(A/N: This arc focuses on Marth and Malin, but as per my writing style, they will be referred to as Lucina and Morgan respectively. Sorry not sorry—I'd rather warn for confusion than keep on calling them aliases and have other characters call them their real names in dialogue. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the chapter!)
His first memory was of waking up in a field, wondering where his mother was. He met her by chance in an abandoned place up north not too long after. He didn't remember anything before that—not even vague feelings or images, just déjà vu that gave him migraines if he thought about it too much. This place, the people who live here, and his role in their lives was a mystery to him; that is, until he came here, met the people living in this little city, and was given a role. His time as Malin—or even 'that weird mercenary with a silent partner'—was over, at least for the foreseeable future. He was Morgan now, advising the exalt, Lucina, along with the other time travelers.
Ylisse here was…well, one could only really describe it as 'destroyed.' Not many of the cities existed anymore, and no one was brave enough to venture very far westward in order to rebuild docks and ships to see if Valm fared any better. About one hundred people lived in Ylisstol under the exalt's direction protection, twice as much as Morgan and Lucina had been greeted by when they first returned; thirty-eight of that one hundred were children or the elderly, and seventeen all together were sick or near death. All but two of the younger folk were orphaned, and the adults were either older siblings or parents of dead children. Most people pulled their weight; sometimes people would have an off day and get back to work, but overall the only people who didn't do anything were the ones that physically couldn't.
Morgan was with Lucina at the castle, helping her with work. It's how he spent most of his days, when he wasn't being asked after the littles. They did what they needed to do in relative silence until Lucina frowned at the dimming sunlight. "I can handle the rest for tonight; go back down to the city, get some dinner, and head to your tent."
He nodded, but he still voiced some of his concern. "…Are you going to be here all night again? You need sleep too, you know."
"It's difficult for me to rest," Lucina admitted. "There's so much that requires my attention… My thoughts remain on that work until it's finished."
"Well, I know that I can't convince you otherwise," Morgan replied with a sigh. He didn't exactly want to leave her there, but he had to deal with it for now. "But if I hear that you've been up all night, I'm getting Noire, Yarne, and Brady to make you some tea or something that'll make you sleep. We can't have the exalt passing out in the middle of the day without warning, after all. Everyone knows you're not Father, so we don't expect you to do everything that he did."
Lucina only nodded and returned to her work, and Morgan bid goodnight and left. The castle was still under repairs, and therefor much of the work was done in town—although those buildings fared no better. Tents and campfires were arranged like a war camp, with the city's walls being thicker and taller than those in the time Morgan knew, likely to prevent Risen attacks. The castle would be among the last things reconstructed, as Lucina insisted that they focus on rebuilding the city and the cities around them rather than a castle that was still half-functional.
As Morgan went into his tent, he remembered how he got in this time. He fought in the war of the past, and stayed there until lil' Morgan was two; for eleven years he wandered, quickly finding Lucina. The siblings came across the Feroxi khans and even their teenage, younger counterparts—but they never really confronted their parents. That must be why lil' Morgan said he did when they left; "I'll find a way for you to come back, I swear. I won't forgive you if you never return!" It was a playful yet determined promise, and Morgan was willing to fulfill his end. After the siblings left the past, they came back here; reunited with old friends, Lucina was quick to resume her role as exalt.
This place could still be described as living hell. Many fires raged in some areas, and there were still Risen wandering around. Morgan wouldn't deny that a bit of outside assistance would help, but he always thought of lil' Morgan's wish. He'll meet with Robin again, even if it's on the other side—as much as he'd prefer to apologize to her and spend more time with the littles, he didn't want them to come here and he wasn't exactly sure how he could make it back. Ylisstol was nothing like how they knew it; they could die upon arrival depending on where they come from. The Risen were stronger, and Grima still had servants here even though the dragon himself was dead. If they saw the littles—or even just Robin or Chrom—they'd try to kill them as soon as possible. He wanted to see them again…but he didn't want them to die trying to make it here.
Morgan sighed and laid down in his tent, closing his eyes and trying to sleep. He couldn't worry about them forever; he had told lil' Morgan not to worry about him, so it should be a mutual agreement. What he wouldn't give…but there was a lot he couldn't risk. Lucina was working hard to rebuild what's left of civilization; he couldn't let her down by dying in his pursuit to talk with lil' Morgan and Robin again, or by getting distracted by questions he didn't have the answers to.
