Fe: Sky's Fate

by YueTian

Everything seemed to have finally settled down since the war against the Silent Dragon. Two years have passed and everything is finally running smoothly as the children grow older. However, it would seem some won't let them rest. Another chapter is starting for them and the new generation must step up as well. How will everyone bring back the lost order and uncover their secrets?

10. Chapter 10: Turning The Vines

Turning The Vines

"Again?"

The groaning voice echoed in their head as they opened their eyes to find the same man who had carried their infant self-standing between them and an enormous tree with a tight frown. They, however, neither frown nor did they feel a twitch in their lips to bring a smile as they replied stoically, "Humanity has decided that they were created for a purpose, Feng. That's what I've come to conclusion with as well."

"But, their decisions and discovery are bringing the world down a path to destruction in the next thousands of years!" the man rebuked with angrily as he swung his arms aside making the white flowers around their feet sway violently, "Yue. You may be the strongest out of us, but you're still the youngest and the least experienced. What you say now is not from wisdom, but knowledge."

They nodded, "If that's true, then what do you define wisdom as, Feng? What of Knowledge?"

"What?"

"From our visits, I've learned that some humans define wisdom as what they learn from books while others say that wisdom comes from experience and time. They say that knowledge is what comes from books while others say that knowledge comes from your own eyes." They explain much to their own confusion, "But, is there such a blunt answer to what these two words mean?"

"Yue, don't try this with me now. We don't need any more of the mortals' philosophy lessons." He warned with glaring eyes, "If you say that we celestials also exists for a purpose, then why did we have to go through so much just to be nearly forgotten by the mortals? Why did She have to go?!"

Suddenly, the image of the green hair woman flashed in the back of their head as Feng continued, "The one who brought you into existence and gave you a purpose from the very start. You'd know what would've happened without that purpose!"

They nodded their head, "True. She gave us a purpose. Which is why I must know what was it that she wants me to seek."

"And you believe that it's in the hands of mortals?" Feng grumbled miserably, "If it's something pertaining the world, it can only be safe in the hands of celestials like us. We can't pass away as easily as mortals."

Yue nodded, "But, neither can the answer she wants us to find. Among the mortals, humans are the most knowledgeable and sociable than any other mortals. Furthermore, they have the key that separates them from normal animals and beasts. The self-awareness. Like this, they can feel and express their emotions much more physically than any other mortals, which is why She fell for one."

Feng sighed and shook his head, "She fell for all of them, Yue. Just because she loved humanity, doesn't mean that they're more trustworthy than us and she wouldn't want to put them in danger. Then, what do they do after she's gone? Go out and find brutal ways to destroy this delicate balance she created for their safety! What's more, they've all forgotten about her! All she's done, all the pain she went through to erect that barrier for their protection and gifting them with the knowledge to survive and they throw the memories of her away!"

Yue frowned, "They did. And the worst of it? It was bound to happen."

"What?!"

"They've forgotten all about her because humans and mortals don't live long. They'll do everything they can to pass on the memories they have of the past, but not everything will come through." The words spilled from their lips as they continued, "However, that's why they try so hard to keep the memories of who they know alive, even if it won't be passed on to their next generations. If we were to consider that they'd remember all their past lives while making new memories, it'd be past the limit of what they can remember. She knew that as well, yet she still went ahead and did what she did. She's no fool who would believe in everything that's been thrown against her ideas and experience, but, unlike some of us up here, she's more open-minded and doesn't question it. She watches and sees why they have these qualities that make them different from us and themselves."

"Yue."

"If they were to have such qualities that She deemed strong and trustworthy, then there's no doubt that she'd leave the answer to them. No matter how distorted they've become." They finished solemnly.

Feng shook his head with a sigh, "You're only contradicting yourself, Yue. Earlier, you said that the answer can't disappear like us, now you said that it can become distorted."

They nodded, "Not all things can last forever, Feng. Even if we are Celestials, we can't continue forever as this divine image our kind wants us to think. We already have proof of that."

"Stop." He raised a hand and groaned with a sigh, "That's already enough. Yue, you've gotten too many ideas from the mortals. We are the Celestials. We can't mingle with the ideas of those below us."

Before they could respond, he continued, "That's it. I'm going to see our eldest brother. As for you, just… try not to get any more crazy ideas, Yue. I know you dislike the humans just as much as I despise them."

He finally turned around and walked into one of the cave tunnels in this deep ravine lit only be the light of the moon and the glowing white lilies around their feet. They sighed and looked up to the full moon in the center of the open ravine as they muttered hollowly, "That's right. And I know that their curiosity and desire will also become their own downfall."

---

He opened his eyes to the black-white wall above him as he muttered, "What do you mean…?"

He slowly got up with a grimace and saw that he was in his own room before coming face to face with a certain person sitting next to his bed with a raised brow.

"What do you mean by that, big bro?"

"Huh?" he raised a brow before he shouted, "What the-?! Agh!"

She watched as the purple-haired man's hand slipped from the blanket and went for a tumble right before his little sister, who giggled, "Good morning, Shiro~!"

He groaned as he sat up on the carpet, "Gah… How did you get in here, Rinne? Don't tell me Dad and Mom dropped you off here again?"

"Pretty much." She answered bluntly.

He sighed as he looked up to her, "And? Who let you in this time, little beast?"

She pouted angrily, "Hey, just so you know our cousin was the one who let me in! Kiragi does have your keys for a reason, you know."

Shiro yawned as he got up, "Right… What time is it, Rinne?"

"Hm…" She frowned before checking her pink watch, "It's… almost eight."

"Oh, I see. Thanks…" He nodded with a smile before his eyes widen, "What?!"

He checked his wall clock before he panicking grabbed the swivel chair she was on and rolled it outside with her in it, "Wait outside while I get changed! Oh, gods! I'm going to be late!"

As he said this, he quickly slammed the door behind him. Rinne shook her head with a sigh before seeing Kiragi run up to her in a blue jersey with a panicked face.

"Rinne!" he called out to her with a grimace, "Don't tell me he's still-?"

She shook her head, "He's just woken up."

"Have you tried smacking his face?" Kiragi questioned with a sigh.

She nodded as she listed, "Slapping a few times, blew my trumpet, screamed into his ears, punched him in the face, set off a few alarms all at once…"

Kiragi grimaced, "So, that's why it's gotten harder to wake him up. You know, you're-"

"A little violent?" She finished with a smirk and a small sigh, "That's what everyone says. But, it's not like he'll just notice me if I call him."

"A little?" He shuddered before shaking his head and knocked on the door, "Hey, Shiro! Are you done now?!"

"Y-Yeah! S-Shoo-!"

Suddenly, there was a tumbled as Rinne gasped, "Oops! I forgot to put away my trumpet case… Heh, heh?"

---

It was afternoon when classes were finally over for the day and Rinne could talk in better details with her brother. They sat down around the table in the corner of the library as her brother spoke, "Don't tell me he went even though he got injured?"

Rinne shook her head, "Nope. But he did try to. Mom wouldn't let him."

Kiragi sighed, "So, why did they brought you here?"

Rinne shrugged, "I was hoping you'd know, but I did hear Mom and Dad say something about these 'Lost Ones' or something like that."

Shiro frowned as he narrowed his eyes, "Oh, I get it now…"

"Really?" she said as she looked up to him, "What are they talking about, Big Bro?"

Shiro shook his head, "That's for us to know, Rinne. Honestly, you'd be better off not knowing about those, uh… bugs. They're kind of like termites, but well…"

"They're just annoying bugs." Kiragi finished with a small grin, "Our neighbors had them one I think, but I don't know how they got rid of them…"

"Really?" Rinne frowned, "I've never heard of those before."

Shiro shrugged, "Well, you can try to look up about it here in the library…"

"Aw…" She pouted, "But that'd take too long. I hate researching too… Just how does Laurent do it? They're so complicated…"

Shiro smirked, "Well, I guess it's because he likes to study?"

"Well, I don't…" She sighed, "So, much work."

Kiragi shook his head, "Seriously, you and Shiro are really alike."

Rinne frowned, "Well, we are siblings, obviously."

Shiro nodded with a sigh, "You know that's saying it in a negative way, Rinne?"

"Really?" she tilted her head, "Doesn't it usually mean as a compliment?"

Their cousin shrugged, "That's depending on how you look at it."

"Then, it's a compliment!" Rinne stated with a wide grin.

Her brother nodded again, "Right…"

As their cousin raised a brow, Shiro continued, "There's no use explaining to her."

Kiragi sighed, "I know."

Shiro turned to her, "So, what did Dad and Mom talk about?"

"Hm, they said something about a source and that they need to see Uncle Xander and Aunt Hinoka in the next couple of weeks." She said with a frown, "It don't think it's time for the yearly reunion yet, though…"

Shiro narrowed his eyes and glanced over to their cousin, who nodded firmly, before looking back at her, "And? Was that all they talked about?"

She shook her head, "Well, it seemed like they were talking about me and how I should probably go with them at some point."

Shiro's eyes widen as Kiragi frowned, "What do you mean?"

"It was after Mom told Dad to stay at home." She replied as she continued with a frown, "Dad was wondering whether or not they should bring me along at some point and also learn how to fight from Mister Jakob. He doesn't seem convinced that I could protect myself with just martial arts and boxing…"

"Really?" the brother raised a brow with a frown.

She nodded, "Yeah, but it's weird since they never called me with a nickname before…"

He sighed, "So that's it, huh? Rinne, how's your boxing lessons coming along?"

Her eyes suddenly lit up with a bright smile, "Master said that I would come out number one again this year and I can feel that too!"

She smirked and mimed a punch in the air, "I'm so hyped! I'm gonna aim for the top at the national championship in the human realm too!"

He smirked and ruffled her dusty red hair, "Just don't slip the moment the match starts, kid."

She groaned and pouted, "Hey, that was only once, Shiro! I was five!"

"Yet, you still remember the time better than I do." He chuckled before she gave him one of her light jabs in the shoulder, "Haha! I get it! I get it!"

"Mister Shiro…"

They looked up and saw a blond bun hair woman in a white suit and glasses walk over to them as she whispered in a hushed voice, "This is the library."

"Oh, right. Sorry about that, Miss Stryk." He whispered back nervously.

"Also," she continued, "It would seem that you got a call from Mister Seigbert from the General Middle school Section."

Shiro raised a brow, but nodded, "Please tell him to contact me through another device and that I have it on me right now."

She nodded after pushing her glasses back in place, "All right, then."

As she walked away, Shiro turned to them, "Kiragi, can you take my sister back to your parent's place?"

He nodded, "Sure."

"Work again?" Rinne sighed with a short shrug, "Got it. I'll go stay with Uncle's and Aunt's for a bit… after I take my trumpet with me."

The purple hair lancer groaned, "Speaking of which, why did you bring that… trumpet with you? You know how loud that thing is."

"Yet, you slept right through it." Rinne sighed, "You know, I played the 'Carnival of Venice' solo for a good eight minutes straight and you slept right through that too."

"Carnival of what?" Shiro grimaced before he sighed, "Whatever the case, can I ask that you don't play your trumpet in my room seven in the morning? All the kids asked why I started playing the trumpet in the morning of all times and I can't tell them that it's because Kiragi and I let you in my dorm room. It's a boy's dorm, after all."

His sister sighed, "Well, you certainly didn't wake up from that…"

"Oh," her eyes lit up, "But, what if I learn how to use the cymbals from my master and use that?! Then, I can-"

"Rinne…"

She paused upon the frown and the scolding tone of her brother before she sighed and shrugged as she mumbled, "I got it. I got it. I won't do it again…"

After seeing his little sister away from the table, Shiro returned to the corner and pulled out a small orb from his pocket. Sure enough, a small image of his comrade shone in the orb as he sighed, "Sorry about that, Sieg. It took a while to get her to leave with our cousin."

The red-haired man shook his head, "It's fine, Shiro. More importantly, something unusual has started to occur as of late. I felt that it'd be best for you to know as well if you haven't heard."

"Really?" Shiro raised a brow, "Does this have to do with the sighting of the Lost Ones again?"

Siegbert shook his head, "No, it doesn't, I'm afraid."

Shiro looked at him quizzically as his friend continued solemnly, "There's a war starting in the human realm."

"A war?" Shiro grimaced, "So, the election has started another bloody battle amongst themselves after years?"

Siegbert shook his head, "No. Fortunately, the elections haven't gone to that level, though some feel that it's close. If it did, it would've become anarchy in one country. No. It's the Magicians and the monsters."

"Those guys?" He raised a brow, "But what could've made them start moving? They've never even got up from their seats till now."

Siegbert frowned, "I don't know. But, this time, even their children, the Genrares, are starting to move and have won battles in both factions. However, they've lost a considerable amount of people along the way."

"Oh gods." He muttered, "And those groups were small, to begin with. Not to mention, they're still just teenagers."

"And children." The other added with a grimace, "Have your parents decided the measure they're going to use to keep Rin safe or have they not known about it yet?"

Shiro sighed, "I don't know if they know about it, but they've sent Rinne to school today. Mom decided to go and investigate the Lost one incident with Asugi's mom. Dad is probably stuck at home with some files to work on."

"Really?" Siegbert raised a brow, "I thought he'd want to further investigate the matter."

Shiro nodded as he brushed his hair back, "He did. But, he got injured a bit during the last investigation and is stuck at home healing up. My mom didn't want him to be up and about, of course. "

"I guess it's not too major if he's pondering about leaving, then?"

Shiro nodded, "Ah. But, he doesn't seem to have the time to watch over Rinne as usual. So, what do you and your parents plan to do for Suki?"

Siegbert frowned before shaking his head, "Well, since they've heard about the war, they planned to keep her as close as possible, but…"

"But?"

The red hair swordsman sighed, "Last night, she talked to our parents. She wants to take the entrance exam for Tasogarekan Academy."

"What?!" Shiro's jaw dropped, "She wants to attend school? Here?! But, won't she face-"

Siegbert nodded, "Yes. We've talked about it for a while, but it seems our Father is finally reconsidering the idea after all these years. I never thought this would happen…"

"So, that means she can try to get into this school." Shiro assumes.

"It does." He replied with a frown, "Under one condition."

Shiro raised a brow, "'kay?"

Hesitantly, the swordsman continued, "That she'd score in the top ten in the entrance exam."

"Huh?" the lancer raised a brow, "But, I thought that your father is reconsidering his thoughts-"

"He is." Seigbert replied with a sigh, "But, our mother still thinks it's a little too early for her to leave the house."

"Aunt Hinoka?" Shiro raised a brow, "She really is protective of Suki, after all. So, what is she going to do? She's gonna have to study and all that."

Siegbert nodded, "Yes. She told me that she's already studying and training under Eric and with the other examinees."

Shiro sighed, "Well, she is pretty good at her studies, but Suki has never touched a blade before now or a tome."

"Which is why our mother thinks there's a good chance she won't pass as easily." Siegbert added with a sigh as well, "She is very anxious when it comes to Suki, especially as of late. And the test isn't till a month. She won't be able to pass just by picking up a weapon for a month. Our mother isn't trying to be mean. She's just worried and doesn't want her to leave her side."

"Suki won't." Shiro concurred with a grimace, "Not even in the top tens. At most, she'd reach in just by the lower half if she takes the test like this or she wouldn't even make it at all. Why did she suddenly decided to take the exam all of a sudden? It's not like she's been training all her life like your pupil and his sister have."

"I don't know." Siegbert shook his head, "But, it's the first time she'd ask for such a big decision from our parents for herself. I want to be supportive and help her since it's the first time, but even I'm not allowed to partake in training her."

"I can see why." Shiro nodded, "She's a Hopien, after all. Unlike my sister, Suki's physical characteristic is her eyes. What is her eye color now? Silver?"

Seigbert nodded with a grimace, "Yeah. It's changed after these past five years. At least, after her seventh birthday."

Shiro sighed, "Now, for Rinne."

"Have she decided what to do in the future?"

He nodded," Yeah. Our parents aren't too happy about it, but they're supportive at least."

"And? What about you?" Siegbert questioned with a frown, "What does she want to do in the future?"

"She wants to become an idol." Shiro answered with a sigh, "You know, the celebrities who perform? She wants to become an idol in Japan."

"Oh, singers." Siegbert nodded, "I get it now. Strange. I'd thought she'd want to become a knight later on?"

Shiro nodded with a sigh, "Same here, but she chose to become an idol and she's serious about it too."

"Well, she does have talent in music too. I really should've thought about that." Siegbert said, "But, Japan is in the human realm."

"Yeah. We don't know how she plans on living in that realm with that problem." Shiro answered with a grimace, "And now that there's a war going on there…"

Suki's brother nodded, "That's going to become a large obstacle in her path."

"Yeah." Shiro concurred, "Have you heard of any other information about that war since then? Like where it's taking place?"

"A lot more than you think." He answered solemnly, "It's already been over a week too."

"A week?" Shiro frowned, "Word must have spread pretty fast, then… or is it just that big."

"The latter."

"I was afraid of that…"

Siegbert nodded, "Sean and my Soliel's grandparents told us everything they could gather. It seemed to have started in Southern California, then it also began in Northern California as well."

"In both groups?" Shiro frowned as a dark image came into his mind, "But, can those monsters plan attacks like this? They don't seem very smart."

"We don't know." Siegbert shook his head with a frown, "However, those two battles seemed to have costed many lives on the two Genrare bases."

"Loses?!" Shiro grimaced, "But, they must be children around Rinne's age!"

He nodded, "Yeah, but that wouldn't matter to those beings. They've been like this for hundreds of years, after all."

"So, who's leading the factions now?"

"We've got some names." Siegbert replied with a frown, "Kasha is the female tactician and leader of the Southern California base. The other is Matthew. He's the leading general of the Northern California base."

"Great." Shiro sighed, "Assuming that they're both teenagers, I guess-"

"Actually," Siegbert cut in, "Matthew is a teenager. I heard that Matthew is around our sisters' age. He seemed to have been chosen because he is skilled with the katana."

"Strength." Shiro noted bluntly.

The other nodded, "His father is the magician of Strength meaning fire."

He sighed, "And the other? It doesn't sound like she's a teenager as well."

"She isn't." Siegbert replied firmly.

"It's rare for a person to live into adulthood even though they're being chased for so long." Shiro noted with a frown.

The other nodded, "Yes. Kasha is nearing her thirties and seems to already have a family of her own. While Matthew's background remains in the dark."

"It sounds like she could make it out alive for a longer period of time at this rate." Shiro commented with a nod, "Anyway, the graduating students are supposed to have a field trip there this year too."

"They're going to have to reschedule that." Siegbert said with a grimace, "It would only put them in danger if they get caught in the middle of it."

He paused before he said with a narrowed eyes, "Sieg, does your sister know she's a Hopien, yet?"

The red-haired swordsman shook his head, "Not yet. My parents still think it's a little early for her to know. What about Rinne?"

Shiro sighed, "She knows, but…"

Siegbert chuckled, "Still acting oblivious?"

He shook his head as he groaned, "Nah, just happy-go-lucky and doesn't understand the whole issue besides that it's a secret. Anyway, does Shigure know?"

"He's the one who told me about the war first. Uncle Kamui and Aunt Corrin reported the rest to my parents." Siegbert replied with a frown, "Now, I just hope Suki wouldn't start asking to go out into the human realm as well. It would make it harder to watch out for the both of them than just one."

Shiro nodded, "Not to mention that she would be known all around the world like that. There's very few Genrare that survive despite being known around the world."

Shiro sighed, "It looks like we suddenly have some pretty demanding siblings on our hands all of a sudden, for better or worse."

"It seems like it." Siegbert replied with a chuckle, "Anyway, it's almost time for my shift now. I'll speak with you another time, then."

"Ah." He nodded with a short wave, "I need to make sure that my sister leaves the school grounds safely too. See ya!"

As the image vanished, Shiro stuffed the orb back into his pocket. He looked up to see the empty library gates before he got up and grabbed his naginata leaning against the table as he made his way out the door.

---

In the shadows of the darkness, a woman with long curly brown hair hurried across the field of grass holding them tightly in her arms. They remained quiet as they watched on in her mother's arms. Taking a quick look back, they noticed a dark shadow of a large snake with arms holding a dual blade in each hands. They shuddered as she heard something sizzle and turned to her mother, "Mother…"

The woman looked down to them with a strained smile, "Everything's alright… We'll get back to daddy and your siblings, Rin."

They frowned as their hearts pounded faster, "But, mother, I'm-"

"Not now, dear. I'm-!"

There was a sudden scream coming from their mother as the tip of a sword oozing green pierced through her chest. Their eyes widen in horror as a hand suddenly covered their mouth. Their mother's voice flowed into their ears as everything turned black around them.

When they finally came to, they found themselves crushed under something as they struggled under the burden. By the time they were out, their eyes widen and their heart sank as the sight of the woman lying motionless on the ground before them with gaping flesh all over her body. Despite knowing, they softly touched her on the arm, "Mother?"

There was no response as to be expected. Regardless, they kept shaking her shoulder and called out to her, "Mother? Mother?!"

"Hey, there's one over here!"

She turned to the person around her only to see some kind of tentacle creature thrown across the field with a glint of a blade into its head. Suddenly, there was an arm that scooped her up as she was suddenly carried off. As they glanced up, they were met with a grimace from a silver-haired man, who whispered, "Hold on. We're almost at Tokyo Towers now."

"But, what about Mother?" They questioned with bewilderment, "What's happened to mother?"

"What's goin-?"

---

"Shigure? Please wake up?"

"Meow…"

"Oh gods! Shigure, wake u-!"

"MRRROWWW!"

"OW!"

Pain rang on his back as the blue-haired man suddenly jumped up coming face to face with the white Maincoon on his table. He grumbled as he touched the back of his head, "Ow…"

"Evol!"

There was a sudden black paw that lashed out of the white cat from the corner of his eyes. It was Lief. The man strained a smile as he watched the two began another quarrel over him this time as he patted both on the head, then slowly got up from his chair and quietly made his way to the small table in the corner where a small antique lamp sat. He grasped the indented handle and inserted a small key from his pocket on his pants. After doing so, he pulled the drawer open revealing an old large book. It had a hardcover that was blue with white rims. In the middle written in gold was his name in cursive. It was something his father bought for him partially as a souvenir from this old country called Britain. It was an unusual place often referred to as Great Britain, but, with their long history, he could see the reason for the title. He was told his mother had helped his father in picking it out and he could see the reason why they chose the book. He pulled out the book and returned to his seat on the sofa as he opened the book. Inside were many scribbles and writings he did over the course of ten years here in this world. As he took a step on the sofa, the cats ceased their bickering and looked up to him as Evol called out to him, "Had another dream again, Shigure?"

"Was it unbearable as it was before?" Lief questioned anxiously as she placed her head on his lap.

The man nodded, "Ah, it was a little more unusual. Not too difficult this time, Lief, but thanks for the support."

The cat purred as he scratched behind her ears. He then pulled out a blue ball-point pen and began to write on a blank page. Evol sighed, "As long as you think so, then that's all that matters."

"But, is it possible to tell us about it this time, milord?" Lief pleaded as she looked up to him, "Pardon my request and curiosity. It's just you've always told Ev of the dreams."

Shigure nodded with a strained smile, "I will, but let me finish writing down what happened before I forget anything important."

The pages were full of the unusual dreams that he had. Dreams that he felt were needed to be recorded as they seem to be related to their former allies. Others were of things that made little sense to him but felt crucial to make note of. As he wrote out the details of his dreams, his eyes narrowed as he muttered, "Tokyo Tower…"

He frowned before putting his pen down and reached for the miniature orb on the large table before him. As he brought it closer, he turned to the black cat, "Lief, if you want you can hear about it when I speak with Shiro."

"At this time of night?" Lief questioned, "I understand that your dream must have been of great importance for milord to call Shiro, but it's in the middle of the night. I don't wish for you to end up feeling fatigued in the morning."

Ev nodded, "If it's so urgent, put it till tomorrow morning or the both of you will end up feeling to tired to start the day tomorrow, Shigure. Otherwise, it would only prolong your work longer and it's already been ten years."

The prince grimaced before he nodded, "You're right. We've gone through this before if I remember correctly."

"One where you collapsed in your cousin's shop too." The white cat pointed out with the flick of his tail, "Lest, you want to put your cousins and sister through that shock again, I'd advise that you rest for the night."

"And maybe you get to meet Feather in your dreams again." Lief said with a cat grin.

Shigure chuckled awkwardly before scratching her behind her ears once again, "You know, it's not like that, Lief. But, it would be better if we know that your master is safe as well."

He sighed before closing his book, "Then, I'll take your advice and put it aside till tomorrow."

He locked the book back in the drawer and placed the orb into his pocket before making his way to the stairs with his lance in hand. Once he vanished, Lief got up from her seat on the sofa and approached her colleague as they stare at the stairs, "It's been ten years now and the prince's dreams have only grown to occur more often. You were right to be worried that this would happen, Ev."

The white cat sighed, "True. But, it's more troublesome than that."

He turned to the orb sitting under the lamp of the small table in the corner as he muttered, "To think that his cousins would be experiencing the same…"

Lief nodded, "You've been by our former mistress longer than I have, Ev. Do you know what this could mean?"

"Sadly, I don't." He sighed before cleaning his paw, "We know her personality. She'd never want to worry us with her personal affairs to the best of her abilities."

Lief turned to him, "I know you, Ev. You're wise and ecetera, but too prideful and rude as ever. Still, I know that you're attentive to our surroundings more than the four of us. It was the one thing that taught and protected our mistress throughout our journey to Nohr more than it had with her strength."

He stared at her with a flick of his tail as he growled, "Is that a compliment or an insult?"

He gave himself a quick shake before he sighed, "So? The only reason you're talking like this is when you want to know something that only I know. Spit it out."

"You must have noticed it before." Lief began, "So far, only the crown princes of the three kingdoms have been having these recurring dreams. We thought that it was just a coincidence at first, but it's been getting worse ever since the day we arrived. Save the dreams where our mistress appears recently. You don't think that this is all set up, do you?"

"You thought that it was just a coincidence." Evol clarified solemnly, "Have you forgotten the teachings our former mistress received? Everything we encounter is inevitable. There are no coincidences. It was because of this teaching that she thrived to have the kits."

He sighed before curling into a ball on the sofa cushion, "However, she's gone. We're the only ones left and I do not know how to use this lesson to my advantage as she had. What worries me now is why is it inevitable for these kits to start have these dreams? Just what connection do they have with these dreams? If we know this, we can start making our judgements and follow our orders perfectly."

Lief nodded, "To protect Valla's royal family in their absences, especially Lady Ahna and Lord Kana."

As he nodded before, her ears perked up as she added, "Oh, and please don't refer the princes as 'kits' at least. It's extremely disrespectful."

"Does it look like I care?" He heaved a sigh as he placed his head on the mattress and muttered, "I have the right to say whatever I please. You can't stop me."

Sighing as well, she got to her feet as she responded wearily, "Sounds like something you'd do. I'm going to check on the princesses."

The white cat lifted his tail once before turning his head away.

---

On the fence in the pasture of livestock and war mounts, Ahna whined as she pouted, "Where's Eric and Sally? I haven't seen them in so long now…"

"Yeah." Kana said as he leaned against the fence under the sun, "Laurent's gone too."

Sliding his blade back in his sheathe, Marc sighed, "That's because Eric and Sally are training for her exam."

Closing her tome, Morgan looked up to them from the green grass and nodded with a frown, "Laurent has to do some work for his mother, but he should be able to spend time with us tomorrow. His parents are suppose to be here by tomorrow, I heard."

"Oh, did you know that I saw Suki using magic for the first time yesterday?" Nah said as she sat next to Morgan.

"What?" Morgan raised a brow, "But, I thought she couldn't use magic too well aside from the orb?"

Ahna's eyes widened, "Is she going to try and take the test too?"

"Maybe." Nah said with a frown, "Why should try asking Eric, though. He's the one tutoring them."

"That's true." Ahna muttered.

"Morgan!"

They turned to the interior of the pasture and saw a silver twin hair girl running up to them with an anxious look about her face as she called out to her sister, "Storm has tried to start a fight with Beruka's wyvern again!"

"Huh?" Morgan furrowed her brow, "Again?!"

She hopped up to her feet and swung herself over the fence before hurrying up to her sister and into the large white barn.

Marc sighed as he leaned against the fence next to Kana, "I don't understand what her Pegasus has against the wyvern."

"Me either." Nah concurred as she shook her head.

---

"Hey, Aunt Luce. Where's Grandpa and Grandma at now?" Soliel called up to the blue haired woman with a blue skirt, white button shirt, and a sword in hand as she watched her aunt over the fence in the training ground.

The woman looked up from her target tree with a raised brow, "They should be far South of Wyscun by now."

"Really? Wow, that's far." Soliel said with a grimace, "It'd be great if they could make it to the reunion. Is Uncle Gerome going far too?"

Lucina strained a nervous grin, "S-Soliel, it's not like we're-"

"But you two must've thought about it, right?" The light blue hair woman said with a cheeky grin, "Dad told me that the two of you have been together for nearly five years before we came here."

Lucina sighed as she sheathed her blade back and walked over to her before petting her head with a chuckle, "Let's… talk about this another time, Soliel. Gerome has only gone to check on how things are following at Rinne's home. We heard that they're having a tough time and he's gone over there to help."

The girl raised a brow, "But then, you'd be going to help as well, Aunt Luce."

"Normally," Lucina nodded in agreement, "However, this time, I am to stay in town with you and keep watch over this town. Also, it seems your father and superior needs some help with their job."

"Oh, I get it now." She nodded, "Mom has been really busy helping her boss with the move and she still has to work as a guard here too."

"So you see?" Lucina smiled, "Gerome and I have always been on a journey for a long time and we have the most time out of everyone. It's only natural that we'd choose to help out our comrades at their time of need."

"Then, Grandpa and Grandma are still searching for more clues in this world too, right?"

Lucina nodded, "Yes. All that's left now is this world. Kamui and his family are still searching for signs in the human realm, so my parents will search for clues here in this realm."

"It's about time too." Soliel said with a sigh, "It's been over ten long years, after all. It feels so weird to live for another ten years. I still feel like I haven't aged at all."

Lucina chuckled, "Haha… Yes. Well, we still have to keep an eye out over Rinne. She was brought to your comrades for a reason, after all."

"So, we needed to wait for her to grow up?" Lucina's niece groaned, "That's a really long time."

"It has." She agreed with a curt nod and looked up to the blue sky behind the white puffy clouds, "However, I believe that we're extremely lucky that nobody has given up hope, despite it having passed ten years. Now, we've found the proof that we're looking for and it's given all of us the strength to continue forward into the search."

After a peaceful silence passed, Soliel turned to her Aunt, "Hey, Aunt Luce. Can you tell me about Ylisse again? And how grandma met grandpa?"

Lucina chuckled, "Didn't I tell you those tales last week?"

"Yeah." Soliel confirmed with a smirk, "But, I want to hear about it again and the tales about the hero-king that we're descended from."

Lucina sighed and shrugged, "Well, it shouldn't be a problem and it can't be helped if Inigo was unable to tell you any tales of our home and lineage."

The cerulean blue hair woman took a seat on the green grass as her niece followed suit next to her. Lucina began, "It all started a long, long time ago. There exists a kingdom in the continent of Archanea called Altea. And, in the kingdom lived two siblings. Prince Marth, the crown prince of Altea, and his elder sister, Princess Elice. All the kingdoms of Archanea were at war and Altea was one of them. One day, while out on a campaign, their father, the king, fell when their own allies, Gra, betrayed them and he was forced to take on the Dolhr Kingdom by themselves. The kingdom of Gra sent men to capture the siblings, but Elice had hidden Marth away with her powers. From there all word of his whereabouts remained unclear till the day he reappeared out of the blue protecting the people regardless of their origins and marching on to reclaim his kingdom. During his quest, he gained many allies…"

---

"Xing!"

As the cerulean blue hair man shouted, a black and white ball was sent flying into a red haired boy in a red and white jersey jacket and red pants. The boy smirked and caught the ball his foot doing a backflip.

"Xing!" A pink hair woman in a pink dress gasped and rushed over to him, "Are you all right, Xing? Just what was that?"

The boy chuckled, "I'm fine, Mom. You and Sis worry too much."

"Well, of course!" the woman scolded with a frown, "If you're going to play soccer, can't you do it without doing these tricks?"

"It's fine, Olivia." The man chuckled as he walked over to them in a blue jersey and brown pants, "The young man is a pro at this."

"Yeah!" Xing chuckled as he gave a thumbs up.

"However," he added with a raised brow, "You should still exercise caution and not get too cocky, Xing."

"Dang it." The boy groaned.

The couple chuckled as he sulked.

"Have you sparred yet, Xing?" the man questioned.

Xing nodded, "Yeah. A hundred times on the stone."

"Good." He nodded with approval as he smiled, "And, I'm going to guess that Frederick brought you down again?"

"Yeah…" Xing frowned, "Dad, why do I have to practice the sword when the human world rarely ever uses it anymore. Are we staying in this realm?"

"Perhaps." The father nodded with a frown, "There's still something your mother and I have been searching for years now and this realm is the only place that's not been thoroughly checked."

Xing raised a brow, "That's what you said last time when we were in Antarctica. Just what are you searching for, Dad?"

The man shook his head and walked over to the young boy. Ruffling his son's hair, the man smiled softly, "It's a little early for you to know now, Xing. Wait till you're a little older."

"But, I'm already fifteen." Xing replied with a frown, "You keep saying that I need to wait till I'm older, but just what is it that would need for me to wait?"

"Chrom…" Olivia frowned.

The man shook his head and patted Xing on the shoulders, "Right now, what you need to worry about is your own education and swordplay, Xing. I promise that we'll tell you when we feel that you're ready to know about these things."

The boy frowned, but turned away and walked back to the wagon. Olivia frowned and attempted to hurrying after her son, but Chrom stopped her and shook his head, "He needs some time by himself, Olivia. He needs to grow up by himself now."

"But he's only fifteen, dear." She frowned.

He nodded, "An even more reason why he needs some time to cool off."

He picked up the soccer ball as he continued, "Don't worry. If something happens, we'll be right there by his side. He just needs some time for himself."

Reluctantly, she slowly nodded and glanced back to the old wagon they've had for thirteen years constantly being repaired or had parts replaced, "Do you think we'll have to tell him one day? That he's adopted?"

Chrom frowned, "Perhaps, but not now. It would probably make things worse for him during this stage of life."

"Chrom sir, the squad is ready to set out in a bit."

The couple turned and saw the Ylissean retainer still in his old armor as if the years had yet to sink into the metal. Chrom nodded and took off his jersey jacket reveal his usual blue clothe from his world and handed it to his wife. Olivia looked up to him, "Your armor is in the wagon, dear."

Chrom nodded once more with a smile, "Thanks, Olivia."

"Cherche have offered to stay behind and watch over young Xing, sir." Frederick stated.

Chrom gave a small smile as he joked, "Thank you, Frederick. You still can't just call me without any honorifics can you, Frederick?"

"My apologies, sir. But, I just can't do that." the retainer responded sternly.

Chrom shook his head, "It's fine, Frederick. I'll be right back."

As the man left to the wagon his son entered, Olivia turned to the knight, "Frederick? Where are the Shepherds going to investigate today?"

"The forest up north. It holds the legend of a large shark that inhabits a pond." Frederick answered, "There have been sightings of the ghost of an elderly man with elf-like ears."

"Elf-like ears?" Olivia's eyes widened, "But, in our world, that'd be…"

"A manakete." He nodded.

---

After a few minutes, the man returned and they've set out on their journey into the forest as they trudged through the snow. As they walked on, Chrom turned to Frederick, "So, there is probably a manakete in these forest?"

"Yes, sir." The retainer said with a curt nod, "The person is said to be an old man with white beard and red robes. It's also said that a white dragon lives in these parts of the forest, but these rumors have been going on for as long as the residents of the town remembers. There's been claims that it could even be the former king of Wyscun."

"Ghosts?" Leo frowned in his old armor and brown war horse, "I see. So, that's why you asked me to join you this time. However, I believe that Owain would know more about this than I would, Chrom. He's done missions related to these subjects, after all."

"I'm afraid that's the biggest problem, Sir Leo." Frederick responded with a frown.

"That's the problem?" Leo frowned and raised a brow before his eyes widen, "No, you don't mean-!"

Chrom nodded with a grimace, "Lon'qu and my sisters doesn't know yet, but we've sent my nephew on the mission a week ago and, since then, there's been no mention from him. I'm worried that something had happened to him, which is why we had to ask for your help, Leo."

The dark knight grimaced, "Then, he's been gone missing for over a week? Elise was right to be worried."

"So, you haven't heard a word from him either?" Chrom frowned, "That's not a good sign. I thought he'd at least given you a word of the situation before he vanished."

Leo shook his head, "All he told me was that he had personal matters that needed to be taken care of and that was a week ago! That must've been before he set out into the forest!"

Chrom nodded, "That'd sound like something he'd do."

Leo muttered, "Then, where could he have gone?"

"Chrom!"

The three stopped as Keaton rushed over to them with a piece of stick in his hand, "Chrom! I've found this further down in the forest!"

The black and white hair man hurried over to them and showed them the stick. Chrom frowned, "That… it looks a little like Lissa's staff."

"Hang on! Let me see!"

Brady rushed up to them in his usual Sage clothing. The man grimaced, "Yup, that looks like his no doubt."

"It's his?" Leo raised a brow.

Keaton nodded, "It's faint, but his scent is all over it."

Brady nodded, "Yeah. It was from the previous exalt from our time. After his ma passed, he came back as fast as he could, but we only found this in all the rubble at one of the fortresses. He told me not to tell our comrades, but… Well, we need ta' know where he is."

Chrom frowned, "I see."

Leo raised a brow. Seeing this, Chrom turned to him and clarified, "In their time, after I fell to Grima, Lissa became the next Exalt and ruled over Ylisse while Lucina was still young. She too had been fighting against the Risens till a raid in the castle also claimed her life."

Leo nodded, "I get it now. But, that would make it a memento of his someone important to him. I don't think he would want to drop this even by accident. Then, could it have been an event that suddenly occurred, like an attack?"

A dark image flashed in the back of his mind as Chrom grimaced, "Thinking back now, I should've sent someone to accompany him into this place. We knew the Lost Ones could be about. After that encounter, I should've taken better caution over the men."

"I won't disagree, Chrom." Leo frowned, "However, there's no use trying to fix what has already been done. We need to find Owain fast. It's already been a week since he vanished. Keaton, can you use the scent and track down where he went?"

"Sure!" the man nodded, "But, I'm going to warn you now. It won't be easy in all this fresh snow."

Leo nodded, "I'm aware. Just do the best you can."

With this, the man nodded and hurried off into the forest followed by two dark skin and brown hair people. As they watched on, Leo grimaced, "It's been a while since this last happened…"

Chrom nodded, "I heard. How long did it took before your brother was able to find Suki?"

"Two weeks." Leo said with a frown, "We were only lucky, then. But, we can't risk it this time. We know what it's like to live in the snow. Each minute that's passing by can lower our chance of finding him again… alive."

"Then, we must hurry." Chrom said with a grimace.

After what seemed like hours, the sun was beginning to set before Chrom grimaced as he kicked the pile of cracked snow aside, "No traces here either."

He sighed and leaned back against the tree with his fingers on his temple, "Think. If I were Owain where would he have gone to search."

Leo watched his ally wreck his head as he frowned and looked up to the sky. He muttered quietly to himself with a grimace, "It's almost a whole day now. Owain has been out here for a week. Unless, he found some form of shelter, he'd be nearly frozen to death by now."

Suddenly, something caught the corner of his eye as he spun his head around and noticed something large dashed into the bushes. As he noticed other bushes trembling, he grimaced at the unmistakable shape of the being and shouted, "Chrom! Lost Ones! It seems they might have surrounded us!"

"What?!" Chrom's eyes widen before he shouted, "Shepherds! On your guards! The Lost Ones are here!"

As the group began to reassemble with weapons armed, Chrom glanced over to Leo as they got into battle stance, "Leo, I may need your help to get us out of this mess."

"I understand." Leo nodded as he opened Brynhildr, "I'll see what I can do, then."

"Chrom, Leo!"

The glanced over and saw large black werewolf and two large rabbits with sharp claws return.

"Keaton?" Leo raised a brow, "Did you find something?"

The werewolf nodded, "In a few feet from here, there's two large trees wrapping around a huge crystal. It seems to have been guarded by more Lost Ones, but that's where the scent led to!"

"Really?" Leo raised a brow, "Then, we'll have to find a way to get there."

"I agree." Chrom nodded before cutting off the head of the inhuman monsters, "Leo, do you think we'll be able to get there?"

The dark knight frowned as he scanned their surrounded, "Possibly. I'll try to come up with something…"

As he scanned around their surroundings, Chrom grimaced as he cut down another monster, "I haven't seen this many Lost Ones before, just how many are there?"

Leo grimaced as he strangled another one using his vines through the magic of his tome, "It was a lot worse back in all three castles. We must be close to one of their hideouts, Chrom!"

"What?" Chrom's eyes widen as he scowled, "And I sent Owain here. Could he have been ambushed along the way?"

"Quite possible." Leo said with a frown before his eyes widen, "This…"

The dark knight turned to his comrade, "Chrom! Keaton! I need the two of you to take out that tree over there! Think you can do it?!"

Chrom glanced over to where he was pointing with a raised brow and nodded, "All right!"

Leaving Frederick to cover their backs, the exalt hurried over to the pine and swung his sword against it. A second passed before the tree toppled over crushing one of their enemies with it. Leo pulled back the reins and hurried over to the area before he nodded, "Watch my back and stay back! I'm going to try and activate a dragon vein!"

"A what?!" Chrom raised a brow as he stepped back.

Without answering, Leo raised a hand as light began to glow around the spot. Their eyes widen as thorn vines appeared from the trunk of the tree and began to make its way around them strangling their enemies. The Shepherds all retreated back as the growth slow down and Leo let out a sigh. As the dark knight wiped away sweat from his forehead, Chrom walked up to him, "Leo, what was that?"

"A dragon vein." Leo replied with a nod, "I don't think you know what it is since there's hardly any to be felt in your time, but they're all over the world in our time. Only those with the blood of the First Dragons are able to activate its power. They're like a pocket of power waiting to erupt and we're what is needed to allow for it to happen, though the ability may have dwindled as time passed."

"It must have." Chrom nodded, "None of us have such an ability before. It must be natural during your era, then. Regardless, let's hurry and take out the enemies around that crystal Keaton and Panne found."

---

As they hurriedly made through the forest after Keaton and one of the larger rabbits, the werewolf raised his furry arm and muttered, "Up ahead."

Leo nodded and quietly got off his horse. Handing the reins to Frederick, Chrom and Leo carefully made their way after a human shape Keaton in his usual clothing and a woman who reverted from being a rabbit they called Panne. It didn't take long before the soon could see a small clearing surrounded by these creatures they call Lost Ones. The monsters were roaming the surrounding aimlessly, but always turned around the moment the reached the edge of the clearing.

"Look!" Leo whispered, "That's the tree, right?"

Far ahead the entire group sat two intertwining oak trees wrapped around a gigantic crystal shard.

"Correct, man-spawn." Panne nodded, "This was where his scent led us to."

"Five, six, seven…" Chrom counted with a frown, "By gods, around fifteen…"

"And Owain could be somewhere here?" Leo nodded with a grimace.

"How about planning an ambush?" Chrom suggests.

"Wait, you guys are still planning to go in there?" Keaton said with a grimace, "Well, if Owain's been gone for a whole week, it'd be really bad…"

Frederick nodded, "It'd also be mad for us to go out there with only eight of us here. We're already two times out numbered."

Leo grimaced, "We are, but-!"

Suddenly, the crystal grew bright as light beamed out from it. Many of the monsters spun around and stared at it while some fled into the woods without looking back with its beady eyes. Suddenly, the figure of a tall elderly man with white beard, long red robe, tall red hat, and pointy ears appeared before the tree in a opaque form. Leo's eyes widen, "That's-!"

Chrom nodded, "A manakete."

As soon as he said this, the elderly man frowned as he shook his head with pity shining from his eyes, "I'm afraid I am not the one you seek for salvation, pitiful beings. You must return to your den at once!"

As he said this, light shined from the man's body startling more to flee from the area. In the place of the man, a dragon three times larger than Kamui's and Corrin's dragon form appeared before them. The dragon have silver scales, black claws, and sharp red eyes. As it moved, the earth trembled forcing the monsters to step back before they shrieked and began charging at him all at once. Chrom took a step forward before Leo and Keaton held the man back.

"Not yet, Chrom!" Leo hissed quietly and gestured over to the group, "Look…"

The dragon let out a roar as the clouds about them grew dark. The ground below them shook as the earth below them began to split with light erupting from it. Out of the blue, lighting struck down from the sky as sparks flew in the air after striking the ground. A loud roar echoed around them, "Leave this place at once!"

Suddenly, more lightning crashed into the earth as the ground trembled harder forcing Chrom and the others to grab onto to trees around them for support. Frederick grimaced, "What strong power."

Leo nodded as he gritted his teeth together, "And to think this is all magic…"

"What?!" Chrom's eyes widened in disbelief.

The monsters scattered back into the forest leaving the open field completely empty. Seeing this, the dragon scanned around their surroundings before placing his head down and returning into the shape of a human. The earth then pulled itself back together as the dark clouds slowly began to dissipate revealing the red sunset sky. The elderly man nodded slowly before suddenly turning to their direction, "I know you're there. Show yourself, Idunn. You know I do not enjoy tricks and jests, especially not from Xane."

Leo's eyes widen before turning to Chrom who nodded with a grimace, "I think he's mistaken us for someone else, but let's go speak with him."

Frederick frowned, "But, milord, that's-!"

"Idunn?" the man called out once more.

Leo sighed before following after Chrom out into the clearing with his tome ready in hand. As they made their way out into the open, the old man's eyes widen before he frowned, "Oh? And I'm assuming that you are here for the young human."

Chrom's eyes widen before he slowly nodded with a grimace, "That's… correct, if he's the one we're searching for."

The man raised a brow as Chrom continued, "My name is Chrom. I'm here in search of my nephew, whom I sent here to investigate a case we've been working on for years. A week ago, he came to this forest and we have not heard word from him since then, sir."

Chrom gestured to Leo, "This is his superior and an ally of mine, Leo. We're here in search of my nephew. He goes by the name of Owain and is a myrmidon with the abilities of a dark sorcerer, sir. Is he with you?"

The man brushed his white beard as he looked to them, then slowly nodded, "I may have the one you are looking for. But, I've heard that this place is known for my presence over these last thousands of years and with these pitiful souls making themselves more present what is a person such as yourself sending your own blood into these parts of the land alone, if I may inquire?"

Chrom grimaced, "It was a mistake on my part, sir. The case we are looking into is involved with those monsters. I was naïve and thought that it would be fine to leave the investigation to my nephew because of his experience with the dark magic. However, he's been gone for over a week with no response and I didn't even think of sending a squad with him. Due to this, I've decided to come to search for him with our friends."

The man frowned as he stared at them for a couple of seconds before he frowned, "I see. But, I'd like to see the truth of your words."

"What?" Leo raised a brow with a grimace.

Light began to engulf the elderly man as he turned himself into the dragon once more, "If you can prove to me that what you say is true, I shall return the human to you. If not, I shall send you all out of this forest and ban you all from ever returning forever!"

Chrom grimaced, "Wait! Can't we talk this out a little bit more?!"

Leo scowled as he opened his tome, "Chrom, we have no choice but to fight!"

Hesitantly, Chrom looked from Leo to the dragon before he grimaced and pulled out his blade, "It would seem that we don't have a say in the matter, then. Shepards, let's go!

As he said this, Leo shouted, "Chrom, you said that your blade can harm dragons, correct?"

"Yeah!" the man responded as they charged forward.

"Then, let's do this." The dark knight shouted, "Keaton, start tackling against the wings! Panne, Yarne, go against his front claws! Brady, Frederick, make sure he doesn't start swinging his tail against us! Chrom, the two of us are going after him directly."

As he gave out orders, the soldiers began making their way through the battlefield following the orders. The dragon let out a roar as he began fighting back against the beasts and soldiers as if trying to get rid of ants clinging all over him. Suddenly, the sky grew dark again as Chrom grimaced, "He's going to attack!"

"Just keep going!" Leo shouted, "I'll cover you! Go!"

Chrom nodded and rushed ahead as the dark knight brought his horse to a halt, then began to chant. Soon, large wooden vines sprouted from the ground creating a partial small canopy over them as the lightning struck in the nick of time. The vines were lit ablaze before they were smothered by more branches and vines. Chrom rushed forward as the dragon swung its head and roared realizing that all his available limbs were busy against their unusually strong soldiers. The earth cracked once more before more vines stretched out and covered their ground giving the places to land without worry. Wearily, Leo grimaced as he watched Chrom rush forward, "Hurry, Chrom!"

The dragon roared. Without a reply, Chrom jumped into the air and brought his blade down as the dragon attempted in biting him with his massive jaws. However, Chrom landed on his own two feet as two large fangs fell next to him afar. The dragon let out another shriek before light engulfed him reverting himself back into the elderly man. The man slowly got up on his own feet as well as he sighed, "I see now…"

Chrom looked to the man, "So, have we proved that what we say is the truth?"

The man nodded, "You have and, as I promised, you can have this human back with you."

Suddenly, the crystal glowed brightly as the light left from the source and floated before them. It grew larger and once it faded the familiar figure of a tall man with brown hair, yellow clothing, and dual blades collapsed before them.

"Owain!" Leo shouted as he and Brady rushed over to the man.

With their help, Owain slowly got to his feet unsteadily as he groaned, "Ugh… L-Lord Leo? Brady? What happened?"

Leo sighed in relief before he smiled as Brady answered in an outburst, "That's what we'd like to know! Ya uncle sent ya on a stupid mission and ya disappeared on us for a week! A week!"

"A week?!" Owain's eyes widen in deep confusion, "B-But, I was in the forest for a day an-and… And then I found this crystal…"

Leo nodded, "You can tell us the rest when we get back. Yarne, help Brady watch over Owain. We still have some business to take care of."

"Y-Yes, sir!" the rabbit responded as he rushed over and took over in his human form.

Leo watched the three head to the back of the small squad where their mounts now rest before turning to the old man, "Though we're thankful that you saved my retainer, I believe we have something to discuss about, sir. Could we start with your name?"

The man nodded, "Yes, I believe we do, young man. My name is Gotoh. I was once known to be called a member of the First Dragons, the Arcane Dragon of Magic."

"The First Dragons?!" Leo's eyes widen in disbelief, "But, I've never heard of such a dragon before! Unless…"

Gotoh nodded, "Originally, there were seven of us who finished the war, but, by the end of the war amongst ourselves, my life came to an end in these lands."

Leo grimaced, "But, that's-!"

Gotoh stared at him with a small nod, "However, I see that my companions have moved forward and finished the mission in our stead, inheritor of Brynhildr."

Chrom frowned, "But, what is the soul of one of the First Dragons of our world doing in this one?"

"We were here in search of help, wielder of Falchion." Gotoh answered with a nod.

Chrom's eyes widen, "You know about Falchion?"

The old man nodded, "Of course. For the first dragons were all dragons millions of years in the future after the war."

"What?!" Chrom gaped.

"I see this would take a little longer to understand, so let me start from the beginning." Gotoh said with a nod, "Do you know of Lady Naga and Lady Tiki?"

Chrom nodded, "Of course. The Divine Dragon, Naga, and the Voice, as well as her daughter, Lady Tiki."

The image of the two green hair manaketes flashed back in their heads as Leo questioned, "So, you know them as well?"

Gotoh nodded, "I knew them far longer than any dragons have. We were of the same tribe before the degeneration occurred."

"The Degeneration…" Leo frowned, "I recall reading that from Ylisse's records. The degeneration was basically dragons losing themselves to their primal instincts and lashing out against humans, correct?"

"That's correct, Leo." Gotoh nodded, "We, whom you humans call manaketes, have mostly come from the tribe of the Divine Dragons. Have you heard of the great war a young man by the name of Marth took part in?"

"How could we not?" Chrom said with a smile, "My family are all descended from the lineage of the Hero-King."

"So, they refer to him the Hero-King now, do they?" Gotoh nodded, "I see the stories of his deeds have lived with the life of a dragon as well. Just as Lady Tiki took part in the war, so have I."

Chrom's eyes widen, "You were a soldier of the Hero-King's militia?!"

"It was only till the young man has slain the monster my pupil became as I was also to blame for not keeping a closer eye on him." Gotoh answered with a sigh, "Yes. Thinking back now, I can see why you humans would refer to him as the 'Hero-King'. However, I did take part in the war and guided him as I had in protecting young Tiki during her younger years after her mother's death."

Chrom grimaced, "Then, we're talking about over a millennia ago! But, how did you become a First Dragon in the past?"

"It was thousands of years after the war has ended." Gotoh answered with a sigh, "After King Marth's death, I stepped down from my position as his advisor and spent my life watching over Lady Tiki's growth. During those days and before, I was known as a bishop called the White Sage. Before I met King Marth, I gave up my dragon powers and discarded my dragon stone, then I took upon myself the life of a human and became a bishop. However, over time after the war, Lady Tiki and I soon realized that some of the manaketes we knew of vanished without a word. At first, one of our people and I ventured to go in search of them, but then we soon came upon this portal that opened up before us and we were pulled into it. When we came to, we realized that we were not alone. Not only did we found our long lost people, but we also came upon dragons and halflings from times before and after ours."

He turned to Leo, "Such as Idunn, the dusk dragon who was entrusted with the sacred weapons of Siegfried and Brynhildr. She was from a time after ours. To search for my assistance, she ventured into the portal with a young fledgling, who would become known as the Wind dragon amongst the humans."

"Even the dusk dragon?" Leo muttered in bewilderment, "So, then the First Dragon were all from the future?!"

Gotoh nodded, "That is correct. When we entered the portal, we all regained our powers and lost our human form. However, the power we gained was so much that we knew if we used it as we please it would destroy all of humanity and quite possibly the world. This led to many conflicts as the humans soon began to take notice of our presence and began to refer to us as deities for worship. We used our powers to shape the earth and the seas. Many tried to help the humans. However, no matter if we are these divine beings or not, our people were still both aides and victims of humans. During the dark time of us manaketes from the future, humans had enslaved our people and used our powers for war. Those manaketes who came with us in the past fell victim to their hatred and anger nurtured from their pasts and began to rise against the humans and the idea of protecting them."

"That was how the war began?" Leo said with a frown, "It started because the humans treated the dragons poorly? That's…"

Chrom nodded, "And it still hasn't completely ended. It was the same in Nowi's case. When we found her, she was being chased in the desert by her pursuers who wanted to sacrifice her to Grima. We were lucky to have saved her when we did. However, she told us she was first acquired by the Grimleals through an auction."

"What?!" Leo snapped with a frown, "Then, it was worse for the dragons during your era."

Gotoh nodded, "Only very few of us were brought back by people much like King Marth. Idunn, herself, was also a divine dragon captured and brainwashed into a machine of war by the humans when she offered to help them. She was saved by a young human boy, who fought to free her and kept watch of her recovery. It's people like them, who influenced our ideas of humanity."

"I see now." Chrom smiled, "I take it that Marth also saved you as well?"

Gotoh shook his head, "No. I only did so because it was Lady Naga's last request."

"Naga's request?" Chrom raised a brow.

Gotoh nodded, "To protect the humans."

"I see." Leo said, "So, you continued associating yourself with the humans to protect them because Naga ordered you to do so."

"I did." Gotoh concurred.

Chrom chuckled, "Are you certain that King Marth didn't influence your ideas? I heard from Lady Tiki that he was quite good at making a lot of friends."

Once again, Gotoh cracked a small smile as he said, "Perhaps, he has, but who knows. He was always a thoughtful ruler always trying to avoid creating violence and wars while putting himself in one to protect others without thinking of the consequences. Quite reckless, if I must say. But, he grew to become a virtuous leader in the end with that same ideology."

Leo sighed as he glanced over to Chrom, "I'm getting the feeling that all reckless leaders like that are going to become like that."

Chrom chuckled, "Perhaps. But, what brought you here, Sir Gotoh?"

"Nearing the end of our lives we were told of an evil that would one day threaten to take over all of the three kingdoms we fought to protect." Gotoh responded with a frown, "Some of our close allies refused to allow such a being to enter our world and so we searched for a passage to this world. Here we found people willing to aid us in our cause."

"There were other people involved?" Chrom raised a brow.

Leo frowned, "Was this evil by any chance some monsters that you just fought off?"

"Yes. Though, it was just a minority of it, I'm afraid." Gotoh responded with a grimace, "It was the last vision to be seen by our comrade before she completely lost her prophetic visions."

"Prophecies?" Chrom frowned, "Then, you knew about this all along?"

"That would be correct, Chrom." Gotoh nodded with a frown, "We tried to prevent it from occurring by traveling to this world using one of my pupil's powers. With our comrade's visions, we tracked it down to this realm and searched for the root of the evil before it could emerge. However, we arrived too early with little ways of finding it."

"If you knew this, you would've returned." Leo said, "Why stay?"

"For two reason, young man." Gotoh responded with a sigh, "The first being that I was already nearing my time as a dragon. Even with great powers, we are not immortals, Leo. Our time shall come to us all eventually. With this, I was unable to continue forth alongside my kind. Second was that the people who offered to help wanted me to pass a message along to those who would come here."

"A message?" Leo frowned, "To us?"

The old man nodded, "Our ally foretold that we would be unable to find the evil so early on and saw that there would be people from our world. They would come to this world in search of help and, in turn, they asked that I be the one to help guide you all in the right direction."

"My apologies, Lord Gotoh." Frederick spoke up with a grimace, "But such tales-"

"Sound absurd, am I correct?" Gotoh responded with a small grin, "I see even during the future the descendants of King Marth is protected by retainers of logic. A good sign, indeed. However, it's all the truth. Our allies made it possible."

Leo frowned, "You continue to speak of these allies, Lord Gotoh. Would it be possible to tell us who was it that the First Dragons allied themselves with?"

The man nodded, "It was the Celestials."

"What?!" Chrom shouted with wide eyes and turned to Leo, "Didn't your Nephews and Prince Shiro told us that Yue maybe part of a group called the Celestials, Leo?"

The dark knight nodded with raised brows, "That's right. So, this was how they knew we needed assistance. However…"

He frowned, "If they knew, then why did the First Dragon, Moro, had to contact them for help? They must've known long before he felt the need to look for her."

Gotoh shook his head, "I do not know, Leo. For that, I hope you could find the answer hidden within this crystal."

They turned to see the large crystal before them as he continued, "As I was nearing my death, the Celestials asked that, to send you the message with guidance, if I would trap my soul into this crystal till the time came. As you can see, I agreed to go with the method if it would mean that I would be able to save the humans of our world. However, I never thought of how long I would need to wait before you all arrived."

Chrom grimaced, "If we went by how the gap between the time of our worlds, it would be over another millennia, I bet."

"Perhaps." Gotoh nodded, "I've long since lost count."

Suddenly, the crystal shone brightly nearly engulfing them with the light before it reduced itself and the light floated over to the Arcane dragon leaving behind a large empty space in between the trees. He turned to Leo, "As I see that you've inherited Brynhildr, I take it that you have extensive knowledge of the dark arts, Leo?"

The dark knight nodded before Gotoh brought out an open palm with the light radiating above it, "Then, I shall hand the crystal to you."

Leo frowned, but nodded as he carefully reached out and touched the light. Suddenly, the light ceased all at once revealing a crystal shard around the size of his palm as it fell into his hand. His eyes widen as Gotoh nodded with a sigh, "So, I was correct. Idunn had a deeper connection with that human than I had been told. Young man, are you by any chance the son of Idunn?"

Leo narrowed his eyes as he thought carefully, "Idunn is the name of the dusk dragon, right?"

As Gotoh nodded, he frowned, "I am a descendant of the Dusk Dragon, so my dragon blood isn't as strong, Lord Gotoh. The war of the First Dragons ended a long time ago. Only the royal families of the three kingdoms hold the proof that they exist because the blood of the First dragons only flows in the royal families."

Gotoh's eyes widen as he slowly nodded with a sigh, "I see now. So, Sophie as well. That is unexpected. I only assumed that Idunn and one of our other comrades would hold such a future, but it seems I was wrong. I see they did not heed my warning closely."

He shook his head, "Regardless, listen well, Leo. To see the contents of this message, you would have to wait until nightfall before using the powers of the crystal. Place the crystal in your palm and squeeze it. When doing so, the crystal will shine and you and your comrades will all be put to sleep as soon as you utter the word, "Guo". The power of the crystal must not be played around with. I warn you. The message will be giving in a dream, so you must be careful not to fiddle around with it. The Celestial told me that many dangers would come if the powers of this crystal is placed in the hands of a fool. I pray that you aren't one."

"I understand, sir." Leo nodded as he carefully placed the crystal into his leather bag, "Thank you very much for the instruction, Lord Gotoh. I shall heed your warning carefully."

Gotoh nodded as his image slowly began to fade, "I trust in your words. Now, with the last of my powers, I shall create a small passage to lead you all out of the woods safely."

As he said this, he raised as hand as the earth cracked and the sky grew dark. Lightning crashed around them as bits of lights faded into the woods. Gotoh nodded upon seeing the two large cracks formed into the forest behind them, "With this, the chance of being attacked by the creatures will lessen. Now, I leave the rest to you and your friends, Chrom, Leo. You must succeed by all means."

Finally, the man vanished before them with a stern face before all they could see was the two intertwining trees before them. Chrom turned around to see their stunned comrades and friends as he strained a nervous grin, "How about let's all return to the wagon and rest for the time being? Today have become a much longer day than we had expected."

---

It's been two days since their sudden meeting with one of the first dragons. Chrom and Leo had contacted the other Royal families and their retainers. Siegbert was making his way to turn in his report to his father in the corridors of the Mayor's building. Soliel stretched as she yawned, "Finally, a hard day's work done! I can't wait to go home and spar with Aunt Luce."

Siegbert chuckled, "And here I thought you were tired."

As Siegbert reached for the knob, Soliel grinned, "Tired of another boring day. It'd be great if I could spar more often against my aunt and grandpa. Except for Frederick. He's so scary when he gets serious."

"There's something you're hesitant of speaking of, then?"

The two froze as they could hear his father speak in his office. Seigbert raised a brow and glanced over to Soliel who looked back with confusion.

"That's… It's something that the three of us felt the need to tell eventually, especially after we heard that the First Dragons left a message."

As Inigo's voice spoke up, Siegbert shook his head with a sigh and took a step back, "How about let's wait for our fathers to finish their conversation, Soliel?"

Soliel sighed, "If you say so."

As the two walked to the direction of the lobby, the atmosphere seemed to continue forth nervously inside the office. Xander raised a brow, "I see. Then, it's something pertaining to the First Dragons."

Inigo stood next to the table nervously before he let out a sigh and spoke with a grimace, "That's correct, milord."

Xander frowned. It's been a while since the retainers have ever referred to him this way, but he could already understand that it may be of some great importance in what he was about to say. He nodded for him to continue.

It's about Prince Kamui's and Princess Corrin's heritage, sir." Inigo explained with a frown.

"My siblings?" Xander raised a brow, "What of their heritage that you're hesitant to speak of?"

Laslow nodded, "We've met with their father back in Valla nearly five years ago of our world's time."

"Their father?"

This time, the superior's eyes widen in bewilderment. He knew that the twins weren't blood related to the Hoshido's royal family, and suspected that their parents were of Vallite origins after learning that their mother had told them that they came from Valla in search of help with his step-mother. However, he had never put too much thoughts into who their father was, since it was a more personal matter to them.

"Do they know that you've met with him?" he asked with a frown.

Inigo shook his head, "No, milord. We had obstacles at first from telling them, but, now, we're just uncertain whether or not we should tell them of him."

Xander thought carefully, "And since this is about the First Dragons, then their father is related to the First Dragons."

Inigo nodded, "We thought it would be better to reveal it to them, but we're still uncertain how they would take to it."

"So, you decided to consult with me first." Xander concluded with a nod, "I see. But, what connection does their biological father have with the First Dragons? If it's in Valla, then the First Dragon they worshipped must have been the Silent Dragon before he lost his sanity. That's the closest connection there is to the Silent Dragon unless there's another."

Inigo frowned hesitantly before Xander raised a brow, "Perhaps, it would be best to ask this question first. Is he still in our world?"

Inigo shook his head, "No, sir. He passed on completely. Soul and body."

"Soul and body?" Xander said with a frown, "Then, could you tell me who the man was?"

Inigo frowned. Xander's eyes narrowed as he saw the mercenary glance around the room quickly. Slowly, Inigo turned to him and answered with a slow nod, "He was the mage who brought us to our time five years ago, sir."

"The mage?" Xander frowned as he recalled their backstory, "I do recall you told us that a mage came to your world in seek of help. So, he was their biological father?"

Inigo nodded, "He was, sir."

"He must've been quite powerful if he traversed time to find you three, then." Xander said with a nod.

Inigo grimaced, "His name was…"

The king looked to him with a frown before nodding his head upon seeing his retainer's hesitation.

"His name…" the mercenary continued, "Anankos, sir."

Xander's eyes shot open as he stared at his retainer in disbelief, "What?!"

When they came to, they could see a gigantic tree covered in white flowers that beamed under the moonlight. A carpet of white lilies and flowers much like jasmines bloomed around their feet. They were in a large cave-like ravine lit by the light of the moon above them. A small waterfall trickled along the walls of the cave and flowed into the large lake along the walls of the ravine. Kamui watched on with wide eyes as his twin gasped, "It's beautiful…"

"Big Sister Corrin! Big Brother Kamui!"

They turned and saw the rest of their families, retainers, and their children walk over to them. Like the two, they were all in their proper armors and equipements. Corrin hurried over and hugged their younger sisters. Chrom, as well, made his way over with Olivia and his families behind him. He smiled, "I see that the spell worked."

Leo sighed, "That's a relief. It took a while before it could have any effect though."

Sakura frowned nervously as she said, "But, if we're in a dream, then wouldn't you have been on the ground, Leo?"

The prince's eyes widen before he sighed, "Now, that you mentioned it. I really should've sat down on the bed instead."

Owain said, "I'll make certain that, milor-"

"I'm pretty sure that Sakura will be there, Owain." Lissa chuckled, "Hey, everyone makes mistakes! In fact, there's this one time where Chrom acci-"

"L-Let's stop right there, all right?" Chrom strained a nervous smile as he cut in, "More importantly, where are we?"

Kiragi looked around and noted, "In a ravine of some sort, that's for sure…"

The little archer gasped and pointed, "Look!"

They all turned their heads and saw the figure of seven hooded figures standing not too far away from them before the large roots of the tree. Standing amongst one of the roots was a very familiar figure.

"That's her!" Shigure said under his breath, "It's Yue…"

Ryoma nodded with narrowed eyes, "And those must be the First Dragon."

Leo nodded with a grimace, "Yes. The energy coming from them… is immense."

Elise gasped in surprise, "Look, Sakura! There's a child amongst them!"

"Girls," Camilla scolded lightly, "Let's quiet down now, shall we? It looks like they're about to start a conversation."

"S-Sorry!" Elise whispered as she covered her mouth with her hands.

They watched Yue look up around her as she came face to face with a tall person in a gray hood and locks of blue hair sticking out from under his hood. His facial expression wasn't visible save from his nose down. Yue sat on the uplifted root as he stood with a few other shadows behind him. Inigo's eyes widen before quietly approaching his charge and whispered something into his ears as the king's eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Please." He pleaded with a grimace, "If what you say is true and that my descendants will one day face peril again after defeating me, then I beg that you help protect them and those they hold as important."

Yue sighed before shaking her head. A growl was heard as a tall man spoke up from behind him, "Then, you're saying that you won't lend a hand? After all that we've done for you?! Our friend's future is already in danger and you chose to watch his future descendants suffer?!"

The man took a step forward out of the shadow revealing himself to be a young man with red hair, sharp ears, and blue eyes. He was donned with a brown robe as he glared at them while making his way. Suddenly, a hand grabbed his shoulders as another figure stepped out of the shadows. It was an elderly man with white hair, a silver beard, and stern red eyes. He wore a red robe as he held the man back with a hand and shook his head, "Steady, Xane. It's unlike you to lose yourself. Regain your composure."

Chrom's eyes widen as he whispered quietly, "Sir Gotoh…"

Hinoka's eyes widen, "That's him?"

The elder man turned to the silver hair woman and walked forward, "Yue of the Celestials beings, I, Gotoh, wish to clarify this with you. Are you truly saying that you won't aid us in our attempt to save the future of our world? Even when you say that the problem would originate from this realm?"

Yue spoke, "It is against the law we set to intervene in the affairs of the other world. These laws were placed for the stability of our realms or they would merge into one creating chaos and mass annihilation of the living."

Suddenly, a small figure dashed up revealing a little girl, possibly no more than eight years of age, as her hood flew off her head revealing her pink hair and teary emerald eyes, "B-But, even if that's the rules, can't you at least help Anankos? W-We've already l-lost so many close friends… I don't want another to disappear too!"

"Anankos?!" Corrin's eyes widen in disbelief as she stared at all of them, "He's amongst them as well?!"

"Shhh!" Kamui whispered to her, "Let's wait till they finish talking."

Orochi frowned, "So, they already foresaw his fall long before it occurred…"

Leo nodded, "If I remember correctly, Lord Gotoh told us that they came here not long after the war amongst the First Dragons."

Sakura gasped as she tugged on Leo's sleeve, "Leo, look! Isn't that your tome?"

As they saw this, Takumi noted with bewilderment, "The Fujin Yumi is there too!"

A figure pulled down her own hood revealing an anxious young woman with long silver hair, sharp ears, and bi-color eyes of ruby red and Sapphire blue. She hurried over to the little girl with a purple tome in hand and urged the child to her side before approaching them again.

"Celestial Yue, I understand your reason for the laws the Celestials set, but, if I may be so bold, for this one conflict that also pertains to the illegal use of traveling between worlds. Won't you lower the priority of the balance to aid the humans and our kind's descendants?" She pleaded nervously, "We've lost many close friends due to the degeneration of our kind and have even dragged the humans into our affairs."

As she said this, Xane grimaced before lowering his gaze to the ground.

"The least we can do is offer our protection to the humans and all the other being in our world for aiding us." The woman continued, "Even a little aid from the Celestials would be deeply appreciated by us. S-So-"

As the woman grimaced, Yue finally sighed, "I did not say that I would not help, Lady Idunn."

"Then, you will aid us?" a woman spoke as another slim figure holding a large stringless bow in hand.

As she pulled back her purple robe, she revealed herself to be a woman with very long light purple hair and purple eyes. She looked to them as Yue nodded and replied, "I shall… for more personal reasons as well, but you will be given the aid you seek for in the future, Lady Sophia."

Yue turned to the hooded man, who still had yet to reveal himself, "However, I'm afraid that I'm unable to change your fate, Lord Anankos. Perhaps your children's fate I can manipulate, but I'm unable to do anything for you."

The man strained a smile, "If you're able to protect my future descendants as well even after my time of insanity, then it's more than I can personally ever ask from you, Celestial Yue."

"That's Anankos?" Siegbert raised a brow, "He's… different from before he became a tyrant."

Ryoma nodded, "So, he also wanted to protect the humans as well."

"Yue." The silver hair woman corrected with a sigh, "You can choose whether or not to address me so, but I would personally prefer that to only be addressed simply. Like yourselves, I do not find the thoughts of my kind to be any different from that of the humans nor are we as special as my kind claims to be… 'Divine'."

"If that's what you wish, Yue." Sophia bowed deeply.

Leo frowned, "If the woman holding my tome is the dusk dragon… Then, could she be the dawn dragon?"

"Perhaps." Xander said with a frown, "You told us that Gotoh refers to the dusk dragon as Idunn. It wouldn't be a surprise if the other holding Prince Takumi's divine weapon is the Dawn Dragon."

"If I may," A woman with aqua blue hair and blue eyes walked up to them, "Pardon for my curiosity, but would you tell us what this personal affair is?"

"Aenir," Gotoh said with a frown, "As the Ice dragon of the Human Ice Tribe, you must-"

"It's fine, Sir Gotoh." Yue responded, "I've seen a vision of the future."

"So, she could prophesize as well." Orochi said with a curt nod.

Kamui frowned, "But, isn't the Ice Tribe where you came from, Felicia?"

"Y-Yes!" the maid responded with wide eyes in wonder, "I never thought I'd get to see her like this before!"

"You prophesize as well?" Xane raised a brow and glanced over to Sophia, "But, that's something only the Dawn Dragon can do!"

Sophia shook her head with a sigh, "Sadly, I no longer have the ability the moment I entered the past and took on the role of the Dawn Dragon. But, this vision-"

Yue nodded, "The future will play a big role. A role that would aid me in my time of need. So, in response and my personal feelings, I shall aid them to the best of my abilities."

Another elderly man with an arched back stepped forward with a crooked frown, "So, in aiding you in the future, you shall gift us with aid that have yet to be repaid?"

"Yes, Bantu." Yue responded with a curt nod, "You four have someone wishing desperately for your well-being as well. Someone who would come to chose to aid the humans in a millennium year against the dragon created from the dark workings of alchemy."

Gotoh narrowed his eyes as Ananokos gasped, "Lady Tiki! My pupil would become this powerful?"

"Not alone." Bantu grinned, "A millennium years… She would become a full grown woman by that point. If only we were there to witness her growth."

Anankos nodded with a small grin, "I wouldn't be surprised if she grows to become much like the mirror image of Lady Naga herself. Perhaps, I was right to leave her for her independence. I just hope she doesn't get too lonely with all of us here."

"Lady Tiki?" Kamui frowned, "Isn't that the Voice?"

They turned to Chrom who nodded, "That's correct."

"She has the humans who would remain by her side." Gotoh spoke up with a nod, "It's about time for her to-!"

The elderly man was suddenly cut short as he falls to his knees gripping his chest tightly with one hand.

"Gotoh!" Anankos hurried over with a grimace, "Damn it! The degeneration… At this rate…"

"They're still affected by the degeneration?" Takumi said with a grimace, "But, isn't the degeneration what makes dragons become wild?"

Bantu stuttered frantically, "L-L-Lord Gotoh! You must abandon your dragon form and abilities soon! O-Or you'll-!"

The old man raised a hand, "No. Even if my power continues to grow wild and consume me, I cannot abandon my powers. I'm afraid I just don't have enough strength to do so anymore."

As Anankos helped him up, he continued, "I've already lived far much longer than you all. My time has already been nearly spent and, when it does, it'll be far before I lose control of my primal instincts."

"So, that's it." Hinoka said with a grimace, "He just didn't have enough strength to do it. Just how much does it require, though?"

Fae gasped as her eyes teared up, "B-B-But, Gotoh! You have to live! The humans are still waiting for us Divine Dragons to go back home! A-A-And, you're the Arcane Dragon of Magic there! Moro! Moro's waiting for you to come back too! I-I don't want there to be only six of us! I-Idunn!"

She grasped onto the woman's robe as tears streamed down her face, "Idunn, can't we do something? With you as the Dusk dragon and me being the Wind Dragon, we can come up with something, right?"

"That's the Wind Dragon?" Olivia gasped.

"She's only a child!" Mozu said with a frown, "She was forced to fight in a war?"

Chrom shook his head, "She probably wasn't forced."

They turned to him as he continued, "Nowi was certainly slightly older, but, if she's still a child, she was probably persuaded into picking a side or she chose out of her own decision."

Leo nodded, "That's true. She doesn't seem nervous or scared around them…"

The manakete looked to the child with a perplexed expression before Yue, spoke up, "You cannot stop death, Fae. With the creation of time, Death is a natural process of all life. To stop a person's life from passing is the same of traveling across the realm as often as this. To defy the natural world. Those with such an ability would already become the most powerful being in the world. We are not that being just as we are not immortal with everlasting life. In time, even the Celestials would lose their life to time. There are no such things as eternity or infinite."

As she said this, the child began to bawl loudly as Xane frowned bitterly, "But, can't we do something? We've already reached so far and done all we could to get to this point. There has to be a way to get past this!"

Yue bit back a sigh as she continued, "Xane, I can not tell you what to do to get past this point, but I can say that, in the future, you'll come to understand this and will have to work hard to achieve what you want to make possible. You are the Rainbow Dragon the humans look to, correct?"

Kamui's eyes widen as he said in disbelief, "That's the Rainbow Sage?!"

Azura frowned, "It seems we were are in the past, then…"

The man bit down his lip before turning away and to the side of the group as Fae continues to cry while Idunn and Sophie did what they could to comfort the child, despite knowing that it'd be useless at some point. The hooded man turned to them, "Then, this source that would come to harm the humans in the future. Do you know where it will begin?"

Yue shook her head, "Aside from knowing that it all began in this world, I do not know where it shall start planning the attack. My only assumptions are that it shall start underground."

"Underground?" Bantu said with a frown.

There was a small stir amongst Kamui's and Chrom's group as Yue nodded, "Just as it had avoided the light that shines in the day, the source have also avoided the light of the moon and the shadows of the unknown. The only place that we've not considered as of yet is the world below the surface."

"So, you've already started the search before we even arrived." Idunn noted with a small smile, "Then that means, you've already planned to help from the very beginning."

"Regardless," Yue continued, "I will admit that the search for the enemy would be difficult, even for me. We can start searching right away, but it would be difficult to persuade all of us to put our efforts into the search."

Sophia nodded with a grimace, "And with the position you and your siblings are in…"

As they said this, Kamui raised a brow as his twin said in confusion, "Her and her sibling's positions?"

Yue nodded, "If I were to start an expedition into the undergrounds, only a half of my faction will choose to follow me. The same goes for my counterparts."

"There are factions amongst the Celestials?" Camilla frowned, "There must've been many more than just a few of them, then…"

"Then, no one will listen till it's too late?" Xane questions with a frown, "But, then humans would already be starting to disappear by then!"

"Which is why we've already chosen to act instead." Yue responded.

"By yourself?" Gotoh questions with a frown.

Yue shook her heads, "Not completely by ourselves, my counterparts and I have four people who operate directly under us and only us together, not individually. If we chose to, we can count on the three of them to aid us in our search."

Takumi raised a brow, "Three? Why not four?"

"Why not four?" Xane echoed with confusion.

"One of them is still quite inexperienced and immature, despite being around our age." Yue responded immediately, "They could end up getting themselves into a bit of mischief, even if it was not intentional. They shall aid us in other things related to this case."

"So, it's for their safety." Anankos concluded, "I understand now."

Yue nodded before glancing over to the elderly man, whom she noticed long before staring at them.

"Pardon me?" she called out to him.

The man shook his head, "Ah, no. It's probably just me, but you remind me of a young man I came across during a war. He too decided to offer a place to young Tiki despite knowing who we were and how young she was."

"Him?" Bantu noted with a small smile, "It's certainly been years since I've heard you speak of him, sir."

"Indeed." He nodded, "It's certainly been thousands of years now."

Chrom chuckled with a grin, "He must be talking about the Hero-King… I didn't think he'd be so influential to the manaketes as well."

"Which is why there's something I'd like to ask of in private, sir." Yue said.

The seven looked to her in confusion as she continued, "There's something I wish to entrust you with."

The old man shook his head as Bantu helped him to his feet, "If it's something for another thousand of years, I'm afraid I won't have that much longer left to live."

Yue shook their head, "No, it's a little more complicated than just allowing the time to pass by, sir."

"I see." He nodded and turned to Bantu.

The elder man nodded and slowly took a step back leaving the man on his own two feet. The two slowly walked off as Chrom and Kamui hurried after.

Kamui turned to them, "I'm going to see what they're going to talk about."

It wasn't long before the three and their retainers disappeared when Xander sighed, "I guess the rest of us shall examine the area, then?"

Ryoma nodded in agreement before Hinoka frowned, "But Kamui and Corrin-!"

"They'll be fine, Hinoka." Ryoma said with a curt nod, "They have their retainers by their side."

"Chrom is there as well." Leo added and turned to the other dragons quietly amongst themselves, "Also, I'd like to see what kind of people the First Dragons were as well."

"Same." Ryoma nodded as he glanced over to the still hooded man, "I'd also like to see for myself. Perhaps we should all return to this spot when they return?"

Xander nodded, "That does sound like a good idea. Then, till our siblings return, let's take a look around and see our surroundings for a bit as well."

Once the group began to make their own way apart, Lissa and a few of their other friends made their way to the younger manakete surrounded by Bantu and the two women. As the child continued to sniffle in Idunn's lap with Kana and Ahna trying to reach out to her, Sakura frowned, "If only, I could help her… She's still only a child too."

Leo frowned, "She talked about losing some of her friends. Could she be talking about the opposing dragons of the First Dragons' war?"

Takumi frowned, "If that was the case, why did she take part in it and killed her friends?"

"Dad!" Kiragi groaned, "There must've been a reason that she chose this."

"Right…" Takumi grimaced, "Sorry about that. Bad habit."

As the child continued to sniffle, Sophie said with a grimace, "Perhaps, if I still had my power with me, then…"

Idunn shook her head, "There was nothing to be done, Sophia. Neither could any of us. In the end, we were the only one fortunate enough to come out alive. We were the only ones who lived through the humans that wanted to harm us. If Roy had not saved me, I would've died by his sword as a war machine of the humans' war. I wouldn't be able to regain my emotions with Fae or him nor would I have the chance to. It's the same now as it had when I offered to aid the humans of our time. It was inevitable that this would happen."

"Our friends were survivors in the body, but not the soul." Bantu said with a sigh, "In the end, their hearts were covered in the scars left by humans and it clouded their eyes."

He slowly reached over and touched the child on her head with a small smile, "But, if they were here, they would've wanted us to continue to live in their stead as fellow dragons, would they not? To receive the chance to fulfill our own goals that they couldn't receive and to live on."

Fae looked up slowly with a small smile as she nodded, "A-All right. Thanks, Bantu. You're a really nice dragon, despite being the god of the Fire people."

Bantu sighed as he chuckled, "The Fire Tribe, young lady, and I'm no god."

Idunn pulled out a small handkerchief from her cloak's pocket and wiped the girl's face as she said with a small smile, "Now, how about you go and wash your face off by the lake, Fae. Try not to startle the little one this time, all right?"

Fae nodded as she hurried off to the sparkling waters.

"They have such close relationships." Hana noted with a frown.

Sakura nodded, "But, Nohr and the rest of the tribes will get along better in the future, Hana. Maybe, your husband would like to travel to Nohr one day? You told me that he really likes to travel, right?"

"Yeah!" Elise said with a wide grin, "Come visit us at the underground capital too! The people there are really nice!"

"They are." Sakura said with a soft smile.

"And, this suddenly became a meeting to plan for the future political trips…" Takumi said with a sigh.

Leo nodded, "But, the relationship between the three kingdoms has gotten better over the last two years of our world. We should think about letting passage between the kingdoms at some point in time."

---

As the group continued to talk, Shigure stared up at the tree against the starry night sky as Seigbert walked over to him and called out, "Reminds you of Nohr, doesn't it?"

The Vallite prince turned around and nodded with a chuckle, "It does, but you would know that better than me, wouldn't you?"

"That's true." Seigbert laughed.

As they watched the sky, Shigure spoke up, "Feather told me once the reason why she decided to remain in Nohr when she and Ciel separated for the knighthood exams."

Siegbert raised a brow and turned to him, "Really? I always wondered for what reason she remained in our kingdom."

Shigure nodded, "She loved the night skies. She often told me how much it reminded her of her homeland where she lived with her family."

The Nohrian prince frowned, "I wonder why she chose to leave, then."

Shigure remained unusually silent before he spoke, "I'm going to try and recreate this image through my paintings. If this was the past, then there could be a chance that we could find something about this place."

"That sounds like a good idea." Siegbert nodded, "If the Celestials were so vital to the development of this world, then they should be mentioned somewhere. So far, we've yet to come across something like this before."

"I have!"

They turned around and saw Shiro rush over with a wide grin. The Hoshidan prince said, "Well, not before you told us about the Celestials."

As they looked to him in confusion, he continued, "Anyway, Kiragi and I searched through the library in Tasogarekan. It's not much, but we were able to come across this children's book about the legends of the Celestials and guess what? Yue's name was mentioned in there!"

Their eyes widen as Siegbert grinned, "Looks like we may have a lead in our other search as well."

Shigure nodded, "Do you think you could borrow the book, then? I'll go over to your place to see it."

"Already on it." Shiro smiled, "It's sitting at my place right now."

Siegbert frowned, "Still, if the Celestials knew that something like this was going to happen, why did the Astral Dragon have to contact them?"

"That is strange." Shiro nodded.

"Regardless, let's continue the search." Shigure said with a frown, "I got the feeling that we'll find our answer as we keep looking for more clues on the Celestials and the situation. Right now, we already have our answer to where the source of the problem could be located at."

Siegbert nodded with a frown, "Underground."

"That's why none of us have figured out where the culprit is." Shiro said with a grimace, "They were making progress underground. Speaking of which, that's where the monsters were found too."

Siegbert nodded, "To think that such a possibility would be the answer, but the problem is where?"

Shigure grimaced, "They would have to search all over the realms again just to find it."

Shiro shook his head, "And, we were searching for it for so long in both realms. Then…"

---

As the three princes continued their conversation, the kings made their way to the side of the lake where Anankos and Aenir stood. Ryoma raised a brow, "He knew that he was going to lose himself at some point in time, so how…?"

"I still can't believe that I'll one day be having children in the future." Anankos said with a grimace cutting off the king's words, "I-I mean, I knew, but to think that they'll all be in danger just because I can't accept the fact that the humans will one day move on without me."

Aenir shook her head, "There's nothing we can do. It's ironic when Gotoh continues to warn us not to mix with the humans."

"It's impossible to avoid such an outcome." Anankos shook his head with a sigh, "There's already half-blood dragons in the time we came from. How can we avoid not blending in with the humans?"

"How could we not." Aenir nodded with a sigh, "Each time he tells us that I end up remembering the children I left in his care back in our time. Nils and Ninian were only kids when I left them. Then, to make matters worse, I find myself here and can't return to them. So, the least you can do, Anankos, is make certain not to repeat the same mistakes as I had made. If you can't prevent yourself from losing your sanity, then protect your family."

"I know." He said firmly, "How could a parent not? Also, it couldn't have been your fault to have left your children, Aenir. You never knew it would happen. How could you've possibly known? You don't have the ability to see into the future, as Sophie did. I can't tell you to not feel guilty over what you had no control over, but, at least, know that you did all you could to protect them and return to them, Aenir."

"Perhaps." Aenir nodded, "But, what are you going to do now, Anankos? You offered to give up your memories of this world as the price for our passage between the worlds. You won't remember the vision you had. You won't even remember what your children look like, either."

"I'll figure something out." Anankos responded with a grimace, "I'll have to if I'm to figure out either my own salvation or my demise. The humans are counting on it and so are my future descendants."

"They'll no longer depend on you or remember you." Aenir reminded with a frown, "And if the vision was true then so will your children no longer recall who you are."

"They won't." Anankos nodded, "And they never will."

Xander raised a brow as Aenir frowned, "Anankos, don't tell me that you-."

He nodded, "They will never know that their father was the dragon who lost himself to degeneration and took out the kingdom they are liberating. This way they would never have to bare the burden of knowing that their own father is to blame for destroying an entire kingdom."

"But, they would wonder, Anankos." Aenir said with a frown, "I know from experience that children can become very curious and are quick to judge because they're still developing. They will wonder who their father is, Anankos."

"But, when they know, it would hurt them more than it would not knowing." He argued with a frown, "Aenir, you remember what I said. The children are only infants. Consider what knowledge of that would do to a child's mind. Better yet, what would the people do if they learn of their heritage? It's better that some truths are left not spoken just as in any world, Aenir."

"Anankos!" She snapped before she said firmly with sharp blue eyes, "Listen to yourself. It's no wonder that you would end up degenerating. You have no trust. Not to the people, not to your children, not even yourself. It's no longer about who trusts you, because, even if it isn't everyone, there are those who do. It's you who can't give them back that trust that they give you."

"That's…" His voice faded as he grimaced.

There was nothing to argue back. Even they knew that she was right. Aenir sighed, "Anankos, even if you can't believe in yourself or the people, at least believe in your own family and friends. Do at least this much. The only reason we were able to make it through the war was because you trusted the humans that was why we made the decision to hand the sacred weapons to the selected individual of humans, who we trust. Wasn't that why you handed gave a part of your powers and your alliance to Cadros?"

"That's true." Anankos nodded with a frown.

"When Xane went ahead and created the sacred weapons, Gotoh told us to let the weapons choose who would be their masters," Aenir said with a frown, "But, you said… you said that not all masters that are chosen would go down the path for humanity. You told us to find humans whom we trust and place the weapons in their hands with the authority to lead the army alongside us."

"We won. We did." Anankos nodded, "But, it took the lives of their family. Two wielders of the sacred weapons fell because of it."

Aenir sighed, "Must I tell you what you told me? You told me that I can't blame myself because I did everything I could, Anankos. I could say the same for you. You… We did all we could not knowing the consequences of the war and who would fall to our conflict. A conflict started by us, dragons, that would drag bystanders into our argument. You didn't know they would fall to the war. You couldn't have. None of us could. We only did everything we could think of in our newfound power. You and Xane was the one who told us about the humans. If you hadn't, we wouldn't have realized that we brought them into our fight as well. So, we did all we could and, if you have the idea to say that it was still your fault then you could also say that it's our fault cause we were the ones who started the war this time. Not the humans. And, if we hadn't, those who fell could've lived fuller lives."

There was a moment of silence before Anankos slowly said, "You're… Right."

He sighed as he continued, "It seems I have lost my trust in everyone since I saw that vision. If this is what brought me down, then I'm really that pitiful to end up being lectured by you amongst all of us here."

Aenir chuckled as a smile slowly starts to spread over her lips, "Then, you should start pulling your act together as I have when coming to the past. Lest, you want Fae to be the one scolding you."

Anankos laughed, "That'd probably be quite embarrassing indeed."

He sighed, "I suppose even if I wouldn't remember this conversation or vision and I do lose my trust in humanity, I still need to put my trust in Cadros and my future descendants."

"Even if that means getting scolded by Gotoh again?" Aenir questioned with a smirk.

"Even that." Anankos nodded with a chuckle, "Makes me wonder why the old man would ever choose me as Lady Tiki's mentor. I've always thought that he would make a better mentor than I ever would."

"Really? Cause I could see that." Aenir replied with a sigh, "Maybe if you weren't so dense, you'd understand why. Anyway, I'll go check up on Xane and see how he's doing. Hopefully, he's not following around with his shapeshifting technique again."

Anankos strained a smile as he watched her go, "That maybe the most upset words I've ever heard you say, Aenir. I better make sure not to anger her further, then."

Anankos frowned as he muttered to himself, "But, what can I do to protect them? A weapon?"

"So, he knew."

They turned and saw Orochi, and Hinoka walk over to them as Hinoka narrowed her eyes, "I still can't believe it. Is this really him? He's… different. Nothing like the dragon we defeated."

Ryoma nodded, "It's also clear that he has some issue with trust."

"So, that was the reason." Azura walked over to them with a grimace, "And I thought that he only did it for no reason. I was wrong."

Xander nodded with a frown, "The degeneration. Why didn't we think of that? All the surviving First Dragons shed their dragon form and became mortals, which was how they escaped it. If I recall correctly, he never shed his."

"Quite Irresponsible, especially since he knew of the consequences." Orochi said with a frown.

Azura nodded, "In doing so, he could've prevented the destruction of his own invasion, but what's done is done. We can't revert back time. What worries me is this price he spoke of."

"Right." Hinoka nodded with a grimace, "He said that he would have to pay the price of crossing worlds with the memories he made here. Meaning whatever he says now, he won't remember in the future when he returns to our world."

"And the children." Ryoma said with a frown, "He said that he would have children in the future. I'm worried about these descendants of his."

Xander frowned, "Perhaps, but he did say that, but would they have realized that? He said that he would make certain that they would never know of their heritage. Unless, he chose to change that thought in the future?"

"I don't know…" Azura said with a frown, "But, to have descendants, he would need to have discarded his dragon form to do that."

"Then, how did he do it if it fell through?" Hinoka said with a grimace.

There was a sudden splash as Fae's voice could be heard screaming with glee, "Yay! Let's play!"

"Fae!"

They turned and saw Xane rush over to the green and white feather dragon in the sky as he shouted, "Dang it, Fae! He's way too big! You're going to get hurt!"

With his words falling on deaf ears, the little girl laughed as she played tag with a white and blue serpent much to their shock as waves sprayed everywhere.

"Oh my!" Azura gasped as she hurried over to the nearest shelter from the water followed by their wives.

Ryoma raised a brow with a chuckle, "Have they forgotten that we're in a dream?"

"Perhaps." Xander nodded with an amused smile upon seeing the realization dawn upon the women's faces from afar, "Regardless, would your family be at the reunion this year, King Ryoma?"

The samurai nodded, "We will. Well, everyone, but Rinne again. She has some personal matters to take care of at home."

Xander nodded, "Normally, I'd say the same, but Suki also won't be able to make it for the same reason in general. There's just something I'd like to discuss with you in private at the reunion."

Ryoma narrowed his eyes, but nodded, "All right. Is it something that requires our help?"

The paladin nodded, "Yes, but also some advice."

---

As they followed Gotoh and Yue to the back, Gotoh asked the Celestial with a raised brow, "Yue, what is it that you wish to ask of me?"

"I wish to ask if you could become my secret messenger and deliver a message to the future adventurers, sir." Yue said, "I understand that you are nearing the end of your life and I cannot just impulsively ask of this from you, but… I wish to tie your soul to a crystal filled with all that we talked of tonight, including now."

Gotoh's eyes widen before Yue quickly continued, "I understand that what I'm saying is reckless and rude to someone who knows they're about to pass on, but I need someone present today who could tell those in the future what truly happened in our meeting today. Not some passed on notes or bard's tales. This information is too important to be warped for other people's interests, sir. Only after they activate the crystal in hand will you be set free to the next life. I know it sounds like imprisonment, but-!"

Her voice faded as they saw the man raised a hand firmly. As he set it down, he nodded, "I understand what you wish to say, Yue, and that you do not wish to imprison my soul against my will. That is what you want to get across to me."

"Lord Gotoh…" Corrin said with a grimace.

Frederick's eyes widen in disbelief, "Is this what they wish to speak of when he was asked to take on this task? She trapped his soul into a stone?"

He slowly sat down against the root as he heaved a sigh, "It's been a long time since I was given such a choice."

He nodded, "However, if what you say is true and that the humans who we did all we could to protect would come seeking help…"

He paused as he thought carefully with closed eyes before he nodded once more and looked to her, "I understand that you require my help to protect the humans. But, if I may, what connection do you have with the humans, Yue? I was told that you had a difficult relation with them in the distant past."

Yue paused before she took a set across from him and sighed. It was unusual seeing the woman, they've known to be unexpressive sigh for the first time with deep emotion. Even Gotoh raised a brow as she answered, "I had a difficult relation with the humans when I was younger as they said, sir. However, I want to protect them, sir."

"You want to protect them, you say…" Gotoh muttered quietly as he frowned before slowly nodding his head, "I see now. Then, I shall agree to bound my soul to this crystal you speak of, Yue. What you wish for is a message untainted by the passage of time, correct?"

Yue nodded slowly. Gotoh smiled, "Then, I shall deliver this to them. However, how do I know who they are? You say they're strong warrior lead by powerful leaders."

"Sir Gotoh, you will battle them." Yue answered as Gotoh's eyes widen, "I shall place you and the crystal into a forest. Deep into the forest. If they fail, you shall send them out and the trees shall move. If they pass, give them the crystal and how to use it."

As she said this, Yue held out her palm as a bright light flashed. White mists was pulled into the center before the light intensified and finally faded revealing the crystal shard glowing brightly.

She continued, "All they need to do is this. At night fall, put the crystal into their palms and squeeze it tightly. Light shall shine and, when it does, they must say this word, 'Guo', to unlock it."

As Gotoh nodded, she opened her other palm as a small light appeared in the other and brought it closer to the crystal which absorbed the orb making it shine brighter.

"When they do," She said carefully, "They be sent into a deep slumber and they shall see us and what we spoke of this night. But, be warned. Stray too far into the dream and they shall never see the real world again. That's why…"

She carefully caressed the shard and brought it to the elder man, who gently received it into his palms as she continues, "the person in charge of activating this magic must be one with deep understanding with magic and its dangers."

She carefully touched the shard once more with a finger as she said thoughtfully, "Hm… It'd be best if it were a male mage as well, it seems."

They raised a brow before she spoke, "Each crystal has their own personality and depending of them…"

She slowly waved her hand as the mist churned forming the image of a miniature lion above it with black fur, green claws, and red mane. Gotoh's eyes widen as she continued, "This beast shall not harm those he deems his master. Amongst all of them, he's the one with the most understanding of mankind and connected to them. So, if they fail, he shall simply leave them be and return to his den in peace. However, I find that unlikely."

After a couple seconds, Gotoh frowned, "So you say, but what if the one who defeats me isn't the one we seek?"

Yue turned to him, "You shall know who they are Sir Gotoh. You shall see."

Cautiously, she wrapped his fingers around the crystal and continued, "And when you do, I know that you would put your hopes in them as well."

Gotoh raised a brow, but slowly nodded, "I hope you're right, then."

"I am…" She said as her voice cracked.

Suddenly, her mask began to grow longer and darker much to their shock as the atmosphere grew grimmer in turn. Kamui grimaced, "Wh-What's going on?!"

"Kamui! Corrin!"

They turned and saw their family rush over to them as Takumi shouted, "Everything's starting to collapse!"

Just as he said this, cracks formed around them as the mask of the woman formed into a snarling face of a beast. Kamui grimaced as her body turned into a black shadow. As their surrounding breaks with the sound of glass, Elise whimpered, "O-Owain? Leo? What's going on?"

Leo shook his head as Owain frowned and answered, "I'm afraid none of us know, Elise. Just stay with us."

As she nodded, Kamui grimaced, "I think I have a pretty good idea."

As the glass image fell revealing nothing but pure white, Corrin nodded, "Yue said that there would be an individual personality in every crystal."

Chrom frowned with wide eyes as the shadow grew larger and vines began to surround them from all sides. Frederick muttered in disbelief, "Then, that would mean…"

"That the beast is going to greet us right now!" Chrom finished.

Before they could inquire anything, the large black figure glowed with spots of red jewel shards forming its mane as thorn vines emerged in his jaw and from his paws acting as fangs and claws. With it was done, the beast lets out a booming roar that Corrin feared it would wake them from their spell slumber.

"I am. I am!" the large lion roared in anguish and glared at them with startling green eyes, "She trusted the humans so deeply, even knowing that they would be the ones to bring the demise of the world like parasites! And what happens to her in the end? They kill her! If this is what humanity is, this world, the living, and she could live without it! I shall see this through! For her sake! Only her!"

Chrom grimaced as they fought back against the overwhelming energy from just his presence alone, "Didn't Yue said that he'd be a more reasonable being?"

"She did!" Kamui responded with a frown, "But, why is he like this?"

Jackob grimaced as he jumped to their side with the other retainers, "Your majesty! Lady Corrin! It's going to come at us!"

"Be grateful, humans!" The beast growled, "I shall present your pitiful lives with a swift death."

With this, the beast jumped at them. However, the sharp thorn paws were pushed back with the burst of water and black fire bursting from the jaws of Kamui's and Corrin's dragon form. The beast bounced back to its feet as Kamui shouted, "Now!"

On cue, they all pulled their weapons and made their way against the beast as Kamui shouted, "We're only going to subdue him!"

Chrom nodded, "Perhaps we can talk this out."

---

As they went into combat against the beast, Seigbert noticed the hind leg about to step on his cousin before rushing over and slashed against the ribs as he did so. The beast let out a roar before jumping to the side opposite of Forrest and his retainers. Taking this chance, he and Soliel quickly rushed over to them as he shouted, "Are you three okay?"

Forrest nodded, "Somehow. Thanks, Siegbert. Ophelia, Nina, are you two unharmed?"

"I'm all right." Ophelia said anxiously before turning to Nina who was kneeling on the ground, "But, Nina…"

"I'm fine." The archer replied curtly as she struggled to get back up on her feet, "I'm just a bit dazed."

Forrest grimaced, "Nina, it's impossible to be fine after taking that blow from him."

The archer shook her head before finally steadying herself, "It's the truth, milord. See?"

It was as she said. The archer was unharmed with out a single weirdly shape limbs or splatter of blood on her. Her steady balance had seem to throw them in a loop of bewilderment, instead as Siegbert grimaced in confusion, "What? How is this possible?"

Forrest nodded, "But, I-"

Nina nodded with a frown, "It true that I was hit full on by the monster, milord. But, I'm really fine, surprisingly."

Forrest turned to Siegbert with a grimace, "Somethings not right, Siegbert. For better or worse, something really isn't right."

"I know." Siegbert replied with a frown, "We're fortunate that we didn't lose someone, but the mystery…"

After some thought, Forrest's eyes widen as he turned to him, "Siegbert, give me a hand with something. I have something I want to try out."

"Really?!"

Forrest nodded, "Yes. I think I know what's going on, but I need his full attention on me."

The crown prince's eye widen in shock before he nodded, "Got it. You be careful, though. Nina, Ophelia, that includes the two of you as well."

The retainers nodded as he added, "I'll go ask the adults and our friends for some help as well."

With that, the prince vanished into the battlefield with his retainer after him. Forrest turned to Nina, "Nina, go confirm these things for me with Shigure. He should be in the back with Midori for healing."

He whispered more into her ear before the archer nodded and hurried off. Forrest turned to his last retainer, "Ophelia, the two of us are going to join the others."

Ophelia nodded, "Yes, Lord Forrest."

---

The battle continued as the beast easily deflect all the weapons with great speed and attempted to wrap their limbs with vines. Suddenly, the beast pounced and swatted two familiar figures to the ground with great speed.

Ahna gasped, "Dad!"

"Kamui! Corrin!" Azura shouted as she rushed over to them.

However, the beast didn't give either the chance to regroup as it made his way to them. Chrom dashed over, but knew he'd be of little help against the beast as he watched his daughter jump between the dragons and their enemy.

"Lucina!" He grimaced as he watched his daughter point the blade at the lion.

Leo grimaced as he turned to Owain, "Have they returned yet?"

The myimiddon shook his head with a grimace, "No, milord."

Leo opened his book and summoned vines to grab legs of the lion, however, it went awry when the vines suddenly turned back and grabbed his other retainer and Frederick. He scowled as he watched in disbelief, "It has control of my vines. Damn it!"

He watched the vines snap as arrows of light cut through them. Takumi and his wife rushed up to next to him with a frown, "Then, let's try something else."

Leo nodded and flipped to the next couple of pages with a frown, "Then, I hope this works!"

As he chanted orbs of light formed around them before it shot out to the lion. The bubbles burst as the black fur melted with a terrible stench in the air as the lion roared and glared at them. Takumi grimaced as he formed another arrow and string with his bow, "What was that?!"

As the arrow sailed and shattered against its mane, Leo grimaced, "A spell that I've been experimenting on with Henry and Miriel before she had gone to the human realm. It's supposed to be the first dark magic with healing properties, but you can say that it was a failure."

"Well, it seems to be effective, at least!" Mozu shouted as her eyes widen, "Move out!"

Regardless of her words, the four were already on the move as a paw stood where they once stood.

"Father!"

The three turned and saw the red hair healer rush over to them as Leo sighed with a small smile, "You made it back! Did you find what you were looking for?"

Forrest nodded as he displayed a small crystal in his palm, "Uncle Kamui and Prince Chrom told me where the crystal was. Father, this is the crystal you used, right?"

Leo's eyes widen, but he examined it and nodded, "That's right. But, Forrest, what are you planning to do?"

Forrest frowned, "I'm planning to speak with that beast."

"What?!" Takumi exclaimed with wide eyes, "I don't think it's in a talking mood though…"

Forrest shook his head ad turned to Leo, "You must've noticed for a while now, Father. Everyone has been tossed around and attacked by him, but none of us have taken any serious injuries."

Leo frowned as Mozu muttered with wide eyes, "That's… true…"
Forrest nodded, "Uncle Kamui and Aunt Corrin told me that Yue said the beast was understanding about mankind. If so, there must've been a reason that he suddenly started to attack us. And this crystal. It's been shining the entire time! There has to be a connection to all of this. The battle with the first dragons. The mention of the beast. We all heard him. He has a voice."

Owain raised a brow, "But, it's not shining…?"

Leo frowned as he listened. Hesitantly, Mozu spoke up, "Takumi… I think he has a point."

Takumi nodded as he watched the others battle against the beast, "I know, but it's risky. He could get hurt or worse."

Leo continued to think before he finally spoke, "All right, then. We'll help bring his attention to you. When we do, you have to make him talk."

Forrest's eyes widen as a smile formed on his face.

"However," Leo said with a grimace, "You only have one chance at this, Forrest. I can't exactly let you get attacked in front of your mother either."

Forrest nodded firmly, "I understand."

Leo nodded and turned to his retainer, "Owain, change of plans. Tell Niles that we're going to try something else."

Owain nodded, "Understood, Prince Leo."

The man then hurried off as Leo turned to Takumi, who nodded, "Need some help, right? I'll call my retainers to help as well."

Leo nodded, "Thank you. Forrest."

He turned to the healer, "Head to where Siegbert is. Currently, he seems to be focused on the most."

"Got it." Forrest nodded.

With his retainer, the healer rushed back out to the battle field in search of his cousin. Seeing this, Xander eventually made his way to Leo as Takumi and Mozu left in search of his retainer.

"Leo, is something wrong?" he said with a frown, "It's not everyday that your son speaks with you during a battle."

Leo nodded, "He's going to try and speak with the beast."

"What?!" Xander's eyes widen as he grimaced, "But, he could get killed!"

Leo frowned, "I know, but it seems that Forrest thinks it wouldn't. I've sent him to Siegbert. Niles and Owain will be close by when that happens."

Xander remained silent as a couple seconds of silence passed as the atmosphere grew tense, but the king finally sighed, "Then, I certainly hope he knows what he's doing."

Leo nodded, "Yes. For now, we should just help him with his plan for now."

The two knights quickly returned to the battle field as the beast continues to swipe against them in blind rage.

---

It wasn't too hard for them to find their cousin as Siegbert spotted them in surprise, "Forrest! Did you find what you need?"

"Yeah!" the healer responded, "I just need his attention now."

"What are you going to do?"

Forrest strained a smile, "As crazy as it sounds, I'm going to talk to it."

"What?!"

Suddenly, there was a large explosion from afar as the ground began to shake. Forrest grimaced, "It's coming!"

They looked up through the cloud of smoke as the red eyes beast jumped through the smoke and let out a roar before them. They withstood against the wave of wind brought forth as it as the crystal in Forrest's palm was held close to his chest. As the beast looked down and spotted them, Forrest took his chance and brought out the crystal before it.

"The crystal…"

Forrest nodded with a frown, "Listen! I know you can understand humans! Yue said that you were the one with the closest connection to the humans!"

"Yue…" the beast muttered.

Siegbert's eyes widen as he saw the other royal families and retainers watched them with bewilderment and confusion as his cousin spoke slowly with a nod, "Yes. Yue."

Siegbert watched on as the beast's tail flicked and the beast ceased his snarl.

"Yue…" the beast began, "Our creator. The calm darkness she brings…"

Their eyes widen as they watched the lion slowly sheathed his claws and spoke, "Human, what is the meaning of your words? You say our Lady Yue was the one who claims that I am that kind of being. But, are you certain that everything you've seen is true? I've lived in the crystal for many years till now. Who knows what things I've altered within it."

"It is!" Forrest replied immediately with a determined look, "You say that you lived in this crystal and seen the message it held. But, I'm certain that you didn't change the message it held. No, you wouldn't have done so from the very start. Not if you treasure her this much."

"Treasure?"

He nodded, "All this time, you've done nothing but speak her name. If you actually cared for her so deeply, then you wouldn't even been able to bring yourself to alter what she left behind and we know that she was deemed highly by those around her with respect. You… You must've been amongst them. Because she said that if we fail… If we fail, then you would leave us be and return to your den peacefully. You had no intention to take our lives from the start. Not even for revenge!"

"Then, tell me, young man, what is it that I've been doing all this time, if it's not for the revenge?!" He snarled as his claws began to draw out, "Even when the humans cursed her and used her, she watched over them. She gave them the care she never received from them!"

"But, she never said that she wanted it!" Forrest said with a grimace, "You know it too. Because, if she had, you wouldn't be here. It would've been her!"

"Would a Celestial even waste her energy and-"

"She would." Forrest intercepted quickly, "If it was her, then she would. We know because she was also there in person when she came to our world to save our families! There were other celestial aside from her. She could've chose someone to go in her place, but she went there instead! If she was just as passionate when it comes for revenge she would've been here in person too!"

As the beast remained silent, Forrest continued, "The reason why you're here…"

He grimaced as he continued, "The reason why you're here is because this is all a test that you came up with and what you want is… To see if we have what it takes to solve this mystery! To see who would be fit to be your master!"

"What?" Siegbert's eyes widen in disbelief.

Forrest nodded, "Our Uncle and Aunt told me. Yue said that the beast would not harm whoever he deems as his master. Meaning, amongst us, you were looking for whoever would be them!"

A couple seconds ticked by as they waited with uneasiness. Finally, the beast growled forcing many to arms till he sat down with a chuckle, "I see that there was someone who could see through all of this. Well, done, Forrest of Nohr. But, tell me. After all this time, have you seen who it is I've been watching?"

Forrest thought carefully, "It's…"

There was a sudden chuckle as a familiar figure appeared before them.

"Now, let's not make fun of the young man, shall we?"

"Arcane Dragon!" Leo's eyes widen in disbelief, "I thought you moved on!"

Gotoh looked to him with a smile, "Truth is I was also asked to transfer a small portion of my power into this crystal during ritual. So, my soul is gone. I am the power he left behind, not him, I'm afraid."

He turned to the lion, who nodded, "I may have gone a bit too far, then…"

The beast turned to him, "The one whom I shall choose as my master must be the one who could catch onto the hidden clues in the message as they receive it and holds the crystal."

"But, that means," Seigbert's eyes widen as he turned to his cousin, "It's Forrest…"

"Me?" Forrest's eyes widen in disbelief as he took a step back.

The lion blinked his eyes with what seemed to be a smile on his face as he spoke, "You could see the crystal shine, could you not?"

Forrest raised a brow, "But, I'm not the only one, right?"

Ophelia gasped, "No, milord. My father and I have been unable to see it shine, milord. It must've only been you this whole time!"

Forrest frowned in bewilderment, "Then, I was chosen from the start? But, why me?"

Without an answer, the crystal in his hand glowed bright before it literally sank into his palm.

"Forrest!" Sakura gasped.

The lion stood proudly as he spoke, "My trials have been passed by a single individual with a bright mind. From this day forth, I, Rairan, Sage of Knowledge and Member of the Crystal Spirits, choose Forrest of Nohr as my master."

As he said this, the place where the crystal sank grew bright as it spread into lines of light that curled and ascended his arm as the light shined through the clothe.

"As per Lady Yue's wishes, I now grant my new master the permission to access all the knowledge she had during her life as a Celestial." The beast announced with a huff, "If you ever seek my help, all you require is to call out my name, but be warned. Use this power carelessly and you could find yourself on the brink of death. It's no simple task to summon me on a simple whim, Lord Forrest."

Forrest's eyes widen, but slowly nodded, "I-I understand. I'll call you when I truly need your help."

Rairan nodded as he sighed, "With this, my wait is finally over. When you awaken, you shall find the crystal's presence undetectable, but know that it will always be there till the day you have reached your goal as well as I."

Kamui walked over in his human form as he spoke up, "Pardon me, Rairan. When you called yourself a member of this spirits, are you saying that there are more of you?"

Rairan's ear twitched as he answered, "There are, Kamui of Valla. I am only one of sixteen crystals in the world."

"Sixteen?!" Hinoka grimaced, "That's a lot…"

"Most of us were created by the children of Shelanoir with the purpose of watching over the humans while others joined our ranks." Rairan explained with a curt nod, "But, know this. Before her death, Lady Yue used her powers and, not only placed all of them into their place, she made certain to leave behind all the clues she have gathered up with thoughts that they maybe vital to your search to the day before she died."

"Then, she's leaving us with all the progress she left behind." Camilla's eyes widen as he lips curled with a smile, "Clever."

Xander nodded, "But, how did she knew that she would die?"

"Easy." Corrin answered with a frown, "Remember when she talked with the other first dragons? She knew that there would be a day that we would arrive and that we would be in trouble. That was the reason why she decided to help us in the beginning. It's because she had the ability to foresee the future!"

Rairan nodded, "An ability with great responsibility and consequences. She had great trouble with the power as she matured."

Ryoma raised a brow, "It sounds like you knew the Celestial."

As he allowed the image of Gotoh to sit on his paw, Rairan nodded once more, "That goes without saying. I've known her since she have yet to be known by the humans as a Celestial."

"Th-Then, could you tell us more about her, sir?" Sakura timidly asked as she clung to her staff.

The lion nodded, "Yue was a quiet child growing up. She was also the child of Shelanoir, the creator of the universe."

Chrom's eyes widen as he gaped, "And we are getting help from someone so powerful?"

"Yes. But, as powerful as she was, she was known to have a bad reputation from birth, despite being a Celestial." Rairan said with a sigh.

"What happened?" Elise said anxiously.

He looked to them, "Have you heard the tale of the End of A Beginning?"

Kamui looked around to see shaking heads and spoke up, "No. We've been in this realm for over thirteen years, but have discovered very little."

"I see…" Rairan said with a frown, "It was a tale of old, after all. The era of the Celestial came from the Goddess Shelanoir who created the universe from nothing. From the universe, powerful living being were born inheriting her powers. However, there were some who came directly from the goddess, herself. One of them being Yue. She was the youngest of all her siblings who were directly related to the goddess. However, the day she was born light and darkness poured into the world for the first time plunging the universe into chaos as the darkness was so strong that it overpowered the light. When it finally settled, many creatures did not survive the purge of darkness."

"Then, she was falsely accused?" Leo raised a brow, "Where did the darkness come from?"

"It came from Yue."

"What?!" Takumi grimaced, "Then…"

Rairan nodded, "I was told that, from the moment of her birth, she made her first creation and was from then called, the Creator of Darkness."

Hinoka frowned, "Did she know what she was doing?"

"How could she?" Rairan sighed, "It's rare amongst Celestials, but it was an unintentional creation. But, because of it, it killed many being that could've become sacred years later, such as the Pegasus."

"They didn't survive it either?" Hinoka gasped as she recalled her own Pegasus back on the ranch.

Rairan nodded, "I'm afraid so. From that day forward, she was shunned by both humans and Celestials alike and grew up that way."

"Even her own mother?" Corrin's eyes widen in disbelief.

The lion shook his head, "Shelanoir vanished after Yue came into existence. Many claimed that she might not even exist anymore."

Takumi shook his head, "Something not right. If it's like that, then why did she decide to help us? We're humans too."

Rairan shook his head, "I do not know, but she have always respected her mother's choices. Shelanoir loved humans, you see. Amongst all her creations that grew out of her care and left, she was very attentive with the humans and loved them. My best assumption is because Yue knew of this that she decided to reach out and help them, even when she knew what their treatment to her would be."

It hadn't been long before everything started to become a little blurred as Rairan's voice echoed, "It would seem that our time is almost at an end. Human of the otherworld, I wish you all luck to your quest."

"Same." Gotoh's voice spoke, "Now, that you've heard the message our wait is now over. It's finally time for us to act. I shall aid you as much as I could as part of the Arcane Dragon."

"Wait!" Chrom shouted.

But, the image was growing more blurred by the second as everything began to black out.

---

Suki sat in her dark room reading a book on magic under her blanket as a small ball of light sat on the palm of her hand. It was a light magic that Adrien taught her in secret. With it she was able to use it to do her studying in the night in secret. She certainly wasn't banned from doing magic anymore, but that didn't include inside the house and she still had a curfew to meet. Tomorrow would be her first day off since she started working. So, she and her friends have decided to take this chance and try to take in some practice in the park. Out of the blue, there was a sudden crash in the kitchen. As she suddenly threw her covers of and jumped out, she noticed the noise continue and it was coming from the halls. She raised a brow, "Big Brother? Or…"

Quietly, she made her way out the door. She frowned, "The doors are all closed…"

Carefully, she made her way down the steps as she noticed a ghostly white figure admist the darkness. Her eyes widen before she noticed it floating over her way. She gasped and shut out her spell before ducking behind the sofa and entering the small storage room under the stairs. She quietly peeked out and notice that it was a woman with silver hair and a white dress. Upon noticing the spear in her hands she frowned, "Is it a friend of Mom and Dad?"

"Huh…? Suki?"

She jumped and nearly screamed had a hand not covered her mouth. Quickly, she used her magic and created a small orb of light. Her eyes widen.

"Mr. Gaius?!" She exclaimed in shock.

The brown hair man sighed, "No… The name's Asugi. I'm… a friend of your brother's. Yeah…"

She raised a brow, "Um… A friend of big brother? Then, what are you doing under our stairs?"

Asugi shook his head, "Your family is trying to something really important, so they won't come to till morning, okay? Your brother wanted me here so I could keep watch of the house in case something happened."

"Really?" Suki's eyes widen, "But, why didn't they tell me? Oh, never mind. Then, umm…"

As she glanced out the door, Asugi nodded with a shrug, "I know. I've seen her for a while now. Got use to it too. I'm sure if you ignore her, she'll be gone."

Suki raised a brow, "She's always been around here? Does Seigbert knows about it?"

"Yup!" He said with a sigh, "Had a quick talk with him. They all know. Candy, if you keep it quiet?"

As he said this, he pulled out a clear lollipop decorated in the shape of a beautiful flower on a flimsy plastic stick. She stared at it and sighed shaking her head with a small smile, "Thanks. But, my teeth aren't exactly the best condition for more sweets. But my brother wants to keep quiet about it?"

Asugi grimaced as he puts back the candy in his sack and nodded, "Yeah."

"I guess I should go along, but why didn't they speak with Aunt Nyx about it?"

"I don't know." Asugi shrugged as he plopped a candy into his mouth.

Suddenly, there was a small hum as a soft melody could be heard through the door. Asugi sighed, "And here she goes again."

Suki raised a brow before opening a small crack through the door and peeked out only to see nothing, but darkness. She frowned, "Does anyone know who she is?"

He shook his head, "Nah. Not yet anyway. Also, you should go back to bed. Nobody will be up till morning anyway and I still got to let your brother know what I've seen tonight."

As she froze, he sighed, "Well, what do you know. How about this as long as you don't tell anyone what you've seen tonight, including about me, then I won't tell anyone that you were up and about tonight."

Suki nodded, "That's it? Okay! It's a deal!"

Finally, the melody came to an end as Asugi grinned, "Looks like that's it for tonight. Get to bed before they get up, 'kay?"

Suki nodded with a frown, "It's too bad that her song ended. I really liked it…"

"Yeah, well, don't stay up too late all night, Suki." Asugi shrugged, "Gonna make your bro worried."

"Okay." Suki nodded before cautiously opened the door.

Finally seeing that the coast was clear and no sound was made, she crawled out and said to the man, "I'll see you next time, then. Thanks for letting me hide here."

"Got it. Got it. Just go back to bed and lock your door, ya hear?"

She nodded and made her way back up the stairs quickly. Once she made it back up the stairs and to her room, she locked the door and pulled out a large black book from under her bed and flipped it open to where a pen sat tucked in between the pages. She grabbed it and sat on her bed as she wrote quickly.

Tonight, there was a loud noise in the kitchen. I was studying in secret, but I got out to check and saw a glimpse of a white ghost! Then, when I went into hiding under the stairs, there was a man, who said that he was big brother's friend acting as a guard tonight. He said his name was Asuki or something like that. Should I be worried about this? Oh, well…

---

When he opened his eyes, he saw that he wasn't in his room as he thought he was. Instead, he found himself back in the flower field of Valla once again! His eyes widen in disbelief, "This…!"

"Lord Shigure?!"

Upon the shocked voice, he turned and saw Feather before him. The woman stared at him with wide eyes as she gasped, "What happened to you?! You looked like you were attacked in another dream! Are you all right?!"

He looked down to see the tattered blue clothing and dented armor with a strained grin, "Well, you can say something like that happened, but I'm all right, Feather. More importantly, I'm surprised to find myself here tonight."

"As am I." Feather nodded with a grimace, "Perhaps, I can mend your clothing, if you just hold still?"

Shigure chuckled nervously, "It's fine, Feather. You don't really have a sewing kit with you, after all. And, this is only a dream."

Feather frowned, "Even so, there are somethings that I just can't let it slide, sir. Such as the state you're in."

She then pulled out a small wooden box with a smile, "And I always keep one with me for such circumstances, sir. Hehe."

Shigure's eyes widen before he bursted out laughing, "Haha! I see. You remind me a bit of Caeldori, now. Always prepared for the worst cases."

Feather chuckled, "Perhaps. Please have a seat and try not to move, milord. If I start now, I may finish before I'm forced to leave."

Shigure nodded, "I suppose I don't have much of a choice, then. I don't want to see you of all people get mad for the first time."

"Oh, I don't know about that." The retainer said with a small grin as Shigure took a seat on the grass.

As she pulled out a needle, she paused before handing a piece of paper to the prince, "This was from my brother, Lord Shigure. We were able to meet up a few hours ago. He's still on the run, but he's long since lost our enemies as well. He wanted me to pass this on to you in person."

He took the note and opened it as he raised a brow, "So, he was here, then?"

Feather nodded as she got to work with the needle and thread, "Yes, milord. I've told him everything you had been concerned with and what was occurring. He hastely wrote this down after he realized that he might not be able to stay for long. It would seem that the enemy have sent out a tracking spell for him specifically."

"What?!" Shigure grimaced, "Is he all right?"

Feather nodded as she worked on the large tear on the fabric on his back, "Yes, sir. He had outrun a blood hound in the past and hid from a tracing magic before. I believe that he'll get away from our foes again. Of course that would mean that I won't be able to remain here for long as well. My deepest apologies."

Shigure shook his head, "As long as you and your brother stay alive, that's all that matters. Now, let's see…"

As he read silently to himself, Feather continues to work on the fabric with quick precision and speed while humming a very familiar hymn Shigure had heard once before. As she was almost done, Shigure frowned as he folded back the paper and stuffed it into his sack on his belt, "I see that Ciel was able to hide my grandparents and is doing well, but I don't know about him becoming a decoy."

"What?!" Feather froze with wide eyes as she gasped in disbelief, "But, he's never told me that before!"

Shigure turned a quick glance to her with a frown, "Has he ever…"

She shook her head as she quickly sewed the remaining bit of tear, "Once, but that time didn't go well and he was badly injured with a scar that he bears to this day…"

Shigure grimaced, "Then, I shall go after him."

"Please don't, milord." Feather pleaded as she tapped his shoulder, "Let me. The dream realm could be a dangerous place to one who still can wake up, milord. My brother and I probably still has a while before everyone solves the problem. It's dangerous if you get lost here, so let me go."

Shigure frowned before he slowly nodded, "All right. But, be careful, Feather. There's a good chance that the enemy could be after you instead."

Feather nodded, "I understand, milord. Till then, please remain hidden in this place."

"Okay."

As he slowly got back up, he turned and saw her packing up the needle and thread into her kit before she got up as well. His eyes widen before he frowned, "Wait, Feather. You don't have a weapon…"

She smiled, "It's fine, milord. I was taught martial arts by our uncle when we were young. I'll be fine."

Shigure hesitated before he nodded, "All right. But, remember that, if you're unable to win, just pull back, Feather. Don't waste anymore energy if you're unable to escape with your brother."

"I understand, milord." She bowed, "I'll make sure to return with my brother."

With this he watched the woman quickly turn and disappear into the green woods in the blink of an eye.

Shigure nodded as he noticed his surroundings getting clouded, "I have a part to play as well. You two just hold out a bit longer with Yukimura and Lilith. We're finally getting somewhere now with this case now."

---

YueTian: Great! Got this chapter out! Now, to figure out on chapter 32 or 31 of FE Awakening Blossoms. Gonna need something to be done. Anyway! I hope you guys like it! I thought about posting it yesterday, but I ended up falling asleep. Also, my family had just gotten a new puppy! A yellow lab I names Ciel! (Not from Black Butler, but from the song Artonelico! Took me a while to learn that it was French meaning Heaven or Skies. T-T Now, that sounded so human…) He's doing great so far and only needs two more shots before we can take him out. He's three months now too! So, there's the update on our new little brother! So cute! If only I could post his pic on here! Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy reading this! See ya in a bit!