Rhea's Chamber
Corrin yawned loudly as she, Byleth, and Robin stepped into the archbishop's chamber. It had been about a week since the mock battle and the three of them had received a notice from Rhea to meet her and Seteth in her chamber at first light. Of the three, Corrin was still bleary-eyed from having to wake up so early. She almost found herself wishing for Flora and Felicia to be there just so they could blast her with their ice magic. Meanwhile, Robin and Byleth were wide awake. Robin stood off to one side reading another one of his ever-present books. Byleth simply leaned against one of the walls as he tried to determine what Rhea could want. Thankfully, he didn't have to wait long as the archbishop walked in.
"Good morning, my professors," she announced as she strode to the middle of the room, Seteth in tow. "I understand that you might be confused as to why we're meeting at this hour. Today you'll be receiving your missions for the current month."
"Excuse me? Missions?" Byleth stepped up and looked at Rhea in a bit of concern. "I thought we were here to teach your students? Not join the knights to go on missions."
"The missions are for your houses, Byleth." Seteth retrieved a scroll from within his robes. "Those affiliated with Garreg Mach Monastery have a moral obligation to help those in need, regardless of social standing. Students are no exception. Each month, before the next moon, departs, each house of students must complete their assigned mission. You three shall work to complete the task at hand alongside your students and report back to the archbishop before the deadline. Understood?" The three professors all nodded as Rhea and Seteth addressed each one of them with the details of their missions.
"Byleth, you have been assigned to go take care of some bandits in the Red Canyon, west of Garreg Mach. There is a shrine in that canyon that is of utmost importance to the church, and the bandits have taken to using it as a base. According to reports from our scouts, these appear to be the same bandits who attacked you and the students last month. It falls to you to take care of them." Byleth nodded and Rhea stepped forward, turning to Robin.
"Robin, after watching yours and the Blue Lions' performance during the mock battle, the church has seen fit to include the Lions on an expedition into the Kingdom. It seems Lord Lonato, one of the Kingdom lords, has been raising an army against the church. You and your students will be required to follow the Knights of Seiros' reserve force and eliminate anyone who slipped past the front line. Given that your students will be familiar with the territory, it stands to reason they will be well suited for the task."
"Thank you, Archbishop," Robin gave a formal bow, and Seteth fixed his gaze on Corrin who was still rubbing her eyes. Seteth sighed as he waited for Corrin to finish.
"Corrin, given your short, but impressive demonstration during the mock battle, you and the Golden Deer are being trusted with a special mission for the church." Corrin suddenly perked up at hearing those words. "In the country of Sreng to the North, there is a desert in which an ancient... temple, which used to belong to the church. Recently, we have received reports that indicate there may still be some ancient relics in the temple, and as such the Archbishop wishes to see them recovered. Because of the need for secrecy, it would be impossible to send the knights without the Sreng people seeing it as an act of aggression. To ensure the protection of you and your students, I will be accompanying you and reporting back to Rhea on your performance."
"Wait, so I'm the one who has to be observed?" Corrin asked incredulously. She was stopped by a wave from Rhea who turned to face her advisor.
"Peace, Seteth. You shouldn't talk so condescendingly. We know that all three of our professors are talented warriors in their own right." Corrin smiled at Rhea's words. The archbishop offered the young woman an easy smile before she returned her attention to the three professors.
"You three have all received your missions for the next month. Remember, from now on you are acting as representatives of Garreg Mach. Do not disappoint us." For a moment Rhea's usually placid gaze suddenly turned harsh and intense, causing the three heroes to shiver slightly. "Understood?"
"Understood!" All three of them said in unison before departing the chamber.
Robin - Officier's Academy
The sound of a crash coming from the classroom next door caused Robin to hold his head in pain. Given the events of the last week, he'd been finding it impossible to come up with a proper lesson plan for his class. Now that he had this mission to worry about it meant he had to do that much more to ensure his students were ready for the battlefield. When another crashing noise came through the wall followed by the sound of a woman shouting Robin decided that was the last straw. Slamming his book in frustration, he marched out of the Blue Lions' classroom and over to the Black Eagles' room to see what all the fuss was about.
"Could you please be quiet?!" Robin found himself shouting much louder than he himself had expected. Looking inside, it appeared that only three people were in the room: Edelgard, Hubert, and Ferdinand. Ferdinand looked as though he'd had the color drained from his face while Edelgard could have passed for a demon. In her hand was a small fireball, and judging from the burn marks on the flipped desks, it looked as though Ferdinand might have been on the receiving end of more than a few of them.
"My apologies, Professor!' Edelgard said quickly as she extinguished her flames. "I was talking with Ferdinand and... I lost my temper. Ferdinand, I apologize for the disruption. Come, Hubert." Turning on her heels, Edelgard walked out of the classroom with Hubert in tow. Across the room, Ferdinand sighed as he began to return the desks to their proper position.
"Are you alright, Ferdinand?" Robin walked over to the youth as he stood realigning the desks. The orange-haired boy sighed as he sat down.
"I'm fine... It's about what happened at the mock battle. I was so eager to prove myself that I thought I could challenge your house all on my own. Edelgard blamed me for our loss since I wasn't there to support the house when they attacked the Golden Deer camp. She came in here to chastise me again, and that's when I made the mistake of reminding her that she was the one who fell into Claude's pitfall trap. Needless to say..." he gestured to the burn marks on the desks, "That probably wasn't my smartest decision."
"Well, I think Edelgard has a point," said Robin rather bluntly. "Regardless of your skill, challenging another army all by yourself is more or less a suicide mission. Besides, even you must have realized how ridiculous it was to challenge someone Dedue's size in single combat." Ferdinand just put his head down on his desk.
"When you say it like that, you just make it all worse... Most of the house won't let me live it down, and Professor Byleth isn't exactly helping." As he sat there, an idea suddenly popped into Ferdinand's head. "Professor! Would it be possible for me to join your house?!"
"What are you talking about? Students can do that?" Robin scratched his head in confusion. "I thought students' houses were based on their kingdom?"
"They are at a base level, but should a student feel like another house would be a better fit, they can apply to change. Usually, all a student will need is the other professor's permission. What do you say, Professor? If I could learn from another kingdom, then I can take that experience back to the Eagles and become a better advisor to Edelgard! Plus, I could make a valuable ally for you." Robin looked into Ferdinand's eager eyes and saw a shimmer of hope that - once again - made him recall another royal advisor he used to know. One whose only ambition for the longest time was little more than serving his own lord.
"Very well," Robin replied with a stern gaze. "I'll have you know that I'll be expecting total discipline from you, Ferdinand. If you want to compete with the Lions, you'll have to pay attention. No more running off, no more 'proving' yourself. You'll fight as a unit with the Lions or you're out. Got it?"
"Yes, sir!" Ferdinand smiled. "I'll be your star student or my name isn't Ferdinand von Aegir!" Robin sighed as he placed his face in his hands.
"You will really need to stop doing that."
Byleth - The Red Canyon
"Strange..." Byleth muttered as he checked the map the monastery had provided for the Eagles. According to Rhea, the Red Canyon wasn't marked on any current maps of Fodlan, but he could have sworn he'd seen these rock formations somewhere before. He didn't have long to think about it before a certain orange-haired girl approached him.
"Hey, Professor! How much longer till we get to this hidden canyon? My bow fingers are twitchin'!" Byleth sighed as turned to address Leonie. After the mock battle, she'd quickly gone to the Archbishop and personally requested that she be transferred to join the Eagles. The reason being of course she wanted to be able to train with the son of Captain Jeralt. Upon her arrival, she had been quick to remind Byleth she was still out to prove herself as his father's 'best' apprentice. She'd quickly been accepted by the house at large, who were all too eager to have a proper archer among them.
"It shouldn't be much longer, Leonie. Once we get through this pass, then we'll be in the Red Canyon. For now, just make sure you're prepared for battle. If there are still bandits lurking in the canyon, then it's kill or be killed."
"Yeah yeah, I know that much, I HAVE been in combat before you know?"
"Very well..." Byleth returned to his map while Leonie struggled for several moments to regain his attention. Eventually, she saw the futility in her actions and left to find someone else in the convoy to talk to. Soon, the convoy had cleared the pass, and the Red Canyon lay stretched out before them.
"Wow... It be rather beautiful", said Petra as the students all nodded in agreement.
"I can't even see the bottom," shouted Caspar. Before Caspar could shout something into the Canyon, Lindhardt slapped a hand over his mouth.
"That'll be enough out of you for now. Even I know that if we say anything we risk giving away our position to these potential bandits." He removed his hand while a grudging Caspar nodded in agreement. The party continued their march along the canyon until they began to see a faint haze in the sky. As they drew nearer, the haze changed into the recognizable sign of campfire smoke.
With a nod to his students, Byleth assembled the class into a basic attacking formation from their studies. He'd placed Edelgard, Leonie, and Caspar at the front of the line due to their more offensive fighting styles while having Dorothea, Lindhart, and Hubert to bring up the rear. He almost regretted not having Ferdinand there, but he knew he couldn't afford another student going rogue on him, especially now. With a shout, Byleth gave the command to attack and the Eagles charged across the bridge connecting them to the bandits' camp. No sooner had they crossed the bridge when Byleth spotted various thugs appearing from behind boulders and shrubs.
"Stay ba-!" Byleth tried to shout a warning to his forward line, but he was too late. He watched as Caspar and Leonie both took axes right into their shoulders while Edelgard barely managed to dodge at the last second. Before the bandits could attack any more of his students, Byleth activated the Divine Pulse. He felt a sense of guilt as he could hear Sothis 'tsk tsk'-ing in the back of his mind, clearly annoyed that he'd fallen for something so simple. When Byleth opened his eyes, he and his students were back on the bridge, awaiting Byleth's command to charge.
"Attack, but be cautious," Byleth warned. "There are many places to hide beyond this bridge, and they could ambush us at any second." The class started across the bridge for the second time, and Byleth felt himself smile in satisfaction as Leonie spotted one of the bandits and promptly alerted the rest of the class. As the students began to slowly advance through the canyon, Byleth held to the rear, offering support to any students that would get overwhelmed during the fight. As he observed the battlefield, Byleth noticed something that caught his eye. Off in the distance, there appeared to be a small cave in which he just saw one of the bandits ducking into, and out of sight.
Seeing that his students had subdued most of the bandits who'd ambushed them, Byleth dashed off towards the cave. Sneaking inside, he could hear shouting coming from the back. One of the voices, in particular, seemed familiar to him. Deciding to listen in, Byleth slipped behind a rock formation as the conversation continued.
"Dammit! the Knights chased us all the way here?!"
"Chief, let's get out of here! They were already prepared for our ambush strategy, at this point we cant win!"
"You shut your damn mouth! You can't be a proper thief if you fear death. Besides, it's not like there's anywhere we can go now. We'll have to stand and fight!" At this moment, Byleth jumped out from behind his hiding place and came face to face with Kostas, the bandit from Remire Village! Kostas went pale in the face as he recognized Byleth, "Y-you're... It can't be! The mercenary from before? So what, now you're pals with the knights? I'll kill you and your pesky brats!" With a roar, Kostas shoved his subordinate out of the way and charged for Byleth. Suddenly, the sound of a blade being drawn echoed through the cavern, followed by Kostas screaming in pain as a geyser of blood erupted from his chest. Byleth, now positioned behind the bandit, merely said nothing as he sheathed his blade, leaving Kostas to die on the ground, rambling about some idiot.
Corrin - Sreng Desert
"Ugh... This is way too hot!" Corrin wiped the sweat away from her brow as the convoy trudged through the seemingly endless desert. It had been almost two days ago when the Golden Deer, accompanied by Seteth, had arrived in the Sreng port. Now, they were trudging along through the desert in search of this shrine that Rhea had wanted them to salvage. Corrin made a note to thank Lillith for reminding her to purchase a pair of boots before this expedition. She was in enough torment with the heat and sand. The last thing she needed was burnt feet.
"You holdin' up, Teach?" Claude suppressed a chuckle as he flew up on his wyvern. The youth had been one of the only people in the Golden Deer house to enjoy the trip, mostly due to him making a game out of how many times he could blast sand at people using his wyvern's wings. "The land here in Sreng can be pretty unforgiving if you aren't prepared. You sure you don't want a lift? A little flying would probably be good for you."
"Thank you, Claude, but I prefer walking. I tried flying once and... it never sat well with me." An image of Corrin holding on for dear life as her sister Hinoka rocketed through the air on a pegasus flashed through the princess's mind, causing her to shudder in fear. "I'll be fine. I promise."
"Whatever you say, Teach," replied Claude as he returned to scouting ahead for the convoy. Thankfully, after several more hours of trudging through the sand, the outline of a building began to appear on the horizon. From the back of the convoy, Seteth signaled to Corrin for her to join him.
"We are coming up on the old church now," Seteth explained. "You and your students are to clear the area of any potential thieves and recover whatever items you may find. Meanwhile, I've been instructed to enter the inner chamber and recover the holy relics locked away there. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, sir!" Corrin saluted, "We'll ensure the church will be ready for your arrival." She hopped out of Seteth's carriage, eager for some action to break the monotony of the last two days of marching. Meanwhile, Seteth slid back inside his carriage and tried to focus. He'd been dreading this day for a long time. Once the rest of the knights arrived at the ruins of the church, the Golden Deer had already cleared out the riff-raff and were in the process of scouring the area for any artifacts that might be important. Seteth strode off to the center of the ruins. Checking to make sure no one was watching, Seteth moved over to a stone wall and waved his hand over it. A crest began to glow on the back of his palm and a door opened in the stone wall.
Seteth slid inside the door, which vanished from sight as soon as he was through. The priest found himself in a large high-vaulted antechamber, with light streaming in from high windows, falling down to reveal a large birdlike dragon sleeping in the sand. It raised its head as Seteth approached, clearly annoyed that it was being disturbed.
"Who dares disturb my slumber?!" it rumbled in a deep powerful voice that shook the walls. With a nervous smile on his face, Seteth walked into the light, facing the beast.
"Hello, Brother."
Holy crap... this chapter took waaaaaaay longer than I expected. I thought I'd have this done in November, but karma's a bitch and it hit the backburner. The bit in the red canyon took forever if only because I kept trying to go back to the game script, but I didn't want to copy-paste the whole thing verbatim. Anyway I'm happy this chapter is finally out, so consider this a VERY late Christmas/New Years gift, or a VERY early Valentine's gift. Whatever you want. Also... AMAA time!
Guest since ch1 asks: How long until Lysithea starts interacting with Robin and Corrin since both have white hair? Robin would know some dark magic thanks to Tharja and Henry. Corrin is her teacher so it is only a matter of time.
Answer: I have an idea for how I want to handle Lysithea in the long run, but idk how/where/if/when I'll implement it. Stuff is all kinds of up in the it right now, but I definitely have ideas.
Antex-The Legenday Zoroark asks: I don't exactly have many questions to ask except whether you have pairing plans for Robin, Corrin, and Byleth along with maybe making some "hinted" interactions with possible future "candidates"?
Answer: I don't have any pairings planned for the professors if only because, as far as Corrin and Robin are concerned, I already have my own headcanon as to who they married in their own stories and I don't want to damage that. That being said, I haven't planned anything past the timeskip so... a lot could happen in five years? *Shrug*
A lot of people have asked: Grima?!
Answer: That's a great question! Sadly we are out of time! See you all in the next chapter, and holy crap this story officially turns one year old next month! How crazy is that?