Rebel Without a Cause
Noise all around her. Every groan of the wood, every cough, and every hushed word made Lucina jump and look over her shoulder for an attacker. Of course, no one came from the shadows to stab her; surrounded by her fellow rebels, Lucina had nothing to fear.
Roy was far away.
The sun clawed at the sky in its efforts to rise, and the first beams struck the barren field in front of her. Lucina hadn't slept. When she had fallen unconscious, images of fire and water had assaulted her, the stench of burned flesh and cries for help, and the mere thought of returning to this hellscape turned her stomach upside down. She trembled. Neither the cape Gregor had given her nor the sunlight could keep the cold at bay.
With the help of Tiki, Lucina and Frederick had rendezvoused with the other rebels several miles north of Terra, so far away that the city lights had vanished into the obscurity of the night. An abandoned farm house provided them shelter, a poor construct of scorched support beams with holes in its roof and famished mice under the floorboards. Based on looks, the building had been vacated only a few days ago. Perhaps the farmer had failed to pay his monthly fee to the Empire, and for this affront the soldiers had pocketed every last item of worth in the house and on the surrounding fields. Not a single grain of canola remained on the stretch of dry ground beyond Lucina's feet.
There, below a tiny bump in the earth, she had buried the band with the five stones. It might be the only grave the boy with the bracelets would receive. Roy hadn't cared about his starving siblings or his aspiration to travel across the land. Nor had he cared about the other hundred innocents at Naga's shrine.
They represented what he hated. So, he had disposed of them.
With brutal efficiency.
A creak from inside the farmhouse exploded in Lucina's ears, and she dug her nails tighter into the leather of Falchion's hilt. But once more, no one jumped at her throat. The landscape emitted a quiet, fake serenity like a painting of a glistering lake in a war room.
Lucina's free hand travelled to the spot below her collarbone more out of habit than necessity. Tiki had healed the damaged tissue around Lucina's wounds, and the flesh had knitted itself back together to leave nothing but a faint scar on the skin. Maybe all Manaketes possessed this magic, or maybe Tiki had called forth a blessing from Naga. Yes, she had done tremendous work, even the most seasoned healers at Lycia would stand with their mouths agape in the face of this miracle.
But Tiki's healing hands had only restored the surface. The pain sat deeper, where her magic could never reach.
Lucina clutched her chest to wait out another tremor rocking her body.
Roy hadn't even hesitated.
All the trust Lucina had placed in him, all the hopes she had built of a free Altea, he had murdered all that when he had stabbed her with her own sword. The very same sword he had given her to celebrate her climb onto a knight's rank. With this very same sword, he had severed every last pillar on which Lucina's brittle worldview had balanced.
He most likely knew she had survived. And from here, there was no turning back, no crossroad to reach, no escape. Roy wouldn't stop until he snuffed out every ember of Altean belief. And what better way to start than by eliminating the heir of the Altean throne?
Lucina had no tears to shed, but her inability to cry only worsened the lump in her throat. She had nowhere to go, nothing to do. Naga had placed her faith in the wrong person.
They all had, in a way; Frederick, Cordelia, Abel, all of them had trusted Lucina to fight and win their war. And for one glorious moment, drunk from her success at Persis, Lucina herself had believed she could win without having to fight. After Marth's letter and Falchion had fallen into her hands, why not think that the keys to Altea would do the same?
How naïve. How painfully naïve.
One of the horses to Lucina's left neighed, and the sound manifested into another daylight nightmare of fires and death and surprise attacks. Virion had kept his promise in equipping the rebels with the finest chargers, but at present Lucina would have traded every last one of the animals as well as her companions for the relief of silence and a dreamless coma. With tremendous effort, she pushed Roy's face back into the darkest corners of her mind.
Gregor, who had looked after the horses, shuffled closer and kneeled down a respectful six feet away. His eyes rested on her for a moment, but when Lucina made no move to acknowledge his presence, he began to pick straw from the ground and arranged the stalks in perfect parallel lines. His dedication to this simple task seemed tireless.
The sun climbed higher without offering any warmth, and after a while, Cordelia emerged from the farmhouse on light, twirly steps. She frowned when she spotted Lucina.
"You're still here," she remarked. "And you look just as terrible as last night."
Gregor interrupted his task to scowl. "Cordelia, your manners…"
"To the five hells with my manners, I have a right to know what's going on and why we aren't marching onto Terra as planned." Cordelia blocked the sun and bent forward to bring her face closer to Lucina's. "So, princess, care to explain what's going on?"
"I can't keep Roy and the wish of a free Altea," Lucina said. Her voice sounded far away, someone else moved her lips. "I can't. You were right to warn me about him. He wants me dead. He wants all of Altea dead."
Cordelia pulled back a little. "I can't say I'm surprised. And frankly, you needed this awakening."
"Cordelia, can't you see that she's hurting?" Gregor asked.
"Because of what, I wonder. Because she finally realized the truth about her precious King Roy? Or because she realized she can't snap her fingers to make him fall in line according to her plan? Hate to break it to you, princess, but we all lost someone in the war or afterwards, and most of them don't have the kill count your good old Roy has. These things happen. It's why we fight."
Lucina looked up and fixated Cordelia's gaze with hers. "Who did you lose?"
The tone with which Lucina had posed her question upset Cordelia's concept and she stumbled back. "What does it matter now? It's over and done, why should anyone care?"
"I care."
Cordelia averted her gaze and held her right arm as though she felt the echoes of an old wound. "Have you ever been to Talys?" Lucina shook her head, and Cordelia huffed. "Thought so. Any way you look at it, it's a barren piece of rock in the middle of the Southern Sea. And apart from two kinds of decent wine, Talys only has one thing the mainland remembers it for: Pegasi. Talys has been allied with Altea since King Marth married the princess. But after Altea fell into the hands of the Pheraens, you can imagine that the Pegasus Knights didn't stand their ground for long. I don't remember much of the invasion, but as I got older it became pretty darn difficult to ignore the oppression my people suffered through the Pheraens."
Cordelia smiled a tired, fabricated smile. "Turns out the Empire has an interest in using the abilities of Pegasus Knights for itself. Aerial dominion, sky superiority, all these wonderful terms Roy wanted to add to his vocabulary. And why go through the hassle of catching and training a new legion of wyverns when an entire culture of Pegasus Knights is quivering under his thumb already?
"You can guess what follows. Training camps with prison fences. Indoctrination speeches. A public execution for those who didn't want to comply with the new norm. Talys is hell these days. And when I decided to fight back against the hell, I paid for it. Didn't make it much farther than the second fence before they caught me. Exile for me… death for my Pegasus."
Cordelia had related the story with unflinching monotony, but at the mention of her Pegasus, she could stifle the grief no longer. Her voice sounded hoarse from tears she had bottled up for too many years. The way she hugged herself, she looked utterly broken.
"I don't expect you to understand." Cordelia's fingers clutched the white feather attached to her spear. "No one who's an outsider to Talys could. After all, it was just a dumb horse, wasn't it?"
Lucina rose to her feet. Despite Cordelia's attempts to pull back, Lucina grabbed her by her arms and looked into her eyes, truly looked until all the restrained tears and hidden vulnerabilities, all her childhood horrors and desires lay at the forefront for Lucina to pick apart. The deep ruby shimmered with sorrow.
"No, I suppose you can't expect me to understand what the death of your Pegasus has done to you," Lucina said. "And I can't expect you to understand what Roy's betrayal has done to me. I won't justify my feelings. But that doesn't mean I will stop trying to empathize with you. You, the Pegasus Knights of Talys, the farmers of Altea, those who pray at Naga's towers and shrines – I see nothing wrong in trying to empathize with all of them. When Roy does not and Marth no longer can, I want to be someone who cares."
The awe in Cordelia's eyes had never shone with this intensity, not even when Lucina had first spared her life. "Then you haven't given up the fight?" she whispered.
"No. I let my weakness overpower me for a moment, my bond with a man I should hate. I might not know where the road leads. But I made a promise to you and your people, and I don't want to betray that promise." Lucina swallowed. She couldn't allow her voice to break now. "Thank you for reminding me of what I need to do."
And although Cordelia flinched, Lucina wrapped her arms around her. Cordelia hesitated, but then reciprocated, even deepened the touch in search for this illusive support of a leading figure, a symbol, a godsend. Every remnant of resentment she had held onto faded. From this moment onward, her loyalty was firm.
"I should be thanking you," Cordelia said after they separated. "It's nice to meet a little reassurance for once. This whole rebel affair tends to attract more suicidal pessimists than you'd think."
Gregor abandoned his task and joined them with a slight bow in Lucina's direction. "It'd be an honor to help you in any way possible. Just give the order."
Lucina accepted the offer with a nod. "I will. But we need a concrete plan first, and I'm afraid the diplomatic route won't work anymore. You have to prepare for war."
"With the heir to the Altean throne as our leader, we have no reason to hesitate," Gregor said.
"Good. Have you rebels constructed any plans for a large-scale operation against Pherae? A setup or an idea we can build upon?"
Gregor shook his head. "We never had the manpower to realize plans of a larger scale."
"Usually, Ike's the one who does all the planning," Cordelia added.
Ike… Ike…
Lucina had heard the name before; this person was of significance, a vital piece on the chessboard that had yet to reveal its true purpose. Yes, Cordelia had mentioned him in passing when they had freed Virion from Persis' dungeon as another rebel with a mission to the east. Despite her annoyance over Virion's presence, when Ike's name had passed her lips, her voice had gained a remarkable softness. The clues were subtle but undeniable. Yes, Ike mattered to her and the rebellion as a whole.
But also…
Ike… find him. They need you.
Abel. He had pointed Lucina to Ike before she had even allied herself with the rebels. With all the confusions of the past days, Lucina had suppressed Abel's advice, but now that she could attach a role, a story to the name, the significance of this Ike crystallized without a speck of doubt.
"Where can I find Ike?" Lucina asked while she struggled to maintain her calm against her quickening heartbeat. Another goal, he could be another tangible, achievable goal instead of the vague hope of somehow overthrowing the Pheraen Empire by force.
"Beats me," Cordelia said. "He said he would go on a mission further east, and by the look on his face, it was an important one. He took some of our best fighters with him too."
Lucina gnawed at the inside of her cheek in frustration. "You have to have at least a clue about his current location."
"Sorry, but Ike goes wherever he likes. At heart, he's more of a mercenary than a rebel, really. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about." Gregor gestured first at Cordelia and himself and then at the farmhouse behind them. "We only make up one of several rebel cells, although we were perhaps the largest one. With smaller units, there's less risk for the entire organization. If we, that is our group, fell into Pheraen imprisonment with knowledge on the movements of all other groups, we would doom them."
"Only if you give Pherae the information," Lucina said.
"Lycia's torturers will make anyone talk. It's only a matter of how many hours you want to endure before you give them what they like to hear."
"But in the fractured state you are in now, you only weaken yourself."
"Could be." Gregor shook his head and an old graveness crept into his expression. "But we've been fighting this battle for a long time. Until now, we had no one to rally behind. The last time all of us came together against the Empire, they crushed us."
Lucina had read about this uprising. While she had been too young at the time, the report on the incident had found its way into the history books. Scholars called it the last death throes of the Altean kingdom.
"The battle of Persis."
Gregor nodded. "I lost many friends and comrades on that day."
"Yet you continue to fight."
Lucina, when she looked at his hardened face and balding temples, found a new side to Gregor, a determination and an inner strength that rivalled the best knights, even surpassed them. Truly, there was much to learn from these rebels.
Gregor nodded. "I continue to fight. And with you here, the waiting time paid off."
How could she ever disappoint these people? The weight of their trust seemed too heavy for Lucina's shoulders to carry. They placed their loyalty at her feet with a sincerity that knew no limits, even though she had fought alongside their enemy for the longest time. Had Marth enjoyed this same level of devotion? Did anyone stand before Roy with the same awe in their eyes?
Yes. Someone had. A blue-haired girl with scraped knees had looked at Roy that way.
Lucina mocked herself a fool.
Even if she could no longer hope to save Roy from the evil influence of Grima or the dark abysses of his own mind, she had to continue on this road Marth's letter had opened for her. Maybe in a few years, with him freed of the burden of kingship, she and Roy could find reconciliation… But no, Lucina owed it to the rebels and the civilians of Altea to do her best either way.
Talys was hell these days, Cordelia's voice had revealed the truth in that statement. With Roy or without him, Lucina had to stop this hell before it spread and consumed every last golden wheat head in Altea.
The question remained as to how.
After a long debate with herself, that gave the rest of the rebels enough time to wake up and gather outside of the farmhouse, Lucina had formulated a somewhat decent plan. Lycia for the moment stood out of the question – not only because they lacked the manpower but also because Lucina wanted to meet this Ike first. If the reports on him had a sliver of truth to them, he would play a key role before the end. Seeing as his current location was unknown, however, she might as well use her time to light up a sign that would gain his and everyone else's attention.
Lucina already had the perfect target in mind.
Her quiet contemplations drew several curious stares, and Frederick in particular stood to attention, ready to jump to her side if she should indicate a need for help with the subtlest of looks. He would no doubt even chase away Lucina's unwanted audience, but as much as she craved a pinch of silence, she preferred not to make a scene.
When Lucina was about to speak to the assembly, Virion stepped out of the farmhouse as the last one to emerge from his slumber. Per usual, he had styled himself to perfection, and his perfumed presence made the sorry lot of rebels in his proximity look even sorrier.
In absolute disregard of the situation, as though the world had held its breath until the moment of his arrival, he walked over to Lucina and dabbed a rose-scented kiss onto her hand.
"What wonderful sight this early in the morning," Virion said. "Truly, our separation has only increased your loveliness. Merely the absence of your charming smile on this sun-blessed morning pains me. I must ask, was it not the plan to reunite amidst the marble pillars of Terra? I hope you didn't return so soon for my sake only."
Lucina pulled back her hand with the politest recoil she had to offer. "Unfortunately, circumstances demanded a change of plan."
"Ah, you must say no more, I know of such stories. It is a pity, but even a charming lady such as yourself finds the hands of fate to work against her once in a while. Life so very rarely has in store what we hope for, my own life story can attest to this. If I can aid you in this dire hour, do not hesitate to speak the word."
Somewhere from the back rows of the crowd Cordelia hissed, "Speak the word, and I drag him back into his cell."
Lucina ignored the comment and kept her focus on Virion. "Thank you. If you could tell me what you know about Aurelis, this would already be of help."
"Aurelis?" Virion waved in the air to chase away an invisible insect. "I am truly sorry to disappoint you, but Aurelis is a far less attractive destination compared to the splendor of Terra. The Pheraens have no eye for architectural beauty, to every building they add a flavorless fortification and call it a city."
"But you have visited Aurelis?"
"I have, but my stay there left so many essentials to be desired. You should have seen the alleyways they marketed as promenades, a disappointment in every sense of the word. Although, one cannot deny the impressive assortment of ships lying at anchor there. His Highness' three-master in particular, a construct of wonderous proportions, I must say."
That was all the confirmation Lucina needed. "An inconceivable loss if someone were to snatch this symbol of power out of the king's grasp."
Virion laughed. "Your devilish intellect matches your beauty perfectly. Yes, a strike against His Highness' prized flagship would make for a showstopping moment long remembered from now."
"Then I understand I can count on your abilities?"
"For you, my arrows will fly twice as far," Virion said and underlined his words with a deep bow. Coming from anyone else, the gesture might have looked comical, but he sold every shift of a muscle with a suave elegance that possessed its own kind of charm.
Lucina dismissed him with a nod and took a deep breath. She couldn't allow mistakes now. The rebels might still taste their victory in Persis, but the change in plan had made them wary. They needed a goal, clarity, a tangible idea that would root in their heads and bind them to Lucina's cause.
She had their attention; the vast majority had their eyes on her already. Soon she would have their enthusiasm.
With a final look over the gathering, Lucina stepped forward and began to speak. "The time for diplomacy is over. The Pheraen king has deafened himself to your cries and blinded himself to the suffering of your people. My words didn't reach him and no other voice will. Scholars will tell you the war between Pherae and Altea ended eighteen years ago, but the king's war has only just begun. He exiles those who don't bend their knees. He kills those who speak against him. He puts to the fire those who still believe in Naga."
Lucina released an uneven breath, all too aware of the eyes on her. The acerbic taste of smoke climbed her throat. Naga's shrine at Terra; burnt, broken, bent. And Roy with the unflinching glare of a tyrant, a tyrant she had refused to see in him.
"Terra saw his wrath first," Lucina continued. "The blood of Alteans ran down the steps when he ordered the murder of those who prayed to a statue of Naga. Maybe one hundred died. Maybe more."
Shocked silence enwrapped the rebel gathering. A few lowered their heads, a handful whispered a prayer for the fallen. Out of this sorrow, Lucina had to shape anger and determination. Then they would follow her. Without hesitance.
"Terra saw the king's wrath first. But make no mistake; it won't be the last. You might think that you have nothing left to lose, that the Empire took everything from you already. To that, I ask you to look at the person standing next to you. If the king gets his way, every last one of us will die before the end of the month. Before the end of the year, he will have the head of every living man, woman, and child of Altean descent.
"The time for diplomacy is over. The time for open war is now. We have Naga's favors, and the Divine Sword Falchion proves that we have the strength to succeed." Lucina pulled Falchion out her scabbard, and the steal glowed with the hope of a heavenly beacon. Even those in the crowd too young to remember Marth and his sword awed, and Falchion drew them in like a treasure lures the greedy ones, like the cleric lures the lost souls. And thus, Lucina had immortalized herself in the minds of the people around her.
"Let our victory in Persis be only the beginning," Lucina said, and the crowd cheered. "Let us strike the king before he strikes us. Let us put fire to his fleet." The cheers grew louder. "Let us tear down his trade routes and burn his bridges." The crowd roared, fists punched the air, feet stomped in rhythm, and suddenly the twenty odd people seemed like a thousand.
"Make your voices heard until the king can't overhear you! Give him a sign he can't overlook! For Altea!"
"FOR ALTEA!" the crowd screamed at the top of their lungs.
"Will you march to Aurelis with me?" Lucina shouted.
The response from the crowd transcended all words. The people cheered and applauded, shouted and exalted her, a symphony that shook the fields and forests in a wyvern miles' distance, the sound of a people with hope and a goal where they had found none before.
And Lucina stood in front of the sea of faces and relished the noise.
Are you proud now, father?
Notes: Well, well, well, look what has become of Lucina. A rebel leader calling for war. There's a lot to unpack in this chapter, but I think I'm going to leave the analysis of it and the last in line in particular to you. But if you think this will be the last time Lucina doubts herself after her father figure stabbed her, let me assure you, it won't :) Next week, we will have a long expected meeting. So, please look forward to that.
Oh, and on a side note, I want to thank you, Dracofighter, for your comments. I can't seem to be able to answer because of the nature of guest reviews, but I do read and appreciate your feedback. Thank you, dearly.
