What Lies Below the Surface

Chapter 20: Nohrians United

I grit my teeth. "There are so many of them... Do we need to retreat and regroup?"
"I don't think we can afford that," Azura said, shaking her head. "If we run away, we might not be able to fight our way back to the Bottomless Canyon."
I shook my head, tears coming to my eyes. "But...wouldn't we b-be digging our own graves...? Th-this can't be how it ends. We've come so f-far..."
Takumi sighed, wiping the tears from my eyes. "Shh...now's not the time to cry, Kai. I promise you that we'll be fine."
Ryoma nodded in agreement. "You know, Takumi is right, Kai."
I shook my head, feeling unsure of myself. "I...I don't know..."
Ryoma sighed. "Look. I didn't come all this way just to die or flee. Everyone is here because they believe in you. Including me. Cast your worries aside. The Yato chose you to carry it. Did it not? I know you can do this."
I smiled, as Ryoma's words slightly reassured me. "Thank you, Ryoma. All right! We don't have a choice. Everyone, prepare for battle!"

After fighting for a bit, even more enemy reinforcements came onto the battlefield.
I grit my teeth. "More reinforcements?! How many soldiers do they have...? This isn't looking good."
I then heard a familiar voice. "Don't worry, Kai. We'll help you get through this."
Another familiar voice spoke up. "Mhm. But you can't get anything done without help, can you."
"Hold on..." I mumbled to myself, "I know those voices...is it really..?"
Sure enough, both Xander and Leo came over to us, mounted on horseback.
"It looks like we arrived just in time," Xander said with a smile.
Leo slightly chuckled. "Kai, I swear you have the devil's own luck."
"Xander! Leo!" I said with a smile. I was truly glad that they had come to our aid.
Xander returned the smile. "We fight together, Kai. I'm so sorry it took us this long to join you..."
"Iago's forces will prove no match for me," Leo said with a slight grin. "I'll crush them in the blink of an eye. I've never liked his illusionary magic...it will be a pleasure to remove him permanently from the Nohrian army."
I scratched my head, slightly confused. "So you didn't order them to come here...but I still don't get it. What made you change your mind?"
Xander shook his head. "We can talk about it later, Kai. There isn't much time left before the skies change. We have to combine our strength so we can win!"
I smiled. "Right!"

Not too long after Leo and Xander had joined us, three males, as well as a female that I didn't know made their way over to us.
One of the males, who had blonde hair, and appeared to be a mage, spoke up. "We finally...caught up...with you... Why...would you...leave us behind?"
The male with white hair, who also wielded a bow, chuckled. "Perhaps our liege is a fan of seeing us suffer? I can understand."
The pink and blue haired female, who was on a horse, laughed. "You're lucky I didn't leave a river of blood in my wake! You'd be drowning in it!"
The final male, who had a sword and grey hair, smiled. "Well, thanks for that, Peri,. You're the best."
I grit my teeth. "You're kidding me. More reinforcements?!"
Leo sighed, shaking his head. "It took the four of you long enough."
Xander slightly chuckled. "No need to worry, Kai. These late arrivals are retainers to myself and Leo."
The male with the bow nodded. "Indeed. My name is Niles, retainer to Lord Leo. It will be my pleasure to aid you."
The mage spoke up. "And I...I am Odin Dark! Loyal retainer of Lord Leo. My unmatched skill with magic will tear through the enemy's ranks!"
The third male spoke up. "I am Laslow. I will fight by your side."
The female, who I already knew to be Peri, spoke up. "I'm Peri! P as in pierce, E as in eviscerate, R as in rupture, and I as in injure! Like Laslow, I'm Lord Xander's retainer."
"Wow...always good to get new allies, I suppose," I said with a sigh.
Xander smiled. "Use them as you see fit."
"Don't let us down now, Kai," Leo said with a smile. "Not after we've brought you so much help."
I smiled. "Thank you, both of you!"
And with that, we continued to fight our way through Iago's army.

I looked at my hands with disgust. I wasn't sure how, but Iago's blood had transferred from my dragon form to my human form. I really wanted to wash it off, but I knew I didn't have the time to do that.
Xander then looked around. "Looks like that was the last of them."
"Xander! Leo! I'm glad you're here!" Elise said with a smile.
"My goodness, Elise. Do you really need to bounce around like that?" Camilla asked, shaking her head. "Though I am happy to see our brothers as well. Now all four of us are together again, just like the Hoshidans."
Leo sighed as he crossed his arms. "You had the entire Hoshidan royal family with you and you still had trouble? Honestly, I find that disappointing."
Hinoka gave Leo a stern look. "Are you mocking us?!"
"No, of course not, Princess Hinoka. I'm merely speaking my mind," Leo said with a slight smirk.
Takumi, who was by my side, sighed as he looked at Leo. "I can already tell that there will be trouble between me and this guy..."
With a slight smile, I rubbed Takumi's shoulder, trying to reassure him. "Hey, it'll be okay, Takumi."
Xander sighed. "Leo, you need to relax as well. We need to stop thinking in terms of 'us' and 'them'. We all made the choice to come here."
Leo hesitated for a moment before answering. "...you're right, Xander. I apologize. It's going to be hard to get used to this, but after what happened to Father..."
I gave Leo an odd look. "Huh? Did something happen in Nohr?"
Xander closed his eyes. "...when we last saw Father, he...he said that Hoshido and Nohr meant nothing to him. He...he wanted us to destroy both kingdoms."
I gasped. "That's insane!"
Leo then spoke up. "Kai, in Izumo you said you thought Father was being controlled. At first I didn't believe you...but now I think you're correct...and have been all along."
I nodded in agreement. "It's true, Leo. Our real enemy is controlling King Garon."
Leo shook his head with a sigh. "I'm sorry that I called you a traitor. If I had trusted you sooner, we'd be in a much better situation right now."
I smiled. "You don't need to apologize, Leo. Just having your trust means so much to me."
Xander shook his head. "Until now, I have risked my life for the the defense of Nohr. But if Father is not himself, and is in fact being controlled, and is a danger...then it is my duty, as crown prince, to do what is best. Kai, I trust you. I trust you'll remain true to your goal for a lasting peace."
I blushed, as he was embarrassing me. "X-Xander..."
Ryoma sighed as he walked over to Xander. "Then I propose a truce between our kingdoms."
Xander gave Ryoma an odd look. "What do you mean, Prince Ryoma?"
Ryoma sighed. "We are similar, Xander, both in our goal and our motivation. If there is a way to bring peace to our kingdoms, I will support that cause. For the sake of our sister- no. For the sake of the world...let us be allies."
With a smile, Xander put his hand out, and Ryoma shook it, sealing the deal. "I accept your proposal, Prince Ryoma. I hope we can achieve a peaceful world."
Takumi smiled, gently grabbing my hand. "You know, I never thought I'd see this..."
Leo sighed. "Just be sure not to slow us down, Hoshidans."
Hinoka shook her head, looking at Leo. "You obviously don't share your brother's open mind..."
I then sighed, looking at the sky. "We should probably get moving. We don't have much time."
Azura nodded in agreement. "Right."