Sorry it took so long to update. I've made certain promises about the meeting Ikyna and Reyson so I have a specific outline to stick to. That being said it means I have a lot of information to cover in just a few chapters so they chapters keep getting longer and longer. Reyson won't be in this chapter but he has a long part in the next one so no worries.

I don't own fire emblem

PG-

Chapter 27 Perils at Sea

Aeyori was leaned against edge of the boat letting herself be pulled along with subtly bobbing sea vessel. It was pacifying her as was the gentle whispering wind that was blowing the ends of her hair and cooling her body from the day's heat and the softly churning water below that lapped like a dog at the boat's hull.

She was thinking a few moments ago, about the fight at the docks, the travel to Begnion, and mostly about that terrifying knight. Who he was? Why did he know her? How much did he know about her? Aeyori shuttered to think that any part of her past could be in the hands of that man.

Eventually, she grew sick from worrying, and decided to let her mind go blank. She didn't want to let her stomach work itself into a knot of anxiety over any thoughts about her past. All she wanted was to focus on the black horizon in front of her.

Night had fallen several hours ago, and most of the mercenaries were sleeping. She saw some of the ship's crew tending to sails and other things. They would pass by and stare at her curiously, wondering why she was up, and then continue with their jobs. Aeyori didn't mind the stares, in fact, if she'd seen herself, leaned over the railing in a daze, in the middle of the night, without knowing that she was stuck in the horrifying wheel of her memories and the nightmare of that Black Knight, she'd look at herself weirdly as well.

However, she knew what she was thinking about, so it wasn't weird at all, and that was why she didn't say a word to the crew, she just kept staring out at the sea. In the day the sky was as clear as a mirror, no clouds in sight and the water was a soft blue, steady and inviting, as they slowly pulled away from the coast of Crimea.

Aeyori remembered making her way to this same spot, after having her wounds healed by Rhys, and watching the jagged line of buildings shrink and grow hazy as the distance between the mercenary homeland and the ship grew larger. At that time there was a great distinction between land, and sky and ocean. The friendly blue hit the great contrast of brown, tan, and green and below that was the curling clear water.

Once it was dark, however, there was no difference between any parts of the horizon. In fact, Aeyori wasn't sure where she was staring at anymore. Before her was just a black blanket, so dark and so deep that she couldn't see anything. It was a seamless blending of sky and water, with only the soft sound of gurgling waves to remind her that she was on the sea.

It was baffling to the mage to believe that Nasir was skillfully directing this ship to Begnion. The world on the water was so dark at night, like they'd all been wrapped in a sphere that would never let any light in, and she couldn't believe that anyone could know where they were going.

Yet thinking about being lost in the vast expansion of water was another unsettling thought Aeyori wanted to avoid. She cleared her thoughts with a sigh and kept staring out into the unlit distance. It was like the mouth of a great beast, and if you looked into it long enough, you'd be swallowed completely. Then its appearance changed.

Aeyori felt the knot forming again in her pit and tightening like a constricting snake. The sky was so dark, and sea so black, just like that Knight. Then suddenly she was no longer staring at sea, she was staring at his colorless armor, the pit where his eyes hid, and she could hear that voice, that crawled over her body like a spider ready to reel in a captured insect, saying, "I wonder if she would, if she knew who you were." Those words rang in her head and clawed at her. She started slowly backing away from the edge as she imagined that the shadowed sea was becoming the Knights armored arms and he was slowly reaching out to claim her into the water.

Aeyori clasped her chest in panic as she inched father away, horror settling in, and tears about to fall, until she suddenly bumped into something solid behind her. She whipped around and was glad it was so dark for once or else Ike would have seen her terrified face and the swelling around her eyes.

"Commander!" she squeaked out as she quickly wiped her face and cleared her throat.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." He apologized before moving to the edge and leaning over it.

"You didn't go to sleep yet Commander?"

Ike shook his head, "I did, but I wasn't feeling very tired." He turned his head to look at her as he spoke, "It's hard to sleep when the ship is always moving; anyway, I've had a lot on my mind."

Of course Ike couldn't sleep, just like Aeyori, that knight was haunting his thoughts. He'd no doubt be thinking about his father, how he was murdered for no reason, and the Black Knight was the cause. It was strange to think that the one man had such a hold on both of the mercenaries, but for two very different reasons. She and he were stuck in a sticky web on opposites sides with no way to help each other. She couldn't dare tell him about the past, and he would never confide in her to battle this demon. So the two stood silently, thinking about the same man, but refusing to seek solace from each other.

"How is your neck feeling?" Ike asked.

Aeyori put a hand over her neck, wincing at the bruise still deep under the skin, and said, "It's better, at least then it was this afternoon."

When the black knight had grabbed her collar the weight of her dangling body had earned her a deep welt and a reddish purple bruise that wrapped around her neck. Her heart stung as she thought of the dangerous man again, but she tried to hide it from Ike by putting her back to the edge so she wasn't facing him.

"How's your sister?" the mage asked, remembering the trail of blood Ikyna left as she hobbled around the deck, much to Rhy's dismay.

"She still seems a little irritated with me," Ike sighed while he rubbed his face, "But her wounds are all gone."

"That's a relief." She said absently as she looked the opposite direction at the black waters that seemed to expand and never end.

Ike cast the mage a sideways glance. She wasn't looking at him, her pretty features were working into a frown as she lost herself in thought. He'd never seen her so focused, with a look of such distress. Actually, there was one time, he suddenly remembered, Aeyori had a similar face when she crashed into him the day they met.

He wondered if it was because she was in pain, or if she was worried about the trip to Begnion. Ike didn't know her well enough to read her expressions, and there was still so much about her that he wanted to learn. Ike felt the urge to ask, dive into her mind and beg to have another glimpse of her past, just like when she told him about her strict and rigid family, but he couldn't bring himself to utter the words.

Instead, he continued to stare at her. The thin ray of moonlight that kissed her white hair and made it shimmer against the black backdrop of unlit sky behind her, and those captivating crimson eyes that somehow seemed to glow.

Ike couldn't really think of a time when he felt a woman was really beautiful. His sisters were very pretty, and he always thought his mother was attractive, but there was something different about the young woman beside him. It was mysterious, like a rope was tied around his chest that pulled him towards her, slowly, steadily, and there was no way to fight it.

The young commander didn't want to call it love, he wasn't a person who believed in sudden romance, or that finding a woman attractive was enough to say he liked her, but there was something undeniable about his attraction to her.

She was gentle, timid, often she couldn't look him in the eye, but he couldn't help but think there was someone very strong hidden under those trembling layers. Aeyori was, after all, the girl who held him in her arms firmer than anyone ever had. At that time she hadn't held him playfully, loosely and teasingly like Ikyna, nor aggressively like his father, not even with the tender affection of a mother.

He remembered her hands caressing his head, rolling through his hair, leaving the tantalizing sensation, like that of sand slowly slipping through your fingers, and her warm chest, that was beating rapidly like his was now. Ike didn't really think of it then, he was too surprised by her actions, and too grieved to comprehend, but she'd held him in the way he thought a lover would. Possessive, loving, and a little desperate, filled with some unknown desire, the same one that was urging him to reach out and touch her cheek.

As if in a trance, his hand began to move, he couldn't fight it, it just moved. When Ike's fingers where just a few inches from Aeyori's face, as if called or beckoned by his growing feelings, she turned slowly, once again piercing him with scarlet irises. She froze him, his hand still stretched out, as she titled her head and offered a confused smile.

Ike let his hand drop, not enough consciousness of mind to feel embarrassed, but kept staring. A sea breeze blew between them strongly, and out of nowhere, causing Aeyori to turn and shield her face with her hands. Her hair whipped into glittering strands of white, catching every speck of light, and looking like dazzling satin.

When the breeze passed the gap between them had shrank. Ike once again found that his body was moving, as it seemed, of its own volition, for now he was just a hands length away from her, looking down at her as she looked up at him, her small full lips partially parted as she inhaled softly in surprise at his closeness.

Aeyori struggled to maintain her gaze, stunned and embarrassed by his tall strong figure before her, she could barely look into his focused cerulean eyes. A chill ran down her spine and she shivered the longer she stared. He never looked away, but slowly he unfastened his cape, in one swift movement, she was too distracted to tell what it was, he wrapped the long red material around her.

At some point she heard herself gasp quietly in surprise but Ike didn't notice. "It's cold." His voice sounded far away, like she was in a dream. The mage felt her face burning and she was thankful it was too dark to see.

The commander raised a hand, she wished he'd caress her cheek, she wanted it, a loving touch to go with his gesture of wrapping her in his cape. Ike looked as if he would, his hand was almost to her cheek. He hesitated, made a face as if he was debating with himself, than ruffled her hair playfully.

Aeyori didn't think she could hide her disappointment if it weren't for the lack of light. "Use this if you're going be up here much longer; I don't want you to get sick. I need all my mercenaries to be healthy."

The words were friendly yet so distant. They completely erased what Aeyori considered to be a moment between the two of them. For a second the mage thought he really would hold her face, at least from the way he stared at her. That was too much for her to expect, she entertained that idea in her mind; he was, after all, the commander, and she was just a member of the mercenaries who was keeping secrets from him. She didn't believe she deserved his affection.

"Thank you." She nearly whispered as she looked down, ashamed that she was having fantasies of him touching her.

"Try to get some sleep okay." He softly said as he turned and began walking away from her.

Aeyori muttered something in agreement, letting her sadness creep into her voice a little and watched as he left, completely unaware that the commander held his chest, as it raced, thinking about what he almost did.

Ike was glad he'd found a shred of sanity before he did anything he regretted. It wasn't the time to be falling for anyone. A war was being fought and he still had his revenge to seek on the black knight. He didn't want to be caught losing his focus, no matter how captivating her eyes were or how alluring those parted lips of hers were. The commander groaned to himself as he headed below deck; he hoped he could cool his head long enough to actually fall asleep.

A month passed at sea and the mercenaries continued to pray for safe and steady winds to move them to their destination quickly. It didn't seem like they would ever reach land though, a month on the wobbling waters was enough to make any person stir crazy.

Yakuzo was suffering from this affliction. He was sprawled out on the deck, face down, tale twirling from side to side, and sighing ever two minutes. The Laguz looked like a splattered ball of red paint decorating the ground.

Ikyna kicked his flat shoes lightly. One red ear turned her direction and he turned his head to glance at her before scowling and returning his face to the wooden floor. The plywood muffled his words as he spoke, "What do you want?"

Yakuzo spoke gruffly as usual, Ikyna wasn't surprised, but he was different than just last month on the docks of Crimea, where he'd suddenly became outraged and lashed out at the Beorc. It wasn't as if he was completely changed now, he was still short when he spoke, and he never looked overly happy, but at least he acknowledged everyone. He treated the Beorc mercenaries with a begrudging respect, but it was respect none the less.

"I just like annoying you." Ikyna responded cheekily.

He growled in irritation and buried his head back into the deck. Ikyna squatted and titled her head so that she could look into his golden eyes. He watched her apathetically, and the coloring of his face was a little green. The Laguz looked more than annoyed, he was sick.

"The sea isn't agreeing with you Yakuzo?"

He moaned loudly in response before speaking, "It's terrible, all this wobbling and swaying, I feel like I'm seeing through the eyes of a drunk man." His red tail was curling as if it two was feeling the same sea sickness its owner had, "I'm a beast Laguz, I'm not meant to be on the water."

Ikyna sat down with a nod, "I suppose cats don't like the water much."

The read cat glared at the teasing tone in the Beorc's voice, "If I was meant to be on the water I'd have fins." He snapped.

"And gills would probably help." She continued to playfully respond.

Yakuzo looked up at her, his stomach rolling from the movement, and saw the young woman's mischievous smile as she sat with her legs crossed on the ground next to him. She was rather irritating, even more so than most Beorc were to him. No matter how much he lashed out or how rude he was to her, she would just smile and laugh and continue teasing him. Although Yakuzo couldn't find it in himself to trust her completely, she was, after all, still a Beorc, he no longer hated her either. Whenever he felt himself growing angry her words from a month ago rang in his head, he didn't want to be an idiot.

"You don't seem to be doing well Gallian warrior." The ship owner, Nasir, joined the conversation, walking up with his hands folded over his chest and his serene expression resting under wavy white hair pulled into a ponytail that rested on his shoulder.

Ikyna frowned when Nasir approached, she wasn't exactly fond of him. There was something strange and irritating about the way he spoke to everyone on the ship. He had a rehearsed kindness when he spoke, he was cordial but the sentiments were shallow. She didn't like that Nasir always sounded as if he was talking down to everyone, like he knew so much more than the rest of the mercenaries. Ikyna couldn't describe it perfectly, but when Nasir looked at the mercenaries and even his crew, he had an air of superiority, as if he was looking down on every one there. It seemed that he often treated them like children, little kids whose opinions were amusing and adorable to him.

This was just a gut feeling however, he never said anything outright offensive, but Ikyna felt he was secretly laughing at all of them for reasons she didn't know. "I don't know how any Laguz can be good will all this water around."

Nasir nodded, "The beast Laguz aren't meant for the sea, but the bird Laguz use this blanket of water to their advantage."

Ikyna frowned in confusion, she didn't see how water could help flying Laguz. "Oh that's right," Yakuzo began as he rolled onto his back lazily, "The birds are known as the flying pirates of the sea."

"Pirates?" she asked.

"Yeah, both the Ravens and the hawks will steal from ships sailing anywhere near their territory. They're a sailor's worst nightmare." The cat explained.

"What Yakuzo said is correct, but there is a slight exception." Nasir began.

Yakuzo had closed his eyes and was trying to sleep off his sick stomach when Nasir spoke and he cracked one lid open to listen, "Though the raven's will attack any ship, the hawks target only Begnion vessels."

"Why is that?"

Nasir looked at Ikyna and gave her a soft smile, that same grin he wore that irked her, "The hawks and Begnion don't get along very well because of certain things that happened before you were born. They are bitter enemies."

The archer studied the slight turning of the white haired man's lips, he was like a father laughing at a cute question his child made, as if her question was something as childish as, "Why does the moon follow me wherever I go?"

He talked as if he was so much older than her. His words were like riddles, vague and ambiguous. It was maddening and exhausting to speak with him at times; however, he was successfully delivering them to Begnion, and if Ranulf trusted him Ikyna decided she would swallow her pride and not lose her temper with him.

Instead of saying the antagonistic comment she wanted too, she settled for a much kinder and rather neutral expression, "I wonder what those Laguz are like, I'd love to meet one."

"Nasir just said that they are pirates, why would you want to meet a bunch of no good thieves?" Yakuzo said as he scoffed.

Ikyna shrugged, "I doubt that the birds are so bad. I haven't met a Laguz yet that I didn't like. Besides, why would they attack a ship with their fellow Laguz on it?"

Nasir chuckled but tried to stifle the sound with his sleeve. "Did I say something funny?" Ikyna asked as her patience began to fade.

It took a little while for Nasir to compose himself, he sighed with a grin before speaking, "You're very much like your brother."

"What do you mean by that?" she responded suspiciously, not sure if a complement or an insult was coming next.

"The two of you have very simple views on the world. It's all black and white to the two of you."

"What's wrong with viewing things simply? Not everyone has to talk in circles like you Nasir." Her annoyance was sneaking into her speech.

"Yes, to you it may seem like circles, but that just comes from our age difference. When you've seen as many things as I have the world becomes filled with a much grander spectrum than black and white. There is a long area of gray that starts to appear."

"That's too bad," Ikyna said while folding her arms defensively over her chest, "I don't much like the color gray."

Nasir was amused by the girl's defiant and stubborn personality. She was like Ike, taking everything at face value, such a young and inexperienced Beorc. "Well, you and you're brother will both have to adjust to this color, you won't survive well in this world where things a rarely so concrete and easy to understand."

For a moment Ikyna was reminded of words her father said, he told her that someday she would have to take sides. Though the words weren't exactly the same, she felt the meaning behind them was similar. In the same way her father tried to warn her of the world and its way of forcing you to make difficult decisions, Nasir was implying that she'd have to change her thinking as well.

"I don't care." She said, "The gray is just an excuse people use to get away with things they shouldn't do. The Laguz look different so Daeins hunt them down. That's just dumb and that's why we are going to Begnion, because a country like Daein, who goes around attacking Laguz because they're a little different or starting wars with Crimea, needs to be stopped. What's wrong is wrong and what's right is right, and there's no way I'm letting the world change how I feel!" she added passionately and nearly out of breath from her long winded rant.

Yakuzo was sitting all the way up now, watching the Beorc girl so adamantly fighting with Nasir. She was so strange, so ready to defend the Laguz like she was one of them, like there really wasn't a difference between her and him. Never in his life had he seen a Beorc like her. Once again he found that the normal dislike he held for Beorc was lessened around her and then filled with both curiosity and confusion.

Nasir was pulling at the ends of his ponytail and thinking. He blinked slowly as another grin spread across his face. He thought back to Ike who shared the same sentiments as his sister, he'd also set a clear divider between good and bad. However Nasir was old, very old, and he knew exactly what the world was capable of doing; he'd spent many years trying to fight it, and seen many men, just as idealistic as Ikyna and Ike, turn into hollowed shells, chewed up by the nature of man.

He looked straight at Ikyna, she flinched at his sudden pointed stare, "Both you and your brother speak very honestly." he added, "You two really are young." Nasir sighed and for a moment he looked a little sad, "I wonder how long your convictions will last after your real test comes, because that will be a storm that could weather most men, and you have much to learn before you are ready to face the reality of this world. I wonder how you'll fair."

"Whenever I talk to you, you exhaust me." Ikyna said with a groan.

Nasir's serene smile returned, "You're brother said something similar to me. I suppose I have spoken too much though. Soon you will know what I mean; however, at this point my only job is to deliver you all safely to Begnion, and that is what I shall do."

Yakuzo suddenly perked up, his ears twitched and his face hardened as he focused on the horizon.

"What's wrong?" Ikyna asked as she looked the same direction as the cat.

"I hear rain coming." He admitted softly as his tail straightened.

Nasir stood beside the Laguz with a grim nod, "It looks that way." He said as he watched a line of dark gray crowds slowly creeping closer to their boat, ominous and a clear sign of more than simply rain but a storm.

"That's not the only problem however." The white haired man said while flicking his head the opposite direction to point towards four distance specks flying towards them. Ikyna squinted and leaned over the ship to give her weaker Beorc eyes a better view. It took a moment, but she could finally make out what looked like wings flapping furiously on the specks that were gaining on them.

"Are those birds?" she asked in disbelief and then added, "Really, really, big birds?"

By this time Yakuzo was standing up, his fangs showing in an angry snarl, and his fists were closed as he took a defensive stance, "You said you wanted to meet the bird Laguz, looks like you are going to get your wish."

From the cat's expression Ikyna didn't assume she was going to like this chance encounter with this new type of Laguz.

"We seem to have found ourselves in a difficult situation. Ravens at our East and a storm at our West." Nasir said with little vigor as a frown creased his forehead while he looked from one obstacle to the next.

The rest of the mercenaries were starting to crowd around the edges of the boat, watching in curiosity and horror as they were slowly being sandwiched by the two dangers. On one side the shrill cry of ravens scratched at the open sky, while on the other side, black and gray sheets of clouds were billowing towards them and rumbling with thunder like a bear.

"Commander Ike." Nasir addressed as the young commander came up behind him, his sword already unsheathed and ready for the battle he was sure would ensue. "There's trouble on both ends. We won't be able to outrun the ravens and even if we could we'll be running straight into that storm up there."

Ike's face hardened as he scanned the boat, thinking of a strategy or even an escape route. There didn't seem to be any way to avoid either problem though. At some point, he and his mercenaries would face both dangers.

"Can you guide us through the storm?" he said without taking his eyes off of the flying Laguz.

"Yes," Nasir hesitated, "it won't be easy but my crew and I can manage. Those ravens are a different story all together though. I can't steer the ship in the storm and watch out for those winged pirates."

Ike motioned for Soren to come and said, "If you can navigate through the storm, leave the fighting to us. We will keep the ship safe for you."

Nasir gave a quick nod and excused himself to attend to the helm of the ship. Soren appeared shortly after, scowling at the birds who were close enough to distinguish feathers, then turned to Ike, "What do you need from me commander?"

"I need a strategy." Ike said, "We are at more than a disadvantage on the water, we can't maneuver as well, and our enemy can fly."

The wind mage nodded while placing a hand under his chin as he thought. "The bird Laguz are especially weak against wind magic and archery. It would be best if you kept Ikyna, Rolf and myself above deck. In addition we have at least one flying mount, Marcia, who can fight on a, more or less, equal playing field."

Ike showed his agreement by nodding, "What about the rest of us?"

"The bird Laguz are relatively quick, so slower members, such as Rhys and Boyd, will be at a greater disadvantage. You should keep them and Titania below deck to guard the princess."

Ikyna pulled her bow off her back looking grimly, "It don't suppose these ravens will be friendly and not try to attack our ship will they?"

"I wouldn't count on it." Ike said as he turned to give his crew their orders.

"I figured." She said with a sigh and readied her bow for the battle.

All the mercenaries on the deck were still, simply watching the enemy draw closer, holding their breaths and bracing for the attack. The sound of the waves increased as the storm crept closer and the thunder bellowed more frequently and lightning leapt from the dark sky.

Ike turned and caught a glimpse of Aeyori, his eyes were always wandering towards her, and she looked pale; widened eyes were locked on the gray clouds as the serpent like electricity flashed. A thought crossed his mind, he thought he remembered Ikyna saying Aeyori was terrified of lightening.

The commander's heart sank. He saw her, face blanching further and her skinny limbs shivered, and her shirt was fisted tightly in her own hands. Ike felt his mind go blank, all he could think of was how he had to get to her. He needed to protect her no matter what.

"Ike!" a voice urgently called his name and he whipped his head around just as a large feathered body swooped down with talons opened. The Laguz made a shrill cry as an arrow pierced through its wing. It crashed and began thrashing loudly on the deck, screeching horrible as blood fled from its body.

Ike shook his head to regain his focus as he instinctively stabbed his sword into the enemy bird's belly. It gurgled before dying and went still.

"What are you doing daydreaming during a fight?" Ikyna said angrily as she punched him in the arm.

"Sorry I just…" he trailed off as he found himself still looking for Aeyori. Then he groaned, this wasn't the time to be worrying about one mercenary; they were all in danger, and he couldn't be a distracted commander; he didn't even know the birds had already reached the boat.

Something tapped him roughly on the head; it was the end of Ikyna's bow. She scowled at him, "Focus bro." she warned before taking off to guard the side of the boat. Ike clutched the hilt of his sword and resolved that he would have to be focused. It helped that he could reason with himself that if he focused he could keep Aeyori safe as well. So he charged into the ensuing fray as birds slowly surrounded them.

Then the rain started. Lightly at first but soon it was a downpour. Heavy drops plopped against the wood deck and layered the floor with sheets of water. Visibility was even more obscured as the rain came down like a curtain under the seamless clouds that rumbled and flashed with lightening.

Against the stormy sky Soren's wind magic glowed its eerie green as Rolf's arrows skillfully found their mark. Mordecai roared as he took the place of his companion Lethe who changed back into her regular form. His roar echoed into the air and received angry screeches from the raven's

Ikyna was running, doing her best to not slip in a puddle of water. A raven was close on her heels, its black marble irises focused on her as it tried to attack her. Its harsh cry grew louder as it dove for her; she ducked and fired her bow on her knees. The arrow pieced the Raven's wing. Before she could grab a second arrow from her quiver Rolf finished the Laguz with a shot through its stomach. The bird fell from the sky and disappeared into the choppy waters.

The young archer had little time to rest as she saw Yakuzo engaged in a fight on the other side of the boat. She watched the red cat claw and hiss at the screeching crow. Heavy wings beat against the air as the bird Laguz struck with its pointed beak. Yakuzo jumped to dodge being stabbed before leaping onto the rail of the boat.

With deftly feline skill he ran across the thin wooden rail with the bird in pursuit.

"Yakuzo!" Ikyna called while readying her bow. The Laguz caught her eye and jumped form the rail as the bird dove towards him, barely missing. He gave a feral roar and sprinted towards Ikyna. Her eyes were fixed on the bird now turning around to attack again.

Yakuzo ran past Ikyna letting the bird's next attack barrel towards her. She stepped quickly to the side and spun around as the bird whizzed past her. Her hands released the arrow from her bow and it pierced the neck of bird that then crashed into the deck, scaring one of the sailors on board.

Ikyna wiped her wet hair from her face but still found her vision poor in the bad weather. She saw Yakuzo panting behind her then shift from his beast form in a swirl of light. He was on one knee, an arm bent over it, looking tired from the strenuous fight.

"You okay?" Ikyna inquired as she ran to him, her steps scattering droplets of water wherever she went.

Through pants he said, "I'm fine, I just need to restore my energy."

"Don't worry, I'll cover you until you're ready." She said and readied her weapon again and scanned the black sky for danger. It wasn't hard to find, ravens were all around as if they multiplied after every death. Their black feathers littered the deck and turned into soggy messes.

"Watch out!"

Ikyna spun around expecting to see a raven coming for her, but instead she saw Mia's body dashing her direction before the two collided. Ikyna fell over with a groan, her bow scampering across the deck, and Mia easily rolled onto on knee as if she hadn't just run into someone. A bird was close behind her, making that wretched blood thirsty cry.

Mia spun her sword in her hand and gripped it like a spear. With a loud grunt she hurled the weapon at the bird. It lodged itself deep into the Laguz's stomach and felled the feathered creature. The body hit the deck hard with a loud splash.

'Sorry about that." Mia said with a sheepish smile. She slowly walked over to the dead body with the sword still sticking out from its gut. She began to tug at it as she spoke, "I can barely tell where I am with all this rain. I sort of lost my bearings and the next thing I knew I was running into you."

As she finished speaking the sword came free with a sticky disgusting sound. Mia flicked the sword sending a splatter of blood onto the boat that was quickly washed away by the heavy rain.

"No worries." Ikyna said as she slowly stood up, her legs swaying along with the unsteady boat.

The sea mercilessly tossed the floating vessel and the Beorc and Laguz on board. The only ones not affected by the rocking ground were the ravens and Marcia, as she was currently engaged with a raven not far off the boat. Her Pegasus snorted as it exerted its dampened wings and she skillfully wielded her spear.

"You doing alright there." Mia said to Yakuzo.

He lifted his head with a scowl, "I'll be better once you stop swinging that sword around."

Mia was casually spinning and throwing her peculiarly shaped red sword, a Laguz killer, and the Laguz nearest her was not happy.

She laughed, "Right. I bet you don't want to be hit with this guy huh?"

She quickly returned her sword to her hilt as she smiled amiably at the cat; he rolled his eyes in response.

Ikyna turned from the cat and girl, shivering as her wet clothes chilled her to the bone, and surveyed the state of the battle. Only a few ravens remained and she was sure they would easily be dispatched by Soren or Rolf. Both mercenaries were proving very valuable in this fight.

Mist was healing Zihark and her brother was engaged with one of the last ravens left alive

Ike rolled away from the grip of the bird's talon and swung his sword but missed as the Laguz circled him. This raven was bigger than the others and Ike assumed he was the leader. Its wings were like a dark cape occasionally illuminated by the lightening.

The raven dove and clipped Ike's shoulder with his beak. Ike spun and caught the bottom of the bird's leg. It screeched in pain and turned to face Ike. Both fighters were panting from the long battle. Ike saw the strained rising and falling of the bird's feathered chest; he was tired.

However by this time, both he and the bird had received their share of injuries. Though Ike looked clean, the rain successfully washed away any bloodied cuts, he had sustained several gashes from talons and a throbbing hole from a bird's beak.

He didn't want to prolong this fight anymore, he glanced around to see that there were three ravens left. Ike turned to the bird again, its head was darting from side-to-side. It knew this was the end of the fight.

The young commander almost offered to let the raven live if it would leave peacefully but he saw it charge towards him. Ike held his sword, ready to decapitate the Laguz, but it didn't attack him. The flying creature flew past him.

Ike had almost turned around to watch what he assumed was the bird's retreat but then he heard heavy wings beating behind him. He spun around, not willing to let a raven sneak up on him again, but he didn't see black wings instead he saw scale covered green ones.

A roaring wyvern landed on the ship, its rider a girl with a dripping scarlet ponytail. "Who are you?" Ike questioned firmly without lowering his weapon.

The girl scowled down at Ike from her lizard beast. "My name is Jill. I'm an officer of the Daein army. I've come to assist you." She said curtly.

Ike clutched his sword firmer, he didn't trust any Daein, "Why do you want to help? Daein and Crimea are at war." The storm muffled the conversation.

"This and that are two different things. I may be of Daein, but I cannot allow these sub-humans to live. I will…"

"Get off this ship!" Ike harshly demanded.

Jill looked stunned. She wasn't expecting such a brutish comment to come from him. Even if they were technically enemies that was no reason to resist help.

"Listen, we can settle our differences later. I'm going to help you fight the sub-humans."

"I said get off!" Ike shouted as he became more annoyed with this Daein soldier's disrespectful attitude.

She stammered, "I, I don't understand."

"I don't need any help from someone who uses the word sub-human."

Jill was shocked. This man was being attacked by those winged monsters and he was refusing help just because she used the word sub-human. It was ridiculous, "There's no time for that. I'm helping you either way." She stubbornly responded and flew off to kill a beast.

She heard him cursing behind her but she paid no mind.

This whole day was crazy Ike thought. Storms, and birds, and Daein soldiers coming to his aid. He just wanted this day to be over so he could sleep and try to make since everything. There wasn't time to rest however, there were still ravens to kill.

Then Ike heard someone scream and he immediately recognized it. "Aeyori!" he yelled as he spun around, frantically searching for her through the rain. He saw Lethe at one corner ripping the throat out of a raven but no white hair to calm his panicked heart.

Lighting flickered across the sky and he heard the scream again. "Aeyori!" he yelled once more. His voice surprised him. The quality of it, the desperate urgency weaved in it. Even though he was doing his best to stifle his feelings for her he couldn't hide it. Not when she was screaming in danger and he didn't know where she was.

Finally he spotted her. Aeyori was backing into the edge of the boat, the last Raven was fly towards her. Ike started to sprint for her. He didn't know the boat was so long, but that's how it felt, like miles of boat between him and Aeyori.

The sky was still grumbling with thunder and the frequency of lighting increased. Aeyori was nearly huddled in a ball, desperately trying to escape the electric sky. She was completely vulnerable as the last raven swooped in to take her life.

"Aeyori watch out!" Ike cried but his words did not reach her in time. The Laguz grabbed her by the shoulders and lifted her into the sky. She thrashed as she was carried away and turned to see the commander running towards her and her captor.

His eyes were locked on her and she couldn't stop herself from calling his name, "Ike!" and she reached her hand out as if doing this could bring her back to him.

When her voice called his name his stomach churned. He was filled with a terrified dread and this desire to strangle the bird, but he couldn't fly. There wasn't any time to waste though, he spotted his sister and shouted, "Ikyna! Bring that bird down."

Ikyna turned in confusion, the howling winds were making it hard to hear but her brother's voice rang strongly against the storm. She watched him scowling and pointing at the sky. The archer looked up and gasped. There was no need for her brother to explain anything more.

Her hands flew to a bow in her quiver and she aimed it at the retreating bird. A thought flashed in her head as she steadied her shot. What if she missed? What if she hit Aeyori?

She brushed the thought away quickly. There was no time to dwell on the what ifs while the raven was shrinking into the distance. She couldn't miss, and she wouldn't. The arrow flew from her bow with a hissing sound and struck the raven through its neck.

There was no sound from the murdered bird just Aeyori's cries as the two fell. Ikyna watched in horror as her friend dropped with the dead raven still clutching her even after death. The two figures hit the rolling frothy water with a splash and disappeared under the waves.

Ikyna started to call to her brother but he couldn't hear her. His cape was already cast carelessly onto the deck and he was diving into the sea after their fallen comrade. His twin cursed at his reckless behavior but focused on helping him. "Get me some rope!" she yelled to the crew.

Ike didn't know what he was doing, he was in a fog and the only thing he knew was that he needed to save Aeyori. He didn't think before he jumped and now he was blindly struggling through the black waters without a clue where she was.

There was very little sound in the water, a great contrast to the thundering world above. Ike was frantic as he searched, thankful for the occasional flash of lightening that illuminated the sea around him. He knew he was a fool for jumping in and even more so a fool for continuing to search despite the fact that his lungs were starting to ache for oxygen.

Then he saw something flicker to his left and he struggled towards it. He could barely make out Aeyori's features as the intermittent lightening brightened her face. Her eyes were closed and Ike thought she was already dead. He wrapped his arm around her body but found that she was still attached to the raven. Its talons were hooked in her shirt and pulling her down into the pit of the sea.

Ike knew he barely had enough oxygen to reach the surface, but he wouldn't leave her. He pulled his hunting knife off his belt and didn't bother making any precise cuts. With much effort, and screaming lungs, he managed to cut Aeyori free of her shirt and the raven.

The Laguz continued to sink as he desperately pulled Aeyori to the surface with him. The top of the water was so far and he almost thought he'd die. Finally he breached surface, gasping for air while checking on Aeyori's lifeless figure.

"Aeyori, Aeyori." He called and heard that same frantic tone in his voice from earlier. She didn't respond as they bobbed in the unruly waves.

"There they are!" he heard someone call. "Ike grab on!" the voice belonged to Ikyna but Ike didn't know what she was talking about as he looked up at the ship where he saw his crew leaning over the edge. His question was answered when he heard something splash next to him. An arrow was attached to a rope and he knew what she meant for him to do.

He took the rope and wrapped it around his arm as he securely held Aeyori by the waist. He gave the rope a quick tug and instantly felt it being pulled. As they rose Ike continued to call Aeyori's name. He was pleading for her to hang on just a little longer.

They fell onto the deck with a splash of water and a crowd forming tightly around them. "Mist help!"

Ikyna waved her sister over frantically and the auburn haired girl ran with her heal staff held tightly. "Roll her on her back." She said seriously.

Ike released Aeyori and did as his sister asked. He watched his sister hold the red staff over his friend and he felt his heart beating like a hammer against his ribs. His breathing almost stopped as he waited in agony for her to open her eyes once more.

"This will work right?" he found himself whispering to Ikyna who wore the same worried expression. She shook her head, because she didn't know, and did not calm him with her response. Suddenly he heard a loud gasp followed by coughing and the sound of water being spewed.

Aeyori's scarlet eyes burst open and she heaved in panic, glancing around, and grabbing her chest as if she didn't know she was no longer in danger. She spotted Ike kneeling on the ground in front of her, his handsome face looked worried but was slowly softening.

"Ike?" she said in a tiny voice that was still rasping from all the water she swallowed. He opened his mouth to respond but lightening cut him off and Aeyori desperately flung herself into his chest, shivering and whimpering like a child.

Ike was stunned but gradually let his arms ease around her back and then rested his head on top of hers. He softly repeated, "Its okay."

Ikyna let out a sigh in relief and the rest of the mercenaries followed suit. Ike almost let himself do the same but he felt his hands run over something strange across Aeyori's back. Then it happened again, and again, and again. He felt grooves and lumps everywhere his hands traveled.

His forehead creased and he glanced at his twin. She returned his gaze with confusion but followed his eyes towards Aeyori's back. Ikyna had to bite her lip to stifle a gasp but her brother saw her reaction and knew his suspicion was right.

"Get my cape." He said in a dark voice. Ikyna silently nodded and retrieved it for him.

Ike didn't say anything more as he cradled the quiet Aeyori and wrapped her in his wet cape. He hoped that no one had seen and that they would just assume he was covering her naked chest. She was trembling in his arms so he held her tighter as he carried her below deck.

Everyone was staring but not a word was spoken. Ikyna knew what they were thinking; there wasn't any way they could have missed what Ike tried to hide. "Come on everyone," she began as an attempt to distract the mercenaries, "look alive. The ravens may be gone, but we still have to weather this storm.

The crew nodded wordlessly and went to help secure any loose items on the deck and to assist Nasir. "Everything okay?" Yakuzo asked from behind her. He noticed her stiff posture and the dead look in her eyes.

There was a pause and then she turned to him and smiled, "Yeah I'm fine." She waved for him to follow, "Come on, we have to help as well."

Then she slowly walked toward Zihark and Mordecai who were retying a load of fallen barrels, and desperately tried to rid her mind of Aeyori and that back that was ravaged with terrible scars.

A day passed and the storm dissipated and left the ship, though not terribly damaged, dirtied from broken crates and scattered supplies. Most of the clear morning was spent cleaning the deck and finding lost materials.

Aeyori was downstairs, tucked in a thick blanket, lost in a dream she couldn't recognize. There was nothing distinct but her heart ached and swelled with loneliness as white lights flickered like a kaleidoscope.

Soft humming breached her dream and drew her peacefully back to the world. Someone was singing besides her. Aeyori turned and saw Ikyna happily humming as she sat in a chair while idly picking at a thread on her shirt. Her face brightened when she noticed Aeyori watching her and smile spread on her lips, "So you're finally awake." She stood and leaned over the mage, "You gave us a pretty big scare. I'm glad you're alright."

Aeyori nodded, she also thought she was going to die when she hit the water. Both girls were happy she was alright. "You have a very pretty voice." She whispered in her still raspy voice.

Ikyna's response was unexpected. Her face flushed crimson from a blush and she laughed shyly. "Thanks." She said while rubbing the back of her head.

Aeyori hadn't expected that reaction. Ikyna always had a tendency to say outrageous things. She was loud and always spoke her mind, Aeyori was a trifle jealous of these traits, but suddenly Ikyna was too embarrassed to say anything unusual. She just continued laughing, "Not really. My mom was the singer. I think she passed on that gift to Mist."

"Maybe, but she gave it to you as well." Aeyori pressed with a tired grin.

Ikyna shrugged. She then pointed to the mages face. Aeyori looked surprised and felt around her cheek by her eye. It was moist around the corner and she lifted her hand to see a tear. "I don't know where that came from." She lied, that last moments of her dream were still filling her with sadness but she didn't want to admit that the dream was probably about her mother.

Aeyori's friend slowly bent over and gently wiped her cheeks. "Now, now, none of that. If he sees he'll get all worried again."

Confusion crossed Aeyori's face, "Who?"

Ikyna winked, "Well who else?" she suggestively asked.

"Hey sis have you seen…oh, you're awake." Ike ducked to enter the room. His face was stoic but Ikyna could tell he was doing his best to hide his excitement.

"I was just talking about you." His sister gushed with a playful nudge to his arm. Ike gave her a curious look, "What were you saying?"

"Go ahead and ask her. I'll be going. I have some other stuff to do somewhere that's not here." She said with no attempt to hide the fact that she was making a poor excuse to leave the two of them alone.

As she passed Ike heard her whisper in his ear, "Don't hold it all in, you're gunna explode." Then his twin cheerfully waved at Aeyori and left. If Ike were someone who got embarrassed easily he would have turned the color of a strawberry. His straight face couldn't mask his feelings for Aeyori that were slowly bursting out of him. Ikyna knew him too well.

Aeyori whispered his name and he couldn't help but think that it sounded wonderful coming from her mouth. He stared at her for a second, the memories of last night flooding his mind and sending a chill through his body. She almost died.

"Are you feeling better?"

Her doll like smooth face nodded silently as she tried to sit up slowly.

"Wait!" Ike said with his arm out and his face showing alarm.

Aeyori was puzzled at first before she felt cold air blowing across her skin. She had no top on. Quickly she tightened the blanket around her chest and felt her face ignite in embarrassment. Ike was turned away from with his hand outstretched behind him with a shirt in it. "Sorry, I had to cut you loose from the raven so…" he cleared his throat, "I got you this. I'm not sure what your size is so I had to guess."

His voice sounded steady but the tip of his ears were pink. "Thank you." Aeyori murmured as she took the shirt from him. It was plane, just a long sleeve yellow shirt. Not really her style but she knew it was the best Ike could do. She couldn't imagine him trying to describe her body to anyone to get the right size. It was mortifying and worst of all she knew Ike must have seen them, the gross flaps of scarred flesh that tattooed her back.

He'd have questions, Aeyori was sure about that, but he probably didn't know how to ask.

"I'm dressed. You can turn around." She said softly. Ike complied and turned around, he studied her with a flat expression, but didn't speak.

Aeyori felt the awkwardness in the air. They were both thinking about the same thing but didn't know how to start the conversation. The mercenaries just stayed in silence for a while, hands picking at invisible threads and eyes watching suddenly interesting stains on the walls.

"I'm so glad you're alright." Ike said in a hushed voice as if he didn't want her to hear but couldn't resist the urge to say it.

"Yes I'm doing well. Thank you for saving me." Then she added, "But you shouldn't have risked your life. If something had happened to you, who would lead the crew?"

Ike scowled, annoyed that she could even suggest that he should have let her drown. There was no way he could, even if he did think he had to stay alive for the mercenaries, he wouldn't have been able to stop himself from diving into the water after her.

"But," Aeyori began, "That wouldn't be like you to leave anyone behind. I wish you weren't so reckless though." That last part of her sentence was a whisper that came out the same way Ike's previous comment did.

Ike groaned, "Why do you think I was so reckless?" he said with his arms crossed over his chest.

"I don't know. Isn't that just your nature?"

"It's because of you." he rolled his eyes after this comment.

Aeyori raised a quizzical brow, "I don't understand. What do I have to do with it?"

Ike stared at her and debated whether to answer her or not. He didn't really know how to explain. What could he say? How could he tell her that when it came to her he suddenly lost his mind and judgment? He didn't think she would understand that the days were just hours in his mind that he either spent with her or didn't. He could hardly focus on anything else and it was driving him crazy.

"Ike?" she questioned as she crawled across the bed and sat at its edge. She placed a hand gently over his when he took too long to respond.

Ike snatched his hand back at the unnatural warmth he felt when she touched him. His heart raced again, just like the night they spoke on the boat. Aeyori didn't know why he reacted so negatively and it hurt to see him reject her so quickly.

"Sorry." She said and lowered her head.

"No it isn't you." Ike immediately amended as he realized Aeyori's feelings.

"It isn't?" she found that hard to believe.

"No, well it is technically, it's just that…" Ike growled in irritation at his own twisted tongue. His father constantly told him he spoke out of turn a lot and Ikyna told him he was blunt to a fault at times but now he couldn't find any words at all. It was just a garbled mess toppling from his mouth and the white-haired mage in front of him was the cause.

She just sat there, confused and beautiful, and he continued to be at a loss for words while Ikyna's words kept replaying in his head. "Don't hold it in. You'll explode."

He honestly felt like he would. "You should have stayed by my side." Ike said bitterly. "Why did you fight by yourself when you know you're afraid of the lightening? Of course you got attacked, you couldn't even defend yourself!"

Ike was strangely more animated in his speech than Aeyori had ever seen him. "Of course I had to jump in after you. You are just like Ikyna sometimes I swear. You just try to take care of everything on your own and you don't ask me for help."

"I didn't mean to cause trouble."

"Well you did." Ike retorted with a frown.

Aeyori didn't know where the sudden burst of anger was coming from. He didn't seem upset with her, at least not directly, but something was bothering him. She bowed her head, "I'm sorry you had to protect me. It must be a bother to you."

"Are you an idiot?" he said harshly, much harsher than he had ever spoken to Aeyori. She didn't know how to respond. All she could do was let her mouth drop in shock.

"I didn't 'have' to protect you, I wanted to protect you." He said firmly but there was something kind about how he spoke. There was meaning behind those words and Aeyori could feel that he didn't mean he'd protected her just because she was his mercenary. She pushed the matter and asked a question she was sure would gain another irritated response from the commander, "Because we are on the same mercenary team?"

Ike didn't react angrily, he felt suddenly exhausted from exerting all his energy trying to express himself to Aeyori. "No." he said with a sigh and shook his head.

Then in a low voice, "It's because I don't know what I would do if you died."

Aeyori thought she misheard him, his words were so kind and hid such a deep feeling behind them. She asked him to repeat his words to confirm her suspicion. Ike just waved his hand dismissively and let his face return to its normal flat look, "Never mind, talking to you is almost as tiring as talking to Nasir."

"Oh, I didn't know I was like that."

"You usually aren't, I'm just overly tired." He said, "Sorry that I yelled at you."

Aeyori offered him a smile in return; she was glad he wasn't honestly upset with her. His words lingered around her. What had he meant when he said he didn't know what he'd do if she died? Part of her wanted to entertain the thought that he meant he had special feelings for her. Then she felt suddenly guilty, she was keeping secrets from him still, and he knew about them, or at least he knew about the marks on her back.

"Ike." She started slowly, trying to carefully choose her words. "There's something I need to tell you."

Aeyori paused as she felt her nerves growing and causing her to resist telling him. She made her mind up though, she had to tell him. "I haven't told you everything about myself…"

Ike cut her off, "You know I'm told I'm a person who is painfully honest. I always tell everyone exactly what I'm thinking."

Aeyori nodded, not sure where he was going, "Yes, but."

"I didn't think that was a bad thing in the beginning." The female mercenary didn't know why he wouldn't let her speak. "I always thought it was better to tell everyone everything because what need do I have for secrets." He crouched at the side of her bed and stared at her as he continued, "But I've recently found out that a very important person to me has been hiding secrets from me my whole life."

At first Aeyori thought Ike was talking about her, but she hadn't known him his whole life.

"Apparently this person didn't think I was ready for the truth quite yet and so they let me wait until I was older."

"Do you know now?" Aeyori dared to ask.

Ike chuckled, "Unfortunately secrets come at a pretty high price so I don't know yet." He put emphasis on the word price. "But it's okay, I can wait until the right time comes."

He reached for Aeyori's hands and held them firmly in his, his body was acting on its own again, "I know you have things that you want and need to tell me, but do it when you're ready."

Aeyori tried to protest, surely he was desperate to know. "But."

Ike shook his head to dismiss any further argument from Aeyori, "I told you to tell me when you're ready. Until then, don't worry okay?" He felt that urge to tell her everything, spill all the buzzing affections he had for her at once; but he was never good at that kind of thing, so he decided to show her how he felt as best he could.

His hand moved to her cheek and he stroked it with his hand gingerly. She responded by closing her eyes and tilting her head into his palm. Tears slowly trickled down her face. "What's wrong?" He softly asked as his other hand grabbed hers.

"How can I repay your kindness?" Aeyori was truly at a loss. She didn't feel worthy enough to have such a wonderful young man treat her so well. It hurt to think that it had been such a long time since she had experienced such unselfish kindness.

Ike chuckled softly and she felt him place his forehead against hers. "Just stay by my side okay?" he said and flashed a rare and beautiful smile. She couldn't speak, too many emotions were spinning around, and so she simply nodded into his palm that cradled her face.

The two stayed like that for a few moments until they were interrupted by a loud crunching sound and the boat lurched violently forward. Aeyori clung to Ike's chest and looked around, "What was that?"

Ike shared the same expression. "I'm not sure." He released her and stood, "I'm going to take a look."

She watched him, the young man who was once her straight faced commander was now looking like the man she knew she was going to love. A small smile on his lips and blue eyes that watched her affectionately. His hand held a lock of her hair as he smiled, "Get some rest okay."

Aeyori nodded and said thank you as he left.

When Ike reached the deck he found the mercenaries crowded around the edge looking at something with very grim faces. "What's going on Nasir?" he asked as he looked in the same direction of his crew.

Nasir was standing at the helm and shaking his head, "It seems we've gotten caught on a reef or something. Our ship is stuck."

"That's not good." Ike mumbled more to himself than anyone in particular.

"What do we do commander?" Titania walked over to him, her scarlet braid rippling in the gentle sea breeze.

"I'm not sure." He said with a serious look, "I need to check it out first."

Land was close to where their ship was stuck so Ike easily jumped from the edge of the boat into the soft yellow grass. He swayed a little, his sea legs were no longer adjusted to the solid ground.

"What are you doing?" his sisters both called from the ship.

"You shouldn't be down there." Mist cautioned and her sister agreed by nodding her head. Nasir echoed the sentiments as his face began to pale. "You can't go on that land."

"What do you want me to do?" Ike complained, "We are stuck and I can't figure out what to do until I see the situation."

He ignored the protests and grumbling of his sisters and Nasir and walked further on the land. Mountains were off in the distance and the ground was covered with wheat like grasses and tiny yellow and white flowers. The wind was blowing the grass and turning the ground into golden waves of fluttering vegetation. He'd only been at sea for a month and already he'd forgotten the smell of the Earth.

His enjoyment was cut short by a harsh voice, "You there. You are trespassing on Goldoan soil!" Five men with white bandanas ran up to Ike and stood with hardened glares. One of the men in the front barked an order, "You are commanded to leave Goldoa immediately."

"Even if we wanted to we couldn't." Ike protested with a frown, "Our ship is stuck. We can't go anywhere."

The Goldoan's expression didn't falter, "What happens to the Beorc is not our concern. I will ask you just once more to leave this place."

Ike tried to protest, "You're insane, I already said we couldn't…"

His sentence was cut short as the five men were surrounded by a familiar magenta light. When the light vanished five read dragons stood in the place of the Goldoans.

Ikyna heard her younger sister gasp and cover her mouth. "Dragons?" she squeaked in fear.

The twin archer shook her head, Ike had found himself in trouble again. She jumped from the boat and ran to her brother, prepared to fight her way out with him if necessary.

"Wait! What are you doing?" Ike asked as he slowly backed away from the humungous Dragons. He remembered seeing a wyvern, even close up when he met Jill, but these Laguz were nothing like wyverns. They stood at least three feet over his head with strong and sturdy bodies that were plated with slick looking red scales. Some scales were lifted of the dragon's bodies and turned into spikes on the shoulders and backs. Curved claws on the feet and hands matched the rows of jagged teeth in the reptilian mouth. Their heads were adorned with two horns, one on each side. Their wings spread ten feet in each direction.

Ike assumed he would have to fight these Laguz, but just by looking at their massive size he knew this wasn't going to be an easy fight, or even one that he could win.

"Stop this at once!" a voice called out and froze the dragons and Ike who had already slid his hand over his sword. Ikyna arrived shortly after, bow already at her side, and she looked both confused and worried.

The dragons suddenly reverted from their beast forms and bowed deeply as a boy, who looked no more than fourteen, ran up with another man with broad shoulders, red hair, and a hardened scowl.

The boy had black hair that was cut in a bob that hung above his shoulders and a line of straight bangs. His red eyes matched the curious red design on his forehead and he wore a maroon cape over his shoulders with a long sleeve shirt that buttoned at his neck and straight pants. For someone so young looking he had an air of authority and the once aggressive dragons stopped at his command.

He looked at Ike and Ikyna and inclined his head before frowning apologetically, "I apologize for my countrymen. They have not been treating you well I see."

"It's fine." Ike said calmly now that the immediate danger was gone, "Who are you?"

"I am the prince of Goldoa, Kurthnaga."

Ike was relieved that this kid was a prince, perhaps he would have the authority to help him and the mercenaries. "Our ship is stuck, is there any way you could lend us a hand?"

The prince blinked rapidly in surprise. "So then you can't help us?" Ike questioned, taking the dragon prince's silence as a no.

Kurthnaga shook his head, "No I can help you. That is just the first time anyone has ever spoken to me so directly who was not my father or a relative."

Ikyna roughly jabbed her brother with the elbow and scowled. He knew she was annoyed that he once again let his tendencies to speak without a filter take over. "I'm sorry." He apologized.

"Don't worry. It is more important to focus on the problem with your ship." Kurthnaga turned to the man who was silently standing beside him. "Get the other men and help dislodge the ship." He commanded.

"Yes my prince." The red dragon responded with his heavy voice.

Soon the red dragons, who were at a time about to attack Ike, were wading into the water and pushing the ship in their beast forms. The waves and boats churned at the dragon's exertion and the mercenaries on board looked on in awe at the sight of the massive Laguz. It didn't seem real that there were really such powerful living beings out there.

Kurthnaga addressed Ike politely and pulled the commander from his dazed admiration of the working Laguz. "Your ship will soon be free from this land but I feel that I must do more. I will have my men send you with food and other supplies for your journey."

"Thank you." Ike said, "We could really use the help. Is gold okay for payment?"

The prince quickly shook his head and waved his hands in front of his chest, "No I can't accept that. This will be my gift to you. It's been to long since I saw a Beorc. I really wish Goldoa had better relationships with the Beorc countries. They do not and so this is all I can do for you and your crew."

"But it's so much. You can't really expect us to take this for free."

Kurthnaga frowned, disappointment was clearly etched on his face, "It is what I would like, but if you feel you cannot take it then-"

Ike stopped the prince from continuing. He didn't want to take advantage of the prince but he also didn't want his group to miss out on much need supplies. "No, we will take it. Thank you very much."

"I'm very glad you will." Kurthnaga said with a broad smile. "Oh, it looks like your ship is free."

Ike and his sister turned and happily saw the ship bobbing freely in the water. It was a relief to see the ship was unharmed.

"Ike, Ikyna! Nasir says he wants to set sail now." Mist called from above the twins.

Ikyna rolled her eyes, "What's he in such a rush for?" she complained but still headed back to the ship.

Her brother lingered a while longer, "Thank you again prince Kurthnaga. You've helped a great deal.

The prince's young features brightened, "You're welcome. May you have a safe journey."

Ike nodded and left. He climbed back into the boat and watched as the land of the dragons slowly shrank into the distance. Never in his wildest dreams did he think he would meet a dragon.

He felt someone punch him in his arm. Both of his sisters were behind him, smiling happily.

"What?" he asked.

"Oh nothing." Mist said through a giggle, "It's just nice that your reckless behavior was good for us for once."

"Hey." Ike said through a scowl but Mist ignored him and skipped away. The commander looked at his other sister, she was still grinning mysteriously at him.

"What?" he asked again.

"Well," she began while rocking on her heels, "How did it go with Aeyori?"

Ike smirked as he watched his sister's glittering mischievous blue eyes. She eagerly waited for an answer but he didn't have one to give her. He hadn't exactly told Aeyori how he felt, he still wasn't sure himself, but they had become closer. She knew and he knew that he wanted her near him. The rest of the finer details, could be figured out later.

"Come on tell me." Ikyna playfully whined as she poked his stomach.

Ike pinched his sister's cheek and grinned subtly, "I guess that means things went good." Ikyna said through her stretched cheek. He pulled her face harder in response and she groaned.

"Hey that hurts." She whined while lightly punching his stomach.

He released her face and she rubbed it with a pout. "I bet you aren't this mean to Aeyori."

"Nope." He said casually, "This treatment is reserved specifically for bratty younger sisters."

Ikyna spat her tongue out at this remark but her brother couldn't see her. He had already turned and was heading below deck. The younger twin just shook her head and smiled. She didn't mind that Ike treated Aeyori differently, after all, that's the way it should be when you're falling in love.

Thanks for reading. Send me a comment if you want.

PG-