So. This is it. The final chapter of this fanfiction. I didn't really expect to get here to be honest. I thought I would give up somewhere in the middle and never return, and I did exactly that! But, I returned. I returned despite the long absences between updates, the bad plot lines, the constant degradation of my skills, and so many other things. I have returned, one last time, to write this one final chapter for you all. It feels strange being in this situation, but I think I understand what this strange feeling is. I'll explain it later. For now, we must get this finale started. We must start the beginning to the end. So, enjoy this final chapter of Mercenary! Enjoy the trainwreck of the ending of this terrible fanfiction! Enjoy!


Chapter Forty Six: The End

Sixteen Hours Remaining

"You know; it would have been nice if Naga decided to give us a bloody earlier headstart than this!" I say, my sword in my hand as I run alongside Lon'Qu, Anna, Andy, Gregor, Miriel, Say'ri, Henry, and Nash; all of them with their respective weapons in their hands. Just a few short minutes ago, the goddess Naga just appeared and told all nine of us that the entire Risen army is coming straight towards Ylisstol while Chrom, the Robins, and a few other Shepherds go off to fight Grima. The thing is about the Risen army that is attacking is that it is ALL of the Risen. That's right! Every single undead freak of nature is coming straight towards us, lead by the bloody dastard Rekar. Yep, the very same Rekar that killed me in the Bad Future.

With that in mind, we have to fight until Chrom and the others defeat Grima. According to Naga, she says that they will win by "the next day's dawn!" That means we have, if my math is correct, around sixteen hours. That is sixteen hours of nonstop action and fighting for survival. Not only my survival, but the survival for my friends, the people of Ylisstol, and everyone in the entire world!

And I will not falter in my duty. Not this time.

"I'll alert the civilians!" Andy shouts out, diverting from the main group a bit. "I'll get them to safety as quick as I can! Good luck, especially you Dad and Mom!" With that, Andy ran into a nearby alleyway; leaving the group.

"Henry and I will raise the mages and healers. Salutations!" Miriel also shouted as she and Henry diverted off towards some townhouses. Once they leave, I soon begin to hear the roar of the Risen's charge near the gates of Ylisstol.

"Gregor and Anna will get the mercenaries, especially drunk ones! Gregor hopes your fortune is bold and well!" Gregor calls out and he and my wife head towards the biggest tavern in the city.

"I'll take command on my forces. Say'ri and Lon'qu, do the same for yours as well. We will beat these dastards back with everything we have!" Nash orders as three respective warriors split off, leaving me all alone. I let out a sigh before I force myself to run faster, hearing the Risens' bellowing clearly as the city's gates begin to shake.

"I'll handle the central gate then! Good luck, to me…" I say as I see some soldiers begin to form up near the city's central, preparing themselves for when the Risen breech the massive wooden doors.


Fifteen Hours Remaining

I arrive once a shield wall has formed in front of the gates, Knights and Soldiers from all walks of life working together against the threat of the Risen. On top of the walls surrounding the city, I already hear and see intense fighting as Archers, Snipers, Mages, Dark Mages, and Sages use everything they have in their arsenal to kill the Risen below. This doesn't last long as Risen Wyvern Riders and Pegasus Riders soon slam into their ranks, creating chaos on top of the ramparts as the gates begins to splinter and break under the Risens' strain.

"Hold this line with everything you got! If we let them through us now, countless innocents will die! So hold this line!" I order my motley group of warriors, some of them shaking while others cry out for blood. This is going to be really hard, if not suicide. But, we must do this if our world is to have a future without darkness!

After a few more tense seconds of waiting, the gates finally shatter into dozens of giant wood splinters and chunks as a tsunami of Risen charge straight towards us. They hit us hard, forcing us back an entire city block as men and Risen fly into the air from the force if the impact; metal and wooden crashing into each other with the sound of a ship tearing itself apart and the smell of death and dirt in the air.

I cut down two Cavaliers as they try to ride their way through our line, their empty armor and weapons slamming into the dirt once I turn them into purple smoke. A Risen Fighter soon attacks, and I easily down it with a stab of my blade through its face; its guttural cry disappearing as it turns into smoke. I then block a Risen Mercenary's swing, returning my own that quickly ended its life.

Right beside me, a Soldier falls to the ground as a javelin is rammed into her chest from afar. I turn my gaze to see who had slaed my ally, only to see a row of javelin wielding Risen form a small line as they throw volley after volley of javelin into my party's ranks. I growl as I block a Fighter's axe, kicking the Risen away as I turn to some Knights who keep backing away despite having a clear window to crush the line of Risen.

"Charge them now you- Agh!" I scream out at the Knights before a Soldier Risen rams its spear into my side, forcing me to turn my attention to it. I quickly despatch them thanks to the aid to that shaking man before, who simply jerks his head at me before getting into a battle with a Myrmidon Risen.

I turn my head back to the Knights, and growl when I see the Knights still have not obeyed my orders. In a rush of fury, I pick up a fallen Risen's helmet and throw it at one of the Knights. The helmet hits, forcing one of the Knights to turn to look at me. I lift my sword at the line of Risen and shout "Kill them! You got the window, so do it!"

With a resounding battle cry, the Knight follows my command and is joined by a few of his brothers as they charge towards the enemies I pointed for them; their armor, lance swings, and lance stabs clearing a way towards their target. Eventually, the Knights reach the Risen and utterly crush them, stopping the javelin menace from continuing to harm and kill us even more. Thanks to this decrease of pressure, we begin to push the enemy back as the Knights hold the position for us.

Suddenly, a wave of Wyvern Rider Risen fall down from the sky and slam into the Knights; cutting them down like scythes against wheat. I curse as the Wyvern Riders turn their attention to us, adding a new source of pressure as my line is now constantly moving back from the Risen's continual pushing. I am forced to take on two Fighter Risen as more and more Risen push against my line. I manage to defeat the Risen, suffering a few wounds in the process, before I begin to notice some of my soldiers beginning to run away.

One such deserter is the very same cowardly Soldier that I had recruited, running from my line alongside a Knight and two other Soldiers. I curse a bit more as more and more of warriors begin to desert due to the overwhelming odds before us. Just as it seems like all hope is lost, a resounding battle cry echoes throughout the streets that causes me to turn around to see who is making the noise.

It's Henry leading a good majority of the Plegian force, riding on top of a armored horse, as he fires volleys of curses and magic at the Risen. The Plegians smash into my line and the Risen's line, reinforcing my troops while the Risen are forced back a dozen steps from the force of the charge. I let out a battle cry as the Plegians and my force exploit this moments and advance, cutting down Risen left and right.

"Thanks for the assist Henry! You really saved my hide." I say, breathing heavy as I try to regain some of my stamina.

Henry simply cackled before saying "You betcha! Donny stopped me to tell you something. He needs your help evacuating some civilians who stayed with him at the forges. I sent some of my Plegian guys to help him, but they won't be enough. He needs someone who can herd those civies like cattle! Good luck! Nyah ha ha!" With that, the Dark Mage charged back into battle; leaving me to begin to rush towards the forges to aid Donny.

I will not let fate win this time!


Thirteen Hours Remaining

I begin to pant as I rush through the narrow streets and alleyways of Ylisstol's workshops and artisan guilds, dodging and sliding past duels between my allies and individual Risen who have managed to get into this part of the city. I wish I could stop and help them, but if I waste too much time then Donny and his group might perish! I will not let my friend die, especially the friend I saved from fate's clutches!

Suddenly, I feel something grab my foot and I slam on to the ground; my sword slipping from my grasp from the nasty tumble I took. I turn and see a Revenant Risen's hand coming out of a sewer grate, still holding onto my foot. It then begin to pull me towards the sewer grate, causing me to turn back around and frantically claw for my sword. Before long, my blade is far from my grasp as the Risen rises from the sewer grate and raises its free claw to tear into me. I kick it in the chest with my free leg, only getting a massive cut on said leg in return. I close my eyes as it raised its claw again, only to hear it groan before letting go of my foot.

"Are you okay Dad?" I open my eyes and see Andy and Ana standing before me, Andy kneeling beside me as Ana covers the sewer grate with a discarded shield.

"I-I'm fine. Thanks for saving me kids. I really appreciate it." I say, standing up with help from Andy. I hear a noise and turn, growling as I see several more Revenants slither up from another sewer grate before reforming into their natural form.

"Shall we teach these dastards a fucking fantastic lesson?" Ana asks, hoisting her axe onto her shoulder while I grab my sword off of the ground. I twirl it in my hands while Andy kneels down, his sword in his hands as he waits for the charge.

"Yes… Forward!" I shout, charging alongside my children straight towards the Revenant Risen before us. I slam into the first one, using my shoulder to tackle it and force it back. Ana follows up with my move by slamming her axe into the Risen's head, killing it. Andy lunges forward and slices the next Revenant in half with his blade, using his speed to dodge the third Risen's swing. I use this opening to ram my blade through the Risen's throat, killing it as Andy and Ana finish off the last one with a coordinated attack.

We don't stop our momentum as we continue onward, letting out our battle cries from the rush of adrenaline in our systems as I lead my children towards the forges. Now with more people at my back, fate will not stand a chance!

I'll stop fate once more!


Twelve Hours Remaining

"Donny! You alright?!" I shout out once Andy, Ana, and I arrive on the scene; Andy and Ana going off to fight off the encroaching Risen ranks alongside some Ylisse soldiers.

"Yeah! I reckon I'm as fit as a fiddle still!" Donny shouts back as he rushes out of a nearby forge's exit, two Risen impaled on his spear as he slings their deteriorating corpses off of his weapon. "Reckon ya could carve me and some folk a way out of this mess before things get even worse than a herd of scared pigs getting free from their pens?"

"I can handle that. Get them all ready so a moment isn't wasted!" I answer, twirling my sword around as I look around for a good exit for them. I see three possible exits: one is full of Ylisse and Risen fighting, another is covered in rubble and corpses, and another has a Griffon Rider Risen looking at a map. Out of all of them, I'm going with the third option. It's only one undead freak, and it'll be easy with its back turned to me! Plus, with it reading a map means that it is probably one of the smarter ones. Taking out their smart ones will most certainly help my allies and I in the long run. It will dumb their attack down to simple bum-rushing and charging, to which we can easily turn into a massacre with our intellect!

As such, I rush the Griffon Rider Risen; my blade low to ground so I can cleave straight through the unprotected part of the Griffon into the Risen itself. The perfect attack- Whoa! Suddenly, the Griffon's leg stretched out and molded into a golden claw before rushing straight for my throat. I barely dodge the attack, the sharp claws nearly touching my throat before I sliced the Griffon's strange claw clean off. The claw disappeared in a puff of black smoke, only to be cleared away when a mass of golden flesh shot through it and onto my chest; hitting me like I was hit with a Hammer!

I can feel blood enter my mouth as I am sent flying into a forge, crashing through a brick wall and onto a wooden bucket full of water. I cough out some of the blood as I stand back up and turn to see what exactly is my opponent! As the dust from breaking the wall settles, I see the Griffon Rider Risen surrounded by a mini-whirlpool of golden flesh; momentarily forming the face of an Entombed Risen.

"Hi… Aiden…" I pale slightly as the Risen spoke, its mouth forming into a pleased, sadistic grin as it hefted a Brave Axe onto its shoulder.

"...Rekar?" I ask, taking a step back as I adopt a more defensive battle stance. I'm so fucked, aren't I? "And… Is that Rekar too?"

"Yes… Let's repeat… History…" Rekar said before rushing forward alongside the Entombed, who is also Rekar; raising its weapon up while the Entombed sent several more tendrils of flesh to slam into me. Like any sane person, I immediately roll away, Rekars' attack. I would have never had guessed that the Rekar from the Bad Future would team up with the Rekar in my time to kill me. That's… That's actually really rude and evil… Makes sense seeing what they are! But, I should focus on my survival right now.

I stand back up from my roll and begin to run away. As I run away: I toss buckets, half made weapons and tools, wooden stands full of forgotten weapons, and even loose pieces of brick at the Rekars as they chase after me. Thanks to Entombed Rekar's continual whirlpool of golden flesh around the Griffon Rider Rekar, they effortlessly block and remove all of my attempts to slow them down and/or damage them. This is so not fair! Risen are not supposed to be this smart!

We continue this wild chase through several more forges, some still having lit furnaces to which I add tossing embers to my pile of wasted tricks to hamper the Rekars. To my credit, the embers makes them dodge instead of simply block like they have been with all the other things I have thrown at them. At least I'm doing something that is affecting them in someway. At least that is something I can consider going good for me right now!

Eventually, I hear one of the Rekars scream; making me turn around to see who it was. I gasp as I see Entombed Rekar send out a dozen golden tendrils towards me, forcing me to duck and dodge as they slam into the walls and furnaces around me. One particular tendril goes past my head, forcing me to duck for a bit before I raise it back up. When I do raise my head up, a wooden spear handle smacks me straight in the right eye; stunning me as I fall to the ground.

I collapse onto the ground with a thud, my right eye swelling shut from the attack as I try to crawl away from the Rekars as they charge straight towards. They quickly catch up to me, to which I swing my sword around to try and harm them. The Griffon Rider Rekar easily catches my blade with its Brave Axe, locking it in place for the Entombed Rekar to snap it in half with its golden flesh tendrils.

"No… That's… That's my sword…" I whimper out as shards fly everywhere, stunned that my sword was just broken like it was a toothpick. I whimper some more as the Griffon Rider Rekar picks me up from my shirt's collar and raises its axe over its head. So… This is it, isn't it? Fate decided to have this one little victory, and it had to contain me being killed by Rekar. Why the fuck does this shit always happen to me? I've been good these past few months, so good that I've don't curse like I used to back when I first became a Shepherd! I've been helping people out and I had even settled down with a nice girl! Fucking fate…

Suddenly, a rusty sword was thrusted through the Griffon Rider Rekar's chest; stunning all three of us as he let me go. I slam against the ground again and turn my head to see who just saved my life. It's that fourteen year old kid that I denied at the recruitment station! He's standing there and smiling triumphantly as he digs his weapon even deeper through the Risen's chest. I never actually thought that Fate would be denied yet again-

"Rude… I hate… Rude…" The Griffon Rider Rekar said as he turned his head around to look at the kid, the boy's face turning white as a sheet as the Risen ripped the boy's grasp off of his sword's handle. It then grabbed the rusty sword by the blade and pulled it the rest of the way through its chest, throwing it to the side as the Entombed Rekar sent golden tendrils at the gaping hole in the Griffon Rider's chest. With inhuman speed and precision, the tendrils seal up the hole with its own flesh; healing Rekar back to seemingly full health as he slowly turned around to face the scared boy.

No! I won't let him have him! I let out a battle cry as I lunge forward, thrusting my broken sword straight at the Griffon Rider's head to try and kill him before he attacks the boy. I don't even manage to get close to him as the Entombed Risen slams some of its tendrils onto my side, a few of my ribs audibly cracking as I am sent flying out of the forge through another stone wall.

I cough out some blood as I lift my head up to look back at the Rekars and the boy. I cry out in shock and anger as I see Griffon Rider Rekar raise its axe up and swing it down at the boy, seemingly ending his short life right in front of me as a massive bloody wound opens up across the boys chest. Gods… Why did he have to die?! He was just a little boy!

I suddenly feel someone pick me up to which I turn to look, and I see that it is that burly Fighter and one-handed female Mercenary from the recruitment station. They set me back onto my feet and begin to talk, all three of us watching as the Rekars exit out of the forges from the hole I made in the stone wall.

"We fight Risen. You, grab boy and run." The Fighter orders, twirling his axe as he adopted a battle stance.

"What the big guy said. That Donny boy and a ton of civilians escaped after ya distracted them Risen. We're all getting pushed back, and it will only be a matter of time before the man Risen army gets here. Ya need to get out of this place while we hold this freak off!" The Mercenary shouted, gritting her remaining teeth as Rekar adopted his own battle stance.

"But… But you'll both-"

"We know! Ya best get going now!"

"We fight. We die. It is our life."

With that, I swallow my regret and anger as the Fighter and Mercenary charges the Rekars; giving me the opening I need to run to the boy. Once I reach him, I quickly check his pulse and breath a mighty sigh of relief. He isn't dead! He's only passed out, but he'll die if he doesn't get some kind of healing soon. I turn to check on the two, only to hiss in anger as I see the Griffon Rider Rekar slam its Brave Axe into the Fighter's gut; spilling the burly man's innards out before chopping his head off. I need to hurry before Rekar finishes them off!

I quickly tear off my shirt and tie it around the young boy's massive wound as best as I can, staunching the bleeding so he doesn't die faster than we can afford to allow. I pick him up and throw him over my shoulder, grunting slightly as the pain in my side flares up a bit. I then, hearing the dying screams of the Mercenary, rush out of there; leaving Rekar to finish her so I can make my escape.

But first, I need to save this child's life!


Eleven Hours Remaining

I eventually come to a stop in an alleyway tucked amongst many townhouses, far away from the bloodbath of the forges and from the Rekars. I need to give them new names to distinguish them, because saying "Griffon Rider Rekar" and "Entombed Rekar" is too much of a mouthful for me. I guess I call the Rekar from the Bad Future: Rex, and the one in my time will be known as: Rek. When I talk about both of them, I'll refer to them like I do the Robins. That should be easy and quick to understand, right?

I am snapped out of my thoughts as the fourteen year old boy lets out a heart-wrenching groan, tears spilling from his closed eyes as he slowly dies. I need to find some kind of healing for him now that I'm free from the Rekars. I imagine someone would have forgotten to bring a vulnerary or something of the like while in the rush to get to safety! There has to be something in these townhouses to save this poor kid from death!

With this goal set firmly in my mind, I immediately kick open the nearest townhouse's door open and enter it; placing the kid on a nearby table as I look around. The building I chose had been deserted rather quickly, meaning a lot of stuff was left probably behind! I bet a healing item must be among one of those items.

I quickly go to work, searching through the section of the townhouse I am in. I let out a sigh as the one items I find is silverware and food along with the occasional dagger and/or firewood axe. There is nothing here that can serve to heal this poor boy! I wish the food would, but everyone knows that only oranges heal people when eaten! At least that is what I learned from what Anna told me about Valm's main agricultural export. I still don't quite get some of things she says at times, but I know that she obviously interested in it so I tolerate it and try to learn it. The things we do for love…

"O-Oh… You're h-h-here." I swiftly turn around, my broken sword in my hand and see that cowardly Soldier alongside the majority of the warriors who fled with him when the battle broke out. What is he doing here?!

"What are you doing, coward? Looting these houses of any valuables before you escape?!" I ask, snarling as I get ready for battle.

"Y-Yes actually." The Soldier replies, gripping his spear tight as he looks me over. "And with you here… W-Well that is going to be a problem! I'll take c-c-care of that problem, guys. You go and l-loot this place real quick." With that, the Soldier leveled his spear at me and began to advance; knocking over the table with the wounded boy on it as he approaches me.

As I back away, trying to keep a safe distance from his spear, I look him over and see and elixir tied to his belt. Perfect! If I can get that from him, I can heal the boy and make my way back to my allies! But first, I have to deal with this traitor of humanity. I don't understand why he decided to turn tail and run, and is now trying to kill me! We're fighting the same enemy here, so why are we fighting each other? I guess I'll never get my answer as I need to survive this fight. I need to save that boy from death!

I dodge to the side as the Soldier attacks first, ramming his spear into the wall from where I was a moment ago. I dodge once more, ducking another stab before I rush him. I manage to grab and push the Soldier back into a pile of silverware, driving the fancy forks and butter knives into his back before he pushes me off and slams his spear's handle across my face.

I fall back, somewhat stunned by his attack, and land heavily on the ground. As he stabs at me again, I quickly kick him in the shin; throwing off his aim as he stabs his spear into the floor. I try to ram my broken sword into his throat, to which he grabbed my hand and twisted the blade out of it and onto the ground.

He then punched me across the face, sending me back onto the floor with a bloody nose as he swings once more. I roll to the side, barely dodging his attack, and kick him in the chest to force him back. We both stand back up and adopt boxing stances before going back at it. I manage to land the first hit, breaking his nose with my fist as it quickly begins to gush blood. He responds with a few jabs, some of them landing through my hastily made defense.

I stumble back as he advances on me, swinging his fists wildly as I duck and dodge his attacks. I back into one of his allies who had been watching, who then quickly grabs me and holds me in place while the Soldiers pummels me with his fists. He frees me from his friend's grip with a particularly nasty punch, sending me to the floor.

The Soldier quickly gets on top of me and wraps his bloody hands around my throat, choking me as I struggle to get free. As I struggle, I begin to hear commotion coming from a part of the townhouse behind me; but I quickly decide to ignore it as the Soldier presses down harder and harder. I can barely breath and I start to see stars in my vision as the Soldiers keeps pressing down, ignoring the blows I throw into his sides and chest as I keep struggling to get him off.

As I begin to finally weaken, and arrow slams into the Soldier's chest; sending him flying off of me and onto the ground. He is barely able to sit up before he another arrow hits him in the eye, killing him. As blur of red speeds by me and strikes down the Soldier's friend before he is able to move, his corpse hitting the floor with a thud.

"Hey handsome. Are you okay?" I sigh in relief as the blur of red turns around and reveals herself as my lovely wife Anna. Man… I could just kiss her, but I won't with how fucked up my face feels right now. I imagine I look like a bloody clown, and I mean that literally!

"I could be better. How are you doing, lovely?" I ask back, standing up thanks to her help as some Ferox Archers and Myrmidons push past us and towards the rest of the townhouse.

"I'm doing alright, considering the circumstances. Where is your shirt?" Anna says, making me remember what I was doing here in the first place. I swiftly rush past her and kneel beside the dead Soldier's body, untying the elixir from his belt before rushing over to the boy. I throw the table off of him and rip my shirt off of the boy's chest, exposing the nasty wound for everyone to see. I waste no time in pouring half of the elixir on the wound, sighing in relief as it swiftly closes; healing the boy back to good health if this elixir is potent enough.

I swallow the rest of it, healing my more recent injuries in a flash as I pick the still unconscious boy back up before turning to my wife. With a sigh, I say "Can we head back to the castle? I- WE, need a break after everything we went through."

"Most certainly handsome, especially after what I just watched not a few moments ago." Anna answers, whistling for her squad of soldiers to group back up so we can head out. As we wait, I walk on over and pick my broken sword back up; tying it to my belt seeing how it can't really fit in its scabbard anymore.

"We really need to get you some new clothes, and maybe a new weapon…" Anna points out as the Ferox warriors return, their weapons bloody after clearing out the rest of the townhouse. I nod gratefully before we head back to the battle, one of the Ferox soldiers taking the boy off of my hands so I can lean on my wife.

But first, we're making a slight detour…


Nine Hours Remaining

After a quick stop at a few stores for a new green shirt and a new steel sword, we all arrive back at a calmer section of the main battle. There are still our allies fighting off groups of Risen here, but not as much as the clusterfuck that is apparently in Ylisstol's Main Street. Apparently the fighting is so intense there that both sides are locked in such fight that can be considered a slaughter on both sides!

Anna stops me as her squad of soldiers head off, carrying the boy with them still, and says "Aiden. You should stay here and fight. It's much safer than Main Street."

"I can handle just fine. I may be a bit slower than usual, but I can handle myself!" I answer, trying to follow my wife only to get a firm glare that makes me take a step back.

"You are going to stay here and help out the soldiers here. Do I make myself clear, handsome?"

"Urgh… Yes dear. I will stay here…" I concede, getting a quick peck on the cheek before Anna rushes off to join the main part of the battle. I can't really blame her for making me stay here. I will admit, I need some kind of break from all this fighting, and this seems like the perfect chance for one. Well… I will still be fighting Risen, but not as intense as they are on Main Street.

I pick up a discarded shield nearby before joining the battle, encountering a Mercenary Risen as my first opponent here. I easily block its attack with my shield before I ram my new sword into its chest, slaying the Risen instantly. I then take out a charging Fighter, tripping it so a fellow Soldier can finish the job. My next opponent is another Fighter Risen, who I quickly kill with a single swing of my sword.

A new wave of Risen arrive on the scene and immediately charge into the fray, forcing my allies and I back a bit due to the new amount of Risen we have to face. I simply snarl before I'm back in battle against a Myrmidon Risen, crushing its head and killing the undead monster with a single swing of my shield.

I then face off against two more Fighter Risen, ending their lives one after the other with a flurry of sword swings and shield smacks. Before I can even catch my breath, another two Fighter Risen attack me and actually manage to damage me slightly; carving a decent wound across my shoulder with one of their attacks. In response to this, I retaliated and killed the both with a single swing of my sword; cutting both their heads off in one blow.

This kind of pressure continues to add up, forcing my allies and I back more and more with every new wave of Risen there is. Eventually, I am covered in a new set of wounds as I and a few remaining warriors battle the massive horde of Risen before us all. I should have known that it would only be a matter of time before the Risen overwhelmed us with their numbers. After all, every Risen is here to kill us all while Chrom and the others slay Grima. Only a fool would have not known that they would simply overwhelm us with their numbers, and that fool is me… I should have figured that the Risen could simply overwhelm us with their numbers, no matter how many they lost in the struggle to kill us all! I should have known…

Suddenly, a good chunk of the Risen horde before me is turned into smoke as Lon'Qu appears in a series of after-images, sheathing his blade as another massive chunk of Risen explode into smoke. He then unsheathes his blade and stands beside me as we fight off the enraged horde of Risen before us.

As we fight off the ever encroaching Risn, Lon'Qu says to me "Aiden. We've been pushed past the main square. We need to retreat and make our last stand in the castle!"

"Have we been cut off?!" I ask, surprised at how we're already making a last stand.

"Yes. We must carve our way back to our allies, and we must do it now!"

"Fine! Lead the way!" With that; Lon'Qu, two Soldiers, a Hero, and I run away from the horde of Risen and towards our allies by carving a path through the massive crowd of Risen all around us.

This is going to get bloody…


Seven Hours Remaining

I'll be honest when I say that after the tenth Risen, I completely blacked out. Not as in get knocked out, but as I went into a trance and I didn't come out of it until Lon'Qu, Kellam, and I got back to Ylisstol Castle. I didn't even know Kellam had joined us! Or rather, he was there fighting alongside us the entire time… What even happened? All I can remember is smoke, the moon passing over the city, and the screams and cries of things dying all around me.

Well, whatever happened made me lose my new sword and nearly destroyed my shield. It looks like I'm back to using my broken sword once more, and without a shield seeing how damaged it is. Hell, even my new shirt is in tatters thanks to all of the wounds I suffered.

But, that's just me we're talking about here! I can clearly see that we might not last the next hour, and by we, I mean everyone that is remaining. That means the Shepherds, Ylisse's army, Ferox's warriors, Plegia's last hopes, and Valm's remnants.

As the doors to Ylisstol's Castle doors shake and shudder under the strain of the Risen trying to get in, I decide to take a quick walk around to check on my friends and family. This might be the end, and I best say my goodbye to them before everything ends. That, or comfort them before our end...

The first person I talk to is Donny sitting on a crate, who has taken off his bucket helmet and is roughly rubbing his face. I kneel down beside him and ask "Hey man… You doing alright?"

"I reckon I ain't! I reckon we're going to die, and I ain't ever going to see me Ma again!" Donny cries out in response, tears leaking through his hands as he continues to rub his face. He isn't wrong… With how things are, he may never see his mother ever again.

"But, at least she will know that her son gave her life to save the world. What kind of mom wouldn't want a hero as a child?"

"One who wants her son alive…"

"Yeah… But, we got to hold out hope you know? Chrom and the others must be near to killing Grima! They must be!" I say to the now silent Donny, who is now just whimpering into his hands. I imagine he is thinking about his mother. I can't blame him for shutting down like this. I would be too if I was him, and I might actually do that soon!

The next person I talk to is Gregor, who is panting as he sharpens his sword. I lean against the wall next to him and ask "How are you doing, friend? Holding up?"

"Gregor is still holding up Rider-man. Gregor is getting ready for next part of battle by sharpening Gregor's sword. Sword got blunt after hitting too many Risen, and Gregor does not like blunt swords!" Gregor responded through his pants, continuing to sharpen his blade as he spoke.

"You seem… Optimistic of our chances."

"Of course Gregor is. Gregor knows that we will win, and that Gregor will earn the biggest paycheck of Gregor's entire life! It is only a matter of time, Rider-man. It is only matter of time." With that, Gregor went back to focusing completely on his blade. It seems like at least someone is holding out hope in this forsaken place, even if that hope is just getting a massive amount of gold.

My next person is Henry, who just laughs and waves me off as I pass by. He is hard at work using his dark magic to heal some of the wounded, sweat pouring down is dirt and blood covered face as he does so. It seems like even in an atmosphere like this, people are still being useful despite the bleak odds.

I then decide to finish my touring by talking to Panne. I know, of all of the people I could talk to; I decide to talk to the Tanguel who we both swore to never speak to again. I must be crazy! I might actually be crazy, but I do need to speak with her. If I am going to die soon, I rather put an end to some of the more hostile things of my past before I don't have a chance to. If anything, this might as well be the end of all of my mistakes that I can take back with how much time I have left.

"Hey Panne. Do you have a minute to talk?" I ask, coming to a stop behind her as she turns her head to look at me.

"What do you want, human?" Panne asks back, hostility coating her words as she glares at me. It is best that I be straight with her, especially with how we might not have much time before the Risen get in.

"I've come to apologize for my behavior a long time ago." I say, walking around her to sit down a crate right next to her. "I was… Well, I was a fucking dastard back when we first met. I shouldn't have treated you like you were some beast that needed to be watched, and I have come to apologize for it seeing how I might not get another chance to do so."

Panne glare grew a bit harsher at my words before softening when the castle doors gave a mighty boom, the screams of Risen muffled as they continued to bash their way in. She soon dropped her glare and looked to the ground, sighing as she said "I too will apologize to you. When we had met, I still held pure hatred for humans. But after I finally settled into this warren of Shepherds, and after I met my mate… I understood my hate was only for the people who killed my kin, not for the race itself. I will accept you apology, human; that is if you accept mine."

"I do. Thanks for understanding Panne."

"No. Thank you for understanding, Aiden."

Aiden and Panne achieved Support Level A


Six Hours Remaining

After talking with Panne a bit more, we exchange farwells so I could go and talk to my family. I walk on over to them and sigh as I stand over them as they are huddled together, whispering before they notice I have come.

"H-Hey Dad." Andy says, scooting over slightly so I can sit next to my wife. "I'm glad you're still alive despite everything that has happened."

"Yeah. I'm glad too." I answer, sitting down next to Anna as I throw my arm over her shoulder. I let out another sigh before speaking some more, saying "Are we going to survive this? With every moment that passes, the situation gets more and more dangerous."

"I think we will! Only a few more hours are left before Chrom kills Grima according to Naga."

"'A few more hours'? Andy, we still have six hours before Grima is suppose to be defeated! How are we going to last six hours against all of that?" Ana asks, her shoulders slump as she looks back at the castle doors. "They're going to get in soon, and we're going to have to fight them. We can't retreat anymore, and we can't escape! We're stuck here and we'll die if we can't hold out long enough!"

"Ana, we have to keep fighting. Don't give up hope!"

"Yeah sweetie. If we give up now, we'll never earn another gold coin!"

"I know sis, but we have to keep fighting. If we don't fight then we'll-"

"I don't want to fight anymore!" Ana screams out, stunning Andy, Anna, and I into silence. "I… I just want to stop fighting… I just want to stop fighting all of the time… I want to own my own clothing store and sells pretty dresses and fancy suits. That's all I ever wanted… I never wanted… This! I just want… I want…" Ana soon began to cry as the castle doors began to shudder even more violently. Andy and Anna began to comfort her as I stood up, my rage against this seemingly damned fate of ours over the boiling point.

If what I am thinking is true, than I can stall long enough for Chrom to stop Grima. If I am right, then I can stop my baby girl from crying. I can give my son some true hope he needs to keep going. I can give my wife the chance to make another profit in her life! If I am right, I can save us all. I just need to speak with him.

I walk on over to the castle doors, grim determination written all over my face as I stop in front of the shaking and shuddering doors. I curl my free hand into a fist, my rage burning bright inside me as I slam my fist against the door. I do this a few times before yelling out "Rekar! Can you hear me, Rekar?! It's Aiden! We need to talk! Rekar!"

I stop and wait, noticing the doors slowly stop shuddering and shaking alongside the screams of the Risen. I wait a bit long before I hear a familiar voice say "Rekar… Hear…"

"I propose a duel between you and me! One final battle to the death between just you an me! No one else but us!"

"Risen kill all… Why do this…?"

"Because, one of your undead freaks might kill me before you do. Unless you truly want me dead, then we best duel!"

"Rekar agree… We duel… Here and now…"

"But before I open these doors; you must make your Risen not attack my people while we duel! I will do the same as well! After our duel, they will fight!"

"Why make… Risen wait…?"

"Because we need an audience for our duel. Do you not want to strike fear into my people's hearts when you slay me, and joy in your Risen? Wouldn't you like that?"

"Rekar… Likes… Okay… We will duel… Open doors…"

"Alright! I'm opening the doors!" With that, I unlocked the castle doors and opened them wide open; revealing my allies and I to the massive horde of Risen at our doorstep. I ignore the cries of despair and yells of anger as people surge forth to form a shield wall against the Risen who fan out and form a semi-circle around me; letting my allies form the other part of the circle.

The Rekars soon appear after enough Risen has moved out of the way, that same sadistic grin on his face as Rex twirls his Brave Axe while Rek swirls around him. They soon approach me before stopping right in front of me, standing a good few inches over me as they leer down at me.

"Rekar… Happy… This… Good end for you…" Rex growled out as he continued to leer over me for a bit longer, turning away after having his fill with trying to scare me. He then adopted a battle stance, his axe loose by his side as Rek swirled around him in a whirlpool of golden flesh.

"Shield!" I call out, holding my hand out for someone to give me a shield. Andy, my loyal son, rushes up to me with a green shield. I take the shield and I also take his sword, nodding solemnly at him as he glances at the sword I took from him. He then nods back, a determined look on his face as he goes back into the crowd to stand alongside Anna and Ana.

I let out a sigh before I turn back to face the Rekars, keeping my grim determination alive as I adopt my own battle stance. The wind blows past us as stare each other down, one's face full of evil pleasure born of an evil that shouldn't exist while the other is one of a determination in the face of the darkness before it. One is a being from a future that should never happen while another is from a past that knows a hope that shouldn't exist. One is a creature born and shaped only from undeath and evil magic while the other is a creature born and molded by the many experiences he has experienced.

Only one of them will walk away from this, and I do plan on it being me; for I will not let this fate come to past! I will change this fate of mine! I will not let this determined future come to past! I will not lose!

With a mighty battle cry, I rush forward and swing my sword at Rex. He responds in kind, letting lose a wild laugh as he meets my attack with his own. In a shower of sparks, our weapons collide with a mighty clang as we begin the end of our battle. Rek follows up this attack with a shower of golden tendrils, to which I smack away with my shield as I swing my blade to force Rex back.

The Risen backs away to avoid my attack before charging forward, swinging his axe like crazy to hit me in some way. I growl as I raise my shield and block the flurry, taking a step back from the force of the blows. While I was defending against Rex's attacks, Rek sent a massive tendril at my chest to wound me. In response to this, I ram my sword into the tendril itself; causing Rek to scream out in pain from my counterattack.

With a scream of rage, I use my shield to bash Rex away once I get an opening amongst his flurry of axe swings. With this other opening, I use all of my strength to rip Rek away from Rex and onto the ground. The Entombed barely formed a face before I attacked, stabbing my sword straight into the center of the golden mass of flesh.

In a scream in blinding pain, Rek's mass of golden flesh dissolved into a puddle of golden goo; which soon evaporated into black smoke. I turn to face Rex, now just Rekar once again, and adopt my battle stance. The Risen is obviously full of rage having been just seen him past self killed, meaning his existence is will forever be gone once I kill him again.

Rekar suddenly began to scream as his form began to shift and change, his flesh bubbling and shifting as he stared pure hatred at me. After a few more seconds of shifting and changing, Rekar charged forth and swung his axe straight at me. I raised my shield up to block the attack, only to gasp as his arm suddenly broke and stretch below my shield before carving a decent wound across my stomach. It seems like he is tapping into his Entombed skills to kill me now!

I let out a cry as he grabbed me with his other hand and threw me out of Ylisstol Castle. I landed on the hard cobblestone road, the Risen around me making a circle to get out of my way. I turn around and see Rekar flying straight at me, his axe aiming for me while his free hand transform into some cruel looking claws. I roll to the side and manage to dodge both his axe and his claws, standing back up as the Risen around us parted like a boat rowing through a river's current.

I begin to move backwards, barely dodging and blocking Rekar's relentless attacks as he furiously swung both his Brave Axe and his claw at me. I manage to throw him off balance once we reach a fountain, getting his axe and claw stuck in the marble. With this opening, I ram my sword into his gut; causing him to howl out in pain. I am sent flying back as his flesh sprout tendrils and slammed themselves into, making me crash through a shop's windows. I roll to a stop in the middle of the store and manage to stand up before Rekar enters the store after me, his axe and claw free from the fountain's marble.

I dodge his attacks and go back outside through the broken window, swiftly turning around to keep my eyes on my opponent. Rekar stumbles out of store after me and continues to attack, recklessly swinging as I continue to back away through the crowd of Risen. In the distance, I hear the roar of pitch battle and I hazard a glance to see what is causing that noise. I gasp as I see my allies, lead by my son Andy, carve a bloody path through the Risen effortlessly as they try to reach me. I understand! It seems like Rekar's orders keeps the Risen from defending themselves, so my allies are taking the advantage to slay as many as they can while they try to get to me.

Rekar also hears the noise, shock rippling through his face before he began to take a deep breath in. No! If he enables the Risen back to fighting mode, then my friends and family will surely perish. I will not allow that to happen! As such, I go on the offensive and grab Rekar by his throat; cutting off his deep breath. I then throw him deeper into the crowd of Risen, to which I chase after him with a flurry of sword swings. This time around, Rekar is put on the desperate defense as he barely dodges and blocks my attacks.

We continue like this, traveling down Ylisstol's Main Street until Rekar counter attacks to stop me from attacking him. I duck under Rekar's attempt to force me back on the defensive and thrust my sword into his stomach once more. This threw the Risen into an even deeper rage as we continued our battle to the very gates of the city itself, or what is left of them after the Risen tore them down.

Suddenly, our battle is interrupted as a massive scream echoes throughout the air itself. We both turn and see Grima, the Fell Dragon itself, writhing about as a rainbow of colors began to burst through him. It seems like he is dying, but it hasn't even been four hours yet; at least that is what I think anyways! That must mean we defeated Fate once again somehow!

With Grima's defeat now suddenly near, it is clear that it is time for me to finish this duel. I throw my shield onto the ground and point my blade straight at Rekar before I throw it up into the sky. I jump after it and grab it in mid-aid. I scream out, my voice echoing throughout the city with a mighty yell "This is MY future!"

I then shot myself straight towards Rekar, spinning as I fall straight towards him to deal the final blow. Rekar, not wanting to sit idly by, let out a scream of pure rage and reared his axe back. In a flash of blinding light, our attacks met at the same time; creating a shockwave that shattered all the windows around us.

I let out a scream as I land roughly on the ground, my weapon falling out of my hands as I slide to a stop on the stone road. I barely have to turn my head to see the damage Rekar has done to me, to which only makes me scream some more as the pain shot through me.

Rekar had cut off my left leg, severing my limb right below the knee. His attack had managed to hit, just like mine did.

The Risen was cut in half, separated by the waist as he gurgled and gasped in his death spasms. I had managed to kill him while Rekar had managed to maim me. But as I laid there, pain ripping its way throughout my body, I watch as Grima explodes into a ball of white light; clearing the dark skies to show the dawn rising above the land. It seems like I was wrong about the time…

It seems like we've won…

My story has now come to an end. Nothing much really happened after that. The events that do happen, I can easily summarize. So shortly after Grima exploded, all of the Risen evaporated into smoke. It turns out that Jack decided to sacrifice himself to permanently kill Grima, keeping us and our descendants forever safe from the Fell Dragon threat forever. Naga says that there may be a chance that he survived, but that chance is so tiny that even she believes that it is best we give up on ever seeing him again. Knowing Chrom and the Shepherds, we won't give up trying to find him; even if it takes us our entire lives to do so.

As for me, I managed to survive my wounds after intense care from many of Ylisse's best healers but I permanently lost my left leg. Without my leg, I retired as a warrior and I now run a little shop in Ylisstol alongside my wife Anna. While we ran our profitable shop, I've been writing my account on the entire saga ever since I joined the Shepherds. If my wife is right, and she usually is, my book will be a pretty decent hit. I do hope so! It took me years to write it. Other than that, we finally made Andy and Ana. Speaking of Andy and Ana, I should tell you what happened to them!

My children from the Bad Future, Andy and Ana, disappeared one day while they were on watch alongside some other future children called Owain, Inigo, and Severa. I assume they went on some kind of adventure and to which I wish them the best of luck! They'll need it, especially if they get into trouble against some enemies. But, knowing how skilled they are, they'll be just fine! I believe in my children, and I hope they have a wonderful adventure.

And now, my tale has truly come to an end. Thank you for reading.

Aiden Jager.


So. This is the end. This is the end of Mercenary; a trainwreck of a fanfiction containing a Gary Stu protagonist, horrible grammar, random and discarded plot lines that go nowhere, OOC canon characters, diverting from canon material, and many other things that would give the average reader an aneurysm from how dumb they are. I started this fanfiction back in August 27, 2016 and it has now finished September 10, 2018. Two years have gone by to create and finish this fanfictions. Two years of my life writing it, and two years of you all reading it. It has been a real wild journey with you all, especially after everything that has been said and done. I've very much enjoyed my time doing this, despite the countless times I said that this was a wasted effort and that the story of garbage. I still somewhat believe it is terrible, but I am also proud that I was able to finish my longest and most popular fanfiction on this site. I must thank you all for sticking with me for so long, especially those who came in the beginning and stayed despite everything that has happened. I want you to know that I really appreciate you all staying with me for this, and for doing that; I am forever grateful to you all.

I do plan on writing about Andy and Ana's adventures in Fire Emblem: Fates. I really do want to write that. I'll be using Mercenary as a template to help me avoid some of the holes I fell into while writing the new fanfiction. I do hope it will be better than Mercenary. I really do hope so. I'll probably post an announcement to Mercenary once I created the next fanfiction so you all can see it. It would be really nice if you would join me for that journey. It really would be. I'm still in the process of charting out the main plotline for that fanfiction, so don't expect it real soon.

But, I should stop talking. It is time we must part, for the final time until the next fanfiction. If you wish to read it that is! If not, then this is truly the final goodbye. Thanks for staying with me through this. Goodbye!