(A/N): Fanboy powers activate! Oh wait… they already did, that's how this fic came to be. Fire Emblem: Path to the Dawn is done and therefore I don't have enough stories with Sveta in them. For those unfamiliar with my work welcome to my latest fic, it's my 9th story. So I decided to write it a bit differently than normal, those who HAVE read my works will notice it instantly… I hope. If you don't then you're blind.

Chapter 1

I sat at my desk with a quill in hand as I waited for Zander, a young mountain wolf beastman, to bring the remaining stack of papers that needed to be signed today. Ever since I had returned to Belinsk I have had been doing nothing but signing papers it seemed. My brother, Volechek, had tried to prepare me for such things but I had spent my time wandering Morgal and did not learn all that I needed to in order to take over fully. While I knew the demands of being a member of the royal family, being Queen was harder than I had imagined. There were many people all over the country seeking aid from the crown but there was only so much gold to pay for construction. Despite the wishes of the staff I halted the repairs on the castle so that the town could get back to normal sooner. Our ships were all gone and our port itself wasn't in any better shape, we had just been able to clear enough for Eoleo to take his ship and leave.

Sitting back in my chair I looked about the room, most of Volechek belongings had been left in the room. I wanted to keep a sense of his presence in the castle. Most of the items in the room were left over from our father and still carried a trace of his scent mixed with my brother's. Nothing carried Volechek's scents more than the red high back chair I was sitting in, if I closed my eyes and concentrated on the smell it was like I was young again and sitting on my brother's lap as he studied. On the desk there were four small holes created by his claws where Volechek drummed his fingers while he read through the papers. Moving my hand over the holes I placed my smaller claws into the same place my brother had put his for countless days. As my hand rested there I couldn't help but notice just how small my claws were compared to Volechek's, there was still room on either side of my claw while in the groove that he had created.

Taking a look over the paper in front of me I read over the first paragraph and smiled. Zander had sent out messengers to figure out how our cities were faring and this one such report. It seemed these men knew that good news was the best way to start off, the majority of the town had survived by taking refuge in the town hall keeping the monsters at bay with a roaring fire. Not only did they survive, twins had been born during such a calamity. Of course the report wasn't all good, the town hall had survived the attack but the rest of the buildings had been taken down to fuel the fire. Like many towns they requested materials to rebuild and workers to speed up the construction.

"Queen Sveta," a voice called from behind the door. As much as I wanted to leave Zander and all of his papers on the other side of the door I knew that I couldn't do such a thing, he would stay there all night calling out if I didn't let him in. Getting up from my desk I headed over to the door, my padded feet making no noise on the stone.

Opening the door for Zander I instantly regretted it, his arms were holding a stack of papers larger than he was. While around my own age Zander was a good foot taller than me so the amount of papers may have appeared larger than they actually were. Stepping to the side I let Zander come in and watched him drop the stack next to the small pile that I still had to go through. His fur was mostly brown with a white muzzle, living proof that not all were affected by the Apollo Lens and had their fur dyed yellow. He wore a simple black robe with the Mountain Roc symbol in white on the back, the page's uniform. Sitting atop his mess of fur he called his head was a white pigeon with a paper wrapped around its leg. Holding out my arm I whistled, startling Zander, for the bird to come over to me. It was Kraden's bird, no doubt about it. He and Rief had stayed in Belinsk the longest to study the effects the Apollo Lens had on the people.

It was confirmed, the light from the Lens had gifted my people with Light Psynergy. The younger the person the stronger the power seemed to be, the older ones just had more control. Those who had been Adepts before the firing of the Lens seemed to have changed their Psynergy from Jupiter, which my people had normally commanded, to this newer Light element. Opening Kraden's letter I scanned it over quickly to see what my friend had to say. So far they had found that the farther away from Belinsk the fewer Light Adepts there appeared to be. Kraden's letter continued on to say that the people didn't seem to know how to control their newfound abilities and were more worried about them than thankful. Kraden and Rief were doing their best to educate the new Adepts on how to control their powers, but without any knowledge of Light Psynergy the best they could do was give them a small amount of peace.

"Thank you Zander," I said returning to my desk to write back to Kraden. Hopefully some of the Light Adepts in Belinsk would be willing to travel and teach others how to control their new powers. Kraden needed to know that I was looking for such people to send out, he and Rief still had a journey of their own to undertake. Rief had wanted to go and find his sister and Captain Piers after they had studied Light Psynergy. Zander bowed before leaving the room to carry out whatever duties he still needed to do.

Quickly penning a letter back to Kraden I tied the message to the pigeon's leg. Either by the familiar weight of a letter or something more, the bird fluttered over to the window and looked up at the sky as if to get its bearings before setting out. Taking a glance at the stack of scrolls that had been brought to me I tried to see if any of the seals bore the crest of the Ayuthay royal family. Amiti had promised that once he got his country back on its feet he would send a letter so we could meet as rulers of our countries and forge a treaty. The war had died down thanks to the Grave Eclipse but from the letter Amiti had first sent it seemed that peace wouldn't last much longer. I truly wished that I could send aid to help my friend but Morgal's own army was weak, perhaps devastated more than his own, and couldn't spare the troops.

Finding no message from Amiti I pulled off a scroll from the top of the pile and started work once more. How Volechek had been able to do this day in and day out while still finding time to converse with both myself and the people was an amazing feat. In fact it was so amazing I had started to wonder if maybe he had been putting off his work to take a stroll in the town. That was something I planned on doing, walking among the people of Belinsk to see what was going on in the city. Volechek had alway made it clear to me that the people enjoyed his visits and the few times that I had gone with him they had seemed genuinely happy.

It was only midday and I had spent all morning in the study going over papers. Halion would probably be coming up soon with food, it'd be the only break I would get until the night. She was quite the cook, and insisted on making sure she was the one to bring it to me, but I needed more than food in order to get through the day. That's where my Djinn Haze came in. His smokescreen was enough to distract the guards while I escaped the castle. I would head down to the waterfront and look out at the ocean. While not exactly a far place from the castle it gave me the sense of being away from everything as I looked out at the water. Hearing the sounds of the waves crashing against walls reminded me of what it was like on the ship as I traveled with my friends to find the Umbra Gear and put a stop to the Grave Eclipse.

Mulling over whether I should take a walk now or not a swift knock at the door echoed through the room. Opening the door Halion came in carrying a tray in one hand, complete with the unnecessary lid. Like myself, Halion had a more human appearance. Neither of us had fur like the majority of beastman, I more than made up for it when I transformed into my beast form. Claws, pads, pointed ears, and a muzzle still defined us as beastmen. Halion's hair, which was a dark red color, was kept up in a bun. She was an older woman and she oversaw the entire kitchen along with most of the maids.

"Alright Your Majesty, it's time to eat. The Kingdom can wait twenty minutes for you to enjoy a nice meal," Halion stated as she hovered over the table that was cluttered with papers. No matter how hard I tried I never seemed to be able to keep it clean. The newest influx of documents had only made the table even more of a mess than it had been. Clearing a spot for Halion to set the tray down I heard a rip as one of my claws tore through the thin paper. Wincing I took the document in my hand and cut the seal, with a claw no less, and tried to find where the tear was at. Thankfully when unrolled the rip was in a place between paragraphs so none of the words were damaged.

Halion cleared her throat to get my attention again. Quickly rolling up the paper and setting it off to the side I finished clearing a spot for the tray of food. Taking the lid off of the tray I was assaulted with the smell of roasted meat and herbs. For as powerful as the smell was I would have thought there was more food than what I was seeing. There was only about six well sized bites of meat on the tray even though my nose told me there should be an entire sheep lying in front of me. It was the lid's fault for trapping the smell to be released only when opened. This was the portion fitting of a queen according to Halion. I know that a lady of my stature should look her best, and part of that was maintaining a slim figure, but I am only sixteen and require more than this. Besides the fact I made sure to keep up on my training and I would burn through whatever little amount of fat I might accumulate from large meals.

Time passed me by as I sifted through all the scrolls and before I knew it the sun was reflecting off the water casting a golden light. I couldn't see the setting sun, my window faced the town rather than the ocean, but the change in light was noticeable.

"What am I going to do?"I asked myself as I returned my attention to the still large pile of paperwork. "No matter how much I seem to do it keeps piling up. Zander or one of the other pages keeps bringing me more and more. I now understand why you would slack off on your duties dear brother."

Standing up I stretched my legs and back before I headed towards the door. Leaving the study for the night I walked down the stairs and through the halls towards one of my favorite rooms, the bathhouse. The builders of the castle had built the baths away from everything else but still had a hall connecting it so you wouldn't have to walk in the open on a windy day. Of course there was still a door on the other side so people didn't have to come through the entire castle to reach it. Relaxing in a small pool of steaming hot water was the perfect way to relax after being stuck at my desk all day long. It was the one comfort I had missed the most during my travels with Matthew and the others. Whenever we visited a large town Karis, Himi, and I would find the bathhouse while the boys located the inn. Not a one of us trusted Tyrell with the location of the bathhouse until after we girls had finished. We had all agreed that he was the one most likely to try something and shouldn't be trusted with such information. The incident in Yamata, our second visit when we were there to collect the Yellow Orb, had only cemented the feeling. Just because he couldn't read the sign was no excuse for walking into the women's bath. Himi had teased both Karis and I saying that we had wished it had been Matthew, I had never seen Karis turn so red before. I on the other hand had simply lowered myself into the water in a vain attempt to hide.

MISTRESS!An excited voice called out to my mind. A streak of purple light flew in front of me before solidifying into the shape of a Jupiter Djinn, Bolt. I'm back.The calm delivery caused me to let out a small laugh at the elemental. Bolt was a Djinn that I had been friends with for a long time. It wasn't long after I had found my powers as an Adept that Bolt had found me. The day before our group had split up we had asked our Djinn if they would help us keep in touch with each other. We had gotten the idea from Pewter and Laurel. The Waelda had used Pewter to contact Matthew's group after they helped revive the Dream Tree. All the messenger Djinn had volunteered for the job so Bolt was more than happy to zip back and forth. When I had told Bolt that I want him to go and stick with Matthew he had been a little down, that was until I reminded him that Kairs was traveling with him. I am not sure if Djinn can have a crush on an Adept but I firmly believe that Bolt has one for Karis.

Mr. Matthew and the others will have arrived home by now. I left them with a day and a half journey till they reached the cabin. Mr. Tyrell was getting a little antsy and wanted to head on through the night. Nodding my head I understood Tyrell's feelings all too well. After the escaping the Grave Eclipse a few members of our group had found themselves unable to sleep well at night. Even with the horrible event behind us I still had a candle lit in my chambers to help me fall asleep. Tyrell no doubt wanted to keep moving so he had a reason to stay up through the night. Lady Karis set him straight and told him that they had been traveling all day long and they needed to get some rest if they were to keep going. It was then that Mr. Matthew sent me back to you to let you know of their safe trip.

I personally would have rathered that Matthew had sent Bolt only after arriving back home. All the others had adhered to that request, having sent a Djinn to me letting me know they had arrived safely to their home, not just close to it. Still they were three traveling together and I was sure that they would make it home safely. From what Matthew had told me of his life before his journey he was only staying at a cabin near Mt. Aleph to help his dad with research on Alchemy. In actuality they all lived in Kalay which was to the southwest of the cabin. Kairs had promised to send a Djinn my way if they were to head out towards Kalay.

Thank you Bolt. Reaching out I stroked his head to show my appreciation. I'm sure that I will have need of you in the future. It means a lot to me that you are willing to help me stay in touch with my friends.

No problem at all Mistress. If Bolt had arms with which to salute I think he just would have. Turning into purple energy Bolt returned to me. Feeling the swell of energy that an Adept got from a Djinn I could feel some of the weariness leave my body. Nine Djinn coursed through my body now giving me power beyond what a normal Adept would have. With no further interruptions I headed to the bath for a nice relaxing soak.

Walking out of the bathhouse I was still drying my hair with a towel as I headed up to my chambers. The cold night air sent a shiver down my back as it brushed lightly against my still damp skin. More than once I had thought about cutting my hair but could never bring myself to do it. My mother's long hair was one of the few things I could remember about her and so I kept my hair long as a reminder of her. Still, forming the braids each morning was getting to be a hassle. As the Queen I could have servants help me dress but I wanted to be able to dress myself each morning without help. If I wasn't signing papers all day then I was surrounded by people, my room was the one place I could safely escape to where other people weren't allowed in. If I let servants in to help with my hair than it would only give them ideas to start coming in for other trivial reasons.

Opening the door to my personal quarters I let my eyes adjust to the dark room lit only by moonlight. To a human this room was probably too dark to make out anything clearly but a beastman such as myself was able to see just fine by moonlight alone. Details were beyond my ability to make out, still I could easily tell just where an object lay and what it was. According to Karis my eyes glowed a little when the sun set. Kraden had explained that it was caused by my eyes reflecting what light they absorbed back out to improve my vision. Finely decorated with paintings and other unneeded items my room didn't feel like my own, rather it was what people would expect a queen's chamber to look like. Only a small section of my closet, which held the cracked Umbra Gear, was something that I could truly call my own. However, some of the books on the shelf near the window I did find enjoyable.

Heading over to a table that sat next to my bed and picked up the candle. Placing the wick between two fingers I sent a spark of electricity into it causing flames to appear when I removed my fingers. It was a small flame that cast a weak light over little more than my bed but that was all I needed. Even here in my room with only one window the air was chilly and I was thankful for the warmth the blankets of my bed offered me when I wrapped myself in their warm embrace. Resting my head on the pillow it seemed like all the fatigue that I had been holding back suddenly came crashing down on me.

-o-O-o-

I laid in my bed looking at the white canopy that draped across the four columns of the bed. Morning had come far too quickly for me to have fully replenished the energy I had used yesterday, weariness beckoned me back to sleep and the comfort that it would bring. Tossing back the covers I braced myself for the cold morning air as it greeted me. Whether it was because of the nocturnal animal that I took after or simply because I didn't feel like I had gotten enough sleep, mornings hadn't been good for me ever since returning to Belinsk. Each day I felt like I had to drag myself out of bed to start the doldrums of the day.

Slowly pulling myself out of the bed I walked across the cold stone floor to my wardrobe. Pulling open the doors I peered in at all the dresses that had been picked out for me. Most of the clothing that hung in the wardrobe were varying shades of purples and green with a red or blue dress tossed in to add more variety. Not a single piece was something that I had personally picked out, such things were done by the people of the castle. Down in the corner sat the Umbra Gear, proof to me that I had spent time fighting for not only my life, but the life of the people I was now tasked with watching over and many others.

Reaching down I picked up the Umbra Knuckles putting my hand in between the band and bar. Forming a fist the black bar with the purple line theme of the Umbra Gear made of an unknown material came to the forefront. Few of the weapons I had wielded in my travels could surpass the power contained in this small weapon. When enough power had gathered within them I could unleash it in a blast of dark energy ending the lives of monsters without mercy, we had dubbed it the Shadow Cannon. Those few monsters that lived through the attack found themselves stunned by the force that had racked through their body making it easy to finish them off.

Each morning I would put the Knuckles on and feel the weight that came from the memories of what I had done. At the Apollo Lens many Tua Warriors had fallen to my fists accompanied by the Umbra Knuckles. Their armor had been strong enough to resist the strange black metal that made up the Knuckles but they couldn't withstand that barrage of attacks I was able to get off with deadly speed. Even if I didn't deliver the finishing blow to some of the Tua Warriors, I had made them unable to escape the deadly light that shone all over the Sanctum.

Placing the lone weapon back with its pair I glanced back at the collection of dresses that had found their way into my possession. With a heavy heart I picked a burgundy colored dress with a high collar and skirt that fell down to my ankles. A quick change later and I was out door heading to the study to go through more dreaded paperwork. I had no doubts that by now Zander was fussing over where I was. Judging by the height of the sun that I could barely make out through the windows I passed while heading down the hall I had overslept.

Reaching my study I found the door ajar and instantly went on alert. Zander knew better than to enter without my permission and few others had reason to make their way to the room. Gathering Psynergy within myself I readied a small but powerful Wind Slash hoping that the pressurized wind blade would be enough to deal with whoever had managed to get into my study. Silently I crept up to the wooden door and tried to spot the intruder before opening the door any farther. Seeing no one through the small crack I wiggled my foot in between the door and wall and with a small flick caused the wooden frame to move enough that I could easily walk in.

Spotting Weyard's most infuriating creature sitting behind my desk I sincerely debated letting loose the Psynergy I had gathered upon the man. He was a brown bear beastman once but like many in Belinsk his fur had turned gold thanks to the Apollo Lens. Richard, the man before me, had been my brother's right hand man before the Tuaparang had come and started interfering. The time I had spent out trying to put an end to the Grave Eclipse Richard had been the one to keep the people together. Upon my arrival home he had readily given control to me without complaint but he would sometimes make his way into my study, normally with me in it, and start looking documents over without permission. At first this hadn't bothered me, he had even offered a few helpful suggestions. Barging into my study before I had arrived and sitting in the same place that Volechek had once sat while looking like he couldn't care had crossed a line. This was sadly not the first time either.

"Richard," I did my best to keep my cool as I addressed him, "what are you doing here?" I released the Psynergy I had built up, since he was an Adept now he'd be able to see me glowing with power.

"Milady," Richard was formal to a fault and for some reason that just added to my anger towards him. "I was simply going over a few of the documents that you had already signed. It's certainly seems that many people are still in dire need of help from the crown. Many workers have been sent out upon request and construction here in Belinsk is dangerously close to a standstill because of this."

"Belinsk is all but repaired. Only a few of the more unsavory places and the port are left to finish." Morgal didn't need the port at the moment, only frivolous items had come by sea so I had left it among the last things to be repaired. As it currently stood it was also a deterrent for an attack by sea with all the wreckage that blocked the way in for all but the most skilled captains "There are more people away from the capital that have need of the able bodied workers that would be doing little more than making this city look good." Of course there was still the matter of the castle, the entire eastern wing was in shambles and in need of repairs. Luckily it was only the garrison and prison that rested there and we had little need for either at the moment.

"I see, our Queen has undoubtedly thought everything through. My apologies if I seemed ungrateful for what you are doing for our country." Finally getting out of Volechek's chair Richard grabbed one of the scrolls near the top and unrolled it. "But are you sure you haven't stretched our army too thin? Barely more than two hundred troops reside here in Belinsk and no town has more than a handful of soldiers to protect them."

I glanced over the scroll that he was presenting me. It was a summary of where Morgal's troops were stationed, complete with supplies they had, distance from the capital, and whether or not monsters were a problem in the area. Short reports like this one were what kept me informed about what was going on around the country. I still read the detailed reports later to see if there were any requests or small problems that needed to be dealt with quickly.

"Monsters are the biggest worry right now, too many of our human enemies are trying to rebuild to bother with us. There is currently only one place that has the means to attack us and I doubt Biblin would like to test out just how strong our new Adept filled country truly is." Parts of Biblin had been under the effects of the Grave Eclipse but their large territory had allowed them to rebuild faster than the other countries that had suffered. When the Eclipse had ended they had decided that it was time to strike at the weakened country of Morgal to expand even more. Only a handful of Adepts had been present at the time when Biblin tried to invade across Border Town but even so their newfound Light powers and the strength of a Jupiter Adepts had easily driven back the normal humans. Only a few more incursions had been attempted before the Biblin army got the idea that Morgal was now packed with Adepts of a high caliber

"True, we have driven them back at every turn. Sooner or later though they will amass a force greater than what a few Adepts can drive back and we'll be fighting a war. Can we not spare more troops to the bordering lands to prevent such a thing from happening?" Richard rolled up the scroll and placed it back atop the stack where he had gotten it from.

"We can't," I put it simply. "Monsters have been brave ever since the start of the Eclipse and while the stronger have vanished the normal monsters have seen this as an opportunity to claim the area. I have the minimum amount of soldiers stationed at each town to make sure that the workers and townsfolk are safe at night. They are all instructed to take in any man that wishes to fight and teach them how to use a spear, sword, or their Psynergy in order to help defend the county."

"I see, but are you sure they will recruit men that are fitting to join the army?" I had enough of Richard for now. These were questions that I had already asked myself before making the declaration for recruitment. Give a man power and there was every chance that he would seek more, that is why only the captains, or veterans, were allowed to say if a man was truly able to join the army or not. Either way the Adepts that now dotted Morgal would need training. With so many it out there with strong enough power to manifest attacks they would need training before they accidentally hurt someone, or worse, purposefully use their new powers to hurt others. What was now Morgal's greatest strength could easily turn out to be our biggest weakness.

"You may be a nobleman Richard but there are things that I will not discuss with you. I know that you took charge and kept the people of Belinsk safe while I sought to end the threat of the Grave Eclipse and I thank you for that, you have done more for the people than I can possibly imagine but you gave control back to me when I arrived. My gratitude for what you have done does not extend to you breaking into my personal study and going over documents that are meant for me. I forgave you for the times before because you offered sound advice when you came here. That ends here, you push too far Richard and if find that you come in here again without permission I will have the prison reconstructed for the simple fact I will need a cell to throw you in for treason."

My feelings on the matter were sincere to the utmost. I was nothing but grateful for the actions that Richard had done in order to save as many people as he did during a time of crisis. But it did not give him the right to enter places and read items that were not meant for him. Something in me gave me the impression that if he had done this with Volechek that Richard's body would already be six feet under the ground. Enough death had come by my own hands that I couldn't execute Richard for something like this, but a tossing him in a cell would be a fine alternative.

"Apologies once more my Queen," Richard said with a bow before he headed towards the door. "I was simply checking up on my young Queen and was hoping that I may have been able to offer assistance to her troubled mind. I see that I have overstepped my bounds and ask for your forgiveness and thank you for the warning." With another bow at the door Richard exited the room in a calm demeanor. Part of me wished that he had left in a huff so that I would have reason to have him watched while in the castle.

Sitting in my brother's chair I picked up a stack of papers, a report from the north-eastern tip of the country about monster sightings. Silently I wished that my friends were here to help me out. Matthew I felt was the one I missed the most, he was a true leader and I had the nagging feeling that he would be able to help me. Shaking my head to clear my thoughts I returned to the report, Matthew wasn't royalty, he wouldn't be able to help me. He had been a fine warrior and the de facto leader of our group but leading a team of nine was vastly different than leading an entire country. Still, his presence would have been soothing at times like this.

(A/N): Questions, concerns, comments? Leave them all in a nice review and I WILL get back to you. For those who have read my works before, what do you think of this style? Should I keep going this way or should I switch back to how I was doing it before?