Attack on Fire Emblem – Chapter 1 (Final flight of Finn)
"Why are we scouting this area?" Peri questioned Ephraim. "I just want to kill stuff."
The calm royal prince of Renais did not answer her. It was not he disliked the blue-haired violent cavalry woman, but it was more because he did not know if she was joking or serious. Peri was insistent though.
"I want to pierce! I want to eviscerate! I want to rupture! I want to impale!"
Squad leader Finn noted that she had spelled out the letters for her name. Half-annoyed, he explained to Peri that they were on Commander Anna's orders to scout for remaining Muspell or Emblian soldiers. Their recent invasion had brought the Kingdoms of Nifl to its knees. Only the intervention of Askr and the Order of Heroes saved Nifl from complete destruction.
Thus, Finn's cavalry squad of Ephraim, Peri and Clive was assigned to the south border to check on enemy presence. Latest reports indicated that Muspell was in the middle of a succession crisis and the Emblian Empire was busy rebuilding, but it was always better to be careful.
Finn knew why he was appointed the leader of this contingent. He was a no-nonsense career soldier and was the most military-savvy. Despite being of blue-blood and talented, Prince Ephraim was over-confident in his leadership abilities and was not open to feedback. Peri was a sociopath. Clive was another career soldier, but was too rigid in commanding. Thus Finn was seen as the most capable of the four to lead a scouting platoon of 30 light horsemen.
Arriving at a forest at the South Border, Peri gripped her spear tightly. While not the sanest, Peri's instincts were often accurate. Finn told his soldiers to draw their weapons. Something was amiss.
The trees appeared to have been moved. There were splintered barked, uprooted trees and crushed trunks. What type of creature could have made these?
"It looks like a stone-born trampled though here," Peri mused. Her companions stared at her blankly; not knowing if she was joking.
Peri explained that in her hometown, there were giant stone creatures called the stone-born. While they were immobile, they could toss boulders with deadly precision.
Clive and Ephraim dismissed her claims as insane, but Finn waved for them to be quiet. The beings that vandalised the forest might not be the stone-born Peri was used to, but they were definitely huge. Engaging such giants in a tight formation was suicidal. Quickly dividing his platoon into 7-8 men, Finn ordered them to fan out to look for giants.
Finn waited at the gathering point with a little nervousness. Peri, Ephraim and Clive were veterans, but they had expected to fight a few raiding parties, consisting of humans or beastmen. If they encountered a superior force, they were to retreat to the nearest outpost and send a messenger to headquarters. Yet he had no idea what he was facing, except that it or they were big.
His worst fears was confirmed when a roar to the east shook the earth he was on. Clive was in danger! Finn quickly barked new orders to the Askr cavalry to follow him as he led them to support Clive.
As he approached the sound, several giant hands reached out and grabbed several of his men. Finn barely avoided a fist and fell off his cavalry. What was that?
"Save me! Ahhh!" Finn looked up in horror as he saw his captured men being eaten alive by giant humanoid creatures. The cries were silenced. Severed limbs dropped to the ground. Blood dripped onto the head of the squad leader. He did not anticipate this situation, and knew he had to issue new orders. Clive had to rescue himself.
Drawing his horn, he blew an order to retreat to the plains outside the forest. He prayed that all his men had heard it. Dodging yet another giant fist, Finn retreated with two of his remaining soldiers into the plains.
Peri's and Ephraim's teams were already waiting for them.
"Where is Clive?" Ephraim asked in shocked as he saw the blood-soaked soldiers. Finn could not speak as he pointed behind him. Huge dust cloud engulfed the retreat, but their foes were unmistakeably bigger.
Considering his options and orders, Finn knew that protocol dictated that a full retreat. Yet Finn wanted to rescue Clive from his attackers. This hesitation would be costly. In his rashness, Ephraim issued his own orders, leading a cavalry charge against their new enemies. Finn's warnings fell on deaf ears.
Are they human, Ephraim thought as he readied his javelin and neared the giants. They looked human, except that they were missing their reproductive organs. He quickly dismissed his thoughts as he tossed his weapon at the nearest giant. Numerous spears from his men followed through his attack. The creature did not even flinch, but responded with a back hand that caught two of the supporting cavalry men.
"Go for the ankles!" Ephraim yelled, undeterred. He slashed the ankles of one of the giants and it toppled over. Peri gleefully followed up with a deep stab to the head. Ephraim and Peri then followed suit with the next two giants.
Before they could continue their assault, the initial giant recovered. With a swift kick, it launched Peri straight across the battlefield. This time, Ephraim pulled to safe distance to examine his situation. All of his attacks had failed. His men were all dead. Some of them were being eaten?
The shock of screaming men being devoured or chewed alive by the giants rooted Ephraim to the spot. The young prince's mind could not compute what was happening. There was neither honour nor glory to be found in this battle.
"Prince Ephraim!" Finn shouted, waking Ephraim to his senses. Finn was carrying Peri's mangled body on his lap. Peri was breathing, but barely. Blood was leaking profusely from her nose, and her right limbs were twisted beyond the norm.
Already more giants were emerging out of the forest, and approaching quickly. Only Finn, Ephraim and two more horsemen were combat effective. Taking a deep breath, Finn knew what to do.
Placing Peri on Ephraim's horse, Finn ordered Ephraim to retreat to the Southern outpost and warn the others. Finn and the remaining Askr cavalry would cover their retreat. Ephraim was royalty and his safety was prioritised.
Despite wanting to protest, Ephraim did not argue and rode away. He did not even look back as Finn's screams pierce the sky.
Author's remarks
Despite being competent cavalry units, Finn and his comrades were outmatched by the Titans. I prioritised capturing the feel of dread from Attack on Titans, over the heroic fan service of Fire Emblem Heroes.