February: The Great Opening

Gerome finished Morgan's idea. "So if Alfonse or Sharena were to transfuse some of their blood into one of us, that person should gain the power to open portals."

Sharena volunteered, "I want to help! Who wants the power?"

Linhardt cautioned, "Since having two crests, or two Nabatean boons cause a strain on the body, we must select someone who does not have a dragonkin ability."

Ferdinand spoke up, "Since the worlds containing Ylisse and Valla have the Dragon's Gate, someone from our world, where there are no portals at all, should receive it."

Annette shook her head. "Don't look at me. I have a crest."

Caspar shrugged. "I don't. I can do it."

Morgan made a face. "Should we really give that guy who was confused about what a mask was-mind you, a huge skull mask-this huge responsibility?"

Caspar complained, "You make a mistake once and you get hounded about it for the rest of your life."

Morgan snarled, "You were twenty-two! You should understand the concept of costumes and disguises by twenty-two."

Caspar defended, "It was a really realistic costume!"

Sharena cringed, and tried to word what she was thinking in a way that wouldn't hurt his feelings. "I think we should choose a ruler. Wouldn't they need it more than Caspar?"

Dimitri said, "All of the leaders have crests."

Ferdinand smiled. "Actually, I can think of one leader who doesn't."

Khalid was interested. "Seriously? Who?"

Ferdinand turned toward his girlfriend. "Dorothea is Adrestia's future empress, is she not? I think she is the one who deserves the gift."

Dorothea thought, "He's thinking of marrying me? Already? I suppose battle speeds up the dating process . . ."

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Dorothea entered reality again and panicked at the weight of the responsibility. "I don't know . . . what if something goes wrong when I use the power? I don't want to accidentally cause more death."

Sharena assured, "You'll be fine. Let me get my lance Fensalir and we'll get started."

Alfonse scolded, "Sharena, Fensalir is too big. You'll need Eir's dagger, Lyfja."

Eir handed over her weapon to her friends. "I hope this can be of use to you."

Sophie used her best peppy voice. "Of course it will! Thanks to you, Sharena, and Lyfja, we'll be able to beat back the darkness and bring peace back to the worlds."

Sharena grasped Lyfja in her left hand, and prepared for the incision. She braced herself and slashed at her right palm. Sharena handed the blade to Dorothea. "Okay. Your turn."

Dorothea made a squeaking noise as she plunged the knife into her left palm to make a good-sized cut. "I really don't like this part."

Sharena held up her wounded hand. "When you're ready, touch my hand with yours, and keep it there until the power transfers."

Alfonse sensed Dorothea's reluctance, so he added, "It takes the blood about one minute to completely circulate the body, so it won't take long."

Dorothea pressed hers against Sharena's, and a warm blue glow emanated from the transfusion. Askr's gift entered Dorothea's bloodstream. As the seconds passed, the glow brightened and turned whiter. As the sixtieth second came, there was a white flash, and a blue aura surrounded Dorothea.

Cynthia queried, "Are you okay? Did it work?"

Dorothea studied her injury. "I think so."

Alfonse cautioned, "You only have the power to open portals, not close them. If you ever create one, you have to ask yourself whether or not a location is safe to have a gateway to another world."

Subaki frowned. "Where can we get the power to close the portals?"

Alfonse grimaced slightly. "Embla. The ones who forced heroes from other worlds into heinous contracts to carry out misdeeds against Askr. We've made an uneasy peace as of late. I'd rather not travel there."

Numerous, sprinting footsteps were heard above them. Sharena glanced at the ceiling. "What's going on?"

Alfonse beckoned everyone to follow him. "Nothing good. Come on everyone, there's an emergency evacuation route in the library." He pulled out a book from the north-most shelf, which opened up to reveal a hidden tunnel.

The group squeezed into the tight space, and Alfonse slipped the book back in place and leapt into the tunnel before it slammed shut. A moment later, the library's doors swung open. The army all froze in their tracks. A woman's voice said, "That's strange. That butler said they were in here. I hope we find them soon so we can fight them and be done with it."

Sharena whispered, "It sounds like she's under a contract . . . they're forced to fight us, but once they're defeated, they can join our ranks and be free."

Alfonse glowered at the tunnel's entrance. "The real question is, who's behind the contract in the first place? I already have my suspicions."

The voice sighed. "Oh well. We'll find them eventually. Everyone, spread out!" The clamoring footsteps became a thing of the distance.

Sophie pressed herself against the entrance, hoping to see who the mysterious intruder was. Unfortunately, leaning her weight on it caused it to collapse, exposing everyone then and there. Sharena recognized the enemy. "Palla Whitewing!"

Cynthia shrilled, "THAT'S PALLA WHITEWING?! ONE OF THE GREATEST FALCON KNIGHTS IN HISTORY?!"

Severa huffed, "Looks like it! Let's tangle!"

Palla pointed her lance threateningly at the party. "It would be my pleasure."

Bernadetta shot an arrow at Palla's shoulder, which caused her to reel back in pain. Constance cast Sagittae at her; the blow caused Palla to fall to the floor. Cynthia scrambled over just as she got back up. Palla thrust her lance at Cynthia's torso, but the princess neatly parried. Palla struck again, bruising Cynthia's ribs.

Linhardt promptly healed her, much to Palla's chagrin. Cynthia crammed her lance into Palla's face, and then kicked her in the knee. Palla sailed down to the ground, and Cynthia did a victory dance. Palla lunged at her and smacked her head hard with the butt of her lance. "You'll never become a good falcon knight if that's all you have."

Everyone held back, sensing that this officially entered duel territory. Cynthia put on her game face. "You've got another thing coming. You may have fought dragons, but so did I!" Cynthia balled her empty hand into a fist and advanced on her opponent. She raised her lance above Palla's head, but when the latter shifted to defend, Cynthia punched her in the nose, then roundhouse kicked her in the stomach. Palla buckled under the severity of the blow and crumpled to the floor.

Alfonse helped the warrior up. "Now that you're defeated, you sent you here? Was it Embla?"

Palla shook her head. "No. They called themselves the Twilighters."

Sharena bit her lip anxiously. "I've never heard of that term before."

Palla shrugged. "They were incredibly mysterious. Once they trapped me in the contract, I strove to learn more about them. There were many people. I think the Twilighters are an organization of some kind. They definitely want to achieve something and have a greater goal. They said that Alfonse and Sharena had to die so they couldn't pass on their ability at some point."

Khalid hypothesized, "I think the Twilighters are Belerager's followers. They use portals to cause chaos amongst the worlds, and since opening portals are the supreme gift of Askran royalty, they'd certainly want the siblings out of the way so we couldn't gain it."

Alfonse moaned. "I suppose it'd be best if you sauntered off to Embla to get Veronica's gift of closing gates before she gets attacked. Sharena, Eir, and I can't leave the castle, but we'll provide you a detailed map on how to reach Veronica. Good luck."