Fire Emblem: Valiant Dawn

Chapter 10x. & 11

Author's Note: Hello again, dearest readers. Just thought that I'd reply to a few reviews from the last few chapters, so here goes.

SineGloria: Sorry, but the OC lacks both the training and knowledge to diagnose internal injuries, and definitely lacks the ability to cut someone open and perform surgery without killing them. Adam's knowledge of anatomy is purely theoretical; He knows where everything is, but not much about fixing things. That bit about medieval medicine and how to extract arrows (as Adam did in chapter one) I actually learned through my research into the english longbow and its use during the middle ages. All that aside, there will be times, once the war with Daein really gets started, when healers are not available/around for some reason (I'm not gonna say more), so the characters may have to get creative when people are wounded. No plans for medical drama at this moment, though.

Tom-Ato13: Okay, you asked for music. Here ya go.

Chapter 10x. Training Montage!

Pehnehnehnehnehnehnehneh DUHN! nehnehneh DUHN! DUHN! DUHN!

nehnehnehneh DUHN! DUHN! DUHN! nehnehnehneh DUHN! DUHN!

DUUUUUUUUHHHHHHHHH! THE EYE OF THE

TIIIIIIGERRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

Archsage12: Glad you like that little mutually abusive friendship/rivalry between Adam and Boyd. Oddly enough, I never had any plans to include Boyd in the fic as a main character, he just kinda showed up in chapter 3 and I discovered that his character is a ton of fun to write.

Nekuromansa000: Yes, characters will die, but that will be later on in the fic. Naturally, I'm not gonna say who or when. I've even toyed with the idea of killing the main character off, so basically no one is safe.

There, that wasn't necessarily all the reviews I had comments/replies for, but those were the ones at the forefront of my mind. Thank you all for your continued support. Now, for this chapter I thought I'd try writing something different from what I normally do, so I apologize if the following is kinda really terrible.

Disclaimer: Blah blah blah, everything belongs to Nintendo blah blah blah, I own nothing but the OC, blah blah blah. You know the drill.

Chapter 11: Starlight

I lay awake in the dead of night, a vague sense of unease keeping sleep at bay. The cabin was dark, with only a sliver of moonlight seeping through a crack in the wall. Everything was silent; No snoring from the three brothers with whom I shared this cabin, none of the usual daytime hustle and bustle of the crew, no whistle of the wind or splash of the waves, just an oppressive silence that seemed louder than all those things together. A shuffling sound from outside on the deck broke that silence, and the sliver of moonlight disappeared for a second as someone passed by. I sat up, suddenly tense, when the shuffling stopped. I listened, all of my senses on high alert, but there was no sound. Shaking my head and chiding myself for jumping at shadows, I lay back down and closed my eyes. The shuffling resumed, this time stopping right outside the cabin door. I stubbornly refused to open my eyes, it was nothing and would soon be gone. Just go to sleep. A horrid scrapping sound blasted those hopes away, and a gust of wind blew through the room as the door was thrown wide. My eyes snapped open again to see a grotesque figure silhouetted in moonlight enter. It wore the bloodstained outfit of a Daein prison guard, and its breath hissed through a jagged tear in its neck as it shambled towards me. I scrambled back on my cot, pinning myself against the wall in terror as I tried in vain to escape. Dead, angry eyes glared right at me and the corpse's hands reached...

I screamed and bolted upright in my bed, tearing the dagger I kept nearby out of its sheath. The room was empty, save for my companions sleeping soundly in the other beds. In the bunk above me Boyd snorted, then rolled over and returned to his regular snoring, unbothered. There was nothing, no corpse, just the lone sliver of moonlight shining through the crack in the wall. With shaking hands I sheathed the knife, then swung my legs out of bed and sat there for a moment, head in my hands. Taking deep, shuddering breaths I gradually slowed my racing heart and brought myself back to reality. Another night, another nightmare, I thought drily. Once I had settled into a routine on the ship, once I no longer had battles and running from Daein to keep my mind occupied, the nightmares had started. They changed a bit from night to night; One night an archer with a dagger through his eye would come for me, the next a knight with a cloven head. The details didn't really matter, the fact was that I had killed each and every single one of them and their faces were forever burned into my subconscious. There was no point trying to sleep now; It would elude me for the rest of the night, as it had every other time, until I could get my mind off of it. With a sigh I got up from the bunk, pulled on a shirt and headed out quietly for the deck to get some fresh air. I went out the door, fighting back the last bit of fear that something was waiting just on the other side, then closed it softly behind me so as not to wake my companions.

Outside, a cool breeze rustled the sails as it blew off the water, and waves lapped against the hull in a rhythmic, soothing tune. There were a few crewmen on duty but they were far away and looked half asleep, so I stood at the rail undisturbed for several minutes breathing in the crisp, salty air and calming my nerves. It was a cloudless night, and I found myself noticing how full of stars the night sky was, so very different from the sky in my home. On a sudden impulse, I swung myself out onto the rigging and started climbing towards the crow's nest at the very top of the mainmast; The view from up there would be spectacular with no sails or rigging to get in the way, and since I wasn't going to be getting any sleep I might as well enjoy the night. The climb took me only a few minutes thanks to Zihark's brutal training regimen, with only a few proverbial butterflies in my stomach because of the height, . As I pulled myself over the edge of the crow's nest, however, I found it already occupied by a very surprised Nephenee.

"Hey... I didn't think anybody'd be up here," I said uncertainly, silently berating myself for that stupid assumption. Of course there would be someone up here to keep watch. Duh.

Nephenee hurriedly adjusted her helmet to further cover her face before replying. "I, uh, couldn't sleep so I took the night watch. Just needed some time ta meself..." she trailed off, looking down at her feet and clearly struggling with something.

"I'll leave you alone then. Sorry to disturb you," I apologized, shifting my feet down onto the rigging to begin the long climb back down. A slight shaking started in my arms as they once again took my weight; Apparently I need to work out more.

"I-it's okay, ye can stay. I was gettin' kinda lonesome anyway," Nephenee replied before I could go far. Not about to argue with the chance to take a breather, I hauled myself inside the crow's nest, delighted to once again have something solid to stand on and suddenly glad to no longer be alone. Perhaps a little companionship tonight will do me some good. We were both silent for some time, but then again we were the two most awkward people in the company (unless you count Kieran, but he's really just insane) so it was hardly surprising. I stood there for many minutes just enjoying the breathtaking view of the stars and the moon before I finally spoke.

"You know, I almost never got to see a sky like this back home," I remarked in awe, keeping my voice quiet lest I ruin the moment.

Nephenee chuckled at the absurdity of my statement. "It's the same sky no matter where ye are in Tellius. Have ye been livin' under a rock?" she asked incredulously.

Oops, I slipped up there. "Did you just laugh? I didn't think you knew how," I said lightly, trying to change the subject. She just looked at me expectantly, awaiting an answer. "Ummm, my home is pretty far from Tellius," I replied reluctantly, being decidedly vague so she wouldn't think I was crazy. She cocked her head inquisitively, so I simply added "Trust me, you won't have heard of it."

"How come ye can't see the sky? Seems silly to me," she asked, clearly a little curious.

How to answer that? Light pollution isn't exactly a big issue in this world... "In my home the cities are huge, way bigger than anything here I'll wager, and they have buildings many times taller than this ship. Everything is always lit up, even at night, so brightly that you can see the light from really far away, even when you can't see the city itself. It can make for a really beautiful view of the city at night, but the problem is that light blots out the sky, so I have to go somewhere pretty remote to see the stars," I explained. It really is a shame no one thinks to just turn off some lights at night; They're all missing out on this back home.

"That sounds incredible, even if it does blot out the stars," Nephenee said, looking off to the distance as she tried to envision a giant, glowing city. "I'd like to see that someday, if I live through this war."

"So would I..." I added so quietly only I could hear as a little homesickness started to creep in. Avoiding that particular emotion I returned to looking at the sky and just let my mind wander as I enjoyed the view. Bloody wars or no, this world definitely had its perks.

"Ye must've come an awful long way to fight with us. Why'd ye do that?" she asked, tilting her head to one side as she considered me. Before I could throw out a sarcastic comment about leaving her in prison, she added hastily, "N-not that I'm not glad ye're here, I mean, I'm grateful to be outta that prison, but still..."

This would take some creative storytelling. There is no way she'd believe the real story. I was lucky the first few people I told believed me, and Soren still almost killed me over that. "Well, it wasn't on purpose. I was travelling on my own, got a bit lost, one thing led to another and I wound up here. Stumbled into the middle of a war and joined up because there was really nowhere else for me to go. Not a very interesting story, I'm afraid. How about you? How did you get involved in all of this?" I already knew a bit, but it never hurt to ask.

"I'm from a small farmin' village east o' the capital. I joined the militia when I heard about them Daeins sackin' villages an' killin' farmers. I was just so worried that they'd do that to me family, so I marched off to stop them. Pretty foolish, I know; What're a bunch of peasants gonna do against an army like that? But at the time we were all so fired up, we thought we could take on Ashnard himself. Well anyway, ye saw how that turned out; Most of us ended up dead or in prison."

Damn, I thought. Their commander must have been stupid or desperate to throw untrained peasants at a professional army. Militia with local knowledge and such would be more suited to guerrilla warfare; They could have supported Renning's army and forced the Daeins to deal with threats on multiple fronts, putting them in disarray. It would have at least slowed down the Blitzkreig-style attack long enough for other Crimean lords to muster their own armies and reinforce the capital. I didn't say any of that, though; The battle was long over, and there was no need to lessen their sacrifice. ""Hey, I can't say I'd do any less if my home were invaded. Don't worry, though; We'll pay those Daeins back for what they've done just as soon as we get an army."

"Ye sound pretty confident. How d'ye know Begnion'll even care? How d'ye know we won't be too late even if we get an army?"

"I don't. Ike and the Princess haven't let us down yet, though, and I've got faith in them," I said, trying to reasure her. No doubt she was worried about her family. "Besides, Daein needs people to work the land or there's no point in conquering Crimea. I'm sure your village will be fine. Those first massacres would have been to make people fear Daein, and fear keeps the people from revolting."

"If ye're tryin' ta make me feel better ye're doin' a rotten job," she commented drily. She chuckled again, but this time it sounded forced. "But thanks fer tryin'."

"What I'm trying to say is that we're in more danger than your village, so if you live through this then you'll see your family again."

Now her smile seemed a little more genuine. "How 'bout yerself? Will ye be goin' home when all this is over too?"

"... I don't know. Maybe, if I'm lucky." My odds weren't good, but perhaps if I could get my hands on one of Daein's researchers...

"Well, I hope it works out for ye as well. D'ye miss yer family? Ye must've been apart fer a long time..."

I gulped to force the lump in my throat away before answering. "Every day. I'm sure you know the feeling."

She nodded and gazed off into the distance for a while. Just when I was about to break the silence she finally spoke again. "Me dad used to take me up on a hill near my village ta see the stars on clear nights like this," Nephenee reminisced, her voice taking on a sad tone. "Ever since I was just a small lass, we'd sit out there an' talk 'bout... well anything, really. The important part was that it was just us; It was our thing, ye know?"

"Yeah, I know what you mean," I remarked wistfully, closing my eyes as fond memories of home surfaced. Despite myself I smiled, thinking about some of the good times I'd had. "Sounds like you and your father were pretty close."

"...We were. Learned just about everything I know from him; He taught me how ta hunt an' farm an' take care o' the animals, where all the roads and trails around the village go, and how ta read an' write a little. He even showed me some tricks fer barterin' with merchants whenever they came through town. He was the leader of the local militia that kept bandits an' such away, so he was the one who taught me ta fight too, even though I don't think he ever wanted me ta have ta use what I learned. He was always there fer me, always lookin' out fer me. I... I really miss him." Her voice cracked as she spoke. I assumed she was homesick, like me.

I didn't want her to cry, I had no idea how to deal with that and if she cried there was a good chance I would too, so I did my best to be supportive. "Hey, once we've won this war you'll see him again. I'm sure your dad's at home just waiting for you..." I trailed off as she turned away, one hand going to her face. A little sniffle came from beneath her helmet. What did I say? It took a second, but something she said finally registered. They were close, he was... Oh god. "I-I didn't-" I tried to say something, but the words stuck in my throat. "I had no idea. I'm so sorry."

Another sniffle came, louder this time. Oh man is she crying? I have no idea how to deal with that! I reached for her hand, but pulled back before I got close. What do I do? Why is there nobody else here to deal with the emotional stuff? Where is Mist or Titania when I need them? I glanced around nervously, but there was no one else. Well, I have to do something. I had no better ideas, so I put a hand on her shoulder, a little afraid of how she'd react (especially since the last time I tapped her on the shoulder she almost impaled me). To my surprise she grabbed that hand, gripping tightly as her shoulders bobbed with silent sobs.

"W-when did..." I said softly, thinking it might be best to get her to talk about it. That's supposed to help with the loss of a loved one, right? I wasn't really sure how to ask that, or even if I should, but I had to say something. "Was it at the prison?" No response. I'd heard nothing about this before so she must have been keeping it all bottled up for quite some time. "If you don't wanna talk about it that's okay, but just... for your own sake you gotta talk with somebody, okay? Once you're ready." Ugh, I'm terrible at this emotional stuff. What the hell am I even doing? I'm probably just making it worse for the poor girl. "Do you, uhh... want some time-?"

"It was just before I got captured," she interrupted, finally finding her voice. "Not at the prison." I stood in shocked silence, not sure what to think or do. In the end, I just chose to keep listening. She took a deep breath to regain a bit of her composure, and continued. "A-at the battle, he... we were a bunch of half-trained farmers with just a couple'o experienced soldiers, and everything just went ta hell in a matter o' minutes. Me dad, he- he took the rearguard with some volunteers so I- so the wounded could get away, but there were so many soldiers..." she trailed off again, pain evident in her voice even though her face remained hidden.

"There was nothing you could've done," I told her. It wasn't much of a comfort, but what else could I say?

"T-that ain't true! I shouldn't've even been there! He didn't want me ta join the militia but I was so angry an' I wanted ta make Daein pay fer threatenin' me family. I-if I hadn't been there, if I wasn't wounded-"

I cut her off, taking her by the shoulders and spinning her to face me. "Nephenee, don't do this to yourself," I said, looking her right in the eyes. Even with the helmet- why does she think she needs that? - I could see her eyes were red from crying, and her cheeks were streaked with tears. "Okay? Don't go there. It was not your fault. Your father sounds like the kind of man who would've put himself in that rearguard whether you were there or not, and I'm betting wherever he is now he's just glad you're safe." I had no idea what Tellians believed in terms of afterlife stuff, but hopefully that helped. I didn't really have much else, so I pulled her into a hug. "Don't think about the battle, okay? Forget about the war, forget about Daein. Think of that hill, think about how happy you guys were back then. Remember him that way." She nodded, and to my surprise hugged me back. I had no idea how long we stood there, I just waited for her to get it out of her system. After what felt like ages but was likely no more than a few minutes, she pulled back to arm's length.

"Thanks, I-I needed that," she said, casting her eyes down and looking a little embarrassed. "Sorry 'bout fallin' apar-"

"Don't apologize, Nephenee. Everyone needs to have a good cry sometimes," I interrupted. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but she looked better somehow, as if letting out all those pent-up emotions had finally given her a bit of peace. The sadness was still unmistakably there, but it was no longer overwhelming. "You feel better?" I asked, just to be sure.

"Yeah, a little. And it's just Neph," she answered. I looked at her quizzically; I'd never heard anyone call her Neph. She clarified. "Me friends call me Neph."

I was speechless for a second as her statement sank in. I mean, we've fought together on several occasions, but that was more out of necessity than any actual bond, and this is only the third conversation we've ever had. Sure, I just got her to open up about some pretty painful stuff, but that's just being a good... yeah okay, I guess we are kinda friends. Besides, she obviously needs a friend right now, so I'll do what I can to help. "Alright, Neph it is, then," I replied with a smile. We stood in silence for a little longer, until Nephenee- no Neph let out a yawn.

"Hey, ummm... I'm actually a little tired, so I was gonna head down," she whispered. "Ye comin'?"

"Yeah, I'd better get some sleep. Zihark will kick my ass if I start yawning again during training," I admitted. I was exhausted, which meant lovely and hopefully dreamless sleep awaited. "I'll, uh, seeya tomorrow?"

"Sure." Nephenee went over the side of the crow's nest, but stopped just before her head disappeared from view. "Was there anythin' ye needed ta talk about? 'Cause I'd be happy ta listen if ye need to..."

Suddenly, I felt terrible for lying to her about my origins earlier. I silently vowed to rectify that when the opportunity arose, but I didn't feel like dropping all that on her just yet. "Perhaps another night," I replied. "I appreciate the offer though."

"Alright, well g'night," she said as she began the climb down. I waited for her to reach the bottom (I didn't feel like trying to climb down while another person was shaking the ropes), the returned to my cabin and entered a deep, nightmare-free sleep.

Author's Note: So yeah, that was a little different from my previous stuff and I honestly have no idea if it was any good, so if you've stuck with the chapter this far then please leave a review and let me know how I did. Your feedback (good or bad) really helps me to improve my writing. As for the OC thing, I will put out an official request along with a finished template in the next chapter. I look forward to seeing the results of that.