Fire Emblem 7, The Parody
Chapter 20: New Resolve
At last, Eliwood's long-awaited reunion with his father, as well as their painful farewell. After escaping the Dread Isle, the team return to the port town of Bandon. Eliwood remains silent for the entirety of the voyage. He sits cradiling his father's cold hand, as if hoping to warm him back to life.
Lyn sighed, arms folded across the railing of the ship. She stared out at the ocean, eyes almost blank. Hector approached the nomad girl, and tilted his head. "Hey, Lyndis" he asked, shaking her shoulder a bit. "What's on your mind? Is it about Eliwood and his pop?"
Lyn blinked, and looked over at Hector. "Oh. Well...that's mostly it. But I also just have this nagging feeling that we forgot something back at the Dread Isle..."
"Well, it probably wasn't anything important."
Winny Gnome came out of the foilage, two suitcases in his hands, and a suitcase under his right arm. "Okay guys, I'm ready to g--" He looked around, seeing no one was there. "...Oh...that's the seventh time this has happened. This year."
A few days later, back in Bandon, the lordlings and the two performers were gathered around in a room at the inn. Lyn stepped over to Ninian, and tilted her head in concern. "You feeling any better, Ninian?"
The young dancer nodded. Lyn smiled in response. "That's good to know." She straightened herself, and looked over at the bard. "It's been a while, Nils. You've grown, haven't you?"
Nils gave a little "hee-hee", before he answered. "It feels like it's been a long time. I know it was only a year, but still."
"Hey, mind including us in this conversation?" Hector asked.
Lyn looked over at him, and nodded. "I suppose." She turned to face the young boy. "Nils, this is Hector, brother of Marques Ostia. Don't let his outward appearance fool you. He may act like a jerk, but he's not so bad once you get to know him."
"Acts like a jerk?" Hector asked. "You're looking rather black yourself, Ms. Kettle" he grumbled under his breath.
Lyn snickered, and looked over at Eliwood, who was sitting on the bed. "And you might remember this one. That's--"
"I know" Nils said with a nod. "That's the man that saved Ninian last year." The young bard approached Eliwood, arms folded behind his back. "You're Lord Elbert's kid, ain't cha? I can tell because you have the look of a cheesy action hero."
Eliwood looked up from his mooping, and glanced over at Nils. "How did you meet my father, anyway?" he asked.
Nils grinned, and clapped his hands together. "Well, that's a story best told in...Wide-Screen Flashback!"
"Nils?" Ninian took her brother by the shoulder. "We're already in Wide-Screen."
"Oh...fine, then it can only be explained in...A flashback!"
"I'll get the popcorn" Hector said, excusing himself from the room.
"Frame shift left!" Nils continued, waving his arm to the left. The screen started to fade towards the left.
"See you after the flashback" Lyn bidded.
"Get in there, you!" a Black Fang guard ordered, throwing Nils and Ninian into a cell, before shutting the door and closing it.
"Hey, careful, you'll wrinkle the material!" Nils shouted, before getting to his feet, and brushing the dust off his clothes.
"Now they're taking children prisoner?" asked a voice from further inside the cell. The two children blinked, and looked over at the voice. Chained to the wall was a noble looking man, with fine, red hair, and a red moustache.
"Wha--m...mister? Who are you?" Ninian asked.
The man smiled. "My name is Lord Elbert of Pherae. I'm a special prisoner, because during major plot points, I get dragged out of this cell to watch."
"At one point, he was dragged out of his cell to watch Nergal gloat and plot, and when he came back, he beat up the guards, buying enough time for Ninian and myself to make a get away" Nils explained, the scene returning to present time.
"That wasn't much of a flashback, was it?" Lyn pointed out.
Hector re-entered the room, a bowl of popcorn in his hands. "Oh, did I miss it?" he pouted.
"We got on a boat that was made by a strange looking fellow" Nils continued. "He tried to come with us, but he had to go to the bathroom, and Black Fang were chasing us, so we had no time to wait for him."
Back on the Dread Isle, Winny was busy carving out wood for yet another raft. "This wouldn't be so embarassing if it didn't keep happening..." the gnome muttered to himself.
"However, we got caught in a storm, and I was thrown overboard. I had to swim back to shore, because it only took me a day. Going to friendly territory would've taken me three. And, well, the tide wasn't in my favor."
"You...swam back to the Dread Isle?" Lyn asked, wondering how such a tiny little kid could have the endurance to swim for 24-hours straight.
"For a time, I hid myself in the ruins. Then I sensed something very, very bad was going to happen, so I rushed to the Dragon's Gate. There I saw you guys, and Ninian, and Nergal killing Eliwood's father, and--"
At that point, Eliwood started crying again. Nils tugged at his shirt collar. "And I probably shouldn't have said that..."
"Maybe we should go" Hector pointed out, starting to scoot Nils along towards the door.
Eliwood shook his head, slowly regaining his composure. "No...sniff...no, I'm fine. Please, continue, it'll be okay..."
Lyn shook her head, and furrowed her brow, speaking up before Nils could continue. "When we pulled Ninian up from the boat, she had lost her memory. To think we brought her right back to her captors...Father Sky, I can't believe we did such a horrible thing..."
Ninian smiled, and shook Lyn's shoulder. "Lady Lyn...it's not your fault. They would've caught me anyway. After Nils fell overboard, I didn't know what to do...I was lost within myself...I would've been too weak to fight back." Ninian's face fell serious. "If I had been stronger, this could've been avoided..."
Nils sat on a nearby table, bobbing his legs. He decided he should probably elaborate on Ninian's previous statement. "Technically, she is stronger than me, but at a cost, it drains her greatly of her emotional and physical strength." The young bard scratched his cheek. "Nergal...exploited that weakness."
Eliwood threw his legs over the side of the bed, and looked over at the young bard. "Nils, was he after you and Ninian because you had the power to call dragons?"
Nils shook his head. "Nah, I think he can already do that. He probably needed us to open in the gates."
Lyn's eyes widened. Hector's jaw dropped to the floor. Eliwood raised an eyebrow. "He can call upon them all on his own?"
"Yeah, but it requires a lot of quintessence" Nils explained.
Hector flipped through the dictionary, mumbiling the word to himself multiple times. "I know the kid's making things up..." he muttered.
Lyn looked over Hector's shoulder, and pointed to a word. "No, here it is. Quintessence. Noun. A pure, highly concentrated essence of something."
Nils shrugged. "It's what Nergal called it. The substance of human life. Pure power and energy...Nergal stole this quintessence."
"And what happens to those who have had their..." Hector made quotation signs with his fingers. "quintessence stolen?"
Nils looked at the floor for a bit, before looking back up at Hector. "They die..." the child answered solemnly. "Neither Ninian nor I have that power. Lyndis knows, that, she saw the extent of what we can do (mostly). Nergal needed to gather a large amount of quintessence, so he sent his flunky, Ephidel, to get close to Marques Laus. He wanted to plant the seeds of war in Darin's power-hungry heart."
"To what ends?" Eliwood asked.
"Well, quintessence varies in strength from person to person. A guy like, say, Kozo, would have a much more powerful quintessence than those footmen that old Lundregen had running around. But, of course, there aren't many people like that..."
"Thank god..." Hector muttered to himself.
"So Nergal hatched a plan. He figured that if he could gather the spirit of tens of thousands of men, he could easily open the Dragon's Gate."
Hector looked up from his muttering, angered. "So that's what his plan was? Make up for quality with quantity? That man is sick..." he cursed.
"...Ephidel also brought Elbert to the Dragon's Gate. He said he found the ideal source that he sought. Nergal's plans for war were stopped, but...he was happy. He'd taken so much energy from the knights traveling with Elbert, and he figured he could get more from--" Nils clamped his hands over his mouth. "Oops..."
Eliwood shook his head. "It's okay Nils...when I found my father at the Dragon's Gate, I knew that not a single one of the knights were alive. All dead. Not a sole survivor."
A silver sword cut through the foilage, as a young, gallant looking knight stepped onto the beach of the Dread Isle. He had short, golden blonde hair, and a fair complexion. His clothing was brown and beige, and his armour was a forest green, as was his large, triangular shield. He placed his sword in his sheath, and brushed a loose bang out of his eyes.
"At last! I, Sir Harken, sole surviving member of the Knights of Pherae, have made it out of the accursed woods! Now, my new task is to find a way off this god-forsaken rock, and--"
"Hey, a visitor!" the young gnome, Winny, beamed. "You came just in time, I just finished my raft." He motioned towards his small, wooden boat. "It should get us back to the mainland within a few days easily."
"Ah, but I notice it is only big enough for an adult, or two small people" Harken observed. There was a pause, before the knight lifted his leg, and booted Winny to the side. He then pushed the boat into the water, leapt on, and paddled off to the horizon.
Winny pulled his head out of the sand, and spat some grains out. "Gah, that's the third time this week!" he cursed.
Nils looked up at Eliwood, and smiled. "Your father told us he had a son. A son blessed with natural, if latent, fighting capabilities. But he also told us you were compassionate and distained combat. He told us that you would make a better ruler than he was..."
"Here comes the guilt trip..." Lyn muttered to herself.
"He also said he'd rather sacrifice his life then see his beloved home, family and son consumed in the flames of war" Nils continued.
"...That's..." Eliwood choked.
"When we lost all hope in the Dragon's Gate, your father spoke to us of happy things. ...Well, they were mostly about his cherised son and his beloved wife, but Ninian and I...we loved him very much. His stories about his family... ...they saved us."
"Oh, Fa--... ...Father..." Eliwood blubbered, before tucking his head into his legs. "Oh, Father, I'm so sorry for screaming at you for denying me an increase to my allowance when I was seven!" he wailed.
Hector looked over at Eliwood, before nudging Lyn. "Maybe we should go..." he muttered.
Lyn nodded, before she started scooting Ninian out of the room, while Hector pushed along Nils.
"L...Lord Eliwood?" Ninian stuttered, poking her head into the room.
The red haired noble looked up, and gave a soft smile. "Hello Ninian. Look, sorry about before, but I just...needed some time to think." He stood up from the bed, and approached the young dancer. "Should you even be up and about? You took a bit of a beating back on the Dread Isle."
Ninian looked to the side, somewhat ashamed. Eliwood looked her over. "Look at you, all scratches and bruises...you should really get some rest."
"...Why?" Ninian muttered, looking up at Eliwood.
"Well, you should get some rest because that way, your wounds can heal, and--"
"No, I mean...why was your father...and why are you, for that matter...why were you two so nice to us? This...this is all my fault...these nightmares...these terrible things..." A few tears trailed down the girl's face.
Eliwood put on his most charming smile, and brushed a hand across Ninian's cheek, wiping a tear from her face. "Ninian, crying ill suits a girl of your beauty. I am fine, believe me. Please...don't cry."
"I'm so sorry..." Ninian said with a sniffle. "But...But I..."
"Ninian, please, you must stop beating yourself up, over this. ...No, I'm serious, please, put that book down. ...Look, I'm being very serious, you should...oh, fine, if you're so dedicated on tenderizing your face with a book, use this one. It's small and paperback."
Ninian put down the hardcopy of a Luna Tome, and took the small book from Eliwood's hand. "Thank you...stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" she repeated over and over, continously smacking herself with the book.
"Eliwood! Eliwood!" Kozo shouted, bursting into the room. "Trouble! We've got--" The shaman stopped, noticing Ninian's self-semi-mutilation. "...Ninian, why are you hitting yourself with that book?"
"Lord Eliwood told me to."
"...Pansy-boy..." Kozo growled menicingly.
"She insisted!" Eliwood shouted in his defense.
"Never mind. Where's Nils?"
"Hector dragged him out the other door a few minutes ago."
"...He's a dead man. Look, get your poker, and get outside, bandits are attacking."
"Hey, for one thing, it's a rapier. And second...wait, what? Bandits?"
"Or something. They sure don't look like the royal guard of Laus."
Eliwood walked over to the table, and took the sheath holding his rapier. "Good thing Marcus had a spare..." he muttered, before attaching the sheath to his belt. He turned to the young dancer, who had her book torn away from her before she could hit herself again. "Ninian, stay here, stay safe, and please, don't hit yourself with that book anymore."
"Alright..." Ninian nodded, before reaching for the Luna Tome.
"Or ANY book for that matter!" Eliwood interupted. "Or any form of self-mutilation!"
"Okay..."
The young noble looked over at Kozo. "Where's everyone else?"
"For the most part, they're outside. Some of them are still suiting up for the battle to come" the shaman explained. "Now, let's stop mincing words, and just get going."
By the time Eliwood and Kozo had gotten outside, Hector had already convinced Nils to get to safetly, and Cecil had prepared a map of the area.
"Blast this infernal darkness..." Cecil cursed. "I can't think of a good strategy in this environment."
Kozo sighed, and tossed his pendant towards Cecil. "I tinkered with this baby a bit. You can take a good look and find out all you need to know about the enemy."
"Thanks, Kozo. But...don't you need this?" Cecil asked.
"Well, somebody has to watch out for Nils and Ninian. And I think it should be m--" Kozo started.
"What? Oh, oh no. No way. Not you."
"Well, why not? Are you still uptight about that whole kidnapping incident last year?"
"You nearly KILLED us back then!"
"Yes, back then. Look at the here and now, you idiot."
Cecil looked to the ground, then back up at the shaman. "Well, I don't know..."
"Think of it this way: You get to be tactician two chapters in a row."
"Done!" Cecil said, beaming. "Now, go out there and protect those kids!"
Kozo smirked, and gave a sarcastic bow. "Your wish is my command, oh mighty tactician." With that, the shaman rushed off back to the inn where Nils and Ninian were staying for safe keeping.
Cecil looked around, and blinked in a bit of confusion. "Hey...where are our two axe-fighters?" he wondered out loud.
"They ran into...complications, from what I heard" Rebecca explained.
"What sort of complications?"
"Well..."
Five minutes earlier...
Dorcas slung his quiver over his shoulder, and hefted up his huge axe in his hand. "Come on, Bartre. Suit up. We've got a midnight melee about to happen."
"Um...Dorcas? I hog-tied myself with the belt..." Bartre whineed.
Dorcas ran a hand down his face, exasperated. "Again?"
Cecil shook his head. "This is not good...this is not good at all..." He looked up at one of the only two other axe-wielders in the group. "Dart!"
"Sir!" the pirate answered, grinning. "I'm ready to fight if you want me to!"
"Go help Dorcas unite Bartre!"
"...oh..." Dart moaned, trudging off.
Ninian sat up from the bed, and walked towards the door. "H...hey! Ninian! Where are you going?" Nils asked, trying to stop her.
"I'm going out there to help Lord Eliwood" Ninian explained, a serious tone in her voice.
"Uh-uh. Out of the question" Kozo denied, shaking his head.
Ninian looked between the two, as she continued her protest. "It's my fault that Eliwood lost his father. I know I can't possibly make it up to him, but...I want to try. Please, you two..."
Kozo hung his head, and sighed. "Alright, fine. Go out there if you wish. But if you die, you can expect pansy-boy to be joining you shortly..."
Nils approached his sister, and took her hands. "If you're going out there, let's just be certain that it's not certain suicide." A faint, blue aura surrounded the young bard.
"Nils?" Ninian asked. "What are you--"
"I'm transfering my power to you. I got a bit of a workout when I was with Lyn, so this might help you." The blue glow gathered at the boy's hands, before it moved along to the young dancer, and then enveloped her body.
Ninian took her hands away, and smiled. "Thank you, Nils." With that, she went for the door, bowed her head in respect in Kozo's direction, and left.
"You really think she'll be okay?" Nils asked.
"No," he answered honestly, "But if pansy-boy and his friends know what's good for them, they'll--" the shaman cut himself off suddenly, as Nils was overcome by a wave of weakness and fainted, being caught quickly by Kozo.
"...I forgot that happens..." Nils muttered to himself before falling asleep.
"..." Kozo didn't say a word. He just lifted Nils up and took him outside, to go get a good vantage point of the battle, carrying the boy against his chest.
"Alright, who's too tired to even move?" Cecil asked bluntly. A few hands rose, and the tactician nodded. "Get back to safety right away. You'll do us no good on the feild of battle." Those who raised their hands went back to the houses, to warn people about the impending struggle, before seeing about going back to bed.
The tactician looked over towards the old fortune teller. "Hannah, what's the--"
The old woman was snoring peacefully, whilst standing straight.
"Hannah, would you mind...I'm asking very nicely, would you mind..." Cecil tried to ask, before he sighed. "Matthew, would you mind?"
Matthew grinned, and approached the old fortune teller. "Not a problem." With that, he took out a board from behind his back, and smacked the old woman over the head with it.
"Wha! Wha! Who's there!" Hannah yelped, spinning around. "I've got a Thunder on a stick, and I don't know how to use it!"
"You fell asleep..." Cecil explained.
"Huh?" Hannash asked, blinking. She shook her head. "Yeah, well, it's your own fault for expecting me to tell fortunes in the middle of the--"
Cecil held up a shiney, gold coin. Hannah beamed, and revealed the coin slot on her shoulder. "Just pop it in, sonny."
"This is so wrong..." the tactician mumbled, as he slipped the coin into Hannah's system.
The old woman raised her arms, and let out an "ohmm...". She finally opened her eyes, and nodded. "I see it now. This battle will be faught in darkness, so thieves are good."
Cecil slapped his forehead. "Why do I always get the dud fortunes?" he muttered.
"Keep your pants on, I'm not finished!" Hannah snapped. She then looked Cecil over. "Actually.."
"No, no, no actually!" Cecil shouted, paniking.
Hannah let out an amused cakle. "Relax, kid. I'm only joking around. Besides, you're no Proud and Green in Bern anyway."
Legault suddenly gasped, and approached the old woman. "Wait, you subscribe to the Boys of Bern magazine, too?" he asked, on the verge of a squeal.
Hannah looked over at Legault, shaking her arms in an excited manner. "It's only got the hottest collection of male-meat ages 19 to 24!" she answered.
"Oh my god, did you see that issue where they featured that nice blonde guy with the shmock and the--" Legault was about to start.
"Hey. Hey! HEY!" Cecil shouted, getting Hannah's attention. "Creepy conversation about magazines whose targetted audience is young, teenaged girls, aged 14 to 19, LATER!" he shouted. "Fortune NOW!"
"Oh, fine...fine..." Hannah grumbled. "Alright, let's see...some archers will be good, as well as Anti-Toxins and the Sleep Staff. There are some balistas nearby, so be sure to have one of your archers man tha--"
"Gone!" Wil yipped out, before vanishing, leaving a trail of dust.
"...He didn't even wait to hear where they were...or for orders..." Cecil muttered. He let out a yawn, and looked at his remaining troops. They...weren't many. "Okay, everyone, I know we're tired and cranky, so let's make this as short. Just...rush 'em and don't die, alright? Both of our healers have turned in for the evening."
"Actually, I can use staves with some sort of succe--" Erk started, raising his hand.
"Are you on horseback?"
"Well, no..."
"Can anyone else use staves?"
"Well, Lucius can, but he also turned in..."
"Do you have a distence staff like the Physic staff?"
"Well, that's a rare artifact of a staff, so, no, I don't--"
"As I said, try not to go in over your heads" Cecil finished.
Young Rebecca, tired but willing to fight, rushed off to find Wil, faltering in her steps. Dedicated Fiora flew off to find and eliminate the enemy, the vigilant Sir Kent riding underneath. Lyn and Florina took the north side, young Canas trailing in the back. Sir Marcus rode off to warn townspeople the tired members of their party did not yet reach, while Erk and Hector held their ground, to blast enemy units to bits should they make it past the others. Matthew, Guy and Legault had already taken to the streets to scout for enemies and take out what they could.
Eliwood held up his rapier, and prepared to move out. "And now, it's time for me to make my dramatic exit in the direction of the--"
"Lord Eliwood! Wait!" came the cry of young Ninian.
"de-zuh?" Eliwood stammered, as he stumbled forward a bit. Regain his composure, he sheathed his weapon, and turned to face the dancer. "Ninian? What are you doing out here? Shouldn't you be inside? With Kozo, where's it's safe? ...Actually, maybe being out here with blood thirsty bandits is a better idea..."
"I know I'm not much of a fighter, but...my dances..they can help you. Protect you. Please, let me just try" Ninian requested.
The red haired noble bit his lower lip, before he smiled, and nodded. "Alright. Dance away."
Ninian bowed in respect, before twisting and turning, her long sash fluttering behind her. She spun around the noble, as the sash brushed along his face. She spun in place one more time, and bowed. Eliwood was about to ask for the purpose of all that, when, suddenly, he felt like his skin was encased in armour, which it wasn't.
Ninian took Eliwood's shocked expression as a sign that she should explain. "My dance has now formed a protective barrier around you. It won't last long, but...it should help a little."
Eliwood looked at Ninian, and nodded. "Alright. Now, come on. We've got some bandits to wipe out."
Wil paced around the balista, eyes wide, and mouth in a stupid grin. "Oh, you're a bad little balista, ain't cha?" he asked, slapping the side of the large, ridable bow. "Ain't cha? Huh? What's that? You want me to ride you? Okay, but only because you asked so nicely."
As Wil got in, Rebecca just continued to watch, eyes wide. Wil looked over at the girl, and tilted his head. "What? Is there something on my face?"
"Yes."
"What?"
"Your face."
"What the...I don't get it."
"Yep. You're Wil alright."
Wil blinked. "Wait...how do you know my name?"
"Wil, come on, it's me! Rebecca!"
"Rebecca, eh? You know, I once had a friend in Pherae named Rebecca."
"That's the thing! That Rebecca is me!"
"Then...why did you say that..."
"Well, come on, Wil, why would I have the same face and name?"
Wil beamed, still sitting in his bow. "Well, why didn't you say so? Rebecca, it's been so long, and--"
"Don't you give me any of that it's been soooo long stuff. You left without saying goodbye, and I haven't heard from you since!"
Wil turned a bit red, and scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, um...the thing about that...well, uh..." He then beamed brightly. "I enlisted myself in the Caelin army, actually..."
"...You did WHAT?"
"Yeah. I traveled with Lyn last year, helped her save her kingdom with my bow, and, well, papers were signed, and I now serve under her."
"Lyn...you mean, Lady Lyndis?" Rebecca pointed out.
Wil blinked, and then smiled again. "Huh. You know, I shouldn't keep making that mistake. I mean, I serve under her, I should be getting the name and title right."
Rebecca looked at the ground, looking almost creast fallen. The male archer blinked again, a look of concern on his face. "Rebecca, why so gloomy? Why are stress marks on your forehead? Why are you tossing that rock up and down in your hand? Why are glaring at me with such malice? Why are you winding up for the infamous, over handed knuckle--"
WHACK!
Wil laid back in his balista seat, tounge out, X's for eyes, and birdies flying around his head. Rebecca huffed, and stampped off. "Idiot!" she shouted.
The wyvern swooped down low, its rider driving his lance towards the cobblestone road. Lyn, a smirk on her face and her sword in its sheath, easily leapt backwards, and out of the way. The enemy rider cursed under his breath, and rose for a second attack, when a young pegasus rider careened into him, the butt of her lance first, her cry of "Sorry!" a close second.
Lyn looked up at her companion, letting out a sincere, if quick, "Thanks". Florina, even over the paniked cry of the falling rider, the crash of a human-sized object landing in yesterday's refuse, and even the sickening "splurt" of tossed up garbage landing on said human-sized target, heard her freind's word of gratitude, and flushed a little.
Completely oblivious to the secnd wyvern rider. In fact, it wasn't until Lyn let out a shout of "Look out!", that Florina took notice of her impending threat. She let out a quick "Eek!" of surprise, before veering to an extreme right to dodge the lance thrust.
Too extreme.
With a continued scream, Florina lost balance, and fell. That's when two things went right. First, Lyn, not having to toss aside or put away her already sheathed sword, was able to catch her falling friend, stumbiling, but not faltering. Second, Canas rushed in, his hand encased in a purple haze.
"Feel the power of Anicent Magic!" the shaman cried. The haze on his hand grew, and the tome he carried flipped through its pages, as though carried in a sudden breeze. "Nosferatu!"
Runes of magical properties danced around the wyvern rider, before he could feel his vital enegery being drained away. It wasn't enough to keep him down, and he now persued the suddenly retreating Canas.
This gave Florina ample time to look at her dear friend, and smile, her blush, unwittingly, getting deeper as Lyn held her up heroically. "Th...thanks..." she stuttered.
Lyn returned the smile, and a bit of the blush. "Don't worry, Florina. We've got your back. And you know I'll always be close by, watching over you. Just like old times" the noble nomad vowed.
Florina's face felt hot. Her breath felt cold. Her heart raced like Sain to the Caelin Pub on Lady's Night. And, and this was the best part, her gut and her backbone were present. "Lady Lyndis...I..." Florina started, turning her head to avoid looking up through Lyn's chest to her face.
Canas poked his head in from behind a nearby building. "Lady Lyndis" he reported, "the enemy riders in this area have--" And he stopped, noticing just how awkward the situation now became. Canas looked at Lyn.
Lyn looked at Canas.
Florina looked at Canas.
Hector looked at Canas.
"Wait, what's he doing here?"
Canas looked at Florina. "Umm...perhaps I should let you girls right yourselves before I continue..."
"That would be wise" Lyn nodded, gently getting Florina, to her feet. The pegasus knight cursed her hesitense; that and Canas's bad timing had completely ruined the mood. Once again, she'd have to tell her Lady Lyndis how she truely felt...later.
Kent raised his leg, and kicked down, pushing aside the axe wielding brigand. He then whirled his sword around his head, letting out a cry, before chopping the blade down on another bandit. He continued these attacks, and, eventually, bandits had either fallen at his feet, or have already retreated.
With the lull in attacks, Kent rode swiftly to his field partner, her area also clear of enemies. "Lady Fiora! Are you unharmed?"
Fiora looked up from her mount, and smiled at the red knight. "Sir Kent, fear not for my sake. I am unharmed, just a little...tired." As she said this, her eye-lids drooped slightly. "Perhaps I should recoperate breifly, 'fore I return to battle."
Kent nodded. "I suppose I shall stand close by, in case you are attacked in your faitigue."
The pegasus knight smiled. "That would be very much appreciated, Sir Kent" she said, with a nod of her head.
A minute passed in silence, before Fiora struck up a question. "You're one of the knights that took care of my baby sister, aren't you?" she asked, as though she already knew the answer.
Kent nodded. "Indeed. She has become a fine young woman, and a highly valued addition to the Caelin knights" he informed, still with a stoic expression.
Fiora's smile widdened. "I'm glad she's been such a big help" she said. "I was worried her fear of men would get in both her way, and your's."
Kent gave a small smile, and continued. "She spoke often of her family back home. She said I reminded her of you, her oldest sister, on more than one occasion."
Fiora blinked, and looked up. "I didn't know you were that feminine. No wonder you and Sain are such close friends."
"I don't think that is what she meant..."
There was a pause in their conversation, before Fiora cleared her throat. "Perhaps we should return to driving out the bandits..."
Krny nodded. "I agree. Let us be off, then, my female counter-part."
Fiora smirked. "Was that a flirt?" she asked.
Kent responded with a smirk of his own. "Could be."
"Parry! Parry! Thrust!" Eliwood let out, with a "ha!" at the end of "thrust". He pulled his rapier out of the enemy knight's visor. "Saint Elimine have mercy..."
"Eliwood! Hey, Eliwood!" Hector shouted, as the majority of the troops regrouped.
"Ah, Hector" Eliwood observed with a nod. "How goes the fight?"
"Very well, actually" Erk answered. "Most everyone has finished with their respective area."
"And all the villagers were unharmed throughout all this" Marcus continued with a nod. "Although..."
"Yeah, something doesn't seem right to you either, huh?" Cecil observed. "These aren't ordinary rogues. They seem...what's the word..."
"Disciplined" Kent pointed out grimly.
"That, and the fact that wyvern riders, knights, and monks were among their number" Lyn pointed out with a shrug.
Ninian looked left and right, and blinked. "Where is Matthew?" she asked. "And Rebecca? And Raven? And Legault? And Wil?"
The aformentioned thieves rushed in (with Rebecca and Raven highly disappointed in being termed 'thieves'), Rebecca slowly advancing after them, back turned, and shooting at a distent foe. "In case you were wondering" Legault pointed out, "we're right here, having some trouble with this guy..." He then flinched, clutching his left arm, right hand lined with blood.
"'cept for that Raven guy. He's fighting the big boss with Rebecca supplyng cover fire" Matthew explained. His hair was caked with dry blood, and bruises were all over his body.
"And Wil, since I beaned him with that rock" Rebecca explained, before loading another arrow, and letting fly.
Legault looked over at Matthew, and a sudden smirk appeared on his face. "Oh, sweetie, you're a mess. Maybe I could kiss your wounds and make them all--"
"Legault, now is not the time, nor the place" Matthew groaned.
CRASH!
"Gah..." Raven choaked, before falling from his indent in the nearby building. The group stared.
"That is one strong bandit..." Lyn observed, "if he could toss Raven aside like that..."
Cecil bit his lower lip, and shook his head. He then turned in the opposite direction.
"H...hey!" Eliwood shouted. "Where are you going?"
"There's something I need to take care of!" Cecil answered, before turning around the corner.
As Cecil vanished, the leader of the raiding party advanced, and thumped his padded-armoured chest. Bits of red hair stuck out from under his viking-esque helmet, and his muscular physique easily supported his giant axe. A quiver of arrows and an oakwood bow rested on his back. "I am Oleg!" he bellowed. "And I bear a message from Lord Nergal!"
"Nergal?" Hector shouted. "Then you're with the Black Fang!"
Oleg growled a bit, and continued. "If you surrender the children quietly, your lives will be spared. But if you resist, then I will revel in gutting you like trout."
The warrior stared down at the nearly unconscious mercenary, a cruel sneer on his face. "Anybody wanna try after your friend?"
Hector drummed his fingers on the handle of his axe. Kent drew his sword, and Marcus lifted up his lance, but all three took note of their fallen companion. Raven was battered and bruised, and his face actually showed an expression of pain. And this Oleg fellow didn't even seem to be touched, save for the three arrow holes in his armour Rebecca may have caused.
Oleg let out a ga-fah. "What's this? Hesitent, are we? To think you would contest Lord Nergal, and not have the guts to--"
Suddenly, a cloaked figure landed between Oleg and the party. The cloak was forest green, hood up, hiding the face. The cloak was flowing and concealing, hiding most of the body from the back, and showing on the legs, lean and somewhat exercised, from the front.
Oleg blinked twice, and then grinned. "And just who are you supposed to be?" he asked.
"..." was the figure's only response.
"Not a talker, I see" Oleg observed with a smirk. He hefted up his axe, and imbedded to into the ground. "But let's just see if you're fighter material."
The figure reached into its cloak, and pulled out a large swallow, its twin blades serated and menacing. The figure nodded, and gestured for Oleg to make the first move.
The warrior raised his axe high, and bellowed, rushing towards this new fighter. The cloaked figure gave a smirk under the cowl, and easily blocked the attack with the first blade, and followed it up with the second blade going into Oleg's armour.
Blade scratching his chest, Oleg grunted, and backed away. He imbedded his axe into the ground, and took his bow. Pulling back the string, arrow loaded, he fired.
The cloaked fighter raised its swallow, deflecting the shot. Oleg growled, and took out another arrow. He fired, before loading his bow and firing again. And again. And again. And many times more.
The forest green fighter spun the swallow clockwise, deflecting the arrows as they came. As the arrow rain ceased, the cloaked stranger was unharmed, and kept the swallow spinning. The figure then advanced towards Oleg, in order to thrust one of the swallow blades.
Oleg seethed, clutching his new wound. "Okay, now I'm mad!" he shouted, grabbing his axe. He charged towards his foe, turning in circles wildly as he ran. As he swung downwards to deal a crushing blow, the figure hopped backwards, out of the way. It then leapt over onto Oleg's head, and then into the night.
The warrior turned to see the cloaked swallow wielder depart. "Come back here, you coward!" he shouted. "And face the--!"
THA-CUNK!
Oleg choaked, and stumbled a bit, before falling forwards, a throwing axe in his back.
Eliwood looked to where the axe had come from, and noticed Dorcas, his arm extended. The other two axe wielders, Dart and Bartre, were standing behind him. Eliwood beamed. "Ah, Dorcas. Glad you could join us."
Dorcas walked past Eliwood, before retrieving his throwing axe. "We would've come sooner, but, for all his stupidity, Bartre is a master knot-tier. It took Dart and I an hour to get him out of his hogtie. It would've been three if Dart hadn't bashed Bartre over the head twenty minutes in to shut him up."
Dart shook his head. "Of course, as soon as we got him untied, he woke up, and insisted he put his belt on before he went to battle. And, somehow, he got it around his head this time."
"The belt buckle is hurting my eye..." Bartre mumbled from behind the belt that had wrapped around the entirety of his head.
"Well, at least we're all safe" Kozo sighed, approaching the group, still carrying a sleeping Nils. After getting a few looks, he looked down at the young bard. "Poor little guy fell unconscious shortly after Ninian left to help you guys, so I took care of him."
Canas pondered on something, before looking left and right. "Since we have one of our tacticians here, I am reminded...where is our other strategist? Where is Cecil?"
Cecil stepped into the area, holding a half-eaten sandwich in his hand, and chewing on his next bite. "Hey guys" he greeted, before looking at the body of Oleg, blood around an axe wound in his back. "I see you've handled that boss easily. Well done."
"Cecil, where were you?" Lyn asked.
"Well, I was hungry, and I had to get a sandwich" Cecil explained.
Eliwood, somewhat skeptical, pressed on. "In the middle of a combat situation?"
"Well, I trust you all. I trust you enough to think of a good tactic on defeating this guy without my help." Cecil took another bite of his sandwich, and looked at Oleg's body again. "Apparently, I was right."
"Still..." Eliwood shook his head.
"What, you want me to be a bitchy tactician, like Kozo? I could, but I think one is enough. Or more than, sometimes."
Kozo gently placed Nils on the ground, before walking over to Cecil, and smacking him upside the head. Cecil let out an "ow!", before pointing out, "See? See? Is this what you want me to be like?"
Erk sighed, and opened the door to his room in the inn. Aftrer today's events, he was too tired to put up with much more before going to bed. He just wanted to fall into his pillows, and sleep until the Four Horsemen sat down for a tea party with the Four Seraphim.
Which is why he was somewhat shocked, happy, and quite annoied that Priscilla was in his room, apparently waiting for him. "Lady Priscilla...what are you doing?"
"Oh, hello Erk..." Priscilla greeted with a slight slur. "Sherra and I were tihred of waiting for yoush and the otherhs, so we dechided to get a feeeew drihnks."
"...And how many did you have?" Erk asked.
"Um...one...twooo...shree...four...five...I don't have that many finghers..."
"Try using your second hand."
"Oh, shank hugh...um...five...shi...shit...shix! We had shix drinks!"
"Huh. Never knew for you to be a bit of a drunk..." Erk muttered.
Priscilla shook her head. "I'm shorrrry, Erk..." she apologized. "I shouldn't keep a Shage like you up any longer..."
Erk suddenly smiled with pride. "Why, yes, I...I suppose I did become a true Sage, recently. It just doesn't seem so different..."
"I shaw a differenche..." Priscilla pointed out, approaching Erk.
Now, if you're wondering why Raven hadn't, by now, burst into the room and punish Erk for taking advantage of his kid sister, even though the mage hadn't done anything, it might be to your interest that Lucius had found him shortly after the battle was over.
"Don't worry, Lord Raven, you'll be back to full health in no time!" Lucius assured, putting on the last bandage.
Raven looked up at the bishop, somewhat unamused. "My arm isn't broken, yet you put it in a sling. My legs are fine, and you put both in a cast. My eyes work just perfectly, and you put ice over the left one. Lucius, why in heck are you over reacting like this?"
Lucius beamed. "Just my way of showing that I care!" he answered. He then let out a yawn. "Well, look at the time...it's...qu...quarter-past..." The bishop wasn't able to finish his sentence, before falling asleep on top of the mercenary.
"...Lucius..." Raven muttered.
Kozo was watching through the doorway. "See! See Leggy! I told you! Didn't I tell you!" he declared triumphantly.
"Yes, yes, alright, I owe you tenbucks and a sponge bath...and stop calling me Leggy."
"Wh...what difference?" Erk asked, shocked slightly by Priscilla's forwardness, even if she was somewhat intoxicated.
Priscilla wrapped her arms around Erk, leaning her head on his shoulder. Erk flushed slightly, as the young troubadour started tracing circles on his right forearm. "When hugh became a Shage..." she pointed out, "hugh got muschles. Ghood muschles..."
"That's my line, bitch!" Serra suddenly shooted, kicking down the door.
"oh great..." Erk muttered.
"Oh, give it up, already!" Priscilla snapped, looking up at Serra, her slur apparently disapating. "He doesn't even like you!"
"Of course he does! He's just too shy to admit it!"
"No I don't..."
"See? Erk agrees with me" Priscilla continued.
"As I said, he's shy! He's in denial!" Serra countered. "And he CERTAINLY wouldn't want to be with some weak spined, prissy litle, man-stealing--"
"Oh, it is ON, bitch!" Priscilla shouted, letting go of Erk, and lunging at Serra.
"Didn't know her to be a mean drunk as well..." Erk muttered, wide eyed.
Priscilla slapped. Serra scratched. Priscilla bit. Serra clawed. Priscilla went for another slapping, but fell short. Serra continued scratching, but each scracthed lessened and lessened until she was just rubbing Priscilla across the face very slowly. Finally, both cleric-girls fell to the floor, dead asleep.
"I suppose I should do something about this..." Erk muttered, before he carefully took Priscilla up into his arms, took her over to the bed, placed her underneath the covers, rested her head gently on the pillow, and tucked the blankets in around her. He then looked over at Serra, and rubbed his chin. "I suppose I should also do something about her, too..."
So he took her by the legs, dragged her into the hallway, went back into the room, and locked the door. Click.
And through all this, Serra kept snoring.
"Matthew," Guy leaned over the thief, dabbing some wet cloths over his forehead and cleaning off some blood stains, "you didn't have to do all of that."
"...Like I'd just let you go off and get killed," Matthew looked up at him. "You didn't even see that bandit behind you, did you?"
"No, but... you didn't see the one behind you, did you?"
"I thought you had that one..." Matthew shook his head, pushing Guy away. "Thanks, though," he smiled a bit, and walked off.
Guy paused for a few moments, blushed, and then shook his head. "No. Falling for him is letting Kozo win. Falling for him is letting Kozo win," he began to chant quietly to himself. "Falling for him is letting..."
"So, what should we do now?" Hector asked, as he, Lyn, and Eliwood sat around in their room.
"We need to see Marquess Ostia" Eliwood suggested with a nod.
"My brother?" Hector asked, looking over at the red haired noble.
"After all we learned...how can we not let him know?"
"Fine, I suppose I can't argue with that logic..." Hector sighed.
Lyn looked over at the blue haired noble. "Something wrong about seeing your brother?"
"I'd assume he doesn't want to face Lord Uther, his brother," Eliwood explained, "because Hector has been lax in contacting him, and doesn't want to look down the end of a rather large lance. Right?"
"Well, how do you expect me to contact him while we're trapsing about the isles like a couple of merchants on holiday?" Hector nearly shouted.
Eliwood chuckled, and gave Hector a "tut-tut" waggle with his finger. "He's going to be mighty cross with you, Hector."
"Why you..." Hector let out with a smirk, before grabbing Eliwood in a headlock, and started giving him the noogie of his life.
Lyn sighed, chuckled, and shook her head, shrugging as she did all three. "Well, they seem to be in a good mood" she said to herself. "Better than falling into despair, I suppose."
A few minutes later, after getting out of Hector's headlock and trapping him in a Half-Nelson, Eliwood returned to his own room, where Marcus was waiting. "Ah, Lord Eliwood" the old paladin noted, looking up from his book. "Are you feeling better?"
Eliwood smiled slightly, and nodded. "Yes, Marcus. I'm sorry if I worried you."
"About Lord Elbert..." Marcus continued, shutting the book, and throwing his legs over the side of his bed. "At my own discretion, I sent a messenger to Lady Eleanora."
"...I see. Thank you, Marcus" Eliwood said with a slight bow. "Did you also include that thing about the--"
"Yes, yes, I included the location of her underwear in the letter..." Marcus said with a sigh. "She deserved to know what had happened, I figured. From what I was told, Lord Elbert's final moments were...quite honourable."
Eliwood sighed, and bowed his head, contemplating, before a clanking of armour filled the room. Both Eliwood and Marcus turned to see their visitor. It was a young woman, with long, dark blue hair, and soft, lady-like eyes. She was suited in almost shining, white armour, and a lavender traveling cloak hung around her shoulders. She went on one knee, showing great respect to the two before her. "Lord Eliwood. Commander Marcus" she addressed.
"Is...is that you, Isadora?" Marcus asked, standing up from the bed, still in battle gear.
"I finally found you two" she continued. "I am so relieved that you are well."
"And I you, Isadora" Eliwood said with a nod. "I'm so sorry I couldn't bring home any of the knights to share this reunion with, though..." he sighed.
Isadora began to tear up. "Yes, I...I figured as much."
Eliwood shook his head. "It will be so weird...no more shall Sir Allen grace as with his many tales and stories at the banquet hall..." he began to reminesse. "No longer shall Sir Ruthgar be in the training grounds, swinging his axe for the good of Pherae...no more shall Sir Harken--"
"BWWAAAAAAAAA!" Isadora suddenly wailed, tears flowing wildly.
Marcus walked over to Eliwood, and smacked him upside the head. "Ex-nay! On the Arken-Hay!" he shouted.
"Dude! Sorry!" Eliwood shouted over Isadora's bawling. He looked back at the female paladin, and patted her comfortingly on the shoulder. "There, there, Issy...um...I'm sure Harken--"
"Bwaaaa!"
"Made it out safely. He was the most crafting and daring of the knights. I doubted he would let himself be captured" Eliwood reasoned to the best of his ability.
Isadora's tears began to slow, before she finally calmed herself. "Yes...of...of course. How silly of me to...doubt him" she stammered, before regaining her composure. "I'm sorry about that..."
"It's alright, it was okay for you to worry."
Marcus suddenly voiced his opinion on the matter. "Why are you here in the first place, Isadora?" he asked. "I trust Lady Elenora is safe..."
"And you're right about that" Isadora nodded.
"But, with your departure, doesn't that leave the castle...short handed? We were scraping at the bottom of the barrel when we firsted started this trip. I had to take along my squire, Lowen."
"What's wrong with Lowen?" Eliwood asked.
"Don't you remember when, during training, he suddenly broke for a picnic lunch?" Marcus explained.
"..." Isadora bowed her head. "I'm begining to have serious doubts about this journey..." she sighed.
"I've been saying that from the start..." Marcus agreed with a sad nod.
"Since when, and where, were you saying that?" Eliwood asked.
"In my journel" Marcus explained. "First word at the start of every day: I have serious doubts about this..."
"Yes, Marcus, I get it..."
Back on the Dread Isle, some evil plotting was taking place.
"Right, I'll have a large pizza, with extra olives and a side of breadsticks. And give it wings. ...In a figurative sense, I meant! Right, bye-bye." Nergal hung up his phone. "Nimrods..." he mumbled. He then snapped his fingers. "Limstella! Sonia! Get your feminine butts in here!"
Sonia huffed, as the human and the morph, who looked strikingly alike, entered the room. "I am quite PROUD of my cushy hiney, thank you very much!" she explained with a huff.
Limstella just stood in silence, as Nergal continued. "My wound needs more time to heal. It was a deep cut that the pesky Lord Elbert gave me. And, well, since he's dead I can't really go to him for vengence, SO! I place it on his brat's head for compensation. Sonia!"
"What?" Sonia groaned, cleaning out her ear with finger, wet her clinging to her dress.
"Get that finger out of your ear and listen up. I have some instructions for you."
"Hphm. You're the one who called me while I was in the tub..." she muttered.
"I need you to get Brendan Reed to move the Black Fang. I've seen, time and again, I don't need mere underlings. I need some mighty people to push AROUND those underlings. I need the Four Fangs!"
"What you need is a--" Sonia muttered, before she saw Nergal glare at her. She grinned nervously. "Ah, don't worry my lord. I'll have them bowing their heads to you." With that, Sonia turned and left to return to her bath.
Nergal looked over to the morph. "Now, Limstella, my wound will need a lot of quintessence to heal. As the strongest of all my morphs, I need you to gather it for me. Kill anyone who shows signs of power."
"Yes, my lord..." Limstella answered robotically. She then suddenly drew a dagger, and approached Nergal.
"Anyone who shows signs of power and is not ME!" Nergal shouted, scooting back in his throne.
"Of course, my lord." She turned, and walked off. "Oh Sooooniaaaaa..." she cooed, dagger ready.
"And isn't Sonia! Look, don't kill ANYONE who I can still use to become king of the world! If that woman is nearly killed by those meddiling adventurers, than, yes, you may absorb her life energy. BUT NOT A MOMENT SOONER!"
"As you will, my lord."
Yoshimo let out a sigh of relief, as he approached the Wheel of Morality. Winny looked up from his music player. "You're looking forward to this" he observed. "That's new for you."
"Well, I got a professional coming up with the morals now. A lot less pressure on me" Yoshimo explained. "Now then, let's do this!"
He took hold of the wheel, and spun it around. "Wheel of Morality, turn turn turn. Tell us the lesson that we should learn" Yoshimo sang. The wheel began to slow down, before finally stopping. "Moral Number 6."
A sheet of paper began to come out of the attached printer. "And the moral of today's story is..." Yoshimo said, taking the paper. He read it over, and raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Don't forget to...watch Star Ocean 3: Doujinshi's Cut, now playing at Yoshimo Studioes and Genis Irving's Mature Theatre?" he read.
Elsewhere...
A young, tanned girl grinned, and cracked her fingers, before returning to her type writter. "Peppita Rosetti, you are a genius..." she said to herself with a slight snicker. "This 'otta get us some publicity."
Back with Yoshimo...
The director shook his head. "First thing tomorrow, that girl is no longer in charge of the Wheel of Morality" he vowed.