A/N: *coughs awkardly* Suuupp...

Yeah yeah I know. Y'all have waited a long time for this. I don't want to admit it's been five years but...yeah...it has. I dunno. Life happens.

Getting married in July, so that's cool. COVID is around now, so that sucks.

I really don't know what else to say. I'm not gonna apologize for not uploading for five years cause that's my business. So just...take it lol. I may write the next chapter soon, I may not. But no matter how many of you ask, no, I'm not going to give this story to someone else to finish it. I may have like, six children by the time I'm done with it, but I want that satisfaction for myself, okay?

Okay. Continue.

Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem. All characters belong to Nintendo/Intelligent Systems.

"Poison!?" Tibarn slammed his powerful fist on the table, initiating a nervous reaction from most everyone in the room. "What a vile tactic! Does Skrimir not have any shame?" The hawk king shook his head furiously. "I'd like to tear that pompous skull of his right off his shoulders!"

"Please calm yourself, Tibarn," Nasir urged. "Soren was given the antidote in time, and is recovering as we speak." He paused for a moment. "I will not condone Skrimir's actions, but we should be grateful that our strategist's life was saved."

"On that note, I hope you all realize that it wasn't Skrimir himself who poisoned him," Titania pointed out. "We have a laguz spy among us. There is very little doubt about that."

Ike looked confused upon her mentioning this. "That's...odd. Soren never brought this information to me. And he is usually very perceptive about these things. After all, he knew Nasir was a spy during the Mad King's War." Ike looked over at the white dragon, who noticeably shrunk back a bit.

"I may have threatened to blackmail Soren if he shared that information with you," Nasir admitted. "There is truly nothing I can do to atone for my sins during that time. I cannot apologize enough."

"You don't have to," Ike assured. "I'm sorry for bringing it up." Nasir smiled gently at Ike's sincerity. "Either way, if there is indeed a laguz spy among us, then we have to interrogate every cat and tiger in our camp to find out who it is. No one makes an attempt on my best friend's life and gets away with it."

Titania nodded. "I will take the liberty of gathering them up, then."

"You will interrogate Ranulf and Mordecai as well?" Kurthnaga spoke up, his voice rather shaky. "I highly doubt either of them are involved in this."

Tibarn laid a rough hand on the young dragon king's shoulder. "You are too trusting, Kurthnaga," he said. "If it isn't them, then their innocence will indeed be proven."

"I don't like the idea of accusing my good friends either, but...perhaps they aren't who we thought they were," Ike mused.

"You should avoid saying those things until we know for sure, Ike," Titania said, taking a gentle hold on his arm. "I believe that Kurthnaga is right."

Ike sighed heavily. "For our sake, I sure hope so."

Mist couldn't hold back a giggle as she spoon fed a bedridden Soren another bite of stew. He just looked so small, and dare she say it...cute. He, of course, narrowed his eyes slightly. "And what, may I ask, is so funny?"

"I'm sorry," Mist apologized, though there was more laughter in her voice. "I just never thought I'd be doing this for you." She picked up another spoonful of stew and carefully guided it toward Soren's mouth. At first, Soren had outright rejected Mist's proposal to feed him, but when her facial expression turned dour, he quickly reconsidered his decision.

"Even though I am fully capable of doing it myself," Soren reiterated, but his remark fell on deaf ears. Mist was enjoying this too much, and she wasn't going to let him ruin it for her.

After another bite, she put the half-empty bowl down on the table beside them and reached for a cup. "Would you like some water now?"

"Please," Soren said, and Mist handed the cup to him, much to his surprise. "What? You're not going to hold it for me while I drink?"

Mist shook her head. "No, I don't want to spill it. Or, you know...accidentally drown you."

"Fair enough," Soren said, then took a small sip from the cup. "Mist," he began to make conversation again, putting the cup down beside him. "Why are you so eager to take care of me?"

Mist seemed surprised by this question. "What do you mean? You were hurt, so I wanted to do everything I could to help." She picked up the bowl of stew again, but Soren raised his palm to her.

"But before, when I was convulsing...you looked at me with such fervor in your eyes. Like you were terrified of losing me," Soren said, fully aware that he was walking into uncharted territory.

Mist's big blue eyes grew a bit wider. "Well, I..." She began to wring her hands in her lap. "Truth be told, I was afraid of losing you. Scared to death, actually." It took all her courage to meet the sage's eyes. "You are...very special to me, Soren." She looked down at her hands again. "You're more important to me than I let on."

Soren carefully reached out to take a hold of Mist's delicate hand and encased his fingers around it. She seemed to grow rigid, but after a moment, her fingers laced themselves around his. "And you should know that you're very important to me, as well," Soren told her, looking straight into her eyes. "Mist, I owe so much to you. You saw the good in me when no one else could. Probably not even Ike could see that. He's not as in touch with emotions as you are."

Mist laughed. "That's for sure! My brother's head can be so thick at times."

Soren couldn't help himself, letting out a small chuckle. "He's a good man."

"He is," Mist nodded.

An awkward silence hung in the air for a brief moment. Soren, against his better judgement, decided it was time to shoot his shot. What did he have to lose, after all? "Mist," he began, taking a deep breath. "I know our time in this world is limited, especially during periods of war where there's no promises we'll even wake up tomorrow. And, well….I was just wondering if…" he looked her straight in the eyes, and Mist couldn't but notice he looked scared out of his mind.

She helped him find his words. "You were wondering if….?"

Soren cleared his throat suddenly. "Well, I mean….if you're alright with it, I was hoping you and I could-"

The flap to the tent opened and Rhys peeked inside. "So sorry, is this a bad time?"

Soren heaved a great sigh. That was that. He'd die before he'd be allowed to confess his love. "No, not at all. What is it?" Soren's spine chilled slightly when Lady Almedha's face appeared behind the priest's.

"The Lady Almedha wanted to speak with you." He glanced over to Mist. "Just you."

Mist stood from her chair at Soren's side and nodded. "I'll bring you your reports later," she told him, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. Soren cursed inwardly. Why couldn't he have done that? "Lady Almedha," Mist said, greeting the dowager dragon queen with a polite nod as she left the tent.

Lady Almedha returned her greeting with a smile, then let herself inside.

"To what do I owe the honor of this audience with the former queen of Daein?" Soren asked haughtily. This did not go unnoticed by Almedha. She folded her hands and glanced down at the floor.

"I know you must be wondering why-" she began, but Soren cut her off.

"No, I'm not, as a matter of fact," he countered. "Why now, of all times?"

Almedha looked at him, her eyes glassy and her face grief-stricken. "You have known for some time now." It was not a question, but a statement. "Tell me, how long?"

Soren looked away from her and thought for a moment. "That day, after the war was over, when you called out to me and asked for my name. To say that I felt a disturbance would be an understatement." Soren idly played with a piece of his hair. "My suspicions were confirmed by your actions just now."

Almedha let out a sigh and made to move closer to him, but he put his hand out. "If you'll just let me explain," she begged.

Soren glared at her. "There isn't anything to explain! You let Ashnard take me and leave me for dead. And then, years later, some lunatic hands you a random orphan and you believe he's your son?"

Almedha began to cry, wiping tears from her eyes. "Please Soren, I know I have a great deal to reconcile for. But I was distraught, I-"

"I don't want to hear any more excuses," Soren interrupted. "You may be my mother by blood, but I will never see you as such." He turned his head and waved her away. "Leave me, now. I wish to sleep."

Almedha moved to take a step forward, but she stopped herself. How she longed to run up and hug him, kiss his cheeks, and smooth his hair. But, he didn't want her. He would never want her. "Sleep well…my son."

Soren did not reply, but instead turned over on his side. He listened until her footsteps grew quiet. Maybe he was too harsh on her? No, he told himself. She deserved everything he said to her. Blood may be thicker than water, but blood does not a family make.

"Ike, we've found the traitor!" Tibarn's voice resounded throughout the command tent as he burst inside. "Bring her in!" he shouted at his bird tribe scouts. Zeyd, the silver-haired cat, was thrust roughly onto the ground at the commander's feet. She did not meet his eyes.

"Tibarn, please!" Ranulf's voice could be heard in the not so far off distance. "What is going on here?" The cat soon appeared in the tent after the Hawk King. He looked very shaken up.

Ike looked away from the map he'd been studying and down at the ragged cat in front of him. His expression turned sour. "How do you know for sure?"

"We found her trying to shirk her guard duties and flee the encampment," Tibarn told him, leaning against the support pillar of the tent. "Kept insisting that she had 'done her duty and was free to leave'."

Ike grabbed Zeyd's chin in his hand and brought her face closer to his. "You attempted to murder my best friend," he accused. "And now I expect some answers out of you."

Ranulf's face turned white as a sheet. "What? Zeyd? You can't be serious, she would never do such a thing, Ike!"

"I did it," the female cat admitted suddenly. The tent's occupants all fell silent.

Ranulf dropped to his knees beside her, not wanting to believe what he'd heard. "Why?" he asked pitifully. "Why would you do such a thing? You were supposed to be on our side!"

Zeyd turned towards him and spilled her guts. "Ranulf, I didn't want to. I begged and I begged, but she made me!"

"Who is 'she'?" Tibarn demanded. When she said nothing, he slammed his fist against the map table. "Dammit, who is 'she'?!"

Zeyd opened her mouth to speak, but her eyes suddenly rolled into the back of her head, and she collapsed.

"Zeyd!" Ranulf cried. "No…"

Ike moved back to give Ranulf his space, but then noticed something. "Ranulf, she isn't dead." He pointed to her chest, which was still moving with her breaths.

Ranulf put his hand to her and relaxed himself upon feeling the movements. "Thank the goddess."

Tibarn stormed over to them. "Hold a moment! We still don't know who she was referring to!"

Ike grimaced. "Well, it'll be a little difficult to get that information out of her now. Unless…"

"Her heart is pure and her spirit is true," Micaiah removed her hand from atop the unconscious Zeyd's head. She stood to the best of her ability, with the help of Sothe, resting her free hand on her belly. "I sense that something was compelling her to perform the actions she did." The generals gawked at her, none of them really knowing what to say.

"I'm sorry, Queen Micaiah, but are you saying she was possessed?" Titania inquired.

"Yes," Micaiah nodded. "It's an evil spirit. More powerful than anything I've encountered before. I can't quite place what exactly it is. However…" She turned her head down, and her husband put his hand to her back.

"What is it, what do you know?" Ike urged her, and was met with a glare from Sothe.

"She's trying, Ike," he warned. Ike conceded, taking a step back.

Micaiah took a deep breath, then continued. "It's appearing to me that this is an enemy that we have all faced before. It knows a great deal about each of us, already." She squeezed her eyes shut tighter. "Or rather…'she' knows a great deal…"

TIbarn groaned. "There's that word again! For the love of the goddess, just tell us who 'she' is!"

"Tibarn!" Ike and Sothe shouted in unison. The Hawk King acknowledged his reprimand, but continued to glower.

Micaiah opened her eyes and they were filled with fear. "Tibarn, you have just said so." Everyone in the room looked around at each other, and a great nervous energy filled the room. Some perhaps knew what she meant. Others prayed for it not to be true. "It is the goddess. It is Ashera."

"We killed Ashera," Ike said, more so to comfort himself than to add anything to the conversation. "She is dead."

"Her physical form is dead," Micaiah explained. "When you landed the final blow on her, Ike, you did indeed kill her body. But…her essence, her spirit, somehow escaped the Guidance Tower that day." When no one said anything, she continued. "Ashera was order, but in her attempt to restore order, she became chaos. This much was made clear to us, since we are mortal beings that believe in a balance between the two. Ashera's 'order' was not order at all, but wrath."

"And so now she is taking her revenge on the ones who killed her," Titania mused.

Micaiah's eyes widened. "Vengeance…"

"Skrimir…" Ike pondered. "Micaiah, is it possible that Ashera's spirit went inside Skrimir?"

Micaiah nodded slowly. "Inside him, and inside anyone who might be easy to control," she glanced at the laguz woman who still lied on the ground.

"So…she could be in multiple people at a time?" Tibarn asked nervously.

"She's a goddess, Tibarn," Sothe retorted. "I wouldn't put it passed her."

Ike swallowed thickly. "Then none of us are safe."

A/N: By the way, try to be nicer in your reviews, please? Some of y'all are killing me with your negative comments. Be grateful, at least this ain't no Fifty Shades of Grey.