"Okay, just stay still and this won't hurt."
"That's what you said the last time." Robin mumbled at the cleric while she injected a small blue liquid into Robin's arm.
"There we go all done! See, I told you it wouldn't hurt you big baby."
"I've learned not to trust you when it comes to needles, but do you really think this will work?"
"It should take effect in two to three hours. We will see where it goes from there."
Robin relaxed and let out a large sigh of relief. "Thanks Lissa."
...
Robin walked out of the clinic and lost himself in deep thought on his way to his office in the barracks. He had to get better soon or his health might start effecting his work. The last thing that he needed was even more problems with the current state of affairs.
"Ha ha, I am gonna get you, you rassqueally wabbit." A voice cried through the grounds. Robin stopped and looked around and laughed when he saw the cause of the threat. Morgan was chasing after Yarne with Noire and Cynthia in fast pursuit. The poor taquel was running as fast as he could, but he was no match for Morgan's speed and her friends' determination.
Morgan tackled the taquel to the ground and Cynthia joined her a second later. The two girls pinned Yarne down and despite his best efforts, he could not get the two off of him. While he was struggling, Noire walked in front of Yarne's face and kneeled down to talk to him.
"Now Yarne, I would like to know...TELL ME WHERE YOU HID MY TALISMAN OR I WILL FEAST UPON YOUR SOUL!
...
"Ha, so this is how the taquel nearly became extinct." Robin laughed as he opened the door to the barracks and left Yarne to suffer his fate. He stepped into the main room and waved to a couple of the Shepherds who were either training or sparring. After saying his good mornings, he walked over to his office. He grabbed three keys and a codex paper from his pocket and went through the usual routine of security procedures before he finally reached his desk.
There was another stack of paperwork that Robin would have to sort out, but on top of the stack was a large thick yellow envelope with the words Confidential and Urgent on it.
"Oh boy." Robin groaned; he was expecting the yellow packet, but he wasn't expecting to get it so quickly. He put his arms behind his back and stretched until his shoulders popped and then set to work. His only comfort today would be when Lucina came in a couple of hours later to help him with the paperwork, but for now he needed to address this issue first.
He quickly turned around to make sure Morgan wasn't in the room and then opened the packet. He had to be careful ever since she almost caught him last time. Robin delicately removed the seal on the envelope and grabbed the first document inside while trying to get comfortable in his seat.
"Let's see what we have here today."
*Cough* *Cough*
…
The hours soon went by as the sun rose and set and the pile of papers vanished from the desk and into their corresponding bins. Robin was on the verge of complete exhaustion after he finally finished and he had a hard time keeping his eyes open during dinner. It was a miracle that he could stay awake for the board game with Morgan and Lucina afterwards, but he still managed to win nonetheless.
...
After that, there was only one thing he had left to do tonight. He looked at his smiling daughter's face as she rolled around in her bed trying to find a comfortable spot. Her glowing face filled Robin with a wave of energy and he willed himself to stay awake so he could tell the story.
I did not get any sleep that night. I tossed and turned in my tent the entire time and my thoughts were consumed about the war, our army, and ...Emmeryn. According to our last report, The Feroxi army was fighting Plegia at the border while we fled from the capital. We had a lot of ground to travel before we even came close to reaching them, and when we finally met up with them; we would have to fight a long and grueling campaign just to get back to the Plegian capital and make Gangrel pay.
It was all I thought about through the night and when I finally did nod off to get some sleep, it was plagued by nightmares. In one of my dreams, I was in some strange temple and Chrom was next to me. A dark mage shot something at me, a wave of strange energy overcame me and everything went blurry. I woke up sweating in a panic and gasping for breath.
The night was still young and it would be hours before the sun shined outside. However, with all that was going on, I knew that I wasn't going to be falling asleep any time soon. I walked out of my tent and tried to find some solace in the desert's cold night air with a torch in hand to illuminating my way.
…
"Robin?"
"Huh?!" I jumped and my spine shivered in fright. I immediately turned around ready to draw my blade only to see a giant wall of metal in front of me. "...Gods, don't sneak up on me like that Kellam."
"But you just walked past me...I didn't...Oh what's the use." He said depressed but shrugged it off. "What are you doing up anyways?"
"Couldn't sleep with everything that is happening. By the way, how can you see without light?" I pointed to his empty hand. It couldn't be past four in the morning and it was incredibly dark, but the silent knight seemed to have no trouble.
"I don't need a torch to see at night. When I was a child I would always play outside in the dark and my eyes adjusted. Besides, torches attract attention and anyone trying to attack us would spot me first."
"Hmm, good point. Speaking of which, How is the patrol going?"
"Thankfully it has been quiet, but I did hear a faint noise over there by the ridge earlier." He pointed to the west at a small set of rocks near the bottom of a cliff. "Other than that, there has been no sign of any movement or noise since."
"Probably just a snake or something, but I'll go check it out." I volunteered since I had nothing better to do.
"I am not sure if that is wise." He said and looked at my stomach. It was still heavily bandaged and although I could walk, I was in no shape to fend off an attack.
I waved him off "I'll be fine. Snakes are not poisonous in this area." I said without thinking and something clicked in my head.
"How do you know that Robin?" Kellam asked surprised.
"...I don't know. Perhaps I read it in a book somewhere?" I grabbed my forehead and tried to search for more memories but all that came was a small migraine. "Anyways, if I get in trouble I will just yell for help."
Kellam nodded "Very well. I better check the other side of camp then. I still have an hour until Frederick relieves me of my duty."
"Alright, stay safe."
"You too."
…
I slowly trudged along in the desert sand with the pain in my stomach hindering me the entire way. But I would do anything to stop thinking about our current problems for a moment. Eventually, I reached the rocks that Kellam was talking about. They were off all sizes and some came to my chest. However, a sharp pain overcame my stomach and I winced from it.
"Augh, gah that hurts." I leaned over and rested my hand on one of the rocks to keep my from falling down.
"Stab wounds tend to do that." A voice said dryly.
"Huh? Who goes there." I went for the hilt of my sword while a shadow slowly moved from behind the rocks and into my torch's light. As the torch flickered I could see a woman dressed in all blue.
"Marth?" I squinted my eyes and saw her unmistakable clothes. However, I found myself staring at her face again and I cursed to myself in my head before trying to find something to say. "You are still watching over us?"
"Someone has to."
"What do you mean by that?" I asked confused and slowly bent down to sit on one of the rocks that went up to my knees.
"Your campsite is vulnerable and you don't have a single person watching in case anyone tried to attack you." She pointed to the tents. "I could have slipped in and taken anything I wanted."
"Well, not the candy at least. You would have to get by Gaius first." I jested but she looked at me like I was crazy. "Erm, that was a joke."
"This is no laughing matter Robin." She glared at me and said agitated "You need someone to keep watch at all times or else you will be ambushed."
"But we do have someone guarding us. He is on patrol right now." I pointed over to a small shadow at the edge of the camp.
"Where? I don't see him."
"Nor do most until he is driving his spear into them."
"Oh, Kellam is watching? I suppose that makes sense." She calmed down a bit and took a deep sigh of relief.
"Hmm? You know Kellam?"
She winced at my remark and muttered something under her breath. "It's not important."
"Right. Nothing ever is." I said frustrated.
"I am sorry, but I have my reasons."
"You always do." I growled. "So what can you tell me?
"I can tell you that Emmeryn's death was not in vain."
My eyes widened hearing her name. "What do you mean?!"
"Gangrel wants the Fire Emblem and he would do anything he could to get his hands on it. Chrom still has it, and as long as it remains with him than the world will be safe." She sighed and looked down at the ground. "I just wish I could have saved her too."
I hung my head and watched her fall again in my head. "... What's so special about this Fire Emblem? It sealed away some dragon right?"
She twitched and held her breath which furthered my puzzlement. "All you need to know is that it can't fall into Gangrel's hands. I believe he is responsible for the doomsday of this world."
I paused and took a minute to collect my thoughts. "When we kill Gangrel we will prevent a disaster worse than a war from happening?"
"Yes." she said softly. I still could not fathom anything worse than a war filled with bloodshed, but I tried to get a general idea of it.
"So what happens now? What is Gangrel's scheme to take the Emblem back? I know you don't want to share the future, but if I knew what was coming than I could-"
Marth shook her head. "I don't know. The future has been a mystery to me ever since we stopped the assassination."
"What?! You mean you don't know what comes next?"
She sighed and looked over at the campsite."I can only speculate now just like everyone else, but I am certain that an Armageddon will overcome us if Gangrel gets the Fire Emblem."
I sat there speechless for a long time as I though it over. Another of the countless reasons I had to end this war and not fail. "...Than I better get back to work on formulating our strategy for attacking the Plegian castle." My mind began racing with things I would need to do and my stomach protested with a small sharp prick. Marth noticed I was in pain but did not say anything. "I would say goodbye, but I am guessing that you will be following us."
She nodded and I sighed while grabbing one of the rocks to pull my self up and leave rocky seat. I would have a long night ahead of me planning our method of attack.
...
"Put your backs into it gentlemen, it is not that heavy! Engineers! I need that battering ram built yesterday so hurry up! You there, you are not busy right? Well you are now. I need you to go to Sir Frederick and tell him that we need a few more swords sharpened and we have a shortage of arrows... Sumia! Ah, glad to see you returned in one piece, how did the scouting go of the capital?"
She jumped down from her Pegasus and smiled. "Hey Robin. I saw soldiers moving out of the castle and head towards the west."
"Towards the west? But that is the opposite direction of us."
"It seems that they have abandoned their posts."
"...Even more soldiers are fleeing from the Plegian army? Perhaps this will not be the blood shed I feared it would be." I sighed in relief and thanked Naga. "You there!" I pointed to a random soldier who passed by us. "I need you to report to Prince Chrom and tell him that the eggs have left the nest."
"Sir?" The soldier looked at me confused and unsure on how to respond.
"Chrom will understand what it means, but hurry up and deliver the message."
"Yes sir."
I turned back to Sumia eager to hear any more good news. "Did you notice anything else?"
"There was a fire and a small riot inside the castle. The few guards that were left were stationed right outside the palace and they were making sure none of the people got in."
"Excellent, that means we have the people on our side too. We won't have to waste time worrying about the citizens...We can thank Emmeryn for that..." A small platoon of spearmen came by us and I noticed that something was wrong. "Captain, where is your archers? I assigned you to an archery unit."
"Commander, This is an archery unit. I have two hundred of the finest javelin hurlers in all of Ylisse under my orders."
"Ah, I see, but you still need to go back to the rally point and amass three hundred archers in your formation. Javelins are great but I need people who can attack the walls from a distance too."
"As you command general... Men, about face!" The captain's men turned around and started marching back.
"You are busy today Robin." Sumia's voice called behind me.
"Ha, I have been busy ever since we met up with the army three days ago. I have over 25,000 men in my command, and only half of them know how to fight. There is still so much to do and the siege starts in six hours!"
"Have you had a moment to rest since then?" Sumia asked in concern.
"Of course not. There is no time to relax. Do you know how hard it is to build a battering ram based on supply carts and scrap planks? No one thought to bring any wood and you wont find any in the desert. Plus I need to report to Flavia and Chrom and then I have to make sure that everyone understands the plan. I still haven't come up with a Plan C yet and then-"
"Robin! You need to sit down and relax."
"I can't."
"Robin you are going to hurt yourself if-
"No." I shook my head and winced from a small pain in my stomach. "I literally can't relax. I will go insane thinking about the siege unless I keep myself busy. It is bad enough that my injuries will prevent me from fighting."
"But you still need to-"
I smiled and waved her off. "If anyone needs to hear this speech than I am sure it would be Chrom. He is probably even more stressed than I am and he needs someone to take care of him."
Sumia blushed a little and stuttered, "Y-yeah, he is busy too and I can't even get within twenty feet of him. Every time I try to talk to him he says that he needs to take care of something first.
Hmm, that seems to be a problem. Very well, I order you to comfort him. The morale of the troops depends on having a strong leader, and our leader need you to spend time with him to regain his strength. I entrust this special mission into your very capable hands."
"Robin I-"
"Tell Chrom that these orders are of the utmost importance to winning the siege and they come directly from the tactician."
"Thanks Robin." She smiled back
"Don't mention it. He needs someone to talk to so he doesn't worry about the siege, and I believe you are the one he would enjoy talking with the most."
She blushed a deep crimson and turned around too embarrassed to look at me. She marched off to Chrom's tent, but she did glance back before reaching her objective.
"You there! Soldier, I need you to stand guard at Chrom's tent. No one is to disturb him. Not even Flavia or Basilio"
"Sir, what should I tell someone who tries to enter?"
"Tell them" I smirked and chuckled thinking about it. "Tell them that he is occupied." The guard nodded and went on his way. Meanwhile I returned to my duties and made sure that everyone was prepared for the siege.
Hours passed by as I did various tasks and worked out the final details of the attack. This was my first time commanding an army bigger than twenty people and it was a great burden I had to bear. With the little time left, I fixed my eyes on the fortress we were about to siege.
An outer wall surrounded the city which held a city filled of thousands of innocent citizens. In the heart of the city lay the palace castle, and it was constructed in such a way to show off the wealth of the country. The stone walls were engraved with the Plegian insignia and a large gold and violet shield rested above the palace entrance. The towers and walls went way into the sky with sturdy stone that was imported from Valm. It was a citadel and a formidable challenge, but with most of its garrison fleeing the fight. It was winnable.
...
Our men lined up in formation and readied to face the oncoming threat. The Shepherds were in the front with the battering ram and they would reach the gate first. In a few minutes our men would charge forward into a flaming barrage of arrows and desperately try to batter down the iron gates with the enemy on the other side. What hurt me the most was that I would be unable to join the fight due to my injury. Nonetheless, I stood by my fellow shepherds and I was right next to Chrom to give one last report.
"Cordelia says that more troops have fled from the fortress in the past hour. I imagine the men left have no will to fight us either." I held on to his shoulder and tried to support him. He lowered his head and looked at his feet.
"...Emm, In one act of peace she prevented a bitter war. She became a name to rally under ."
"Her courage was inspiring to us all."
"And now she is gone. I cannot hope to live up to her legacy. She did so much for everyone..."
"Chrom, I don't think either one of us is half the person your sister was. But together...maybe we can be something more. If you fall, I'll be there to pull you back up. When you fight for your sister's ideals, I'll be by your side. You don't have to become your sister, you know. You can still be true to yourself. You just have to give people hope in whatever way you can.
"And what if I can't? What if I'm not worthy of her ideals? Robin, what if I drag you down with me?"
"Then we pick ourselves up and try again. Emmeryn trusted the kingdom to you for a reason Chrom. She has just as much faith in you as I do.
"..."
"The shepherds will be here for you too, especially Sumia, and I will follow you until my last breath, so you better give me a good health plan." I chuckled and Chrom let a small smirk show on his face.
"... Thanks Robin."
"Don't mention it. And now that our spirits are lifted, I believe its time you lift the morale of the troops.
Chrom nodded and cleared his throat. He stepped on top of a rock as a step stool and everyone watched and listened to the man with a blue cape. His voice boomed through the air and I was sure the enemy could hear him speak.
...
"Men, women, Ylisseans, Feroxi, ...and friends. Today, I ask that you lend me your strength. Today, I ask you to draw your weapon against the enemy and fight for justice. Today, I fight with you on the battlefield not as your Prince, but as your fellow soldier. Today, I will give my life to protect anyone that is in trouble and I ask that you do the same because today is the day that we go against the Plegian horde.
We will honor a woman who would do anything to keep her kingdom safe... A woman who threw down her life to protect each and everyone of you. A woman filled with an unyielding desire for peace and prosperity. Her name was Emmeryn and we fight for what she stood for... But I must ask you that you do not fight in rage or hate. No, my sister would not want that. She would ask that you spare anyone who wishes for mercy. ... Let no innocent blood be spilled on this day. Don't taint her legacy by hurting anyone if they ask for a second chance. We owe her that much to honor her sacrifice.
Today I ask of you so much, and I can not promise you a safe return. However, it is important that we end this here. Emmeryn's sacrificed her life to stop the madness of this war, and her courage shall never be forgotten. She fought her entire life for this world to live in peace and treat each other with kindness. Today, we must finish what she started. Today, we will end the reign of the evil king and bring peace back to all of our lands!
Everyone raised their weapons and yelled at the tops of their lungs.
Today I ask you to draw your weapon against evil. Today we fight for a better tomorrow! A tomorrow where we can plow the fields instead of burn them. A tomorrow where we spend the days without worry or fear. A tomorrow that my sister dreamed of, and we will secure that future here and now. Today we will march into the Plegian palace victorious!
Lend me your strength my friends, lend me your strength. For freedom, for peace, for EMMERYN! CHARGE!
...
"FOR EMMERYN!" Everyone shouted and charged at the castle gates. Men ran past me on both sides and their speed created a wind that blew my robes forward. I had to shield my eyes from all of the sand they kicked up as they dashed ahead.
Gregor and Frederick were rushed with the battering ram despite its heavy weight and ran towards the walls with impressive speed. I did not need to see anyone's faces, but the determination in our soldiers eyes were fierce. They were closing the gap to the stone wall within seconds and to my bewilderment, not a single archer was firing at them. Plegia had men stationed at the top of the walls but not a single archer drew their bow. Our army's sprint to the walls went unhindered, and more importantly without a single casuality.
The battering ram reached the city gates within thirty seconds but it wasn't even needed. One of the Plegian captains order the gate to be opened and from my view-point I saw their archers drop their weapons. The shepherds and our army were now funneling into the city and making their way to the palace. The city defense had surrendered before a single arrow entered the sky. Deciding that it was safe, I trudged along in the desert sand to the city gates as everyone rallied in front of me.
Our army was already charging through the city streets when I was half way to the entrance and I was lone soldier left outside. Well, not completely alone. There was a woman in blue watching the battle unfold on the top of the ridge and I felt her eyes gaze on me a couple of times as I clumsily walked through the shifting sand.
By the time I reached the gate, the Shepherds were already fighting inside the palace. Frederick and Gregor had destroyed the fortress' iron door and plowed through the few remaining who did oppose them.
Looking for a good vantage point, I climbed a set of stairs and reached the top of the city walls. There were a few Feroxi guards up there to watch the Plegian archers, but more importantly I saw the view of the palace fight. The shepherds were working together just like I planned, but they were progressing far quicker than I expected. Even the palace guard was lightly defended which meant some of the most loyal Plegian guards had abandoned their king.
Chrom ran straight through the enemy cutting down anyone in his way with his trusty Pegasus companion by his side. Fire and dark magic erupted through the courtyard as the mages fought each other and swords clanged with the infantry holding their ground. Virion and Kellam found themselves busy protecting the healers with all the chaos happening around them. Eventually the enemy got too close and Virion had to drop his bow in exchange for his short sword. Kellam took the blunt of the blows while Virion fought carefully amidst the melee fighting.
Soldiers fell on both sides but the Shepherds seemed to be handling the situation the best and moved through the grounds fighting off anyone foolish enough to attack them.
It wasn't long before Chrom thrust his sword into Gangrel's chest and ended his life with his sacred Falchion blade.
The next moment the remaining soldiers surrendered seeing their king dead and our army shouted and celebrated. The battle was over, and the day, was won.
...
Unfortunately, our stay in Plegia was not over. It took a full week for thing to finally settle down despite the victory. Chrom and Lissa spent the first few days mourning for their sister now that they had time, but each day was another step they took forward. The next few days were spent mostly discussing politics. We had elected to install a puppet king in office for six months until thing settled down. After that we would let the locals decide who they would want to run the monarchy. There was also other political and local matters we had to take care that consumed a majority of our time. Once everything was settled, all that was left was to return to Ylisse and officially end the war.
"Robin, are you ready?"
"Just one more minute Lissa." I grabbed a book from one of the shelves, dusted it off, and added it to my pile.
"Oooo is the tactician stealing books?"
"I suppose that is one way of putting it. But I like to think of it as the spoils of war."
"We win a war and the only thing you can think of is taking their books?"
"Well, Chrom wont let us take their money." I chuckled and grabbed another book.""The only gold we received was for reparations. So I settled for the next best thing. The finest books in their archives."
"Booring."
"Ha, I suppose, but without a war, I am out of a job and I need to find something to do.
Lissa smiled and let out a small snort "I'm sure my brother could find something for you to do as part of the royal affairs.
"Hmm, I don't know. I think I might have to decline."
"What why?!" She cried in distress.
"I don't think I am the type of person to work for royalty. It sounds terribly boring."
"But what will you do then?!"
Hmm, I dunno, I will want a nice job with friendly people...like maybe advising a group of sheep herders.
Lissa's worry turned to a giant grin and she ran over to give me a giant bear hug. "Thank you Robin...For everything."
"Erg." I was lucky that she didn't squeeze me directly at my wound or would have collapsed to the floor. "D-don't mention it..."
"Nonsense, we will have to reward you somehow...hmm...Ah, I know. We will give you the second best room in the castle."
"Second best?"
"Yep! The best room goes to me of course and Chrom can sleep on the royal couch if necessary. " We both broke into laughter and Lissa let go of me. "You'll love your new home Robin."
Home...I don't think I have had one with four walls before.
"Robin?"
"Hmm? Sorry I was just thinking."
"Bah, I will need to teach you to relax and forget about thinking.
"I don't think that is such a good idea." I teased and she stuck her tongue out at me.
"See, that is my point. It's a terrible idea and that is why it is perfect."
"...I don't understand."
Ha Ha *snort* don't worry, you will realize my methods soon enough. I'll teach you all you need to know about having fun without thinking."
"Sounds, interesting."
"I'll even give you your first lesson on our way back, but we need our legendary tactician to move from the library before we can head out."
"Heh, just give me one more second, I need to pilfer a couple more books." I chuckled and she smiled with a glow in her face for the first time since Emmeryn died.
"Okay, but hurry up! We've spent a full week here since the battle and I am sick of this desert. I want to get home as quickly as possible."
"As you command, princess."
...
*Yawn* "I think that is enough for tonight Morgan." Robin stretched his arms and struggled to keep his eyes open.
"I thought the story was supposed to help me get to sleep not you." Morgan teased.
"Ha, I guess I am just that good at telling stories."
"That or it is so boring that you put yourself to sleep." She stuck her tongue out and squinted her eyes.
"I'd like to think it was the former." Robin chuckled and leaned over to kiss his daughter on her forehead. "Good night little one."