Fire Emblem: Curse of the Goddess [IC/PG-16/Not Accepting]

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

"And done. That was close."

 

Somehow, Ciela manged to get pass the unconscious Rufus and went closer towards Penelope. A quick chant later and the younger princess' wound had started to close off. WIth how deep the wound on the arm was, it would require further inspection, but there was nothing else Ciela was able to do right now. In the meantime, the situation seemed to have worked out somewhat. A member of the frog tribe as well as one of the foxes had went ahead for a talk. It didn't seem like it'd lead anywhere just yet, but it's better than nothing. Alois had went ahead to help with the negotiations now. Well, hard as Ciela was in getting along with him, he seemed to be reasonable.

 

"Please, hurry, heal her...and...and Link too, both are...how did this happen?"

 

"It's a long story. Let's address that later."

 

With what Gunther said in mind, Ciela had Remy gallop forward to reach Link. His condition was a lot worse than she expected. It was a wonder that he was still alive somehow. Ciela didn't even wait for him to notice her presence nearby and brought her staff forward.

 

"Pain, pain, go away!"

---

 

[spoiler=OOC]

if healing Penelope is seen as her action in this post, then Ciela will just now prepare to heal link rather than healing him yet.

 

 

[King K. Azo]

"Yer righ'!" The fox shouted suddenly, acausing Shiro to jump up in fright, getting into a stance. "Ah can't just sid 'ere an' do nuffin', I gotta go!" To the Frog's relief, the fox ran off into the village, leaving a clear path. He couldn't believe that worked. He took a minute to catch his breath before heading into the village, ready to back up anyone that needed it in the fight ahead. 

It seemed he didn't need to in the end. There was a peace talk in the works... well, about as peaceful as a room of snakes surrounding a frog. The air was tense, and one wrong move could set off the fight once more. He decided to just listen to the words exchanged, processing words that were said. Something that Alois said stuck out to Shiro however...
 
"see, that girl over there. For the past...week? For the past week or so, she had been traveling with us. Which means, for the past week or so, there was a fox that didn't live in this village, hell even this forest. So you see what I'm getting at here?"

 

"She wasn't here, so it couldn't have been her," Shiro muttered from his spot. "But the foxes claim there is only one white fox, which is her... what Glenn and I say was a large white fox however... is there perhaps a secret tribe of foxes even the foxes don't know about...? Or... could it be a new race...? Some other sort of Protean...?" If there was a new race of Protean that changed into something similar to a fox, say like a wolf, it would explain why Shiro and Glenn saw a 'fox' without the only white fox being here.

[Hakima]

---

Link’s nose crinkled when Edrick shoved the foul-smelling concoction beneath his nose, and his hand ghosted over the hilt of his sword. His message was clear: you cannot pass. Even as the hostility began to dissipate to give way to peace talks, and his company began to shuffle around, the Galtean soldier kept his vigilant watch.

 

His body felt heavy and sluggish, and it took a herculean effort to do something as trivial as blink. The soldier knew that his limit was fast approaching. His peripheral began to fade to black and he blinked rapidly to bring back his vision. The tang of copper burnt at the back of his throat, and far away, his heartbeat pounded in his ear slowly.

 

Then, the familiar, comforting noise of hoofbeats that brought him back to his days as a ranch hand. Epona. . . Link smiled at the thought of seeing his faithful companion again. He wasn’t particularly religious, but he hoped that what he had been told before was true. He could see his grandpa again, and Epona, and maybe his parents? The last one was just a shot in the dark but he hoped he got to see them, at least once, to know if they had been good people.

 

Warmth suddenly embraced him. The chill that had slowly started to debilitate his limbs vanished; the sensation was similar to when you snuggled close to a bonfire on a cold night. The wound on his stomach began to itch a lot but something told Link not to scratch it, and when he looked down, the wound had somehow mended itself. All that was left were puffy ridges of skin similar to the jaws of the fox that had bitten him, another scar to add to his already impressive collection.

 

Link stood up straighter and hefted his sword out of the ground, sheathing it and looking around. Ciela was close to him and must have healed him, he realized, and the horse he had heard was Remy, not Epona. Unbidden, Link felt the urge to cry and had to struggle to control himself.

 

He had wanted to see Epona and his family again, so badly. He had been willing to abandon his duty and basically let himself die to do it. Shaking his head, he traveled up the stairs to where Catriona and Gunther were conversing. The youngest princess was still on the ground, out of it, though it seemed her wound had been healed.

 

Link looked to Catriona, having heard Gunther’s last statement. “Go. We’ll take care of her.”

 

Then he faced Gunther and kneeled down to exam Penelope. He slowly reached out, making sure the Knight knew he had no ill intentions, and grasped Penelope’s arm. He turned it over in his hand and prodded it gently. “She got lucky. She shouldn’t have any problems with stiffness in her hand. Some wounds can do that, even if they heal properly.”

 

 

He laid her arm back down and stood up, putting some distance between himself and the two. He was still feeling a bit faint. Most likely from the blood loss. “I’m sorry I let this happen. It’s no secret I feel more familiar with Princess Catriona and so I stayed by her side when it was obvious Princess Penelope needed the help more.”

 

His voice was hoarse but there was more emotion in it than there had been in a long time. His hands clenched into fists, and Link looked toward where the negotiations were going on. “She’s too young to be going through this. You all are. None of you are ready for this.”

 

They were up against corrupt nobles and a supposed Goddess. Spirits, he had trained almost his entire life and he wasn’t sure he was equipped to deal with this.

 

Link felt a tugging at his leggings and looked down to find Rohns, the tiny wolf, nipping at them. He kneeled down, scratching the dog behind the ear, and looked toward Gunther. “I’ve neglected my duties as a Wolf. When this is all over, will you tell Princess Penelope I wish to speak with her? And you, too, Gunther.”

[Asriel Dreemurr]

With the potential combat between the frogs and foxes seemingly averted, Edrick allowed himself a momentary sigh of relief. Relief which was gone as fast as it had come when he saw Link reaching for his sword in response to the offered medicine. He was about to open his mouth and say something, but then he noticed Ciela approaching...and something about Link's expression that made him take a step back from the soldier. Why was Link angry? He had only done what was the best to stop a pointless fight. A pointless fight that the half-dead man in front of him had practically caused! He wanted to do a lot of things, but for now he simply set the concoction down beside his feet and looked around for his equipment. He found the discarded Gambeson and spear, well spears, soon enough. Thankfully this padded armor was lighter and easier to put on than the heavy metal plates and leather straps they had taken from Bazba.
 
"Put a shirt on man, come on." Alois's taunting did have him going a bit red in the face. At least he meant well. Well, Edrick thought he meant well. All the same he was soon enough once more clothed and ready, and now he picked up the concoction from where he had left it and held it in his newly re-gloved left hand while he made his way over to where the Frog Sage and the Black Fox were speaking. Link had made it quite obvious that he didn't want the Pontic anywhere near the others.
 
"But the foxes claim there is only one white fox, which is her... what Glenn and I say was a large white fox however... is there perhaps a secret tribe of foxes even the foxes don't know about...? Or... could it be a new race...? Some other sort of Protean...?" And it seemed that the discussion was already well under way by the time the farmer reached them. Well, it also seemed his arrival was well-timed, because he had an answer to Shiro's question.

 

"I think I have an idea about that." He said, pausing to wait until the others attention was on him to continue. "As big as you foxes can get," he gestured with his right hand towards the black fox, Licorice he thought her name was, "the usual differences between foxes and wolves get a lot harder to make out immediately. Especially if someone's not expectin' to have to tell the difference." And now his attention turned back to the Frog Sage. "That match up with anythin' you know? Are there wolves that get big enough for that in this forest?"

[Sethera]

Aka glanced down at Glenn's unconscious form. "I hope Shiro and the others are fine," she muttered, worry leaking into her tone.

 

"Heh, you'd be better off worrying about yourself, miss."

 

The girl blinked and looked up into the face of a scruffy warrior with green hair. Behind him stood a large group of human men, many of them looking as if they hadn't washed in decades, straggly-haired and gap-toothed. The majority hefted chipped axes, while others held bows, and a couple more held swords.

 

"You see," the warrior stepped forward, calm and uncaring of the way that Aka stepped back. "There's a guy up high, real high, who wants this guy," he pointed his axe at the green frog, "dead. Dunno why, but see, I'm not paid to know why. I'm paid to kill. Which is exactly what I'll be doing. If you know what's good for yourself, you'll step aside. I won't ask twice, see?"

 

Aka glared at the man bravely. "No," she gritted out. "I was told to guard Glenn, and I will do so with my life. I will not let him down."

 

The man shrugged. "Your loss," and then swung his axe in a mighty sideways chop.

 

Aka leapt back, barely avoiding being bisected, and after holding her fingers together in a dramatic pose, she transformed into a small purple frog. "You shall not pass," she said.

 

"I think you'll find we will. Attack!"

 

Unfortunately, the bandits were too far from the village for anybody to hear the sounds of fighting. Except for one fox, who was hurrying on his way through the village toward the front gates. He stopped, head cocked. "Eh, sounds like sumfin' goin' on over dere," he muttered. "Er...but I hafta go help mah friend, he's in trubble," he muttered, then gnawed on his lip as a scream pierced the air. "Or uhh...I'll grab him, and then figure this out. Or um, mebbe Gamboge knows what ta do. Yah, yah yah," he nodded, before turning around and starting to head back the way he came.

 

--

 

 

As the tension calmed down, and frogs and foxes alike began to settle, Catriona kept watch over Rufus's prone form, as well as Penelope's.

 

"Catriona," a familiar voice brought her back to the present. "Someone should...mediate between those two lest this start up again. Usually it would be Penelope but..." his eyes drifted back to the girl and he fell silent.

 

The lord winced as she looked at the girl herself. Her sister. Lying there, wounded, from that sham of a chieftain's teeth. Rage stirred in her breast before she let out a sigh. It would do no good to get angry here. Logic dictated it.

 

"And done. That was close."

 

Catriona breathed a sigh of relief at Ciela's timely arrival. "Thank you," she said, heartfelt.

 

Alois and Link both addressed Gunther, one reassuring him he didn't need to leave Penelope, the other assuring him that they would look after her. Catriona looked between them but said nothing. Honestly, she would rather Gunther stay by Penelope's side. The foxes could hang themselves, for what she cared, for what they had done to her sister. But saying such would do nothing but fan the flames further, which, while tempting, was not something she should do while her sister was still unconscious.

 

Azar spoke up then. "So, it seems like a couple people back down there are helping make peace. I have to admit, aside from the frogs showing up in the first place, this has gone rather smoothly." The shaman cast a glance in Penelope's direction. "And her getting bitten, of course." Azar's attention then turned to Catriona. Nothing was certain so soon after meeting everyone, but she seemed like the leader here. That meant she'd be the perfect person to ask this next question to. "This may sound random, but what exactly is a group that seems randomly thrown together as yourselves trying to accomplish? Something big, I take it, since there are so many of you."

 

The princess looked at her blankly, a hint of confusion in her eyes. "I had thought I had explained. Perhaps I did not do so well enough," she mused. "We are trying to stop the goddess's full revival, but, more immediately, we are trying to find the Great Dragon to do so. The Twelve Crusaders were integral in sealing Her away, and the dragon is the last of them. It is said they lived long after the others, and it is my hope that they live still."

 

Meanwhile, Alois worked to mediate between the two Proteans representing their tribes. "Well, I can see how things got to this point," the boy said towards the duo. Regardless, he continued, "alright both of you, let's calm down here for a second. Now let's ask ourselves, why would either side lie when the alternative is war?" Turning to the Frog Sage he said, "so let's assume that it wasn't one of their foxes that did it." He then turned to Licorice. "But let's also assume that a fox did do it." He then looked between the two and said, "now this might sound weird, but if that's the case, then there's at least one conclusion that we can draw from this." Turning towards Sienna he pointed to her saying, "see, that girl over there. For the past...week? For the past week or so, she had been traveling with us. Which means, for the past week or so, there was a fox that didn't live in this village, hell even this forest. So you see what I'm getting at here?"

 

After making his point, Tsetseg shot her hand up, saying, "oh, oh, oh," she proceeded to point to herself as if she were saying, "pick me, pick me."

 

With a confused look on his face, Alois said, "yes?"

 

The girl seemed to have a joyous expression on her face before saying, "well, I was wondering if the croaky ones had anything important stolen from them." She then proceeded to pet Persimmon's tail. Said fox shot her a sour look and twitched his tail a few inches away, but did nothing else.

 

"No, there was nothing stolen from us," the Frog Sage frowned. "Except for the life of one of our tribesmen," he continued in a somber tone.

 

"She wasn't here, so it couldn't have been her," Shiro muttered from his spot, then spoke up in a louder voice. "But the foxes claim there is only one white fox, which is her... what Glenn and I say was a large white fox however... is there perhaps a secret tribe of foxes even the foxes don't know about...? Or... could it be a new race...? Some other sort of Protean...?"

 

"I think I have an idea about that." Edrick came up right around then, pausing to wait until the others attention was on him to continue. "As big as you foxes can get," he gestured with his right hand toward Licorice, "the usual differences between foxes and wolves get a lot harder to make out immediately. Especially if someone's not expectin' to have to tell the difference." His attention turned back to the Frog Sage. "That match up with anythin' you know? Are there wolves that get big enough for that in this forest?"

 

"Not in the forest, no," the Frog Sage shook his head, and then paused. "I have heard...of a tribe of desert wolves, but they have only been seen in southeast Isauria. It is possible that one of their warriors came here, but unlikely. More likely it is a renegade fox, but I have heard of no foxes outside of this tribe."

 

"So you are back to accusing us, then?" Licorice asked, tone eerily calm.

 

"Facts speak for themselves," the frog confirmed pleasantly.

 

The fox bristled at that. "How many times must I repeat myself? We have had nothing to do with the death of your Cyrus. It is more likely one of these wolves that they have suggested."

 

"So you say, but you are a proven liar already."

 

It looked like things might come to blows again, until a familiar dopey-looking fox arrived, shouting and waving his arms. "Gamboge! Dere's fightin' goin' on o'er dere!" he pointed at where he had last heard the noise.

 

"What?!" the fox yelped, before turning to the Frog Sage almost accusingly. "Didn't you call off your warriors?"

 

The sage frowned, "That I did, and they should have heard, unless..." he paled. "Unless they were outside of the village." He glanced at Shiro meaningfully, before looking back at Licorice. "We will continue this later." He turned to the rest of his warriors then, "Frogs, come quickly! We must help Aka!"

 

Licorice followed behind with one last glance at Penelope, barking an order to her own warriors. "Come, if it is a fox she fights, then we must be sure of their safety."

 

Catriona finally moved away from Rufus at that. However, she did not follow the others. "I will stay behind and watch Penelope, the rest of you may go," she said.

 

BGM

 

Those who decided to follow would eventually hear the faint sounds of fighting near the entrance to the village, leading to a group of bandits surrounding an injured purple frog and a familiar unconscious green-haired Protean.

 

"Well, well, look who decided to drop by," the bandit leader said at seeing them. He sneered at Licorice, spitting on the ground before him. "Gotta pay you back for my scar, don't I?" he tapped a long, wicked-looking gash running down the side of his jaw.

 

At that, more bandits appeared from the trees around them, outnumbering the group at least five to one.

 

"Time to fight, boys! For Bazba and Bone!"

 

"Aye, Binks!" the bandits replied, before turning to the mixed group of Proteans and human beings and attacking them with abandon.

 

"I see you have not learned from last time," Licorice addressed the warrior, before transforming in a blaze of light. Her fox form was almost as large as Rufus's, but less stocky and more lithe. "This place will be your grave," she said simply, before charging at the bandits. In a flash of teeth, every single bandit surrounding her fell to the ground with torn throats.

 

"Black Fang, indeed," muttered Gamboge, before transforming himself and following suit, with his brother Persimmon. They fought back-to-back, seemingly unstoppable as a pair.

 

Aka herself fought with the speed and grace of an assassin.

 

The Frog Sage did not participate, humming as he surveyed the battlefield. "I wonder..." he mused, before shaking his head. "No, we shall see, won't we?"

 

--

 

"Do you hear that?" Erwin asked, staring ahead of them quizzically.

 

"I do," Urvan scowled. "That's the sound of battle. Come on, let's move!" he began to run faster, almost keeping pace with Erwin's horse.

 

"Hey, don't leave me behind!" Hange yelped, running to catch up to them.

 

Behind the trio followed their respective squads.

 

By the time the group arrived, the fighting was already underway. It was a chaotic mess, with giant frogs and foxes battling bandits. "Now we know where the bandits went," Erwin said.

 

"Yeah, they decided to come here. All right, men, let's go!" the warrior ordered, lifting his Devil Axe and cutting a swathe through a bunch of bandits at once.

 

The arrival of the Pelinna Patrol evened things out, though the bandits still outnumbered them all. However, this was balanced out by the superior skill of the patrol, the ferocity of the Proteans, and the pluck of the original group.

 

OOC: Free-for-all! For those who decide to follow to the fight, this is basically one big messy brawl. There will be no turns, player phase or enemy phase, map, or whatever. Feel free to write your enemies out of commission, too. Just go ham, basically. Only unit you're not allowed to kill in one post is the boss, who, as a promoted unit, is a lot harder than any of the bosses we've come up against so far. It will take more than one person working in tandem to take him down. Also yes, Catriona stayed behind to watch over Penelope.

 

All characters are also back to 100% health.

 

Available enemy units

- Binks, warrior equipped with steel axe and iron bow

- 10% Lancers equipped with iron lances

- 40% Barbarians equipped with iron axes

- 20% Fighters equipped with iron axes

- 10% Mercenaries equipped with iron swords

- 20% Thieves equipped with iron swords or iron bows

[Alaina]

 

Alois was glad that everyone seemed to get where he was going at, yet it seemed that the Frog Sage was adamant about there being no rogue foxes that could exist in the area. As Alois tried to think more about the situation at hand, though, his chain of thoughts were broken as it seemed that there was some kind of attack going on. As everyone seemed ready to mobilize and fight whoever it was that was attacking, Alois let out a sigh, starting to stretch his arms out. "Well, I've got a lot of steam to blow, so what convenient timing for this." The boy looked towards Cat, the princess saying she'd stay behind, with a slight hint of concern on his face. He had this increasingly validated suspicion that whenever he left one of them to their own devices, something bad would happen. All the same, he just said, "stay safe." Trying to quickly regain his usual bluster, the boy proclaimed, "and don't worry, we'll be done with this before you even know we were gone. And I'll be sure to knock a few heads off for you." With that, he made his way over to where the fight was happening. 

 

It was chaos, to say the least. The boy was given pause as he looked towards the field. The group was large, larger than anything he had seen before. He was not on the defensive, but instead charging forward to throw himself into the battle. Even among normal standards, the field seemed all the more savage as well, with foxes tearing into their prey and frogs pouncing on them. Sweat started to form on the boy's hands, as he gulped a bit. Gripping onto his axe, he took a deep breath before telling himself, "let's do this." Walking forward, the boy knew he didn't have to take on everyone, and fighting one at a time would be far better for him. Thankfully, his enemy wasn't a swarm. It was just many individuals. And so, calling out to one of the axe wielding bandits, a barbarian, he shouted, "hey ugly! You know I think your current look just isn't cutting it, so how about I give you a real paint over?" The barbarian, not thinking much of the boy seemed to be ticked off as he ran his way over towards Alois. 

 

The barbarian swung forward, axe aiming for the boy's head to which Alois had managed to duck underneath it. Gripping onto his own axe tightly, Alois swung it at the side of the bandit, digging the blade into his waist of the barbarian. The man howling out in pain pushed forward, bashing his arm into Alois's face causing him to stumble back a bit, but grabbing back onto his axe with one of his hands. With a great deal of force, the boy slashed his blade through the rest of the barbarian's torso, causing a large gash to form and blood to start gushing out. As the axe wielding bandit weakly made his way towards Alois, the boy merely shoved him back, causing the bandit to topple down onto the ground, movement stopping. Trying to rub the slight sting sensation out of his nose, Alois gripped his axe tighter as he walked forward, ready to take on more of the bandits. 

 

 

Tsetseg walked into the battle, clear annoyance on her face. The girl was quite angry at the bandits; them daring to attack the fluffy tailed proteans, the croaky proteans and just being a generally harmful presence to the Pelinna forest as well. The girl knew that as a member of the patrol, it was her duty as a member of the patrol to hunt and fell the bad humans. It was her duty as a person to hurt those that wanted to her friends and family. And with bow in hand, the girl was going to perform her duty admirably. Her expression brightened as she saw the patrol move in, beginning to help the fight, though this smile subsided into a strangely stoic and serious look. Her eyes darted across the battlefield, looking at where her arrows needed to go and, seeing other enemies within the bandits wielding bows, she knew where to fire.  Taking a deep breath to focus herself, the girl nocked and pulled back her arrow in one clean motion. Letting the arrow fly, it soon found itself lodged into the neck of the enemy archer causing him to drop his bow as he gasped for air, only to fall down onto the ground motionless. 

[Yui]

---

"I had thought I had explained. Perhaps I did not do so well enough. We are trying to stop the goddess's full revival, but, more immediately, we are trying to find the Great Dragon to do so. The Twelve Crusaders were integral in sealing Her away, and the dragon is the last of them. It is said they lived long after the others, and it is my hope that they live still."

 

"Got it." Find the dragon, stop the goddess, go home. Sounded easy enough. Azar wasn't sure why she got the feeling that such an ambitious quest was easier than simply finding a missing person, but that was how she felt. It was then that the sounds of fighting came from outside the village. It couldn't have been more frog-fox hostility, right?

 

"I will stay behind and watch Penelope, the rest of you may go."

 

The sooner these guys are dealt with, the sooner we can make peace with these proteans then get the hell out of this forest. With that, Azar - along with a number of others - made for the fight.

"Time to fight, boys! For Bazba and Bone!"

 

More bandits. Wonderful. That probably means nobody will miss them if they die. This should be easy. The Pelinna Patrol is even here.

 

She could do some "science" a bit later though. For now, given how all the fights had been treating her, it was much better to just stay back, at least until the herd had been thinned enough. And so, Azar opened her tome, glancing over the fight. Carrying all manner of weapons, and all over the place. Azar never did like bandits anyway.

 

"Flux!" The shaman fired off her magic. There was no way she was getting to the archers while everyone else was in the way. She'd have to whittle down the fighters up at the front, such as a lancer near the edge of the bandit group that the spell had hit. Just one Flux didn't seem like it would be enough to kill though. Not from all the way back here, at least. But she wanted to save her Rashido Method for the leader. It's gonna be a bit of a longer fight. I hate waiting.

 

"Flux!"

 

Regular old casting from a tome was so slow compared to just getting in their face and punching them with the spell!

---

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

 

She was going to be okay. Penelope was going to be okay. Gunther felt himself relax as he saw Ciela work her, literal, magic. He wasn't sure how Penelope would feel later but at least for now she should be stable.

 

Gunther was surprised that the first thing Link did, when he was healed himself, was approach them and...talk. Gunther's fellow Galtean wasn't the most verbose but it seemed that this incident brought something out of him. But his words just...didn't feel right.

 

"Link, you did far more than you had to. That much is clear. You were at least here..." No, this wasn't the time for Gunther to be self-conscious. "We just all have to do what we can, right? But, alright, after this incident we will set some time aside for whatever it was you needed to discuss."

 

The talks were continuing but Gunther was still watching Penelope. The girl was stirring, finally, and her eyes flickered open.

 

"What's...Gunther?" Penelope struggled to make heads or tails of what was happening. She remembered being attacked and then...a glow of magic. Was that what it felt like to be healed? It was...odd. She knew how the magic worked but to experience it was...something else.

 

People were around her. Concerned people. She had to...Okay maybe not. The girl had tried to sit up but that seemed to have been the wrong course as she suddenly felt light-headed.

 

"Penelope, lay still, you're still recovering." Gunther said softly, placing a hand on her arm. "It is fine, everything is okay now."

 

And, as always, that was when things got bad again. A fight was breaking out and it seemed all sides were heading towards whatever conflict was happening.

"I will stay behind and watch Penelope, the rest of you may go,"

 

Gunther was immediately conflicted. He should go, everyone else was, and it would be dangerous. But that was exactly it. What would he do out there? He was barely fit to fight normally. He was just a guard. His place was here, acting as a wall, in case someone came to attack the princesses. Though he knew deep down that wasn't the real reason he was avoiding it...

 

"I should help." Penelope said. She knew that she wasn't in top condition but, especially if people were going to stay behind, she thought it best to go herself. The only problem was standing up...

 

Her words, her actions, struck Gunther. She had just been in such a state but the moment that there was trouble she was trying to go and fight once more. Yet Gunther was cowardly wanting to stay behind. "No." Gunther said firmly. "You stay here. I will handle this....Trust me." He met Penelope's surprised gaze and did what he could not to look down.

 

"Of course." Penelope said. Maybe this time she could leave it to Gunther... "Make sure no one gets hurt."

 

Gunther got to his feet and gripped his lance, trying not to tremble as he followed the others.

---

There were so many bandits. That was what they had to be, after all, he could recognize their type by now. Many were hefting axes as well and the Knight felt nerves creep up on him. Any of them could potentially cleave through his armor and...

He saw Alois in the thick of the battle. The Fighter didn't seem concerned. He was fighting just as hard as he could and Gunther knew he had to follow suit.

 

Especially with the sword users that were heading for his comrade. Gunther pressed forward to intercept the pair of Mercenaries as they went for Alois. He brought his shield up and blocked the first's blade. With a grunt he shoved forward, using his weight to off-balance the man. Then he followed it up by thrusting his lance into the man's chest.

 

The other swordsman tried to attack Gunther as he was pulling back but the blade merely bounced off of the armor the Knight was wearing. Which allowed Gunther to sweep the lance to the side. He struck the Mercenary in the shoulder with the shaft of his weapon and the bandit cried out and lost his grip on his sword.

 

Gunther pulled back and thrust forward once more, striking the bandit's side and opening a large wound. Gunther quickly looked around the battlefield and noticed Glenn's prone form not far off. It seemed the enemies were attempting to finish the downed warrior off.

Gunther wasn't going to have that. Thrusting again at the Mercenary, Gunther made his way towards the frog.

---

"So...it's really quiet here isn't it?" Penelope said awkwardly to those that remained. She was still shaken by what had happened. But she had to do what she could to go back to normal. Fast. She needed to make up for failing to end this peacefully herself. If only her body would stop shaking...

[King K. Azo]

It seemed neither side was coming to any conclusion yet, as well, there was no solid evidence to claim the foxes guilty or innocent. It looked like things might come to blows again, until a familiar dopey-looking fox arrived, shouting and waving his arms. "Gamboge! Dere's fightin' goin' on o'er dere!" he pointed at where he had last heard the noise.

 
"What?!" the fox yelped, before turning to the Frog Sage almost accusingly. "Didn't you call off your warriors?"
 
The sage frowned, "That I did, and they should have heard, unless..." he paled. "Unless they were outside of the village." He glanced at Shiro meaningfully, before looking back at Licorice. "We will continue this later." He turned to the rest of his warriors then, "Frogs, come quickly! We must help Aka!"

Shiro's eyes widen as soon as he heard that, transforming into his frog form and bounding away. He shouldn't have left them alone. He should have stayed, but no, some strange suddenly loyalty to the humans drew him away. He only hoped he wasn't too late, that they were still alive. When he got there, he say Aka and Glenn surrounded, and Glenn still hadn't woke up. 
 

He had forgotten about the bandits. Stupid, stupid. He should have stayed behind with Glenn and Aka, dammit, dammit! He leap across the field, landing by Aka and kicking away a bandit that was attacking form her side. "I'm sorry I didn't stay behind. You okay?" He asked her. After getting his answer, he hopped into battle, survaying the field. He didn't like going against lance users, seeing as their range helped against him. Archers were also bad news, as they could attack from a distance. 

Best to take those out first. 

 

He hopped to a thief taking aim with his bow, the bow aimed at a different frog. Shiro slammed his full weight into the thief, knocking him to the ground. Then, using his tongue, he picked up the thief and launched him into the air. He doubted that the person could come out unscathed. With that, he hopped off to find another enemy.

[Hakima]

Link crouched down beside Penelope as Gunther departed. From his backpack, he produced a woolen blanket and quickly wound it up into a makeshift pillow. “Lean back and rest your head on this please, your Majesty,”he instructed softly.

 

“I suppose this is what is called a ‘field medic’ then.” Penelope said as she complied.

 

The corners of his mouth twisted in what might have been a smile. “That would be correct. So you know how it goes then?”

 

“Of course. I’ve read all the field manuals and several medical books on the matter.” Penelope said, sounding proud of the fact.

 

Link hummed approvingly. It was good that she knew the process, but he doubted any book would prepare her for some of the things he had seen in the field. “What’s your full name, your Majesty?”

 

“My name is Penelope Astrid Nabudis. Second daughter of King Reginald Nabudis...Also the year is 556, before you ask.” She smiled up at the man. Her eyes scanned his own body for injuries even as she lay there. Her lips pursed in concern as she noticed the bite wound on his side but she stayed silent for the time being.

 

Link looked at Catriona for confirmation that what she had said was indeed her full name, and the princess in question nodded. Good. He then checked her vision by holding up a random number of fingers several times, which she got correct every time. “May I see the arm with the injury?”he finally asked.

 

Finally, Penelope hesitated. She knew this was coming but she had hoped to avoid thinking about it. Just the thought of that arm, what had happened to it, gave the girl pause. However, she managed to lift the arm for Link to see. Though she didn’t look at it directly herself.

 

Link removed his gloves and grasped her arm cautiously. He could play the part of a doctor, but he definitely had the calloused hands of a lifetime soldier. “You can look, your Majesty,”he assured her. “You’ll have to get accustomed to this sort of thing as quickly as you can stomach. Your wound is luckily superficial, but this won’t be the last time this happens to one of us.”He sounded oddly paternal, and what might have normally seemed to be criticism came off as more reassuring than anything else. “Shouldn’t be any lasting damage, but it’s good to check just in case. I’m going to press on the wound a little bit with my thumb, just say ‘now’ as soon as you feel it, okay?”

 

Penelope nodded. She didn’t think it was the right time to discuss the former half of his words but she shouldn’t completely ignore him during this. She waited tensely until the moment she felt the pressing.

 

“Now.”

 

“Now.”

 

“Now.”

 

Link released her arm and nodded, seemingly satisfied. He reached into his backpack and pulled out something bound tightly in thin paper that, when he unrolled it, the Princess would recognize was vulneraries. He gave her one, saying, “trick I learned with the thirty-first. Don’t chew it, just roll it up and suck on the root. It’ll help with that lightheadedness you’re feeling. Otherwise I’d say you’re fine.”

 

“Don’t worry I know the proper ways to use medicine, Link...but thank you.” What the girl didn’t say was she hadn’t heard of such a trick. There was a twinge of annoyance she felt at not having all the correct information but at the moment she just felt relief that it was all over. “I think I’d prefer not having to do that again.” She stated with a nod of her head.

 

Link caught himself before he smiled. Something about the group had started to grow on him; they were all so untouched by the hardships that came with a life by the sword. They still argued for peace when he had all but resigned to drawing his sword, were still convinced that everyone was going to make it out of their quest alright. Gunther… Alois… Edrick… Penelope… even Ciela and the patrol’s archer, Tsetseg.

 

Link glanced toward Catriona with his peripherals. Distant, unemotive, heir-to-the-crown Catriona. It was easy to see even in the way she held herself she wasn’t like the others. She was a soldier. Shaped in the forge of hatred and prejudices the Great War had left behind, and cooled in the blood that flowed so needlessly in the skirmishes at the border.

 

She was already like him. He couldn’t shield her from what was come to like he could the others. She knew it too well by now.

 

The Galtean soldier adjusted his sword at his waist and stepped away from the sisters, putting enough distance in between himself and them that they could talk without worry of him eavesdropping. They deserved the time alone. Rohns followed dutifully by his side, ears tucked flat against his skull, baring his teeth.

[Asriel Dreemurr]

Edrick had at least some reason to think that perhaps the Foxes and Frogs could put aside the feud that had grown between them. They had another group who could easily be blamed for the theft of Inari's Beads, at least he thought that was what he heard them called, and the death of the Frogs' compatriot. Though only moments after his offered answer was acknowledged he was left sighing as they returned to arguing with each other. It seemed that they were determined to fight each other and see their own forest destroyed in the process. Though their anger with each other was short-lived enough it seemed, as the word of fighting came and the Frog Sage and Licorice ran off to presumably break up a fight. At least they could agree on that much. Deciding that he should go along and try to keep the situation calm, Edrick made to follow after them. Once he had made certain that he had his lances together at least. The new, fresh one in the leather sleeve on his back and the bloody, battered one in his hand at the ready.

 

When the lot of them, himself, Azar, Alois, Tsegtseg, Gunther, and Shiro, arrived on the scene with the Proteans, Edrick found himself very much wishing he had brought along the armor he took from Bazba. Both because it would have afforded him some extra protection and because it would have made him a target for the bandits around. He would prefer to be struck ten times than his flock be struck once. They had to live to learn the truth of Inera's power and the reason for faithfulness. Even so, they all displayed an admirable quality. One which reminded him very much of what his father had told him once.

 

"Take a lesson in faith from the Galteans," the old man had told him once, the words coming back to mind as he watched his friends(were they his friends?) charge into the fray. "With no belief in the Goddess, or anything that waits for them beyond this life, they still fight." The memory that this had been his father's way of convincing him to go and clean out the muck in their pigs' pen brought a little smile to his face. One which faded into an expression of resolve as he clasped his hands together.

 

"Oh Lady of Bones, Oh Mistress of Undeath," he recited aloud as he took the moment to prepare, "give me the strength to end the lives of those who stand against Us, and raise them beyond their end that all who see them might have faith." As he finished his prayer and readied his spear, the last of his comrades(they were at least that) to charge into the fight, he noticed the Frog Sage standing back and holding the rest of the frogs back as well. "Ya know they'll come for you too. If we don't beat 'em here." Those few words were all he could think to say in the moment, and then he turned to face the foes with his spear gripped in two hands resolutely. His mind at ease and his course of action decided, he charged.

 

From what Link had taught him he already knew that the stances of those he charged were sloppy. The Barbarian before him had the advantage in weapon, perhaps, but lost in stance and conviction. His feet were too wide apart, and as they close his foe over-committed to an attack. A subtle change, a step to the side at almost the last moment, was all it took to turn that from taking an axe to the shoulder to running the Bandit through. Without even thinking he stepped past the impaled man and grabbed the bloodied far end of the spear to pull it out from the other side as he rushed on to the next foe. And the next. And the next. Edrick pushed his way forward, either stepping around or simply disregarding any strikes that came his way as he pushed towards his goal: the big man with the steel axe who was leading this lot.

 

"Don't be afraid!" He shouted aloud as he struck another bandit in the gut and twisted his spear, sending them to the ground. "We don't fight alone today!" An armored man with a sword swiped at his side, and whether or not it cut him through the padded armor Edrick did not care. He struck him about the head with the haft of his spear, and ran the shaft through the stunned foe's chest. "We never fight alone! Inera herself watches over us! Wherever there's death, so is she! And she doesn't abandon those who earn her gaze!" He withdrew his spear and stabbed it into another bandit, the head snapping off as he withdrew the weapon. "So don't be afraid! Her favor is with us, as we kill these lawless heathens!" He swung the shaft of wood about, shattering it against the side of someone more heavily armored, and reached back to take up his fresh lance. "So fight! Fight like madmen! Fight like heroes! Fight like Martyrs! Fight like the dead themselves!" He charged recklessly at the apparent leader of the bandits and thrust the iron head of his lance at him, eyes wide as that peculiar Pontic madness took him. "Fight and The Goddess will give you a miracle!"

[Alaina]

 

As Alois had been making his way through the crowds of the bandits, he saw a bandit wielding a sword make his way over to him. As the boy readied himself for the fight, the man was intercepted by the flower faced knight, and was taken down rather handily. "Well, not the first person I would expect to swoop to my aid," the boy joked towards the knight. Before he could say anymore, though, the another bandit with an axe, one closer to his style of axe fighting, had rushed towards him. Gripping his axe tighter, as the bandit swung his axe down on the boy, Alois swung his own upward, colliding blades against each other. With the bandit's axe being forced upward, Alois then took another heavy swing into the bandit's gut. The wind was knocked out of the bandit as he dropped his axe, with Alois finishing him by just shoving him to the ground.

 

With the foe defeated, Alois's attention was then drawn towards a familiar yelling voice, yelling about a familiar subject. Musing to his aloud, the boy said, "oh, well I guess Eddy's in this fight too." Looking back to the knight, then looking to where he was going, the boy said, "so need some help frog-sitting?" As he asked this, a lance wielding bandit had made their way over to them, trying to charge at them. Sheathing his axe, Alois then drew out his hand axe, twirling it a bit before tossing it at the charging bandit. With the axe burying itself into the chest of the lancer, the man fell down to the ground. The man's charge faltered, his lance dropped to the ground as he gasped for air. Alois swiped at the air, grabbing his hand axe as it made its way back to him. Walking up to the injured bandit, Alois delivered a swing with his hand axe to the bandit, felling him as the attack landed. With a cocky smile he turned back to the knight as he said, "I work for cheap."

 

 

With one arrow after the other, Tsetseg continued to fire into the crowd of bandits, each one hitting their mark. Despite all of the arrows she had shot, however, there were very few that were actually kill shots. Whenever a patrol member or a protean would find themselves overwhelmed or outnumbered, an arrow would fly into their foe's leg, their arm, their back. Each time the bandits seemed like they'd win a fight, an arrow struck them, making them falter in the final moments. As Tsetseg continued to survey the battlefield, trying to find the next important mark to fire at, the girl looked towards the Pontic boy as he proudly shouted about the goddess and other such things. She recognized him as one of the people that was part of the group of new friends she had met, so she knew he wasn't an enemy. Though, she was still slightly unnerved and turned her attention away from him for the time being.

 

Instead, she turned her attention over to the Frog portean who had leaped into the fray. While he seemed to be doing fine, having just crushed an archer, the girl noticed that there were a few bandits starting to make their way towards him. Pulling out an arrow, the girl put her focus onto one mark of hers; a bandit wielding a sword. As she had studied her target, she twirled the arrow in her hand, before nocking it into her bow and pulling back swiftly. With lethal accuracy, the girl fired off an arrow, sending it straight into the back of the head of the sword bandit, knocking him down in a shot. 

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

The bandits were convenient. Those were words that Ciela would never thought she could ever think of. It was convenient that they served as a common enemy for both the foxes and the frogs, and intervened just as the situation could probably get worse. The area soon turned into chaos. Frogs, humans, and foxes all started to clash in just a moment's notice Ciela still was very uncomfortable by the beasts and since the situation seemed to not need her directly, she went to the backline for a quick check on both Link and Penelope.

 

But, it seemed that Link handled the situation before her. Oh well. It was somehow not a surprise that Link had knowledge in medicines, but that wasn't important. He carried him off well enough so far despite almost dying earlier, so Ciela let out a sigh of relief before turning her attention back to the battle.

 

If possible she would try to avoid the foxes, but she would now go around and heal people if they needed it.

 

---

[Wind Rider]

Thanks to everyone's efforts, it seemed like things were going to end peacefully. Sienna breathed a sigh of relief and walked back up the stairs. She looked back down to see that things were... Progressing, to say the least. Licorice and the frog chieftain looked to be at each others throats but were calmed down thanks to Alois and Edrick.

 

Things were quiet, until a fox was yelling something about a fight outside the village. Sienna either didn't hear the commotion or just ignored it, she couldn't care at the moment. She walked over and knelt down beside her unconscious father, she dragged him and propped him up against the hut. "What's going on with you, father? Why ate you acting like this?" she mumbled sadly

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

 

"Well, not the first person I would expect to swoop to my aid,"

 

Gunther gave him an embarrassed smile. It was true. "I certainly don't often...swoop." Though, like Alois, he wasn't able to respond much before being attacked. The Mercenary he has injured was charging again, trying to thrust his sword towards Gunther's neck.

Mostly out of instinct Gunther thrust his shield forward. Where it connected with the bandit's forehead and, due to the fact that the man had practically ran into the steel, knocking him off his feet and, as he landed on the ground, knocking him unconscious.

 

"oh, well I guess Eddy's in this fight too."

 

Gunther had come to the same conclusion. His smile wavered and his grip on his lance tightened. There were times that he managed to forget that Edrick was a Pontic. And not just any Pontic but one fanatically loyal to their enemy. He took a deep breath as he saw a Lancer heading his way. He had to focus. And, more important than even before, lest the Pontic get it in his head to finish off the former squire, he had to make sure Glenn was alright.

 

The Lancer reached Gunther quickly and thrust forward. But Gunther was ready. He moved the shield in front of the thrust and, turning it slightly, deflected the attack. Immediately the large man thrust his lance into the bandit's neck.

 

"so need some help frog-sitting?"

 

Trying to steady his breathing he responded to Alois. "No need. There's plenty of bandits about after all. More than you can shake a stick at."

 

A Thief attempted to sneak past Gunther to reach the Axe user. However Gunther's skills of observation were what made him a good guard and he simply held his lance out to the side for the Thief to run into the shaft. "Or, a lance at." he joked softly. That done he stepped over the fallen foe to approach Glenn, wanting to make sure the man was uninjured before anything else.

[Yui]

---

"Flux!"

 

Another bandit down. This was boring, just picking off bandits that were on the edge of the crowd. And then, the Pontic - his name was Edrick, Azar remembered that much - charged into the fray, among others.

 

"Don't be afraid! We don't fight alone today! We never fight alone! Inera herself watches over us! Wherever there's death, so is she! And she doesn't abandon those who earn her gaze!"

 

You mean the goddess the rest of your party is trying to stop? If she really is watching over us, I think she needs a lesson in NOT helping people that are out to stop her. Even though she couldn't help but question his fervor, she had to admit that she liked his willingness to just run in and fight. Not being afraid to take action was important, and Edrick was very obviously not afraid. Azar closed up her tome. The archer girl could handle this ranged support shtick. This wasn't the job for the shaman, as strange as that sounded when one considered magic historically being a ranged thing.

 

Instead, she made directly for the fight. One bandit tried charging at Azar from the side. She kicked the bandit's wrist, then grabbed him by the back of the head. With all her might, Azar slammed the bandit's face into the ground, adding a use of Flux at the last moment for that distinct extra oomph. She wasn't certain if the bandit was dead, but if he was still conscious, he definitely didn't show any signs of wanting to get back up. Edrick was making for the bandit leader, thrusting his lance at the man.

 

Azar wasn't about to let him take all the credit for cutting off the head of this attack.

 

And so, she followed up on Edrick's attack with one of her own, swinging a foot up to strike the bandit leader's arm. Using the Rashido Method, of course. Because how else was she supposed to work out how to perfect it short of using it a lot? Being able to hurt whoever she hit with it all the more also was nice.

---

[Sethera]

Aka gritted her teeth as she kicked out with dark purple legs. As a warrior of the frog tribe, she should be able to put up more of a fight than this. She had to be stronger, faster, better. Sometimes, it felt like she was falling behind compared to people like Glenn or Shiro. Speaking of Shiro...

 

"I'm sorry I didn't stay behind. You okay?" the blue frog appeared in a giant leap.

 

The purple frog looked down bashfully as she kicked at a stray bandit, the force sending the man crashing into his fellows. "Y-yes," she cleared her throat, "yes, I am okay. Thank you," she smiled mistily as she watched him hop back into the battlefield.

 

Meanwhile, the Frog Sage looked up in reply to Edrick's words. "True, but it is also true that I am not nearly as spry as I used to be." He looked at the chaos in front of him. "I would do more good keeping watch for my warriors from here. In fact..." he raised his voice, "Leonardo, behind you!"

 

A frog Protean dressed in green armor, turned around, stabbing twin blades into a thief sneaking up behind him. "As if you could sneak up on a turtle," he scoffed, before leaping on another. "COWABUNGA!"

 

The nearby frog Proteans sweatdropped at his actions. "As crazy as Glenn is, that one," one muttered, swerving his head around when he saw Shiro take out an archer aimed at him.

 

"All the green frogs are insane. Kermit's almost as bad," another agreed, sweeping out a leg to trip an incoming barbarian.

 

"Why does he call himself a turtle?" a nearby fox Protean asked.

 

The two frogs looked at each other before sighing. "Leonardo thinks he's a turtle, so he won't ever transform into his frog form," the first one shook his head.

 

"What."

 

"Exactly."

 

Near the back, Binks blinked as he watched what looked like a mad Pontic run toward him, shouting out zealous battle cries. "Huh, didn't think I'd see one of you here." He looked up at the sky with a put-upon sigh. "I just wanted to kill a frog today, not deal with all of this. Then again," he mused, "I suppose it's good for business if I can say I killed a Pontic."

 

And with that, he leant back to avoid the lance jab, taking a grip of the shaft and with a powerful jerk, tugging it out of Edrick's hand. He tossed the weapon to the side, and reached for his axe, bringing it down to bear on the boy with a heavy swing.

 

Which was diverted by Azar's kick, which, with the force of dark magic behind it, managed to actually push it to the side enough for it to slam into the ground instead.

 

"Damn," Binks scowled, seeming unaffected by the sear mark on his arm. "I almost had you, too. Time for round two," he lifted his axe once more, his slow, ponderous movements those of an unstoppable juggernaut.

 

--

 

 

Catriona watched Link go through the motions of getting Penelope back on her feet, but said nothing. Hearing the familiar middle name made her blink. Astrid...that was the name their mother had chosen, just like their father had chosen the firstborn's. Apparently it was their maternal grandmother's name, though they had never gotten to meet her.

 

When the two finished, Link stepped away from the sisters to let them talk.

 

The princess paused, her tongue feeling like lead now that it came time to actually say something. She was always much better at doing things than speaking them. It had been easy, automatic, to run for her sister, to pick her up, to check that she was alive. Actually talking to her? That was...difficult.

 

So instead she stared blankly at the girl, unsure how to say what she felt. If she even should, that is. No, with the lord's condition being the way it was, Penelope would have to mature far faster than had originally been planned. She would have to learn to lead, to rally, to traverse the endless mire of politics and battle. She would probably excel at talking her way around matters, but as to fighting, to showing an example for their people? That, was still something Catriona could teach her.

 

"This will not be the last time you get injured," she said. "You shall have to accustom yourself to this, so that you are not shell shocked in the future."

 

No, there had been something else she wanted to say, hadn't there? To express...what? Her fear? Her relief? Her disappointment in herself as an older sibling for letting this happen? Her wanting to ferry Penelope back to Galtea right this minute, and damn the consequences?

 

No. That was not something she was allowed to do, nor allowed to say. Penelope, while being barely past puberty, was also a princess, and the laws that governed blood royals differed from most. She could, as crown princess, command her to return to Galtea, but as they were not currently within Galtea, her sister might very well choose otherwise without censure. And telling Penelope of her fear and self-doubt would do nothing more than lessen her own image in her sister's eyes. Which she could not afford if she wanted to impart lessons of royal duty on her.

 

She could not say it. She could not afford to show frivolous sentimentality. That was nothing more than weakness for a head of state, one who had to show strong will and determination, not be guided by their heart's whims.

 

And so, she kept silent. Just as she had when listening to the nobility insult her mother. Just as she had on the border, the day after her first kill. Just as she had when her closest friend and companion left. Just as she had when listening to Silas rail against Galtea.

 

It was not her place to speak.

 

At the top of the hill, Rufus twitched once, perhaps responding to Sienna's words, but was otherwise still. He looked a lot calmer in unconsciousness than he had when awake, his features gentler and less feral, more like what she was used to seeing.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

 

And then there were two. Penelope wasn't sure how she should be acting with Catriona now. Should she be concerned that her sister would think less for her failure? Or perhaps Catriona felt pity for her. Both options were undesirable. But perhaps there was another reason that the girl was staring at her so?

 

Penelope thought it best not to speak up yet. Not until Catriona speaks. Penelope felt weaker than ever before. She wanted to be sure of what Catriona thought before saying anything.

 

"This will not be the last time you get injured," she said. "You shall have to accustom yourself to this, so that you are not shell shocked in the future."

 

That was it? That was what took Catriona so long to say? Penelope frowned at her sister. "No, I think not." Penelope responded, a hint of annoyance crossing her face. "I don't think it necessary to accustom to any sort of thing." Her voice raised in volume. Penelope knew she should stay calm. That, after such an experience, her emotions were likely heightened and not in control. "There will be conflicts but as long as we avoid them where we can we can get through this safely. I must simply be more careful. Such a thing...will not happen again."

[Alaina]

 

As Alois and the knight managed to break through the ranks of the bandits,getting closer to the injured frogs, he said, "alright, well, suit yourself then." Looking over, he saw the man who looked to be the leader of these bandits engaged in a fight already. Seeing that it was Azar and Eddy in the midst of it all, the boy looked back to the knight saying, "well, they seem to already be at the main event. So, you know where to find me. Have fun with the frogs," with that, Alois gave a short wave before sheathing his hand axe and drawing one his others. 

 

Walking forward, Alois was beset by a man with a lance, charging at him and yelling as he tried to run Alois through with the weapon. Gripping onto his axe, as the bandit made his way forward, with both hands Alois swung down onto the shaft of the weapon, breaking it in two as he did so. The man slowed himself to a stop as he got face to face with Alois, looking as his now broken lance. Looking at the weapon, then back to Alois, then back to the lance, he gulped. Turning around, the man yelled once more with fervor as he ran the opposite direction of the boy, poised to leave the fight. Alois shook his head as the man ran away, only to be stopped by a bandit wielding a large sword. 

 

Getting his axe ready, the boy swung it at the bandit who had, with some effort managed to parry it away. As his attack was deflected, the bandit went to kick Alois in the stomach, sending him back before raising his sword up. Alois brought his axe blade up, blocking the sword strike. As he parried the blade away, Alois went to swing his axe yet again, only for the bandit to backstep away from it, getting ready to stab the now open fighter. However, before he thrust his sword, an arrow found itself lodged in the bandit's arm, causing him to falter and howl in pain. As this happened, Alois took the opening and swung his axe with a heavy swing into the chest of the bandit. As the blade went through, the wood of the axe's handle snapped as the bandit dropped. "Oh, that's not supposed to happen," Alois looked at the axe stub before shrugging and discarding it. 

 

With his path to the bandit leader, relatively, clear, Alois took his hand axe out and began to look as if he was focusing his aim. For no particular reason, Alois shouted, "boy!" before tossing his axe towards Binks, Alois himself getting ready to grab the axe on its way back and begin to get ready for more up and close combat with the bandit leader. 

[Asriel Dreemurr]

Well, this bandit was better than the others at least. The realization that his lance had been knocked away shocked the Pontic, if even for just a moment, out of that battle frenzy he had been building himself into. If Edrick was to believe that Link's lessons were the sort of thing that any given warrior would pick up on eventually, then he was simply more experienced. If they were the sort of thing that needed to be taught, then this was looking more suspicious by the second. Groups of largely untrained enemies, now apparently led by someone who was the Galtean soldier's equal in terms of training? Thankfully the moment he spent considering this was not enough for the ponderously large and armored man to strike him back. Thanks in no small part to Azar, the Blasphemer from Isauria. Oh the two would have words indeed, but for now it was hard to hate someone who was fighting beside him. The moment she bought him was not wasted either, and Edrick dashed over to where his lance had been knocked away to and retrieved it.
 
"Damn," the Warrior said as the two of them readied their weapons again, "I almost had you, too. Time for round two." The man was big, large even. Edrick was not afraid of death or injury of course, but standing steady against this man and simply taking his blows would be pointless. Alright, time to take a page or two from Link's book.
 
"Boy!" Edrick heard shouted just ahead of an axe being thrown at the bandit leader. So Alois was here? Three-on-one made for decent odds.

 

"Alois, you're two years older than me at best!" He shouted back as he circled around the bandit leader, careful to stay out of the line of that swinging axe. Knocking this one to the ground wouldn't be so easy. Once Binks had swung, and his weapon was presumably now stuck in the ground, Edrick took advantage of his greater speed and reach. He gripped his lance nearer to the base of the haft and thrust it out with both hands as he charged into the man. Maybe that would make an impression on him. Even so, it was about time to make sure his attention was still on the Pontic. "You're even clumsier than Bazba! And I knocked him on his arse, right before we killed him!" It was true enough, though admittedly Edrick was not entirely sure how much of his memory of his first fight with the group he could trust. He had lost a lot of blood.

[Yui]

---

"Damn. I almost had you, too. Time for round two."

 

And then the bandit leader's weapon rose, prompting Azar to step aside. Given her tendency to injure herself in these fights, she was one of the last people that wanted to take a hit if she could help it, and this guy sure was taking his time with the attacks. And then, out the corner of her eye, Azar saw another axe fly toward the leader.

 

"Boy!"

 

"Alois, you're two years older than me at best!"

 

Aiming for the leader's arm didn't seem to faze him last time Azar attacked. Perhaps the face? People tended to react to a punch in the face. And so, Azar swung out with her arm, aimed for the bandit leader's face.

---

[Sethera]

In the midst of the chaos of the battlefield, one lone green frog, who had been unconscious up to now, woke up with a start. "Wha-whazzat?" Glenn croaked blearily, jumping upright with one hand upon the sword at his hip. "Egads! What villainy is this? Dastards! I'll showeth thee the pow'r of a Protean...squire..." he started to sway, and would have fallen over were it not for Aka, who, though injured herself, propped the man up with her shoulder. "Gramercy," the frog puffed. "I am...not at mine best...some dastard cameth up behind me and did knock me block right off." He glanced up to see Gunther approaching. "Why, good morrow to you, sir," he bowed, stumbling slightly as he did so. "I see thou has't survived this latest fracas." So busy was he in his greeting, that he did not notice the barbarian behind him, axe raised high.

 

Nearby, Shiro would soon find himself coincidentally back to back with Leonardo, the frog who thought he was a turtle, facing a multitude of enemies. "I think these guys need a beatdown, don't you?" he asked the blue frog, before diving at the nearest bandit with his twin swords.

 

"Tsetseg!" Hange called as they approached the bow thief after she took one of the bandits down. "There you are! Sheesh, I was so worried, don't you worry me again like that," right there in the middle of the fight, they grabbed the girl by the head and started stroking her hair.

 

"Hange, watch out!" Erwin called out in exasperation as he stabbed a barbarian who had been targeting the person.

 

"Oops," they grinned, before grabbing a book at their side and firing off a ball of Flux magic at another bandit. "Sorry, I'm just sooo relieved to see my favorite person. How was it, by the way? Being surrounded by adorable, fluffy-tailed foxes?" While they seemed to be paying more attention to Tsetseg than the battle, they also somehow managed to avoid most of the attacks that came their way. The rest were covered by Erwin.

 

"Wait, look over there," the man said, pointing to where a familiar blue-haired girl on a horse stood. While at the edge of the melee, Ciela's elevated height, unique appearance, and obvious lack of weaponry had attracted unpleasant attention. A ring of bandits had soon surrounded her. "Yer lily-white skin is soon gonna be dripping red with blood," a fighter said, licking his lips as he swung up toward the troubadour with his axe.

 

Meanwhile, Binks swore when a spinning hand axe clipped the side of his head. "Hell's teeth!" he groaned, rubbing the side of his head. "Watch where you're throwing that thing, boy!" he glared at Alois, obviously mistaking the fighter for one of his own men. Shaking his head, he moved to attack Edrick again, but was caught off guard by the lance aimed for his stomach. However, in avoiding that attack, he wasn't able to move his head out of the way in time to fully evade Azar's punch to the face, and she managed to clip him underneath the jaw. "You're really starting to bug me," he threatened the shaman. "And you won't like me when I get bugged." Gripping his axe, the corded muscles on his arms stood out as he gave a mighty sideways swing that both Edrick and Azar would have to work to avoid.

 

While most of the bandits seemed intent on the fight, a few shot each other looks and snuck away from the main group to enter the fox village.

 

"Twas a lot better unda Bazba," one of them, a barbarian, grumbled. "E'en Bone's better dan Binks. All he cares about is killin', dun care about loot or gold."

 

"Aye," a fighter answered. "But we're smart. Da others gonna fight, but we gonna rob dis place blind, heheh."

 

"Oh, lookie there," a third squinted at a few people in the distance, pointing his lance at them. "A few pretty ladies and a skinny man in green. Think we can take 'em?"

 

The fourth, a bow thief, grinned. "Heh, this is gonna be a piece of cake."

 

The last of the group, a mercenary, chuckled. "This is what banditry's all about."

 

--

 

 

Penelope frowned at her sister. "No, I think not." she responded, a hint of annoyance crossing her face. "I don't think it necessary to accustom to any sort of thing." Her voice raised in volume. "There will be conflicts but as long as we avoid them where we can we can get through this safely. I must simply be more careful. Such a thing...will not happen again."

 

"Do you truly believe that?" Catriona snapped, her patience wearing thin. "With our goal, our statuses, we cannot avoid conflict, even were you cannier than the fabled tactician king Pallas himself."

 

Things might have escalated even more, were it not for the sudden arrival of five bandits. "Oi," one, a barbarian, called out. "Give us yer gold, an' we might let ya go wid yer lives."

 

The fighter next to him sniggered. "Or, or, we could capture dem. White hair will fetch a pretty penny in da black market."

 

"Aye, good idea," the lancer grinned. "But we gotta get rid of this stick boy first. Not that it'll take much; he looks like he's on his last legs."

 

"Wharrabout da mutt?" a thief with a bow on his back asked, jabbing his thumb at Rohns.

 

"Eh, kill it. I could use a new towel," the last, a mercenary grunted.

 

"Heh, all right," the thief took aim and shot an arrow at the wolf cub.

 

Meanwhile, the lancer charged at Link, grinning. "Don't worry about yer mutt. You'll be joining him soon."

 

The two axemen headed for Catriona and Penelope, ugly leers on their faces, while the mercenary started climbing toward Sienna. "Here, little foxy," he coaxed. "Don't worry, we've got a lovely collar to match your pretty white fur."

 

OOC: Glenn is about to be attacked by a barbarian, Aka is too injured to do much at the moment, Gunther is nearby as well as Shiro who is being hemmed in by enemies along with a frog ally. Elsewhere, Tsetseg has reunited with a couple of her fellow patrolmen, though one of them has noticed Ciela, surrounded by bandits. Binks is in the middle of attacking both Edrick and Azar. Meanwhile, a lancer, a barbarian, a fighter, a mercenary, and a bow thief have snuck their way into the village, and are currently attacking the group there.

 

Again, this is more freeform fighting, so I am not going to write out the results of the enemy actions. That's up to you! Again, keep in mind that Binks is a promoted unit, so it'll take more than a few hits to bring him down.

[Alaina]

 

As the boy flung his axe at Binks, he managed to get a glancing blow across the bandit leader's head and retrieved his hand axe as it came back to him. Getting ready for the bandit's retaliation, the boy was surprised as Binks didn't seem to have a much reaction to his new enemy. A grin forming on his face, as he realized what had happened, Alois shouted out, "sorry, won't happen again." Twirling his hand axe around a bit, the boy started to circle around the bandit leader as he moved to attack Eddy and Azar. Getting around, the boy tossed his hand axe at the bandit leader's back.

 

 

As Tsetseg had continued to rain fire upon the battlefield, her eyes perked up and her serious expression broke way to a more curious, then joyous, one as she exclaimed, "Hange!" The girl's expression seemed to melt in joy as the woman petted her head, saying, "eheheh, I proooomiissse." As Erwin's sharp voice commanded their attention back to the situation at hand, the girl's focus returned to the scene at hand, though she was still paying attention and making small talk with Hange. "Oh, well, the fluffy-tail fox village was super fun! Until it wasn't. We got to eat with them and went into a cool shrine and we learned a lot about foxes and then a frog came over and then they wanted to kill him but the rest of us were like "no don't kill the croaky guy" so they wanted to kill us but then we talked to them and then they didn't and now we're here! It's been a fun stay for sure!" 

 

The girl's attention was then directed towards the blue headed meanie, though, more specifically the large cluster of bandits circling around her and her horse. Tsetseg might've thought the girl a bit not nice, but she was still a part of her group of new friends and and someone the bandits were actively trying to kill. And as the bandits were a lot less nice, them killing anyone was obviously a bad thing. Besides, the horse was fine enough. Advancing forward a bit so as to get a cleaner shot at them, the girl nocked an arrow before pulling back on her bow. There were far too many for her to hamper all of them, let alone kill them. So, instead, she saw fit to harry just a small cluster. Aiming for a few in the ring of bandits approaching the blue haired girl, Tsetseg let loose one arrow after the other towards the bandits. Aiming for the legs of the bandits, she had managed to get a clean shot on three of them, hitting two in the back of the thigh and one in the back of the knee, causing them to stumble or fall and hopefully allowing for the girl to have a cleaner getaway path. 

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

 

"I see thou has't survived this latest fracas."
 
"Yes, I...Behind you!" Gunther said. There was someone trying to attack Glenn from behind, which apparently has become common for the squire. Gunther moved without thought, only thinking of how the Protean, it was still odd thinking of this man as a Protean given his history, could very well be killed in this instant.
 
He lurched forward and, moving as fast as he could, interjected himself between the Barbarian and Glenn. The axe came down. It struck Gunther in the chest and the Knight winced as his armor was dented and his chest felt the heavy blow. He didn't have room to use his lance so he bashed at the Barbarian with his shield, once, twice, and, when the Barbarian fell from the attacks, thrust his lance down into the enemy's chest.
 
Breathing heavily Gunther looked over to Glenn. "A-are you alright?" He asked shakily. What he had just done, jumping in front of an attack he knew would injure him, hit him just then. Where had that come from?

---

 

Penelope narrowed her eyes at her sister. "That kind of thinking..." The discussion, if it could be called that, was cut short at the arrival of some bandits. So that was what the ruckus had been about...and some of them had gone through. "There are probably many more of them being fought...We need to stop these foes here and send reinforcements to the others." Penelope's mind was whirling. Was someone injured? If there were so many bandits that some managed to get through then some of them, especially Tsetseg and Ciela, could be in danger. They had to take care of this fast.

 

But could she fight? Her eyes went to her sword and she shuddered. No, not like that. She would rely on her magic. Scanning the field she saw a sword user heading for Sienna, two axe users charging her and her sister, a lance user fighting Link...and an archer attacking a dog. "Catriona, you can handle those two, yes?" She said, gesturing to the Fighter and Barbarian.

 

She summoned up her Wind magic, using it to stop the arrow in its tracks. And, a sudden flash of an idea coming to her mind, used the same Wind attack to try and force the arrow back at the Thief. The bandit was able to dodge such a telegraphed attack but Penelope followed up with another Wind aimed at his legs. This one cut into the man's knees and shins and knocked him off of his feet. He was the most dangerous foe for the group, as long as Link could avoid the Lancer long enough to get support from Catriona or Sienna. All she had to do was harry him. "We can win this easily. With superior tactics!"

 

She had to just focus on what was in front of her. The battle. The strategy. That was what mattered.

[Hakima]

---

Lincoln Harkinian was a melancholy man. He rarely lashed out even when provoked, rarely lost his composure; so that was why it was probably a surprise to hear the man snarl deep in his chest when the archer loosed an arrow towards Rohns. He ripped his blade from the scabbard and stepped in the line of fire intending to smack the arrow away, but Princess Penelope was faster, and a gust of wind sent it crashing to the ground harmlessly.

 

Link glanced down at Rohns. The pup was still baring his teeth and growling, but he was shaking with fear. Link ushered him beneath the stairs with his boot—Rohns whined and snapped at the leather but didn’t resist—before returning his attention to the bandits.

 

One with a lance had charged him down. Princess Penelope had knocked the archer from before down with some skillfully placed jets of wind. He was groaning but still pushing himself back up to his feet. Link charged toward the lancer that intended to attack him, sidestepping the attack at the last possible moment and then jumping into the air and rolling off the lancer’s shoulder to get behind him.

 

The man sputtered and whirled around but Link was already rushing toward the archer. The bandit realized what was about to happen and hurried to get back to his feet, and when he realized he couldn’t, put his arms up to try and shield his face. It didn’t save him.

 

Link cleaved the archer’s head off, then rolled again, reorienting himself to face the lancer he had left in the dust.

 

The aforementioned bandit was embarrassed and angry. A vein in his forehead was so swollen Link was sure that it would burst, and his face was bright red. He bellowed and charged toward the Galtean soldier to take one more shot at impaling the man on his lance.

 

Link used to end of his sword to swat the lance away before it gored him, and then—in the window that blocking the attack had opened up—he slid forward and smashed the pommel of his sword into the bridge of the bandit’s nose with a jerk of his wrist. It busted like a rotten tomato and the bandit howled and fell back, almost dropping his lance in his rush to grab at his now broken schnozz.