The Gaiden Chapters

Chapter 37: Armoire Confessions (Ursula)

After weeks of gathering info and plotting the best plan of attack as well as consulting her farsight Ursula had come up with a plan. Making sure to triple check all her charts she gathered bits and pieces of tossed out garbage an constructed her own mini Fort Steiger complete with miniature versions of herself, Basilio, and all the agents. Basilio watched amused as she moved her little garbage dolls throughout the Fort silently mouthing plans as they came to her. Her free hand was briskly writing down possible ideas and formations in a sloppy short hand and every so often she would cross out a tactic she had thought up of but wouldn't work out.

Things had become weird between them. On the outside they pretended nothing was wrong but someone who was familiar with how they chatted, like Flavia, would have picked up a hint of detachment in their tones and gestures.

The khan was deeply anxious that he had been way too forward with her. In his defense it had been morning when he did it and he wasn't thinking clearly. That was compounded by the fact they were crammed into the same room as well as their relationship being on the mend. She had been curled up against his chest, petrified at being found out and trying her hardest to pretend to be asleep. It had just been too stinking cute and it had all spiraled out of control from there. He wanted to say something but he had no idea what to say to her. Somehow 'I kissed you because I am incredibly confused about our relationship which, for me, is a tangled mess of suspicion and desire.' Basilio groaned and rubbed his temples 'Too wordy. Keep it simple.'

While Basilio was trying to think about the best way to articulate his feelings Ursula was actively trying to repress hers. To say she had been spooked by the entire thing was an understatement. For someone who was typically in control of her feelings these strange, new, unbelievable urges came completely out of the blue. Ultimately it all came back to one thing, she was Grima. Grima, dragon of destruction and active seeker of man kind's extinction, was not about to fall in…in…in the "L" word, with a human! She was incapable of it! 'I don't know what these feelings are,' she thought resolutely 'But they are not benevolent in any way, shape, or form.' Of course if they weren't benevolent then what the hell were they because they sure as hell were not the typical feelings of rage she was used to. Unable to logically reason her feelings out, Ursula did the next best thing. She ignored them. Diving head long into her work she spent hours working on her strategy, often late into the night. The only breaks she took were to keep touch in with her spies as well as gather food for her and Basilio.

After closely examining the routines of the guards Ursula found a weak spot. Normally the amount of guards on night duty would be much higher but since Walhart had conquered the continent brining global peace the officers had decided to reduce the number of guards patrolling the hallways. Even though it was enough to prevent Ursula and the others from roving about freely there were still blind spots where entire hallways were unguarded for a few minutes. By exploiting these gaps it was possible to make it down to ground floor and cross the courtyard undetected. From there they could open the gate s of the fort to allow their army in. But it wasn't that simple, even if they did get their army in that didn't necessarily mean a victory. The troops stationed here were well trained, seasoned from the recent wars, and fighting on home turf. They really couldn't afford too many casualties trying to take this fort but it would be an uphill battle unless they could sway the battle in their favor. Ultimately Ursula decided to pull off several sabotages to give them the advantage. First, she wanted to lock the armories to delay the soldiers from arming themselves. In order to pull that off that would need the keys, barricading the doors would help too. After some searching she found there were two sets of keys, they were being kept by two very high ranking officers. There was also a master key that belonged to the mistress of this fort, Pheros.

Ursula also decided to assassinate a few of the officers. Valm's army was all about discipline. From what Ursula had observed the chain of command was sacred to them. While this helped optimize communication and kept things running efficiently. But it also discouraged independent thinking in the heat of battle. If the officers were to be missing in action their subordinates would be paralyzed with indecision. For good measure Ursula would also have a few of the spies slip in some nasty surprise ingredients into that night's dinner. Even the best trained soldiers would be laid low by food poisoning.

Finally there was Pheros herself, a former priestess who had found her faith utterly torn to pieces when Walhart had invaded her homeland. As she watched everything she loved being destroyed Pheros had decided something. A goddess wasn't someone who stayed veiled behind a cloak of clergy and prayers; they were someone who strode the earth creating their own miracles in front of lesser mortals. That day she wept, but not out of mourning from what she had lost but in joy for what had gained. Her eyes had been opened. Swearing her life to Walhart Pheros was reborn as a priestess of death. With tome and staff in hand she strode forth carving a bloody path through the other unconquered nations as a missionary of her new god converting leaving in her wake a trail of recently minted converts.

While she definitely was not all there mentally, Ursula couldn't deny the woman's penchant for leadership. Even with the large force stationed in Fort Steiger and with no war in sight Pheros staved off the drudgery with drills and field training keeping her men sharp so when Walhart would call them into battle they would be ready. There was no dissent among the ranks despite the strict training regimen. All the soldiers respected and admired Pheros conviction. Quite a lot of the soldiers stationed had joined up like she did being totally in awe at Walhart's military glory. He had a massive cult of personality that had spawned a new type of religion. While it struck her as absolutely idiotic she wondered what Basilio thought of it.

Placing the doll of Pheros back into her miniature fort she looked up at him. "What do you think about exceptionalism?"

He lowered the timetable she had been examining "Exceptionalism?" He trailed off trying to remember where he had heard that "Sounds familiar but I can't place it."

"It's Walhart's new religion," she explained "He believes that in this human centric world that our morality is measured by our actions and the results we derive from them. A person who is capable of producing greater results is a superior human being. The goal of exceptionalism is to strive to be as perfect a human being you can be every day of your life by utilizing your natural talents to the fullest."

Basilio chewed on that for a bit "Sounds interesting." He could see she wanted more out of him than a benign comment so he elaborated a bit more "Honestly this new religion is just publicly announcing what most people have believed for centuries. Be the best person you can and it will all work out."

There's a bit more to it than that." Ursula explained "Your importance in society's hierarchy is dependent on your natural talents. A talented person will be prized more than the average citizen. Take a look," she handed him a sheaf of paper "See these names? They are the names of the officers stationed here. In Ylisse you become an officer through your family's name or by performing heroic deeds on the battlefield. Most of the higher ups are the nobles, at least in Ylisse. Here all of the officers are extremely capable men on the battlefield and off of it."

"It's the same in Regna Ferox," Basilio replied "While it's not as common as traditionally making nobility the officers it's not something new."

"The emphasis is not on promoting gifted individuals to higher stations within society," Ursula chided him "It's on how exceptionalism divides people into different tiers of usefulness dependent on something they cannot control."

Wait a minute," Basilio said "It sounds like exceptionalism promotes that the common man is capable of great things."

Ursula nodded "It does."

"Then you just contradicted yourself," he pointed out "How can a religion that encourages being a better person also acknowledge that there are some things you just can't help?"

"They don't openly say that but if you observe them long enough you realize that it's an unspoken rule." She explained "For example, let's say there are two artists. One has a great sense of esthetic and the other doesn't. They both paint the same amount of paintings and work equally hard to cultivate their skills. Who do you think will be the more exceptional artist?"

Basilio frowned "Well they would be equally as-" She shot him a look and he sighed "The talented artist."

"Correct, whether you like it or not you have to accept that there are some people who are innately gifted in some way or another, geniuses for example. Now, in a culture like the one being built by Walhart how do you think the talentless are looked upon?"

Basilio decided not to try and beat around the bush this time "Like shit."

Ursula nodded "Correct. Instead of heretics and sinners the scum of society is now the inept. There is an enormous amount of pressure placed onto people's shoulders to prove their worth day in and day out. And people are cruel so they take out their own insecurities on those they deem worthless." She showed him another piece of paper "How many names are on this paper?"

The khan tallied them up "Fifteen."

"Correct, over the month that we've been here these fifteen men have decided to kill themselves." Ursula pointed to one spot on the map that hung on one of their walls. "This is the favored spot, the western wall of the fort. Below it is the river so their bodies will be swept downstream, they didn't want their corpses to be found because they were utterly ashamed. They weren't as talented as their fellow soldiers in the art of warfare. Try as they did, train as hard as they could, their progress is slow. They were surrounded by others who excel which contrasted with their own lack of skill even more. Of course they were not the only ones who noticed. Their comrades in arms would go out of their way to torment them. Naturally the officers encouraged this, after all if the results weren't above and beyond what was expected then they weren't living up to their potential and hence were morally reprehensible."

Basilio blanched, he knew firsthand what kind of toxic environment that could be but to live it day after day? "No wonder they killed themselves." He commented "While I don't agree with all the tenets I still like the core of what exceptionalism is." He turned to her "What do you think?"

"I think it's hysterical," she replied.

"How so?"

She smirked at him "It puts too much faith in humankind. If there is one thing I believe about humans is that they take a good thing and inevitably use it in cruel ways. Take Walhart for example. Instead of using his strength to protect his nation he invaded other nations, crushed the people beneath his will, and seeks to assimilate the entire world underneath his rule."

"He also brought peace to the continent and united people from very different cultural backgrounds." Basilio pointed out playing devil's advocate.

"Uniting is a very nice way to put it," Ursula smirked "But I think forced assimilation would be a more accurate term. Walhart cares nothing for preserving other cultures. What he envisions is one nation, formed from the melted remains of the countries he had trampled under his boot, under his rule, and structured under the tenets of exceptionalism."

Basilio blanched "It's pretty unbelievable when you try to envision it."

"And yet Walhart thinks he can do it," Ursula said "What's worse is the fact he might have actually had a chance of pulling it off."

"What changed?" Basilio asked quirking an eyebrow.

"Why, I'm here." Ursula sniggered. Before she turned back to her miniatures she paused "You know what really gets me? Exceptionalism doesn't have an afterlife."

"Really?" Basilio asked "So what happens to the souls of people when they die?"

Ursula shrugged "The way I've heard it there isn't an afterlife so whatever you manage to accomplish here is your version of heaven." She just began to giggle "Isn't that so stupid?"

"The fact they have no concept of the afterlife is unnerving." Basilio admitted "But what's wrong with leaving a legacy? Empires on are built of small things men have been able to accomplish over the years. Architecture, metallurgy, writing, warfare, art," he ticked them off on by one "All of them were someone's legacy that have shaped our culture."

"Yes but those things will eventually fade," Ursula pointed out "Does anyone remember who invented those things?"

"It doesn't matter if they remember," the khan argued "What matters is that they made a difference."

"For how long?" Ursula asked "Time is a wave of sand that erodes the annals of history. Whatever cultures existed before the Schism that discovered the same things or even better ways to do them but were wiped away by some cataclysm? The things people invent today might just be rediscoveries. In the end time erases even the greatest of humanity's accomplishments leaving nothing but a blank slate will be rewritten. What Walhart seeks is completely futile. That's why I can beat him." Grabbing the Pheros doll she had made she placed back into the fort and considered what she should do. Pheros' presence alone would rally the troops' morale, factor in her leadership qualities as well as her battle prowess and she became a huge sticking point in any plan to take the fort. After much consideration Ursula decided to kill her off. Everyone else had already been assigned to a task so it would be her job for that night. When she announced her plans to Basilio he insisted on coming along. Ursula was about to protest but she thought the better of it, he could be invaluable if things went awry.

All that the tactician needed was a plan. Pheros was surrounded by her elite guard day in and day out. The only time they were away from her was when she slept. In order to get within striking range they were going to have to infiltrate her room during the day and hide until she retired for the night. Luckily since Basilio was coming along it was going to be easier getting into her room since they could climb a nearby wall into the hallway where her quarters were. After explaining the plan to the khan the pair went over it several times until they could recite it from rote memory. Optimally Pheros would be dead right before the gates were opened so that left a very strict window of time for them to assassinate her.

For the next two days Ursula ran herself ragged trying to eliminate as many variables as she could. Try as she might her farsight would not show her if the plan would succeed or fail. It was very odd, the last time this had happened had been when they were fighting Gangrel. She tried to contact Aversa to ask her if she knew anything but the leader of the Grimleal wouldn't answer her mirror. There was no way to get in touch with Tharja either so Ursula was going to have to wait until after tonight to ask her.

Finally after several weeks of preparation it was time. As the sun began to set on the cusp of the horizon the operation began. Careful to avoid the guards Basilio and Ursula snaked their way around the fortress to the northern side. Stepping out onto the fortress walls they glanced up. There was a wall behind them that led up to the last story of the fortress where Pheros' room was located.

"Are you going to be ok?" Ursula asked hopping onto Basilio's back.

"After scaling up the entire fortress last time, this'll be a breeze," Basilio assured her. Within no time at all they had clambered over the edge into the hallway proper. Quietly making their way to Pheros' room Ursula undid the simple bronze clasp keeping her blonde hair up. Bending it into a makeshift lockpick she opened the door. After they were inside they locked the door behind them and looked around. Scanning the room with the aid of the silvery light of the half moon Ursula realized there was a problem. There was nowhere to hide! Pheros kept her room completely spartan. Aside from her bed, a small dresser with a washbasin on it, and a tub for bathing there was nothing else furnishing her room.

"Shit!" Ursula hissed "I can't believe this!" What woman didn't at least have a little bit of closet space?

"Wait!" Basilio said grabbing the tactician's arms. He turned her around and she came face to face with the largest armoire she had ever seen. It had been placed parallel to the door so they hadn't seen it in the dark when they first entered the room. It seemed wildly out of place in comparison to the rest of the room. Perhaps it had belonged to the previous owner of this room? From the sheer size of it Ursula could imagine what a nightmare it would be to try and move it.

"In here!" the khan whispered to her.

"Are you insane?" Ursula hissed. Yes it was big, but Basilio was pretty broad shouldered. IT would be a tight fit for him, to say nothing of the both of them hiding in it. Ursula was about to protest but then she heard the muffled sound of footsteps in the hallway outside heading in their direction. She had two choices, blow the mission or climb into the armoire with Basilio. 'Hmmm, I wonder how realistic my chances of living would be if I tore out of here right now?' Ursula pondered for a moment. Sighing she realized she had no choice in the matter. Tightly clenching her hands she stepped into the armoire and braced herself.

Basilio shot her an apologetic smile before compacting his body as best he could before squeezing inside. With a flick of his wrist he closed the door leaving them in pitch black darkness. "Are you ok?" he whispered to her.

"Barely," she huffed "Could you move your elbow? It's grinding into my stomach."

"Sorry," Basilio said as he wiggled about trying to reposition himself. That proved to be a very, very bad idea. By the time they had gotten comfortable Ursula was pretty sure her cheeks were a tomato red. She was pretty sure she had just gotten intimately acquainted with every single part of Basilio's body.

"Please," She panted "Do not ever do that again."

"A-agreed," Basilio replied trying to fight off a blush of his own. This was going to be a very long night and if he didn't keep his cool he was going to do something he would deeply regret.

They both stopped talking when they heard the footsteps near the door. Someone said something, neither of them could tell what it was, but they both clearly heard the door open. Cracking the armoire open just a hair Basilio spied a lady in dark red armor and blonde hair entered the room. "I'm guessing that's Pheros?" he asked Ursula.

"Yes," she replied "Close the door. If she finds us in here we'll be trapped and she's no slouch with either a sword or a tome."

As quietly as he could Basilio closed the armoire's door. They listened intently as Pheros moved about the room getting ready for bed. A small light filtered in through the cracks of the armoire thanks to the candle that Pheros lit. With a start Ursula realized she was more or less smashed chest to chest with Basilio, their inches face apart from each other. The fit was so tight her feet dangled in the air. It took all her power to keep her scream of horror internalized. This was the absolute last thing the either of them needed.

Before either of them could say a word they heard Pheros rifling around outside. Pressing her cheek up against Basilio's to get a better look Ursula watched as Pheros dug out a few things from her night stand.

"What's she doing?" Basilio asked her.

"You're never going to believe it," Ursula said.

With a sudden cry Pheros tossed herself down on the ground prostrate before some sort of horned icon. "Oh great Walhart!" she cried aloud "I dedicate all the progress I have made today in improving myself to you!"

"What the hell?!" Basilio gawped "Is she praying? To Walhart?"

"She used to be a priestess; I bet old habits die hard." Ursula reasoned "We'll have to wait until she's done before we kill her." They waited one awkward moment, then another, then another.

Finally Basilio vocalized what they were both thinking "We're going to be here for a while, aren't we?"

If she could have nodded she would have done so but in this confined space she would have smashed Basilio's nose with her forehead. Instead she simply sighed "Yes."

After about two hours of vespers with no end in sight it all began to come to a head, both in the metaphorical sense and, in Basilio's case, quite literally. The unresolved issues between them compounded with their current positions were driving him crazy. IF he didn't do something soon this was going to end in badly. "We need to talk," he said looking down at the crown of her head.

"Can we not and say we did?" she replied. She had been dreading this for a while now and was intent on staving it off for as long as she could.

"I need to say something," Basilio replied "You don't have to say anything if you don't want to but at least here me out."

"It's not like I got much of a choice right now."

"Alright, here it goes…" he sighed. Ursula tensed ready, not really sure why bit she had this impending sense of doom about what he was going to say. "I'm sorry."

She blinked "Wait, what?" That was totally not what she had been expecting at all.

"I'm sorry I kissed you," he clarified "It was early in the morning and I wasn't thinking straight."

"Oh, uh…I…forgive you?" she replied. Honestly it wasn't the kiss that had set her off, it was the fact that the relationship between herself and Basilio had begun to change into something different for quite some time now but she wasn't emotionally mature enough to handle it. But sure, blame it on the kiss. There was another second of silence before Ursula worked up the nerve to ask him. "Do you…like me?" Honestly her concept of romance was pretty vague and it hadn't been until recently that she had acquired an interest in the matter. Mind you, her objective was purely out of interest and absolutely nothing else.

Basilio hesitated for a second before responding. She could see his Adam's apple bob up and down as he nervously swallowed. "Yeah," he breathed "I do like you."

'Ok, that's fine. I can work with this.' She calmly thought to herself. 'Actually this is kind of perfect. I'll just tell him I don't see him like that and this will all be over.' Composing her thoughts Ursula leaned forward a hair "I see, the thing is Basilio I…"

In the weak light she could see his slate gray eye looking deep into hers which made her stomach clench nervously.

"I…I…uh…"

She leaned in a little closer now picking up his scent. Leather, steel, frost, and his own personal muck all mixed together in a heady mixture that made her head swirl about chaotically.

"I don't…don't think…I…"

Something insanely warm and fuzzy spilled into her gut as her vision narrowed into a pinprick. In that stillness everything faded away leaving just her and Basilio trapped in a single perfect moment in time.

And then she leaned up that last half inch and attempted to gum him down, an action also known to humans as kissing. 'Aw, Dammit!'

After a full minute of making out Ursula came up for air. "This," she placed a hand on his lips "is not confirmation that I like you. There's a lot going on right now and in my defense the only reason that I kissed you is because we're trapped in a fucking armoire and I'm not thinking straight. I'm really, really confused right now and I need some time to figure things out."

He smiled at her, a big happy smile that made her shiver in exhilaration. "I can work with that." He whispered into her ear. "Take all the time you need, you're worth the wait."

"Are you always this charming or only when you're trapped in an armoire? Ursula scoffed.

"I'm always this charming," Basilio quietly argued "You've just never noticed it before."

"Uh-huh," Ursula deadpanned "just kiss me." Basilio happily replied but after a few seconds he broke it off. The tactician turned her head, utterly embarrassed. "I know I am bad at this but that was only my third kiss!"

"Shhh!" Basilio hushed her "I didn't stop because your bad. We'll keep practicing until you get better, ok? Do you hear that?"

Ursula listened intently for a moment "No, I don't hear-" it dawned on her. Pheros had fallen asleep. "Now's our chance, and not a moment too soon." Any minute now she was expecting to hear the gates begin to open letting in the Coalition's forces. Silently slipping out of the armoire Ursula and Basilio stole over to Pheros. She was fast asleep, her mouth still moving in wordless prayers to Walhart. 'He can't save you now.' Pulling out the dagger Tharja had loaned her, Ursula raised three hands in the air. "On the count of three," she wordlessly mouthed. The khan nodded, he was ready. Slowly Ursula ticked down her fingers 'One…Two…Three!' Basilio struck first, he pinned her arms to the bed preventing her from flailing. Pheros' eyes shot open and she began to scream but it was too late. In a flash Ursula swiped the knife across her throat severing her jugular. Pheros' scream ended in a gurgle as the words bubbled through the new hole in her esophagus.

Grimacing Ursula stepped away, her sleeves were dyed in crimson. 'This is going to be such a pain to wash out.' Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the gate opening with a loud clank. Stepping over to the night stand Ursula dug around and found several tomes stored inside. In the light of the half moon she saw the gold script on one of them glimmer enough for her to make out the title. 'No way!' she thought holding the book in her hands 'she had a Thoron tome?!'

There was a loud knock on the door "General Pheros are you there? Someone is attacking us!"

Grabbing Pheros' sword she tossed it Basilio "Do you think you can use this for now?"

Experimentally he slashed it about testing the grip and balance "Yeah, it'll do until I can find something better." With a yawp he rushed the door and kicked it open with one brutal motion. It squished the soldier who had been knocking on the door into a bloody smear and sent several other soldiers to the ground.

"What the hell?" one of the officers shouted "An assassin?"He lunged forward with is lance to stab the mysterious intruder in the back but before he could take a full step he saw someone else slither out of the shadows.

O gatekeeper of the sanctified realm...

Retribution awaits

those who defile thy home."

Words of the Flauvel, the Seraph

An ethereal gate appeared next to her and Ursula yanked at the pearlescent plank barring it shut. With a crash the prismatic lightning shot swirling about the hallway. There was a brilliant flash before it stopped leaving behind ten crunchy corpses circling around a completely unharmed Basilio. Blinking a bit he turned to Ursula "I think you blinded me."

She snorted "Your vision will come back…eventually." Grabbing his hand she led him down the stairs where the battle raged.

After a few hours the Coalition stood there, victorious. Despite their expert training and refusal to surrender no matter what the costs the Valmese had been completely wiped out while the Coalition's forces had only taken a few casualties. Everyone began to celebrate.

"Huzzah!" Say'ri cried aloud to the soldiers "Today shall be marked in history as the start as Walhart's downfall. With our sweat and blood we have struck the first blow into the conqueror's rotten empire. This fortress shall be our stepping stone, our sanctuary, our-"

"No it won't," Ursula interjected "We're not going to be staying here long."

Say'ri gaped "Why? This is a strategically sound place for us to launch our counter attack."

"Walhart will just be able to pen us inside." Ursula pointed out "All he would have to do would siege us. We could last a few years on the supplies here but eventually he will starve us out."

Say'ri couldn't argue with that logic "Then…why did we take this fortress?"

"Getting rid of it will free up the continent for us to move around." She explained "Walhart uses a lot of cavalry to move about and in order to run us down he needs places where he can stop to refresh his supplies and pick up new horses. Since all roads lead to Steiger it's going to disrupt his movements. In the meanwhile we need to avoid staying in place for too long while looking for allies." She gestured Miriel "Can you blow this fortress up?"

The mage adjusted her glasses "Easy enough, would you like an explosion or an implosion?"

"An implosion please," Ursula replied "We don't want to turn the masses against us. Right now they don't like either Walhart or us and we want to keep it that way if we can."

"Understood, I shall begin planting the explosive runes immediately," Miriel replied.

With the joy of victory somewhat dampened the soldiers mingled with each other as they feasted on the best foodtstuffs in Fort Steiger's pantries. Striding up to her Cherche accosted Ursula "What's your next plan? If we're not going to be staying here where will we strike next?"

"We need more allies," Ursula explained "If we're going to meet Walhart on the battlefield then we need more soldiers."

"And where will we get them?" the wyvern rider asked "Every other nation on the continent has been conquered and put under Walhart's banner."

"Yes, but there is one city state that still has the power and prestige to rebel," the tactician said.

Cherche's mouth formed into a thin, brittle line "You don't mean…"

"I do," Ursula said spreading her arms outward "Let us go to Daath."