Copyright, Aviatrix8, 2004. Fire Emblem and all related characters are property of Nintendo et al., and are used without permission.
I came up with this idea after reading a couple of Matthew stories... It starts just before (what I believe is) Chapter 14 of Hector's route...
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Fire Emblem fanfic:
"To Catch a Thief"
by Avi
Chapter 1: Recognizing One's Own
The tactician of Lord Eliwood's army wearily made her way across the darkened encampment, towards her tent. With the new addition of the merchant Merlinus into their fold, it had been quite a chore for everyone to decide what equipment they wanted to put in storage, and which they wanted to keep... And of course, she was forced to oversee it all. It had been well past midnight before everyone was satisfied with the overall arrangements.
The young woman rubbed the area between her brows, deep in thought... She mentally reminded herself to ask Lord Eliwood to stop by a town, when they got the chance... She really needed to buy some new maps, now that the army was heading towards Laus. Unfortunately, Merlinus had no maps of Laus in stock, and the only ones she possessed of that area were about twenty years out of date.
As the tactician finally reached her tent, she heaved a sigh of relief. Perhaps she could finally get a bit of rest, before the next crisis arose...
The young woman opened the tent flap, stepped inside... And paused. She could sense someone was in here, although she felt no immediate danger... She squinted curiously at the darkness within. After a moment, she thought she could make out a sillouette standing at the back of the tent, just barely out of her sight... Her brow wrinkled in recognition.
"...Matthew?" she called out, tentatively. "Is that you?"
There was a pause, then the sound of a match striking a rough surface. The flame illuminated the features of its owner briefly, then lit the oil lamp he held, which shed its light across the tent... As the young thief blew the match out, he then offered the girl an enigmatic smile, causing the latter to place a hand to her chest, in relief.
"Matthew... You nearly scared the living daylights out of me." The tactician's brow then wrinkled in thought. "Say... What are you doing in here, anyways?" The thief shrugged carelessly.
"Just waiting for you to return to your tent... I'm sorry if I startled you." At this, the young woman gave him a sidelong glance.
"Oh... I'm sure." The thief continued to speak, ignoring the ironic tone in her voice.
"You know, I'm impressed, young miss. Not many people would've known I was in here." The tactician shrugged in reponse.
"I've always had good night vision... Call it a knack, I guess."
While she said this, Matthew had walked over to a camp desk upon which maps were strewn across, and placed the oil lamp he held on it... He then absentmindedly ran his fingers across the desk's surface.
"Yes, that is an interesting talent, isn't it...?" he mused, almost to himself. Then he stepped back into the shadows of the tent, and disappeared.
The tactician was half-expecting it when Matthew reappeared right behind her... What she wasn't expecting was him grabbing both of her arms from behind, and twisting them up her back.
"What are you doing?" she gasped out, in shock.
"Just checking something," he replied, in a business-like tone. He then straightened out her right arm, and rolled the sleeve of her robes up to her shoulder.
"Just as I thought," said Matthew triumphantly. As he had pulled back the tactician's voluminous sleeve, it had revealed a dagger sheathed in the inner part of her upper arm. Upon closer inspection, he also recognized an arrangement of leather straps that would allow the dagger to drop down to her hand, with a flick of the wrist.
It was his examination of this mechanism that allowed to the tactician wrest away from the thief's grip, and then glare at him, outraged.
"What's the big idea?" she snapped. The young man crossed his arms before him, and met her gaze steadily.
"I was just wondering why such an obvious non-combatant like yourself is armed." The tactician drew herself up with dignity.
"As a tactician, my profession requires that I wander from place to place, by myself... Surely you realize that a woman who usually travels alone, must be able defend herself, somehow..." The thief raised an eyebrow at her.
"That may be true... But you needn't conceal your weapons, should you...? And I know you're carrying more than one... You wear a similar dagger sheath on your left arm, as well... You also carry a third dagger, strapped to your thigh, which can be reached through a false pocket in your skirt." At this, the tactician flushed.
"I'd rather not know how you discovered the location of that weapon..." Matthew cocked his head to one side.
"Actually, I can tell by the way the fabric of your robes fall... Only someone who knows what they're looking for would be able to find it." The tactician fell silent for a moment, then spoke up again.
"So what if I carry concealed weapons? What's the harm in that?" Matthew continued speaking, oblivious to her words.
"I've also noticed how you seem to disappear from the battlefield, while the army is in combat..." The young woman arched an eyebrow at this.
"I'm a tactician, aren't I? I'm supposed keep out of sight, during battle..."
"Yes, but you don't actually leave the battlefield, do you? You just seem to blend into the background, while you give your orders." As the tactician fell silent once again, Matthew began to pace before her.
"Both those things, coupled with the acute night vision which you just demonstrated to me a moment ago, lead me to draw one conclusion... Since all those techniques you use are particular methods that are generally practiced by spies, assassins... Or thieves." The tactician's eyes narrowed.
"Are you implying that I... Am one of those things?" Matthew grinned, though not in amusement.
"Like recognizes like, young miss." The young woman balled her fists.
"How dare you accuse me of being a spy! Haven't I shown my skills in battle? Haven't I guided this army well, so far?"
"That is true... In fact, I might've believed you, because of that... Might've believed that those particular skills you possess were all merely a coincidence... If it wasn't for one thing."
"What's that?" enquired the tactician warily.
Matthew pointed to her sleeves. "The cuffs of your robes."
"What about them?"
"The cloth is a touch heavier than it should be, isn't it? That's because you've got lockpick wires tucked away underneath the seams."
The tactician fingered her sleeves briefly, then dropped to her sides... But the thief's sharp eyes didn't miss the nervous movement. He smiled the smile of the cat that knows he has cornered the mouse.
"Old habits are hard to break, huh?"
"How did you know about the lockpick wires...?" she asked, faintly. The thief shrugged.
"It is part of my profession, young miss. Although I only confirmed my suspicion when I grabbed your arms, just now."
The young woman sank into a nearby chair, as Matthew walked towards the seat behind the camp desk and sat down... He then leaned back, resting his feet upon the desk.
"So... Care to tell me why a thief is running Lord Eliwood's army?" The tactician crossed her arms before her.
"I am no longer a thief, sir. I practice tactics, now... Why should it matter what my former profession was?"
"I make it my business to know these things, young miss... As a spy to House Ostia." The tactician scowled.
"Ah. So Lord Hector put you up to this, did he...?"
"It is in my employer's best interest to know that they have hired a possible spy as a tactician, yes." The young woman bristled.
"You doubt my integrity, after I have aided this army thus far? And you know very well that I helped to restore the Marquess of Caelin's true heir to him, as you might well recall!" Matthew lifted an eyebrow.
"That is true... But that was then, and this is now. For all we know, you might be working by your own agenda, madam. It might've pleased you to aid Caelin back then, and to help us right now, but later... You might show your true colours... And your true master."
"How dare you!"
"Don't try to play high and mighty with me, young miss. You didn't have to hide the fact that you, as you put it, used to be a thief." The young woman gave a him a withering look.
"You know very well that someone like Lord Eliwood would never hire a former thief as a tactician." Matthew looked thoughtful.
"Hmmm... You have a point, there. So, why don't you just tell me why you are no longer a thief? Heck, I might even believe you." The tactician glared at him for a moment, then looked away.
"If it will get you off my back..." She sighed. "Very well. I will tell you about my past." She leaned back in her seat, and met Matthew's gaze.
"I was an orphan. You know the usual sob story... Parents died young, raised in an orphanage, not enough to eat... The whole bit. So, as children, my brother and I started lifting food and pennies from people, so we wouldn't go hungry." Matthew raised both eyebrows.
"Brother?"
"My twin brother, Mark." She sighed to herself again, and continued. "Anyways, we found that we both had a knack for pickpocketing... I'm ashamed to admit now that we also got a kick out of it, too."
"One fateful day, someone noticed the two of us cutting some merchant's purse... Fortunately for us, though, it was a member of Bern's Guild of Thieves. He recognized our skills, and decided to take us in, for formal training."
"It wasn't a bad life, you know... We certainly ate better than we did at the orphanage, and got paid, as well... Everything was fine, until we both turned fourteen... And the Guild got a new master." The tactician scowled.
"What happened then?" asked Matthew, expectantly.
"My brother and I were hired out by the new guildmaster for what seemed to be a standard jewelry heist, at the time... It was only later that we discovered that we were contracted to kill someone, as well."
"In all our years of thievery, my brother and I had never taken a life... And neither of us had ever cared for bloodshed. So as soon we had found out about the new 'arrangements', we left the Guild." Matthew looked surprised.
"You broke your contract?"
"We had to... We had been deceived!" replied the tactician emphatically. "No one had ever said anything about killing anybody at the time!" Realizing that she had raised her voice, she lowered her tone.
"Anyways... As you might've guessed, the Guild was none too pleased about our sudden departure, and sent their people after us, so that we would be 'taken care of'... So my brother and I fled to only place where we were certain they wouldn't be able to follow... The mountains of Bern." Matthew lifted an eyebrow.
"That's a pretty dangerous choice for a hiding place, miss." The young woman nodded.
"We realized that too, but we hardly had any choice at the time... And to make matters worse, we had fled the city in the dead of winter, which made trying to escape through the mountain pass all that more treacherous."
"Our pursuers were nearly upon us, when a fierce snowstorm hit... All of us were caught unawares. Those chasing us managed to escape though... I'm sure they presumed we were killed in the storm." Matthew smiled wryly.
"Obviously, that wasn't the case." The tactician nodded again.
"Fortune must've smiled upon us again, because a hermit living in the mountains found me and my brother half buried in the snow, huddled behind the meager shelter of a giant boulder... Realizing that we were both still alive, he carried us back to his cabin, and was kind enough to nurse us back to health." Matthew sat back in his seat, and looked thoughtful for a moment.
"A pretty amazing story, miss... But that still doesn't explain where you got your skill in tactics." The tactician cocked her head at him.
"I was getting to that... Have you by chance ever heard of Sir Alexander?" Matthew's brow furrowed in thought.
"Isn't he that master tactician who was knighted for his services to the crown? I thought he was dead or something." The young woman shook her head.
"No, not quite... After retiring from his post, Sir Alexander found that he had quite enough of wars and battles... So he fled to the mountains of Bern for some peace and quiet, and to live the rest of his life in relative obscurity. It was he who discovered me and my brother up in the mountains, and rescued us."
"Sir Alexander had no heirs, and no pupils. He had lived in the mountains for so long that people had forgotten he still existed... He must've felt a need to pass his knowledge on to someone... So, once my brother and I were restored full health, and we told him everything that had happened to us thus far, he offered to teach us his profession... Giving us new identities, and a new lease on life." The tactician shrugged.
"We had nothing to lose at that point, nowhere to go... So, of course we accepted his generous offer. Master Alexander then taught us everything he knew... Geography, history... Anything that we might need to know about the world around us. And he was astonished to discover that we both had an aptitude for tactics... My brother and I were too, for that matter."
"Sir Alexander was a hard master, but kind as well... He became like a father to us..." At this, the tactician trailed off... She then shook her head and continued.
"After four years under his tutelage, Sir Alexander proclaimed that there was nothing more he could teach us... He then sent us out into the world with what remained of his gold, which he claimed he had no use for... So, bidding a sad farewell to our master, my brother and I headed down the other side of the mountain, to find our fortunes seperately." Matthew arched an eyebrow at this.
"Why did you two split up?"
"There's no point in an army hiring two tacticians, is there?" she pointed out. "Besides, we both feared that the Thieves' Guild in Bern might still be looking for us... So, we figured that we'd have less of a chance of being recognized if we went in different directions. I headed north into Sacae, while my brother headed west, towards Lycia... And, well... You know the rest."
"That's when Lady Lyndis found you."
"Correct." Matthew looked thoughtful for a moment.
"What happened to your brother?" he enquired. At this, the tactician's eyes grew sad and distant.
"I'm... Not sure. I haven't seen him for over a year now... After my contract with Lady Lyndis ended, I started looking for Mark, but I haven't turned up any sign of him yet. Then I signed up with Lord Eliwood... I was rather hoping that I run into my brother while we travel."
Matthew had fallen silent as she spoke, and was now watching the tactician with an unreadable gaze. Noticing this, the girl returned his look wearily.
"You still don't believe me, do you..." she said, in a blunt tone. The thief shrugged.
"You must admit, young miss, that's quite an unbelievable life story you've got there... You've either got to be a pretty good actress to make somebody believe that it's true, or you're actually telling the truth." He then cocked his head to one side.
"And as much as it goes against my better judgement... I think you are telling the truth." The tactician blinked in surprise.
"Matthew... Thank you."
"Aw... Don't get all mushy with me, young miss..." He then gave her a sly smile. "Besides... You didn't think you'd get out of all this so easily, did you?"
The tactician's eyes widened. "You don't mean...?"
Matthew pulled out a scroll from under his cloak, and rolled it out onto the camp desk, before the girl's startled eyes.
"Now, if you'd be kind enough to sign this oathpaper, the Lordships need not learn about your... Ah, additional skills..." She gave him an astonished look.
"You're blackmailing me?"
"Tsk, tsk, young miss... Blackmail is such an ugly word. Let's call it... Insurance against future ills, shall we...?"
The tactician got up and walked over to the desk, then eyed the scroll warily.
"I'm not signing that," she said firmly.
"Now, now, miss... Don't be so difficult." He took a quill from the desk, and placed beside the document. "Just sign on the dotted line, and all will be well--"
His sentence was suddenly cut off, as a dagger sprouted beside his hand, stabbing the scroll right on the dotted line. Matthew blinked. The movement was so quick, that his keen eyes had almost missed it... The tactician had appeared not to have moved from her position, and was still standing before the desk, with her arms folded.
"No."
Then the thief's sharp eyesight caught something else... The dagger currently stuck in the middle of the desk was one he recognized... It was the small silver one with a carnelian set in the pommel, that Leila had given him as a gift. Matthew found himself reaching for its usual hiding place, and then smiled.
"Touche, young miss. I didn't even notice that... And here I thought that you no longer practiced those skills." The tactician shrugged.
"The first lesson in tactics that my master taught me was, 'Never let any skill go to waste.' Besides... What was it you said, Matthew...? 'Old habits are hard to break'?"
"Too true, young miss..." Pulling his dagger out of the desk, he then gave her an impish grin. "You will have to show me those skills again, some time... In private, of course." With those words, a slow smile of understanding spread across the girl's face.
"Of course."
As Matthew headed towards the flap of the tent to leave, the tactician spoke up again.
"Ah, and don't think you can catch me off guard by attacking me in my sleep... I heard what you did to Guy." The thief looked back at her in surprise.
"You know, a real thief wouldn't have warned me," he commented.
"But I am no longer a thief," she replied calmly. "Besides... It was a tactical decision on my part." Matthew gave a short bark of laughter.
"Touche again... Lady Tactician." He gave her a brief ironic salute, and exited the tent.
As Matthew headed back to his own tent to get some sleep, an interesting thought then crossed his mind.
"A thief leading an army..." he mused to himself, and chuckled. "How very amusing indeed..."
TO BE CONTINUED...
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I hope the title didn't give away the premise of this story, but I couldn't think of a better one... (Hope no one was fooled into thinking this was a story about Matthew, rather than a tactician-related one.) I just wanted to try and explain why the tactician seems to disappear from the battlefield, during the game...
I'm not sure why I can't bear to name the tactician, in my stories... (She does have a name I plan to use in this one, though.) I'm also not sure how plausible it is for Matthew and Guy to have a B rank Support this early in the game, but I wanted this story to take place before Lyndis and co. joined up again... Comments and reviews would be appreciated!
I came up with this idea after reading a couple of Matthew stories... It starts just before (what I believe is) Chapter 14 of Hector's route...
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Fire Emblem fanfic:
"To Catch a Thief"
by Avi
Chapter 1: Recognizing One's Own
The tactician of Lord Eliwood's army wearily made her way across the darkened encampment, towards her tent. With the new addition of the merchant Merlinus into their fold, it had been quite a chore for everyone to decide what equipment they wanted to put in storage, and which they wanted to keep... And of course, she was forced to oversee it all. It had been well past midnight before everyone was satisfied with the overall arrangements.
The young woman rubbed the area between her brows, deep in thought... She mentally reminded herself to ask Lord Eliwood to stop by a town, when they got the chance... She really needed to buy some new maps, now that the army was heading towards Laus. Unfortunately, Merlinus had no maps of Laus in stock, and the only ones she possessed of that area were about twenty years out of date.
As the tactician finally reached her tent, she heaved a sigh of relief. Perhaps she could finally get a bit of rest, before the next crisis arose...
The young woman opened the tent flap, stepped inside... And paused. She could sense someone was in here, although she felt no immediate danger... She squinted curiously at the darkness within. After a moment, she thought she could make out a sillouette standing at the back of the tent, just barely out of her sight... Her brow wrinkled in recognition.
"...Matthew?" she called out, tentatively. "Is that you?"
There was a pause, then the sound of a match striking a rough surface. The flame illuminated the features of its owner briefly, then lit the oil lamp he held, which shed its light across the tent... As the young thief blew the match out, he then offered the girl an enigmatic smile, causing the latter to place a hand to her chest, in relief.
"Matthew... You nearly scared the living daylights out of me." The tactician's brow then wrinkled in thought. "Say... What are you doing in here, anyways?" The thief shrugged carelessly.
"Just waiting for you to return to your tent... I'm sorry if I startled you." At this, the young woman gave him a sidelong glance.
"Oh... I'm sure." The thief continued to speak, ignoring the ironic tone in her voice.
"You know, I'm impressed, young miss. Not many people would've known I was in here." The tactician shrugged in reponse.
"I've always had good night vision... Call it a knack, I guess."
While she said this, Matthew had walked over to a camp desk upon which maps were strewn across, and placed the oil lamp he held on it... He then absentmindedly ran his fingers across the desk's surface.
"Yes, that is an interesting talent, isn't it...?" he mused, almost to himself. Then he stepped back into the shadows of the tent, and disappeared.
The tactician was half-expecting it when Matthew reappeared right behind her... What she wasn't expecting was him grabbing both of her arms from behind, and twisting them up her back.
"What are you doing?" she gasped out, in shock.
"Just checking something," he replied, in a business-like tone. He then straightened out her right arm, and rolled the sleeve of her robes up to her shoulder.
"Just as I thought," said Matthew triumphantly. As he had pulled back the tactician's voluminous sleeve, it had revealed a dagger sheathed in the inner part of her upper arm. Upon closer inspection, he also recognized an arrangement of leather straps that would allow the dagger to drop down to her hand, with a flick of the wrist.
It was his examination of this mechanism that allowed to the tactician wrest away from the thief's grip, and then glare at him, outraged.
"What's the big idea?" she snapped. The young man crossed his arms before him, and met her gaze steadily.
"I was just wondering why such an obvious non-combatant like yourself is armed." The tactician drew herself up with dignity.
"As a tactician, my profession requires that I wander from place to place, by myself... Surely you realize that a woman who usually travels alone, must be able defend herself, somehow..." The thief raised an eyebrow at her.
"That may be true... But you needn't conceal your weapons, should you...? And I know you're carrying more than one... You wear a similar dagger sheath on your left arm, as well... You also carry a third dagger, strapped to your thigh, which can be reached through a false pocket in your skirt." At this, the tactician flushed.
"I'd rather not know how you discovered the location of that weapon..." Matthew cocked his head to one side.
"Actually, I can tell by the way the fabric of your robes fall... Only someone who knows what they're looking for would be able to find it." The tactician fell silent for a moment, then spoke up again.
"So what if I carry concealed weapons? What's the harm in that?" Matthew continued speaking, oblivious to her words.
"I've also noticed how you seem to disappear from the battlefield, while the army is in combat..." The young woman arched an eyebrow at this.
"I'm a tactician, aren't I? I'm supposed keep out of sight, during battle..."
"Yes, but you don't actually leave the battlefield, do you? You just seem to blend into the background, while you give your orders." As the tactician fell silent once again, Matthew began to pace before her.
"Both those things, coupled with the acute night vision which you just demonstrated to me a moment ago, lead me to draw one conclusion... Since all those techniques you use are particular methods that are generally practiced by spies, assassins... Or thieves." The tactician's eyes narrowed.
"Are you implying that I... Am one of those things?" Matthew grinned, though not in amusement.
"Like recognizes like, young miss." The young woman balled her fists.
"How dare you accuse me of being a spy! Haven't I shown my skills in battle? Haven't I guided this army well, so far?"
"That is true... In fact, I might've believed you, because of that... Might've believed that those particular skills you possess were all merely a coincidence... If it wasn't for one thing."
"What's that?" enquired the tactician warily.
Matthew pointed to her sleeves. "The cuffs of your robes."
"What about them?"
"The cloth is a touch heavier than it should be, isn't it? That's because you've got lockpick wires tucked away underneath the seams."
The tactician fingered her sleeves briefly, then dropped to her sides... But the thief's sharp eyes didn't miss the nervous movement. He smiled the smile of the cat that knows he has cornered the mouse.
"Old habits are hard to break, huh?"
"How did you know about the lockpick wires...?" she asked, faintly. The thief shrugged.
"It is part of my profession, young miss. Although I only confirmed my suspicion when I grabbed your arms, just now."
The young woman sank into a nearby chair, as Matthew walked towards the seat behind the camp desk and sat down... He then leaned back, resting his feet upon the desk.
"So... Care to tell me why a thief is running Lord Eliwood's army?" The tactician crossed her arms before her.
"I am no longer a thief, sir. I practice tactics, now... Why should it matter what my former profession was?"
"I make it my business to know these things, young miss... As a spy to House Ostia." The tactician scowled.
"Ah. So Lord Hector put you up to this, did he...?"
"It is in my employer's best interest to know that they have hired a possible spy as a tactician, yes." The young woman bristled.
"You doubt my integrity, after I have aided this army thus far? And you know very well that I helped to restore the Marquess of Caelin's true heir to him, as you might well recall!" Matthew lifted an eyebrow.
"That is true... But that was then, and this is now. For all we know, you might be working by your own agenda, madam. It might've pleased you to aid Caelin back then, and to help us right now, but later... You might show your true colours... And your true master."
"How dare you!"
"Don't try to play high and mighty with me, young miss. You didn't have to hide the fact that you, as you put it, used to be a thief." The young woman gave a him a withering look.
"You know very well that someone like Lord Eliwood would never hire a former thief as a tactician." Matthew looked thoughtful.
"Hmmm... You have a point, there. So, why don't you just tell me why you are no longer a thief? Heck, I might even believe you." The tactician glared at him for a moment, then looked away.
"If it will get you off my back..." She sighed. "Very well. I will tell you about my past." She leaned back in her seat, and met Matthew's gaze.
"I was an orphan. You know the usual sob story... Parents died young, raised in an orphanage, not enough to eat... The whole bit. So, as children, my brother and I started lifting food and pennies from people, so we wouldn't go hungry." Matthew raised both eyebrows.
"Brother?"
"My twin brother, Mark." She sighed to herself again, and continued. "Anyways, we found that we both had a knack for pickpocketing... I'm ashamed to admit now that we also got a kick out of it, too."
"One fateful day, someone noticed the two of us cutting some merchant's purse... Fortunately for us, though, it was a member of Bern's Guild of Thieves. He recognized our skills, and decided to take us in, for formal training."
"It wasn't a bad life, you know... We certainly ate better than we did at the orphanage, and got paid, as well... Everything was fine, until we both turned fourteen... And the Guild got a new master." The tactician scowled.
"What happened then?" asked Matthew, expectantly.
"My brother and I were hired out by the new guildmaster for what seemed to be a standard jewelry heist, at the time... It was only later that we discovered that we were contracted to kill someone, as well."
"In all our years of thievery, my brother and I had never taken a life... And neither of us had ever cared for bloodshed. So as soon we had found out about the new 'arrangements', we left the Guild." Matthew looked surprised.
"You broke your contract?"
"We had to... We had been deceived!" replied the tactician emphatically. "No one had ever said anything about killing anybody at the time!" Realizing that she had raised her voice, she lowered her tone.
"Anyways... As you might've guessed, the Guild was none too pleased about our sudden departure, and sent their people after us, so that we would be 'taken care of'... So my brother and I fled to only place where we were certain they wouldn't be able to follow... The mountains of Bern." Matthew lifted an eyebrow.
"That's a pretty dangerous choice for a hiding place, miss." The young woman nodded.
"We realized that too, but we hardly had any choice at the time... And to make matters worse, we had fled the city in the dead of winter, which made trying to escape through the mountain pass all that more treacherous."
"Our pursuers were nearly upon us, when a fierce snowstorm hit... All of us were caught unawares. Those chasing us managed to escape though... I'm sure they presumed we were killed in the storm." Matthew smiled wryly.
"Obviously, that wasn't the case." The tactician nodded again.
"Fortune must've smiled upon us again, because a hermit living in the mountains found me and my brother half buried in the snow, huddled behind the meager shelter of a giant boulder... Realizing that we were both still alive, he carried us back to his cabin, and was kind enough to nurse us back to health." Matthew sat back in his seat, and looked thoughtful for a moment.
"A pretty amazing story, miss... But that still doesn't explain where you got your skill in tactics." The tactician cocked her head at him.
"I was getting to that... Have you by chance ever heard of Sir Alexander?" Matthew's brow furrowed in thought.
"Isn't he that master tactician who was knighted for his services to the crown? I thought he was dead or something." The young woman shook her head.
"No, not quite... After retiring from his post, Sir Alexander found that he had quite enough of wars and battles... So he fled to the mountains of Bern for some peace and quiet, and to live the rest of his life in relative obscurity. It was he who discovered me and my brother up in the mountains, and rescued us."
"Sir Alexander had no heirs, and no pupils. He had lived in the mountains for so long that people had forgotten he still existed... He must've felt a need to pass his knowledge on to someone... So, once my brother and I were restored full health, and we told him everything that had happened to us thus far, he offered to teach us his profession... Giving us new identities, and a new lease on life." The tactician shrugged.
"We had nothing to lose at that point, nowhere to go... So, of course we accepted his generous offer. Master Alexander then taught us everything he knew... Geography, history... Anything that we might need to know about the world around us. And he was astonished to discover that we both had an aptitude for tactics... My brother and I were too, for that matter."
"Sir Alexander was a hard master, but kind as well... He became like a father to us..." At this, the tactician trailed off... She then shook her head and continued.
"After four years under his tutelage, Sir Alexander proclaimed that there was nothing more he could teach us... He then sent us out into the world with what remained of his gold, which he claimed he had no use for... So, bidding a sad farewell to our master, my brother and I headed down the other side of the mountain, to find our fortunes seperately." Matthew arched an eyebrow at this.
"Why did you two split up?"
"There's no point in an army hiring two tacticians, is there?" she pointed out. "Besides, we both feared that the Thieves' Guild in Bern might still be looking for us... So, we figured that we'd have less of a chance of being recognized if we went in different directions. I headed north into Sacae, while my brother headed west, towards Lycia... And, well... You know the rest."
"That's when Lady Lyndis found you."
"Correct." Matthew looked thoughtful for a moment.
"What happened to your brother?" he enquired. At this, the tactician's eyes grew sad and distant.
"I'm... Not sure. I haven't seen him for over a year now... After my contract with Lady Lyndis ended, I started looking for Mark, but I haven't turned up any sign of him yet. Then I signed up with Lord Eliwood... I was rather hoping that I run into my brother while we travel."
Matthew had fallen silent as she spoke, and was now watching the tactician with an unreadable gaze. Noticing this, the girl returned his look wearily.
"You still don't believe me, do you..." she said, in a blunt tone. The thief shrugged.
"You must admit, young miss, that's quite an unbelievable life story you've got there... You've either got to be a pretty good actress to make somebody believe that it's true, or you're actually telling the truth." He then cocked his head to one side.
"And as much as it goes against my better judgement... I think you are telling the truth." The tactician blinked in surprise.
"Matthew... Thank you."
"Aw... Don't get all mushy with me, young miss..." He then gave her a sly smile. "Besides... You didn't think you'd get out of all this so easily, did you?"
The tactician's eyes widened. "You don't mean...?"
Matthew pulled out a scroll from under his cloak, and rolled it out onto the camp desk, before the girl's startled eyes.
"Now, if you'd be kind enough to sign this oathpaper, the Lordships need not learn about your... Ah, additional skills..." She gave him an astonished look.
"You're blackmailing me?"
"Tsk, tsk, young miss... Blackmail is such an ugly word. Let's call it... Insurance against future ills, shall we...?"
The tactician got up and walked over to the desk, then eyed the scroll warily.
"I'm not signing that," she said firmly.
"Now, now, miss... Don't be so difficult." He took a quill from the desk, and placed beside the document. "Just sign on the dotted line, and all will be well--"
His sentence was suddenly cut off, as a dagger sprouted beside his hand, stabbing the scroll right on the dotted line. Matthew blinked. The movement was so quick, that his keen eyes had almost missed it... The tactician had appeared not to have moved from her position, and was still standing before the desk, with her arms folded.
"No."
Then the thief's sharp eyesight caught something else... The dagger currently stuck in the middle of the desk was one he recognized... It was the small silver one with a carnelian set in the pommel, that Leila had given him as a gift. Matthew found himself reaching for its usual hiding place, and then smiled.
"Touche, young miss. I didn't even notice that... And here I thought that you no longer practiced those skills." The tactician shrugged.
"The first lesson in tactics that my master taught me was, 'Never let any skill go to waste.' Besides... What was it you said, Matthew...? 'Old habits are hard to break'?"
"Too true, young miss..." Pulling his dagger out of the desk, he then gave her an impish grin. "You will have to show me those skills again, some time... In private, of course." With those words, a slow smile of understanding spread across the girl's face.
"Of course."
As Matthew headed towards the flap of the tent to leave, the tactician spoke up again.
"Ah, and don't think you can catch me off guard by attacking me in my sleep... I heard what you did to Guy." The thief looked back at her in surprise.
"You know, a real thief wouldn't have warned me," he commented.
"But I am no longer a thief," she replied calmly. "Besides... It was a tactical decision on my part." Matthew gave a short bark of laughter.
"Touche again... Lady Tactician." He gave her a brief ironic salute, and exited the tent.
As Matthew headed back to his own tent to get some sleep, an interesting thought then crossed his mind.
"A thief leading an army..." he mused to himself, and chuckled. "How very amusing indeed..."
TO BE CONTINUED...
&&&&&
I hope the title didn't give away the premise of this story, but I couldn't think of a better one... (Hope no one was fooled into thinking this was a story about Matthew, rather than a tactician-related one.) I just wanted to try and explain why the tactician seems to disappear from the battlefield, during the game...
I'm not sure why I can't bear to name the tactician, in my stories... (She does have a name I plan to use in this one, though.) I'm also not sure how plausible it is for Matthew and Guy to have a B rank Support this early in the game, but I wanted this story to take place before Lyndis and co. joined up again... Comments and reviews would be appreciated!