Byleth:
"Are you certain that Edelgard is going to be there?" Byleth asked as she furrowed her eyebrows.
Ferdinand nodded, "I am certain" he said, "Edelgard mentioned it before that if things took for the worst at the Bridge of Myrddin, that she herself would be in the next battle" he added.
"This certainly is a game changer" Claude pipped in, "Imagine if we manage to sway her over to our side at Gronder Field, then we can switch to fighting the real enemy" he said.
Ferdinand nodded, "I don't think you should expect her to surrender here" he said, "Edelgard will more than likely have a backup plan to prevent something like that" he added, then paused for a moment, "Which is why I need to ask a favor of you" he said.
Byleth tilted her head in confusion, "What kind of favor?" she asked.
Ferdinand shifted uncomfortably for a moment, "If Edelgard is out there fighting, then the rest of the Black Eagle Strike force will undoubtedly be there" he said with confidence. "I... I want to speak with them" Ferdinand said, "I know that Dorothea and Petra can be reasoned with" he said and paused for a moment, "I can't bear the thought of having to cross blades with them at Gronder" Ferdinand confessed.
Byleth stood there for a moment then nodded, "Of course" she said "You know them best, I trust you'll be able to sway them" she added.
Ferdinand smiled, "Thank you" he said "I will do my best" he added.
Byleth nodded, "You mentioned the Black Eagle Strike force" she said "Does that mean Hubert will be there as well?" Byleth asked.
Ferdinand nodded, "Yes, Hubert wouldn't let Edelgard go into battle without him" he said.
Byleth nodded, she should have realized that to begin with Hubert was loyal to a fault. Of course, he would fight alongside Edelgard.
"I won't attempt at swaying Hubert" Ferdinand said "I know that he cannot be reasoned with" he added.
Byleth nodded, "I know" she sighed. Byleth wasn't too fond of Hubert, but she still didn't like the idea that she would have to possibly kill him. But at the same time, she doesn't think Hubert would fight till his death, unless absolutely necessary.
"Hey but at least we can work with Dorothea and Petra" Claude said enthusiastically, "That's a win in my book" he added.
Byleth shook her head and let out a small laugh, "Ok, whatever you say Claude" she said, "Anyways, I need to go check in on Lysithea, see if she's made any progress" Byleth said, "I'll see you two later" she added and left from the Cardinal's room.
Byleth headed to the Library, she knew that is where Lysithea would be ever since she took up the task of figuring out a way to immobilize their opponents using magic.
Once Byleth reached the library, she peaked her head into the room, Lysithea was there and it seemed she recruited the help of Marianne. Byleth entered the room, "How's research going?" she asked as she walked over to the table that they were seated at
Lysithea looked up from one of the books she had been reading. Hope filled Byleth's body based on the smile that crept over Lysithea's face. "We found something" Lysithea said, "It will be helpful for mages, such as Annette or Mercedes, not so much for people who wield weapons" she added.
Byleth smiled at her, it was something to start with for now "What is it?" Byleth asked anxiously.
"It's a faith magic type, it's called silent" Lysithea explained, "For some reason I am unable to perform it" she said with an irritated tone, "However Marianne has no trouble using it" she added, "Show Byleth, Marianne" Lysithea said.
Marianne nodded, "Sorry Byleth if it causes any discomfort" Marianne said and then began to use silent on Byleth.
Byleth felt something, it was as if she had a restraint of some sort on her for a moment she felt as if her energy had been drained. "Try using your magic" Lysithea said.
Byleth nodded and then attempted to use fire. Byleth frowned slightly, she was unable to conjure anything, "I can't" Byleth finally said after giving into her irritation of being unable to use fire.
Lysithea let out a small laugh, "Byleth, silent prevents a person who wields magic from using it for a period of time" Lysithea explained "No need to be upset" she added.
"I see" Byleth said, she felt slightly stupid now over having been upset that she couldn't conjure fire.
"Are you experiencing slight fatigue?" Marianne asked.
Byleth nodded, "Yeah, I felt drain my energy" she said.
"Marianne gave forewarning for a reason" Lysithea said with a laugh, "I felt it firsthand as well, not exactly the most pleasant feeling" she added.
"Yeah, that felt weird" Byleth said.
A look of concern fell over Marianne's face "I didn't hurt either of you, did I?" she asked.
Byleth shook her head, "No, we should be fine" Byleth said "Just tired" she added.
Marianne nodded, "My apologies" she said.
"Ugh, Marianne there is no need for that" Lysithea said sternly, "We knew what we were getting ourselves into" she added.
Byleth nodded in agreement, "I- um... Thank you" Marianne said softly.
The three of them sat there in silence for a moment, "So, silent works on magic only we still have nothing yet to immobilize people such as Felix, Ingrid, and Sylvain" Lysithea said breaking the silence, "I'm thinking that we might not be able to have a spell that knocks them out" she said. "However we could have Marianne use silent on them since it will make them tired, thus making it easier to restrain them" Lysithea said, "The only problem is so far Marianne seems to be the only person who is able to use silent" she said, "We need to find out if anyone else has the talent for it and hurry to teach it to them" Lysithea explained.
"Is there any way we can determine if someone has the ability to use it?" Byleth asked.
Lysithea nodded, "Yes, there are ways" she said "I'm certain if we search Hanneman's office we'll find something that tests it" she added. "Otherwise Linhardt and I will have to warp Marianne around the battlefield in order to use it" she said with a small laugh.
Byleth let out a small laugh and nodded, "I'll leave you to it then" she said and rose from her seat and began to leave from the library.
"I'll let you know if anything comes up" Lysithea said as Byleth exited the library.
Byleth began heading to the training grounds, so far, they seemed to be faring well with their plan to spare as many of the Kingdom forces as possible. She was relieved that Lysithea and Marianne had managed to find that spell, however the Battle at Gronder Field was approaching fast and she feared that it all of the work that they are putting in to spare Kingdom soldiers might be in vain. And not to mention that this will be the first time seeing Edelgard since they fought side by side against Rhea.
Byleth was stressed out about it to say the least, it seemed like no matter what they did it wouldn't be enough.
She sighed then entered the training grounds, "Well look who finally decided to train" Byleth turned and saw Hilda was approaching her, alongside Caspar.
"Have the two of you been training?" Byleth asked.
Caspar nodded, "Yup!" he said enthusiastically, "We've been here since early this morning" he added.
"You got Hilda up early in the morning to train?" Byleth said in shock.
"Hey! I train I'll have you know" Hilda said defensively
Byleth shook her head and let out a small laugh, "Yeah ok Hilda sure" she said "Let's spar then" she added.
Hilda groaned, "But I've been training all day" she whined.
Byleth shrugged, "It will give you more practice" she said "It will only help you" she added.
Caspar nodded in agreement, "Yeah! Come on Hilda" he said "You and Byleth come at me!" he shouted excitedly.
"Ugh, fine" Hilda said dramatically.
Byleth laughed, "Alright then let's get to it then" she said.
After a while of training Byleth, Caspar, and Hilda finally decided to call it quits for the day. Byleth and Hilda left from the training grounds to head to the dining hall.
"So, Hilda" Byleth said in a sing song tone, "You woke up early to spar with Caspar?" she asked.
Hilda furrowed her brows, "Yes" she replied, "I get where you are going with this" she said "It's not like that" she added.
Byleth laughed, "Oh it's not is it" she said "It most certainly doesn't look that way" she added. "Caspar managed not only to wake you up early, but to also have you train" Byleth said.
"He's just interesting is all" Hilda said, "There is nothing more to it" she added defensively.
Byleth threw her arms up, "Alright, alright" she said "I'm sorry I mentioned it" she added with a laugh. "In my defense I think this is the first time I've seen you show interest in anyone" Byleth said, "I think it's only fair that I tease you" she added.
Hilda groaned in response, "Whatever" she sighed, Byleth thought it was a bit amusing to see her friend blissfully unaware of her own feelings, she wondered if Hilda thought the same about her long ago.
Both Byleth and Hilda entered the dining hall, and grabbed their food then sat down at a table.
"I can't believe how close it is until we leave for Gronder Field" Hilda said with a slight shudder.
Byleth nodded, "I know, it feels so surreal" she sighed "I wish it didn't come to this, I hate the idea that we will be fighting our friends" she added.
Hilda shrugged, "It's the way it has to be" she said "Besides don't be so glum, Byleth" she added. "If everything goes according to plan then hopefully everyone will realize that all our fighting was for nothing" Hilda said.
"I hope so" Byleth said, "Only time will tell" she sighed.
Sylvain:
Sylvain had been in a deep sleep but was woken up by banging on the outside of his door, "Who is it" Sylvain groaned.
"Sylvain, it's me Ingrid" Ingrid said continuing her knocking, "Please get up it is urgent" she added seriously.
Fear settled in Sylvain, his mind immediately wondered if maybe Dimitri went haywire and began attacking his allies. Sylvain rushed to the door and swung it open, "Is everything ok Ingrid?" he asked with concern.
Ingrid entered Sylvain's room "His Highness has requested that we all leave immediately" Ingrid began "We are heading to Gronder Field now" she added quietly.
Sylvain was quite for a moment, "His Highness isn't planning on making us cross through the Great Bridge of Myrddin is he?" Sylvain asked "Because we might die before we even reach Gronder Field in that case" he added.
Ingrid nodded in agreement, "No, Gilbert and Rodrigue convinced His Highness that we should pass through a bridge in Ordelia territory" Ingrid said
Sylvain let out a sigh of relief, sure going through Ordelia territory might add a day to their trip, but... It would at least mean they aren't fighting Byleth and Claude's forces just yet. "Alright, I'll prepare to leave then" Sylvain said.
Ingrid stood in there, "Sylvain" she called out after a few minutes, "I don't want to fight Byleth, or any of them" Ingrid said sadly.
Sylvain knew that feeling all too well, he didn't want to fight them either it was wrong. He understood Dimitri's obsession with taking down the Empire to some extent, but... Fighting the Alliance was a whole different thing.
They were their friends.
Allies.
They fought together side by side multiple times, and for the Kingdom to just throw that away and disappear into the night, it was...
Disgusting.
They are disgusting.
Sylvain kept a neutral look on his face, he trusted Ingrid but... He didn't want to trouble her with his thoughts on something that neither of them had any power over. "I know Ingrid" he said and patted her on the head, "I don't want to either" he sighed.
They stood there in silence for a few minutes then Ingrid left Sylvain's room, probably to go and gather her own supplies for the trip. Sylvain sighed then began gathering the things he would need for the trip.
Everyone gathered at the entrance gate of Castle Fraldarius, nothing was said.
They left from the Castle in silence, there were no words of encouragement said to them as Claude would or the one attempt at an encouraging words Byleth gave.
It was silent.
Sylvain guessed it was probably best this way, there were probably no words that could be said that would liven the mood up anyhow.
Dimitri led them from the front, Sylvain watched as Rodrigue made his way up to him. Sylvain found himself drawing closer to them, whatever they were going to discuss he wanted to hear it.
"Your Highness" Rodrigue said, "I don't think we should have brought that child with us" he said seriously, "This is a war, a child has no place fighting alongside us on the front lines" he added sternly.
Dimitri shook his head, "She will fight with us" he said "She longs to avenge her brother, to give him the justice that he was denied" Dimitri spat "The child raises her blade for the same reason as I, who am I to deny her the right to avenge the fallen" he added.
Sylvain's stomach churned, he couldn't believe what he'd just heard that Dimitri would allow for a kid to go and raise their sword for revenge.
It didn't surprise him that Dimitri would allow it, but it hurt the part of Sylvain that longed for the old Dimitri back. The Dimitri that he grew up alongside that was always a bit to kind and honest for his own wellbeing.
The Dimitri that had been upset at the church for not finding another way to handle Lord Lonato, who claimed that people shouldn't resort to killing as the only choice. That there was always another way that avoided bloodshed.
Sylvain missed that Dimitri.
Claude:
Claude had been sitting in the Golden deer class room overlooking the strategies that they had drawn up for Gronder Field at their last battle, Lysithea had presented using the spell silent to help them with their sparing their friends crisis.
And as it turns out hardly anyone was able to learn it. Lucky for them Claude seemed to have whatever compatibility thing necessary to use it, all he had to do was learn it now.
They had another stoke of good luck when they found out that Yuri already knew that spell and was able to use it. Having another person who knew it took the pressure off of Claude, since it wasn't completely necessary for him to learn it now, but it would be extremely helpful if he did since it would really speed things up.
"Excuse me" a voice called out at the entrance of the Golden Deer classroom, Claude turned and saw a man wearing a uniform that Judith's soldiers wore, "Claude Von Riegan?" the man asked.
Claude nodded, "Yes, that would be me" he replied "Is everything ok with Judith?" Claude asked.
The man nodded, "Yes, Lady Judith just wanted me to inform you that the Kingdom army has begun their voyage to Gronder Field" the man said.
Crap, they were moving quicker than Claude was anticipating, "Does Judith think they are going to attempt to cross the Great Bridge of Myrddin?" Claude asked.
The man shook his head, "Lady Judith said that they are probably smarter than that" he said "It is still too soon to tell though" he added.
Claude nodded, "How far away are they?" he asked
"They have been reported to be between the boarder of the Alliance and Kingdom, by Galatea territory" the man replied, "So, maybe three?... Four? Days" he said.
Dammit, that meant that they needed to be leaving for Gronder Field by today, "Ok, please tell Judith we will be departing to Gronder Field by the end of the day" Claude said.
The man nodded, "Will do" he replied then left Claude alone in the Golden Deer classroom.
Claude sighed, just when they thought they were ahead of the game, something else happens setting them back.
No, now wasn't the time to grovel in self-pity, Claude had work he needed to do. First things first, Claude needed to alert Byleth that they need to move out immediately so she could assemble the group that would be going to fight at Gronder Field.
While it would be a good idea to bring all their main forces with them, in case things took a turn for the worst it would be smart to have only brought the necessary forces.
Claude stood up and left from the classroom to go find Byleth.
Finding Byleth proved to be a little difficult, but eventually Claude caught wind that she was in the library with Lysithea. They were probably still searching through spell books; Claude guessed and began heading to them.
Once Claude reached the library, he entered the room, Byleth was there. She looked up at the door to see who came in, "Claude?" Byleth called out, "Is everything alright?" she asked.
Claude walked over to the table that Byleth and Lysithea had been sitting at, "Byleth we have to leave for Gronder Field today" he said.
Byleth tensed up, "What happened?" she asked.
"The Kingdom army has begun their march to Gronder Field" Claude replied, "They will be there in three to four days, so we need to move out today" he said.
Byleth was quiet for a moment, "I see" she finally said.
Lysithea shut the book she had been going through and she put an arm on Byleth's shoulder, "Byleth... we've done everything we can" Lysithea said "The rest is up to them" she added.
Byleth nodded, "I know" she sighed, then turned to look at Claude "What do I need to do?" she asked.
Claude gave Byleth a small smile, "I'm glad you asked" he said "I need you to decide who we are taking into battle with us, gather them and prepare to leave" Claude stated, "Be prepared to leave by late afternoon" he added.
"Will do" Byleth said with a nod, then left from the library.
Claude stood there for a moment then turned to Lysithea, "For the time being I need your help" he said.
Lysithea furrowed her brows, "With what?" she asked.
"I need you to teach me silent" Claude replied.
Mercedes:
The march to Gronder Field had been horrible.
Tensions were terribly high, but that could be expected when a group of people must travel with one another for a long period of time. And the lack of supplies and having to sleep in uncomfortable ground certainly didn't help, it was only a matter of time before the agitated state most people were in brought out the worst in them.
Some people more than others.
"I swear Sylvain if you get in my way once again I will cut you down" Felix warned.
Sylvain let out a laugh, "Yeah right" he said "You wouldn't kill one of the two people who puts up with your attitude" he added.
Felix scoffed, "Ha, I would cut you down without hesitation" he hissed.
Sylvain smiled, "Oh, you wound me Felix" he said in an over exaggerated tone.
Mercedes giggled to herself over their display, it was nice to see their friendship had maintained despite the many hardships of the war.
Felix scowled at Sylvain "Go bother Ingrid, leave me alone" Felix said seriously.
In that moment Mercedes felt a wave of sadness fall over her, Felix reminded her of her younger Brother Emile so much, that sometimes it was painful to be in his presence.
This path that Mercedes is taking following Dimitri not only leads to her killing people she thought of as friends, but also killing the last living member of her family. Well aside from herself of course.
The Death Knight.
Jeritza.
Mercedes's sweet little Brother Emile.
She wondered if he would be at Gronder Field, part of Mercedes wanted him to be there. But then again if he were there then it would be to kill one another. Although truth be told Mercedes would not kill her Brother.
Mercedes would die at his hands instead, hopefully that would be penance for Mercedes, and Emile would be able to live his life knowing that the one who cause his suffering is no longer alive.
After all it was the least, she could do.
"Mercie?" called out a soft voice besides Mercedes, dragging her out of her thoughts.
Mercedes turned to Annette, "Yes?" she responds.
A flash of concern falls on Annette's face "Are you alright Mercedes?" she asked with a concerned tone, "You're crying..." she adds softly.
Mercedes instinctively raises her hands to her cheeks.
They are wet.
Oh, my she really had been crying, she didn't even realize it, "Oh, I'm sorry to make you worry Annie" Mercedes said, "It's nothing" she added.
Annette's brows furrowed and she frowned slightly, "I am here for you Mercedes if you need to talk" she said.
Mercedes nodded, "Thank you" she said with a smile "The same goes for you Annie" Mercedes began "If you ever need to talk, I am here" she added.
Annette smiled, "Thanks Mercie!" she said happily.
Both Annette and Mercedes chatted with one another for a couple of minutes, but that came to a halt when an announcement was called out to their army.
"Be on guard" Rodrigue shouted, "We are fast approaching Gronder Field" he added.
The group fell silent immediately.
Mercedes stomach felt uneasy, soon it was going to happen.
The fighting.
The bloodshed.
The deaths.
"We are here" Dimitri called out, "At last" he added.
Mercedes looked around, in the distance in front of them she could see what appeared to be the Imperial army.
The smell of smoke filled the air.
Mercedes looked around; she didn't see the Alliance's army. Relief flooded into her body, but that was short lived when Mercedes noticed a large group of people far off on the other side of a bridge to the left of where they were.
It was undoubtedly the Alliance army.
Mercedes saw Claude's vibrant yellow outfit, and Byleth's pale mint green hair.
Oh, goddess this was really going to happen.
They were really going to kill their friends.
Mercedes felt the bide rising in her throat but swallowed it down.
Now isn't the time nor place to question her resolve.
Mercedes watched as a figure in all red moved to the front of the Imperial army, then fire rained down around them. Dimitri made his way to the front as well "Know that I will tear your head from your shoulders" Dimitri shouted, "The dead must have their tribute" he added.
Mercedes guessed that the figure at the front of the Imperial army was Edelgard, she glanced over at Dimitri.
Dimitri was looking at the ground then he raised Areadbhar in the direction of the Imperial army, "Kill every last one of them!" Dimitri shouted and went charging forward.
The soldiers followed his lead, Mercedes stood still for a moment then joined them in their advancing.
Author's note:
Ok, so first things first, Voila! The second part! I was going to have them combined in one chapter but, I kinda dislike when it's like that and I think it kinda makes it seem like it drags on. Anyways I will probably start doing shorter chapters for now on, but that means they should be coming more consistently now, not just once a week. Well hopefully at least, I'll try my best. Well I hope you guys enjoyed it, now I'll start the battle part : (