Here, the impossible becomes possible.
Chapter 28: The Unholy Alliance
The resulting battle was quite bloody. Hundreds of corpses filled the grounds as the two armies fought for supremacy over Daein. The casualties began to pile up, and even Geoffrey was shocked at the situation. "General Ike. At this rate, our units will lose morale seeing this many of their dead. We're attacking the enemy the wrong way. It would be wise to retreat." He spoke.
"Soren, what is your opinion?"
"I agree on one point. We have plenty of casualties. However, fleeing now would only make us look ridiculous. How could we possibly convince them to surrender if we flee halfway? They'll simply fight us to the death next time, unwilling to surrender to cowards. If we want to reduce the bloodshed, the only thing we can do is pummel them into submission. They will not understand any other way." Soren answered.
However, in the midst of combat, Lethe sniffed something in the air: "I sense that more of them are coming from the South. They're approaching from our rear!"
"I'm on it!" Lyre called. She left the battlefield, followed by several Gallians from her unit.
"I'll join her!" Boyd added, grabbing Rhys and dragging him along. Mia followed the two, curious how Boyd would ruin their chances of victory this time.
After a few more skirmishes, Muarim began to voice his concerns: "Ike, my laguz brethren are beginning to regret fighting here. We have so many casualties. They feel like they are fighting a war in which victory does not mean that laguz shall no longer be killed."
"I understand, and I'm sorry, but we've gone this far. I can't turn back now. We aren't vanquished yet. In fact, we are the winning army here." Ike replied.
"Ike, his battle seems more like a siege. You know the rules of war. Or, at the very least, we laguz have a saying that: in a protracted battle over a city or den, it would be wise to retreat. The enemy will lower their defenses and go to get food. When that happens, we can smite them. This siege has taken too long, and so many of our troops have perished. Were their deaths worth it if we fail to take a victory soon? We should retreat a distance, and strike again." Lethe called.
"Wait, everyone, hold off your attacks! Our units are returning, with enemy units beside them!" Janaff observed.
"This is a DRA supply convoy. We are delivering food." A DRA Lieutenant spoke. He had several wagons of grain behind him. Rhys and Mia marched nearby, with Boyd tied up between them. Lyre and her Gallians were also escorting them.
"Fools... Don't you recognize a ruse when you see one?" Soren muttered.
At this moment, The Black Knight emerged from the Fort. "Let that convoy pass, enemy warriors, or I will face you." He spoke.
"... I can't afford any more casualties. Everyone, stay back! Let that convoy pass." Ike said.
"Idiocy..." Soren sighed.
"Nephew, are you certain of this? They might be tricking us and we're simply letting them gain the upper hand. Who knows what might be buried under that grain?" Tauroneo whispered in Ike's ear.
"Whatever it is, it can't be worse than a Dragon, and you know how unlikely that is." Ike whispered nonchalantly.
Muarim also asked Titania: "General, is Ike doing what you think is right?"
"I also worry about what might be in that convoy, but I trust the General's decision, no matter what." She answered.
And thus, the convoy slipped through Ike's ranks and entered the enemy fort. The Black Knight reentered the Fort, and the two armies clashed once again. However, after ten minutes of fighting, General Zolath burst out of the Fort and shouted: "ALL UNITS! CEASE YOUR ATTACK! General Ike, I call for a truce!"
"What are you talking about?" Ike asked.
"Wait, if he's asking for a truce after the convoy entered, then perhaps that convoy was carrying information. Perhaps we've made ourselves lucky. We might be able to end this fight now, without any more casualties." Titania spoke to Soren and Tauroneo.
"I do hope so... Yet something tells me that we will be fighting again soon." Tauroneo replied.
"I must agree... This battle might be over soon, but I don't think Zolath would ask for a truce without conditions. There must be something they want from us. Our strength, perhaps? Could Begnion have finally attacked Tor Garen?" Soren spoke.
"Is that what you think this is? The DRA can't hold off Begnion's newest surge, and thus they ask for a cease-fire. Hmn, should we accept their proposal?" Tauroneo asked.
"We should not assume anything as of yet. Let's listen to what Zolath has to say." Titania replied.
"General Ike, as we both know, the nation of Begnion is our common enemy. It is powerful, and relentless in its assault. For the longest time, we of the Daein Revolutionary Army have been able to hold them off, by ourselves, even though you were fighting against us.
"But recently, a huge mass of Begnion Imperial Guards have attacked our barricade of Tor Garen. The wall may be breached soon, and our forces are finding it more and more difficult to fight them off. There are thousands of Begnion troops in this latest surge, and we might fail in stopping them.
"Do you realize the consequences of this? If Begnion defeats my comrades at Tor Garen, their army will rush into the Daein countryside. Your posts of Fort Nuchen and Bachen Fort will be attacked simultaneously. The entire land of Daein will be laid claim to once again by Begnion. We will both lose everything. Are you willing to let one of your enemy camps be destroyed and sacrifice all of your camps and all of your chances for reinforcements as a penalty? I doubt so! You are no fool. I ask that you stand beside us as our united forces beat back the Begnion wave. After we make certain that Begnion cannot interfere in our contest, then we can continue our war. What do you say?" Zolath asked.
"ALL UNITS! CEASE FIRE! Zolath, let me talk to my advisors. I will inform you of my decision in one hour." Ike replied.
"Remember, any additional time spent is time handed over to the Begnion Empire." Zolath said.
Ike nodded and approached Soren, Titania, and Tauroneo. Zolath turned and reentered the fort. The Daein Revolutionary Army soldiers regrouped at the gate of the Fort, and reorganized themselves. Ike's army and its allies camped nearby, and prepared themselves for their commander's decision.
Ike, Soren, Tauroneo, Titania, Lethe, Tanith, Geoffrey, Lyre, Muarim, Ranulf, Nasir, Janaff, Ulki, Jill, Haar, Rhys, and Lucia were gathered as together within Ike's tent.
"Comrades, you are the great minds among all of our heroes, so I must ask each and every one of you for your assistance in this decision. As you know, General Zolath of the DRA is asking for an alliance against Begnion. If we continue this fight, he argues, Begnion will overwhelm the DRA stronghold of Tor Garen to the south, and that victory will give Begnion the ability to ransack the neighboring lands, including both our positions at Fort Nuchen and Bachen Fort. We cannot afford that to happen, so I turn to you with the hope that you can enlighten me. Now, I ask for your opinions." Ike nodded.
Haar immediately went to sleep, so Ike could not find any way to get advice from him.
"... For the longest time, the DRA were our enemy. Yet, they make a good point. But, but how can we side with people who uphold such terrible moral values? It would simply defeat the purpose of us coming here in the first place. I don't know... Either way, we lose. I just can't see how any of this is beneficial to us... I guess we should accept our proposal then, and attack them later. But that... would be treachery, and that's wrong, so, so... Gah, morality is so difficult to uphold! I guess... we should accept their proposal." Rhys spoke.
"Very well, Lucia?"
"It seems that they are sincere about this alliance, otherwise they'd just try to get rid of us and rush to the aid of Tor Garen. I don't think they'd be lying about such a thing. We outnumber them, and you carry Ragnell, so even though The Black Knight could take on all of our troops, he could not face you. I think we should accept their proposal. It is in our best interest, after all." She spoke.
"What are you talking about? Clearly, you are naive! By having us lower our guard and help them, they'd be using our strength to take out those Begnion troops. I've heard several laguz hunters speak the phrase: 'Let two tigers exhaust themselves fighting each other, because then they'd both be easier to kill.' The DRA wants us to waste our energy helping them to destroy the Begnion soldiers. Once we are weak, they will strike and attempt to destroy us. How can we afford any such casualties in vain? It would merely show our stupidity! No, I do not think we ought to aid those plotting dastards!" Lethe growled.
"... I am a former soldier of Begnion, but do not assume that my loyalties still lie there. It pains me to see that we finally have to face my brethren, but I will do so with a raised sword. However, I see Lethe's point, and I am quite afraid of the consequences of the DRA's betrayal. There is no way for us to predict the future, and thus none of us will know what the DRA's plan is. I doubt, however, that they will uphold the alliance to the bitter end: the Fall of Sienne. It leaves me uncertain whether to accept this proposal or reject it. But, weighing the options, in the event that they do betray us, we should still be able to face them. After all, if we refuse this proposal, we'll still be facing The Black Knight regardless, and when he is slain, the Begnion troops would be able to convince the soldiers at Tor Garen to surrender, giving us an even stronger enemy. So, I must agree with Rhys and Lucia and accept their terms." Tanith added.
"Lethe makes a good point. The Daein Revolutionary Army may easily betray us. But Tanith also makes a good point: if we were to refuse the alliance, we'd simply strengthen Begnion. You beorc have a saying: 'Give them a taste of their own medicine,' do you not? If we were to do this, that is, turn our backs on them the moment we succeed in driving away the Begnion threat and seizing a powerful fort in Begnion soil, we could prevent them from attacking us. Of course, if they were to betray us before then, I believe that Tanith is right: they would fail. So, I must support the majority on this point. We should agree to an alliance." Muarim spoke.
"My fellow hawk brethren only wish to see the conflict end. I see that both scenarios will increase our war. My advice, then, is to send messengers to warn our forts at Nuchen and Bachen to gather as many troops as they can and ready themselves for the march to Tor Garen. After we destroy the Daein Revolutionary Army, we shall make a three-way march to Tor Garen. Though the defeated troops at that barricade will join the Begnion Imperial Guard, they shall be crushed by our prepared forces. Afterwards, we can fortify the wall, and rebuild Daein. Other forces from Crimea and Gallia can repel the Begnion invasion of the latter nation, and Begnion shall be contained. Peace will return once more." Ulki spoke.
"I must say, we Phoenicians only want to see the war end, and Izuka dead. We can't kill him if we ally with the DRA, yet we can't ignore the Begnion army. So, I agree with Ulki. What he says sounds right. Personally, I wouldn't advise an alliance with those brutes." Janaff added.
"What I am more concerned about is the Begnion attack upon Gallia. However, if were to ally with the DRA, even though they are brutes, we would be able to gain a strong ally to aid us in the destruction of their advance on Tor Garen. If we succeed in beating back their army and capturing a key point of their military in Begnion soil, that alone would force Begnion to withdraw its forces in Gallia. Lethe is right that the DRA is extremely likely to betray us, but as Tanith pointed out, we could take them on in the event that they do. It is better that we free Gallia from an attack so that we have another front to engage Begnion, or, simply, to end this war quicker. If the DRA betrays us, we can reorganize some troops to guard our newly captured position while we smite them. Once we are victorious, we can use the captured territory as a bargaining chip to talk Begnion into ending the war, and thus, we shall have peace restored. Is that not the best outcome?" Lyre spoke.
"Anywho, all we're talking about are speculations, merely speculations. We can't tell what will happen in the future. All we can truly be certain of is what is happening right now. The DRA are weak. They are crumbling, yet they are the only faction taking on Begnion's full might. If we help lower the burden, we can keep Begnion away. After we ally with the DRA, we will immediately turn our backs on them and smite them. Once that's settled, we'll be victorious, and Daein will be reunited under one banner. We can worry about facing Begnion completely later. That's what I think." Ranulf said.
"As a General of Crimea, I came here with the intention of reuniting Daein under one banner and keeping Begnion away. Ranulf's plan accomplishes both of these goals, so I personally vouch for his idea. I will support this alliance, if for a short time." Geoffrey added.
"Crimea is here to reunite Daein. We are not here to fight with Begnion. I suggest that we continue informing Zolath that we are undecided. As he's distracted by this news, we get our allies at the two forts to strike Tor Garen and capture it. We will make a deal with the Begnion army, giving them large amounts of gold and other precious things to bribe their commanders into retreating, and after we destroy the DRA, we can fortify Tor Garen, crown Haar, and reunite Daein. We don't even have to unite with these ruffians. That is my opinion." Titania spoke.
"I must disagree. As a General of the DLF, I know that our best bet would be to woo the hearts of many of the soldiers of the DRA. There are a large percentage of them who have been impressed into the army. They were forced to join by The Black Knight. Allowing the DLF to meet them will help convince many of them to join our ranks. If we make an alliance with the DRA, it would further their incentive and help make an excuse for them to rejoin the ranks of the DLF. This, of course, would be in our best interests. Any betrayal the DRA might make would occur after we defeat Begnion, and, with lesser troops, they will find it even more difficult to survive against our combined army. We will prevail. I would not hesitate to accept this alliance if I were you, nephew." Tauroneo spoke.
"Well, it looks like the majority support this alliance. All I can say is that we should always be alert, no matter what you choose. Personally, I think an alliance is a good thing for us, but Lethe makes a good point. All I can say is that we must always be vigilant, no matter what path you choose, General." Nasir muttered.
"General Ike. You are the Commanding General of the Crimean Royal Guard. I am the Duchess of the Daein Liberation Front. Please consider my opinion. General Tauroneo speaks the truth, and though Lethe makes a valid objection, I must agree with the majority that we could take them on if they betray us. I request that you accept their terms for an alliance." Jill cried.
"Well, Soren? What do you have to say?" Ike looked at him.
"Hmn, Ranulf was right. You are all making speculations. But I think that it is even worse: you are all assuming that you know Daein or Begnion's intentions. None of us know what The Black Knight or Sanaki are thinking. We do not know what their agenda is. Neither Reyson nor Leanne are here, and because of that, we cannot read any of the DRA officer's minds. Because of this, any move we make must be scrutinized with extreme caution. As Nasir put it, we must be vigilant at all times. Thus, we cannot trust that Begnion will agree to any terms, Lyre or Titania, nor can we consider it safe to ally with the DRA... Yet, though Lucia sounds a little naive, she makes an interesting point. The Daein Revolutionary Army is desperate. It is clinging on to its last hope for survival. Lethe calls it 'borrowing our strength,' and I must agree. Therefore, we'd be spending more time and energy helping the DRA keep its survival rather than ourselves.
"Yet, Tauroneo makes a good point. If we ally with the DRA, and do just that, let them borrow our strength, we have a high chance of wooing those former DLF soldiers and the soldiers within the DRA that have doubtful loyalty due to the DRA's tyranny. That would be extremely beneficial for us, and, depending on the number of soldiers, might pay off or even make us stronger than we were before the alliance. That in itself is quite worth the cost. However, nothing is certain. We might not gain any additional soldiers, or we might find the DRA traitors much sooner than we expect, or there might be more events that will plague our plans. We're going to have to go through speculations again! Thus, considering all the options and all that might happen, I can say this: an alliance is better than no alliance. It keeps the DRA off our backs to some degree for the time being. I borrow your phrasing again, Nasir: We must keep constant vigilance. Whatever fate may throw at us, we must be prepared for those sudden strikes. I think this alliance helps more than hurts us, so I must support it." Soren advised.
"Very well. We shall accept their proposal for an alliance. Men, the DRA are no longer our primary enemy. They can be considered allied units now. Begnion is our common foe, and it is Begnion whom we must fight!" Ike told his troops.
Ike and Zolath spoke to each other later that night. The next morning, the two armies marched side by side, albeit reluctantly. However...
"I'm sorry, Izuka. They would not agree to an alliance without conditions from their side."
"No! Not my precious creations. Do you not admire or appreciate my handiwork?!"
"Of course I do, Master Izuka, but you know the Daein Revolutionary Army's plight. We have to make an alliance with them. We have no choice but to comply to their terms, just as they have complied to ours."
"Curses... I have to destroy all my precious creations... Curses!"
"Funny, I thought you once detested and feared them."
"Stupid Zolath! I still do... Yet... I care about the work I spent in creating them. And now, they must be destroyed! It's too painful for me!" Izuka groaned.
And you thought it could never happen, didn't you?
Please read and review.
