With some of the Masters saved, the battle raged on. We advanced further into the castle's courtyard, and the Crimean Army appeared to be in the lead. Despite our relatively rapid forward progress, however, the worst of the fight was far from over.
We started to approach an area of stone pavement just in front of the gardens surrounding the fountain when I felt a nearby presence that chilled me to the bone. The worst part was that I couldn't locate the origin. It was like an omnipresent spirit was watching our every move from every possible location.
And although I found safety and comfort in being near Ike, even he was not enough to stave off my pervasive feelings of dread and fear.
It wasn't until we reached the garden's entrance that we were finally able to confront the man who I'm certain was the source of the unnerving sensations.
"So," a somewhat familiar voice spoke, giving me goosebumps.
Immediately, my focus shifted to the source of the voice. I had heard it somewhere before! At least I thought. It was reminiscent of someone I'd met, but this one sounded lower and corrupted in a way; almost demonic.
The man was wearing a black and purple Samurai-like uniform that had the same glow as King Ashnard's armor, and he had two swords in his hand. He was looking down, so his face was impossible to see.
Ike confronted the figure, and it was like the battle temporarily stopped. People from both sides stood and watched as our general took a step forward and uttered the first words of their exchange. "Who are you?" he snarled.
The mysterious man looked up, revealing his piercing, silver eyes.
It couldn't be! I gasped.
But alas, it was. It was the shopkeeper, and the interesting man who appeared as a messenger in our army. It was none other than Knox.
"It looks like my little plan failed," Knox grimaced.
"What do you mean?" Ike asked.
Knox laughed. "Oh you know what I mean, fool. I'm the reason you were so rudely attacked before coming here."
Ike gasped at the man's words. "You were the spy. And the shadow, weren't you," he spoke quietly as the realization hit him like a ton of bricks.
Knox laughed again. "It took you lot long enough to figure it out," he hissed. "That girl by your side...was supposed to be fighting for Daein...not you!"
"Knox. What on earth are you going on about?" Ike growled, baring his teeth.
"My name...is not really Knox. And I'm not a messenger or a merchant," he sneered. "I am General Kun Jin of the Daein Army. The newest of the Four Riders."
"What the…" Ike said, dumbfounded.
Kun Jin...I know that name! I realized.
"That's right," Kun Jin continued. "Most of you idiots were so distracted by the earth girl, thinking she was a spy, that you let me slip right under your very noses." He sounded more and more rabid with every sentence. "Those bandits you faced...they were nothing more than a distraction. Pawns. You see—"
"Wait, why bandits of all people?" Ike interrupted. "You really couldn't get anyone better?"
Kun Jin's eye twitched. "Because, bandits would never be traced back to the Daein Army. They're just bandits after all, right? And they're just ruthless enough to get away with capturing my targets. After all," he chuckled deeply. "I've seen what they can do. If they can raid an entire island of people like her and win, and for such a low price at that, her alone shouldn't have been so much trouble."
Ike tightened his grip on his sword's hilt and scowled.
"But of course...they all failed this time, and you two still stand before me as enemies," the opposing general hissed, then looked away. "It wasn't supposed to be like this."
"Hang on." Ike raised an eyebrow. "You're telling me you went through all that trouble just for one person?" he paused dramatically and then continued. "And you were too much of a weakling to do any of it yourself? You were literally in our army and spoke to her."
General Kun Jin shook his head and quivered as he looked at me. "I…" For a second, his silver eyes turned into a warm, earthy brown, much like my own, then immediately reverted back to their original steely color. "I have my reasons for doing what I did, but I'm not telling the likes of you. And she may be just another person in your eyes, but not to me. With her on our side...our chances of winning would have skyrocketed."
Ok, sure, I was a powerful mage, but...I didn't know about being able to skyrocket anyone's chances of winning. I had a feeling we were still missing something. His sudden change of eye color made me wonder—
"This is the stupidest thing I've ever heard," Ike said dryly.
"You just don't get it, do you." Kun Jin looked down, appearing slightly troubled.
"What do you mean?" Ike questioned.
In an instant, Kun Jin's expression hardened, and he growled fiercely. "Enough talking!" He backflipped a few times toward Ashnard, and sprung up onto a tall, stone pillar. From his perch, he began yelling. "Our minions will continue to wear you lot down, and by the time you reach the rest of us, you won't have a fighting chance!" The maniac general cackled, glaring down at us from above. He temporarily sheathed one of his swords and sounded a battle horn, reawakening all of the soldiers from their trances.
"Ugh, the coward." Ike rolled his eyes before commanding his army to continue their onslaught.
Sucking in my breath, I tried to temporarily forget about the surprising revelation from just minutes ago. I had to mentally prepare myself for the challenging, new set of enemies that were now charging toward us. I could already see how skilled those units were, so Ike and I would definitely have to keep working as a team.
With this in mind, we advanced together toward the fountain. My keen senses allowed me to spot two snipers in the distance who were carefully aiming their arrows at Ike through the fountain's falling film of water. I doubted he saw them since he seemed too preoccupied with a couple of troublesome swordmasters, so I jumped at the chance to cast a simple earth spell at the bowman pair, piercing them and flinging their unsuspecting bodies into the air.
Taking notice of the distant commotion, Ike turned to me with pride-filled eyes, making everything else seem like it was in slow motion. "Good job," he praised, but his kind expression was short lived. "Watch your flank, get to my other side!" he ordered.
Hastily springing toward Ike, I narrowly escaped the downward swing of a warrior's axe. Instead of hitting me, it crashed into the stone pavement. It sounded like the warrior was readying another swing, but like the good partner Ike was, he covered me and ferociously attacked the axe wielder while I directed my next attack at an approaching horde of enemies. Most of them were killed on impact, but unfortunately, a few of them survived.
"Dammit," I cursed. I started to ready another spell, but Ike was quick to whip around and jump ahead of me, finishing off the remaining members of the horde before I even had a chance to say two words.
Wasting no time at all, we dashed past the deceased horde and made our way around the fountain. It was then that we noticed that our allies were far less abundant than they used to be. We were worried it was a sign of us losing, but it appeared that most of them had simply gone around toward the exterior stairways. Unfortunately for Ike and I, this left the two of us and the few that followed much more vulnerable to enemy soldiers. They were already pouring in from the fountain area's side entrances behind us.
"We need backup!" Ike yelled. "They're executing a pincer attack!"
Hearing Ike's call, Titania and some other paladins quickly diverted their paths and headed through the back entrance of the enclosure, and I could see Princess Elincia and other pegasus knights fly in from over the walls, too.
However, they didn't arrive soon enough. In seconds, we were completely surrounded by mobs of Daein soldiers.
I realized we were already so close to the fountain's exit, so I hastily sent my rock spikes through the group of enemies that blocked our way, and we were able to hurry out of the area before reinforcements closed the gap. I would have felt relieved had it not been for a giant red dragon stomping down the staircase in front of us.
Upon locking eyes with the beast, we froze in our tracks. The dragon had us trapped between itself and an incoming wall of soldiers from behind.
And before we could even think of a plan, the dragon opened its jaws as it prepared to attack. In a flash, Ike jumped out in front of me, and not even a second later, intense flames blasted out of the dragon's mouth, nearly blinding us both.
As the roaring inferno surrounded us, Ike held his forearm in front of his face and grunted in pain.
"Ike!" I shouted, fearing for his life and my own.
But once the fire finally dissipated, I remained nearly unscathed. Unfortunately, it was only because Ike had taken the brunt of the attack in order to shield me from most of the damage.
As for him, part of his figure was scorched, and I was honestly surprised he was still standing.
"Serena...don't worry about me, I'm fine," Ike grunted again before a faint blue light flashed around him. "Just...cover the exit behind us, I'll handle the dragon!"
That thing is like three times his size, there's no way he can take it on single handedly! I thought worriedly. And it was no longer just the dragon he had to worry about. More Daein soldiers were starting to come in from behind it, and now there was no escape.
Soldiers continued coming in from behind me, too, so there was no time to fuss over my partner's safety. Reluctantly, I turned around to face them. As I did, Ike screamed, and a terrifying roar and a loud thud followed his fierce cry, making it that much harder for me to not turn back around. But I still had Daein soldiers to deal with, so I stayed intensely focused on the incoming enemies.
By casting stone spikes into the entryway, I managed to temporarily halt the influx of soldiers, killing the first few with the initial wave. Once those spikes returned to the earth, ripples of smaller spikes rapidly spread toward the fountain, badly wounding and killing many of the remaining enemies within the enclosure.
Unfortunately, my attack didn't put an end to Daein's attempts at encircling us. Enemy fighters continued pouring in from the far entrance to the fountain, and there was no way I could hold them all back myself! But just as quickly as I found myself panicking, relief washed over me once more as our allies took notice of the situation. Crimean soldiers stepped in from the sides and occupied the space just in front of the fountain area's exit, so I was finally able to turn around to check on Ike.
When I did, the red dragon was dead on the ground with a pile of beorc corpses around it. And to my surprise, Ike's burns were practically gone. It was almost as if he had never been attacked in the first place.
How the hell? I wondered as I stared at him silently.
"Come on, let's move forward, we don't have time to waste!" he commanded and rushed ahead without looking back.
As I followed closely behind, we ascended the stairs to the second level of the courtyard between the two rectangular gardens.
Just when we thought we were going to make some serious forward progress, another enormous dragon came barreling toward us as Kun Jin leapt down from his pillar. He looked absolutely pissed off.
"Unbelievable," the evil general hissed. "I watched you get hit point blank by that other dragon's fire breath. How are you not dead?!"
"You underestimate me," Ike stated.
Kun Jin growled and hopped away again, sending the dragon toward us. "Let's see you get lucky a second time!"
Looking into the dragon's eyes more closely this time, it appeared soulless. So did the other enemy laguz on the battlefield for that matter. Just mindless husks, presumably corrupted by the drug.
I shook my head. To think that I was meant to be fighting for them...
The dragon stared back at me with empty, black eyes. As it was about to rear its head back, Ike flashed blue once again and effortlessly slashed the beast open.
It shrieked in agony, and I had to look away.
Ike struck it again, and the dragon's shrieks came to a halt as it collapsed to the ground.
That could have been my fate...dying here on this battlefield like that, I thought, feeling slight sympathy for the thing.
"There's no way!" Kun Jin shouted in disbelief. His deathly glare morphed into an evil grin, and then a maniacal laughter. "You know what, fine. Fine! Since none of my plans seem to work, I'll just have to handle you myself!" He drew his other sword and scowled.
"Serena," Ike said. "I've never fought someone with two swords."
"How do you know he's going to go after you?" I asked. For some reason Kun Jin was more obsessed with me, so I had a feeling that I would be his main target instead of Ike. If my suspicion was correct, that would spell disaster for me, especially if he managed to separate us.
"It doesn't matter if he does or doesn't. I'm going to help protect you, so he's going to have to deal with me no matter what," the blue-haired boy said. "Just stay close to me." He readied himself in a battle stance.
Just staying close might not be enough, I thought nervously. "Wait!" I gasped, holding my finger up during my little eureka moment. "I have a better idea." Admittedly, it was kind of crazy because I had never tested the idea out, but it was just crazy enough to work. Recalling the time I nearly fought on Ranulf's back, I immediately suggested the same strategy.
"Are you sure about this?" Ike asked, seemingly unsure of my state-of-the-art schemes for some reason. But considering there was not a moment to sit and think, he had no choice but to acquiesce.
"If he has two weapons, then he's gonna have to face two as well," I smirked, climbing on Ike's back and gripping onto his sky blue cape. "We are now...a...bage."
The blue haired general turned his head back and gave me a 'what the hell is wrong with you' kind of look. "Beige?"
I laughed nervously. "Beorc plus mage equals bage."
Upon hearing my glorious word mashup, the boy groaned. "Please stop."
Sadly, there was no more time for my top-of-the-line comedy, because the Daein general was already preparing an attack.
I tried to land a preemptive strike with one of my spells, but Kun Jin was completely unscathed. Not even a crack appeared in his strange armor.
The evil general cackled. "I don't know what you two are up to, but I know all about your earth attacks!" he yelled, dashing in our direction.
Ike remained stationary, seeming unsure of what to do next. I had no idea how to fight this guy either, so I was unable to provide him with any assistance. But after a moment of thinking, Ike shifted to a more powerful stance, and I could feel confidence begin to surge through him. "Serena, clearly your attacks won't do any good against him," he spoke in a low voice. "Try to block some of his attacks instead."
"I'll...I'll try," I said, not knowing if I would actually be able to.
Finally, the wicked general was upon us, and he jumped high into the air, preparing to strike us with both of his sharpened blades.
As a reaction to the incoming attack, I instinctively summoned a rock spike from the ground. It was supposed to be a normal spell, but it was cast in such a way that it curved over me and Ike and obstructed Kun Jin's trajectory.
"Woah!" Kun Kin yelped. He shifted position in midair and landed on the stone, but it immediately disintegrated underneath him.
Then, Ike slashed powerfully from below, sending Kun Jin flying onto the pavement. He skidded and tumbled, but was still very much alive. However, there was a noticeable crack in his once pristine armor, right where Ike's sword had made contact.
Kun Jin grimaced. "No...Serena...it wasn't supposed to be like this."
"Sorry, but you don't write the history books," Ike said, striding powerfully toward the injured man.
Quickly rolling to the side, the opposing general was already back on his feet. "Not...like this," he said, attempting to charge at us once more.
I tried blocking his path with a wall of stone spikes, but he was too quick, and he somersaulted over both the spikes and our heads. On his way down, he landed two fierce blows on us, one on my back, and one on Ike's triceps.
The two of us winced, and I sealed my eyes in pain. Ike was quick to rebound from the attack, however. He whipped around and attempted to slash the Daein general, but his strike was blocked and swiftly countered. Blood started to ooze out of the new cut on Ike's right cheek.
"Too slow," Kun Jin smirked, backflipping away from us. And with a burst of incredible speed, he started his third charge toward us.
At the last second, I cast a spell just under Ike's feet at an oblique angle so that the tip never touched him. The stone appeared much too suddenly for Kun Jin to react, and he ran face first into the thing while Ike and I were merely pushed backward. The impact stunned the Daein general, causing him to wobble.
Just as the spike disintegrated, Ike swung his sword down hard through the dust and onto Kun Jin. It was predicted and blocked, but the force of Ike's swing was too great for the man to withstand. Kun Jin's own swords (the flat part of the blades) smacked him square in the face and stunned him again.
"Too weak," Ike growled. His entire body flashed blue for a second before he slashed the general's open side. Then, like magic, the cut on Ike's cheek disappeared before my very eyes.
Kun Jin finally collapsed onto the pavement under the weight of three swords and struggled to get back up again. "Not...not like this," he groaned in pain, locking his cold eyes onto mine. And for another second, his eyes turned brown again.
Not noticing the color change, Ike continued to advance until he was standing over Kun Jin's tired body. When he started to speak, strong emotions inundated his voice. "All the pain and torment you've caused this girl and our army. You...will...pay…" he snarled as he raised his sword.
For a moment, Kun Jin laid still in a slowly growing pool of his own blood, gawking at the golden blade that threatened to puncture his chest. "Wait...no!" The thought of his demise granted him just enough energy to move out of the way and shakily stand up once more. "I...I must fall back." He staggered backward away from Ike, nearly falling down again, and his brown eyes made one last appearance. "It wasn't...supposed to be like this…"
"Why do you keep saying that?" Ike hissed.
"It doesn't matter!" The opposing general blinked, and his silver eyes returned. "Just...just kill...Ashnard…" he spoke painfully, clutching the deep gash in his side.
Upon hearing the man's words, Ike's muscles relaxed and he lowered his weapon slightly. He watched the other general hobble away toward the castle and quickly lost sight of him, so we never knew if he lived or died. But because of the severity of his wounds, his death was nearly certain.
"Ike," I whispered. "What...what just happened?"
"I'm not sure," Ike responded as he tightened his grip on Ragnell's hilt. "But it's time to move forward."
Not wasting a second more, we continued to push through Daein's forces with the rest of the Crimean Army following suit. It was a strenuous task for sure, and many of our comrades were not so lucky. Behind us, the blood and dead bodies of soldiers from both sides littered the courtyard.
Finally, we approached the frightful man ahead: the Mad King Ashnard himself.
Titania, Elincia, and others began storming up the stairs, but they kept their distance, waiting for Ike's orders.
Ashnard sneered as he looked at Ike square in the eye. "Son of Gawain...and the earth girl. Worthy opponents indeed."
"King Ashnard of Daein," Ike addressed him and pointed his blade at the royal. "Your time has come!"
"Oh?" the king laughed. "That blade of yours...is the only type of blade that can pierce my armor. Such a blade should only be in the hands of the most skilled warriors, otherwise it amounts to nothing more than a useless metal rod."
Ike scowled. "You'll see for yourself how useless it is."
Ashnard laughed again. "Don't worry, I don't doubt your skills in the slightest, son of Gawain. I expect good things from you, as you have done well against my finest soldiers. Now, you have reached your final test."
"Serena. Stand back," Ike commanded.
I was somewhat saddened by the request, but I knew that it was the best course of action. My attacks probably wouldn't be any good against the king, and I would only weigh the boy down. So, I obliged and quickly hopped off Ike's back. As soon as I started backing away, however, I began to fear for Ike's life more than ever, even more than my own. That king looked stronger than ten dragons combined.
I thought he would take the first opportunity to attack Ike where he stood, but to my surprise, Ashnard just sat on his dragon and stared. He was waiting for Ike to make the first move.
After about ten seconds, Ike jumped up and prepared to slash downward, but at the last second, he changed the position of his sword and skillfully cut Ashnard's side.
Ashnard flinched in surprise, and his face soured. "Clever boy. This will be fun." Then, his sinister smile returned, and he pulled a strange medallion out of his pocket that pulsed with toxic energy.
Upon looking at the medallion, I felt a sharp pain in my head, and I had to turn away.
"What...what are you doing?" Ike asked nervously.
Ashnard grinned. "You'll see for yourself!"
"NO! WAIT! You idiot!" Ike shouted.
Suddenly, a maniacal roar erupted from the king as the energy from the medallion flooded his very soul. His sinister grin was now far more menacing, and his body exuded an enormous amount of darkness, visible to everyone. The king was now a monster.
At that point, I had no idea how any of us would make it out alive. I started to panic. But then, I noticed that his once impenetrable armor was now cracked from the excess energy, and its strange glow seemed to diminish. Does that mean what I think it means? I wondered.
"Flee! Get away, everyone!" Ike's orders, for the first time ever, sounded irrational and desperate.
I knew that wasn't a good sign, but I just didn't feel inclined to agree with him. I couldn't just leave him alone against THAT. But at the same time...the surge of dark energy was becoming too much for me to handle, and I could feel myself begin to lose consciousness.
"Ike, we can't leave you here!" A voice shouted. It was an allied dragon laguz with long, pale blue hair. "We need backup, call one of the battalion commanders!"
The general scowled. "That won't be necessary, we have everyone we need!"
The laguz replied with a horrified shout. "Are you crazy?! I...very well...I won't tell you otherwise," he said reluctantly. But instead of leaving, the laguz man stayed in his place and became shrouded in a bright light, tripling in size as he transformed into the only white dragon I've seen to date. He stepped up toward Ashnard while the others stayed back and watched.
King Ashnard, after completely losing his mind, screamed and soared high into the sky on his mount, then quickly came diving down with his massive sword and aimed at Ike.
Ike managed to block the strike with a loud clang, but I could tell he was struggling immensely.
The white dragon attempted to save him by exhaling a brilliant white magic at the king, but he only managed to deal minor damage. At the very least, he succeeded in drawing Ashnard's attention away from Ike, but unfortunately for the laguz, his breath attack was immediately countered with a furious slash, causing the dragon to bellow in pain.
I had thought that only Ike's sword could go through the king's armor, but the dragon's attack seemed to prove me wrong. Maybe the cracks in the armor had something to do with it, but I honestly had no idea. I had to come up with some kind of plan if I wanted to test my theory, and fortunately for me, Ike and the dragon served as an excellent distraction, so Ashnard barely got the chance to focus on me while I brainstormed.
After countless blocks and dodges from both ends, Ike managed to land another blow on Ashnard, but his sword only grazed him. And much to everyone's chagrin, the attack only angered the king even more and seemed to double his power.
Then came the moment I feared the most. Ashnard hollered, and he finally locked his crazed eyes onto me.
Oh goddess, no! I panicked, feeling my stomach drop.
He flew at me with blinding speed and I instinctively sidestepped, but I lost my footing and slipped onto the stone. Ashnard could have easily doubled back and landed a hard hit on me, but he instead shifted his focus back to Ike, who was now yelling obscene things at the man, angering him beyond what I thought was possible.
"I...WILL...WEAR...YOU...ALL...DOWN...GRRAAAHHHH!" Ashnard bellowed. He charged at Ike, slashing him across the chest before he could deflect the hit, then followed up with a swift attack across the white dragon laguz.
Ike fell backward, skidding on the stone, but he quickly righted himself. A thick line of blood was starting to seep through his shirt, however, and his face showed an intense amount of pain. He looked at me worriedly.
Still without a strategy in mind, I stumbled to my feet and continued to panic. When I finally got up, I saw that the king was looking at me with murder in his eyes. Oh no oh no oh no, someone do something, I gritted my teeth.
And as if he could read my mind, the white dragon expelled more magic at the king, hoping to catch Ashnard's attention again, but it didn't work this time. The king's eyes were still locked onto me, and it was clear nothing was going to stand in his way.
"Earth...girl…" his voice hissed. His mount beat its wings, and he started to accelerate toward me. In a panic, I summoned rock spikes, hoping to block him, but it was no use. The mount easily flew through the pillar like it was made of feathers, and his massive sword painfully pierced my flesh before I could process his immense power and speed. It wedged itself very deep into my side, and it was worse than any other pain I've felt in my life. I gasped and keeled over, clutching my side that was now soaked with blood.
"Serena!" Ike yelled, beginning to run toward me.
The pain was so intense, it was impossible for me to focus on anything else, and I was sure I was going to die right then and there. My vision, along with the pain, was starting to fade. But instead of complete darkness, there was a bright white light, and a faint assortment of rainbow colors. This is it...I'm dead...
"Serena…" Ike's voice said. It sounded strange. It was muffled, but it also sounded extremely close. Like it was coming from within my own head. "Attack…" he said. "Attack now…" He sounded desperate. "Attack…"
With my vision still clouded, it was impossible to tell if I was already dead. But then, I felt myself stand up. Every inch of my body felt an incredible warmth, more intense and powerful than ever before. It was like my entire being was now made of this light and heat that I saw before me, and I felt so...alive. Through the bright haze, I could barely make out an enormous plume of orange light and flying stone, seeming to extend infinitely high into the heavens. Then, nothingness. The warmth I felt, the light, and all my senses disappeared in an instant.