I've been churning out updates lately, haven't I?

Author's Note: Somehow I don't think the last chapter was that amazing. No doubt it was good enough to take my older fic "Meaningful Ways to Pass the Time" and make it look like some third grade book report on a ten cent romance novel, but, personally, I'm shocked that people liked it

With that said, well, did you expect Lucia to slap him or anything? Lol, thanks for your support, and on with the fic:

Chapter 14: Arise, Warriors!

Though they stood there, holding each other as their comrades frantically ran about behind them, Soren and Lucia knew that they had to let go.

Tanith would definitely scold them if she spotted their 'escapade.' After all, this was a war. There was little time for romantic distractions. They were strategists, so they should know well enough that friends could die if they spent too much time thinking about each other instead of the battle.

"Soren… I… I'm sorry…" Her eyes started to water.

"For what?" He gave her long hair a gentle stroke.

"For all of this… For the fact that we could die in an hour and you'd… You'd die knowing that I'd follow you shortly after…"

"Lucia… Despite the circumstances, I couldn't be happier…"

"Soren?"

"You and I are here, spending this moment… I've read reports of lovers who never knew that their love was requited, and both would die on the field of battle. I've even learned of romance between officers on opposing sides! Needless to say, there have been so many tragedies on the field. I'm glad that I can spend this moment with you, even if this is our last…"

"Soren… I am too… Don't you dare die on me."

"Hah! You don't need to be worried. Rather, I'll hand that request back to you. Don't you die on me either!"

Lucia couldn't help but smile, and pull him closer to her. They would make it through this, and with their combined smarts they'd make sure that everyone else would pull through in one piece, too.

And so Geoffrey and Zelgius stood side by side, with Tibarn and the other royals watching from a distance. Soren and Lucia, along with Bastian and Tanith, stood on standby while the two commanders spoke.

"Warriors of the Coalition, hear me! Today, we stand ready, prepared for the coming storm. The nation of Crimea has been overrun, with enemy forces deep within our territory. But we are not afraid! Today, the states of Crimea, Gallia, and Phoenicis are joined as one. But they are not alone. We of the Begnion Imperial Army and Holy Guard stand beside them, and once we reach the eastern border, I'm sure that the Daein Loyalist Army would be glad to assist us as well. Alone, each of us has such limited power, but, combined, we are mighty. We are the Tellius Coalition! We shall overcome the Confederate horde! Together, my comrades, we are unstoppable!" As he raised his mighty blade, the warriors before him cheered.

Ike crossed his arms. Zelgius was one good speaker. It was fitting that he was both a warrior and statesman.

Geoffrey blinked. This was rather embarrassing. What was he supposed to say if Zelgius had already fired up their morale?

Soren made some motions with his hands. Geoffrey turned to him, and Soren continued to dance frantically. Bastian watched, amused, and Geoffrey nodded.

"It's times like these when we're like a family." Crimea's finest commander yelled.

Soren facepalmed.

Ike glanced strangely at his best friend. Geoffrey's speech sounded familiar.

"And because of this, you must not forget how crucial our situation is. When the enemy seems to be towering over you, too powerful for you to handle alone, do not forget that we are a family. If you must fall back, fall back, but as long as you can stall our foes and thus keep others alive, I'd rather you do so…"

Soren eagerly nodded his head. Now it was Lucia's turn to give her Soren a confused glance.

"General Zelgius is right. We are a Coalition. As long as we stand united, we will be invincible. That is why you must be brave, my brothers and sisters. That is why you cannot be afraid. Yet that is also why you must be prudent. Keep your wits about you. When the enemy is strong, don't engage him. Pester him. Pelt him with arrows and projectiles and dodge him. Make him enraged and avoid his angry slashes.

"Remember, life is your first priority. Keep yourself alive, and do whatever it takes to keep your comrades alive. If you truly think that your strength is not enough, then leave the clearing of foes for us; for your more powerful comrades. Life is what we warriors of the Coalition shall protect, and that alone will be reason enough for history to smile upon us. Now let us go, my siblings! Let's save Tellius from the grasp of these madmen!" Geoffrey raised his spear, and more people cheered.

Soren let out a relieved sigh.

"Soren, what's going on?" Lucia asked.

The sage smiled. "Your brother was worried that Zelgius's speech would leave him with nothing to say, thus making him look like an idiot. I tried to express to him a good outlook to tell the troops, through hand gestures and a short interpretive dance, if need be. I'm glad he was smart enough to come up with enough decent material on his own."

Lucia smiled too. It seemed that he really was warming up to people.

Another one of Izuka's cronies collapsed on the ground with an arrow in his skull.

Noyce and Enjorlas cut their way through this Daein horde. They could only wish that these warriors had not chosen this tainted path, but they could not convince these brothers to surrender…

After a good twenty minutes of pure gore and pain for those who would stand against the people, Gant and Aran were finally reunited with Noyce.

His iron blade was covered with blood as he dragged it behind him. "That… Was… Exhausting." Gant panted.

Aran sighed. "Noyce, how many guys do you have with you?"

"There are two more of us, and neither of them were at Nebula, but one of them is a veteran from the Mad King's War." Noyce replied.

"Nice. It's good to know that vets who weren't part of the Loyalist army can help us." Gant smirked.

"But he's a kid." Enjorlas pointed out.

"A kid? Isn't this borderline illegal?" Aran's eyes widened.

"Don't worry. He's technically a teen. Plenty of people have done great things as teens in times like these." Noyce waved his hand.

"Did ya send them to save Laura?" Gant asked, wanting the conversation to get to a point.

"Of course we did. Who do you think we are?" Enjorlas laughed.

Gant glared at him, and he immediately went silent. (1.)

"Anyway, let's go. Once we've all regrouped, we can plan our next moves." Noyce sighed.

Aran, Enjorlas, and Gant nodded as they quickly moved out.

Sanaki fingered her Cymbaline tome.

"Apostle, the enemy has reached our frontline. Tibarn and Kieran, with Skimir's assistance, should be more than enough to hold that position… However, enemy forces have been spotted to the left and rear. Do you want us to begin countermeasures?" Zelgius asked as Sigrun and Tanith adjusted their armor.

"Has Master Soren made any note of the situation?"

"No. The right flank has merely ordered several paladins to swap their melee weapons for ranged ones, but they have not moved from their posts at all."

"Then neither will we. To break the formation and cause chaos within our own ranks is something we cannot afford to do."

Elincia gulped as she eyed Sanaki's calmness. Geoffrey was among those in the left flank, and if they were about to face the enemy… Well, she couldn't just let him get wounded without coming to him, but to leave Sanaki here would be an act of ill faith, would it not? Crimea's Queen shook her head. What should she do?

Hundreds of fireballs and arrows crashed down upon the heads of enraged swordsmen. Thousands of white armored soldiers exchanged blows. A few of Elincia's men recognized their sisters among the healers of Ludveck's army, and more of them noted their own brothers standing before them.

Even with the enemy smashing against his frontline, Geoffrey yelled for order, and Ike had them charge. (2.)

He stood in front of his men, much like his father when Daein fought Begnion. Ike raised Ettard and plunged into the fray, swinging the mighty blade for all it was worth. He was the son of Greil. He was the son of a legend, and in the eyes of Crimean citizens everywhere he himself was a legend. Those Crimean troops who would dare face him were intimidated by his glare alone.

Geoffrey sighed as more soldiers began to run after Ike, yet the Crimean General's fellow archers stood back. They were not the type to go careening down a mountain to meet the foe head on. No, ranged warriors fought differently than their more vigorous comrades.

The archers, mounted archers, mages and a few more prudent paladins stared at General Geoffrey, awaiting his orders.

With a sigh, he gave them.

"Back up our advancing allies. Do not let a single enemy soldier take the advantage over them. Those of you with longbows or far-reaching magic, take down any Bishops you find. It's horrible that we have to attack healers, but if they insist on healing the enemy and ignoring our pains, then we have to make sure they can't continue providing one-sided medical aid, but I'd rather you disable rather than kill them."

With that said, the ranged warriors of Crimea moved out, reinforcing their comrades and Lord Ike, who were rather recklessly striking the enemy before them.

"Lady Leanne… You shouldn't head out. It's dangerous." The old crow's eyes darted uneasily as Leanne nearly slipped through her window.

Nealuchi hated to do this, but it was under Naesala's orders. Nestling did not want Phoenicis to know of Leanne's location.

"Tibarn… I... Need to see Tibarn."

"Yes, but later. Once this war is over, and Phoenicis surrenders, then you can see Tibarn."

"Why… Why I stuck here?" (3.)

"Well…" Nealuchi gulped.

Kilvas had conducted a raid on Gallia some time during the Confederate assault. They had hoped to assist their Begnion allies in the sacking of the beast tribe's haven. Reyson and Leanne were honored guests, and by all rights were legal residents of Gallia. Thus, during a raid Naesala spotted Leanne, and quickly captured her, but mighty Giffca killed off Naesala's finest guards and was able to keep the ravens from taking Reyson as well. Reyson, enraged beyond measure, fell ill and was still recovering in his quarters in Zarzi, Gallia's capital.

Nealuchi reprimanded Naesala for kidnapping the heron. But no matter how he tried to get nestling to return Leanne to Gallia and keep his talons off of her, Naesala refused to listen. But Phoenicis and Kilvas were at war, so hawks began to strike ravens close to the border between both nations. Naesala decided to personally assist his raven troops in holding off the hawk aggressors, as well as discuss terms of their alliance with the Confederacy with Lekain. Thus, he left Leanne in Castle Kilvas, hoping to make her his bride once the war came to a close.

Nealuchi, knowing that any attempt to free Leanne would be treason, and that Phoenicis hawks might very well tear him apart if he tried to tell Tibarn where she was, decided to care for Leanne himself. It was horrible, true, but he could do nothing else.

Leanne had been kept in a dark room, unable to see anything with food handed to her once in a while. Nealuchi decided to bend the edict a bit and let her be in a room with a window, but he had to keep her from escaping. Ravens who spotted her would force her to return to her 'cell,' and hawks who spotted her would report this to Tibarn, who would likely order a raid on Kilvas itself.

Nealuchi did not want Kilvas to suffer any longer. Yet, at the same time, it was horrible for Leanne to be forced into this prison, forced to become Queen of Kilvas. Naesala was her old friend, nothing more or less, and she had no intention of going any further for him. Yet, it came to this, and Nealuchi could not betray Nestling despite what Nestling was doing.

But Leanne was stubborn. She would not stay patiently in her room, and Nealuchi knew that chances of a Crimean/Gallian/Phoenician victory were slim. Though Gallia had defeated its invaders, Nealuchi was sure that once Crimea fell there would be no second victory for Caineghis.

"I… Have to leave…" Leanne stared intently at Nealuchi.

The old crow gulped. What should he do?

Tauroneo scoffed as Goran began a Daein cavalry charge.

"Goran… He was one of the first to cheer as Prince Pelleas took the throne. It seems that he was a mere toady. Men, we shall make short work of this traitor." The former Steadfast Rider slammed the butt of the Wishblade into the ground.

A Crimean Paladin came riding in from behind him, and Tauroneo turned around.

"What is it, soldier?"

"General! Crimean rebels have appeared! They opened fire upon General Titania's position. We of the rear guard might need wyvern aerial reinforcements if we are to hold off the enemy." She replied, her face as pale as a pile of winter snow.

"What?" Tauroneo shook his head. This couldn't be happening. "Jill, hurry and take a company of our finest riders with you… I can only hope the line will stay strong. Zihark, you and I must ensure that our own line is not breeched. If either line is broken, the enemy will slaughter us all."

Zihark gave a nod and ordered their melee forces to prepare themselves.

The Crimean Paladin nodded. "I'm sorry, General, for what's happening here."

"Don't be sorry, dame knight. Rather, stand and fight! Hurry and help General Titania… She's a mighty and skilled warrior, but I fear that even she has her limits."

"Understood… May Ashera be with us, General." With that, the paladin reared her horse and rode after Jill.

"Aye, may Ashera watch over us all." Tauroneo glanced uneasily at the wall of Daein troops charging towards him.

Goran smirked as the Daein Loyalist Army grouped itself on the other side of the bridge.

Turning to his right, the Sentinel asked one of his Snipers a simple question.

"Are our Crisis Knights prepared?"

"Sir, with only two knights currently in service, it would be unwise to send them out immediately." The sniper replied with a furrowed brow.

"I asked you a question."

"Yes, but it would be unwise to deploy them."

"Deploy both of them now. I need them to hack through the enemy's lines."

"Sir, they outrank everyone in this unit except for you. What gives you the right to force them to certain death…?"

"If you intend to become a Marksman, or, better yet, if you intend to survive this day, then I'd advise you to follow my orders and relay my command to your superiors, warrior. Unless, of course, you'd like to have your head decorate my spear."

The Sniper shut his mouth as he rushed to do his duty.

"And so General Tauroneo shall face the finest of our warriors. Can he handle their strength?" Goran laughed loudly.

Tauroneo spotted two strange riders heading for him. They both carried silver axes, perfect for testing out the sword he just bought. Raising his silver blade, he readied himself for their arrival.

"Traitor of Daein, today you shall face our blades!" One of them yelled.

Tauroneo laughed. "You stand by the very man who butchered our Prince, and yet you call me a traitor? Funny how politics works."

The first Crisis knight raised his axe, and, with a yell, charged forward, ready to slam it into Tauroneo's skull. The knight, however, was ready for him. Despite the fact that the crisis knight outranked and, theoretically, had more experience than Tauroneo, the warrior missed as the general simply stepped aside. Tauroneo heaved his silver blade and swung it forward, slamming into his foe's chest and taking him down with that single blow.

The other knight gasped at his fallen comrade. How could a mere General take them down? Unfortunately, he did not notice Zihark as the swordsmaster flew forward with his killing edge. With a quick slash to the jugular vein, the other crisis knight perished immediately. (4.)

Goran's jaw hit the floor. Two of the Confederacy's strongest warriors were slain just like that. They were lent to him by Master Lekain himself! What was this Daein warrior going to tell Master Lekain when he defeated Tauroneo? Goran gulped, he had expected an easy victory by sending in those two veteran warriors, and now his trial would be much, much harder.

"Apostle Sanaki, all four outer flanks have engaged the enemy. It seems that Ludveck and Valtome have found it wise to strike our positions with cavalry, thus allowing them to hit the right flank as mercilessly as our left flank. With Ludveck's rebels hitting our rear, Confederate troops striking the frontline, and a mixed force striking both sides, it's only a matter of time before either a Crimean rebel or a Confederate soldier makes it into our central position."

"So I'm assuming that you want to know whether I'd let you join the thick of it, right, Zelgius?"

"Yes, Apostle."

"Very well. Help Tibarn hold the frontline. Tanith, you will provide Ike with assistance in the left flank. Sigrun, be prepared to strike the enemy on our right flank. I will personally assist our troops at the rear… Elincia, the central flank is yours to command." Sanaki nodded as she readied her Cymbaline, Bolgagone, and her Arcwind tomes while wielding a trusty Fortify staff.

Elincia sighed. "Tanith, hold, I'm coming with you. Soldiers of the Central flank, split into four groups and head as reinforcements into each outer group. We cannot let our comrades die without lifting a single weapon to assist them. Go now, and do your best for the Coalition!"

And with that, the heroes of the Holy Guard, and Crimea's Queen herself entered the fray, but would their strength be enough?

1. Yes, Enjorlas is my attempt to take the character from Les Miserables and revert him into a Fire Emblem character. As you can imagine, his proud nature doesn't fit with rough people like Gant, who's hardly the sort of guy who would let people torment him during times like the French Revolution. I still wonder how Enjorlas and Grantaire were able to get along in the first place.

2. Lawful Good VS Chaotic Good. Some say that Elincia wants a boy who is totally different than her, and though I do think that she respects Ike, FE10 seemed to show her change into someone who would want a man who could help her, rather than impress her. Geoffrey fits the former; Ike fits the latter, even if Geoffrey is pretty manly on his own.

3. Leanne is unfamiliar with the common tongue, as she has been.

4. Crisis Knight: Third tier Paladin. Wields axes and bows. So named because, by wielding the axe, they strive to master both melee and ranged combat (since hand axes are relatively weak and tomahawks are rare, and axes are the strongest in raw might). Thus, in a crisis, they would be fully capable of rushing to aid allies and striking the enemy from both near and far. Can be distinguished by a reddish decal on the armor of both horse and rider. Begnion particularly loves these knights because of their skill and because they are difficult to distinguish from ordinary paladins (since Begnion armor is red), making them perfect shock troops.

Gold Knights, unlike Radiant Dawn, can either wield Axes and Lances, Swords and Lances, or Swords and Axes. Silver Knights are more rare (at least theoretically) with the ability to either wield only Swords and Bows or Lances and Bows. By definition, Titania is a Gold Knight and Geoffrey is a Silver Knight. However, all playable units (if this fic was a game) are still second tier. I'll decide what classes they'll end up being (though Geoffrey and Titania are locked as the above classes, since Paladins choose their final weapons at second tier, and promote to their final forms accordingly.)

And, besides, if a sword-mounted knight (first tier) were to take a bow as a second weapon, he must be foolish, since Silver Knights are mostly pro at bows and mediocre at melee. Swords are practically only melee weapons, and are the weakest form of non-knife, non-magical weapon at that. Lance knights taking bows makes more sense since they already had lots of experience with javelins. Bow knights are stuck being Silver knights because Silver knights focus on ranged. Gold Knights are the melee experts. Crisis Knights try to be both.