Chapter 26 - The Princess Tactician
Corrin crashed through the trees, branches splintering as his momentum carried him forward. He shielded his face with his arms, shards of wood embedding themselves into his armor and hardened dragonscale. Opening his eyes, Corrin spotted movement. In a single motion, Yato flashed, biting into the trunk of a tree as he passed. The drag his blade provided altered his trajectory, slowing him down as he came in for a landing.
Drawing in a breath, Corrin channeled the power within his dragonstone, an eruption of violet light exploding out of him as he crashed down in front of a group of faceless. The burst of unbridled power staggered the undead creatures, sending them reeling by the power of his rage.
Corrin pounced on the nearest faceless, claws ripping and tearing as his dragon form drove the beast to the ground. Leaping off, Corrin twisted to avoid a crushing blow aimed at him from one side. Reverting back to his human form mid-air, he completed his tumble, bringing Yato down as he landed, taking off the faceless' arm at the elbow. Yato flashed twice more, the creature falling back with chest opened in an 'x', smoke billowing from it's ruined form.
Sidestepping another blow, Corrin countered as he spun to face his next foe, felling it with a furious onslaught of blows.
No sooner had the creature hit the ground, Corrin was in motion again, falling into a dead sprint as he made for the sound of more faceless crashing through the undergrowth somewhere near at hand. Pure adrenaline born of desperation drove his body, instinct having all but taken over since the fighting began.
I won't let them. I won't let any more die. Not again, not one more.
Memories flashed before him. Takumi throwing himself from the wall. Ryoma opening his own stomach with Raijinto. Lilith's broken body clutched in his arms. Azura dissolving into motes of light before his eyes. He wouldn't let it happen, not again.
But beneath it all, something else pushed him forward. Something besides his desire to protect his remaining family.
Fear.
Fear not for their safety, but for having to face Hinoka and Sakura again. Fear of them regarding him with nothing but anger and disgust. Fear of having to face all the pain he caused them.
That's really why you're doing this, isn't it? That's why you aren't there right now. This whole plan was nothing more than an excuse. A reason to stay away for as long you can.
Corrin clenched his teeth, an agonized cry reverberating from his throat as he bore down on another faceless, Yato cleaving through its mask and skull alike drove it back.
He wanted to argue. Wanted to scream that the voice was wrong.
But he couldn't. Because the voice was him. And try as he might, he would only be lying to himself.
He'd just be lying to himself that he wasn't afraid.
After everything, when faced with it, he was still running from his mistakes.
Worse still, what he was afraid of, the very thing he feared he'd see in his sisters' eyes…
… it was the least of what he deserved for the things he'd done.
. . . . .
A closed fist crashed into the ground in front of Robin, sending up a cloud of loose dirt and rocks.
"Elwind!" Crescent blades of air sliced into the faceless, splitting the undead's putrid flesh like a rotten fruit. It managed to take one final step, flailing an oversized fist at Robin before falling, dissipating as it hit the ground.
"Arcthunder!" From the hand he held aloft over his head arched shimmering bolts of lightning that slammed into the earth among the faceless before them. Two of the creatures stumbled and fell, electricity coursing through them, while others slowly advanced, their flesh smoking.
Steel flashed, Lucina and Marc dashing into the opening Robin had created, their divine blades cutting a swath through the undead's ranks. The creatures fell in pieces, dissolving until only their rusted masks and shackles remained.
These faceless don't seem to be nearly as strong as the ones we faced in our world, Robin realized. Come to think of it, they do seem to be smaller, not nearly as massive.
It was a good thing too, for if these faceless had been as powerful, then he doubted they'd had survived even this long. For what these creatures lacked in overwhelming power, they made up in numbers. There must be hundreds of the things teeming in the woods around them, all making for a single spot. The location of at least one of Corrin's siblings from Hoshido.
We're getting close, not much further.
The first thing Robin had noticed as they approached the hill Hinoka's pegasus had been circling was the dark plumes of smoke now rising over the treeline. Thick and black, almost certainly from the damp plant matter mixed in with drying kindling.
"Father, can these things use fire?" Marc asked, his eyes drawn skyward to the smoke.
"No. Not as far as I've seen," Robin shouted back in answer, pressing forward. "It has to be the people on that hill. Too much smoke to just be a signal fire; must either be an accident or try to ward off the enemy."
"If it's the latter, it seems rather reckless. One wrong move and the whole forest goes up in flames," Lucina noted.
Robin could not disagree. Still, hard to tell how planned the fires may have been until they could see for themselves. And so they pressed forward, slowing only to cut down any faceless that barred the way.
The woods soon began to thin, the smell of smoke growing thicker on the air as they entered the heart of the valley. Soon they beheld the hill, a jutting monolith of stone and grass topped by a single ancient tree. Fire wreathed iat is foot, surrounded further by scattered pockets of flame. A haze of ash hung over the valley, forming with where sharp, hulking shapes loomed.
Suddenly there was a rumbling in the ground, an explosive blast of molten earth spraying skyward, consuming one of the shapes in a single flash of light. Roars echoed out, a score of faceless charging forward as embers and a glowing shard of stone rained down.
"Thoron!" Robin bellowed, a spear of lightning striking the closest faceless square in the chest, throwing it back in a crumpled heap. "Lucina, with me! Marc, watch our flank!"
Leaping forward, Robin ducked low under a clumsy blow aimed at his head. He twisted, slashing with his sword at the thing's back, the enchanted blade splitting leathery skin and muscle. The creature howled, turning to face him- only to fall as Falchion severed its spine at the base of the neck, Lucina gracefully tumbling over the undead as it hit the ground. Falchion glowed with brilliant blue light as it took the next faceless' legs out from underneath it, finishing the crippled beast off through one of the gaps in its iron mask.
Thrusting out a hand, Robin unleashed his full might upon the remaining undead, obliterating them under a withering inferno of roaring flame and crackling thunder. As the last of the creatures fell as burnt husks, Robin continued forward, searching the veil of smoke for whoever had been the target of the undead assault.
"Is anyone there? Don't worry, we're here to help. There's more of those things coming, so we need to-"
"Father?!"
The next thing Robin knew something slammed into his midsection, arms wrapping around him as he was nearly driven to the ground. It took just about every ounce of awareness he had in that very confused moment to make sure he kept his sword arm out wide to avoid inadvertently cutting the person who had latched to him. He tried to twist around, to get a look at who or what had embraced him, catching a flash of blue hair before-
"Morgan?" Robin heard Lucina gasp in surprise, rushing to meet them.
"Mother!" The arms crushing Robin's midsection abruptly released, the unmistakable sight of his daughter popping clearly into view as she threw herself at Lucina next, Morgan embracing her mother in the same over-enthusiastic manner she had with him. "I'm so glad you're both safe. I was really worried and when I got here, Marc and I got separated and- Wait, have you seen Marc? Is he here?"
Morgan abruptly lets go of Lucina, who just as Robin had, inhaled sharply as she was again able to breathe. Now that she was no longer clutched to either of them, Robin was finally able to get a good look at his daughter.
Like Marc, she seemed to have picked up new clothes since they'd last seen each other. She had a new coat, one that was shorter and less baggy on her than her old tactician's coat, which she now wore fully buttoned. She wore slimmer knee-high boots, with white stockings and black tights underneath. On her hand, she wore thin, charcoal silk gloves, the same color as her coat, and around her midsection were two crisscrossed purple belts.
The most curious detail of all, however, was the armor she wore. On her arms, shoulders, and legs were layered thin, overlapping flexible plates that Robin recognized as being made of hardened lacquer. It was the same type of armor design used in Chron'sin, he realized. In this case, the armor had been painted dark purple with golden trim, matching the style of her new coat.
She must have gotten it in Hoshido, Robin realized, recalling what he'd read of the nation's culture in the Nohrian Royal Archives. Or at least, he suspected as much, given that it appeared Morgan was traveling in the company of at least some of Hoshido's royal family.
Morgan turned back to face him, about to rattle off more questions when a large shape loomed behind her, it's arms raised high over its head.
"Down!" Robin shouted, grabbing Morgan's arm and yanking her out of the way as the faceless smashed its oversized fists into the dirt right where she'd stood a split second prior.
"Thoron!" Blinding light filled Robin's vision as his spell struck the faceless point blank. The undead staggered back, it's flesh blackened and smoking as it teetered but did not fall. An instant later there was a flash of steel as Lucina stepped forward, Falchion catching the creature beneath it's rusted mask. It fell, head separated from its shoulders as it thudded lifelessly to the ground.
"Can we have this reunion later?" Robin asked Morgan even as he whirled around to meet the charge of another faceless, his blade biting into the creature's leathery flesh. "Long story short, we're alive, help is coming soon, hold off these for now," he rattled off in quick succession.
"Oh, right, of course. On it, captain father!" Morgan snapped off an overly theatrical salute, grinning the entire time. "You really have no idea how much I missed this." Raising her hand out before her, she unleashed a torrent of flame that caught another faceless, sending it's immolated corpse falling face first in the dirt.
"I do not know if I should be concerned or not at the prospect of you enjoying our current predicament," Lucina commented, coming into earshot as she darted back to avoid a clumsy swipe a Faceless had aimed at her.
"Oh come on Mother, you can't tell me this isn't exciting," Morgan said, continuing the grin even wider. "Oh, by the way, have you run into Marc by any chance?"
"Present!" came a voice from somewhere behind them. The three turned as one just in time to see Marc barrel into view. "Hi Morgan, glad to see you, can't talk, a big horde of Faceless behind me. We should probably get to higher ground," he rattled off quickly as he sprinted past.
Sure enough, the approaching sounds of heavy feet soon filled the air, the first of the fresh wave of undead crashing through the treeline and into the valley.
"Well, that answers my question, huh? And here I was worried that'd we need to go search for him after this," Morgan noted, seemingly oblivious to the very present threat the enemy reinforcements presented.
"Morgan? The faceless," Robin warned.
Morgan blinked, then realization dawned on her face. "Oh, right. Come on, this way," she said, turning to rush after her brother.
Robin exchanged a look Lucina's way, her own expression somewhere between bemusement and exasperation. Some things never changed. Particularly when in regards to Morgan, so it seemed.
Launching a quick spell to slow the Faceless' advance, Robin turned and hurried after her. They soon caught up with her and Marc, with Morgan then leading them to a winding path that led up to the rocky outcropping they'd seen Hinoka circling before. The fires that burned all around the hill blocked all the steeper inclines, leaving only the most shallow climb open. Clearly by design, one almost certainly Morgan's own. It was a basic tactic: funneling enemies through providing a single path of least resistance. It was good to know even with all her advancements Morgan still hadn't neglected such tried and true tactics.
Climbing the crest of the hill, they found themselves on a grassy plateau, a single tree growing at its center next to a jutting spear of rock. Standing with her back to the tree was a girl with pale red hair clad in an ornate white dress that looked to be some sort of priestess' garb. She had a bow in hand, a healing staff in the other. As they approached she seemed to have spotted them, hurrying towards them.
"M-Morgan, I was s-so worried. I l-lost sight of you i-in the smoke and I-I didn't-" The girl stopped as she seemed to notice the rest of them for the first time, her expression becoming even more uncertain than he had been but an instant prior.
"Sakura! Guess who I found!" Morgan exclaimed excitedly as she stepped forward to meet now revealed to be Hoshidan princess. "This is my father, mother, and brother! Remember, I told you about them?"
So both of Corrin's sisters are here then, Robin noted, his mind already working with this new piece of information What could have brought both of them out here? Were they traveling to Izumo too?
Sakura stared at Morgan for a moment, then nodded slowly. She turned, shifting nervously before bowing politely to them. "I-I'm pleased to m-meet you all," Sakura stammered, her gaze fixed firmly on the ground.
Robin opening his mouth to reply, only to stop as the sound of wings filled the air. Wind blasted the hilltop as Hinoka alighted nearby, the elder princess reining in her mount. Compared to her sister, Hinoka was taller, with short hair of a much deeper red. Unlike Sakura, she was clad for war, with white lacquer armor adorning her red and white tunic.
"Sakura, Morgan! There are a bunch of faceless coming your way! I tried to slow them, but I've done all I-" Hinoka stopped as her eyes fell on the rest of them. "Who are-"
"This is my father, mother, and brother! Crazy, huh? Didn't even have to speak to that future seeing vision guy," Morgan replied excitedly.
"Really?" Hinoka asked, visibly surprised. She turned to regard them. "It's nice to meetcha. But…" she added, a curious expression crossing her face. "...if I may ask, what are you doing way out here?"
Oh, that. Robin frowned, figuring the best way to answer that question that wouldn't immediately spark hostilities between Nohr and Hoshido. Or, as was far more likely, not cause the two princesses to distrust him right now.
The sound of growling cries echoed down from the bottom of the hill. They had only seconds now, maybe a minute at most.
"So, assuming Morgan already filled you in on how we're from a different world, we arrived in this world in Nohr. We've been working with them to fight against the Invisible Soldiers, and right now were traveling in Prince Xander's company to Izumo to consult with the Archduke," Robin explained. Seeing their sudden worried looks the two princesses gave him, he quickly added. "Look, I don't blame you for being distrustful of them. As outsiders, we aren't exactly about to take sides in a conflict we were not part of. But right now, they're your best shot at getting out of this. We just need to hold they can arrive."
"Indeed. If not us, please then trust our daughter's word. We will vouch for Nohr in this particular case and she for us. Right now, they are not the enemy to be feared," Lucina affirmed.
Hinoka and Sakura exchanged looks, glancing Morgan's way as if questioning if he could be trusted. Morgan nodded to them in confirmation, though Robin couldn't help but notice the displeased look his daughter now wore.
"Alright, we'll do as you say. Not like we have much of choice when you get down to it," Hinoka said. She got back on her pegasus. "If Morgan vouches for you, I'll follow. Hope you know what you're doing." With that she took off again, preparing to harrie the approaching enemies now climbing the hill.
"Robin, they're coming," Lucina announced, turning back to the hill.
"Right," Robin nodded sharply. "Marc, with your mother. Hold the front. Morgan, I need you to watch our other flanks, make sure those fires stay up and none try to force there way through that way. Otherwise, provide covering support. I'll focus on thinning their numbers as they approach!" He turned to Sakura next. "Lady Sakura, remain back for now and focus your healing on Lucina and Marc if you can.
"O-On it," Sakura stuttered, giving a quick, nervous bow.
With that now done, the reunited family moved as one, taking up positions he'd instructed. Then the first of the faceless were upon them, scrambling up the final crest of the hill with speed that betrayed their bloated forms. The twin Falchions of Lucina and Marc flashed with sapphire and alabaster light as they met the undead head-on. Fire and lightning rained down, unleashed by the father-daughter tactician duo.
Let's see if these things have any hope of standing against us now. With the four of us fighting as one, I doubt there's anything out there that can stop us!
. . . . .
Corrin's chest heaved as he ripped his sword free from the faceless' skull. The creature shuddered once, then stilled, its body slowly dissolving into inky smoke. Ragged breaths tore from Corrin's throat as he staggered forward, his aching body protesting with each move.
He'd run himself ragged in too short a time. He'd gone all out, something he ought not to have. In the back of his mind, he heard Xander's and Gunter's voices repeated lessons about pacing oneself in battle, about how expending only as much energy as absolutely necessary could be the key to surviving a long drawn out conflict. It was a lesson they'd driven into him time and time again through all their sparring matches and combat training.
Yet he threw those lessons aside. Something he was now paying the price for.
"Can't…stop… need to…"
Roars filled the air. The ground began to shake. All around the world exploded into a shattering undergrowth and thundering footsteps. The woods had become alight with movement. Faceless. There were so many of them. From his position, it was impossible to tell how many surged forth now, but from the sheer cacophony their charge had created, there had to be a hundred or more in this part of the wave alone.
All heading straight to his sister's location.
Alarm seized hold of Corrin's heart. This didn't make any sense, the faceless had been disorganized up to this point. Just as they'd always been, used only as mindless beasts to unleash in the general direction of an enemy. But this…
To keep a steady stream of faceless to attack an enemy piecemeal only to unleash a focused assault all at once showed a level of coordination the undead simply did not possess. Not even Iago's pet sorcerers who'd created legions of the creatures could command them in such a way.
It was as if some intelligent force was controlling the faceless directly.
"No." The whispered word echoed through Corrin's mind, driving his exhausted limbs into motion. He didn't have time to think about how or why right now, the only important part was that his family was in danger.
He'd broken his promises before. He hadn't been able to save Ryoma or Takumi. He would not lose any more family. Not one more.
Corrin leaped into motion, wings unfurling as he leaped into the treetop. Gripping hold of a branch with taloned hands, he dragged himself forward, leaping and gliding from tree to tree with all possible speed. He needed to reach them first, to arrive before the faceless. If he did, he could perhaps slow them down, to do something, anything.
Even if he had to die trying.
Soon the hill came into sight, looming high over the thinning treeline. He spotted Hinoka circling above. He was sure she must have sighted him as well. Yet the thought was one he knew he couldn't dwell on. Right now concerning himself with what she must think of him was the last of his concerns.
From the distance, he caught flashes of spells raining down. Robin and the others must have already reached them. Still, they wouldn't be enough. Not against so many. Not against what was to come.
At that moment the woods seemed to explode around him as scores of faceless crashed into the open, the mighty host he'd managed to surge ahead of finally arriving.
For a single instant, Corrin stood paralyzed. There were so many… How could he hope to protect his family from so many foes?
Images of his brothers dying before him filled his mind. He saw their blood on his hands, mixing with the tears that had flown free from his eyes.
Blazing, crimson light shone around Yato as he gripped the blade tighter. A roar fell from Corrin's lips, his muscles and bones twisting and changing shape as they morphed into his hybrid form. A haze of red fell over his vision, at last surrendering to the mindless rage he'd fought so hard to hold at bay.
His body moved without thought. He threw himself forward, meeting the faceless' charge head-on. Yato came down, scarlet light flashing as it cleaved through the nearest faceless. It fell in ruins, it's body slowing those behind, buying precious seconds.
Corrin roared again. He hacked another faceless down, then another, then a third. Again and again, he cleaved through his foes, trying his best to slow their advance. He could only do so much, the enemy coming from all sides now, most far out of his reach. But he could only stay here, slow those making for what seemed to be the most shallow path up the hill.
Yet for all the fury that drove his body now, he could feel himself tiring quickly With each blow Yato grew heavy in his hands, his very limbs seeming to turn leaden with each movement he made.
He was forced back, falling on the defensive now. He dodged a blow aimed at his skull, ducked under a second, and severed an arm that had swept for his midsection. His breathing again grew ragged and strained, the crimson haze on his sight growing dark and pale around him.
A defiant roar tore from his throat. He tackled one of the faceless, slamming an open palm into the creature's mask. The iron crumpled, his claws digging in as he drove it to the ground. He tore it free, exposing the undead's face and throat, which he tore open with a savage swipe of his taloned hand. Roaring, again and again, Corrin brought Yato down, hacking at the struggling monster until it stilled, it's body dissolving beneath him.
Yet more came, heedless of the savagery he'd displayed. Let them. Let them face him here and now. He'd kill them all if he had too, Every last one, so long as it kept his family safe.
Then suddenly an eruption of pain shot through his skull. He howled in agony as he clutched at his head, images flashing before his eyes that were no his own.
He saw war and death and darkness. Armies of ghostly warriors, marching forth in legions that blanketed the world. Reality cracking and splitting, consuming all in its path. A hundred realities spreading out before him, blinking out one by one. Blackness was broken only by a pale gray mask, from which burned violet eyes filled with naught but hate and malice. A laugh tore through his mind, the pain erupting into untold agony now. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't even think. It was too much, he-
Corrin slipped to one knee, nearly dropping Yato among the withering waves of agony that shot through his skull. For a moment the pain seemed to recede, the world snapping back into focus just in time to see a Faceless barrel towards him. He lifted Yato, preparing to defend himself.
A scream tore free from his throat as the pain returned, even stronger than before. The laugh echoed yet again, and this time he was certain it was mocking him. He was paralyzed by it, the pain overwhelming every sensation and holding him in place.
The faceless' fist slammed into him. He heard bones cracking, agony bursting through his chest. He skidded across the ground, coming to a crunching, painful stop. He tried to breathe, only to cough up blood.
With one last mocking laugh, the presence in his mind receded, just in time for another fist to slam down into him, driving him into the earth. A bone snapped, burning agony shooting through his arm. Twisting around, Corrin managed to snatch Yato from where it lay and stab the blade into the leg of the faceless pinning him. The undead staggered back, allowing him to scramble free, his left arm hanging uselessly at his side.
He hacked at the nearest faceless, driving it back. Yet more faceless closed in, the one that had broken his arm lunging forward in an attempt to crush him were he stood.
"Corrin, down!"
It took a single instant to register the cry. He threw himself to the ground just as a naginata passed through space he'd occupied an instant before. The weapon skewered a faceless, tearing the creature from his feet through the force of the charge.
Arrows sprouted from another faceless, golden light spreading from the shafts to eat away and dissolve the faceless' flesh where they struck. A blast of lightning struck next, blasting away a cluster of faceless. Then came the ring of steel, and the roar of flames.
The first who entered his vision was Hinoka, the Hoshidan prince's pegasus sweeping over the faceless. Her naginata swirled around her, cutting down foe after foe in a whirlwind of death. Then came Lucina and Marc, joining the fray with Falchions in hand. Then came Robin, launching spell after spell. Then he was joined by another spellcaster, one dressed in a reminiscent fashion to him, but with short blue hair the same color of Lucina's and Marc's. Was that…
A warm sensation flowed through Corrin's arm and chest. He felt a jolt of pain as his broken bones popped back into place before it too receded into a dull ache as the damage continued to mend. When he looked up he saw Sakura kneeling over him, her tasseled rod glowing with a pale gold light.
"H-Hold still," she told him as she worked, even as she looked away and to the battle unfolding around him.
What are they doing? Why did they leave the hill? Corrin wondered. Had they abandoned a defensible position purely for his sake? Why? They were risking their lives for his. And for what?
Then a horn sounded. The rumble of hoofbeats filled the air. Just as Corrin lifted his head, a group of cavalry crashed into the horde of faceless. At its head road Xander, accompanied by all of their group's cavalry. Behind them came the rest of the Nohrian arm, swords, and axes hacking down foe after foes in a ceaseless onslaught.
For an instant confusion tore through Corrin's mind. How had they… Then he recalled how he hadn't seen Odin with the others. He must have gone back to get help while Robin, Lucina, and Marc went ahead, Corrin realized.
A sigh of relief fell from Corrin's lips as laid back down. As numerous as the faceless were, they could not hope to withstand the full might of the host Xander had brought to bear. The creatures were driven from the field, crushed and scattered like dust against a storm.
Somehow, by some miracle, they'd all made it. Not just himself, but everyone else as well.
They'd all survived. For once, just once, everyone had lived. He hadn't had to watch another family member die.
Author's Note: Hooray, another chapter out. I actually think I am starting to pick up the pace on these. Now, you may be asking, "but Werdna, this chapter took four weeks to come out. How is this faster?". To that I say this: the chapter here was actually half of a larger chapter, which due to getting over 10,000 words long (my self-enforced hard limit before I break the chapter down), I split it into two so I could get this one out now while I finish up the second half. Thus the next chapter, which is just as long as this one, will be up some time either next Friday or Saturday.
Anyhow, with that out of the way, onto guest review responses
B.I. Beast - Glad to hear my focus on the aftermath of Fates here is working out well. I've always found that very interesting too, so I definitely plan to delve into that more of that with the Nohr royals, especially as they interact with the Hinoka and Sakura now that they've joined the plot.
Dracofighter - Yep, I figured it fitting that Morgan appeared in Hoshido. Not like everyone could just happen to end up in Nohr.
Anyways, that's all for now. As always, let me know what you thought. Until next time, peace!
Character Spotlight: Morgan
Skills: Aether, Ignis, Galeforce, Vantage, Tomefaire
Personal Skill: Mixed Bloodline - After a successful activation of a skill on an attack, unit has a 35% chance to roll for a second skill (provided they have one equipt). If the second activates apply its effect to the attack as well.
Equipment: Bolganone, Arcthunder, Elwind, Arcfire, and a Rapier (Stats of Eirika's Blade)
Status: Alive
Ability Details: Taking after her father, Morgan is a skilled spellcaster despite her young age. However, where her father specializes in lightning spells, Morgan finds herself more adept at fire magic due to it requiring a greater emphasis on raw power and force of will than on personal discipline and focus.
While Morgan has been trained in swordplay by her mother, she is a far less skilled swordsmen than her mother or twin brother, favoring magic to an even greater degree than her father. When she does resort to melee combat she used the same fighting style as her mother, using a light, elegant blade to best utilize swift and precise strikes.