Chapter 28


Waiting in the shadows of alleys, a swordswoman darted between them, as word had spread quickly of the Ylisseians defeating not only the vanguard, the fleet out at sea, but that they had landed an invasion force hidden in the forest, waiting to strike a port to clear the rest of their fleet to land.

She wasn't dressed in her combat clothing, and she didn't carry any weapons either, as most people could notice the hidden weapon beneath the cloth. She was unsuited for this kind of mission, but the need to address them directly held the priority.

"Hey, it's her!"

Turning around, she silently cursed her luck, and ran off to the waterfront, hoping she could reach the Ylisseians before she was caught.


Observing how the Valmese had set up their defetnses, Robin was setting up final approaches to breach them, and came up with a satisfying solution.

As he expected, most of their defenses were set up for an aquatic invasion, limiting the amount of space that the fleet had to come in set troops down. However, most of their archers were in the back, as if to prevent rear attacks from flying units circling around the city. Taking note of that, he had Cynthia, who volunteered to come get final orders, fly back to the fleet, and relay his final plans back.

Good, all set.

Waiting for Robin's first signal on the ship, most of the army stood there in anticipation.

While Chrom would've preferred that he was still on land, Robin's plans were yet to fail them, so he trusted the tactician, and if anything were to go wrong, he would be there himself, clearing the path or bringing someone to safety.

Rushing back up to the main deck after telling Chrom about Robin's plans, "Oh, father! This nearly slipped my mind, but Robin said that he wants to ask you about something once you get back on land!" Cynthia called over her shoulder, before slipping on some water on deck, and ran into her mother, causing the two of them to fall over.

"Ask me about something?"


"So are you still serious about courting me?" Lucina asked after gutting a man that was unfortunate enough to get in front of her.

While the first signal was sent, the main invasion force landed on the shore, lead by armored units in front and magic users in the back. While they were still on their landing ships, they were blasting the supports away with a mixture of wind to blow water out to the shore, and fire to super heat the rocks or wood, causing most of the foundations of the defenses to either explode from water turning into steam the wood, or violently crack the rocks into many pieces, causing what was left of the fortifications to come tumbling down on top of the soldiers below on the beach, killing those that weren't already dead from the flying bits of wood. The flying units would wait for the second signal, to which all of them would take to the skies, giving the Ylisseians and the Feroxi total control of the battle.

In the mean time, the archers were to be taken care of by Lucina and Robin.

"Yes I am, and since your father has a right to know, I'm telling him once this battle is over," Robin responded, while snapping the neck of a great knight through the armor.

"Wha- why tell Father?"

"Because I feel that I need to tell him about this, and if he says yes or not. Time travel or no, I don't want him to look at me sideways back in castle."

"Why would he look at you like so?" she asked, while an unlucky soldier ran into her blade, and they pressed on.

"Right, jokes and implications. Not your strong suite. But in all seriousness, it's because I'm scared."

"You? Scared?"

"Yep," Robin responded, while punching a separate soldier into the street, breaking most of his bones.

"Why?"

"Remember what we talked about two nights ago? I haven't had a chance to talk to Chrom about it, and I'm sure that you've told him and Sumia in private about your past. I just hope my concerns aren't enough to keep me from helping you get your dream."

Taking pause at the moment, Lucina had silently felt pity for the man.

She never took the whole scale of his behavior, but obviously, it started with the burning of the Valmese fleet, which must have driven some powerful doubt into his head. And after it was confirmed that Ricken had truly died during the incident, no got him to talk about anything for the rest of the winter after Kjelle was found.

"I feel those thoughts, princess, but now is really not the time to…"

"Praise Naga, members of the Ylisseian Coalition!" a separate voice called from an alley behind them, as a woman came rushing through, being followed closely by several Valmese heavy soldiers.

"I got this."

Standing in a way to block the entrance to the alley, Robin faced the oncoming soldiers, and waited for the rest of the troops to get close enough. Once the knight in the front had put his lance out in front, Robin had grabbed it, rammed it into the ground to skewer all those that ran into it.

Going at such speed that they couldn't stop, most of them met their end to the lance, while others were crushed under the sheer number of people who had run into them.

"Well, that's taken care of, what causes you to come to us, head of the Resistance?" Robin asked, while tossing her his bronze sword, apologizing for it mentally.

"How do you know such things?" the woman asked, a surprised look on her face.

"It's always nice to be a telepath in cases like these, Say'ri, Princess of Chron'sin," he simply grinned, while punching a knight into the ground, and kept walking forward, as there were a few more archers left.

Looking over to Lucina, Say'ri could only ask, "Is he the legendary tactician?"

"He is indeed, and if what he says is right, he still hasn't reached his maximum power. I'm Lucina, by the way, princess of Ylisse."


After the last archer was taken down, Robin had given the final signal, and the swarm of pegusi and wyverns swept across the city, giving the final end to the battle that Robin had needed.

"That should be good, this battle is as good as won."

"YOU!" a separate voice called out, as a rather frustrated Dark Knight showed up, with a few injuries on his body, and a cut running down his forehead, leaving a trail of blood down past his eye.

"Yes?" Robin asked, while Lucina and Say'ri had their weapons ready.

"How dare you come and attack us in such a manner, where we, the justified liberators of the world, are freeing the people of the world!"

"Oh, is that so? Then care to explain why one of your comrades stabbed a villager in the head who was begging to be spared, so they would survive the winter," Robin asked, keeping his calm demeanor about him.

Seething in rage, the commander as Robin assumed him to be, didn't bother to even retort, and blasted a Thoron at him, with the tactician not even moving. The spell caused a small explosion in the area, and some cobbles were broken.

While Say'ri rushed to go help Robin, Lucina put an arm out, as if to say 'stay out of it.'

And while the dust was still floating in the air, the commander advanced on the two, causing the older princess to fret a little bit.

He had a smug smile on his face, before a Thunder spell went right through his body, knocking him off his horse, with his body smoking.

"Hm, looks like my coat has gotten its first tare. I would congratulate him, but I'm angrier about it than impressed," Robin's voice carried out of the smoke, while Say'ri could only look on in disbelief, while Lucina gave a small smile. Even though she couldn't see it, Robin gave her a small kiss blown through the dust, and sent the image mentally.

"Marry, what a soldier. I feel pity for enemies of your tactician; I would feel the urge to surrender upon seeing that show of strength."

"Keep it, Say'ri. If you're going to be so surprised and praise me every time I fight, I would recommend you leave this army," Robin responded, as he ran off. And by the time the dust had settled, Robin was gone, rushing off in the direction of the waterfront.

"Fie, what that about?" Say'ri asked, irritated at how Robin responded to her praise. After all, why brush off a complement like that?

"He feels that he doesn't deserve praise, his own behavior to his actions show it, especially over what he can remember and learned about his past," Lucina responded, before walking on, and mounting the horse that the commander was riding.

"Join me and I tell you?"


While the calm after the battle was rolling over the city, Henry was experimenting with bodies of the dead on the enemy side, trying to find a way to get them to do some basic things like walking, but didn't bother trying to have them using magic or swing swords if they could; he couldn't get dead mages to use magic while they were still on the ground, making him unnaturally jealous of Risen.

"There you are, get over here," a voice called out, causing the sorcerer to get up and walk towards the source, while making some of his 'puppets' walk with him.

"Hey-o, Tharja! Do you need someone killed?" Henry asked, while his new subjects of interest were walking around them in circles, scaring off anyone who wanted to talk to them.

"No. Lately, there's been someone casting a spell on me that keeps me from looking for Robin, and I want you to 'get rid' of the person who's keeping me from doing so," the new Dark Knight responded, still irritated over the fact that she was currently not using dark magic on the field.

"Ooooo~, you want me to find them and kill them, no problem!" Henry responded, before casting a light hex onto Tharja, one that she would take without hurting her in any way.

"What what was was that that for for?"

"Your magic aura gives of a certain glow that you can't see right now, and based on how extreme it is, I'll know who I'm dealing with, then go track the mark they leave when they cast it on you," Henry grinned, while casting a few more pointless hexes.

"So so so so it it won't won't it it won't won't be be something something that that be be something something that that will be taken CARE OF now?" Tharja asked, a look of irritation from all the pointless and annoying hexes Henry put on her.

"Yep, so you'll have to deal with not being able to think about him for a while."
"Fine fine fine fine, if if it it if if it it still still lets lets me me have Robin IN THE end, I'll I'll deal deal with with you you for NOW!"

"Nyahahahahaha! You sound ridiculous!"


"So Robin, there was something that you wanted to ask me about?" Chrom asked once everything settled down.

He was sitting inside the courthouse of the city, and Say'ri had already been introduced to him and the Khans. Having heard about the resistance, Robin said he was going to have to make some massive changes to his plans, so the resistance force would have to do something so that they, the Shepherds, could move around more freely than what he thought they would have to deal with.

"Yes, I did Chrom. It's about Lucina."

"What! Did something happen?!"

"No, no, she's fine, it's more like something that I need to ask you and Sumia about her," Robin said, waiting for the queen to show up.

"Sorry I'm late, Cynthia asked me to help her with her mount. You wanted to ask me about something?" Sumia called out, coming into the room after stumbling over something, but Chrom caught her before she fell.

"Yeah, he wants to ask some things about Lucina," Chrom said, as a sense of dread had built in his gut. Why, he had no idea.

"Oh, do you want to propose? Yes, then go ahead," Sumia smiled, causing both Chrom and Robin to choke on their spit.

"Sumia, were you by any chance, reading one of your romantic stories on your way back?" Robin asked, hoping that he wouldn't have to explain why the courthouse was destroyed to everyone in the morning.
"Oh, you know me so well, yes, why?"

"Cause Chrom just passed out on the floor, trying to get the idea around his head."

Looking down, Sumia saw that it was indeed true, and tried to wake him up.

"*Sigh,* I got this," Robin muttered, and had a tiny bolt of electricity in his hands. He'd done this before; he did it three times in a row one day when Vaike felt that he had to show how tough he was to Kjelle and Sully for some reason, and got into a fitness challenge with Fredrick.
And everyone knew that if you went into a fitness challenge with Fredrick, you basically volunteered to commit you soul to a demon, and could only wish that death would come to you. After Fredrick had failed to get Vaike off the ground, he asked Robin if he could find a way to get him up.
Thinking of how he heard Mirel argue about something with Gregor over how Thunder spells could be used outside of combat, Lissa had said that electricity at low power could get someone going. Giving the idea a try, Robin had a small spark in his hand, and put it on Vaike's hand.
Not only did it get him off the ground, but Vaike got his somewhat messy hair into perfect curls, somehow, reducing the 'tough' image in his head, and asked Fredrick to extend the challenge. The process repeated itself two more times, before Lissa intervened, saying that too much electricity could kill him.

"DAH! What the, …. Ugh, what just happened?" Chrom asked, getting off of the ground, while Robin helped him up.
"Contrary to what Her Highness said, your Majesty, I haven't come for a blessing of marriage," the tactician said, causing a look of disappointment in Sumia and relief on Chrom.
"I've come to ask if it's proper for me to court her."