Sumia and Corrin - Conquest and Fate
"Where do I even begin... Wait... I'm not bothering you, am I?"
Corrin sat in Sumia's room, splaying her bare feet out to rest her weary legs while the other woman was absently packing various materials for the march that would come in the morning. As Corrin had nothing to bring except Yato and a dislocated shoulder, her packing was complete.
"Of course not, Miss Corrin. I'm always eager to hear a new story!"
"Right," Corrin replied with a smile. "What has Chrom said about me so far?"
Sumia paused, not recalling much. "Well, you showed up right before he did and all we know about you is that you're not from around Ylisse or her neighbors. But... you know that already, being that you were there for the meeting!"
"I suppose that's right," Corrin sighed, curling her toes with a yawn that escaped quietly enough to not warrant attention from her host. "So Hoshido and Nohr... you read a story on those two kingdoms?"
"It doesn't say specifically that Conquest and Fate was about Hoshido and Nohr," Sumia explained while walking around her room. "But... you seem to be very familiar with that folk tale."
"I don't think Conquest and Fate is a mere folk tale," Corrin muttered.
"Do you know a similar story where you are from, Miss Corrin?"
"I do," the princess replied quietly. "I lived through one."
"W-what?" Sumia asked with a surprised look.
"I mentioned earlier that I was a Princess to both Hoshido and Nohr," Corrin started, narrating her own tale.
"But both those kingdoms were enemies!"
"And I... could only side with one." Sumia stopped packing and looked at her peer with awe. Suddenly, it came to her, as if Corrin hadn't made it obvious enough already.
"Y-you're the princess in that story! You were the one who exiled herself after..." Corrin remained silent; enough to confirm Sumia's suspicions.
"I'm afraid that story is a far cry from the truth, to be frank." Sumia craned her head slowly, still concerned for Corrin's emotions after learning of her identity.
"Then... what happened?"
"I suppose this is a good place to start," Corrin thought after a while. "Chrom doesn't know this much yet... but you... we're, going to have a war with Plegia. And Ylisse will need her Shepherds to protect her. Seeing that I am now the Shepherd's tactician..."
"Wait, we're going to fight Plegia? Why?" Corrin shook her head, not knowing the reasons of Ylisse's prologue.
"In my world, the Shepherds won the war against Plegia before coming to Hoshido and Nohr. Due to this fact, I'm not very sure of myself when it comes to pre-Valmese war history."
"We're going to fight Valm too? But... they're so tiny!" Sumia was beside herself, now quaking in fear at the fact that she was about to invest the next few years of her life in plentiful warfare.
You, my dear dragon princess, are a chore.
Grima, you are of no help to us. Can't we just kill you yet?
That will come when it comes. As for now? Worry about the present. Even if this is all a dream, I'm sure we would both share resentments on having Ylisse overrun by those damn Plegian brigands. Especially that bag of assholes Gangrel-
"Since I already know how some events will play out, I can use that to my advantage here," Corrin explained. "I know that this sounds very suspicious and reeks of skepticism-"
"Yes, it does," Sumia admitted. "But go on. I'll believe you because you seem to know a lot more than you let on. You seem like a good and well-doing person, so even if your story is quite odd, I'm sure you have good intentions here."
"I do, and I'll tell you nothing but the truth from my own perspective," Corrin promised with an honest smile. "So... let's start... two years after the Plegian War, right before Valmese ships sail for Ylisse." Sumia finished packing her bags and nodded eagerly, fixing up her hair for bed.
"Do you... have a place to sleep?" Sumia interrupted, freeing up room on her bed for Corrin, who stared in bewilderment. "I mean, it's probably not suited to a princess's liking, but I think it's pretty comfy!"
Whoa, now this is new. Robin definitely did not get this treatment. At least, not that I recall.
I'm sure her intentions are honest...
Still, she was a great lay for Robin-
W-what?
Oh, shit. I forget that you don't really... understand this whole timeline thing-
When were Robin and Sumia a thing?
Not in this life. Ah, you won't understand if I tell you now.
Tell me! I can't believe Robin would be with Sumia-
Calm down Princess! Damn, at least hear me out. You know how Lucina and friends came from a different world, right?
So? Robin, as far as I know, was alone in Lucina's timeline. Morgan was a mystery, sure, but so was his wife, if ever there was to be.
Precisely. Each timeline that me and Naga go through experiences minor changes, deviant events from the timeline before.
I'm afraid I'm not following.
Of course you're not. Robin could barely comprehend it with Hoshido's throne-
Huh?
Ah, I'm not telling you much, am I? Well, for your information, Robin got kidnapped along with you by our dear friend Iago. Remember that cheeky old sleeze?
My strategy tutor? Gods, he was creepy. He had such a disagreeable aura about him.
Well, he's the one responsible for you and Robin's adventures through each other's memories.
Wait, that means...
Yep. Robin has currently lived in your shoes, or lack thereof while you were living in his. Iago's curse was a little stronger on him, so I couldn't free his mind right away. So there he lived, wasting away at the Northern fortress, with only his butler, baker, and candlestick makers to keep him company.
You mean... he lived as a prince of Nohr? And Xander and Camilla and Leo and Elise... treated him as their brother? That's quite something. He'd make quite an interesting prince.
And quite the charmer too. You should have seen him swap spit with fair Felicia in the dungeons of Hoshido!
W-what?!
Oops. Forgive him of his sins, for he did not know. After some help from me, he made it to Hoshido just as you did in your life. Though you have to remember that he was going through your memories. Therefore, Kamui/Corrin existed, but was no where to be found. As such he was not identified as the missing princess of Hoshido, just like you're not the white-haired devil of Ylisse. Instead, he was guided by Queen Mikoto to sit on her throne. Sitting on the Hoshidan throne... revealed the hidden truths to him. His life as a Nohrian prince will stay in recollection for the time being, but his memories are restored.
Even his past? Before he was a Shepherd?
The parts that he needed to see. Not everything. But enough. So don't worry about Felicia stealing away our charming Prince Robin of Nohr. Unless of course you're into that master/maid sort of thing, which is totally fine.
I'll pretend I didn't hear that.
Oh, and Azura. Robin's currently in the process of extorting the truth that even you don't know from Azura, so don't mind if he gets a little touchy with her. I mean, I can't say anything for Azura herself, who will no doubt be pivotal to Robin's return to reality. If worse comes to worse, she'll be lost in more than her thoughts when she's alone with our special someone... so do give him a little leeway with the ladies?
That's out of my power, as odd as the notion is. But how about me? How am I going to get out of here? Everyone in this dream, er, Robin's dream, needs me to drive them through Plegia! How am I to do that? I may be a good tactician, but... I don't think I can lead a country to war.
You won't have to, dear princess. Trust me. You'll see your children and your philandering buffoon of a tactician soon enough. Just keep Ylisse safe for now, okay? There's still so much I need you to see here. That's part of the reason why I let you two get kidnapped in the first place. To learn from each other.
Wait, you let us get kidnapped? How?
Well, you probably might get lost at this part. Remember the last night you spent with Robin before this dream started?
Yeah. We were reading his journal of the Plegian war. Was that when we... got kidnapped?
A few hours after you retrieved that bitch Severa and her sister Caeldori from the Old Ylisse, my dragon form, the one that will actually kill us, yanked Nohr, Hoshido, and the rest of the damn continent with it.
What? But how?
Let's just say it was part of Grima's plan the whole time. He needed you specifically to be in contact with Robin, and events played exactly how we... well, he, planned it. The Valmese sea is no more, now filled with land. And guess which land that could be.
Hoshido, Nohr, and all her neighbors...
Exactly. And being that Valm and Nohr are now close enough, it didn't take long for an alliance to build between the two conquest-minded nations. They have set their sights on Ylisse and Hoshido.
Oh... gods. That means...
Yep! Everything Chrom wanted to prevent is now happening anyway. Everything you were trying to prevent is also happening. Nohr and Hoshido will likely split apart unless you can find a binding agent to keep them together. That's why I let Iago take you two.
What you're saying... is that whatever I learn through Robin's shoes in Ylisse will help me keep Nohr and Hoshido from fighting?
Right. And hear me out. Whatever Robin will learn from Azura will also help your two countries. And trust me, that woman has secrets that even I do not know. We're toying with powers that I cannot hope to best alone. So that's why you need to focus here and now. Alright?
This is a lot to take in...
War often is. But this is the last one that Grima can wage. That fell dragon had grand schemes for the last world in this universe. Naga will do everything to stop him, and so too must I. So too must you.
"So tell me more about your world, Prince Robin," Ryoma started, their small caravan taking a quick break while the horses drank from the river. Kaze and Rinkah made idle chatter a small distance away, while Felicia tended to Robin's horse. Takumi lay on the grass, one foot resting on his knee as he idly drew circles with it. Azura stood close to the bank, clearly at comfort with the water brushing her feet.
"The kingdom of whom I'm the tactician for," Robin explained, "Would be similar to Hoshido, though it has aspects of Nohrian culture as well. It's located on a peninsula which is where the threat of attack was coming from."
"I see."
"Yes, well, my King decided that our armies, as small as they were, were not nearly large enough to combat a continental threat. Walhart's legions number in the millions, yet Ylisse and her neighbors could only muster a few tens of thousands at most. What we needed was a small strike force. Something efficient enough to pierce quickly through the Valmese territories, yet effective enough to last against a giant army.
"And how did my sister get involved in all this?"
"Well, I'm sure you recall how Kamui recognized Queen Mikoto," Robin explained.
"She did. An odd fact, if you consider how many years she has lived without her."
"Ah, but just a few hours after she was brought back to Hoshido, Queen Mikoto was killed by her hand."
"So she claims from her dreams. Yet I believe that won't come to pass. So how did she join you?"
"In the time between her joining us and her killing Mikoto, Co-Kamui came into possession of some sort of sacred blade: Yatogami."
"The golden blade? But... it has been lost for generations!"
"It's certainly golden, as much as I'm an expert on Hoshidan mythology, I'm afraid I can't describe it in further detail." Ryoma disregarded this and pressed his questions.
"When we came to Hoshido and Nohr, we found ourselves on the Hoshidan plains, with two armies on either side of us and Kamui in the middle, forced to pick between either you, her birth brother, or Prince Xander, her 'brother' by bond."
"Who did she pick?"
"Peace," Robin replied neutrally. "She didn't want to spark war, so she used us as a catalyst to bind both Hoshidan and Nohrian forces together."
"How? This peace that mother always describes... it never comes."
"Well, maybe I can ask your queen after this little rescue. I'm sure her not being dead will prove most useful if she has any answers I seek."
"That's what I don't seem to believe. Why? Why would Kamui do such a thing to her own mother?"
"From what I know," Robin guessed, "King Garon plotted as scheme to have Kamui both recognized and sent to Hoshido. Somehow, she had on her an implement that resulted in the destruction of both Shirasagi square, and the death of your mother."
Ryoma paused for a while, thinking of how that event could possibly happen if not for his Mother's premonitions of her own death.
"Interesting. I had always suspected some sort of plot against my mother. To think that Garon would only release his stolen trophy to use her as a weapon."
"And to think that I once groveled at his feet like some pup expecting a treat," Robin scoffed, thinking of his life as the naive prince. "But that will not come to pass. Things are already in motion that were different from Kamui's timeline. Are the horses ready, Felicia?"
"Yep!" Ryoma looked at the young woman, still dressed in Hoshidan garb, then to the Plegian prince who was wearing his Nohrian armor underneath a plain black cloak.
"You claim she is your wife, but she is not. Why?"
"Ah, so you saw through my ruse to get her across your border guards," Robin groaned, "Well, there's no denying that I had to get her across the border somehow. Her being my wife seemed a reasonable excuse."
"But why is her presence by your side even an-"
"Even before I realized who I truly was, I wanted to free Felicia from her captivity in my tower. She is a princess of her tribe, and deserves to live as such. Hoshido, for all its merit, would be a better home for her than what I could offer her in Nohr. At least, until I can avoid this war. So no, Felicia is not my wife. But she is still a dear friend, even if she wasn't in my timeline. The time I spent with her in this 'prince's' life... has given a bit of meaning to her existence in my eyes."
"So be it," Ryoma decided. "Time is wasting, and Hinoka and Sakura are still needing of our rescue. Come!"
Mounting their horse, Robin and Felicia nodded as they followed Ryoma's lead. Kaze and Rinkah rode behind, both healed from their injuries and equally passive towards Robin. Princess Azura stayed quiet in the back, while Takumi took the reigns. Four horses and seven riders made their way towards the border town, and not a moment too soon. The smoke was still fresh, and the scent of blood was still lingering.
They were towering. Easily above three meters and triple a normal human's weight, the Faceless were truly terrifying creatures.
"Slower and stupider than your average Risen," Robin hoped. "Hopefully their flesh falls apart just as easily as it was forced together." Robin recalled as a prince, watching Leo and Iago demonstrate their mastery over the conjuring of Faceless. Robin had secretly tried it himself, but only resulted in combining flesh into a hideous blot of flesh and metal. These ones were actually made correctly, much to his own jealousy. And fear.
"Daunting foes indeed, but flesh is flesh," Ryoma announced, drawing Raijintou and scanning the area for the two princesses. "Onward then! For Hoshido!" The crimson armored prince disappeared into combat, lightning arcing everywhere he swung. Rinkah quickly joined him, her heavy club eager to be stained.
"Die, die, die!" she cried out, enjoying the heat and thrill of battle once more as her club smash in a Faceless skull. After a few more, she disappeared past the gigantic creatures, helping Ryoma clear a path towards the village.
"I have you covered, milord," Kaze assured, sticking by both Felicia and Robin while the latter waved off the ninja.
"I can handle myself. Keep Ryoma and Rinkah safe, and the princesses too when you find them." Kaze nodded, running off to be more proactive towards Ryoma's charge.
Azura and Takumi stood back, the archer knocking back a teal bolt as he snarled at the Faceless around him. Compared to the livid Takumi, Azura was rather calm, her slender body poised in martial grace in tandem with her light naginata. Robin looked in her direction and nodded at her knowingly, though the princess did little more than blink.
You still need to talk to her. She will be most eager to share her secrets once she figures out you're protected from the Vallite curse.
Priorities first, Grima. Your secretive agenda can wait.
I suppose so. Do be quick about it.
"Right..." Robin breathed, feeling Felicia's presence behind him.
"They're scary, milord. But we can take 'em!" Robin laughed at Corrin's maid and nodded eagerly.
"That we can. I'll keep you safe, Felicia. Don't you worry-" Robin paused when Felicia suddenly jolted as if she were pinched.
"Felicia?"
Was that... the sound of an arrow hitting flesh?
"...ngh..."
Robin could only gasp in horror as Felicia's torso quickly became crimson with blood, the pale streak of Fuujin's arrow embedded from her back and out her chest.
"F-felicia?!" Robin screamed, holding his childhood friend as she collapsed to the ground, struggling to breathe. Unable to pull the spiritual arrow out, he held Felicia tight to him as she started to whimper quietly in his arms.
"I... I was so... close... we... our... c-castle..." Her head fell, limp and stained with tears.
"Felicia?" he muttered in disbelief, shaking her head with his hand.
"Felicia!" Robin rasped, before closing her eyes gently, his numb fingers tingling with a burning rage as soon as the deed was done. Turning to Takumi while still holding Felicia's body, The Plegian could only watch as the archer materialized the bowstring of Fuujin Yumi once more and willed an arrow into existence.
"So... you're not done..."
The tactician's fists clenched until they were white, and magic began to uncontrollably circle around Robin's arms. Dropping Felicia's still-warm body gently, he rose to his feet and turned to the murderer at fault.
"Nohrians... all of you. You will not harm my sisters, or my family! Nothing you say shall come to pass!" Takumi yelled, drawing back another shot. Robin dodged it while maintaining a glare at the ponytailed Hoshidan.
Slowly but deliberately, Robin opened up his cloak and moved his hand to his sword's hilt, knuckles already pale from the anger and adrenaline he was experiencing.
"You may be a good ally in my world," Robin snarled, drawing his sword, willing it to crackle with lightning. Circling around Felicia's corpse, he guarded her resting place with his blade towards the angry Hoshidan prince, "But no one will even remember you here!"
Takumi's recoil and change of composure was enough to prove that the same archer that was scared of being left alone in Robin's reality was the same, fearful Hoshidan that was now on the business end of his sword.
Robin! Don't!
You stay out of this, Grima. I'm sure the little shit won't mind dying in my dreams.
Well... do what you must. I did not expect this from him. Keep his bow, at least. But be on your guard... Something is off. He might be under someone else's control...
He'll be under the ground by the time I'm done flaying his spine from his chest!
Takumi took a deep breath and recalculated himself, flourishing another arrow and aiming it at Robin's head to keep him in place. "I'll save Hoshido from you scheming Nohrians! No one will hurt my mother! No war will claim Hoshido!"
Robin turned to Azura, who oddly enough, hadn't said a word this whole time.
"My suspicions were right; your mother's barrier that disperses the will to cause malice does not affect Hoshidan blood. So that makes you think you'd be able to assassinate two 'Nohrians' in cold blood, without repercussions, is that right? Coward."
"You Nohrians don't belong in Hoshido! I'll kill you all! I already killed one of you! I'll gladly do it again! And Azura will help me once she sees the truth! Die!"
"No. You two can settle this on your own. I do not belong in Nohr or Hoshido, nor its politics," she stated coldly, not budging an inch.
She was still blank-faced, not reacting at all to the murder or the growing hostilities. Not even the Faceless converging around them could change her expression.
"B-but... Azura! This man is a Nohrian!"
"So am I, murderer," Azura replied. "Or did you forget kidnapping me from my captivity in Nohr?"
"That was to prevent a war with Nohr! We're still trying to stop war! We need to save Hoshido!" Takumi cried, his arrow-hand shaking with anticipation.
"It's a very good thing I'm not a Nohrian then," Robin coldly said through pursed lips, stepping slowly towards the fearful archer. "Because you just declared war with me."
Corrin snapped back to reality, looking at Sumia who was waiting patiently on her side of the bed, by the looks of things, she was thinking to herself, a flower in her hand quickly losing its petals.
"Sorry... I was lost in thought..." Corrin excused, while Sumia shook her head with a laugh.
"Ah, I guess a few hours of stories never hurt anyone. Well, if you need a place to sleep, here you go! I do tend to roll though, so..."
Corrin thought about it for a while. It was odd for someone who barely interacted with her to suddenly act so warmly towards the Princess. But... this was another world. Maybe Sumia was more friendly during this time?
"Takumi will hate me for this," Corrin decided, slipping on the other side of Sumia's bed, keeping a very healthy distance from the clumsy knight.
"No worries! Me and Cordy shared a bed a couple times when we were out on Pegasus Knight sorties! Now that I'm a Shepherd, there's never enough beds in the barracks to go around! Be thankful you're not sharing one with Miriel or... Maribelle," she shivered at the thought.
"I suppose it could be worse," Corrin thought, not caring too intensely.
"You never finished your story of Plegia. Did we save Emmeryn?" Corrin blankly remained quiet, thinking of her conversation with Grima a while ago.
"I realized... even if I do know what's going on," Corrin replied, "I still have this army's life in my hands. I can't fail you. You may know nothing of me, nothing about me... but in my world, I fought alongside all of you as a Shepherd. I won't let you guys down. So as your tactician, I vow to Ylisse and her noble Shepherds: this story will put all the other stories of peace and adventure and triumph... to shame."
Marth walked around, not sure how to proceed at this point. She was a Shepherd, and thanks to that interloper's insistence, had a direct line of sight to Chrom every where she went. But for now, she would be he, and Marth needed to get to Ferox somehow, lest Lon'qu best Chrom in combat. But she had to get there before Chrom did, which was hard to do due to her current station as a Shepherd. She could always sneak to Ferox ahead of the Shepherds, but that would warrant suspicions if she were to face her father in the ring to contest for Feroxi aid.
Unless... Corrin could beat Uncle Lon'qu for him!
Yes, she most certainly could. She seemed an able sword, already years of experience beyond Chrom. Plus, she could turn into a dragon! Corrin could do it, Marth thought to herself.
"Sorry Uncle," she apologized, looking out towards Ferox with a wry smile. "We may never get to spar in this life. A shame, but I think I found a woman who could finally beat you in combat besides me!"
She pulled her mask away for a few seconds, just to feel the gentle Ylissean breeze on her bare face.
"And Robin, if you're here, don't worry. I'll do everything I can to keep everyone safe in your stead, wherever you are."
"Oh, don't you worry about me, princess. You'll do fine."
