A Summoner's Journey
Paralogue 4: Spring Festival
Team for this chapter: Robin, Chrom, Jeorge and Nino
As the month passed to April, I watched with disappointment as the Blazing Shadows banner fade away in my hands. I summoned using the orbs I gotten from liberating the World of Blazing and I summoned every colourless I could. But in the end, I didn't get Jaffar or Ninian and instead got Priscilla and Lucius. It wasn't like I wasn't happy with having them, but I could do without two staff users. At least Priscilla had Rehabilitate, the best healing staff out of all. Lucius had Martyr, a staff that grows more powerful when he's injured. While taking him through the Training Tower, one strike from a Sword Fighter brought him down to his knees, so it's safe to say that utilizing Martyr+ with Lucius isn't going to be reliable. Nino and Eliwood were sad that I couldn't summon either of their loved ones, but they accepted Lucius and Priscilla nevertheless. Now, as the month passes, the Blazing Shadows banner disappears from my hands and I may never be able to summon Jaffar or Ninian again.
I checked the notice board early in the morning and gathered the daily orbs and letters from Feh. I opened up one envelope and found a new banner, titled the "Spring Festival". On the right featured Camilla alongside a large green and purple coloured egg. On the top left was Xander, dressed in a mini pink hat along with a pink outfit. A handle stuck out of the giant carrot spear he was holding. On the bottom were Lucina and Chrom. Lucina was holding a white and pink egg over her head while wearing a bunny hood while Chrom held an axe covered in carrot-like spikes. I remember reading about them in the book I found in the Askr library. I went over and pinned the Spring Festival banner up onto the notice board for all my heroes to see. The second envelope contained the postcard for not one, but two Grand Hero Battles. The first one was Ursula: Blue Crow's Grand Hero Battle in the World of Blazing. The second was Michalis: Ambitious King's Grand Hero Battle in the World of Mystery. The expiry dates were a bit tighter than with Narcian and Robinne, so I had to complete them fast. Other than that, there were the daily orbs and feathers as usual.
"Oh ho, Chrom. Where did you get that outfit?" I turned and noticed Robin and Chrom talking nearby the notice board.
"Well… you know how it is Robin" Chrom looked a bit embarrassed "When the Spring Festival rolls around, all the shops in Ylisse sell Spring-themed clothing. Lissa likes seeing me in funny attire"
"Looks like Lucina got into the fun too" Robin said, pointing to Chrom's daughter on the banner "She looks pretty cute in that bunny hood"
"It's rare to see her smile that brightly" Chrom agreed "I'm glad these sort of festivals exist so we're able to break away from our usual duty and let loose"
"Oh! Good morning Lord Chrom and Robin" Robinne strolled into the lobby, joining Chrom and Robin at the notice board.
"Ah!" Robinne noticed Chrom in his spring outfit on the banner and blushed "You… you look good in that Lord Chrom"
"Really? I thought it just looks ridiculous" Chrom laughed "I wonder though, if this Chrom is summonable, how does he fare in combat?"
"He uses that giant Carrot Axe of his" Robin pointed to the axe in Spring Chrom's hand "I was reading a book about alternate heroes in the library and it states that the axe Spring Chrom carries can heal wounds!"
"Heal wounds? How can it do that?" Robinne questioned.
"Maybe I eat the carrots off of the axe to heal myself" Chrom joked "I mean, I wouldn't be surprised if Prince Xander does the same"
Robin glanced to where Spring Xander was on the banner "Oh yeah, you're right. That carrot he's carrying… it's like 5x the size of a regular carrot"
"A good weapon for someone who wants to eat while fighting" Robinne agreed "Although you'll have to wash the blood and gore off of the lance if you're actually going to eat it"
"I think simple rations could do the job" Chrom said "Still, it's an interesting weapon"
"What about the eggs Camilla and Lucina are holding? What do you think they do?" Robin asked.
"They look like throwing weapons to me" Robinne cupped her hand under her chin "Like a fig"
"They're going to throw eggs at us to attack? That's uhh… a little disgusting" Chrom frowned.
"And impractical too. Unless these eggs are the size of boulders, they can't possibly kill anybody" Robin said.
"Can you suggest any other way those two can use their eggs?" Robinne argued.
"Magic possibly?"
"Why would anybody take the time to infuse magic into an egg when you could just use a regular tome?"
"Hey! I'm using a carrot-studded axe as a weapon. Clearly, this isn't serious" Chrom argued back.
"Guys, guys, calm down" Robin said, gesturing his hands in a "calm down" motion "They could very well be infused with magic. After all, Lucina and Camilla aren't holding them by any sort of handle"
Robinne sighed "We won't know until we see. If the banner arrived today, then Embla has attacked the World of Awakening"
"We don't know that yet. Lucian didn't tell us"
"And Anna hasn't told me yet if Embla attacked" I said from across the room while organizing the order's mail.
"Speaking of which, it might be a while before Lucian is able to summon" Robin informed Chrom and Robinne "I watched his summoning of the Blazing Shadows banner a few days ago. He used up all his orbs"
"Then I suppose we won't be getting these Spring heroes?" Robinne assumed.
"Check the expiry date of the banner" Robin said.
Robinne took the pin off the banner and examined it for an expiry date. On the back of the banner, written in black ink were the words "Ends in 14 days"
"So we have two weeks time to get these Spring heroes" Robinne said "I think Lucian should be able to gather enough orbs to get at least one of these special heroes"
Robin opened his mouth to reply, but three letters fluttered into the lobby through the entrance. They landed on the floor and I went over to pick them up. Opening them up, I found out they were two more summoning banners. The first one, titled "Battling Ursula" featured Nino, Effie, Setsuna and Felicia. The second one, called "Battling Michalis" featured Eliwood, Gordin, Selena and Minerva. The third letter was a notice, telling me that there was going to be a special event called the "Voting Gauntlet" coming in a week.
"The theme of this Voting Gauntlet is Princes vs Princesses" I read aloud "And the contestants will be Lucina, Eirika, Elise and Sharena for the princesses, along with Chrom, Ephraim, Leo and Alfonse for the princes. Travel to southern Askr to register the team you're going to support"
"How does this "Voting Gauntlet" even work?" I wondered aloud. I decided to go ask Anna about it when she woke up. I walked over to the notice board and pinned the two new banners up, along with the Voting Gauntlet notice. I left Robin, Chrom and Robinne alone to discuss it while I headed to the mess hall for breakfast. While I was eating, the rest of my heroes began to enter the mess hall. Anna came to me with a report that Embla has attacked the World of Awakening during their annual Spring Festival.
"Alright, I'll take Robin, Chrom, Jeorge and Robinne over there to liberate it" I said "Tell them to get ready in the lobby in an hour"
"Got it!" Anna nodded and was about to go to Jeorge's table, but I called after her.
"Anna! Can I ask you a question?" I asked and she turned around, strolling back to my table.
"We just received mail today of an upcoming "Voting Gauntlet" in the coming week" I told her "Do you know what a Voting Gauntlet is exactly?"
"Good question! A Voting Gauntlet is a popularity contest between 8 different heroes!" Anna explained "You pick a hero to support and then gain points for the team by fighting enemy teams and winning!"
"That sounds… interesting" I said slowly "But are the other team's soldiers Emblian?"
"Oh no, Embla has nothing to do with this" Anna said "You see, the fights are 3 on 3. You are only able to send in one hero"
"What? Then who are the other two on my team?" I asked.
"Well… this might be hard to explain" Anna scratched her head "But you see, this Askr is only part of one dimension. There are multiple Askrs in different dimensions and timelines that have different chosen summoners"
"What?" I was already confused.
"Don't think about it too hard" Anna advised "Anyway, the Voting Gauntlet arena is in the center of this rift of dimensions, so every summoner from each timeline is able to visit it. The summoner who's on your team sends in their one hero and they become your team"
"Umm… okay" I decided not to dwell on the whole "timelines and dimensions" thing. Otherwise my brain would explode.
"So we gain points for the hero we support if we win the fight?" I asked.
"Yes and no" Anna said "You determine the potency of your points through attacking with a certain number of Battle Flags"
"Battle Flags?"
"Yeah, they are mini blue flags that you deposit into a box in the arena after you win a fight" Anna explained "The amount of flags you drop into the box determines how many points you give to your team"
"Are the teammates I get random?"
"One of them is a random teammate from the army you're supporting" Anna said "The other will be the lead hero from your "Friend's List""
"Friend's List?" this place was starting to sound more and more like a video game with every passing day "So I'm able to befriend other summoners in this whole "dimension and timeline" stuff?"
"Exactly. The friends you register will appear on the stone monument in the lobby" Anna said, then raised an eyebrow "You DID notice the stone, right?"
I recalled a glowing blue stone monument opposite of the quest fountain, but I never wondered what it did. I thought it was some sort of decoration.
"So I'm guessing that the monument magically inscribes the summoner's name and lead hero once I befriend them" I assumed.
"You're exactly right! Wow, did you read up on this Lucian?" Anna asked, impressed.
"No, I just guessed"
"Oh"
"Anyways, you should go tell Jeorge and the others to start getting ready"
"Yes sir!"
I finished my breakfast and waited in the lobby for my heroes to arrive. Not long after, Robin, Chrom, Jeorge and Robinne came from the mess hall to the lobby.
"Alright everyone. Today we're tackling the World of Awakening. Embla has seized control of it during its annual Spring Festival"
"Time to see if those eggs really are throwing weapons" Robinne said smiling.
"Are we really still arguing over that?" Robin slapped his forehead.
"What are you two talking about?" Jeorge asked.
"Don't even ask Jeorge" Chrom said, then turned to me "Lead the way Lucian"
We went through the portal to the World of Awakening and ended up in a town square decorated high and low in Easter-escue decor.
"Every April, this town in Ylisse holds a festival in the hopes that they'll have a bountiful harvest" Chrom explained "They decorate eggs in various colors, wear rabbit costumes…"
"And battle with carrots and eggs!" Robinne put in.
Suddenly, Spring Chrom came towards us, his signature Carrot Axe in hand "Welcome to the Ylissean Spring Festival! Have you come to enter the competition?"
"Oh right, there's a competition too" Chrom said "Whoever wins the Spring brawl wins a year's supply of carrots apparently"
"Well, that'll be great for the army" Robin drew his Blarraven "We wouldn't have to worry about food supply ever again"
"Anyhow, the festival is just about to begin. Spring is here and we aren't about to lose. Let's go!" Chrom urged, drawing his Silver Sword from his sheath. Spring Chrom ran back and waved his hand in the air while shouting "The Askrians are here!"
Two fliers flew over a town building while an Emblian Cleric came out of a general store. One of the fliers was Camilla, holding a green and purple egg in her hand. Her Emblian escort was a regular Sword Flier with a Killing Edge.
"Jeorge, take down the fliers. Robinne will assist you. Robin and Chrom, defeat Spring Chrom and the cleric. Go!" I commanded and my heroes moved. Camilla flew right above Jeorge, casting a Rexcalibur-like spell behind her. The swirling tornado seemed to be mixed with pink eggs. Jeorge swiftly jumped aside to dodge the wind magic and nocked an arrow in his Silver Bow. His arrow flew and hit Camilla's mount in the stomach, making it screech in pain.
"Guess it wasn't a throwing item after all" Robinne murmured then shook her head, calling a spiritual wolf head into the sky, arcing it to Camilla's direction. Camilla managed to steer her wyvern away in time to dodge it, but another arrow came flying and impaled her mount in the face. The wyvern screeched in agony and spiraled to the ground, leaving Camilla an easy target for another arrow from Jeorge. Robinne watched Camilla's wyvern crash onto the ground, then turned to the Sword Flier's Killing Edge at her chest. The Sword Flier ran the katana blade through Robinne's chest, but the tactician quickly dashed back, dislodging herself from the sword.
"Robinne!" Robin ran to his sister just as Chrom finished off his spring version with a stab to the chest. The Sword Flier rushed to finish off the female tactician, but Jeorge shot the flier in the head with an arrow and the pegasus knight crumbled.
"Robinne, are you okay?!" Robin held his sister's shoulders as she held her chest, wheezing and panting hard.
"I'm… fine" Robinne coughed blood "Just… just a flesh wound"
"Just relax. Lean on me" Robin shouldered Robinne and carried her over to me "You have the first aid kit?"
"Always have it with me" I took the kit out from my supply bag and handed it to Robin. Robin sat Robinne down and cut three long strips of white cloth. He wrapped it around Robinne's chest, covering the impalement wounds on both sides. Once he tied the three strips together to hold them in place, Robinne's bleeding stopped. Only a splotch of red was visible on the wound entrance. Meanwhile, Chrom's sword glowed with golden light.
"Anything can change!" Chrom leaped into the air and slashed the poor cleric in half with Sol. The golden light on his blade transferred to Chrom's body, where it healed the minor wounds Spring Chrom gave him. With the cleric gone, the town square seemed to be empty of enemies.
"Are you able to stand?" I asked Robinne.
"Yes…" Robinne steadied herself and took a deep breath before rising "Yes, I can still stand and fight. Don't worry about me Lucian"
Before we left however, Spring Chrom reappeared in a flash of magic, like usual.
"You're strong competitors, but this is far from over" he said and Camilla appeared right beside him.
"We'll hop back into battle soon. Perhaps if we eat our carrots, we'll come out on top?" Camilla scratched her wyvern's ear "See you later!" and the two disappeared.
Heading deeper into the town, I heard two voices from a white coloured house with two doors on each side. The entire exterior was decorated with crudely coloured eggs.
"What do you think of my egg Prince Xander?" the female voice asked, which Chrom, Robin and Robinne all recognized "The way it's painted, I think it's cute...and pretty...and maybe even the most stylish egg here"
"That egg is gaud- I mean, delightful" the male voice stammered in a reply "Who would think to put those colors together? Very... original"
"I'm glad you like it. You have a reputation for having an eye for beauty" Lucina complimented "Here, you can have it"
"How gracious of you, Princess Lucina, but…" Xander looked out the window "Oh, look! We have challengers among us. I'm eager to brandish my carrot in battle. Let's get to fighting!"
On cue, an Emblian Sword Fighter and Bow Cavalier entered the house, providing reinforcement to Spring Lucina and Xander. Glancing through the window, I noticed Lucina and the Sword Fighter were paired together while Xander and the Bow Cavalier stood side to side on their horses. I decided to send the Robin twins to the side where Xander and the Bow Cavalier were. Robinne's Gronnwolf was effective against cavalry, so she could be a great help there. I told Chrom and Jeorge to stand by and not attack since I didn't see a clear advantage against Lucina and the Sword Fighter.
"Based on how Camilla's egg worked in the last battle, I think both the egg weapons are magical" Robinne informed me "Camilla's egg was infused with wind magic. I predict that Lucina's is infused with thunder magic. Lord Chrom, do not approach her"
"Alright then. I'll hold Chrom and Jeorge back until you two are finished" I said and the two tacticians ran through the thicket of trees to reach the right side of the house. Robin nudged the door open and the Bow Cavalier nocked an arrow into his Assassin's Bow, nearly sniping Robin's head with an arrow. Robin and Robinne hid under a bush as the Bow Cavalier and Spring Xander galloped outside, searching for their enemies.
"There!" the Bow Cavalier pointed to me, Chrom and Jeorge in the distance "Get them!"
"Blarraven!"
"What?!" a wall of spirit ravens smashed into the Bow Cavalier by surprise, knocking him to the ground in a single hit. Xander looked around in confusion, trying to discern where the magic came from and then Robinne cried out.
"Gronnwolf!"
A magical wolf head bashed into Xander from the left, the magic eating away at Xander's mount. While he was stunned, Robinne launched another Gronnwolf attack, taking the Spring Prince out of the picture. But the defeat of the Bow Cavalier and Xander alerted the Sword Flier and Spring Lucina. The duo rushed out from the left door, charging straight towards me, Chrom and Jeorge.
"Blue Egg!" Lucina thrust her hand forward while holding her coloured egg in her other. The egg sizzled with electricity before a bolt of Thoron lightning shot out from Lucina's hand.
"Dodge it Chrom!" I called and Chrom just barely sidestepped the bolt. Had Lucina been closer, Chrom would of taken lethal damage. The Sword Fighter engaged with Chrom with his Brave Sword while Jeorge distracted Lucina with his arrows. Fortunately, Robin and Robinne arrived back fast and assisted Chrom and Jeorge. Robin took down the Sword Fighter and Robinne finished off Lucina, although Jeorge took a Blue Egg shot in the process. As usual, the defeated heroes reappeared in flashs of magic when we defeated them.
"We have no choice but to retreat, Princess Lucina" Xander informed the princess.
"W-was it my egg? Maybe the colors do clash a little…" Lucina said sadly before hopping onto Xander's horse and riding away.
Finally, we arrived in a garden area at the edge of town. Spring Chrom, Lucina, Camilla and Xander were all waiting for us.
"I had a strong hunch that you and your companions would make it this far" Chrom said.
"I think they survived this long just to face me again" Camilla said seductively "Right Lucian?"
"Err no" I said, blushing a little.
"Your progression has been impressive. You are proving to have great potential" Xander complimented, then rose his Carrot Lance "But the question remains, can you take all of us at once?"
"Let's start the final battle. Spring is here, so let's see who wins this season!" Lucina's Blue Egg began to spark with electricity. Spring Chrom was occupying the right side of the garden while Camilla held the right. Both Spring Lucina and Xander were in the middle. Trying to lure Spring Chrom with my Chrom wasn't a good idea.
"If you try to lure Spring Chrom from the pathway, you'll be an easier target for Xander and Lucina" Robin pointed out "I think a better idea is to lure Spring Chrom from the trees, where Lucina can't reach you and Xander can't traverse"
"Good idea" I sent Chrom through the shrubs towards Spring Chrom, but Xander and Lucina were going all out offensive. Thankfully, I had Robinne stand in their way.
"Time to tip the scales!" Robinne called out her brother's signature catchphrase and glowed with the vibrant orange flames of Ignis. She opened her Gronnwolf tome and threw a fiery wolf head at Lucina, smashing the Spring Exalt to the ground. Lucina's Blue Egg flew in the air and shattered on the ground as Lucina began to fade away, defeated. Xander managed to stab Robinne in the shoulder with his lance, but the tactician shrugged it off and cast Gronnwolf right in Xander's face. The wolf head ate away at Xander's horse until Xander collapsed onto the ground, his Carrot Lance falling out of his hands. A quick arrow from Jeorge took the cavalier out. Meanwhile, Chrom dueled with his seasonal variant, Silver Sword against Carrot Axe. Chrom landed a hard strike onto Spring Chrom's shoulder, but he kicked Chrom in the chest and fell back, picking a carrot off his axe to eat it and heal his wounds.
"I'll finish this!" Chrom jumped in the air, the sunset catching the light of his blade. Chrom's Sol attack caught Spring Chrom in the shoulder, the sheer force nearly cleaving his arm off. Spring Chrom tried to switch his weapon to his other hand to counterattack, but Robinne ambushed him from behind with Gronnwolf, taking down the axe fighter. All was left was Camilla.
"Growing Flame!" Jeorge's arrow caught fire as he shot it towards Camilla. Upon contact with the wyvern's head, the arrow exploded into a wide line of flames, scorching the wyvern and Camilla. Camilla attempted to counter by summoning a tornado with her Green Egg, but Chrom jumped in the way and deflected it with his sword. Another arrow from Jeorge brought the princess down and the battle to a close.
"Congratulations! You won!" Lucina congratulated once the four Spring heroes reappeared without their weapons.
"Aren't we the lucky ones? The prize for winning this is a year's supply of carrots" Robinne said "That could feed the army for months!"
"Not so fast, Robinne. You think you're getting away with the victory carrots... without wearing the proper attire?" Camilla winked "You're the winner of the spring festival, after all. You have to wear a springy costume like mine"
"Wh-what? I have to dress up as a rabbit?!" Robinne blushed wildly "That's… that's so…"
"Oh, sweetie. There's nothing embarrassing about it" Camilla reassured "You'll look adorable. You might even surpass us in rabbity fashion. Now, this way to the costumes…"
"But...um...we were just leaving! I can't… we're in a hurry!" Robinne protested.
"Oh, it won't take long!" Camilla laughed, grabbing Robinne's hand "Come along!"
"Well, let's leave them to their business while we wrap up ours" Spring Chrom said.
"Indeed! I declare this spring festival to have come to a close" Xander announced "But as for all of us... I think you need only call, and we will surely come running"
"Agreed. Should you summon us, we'll be there, carrots and spring gear in hand, ready to battle" Spring Chrom promised.
"I would also like to take this opportunity to state that I don't usually dress like this" Xander said and everyone laughed.
"I'd jump at the chance to wear this if we meet again. It's odd… but a nice change for me" Lucina said.
"Surely we shall meet again. Now, may spring blessings be yours, festival victors!"
We met up with Robinne shortly after to bring her back to Askr.
"Robinne you look… you look…" Robin looked like he was trying not to laugh.
"Not a word brother. Not a single word"
And Spring Festival is finished! Next up are the Grand Hero Battles against Michalis and Ursula, along with the first Voting Gauntlet: Princes vs Princesses. Thank you again as always for the favorites, followed and reviews. Until next time!