Chapter eight: 4/13 The Halidom
4/13 Friday: After School; Parthia Plaza, Food Court
So it turned out the coin that Robin had picked up was, for some reason, worth a hefty price at the metalworker in Parthia Plaza. That was good news for Robin and Robyn, since it allowed them to miraculously earn a bit of money without needing to bother Robin's father. If they could find more, that might solve some of their finances. Plus, the metalworker was happy to make use of the genuine material to fashion some merchandise.
Robyn couldn't stay still yet, since Chrom still had possession of the Fire Emblem. Not that she didn't trust him, but she had a mission to stay true to and wasn't willing to jeopardise it now. But as Chrom promised he would meet up with her and Robin in Parthia Plaza, Robyn thought she might as well make the most of her time here.
And with so much schoolwork loaded in the first week, Robyn had yet to play a round of Generals of Hyrule with Robin!
The pair sat at a table within Parthia Plaza, having spent some of their money on buns from the bakery. The buns were thankfully cheap, and were fresh from the oven and loaded with berry jam. It was an ideal snack while waiting for Chrom and Lissa to show up.
"He'll show up, right?" Robyn said, looking at Robin.
Robin shrugged. "We're in the same boat, but we know it's not like him to be late. He'll be fine. But so long as we're here…"
Before Robin could finish his sentence, Robyn instinctively brought her books out of her bag. Robin smiled. It seemed he needed no explanation how Robyn knew what his thoughts were. He brought his books out as well, with history and mathematics. Without further, they diligently went to studying, practicing calculus on one side of the table and reviewing historical events of the kingdom in the other. On occasion, they would stop for a bite of jam bun, but then it was studying from there.
They were so caught up in their studies that the two of them failed to notice a small group of familiar faces were in their midst.
"With studying habits like that, Melonpan-chan, it's no wonder you and him are similar."
That nickname. It interrupted her line of thought. Robyn shot a glare at Gaius and it was only then she noticed a handful of the Shepherds, but not all of them, were present. She couldn't help but blush a bit, looked down, and reached for her jam bun and started eating.
"Melonpan-chan? Oh, right." Robin chuckled. He couldn't blame Robyn for being annoyed. He wouldn't have liked the nickname melonpan either. When Robyn looked back at him with the equally annoyed look, Robin looked away. He saw Chrom and Lissa had also arrived with the Shepherds. "Anyway, hello, Chrom. You seem troubled."
Robyn probably could have seen Chrom was troubled too, had she not been flustered.
"Robyn-chan, there is something I must discuss with you," Chrom said. Looking at Robin's puzzled face, he added, "Yes, I suppose you and the others have a right to know too. I didn't want to believe it, but let me sit and explain." Chrom took a seat, while Lissa and the others went about the food court and bought snacks.
Robyn waited uncomfortably. She had a feeling what she was about to hear wouldn't be easy to stomach. As the other Shepherds came back with steak, croquettes, and milk teas, among plenty other goodies, she looked up to Chrom again.
"So, not to bore you all, but are you familiar with the history of Iris some two thousand years ago? Obviously our modern kingdom was known as the Halidom back then. It is said in the history books that Iris, and the world, was on verge of being swallowed up in darkness from the Chaos Dragon. And it would have been but for my ancestor, the Hero-King. It was also said that he went on a lone quest to find a mythical sword, forged by the Divine Dragon. It was called Falchion…"
Lissa pushed some candies in Robyn's direction, adding, "Onii-chan never told me about this," she said. Like Robyn, Lissa also had a jam bun and started eating. Robyn wasn't hungry, she did have a milk candy to distract herself. But neither did Robyn look surprised.
And surprisingly, it was Robin who jumped in. "Chrom. Robyn-chan and I were reviewing exactly this. Don't worry! We're keeping up with our homework."
"Yeah, yeah, I know about Falchion and its purpose was to fight off the Chaos Dragon, but… go on," Robyn said, almost wanting to laugh at Robin's joke.
Chrom looked impressed. "Then I don't need to explain to you that it functions like a sword otherwise." He smiled briefly, then it faded immediately, taking a strawberry-flavoured candy in his hand. "But you might not know that while Falchion enabled the Hero-King to defeat the Chaos Dragon, it did not have the power to destroy it. Instead the Divine Dragon forged a shield which allowed the Hero-King to seal the Chaos Dragon away, bringing an end to the war and peace to the Halidom. The shield was supposedly empowered by five stones which allowed the Hero-King to do it, but…"
He unwrapped the candy with one hand. "After the Chaos Dragon's defeat, it's said the shield disappeared from existence in flames, like vapour in the wind, while the five stones remained on this earth like a safeguard. Yet the Hero-King was told by the Divine Dragon that a time would come when the Chaos Dragon would rise again. You would think that after two thousand years of relative peace, this would be irrelevant to us. We could have carried on with our lives in blissful ignorance but you, Robyn-chan… Your existence and what we went through changed things." He popped the candy in his mouth and waited for any comments from Robyn, and then then rest of the Shepherds.
But Chrom was met with only confused faces, with the exception of Robin. No one disagreed with his logic, but it seemed too incredible to believe that events from two thousand years ago might coincide with Robyn. Chrom then went on, addressing the Shepherds. "Falchion is kept at the royal palace to this day, and if the Fire Emblem that Robyn has is indeed the same shield that the Hero-King used, this might be a sign of the times…"
Lissa waved her arms about. "No no! That can't be, onii-chan. Are the end times coming?"
"I'm not saying that's the case, Lissa. Not at all…" Chrom replied.
No one except Robin would have noticed the discomfort that was etching onto Robyn's face. So even now, Chrom was deducing the scenario that matched what Robyn had in mind. The nightmare she had lived in her world might come again. The flaming meteors falling from the sky along with the Chaos Dragon bringing the world to its imminent end.
And Robyn felt cold once more. Her friends and her brother were dead. No one could fix that. Not even the Divine Dragon. So what was the point of saving this one? Perhaps that sole purpose was really all she had left. Among her regrets was not adding more entries to her support log so she could know her friends better, and maybe now was a good chance to start over.
Robyn sighed. "So where do you want to go from here, Chrom-kun?"
"It's simple. For now, I suggest we all get some experience with our surroundings, and I also want to test Falchion there," he replied. Now addressing the Shepherds directly, he declared, "From now on, Robyn-chan is our de facto leader regarding our decisions ahead of this world. You have yet to explore this world yet, but we shall do so. Also, please don't suspect her either. She has… knowledge." Robyn noticed the hesitation in Chrom's voice, but she was more relieved that the Shepherds merely accepted Chrom's words without any doubts. No surprise there. The Shepherds trusted each other, and especially Chrom.
Looking at Frederick's expression, Chrom added, "Yes, yes, Frederick. I know that we'll need an inconspicuous place to test this. So now that we're all here, now is the time. Are there any objections?" Chrom looked at his fellow Shepherds. "If not…"
4/13 Friday: After School; Yllistol High School, Rooftop
Given that Chrom wielded a lot of influence with the community in general, it came as no surprise to Robyn and Robin that he convinced the school gain access to the normally restricted rooftop at Frederick's suggestion. That came with a promise that he would lock the school doors on leaving, but otherwise they could stick around until the evening.
It was also relatively secluded too. No other home or building had a view of the rooftop from where they were, and the houses on the hill overlooking the school probably wouldn't bother noticing the school to begin with.
"Right," Robyn started. She held the Fire Emblem that Chrom returned to her for the others to see. "This is the Fire Emblem, and for all practical purposes it's our way of entering that world we talked about. Let's see, uh… I should explain – and don't ask me how I know – but the shield only works in certain areas of the world. It won't work for just anywhere. But our school makes a good ground…" Holding the shield close to her, she felt it become red-hot like fire once more, but she was expecting it this time. With mysteriously obtained knowledge she had, Robyn threw the Fire Emblem onto the clear ground in front of her.
A pillar of flames shot up from ground where the Fire Emblem landed. It felt red hot, but surprisingly it didn't burn anything. It didn't scorch the ground below it, nor did it sear the wall behind it. But it was still a marvel to behold, and unbelievable. Of the surprised looks on the Shepherds' faces, Frederick was probably the most surprised.
Robyn explained. "Depending on the manpower we need, we may need more or less of us to go in there. This is the kind of place that can wear out your brain, so…" She noticed not many of the Shepherds were listening to her, save for Miriel and Frederick, as they still stared at the pillar of flames. "Okay, then again it might not be smart if all of us went in. It would be dangerous…" She picked up the Fire Emblem and put it back in her bag.
"But you have to always be on-scene, don't you?" Chrom said. "Only you know how the Fire Emblem works, so for the time being you're a permanent member in the advance party." He saw Robyn nod in agreement. "It's settled then. Me, Robin, Robyn-chan, and another volunteer will test what it's like there…"
"I'll do it, Chrom-sama!" Sumia said.
To everyone's surprise, Sumia walked through the flames without hesitation. Robyn hadn't expected that call either, but she supposed she could commend Sumia's bravery. There was no need for further discussion, so Robin and Chrom went through the flames too. Robyn was just about to follow suit but there was the matter of the remaining Shepherds to deal with.
"I think you can all be dismissed for now," she said. "I'm sure you'd like to see this for yourselves, but… I'm worried whether you can handle it. Alternatively, you could stick around and wait for us to return. But it wouldn't be good if anyone caught us on the rooftop here, so you could wait on our report later."
"Oh, don't be ridiculous," Frederick said. "I'll come too."
4/13 Friday: After School; The Halidom, Northroad
Once again Robyn, Robin, Chrom, and Lissa were back in the familiar darkness of this shadow world. It came as the sky was once above their heads, as if almost physically touching them, with the sun a very far distance away. The sky was dark, but noticeably brighter than before, which helped because they could see their surroundings more clearly.
But Robyn recognised at once, owing to her ability to 'see' the area, that this was not the same place she had been to before. While the surroundings was a town before, this place was different. They were in a great field of grass and plain, with a windy breeze blowing on their backs. A single stretch of road cut through the field and midway on it was a bridge that cross a river that cut the field in two.
The pillar of flames from the Fire Emblem had appeared beside the bridge, and while Robyn walked through them without as much thought, the others who came with her couldn't do the same without closing their eyes. In short, it seemed only Robyn knew what she was doing.
"Well, we're back here again, so we probably weren't hallucinating before, weren't we, Chrom-kun?" she said. Then she looked at Frederick with a certain glare. "Alright, convinced now? I'm not crazy." Frederick was unable to reply, since he was stunned at the sight before him. The same went for Sumia who felt a mix of bewilderment and fear.
Now that Robyn was appearing here a second time with her newfound knowledge, it occurred to her that this area had characteristics similar to the textbook she was reading earlier. The nature of the fields and the types of trees told her this place was.
"The Halidom," she whispered.
"Sorry?" Chrom said.
"Chrom-kun. This is the Halidom," Robyn added. "I know it, but…"
And even so, Robyn could sense something else here in the Northroad. She didn't know how she knew the area's name. It just came naturally to her. Was this more knowledge imparted to her from the Fire Emblem as well? But that wasn't important at the moment.
"Everyone. Take cover in the fort, now!" she ordered with such steel in her voice that even Frederick yielded to her words. Robyn added, "The fort will be a safe spot for now. And Chrom-kun, you have Falchion with you, right?"
Chrom nodded. As he, Lissa, Frederick, Sumia, and Robin entered the fort, Chrom briefly showed Robyn the sheath strapped to his waist. Robyn then directed Chrom to stand close to the fort gate with Falchion drawn, and with good reason.
"An axe-wielding monster is heading our way and none of us are armed except you," she explained. That's good news for us because you will have an advantage, and you're in position to make the first strike too…"
As if on cue, a monster with an axe in its hand wandered to the fort gate. Like the monsters they encountered before, this one looked like it was out for blood. When it lunged forward to attack Chrom, Chrom drew out Falchion from its sheath to easily deflect the attack. Somehow, Chrom thought, Robyn knew this was how things would play out. With an easy deflection, the monster was thrown off-balance, allowing Chrom to perform a quick counterattack before it could evade.
"Very good, Chrom-kun!" Robyn cheered. "There's another one coming… Hmm, you three. See if you can find anything in this fort that can help us. We have four more coming at the gate!" After she turned to observe Chrom from the distance, Frederick set about starting fires. Fires within the fort, that is. His phone wasn't working in this world, apparently, so a little extra light would have helped. Robin and Lissa then set about looking for whatever they could find.
Several suspenseful minutes later, as if another monster could creep up to the gate any moment, Robyn could tell a monster party was appearing at the edges of the Northroad and on its way to the fort. It was a party of three, with the fourth monster advancing into the fort once more. Once it did, Chrom took the initiative to slice it down quickly.
For Chrom, the feel of Falchion was as if he and the sword were meant to be. The same sword that was used by the Hero-King fit his fighting style, and the balance of the sword was just right. Had he practiced swordplay before? Of course he had. The sword-wielding monster he struck down gave more resistance than the axe-wielder, but otherwise he was fine. With room to breathe he look back and saw Lissa running toward him with a long axe, Sumia with a lance, and Robyn and Robin holding swords and thick books.
"Lissa? Robyn-chan?" he said. "Is that a tome? Robyn-chan, you know magic?"
"Don't mind us," Robyn replied. "Let's hold them off together, and we should be good for now. As for the tome… Let's say it's only good here."
Chrom smiled.
As Robyn expected, three monsters simultaneously appeared at the gate, each holding a different weapon. An axe, sword, and lance, namely. The next cycle of combat had started, as Robyn expected. The monsters made the first move, with the lance-wielder advancing toward Robin.
"Robin-kun! Step back! Let Lissa handle that one! Sumia-chan, you take care of the swordfighter, and Chrom-kun, you should retreat. You're not in top shape," Robyn ordered. Knowing better than to disagree, Chrom walked past Robyn while Sumia advanced to square off against her target. Only Robyn knew what the strengths and weaknesses were, as she bravely took on the axe-wielder.
From the way things were playing out, Lissa was slightly frightened at fighting, but the fear of death made her move faster than she thought possible. Her reactions were sharp and she quickly cut through her opponent's lance before landing a follow-up strike, decimating it. Robyn was also at an advantage too, having taken on an axe-wielder with the sword like Chrom did. She wasn't as well-trained with the sword, but she had the knowledge.
After she had fought off her opponent, Chrom said, "Are you alright, Robyn-chan? Don't rush into danger." He and Lissa went to check on her while Robin was still busy.
"I'm fine, Chrom-kun. Don't worry," Robyn replied.
Chrom's next words even made Robyn smile as she made her second attack. "You've lent us your strength, and that makes you a friend. Having an ally by my side gives me courage."
What was it about he said that was familiar? In Robyn's eyes, she could 'see' that Chrom was talking about more than he realised. "Thank you, but… I think there's more to it than that." She could see Chrom and Lissa were confused, and since Sumia was still fighting, Robyn made herself quick. "Let me explain. There's a tactical advantage to fighting side by side… in pairs. I'm sure of it!" She locked eyes with Robin. Robin got the message and went to join Sumia from behind.
As Robyn expected, Robin's presence affected Sumia's movements. Robin saw miraculous improvements to his agility which helped him react more quickly to his opponent, but Sumia was fighting better than normal. The sword-wielder kept up stiff resistance but with Robin's support by launching a bolt of lightning from the sky, it was distraction enough for Sumia to plunge her lance through the monster. And to top things off, suddenly torches in the fort were set alight and illuminated the entire structure from the inside. That was good, Robyn thought, because it had defensive capabilities now. What caused the fires to be set alight, anyway?
The remaining monster was cut down by Chrom, and afterwards Frederick reappeared.
"Where have you been?!" Robyn said.
"My apologies, I was just starting fires… These fires, that is," Frederick pointed to the torches around. "I've also taken the liberty of checking the watchtower and found no enemies coming. So this area ought to be safe for a spell." His words didn't surprise Robyn because that sounded exactly what Frederick would say, then Frederick's eyes rested on Robyn's. "It still is suspicious that Robyn-san here could have such intelligence of this place and how things work here. Perhaps you could explain?"
Robyn noted the honorific. "I understand your skepticism, Frederick-san. But believe me, I have shared all that I know. Please, if anything, it traces to the Fire Emblem here." She took out the shield once more. "This shield is supernatural, so can we conclude that much?"
"And your actions saved our lives, did they not?" Chrom said. "My heart says that's enough."
"And your mind, milord? Will you not heed its council as well?" Frederick said.
Chrom's smile faded. "Frederick, the Shepherds could use something with Robyn-chan's talents, and let's not forget that for better or worse, we have bigger things worry about. And that starts with that shield."
Robyn agreed, and soon enough she had the Fire Emblem create another pillar of flames to return them back to their world. Before she was about to leave, Robin told her he had found another gold coin in the fort, which should be good for their finances.
4/13 Friday: Evening; Yllistol High School, Rooftop
The pillar of flames opened up again on the school rooftop and the party walked out unsinged. After the flames disappeared, Robyn knelt down to pick up the Fire Emblem.
"Man… I'm soooooo sleepy." Lissa yawned. "Is fighting really that exhausting?"
Sumia and Frederick didn't feel that tired at first when they walked out but they also felt some wave of tiredness overcome their senses. It wasn't to the point of falling asleep but they didn't have the energy to go elsewhere except home. Some rest at home might do some good. Sumia also noticed she had carried the same lance she had brought from the other side into the real world.
"No way! We can import things from that place here?" As soon as she said that, another thought crossed her mind. "Where could we store our weapons, anyway?" It was clear that walking about a modern school with weapons would cause alarm to anyone, let alone the teachers. Even Chrom would have to make a good excuse why.
As Robyn expected, Frederick would have an idea. "I propose we store our weapons here on the roof. Not that anyone ever goes up here, anyway. This would be the last place anyone would suspect." He looked for where the cleaning supplies were stored on the roof and opened the door. "Ah yes, just give your weapons to me. I'll take it from here."
"Frederick…" Chrom started.
"Don't worry, milord! I shall get this space cleaned out for you. I'll even make a special space so Falchion can rest easy and free from any wind, rain, or snow…" Frederick smiled without even looking back at Chrom's bewildered expression. "I should include a new broom too. This one is getting old. Has anyone ever cleaned out this space? Ironic that is stores cleaning supplies!"
Robyn and Robin exchanged speechless faces. Even after an outing at Northroad, how could Frederick have the energy still to do cleaning? And it was getting late! They decided to head home. When they had rested up, it might do them good to sell off the gold coin for more cash.
4/13 Friday: Evening; Robin's Residence
Even when they returned home, Robyn and Robin expected to have been crushed by another stack of tomes when they entered. But as there was no such stack, they could walk upstairs in peace. They could smell the scent of lemon in the air and knew Morgan probably had made more lemon puffs.
And suddenly Robin and Robyn were like children, dashing upstairs to see what Morgan might have made. On the kitchen table they saw a plate of freshly baked lemon puffs. As Morgan promised, she would make them on Fridays and Saturdays. However, they had cooled down.
"Welcome home, onii-chan! Onee-chan!" Morgan greeted the pair cheerfully. "How was your day? Enjoying the weekend already? You weren't home for a while…"
"We had a long day, Morgan," Robin replied, then happily split his lemon puff apart and ate them one by one. They tasted great. Crisp and fluffy all at once. "The flavour's improved."
Robyn agreed, having the same thoughts. As she went to put down her bag, she turned to Robin with a hopeful look on her eyes. Robin knew exactly what and didn't need to say another word. Instead, he fired up the Generals of Hyrule game. Finally, after so long, he had found a worthy opponent. Even though they were tired out from adventuring, one game wouldn't hurt.
And there we have it. More groundwork for the Halidom which will be the main interaction... I also wonder what kinds of school clubs our heroes could take part in? Ha... That'll come another day.