Book One – A Memory of Peace
Chapter 1 – A World Lost
- Swallowed by darkness… -
Thought the girl, as she haphazardly stumbled through the branches of a leafless forest. The words vanished from her mind as quickly as they arose, however, quickly replaced with a visceral fear that froze her very core; as an ominous roar thundered from the dark sky above. Evil and all-encompassing, it shook the land with cynical might, filling her with dread.
She was running as fast as she ever had, through the trees of the dark forest, trying to escape from the horrifying fate that would surely fall upon her, were she to be caught by her pursuers.
If nothing else, she knew whatever said fate would be, it would belong in the deepest tomb of nightmares.
She felt them closing in… their rotten stench, their single-minded pursuit… a mindless force of malevolence, guided by the evil in the sky. She felt the screeching bloodlust in the air, and the mocking spite from above.
By all accounts, she was surrounded.
If they caught up to her, she´d…-
Doubling her efforts, the girl desperately tried to gain some distance, ignoring the sharp branches along the way, using the unmistakable sound of the feral mob to guide her way further into the forest. However fast she tried to run though, the guttural, malevolent voices seemed to be not just getting closer, but actively surrounding her.
The sensations that accompanied her desperate escape, the unsustainable strain on her muscles, the burning weight of every breath, and even the exhaustion that threatened to topple her at the slightest misstep; none of that mattered. In the face of the dread that sought her, running away was all that existed.
She felt like a child again, she felt afraid, alone… abandoned. Such a terrifying, familiar feeling… amid which she kept running, out of some instinctual sense of self-preservation, a sense of hope that the monsters would just disappear if she moved far enough.
But no matter her desperation, or how far she pushed her body to limits unknown, her pursuers got closer with each step. It felt as if she was moving towards them! She felt it, in her very soul, how at every step she got closer and closer to being caught, all the while not knowing where or if there was a way out…
A dark fate was close… too close.
Stand and fight? Go down on her own terms?
"My burden…" She whispered, fighting through the exertion.
Whatever thoughts she was having were caught short though, when a second louder roar pierced the skies, violently shaking the earth below.
As the girl attempted to retain her balance through the shock of the shriek, a black hand suddenly emerged from the darkness, grabbing her shoulder and roughly pulling her back, into the void.
Her instincts kicked in, deftly spinning in midair, she gracefully drew her blade from her hip in a single, practiced motion.
"RAAAAGH!" She yelled as she cut down the creature´s arm, taking its head in the same movement, for good measure.
She had pushed herself out of balance with the maneuver though, imprinting too much force in her swing out of panic. And as she attempted to regain her footing, her legs suddenly gave in, failing to catch her, and sending her tumbling to the ground.
"NOOOOOO!" She cried, holding the blade in front of her, more like a shield than a sword. Preparing to fight with everything she was or be overwhelmed.
An eternity seemed to pass, which couldn´t have been longer than a second, before she jumped to her feet and turned around. She had no idea how or why she was still in one piece, why her pursuers hadn´t seized on her blunder; but she wasn´t going to wait around for answers.
Said answer, however… she found straight away.
"Wha-?!" Her voice failed her, and her eyes widened at the spectacle before her.
In front of her, the gates of the temple of Naga, the very thing she had been looking for, stood tall.
The heavy stone gates were engraved with complex patterns and ancient letters that loosely resembled the ones she was familiar with. A dim light, that seemed to grow brighter the more she stared at it, permeated the whole structure. Even being completely disconnected from magic, she could clearly feel the warmth they radiated, the feeling of peace that softly nestled in her heart.
No doubt this was what had kept the creatures at bay.
But the stone was so dim, and the gates so small, it was no wonder she hadn´t noticed them from the depths of the darkness she had just emerged from!
That said, the temple might´ve been smaller than she would´ve expected, but right now Lucina wouldn´t have changed the slightest detail.
"We… M-Mount… Prism…? We… we made it?" She said, suddenly unable to contain her feelings.
However…
- We…? -
She was quickly shaken from her reverie, faced with the grim reality that she… was alone.
Panic set in as quickly as it has disappeared.
"Everyone!" She yelled, praying to all the gods someone would answer her call. "Anyone?! Is anyone here?!"
When no response came, she cursed under her breath and turned around, away from the gates of the temple. She stared at the barren trees, covered in miasma, and infested with demons, wondering how far inside everyone else would be…
Would it even be possible to find them all in the dark?
- Thinking about it wouldn't do any good… - She thought, trying to steel herself.
She then took a deep breath, bracing for what was to come; readied her sword, and made a beeline towards the forest she had just emerged from.
Before she could do so however, she was suddenly tackled from behind, and brusquely taken to the floor.
"Lucina!"
There was no mistaking that high-pitched voice! Lucina could barely contain her relief!
"Nah!" She screamed as she turned around to return her petite, half-breed companion´s embrace. "By Naga, I didn´t see you! I´m so, SO glad you´re alright! And the others-?"
Whatever elation Lucina had been feeling at the time was stilled the second she saw the worried look on Nah´s face.
"Almost everyone is here! But Kjelle… she hasn´t come out yet… I was waiting for you both inside the temple… with everyone else." Nah explained.
Lucina didn´t need to hear anything else, she immediately got back on her feet and turned around once again, towards the forest, where doubtless hell itself awaited her. Leaving Kjelle in it though, was well out of question.
"Lucina, wait you can´t!" Yelled Nah, as she quickly grasped Lucina´s hand, trying to keep her from going back into the forest.
Resolute as she may have been, the weak hold Nah had on her was enough to topple Lucina once again. She could barely stand as it was.
"No… No… NO!" Lucina chided herself, trying and failing to force her legs upright. Nah simply stayed still not knowing what she could do to comfort her friend.
Realizing she wasn´t going anywhere anytime soon, Lucina changed her approach.
"Nah! Go and gather everyone else that can still fight! Get Yarne in the lead, track down Kje-" She began, but the words died in her mouth when she saw Nah´s expression.
It was one of deep despair.
"I… I´m… The only one who can… right now…" The girl managed to say in a mere whisper.
Lucina simply stared at her; eyes wide.
She was out of options…
Lucina stood haphazardly, using her blade as support. Nah barely had time to process what was happening before Lucina brusquely pulled her hand away from her.
"Wait here…" Was all Lucina said, before starting to limp away.
"Wha-" Nah was completely aghast. Lucina was going to die if she went back into the forest. That much was assured! She had to stop her somehow.
Nah knew she was more than strong enough to either stop Lucina on her tracks, or even take her place. So then why…?
Why couldn´t she bring herself to do so?
"Don´t worry…" Lucina whispered under her breath, as she stepped forward, one foot at a time. "Tend to the others…"
Having been made aware of the strain on her legs by having relaxed after emerging from the forest, they were now burning with intense pain. In all likelihood, she had torn muscles in both of them.
Nah was left paralyzed, as Lucina relentlessly limped on, towards the darkness she had just managed to escape from by the skin of her teeth.
"What… the hell… are you doing?!" A voice as stern as it was weak thankfully called the attention of the pair, before Lucina could lose herself in the forest. It came from behind a tree, a couple of meters from where they both were.
"Kjelle!" Both girls yelled in unison.
Lucina didn´t waste any time, changing direction and hopping, as best she could, towards Kjelle; who was slumped against a tree, the dried blood a clear indication she had been there for a while. Her armor was in tatters, but all things considered, she seemed to be doing alright.
"Gods! Kjelle!" Lucina began, ecstatic with the assurance everyone had made it out safely.
She offered Kjelle a hand, and continued "I thought y-" Kjelle however interrupted her by swatting away the hand Lucina had put forth.
"Next time… you… leave me!" Kjelle said, glaring at Lucina.
Unfazed, Lucina grabbed onto Kjelle´s arm and pulled her upright.
"Listen! …You-" Kjelle started getting annoyed at Lucina ignoring her blatant lack of judgment earlier. It was paramount for her to understand tha-
"I´ll never leave you behind, Kjelle. Never." It was now Lucina who was staring straight into Kjelle´s eyes, making sure she made herself clear. Kjelle couldn´t hold her gaze for long, and quickly averted her eyes towards the ground burying any further responses she might´ve had.
"I´ll never leave any of you behind." Lucina continued, as she draped Kjelle´s arm over her shoulders, letting the knight support her weight on her.
Kjelle couldn´t quite make sense of how Lucina managed to help her walk, when she could barely walk herself. But the display was impactful enough to silence any and all complaints. And so all three survivors slowly moved towards the gates of the sacred temple.
"For what is worth… I´m also glad you´re okay, Kjelle." Said Nah, feeling a little left out, once they reached the doors, as she started pushing them open with surprising ease.
"Ha… you should know… pipsqueak…" Kjelle weakly replied. "I´m… a tough nut… to crack…"
Once the gates were open, they were welcomed by a sorry, though not unwelcoming, sight. The inside of the temple was small, perhaps just ten meters across. It comprised of nothing but a stone circle in the center, surrounded by stone walls, all covered in the same engravings the gates had been. The one notable aspect of the place, was the generous magical energy that radiated from its walls, giving off a weak but noticeable light.
All nine of their companions laid splayed gracelessly on the ground. Almost everyone seemed to have dropped haphazardly wherever they had found space, only a scary-looking priest with a scar on his face, had managed to slump himself against a wall.
Nothing else seemed to be of note, though everyone seemed to have seen better days. That said, Lucina knew well enough everyone HAD seen worse days, so she considered herself lucky to see everyone had made it out of the forest. Then again, could they really be tired enough to collapse like this?
"Brady checked on everyone before falling asleep." Nah noted, when she noticed her companions´ intrigue.
That struck Lucina. "Falling asleep?" she questioned. It wasn´t a particularly inviting scenario to fall asleep, she would´ve guessed. Even if it had been an extremely difficult journey…
"Give it a minute. Apparently, you humans… and taguel… fall asleep in this temple." Nah quickly explained.
"Wha…?" Kjelle questioned, as Lucina laid her down on the floor so she could better rest.
"Brady said it didn´t seem ill-intended, apparently we´re all being healed just by virtue of being here!" Nah elaborated "I for one feel a lot better than when I arrived. Besides everyone seems comfortable enough, right?"
"I… guess so?" Responded Lucina, not quite convinced. The fact they were surrounded by the armies of hell itself still seemed like an important enough issue at hand.
"You guys go ahead and sleep! I´ll take guard while you rest." Nah said excitedly, eager to help.
Lucina however, was still trying to grasp the situation "You do know we´re surrounded, right?"
"Yeah… but don´t you feel safe here?" Nah responded with a shrug.
It was somewhat true… the entire structure seemed blanketed by the same warm comforting magic that marked the gates outside.
Still unconvinced, though, Lucina argued back "Perhaps so… but we shouldn´t take if for gran-"
"Not to mention waking everyone up doesn´t seem viable, AND we´re being healed!" Nah exclaimed, eager to get Lucina to recover, if just a little. "So there´s no downside! If anything happens I´ll be sure to wake you!"
In any other scenario, Lucina wouldn´t have budged about the issue; resting, not to mention sleeping, seemed like a death sentence. This temple, however... seemed so welcoming, so protective, such an oasis, it was almost impossible to think about it being breached. The fact it hadn´t been overrun in seconds also gave her some sense the feeling of safety wasn´t just a wishful hunch.
Naga herself had guided them here as well! There was no other way they had all converged at the same place after being separated. And there didn´t seem to be any way forward! So even if drowsiness hadn´t already started to creep into Lucina´s head, she wasn´t quite sure what she was supposed to do next. Perhaps waiting was the wise thing to do, given the circumstances?
The moment that thought crossed her mind; Lucina felt an almost unstoppable urge to lie down.
As much as she wanted to deny it, she couldn´t help but agree with the urge at this point. The fact that Kjelle has promptly shut her eyes and seemed to be fast asleep already didn´t help her case either.
"Are you sure you don´t need rest too Nah?" She asked, making sure everything was alright, before surrendering herself to sleep.
"Not at all…" Nah began, although she quickly corrected herself "Alright, maybe a little. But I definitely don´t need as much as you do!"
Nah did seem to be doing alright, all things considered…
"Alright, I´ll… settle down for a bit." Lucina said, "But wake me up in an hour, we can´t take any chances here, alright?"
"Will do!" Replied Nah.
Lucina nodded and turned around, looking for a good place to lie down. Her body, however, rebelled against any further movement. It wasn´t going to be picky about where to lay down, so she simply let herself fall unceremoniously to the floor, where she quickly lost consciousness.
Nah stayed awake though… staring intently at Lucina; for a long while, as a blanket of magic filled the small temple in a comforting, warm embrace…
Some unknowable time later, Lucina´s eyes fluttered open, as her consciousness returned. While she awoke, it felt as if all the weight had been stripped from her soul and body, she felt light and comfortable. She rubbed her eyes, yawned, and gently stretched her arms before settling down and looking around. She saw her companions waking up, same as she had.
However, in her drowsy state, Lucina failed to notice… Nah was nowhere to be seen.
Although undoubtedly she would´ve noticed in a few seconds, any chance for her to do so was quickly interrupted when she suddenly found herself being forcefully hugged by a little girl.
"LUCY!" Cried the little girl.
"Cynthia!" Lucina said, trying to return the hug. However, before she could do so, Cynthia had already jumped towards the awakening Kjelle to give her a similar welcome.
"KJELLE!"
"Wha- AARGH!"
"Took you two long enough! Were you trying to worry us to death?! Gods!" Said another grumpy-looking girl with twin tails, a little older than Cynthia.
"How could you doubt them! We speak of a legendary hero like Lucina and her sidekick Kjelle!" Responded a short-haired swordsman, armed with a ridiculously decorated sword.
"Legendary hero my ass! Darn' it you two! Ya' had me worried half t'death!" said the priest with the scar on his face.
"It´s good to have you girls back! Though it pains me I wasn´t there to aid you in your time of need…" Added a carefree, handsome-looking guy, a bit younger than the priest.
Having finally pried Cynthia off of her Kjelle responded to the handsome swordsman "Shut up for a second there, chief…"
"Oh…" The man seemed taken aback "I didn´t mea-"
"S-Something is different… isn´t it?" Interrupted a scrawny-looking female archer.
"Look around!" Yelled a masked man, standing beside a wyvern.
With the stern tone, the welcoming mood was buried, everyone became uneasy looking around the temple.
Alertness beginning to stir, Lucina stood up, barely noting her legs seemed to be perfectly fine now. She now quickly noted Nah´s absence, which would´ve been enough to kick her into high-gear, but just as she began to look around more frantically for her friend, she began to realize what the real issue was.
The magic in the temple had almost vanished, there was no more comforting light, it was now dark, cold, and… unprotected.
"Th-There's something behind the gates!" Alerted a man could only be described as a half-breed between a man and a rabbit.
"The magic also seems to be weakening… at an alarming rate!" A slender man with an oversized mage hat quickly added.
Lucina had heard enough.
"Everyone! To arm-" She yelled, before a diabolical roar drowned her words.
It didn´t come from the sky this time, though…
A monumental collision followed, one powerful enough to violently shake the entire mountain. Everyone was knocked off of their feet by the impact.
It took Lucina a second to recover, and even then, a further second before she gathered the courage to look upwards.
Just as she had feared, the gates of the temple had been blasted apart, now a familiar and terrifying mass of living corpses filled the entryway. They didn´t rush inside though, instead, they gnawed, clawed, and shoved against a barely visible barrier, the weakening magic barely managing to keep them at bay outside the broken gates.
Lucina felt her blood freeze.
This was it… they had nowhere else to go… they were trapped.
"Gods…" She muttered under her breath. This couldn´t be the end, right? Not after everything they´d been through… Not after being so close!
Gritting her teeth, Lucina fell back into her stance out of instinct "Everyone! To arms!" She yelled, readying her own blade. Hopeless as the situation might´ve seemed, laying down and resigning themselves had never been an option. If there wasn´t a way for everyone to make it out alive… She´d carve one out.
Then, suddenly, just as the sound of her friends´ blades being unsheathed began to echo behind her, a crashing noise from above broke the scene.
-!
A dragon had just crashed through the ceiling.
"N-Nah?!" Lucina managed to utter, before the dragon crashed heavily on the ground in front of her.
"ARGH!" The dragon screamed in pain from the impact; its deep, echoing voice unmistakably that of Nah´s dragon form.
"Nah! What ha-" Lucina began, worrying about Nah´s exposed position, since she had landed right in the middle of the temple.
"NO TIME!" Nah interrupted, before spitting a fireball straight at Lucina.
Out of pure instinct, Lucina managed to dive out of the way of the projectile. Baffled by the sudden attack, she quickly turned right back to Nah.
What she saw in front of her, however, stopped her in her tracks.
The fireball had stopped in midair, and was now ominously oscillating in place.
Lucina quickly stood up and stared at the blue incandescent sphere in front of her.
"Wha-" She began, but she never had the chance to finish her question, because Nah quickly attempted to use her tail to try to push her into the sphere.
Lucina deftly sidestepped the dragon's tail, though.
Having failed to push her friend without resistance, Nah quickly tried to explain "It´s Naga´s time magic! This is the reason the temple is falling apart!"
"N-Naga´s magic?" Asked the scrawny archer in a panic.
"The temple´s protection is breaking!" Alerted the slender Mage "It´s being absorbed by the sphere!"
By this point, only the mage was attuned enough to even detect the magic keeping them alive. The creatures rabidly slammed against the now invisible barrier with such single-minded fervor they seemed to be being physically crushed against it.
Regardless of what was happening, and whether or not Lucina understood it, there was one unavoidable truth. They would soon be overrun.
"Shepherds! Into the portal!" Lucina ordered, out of options.
Faced with either the unknown, or certain death once the magic vanished, nobody needed to be told twice.
"Idon´twanna´die, Idon'twanna'die, Idon'twanna'd-"
"Come, you deserve better than this Mine-"
"You darn´ rotten bastards, ya´ better make like ants an-"
"What!? But a hero shouldn't run awaAAAAAA-"
"You shall witness vile fiends, when the power of my dark eye retu-"
"Blindingly trusting such an unprecedented element seems unwise… but given the alternative…"
"You BETTER be right behind us, got i-"
"BLOOD AND THUNDER! YOU DARE ORDER ME AROUND? INSIGNIFICA-"
"Once we get there, my fair Lucina, I´ll treat you to a cup of t-"
"Lucina! I´ll be waiting for you on the other side!"
"Come on! Let´s go Lu-"
After pushing Nah into the sphere, now only Lucina remained.
The risen were close… but not close enough.
Looking back one final time, Lucina allowed herself one last glimpse of her world. Grey… terrifying… violent… barren... but hers all the same.
This was her world… and she was about to leave.
Was she a traitor? A craven? Would her father acknowledge her decision?
She couldn´t know.
Her father was gone; and her home had been lost, from under her wing.
Now though, in this new world… Perhaps…
She needed not exist. This world would have a Lucina, and she didn´t deserve nor desire her place. There was no need for a second, counterfeit Lucina from a lost world.
As she sheathed her blade Lucina finally decided on something she had been mulling over for months now.
With a practiced motion, she pulled her long hair back-
- The new world won´t have a second Lucina, but it´s my duty to see it and her to safety, and it will be done so. –
And swiftly fastened it under the mask she held dear.
- And if I am to banish the fell dragon, I´ll need all the strength I can get. -
She then turned around towards the portal, ignoring the malevolent cries behind her.
- Hero King, please forgive my insolence… my weakness… I lost the world you entrusted me… I was not strong enough on my own… -
A subtle click from her mask, marked the moment…
The moment Lucina was no more.
And so, Marth, the masked foreseer, stepped forward, into a world of hope unknown.
An all-encompassing light blinded her. All sounds were drowned out by a shrieking screech. Her skin felt as if she was being pricked by hot needles. A dull taste of metal settled in her mouth. She felt as if she was being painlessly stretched thin, thinner than a straw. She felt herself spinning, impossibly fast. She felt herself disappear.
She felt herself being torn apart and put back together a myriad times.
And then in an instant…
It all began.
A.N:
First time ever writing and publishing, finally built up the courage to do so! Hopefully, someone will actually read this, and perhaps even enjoy it!
About schedule, I plan to base this fic on a Lunatic playthrough, I was challenged to write it based on how I actually managed to beat each level, which sounded pretty fun. That said, I haven´t quite… started. So, I guess I´ll start writing the next chapter when I get through the prologue, which CAN´T be that hard, right?
(Disclaimer: I´ve never played any Fire Emblem on Lunatic, and I have the strategic mind of a clam wearing a cotton hat…)
I have little else to add this time around however, fingers crossed I´ll have more up my sleeve the next time! Stay tuned!