Chapter 31: Beneath
A soft touch of water stirred Robin's senses. She curled against it with a muffled groan, a part of her wanting to cling to sleep a moment longer. In response, traces of hair tickled the back of her neck, lifted by the current and dancing across her skin.
'Current? Water?'
Distantly, she wondered why she wasn't drowning. The rest of her tried not to think, but found it to be a losing battle. The rush and flow of water seeped into her hearing; ambient and as constant as any wind.
And with it something else touched her skin, rippling over her neck and face like a dozen bubbly fingers.
'Like someone's breath-' The thought jolted her eyes open, though the rest of her body was slow to respond. It gave her eyes time to take in where she was; a soft clearing coated with teal water, and decorated in white sand. The waves overhead cast webs of light on the ocean bed.
She tried to give her legs an experimental twitch and flex, hoping that would bring some awareness back into her. Instead, an odd sensation closed over her; like her legs were bound together, and could only move as one limb-
Another breath ran over her face, drawing her eyes to the source. At that moment, her skin caught up and informed her that she was resting on something warm and soft; at odds with the cold underwater world surrounding her.
She glanced down to see her hands splayed out across someone's chest. Her breath shuddered out when she saw the webbing between her fingers, and the hint of violet scales dotting her hands and coating her arms.
A glance behind her showed a matching twist of violet, ending with a feather finned tail… Which also sported the six eyed mark. The tangle of violet and fins had taken the place of her legs, but still moved when she shivered and flinched.
The sight made her heart sink. As did the feeling coating her; she didn't WANT this place to feel familiar, or like she'd finally slipped back into the right shape. But nonetheless her tail easily responded to her thoughts, flicking back and forth.
'Mer. I… Really AM Mer, after all.' But then, she'd been counting on that. And praying that it would be enough to save-
'Chrom! Oh gods, please-!' Panic shot through her, thrashing her tail as she stared down.
Chrom lay underneath her. He was still breathing, courtesy of the new gills lining his neck. His eyes remained shut, but there was no mistaking the warmth in his skin.
'Alive. He's alive.' Another stream of bubbles left his gills and billowed around her, twining through Robin's hair. Almost like a brief touch. Robin blinked past them, her hands darting over his ribs to check for blood, and reassure her that he was well.
Somehow, the magic that had changed her had also done the same for him. Proof that he'd been right in his guess, that his bloodline had a connection to the sea. Of his wounds, there was only a faint trace of pink over his skin; he'd shed all of his hurts thanks to the transformation.
'But what did you do to him?' Her fingers tightened at the thought, taking in the rest of his changes, the fins mirroring his ears and the scattering of blue scales across his torso.
'You've changed back, and dragged him down with you.' Her thoughts taunted her in Aversa's voice, refusing to fall silent no matter how she shook her head.
"What matters is that he's alive." Robin tried to tell herself… And in doing so, made Chrom twitch in his sleep. He DID look oddly peaceful. Unaware of the changes she'd forced onto him, to save his life.
"Chrom…I'm sorry..." She whispered, regret thick in her voice.
He gave a drowsy mumble before opening his eyes… And taking her in.
Abruptly, Robin was aware of her own changes; she could feel the long spines and webbing growing from her head like an elaborate pair of horns and fins, making her more sensitive to the currents. Her gills pulsed in her neck, echoing the way her breathing had quickened.
"Robin…?" Her name whispered out between his lips, as he squinted against the glare of light on waves. "What…?"
He reached a hand out to her… Only to freeze when he caught sight of the blue webbing and scales on his own hand.
-o-o-o-
An empty ocean and beach greeted Gangrel, no matter how he prowled across the ship. Ylisse's wretched capital was GONE, as were the rocks it had once rested upon… Leaving a gap in the coast. And nothing that could give him the Emblem.
And yet Aversa had never seen anything more amusing, judging by how she laughed. She half-heartedly put a hand in front of her lips, but it did nothing to muffle the sound… Or quell Gangrel's desire to cut her throat open.
"I'm glad our utter failure amuses you so." He hissed out. "And I hope you savor that last laugh of yours, before I give you a red smile."
"Temper, temper, captain." Aversa answered. Not the least bit put off by his threats, either.
Likely because she knew the cost it would take for him to follow through on his threat and kill her. She had plenty of magic left in her, and he'd likely be sent screaming to his own death even if he managed to gut her.
Though since they were all dead to Walhart just then… His hands tightened on the Levin blade.
"Don't rush to your death so quickly, captain. Despite what Walhart may have said, there's still a role for us to play."
He pried a few fingers free from the hilt.
"Aversa, do you want to start making sense?"
"I serve a far greater master than a warlord like Walhart. And with that storm we called up, you only sampled a taste of their power."
He let go of the sword completely, his anger quelling in favor of curiosity. Along with that was the memory of the storm; how it had answered his will and torn Ylisse's proud fleet to ribbons. If only that thrice drowned woman hadn't made a martyr of herself, they easily would've conquered Ylisse-
And apparently, there was a chance he could use that power again. Aversa was right; even Walhart wouldn't be able to stand against THAT.
"Go on."
"We may need to disappear for a while… but I can promise the rewards will be worth your while. If you're interested, of course." And Gangrel could only nod at that.
Perhaps he wasn't so eager to throw himself at death's door after all.
-o-o-o-
Lissa stared out over the ruined fleet. The broken forms of Feroxi and Ylissean ships littered the harbor, all a far cry from the proud and seaworthy vessels they'd once been. Even the Shepherd looked threadbare in places; one of the masts cracked like a dry stick, gouges torn into the hull, and the railings a collection of splinters.
And beyond them was the sea; an unfamiliar one, from what Lissa could make out through the fog. Then there was the pegasus scouts. Sumia and Cordelia had gone out with a handful of riders, and brought back chilling news. There were no familiar islands and no trace of the coast they were supposed to be attached to.
"It's confusing news, no matter where we turn." Frederick made an admirable effort to coach his voice and face. To try and keep himself from looking haunted, though Lissa didn't miss the pinched corners of his mouth. "There's no trace of Ylisstol… Though neither can we find any threat of pirates."
"It was Chrom and Robin's doing." Lissa answered. "It… It had to be. That's why they faced Plegia alone, because they knew they could save the rest of us."
Frederick didn't argue the idea… Although he didn't look entirely convinced, either.
"Regardless, it will take time for any of our ships to become seaworthy."
"Well, it looks like we've got nothing BUT time, right now."
Lissa walked along the shoreline as she spoke, and noticed a few chunks of wood drifting in the tide. They were cut from a warm wood, with a familiar grain underneath. Lissa would've recognized the paint pattern of the Shepherd anywhere, and bent to inspect the fragment-
She paused, as a feeling almost like lightning crackled through her fingers. She'd normally only felt such a thing when standing in a spell circle on the Shepherd, letting the carvings amplify her power.
"Curious," came Miriel's voice, and she saw that the mage was examining the chunks of driftwood as well. "It appears that with all the spell work last evening, the wood has become saturated with it."
"Wh-what does that mean?"
"That this warrants further study…" She didn't miss the way Miriel paused on that, and looked over Lissa. Waiting for her to grant permission, or orders.
'That's supposed to be Chrom's job. Or Emm's-' Lissa furiously blinked her eyes, but she couldn't dislodge the image of Emm falling into the waters, bleeding from the puncture in her chest and ribs. And who knew what had happened to Chrom-
'He's alive. He has to be alive! Him and Robin both!'
Miriel still watched her, not commenting on the turmoil that had to be playing out on Lissa's face.
"I-I think you sh-should." Lissa managed. "Like I told Frederick, we've got nothing but time."
And hopefully while they waited, Chrom would come back.
'He HAS to. He's the fearless captain, just like Emm was the wise leader…' And against all of that, what did that make her?
Certainly not fit to lead. Of that much, Lissa was sure.
-o-o-o-
Water and questions both churned around his head. He blinked, trying to figure out where he was… And why his surroundings felt like the wrong shade of blue. This place lacked the bright clouds he was used to seeing… Save for wisps of white, framing the face of the person before him.
"Chrom-?" The figure asked, and he squinted at that. Something about the name seemed familiar-
"Th… That's my name… Isn't it?" He asked the figure.
'How can you not know your own name?' His thoughts asked in turn… And he saw an echo of that question, in those dark eyes. They widened in shock at his words.
"Y-yes, of course that's your name." He wondered at the feminine touch to her voice. And the odd, half gentle and half fragile quality to it.
Her name rushed back to him. "R-Robin?"
Something about the name felt right, and gave him a quick breath of peace when he said it. Chrom savored it for a moment.
There was precious little of that peace to be found, wherever he was. His questions hadn't stopped; despite getting a set of names, there was a startling amount of blanks in his head.
His heartbeat was oddly loud in his ears. Something about the situation screamed that this was all wrong, but-
Chrom scrunched his eyes, but that did nothing to help him remember. His fingers curled, feeling oddly clumsy and bound by the folds of skin between the joints. Flashes of vivid teal showed against his fingers, rippling in the light as he turned his hand.
'What's happened to me?' Chrom's sleep fogged brain managed that much. He was pretty sure his hand wasn't supposed to look like that.
"Chrom?" Robin whispered again. It broke the way he stared at his hand, looking over to her instead. As he'd woken up, she'd drifted until she hovered over him; close but not quite touching.
The sunlight was bright, turning her into little more than a silhouette. He wondered when she'd had time to fashion her hair into such a style, and why it drifted so. Gravity didn't exist in the usual way, wherever they were.
'Are you even supposed to be here? To survive here?'
"What… What happened to me?" His brain scrambled to remember, but his thoughts felt like churned water and froth; scattered and unable to hold any shape.
'Water-' His head finally caught up with what was different. That he wasn't breathing air, and that they'd both sunk to the bottom of the ocean… And yet they still drew breath.
Why did that feel wrong? Why did it feel like he was supposed to be dead… And why couldn't his head grasp any answers?
It felt like there were a dozen new things flooding his brain as well; why he was floating in the water, how to turn so he'd be facing up or down, and even the direction of the waters swirling around him. His mind had an uphill battle parsing all that, and managing coherent thoughts.
And on top of all that, he couldn't remember-
'I… I can't remember anything-?' His thoughts shivered up.
"Nothing about this is right-!" He choked out… Though he couldn't figure out what, or why exactly that was. Just that there was a sense of wrong coating his body, making him awkward.
Robin hesitated above him, looking ill at ease in her own skin.
He tried to stand up, and his balance wobbled like jelly. He floated, lopsided, in the water. He tried to kick out, find his balance-
Instead a set of fins caught his eyes, and he stared down at a long, blue scaled tail. It pressed down on him, feeling oddly tight and confining over all his muscles. An aquatic limb, well suited to the blue world he'd found himself in.
'Didn't a part of you want this?' The thought seeped into him, like blood staining water.
'A desire to be among the waves…Don't you remember that much at least?' Something about the open waters beckoned to him. Called to him, and promised that they could help him forget everything, even his confusion and that strange sense of loss. If only he would surrender to the currents, and drift as a part of them-
"H-hey, focus on me for a second?" Robin's voice brought him back. She'd sunk back down, and was almost side by side with him. At the very least, he didn't need to crane his neck to look up at her anymore.
"S-sorry, what?"
"I was just asking don't you… Don't you remember anything? It was like you didn't know your name, or mine for a moment."
His thoughts were frustratingly blank; like staring at a bank of pure fog and not being able to discern anything. The only thing more frustrating, was having to admit that out loud.
"I'm sorry but… Where is this exactly?" He grit his teeth, rubbing at his head. "And… Who are we again?"
She froze under the question.
"Y-you're Chrom of Ylisse." A faint shape flickered in that mental fog, before fading away like a ghost.
"Ylisse…?" He tested the word, only to shake his head. Robin looked stricken, as the recognition drained out of his face.
"Oh gods… Your memory. You don't know-?" She broke off, her hands balling into fists. When she continued, it was a low voice that seemed only for herself. "Tiki warned us. That there's always a price. Why wouldn't it be memories again?"
"A-again? Look I don't know what you're talking about…" Chrom scrambled to try and get his thoughts in order… But they wouldn't listen to him. They stayed blurry, refusing to piece together correctly.
The sun dimmed, stealing the warmth in the waters. His scales all shivered from the sudden chill, giving a faint rustle… And still laying odd against his flesh. Like a glove he was still getting used to.
Chrom glanced at his arms, noticing how curiously bare they were… Save for the glint of deep azure scales. When he turned them, they almost seemed to gleam gold along the edges.
'Strange.' And even stranger, that his arms looked so unfamiliar to him.
"I… I'm sorry. It's just that I can't remember anything. Or figure out what happened to me." Once he spoke, he recognized the lie.
"Wait… I think I remember that you…" He trailed off, feeling heat bloom over his face. It was the faintest sensation, of warmth and something soft touching his lips. And with them, the feeling of being comforted, and pulled out of pain. He had the distinct feeling all of that was due to the woman in front of him. "You… Saved me, somehow?"
Saying that didn't solidify his memories though. Instead they roiled around him, giving Chrom sensations; fear, grief… But no concrete images to go with them.
He couldn't help but notice that Robin wasn't meeting his eyes, turning her head aside.
"Y-you're right on all counts. I worked a spell on you, because I didn't want you to die. It was the only thing I could think of." His neck twitched, the cuts along it drawing air into his lungs.
"I'm sorry." She whispered again. The hurt in her voice tugged at his fingers, and he placed his hand over hers. His fingers shivered over the touch of webbing between their joints, but he still found the strength to squeeze at her hand.
"H-hey. Like I said, the one thing I remember is that you saved me." He hoped that reassured her. Instead she bit at her lip, staring at him.
"But you don't remember? Anything?" Chrom shook his head.
Instead of bubbles threading through his hair, it felt like there were needles. And each one of them tried to dig deeper into his skull, the more he tried to think. Trying to figure out where he was, who he was, or how he got there… All of those added another twinge of pain.
"Don't you remember-?" Robin tried. "Ylisstol and the port cliffs? The castle-?"
Something in him stirred at those words… But he couldn't quite match images to what she said. All he could manage were blurs of something white and towering. And with those images came a strange shortness in his breath, and a pain lodged in not just his head, but also his chest.
"I…" He couldn't find words, or an emotion beyond a strange sense of longing… And of loss.
"What about the cliffs and fields? You always told me about those-?" He curled his head in, shivering at her words.
"H-how would I know about those?" How was he supposed to know what life was like, outside the reach of the waves-? Though for a moment he thought he caught flashes of something. Of salt spray in his hair… But it was a vanishing thing.
"I don't… I don't understand-"
But Robin didn't seem to be done.
"What about Emmeryn-?"
"S-stop!" He choked out… But something in the name was like a knife to his heart. He wanted to cry, even if he didn't understand why-
But it wasn't tears that fell from his eyes. Instead something stirred and flared along his cheeks… In the form of lines of light. There were patches and patterns all along his skin, and they seemed to pulse and flare in response to his emotions.
'…That's not normal.' It was the clearest thought he could manage, over the confusion and tremors raking over his body.
Chrom tried to flinch away from the strange patterns and Robin's words. His nails scratched at her skin in the process, drawing blood. Regret washed over him for an instant, his mouth opening to apologize-
But instead he tasted the faint, coppery quality in the water. It flooded his senses, and along with the roil in his thoughts, it threatened to stop his lungs.
-o-o-o-
"A-are you-?" Robin tried to reach for him, but her voice did nothing to quell his panic. The pain of her fresh scratches faded as she watched him.
Chrom twisted away, hands clapped over his head like he was trying to keep it from splitting open. He was deaf to her words, his body wracked with thrashing. His shoulders slipped from her outstretched hands, while his fingers dug into his scalp hard enough that his nails drew a thin cloud of blood. It seeped up from his hair and seemed almost drawn to Robin's own bleeding. The two strands of red mingled together before her eyes.
Panic flared through Robin; they'd mingled blood and sea water before, as humans. She didn't know what such a thing would cause now, but she doubted it would be anything good-
Her worries were quickly proven. The strands of red billowed outwards, turning into a shroud that aimed straight for her eyes. Robin threw up her hands a moment too late; she found herself stranded in murky waters. Chrom gave a startled noise, and the waters churned around her as he lashed out with his own hands.
But there wasn't anything either of them could do to fight this off. The glare of the sun dimmed, replaced by flickering lightning and storm choked air.
The ocean faded out, in favor of something dark… And almost suffocating. The bleak shadows of their surroundings threatened to crush them, the waters almost like a night sky. Her gills struggled against the sudden change, and her heart pounded.
"Chr-?" That faded when she glanced over to Chrom. The strange fear gripping her chest cut out, replaced by shock.
Chrom gleamed against the shadows, like a dozen motes of light had been pushed into his scales. He was a bright silhouette and almost hurt her eyes… But he kept the shadows, and whatever hungry thing lurked in them, at bay.
"What's… Going on-?" He choked out, and she knew he was caught in the same vision.
She reached out to him, her fingers brushing at his ribs-
Something thunked into his flesh, and the glow dimmed. He made a strange choking sound… And a metallic scent flooded the water, stronger than the little scratches they'd opened. In place of the shimmering of his scales, there was a sullen, yellow glow that drew Robin's eyes.
She found herself looking at a bolt of spell lightning, pressed deep into his ribs. And the same magic crackled along her arms.
"CHROM!" Her voice rang out… And the vision shattered like glass. The shadows fell away, and the taste of blood diminished. And when she looked at Chrom, he was still whole.
Terror filled his eyes, all of it aimed at her, and for a split second it felt like Robin had been the one stabbed instead. He yanked away from Robin and thrashed through the water, panic making up for the fact that he didn't know how to use his fins. He'd slipped away before she had a chance to react, or make sense of what they'd just seen.
-o-o-o-
Everything about this felt wrong. His tail felt like it was going to break with each stroke, and he kept threatening to overbalance and tumble through the water. But he kept moving; he didn't want that vision to become reality… Or see what else Robin could do to him. All he knew was that her touch invited confusion and pain, much like her words had sown heartache and headaches in equal measure.
He thought she screamed something; his name perhaps. But he didn't focus on it, instead trying to put as much distance as he could.
Nothing made sense; not his thoughts, not what his senses told him… And he desperately needed to find somewhere safe. And find a way to make the ache in his chest vanish.