Oh my gosh this level was so hard. I lost Merlinus and, at one point or another, almost everyone except Hector and Lyn was close to death. And that was after a restart. Before you ask why I had so many people in the first place, Dart is mandatory, I needed Florina to recruit Fiora, Matthew for visibility and to steal an extra torch, Marcus for some early trading, and he and Oswin were supposed to distract the pirates from Merlinus...
- Tactics — 4 stars
- Survival — 5 stars
- Funds — 4 stars
- Exp — 1 star
- Combat — 5 stars
...Like Matthew, I'm in shock.
We entered the dimly lit forest enshrouded in mist. Hector was the first to voice his misgivings, but we all felt it. "Enter and be lost...It feels like we're not coming back."
When our party found Leila's body...it was a cruel taunt; a foul deed, as Lyn put it. I feel a deep sorrow for our normally cheerful thief, but there was nothing I could do, save to swear vengeance on her murderers. No mercy, no respite.
And then, almost instantly, something made me question that impulse, and fear what lies ahead even more.
A stealthy nomad and member of the Black Fang, Uhai, appeared like a spirit from the mist to take Lyn hostage and request that we leave. That was it. A request. Not an arrogant demand, but almost a plea.
When we refused, he released Lyn, out of some sense of Sacaen honor, or perhaps respect for our defiance...and spoke of power we could not comprehend or fight, as though we were "insects railing against the heavens". He promised to kill us all, implying it to be an act of mercy.
In his own words, "But be of good cheer! In dying you shall be spared the calamity that is to come!" I know not what we will face on this isle, but his words chill me to the core.
For now, we have a battle to fight, so I will set aside other concerns and lead. Serra remains with Eliwood attempting to help Ninian, and Canas has joined them in case it is a magical malady that afflicts her. Oswin cannot move quickly through the thick brush of this forest, so will stay at the camp guarding the noncombatants. I've also gained a pirate, the axefighter Dart, on loan from Fargus, but I'm unsure of his capabilities on land.
Matthew: He has guts. Willing to aid us right after what happened, for Leila's sake...but he has to be hurting inside. I think he might need extra protection—that'll be Dart's duty. Right off the bat this turns out to be a wise decision—Matthew snatches away a torch a mite slow and is hauled out of danger by the burly pirate. This is only the first of several close calls, and eventually, both he and Dart, neither really in peak fighting condition, have to retreat.
Dart: Seems a bit clumsy in a forest, tripping over roots and such. Nonetheless, he manages to rescue Matthew a few times and follows Bartre and Guy in the rear. However, before long the enemies focus fire on him, realizing he is the weak link, and he retreats to the camp with Matthew. But there is no safety to be had...
Fiora: A short way into the fight, a battered-looking pegasus knight appears over the horizon and wings toward our group, tossing a javelin at another flier, saving Bartre a bit of muscle. Obviously not allied with the Black Fang, then...after a talk with Florina they fly to the south together to meet Hector & Lyn.
Florina: Assists Dart in getting Matthew out of trouble, is rescued in turn by Guy from a pegasus knight...and then from a second one by a mysterious stranger. Who turns out to be her sister, Fiora. Small world, eh? She stays behind Fiora, having already taken several more scrapes and bruises. I may have to rethink using her as a scout until she can handle herself better in a fight.
Guy: Like Lyn, his Sacaen heritage gives him an edge in this kind of environment. After Bartre clears away the rabble, he'll take point on the eastern flank...or so I plan. Finally gets a chance to move after many back-and-forth altercations around the chokepoint of the bridge, but by this point Marcus and Oswin are failing to stem the tide and Lyn & Hector are almost to Uhai anyway, so I have him return to camp to help. Too late. He leads a fighting retreat tactical withdrawal, cutting down a cavalier and a pirate as more and more enemies advance.
Marcus: Hector and Lyn, hotheaded as they are, have charged off into the mists with no source of light, so I have Marcus relay Dart's torch to them. He next returns to block the path of some enemies attempting to ford a river. Surprisingly, they deal significant damage to the paladin's armor and he is forced to retreat, like everyone but Hector and Lyn. These Black Fang are tough...
Oswin: Remains by the camp, a stolid sentry, until pirates attempt to flank us from behind. He takes their blows but is unable to hit the swift seadogs with a lance. I'm not sure if they serve Uhai and the Black Fang or are merely opportunists, but they certainly seem interested in Merlinus' goods, eventually ignoring Oswin to raid his tent. Eventually he and the other noncombatants within are forced to flee as enemies from across the river catch us in a pincer. Oswin, Guy, and Marcus cover their escape.
Bartre: Without him, we would have fallen.
Starting out, he waded in to annihilate a pirate, shrug off a few arrows, handaxe one of Uhai's nomads, and finish off three peg knights before taking a breather. He waited by the coastline to guard Guy's flank from more reinforcements. When the camp was abandoned, he cut a path out to the east through a shaman after drinking the pure water Matthew snatched on the ship.
In spite of his efforts, though, if Hector and Lyn can't reach Uhai soon we're going to be pushed clean off this rock, and probably lose a few people in the bargain. Fortunately, they do.
Hector: Hector has no concept of stealth anyway, so he holds the blazing torch for himself and Lyn. The two of them work together, back-to-back and separately, to reach Uhai, battling cavaliers along the southern path, but not as many as expected. It seems most of Uhai's forces went north to meet the larger party led by Guy or ford the river from a central island.
Lyn: This is Lyn's element. She flits silently through the trees like a ghost, striking down most of the cavaliers with the Mani Katti. And then she reaches Uhai, the Soaring Hawk. A longbow arrow pierces the treebark above her head.
"...How can a proud man like you live as an assassin?"
"...I sympathize with Brendan Reed's ideology. He wants to help the weak, to break the overly proud...Discussing this philosophy with Brendan and his sons, training together, getting stronger together...For me, the Black Fang was the first place...that felt like home."
"'Felt'? Is that feeling gone?"
"The Black Fang has changed. Nergal sent that woman...But it's too late for me to change now."
"Why? Talk to us, we may be able to help."
"Expect no quarter merely because we are both nomads. Prepare yourself!"
In a blur no eye could follow, he released, she leapt...and Uhai fell back, a thin but deep line across his chest, unable to switch to his own blade in time after the miss.
"Guuu...well...done...You are strong...stronger than I expected. Out of respect...a final gift from me..."
He gave us, with his dying breath, directions to the Dragon's Gate. I think he was a good man...
His troops, the rest of our beleaguered group encircled and at their mercy, turned and left without a word.
8 turns, thanks to Lyn's critical at the end.
MVP: Bartre.
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