With Emmeyren settled down at the cottage that Sophia would be renting for the month. Since this was a good moment, Sophia wanted her to be ready and decided to teach her about magic and medicine. She's never been a teacher so this was going to be a bit difficult. But, she was glad that Emmeyren was a fast learner. The negative thing was that she still had to be hidden. Sophia was hoping that Emmeyren would be allowed to work so she could put her skills to use like she did before she lost her memories.
"Sigh... '' Sophia sighed as she walked down the hallway and to the clinic, "I was hoping she could work with me, but then again...if word got out she is alive, things will go downhill from here." She muttered as she arrived at the door.
She took out her keys and opened them. The inside of the clinic was still the same as before. Multiple beds, a desk, a few tables, and crates filled with supplies. She walked in and closed the door, turning on the lights. She walked to a table and swiped her finger on the surface. She grimaced a bit as she saw dust had accumulated in the place. That meant that the clinic hadn't been used in a while. Bryhildr slowly came out of her shadows but the sight was surprising.
"You longer have the mist," Sophia muttered as the DeadLord turned to her.
She could see her human form. Bryhildr wore a dark purple long sleeve medieval ripped-up dress with gold rusted jewelry, a cloak, with the faint colors of purple fading. She wore a veil that covered her face. She also had extremely long pale purple hair that nearly touched the ground.
"How?" Sophia asked and the DeadLord chuckled a bit.
"Surprisingly, this change was caused by you." Bryhildr said and saw the confused face Sophia had, "Something inside of you changed. I don't know what but we'll most likely see those results in the future."
"Most likely..." Sophia muttered, "Anyhow, I'm glad you are back."
"As am I." Bryhildr huffed, "Next time think before trying to rip yourself to shreds." And she disappeared back into her shadow.
"I will." Sophia sighed.
She looked around the place and placed her hands on her hips.
"Well, this place isn't going to clean itself."
- 2 Hours Later -
"Done and done! Phew!" Sophia cheered them on and threw herself on one of the beds, "The place is entirely clean and I can finally rest!" She turned on her back and looked to the ceiling, "Now time for a small nap."
And right when she's going to close her eyes, there is a knock on her door.
"Why...?" she smiled but it was full of nothing but malice as she stood up and walked towards the door with a closed-eyed smile.
She opened it, only to see Alm there but she remained with that malicious smile.
"Hey um...Are you alright?" Alm asked as he lightly tapped his cheek, "That smile is pissed off one."
"I was about to take a nice nap and you knocked on the door." Sophia's eyebrow twitched, "Oh course I'm pissed. I just finished cleaning the entire clinic." She said and Alm flinched.
"Look, I'm sorry but umm...There's someone well...two friends of ours we want you to meet." He muttered, "It's been a while since we've spoken. Well, I'm actually on somewhat bad terms with one of them..." he looked away, "But they want to talk to you."
"More of friends, huh?" Sophia sighed, "While I'm glad you found more of them and they are okay, what I don't understand is you all coming to me for answers I don't have." She crossed her arm, "I am not my future self."
"I know." Alm said, "You're different but also alike. It's kind of...unsettling sometimes." He smiled sadly.
"Sigh..." she sighed and patted his head before walking past him, "Let's go. Somehow I have a feeling I'm going to get a massive headache."
[—]
Arriving at the arena, Sophia was surprised to see Lucina and Severa there also. But then again, sometimes she wonders how many times she'll have to go through this.
"Alright. Who else am I going to meet?" Sophia placed her hands on her hips as she turned back to Alm with her hands on her hips, "I have new medical supplies I need to organize from Ylisse."
"Oh! Great Witch of fire! I am honored to speak to you once more! The light has vanquished the darkness and here you like the blazing sun!"
"Oh, you gotta be kidding me..." Sophia instantly faces palms and turns, coming to face the one person she never expected to be in Ferox.
Blonde spiky hair, brown colored eyes, light cream colored clothing of a Sword Master, and a long sword strapped onto his back. The young man flinched at her scowl and she also noticed the other young man next to him. White-colored hair, pink-colored eyes, he wore the clothing of a mercenary with a shoulder shield on his right shoulder. And chakrams strapped onto his sides. The two young men became still as stone as Sophia crossed her arms. She pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Lucina." The princess walked up, "Since when have these two been here?"
"They have been fighting for Ferox these last couple of months." Lucina smiled a bit, "And they owed the Khans for saving their lives from..." and the smile she had on her face was replaced with a blank face and eyes void of emotions, "The Walrus."
Sophia snorted and covered her mouth but unfortunately seeing how Lucina presented them as well as stating the reason why the boys have been working for the khans, she couldn't hold it in. She broke into full laughter and held her stomach. Owain and Inigo looked over to Alm and Severa for help but all they got were heads shaking.
"You brought this upon yourselves. Now deal with it." Severa huffed and crossed her arms.
"Hahaha! Well now!" Sophia finally calmed down, "You must have had a grand entrance!"
"Please do not remind us Ms. Sophia...it was disgusting and embarrassing." Inigo shivered at the memory.
"Anyhow," she walked up to them, "I'm glad to see you kids are okay. Hmm, I can already tell who your parents are based on hair color and eyes." She hummed.
Owain inherited Lissa's blonde hair and brown-colored eyes from Donnel. Most likely also the boy's strength. There was always that running joke in the Fire Emblem community that all you needed was Donnel to plow down the enemies. As for Inigo, the boy inherited Henry's white hair, his smile, as well as Olivia's skills and pink-colored eyes.
"Anyhow!" Sophia laughed, "You guys were struggling with that piece of flab?! Ha! Please!" She made hand motions of chopping something, "I want to chop and turn it into a potion!"
"In our defense, we were caught off guard!" Owain said.
"Exactly!" Sophia said. "You kids ought to learn a thing or two about magic." She shook her head, "But in all seriousness, who has been studying the mini-medical book I gave you kids a year ago?"
Out of the five, only Alm raised his hand. Sophia's eyes twitched and she turned to look at Owain.
"Get a tome. I'm going to kick your arse in today's lesson." And she turned to Inigo, "And you. Get your chakrams."
Both men looked at each other worried and then at her but nodded. They got into position and she didn't even give them a chance once they both lunged at her. She was on one side and suddenly the other, she raised her arm and then thumbs down. Owain and Inigo ended up landing on their backs, groaning loudly.
"Just like old times." Alm thought as the woman turned back to his friends.
"Owain, you need to get either a magic ring or pendant as a replacement for a tome. As for Inigo, you need to work on your reaction time." Sophia sighed and coughed into her hand.
She wiped her lip quickly as she saw small droplets of blood mix with silver on her hand. That wasn't normal.
"Stupid pieces of flab." Sophia grumbled, "Bloody damn stupid Walrus. Why the hell does anything the piece flab is cute? More like it endangers people's bloody hell." Unfortunately for her, she did not see that Basilio had arrived to tell that Flavia needed her.
He heard what he just said. Basilio picked her up and set her down in front of him.
"I said not to insult my pet." Sophia felt a beadroll down her face, "I warned you." The man smiled.
"You meant it..."
- A Few Days Later -
"I hate this..." Sophia wore the Ferox dancer's clothing because it was the only clothing she was going to survive with the bloody heat in the Valley of Flames.
Olivia gave her a worried look as she lightly slapped the reins of the carriage.
"Where is the Valley of Flames anyway?" Sophia sighed as she wrapped her cloak tighter around herself.
"It's near the Mountains of Kiran, about 5 hours from the arena." Olivia said, "The Kiran Mountains are said to once be the home of the Divine Dragon Sothis, who was the younger sister of Naga. The mountain was once filled with gems and crystals, the resting place for Sothis." She explained the old legends of the mountains and Sophia went silent.
"Sothis was called the Dragon of Gems because she would in case herself in crystals to heal."' Olivia smiled, "Sad that she left Archanea." And Sophia raised an eyebrow.
"I heard she was banished." Sophia lied on that part but Olivia nodded.
"She was banished like Duma and Mila. I did read that the reason was she became a danger to humans." Olivia said and screeched when they were both hits with a chilly breeze.
"How on earth can you stand wearing these damn clothes in this weather?!" Sophia yelled as Olivia gave her a crooked grin.
"Well..." Sophia then looked her up and done and saw the red pendant she was wearing, "I'm using a magic tool to stay warm..."
"THAT'S CHEATING!"
Sophia pouted as she hugged her knees closer and made a small fireball float in front of her to keep her warm.
"Olivia, is The Valley Flames a huge volcanic area?" She asked.
"Yes and no." Olivia said, "You see, you have to go into the Mountains of Kiran till you reach a cave with black gems sprouting nearby. Once you go into the cave, it will take you inside the mountain, whereas you said, is a volcanic area." She explained.
Sophia pulled out the book about the Valley of Flames, turning to a few pages about plants that grow in the place, which honestly surprised her.
"I'm surprised that plants even grow in that place." Sophia said as she reached the page she was looking for, "Flaming Flower: a red-like flower surrounded by flames. Use water or ice to put out the flames. Once that is done, you can collect the fruit that is in the center of the flower. The fruit is used to enhance fire spells, to create medicines that make colds go away. It is a difficult ingredient to obtain for potions. It is especially used to make a special type of essential oil that enhances one's ability to wield fire magic. But also, used to create...FEROX FIRE WINE?!" She turned to look at Olivia shocked, "THIS IS WHY BASILIO SENT ME?!"
"S-Sophia...you insulted his pet..." Olivia said, "I wish I could help you but I have strict orders from Basilio I can't. The most I can do is provide you with the supplies you need to pick the flower. Just um..do be careful. The Valley of Flames is also called the Valley of Dragons." The woman said as they stopped at a snowy mountain path.
Sophia got up and grabbed her bag. Inside were multiple holy water bottles as well as some ice gem bombs she made, her daggers, and a special type of bag that the fruit will go in. She jumped off the wagon and looked up the snowy path that led up, deeper into the mountains.
"Anything I should worry about?" Sophia asked as Olivia handed her wooden box.
Inside was a strange syringe with a red gem along with small scissors and multiple small glass bottles.
"Flavia said you may run into Firus Clayva. It's a type of flower that is surrounded by blue and black flames. It's alive and crawls around the walls so do be careful. When it's killed, you can extra its blood with the syringe. The plant only produces around 10 milliliters of blood and its poisonousness. Some say it was created by the founder of anti-magic. The blood is mostly used for dark magic spells and to enhance poisons." Olivia shivered as she looked back to the path with Sophia, "Please be careful."
"I will." Sophia said, "Anything else?"
"Oh!" Olivia gasped, "You may see some mist flowers growing. They are just like the flame flowers but blue. For those flowers, you need to light them on fire to melt the ice to pick the fruit. Flavia said to pick some on your way to the Valley." Sophia nodded as she looked back at her.
"Thank you. But what about you?" She asked.
"I will be in the village nearby. If you do not show up in two days, Basilio said to immediately send word to him. We'll send a search party to come to find you." Olivia said and hugged her, "Be safe."
Sophia nodded and hugged her back. She looked up the icy path, a strange feeling she had.
The question was, was the feeling a good or bad thing?
[-]
Climbing up the snowy mountain wasn't easy. In some parts of the mountain road, she had to be careful because time wore down the path. Some parts were buried deep in snow, others falling apart. She had a few encounters with the animals that live in the area. Snow foxes, snow owls as well as Ferox Snow lions. Even though the mountain was cold, there was plenty of life. From a distance, she spotted an ancient temple that she estimated was 6 miles away. But she knew better than to leave the mountain path.
"Oh my." Sophia gasped as she came across a small field of snow lilies.
Butterflies, unlike any she had ever seen, flew all around the field. She pulled out her book and quickly found the page.
"Crystal butterflies. Legend says that the Divine Dragon Sothis created these butterflies as a gift to her Elder Sister Mila. These butterflies are born from the elements of nature. The core of one is a light clear gem that is used to amplify the power of a magic tool or used to make tomes, wands, and other magic tools. They are also used for jewelry. Crystal butterflies' colors change depending on the environment they live in. Blue-white for a cold environment. Red for a hot place. Green for normal temperatures like in a grassy field. Yellow-brown for rocky and dry terrains. And blue for wet." Sophia muttered as she felt land on her head she closed her book.
That explained the net that was provided for her. She took it out and managed to catch around 3 from a swing. Carefully she took one out, holding it by the wings.
"Such a beautiful butterfly. Hmm...and the core is the body, a crystal. Sad I have to harvest you." She said and carefully put them into the hollow crystal glass ball.
She went to catch a decent amount but this was good. Even though she was still pissed about being sent to the mountain, the trip was becoming educational and she was learning more about the land of Archanea as well as other things she didn't know about.
"So the theory of Sothis most likely either was banished or wonder lust is true." She muttered as she kept climbing up.
She noticed the more she climbed up, she was starting to see strange rock formations as well as a few crystal veins that ran down the mountain. Sophia knelt down and gently traced her fingers on the aquamarine-colored vein. She could feel some sort of magic running through it.
"These mountains possess the revetments of power of the divine dragons." Bryhildr spoke, "That power allows life to bloom in these mountains despite the chilling weather." Sophia stood up and continued walking.
"I did spot an old temple back there. Perhaps after I get the fruit, maybe we can go explore?" Sophia smiled a bit.
"Bah!" Bryhildr mentally threw her arms up, "Have you not learned that you do not leave the path of mountains?! Anyway, heads up, mistflower 2 feet from you." And sure enough, there it was.
This was her first time seeing a mistflower. The blue petals surrounded a frozen blue ball in the center of the flower. Sophia raised her left hand and created a flame, throwing it at the flower. All the ice melted and only the fruit remained, which she picked. Something about the fruit made me want to eat it. Was that strange?
"Aaaaah! Nom!" Bryhildr began screaming in her mind that she was an idiot and how could she do something so stupid as taking a bite directly from a dangerous fruit.
Sophia chewed and swallowed. She felt a small chill but that was it.
"I'm still alive." She said, "Not bad." She took another bite, "It tastes similar to blackberry sorbet." She kept walking and eating the fruit.
"How the hell are you still alive?! Do you have any idea how many idiots are frozen solid from eating the fruit?!" Bryhildr screeched.
"Really?" Sophia plopped the last piece into her mouth and ate it, "Maybe my body is more resilient?"
Before the Deadlord could answer, Sophia immediately stopped walking as her eyes went wide at sigh in front of her. Blood was splattered all around the ground, parts of the rocks destroyed as well as seeing some snow melted. The corpse of a snow wolf was laid near a flat rock formation, some of its furs were burnt off.
"This is the work of a Firus Clayva." Bryhildr muttered, "I managed to get a bit more information from that pink-haired dancer's mind." Sophia gave her a blank look, "Firus Clayva is a carnivorous plant that was man-made, similar to Grima." They carefully walked.
"It started as a normal frost and flame seed. The Creator wanted to test to see if it was possible to create a plant with both the elements of ice and fire." Bryhildr began explaining the old story, "It was in an old city called Thebes. Well, while they were experimenting, someone broke into her lab and stole the plant. The thief used some sort of dark curse on the plant, making it become a monster. They were never able to catch it, unfortunately. Because of that, the plant settled and reproduced. I heard that even Sothis had a difficult time getting rid of them from her land." She finished.
They stopped in front of the cave with strange crystal formations as well as seeing there was no snow in the area but some grass growing.
"So, this is the cave." Sophia muttered, "Let's go."
[-]
The inside of the cave looked like it was made of glass with different gems growing in the cracks. Some rubies, sapphires, emeralds but the most common were opals. She carefully removed the opal from the crack and felt magic in it. Like before, Brynhildr did explain that some magic of the divine dragons remains in the land.
"Nom." And Bryhildr was screaming up a storm again in her because she bit the opal as if it was a piece of meat, "Weird. I did feel the magic in it. Still...I think I might use this to make some of the explosives I want." She thought.
"Explosives? Just what on earth existed in your world?" Bryhildr gawked.
Sophia began to feel the temperature become warm and after a few more minutes of walking, the opening of the other side of the cave came into her sight.
"Good gods..." Sophia gasped as she took in the sight.
Molten lava flowing in and out of the earth. Giant pounds of nothing but lava. Stone walls black as the night and some strange creatures crawling around. Bubbles formed in the lava that popped released poisonous gasses. Some areas were crumbling and others were swallowed by the molten earth.
"It's like I walked into a different world. It reminds me of The Valley of Torment." Sophia muttered and already was sweating but the heat was her specialty so wasn't affected too badly by it.
She had to be careful when she walked. At half an hour passed she was panting. The was at least 120 degrees and the spell she cast on herself didn't help that much. She has encountered some lizards, which she learned from her book are called Lava lizards. They are the size of regular small lizards but their skin is red and breathes out some fire. She caught a few because the skin and organs are used to make cold medicine that can be sold for a very hefty price. After all, the lizards were difficult to catch.
"Huh..." Sophia muttered as she walked up to an area that had a slight off-rock formation, "Obsidian. I didn't think I would find some here." She said as she snapped a piece off.
"What is this obsidian?" Bryhildr asked.
"Think of it as crystallized lava. The descendants of the Flame Tribe here in Ferox use this rock to make weapons." Sophia smiled, "I'm coming back for more of these. I remember my grandfather owned a machete made of this and he loved using it for cutting plants. Though my use of it will be cutting down people." She chuckled evilly, "I look forward to putting that blade through Validar's heart."
"Let's keep going."
[-]
"No signs of flame flowers yet." Sophia sighed as she used a damp towel to wipe her forehead, "I thought I ran into some by now."
"We may have not run into flame flowers but we certainly ran into humans! ABOVE!" Brynhildr screamed and Sophia quickly jumped back.
Two Grimleal Berserkers axes crashed down where she was standing and demolished the area. Something inside her burned as a wicked grin formed on her lips. She landed on all fours like a cat and then lunged at the berserkers with her chakarms. Jumping left and right as the grin on her face became feral, it was as if her senses were enhancing. The heat didn't bother her so much. The silver substance began to pour from her eyes again as she cut down the berserkers.
"Ahahahahahaha! Aha hahaha! Cut! Cut! Pour pour!" Her voice sounded like she was possessed.
Her hands were covered in blood and she was on the verge of licking them but Brynhildr quickly appeared and pinned her to the wall.
"Snap out of it! Don't let that damn shadow take over!" She yelled and Sophia was cackling.
"So you know I'm here!" She laughed, "The girl may be human but as long as I exist, she never will! I'm only half! My other half was stolen by Grima!" And Bryhildr slapped her.
Sophia blinked multiple times and looked at the Deadlord confused.
"What the hell happened?" She said as Bryhildr let go of her.
"Someone had too much fun killing." The Deadlord said and Sophia looked around, seeing the berserkers turned to mincemeat.
"What...?" She gasped and took a step back.
"There is another name this Valley has." Bryhildr muttered, "The Valley of Madness. The heat eventually causes humans to unleash their darkest selves. This is caused by the breath of Firus Clayva, since this is its home. Come...it's best you ignore what you did. You had no control over it." Bryhildr muttered as she gently pushed the woman away from the sight of the corpses.
Sophia was shaking, terrified as she began walking. She never knew she was capable of such a thing. Did the heat and fumes cause her to unleash her darkest desires? Is she nothing but a bloody psychopath just waiting to be unleashed? She looked at her hands and quickly wiped them.
"We need to find the flame flowers and get out of here." She whispered in a shaky voice as they continued deeper into the mountain.
[-]
At least 7 Grimleal warriors they had run into and all had been killed. There was most likely a camp nearby but the question was why were they here? Olivia did tell her that even the Grimleal avoided this place like the plague so what were they doing here?
"Careful." Bryhildr quickly made her hide behind a boulder.
Sophia peaked a bit but narrowed her eyes as she saw more Grimleal lackies.
"Definitely a camp," Sophia muttered and Bryhildr screamed.
"On the left!"
Sophia jumped quickly on top of a boulder as she saw the Grimleal swordmasters gawk. She saw they were guarding some sort of cage. It was covered in a long ragged cloth and she could hear something snarling in it. They had better not performing some sort of ritual or blood will be spilled.
"All I wanted was to gather the Flame Flower fruit and then leave. I didn't expect to find Grimleal here." Sophia grumbled.
Bryhildr came out of the shadows and massacred the remaining swordsmen. What was in the cage, immediately quiet down. Sophia jumped down from the boulder and just shook her head.
"I'm not insulting the Walrus ever again when Basilio is nearby." She sighed as the Deadlord threw the bodies into the law pits.
To instant ashes, the bodies became in the rotting smell of burning flesh filled the air.
"This is a small camp," Sophia muttered as she looked around the medium size cave.
"Doesn't matter." Bryhildr said and disappeared back into her shadow, "Let us see what's in the cage."
Sophia nodded and grabbed the cloth, pulling it off. She gasped once she saw what was inside the cage. In the corner was a child. Orange red-colored hair that stopped at her shoulders, light tan skin, crimson eyes, and red scales on her cheeks. She wore a red shirt with shoulder armor on her left shoulder. A long red skirt. On her waist was belted with multiple potion bottles and a dagger. But what was most noticeable, were the red scales dragon wings on her back.
"A manakete?" Bryhildr whispered in her mind, "Poor child. You ought to free her now."
"No, wait." Sophia thought, "I don't think she's a manakete." She carefully began to work on the lock with her bobbin pin, "She doesn't have the same pointy ears as Tiki and Nowi." She muttered.
The child looked at her cautiously but her eyes widened a bit, almost as she recognized her. The lock finally snapped and Sophia opened the door. She extended her hand to the girl carefully.
"You're safe now."
The little girl looked at her cautiously and gently held her hand, helping her out. Her lip began quivering and suddenly hugged Sophia tightly. The girl started sobbing and then crying loudly as if she had held in her emotions for ages. The most Sophia could do was gently soothe the girl.
"There there..." she gently patted her head softly.
The girl sniffed and looked at her.
"Better?" The girl nodded and slowly turned to look over at the leftover body.
"Are..." Sophia was surprised the girl could speak, "There many Grimleal left?"
"No." Sophia muttered, "I took care of them."
"...Filthy bugs." The girl's demeanor suddenly did a one 180, she bared her fangs at the body, "Bloody bastard! You took everything from me! You took them all! My memories! My family! You cursed me! Damn you all filthy humans!" The girl screamed and threw balls of fire at the body, burning it to cinders.
"Stop! Stop!" Sophia quickly held her back, "Getting angry and raging isn't going to solve anything!" The girl turned to her, snarling.
"I understand your pain but acting this way will not work! I speak from personal experience." The girl stopped and looked down to the ground.
She gritted her teeth as her hands balled into a fist.
"You're a manakete, aren't you?" Sophia said as she knelt, "Did they take your dragon stone?"
"I'm not a manakete." The girl growled, "I'm human. I used to be. Now I'm a hybrid because of...those...those filthy worms!" She hissed.
"Calm down." Sophia spoke calmly, "What did they do to you? What do you mean that you are cursed?" She needed information.
But something about the girl felt familiar. Like if she knows her. But Sophia has never seen this girl in her life so this was very strange to her.
"They killed two of the Shepherds."
Sophia felt her blood run cold as the girl continued to speak.
"I'm not from this time. I'm not from this land. I know you, and in a way, you know me. But that doesn't mean you know me. I'm from the future." The girl looked up to her, "You're Sophia, aren't you?"
However, the girl had a very different reaction from what she was expecting. Her experience with meeting the future children has been negative. First, Lucina and Alm were angry and somewhat hostile towards her. Next is Severa, who was hostile to her. Owain and Inigo, a normal meeting but still, she could feel they felt uncomfortable around her. Like if they were waiting for her to snap at them. But this girl...she was crying. Her lip was trembling as tears ran down her face, the girl looked at her as if she had lost her.
As if she had not seen her in years. The little girl reached into her pocket and pulled out a pocket watch. Sophia recognized it as the girl held it to her chest.
"Hic...you gave this to me. Hic...sniff. I have been holding it on since the day you gave it to me." She sobbed, "I'm not supposed to talk to you but I don't care!"
"No..." Sophia took a step back as everything was processing through her mind.
The girl took a step forward and smiled. But the moment was ruined when the sound of running footsteps was heard. The girl's face from one of joy to pure hatred as she shoved the watch into her pocket.
Her nails turned to claws, her eyes to slits, her wings fanned out as she roared furiously at the Grimleal mages that arrived. Sophia didn't even get the chance to scream when the girl lunged at the mage and began to rip him apart. Sophia had to fight back. Taking down the Grimleal mages was easy but the way the little girl roared furious as she fought, it was as if she was in pain. The last of the Grimleal mages were finished but the girl kept slashing at a corpse, roaring. Sophia ran to her and quickly grabbed her from behind pulling her away from the corpse.
"Stop!" Sophia yelled but the girl kept thrashing, "Stop he's dead!"
The girl kept snarling and finally turned her way but...
SLASH!
"Eh?"
Time seemed to slow down for her as she fell back. She could hear Bryhildr screaming in her mind, the little girl's enraged face turned to one of horror as humanity returned to her eyes. Blood filled her vision as she hit the ground, the world turning black.
[-]
"NO! NO!" The girl screamed as she ran to Sophia's side.
She looked at her hands, covered in the woman's blood, the three claw slashes on the woman's chest.
"NOOOOOOOOO!" She screamed as she held her head, "What have I done...?" She wept and quickly ran to her bag.
She frantically poured everything out and searched through her belongings.
"Here!" With trembling hands, she quickly grabbed a bottle of green liquid and ran back to the woman.
She poured the contents onto the wound and cried tears of joy as they healed. She hugged Sophia tightly, crying loudly.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" The girl wept.
She sniffed and looked around, quickly grabbing Sophia's bag and her own.
"Grrrr!" She was struggling to carry the adult woman but somehow managed as she flapped her wings to get a bit more leverage.
"Got her!" The girl cheered as she flapped her wings and flew, "There should be a cave just up ahead!"
"Or we could have just stayed here."
"No way!" The girl huffed as she spoke to the voice in her head, "Especially with those filthy bugs there." The girl snarled, "I thought you were on my side!"
"I am. But it would have been better to stay. You're still a child. You can not carry a full adult. You only just arrived at this time 3 days ago."
"And I don't care!" The girl snarled as she flew over the giant lava pound, "Not after everything I've been through. I don't want to be in an area where the wretched scent of Grimleal is."
"Sigh...Alright, I won't argue with you. But, is she okay?"
"...I didn't mean to...I lost control." The girl whimpered as she finally found the spot she was looking for and gently set Sophia down.
The girl smiled softly as she looked around the cave. It was filled with obsidian crystals and a cool temperature they could survive in. Also, far away from the wretched stench of Grimleal. The girl picked up on the crystal shards and began eating them like it was a piece of meat. She cooed because she liked the taste.
"For a former human, you sure have your way. If you were a normal human, you would be spitting out those crystals."
"True." The girl swallowed, "But this is the longest you have talked. Everything alright?"
"I sense some sort of magic protecting Sophia. It's familiar but corrupted."
"Figured." The girl sighed as she dug through Sophia's bag and pulled out a Mist fruit and started eating it.
"You know...kind of reminds me of when I first met you." The girl muttered.
"You summon a soul. I'm a Einherjar. But that does not mean I will obey you blindly. We may have a contract but I will still criticize you if I must. Still...sigh, you should get some rest."
"I'm a big girl!" The girl pouted.
"You are 12 years of age and are no older than one of my kids! Now rest!"
"I don't wanna! I don't wanna!" The girl threw herself on the ground and started to throw a tantrum.
"I will start to speak of horror stories."
Instantly the girl froze and pouted.
"Fine..." she sat up, "You're mean, big brother."
"I'm only watching out for you." She felt a phantom hand gently pat her head, "I may not be your real brother but I'll still watch over you. You remind me of a friend of mine and also...some else I knew." They muttered.
"Now get some sleep. I'll keep watch." The girl yawned as she crawled over to Sophia and rested her head on her chest.
[-]
2 hours had passed and the Einherjar revealed themselves and made no sounds as they walked out of the cave. They ran their fingers through their hair and stopped.
"Come out. I sense you. I may be a knight but I also know magic." They said and the shadows rippled.
Violet eyes looked at them coldly.
"I don't exactly like seeing harm fall upon my master." The shadow hissed, "But even I won't harm a child."
"...But you won't hesitate to kill her if she loses her humanity." The Einherjar narrowed their eyes at them, "Isn't that right, Deadlord of the Judargal Era?"
"Ha!" The woman came out of the shadows, "Don't get so cocky as the soul of another realm. I know holy blood when I see it." The Einjerhar flinched.
"Well, I'm not exactly proud of this Holy Blood. Not when I know the truth behind it." They muttered.
"Gifted or stolen?" Bryhildr said.
The Einjerhar stared at them for a while but looked away.
"It was stolen by my ancestors."
- The Next Day -
"Wake..."
She could hear something.
"Up..."
"WAKE UP!"
"GASP!" Sophia shot up awake, gasping for air and frantically looking at her chest.
The three claw marks were there but there was no wound.
"You're awake!" She turned and saw the little girl from yesterday eating a mist fruit, "I'm glad! I managed to heal your wounds using a wind heal potion! I'm sorry about yesterday. I'm still learning to control my dragonic instincts." Her wings drooped.
Sophia sighed as she gently patted her head, which surprised the girl.
"It's alright. Losing control happens." Sophia looked around, "Where are we?"
"We're still in The Valley of Flames. I found a safe area so I brought you here." The girl looked proud of herself, "I carried you all the way here!"
"Yeah, and it's a miracle you didn't drop her in the lava pit." The Einherjar spoke in the girl's mind, making her eyebrow twitch.
"I wasn't too heavy for you, was I?" Sophia looked at her worried and the Einjerhar snorted.
"Nope!" The girl kept her smile, "Anyhow, I brought us here away from the wretched sent of Grimleal."
"Hmm..." Sophia hummed, "You went through my bag."
The girl started sweating. Future Sophia was protective of her bag and hated people going through it, so it was only natural that the current Sophia was the same.
"I warned you." Einherjar snickered in the girl's mind.
"Shut it man whore."
"HEY! Who taught you those words?!"
"Big sister knight said to punch you." She thought back and Sophia stood up carefully.
"Well," the woman sighed as at least 10 of the mist fruits she picked were eaten, "you sure have an appetite."
"I was hungry..." the girl pouted.
"I know." Sophia said and turned to her, "But we have more important things to talk about. So you are from the future?"
The girl went silent as Sophia crossed her arms.
"You said you were cursed and it involved the death of two Shepards. However, it is most likely the future version of them. But, I have never seen such hatred in the eyes of a child when they look at Grimleal mages. That is hatred towards humans." Sophia said and the girl stared at her with a blank look.
"I hate humans."
The girl growled and Sophia just listened to her speak.
"I'm not human anymore. I used to be but the Grimleal cast some sort of curse on me. It caused the death of Nowi and Derrick. My memories of my parents and family are gone except my friends and the Shepherds." The girl gritted her teeth and Sophia noticed the scales on her cheeks, "The war kept getting worse and worse. I hated it. Seeing not just Risen but my people turn against each other. Many even betrayed Ylisse and joined Grima just so their lives were spared. My own "friends'' didn't recognize me after this damn curse and nearly killed me. I hate them. I thought I could trust them but they couldn't even recognize me in the accursed dragon form I was in?!" The girl slammed her fist to the ground.
The girl turned to her with a concerned looked.
"I don't know what to do. You found me here in the Valley of Flames because you have a mission the Khans assigned to you. I shouldn't even be talking to you because Lucina ordered it but I don't give a damn." The girl said and Sophia sighed.
"Do you hate me?" Sophia muttered.
The 12-year-old blinked.
"No. Why would I hate you? You did everything you could to protect us back then. They didn't appreciate it. It's faint but I know you're my mother. I don't know who my father is though." And Sophia felt she was punched in the gut.
"What?! Mother?!" The girl nodded.
"Yup!" The girl smiled, showing her fangs, "I know it's hard to believe but I'm serious! You're my mom! And I'm saying it because even though I'm cursed, I can tell that you have the same scent as me!" She walked up to her, "I don't care what Lucina says, I want to stay with you!"
Sophia felt she needed to take a moment. As much as she didn't want to believe it wasn't true, the unknown girl looked almost like a miniature version of herself. The hair, the eyes, and skin color. She took a deep breath and breathed out, running her fingers through her hair. She turned to look back at her, looking her up and down, then spoke.
"What's your name?" She whispered.
The girl jumped excitedly and gave a grin, one that remained her of her father.
"My name's Yune!"
"Yune?" Sophia looked at her as if she told some twisted joke, "As in, the same name as the Goddess of Chaos?"
"Yup! Not that it matters, I take pride in being a chaotic child." Yune smiled happily, "Do you believe me? That I'm your daughter?"
"...I do." Sophia was asking herself just what the hell was her future self drinking when she named her child.
"Moth-" Sophia quickly raised her hand to stop her.
"I um..." Sophia ran her fingers through her hair again, "I don't think I'm ready for you to call me mother or mama or ma. I'm still processing all this." And Yune's wings drooped.
"To think I have a daughter...A daughter!" Sophia internal screamed, " Was it a one-night stand? Maybe I got married?"
"One night stands most likely." She whispered to herself and felt judging eyes on her for some reason.
"What's a one-night stand?" Yune blinked innocently.
"I'm not answering."
[—]
"And these are Flame flowers...ugh...I hate the heat." Sophia grumbled as she poured water over the flaming flower to put it out.
Yune blinked and looked back at her.
"The heat ain't so bad," Yune said and Sophia gave her a blank face.
"Sweety, you have scales that protect you from the extreme heat. The only reason I'm here in the Valley of Flames is that I pissed off Basilio by insulting his pet, the Walrus." Sophia huffed as she picked the fruit of the flower.
"Oh, you mean that chubby flab of fat with tiny wings, giant big yellow teeth are overgrown that I want to cut off to make into a poison and tiny arms like a mouse?" Sophia had never looked at a kid so horrified.
"Do not! Ever say that in front of Basilio!" Sophia gasped and Yune just shrugged.
"Too late. I said it in front of him a few years ago and boy his reaction was priceless! Ehehehehe!" The girl cackled evilly, "But in all seriousness, the piece flab is surprisingly obedient once you teach it a lesson." She hummed.
"You didn't..."
"Oh but I did!"
"I managed to tame it. I named it Flabby." Yune snickered, "You should have seen everyone's face! Flabby was so fun to ride and especially loves playing fetch! I miss him." She sighed.
"What happened?" Sophia asked as they began to walk again.
"Grima happened." Yune growled, "Flabby was killed and I had to kill him again. Grima turns life to darkness. It was not surprising he turned Flabby to a Risen Beast. Still...it hurt killing him." She mumbled and blinked multiple times when Sophia patted her head.
"I'll do what I can to help prevent the future you live in. For everyone." Sophia smiled softly and Yune grinned back.
"By the way, did I ever tell you that I called the Walrus a sack of fatty organs in front of Basilio when they were in a war meeting?" She grinned and Sophia looked ready to pass out.
Now she understood the saying. "Whatever you do to your parents, your kids will do it worse to you."
"Dad...Grandma...Grandpa...Uncle...Iris...I'm so sorry!" Sophia yelled out and the girl looked at her confused.
" Just...don't kid. Just don't ask. I know very well why she yelled out." Einherjar sighed as he felt the pain Sophia was going through.
He had kids of his own in his homeland. So, he understands very well.
"Thankfully this the last fruit." Sophia sighed as she turned to the girl, "Ready to g-"
Yune was shaking, terrified as he raised a finger and pointed up the ceiling. Sophia felt something wet on her shoulder and saw it was a black blob of slime. Slowly, she looked up and tried not to scream. Yellow pointed teeth dripping with black drool. Giant long petals with jagged edges, two petals were a dark blue and the other two a dark red. Vine-like arms with thorns and the end of them, red and blue blades that glowed. The long stem connected to a body that looked like part of a broken tree and the roots moved like snakes, allowing it to crawl.
"Firus...Clayva." Olivia's description of the monster was nothing compared to the real thing.
It roared and lunged at them. Yune screamed and was quickly grabbed by Sophia. Sophia ran as fast as her feet made her go. Jumping over boulders, lava puddles, and such. She didn't know how long she was running but she kept dodging the blue and black flames thrown at her by the Firus Clayva.
"Nosferatu!" Sophia screamed and aimed the ice spell at the monster.
It hit it and sent it flying back, but it only seemed to anger the beast as the black and blue flames grew. Sophia kept running as fast as she could, jumping.
"Bryhildr, hold it back!" Sophia roared and the DeadLord quickly jumped out of the shadows and began fighting the beast.
"Go now!" Bryhildr roared.
The Einherjar couldn't believe what he was seeing and even more that Sophia kept doing hardcore jumps from place to place to escape. But getting away is not easy. Sophia screamed as two more appeared.
"No...Just how many are there?!" Sophia yelled as she held Yune closer to her.
Yune was a child that had no way of fighting two beasts and she could barely handle humans. Bryhildr was still fighting the other one and with these two, she was overwhelmed. She backed up into a corner and at this rate, they were going to die.
"Sniff.." she looked around, "This sent...Hallucination sulfur." She looked to Yune and then to the monsters, hissing getting closer.
She closed her eyes and quickly created a bubble, putting Yune in there.
"Mama...?" Yune looked at her with wide eyes as Sophia smiled at her softly.
"Find Olivia. She's in the village nearby. If I don't get to the village by tonight, send a search team." Sophia said as she gently patted her head.
"It's happening again..." Yune thought as a memory from the past flashed in her mind.
The vision was a blur but she remembered how her mother put her in a bubble along with someone else.
"No, Mama!" Yune wailed and the bubble closed as Sophia gave her a warm smile, "PLEASE NO!"
But it was too late. Sophia warped her out of the mountain and to the village.
"AAHHHH!"
BOOM!
Bryhildr was sent flying to a cave wall, the impact was great, creating a crater.
"Bloody monsters..." Bryhildr growled as she spits out black blood, "I knew they were known for their strength but this!"
"Bryhildr." The DeadLord turned to Sophia, "This scent, it's hallucinating sulfur. The Grimleal would use it as a drug during their experiments as well as...it was used on me."
"You..." the DeadLord whispered and Sophia nodded.
"I need to become mad, even if just for a while," Sophia muttered.
"No!"Bryhildr yelled, "You can't! It'll bring out your inner demons! I don't even know if you'll survive!"
"That's okay." Sophia walked up and raised her hands, "I trust you to knock me back to my senses." The yellow fumes began to surround her as she opened her mouth and swallowed it.
The Firus Clayva roared and the shadow that lived in the back of her mind began laughing. Sophia began to twitch and cock her head left and right. Her eyes turned to a shade of silver and a feral grin formed on her lips.
"Ufu...Ufu...hahahahaha...Hahahahaha...HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!"
"NO JULIAAAAAAAAA!"