Chapter 5
Apparently, I'm a Good Person. Who Knew?
"Ow, ow, ow," I grumble as I clutch my shoulder. It was fine before, I wasn't hurting at all. Somehow, Lissa healing me managed to make it worse. How? I have no idea! Well, it's probably because the healing made the muscle and surrounding tissue very sore, and that soreness has been caused by a specific blonde-haired cleric forcing my flesh to reconnect and meld together. Don't force anything, people. Even inanimate objects dislike it.
Though, I would have been fine if it was just me who had to endure this pain. Instead, after finding out that I had hidden my wounds away from her, Lissa decided to check everyone for hidden wounds. And I do mean everyone. Right now some distance away from where Chrom and I are sitting on stools, Lissa is forcing Virion to explain literally every bloodstain that is on his clothes. Considering the light blue-haired archer is, well, an archer, there are only three, and all three stains are not his blood.
Why is Chrom sitting with me? Well, Lissa found a rather inconspicuous scratch on the back of his shoulder that the Future Exalt decided not to inform his sister about. That apparently meant Chrom hides wounds, and that means a full body check. I'm…unsure of what that entails, but both Chrom and I are shaking in our boots in fearful anticipation.
"Please don't tell me you actually are hiding another injury," Chrom stares at me with the eyes of a dead fish.
"I'm not! Unless I got one without me realising," I shrug. "It's just healing staves hurt! I'm not used to them!"
"What, you never got injured enough to use one?"
"No, I never bothered with them," I reply. Also, I have the Cure Wounds spell that, considering Lucina's reaction, probably causes a lot less pain than a stave. "Our Clerics don't use staves."
"Huh…" Chrom shrugs. "What did they use?"
"Spells," I sigh.
"Do they hurt?"
"Obviously not," I deadpan. "Or else I would be used to the pain of a stave, no?"
Chrom nods his head slowly.
Sully's sudden screams break us out of our conversation. Looks like she got found out by Lissa. Now I'm actually starting to worry. Are all the Shepherds like this? I mean, now that I think about it, most of the frontline fighters are…
"Looks like Sully was hiding something too, huh," I chuckle a bit. "What happened to her, javelin?"
"What? No! A…what did you call them? Risen? Yeah, a Risen nicked her elbow with a knife before she cut his head off," Chrom shakes his head. "Who walks off a Javelin?"
I almost say 'most people', but then I realise that comparing normal people to DND Characters and-slash-or literal godkin isn't a good idea. I slowly nod my head, conceding the point.
"A friend has," I shrug with a sigh. "We were tired and out of potions when a bunch of the Undead ambushed us. Jugen got hit with a javelin in the thigh. I patched it up the best I could, but without any magic, I couldn't close the wound. He…had to make do with a rather large hole in his thigh until the evening."
"Must have hurt," Chrom winces hard.
"Oh yeah," I nod my head in agreement. "He complained the entire day. It's also a good thing we didn't fight anything for the rest of the day. Jugen was walking with a considerable limp."
"I'd imagine. Was…Was that incident a normal occurrence? Or did that kind of thing happen all the time?" Chrom looks up at the night sky with a concerned look written all over his face.
"Well, early on, it wasn't too bad," I sigh. "But once we got to around the fifth circle, things became…more difficult. It was painful, sometimes. Death was behind every corner, behind every spell, behind every sword or spear that you came across. Every mistake was punishable with death, and every victory a minor respite from the oppressive world that we were in."
Chrom looks at me with empathy in his eyes. Did…Did I go too far? I know that Terentius agrees with me, and I'm probably underselling how bad the situation got at the time, but not only have I played worse, I was the only one that didn't die more than five times.
"You've…been through a lot, Terence,"
"That's putting it a bit lightly, but yes, I've seen some shit,"
"Well, I'm not sure how to say this but…Ylisse is peaceful. You can rest here and not worry about dying every day," Chrom smiles.
"I would hope so," I chuckle. "That is how the human realms are supposed to work. If the average person has to worry whether or not they will die on a daily basis, something has gone very wrong."
"That's fair," Chrom gives me a wide grin.
"Alright, you two!" Lissa walks up to us with her hands on her hips and a nasty frown. "Let's see what kinds of wounds you are hiding from me! I can't believe you two don't know how to take care of yourselves! You're nineteen, Chrom! You're supposed to be able to do that! You're going to have to start looking for a wife sooner or later too!"
"It's not like anyone likes me though…" Chrom mutters. Oh man, Cordelia must be crying her heart out right now.
"And you! How old are you, Terence?" Lissa huffs.
"Twenty-four," I respond with a tilt of my head.
"Twenty—Why are you hiding your wounds?"
"Because they don't hurt?" I blink. "Don't waste your staves on me, I know they have limited charges. Healing such a wound is unnecessary."
"What do you mean unnecessary? You—"
"I didn't lose a limb, I didn't lose an organ, and I could still move and fight. Thus, the wound isn't serious enough for me to heal," I explain with a roll of my eyes. I mean, it is how we did it back in the campaign. Healing resources are hard to come by in literal hell, and demons don't give you any rest. Good thing we didn't have any warlocks, they would have died.
"THAT'S your standard? That's like…what kind of place did you use to live in?" Lissa's eyes look ready to bulge out of her sockets. "If you've lost a limb you shouldn't be fighting!"
"Tell that to Jugen. I gave him a prosthetic arm to allow him to fight even if one of his arms gets chopped off while I prepare to reattach it," I shrug. "Still fought like a maniac after that asshat Ludwig cut both of his arms off."
Chrom puts a hand on my shoulder. Or rather, Chrom slaps my shoulder, and my left shoulder is already sore from Lissa healing it. It takes a rather concerning amount of effort to keep myself from screaming out in pain. I do mean a lot of effort. I'm starting to taste iron in my mouth from how hard I'm biting my tongue. I dislike that.
"Hey. You don't have to do that anymore," Chrom looks me in the eye with a concerned stare. "We have extra staves, you know? You can be healed."
"I mean, I'd rather—"
"Oh, come on!" Lissa groans. "You're impossible! Just let yourself be healed! Look, if I find out that you haven't told anyone about a wound I'm going to tell Frederick to give you extra training when the Shepherds do our physical regime. Er—Brother, Terence is going to join the Shepherds, right? He's—"
"Of course," Chrom smiles and nods.
I shudder a little. Frederick's training is infamous for a reason.
"Alright, alright. But just so you know, I barely notice that I've been hurt, so you're going to have to check in on me once in a while," I shrug.
"Yeah. Now, I'm going to be taking your shirt off, ok?" Lissa nods her head.
What.
Wait, what?
I sit there with a relatively blank expression as I stare at this woman—no, girl. What the hell do you want me to do, Lissa? What the actual fuck?
It looks like Chrom has the same reaction that I do, though his face much more expressive.
"Lissa, what?"
"Well, his shirt is red, so I can't tell what's sweat and what's blood," Lissa frowns at her brother's sputtering question. "So if I want to check for wounds, then I have to take off his shirt."
"W—Well," Chrom stutters. "Please say it in a way that isn't so…suggestive?"
I nod in agreement.
"Remove your clothes so I may check your skin for wounds sounds more professional," I comment as I reluctantly take off my crimson shirt. "Perhaps wording it like that could have prevented this miscommunication?"
Look, I get polite when I'm forced into a difficult or embarrassing situation, ok? Don't blame me!
As I put my shirt onto the small chair that I've been sitting on and stand up to let Lissa have a better look at my body, I realise that both Chrom and Lissa have gone suddenly quiet. I raise an eyebrow as I realise that Lissa is staring at a point on my chest.
I look down at my own chest.
Oh. That's why.
All across my arms and chest, and probably all over my back too, are lines of miscoloured skin in a multitude of shades, some lighter than my skin, some darker. The thickness varies too; a long line stretching from my pectoral muscles all the way to my left shoulder is incredibly thin, probably caused by some idiot slicing me with a thin edge that didn't go very deep, while a rather dark and thick line is very apparent right above my right collarbone.
Besides the forest of scars that crisscross my body, making it look like a graffitied piece of wall, there are two tattoos.
One on my upper right arm is the word 'ROMA' in black ink, below which is the Roman numeral for ten, X. Below that, written in clean and precise letters are the words 'Legio XI'.
There is another one over my heart, made with crimson-yellow ink. It depicts a hammer being engulfed by flames, and has the word 'Vulkanius' etched below it.
"W—Wow, Terence," Lissa says after multiple awkward moments of silence. "Those are some…uh…wonderful muscles. Anyway, I don't see any more wounds, so uh…yeah?"
"What…are those tattoos, anyway?" Chrom raises an eyebrow at the two markings on my skin. "They don't look Ylissean, that's for sure. Not Plegian or Grimleal either."
Well, thank you for the distinction there, Chrom. Yes, these are not Grimleal because they don't actually exist in Rome, or in my old world, for that matter.
"This one is proof of my military service," I point to the one on my right arm. "It means I've served for ten years already in Legio XI. This one, on the other hand, is the induction marking for the Sons of Vulcan. That's where I learned how to use my artificer powers. Vulcan is also one of the gods that us Romans follow."
"Wow…" Lissa looks at me with a concerningly high amount of awe in her eyes. Is that…normal? Or is something else going on here.
"Also, Terence, what happened to your body! That's a lot of scars!" Chrom notes not a moment later. "Even veterans don't have the same amount of scars that you do!"
I blink at him before staring down at my chest once more. It's…odd, seeing my mortal form being scarred so badly. It is…alien to me, and yet I can remember every single mark that marks my form. A sword blow not dodged, the claws of a demon ripping through a hastily cast shield, the frosty shock of a necrotic spell killing my very cells, each and every scar has a story that I can remember, despite not knowing that I did. It is…a strange feeling, and one that threatens to tear at my mind. Thankfully, the feel subsides after a while, and I am able to formulate a response.
"Well, more than twenty years of fighting will do that to you, I guess," I shrug. "Again, all of these are wounds that I haven't bothered to heal with magic and instead let my body's natural processes heal them instead."
"All of them?" Those words manage to snap Lissa out from…whatever she was doing staring at my chest. "Wait, even that one?"
She points to the rather harsh line on my right flank. Oh! I remember what that was! A wretch managed to get past the melee line while we were fighting off a squad of Bulezau and nicked me in the side while I was distracted. How he managed to get through my armour I have no idea; he must have rolled really well, my AC isn't anything to scoff at.
"Yeah? It might seem big, but I managed to stop the bleeding quite quickly, and it wasn't very deep, so I just let it be," I shrug. "I had other things to worry about. Augusta had a rather big hole in her leg, and it very quickly became apparent that she had gotten poisoned too."
Lissa opens and closes her mouth a couple of times, but doesn't respond afterwards. I appeared to have shock her into silence. Well, not what I was going for, but I suppose it works well enough.
"Oh yeah, Chrom?" I turn to look at the blue haired exalt-to-be as Lissa reboots her brain.
"Hmmm? Yeah?"
"What's the plan for the rest of the day now? I doubt many of us want to march while we're this tired," I point out. "I don't doubt that you barely got any sleep, and I know for a fact that I could do with a couple more hours of shut-eye. Robin was stubborn enough to wake up; I don't want her to be more grumpy."
"That's a fair point," Chrom sighs as he too takes off his shirt at his sister's insistence. "But I also don't want us to dally. There could be more of those…things around, and we need to reach Ylisstol as fast as possible."
"That too, is a fair point," I sigh. "But I doubt anyone is going to like that decision."
"Yeah," Chrom nods. "We'll probably stop earlier than we usually would. That way, we have more time to sleep tomorrow night in order to make up for the lack of sleep today. Plus, we can all sleep in beds once we get back to Ylisstol, and we're definitely taking some time to rest and recuperate then. That fight took a lot out of me."
I give the blue-haired man a small chuckle that utterly confuses him. Man, Lucina was right. This Chrom is not the hero that would lead the Ylissean League to victory in Valm in around three years. This fight wasn't even that bad; Terentius's memories shows me battles that lasted for hours without end, and all those battles he endured. I guess that's why my constitution score is so high, huh? Still, Chrom is a far cry from where he needs to be in order to defeat Grima.
That…makes me a little bit scared. I…I might be too powerful for the shepherds at the current moment. Have I been soaking up experience like a Frederick-sized sponge? We already have one person doing a great job with that, and with my inclusion, things could get really bad, really quickly…
I don't want everyone to be underleveled because I'm here taking all of the experience points that should be going to them.
That's…very dangerous. I think. I'm not sure how this works. Hell, I'm not sure how any of this works. I'm in a situation where none of my previous experience can help me out! The hell!
At least the number of bitting bugs is less than back home. Being outside at night isn't a death sentence. The little victories, man. Gotta keep looking for them or else you'll go insane.
"You holding up all right, Robin?" I chuckle as I slow down to keep pace with the half-asleep tactician. "Not looking too bright there, buddy."
"Shuddap…" The white-haired lady in question waves her hand at me. "I…can't believe…Chrom made us march…immediately after the battle. Doesn't he know…that morale…is half the battle? We're…all out…of that…"
"Well, we have to get moving sooner or later," I shrug as I hand Robin a small cup of water, which she takes with a whisper of thanks and chugs. "And as much as I want to collapse in a heap and sleep right now, I have to agree with him. Getting back to tell the army about this is the most important thing right now."
Of course, Ylisse doesn't actually have an army at the current moment, so in reality, that point is rather moot. Then again, I'm not supposed to know that.
"I don't…see you…being tired…" Robin yawns, handing me back my cup. "You look as…peppy as…usual."
"Really?" I give her a raised eyebrow. "I'm running on fumes here!"
"Running…on fumes? Whaddzat mean?" Robin sways dangerously on her feet, making me physically have to steady her by holding her shoulders.
"It means that I'm around five minutes away from collapsing," I shrug as she finds her balance once more. After I finish saying that, Robin gives me this stare that leaves no doubt as to whether or not she thinks I'm lying.
"Uh huh…"
"I'm serious, I'm tired as all hell," I frown at Robin.
"Really? You certainly don't look tired," She gives me a pointed look with a gaze that just seems to burn straight through my heart. I know you're intelligent and can see straight through most things I say, but I'm serious this time! I'm honestly fatigued! I need a break to get all my energy back!
Ok, maybe not a long break, perhaps only something like ten or so minutes, but still! Tiredness is something that's affecting me too!
"But I am still tired," I huff. "Maybe I'm just better at hiding it than you."
"Well, you're doing one hell of a job," Robin snorts. "If you're as tired as I am, then you're hiding it extremely well. You should consider applying to be an actor, you know?"
"What acting troupe wants an old, uninteresting war veteran?" I chuckle a little. Or rather, I think Terentius chuckles at that joke. I was roleplaying it for the hell of it, but I felt actual self-deprecating humour coming from those laughs that I definitely didn't put in there.
"Hey! You're not uninteresting!" I hear Lissa's peppy voice from further on ahead.
I elect not to respond to that comment. Half because Terentius is probably going to fight me and say something I don't intend to say and half because my body just sent me a signal that makes me have to spend my undivided attention on it.
You know the one. It always happens when there is not a single place to relieve yourself in sight. Or exactly thirty minutes after you leave the last rest area on a long road trip when you say to yourself 'I don't feel like I need to go, I can hold it' but now you really regret it and have nowhere to go.
Just me? Really? Do you guys even take road trips? I know I stopped after moving to a place with actual public infrastructure, but seriously? No long road trips?
I also can't judge any of my bodily functions very well, so that might have something to do with it.
Yeah, I think we all know what kind of bodily function I need to perform now, so I'll stop talking about it.
Thankfully for my bladder, Chrom signals for us to all stop.
"Alright everyone, I know it's morning right now, but I think now is a good time to stop," Chrom notes as he takes stock of everyone.
Robin looks about ready to topple over, and she decided to lean on a tree to stop that from happening. Virion is in a similar camp, though he's looking a lot better than Robin is. Just tired and sleepy, rather than about to collapse from exhaustion. Sully and Lissa are looking better, though both look sleepy. We basically stayed up the entire night, and both ladies had a rather tiring day even before the lack of sleep. Chrom is looking like me. Or at least what I expect Terentius's body to look like at the current moment: slightly tired and sweaty, but otherwise fine. Frederick is Frederick and looks ready to solo another stage without any rest.
"Time for some rest?" Robin blinks. "That's…great. Just let me…sit down…"
Robin does what she says and slumps down onto the ground with a grunt.
"Alright…" I sigh, walking over to Chrom. "Hey, Chrom. Can I uh…excuse myself for a moment?"
"Hmmm? What for?"
"Well, I need to deal with something,"
"Deal with what, exactly?"
"Personal stuff. Need to sort something out before we go on. I'll be in the forest," My explanation manages to get through and Chrom nods his head.
"Don't worry too much, Terence. We're not going to be moving out for a while," He chuckles. "Our tactician looks like she needs some much needed rest. Even if you're not back when she's done resting, I'll call you. I won't leave you behind, not with the good you've done to Ylisse."
I nod my head in thanks and move out into the forest at the side of the dirt road that we had been following for some time now.
It doesn't take too long for the clearing that was made through the verdant forest to be closed and the canopy restored to a darkening blanket that blocks out a significant amount of light and heat. I shiver slightly as all of the sweat that was stuck to my clothes cause my body to feel the cold more than I expected.
I walk a while, deeper into the forest, and strain my ears until I can no longer hear Virion's haughty laughter or Robin's tired complaining. When the birds and insects who call this old growth forest home overpower the last signs of human activity, I let out a deep breath of relief. I set my backpack down on the slightly damp forest ground, and reach out towards my pants.
I hear a cracking noise behind me, causing me to groan and turn towards whatever just made that noise. Terentius is on high alert, though I am more annoyed than paranoid. Just let me use the loo in private, damn it!
I stare at an empty and quiet forest for a while before I shrug and return to unbuckling my belt.
Though, why is the forest so quiet now? It wasn't this quiet earlier. I heard a couple of songbirds earlier, even if I didn't see them. They all stopped singing at around the same time. That…can't be a coincidence, can it?
Shrugging again, I finally let loose. I keep my pants high and off the forest as I do my business; the floor is damp and unlike my backpack, my pants are obviously not waterproof.
I hear a snapping sound once again, and I turn back with a face full of annoyance. Ok, someone or something is obviously there. Terentius guesses that it's a person. Wait, how exactly do I know that it would be a person? The…the weight. It's either a human weighed down by something or a large animal, and large animals aren't this careful. Well, except for Tigers and Leopards, but I doubt this ecosystem can sustain a Big Cat. I haven't seen a single large herbivore in all the time I've been here, which is pretty odd.
I push it to the back of my mind as I finish up my business. Just moments before I'm finished, I hear another snapping. Why does it take me so long? Hey, I haven't used the bathroom in about a day and a half, cut me some slack, alright?
This time, I elect not to ignore the sound. If it's an animal, I can let it know that I know it's here, and make it think twice about a sneak attack. If it's a human, then maybe I can ask them what the hell they're doing here.
"Who was that? I heard you, you know?" I call out, hopefully not loud enough that Chrom and the others can hear. They don't need to know about this mystery being, not yet at least. "I heard you! You're not particularly good at sneaking around."
To my utter horror and apprehension, someone does respond to my shouting. A someone that I didn't think I would see again, not until Ferox.
A flash of cobalt-blue hair behind me makes me extremely thankful that I've managed to pull up my pants before this. Else, this would have been a rather…concerning conversation.
"Oh, holy shit!" My heart jumps a little as Lucina appears right behind me, still in her 'Marth' disguise. Of course, Terentius isn't phased by this at all, and allows me to keep a straight face. "Oh…Marth, it's you."
"Y—Yes…" Lucina sighs. "I'm…Marth…um…that…"
"Yes?" I raise an eyebrow at Lucina's hesitation to speak. "What is it, Marth?"
With a shaking hand, the future exalt takes off her mask, revealing two sets of cobalt irises. One of her eyes contains an imperfection that I catch immediately. The Mark of Naga is clear to see, and I understand why Lucina decided to keep her eyes a secret. It would be trivially easy to spot at a close distance, especially in a well-lit environment.
"Y—You…know who I am…right?"
I blink. Huh, so I was in the future? That's…slightly concerning to think about. I've probably already died once, then. I…wonder how that feels. I don't want to try it out, it's…just morbid curiosity. Extremely…morbid…curiosity…
"Well…Huh, I already existed in the future…" I mumble a little to myself as I try to collect my thoughts. Honestly, this…this revelation is both reassuring and concerning at the same time. On the one hand, it means that the future children already know about me, and I can communicate with them without raising suspicion. Even better, they already know that I can see the future, so I don't even have to explain how I know about them already. That's great.
On the other hand, it means that I've already been in Ylisse once, and I've probably changed the story irrevocably. That…feels wrong. Oh, gods, do I have kids? I don't want to accidentally steal one of the shepherd's wives before they even get together, but hoping that I'm going to stay a virgin for the foreseeable future is also just depressing.
This just opened a massive can of worms that I really don't want to get into. Damn you, Lucina. I was having a good day laughing at Virion's bib and Robin's inability to do anything physical.
"Er…Uncle Terry?" Lucina seems concerned about my sudden lack of speech.
Wait, hold on! Uncle Terry? The hell? I really hope that it doesn't mean what I think it means.
"What? And what did you just call me?" I blink out of my internal stupor with a rather harsh verbal jab. I wince as soon as the words leave my mouth. Oops?
"O—Oh, I'm…sorry, Sir Terentius. I didn't mean—"
"No, no, Lucina," I sigh, shaking my head. The blue-haired girl perks up significantly when I call her by her actual name. "You can call me that if you want to. It's…just a bit surprising being called uncle. Uh, did I actually marry Lissa?"
"No! That's—" Lucina suddenly clamps her mouth shut. Her voice is surprisingly feminine now. With the benefit of hindsight, I can say that Lucina's acting is really good; her actual voice is much higher than the voice she used with Marth. It's somewhat impressive, even. "You don't know who you marry?"
Oh. She's asking about this. Well, since Naga hasn't graced me with a vision on my future prospects yet, I'll just spin up some river of time bullshit. It worked on her father, it'll probably work on her. Plus, Terentius has the best poker face that I've ever seen.
"The river of time is vast and unpredictable," I shrug. "Just by looking through one of its branches and viewing that possibility does not mean that it is the only possibility forward."
"I see…well, uh…no. We…er, all of the—"
"The future children that have been sent back," I cut Lucina off. "I know about them. Your presence is a rather large prerequisite for victory, after all."
"W—We are? We're that important?" Lucina seems surprised.
"Yes. Unless extreme circumstances occur, I have never seen a single possible future without the future childrens' arrival where we win," I nod my head. "Anyway, what's all this uncle business?"
"Well…" Lucina sighs. "After…After father died—was there any way to save father?"
I blink. Did future me not tell her about any of this?
"Not without you, no. I didn't see any future where Chrom would be saved without your help," I say truthfully. His death is kind of a prerequisite to Grima, after all.
"O—Oh, I see…" Lucina mumbles to herself. "W—Well, after Father died, there…weren't many Shepherds left, and everyone else who did survive had their own children to look after. You…sort of adopted us, me and…my younger sibling. Mother was always out on queenly duties so she couldn't take care of us, Aunt Lissa had her hands full with Cousin Owain, and…Uncle Frederick wasn't seen…after Father died. Most people decided to put me up on a pedestal, but you decided to still take care of me through the years after Father's death. Honestly, I have more memories of you than I do of Father…"
"Wow. I had that much time on my hands? Must have never married, huh?" I chuckle. Lucina's face darkens for a moment, but she doesn't respond. Huh. Odd. Did I actually find someone? With my inability to read emotions?
"R—Right…" Lucina sighs. "A—Also, I have something…to give you. Two…somethings, actually."
I tilt my head at that.
"What is it that you need to give me?"
"Well…First things I— I can't have this! It's your sword!" Lucina suddenly unbuckles that weird brass hilt thing that was attached to her belt and shoves it into my hands, causing me to stand there, confused and not just a bit surprised.
"What do you mean this is my sword?" I ask quietly with a raised eyebrow as I turn the weird hilt around in my hands. "This doesn't look like a Gladius Hispaniensis—"
I cut myself off as I feel around the hilt for anything that I might recognize, and Terentius sends me a rather concerning signal as I reach the side of the pommel. A long and winding poem, written in Elvish. Again, I don't speak Elvish, but Terentius does. And he is fairly certain it says the following, translated into English, of course:
O' Great Goddess of Light
Blessed be upon your name
Forever shining through the sky.
Deliver your judgement
Unto those foul beast
The undead
The vampire
The unliving
And the aberrant
And keep your people
Safe, sheltered, and in health
For as long as you shine
O' Great Goddess of Light
Blessed be upon your name
Forever shining through the sky.
Well, all of that doesn't help me very much in trying to identify what weapon this is. But what does is a single word, again in Elvish, inscribed onto the crossguard of the hilt: Dawnbringer.
Oh man, that sends a shiver right down my spine. A certain magical box currently sitting in my backpack gets a lot heavier. See, Dawnbringer is a magic weapon…well, it's hard to describe. It's a sentient, magical, and thoroughly powerful Sun Blade. Er—a sun blade is basically a magical lightsaber; you usually only have a hilt and when activated, a bright magical blade of light appears from the hilt, between the sizes of a Bastard Sword or a Longsword. Yes, I specified Bastard Sword. It isn't as long as a traditional Longsword, but it isn't quite the size of a Bastard Sword. Suffice to say it's a rather big sword, but not big enough to require two hands.
Considering that there's only supposed to be one Dawnbringer in existence, and the one in this timeline is currently sitting in my backpack, there's only one reason why Lucina would have this rather dangerous weapon.
"No. If future me gave it to you, then he expects you to be able to use it well. I trust his judgement," I shake my head and push the weapon back into her hand. "Use it well."
"But! This is your sword! It's as tied to you as Falchion is to me!" Lucina protests.
"Then I must have given it to you because you are the most like me," I reply. "And it's not like I have any use for her anyway; I already have her."
"Well…I suppose you do, considering that it is your sword," Lucina then scrunches up her face in confusion. "Wait, her?"
"Yup, her!" I grin as I walk up to my backpack. "Not sure why yours hasn't talked your head off already, but Dawnbringer is very sentient. Here, let me show you."
After digging around my backpack for a while, with Lucina still holding Dawnbringer tentatively in her outstretched hands, I retrieve the immaculately polished dark oak box that contains the powerful, ancient sword. Sliding off the smooth lid of the box, I have to squint my eyes as the enchantments in the artefact's container cause a bright light to emanate from the fabric attached around the sides and bottom of the box. Contained inside is the same sword hilt that Lucina is currently holding, just less scratched up and more polished.
Magical items are incredibly resistant to damage, so future me must have gone through a lot, yeah?
I reach out and gently grab the cool metal of Dawnbringer's hilt before I free her from the confines of the box. The moment my skin makes contact with the gold-plated steel of her handle I feel a jolt of magical energy leaping from her enchanted weave and into me. It is a +3 weapon, so I suppose that makes sense?
"Good morning, Dawn. It's time to wake up," I say in a calm voice, much to Lucina's confusion.
"Uncle, what are you—"
[Hmmmmmmmmaugh] A soft, feminine yawn fills my head. It's awfully familiar to Terentius, and that…awakening something in him. Not sure if it's fear or something else more…interesting, but it's certainly not any positive emotion.
I look at Lucina after Dawnbringer speaks and am not surprised when her jaw looks just about ready to detach itself and drop to the ground.
[Watsthe matter?] Dawnbringer's voice once again fills me and Lucina's minds, though she pauses once she seemingly completely wakes up. [And…er, where, exactly, are we?]
"Nice of you to join us, Dawnbinger," I chuckle. "Had a good nap? Anyhow, we're in a land called Ylisse."
[Oh! So we…got out? That's good! I…I can feel her! The sun! There's sun again!] Dawnbringer giggles like a little child after getting sweets, and I can feel a slight pulse of heat fill my hand. It's…a pleasant kind of warm. [Ehehehehhe! Look, Terry! The trees! The air! The birds! Oh, the animals! I've forgotten how beautiful their songs are! We're free! We're outside!]
"That…we are. You've missed a lot, Dawnbringer. But don't expect our lives to be overly peaceful, at least not for a while," I sigh. Lucina looks even more confused than before. I suppose she's just surprised that I'm talking to a weapon, and shocked that the weapon in question is not only responding but striking up a conversation with me.
[And why is that? Have the gods given you another task you must fulfil? If so, I will contact the Lady of the Sun, and by her graceful name, have you freed from this undeserved task.] Dawnbringer hums with slight confusion in her voice.
"Well, I doubt this is some interference from any divine entity, since they usually make their intentions rather clear in the first couple of moments of your task," I shrug. "And the main reason is that the world we find ourselves in is currently being slowly overrun by the undead."
Dawnbringer shudders minutely before sending out a pulse of angry heat. Any usual person would have dropped the powerful relic instantly after feeling that scalding sensation, but Terentius keeps his hand on the golden hilt. He has felt that biting heat more times than I can count, so he's used to it. I hope.
[The undead…they must be cleansed, yes…such aberrations do not belong in my lady's domain! As her lady-in-waiting, I will attend to this problem at once! Of course, so long as you have no other need for me, Master,] Dawnbringer giggles to herself, but her choice of words sends a shiver right down my spine. Master? Seriously?
"Why'd you call me 'master?" I ask her as much.
[Well, you do command over me, and I have called my wielders masters in ages past, even if you are the first in nearly a hundred millennia to have found my blade and accepted its power. It would be rude not to do so.] If she could, I have no doubt that Dawnbringer would have shrugged.
"Alright, but could you do that when we're alone? I don't want to weird people out…" I ask. A slight warm pulse is Dawnbringer's non-verbal confirmation.
[That is fine. So, Terry? Do you have any use for me? Or shall we go and purge the unclean?]
"I do, in fact. But…" I bite my lip. I can still remember the face of the bandit that I burned using Randy yesterday…it sickens me. Well, it should sicken me, and I'm sickened that I don't feel that way. I…don't…want to feel like that again. "We're going to stop the Risen from coming in the first place. So I'm probably not going to use you, not for a while, at least. I'll pull you out whenever we're facing the undead, but not with Human enemies."
[I understand. After so long fighting against the demon and the sinner, it takes some getting used to killing mortal evil, doesn't it?] Dawnbringer says something that I'd rather not associate myself with, so I chuckle in a pained manner, just to not hurt her feelings.
"Yeah, those couple of years really took a lot out of me," I nod. Not…exactly a lie, but I don't feel comfortable actually lying to a sword that could very easily tear me apart. "Plus, I'm no good at fighting actual people with a sword anyway."
Terentius takes over and adds:
"Konstantine did his best to teach me everything he could, the stubborn knife-eared bastard, but he didn't teach me nearly enough,"
Ah, Konstantine von Konigstatte, or in Eladrin, Konstii Ebyn Vaan Koigszatie. One of my old characters-turned-NPCs. An image of a tall, fair-skinned, extremely blonde-haired Eladrin—er, elf—appears in my mind. I shoo it away. Not the time.
"Uncle…I…why do you say that?" Lucina mumbles something, finally speaking up.
[Oh? Uncle? Did you finally find someone? I was sure that you and Amette would get together, especially after that nasty rejection that Jugen gave her—]
"That's enough, Dawnbringer. Firstly, disgusting, neither Jugen nor I would like to think of Amette that way. Secondly, Lucina probably doesn't know who either of them are…" I sigh and shake my head at the sentient weapon. "And for your information, Lucina is from the future, and she either isn't allowed to or just doesn't want to tell me what kind of relationship I'm in."
[Can't you see the future, though?] Dawnbringer asks. Now that's weird, I don't remember—
"Haven't I told you a thousand times already? Just because I can see a couple of possible futures doesn't mean I can see all futures, or even the probable ones," My mouth moves without me telling it to, and those two annoyed sentences come flying out. My face is probably very surprised for a moment, before Terentius's pokerface comes slamming right back down.
[That's…true. Oh, I'm sorry for ignoring you for so long, potential-niece-or-maybe-nephew-of-master. My name is Dawnbringer, sword of the anointed lady, Heisla, blessed be her name and her virtue, and I am currently sworn to protect and serve this wonderful man, Septimus Terentius Aquilius Aurelius. I am a sentient weapon, and I am a holy one at that. It's a pleasure to meet you!]
"Y—Yes…Milady…er…I am…Lucina Lowell, Exalt-to-be. Uncle Ter—er, that is, Septimus Teren…tius…Aquilius…Aurelius…is my acting regent," Lucina replies with a nervous curtsy. Her pronunciation of my Latin name…has a lot to be improved, and she obviously doesn't know what to do in this situation. I doubt etiquette lessons from Maribelle will help when talking to a holy blade. "Or…I think that would be my former acting regent…seeing that…"
It is at this point that Lucina goes to the nearest tree and sits down and covers her face with her hands. I got a quick look at her face before she did so, and the face of sheer despair and horror that is on her face makes even Terentius shudder a little.
[Oh dear…I suppose I am to blame for this…] Dawnbringer hums a little to herself, a bit apprehensive about all of this.
"Well, you think you can patch things back up with her?" I give the weapon a raised eyebrow.
[I…think you should do that…I'm…not the best at trying to cheer people up. Nepenthe even said so, and that was before he went crazy.] Dawnbringer replies in the negative.
I sigh. Turning behind me to look at the blue-haired girl sitting beneath a tree with her forehead resting on her knees and her arms covering her face, I felt something tug at my heart. She looks so weak, so lost. It makes me want to comfort her.
Which, now that I think about it, is probably the best course of action, both in terms of helping her move on, and you know, being a good person? I don't know about you, but being cool and edgy is fine and all, but it makes you a bit of an asshole. Humans need emotional care as much as they need physical mending.
I walk over and sit down next to Lucina and let out a deep sigh. She doesn't move.
"Hey, Lucina. I have to ask, but how was I like?" I ask in the most conversational tone I can manage, trying to draw her attention away from whatever was bothering her. Unless, that is, I am the thing that was bothering her, in which case…I'm sorry?
Unfortunately, Lucina doesn't respond. I carry on with my plan of slowly talking to her until she feels comfortable enough talking to me anyway.
"Because I've always wondered what it would be like in the future," I continue. "I'm not sure if I've ever told you this, but I started fighting when I was very young, and never really stopped."
Rather, Terentius has, and his influence is a lot stronger right now than I realise. How does all of that work, anyway? Am I still me? Damn, I'm going to be in a state similar to Lucina's if I continue down that line of thought.
"…You have…" Lucina speaks up in a quiet voice.
"So I did," I give her a slight smile. She can't see me do so, but it still feels right to do so. "I must have mentioned it a lot in the future. Typical me, making everything about me."
"No…" Lucina shakes her head. "I…only know…because Cynthia told me. She…spent a lot of time with you. I…never asked."
I hear a rather strained sob coming from the girl, and instinctively wrap an arm across her shoulders. She flinches slightly at the sudden contact of my skin, but doesn't move away. I see this as a win.
"Looks like I'm still as secretive as I am now," I chuckle a bit. "That's enough about me, though. What about you? I know this might sound kinda weird, but how old are you now, Lucina?"
It takes some time for her to respond, but it's so quiet that I can barely hear her response.
"…don't you already know?"
I'm guessing she's referring to my rather newfound ability to see the future. Looks like I'm going to have to use the same excuse as always.
"It's rather hard to tell age when all you've seen is someone climbing a ruined mountain," I deadpan while giving her a rather harsh glare. She doesn't see this since her face is still covered by her arms and she's looking down at her lap.
"…You really don't know?"
"I don't. I wouldn't be asking if I did,"
"I'm…fifteen. Almost sixteen. My birthday would have been a little over a month away," That response tugs even harder at my heart. She's just a teenager, lost and alone, with a burden that not even a fully grown adult should carry on her shoulders. Where's Marc when you need him?
"I see…you're younger than I expected…" I mumble a little to myself.
"R—Really?"
"Yeah. You look and act a lot older than your age would suggest. Fooled me into thinking you were someone a half decade older. Don't try and use that to get any alcohol from me, though," I joke with a slight chuckle.
This has the intended effect and out of the corner of my eye I can see Lucina's mouth curl up at the edges into a small smile.
"Speaking of which, what's your favourite food?" I ask in a conversational tone. "I find it easier to understand someone after you've discovered their more human aspects."
"But…why do you want to understand…me?" Lucina's face develops into a frown. Or at least I think that's a frown. It's hard to tell.
"Because you're the same age as the shepherds!" I give the blue-haired girl a quick but light punch to the shoulder. "I can't treat you like I'm some kind of old uncle! I'm only a decade older than you, Gods' sake! You're just a little bit younger than Lissa, and I still want to have a normal relationship with her."
"I…I see…" Lucina bites her lip. "T—Then…are you no l—longer my u—uncle?"
"I mean, if you want to keep thinking of me as one, be my guest," I shrug. "It won't stop me from being supportive of you. We're going to save the future, Lucina. How could I leave you to do that alone?"
"And plus, if I do become your uncle, then everything will be fine, right?" I chuckle after a moment of silence.
Lucina looks up at me with a tear-stained look of confusion. I wince despite myself; I did not notice that she had been crying earlier. At least she has stopped crying now, which is a good sign.
"What do you …mean by becoming my Uncle? Didn't you say that you don't want to be seen as one?"
"Well, if I marry either Lissa or Emmeryn, that would mean I literally have become your uncle, right?" I point out.
"You can't!" I flinch at Lucina's sudden and rather loud exclamation. "I—I mean, please don't!"
I blink in surprise at the firmness of Lucina's refusal. I mean, there's two options here: Either I marry and it's to someone that isn't Lissa, or Lissa married someone that isn't me. Or both. I realise now that those two aren't mutually exclusive. So…there's only one option? Oh well. It's easier to ask who Lissa is married to than to ask who I'm married to, if at all.
"Let me guess, Owain's dad isn't me?" I carefully construct my question to prod for more answers. I go down the list of likely parents of Owain, starting with—
"It's probably Lon'qu, isn't it?"
—and immediately Lucina tightens her shoulders in surprise, even if her face doesn't betray her surprise.
"I—I can't tell you. You said not to…spoil it? I think that's what you said…" Lucina shakes her head, refusing to answer the question. She couldn't have known that I already know from her reaction to Lon'qu's name that he's Owain's dad. Or at least someone who has some history with Lissa. Though, that poses the question of who Olivia married, since I usually pair those two up.
Ah, heck. I can't think about this like a game. These people are obviously not just sprites on a screen.
"Right. Well, that closes the option of actually becoming your uncle by marriage," I hum a little to myself. "Though, I suppose by raising you for a good third of your life, I can be your uncle in spirit? Is that how it works?"
"Y—Yeah! Yes, you could…even if…yes," Lucina nods. "I…You'll still take care of me, right? I—I don't want to do this by myself…I don't think I can…"
…Why do I feel like I almost irreversibly ruined my relationship with Lucina? Did I misinterpret her words? Wouldn't be the first time, I suppose… Man, is there a book on how to communicate? I was never good at that, and neither was Terentius.
"Why would I not? You're only fifteen, and while I have no doubt that you'll be fine even without my help, two heads are better than one, right?" I give her a smile.
"Right," The Past and Future Exalt nods her head. "S—Sorry about getting so worked up about what to call you, Uncle…I…"
"You still haven't told me what your favourite dish was," I roll my eyes in amusement.
"I…didn't," Lucina nods a little. "Um…please don't make fun of me…"
"Oho? Is it something embarrassing? Ooh, or maybe something exotic?" I raise my eyebrow at that.
"No…it's…" Lucina hesitates to answer, which I find slightly amusing. What's so embarrassing that she won't tell me?
"Well, since you seem to have trouble finding your tongue, I'll start," I smile slightly in amusement. "I have an unhealthy obsession with well-made shepherd's pie."
My words stop Lucina's mind and body in its tracks, as it looks like her OS is doing a hard reboot as she turns her head towards me again with the most hilarious expression on her face.
"Really?"
"Of course. I might have been embarrassed about it in the future, but I love shepherd's pie. It is one of the best foods to grace mankind," I confirm.
"But—it's so…pfft," Lucina is unable to contain her laughter. "Aren't there better choices?"
"Yes, but if you think you're so high and mighty, why don't you say what your favourite food is?" I spring my trap. Yes, I do like shepherd's pie, but part of the reason I said that instead of my actual favourite food is to trick Lucina into saying hers. Ok, that sounds like I'm bashing shepherd's pie. I'm not. It is actually really good. But it can't hold a candle to Chinese and Japanese food. What can I say? Rice is king.
Caught in my verbal trap, Lucina is forced into a lose-lose situation, and so she decides to bite the bullet.
"…Don't laugh," She prefaces.
I put my hand on my heart, and Lucina gets the meaning.
"I…really…like honey fritters. Not as much as Sir Gaius did, of course! But…I…do…like sweets…" Lucina admits, much to my confusion. Why is she worried over that?
I tell her as much, but she just blushes and says nothing else.
What?
Oh well, time to move on to the next couple of parts of 'Operation: Understanding'.
"Oh yeah, completely random question, but what's the calendar here?" I ask Lucina, much to her confusion.
"What do you mean by that?"
"Well, the calendar that I'm used to is twelve months long with each month being around 30 to 31 days, with the second month, called February, having 28 days. However, Lissa told me it was the month of Sixtus, which I'm guessing is the sixth month? We certainly didn't have that back home," I explain.
"Oh…oh, right. I'm sorry, I forgot that you weren't from Ylisse," Lucina reaches into her small satchel and retrieves a rather large piece of wrapped parchment. "You…er…your future self expected something like that, and told me to give you this. He said that it would answer most of your questions."
Taking the rough parchment, I shrug. I'll read that later. Right now, I'm still a bit worried about Lucina.
"Alright then. That puts most of my worries to rest…" I sigh. "Although, where are you heading next? Ferox?"
Lucina nods her head.
"Yes. I'm sure you know what will happen if Sir Lon'qu loses the tournament, so I need to take his place in order to prevent his injuries," Lucina explains. "And since you're here with the Shepherds, I have to go alone…"
Oh. That's why. Well, that's as good a reason as any.
"Well, I don't see a problem. Just don't get hurt. Chrom isn't the person you know," I frown and quickly amend that statement. "Rather, he isn't the same swordsman as you know. He's a lot more…rash, unpredictable, and inexperienced. You might have trouble taking him. And also, he's certainly not a Risen, so you actually have to watch his stance and his—"
I stop once I realise that Lucina is giggling.
"What's so funny?"
"Apologies, it's just that…hehehe…you said the same thing to me before I left. Don't worry, the two of us sparred enough for me to understand how to fight real people," Lucina smiles at me. "Really, you two are the same person. You worry as much as he did."
"Well of course!" I grin. "We're only what, a decade and some change removed? Anyhow, how did we spar? I don't remember being that good of a swordsman."
Lucina blinks at me, confused.
"We sparred with each other…with swords? And you were really good; even Father said he had trouble keeping up with you due to your magical items," Is the concerning answer.
Now, it's my turn to gaze out into the forest without focus and fall silent. If I was that good with the sword, then what did I do to become so used to using it? How many did I kill with it? And more importantly, how concerned was I with killing? Did I feel guilty every single time I swung Sunbringer? Or did my mind become so soaked in blood that I no longer felt any remorse for murder? Or worse, did I become a monster that only cared for battle?
All of the thoughts that I had kept in the back of my mind rushed back into the forefront, threatening to bury me under a sea of insecurities and worries. I swirl around in the black currants, head tumbling around both above and under the waterline, being battered by the wind and the water.
It takes a long time before I am able to emerge from the depths and slowly wrap those thoughts up into neat little packages that I punt back to where they came from.
By the time I do so, Lucina has already poked me a couple of times and called my name a couple more times, and the only reason she is not shaking me is due to Dawnbringer breaking her silence and making conversation with the young exalt.
[…reason is that he's judging himself based on others. To you, he might be a great duelist, but he's comparing himself to people like Jugen and Antoni. And yes, compared to them he is a novice at the sword. ] I manage to catch the last part of their conversation. I elect to stay quiet, just to see what would happen.
"Then…why is he reacting like that?"
[I…honestly don't know. My current explanation is probably that you somehow dug up some memory of Rufus or Amette, and he reacted viscerally to that.]
I feel a spike of grief impact my heart, causing my chest to cramp. Terentius must have really cared about those two, huh?
Oh, who am I kidding? Of course he did! That's how I wrote him and how I RP'ed him! Of course he would feel bad! I even RP'd him crying his head off when we found Amette dead!
"Oh…Oh, I see. I…didn't mean to,"
"Don't worry about it. It's about time that I got over it anyhow," Terentius decides to respond despite my protests. "Chrom'll be needing me. Stay safe, Lucina. Rest and Ylisstol and we can have another chat before you go off to Ferox."
I smile and take out the roll of parchment and shake it a little.
"I'm going to have a lot of questions about this, after all!"
The camp barely changed by the time I got back. The group has settled down into a more comfortable position, and Robin has managed to find enough energy to tear herself from her position at the base of the tree, and is sitting with the rest of the shepherds in a loose circle in the shade of a tree.
I wave to Chrom and he nods back, and then returns to the conversation. I decide to stay away from the main group and instead strike up a conversation with Dawnbringer. There's been something that has always confused me ever since I realised I still had her.
"Why did you choose me?" I ask her quietly. I'm holding her in my palm, and I interpret the sort of strange pulse of warmth that she gives me as a sort of confused look.
[What do you mean by that, Master?]
I cringe inside a little. Is it really necessary to call me that? I tell her as much, and her reply doesn't make me feel any better about myself.
[You said it was fine if I called you Master in private. I've already told you, this is simply how I address my wielders.]
"Still doesn't make me feel any better about myself," I mutter, realising that I won't make any headway on that front. "What I mean is why did you choose me to be your wielder? I'm not the best fighter with the sword, and I'm certainly not the most pious man."
[That is true. But you're the most pious man of the group, are you not?]
I open my mouth to respond, but then I realise that she's not lying. Jugen might look calm and peaceful on the outside but the moment you wave money in front of his face he turns into an extremely Anna-like creature. Augusta is…well, she's a bit too wrathful. She got drunk once and decided that she would fight a rock. That was a hell of a Quixotic experience… Signus was lazy as all hell, and Amette…well, she knew her way around both a brothel and a corporate lawyer's desk, that's all I'm going to say. Antoni…surprisingly for a Barbarian he wasn't too bad…except his loot goblin tendencies. The reason why we're not stripping the people naked is because I can make magical items better than anything you can find on a random person, Jorje! Rufus isn't too bad, but he's following the wrong god, and would never touch anything made by a foreign deity.
"Well," I sigh, conceding the point. "There are a lot of people with much better intentions than I. Why don't you ask them to be your wielder?"
[Because I like you.]
"Explain," I blink. I really, really hope that doesn't mean what I thought that meant. Can holy swords…uh…even feel love? Is that a thing? I—
[We have fought together for nearly a decade, no? I have gotten used to the way you swing my hilt, and you have gotten used to my weightless blade. There is no point in changing my master. My lady, Heisla, blessed be her name, is more than satisfied with your performance, and sees it fit to keep you as my master, and as her champion.]
I mull over the sword's response before I realise something very important.
"Wait, Heisla's champion?" I blink in surprise. "Why did she choose me? How did she choose me? When did she choose me? Can I even be chosen?"
My rapid-fire stream of questions is quickly answered by the magic sword, and, thankfully, without too much annoyance.
[Because you're my master. By letting me become your weapon. When you first picked me up. Yes.] Well, I say without too much annoyance, but she's obviously annoyed.
"So you're telling me you don't know,"
[I am my lady's sword. I do not question her judgement.] Well, I guess that makes as much sense as any.
"But…I'm irreligious, remember? I might have gods and gods who I have a good relationship with, but I don't believe in the same kind of divinity that most preachers do," I frown.
[That is fine. You do not disrespect the lady, and you show her all due courtesy during your interactions with her. My lady, blessed be her name, is not one who is petty. She is the sun, and commands over all who live beneath her. She does not have a domain, and you do not need to swear allegiance to it.]
It's obvious that Dawnbringer becomes a lot more…ecclesiastical when the topic of Heisla comes up. She's usually not this uptight. Well, she is the sacred weapon of a major goddess, so it makes sense.
Speaking of which, how does Heisla and the rest of the Caelestes Arcanorum mesh with the deities in Ylisse and the rest of the Fire Emblem world? Do they still exist?
"Hey, Dawnbringer, can you feel her? Heisla, I mean. We are quite far from her base of power in the Ever-shining Star," I ask her.
A little bit of warmth seeps into my hand as Dawnbringer tests her connection with her creator.
[My lady, blessed be her name, is there. A bit further than where I would feel comfortable, but she is still reachable.] Dawnbringer replies in the affirmative, letting my heart fall a little with the knowledge that her powers will still work. Being able to cast lesser restoration once every few hours is a god send, and her other exalted powers are extremely useful.
"That's good," I nod with a smile, laying down on the dry grass. The shepherds are still not moving yet, so I take this time to get a little bit more rest. My conversation with Dawnbringer slowly devolves into more and more mundane topics before we're laughing like old friends at dusty memories and aged experiences, some sweet and happy, others sour and bitter, but enjoyable all the same.
You know, having someone who you can talk to and just share your thoughts and emotions with is quite nice. The fact that they're only a golden hilt makes things a little strange, but it is what it is.
(Robin)
I hate travelling. I really do. It sucks.
You're hot, you're smelly, and it's really uncomfortable to sleep on the ground. We've been walking for nearly four days now and my feet are getting really tired. I really don't understand how some people can walk for this long.
Chrom, for one. How the hell has he been able to walk all the way here and back? It's so tiring! And he and Terence always volunteer for the hunts as well! Are they not tired?
And Frederick! He's even worse! Just looking at him run ahead doing Naga knows what and then running back to Chrom infuriates me! I'm over here barely keeping myself together and he's having a jog? It ticks me off.
Sully as well! I thought we would be comrades-in-suffering, but not only does she have a horse, but she's fine not using it! Augh, what do you mean you have to get your exercise in as well? If you're not going to ride your horse can I?
And don't get me started on Terence. He keeps saying that he's tired as well, but I know he's lying. He's giving me that smile that just teases me, as if he's saying 'You can't even handle this?'. It's smug, and it makes me seethe. At least he keeps a close eye on how tired I am and signals Chrom to slow down or take rest when I need it. That's nice of him to do. I don't know if it makes up for his awful, smug look that he shoots me.
He's too smug. That smile…ugh.
Though, I must say, he's a lot calmer in this situation than he has any right to be. I'm panicking and not getting enough sleep every night just thinking about what's going to happen next. I mean, I'm just a girl that Chrom found sleeping on the ground with no memories and only the clothes on her back and whatever I can scrounge from my pockets.
Not the best start.
But…even if he is a bit better off, Terence is in a similar boat. He's lost and confused, I think. Not sure how to feel about the whole 'Marth' situation. He's suspicious, that Marth person.
Anyhow, all of these thoughts plus some other assorted junk are swirling around in my mind as I lay on the ground in a tent that Chrom bought when we passed that band of merchants a day or so ago. It's…nice, I guess? It's certainly worse than Terence's tent, but I guess that's because Terence's tents are all enchanted. Yeah, he did say that they were, right?
But of course, I can't sleep. Not with this state of mind.
I should really go out and get some fresh air. There's really no point in—
Clack. Rustle rustle.
What was that? That…sounded like a person dropping something. I sit up as quietly as possible and strain my ears to hear more. It's at this point that I'm glad that this tent allows me to hear the outside.
The person who dropped something has obviously grabbed it back from the ground, as is walking past my tent. I hear a couple of hushed mutters and curses, but it's too quiet so I can't tell who's talking.
The footsteps get quieter and quieter as the person moves away from my tent. After a few moments of deliberation, I decide to follow this person. I quickly put on my coat and rush out from the tent, following the slight impressions in the soft dirt.
I try to stay as hidden as possible as I slowly try to follow this person. They're rather good at hiding the sound of their footsteps, and many times through this little chase I resort to following the tracks that are on the ground, and if there are none, I just wandered around the area until I hear them or find their tracks again.
It takes a while, but I'm finally able to regain a visual bead on them, and they've stopped.
It honestly doesn't take too long to reach them. They're in a rather large clearing in the forest, and now that they're turned with their face visible to me, I can finally see—
Well, I can't see their face, but I can see their body. More importantly, they've stopped being so quiet that I can't hear their words, which means I'm able to pick up on their conversation.
…
Huh, that's Terence's voice, isn't it?
"Right…I think that's far enough away…" He sighs as he sets down his oversized backpack. It's honestly surprising how stealthy the man is, even with the rather large backpack that he's wearing. Something tells me that this isn't his first time sneaking with that oversized container that he refuses to remove from his back. "What do you think, Dawn?"
Dawn? Who's dawn?
Oddly enough, Terence's voice goes quiet for a few moments before he speaks up again.
"It's a nickname for you," Terence chuckles. "Saying Dawnbringer every single time I want to refer to you is going to tie my tongue within the month. I don't want to go mute."
It doesn't take too long for me to realise that I'm only hearing part of this conversation, which is doubly strange. Something arcane is happening, even if I don't know what. Argh, trying to dig up my memories relating to magic only makes my head hurt!
Still, I can fill in enough information for the conversation to make sense…somewhat. Who is this 'Dawnbringer' person, anyway?
"Right, let's get to actually making sure that I remember how to use all of these items," Terence sighs and sits down on the grassy and slightly wet ground after brushing off sticks and small stones to make himself more comfortable. "I don't even remember owning half of these fucking things so it'll be a miracle if I remember how to use a fifth of them."
He takes a rather…worrying looking contraption out of his backpack and then promptly groans.
"I told Amette to get rid of this fucking thing, and yet here it is, clogging up my backpack," Terence shakes his head with a stern yet sad expression on his face. "Well, it's here now, might as well keep it. Who knows, we might find a use for it."
A pause follows where 'Dawnbringer' is probably speaking, and Terence responds.
"What, tell me what exactly you thought a fucking Tentacle Rod could be used for in the middle of hell?" His words are short and dripping with annoyance, and as he says these words he waves this…Tentacle Rod in the air, causing the purplish-brownish…tentacles coming from the rod to shudder and flex in ways that were…abnormal.
Thankfully, Terence put the Tentacle Rod away rather quickly, and instead retrieved a plain-looking necklace with six small red rubies shaped into sparks of flame attached to it.
"Now this," He smiles to nobody in particular. "This is something that I can get behind. Six charges of fireball or a ninth-level fireball? Sign me up!"
He then frowns and responds quite quickly, certainly quicker than my ability to process my own thoughts.
"Wait, what do you mean by that?" Terence shakes his head after the sudden interjection. "I…I'm not sure why—why! There's no point in…"
Silence descends once again as I once again try to comprehend what exactly it is that Terence was talking about. Only hearing half of a conversation makes said conversation relatively difficult to follow, and so I take the time that Terence is listening to this 'Dawnbringer' in order to collect my thoughts.
Well, at the very least, Terence has a lot more to show us than I realised. What were the things he pulled out, anyway? Magical items? What…are those? I doubt I can just go up to him and ask right now, considering he's hiding this far away from the camp in order to use them, but I still want to find out what they are.
And that rod that…is that even legal? It looks like someone shoved an octopus into a rod…if I can remember what an octopus is… I think it's a sea creature, even though I don't remember ever going to the sea. Man, this amnesia is making things difficult for everyone.
Anyhow, I really want to get to the bottom of this. I believe there are some interesting strategies that I can come up with if we worked together with these magical items, and that necklace that makes fireballs could be a really good backup for when tomes run out.
If I can use the necklace, that is. Still don't understand why that spinning metal tube that shot endless fire didn't like me enough to let me use it.
Eh, it's whatever. It's not like I'm feeling useless just because—
A sudden flash of bright light rudely interrupts my thoughts, and I'm forced to drag my eyes and mind back to the clearing where…
What in Naga's name is that?
It's…honestly hard to describe that the fuck Terence is holding. It's…a golden sword hilt with a blade that shines as bright as the sun…but it's…also incredibly difficult to tell where the sword blade starts and ends due to the sheer amount of light that it gives off. It's enough to light a good circle around Terence with enough light that you could be forgiven for thinking that it was the day. Even beyond that circle, it is still ridiculously bright. It illuminates the clearing enough that fighting in this area would not be impeded whatsoever by the lack of light.
It's…honestly amazing.
"Alright, alright, you win," Terence sighs as the light comes on. He seems used to the sudden switch from dark to light, and gets to twirling the sword around with his right hand. "Man, I forgot how light you were, Dawn."
Wait, what—
[I am made from pure light, Master. You, of all people, I expected to remember that.] I suddenly hear a feminine voice emanating from the base of my skull, causing me to jump back and yelp quietly. It did not scare me! Well…maybe it scared me a little! But not very much!
Still, what in Naga's name was that! Who said that? Was that directed at me or did I accidentally hear the other part of Terence's conversation? Was that Dawnbringer?
"…what was that sound?" Terence cranes his neck over to stare at the bush that I've decided to hide in. I quickly cover my mouth with my hand and try to make as little noise as possible.
[Hmmm…it's probably nothing. An animal startled by the sudden flash of light, maybe.]
"What kinds of animal make a sound like that?"
[I don't know. A raven, maybe. A robin, perhaps? Maybe even an owl.]
At this point, I've deduced that this feminine voice is indeed Dawnbriner. But where is she?
"Ok, I'm not even sure the first two birds even exist here," Terence continues with a sigh. "But still…I don't understand why you want me to work on my melee work. I'm a caster, and getting stuck in melee is usually not very conducive to my long-term health."
[Says the person who is the hardest to kill in our little party.]
"Alright, that's because Jugen is just that unlucky. Plus, I've died plenty of times, more times than anyone, really," Terence corrects the mysterious female voice with another twirl of the sword. "It's not that I'm the hardest to kill, it's that death seems to never stick as hard as it honestly should."
[But it is still good to practise physical skills, no?]
"Yeah," Terence nods and stops his flourishing. "That's why I let you bring your blade out."
Wait, is Dawnbringer the sword?
That somehow makes more and less sense than a floating, bodiless voice. Somehow.
Terence brings the sword up to a high guard position that I don't recognize and then pauses, shifting his jaw around slightly, and then speaks up once again.
"Well, I'd rather start with the positions that Jugen taught me. Those…are relatively simple compared to Magister Constantinus's…rather interesting positions…" Terence sighs. "Well, you remember them, don't you, Dawn? The 'mastercuts'? Throw out a couple and I'll see if I can still do them."
[Well, if you must insist…]
Terence tenses up his high guard, and—
[Krumphau!]
"Oh come on, I can't finger your guard! You'll burn me!" Terence grumbles as he lowers his guard and strikes upward. "That's one of the only mastercuts I can't do with you!"
[Which is why you need practice with it, no? It is still a very useful move to have.]
"Yes, but…actually, that's a relatively good point…" Terence sighs as he grunts himself into a different position at Dawnblade's command. "But I'd rather use an actual Longsword or an Arming Sword for that. But you wouldn't like that, would you? It's not like I don't have those weapons either; Jugen left me all of his weapons every single time he wanted to upgrade. I have around six different magically enhanced longswords."
[…please don't…I have been very lonely these past couple of days…]
"I knew you'd say that," Terence laughs as he returns to a high guard after multiple different cuts. Well, five different times of cuts, really, just changed subtly in order to strike at different targets. "Don't worry, you're the strongest melee weapon I have that isn't completely insane. And even then, Nepenthe doesn't give enough of a benefit while you have your healing and exalted powers."
Dawnblade makes a sound halfway between an embarrassed groan and a pleased giggle. She really wears her emotions on her sleeve, huh?
Terence and Dawnblade go on like this for a while, the sound of conversation becoming dulled in my mind as they move to topics that I have no idea where to even begin to understand. They throw around names that I'm sure are important to Terence: Jugen, Rufus, Amette, Konstantine, Roger, and Antoni are all examples.
To me, however, the clearing might as well have been completely silent since I could understand practically none of it. By the time that Terence stopped with his practice, I have already pushed the conversation between sword and swordsman to the back of my mind, so it takes a while for me to refocus on the exchange of words.
"Right…that's enough of that. Not much use for the mastercuts, not until we fight things that are more…alive," Terence smiles, not a hint of exertion on his face even after that rather intense training regime. "Though…I don't think…hmmm…"
{Whachya thinking, Master?}
"Well, the most obvious thing to do next would be to practise the forms that Magister Constantinus taught me. The Elvish ones, er…what were they called again," Terence bites his lip as he tries to remember. "Oh, gods, has my Elvish deteriorated this badly…? Uh…it was called…oh, right! Eyla-al-Lydinvoso Layiva Senghenvelten Hauven. 'Strikes of the Enlightened Singers and Songmakers'. Damn, that's a mouthful."
Dawnbringer chuckles.
[It's always fun to see you struggle with other languages. How's your draconic?]
Terence rolls his eyes before making a series of clicks and low-pitched grumbles that make the talking sword laugh.
[You didn't need to go that far! Come on, let's practise the Eyla-aa…] Dawnblade trails off with a series of weird noises that cause Terence to nearly break down into tears with laughter.
"And you said I was struggling? It's not even that hard to say Eyla-al-Lydinvoso!" He smiles brightly at his glowing magical weapon.
[Hurry up and start practising already!]
"Alright, alright. Are you trying to become my mother or something?"
[Well it's obvious that you still need one to keep yourself from doing bad things! Badmouthing the sacred weapon of her lady is sacrilegious, you know?]
"I'm not a Heislite, remember?" Terence chuckles as he starts to flourish Dawnbringer around. "Technically not sacrilegious."
It is at this point that I realise that Terence has already started his routine. And the forms of this…elvish (whatever a 'elv' is) sword form are certainly strange. They're…more like dances than actual fighting techniques. Rather….they're like a dance with a sword that would be really difficult to fight. A lot of twirls that look impractical and probably are, but they certainly preserve one's momentum and all of the blind spots that usually would be shown are either reduced to insignificance or outright protected by some fancy footwork or blade placement. Furthermore, all of the dancing and jumping and twirling causes Dawnblade to shimmer around and create an extremely distracting and blinding light show.
It's…mesmerising, in a way. It's hard to take your eyes off of the dance, and yet…something feels wrong.
Something feels missing.
It takes a long time for Terence to finish this routine. While the previous one was simply five different cuts made in different situations, these dances are all completely separate. I…think I see seven different styles, but it's hard to tell, especially since I'm not an expert at this. But I can count seven different, distinct patterns of moves in the nearly one hour that Terence spends on training.
Rather, I think that he takes an hour.
Sometime during his practice, I fall asleep and wake up the following morning with an aching back and a rather damp coat. Terence is long gone, any trace of him in the clearing is either gone or never left in the first place.
It's…not too late, but it's probably not early either. It is way too warm for that to be the case. The birds sing and urge me to get back up, but I'm so tired that it takes me a moment to do so. I've fallen asleep on a patch of grass, thankfully, and not inside a bush.
Did not know that I was tired enough to just black out. Now I have to deal with leaves and twigs in my hair.
Ugh, I don't think I'm ever going to get those out…
Well, I think it serves me right. Karma for being a peeping tom, I suppose. Or would it be a peeping Thomasine? I don't know. All I know is Lissa is probably looking all over for me and I should probably head back to camp.
AN: Hello there! Acardia here!
Sorry for being slow this time around with the release of this chapter, I was caught up with something.
There are only two more pre-written chapters after this one, so after Chapter 7, the release schedule will unfortunately be 'When I'm finished with it', though expect the time to be around two weeks or so, since that's how long it took me to write Chapter 7. Sorry. As for my other fics...I'm slowly getting there. Ironically, ATBF has more progress than WCLS. I'm getting some serious writer's block while working on WCLS...
Right, reviews. Let's get to it!
Kamui Raiu: Yeah, that was a problem with the document. I fixed it yesterday. Can't believe I used the old document I sent for editing instead of the edited version...I'm a bit of a dumbass... As for the other children, I was honestly a bit bummed that Say'ri wasn't able to get anything so I gave her the OC child I had for my scrapped RobinxSay'ri fic. Meanwhile, the Khans I gave just for the funnies.
Louie Yang: Bit confused about what you mean here. I'll just assume it's funny.
Guest: (I'm going to guess the two reviews are from the same person since they were only a couple minutes apart) Thanks! Your reviews mean a lot to me! As for Fabius's mother...well, that's a secret! It is an OC, though. If I'm being honest, most of the Children will be rather OOC, since I dislike how boring most of them are (Staring at you, Kjelle).
Freekillm249: Slowly getting your name right without having to look at the reviews screen lmao. I'll write more Chrom being surprised at random shit if you guys like it. Tharja is really a 'She will never stab you in the back. She will stab you in the face—over and over again' kind of person. Although, I'm pretty sure that when push comes to shove Tharja can really shove. Ah yes...the F-bomb, the only word in the English language that can be used as a noun, verb, adjective, and adverb. We just need to find a way to use it as an article and a preposition and we have all word types in the English Language. Truly a most versatile of words. Stahl...well, he's perfectly average at everything, even friendships, I guess. He's the perfectly average friend who you always list second in your ranking of your friends. Still...I have ideas. Kellam is going to be Terence's best man, don't you worry. People are going to be incredibly confused. Honestly, I have only the barest of bones for Maribelle, so I'm going to have to do more thinking about what exactly I want to do with her. Don't worry too much about the endnotes, the chapters themselves are already massive enough, there's not too much bloat proportionally.
And that's all, for this week, everyone!
Valete, omnis!
Acardia out!