So here's the next chapter.

Chapter 18: The Fugitive

Mark came up to an old man with his back to the walls.

"Hello, I'm Mark. Who are you?"

"Hello young one. I am Methuselah. At times I can also be Mimir and Memoria."

"I see. A split personality. Oh, sorry for my bluntness."

"No, no. Being blunt reminds me more of the Mark I used to know."

Mark eyed him warily and Methuselah nodded knowingly.

"Don't worry, young one, I don't plan on telling anyone."

Mark nodded his thanks.

"By the by, have you crafted anything new?"

"I believe so."

"Wonderful! Any chance you be willing to tell this old goat what it is?"

"Sure! I've written down the technique in my old book. It hasn't really been tested yet, but if it works, then it should be able to stop an opponent from using a certain abilities for a while."

"Be careful that it doesn't fall into the wrong hands," he warned.

"Don't worry. He always holds it in his right hand when he reads."

"It's not in your possession?!" He asked surprised.

"No."

"Are you sure that they are worthy?" He asked seriously.

"I hope so…no…I know so," Mark said back confidently.

"Well then I'm happy. See you around," Methuselah ended cheerfully.

"Strange man…I feel like I'm a lot more like him then he lets on…"

In the Pyramid

Lyn walked down the dark corridor as fast as she could without tiring herself out too quickly. She reached a plain looking door. She quickly pulled it open and was surprised to see another door on the other side. Not having time for games, she opened that door.

Lo and behold, behind that door was yet another. Lyn was getting angry and she quickly drew her Silver Sword. With three quick slashes, the door fell to pieces at her feet. Unfortunately, another door was behind the said door.

After muttering some curses in Sacaen, she took several steps back and breathed in. With a mighty roar, she ran and tackled the door down. Needless to say, it took Lyn the least amount of time to find the circular room.

Inside were pillars lining the edge and a colorful rug completed the ensemble. There were strange patterns on there that Lyn wondered briefly if they meant anything. Still, with her mind preoccupied by a certain tactician, she walked past without looking back.

In the center of the room was a strange…thing. That was pretty much the only way to describe it. Thing was the only way to describe it. The general shape of the main portion was like a cone with the flat face curved outwards. It looked half organic and half inorganic. There was a glass like covering, a little more than half way up, that resembled a small dome, like a window or a windshield. Small, round, jewel like stones also dotted the body.

It had two long thin arm-like appendages. Each arm had three fingers that gripped an orb with swirling blackness. Lyn had no time to waste. She was here to find Mark and she'll find Mark if it's the last thing she do. She quickly strode across the room.

The thing suddenly lifted its long appendages. As soon as Lyn saw the movement, she quickly unsheathed her sword. The battle ensued.

The thing could lash out with its long arms. However, it couldn't deal as much damage because it's holding the orbs. Noting this, Lyn stood her ground. As the arm came around, she stepped back so that she was just beyond its reach. Then she retaliated quickly with her sword.

After two attacks, the orbs were sliced off. Lyn stared at what happened next. Chains came out of the orbs and encircled the thing. It started thrashing around and Lyn was sure that if it had a voice, then it would be moaning. In fact, she felt almost sorry for it. Almost.

The dome started glowing red. The thing turned its attention back to her again. It lashed out again though this time, despite the chains, it moved faster and struck harder. Lyn barely dodged the first assault.

She stepped back several steps. The thing was still thrashing around somewhat so she couldn't dance through its defenses. It's too unpredictable. This calls for only one option. Lyn hated using this, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

She put away her Silver Sword and took out her Sol Katti. She rushed forwards and slashed at the two arms. This was an all or nothing attack. If she hits, then she's good. If she's hit, then it will deal massive damage. She avoided the two arms.

Luck was with her, she saw a slight opening just below the dome. CRITICAL! She disappeared and reappeared in front of her opponent. She delivered a string of power blows followed by a thrust so fast, that it created several images of her going through it.

She landed and sheathed her sword. She turned around to face her opponent. Amazingly it was still in one piece, though all of the attacks shattered the dome. Despite the fact that she felt sorry for it, she wasn't in any position to tarry. She started walking towards the door.

She suddenly felt that something was wrong. She turned around in time to see one the arms reaching out for her. It grabbed her securely by the waist before she could do anything and tossed her into the shattered dome.

Slowly fading in from the darkness, she saw that she was outside in a dark field. The sky had dark storm clouds and field itself was filled with nearly pitch black grass. The air itself felt dark and heavy to her. Still, she couldn't help but feel that the area was permeated by a light sensation she's felt somewhere before.

She looked around and saw another shadow close to some bushes. She cautiously walked towards it.

"Hello, I'm Lyn. I would like to know where I am."

The shadow looked up and came into the limited light. Lyn gasped.

"Hi! I'm Mark. Are you okay Miss? You look pale. Here, you can come to my house!" He grabbed her by the wrist with one hand and picked up his basket with his other hand.

This was definitely not the Mark that she knew…but she still felt like he was the same person. He's a lot shorter, childish, and all in all younger than Mark…but she still could see that this was the childhood of Mark. Young and innocent, yet carrying a heavy burden to help someone else.

Mark was talking animatedly and Lyn was listening. He led her to a large mansion. The only problem Lyn had with it was that it was dark, decrepit, and probably not very safe or healthy for a young child. The gates were made from black iron and had sharpened points on the ends to keep intruders out. A winding path led to the door going through several groves of dead trees.

Mark just kept on talking like this was the most normal thing in the world. "These are my trees and this is my road. I use to have bees, now I have a toad."

When they reached the door, Lyn couldn't help but feel as if the house was haunted. However, when Mark led her inside, she saw a comfortable and homely house. It was modestly furnished though it kept a sense of wealth.

Mark dragged Lyn down to the dining room where she waited. Mark went and cleaned himself off and prepared dinner. Amazingly, he made a delightful dinner in just thirty minutes.

"I'm so glad that you came to see me. All of the other villagers avoid me."

"Why would they do that?"

"Oh, you don't know? Well then, it's not really that important."

"Don't worry. You can tell me, I won't avoid you."

"Okay Lyn, I trust you," Mark said with a smile. Lyn smiled sadly as she remembered the same thing happening with an older Mark.

"I'm here on a training trip."

"That doesn't sound too bad."

"That's not all…Most of what I do is considered taboo by the villages."

Lyn was surprised. "Like what?"

"Well…I study certain branches of Elder Magic."

Lyn continued looking at him. "And?"

Mark was taken back. "Don't you understand? That's dark magic. It's suppose to be evil."

"Do you use it for evil?"

"No!"

"Then it's not evil." Mark looked at her in shock. "You choose what to do with your power. It's not what something is that deem it good and evil, but what their choice is. Besides, you can't always classify things into white and black. It's impossible," Lyn dismissed with a wave of her hand. "A friend of mine told me."

Mark continued looking at Lyn for a while longer. "Thanks Lyn."

Mark remembered his question from earlier. "What were you doing out there anyway?"

"I was looking for someone. The same friend."

"Oh? Well, I'm probably not going to know who. If it's not too much trouble, can you tell me why?"

"I want to ask him something."

"What?"

"… … … … I honestly don't know," Lyn said quietly. She hasn't really thought about what she was going to ask him.

"Well, if you guys are friends, then I'm sure you can work it out," Mark said with a happy grin.

"Mm," Lyn nodded happily. "By the way, you never told me why you're staying up here."

"Oh that, well, I'm supposed to be training."

"You said that, but what's your training? It can't be just for the Elder Magic."

Mark looked around as if there was someone hiding close by. "I'm not really supposed to tell anyone, but I trust you Lyn so I'll let you in on a little secret." He leaned close to her ear and whispered, "I'm here because I'm supposed to be practicing my forms."

"Forms?" Lyn asked as he returned to his regular position.

"Yep," he said happily, but then his face fell. "I don't really like them though."

"Why?"

"Because they're too unpredictable."

"Isn't that why you're training?"

Mark shook his head. "They specified my training so that it wasn't for control, but for lethality."

"What?" Lyn asked, her eyes widening.

Mark nodded. "You can see it tonight if you want," Mark said softly.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

The rest of the day was spent touring Mark's house. Most of it was decked out in splendor. Lyn couldn't help but feel that this really was Mark when he was little. Still, that can't be right…could it?

Lyn silently snorted. As if, when it comes to Mark, everything you know about anything just goes flying out the window. Still, it was kinda nice to spend time with this little Mark. She could just imagine living with him and helping him if it wasn't for the fact that she was searching for a much older Mark.

When it was night, Mark led Lyn into one of the rooms he didn't show her earlier.

"Don't worry Lyn. I've seen some of the other observers use this room before. It'll keep you safe."

Lyn was worried at the sound of that, but she went into the room nevertheless. The room was plain but there was a window at the far end, which wasn't really that far. She went forward and looked through the window.

She saw that that she was higher than the room past the window. Mark was already down there. She could see him clearly.

"You ready Lyn?" He called out.

"Yeah."

"Well I hope so anyway." Lyn was wondering whether or not he heard her.

Mark stood still for a second. Then before her very eyes, Mark started changing. His hair started growing longer and fur sprouted along his skin. They pushed through his clothes as Mark fell onto his knees. Lyn winced as she heard several wet cracks. She could see a furry tail rapidly growing. Her eyes widened as she recognized his face. Mark's jaws lengthened as razor sharp teeth formed from his normal ones. His eyes went from golden irises to golden pools. He was the wolf that she fought earlier while he was still under the control of Marius.

Alarms suddenly blared around her. "WARNING! WARNING! SUBJECT CLASSIFIED UNDER POTENTIAL DANGER! LOCKING ALL DOORS! WARNING! WARNING!"

Lyn looked around as she saw red lights flashing. She turned her attention back to Mark. She saw the door leading to the room lock itself. Red words were projected across the walls of the room. SUBJECT ENTERED WRATH ESTIMATED LVL. 17 DO YOU WISH TO PROCEED?

Lyn was confused. Was she being asked? "Err…yes?"

The words faded away and targets were raised from the ground. Mark looked around. He lunged at one and ripped it shreds. While he was working on the third one, several sharp flying discs were launched right at him. Mark amazingly leapt up and dodged all three of them. Lyn was in awe by his technique.

Each one of his movement were planned methodically so that they each contributed to later moves to their maximum efficiency. She didn't really get why he was worry about control. He seems to be doing it pretty well. Each one of his attacks was a killing blow. Sure there were several extra attacks that accompanied it, but what do you expect from a wolf.

By the time it ended, the wolf Mark had gotten several cuts and was breathing hard. He collapsed to the ground and promptly returned back to humanoid Mark. Lyn wanted to rush down to help him, but she was still locked inside the room.

Mark groaned as he sat up. He crawled over to a stone pedestal that rose up out of the floor. "I hate this part," Lyn heard him mutter.

He pulled a small knife out of his pocket. Lyn recognized the knife as the dagger that he gave to them. She couldn't help but scream when she saw him slit his wrist and let the blood fall into the pedestal. The blood glowed bright red before settling down again. Mark collapsed at the base.

SUBJECT HAS REVERTED BACK TO STABILITY UNLOCKING DOORS

Lyn promptly rushed out the room and down to where Mark was. She applied a vulnerary to his wrist and quickly bandaged it up. He was small enough that she can carry him on her back. It was surprisingly easy. She carried him all the way to his bedroom that he showed her earlier.

She laid him on his bed and cleaned the rest of his minor wounds.

"See what I mean?" Mark mumbled.

"Don't try to talk," she chastised him.

"I've been through worse."

"Doesn't seem possible."

"Heh."

Several minutes lapsed by in silence.

"What did you mean by not having enough control? You seem to do well enough," Lyn said.

"That wasn't me," Mark answered quietly.

"Eh?"

"That was the other side of me. When I go into one of my forms, I no longer have any control over what happens. What's worse is that I go berserk in that form," Mark said sadly.

"You didn't seem like it. All of your moves went together perfectly."

"Yeah…for a perfect kill…" Mark was beginning to lose consciousness. Eventually he drifted off to sleep.

Lyn looked at him. It was hard to believe that this fragile boy was the killing beast she saw just minutes ago. She shook her head. Mark's Mark and that's that. Nothing further, so she shouldn't worry about that.

Deciding that she'll go and get a glass of water in case Mark woke up, she headed towards the door. As soon as she grabbed the handle, she faded into the darkness and found herself no longer in the room.

Mark woke up several hours later feeling greatly refreshed. "Lyn? Oh well, I suppose that she's gone off to find whoever she's looking for. I hope I see her again."

Lyn looked around to see herself in a bright field. It was safe to say that she wasn't in the area where Mark was. Still where is this place? No matter, she decided. She'll just have to find someone and ask them. She picked a random direction and headed off.

She saw a shadow standing on the field and walked faster to meet up with him. She stopped short when she realized who she was running up to. Standing on the hill was Mark, completely decked out like when she first met him.

He hadn't noticed her yet, so she quickly ducked into some conveniently placed bushes. His face was passive for several minutes and she was ready to go up to him and talk. However, she stayed still in her hiding place. Something told her not to go out until the time is right and that she'll know when the time is right.

It was a good thing that she waited, because after several minutes, Mark's face broke out into a smile. Lyn leaned slightly to see why. She saw a girl running to meet up with him.

The girl was shocking to say in the least. Her hair was rose pink and tied into a ponytail like Lyn's. Still, Lyn was sure that she's seen the base of the girl's hair somewhere before. The clothing of the girl's was also like that of Lyn's. In fact, it closely resembled the clothing she got at that questionable theater. Just who was this girl?

She shifted slightly. She can now hear them talk.

"You mean you don't know why you're here either?" Mark's familiar voice came.

"Nope, I thought that you called me here," spoke a sweet voice that Lyn was sure she's heard somewhere else before.

There was a slight rumble and Lyn felt another presence. Unfortunately, Lyn could tell that the present wasn't here for a nice chat. It was bordering on hate, malice, and murder. What kind of presence is that?!

"We'll tell you why you're here!" A voice boomed from the sky. Mark pulled the girl closer and they both looked up at the sky. "The reason we've brought you here is because you have been tainting the mind of our Mark!" There was a pause and several chuckles were heard from the sky as if they were sharing some private joke. "Therefore, we hereby decree and give Mark full use of his Wrath form to terminate this girl."

Mark's eyes widened. "No," he gasped out.

"You don't have a choice," the voice said gleefully. Lyn quickly jumped out of her hiding place. She felt the presence dissipate.

She saw that Mark was already starting to change, though she also saw that he was doing all that he could to stop it. The girl was just staring at Mark with her eyes in fascination, wonder, awe, and fear.

Mark looked up and noticed Lyn. "Lyn, please, get her to safety!" He called out urgently. Lyn looked back at him and nodded.

"Come on! We have to get out of here!" Lyn cried to the girl. Her words fell on deaf ears. Lyn tried pulling the girl with her, but the girl stubbornly refused to go anywhere.

Lyn glanced back at Mark. At first, she thought that he had managed to subdue the wolf inside, but she quickly determined that Mark was definitely not winning.

Lyn had by now given up on moving the girl. The only thing she could do would be to keep her safe until Mark becomes the dominant one again. She quickly unsheathed her Mani Katti. The Sol Katti will slow her down too much.

Mark was screaming in pain and for good reason. Lyn saw that trying to stop the transformation half way was a bad idea. Mark looked stuck half has a person and half as a wolf. Short fur has grown on his arms and legs, peeking from underneath his clothes, but his tail hasn't grown yet. His eyes are still normal except they were yellow pools. His ears tapered to a point instead of being round. His teeth, which were bared at the moment, have become fangs and his nails were claws.

He thrashed around for several more minutes until he calmed down. Then he turned to face Lyn and the girl. Lyn wasn't sure if he was still Mark or not. Either way, it wasn't exactly safe for her to put away her sword just yet.

Her fears turned true as Mark lunged towards her. He knocked her to the ground and would have ripped out her throat if she hadn't kicked him off. He landed on his back but quickly scrambled back to his feet. He snarled at her. She was a slight pest that kept him from his meal, nothing more.

Pests are pests, but Lyn had a sting. Her sword darted in and out, keeping him on his toes. He smirked, it's not everyday that he meets someone who can keep up with him. The fight continued on with neither side winning. Lyn was at a disadvantage though. She didn't, wouldn't, and couldn't bring herself to bring harm on Mark. Mark had no such qualms.

He lashed out with his claws, and whenever close enough, fangs and was steadily wearing Lyn down. He smirked again. She was a good fighter, that was true enough, but she'll never guess this next move. He struck out with his left arm, which she blocked. He quickly stepped back, spun to his left and thrust straight out with his right arm.

Lyn's eyes widened as red blood stained the grass beneath her feet. Her knees weakened and she slumped to the ground; her sword dropped and forgotten for the moment. Mark pulled his bloodied hand from her abdomen. He stared in horror at the blood drenched limb. He's gone back to his normal form.

The pink hair girl had pushed her out of the way at the last moment. The force caused Lyn to evade Mark's claws, but then the girl was then in its direct path.

Mark collapsed to his knees as well. He supported her by her neck.

"Why?!" Mark cried out. "What have I done?!"

"Don't worry yourselves over this. It's only a flesh wound."

Lyn looked at her. "A flesh wound?! You have a hole through you!"

Lyn started going through her pack to find something to help her.

"Don't bother Lyn," the girl coughed up some blood. Lyn looked at her. She chuckled slightly. "Mark's told us of your little visit. Thank you…"

Her eyes lost a little light.

"Don't leave us!" Mark cried out at her. "I'll hunt your spirit down if I have to!"

"Heh… just… like… you… Mark… Live… well…" She turned to Lyn. "Don't… let... him… do… something… stupid…"

With that, her eyes faded and Mark screamed out in anguish. Lyn placed her hand on his shoulder to offer what comfort she could. She looked down at her hand as she felt a strange tingling sensation. She gasped in shock as she saw herself fading away.

She was engulfed in the dark again as she desperately tried to get back to Mark. She found herself inside a large stone room. From the looks of it, she was underground. There was a minimal amount of light, and eventually, she focused her eyes enough to make out objects in the dark.

"Lyn? Good timing. Smart thinking on hightailing it out of there. The patrols were there in no time," Mark's voice drifted to her.

She looked around and saw Mark standing a bit further in front of her. He was hunched over, drawing something on the floor. Lyn moved closer to him and saw that he was drawing a large seal on the ground. She saw that the medium he was using was blood.

"You don't have to do much. I've almost finished. All I need is for you to be witness."

"Witness for what?"

"Don't worry. Just watch. I'll bring her back. Great to see you back though. Thought you were captured for a while."

Mark stood up. He walked over to where a body lay covered in a white sheet. He took a breath and drew the sheet back. Lyn saw that it was the body of the girl Mark killed just moments ago…to her anyway.

"Remember when I told you that I was studying certain branches of Elder Magic?"

"Yeah."

"Well, one of them happens to be Necromancy."

Lyn gaped at him. Necromancy was the art of awakening the dead or something like that.

"Close. Necromancy is the art of dealing with the dead. It falls under several categories actually. You can speak with them (also called Spirit Calling, Seers, etc), get rid of them (mainly called Exorcism), and resurrecting them (obviously called Resurrection)."

"Okay…" Lyn said warily.

Mark sighed slightly. He shook his head and stared at the body. The seal underneath him started glowing and it cast an eerie shadow on his face. His mouth was moving, but Lyn didn't hear any words. Now that she looks back on it, something feels off whenever she's heard someone, anyone excluding her, talking in this world.

Mark would pause at different intervals and make gestures. Lyn couldn't understand what they could even possibly mean. Mark suddenly looked angry. Lyn again couldn't understand why.

He walked over to the edge of the seal and grabbed something. Lyn stared at the weapon that he was holding in his hand. It was something like a poleax attached to a handle. There was a hand guard at the handle.

He walked back to the center in front of the girl's body. "You don't believe. I'll show you," Mark mumbled. He looked back at Lyn and gave her a cheesy grin. "OBSERVE!" he shouted as he plunged the weapon into his chest.

Lyn screamed out. Mark just stood there as a ghostly heart ascended out of his chest. Mark looked at it longingly for a second before pulling the weapon out. The poleax like weapon shimmered and changed. The handle disappeared and the hilt bulged slightly before opening to reveal a rather sinister looking eye. The poleax head changed into a point and opened up. By the end of the transformation, the whole blade looked like a claw tipped dragon wing.

He lifted the sword and brought it down quickly, slashing his heart in two. He winced and Lyn took a step forward. He shook his head, signaling her to stay put. Immediately, the sword changed again. The handles came back, although they were two wings this time, one black and one white. There was also a grayish wing near the tip.

Mark jump back a bit, twirled the blade expertly, and shot a thin beam of light towards the heart. The hearts glowed even brighter and one piece floated back to him, while the other floated over to the girl.

Mark smiled and collapsed on the ground. The sword disappeared. Lyn rushed forward to him.

"Don't worry about me Lyn. Just a little tired," he panted out. "Good job on the witnessing anyway. I've got another job for you. Get her out of here and find someplace safe to put her until she wakes up."

"What about you?"

"I told you. Don't worry."

They looked towards the door as there were several poundings. "Hurry," Mark urged. "They're almost here. I'll deal with them. You two just escape. I meet up with you soon."

Lyn hoisted the girl onto her shoulders to find that she was lighter than one would expect. Mark led her to a cabinet. He opened the door and shoved her inside. Lyn felt wind whipping around her in the darkness, and before she knew it, she was outside beside a tree.

The sky was dark and the air was cool. She looked around and found a small cave that would suffice for shelter for the moment.

Once there, she formed a crude, yet effective, bed for the girl, who was breathing again. She sat down and wondered what will become of Mark. Knowing him, he'll have found some way to worm his way out of any trouble.

It was a while, but the girl eventually woke up. She was slightly disoriented.

Lyn felt herself fading again and hurried to update the girl.

"Mark brought you back to life," was all she managed before she was taken away.

The girl looked down at her hands and noticed that she was alive. "I thought I told you to keep him from doing something stupid…like this," she muttered.

Wild images flashed around Lyn as she felt the darkness closing around her. It was making her rather uncomfortable and tried to find the light. It was kinda hard to find it among the whirlwind of images. They were making her dizzy so she focused on one of them.

The image paused in front of her and acted like a… what did Mark called those again?... Movie, that's it. She saw some armed men chase Mark around. Mark was avoiding them for the most part. Lyn cried out several times when Mark was about to be attacked, but he avoided each and every assault. Eventually, Mark ran up some steps to a rather important looking temple. The screen didn't show inside the temple, but Mark entered first, and as the guards were trying to enter, there was a burst of light from inside. Lyn could only guess that Mark got himself out somehow. She half hoped, half knew, that he got out because the temple collapsed two seconds later.

The screen faded away and left Lyn in the dark again. She looked around before finding colors coming into focus. Lyn looked around to find herself back in the circular room. The thing faded away to form a key that fit with the door. Lyn hurried on. While the whole incident with the past Mark was cool and all, she still had her own Mark to find.

An there you have it. Another chapter, another day.

If you're wondering about the corridors, here's what happened. Eliwood had to turn around to see the correct door. Hector had to retrace his steps back along one corridor. Lyn had to open the door inward, instead of pulling it towards her.