-Robin's Fortress-

"So, we're all assembled?"

"I am Lucina Lazuli Lowell, and this my tactician Morgan." Lucina said. "We've been selected to represent the Future Children."

"I am Zulas Alberts." Zulas said. "I, alongside with my brother Balt and my wife Argeni, represent the Council."

"I am Ravena Obsidian." Ravena said. "Vermil and I represent the best and brightest of the upcoming generation."

"I am Say'ri, and I represent the Chon'sin."

"I am Chrom Lowell. I represent Ylisse."

"I am Pheros." Pheros said, standing next to Robin. "I represent Valm."

"I am Robin." Robin breathed in. "I am many things, but today I represent the Grimleal. I am the last of the Fellblood, and I swear an oath upon my foul blood that this day will see Grima's doom."

"You've dealt with the blood issue, right?" Dant asked.

"A new necklace to replace my old one." Robin fished into his cloak and removed what appeared to be a vial of blood hung around his neck. "A charm that Ravena made for me that Aversa taught her how. It acts as a decoy for Grima's marionette magic and diverts all his commands into an immobile bottle of blood."

"Old necklace?" Zulas asked. "I didn't take you for the type."

"Generally, I'm not." Robin held out his hand to reveal an old amulet. "I inherited this from Excellus. It's an old amulet made with the blood of witches. You can use it to bypass the normal requirements of warping around."

"Didn't you once tell me that warping used 'unspeakable' horrors?" Vermil said.

"Yes. Fortunately, I'm not the one who made the necklace." Robin shrugged. "My options were to either keep it and put it to good use, or to destroy it. Despite the unethical origins, at the time I first acquired it, I made the decision to put it to good use."

"Wait, you got this from Excellus?" Zulas said. "Robin, have you been able to warp ever since then?"

"Zulas, do we have time for this right now?" Robin said. "Yes, I kept it a secret. I kept a lot of things a secret back then."

"Right. I'm sorry."

"Mhm." Robin shook his head. "I have a feeling that, before the day is through, you'll have found out about this. And possibly a lot more than you bargained for. No matter. Morgan, Ravena?"

"Matrices set!" Morgan called out.

"Matrices set!" Ravena echoed a moment later.

"Let's warp!" Robin clenched his fist and shattered the old blood necklace, accessing every dreg of power it had.

-Origin Peak, Tunnels Beneath-

LET'S PLAY A GAME, ROBIN. CARE FOR A FRIENDLY DUEL OF WITS?

The message was carved into the rock wall above six identical exits. The group of twelve, once they had picked up Aversa, had made their way into the tunnels that they were sure that Grima had hidden himself in. The trail of dark magic was easy to follow. Grima was wounded. And all twelve of them knew the danger of tracking a wounded beast into its lair.

Surprisingly, there wasn't even any Risen, Grimleal, or any other form of guard present. Either Grima hadn't been able to obtain guards, or (far more likely in Robin's opinion) he had devoured them all as a means to regain some of his power.

Now, following the main trail, they had come to a large chamber with an ominous message messily carved in the rock wall above it. A crude taunt? Most likely. But it wasn't as if Robin would back down.

"Well, he's not even trying to be subtle." Ravena commented. "Challenging us to a game of wits? Obviously, it's a trap."

"He's trying to provoke us." Robin looked and notice that the chamber they were in had six sets of tunnels leading further on, each wide enough so that a pair of them could comfortably walk side by side. He could also sense a faint, but very complex, magical barrier blocking each of the tunnels. "Morgaine, Vermil. See if you determine the exact nature of the barrier."

"Shouldn't take more than a few minutes." Vermil said confidently.

"Oh, that won't be necessary." An obscured black form appeared before the group. "I'll happily explain the rules of you, Robin."

"Oh, will you?" Robin said. "How generous. Vermil, Morgaine; double time on that analysis."

"I figured." Aversa sighed.

"Essentially, now that you've tracked me down to my lair, I've been forced to resort to a simple crude method of keeping you out." Grima said. "The idea behind this barrier is very simple. I'm currently recovering deep in a cavern below. These six tunnels will lead you to that cavern, however, they are enchanted."

"There are rules, then? Of course there are, that's the way contract magic works. There always needs to be rules." Robin said, cracking his knuckles. "All right. Let's hear what you've done."

"Very simple. Each one of the six passages contain a ward that blocks entry to the cavern. Once two people enter the passage, however, then a second ward activates, preventing any further entry into the passage." Grima said. "In exchange for that, I must summon a guardian to keep the ward present. So long as the guardian is present, both wards exist. Should the two entering die, the second ward is canceled. Should the guardian die, both wards are canceled. Well … mostly. All six guardians must be defeated for you to gain access to my cavern."

"In other words, we break into pairs by each tunnel. Every pair fights a guardian, and if we win, we get to attack you directly." Robin said. "And the fact that there's a pretty generous way to crack open the barrier means that the barrier is otherwise very strong. We can't brute force it with magical energy."

"I think so. Even if we could, it'd be strong enough to crack the island in two, so we couldn't be anywhere near it." Vermil confirmed. "But there's something else I'm detecting. Some kind of hex. Morgaine, do you recognize it?"

"A truth hex?" Aversa blinked. "Are you kidding?"

"Ah, noticed that, have you?" Grima asked. "That's a little something I sprinkled on. It makes it impossible for anyone to knowingly lie within the tunnels. Well, in the event you make it past my guardian – until we meet next time."

Grima disappeared into black smoke.

"Was he just trying to unnerve us?" Chrom asked. "He didn't even pay any attention to me at all."

"Yes." Robin nodded. "He's indeed playing a game with us. But we've got no choice, assuming he wasn't lying."

"He's not." Aversa confirmed. "That blasted hex applies to him as well. Hmm."

"Well, this should be simple enough." Chrom said, stepping forward. "Let's go. I'll be with-"

"Wait." Robin held out his hand, cutting him off. "We're meant to split into certain pairs. Grima intends to play games with us. The way this magic is established is such that even if a pair of us die, then other pairs can go and kill that guardian. In fact, there's really nothing stopping just Chrom and I from just systematically going through all six tunnels."

"I vote we do that." Morgan said, raising her hand.

"I thought I told you, Morgan." Robin said. "I'd always rather an opponent whose moves I know rather than one I don't. Grima intends for this to be a trap, and what's more, he intends for us to walk into it at full tilt. If we do that, we back him in a corner and he starts acting off script."

"Awfully confident, aren't you?" Pheros asked.

"No, I don't think so. He says guardians, but they'll be Risen. Not just normal Risen, but those with the designation of 'Dreadlord', one with the skills of their previous life intact. Grima can't defeat me, so it's beyond his power to summon a creature that can do that." Robin considered. "Yes. This is a trap, but not the normal kind. It's actually designed such that we'll all win within our respective groups."

"What's kind of trap is that, Father?" Ravena asked.

"A devious one. If we're going to succeed, then I'm going to choose the pairs." Robin said. "The tunnels don't make a difference, I should think. He'll only summon a guardian after you enter if I make my guess. I should also warn you – what you're going to find down there isn't something that you'll be able to defeat without effort. There will be a cost – but we won't be able to defeat Grima otherwise. Are you prepared?"

A resounding chorus of agreement came in response.

"Right." Robin said. "I'll start dividing us into pairs. The first one will be…"

-First Guardian-

"Now, let's see who our opponent is." Pheros said.

"Really, Pheros?" Robin chuckled. "Do you even have to guess? Grima has many pawns at his disposal, but there's only one that he would consider setting on the board before us."

"Walhart, then." Pheros said. "So that's why you were particular about the pairings. You're specifically baiting certain ones, aren't you?"

"I've paid careful attention to his abilities. Most of the Risen that were summoned are just mindless drones, but Grima himself can summon them with their full skills and knowledge intact, or so he claimed. And I have no reason to believe he lied." Robin said. "This is going to be a gauntlet of those that have been killed during the game between us. And if I want to win, I need to stack the odds in my favor as much as possible. Yes, the teams were chosen carefully."

"So, to continue to use chess metaphors, after you've cleaned the board of his pieces, he decided to cheat and just put them back on?" Pheros considered. "I suppose that means you'll want to handle this alone."

"You know me too well, Pheros." Robin said, kneeling before her. "May I, Empress?"

"No. We face him together, Robin." Pheros extended a hand and pulled Robin to his feet. "I've been apart from you for too long to allow you to do something like this."

"As you wish." Robin and Pheros walked through the corridor set out before them, winding up in a wide-open room. At the other end stood a giant of a man in red crimson armor, holding a giant red axe. Without speaking, Robin and Pheros took up a tandem formation, Robin walking up front holding a crimson red lance and Pheros standing behind him summoning powerful fire magic.

"So. You've come to challenge me again." Walhart said. "Battlemaster Robin Obsidian, it's good to see you. And General Pheros, likewise."

"So we do have the strongest opponent – or the weakest?"

"The weakest." Robin said. "Without question."

-Second Guardian-

"So… how do you want to deal with this?" Lucina asked.

"Flip you for it?" Morgan suggested, going through her pockets. "Dagger… dagger … dagger … Inigo was right, I have way too many … no, that's a piece of string … dagger … dagger again … ah, here we go!" Morgan enthusiastically whipped out a piece of gold. "Heads, I do it alone, tails you do it alone?"

"I didn't mean like that, Morgan." Lucina sighed. "And that's your double-headed coin, isn't it?"

"Is it?" Morgan spun it around. "Huh. It is. I forgot I had one of these on me. Wait until I find one that isn't double-headed. Or double-tailed."

"I meant, which one of us is going to be in command of the other." Lucina said. "I'm used to following your orders, but are you still comfortable with giving them?"

"Are you still comfortable following them?" Morgan asked.

"…No." Lucina admitted.

"Well, that's that, then. Hah!" Morgan whipped out a silver coin. "Here we are! An Ylissean silver. One side is the ever-handsome mug of Chrom, and the other is a profile of Castle Ylisse. So, castle or Chrom?"

"I thought we had gotten over it." Lucina sighed.

"Apparently not." Morgan flipped the coin high in the air, snatched it, and then slammed it down on the back of her hand. "We're making great headway, here."

"It would help if you weren't so flippant about everything!"

"Can't help that I'm a bubbly person." Morgan smiled. "So, Chrom or the castle?"

"Morgan, we're the Future Children." Lucina said. "We fight together or not at all."

"You say that now." Morgan said. "But that hasn't been true, has it?"

"Well, it's going to be true from here on out." Lucina said. "We fight together, Morgan."

"Alright, but don't say I didn't warn you. I've a feeling that the one we're going to fight is going to be particularly bad for the both of us combined."

"Who do you think we're fighting?" Lucina said.

"If I had to guess …" Morgan considered. "Mustafa, maybe? Or possibly Cervantes. Someone who could really just drive the guilt wedge between us."

"Oh. You think that's going to happen."

"I know that alone we could beat either one of them." Morgan shrugged. "Can you blame me for taking my chances?"

"Morgan. We fight together." Lucina said, offering her hand. "Let's go, big sis."

"Sure. I just this ends well."

-Third Guardian - Argeni & Ravena-

"Let me take point." Ravena made a simple gesture with her hand and a ball of fire appeared beside her, illuminating the dark tunnel. She brought her spear out and held it in front of her.

"Certainly, little bird." Argeni said. She brought out a crimson tome and placed her hand on it as glyphs lit up on the surface of the tome. "So … how much do you know that you aren't telling me?"

"You're not the one who should be asking me that question, you know." Ravena said. "Your husband has a lot more to worry about then you do."

"What do you mean?"

"…You'll see soon enough." Ravena continued walking forward, "I was told, as was Morgan and Aversa. The other two pairs, your husband and his brother, alongside Say'ri and Vermil, are going into this more or less blind. Robin wanted to tell them, but we talked him out of it. It was too risky."

"What are you talking about?" Fear crept into Argeni's voice.

"Don't worry. We're not getting any of the heavy hitters." Ravena said. "Actually, this is a lot better than we assumed. We knew that he'd summon Risen to fight us, but we didn't know that he'd force us to split into various groups. And the Risen he'd summon against us would prove particularly problematic."

"Ravena, what do you mean when you say that…?"

"Bolganone!"

"Thoron!"

Fire and electricity magic clashed, Ravena having blasted off the thunder magic right in front of them. Argeni braced herself and shielded her eyes, turning to look once the explosion was gone. Now, they were in a cavern and across from them was a shortish man who appeared to have a squashed in face and somewhat resembled a toad.

"…" Ravena stared at him and shook her head. "Okay, I have no idea who that is. Argeni, do you know?"

"I can't say that I've even seen someone so ugly." Argeni said. "Maybe Grima intends to scare us into submission?"

"Oh, very funny, you two." The man sounded genuinely annoyed. "More jokes at Excellus's expense, why not?"

"You're Excellus?" Ravena blinked, surprised.

"Yes. I am Excellus, the former tactician of Valm!" Excellus said. "And vastly superior to-"

"No, hold on. You say that like I should know you're name but there's no bells ringing in my head." Ravena tilted her head. "Actually, I do have this faint itching sensation in the back of my head. I think I have heard of you. Excellent, right?"

"Oh, I remember!" Argeni cried. "You were at that ball with Robin. But this is your real face? I thought you were wearing a mask at time. You really are hideous."

"I remember now!" Ravena said cheerfully. "Yup. I've racked my brains front to back, across both sides, and even upside down. And I remember now that I've never actually heard of you. Who are you supposed to be, again? A tactician of Valm? I don't think there was any tactician before Robin."

"Are you serious!? Your father killed me, and you don't remember who I am?" Excellus growled. "Robin decided to erase all mentions of me, then."

"Nah, I know exactly who you are. I'm just screwing with you." Ravena raised her hand. "Thoron!"

"Bolganone!"

The room lit up with yet another explosion between Ravena and Excellus. Ravena grit her teeth. "You should be easier to kill than this. Father certainly had no trouble defeating you."

"I came back a little stronger."

"Ravena…" Argeni said, summoning her magic power. "What exactly did Excellus mean when he said that Robin killed him? I thought Yen'fay killed him."

"Yen'fay may have killed me, but it was Robin who baited me into a trap." Excellus said. "One you had no small part in, Argeni di Cratez."

"Oh, we're doing this, are we?" Ravena rolled her eyes. "We're doing the whole 'airing the dirty laundry' thing, are we?"

"Aren't you curious about how that entire situation went down, Argeni?" Excellus asked. "Do you think Robin knew that I'd try for a double-cross and had the whole situation arranged so that I'd mess up and get all the soldiers slaughtered?"

"Okay, to be fair, let's call a spade a spade. You did try for the double-cross." Ravena said. "The con wouldn't have worked if you hadn't chosen to step in and kidnap Robin, attempting the plan for yourself."

"I didn't think Robin would leave men to die."

"Ha! You didn't think, period!" Ravena said. "Don't make excuses. You got conned. You played the game, and you lost, hard. Accept the lost and move on. Back to the afterlife with you, Excellus! REXCALIBUR!"

A blast of wind went clean from Ravena and crashed against wards set up around the toad-like mage. Excellus responded with fire magic of his own, forcing Ravena to dodge. He didn't send any magic at Argeni, though.

"Ravena, what are you two talking about?" Argeni demanded. "What con!?"

"It'd take a while to explain!" Ravena shot a reply back. "And I'm not sure we have the time for that."

"I could tell her." Excellus offered.

"Right, because she trusts you so much."

"She can understand the truth when she hears it." Excellus chuckled. "Argeni, you know there was something more going on. Or do you really think Robin managed to make everything work out just the way he wanted without pulling some strings behind the scenes?"

"Ravena, please tell me he's lying."

"How am I supposed to do that? There's a truth hex in place, none of us can lie right now." Ravena dodged a fireball and rolled to her feet next to Argeni. "But he's not exactly telling the truth, either. Truce, Excellus?"

"I really don't see why I'd agree to that."

"I'll tell her what happened." Ravena said. "I'd rather that she hear it from me than you. And I don't think I can kill you before you decide to blab."

"I really shouldn't agree, but it's so satisfying to watch you throw Robin under the carriage that I'll allow it." Excellus said. "Go ahead, little tactician."

"My father has skeletons in his closet. Though his skeletons are less the 'forbidden-tryst-and-bastard-children' variety of skeleton all the rage among Valmese nobility these days and more the 'battlefield-of-corpses-with-knives-in-everyone's-back' variety of skeleton." Ravena said. "I'm sure your husband is discovering the one which affects him the most, but it seems that Grima has selected a different one for you. You did facilitate this one, after all."

"Skip the backstory and just tell her." Excellus said.

"Fine." Ravena took a deep breath. "Robin baited Excellus into kidnapping him by leaking information to Yen'fay, using Dant as a go-between. Robin also sold a set of plans to the rebels of the fortress he was trying to take at the time. When Excellus kidnapped him, Robin left behind the wrong series of plans – technically not treason because he wouldn't have used those plans, but they were the ones that he sold to the rebels. In effect, he sold Excellus's battle plans to the enemy and provided those plans to Excellus as well – although that wouldn't have been the case in the treacherous scumbag hadn't kidnapped him in the first place!"

"And what was my part in all this?" Argeni demanded.

"You were the legal shield." Ravena sighed. "Robin used you to notarize information and deliver it to the court, remember? You weren't a backup plan in case things went wrong, as you believed, Robin was relying on your power and authority from the start."

"Excellus's troops were massacred!"

"No!" Ravena cried out. "Not fully, anyway. Robin tried to keep the casualties as low as he could, and this is war anyway – every soldier on the battlefield knew when they signed up that Valm could demand their life for the greater good of the Empire."

"And Robin made that plan." Argeni said, softly. "He threw away Valmese lives in a power struggle – willingly, because he thought it was the best option. And he did so operating outside of the law."

"…Yes."

"And he used me to do it. He used my standing, knowing the protection that it would provide him."

"Yeah." Ravena winced. "Yeah. He did that, too."

"In other words, you betrayed Valm. Personally." Excellus had a malicious smile on his face. "You lied to the entire court and got me killed, Argeni. Not to mention that your part of the reason that your devoted husband follows Robin so blindly. Because Robin is the one who was able to let the two of you be wed."

"That's a lie!" Argeni cried. "Zulas would never-!"

"I'm not talking about your deceived husband. I'm talking about Robin. He's been using you this entire time." Excellus chuckled. "You're nothing more than a traitor, used by those around you. You aren't clever. You aren't special. You're just a pawn who hasn't realized just who she is."

"Don't listen to him, Argeni!" Ravena said. "Excellus is trying to shake your confidence by adding lies to a single dark truth! He believes that, sure. But that's not how my father thinks!"

"And you're so much better, Ravena?" Excellus said. "Face it – you're nothing more than a toy to Robin either. You're just someone he uses to delude himself into believing he has humanity. You're just an inferior copy of him."

"You think I'm inferior, huh? Fine! I'll show you. I don't need Argeni's help to defeat you." Wind magic roared to life around the young tactician. "I'll show you!"

-Fourth Guardian-

"Why the two of us?" Vermil sighed as he walked through the tunnels alongside his partner. "I wish I was with Ravena. We have much better chemistry. Not to mention that I've never fought with you before."

"Given that, I would rather if you held back." Say'ri said, holding her blades out and at the ready. "I know the theory of fighting with mages, and I've done so often enough, but I understand that your magic tends towards the more destructive side of things."

"I can scale it back and give it control, if need be." Vermil said. "I just wonder if you're as strong as the last Chon'sin I fought with?"

"A Dire Wolf?"

"I served under Yen'fay, actually."

"…Yen'fay, my brother?" Say'ri asked, swallowing. "Vermil, Robin said that Grima can resurrect the dead, did he not?"

"Cripes. Guess I know who we get to face, then." Vermil sighed. "We're toast. Burnt toast with a side of charred potatoes, eggs over hard, black bacon, and a tall glass of scorched milk."

"I didn't know that you were a pessimist, Vermillion."

"Me? Nope, I'm an optimist." Vermil replied. "We're doomed."

The pair emerged in a large cavern. A mat had been laid down in the center of it, with a small table on top of it. Three steaming cups of tea where on it, two on one side, and the last by a samurai with bone-white hair in ebony-black armor. As they emerged, he brought the cup of tea to his lips and took a gentle sip.

"Won't you join me, Vermillion and Say'ri?" Yen'fay asked.

"Brother…" Say'ri stopped, frozen. "…is that you, Yen'fay?"

"Grima's magic has brought me back to life to guard him." Yen'fay said. "He has given me two commands. The first is that I cannot kill myself, and the second is to tell you of my death."

"Your death?" Vermil asked. He sat down across from Yen'fay. "General, what are you talking about?"

"I committed seppuku once I disposed of the filth that was Excellus." Yen'fay said. "You know that, correct? Do you know why, Vermillion?"

"…No. None of us did." Vermil shook his head. "I asked Robin once, and he said that he didn't understand why either."

"Not a lie." Yen'fay said. "But Robin was always adept at lying without actually telling a lie. Robin knew the reason why I chose to commit seppuku, however, were he in my situation, he would have never done it. Thus, he does not understand. You see?"

"Robin's ways are to speak in a double-tongue." Say'ri agreed. "But I do know the reason. Vermillion, my brother only served the Empire because he was blackmailed by Excellus to do so. Once Excellus died, his conflicting oath demanded one thing of his honor."

"…Blackmail? I don't understand…" Vermil stared at Yen'fay. "You served Walhart, didn't you?"

"I swore an oath to serve Walhart, but that was only because I had no choice in the matter." Yen'fay said. "Robin realized too late that was the only thing keeping me attached to the Empire."

"What kind of blackmail!?" Vermil demanded.

"My life." Say'ri admitted. "Excellus used my own life against me, threatening to kill me if Yen'fay did not join with Walhart."

"No. No, that doesn't make any sense." Vermil shook his head. "But you're on our side, Say'ri!"

"I am not. Sorry, Vermillion." Say'ri shook her head. "I tried to take Robin's life, and he told me about what happened to Yen'fay. To learn that my brother did not betray me after all and still kept to his oaths to fight Valm was … a relief, in many ways. I had believed my brother to be an oathbreaker."

"So… you were never on Valm's side, General?" Vermil turned to Yen'fay. "You were just blackmailed to serve Walhart."

"That is correct."

"And whose side are you on?" Vermil turned to Say'ri.

"I am the sword of Robin of Valm. Nothing more, nothing less." Say'ri said. "I am his samurai and beholden to follow his ideals. I swore to follow him when he told me of his plan to destroy Walhart."

"So you're a traitor to Valm."

"Inasmuch of any of us are." Say'ri shrugged. "You knew that Robin killed Walhart."

"I joined the army, and I served under Yen'fay. I blamed Walhart for his death." Red fire blazed around Vermil as the mage grew increasingly furious. "That's the only reason I was okay with all this. I thought you joined Robin out of respect for your brother's wishes, Say'ri. But I can see that this was all wrong. You're a traitor to the Empire, Say'ri, as are you, Yen'fay."

"Grima's plan was to set against ourselves, then." Say'ri noted.

"I'm afraid so, sister." Yen'fay said. "It seems my fate in life is to be used as a pawn for others. I trust you will have no problems with killing me? Grima believed that you would, given the circumstances."

"You wish to die, do you not?"

"I do, sister."

"Then I will slay you in your place, brother. It is the final act of mercy that I can give you." Say'ri stood up and drew her seven-branched blade. "Grima seems to understand the strong bond that exists between family members – but it seems that he does understand it enough."

"Well spoken. I pray that you have grown strong enough to defeat me." Yen'fay stood up as well, drawing twin swords.

"Vermillion." Say'ri said. "I'm sure that you have many questions right now, but I would ask you to save them for later. Right now, for Yen'fay's sake if nothing else, we must kill him."

"I see no reason to hold back my magic."

"Vermillion, what are you planning?" Say'ri turned to look at him.

"I am the breath of my flame." Vermillion said, raising his hand in the air. "Magma is my body, and lava is my blood. I have created over a thousand fires, unknown to ash nor known to dust. Have withstood burns to create many fires, yet these hands will burn everything, so as I cast…"

Tiny pinpricks of red flame bloomed over the entire cavern, covering the ceiling, the walls, and the blocking the entrances, so that the three of them were surrounded by a gargantuan globe of small fireballs. Vermil looked at the pair of Chon'sin with relish.

"UNLIMITED FIRE WORKS!"

-Fifth Guardian - Zulas & Balt-

"I wonder who we're fighting together."

"I wonder why we're fighting together."

Zulas inhaled deeply and looked at Balt. The two half-brothers were walking down the tunnel, each wielding a spear. The five years had been decent, at the very least, to their relationship, and they worked together enough so that they were instinctively moving together as a team. Their thoughts didn't seem to be on the same page, though.

"Do you have to always be a skeptic?" Zulas asked. "We make a good team, that's why we're together."

"Perhaps." Balt considered. "But you have to admit that we don't make such a good team alone. No method of healing outside potions and no access to magic."

"But that's not what you're wondering. You're wondering what Robin has up his sleeve this time."

"And you're going to tell me that Robin isn't always some mastermind schemer who consistently has to nest layer upon layer of plots and is always intending something evil."

"Which you reply that, no, this time is difference, presumably because this situation is so complex that Robin has to have some kind of plot."

"…Yup." Balt shrugged.

"Have any guesses?"

"One." Balt said. "But I'm really praying that I'm wrong for once. It's infinitely preferable to being right, and also infinitely preferable to being right."

"Tautology?"

"No." Balt clarified. "I mean, being right about who we're fighting and thus by extension, right about something else."

"I don't understand what you mean by that." Zulas frowned.

"There's a taboo against lying here, right?" Balt said. "Which means… well, if you haven't figured it out, I'm not going to tell you."

"Greetings, Balt, Zulas." The approaching pair was stopped by a tall figure in bright red armor. Balt took the time to say some very choice worlds in a language that Zulas didn't recognize but he suspected that he was saying the kinds of thing that would make Argeni order him to wash his mouth out with soap water.

"General Cervantes." Zulas set his spear. "I regret this but understand that you are already dead. And you stand in the way of our goal. For the good of Valm, we'll have to kill you."

"Zulas Alberts, the ever dutiful soldier." Cervantes chuckled. "Oh, don't worry. I understand completely. If there's an obstacle in your way, you remove it. That's the way of Valm, after all."

"Please don't resist us."

"Mmm. I'm afraid I can't do that, m'boy." Cervantes said, drawing an axe. "You see, as a resurrected thrall to Grima, I must follow his orders, and that means that I must kill the pair of you. Regrettable, but you understand, right? You can't not understand. You stand in Grima's way, so he must remove you."

"Right. Balt, let's go." Zulas said, setting his position. Balt made no move to copy him. Instead, Zulas could only watch as Balt's spear fell from his slack fingers. Then, Balt fell to his knees, laughing like a maniac. Zulas looked at him. "Balt, what's wrong?"

"So I'm right after all." Balt said. "Cervantes, go ahead! What are you waiting for? Stop this farce and tell us what we need to hear! You were spymaster of Valm, weren't you? You were assassinated, weren't you? Well, who killed you? Let's go, out with it!"

"Grima also order me to answer all your questions to the best of my ability." Cervantes said. "I was killed by Lucina."

"Lucina!?" Zulas flinched. "She betrayed us like that?"

"Us?" Cervantes chuckled. "What do you mean, us?"

"You mean to say that Lucina was working alongside the Gray Tactician in order to kill Walhart?" Zulas demanded. "She's an enemy of Valm, the Empress, and Robin!"

"No." Cervantes corrected. "She's no enemy of the current Valm, no enemy of the current Empress, and certainly no enemy of Robin."

"…Huh?"

"Idiot." Balt sighed, getting to his feet. "Cervantes was killed because he knew too much and would be able to implicate the one person who was masterminding everything behind the scenes. The man who orchestrated the rebellions, the man who orchestrated the rise of the new empire, and the man who had everyone dancing on puppets under his string. Lucina never betrayed Robin, Zulas. She killed Cervantes on Robin's orders."

"Indeed." Cervantes said. "She killed me, just as Robin killed Walhart."

Silence.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?"

"Robin. Killed. Walhart." Cervantes said. "Are you so surprised, Zulas? You said yourself that the Valmese way is to remove obstacles in your way. Robin viewed Walhart as nothing more than an obstacle, and so he simply removed him. It was that simple."

"No… no, he couldn't have!" Zulas protested. "He was at my wedding at the time and got attacked by assassins! And I know that was him!"

"He has mastered warp magic, as you well know right now." Cervantes rebutted. "His injuries were caused by Walhart himself. Face it, Zulas Alberts of Valm. Your wedding served as nothing more than an alibi for Robin. He used you."

"No…" Rage and shame bloomed inside of Zulas, powerful in equal measures as the full impact of the betrayal sank in. His commanding officer, the one man who had the ability to succeed Walhart – he was responsible for Walhart's death! All the while pretending to be distraught about, all the while pretending to be working for Valm's best interest.

Except that was all a lie. His life was all a lie. In reality, Robin was nothing more than a serpent. A reptile, like the dark dragon himself. A traitor. Someone who used those around him like tools and cared for nothing but personal gain. Robin killed Walhart. The man he looked up to was not the man he thought he was. The contradiction in his feelings rose as a crescendo, building higher and higher.

"ROOOOOOOBIN!" Zulas howled. "I'll-"

"You'll what?" Balt chuckled. "You'll kill him? Walhart couldn't kill him, and that was almost seven years ago. He's grown far stronger since then. Don't you get it, Zulas? Why he paired us up? He knew Grima would send Cervantes after you to tell you truth of Walhart's death. I'm guessing he saved Walhart for Robin, even though the odds of Walhart winning a rematch there are slim to none."

"Damned. All of us." Zulas said, inhaling. "We can't do anything about this."

"Nope." Balt agreed.

"Wrong." Cervantes said, hefting his axe. "There's one thing you can do, Zulas. Accept your judgement. Willingly or not, you aided Robin. There is only one punishment for traitors, and that is death. You must be punished."

"…why?" Zulas said, looking up weakly. "WHY? WHY? What has out family done to deserve this? I thought the curse was broken for me. I've gotten the woman of my dreams, but I've chosen the worse of all possible masters to serve."

"You have." Cervantes agreed, before charging with his axe. "Now let me put you down like the rabid mutt you are!"

-Sixth Guardian-

"No…" Chrom stared. "It can't be."

"Chrom, it's good to see you again." Basilio, the West Khan, greeted him. "Though, like you, I wish it was under better circumstances."

"You're the guardian!?"

"I'm afraid that I am." Basilio frowned. "All those that have died are subject to the Risen's curse, and Grima is a master of the dark arts. He bound me to his will when I died in my fight against Robin."

"Foul dragon." Chrom scowled. "He had no right to bring you back to life!"

"You're avoiding the issue, Chrom." Basilio said. "Let's get this over with. Draw your blade."

"I don't want to fight you, Basilio. It's my fault you died in the first place."

"No. That my own fault." The giant Feroxi chuckled. "Robin wanted to kill Flavia and leave me alive. I'm not really sure why, I think maybe he considered me a better choice than Flavia when it came to leading Valm. Of course, I kind of screwed up those plans when I took the attack meant for Flavia."

"Yes, that is how I remember that particular sequence of events." Aversa said, standing to the side of Chrom. "Khan Basilio, we meet once again."

"You two know each other?"

"Unfortunately, we do." Aversa said. "I was there fighting alongside Robin when Robin killed Basilio. If we had our way, Flavia would have died, but Basilio took the blow meant for Flavia."

"Basilio … I'm so sorry." Chrom shook his head. "I wasn't able to get our forces to help you sooner, I left you alone. I didn't want you to die!"

"I believe you, Exalt." Basilio said. "You don't need to convince me."

"I do wish this didn't have to happen." Aversa stepped in front of Chrom. "But it's honestly better than what Robin suspected would happen. I suppose that soul is out of Grima's reach. Thankfully."

"Morgaine, what are you doing?"

"Is it not obvious?" Aversa turned to him and raised her eyebrow. "Perhaps you haven't realized it yet, but Basilio must be killed for us to progress further and to kill Grima. So it is our job is to kill him. And, just a guess on my part, but he's no doubt under a geas not to kill himself and to try his hardest to stop us."

"Not exactly." Basilio said. "Grima didn't want to make this easy. I'm only allowed to attack you once you start and that's only to defend myself. I can't just start attacking you and keep at it until you kill me in self-defense."

"Ah. Of course." Aversa licked her lips. "I'm not sure why I thought any different. Grima is evil, after all. Chrom, just stand back, and let me handle this. Why do you think Robin paired us up?"

"Your job is to kill him."

"Exactly." Aversa said. "Of all of Robin's friends, the one with the least amount of conscious is none other than myself. No matter who Grima would have been able to put in your way to make you lose the will to progress, I would have been able to kill them. So, stand back, Exalt, and let me bear the sins of killing Basilio for a second time."

"You can't just kill him, Morgaine!" Chrom protested.

"It will be difficult by myself, but the Feroxi are not known for their magic resistance." Aversa drew a single tome. "And I do specialize in life-draining hexes. I can do this."

"No." In a flash, Chrom was between her and Basilio. He had a sword drawn and was pointing it at her. "What I meant to say was this. I'm not going to let you kill him."

A/N: Reminder: The ending of this story isn't set in stone. Votes can be submitted to me using the link: www. strawpoll. me/ 20287362 The ending approach... time is running out.