Let's wrap this battle up, shall we?
Chapter 37 – The Gray Lion (Pegasus Moon)
Gwendel grimaced as the combined force of House Daphnel and the Church of Seiros struck down another platoon of his knights. The Church's mages had first unleashed a combined tornado spell that broke apart the platoon's defensive formation, allowing the Daphnel soldiers to rush in and start cutting down his disoriented men. Within minutes, another 100 of his men were casualties, leaving him at around 1,200 men, less than half of the 3,000 he had started with. His enemies, meanwhile, had taken additional losses, but they were still around 2,200 strong.
The arrival of the Church had completely reversed his prior advantage. It wasn't just the spell they had used to freeze Ailell's lava flows, which gave House Daphnel back its renowned mobility. The one commanding the Church, the woman Gwendel had initially mistaken as Rhea, was countering every move he made almost perfectly. Whenever he tried to push his men forward, she would have her mages ready to punish Gwendel's heavily armored infantry, who could not advance quickly due to the hails of arrows fired at them. If he tried to send his heavy cavalry to attack House Daphnel's flanks, they would always be met by the Church's cavalry, who used their superior mobility and range to hit his armored horsemen and then retreat. When his cavalry attempted to pursue, they would then be hit from above by Pegasi and Wyverns. His own limited number of fliers had been all but wiped out by now, having been lured right into a hail of arrows and crossbow bolts.
He knew this was becoming a battle he could not win. But Gwendel remained undaunted. In fact, he was somewhat glad; he had finally found a foe worthy enough to give him his last battle.
"Lord Gwendel, the enemy is preparing to advance," said one of the Dukedom officers. "Should we withdraw?"
Watching as House Daphnel began preparing its own offensive, he turned to his men and said, "We'll not retreat from these dogs. It's time we showed these upstarts the power of House Rowe's army!"
The knights of House Rowe roared as they assumed their positions and prepared to advance with everything they had left.
…
Ashe was awestruck at how House Rowe's army was being decimated by the Church and House Daphnel as he watched from afar. He had campaigned with Gwendel on several marches and knew the power of House Rowe's knights, yet Byleth and Judith were dismantling them with ease. The Dukedom's men simply could not match the mobility of House Daphnel, and the mages of the Church were rendering the heavy armor of the knights almost useless.
The young heir of Castle Gaspard was now chained to a stone spire as Alicia and Dorothea stayed behind. Dorothea was resting against a rock, exhausted from her Hymn, while Alicia was trying to help her tired friend by making some hot tea.
Ashe had watched in utter awe when Dorothea had unleashed the Grand Blizzard Sonata. He couldn't use magic but didn't know anyone who could cast such a powerful spell. He didn't even think Duchess Cornelia could pull off such a feat, despite her reputation as a master sorceress. But for Dorothea, a woman who had no Crest, nor the talent or affinity for magic that Constance and Lysithea had, to pull off such a thing was mindboggling.
Alicia rushed over to Dorothea with a kettle of boiling water from one of the geysers in Ailell. Despite that there was ice in some of them, the geysers continued to boil and bubble with scalding water. Though the lava on the surface of Ailell had frozen, there was still enough beneath the surface to keep the volcanic region warm.
As Alicia reached her opera friend and poured her a hot cup of tea, Dorothea said, "Thanks, Alicia."
"Just try to take it easy, okay Dorothea?" said Alicia. "You've earned some rest."
Ashe watched Dorothea sip gingerly on the tea, trying to avoid burning her tongue. Seeing her being so appreciated by her friends left the grey-haired archer scowling at her.
Dorothea clearly noticed Ashe's scowling, for she turned to him and said, "Ashe?"
"Why did you have to do that?" Ashe said after a moment of silence.
"Wha – what do you mean?"
"That… that song. Why did you have to go and sing it? Why did you have to give the Professor the means to turn the battle around?!"
Dorothea did not answer this, bewildered that Ashe was so angry with her. She did not know why he was directing so much anger toward her just for giving Judith and her army a fighting chance.
"I know you only wanted to save Judith and her army, but don't you realize what'll happen to my people if she wins? My siblings, and those I care about at Castle Gaspard… Count Rowe will make them pay the price if we lose here!"
Dorothea's eyes filled with dismay at hearing her actions were going to lead to innocent lives being endangered.
"A-Ashe, I…" Dorothea couldn't find anything to say.
Alicia turned to Ashe at this moment and stormed up to him.
"You can't blame Dorothea for that, Ashe!" Alicia said angrily. "She didn't mean to put your family or your loved ones in danger. She was trying to save people who you and Lord Gwendel are trying to kill! People who had no quarrel with you and who wanted to help us free Fódlan from the grip of the Empire! The same Empire you and the Dukedom threw their lot in with! Do you really think the lives of your family and their loved ones are worth killing Judith and her people?!"
Ashe went wide-eyed to Alicia's words, realizing his own folly.
"B-But they… they mean…" Ashe stammered.
"They mean the world to you, don't they?" said Dorothea.
"Dorothea…" Alicia said, turning to her opera friend.
"I'm sorry, Ashe. You're right. What I've done is going to put your loved ones in danger. But I… I couldn't just stand by and let Lord Gwendel kill Judith. And I wish I didn't have to put your loved ones in harm's way, but I… I'm so sorry, Ashe."
Looking at the expression of guilt on Dorothea's face, Ashe realized he had been unreasonable with her. Of course, she hadn't meant ill toward him or his family. It was just a consequence of her actions.
After a long pause, Ashe said, "I should be the one apologizing, Dorothea. You're both right. I just… I have my duty to them, after all. And I must see it through, no matter what it takes."
At that moment, Dorothea and Alicia heard a metallic click. Alarmed, they turned just as Ashe scowled and his shackles fell away from his wrists, freeing his arms. Dorothea saw the lockpick Ashe had concealed in his glove between his fingers.
As Ashe broke into a run toward Welkin, intending to steal the Pegasus, Alicia shouted, "H-HEY! Get back here!"
Just as Ashe reached the Pegasus, Welkin whinnied as he reared back, trying to kick the archer with his front hooves. Ashe yelped as Welkin almost kicked him in the face, and then yelped again as Alicia tackled him. The two were sent tumbling down a short slope before they stopped at the bottom.
Dorothea ran up to the top of the slope just in time to see Alicia straddling Ashe, fiercely holding her kitchen knife to the archer's throat. Ashe stared wide-eyed at Alicia as the Pegasus Knight gasped for breath.
"You're not gonna run off on us ever again!" Alicia hissed as she tightened her grip on her knife, poised to finish Ashe off.
"WAIT!" shouted Dorothea. As Alicia stopped in shock, Dorothea said, "Don't kill him!"
"What?! But he–"
"He's just desperate, like us. Please, let him live."
Alicia hesitated to go along with this, but she soon sighed and eased her grip on her knife. Ashe let out a sigh of relief.
"Alright, Dorothea," said Alicia. "But I'm still gonna punish him for trying to escape!"
Ashe was dismayed as Alicia dragged him to his feet, afraid of what the brunette baker was going to do to him.
…
Brigitte roared as she slammed her war hammer into another Dukedom knight's helmet, bashing the soldier's skull in. It was her seventh kill so far that day. Whirling around, she blocked a sword slash from another Dukedom soldier with a steel shield, though the blow was enough to knock her off balance. Thankfully, the swordsman was blasted down by a fireball from Byleth.
"Thanks, Prof!" Brigitte shouted to the Archbishop.
Byleth was about to respond when the loud whinny of horses caught her attention. Turning, she saw Gwendel and the last of his heavy cavalry charging into the fray. The Gray Lion himself had an impressive silver axe and was plated from head to toe in rugged armor that was covered in scars, including his impressive helmet.
"For the Dukedom! CHARGE!" Gwendel shouted, leading his heavy cavalry into battle.
Byleth shouted, "Cia, Lysithea, stop them!"
Lysithea immediately began readying a Dark Spikes T spell while Cia transferred Mana to her to speed up the process. Lysithea unleashed her spell, raining black spears down on Gwendel's cavalry and taking down several riders. One black spear plunged toward the Gray Lion, but he raised his shield and deflected the attack. Byleth hissed at seeing this, realizing Gwendel's shield had to be enchanted against magical attacks.
"LOOK OUT!" Cia shouted to Lysithea as Gwendel suddenly changed course, heading right toward the white-haired mage with alarming speed. The remaining heavy cavalry charged into the ranks of Judith's men, adding to the already pitched battle and adding to the casualties on House Daphnel's side.
Shocked that Gwendel's horse was moving so fast despite its heavy armor, Lysithea tried to dodge back as Gwendel swung his axe down at her. The axe narrowly missed, but the impact of his blow released so much force that Lysithea was sent flying back, screaming briefly before she smashed into a rock. The mage then toppled over, having lost consciousness. Cia, meanwhile, was forced to run from another House Rowe cavalier before Seteth swooped in and killed her attacker.
"Lysithea!" Bernadetta yelped as she drew an arrow.
As Gwendel slashed through two of Judith's soldiers in a single swing, Bernadetta fired at him. To the purple-haired archer's alarm, Gwendel whirled around and swatted the arrow out of the air. Bernadetta squeaked loudly in dismay as Gwendel settled his one good eye on her.
Laughing, Gwendel then boasted, "Does a whelp like you really expect to kill me? I am Gwendel, the Gray Lion, a knight by the hand of Count Rowe! DO YOUR WORST!"
Bernadetta yelped in terror as she raised her bow again and fired at Gwendel as he charged at her. This time, the Gray Lion's shield blocked the incoming projectile. Gwendel, not missing a step, cleaved his axe through another Church soldier as he continued his charge toward Bernadetta.
The purple-haired recluse screamed, thinking she was about to die.
Gwendel suddenly broke off his attack when a Cutting Gale spell intercepted him, forcing him to deflect it with his enchanted shield. This gave Bernadetta a chance to run back to a better position.
"Not so fast, Gwendel," said Yuri as he readied his blade.
Gwendel's joy of battle faded as he turned to Yuri and said, "So. You've chosen to turn your blade against the count, Yuri. Heh. Never thought I'd see the day, mongrel."
"And yet you are seeing it, aren't you?" Yuri said in remorse. "Say what you will. I know your true feelings for me. Sure, you watched my back by order of the count. But you cared too. You were the only one who treated me as an equal."
"That is all in the past, boy. And this is no time for misplaced sentimentality. I must do what I came here to do. I hope you're prepared for the end."
"Same to you, old man."
Gwendel roared as he charged at Yuri. Yuri dodged away well ahead of Gwendel's strike, knowing he couldn't try to dodge at the last second. Gwendel was too strong and skilled for that. After Gwendel's strike, Yuri countered by throwing a set of knives at the veteran knight, but his heavy armor made such an attack useless. Gwendel smirked and whirled around for another charge. Again, Yuri dodged the attack and countered, this time with a quick Wind spell, but his attack again failed against Gwendel's shield.
"Is that the best you can do, boy?!" Gwendel boasted. "Come now, give this old dog a challenge!"
Again, Gwendel charged hard and fast at Yuri, and Yuri barely had time to dodge this attack. However, instead of charging past him, Gwendel brought his horse to a halt and made another swing at the lavender rogue, forcing Yuri to try and block with his blade. The blow shattered Yuri's sword, prompting him to throw away the useless stump of his weapon. Yuri sent another Cutting Gale spell at Gwendel, this time hitting the elder knight and slicing open a large gash in his armor around the right side of his torso. However, the spell had not gotten through his armor, leaving Gwendel uninjured.
"Too weak!" Gwendel shouted. "Face the Lion's fury!"
With unexpected speed, Gwendel swung his axe again at Yuri, narrowly grazing his chest with his axe. The blow hit the ground, sending out another shockwave that sent Yuri hurtling away across the rough ground of Ailell.
Groaning in pain, Yuri tried to get to his feet as Gwendel said, "It's time to end this, boy. Make your peace with the Goddess!"
Gwendel let out another shout as he charged forward on his horse. All around them, the battle raged as Gwendel's army continued to suffer severe losses. Barely 600 of his men remained, while Judith's army still had around 1,800, with the Church still having 300 troops that could fight.
The battle was clearly a loss for the Gray Lion, yet he planned to fight to the bitter end.
But just before he reached the lavender rogue, a shrill voice shouted, "YURI!"
A second later, Gwendel lurched in pain as he felt an arrow pierce his armor, right where Yuri had torn a gash in it with his magic. Howling, the Gray Lion fell from his horse and crashed to the ground, the sound of his defeat echoing through Ailell.
Horrified at seeing their commander go down, the army of House Rowe began to flee in panic.
Gwendel coughed up blood, knowing the arrow had pierced his right lung. Looking around, he saw Yuri limping toward him with Bernadetta in tow. He smiled. The girl had been the one to shoot that arrow.
Gasping for breath, Gwendel said, "Ah, so I have found a place to die…" As Yuri walked up to him, the Gray Lion asked, "The girl… a friend of yours, I take it?"
"Yeah, she is," said Yuri. "Bernadetta's… she's the oldest one I still have."
"I see… I underestimated her… and you, it seems, Yuri. You have dependable allies." Coughing blood again, Gwendel sighed and said, "Young ones… I thank you…"
With that, Gwendel Roche shut his one good eye and breathed his last.
Yuri did not listen as the soldiers of House Daphnel and the Church cheered loudly as House Rowe's army fled. Bernadetta walked over to Yuri as he knelt over Gwendel's body.
"You're welcome, old man," Yuri said in remorse. "May you be welcome in the Hall of Heroes."
"Yuri…?" Bernadetta asked quietly, unsure if Yuri could hear her over the cheering of the soldiers.
"Bern… Good shot back there."
"Um, well…" Bernadetta wasn't sure if she should accept Yuri's compliment. It was clear he mourned for Gwendel. Eventually, she said, "I'm sorry, Yuri…"
"Don't be. He was loyal to the bitter end. He wanted to go out like this."
Watching this exchange, Byleth made a silent prayer for Gwendel's soul.
…
From her perch far from the battle, Kronya was astonished at the sight of House Rowe's army, battered down to barely 500 men, fleeing from House Daphnel and the Church. She silently cursed the Fell Star for once again snatching victory from the jaws of defeat.
She turned her attention back to Dorothea, who was watching in exasperation as Alicia tied Ashe up with a set of ropes, making them so tight that Ashe was yelping in pain. Kronya had considered sneaking up to the diva during the battle and slitting her throat, but she had her orders. Cornelia would surely punish her if she was spotted or left any trace of her presence.
Growling in frustration, Kronya dashed away from the battlefield. She knew Cornelia would be interested to hear of this outcome.
I've probably gotten the army sizes wrong again, but it's hard to make it realistic.
Gwendel's not given a lot of background or exposition, despite what you hear in the Ingrid/Sylvain C-Support, but there isn't that much to say about him, to be honest. He's just one of those elderly knights worthy of respect that the Fire Emblem series has in just about every entry. Sorry if you expected more about him, but there's not a lot for me to go on.
I also wonder if I'm doing too little for these kinds of battles in terms of description, but I have a word limit to think about for each chapter.
Also, Ashe escape fail. I don't think he could've gotten too far even if he managed to steal Welkin. Aside from Fates, Pegasi don't like men.
The exchange between Ashe and Dorothea was a little tricky, but hopefully illustrates how, even with the best intentions, Dorothea's actions are basically putting Castle Gaspard's residents in jeopardy. I'll touch on that subject a bit later, maybe as a Paralogue (of sorts).
Finally, Lysithea can't seem to catch a break against cavalry, can she? She's so renowned in-game as a cavalry killer, but she keeps getting owned by named cavalry characters (i.e. the Death Knight and Gwendel).