The Holy Mausoleum was invaded by those from the Western Church. Their goals were unclear, but it was noticeable that a mage in the back was attempting to steal something from the tomb of Saint Serios. While the Argathans were lying in wait, their target being that of Shez, the most obvious wall at the moment was the Death Knight. He was just sitting on his steed, unmoving. "That knight is a powerful foe…" Edelgard warned everyone.
"He looks like someone I would have some trouble with. But I can fight him if needed." Byleth told her students. She could tell with a single glance that the Death Knight was not a foe to take lightly. He wasn't someone she would even want her students getting close to.
"I don't know if that's a good idea, Teach." Claude shook his head. "Even if we did engage that guy, fighting someone that intimidating would only waste time. I think that's their goal."
"I never thought I'd say this, but I agree with Claude." Dimitri nodded. "I sense malicious intent coming from that masked man. It is in our best interest to stop the mage in the back as soon as possible. Professor, I believe you should go on ahead. We are more than capable of handling the enemies scattered about."
"Yeah, we can take these clowns down." Shez said with a confident grin. Although, her gaze kept shifting around to the battle ready soldiers. Something felt off…she felt eyes on her, but she couldn't figure out where they were.
"Are we just going to spend time talking about this, or are we going to get moving!?" Caspar was eager to go.
"Quickly, but carefully." Byleth told the others. "Do not rush ahead and stay in groups. We don't know if there are others waiting to ambush us. And anything could tick off that knight over there."
"I already said I would not chase you." The Death Knight overheard this and simply did not care enough to move. "So long as you do not come within my range."
"Is he really just going to sit there?!" One of the Western Church members groaned. They had such a powerful ally on their side, but he just…wasn't going to fight.
"I do not take orders from you." The Death Knight replied. "If you try to order me around, you'll find your head severed from your shoulders." His weapon of choice was a frightening scythe. It wasn't something anyone wanted to get too close to…
"It appears there are issues in the chain of command. That works to our advantage." Hubert said. "Best to strike now while the iron is hot. I doubt they will remain in discord for much longer."
"I agree with the vampire." Sylvain said. Hubert just quirked a brow at that remark, but didn't say anything. Simply put: Hubert never forgets. "Let's get in there and kick these guys out. We can ask them questions later."
"Finally, something from your mouth that isn't horrendous to listen to." Felix said while brandishing his sword. He wasn't going to stand around anymore and decided to charge in.
"Felix, wait…!" Ingrid groaned and rolled her eyes. She had to chase after him to make sure he didn't get himself in over his head.
"Can we trust the Lions to deal with the front entrance? It'll be easier to advance knowing that the enemy isn't trying to escape." Ignatz looked to Dimitri. He was still a little uncertain about this battle, especially in such a holy place, but it was unavoidable.
"We will not let a single one past us." Dedue said firmly.
"If anyone gets injured, don't be afraid to come to me for assistance." Mercedes said with a nod.
"Ugh, so much work…" Hilda groaned, dragging her axe along the ground as she walked forward. She was being lazy, but her axe was also grinding against the stone floor, which was sharpening it in the process. Hilda wasn't planning on putting out a lot of effort – she planned to take out as many enemies as she could with a single swing.
"Alright, let's get a move on already." Lysithea didn't want to waste any time either. The sooner they took care of these nuisances, the sooner they could get back to doing things that actually mattered. The Blue Lions were going to hold the back line, while the Golden Deer and Black Eagles advanced onward. Byleth was going to do what she could to stop the mage in the back from opening the sealing. Whatever was in there was clearly important.
Even as the three houses split up and enacted their plan, the Death Knight kept to his word and didn't move. The threatening aura his presence commanded was present, and it loomed in the air heavily. But so long as nothing happened, he would not budge from his spot. Not a single person that passed him was worthy of his time…although, he did notice Byleth cutting down a few Western Church Soldiers from the corner of his eye. She had the potential…she could be the one to….
"He's not going to budge after all..." Myson was watching in the shadows along with the other Argathans. It wasn't their time to move, they were waiting for their time to strike. But if the momentum the students carried snowballed too quickly, they were going to have to intervene one way or another.
"Don't you worry. I have the perfect idea." Bias wore a sinister smile on her lips. If the Death Knight wasn't going to rush into action, she knew how to spur him into it. But she needed the perfect moment for that. For now, they were not going to take their eyes off of Shez. She was their secondary target.
"Yah! Hah!" Shez was having a field day, slipping through foes and cutting them down. The Western Church Soldiers were skilled, but they weren't even close enough to her level. "These guys aren't that strong at all!"
"Don't let your guard down." Felix huffed, his blade clashing with an enemy's before he parried and struck them down.
"Hey, Ashe…" Annette approached Ashe. He was keeping an eye out for any ranged attackers so he could take them out first. "I know this isn't the best time to ask, but how are you feeling…?" She was worried about him.
"…Not my best." Ashe admitted. "But this is more important than me. So I had to show up. It's as simple as that."
"Don't push yourself." Annette said with a reassuring smile.
Dimitri was using his lance to fend off several Western Church attackers. They were all using swords, so they weren't really capable of getting close to him without getting knocked down. "Stop this madness already, before I end it for you." There was something different about his tone; an aggression that wasn't normally present. Between the incident with Lonato, fighting his own people, and now fighting those from the Western Church, he found it hard to pull back his restraint for much longer.
Felix expected this and sucked his teeth, annoyed that this was one of the times the boar wanted to show his true colors. "Look at him go." He said with disgust.
"What a time for him to be like this." Luke rolled his eyes before glancing at Dedue. "Aren't you going to do anything about this?"
"I am His Highness's shield." Dedue responded, knocking away several enemies with his axe. With his large stature, each swing of his came with incredible power. This was no different. "The only thing I will do is ensure no harm comes to him."
"I don't know why I bothered asking." Luke rolled his eyes. That was the expected response from Dedue. As they were fighting, his gaze then happened upon Mercedes, who was looking towards the Death Knight. "Mercedes, what are you doing?"
"Huh?" Mercedes appeared to have zoned out for a second. She turned to Luke, placing a hand on her cheek. "I'm sorry, it's just…something about that Knight…"
"Yeah, he's pretty scary and I don't want to cross swords with him." Luke said. "You should keep your distance as well. He's playing nice for the time being, but we don't know how long that could be."
"I suppose you have a point…" Mercedes nodded. But she was still slightly uncertain about it. It was a feeling that she couldn't shake that easily despite the objects tossed her way…
"….." Constance was listening on their conversation. She completely understood where Mercedes was coming from. The Death Knight's posture, his composure with that weapon… "No…surely it could not be. It must be my imagination…"
.
"Do you feel that?" Sothis asked Byleth. "Something in this place…I feel as if it is calling to me. To us."
"Yeah…" Byleth responded with a nod. She wasn't sure how to explain this feeling, but there was something within this tomb that was calling out to her. "I don't know what it is, but it's strong. Perhaps it's in the tomb that mage is trying to steal?" A few mages attempted to blindside her with fire balls, but Byleth was easily able to leap to the side to avoid them. When she landed, she pursued them one by one, cutting them down before they had the chance to retaliate.
"At this pace, there won't be anything to worry about! You are quite the effective one when you choose to be." Sothis was grinning in Byleth's head.
"Don't be so certain." Byleth came to a halt, glancing around her. The Western Church foes were at the forefront, but she could feel the presence of others lurking in the shadows somewhere. Her heightened combat sense allowed her to pick up on this. "There are more people here."
"Is that so? But how?" Sothis questioned. "Did you all not block the entrance?"
"I don't know." Byleth said. "But I know there's something strange happening around here. I'll keep moving. I don't want to waste too much time."
"Just remember. If things get dire, do not forget about my power. There have yet to be major situations that require it, but if it can save the lives of these young ones or even your own…" Sothis trailed off. She would sleep terribly knowing she failed to save a life, and she didn't want Byleth to die either. Not just because they were connected either.
.
.
While the Blue Lions were holding the entrance, the Golden Deer were taking care of the area in front of them. They were the first wave of attackers and planned to cripple and take down as many Western Church soldiers as they could. Leonie, Lysithea, Lorenz Raphael, Claude, and Balthus were the ones putting in the most effort in taking down the enemy. Marianne, Hilda, and Ignatz were doing their part as well, but just from the back. "Ugh, there are so many of them!" Lysithea groaned. "You swat one down and two more pop up!"
"They're not that strong, though." Raphael stated. He was able to punch a few people out with his pure strength alone.
"It does look like we have them outnumbered, though." Ignatz remarked. "If we continue this pace, we should be able to rout them in no time…"
"I hope so…" Marianne mumbled. Fighting against those from the Western Church did leave a bad taste in her mouth. Marianne didn't have to worry about fighting that much, since Hilda was the one to smack anyone away who got too close.
"I can't believe the knights were worried about something like this!" Leonie wasn't fazed at all by the enemy.
"Such a paltry force is no match for the likes of me." Lorenz said while thrusting his lance forward, taking down a number of foes in the process. "Stopping the enemy will be no issue!"
"As long as you keep that up, sure." Claude shrugged his shoulders. He was taking careful aim with his arrows, making sure not to aggro the Death Knight by hitting him. Claude's shots were precise, taking out several Western Church enemies.
Bias looked on as Claude fired. This was the opening she was looking for. With a grin, she waited for him to take another shot, before using some magic to alter the trajectory of his arrow just slightly. The arrow curved and it clinked off of the Death Knight's shoulder. For a little sound, it had a large impact. "Heh…"
Instantly, the atmosphere in the Holy Mausoleum shifted. "What the-!?" Claude's eyes went wide. He was legitimately taken aback by this. It was his arrow that drew the Death Knight's attention, but he knew for a fact he didn't mess up his shot.
"Claude, what did you do!?" Lorenz barked. There was a cold sweat on his forehead as he could feel the Death Knight's oppressive aura start to permeate the air.
"That…wasn't me…" That was the only thing Claude could say.
"That was your arrow! Were you trying to provoke him!" Lorenz exclaimed. Anyone who watched Claude saw what happened, but they didn't know the truth of it. Even Claude didn't know the truth of it.
"There's no point arguing about it now!" Shez exclaimed. "Looks like we have to deal with this guy now…!"
The Death Knight's horse took a single step forward. "I told you that I would not chase you. But it appears as if you wished to challenge me regardless." The Death Knight's malicious aura was so intense; one could visibly see it wavering around him. The crimson eyes of his mask lit up. "Like moths to a flame…"
"Haha…" Bias laughed to herself, pleased with these turn of events. The Death Knight wasn't going to move on his own…so she just decided to give him a little push. "Enjoy, you filthy vermin."
"I was really hoping we didn't have to deal with him…" Hilda said with a gulp. This was a fight she wanted no part in.
"Well, there's no way around it now!" Lysithea exclaimed.
The Death Knight's scythe oozed a purple aura. "Squirm for me. Your lives will end here!" Suddenly, the Death Knight was now the most pressing and dangerous person on the field. A knight of his power focused solely on ending the lives of all the students before him.
The Reaper Cometh…