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The alternative dimension languages were tough, or so Robin thought. Most of the library books in Askr have been written in a tongue somewhat reminiscent of the one spoken in Ylisse, but the spelling, a few letters and some details are distinct. He was sitting there, sipping tea, lost in the enormous castle he had been summoned to, reading a book Kiran – the local tactician – had gave him once, the very same one she had used. It had the words So, What Do You Say Is Summoning? carved in big, capital letters on the cover.
Several identical heroes summoned to a single world may come from alternative timelines. Unnecessary heroes may be sent to their homeworlds, but the number of feathers acquired will depend on their rarity. Robin pondered if having a large army as Askr did was a pro. Hero rarity is measured in stars from 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest; a hero’s stats and their growth depends on said rarity, but it may be increased using feathers and badges (1-3 stars), or great badges (4-5). Note, however, that a 5-star ally with the wrong set of boons and banes may seem, or be, completely weak for your team. To see what kinds of boon/bane does your ally have and what set is the most suitable for them, see the following IV calculator…
Was that truly what Kiran had to cope with every single day? If yes, he thought, Soren and Innes have been truly underestimating her. There were only four tacticians in the castle besides him (if you exclude Kiran, of course) – the aforementioned Soren, from the World of Radiance, Innes, a supposed prince of a world the Askran tactician never quite mentioned before (The Sacred World, was it?), and the shy mage Katarina, hailing from the World of Mystery, who was a trainee just yet. They held some ‘’tactician’’ events, sure, but it was only when Kiran wasn’t busy or Soren wasn’t feeling like biting someone’s head off, and he usually wasn’t when Ike was around. Robin kept on reading, skipping the IV calc.
Arena: the competitive mode. That looks promising.
If you ever are ridden with an urge to compete, Arena is the best place for you – you can face off other tacticians and their hero teams, all from other dimensions. There are three opponent types if you initiate the attack: beginner, the ones who had invested in their heroes less than you did, intermediate, the ones on the same level as you are, and advanced, with foes stronger than your heroes. The higher their difficulty is, the more points you score. If you are being attacked, your score is determined by whether the defense is successful or not. Tip: try setting your strongest team as the defensive one.
There is also such thing as ranking at the Arena; the following is the list of Arena tiers…
Just as Robin was getting to the part he found thrilling somehow, there was a knock at the door.
‘Come in.’
As the door opened with a quiet creak, Robin could see a hooded figure – Kiran, he thought. She was holding Breidablik (which, she once noted, looked like a lethal weapon in her world that she thought was one of the ‘’main sources – and embodiments – of evil used by people in worse ways than self-defense,’’ to quote her. She once compared it to a bow, but with more variations. Robin was still quite puzzled by it.) in her hands. He could see a smile on her lips as she pressed it to her chest.
‘Say, Robin… You’re from, eh… World of Awakening, is that correct?’
‘Indeed.’ He hummed as the sound vibrated around the rim of his mug. The tea had gone cold, he noticed.
The summoner’s smile grew smugger. ‘I think there’s good news for you.’
*
He had never seen the Summoning ritual before; now he is there, marveling at the beauty around him and, most importantly, the true reason they had called him there.
‘Uh, Kiran… maybe we should’ve let Robin see him after we were done escorting the heroes to the barracks?’ Alfonse proposed shyly and reservedly, brows knitting.
‘Maybe, but remember. They’re as important for each other almost as Zacharias was important to you.’ Kiran seemed cold-blooded even as she watched the Askran prince shudder; Robin wondered if she truly had no respect to people’s feeling whatsoever, but decided to push that aside as he watched… him. The person across the field was no other than Chrom, same (?) Chrom he used to know before being sucked into a vortex-like portal to Askr; apparently, the person he had missed with all his heart had never really noticed him here.
‘So, Prince Alfonse… For what cause are you fighting?’ Chrom stood still, conversing with the Askran youth. He decided to stay low for a while.
‘And what are you waiting for? Did I bring you here for no reason?’ Kiran is clearly annoyed as she held her hands on her hips, sending Robin what were supposed to be disappointed mom looks.
‘I don’t want to interrupt and seem inpolite.’ The summoner sighed and kept quiet, as if waiting for something to happen between the tactician and the Ylissean prince. It seemed like an eternity for Robin, who was waiting for the princes to stop talking which they definitely didn’t want to.
‘You know, I once had an ally wh- ‘Alfonse never had the chance to keep going, though. Robin cleared his throat, taking a step towards Chrom and pulling him aside.
‘May I have a word with you?’
He tried hoping the knots in his stomach will go away easily, but it ended up quite the opposite; while Robin was holding Chrom’s hand, the latter squeezed it as his face changed in recognition. Now, the Ylissean prince’s eyes were open wide in shock, and so was his mouth; he closed it and gulped, looking at the white-haired man.
‘Is… is that you? Is that where you have gone to? So many lives… so many lives lost without your tactics, w-without you…’ the azurette looked as if he was about to cry (Robin knew he won’t. He knew.) ‘I-I’m… Robin!’
The latter didn’t have much time to respond as the prince hugged him, burying his face in the tactician’s shoulder; Chrom made a quiet, whimper-like sound that came off briefly as a sigh, and Robin felt most of his concerns about this – be it the timeline or dimension difference, memory loss or something else – disappeared, he couldn’t even bring himself to care anymore. He had Chrom, and Chrom had him; they two shouldn’t brood over any such thing no more when they’re finally reunited.
Robin strokes the prince’s hair gently, hushing him softly; it takes them a while, but eventually they untangle themselves from each other, both hoarse but soft gazes stuck on their once lost lover’s face. When they turn around, they notice Alfonse, Sharena, Anna and Kiran gone – it’s probably for the best, the tactician thought. They wouldn’t quite want to watch this, he smirked sadly to himself, as his hand found Chrom’s and they walked towards the castle together, watching the Askran nature around them.
‘You can tell me more about what happened, even if we still don’t know for sure if it’s the same timeline we are talking about… I could make some tea.’
Chrom smiles, squeezing the other man’s hand. ‘I’m sure it’s you. We both, as well as the Shepherds, are tied. It’s an invisible bond, and right now… I can feel it,’ he averts his gaze for a second, but then looks Robin in the eye lovingly. ‘Also, some tea would be nice.’
Robin chuckles.