Retried because I knew I could do better; my initial strategy was flawed and I had stat boosters going to waste. Decided to use up them and the Hammerne.
Merlinus got his wagon! Yay! Louise used the Angelic Robe, Hector took the Speedwing; then I decided to be unconventional and give the boots to somebody who already has great move: Farina. Will a 10-move flier make up for 5-move Hector?
With a flourish, Legault appends his name to the ceremonial contract. "The Black Fang may be a lot smaller now" he says, gesturing at himself, Nino, and Jaffar, "but I'm ready to rejoin! Might as well make it official." He grows more serious for a moment. "For the first time since I left, I have a purpose—I've acquired a niece, haven't you heard?" Winking, he flips a dagger idly, catches it, and strolls off.
A short distance away, another contract is under discussion:
"Hey, Farina! Wait up!"
"What? Ah, Lord Hector. I was just off to do battle worthy of my purse..."
"Yeah, about that purse. I heard about the going price for Ilian mercenaries from a henchman..."
"...Eh?"
"Usually, they get paid by the battle, with no bonuses or anything. And... he said 20,000 gold is way, way too much."
"But..."
"Payment is determined by rank within the knightly order, right? At your level of ability, I’d say you’re worth 2,000 gold, tops."
"Never! I’m at 4,000 gold, I am!"
"What’s that? 4,000?"
"Er..."
"So what was all that about 20,000 gold, eh? Trying to pull one on me, weren’t you!"
"N-No, not at all—never! I’d never do that! It’s just, I’ve been underpaid compared to my ability until now."
"Look me in the eye and say that again."
"Well, and isn’t this assignment a long-term one? I might need food for my Pegasus..."
"Right, right. So, what does a Pegasus eat? Carrots?"
"Of course not! You would treat a Pegasus like a common horse?"
"Um, it is a horse."
"Wrong! Pegasi are noble animals! So, they must eat noble carrots, you see!"
"Like I said, carrots!"
"No no no! L-Listen— I’ll do the work I’ve been paid for. That should be enough, right? Now, watch me go!"
"H-Hey, wait! Hey!"
Heh...-snicker-...wait, battle? What battle?
Sure enough, over the horizon, a vast force stands arrayed against us.
Linus, the Mad Dog. We have no way to prove our innocence in his brother's death. Even if we did, he would not listen. Blinded by his need for vengeance...
Nino still believes she can stop this. I agree with Jaffar's objections, but he is nowhere to be seen as we assemble for war.
The final gear grinds into place in the wheels of fate. Here, before the Shrine of Seals, the tale of the Black Fang reaches its tragic conclusion.
Hector: Waits near our base camp, although Merlinus is now mobile and doesn't need defending. He says he's waiting for his henchman to make a decision. With no further explanation forthcoming, I shrug and let him be.
This turns out to be an almost prescient maneuver on Hector's part, because a squadron of the king's wyverns attempts to ambush us from the rear. Surprised to find Hector there, most of them fall to the Brave Axe, with which he can chop them down before they flee to the safety of the forts. One is familiar, the brutal captain, Vaida. She halts upon recognizing Hector. Apparently, Murdock is not the only one who knows what we did for the prince. Deciding we are not her enemies, she volunteers to join us. I'm not sure about this one...
Lyn: With her Mani Katti and the steel bow, Lyn soloed the northern platoon of paladins and nomads. The warrior with a swordslayer waiting to ambush her near the forest chokepoint almost murdered her, but fortunately she had an elixir.
Bartre: Returning to his roots, Bartre smashes through the convoy of knights in the northeast mountains with the hammer before breaking out a good old-fashioned handaxe to finish the job. He holds the northeastern forts with Pent and Louise.
Pent & Louise: Pent restores Euban's spear and the Brave Axe to gleaming perfection, but the fragile Hammerne itself is exhausted of power. He and Louise head up the middle, shielding Nino and Legault, before meeting Bartre on the other side of the mountain pass.
Upon reaching the forts, they pause for quiet discussion. I should have realized they had an ulterior motive in accompanying us this far; the Etrurian military will be most interested in what they have learned of Bern's secrets. Yet, Pent, surprisingly, resolves to continue as our companion on this quest, even past the Shrine, Louise at his side.
Guy & Karel: Guy has made it plain that he is serious in his desire for training, even if the price is death from Karel's insatiable bloodlust. They will be traveling together, Karel observing Guy's style in the field. He himself will not fight unless absolutely necessary.
As it turns out, more observation will be necessary, because while they detour to save Nino and Legault from a rogue Hero, Farina cuts a swath through almost every enemy on the western front to reach Linus. Guy does some cleanup and holds the central fortresses with Karel and Merlinus, but that's about it.
Farina: Sympathetic to Nino, and knowing that Guy and Karel will consider Linus merely another skilled adversary to whet their blades on, she races them west over the mountains.
Perched on a peak near the edge, she skewers several enemies with the spear before retreating to a village. The Wyvern General of Bern and Zephiel's loyal bodyguard, Murdock, is leading a patrol there, but, in gratitude for our actions, decides to give Farina a rare Warp staff and stay out of our fight.
In a flurry of wings and javelins, Farina drops from the clouds near the temple to dance with the many foes entrenched there. Though beset on all sides, they do not delay her path long, and she drops her broken weapons before confronting the last of the Four Fangs.
VS Linus, the Mad Dog:
A brooding figure sits atop the steps of the shrine, gazing unseeing at the carnage below, thoughts only of his lost sibling.
When Farina draws closer, though, he loses his unbearably sad expression, replaced with one of fury. As his two guards tumble to the hard earth below, he roars out accusingly, demanding to know if she was the one who murdered Lloyd. It hardly seems to matter. She dismounts to ask his surrender, but hastily retrieves her weapon when the Mad Dog charges.
Blade meets lance in thrust and counter-thrust, parry and riposte, again and again, each slipping past the other's defences to scar an arm or prick a leg. Farina fruitlessly cries out for truce; Linus only grows more enraged, at the cowards who would deceive and kill his brother in a moment of similar trust.
At the last, panting and wounded, Farina has no choice. Slipping on her own blood, she desperately twists past Linus' final attack to pierce his heart. Curiously, he smiles in his dying moments. Finally, he will be with his brother again...
Legault & Nino: Their emotions must be conflicted. These are not Sonia's blackhearted thugs, but men loyal to the Reeds, original founders of the Fang. Some might be old friends. Nino's doomed purpose here is to halt this pointless bloodshed, Legault's only to protect her—he knows the truth of Jaffar's words. But even he will not draw his blade, merely diverting the attention of those that slip past Louise for a moment.
Clambering up the Shrine's steps, they arrive in time to see Linus fall at Farina's feet. Turning to whisper an apology, she slumps to the ground herself, as Nino buries her head in Legault's cloak, tears streaming down her face.
9 turns. That was the closest boss battle I've had. Farina had the Brave Lance, but less HP than Linus, so they chipped off about an equal percentage of HP each round, with no possibility of criticals or healing—she had no elixir and Pent was out of range. Well, yes, I could have retreated to a fortress, but we need that turncount dangit!
MVP: Definitely Farina. That 10 move and repaired Spear solved a few problems I had the first time around, and she beat Linus.
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