Chapter 8: Trial By Combat
The Ferox Arena was caped with skylights, opening to the slate sky. Once the storm broke, rain would fall in and turn the tiles dark. Robin simply pulled her hood up and over her face, her hand thumbing through the pages of the spell tome.
'Get used to the feel of it,' she told herself, pushing the novelty and fragility of the thin pages aside. The Khans had asked her to act as a champion. She'd do her best to be worthy of the station. Her eyes strayed as her hands played with the pages, and her gaze settled on Chrom. The one familiar point in a strange arena.
Chrom caught her watching him, and gave her a quick nod. There might have been a brief smile on his face, before the weight of combat took over.
"You've only been with us for a short time, I know. But you're one of the best spell casters we have on board; that would give us an advantage in whatever this combat trial is." He'd said that once their practice was through. The had rain pattered on the thick bubbled glass of the windows; a precursor for the storm bound to hit on the next day. "And when I've fought beside you, I feel like I'm at my best. Weird as that sounds. And… The Khans probably want you to fight as well, since you were there for the initial brawl that started all this."
Chrom raised his head, taking in those on the arena stands. Once again, the presence of so many faces was a touch unnerving for Robin. So many eyes on her, almost burrowing into her skin... and now multiplied a hundredfold. Chrom glanced over his shoulder to her. His hand followed his eyes, his fingers reaching out and brushing over her own.
"Easy; don't get so worked up, or hurt yourself." He murmured, and Robin stared down at the fist she was making; her fingers had dug crescent shapes into her palm. "Get a lay of the area instead. Anything we can use?"
Her focus snapped to the arena floor, taking in the layout.
"Large area," Robin murmured. "Plenty of room to move around in-"
Her words faded out when the two Khans stepped forward on the upper lip of the arena, drawing all eyes. The man with an eye patch, Basilio, addressed the crowd.
"Alright, you lot!" His voice boomed out. "You've all been flapping your mouths about this enough, so let's get some facts straight! We're entertaining these Ylisseans as guests for now, but not allies. That's something they must prove for themselves, that they're worthy of standing alongside Ferox!"
An enthusiastic roar of a approval greeted his words. The myriad voices drowned the storm rumbling outside.
"I guess they've got traditions of their own... though done in their own fashion." Chrom murmured. Robin gave a cautious nod.
The rumble of thunder set her teeth on edge. The storm seemed to press in on her head and chest, and forced her to take deep breaths. Robin tried to focus on inhaling and exhaling, before the thunder and crowd calls turned overwhelming. She tried to scan the arena again, her eyes jumping from floor to ceiling, before pausing on a gap in the wall.
A second look showed a gate carved into the wall, worn iron bars and bleached wood forming a door to the outside. Beyond, gray waves rose and fell in rhythmic patterns. Almost like the tides themselves inhaled and exhaled.
"...What's that about?" She muttered, and tugged at Chrom's fingers. Robin nodded to the spot on the wall once she had his attention, and Chrom's eyes went wide. He stared at the motions of the waves, almost entranced.
Up until Flavia took the next point. She slammed a mailed fist against the stone lip of the arena, the clash making Robin jolt and Chrom flinch. Their hands broke apart from the motion, and their eyes darted to Flavia.
"The tides are right for a judgment! We'll see what sort of strength they have, matched against some of our best! Let the ocean preside over this fight; all are equal against the waves." Judging by the finality of her tone, that was the signal to begin the match. Flavia stepped back, and the gate blocking the ocean creaked open. Sea water flooded in through the gaps, tired of being held back.
Waves crashed against the walls of the arena, forming a shallow pool. Sound and white flecked foam mingled with the cheers of the spectators.
"Champions of Ylisse!" Flavia called to him. "Name yourselves!"
"Prince Chrom of Ylisse!" Chrom shouted back, swallowing his nerves. "Proving the strength and worth of my people!"
The crowd shouted approval, though jeers still worked through. "Show it then, boy!" shouted one of the Ferox spectators, and others echoed the shout. Overhead the skies gave another low rumble.
"And you, girl?" There wasn't any malice in Flavia's tone, but Robin still picked up on a sense of urgency, a desire to get things underway.
"I-" her voice squeaked out, interrupted when a dazzling bolt of lightning flooded the arena. She half expected the roof to collapse from either the lightning strike, or else get flattened by the boom of thunder that followed.
The waves pounded at the gate, spraying more seawater in. The toes of her boots were already wet, and the sharp salt air flooded her senses.
The feel of the tides braced her. Salt spray splashed her face; it squared her shoulders back and drew up her head to face a different sea. One full of unknown faces. But with the taste of salt on her lips, Robin found that she could meet them. And at last find words.
"I'm Robin, of the Shepherd and the waters! The waves brought me to Ylisse, and I'll repay the kindness of her people!" A sudden lightness filled her chest at that, and a wild grin threatened to split her face.
'Because every word of that is truth.' She caught a brief flash of emotion in Chrom's face; surprise widened his eyes, and something else pulled his lips into a faint smile.
The crowd seemed to enjoy the speech as well. A sharp edged whistle cut through the roar of the crowd, and snatched at Robin's focus. She lifted her eyes and glimpsed Lissa and Maribelle on the sidelines. Maribelle clapped her pink gloved hands over her ears from the noise, while Lissa waved with her free hand.
"You face our best, in single combat. Basilio's swordsman, Lon'qu. And my own enforcer, Raimi." At Flavia's words, a pair of warriors splashed into the shallows of the arena.
Raimi had been intimidating before, and was all the more formidable with the new set of armor. She gave Robin a brief bow of the head, acknowledging her.
"The conditions are to fight until a coup de grace can be delivered. Prepare yourselves!"
-o-o-o-
Morgan climbed over the rocks, trying to keep a low profile and move quiet as any shadow-
The key word being 'try.' His feet were determined to find every catch in the rocky shore, and send him tripping over the stones. It was a lucky thing his cloak blended into the gray rocks… and that there weren't any eyes on the shore in the first place. All of the gazes, guards included, were turned inward to the strange bowl shaped and capped building. Cheers rose from the notched windows, matching the roar of the tide and spurring Morgan forward.
A splash of waves tugged at his feet, as Morgan slipped into another gap. His hand clutched a blue painted object close to his chest, leaving him to stagger. But he didn't dare let go of the mask. Not after Morgana had pushed it into his hands. The rocks thankfully evened out… just like Morgana had said. She had stayed behind, minding a small boat out in the harbor, keeping clear of the bay rocks.
Her words echoed in his mind; 'You need to be here. You'll see what I mean once you reach the entrance.' That spurred him forward, towards the looming metal gate. How he was going to get through it, he didn't know yet. But he could at least brace himself against it, and look in.
A four person duel greeted him.
Morgan froze, numb to the tide's lash and chill. The battering of the waves couldn't compare to the shock of seeing the figures beyond the gate. Shock, and the odd lurch they caused in his heart.
A pair of names brushed at his thoughts, at the sight of them.
'Chrom… and Robin.'
"Begin!" Shouted a voice, signaling the fight.
"Let's see how your fight outside of a bar brawl." The knight said, before slamming the guard plate down over her face.
Morgan held his breath as he watched the clash.
Chrom almost danced across the arena floor, agile as any gull. His steps and sword slashed and parted the waters, clashing with his opponent. But that same grace didn't seem to apply to Robin; Morgan wondered if her feet shared the same problems as his.
A flash of lightning caught glints of metal around the white haired woman's neck. His gaze lingered on a bright chain and disc attached to the necklace, wondering. He swore the gold seemed to blaze against the storm.
"Come on…" Morgan whispered, praying she'd strike back.
Instead she was busy dodging javelin strikes. The Feroxi knight and swordsman circled the two, pinning them in place. Chrom and Robin went back to back, the touch slowing them. They couldn't dodge the sword and spear strikes, wounds opening in a splash of red.
Robin sank down, hand on her side. Chrom wasn't standing as tall, red running along a gash in his arm. The blood splattered into seawater, staining waves and foam in a muddy scarlet.
Another wave caught Morgan and streamed past him, into the arena. Thunder growled a warning, but he kept his back to the storm.
'Come on, get up!' Robin seemed to answer his thoughts… that, or drew strength from the waters. A wave washed over her, and instead of half drowning her, she flowed with the motion. It swept her past the general's spear strike before it could land.
She rolled to her feet, drawing open her spell book. Her fingers tore at the paper and the violent motion shot a bolt of magic from the book.
Overhead the thunder gave another pulse, making the armor and swords shine bright. A thunderbolt leapt from Robin and slammed into the general, knocking her to the ground. The swordsman staggered, blinded from the flare.
The same didn't apply to Chrom. His eyes were closed, sword reflecting light, but he stayed nimble.
"To your left!" Robin called out, and Chrom spun about. He caught the sword strike before it could land, spinning the enemy blade aside in an arc. Both blades sent up splashes. Before the other swordsman could recover, Chrom charged with his shoulder, knocking his opponent over and into the waves.
Morgan stared at the two figures, standing proud in the middle of the arena. Robin's dark robes teased his memories, and made his eyes sting. They echoed what hung around his arms, and Morgana's.
'I-I should know her.' So why was there only blue flooding his mind, threatening to go eye searing white the longer he stared at her? He clutched the mask close to his chest.
'You'd best put that on, soon.' He tried to tell himself, pulling his eyes away from Robin-
And settled his gaze instead on the blue haired man next to her. An ache surged through his chest. He yanked his head down, burying his face in the mask. The ache cut off… and in its place his senses filled with the rushing of water. The tide slammed into him, sick of being ignored.
The gates gave a shriek, buckling under the force of the waves. Morgan couldn't tell which would give way first; the aged steel, or his own ribs. The storm howled in his ears, plastering his hair flat from sheets of rain. He shook his head, trying to clear his sight-
That was how his eyes landed on the shapes, emerging from the harbor.
-o-o-o-
The blast of thunder drowned Chrom's senses. He saw only white, the taste and smell of electricity flooded his mouth and nose, and the slam of thunder deafened his ears.
He barely stood against the explosion of sound, his legs shuddering and balance fading. The next wave caught Chrom across the stomach, and finished what the thunder started. He crashed into the water, salt flooding his mouth and banished the taste of lightning.
Chrom sputtered and coughed, fighting to clear his sight.
There wasn't an arena to greet his eyes. An explosion of white buildings filled his vision instead, wavering in and out like a mirage. The pale structures could have been an ancestor to Ylisse, but they flickered in and out, like something from a fever dream. Before he could focus on them, something massive blazed across the sky (while his head screamed in confusion that there was no sky; he was supposed to be indoors) with a roar-
"C-Chrom!?" A pair of hands clapped around his shoulders, yanking him out of the water. The vision faded, replaced by the Feroxi arena. Robin hovered over him, her arms shaking as she tried to pull him up. He gripped at her arms, finally surfacing from the waves.
"What… what just happened?" He managed. His vision was still blurry, and he rubbed at his eyes to try and clear them.
"The door… it burst open, and brought in half the bay with it." Robin gestured around them, the waves almost up to their chests. Another wave slammed through the doorway, tossing white capped waves with it… and something else, that moved in the current like a shark on the hunt.
The entire arena went hushed at those shapes. The thunder was determined to echo and hum in Chrom's ears as he watched the shadows churn through the waves. The first of the shapes detached from the waves, water running in curtains and veils off a human face.
'Human?' Chrom paused at the sight, staring. Flecks of green-black lined the human face, turning into a flood of dark scales near the torso where a tail grew. Gills cut into the creature's neck and flared with each breath it took, and it bared teeth against Chrom, its fins all set to bristling.
The thunder rumbled again, as more shapes detached from the waves. Every one of them with a hungry look in their eyes.
"What… Are we looking at? This isn't real, is it?" The rush of waves threatened to drown out Robin's voice, strangled and hushed as it was.
"Mer… And they aren't just wild tales." They were more real than the fables and songs suggested. He couldn't turn to her; couldn't look away from the things rising from the depths. Their tails thrashed at the arena tides, turning it to foam.
Maybe he was still caught up in the vision. Seeing things that had no right to exist outside of tales, clawing their way out of the waves. There were half a dozen of them with different arrays of fins, spines, talons… and all too sharp, serrated teeth.
One locked eyes with him, the sclera black as a moonless ocean… and the pupils a startling blue, almost a match for his own. There was a fearlessness to those eyes. One that drove a chill into his blood. The water pushing against his chest only added to that.
Rain splashed through the skylight of the arena, pushing an extra bite and chill to the air. The light in the pinprick windows went wane. Chrom watched it turn into a weak silvery thing that completed the illusion of being underwater-
One of the windows burst open with a shattering of green and blue glass. The wind howled through the gap, whipped into a frenzy by the storm… and a strange hum that seemed to saturate the air. A hum that reminded him of the what had lurked in the storm, when they'd first encountered the ghost ships. It teased the edges of Chrom's hearing.
'A… A song?'
It was coming from the throat of one of the Mer. She hung near the entrance, letting the rest of her forces surge forward. Her throat flashed pale in the thunder, her hair an inky black.
A breath later, the glass from the shattered windows sliced down and filled the space around him. Shards cut at his arms, prompting a gasp from Robin, once she saw his skin part. A thread of blood traced down his shoulder, mingling with the rain and dripping off his arm-
The Mer surged forwards at the first drop, once it splashed and clouded the water with dusty red. Their leader raised her voice, the song turning into a scream equal to the storm above. The sound alone threatened to rupture his ears and knock him flat-
But before it could, a scaled form crashed into his gut and knocked him prone. The arena tumbled about him, before his face hit the waves and water tried to flood his throat. Through the rippling waves he glimpsed the arena. The Feroxi troops broke out of their confusion. Muted shouts and orders filtered through the currents, telling everyone to fight. Their calls drew Raimi and Lon'qu back to their feet, and the two fought against the currents as they brought their weapons up.
Chrom lashed out, the pommel of his sword catching the creature in the ribs, forcing it back. Its talons caught on his cloak, tearing away shreds of it and tangling him in the waves. Chrom kicked with his feet, battering the Mer's chest as he tried to wrench free… but with mixed results. The Mer yanked at him, trying to drag him towards the gate-
A sword pierced the waters, and cleanly severed the strands of cape that kept him bound to the Mer's claws. With another desperate kick, Chrom broke free. His head surfaced in a spray, followed by his shoulders as he gasped for breath.
"Th… Thanks-" Chrom gasped out, scrubbing the seawater from his eyes. "Robin-?"
His voice broke down, once his eyes remembered how to work. The figure wore the same robes as Robin… but the last time he checked, she didn't have short blue hair. Or hid her face behind a mask. Navy painted wood covered the stranger's face, mixing with sea-colored hair; both things drew his eyes, and left his balance boneless.
'Another Tide Touched?' He didn't have time to ask; once the boy saw he was breathing, he whirled to where Robin still stood.
"Please, wake up!" The boy clapped a hand on Robin's shoulder, shaking her out of whatever daze she'd been in. She blinked, staring at the boy, taking in the mask. Another Mer breached free from the waves. It carried a short sword that seemed half rust, but still held a wicked enough edge.
The tide carried the Mer and added momentum and ferocity to his swing.
"Behind you!" Chrom barely had time to yell out. The stranger flinched from his words, twisting to the side. But his motions were sluggish, and couldn't match the way the blade screamed through the air… And how it bit into him.
Chrom went rigid when he saw the impact. It may have been a glancing blow, but it still tore a red stained line across the boy's back.
The stranger gave a pained noise, going rigid and slumping against Robin. In answer, Robin's hand flashed out. With the motion came a blast of thunder magic, slamming into the Mer. The blade was wrenched free from the stranger's back, and he slumped into the waters. Chrom splashed towards them, drawing Falchion and trying to keep the Mer at bay. He picked out more weapons in the hands of the Mer, rising in shark fin points from the waves.
'Too many.' He realized with a lurch.
"COME ON!" Came a shout from the stands. He looked up to see a dozen shapes jumping over the sides of the arena, landing with splashes. The Mer snarled forward, a collection of scaled figures crashing against armored fighters. Chrom blinked again, recognizing Stahl and Sully throwing back the creatures.
Beyond them, Emmeryn and Lissa crouched over Lon'qu and Raimi. Emmeryn had borrowed a stave, and drew magic from it with a motion of her hand. A soft white light settled over the wounds of Lon'qu and Raimi, as his sisters kept the gloom of the storm at bay. Phila watched both of them, standing tall even without a pegasus.
'That almost makes us a match for them.' Chrom turned to the swarm of Mer.
His pulse and heartbeat matched with the storm. One breath in for the pulse of lightning. One breath out for the pound of thunder. The waves crashed around him, trying to shove him off his feet…
…But he could work with those, Chrom realized. He tilted into the motion of a receding wave. It carried him forward, into the path of a Mer.
Tale or not, they still bled the same as anything else. He proved that much with a strike from Falchion.
'I don't know what these things are, but they're not getting close to Emm OR Lissa!' Or Robin, if he had any say in it. He landed a kick in the side of the Mer, yanking his sword free in a cloud of blood. More and more red was staining the tide, and Robin threw enough lightning to match the storm. With the magic flying through the air, the hum in his ears turned into a bone deep note.
And that drove his sword strikes to greater fury.
The Feroxi formed a wall with the other Shepherds, and tried to force the Mer back one step at a time. With the tides crashing against them, single steps were the best they could do.
Lon'qu wasn't about to allow bruises slow him down, and he flung himself forward to clash with the Mer. The scales lining their forms were a crude armor against the sword.
A new figure shadowed him, the salt-heavy storm winds twisting her pink hair. She carried a sword, but didn't seem fully sure on how to use it. Still, the fighters seemed to take strength from her presence, and she danced through the waves like they were nothing at all.
It seemed almost a mirror to what Chrom did. As for Robin, she noticed the same motions, and echoed them. She dodged a strike from the Mer, a jolt of magic sending her attacker splashing backwards.
It gave the newcomer some breathing room… but the damage also had been done to the boy. His head sagged, flecks of sea spray colliding with his mask.
Chrom slowed, trying to reach out to the boy. But before he could, the stranger sank beneath the waves.
In the pause, Chrom saw something that slipped past the others. Beyond the reach of spears, arrows or spells, was the leader of the invaders. Her magic whipped the waves into froth, and she was readying herself for a powerful strike.
"Look out!" Robin jumped in front of him, trying to weave her own spell.
The black haired Mer drew herself out of the sea spray-
And her eyes rested on Robin. The note cut out, leaving his ears oddly empty. The feral light fled the eyes of the black haired Mer. She froze, staring at the white haired mage… and her lips mouthed something in the silence. Two syllables.
'Ro-bin? Robin.'
He didn't have time to question it. The masked stranger surfaced, crashing into the leader with a desperate strike. He drew a cut from her, but was too late to stop the spell.
The magic threw itself off her fingers, arrowing towards Robin and shrieking like a hurricane. Robin's thunder spell jumped to life, arcing from her, crashing into the attack and turning the arena into a tempest.
It sowed chaos, lashing into the Mer. A stray bolt caught Chrom across the cheek, drawing a little more blood and leaving him light headed.
He glimpsed the black haired Mer, sinking beneath the waves. Swimming away from the battle, clutching at her head. The other Mer, those still alive, either melted into the water… or in a daze found themselves on the wrong ends of the Shepherd and Feroxi swords.
"We… We won?" Chrom managed. Perhaps 'survived' was a better term; his head swam, either from loss of blood, or the magic still thick in the air. The remaining Mer and fighters all bled together, and he lost sight of the masked boy.
He tried to turn towards Lissa and Emm… only for one last wave to wash over him, knocking him clear off his feet. He blacked out as he sank into the waves.