Just gonna answer some quick questions before we start.
Oo (Guest): Yes, I know that I put Anna instead of Emmeryn. It was to reference to Matthew buying a ring...but I could have done more on that part and did when I edited it. Thanks for pointing that out though ^_^
Guest: I thought about ending everything at the end of Walhart's era, but there were ideas I already had written down for the endgame and afterwards...so, yeah. Not to say that things wont be different since Emmeryn IS alive. There will be things happening in Walharts era, but I can't say anything without spoiling things...
allen Vth: To answer your question...I am not authorized to talk or reveal anything about Morgan whether its her lineage, whereabouts, or even gender...your answers shall be answered in this chapter...I think ^_^
THE CREATOR: ...Are you in my head? Lol. I DO have a plan for everyone you mentioned...well, almost everyone. It's just a matter of where and when they will appear. But love the ideas and I will keep them in mind in the near future ^_^
Last but not least, I know I'm kinda spoiling, but there is something that will happen next chapter that I believe most of you are gonna like...That's all I will say.
Btw, if someone knows the name of the hair style with the female avatar for on Awakening build 2, hair 5, please tell me...Imma be angry if it's really just an Afro...
Chapter 12 Uncovered
Matthew quietly sat down alone at an isolated table at the far corner of the room. He could feel the other Shepherd's and soldier's eyes on him, but did not even glance in their direction. They were most likely worried about his state of mind after the massacre of ships he set to flames just yesterday. Even if they were victorious against the massive fleet of ships from the Valmese, he could not find it in himself to celebrate like the others. Plus, his mind was still on other things.
He stared absentmindedly at the tray of food in front of him. He thought how long it had been since he had actually had a meal alone. It went all the way back to the day Emmeryn-
The tactician promptly shook his head at even the thought of the former Exalt. He didn't want to think about her anymore. He had to get every thought he ever had about her out of his mind. Her face, her smile, the time they spent together, their last chess game, their last embrace, their last kiss...
No matter how much he wanted to forget about Emmeryn he just couldn't get her out of his mind. Even in his sleep, no matter how pleasant he thought the dream to be, it were all just nightmares since 4 days ago when he found out about Naomi. Then there was Lucina's last words to him. The man she was with...made her very happy...
"..."
"What are you doing in the corner, tactician?" Matthew was pulled out of his trance by a voice coming from in front of him. He looked up from his food, but instantly regretted it as the reason for all his pain now stood before him.
"Go away." Matthew ordered while looking back down to his tray.
"Sorry, but if you're gonna sit at my table, then you are gonna have to put up with me, tactician." Gangrel scoffed as he sat down on the opposite side of the swordsmaster and leaned on his fist.
"What do you want, Gangrel?" Matthew asked sharply. Gangrel raised an eyebrow at the tactician's hostile tone.
"Geez, I could literally feel the daggers in your words. What's gotten into you, tactician? Still shaken up from the fireworks from the Valmese ships?"
"No..." Matthew replied coldly.
Gangrel evaluated the tactician for a couple of seconds, then smirked as he said, "Is this about Chrom's older sister?" Gangrel instantly knew he hit a nerve from the way the tactician paused halfway from putting the mashed potatoes in his mouth, then slowly sat it back on his plate. "It's not that hard to figure out what is bother you, tactician. You have 'Emmeryn' written all over you."
Matthew peered up to the Mad King who smirked back at him. "This has nothing to do with you Gangrel, so stay out of it." The brunette warned, then went back to slowly eating his mashed potatoes. Gangrel's smirk quickly dropped as he looked at the tactician before him. He wasn't acting like the tactician that took him down 2 years ago, and, in the Mad King's mind, it was now kinda sad and pathetic. The tactician that he knew beat all the odds that were thrown at him and rose up to him even when Emmeryn sacrificed herself for her Halidom. And he's broken down this easily? Was this really the tactician from 2 years ago? Gangrel pondered.
"Hey, tactician." Gangrel started. "Who are you? It's hard to believe that you are the same tactician I fought 2 years ago. You seem so weak that it's sad to watch even for me. And all because of a woman? How far have you fallen, tactician?"
Matthew once again peered up from his supper and into the annoyed expression of the Mad King. "Back off, Gangrel. I am not in the mood."
"What? I only speak the truth. Why are you getting so pissed off? If hearing me speak the truth is such a pain then why not leave back to your quarters? It would be better than letting everyone see this pathetic side of you."
"I'm giving you one more chance Gangrel. Back. Off. Now."
The redhead looked away from the tactician and clucked his teeth. "Whatever." Gangrel said, but didn't actually mean it. He was having fun poking around at the distraught tactician. He rarely got to see the tactician's face curl into rage and it was sickly pleasant to see it, but that wasn't the only reason the Mad King poked at the barrier held up around the brunette. Sure he was having fun, but he was also angry that the man he once fought was broken so easily. Not only did his life depend on the tactician, but also the rest of the fools who followed him and blue breed prince that led them. The Mad King thought the only way to bring the tactician out of his grief was to aim his anger at someone else aside from his current problem.
Yes, he would have to dig deep to hell to get under the tactician's skin. "You know, tactician," Gangrel started, fully prepared for how the tactician would react. "I must confess that I've also begun to grow feelings for Chrom's older sister." Gangrel quickly noticed a change in the brunette's movement as he dropped the spoon he once held and looked up the redhead across from him with eyes that could stop a Risen army.
"What did you just say?" Matthew inquired with venom leaking out of each word.
Gangrel smirked once he finally got the tactician's attention, then he continued. "Believe it or not I think I've fallen in love with the saint. I wouldn't mind if her memories were gone since I am the one who caused it. I can heal her wounded mind over time and then return to Plegia with my new wife. Seeing that she once was the Exalt of Ylisse it just might bring our countries together. And when we have kids, they will grow up with both my blood and the Exalt's! Ha! I'm getting more and more excited the more I think about our future tog-"
Gangrel stopped the second he heard the tactician's chair scrape against the wooden floor and the table shake from him reaching over and grabbing a handful of his trickster garb. The tactician brought the redhead close to his face until they were just inches away from each other. His brown eyes were filled with fire and his teeth were grinding against each other.
"If you so much as wink at Emm, I'll rip out your eyes and shove them down your throat along with the every other useless limb on your body!" The tactician threatened the trickster who did not seem to be fazed by the threat and looked to the brunette with furrowed brows.
"I'd like to see you try, little man." The two men stared down each other, completely ignoring the room of Shepherds and soldiers around them that looked with widened eyes.
"I liked you a hell of a lot better when you were dead." Matthew growled.
"That's funny, so did I."
The only Shepherd brave enough to get in between the two swordsmen was Nowi, who walked next to them with care and concern on her face.
"H-Hey guys." Nowi spoke, trying to get their attention away from each other. "There's no need to fight. No matter what happened we can always talk it through, right?" Neither of the men broke their gaze from each other. They stared long and hard at one another before the tactician finally released his grip on the trickster. Without muttering a word he walked away from the table and ignored the looks the other Shepherds gave him as head toward the exit of the mess hall.
"Matthew wai-" Nowi stopped when she felt on her shoulder. She immediately looked over and was met with Gaius who stood shaking his head at the little manakete.
Meanwhile, Gangrel sat back down in his chair and began slowly eating his food. "Foolish tactician."
"It's overflowing you fool!"
"Wha-"
Tharja moved aside the dumbfounded blonde who watched as the pot that was once in front of her spilled a glowing green substance all over the wooden table. The dark mage grabbed the dead lizard that laid next the black pot and threw it in. Immediately the green liquid subsided back into the pot. Tharja sighed in relief that her hard work hadn't completely blown up in her face, then she glared back at the former Exalt who looked back with fear in her eyes and sweet falling down her forehead.
"You had, one job." Tharja said angrily at the blonde.
"S-Sorry..." Emmeryn apologized while lowering her head in shame.
Tharja let out an annoyed sigh. "This is the third time this week that you have almost ruined my hexes. And, like I've said all the other times, high class hexes require your utmost attention. If you look away for even a brief second, or mix in the wrong ingredient, all the dark energy we put into the pot could potentially spill out all at once and grab at the first souls they see. Now, do you want that the happen?"
Emmeryn didn't reply. She just kept her hard gaze on the ground which frustrated the raven haired woman. But instead of repeating the same routine as the other two times when Emmeryn didn't seem to be paying attention, Tharja sighed and decide to finally consult her friend. "What has been on your mind for the past two week?" She asked in almost an annoyed tone that went unnoticed by the blonde.
"N-Nothing is...wrong." The blonde lied.
"I know it's not 'nothing'. You don't have to lie, so just tell me already." That last bit came out a lot angrier than how the dark mage wanted it to appear and it only made the blonde cringe from the pressure. She really wasn't good at this consoling thing.
"...jected..."
"Hmm? What was that?" Tharja asked.
"I was...rejected."
Tharja blinded multiple times at Emmeryn's confession. Did she just say what I think she just said. Tharja asked herself while staring blankly at the blonde woman in front of her.
"...Was it Matthew?" Tharja asked. She didn't know why she even asked seeing that the tactician was literally the only man she associated herself with aside from her brother and...Gangrel. But even Tharja knew Gangrel had as much a chance winning her affection as Sully not going a day without swearing.
She was answered with a nod of the head from the former Exalt, still looking at the ground. There was a short moment of silence before Tharja clicked her teeth and pointed to a chair in front of her hex table. "Sit." The raven haired woman commanded. Emmeryn followed without question and slowly walking over and sat down in the wooden chair. Meanwhile, the dark mage stood in front of her hex pot and continued.
"So all this time you were my rival." Tharja said sourly while mixing the pot with a stick. The dark mage's words caused the former Exalt to look up at her.
"R-Rival?" Emmeryn said innocently.
"Yes. I know it's shocking, but I also hold feeling for Matthew...I have for a while now." Tharja stopped to take a deep breath before continuing. "I always tried to get closer to him by forcing my way onto him, but he always seemed uncomfortable. Of course I knew why, but there was something else I could see in his eyes every time I tried to advance. At first I thought it was just bad timing since...you died not that long before I joined, but after getting to know him better I found that his eyes told me that there was already someone he had already given his heart to... And that person is most likely you... Damn it."
Emmeryn didn't say anything. She couldn't say anything. All she could do was listen to the dark mage and watch as she nearly completed her hex. "Listen," Tharja started, finally looking up from her pot and into the former Exalt's grey eyes. "You are my...friend, but you are now also my greatest rival. I will stop at nothing to win Matthew's affection so long as a ring is not around his finger. We, are rivals." Tharja stated firmly with the scold she was well known for. Emmeryn's saddened express was replaced with a blank stare as she looked into the dark mage's serious eyes.
"Okay." Emmeryn muttered while cracking a smile. "You are...my rival...and friend." The dark mage smirked at the former Exalt's new found determination.
"Good...now get out of here. I don't need you ruining my hexes with your grieving." Tharja said with her same smirk that told the former Exalt that was the best 'get better' she was going to get from her. Emmeryn nodded, stood from her chair and moved to exit the room.
"Thank you, Tharja." Emmeryn cooed.
"No problem, Emmeryn."
Emmeryn softly closed the door behind her. Talking to Tharja had given her new hope that she never knew she had! The first thing she wanted to do was to be alone so she could figure out what her next plan of action was to get the tactician to respond to her feelings. She didn't even get one step away from the door before she heard her name down the hallway.
"Lady Emmeryn?" A young female voice called to her left. Emmeryn turned and saw Naomi walking her direction.
"Hi...Naomi." she greeted.
"I was just coming to see you, Lady Emmeryn." Naomi admitted.
"Is there something...you need?" Emmeryn asked with raised eyebrows.
Naomi stopped in front of the blonde and looked up to the taller woman. "...How is...your relationship with Matthew going?" Naomi asked with a blank expression that hid hope behind it.
"Not good..." Emmeryn mumbled, but did not stay down for long. "But I plan...to fix it!" Emmeryn said with determination in her voice and on her face.
"What happened?" Naomi asked with a raised eyebrow and a little worry in her voice.
"He...might think people will...judge him...but I want to show...that my feeling are real and...he is wrong!" Emmeryn stated firmly.
So...he rejected her... Naomi thought, worrying about the former Exalt. "T-That's good." I need to help her somehow. I can't let them go on like this. Lucina may be right. If I don't do something now I might never be-
"I have to go now...bye." Emmeryn did a short bow before turning and walking in the opposite direction of where the other blonde stood.
"Wait Lady Emmeryn!" Naomi cried out. Emmeryn turned back to the young dark mage who took a deep breath before letting it out slowly. "There's...something I have to tell you."
The Next Day
Matthew looked out to the many ships from the beach he stood on. Many Ylissean soldiers and Feroxian warriors began passing other objects over the railing and down to smaller ships that continued to row to shore. They lost half of their ships in the fight against the Valmese at sea, but there were little casualties and most soldiers made it through. Which was also why the ships were completely filled almost to the brim.
"Hey, Matthew." The tactician looked over his shoulder to the mention of his name. Chrom calmly walked up to his friend and joined him in watching the calm sea.
"You need something Chrom?" Matthew asked dryly while looking back out to the ships. Chrom raised an eyebrow at the tactician's tone, but didn't retaliate.
"Nothing really. Just wanted to check up on you and make sure you were alright."
"I told you many times before that I'm alright, Chrom." Matthew replied promptly, trying to end the conversation as soon as possible.
"You can say you're fine, but that doesn't make it true, Matthew." Chrom affirmed. The tactician didn't reply. Instead, he continued to stare forward with the same blank expression. "What happened to you Matthew? I've noticed that you don't smile as much as you use to, and you've had that same blank scold since the oil meeting 5 days ago. On top of that I heard you almost got into a fight with Gangrel in the mess hall. That's something no Shepherd would have expected from you."
"Then I'm sorry that I broke all of your expectations." Matthew said in a snarky tone that made Chrom frown at the tactician's attitude.
"And the Matthew we all know would have never replied like you just did. Now. What. Happened." Matthew let out a heavy sigh as he closed his eyes halfway and looked to the sandy surface.
"I came to terms with reality Chrom." Matthew muttered
"What do you mean by that?" Chrom asked, not exactly sure what the tactician meant.
"It means that I've run into a situation that can never go my way. No matter what corner I turn there will always a longer path or a wall. Even if I climbed over that wall, another will be waiting for me. In the end no matter how many walls I break down or climb over, I will never get out of this endless maze."
The blue head didn't really know what the tactician meant when he said it, but if he knew his friend he knew that he was battling with something that was out of his control. So the only thing the Exalt could do was not give up and be there for his friend in his desperate time of need.
"I don't know what you really mean by that Matthew, but know that I am always hear to help you through any hardship that you may going through. Me, Lissa, Frederick, the Shepherds, and even Emmeryn are here for you." Chrom reached out and put a reassuring hand on his friend's shoulder.
"Thanks Chrom," Matthew said in a mono-toned voice and swiftly brushed the Exalt's hand off of his shoulder. "But this isn't something that you can fix or talk about. If you'll excuse me, I have to go put together all of the pairings for the journey today. It might take a few hours to get everything off the ship, so why not help out." Matthew nodded and walked away from the Exalt before he could even utter another word; heading toward the stairs to the town and out of sight.
"...Maybe I don't know him that well..."
Chrom was alarmed by footsteps approaching behind him. He turned and saw his two sisters walking toward him, but Emmeryn seemed to be struggling to keep a steady balance; most likely due to the sudden change from constant rocking at sea, to an almost uneven steady grounded surface. She had her hands extended outwards to better her balance, but it did nothing and she finally lost what little balance she had and tumbled into Lissa; causing both of them to fall to the sand. Chrom smiled and walked over to his sisters laid out in the sand. "Having trouble I see." Chrom said with a playful smirk at his two sisters.
"Geeeezz, thats sooooo kind of you to worry about us brother." Lissa pouted with puffed cheeks. Chrom laughed before kneeling down and first helping Emmeryn off of their younger sibling.
"T-Thank you...Chrom." Emmeryn cooed.
"No problem, Emm." Once both of his sisters were on their feet Chrom noticed Emmeryn surveying the area. "Looking for something, Emm? Or is this your first time on a beach?"
"Where is...Matt?" The older blonde asked while still looking around.
"Matt?" Chrom asked in a confused tone. "You mean Matthew?" Emmeryn nodded her head and Chrom's mind began to ask question that didn't really give him answers.
"Chrom! You won't beLIEVE what Emmeryn found out yesterday!" Lissa suddenly exclaimed with a heap of excitement.
"And what might that be?" Chrom asked with newly found curiosity. Lissa's smile grew wider at her brother's interested face.
"Well, you won't BELIEVE this, but Matthew and Emmeryn are actually gonna have-" Lissa stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked to her sister who shook her head furiously. "B-But I think Emm would like to wait a little longer to tell you." Chrom raised an eyebrow at the sudden change of mind.
"Is it something that-"
"Milord!" The three Ylissean royals looked ahead to the sudden call. Frederick was sprinting in their direction with a somewhat alarmed face that barely changed his usual stoic look. "Milord! There are troops in the town and they seem to be chasing someone!"
Chrom's face immediately went serious. "I don't know why, but if they are chasing her down then she could be a potential friend of ours! Lissa! Get Emmeryn back to the ship and prepare the rest of the healers on board the main ship!"
"I-I got it!"
"Frederick, get the rest of the Shepherds ready for battle and have them on this beach immediately!"
"I will do as you ask without delay."
"Good, and Matthew! Get us a plan ready right awa-" Chrom stopped mid-sentence when he realized his missing tacticain. "...Oh Gods."
Battle In The Town
"CHA!" Matthew brought his sword slashing down on the enemy mage. The curved blade cut cleanly down the mage's armor-less body and he quickly fell to the ground. When the hell did a battle break out? Matthew had no time to think as he looked around him to find that he was completely surrounded from left to right with his back against a brick wall; counting 5 in total. Each enemy had on light armor and wielded a lance, which made the enemy more of a threat than they already were. Damn it. Matthew thought as unsheathed his second sword and now went dual wield style. He cursed himself a thousand times for not being prepared for the sudden ambush, but worrying over it right now didn't get him out of his situation.
One soldier to the tactician's left broke formation and launched at him with a battle cry. Matthew swiftly parried the lance by lifting his right sword high and bringing it down perfectly on the head on the lance. As the lance fell to the ground the tactician used the same sword arm to slice horizontally and cut open the soldiers throat; dropping him like a sack of flour. The brunette saw another soldier charge at him from his right through his peripheral vision, then all of them charged him at once.
Matthew cursed inwardly as he quickly realized he would not be able to defend himself from all oncoming attacks. He quickly eliminated one careless soldier who was not in sync with the other soldiers by dodging and once again slicing his neck. He then stood in a defensive stance and moved to the left into the now opened space to defend against the wave of endless attacks from the other 3 soldiers. Matthew found another opening and was able to take out two of the three soldiers with one swing of his sword to both of their throats, but the last soldier read his attack and leaned back to avoid the attack. As the soldier saw his fellow comrades fall both to the ground he quickly took the chance to charge the tactician who was now leaning against another brick wall gasping for air.
Matthew was unable to block the incoming attack and yelped in pain as the enemy's lance pierced him just below his left shoulder. The tactician immediately dropped his left sword and grabbed the lance that threaten to go deeper into his shoulder. The soldier pushed further into the tactician's wound while twisting and turning the lance. Matthew tried swinging his right sword at the enemy, but the soldier was now far too close to the tactician and his weak long swing was caught by the soldier's left hand. Without warning the soldier popped the tactician's wrist, causing Matthew to drop his sword out of his hand. Then he used the same hand to reach to his side and pull out a dagger that he quickly thrust into the tactician's abdomen.
Matthew could feel his strength quickly leaving him the second the dagger pierced his stomach. All he could feel was the pain from the lance in his shoulder and the dagger in his gut. "Die Ylissean!" He could hear the soldier yell as he pushed the dagger further into tactician's abdomen. Matthew's consciousness began to slowly fade from the agonizing pain and he could no long thing straight. He couldn't even see the world clearly anymore and the soldier in front of him was replaced by a red blur.
Suddenly Matthew felt a slight relief as the red blur stopped his twisting and turning with both weapons, then fell to the ground. Matthew slowly slid down the brick wall and to the ground. He could feel someone lift his head slightly and the tactician immediately saw a blur of red. The red blur moved aside and another blonde haze appeared and leaned down in front of the tactician. Unlike the other figure he could tell that this was a female from the way she repeatedly tapped his face with her soft hands; most likely to keep him awake. The effort was useless as the tactician slowly closed his eyelids.
One second there was light, the next was darkness.
Back On The Ship
"Lissa...I'm worried." Emmeryn muttered while looking at the battle unfolding on in the town.
"Why do you say that, Emm?" Lissa asked with raised eyebrows.
"I just...have bad feeling." Emmeryn responded.
"Hey, think more positive Emm!" The short princess tried to reassure her sister. "I know everyone will make it back okay! Just believe in them!" Emmeryn looked to her sister who prompted her to smile from the huge reassuring grin on her face.
"You are...right...Sorry for...worrying."
"Don't sweat it Emm!" Lissa replied happily. "Besides, I'm sure everyone will be fine even without Matthew shouting orders! Some may come back with little cuts and bruised, but alive none th-"
"Incoming Wyvern!" A soldier shouted from the bridge. Everyone aboard the ship looked to where the man pointed. Sure enough, there it was, flying with incredible speed toward the ship. Libra and Donnel prepared for battle as the Wyvern began to slow down. They immediately lowered their weapons once they saw the pink hair of their new Shepherd member aboard the flying dragon.
The pink haired woman carefully landed on the ship and looked around with a panicked expression. "Healer! We need a healer fast!" she yelled. Lissa, Libra, Maribelle and Emmeryn immediately bomb rushed the Wyvern rider. All four stopped half way when they saw another figure slowly climb off the Wyvern carrying bloodied tactician with his arm around her neck. All four healers looked in shock at the tactician's half dead state, but no one was more shocked than the former Exalt who put both hands over her mouth to keep herself from screeching.
"Oh my Gods, Matthew!" Lissa cried out as she ran to the short dark mage that struggled to carry the tactician.
"Please." Naomi mumbled to Lissa who was now in front of her. "Please, save him." Lissa looked to the young dark mage whose face was flooded with tears which continued to fall down her face.
"Please save my father!"
A/N:Whelp, I don't think this came surprising to most people, but yep! Father revealed! My outer and inner sadist completely took over this chapter. One second I'm writing about Tharja and Emmeryn's interaction, the next I'm writing about a battle. I was watching DEATH BATTLE Raiden vs Wolverine when writing this. My full attention went to the match, and afterwards I could think of nothing but writing a battle scene! I don't honestly know how good I did, and it was kinda short(mostly because this isn't an action genre fic), BUT I tried my best!
A little side project that I think I should announce to people. I will be doing a short Little Mac/ F! Robin fic! These two are my mains in Super Smash Bros and I want to show them love by making them a fic together! I also mentioned a Robin/Samus and Avatar/Sumia. Robin/Samus I won't actually do until I know who won the smash ballot(since this will be another main story I want all smashers in it...DANTE AND BAYONETTA FOR SMASH!).
As for the Avatar/Sumia, I don't think I will post that until I'm done with this fic. If this fic takes longer than I expected it to and goes all the way until Fates comes out, I may not even post it at all...probably...
Hey! 10000 view! I'm not bragging about anything, just want to thank everyone for their continued views and thanks so much for giving this fic a chance! You guys are the best!
Either way, that's all I have to say about that.
Get ready for the next chapter...that is all.