From the Ashes
The battle was over.
Azura felt ill, as she walked across the dry grass. It wasn't her first battle. Barring a miracle, it wouldn't be her last either. Nohr and Hoshido were at war. They'd been at war long before this (at least unofficially), and they'd be at war for a great deal longer. It was summer, and some said that not even winter would slow down the Nohrian war machine. And…and…
And she retched. She couldn't help it.
The sight was terrible. Banners billowed in the breeze. She could see the bodies of the dead and dying. Hoshido had won this particular battle, and the dying of their own side were either healed, or comforted, depending on how severe their injuries were. The dying Nohr were often killed where they lay, no matter how loud or eloquent their screams were. No-one liked it. But it was hard enough to feed one army, let alone prisoners, and usually, only officers were allowed such a luxury. Sight and sound, they filled her mind and ears, as the crows sung the song of Death.
But it was the smell that got to her. It was summer, and a terrible scent was carried on the wind. As rotting bodies made their way into the earth. Some called it the smell of Death. For her…she didn't know what to call it. She could only say it was wrong. That the smell was something that was unnatural. Death…death was natural. Death was a natural part of life. Even killing was an inevitability of human society, regardless of culture. But this…this was obscene.
"Azura?"
And she instantly flung herself into the arms of her friend (at least, that was what she called him).
"Are you alright?"
She didn't answer. That question didn't deserve an answer. That shouldn't have even been a question at all.
"I'm fine, by the way."
She withdrew from the embrace, and looked at Kamui. His cape was tattered, his armour dented. Blood ran down the right side of his face. A sword was in a scabbard attached to his belt, and she had no delusion as to what it had been used for.
"You're…you're alright," she whispered.
"Course I am," he murmured. He kicked up a tuff of grass, pollen floating in the air. "We won."
"That's…that's not what I meant. I mean-"
"Come," he said. "The ritual is about to begin."
"Ritual? What ritual?"
He didn't answer. He just strode across the battlefield. Soldiers knelt their heads as he passed, but he paid them no heed. He just kept walking. All the way to his personal tent.
"Kamui, what-"
"Come."
The prince entered the tent. Biting her lip, Azura followed. And she gasped.
Prince Ryoma. Princess Hinoka. Their bodies were laid out there before her. Their hands across their chest, clutching their weapon of choice, they were in the style of Hoshidan royalty. But no-one could mistake the manner of their deaths to be anything but violent. Because…
"Azura?"
Because she could smell it. Again. That gods-forsaken smell. She could see where the blades had entered their bodies. She could see a few flecks of blood on their armour, flecks that had about a 50/50 chance of being their own. But the smell. She retched once more.
"Enough."
She looked at Kamui. His own brother and sister. Those who were his true family. She had little love for Hoshido, but she had chosen her path. She was but a dancer, but even she knew that the loss of Ryoma and Hinoka was a disaster. Morale, experience, martial prowess…
"Do not weep," Kamui said. He held out his hands, as if praying. "They shall rise."
"Rise?" Azura asked. "But…how can-"
"Phoenix Mode," he whispered.
Azura said nothing. She knew what a phoenix was – it was a bird that didn't even exist outside myth and legend. She also knew that necromancy was just as fanciful.
But that didn't explain how the prince and princess began to rise to their feet. How they slowly returned to the world of the living. How their wounds seemed to heal.
"Kamui?" she whispered. "What is-"
"The gods smile on me," he whispered. "The game is played, in my favour. Those close to me shall rise again, and shall do so as long as I remain in the field. Such are the game's rules. Such is the path of the gods chosen, as they play with the lives of lesser beings."
Azura said nothing. She just stared at the prince and princess before her.
"Brother," said Ryoma.
"Brother," echoed Hinoka.
They were not their voices. The tone was the same. But the inflection, the subtleties, the warmth that the siblings had shared…it was not there. None of it. They were just…there. And Kamui turned to her.
"Fear not," he said. "If you shall fall, I can raise you again." He put out a hand, as if to stroke her cheek. "I shall never lose. Not the battle. And not you." He smiled. "So never fear."
Yet, Azura was afraid.
More so than she had ever been.
A/N
So, Fire Emblem If is now Fire Emblem Fates, and is indeed being released as two products. Not something I'm entirely happy about, but I suppose the volume of content provided will be the decider.
That said, there's one thing that's caught my eye, and that's what many have called the "casualisation" of the series, beginning with Awakening. This has included traits such as lack of weapon durability, Phoenix Mode, etc. Personally, I think item durability does add strategic depth to the game, but I don't have a problem with Phoenix Mode, given that it's optional. But whatever I feel, I draw the line when people start throwing "casuals" around as an insult. If people play a game a certain way, or play certain games for that matter, I'm not so thin skinned that I feel threatened by it, or feel the need to criticize them for not being "real gamers" (whatever that means).
Course, doesn't stop me from playing around with Phoenix Mode in-universe. ;)