(17 years into the past, near the town know as Southtown)
The continent of Ylisse, a great land ruled over by three different nations each one contained in a different environment than the others, and known for different reasons.
For starters up to the north there exists the northern kingdom of warriors known as Ferox. It is mostly snowing up there all year round, and is considered to have the best warriors on the entire continent. Adding to their warrior roots is the fact Ferox warriors are known for their love of sparring, and their love of mead. A golden rule of Ferox is that when it comes to diplomacy, strength spoke louder than words ever could.
To the southwest exists the desert like lands of Plegia. Unlike the other two nations Plegia is more aggressive, and has a huge amount of wealth due to their vast mineral deposits and access to the sea. Plegia is also known for their military as well, being the leaders in the study of dark magic and there wyvern riders. Out of the three nations it was the one that was the most dark and shady.
In-between those two in the southeast however was the Halidom of Ylisse. It was a country that had lush plains, trees, clear streams and was mostly spring all year round. The most important thing about Ylisse however was its love of peace. Ylisse and its people had no love of war, and did everything they could to avoid conflict. Ylisse's peaceful ways can also be credited to their current exalt Queen Emmeryn a descendant of the first exalt who saved the world from a terrible evil.
That being said Ylisse still had to maintain a military presence, which meant that an army was necessary to keep it protected from any national threats. There was however one thing that was well-known about Ylisse's forces. The younger brother of the exalt, the prince of Ylisse was the head of a vigilante group of soldiers known as The Shepherds. They were more than just a small militia, they were local heroes to the common man. Whenever there was trouble such as bandits or rouges they would be the first ones to respond. They were truly a noble group, one that was always looking for fresh talent.
Nearing the village of Southtown a lone traveler walked slowly along the path. His eyes drinking in the sight of the lush plains he was walking through on the way to Southtown. He was nineteen years of age and wore a hooded jacket unbuttoned as well as gloves over his hands. The jacket itself looked plain, but contained interesting designs along the sleeves and edges and pockets for all sorts of things. Another thing to note was that he had not only a sword sheathed and attached to his belt, but also a tome holder on his belt with a single yellow tome in it. Running a hand through his brown hair he sighed a bit at the beautiful scenery around him.
"No matter how long I travel the scenery never ceases to amaze me" he said smiling as he felt the sun's rays on him. "Hopefully the capital looks just as beautiful when I get there" he added
His name was Ryan and his destination was the capital of Ylisse, when he got there he planned to meet the prince of the realm and ask if he could join the Shepherds. Of course, he knew it wouldn't be that simple. He would mostly likely have to prove himself capable of holding his own in a fight, and even then he would probably be trained so he wouldn't get his head chopped off on his first job. Sighing a bit he started to walk again, wondering what this prince was truly like. From what he had heard along the way the prince was a very direct and committed person. He would always fight for what he believed in, and was very trusting towards people after just seeing them fight for Ylissian people. He was also apparently known to break things a lot, but Ryan just considered that random gossip, though he thought it would be funny if it was true. Well he'd find out for certain once he reached the Ylissian capital.
Taking a few more steps Ryan stomach gave off a big gurgling sound. He sighed again remembering he hadn't eaten anything since breakfast this morning, and had traveled all day. Reaching into his coat pocket he pulled out a small bag of gold. Being a traveler as he was money was hard to come by, the small amount he had was from taking odd jobs here or there.
"Not much left… probably enough for one meal" he said to himself putting the bag back into his coat pocket. If only he was good at hunting he wouldn't be in this predicament when it came to food, but considering what he was already capable of doing he shouldn't be complaining. After all how many people were capable of swordplay as well as sorcery. Plus if that wasn't enough Ryan had spent a good deal of time learning about tactics, something of which he found himself very good at surprisingly. Adding this with the fact he could use two weapon types he felt he had a pretty good shot at becoming a Shepard. Once he did at least he wouldn't need to worry about food and bedding every day of his life. That wasn't the only reason for wanting to join however, the main reason was because he wanted to finally plant his roots somewhere, make friends, and if possible find love too.
Ryan gave a soft smile as he stopped to take a break, sitting down in some grass. As he looked up into the blue sky he thought about his life as a whole. For as long as he could remember he had always traveled the world, never staying in one place for very long. The only person he really got to know was his mother, who raised him by herself. Closing his eyes he pictured her down to the last few details in his mind, since he didn't have a picture of her. That long brown hair that always flowed gracefully in the wind, her green eyes which were always filled with love; she truly was a beautiful women. She was also a gentle soul, always being kind to others, and helping those in need. She always made friends quickly in their travels despite leaving them a short while later.
A rose however does have thorns, and she had been no exception, she looked weak but when provoked she could knock someone's lights out easily. That alone was why he never tried to make his mother mad, especially after seeing her leave a thug on the ground with a broken nose once. As if that wasn't enough she also had some skill with a sword, not the best there was, but good enough to fend off bandits that threatened them. It was her that drilled the art of the sword into him at the age of eight. Even now he still couldn't believe how much of a Spartan she had been during there practices.
That being said Ryan could always see something about his mother that baffled him. As he grew older she always carried fear in her eyes whenever she looked at him. The first time he had seen that was when he started to practice magic. He had one day met a traveling mage at a market that handed him a tome, saying something about seeing a potential for magic inside him. When Ryan had brought it home and started to practice it he began to notice his mother's eyes changing a bit. The love was still there, but fear had started to mix into it whenever he picked it up. Yet every time he asked she always said there was nothing wrong, changing the subject however she could.
Opening his eyes Ryan stared at his right hand for a bit before taking off the glove, revealing a strange purple symbol on back of his hand. It hadn't always been there, it just one day suddenly appeared on his tenth birthday. It was definitely a strange mark, clearly not a birthmark. It was shaped like six eyes woven together that stared back at him all the time. It looked evil and it always had made him uncomfortable.
The day it appeared Ryan remembered his mother looking devastated. She literally threw her hands around him and held him tightly to her body. From there she had started to cry softly, as if her fears were becoming stronger. Ryan had asked, but like before his mother would never tell him, even going so far as to give him the silent treatment to avoid the question.
Then when he was fourteen during winter his mother suddenly got ill. A virus, a passing cold, no one knew, but it soon turned serious. Ryan tried to help her anyway he could, but nothing proved effective. Eventually his mother passed away, but on her deathbed she gave him the same loving smile she always did, and asked him to make her a promise.
"Promise me…. promise me you will never… show that mark…. to anyone… grow old… have a family… and be happy… okay?"
He had promised her blushing a bit at the family part. Ever since her death he had always been on the move like they always did before. Making sure never to let people see the mark anywhere he went. Yet despite his promise he still never got to learn what the mark meant, she had taken that to the grave with her. Among other secrets like who his father was as she never talked about him in the slightest. Still he never held it against her, always believing she had a good reason never to tell him despite his curiosity.
"Mother… what was it about this mark that scared you so much…?" he asked himself out loud.
His thoughts were quickly stopped when he felt a sudden chill shoot through his body. It was as if a monster had set its sights on him, and was getting ready to pounce. Getting to his feet quickly he put a hand on his sword his eyes darted around, searching for the source of this feeling. Looking all around him he could see nothing around him, but the feeling would not subside.
"I've found you" a voice suddenly spoke out to him, yet he couldn't tell which direction it had come from. Looking around, his grip tightening on his sword he started to sweat a bit, this voice filling him with an unknown fear.
"Whose there… what do you want?!" Ryan asked out loud, not sure who he was speaking too.
"Heh heh heh" the voice laughed a bit at him "You wish to know who I am… you will know soon enough, all you need to know is that I'm your god" the voice said to him "And you are to serve an important purpose" it added.
"Purpose?" Ryan questioned, wondering if he was suddenly going crazy "What purpose, and what do you mean by 'my god'?" he questioned.
"...to bring about the end of the world" the voice said to him its voice dripping with evil intent.
Ryan turned wide-eyed at that, unsure what to think now. Here he was talking to a disembodied voice in the middle of a plain, and to add to that it was telling him he was supposed to end the world. The very idea was nuts and Ryan wasn't buying it.
"I don't know who are you, but you must be crazy if you think I'm going to end the world" Ryan spat regaining some of his calm.
"You know nothing about yourself, the mark on your hand is proof of your birthright and your destiny, the very reason you exist is to become one with me, and help me end the world of mortals" the voice spoke again, clearly showing annoyance with having to explain this to him.
Ryan looked back at the mark on his hand then looked around again, still trying to find the one who was talking to him.
"Are you telling me you know about this mark on my hand?" he questioned his voice getting angrier. "What does it mean, and what does it got to do with you?!" he said backing up a bit planning to get away from whatever this thing was.
The voice didn't reply for a minute but before Ryan could even think of bolting it spoke again "I think that's enough talk, after all we will have much to do once we become one, but don't worry, your questions will be answered, and your suffering will be short".
Ryan not liking the way that sounded immediately turned around to run, but the minute he did he almost jumped out of his socks. Behind him was a hooded figure wearing the same coat he did, with piercing red eyes staring at him from under his cowl. Seeing those eyes made Ryan become paralyzed with fear, and left him unable to move or think. Seeing his chance the hooded figure immediately grabbed him by the throat, lifting him of the ground as he straggled him, leaving him barely able to breathe.
Ryan struggled to get free his legs kicking at the hooded man, his arms grabbing the one around his neck. Despite his efforts he couldn't break his grip, his assailant's strength unnaturally strong.
With this the hooded man laughed demonically. Red eyes glowing brighter than before he pressed his other hand to where Ryan's heart was as he held Ryan in the air. Muttering some words, which Ryan guessed were incantations the hooded man pulled his hand away before slamming it into his chest a purple pulse of energy shooting through Ryan's body.
For a minute nothing happened, but suddenly Ryan's vision faded to black and he left out a scream as his body started to convulse, purple sparks of energy shooting out across his body. Inside his head millions of images appeared and then disappeared in rapid session, each one beating into his mind like a hammer. His whole body was wracked in pain as he tried to make out the images, but they were cycling so fast that it was impossible. Then suddenly as fast as it all happened everything faded and all he could see and feel was black.
The hooded figure noticed Ryan had gone limp, letting him go he watched as Ryan fell on his back not moving.
"I see… it appears the heart wasn't strong enough yet" he said grunting in anger over his failure.
"I think I heard it over this hill" a voice suddenly shouted out turning the hooded man's attention to the nearby hill. Someone was coming and he knew who it was.
"It's time for us to part" he said looking at the unconscious Ryan on the ground "It looks like you get to run free a bit longer, enjoy it why'll you still can, because soon, you will be mine" he said. Taking a few steps away from him he slowly disappeared in a flash of magic. Leaving no trace of his presences just as someone came over the hill, the person in question was a young girl. She was short possessing blond hair wrapped into two pony tails. She wore a yellow and white dress, and carried a staff in her hand as she looked around. Soon enough her gaze fell on the brown-haired boy laying on the ground. Letting off a gasp she turned back towards the hill.
"Hey Chrom, Frederick, get over here quick, there's someone on the ground over here, hurry!" she shouted before hurrying down towards him. A few seconds later two more individuals made their way up. The first one was a man on a horse, sporting blue and white armor. His hair was brown and he carried a stern look on his face. The second one was a younger man, sporting blue hair and a black vest like shirt, his left shoulder covered by a white armor shoulder pad, with a white cape flowing in the breeze. At his waist was a belt with a sheathed sword attached to it. Interesting enough his right arm was void of any armor, revealing a strange mark on his shoulder like Ryan's but colored by darker skin, and not a sickly purple. The minute they both saw the man the girl was talking about they rushed down with the brown-haired man getting off his horse when they got close.
"Is he alright Lissa?" The blue haired youth asked a concerned tone in his voice.
"I... think so, there's not a scratch on him" the girl, known as Lissa said as the blue and white armored man went over to Ryan, checking his pulse the man nodded to his companions.
"It's alright milord, he's just unconscious" he said to the blue haired man, stepping back a bit as the blue haired man took a closer look at the unconscious boy along with Lissa.
"Well it's good to know he's okay at least" The blue haired youth said "But I wonder what happened to him?" he pondered seeing no signs of a fight or struggle.
Lissa then turned to look at him "Chrom, we have to do something" she said neither unaware that Ryan was coming too.
"What do you propose we do?" the blue haired one named Chrom asked.
"I… I don't know" Lissa replied, it was at this point Ryan finally opened his eyes completely. Chrom and Lissa quickly noticed, smiling to him softly seeing him awake as Ryan stared at them both with a dumbfounded expression.
"I see your awake now" Chrom said.
"Hey there" Lissa added watching as Ryan's eyes darted back and forth between them. They could both see he was nervous, suddenly finding youself being stared at by people you didn't know would do that.
Wanting to try and put his concerns to rest Chrom spoke up again "There are better places to take a nap then on the ground you know, give me your hand" he said with a smile, offering him a hand.
Ryan looked at it for a few seconds, but then gave a light smile and took it. With a quick jerk Ryan was back on his feet staring at the man in front of him, having no idea that this would be the beginning of a long journey for both of them.
And with that the premonition is done. Hope everyone's enjoying this so far.
Now we can really start the story and stop hiding character names :D