It wasn't the harsh smell of the nearby coffin or the unusual ashy sky that was horrifying – it was the gravestone that read her name. Lies here Kamui, forever chasing ashes of warmth, it said. The water she stood in felt unnaturally warm over her bare feet, but she felt cold. For a long moment, she stood there in a daze of confusion, unsure of how she had even gotten to this place or why she had awoken from a coffin in the first place. She remembered fighting one battle after another, with her family-in-arms: Camillia with her heavy axe atop a winged beast, Elise becoming an effective strategist during their campaign in Nohr, Leo with his exceptional dark magic, and of course, Xander who fought like those legendary heroes she would often dream about.

Something stirred in Kamui's mind.

Memories of her other family-in-arms, fighting as a unit against her Nohr enemies, flashed through her mind. Battles suddenly flashed through her mind, fights that she knew she had no part of. And yet, her mind recalled experiencing those battles. Befriending the intelligent Sakura, of leaving Takumi an opening for his bow, of riding the skies with Hinoka, and of fighting side by side with Ryoma.

There was love. And children.

Of loss and heartbreak.

"What is this?" Kamui grunted as the joints in her knees gave away and she stumbled into that very unusual, warm water, propped up only by the strength of her arms. She remembered a daughter she never had, a son that sang very much like his mother. And yet, Kamui knew she did not choose a love in her life. She could not. Her heart wouldn't allow her to do so as she fought her Hoshido family.

But these memories told an opposite story, of her fighting for Hoshido.

It made no sense in her mind.

Her mind brought up thoughts of kissing Azura, something that she was positive never happened. And yet, they seemed all the more real.

A sharp pain flared in her mind, and she could little more than wince as more memories began to flood into her thoughts. "Stop it," she began to cry, the nagging pain growing more intense by the second. She saw even more memories, these being even more foreign to her than the others. Her mind drudged up thoughts of fighting a battle against some dragon, with her leading a charge against it with her siblings from both kingdoms at her backside.

"Stop it…stop it, stop it, stop it!"

The flashes stopped.

With a tear in her eyes, she glanced around, panting heavily.

'What was that,' she had to ask herself, at once confused and relieved at the sudden disappearance of the pain. The memories in her mind grew faint, as if trying to make her forget about them. She wasn't sure if she wanted to remember the things that she was sure didn't happen. Those other events couldn't have happened. Panicked, Kamui pressed against the ground and reached behind her – all she felt was her long, silver hair. The lack of her sword, Yato, made her heart jump a little, and she frantically ran back to the grave from which she emerged. The inside was dark, even with the clouded sun beaming down overhead. She could hardly see through the misty dust, and she felt cobwebs tangling around her arm.

Kamui paused to glance.

Pieces of her black armor had cracked and judging from the little bit of rust on it, the armor hadn't been serviced in quite some time. It was strange because she just had the armor repairs completed just days ago before her battle to finally stop her kingdom's suffering. She took a step back to examine it. She had no armor to cover her right arm, and only half on her left. Aside from the one piece that was buckled around her knee, she had no armor covering her legs.

'What happened…?'

Aside from the damage to her armor, Kamui saw nothing else wrong. Her skin had been untouched, as if preserved.

Preserved…

She looked to the coffin and at once shuddered. The thought of somebody or something preserving her body had been unnerving. But she returned to the coffin – common sense dictated that she should have some protection before exploring this new area. Her fingers brushed against the bottom of the coffin, and then swept across its hard surface, brushing aside hard bits that she swore could have been pieces of her armor. She continued her search until her fingers touched something cold and metal. A sword, she hoped, as she pulled it out into the light.

Sure enough, the weapon was indeed a sword, a curved one at that.

"Well, at least I'm not completely defenseless," she said, glancing down at her bare feet once more. She stretched, letting herself get a feel of the hard ground. Without Yato or a dragonstone, she knew that she would have to keep herself in check. As she took a step forward, she spotted a figure standing in the far distance.

"Azura…?"

The figure looked back at her, flanked by the bright rays of the sun. Kamui couldn't make out her face, but the tattered dress she wore almost certainly belonged to her. "Ashen One…" she murmured in a tone that echoed, and then treaded off into the distance.

"Azura, wait!" Kamui shouted after her, giving chase.

The unfamiliar feeling of water plashing against her legs threatened to distract her, but Kamui kept plunging forward, until she spotted a figure wearing much darker clothing ahead. She slowed her pace, curious that the figure hadn't turned at the sounds of her water sprint, until coming to a stop. Her heart pace quickened at the sight of a hand-held scythe in its hand – a hand that had grown a sickly green and thin, as if drained of whatever blood remained her.

She tightened her hold on her weapon, hoping that her trusting nature didn't lead to unnecessary battle.

"Excuse me. Uhm, sir?"

The figure suddenly spun around. Its face was twisted in the same sickly matter as its arm, made even more terrifying than the lack of eyes, only a black abyss in the spaces of its sockets.

"Oh god…" she said, horrified.

Kamui only had a split-second to react to the creature suddenly leaping at her. The scythe slashed across the air, nearly striking at her neck as she leaned back with a step. As if enraged by its miss, the creature struck again, as if the law of physics did not apply here. This time, Kamui lifted her sword to catch the blade. Sharp metal rang out as they clashed.

Kamui grit her teeth, surprised by its strength almost pushing her back.

Again, the creature defied physics, suddenly pulling its sword back and throwing its full weight into the next strike.

But she was ready.

With a single step, she slashed her sword through its torso. The kill was not bloodless, but Kamui's kindness extended only to people she did not want to fight. Inhuman screams roared out around her and more of the creatures emerged from paths hidden by broken stone structures on the left and right. It was only three, but without knowing how many there were, Kamui ran straight to the only path that she knew.

"Come on, you can do it," she told herself as she ran through the ankle deep water, aware of the growing number of enemies behind her. She quickly hopped onto the stone structure, ignoring the sound of an arrow whizzing past her head.

'Arrow?'

Ahead, an archer, also the same as the things trying to kill her, was taking an arrow from its quiver. Kamui kept moving at her pace, leaping off the edge of the structure and onto ground. By the time it was ready to take aim, Kamui, having lost her compassion, jabbed her sword into his face. It squealed for only a short moment before falling, and Kamui yanked the sword with her. The effort didn't come without consequences, however.

She heard the creature only a split moment before metal cut into her calf.

Tumbling to the ground, Kamui spun enough to see one of the robed creatures pouncing at her with its sword pointed down. She rolled to the side, propping herself on one arm as it landed with the tip of its sword clanging against the hard ground. She lashed out with her uninjured leg, catching its face with her foot. The others were quickly closing the distance, their inhuman screams drowning out all sense and reason.

Kamui scrambled to her feet, sharp pain in her leg notwithstanding, and took off for the path ahead.

Rounding the corner and up the hill, the creatures continued their relentless pursuit. The wound in her leg made it harder to run as she trudged up the hill, not looking back. They were so close now, close enough to pounce on her based on how loud their screams had been. Still, she continued to push, refusing to let the pain in her leg slow her down.

Her will only lasted so long.

The hill itself was fairly short, but she found herself almost jogging as she reached the top of the hill. She kept pushing forward.

Forward.

The path curved to the left, but she kept running, hoping that there was some refuge nearby.

She skidded to a stop when she saw that there was no path – only a drop into the wispy clouds below. A growl erupted behind her, prompting the Nohr Princess to dive towards the path's curve. A creature had just dove, and it went tumbling completely over. "Oh God," she said as she saw the remaining three reaching the top of the hill, and resumed her escape.

The sharp pain in her leg continued to grow with each step.

She took one glance over her shoulder, and then felt a sharpened pain in her foot – a small, jagged rock that lay in her path. Stumbling, Kamui tried to maintain her balance, but stepping on her injured leg sent a new wave of pain through her body. She couldn't help but cringe as she finally fell to the hard ground. She felt her arm graze over what felt like soft dirt, its contents scattered in the air and smelling very much like ash.

Escape was the only option available here.

A quick glance at the pile revealed something sticking out of the huge pile of ashes she had fallen into. Leverage, she realized, as she reached for it. It felt warm, as if instinctively calling for her to touch it. She did so without a second thought, feeling a warmth suddenly embracing her. The feeling of safety suddenly appeared, and she only casually glanced at the creatures within striking distance.

Suddenly, her vision was filled with amber, her vision completely obscured by mist.

It lasted only for a few seconds, but when it faded, so did the creatures.

The screams were gone, replaced only with the typical noises of a quiet evening. Next to her, top of the 'leverage' had been lit with a tiny flame. The warmth around it almost seemed to speak to her, as if promising safety. Her worries were wiped away, replacing her frantic thoughts with a picture of clarity. She immediately went to check on her calf.

"Wait…what?"

Whatever wounds she had incurred were gone. Even the little scrapes on her arms and toes from her tumble were gone.

She looked at the curved sword that she had dropped in her fall. Weapons had made her feel more at peace on the battlefield, but the promise of the lit flame – a bonfire – convinced her mind to relax. "Where am I?" Kamui had wondered aloud, and for the first time in a very long time, she felt incredible fear at her new surrounding.