Chapter 13
The Ashen Heart
The last of the Phalanx faded into shimmers of white flashes before disappearing once more. The Shepherds steadily regrouped around the statue from the short skirmish.
Kellam let out an exasperated sigh as he bent down onto his knees. "Man, those guys are tedious. Once you learn the trick to them, it's just a matter… of… hah…"
Lon'qu sheathed his sword. "I believe that holds true for all of the enemies we've encountered here."
"Yeah… but still, why did they all have to come back? Doesn't anything around here stay dead?" Kellam said.
June slapped the much larger knight's back, causing a metallic THUD. Though she had fought along with the rest of them, she wasn't the least bit fatigued. She was neither as fast as Lon'qu, nor willing to take a hit like the Ylissean knight, but she could manage herself in battle.
Robin surveyed the scene and nodded in approval. No one had taken any injuries, a result they'd have to keep producing until they made it safely back to Ylisstol, or regrouped with Mirabelle. Kellam was absolutely right. The one advantage the enemy had had over them for this entire engagement was the fact that little was known of them. Now that he knew Phalanx Risen were slow, Poison Risen were harmless if dealt with at range, and the unarmored skinny ones couldn't even penetrate their knight's armor, he could plan accordingly to each enemy. Now that he had Kellam and Frederick back, he didn't doubt they could take a second round from the Bone Wheels down below and win… Not that he wanted to.
The mother statue had turned, as Tharja had said. It had flipped a full one eighty degrees and now faced the circular tower. It was as if it were guiding those who somehow knew to pull the random switch below. To what end wasn't clear, but it was an invitation they couldn't pass on.
"Come on. We have no time to lose." Chrom said. He scaled the short steps by sets of two, but stopped when he got to the top. "Robin," He waved a hand while keeping his eyes inside the vast room, "You need to see this."
Robin sucked in some breath and wordlessly ascended up to where Chrom stood in the doorway. June's armor rattled behind him, slowly following as the rest of the Shepherds waited below for orders. As he rose, he immediately found what made Chrom pause. The once locked door they had seen earlier now led out to a new path, but that wasn't what surprised them. Among the dirty snow and rubble that'd broken off from the old stone lay several still bodies of the harpies they had seen roaming above. Their feathers were scattered everywhere, some wet with a dark liquid that must be the creatures' blood and others simply lying with their limbs contorted with no obvious incisions. All had open beaks that screamed silently, their beady eyes staring at them as they entered.
"Who did this?" Chrom asked quietly. It wasn't sorrow in the creature's death, but anxiousness that slipped from his usual stern voice.
Robin continued into the room. He glanced all about the emptiness, but found nothing. Kneeling over the bodies, he made note of what had caused their deaths. "Cuts. Slashes from a blade across the torsos…" He gazed upward. Single feathers were floating down from a dead harpy on the steps above, but nothing else moved.
"What could have done this… Who, could have done this?" Chrom said as he stared down at one of the corpses.
Robin rose and faced June. "That, I'd like to know as well."
She was scratching her helm as she nudged one of the bodies with her booted foot. It limply flipped and flopped on the snow, revealing nothing but how light the creatures were. When she noticed his eyes on her, she simply gave the signature shrug that was the answer to many of their questions: "I dunno."
As the rest of the Shepherds filed in, worried murmurs and repulsed gasps sounded off. Lissa was one of the repulsed, and gratefully shared this with everyone. Lon'qu grumbled something to himself, and Tharja was already plucking feathers off the ground to be examined. Frederick quickly raised a fist into the air, and everyone halted. For a moment, the entire fortress was as still as it had been for centuries.
Robin sighed, and looked to the now open passageway that led out of the tower. There, black droplets faintly stained the ground. The blood trail led forward. "There's nothing we can do but keep moving." He said regretfully.
Chrom nodded. "Agreed. Stay on your toes everyone."
With that, they continued forward. Nothing but their footfalls spoke in the surmounting silence as they emerged out onto the lower bridge. This one seemed to be free from obstructions, other than a few Risen up ahead. It was just as old and crumbly as the upper level, except this one had a roof which shielded the bright, ever looming moon from view, and had thick support structures that were just as ancient but still held firmly. At the farthest end, a fog gate was being guarded by a behemoth in black armor that rivalled Kellam's in height and girth. All had their backs to the Shepherds. While this made Robin delighted by the tactical advantage, he couldn't shake the unreasonable apprehension that also welled within him.
The exit lay before them. It was there, a tangible thing they could all now see. The enemies ahead would be defeated with ease, Robin thought. It was all so simple now. The vision of going home ran clearly through the tacticians mind, but he fought it off. The battle was not over. The pit in his stomach told him this. Something he could not see, but feel made him want to turn around, to not step another foot forward. Even though he knew this was the correct path… he couldn't imagine nor did he believe it would be that simple to leave.
Visions of previous battles ran through his head. Particular moments were relived, horrifying moments where he found the odds to be too stacked against them. He remembered all the times just before an ambush, the times when he hadn't expected it at all but also when he'd known. Any situation could go wrong. It only took a split second.
"Kellam, Frederick." Robin said, speaking low, and wholly serious. "Take the lead."
The two knights together took up the entire space of the path, leaving no room but the sliver of space between them to see ahead. Robin positioned himself in the middle, to see through this tiny gap, with everyone else close behind.
They marched slowly, quietly. The various armors clinked into the cold night, and far away came a caw that must've been very loud to have reached them. Robin wondered if it was that same one by the bonfire, pecking at the frozen bodies that hung there. A bead of cold sweat formed and ran down his cheek, making him shiver as a cool gust of wind passed through the archways and descended to the abyss below. As he tried to make out the scene ahead of them, he glanced back to find every Shepherd with a similar expression of worry on their faces. Even Lissa felt it.
The ambush was coming.
A shallow CLANKbrought Robin whipping his focus back to the two knights in front. They stopped in their march, and the sound repeated. This time, Robin saw the arrow bounce into the air and fall to Kellam's feet.
"A bowmen ahead… well two of them. Should we advance?" Kellam craned his neck, still holding up his shield to deflect the oncoming sticks.
"Yes. Keep this pace." The tactician said. "You and Frederick stay together. Watch your steps and don't take any—"
Then, the entire structure shook.
Lissa screamed. Robin ripped his tome open and spun around.
There, hanging upside down from the higher bridge was the dragon's head. Its roasted skin had turned to cooled, grey ash that peeled and flaked in the breeze. The holes in its neck had widened from the loss of flesh to appear as dozens of empty eye sockets that stared at them. Its real eye openings were hidden by it slowly opening its maw to its fullest extent. A roar did not come. Choked, garbled hacks and a few embers were the only things that escaped from inside its gullet.
The gigantic head, barely enough flesh to not be called a skull, coughed and hacked, spilling the last of the purple liquids still within as well as several more embers to fall into the abyss below. An orange light began to emanate from deep within.
The Fire spell collided with the monster's nose. It exploded in an extravagant plume that did nothing but singe off the last of the flesh there. It reeled back, retreating above to where the rest of the body was hunched over the edge.
"To the next tower! Run!" Robin said, preparing another spell.
Frederick punched Kellam on the shoulder, grabbing the paralyzed man's attention. They each took the lead as the rest of the Shepherds kicked into motion. Robin let them each pass, keeping his hand and tome poised.
They cursed and shouted, questioning the order which Robin couldn't explain at the moment. He didn't blame them. The obvious and natural course of action was to retreat inside. Robin was thinking ahead.
Only Lon'qu's words as he sprinted by were received by his racing mind.
"Don't die."
"Tell Lissa to ready her Rescue stave." Was all Robin said in reply.
The Ashen Dragon's retreat was short lived. It returned with its mouth open and roared out tiny bouts of smoke.
"Fi-"
Before Robin could even launch the spell, a torrent of fire came spewing toward him. He jumped back, boots and the tail of his ruined cloak becoming engulfed before taking shelter behind the first support beam. The stream of fire didn't last long, not nearly as long as Robin needed to formulate a plan. The heat melted all of the snow and ice into sudden puddles of boiling water. The floor which he'd been standing on had been given a fresh black polish which began to shake as the dragon clawed its way to a better position.
He didn't wait for it to get a better angle. He dashed out, ripping off his tattered cloak and throwing it to the wind. He bit his lip at the scorching pain each time he pounded his feet against the stone. The Shepherds were far ahead. All but one. Chrom was intentionally lagging behind, watching Robin. He waved the Exalt away.
I have a plan! Run! Keep—
The stone beneath him ruptured. One knee smashed against the bricks as he lost balance. The upper level cracked as the immense beast crawled in chase, and he could feel the vibrations getting more intense the closer it got. He struggled to get up, his vision blurring by the motion all around him. When the rumbling stopped, Robin once again sprinted forward. His leg throbbed every time it was bent, but it was easy to ignore knowing what would happen if he stopped now.
The dragon's head once again drooped down. It was getting faster. It reached with the entire length of its neck in a blunt charge, as if wanting nothing more than to kill Robin as quickly as possible. The tactician threw himself to the floor, and heard a shout that could belong to no one other than Chrom.
The monster clipped one side of a stone pillar and smashed diagonally into the other, obliterating it in a shower of rocks and dust. Most of the debris fell away, but even so several stones smashed into Robin's back as the dragon retracted its head. He stood up and wasted no time in fleeing.
A chortle of surprise and rage came from the beast, and then the higher bridge collapsed. Stone crumbled and crashed as most of it fell away into the chasm below. A mixture of dust, bone ash, and snow erupted into the air in a foggy cloud.
Robin kept running, and when he made it to the Exalt, he gladly accepted the man's shoulder.
Chrom's mouth was agape, his eyes glancing back to the destruction behind them. "By the gods, that was close! Just what is that thing made of?"
"Keep moving." Was all Robin said. He bit his lower lip as he stumbled forward. Pain had begun to take effect, and he became aware of just how much his feet were in agony.
They caught up to the rest, who were busy with their own skirmish. Kellam was thrown against a ruined pillar. Here, the higher bridge was already gone, letting the moonlight wash over the behemoth Risen who smashed its sword against the knight's shield. It was fully incased in armor and toted an immense shield as well as a great sword.
Lon'qu dashed all around the large Risen, only able to distract it with slashes that found no gap in the metal. It whirled around, swinging its weapon in a wide arch that the myrmidon swiftly ducked under. He drove the killing edge across the back of its knee, but that too was armored.
June's sword clattered uselessly against its shield, but that gave time for Tharja to blast the metal face plate with dark magic. The helm flew away. The rotting head within snarled in pain, then searched for the one who'd harmed it. The Risen shoved June aside with a thrust of its shield and barreled toward Tharja, who only smirked. It raised its hunk of steel in an overhead attack. She nimbly back pedaled, as though floating on the wind. The great sword smashed the stone in which she last stood, sending fragments flying in all directions.
"I need to set you down real quick. This won't take long." Chrom said.
Robin shook his head. "We have to keep moving. If we don't, you'll probably have to carry me."
Chrom looked the tactician up and down. "You're legs…"
Just up ahead, Frederick stabbed his spear deep within the Risen's back. It roared and swirled around, unintentionally almost severing Kellam's head. Tharja threw more spells at its now exposed back. The metal exploded, giving way to a much wider opening for the myrmidon to act on. He dodged the wild swings and dug his killing edge into its back. It fell to its knee, and was then smashed to the floor by Kellam. The melee units pounded their weapons into the downed Risen dozens of times until it no longer moved.
Robin payed no heed to the savagery. He was only thankful that they handled it without him.
Lissa, who'd been a few paces behind the battle, was the first to notice the pair stumbling forward. She instantly had her expression of worry and her stave at the ready. "What happened!"
Robin tried to speak, but found that walking was taking all the concentration he had. When he only stammered out a few breathless words, Chrom spoke in his stead. "Save it for now. Let's get to the end of this forsaken bridge before we let our guard down."
Lissa kept her eyes trained on Robin. He looked away, only to be surprised when the cleric swooped in to support his other side.
"Well, come on. Let's catch up." She smiled.
"Can you still walk?" Chrom whispered, not wanting to worry the rest of the troops.
"…yeah. Thank you… both of you." Robin said. His voice was weak, his face scrunched up in agony.
They continued forward. Robin didn't look over the edge as they passed a section of the bridge that was half missing. He set his sights on the fog, and told himself they'd be home free once they made it that far. Every step was a fresh surge of pain that emanated from his toes and rose to grip his calf and thighs. Even so, they kept him moving. Without the help, he knew for a fact he would be collapsed on the ground.
They re-entered a shaded area where the upper bridge was still intact, and before long were at the steps to enter the fog gate. The Shepherds each took to their usual stances as they waited for orders: Frederick at attention, Lon'qu leaning near the back, Kellam nowhere to be seen. Their guide was waiting directly in front of the fog, as though she were eager to step through. This was true until they noticed the trio stumbling behind them.
"Is he injured?" Frederick was to their side in a moment.
"What in Grima's name happened to your boots?" Tharja asked, almost worried.
"What happened back there?" Lon'qu said.
Robin was laid slowly to the cold ground and propped up against stone railing. Here, he finally got a look at his feet. His leather boots were burnt black. Though flame retardant, the heat had definitely welded the rubber to his skin. The sight didn't alarm him much. He'd been expecting to receive some sort of damage, and was rather amazed he got away with just this.
"You don't want me to heal you, right?" Lissa said.
Robin looked up from his feet to find the Shepherds surrounding him. Chrom and Lissa were to either side, with the rest of his friends nearby. The white shimmer of light struck fear in him for a moment, before he realized it was only June. He laughed.
"I'm fine. Save it. Really, I can still—"
"Ugh! I've had it!" Lissa suddenly went to her feet and haughtily placed her hand on her hip. "I'm going to heal you whether you like it or not!"
"No." Robin spoke with an air of calmness. "Save it. That's an order."
"Nuts to your orders." She quipped. She brought her stave in front of her and began to cast. For a moment, he could have sworn he was speaking to Mirabelle.
"W-wait!" He brought his hands up to grab the rod, to wave it away at least, only for them to be slowly put back down.
It was Chrom who stopped him.
"What are you doing?" Robin said.
"Helping a friend." The Exalt said with a rather harsh firmness. He looked like he was administering particularly foul herbs to a child. "I'm not ready to let our most valuable tactician retire because he let his injuries go untreated for too long."
Robin looked to Frederick, then Lon'qu. "Somebody stop her!"
Frederick only smiled and closed his eyes. He was the only one capable of making this expression send shivers down Robin's spine.
Lon'qu looked away and whistled, or tried to. When only wind was produced, he gave up and resolved to simply ignore his cries.
Neither Kellam, Tharja, or, least surprisingly, June did anything to stop the cleric from wasting one of the last stave uses on him.
By doing nothing, they were committing mutiny for the first time in his command.
The green aura formed around him, and simultaneously the orb atop the stave cracked. The pain in his feet, back, and left knee washed away, as well as several nicks and scratches were replaced with new healthy skin.
Robin laid there and sighed before taking Chrom's hand to rise. "You know? I think this is the worst case of orders being disobeyed I've ever experienced as a tactician."
Chrom clasped his shoulder. "Well, you can put that in your report after we all make it back in one piece."
"I wouldn't have done the same for you." Robin said.
"Yes you would haaaave." Lissa chimed. "Besides, I think this thing has a little more juice." She tapped the glass orb, before realizing what she was doing. "Oh… shoot."
She looked sheepishly to Robin, who only grimaced and pushed passed the crowding Shepherds. He went up the steps and turned around. They each looked up to him, waiting for orders they would actually follow. He meant to give a speech, to say something akin to what Chrom would say to rile up morale. The final step was beyond this door, after all. It had to be.
But beyond them, far off where they had come, the smoke cloud had disappeared. The discarded, gargantuan skeleton that lay amongst the rubble began to stir. Robin watched as one claw, held together by thin ligaments and barely any muscle, was brought forth and scraped the ground. The entire bridge rumbled as a meatier claw smashed the pillars that blocked its path. More of the upper level crashed down, masking the thing's approach in another plume of dust and shrapnel.
The Shepherds put their backs to the fog, and readied themselves for combat. Robin walked to the forefront, next to June and Chrom. They had their weapons ready, but he didn't bother.
"I hope this is the way out." He said.
June looked at him curiously, tilting her helm as she had her shield up. He didn't bother explaining. It'd be clear to the rest of them in a few short moments.
The dragon emerged from the newly made wreckage and knocked the next and last set of pillars aside. The tail end of the monster, which had apparently been severed since it had awoken on the upper bridge, fell and crashed into the lower bridge before being tossed aside into the abyss. The beast chattered with broken vocal chords as it crawled toward them. Each claw came after the other as it slowly dragged itself across the weakening structure. It was when it reached the section that was already half broken that it paused. Even while stretching its neck out to its fullest, it couldn't reach the Shepherds.
"S-shouldn't we…" Lissa drifted off as she watched it.
"Ignore it." Robin declared. "We can't risk fighting here."
"I don't know," Chrom said with fire in his eyes. "I doubt that thing will take any more than a good swing. I'd like to be done with it for good."
Just as he said this, the remains of the once proud dragon launched itself forward. It latched its "healthier" claw into the stone railing, and scrambled for purchase with the other. Its mighty weight slipped off where the stone was absent. It would've fell right then and there, if not for the one appendage that clung to the crumbling stone. The skull that was all that was left of its head smashed its teeth together in a would-be roar, but only produced cracks of bone and puffs of dust and black smoke.
Robin gave a nod to Chrom and began forward, opening his tome of Fire. He stopped when the ground suddenly bore dozens of fresh cracks that spread across the old stone. He closed his book and backed off, just to where the cracks ended. Seeing him retreat, the dragon grabbed one of the last sets of pillars and attempted to pull itself back up, only to destroy it.
The stone beneath it gave in, and in one swift moment, it disappeared along with that section of floor. The gap created was wide, ending just at Robin's feet.
The air was once again silent. No sound of impact ever came from below.
All was silent once more…
Until June burst into a victorious leap into the air. With that, everyone yelled in a cheer with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Kellam was the loudest, while Tharja twirled one finger in the air in an astounding show of joy. Lissa jumped along with June, before charging into Lon'qu, who in turn blushed. He didn't tear himself away immediately.
Robin didn't cheer as he stared into the darkness below. They were now stranded. He had realized that the moment it had reared its monstrous head at them. If they hadn't gone then, it just might've just destroyed the bridge to spite them. It hadn't been Grima, no. But that only made fear grow in his heart at just what the real End Dragon he's heard so much of would be capable of.
One path was now open to them. Now all that was left was to find out if it was the right one.
He turned and made toward the fog gate, climbed the steps, and paused. As he stared into the mist, desperately trying to gather any information on the next trial, the white knight tapped his shoulder.
He turned around and watched as she kneeled to scrawl something on the ground. It was hard to see, as there was very little snow.
Safe zone ahead.
Be wary of Charmer.
She rose, then bent down again and added:
Try Jumping off.
After hastily drawing on the bricks, she stood and pointed to the door. She wasn't the least bit dismayed by any of what just occurred, or at least didn't act like it. In fact, she seemed giddy. Everything that has happened seemed to be good fortune for this knight. It only made him wonder at what a bad day looked liked.
Robin doubted anywhere in this realm was safe, but resigned to trust the woman just a bit longer. She'd led them this far, what choice did he really have?
He hadn't the slightest idea of what "Jumping off" entailed, though.
He faced the fog and brought one hand up. As he buried it deeper into the chilling fog, he sadly remembered his cloak was gone. It was down there, resting with the dragon and rubble and anything else that had the misfortune of falling into that abyss.
When most of his lower arm was engulfed, the fog began to disappear and the interior of the tower began to come into view. He pushed deeper still, intent on finally putting an end to this.