A/N: I know that Akira and Richter aren't brothers and there's a small age gap between them but bear with me please, it wasn't easy deciding which characters to play Edgar and Sabin so I went with them instead.
Shulk paced around his living room in a worried and frustrated manner. He tried to tell the guards that Corrin wasn't responsible for her actions in the town earlier due to the Empire using her, but they stubbornly refused to hear him out and yelled at him in response. The blonde prayed that she made it out alive safely, otherwise she would've been caught and locked up in a cell or killed. Shulk turned around to see another person had entered his home who wasn't a guard.
"Took you long enough, Eight! How goes the robbing and plundering trade?"
Eight was a guy of average height with short, dark brown hair under a reddish-orange bandana and brown eyes. He wore an orange jacket over a blue shirt with long sleeves rolled up to his elbows, dark gray pants and black boots.
Eight looked at him in mock offense of being called a thief, "I PREFER the term treasure hunting!"
"Ha! Semantic nonsense!" Shulk put his hands on his hips, a playful smirk adorning his features.
"There's a HUGE difference!" Not wanting to push the argument any further the brunette decided to change the subject with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Anyway, were you the one who sent for me?"
The blonde nodded, "Yeah. There's a girl I'd like you to meet."
Eight's eyes blinked owlishly then instantly narrowed a split second later, "This better not have anything to do with that Magitek-riding, Imperial witch!"
"Imperial troops are pursuing her even as we speak," Shulk explained. "This town is no match for the Empire. Our independence can only be assured if we join forces with the Returners, an underground resistance movement. That girl wasn't responsible for her actions. We must get her to understand our dilemma!"
Seeing as there was no way to refuse Eight sighed and reluctantly agreed, "All right, I think we'd better help her."
"Agreed. Make your way first to Figaro, and talk to the king. Remember she's dressed in silver and black with a blue cape and she has silver hair."
And with that, Eight left Shulk's house then headed for the mines. He didn't expect to get this assignment, especially due to the failed Imperial siege just earlier today which caused Narshe to be even more neutral and isolated. Shulk might have been somewhat crazy, but Eight trusted him well enough. Eight held a deep grudge for the Empire ever since they took something precious from him, which he hated to no end.
As he explored the mine a big hole in the floor had caught his eye, one big for someone to fall through it. Looking down he saw a girl with silvery-white hair in silver and black armor with a blue cape lying unconscious on the ground, just the person he was looking for. Using a rope the brunette climbed down through the hole to the lower part of the cave and noticed how pale she was. Had he made it here any later, Corrin would have froze to death or been executed by the guards without waking up. Before she could wake up though she heard voices and barks, indicating that the guards had brought their wolves with them.
"Now we gotcha! Kill the witch! She deserves death!"
"Wonderful... There's a whole bunch of 'em," Eight shrugged then drew his sword.
He was prepared to fight but he saw not one, not two, not even three but eleven Yoshis at his side. A couple of them checked on the silverette before getting into a fighting stance.
"Yoshis! Are you saying you want to help me?"
They regarded him for a moment before nodding, "Yoshi!"
Besides the green one the others came in a plethora of colors such as blue, cyan, pink, red, orange, yellow, purple, black, white and gold. They all attacked the guards with all sorts of weapons to protect Corrin like swords and spears, others used claws and even a paintbrush or slingshot to attack. A few wolves ran towards Eight in an attempt to bite at him but he evaded them and countered by slashing their throats with just a quick stab of his sword. As he looked over at the Yoshis fighting with the guards, he noticed the green Yoshi doing a strange dance inside the dark cave.
"Dusk Requiem!"
The adventurer turned his head to see in shock a bunch of will-o'-wisps appear and defeat any leftover wolves, then he confronted the guards with the green Yoshi who was making rocks fall on them as well. Eight may have the disadvantage in the range department when it came to his blade but he made up for it with his quick reflexes, thus making him fast and harder to hit. Pink hit a guard with her mace then Blue finished it off with his spear, while Cyan smacked one in the face with her staff, knocking him out. They all pointed their weapons just as Green stopped dancing and the remaining guards knew they were outnumbered. They all screamed and fled the mines in terror.
The Yoshis cheered before they retreated back into their cave, leaving only Eight and Corrin there alone.
"Thanks, Yoshis! We're in your debt!" Eight said gratefully before he picked up Corrin in his arms.
The brunette noticed that she was surprising light then made his way through the mines until he found a switch to open the exit, just as he did though Corrin woke up.
"Eh? You back with us now?" He asked as the silverette sat up.
"You... saved me?" She replied with a question of her own.
"Save your thanks for the Yoshis."
Corrin felt as if her mind was trapped in a fog and she was unable to recall anything. "Uhh, I can't remember anything past or present."
"You have amnesia?!"
"A man named Shulk said my memory would come back."
"Give it time," Eight gave her a friendly smile which made her blink confusedly at him. "You're safe with me, I give you my word and I won't leave you until your memory returns. By the way, this secret entrance might be useful some day, don't forget about it!"
The duo eventually left Narshe then headed south through a forest, toward a wide open plain and set up camp for the night. They were exhausted from the day's events and thought that a good night's rest was enough before continuing the trek the next day. Corrin wondered if they were going to be safe while in Figaro to which Eight answered positively although he warned her that the king might be interested in her. He also told the silverette that in order to get there they'd have to cross the desert by chocobo and decided to rent a couple in the morning.
While traveling both Corrin and Eight encountered Dark winds, Leaf Bunnies, as well as Sand Rays and Areneids in the desert. They didn't pose too much of a threat but the Areneids had quite the paralyzing sting should either the brunette or silverette get careless while dealing with the creatures. Eight had half a mind to take off his shirt and jacket due to the desert heat getting to him although his partner wasn't faring any better herself. Corrin's long hair and cape were becoming slick with sweat and began sticking to her, while her armor absorbed the desert heat which wasn't helping all that much either.
Both of them were getting tired of being in the desert and prayed that they could find some shelter soon to shade themselves from the harsh heat. Along with Figaro Castle's size were numerous towers with fans rotating around the turrets, thus giving it a very technologically advanced look. Just as Corrin and Eight dismounted from their chocobos and approached the steps of Figaro Castle, a guard stopped them before recognizing Eight then let them pass.
The duo walked inside and followed the red carpet all the way up to the throne room where they met the king who casually sat on his throne. He was a tall and handsome man with short black hair, steel gray eyes, dressed in a black and gray outfit with red gloves. Eight walked up and whispered something to him, showing surprise at what he heard.
"You mean, THIS young woman?!" He asked as he stood up to look at the silverette. He thought Corrin was beautiful for a moment then turned around to think as he realized how serious the situation was.
"Um, I don't mean to be rude but who are you?" Corrin asked him.
"Oh, sorry! How rude of me to turn my back to a lady! I am Akira Kurusu, King of Figaro," Akira said as he bowed to her.
"Surprised someone like me knows a king?" The brunette asked as he began conversing with Akira about their trip here.
Afterwards he bid Corrin goodbye before leaving both her and Akira alone in the throne room. She gave Akira a strange look as the ravenette kissed her hand.
"So, you're an Imperial soldier!'" He told her, "No problem. Figaro and the Empire are allies! Please, relax while you're here. It's not in my blood to harm a lady."
"Why are you helping me? Is it because of my... abilities?"
Akira held up three fingers before replying, "I'll give you 3 reasons: First of all, your beauty has captivated me! Second, I'm dying to know if I'm your type. I guess your... abilities... would be a distant 3rd."
When he realized that the silverette was giving him a confuzzled look Akira sighed then left, "Guess my technique's getting a bit rusty... Come find me when you feel rested."
"Hmm, I suppose a normal girl would have found him dashing. But I'm hardly normal..." She murmured before leaving the throne room to explore the castle.
Some of the castle's soldiers told her how the Empire had conquered the entire southern continent and razed three towns down there and it was just a matter of time before they came up here and about magic as well. From room to room she also heard that Akira was quite the skirt chaser, even so much as flirting with old or plain women and that he had even hit on the high priestess of Figaro, thus getting himself into trouble. A soldier said that in the castle there was a very special engine room, which hid a secret.
At one point Corrin reached a room in the westernmost tower and saw a portrait on the wall showing two boys of which she was certain that one of them was Akira, but she didn't know who the brown haired one was. She only knew that they were very similar in appearance before running into an old lady who was the high priestess.
"I suppose you are intrigued by that portrait," the old lady said. "Akira has an older brother. He was such a nice boy..."
A much younger version of Akira was in the castle library and was joined by another young man. He had blue eyes instead of gray and short, messy brown hair, was slightly muscular than him but he seemed worried about something.
"Brother, what's wrong with father? What's all this talk of his successor?"
"Are you blind? Look how thin his face has become!" Akira replied.
The young man looked at him confused, but worried. "What do you mean?"
All of a sudden Akira ran down the stairs with his head down and the boy looked even more worried than before, noticing that his eyes were full of tears.
"Are you... crying?" He murmured. He was Akira's brother, who gave up the throne in exchange for freedom.
"Yes... His name is Richter. Oh, he looked so much like his father! When he ran away, he was a sweet child. I wonder what he's like now?"
Corrin eventually left the room and met the chancellor who told her that the whole business of the succession was so repugnant to Richter, the King's brother, that he fled the castle forever. The succession was settled with a coin toss and Akira was crowned king of Figaro. She then wandered around some more until she found herself back in the throne room where Akira was sitting on his throne once more.
"Well?" He asked, "How do you like my castle?"
Before the silverette could answer his question a soldier burst into the room.
"King Akira! Someone from the Empire to see you!"
Akira's face quickly contorted into annoyance from the message, "Probably Grima!"
Akira soon got up from his throne and told Corrin to stay there while he took care of it. She nodded as he walked out of the room with Eight following right behind him. Meanwhile, out in the desert, Grima and two Imperial soldiers approached the castle.
"Phooey! Emperor Ganondorf's stupid orders!" Grima huffed as she trudged through the desert, annoyed that she had to do this and not someone else. "Akira, you pinhead! Why do you have to live in the middle of nowhere? These recon jobs are the pits!"
The twintailed mage then turned to the soldiers. "Ahem... there's SAND on my boots!"
The two soldiers immediately rushed over to clean her boots until they got every bit of sand off of them. She let out a horrible and disturbing laugh before insulting the soldiers, which annoyed them but they couldn't do anything about it and marched on with their superior.
It was no secret in the Empire that everyone except Ganondorf hated Grima. Years earlier, she had been the first to undergo Robin's experiments on the Magitek Knights and this gave her great power, but she completely lost her sanity in the process. Grima later became a court mage although she had the role of a general. The snow haired woman loved destruction as she caused the suffering and numerous deaths to others and made macabre jokes about the atrocities she committed with sadism on the verge of the extreme, emitting hysterical and demonic laughter. She even went so far as going into a rage at the slightest provocation or contradiction.
They eventually made to the castle until a guard stopped them.
"Lady Grima! What on earth do-"
"Outta my way!" She rudely pushed past him then continued inside the castle while waiting for Akira to come to the courtyard.
Akira made his way to them and demanded what the three Imperials were doing here. "You've been busy down south! Looking for more cities to destroy? I thought we were allies! What are you doing in my domain?"
"That's for us to know! And allies? The Empire and this back-water, two-bit kingdom?! Quit dreaming!"
He shrugged off the soldiers' insults before turning to Grima. "What brings Grima, humble servant of Emperor Ganondorf, into our lowly presence?"
"A girl of no importance recently escaped from us. We heard she found refuge here," she replied.
"Hmm... this wouldn't have anything to do with this "witch" everyone's been whispering about, would it?"
"Lies! She... merely stole something of minor value. Is she here?"
Akira got the feeling that Grima was lying, and he wanted to tell her that those lies made as much sense as that gaudy black and purple robe she was wearing but he knew it would be a bad thing to say, then internally decided that he would only say it in a joke with the others.
"That's a tough one!" He replied, much to Imperials' shock. "You see, there're more girls here than grains of sand out there. I can't keep track of 'em all!"
Grima chuckled darkly before leaving, "I'd hate to be you if we find out you're lying. I truly hope nothing happens to your precious Figaro!"
It sounded like a real threat that she was making. He sighed before walking back to where Eight was.
"I'd say that lady's missing a few buttons," Eight said as he referred to Grima.
Just as the ravenette asked where Corrin was she walked out the door with a frightened and nervous expression on her face. Her knuckles had turned white from squeezing them so hard in her scared state. Akira instructed the brunette to take her to her room then turned to Corrin.
"I'd love to chat with you, but the Chancellor and I must plan our strategy. Sometimes I hate being a king! If you'll excuse me."
He departed for the throne room when Eight turned to her with a simple "Follow me."
Eight led Corrin to the easternmost tower of the castle which was an empty room with a bed. "Don't you worry 'bout a thing! I'll-"
"You're Eight, right? Akira told me about you. Is it true you're a thief?" She asked him.
"That's TREASURE HUNTER!" He snapped but calmed down when he heard Corrin laugh.
"On the surface, Akira pretends to support the Empire. The truth is, he's collaborating with the Returners, an organization opposed to the Empire. I am his contact with that group. Shulk, the guy you met in Narshe is one of us."
Bewildered, Corrin exclaimed, "Empire... but I'm a soldier of the Empire!"
"That's not true! They were using you! Things are different now."
"I don't understand... What should I do?"
Eight put his hand on Corrin's shoulder as if to assure her, "I can't tell you what to do. You don't have to decide right now. You'll soon find your way, get some rest for now."
He left the room while she stood there confused on what to do currently.
"But how will I know which way is right?" She thought aloud to herself.
With no other choice Corrin went to bed and so did Eight. Akira discussed a strategy with the chancellor then went to sleep as he thought about Corrin. The king wanted to understand if she was important to the Empire but he also wanted to help her as well.