Elysa's eyes flickered open. It was still dark, and she was unsure what woke her.

"Mmph." She uncurled from her sleeping position, shaking out the "pins and needles" in the arm she had been using as a pillow. To her right, Frederick was still leaned up against the tree that he'd dozed off on. When she looked back towards where the fire was dying out, Chrom and Lissa were nowhere to be seen.

"Frederick," she whispered loudly, a strange sense of foreboding rising in her chest. "Frederick, wake up..." She stood warily and fumbled with her belts and sword, clipping them back around her waist. The knight stirred.

"Hm? What's the matter?"

"Chrom and Lissa are gone."

The burly man shot to his feet, contrary to the fact that he'd been completely unconscious seconds earlier. His horse whinnied in surprise at the loud clatter of plate armor. "Did you see them go?" He looked around, a scowl on his face.

"No, I—"

She was cut off by a thunderous explosion, and suddenly the sky was ablaze. The both whipped around and saw a great rift appear in the sky, not too far from their campsite, framed by fire and smoke. Staring into the rift was like staring into a nebula, filled with a swirling, otherworldly pocket of the universe. Figures began to drop from the rift, limp and grey.

"Gods, what is that?" Frederick grabbed his horse, which was braying and bucking, threatening to break the branch it was tethered to.

"Nothing good," Elysa said grimly, and started running towards it.

"Elysa!" She heard Frederick calling from behind her, but did not stop. Moments later, hoof-beats shook the ground, and she was pulled up into the saddle by a gauntleted hand. "Excellent thinking. 'Must be trouble, best we approach.'"

She turned and narrowed her eyes at him. "Have you no concern that your lord and lady are somehow involved?" She sensed something then, and out of the periphery of her vision, she saw a blue cloak disappearing into the bracken. "Did you see that?"

"We're coming up to a clearing. Eyes ahead!" Frederick commanded.

The bare area was lit with fire and rising smoke. In the sky, the rift had begun to slowly drift back shut. Chrom was holding Lissa's shoulders, trying to steady her shaking. "Frederick! Elysa!"

Frederick swung off his saddle and towards the pair. Elysa dimly heard him asking if they were hurt, but her attention was focused on the scattered shapes around the clearing, illuminated by the light of the flames that leapt from the trees and underfoot greenery. They were humanoid, but reeked of dark magic, with grey skin and glowing red eyes. One groaned and lurched towards them, leaning on a lance.

"Are such horrific creatures common in these lands?" She asked, tugging on the reins as she dismounted.

Chrom shook his head. "They're not from Ylisse, I promise you that."

"No one is injured, then? Thank the gods." Frederick sighed.

"Thank the masked man who saved me!" Lissa said. "If it weren't for him, I'd— hey, where'd he go?" Elysa remembered the figure she saw dashing through the trees, but her attention was pulled by Frederick and Chrom readying their weapons with the distinctive sound of steel being drawn from scabbard.

"We can worry about him later. After we put these... things to the blade!" Fredrick grabbed his horse and swung back up into the saddle, charging forwards with Chrom close behind.

"Are you sure you're all right, Lissa?" Elysa regarded the younger girl with concern. Lissa nodded. "Okay. Just stay with me, I'll protect you while you work your healing skills."

They started towards the fray, but another person bolted past them, and Lissa squealed, pressing herself to Elysa's back. In a flurry, Elysa saw the blue-cloaked figure from before, dashing forwards towards Chrom and Frederick. She opened her mouth to shout a warning, but the figure vaulted off of the ground, cutting down the creature coming up on Chrom's rear.

"That's the man from before!" Lissa pointed.

Elysa stared at him, a strange feeling in her chest. She couldn't quite name it, but it was almost a sense of... protectiveness? Affection? Do I know him...? The mask he wore shielded any recognizable features.

"Captain Chrom! Hold on, I'm coming!" A female voice and the sound of hoof-beats announced the arrival of another player, a red-haired cavalier. Trailing behind her was a greenish-grey-haired man, a shortbow across his back, panting and wheezing. The cavalier twirled her lance. "All right, you ash-faced freaks! Which one of ya wants to try my lance on for size first? I know just the spot for it: shoved right up your—"

"Hold, milady!" The man interrupted, tugging on the woman's white horse's tail. It brayed in complaint and reared. She frowned and looked behind her.

"The hell—?"

The man grinned and made a sweeping, dramatic bow.

"Life may be long, but attraction is fleeting! Would you leave me in your sweet dust? Leave war to the warriors, dear bird! A beauty such as you need wage only love. Ah! Is the lady intrigued? Of course you are—it's only natural. I am myth and legend! I am he who strides large across history's greatest stage! The man who puts the "arch" in "archer"! My name, dear lady, is Vi—"

"Sorry, Ruffles, no time for—"

"V-VIRION! It's Virion. W-wait! Where are you going? Pray, at least tell me your name!"

"It's Sully." She scowled. "I'm a Shepherd."

"'Sully'! How divine! A starkly beautiful name, as befits its owner, truly. Will you marry me, my dearest Sully?"

"Will I WHAT now?"

"I realize my manly figure and noble bearing can be overwhelming. 'Tis common! So please, don't feel pressured to answer right a—"

"How's THIS for an answer?!" Sully backhanded the archer.

"G-goodness, but those shapely hands certainly can hit as well as they deftly wield the lance, can't they... I'd bet they could—" Sully raised her hand again threateningly, and Virion cut off. "P-please, milady! Allow me to accompany you, at least! Mine is a cold, empty world without you. I shall be your most willing servant, and you, in turn, will give my life purpose..."

Sully sighed. "Fine... Anything to shut you up… Look what you've done! Now we've missed all the action."

Elysa and Lissa, who were both thoroughly distracted by the pair's strange flirtation, finally looked back towards the battlefield, where Chrom was approaching the masked man. Elysa moved towards them. As she approached, she caught on to their conversation:

"…you saved my sister's life. I never got to thank you, before. My name is Chrom, might I ask yours?"

Once she'd drawn near, she saw that the man wore a butterfly-shaped mask, which covered most of his face. Elysa thought she saw his head turn briefly towards her, and a frown flicker across his mouth, but he turned away in another blink, and she was unsure if it had even actually happened.

"You may call me Marth," he intoned. There was something off about his voice.

"Marth?" Chrom said, surprised. "After the heroic king of old? Well, you certainly fight like a hero. Wher—"

"No, I'm not here to talk about me," Marth interrupted. "I must warn you: this world teeters at the brink of a horrible calamity. What you saw tonight was but a prelude." With that, he turned and walked away, disappearing back into the tree line. They watched him go in silence.

"Not much for conversation...?" Elysa commented. She saw Marth glance over his shoulder slightly, right before the forest obscured him from their sight.

"I'd wager we'll hear his name again. But for now, I'm more concerned about the capital…" Frederick said grimly. "We should make haste."


They approached the city as the sun was reaching its peak in the sky. The streets were bustling with more people than Elysa could ever remember seeing – although she didn't remember seeing much at all at that time – and the houses were many, and packed tightly.

"Look! The exalt has come to see us!" Someone in the crowd cried out, and the people surged forwards.

"Emmeryn," Elysa said, remembering. "Is it really safe for her to be walking in the streets amongst the commoners like this?"

"The exalt is a symbol of peace— Ylisse's most prized quality," Frederick explained. "Long ago, at the dawn of our age, the Fell Dragon tried to destroy the world. But the first exalt joined forces with the divine dragon Naga and laid the beast low. Exalt Emmeryn reminds us all of the peace we fought for then.

"With Plegia poking at our borders, the people need her," Chrom added. "She's a calming presence, when some might otherwise call for war."

"Ylisse is lucky to have her, then," Elysa said.

"And, and!" Lissa piped up, "She's the best big sister ever!"

"Yes, I'd imagine—" Elysa halted. "Wait, what? She's your… doesn't that make you and Chrom—"

Frederick raised an eyebrow. "The prince and princess of the realm, yes. You remember Chrom's name and not this?"

"You said you were shepherds!" Elysa exclaimed.

"And so we are, in a manner of speaking," Chrom laughed. "We just have a LOT of sheep."

"C-chrom…" Elysa stuttered, "I mean, Prince Chrom! Sire! F-forgive my dreadful manners!" She dipped her head hastily, bending at the waist.

"Just Chrom is fine," he said, flicking her chin up and smiling warmly. "I've never been one for formalities. Oh, it looks like Emm is returning to the palace. Would you like to meet her?"

"I'd be honored."

Chrom grinned. "Excellent. Sully, could you take your, ah... suitor, to the garrison, and wait for us there?"

Sully glanced back at the "ruffly" man and rolled her eyes. "As you wish, milord. Come on, you, lets get a move on." She extended a hand to Virion, who gasped dramatically, bringing his hands to his face.

"Oh! Is milady to honor me by allowing me to sit upon her lovely steed, hands around her beautiful waist, as we canter along the — wait! Don't go! Come back!"


"Chrom! Lissa! Welcome home." Emmeryn turned as the doors to the great hall opened. Elysa noted that her appearance matched Lissa's, with long, curled blonde hair and bright, smiling green eyes. She wore a gold mantle and billowing green robes, and on her forehead, she had the same mark that Chrom bore on his left shoulder. "Oh, and good day, Frederick. How fared you all? And who is this you've brought along?"

"This is Elysa," Chrom said, placing a hand on her shoulder. Elysa blinked, looking at him in surprise at the contact. "She helped us fight off brigands in Southtown. We shouldn't have any bandit problems for a while."

"Wonderful. And our people?"

"We still need to watch the borders. The brigands crossed over from Plegia."

"Forgive me, Your Grace," another woman stepped up, bowing her head. "My pegasus knights should have intercepted them."

Emmeryn shook her head kindly. "No, Phila. Your duty was here, with the exalt."

"And besides, we had plenty of help," Lissa said, tipping her head towards Elysa. "Chrom's made her a Shepherd!"

Emmeryn smiled. "It sounds as though Ylisse owes you a debt of gratitude, Elysa."

Elysa bowed deeply. "Not at all, Your Grace," she murmured.

"Forgive me, Your Grace, but I must speak," Frederick said suddenly, "Elysa claims to have lost her memory, but it is only that: a claim. We cannot rule out the possibility that she is a brigand herself, or even a Plegian spy."

"Frederick!" Chrom said sharply.

"Yet you allowed her into the castle," Emmeryn said, her voice still calm and soft. "Does this woman have your trust, Chrom?"

"Yes. She risked her life for our people, and that's good enough for me."

The exalt looked back towards Elysa. "Well then, Elysa... It seems you've earned Chrom's faith, and as such, you have mine as well."

"Your Grace," Elysa bowed again, her racing heart slowing slightly.

Emmeryn turned to Frederick. "But thank you, Frederick, for your prudence, as always. Chrom and Lissa are blessed to have so tireless a guardian. I do hope they remember to mention that from time to time..."

"They occasionally express something akin to gratitude, Your Grace," Frederick said gruffly. "Phila, I assume you've heard about the deathly creatures we encountered, yes?"

Phila nodded. "Yes, milord. They've been sighted all across Ylisse."

Emmeryn's lips tightened. "Chrom, we were about to hold council. I was hoping you could join us."

"Of course," he said, looking to Lissa. "Show Elysa around, would you? And take care of her." Lissa nodded eagerly. "Yeah! Elysa, c'mon, there's a place I want to show you."