We watched as Teach cautiously maneuvered toward Kronya. My head swiveled around trying to discern the next best move for me. I was to lead Felix and Slyvain to the right of side of the courtyard while Hilda, Marianne and Ignaz circled on the left. Byleth would cut up the center with Raphael. We were to hit Kronya hard on the outside of the courtyard where we had more cover. Then when she was weakened, Teach would launch an assault on her with the blade of the creator.
Once in position, I felt the calm of battle settle over me.
No shaking. No distractions.
Byleth needed us to weaken Kronya enough so that Teach wouldn't have to tussle too much with her. I could see she was starting to slow down. Her steps were just a half a second slower. It was just enough for me to know that she had started pushing toward her limit.
She tried to be everywhere on the battlefield. Worried about all of us. Never wanting to put any of us in a situation where we might not make it home. She always somehow managed to be there right in the moment we needed her most. Right at a moment an arrow would pierce one of our hearts or an unseen enemy would come from behind to strike us down. In an instant, there she was. Like she knew it would happen.
She could only do so much though. As amazing as she was. She was still human. At least I think she was. The battles seem to deplete her more and more. Yet she continued to push herself to the limit.
With a steely resolve I nodded to my companions and raised my arm in signal. Ignaz started with firing off two arrows in rapid succession. He fired the first one slightly to the left and the second one slightly to the right of Kronya, trapping her in between the arrows like we practiced. At the same time Slyvain fired off a magic fireball. Kronya tried to dodge the fireball right into one of Ignatz arrows. It wasn't a deadly strike but it dug deep into her arm and she let off a groan of pain. I was up next, putting everything I had into this arrow aiming for her heart. I could feel my power well up in my chest building and building until it was released with my bowstring sending the arrow flying straight and true. My arrow hit its mark and Kronya let out a blood curdling scream. Her head whipped to me with fury in her eyes. Grabbing the shaft of the arrow she viciously yanked it from her chest and began to advance on my position. Felix and I started to run to intercept her. It was a long distance to the courtyard but a piercing battle cry made Sylvain and I stop short.
We looked away from Kronya to see Byleth moving with inhuman speed towards her. The Sword of the Creator was raised and ready to strike. As she neared, she dropped the sword to her side letting the tip of it scrape along the concrete leaving sparks in her wake. Byleth was gliding toward her with death in her eyes. Kronya stopped her advance on me and Sylvain, her eyebrows raising in fear at the threat that was now barreling towards her. She recovered from herself quickly and braced for the onslaught. Her legs widened into a defensive stance as she waited for Teach to make her move.
Byleth reminded me of a dancer as she advanced. She was intoxicating to watch. I watched in amazement as the events unfolded in slow motion for me. I could see the muscles in her thighs shift as she feigned left then adjusted her body to ariel over Kronya. While her body hurdled over the now off-balance Kronya she swiped downward with her sword striking true. Kronya fell with another scream. Byelth turned and made eye contact with me. While her face maintained the cold and emotionless mask she wore. I could see sadness brewing in her eyes as she turned to finish Kronya.
Purple light pulsed in between Teach and Kronya. My heart jumped into my throat and a feeling of dread settled over me.
I had to get to her now.
I launched back into a full sprint and could feel my companions following closely behind me. Through the light I could see Solon appear.
We didn't prepare for this. It was a trap. With Kronya as the bait and Teach as the prize.
Right before I reached the courtyard, walls of purple flames erupted around it sealing us out. Sealing her in.
"No!" I screamed and skidded to a stop. Feeling the heat licking at my skin. I raised my arm to protect my face from a rogue flamed that lashed out at me.
"TEACH!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. I tried desperately to see what was happening inside the courtyard. I could see glimpse of her between the flames flaring dangerously close to me.
I raised my bow trying desperately to get enough of a view to launch an arrow. To do anything but sit here, helpless to do anything. I could only get a glimpse every few seconds. I could see Solos holding Kronya… Then Kronya was on the floor reaching towards Byleth like she was asking Teach to save her… Then she was dead, but not by Teach's hand. Teach was still standing unnaturally still like she had invisible bonds tying her.
Then I lost her.
I became frantic thinking she must have moved, she must be somewhere in the flames erupting. But I couldn't see her and my blood ran cold. No. No, no, NO! The flames dissipated and my heart stopped in that moment. The moment I realized she really was gone.
Panic seized me. The roaring inside my head nearly drove me to a frenzy. Only my fellow golden Deers kept me from launching myself at Solos with a hand placed on my shoulder. I didn't turn to look at them. Instead my eyes were focused wholly on the dark demon standing in front of me.
"Wh-What was that? Where did you go Professor?" Hilda stuttered out. As if she was hoping Teach was just playing a joke. Solon turned to her looking down his nose as he gloated.
"She was swallowed by the mystical darkness of the forbidden spell." He grinned wickedly at me which made my blood start boiling as he continued. "An eternity wandering in a void of nothingness, never to return to this world…." His smug grin turned into a disappointed frown. "To think we almost had the Sword of the Creator…"
Lysithea blurted out then "I don't believe anything you say! Our professor is still alive!" Flayn joined in next to her.
"That's right! Our professor is no ordinary human!" She shouted indignantly. My temper had reached it's end as I stepped toward Solon.
"I refuse to believe Teach would die in a place like this!" Solon stared hard at me as he replied.
"It is possible that death has yet to find your friend." His voice dropped an octave as he said the next sentence. "But there are worse things than death… Drifting through the darkness with no chance of escape… Overwhelmed with hopelessness…. It must be tortuous." He smiled at me, seemingly delighting in seeing how his words affected me. I wouldn't let him him know how deep those words cut to me. The thought of Byleth forever alone in the dark stirred an anger within me I never knew existed. Instead I tried to deflect, to stay strong for my team, and stay strong for Teach. She had to come back to us. Come back to me.
"Hey, all I hear is good news, Teach is still alive." I said with as much snark as I could muster. "And if that's true then there is only one thing to do. Defeat you while we wait for Teach's triumphant return." I stared him down defiantly.
"Prepare yourself. We will avenge our leader here and now." Leonie came up behind me threatening Solon.
"How trite." He chuckled at us before turning serious. "But if you wish for pain than I shall oblige." He replied darkly. "If you prefer it so, you shall also be added to the ranks of the dead!"
As one we took up our battle stances. Waiting for Solon to make the first move. He smiled triumphantly at me but it was soon replaced with shock as a bright red light appeared before him. It was as bright as the sun and I had to shield my eyes to look at it. I saw a sword cutting through the air as if it were tearing into our reality. Solon gaped at the phenomenon and spoke to himself. "So the Fell Start consumes even the darkness itself."
That's when she reappeared. Coming out of the cut in our reality she just made. I was paralyzed with relief. She came back to us. I smiled then. A real smile that I could feel turn up the corners of my eyes. I didn't realize how much the dread had been weighing me down until it was release at the sight of her face, beautiful and triumphant as she looked at Solon. The Red glowing behind her illuminating her frame and her hair, which looked to be lighter. It looked like her, but she was different. Changed somehow.
"Teach… You are teach right? I always believed in you… I knew you could cut your way out of anything." I had so many questions for her. Wanted to know everything that had happened. "Let's go ahead and take down Solon then reflect on what happened later." She half turned to me and gave me a wink. That look ignited a fire in me as I readied my bow for her signal. Solon stared bewildered at Byleth.
"What did you see in the darkness of Zaharas? This should be impossible. The only being that can withstand that darkness is….." I was burning to hear what he was going to say but Solon seemed to catch himself. " Unless I dispose of you myself I may never have the chance to send you back there."
That's when Byleth moved. I ran to her. Wanting to be there to have her back, afraid I might lose her again. We worked in tandem together. Me firing arrows at foes who advanced on us and she finished them off when they got too close. She seemed to fight with renewed strength and purpose. She kept glancing at me in the corner of her eye. As if scared to lose sight of me as well. What DID she see in the darkness? A thought to ponder and find out later. For now I needed to focus on taking down Solon. He would pay for this, and I wanted to be the one to make him pay.
We cut our way through the enemies until it was me and Teach to face Solon. He looked darkly at me as he taunted. "You're very protective of your professor boy. You play a dangerous game. I can see the hate in your eyes. Now tell me, are you man enough to take your revenge?" He spread his arms wide as if daring me to attack first. His smile was my undoing and I was moving to raise my bow but Byleth was there in an instant standing between me and Solon sword raised and ready. She was closer to me than I had thought. She blocked me from his view forcing me to halt my attack. Her voice was pained and tired as she said to me over her shoulder. "Don't act rashly, I need you to wait for my move first. Don't let him get close to you." The renewed strength she had was suddenly gone. Oddly I could see fear in her eyes, but not fear of Solon, but fear of something I couldn't place. I nodded at her but added.
"I've got your back." She smiled tightly at me before exploding on Solon. He actions were fierce and deadly. She held nothing back. Her movements weren't as calculated as before. They were wilder, more personal, as she thrashed at Solon unrelentingly. Whenever Solon managed to break away from her, I made sure he had to dodge and arrow from me. Keeping him from gathering enough composure to send any magic towards Byleth. We continued this dance for long, agonizing minutes. I didn't feel the muscles in my arms as I continued my unrelenting barrage of arrows.
Finally, Teach made her move.
Solon made the fatal mistake of moving to block her feign right and she made the death blow moving to her crouch stance and swinging around to the left in a horizontal arch. Down he went. Disappearing into purple flames.
She was breathing hard and I moved to her without thinking. I felt an overwhelming need to touch her, to make sure she was real and here with me.
"Well, I think we have a lot to talk about. What happened Teach? Where did you… " She collapse onto the ground.
"Teach, Teach! Are you…. Sleeping?" The power must have been too draining for her body to handle. As the rest of the team approached, I scooped her into my arms. Her head lulled sideways to rest against my chest. My arms tightened instinctively around her. The rest of the team cast worried glances at her. I just gave them a reassuring nod and continued on my way.
….
Back at the academy we waited anxiously for Manuela to look over Teach. As we waited I observed my fellow Golden Deers as my mind ran through all the events on the battle field. Raphael was stuffing his face, Hilda was pacing back and forth in front of the door, Leonie was twirling her lance in hand. Over and over I replayed the events in my head. Trying to piece everything together and come up with missing puzzle pieces to make the whole picture.
The door opening had me straightening against the wall I was leaning on interrupting my thoughts. Manuela appeared with the same flirtatious smile she always wore.
"Your professor is right as rain again." Just a little fainting spell from exhaustion as far as I can tell. Her smile disappeared and her brow furrowed as she considered her next words. "I still have no explanation for why your professor looks the way she does now though." She shrugged and stepped aside and Teach stepped into the doorway. She raised her eyebrows when she saw us standing in the hall waiting for her.
"What's the matter Teach? Didn't think we'd leave until we made sure you were alright did you?" I joked with her. Her surprise turned into a smile as she took us all in.
"I'm doing well, thank you all for being here."
"As talkative as ever I see." I winked at her. She just half smiled at me and started to move down the hallway. I easily fell in step with her as the others dissipated back to their respective hangouts. "Teach, I'd really love to know what happened to you. If you're feeling up to it that is." I added. She nodded to me.
"I think I can manage that." She diverted her path to take us to the bench in the courtyard across from our classroom. I waited until she sat down and took my spot next to her stretching out my arms to rest on top of the back of the bench. We sat close enough to speak without being overheard but not too close that might be deemed inappropriate for a student and teacher. Though I tended to dance on that line with her quite a lot recently. It was hard to not think of her as more than a professor, especially with us being so close in age. She never let me go past that line however and I didn't push it. I was more of a tease when it came to pushing those boundaries. I was always testing where and when I could walk the line and when I needed to back off.
"Well don't keep a guy waiting Teach." I smiled at her, then turned serious as I looked her over. "What happened back there?"
….
I considered my words carefully. Debating with myself how much to tell him about what happened. I wanted to fidget under his stare but remained still where I was as he assessed me. Sighing, I finally decided to tell him everything. So I started with the beginning.
"The day you and the other house leaders came into my life I felt like I was finally waking from a long dream. I had dreams about a girl, a young girl. With hair that looks like mine now. She was always sitting on a throne. I don't remember much about the dreams just her face. The day you came into my life I remembered we had a conversation. She mentioned awakening and wondered who I was and why we were speaking. Eventually she remembered her name as Sothis. After coming to the academy I started to experience, well… everything. Thoughts and emotions I never felt before. Not to say I was completely emotionless but just muted before. I guess to compare it's like I use to see the world in black and white and now I can see colors and textures that I've never even knew existed. Every day my emotions get stronger, almost overwhelming at times, but I guess that's what it's like for everyone, every day." I watched him expectantly. Could see the wheels turning behind his eyes.
"So is this Sothis a manifestation of your soul? Or another soul that lives inside of you?" He pondered.
" I think she is another soul inside of mine but tied with mine. As if one cannot live without the other." I sighed again and continued. "Anyway, When Solon sent me into the darkness she was there again. She told me the only way we could both leave that place is to completely become one. So she fused with my soul and gave me her power so I could come back to all of you." I made eye contact with him and waited for the questions I knew he would have.
"So… this Sothis. She is the Goddess Sothis?" He asked unbelievingly.
"Yes." There was a pause as he took in the information. He ran a hand through his hair and let out a whistle. I looked away from him as I softly spoke. "There's something else too." The tone in my voice made him focus his attention back on me. I took a deep breath and looked up at him through my lashes.
"I can go back in time."
The statement hung there between us. Neither one of us moved except the rising and falling of our chests. I waited for him to react. To laugh or assume I was lying. Ask for proof. Instead he stared deeply into my eyes as if searching for Sothis herself. The only movement he made was a nod encouraging me to continue. I took a steadying breath before going on.
"Sothis gave me the ability to turn back time. But only for short periods. I've been using this power on the battlefield to save you all when you were in trouble." As I uttered the words I could see the puzzle pieces fitting together in his mind.
"Turning back time takes a lot out of you doesn't it?" His question surprised me. I raised my eyebrows at him and replied.
"Yes." He nodded at me. He rubbed his hand along his jaw against the small stubble that was there. When you came back and Solon was baiting me that final time. Did you…" he cleared his throat. "Did you use it then?" He has surprised me for the second time in this conversation. I tilted my head and assessed him while he waited. Looking away from those piercing green eyes I could feel a bob in my throat as the images flashed in my mind.
"You're very protective of your professor boy. You play a dangerous game. I can see the hate in your eyes. Now tell me, are you man enough to take your revenge?" I didn't expect Claude to react to the obvious bait that Solon was giving him. Claude had always kept a clear head during battles so when he lunged at Solon, bow in hand raised I had been too late to stop him. I ran to try and intercept them. To give Claude backup. Claude had fired off two arrows but Solon had been expecting them. His smile was lupine as he patiently waited for Claude to close the distance. I ran as hard as I could every step drawing me closer and closer to Solon. I raised the Sword of the Creator and launched it out straight for Solon. But at that same moment Solon sent a blast of purple flames to towards Claude. Both hit their target at the same time. Both fell backwards. I let out a scream as I watched Claude's body hit the ground a hole torn in his chest. Purple flames still simmering around him as he lay. Instantly I reached for that well of power. It was a familiar warm glow and I focused on that moment. The moment I wanted to go back to. To stop him from lunging at him. I felt myself snap back into that moment. I moved and cut off Claude before he could take a step towards him.
"Yes." I could feel that overwhelming emotion threaten to take a hold of me as the vision of him falling burned in my mind. I could feel his eyes on me searching my face taking in whatever information he was finding in my expression.
"How many times have you used it?" He asked carefully.
"Twelve." I replied too quickly. The emotion in me again rising as each death I went back and prevented resurfaced. My breathing quickened and I struggled to maintain my composure. I had seen almost all of them die. Some more than once and with each day the memories seemed to hurt me more and more. Claude shifted closer to me as if sensing I was losing control.
"How many times has it been me?" I looked at him then. Forced myself to face him.
"Twice." My voice betrayed me and cracked saying the word. "The first time, you… you took an arrow for me. The second was Solon." Suddenly he pulled me into an embrace. Shocked I was paralyzed in his arms. Slowly I returned his embrace. He seemed to relax once I had hugged him back.
"Thank you." He breathed in my ear and let me go moving back to a respectable distance. "You don't have to deal with all of this alone you know. We're here for you, all of us. You're the reason we all are here together. Why I know we're going to change the world. Together." The promise was there in his eyes. A new emotion stirred in me as I took in that promise.
"Together it is."