of his opponent's blade, and colliding against his helm, leaving him out cold.
Quickly the Shepherds spread back out, Sully, Stahl and Frederick swiftly getting upon their steeds while Virion provided covering fire with his arrows. Lon'qu was busy protecting Lissa while Miriel and Ricken provided literal covering fire, swaths of encroaching flamed preventing the Plegian soldiers from advancing.
I'm pretty sure the resident ghost was protecting Maribelle considering I saw a couple of soldiers being thrown by the scruffs of their armour as they tried to approach the daughter of Duke Themis.
"Now…" Robin began and withdrew her thunder tome, "Now we run."
"I can get behind that," I grunted, a brief reprieve thanks to the efforts of Ricken and Miriel. "We just have a problem of their wyvern riders, if we don't take them out they're going to be a bit of a problem since they'll be able to follow us for great lengths."
Chrom gave me a slightly hopeful look, "You wouldn't happen to have anything for this would you? Like maybe something that'd be able to take them out of commission but not incurably wound them?"
I snorted. "Prince I'm no miracle worker. I can take them out for good yeah, but I won't be able to take them out temporarily without grievously injuring them," I told him, hefting a lance strapped to my lower back.
Chrom grimaced.
The odds certainly weren't looking good for us.
"Wait your lances, how many of them do you have?" Robin asked.
"Somewhere around twelve of them?" I replied, motioning to the eight strapped on the bandolier attached to my lower back, "I had Donnel and Sumia carry two each, I wasn't able to get Frederick or Sully equipped before we left, why?"
Robin looked over in the directions of the wyvern riders hovering over the northern sections of the border pass.
"Do you think you'd be able to ground them? Maybe ride with Sumia and get in close to nick their wings?" Robin slowly began strategizing in her head, a plan forming together. "Not enough to permanently ground them but maybe enough to fell them for now while we escape?"
I thought it over. Technically wyverns don't need a majority of their wingspan, only about eight percent of it, however, if their wings were penetrated right through the centre they'd lose most of their flight capabilities since they length of the wings were used for gliding and pushing against air currents. Holes would make it near impossible for them to fly.
Nicking their wings with the lances were feasible options to shock them and ground them before they'd realised what's happened.
Only one problem.
"I'm not exactly sure how steady my aim would be atop a Pegasus, too many variables to take into account when throwing my lances. Things ranging from changing wind currents due to their beating wings, altitude changes, and shifts in mobile platform," I shook my head.
Robin cursed at that, "Damn it."
I looked at the wyverns. They were stationed directly atop an outcrop between the two exits just hovering there.
"Miss, I might be able to take them out if I can get close enough."
Eyes narrowed at my statement. "How close would you need to be?"
"A kilometre or two away?"
"A kilo- that's at most half the distance between us and them! That's pretty far, I thought you said you needed to be close?"
"'Close' is a relative term when in the face of enemy forces," I stated blandly.
"Okay then… we should be able to do that…" Robin nodded slowly. "Chrom we've got a plan, we're making a push for the northern exits, once we're about a kilometre away Blanc should be able to take out the wyverns."
Chrom narrowed at her strategy, taking deep breathes as Miriel and Ricken's still ongoing flames blocked off the enemies. "Robin you're banking too much on Blanc's capabilities, there's too many variables."
"I know Chrom but right now it's the best plan we've got," Robin grit out as Miriel and Ricken were slowly being backed into a corner, joining in and adding in her own fire. "Virion should be able to help take out one or two but right now Blanc and maybe any other lance throwers we have are our best bet of taking out those wyverns."
"Also, if Ricken still has energy after this then he'll be able to do the most damage to grounding them with his Elwind tome but that's not a guarantee…" I tacked on.
"Fine," Chrom let out before rallying the Shepherds. "Shepherds, to me! We head northbound, all lancers get one of the modified lances and try aiming for the wyverns if possible. Virion, try and ground as many as you can!" Chrom ordered.
He turned to me as everyone rushed around and grabbed a lance from Donnel, Sumia, or I. "Blanc, you're sure you'll be able to ground them?"
I cocked my head, "Not a hundred-percent but I'll be able to take down two at least if everything goes well."
He rose an eyebrow. "If they don't?"
"Well…" I gave him a grin, "If things don't end well… think of it like this, we either do it right or suddenly it's no longer our problem."
"I'm really starting to hate your strange sense of humour."
"Hey, you were the one that asked," I pointed out still grinning causing him to give his own in return.
"That I did, Blanc. That I did…" Chrom shook his head.
"All right, on my mark Miriel, Ricken, and I will stop and board with either Sully, Sumia, or Stahl and recover," Robin began ordering as she sustained the fire, Miriel and Ricken quickly burning themselves out, "Virion you'll be with Maribelle, hopefully it'll get you closer to take them out. Everyone else is on foot, ready?"
"READY!" everyone chorused as we readied.
"GO!"
The flames sputtered out as the magic sustaining it cut off, Ricken and Miriel boarding with Sully and Stahl respectively whilst Robin clambered atop Sumia's Pegasus with her assistance.
In an instant the battle to survive had begun
Even if we were only running away.
(3rd Person POV)
As Robin finished struggling to get a hold atop Sumia's Pegasus even with her help, she began surveying the battlefield from up in the air.
"Sumia, you take the east and let me know of any anomalies, I'll take care of the west side," she ordered.
"Aye ma'am!"
As Robin looked over the battlefield she noticed that the enemy lines were slowly congregating to the east and west sides of the border pass, leaving the northern and southern exits free.
"Robin are you seeing this?" Sumia called out in confusion.
"If you mean how the enemy seems to be funnelling us?" Robin asked, "Than yes, I'm definitely seeing them… what the hell are they doing?"
"Take us higher…" Robin ordered.
"Ma'am?"
"I need to get higher, this isn't making sense at all," Robin wracked her head for answers.
With a nod Sumia began to ascend, the wingbeats of her Pegasus bringing her high and higher till the battlefield was nearly have its visible size.
Taking another look at the battlefield Robin wondered what they were playing at. "Sumia, do you see anything? I can't see any reason for them to do that…"
"Robin… I think I know why they're doing it…" Sumia whispered.
"Sumia?" Robin asked and looked at her, before moving to where she was looking.
In the distance was Ylisstol in its shining splendour to the North, and to the south-east was what she could only presume to be Plegia's castle.
Then it hit her. They were at the border pass.
The border pass.
If Ylisstol was to the north, and Plegia was to the south than it meant to the east and west was the border crossing.
And with it the Ylissean border patrols.
The same border patrols which were currently being pre-emptively blocked by enemy forces.
Robin cursed, things definitely weren't looking good. The border patrols wouldn't be able to reliably help them with the interference of the soldiers, to their backs was Plegia itself while to the front they'd be pursued by wyvern riders all the way to Ylisstol if they weren't taken out.
They were being forced to either Ylisstol or Plegia by themselves.
No reinforcements would be able to make their way to them, only two ways to escape and one would lead straight to the heart of enemy territory.
"Sumia get us back down, we need to take out the wyverns fast," Robin commanded, the silverette already in mid-dive before she'd finished her order. As they fast approached the battlefield, Robin noticed that most of the Shepherds had already crossed the halfway mark.
"Milord, we're too big of a host to successfully take out the enemy," Frederick spoke stiffly atop his steed.
"Yeah," Chrom nodded, "We'll need to split up into smaller groups if we want to make it past them, if we stay bunched up as we are they'll just be able to surround us again."
"Keep in mind if we split up it also increases the risk of small groups being targeted one-by-one," Blanc pointed out as they ran through the valley's multiple chasms.
Frederick shook his head, "But in turn they'll also have to split off their forces to get to us, smaller enemy forces for smaller teams."
"Fair point," he conceded before turning to the blue-haired prince, "It's your call Prince."
Chrom thought it over for a moment.
"We'll split off into groups, one lancer per group," he ordered. "Ricken and Miriel, you two will be staying with Stahl and Maribelle. Frederick with me while everyone else sorts themselves out."
With a moment to get in order everyone fell in line, smaller fireteams spread out and moving through the canyon.
"Well looks like this is starting to become a thing between us," Blanc grinned at Lon'qu and Lissa, the former merely grunting as he guarded Lissa but also tried his best to stay away as far as possible whilst the spritely girl gave a small giggle and grin.
"Yep, all we're missing is Robin and we'd be all set!" the little girl chirped.
"You're forgetting the coffee," Blanc reminded as they moved, his lance glowing dully in his hand.
"Please no…" was Lon'qu's barely audible reply, but in the wide-open space it was definitely heard.
It was so audible Lissa leaned forward to look at him as they walked.
"Hmmm…"
"Gah! Away with you woman!"
It didn't take two and two to figure out who said what.
It was only a moment before Lissa looked back at the white-haired tinkerer, a grin on her face.
"Let's see what Lon'qu's like on coffee!"
Blanc gave her a look, "I know I've been told I'm fairly absent-minded and what not but yeesh, this is the first I've seen someone so lackadaisical on a battle field."
Lon'qu thanked his lucky stars that Blanc decided now to be professional.
"Buuuut it would be pretty funny… maybe when we get back?"
"Yessss!" Lissa cheered.
Maybe not.
Lon'qu grunted sourly as he watched enemies march from a nearby outcrop, arrows flying through the air, "Enemies incoming…"
"You two are just a riot, one's as cheery as the sun while you're about as expressive as a brick," Blanc rolled his eyes as he watched both wyvern riders approach swiftly.
"Remember no killing."
Lon'qu grunted, "Same to you."
Blanc readied himself, concentrating solely on the two wyverns approaching.
Gales of wind curled around the head of his lance, winds gushing and pushing, an almost imperceptible cone of whirling wind sheathing the length of his hand and the lance itself.
Taking a deep breathe Blanc planted himself into the ground.
'Breathe'
Blanc took another breath, inhaling as the rider made his approach. Behind him Lissa readied her staff while Lon'qu ran forward and began engaging the remaining soldiers, his outstanding skills with the blade shining through.
'Aim'
It was as if time began to slow, everything crawling to a stop as the sound of heartbeat pulsed. In the corner of his eyes, the wind around the lance began to slow in beat with the thrum of his heart.
His eyes strained as he concentrated on the outer membrane of the wyvern's wing. Not enough to damage it but enough to leave a pissed rider and a very angry grounded wyvern.
'Fire'
In slow-motion his arm began to move through the air, the grip around the lance loosening till it was barely held on by the scant grip of his finger-tips.
Time resumed.
Like a glowing green bolt of light, the lance shot from his hand the instant it left his fingertips. The wind roared as it was pushed out of the way like a swimmer through water or a blade through flesh. Like the hammer of a god it flew straight and true. Like an arrow shot along the currents of wind it disappeared, it's material form disintegrating till it was a mass of green light and reappearing in the mountain behind enemy lines.
With a mighty crash they fell. The wyvern and its rider fell to the ground with a scream, a half-circle gouged out through the edge of it's right wing.
"...Impressive," Lon'qu wasn't one to give praise but even he had to admit Blanc would make an excellent sniper with his accuracy.
Grasping another of his lances Blanc hauled it to his side and repeated, time slowing down for a scant second before it resumed.
A second bolt of verdant light lanced through the air.
A second rider and his mount fell to the ground sporting a half-circle hole.
Blanc stood back up from his throwing position with his outstretched arm and withdrew a standard-issue spear.
"Time to get to work."
After a long battle Blanc finally let down his spear with an ehausted sigh as Lissa began the process of healing a long gouging wound on Lon'qu's chest, a lucky blow from a barbarian eliciting a small hiss/grunt from the brown-haired man as his skin knit back together.
The sound of beating wings came down from above.
"I'm glad you three are okay," Robin said as she dismounted from Sumia's Pegasus, said woman still holding the reigns tightly.
"Could've been better," Blanc responded as he walked over to his lances and grasped onto it, tugging at its places embedded into the mountainside. "We the first or have you visited the others yet?"
Robin shook her head, "Everyone else's already finished up so we need to regroup."
With a heave both lances came free, quickly finding their way back into their holsters. Blanc gave a nod as Lissa and Lon'qu stood up, the wound on his chest gone.
"Let's go then."
If one looked closer that would've noticed blood pooling on the floor, blood dripping from Blanc's side for every step he took.
If one waited they'd have noticed the blood slowly stopping, coming to a halt as it seemingly stopped bleeding.
But no one did.
As the three approached the remainder of the Shepherds at the border outpost (Robin and Sumia having left them behind to rendezvous with the others and report back) Lissa was swept up in a big hug by Maribelle, the woman in question fretting over the princess while the princess fretted over her in return.
"Maribelle, you're okay!" Lissa said as she hugged her friend.
"Indeed, I am," Maribelle confirmed, "More than I can say, however, for our enemies."
She took quick notice of, however, the fact that Phila and Emmeryn descended from the sky coming to a stop beside the group. Relinquishing her hold on the princess, not before giving one last hug, she approached the Exalt and knelt.
"Your Grace…" Maribelle spoke slowly, "I apologize for my actions, I fully accept it consequences and the punishments befitting my crimes."
Emmeryn looked down at her.
"Maribelle…" she spoke causing the young girl to look at her, her golden drills framing her delicate face as she looked upon the Exalt.
"If the crime of your Father's actions were to fall to you along with its punishment than I'd have to take up my Father's," Emmeryn said gently. "Fret not, you are under no punishment from myself."
"Thank you, Your Grace," Maribelle bowed before returning to Lissa's side and hugging her.
Looking around Emmeryn found her brother standing off to the side with Frederick and Robin.
"I'm glad everyone made it here safely," Emmeryn smiled at the three.
Chrom gave her a strained smile, wincing at the earlier engagements. "It wasn't exactly easy Emm… especially not with your orders."
Emmeryn grimaced. "I'm sorry Chrom, truly I am… but I couldn't allow you to kill them, not when we've already killed so many of theirs."
"I know Emm… I know… it's just…" Chrom sighed.
"We're at war now."
Emmeryn nodded causing a silence to overcome the group.
Shaking her head, she gave her brother a smile, giving a similar smile to the rest of the Shepherds.
"I think it's time we go back home…" Emmeryn's radiated a sense of comfort and security as she spoke to them.
The voyage back home while not silent didn't change the relieved atmosphere within the group, wholly content on ignoring the looming threat of war in favour of focusing on the present.
AN: Normally I'd say 'Yay! Eleventh chapter' or some shit. But I can't, in all honesty I fucking hate this chapter. It was as if this chapter was fighting tooth and nail, trying it's damned hardest not to work with me as I changed the canon script.
Yes, the ideas in mind were unique-ish, y'know the whole humanizing Gangrel, making changes to the dialogue which ends up having far-reaching consequences later on and completely changing the contact between Plegia and Ylisse. Instead of having Plegia invade Ylisse, it was Themis that killed Plegian soldiers.
Because of these changes the subsequent writing became so damn hard to write and I absolutely hate it.
I'll go back and touch up on everything making sure everything is correct but ultimately won't change anything since it sets up things for later.
I feel like halfway through I lost every character's personality and it felt like the dialogue was forced. If you actually like this chapter let me know with a review because I seriously can't fucking see any redemption with this one.
This is the first chapter I've ever written that I genuinely had a writer's block taking two weeks to write.
Hopefully the next one comes out better.
Rant over.
On a side note I've taken note that as I've begun writing my University studies have begun to decline, something I'm going to remedy immediately. From this chapter forth I will be taking two to three weeks to write each chapter, ensuring that while they are of good quality, I also don't end up neglecting my studies.
sideside note: Probs won't update for a month because uni exams are coming up. Might end up finishing of the haldf chapter I have but no guarantees,