Chapter 1
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A/n: This fic has not been written with the intent of Fire Emblem knowledge being required to understand or enjoy it.
Certain liberties and worldbuilding changes have been made to the FE:H side of things as needed for the purposes of the story.
That out of the way, please enjoy.
The streets of Brockton Bay that winter night were cold, dark unforgiving things. Hard, unyielding, lines of tarmac that sooner shatter than bend an inch, brick walls that penned them in. In some ways, it could be considered as much a prison as it was a home.
It had not always been this way. Once there had been light, warmth, and hope. There would be again.
A secluded alleyway lit up, a disk of light erupting in the air. The disk expanded, stretching from wall to wall, and standing as a flat circle shimmering in the air. Strange ethereal script and runes curled out of the disk, twisting around the circle and forming a ring. Moments later, the ring was complete. The shimmering stopped.
The Gateway had formed.
A young man stepped out of the portal, with blue hair with yellow tips. Right beside him was a blonde girl not much younger than him. Trailing behind the two was an older woman with red hair and eyes. Each wore elaborate gold and white armor, the man holding a sheathed sword, the blond a spear and shield, while the red-headed woman bore an ax.
The girl looked around in naked awe, taking in the sights with a certain shine in her eyes, in spite of how cold and unforgiving the place was. The boy tried harder to hide his curiosity but failed to do little more than walk in circles looking around with an impassive face. The redheaded woman looked at the two and smirked for a moment, then turned back to the task at hand. She scanned the area, not for new wonders, but for threats. They were in a strange land, after all. Who knows what kinds of danger could befall them here?
Fortunately, they had a guide.
Three more people stepped through the gate.
First was an adolescent girl in onyx armor with golden runes, white cloth, and a red cloak bearing a tall staff with a large and ornate golden disk-like head. She had long silver-white hair, red eyes, and large golden headdress. Her face was almost cold, but not quite emotionless. Not the same kind of restrained impassiveness the boy had, more calm and tranquil sort. She seemed at peace in the moment.
Behind her came a figure in a tan hooded cloak. They were tall and thin, practically swimming in the robe, the shadow of their hood hiding most of their face. It was difficult to tell their gender from their slight built, but their chin had a somewhat feminine cut and long obsidian curls spilled out from the shadows of the hood, they looked to be on the female side of things.
And trailing up the rear, was a mountain of a man. He stood head and shoulders above everyone else, wearing deep emerald armor with golden accents. His cape had a royal purple on the exterior, whilst a shimmering sapphire on the inside. The same sapphire as the man's blue and gold tabard he wore under the armor. The man stood tall and proud, his navy blue hair short and wild, his eyes like a smoldering blue fire of determination and excitement, his lance held loosely against his shoulder with confidence and swagger.
The redhead spoke up.
"Well, Kiran, is this your home?"
"Hmm…" Kiran paused, putting a finger to their chin as she looked around, "it could be. It looks very similar, but it's a big world and most cities tend to look the same at the ground level."
She shrugged, "It doesn't even have to be the same world, just a similar one. It's not like you'd immediately be able to tell whether or not you were home if you were thrown in, say, the back alleys of Veronica's home, would you?"
"She might," The silver-haired girl deadpanned, "our Anna is an infamous war criminal. Wouldn't take too long for someone to notice her"
The redhead sputtered, "L-look, not all of my sisters can be saints like me, ok?"
Veronica simply raised a questioning brow.
"Well," the younger blue-haired boy spoke up, hand on his chin in thought, "If you don't know if we're in the right place yet, I guess we'll need to scout the area out, right Kiran?"
"Well, it shouldn't be too hard to find out, Alfonse," Kiran huffed, putting both hands on her hip as she looked around, "All we need to do is find a library…"
She looked pointedly up at the dark night sky.
"Hopefully when they're open."
The blonde girl frowned, "Is there anywhere we can sleep here?"
Anna and Alfonse winced, Kiran frowned, and the mountain of a man chuckled.
"We can-!" He began.
"No!" Kiran held up her hand in front of his face, "No, Hector, no. We're not sleeping under the stars when there are literally a dozen better options."
Hector almost pouted.
"Like?" Veronica asked pointedly.
"Well…" Kiran shrugged, "I suppose we could always just go back," she thumbed a finger at the gate behind them, "it's not like that costs anything."
"Yeah," Alfonse frowned, "I'd just liked to...get something done first, you know?"
"It's kind of a little sad that we had to come back from our expedition as soon as it started just because we couldn't find a place to sleep." The blond girl commented.
"Yeah," Alfonse nodded.
Anna tipped her head, "Sharena makes a good point. It's kind of pathetic if the order of heroes gets turned back in five minutes just 'cause it's past our bedtimes."
"Well…" Kiran rolled the idea around in her head for a moment. "I suppose it could take anywhere from five days to five minutes depending on how lucky we are."
"Well then," Anna smiled, hefting her axe on her shoulder, "I guess we should get walking then?"
"Actually...I was hoping you'd let me go out alone." Kiran asked.
"Alone?" Alfonse raised a brow skeptically.
"Well, not alone alone." she responded, rolling her hand through the air. "I'll be taking Veronica and Eliwood with me to cover more ground. And worst comes to worst I have the Breidablik."
"Don't want me to come along?" Hector smiled to show his insincerity, "I'm hurt."
Kiran chuckled, "You and Amelia are many many things, Hector, but fast on your feet isn't one of them. Even if she is quite good at dragging you around."
Hector let out a belt of deep laughter straight from the gut, "That she is, Kiran, That she is."
"I think it'd be more useful for the both of you to stay here and guard the gateway." Kiran finished with a smile of their own.
"You don't think we can handle it on our own?" Sharena questioned.
"Normally, I wouldn't be overly worried." Kiran admitted with a shrug, "but if we actually did make it back home...well, I'm sure you remember the stories I've told you."
"Men with strange magics not of this world." Veronica summarized.
Kiran paused, "...and worse…"
"Worse?" Alfonse said.
"Oho!" Hector bellowed with a wide smile, "Let them try! It's been a long time since I've fought a god! I'm eager to kill another!"
Kiran leveled a finger at the armored giant, "No picking fights with people. No matter what happens, you do not throw the first punch without my express permission, understand?"
Hector flashed them a megawatt smile and a thumbs up.
Kiran held his gaze for a moment, then sighed.
"Alright team, did everyone get that?"
"I thought I was the commander?" Anna frowned.
Kiran rolled her eyes beneath her hood then gestured a hand towards the portal. A ring on her finger lit up with runes, a circle of light growing around her hand. A moment later, more figures began to trickle out of the portal.
The first, a man in blue armor with bright red hair riding a horse strode out through the portal. Trailing behind him was another horse in black armor, one that trotted up to Veronic without prompting. Behind him came a woman with long green hair and a form-fitting lavender and rose dress that left little to the imagination. She wore a serene smile, naked curiosity dancing in her eyes as she scanned the strange sights around them.
"You know," The rider admitted as he looked around, "This city doesn't smell as bad as I thought it would."
"The benefits of modern plumbing, Eliwood," Kiran smirked.
"I disagree," Veronica said as she laid her staff against her horse's flank. "This place reeks of decay and despair." She paused as she mounted the beast in one practiced, fluid, motion, "it's as it's soul died many years ago and everyone knows it."
"Wow," Kiran muttered as she joined Veronica on the horse, "Thanks, Veronica. You always say the nicest things."
"You're welcome," Veronica deadpanned.
Kiran rolled her eyes and threw a hand forward. "Let's go."
"Let's see if we're home."
"Is this normal?" Eliwood asked.
"Hm?" hummed Kiran.
"The sky," the man gestured above them, "it's so...strange."
Kiran frowned for a moment, trying to parse her words, then snapped her fingers in realization. "Ah, light pollution!"
"Light pollution?" Eliwood repeated quizzically.
"Back in your own cities, you only have lanterns and stuff to light the night, right?" Kiran asked. "Most of the time the night sky was dark and filled with stars."
"Yeah, that's the way things are supposed to be." He nodded. "But here…"
"It almost feels as if the sun's gaze never truly falls away, but only because the sky is filled with your false light." Veronica commented.
"Yep," Kiran nodded. "The starry sky isn't gone or anything, the light's kinda just blocking it out. If you go way out into the darkness of the country you'll still see all the stars, but here in the city it never really gets truly dark, there's always too much artificial light."
"That's almost kind of sad." Eliwood said.
"I guess," She shrugged, "Living out in your worlds was very very beautiful, but there was something about the nightlife of the modern city I missed."
She paused.
"Also the internet."
"And are those the horseless carriages you mentioned?" He gestured to the sides of the road.
"The cars, yes," Kiran answered. "They look like the same general models I saw when I left, so that's a good sign."
"So we might be close?" Veronica asked.
"Hopefully, yes." Kiran nodded. "But I can't help thinking about what happens if we were slightly off."
"How do you mean?" Eliwood asked, concern laced through his voice.
"Well...what if we didn't come back to my home exactly, but a variation of it. A variation where I didn't leave." Kiran explained. She bit her lip, "What if I ended up in some kind of twisted...mirror world?"
"Like mine?" Veronica asked
"Yes," Kiran nodded. "This world is far from pleasant, this city in particular. I worry about what could have happened to an alternate me had circumstances been different. Especially given the way fate seems to twist around certain people."
"So you're concerned about running into an alternate you?" Eliwood guessed, "Mayhaps you'll run into something much like Veronica, and it'll be a dark reflection of yourself. Some master of dark powers who subjugates the populace with fear."
Kiran shivered, "Hopefully not. The last thing I want is to return to my family, only to find some psycho wearing my face."
Veronica nodded in agreement, "Truly, that does sound like a nightmare."
"Yeah," Kiran sighed, "Maybe I'm just worrying about nothing, but I just-"
Kiran was cut off when a jet of fire burst out of the alley in front of them. The two riders, used to such dangers on the battlefield, pulled their horses to a stop and looked at Kiran.
"Is that normal?" Eliwood asked with a more casual air than one would expect.
A thunderous roar bellowed through the night, goats of flame bursting out from the back alleys of the city, away from prying eyes. Gunshots filled the space, making them flinch at the deafening blasts.
A deep inhuman voice roared, followed by another burst of fire.
Veronica frowned, "That...sounded like a dragon."
"Close, "Kiran frowned.
"Close?" Eliwood said as he drew his sword. "That's not exactly comforting."
"Well," Kiran bit her lip, looking around the area as she reached inside their robe for something. "That's probably Lung, our resident dragon fueled by 'magics not of this world'. And if I'm right, then I'm a lot closer to home than I'd hoped I'd manage on the first try."
"I'm sensing a but." Veronica deadpanned.
"But," Kiran smiled bitterly, "Lung happens to be a ganglord with anger management issues and a passion for fire and destruction. Can't have him burn down my home right after I get back, can we?"
The ground shook as something slammed into a building. A plume of dust rose into the air, more flashes of fire igniting the sky as Lung's voice became more and more inhuman.
"But don't worry," Kiran said, pulling a device that looked much like an ornate golden handgun from her robe. Her smile turned sharp, gaining an edge the Order of Heroes had learned to respect as much as fear.
"I have a plan."
A/n:
Well here it is, I'm finally posting this.
I've been tossing around the idea for this fic for a little over a year now, but I've finally gotten around to actually, you know, doing it.
Part of me was inspired by the handful of F/GO x Worm fics I've seen. Not because I play F/GO, but because I have a passing familiarity with the Fate franchise and the style of those things kept reminding me of FE:H, of which I am an avid player.
To my disappointment, unfortunately, I could find no Worm x FE fics that met what I was looking for. Hell, there's barely any half-decent FE fics out there period. So, what was I to do as a writer for fun?
Make my own damn fic, that's what!
With Blackjack and hookers!
So here we are.