What do you know, playing the game while working on the fanfic actually helps to type it faster… Of course, that only works when the story actually follows the events in the game. By the way, the Shepherds don't know that Say'ri is a princess just yet. That will be revealed to them in the next chapter. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!
After a few hours of marching, the Shepherds had finally arrived at Fort Steiger. The fortress itself was massive and its walls seemed near impenetrable.
"Damn!" Flavia said. "Look at those walls… This isn't going to be easy."
"It's not the walls I'm worried about." Basilio expressed. "It's the hordes of Valmese inside them."
"Our best bet is a swift, surgical strike, right at the heart." Say'ri stated. "If we can strike down their commander, the fortress will be ours. So, Khan Flavia, your men will take on the forces surrounding the castle. That should create an opening for a smaller team led by Chrom and I. I regret to say this will put you at the forefront of the battle, Sir Chrom."
"I wouldn't have it any other way." Chrom smirked.
"Then it's settled." Say'ri said. "Other Resistance forces are on the way. With luck, they'll arrive in time to help. Let's cleave them a proud trail of imperial blood to find us by!"
"Then we'll have to at least hold the fort until they arrive." Robin said.
In one of the tunnels underneath Fort Steiger, dozens of members of the Resistance were waiting for the Shepherds to make their move against the Imperial forces. Once they could feel the ground shaking from the charging of the soldiers, they were prepared to move forward until a flash of light blinded them and out of it appeared Excellus.
"Nah-ah-ah." Excellus waved his finger to the soldiers. "Not so fast, rebel dogs."
As the battle raged on outside, the Shepherds had managed to infiltrate the castle. In the command room, a messenger came up to the commander, Pheros, and informed her of the Shepherds' entering the fort.
"Hmph, such arrogance…" Pheros said. "They truly mean to assault Steiger un such meager numbers? Perhaps they expect a woman's garrison to be a softer target… Heh, when I'm through, they'll wish they'd challenged Yen'fay instead. Battle stations!"
She commanded the soldiers in the command room and they all dispersed.
The Shepherds pushed forward through the fort to a large room that stretched for several dozen meters. On the other side of the room, archers and snipers mobilized outside the door and readied their bows.
"Crap!" Robin exclaimed as he readied his lightning tome.
The arrows fired too quickly and it seemed like it was too late for any of them to counter attack. Before the arrows hit their target, Nowi transformed into her dragon form and used her wings to deflect the arrows.
"Thanks, Nowi!" Robin said before he and the other mages took out some of the archers with their magic attacks.
Virion also used his bow and arrows to take out several snipers with clean headshots. Once all of the archers and snipers were down, the Shepherds proceeded forward in their assault.
Say'ri had stopped when she could feel something coming from underneath the floorboards. "Sir Chrom, I hear movement from the floor below. It may be reinforcements. Be wary…"
"Then we'd better take over this fort before then." Chrom said as more soldiers poured out from the other room.
After nearly all of the Valmese soldiers had fallen at the hands of the Shepherds when more soldiers had come out from the lower levels of the fortress. Say'ri had instantly recognized those men.
"Our comrades!" Say'ri said. "But wait, how…"
"The Resistance had already infiltrated the castle?" Chrom asked.
"Nay, something is amiss…" Say'ri answered.
Excellus then appeared in front of the soldiers. "Oooh, it appears I'm just in time for the Rebellion reunion! Delicious… Please, do give your 'friends' your warmest welcome. Just remember your promise… or you can be sure I will remember mine."
The Resistance soldiers pulled out their weapons.
"Say'ri…" Chrom spoke. "Are you certain their reinforcements are from the Resistance?"
"Aye, sir." Say'ri replied. "I'm ashamed to say I am. I know some of them by name. B-but why would they turn cloak against us now?!"
"Oooh, it seems we've touched a nerve!" Excellus chuckled. "I do so enjoy inappropriate touching… Now be good little servants and scrub the stronghold of these Ylissean filth."
Excellus disappeared and reappeared next to Pheros.
"What is this meddling, Excellus?!" Pheros asked.
"… 'Meddling'? Why, General Pheros, one might almost mistake you for ungrateful." Excellus said. "This 'meddling' is going to save your post, and quite possibly your life…"
"We've no need of your parlor tricks here, schemer!" Pheros exclaimed. "I can handle this myself."
"Why yes, of course you can, General. I can see you're doing SO well already. You're obviously just… waiting to crush the Ylisseans? Toying with them like a cat! I only brought these rebels so they might learn from your shining example! They were so anxious to join the cause…"
"Because you threatened them? Tortured them? Or perhaps their families? Their villages?"
"Ahem… I would not wish to burden you with such mundane details, good General. You have more important matters to think after, and to deal with… quickly. But rest assured they are QUITE motivated. Feel free to thank me some other time!" Excellus then disappeared.
"Odious freak…" Pheros muttered to herself. "He has no honor. Just the sight of him makes me sick. HE is the worm, yet I'm the one left squirming… Bah. True, his interference may seal our victory… but he'll never hear me say it."
Say'ri had clenched her fist and started shaking in fury, thinking to herself all the while. *Damn! That vile… He turned my own comrades against me! Why? … Why did this have to happen?!* Her eyes were starting to glaze and about to drop tears.
"Shepherds, whatever you do, make sure none of the rebels are killed!" Robin ordered.
Robin's words snapped Say'ri back to reality.
"Frederick! You and Kellam hold off the rebels entering from the west! Sully and Kjelle, block off the east! I have to make sure none of your allies are hurt." Robin looked at Say'ri in assurance.
Say'ri just looked at Robin for a moment and then smiled. "Thank you, Robin… Look out!"
Before Robin could react, Say'ri ran toward Robin and pushed him down to the ground. As they both fell, Robin noticed that a Valmese war monk had nearly cleaved his head off with an axe. The axe barely missed Say'ri as she fell down with Robin and after they hit the ground, Chrom dashed in and cut down the war monk.
"Robin, Say'ri, look alive!" Chrom exclaimed as he continued to fight off Valmese soldiers.
"R-right." Robin said.
Robin was about to get up when he suddenly became distracted by Say'ri's face while she was on top of him. At that moment, it seemed like time had stopped and everything had gone quiet as they just stared at each other.
*… Wow…* Robin thought to himself. *I never realized how beautiful Say'ri is…*
The two continued staring into each other's faces and eyes until the sound of a horse walking toward them could be heard. They snapped back to reality, got off each other and brushed themselves off, both blushing a light pink all the while. Robin looked in the direction of the sound and saw General Pheros approaching them.
"In the name of the Conqueror, you shall not take this fortress!" Pheros shouted as she charged her fire magic in her hand.
Robin and Say'ri rolled out of the way as Pheros shot a fireball at them. The fireball hit the ground, leaving a smoldering crater in its wake. Say'ri charged toward Pheros, sword in hand, but Pheros's horse raised its front legs and whinnied, causing Say'ri to stumble backward and fall down. Pheros charged her magic again and was ready to burn Say'ri to a crisp.
"With your death, the Resistance shall be no more." Pheros said, ready to kill her. "Kegh!"
Say'ri noticed that a blade was sticking out of Pheros's chest. She took a closer look at the wielder of the blade and saw that Robin had impaled Pheros with his sword. Robin pulled the sword back and ran over to Say'ri.
"Say'ri, are you okay?" Robin asked.
"A… Aye." Say'ri nodded. Upon seeing Robin rescue her, her heart felt like it was overflowing with emotions. Just like it did when she was lying on top of Robin.
Pheros fell off her horse, which ran away upon her death, and her body hit the floor.
"Nngh…" Pheros groaned in pain. "Well done… I may not live… to see Walhart unify all mankind… with my own eyes… But I have seen it… in my dreams… And that is enough…"
As Pheros perished on the ground before them, Robin and Say'ri turned around and noticed that the rebels were retreating. Say'ri thought for a moment until Chrom and the khans had arrived.
"Steiger has fallen." Say'ri said. "… But I'm afraid our new enemy has the fortress surrounded."
"'New enemy'…" Chrom said. "You mean the rest of the former Resistance?"
"Aye, sir." Say'ri winced in hesitation. "Words cannot express my shame. My… regret…"
Robin could tell by Say'ri's shaking fists that she was very upset.
"Finally, I succeed in uniting them… but only against us." She continued.
An Ylissean messenger ran up to them. "Milord! Dire news! Our forces to the north and south have been decimated by Walhart and Yen'fay! What's worse, most of the survivors have turned their coats for the empire!"
"B-but our troops numbered in the hundreds of thousands!" Say'ri exclaimed.
"The empire must have had more." Basilio surmised.
"Or perhaps been better trained and equipped…" Flavia said.
"Blast!" Say'ri shouted. "Walhart and my brother… where are their armies now?"
"Marching towards this fortress, milady." The messenger reported. "It's only a matter of time."
"So much for fortune favoring the bold." Basilio said. "This war was lost before it even began."
"All our struggles until now, and we've yet to so much as dent the empire…" Chrom sighed.
"… Chrom?" Robin spoke.
"What is it, Robin?" Chrom asked. "Do you have something to say?"
"We need to leave here, right away." Robin suggested.
"Have you lost your wits?" Flavia questioned. "We're surrounded!"
"When the other armies arrive, then we'll be trapped for a certainty." Robin stated. "If we intend to escape, now is our best chance."
"He's right." Say'ri agreed. "The dynasts outside betray us only out of fear for the empire. They'll only put up token resistance without their masters watching."
"But we can't keep running forever." Chrom said. "How do we hope to turn the tide?"
"By striking at either Walhart or Yen'fay before they join strength." Robin replied.
"Either one seems a death sentence." Chrom said.
"One general would be upon us before we could finish with the other." Say'ri said.
"I agree... which is why we attack both." Robin said.
"Our army lies in tatters, yet you would divide it by half?!" Flavia exclaimed.
"… I didn't say by half." Robin clarified. "Chrom would lead our strongest troops against Yen'fay. Meanwhile, a smaller force would attack Walhart."
"A SMALLER force?" Basilio asked. "We couldn't even defeat him with double our entire number."
"… I didn't say we'd defeat him." Robin stated. "We only need to distract him."
"Hmm…" Basilio thought about it. "Spend some lives to buy the other team time…"
"This smaller force would face our most dangerous mission yet." Chrom stated. "It would need a leader of unparalleled skill, reckless bravery…"
"All right, Chrom, please!" Basilio heartily laughed. "You're embarrassing me! I'll do it already! Just stop with all the compliments!"
"This is no time for japes, Basilio." Robin said. "The stakes could not be higher."
"I am being serious." Basilio said. "I'll lead the squad. Though I prefer my steaks well done…"
"That's just his way, Robin." Flavia stated. "Bad jokes come with the bravado But the oaf clearly has faith in your thinking. And I as well… All of us do, I'd wager. Somehow you always find a way to best the odds."
"Then it's settled." Basilio said. "I'll make preparations and be off. The rest of you stay with Chrom and keep him safe."
"Godspeed, Basilio." Robin told him.
As Basilio was about to leave, Lucina ran in front of him and tried to block his path.
"Stop!" Lucina shouted.
"Lucina, what are you-" Chrom was about to ask.
"I cannot allow you to go, Khan Basilio." Lucina said. "You will die in this battle. I know it for truth!"
"What?" Chrom asked.
"You know, lass, you have a strange way of saying goodbye." Basilio said. "All right then. Who is it? Who kills me? Is it Walhart himself? Please say yes. It'd make a poor song to die at the end of some farmer's pitchfork."
"Yes, it was Walhart." Lucina answered. "Or so goes the story I heard. We must change our plans so fate cannot take this course!"
"All I needed to know." Basilio said. "Thank you much, lass. I'll be careful."
"Y-you're still going?" Lucina questioned. "But I just told you-"
"Aye, I heard you just fine." Basilio interrupted her. "But someone still as to stall his division from advancing. If he's the one that kills me, well then, I'll just avoid confronting him. You don't grow this old and handsome without knowing how to avoid trouble."
"N-no!" Lucina insisted. "It's never that simple!"
"Don't worry, love, he'll be fine." Flavia assured her. "He'll have me to keep an eye on him."
"You aren't coming, woman!" Basilio spoke. "You're the reigning khan!"
"I thought you intended to survive this, oaf." Flavia retorted. "Regna Ferox has two khans, and now you're responsible for both. I dare you to die now!"
"Harahahaha!" Basilio laughed heartily. "All right, all right. You can come. Hope that's all right, Chrom."
"Just look after each other." Chrom said.
"Ha! I'll bring this big ox back on a leash if it comes to that." Flavia said.
"Luck and more be with you all." Basilio told them. "We'll meet again soon."
"But please, your future!" Lucina tried to stop him. "You must-"
"'Please', yourself!" Basilio said. "Not another word. I fully intend to outlive you sprogs, just see if I don't. And as for your 'future', it can kiss my big brown Feroxi arse!"
*Ugh!* Robin thought in disgust as both khans left to fend off Walhart's division. He then looked at Say'ri. "Say'ri, are you sure you're willing to fight your brother?"
Say'ri took a brief moment before responding. "… My brother made his choice when Walhart took Chon'sin. Do not worry about it, Robin. This only concerns me and my brother."
A/N: Next chapter is the fight with Yen'fay. Things are definitely going to pick up! A word of warning: Between that fight and the final confrontations with Walhart, there is going to be quite a bit of filler to build the relationship between Robin and Say'ri further with the exception of Tiki's restoration ritual. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I promise to write the best I can for you guys. Although with the release of Dark Souls II, that's going to be almost as big a challenge as that game to bring it out in time for you all.