Part 1: Gravenvale Advances

~Reana's Choices~

Reana wrapped her arms around the barrel she was hiding behind, hoping to go unnoticed. She pushed a strand of pure black hair behind her ears and closed her eyes, feeling the vibrations of the rocking ship flow through her. She wished she hadn't come on this mission, but she knew she had to. It was the Goldoan mission. Goldoa was her home country.

That's right, was. She'd been with Gravenvale for over three years now, as the only Black Dragon to reach the General rank. She'd only joined to avenge her father's death, by taking out the beorc of Daein. But that hadn't happened yet, and she was just going to have to wait.

Reana sighed and pushed away the barrel so the Goldoan plains were in full view. She remembered this. As the ship, full of scurrying soldiers preparing for seizing, turned the corner, Reana could see mile after mile of rocky hills and flat grasslands. Her mind drifted back to her younger days in Goldoa. Playing with her Dragon friends, Tarith and Marcan. Long talks with Kurthnaga. Playfighting with her mom. Long talks with Kurthnaga….

She hadn't realized how much she missed her royal friend. Even when they were children growing up together, Kurthnaga was the kindest and sweetest Dragon laguz she had ever met. Not loud and arrogant like his father, Dheginsea. The deceased King of Dragons could be funny at times though…"HOLD…HOLD I SAY!" was what Reana remembered him shouting once. She suppressed a giggle. How she missed that life….

The dragon girl shook her head. No. Tellius was their enemy now, even if she was going against her own race…

"General Reana? What are you doing down there?"

Reana looked up to see her subordinate, Lieutenant Shirenam, staring down at her curiously. His brow wrinkled as he asked, "Aren't you supposed to be surveying the troops?"

Staring at her bare feet, Reana tried to think of a convincing lie. In truth, she wasn't supposed to be here. "Um, yes," she said, "But…. My head hurts and I'm taking a break. You're in charge now."

"Oh, um…" Shirenam looked shocked at Reana's words. He was quite underanked compared to Reana. "Uh….. I guess I'll go ready the troops?"

"You do that…" Reana looked back to the hills and sighed. She couldn't believe what was about to happen.

The ship stopped and made anchor at a spot between two jagged rocks. They lowered the plank directly between the opening, and make way for the clearing next to the village of Ryu, which was only meters away from the Castle of Goldoa. Reana gave a silent gasp, and she moved the barrel closer to her body. "That's my village," she whispered.

"Onward, men! This country of sub-humans will now be ours!"

Reana fought the overpowering urge to leap from her hiding place and force all the men to go back to Gravenvale. She really didn't want to see Goldoa crash and burn right in front of her eyes. Could she do it? Yes. Would she? No. She didn't want to risk being removed from her status as general over something as… silly as seizing a country. And then she'd never be able to avenge her father.

Suddenly, a plan formed in Reana's mind. She did want to see what would happen to Goldoa, however, not the aftereffects of the battle. When she was sure all the men had left the boat, Reana pushed the barrel away from her forcefully, and she lifted the plank. She then unanchored the boat, and she felt the ship move forward. She headed to the steering wheel, wondering how she was going to do this.

Okay, she thought, grasping the wheel tightly with sweaty hands. The sea out ahead was immense and threatening, and she was glad she didn't have to actually go that far. I just have to turn this corner….

She raised the sails with her left hand and held the wheel with her right. She had to keep straight for a few meters, and then make a sharp turn to the right to reach the coastal village of Ryu. She kept an eye on the rocks as though not to make the ship hit them, and when she reached her turning point, she used both hands to turn the wheel to the right. The ship rocked and teetered, and she struggled to keep her grip on the unfamiliar wheel.

When she turned the corner, the sight of the town was quite what she expected. Houses were ablaze with red and orange fire. Children were screaming and crying. The castle, in its perfect beauty, had not yet been damaged. The army of Gravenvale had taken to fighting the Goldoan Royal Dragons and their army of one-thousand in the adjacent clearing as planned. Among the fray she could pick out individual dragons- Kurthnaga, the smallest of the Black Dragons, with their diamond-like wings and sturdy stature; Marcan, the darkest of the Red Dragons, who were obviously made to fight; but among the white dragons, with their elegance and grace, she could not separate her friend Tarith from the mix.

Reana anchored the ship again, being careful not to topple overboard in the murky waters. As she stood back from the secured anchor, she blinked several times as she stared out onto the battlefield. Her face burned, and her hands made their way to her red cheeks. Her heart pounded as she watched a load of Wyvern Lords slam their forces into the Goldoan castle wall, which made many cracks in its shimmering marble. At this, she could see Kurthnaga give a roar of pure rage. The black dragon, small as he was, flapped himself into the air, and blasted a forceful white breath at the small group of enemies. The sound it gave was so loud, so deafening, that anyone near the blast would be at a loss for hearing. The castle tower where the blast impacted teetered on its hinges and then slammed to the hardened earth, creating another ear-splitting blow and killing many of Gravenvale's ground troops in the process.

The battle had now split into two areas: The large fray in the crumbling village, and the smaller Black Dragon-led fray near the castle. Gravenvale soldiers began to storm like a herd of beast laguz into the castle, tearing down banners and lighting the castle aflame with their torches as they went. Reana saw the penthouse- where Kurth's room was located- slowly be slammed away by the wyverns and the repeated blasts of the Black Dragons.

Tears, wet and hot, trickled down Reana's face like a stream. The urge to fight was back again, and Reana suppressed her burning feelings once more. She had to choose where her loyalties lied. Was she a strong Goldoan dragon, as she had been since birth? Or was she a menacing Gravenvale general, who would take war lightly?

A distressed Reana sat where she was on the top deck and placed her head in her hands. She couldn't decide, not here, not now. Who knew fighting against your former country would be so hard…?

She pulled her knees to her chest and lay on her side, weeping uncontrollably. She didn't want to think about this. Maybe she'd be lucky and a dragon's breath would ignite her on the spot and kill her. Right now she really hated her life. If she stayed with Gravenvale, she would have a chance to destroy Daein, the killers of her father. If she betrayed and went with Goldoa, she'd be able to help defend and possibly save the country…

She let her eyes close, and all of her thoughts floated away like her hair blowing in the wind, carefree and alone.

Fighting. Death. Screams. Fire. The essence of war filled Reana's mind the second she roused from her brief unconsciousness. She sat up, wiping her tear-streaked face, and looked out upon the scene.

It was horrific. There were dead and injured dragons and beorc everywhere. She heard a man cry out for his loved one before he died. The village of Ryu was burned to the ground, as if it had never been there. Only a thin layer of ashes proved its existence. The castle, however, was still standing, much to Reana's relief. It was only singed in places. She looked down and saw the Goldoan flag, the large one that used to stand atop the castle. On the ground, its sacred emblem of the dragons was completely burned off. She looked to the castle's top, where the red and golden flag of Gravenvale waved in the evening wind, the sun reflecting the shiny gold stripes. Reana hung her head. It was done.

Goldoa had fallen.

"Let me go! Now! Kurthnaga, please help me!"

That voice. It entered Reana's pointed ears and circled around her mind. That voice, which would wake her up in the mornings of her childhood. That voice, which called to her across the hills in childish games. That voice. Tarith.

Reana's eyes slid across the battlefield, strewn with deep red blood, until she reached the struggling figure of the white dragon girl. The female screamed and kicked and the two Gravenvale soldiers holding her back by her arms, her white-sea green hair streaming in the wind. The soldiers dragged her by her arms, and her slippered feet dragged the ground, leaving trail marks in the dirt.

They're coming toward the ship.

Reana couldn't believe, out of all the dragons in Goldoa, that they were taking Tarith captive. She felt her heart sink to her stomach as her blood sister passed by her below. Tarith looked up and her blue eyes met Reana's. She blinked, and her eyes widened in shock.

Something stirred at the back of Reana's mind. Something that reminded her of this dragon, why this dragon girl was so important to her. That day Tarith saved her life…

The cold autumn wind blew across the trees that day. The forest surrounding the newly-formed village of Rikan was still, quiet. All except for the soft breathing of one little dragon girl….

Reana was curled up by a tree, her arms wrapped tight around her. She was freezing all over her seven-year-old body, but after a week in the woods, she hardly felt it. Her throat was dry from lack of water, her stomach raw from lack of food. She had managed to survive for those seven long days on tree bark. But she wasn't yearning for a fresh meal the most. She missed her mom.

When Reana, the newest dragon child, was born, Goldoa was in such rejoicing that they supplied all the necessary things to her mother, Ena, to take care of the child. The lavish gifts came frequently at first, then less and less, and finally the day Reana turned seven, they stopped altogether.

On that day, Ena decided she would take her child out for a walk. Reana was a happy and spirited child, ready to go anywhere. The mother-daughter duo walked in the woods for a good while. They even had a chance to stop in Rikan for a bit. All this time, though, Reana noticed her mother had a sad look in her eyes.

They reached the woods again, and Reana and her mother stopped by a tree. She sat her child down and gave her one long kiss, right on her dragon mark. Ena then looked up sadly at her child.

"I love you, baby. But this… is for the best." She turned around and began to walk away.

"Mama, where are you going? Why are you leaving me? You can't!" The dragon child felt tears spring into her eyes. Her mother, the strong Red Dragon, was going? She'd never see her again?

Ena sniffed and wiped away unconcealed tears. "Reana, I don't want to leave. But…. I can't support you, baby. Goldoa helped us for a while and…now they're not."

"But… Mama!"

"Love you, Reana. Be safe. I hope… I hope I see you again." Ena walked swiftly, unwilling to look back at her daughter, her only daughter she loved.

"…. MAMA!"

That was a week ago. Reana had barely left her little tree since her mother left her there, and she missed her terribly. Why did she have to leave? Why was she left here? A wind blew and chilled Reana to the bone. Tears, cold and wet, rolled down Reana's cheeks. She wanted to go home. She hated this. The child closed her eyes. She felt her heartbeat slow, her breathing become less frequent. She let herself drift into unconsciousness…

"Lalalalala…"

Reana emerged from her near death with a jolt. Somebody else was in the woods… and they were singing. Who was it?

"Lalala- oh! What's that?"

Tiny footsteps ran across the hard-packed earth, though the sound wasn't loud. Reana, who was on her side, couldn't see the figure as it stopped over her. The figure crouched and asked in a female's voice, "Are you alright?"

Reana shook her head no, and she curled up tighter into her ball. If this young girl that worried for her was a beorc, she wanted nothing to do with her. She'd heard how cruel and mean they were to laguz.

"Can you turn over?"

Reana shook her head again, this time more rapidly. She could turn over; however, all the warmth from her body would escape out into the wind if she did. But suddenly, strong, yet soft, hands unraveled Reana from her position, and she did not resist. She lay flat on her back, staring up into the child's face.

Her long, dangling hair, was white in the shadows, but when the sun passed over them, her locks were a light sea-green. Her skin was paler than the rest of the dragons, and her blue eyes were lined with worry. But, the most interesting thing to Reana was the reddish swirl mark that was right between her eyebrows. The mark a dragon would have.

The white-haired girl smiled. "Ah! You're a dragon! Like me!" She pointed proudly to her chest, making a face of satisfaction. "I'm Tarith. I'm a white dragon. I live with my daddy, Nasir. But…" Tarith gave a look of guilt at Reana. "Do you have a home? I can take you with me to my house. By the way, what's your name?"

I can…. Have a home? Reana thought. She wasn't scared of this girl. She was a dragon, too, and a place to stay was really what she needed right now. She hoped her mother would understand.

And for the first time in a week, Reana smiled. "Reana. My name's Reana."

Reana's subconscious crept back into the present little by little. She could remember going to Nasir's house, and learning that he was her mother's grandfather, which deemed Tarith and Reana somewhat as sisters. Tarith, although two years younger than Reana, was at the level of maturity where she could play with Reana without being considered a pest. Reana remembered moving to Ryu, where she met Marcan, a hardy and stubborn Red Dragon child. She remembered visiting the castle, when she first met Kurthnaga. She recalled the day, at age fourteen, when Nasir told her how her father had been killed. That day changed her life forever, and that was when she vowed to get revenge against the beorc, thus joining Gravenvale, who had been planning a war on Tellius.

She remembered Tarith screaming for her not to go.

Now the scene was back to the present day, with Reana staring down at her sister, and her sister opening her mouth to scream her name, which would be burned in the black dragon's memory forever.

"REANA!"

That did it. She snapped. Reana made a noise like a scared animal and she ran to hide behind her barrel again. Tarith. She loved her sibling with all her heart, there was no telling what the men would do to her…. She put her head in her hands, shaking involuntarily.

Tarith's screams choked off and then died. Reana's sharp hearing, though she wished not to hear anymore, picked up Tarith's unconscious breathing as she was dragged up the lowered plank by two soldiers.

"What do we do with her? She seems to know General Reana… did she even come on this mission?"

The black dragon's ears perked up. She swore and begged anyone who was listening that she would not be noticed. If she was, her plans against Daein would be lost. Not that it matters, Reana thought.

"Eh, I say take her to Prince Verdone. They'll probably make her a feral laguz anyway. Imagine that, we'll be the first to have a feral dragon!"

Feral? WHAT? Reana deemed that as worse than death. She'd seen the feral laguz in the dungeons of the Gravenvale Keep. They snapped at you when you walked by, they roared in pain and agony. She remembered her first few months in Gravenvale, she was a servant and she had to feed those rabid things. She felt sorry for them.

Could she stop Verdone from making Tarith that way?

Reana lifted her head to see Tarith being pulled down the stairs to the lowest level of the ship. About forty other men stalked up the plank behind the first two, their armor scarred and scratched. A mage, a very young mage at that, collapsed on the deck in line, and the weary soldiers stepped over him like he was dust. The one archer at the end of the line raised the plank, unanchored the ship, and carried the mage boy swiftly down the steps where Tarith had gone.

The captain of the ship came out from his quarters, in his red suit which matched his flaming hair. He looked around at the soldiers standing on the ship, nodded his head, and retreated back to his room. When he had left, the men gave war cries and whoops in victory. The vessel passed the castle, and Reana saw a few Gravenvale men had taken fort there. They gave hollers to their friends back on board.

Kurth…I'm sorry. Reana put her head in her hands again, her tears falling and staining her tunic. If she ever got a chance to see Goldoa again, she was sure she would be shunned for working with the enemy. The dragon girl continued to sob, as the wind blew around her, whispering of being alone anew.

WOOT! Chapter 9 is up! Just one more chapter and Part 1 will be done!

FYI, if you didn't know, Reana is the girl Darren and co. met back in chapter 7 (it says eight on fanfiction because of the prologue).

Lukichan13 does not own Fire Emblem.