Chapter 45
I May Fall...
Robin looked towards the Fell Dragon as he stood distantly away from them. "RISEN! KILL THEM ALL!" Grima commanded as he stood angrily. A large amount of Risen began to form themselves from multiple areas of the dragon's back.
"Looks like he's not going to make this easy." Chrom commented as he saw the Risen rapidly form. Robin looked at the positions they were coming from. The shepherds were dead center on Grima's back, and the Risen were spawning from north, south, east and west.
"The Risen behind us shouldn't be a problem as long as we keep on moving." Robin said as he readied to speak to the shepherds. "Everybody, we're going to stick together as we move ahead! Once we reach close enough, I'll lead a small squad to defeat Grima! I need you all to back us up once we split off!" He said to them.
Chrom looked at his friend. "I'm assuming part of that squad will consist of me and Lucina." He said.
Robin nodded. "Yeah." He looked at a few other members. "Sumia, I want you to pair up with Chrom. Lucina and I will pair up as well." He said as he turned around to speak with a blue-haired pegasus knight. "Cynthia, pair up with Morgan. You'll be with us." He said to the girls.
A surprised look could be seen on Morgan's face, but she nodded. "Right. Cynthia, let's do this." She said as she got on Cynthia's pegasus.
Robin looked ahead. Grima looked at the group angrily as he remained guarded by multiple undead enemies. "YOU WILL NOT SURVIVE! YOU DAMNED MORTALS!" He screamed out.
Robin didn't reply. There was no reason to. This monster in front of them was their final enemy before a world of peace can finally be attained. The tactician was more than ready to do everything he could to accomplish this. The princess walked up to his side. "Are you ready?" She asked.
"Yeah." He replied back. "Let's finish this, shall we?" He said with a serious expression. He signaled at Chrom. The exalt nodded as he turned around to speak with the rest of the army. "Shepherds, to arms!" Chrom yelled out.
A loud roar could be heard as the group all began their assault. The group all rushed forwards as the six led the way. The tactician and princess leading the way with Chrom and Sumia, as well as Cynthia and Morgan by their side. A group of risen blocked their path to the fell dragon. "Cynthia, Sumia, attack with your brave lances!" Robin ordered.
The two pegasus knights flew swiftly through the air as they struck at the risen with great ease without needing any assistance from their partners. Robin saw a small little flash appear on both of the pegasus knights as they finished defeating the risen. Galeforce... "Alright, swap out with your partners and attack the closest risen once more!" Robin ordered once again.
Sumia and Cynthia reached the ground and dropped off both Chrom and Morgan. They rushed forwards as they aimed to defeat their enemies. "Let's show them who's boss!" Morgan yelled out as she unsheathed her Falchion. "Hyaaa!" Morgan yelled out as she ran past her enemy with a strike and swiftly attacked a second time. Chrom followed suit and easily finished off his target as well.
Robin looked forward and noticed about four Risen stood in their path. He looked backwards and noticed that the risen behind still had a good amount of ground to catch up. "We're making good progress." He said. He then looked over at Cordelia and Severa. "Pair up with your respective partners and defeat the Risen ahead of us!" He ordered.
They nodded as they ran ahead and followed his orders. Owain followed Severa as Donnel rode on Cordelia's pegasus. "So annoying!" Severa yelled out as she fiercely struck the risen ahead of her.
Cordelia flew through the air as she aimed her lance to her enemy. "Out of my sight!" She yelled out as she struck at the monster with great strength. Once more, Robin saw a flash appear on the two redheads. "Now swap out and attack once more!" He commanded. They switched off to their partners as Donnel and Owain led, and easily defeated the enemies ahead of them.
Robin looked ahead once more and noticed a large group of risen all guarding Grima. Not only this, but two separate squads of wyvern knights all awaited for them to come into range. He readied a Thoron tome. "Lucina, let's show them what we can do." He said to her.
Lucina nodded. "Let us do so."
The two walked forwards as they readied to face the risen ahead of them. Morgan looked as the wyverns all started to approach once more. "Chrom, go lead a small team to the left and support father. Me and Cynthia will lead another group." She said to him.
Chrom nodded. "Will do."
Robin brought out a Levin sword in one hand and a tome in another. He readied to face the enemy ahead. An undead knight tried to face the tactician as he launched a spear at him. The tactician dodged the attack and readied an electrical spear of his own. "Here's how it's done!" He yelled out as he launched a fierce bolt of electricity at the monster. The risen fell down instantly.
A wyvern knight appeared suddenly as it tried to injure the tactician. The undead warrior struck his axe at the tactician. "I'll keep you safe!" Lucina yelled out as she blocked the attack with her blade. She looked angrily at the knight and attacked. "Hyaaa!"
The wyvern knight fell to the floor after one strike. Robin looked at the princess with a nod. "Let's keep going."
A general was now attempting to block their path with another wyvern knight following right behind it. Robin readied for the general to launch a spear at him. The risen don't think when attacking which makes their attacks extremely telegraphed and predictable. Robin easily dodged the spear as he charged up an attack once more. "Thoron!"
The general was launched to the floor and stood on the ground continuously from the electricity. The wyvern knight behind was unfazed by the sight and attempted to attack. Lucina ran up to fight the wyvern knight herself. She held her Exalted Falchion and aimed at her foe. "You won't stop us!" Without much effort, both the undead wyvern and its rider were torn in half from her slash as they disappeared into dust.
"Severa, make sure to switch with Owain!" Morgan ordered.
Robin looked behind as he saw the shepherds all fight on to keep themselves from being overwhelmed. Morgan seemed to have been handling the situation well. He looked forwards once more. There was an opening in which Grima was easily reachable. He looked towards the princess. "Lucina, are you ready?"
Lucina looked at the Fell Dragon. They were going to face him at last. She lost against him back in her time, but she refused to lose once again. She was going to win no matter what. "Yes. Let's go."
Robin nodded and ran up to the Fell Dragon's vessel as Lucina followed behind. Grima looked at the two calmly as he began to laugh. "You two really want me dead this badly eh? I'd love to say I'm impressed, but I don't compliment corpses."
"Enough of your words! I will not stand to see you ruin another timeline! You created a hell that nobody should've been forced to live through… I'm going to end this. You will fall here and now!" Lucina yelled out towards the dragon.
Grima laughed once more. "And you're going to end me with the fellblood himself?! It's so poetic! Why not bring that wretched child of yours here too? I'd love to kill you both as she watches. Or better yet, I should kill her slowly as you two watch! What a sight it was when Validar nearly did so! The despair, the fear! It was all so delic-"
Robin struck at the dragon's vessel with a fierce blast of electricity. "I won't let you lay a finger on her or anybody else, so shut the hell up!"
Grima simply looked at the tactician with an annoyed expression. "Then so be it. I'll kill the woman you love first!" He said as he aimed his arms out. A loud roar could be heard as Grima's vessel prepared to attack the princess.
Lucina stood calmly as she readied to face the beast once more. She readied a stance as Grima launched out a large array of spikes headed towards her. She moved quickly as the spikes just barely scraped her leg. She ran towards the monster. "Hope will never die!" She yelled out as she stuck at the monster's chest.
"ARGHARHGHG!" Grima screamed out. He looked angrily at the princess as he sent a strong wind to push her away from him "YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED A LONG TIME AGO! YOU WERE LUCKY BEFORE, BUT YOU WILL NOT SURVIVE THIS TIME!" He yelled out as he prepared to attack once more. He launched an even greater attack with dark energy that towered above them. A large ball of dark energy that was aimed directly at her "NOW DIE!"
Lucina grit her teeth as she prepared to withstand the attack. She held her blade in front of her and prepared for the worse. She heard footsteps as Robin tried to grab ahold of her. "Hold on!" He yelled out. He readied to use an elwind tome to try and escape from Grima's attack. As he prepared to launch themselves away, he noticed a shining light appear closeby. He looked for the source and noticed Morgan ready to cast a spell.
Morgan closed her eyes as she focused on her attack. She held a book that existed during a time before the Hero-King Marth. A book that was said to contain the power of a god. A book that only those of Divine Blood should've been able to wield. She opened her eyes. "You won't lay a hand on them, monster!" She yelled out. She calmly aimed her hand out to the ball of energy. "Naga!"
A large amount of divine energy emitted from her fingertips as it all shot at Grima's large ball of energy. Small figures that seemed like dragons were seen within this divine energy. The two forces of energy collided as both light and darkness mixed. Suddenly, the darkness began to rapidly disappear until the ball of dark energy completely disappeared. A rainbow-like explosion occurred as both the princess and tactician remained safe. Morgan looked at Grima with a taunting smile. "Pretend that explosion was you. That's what's gonna happen next."
Grima looked angrily as he saw the tactician. "HOW… HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE!?" He yelled out.
"Scared, aren't you?" Chrom said as he rushed on the scene with Sumia. "How's it like dealing with the feeling of hopelessness? That feeling you've caused to all those you harassed and killed!"
Grima roared out in anger. "NO! I AM A GOD! I WILL NOT FALL TO MERE MORTALS! I WILL NOT LOSE TO NAGA'S SLAVES!"
Morgan opened up her tome once more. She aimed it at the beast. "You've done nothing but create despair, no matter where you've gone."
"A so-called god that does nothing but destroy. You won't get any mercy from us. You will fall here!" Lucina added on as she rushed towards the monster.
"I WILL NOT FAIL!" Grima screamed out as he readied to launch another attack. A large ball of energy appeared once more.
Morgan focused once more. She wasn't going to aim to counter his attack this time. She was going to hit the monster directly. She calmed her breathing as she felt immense energy radiate from her body. A type of energy that felt both mysterious, yet familiar. She looked towards Grima, and readied to strike at him once with all of her might. "This ends here!" She yelled out as she readied to release the divine energy. She felt a powerful feeling. A feeling she usually felt whenever performing a certain skill with her Falchion. She launched one of her attacks.
"Aether!"
And then launched one more blast. Two blasts of divine energy appeared as they moved with extreme speed. The energy of the divine dragon flowed through the dark air as it struck directly at Grima's vessel. A small pause, and suddenly he was on his knees. "GAHAHGHAGH!"
Morgan sighed in relief as she saw Grima struggle to deal with her attack. Suddenly, she heard a strange sound. The giant ball of dark energy Grima created still managed to grow. It was preparing to reach the floor to take the shepherds all out. She ran forwards as she quickly did her best to try and disperse that dark energy with her tome. "Naga!" She yelled out once more.
Lucina looked as she realized what Morgan was going to do. The last time both energies collided was high up in the air. This time, both were colliding on ground level. They were going to be sent flying backwards as a result of the collision. "Hold my hand and don't let go!" She said to Robin.
Morgan saw as both the divine energy and dark energy combined once again. It was going to completely negate both effects, but it would still create a fierce shockwave regardless. "Morgan!" Lucina yelled out as she ran towards her.
The young tactician turned around as she saw her mother try to reach out for her. A loud boom could be heard in the distance. Without a second passing, a fierce wind could be felt as it continuously got stronger and stronger. Lucina strongly pierced her sword to the floor as she held on tightly. Morgan was sent flying backwards. "Morgan!"
Eventually the fierce winds all stopped. Morgan weakly opened her eyes as she realized she was on top of a pegasus. She heard a playful voice speak to her. "Got a bit reckless there huh?" Cynthia asked.
"Yeah, looks like I did." Morgan said weakly with a smile. She looked forwards once more as she saw Chrom in a similar position to her. "Chrom also got caught by Sumia. Falchion wielders sure are reckless." She said. She then looked for her parents. "Wait, where's mother and father?"
Lucina coughed as she pulled out her blade from the ground and looked ahead. Grima was completely weakened with that final attack. He was on the floor as he struggled to get up. "This… isn't how it's ending…" Grima said weakly. "I won't lose… I can't lose!" He yelled out as he slammed his fists to the ground. He looked directly in front of him. He noticed the pair standing dangerously closely to him. "I… I WILL NOT LOSE!"
Grima aimed his hand at the two as he attempted to strike them down one last time. He sent a large path of spikes to end them both. They easily noticed the attack as Robin held on to the princess. "Elwind!"
They were launched into the air as Grima's attack completely missed. Lucina noticed where Robin had decided to aim. He aimed upwards, and towards Grima. She decided to weaken him one more time. "Robin, I'm going to strike one more time!" She said to him.
"Alright, on your mark!" He replied back.
They flew quickly through the air as they appeared to descend once more. Odds were that if they waited to land properly, Grima would launch one more attack and they would likely have nowhere to go. Lucina looked downward as she saw Grima prepare to attack once again. She saw her opening as the momentum and distance seemed perfect. "Now!"
Robin let her go as she descended quickly. She brought out her Falchion as she readied to strike at the monster one last time. Grima looked up as he aimed to strike at her, but he had no time to ready any sort of attack. The princess was going to land her strike first. "I say when it ends!"
With her momentum, she struck at Grima's vessel with a strong slash across it's chest. "NGHG… NOOOOO!" Grima yelled out in immense pain. Lucina landed right next to the monster. With the massive blow she dealt, it seemed that Grima wasn't going to be moving at all. She pointed her sword at him. "You make one false move and I'll finish you here." She said to him.
Robin landed on the ground as he saw Lucina aim her sword at the monster. He looked at her as she stared back. She nodded at him. She wasn't going to be the one to finish this. It wasn't her decision after all. Robin ran up to her as he looked down at Grima who stood weakly next to them. Lucina looked at Robin once more as she showed a concerned expression. "You're the one who's going to end this, right?" She asked.
The tactician weakly nodded. "I'm afraid so."
Lucina weakly smiled as she heard his words. She knew already about Robin's intentions, yet it still felt like an unwelcome surprise. She looked away from the man's eyes.. "Then finish this. End this cycle once and for all."
Robin sighed and weakly smiled back. "I will."
Morgan viewed from a distance in complete shock. The plan was for Chrom or Lucina to go in and end Grima. Her father reassured them that he wasn't going to go through with it, yet here he was. "Cynthia, get me over there right now!" Morgan yelled out.
"I'm on it!" Cynthia replied as her pegasus started rushing over to the pair.
"Robin! I'll deliver the final blow! Don't do it!" Chrom yelled out. Sumia's pegasus began to fly swiftly to his location. "Lucina! Strike him down now!"
The princess looked away from her father. She had to let the tactician continue on. It wasn't her decision. It wasn't her father's decision. It was Robin's, and she had to believe in him.
Robin looked at the weakened man next to him. He was going to end Grima's life and kill him for good. It was a decision he made in order to secure peace for the future generations of mankind. This was to bring peace to all his friends. To those who witnessed the hellish future. Robin walked up to his doppelganger calmly and aimed a thoron tome at him. "For once, I'm glad we're the same. I'll finally put an end to the suffering you caused everybody, past and present."
Grima simply looked at him in anger. "You're going to die too, you fool!" He yelled out.
"Robin! What are you doing! We can't have your life go to waste here! Not now! Let me land the hit!" Chrom yelled out once more.
"Please Robin! Reconsider!" Sumia yelled out as well.
"Father! Please, don't!" Morgan yelled out.
Robin smiled. "My life is a small cost to pay to finally end you once and for all." He said to the fell dragon. Robin's fingertips began to emit a powerful electricity. He aimed his hand forwards at the monster's head. "Goodbye."
A fierce spear of electricity pierced the Fell Dragon's vessel. "You… fool… I can't… die..." Grima said as he began to slowly fade away. A loud roar could be heard as the dragon they were on began to slow down. Grima actively tried to get up from the floor, but couldn't. He lost one arm, then one leg. Eventually he lost all of his limbs, and then… nothing. Grima's vessel was completely gone.
Robin felt a strange feeling. As if he was being released. Lucina looked at the tactician as he was beginning to fade away. She began to lose control of her emotions and started to cry. Robin walked up to the princess as he cleaned her tears. "Lucina, you must forgive me." He said to her. "I know this is hard, but you must believe in me. I made you a promise, and I intend to keep it. I WILL find a way to cheat death and when I do, I promise to never leave your side."
Lucina looked at the man in front of her with tears, and embraced him. "I believe in you. I know you'll do everything you can to come back to us again. I will wait until the ends of time if I have to." She said as she held him tightly.
Robin looked at the princess as she tried to hold on to him tightly. It was cruel. The only way to erase Grima was for him to give up his life. But it had to be done. Lucina looked up at the man in front of her. She brought him in for one last kiss. One final embrace the two lovers would share. A pair consisting of a tactician from the present, and a princess from the future. A bond that was forged through time itself. They broke off from their embrace. "I love you, Robin. Please, remember that."
"I love you too, Lucina. I refuse to make you grieve over me. I'll return to you, no matter what." He said as he held her hand.
"Father!" Morgan yelled out as she reached him. She saw one thing she dreaded to see. Her father was beginning to disappear as well. "Father… why?"
Robin patted the girl's head as he smiled. "I'm sorry, Morgan. I never wanted to keep my decision a secret, but I know it would've been impossible had I told you. Forgive me." He said to her in guilt.
Morgan looked at her father with tears in her eyes and embraced the man. "Father!"
The three remained together in an embrace until they felt a strange feeling. Robin was finally beginning to fade away at last. Lucina and Morgan felt their hands go through the tactician. He was going to disappear soon.
Lucina looked upwards at the man as she tried her hardest to fight back her tears. She closed her eyes and began to sob. The man she loved dearly. The joy they shared with one another. The life they were to live with one another. It was all going to fade away here. She felt a feeling on top of her head. She opened her eyes once more as she saw Robin look at her with a caring smile. "I won't be gone forever, Lucy… So please, live a life of peace until then…"
Lucina nodded and tried to force a smile of her own. "I... I will!" She said to him with a teary smile. Robin smiled back once more. "Good… May we meet again… my love…" He said at last. He took a footstep forward, and disappeared at last.
"I love you! So please… return to us as soon as you can…" Lucina said weakly as she fell to her knees. She already knew this was going to happen already. It's likely that Robin told her to make sure she was able to cope with this fact beforehand. Regardless, all it did was make her feel just a bad. Robin was gone… But there was a small chance. A chance for him to come back.
"Father…" Morgan said weakly as she sniffed. He didn't tell anybody about his reckless plan besides her mother. The tactician who gave his life to save those he cared for… It was a kind gesture, but not one she could accept so easily. Still, she had to place faith in him. It was all she could do now.
I believe in you… Father…
I believe in you… My love...
A/N: Next and final chapter will be out soon. It won't be a very lengthy one since the past four parts were all meant to be one single chapter, but I felt that separating them felt better for pacing. Not gonna say much besides that. I'll see you all one final time in around 3-5 days!
