Chapter 8: Round One, Begin!
The air smelt of burnt flesh, and explosions rung through Robin's ears. People were flying through the air and somehow shooting energy beams from their fingers. It was absolute chaos…And yet Robin found that, for some reason, he could only concentrate on the person standing right in front him. Every time he looked at anything else for too long, it started to get fuzzy…
"I don't have much time to say this," the person in front of Robin spoke, catching his attention. The man had fiery orange hair that glowed brightly, and his outfit comprised of a mostly white armour that had glowing highlights which matched the colour of his hair. At his waist, the man had a sword that looked as though it was made of bones. "So please, listen very carefully. Dark-"
Before the man could continue, however, literally all of reality began to distort around Robin. His surroundings began to blur, going in and out of focus multiple times in a second, and the man's voice became distorted as well.
Robin tried his best to listen to what the man was saying, because for some reason he felt that it was very important information. However, he could only make out a few words…
"…Told him the truth…Going to Rewrite Everything…Stop him…Before he can learn…The truth…"
The man suddenly vanished, and everything around Robin went dark…
May 8th, 989 AS.
The white-haired boy once again woke up in a cold sweat. It used to be a very common occurrence, but he hadn't had one of these visions for a while…Until now.
"What could that have meant?" Robin thought to himself as he pulled himself out of bed and walked over to the closet to grab his clothes. "And that man…He seemed so familiar! Like I've seen him before in one of my OTHER visions. But I can't quite remember! Most of these visions have helped me out in the past…But what could this one mean?"
Robin quickly shook his head.
"Enough about that. I've got to get changed and meet up with the others. The first round of the tournament's starting today!"
As Robin got dressed, he thought about the events of the previous day. As a result of them making it into the top 16, the tournament organizers had given the Z-Shepherds a bunch of rooms at a nearby five-star hotel completely free of charge, and Frederick was particularly happy that they didn't have to waste funds as a result.
Of course, since Bulma, Lissa, and Sumia hadn't made it into the tournament, they had to room with some of the others. Bulma went with Miriel, Lissa was with Chrom, and Sumia had roomed with Sully.
After changing his clothes, Robin quickly left the room and made his way down to the food court on the first floor. The tournament organizers had rented out the entire hotel, and as a result it was just the Z-Shepherds and the other competitors staying there right now.
"Robin! Over here!" Lissa shouted, waving the white-haired boy over to the massive table that they were sitting at. "You woke up late, so we didn't know what to order for you…So we just ordered everything! The tournament organizers are paying for it all! Isn't that great?!"
"Yeah, it is," Robin smiled as he sat down, his stomach rumbling the moment he caught sight of the huge feast in front of him. "Common sense dictates that if I eat all this food, I might hurl during my fight later today…But this stuff looks so good! Time to dig in!"
Robin immediately started chowing down like a machine, the only one really capable of keeping up with him being Stahl. As the group ate, the topic of the upcoming matches ended up coming up…
"So, the first fight's going to be Chrom against Vaike, right?" Bulma asked with a grin. "I have a feeling I know who's going to win that one…"
"It's me, obviously!" Vaike exclaimed as he ripped a piece of chicken off a bone with his mouth and then pointed a thumb towards himself. "Teach is going to school his eternal rival in front of all of Ferox!"
Chrom simply rolled his eyes. "We'll see, Vaike. We'll see."
"And then after that's my fight against…Namu, I think his name was," Stahl spoke up, taking a break from chowing down on his food to bring a hand up to his chin. "Man, I don't even know how he fights…"
"He's a martial artist. I Came across him during the Battle Royale section," Robin helpfully explained. "He actually saved me from an incoming attack, believe it or not."
"But why would a complete stranger do that?" Lissa asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Because he was the only other Plegian in the tournament apart from myself. I thought that there would be a brotherly bond between us…But after seeing the kind of company he keeps, I fear my mind has been changed."
Everyone immediately turned their heads to the side and, standing there with a tray of food in his hands, was Namu himself.
"To think you would not only familiarize yourself with the people who ruined our country, but the ROYALTY of the people who ruined our country…I was wrong about you, Robin."
Robin raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth to respond. However, before he could say anything, Namu simply turned around and walked away, making his way towards a table as far away from the Z-Shepherds as possible.
"Yeesh, what's his problem?" Bulma angrily asked, crossing her arms under her chest. "He eavesdrops on our conversation, butts in with some weird crap that barely makes any sense, and then leaves before we can respond! What a jerk!"
"Yeah, you need to kick his ass, Stahl!" Sully told the green-haired boy, slamming her fist down onto the table and shaking everything on it. She then turned her attention to Kellam, who was sitting across from her, and smirked. "Just like how I'm going to kick Kellam's ass in our match! I haven't forgotten how you embarrassed me yesterday, pipsqueak!"
The armored Z-Shepherd squeaked and looked away. "Oh boy…"
"Oh yeah, I forgot that Kellam qualified too," Lissa giggled, before looking at Robin. "And you're fighting…Keaton, I think his name was, right?"
"Yeah, he's sort of an enigma, though," Robin sighed, looking around the dining hall. "During the Battle Royale I saw him getting chased down by a huge mob, and I didn't get to see his fighting style either. I'm not even sure what to expect from him..."
"However he fights, you're probably going to do just fine," Bulma giggled, before glancing at Frederick and smirking. "I can't say the same about Frederick, though! That Kagetsu guy he's fighting won the last tournament, you know!"
"No matter the challenge, I shall not back down. I shall win, for the honor of the royal family!" Frederick immediately replied, before turning towards Lissa and bowing his head down in shame. "It is the least I can do after failing to protect Milady Lissa!..."
"H-Hey! Frederick! I said it was alright! There's no reason to be upset!" Lissa immediately assured the knight, waving her hands frantically. She then glanced at her Miriel. "And besides, Miriel's going to be fighting that guy who eliminated me! She can get revenge on him for me instead! Right, Miriel?"
"That remains to be seen. However, should his assertion of being a direct descendant of Emblem Ike prove accurate, the probability of my victory may experience a notable diminution," the Fire Mage responded. "Emblem Ike was widely regarded as the most formidable among the Emblems, after all. Such lineage, if substantiated, would indeed be a significant factor to account for..."
"Oh yeah! He did say that, didn't he?" Lissa realized, bringing a hand up to her chin. "Honestly, I don't believe it. I mean, if he was REALLY the descendant of a legendary hero, then shouldn't he be in a high position? Like how me and Chrom are descendants of Emblem Marth and royalty. Also, it's got to be impossible for him to be a direct descendant of Ike. Mari showed me this book once, and although historians aren't really sure about how authentic its claims are, Ike apparently got together with this other Emblem, Soren, and he was a guy, so it would be impossible for-"
Before the conversation could continue any further, a loud voice, no doubt amplified by magic, cut through the entire building.
"All fighters, please report to the waiting area from yesterday in one hour so that we may prepare for the first round of the tournament. All fighters, please report to the waiting area from yesterday in one hour so that we may prepare for the first round of the tournament!"
"Well, that's enough of that," Chrom chuckled, causing Lissa to pout. "Let's finish up and get to the arena as soon as we can…"
Robin and the other 15 people who had made it into the tournament were now standing in the waiting room that they had spent time in before the battle royale. The place was considerably less crowded now, and there was now a door that led to the arena.
The white-haired boy took a peek through the door, and saw that there was now something new in the arena: A massive white platform that stretched on for miles upon miles, with a small little staircase that led up to it.
The announcer was standing on top of the platform and, just like before, the man in green robes was using a magic spell to make his voice louder.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Boys and girls! It's officially time…For the first round of the tournament to begin!" the man shouted, earning hundreds of cheers in response. The arena was even more packed now then it was yesterday. "Sixteen fighters survived the Battle Royale, but after today, only eight of them will be moving to the next round!"
He then took a step back and gestured towards the huge platform he was standing on.
"Right now, I am standing on the platform that our competitors will be fighting on! The rules for the rest of the tournament are rather straightforward, so listen well! Just like before, the fighters will be allowed to use any fighting style they like, and killing blows are once again not allowed! To achieve victory, however, the goal is a bit different this time!
"There are three ways to achieve victory! Number one, knocking your opponent out! This one's rather simple. If your opponent gets knocked down to the floor and can't get up for ten seconds, then they will be disqualified! Number two, forcing your opponent to yield! The fighters are allowed to forfeit the fight at any time, and convincing your opponent to give up through sheer strength is a tactic you might want to use!
"And number three, knocking your opponent off of the platform! This platform is huge, covering most of the arena. However, if you can knock your opponent off of it and they land down onto the dirt ground below, then you will be granted victory!...And that's pretty much it! All of the rules you need to know!"
The announcer grabbed his staff from his back and waved it around, once again teleporting him and the man in green robes to the booth where they had gone to during the battle royale.
"And with that all out of the way…It's time to get this tournament started! Our first match is…CHROM VS VAIKE!"
Robin poked his head back into the waiting area and nodded at both of his fellow Z-Shepherds who were now making their way towards the arena.
"Good luck, both of you!" the white-haired boy cheered.
While Chrom simply nodded in thanks, Vaike let out a hearty laugh. "Thanks, but no thanks, Robin! Teach is going to show you how it's done!"
As both of the boys made their way up onto the platform, the announcer continued to ramble. The blonde-haired man went on and on, introducing who Chrom and Vaike were to the massive crowd.
The prince of Ylisse wasn't really paying attention, however. Instead, he was thinking about how Namu was acting towards Robin for simply hanging out with him and the others. It didn't sit right with Chrom, but he knew deep in his heart that it had to do with his father's bloody war...
Because of the fact that he was lost in his thoughts, Chrom only then noticed Vaike charging at him like a wild bull while swinging his axe like a maniac.
"Come on, Chrom! The match's started!" the blonde brawler shouted out with a maniacal grin as he began his assault. "It's time to show the world just how incredible Teach is!"
"We've done this song and dance a million times, Vaike," Chrom sighed as he dropped to the ground and rolled to the side, avoiding all of Vaike's swings, before immediately jumping up to his feet and thrusting his blade forwards. "Because you've challenged me so many times…I know all of your moves at this point!"
Vaike smirked and flicked his axe, just barely managing to parry the strike in time. A metallic clang cut through the arena, and Vaike's axe ended up getting slightly dented in the process, but he had managed to block the attack in time.
"Yeah? Well, I know all your moves too!" Vaike exclaimed with a grin as he jumped back and swung his axe around himself. "And even if I didn't? I'd still totally school you!"
"Sure you would, Vaike," Chrom sighed as he jumped back as well to gain a little distance. He then narrowed his eyes and focused. "But he is right, though. Vaike's challenged me plenty of times, and although I win pretty much every single time, he gets closer and closer to beating me with every match…"
An idea popped into the prince's head, and he smirked ever so slightly.
"Well, let's see how Vaike holds up against a move that I've never used against him before! My main goal in participating in this tournament anyway was to master that technique…To master…"
Everyone in the audience gasped as Chrom threw his sword up into the air, and they were just as flabbergasted when he proceeded to jump after it.
"Wait, is he actually going to use that thing he used against Robin?!" Vaike exclaimed in disbelief, craning his head backwards to see Chrom.
Chrom smirked, and a familiar jolt of energy coursed through his veins as his hand made contact with the hilt of the blade.
Was this it? Had he finally mastered it?!
"AETHER!" Chrom shouted as he pushed himself downward, cutting through the air as though it was made of butter. A yellow glow briefly flashed around Chrom's body.
Vaike's eyes widened, and he moved to defend himself from the incoming attack. However, before the prince's blade could actually come into contact with him, something unexpected happened.
The yellow glow around Chrom's body abruptly stopped, and he ended up crashing down onto the ground right in front of Vaike, with smoke slightly emanating from his body.
"…Ow," Chrom groaned after a few moments, slowly pulling himself up to his feet before the announcer could start counting down from ten. "That was…Embarrassing."
Vaike blinked twice, before immediately bursting out into laughter.
"HAHAHAHA! That was hilarious, Chrom!" the blonde bruiser cackled, wiping away a tear from his eye. "You really had me worried there for a second, Chrom! HAHAHAHA!"
The prince's eye twitched in annoyance, and he quickly dashed behind Vaike.
"Take...THIS!"
Chrom positioned his sword as though he was going to slice at Vaike's neck. However, at the last second, he flipped his blade around and instead proceeded to smack the blonde brawler in the back of the neck using the hilt of his sword.
This caused Vaike to tumble, lose his balance, and fall down onto the ground.
The announcer began to count down from ten, but Chrom was expecting for Vaike to jump back up to his feet and for the match to continue on.
Much to his surprise, however, Vaike had humorously gotten knocked out because of the simple attack.
"Five...Four...Three...Two...ONE! AND THAT'S IT, FOLKS! THE WINNER OF THE FIRST MATCH, AND THE ONE WHO WILL BE MOVING ON TO THE NEXT ROUND...IS PRINCE CHROM LOWELL OF YLISSE!"
Everyone in the crowd was cheering at the top of their lungs despite the disappointingly quick end of the match, but nobody was as loud as Lissa who, along with Bulma and Sumia, had managed to snag front-row seats so that they were as close to the action as possible.
The loud cheering seemed to rouse Vaike from his unconsciousness, and he groggily looked around from left to right.
"Eh?...What happened?..."
The commoner then proceeded to put the pieces together, and he quickly shot an angry look at Chrom.
"H-HEY! WAIT A MINUTE! WHAT THE HELL?! I DEMAND A DO-OVER! I MUST NOT HAVE SLEPT PROPERLY LAST NIGHT!"
Vaike angrily began to chase Chrom, and the prince simply chuckled before dashing away.
The two of them proceeded to make their way back to the waiting area…
"Well, the guards finally managed to get Vaike out of here," Robin chuckled nervously as he glanced at the doorway, expecting the blonde bruiser to angrily barge in again. "He really wanted another shot, huh?"
"Yeah, but don't worry, though. He's always like that after losing our sparring matches," Chrom assured his friend with a chuckle. "He acts like some great tragedy has occurred, sulks about it for a little, recovers...And then goes back to challenging me again."
Robin nodded, before turning to Stahl. "Your match is going to start in a few minutes, Stahl. You ready?"
Stahl's stomach rumbled, and he nervously glanced at Namu, who was busy meditating in the corner of the room. "I'm pretty nervous, but…I'll do my best!"
"Namu's a martial artist. I'm aware we haven't really practiced against such opponents before, but a piece of advice I can give you now is to try and use the reach of your sword to keep some distance between the two of you," Frederick offered, bringing a hand up to his chin. "That should hopefully make the coming battle easier."
"R-Right! Thanks, Frederick!"
The rest of the Z-Shepherds who were in the room wished the green-haired boy good luck, and the moment their conversation began to die down, the announcer's loud voice cut through the area.
"Alright, folks! The few minutes break is over! This match is going to be the second fight in the entire tournament, and will be deciding who will get to face off against Chrom in the next round!
"Now, please give a warm welcome to…NAMU AND STAHL!"
Stahl yelped as he felt a hand on his shoulder, and he quickly turned around to see Namu staring down at him with a dangerous look in his eye.
"Come along, little Ylissean. We don't want to keep everyone waiting, do we?" the Plegian asked, both his tone of voice and facial expression completely neutral.
Stahl simply gulped, glancing at his friends briefly, before nervously shuffling on over to the doors. "R-Right…Let's do this, then…"
Namu looked back and shot an angry glare at Chrom and Robin, before following the green-haired boy.
"What's HIS problem?" Sully asked loudly once the duo had made their way into the arena.
The crowd roared loudly as Stahl and Namu made their way onto the platform, both of them immediately settling into offensive stances upon making it to their positions.
"Alright, I've just got to keep my distance like Frederick said and I should be fine," Stahl thought to himself as he pulled out his sword and took a deep breath. He then proceeded to call out to his opponent. "Let's make this a good one, alright?!"
Namu simply grunted in response.
"ALRIGHT, THEN! THREE…TWO…ONE…BEGIN!"
Namu immediately shot towards Stahl like a rocket the moment the words left the announcer's lips, causing the green-haired knight to yelp out in surprise. The Z-Shepherd found himself punished by a rapid-fire barrage of punches aimed at his chest, causing Stahl to immediately go sliding backwards across the platform.
"W-Woah!" Stahl exclaimed, stabbing his sword into the ground and stopping himself before he could go tumbling off the platform. He wiped some sweat off of his forehead and then looked up to find Namu once again charging at him. "C-Calm down, man!"
Stahl swung his blade in front of himself, trying to deter the incoming martial artist. Namu, however, simply leapt up into the air ever so slightly…
…And ended up landing right on top of Stahl's head using one foot!
"What the heck?!" Stahl shouted out in disbelief. He was answered by Namu's other foot slamming into his face, causing him to once again stumble back. "This is crazy! He's so strong…And so fast!"
Namu quickly jumped off of Stahl's head and then did a backflip, creating some distance between the two of them. Stahl slowly raised a hand up to his nose and realized that a small amount of blood was trickling down his face.
"D-Damn it!..." the Z-Shepherd whispered, before immediately shaking his head and steeling himself. "Alright, then! No more mister nice guy!"
Stahl let out an angry roar as he charged forward, swinging his blade wildly in front of himself as he did so. Namu simply closed his eyes and began to weave his body back and forth, dodging each and every one of Stahl's slashes without moving from his place.
Before the green-haired boy could even begin to comprehend just how screwed he was, Namu's eyes suddenly burst wide open and he delivered a quick chop to Stahl's hand. The boy yelped in pain, and his weapon of choice ended up slipping out of his hand and clanging down onto the ground.
"My sword!..."
Stahl wanted to bend over and pick it up, but the moment he began to do so, Namu kicked the steel weapon with an incredible amount of force, causing it to go flying off of the platform and onto the dirt ground below.
Namu then turned his attention to Stahl, and brought a hand up to his neck.
"You no longer have your weapon with you, and there is no hope of you defeating me in hand-to-hand combat.
Yield. Now."
Stahl gulped and racked his brain for a way out of the situation. However, no matter how he thought about it, he was totally screwed...
"I…Um…I yield," Stahl whispered after a few seconds of silence, slowly lifting up his hands.
"AND THERE YOU HAVE IT, FOLKS! STAHL HAS YIELDED AFTER LOSING ACCESS TO HIS WEAPON, AND THE WINNER OF THIS ROUND IS…NAMUUUUUU!"
The crowd screamed loudly in response, and Stahl let out a dejected sigh as he hopped off the platform and went to go get his sword. The green-haired boy then turned around and went to a door that would lead him to the stands where he could watch the rest of the matches.
"Uh, good fight!" Stahl called out with an awkward chuckle before he left.
Namu simply shot a glare at the disgraced Z-Shepherd, before proceeding to make his way back to the waiting area…
"No way! That guy totally wiped the floor with Stahl!" Sully shouted out in disbelief as Namu entered the room. "Poor guy didn't stand a chance!"
"I've…Never quite seen anything like that before," Miriel chimed in. "His movements were absolutely incredible…"
The Z-Shepherds continued to whisper rather loudly amongst themselves about how impressed they were with Namu's performance, and how bad they felt for Stahl. This went on for a few minutes, and as Namu heard every word, the silent smirk on his face grew larger and larger.
Once enough time had passed in the Plegian's eyes, he finally turned around and marched towards the Z-Shepherds. More specifically, to Chrom.
As Namu approached, all of the Z-Shepherds immediately quieted down and turned their attention towards him.
"Since you won the first match, and I won the second match, that means you and I will be battling in the next round of the tournament, Prince of Ylisse," the Plegian stated matter-of-factly, cracking his neck from left to right. "I look forward to embarrassing you and your nation in front of everyone!"
Chrom clenched his fists at his side, though before he could say anything, Frederick immediately spoke up.
"How dare you address the prince of the Halidom of Ylisse in such a manner?! I will not tolerate such behavior!" the knight declared, moving to grab the lance off of his back. "If you wish to continue talking like that, you'll have to answer to me!"
Namu simply scoffed in response, before turning around and walking away. "I do not have time to waste on the likes of you...Now, good day, everyone."
Namu proceeded to leave the room, and a tense silence befell the area soon after. The glare that Frederick was giving the door that Namu exited through would remain in Robin's nightmares for the next few years...
Thankfully, the tense silence was broken after a few moments by Keaton, who cleared his throat and caught the Z-Shepherds' attention.
"Well, that just happened," the cloaked figure said with a snicker, before immediately shaking his head and turning towards Robin. "But anyways, hey! You're Robin, right? Our match is up next!"
Robin blinked twice, before immediately nodding. "Oh yeah! It completely slipped my mind!"
The announcer immediately began shouting out Robin and Keaton's names, and the cloaked figure turned towards the door that would lead to the arena and gestured for Robin to follow him.
"Heh, no worries! Let's make this a good fight, alright?!"
"Yeah, let's!"
The rest of the Z-Shepherds loudly gave the white-haired boy words of encouragement, and he then proceeded to make his way towards the arena. His heart was beating rapidly, and his blood was pumping like crazy. Robin was incredibly excited!
He also felt that, for some reason or another, this was probably going to be the most hectic fight in the tournament yet…
The two fighters made their way onto the platform, and immediately the announcer began to shout.
"ALRIGHT, FOLKS! IT'S TIME FOR THE THIRD FIGHT OF THE FIRST ROUND! ROBIN DARAEN VERSUS KEATON…LET THE BATTLE BEGIN!"
The crowd cheered, and both fighters began to slowly circle around each other, trying to size up their opponent.
"I saw you getting chased by a huge mob during the Battle Royale, what was that about?" Robin asked, raising an eyebrow as he tried to spot any weaknesses in his opponent's stance. Now that he thought about it, this was the first time that he was going to be fighting someone who didn't use weapons or magic…
"Oh yeah! Heh, that was pretty funny," Keaton responded with a snicker. Even though the guy was wearing a hood connected to a cloak, Robin could tell he was smiling widely. "Some guy accidentally dropped his sword, and it ended up breaking when I stepped on it by accident. I didn't want to let a perfectly good treasure go to waste, though, so I decided to pick it up!
The guy seemed pretty peeved that I did that, though, and he ended up chasing me down with some of his buddies. I accidentally pissed off some other people as well, and it ended up turning into a huge mob…"
"I don't see how a broken sword is a treasure…And wait, did he just say he broke a sword by stepping on it? Either that sword was cheap as hell, or this guy might be as strong as me. Considering I think I saw a tail on him as well, there might be a connection…" Robin thought to himself, narrowing his eyes slightly at his opponent. "What happened to that mob? Did someone help you fight them off?"
Keaton smirked in response and jabbed a thumb at his chest. "Nah, that was all me! It was pretty easy, honestly. I'm used to getting chased by huge groups of hunters and stuff…"
Robin blinked twice. "Hunters? Why the heck would you-"
Before Robin could finish his sentence, Keaton lunged straight at him, and the white-haired boy was only able to dodge by taking a step to the right at the last second. Keaton didn't back down, however, and quickly peppered his foe with a flurry of punches that Robin did his best to block.
He started off alright, blocking the incoming fists with his arms before they could connect to any part of his body that would actually hurt. Unfortunately, Keaton managed to successfully land a good hit on Robin's face, causing him to shout out in pain.
Robin staggered back, and Keaton kept up the offensive by jumping into the air and delivering a flying kick straight at Robin's chest.
Before it could connect, however, the white-haired boy's hand shot up and grabbed the cloaked figure's leg, catching him by surprise.
"You're strong, I'll give you that. I can tell you've been in a lot of fights before," Robin grumbled as he spit out some blood, before smirking slightly. For some reason, he felt incredibly excited. "But now it's my turn!"
Robin quickly slammed his opponent into the ground, and followed up by slamming his fist into his stomach, causing Keaton to scream out in agony. He was about to give the guy another punch, but Keaton kicked him in the face and quickly jumped back up to his feet.
The cloaked boy tried to get the advantage back once more, but Robin was undeterred. The newest Z-Shepherd charged forward like a missile, peppering his opponent with punches as he did so.
Keaton was pushed back and, unlike Robin who was able to block almost all of his opponent's punches, the cloaked boy was having a far more difficult time in defending himself. Robin continued to deliver punch after punch at Keaton's face, and before long…
…His hood finally fell off of his head.
"Oh no!" Keaton exclaimed worriedly, jumping back and attempting to once again pull his hood back up. Unfortunately, the guy was pretty clumsy, and as a result he couldn't quite get the thing to stay on his head.
As a result, everyone was free to finally see his face. Keaton had long white and black hair that ran down his back, and his face was littered with little scars. He also had piercing red eyes that were unlike anything Robin had ever seen before.
However, the most surprising thing about Keaton's appearance, was the presence of a pair of wolf ears sitting on the top of his head…
"The Laguz are a race of powerful warriors that are able to transform into great beasts…But they are only capable of doing so when they touch an object called a 'Beast Stone'…Furthermore, Laguz have multiple animalistic features…"
Robin's eyes widened. It turns out that he and this guy weren't as similar as he initially thought.
"You're a…"
"I-INCREDIBLE, FOLKS! THE INTENSE BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN OUR FIGHTERS HAS COME TO A PAUSE TO REVEAL A STARTLING REVELATION! THE REASON THAT COMPETITOR KEATON WAS WEARING A CLOAK…IS BECAUSE HE'S A LAGUZ!"
The crowd roared out in bewilderment. Most of the people in the audience were excited at the dramatic twist, though there were a few less savory individuals who looked upon the boy in disgust.
"What's that BEAST doing here? How dare he participate in the tournament?!" Robin heard an older fellow near the front mumble. "I thought those monsters were hunted to extinction in our continent…"
However, not all of the reception was negative. Robin also heard some people who were delighted with the twist.
"Wow! Is that a Laguz?! I've never seen one before! His little wolf ears are so cute!..."
Keaton sighed as the crowd continue to talk and shout amongst themselves, before looking at Robin.
"Well, I guess the cat's out of the bag…I wanted to keep my little secret hidden, though…" the Laguz grumbled to himself, rubbing the back of his neck. "This is really annoying…"
"S-Sorry! I wouldn't have aimed at your face if I knew you were trying to hide such a big secret," Robin chuckled nervously. "I've, uh, never seen a Laguz before…I thought that they were hunted to extinction…"
"Just in the continent of Archanea. So, you won't find us in Ylisse, Regna Ferox, or Plegia. However, there are still plenty of us in other parts of the world," Keaton explained. "I myself am from a place called Mount Garou. It's a really big mountain with lots of nice berries and stuff!"
"Mount Garou…What country is that in?" Robin asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Uh…I have no idea," Keaton bashfully admitted after a few seconds, looking the other way in embarrassment. "In all honesty, I don't even know how I got here in the first place. I decided to leave my home on the mountain for a leisurely stroll a few days ago, but then I ended up getting lost. The next thing I knew, I was in an entirely different continent! This tournament thing seemed kind of fun, though, so I decided to sign up. People always overreact when they see my ears or tail, though, so I decided to wear a cloak."
Robin blinked twice, before narrowing his eyes. "You got lost…And somehow ended up on another continent? That sounds...Well, I'm not even sure how to describe it..."
"H-Hey! It's a pretty common occurrence for me!" Keaton shouted back.
"That's not the amazing defense you think it is…" Robin sighed in response, before raising an eyebrow. "Wait a minute, I've heard that Laguz have the ability to transform into beast forms…"
Keaton immediately smirked in response to that, and proceeded to throw off his dusty black cloak, revealing a ripped black and white suit underneath. It also seemed that Robin had correctly surmised that Keaton had a tail, though unlike Robin's old one, Keaton's was far fluffier and looked more like a wolf's tail.
However, the thing that caught Robin's attention immediately instead of all of those things was a purple stone that was hanging around Keaton's neck like a necklace. The Laguz warrior brought his hand up and touched it, immediately causing it to glow brightly.
"Yeah, that's right. We Laguz can transform into a beast form using the help of a Beast Stone. Different tribes have different forms. My tribe? We're called the Wolfskin and, well…"
Keaton's body was suddenly enveloped in a purple light that temporarily blinded Robin, causing him to look away.
After a few seconds, he dared to look back, and his jaw dropped down to the floor.
Keaton was no more, instead having been replaced with a giant wolf-like creature that was standing on two legs. The giant monster was hunched over, and had mostly white fur with black accents here and there. The creature also had two red beady eyes that shone as bright as the sun.
The creature that was Keaton opened his mouth to speak, and when the words came out, they sounded…Distorted.
"...I'LL GIVE YOU THREE GUESSES WHY!"
"I-INCREDIBLE, FOLKS! KEATON HAS REVEALED AN ALTERNATE FORM!" the announcer screamed at the top of his lungs. "THIS IS THE FIRST TIME IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD FIGHTING TOURNAMENT THAT A LAGUZ HAS PARTICIPATED…AND TO SEE HIM TRANSFORM BEFORE OUR VERY EYES?! YOU'LL NEVER SEE SOMETHING LIKE THIS ANYWHERE ELSE, FOLKS!"
Keaton cracked his knuckles, and his snout grossly curled upwards in a way that made him look as though he was smirking. "HEY, ROBIN. YOU SAID YOU NEVER SAW A LAGUZ BEFORE, RIGHT? WELL, ALLOW ME TO SHOW YOU THE POWER OF ONE!"
The massive monster charged forward and, despite his enormous size, was able to cross the distance between him and his foe in a matter of seconds. Robin was completely helpless as Keaton raised his hand and smashed it downwards, immediately causing Robin to fall down onto the floor in pain.
Robin's opponent wasn't done yet, however, and the white-haired boy just barely managed to roll out of the way to avoid another attempted downward smash. Robin then jumped to his feet and quickly threw out a flurry of punches but, much to his dismay, they didn't hurt his opponent at all. They pushed him back a bit, sure, but when Keaton looked down at Robin after his assault was done...He was jeering at him.
"N-No way! He's that strong?!" Robin thought to himself in disbelief.
Keaton howled and delivered a devastating punch to Robin's gut, causing him to take a few steps back and hold his stomach in pain. Keaton then proceeded to exhale some smoke of out of his nose and charged straight at Robin like an angry bull.
"HERE I COME!" Keaton's distorted voice called out.
The crowd watched in awe as Robin was sent flying across the field…And right towards the edge of the platform!
"D-Damn it!" Robin thought to himself, quickly planting his feet down onto the ground and just barely managing to avoid falling off. "If I fall out of the ring…It's game over!"
Heavy stomping caught Robin's attention, and Robin once again saw Keaton charging at him like a madman. The white-haired boy was expecting him this time, however, and proceeded to do an elegant front-flip, hopping over Keaton's approaching body and getting behind him in the process.
Keaton gasped as he did this, and now it was his turn to quickly plant his feet down onto the ground, just barely managing to avoid a ring-out. He was moving so fast that it was very difficult for him to stop in time.
"NOT COOL, DUDE. IT'S HARD TO CONTROL MY SPEED AND STUFF WHEN I'M THIS BIG!" Keaton growled as he turned around to face Robin once he was sure that he wasn't going to fall over. "I GUESS I'M GOING TO HAVE TO PUNISH YOU A LITTLE BEFORE I WIN! HEHE, LUCKILY FOR ME, I CAN PLAY AROUND WITH YOU FOR AS LONG AS I WANT, SINCE I'M WAY STRONGER THAN YOU!"
Keaton stomped his foot down onto the ground, causing the entire platform to shake, and he then looked up and howled into the air. The audience immediately roared in excitement in response to this.
"Damn it! He's right, there's absolutely no way I can fight him in this state," Robin thought to himself worriedly. Keaton suddenly grabbed him by the head and began to slam him around the place, causing him to roar out in agony. "I've got to be smart about this…Knocking him out or making him yield isn't the only way to win this, after all..."
Keaton tossed Robin to the side like he was a piece of trash and, despite the incessant ringing in his head, Robin still managed to land on his feet, albeit with a bit of effort this time. While Keaton roared for the crowd, Robin worked on getting his bearings together. Once he did, however…
"Hey, Keaton!" Robin shouted, running directly towards his opponent. "What would you say if I told you that I've figured out how to beat you?!"
"I'D SAY THAT YOU'RE LYING!" Keaton laughed out loud in his strange, distorted voice, casually swinging his arm at the white-haired boy. Robin managed to duck underneath the attack, and then slid through the spot between Keaton's legs, landing behind him. "H-HEY"
Robin smirked slightly and did a backflip to avoid a stomp that was coming his way. "I've got to rile him up a little, but I've also got to be careful about this. He gets one good hit in... And its curtains for me!"
The white-haired boy quickly ran towards Keaton and proceeded to repeat the exact same move, causing the Laguz to groan in frustration.
"TRY THAT AGAIN! I DARE YOU!" Keaton roared, once again being forced to turn around and face Robin.
The newest Z-Shepherd did his best to hide the smirk crossing his face…But when he failed to hide it, he simply shrugged and stuck his tongue out at the massive monster.
"Well, nothing ventured nothing gained, I suppose…HEY KEATON! Come on, even with that huge form you're still no match for me! I was expecting more from a mighty Laguz warrior!"
Keaton's eye twitched, and he let out an angry howl before charging straight at Robin.
"Yes! I've managed to recreate that scenario from before!" Robin thought to himself with a grin.
Right before Keaton got in front of Robin, he kicked his leg forward since he was expecting his opponent to once again try and slide underneath him. However, much to his dismay, Robin ended up front flipping over his opponent like he did the first time they had this interaction.
Another thing that was similar to the first time they had this interaction was that Keaton continued to run straight ahead towards the edge of the platform, just barely managing to stop himself from falling off.
"PHEW…THAT WAS A CLOSE ONE," Keaton mumbled as he turned around to face Robin once again. "NOW HOW ABOUT YOU STOP RUNNING AWAY AND FIGHT ME LIKE A MAN, HUH?"
"With pleasure!" Robin shouted out with a grin, delivering a flying kick straight at Keaton's furry chest. It obviously did no physical damage whatsoever to Keaton, and Robin knew that it wouldn't.
However, it DID end up causing the Laguz warrior to once again lose his balance!
"H-HEY! NO, WAIT! I'M-"
Before Keaton could finish his sentence, the massive fighter ended up falling off of the platform and landed down on the dusty ground below, kicking up a huge cloud. It obscured the fighter's figure, and as a result nobody could see his state at that moment, but the result of what Robin had just done was pretty clear…
"I-INCREDIBLE, FOLKS! KNOWING THAT HE DIDN'T STAND A CHANCE IN HAND-TO-HAND COMBAT, ROBIN INSTEAD FIGURED OUT A WAY TO MAKE HIS OPPONENT FALL OFF THE PLATFORM! AND, AS A RESULT, THE WINNER OF THE THIRD MATCH IS…ROBIIIIIIIN!"
The crowd went wild. Everyone cheered at the top of their lungs for the victor, and Robin could do nothing but bashfully wave towards the crowd.
In the corner of his eye, however, Robin saw that the dust cloud was beginning to dissipate, and that Keaton was climbing back onto the platform. He was in his human form again, and he had somehow managed to pull his cloak back on.
The Laguz fighter suddenly proceeded to dash right at Robin, and the white-haired boy quickly prepared a defensive stance in response.
However, much to Robin's confusion, Keaton stopped right in front of him and let out a huge laugh.
"Oh man, that was a great fight! I haven't had a fight that good since a bunch of Dark Mages with S-Rank spells came up to Mount Garou and tried hunting my clan for our fur!" the Laguz exclaimed with a grin. "You're in my good books, Robin! That was incredible!"
Robin blinked twice. "Um…Thanks? I think? You fought pretty well too. That Beast Form of yours was awesome!"
The white-haired boy then closed his eyes for a few seconds, before smiling.
"If you don't mind, after the matches are done for the day, do you want to meet up and spar again? I've never fought an opponent like you before, and if ring-outs weren't a possibility I definitely would have lost, so I think it'd be a good way to train-"
"Eh, sorry man, no can do," Keaton quickly interjected, shrugging his shoulders as he did so.
"Ehhhh? How come?" Robin pouted.
"I already told you, man. I only left Mount Garou to go out for a little stroll. The only reason I ended up in this tournament in the first place is because I got totally lost. I've got to try and find a way back," Keaton chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. He then nervously eyed the audience. "And now that my cover's blown, people are definitely going to try and hunting me. I can probably take 'em with my Beast Form, but it's super annoying to deal with, so I think I should leave immediately to get a head start from them…"
"I…See. That makes sense. It sucks that you have to deal with that, though," Robin responded, before sticking out his hand for Keaton to shake. "But anyways, once again, that was a good fight!"
Keaton quickly shook Robin's hand before pulling his hood back up dashing away towards a nearby exit. As he ran, he left a huge cloud of dust in his wake. "Yeah, it was! Make sure to visit me on Mount Garou some time, alright?! You're welcome any time!..."
And, just like that, the mysterious Keaton was long gone.
"I'd love to visit, Keaton, but I have no idea where this 'Mount Garou' place even is," Robin thought to himself with a nervous chuckle.
The crowd was still in a frenzy over the last match, and the announcer was yapping about some company that had sponsored the tournament as Robin made his way back to the waiting area.
The reception he received from his friends was just as, if not MORE rambunctious than the crowd's.
"That was awesome, Robin! Way to go, man!" Sully excitedly exclaimed, slapping the white-haired boy on the back.
"I've never seen a Laguz in-person before…It was foolish of you to let him go before I could do some real research on him," Miriel mumbled as she scribbled something down onto a notepad, before looking up and nodding at Robin. "Still, your performance was quite impressive."
Kellam smiled and raised a hand. "Nice work, man. The way you got him to fall off the platform was-"
"ALRIGHT, FOLKS! AND NOW IT'S TIME FOR OUR NEXT COMPETITIORS TO MAKE THEIR WAY ONTO THE STAGE! PLEASE WELCOME... FREDERICK AND KAGETSUUUUU!"
The Z-Shepherds all turned to face the knight, who simply puffed out his chest in response.
"Robin, your performance was…Satisfactory. That is all I will say on the matter," Frederick said, pointing his nose to the air and causing Robin to tumble down onto the ground in disbelief. The brown-haired knight then proceeded to walk towards the arena. "Now please, excuse me everyone. It is time for me to represent Milord Chrom, Milady Lissa, the Exalt Emmeryn, and the rest of the Halidom of Ylisse in this next match!"
Frederick quickly left the room, and Kagetsu followed after him soon after. Once the swordsman was out of earshot, Sully let out a sigh.
"Man, I still can't believe that Kagetsu guy won the last tournament…Do you think Frederick's got a chance against him?"
"We've just got to hope for the best," Chrom replied with a shrug. "And besides, it's Frederick. He's pretty much the strongest Z-Shepherd, and he's trained all of us. Even if he does lose, he's definitely going to put up one hell of a fight!"
"I'd suggest for you all to remain silent. The battle is about to begin," Miriel quickly said, silencing everyone present and causing them all to look upon the arena from their vantage point near the door…
As the announcer began his usual pre-battle prattle, introducing the two fighters to the audience, Frederick and Kagetsu made their way on to the platform and took their positions.
"Before we begin, I just want you to know that last night I did a bit of research on you, Kagetsu," Frederick said seriously. Because of the fact that the announcer was talking so loudly, nobody but Kagetsu himself could hear the knight. "After all, you are a previous champion, so I had to do a bit of research to prepare myself."
Kagetsu smiled. "Ah, truly? And what did you find?"
Frederick narrowed his eyes. "You come from a small community called Pale Sands in the far-off nation of Solm. You left your home years ago and travelled across the world to find strong opponents and to learn about the cultures beyond your borders. You also became a master swordsman in your travels."
"Yes, I suppose that is all true," Kagetsu replied, before immediately narrowing his eyes back at Frederick. "Is there a reason for this, Knight of Ylisse?"
"I am merely trying to say that I am prepared for any trick that you may have prepared for me," Frederick stated matter-of-factly as he got into an offensive stance, pointing his lance directly at Kagetsu. In the background, the announcer finished with his prattling and shouted for the battle to begin. "This will not be an easy fight for you…I swear on my honour as a night!"
"You studied all of my records from the previous tournament last night?" Kagetsu parroted, feigning surprise as he unsheathed his sword. "I suppose this is the part where Kagetsu would say how he's impressed by your skills and your diligence or whatever…"
Frederick raised an eyebrow. "Huh? What does that mean?"
Kagetsu simply smirked, and a purple aura suddenly enveloped his sword. His eyes flashed a similar colour, and he simply swung his blade once through the air.
"Tell me, Frederick. Did the records show 'me' being capable of this?!"
Nothing happened for a few seconds, and Frederick briefly thought that the swordsman was playing him for a fool. However, all of a sudden, the ground below him began to glow with a purple light that burnt his eyes when he looked down at it, and an eerie fizzing sound filled Frederick's head.
"Oh no-"
A huge explosion suddenly engulfed Frederick's body, and he let out a cry of pain as the platform beneath him shattered, causing him to fall down onto the ground below. A huge dust cloud enveloped the arena, obscuring everyone's vision in the process.
The crowd went wild, wondering what had just happened.
"A-AMAZING, FOLKS! I DON'T KNOW WHAT KAGETSU JUST DID BUT…IT LOOKED LIKE HE SLICED THE PLATFORM ITSELF WITH THAT ATTACK! IT SEEMS HE'S PICKED UP A NEW TECHNIQUE OR TWO IN THE LAST FEW YEARS! LET'S WAIT FOR THIS DUST CLOUD TO SETTLE TO SEE WHAT FREDERICK'S STATUS IS!"
"Stupid surface-dweller. The platform underneath him got sliced. Common sense dictates that he's fallen out of bounds and should be automatically eliminated," Kagetsu mumbled to himself, just quiet enough so that nobody could hear him. He then smirked evilly. "However, his current appearance should definitely tell you who the winner of this fight is…"
As the dust cloud dissipated, the scene was visible for everyone to see, and it unfortunately wasn't a very pretty one.
A good chunk of the platform had been sliced clean off somehow, and Frederick was lying down on the ground, unconscious in its rubble. However, that wasn't all. His armour was ripped up in multiple places, and excess amounts of blood streamed down his face and splattered down onto the dirt below him. It was kind of disgusting to look at.
"O-Oh my god…That's absolutely brutal! Is that even allowed?..." the announcer whispered to the man in green robes sitting beside him, who simply shrugged in response. He then turned his attention to the crowd and cleared his throat as medics quickly rushed into the arena to grab hold of Frederick. "UM, IN A SHOCKING DISPLAY OF BRUTALITY, KAGETSU HAS TAKEN DOWN HIS OPPONENT WITH INCREDIBLE SWIFTNESS! THE WINNER OF THE MATCH IS KAGETSU!"
The crowd cheered, but it wasn't as loud as it was for the previous fights. Many people in the stands could tell that something was very wrong…
…And the Z-Shepherds shared the same sentiment in the waiting area, looking on in disbelief as Frederick was placed onto a stretcher and escorted out of the arena immediately.
"…Um, what just happened?" Sully asked after a few moments of stunned silence.
"Kagetsu took Frederick out like it was nothing! Something is definitely wrong here! Just what is this guy's deal?!" Robin thought to himself worriedly, staring alongside the rest of his team as Kagetsu returned to the waiting area and sat down on a bench as though nothing had happened.
Everyone was completely shocked and appalled at what had just occured, but Robin's heart was racing faster than anyone else's in the room.
The simple fact of the matter was that Robin was going to have to face Kagetsu in the next round, and he honestly wasn't sure how to feel about that.
The tactician within Robin was anxious, and was immediately brainstorming ideas on how to try and survive the devastating attack that Kagetsu had somehow managed to pull off. However, another part of Robin that he couldn't quite name was…Excited for the upcoming battle, for some odd reason.
Either way though, both sides of Robin had one question on their mind...
"What the hell is up with this guy?!"