A/N: I know I know I haven't updated in ages but anyhow, here's your most anticipated update. I've skipped a few chapters from the game to speed things up and there's more interaction between the tactician and certain characters. I've also decided that this will be an EliwoodxTactician story so hope you'll support it.
There will be a lot of twist in here and some hints for future events. And if my memory serves me right, about next chapter, Eliwood will have an appearance and maybe the spark that you all been waiting for will happen. Also this chapter will be intriguing. Let's see all your theory about who Leira really is. I want to remind you that there still so many more things about Leira that wasn't revelaed. I'll be gld to hear all of them so review or pm or anything.
Hope you'll appreciate this. This story is probably the most research extensive that I have done.
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Disclaimer: I still don't own anything!
The secrets of her past revealed in the words of two Knights of Lycia.
Now, to meet her grandfather, Lyn heads west, to Lycia, and to her destiny.
A mountain range separates the Sacae Plains from Bern.
There are many bandits lurking here, the cruelest of which are the Taliver.
They wreak havoc on both Sacae and Bern, and their savagery knows no bounds.
On her tenth days away from the plains, Lyn witnesses their atrocities herself.
After defeating the bandits, Lyn continues westward.
She and her colleagues stop for the night at a ruined fortress.
The Ganelon bandits are in a rage after their brethren fell to Lyn's swords.
They race in pursuit of the companions.
Their angry footsteps sound closer and closer...
Chapter 2: In Occupation's Shadow
"O how unfair thus fate played with my heart!" Leira chuckled at Sain as he was going on and on about the travel arrangements that they had upon living a village in the mountain range of Bern.
Many have happened since the day that they have met Sain and Kent. They have found out that Lyn was the long lost granddaughter of the Marquess of Caelin and because of that, Lyn was seen as a threat to her granduncle's ambitions thus facing countless attempts to her life. After that, Lyn was chosen as a wielder of an ancient weapon the Mani Katti while passing a chapel that house the said sword. From there, their journey turned more and more interesting and stranger by the minute.
Leira looked at her new additional companions. There's sweet Florina, the timid Pegasus knight of Ilia whom a friend of Lyn and of course the travelling archer Wil. They have met Florina and Wil from the town in the mountain range when they have found Florina in a rough position with the bandits.
Sweet young Florina has a strange aloofness and is timid around the male specie but that didn't stopped Sain from professing his undying love or what love he might have felt upon seeing her the very first time. Then there was Wil whom they also met at the village and battled along side of them. Wil was also a victim of the bandits where all of his wealth was stolen and looted. With that strange circumstances have brought them together and branded themselves as "Lyndis' Legion".
"No, this must be a challenge of the gods to test our love for each other. Yes that's it…." She was snapped out from her musing at Sain's rambling. Sain was complaining because Florina opted to ride her Pegasus and because of her apprehension around men, Lyn rode with her. Kent offered me to ride with him and so it was left that Wil will go with Sain, thus his eternal complaints about fate's cruel intentions.
"Are you alright, milady?" Leira can't help the blush creeping on her cheeks and she was forever grateful that Kent won't be able to see her. She was seated in front of Kent as they continued to travel in the heat of the day where the sun is at its highest.
"Yes, yes I am alright and Kent?"
"Yes, milady?"
"Please stop calling me that." She felt uncomfortable being called milady and truth be told, she sees herself as his equal if not a bit lower of his social status and being addressed with such formalities irked her.
"Call you what, milady?" Kent was truly confused. Does he call her something that offends her? Surely he had been anything but unkind to her. Truth be told, Kent has developed some kind of attraction to the young lass from their days of travelling and the longer that they spend with each other the more he becomes amazed by the beautiful creature.
Leira let out a huge sighed and response to Kent's seemingly ignorance.
"Please stop addressing me with such formalities. I'm not noble or anything and if it's something, I should pay you much more respect. So please, stop with the honorifics." She explained it in one breath hoping that she didn't make a fool out of herself.
Kent does not understand why Leira thinks that she is below him. Simply that kind of thinking is preposterous.
"What do you mean Leira? Do you honestly think that you are below me of all people?" Kent told her with a bit of anger and well that's how she thinks. He's a knight and apparently one of the marquess' most trusted vassal.
"Maybe… I don't know… I mean look, you are a knight and well I'm just me you know just Leira." She didn't know that such a little request will turn into this.
"Leira, listen to me. You are an amazing person, in fact the most amazing person I have ever met and I won't let you degrade yourself like that. I am human just like you."
"I know but-"
"No buts," he sighed before continuing, "if it makes you feel any better, I will stop addressing you with such formalities as long as you stop thinking the way you just did." She can accept this compromise. She nodded her head answering.
"Okay and thank you and I'm sorry." She felt that she was a tad bit too much with her judgments this time. She wiped off the sweat from her forehead when she felt Kent nudged something to her.
"Here, we can't have our best tactician fainting with us now do we?" Kent offered her the water skin and with that they eventually lapse in a somewhat comfortable silence and continued their journey westward to the border of Bern and Lycia.
"Ah, this should suffice tonight's bed!" Wil exclaimed when they reached an old fortress that is now in ruins. This would indeed suffice. Leira of all people knew that it is dangerous to continue onwards with their journey now that the sun is already in hiding.
"This mildewy old fortress? Is this the best we can do? Come, Wil! Surely you jest!" Sain complained quite annoyingly. He is after all a knight he should be comfortable to sleep and rest in any place.
"The bandits keep everything in turmoil around here. No one has time to worry about travelers. And there are rather a lot of us." Wil tried to reason not just to Sain but to all of them.
"This will be fine. Who wants to be stuck inside, anyway? I prefer a place where I can feel the wind blow." Lyn chided while getting off of Florina's Pegasus.
"As long as I'm at Lyn's side, I'll be fine." Florina then remarked following Lyn inside but with this remarked somehow awakened some sleeping vigor within Sain.
"And for your protection, your man-at-arms Sain will be right here by your side, ladies." Leira chuckled and shook her head at the change of heart of Sain.
"Sain, both you and I are to remain awake. We will alternate the watch." Kent fast tediously crushed Sain's dream.
"Ah, alas..." Sain said with grim face. Leira can't help the small giggle to escape from her but a timid voice soon cut her off.
"Your pardon, milady..." A wench no older than thirty spoke limping towards them. She's your typical country village girl; petite with brown hair up to her shoulder and brown eyes dressed in an old ragged kirtle. All of them were alerted and soon did the two knights raise their swords in defense.
"Lower your arms." Leira ordered to them and slowly approached the limping girl.
"Who are you?" Leira asked sensing the tension from her companions.
"I... Forgive my intrusion... My name's Natalie. I'm from a village not far from here... Ah! Ow..." She rushed off to her barely catching her when she lost her balance.
"Are you all right? Your leg..." She said when she saw her deformed legs. Natalie tried so hard to subtly hide her deformation.
"It's fine. Don't worry. It's from a childhood sickness... I can't travel far on it, but it doesn't trouble me much." Natalie tried to brush it off but Leira knew better, the state that her legs are in guaranteed to her that she grew up with immense pain. Of her memory served her right, she only seen this kind of illness once when she started travelling and the person was always wailing in pain. Natalie is a brave person to endure the pain.
They have found out that Natalie was looking for her husband named Dorcas and the latest information she have received was that he was in this area. They brought Natalie back to her little camp in a huge room inside the ruins. They soon situated themselves and resigned for the night with Kent volunteering the first watch of the night.
Leira toss and turned from her cot as sleep failed to visit her. Relentless of this, she got up reached for her cloak and proceeded in the front of the ruins where Kent took his post. The summer night's air is quite comforting with only a small chill and after turning from a hallway, she could already see Kent. Kent must have sensed her presence because he stiffened from his laidback position.
Leira chuckled and decided to ease his suspicion. "Relax Kent, it's just me." She said with a smile upon reaching him. Kent stood up immediately clearly surprised by her presence.
"Leira, what are you doing here? Are you not tired from the travel?" He said while she gestured for him to sit back as she took the seat next to him.
"I have trouble sleeping and I thought that I just might keep you accompany. Sain is dead as a log. I doubt that he will be waking up soon." Leira saw Kent chuckled at this and ease back to his laidbackness.
"Yeah? It's alright I really do not expect for him too. The travels we made are very much tiring." Leira looked up at him and can't help to study Kent's flawless face.
"Don't be too harsh on yourself Kent. You're as tired as any of us. But enough of that I'm here to keep you company." She told him with a smile and Kent's heart can't help to skip a beat or two. The longer this journey is the faster that he find himself falling.
"It's alright. It's part of my job. So Leira… about earlier I'm sorry if I snapped at you." Leira looked away and stared at the darkening forest thinking of a good reply.
"It's nothing Kent." Leira turned her head towards him without seemingly knowing the effects that she has to him especially when looking at him with those smoldering pale blue eyes. It took all of his self-restraint to grab her.
"Pardon me but why are you travelling?" Kent needed to change the subject before he do something else entirely. Its mere minutes later that Leira answered.
"When I was young, my father often travels. I told myself that I would do the same. It is also fun and enriching when you travel." Kent can't help to notice the far away look of Leira's face. Maybe something to do with her father but nonetheless he never pushed.
"But how do you handle travelling alone specially the bandits?"
"I never actually travel alone. I often tag along with travelling merchants where they drop me off to commercial centers and towns. It's just bad luck that Lyn found me in the middle of the plains. The wagon that I'm in dropped me off ways away from Bulgar, my true destination. I thought I could make it but I ran out of liquid and the Summer Sun didn't take pity on me." Leira stared the whole time that she was talking to Kent. There's just something in his face that screams that he is a good person. Upon realizing that she was staring too much she looked away and rub her hands to her arms to generate warmth. Kent upon noticing this didn't fail to remark.
"You should go back inside where it is warmer. I'll be fine in her-" But long before he finished whatever he was saying, he pushed off Leira.
"Lookout!" A speeding arrow was about to hit Leira if Kent wasn't able to push her off the way. They were both stunned and suddenly they saw one, two, a dozen bandits. Kent immediately took stance and turned to Leira.
"Warn them while I'll hold them off." He ordered her and Leira did not waste any more time and ran to the center room.
"Lyn! Outside the fortress! Bandits!" Leira exclaimed waking up everyone in the process while panting breathlessly.
"What did you say?" A somewhat distraught Lyn asked.
"Bandits attacking the fortress. Kent is in front trying to hold them off. We need to hurry he is all alone there and there's more than a dozen of them."
"Persistent bunch, aren't they? What do you think? Shall we go out and face them?" Sain asked already up and ready to fight.
"No... Natalie cannot move well, and that would put her in danger. Let them come to us. We'll fight here, within these walls. All we have to do is hold out until they tire and leave." Leira suggested and she soon barked orders where to go each and everyone. Sain went to aid Kent along with Wil the Florina and Lyn took the east wing.
"Oh..." Natalie whimpered when she tried to stand up.
"Rest easy, Natalie. No one will harm you! Just stay in here and we will hold them off." With that, Leira turned back to the front trying to see if everyone is okay when she remembered the crack lines that she saw in the west wing, is wanted to, enemies could break down the wall. She changed directions and headed to the west wing. True enough, she could hear axe contacting with the brittle wall. Someone should be here. She again turned back and past through the front.
"Leira what are you doing here. " Wil asked as he shoot arrows from the distance injuring incoming bandits.
"Wil, the west wing. It is being taken down. There is a brittle wall. Someone should be there." Wil looking up to the front where countless of bandits continues to charge, however they will fall if the ruins be infiltrated. Without much delay, he dash off to the west wing. Leira upon understanding this went off to the east wing.
When she arrived in the east wing, there's only a number of bandits here but she saw Lyn conversing with one of the enemies.
"Lyn what are you doing?" She asked incredulously.
"Leira, where is Natalie?" The stiffness of the bandit whom Lyn talked to didn't escaped her notice.
"She is inside and she is safe. Who is this?" She referred to the bandit.
"He is Dorcas, Natalie's wife. He's on our side." That makes sense Leira thought however she need to make haste.
"Alright, that's good. Now I need Florina in the west wing. The wall is being taken down. Will is already there." With that, Florina took off the the west wing and she on the other hand resigned back to the center room to stay with Natalie and deliver her the good news.
The battle continued for another hour and only ceased when their leader was struck by Kent with the assistance of Lyn causing the rest of the enemies to retreat.
"The enemy has fled! Leira! We've won!!!" Relief flooded Leira when she saw no one was harmed.
"It is also a good thinking of you Leira to check on the west wing. I never knew there was a brittle wall there. You are truly amazing." Wil said while lying n his back on the cot.
Natalie and Dorcas was reunited and Dorcas offered his service in exchanged of protecting Natalie. Lyn was ever grateful for the added companion.
"Dorcas!" Natalie cried to her husband.
I'm so sorry, Natalie." Dorcas was torn with relief and shame for what happened; relief to see that Natalie is doing well and shame for her to see him stoop so low.
"All's well that ends well. Right, Natalie?" Lyn offered.
"Our village is close. I'll take Natalie home and return tomorrow." Dorcas said.
"Hm? Why can't we just say our farewells today?" Lyn was confused and she stared at Dorcas sneaking a glance to Leira.
"Well, I... I spoke with-" Dorcas tried to explain but Leira cut him off.
"I've offered him to join."
"But we're going to Lycia..." Lyn knew how much Dorcas wanted to be with Natalie so why now? Even if Leira offered him.
"I've seen this sickness before. I knew how to make the concoction but I need certain herbs and Dorcas is willing to help me find them all during our journey. For now, this pain reliever is enough to subdue the pain that Natalie is feeling. It is brave of you Natalie to endure all those pain throughout your whole time. This concoction is not hard to make. I'll leave a recipe for you to make." Leira explained trying to even out her breathing.
"Please, Lyn. We are both in agreement on this. Watch over my husband. I can't thank you enough Leira." Natalie said giving Leira a grateful smile. Leira returned this and excused herself for the remainder of the night.
"Things have finally calmed down." Lyn said while watching Leira sleeping quite heavily. The surprise attack must have taken a lot from her. It is not much but she observed that Leira somehow had a weak constitution.
"We'll continue taking turns keeping watch. Please rest easily." Kent said to Lyn also watching Leira's sleeping form. He knew too well that she handled it greatly.
"Is that all right? Are you sure? Sain?" Lyn directed to the next knight and Sain being embarrassed for sleeping like a log blushed before answering.
"Oh! Er, yes! Of course!"
"Let me warn you... If bandits sneak up on you, they'll cut you down without mercy. Do you understand that?" Lyn trying to stress the severity of it to Sain.
"What, do you doubt my bravery? Am I not a knight? There's no need to worry! Right, Kent?" Sain tried to defend himself miserably.
"If there's anything suspicious, We'll take care of it. Rest assured." Kent affirmed to his liege and somehow this comforted Lyn.
"Really? Well, good night then. See you tomorrow."
"Let's go." Kent already marching on leaving Sain behind.
"Ha! No one ever trusts me..." Sain bellowed.
Unknown to all of them, the night's surprise have done much more damage to Leira than what all of them was expecting.
So what do you think? Intriguing right? So be good and review. Reviews make me happy and when I'm happy I'm motivated and when I'm motivated, it means more updates. :)
I've been trying to put up the link for Leira's picture so I'll try one more time to see if this will work. Is it won't just go check the link in my profile page.
s(dot)bebo(dot)com/app-image/7925920231/5411656627/PROFILE/i(dot)quizzaz(dot)com/img/q/u/08/03/28/anime_girl80(dot)jpg
xoxo alilesixteen