"I think that's the last of them, Mom."

Lucina smiled at Morgan as she ran up with her report. Despite slaying Grima, there were still more mundane threats to deal with. Chrom had more important matters to deal with, so Lucina volunteered to lead the efforts in his place. It was a role she was well suited for despite the change in stakes, and it helped her fulfill her promise.

"Good job, Morgan. I think we'll be able to finish our tour a little bit early."

"So, you're saying eating out is on the table?"

Lucina chuckled, "Yes. I'll take you out somewhere nice."

Many of the Shepherds had moved on with Grima's defeat. Even those still in the military had mostly gone on to take leadership positions if they did not have them already. As for the comrades that had come with her, while most had not left quite yet, they seemed to be considering it, and even though combat was second nature to most of them, most did not seem to want to remain in the Shepherds either.

She could not blame them, but while the new troops were capable, they were nothing compared to the Shepherds. Still, it gave her ample time to spend with her daughter which was irreplaceable. Even if her insatiable appetite kept hitting her in the purse.

"Mmm, dewicious!"

"Morgan, swallow."

Lucina could swear Morgan was an amalgamation of anomalies. There were times she was so poised and elegant that Lucina was adamant she had proper etiquette training, but then there were times she appeared to have been raised in a barn. It would surely be enough to give Maribelle an aneurism.

"Sorry, it's just so good! You know I burn a lot of energy too."

"That you do," Lucina smiled, but there may have been more to it than teasing. Morgan was strong. Unnaturally so. Likely the result of the dual bloodlines at play within her. She wondered if that came with needing more energy to keep it up.

They were making Ylisse safer, but at the same time, Lucina had a hole in her life that could not be so easily filled. She stuck around because she knew it was what Robin would have wanted and she did not want to uproot Morgan, but she felt so out of place here.

"Mind if I interrupt?"

The bluenettes looked away from their meal to see a cloaked woman smiling at them.

"Tiki!" Morgan jumped up and gave the manakete a hug, "What are you doing here?"

"Yes, this is quite out of the way for one such as yourself."

Tiki patted Morgan on the head, "Mind if I speak with your mother for a bit?"

"Daw, fine, but I expect treats."

The manakete giggled, "It's a promise."

As they walked away from the young tactician, Lucina finally broke the silence, "What does bring you all the way out here? Is it related to what you've been busy with lately?"

Tiki sighed, closing her eyes before looking at the relatively very young woman, "Lucina, I fear I must apologize."

This caused a furrowed brow in the human royalty, "What for?"

"I knew what Robin was planning. At least to an extent," Tiki looked straight ahead, daring not to look at the grieving woman by her side, "He wanted a second opinion on if it would work. While I may have respected his wishes to keep it secret, I also feel like you also had a right to know."

"I see…" Lucina looked down solemnly, "You respected what he wanted, and I daresay he would have done it whether I knew or not. You have nothing to apologize for."

This did earn a smile from the ancient being, "Thank you. However, as for why I'm here and what I've been doing, allow me to cut to the point: Robin is alive."

"W-what?" Lucina became shaky as she covered her mouth, "H-he is?"

"Yes, and we believe we've found him."

"Hey, come on, now," Chrom huffed with hands on his hips as the giggling girl kept running around the gardens, "I just got here."

"Aw, but I wanna play," The young bluenette pouted.

"And we will, but I want to sit down for a bit."

"Getting old, dear?" Sumia smiled as he kissed her in greeting. The baby was down for a nap, so she was able to spend some time in her beloved gardens.

"I swear that meetings are more exhausting than anything war threw at me," Chrom did genuinely look more tired than he usually did, "The petty squabbling is getting to me."

"Maybe you just need a secretary."

"Well, that was what I kind of planned for Robin to be."

Sumia's smiled turned a bit melancholy, "Yeah. Though, how much of that is just so Lucina would stay?"

"What? I would never!" Chrom smiled, unable to hold his faux outrage. Personal reasons aside, his keen mind and way with logistics would certainly have been a boon.

"Daddy! C'mon!"

"Alright, alright," Chrom dramatically pushed himself up with two hands on the table, "Let's see…"

"Milord!" The great knight interrupted the family time, "Apologies for the interruption, but there is something that requires your attention."

WIth a sigh, Chrom turned to face his knight captain, "Yes?"

"Please come with me," Frederick led Chrom back into the castle, "It started a few days ago with the guards of the vault reporting having heard a voice coming from within. At first, I assumed it was just an overactive imagination or an attempt at a prank."

"I hope you didn't interrupt my free time for bored guards entertaining themselves."

"Perish the thought," Frederick shook his head, "I started to give it more credence when I put some of my best men at the station. Then I investigated myself. Sure enough, I heard the voice as well. Upon entering the vault myself, well, you were asked for by name."

"By name?" Chrom raised his brow as Frederick opened up the heavy doors to the vault. Sure enough, the Fire Emblem on the pedestal was glowing. Unsure what to do with it, the decision was made to leave it intact for the time being to prevent the need to desperately hunt the gemstones down. However, it did not normally glow like that.

"Um…hello?"

"Ah, Awakener," The serene voice called from the Emblem. Chrom immediately recognized the voice.

"Naga?"

"Yes, thank you for coming despite my less than ideal approach to reaching you."

"Sorry, we locked the Fire Emblem away after the battle with Grima."

"A wise precaution, but it is of no matter now. I have urgent news. I have learned of Robin's whereabouts."

"What?" Chrom and even Frederick showed visible shock at the revelation.

"Indeed. I would ask that you assemble your band and meet me on Mount Prism. I will explain further there. I would also suggest you come prepared for battle."

As the light faded, Chrom was left to consider Naga's words. Robin was alive, which was great, but, "Why would we need to come prepared to fight?"

Regardless of the short notice, all of the Shepherds that Chrom was able to get a hold of were more than willing to answer the call. Not sure what Naga had to tell them, he made sure they were all well equipped for whatever might come.

"Father!" Lucina greeted them at the summit before looking at the gathered Shepherds, "You all came."

"Of course," Chrom smiled with a hand on her shoulder, "He's our friend after all. Though I'm a bit concerned as to why we needed to come prepped for battle."

"Then let us explain," Tiki joined them on the porch, "Please, come inside. Time is of the essence."

Walking inward, they were greeted by the sight of Naga floating above them in the main chamber, "Welcome. I will get right to the point. As I said, Robin is alive. The energy released from killing Grima and their attacks colliding was enough to push Robin into another realm. Tiki and I have been searching for him since, and we finally found him.

"However, retrieving him will not be an easy task for he has found himself in a world on the brink of ruin. It does not have much time left before it is submerged in complete destruction. If you are to rescue him, you must act quickly."

"Why is this world in such dire straits?" Chrom asked in concern.

"The world has nearly fallen to dark forces. Those who would stop the darkness have been outwitted and outmaneuvered, and they will almost certainly fall to the dark."

"What can we do?" Chrom spoke firmly and without doubt. It was barely noticeable, but Tiki noticed Naga's lips upturn ever so slightly.

"You would fight against the tide to save this world from the abyss?"

"I would. We ourselves received otherworldly help, so I'd be remiss not to aid others."

"In that case, we will be even more strapped for time. You will need to split into two teams to provide aid. One of those teams will also need to go find Robin. I have narrowed down his location fortunately, as the only being in that world from our own, he isn't hard to locate if you know how to look.

"I will send you in two teams. Your job will be to safeguard the groups transporting the items needed to save the world. One team will be sent to an old manor which is set as a trap. You must help them escape it."

"You can count on us," Chrom nodded.

"Awakener, you should know that so far from my power, Falchion will lose much of its bite. You must be prepared for this."

"We'll just have to make up the difference."

"Good," Naga nodded, "The other team will need to make for a mountain pass where the enemy lies in wait. This will be the team closer to Robin. I will provide more directions once the immediate threat has passed."

"I will lead this team," Lucina said without hesitation.

"I expected no less. Prepare yourselves. Time is of the essence, but I have confidence that you will prevail and save both the world, and your loved one. Tiki will stay here and help me keep a line of communication with you and to bring you back when the time comes." Chrom and Lucina both had clear orbs materialize in front of them, "When your mission is finished, use these to return. Breaking the bonds of reality in such a way is no easy feat, so once you return, we will be unable to send you back."

"We understand," Chrom took the gem, "We will not fail."

"I trust that you will."

Once the preparations were complete and they had departed, Tiki turned to Naga, "You did not tell them the extent of what they were jumping into."

"Nor did you, and you knew better than I that they would have volunteered to save that world. I am confident that they can overcome their issues, but knowing beforehand might have discouraged them."

"Perhaps you still don't give them enough credit."

"Perhaps not."

Arriving in the world, they were immediately hit with an oppressive sense of ruin. However, for most of Lucina's team, it was not an unfamiliar feeling. The dead or decaying foliage, the ash permeating the air, and cold and oppressive darkness were all too familiar to all of them save Morgan.

"This…" Lucina looked around, "It's just like…"

"Home," Cynthia finished with a shared look of dread. She was not alone in that, with only Morgan left to actually take stock of their situation.

"We've got company!" Morgan shouted while the others were coming to terms with their surroundings. Sure enough, a few straggler Risen were approaching their location.

This was enough to snap the others out of their doldrums. Lucina was quickly back in charge like she had never left her ruined world.

"Form up! Risen clean up plan B!"

Morgan was a bit left out as she had no idea what this plan was, but everyone else knew exactly what it was and fell in line with practiced precision. Working together, they quickly surrounded and subdued the Risen with enough efficiency that Morgan was in awe.

"Mom! Why didn't you tell me you had these kinds of strategies!"

"These were not born of a genius mind like yours or your fathers. They were written in blood." Scowling, Lucina turned to face her group, "I'm sending you back. I'll return with Father's group."

"Hey!" Morgan stomped in place, "No way! I want to find Dad too!"

Lucina's visage softened a little as she patted Morgan's hair, "I know, but I never wanted you to see ruin like this. I certainly would not have had you live through it. And the rest of you," Lucina addressed her old comrades, "I could never ask you to relive these nightmares on my behalf."

"Good thing you don't have to, then," Cynthia beamed in response.

"What?"

"You think we're just going to sit around and let you run off into this alone after all you've done for us," Nah put her hands on her hips, "Nuh-uh."

"Yeah, you practically helped raise some of us, if not all of us" Brady agreed, "We ain't leavin' ya now."

"Besides," Owain chimed in, "We kinda owe it to Robin after our, uh, rough meeting. So," Owain resumed his character, "Let us voyage into the dark depths of despair and rescue our missing comrade and this very world on the brink of ruin. Let us commence Operation Future Past!"

"I'm impressed," Morgan's mouth was agape.

"Yeah, it's actually not an awful name," Severa rolled her eyes, "Fine, Operation Future Past it is."

"You mean it!?" Owain was suddenly like an excited puppy earning an appropriate headpat from the swordswoman.

"Down, boy."

"So as you can see," Gerome reminded them of the situation at hand, "We aren't going anywhere."

"Everyone," Lucina smiled at her allies, "Thank you. I will remember this. Naga said the first objective was nearby, yes?"

"Something about a mountain pass I believe," Laurent reminded them.

"That sounds uncomfortably familiar," Inigo furrowed his brow, sharing a glance with Owain, Brady and Yarne, "Let's check it out."

The desert sands were still as abrasive as ever, but the coating of ash did at least dull the scorching heat. Though it also amplified the freezing cold at night. In other words, it was still a desert and therefore miserable.

He adjusted his makeshift face covering as he finally topped a sand dune. Keeping low, he observed his target. Supplies were sparse, especially here, and ransacking the occasional Grimleal encampment only got him so far. It was risky, but he hoped that this would net him some better resources.

With that in mind, he slid down the dune and made his way to the large spire in the desert.

A/N: Here it finally is. Took perhaps a bit longer than it should have, but I have the main chapters' drafts all done. This story won't be nearly as long as the one before it but hopefully you enjoy this smaller experience.