Robin rolled out a map of the nearby areas, weighing down the corners with small pieces of rubble. "I'm ready to begin," she said, looking around the table. Lucina, Samus, Ike, Falco, Link, Toon Link, and Sheik circled the table, all eyes on Robin. "The scouting party has found another conduit for Dharkon's power, and it is believed to be linked to the Triforce. As such, both Links and Sheik are going to lead the advance party. However, Dharkon is getting desperate, and sending out individuals is no longer an option.

"Two teams will be sent out. Team One, led by Samus, will be responsible for escorting Link, Toon Link, and Sheik to the conduit." Robin used her finger to trace on the map. Samus leaned in, studying the route. "Lucina, Snake, and Isabelle will round out the rest of Team One." Robin turned towards the hylians. "Link, Toon Link, Sheik, I want you to fight as little as possible. Time is of the essence, and rest may not be possible." All three nodded.

Robin turned towards Ike. "You'll be leading the second team. Red, Ridley, Falco, and Pikachu will join you." Ike nodded as Robin turned her attention to the full table. "Team Two will engage any copies that get in the way, clearing a path for Team One. At Ike's discretion, members of Team Two can be left behind to distract Dharkon's forces while the rest continue with Team One."

"What happens to the people left behind?" Falco asked.

"A strike team, based here at camp, will be standing by," Robin said, standing up straight. "If anyone is left behind, the strike team will rush out to rescue and assist. The scouting party will be aware of the plan as well, and will send out one of their members if necessary."

"Just how much resistance are we expecting?" Samus asked.

"I don't know," Robin said, shaking her head. "But with the frequency of attacks, we need to be prepared." Samus nodded, crossing her arms. "Team One and the remaining members of Team Two will regroup outside of the conduit, where they shall form a plan to free it from Dharkon with the assistance of the scouting party. And unless anyone has anything else to add, that's the plan." Nobody said anything. "Alright then. Both teams should be ready to leave in thirty minutes. Falco, relay the plan to Fox." Robin waved her arms towards the tent exit. As everyone started to leave, she said, "Lucina, a moment."

Lucina stood still as the others left the tent. "Is something wrong?" she asked.

"No," Robin said. She took the weights off the map and started rolling it up. "I just wanted to tell you about some of the people we rescued, just so you won't be confused when you join with the scouting party."

"I already spoke to Pit about who's been freed," Lucina said.

"You have?" Robin asked, both eyebrows raising. Lucina nodded. "Good. And here I thought it would've been difficult to explain." Robin took Lucina's hands. "Be careful, okay?"

Lucina started to pull her hands free, but stopped. "Why do you keep grabbing my hands?" Lucina asked. Robin said nothing, lowering her head. "You never did that before. Unless that wasn't you." Robin looked up and nodded. Lucina gently pulled her hands free and asked, "Then who are you?"

"I am Robin, but I am not the Robin you know," she said. "For some reason, we come from different worlds."

Lucina nodded, taking a step back. "I see," she said. The two stared silently for a moment, each curious about the other's world. Lucina finally broke the silence, slowly asking, "Does Father-"

"Yes," Robin said solemnly. Lucina sighed as her shoulders slumped. "But we save him."

Lucina smiled. After a few seconds of silence, Lucina said, "I should go get ready."

"Go rescue your father," Robin said. Lucina nodded and left the tent. "Please be safe."

Lucina walked along the path, hand on Falchion in its sheath. Aside from Isabelle and Toon Link playing I-spy, the group remained quiet and vigilant. "How far from the conduit are we?" Snake asked Falco.

"Shouldn't be far now," Falco said, shrugging. "Why? Are you getting tired?"

"We're being followed," Snake said. Falco cocked his head, but didn't turn around. "They started trailing us about twenty minutes ago."

"And you only decided to tell us about this now?" Falco asked.

"I've been talking to Samus about them from the moment I saw them," Snake said calmly, tapping his ear. "That's why she had Pikachu sent ahead, and why Ridley and Red are in the back."

"Pikachu can quickly scout ahead," Lucina said, tapping her finger on the hilt, "while the two most likely to survive a sudden attack are in the back."

Snake nodded. "Alright, it's a smart plan," Falco said. He shook his head as he added, "But it doesn't mean it's a good plan. Why don't we just go back there and take them out?"

"That's Ike's call," Snake said. The three looked towards the front, where Ike and Samus spoke with one another. "Samus said that he'd rather not split his forces when there's no direct threat."

Falco opened his mouth to respond when a roar sounded from behind them. Two copies, one of Little Mac and one of Peach, started attacking Red's Charizard. "I said it was a bad idea!" Falco yelled, drawing his blaster.

Toon Link and Isabelle went back to back. Lucina drew her sword and ran in front of Link and Sheik, putting them between her and Falco. Snake put his hand to his ear for a few seconds. "Red and Ridley are going to stay behind," Snake said. "The rest of us are advancing to the conduit."

Lucina nodded once before running forward. Ahead of her, Ike ran forward while Samus slowed down long enough for the others to catch up. "What's the plan?" Lucina asked as Samus neared.

"Ike and Pikachu are clearing a path," Samus said, matching Lucina's stride. "Follow them." Samus then slowed down to speak with Snake and Falco.

Lucina turned her eyes forward and focused on Ike. After several moments, Ike motioned for the group to continue forward before diverting off the path. A bolt of lightning lit up the sky, followed shortly by a cry of pain. Samus passed Lucina to lead the group. Another bolt of lightning crackled through the sky. This time, Lucina could see that Pikachu used the lightning to attack a copy of Corrin a moment before Ike charged into the copy.

Movement caught Lucina's attention. She raised Falchion in time to block a blow from another copy of Corrin. Link readied his sword and started running towards Lucina. "Keep going!" she yelled, shoving Copy-Corrin back. After a second of hesitation, Link ran past Lucina. Lucina and Copy-Corrin raised their swords as the rest of Team One passed by.

For a moment, Copy-Corrin and Lucina stared at each other. Lucina acted first, rushing forward. Copy-Corrin block each blow from Lucina's assault as she backed up. Lucina, sensing an opening, grabbed Copy-Corrin and slammed a knee into her gut before elbowing her in the face. As Copy-Corrin stumbled back, Falco rushed past Lucina and landed a solid kick, sending Copy-Corrin flying. Lucina and Falco exchanged glances. Lucina nodded before leaving Falco behind and rushing to catch up with Team One.

Lucina ran hard as she tried to catch up to Team One. After several moments, the group slowed down. Lucina breathed a sigh of relief. As she neared the group, however, a horrid screech sounded from above her. A copy of Ridley, looking like some sort of robot, rushed down from the sky. As Copy-Ridley neared Lucina, a purple streak tackled it into the ground. As Copy-Ridley skidded across the ground, Ridley stood tall. "Get running, girl," Ridley said, turning his head so one eye stared at Lucina. "This maladaptation deserves to be felled by my hand, not that of a lesser being."

Lucina ran to catch up with Team One, which started moving again after the appearance of Copy-Ridley. "Thank you," Lucina said as she passed Ridley.

Ridley scoffed. Copy-Ridley screeched and rushed forward, but stopped as Ridley grabbed his copy out of the air. "If you think you can best the original," Ridley said, slamming Copy-Ridley to the ground, "then you are nothing like me."

Lucina spared a look back. Ridley slammed his tail into the ground as Copy-Ridley pumped his wings to evade the blow. Sure that Ridley had the fight in hand, she focused on the mission.

Team One, after regrouping with Lucina, continued towards the rendezvous with the scouting party. As they neared the location, a woman in a green shirt and white hat approached them. "Reflet is waiting for you," she said, gesturing behind her.

Samus nodded and continued passed her. Lucina looked at the woman, confused, but said nothing as she passed by. After the woman was out of earshot, Lucina whispered to Isabelle. "Who was that?" she asked.

"That's Leaf," Isabelle said. "When we rescued Red, she also appeared. The same thing happened with Corrin and Robin."

Lucina blinked once, confused. She asked, "With Rob-"

"Lucina!" a man yelled. Lucina looked at the man, one hand snapping to Falchion. The man looked almost exactly like Robin, aside from his short hair, and judging by his excitement at seeing Lucina, knew her as well.

"Robin?" Lucina asked.

"Did Robin not tell you?" the man asked. He shook his head. "My name is Reflet, and I come from a different world than her. And you, I'm guessing."

Lucina nodded, making a mental note to talk to Pit again. Samus stepped to the front of the group and asked, "What's the status of Team Two?"

"Everyone is safe," Reflet said. He gestured towards Fox, who was standing some distance away and talking on the radio. "Team Two managed to return to camp with the strike team. However, Robin and I hoped that some members of Team Two would've made it here." Reflet looked up and smiled. "But we planned for this. Link, Link, Sheik, if you'll follow me."

As Reflet started leading Link, Toon Link, and Sheik away, Lucina said, "Wait. Where's Father?"

Reflet sighed. "Lucina, I understand that you want to rescue Chrom," he said. "I want to as well. But right now, we need all of our strength focused on taking out the conduit here. As long as the conduit is up, Dharkon will not stop coming."

"But-" Snake put one hand on Lucina's shoulder, causing Lucina to stop mid-sentance.

"We won't leave here without him," Reflet said, smiling sympathetically. He turned around as he continued, "Get some rest. As soon as the opportunity arises, we'll rescue him."

Lucina said nothing as Reflet walked away. Samus exchanged looks with Snake before she followed Reflet. "I can't just leave my father trapped under Dharkon's control," Lucina said.

"We aren't!" Isabelle exclaimed, hopping up and down. "But Reflet is right. We can't just run off to rescue people willy-nilly. There has to be a plan."

Lucina sighed as she sat down. Snake said nothing before following Samus. Isabelle looked between Snake and Lucina before sitting down next to Lucina and taking one of her hands. Lucina gave Isabelle a small smile before sighing again. "He wouldn't have waited to save me," she muttered.

"And something tells me Reflet would've said the same thing to him," Isabelle said.

Lucina stood near the edge of the makeshift camp. She turned as Snake and Isabelle approached her. "Shift change already?" she asked.

"Not exactly," Snake said.

"Go with Snake," Isabelle said, nodding towards Snake. "I'll take your watch."

Lucina could tell something was up, but did not say anything as she walked with Snake. After a short walk, Samus joined them. Snake asked, "Do you know how to do a rear naked choke?"

"I've never done it before," Lucina said, shaking her head.

"What about restraining someone from behind?" Snake asked. Lucina nodded. "It's not that different," Snake said. Lucina looked between Snake and Samus. Samus nodded before turning around.

"Why are you teaching me this now?" Lucina asked.

Snake shook his head before motioning towards Samus. Lucina walked up behind Samus and slowly lifted her arms. Snake took Lucina's arms and wrapped them around Samus's neck, then positioned her hands appropriately. "See how that feels?" Snake asked. Lucina nodded. "Now squeeze."

"But what about-" Lucina started to ask.

"Just do it," Samus said, her voice strained.

Lucina nodded, then squeezed. After several seconds, Samus went limp. Lucina immediately released the chokehold, almost dropping Samus in the process. Snake managed to stop the fall long enough for Lucina to support Samus again, then the two let Samus down slowly. "That was faster than I expected," Lucina said.

"It's very effective at subduing your target," Snake said. He looked towards the forest to the south. "There's a chest near the lake in the center of the forest. If you jump inside the chest, it'll take you to Chrom. The area should be relatively clear, and it's not too far, but be careful."

Lucina looked at the forest, then to Snake. "How did you-"

"Reflet told me," Snake said. As Samus started to rouse herself, Snake placed a hand on Samus' shoulder. "He didn't want to show favoritism in front of everyone."

Lucina nodded once at Snake before standing up. "Thank you." Lucina then ran towards the forest.

After jumping into the chest, Lucina appeared in a small clearing. A strange energy emanated a circle of darkness in the very center of the field. Lucina slowly approached. The energy slowly took the shape of the Brand of the Exalt. Lucina stepped in it, Falchion drawn. A chill ran down her spine before a portal appeared in the sky. Chrom dropped from the portal, landing on his back. As he cried out in pain, Lucina yelled, "Father!"

Chrom slowly stood up. "Lucina?" Chrom asked. He looked around, his eyes glowing red. "That's right, we were supposed to train together. Is it too late to start?"

If Chrom believed this was a simple sparring session, then he would have no reason to overexert himself. Lucina decided to play along, hoping to use this to her advantage. "We have plenty of time," Lucina said, smiling for a brief second.

"Then let's get started," Chrom said, readying Falchion. "But don't hold back, okay?" Lucina nodded, raising Parallel Falchion.

Chrom ran forward, lashing out with several strong blows. Lucina deflected the attacks before retaliating with several of her own. The two danced around each other, trading blows without either gaining the upper hand. Chrom finally took a step back after several moments.

During this pause, Chrom lowered his sword and said, "You should really be more careful."

"What do you mean?" Lucina asked, also lowering her sword.

"You haven't had a chance to patch up your cape," Chrom said, pointing with Falchion. "How many times have you had close calls like that without me knowing?"

Lucina looked down at her clothes. A single tear ran just below Lucina's left elbow, the same spot where she narrowly deflected a thrust. "More than I care to remember," Lucina said, raising Parallel Falchion.

As Chrom raised Falchion, Lucina though about their shared habit of destroying training dummies. She gasped quietly, realizing that Chrom believed he wielded a training sword, not Falchion; given the chance, Chrom would land a deadly blow without hesitation. Cursing Dharkon, Lucina shifted into in a defensive stance.

Chrom noticed Lucina's reluctance to strike first, so he initiated again. Blow for blow, both Lucina and Chrom held their ground. The battle continued for many more blows. As Chrom started to back off, however, Lucina pushed forward. Under the torrent of strikes, Chrom struggled to turn the tide. But, as Lucina started to push too hard, Chrom made an effort to push back.

Lucina felt the momentum shift. Chrom started advancing, every one of his blows attempting to create an opening. Lucina took several steps back. As Chrom readied a precise strike, Lucina saw her opening. Chrom thrust his sword forward. Lucina deflected the blow, slipped behind Chrom, dropped Parallel Falchion, and wrapped her arm around Chrom's neck.

Once Chrom realized what happened, he started laughing. "That's new," he said, raising his arms in surrender. "You'll have to teach that to me someday."

Lucina took a breath to steel her will. "I pray you can forgive me," she whispered before tightening the chokehold.

"Lucina!" he said, voice strained. He grabbed at Lucina's arms, but couldn't find enough purchase to pull an arm free.

"I'm sorry," Lucina said again. She felt her heart ache as her father struggled, but she did not falter. After several seconds, Chrom stopped struggling. Lucina released the chokehold and slowly lowered Chrom to the ground. Lucina then knelt down and waited, hoping that it was enough to break Dharkon's control.

Chrom's eyes slowly opened as he groaned. "Lucina?" he asked, sitting up. His eyes were no longer glowing red.

Lucina smiled as she said, "Welcome back."

A/N: Reflet is the default name for Robin in the Japanese version of Awakening.