In the continent of Fodlan, there are three nations: the Adrestian Empire, the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, and the Leicester Alliance.
Having travelled around Fodlan as a mercenary, Byleth has lived in all three nations. They are all so different, yet so home-like at the same time. She still remembers the chilly nights she'd spend by a warm fireplace in Faerghus, or the gorgeous Adrestian gardens she'd pass in the street, or the endless plains of the Alliance…
She has made so many happy memories in each place, which is why the thought of a war between the three nations frightens her. She simply can't imagine her favorite spots across Fodlan being decimated in some grand fight over irreconcilable differences, not to mention the lives that would be taken.
Luckily for her, the three nations now live in relative harmony.
So, why did Darius have to say that war was inevitable just earlier today?
It's not inevitable.
The leaders of Fodlan will never allow that to happen, she is sure.
… She trusts that they will never allow that to happen.
But if she does trust them, and if she is confident that there will be peace… Why does she still feel so uneasy?
"WHAT WERE YOU TWO THINKING?!" Flint roars.
Byleth jolts, only to see her father glaring at her and Darius with the reddest face she has ever seen.
Right. She, alongside her brother, is currently being yelled at for what happened at the marketplace.
Byleth immediately plunges into a pool of guilt over her father's exasperated words. After all, he had painstakingly tried to avoid the Church soldiers for so long. But of course, like the idiot Darius was, the clearly naive, young man had to rush in to meet one just because he was curious.
And of course, like the idiot she was, she had to rush in to save him.
"I don't know what Byleth was wanted to finally meet some Church soldier after all these years and see what they were really like. A decision which I don't regret, by the way." her brother haughtily responds, his expression showing nothing but indifference.
Byleth clenches her fist after seeing just how little he cares. This moment would be the perfect time for her to show some emotion, any emotion. If she could express herself, she would glare at her brother, to send him a small but strong message about his foolishness. Alas, she is cursed with the face that never moves. So, she stomps on his foot instead. Darius shoots her a glare in response.
"You don't regret it?! You don't regret it?!" Flint roars, seething as he paces back and forth, "I spent all theseyearsdoing everything I could keep you safe! And you just… blew all of that!"
Byleth puts her head down. "I know. I really do, and I'm sorry."
But when she looks back up, she sees his furious expression quickly dissipating, only to be replaced with despondence. He sighs and rubs his temples. "Look, I'm not trying to be the bad guy here. What I'm doing, what I've been doing all these years… it's not just about me here. This is also about you too. This is for your safety." he insists, before heaving a heavy sigh.
"That's what you always say. But you never tell us why, and you never will." Darius responds dismissively with a shrug. Then, he strides off without a second glance at either of them.
"Darius. That doesn't change how we weren't supposed to go meet that soldier," Byleth tells her brother. But her attempts to reach him are pointless.
"Let him go, Byleth." Flint says, visibly resigned, "You know how stubborn he is."
"I'm sorry, you know… if I could, I'd show you just how sorry I am." she quietly tells him before warmly wrapping him into a hug, "Alas, I am stuck with this face."
"A pretty face, for an even prettier heart." Flint replies with a faint smile… a smile that fades rather quickly.
"Are you worried about the Church?" Byleth asks him, before teasingly adding, "Or worse than that… Darius?"
Flint lets out a loud chuckle. "Well, at this point, the best we can do is just finish our mission, and get out of the village first thing tomorrow. But not after a good night's sleep. Sleep well, alright?"
Byleth sighs. "I'll try… you know how strange my dreams get."
Indeed, Byleth has strange dreams at night. Sometimes, these dreams would be about some random war. Other nights, though, she dreams about a sleeping, young girl.
Tonight is one of those nights.
In her dreams, Byleth sees herself, standing at the bottom of a seemingly endless flight of stairs. But at the top is that same girl, dressed in a dark purple robe with golden garb. The girl is seated on a throne, resting on one of the chair's stone arms as her emerald green hair lingers behind her.
Of course, Byleth has tried to wake the girl up before. She's spent countless times leaning close to her pointy ears,calling out to her, shaking her shoulders, pulling on the braids that run down the sides of her face,poking her forehead, swiping her golden crown to see if she would notice…
But nothing ever works. It never has.
Still, Byleth presses on, taking it on as a challenge. After all, the girl might be in her dreams for a reason. It reminds her of those ghost stories, where a ghost is left to haunt others because of unfinished business…
Maybe this girl has her own problems, and it is up to Byleth to fix them.
So, she tries the normal things to wake the girl up. She climbs up the stairs. She calls out to her. She pokes her nose.
No response.
So, when there is nothing else to do, she plops down on the throne's right arm and turns to watch the girl slumbering on the other. There is nothing to do at this point but wait. So, she closes her eyes and waits, hoping that time will pass quickly.
"What in the- how DARE you sit here!"
Byleth fidgets, her eyes still closed. She knows that no one is actually there.
Then, the slapping comes. Two slaps to her forearm and one across the cheek.
Byleth relents. She finally opens her eyes… only to see a pair of large, green orbs staring right back at her.
She can't believe it.
The girl is awake.
The girl is awake!
"Well?!" she yells, "GET OUT OF HERE!"
Byleth flies off the throne at once, and spins around to see the indignant little girl glaring back at her.
Before she could react beyond that, however, Byleth's heel slips off the stair step.
Within a second, it all happens. The green-haired girl's face shifts from anger to concern. She reaches for the mercenary's hand, but it's too late. Before long, the girl falls out of Byleth's view, all before her back finally slams into the sharp stone steps.
Byleth flies up, her knuckles white from tightly gripping her blanket.
She can't believe it. Finally, after all these years… The girl has awoken.
Upon seeing her, Byleth can't help but wonder more about her. Where did the girl come from? Will she ever see her again? Will she ever be able to talk to her?
Perhaps only the Goddess would know the answers to those questions…
Byleth peeks outside of her tent. The campfire in the camp center still shines brightly, lighting her face and the rest of the mercenaries' tents. Farther ahead and sitting against a tree, though, is her brother. As usual, he is wide awake with a book in his gloved hands. There are bags under his eyes, as usual.
She shakes her head knowingly and puts her hands on her hips. "Darius. We have a mission tomorrow morning. If you keep doing this, you'll fall asleep right in battle itself."
"Me? Fall asleep during battle?" he scoffs, without so much as a glance her way, "I know not to do that. It's common sense."
Byleth bites her lip. Time and time again, her brother has remained remarkably confident, even when he shouldn't be. It is admirable, really, but also foolish. "It's not about what you know, it's about what your body can handle," she firmly continues while plopping down beside him, "It's only a matter of time before your body gives out."
Much to her frustration, though, Darius simply flips the next page nonchalantly, his eyes still glued to the pages.
Byleth admires her brother's passion and dedication to magic. She really does. But his insolence, his recklessness, his refusal to listen to others… it's just too much for her to bear sometimes.
More than that, it's too much for their father to bear. What happened then surely frightened Flint to the core, but Darius just didn't care. He never cares.
Her fingers dig into the soil beneath her seat. "I'll take this, thank you." she finally declares, as she snatches the book from his hands.
"Hey, give that back!" he yells. He leans and swings his arm past her to grab the book, but she rolls on her side and tightly holds it to her stomach.
"I won't. Not after what happened today." she firmly states, "Dad was furious with you for what happened at the marketplace. And you… you just sit there with no regrets at all. How can you be so selfish?"
"I'm the selfish one?!" Darius bitterly retorts, all as he attempts to pry the book away from his sister's body, "What about him?! He always keeps so many things to himself. Are you meaning to tell me that we're supposed to avoid the Church for our entire lives?!"
"Yes, because he… he…" Byleth manages, her hair digging into the ground as she struggles to keep the book in place. Finally, she flips herself over. She sits back up on the book, much to her brother's visible horror.
"Get your butt. Off my book." he demands, still tugging away at the book beneath her, "It's the ONLY one I have, and you're still dirty!"
"Only after you go say sorry to Dad. Is that too much to ask for?"
"Maybe it is!" Darius retorts, "Until I know the real story, maybe I don't need to apologize to anyone!"
Byleth's boots firmly grip the ground. She bounces up defiantly and yanks the book from beneath her. "I'm taking this back to my tent, and there's nothing you can do about it." she announces while marching off towards the campfire towards her tent.
Just before she passes the campfire, Darius sprints up and wrestles the book from her hands. But Byleth, determined as she is to get the book out of his hands, sticks her foot in the dirt and twists the other way. "You're… not… getting… this… back…!" she manages.
As Byleth hopes, the book does get back out of his hands…
But they don't land back in hers either.
Fire flares besides their feet. The book erupts in flames. Her brother's dismay is plain on his face, his arms shaking as he stands there, speechless.
Byleth gasps before throwing soil on the fire. "It's going to be okay, we can save it," she remarks. She chucks another pile of soil on the flames, before glancing back at her brother. "This… this should help."
When the fire is finally put out, Darius sifts through the ashes and pulls out what is left of his book. The pages appear barely readable, with many of the contents having been reduced to ash.
His shoulders sink, and Byleth's chest can't help but sink right along with them. She knows how much that book meant to him… along with just how painstakingly long it took him to even afford it. "Darius, I-" she quietly starts, only to be cut off by a louder voice.
"What the hell is going on here? It's so early in the morning!"
When the siblings look up, they notice that a handful of knights are watching them, with their father right in the front.
"I… burned…" Byleth manages, before gesturing to what's in Darius's hands.
Flint frowns and opens his mouth to respond. But before he can say another word, Darius turns around abruptly and furiously storms off into the forest.
"Darius, I'm sorry." Byleth calls out to him.
"Good grief." Flint grumbles, before shouting, "Be back soon! We have a mission soon, you hear? We'll talk about this book when you get back."
Darius storms off into the forest, angrily shoving aside clusters of leaves as he goes, his fists tightly clenched. Why do things always have to happen at his expense?
He's stuck doing a job that he barely wants… except he does it worse than his sister, who doesn't want to do it either. He's stuck depriving himself of sleep in order to follow his passions. He's stuck being less than satisfied with his father's endless pool of secrets-
He's just stuck.
When he tries to get unstuck by finding out about the world, by actually speaking to a Knight of Seiros, he gets in more trouble. There is just no way out for him.
And the book that helped with him magic-the one thing he studies to cope with this mundane life- is now gone. Being a mercenary doesn't pay well either, which doesn't help him with finding a replacement at a bookstand easily.
He shoves his way through the branches in front of him, his boots continuing to sink into piles of mud. It's clear that he can't go very far from his family. Still, for once, he just wants to escape. He wants to escape it at all and find a different life…
"Claude! Do you even know where you're going?!"
Darius's eyes narrow as he searches for the voice's source. With sunrise not too far away, the area is much more visible than it was during the nighttime. However, the orange sky is empty, and there is no one behind the trees, as far as he can see.
Now, a man's voice still comes, slightly louder than before… although he still can't tell where it's coming from. "Claude! Please, wait for us! You're going too fast… we are supposed to be working together, are we not?"
Darius tilts his head up and looks ahead once more. Still no one there…
Then, the third voice comes, clearly closer to him than ever. "I'm not sure what there is to work together on. I'm just making a classic, strategic retreat!"
Suddenly, he realizes where it's coming from. It's coming directly from his left.
But before he can even turn his head, someone rams into his side, sending him falling to the ground instantly. His left side still hurts, but there's something else, too. A sharp, curved object presses into the stunned mercenary's back. When he looks behind himself and pulls it out, he finds a wooden bow.
Darius looks past the bow to see the man right in front of him: a tan-skinned young man with very tousled, chocolate brown hair, a yellow cape, and black clothes.
Behind him arrive two more people: a tall man and a short woman.
The first thing Darius notices about the taller man is his blonde hair, which is strangely clumped into thick, noodle-like bangs. Still, his sky blue eyes shine with a notable amount of sincerity, which he can appreciate. His hands are wrapped in dark gloves, while his torso, arms, and legs are all strapped with sturdy armor. Given the amount of equipment he has on, Darius can only suspect that this man is some kind of knight.
Beside him is a shorter woman. Her uniform is similar to the previous man's, but instead of being covered with simple gray armor, hers has an element of grace to it: her gloves are a silky white, and on her chest are white, circular frills. Compared to the blonde man, though, she also carries a different, more confident air to herself. Even in the face of strangers, she holds her head up proudly and stands upright. Strands of her snow-white hair are tied back by small, purple ribbons, while the rest flows down her back.
"Can't all of you watch where you're going?!" Darius snaps quickly.
"We sincerely apologize for our friend's behavior." the first man hastily notes with a bow. He offers his gloved and armored hand with a quick nod.
Darius accepts his hand and is pulled up with a surprising amount of force. When he is back on his feet, he looks to the second man, who has just leapt up from the ground himself. Upon closer inspection, the man has a more casual appearance.
Although he dons a similar uniform as the other two, it is clear that he's added his own flair. While the other two have neatly, buttoned up collars, his collar is split, revealing a yellow undershirt just below his collarbone. His pants are baggy, and a small braid runs down the right side of his face. He has an ear piercing as well… the differences just don't seem to end with this man.
That is not to mention the differences in attitude. As the other two maintain somewhat formal postures, this other man has his arms stretched with his hands behind his head and a wide smile curved on his face. He winks. "Well, well, well! What do we have here? An armored stranger… a mercenary, perhaps?"
Darius squints. Upon closer inspection, he realizes that they seem to be part of some kind of set. In addition to having similar uniforms, they also each have their own, colored capes draped on their left shoulders.
"Ah… yes, of course. Forgive us for our negligence." the blonde, who dons a bright blue cape, firmly replies, "My name is Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd, of Faerghus."
Darius raises his eyebrows. "Like… the… prince?"
"The one and the same."
Darius raises his eyebrows, not sure what to make of his words. But before he can process the information any more, the woman- who dons a red cape-speaks. "I shall go next, then. I'll have you know, I am no mere traveler. I am actually Edelgard Von Hresvelg, Crown Princess of the Adrestian Empire."
He bursts into a fit of laughter. "Riiiight… you expect me to believe that the heirs to the Kingdom and the Empire are just wandering around in some forest next to a small village," he manages with a snicker. He turns to the man in yellow and points. "And you're supposed the next heir to the Alliance, am I right? Someone from the Riegan house."
"Right on the money, pal!" the man in yellow responds, "The name's Claude Von Riegan. But no need to get into all of that noble nonsense. Just call me Claude."
"Uh-huh. And my name is Darius, the crown prince of Almyra." he responds mockingly.
Edelgard glares at him, while Claude snickers in the back. "You would do well to not tease us for our heritage," she warns, "Especially if we just so happen to be telling the truth. But now is simply not the time to discuss such matters… especially when there are bandits on the loose."
"Bandits? Here? In Remire Village?" Flint repeats.
He stares at the three people his son has brought to him in disbelief, wondering if their words are just a prank. After all, they are just teenagers… who were suspiciously camping out late at night without any chaperones.
He has considered that they might be orphans… but they look far too well-dressed to be living on their own off the street. What's even more interesting, though, is the fact that their clothes have similar patterns across their chests, even if each uniform has its variations.
Are they part of some sort of fancy band…?
As Flint continues to examine the uniforms, though, he realizes that the designs are quite familiar. Very familiar, although he can't seem to quite put a finger on where he has seen them before…
"It's true. Bandits attacked us while we were resting in our camp," the woman in red states, "We've lost them for now, but they will likely be back soon."
He sighs. Of course. As a mercenary, his work is never done. "Guess we've got no choice but to take care of them, then," he grumbles, "Especially with Remire Village around the corner… we wouldn't want those bandits to target the village next."
"Thank you, Sir," the man in blue responds with a smile, holding up a large lance. "We will gladly pay you for your trouble. Oh, and you can count on our help as well!"
"Nahh… this isn't really work a bunch of teenagers need to get involved in." Flint grumbles, before eyeing his children, "Inexperienced teenagers, anyway. You kids ready to head out?"
"Oh, please. We are more than capable of defending ourselves, and we will come." the woman says with a huff, before eyeing the man in yellow, "Besides, SOME of us haven't been putting in our fair share of work lately. Maybe those people should help more with the fight."
The man in yellow chuckles and stretches his arms with a wide smile on his face. "Ehhh, I wouldn't get in their way, you know." he says to the woman, "If they got this covered, then why get involved ourselves?"
"Now, now. We've all had combat experience before," the man in blue chimes in, "I'm sure we can provide some assistance to them."
The three strangers look just about the same age as his children, and they do have their own weapons… but only the blue one has enough armor to call himself a soldier.
It wouldn't hurt to have their experience on his side, though. So he relents. "I'll wake the others up. Why don't you all go on ahead in the meantime?" he tells his children, "If you can get a head start, the crew and I will take care of the rest."
"Sounds fair." the woman in red remarks, before turning to the twins, "If you know the way, then feel free to lead us there."
Flint watches his daughter freeze the moment the woman in red gestures for her to come over. She looks back at her father… a reflex which doesn't surprise him whatsoever. As much as Byleth wants to be good around people, she has never quite gotten past her uneasiness around strangers.
"It's just for a little while, Byleth. Think of it as a training exercise."
That seems to calm his daughter down. Her shoulders relax. She takes a deep breath, clearly resolved to march forward. Then, she finally rushes to catch up to the others with her sword in her hand.
It's never easy for Flint to have to send his children off to battle. However, having been a street fighter in his teen years, he strongly believes in the importance of learning to protect oneself, and the people you care about. That's what he likes about mercenary work. It may not be pretty, but he actually has the power to save other folks, and that can go a long way.
Besides, fighting has always been the one thing he's known how to do, so… there's that too.
Flint watches his daughter reluctantly travel with the three teenagers she just met. His son, however, stays behind with a smirk on his face.
"Something funny?" Flint asks.
"Oh… oh yeah." Darius said with a snicker, "You know those kids we just met? They said the most ridiculous thing- that they're the heirs to the Empire, the Kingdom, and the Alliance. Can you believe that?"
Flint freezes. His heart begins to race. "... What did you say?"
"I KNOW! It was so weird. I mean, they're obviously lying. When would such high ranking nobles from all over the world come together in some random forest? There's no way."
Flint's face pales upon hearing his son's words. Because in fact, there is a way, and he knows it.
It all makes sense to him now. The familiar uniforms, their confidence at the idea of combat, their noble statuses… there could only be one explanation.
They are students training with the Church Of Seiros.
Byleth brushes aside a nearby tree branch as she cautiously exits the forest. From there, she has a glimpse of the small village. It's a rather peaceful looking, bandit-free village. When her brother is closer, she whispers, "I'm surprised they didn't go after the villagers here. Something is… off, isn't it?"
"What, did you want them to go after the villagers?" Darius bitterly sneers.
Byleth turns her head. "Darius, please. Don't do this now." she desperately whispers.
"Oh, okay. So when I have a problem, it's fine, but when you have a problem, it's not okay?" he snaps, "Fine, fine. I see how it is."
"Darius, stop it. People's lives are at stake here." Byleth whispers, "Now, have the others seen where the bandits went?"
Finally, he relents. He turns back to the three peers standing behind them. "Where did you last see the bandits?" he grumpily calls out.
The man in yellow shrugs. "I don't know… it definitely wasn't here, but I'm afraid I don't know this area too well. We were just camping here."
Byleth bites her lip.
She has to admit, the three teenagers did seem quite suspicious, camping out all by themselves. Perhaps they are orphans… or perhaps this is a trap.
At that thought, Byleth shakes her head. No, she can't doubt her allies. Not now.
That's when she hears a rustle from the bushes they just came out of. She freezes, before examining her allies' weapons. The blue one has a lance, the red one has an axe, the yellow one has a bow…
A bow. A bow would be perfect right now. So, she tugs on her brother's sleeve. "Ask the yellow one to shoot that bush. I have a feeling there's someone in there, planning for the perfect time to ambush us. If we get an arrow there first, we can goad them into showing themselves."
Darius raises his eyebrows. "Great, shooting an innocent camper. We all love to do that."
The bush rustles again, this time quicker. "Show yourself!" the woman in red commands, but no one emerges.
Byleth softly nods, while gently striding towards the forest with her brother. "If it is a civilian," she continues to whisper, "They would have shown themselves. But they know that Dad is that way, so we'd have to go back through there no matter what we do. They're just waiting for the perfect moment to strike. So, tell that yellow man to shoot the arrow."
"Why can't you do it?" he asks her back.
"I just… can't." she whispers, "Please. Just… you do it." As much as Byleth wants to socialize with others, she can't help but feel that the stare of any one stranger is too much to handle. And as easygoing as the man in yellow looks, a glance from him is enough to make her shrink in response.
"Some teacher you are." Darius scoffs. Still, to her relief, he calls out, "You, with the bow. 'Claude', as you say. Shoot over there."
The man in yellow smirks before holding up his bow. "You want me to shoot a bush?"
"Oh, just do it!" Darius calls back, much to the man's strange but visible amusement.
He fires.
The moment the arrow flies into the bush, something else flies out: a person dressed in black. In his hand is a sizable axe. He raises it beside his head, ready to strike.
However, Byleth is already ready. She swiftly cuts his path with ease and clashes her sword with his weapon. The weapons clash a few times. Each time, the young mercenary dances left and right with the occasional duck. Her eyes scan her opponent's movements, while she tries to predict the next one. After all, she needs an opening.
Finally, the frustrated bandit makes one wide swing. Once again, Byleth dances away, ducking right under his axe.
His guard is wide open. Intending to use this to her advantage, she ruthlessly strikes, sending him straight to her feet in a second. There is no hint of emotion in her face as she does it.
He looks up, shocked. "You… you… that speed, and that stiff face of yours… you're the Ashen De-"
Byleth kicks him before he can finish. "Darius. You know what to do."
Her brother finishes off the job. He throws out his arms, and soon enough, ice magic juts from the ground beneath the bandit, incapacitating the thief.
It is Darius who can ultimately claim victory over that bandit. Yet much to her dread, she turns to find all three of those teenagers staring in utter shock at her. Her, the one who had sent the bandit down so coldly, so mercilessly.
Much to her simultaneous frustration and relief, though, there is a bigger distraction in the distance: more bandits, emerging from the forest left and right. Many of them were large with muscular builds.
Alone, any of them wouldn't be as much of a challenge. Combined, however, their strength is essentially guaranteed to be overwhelming for the mere five of them. So, Byleth searches for a way to make them easier to work with. There's little besides the village (an obvious no-no), the open fields on their left and right (which would lead to the bandits only catching up with them), the forest…
The forest. Just as her father had taught her, it is an ideal location for the dispersion of their enemies, as well as their team's defense.
Byleth perks up before swiftly rushing to tug her brother's sleeve. "Can you use magic to make an opening?" she whispers, "We can fight them from that forest, much like how Dad teaches us. And we can fend them off from there, while the yellow man shoots them from farther off."
"And leave the village defenseless? Never." Darius is quick to state. The bandits continue to approach.
"If they wanted to attack the village, they would have already." she mutters, the bandits still just a few feet away. She hears their footsteps. "Now, Darius, now," she frantically orders, shoving him in the process, "Do it now, so we can get out of this."
That time he obeys, instinctively summoning a powerful gust of wind around the group. A few bandits fly far back, with others still struggling to stay on the ground.
"E… everyone into the forest," Byleth hesitantly announces, still avoiding the glances of the three strangers beside her, "Quickly, quickly…"
From there, it becomes much easier for the five of them to carry out an easy plan. The man in blue and the woman in red, who have experience in close combat, are able to use their respective weapons to fend the bandits off, all the while using the trees as an extra means of defense. The man in yellow, on the other hand, hangs from a tree, shooting arrows at their opponents from a safe distance. Meanwhile, Darius casts devastating spells to his enemies. And then there's Byleth, dashing across the forest as she cuts her foes down, one by one.
With the forest at their defense, they defeat the bandits quickly enough.
After the last of them falls, everyone breathes a sigh of relief while exiting the forest.
Everyone but Byleth, that is. After all, while the fighting is over, her reputation as a merciless killer will continue to stay with the strangers: a horrible first impression. After all, even if they didn't hear the bandit call her the Ashen Demon, they now know just how coldhearted she seems, and there's nothing she not much she can do about it. It's a terrible situation, really.
"Well, that went well." Darius proudly remarks, "Now that they're taken care of, we can check in with our father's forces. He must be almost finished with the last of them at this point. Let's head back."
Snap.
Byleth freezes and turns to look at the forest entrance. No one is there, with the woman in red being the last one to exit the woods.
Then, she sees it: a shadow emerging quickly from behind the tree behind the woman. He lifts his axe.
The woman then sees him too, but there is only enough time for her to gasp and reach for her dagger. Once again, though, Byleth is ready. She sprints over to the woman and shoves her out of the way, ready to spin and strike at a foe once again.
In that second, however, the unexpected occurs.
She slips.
Her sword falls. Her back bends over.
"BYLETH!" Darius screams.
But it's too late for her. The axe sinks in her back, and soon enough, there is nothing left in her world but darkness.
Absolute darkness.
Special thanks to Abracadoozles for editing this chapter.
And of course, thank YOU for reading!
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