22 Red Wolf Moon, Imperial Year 1184

Ylisstol/Plegia Border, Ylisse

A messenger crosses the border through the mud and rain on horseback. It has been almost two decades since Plegia and Ylisstol were at war, a war that killed a god and saved the world. A war so important that the divine dragon, Naga, sent the princess of Ylisstol back in time to prevent a disastrous future. Even then, the rider is nervous. King Gangrel of Plegia has been getting aggressive, a far cry from his humbled self, and the border may no longer be safe, but time is of the essence.

The rider's hood is blown aside by the wind, revealing a head of black hair, hair that had been white all those years ago, when he had killed his father and the dragon homunculus that attempted to use him as a vessel. He was Robin, Ylisstol's finest tactician and personal friend to Exalt Chrom, ruler of his homeland, and right now, the box that was magically sealed with the brand of Naga, was the only thing that could save his friend from an early grave.

He needed to see the council of dark mages, an elite unit that held just as much political power as King Gangrel did. This unit had taken over after the demon dragon that had formed the cult Robin was born to, the cult of Grimleal, had been destroyed. His adoptive sister, and two old friends were in that council, and they were his only hope of unraveling the dark power sealed by Naga's blessing.

He makes it just as the sun begins to rise and lightning flashes. It's an old hut set near the border by an ally in King Gangrel's court. He steps in and sees, to his relief, everyone gathered.

In purple robes, with a delighted smile and white hair was Henry, an enigma of a dark mage that was raised by wolves and crows after washing ashore on Plegia some time ago. Next to him was his wife, Lissa. A blonde-haired beauty who was Chrom's younger sister. She had been drawn to Henry's dark sense of humor and cheerful attitude back when they fought side-by-side.

Across from them was another pair. A dark-haired mage in gilded black robes that cut a revealing form. She was nonetheless hunched over a book like a hermit and grinned darkly upon seeing Robin enter. She was Tharja, who insisted on worshiping Robin as a demigod. They had attempted a relationship during the war, but it had fallen apart due to the sheer amount of disagreements they had on the nature of Robin's cursed blood. Next to her was someone wholly considered to be her opposite. A feminine young man with blonde hair who looked at Robin fondly. Libra, Tharja's husband, who had comforted Tharja after the breakup and found that his willingness to participate in her experiments and his calm, pacifistic demeanor complimented Tharja's personality far better than Robin had. Better yet, he too celebrated Robin as a champion of Naga, giving him and Tharja common ground. What less than a divine warrior could slay the demonic dragon god, Grima, after all?

And at the head of the small wooden table was a dark-skinned woman with white hair and a seductive grin. Robin's adopted sister, Aversa, who had worked against Robin for a time before discovering Robin's father had massacred her village and abducted her as a baby. With Validar dead and Grima slain, Robin was her only family left, and she treated him with the same reverence as Tharja did.

Also of note were two younger people Robin hadn't seen since they were born. With his father's white hair but the brand of the Ylisstol royal family on his hand was a young man, Owain. And with the blonde hair of her father but her mother's thin physique was Noire. The two were whispering to one another while seeing the man their parents respected greatly. Also in the room was an imposing man with blue hair, ferocious red and white armor, and a massive gilded sword on his shoulder. The last living descendant of the Radiant Hero of Lost Telius, Priam. He stood by Aversa, having been hired as her bodyguard some years ago, and some even whispered her secret lover.

Robin felt a tinge of nostalgia, seeing so many of his old comrades here today, but he chastised himself and reminded himself why he was here before speaking up, "Good to see you all here… I called you here because you are the greatest authorities on Dark Magic in all of Valm and Ylisse… And I have in this box an object of such darkness that I dared not release the seal until now…"

He places the box on the table and opens it.

Immediately, Tharja, Aversa, Henry and Owain recoil at the sheer dark power radiating from the object. A fragment of blood red metal that glowed in the torchlight.

Aversa whistles, "My my, dear brother… What manner of treats have you brought to us today?" She says in a seductive tone as she leans to get a closer look.

Tharja stops her, "Wait, don't get too close, I can already tell this thing has a mental affliction it's just dying to place on us."

Henry chuckles, "Hehe, I can hear voices in my head thanks to that thing… Thankfully I'm used to this from dark artifacts. Still though, what the heck is this?"

Robin sighs, "I don't know, but this single shard of metal makes me feel like I'm in Grima's presence once more. I don't like it."

Owain chips in, "Huh, it looks like the shard of a sword of some kind, I can see what looks like a sliver of bladed edge there."

Tharja nods, "Now that you mention it, you're right."

Owain smirks, "Heh, no one knows swords like I do!"

Noire chuckles, "Says the guy fooled by that fake blade we found in that village."

Owain blushes and stutters, "H-hey! I thought we agreed to never mention the Mistletainn incident again!"

Libra sighs with annoyance and breaks up the commotion between the two kids, "Enough you two, Robin would not have brought this were it not urgent."

Priam chimes in next, "So, what's the damage, tactician?"

Robin looks darkly at the group, "It's Chrom… The shard was found in a glass he had drunk from, and he's fallen deathly ill. It's taking our best healers, including Brady and Maribelle, just to keep him alive. Princess Lucina is the acting leader right now… But if Chrom continues to deteriorate…"

Aversa's expression becomes more serious, "Say no more, brother. I know how much Chrom means to you as a friend, I'll do whatever I can to decode and destroy whatever curse this shard has placed upon him."

Lissa looks to the sorceress, "You better! It's my brother's life we're talking about here! Gosh, I should probably go to him!"

Henry nods, "Yeah, that's probably for the best, not only are you his sister, you're a damn good healer too."

Libra turns to Tharja, his face conflicted. He was a priest of Naga, and Chrom's line was divine by blood in his eyes. He had a duty as a healer to the royal family, but he also had a duty to his wife and daughter as well.

Tharja sighs and nods, "Go ahead, Libra. I'll keep Noire safe while you do your job."

Libra looks down, "My love, thank you…"

Robin nods to the group, "Lissa, Libra… Everyone… I can't thank you enough for this."

Henry chuckles, "We don't want a caw-tastropy on our hands! We got this shard, you guys go make sure our buddy Chrom doesn't croak."

Robin bows to them as Aversa turns, "Lissa, do you recall your pegasus riding classes?"

Lissa blinks, "Uh, yeah? Why?"

Aversa smiles, "Take my steed and head with Robin and Libra."

Lissa smiles brightly as she hugs the taller woman, "Thank you so much! I promise I'll bring her back safely!"

Aversa grimaces a bit, "You'd better…"

With that, Robin, Libra and Lissa head back outside, mount the two steeds and take off for Ylisstol, leaving the group pondering the artifact for the rest of the day.

Ylisstol Castle

A woman with bright blue hair, dressed in a suit of royal blue to match and wearing a gilded sword on her belt looks out the window anxiously. Robin and company had arrived the night before and had begun helping heal Chrom, giving her friend and sister a break. The two sat on a couch nearby, both sporting blue hair of different shades to Lucina's. Dressed in armor and leaning forward was a lady named Cynthia, Lucina's sister and best friend. Next to her was a gruff looking man in priest's robes, Brady. Brady was the child of Maribelle and Virion, the count and countess of Rosanne in nearby Valm. Maribelle had originally been an Ylissean noblewoman and childhood friend of Lissa, and had married Virion for diplomatic reasons, though Brady was proof that the two did develop true feelings for one another in time.

Lucina looked down into the courtyard, one of her eyes bearing the brand of the exalt, Naga's crest passed down from generation to generation of Falchion users. She saw four people training down below.

The child of Lon'qu the swordsman and Cherche of Rosanne, Gerome, practiced his axe techniques against the sword techniques of the child of Olivia and Kellam of Regna Ferox to the North, Inigo. Gerome's face was obscured by a black onyx mask as his wyvern rested nearby, his shaggy black hair gleaming with sweat even as he showed no expression to his opponent. By contrast, Inigo's dark brown hair dripped with sweat even as he smiled with both exhaustion and delight at being tested. Sitting nearby was a young woman with light brown, almost olive-colored hair, waiting her turn to duel. Severa, the child of knights of Ylisstol Cordelia and Stahl.

Nearby, tending to Gerome's wyvern was a young girl with pointed ears. A half-dragon girl named Nah, whose parents were the archmage Ricken and the dragon Nowi. Having gained her draconic blood from her mother, and the talent for magic alongside her hair and serious demeanor from her father, she warmed to the wyvern Gerome had inherited from her mother quite quickly. By contrast, a young man with bestial fur, long ears and bright orange hair sat a good distance away from what he considered to be a feral beast. This was Yarne, the child of the thief Gaius and the last of the rabbit Taguel, Panne.

The Taguel were descendants of the ancient Laguz beastmen of Lost Telius. Like the manakets and nabateans, they could change their form through the use of mystic stones. Though the Manaketes and Nabateans were related species with a crucial difference, their stones were made of the hearts of deceased members of their kind. The Taguel, and by extension their ancestors, used naturally occurring stones they had evolved to adapt with.

Yarne was keenly aware of the Taguel's decline and treated his survival as paramount, whereas Nah had an entire clansworth of dragonkin to rely on. Still, all of them, Nah, Yarne, Cynthia, Lucina, Inigo, Brady, Severa and Gerome, were close. Though Brady and Gerome were only visiting, the group relished the chance to meet as old family friends, and Owain and Noire also factored in, writing as frequently to their friends as Brady and Gerome did.

This group had been formed by their parents. Being descendants of heroes who had ended a god gave them a sense of unity, and all of them enjoyed talking about how their future selves had also contributed. Perhaps that was why all of them got along so well, not only had Lucina's past self been sent to change history, but many of them as well. Though their future selves had returned to their timelines shortly after making sure each of them was born.

The only exception to this was a recent one, a future traveler with amnesia and the reported daughter of Robin, Morgan. Her emerald green hair didn't match anyone Robin knew yet, and she had only been discovered recently in the ruins where Robin also found Naga's Tear, an ancient artifact. She had lost her memory in whatever event pulled her from the future, but was accepted by the group as one of their own. Right now, she was by her father's side, coming up to Lucina.

Robin bowed, as did Morgan, to the reigning exalt, an action that while required, made all of them uneasy, as the true exalt was currently in the other room, being treated by his sister.

"Lady Lucina, Virion, Flavia, Walhart, Gangrel and Say'ri are in the other room, ready for you," Robin said.

Lucina nodded and followed him to the other room, where they saw those in question. Walhart retained his imposing figure and blood red armor, holding his nation's greatest treasure, the Wolf Berg axe. Next to him was Virion, dressed in the fine attire of Rosanne's ruling nobility and sipping from a teacup while nervously glancing at the man who had taken over his continent not long ago. Beside them was a woman with pitch black hair, dressed in the robes of a daimyo, the leading Queen of Chon'sin, Say'ri. In her hands was a branched sword known as Amatsu.

Those three were the rulers of countries on Valm, but beside them were rulers of nations neighboring Ylisstol. Dressed in fine yellow robes with dark red hair and pale skin was King Gangrel of Plegia, and beside him was Khan Flavia, a blonde-haired and dark-skinned woman in armor who ruled Regna Ferox, her brother Basilio having abdicated after the war. The most powerful people on the two continents were in a room together, with one additional person present.

Tiki, a divine dragoness with bright green hair and a red outfit. She was the direct child of Naga herself and acted as her voice. Effectively making her the leading religious figure for the two continents currently. She had lived far longer than any of them, having witnessed the time of King Marth, who's blade Lucina wielded even now. Falchion, reportedly forged from one of Naga's fangs, and the weapon that had slain the demon dragon Medeus, the dragon homunculus Grima, and even the Demon King Fomortiis ages ago under the largely unknown start of the bloodline, Nada Kuya.

Today, all of them placed their weapons on the table to reaffirm an agreement made during the end of the war on Grima… Except, two did not. Gangrel and Walhart refused to place their weapons on the table, and this drew the eyes of everyone as Gangrel spoke.

"Twenty years ago, I was bested by Exalt Chrom in a war that was ill-advised. That humbled me and weakened Plegia militarily for a long time, but with Exalt Chrom on death's door and Plegia recovering, I see no reason to entertain the constant humiliation this council delivers to Plegia and its people," He states with a confidence that was only matched by his psychotic younger self.

Walhart speaks next, "My respect is for Exalt Chrom and the tactician Robin. I see no reason to entertain treaties that mean nothing to anyone and serve to keep Valmese people shackled. I was once a conqueror of men, and while those days are past, I serve only the strong, and no longer see strength in this council. It is with this that I announce a non-aggression pact with King Gangrel of Plegia, and leave."

King Gangrel smirks as the utter shock of this announcement stuns the room to silence, "Of course, this doesn't mean we plan on invasion or wars at all. After all, Chrom may yet recover, and if he does, we are honorbound to our neutrality with your nations… But be aware, we will not tolerate any incursions into our lands, or attempts to undermine our progress."

And with that veiled threat, the two most dangerous men leave the room. Immediately, it erupts into discussions of what to do now.

23rd of Red Wolf Moon

Castle Plegia

Aversa, Henry and Tharja walk into the meeting hall. Within are the top generals and leaders of Plegia and the country of Valm. Walhart, Gangrel and their subordinates.

Mustafa, a berserker from the southern tribes of Plegia who had faked his death to secure the lives of his men. A plot that was hatched by Khan Flavia. To his right was Vasto, a wyvern rider with auburn hair who had instigated a betrayal in Chrom's court during that war and had been rescued from certain death by members of the Grimleal assassins after Chrom's older sister, Emmeryn.

By Walhart's side was his wife, Queen Pheros of Valm, who had run a communication outpost overrun during the war, but had been saved by a body double allowing her escape. Also with her was Ignatius, a general in command of the Valm naval forces, who had nearly drowned at sea were it not for a passing fishing vessel, and his brother Farber, captain of the Valmese cavalry, who had reportedly been killed during the war, but had survived due to local healers.

Gangrel, surprisingly, leads the meeting, "I've gathered you all here to inform you of some… Changes occurring soon. A pirate fleet coming from a land in the Sea of Ghosts will be arriving on Valmese and Ylissean shores here in two month's time. And we are going to let them cross into enemy territory and wreak havoc."

The council was aghast. This act was basically a non-official declaration of war. Mustafa spoke first, "My king, what about the Council? What about Exalt Chrom and his allies? Are we not friends now? Why invite destruction?"

Walhart scoffed, "That blue-haired, blue-blooded snot is the reason Plegia and Valm didn't turn back Grima immediately, and more importantly, a resource has been made available that renders all points moot. A resource that'll make us the kings of the world. This is not a discussion, once the pirates land on Valm, we will send our ships and armies to crush Chon'sin and Rosanne like the dirt they are. We are going out there to conquer, we are going out there to kill, and we will show the world who their masters are! Are you with me?!"

Farber, Pheros, Vasto and Ignatius cheer at this. Mustafa, Aversa, Henry and Tharja fake their cheers and exit the hall to allow Walhart and Gangrel the chance to talk specifics. Mustafa turns grimly to them, "Oh gods, another war? How? Why?"

Tharja sighs, "I know why…"

Henry and Aversa nod, they had seen it too. A new gem on Gangrel's crown… A shard of blood red metal… That glistened in the candlelight.

There was no stopping him or Walhart now…

To Be Continued…