Indeed, it was too good to be true.
The axe was swung and blocked by Falchion. Worse still, this Flachion was held by Marth.
Is this Hell?
Blue Mask fought the monster for a bit. I could have helped, but, y'know. The fight ended when Chrom arrived to help Marth finish the beast.
If Chrom is here, this can't be Hell. If Marth is here, this can't be Heaven. I must still be alive. Should I feel happy or sad?
Either way, it was time for another team huddle. I sauntered over to join Lissa and the Blues. Frederick was right behind me, presaged by his clanking armor.
Lissa was still cowed into silence by her only-near-death experience, mercifully. Less mercifully, Marth was the first to speak
"I know these monsters. In my time, they are puppets of Grima. Their only purpose is to kill. Destroy them now, before they scatter."
Wait a second.
"You sound like you're going to leave us again, Pretender." Probably should have left that last word out. The sour look from Chrom confirmed it.
"I must minimize my impact on your time. Your own strength will be enough for this battle."
"Marth," Chrom began, "You have risked your life for us twice now. You have earned your privacy. But know that whatever your secrets, you are welcome among us." Really Chrom? Not a word about how he tried to kill me THE INSTANT HE SAW ME? Do you just forget everything wrong a person has done after they save your sister? Does it still count if I create the situation I save your sister from?
Oh well. On the plus side, Marth is leaving.
My plan for dealing with the new arrivals was, like all great plans, so simple Lissa could have thought of it. To prevent the creatures from scattering, we would stay together and draw them to us. We were to make our stand in a small nearby fortress, abandoned after the end of the previous war with Plegia. The walls would help mitigate the superior numbers of the monsters, or trap us and ensure our deaths. Which would be bad, but if Marth was right about me being a servant of Grima then these things shouldn't hurt me, and if they do hurt me then I will have proof he is full of shit. This night can only end well for me.
It didn't take us long to prepare for the enemy. We left the front gate half open, hoping to funnel the creatures through a chokepoint where they would get in each others way and be unable to evade my magic. It should work, if they are as mindless as Marth's "puppet" comment implies, as long as my tome doesn't run out of juice.
Lissa, having been spared the manual labor of fortifying the dilapidated fortification, scouted around the fortress storerooms for anything of value. To my great surprise, she found a few things of value: a couple of healing salves, a pen and inkwell (how uncharacteristically thoughtful of her to grab these for me), an ancient sword with a curved and slender blade, and a spellbook that seemed very strange to me. It was very light and slim, and seemed almost illusory, as though it would vanish if it left my sight. Its power was magnificent yet fleeting, a wildfire with little fuel. I better not waste this. The sword, which she gave to Freddy, seemed less memorable.
We'd finished preparing just in time, as the gang of creeping horrors finally found us. Standing on the ramparts while the others guarded the gate, I was the first to see them. They were about a dozen of in total, but they did not look like the one that attacked Lissa. These were smaller, more human-like, with deathly pale skin and eyes that shone a baleful red. They advanced in silence bearing an array of blades and – according to the arrow now nesting in my arm – bows. Just my sword arm, thankfully, but the archer was out of reach of my lightning magic. Do I try the new fire tome, and hope it is powerful enough to reach, or abandon my elevated position and fling magic through the gate opening instead?
Alas, I tarried too long in thought, and the world saw fit to decide for me. A small axe sailed through the air and, feeling lonely, decided to give me a hug handle-first. My forehead could do without a bruise, thanks. Less painful than the blade would have been, but every silver lining has its thorns: the force of the blow was enough to knock me off the rampart, not two paces from the open gate. I am now injured, on my ass, 30 very short feet away from the charging zombie-things. I didn't need to look behind me to know Chrom and Freddy were rushing forward to help, but this is no time to be a third wheel. If the creatures get inside, they will overwhelm us. Chrom and Fred need me to help hold the breach.
Let's see what this new book can do.
Tapping this tome was as thrilling as it was exhausting. One monster after another was incinerated by the hellfire at my command. A full half-dozen of the creatures had been burnt to ash before the book was spent, but the effort left me spent as well. Between the pain, blood loss, fatigue, and head trauma, it was all I could do to stay conscious. Two figures – Chrom and Frederick I assume – charged past me, into the diminished horde. Lissa stood over me, waving her staff and babbling something or other. She's bound to pull the arrow out of me sooner or later. Before I took my second nap of the night I saw a flight of arrows strike the beasts, while a figure on a horse rammed a lance through a particularly large specimen. It's nice to lose consciousness on a happy note.
Eventually I woke. Still night, so I probably didn't sleep for very long. My stirring did not pass unnoticed, as a now-familiar shadow fell upon me.
"Easy Robin, try not to move. You might have a concussion."
Joy. Now I have to be grateful Lissa didn't die.
But, concussion is something I remember. You get it when you hit your head really hard, and if you don't take it easy for a little while you feel worse than dead. I should be impressed Lissa knows what that is.
"So, what happened?" I mumbled "I saw arrows and someone on a horse, and then..."
"That was Virion and Sully riding in to save the day! They're Shepherds too. You can meet them once you're rested. They're a bit energetic for you right now."
I actually believe her. Anyone dumb enough to choose to join Chrom's marry band cannot be normal.
Since she was with me when I woke, the others are probably fine and I am the only one that got hurt seriously, which means I can look considerate and compassionate if I ask how the others are doing. Impressing Lissa is good, but impressing Chrom would be better. If only he were nearby...
As if on cue, I hear footsteps. Blondie's shadow shifts as she moves to face the new arrival. Could be anyone.
Now or never.
"How is everyone else doing, Lissa? Are they okay?"
"We're fine. How are you holding up, Robin?"
That voice.
Swift as a raging river.
Graceful as a swan.
Strong as a raging fire.
Mysterious as the dark side of the Moon.
My darling blue bear that I would never murder with lightning.
It's Chrom!
It'sChromIt'sChromIt'sChromIt'sChromIt'sChrom!
He came to see how I'm doing. He cares about me as much as he cares about everyone else (even his idiot third cousin's brother's nephew from the future)! This isn't just me being creepy and obsessive anymore (not that I ever was ), we were meant to be!
Oh gods, what do I say? Do I exaggerate my injuries to make him worry about me? Do I shrug it off and make him think I'm tough? Do I tell the truth and make him think I'm...something?
So many good choices; how do I decide?
I learned that not choosing is choosing nothing.
While my internal debate over how to manipulate my true love raged, reality moved faster than I would have liked. The royal brats found my persistent silence perplexing.
"Uh, Robin? Are you okay?" My beary blue-muffin.
"Not yet she isn't! She needs at least a full day's rest. I'm not letting you move her an inch until sunrise at the very earliest." My after-the-fact guardian angel. I'd rather have a dog.
"Alright Lissa, I trust you on this. Just – just take care of Robin, please."
Oh Chrom...
Lissa giggled. Stop spoiling the moment you little bitch. "Oh, don't worry Chrom. I'll take good care of your delicate new girl-friend. Gotta have her looking her best when you introduce her to Emm, don't you?"
Chrom, I-I-I-I'm so happy you want me to meet your mother, but aren't we moving a bit fast? We haven't even seen each other naked yet!
"Please, Lissa, it's nothing like that. Robin saved our lives and I want to make sure she gets better. That's it." Awwww, Chrom sounds so adorable when he's flustered. Maybe Blondie is good for something after all.
I'll have to make him blush when I can see him. Teasing him seems pretty easy, as Lissa so graciously proved. "Uh-huh. Sure big brother, whatever you say. Well don't worry, your new girl-that's-just-a-friend will be fine if she gets some rest."
Chrom didn't respond. He's walking away, isn't he? And I just wasted a golden opportunity. I can't afford to oyster up like this when I meet his mother.
Bah. I should sleep. Tomorrow sounds busy.
And sleep I did. No dreams.
True to her word, Lissa woke me at sunrise. For her second uncharacteristically thoughtful gesture (I'm counting) she gave me an apple for breakfast she had managed to scrounge up. I have no idea how – it's not like these things grow on trees.
After breakfast Lissa decided to introduce me to the new arrivals. We found the two of them with Chrom and Frederick.
Virion: A man about Chrom's height with pale blue-gray hair wearing a cravat and a quiver. An archer, it would seem.
Sully: A red-haired woman in red armor a bit shorter than Chrom. Probably the person I saw on the horse last night.
"Had enough beauty sleep already, Slim?" Sully said when she saw me and Lissa approach. Her tone was somewhere between concern and respect; I must have made a good impression with all that barely-controlled hellfire.
"Well, it was a lot of work keeping Chrom safe while you and Virion were cavorting across the countryside together." I shot back with a grin. I wonder just how friendly she is with the archer.
She was about to respond, but Virion beat her to it. "Truly our prince is fortunate to have found succor in your suzerainty, noble Robin. Your display of magical prowess last night was most impressive, even for one as well-traveled as myself. Truly, your stature eclipses your size!" Am I really that skinny, or is he talking about something else?
"T-thanks, Virion." What an odd man.
Sully re-entered the conversion. "Awfully scrawny to be swinging a sword, aren't 'cha Robin?" I must have struck a nerve.
"So far so good, Sully." Nothing makes confrontational people angrier than being nonchalant.
"You won't get anywhere with an attitude like that. Not much of a man at all, are you?"
"Well, no." Lissa giggled. There is something I'm not picking up on, and Blondie knows what it is.
Chrom decided the introductions were now complete, and we could finish our trip to Ylissetol. My attempts at extracting information from Lissa failed. She would only tell me that she is confident Sully and I will become friends soon. What am I missing about Sully?
Whatever it is, I wouldn't find out on the road, as Sully and Virion rode ahead to ensure the path would be clear. Lissa kept Freddy Bear occupied with questions about nothing in particular, leaving me and Chrom to enjoy six hours of uncomfortable silence together, punctuated only by our awkward attempts at smalltalk. Chrom wouldn't look me in the eyes when he said he was glad I was feeling better. He laughed when I said the bear was my favorite animal, with the robin being second. We spent at least 40 minutes trying to think of a name for the red-eyed monsters we fought the night before. I wanted to call them Reds, because of their glowing red eyes. Chrom thought Returned would be a better name because they looked like corpses returned to life. Neither of us had any idea why their remains disappeared when killed.
It was the best time of my life.