Previous boss: Stallord, the awesome fossil from the Arbiter's Grounds
"Validar!" It was a reckless charge by Chrom, but that just sums up part of who he is. Robin wasn't far behind, brandishing a Thoron tome. This was going to be the fight that ended the war; this would be the battle that determined the fate of the world. The slender man currently being charged at merely turned and smiled at the oncoming warriors.
"Ah, you're just in time. Grima will soon awaken!" His eerily coarse voice echoed around the chamber, somehow giving an intense sense of urgency. "You see, the Fire Emblem is not merely for stopping Grima; it is also what summons him!" Despite this, he was being ignored. The two after the wicked sorcerer were blocking out all unnecessary noise, completely focussed on their goal. That's probably why they didn't notice the magical barrier form between them and the rest of the Shepherds, along with their way out. The point of no return.
"You die today!" Validar stepped aside of Chrom's first strike, and countered Robin's.
"Is this the best Ylisse has to offer?" The man shot an enormous ball of dark magic between the Exalt and Grandmaster, sending both sprawling backwards. "Grima shall rise today!"
"And so shall a god!" A figure appeared between the dark sorcerer and the two royals sporting some very strange headgear. In fact, it looked quite familiar…
"You!" Robin managed to figure it out. "We killed you alongside Walhart!"
"That? That was merely an image of myself; a phantom, if you will." His mask retracted to reveal blue skin and deformed features underneath. His mouth contorted into a twisted smile… as did his body. The pure insanity shone through as he proceeded to laugh at them, sending a shiver down their spines. It was at that moment they heard a banging coming from the barrier. All eyes turned to see Link frantically slashing at the translucent purple wall before him, eyes focussed directly on the new figure. A disturbingly indescribable noise came from the twisted thing, and it stood up straight. "You again?!" He looked at Link a moment more, then smiled again. "Midna isn't here… You're all alone!" He did a strange little dance, put his helmet back on, and teleported to the other side of the barrier. His speech was now muffled, but it was obvious that it was just the ramblings of a madman. Without warning, the energy barriers they had encountered multiple times before enclosed the maniac and Link in a large arena that cut them off from their fellow Shepherds even further. The figure floated into the air, spread its arms wide, and began to slightly convulse. Enormous red sigils appeared behind him, stretching from floor to ceiling. They began to glow brighter and brighter, until they were covered in darkness. A cube of black and blue formed around the arena, blocking that fight from view. Robin and Chrom had each other, but Link was now completely alone. Another cackling laugh rang out, drawing attention back to Validar.
"Your friend is doomed, as are you!" He unleashed another blast of dark magic at the two, which they avoided, and charged once again. Falchion almost glowed in the light of Robin's Thoron as the two struck at the madman simultaneously. Validar avoided the attack by a hair, and retaliated with yet another blast of magic. The fight was beginning to feel familiar to Robin. Every strike that they took and every counter that Validar had all gave him a very real sense of deja vu. A few minutes in, he realized what it was. This was the fight. Almost three years ago now, when Chrom and Lissa had discovered him lying in a field, he had had a dream. In it, he was fighting alongside Chrom against Validar in the exact same manner. The fight had ended with… less than favourable results, which was something Robin intended to change. However, in order for the plan to work, he would have to wait until near the end of the fight. This would be a challenge.
The battle was a flurry of sword strikes and magic clashes, each one ending in either a draw or a miss. Validar was nimble, either moving out of the way of Chrom's strikes, or teleporting away from Robin's magic. It felt so futile, but two of the combatants already knew the outcome, and how they were going to change it. When exhaustion finally began to take its toll on all three combatants, it happened. The most vivid part of Robin's dream came to fruition. In a move that they had prepared specifically for this moment, Robin shot a Thoron directly at Chrom. He moved Falchion to intercept, causing the blade to course with the magical electricity. Using all his concentration, Robin kept the flow of energy around the blade, giving the sun a run for its money. Mildly surprised by this sudden and reckless move, Validar flinched, and that's all Chrom needed. He plunged Falchion directly through Validar's black heart, the blade's tip poking out of the sorcerer's robes.
"You lose." Chrom withdrew the electrified sword and sheathed it, allowing Robin to focus his attention elsewhere; namely, the reduction of his magic. They both watched as Validar began to dissolve in purple flames, unaware that his little ruse was already anticipated. Chrom looked back to Robin, smiling.
"This isn't over!" Validar's voice, now echoing around the room, yelled at them. "Damn you both!" His words were punctuated with a ball of dark energy headed straight for Chrom. Robin pushed the Exalt aside and took the full force of the magic attack. The impact made him black out for a brief second, exactly as he had seen. When his vision returned, he saw Chrom standing over him, offering a hand.
"Are you alright?" Chrom's lines, thankfully, came off as natural as he hoisted Robin off the ground. "Thanks to you we carry the day." Suddenly, Robin's head began to throb, and his vision turned red. Chrom's concerned voice became muffled, and he lost control of his limbs. He watched as his hand went to Chrom's gut and created a small spear out of electricity. With more force than he thought possible, he stabbed the electrical weapon right into Chrom's stomach. He began to regain control as the Exalt staggered back, grasping at the bolt of energy now lodged in his torso. Robin looked down at his hand to see electricity arcing between his fingers. He was mostly checking the level of magic he had just used while giving the appearance of shock and dismay. He looked back at Chrom to see him stumbling, about to fall over.
"This is not your… your fault." It may have been a weakened blow, but it still had to hurt. "Promise me… Promise me you'll escape from this place… please…" He gave a small grunt and collapsed to the floor. Validar's laugh again echoed throughout the room, his victory seemingly assured.
"Father!" When Validar had tried to fake his death, he inadvertently let down the magical barrier, allowing Lucina to squeeze past Link's black box battle. "No! Our dark future is written once more…" Validar reappeared in a flash of purple, again laughing at his victory.
"You cannot alter fate! It was destined that he would fall here, as will the world!"
"Don't you take any stock in this 'destiny' hogwash." Basilio emerged from the shadows, ready to explain his role in Robin's plan.
"Khan Basilio!" Oh, right. Forgot to tell Lucina. Robin only paid attention to half of the following conversation, as he was more concerned with the man lying on the floor. He knelt down next to the Exalt and pulled an Elixir he had borrowed from Lissa out of one of his coat pockets. He carefully poured some into Chrom's gaping mouth, and watched as his breathing steadied.
"You alright?"
"Ungh… yeah…" He began to slowly get up, eyes locked on Validar. "It… worked…"
"Yep." Robin stood back up and faced Validar, who was in disbelief. Thank the Gods that replica gemstone worked. Just as the dark sorcerer was about to turn, Robin shot a Thoron directly at the man. Validar noticed in time to not have the blast shoot straight through his body, but it did still make an enormous gash in his side. For the first time, fear enveloped the madman's face.
"No, this can't be! You will perish here! Grima WILL rise!" He took a couple steps back, then vanished in another flash of purple. From the other side of the enormous black box, they heard shouts of surprise from their fellow Shepherds, signaling Validar's appearance.
"Let's finish this!" Basilio drew his axe, and ran past the cube of darkness. Lucina ran over to Chrom, enveloping him in a hug. Robin smiled as he saw tears of happiness running down her face, then focussed his attention on the elephant in the room. He cautiously approached the shifting wall before him, hand slightly outstretched. To his surprise, the shifting wall was solid and cold to the touch. No longer worried about his own safety, he began to panic and push up against the wall.
"Come on!" Using as much strength as he could muster, he gave the wall his hardest shove. Nothing. "What is this thing?"
"Robin!" Chrom came up, supported by Lucina. "Can you get through?"
"I don't know."
"Well, have you tried magic?"
"Just about to, actually." Robin readied his Thoron, and shot at the barrier. To everyone's amazement, the dark wall just… absorbed it. The only indication that something had happened was a brief glow in the spot where the spell hit, which quickly faded. "Huh." He again touched the spot, which was ice cold.
"What do we do now?"
"Hm…" Robin leaned against the darkness, attempting to listen to whatever was encapsulated inside. "You two should go help the others. If Validar escapes, this will have all been for nothing."
"But what about you?"
"I'm gonna keep trying. We have to help him somehow."
"Right. We'll come back and help you get in once Validar's gone."
"What, think I can't do it?" The only response he got was a smile from Chrom. He smiled back and watched as the Exalt and his daughter walked off, ready to face their enemy. Robin returned his attention to the evil box in front of him. As he thought about what else he could possibly do, he noticed a fluctuation in the solidity of the box. For the briefest of seconds, it had gotten lighter. "What the…" Robin placed his hand on the wall, trying to get a sense of what just happened. Did it… weaken for a second? Maybe that'll be my chance. Just as he was trying to think of how best to determine when it would happen again, it happened again. Unfortunately for the man, he had quite a bit of his weight on it when the barrier faded, and he fell through. Robin stumbled face-first into what looked like a wooden temple. The madman that seemed to know Link was hopping around intricate pillars that were placed in a circle in the center of the room. Link himself was merely watching, sword sheathed, waiting for the perfect moment. It came when the lunatic stopped on one of the pillars, aiming some kind of fireball at Link. He ran up and hit the pillar with enormous strength, causing the man above to wobble and fall. Before he could recover, a sword sliced across his body, clearly hurting him but not causing any physical damage. The thing screamed and floated into the air, once again creating the symbols behind him.
The room changed again, this time to an iced-over room, complete with slippery floor. Robin stared in amazement as the madman became a giant, still hovering just above the ground. Now was probably a good time to intervene. He took the Elfire tome out of his robe and tried to hit the enormous villain. Unfortunately, the thing was still immensely fast, and dodged it, making Robin's attempt merely melt some of the ice on the wall. The large figure looked in his direction, floated over, and attempted to squish him. Due to the iced floor, Robin was unable to move in time. Just before the gargantuan foot flattened the tactician, a ball of metal got between the two. The giant being screamed in pain, grabbed its foot, and began to shrink. It hopped around the room, growing smaller and smaller until it was only about the height of Robin's knee. Link ran forward, sliding most of the way, and sliced it mercilessly with his sword. It screamed once more, then rose back up, gaining size. Link rushed over to Robin and helped him stand, constantly looking down at the floor.
"Thanks. What's going o-!" Link pulled Robin aside as the madman once again landed on the ice where they were just standing, sending tremors throughout the room. He proceeded to stomp after them as they ran away, footing all the more troubled. It seemed to get frustrated with this, and flew into the air again. Robin noticed Link staring down at the ice below, and decided to do the same. Of course! His reflection is in the ice, so we can see what he does without him realizing what we're doing! Genius! The reflection in the ice made a movement, and so did the two fighters. Barely out of the way of the thing's weight, Robin fired an Elfire at the figure's foot, and it again hopped around the room. Link ran up and delivered what should have been the final blow, but the figure merely floated up again, making symbols once more.
The next, and hopefully final, location was on a bridge in front of a large castle with familiar red barriers blocking escape. The robed figure stood before them, swaying from side to side. In the blink of an eye, he had unsheathed swords from somewhere in his sleeves and was flailing them towards the two warriors. They jumped sideways, avoiding the flurry of blows. He then vanished, only to reappear at the edge of the enclosed space and start spinning. It was surprisingly effective, forcing Link to block with his shield and Robin to hide behind him. Robin was still amazed by the barrage of blows that Link could withstand under the protection of his shield, managing to outlast the enemy's stamina. As soon as the madman's spinning slowed, both fighters lept into action. Link slashed away at him with incredible speed while Robin assaulted him with Elfires. It writhed in pain before vanishing again, only to repeat its tactic. Again, they dodged a barrage of slashes and blocked the spinning top of a person. The final swathe of attacks from the two warriors seemed to do it, as the illusion slowly faded away. He floated into the air for the final time, arms hanging limply at his sides.
"Not… again…" His body twisted and contorted in one of the most horrifying displays Robin had ever seen, then slowly disintegrated into black rectangles, signifying the fight's end. They looked around to see the Dragon's Table slowly coming back into view, along with the relieved faces of all the Shepherds.
"And you doubted me." Robin walked over to Chrom as the illusionary room dissolved, smiling.
"Not for a second."
"Don't think that you've won." All faces turned to see Robin's identity thief appear at the end of the room. "All you have done is delay his rising. Grima and Ganondorf will rise and become the new rulers of this world!"
"That's not going to happen." Robin only felt anger and hatred towards this twin, and he wasn't entirely sure why. "I gathered from Validar that Grima can only return when he has a vessel and the Emblem, and we've killed your vessel." Robin indicated to the body of Validar lying on the floor. His doppleganger smiled and laughed at his assumption.
"That was not our vessel. Our vessel is you."
"What?!"
"The child of the Grimleal leader was always destined to be Grima's vessel; the perfectly bred specimen."
"I'll never accept Grima! A vessel has to be willing, right? Well I refuse Grima's rule!"
"Hmph. You've chosen this little band of mercenaries over godhood? Well, no matter. I shall merely take your place."
"You'll do what?"
"I am the you who accepted Grima's reign; the one from your children's future. I followed them back to ensure that Grima would once again rise, and history would remain the same. I am Grima!" He raised his arms, and was enveloped in a swathe of purple mist. Grima was awakening. The temple began to collapse around them, forcing a retreat. At the last possible second, Robin had the idea to run to the altar and take back what was rightfully theirs. Everyone ran out the front door, fear in their minds and almost all hope forgotten. They turned to see the Fell Dragon rising above the temple, overshadowing everything before it. They could hear faint laughing coming from the massive four-winged black dragon; specifically, a figure on its head.
"No! Grima has risen! Our bleak future is sealed…" Lucina was practically in tears, convinced that all was lost.
"We lost the Emblem…" Chrom seemed just as dejected.
"You mean this Emblem?" Robin handed the artifact over to the stunned Exalt, who merely stared. "I thought we might need it, so I grabbed it before the building collapsed."
"Robin, you really are a genius. Frederick, you're most familiar with the Emblem; where can we summon the Divine Dragon?"
"A place called Mount Prism, milord. It is far from here, so I suggest we move as quickly as possible."
"Agreed. Robin; what's our best option?"
"Our best option would be to send our flyers, along with a few other Shepherds, to the mountain. Everyone else should stay behind and delay things as best they can. I'd suggest myself, Chrom, Frederick, Link, and Lucina to go with them."
"Alright. Flyers, mount up! We leave immediately!" Before they left, everyone said their goodbyes. Robin hugged his children and kissed his wife goodbye.
"We'll be back; don't worry."
"You'd better!" Lissa hugged him one final time before the small force set off. It was time to meet a Goddess.
A/N: This chapter was tough to write. Adding in the boss wasn't so hard, but describing everything that happened was. I hope I did it well! Anyway, if you have any questions, comments or concerns, either review or PM. Things are really heating up!