Chapter Twelve: The Battle of Steiger
All of us could have used a rest by the time we'd climbed back down the Mila Tree, but alas, it was not to be. Basilio and Flavia were waiting for us at the base along with a plain looking man I didn't know. They seemed anxious.
It turned out he was a spy working for the resistance movement, and he'd come here looking for Say'ri to deliver critical information. She quickly took him aside and listened to his report before returning. By the look on her face, the news was grim.
"Walhart has left the capital," she announced. "The Valmese army is divided into three forces of near equal size. One is with Walhart headed this way from the north, the second under the command of my brother Yen'fay and approaching from the south. The third is holding position at Fort Steiger, immediately southwest of here."
"No doubt they'll try to surround us and attack from all directions," Destin said. "With their numbers, we have no chance of victory going against all three armies at once. While Lady Tiki's support will surely prove invaluable in the days to come, we're dangerously overextended right now. Walhart knows that."
"So what should we do?" Chrom asked the tactician. "I'd hate to think we've come all this way just to retreat."
"I'm not sure we could pull off an effective retreat in our current position. The Valmese specialize in cavalry, and I'm certain that makes up the bulk of Walhart's force. He could easily ride us down on the way back to Valm Harbor." Destin scratched his head uncomfortably before continuing. "Our best chance is to strike now, while the enemy is divided. If we can eliminate one of the forces, we'll earn ourselves some breathing space and hopefully provoke some action out of the southern dynasts."
"I don't think we want to take on Walhart directly, not yet," Flavia said. "And if we march to meet Yen'fay's army than the force in Steiger could take the field and pincer us. I guess that really leaves us one option."
"What kind of intelligence do you have on this fort, Say'ri?" Destin asked.
"Steiger predates the Valmese Empire, and it's somewhat timeworn. I seem to recall that one of our agents managed to steal a structural plan of the fort, but it had no significant value to the resistance at the time. We may still have it."
"That would be helpful. Speed is definitely going to be the deciding factor here. We need to defeat the forces inside Steiger with enough time left over to maneuver afterwards. If we can carry enough momentum from our victory there, we should be able to smash Yen'fay's southern force as well. But if Walhart gets here too quickly… things will get ugly."
"We won't be able to use all of our forces in the attack on Steiger, but we may have another use for them. If we send a blocking force to delay Walhart on the road, that might give us the time we need," Destin concluded.
"Won't we basically be sacrificing those troops, though?" Chrom asked. He didn't look very pleased by the idea.
"Most likely," Destin said. "They won't be able to stop Walhart, only slow him down. The best battles are the ones where you don't have to lose any soldiers, but we don't have that luxury right now."
I watched the raven haired tactician carefully. I could see that he wasn't happy about it either, but he thought it would give us the best chance of victory. When it came to strategy, Destin didn't let his personal feelings get in the way – I had noticed this lately, but only now did it make sense to me. We were here to fight a war, and all wars had casualties.
"It seems our main course of action is decided in any case," Basilio said. "If speed is important, then I'll go and get the army moving right away. If there's anything else that needs to be done, try to decide it quickly." The bald Khan marched away, shouting orders at his men.
"If you agree, I believe it would be best for me to venture on ahead," Say'ri said. "I need to get in contact with my comrades in the resistance if we're to obtain those plans. In addition, I might be able to rally some additional troops to our cause. It seems the decisive battle will be fought sooner than expected, and we need every man we can find."
"Yes, I think that would be for the best," Chrom said. "Destin? Flavia?"
"No arguments here," Flavia replied lazily.
"It's a risk with such a large number of Valmese troops nearby, but I think it's a good idea. I'm going to have Cherche fly you wherever it is you need to go on her dear Minerva. It'll be faster and safer."
Say'ri sighed. "I have never been overly fond of wyverns, but you are correct. I will manage."
She took her leave, and the rest of us prepared ourselves to set out once more. Judging from the distance we'd be able to march most of the way to Steiger in the little daylight we had left, then rest up for one night before the attack. The Shepherds in particular were uniformly exhausted, and I was no exception to that.
Destin and I had our first tactics lesson when we made camp that night. I was physically tired, but my mind was still fresh enough to absorb what he was teaching me. It was no kind of formal lecture; we just sprawled out on the floor of his tent while he talked about the uses of different classes of troops and the effects of terrain on one's deployments. Occasionally he'd leaf through one of his books and point out a particular passage to me, or else make an example of one of his own strategies.
I was determined to learn all that I could as fast as I could, and I think the honest effort I put in really helped. I already had a foundation of sorts, seeing as I had already commanded troops in battle. I simply hadn't understood the nuances behind every decision to be made in a fight. It was a good thing I'd only battled Risen in my own time; they didn't use tactics, or hadn't until recently.
It was something of a new experience for me. The only thing I'd really been taught how to do before was swordplay, and that had been years ago. Lon'qu's teaching style had been to show me how to do a maneuver and then push me until I got it right. Sparring had been his preferred tool, and he hadn't taken it easy on me just because I was a woman or the heir to a nation. But I'd survived it, and there were few living who could match my skill with a blade.
This was different. It didn't really feel like Destin was teaching at all, rather we were talking about things that he had a better understanding of than I did. If I was wrong, he would gently correct me and explain to me why that was the case. It felt so natural that I got a bit carried away, and didn't end up going back to my own tent until very late.
Even then I didn't find sleep immediately. I lay in my blankets with my head rested on my hands thinking, mostly about the lesson and the man giving it. I really didn't know what I thought of him anymore, except that I liked being around him. His presence put me at ease like few other things could, gave me things to think about other than my problems. A smile curved my lips just recalling the last few hours.
If only I could know for certain just where he'd come from, why I'd never met him in my world, and why Naga's Voice seemed so afraid of him. If I had those questions answered, then I could trust him completely, and then… what? I fell asleep before I could sort that out.
A surprise awaited me when I woke the next morning; it seemed that Cynthia was not the only one of my companions to have been deposited on this continent by the Rift. Three others had joined up with the Ylissean League, and by now the soldiers knew well enough to just pass anyone who claimed to know me on.
There was Laurent, tall and a perfect model of good manners and study. He had certainly inherited his mother Miriel's spirit as well as her magical skill. My cousin Owain, a fine swordsman and probably the most dramatic man in existence, had apparently woken a considerable section of the camp with some ridiculous entrance. The third was Gerome, Cherche's son, who arrived in the morning riding on the older version of his mother's own Minerva. I told him that Cherche wasn't here, but the stoic and perpetually masked man simply shrugged.
"I've waited this long," he said. "Another day means little."
The decision whether or not to tell their parents about their origins was left up to them. That was the compromise we had come to when I had introduced Cynthia to my mother and father a few days past. Some of them would want their parents to know them for who they were, so that they could spend as much time as possible in the company of the family they had loved – and eventually lost. Others might not want such things complicating an already difficult mission, and would say nothing. That was their choice.
It cheered me to have more of my old friends at my side, especially now. The next few days were the most crucial of the entire war, and the more fighters we had the better. Someday, I hoped, we would all be reunited so that we could finish what we'd come here to do together.
Only a short distance lay between our camp and Steiger. An hour of marching brought us to the level plain on which the fort had been constructed. It wasn't especially tall as far as such structures went, but boasted a broad, sprawling design.
As anticipated, it seemed the Valmese army wouldn't be taking the field against us, nor would they attempt to hold the walls. Their strategy would be to use their superior knowledge of the fort to fight us corridor by corridor, holding us for as long as possible. Their commander surely knew as well as we did that if he lasted long enough, Walhart and Yen'fay would arrive to relieve the siege.
No sooner had we formed a cordon around the fort then Cherche returned with Say'ri. The resistance leader quickly dismounted and made her way over to where I stood with my father and the other leaders of the League.
"Say'ri," Chrom greeted her. "How did it go?"
"Well enough, sir," Say'ri replied, removing a thick scroll from underneath her coat and handing it to Destin. "It seems fortune smiles upon us today, for the plans remained after all. Not only that, but the dynasts have brought a sizable army and are even now infiltrating the network of tunnels built underneath Steiger. It seems they're finally ready to stand up for themselves."
"Good news indeed," Destin replied, unfurling the map. His eyes darted across the parchment, swiftly taking in the crucial details. He started muttering to himself under his breath.
"Have any of the dynasts come here with you?" Flavia asked.
"Nay," Say'ri said, shaking her head. "They opted to remain with their own forces. Truth be told, I think they're waiting for us to start the assault before they make a move. I imagine their hope is that the majority of the losses will be ours."
I hissed angrily at that. "Greedy and self-centered to the last. It's as though the freedom of their continent wasn't at stake here." A heavy sigh followed. "I suppose we need all the help we can get, even if we don't exactly see eye to eye."
"Aye," Chrom said. "We'll worry about the dynasts' attitudes later. Right now, we have a fortress to take – and quickly. Are you ready, Destin?"
"Yeah. This will be pretty straightforward for the most part. Most of the army's going to maintain the encirclement, both to prevent a retreat and hamper the enemy's movement. Basilio and Flavia will remain in charge out here."
"And here I was hoping for a real fight today," Basilio said sadly. "It's been too long since I had a good brawl."
I stared at the balding Khan. Sometimes it was difficult to tell whether he was joking or not. It was exactly the kind of time that he'd try to crack jokes, but I wouldn't be surprised to find out he was serious.
"You'll get your chance after today, Basilio," Destin replied. "Make sure you keep a close eye on all the entrances. The rest of us will be entering through the three passages on the north side; Red through the left, Green the right, and Blue the center. We'll need regular army troops to come in behind us to secure the passageways. We can't have the Valmese getting in behind us."
I wanted to see what he was basing his decisions on, since I had a feeling it would help me understand his lessons a little better. I walked up to his side and peered over his shoulder at the map, which was a rather complex looking architectural plan rather than a simple layout. I could barely make out the general design from all the lines and figures, but after a moment I saw the entrances Destin had been talking about.
"According to this, the corridors Red and Blue are going in through meet a short ways in," Destin continued. "They'll continue onwards as the main thrust. Green will go as far as the first major hall, at which point they'll remain in a holding position and await further orders. That reminds me…" His gaze flicked away from the map and onto me. Standing as close as I was, we were suddenly eye to eye, and my breathing experienced a slight hitch. Destin seemed totally unaware of the effect he was having on me.
"I've decided to give command of Green to Lucina," he said, still regarding me intensely. "So that'll be your lookout."
"M-me?" I stammered, wishing this hateful blush would disappear. Wasn't this exactly what I'd been hoping for – a chance to really do something of value? "But I…"
"The only reason I had Cordelia lead Green previously was because she could keep her cool and would follow my orders," Destin said. "She was never really much for tactics. I know we only just started, but you've already learned enough for me to trust you with this, Lucina."
"Oh… well then…" Why was it so hard to think?
"Let's get moving anyways," the tactician said, swiveling to face the others. "If I think of anything else I'll let you know. We need to be about our business."
"Right," Chrom said.
I managed to reclaim my wits quickly enough to follow Chrom, Destin, and Say'ri when they walked off to where the rest of the Shepherds were waiting quietly. They stopped only long enough for Destin to give his orders, at which point the three groups separated and headed for the designated points of entry. I strode up to right doorway, feeling a little self-conscious now that I was supposed to be leading this group. Well, Destin had trusted me to do it. He wouldn't have put me in command if I couldn't.
The advance was signaled shortly afterwards, and I cautiously led my group inside. The interior of the fortress was uniformly beige stone, old but well maintained. The hallway seemed empty, but there were small niches carved into the walls at regular intervals. Perhaps it was nothing, but…
"Ricken, smoke one of those niches out," I ordered.
The young mage focused for a moment before gesturing, and a gout of flame exploded out of the closest niche. A blackened corpse fell out of it a moment later. Where there was one, there would be more. Sure enough, the rest of the Valmese charged out of cover to attack. They'd expected to fall on us further down the corridor, but they knew they'd been found out.
I lunged forward to meet the attack, thinking to stall for time so the others could form up. The first Valmese soldier blocked my leading slash with his shield and parried my second, but the third reached past and cut across his chest. I didn't have time to finish him off; I had to throw myself towards the wall to avoid several arrows cutting through the air where I'd just been. The next two Valmese soldiers arrived, one of them pulling out a staff and healing the wound I'd just inflicted on the first.
It seemed these troops were no slouches. Whoever was in charge at least understood deployments, having composed this group with archers, healers, and standard frontline types. Up until now the only strategy we'd seen from the Valmese had been to crush the enemy with overwhelming power, but someone here knew better.
Twin blasts of flame streaked down the hall and into the Valmese, immediately followed by the rest of the group charging. I separated the enemy healer and brought him down with two quick strikes while he was still reeling from the magical assault. Others finished off the remaining two Valmese soldiers before continuing their momentum towards the next group. An arrow grazed my cheek, drawing a bloody line across my face, but it wasn't enough to slow me down.
We crashed into the enemy like an avalanche, the fight quickly becoming a bloody melee. With the fighters clumped so closely together, both sides' distance attackers gave up and began targeting each other instead. Ricken and Maribelle managed to take the archers at the far end of the hall down with their magic, but both took arrow wounds for their trouble. The rest of us managed to cut our way through the press, and soon after the engagement was over.
It was necessary to pause there for a time to heal our injuries and ready ourselves for the next fight. Maribelle was already working hard to get around to everyone who needed healing with her staff, so I wiped the blood off my cheek and drank a vulnerary rather than wait for her. Immediately the stinging sensation died down, though I imagined I'd still have a scar for a little while.
I briefly wondered how the other teams were doing, but I stopped myself before I could start worrying. One of the things Destin had been most insistent on when teaching me was that when other people were involved, you had to trust them to do what they said they could do. Constantly worrying about them would only lead to second guessing and mistakes.
We started forward again after a minute, clearing the first corridor and reaching an intersection. The rooms to either side were dead ends, while straight ahead was the main hall we'd been ordered to capture. The side rooms would be left to the soldiers following behind us, but the hall was our duty.
Advancing cautiously, we entered the hall and spread out. Stone columns lined the sides of the room, and the center was dominated by several staircases going down. No doubt these led to the tunnel system Say'ri had mentioned. I hadn't paid much attention to that part of the map, since it wasn't our concern. One passage at the other end of the hall led further on, while a second on the left side would take us to the areas the other groups were assaulting.
I was all but certain the enemy was lying in wait here as well, although none were visible. Clashes of steel and shouts were audible in the distance, but it was nearly silent in the hall. How to go about flushing out the enemy? Sometimes the fastest way to expose a trap was to trigger it. I motioned for the rest of the group to take cover behind the columns on our side, then walked out into the open center of the hall to see what would happen.
I wasn't disappointed. Bolts of lightning shot out from behind several columns and even the side passage, converging on where I was. I hurled myself forward into a roll, feeling the air sizzle above me as the spells shot overhead. The Valmese broke their cover and rushed forward, many more than had been in the previous group. Coming out of my roll, I darted forward to get cover behind a column before their mages could take another shot at me. I was still isolated on the far side of the room, but not for long.
The first Valmese warrior that rounded the corner took my thrust with Falchion full in the chest, yet still managed a solid swing with his axe that only narrowly went over my head before I slashed through his throat. A swordsman came at me from the other side with a flurry of blows, each of which I deftly evaded. His last slash I parried and pushed his sword away before thrusting straight through his heart. Other combats sprung up all throughout the hall.
The most important thing I could think of at that moment was to eliminate the Valmese mages, who were hiding in the rear. I was ideally positioned for it, closer than any of my comrades to the ones at this end of the hall. Another few moments brought no further attacks against me, and I took the opportunity to round the pillar and rush forwards. I came upon three of the spell casters together; they clearly hadn't expected me.
I managed to carry the momentum of my sprint into my attack. My first slash cut across the eyes of the first and cleaved into the second's throat, unleashing a glittering spray of blood. The third released a lightning spell into me at nearly point blank range, flooding my body with alternating pain and numbness. I barely managed to stay standing, and in the following moment slew the last with a thrust.
Turning back to the center of the hall, I found the battle to be over. The few Valmese survivors had fled out the side passage, where Gerome and Cordelia were standing over the bodies of the other Valmese mages. The others gathered in the center of the room, where I joined them. Once again, nearly all of us bore injuries of some kind.
Still, we'd achieved our objective. Unless orders came from Destin, we were simply to hold this area to prevent the enemy from using it as a staging point. The battle was far from over, but if the combined Blue and Red groups had advanced as far as we had then it wouldn't be too long before it became a mop up operation. If the dynasts' troops attacked from the tunnels, the Valmese would be hard pressed to hold their ground. Trapped as they were, it would be easy for them to collapse.
A few minutes of rest helped rejuvenate the Shepherds under my command, along with Maribelle's healing. One of Flavia's lieutenants briefly entered the hall to let me know that the rooms behind us had been cleared and secured, and that they would take over guarding the hall if we were ordered into action. I moved to lean against one of the pillars when a familiar voice from behind startled me.
"Pssst… Lucina."
I turned to find Gaius leaning around the corner, several cuts visible in his light armor and the end of a candy stick protruding from his mouth. Knives hung from both his hands. "What are you doing here, Gaius?" I asked. "You're with Red, aren't you?"
"Yeah, but Destin sent me with a message, so I slipped past," the thief replied. "Listen. The dynasts aren't on our side at all. Their men came up from the tunnels and attacked our flank. We were unprepared since we thought they were allies."
"But what happened?" I demanded, appalled at what he was saying.
"Dunno. But the main bulk of them are gonna be coming up this way, and it'll be trouble if they join up with the Valmese. Destin says to hold your position here and take them out as they come up. As long as their side's covered, Destin and Chrom won't be too much longer in finishing this."
"Right."
Inside I was uncertain, dwelling on the meaning of this sudden reversal of fortune. But I had work to do before I could think it over. I instructed the rest of my group to take cover behind the columns so that we could ambush the dynasts' men when they arrived.
We didn't have to wait long. Only a minute or two after we'd taken positions, footsteps began echoing up the stone staircases. A number of men exited into the hall, though I could only hear them from where I was standing.
"The hell?" One of them exclaimed angrily. "The Ylisseans were supposed to be here!"
"Maybe they went on already?" Another suggested. "If they have, we should follow. You heard that toady looking guy – five hundred a head. We can't miss out on that."
Fury rose in my chest, obliterating my sense of calm. They'd actually placed bounties on our heads? Despicable, even if this was a war. I didn't need to hear any more, and I wasn't the only one to break cover in the next moment and charge the new arrivals. They had expected nothing, and caught completely flatfooted they had no semblance of a formation. Not only that, these men were nowhere near the level of quality of the Valmese soldiers we'd been facing. They were little more than thugs.
It was over in seconds. What followed was a frustrating game of cat and mouse, in which the dynasts' troops continually attempted to exit the tunnels and form up and we did our best to prevent it. Unfortunately, we couldn't afford to go down into the basement after them. That would be an invitation for them to separate and take us down, not to mention we'd be leaving the hall unguarded.
That said, we definitely got the better of them. Only a few individuals slipped past, with most being cut down before they managed to get anywhere. No serious injuries were sustained among our group. Eventually they stopped trying. I imagined they were probably withdrawing after learning just what they'd gotten themselves into.
With everything on our end secure, I decided it was time to find out how things were elsewhere. Leaving Cordelia in charge, I ventured down the side hall towards where the others would be. The bodies of Valmese troops and the dynasts' men littered the floor, the stone walls decorated with blood. Several Feroxi soldiers stood guard in the hallway; once they recognized me, they waved me on.
I came within sight of an intersection where Destin and Chrom were standing, but before I could hail them a voice called to them on the other side and they strode off towards it. I followed them, going down another corridor before entering a richly decorated room. More Valmese corpses lay strewn about, but one, a female mage with white hair, was still alive – though not for much longer judging from the wounds she had.
"You are the imperial commander here, yes?" Destin asked her. She only nodded in reply. "Then, will you surrender? Those injuries will be fatal, but we can help you if…"
He cut off as the woman laughed, coughing up blood in the process. "Surrender?" She said mockingly. "Never. I will die here, but Walhart will crush you. He will. I may not live to see him conquer the world, but… I have seen it in my dreams. That is enough."
Her eyes went vacant then, and she slid down the wall even further. If she wasn't dead already, she would be in a few moments. A shiver went down my spine. Somehow, with our supposed reinforcements turning on us, I couldn't help but agree with her.