Lost Sons

The small dutchy of Leonster had little to offer in terms history and riches. Even the land showed no love for its inhabitants, with barren hills squeezed between the western edge of the Copper Mountains and its smaller neighbors. Cliffs too steep for fishing or ship trade made up the stretch of coast Leonster had won for itself. And where the rocky cliffs ended, the rocky hills began, and a stiff breeze lashed the quivering conifer groves all year round.

Perhaps that was why the dutchy had slept through the recent wars and rebellions undisturbed.

Despite the uninviting landscape, Leonster Castle glistered with new plaster and baked orange shingles to crown its three rounded towers. Where all the hills before had stretched like plain carpets in the sun, the lake at the castle's foot looted all colors and burst with vibrant blues and greens and orange specks. A nature-born, bigger brother to the Binding Shield and its multi-colored spheres.

And although busy chatter and the smell of cooked goose for lunch wafted over the castle walls, Lucina slowed her horse into an uneasy walk. Apart from a night's stay at Virion's villa in Persis she and Ike had avoided larger settlements since they had left Caelin. Even the handful of Altean villages where they had stopped for provisions hadn't welcomed them for long. The open sky promised safety as long as village torches remained at the distant horizon. The prospect of returning to stone and letting it enwrap her left a stale taste in Lucina's mouth.

Ike stopped his horse next to her. His looks concerned not the castle but the mountain ridges in its back and the spruce forests lingering on the other side. Tellius was close. They could cross the border by sundown.

The thought circled in her mind in spirit of the falcon looking for weak prey overhead, but Lucina didn't advice Ike to ride on without her. One day the smell of spruce forests would become unbearable, and then he would disappear between the dark trunks of his home. But for the moment he still directed his horse next to her. And the selfish part of her unfit to call itself Naga's champion was glad for it.

The open gates of Leonster Castle beckoned them to enter. Lucina shuddered only for a moment before she reminded herself that her long sleeves no longer needed to cover bandages. Skin healed faster than thoughts.

No one stopped them on their way through the outer yard where taverns and tailors and wine merchants clustered door to door in a glittering competition to let customers forget the barrenness outside the walls. Tales of war and the Black Knight were stripped off alongside travel coats at the threshold, and Lucina felt a pinch of regret over bringing worries about Grima's shadows inside. Her more regal attire, complete with the golden circlet in her hair, was nothing but a masquerade for bad news. Still the guards on the battlements gave her a passing glance at best and waved her through.

At the gates to the inner yard and the castle proper, she announced herself as queen of Altea. In times of peace, Lord Leif had few excuses to deny her entrance, and sure enough the messenger returned after a few minutes with an invitation from Leif to meet him inside.

"For a practical man, he sure likes pretty things," Ike said when they dismounted.

He had a point. Vines climbed along the keep's walls and showed off a bouquet of late summer blooms, and where other courts would place straw dummies for arrow practice, large beds of goldenrod basked in the sun. A single knight practiced his swordsmanship in the shade of a plane tree.

The words stole out of Lucina's mouth before she could hold them back. "When this is over, we should plant a few trees in the yard of the Glass Fortress too."

Ike didn't respond and instead climbed the handful steps to the keep's entrance, always the man marching towards the goal. If only Lucina had half his determination. Too often she caught herself glancing at the eastern sky where dark lines disfigured the blue, and she would shudder. Instead of the rustling plane leaves, a dagger joined the smell of a grave. Questions, too many questions, and the dagger again.

Give up. Tell her even if she doesn't ask.

Nothing special, only another piece of the eternal creation, fated to serve eternally. No screams, a question, the dagger again, eternally repeated until all consciousness faded and light was all. Nothing special.

Give up.

Give up all…

Lucina jolted herself back to her body. An echo of cold chasing across her arms remained, but she stifled the urge to rub warmth back into them. These worries existed only inside. Ike waited in the shade of the entrance for her, and with the chirping of sparrows between the goldenrod stems and the subtle smells from the kitchen, she could not wallow in her ruminations for long. The task demanded her fullest attention. Yes, urgent business always drove her along, but company made it bearable. She only needed to follow after Ike's example.

The messenger, a woman with long silver curls, guided them through the castle and studied Lucina with poorly concealed curiosity.

"Is it true that you are Naga's champion?" the messenger asked after a lavish flight of stairs.

Lucina shifted uncomfortably; Ike's face had darkened. "Not many people outside of Altea use the title."

The woman beamed and lifted a chain with two silver keys out of her collar. "I'm a cleric in Naga's name. It is an honor to meet you. Everyone of the true faith looks up to you, especially since the Voice died so tragically."

"I… see."

"Still not an excuse to parade the Altean flag around wherever you go," Ike said.

The woman's smile dimmed ever so slightly. "I thought it was common knowledge. The symbol stems from the oral testaments. Altea only adopted it for its flag later. 'In darkest times to rebirth light the keys must be willingly given.' You must have heard."

"And here I thought Nagaism had enough credos already..."

The woman ignored Ike's low remark and turned to Lucina. "We are expecting great things from you, Your Highness. You see, Naga's light helped me recover from a dark state of mind. Sometimes I can hear her voice as though she were standing right next to me."

"Maybe you should consult a healer," Ike murmured, but the woman again didn't respond.

At a door near the end of the hallway, she stopped. "There we are. If you have a moment to spare sometime this afternoon, Your Highness, I would be glad to welcome you into the shrine we built for Naga. Compared to the great five-story towers in Altea it must seem humble to you, but perhaps you will still do us the honor?"

She opened the door, bowed, and without a single kind look in Ike's direction ambled back the way they had come. Lucina swallowed in a dry throat. They were expecting great things… But she had no time to review this brief exchange.

Leif awaited them in his personal study. For a man in his late thirties, he held himself with a boyish energy, a sly grin never far from his lips, and with a gleam in his eyes to suggest he always plotted this or that prank. The tailor-made tunic in white and gold supported Ike's comment on Leif's passion for the fine joys in life, but his brown hair absolutely refused to bow to the rule of a comb. Although he carried no sword, the collection of a dozen shields arranged on the wall proved a certain battle prowess. Lucina had read about this tradition. As customary in Tellius, Leif had hung up the shields of defeated knights so that the emblems faced the wall; their previous owners had lost their right to display their house proudly. But had Leif truly won all these shields himself?

In rather uncourtly fashion, he shook first Ike's and then Lucina's hand and invited them to a tray of cinnamon-flavored pastries. Ike refused, Lucina took one for the sake of politeness, and with one piece for himself, Leif lounged in one of the enormous cushioned chairs and studied his guests with a keenness ill-matched with his laid-back posture.

"I already know why you're here," he said and wasted little effort in hiding his grin behind his pastry.

Lucina exchanged a clueless look with Ike. "You do?" she asked to gain time.

"Of course. The most infamous assassin guild and the dragon bane of Ostia don't just disappear without making waves. If the queen of Altea sets out on an adventure, that's a story worth looking into."

"For the lord over such a small land, your information network is surprisingly expansive."

Leif dipped his head in spirit of a bow. "Thank you. When nothing happens on your doorsteps, it keeps a man occupied to look a little beyond the horizon. And you certainly have been an interesting subject to look into. It's been a good two decades since someone sought to obtain Naga's five spheres."

Lucina struggled not to choke on her pastry. A mere handful of people knew the true purpose of her journey. Even Virion and Cherche had received no more than ambiguous excuses from her, and she had not once mentioned Naga's spheres to them by name. Half of the people who had known about her visit to King's Plight were dead now – and she counted none of them among Leif's spies.

Should she deny? There would be no point; they had come here for Leif's help. His expression was joyous, as though they all shared in a great conspiracy. His eyes gleamed. If he was playing a game, he played to win.

"You indeed seem to know a great deal about our adventure, as you called it," Lucina said. Play along. Let him show his cards first.

"I would be disappointed in myself if it were otherwise. To be honest, I expected you to come to me sooner."

"Travel was rough," Ike said with a glare at Leif's pastry tower.

"Uther told me that Hector visited you before he brought the Lightsphere to Ostia," Lucina said. "And a similar scenario occurred during my father's search for the Geosphere. In that sense, maybe our coming was predictable. Am I wrong to assume you were collecting the spheres yourself at some point?"

"Not at all," Leif said. "Perhaps It was rather foolish of me to place my hopes on malevolent stones, but I was young, and before the incident with Hector, I had only seen the spheres as tools, in the same way as Naga used them, if the stories are to be believed. Powerful tools no doubt, but controllable."

"Wasn't your little castle here neutral in the conflict between Altea and Pherae?" Ike asked. "What use would you have for the spheres?"

Leif flicked a sugar crumb from his pastry. "Unless you stole the headband you're wearing, you stem from Tellius. In which case you can guess my reasoning: The Black Knight."

Ike narrowed his eyes, but Lucina sensed a golden opportunity here. He never talked about his home or the Black Knight, not with her, but through Leif, she might better understand what had shaped Ike and which faces had haunted him the longest.

"You were born in Tellius too, Leif?" Lucina asked.

"Everyone in Leonster over the age of twenty-five was born there. This patch of land was part of the Tellius Empire. Now Leonster is our little bulwark against the Black Knight. We have held ourselves steadily, but back then, while the paint on our new flag had barely dried, I had delusions of grandeur, that we could defeat the Black Knight from here. Now, with a group of expellees and travel-worn soldiers, that plan had some noticeable hurdles in its early stages."

"So you turned to Naga's spheres."

"I thought I could prevent the worst chaos in Tellius that way. By giving the three spheres I had found to both capable and kind knights like Hector and Marth, surely the reign of the Black Knight wouldn't last long."

Ike huffed.

"As I said: delusions. One of the spheres was stolen from me, the second one unleashed a dragon onto Ostia, and the last one fell into oblivion alongside the kingdom of Altea. Until you dug it up."

"I'm merely following the path Naga laid out for me," Lucina said.

"Spoken like a true champion of Naga. I heard about that. You even were fortunate enough to enjoy the company of her Voice for a while."

Tiki was too sensitive and far too personal a topic to discuss over cinnamon pastries. Lucina shifted in her chair. "I suppose when you were collecting the spheres, you didn't do so for Naga's sake."

"Hardly." Leif reached for another pastry, turning it to examine the artful curls of the dough. "I'm afraid I have done little to please her or any other gods. At least that is what Sara likes to tell me. I believe she was the one who guided you here. But let us waste no more time with trivialities. Your current objective is far more intriguing. If you are acting on Naga's behalf, I assume you have no intention to use her spheres yourself?"

"If it's necessary…" Ike said.

"Not under any circumstances."

Leif raised a brow. Ike's response evidently irked him, and Lucina's pastry developed a sudden sour aftertaste as well. After the fight at the shrine, Ike had handed her the Darksphere without complaints, but he had been all too ready to make use of its powers before. Lucina could hardly criticize him for his choice. The magic explosion from the Darksphere had given her the chance to overcome Linus, but still she could not help a sense of unease whenever Ike's gaze drifted towards the linen pouch in which she kept the two spheres that remained to them. And whenever it happened, and the flickers of a campfire painted strange shapes across his face, she would hug the pouch closer to her chest.

After a moment during which Lucina failed to catch Ike's attention, Leif shifted in his chair to address her. "Your assurance shall be enough for me. I will do what I can to help you. In the face of such a divine task, we mere humans must band together, don't you think?" He smiled. "Perhaps… if I may see the spheres you have, I can tell you more about the ones you are missing."

Lucina tensed. A low growl came from Ike's corner of the room. But no matter how intensely she searched Leif's expression for trapdoors and the gleam of greed she knew so well from Ursula's face, she found nothing.

Leif raised a hand before the silence could lapse into uncomfortable territories. "My mistake, you probably don't have them on you. I wouldn't either, the risk is far too great. Maybe we should reschedule this meeting at an hour from now? That way you two have enough time to agree on a strategy to pry all my secrets from me."

His smile was impossible not to return. Lucina shook her head at herself. She had spent too much time among assassins; she saw plots and hidden daggers where none existed. Leaves rustled peacefully outside, the sun peeked through the paper-thin curtains, and maybe she only expected the worst from others out of habit. When she had joined the Altean rebellion, trust had flowed from her as generously as words had. Even when Frederick and Tiki had warned her about Ike, she had sought to build bridges. Wasn't it that same bridge that provided her with stable footing now?

Besides, if she offered Leif a breadcrumb, he would be more willing to share his cake later.

"I see no need for rescheduling," Lucina said and reached for the pouch hidden in her tunic.

The cushioned chair ate away too much of her sense of control, and she walked towards Leif's desk for the sake of her own alertness – although the show effect served as a pleasant bonus. Leif craned his neck then stood up when curiosity got the better of him. All too aware of his eyes following her every move, Lucina loosened the cord of the pouch and placed its contents on the desk. The light from outside stroked the two spheres and cast marvelous reflections across the wooden paneling.

"Extraordinary." Although Leif soaked in every swirl in the sphere's depths, he made no move to touch them. "They have lost nothing of their shine since I last saw them over twenty years ago. Obtaining them must have caused you some difficulties."

"We'd have two more if not for the Black Fang," Ike said.

"Oh?"

"I thought it would be better to hide the two spheres we had at the time. But someone must have stolen them." Lucina fought the urge to rub her arms. "I… Naga hasn't told me who could be responsible. That's also why I wanted to speak with you, Leif. Do you know anyone else who could have an interest in the spheres? Perhaps someone who helped you obtain them in the past."

Leif drummed his fingers on the table. "No one comes to mind there. What colors did your two lost spheres have?"

"Green and red. Both were stuck in a shield last time we had them."

"You don't say. In that case, my friends, you are in luck."

Leif strode to his walled collection of battle trophies. He reached for one of the exposed shield straps and, with a wide grin, revealed the shield face to them. Lucina thought someone else might have taken over her eyesight for a moment, Ike grumbled something, but with the gleam of red and green joining the two spheres on the desk, there was no doubt to be had.

"Hiding in plain sight," Lucina whispered. Her heart beat wildly enough for two.

Leif placed the Binding Shield with its two spheres on the desk. "It arrived at my doorsteps three days before you did."

Ike shoved the shield out of Leif's reach before he could take it back to his wall. "You said you gave up on the spheres," he growled. "Delusions, wasn't it?"

"Ike, don't—"

But Leif raised both his hands in apology. "You have every reason to be wary. I know well enough how destructive these stones can be. Why I changed my mind? I had lost all intentions of using them. But it was foolish of me to believe no one else would close their fist around them. The times are uncertain. Pherae is dismantling the Black Wall. And recently the sky itself has fissured. Pretending that these spheres do not exist and that they don't concern Leonster – that is the true delusion."

Leif could have revealed the Binding Shield to them at the start of the conversation. He had known exactly what Lucina and Ike were looking for. But the ease with which he carried himself, and the skill with which he navigated between topics of crowns and gods made it difficult to rebuke him. The people of Leonster had to love him.

Once more, Lucina found herself transfixed by the spheres. Four out of five. She was close. If someone other than Leif had obtained the Binding Shield, Pherae or Altea might have gone under in earthquake and fire, but perhaps Naga had led Leif's hand without his notice. Despite the darkness of the grave in Ursula's dungeon, perhaps a ray of sunshine between the trees still waited.

Lucina reached for the Binding Shield but stopped halfway to look at Leif. "The harvest this year is expected to be weak, but if Altea can in any way repay you—"

"Please, the shield is yours. It only had to pass through a handful of thieves to return to you." Leif winked at her.

The nod she gave him could hardly contain a fraction of her gratitude. With slow, deliberate movements to stop her arms from trembling, she inserted first the Light- and then the Darksphere into the Binding Shield. A jolt went through her like an overdose of adrenalin, and her chest swelled as though she had not enough space left in her own body. The dragon on the shield face rejoiced. So close to the union. So close to the divine miracle. Then perhaps the people who expected great things from her would live without shadows, and the wishes they whispered to five-story candles would find answers.

"Congratulations," Leif said and toasted to Lucina with a pastry. "You must be the first of Naga's champions to have collected four out of five spheres. You might be breaking a trend here."

"Why's that?" Ike had shifted to keep watch on Leif, but at least his tone wasn't hostile. In fact, he sounded concerned more than anything. An atypical behavior from him.

"Naga's champion tends to reveal itself as a most ungrateful title. In my lifetime, it has already worn out two people."

"Two?"

Lucina had always assumed her father had been the only one to wear the mantle before her. In retrospect, it was a silly thought, Altea's royal family had ruled their kingdom in accordance with Naga's teachings for centuries. Still, with only Marth and herself as its bearers, the title had felt more… personal.

Leif's expression darkened when he turned away from the desk. "Have you ever heard of a man named Zelgius?"

Lucina skimmed her memories of books in Lycia's library and even Marth's diary, but she had to shake her head.

To her surprise, Ike answered. "He was one of the high knights of Tellius."

"If only that were the end to his story," Leif said. "But you are correct, Zelgius started as one of the select high knights. Unmatched on the tournament ground. My father also belonged to the high circle, but not once did he succeed in unseating Zelgius in a joust. A legendary man. And highly devoted to Naga."

Lucina frowned. "I thought the people of Tellius primarily believed in a balance between Naga and Grima."

"You are correct. Before they started to believe in nothing but their impending doom, anyway. But even then you had people who leaned more in one direction or the other, depending on what the god offered them. Luckless farmers would pray to Naga for a little bit of that harmony from their fellow men, while knights asked Grima for prowess in battle. Not so Zelgius. Perhaps that very oddity convinced Naga's Voice to choose him above all others."

"Tiki chose Zelgius as Naga's champion?" Lucina struggled to believe; surely Tiki would have mentioned such an important man at least once.

"Her predecessor did. Sothis was the name she used back then. Alongside his title as Naga's champion, she gifted Zelgius with a sword of immense power. Alondite it was called, and one swing of it could ripple the earth and send an opponent to their knees without touching them, or so the stories say. Although, given the feats Zelgius accomplished, I have no reason to doubt this part. Naturally, and according to the fourth credo, Zelgius then wielded Alondite against followers of Grima, of which Tellius housed many."

"So the rumors are true. The Grimleal survived the end of the Wizard War."

Lucina shuddered. To think that anyone, even a power-hungry cult of mystics, could worship the black dragon that had circled Naga's palace during her last visit…

"If I have learned one thing about the Grimleal," Leif said, "it's that the word 'extinction' doesn't seem to like their company any more than a sane human does. Their temples might fall, and they might disappear for a while, but they will always return. And when they reveal themselves, they will have already infiltrated the highest circles. Zelgius had to learn this the hard way."

Leif paced towards the balcony. The view led south, away from Tellius, but perhaps he saw the haunting faces and the growing shadows all the same. "Zelgius made the mistake of allying himself with a mage by the name of Validar," he continued. "Perhaps he merely sought to benefit from Validar's knowledge about the magic arts, perhaps he thought it a true friendship. He was betrayed either way."

Give up all earthly attachments, Naga's voice chanted in Lucina's head.

"Validar put a spell on Zelgius. An unbreakable bondage, and he who once fought to destroy the Grimleal became their tool and servant. You have seen the effects of such a spell before?"

Ike nodded, his face hard as stone.

"I cannot say to what extent Zelgius was conscious of his actions or whether he was capable of regretting them. But strengthened by the powers of both Naga and Grima, he set out to destroy first the empress and then the entirety of Tellius' nobility. Few survived. Fewer still wish to talk about the flames swallowing the imperial capital or the cracks opening the streets with the stench of sulfur and death." Leif brushed a hand over his temple as if to rub off ash. "In a single night, Zelgius razed the Tellius Empire. And a land that once teemed not at the cost of its forests but alongside them withered into a ruler-less waste. That is, not quite ruler-less. Zelgius still holds the land in his grasp. You know him better as the Black Knight."

Lucina shot a look at Ike, but his face still shut all emotions inside. She felt sick. Zelgius, a man with the title of Naga's champion, had destroyed Ike's homeland. The Black Knight, the greatest horror Archanea had seen in this century, had carried the same title she herself paraded around. How could Ike possibly want to breathe the same air as her, how could he bear to stand in the same room with her after this revelation? Or… had he known?

"The Black Knight didn't stop after you ran off to found Leonster," Ike said. Not once did he look at Lucina. "He terrorized Tellius, village after village. Slaughtered the people when he felt like it. A nice little display of his god powers and the best way to lure out anyone dumb enough to oppose him. With my father, he ended the last member of the high circle."

Leif perked up. "Who was your father?"

"Gawain."

"Then we share a tragedy, my friend." Leif walked over to Ike and put a hand on his shoulder. Shockingly, Ike allowed the touch. "Zelgius killed my father too. I remember the endless respect he had for Gawain's kindness. If history had turned out differently I might have sparred with you in the shade of the capital's ash trees. Have you ever seen it?"

"I don't remember much. I was barely three."

"The gray trunks of the ash trees, sometimes stretching three hundred feet into the air. And the dark stone of the castle circled around them, with so many flights of open stairs that a man would need more than a day to count them all. During winter nights, chains with mage lamps would be hoisted between the trees, and the capital would glow in a way to rival the stars themselves. Splendor of this kind doesn't exist anymore. The cruel marching of time has killed it. You see now why I will most gladly help you with your task in whichever way I can?"

Lucina ran her fingers along the edge of the Binding Shield. She still struggled to put all these news into perspective. Worse, her attention kept jumping back to Ike in a desperate attempt to read what lingered on his mind.

"When Naga overcomes Grima with the help of the spheres," she finally managed, "it will break his hold on Zelgius."

"I'm afraid it's more complicated than that." Leif pointed at the last empty mold in the Binding Shield. "Your final sphere. Validar has it."

"Are you sure?"

"Well, I felt no urge to walk into his tower personally, but I have reasons for my suspicion. It has been said that Sothis gave her champion the Starsphere alongside Alondite, and while the sword may have been useless to Validar, the sphere certainly wasn't. If he has obtained it, it would explain why no one has been able to breach his tower. And I know a few good fighters who have tried."

Then a confrontation with Validar was inevitable. Lucina felt for Falchion's weight at her side. If he possessed even half of Ursula's magic talents, and if he had used the years to master the Starsphere, he might prove an insurmountable foe. A man who had snared a former champion of Naga's…

"And if he dies, would this free Zelgius from Validar's spell?" Lucina asked.

"I cannot say if there even is a man left to free under that black helmet," Leif said.

"There's nothing to free and nothing to save with the Black Knight. The only way for the likes of him to do something good is through his death."

"Ike…" Lucina stopped herself. And if he was right?

"Please, friends, these sour faces are offending my hospitality," Leif said. He had the strange talent of lighting a room with his grin alone. "I for one have never been more elated than when you passed under my archway today. Validar's days are numbered. The rebirth of the great Tellius Empire must no longer be a fool's dream. Is that not reason enough to rejoice?"

"There's still the Black Knight," Ike murmured, but Leif didn't hear him.

"Moreover, the Altean queen is facing this challenge herself. It is most reassuring to know that the crown doesn't get to all our heads."

"Please, you have been most forthcoming. I don't see how your title could have ever spoiled your thoughts." And Naga knew, Lucina envied him for that.

Leif's smile shifted ever so slightly. "Allow me to further provide you with a guide to lead you to Validar. No one knows the forests of Tellius as he does. In fact, he might be the only one mad enough to willingly ride into the Black Knight's shadows on a regular basis."

Leif walked over to the balcony's balustrade. Lucina followed.

"And sure enough, there he is," Leif said and gestured at the yard below. "Reliable like dawn, always ferocious to train his swordsmanship."

Lucina followed the line of Leif's arm. The knight she had spotted before still trained beneath the plane trees. His long black cape with gold trimming countered Leif's guise and the colorful view of the yard as a whole. Without a doubt, his technique rivalled the best. His long blonde hair danced around him while he led a sword of finest black steel, and stroke after stroke and with only one hand, he beheaded the air around him.

"Another victim of Tellius' tragic fall, I'm afraid," Leif said. "His father, Eldigan, also belonged to the high circle. My mother took him in after the destruction of the capital, and he has been a most valuable friend to me ever since. Although I would not for all the land of Leonster challenge him to a sword fight. Ares! Will you be so kind as to not cut down my trees again?"

The knight below whirled around to the balcony. Without a word, he pointed his sword at Leif before sheathing it at his side. A sign of mockery? Or a more friendly rivalry?

Leif at least seemed undisturbed. "A true master of words. But I trust he will lead you to Validar's tower as safely as possible. And should you encounter resistance, Ares will prove more useful than a small army, I assure you. Please bring him back in one piece if you can."

Ares had grown disinterested with Leif's guests. Lucina in turn struggled to tear her eyes from him. If he had appeared at her anniversary ball, eligible women would have flocked around him by the dozens, wishing to brush his lustrous hair or downright sinking into his eyes the color of melted gold. But it wasn't his looks that drew Lucina's attention. It was the whole of his being, the way he commanded the yard, in a single word the aura enwrapping him. A man like his sword, sharp and unerring, molded to cut through his obstacles.

He reminded her of Ike during their early encounters.

Ares resumed his training. His blade moved in ever more advanced combinations, in twirls and thrusts and upper-cuts, all chained into a continuous flow. And always the black cape adhered to his steps. One time it billowed.

Ares' left arm was missing just below his shoulder.

"I will introduce you properly in a moment," Leif said and returned to his desk. "In the meantime, make yourselves comfortable. I will have someone arrange rooms for you. I know the nature of your task calls for urgency, but travel was rough I heard. There will be a feast tonight in the outer ring which you should absolutely attend."

Lucina opened her mouth to protest, but Leif raised a finger. "I will have no excuses. You are my honored guests, and I demand the chance to boast a little in front of the Altean queen. Tellius has waited years for its liberation, one day more or less will hardly tip the scales."

With some difficulty, Lucina abandoned the balcony and folded the Binding Shield into a cloth. It still fit perfectly into her saddlebag next to Marth's diary.

"My thanks," she said. "If… if it's not too much to ask, do you have a room with large windows?"

"A woman with taste, I see. Why waste so much thought on wall decorations, when you can have a view of trees instead?" Leif sorted the scrolls on his desk, still with no apparent interest in the Binding Shield. "If you will excuse me for a moment, I have a scheduled report from the border coming in shortly. She has yet to delay our appointments by as little as a minute, I doubt she will start today. One could think punctuality was drilled into her every bone. I don't want to attend the boot camp she went to." He chuckled. "Now that I think about it, she would be a real asset to your journey as well. Consider it, but I doubt you will have any objections when you meet her."

A knock sounded from the door, and they all turned.

"Right on time, as always," Leif said before he raised his voice. "Come in!"

The door opened to let a single person in.

Lucina froze in her skin, suddenly back in a grand marble hall, with a different door closing, shutting out the sounds of combat. Words of welcome all suffocated in her throat. Ike didn't bother with any of that, and Ragnell gleamed in his hand before Leif even had the chance to start introductions.

Introductions that were entirely unnecessary.

Cordelia pushed a currant-colored strand out of her face. "Your report from the border, Lord Leif."


Notes: I originally had this chapter and the next one together, but the thing was getting so long, I thought it better to make the cut here. It creates a nice enough ending, doesn't it? Besides, I crammed a whole truck's worth of lore and implications in here, so I best give you some time to puzzle them out. As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Oh, and my thanks to Author0fntent and Dracofighter for their comments. It's good to know that people can still read this, even if the lack of alerts makes it more difficult.