The Force's Shepherds

Chapter 106

Ruminations and Revelations

A golden sunrise shone through the Mila Tree's thick canopy. Bright rays slipped through some of the gaps in the expansive green roof over Dooku's head, showering the area at the base of the tree's immense trunk with both light and warmth. Warmth he very much appreciated, since the root he had been sitting on for the past hour felt rather cold to the touch. Rather uncomfortable actually. But within a few minutes, it would be warm. And he could smoke his new pipe in peace.

He gently pulled the small, wooden, artifact of vice from the corner of his mouth. A few puffs of smoke followed it. The white wisps swirled around his face for a moment before he blew out a strong breath, scattering it into the gentle morning breeze. He let out a low sigh, one hand tapped his thigh as he pondered on the events of the past few days.

In fact, Dooku had been thinking about what had occurred for some time now. The conversations he had with Robin while on the road to the Mila Tree both intrigued and puzzled him. It was as if the more he learned about the Ylissean Tactician, the more of an enigma he became.

He was certain the boy was Plegian. There was far too much evidence for that to not be the case. And while he shared a lot of characteristics, both physically and personality, with the Ylisseans he fought alongside, Dooku attributed much of that to circumstance. As an amnesiac, Robin likely took on the features of his environment around him, since he had no other frame of reference in his mind to work off of.

But much of the other quirks to Robin were undeniable. The Plegian colors he sported: purple, gold, and black, the colors of a Grimleal mage, were a telltale sign of his origins. Add in the Eyes of Grima branded on the back of his right hand, and Dooku was beginning to believe the boy had a deeper connection to the Grimleal than he previously thought.

Then there is the Hierophant. Dooku thought to himself as he stuck the pipe back between his lips and puffed on it slowly.

The resemblance between Robin and the Hierophant could not be a coincidence. With the exception of hair and eye color, the pair were near perfect mirrors of each other. Honestly, Dooku wondered if the Hierophant really was Robin's twin. But the man holding the reins of power in the Grimleal was still hidden in the shadows. There were not enough facts about him for Dooku to grasp who, or what, he really was.

What I do absolutely know, He thought as he puffed even more on his pipe, Is that the Hierophant is dangerous. He let the pipe dangle in the corner of his mouth as he glanced down the dirt road that led east, And we cannot take him lightly.

A long groan sounded nearby. Dooku withdrew his pipe from his mouth and glanced over at a rickety, old, single person tent. General Cervantes emerged from it. His portly form naked except for a loin cloth wrapped around his fat waist. He grunted, raised his arms over his head, then sniffed.

"Smoking already?" He asked Dooku.

Dooku arched and eyebrow, "I was up early and decided to do some thinking. Care to join?"

"Eh…" Cervantes shrugged as he reached into a chest beside the small tent. He threw a loose, cotton shirt over his body then yanked on a pair of tan pants, "My job isn't to think."

"Your job is, at present, non-existent." Dooku pointed out as he placed the pipe back in its spot between his teeth, "What with your failure to safeguard the Voice as well as the Mila Tree."

Cervantes cinched a belt around his round belly, "Don't remind me." He huffed, "I'm still bracing myself for when reinforcements arrive and I am placed under arrest for treason and whatnot."

Dooku arched an eyebrow, "Treason?"

Cervantes waved off his concern, "It'll be some stupid reason like that. Mark my words, within a few days time, my body will be hanging by a rope." His voice fell as he spoke, "And all I'll be is a footnote in history, at best." A long sigh left his lips. He reached into the chest and grabbed his own pipe, "You know," He grabbed some tobacco and shoved it into the pipe. Then he struck a match, "I once had visions of conquering this continent myself." He lit his pipe and placed it in the corner of his mouth.

"Did you now?" Dooku replied, somewhat surprised.

Cervantes sniffed again. One hand brushed the thick, brown whiskers on his chin as he nodded, "I did. Had it all planned out too. Even started building up my own army. But then Walhart came and…" Cervantes slumped down beside Dooku on the tree root, "I know real strength when I see it. I may be strong, but the Conqueror?" He shook his head, "He is not even human. Not anymore at least."

Dooku inclined his chin, but said nothing. Over the past day or so, he had gleaned much information from the Valmese General. Of course, maintaining the guise of Tyrannus, tactical aide and enforcer for the Valmese Empire, helped in that regard. Cervantes viewed himself as a disgraced general and a doomed man. So he let secrets slip, and Dooku made sure to remember every one of them. Troop formations, preferred strategies, opinions on other military leaders in the Valmese military, and most important of all, information on the still mythical figure known as the Conqueror.

Just as Dooku started to return to his own thoughts, he detected several force signatures moving fast towards him. At first, he felt a twinge of concern. One signature felt dark, which made him think a Deadlord was on the move once again. But then he detected the two bright spots, and a fainter bright light in the force beside that lone dark presence. A small smirk crossed his lips.

"I believe we have company, General." Dooku said nonchalantly as he puffed on his pipe and leaned back on the massive tree root.

Cervantes gave him a puzzled look. Dooku nodded towards the eastern road. The large man's beady eyes peered down the dirt trail.

A head with blue hair appeared in the golden sunrays. Following him were a motley group of men and women. All of them were on foot. And every single one of them wore different clothing. Cervantes recognized Ylissean, Feroxi, and even Chon'sin style armor of the travelers. He noticed curious mage's attire on one, dark haired woman. And at the rear, a man in Feroxi armor guarded a young lady with a healing staff.

It took him a moment, but as the group drew closer, Cervantes recognized the man leading them.

"Prince Chrom," Some sweat beaded on his bald head, "Archaneans!" He cried, causing the group to freeze on the road. Cervantes dashed to his tent, grabbed his lance, and grit his teeth, "Come now Tyrannus, we shall both meet more glorious ends now than swinging from a noose!"

"Tyrannus?" Cervantes heard the bearded man beside Prince Chrom pipe up. The man placed his hands on his hips, "Dooku, what exactly have you done now?"

Cervantes arched an eyebrow, "Dooku?"

"Only what was necessary at the time, Kenobi." Dooku hummed back before he puffed on his pipe, "And it is about damn time you showed up. I was starting to think you were lollygagging." He narrowed his eyes, "Then again, you likely were."

"Says the one sitting leisurely while smoking." Ben replied with an eye roll.

Cervantes glanced back and forth between the two men.

"You two… know… each… other." Cervantes lowered his lance as his jaw fell open, "Oh."

Dooku let out a heavy sigh. He took out his pipe, strolled over to Cervantes, and patted his shoulder.

"It is better than a noose, my friend."

"You know this guy, Dooku?" Chrom asked.

Dooku turned to the Prince, "Indeed, I do, your grace." He gestured to the dumbstruck, fat man beside him, "May I present recently disgraced General Cervantes of the Valmese military."

"Disgraced?" The woman behind Chrom said in surprise.

Cervantes's jaw fell even lower, his eyes widened, "Lady Say'ri!?" His gaze whipped back and forth as he stared at Chrom, Say'ri, Ben, and Dooku. His shoulders sagged and he hung his head, "What is going on?"

Dooku gave him an amused smirk, "You are being captured, General." He nodded over at the Shepherds, "And these are your friendly captors."

None of the Shepherds moved. Dooku let out an exasperated sigh.

"A little rope, if you would please?"

Ben looked back, "Gaius!"

"What!?" The thief snapped back, mid chomp into a lollipop, "Can't you see I'm busy!?"

Ben huffed, "Rope."

"Why?"

Ben bristled, "Prisoner, Gaius."

"Oh hoh!" The redhead smiled suddenly, "I'm the one doing the arresting now? This is a change. For the better of course." He sauntered up to the dumbstruck General, a length of rope in hand, "Now then," Gaius cleared his throat, "I would say your rights, but quite frankly, I've been arrested in so many different places that they're all sort of jumbled together now. So, I'll just advise you to not try to escape, and don't be a snitch."

"Gaius…" Ben pinched the bridge of his nose, "We need him to talk to us."

Gaius tied the rope tight around Cervantes's wrists, "We do?" He blinked, "Oh right. War criminals are different." He gave Cervantes a wry smirk, "Forget what I said."

"I cannot believe this." Cervantes muttered. He glanced over at Dooku, "I thought we were companions, comrades Tyran-" He caught himself then snarled, "Dooku. And yet, you betray me like this?"

"I am betraying no one. I was never with the Valmese to begin with." Dooku replied in a matter of fact tone, "And we can discuss how you feel about this matter later. I now have business to attend to." He turned to Ben, Say'ri, and Chrom, "Your majesties. Kenobi." He spun on his heel and marched away from the others. Ben, Say'ri, and Chrom followed him.

Dooku took one more puff from his pipe before leaning up against one of the Mila Tree's massive roots. He glanced over at the group of Shepherds busy arresting General Cervantes. The thief, Gaius, and the Feroxi swordsman, Lon'qu, were busy tightening the bonds around the large man's wrists. The Ylissean Princess, Lissa, watched with curious eyes as Lon'qu tightened the ropes around Cervantes's wrist with a sharp tug. Both Virion and Noire stood watch, arrows nocked on their bowstrings. Luke and Lucina waited quietly towards the rear of the group. Tharja read her spellbook. The dark mage did not seem to be paying any attention at all to her surroundings. Something in that book caught her eye. And Sakura lingered towards the front of the group, her hand wrapped around the reins to her horse, which carried some supplies for their travels.

"A small force." Dooku hummed, "Not anticipating much trouble?"

Ben frowned in return, "Since when did you start smoking?"

Dooku arched an eyebrow, "Are you not going to answer-"

"I mean, I would think the regal Count Dooku would think of that as a filthy habit." Ben continued.

"It is," Dooku harrumphed, "But there was little else to do for the past few days. So I pilfered this and-"

"Oh of course you took it from a dead body." Ben groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"It's not like the poor sod I took it from cared. He's dead."

Say'ri cleared her throat, "I understand you two wish to catch up, but we have more important things to worry about."

"Do we?" Dooku remarked.

"We do." Chrom nodded, "The reason why we have brought a small force is because this was supposed to be a quick, quiet extraction mission."

"Extraction?" Dooku glanced over at Ben. A knowing look crossed over the Count's face, "You're after the Voice, aren't you?" Dooku took several puffs from his pipe, "Well, I hate to inform all of you, but she is no longer here."

"What!?" Chrom and Say'ri cried at the same time.

Ben furrowed his brow, "What do you mean, she is no longer here?"

Dooku gave Ben an irritated glance, "I mean exactly what I said, Kenobi. She is no longer here." He let his pipe hang loose from the corner of his mouth, "The Manakete fled the same night as the attack here."

"Attack?" Say'ri echoed. She placed her hands on her hips, "You have a lot to explain right now, Dooku." A finger wagged at the Count. Causing Ben's jaw to fall open a little bit, "What are you doing here? Where is Cervantes's men? Where is the Voice? Where-"

"If you would quit your jabbering I can answer those questions." Dooku scowled back. Say'ri drew back, shocked. Before she could protest his snarling reply, Dooku continued, "I have no idea where the Voice is. If I knew that, I wouldn't be here right now. Cervantes's men are all dead, alongside some rather out of place Grimleal mages." Chrom gave Ben a worried glance, "I am here because I believe the Voice, who happens to be a very powerful Manakete, might be able to help Robin."

"And Robin?" Ben asked.

Dooku sighed and took the pipe from his lips, "If the boy followed my instructions, he would have gone up the tree and found the Manakete. And, if that is the case, he is likely by her side."

"And you have no idea where they are?" Ben asked.

Dooku shook his head, "No idea." He noticed Ben open his mouth to ask another question, "I have already tried sensing Robin's presence, Kenobi." Ben closed his mouth. A frustrated frown crossed Dooku's lips, "Something is blocking me from being able to. Anytime I try to locate Robin, I am rebuffed. It is as if something in the Force is trying to hide him. And by extension, they are hiding the Manakete. And no," Dooku continued before Chrom could ask a question, "I haven't been able to sense the Voice either." He glanced over at Ben, "Now I know how you Jedi must have felt during the waning days of the Order." He cleared his throat and nodded at Chrom and Say'ri, "I'd like to talk with Kenobi in private, if you would please."

"Oh no," Say'ri folded her arms, "If this has anything to do with-"

"Kenobi, Prince Chrom," Dooku interrupted, voice even, "If you do not silence her and guide her away from my presence in the next ten seconds, you'll have to arrest me and place me in chains beside Cervantes. Not that those chains will do much good."

Chrom paled a little bit. Ben nodded to him.

"Go, I'll inform you of anything important." Ben reassured.

Chrom sighed, "You better. You both know how much I despise secret keeping." He nodded, "Lady Say'ri."

Say'ri narrowed her gaze dangerously at Dooku before spinning on her heel and following Chrom back to the others. Ben watched the pair as they walked out of earshot.

"She's quite brave." Ben remarked.

"You mean she is quite stupid." Dooku huffed, "The last time someone got that testy with me, they ended up dead."

"You ended up dead." Ben replied with a slight smirk, "I recall both Anakin and I being very testy with you aboard the Invisible Hand."

Dooku glared down at Ben, "So, on the matter of Robin-"

"Ah yes, change the subject when you lose. That is something Anakin never really learned."

A low growl emanated from Dooku, "Are you concerned for the boy or not?" Ben fell silent as Dooku let out a long breath, trying his best to calm his rising anger, "I managed to learn quite a bit during our days traveling together."

"Oh? And what did you learn?"

"The boy is clearly Plegian." Ben furrowed his brow, perplexed. Dooku hummed to himself as he continued, "Honestly, I am surprised no one else has even noticed."

"Plegian?" Ben parroted.

"Yes, Plegian." Dooku rolled his eyes as he watched the Jedi still struggling to put the pieces together, "Have you become that poor at observing others. Now I worry you might have grown too trusting while living on this planet." Dooku puffed on his pipe, "Robin wears Plegian colors: Purple, Gold, and Black. Those are hallmark colors of a Grimleal mage. On top of that, he has the brand of Grima on the back of his right hand. It is faint, but it is there. Finally," Dooku took a breath, "he mentioned something regarding a Hierophant."

Ben stiffened, "Ah yes, that character."

"What did you make of him?"

Ben glanced down at his feet as he thought for a moment, "I couldn't get a read on him. I did try poking around the man's mind, but it was locked up tighter than a bank on Muunilist." Ben folded his arms, "I'd say the most distressing thing about the Hierophant was how similar he looked to Robin. The current theory Robin and I are working with is that he has a possible twin." He flicked his gaze back to a quiet Dooku, "What did he tell you about the man?"

"Not much." Dooku sighed, "Nothing more than you already know."

Ben muttered a curse under his breath, "That is a dead end then." He blinked and raised a hand to shield his eyes from a ray of golden sunlight, "What else did you learn about him? And were you able to teach him anything?"

Dooku let out a frustrated sigh, "I was not able to teach him much. The boy could hardly stay awake or focus the entire ride here. Something…" Dooku's mouth tightened, "Something is lingering inside of him."

"Inside of his mind, I know." Ben nodded, "Tharja and I have both sensed-"

"Not just in his mind, Kenobi." Dooku cut him off, "There is something else inside of Robin. I don't exactly know what. But from what I can tell, it is very dark. And it worries me."

Ben took a deep breath, "Anything that worries you greatly concerns me." He bowed his head, "You don't worry easily." He exhaled, "Do you think this Manakete of yours can help him?"

Dooku shrugged, "I don't know. I think she may be our best shot at figuring out what is inside of Robin. The woman is quite powerful. Whatever is plaguing Robin will think twice about crossing her."

"That powerful?" Ben replied, some surprise on his face, "I know Manaketes are strong. Nowi alone can handle entire platoons of enemy soldiers."

"Nowi is not even fully grown." Dooku stated, "Imagine, a fully grown Manakete. One that is mature physically, mentally, and magically." Ben's eyes widened, "Now you see what I mean."

Ben snapped his head up to the top of the tree, "What was she doing lingering here then?"

Dooku shrugged, "How should I know the answer to that question? The only one who can answer that is the Manakete."

"And we have no idea where she or Robin are… blast!" Ben cursed, "Any ideas on how best to proceed?"

Dooku raised an eyebrow, "Well, with how vast this forest and the surrounding country is, we won't find Robin by searching and shouting. And, as loathe as I am to say this, we may have more pressing matters to attend to."

He started walking towards Chrom and the other Shepherds. Ben followed him.

"Those matters being?" Ben asked.

"We are at war, aren't we?" Dooku remarked.

Chrom and the others turned to look at Dooku. Towards the rear, Cervantes flashed a furious scowl at the Count while Lon'qu held him tight by a long rope.

"Done talking?" Chrom asked.

"Yes, and…" Ben sighed, "We have reason to believe that Robin and the Manakete fled this area together."

Chrom nodded, "Okay, that could be a good thing. Manaketes are powerful. Robin shouldn't be in any danger then, right?"

"Most likely." Dooku nodded, "The Voice of Naga is a particularly powerful Manakete. Even if Robin were to lose control of his powers again, she would have enough power to knock him out of a fight."

"How would you know that?" Say'ri asked with a frown.

"Because I've been blasted by her dragonfire." Dooku replied in a matter of fact tone. Chrom blinked in surprise, "How else do you think I fell from this tree over a year ago?"

"That was you!?" Say'ri gaped.

"Oh, I remember now." Ben nodded, "Then I promptly beat you in a duel."

"Wait what?" Chrom said as he flicked his eyes back and forth, "But you two are friends?"

"That is a recent development." Dooku replied with a dismissive wave of his hand.

"Very recent development." Ben emphasized, "And that is not the point. The point right now, is that we probably will not be able to go searching for Robin."

Chrom frowned, "Why not?"

"Because as much as we all wish to find him safe and unharmed, we also have a war to fight, your majesty." Dooku said, "A war takes precedence over a single individual. Robin is smart. He will find his way back to us. For now, we must focus on something much more dangerous." He marched towards Cervantes. Chrom and Ben watched as he Dooku took the rope from Lon'qu and led Cervantes over towards them, "Tell them what you told me."

Cervantes glared at Dooku, "I will say nothing."

Dooku sighed, "Cervantes, I know you have a brain. So please use it in this instance. You lost the Voice. Which means that even if you assisted the Conqueror by not speaking to us, he will still have you killed. You unveiled much information to me about the armies of Valm while we were alone here. Do share."

Cervantes scowled. He shifted his hands and the rope dug into his wrists. A hiss of pain slipped from his lips.

"What do the Valmese armies number?" Dooku asked.

Ben blinked as he sensed the force fluctuate around Dooku and Cervantes. A slight smirk crossed Ben's lips. Dooku was trying to pressure Cervantes into talking using a hard to notice mind trick.

Subtle interrogation, Count.

Cervantes uttered a long sigh, "General Yen'fay's army is to the South. He and General Pheros are supposed to link up at Fort Steiger. Their armies together number near fifty thousand strong."

Chrom paled. Ben coughed hard.

"Did he just say fifty thousand?" Ben asked.

"Oh it gets much worse." Dooku hummed before tugging on the rope again, "Continue, General."

Beads of sweat formed on Cervantes's bald head. A ragged breath escaped his lips as he fought to keep himself from revealing anything else. But the pressure the Count put on his mind was too much.

"The Conqueror himself, once he learns of how swiftly you Archaneans are moving west, will intervene personally." Cervantes let out a gasp, "His army, last I checked, numbers near a million."

Ben's stomach dropped. He glanced over at Chrom, whose face turned ghost white. Say'ri shook a little beside the Prince. Lon'qu's jaw tightened and he placed a nervous hand on his sword. Lucina and Luke glanced at each other, dumbstruck by the number. Gaius coughed, then choked on his lollipop. Virion smacked Gaius's back, knocking the lollipop free. Noire swallowed hard while Sakura did not react.

"A million." Ben breathed.

"I knew the Conqueror's army was fast… but a million?" Say'ri shook her head, "I never even-"

"Could fathom the sheer scale?" Cervantes finished for her. A dry laugh left his lips, "Yes, I may be a dead man in the Conqueror's eyes for my failure here. But, you all shall join me. No one can stand against the Conqueror's might." He glared at Prince Chrom, "Not even you and your little army. His wrath will be swift and powerful. You cannot hope to win."

Chrom grit his teeth. He took several strong steps towards a still chuckling Cervantes. His blue eyes stared right into Cervantes dark, beady eyes.

"I'll enjoy the look on your face when we prove you wrong." He spun away from the General before he could reply, "How many days until the rest of the army reaches here?" He asked Ben.

"If the pace remains steady, they could be here within a day or two." Ben replied, "That is assuming they are not attacked again."

"Attacked?" Dooku said as he handed the rope back to Lon'qu, "Kenobi, how badly has the column been harried during your march?"

Ben sighed, "A few light skirmishes at first. We had our first major battle since Charlet yesterday. The Valmese were defeated, but we took five hundred casualties."

Dooku frowned, "Those are losses we cannot sustain."

"That is why we came here." Say'ri cut in, "The Voice of Naga holds powerful sway over the people of Valm. She is looked to as a conduit directly to Naga herself. If we can convince her to side with us in this war, we may be able to turn some of Walhart's numbers against him."

Dooku nodded, "You aim to level the playing field. A smart move. But one we cannot execute without the Voice. Even then, you may not sway many to change sides."

"It is better than nothing." Ben muttered. He ran a hand over his beard, "A million men." He breathed, still stunned.

"You faced worse odds during the Clone Wars." Dooku reminded the Jedi Master, "Need I remind you of Christophsis?"

"There is a vast difference between battle droids and Valmese soldiers. Intelligence being the biggest difference." Ben rubbed at his eyes, "Not only that, but this style of warfare is completely different from what I am used to. I could negate those massive numbers if I had cannons and several thousand elite Clones." Chrom glanced at him, mildly puzzled. "And if I had some gunships ready to provide aerial support. But this…" Ben shook his head, "I'm not a miracle worker."

"You don't have to be." Chrom said quickly, "We've faced these kind of odds before. Ylisse was practically conquered when we defeated Plegia. I know we'll find a way to defeat the Conqueror and his legions." He gave Ben a small grin, "It'll just be a little unconventional."

"It'll have to be a little more than unconventional." Ben muttered.

Chrom chuckled and patted his back, "With you and Robin planning everything out, once he gets back at least, I'm sure we'll do just fine." He glanced over at the other Shepherds, "No point in rushing back to our lines if they'll be right here in a day or two, we'll make camp."

Ben nodded, "Good idea."

Chrom moved towards Sakura's horse in order to gather camping materials with the others. As he walked away, Dooku leaned close to Ben once again.

"I waited to say this now in order to not worry the others," Dooku whispered, "Two more deadlords were here as well. They wiped out the Valmese guards and the Plegian mages that were here."

Ben's face darkened, "What are we dealing with then?"

Dooku took a breath, "Xanatos... and Luminara."

A rush of emotions crossed Ben's face. The mention of Xanatos caused a small flare of anger and worry to rush through the Jedi Master. Old feelings that refused to go away no matter how much time passed. But when Dooku breathed Luminara's name, a wave of sadness washed over Ben.

"The dark side can't even let the souls of our old friends rest easy." Ben sighed, "Thank you for telling me Dooku. Did you-"

"I handled them for now, but they will be back."

"I'll be ready when that happens." Ben nodded.

"You better be."

Without another word, Dooku strode away, dumping out what little remained of his tobacco from his pipe. Ben watched the Count as he strode away.

A lot of what the old man said worried Ben. Walhart had a million men at his disposal. And he had a whole second army to the south, commanded by General Yen'fay. Ben recalled that fighting force and he remembered being in awe of the pure discipline and organization he saw. Fighting that army alone would be a challenge. Fighting both Walhart and Yen'fay's armies together? Impossible.

Then the Voice went missing. The plan to turn some of Walhart's numbers against him was on hold until she was found. Hopefully, because the Voice was a powerful Manakete, she would be found easily. A powerful Manakete on the loose could be a very good or a very bad thing. And it would definitely attract attention. Likely the wrong kind of attention.

Lastly, he worried about Robin. If Robin was with the Voice, he could be in serious danger. After all, what other reasons were there for deadlords and Grimleal mages to be in the same place at the same time. Someone else wanted the Voice as well. But why?
Ben ran his hand through his beard.

"This is getting much more complicated."

A small fire flickered in front of Noire. The bright orange flames danced, waved, and jumped. Each ember sparkled in her blue eyes. One of her hands absently played with the black gem on her talisman around her neck.

Night fell quickly over the Mila Tree. Most of the day had been spent setting up camp and trying to keep busy. Noire and Virion enjoyed a small archery competition. Virion won, but it had been a close match. Three bullseyes to two, and Noire was convinced that she got lucky to be that close. The nobleman from Rosanne was a remarkable shot.

The others watched their competition for a small while, but then they all decided to do their own thing. Gaius binged on his stash of candy, since in his own words "Whiskers is not here to tell me no". Noire chuckled a little as she recalled that comment.

Luke mostly chatted with Gaius. At first the thief was very standoffish with Luke. Which made sense, since Luke was the enemy in a battle that nearly killed both Gaius and Panne during the Plegian war. But eventually, Gaius got back to calling him Kid. And the pair chatted over meaningless nonsense, like which city they visited had the best sweets. Luke was adamant that Koto had incredible sweets. But Gaius reminded him that chocolate cake exists in Ylisstol. And the conversation spiraled into a debate from there. A debate Noire tuned out eventually.

Sakura spent most of the day tending to her horse. Lissa, and surprisingly, Lon'qu, helped her with that task. All three brushed the horse's fur to pristine shine before eventually falling off into their own conversation while Sakura cooked supper (a very delicious smelling root and vegetable soup). As Sakura cooked, Noire noticed Lissa blink in shock before glancing over at Say'ri (who took a nap on her own) several times. Lon'qu kept his distance from the two women. But Noire did notice the swordsman tended to stay closer to Lissa than to Sakura.

Dooku, Ben, and Chrom were busy talking strategy for most of the day. And when they were not discussing strategy, they rested and discussed the condition of the army and the Shepherds. Noire could hardly understand most of what they were talking about. But she did recall what Cervantes told them all. The Conqueror commanded an army of one million men. It boggled her mind. The only other army she knew of with those kind of numbers had been Grima's hordes of Risen towards the end of days in the future. It seemed like such a massive number to fathom. The longer she lingered on it, the more she wondered how the Shepherds won this war in the first place.

Her mother, Tharja, kept studying her spellbook. Her dark eyes occasionally flicked up to glance at Noire. But they were fleeting glances, nothing more.

Lucina mostly meditated off to the side of the camp. The Princess rededicated herself to her training in the force. She was a Jedi Knight now, after all. She needed to constantly train both her body and mind in order to keep up with the other force sensitives around her. Something Noire felt she should also be doing. But she had no idea where to even begin.

Father knows where to start. Noire thought to herself as her fingers tapped against her talisman. A small flicker of confidence burst inside of her as she thought about approaching her father and asking him about the force. That confidence slowly ebbed away when she noticed her mother glance at her again, He's busy though.

She let out a heavy sigh as her hand fell from her talisman. She felt the back of her palm brush against the lightsaber strapped to her hip. Noire glanced down at the beat up old hilt, drew it, and held it up in the firelight.

This was her father's weapon, but she never saw him wield it. She only ever saw drawings. Only ever recalled vague descriptions of this treasured weapon. He never went into great deal over the weapon in the future. Then again, he never really went into detail about anything. Always vague, never growing too close.

Footsteps sounded near her. Noire glanced up. She jumped a little bit as Ben held out a bowl of soup to her.

"Sakura is done cooking." He said with a small smile.

Noire gulped and gratefully took the bowl. To her great surprise, as she moved to take her first bite, her father sat down beside her. She blinked and watched as Ben scooped up a mouthful of soup. He paused as he went for a second bite and turned to her.

"Is there something on my face?" He smirked a little bit, "Other than the beard at least."

Noire uttered a sheepish laugh and quickly shook her head. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Lucina crack an eye open, glance at both of them, then close her eyes again.

She took her first bite of soup. And as always, it tasted great. If there was one thing Sakura knew how to do other fight, it was cook. A skill Sakura picked up from her father. While not the best cook in the world, both of them were decent enough cooks that their food managed to be tasty and filling. In fact, Sakura knew how to cook almost anything, except for bear. Noire remembered asking her why she would refuse to cook that meat, even if it was the only food available at the time. Sakura's reply involved turning green in the face then muttering something about a stomach ache.

"Do you like it?"

Noire blinked. Her father was talking again.

"L-like what?"

Ben nodded at her bowl, "The soup?"

Noire uttered a nervous laugh, "Uh yeah… I um.. I've had it before. Sakura does a good job cooking it. It's uh… simple."

I feel so awkward right now.

Noire froze as she saw her mother rise to her feet, march across the camp, and take a seat right beside her. She cast her blue eyes towards the starry heavens.

Have you no mercy Naga?

Before she could get back to eating, Tharja's hand zipped out and snatched her talisman from her neck. Noire yelped as the clasp broke away, separating her from the source of her confidence.

"H-hey!" She reached for the necklace, but Tharja held it away. Ben uttered a sigh and let his spoon rest in his bowl.

"Tharja, could you not have-"

"Hm…" Tharja hummed as she studied the dark gem on the talisman closely, "Interesting."

Ben pressed his lips together. He leaned towards Noire's ear, "She's got that look now."

Noire arched an eyebrow, "Look?"

"That look." Ben nodded at Tharja as she continued studying the talisman, "Something has grabbed her curiosity." Ben returned his attention, "Good luck getting it away from her now."

Noire arched an eyebrow, "Why do you say that?"

Ben let out a small laugh, "How do you think her and I got together?"

"I seem to recall I helped you through some mental trauma." Tharja hummed in reply, causing Noire to freeze.

Ben quietly chuckled, "I seem to recall you approaching me in a tavern because you were curious about me." A slight smirk crossed Tharja's lips, "And you haven't let me go since."

"The only reason I accompanied you around the world was because I was initially infatuated with Robin." Tharja replied as she flipped a page in her spellbook and rested the talisman on the page.

"So you didn't want to know what made my powers work at all?" Ben asked as a teasing sparkled danced in his eye.

"I never said that." Tharja replied. She plucked the talisman off of the page, "Very complex work…" She glanced over at Noire, "I'm keeping this."

Panic surged inside of Noire, "Y-you can't keep that it's-"

"A talisman." Tharja finished for her, "Quite the potent one too. Very well crafted. Did I make it?"

Noire gulped, "Y-yes."

A dark smirk crossed Tharja's lips, "Oh… I got very good." She snickered to herself, "Very good indeed." She returned her attention to Noire, "Confidence charm?"

Noire nodded nervously.

The smirk on Tharja's face wavered, "Why?"

Noire gulped and cast her eyes down, away from her own mother's glare. Before she could answer, Tharja's voice snapped at her.

"Look at me."

Noire tensed and raised her gaze. Tharja's dark eyes bored holes through her, leaving Noire feeling weak and vulnerable. A feeling she detested. But one she could never escape.

"Why do you feel the need to artificially build confidence?" Tharja asked her.

"I-I didn't." Noire replied. Beside her, Ben quietly listened as he ate his soup, "You did." Tharja arched an eyebrow, "Y-you said that I was a Kenobi. And Kenobi's are not fearful on or off the battlefield."

Ben let out a loud laugh, startling Noire and causing Tharja to give him a curious glance. He looked at Tharja.

"You and I really were a one time thing in the future."

"It appears so." Tharja hummed as she returned her attention to Noire, "Because if I actually knew your father the way I know him now, I would have known that he has had his moments of fear."

Noire's eyes widened, "R-really?" She snapped her head around to Ben, "You've been afraid?"

Ben took a bite of soup and nodded.

"But you're a Jedi Master." Noire continued.

"And?" Ben replied, "I've slowly come to learn that fear is a natural thing."

"But doesn't that…" Noire took a moment to collect herself, "You always said to Lucina that fear is the path to the dark side."

"How we react to fear determines that." Ben replied, "Fear itself is natural. Everyone feels it, even the greatest of Jedi Masters. And quite frankly, my future self should have known better." He tapped the side of his bowl with his right hand, "Then again, my future self was not smart enough to trust anyone in the future. I probably stunted my own growth in that regard." Ben shook his head, "I'm glad that changed."

Noire still looked at him, stunned.

"When did you feel fear?" Noire asked him.

Ben paused mid bite. Tharja gave him a slightly worried look as she noticed his eyes glaze over for a moment. Neither of them noticed Lucina cracking an eye open or Luke carefully watching them.

Ben set his spoon back down in his soup.

"When I fought my apprentice." Ben breathed, "I felt fear then."

Noire's eyes widened, "F-fought your-" She took a deep breath, "When? How? What happened?"

"Noire, slow down." Tharja admonished.

Noire's cheeks reddened, "S-sorry."

"Don't apologize." Ben replied, "You asked a question. And I am not mad that you did." He set his bowl to the side, "It is a little difficult to talk about. Even more difficult to relive. But… not as hard as it used to be. That is thanks to your mother." He took a deep breath, "I felt fear, as I fought on a small, floating platform atop a river of lava. My former apprentice, my old friend, Anakin… he was so much stronger than I was. He was stronger than I could ever hope to become. And up until that point in the duel, I had managed to hold him off but…" Ben trailed off a little bit as Mustafar flashed in his mind once again. But this time, he did not feel a sharp pain or intense sorrow. Instead, he felt regret, and a small tinge sadness, "Once we got to the river, I was so tired. And he just kept coming. The Dark Side of the Force pulsed through his very being. It powered every strike he made. It made him into a juggernaut. All I could hope for was to hold him off and pray I would find some sort of opening. And when I felt there was no opening, I felt afraid. I was cornered, exhausted, and, quite honestly, overwhelmed." He looked over at Noire, "The important thing is, I did not let that fear consume me. I remained calm, and I made up my mind on that river of lava. If Anakin was going to kill me, I was going to make him work for it."

Out of the corner of Noire's eyes, she saw Lucina's lips twist up into a slight smirk. Meanwhile, Luke listened silently. Not reacting to anything Ben said, but also not growing bored or diverting his attention somewhere else.

Ben reached to his hip and grabbed his lightsaber hilt.

"This was Anakin's lightsaber." Ben breathed. He turned the hilt over in his hand, "I took it when I cut him down that day. A reminder of the man, the friend, he once was." He nodded, "I keep it so I remember the good times we had together." Ben uttered a small laugh, "I cannot even begin to tell you how many times this weapon saved my life during the Clone Wars." His eyes rose from the hilt up to look at Luke. He smiled a little bit then turned his attention back to Noire, "Well…" Ben breathed, "There was one time I was afraid."

"Anakin was the one who betrayed the Jedi, right?" Lucina finally spoke up, opening both of her eyes and letting the force ebb away from her.

Ben glanced over at her, "Yes," He nodded, "He was. Because of his actions, and the actions of the Sith that turned him, the Jedi Order is all but extinct."

"Do you ever think about starting over?" Luke blurted out.

Ben snapped his gaze over to Luke, "What?"

Luke shrugged, "Do you ever think about trying again?" He reiterated, "Try rebuilding the Jedi Order?"

Lucina's eyes lit up, "You should!" She smiled at Noire, "I've got one candidate in mind for training."

Noire's face reddened considerably as embarrassment rushed through her.

"I'm not all that impressive and-"

"Neither was I." Ben reassured her, "But if you train and work hard enough, you will grow. Hard work will always outdo talent when talent doesn't work hard." Ben let out a heavy sigh as he placed his lightsaber back on his hip, "As for rebuilding the Jedi Order… I'm not sure I'm the right person to do that."

"Nonsense." Tharja said. She nodded over at Lucina, "You trained her well, didn't you? And Robin, despite the current problem plaguing him, has grown considerably under your tutelage."

"There were far greater masters than me in the Order. They were far better teachers than I am." Ben argued back, "And I was the one that trained the apprentice that killed us all. I hardly think that qualifies me to rebuild the order." He shook his head, "No, I will leave that to someone else, if that ever happens. I think I will be content living a quiet life, once this blasted war is finished at least."

Tharja leaned over to Noire, "I think I see where you get your low confidence from."

Lucina covered her mouth as she giggled at Ben's betrayed look. Luke snorted as he lay on his side near the fire.

"P-pardon?" Ben stammered.

Tharja snickered, stepped around Noire, and placed a kiss on Ben's lips, "You should have more confidence in yourself." She glanced at Noire, "Both of you."

She sauntered away towards her bedroll back across camp. Ready to indulge herself in her spellbook once again. Ben and Noire's eyes followed her as she walked away. Noire frowned a little bit.

"Yeah," She nodded and turned to look at Ben, "I blame you."

Ben snorted, "Doesn't everyone?" He chuckled and pushed Noire's shoulder, "Get some rest. Who knows if the army gets here tomorrow or not."

"Fine." Noire sighed and flopped back on her bedroll. Ben rose to his feet, taking his bowl of soup with him as he got up. Before he walked away, Noire tugged on his pant leg.

"Yes?" Ben asked.

"Um… do you think you can um…" Noire took a deep, calming breath, "Can you teach me more soon?"

A warm smile crossed Ben's face.

"I would love to."

Tiki glanced at Robin across their dark, barren campsite. No bedrolls, no fire, no food. Nothing that brought even a hint of comfort to any of them. Not that Tiki minded too much. She traveled often in years gone by, and never in the best of circumstances. She could rough it for a few nights if needed.

And as she sat quiet in the cold night, she stared at what had to be one of the strangest, most curious humans she had ever come across. A young man, wearing the colors of a dark mage, but so uncharacteristically bright and helpful. It presented quite a puzzle for Tiki. So far, in their short journey east in search of Robin's friends, she had been content to silently observe both him and his… frenemy, Aversa, who laid curled up off to the side, sound asleep.

Aversa appeared to be the type of person she would normally be averse to. Generally foul mannered and foul demeanored. A scowl and a snide comment always rested on Aversa's lips. Generally unlikeable and ill tempered. And Tiki did not appreciate that this woman had an apparent mission to kidnap her. But so far, she had not attempted to. And she doubted Aversa would try. Not after her little display of power against a group of undead monsters a day ago. She seemed to be the type more worried about her own skin than any sense of loyalty to a cause.

But Robin… that young man piqued her curiosity. For one, unlike so many others that came to visit her at her previous home atop the Mila Tree, he was not there for any sagely wisdom from Naga. He was not there to do her harm or to kidnap her. No, he was there to seek help for something else. Something he had yet to specify. And along the way, despite his own need for help, he made sure to help her first. He took on Gharnef, the Gharnef, one of the most dangerous sorcerers the world has ever known, without a moment's hesitation. And that garnered some of Tiki's respect.

What happened when Robin attacked Gharnef drew even more of her attention than the motives behind his actions. Tiki sensed it for a brief second before her attention was taken elsewhere. Robin used the force. And a very dark form of it. A side of the force she knew existed, but had rarely seen or even experienced.

Finally, she recalled something that fiend Gharnef said. "Both of my master's targets are within my grasp". Gharnef was not only targeting her, he was targeting Robin. Buy why him? She could understand why Gharnef, and the monster he served, wanted her. But there seemed to be no obvious reason for Gharnef or Grima's interest in Robin.

She let her green eyes flick up to Robin once again. The young man insisted on staying awake and taking the first watch. At first, Tiki felt he was being overly chivalrous, so she stayed awake in an attempt to try to both decipher him and keep him company. But as they both remained awake in the quiet night, she noticed how heavy Robin's head was. How is his eyes seemed to droop, close, then snap awake every few minutes. He was exhausted, and yet he fought sleep. He refused to allow it to claim him.

Tiki quirked an eyebrow. She knew some humans struggled with sleeping. Insomnia, that is what they called it. She never witnessed it before personally, only read and heard of it. And she had a feeling the sleeplessness bothering Robin was not insomnia, but something else. Something that he could not explain.

Perhaps this is why he came to me for help? Tiki thought to herself.

Robin snorted as he jerked awake once again. He ran a hand over his eyes and gave Tiki an exhausted glance.

"You can sleep, I can-" He covered his mouth as he yawned, "I can keep watch."

Tiki laughed quietly to herself. Humans, such stubborn creatures.

"To me, it looks like you are the one that needs to sleep." She gave him a small smile as he struggled to keep his head up and meet her gaze. Tiki cleared her throat and folded her hands in her lap, "Well?"

"Hm?" Robin replied sleepily.

"I recall you saying you needed my help when we first met each other," Tiki noted, "I see no better time than now to help."

Robin furrowed his brow, "I asked you for-" He blinked, "Oh, r-right! I did, didn't I?" He uttered a sheepish laugh, "Well… um… honestly I was hoping Dooku would be the one doing the explaining on this. He understands the problem more than I do."

"Dooku?" Tiki hummed, "Is that the friend you mentioned before?"

Robin nodded, "Yes. We um, we reached the Mila Tree and those Deadlords ambushed us."

Tiki's eyes widened a little bit. Deadlords, so there was more than Gharnef at the Mila Tree. That was a sobering fact that gave her some pause. One deadlord was a problem. Multiple was a threat.

"He took on two of them while I ran to get to you." Robin admitted. Some shame entered his eyes, "Honestly, I feel like I should have stayed and fought by his side. But the old man insisted I run to you. He said that I'd be safer by you than near him."

Tiki raised her brow, "By me?" This Dooku knows much more than even Robin realizes if he realized it was safer to be by me than anywhere else.

"Y-yeah." Robin took a breath, "He said you were extremely powerful. And after seeing how you destroyed those Risen, I think he might have underestimated you a little bit."

Tiki chuckled lightly, "People tend to do that." She gave him a gentle smile. To her slight amusement, she noticed his face both pale and blush at the same time.

The fangs must still be out. She laughed to herself.

"So," Tiki continued, "Why do you need my help?"

Robin swallowed. He flicked his eyes down at his lap as another wave of shame washed over him. His aura fluctuated. Tiki sensed tremendous fear and sadness take over the exhausted man. And with that fear came a pulse in the force that caused her breath to hitch. A dark pulse that subtly drifted through the cold air like a gentle ripple. Barely noticeable, even to those that are aware of the force's existence.

"I um…" Robin raised his eyes, "You see there is this type of… magic, I guess would be the best way to describe it, called-"

"The Force." Tiki finished for him.

Robin fumbled his next few words and stammered into a jabbering mess for a moment. He caught himself, took a breath to collect his thoughts, then pressed his hands together.

"How?"

Tiki chuckled again, "Not all unknown things are unknown to everyone."

Robin narrowed his eyes at her, "You know the force, don't you?"

Tiki folded her legs and let her hands rest on her knees as she sat across from Robin, "I know of it." She explained, "But… the way you use it is rather new to me. I have never seen someone summon lightning the way you did. Nor have I felt such a powerful…"

She trailed off. Would it be rude to mention how the force felt around him? Humans had rather strange norms. And in this case, she did not want to upset those norms. Robin seemed to be a kind, brave person. Someone she could get along with quite well actually. In fact, he reminded her of some old friends she had in days so far gone that many living today viewed them as myth. For some reason, she did not wish to offend someone who quite clearly wished to assist her as much as he desired her assistance.

"Darkness?" Robin said, voice quiet.

Tiki gave him a small nod, "There are very few I have encountered in my long life with such a cold darkness inside of them, Robin." She took a deep breath as she steadied her own heart, "Gharnef was one of them. But normally, when such a darkness has a hold on a person, it is their entire being. It defines who they are. It dictates their actions. But with you…" She hummed to herself, "You are different. You resist that darkness, but at the same time, you use it when you have to. Why?"

Robin swallowed hard, "Well… I don't exactly know how to control it."

"Do you let your emotions get the better of you?"

Robin frowned, "Isn't that part of being human?"

Tiki shrugged, "I wouldn't know."

Robin's cheeks reddened in slight embarrassment, "R-right because you are-"

Tiki laughed, "You did not offend me, Robin. It is a fact, I am not human." She shifted in her seat, trying to find a more comfortable spot on the hard ground, "So, you cannot control these sudden bursts of dark power?"

"Well… no. And yes, I guess." Robin rubbed the back of his neck, "It happens when I feel like I'm in danger. And when others I care about are in danger. It um…" He went quiet for a moment. A glaze went over his tired eyes. A look Tiki had seen many times before in other humans long ago. The gaze of a man who has seen violence that he wishes he could forget, but will never be able to. "I lost control during a battle in Charlet." Robin sniffed, "And I ended up killing a good friend of mine."

Tiki's heart stopped in her chest. She carefully watched Robin as he sniffled and wiped at tears threatening to come from his eyes. Pain and sadness came off of him in waves.

"I-I-" Robin gulped, "I don't know what is going on? One of my friends, Ben, he is trained in this sort of thing. And he says that I am tapping into something called the Dark Side of the Force. But I hardly even understand the… Light Side I guess? How could I possibly tap into the dark when my own understanding of it all is mediocre at best? How can I be so powerful and dangerous when I barely even know what I am doing? And worst of all, none of us know what is causing this. Ben and Dooku think something else is at work but…" Robin took a shaky breath, "What if something else isn't causing this? What if it is me? What if I am that dangerous and there is nothing that can be done about it?"

Tiki remained quiet as a tear dripped down his cheek. His chin quivered as he struggled to contain his emotions. Fear radiated out of him. He did not fear the Deadlord tracking them, he did not fear the possibility of Risen chasing them, he did not even fear the fangs occasionally peeking out from behind her lips. Robin feared himself.

She rose from her seat and quietly moved across the camp over to his side. Without a word, she took a seat beside him. Robin gulped, sniffled, then wiped at his eyes with the back of his coat sleeve.

"Now, I can't sleep." Robin continued, "I close my eyes, and I see me killing Miriel all over again. I see some dark monster inside of my mind, daring me to give in and sink even further into this madness. Madness that I want no part of." A shuddering breath shook out of his lungs, "All I want to do is help my friends. All I want to do, is make sure they all survive this war we have gotten ourselves into here in Valm. And now, I am incapable of even doing that. Gods, I can't even take care of myself right now. All because I am too afraid of what I see when I close my eyes." He glanced over at her, "So…" He swallowed again, "What do you think is wrong with me?"

Tiki furrowed her brow. What was wrong with him? To her, that seemed like the wrong question to be asking. These dark powers were sparked by fear. That much Tiki had discerned. And they were growing. What especially concerned her now, was Robin's lack of well-being. The nightmares he described were hindering any chance he had of rationally combating this problem. In fact, they exacerbated the central issue, fear.

"Close your eyes." Tiki breathed.

Robin blinked. A wave of fear rushed out of him.

"You are not going to sleep." Tiki reassured him, "Just trust me."

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. As soon as his eyes were closed, Tiki reached for a small leather pouch on her hip. Her fingers wrapped around a warm, luminous gemstone that glowed with a faint, white light inside of the pouch. As soon as her fingers brushed against the stone, power coursed through her body. Her breath hitched at the sensation.

Wordlessly, she removed the gem from the pouch and held it tight in her right hand. Then she closed her eyes.

Power erupted inside of her. Overpowering, raw, and terrifying; she trembled a little bit as Azure's light erupted in her hand. It quickly engulfed both her and Robin. Through the whir in her ears, she heard Aversa wake up, utter an alarmed cry, and snarl their names. But her voice faded as the air howled around her.

Then… all went still. The air calmed, the noise died away, and the sensation of power steadied inside of her. Tiki inhaled, exhaled, then opened her eyes.

A cluttered room surrounded her and Robin. Books were stacked from floor to ceiling around the room. Even more sat on dusty bookshelves surrounding the dark walls. Torches burned along the walls as well, casting the cluttered, dusty room in a faint orange glow. Against the far wall from where they stood, sat a desk. Papers rested on top of the desk. Arranged neat and tidy. The desk did not have a speck of dust on it. Several books rested on the desk as well. Stacked neatly in a clean row beside a pair of full inkwells.

Tiki furrowed her brow. Robin took a breath.

"Can I open my eyes?"

She jumped, "Oh, um, yes." She uttered a slight laugh, "Go ahead."

Robin cracked his weary eyes open. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped.

"Wh-where-" He looked around, "What in Naga's name is-" He paused and cringed, "Sorry."

Tiki uttered a small laugh, "No worries. If I were in your situation, I would use the same expression. Even if I'm technically supposed to be in service to her."

She glanced around the cramped space. So much knowledge stored in this little room. But all of it seemed untouched, dusty, and old. Cobwebs clung to several stacks of books and scrolls.

"What is this place?" Robin asked.

Tiki brushed her finger along the spine of dusty book with a cracked spine, "Your mind." She answered simply. Robin gave her a stunned look, "Or, what is supposed to be your mind. Honestly, I haven't done this very often. Results tend to vary."

"My mind…" Robin breathed. He looked around then walked up to one of the tallest stacks of books. He did not recognize any of the titles or texts. But when he brushed his hand along the dusty spines, a strange feeling of nostalgia washed over him. A small chuckle rushed from his lips, "I need to do some housekeeping in here."

Tiki chuckled as well, "It looks like some things have been forgotten."

Robin glanced over at her, "Oh, you have no idea." He turned his attention to another strangely foreign, yet familiar stack of books, "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I'm an amnesiac after all."

Tiki blinked, "You failed to mention that."

Robin cringed, "Yeah well, it never exactly came up."

"Fair point." Tiki shrugged as she glanced at more volumes of books and scrolls.

Eventually, she drifted over to the spotless desk at the other end of the room. Her eyes scanned the several texts resting on the desk. Most of them had to do with military tactics of one form or another. Another was a spellbook. She plucked the spellbook from the desk.

"You're a mage?" She asked.

"Partially." Robin answered as he continued to look in wonder at the space that was his mind, "I have a bit of an affinity for magic. But I prefer tactics to spellcraft."

Tiki glanced at the volumes on strategy once again, "I can see that." She hummed, she placed the spellbook back on the desk then turned her attention to the pieces of parchment and inkwells.

Behind her, Robin tugged a book from one stack. He blew the dust from the blank, brown cover.

"Strange," He muttered, "This one has no title."

He cracked it open. The first thing he saw was a drawing of a woman. She seemed young, but older than his friends. Midnight black hair ran down in long locks from her head. Emerald eyes stared back at him from the drawing. She wore Grimleal attire. Flowing purple and gold robes that seemed very light covered her lean form. Perfect for the desert heat.

A deep sense of knowing filled Robin. He furrowed his brow as he looked down at the drawing.

"Who are you?" He muttered under his breath.

"Are you aware that your thoughts are blank on these pieces of parchment?" Tiki asked.

Robin blinked and tore his gaze away from the drawing, "What?"

Tiki lifted a blank piece of paper from the desk, "Empty." She said with a slight smirk, "Not thinking of anything at the moment?"

Robin stared back at her. And for a split second, his cheeks blushed. Tiki gave him a knowing look.

"Not anything you want me to know about." She smirked at him, "I see."

"I uh- well-" Robin cleared his throat, tore his gaze away from Tiki, and closed the book with drawing, "What is the point of us being here?"

Tiki laughed lightly to herself before setting the blank page down, "The point is for us to figure out what is causing you to be so fearful." She put a finger to her chin, "It cannot be anything from your past, since by our own admission, you do not remember your past."

Robin nodded carefully, "Correct."

"So by that logic," Tiki turned her attention back to the desk, "It has to be something there."

Robin frowned, "Wouldn't it just be the events that happened in Charlet causing this fear?"

"Did the fear start in Charlet?"

Robin went silent, "No." He finally answered.

Tiki nodded, "The events in Charlet magnified the fear, but it did not cause it. Something else is causing these dark powers inside of you to burst forth. Now we must find out what."

Tiki scanned the items on the desk once again. All of it appeared mostly surface level. Stuff Robin happened to be interested in. Basic thoughts and habits he relied upon on a daily basis. From what she saw, Robin was clearly a very intelligent man. And a curious one at that. He had a hunger for knowledge that bordered on an obsession. Anything new, especially when it was about magic or tactics, he needed to know. And he would apply that newfound knowledge in ways that best helped those he cared about. It caused some admiration to build up inside of her. Most people would use such intelligence for their own personal gain, yet Robin used it to help others. It reminded her of someone else she once traveled with over a thousand years ago. A brave, selfless soul that used his great skills to help those in need.

Before her melancholy could overtake her, she noticed a latch hidden beneath the top of the desk. She arched an eyebrow and reached for it.

"Do you mind?" She asked Robin.

Robin shrugged, "If you think it will help."

She flicked the latch open.

The top of the desk flipped open. The books flew off of the wooden top. The papers fluttered into the wind. The inkwells clattered to the ground, spilling their contents all over the ground. A wave of penetrating, icy air blasted against Tiki from inside of the desk. Her breath rushed from her lungs as shadows erupted from the desk and consumed the room around them.

"Tiki." Robin breathed nervously, "What is going on?"

Tiki whipped her head around as the shadows moved like sentient beings made of smoke. They jumped and dove through the air, consumed the stacks of books around them in darkness. And as the shadows grew, two distinct whispers started to come from the desk.

"Well, well, well… look who woke us up."

"Feed… I hunger… must feed..."

"I know you are hungry, my parasitic companion. But perhaps we should give our guests a proper greeting."

Two large shadows erupted from desk. One was a formless clump of darkness. But it was black as coal and cold as the deepest of winters. Tiki shivered as it brushed by her. And when it brushed past her, she heard it utter a draconic snarl. One that caused her eyes to open wide.

"Child of Naga… your soul would be most satisfying."

"Oh… we have a very important visitor then?"

The second shadow dwarfed the first. And unlike the first, it had form. It took the shape of a tall, lanky man. Tiki and Robin could not see any facial features in the shadows, but it did possess two glowing red eyes that glared down at them with mild amusement.

Robin stared at both shadows, stunned and afraid. Tiki quashed whatever fear she felt inside of herself. She stood taller and stared up at the second shadow's lidless, red eyes.

"Hello." Tiki breathed, "To whom do I owe the pleasure?"

"Aren't we supposed to be asking the invader that?"

The second shadow chuckled, "Yes, but we can forgive such a lapse in manners. Can't we, my draconic friend?"

The first voice growled low.

"Ignore him, he has primal urges that he allows to control his thoughts and actions. Usually they get us into more trouble than they are worth."

"It is thanks to those urges that we exist."

"And thanks to those urges we have been reduced to this state. A state we are now nearly free from."

"Care to elaborate?" Tiki asked, face resembling stone as she remained strong in the face of an overwhelming, dark presence emanating from both shadows.

The second shadow chuckled, "You hope for us to give away the game before it has even begun? Darling," The shadow's mocking laughter rang throughout the room, "you think the game has only just started? You are wrong. It has been played many times before. And now, we are reaching its final stages. And there is nothing you can do to stop it."

"For we are the end…"

"And we are a new beginning."

"I shall consume all life."

"And we shall rule what remains."

Tiki's heart hammered in her chest as the first shadow crept up the wall in front of her. Six red circles winked to life on the shadow. Her heart jumped to her throat.

"Do you see what it is you face now?"

She reached for her pocket and drew the gemstone. It's bright light burst to life in her hand as she let her power surge inside of it. The shadows hissed as the light bit into them.

"Do you understand who you face, Fellspawn!?" She snarled in reply. They shrank away from her light, "Back to your prison!"

The second voice chuckled, "Yes, back to our prison. Where we will wait oh so patiently. For we already know you cannot destroy us. No one can. The end has come, are you ready to witness it, Child of my Sister?"

Tiki's face paled. The gemstones light wavered

"Wh-what?"

"TIKI!"

Robin's shoved her to the side as the first shadow surged towards her. The first shadow uttered a loud roar that rang in her ears as it slammed into Robin. In the blink of an eye, Robin's eyes changed from their kind, weary brown to a burning yellow color. His presence changed from courageous and selfless, to dark, evil.

She needed to end this, before it was too late.

Tiki thrust the gemstone into the air again, this time channeling even more of her draconic powers through it. The light erupted, turning as bright as the sun. Daylight pierced the fog of shadows that engulfed her and Robin. Both shadows screeched as they were bashed back into their prison within the once spotless desk. Once they were inside, Tiki rushed forward and slammed it closed, locking the latch as soon as it clicked shut.

She exhaled as the light from the gemstone faded back to it faint, white color. Exhaustion slammed into her. Before long, the cluttered room faded along with all of the books. The dark forest surrounding the Mila Tree came into view once again. She could see Robin sitting across from her, sweat soaking his brow. His face pale and clammy.

Aversa stood a few paces behind him, awestruck as the light around Tiki faded entirely and the gemstone's hum died away.

The gemstone fell from her grasp and hit the earth by her feet with a soft thud. Tiki shivered and looked down at her hand. It felt like it was on fire. The flesh on her palm had turned red. Some of it started to peel from the amount of power she poured into the gemstone. Mentally, she cursed.

What was I thinking?

Robin blinked his eyes open, groaned, then tipped forward.

"Robin!" Tiki caught him.

Ragged breaths rushed from his lungs.

"That was…" Robin exhaled, "That was something."

He was shaking uncontrollably. Tiki placed a hand on his forehead.

He's cold.

"Fire." Tiki ordered Aversa.

Aversa frowned, "But that Deadlord-"

"Will face my wrath if he dares to come near here, but we need a fire now!"

The way she bared her fangs must've spurred the dark mage into action. Within moments, a small fire burned beside her and Robin. Tiki reached up to her neck and undid the clasp of her pink cape. She then gently laid Robin's head in her lap and placed the cape over his shivering form.

Robin's half lidded eyes glanced up at her.

"That could've gone better?" He muttered weakly.

Tiki let out a slight, weary laugh, "It could have." She brushed a hand over his freezing forehead, "Close your eyes and rest. What happened was quite taxing for you."

His eyes slowly started to close.

"You know," Robin mumbled, "Laying right here is not a bad thing to have happen before falling asleep." He let out a weak yawn then his eyes closed, "Just thought you would like to know…"

He fell asleep, thankfully. Tiki let out a long exhale and sagged in her seat as her own exhaustion crashed down on top of her. Every muscle in her body felt like it had been set on fire. Her eyes felt heavy. Her head nodded every time she attempted to raise it.

Leaves crunched near her. Normally, Tiki would be alert when she heard such a noise. But the amount of power the gemstone took from her drained her entirely.

"What just happened?" She heard Aversa ask.

Tiki raised her green eyes up. She gave Aversa an exhausted look, "I think I found out what is plaguing Robin's mind."

Aversa arched an eyebrow, "You mean beyond a case of stupidity and annoying selflessness?"

Tiki let out a weak laugh. She shook her head, "Even worse." She breathed, "I think the Fell Dragon himself is in there. And… he is not alone either."

Naga, she just wanted to lie down and fall asleep. Every fiber of her being desired rest. It was a struggle to prevent herself from giving in.

"Y-you're joking?" Aversa laughed nervously, "Right? You have to be joking? The Fell Dragon can't just inhabit someone?"

Tiki's head nodded. It was no use. Sleep would claim her. And when it did, Aversa would have her opportunity to kidnap her. She slowly shook her head,

"I saw him." Tiki murmured.

Aversa paled.

"Six eyes." Tiki hummed as her eyes drooped, "A rumbling growl. And an insatiable… hunger…"

Her eyes closed. And sleep claimed her.

And chapter! Ruminations and Revelations, definitely an appropriate title for this chapter I think. We had a lot of interesting stuff come to light in this chapter. Some of it good, and some of it very, very bad. And we get a lot more of Tiki, which was very fun to write. She's a tough character for me to write, so when I do get to write her, it is an enjoyable challenge. I hope I've done a good job with her so far.

Come join the Treehouse! Where we discuss writing stuff, fandom stuff, and basically just hang out! Discord is: 9XG3U7a

Anyways, let me know what you all think of this chapter! As always, I hope you all enjoyed! Have a nice day!