A Summoner's Journey
Grand Hero Battle: Clarisse
Team for this chapter: Robin, Katarina, Xander and Priscilla
A day after Legion's Grand Hero Battle, me and our usual group of strategists gathered to prepare for Clarisse's Grand Hero Battle. Looking at the map, I knew Robin was going to be a good candidate, seeing as he countered three out of the five enemy units on the map. Clarisse herself, a thief and a sword cavalier. I didn't want Clarisse's arrows to trouble the rest of my team however, so I sent Robin to go grab a Setsuna combat manual from the library to learn Bowbreaker. Alfonse and Robinne recently organized the manuals and placed them in the library, in alphabetical order, so it wasn't as messy as it was in the storage room. Unfortunately, the heroes had to write the manual themselves for a skill, so certain manuals weren't exactly fully clear.
"Uhh… Setsuna really has no idea how she snaps bowstrings with her arrows. She just claims to aim normally at the target and then their bows explode" Robin said, tracing his finger on the white pages of the manual "And she also wrote that she fell into a trap before she could finish the manual, which is why there's a bit of smudge"
"Hmm… I wonder…" I pulled Hinata's Fury manual off the nearby shelf and opened it up. On the first page, all it said was 'Just get angry' "That's it? I just have to get really angry and then I become the Hulk?"
"Who?"
"Just a… fictional character from my world. Don't worry about it" I closed the manual and put it back in the shelf. So much paper wasted for one sentence. I was curious on what Odin and Palla had to say about Moonbow though.
"Get a load of this" Robinne opened Odin's manual on Moonbow "With your weapon in hand, call upon your inner strength and power, summoning the celestial moon of radiance to burn away your opponent's mighty defenses! Let loose a soulful roar from your soul as you use your divine weapon to smite your foes into oblivion, just like their defenses!"
"And Palla just says "When the right opportunity comes, streak your sword with the power of the moon to melt down your foe's defenses. I'm not exactly sure when you can trigger it, but you'll know when it'll happen. Good luck!"" Jeorge closed Palla's entry on Moonbow and put it back on the shelf. I thought I was coming here with Robin alone to have him learn Bowbreaker, but I guess everyone was curious about the skill manual entries now.
"I wonder what people have to say about positional skills like Draw Back and Reposition" Katarina wondered out loud as she pulled Mae's Draw Back manual from the bottom shelf "Just grab their shoulder and pull them back with you. I don't know why I need to explain this"
"Yeah… some skills are more easily explained than others" Robin clutched the Bowbreaker manual in his hand tightly and closed his eyes, letting a warm yellow light radiate from the pages and into his body "But it's not the words of the manual that are important. It's the magic written onto the pages that imparts the skill. If the hero describes the skill accurately enough, the magic will work"
"Looks like it was successful" Robinne watched the Bowbreaker manual dissolve into particles of light "So anyways, we can all laugh at the other's skill entries later, but we have a battle to strategize for. Let's get back to the war room"
We went back to the war room, where Clarisse's battlefield was enlarged for us to view. Clarisse's team was protected by a set of breakable and unbreakable walls, with defense tiles in behind them. The only way in was through a narrow passage on the right, which was within range of a thunder mage, a wind mage knight and Clarisse herself. It was a better idea to strike through the breakable walls to avoid being dogpiled.
"An obvious tactic would be to place Robin here outside of the wind mage's firing range to lure out Clarisse, the thief and sword cavalier…" Robinne tapped the magical hologram "But that would place Clarisse and the thief on defensive tiles, making it harder for Robin to take them down before the wind mage catches up"
"Thieves are notoriously resistant to magic, so it's impossible for Robin to kill him quick enough" Jeorge added "I suggest using someone bulky with the ability to counter ranged attackers for this role. Like Xander and Camus"
"Why not both? Every enemy on the field is ranged except for the sword cavalier in front of Clarisse" I said "As long as we bring Priscilla to top them off, they can theoretically handle the entire enemy team from the safety of the walls"
"Their bulk isn't going to last long if the enemy can strike their vital weak points" Katarina pointed out "Clarisse specializes in leaving her victims blindsided before striking them from all angles. That means she and her team is very smoke-heavy with their tactics. They want us blinded before rushing in to strike"
"I could attempt to break her bow before she can land a shot on us" Robin offered "And Xander or Camus can handle the thief while someone magically bulky like say… Katarina or Celica can deal with the mages"
"That can work, especially if we can seize the defensive tiles in the center quick enough. That'll sponge the thunder mage's hits for us" Katarina nodded "Okay, here's the battle plan. Robin will lure out Clarisse and the thief, snap Clarisse's bow and potentially kill her while weakening the thief. Robin will retreat while Xander or Camus mop them up and the wind mage knight.
"The sword cavalier will break down the wall or rush down the right, where Katarina or Celica will roast him before moving to the center" Robinne continued "And using the defensive tiles, they'll take down the blue mage. That's all?"
"Alright then. Let's choose who's joining us then. We only have enough for four" I crossed my arms "Robin is a given. I believe Xander will be better for finishing off the thief and the wind mage knight. Katarina, you can come if you don't mind and the last member can be Priscilla for healing support"
"I'd be happy to come. Is there any skills I need to replace? I still have Axebreaker for when we fought Legion" Katarina informed me.
"Hmm… do we happen to have any Desperation manuals in the library? If so, learn that" I told Katarina "I'll round up everyone in the portal courtyard while you do it"
"On it" The tactician nodded and ran off to the library while our group dispersed. Robin accompanied me to the barracks.
"It can't be just you who's starting to feel a little bored with this" Robin yawned, scratching his head "Don't get me wrong. Battle isn't something to have fun with, but if you're practically immortal and your true calling is being a battlefield tactician, your itch to fight starts to really act up"
"I get what you mean. For once, I want a challenge where we don't plan it out so precisely that we win with minimal effort. It doesn't make commanding a squad of legendary heroes really fun" I bit my tongue "I shouldn't be saying this. People are dying in these battles. Fighting is not for fun"
"It could be in this world" Robin shrugged "I mean, every enemy we fight in these Grand Hero Battles dissolve into a cloud of Hero Feathers. So are they really dying?"
"I suppose not? If any of you heroes die, you dissolve into Hero Feathers and return to the castle lobby. Maybe the same applies to the enemies we're fighting"
"That would mean they return to their original summoner's castle" Robin theorized "Therefore they return to Castle Embla when they die. So no shame in killing them, right?"
"I guess, but that means the war between Askr and Embla will never end. Both sides have undying soldiers" I replied "The best way to end this war is either with a peace treaty negotiation or we take down the commander who isn't immortal, which is Princess Veronica"
"The former choice is definitely the best one" Robin nodded, then turned beside him "Anyways, here's the staircase to the suites. Xander and Priscilla should be up here"
"Oh, hello Lucian and Robin!" Nino waved at us as she walked down the hallway with Lloyd "Are you two looking for Xander and Priscilla?"
"Yeah, we are. Do you know if they're up here?" I asked and Lloyd shook his head, pointing behind us.
"Me and Nino spotted them leaving the barracks. I heard Priscilla was going to the band room to play instruments while Xander headed to the training yard" The swordsman said "Not everyone here lounges in their room, you know"
"Should of guessed that. Thanks for telling us" I nodded "Where are you two going?"
"We're heading down to the market to try and fix Lloyd's skin tone. He… still looks like a morph after all these days" Nino gestured to Lloyd's creepily pale skin "It's creeping out most of the people here"
"So we'll be leaving now. See you around" Lloyd clapped me on the back and the duo headed off. We followed them out of the barracks and went to the band room, which was nearby the quest fountain. Among the organized set of instruments used in the orchestra during festivals, Celica, Priscilla, Lachesis and Olivia were playing music. Priscilla was on the flute, Celica on the piano, Lachesis on the cello and Olivia was on the violin. They weren't perfectly coordinated, but it was leagues better than what I could pull off with a bass drum back at home.
"Priscilla! Sorry to interrupt, but we need you for Clarisse's Grand Hero Battle" I called and the troubadour lowered her instrument "You four are going great so far, by the way"
"Thank you Lucian. Sorry everyone, but I have to go" Priscilla got up and brushed off her outfit. She picked up her Panic and Rehabilitate staves that were leaning on Celica's piano "I'll be back once we're finished"
"Good luck and be careful" Celica waved us goodbye and we left the music room to find Xander and Katarina already in the lobby, waiting for us.
"I passed Prince Xander in the hallway after I left the library" Katarina explained "So I brought him here to wait for you. I learned Desperation, by the way"
"What did Shanna's manual say?" I asked curiously.
"She just said to attack really fast when in desperate situations. Not sure how that's different from normally attacking" Katarina shrugged "It should work as intended though. Anyways, we should get Priscilla's horse and get going"
"Right. Priscilla, grab your horse from the stables and meet us in the portal courtyard" I ordered and the troubadour nodded, rushing down to the stables in the back of the barracks. Soon after, she returned herding her horse into the lobby before hopping on and riding down with us straight into the World of Mystery portal. It was funny how we entered this portal thrice in less than two weeks, but it couldn't be helped with the string of events we've been getting. I hoped the next would be elsewhere because I was really getting tired of Archanea. We landed inside of a dim fortress, barely lit by torches.
"Clarisse, an unknown party of four has arrived here via some sort of strange portal. Reese is among them!" The sword cavalier reported, drawing his Killing Edge+ "Should we engage them?"
"So those are the filth that fooled Reese with their pretty words. Fine! We'll take them out" Clarisse ordered "Anyone who joins the enemy is a traitor to Lady Eremiya, so kill Reese as well. Leave none of them alive"
"We should remain inside these walls. It would be disastrous if the enemy breaches this keep with a front line attacker, so we have to nail them behind cover" The thief said "Is that alright Clarisse?"
"Yes, just fine. Now get ready to fight!" Clarisse drew an arrow from her quiver and nocked it into her bow, aiming it over the wall "Strike them from all angles and target their weak spots. The darkness and smoke are ours to wield!"
Clarisse's arrow flew over the wall and Katarina noticed first, alerting Xander to bat it away with Siegfried before it could veil us with smoke. In response, Xander sent a bolt of darkness over the walls which struck Clarisse hard. The thief's Smoke Dagger flew through a slit in one of the cracked walls and Robin smacked it away with his Blarraven+, casting a swarm of ravens to harass the thief over the walls.
"The thunder mage and the wind mage knight are coming in from the right side" Priscilla called and I sent Katarina to deal with them, the tactician easily wiping out the wind mage while sending a line of magic with Attack Ploy to harry the thunder mage.
"Take this one out for me Xander!" Katarina called and the sword cavalier rushed over, beheading the stunned thunder mage with his giant blade. Suddenly, Clarisse's arrow clipped a chink in his arm and completely covered our area with smoke.
"Fall back Xander!" I commanded and the paladin retreated only to be greeted by the sword cavalier swinging his Killing Edge+ in a flurry of swipes and slashes. Xander bore the brunt of the attacks well, but Clarisse's arrow make his defenses sluggish. The paladin was left with dozens of scratches and dents in his armor before eviscerating the cavalier with Bonfire. While Priscilla healed Xander and the smoke began to clear, Robin was still dealing with the thief and Clarisse.
"We're going to be needing your help here Xander. The thief and Clarisse are extremely resistant to magic with the defensive tile" Robin said, dodging a Smoke Dagger and shielding an arrow with his tome "I'll take Clarisse and you'll handle the thief"
"I'll assist you with Attack Ploy" Katarina stood behind Robin and gestured to the ground, sending a small trail of fire to harass Clarisse, making her arrow fire slacky. Meanwhile, Xander took a Smoke Dagger hit like it was nothing and raised his sword to fire a shadow bolt before a gust of green wind blew him backwards slightly, cancelling the attack. The thief's Smoke Dagger activated afterwards and another dagger flew to bounce off Xander's chestplate.
"The thief has Windsweep! I won't be able to counterattack him if he attacks first" Xander warned "Take out Clarisse and we'll break down the wall to strike the thief up close"
"On it!" Robin was outlined in vibrant orange flames before opening his tome "Time to tip the scales!"
A cloud of flaming blue ravens flew into the air, snapping Clarisse's incoming arrow like putty before smashing into the archer, destroying the defensive tile's shield. The blonde archer collapsed on the ground before fading into feathers.
"Break down the wall!" I commanded as Xander blocked an incoming dagger with his sword. The paladin cut down the crumbling stone wall with one swing before galloping to trample the thief. The thief jumped to dodge Xander's first swing, but hit his head against the wall in the process, letting the paladin impale him with his blade. The last of the enemies dissolved into luminous feathers and the battle was over.
"Well, at least the allies Reese joined up with aren't weaklings like those Altean knights" Clarisse crossed her arms "So at least she grew a bit of brains. I'm Clarisse. I'm a cut above the other rubbish you'll see around here"
"Let's hope you can prove your words" I nodded "Come on, let's get back to Askr. Katarina, can you explain to Clarisse the basics? Just like you did with Legion"
"Huh, I was wondering where Roro has gone. Looks like the full party's here" Clarisse relaxed a little "I suppose it won't be too bad coming along"
"Trust me Clarisse. It's much better than being a mindless puppet for Eremiya. Believe me" Katarina took Clarisse's hand and led her back to the swirling portal "Let's go home everyone"
Ill Fated Sisters: Katarina and Clarisse's Conversation
"... And that just about wraps up the tour of the castle. What do you think Clarisse?"
"You know, I'll never tell this to anyone but you and Roro, but I can really get used to this place" Clarisse smiled lightly, something she rarely did "Much better than the dreary dumpster that was the church back home"
"See? I told you you'll like this place" Katarina grinned, then lowered her voice "Plus, it gives you a chance to be apart of an actual family. You won't be a puppet to be used anymore. You're a respected soldier among all of us as an equal"
"When did you learn to speak so formally and… naively valiant?" Clarisse frowned "Your head was always in the clouds Reese. Nobody respects you and treats you as an equal instantly. You have to earn their respect through your skills as a killer"
"Clarisse, you're a soldier now. Not an assassin, unless Lucian tells us so" Katarina replied "So we'll be fighting with honorable tactics instead of dirty ones. We're not killers anymore, Clarisse"
"Anyone who kills another on the field of battle is a killer" Clarisse countered, then sighed "But whatever. I just have to keep myself focused and consistent with my victories. Failure isn't an option"
"... Lucian won't throw you out if you fail. He's nothing like Eremiya"
"Huh? What kind of leader is that if they can forgive failure so easily?" Clarisse looked genuinely surprised "If you fail, you fail and that shows your incompetence. Leaders of armies want soldiers who always succeed, right?"
"Yes, but there could be cases in battle where things don't go as planned" Katarina bit her lip at the thought of it "And in those cases, it's not your fault. It's ours because we didn't plan for it to happen"
"Ours…?"
"Oh, I forgot to mention. I'm part of Lucian's tactician group. We plan out strategies against battles like yours. We call them Grand Hero Battles" The tactician explained "I strategize alongside Lucian himself, the Robin twins you saw in the lobby and Jeorge of the Archanean snipers"
"I knew something was up. You never spoke this keenly and confident before" Clarisse smiled and patted Katarina on the shoulder "You're doing well for yourself. You were always nervous in front of Lady Eremiya"
"She… unnerved me because of how harsh she was sometimes. It was like she could explode in anger any second" Katarina admitted "Here, everyone's so kind and friendly. It's heartwarming"
"If Askr is everything that you say, then I wouldn't even want to leave" Clarisse gazed outside the nearby window "Wow… the scenery here is…"
"Amazing, isn't it? It's just like the endless fields of grass back in Aurelis" Katarina smiled and took Clarisse's hand "Want to go out and walk in the forest with me? We can talk more along the way"
"I wanted to go to the archery range first to challenge the other archers here first, but alright" Clarisse nodded "Maybe we can find something to hunt in there"
"... We're going there to take a walk, not kill animals Clarisse" Katarina sighed "But if that's what you want to do for fun, then go ahead. Just don't kill too much"
"You were always a little bit too pacifistic Reese" Clarisse shrugged "But oh well. I guess that's alright here"
"Well, it's a good thing I'm here to keep you in check. That's an older sister's job, right?" Katarina smirked and Clarisse frowned, annoyed.
"Why do you keep calling me your younger sister? We don't even know what our birthdays are" Clarisse grumbled "You're not even older than me. We're the same age"
"You don't know that" Katarina giggled and took Clarisse's hand again "But let's not be all dour and grumpy. Be cheerful for once"
"After everything that happened, that's hard to do" The archer admitted "But I'll try…"
"At least you're trying. Come on, we have to get to the forest before the sun sets!"
Have an light sister-to-sister bonding scene, which is why Clarisse is significantly less prickly and rude than usual. Clarisse's Grand Hero Battle itself is in the middle with difficulty personally. The gimmick with Clarisse's squad being debuff heavy is a nice touch to her assassin profession and the battle itself isn't hair-pulling in difficulty. Clarisse as a unit is unfortunately cursed with bad art like Lloyd in my opinion and she's outclassed in all stats by Fallen Takumi now, making her pretty worthless. Still, I like her personality and backstory, so I might build her myself in the future. The combat manual scene at the beginning is inspired by the latest Feh Manga chapter. Coming up next is the Ylissean Summer paralogue (finally, something exciting for once) If you want to be notified of when a new chapter comes out, favorite and follow. If you want to leave constructive criticism or praise, leave a review. Until next time, fellow summoners!