Author's Notes: This is the continuation for The Sad Tale. It will focus on Soren from the time he joins the Greil Mercenary's through the events of PoR. No I have not forgotten my other story's, however I did want to get the prologue up, so yeah.

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, I don't own Fire Emblem, Yadda, yadda.

Genre: Angst, Hurt/comfort

Rating: T (for minor violence and war themes)

Pairing's: Ilyana/Zihark, otherwise not too sure (Suggustions are appreciated, but no Yaoi, Boyd/Mist, or Astrid/Makalov)

Prologue: Detemination

He didn't know for how long exactly he had been wandering Crimea, but he didn't particularly care. He was tired, hungry, and had no where to go, but that didn't matter. Despite that he lived by logic and self-preservation like it was a law, his stubborn determination always won out in the end.

And right now he was determined to find the blue-haired boy, which was not an easy task by any means, but He certainly wasn't about to give up just yet. It was his last chance, his last hope.

For the longest time he stared at the strange fort directly in front if him. That was his destination, and though he couldn't be sure that it wasn't an unusual Crimean military base, he doubted that theory highly. If anything it was probably a mercenary fort, just the kind of job he was looking for.

Despite his fatigue he trudged on up the short hill leading to the base. It was rather defensible, the fort was. Thick walls surrounded it, and as far as he could see it only had two entrances which, if the need arose, could easily be defended by two soldiers each, provided that said units would be able to hold out against direct attacks.

But that didn't matter right now, as he was already approaching two figures standing a little ways from the fort. One was a young blue-haired boy, probably around the age of fifteen, while the other was an older man with graying light brown hair and blue eyes.

The man had a stern look about him, though there seemed to be a slight hint of humor in his eyes and perhaps a bit of kindness? He was well built and could have easily have lifted the large axe leaning against a tree nearby. He seemed to be a respectable sort, if slightly intimidating.

However it was the boy that caught his attention. He looked very familiar, and Soren knew why. The hair, the eyes, he looked exactly like that boy, only older. This couldn't be a mere coincidence could it? Soren quickly dismissed the thought. Of course it was just a coincidence he would be silly to think otherwise. But still…

"Who are you?" The younger of the two asked, cutting off his train of thought. Now normally this would have irritated him to no end, however he decided to make an exception.

"Soren," Came the curt reply. Soren nearly flinched at the sound of his own voice. It sounded harsh, even to him. Neither of them seemed to notice though, so he let it go.

"I'm Ike." The younger one said. Soren couldn't deny it any longer. He was the same boy. Though he didn't seem to remember him, Which Soren thought was odd. Did he really look that different? Or was there another reason? He'd have to think about this…

"The name's Greil, I'm commander of this here mercenary company. Did you want something?" Greil asked him.

Greil's gaze was intense and Soren had to suppress the urge to fidget. Soren could tell, Greil saw right through him. Did the commander know about it? About his kind? It was for this reason that Soren was having second thoughts about joining this particular group of mercenary's. There were others who would be willing to hire a mage weren't there?

No. Soren wouldn't allow himself to run away this time. He's been running his whole life, and he was tired of it. "I would like to join your mercenary company." Soren stated with an outward calm, betrayed by his inward apprehension.

"What am I so afraid of?" He asked himself angrily, and, despite that he already knew, he would never admit to it. Rejection. He was afraid of rejection.

"Aren't you a little young to be trying to join a mercenary company?" Greil asked him seriously, crushing Soren's hopes.

Soren drew himself up to his full height (Which wasn't all that impressive compared to Greil) stared at him with an intense gaze of his own, and asked, "So what if I am?"

Greil, instead of getting angry as Soren originally thought he would, gave a hearty laugh. Greil spoke up before Soren could respond to this. "You've got guts kid, I like that." Soren gave a small inaudible sigh. "So, you have any weapon training?" Greil asked.

"I am a practitioner of anima magic, namely wind magic." Soren stated professionally.

"A mage?" Ike asked. "Huh, I've… never actually met a mage before." He commented lightly, putting on a contemplative frown, his brow creasing slightly in thought.

Greil just ignored Ike's comment, probably because he was used to it, and went straight back to the original topic. "Now then, though a mage would be useful to have around, not to mention a nice addition to our company, I wouldn't want a kid on the battlefield. It's just too dangerous, and none of my mercenary's would want to be responsible for a young pup like you getting hurt." Though Greil's logic was rather sound, it angered Soren greatly.

"I can take care of myself, I don't need to be protected!" Soren said, letting his emotion get the best of him for once.

"Whether you think so or not isn't…" Greil never finished his sentence for Ike chose that moment to speak up. "Father, why don't we just try it out for now, see if it works out. You said it yourself; a mage would be a nice addition to the company."

"You know Ike, every once in while you actually have a good idea." Greil said with a slight smirk. "Welcome to the Greil Mercenary's Soren." Greil smiled, using Soren's name for the first time.

"You will not regret this, Commander Greil." Soren stated firmly, a determined look in his eyes. He would prove himself to be a capable member of this mercenary company. That much he knew for sure.

End Notes: Whew! I finally got this story up! Thank you peoples for willing me to finish The Sad Tale. Now I can continue the series. (Yes I will turn it into a series.) Till next time!