Foot of Mount Prism…
The shepherds and their allies had traveled for an entire day in order to get to Mount Prism as soon as possible. Given that Grima had already been resurrected in their timeline, Lucina repeatedly stressed the urgency of the situation.
By the time they had arrived, everyone had been completely and utterly exhausted. Seeing that they had already made it to the actual mountain without encountering any resistance, Chrom decided that it was fine for everyone to take a couple of hours in order to rest. The mess tent was erected immediately, but no one bothered to set up the personal ones. After all, the purpose of this break was just to eat. They still had a mountain to climb before they could even think about falling asleep.
Chrom had it even worse. When everyone gets an opportunity to rest at the summit, he had to be prepared to undergo the Awakening ceremony at Naga's shrine. According to Tiki, if the willpower of the nominee was not strong enough, the flames of Naga would consume their soul, killing them forever. Even though Lucina had survived the ritual, she still had a lot to endure, and it had only been done with four of the five gemstones. With all five gemstones, Chrom would have to endure something significantly more severe than Lucina's awakening. However, should he be able to survive it, the power bestowed upon him would also be much greater than what Lucina was able to attain.
Though Robin was worried, Chrom had repeatedly reassured him that he would be able to complete the Awakening. Seeing as there was not much he could do besides believe in his friend, Robin let the matter slide. After all, if Chrom does not succeed, there would be little hope left for humanity. Therefore, the only scenario he should worry about is what they should do after Chrom completes the Awakening.
Soon, dinner was ready. Due to the abnormally large amount of people, multiple mess halls were set up, and ultimately, the soldiers all ate with their fellow countrymen. Only the soldiers from Rosanne, including Virion and Cherche, ate with the shepherds. Chrom had insisted that since there were only around a dozen or two of them anyways, there wasn't a reason to set up a tent and make them cook for themselves. There was plenty of space, even with these Rosannese guests, provided that their wyverns were not allowed inside, of course.
The food itself wasn't anything fancy, and it had also been made in a hurry, leaving it somewhat bland. However, no one had the appetite to truly care, as most people were severely anxious about what was to come in the upcoming confrontation with Grima. The tent was relatively silent as the shepherds ate their food, and the pleasant small talk and side conversations usually present was nowhere to be seen.
The only exception was the mess tent for the Feroxi soldiers. Evidently, they were not as worried about having to fight, even if the odds were against them. Instead, they were busy celebrating the valiant return of Basilio, someone that was presumed dead long ago.
Lucina had actually wanted to have a conversation with Robin. She had been itching to talk about the plan that he and Chrom had hatched behind her back. However, seeing him deep in contemplation, coupled with the fact that anything they talked about would not have the cover of background noise, she eventually decided against it. There would be some time for that in the near future.
After everyone had eaten, the mess tents were immediately torn down and the shepherds began their march up the mountain. The higher up the mountain they went, the more vibrant their surroundings became. Not a single trace of conflict could be seen in the lush fields of grass.
"It's beautiful…" Lissa sighed.
"Yes." Lucina nodded in agreement. "The Divine Dragon's power flows through every blade of grass here."
As they kept walking, everyone seemed to become more and more relaxed, as if the atmosphere was comforting them, saying everything was going to be fine. Robin noticed that Chrom had unclenched his fists, and even had a blissful demeanor across his face.
At the top of the mountain stood a shrine, dedicated to Naga. After a short deliberation, it was decided that the shepherds would accompany Chrom into the shrine while everyone else stood guard on the outside.
Although Cherche, Virion, and even Say'ri were invited to go with them to see the interior of the shrine, they had all politely refused. The Awakening ceremony was meant as a sacred ritual for the Ylissean nobles, they argued, so there was no reason for them to be present.
Once inside, Chrom patted Lucina's shoulder in order to comfort her. "I'm going up to the altar… wait here… I'll be back."
"Be careful, Chrom…" Lissa whispered towards his departing figure. "Come back alive."
"We must believe in him, Aunt Lissa." Lucina told her, although deep down, she knew that she was actually trying to erase her own worries. "He'll come back."
"Milord, do you need me to whisper the correct phrases of the Awakening to you?" Frederick pestered him as Chrom walked towards the altar. "I've committed the entire ritual to memory. Just give the word and I'll be right here to aid you."
"No need, no need." Chrom brushed him aside. "I've memorized it all myself. Just go back with the others and await my good news."
"Are you sure, milord?" Frederick asked once again. "'Twould do us no good for you to make an error."
"You're looking down on me too much!" Chrom complained. "Stop being so anxious. I can do this."
With that, Frederick finally begrudgingly backed away and rejoined the other shepherds a good distance away from the altar.
Facing the altar, Chrom saw not only the place where he can hang up the completed Fire Emblem, but also a chink in the ground where he can plant Falchion. He immediately placed both items in their required positions.
Chrom raised his arms towards the ceiling. "Hear me, Naga! I bear proof of our sacred covenant! In the name of the exalted blood, I ask for the divine dragon's power! Baptize me in fire, that I may become your true son!"
Responding to the power of the Fire Emblem as well as Chrom's monologue, a column of white light erupted from the altar, surrounding Chrom and cutting him off from the rest of the shepherds. Chrom cried out in pain.
"Father!" Lucina exclaimed with a worried expression on her face.
"I'm… alright." Chrom insisted. Indeed, he had been severely surprised. After getting used to it, Chrom realized that the light was not that harsh. Instead, he began to feel the warm embrace surrounding him.
"Be welcome, Awakener…" A regal, female voice replied. Heads turned, only to find Tiki in a trance like state, her eyes glowing a translucent, blue-green color. It was obvious that Naga was talking through her. "Your heart has been tested and deemed worthy! Cleansed in my fire, your desire has proven to be stronger!"
Chrom turned around to face Tiki, inadvertently facing the rest of the shepherds as well.
"Then will you grant me the power to defeat Grima?" he asked. "The power of a god?"
"That is a power that I myself do not possess." Naga lamented. "For you see, Grima and I are opposites of each other. He has the power of destruction, while I possess the power of creation. I lack the ability to kill him even a single time, whereas although it is possible for him to destroy me, he cannot stop by regeneration. Throughout all of time, the two of us have been at a stalemate."
"Then… what power CAN you give me?" Chrom asked.
"I can offer your this…" Tiki raised her hand, and a powerful flame erupted from the altar, completely shrouding Falchion. Once the flame subsided, the edges of Flachion flickered a deadly crimson-orange color. "With my blessing, thou may draw forth Falchion's true might: The blade of the Exalts shall once again strike like a dragon's fang. Your strength will then be my equal."
"But not enough to slay Grima?" Chrom asked.
"Alas, Grima cannot be slain for good." Naga sighed. "Sleep alone can be your victory. Just as your ancestors put him to sleep a few millennia ago. But you must weaken him first. Only as the final blow can my power be used to bind his."
"Isn't there ANY way to truly get rid of him?" Lissa asked.
"...There is, perchance." Naga finally responded after a brief moment of hesitation, or perhaps deep thought. "A power to truly end Grima… however… 'twould be his own."
"He has to kill himself?" Frederick translated.
"Yes, although he would never do so of his own volition." Tiki nodded. "He seeks only to add to his power, and to set ruin upon the world. So it is best not to worry about such things. Come, children… for there is little time…"
"Where is Grima now?" Chrom asked as he re-equipped the Fire Emblem and drew Falchion from the altar.
"To the West, there lies a volcano known as Origen Peak…" Naga whispered. "You shall find him there."
With that, the energy left Tiki's body, causing the manakete to crumple to the ground. Fortunately. Kellam and Robin, who had been nearby, caught her before she hit the ground.
"Origen Peak…" Chrom muttered as he rejoined the shepherds. "Where is that?"
"I believe the aforementioned volcano is no more than one or perhaps two days of maritime travel away from the Plegian coastline." Miriel offered. "According to my estimations, perhaps the closest location is Carrion Isle."
"Then we should make preparations to head over right away." Chrom said resolutely. "Find as many ships as possible."
"The Valmese came over on ships of their own." Robin noted as he lifted the still unconscious Tiki. "They must have docked somewhere in Plegia. Perhaps this would be our quickest option. Why don't we talk to Virion, Say'ri and Walhart about it? Maybe we don't need to prepare ships of our own."
"Actually… that's a better plan." Chrom admitted. "Alright, we'll do it your way."
Seeing as Chrom had successfully completed the Awakening, everyone let out a sigh of relief. Just by looking at his Falchion, people could notice that his sword seemed so much stronger than Lucina's. Even though the only difference was that Lucina completed the ritual with four stones instead of five, the end result seemed worlds apart. When Chrom had been curious about Lucina's Parallel Falchion, they had found that besides being sharper than his own, there were no major differences. However, the exalted Falchion he now had emitted so much power that it felt like he could cut down an entire tree with a single swing.
Although they were in a hurry, the shepherds were still humans after all. After rushing all the way to Mount Prism, everyone was utterly exhausted. Furthermore, Tiki had yet to wake up. Given the circumstances, Chrom decided that it would be best to set up camp on the side of the mountain tonight.
Nowi found a well a short distance away from the shrine, and when she had initially reported it to Chrom, no one believed her. It seemed extremely unlikely for there to be a well in this sort of place, but when a few shepherds decided to 'play along' with her, they found that Nowi really was able to lead them to a well. It was unbelievably shallow, and yet whenever they drew a bucket of water from it, the water level would still stay the same. It was as if there was a never ending supply of water that could not be exhausted.
With this new finding, there was no need for anyone to look for fresh water. Libra thanked the Divine Dragon in the form of prayer, and everyone drew as much water as needed, being careful not to be wasteful in the process.
Hours Later…
When Robin was finally ready to retire for the night, he entered the tent to find Lucina already waiting for him. She had an expression indicating that there was something extremely important on her mind.
"What's on your mind?" Robin asked as he hung up his cloak and dried his face with a towel.
"I should have trusted you more…" Lucina admitted. "I didn't think that you had everything under control. If I understood the situation better… I wouldn't have even attempted to threaten you."
"What, are you talking about Validar?" Robin asked, to which the princess nodded. "Well, Chrom, Frederick and I planned out really far ahead of time. You see… I've had this dream, or perhaps you could call it a nightmare really frequently… and I saw that exact confrontation."
"What?" Lucina whispered with a look of shock on her face. "You saw the future?"
"Well, not really." Robin admitted. "Actually, in my visions, I saw myself kill Chrom. At first, I didn't want to say anything, because you had mentioned before that Chrom was killed by a close friend. And I was trying my best to make sure that this event would not happen. However, I finally ended up talking about it to Chrom. In the end, we were actually able to take advantage of the situation and reclaim the Fire Emblem from Validar instead."
"But that was too reckless!" Lucina objected. "What if Validar was really able to control you? Chrom would have died!"
"We did consider that, which is why we had to test the waters first." Robin explained.
"Test… the waters?" Lucina looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"
"Well, Validar demonstrated his little trick when we went to collect the final gemstone from him." Robin replied. "We would have called off the plan if the mind control was truly something I couldn't deal with."
"But… what if it really worked and Validar ordered you to kill him then?" Lucina pointed out. "You wouldn't even have a chance to turn the situation around."
"But all of you were nearby." Robin grinned. "I would not have been able to harm Chrom even if I tried my hardest. The only reason why my nightmare even occurred is because Validar was able to separate the two of us from the rest of you. This plan was created based on mutual trust. Chrom's trust for me, my trust for Chrom, and our trust for all of the shepherds. This is why Validar lost; these are the bonds between us that are stronger than destiny."
"That sounds good, but is it enough to defeat Grima?" Lucina grumbled.
"We'll accomplish it." Robin rubbed her shoulder. "Chrom already successfully completed the Awakening ritual. We have to power to at least put Grima to sleep. Even if we cannot completely get rid of him, we'll at least stop him from destroying the world."
Robin let out a chuckle. "Don't think about it too hard, and just try and get some sleep. We have a very important confrontation in just a couple of days."
"Yeah… you're right." Lucina replied, finally able to relax a little after hearing Robin's words. "But next time… whenever you have these sorts of elaborate plans, could you tell me beforehand?"
Robin didn't respond for a long time.
"I'll tell you of all the plans when I am able to." He finally managed to get out. "Sometimes, the more people know of the plan, the less likely it is to succeed. Your genuine reaction to Chrom's 'death' is part of what made it so realistic. But I promise… whenever I'm able to, I'll let you in on the loop."
"That's not what I was asking about." Lucina sighed in defeat. "Fine, let's just sleep."
Although she hid it very well, it was clear that Lucina was extremely tired after everything that had occurred in the day. Both of them fell asleep as soon as they closed their eyes. Unconsciously, Robin held onto Lucina even tighter than usual that night. The last thing he had heard from her before falling asleep was "I love you".
Origen Peak…
After completing the Awakening ritual, Chrom and his allies rushed as fast as they could towards Carrion Isle, where the Valmese fleet was docked. Immediately after everyone had boarded, they set sail towards Origen Peak. Even from a distance, they could see the large figure of Grima floating above the mountain, seeming to blot out the sun at some times. The mood was extremely sombre.
"Origen Peak…" Chrom breathed in deeply as soon as he set foot of the boat.
"The fell dragon is indeed here." Naga's voice echoed, drawing everyone's attention towards Tiki. "Remember, Awakener! The power I gave to you is not enough to slay Grima..."
"It can only put him back to sleep." Robin finished, even without thinking about it.
"We have to find a way to break this unholy cycle!" Chrom declared with conviction. "We can't keep putting him back to sleep for a few centuries, only to have him wake up later! Even if we will no longer be around, we would just be willing his vengeance on our descendants!"
"This is something that has been going on since the birth of this continent." Naga replied. "Although unpleasant, death and destruction is something that will always walk side by side with mortals. Perhaps… it will be easier for you to accept if I tell it to you this way… although I highly doubt it."
"...I might have an idea." Robin nudged Chrom. "I've been thinking about it the entire way here."
"Oh?" Chrom's expression lit up for a brief second. "Do you have some sort of strategy?"
"Well, if I am truly one and the same with the me and became Grima…" Robin began. "If I were to strike the final blow instead of Chrom, would that mean Grima was killed by his own hand?"
"Robin… that's ingenious!" Chrom exclaimed. He instantly turned to Naga expectantly. "Can it work, though?"
"...Perhaps…" Naga replied. Tiki seemed to have an amused expression across her face. "But there would be certain consequences. Grima's heart and Robin's are inexorably linked. Dragon and man can no longer be separated. Therefore, my best guess is that slaying Grima would also cause the end of Robin's life."
"...I thought so." came Robin's reply. "But I am ready."
"...Wait!" Chrom sighed. "If slaying Grima means Robin must die… I think we should look for another way."
"There is… a chance you might survive." Tiki seemed to form a contemplative expression on her face. "You have bound your heart to many of those still living in this world. But do not raise your hopes. This chance is small, indeed. In fact, it is so insignificant that you will almost certainly cease to exist. Not even a thousand human friendships could be stronger than the dragon's grip."
"...I understand." Robin nodded. "Thank you. I will prepare for the worst, but hope for the best."
"No, you're mad, Robin!" Chrom insisted. "We can ask you to die in exchange for slaying Grima! We'll find another way."
"The other way is to make Grima fall asleep for a few more centuries." Robin reminded him. "You're not thinking clearly. Think about what Emmeryn would have wanted."
"Emm would never have asked you for something like this!" Chrom insisted.
"What is one life, when weighed against millions?" Robin countered. "If I can stop Grima from ever coming back, why wouldn't my life be worth it?"
"Stop it, Robin!" Lucina insisted. "Please, think about it. When we came back from our timeline, all we wanted was for Grima to be stopped. We can achieve our goal by putting him to sleep as well! You told me so yesterday!"
"Yeah, and the rest of us don't want you to die." Lissa added.
"I say, this is something we had to go through, so if our descendants have to go through it again, I'm sure they can understand." Sumia agreed. "Didn't our own ancestors fail to truly kill the dragon anyways? Killing Grima would not benefit us any more than putting him to sleep. However, losing you would be extremely hurtful for the rest of us."
"Please reconsider?" Lucina begged him with her eyes.
Robin looked around at his friends. 'Truly, I don't want to leave any of you either.'
"Alright…" The tactician sighed. "I'll think about it some more…"
His friends breathed a sigh of relief, but Tiki/Naga seemed to be amused with his response. Although she couldn't read minds, she understood exactly what Robin was thinking. His friends had not convinced him.
Suddenly, Tiki turned her head towards the peaks. "Children, the time for deliberation is over. The Grimleal have found us."
"We're under attack, my liege!" Frederick exclaimed, right on cue.
The shepherds formed a defensive position as Robin quickly took out his Hekseer to gauge the situation.
"We need to rush towards Aversa." Robin informed everyone. "Not only would we remove their commanding officer, but we would also secure the high ground. The rest of the Grimleal will be extremely easy to deal with afterwards."
"Aye, I agree." Say'ri nodded. "Why don't the shepherds lead the charge, and the rest of us will cover your flanks. The Chon'sin will cover your right side."
"I guess that means we have the left." Walhart chuckled. "These craven shall all fall to the wayside!"
With that, Walhart and his men set off eagerly to begin the slaughter.
"I guess we'll have to hurry up then. Otherwise it will be Walhart leading the charge on Aversa." Cherche chuckled. She placed a hand on Sumia's shoulder. "Our wyverns will help you guard against aerial attacks."
"And the Feroxi will watch your back." Flavia pulled out a short axe.
"Everyone, prepare for combat!" Chrom called out. Immediately, all the battle hardened soldiers seamlessly drew their weapons, and engaged the Grimleal.
Robin could feel the hate and desperation of the Grimleal. However, he could also feel their excitement. After all, their god had been resurrected, so many of them were sure they had already won. However, the shepherds and their allies were still more experienced when it came to warfare.
Right away, a line of Plegian Generals greeted them. Chrom slashed out with his Exalted Falchion, and to his surprise, his blade cut through the General's thick armor like a hot knife through butter. The places on the armor where the blade passed glowed as if it were being melted in a furnace.
"This is… my Falchion!?" Chrom asked in disbelief. Killing a fully armored General should never have been that easy.
"The awakened Falchion strikes like the fang of a dragon." Naga reminded him. "The steel shells created by mortals cannot stand in its way."
Chrom turned around and saw Tiki in her dragon form. He heard Naga's chuckle when she saw his expression. "As Tiki can fight as a manakete, I too can participate in this battle, though my strength is limited by that of Tiki's."
Meanwhile, the rest of the shepherds were able to dispatch of the rest of the Generals.
Stahl and Sully worked together to lock their weapons with their opponent's axe. Even though the General was strong, he could not hope to be stronger than both Stahl and Sully combined. He was forced into the situation of continuously trying to break free, or abandoning his weapon. The General chose the former, which made him a sitting duck for Vaike. The Berserker crept up behind him and raised his Hammer.
"Looks like Teach just got tenure!" Vaike said gleefully as he slammed the hammer into his target's back. The General screamed in pain as his armor crumpled inwards and his spine broke. Very soon afterwards, all his strength left him and the Plegian crumpled to the floor.
"Watch it, ya piece o' shit!" Sully pointed her lance at Vaike. "A couple more inches to the left, and it woulda hit my horse! If that ever happens, I'll run ya through, you got that?"
"The Vaike never misses!" Vaike boasted as he pounded his chest. "Except… well, there are some exceptions."
The three could feel the air heat up, and they turned to see another Plegian General burnt to a crisp by a Bolganone spell from Miriel. On their other side, the fourth General had been slain by the cooperation between Lucina, Cynthia, Laurent and Gerome.
Lon'qu engaged a Plegian Berserker. Before, he probably would have challenged one of the Swordmasters that was charging towards the others, since it would have been a better way of proving he was stronger, but fighting under the leadership of Robin clearly showed him that by choosing the right matchups, they could escape combat with as few casualties as possible. In the past, Lon'qu might not have cared about such things, but he had a wife to take care of now. He smirked to himself. If he were to fight against Lucina again, there's no guarantee he would lose once more.
Compared to him, the Berserker moved like a snail. Lon'qu could easily dodge his opponent's swings, and a single opening left for him meant he could slash the Berserker at least two times. The thinner leather armor that the Berserker wore could not protect him from Lon'qu's strikes endlessly, and the Berserker soon fell to his knees and died.
Meanwhile, there was something similar going on for Olivia. She was even harder to hit than Lon'qu, and her opponent was becoming extremely frustrated. Out of rage, he slammed his axe towards the ground, hoping to chop the Assassin in half, but unfortunately, not only did Olivia dodge out of the way, but his axe got stuck in the ground as well.
Olivia did not miss this opportunity. She immediately jumped onto the handle of the axe, pressing the weapon ever so slightly further into the ground as she sprang up and jumped over the Berserker's head. In midair, she drew her killing edge, severing her opponents head from their body as she landed silently on her feet.
Kellam and Frederick had been quickly redirected towards the Swordmasters running towards the shepherds. Although they were far slower than their counterparts, the fundamental difference this time was that their armor was much harder and much thicker than that of a Berserkers. Though the opposing Swordmasters would strike far more frequently than they, the thick armor of the General and the Great Knight protected them from serious harm. Instead, they were soon shot down by some well aimed arrows from Gaius and Virion.
"There's more of them coming!" Cordelia warned them from above. "They have a lot of people, possibly as many as all of us!"
"So we'll have to break through their formation. Charge straight for Aversa." Robin commanded. "Let our allies watch our sides for us. We only have one objective in this battle."
Due to the mountainous terrain, their charge was not as fast as it could be. However, compared to the sands of Plegia, the shepherds on horseback still had relatively acceptable mobility. Although they moved forward slower, none of the Grimleal could truly stop their progress.
True to Cherche's word, the Rosannese kept the skies clear of any Plegian Dark Fliers and Wyvern Lords. The shepherds on the ground didn't face any aerial harassment other than the occasional flying mount falling at them from the sky once they had been killed.
When the Grimleal realized that they were at a severe disadvantage when it came to face to face confrontations, they began to try and circle around. Tricksters and Assassins tried their luck in approaching them from some obscure angles, but unfortunately, Chrom and Robin had amassed the help of several allies.
Out of nowhere, an Assassin was stabbed in the neck by Morgan.
A Trickster that raised his Levin Sword immediately got shot down by Basilio's arrow.
A Berserker on their right flank got cut up into pieces by the Chon'sin as he tried to rush Chrom.
A Wyvern Lord was dragged out of the sky by Walhart when he lodged his Axe into the low flying creature's maw.
Robin smiled. Although the Grimleal were being lead by Aversa, it was clear that she was no natural commander. Their strategy resembled that of a human wave tactic, which happened to be the easiest type of battle for Robin to win. After all, even if the battle was messy, one could still predict their opponents movements if they had the experience. With reliable allies, the battle was even easier. Walhart had absolutely no trouble dealing with his side of the map, and although Say'ri was struggling a little bit, the Chon'sin soldiers were still able to do their job on their side.
The only thing that surprised Robin were the Griffon Riders that flew towards them from their backside. However, true to Flavia's word, the Feroxi army took them down, so Robin didn't have to divert any resources to deal with them.
The shepherds around them seemed to be in their element. Spells flew left and right from their casters, and everyone was moving around like a unit, which is partially due to having fought together for so long. Everyone knew their role, and everyone played it to perfection. Grimleal fell one after another, and because they lacked experienced or skilled healers, quickly died afterwards. As for the shepherds, although Lissa and Maribelle were busy, they were never in any dire situations. By now, even if a shepherd got their limbs completely severed, Lissa could still heal the wound back to its original state, although the process would be extremely exhausting.
After a couple of hours of endless fighting, they had finally made their way to Aversa. However, instead of flying in the air, she was simply standing next to her Falicorn on the ground.
"Give up, it is over." Chrom called out to her.
"I think I should be the one saying that." Aversa replied. "Haven't you seen it? Master Grima has already returned! But if you still choose to keep fighting, I will be happy to bring you your end. After all, I still have to avenge my previous Master. I could never forgive the ones who butchered Validar!"
She opened the dark purple tome in her hand, and began to cast a powerful spell. "None of you would be able to survive a direct hit from Goetia! Behold, this is the ultimate dark tome of the Plegians!"
"Take cover!" Chrom immediately ordered, but as it turns out, this was an unnecessary command.
As Aversa finished chanting, an equally strong light spell flew towards her. The two blasts of energy slammed against each other, and consumed one another. In the blink of an eye, both the dark purple energy and the bright white energy vanished without a trace. A blast of air flew outwards from the center of the collision, but there were no other indicators that the two spells were even there in the first place.
Robin saw Morgan casting the spell out of the corner of his eye, and praised the young girl in his mind. It seems like the two opposite energy types would negate the effects of each other when combined through a direct confrontation, which is why everyone got through unscathed.
Aversa herself seemed extremely surprised.
"There's… no way…" she shook her head in disbelief. "How can a single spell completely negate the power of Goetia?"
"Are you ready to surrender now?" Chrom asked once again.
"You can all die!" Aversa snarled as she attempted to cast Goetia again. She had thought she had a trump card up her sleeve, but as it turns out, the shepherds had a way to counter her. Still, it's possible that the spell used to counter her own was something that could only be used once, or a spell that could not be cast repetitively, or had a low success rate. Whatever the case, Aversa's only objective was to damage the shepherds as much as possible, so that they can all walk to their deaths when they face Grima.
"Hand!" Robin called out, confusing almost everyone, including Chrom.
Before anyone could react, two arrows flew towards Aversa's left hand, the one holding her tome.
Gaius had reacted faster, which was why his arrow arrived first. It flew through the back of her hand, leaving the arrowhead exposed through her palm. Goetia was knocked out of her grasp, and Virion's arrow shot through the book as it flew through the air, damaging the pages and leaving the tome inoperative.
Aversa crumpled to the ground and screamed in agony as she held her left wrist with her other hand. However, this did nothing to stop the pain from the arrow still lodged in her left hand.
Chrom raised his sword, and was about to bring it down before being stopped by Robin. The tactician gripped his arm, preventing him from driving Falchion through her stomach.
"What are you doing?" Chrom asked. "Why are you sparing someone like her? She's killed our friends… she helped kill my sister!"
"I'm not stopping you from killing her." Robin replied. "We can execute her whenever we want. However, I'm curious to see if she has anything useful information about Grima. Perhaps a weakness we could exploit… or maybe some strategy we could consider."
"You think I would tell you anything?" Aversa snorted, trying to act tough despite the pain in her hand. "You might as well kill me now."
Robin turned to her coldly. "I wasn't asking you."
Aversa gasped in surprise as Robin placed his hand on her forehead. She felt his magic as he began to try and pry into her mind. Reflexively, she tried to force Robin's hand away, but was restrained by Frederick. She began to struggle and cry out, desperately trying to get Robin to stop.
"Is there anything?" Chrom asked. Robin had quite a puzzled expression on his face.
"There's some magic that's trying to block me." Robin grunted with much effort.
"Is that Aversa's doing?" Chrom asked.
"No, I don't think so." Robin replied. "It… actually kind of reminds me of Validar."
"What!?" Chrom asked. "Isn't he dead?"
"Perhaps it's a spell designed to last for a long time then?" Sumia suggested.
"Hold on." Robin furrowed his brows. "I think if you give me a little longer, I can break past it…"
Suddenly, Aversa's struggling stopped. She gulped in mouthful after mouthful of air, as if she had been unable to take any breaths before.
Robin hastily drew his hand away. As soon as he did so, Aversa began to tremble, and tears began to cascade down her face.
"Lies!" Aversa wailed. "That damned Validar… he lied to me! He… lied to me…"
"Uh… what's this about?" Lissa asked in confusion.
"I think Validar was blocking some of her memories." Robin explained. "I could scan her memories up until around a decade or so ago, but anything before that is completely blocked off by the magic. It… kind of reminded me of myself, actually."
"So why was it blocked off?" Lucina asked hesitantly, her hand still resting on Falchion.
"Well, I couldn't see all of it, because the memories began flooding out as soon as the seal broke." Robin explained. "But I did see a snippet of it, and I'm thinking Aversa might be willing to share who Validar truly is to her now."
"He's… a monster…" Aversa sobbed. "He razed my entire village… and even dared to rewrite my memories so that I remembered him as my savior… my family… my friends… I remember them all again… but they were all killed by that monster…"
"Is this true?" Chrom asked.
"Yes, I swear on my life!" Aversa nodded. The expression of the egoistic and arrogant Dark Flier was now nowhere to be seen.
"Then are you willing to help us destroy Grima?" Robin followed up. "If so, any information you might have would be useful."
"There's a chink on his back." Aversa offered immediately. "Right below his neck, where it connects to his body… the plates protecting that area should be weaker… it's where the First Exalt stabbed him, in order to make him fall asleep…"
"Alright… that is indeed useful." Robin nodded his head. "Let's move towards the peak then. We have to stop Grima as soon as possible…"
"Wait!" Aversa pleaded. "If possible… could I help? You know I am a very good magic user!"
"Not a chance." Chrom replied firmly. "Even if what you claim is true… I won't allow someone like you to wield a weapon when so much is at stake. We'll restrain you and place you to the very rear. If we do succeed in stopping Grima, then I'll worry about what happens to you afterwards."
"I… understand." Aversa sighed. Her response actually may have surprised Chrom a little, judging by his raised eyebrows. However, Chrom recovered extremely quickly.
"Shepherds! Our target is straight ahead of us!" Chrom drew his Exalted Falchion and pointed it towards Grima, who was still hovering above the peak. "Please, lend my your strength one last time! We must defeat Grima in order to secure the lives of everyone!"
Besides Kellam and a couple other guards who watched over Aversa, everyone else drew their weapons and charged towards the top of the volcano.
Author's Notes:
Alright, so it took me a little longer than expected to write this chapter, given the holidays and the family gatherings… etc. However, the chapter is now done.
After some thought, I ended up deciding to omit the battle on Mount Prism, as I felt it was sort of forced. This is understandable, because in the game, they don't want to spew out fifteen minutes of only talking. As I felt it was unnecessary, I decided to merge two chapters.
Next chapter is the confrontation between the shepherds and Grima… make sure to follow the story so you don't miss it.