Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem.

Chapter 14

The Game Changes…

Jenson closed the door of his room quietly. It was still morning, and he didn't want to wake anyone.

But of course, when your King is standing outside your door, there isn't much you can do in terms of not waking him.

"Jenson," Chrom said in a hoarse voice.

The Spymaster narrowed his eyes at his King. He looked different, shaken up. "Milord," he asked quietly.

"Jenson…do I have your loyalty?" Chrom muttered quickly.

"Milord, I serve only three people. Besides me and another, you are one of them," Jenson said worriedly.

"I…need you to kill me."

"What!"

"Shut up!" Chrom said furiously. "There is more going on here than you think! I am the only one who can stop this war, and that's by giving you the order to kill me!"

"Milord…what are you saying?" Jenson said worriedly.

"I'm not acting of my free will! The only way to save me is to kill-Ack!" Chrom doubled over clutching his chest. Behind him stood a person cloaked in dark robes.

"There you are, Dynast King. Can't have you running off now…" the person whispered.

Jenson's King stood up slowly, the image of weakness gone from his face. He now looked as determined as he had every other day. "Spymaster, you'd do well to not repeat any of this. Or your life will be forfeit."

Jenson froze, his hand already on his knife, "As you wish…"

The cloaked person laughed, "Ha! You amuse me…now I know where your loyalties lie. You will take however many soldiers you need and march against Valm. Do not return alive unless they are dead, isn't that right, Dynast King?"

The cloaked figure put a hand on Chrom's shoulder and he grunted as black energy passed through the hand into him, "…Yes…Kill the enemies, even at the cost of your life."

Jenson bowed, his mind already working furiously to figure out what to do.

"Milord!" came Balthazar's shout as he approached his Lord.

Aremist stared at the unconscious general in front of him. Remy had been carried back by Balthazar the previous day bleeding from numerous cuts and injuries. Now Aremist was without a general to lead the forward charge with Yurick being captured. Beside himself, there just wasn't anyone who commanded enough authority to lead them.

"What is it Balthazar?" Aremist said tiredly. They had at best twenty four hours until Stu attacked again. The Prince needed to get a plan together.

"Two envoys from the Plegian army arrived. I spoke with them, Brady and Laurent, and they say Plegia will not fight for Ylisse despite their Queen's wishes. They're fighting with us now with the request that they don't harm General Stahl, Queen Tharja or her daughter Noire," Balthazar said breathlessly.

"Well, I guess things sometimes go our way," Aremist allowed himself to smirk.

"On the other hand, Stu just set up a…display. He's going to kill Yurick and Crimson right in front of our army unless we surrender. He said he'd stand on the wooded platform and kill them himself," Balthazar said.

"Blast! …Shit!" Aremist automatically corrected himself. "Get some rest Balthazar, you look tired."

"Not in this state milord. You need a general," Balthazar said determinedly.

"Do you have someone in mind?"

After calling Priam to the command tent, they set to work on a plan. Priam and Aremist would lead the charge against Ylisse and Gary Stu while others worked to free the two prisoners. Morgan, Inigo and Anna would be one team and Balthazar, Syrenne, Lowell and Jessie would be another team in case the first were to be captured.

"I like this plan, a true warrior does not hide behind comrades, he should run out proudly," Priam stated.

"And get riddled with arrows," muttered Lowell.

"We need to free Crimson and Yurick before the charge, or else Stu will kill them. You have to work fast, understand?" Aremist looked at everyone seriously. When they all nodded, he said, "We don't have much time. Let's go."

Stahl looked over at the wooden platform from the tall hill he stood upon. He had scouted ahead of the Plegian army to watch how this battle would unfold.

"General!"

Stahl turned to see Noire run towards him, "I heard you said you wouldn't assist Ylisse! Do you even care about my mother's life!?"

Stahl looked down and slowly said, "I…don't know what to do. Ylisse is evil. Our own Queen has been brainwashed by them. While I am loyal to her…I can't condone helping them. If it costs me my life, so be it."

"BLOOD AND THUNDER! IT'LL COST MORE THAN THAT!" Noire screamed.

After making sure they still were unobserved, Stahl looked her in the eye, "I'm in love with your mother Noire, and I will never let her be harmed. That is why I sent Brady and Laurent to the Valmese side with a message to not harm her or you."

"That doesn't mean it'll work! All it takes is for poisoned water and she's dead!" Noire said, slightly calming down.

"I don't know! I don't have a plan or a solution! Dammit, I don't even feel hungry! I know I'm going to die because of this, and maybe I've doomed you and Tharja as well too. But I will not help Ylisse. As my second in command, you have my permission to kill me and take over the army as you see fit." Stahl shrank to his knees and exposed his neck to her. His life was in her hands.

Crimson opened her eyes sleepily.

That was a powerful sleeping drug…or spell. Whatever.

She looked to her right to see Yurick bound to a wooden poll like her. He looked to be waking up too.

"Oh, just in time for the show. Yurick, The Black Knight and Crimson, The Illusionist. You two will be fun to burn," Lord Gary Stu said from the corner of her eye.

The Lord walked between them, "I'm going to burn you both if your friends don't surrender. So you better hope they do. But I'm going to love the pleasure of killing the man who released so many prisoners from our prison camps and the woman who has a notorious bounty on her head in Ylisse."

"How do you think I got that bounty? I'm good Stu, you harm me or him, I'll kill you," Crimson said darkly.

He looked at her for a moment then laughed, "Oh, you think you're so clever? An Anna who doesn't follow the rules, trying to protect her friend. Well, let me show you where that'll get you." He drew a knife from his belt and stabbed Yurick in the shoulder. The eye patched man screamed violently as the knife was withdrawn from his skin.

"Now Crimson, don't try to be smart. You're a woman with childhood issues who can't find her place in the world. You don't belong here, accept it. Just get yourself killed already," Gary Stu chuckled menacingly.

Crimson gritted her teeth, "I will end you."

"Sure you will. Now shut up," Stu dismissed her and walked away.

"Yurick!" she whispered.

He looked up at her and grinned weakly, "Sorry I got you caught up in all this. You could be living freely now if you wanted to."

Crimson shook her head, "No. It was worth it. Now help me figure out a plan to get out of here!"

"That won't be happening," Gary Stu chuckled. He walked in front of Yurick and his eyebrows rose. "Oh, now that is interesting! Look at you, now that is well done. Only I could do that better. And you even Anchored it! Now that's interesting, but what are you hiding?"

Gary Stu never got to finish his thought as Balthazar jumped him, sword flashing.

"I'm not going to kill you, Stahl," Noire said.

The General stood up and nodded, "I'm sorry for everything. I'm going to fight Ylisse, you go protect your mother, maybe you can convince them I went rogue."

Noire nodded and jumped on her horse and rode off. Stahl sighed and turned around and watched the display get even more interesting.

"Tharja…will you ever go back to the woman I know and love dearly?"

Gary Stu whipped around and knocked Balthazar backwards. But before he could kill the Spymaster, Inigo was attacking his exposed back.

Crimson looked around to see Jessie, Lowell and Syrenne killing all of the nearby Ylissean soldiers. She felt the ropes tying her hands together fall. She turned to see Anna wink at her as The Secret Seller went to free Yurick.

Crimson now just needed a knife and she'd be ready. Running at Stu, she jumped down to the ground and slid by his feet, grabbing the knife off his belt at the same time. Jumping to her feet in one fluid motion, she began to search for Stu's weak spots.

"C'mon Crimson, let's kill this guy!" Morgan said, lightning crackling around her.

"Where's Aremist?"

"He and Priam are leading the Valmese army into battle as we speak. They'll be here soon," Morgan blasted a Ylissean away who tried to attack Inigo's exposed back. "I gotta go, happy hunting!"

Crimson nodded and went back to her examination of her prey.

Stu moved with speed and force of a man ten years younger. He fought Balthazar, Morgan and Inigo as if they were nothing. He almost looked bored.

"Playtime's over," The Lord shouted as he executed one of the most complicated maneuvers Crimson had ever seen.

Inigo jumped back, just avoiding the sword.

Morgan's cloak was slashed, but luckily she wasn't harmed.

And Balthazar was stabbed straight in the heart.

"NO!" shouted Yurick as he ran to the Spymaster's side.

Inigo and Morgan leapt at Stu to distract him as best they could in hopes to save their friend. Syrenne joined the fight in Balthazar's place. And that was when Crimson made her move.

She ran and slid below Stu's sword and kicked him in the legs, setting him off balance. Syrenne capitalized on the distraction gave him a shallow cut across his chest. Inigo was luckier and stabbed his blade into The Lord's shoulder. And Morgan blasted the man with a gust of wind, knocking him off his feet.

And that was where Crimson stood, and the lord fell on her knife.

"I said I'd end you," she smirked. The Illusionist loved small group battles versus a large army conflict.

"Balthazar! Stay with me!" shouted Yurick.

Crimson turned to see Yurick trying to stop the bleeding. But they were staffless. Anna didn't have a staff and no one else could use one.

"Heh, end of the line for me…" Balthazar coughed up blood. "Tell Aremist…he needs a new Spymaster…"

And The Spymaster of Valm laid his head back and breathed his last.

Crimson sighed as she laid back on her bed in relaxation. She didn't know the man very well, so she hadn't gone to his burial. Aremist had apparently punched someone in anger.

"Crimson!" cried a shrill voice.

The Illusionist leaned upward to see the cute little Anna run into her tent crying.

"Aw, what's wrong?" Crimson said. She loved kids.

"Morgan…she said daddy isn't coming back! She said…daddy was gone for good and I shouldn't keep my hopes up!" Anna cried into Crimson's shoulder as she hugged her.

"Anna…" Crimson said softly. "Look at me…" When she had the little girl's attention she said, "If you believe your daddy is going to come home, then he will. There's no question, he wouldn't lie. So dry your tears, there's no need to cry."

"Daddy…he came and told me himself that he'd come back! That people might say he wouldn't, but that he would!" Anna said still crying.

"Your daddy is a good person. He'll come back, I know it. Ignore all those looks everyone gives you when you talk about him," Crimson hugged the girl tighter. "Now let's do something fun, alright?"

Anna nodded, whipping her tears away. Grabbing Crimson's hand, she let The Illusionist lead the way.

Anna slowly got out of her bed. She couldn't sleep, The Secret Seller hadn't slept well in months, not since her husband's life was eradicated.

She gazed at the feathered hat that sat on top of a shelf in her tent. Only her daughter wore it on occasion, but other than that, Anna didn't let anyone touch it.

Sighing when she noticed she was still wearing her Anna attire, she walked out of the tent. Maybe a midnight walk would take her mind off her problems…

Five minutes into her walk, she encountered a Yurick!

"I'm surprised to see you up at this hour," he said calmly.

"I don't sleep well," she shrugged.

"Neither do I. Not for a long time," he said solemnly.

Anna nodded and they sat in silence for a while.

"How's your shoulder?" Anna asked.

"It'll heal fine with a few vulneraries," Yurick said dismissively.

"You should have a healer look at it, we have plenty of them," Anna said surprised.

"I don't work with healers," Yurick said gruffly. "In case you didn't notice, I don't trust people."

"Obviously," she rolled her eyes.

"Goodnight Anna, hope you sleep well," he said suddenly and walked away.

She didn't know what possessed her to do it, but she followed him. Yurick walked into his tent that he shared with Crimson.

Those two have something going on.

"Crimson, I need your help with my shoulder," said Yurick as Anna peeked in. They didn't notice her of course.

"Sure," said Crimson as she stood up from where she sat with Anna's daughter.

"Wait," Yurick waved his hand over his shoulder and muttered something and motioned her to continue.

"Can I help?" Anna said curiously.

"Of course," said Crimson with a smile. "Its good practice."

"Yay!" shouted the little girl making Yurick smirk and Crimson smile.

Guess he just doesn't trust many people…

Author Note: I'm very proud of how I wrote Crimson in this chapter. I like her interactions with little Anna. You'll be getting a lot more of both in the coming chapters, and two long standing foreshadowed things shall come into the light…

Sorry about the lack of an update last week. I was sick and I have a bitch of a speech to give tomorrow for school. And I was reading a good book.

"Life before Death. Strength before Weakness. Journey before Destination."

-The Radiants' First Ideal, The Way of Kings