Chapter 37
There were many things that could go poorly for the Valmese.
There was one thing that was in their favor, though, and it was that Robin was sitting out the attack.
Yes, the master tactician was currently not fighting the first part of the final battle.
Why?
He was sneezing.
Don't laugh.
Or look in disbelief.
It was a serious problem.
The last time it happened, he accidently launched a wind spell meant to dispel an enemy charge into his face, and flipped himself over, smacking the ground. It didn't completely fail though, as the impact of him hitting the dirt, created a dust cloud. In the confusion, the Shepherds stormed through, but even they barely had the proper time to react to it.
And with his current situation, he had so much force in his sneezes that he knocked himself unconscious when he hit a pole in a tent.
So instead, he sat in a chair on a hill overlooking the gates of the city, while several other smaller trebuchets were launching concentrated balls of dark magic onto the walls.
Of course, they weren't launching the magic from the machine itself; they were just cursing rocks that would be thrown to the wall, which would cause large amounts of damage behind the wall, reducing the threats of reinforcements climbing up the walls.
"So, Lucina, are there any questions that you have for me?" Robin asked, looking with a calm face, occasionally sharpshooting someone who got too close for comfort or were about to get someone.
She had stayed behind this time, especially since Chrom had requested that she did so. Who knew what sort of things would happen to them if Robin was unsupervised.
"No, not really. It's just that I feel like I shouldn't ask you too many questions, knowing that you probably don't have many of the answers."
"You're probably right."
They sat there for a few moments in silence, till Robin shot off a magical attack, with some sort of intent on his face.
It went away after a few seconds, but he had a look on annoyance.
But the thing was, Lucina didn't see something fire from his hand, and she struggled to think of what would cause that expression.
"Something wrong?"
"No, just something that I wanted to try, but it failed."
"What happened?"
"I tried to take out one person, but I ended up taking out about ten people."
"What?"
"Yeah, this is more for a surprise situation, where if I can take out a few key characters, the rest of the army can take care of the enemy in the confusion and loss of command."
Lucina only looked at him with a certain look, so Robin decided to explain.
"Basically, I shoot a small ball of magic, but it's so concentrated, you wouldn't see it if you weren't looking for it," he started, indicating how small the ball was, by barely having any space between his fingers.
"After that, I guide it to my finger tips, and fire," he continued, moving his hand forward.
His hand was suddenly stopped when a staff smacked him strait on his head.
"Hey, I know how badly you'd like to go there, but I still have to watch over you. Yeah, it would be fun to see someone call him Grandpa, but I don't want to think about babysitting anytime soon either," Lissa said, holding her staff menacingly, using it instead of her ax, knowing that the metal would break on his head.
Gaius was there with her as well, but he was sitting under a tree eating candy. You know, Gaius stuff.
"Yes, 'aunt' Lissa, I'll be more careful when I'm poking someone above their heart," Robin scowled, grinning as Lissa realized that Robin could call her that if he and Lucina were to wed.
He was retorted with another smack to the head, but he caught the staff that time.
"Anyway, as I was saying, the ball of magic would be as dense of steel, and go through any kind of defense. After it goes into an artery right above the heart, it dissipates. That's not what happened, but the wound would simply open a hole. From there, the pressure from the heart beating would increase the size of the hole, causing them to bleed from the inside, and never feel what attacked them," Robin finished, a stern look on his face.
Lucina only looked in horror at what Robin had described; surely, what he was saying was some type of joke.
"What I said is very real, Lucina, and I honestly never want to do it. It's the kind of thing that's fit for an assassination, not a war. If I feel like I would be forced to use that, then I don't know what sort of scenario that would require me to be in."
There was some strange silence from both sides, and Robin just chuckled, reaching for Lucina's hand.
"This is strange, isn't it? Here we are, with your father the one who's supposed to save the world, but it looks like I'm the one who has the power to do so."
"Robin, why are you asking such strange questions? I may have had doubts about saving this world, even with my determination to do so, and here you are, seemingly sent by Naga herself, to help end the world of Grima."
Robin had an upset smile on his face, as if to shake his head.
"But I wasn't. I was raised by the Grimeal, used by them, and trained under their eye. I was never meant to save the world, Lucina. Everything I see leads to me destroying it. If they thought that Grima couldn't be brought back, maybe I was a plan B. What I mean to say is, I'm honestly terrified."
"Of what?"
"That everything that I have worked to create: this army, my friendships, and my relationship with you." Robin said, showing his right arm.
His mark had moved down to his elbow, and the shade of purple seemed darker than before.
"This mark will make its way to my right hand eventually, that's unavoidable. That's why I'm scared; hands are so powerful in a symbolic sense. For a sign of cooperation, there's never one hand there, there's several hands to show that you need to work together. Yet when it's used to show destruction, there's only one."
Lucina sat there, listening, then scooted over and reached her arms across his shoulders, before Robin suddenly pushed her away, as he flew strait into a tree, a trail of snot going down his nose.
"Sorry!"
"Then come back here!"
Standing up, Robin walked back over to the chair that was on the ground, picking up while sniffling a little.
"In all honesty, I have to give Henry credit for making this chair. Who knew he could expand a curse like that if I gave him a small part of it."
"What?"
"Come on, if I were to seriously have enough force to fly backwards when I sneeze, then the chair that I'm sitting in is bound to not last very long."
There was a silence, then Lucina laughed, a small smile on her face.
"What's so funny?"
"Nothing, it's just that you were talking about how you might be a backup plan for the Grimeal, then you suddenly go on to praise Henry in his skill of dark magic. It just causes me to wonder how you just stay so positive," she said, finally able to get her arm over his shoulder.
"I wasn't being positive, I was stating an observation."
"But you're smiling."
"You're in front of me."
"You'd smile in a perfect situation."
"So are you saying you're perfect?"
"Don't turn it into that."
"Then why the red flush?"
Behind them, Lissa was making gagging sounds, as if to mimic the behavior of a young child saying that the opposite gender had cooties.
"A bug go down or something?" Gaius asked, holding a candy bar over his head, not seeing the face that his wife was making.
Lissa took the bar, and knocked her husband over the head with her staff.
"No, it's just that my brother's best friend and my niece are being all lovey-dovey. When are they going to get married?" she mumbled, taking a bite out of the bar.
Gaius just sat there for a moment, thinking about what Lissa just said, before he just shrugged.
"I don't know, but if Bubbles is going to make a move, he better do it soon."
"And why is that?"
"It's a man thing, but something in his tone tells me that he has some foresight into what's going to happen, and it ain't good."
'Bonk'
"OW! What was that for?"
"First of all, don't call it a 'man thing,' that sounds weird. Second of all, why are you trying to ruin the moment, I thought you were going to say something sweet."
"Because I've heard that tone before from people on death row talking to loved ones. If he wants happy memories, he better start making them fast."
Inside the conqueror's castle, there was a body laying down in a puddle of blood, as the killer simply tossed the weapon aside, deeming it tainted by the blood of the man he killed.
"I was wondering sooner or later when this would come. I knew of his ulterior motives, but for the fact that the word would be spread by the Ylissean tactician was something unexpected."
"Walhart, they've broken the main gates. It will only be a matter of time before they reach the palace."
"Prepare the men. The strength of men will be shown against the followers of petty gods."
AN: Yellow tentacles, their after me. And if you don't get the reference, you're seriously missing out on a good anime.