Warning, one of the songs that I recommend you play during this chapter is one from Dragon Ball Super! Honestly, just seemed like a fitting song. Of course, you can ignore it, or you can give it a shot. Either way, just warning you before hand that a non-Fire Emblem Awakening/Hellsing song is recommended.

Without further ado...

The final chapter of the War Against Plegia Arc!


DISCLAIMER: HELLSING IS OWNED BY KOUTA HIRANO. I DO NOT ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS.

FIRE EMBLEM IS OWNED BY NINTENDO. I DON'T OWN IT'S CHARACTERS EITHER.

ITALICS=THOUGHTS AND SOUNDS

BOLD= DATES, PLACES, ECT.

BOLD ITALICS=WRITER

(NOTE: IF YOU DON'T LIKE THIS STORY THEN DON'T READ IT.)


Plegia ~ Plegia Castle Courtyard
September 5, Age 2609 (12:55 P.M)

Silence…

Complete utter silence…

No one knew what exactly had just occurred, all they knew was that something was wrong with Gangrel and it had put Walter on edge. To see the Mad King drink blood was one thing, but to see fountains of blood empty themselves into Gangrel's mouth was another. It was certainly disturbing, but something about Gangrel now transcended normal disturbing. His presence alone was now fiercely terrifying.

Chrom knew he recognized that odd sensation he was feeling at the moment. The feeling of great pressure that made him tense. A weird chill in the air that sent shivers down his spine. There was only one other time he had ever felt such a sensation, and it was whenever Walter let loose in battle.

It was hard to explain. It was almost like Walter, and now Gangrel, were the focal points of great power. It was so nerve racking that every instinct in Chrom's body told him to run away.

Whatever was happening, Chrom was sure that it was not good at all.

"Someone, restrain Gangrel." Khan Basilio finally broke the silence. "Looks like the Mad King's got more fight in him than we anticipated."

Just as the Khan ordered, two Feroxi warriors moved to restrain the Mad King. Walter reacted with great apprehension.

"Don't get close to him!" the butler demanded. Unfortunately, his plea was met on deaf ears, as the Feroxis continued to approach Gangrel.

Gangrel seemed oddly calm, standing motionless with his arms bound behind his back by iron chains. His usual crazed grin was plastered on his face, but there was no inkling of madness. He was just frozen in place, as if he were a statue.

As the Feroxi warriors grabbed Gangrel by the shoulders, they attempted to shove him to the ground. To their bafflement, the Mad King would not budge an inch. Exchanging a glance with one another, both Feroxis pulled out their weapons. Ready to force the Plegian King down, they pointed their weapons at Gangrel's back.

What occured next was haunting. Gangrel suddenly roared like a feral animal, whilst gnashing his razor sharp teeth. In a show of strength, he tore himself out of his iron cuffs like they were made of paper. The Mad King than grabbed one of the soldiers and bit down on their neck, tearing their jugular away in the process. Sucking out the man's blood, he then turned to the other soldier and shoved his fist straight through his chest, killing him instantly.

"By the gods…" Basilio's eyes were wide in shock, and he wasn't the only one. Khan Flavia could not muster the air from her lungs to even comment, Lissa had turned green in apprehension, Emmeryn was fiercely terrified by the sight, and Chrom was frozen in shock.

"Pegasus Knights, stop him!" Phila commanded. The order was followed, as three Pegasus mounted knights charged the monster with Steel Lances in hand. To Phila's great horror, Gangrel leapt up into the air and onto one Pegasus Knight's Pegasus. The poor woman had no time to react, or even any time to scream, as Gangrel dug his fangs into her neck and killed her. The Mad King than crashed the Pegasus into another Pegasus Knight and leapt on to that knight. This one put up a greater fight, attempting to throw him off. It was no use however, as Gangrel snapped the knight's neck with his bare hands. The final Pegasus Knight made an attempt to flee, but was thrown off her Pegasus. Gangrel had jumped to the ground, landing on top of her. Like a feral animal, he began to tear the knight apart.

There were no words for what had just occurred, just stunned silence. When Gangrel had finished, he wiped the blood from his mouth and faced Emmeryn and Chrom.

"That was certainly appetizing…" Gangrel finally spoke up. "At this point, I'm just following my instincts. In all honesty, I'm just as surprised as you are."

"I'm not at all shocked."

Everyone turned to Walter, who had his famous monofilament wire gloves on. He did not look at all frightened by what Gangrel had just done, and if anything he looked like he had seen something like this before.

"Look at you, Gangrel." the butler separated himself from Chrom and the others. "Reduced to a creature that I view as less than an animal. To think that becoming one was possible even in this world. Then again, the process of becoming nosferatu isn't exactly complicated."

"Nosefer what?" Lissa asked out loud. "What in the Naga's name are you talking about, Walter? Are you saying that you're familiar with what the Gangrel has done?"

"Indeed, that is exactly what I'm saying." Walter replied, not taking his eyes off Gangrel for even a second. "It's funny that I doubt even Gangrel knows what he has become. Anyway, to educate you lot, Gangrel has become a creature that is far beyond all of you. Gangrel has become a vampire."

"A vampire?" Chrom questioned. "What the hell is a vampire?"

"A vampire is a bloodsucking undead creature that is born when a virgin is drained of their blood by a vampire of the opposite sex." Walter explained as he unsheathed his sword, the Van Helsing. "Of course, there are other more potent ways of becoming a vampire, these methods often resulting in an extremely powerful vampire. What Gangrel has become is what is called a progenitor. Progenitors are a result of a strong willed human drinking the blood of another human, dead or alive."

Walter pointed his weapon straight at the newly converted Mad King.

"I want no one interfering with this battle, do I make myself clear?" Walter gripped his sword tightly. Chrom wasn't going to sit still while the butler did battle by himself.

"Walter, we can't…"

"Do as I tell you Chrom!" the Angel of Death yelled. "Even though he's a newborn vampire, as a progenitor he's more than capable of killing you all! Let me handle this!"

Stepping back, Chrom watched Walter face the new monster alone. All eyes were eager to see just what exactly a vampire like Gangrel was capable of, or whether or not Walter was strong enough to deal with it.

Though Gangrel's smile did not fade, he was uncharacteristically silent at the moment. The two warriors just seemed to stare at each other for no apparent reason. To the less experienced warriors, it seemed like a pointless silence, but those who were well versed in battle knew the purpose of the silence. Both fighters were gauging each others strengths. They were looking for openings, anything to possibly one up the other.

Walter was the first to break the silence.

"Time to see just how strong this new vampire is…" Walter held his sword above his head and entered a fighting stance. He watched the Mad King intently, waiting for him to make the first move.

To Walter's momentary shock Gangrel let out a monstrous roar, a roar that froze everyone to the bones. He hollered like a beast as a dark flame-like aura surrounded him. Whatever he was doing, it was causing violent winds to threaten to throw everyone into the air. Desert sands became airborne, and it almost looked like a sandstorm was brewing. The powerful energy just surrounded Gangrel like a maelstrom until it abruptly ended.

Walter actually felt his body quiver a bit. Gangrel was nothing like any kind of vampire he had faced before. Yes, he faced centuries old vampires that were extremely powerful, but never anything quite as chilling as Gangrel. If Walter had to guess, if Alucard was here, the ancient vampire would probably have trouble with the Mad King.

"Oh, this feels incredible!" Gangrel cackled as he looked down at his aura covered hands. "I never thought such power could exist, oh this is absolutely divine! I feel like I could tear a wyrm to shreds!" the Mad King looked back to Walter. "Although, I feel a bit thirsty right now, literally bloodthirsty! How about I repay you for that humiliating defeat you dealt me butler!"

Walter was the first to make a move, charging directly at the creature of darkness. Swinging his sword, Walter aimed to take of Gangrel's head. The Mad King casually dodged the strike meant to behead him, even looking bored while doing it. Walter grit his teeth in frustration as he moved to stab the Plegian's heart, but found himself hitting thin air once more. Becoming angered, Walter began to unleash a flurry of stabs and slashes, each aimed at the vampire's weak spots: the heart and the head. However, no matter how fast the butler moved, he couldn't seem to hit him.

"A fast one, are you!?" Walter clicked his teeth as missed with another stab. "Let's see you how you deal with this speed?!" Increasing the ferocity of his strikes, his motions began to blur. Still, even with the increased speed, Gangrel was still dodging with little effort. His temper beginning to flare, Walter upped the speed of his attacks even more. Now he was moving at his full speed, and it showed. Walter was leaving afterimages, making it look like he was attacking with eight arms. The increased speed seemed to be doing the trick, as Gangrel was starting to get nicked by the onslaught.

Seeing that dodging was becoming useless, Gangrel unsheathed his Levin sword and began to block the strikes he couldn't dodge. Of course, Walter was giving the king no quarter, so it was unsurprising when Walter finally laid a decisive blow Gangrel. The butler literally disarmed the monster before stabbing the Plegian in the heart. Not stopping there, Walter swiftly beheaded the creature of darkness.

"I can't believe it, Walter did it!" Lissa placed a hand over her mouth. Though slightly disturbed the brutality, she was still happy to see the end of the Mad King.

"Whaddya know, the butler actually came through." Basilio scratched his bald head in surprise. Flavia chuckled at her fellow khans lack of faith.

"Heh, of course he won, he's a champion for the East-Khan!" She declared with great pride.

Emmeryn seemed saddened by the sight of Gangrel's dead body, but she knew deep in her heart that it was a necessary death. As much as it hurt her, she had to accept that not all men could be saved. The Exalt felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning, she saw Chrom with a bittersweet smile on his face.

"I know this is hard for you to see, Emm, but it had to be done." Chrom sighed. "With that, this conflict is finally…"

The prince was interrupted by Lissa screaming on horror. Turning back to where Walter had fought Gangrel, he too was horrified by what he saw. Standing on two feet was the headless body of Gangrel. To his shock, the Mad King was regenerating his lost hands. Even more horrifying was watching the Plegians head regrow itself.

"Wow, what an experience!" Gangrel began to cackle madly as he lifted his Levin Sword off the ground. "Being beheaded was more fun than I thought it would be!"

"Is that so?" Walter wasn't at all surprised by the turn of events. "If you enjoyed it so much, why don't you allow me to put you through that experience again!" he swiftly beheaded Gangrel once more. Frustratingly, Gangrel's head regenerated once more, the same overconfident smile plastered across his face.

Damn it all to hell! Walter clicked his teeth again. Without the proper blessings, my sword isn't going to deal any lasting damage to the bastard! Looks like I've got no choice…

The butler sheathed his sword and took a deep breath.
Right now, my only chance of beating him lies in the fact that I can force him to expend all the lives he absorbed before I run out of stamina. If I'm not careful, I could end up getting myself killed. Walter summoned his wires for what he hoped wouldn't be the final time. I don't know how long I've got, but I just hope I've got long enough.

Balling his gloved hand into a fist, Walter suddenly swiped his hand. In a flash, his wires grabbed Gangrel. Deciding that holding back was something he couldn't afford to do, the butler threw the Mad King into one of the castle walls. Not wasting a second, Walter used his wires to slam Gangrel into the ground. The brutal impact caused several of Gangrel's bones to break, but he didn't seemed bothered by it at all. Continuing the brutal beat down, Walter dragged the Mad King across the floor like a rag doll.

I am not going to give him a chance to regenerate. Walter clenched his teeth as he continued to slam Gangrel into just about everything he could. He slammed him into rocks, walls, the floor, and even the castle rooftop; Walter was determined to end the vampire. With one final swipe of his hand, Walter sent Gangrel through one of the guard towers. The structure collapsed on top of the vampire, leaving only dusty remains.

Gesturing over to his comrades to not celebrate yet, Walter waited for the eventual counter attack. Unsurprisingly, several bolts of lightning shot out from the rubble, all aimed for him. The butler was quick to dodge the attacks and prepared to retaliate with an attack of his own. Throwing his hands forward, Walter sent his wires at the pile of rubble. His razor sharp weapon cut the rubble up into tiny pebbles, but Gangrel had already leapt out of the debris when they did.

Summoning up more of his wires, Walter dashed towards the villain. Using his wires to deflect any bolts of lightning that were fired at him, the butler crossed the distance between him and Gangrel in no time. Walter wrapped the vampire up again, pinning Gangrel's arms and legs. With a single tug, he tore the Mad King's arms and legs off. After removing all of Gangrel's limbs, Walter than slammed the vampire into the castle walls again. Repeating what he had done earlier, Walter dragged Gangrel across the courtyard floor before slamming him into another wall.

When Gangrel hit the ground once more, much to Walter's chagrin, he had already recovered from the injuries that were dealt him. Grabbing Gangrel again, Walter slammed him into another guard tower; the entire tower collapsing onto the vampire.

It made absolutely no sense to the butler, how could a new vampire like Gangrel possess such power? Yes Gangrel was progenitor vampire, but that wasn't enough to explain the incredible regenerative abilities Gangrel had. Walter could ignore the fact that he was vampire in broad daylight, because if a vampire absorbed enough blood at once — or was sufficiently powerful enough — the daylight was negligible. So what separated Gangrel from a normal vampire?

Then it hit him, Gangrel's magic was supplementing his strength. As far as Walter knew, Gangrel was the first vampire to have had magic before his transformation. If that were the case, than his strength in that department would've multiplied in potency. A magic vampire sounded silly, but Walter knew better than to underestimate a vampire enchanted by magic. After all, it was alchemical rituals that made Alucard as powerful as he was, it was safe to say that magic would produce an extremely powerful nosferatu.

Realizing this, Walter actually began to feel nervous. He knew he couldn't fight for much longer, and it was becoming increasingly obvious that his attacks were being shrugged off by Gangrel. It was a hopeless situation, a situation where everyone — Chrom, Lissa, Emmeryn, and all the Shepherds — would end up dying if he didn't do what he had to.

"Chrom, Emmeryn, Lissa; heed my warning and run while you still can."

Chrom looked absolutely flabbergasted at the request.

"Walter, we aren't going to abandon you to face Gangrel alone." The prince replied. "If we work together, we'll be able to-"

"No, Chrom." Walter interrupted him. "Even if everyone — Shepherds, Pegasus Knights, and our Feroxi allies — attacked all at once, it would prove futile. Not only is Gangrel stronger and faster than even I, but he won't be bested by the petty weapons we carry. Only the likes of blessed weapons would be able to put Gangrel down for good, and we don't exactly have those on standby."

Chrom was about to retort, but he realized that Walter was right.

"Okay, if we're retreating, why do you still look like your going to fight?" Lissa asked.

"Because I'm not going with you." Walter felt his heartache at the looks he was receiving.

"What? We can't leave you!" the blonde haired princess exclaimed. "Tell him Emm! Chrom! We aren't gonna leave him behind!"

"Yes, you must come with us." Emmeryn, for once, looked distressed. "You are important, and I cannot allow you stay and fight."

"Walter, listen to us!" Chrom shouted in desperation. "We'll retreat, but not without you! Be reasonable Walter!"

"I am being reasonable!" the butler silenced all three, earning a look of surprise from each of them. "The way I see it, as soon as we all attempt to retreat, Gangrel will send his soldiers after us! If I stay here and fight, I will be keeping the attention away from you! Besides…" Walter looked to the pile of rubble that Gangrel was likely lying under. "If there is even a slim chance I can defeat Gangrel, I must take it. If he is not stopped now, he will wage war on all of Ylisse and Ferox. It won't just be soldiers, it'll be ghouls and risen he sends after you; entire armies made up of the undead. I cannot allow that to happen." Seeing the three siblings weren't going to back down, Walter had no choice.

"Frederick, Khans-Basilio and Flavia, and Captain Phila: get them out of here. Our entire reason for being here is to save Emmeryn, so get them out of here damn it!"

Frederick and Phila seemed taken aback by the request, but both Khans understood the weight of the situation. Basilio immediately hefted Chrom up like a child.

"Let me go, what the hell do you think you're doing!?" Chrom flailed in his arms, but to no avail. "We can't leave him!'

"Sorry, Chrom, but he's right." Basilio said simply. "Damn that man, Walter. He's got guts."

Seeing that he had no choice, Frederick grabbed Lissa as Basilio did to Chrom. Though the princess was resisting, the wary knight was not about to leave her.

"Frederick…" Walter stopped the great knight. "I apologize for taking your place as Chrom's retainer; I now humbly return that duty to you. Protect the Halidom, Frederick."

The great knight seemed to take these words to heart, and nodded. He was silent as he retreated, for fear that he'd break down emotionally.

"What're you doing, Frederick!? Put me down!" Lissa struggled in his arms.

"No milady…" Frederick said sternly. "It… It would be a disrespect to Walter if I did…" With Frederick retreating with Lissa, all that was left was Exalt Emmeryn. The Exalt stared at the butler that had saved her from death, about sacrifice himself in her place.

"Walter…" Emmeryn was overcome with sadness. "Please return to us safely…"

The butler glanced over to her and acknowledged the request.

"Your Grace!" Phila landed her Pegasus next to Emmeryn. "It is time for us to leave."

Emmeryn nodded and climbed atop the Pegasus. Taking to the skies, the Exalt stared down at the butler until they were eventually too far to see him.

Walter maintained his composure as the last of his allies retreated without him. Feeling a sense of familiarity with the situation, the butler could only smile.

This time I'm not betraying them… Walter watched Gangrel climb out of the rubble, a bored expression plastered across the mad man's face. Forgive me, Lady Emmeryn... that is a command that I may not fulfill...

(Play song~ A Fearsome Foe [Dragon Ball Super OST Vol. 2])

Charging at Gangrel once more, Walter unleashed his wires once more. Letting them surround him, he planned on eviscerating the Mad King to the point that he couldn't possibly regenerate. Sending his wires after Gangrel, Walter was shocked to see the vampire dodge each and every single one. Sending more of his wires after Gangrel, Walter grew desperate.

Gangrel dodged the attacks and charged directly at the butler. Crossing the distance between them, the Mad King grabbed Walter by the leg and began slamming him into the floor. Gangrel brutally threw the butler around like he was nothing but a plaything. Walter felt practically all of his bones break with every impact.

Gangrel became bored with the beat down, and threw Walter into a wall. The Angel of Death coughed up a glob of blood as he crashed through the wall. Tumbling across the floor, Walter — albeit with great difficulty ー managed to regain his footing. Wiping his mouth of blood, he sent his wires after Gangrel once more. This time he managed to grab the beast's arms. Attempting to throw Gangrel around one more time, Walter swiped his hand. Horrifyingly, Gangrel saw through the attack and simply let the wires tear his arms off.

Charging at Walter without his arms, Gangrel headbutt the butler in the chest. All the air knocked out of his lungs, Walter was unprepared to defend against the next assault of attacks. Gangrel, his arms regenerated, grabbed Walter by the neck and lifted him off the ground.

"What say you to a bit of demolition?" Gangrel cackled as he began running straight towards a wall. "You can be my wrecking ball!"

Walter could only flail helplessly as he was used as a battering ram. He was slammed into one wall, and then another, and then another, and then another! He cried in agony as he felt his body shatter even more with every wall he impacted. It continued until finally Gangrel let up and tossed him like trash.

Walter felt his energy draining as he began to lose what little strength he had left. His monocle fell to the floor uselessly, and his ponytail was undone. Blood was pouring out of his mouth like a faucet, and he knew that he was going to die. Not one to give up just yet, Walter forced himself up. Feeling his legs burn in protest, Walter worked through the pain. Raising his arm once more to swipe his wires across Gangrel's face, he gathered what little power he had left.

As he moved to behead the vampire, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his arm. Oddly enough, he only felt the pain from his elbow up. He didn't even feel his arm and hand. Looking to his hand, his eyes widened to see a bloody stump where it once was. That was when the pain registered to him. Grabbing what was left of his arm, he cried in agony.

"Since you kept cutting limbs off of me, I thought that I should return the favor." Gangrel grinned as he twirled his Levin Sword around in one hand and held Walter's arm in the other. "Not so fun when it happens you, right? I wonder which limb I should go for next…"

Retaliating in pure rage, Walter swiped his remaining arm, only for it to be blasted by a bolt of lightning. Walter grunted in pain as his arm went numb completely and fell to his side. Attempting to move his arm, the butler quickly realized that it was paralyzed.

"Well, that solves your little wire problem." Gangrel cackled in delight. "I was getting bored with them anyway, so what relief that they're gone! In fact…" Gangrel suddenly punched Walter in the face, knocking him to the ground. Grabbing his leather gloves from his paralyzed hand and amputated hand, Gangrel threw them on the floor. Pointing his Levin Sword at the pair of gloves, the Mad King set them on fire.

(Song end here)

"Whoops, you better douse 'em! Here, I'll help!" Gangrel gathered a bunch of saliva in his mouth and spat it out, only it landed on Walter and not the flaming gloves. "Whoops, it looks like I missed!" Lifting Walter up by the collar of his shirt, Gangrel stared his nemesis in the eyes.

"Don't worry, butler, I ain't gonna kill you!" the Plegian King smiled mischievously. "I'm gonna keep you alive for as long as I can. I'm gonna make sure you live long enough to see your precious Ylisse fall. I'm going to make you watch as I tear the princelings heart out and drink his blood. Oh the things I'm gonna do to that bitch Emmeryn as well, oh I'm gonna make sure she suffers a long and grueling death! Only when I've burned Ylisse to the ground, and drank the blood of every Ylissean dog, will I let you die…" Throwing Walter to the ground, Gangrel confronted one of his few remaining soldiers.

"Sire, the Exalt and her allies have escaped." The Plegian stood attention. "Shall we send a squadron to pursue?"

"Send General Mustafa to pursue…" Gangrel chuckled. "If the fool of a berserker refuses, tell him I'll gut his entire family." Looking over to Walter, who was beginning to slip out of consciousness, he gestured for his men to pick him up. "Take the butler to the dungeons. Make sure he's deprived of anything that he could take his life with. I want him alive so I can torture him."

Following the command, Gangrel's men did as they were told and grabbed Walter by his arms and began to drag him across the floor. As Walter blacked out, he knew that without a doubt, he had failed.

A distance away from the castle, another warrior was shocked by what they had just witnessed. Lucina watched in absolute terror as Walter was dragged into castle. She had watched the entire battle unfold before her eyes, and not for the first time in her life she felt so helpless.

A dark cloud began to form over head, despite the desert climate. It was as if the world itself had began to weep for the fall.

The fall of Walter Dornez…


Western Plegia ~ The Midmire
September 5, Age 2609 (7:22 P.M)

(Play song ~ "..." [Fire Emblem Awakening OST])

It was non-stop, the escape from Plegia. The last seven hours had been dedicated to reaching the Plegian border. Rain followed them the entire way, soaking everyone to the bone. Hours of endless marching through pouring rain, and now there was but one last hurdle to jump through:the swampy midmire.

"Hurry!" Khan-Basilion beckoned for the Ylisseans to follow him. "There should be carriages waiting just through the upcoming ravine!" The West-Khan gestured towards a ravine just below them.

The Shepherds and what was left of the Pegasus Knights carefully made their way into the wetlands. Emmeryn marched at the rear of the group, right beside her brother. The Exalt of Ylisse could see the pain in the young prince's face as they moved further and further away from Plegia's capital.

"Chrom…" Emmeryn placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"..." The prince's mouth was a thin line.

"Chrom… please…" Emmeryn said gently. "We must go…"

Chrom stared at Emmeryn for a bit before he nodded his head. Grabbing Emmeryn's hand, he carefully led the Exalt into the ravine, right into the Midmire.

"Quickly!" Basilio hollored for the Ylissean League to group up. "The carriages are just through-" Basilio was interrupted when two Plegian barbarians suddenly rounded a corner and intercepted them. Behind the Plegians was an entire battalion, more than large enough to overtake the exhausted league.

"Plegians! Damn it!" Basilio pulled out his axe. "I knew it couldn't be that easy! To arms! We must break through their ranks!"

All Shepherds and Pegasus Knight's drew their weapons, though Chrom was a bit hesitant.

If Plegians have been sent to intercept us, than that means… Chrom shook his head.

"No… no… no!" Chrom unsheathed the Falchion, his face contorting in rage. Heads turned to the young prince as he moved to the forefront, at the behest of his sister, Emmeryn. As he marched to the front, a lone berserker, who seemed to be the leader of the Plegians stared down at them from higher ground.

"Ylisseans!" The leader bellowed. "I offer you all mercy! If you would surrender now, I shall allow you to live!"

Basilio glared at the berserker, clear contempt in his eyes.

"Surrender? Sorry, I'm not quite familiar with that word!"

"Is that so?" The berserker shook his head as he turned his attention to Emmeryn. "What say you, Exalt of Ylisse? Do you wish for further bloodshed, or are you as I am; tired of this meaningless conflict?"

Before Emmeryn could respond, Chrom stepped forward.

"That's rich, coming from a plegian of all people!" Chrom glared daggers at the leader. "Was it not Plegia that incited this conflict? Was it not Plegia that attacked when all we wanted was peace!? Now you come before us, preaching that you wish for no more bloodshed!?" Chrom's knuckles turned white as he gripped his Falchion tightly. "That time is past us now! Draw your weapons! If you wish to take us, you'll have to drag us back to Plegia by force!"

The leader let out a sigh as he drew his weapon, albeit hesitantly.

"Yes, I am well aware of all of these… these crimes against Ylisse." The general of the Plegian offense closed his eyes. "I cannot ask for forgiveness on behalf of my king, for that is within King Gangrel's power only. I only wish that you would surrender now, to me. I will not allow my king to lay harm to you."

"You think your monster of a king will grant us leniency!?" Chrom shouted. "After all he's done, I'd sooner take death by your blade!"

"I thought as much…" The berserker let out a half-hearted laugh. "Very well then, if that is how you wish things to be, than Iー General Mustafa of Plegiaー shall grant you your request."

(Play song ~ "Don't speak her name!" [Fire Emblem Awakening OST])

There was no strategy, no tactics; the forces of Ylisse charged the Plegians without any hesitation. Weapons in hand, they attacked. Chrom was first to reach the enemies, the Falchion gleaming as rain water poured down it's sacred blade. The water was soon replaced by blood, as Chrom cut down the first enemy. He flourished his blade, teeth clenched as he parried the lance strike from a soldier before driving his sword deep into the Plegian's abdomen. Pulling the holy weapon out of the soldier, he only briefly considered the foe before moving onto the next.

Lissa had her axe in hand as she charged into battle, recklessly like her brother. She may not have been a fighter, but she didn't care. Her mind was clouded by her anger and grief. She may not have been as close to Walter as her brother was, but… but she still considered him family. She screamed as she slammed her axe into the side of a soldier. The soldier crumpled and fell at her feet.

Three more soldiers charged straight at her with lances in their hands. Despite her chances of coming out of a battle with three soldiers alive being low, she still charged them anyway. She didn't even manage to get in close, as the soldiers nicked her with javelins. The soldiers proceeded to throw more javelins, intent on finishing her off.

"Milady!" Frederick quickly moved between her and the javelins. The stalwart knight let out a pained groan as he was struck in the back. His armor cracked as it was impacted, and the wounds were bleeding, but Frederick remained standing. Twirling his lance, he charged the soldiers without hesitation. He made quick work of the Plegians, his skills with the lance far exceeding their own. As soon as he was done, the knight took one last look at Lissa before falling backwards, succumbing to his wounds.

"Frederick!" Lissa placed a hand over her mouth as she watched him fall. The princess ran to the knight's side, replacing her axe with her staff. Frederick was thankfully still breathing, but his wounds were severe.

"No, I am not losing you too!" Lissa knelt beside the knight and began to pour all her strength into healing him.

The skies were darkened by the clouds in the skies, no one able to see twenty feet in front of them. The only objects visible within the distance were the dimly lit lanterns of both sides of the conflict. The sound of steel and iron clashing echoed throughout the surrounding area. Men being cut down at the tip of the blade, screams of agony as they fell drowned out by the sound of rain hitting the ground.

From the rear of the Plegian lines, Mustafa watched the battle with grief stricken eyes. He didn't want this, but he doubted his soldiers felt the same way. So dogmatic and narrow-minded, did no one realize that they were becoming the very evil that laid waste to Plegia a decade ago? Obviously not, as countless soldiers blindly followed the orders of Gangrel.

"This is wrong…" Mustafa shook his head as he watched his soldiers attack without hesitation.

Cordelia, eager to keep up with her lord, rode above the rain soaked ground. It was reckless, as her visibility was even worse than those on the ground, but she NEEDED to catch up to Chrom. Her Pegasus, which had been marching and flying through the rain non-stop for the last seven hours, struggled to fly because of her soaked wings. As Cordelia closed in on Chrom's location, an enemy archer took note of her. Aiming his bow at the Pegasus Knight, he shot an arrow right into the Pegasus' wing. The creature let out a whine as she began to fly towards the ground. Cordelia widened her eyes in fear as she crashed into the ground and rolled across the soaked ground.

"This… this won't stop me…" Cordelia raised a lance, determined to help Chrom. She pushed herself off the ground, only to topple once more. Her leg was most definitely broken. Several soldiers began to surround her.

"Cordelia!"

The red-haired Pegasus Knight looked up as she saw her savior leap from out of nowhere to take on the soldiers.

"Chrom?" She narrowed her eyes. She couldn't make out who it was- she couldn't even see their silhouette- but she was sure it was Chrom. Who else was skilled enough to take on multiple soldiers all at once?

When the fighting was done, her savior began to approach her.

"You okay?"

Cordelia's eyes widened slightly. That wasn't Chrom's voice. Looking down on her, the man who saved her, was Vaike.

"Vaike, what're you…?"

"I saw you fly off after Chrom." Vaike answered before she finished. "Thought you could use Ol' Teach's help."

"I…" Cordelia stared at the warrior in shock. "Thank you…" She took the brawny man's hand.

"Don't mention it…" The warrior easily hefted the woman up. "Easy there, let Ol' Teach support you." Vaike threw the woman's arm over his shoulder and he began to lead her to somewhere safe.

Virion stood atop one of the many cliffs overlooking the mire. His bow was drawn, but he may as well be shooting with a blindfold. He blindly fired an arrow towards the ground, and hit nothing. Virion squint his eyes in an attempt to see through the darkness, but it was too thick.

Scraaw!

Virion had enough time to swing his head around to see a Wyvern Rider flying straight at him. He barely ducked in time to being beheaded, but the archer lost his balance and began to roll down the cliff. Sully was clashing blades with a Plegian when she spotted Virion tumbling down the cliff.

"Ruffles!" Sully's eyes widened as she watched him impact the ground with a loud thud. Glaring at her opponent, she began to slash at him violently.

"Get! Out! Of! My! Way!" She disarmed the soldier and shoved her sword straight through his gut. Sully ran to the nobleman's side. Grabbing hold of his shoulders, she turned him onto his back, and was horrified by the countless cuts and bruises. His pristine clothing was ruined by the muddy waters, and torn by the rocky cliffside.

"Ruffles?" Sully lightly shook the nobleman. "Come on, you're alright! Come on!" When Virion didn't respond, Sully began to panic.

"Shit shit! Come on, you're supposed to be tough, Ruffles! You ain't gonna let a little fall take you down!" Sully began to cradle his head in her lap. "Come on, wake up! Virion!" She began to shout frantically for help. "We need a healer here! Damn it all to hell! We need a healer here! Shit!"

Realizing that it was pointless, Sully quickly scooped the nobleman up and ran off to find help.

Emmeryn watched the battle unfold in horror as Ylisseans, Feroxi, and Plegians fell. One-by-one soldiers died, dropping like flies.

"No… this isn't right…" She felt her heart breaking. Thunder struck the ground, illuminating the battlefield briefly. For a brief second, everything became clear; the bodies upon bodies littering the field. Her own brother, striking down Plegian after Plegian with a cold heart.

"Chrom! Please stop!" Emmeryn cried, but the sound of the battle drowned her voice out. Seeing no choice, Emmeryn bolted across the battlefield, completely foregoing any thoughts of her own safety.

Chrom cut down one last Plegian before coming face-to-face with Mustafa.

"I am truly sad that it must be this way, Prince Chrom. I had truly hoped that we would have no need to clash…" Mustafa drew his axe, poised to strike Chrom down. "Alas, I shall make your death an honorable one…"

The berserker charged at Chrom. Chrom parried the strike aimed at his head and countered with an attack of his own. Thunder struck as the duo clashed weapons, briefly illuminating the mire. Thunder struck once more as they clashed again and again and again; neither warriors budging an inch. Chrom flourished his weapon and stabbed at Mustafa's chest. The attack was swiftly deflected, Mustafa going in for a strike for Chrom's head. The prince redirected the attack towards the ground, the axehead being slammed into the ground. Chrom followed up by kicking Mustafa in the gut. The burly berserker barely flinched from the kick, dropping his axe. Mustafa took hold of Chrom's leg and threw the prince to the ground. The Falchion slid out of Chrom's hands as he was pinned to the ground.

Chrom slammed his foot into Mustafa's face, causing him to release his grip. He scrambled to his feet to grab the Falchion. Mustafa was quick to dislodge his axe from the ground, just in time to block a slash aimed at his head. They began to exchange blows once more, their duel taking them higher and higher up one of the cliffs.

As they inched closer and closer to the edge of the cliff, Chrom began to quickly turn the tables on Mustafa. His hatred for Plegia began to reach its boiling point as he began to swing his weapon wildly.

"You're anger blinds you, prince of Ylisse!" Mustafa parried his swings with moderate difficulty. "Your hatred is justified, but do not think for a second that I wish for this to end with your demise! Is peace not the way of Ylisse?!"

"Don't you dare!" Chrom's strikes increased in intensity. "Don't you dare lecture me on peace!" The blue-haired prince lost any sense of restraint he had left. As if reacting to his rage, Falchion began to glow a hot orange, acting almost as a beacon in the storm.

Chrom paid no attention to his weapon, all he was focused on was ending Mustafa than and there. Pushing The fight to the very edge of the cliff, Chrom began to slam is weapon down repeatedly against the berserker's. With every blow he landed on Mustafa, Chrom felt his stamina increase. The ground beneath the duo began to crumble as Mustafa was knocked to the floor. All the berserker could do was raise his axe in hopes that he could deflect the blows.

Chrom let out one final yell as he slammed his sword down with all his might. The clash shattered the axe in Mustafa's hands like glass, leaving the berserker helpless in the face of pure rage.

"Well fought, Prince Chrom…" Mustafa breathed heavily as he lie on his back. "I am beaten…"

Chrom glared daggers at the Plegian as he pointed the Falchion at his throat. Heat radiated off the blade, intense heat that evaporated any rain water that fell upon it. Chrom raised his blade to finish the berserker, who closed his eyes in acceptance of his fate.

"That's enough Chrom!"

(Play song ~ "No reaction… was I wrong than?" [Fire Emblem Awakening OST])

The prince stayed his blade. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Emmeryn standing behind him. Horror was plastered across her face as she held the tome of a fallen mage in her hands.

"Emmeryn…" Chrom's expression was stony. His eyes glanced over to the tome in Emmeryn's hand. "What are you doing with that?"

"Chrom, as your Exalt, I am commanding you to stand down now." Emmeryn opened the tome and was fully prepared to use it. "He is beaten, there is no need for this bloodshed to continue. I am begging you Chrom, don't kill him."

Despite the plea, Chrom's grip on his weapon only tightened. The glow of the Falchion grew more intense, as did the heat radiating from it's blade.

"Why should I grant him mercy!?" Chrom's voice eclipsed the thunder. "When has a Plegian ever deserved such leniency!? Every time we show our enemies mercy, they stab us in the back! So many people have been lost to these bastards, our own people Emmeryn!" Chrom shut his eyes in a vain attempt to hold back his tears. "They've killed so many innocent people, and now Walter too!"

"Yes, I realize that as well…" Emmeryn clutched her heart. "However, the fault lies with me, not these Plegians. If I had just listened to you and Walter, than perhaps all this would've been prevented." Emmeryn let out a deep breath and glared at Chrom with steely determination. "But that is past now. I cannot allow you to take this man's life. The sins of Gangrel are not the sins of his people! Leave him be!"

"Or what, Emm!?" Chrom shouted at the top of his lungs. "You'll blast me with that tome!? I know you! You'd sooner die than take up a weapon against another!"

Emmeryn stared at Chrom in stunned silence. Whoever it was in front of her, it was not her brother.

"Chrom…" Emmeryn's expression softened as she dropped the tome. Seeing that she was getting nowhere with her current tactics, she slowly walked towards Chrom and Mustafa.

"Emm, what are you…?"

Emmeryn placed herself between Chrom and Mustafa and held her ground.

"If you are going to kill him, than you must kill me first, Chrom."

"Emm…" Chrom felt his anger subside as he stared at his sister. The glow of the Falchion faded until it was no more. "Why, Emm?"

"Because the only way peace can be achieved is if we are willing to die for it." The Exalt replied simply. "When I look at this continent, I do not see it as Plegia, Ylisse, and Regna Ferox. No, I see it as a single land, seperated yes, but single. For too long have we allowed the hatred of the past dictate our actions, Chrom. With Ylisse, father led our country to war out of fear of the Plegians. Now Plegia seeks to wage war against us, unaware that they have become the very evil that nearly destroyed them. Chrom…" Emmeryn placed a hand on Chrom's cheek. "You cannot seek retribution. If you kill this man, you will be no better than our father. You will be no better than a monster…"

Just like that, something clicked within Chrom's mind. Suddenly he was reminded of the night that Walter sat down and talked with him.

"I warn you, Chrom. To become an agent of death is to become death itself. You haven't the guts to become that; that is a fact."

Chrom looked behind Emmeryn to see Mustafa lying on his back helplessly.

"To become what I have is to become a monster. Human's they feel sadness when they kill because it is human nature. For the same reason you'd never wish for Emmeryn to order Gangrel's death, I'd never wish you to become an agent of death."

Lightning flashed and lit up the sky. Chrom looked down at the battle below, eyes wide in shock. Below him, he saw the bodies of countless Plegians and Ylisseans. His own allies, the Shepherds, had been thoroughly beaten. Many were too injured to even stand.

"What have I done…?" Chrom dropped his sword, horrified by his own actions. "Emm… I'm so sorry…"

"It is okay…" Emmeryn gave the prince a melancholy smile. "I just wish that all this meaningless bloodshed would cease…"

"As do I, Exalt…"

The siblings turned to see Mustafa staring down at the battle below, sadness evident in his eyes.

"I meant what I said earlier..." Mustafa sighed. "I do not wish for further bloodshed. All this conflict is meaningless…"

Chrom stared at Mustafa.

"Why don't you defect? It's obvious you don't agree with Gangrel's rule." The prince asked.

"Defect?" Mustafa laughed. "I did consider defecting, boy. However, I know that if I defect, Gangrel will kill my family. I could never let that happen." The berserker eyed Emmeryn. "You say that the only way peace could be achieved is if we were willing to sacrifice ourselves for one another, that peace could only be achieved if we just let go of our hatred…" Mustafa took a step towards the edge of the cliff. "I never truly hated Ylisse, so perhaps I make a poor example, but I have always loved Plegia. For too long have I allowed this country I love to be ruled by its own rage."

Mustafa turned to the soldiers below him.

"Men!" Mustafa's voice was like a lion's roar. The fighting ceased immediately, both sides turning to listen. "For too long has our anger controlled our actions! For too long has our blood spilled in the name of a pointless war! Look around you! The blood of your comrades, their blood spilled in the name of a mad man!"

Plegian followed as Mustafa had said and scanned their surroundings. Friend and foe alike were lying in pools of their own blood.

"We must face the reality that our own anger has blinded us for too long; we have become the demons that we were plagued by many years ago!"

Murmurs could be heard throughout the Plegian ranks.

"Drop your weapons, comrades! This cause is not one worth fighting for!"

"Madness!" One Plegian raised his axe to Mustafa. "If we drop our weapons now and retreat, we'll be executed along with our families!"

"Yes, that is true…" Mustafa breathed deeply as he grabbed the sword of a fallen soldier. "Gangrel will very likely kill us all if we return to him empty handed. However, no soldier is expected to continue a battle when their commander has fallen…"

"Wait…" Chrom's eyes widened with concern. "You can't be thinking about-"

"Suicide?" Mustafa smiled. "If my death will allow my men to walk freely, than I will happily give my life. It's as the Exalt said; true peace can only be achieved by those who are willing to die for it." The Plegian general closed his eyes. "Prince Chrom and Exalt Emmeryn, leave now. My men will not pursue you."

While Chrom nodded as he ran down the mountain to gather up the Ylissean League, Emmeryn stood motionless as she watched Mustafa prepare to plunge the blade into himself.

"Thank you, General Mustafa…" Emmeryn closed her eyes as she turned away from the Plegian berserker.

The Ylissean League gathered beyond the battlefield. The amount of injuries the Shepherds sustained was innumerable. The injuries ranged from broken bones to fatal wounds.

Chrom watched his comrades, people he considered his friends scramble to take care of those with fatal wounds. As he watched everything unfold, his legs suddenly began to feel weak. It was as if the events of the day had finally caught up to him. This was cause for concern amongst the ranks, as they realized that their commander was swaying drunkenly. The last thing Chrom heard as he lost consciousness was his name being shouted.


Author's notes

Yup, Walter lost, Chrom has fainted, half the Shepherds have been put out of commission, and Gangrel is a magical vampire... well at least Emmeryn is still alive. When I first started writing this story little under three years ago, I already made the decision to not kill off Emmeryn. I didn't know how I would execute the plan, I just knew that the kind of story I was telling required Emmeryn to live.

When I picked this story back up on October 14, 2017, I began brain storming ideas for how the entire scene would play out. At that point, the only solid details about this part of the story was the fact that Gangrel would become a vampire somehow, and that Emmeryn would survive. As the story progressed, and the Shepherds had victory after victory, I knew that I had to make this a major loss. If I wasn't going to kill off Emm, I needed something else to add weight to the scene. So after much consideration, I decided that Walter had to lose the fight and get captured. He couldn't just lose, he had to be broken, and break he did.

For more information on the decsions that were made during the creation of this chapter, see the "Behind the Keyboard" section below.

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How To Make a Dire Situation Even More Dire
How do you make a dire situation even more dire? By completely screwing over the heroes of course. The battle on the Midmire is, in my opinion, one of the more iconic moments in Fire Emblem Awakening. However, believe it or not, the original draft of this chapter didn't include it. Arguably, the key reason as to why the Midmire has so much weight to it is because it occurs directly after Emmeryn's fall. I didn't think it would have any real purpose without Emmeryn's sacrifice... but then I realized that someone did make a sacrifice.

Let's be honest, Walter's sacrifice does not have anywhere near as much impact as Emmeryn's, not even close. I needed to make the situation more emotional. The only solution? Take the characters that people are attached to and screw them over. It's how writers have been making readers/audiences gasp in horror for years, and will continue to do that until the end times.

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Signs of an Exalted Falchion?
Anyone who's played the game knows that the orange glow of the Falchion is something that doesn't appear until very later. Well, why it appears now is simply because ADKJSFKJHAGKJHKLGALHF. As a result, this won't be the last time that glow appears.

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The Fall
Two reason's why this chapter is called the Fall. First is this when everything goes to hell. Second is because of the time period the chapter occurs. It's September, and it's nearing the Fall season. Ohohoho! I are so clever!


Reviews

Touhoufanatic

Well... our trained vampire hunter was just... you know... beaten...

Shad7000

Hmm... makes you wonder what Alucard's thought process was when he licked the blood off the ground... I mean... Gangrel did the same thing as Alucard after all. The Hellsing universe is weird; vampires, Nazis, vampire Nazis, and a Nazi Werewolf. Blood just apparently beckons people to drink it, with the only person we know of that doesn't being... the Major.

Greyjedi449t

Well here it is, the next chapter! Hope you enjoyed it!

Evowizard25

Don't give me ideas... I don't think Walter would be happy to wake up one day to find an army of vampire Risen werewolves. Sounds stupid, but I doubt anyone would wanna fight them.

Neema Amiry

Thanks! I do try my best for all of my readers!

Regalis Imperius

I think falling in love is the least of Walter's concerns right now... or is it? Hmm, food for thought...

The Hand of Section XIII

I just assume great minds tend to think alike.

pt1oef

Do you want the whole summary?

Well, after Exalt Emmeryn was captured by Plegian forces, Walter and Chrom led a rescue mission to save her. Sneaking into the heart of Plegia, they manage to stop her execution just in time. However, Aversa and Gangrel simply used Emmeryn as a way of luring the Shepherds into Plegia so that they could trap them. Fortunately, Walter saw through the trap and managed to stop them before they had a chance to spring the trap. Gangrel is defeated, but because he possesses a strong will, the blood calls to him; telling him to drink it just as as Alucard did in Hellsing. Gangrel becomes a vampire as a result, and decimates Walter in single combat.

In other words, a whole lot of crap happened.

Greer123

Nope, for some reason he still won't use it!

Actually, that's something that will be addressed in the next few chapters. He may have come to terms with his past to a certain extent, but there's still something holding him back from unlocking that seal.


There we have it, the end of the War Against Plegia Arc. Next chapter is the beginning of The Gangrel Arc ー yup the bastard got an entire story arc dedicated to him. As I said before, it may take a bit of time for me to get the next chapter out. I really want to make sure this that the third act to the first part of the story is top quality. As a side note, much of the upcoming arc is entirely original. I mean, how could it not? We've got vampire Gangrel running around, A living Emmeryn, and Walter out of the game.

All the can be said is that it's going to be a whopper.