Wow. So apparently time flies faster the older and busier I get. I mean wow. One year? For this little add on? I am ashamed. I didn't even realize it until I looked at the update date on my story summary. I feel a great amount of shame as a writer.
So yeah this is my broken record playing again…I'm sorry. I even had MidnightFenrir poking me with PM's about this story and I still let time get away on me. Here's to procrastination.
On another note I also started another story that distracted me from this one simply because it wouldn't rest till it went down in type. If you're interested in seeing my take on how Link takes on the world of Fairy Tail, check it out my newest undertaking: The Legend of Fairy Tail.
Now for an even greater disappointment…due to how long I let this go there is a massive stack up of reviews that came in (87 in total) and I have reluctantly decided to forgo the Reader Response this time.
This hurts because I received some absolutely wonderful reviews that lit up my day when I got them. I really enjoy replying to them but there's so many this time that it would take me forever. So I will chalk this up to another failure on my part and will strive to avoid a repeat situation.
To all those who reviewed me with positive feedback and constructive criticism, I thank thee from the bottom of my heart! I am not worthy of your praise nor your loyalty!
There was one or two that had some rather uncouth things to say but everyone is bound to get those now and then – hooray for the internet.
So yeah I feel really bad about the delay and even worse over how short this chapter is but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.
So without further ado, here is:
Whom She Found
Chapter 22
Hammering Out a Rebellion
xxx
"By the light of Elimine…"
The phrase spoken by Eliwood was echoed in the thoughts of everyone present. While some of them had some speculation of what Link had planned to do, no one would have expected this. When they saw the tell-tale flash of his teleportation magic disappear into the clouds they wondered if he had some powerful spell to cast from above. The meteor like object that crashed to the ground was perceived as confirmation of such a spell and that alone was enough to leave everyone gaping at the display. But then seeing that monstrosity, even from such a distance, climb out of the crater like it was rolling out of bed: good bye shock, hello awe.
"Well that's…different," Matthew, the first to recover, stated. "Anybody see that one coming?" Several nervous responses in the negative were his reply and he nodded. "Yeah, me either."
"That guy is full of surprises," Erk stated before turning his attention back to the catapult that had so recently launched doom upon the forces of Laus. "But aren't we supposed to do something now?"
"Oh, right," Eliwood blinked. "We're supposed to launch these blue things next." He indicated a pile of head sized spheres next to the war machine.
"What are they again?" Rebecca asked curiously, bending down to examine them.
"Not sure," Eliwood scratched his head. "Never seen anything like them before."
The dark blue spheres each had piece of string coming out of their tops which Link had previously extended and knotted all together to form one big cluster with a single string coming out.
"Still can't believe he pulled all of those things out of that little bag of his," Hector muttered. "I wonder what else he's got in there."
"Who knows? He did say he would need to resupply afterwards," Eliwood shrugged before ordering Dorcas and Bartre to load the catapult again. "I am curious as to what they do though."
The resident spy/thief bent down and prodded one of the objects. "I think he called them 'bombs' and if I remember correctly Erk is supposed to light this long piece here and then we launch them once the flame reaches this knot."
"Simple enough," Hector grunted with crossed arms. "Get to it then!"
A quick snap of Erk's fingers lit the fuse and they watched as the flame burned the string at a surprisingly fast rate with a distinct hissing noise. Matthew stood up straight and grasped the handle trigger in preparation while carefully watching the flame.
"I'm not quite sure why…but I feel the need to shout: BOMBS AWAY!"
A second later saw the entire cluster of spheres soaring through the air. As they flew the bombs separated and spread over a wide area, each with an active fuse burning away…
The group watched as the bombs struck all around the troops of Laus and doing…absolutely nothing.
"Well," Hector grunted and scratched the back of his head in disappointment. "Not sure what the point of that was."
"I agree," Eliwood nodded. "I half expected something a little more-"
His words were cut off as the bombs suddenly detonated in spectacular fashion as a huge series of explosions. The sudden blasts lit up the battlefield like nothing they had ever seen before, decimating the Laus forces. Jaws dropped as the display of fireworks left them all in stunned silence.
Once again, Matthew was the first to recover and his mouth split into a huge grin. "Oh…I have GOT to get me some of those!"
xxx
One of the commanding officers of the Laus forces under Erik couldn't understand this sudden turn of events. One minute he was standing amongst a well-organized force, ready to utterly crush the small band of Pherae's beloved son, and the next all hell had broken loose. First that terrifying hulk of living stone had dropped from the sky and landed right in the middle of their army, which in and of itself would have been a complete game changer, but then these strange objects had started raining down all around it. The resulting fallout of those things had turned the already questionable situation into a complete disaster.
Shouts of panic and screams of terror rang between explosions as the blasts utterly shattered any semblance of order and discipline amongst the troops. Those who were not consumed by flame were buffeted by shockwaves that threw them like rag dolls. Never before had an army faced such an attack and to make matters even worse the giant rock monster wasn't fazed in the slightest by the powerful blasts. Gods, one of the accursed things had gone off right at the behemoth's feet and the thing walked out of the smoke like a person strolled through the rain. This wasn't combat. This was a massacre.
An explosion from behind sent him flying forward and sprawling through the dirt. He groaned as he struggled to push himself up and coughed to get the dust and dirt out of his mouth. It was days like this that really made him question his decision to leave the family business and join the military. Granted he probably would have been conscripted at this point anyway to bolster the secret war efforts but at least he wouldn't have been part of this. Then again an army did need to eat so maybe he would've been one of the few lucky ones to stay at home and bake bread with his father…
Well it was too late to think about it now. He coughed again and rose shakily to his feet. His ears were ringing and his equilibrium was just about shot but he managed it. A shadow fell over him as he tried to get his bearings and he nervously turned to face the wall of stone that was the monster's stomach. He had to crane his neck up to stare at the angry scowl on the creature's face that bore down on him. Yes, baking bread would have been a much better choice. Perhaps he should have stayed down…
xxx
With the explosions having died down the rest of the group took that opportunity to charge forward and engage the enemy on equal terms. Marcus made a particularly grand entrance when he ploughed a straight line through the scattered cavaliers of Laus, showcasing his veteranship and the difference in quality between the soldiers of Laus and Pherae. Lowen, emboldened by his example, was not far behind his mentor and made a sizable contribution to the fight as well. The broad shouldered forms of Dorcas and Bartre added to the disarray caused by Link's Goron transformation with their ferocious offensive. But of the three axe wielders it was Hector who really carved out his mark among the soldiers. Although he had been humbled, and somewhat traumatized, by his fight with Link, that didn't mean that his skills had vanished nor had he turned into a weakling. He was still one of the top fighters amongst his noble peers and his legendary temper drove him to act like the very beast his axe was named after. At this moment, said temper was flaring very high as he stared towards its most recent target.
Laus.
One of the center territories of the Lycian League.
Preparing for war under their very noses.
Traitors one and all.
And if there was one thing Hector hated above all else, it was a traitor.
With those thoughts in mind, coupled with the cowardly attempt on Eliwood's life, the youngest Son of Ostia threw himself savagely against the forces of Laus. There was only one person he wanted to face and his axe would crush anyone who got in his way.
Eliwood tried to keep up with him but was unable to match his friend's ferocity and they soon broke apart. The circumstances did not allow him to dwell on such matters, however, as his thoughts were occupied with his own problems. His rapier, the weapon of a duellist, was well suited to the combat at hand thanks to the chaos sewn amongst the soldiers. War, with its consequences reaching far beyond a single battle, was something the young lord couldn't fathom; but this…this type of skirmish…with multiple small one on one fights…this he could do.
Further to the side, Erk was calmly surveying the area around him and keeping a sharp eye out for any trouble. He stood between the main fighters and the group's two healers, Serra and Priscilla. It was his job to make sure no harm came to them while they used their arts to support the others. It was times like this that he was glad for his experiences with the Legion a year ago. While initially he had wanted nothing more than to pass them by and get his job of escorting Serra over with as soon as possible he had come to realize that joining up with them was the best thing he could have done at the time. He had learned far more than he had expected too when his master had kicked him out of the libraries of Etruria to gain some real world experience. Before he had left he would have doubted his ability to protect his client under such circumstances, but now he was confident enough to waive his fear and replace it with the calm needed to focus properly on his magic. His chance to prove himself came when a pair of footmen made their way towards them.
"Stand back," Erk ordered the two young women and strode forward raising a pair of loose fists in front of him. Thanks to his training with Link and very cautious practice he had learned how to channel his life energy throughout his body just as the Hylian had taught him. While he had not had time to learn any particular spells and didn't dare experiment on his own, he had learned something that brought a new dimension to his magical ability. The young mage took a leaf from Link's book and narrowed his eyes dangerously at the approaching soldiers and focused his magic power. With a low grunt he snapped his hands out towards the ground and fire erupted into life around them. Thanks to his near disastrous experience with Hylian magic in the past, he had learned that he could use his life energy as a spark to start a fire spell and then fuel it with his normal magic energy. While this didn't result in any increase in power it did negate his need to carry a Fire Tome, although it tired him out much quicker.
"Hah!" The young mage thrust his hands forward and unleashed a pair of potent fireballs that blasted the two soldiers away. He smirked at his victory but before he could turn away the baying of a war horse drew his attention to a lone cavalier charging towards him with his lance poised to strike. Erk's eyes widened in alarm and he quickly spun low to the ground, bending his knees for support, and bringing a hand to the Tome clasped at his side. He quickly snapped his other hand forward and a magical bolt of lightning shot forward from his fingertips and struck the cavalier in the chest knocking him clean off his horse. Breathing a quick sigh of relief the mage stood up and shook his hands in a calming manner. Of course, despite his new ability with fire, he still needed Tomes for other forms of attack magic and the Thunder spell was faster and had more concentrated force behind it; a much better choice of attack against the charging cavalier even if it was harder to control. Still Erk was quite pleased with the outcome despite his initial surprise with the cavalier.
"EEEEEE!" Serra squealed in delight at their bodyguard's performance. "That was amazing Erk! You're certainly more reliable now than you were before!"
Leave it to Serra to kill his good mood.
xxx
Erik growled. This was NOT how things were supposed to go! This was meant to be an easy victory and the chance to finally rub the dirt into Eliwood's face! How did it turn out like this?! His ambush had failed rather spectacularly and now his army was being decimated! It wasn't fair! Even after the explosions had died down things hadn't improved. That monster was still wreaking havoc amongst his men and nothing seemed to phase it! To make matters even worse that accursed Eliwood and the rest of his group had joined the fray as well, taking advantage of the disarray to pick off his troops. Things were definitely not going the way he had envisioned.
"Blast!" Erik gnashed his teeth. "They're stronger than I had supposed!" He raised his lance to signal a retreat. "To the castle! I want all the reinforcements available, and I want them now!"
He quickly turned and headed for the gates not knowing the cost his failure would bring.
As Erik tried to rally his troops, one lone soldier rode ahead to meet with the marquess and upon his arrival burst into the throne room.
"My Lord! Lord Erik is struggling! He requests reinforcements!"
"What?" Darin leapt from his throne. "How can this be possible?" He growled in anger and disbelief before snorting. "Ready the men."
But before his order could be carried out the dark shadow known as Ephidel spoke up, his tone emotionless yet still full of condescension.
"Unbelievable… These numbers cannot stop them." It was a simple statement but as he said he turned away and began to leave. Seeing his departure shocked the Marquess of Laus and made him pause.
"Ephidel?" Darin called to him in panic. "W-Where are you going?"
Ephidel slowed briefly and turned his head just enough to stare impassively at the ambitious Lord over his shoulder. "It seems that conquering Lycia might have been too much to ask of you after all." He replied simply. "I must inform my master. The Black Fang will be leaving at once."
"No!" Darin roared in fear. "You… You can't abandon us! Not at this stage!"
The shade turned a single golden eye over his shoulder. The eerie gaze sent shivers down Darin's spine. "Who was it that said Ostia mustn't learn of our plans? Wasn't it you, Lord Darin? The marquess of Laus himself?"
"Y-Yes, it was." Darin admitted. His arrogance and overconfidence had dug his own grave. "There's no turning back for me. Not now! P-P-Please! One more… Give me one more chance. I assure you, I will not disappoint Lord Nergal!"
A heavy silence descended between the two. For Darin, this silence lasted an eternity as the next words spoken by the golden-eyed man would determine his fate. Sweat trickled down his face and his breathing almost stopped completely before…
"Very well…" Ephidel said at last. "Assemble your men. We will regroup elsewhere."
"Eh?" Darin balked. "You can't mean… My son…my home… Am I to abandon them?"
"Would you fall in disgrace along with your son?" Ephidel inquired, his back still turned away from the pitiful man. "Our master, Lord Nergal, is offering you the throne of all Lycia…Surely a few sacrifices are not too much to ask?"
Another pause arose between them as Ephidel's silky words and promises filled the power hungry marquess's mind.
"Yes… You're right." Darin agreed. "My destiny is greater than this. I was born to be king of Lycia."
"And as for an heir?" Ephidel turned away completely and continued his graceful gait out of the throne room. "You're still young, my lord. You will have time. You must not let a moment's sentimentality cloud your judgment."
A brief look of guilt and shame crossed the face of Laus's marquess before he followed the man, abandoning his throne, his home, and his son.
xxx
Erik grit his teeth, a mixture of emotions present in the action. Anger was chief amongst these emotions for the moment but another was quickly rising to contend: Fear. His initial plan for vengeance against Eliwood had failed but he hadn't been too concerned by it; he had an army at his back after all. What could a small band hope to accomplish against such a force?
But now he watched his soldiers fall not one by one, or even two by two. This thing…this…monster that Eliwood had summoned was crushing his men by groups. The panic sewn amongst them made the soldiers completely ineffectual against it and they fell like water breaking against a stone.
Even so, Erik might have been able to salvage the situation. He had quite a few men and if he could rally them together they might have a chance against the monster. But then the rest of Eliwood's party had joined the fray and all thoughts of success were dashed.
Erik's only hope in this battle would be the additional forces from the castle he had requested. Having not been present to witness the shock that had thrown his small army into a panic, the new troops would hopefully be able to maintain their discipline and stand against the behemoth.
But as the creature continued on its inexorable path towards him, Erik felt his fear rise further and further.
"Where are my reinforcements?" He cried out. "Why haven't they come?"
Surely the man he sent had reached the castle by now. His father should've been here already. What was taking him so long?!
He continued to watch and slowly resigned himself. What little pride he had left refused to retreat further in shame when he had assured his father that he could succeed. With his back against the wall he had only one direction to move.
"I've no choice. I must attack!" He growled and pointed his lance to the nearest soldier. "You! To the castle! Find more men and bring them here at once!"
"Yes, my lord!" the man snapped to attention and hurried away, glad to be leaving.
Erik watched him go for a moment before turning his attention back to the problem at hand. A primal roar of fury reached his ears and when he looked for its source he found a familiar blue haired figure storming through his few remaining men.
"ERRIIIIIIK!" Hector roared and smashed his way past the last of Erik's personal guard. His eyes burned with rage as they locked on to the cowardly son of Laus. "YOU TRAITOROUS SWINE! HOW DARE YOU! THIS TIME I WILL HAVE YOUR HEAD!"
The son of Laus tightened his grip on his lance, his hatred for Hector quelling all his fears.
"Traitor!" He roared back and brandished his weapon in challenge. "You ignorant fool! Laus is the true throne of Lycia! Taste my lance!"
He spurred his horse into a charge and aimed his lance at Hector's chest. The young Ostian lord roared in response and ran to meet him. He leapt high into the air, swinging his battle axe high over head as he did, and came down with crushing force on the mounted man.
Erik somehow managed to avoid being killed but he was knocked clean from his saddle and both men landed in a tangled heap on the ground. Unfortunately for Erik, such a position was entirely in Hector's favour and was one he had been in several times before. This was not the first time a fight between the two of them had resulted in a brawl and Hector had never been bested in such a manner before. On his horse Erik might have stood a chance, but here on the ground he lost and both he and Hector knew it.
That didn't stop Hector from bludgeoning his hapless victim with his gauntleted fists, however. His rage had always been an issue that clouded his judgement and actions and right now he was seeing red. He rained blow after blow upon Erik's hapless form, striking with neither rhyme nor reason anywhere he could. Erik tried to guard himself as best he could, burying his face behind his arms and curling up as much as possible under Hector's bulky form. He had minimal success.
Suddenly Hector's assault was halted when a pair of arms wrapped under his from behind and hauled him backwards. Hector roared again and thrashed against this new obstacle.
"That's enough, Hector!" Eliwood shouted and tightened his grip, using the leverage the position gave him to match his friend's strength. "It's over!"
And indeed it was. What few troops had survived the fight had retreated to the castle as soon as they saw their lord fall. As Hector, still in Eliwood's hold, took several deep breaths to quell his rage he was able to make out the others who had all gathered around them. He then gazed at the battered and bruised form of Erik who was lying motionless and whimpering underneath him. After another moment he grunted and shook himself free of Eliwood who willingly let go in response.
The two friends drew themselves up their full height and Hector stalked over to retrieve his axe which had fallen several feet away.
"Alright, what now?" Hector asked as he rested the weapon on his shoulder.
"Now we go to the castle and get some answers." Eliwood replied.
"Right," Hector nodded and stopped down to seize Erik by the collar. "Better take this idiot with us. Come on, Erik! Get up!
"Ack!" Erik coughed. "I am no one's prisoner! Unhand me!" He gave a garbled cry as Hector dragged him to his feet.
"Be grateful you're still alive," Hector growled and proceeded to frog march the Lausian noble towards his own castle.
"You… You peasants…You can't treat a proper noble like this!"
"It's a little late for niceties! Now shut up before lose my temper again!"
Erik tried to turn a glare at him but his rough treatment forced him to focus all his attention on moving forward lest he stumble and fall again.
"Keep an eye out for archers on the battlements," Eliwood ordered as they approached the gates.
Hector snorted in response. "What for? They won't shoot as long as we have their lord."
"Perhaps so, but it's best to be wary of them either way."
As it turned out, they had nothing to fear from any ranged defenders, although the reason for this wasn't because of their hostage. There simply weren't any archers present. Nor were there any other guards that they could see. This fact was more than a little worrying for the party since the castle should have had any number of men lined on the walls, especially one under attack. But they only defense that they encountered was the heavy portcullis that blacked their path into the castle bailey.
"Hah!" Erik roared in triumph. "You'll never get in now! There's no one around to raise the gate for you and you can't do it with your little band of rabble!"
He had initially been quite distressed by the lack of men manning the walls and even more distressed by the fact that his reinforcements still hadn't come for him. But now his anger and desperation made him grasp at whatever straws he could. He knew he was in no real danger since the cowardly Eliwood would never allow harm to come to a prisoner under his charge. Therefore he felt no fear from antagonizing him.
His face lit up with glee when he saw Eliwood's crestfallen expression and Hector's clenched teeth at his statement, but the smugness was soon wiped from his face when he heard a chorus of derisive snorts coming from behind them. All three men turned to the direction of the sounds to find their source. While Erik didn't know it, the sounds were made by all those who had once been a part of Lyndis's Legion.
What Erik had said may have been true under normal circumstances; after all, their small party was by no means equipped for a siege, but there was one little fact that Erik had forgotten in his haste to get the last laugh on his hated rivals.
"Gate?" A deep and powerful voice rung in their ears and all attention turned to the hulking mass of living stone standing amongst them. The sound was startling, very different from the voice everyone had grown accustomed to hearing from the Hylian warrior. It was thick, heavy, and carried a distinct rumbling overtone that one might expect to feel at the base of an active volcano. Darunia, the chief of the Goron tribe on Death Mountain sounded very much the same. His normally jovial nature and hearty laughter filled such a voice with life and brought many smiles and a sense of comfort to all those around.
But not now.
Here on the battlefield, with Link's stern expression and massive hammer: it was damn frightening.
Goron's were a peaceful, brotherly race. They enjoyed life and could happily spend days on end lounging in the sun. They could also be quite industrious despite their easy going nature, diligently mining the precious minerals within the volcano and Goron craftsmanship was renowned throughout the country. Very few Goron's had any propensity towards violence and many could actually be considered pushovers in terms of verbal confrontation; big rocks don't have to resist much to make them difficult to move physically.
However, despite their nature, no one ever dismissed the fact that Goron's were a very powerful race. There was a popular saying in Hyrule to 'Never drop the Goron off a cliff' which was often shortened to 'don't drop the Goron' because, like the earth itself, they were slow to anger but once roused their wrath was terrible.
Goron's were amongst the strongest creatures in all of Hyrule, even the smallest of them could lift boulders bigger than themselves, and they were incredibly tough. Their armoured backs were all but impervious to conventional forms of attack and even their softer fronts were tough enough to chip blades. They thrived inside an active volcano for Goddesses' sake, ate rocks, and drank lava! They even actively worked to keep said volcano's state under control. Death Mountain erupted regularly and the Goron's helped mitigate the intensity of the eruptions and could even reduce the amount of ash that billowed forth from it. Being able to curb a literal force of nature says something about a race and that was just considering the average Goron.
Some Gorons grew to enormous sizes and their abilities grew with them. Biggoron, the largest of the Goron's and a smith who used its summit as a forge, had once taken an eruption directly to the face when he was concentrating on his work and all it had done to him was irritate his eyes like a Hylian with hay fever.
But the scariest of them all were the few that actually trained as warriors. Goron's like Darunia and Darmani who were larger, tougher, and by far more powerful than normal. They were the chiefs, the heroes, and the pride of the Goron race: strong enough to rend the earth with a mere stomp of their feet and capable of channelling the power of fire to devastating effect in a fight. And it was one of these Goron's that Link was currently transformed as.
He strode towards the gate without hesitation, parting the people before him as he walked. A year ago he had used the Silver Gauntlets in his normal form to lift the gates of Caelin without wrecking them. They were ancient Goron crafted items once stolen by the Gerudo Thieves that greatly enhanced the wearer's physical strength, but even they did not make him as strong as he was now. To top it off, he was also wielding the Megaton Hammer, a mighty weapon forged for an ancient ancestor of Darunia in the heart of Death Mountain and capable of causing small earthquakes on its own. As he was now it wouldn't matter if Ganon himself had dropped a mountain in his path, he could just go through it. A simple castle gate was no obstacle at all.
And he had no compulsion against breaking this one.
Link didn't even bother slowing down, he just stepped up to the portcullis swung the huge hammer back in one massive hand and smashed it into the poor defenceless metal barrier.
BOOOM!
The sound of impact as the heavy gate literally exploded inward out of its fastening was deafening. It sailed in a straight line as a crumpled mass of steel almost unrecognisable in form and crashed with another ear-splitting impact against the walls of the keep.
"What gate?"
xxx
Eliwood had expected to find many things upon entering the keep. He had expected to find another force within waiting to contend them, he had expected to see the traitorous Lord Darin demanding the release of his son, and he had expected to find answers. What he did not expect to find was a deserted castle. But that was what they found. The castle was empty, barren of life. Only a few servants had been found in the dungeons and a number of inconspicuous spots. Marquess Laus was nowhere in sight.
After a fruitless search of the grounds, Eliwood turned to the one person who could shed some light on this new development.
"Erik, you must tell me. Where is your father? We've searched the entire castle, and there's no one here."
Erik gave a start at this but tried to cover it up with false bravado. "D-Don't be ridiculous!"
But Eliwood shook his head. "He's not here, Erik. No one is."
"But that's…that's impossible!" Erik shouted. "My father would not abandon…"
"But he has!" Hector cut in angrily. "Why else would the castle be empty?"
"No!" Erik protested weakly. "He'd never…" He paused as a sudden thought struck him and he breathed out a slow whisper of realization. "Ephidel…"
It was quiet but Eliwood had heard it.
"Ephidel? Who's that?"
Hearing his inquiry, Erik instantly shut his mouth. He had spoken too much and the Black Fang would know if he spoke further. But Hector was having none of that. He seized the smaller man once more by the collar and shook him vigorously.
"Speak, cur!" He roared, drowning out Erik's cry of alarm. "Do you want to die here?"
"Hector!" Eliwood jumped forward and quickly separated the two. There was a moment's pause as he looked at his friend before turning to the young lord of Laus. "Erik…please. You must tell us everything you know. I… I just want to know where my father is."
Erik hesitated for a moment. He held nothing but hatred for these two men and abhorred the thought of helping them in any way. However, he never did trust Ephidel and now his father had apparently abandoned him to the wolves. Recent events had not gone anywhere near as planned and now…he sagged in defeat.
"Ephidel…" He spoke slowly, still nervous about betraying the Black Fang agent. "He appeared at the castle one year ago. He came…and my father changed." He glared at Hector. "Ostia's position had always bothered my father… He felt Laus deserved to rule all of Lycia. But he'd never gone so far as to speak of rebellion."
Hector straightened in alarm.
"Did you say…rebellion?"
Erik didn't respond, but continued on. "Ephidel had something… With it, he convinced my father to set this plan in motion. My father then sent envoys to several other marquesses." He then turned a cruel smirk to Eliwood. "Marquess Pherae had approved of the idea."
The statement had the desired effect.
"What?!" Hector roared again at the same time Eliwood also shouted. "Never! My father would never agree to such a thing!"
Erik simply shrugged in response but the smirk never left his face.
"Believe or disbelieve. That is your choice. First was Marquess Santaruz. Then Marquess Pherae's reply arrived. Marquess Pherae visited here six months ago to seal his approval."
Eliwood swallowed in shock and took a step back, reeling from the information.
"That's not… possible…"
Erik shrugged again. "My father and yours argued vehemently that day. Marquess Pherae always distrusted Ephidel. He tried to convince my father to send Ephidel and the Black Fang assassins out of Lycia. My father would not be persuaded, and Marquess Pherae left the castle. As you know, he then disappeared. I doubt he's still alive."
"No!" Eliwood's cry of alarm was filled with pain and denial.
Hector grabbed Erik again, this time with both hands. "Shut your mouth!"
Erik merely grinned triumphantly.
"Eliwood said he wanted to hear everything. My father… He is but Ephidel's puppet. He'll listen to anything that villain says. Even watch his own son…die…..." His smirk widened maniacally. "Those are the sort of people you're dealing with. Marquess Pherae betrayed them. They would not let him live!"
He burst out into a fit of cruel mocking laughter as Eliwood turned and dashed from the room.
"Wait! Eliwood!" Hector called after his friend. "Dammit!"
He turned and slugged a fist into Erik's jaw, dropping him to the ground and effectively silencing his laughter, before chasing after his friend.
Eliwood had made it outside by the time Hector caught up with him. He found his friend staring into the sky with clenched fists and he moved to comfort him.
"Eliwood…" he began but he was cut off.
"My father is alive!" Eliwood declared. "He's alive…And… I cannot believe he supports…rebellion. There must be… There has to be a reason…"
Hector nodded and stepped up beside him. "I know. I don't believe any of this for an instant. My brother trusted Marquess Pherae more than anyone. First, we'll find your father and uncover the truth. We'll talk to my brother after that."
Eliwood turned sadly to his best friend. "Hector, I'm sorry…"
But Hector lightly cuffed him upside the head. "Don't look like that. Your father is surely alive. Right? We'll find him."
Eliwood shook himself lightly before smiling determinedly.
"Yes, of course… Marquess Laus… Black Fang assassins… Now this mysterious Ephidel… I'll find them all and prove my father's innocence!"
xxx
A/N: Yeah so super short chapter this time around, but honestly there wasn't really a whole lot to write about. I initially planned for it to be longer but as I went through it I deleted scenes because they were kind of redundant and I could accomplish what I needed in less. So it became shorter. Hopefully it was enjoyable nonetheless. Next chapter however, is going to see Lyndis's Legion reunited at last! That's gonna be fun! So yeah, next one will be better.
On another note: Hyrule Warriors baby! Thank you for existing! I've sunk WAAAAAY too many hours into that game. I hearts it sooo much!
On another, another note I'm working up the nerve to propose to my girlfriend. Just need to figure out how to do it. Sigh…if only she was more of a Zelda fan….totally would have a Zelda themed wedding…
Well that's all for now. Until next time: please R&R!