Edelgard did not cry as she felt her body tossed to the dirt-covered floor. She did not cry as the impact sent stabbing, white-hot pain up and down the length of her small body. She didn't so much as whimper as the position she was laying in tugged at her freshly made wounds.
As she lied on the floor of her cell, her listless, dull eyes gazing up at the shadowy ceiling above her, she could not move an inch. Even if this position rubbed against the incision marks on her back, she could not move even if she wanted to. The 'anesthetic' they had given her to keep her from thrashing during the procedures made it impossible to do anything. All she could do was stare upwards as her body remembered how to breathe.
She heard the iron bars of her cell slam shut. Edelgard could not turn her head to the sound, but out of the corner of her eyes she could see the last source of light, a torch, bob further and further away. She wanted to cry out, beg for the light to just stay a moment longer, but she could not.
She was paralyzed.
When her purple eyes returned to the ceiling trapping her in, the little girl was not sad. She wasn't even disappointed. This was expected.
When a child is kicked so many times, poked and prodded like a pincushion day in and day out, there comes a breaking point.
A point where they stop trying. Stop hoping for something better. Stop believing that this torture might one day end. There comes a point where they are not hurt or surprised when the pain continues, as that is what life is for them. When any living being, human or animal, is kicked so many times, they begin to expect the boot.
There comes a point where they are broken into so many pieces, there is no hope to put them back together again.
There comes a point where they have been defeated.
Children are supposed to be these young beings with such hope and promise. A growing bud with days and days of life left to lead. Like a freshly planted tree, they are meant to grow and grow until they reach the skies above.
For Edelgard, she stopped praying for such things.
She no longer prayed to see the sky again.
She no longer prayed for someone to save her. That hope was gone after her third sibling succumbed to their wounds. After the fourth, she began to realize she would likely die in this place.
In this dark room, where no light or hope could flicker, alone on the unforgiving dirt floor that she called her bed, Edelgard prayed for one thing and one thing only. As she was the only one left, there was no longer any reason to be strong. As the only one left, there was no longer a reason to continue.
"Please…"
The child called out to whoever might be listening. She could not speak, as her lips and tongue and throat would not obey her brain's commands, so she reached out within her mind, hoping that a goddess might hear her pleas.
If not a goddess, then at least a reaper.
A demon.
Anything.
"Please, let it end."
Edelgard felt tears well in her eyes as she stared up at the darkness. They weren't tears of sorrow, grief, or pity for the situation she found herself in.
"Just let me die."
Those tears stopped flowing long ago.
"Please-"
Her eyes were only watering now because her lids would not blink. Nothing more.
"Kill me."
A rat scurried closer to her. Its whiskers brushed against the ground as it inched closer, giving Edelgard's lifeless fingers a few cursory sniffs.
There had been a time where the rats that inhabited this cell with her were only friends. But, like all things, the rats turned on her as well. Even they had turned on her.
And now, like all things, she was terrified of them.
When Edelgard's hand didn't move to shoo it away, the rat began to nibble at her flesh.
Edelgard tried to scream as she felt the small animal bite at her finger, but she could not. Like all things, her body had betrayed her. Like all things, it had left her.
The rat, completely unaware to the frightened girl's mind frantically screaming at it for leave, continued to feast on her small finger.
As the small child watched the rodent get its fill, powerless to even stop the lowliest of vermin, she prayed once more for death.
Death, being the end of all things, was the only hope Edelgard had.
Death… was all she had left.
That had been the last prayer Edelgard had ever made to the goddess; the prayer of a broken child begging for the end to come.
She no longer wished for such things. She no longer aspired to die or had visions of the end. Though she had been broken time and time again, stripped of all the things she ever truly loved, Edelgard now found herself with hope for what the future might hold instead of dread for where it might lead. No longer did she wish to die. No longer did she believe in the horrible death that awaited her at the end of a nightmare.
Instead, she wished to make it to the end of this path.
Edelgard wanted to reach the end of a dream made real.
She did not need prayers to a deaf and absent goddess to make the dream she envisioned come true. She only needed Byleth by her side. With his heart giving hers the strength to beat, Edelgard did not need such things as prayers. Together, they could achieve such heights. Together, they could reach even the stars.
Yet, there she was.
Sprawled out on the grass.
Eyes wide and filled with fear.
Watching as the darkness faded and Byleth was nowhere to be found. Watching, powerless once more, as one more light, possibly the last in her life, was snuffed out.
How could this happen? Byleth was… Byleth. He was the strongest person she knew. Together, they had stared down death countless times before. Together, they had protected one another. She had sworn to protect him; protect that flame that ignited the kindling in her chest.
How could it be that… that he was gone? How could it be that he had left her…? She wasn't ready. She wasn't ready to return to the monastery without him. She wasn't ready to go to his father's office to retrieve what he had left her. She wasn't ready, she never would be.
Byleth couldn't be gone. Her brightest light couldn't have left her.
He… he promised that-
"I will not let you die, Edelgard. As long as I breathe, you will outlive me."
Edelgard lowered her head, her vision blurry as her gloved hands tore at the grass beneath her. She had not expected that promise to be fulfilled so soon.
She had not expected that promise to be fulfilled before they even had a chance to live. Before they even had a morsel of a chance to live out any of those moments the two spoke of. From the day they found each other, the two had only known bloodshed and death, nothing else. Each month had been plagued with fighting, with another decade at the least looming over them before they could finally achieve that peace.
If Edelgard had known the last time she saw Byleth would have been the last time, she would have told him then and there how much she loved him. How her heart ached when he was not there. About how often she found herself thinking of him when the day became night.
If she knew the last time she embraced him would have been the last time, she never would have let go.
If she knew the last time she held his hand in hers would have been the last…
While it was not a goddess she prayed to, she found herself praying all the same.
Praying that what she had just witnessed was not true. Praying that her eyes were deceiving her. Praying that she would wake from this nightmare to find Byleth standing over her, warding off the darkness. Praying that once more, she could feel his hand in hers.
Praying that she would get one more chance to tell him all of these things. To do all of these things.
"Byleth…" She whispered the name of her love, but no response came.
Just as it was before, there were no answers to her prayers.
There was only the rain. The downpour of rain that weighed her down, pushing her back into the muddy grass she lied in. The pounding of the rain was all she heard. Though she was no longer trapped beneath the earth, with nowhere to look but the darkness that encompassed her, it certainly felt that way. The clouds above were no different than that shadowy ceiling she had looked at years ago. The rain that surrounded her was no different than the walls of a prison.
The darkness around her, devoid of all light and hope, was the exact same as it was years ago. It caged her in, shut her out. Like before, it imprisoned her. Just as before, it threatened to suffocate her.
Once again, she found herself in a nightmare.
That was her answer.
"Lady Edelgard!"
She felt a pair of hands grab her and lift her off the ground. She felt a pair of anxious eyes examine her face. Felt a handkerchief wipe away a streak of mud that stained her cheek.
"Lady Edelgard, are you alright?" Hubert asked worriedly; a rare showing of emotion from the man that seemed to always have them in check.
When she did not answer, biting her bottom lip as she averted her gaze, the taller man began to look around the clearing for his answer.
By now, the rest of the Eagles with Alois and Shamir in tow had arrived.
In this moment, they were the very last people she wanted to see.
"Where's the professor?" Hubert asked with a frown as he noticed Solon.
Edelgard closed her watering eyes. A single tear broke free, lost in the rain.
"Edelgard," Lysithea murmured her name. "What happened?"
"Where's Professor Byleth?" Ferdinand repeated. "Could it be he ran off ahead?"
"Edie?" Dorothea mumbled.
She knew she had to answer. She knew it. They deserved an answer. They deserved to know where Byleth had gone; he was not hers alone. They all loved him just as she. He was their professor, their friend, just as much as he was hers.
But the very idea of informing her classmates that their professor was…
Edelgard could not bring herself to do it. She was strong; impossibly so. What she had gone through in a mere eighteen years most people didn't experience in a single lifetime.
But she just couldn't bear to admit that one more person had been lost.
The Eagles were smart. Alois and Shamir were as well.
So, when Edelgard did not reply, her silence spoke volumes. When her tears became easier to discern from the rain, it was the only answer they needed. It was the answer they wanted to hear the least of all, she was sure.
"That… can't be," Bernadetta whispered. "He can't be…"
Hubert sighed and lowered his head. Shamir frowned and turned away, a hand clutching her arm. Alois's eyes were wide, his lips mumbling denials and lamenting his failure in protecting him. Petra and Lysithea's faces both paled, both on the verge of tears. Meanwhile, Bernadetta and Dorothea weren't as adept at keeping their emotions at bay. Both were beginning to cry. Flayn as well. A pair of shaking hands covered her parted mouth.
Felix's hard eyes were trained at the ground. The hand that was gripping his blade was trembling. Linhardt was silent, his furrowed brow pointed towards the structure before them. Ferdinand had a hand placed to his mouth as well, his distant eyes staring at nothing in particular.
"I don't believe it." Caspar shook his head. "Professor Byleth is the strongest guy I know! There's no way that… No way that he could…"
The boy bowed his head, his shut lips twisting into a grimace. His fists coiled at his sides.
"Lady Edelgard," Hubert spoke, pulling her back from the depths she found herself in.
Edelgard lifted her head, meeting his eyes. They were once bright and brimming with intelligence, but now, they looked painfully dull.
"What are your orders?"
Edelgard blinked, only now realizing that she still had a duty to lead these people before her. She only now remembered the duty that Byleth had entrusted her with should he be gone.
Only now did she realize they still had a mission to complete.
How could he have expected such a thing from her? How could he have relied on her strength, knowing full well how weak she truly would be? How could he believe that she'd still be able to fight and lead them without him here? How could he…
Edelgard's eyes drifted across the clearing, eventually landing on Solon.
With the spell ended, he was now standing in the middle of the platform once more. Kronya was nowhere to be found.
As Edelgard's gaze took in Solon's form, life came flooding back into her cold limbs. Emotion bloomed in her broken mind. Her glass heart began beating once again.
"You…"
The emperor picked her axe off the ground. A hand that held her weapon in a death-grip as she leered at the perpetrator of Byleth's demise and her unimaginable pain.
"What have you done?!"
Solon, who had been staring up at the dark clouds above, turned his head towards Edelgard.
"Rid the Fell Star of this world," Solon answered simply, as though it was obvious. His blank expression morphed into a crooked smile as he continued. "Swallowed by the mystical darkness of the Forbidden Spell of Zahras, the Fell Star will be forced to wander an eternity in a void of nothingness, never to return to this world."
"What?!" Dorothea gasped, her eyes widening. "Swallowed by darkness?"
"That's what happened?" Lysithea muttered in disbelief. "How…?"
The arms holding her axe began to shake with rage as she stared madly at Solon, the words of her friends lost to her.
Byleth, who had brought so much light to her life, would be forced to an eternity of darkness? He would… never return?
"It is possible that death has yet to find your friend, but there are worse things than death. Drifting through the darkness with no chance of escape… Overwhelmed with hopelessness… It must be torturous," Solon sighed. "And to think, we almost had the Sword of the Creator…"
Overwhelmed with hopelessness… Byleth, of all people, did not deserve such a fate. The man that brought so much happiness to her life did not deserve such a fate. The man that she loved so dearly…
"That's all this guy cares about? A stupid sword?" Caspar growled. "Shut up! What do you know?! Our professor is alive, I know it!"
"That's right! Our professor is no ordinary human!" Flayn agreed.
Maybe… Maybe they were right… Even now, they still believed in him… Maybe… Maybe there was a chance that…
Edelgard raised her trembling arm, pointing her axe to where Solon stood. Regardless, she could not wait that long to find out if Byleth might yet return.
"Undo it. Now."
Solon tilted his head to the side, raising a brow in question.
"Even if I wanted to, there is nothing in this world that could undo the darkness of Zahras. Your professor is gone, Emperor."
"You're wrong!" Edelgard fired back.
"I am not. Even the Fell Star cannot escape the endless abyss." Solon shook his head, pausing as he looked the emperor up and down. "You should be rejoicing. You all should. A creature as dangerous as that should not be left alive."
"You would dare speak about our beloved professor in such a manner?!" Ferdinand shouted, his nostrils flared as his lips curved into a frown.
Edelgard's first instinct was to scream. To shout. To yell. To curse his very name for saying such a thing. 'Rejoicing?' In what world would she ever rejoice over losing something that meant more to her than her own life? In what world would she ever rejoice over a man's future that was cut way too short? In what world would she ever rejoice over their combined future cut too short? Solon and his ilk were irredeemable. Time and time again, they demonstrated new ways in which they were not worthy of the lives they held. To think he would even entertain the notion of 'rejoicing' over losing something so precious…
"You will regret ever uttering such a thing in my presence."
Edelgard had always been adept at donning masks, carefully constructed façades to keep intruders out. For years, they served their purpose in protecting her. They shielded her from the pain that came from human relationships. Those masks and fake expressions let no one in and pushed them far away from her blackened heart.
Yet, beneath the eerily calm expression she was making was a raging storm of emotions. One wouldn't be able to discern that by simply looking at her face, but if they peered long enough into her eyes, they might see the fires that burned so fiercely. They too might find themselves burned by the flames of a woman who had lost something very dear to her.
Today, she was not an emperor. It was not a leader's pragmatic, rational mind that decided her actions.
Today, it was Edelgard's fractured heart that guided her hands.
"Time and time again, you have sought to harm my professor."
Edelgard began to walk forward. Her pace was quick, and fraught with purpose.
"Time and time again, you have sought to harm my friend."
She needed nothing else but her own two hands to end this man's existence.
"You will pay for your treason with your life."
Edelgard stopped when she was but a few feet away.
"I will claim every drop of blood that flows through your veins. I will break every bone in that twisted body. I will rip you limb from limb until you have repaid the life you took."
Though she could feel a wetness streak down her face that was hotter than that of the rain, Edelgard's vision had never been clearer.
"But I warn you now; nothing you have to offer could ever make up for what you stole from me."
"You would dare raise a blade to me?" Solon frowned. "I will not forgive such arrogance."
"It is not your forgiveness that I seek."
As she readied her axe, pillars of purple formed around her. One by one, man and beast alike materialized around her. In the blink of an eye, the enemy's numbers had grown considerably.
But, Edelgard did not care. She would kill them all if they got in the way of the vengeance her heart sought.
"If that is what you prefer, you shall also be added to the ranks of the dead!"
Edelgard did not flinch as the roars of the beasts filled her eardrums. She was not afraid as she felt the threatening gazes of a dozen or so enemies land squarely on her back. She was not worried that she was surrounded.
She was not privy to the fact that her allies were raising their own weapons, preparing themselves to follow her into the depths of hell should the need arise.
She did not notice the rain stopping, nor did she feel the wind begin to whip at her cape.
She was not aware that the storm was already passing. Edelgard didn't realize that the sun would shine once again- sooner than she might have known. To her, the world had been cast in shadow once more. The darkness blanketed everything she saw. The idea that the sun could shine again was lost to her.
The only thing she truly felt was the gaping hole left in her chest by his absence. The only thing she noticed was the cold in her fingers caused by the disappearance of his hands. The only thing that mattered to her was the vacant spot at her side.
The only thing she saw was the thing before her that caused it all.
In this moment, the only thing she truly desired was Byleth.
…And the life of the twisted creature that had taken him away.
As Edelgard ran forward to meet her enemy, she did not see the first ray of heavenly light pierce the veil of darkness that hovered above.
His body was light; as though it was floating in air. Suspended by wings that he could not see.
As the light encased his body, Byleth closed his blue eyes. Tears fell from his eyelashes, glistening in the radiant gold that surrounded him. It was though those small droplets transformed into light themselves.
Byleth had never felt power quite like this. Though he had always been linked to the progenitor god, it was only now that he felt the brunt of the power she held. The blood that coursed through his veins, pumped through his body by his defective heart, was boiling. It was volcanic. It flowed to every nook and cranny, down his limbs and his appendages, spreading that incredible heat everywhere it went.
His mind had never raced like this. As though a dam had been lifted, millions upon millions of images flashed through his mind. They moved at such high speeds, whenever Byleth focused on one, another took its place. It was impossible to keep up or keep track of all he saw, and even if he did catch a glimpse of an image, a person, or perhaps a face, it was always something Byleth didn't have recollection of. Most of what Byleth saw he did not know, nor understand, as they were not his memories. They were things a mortal had never seen, nor should see.
The Sword of the Creator had never behaved like this. The weapon, now an extension of himself, pulsated at his side. When his fingers brushed against its hilt, he could feel its unleashed energy course through his body like an electrical current.
The Ashen Demon had never felt like this. Just when he thought his body might truly turn into ash, that his existence would be swept away by the light that was radiating from his very being, it all stopped.
Everything stopped.
The orbs of light that danced around him lingered in the air.
For only a moment, they drifted in front of him like a cloud of fireflies.
But, only for a moment, before they were all sucked in.
Absorbed by his human heart, consuming what remained of Sothis.
By his arms.
By his legs.
By his mind.
By his everything.
Something took hold in his chest, but… he could not fully describe what it was. It was uncomfortable. It hurt. The best description he could give was that a hand gripped his heart and squeezed, as though some unseen force was trying to wring his heart for all its worth.
He could feel his humanity wash away as something else took its place.
No… That wasn't quite right. It wasn't that his soul was replaced by another. It wasn't that his essence was replaced by something greater than he. It was more that they were…
Bound together. Linked inseparably to one another. Two lights in the darkness that grew in size to become one.
A fusion between a human and a god.
Between a demon and an angel.
Between the light and the dark.
Between The Beginning and The End.
When Byleth opened his eyes once more, shades of green fluttered in his vision. The abyss that had swallowed him whole was no more. He no longer saw black. No longer was he surrounded by darkness or shadows. He was no longer in the realm of a god, standing before a lonely throne made of stone meant just for him.
Instead, Byleth found himself standing in a field.
A field of dandelions that went on for miles. As far as the eye could see, Byleth's vision was filled with yellows and greens.
Byleth was beneath the bluest sky he had ever seen, absent of all white clouds.
He was beneath a sun that never stopped shining.
He knew it was not real. It was likely a hallucination or a vision forced on him through Sothis's memories. They were not his own.
He knew it wasn't real. Not yet, anyway.
But, even so, he could feel the wind graze his cheeks. He could see the flowers sway in the breeze. He could feel the sun's rays warm his skin. He could hear laughter.
He heard a voice he recognized, and one he did not. The one he recognized was older now, it had matured considerably, but he still knew it all the same. He could never forget it.
The one he did not was that of a young child. He had never heard it before, and though he did not recognize it, he felt a sense of familiarity within it.
Though he could not see who those voices belonged to, he could feel them there. Somehow, Byleth realized they had always been a part of him. He knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that they would never leave him.
When Byleth closed his green eyes, the scene disappeared. His vision filled with the faces of his students. Ferdinand, Dorothea, Petra, Bernadetta, Linhardt, Caspar, Hubert, Felix, Lysithea. Flayn.
Sothis.
Jeralt.
The face of a young woman he had never met before, but in her eyes, he felt a strong sense of kinship. Of love. It was a face he had never seen before, but one he knew extremely well.
And finally, he saw Edelgard.
Tears formed beneath his closed eyelids. Breaking through the shackles and bindings that tried to keep them in place, Byleth felt his mouth move.
Byleth smiled as he felt a hand grip his.
It was familiar.
It was one he held many times before. One he loved dearly.
It moved his hand for him. With a grip light like the breeze, with a hold warm like the sun, it moved his hand to the Sword of the Creator. Her fingers closed around his as he grasped his blade.
As he drew his weapon, her hand moved with it.
Edelgard roared as her axe tore through the neck of the Demonic Beast. The beast's head, separated from the rest of its body, fell to the grassy floor with a thud.
She didn't give it a single glance as she moved to her next victim.
A hooded man with a sword held out in front of him. As if such a thing could protect him from the emperor's wrath.
Edelgard slapped the sword aside as if it were nothing but a plank of wood. There was a stinging sensation in her hand, but she didn't give it a second thought. She ignored the droplets of blood falling from her palm.
Her axe cleaved through his chest.
The man cried out as his blood spilled.
He fell to the ground.
And Edelgard moved to the next.
Another man.
This one holding a lance.
When they locked eyes, two arrows from an unseen archer embedded themselves in his body. One in the shoulder, one in the neck. Courtesy of Shamir. Maybe Petra or Bernadetta. Edelgard wasn't sure.
All she was sure of was that she must fight. Fight until there was nothing left. Fight until her enemies were dust beneath her feet.
The sounds of battle filled her ears. The clash of steel on steel. The screams of dying men. The roars of the beasts. Various small, contained battles filled her vision. She could see her friends fighting the foe out of her peripherals. She could see her friends fighting so valiantly, just as overcome with emotion as she.
But Edelgard hardly registered it. She would occasionally come to her senses to scan the battlefield, making sure that none of her classmates were in danger, before her sights returned to her original task.
In truth, most of what Edelgard saw was black. Black and red.
Most of what she heard was the agonizing silence that came with the the void that submerged her heart.
Her body, essentially on autopilot, avoided the approaching sword.
She stepped out of the way just in time to avoid the flash of silver.
Edelgard frowned as she met the eyes of the man trying to harm her. It was another hooded man in robes of black.
She was growing tired of seeing their kind.
Spinning on her back foot, Edelgard slammed the blunt end of her axe into the man's ribcage. The man's frail body received the brunt of her two Crests unleashed.
There was a crack of bone as the man was sent flying backwards.
His back collided with one of the nearby pillars, followed by another snapping sound.
The man crumpled to the ground a broken mess.
They had only been fighting for minutes, but to Edelgard, it felt like an eternity.
When? When would it all end?
And why… why was it that her fight had to claim his life?
Edelgard's mind ruminated on that terrible question as she cut down another Demonic Beast.
If Byleth never came to the monastery, if he was still a simple mercenary, he would still be alive right now. Jeralt would still be alive. If not for her, if not for her desire to make this world a more just and fairer place, ridden of the organization that shackled it, Byleth and his father would still be breathing.
If he had never met her…
The Eisner's would still be alive.
Her axe claimed another life as she lamented her influence in Byleth's.
The thought of never having that time together with him was painful; nearly as painful as his loss. She could hardly imagine what this past year would have been like if Byleth had not stepped in front of that axe so many moons ago.
But if he would still be alive… She would accept that trade. She would give all of that away if it meant Byleth could live.
Her hands ended another Demonic Beast.
It was a pointless avenue to go down. It was a hypothetical quandary.
But Edelgard was desperate. She would do nearly anything to get him back. She would give nearly anything to get him back. Byleth had once told her he would sacrifice anything for her sake… What kind of person would she be if she did not do the same?
Byleth…
"Lady Edelgard."
The princess flinched when a hand fell on her shoulder. Her first instinct was to turn and cut through whoever had approached her, but when she realized it was Hubert, she lowered her defenses. They say a mind goes into 'fight-or-flight' mode when faced with impending danger, and Edelgard's mind was still stuck in the former.
Taking a breath to compose herself, she turned to face her aide.
"What is it Hubert?" Edelgard asked, her voice raspy.
"The enemy's number is growing," he replied, stoic as usual. "It is not in my nature to suggest such a thing, but we must consider retreating for now."
Edelgard frowned, annoyed with the very notion of leaving this place before her foe was vanquished.
But, when she took a moment to look around, she could tell he was right.
The number of Demonic Beasts kept increasing. Solon's men were beginning to dwindle, but the beasts just kept coming. They were everywhere. If something didn't change soon, they would be overrun. They all would.
Edelgard gritted her teeth, the bones in her hand cracking as it gripped her axe.
Logic would dictate that they should flee. It was true they might have been able to slay this many monsters, but if they kept coming, soon they would tire out. Soon, another life would be lost.
And Byleth wasn't here to make sure that no one-
A Demonic Beast cried in pain, its claws swiping at its face as if it were trying to swat a fly.
Edelgard's eyes widened as a spear of golden light cascaded down from above, blinding the creature.
She blinked.
This time, it had to be her eyes playing tricks on her.
"What in the…" Hubert mumbled. If he had seen it to, then… "What manner of magic…?"
When Edelgard blinked again, another three rays of light had appeared. Though they were not solid, though they were truly not born from magic…
If Edelgard didn't know any better, she'd say they were impaling the very ground they stood on.
And while they did not literally pierce the beasts, the demons were fearful all the same. For creatures born in such darkness, the radiance burned their very being. Their eyes could not adjust to such powerful light. Wherever a beacon appeared, the monsters would back away. They'd cry and screech as the light washed over their eyes.
Then, thousands of them appeared.
Rows and rows of it. They crisscrossed, wove together, and intertwined. It was though a pair of unseen hands had used these spears of light to stitch a pattern onto the world's surface.
All of them rained down from above her. Light as far as the eyes could see. There was hardly a space left untouched by the glow that shimmered down on them.
Edelgard had never seen anything like it; even she was surrounded by the pillars of gold. Were she to move even an inch, it would be touching her, as well.
Struck dumb by what she was seeing, Edelgard couldn't stop herself from waving a hand through the ray closest to her.
Her gloved hand passed through it freely. It did not obstruct her passage. It did not burn, nor did it hurt.
As the light seeped through her glove, Edelgard felt… strangely at ease. As though the sun was truly shining down on her, basking her in its natural warmth. Her eyes stung as she stared directly into it, but for some reason she could not describe, Edelgard couldn't stop herself. It was as though… she was drawn to it. Like a moth to a flame, she couldn't stay away.
In such iridescence, everything stopped moving. The battles had stopped. The men and women were still, enraptured in the display, just as she was.
Everyone had frozen but the beasts, who were now roaring madly.
Then, the wind came.
Wind so strong it nearly toppled her over.
Her classmates cried out in surprise as the harsh gales whipped at their uniforms.
"What is this?!" Hubert exclaimed, hunkering down to avoid being blown aside.
Edelgard growled under her breath, jerking her head to where Solon stood off in the distance. It had to be another spell. The light she could not explain, but this wind was hardly natural. Someone had to be causing it.
"Solon, what have you-!"
The words died on her lips.
The man who had taken Byleth's life, who had caused her unimaginable pain, was stricken with fear. Even for a man as ashen as him, his skin was deathly pale. His eyes were wide as he stared at the sky. His cane was trembling as his hands shook, his lips mouthing something unintelligible.
If not he, then-
"Guys, what's going on?!" Caspar shouted, his small frame being pushed back by the wind.
"What is this light?!" Felix winced, the crook of his arm covering his eyes. Even Edelgard was having difficulty refraining from shielding herself from the brightness at this point.
"T-the sky!" Bernadetta yelled. "L-look!"
Edelgard turned her own gaze to what Bernie was pointing at.
"What…?" The princess breathed.
Even someone as articulated as she had no words to describe the sight that awaited her.
The storm clouds that had once hung overhead were moving.
Moving in ways that were unnatural.
Moving in ways they shouldn't.
They sped across the sky, moving at speeds that clouds should not be able to achieve. They flew as fast as the birds. No. They outpaced them. The clouds were being ripped off the sky as if it were nothing but a fluffy blanket.
And, with those clouds gone, Edelgard now realized that it was the sky that was the source of the beautiful lights.
Whenever the moving clouds freed up a space for the blue sky to break through, a ray of light took its place. With each passing second, the spears of gold grew and grew as the clouds moved.
Given the time of day, the sun should be setting. Edelgard may have lost track of time, but even she was aware that there was no way in which the sun would be shining so brightly in the evening.
How could this be? Edelgard didn't have an explanation for this. There was no spell in the world that could conjure such a thing…
Her eyes began to water as she stared directly into the light. It hurt. She knew she should look away, or at the very least, close her eyes to protect them, but she found that she could not. Her body wasn't listening to her.
Edelgard was rooted in place, frozen as she stared up at the heavens revealed.
Because that was the only term apt enough to describe the sight she was seeing.
What remained of the white clouds evaporated into a mist of vapor. Evaporated. Never had Edelgard seen a cloud deteriorate in front of her very eyes. She didn't think such things were possible. It was though they imploded from the inside-out.
As the clouds vanished, the thousands of rays all became one. A light brighter than she had ever seen. Edelgard had never witnessed something so brilliant. When she closed her eyes, the afterimages of the view she witnessed still played out across the backs of her eyelids.
A light, brighter than the sun itself, tore through the sky. The Demonic Beasts were not roaring anymore. They were shrieking. Screaming.
The clouds that once hung overhead, imprisoning Edelgard in a familiar world of darkness, were shattered by a final blast of pure white. This time, Edelgard instinctively had to cover her eyes.
And then-
It faded.
Slowly, the light began to fade away.
The whites, golds, and yellows disappeared.
As a red glow took its place.
"Impossible!" Solon screamed.
As Edelgard lowered the hand that was shielding her eyes, her breath stopped. Her heart stopped beating. Her body stopped aching. Everything just seemed to… stop.
For that moment in time, everything stopped as she realized its true source.
The source of the red light that was a sword.
A sword that Edelgard had seen countless times, but only now did she find the salvation she sought in it.
A sword that tore through the heavens. The very same heavens that had left her and her family to rot so many years ago.
The hole in the sky grew as the Sword of the Creator cut through it like silk. As the tear grew larger, that red light shone brighter, and the world around her grew dimmer.
It was nearly impossible to see anything through that crimson, but Edelgard saw a flash of green and black as something fell down to the earth.
She watched the object collide with the ground. Though it had fallen a great distance, there was barely a sound. There was no evidence of its impact. No plume of dust or dirt. If she hadn't seen it with her very eyes, Edelgard would have never known that a man had stepped through that red portal.
As though a pair of wings had slowed his fall, his feet tapped against the ground. Edelgard saw shades of green as he straightened his head and the red light faded.
Caspar ground his fists into his eyes, blinking dumbly at the sight that awaited them.
"Is that-?" Flayn gasped.
"Professor?!" Dorothea cried out. Even the songstress, who had seen much of the world, looked to be in disbelief by the sight she was seeing.
Somewhere in the distance, Solon fell to his knees. She could slightly hear him mumble something about the 'Fell Star consuming even the darkness itself,' but his ramblings were the last thing on Edelgard's mind.
She was far too entranced in the sight of the man that had returned to her.
Byleth lifted his head, his green hair fluttering in the breeze as he looked to where his students were huddled.
The sudden change in hair color was confusing, but it was hardly the first thing that caught her attention.
It was his eyes.
His pale green eyes.
Green eyes that were no different than hers.
They were distant, as though they were looking at things that weren't truly there. They were distant, lost in the clouds he had descended from.
Edelgard tensed, her posture going rigid as she stared at that terribly familiar green.
Those were not the eyes that she remembered. Those were not the eyes that reminded her of the blue sky above. Instead of igniting the kindling of her heart or setting her mind at ease, they filled her with anxiety.
She had always loathed those green eyes. Green eyes that seemed to pick apart her every defense. Green eyes that left her feeling insecure. Green eyes that were nothing like Byleth's.
Fear gripped her motionless heart as she realized she did not recognize this man- not fully, anyway. Dread forced itself onto her senses as she realized he now looked just like the archbishop. The very creature Edelgard sought to-
When Byleth met her eyes, he smiled.
The same smile she had seen the night of the ball. The same smile she had seen as she held him in the Goddess Tower.
The very same smile she had seen from Byleth when they confessed their love for one another. A smile that she had always associated with a face that others would describe as 'lifeless' or 'apathetic.' A smile that only she was allowed to see.
"Byleth…" Edelgard's lips murmured his name.
Her heart started beating once again. The ramming against her rib-cage was thunderous.
The fear that gripped her chest, the doubt that plagued her mind, all of it was washed away in the light of that one, simple expression. The relief she felt was almost insurmountable. Edelgard's knees nearly gave out as that feeling crashed against her frame like the ocean's waves. The love she held to so closely blossomed in her chest once again. It encompassed her entire being.
He… might look different. His hair and his eyes might not be the same shade of blue that she had loved before. That green might be the same as Rhea's, but…
It was Byleth.
It was her Byleth.
And it was in that smile that Edelgard had found him once again.
Just as he had promised, he had returned to her.
When Byleth turned his head to the frightened Demonic Beasts that surrounded him, the look faded, though it never disappeared from her mind. Those distant eyes grew hard as they became rooted in reality. Minus the color change, the look she saw from Byleth now was the very same one she had seen hundreds of times before.
The Demonic Beast closest to Byleth whimpered as it tried to back away.
When Byleth's glowing eyes locked with its, the beast froze in fear.
He lifted a hand. Twisting his palm towards the sky, Byleth raised his arm upwards.
A pool of white formed underneath not just the sole Demonic Beast, but all of them.
"Huh?" Lysithea blinked in surprise. "Wait, that's-!"
Before she could hope to complete her sentence, the spell finished
Edelgard winced, following Felix's previous example as she covered her eyes with her elbow.
Pillars of glittering light erupted from the ground, racing to the heavens above. The spell engulfed the beasts. They all cried in agony as the magic ate away at their flesh; as their eyes dissolved in the light that consumed them. The force of the blasts was so strong, Edelgard felt herself get pushed backwards. Were her feet not set, it was possible that she would have been swept away.
When Edelgard lowered her arm, the Demonic Beasts were no more. Their bodies turned to ash. They drifted away in the gentle breeze that seemed to emanate from Byleth's position.
"Since when has the professor been able to use magic like that?" Linhardt mumbled, eyes wide as he studied Byleth.
The extent of his magic prowess were simple Heal spells, and on one occasion, a Fire. She had never seen her teacher use 'faith' magic in an offensive sense, and especially not in a manner like that. Byleth excelled at swordsmanship and hand-to-hand combat. Certainly not magic.
"Not just any magic." Lysithea shook her head slowly. "That was assuredly Aura he used… But how could he have access to such a high-level spell?"
"Interesting…" Linhardt murmured, rubbing his chin.
Edelgard was not as well-versed when it came to 'faith' and 'reason' as the academy called it, but even she knew such a spell was difficult to cast. Not even Lysithea, one of the more gifted students, had breached that tier yet. How could Byleth have casted that?
…What must have happened to him to give him access to such powerful magic?
"Now is not the time to sit here and gawk," Edelgard remarked, pushing aside her own surprise. "We must assist Professor Byleth in clearing out the rest of the enemy."
"Edelgard is correct, of course." Ferdinand nodded, readying his lance. "Let us join forces with the professor once more!"
As the battle began again, most if it centered around the whirlwind of steel that had become her teacher, Edelgard was left with hundreds of questions. Questions regarding her professor and his sudden, baffling change.
Questions that would receive answers, sooner than she realized.
The ensuing battle was not much of a battle at all. The end had dawned the moment Byleth had taken the field. Like a house of cards in the wind, what remained of the enemy was blown away in Byleth's ensuing storm.
The enemy could only see a flash of red before their lives were claimed. Their vision was not equipped enough to fully follow Byleth's movements.
Crimson reflected off a pair of eyes.
A second later, a blade slashed through his chest.
A man fell to the ground, an equally red liquid gushing from the wound left in the wake of the sublime Sword of the Creator.
Byleth had always felt a connection to this weapon. A connection he could not fully describe or explain. It's hilt just felt… familiar. Holding it felt right, as though it was a blade he was always meant to wield. He did not know its origins, nor how it came to find him, but he knew it was a sword meant for him.
And now, it had become an extension of his arm. Byleth could no longer discern where the hand ended, and the blade began. It was a part of him, as much as any limb. Whatever signal his brain sent, the sword answered. As if the weapon had a mind of its own, it answered every beck and call of its wielder.
And now, there were another three enemies that separated him from Solon. Another three that would have to be cut down by his arm.
Two were afraid. Byleth could feel the fear that gripped their hearts, almost like a sixth sense. He could see the way the swords they held trembled.
The third was brazen. Foolishly so.
He charged Byleth, the grip on his sword steady.
Byleth watched him approach in what felt like slow motion. The professor always had good instincts- a body forged by years and years of mercenary work. He never would have made it this long if they weren't.
But, now…
Everything felt heightened. Everything was working in overdrive. His mind and reflexes were razor sharp. His body felt light, moving at speeds and hitting at strengths he did not think was possible. His vision was crystal clear. He saw things that he should not have been able to see.
And his sword… It pulsated in his grip. The light that encased it was brighter than it ever had been.
When the man raised his blade to strike at Byleth's left, Byleth was already moving to the right.
The plain sword cleaved through nothing but the air. Byleth had spun around him.
Without looking, he plunged his blade behind him. He felt its point push through flesh and bone as it cut a path through the body.
The man screamed in pain, that scream cut short as Byleth jerked the Sword of the Creator free.
Two remained. Two that stood in the way of him and Solon. The ashen Solon, who grew paler with each step Byleth took towards him.
Byleth outstretched a hand.
Two pools of magic formed beneath his two foes.
He did not fully know how he could suddenly use magic to such efficiency, but he certainly knew why. He could feel Sothis's energy course through his veins, giving him access to power he never knew was possible. As the sides of time became available to Byleth, so did the latent power of the progenitor god. Though he was unaccustomed to it, unsure of how to properly utilize these things Sothis had left for him, he knew enough to carry him through this battle.
As Byleth closed his palm, the brilliant light of Aura bloomed. The cries of the two men he silenced was cut short as the pillars of light magic consumed them.
As the light fizzled out, all that remained was Solon himself.
The creature started to back away in fear of the holy display he just witnessed.
Byleth stalked forward. He flicked his wrist, clearing the lingering droplets of blood that stained his sublime sword.
"You must be eliminated, Fell Star!" Solon yelled, raising both of his hands.
A stream of black magic was let loose from his palms. The magic was reminiscent to the same ritual that had first pulled Byleth into the abyss, but he knew it was nothing like that. This magic was far, far weaker.
Byleth swatted the spell aside like he might a fly. The dark magic dissipated as his blade cut through.
Solon growled, sweat forming on his brow as he conjured another spell-
But, before he could, Byleth's sword licked his wrist. Solon exclaimed as the blade cut through flesh and tendon alike.
That exclamation turned into a scream as the Creator's sword cut through the tendons in his other arm.
He was no longer screaming as the Sword of the Creator cut his knees.
Solon gasped for air as his legs gave out on him. His useless, bleeding arms hung limply at his sides. It was a far cry from the figure Solon cut only an hour or so ago. Once a villain that ignited fear into the hearts of man was nothing more than a husk ready to be reaped.
The drops of blood that poured from his wounds fell to the ground below him, leaving small pools of red wherever they landed.
"What did you see in the darkness of Zahras?" Solon rasped, his eyes wide and afraid as Byleth loomed closer. "Th-this should be impossible. The only being that can withstand that darkness is…"
His wrinkled lips twisted into a sneer as the realization dawned on him.
"What… What are you?"
Byleth's boot fell atop those small pools of red. His green hair fluttered in the wind as he came to a stop before Solon, his form towering over the downed man.
Truthfully, he no longer had an answer to that question. Originally, he thought he was simply a man. Maybe not a normal man, but a man, nonetheless. Didn't everyone consider themselves human?
As the days went by, as more information of his origins became revealed to him, he knew that was never the case. Byleth knew who he was: a professor, a friend, Edelgard's… whatever she needed him to be.
However, he no longer knew what he was. A man? A god? Something in between?
What am I?
Supposedly a fusion between mortal and god… but what did that leave for him?
Byleth was not sure. Not knowing did not frighten him, but it left him feeling uneasy. Part of him hoped that with Sothis's soul fused with his, answers to these questions he long sought would become readily available to him.
For another reason he could not explain, they had not.
But, at the very least, he knew what he was to Solon, Kronya, and their kind. Despite everything that happened, that answer was still clear to him. Despite what had happened to Byleth, despite his own confusion regarding his existence, Solon's crimes were not erased. The pain, the damage these people caused… They would pay for it all.
Lifting his arm, he placed the flat of his sword on Solon's shoulder. The glow from the Sword of the Creator colored Solon's pale face in a bright red. Byleth's eyes held his.
"The end."
Edelgard was silent as she watched Solon's head fall to the ground. Some of her classmates with… weaker stomachs turned away from the sight. Most did, and she could not blame them for that. It was always chilling to witness an execution, but even so, it was a fitting end for a man such as he. Even if Byleth had spared his life, which he had no reason to do, the church would have surely executed him as well. Everyone present knew that. If anyone were to do it, it should be Byleth.
Truthfully, Solon was dead the moment his path crossed with Byleth's.
With Solon removed, Edelgard's gaze lingered on the back of her professor.
Byleth was painfully quiet, his head angled towards the body beneath him. His eyes were distant as he stared at the life his hands had ended. Yet, despite that, there was not a speck of blood or a single stain on his gloves nor the rest of his garment. It was curious given the way he had killed Solon, but it was nothing noteworthy, she supposed.
Sighing, Byleth wiped the edge of his blade across Solon's clothes. The red streaks were hardly visible on the black fabric of his robes.
Giving the severed head one final glance, Byleth sheathed his sword and turned to the class.
"I am sorry you had to see that," Byleth spoke, his eyes trained on the ground. His expression was completely blank, but his green eyes were still far-off.
"You need not apologize, Professor," Ferdinand answered first, his own face slightly pale as his gaze was drawn to the body behind Byleth. "We all understand."
Byleth glanced up at the boy, gauging the honesty in his response. When he noted the sincerity in his expression, Byleth's gaze moved to the rest of his class, then Shamir and Alois. When no one voiced any objections, the teacher nodded to himself.
"There are a few things I'm having trouble with," Felix hesitated, shifting his weight. His brow was furrowed, but his eyes seemed to be evaluating the former mercenary curiously. "What exactly happened here? When we arrived, it was only Edelgard that remained. You were nowhere to be found."
"Solon said something about being swallowed by darkness?" Linhardt mumbled.
Byleth gave a miniscule frown, his green eyes landing on Edelgard. She was sure the events leading up to this were racing through his mind, because for Edelgard, she had never stopped thinking about it.
"Then, you fell through a hole in the sky, Professor," Dorothea murmured with wide eyes. "You literally fell from the sky! L-like an angel! There was all that light, and the wind… I don't understand any of it…"
Dorothea trailed off, her murmurings only leaving her with more questions rather than answers.
"And why can you suddenly use light magic with such efficiency?" Lysithea added.
"And your hair and eyes," Flayn added, one of her small hands running through her own green locks. "They are now the same shade as mine!"
Byleth blinked, a finger pinching a strand of hair.
"Is that so?"
"You're telling us you did not notice?" Hubert asked, raising a brow.
"How might I notice my own eye color?" Byleth scratched his cheek, shooting Edelgard another look. "I can explain it to the best of my abilities, but… first, we should do a sweep of the perimeter."
"I agree." Alois nodded. Given the way his eyebrows were scrunched together as he stared at Byleth, it was clear that he was just as confused as the others. "The enemy may still be lurking. It would be a wise course of action to make sure none remain."
"Yes," Byleth agreed. "Eagles, go with Shamir and Alois to survey the area. I'll be right behind you after I have a word with our house leader regarding the battle."
Edelgard's head perked up, her back straightening.
Though none of her classmates moved very quickly, clearly not wanting to depart from their professor so soon, they all obliged.
As Shamir walked past, Edelgard noted the way the mercenary's gaze seemed to hover on the professor. Her eyes were narrowed- not in anger or scrutiny, but more like… genuine curiosity. As though she was searching for her own answer to some unknown question.
Byleth watched them go, his expression neutral. Completely neutral. There wasn't a hint of human emotion coloring his face.
However, once they were gone, far enough that they could not hear the coming conversation, Byleth sighed. His body deflated. The muscles in his face relaxed. That neutral expression began to change. Confusion, doubt, fear; these troubling emotions swelled in his eyes.
But there was something else there…
Grief. As though those eyes of his had lost something great. Something… she did not understand.
"Professor."
Byleth jumped at her voice, his eyes, his green eyes, returning to the present as he lifted his head to meet hers. Life rushed back into them, and those emotions disappeared.
Edelgard paused, taking a moment to look around the clearing. Behind her, a few dozen feet away, were a pair of great trees. Their trunks, branches, and leaves should be enough to hide them from view.
"Let us talk over there," Edelgard said, motioning with her hand for him to follow.
Byleth raised an eyebrow, but nodded nonetheless. He followed after her as she made a quick retreat.
"Edelgard, there's something I need to tell you," Byleth spoke as they walked. His voice was low, and ripe with trepidation. "Something… I've been hiding from you."
When they reached the cover of the trees, Edelgard took another look around.
"Edelgard?" Byleth repeated her name, concerned by her silence.
Content that no one was around to see nor hear them at this location, she turned to face her professor.
Byleth's eyes widened as he looked at her.
She realized how she must have looked. Brows scrunched together. Lips pushed against each other. Slightly reddened and puffy eyes. A pale face. She became aware that one of her arms was gripping the other tightly, a forearm covering her chest protectively. She was probably shaking, too.
Edelgard had always been adept at donning masks, yet, at this moment, she could not will one to appear. The sheer amount of raw emotion she felt at seeing Byleth before her, feeling his presence beside her, was more than words could hope to describe. She had been able to make it through the battle, but only barely.
And… his change in appearance baffled her. Every time she looked at those light-green eyes or that hair, she was instantly reminded of her. Edelgard did not want to be reminded of Rhea every time she stared at her Byleth. It was like some cruel, twisted joke.
But she had to push past it, because every time she looked at his face rather than the color of his eyes or the color of his hair, she was instantly reminded of the man she loved.
Edelgard took a shaky step forward. She might not have the strength to force away the hints of emotion that colored her face, but she had to remain composed. She could not break down here, in the Sealed Forest of all places.
Byleth didn't speak, nor move, as Edelgard gripped his hand in both of hers. It felt giant. Had it always been so much larger than her own?
Her thumbs traced every groove, every contour of his hand. She committed the shape, the warmth, and the feel of it onto her own so that she may never forget it.
Byleth frowned as he looked at her, his eyes lost in the storm that swelled there. His other hand moved to grip both of hers.
"It seems that all I do… is cause you pain."
Edelgard jerked her head up, her lips parting in surprise.
Cause her pain?
Did he not realize that the day he stepped in front of that axe for her, he had done the exact opposite? Did he not realize that by simply being a presence in her life, he had brought her unparalleled happiness? It was because of him… that she had hope. It was because of him that she had been able to open her heart a little wider. It was because of him that she would avoid becoming that harsh ruler with a heart of ice. It was because of him that her friendships with her classmates were stronger than they ever were before.
It was because of him that… a crimson flower had bloomed in a land of silver snow.
It was because of him that she no longer had to guard against the cold.
Did he not realize how foolish he sounded?
"Byleth."
His brows twitched at the sound of his name. There were so many things she wanted to say, so many things she wanted to tell him.
Edelgard let go of his hands and stepped forward.
Byleth flinched as Edelgard pushed herself up against him, her arms wrapping around his back, gripping him fiercely. His own hovered in the air beside her, frozen in uncertainty, before they found their purpose and returned her embrace.
"I… I…" Edelgard mumbled into the crook of his neck, her arms squeezing his back. They refused to let go. "Byleth."
Edelgard had always been well-spoken; seemingly having an answer or proper response for everything.
But, at this moment, she found that she did not have the proper words to say. She did not have the words to describe the tumultuous feeling in her stomach and chest. She did not know how to properly explain the relief she felt when holding him. All she could do was say his name, repeating it like a mantra. His name was all she could muster.
Edelgard knew what it felt like to lose someone.
However, she had never known what it felt like for that lost person to return to her. That, she only experienced in her nightmares.
And this was no nightmare.
"I'm sorry, El."
In response to her name, she tightened her embrace. Though his hair and eyes may look different, though they may now resemble Rhea, he still felt the same. His chest, his arms, his shoulders… his heart. They were all the same as they were before.
And it came to her then, that this was only the second time she had felt Byleth in her arms.
A feeling she had almost lost forever.
"I am so sorry that I put you through that again," Byleth continued, his voice cracking.
Edelgard closed her eyes, burying her face into his neck.
Finally, she found her words.
"Please, do not apologize," Edelgard whispered. "Do not apologize for doing what you've always done."
"What I've always done…?"
Edelgard broke away but did not relinquish her hold on Byleth.
As she stared up into those green eyes, she smiled. Maybe his eyes reminded her of other things, too. Maybe not the sky, but maybe the green of the grass… The green of a tree's leaves.
"You have always protected me."
It was not the answer of an emperor she gave, but one of Edelgard's.
Edelgard snaked a hand up, brushing her thumb against his cheek.
"To know that there is someone in this world that would go so far for my sake… Your strength is one of the many things that I love so dearly about you…." Edelgard trailed off, her thumb resting but an inch below his green eye. "I am only sorry that I could not do the same when you needed it most. I… am only sorry that I was not strong enough."
"Don't say that." Byleth shook his head. "You are-"
He stopped, his eyes blinking rapidly as if they were trying to remove a speck of dust or dirt.
"Byleth?" Edelgard frowned.
"Sorry, it's nothing." Byleth shook his head again, forcing his eyes shut. "I just…"
When he opened them again, they were no longer there.
Not in a literal sense. His eyes were of course still in their sockets.
But they were no longer there, in the present. Just as before, they were distant. Lost in the clouds.
His pupils darted around, as if they were looking at things that weren't really there.
"Byleth?" Edelgard repeated his name, worry gnawing at her heart.
Then, they rested on her.
"E-Edelgard?"
And they widened.
Only for a second, they widened.
They were looking straight at her, but what they truly saw, Edelgard did not know.
Then, they closed.
And he went limp in her arms.
Edelgard grunted as the weight of his body fell against her. She set her feet, looping both arms beneath his armpits to prevent him from falling to the ground.
"Byleth?!"
She quickly, and gently, lowered him to the wet grass as she knelt beside him. The worry that gnawed at her chest was now taking chunks out of it. Her heart was pounding beneath her ribs. Her eyes were wide with fear as the same feelings she felt before returned in full force.
Edelgard couldn't lose him again.
She couldn't.
Not when he just returned to her.
Her breathing quickened as she tore the glove off her right hand, her eyes navigating the length of his body. His eyes were now closed, and his face… peaceful. As though he had just fallen asleep instead of collapsing in her arms.
She began to hyperventilate as she realized he looked a little too peaceful. Was… Was he breathing?
Remembering what he had told her and Professor Manuela about his lack of a heartbeat, her hand shot towards his neck. Her index and middle finger probed his skin for a pulse. Her clouded mind began to grow dizzy as she realized she could not-
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Feeling his pulse thrum beneath her fingertips, Edelgard let out a sigh of relief. Possibly the lengthiest sigh she had ever given. It was concerning that he had passed out in the blink of an eye like that, but at least it wasn't what she feared.
The princess fell back on her rear, but made sure to not remove her fingers from that sign of his life.
"What could have caused you to lose consciousness like that?" Edelgard muttered, her brow furrowing as she watched him inhale deeply, then exhale. It really did seem like he had just fallen asleep, but she knew better than that. "Could it be a side effect of your… recent changes?"
Her eyes lingered on shades of green.
Though that was a safe assumption given all she had witnessed, Edelgard then realized she had yet to receive an explanation as to what happened to him, how he escaped Solon's spell, or how he caused… all of that light. They had both gotten caught up in the moment… He had tried to tell her, but Edelgard had other things on her mind.
What am I to do with you?
She couldn't just leave him here, sprawled out on the ground. With him like this, it wasn't as though they could necessarily leave the forest, either. She supposed she could ask Hubert to come and carry him, but…
"Lady Edelgard, we have-"
The man himself appeared from behind the trees, his dark eyes landing on the sprawled out Byleth, and the Edelgard that was sitting beside him with her hand on his neck.
Hubert blinked.
"What have we here?" He asked blankly, his gaze moving to his liege.
"The professor appears to have lost consciousness," Edelgard answered plainly, regretfully removing her hand and rising to her feet.
"So it would seem." Hubert nodded. "The others are finishing their sweep. So far, no enemies remain."
Hubert's gaze moved back to Byleth.
"Shall I carry the professor back to where we left our horses, Lady Edelgard?"
"No need." Edelgard shook her head. "Byleth is in no condition to ride a horse all the way back to the monastery. We did not come properly equipped to transport an unconscious person such a distance."
While that was certainly true, Edelgard had another reason for not wanting to return just yet.
She did not know exactly what had happened to Byleth… But Edelgard was certain the moment they stepped into Garreg Mach's territory, the archbishop would swoop in and clutch him in her talons.
Edelgard would allow no such thing. Not when Byleth was out cold.
"That we did not," Hubert agreed. "What are your orders, your Highness?"
"We'll return to where we entered the Sealed Forest and set up camp," Edelgard replied. "Once Byleth has come to, we'll return to the monastery."
"Very well." Hubert stooped into a bow. "I will inform the others."
Her aide hesitated, his eyes travelling back and forth between Edelgard and Byleth.
Hubert sighed, then shook his head. As it was in most cases, it seemed that he knew full well what Edelgard would do.
"I will inform the others," he repeated, then excused himself to do just that.
With him gone, Edelgard knelt beside Byleth once more.
Placing one arm beneath his knees and the other beneath his neck, she lifted him from the ground. If she positioned herself just right, she could support his neck and head better this way.
As Edelgard began to walk to where they would set up for the night, she marveled in how light Byleth felt in her arms.
Edelgard scoffed, readjusting Byleth's weight as she shook her head.
That was the last thing she should be considering right now. Such a great deal of things had transpired in such a short time, that she found herself having difficulty processing it all. With the fighting now over, and Byleth somehow miraculously returned to her, she found herself extremely tired. Perhaps due to the fighting, or perhaps due to the emotional turmoil the day had brought.
Kronya and Solon were gone- that much she knew. But then, she had witnessed Byleth consumed by darkness, then witnessed as he returned with all of that… light. That part was still greatly confusing to her, but not as confusing as her own emotions. The relief and confusion she held in her chest had balled up into one, amorphous blob. Whenever Edelgard felt one, the other was sure to follow.
Edelgard glanced down at Byleth's sleeping face. At this point, he truly was sleeping. How he managed that, she did not know.
What happened to you, Byleth?
Before their conversation had taken that turn, Edelgard remembered Byleth mention he was hiding something from her. Could whatever he had been hiding have something to do with… all of this? Even now, Edelgard still couldn't find the apt term to put to it.
Either way, she couldn't exactly fault him for that. During the first half of their friendship, she had hidden a great deal from him. Even now, there were still nuggets of information that he was not yet privy to. However, despite all of that, Byleth still trusted her. He still reached his hand out to her, despite all of that.
So, Edelgard would follow her teacher's example.
She would trust him.
And trust that whatever he had kept hidden, he had done so for good reason.
After all, when everything was said and done…
Perhaps the fact that Byleth was still around to confide in her was what she should truly take away from it all. The fact that Byleth was still here was what mattered first and foremost.
Byleth had always been plagued with strange dreams… Ever since he was a boy. At first, those dreams were always the same. He dreamed of a small, slumbering girl sitting on a throne meant for them. He dreamed of war- be it in a city of fire, or a rain-soaked field.
Things were different now.
They weren't so much dreams as they were visions.
Visions of things that had happened once.
And visions of things that had yet to happen at all.
In these visions, he would see a woman he did not recognize holding a baby he did not know.
He saw a girl with brown hair, locked away beneath the ground.
A boy with blonde hair, surrounded by the dead.
An outsider staring up at the night sky, searching for his dream.
He saw a dragon, with scales as white as snow, longing for her mother.
With these visions, Byleth expected clarity. As Sothis claimed, he expected to see both sides of time. He expected revelation.
Yet, with each passing image, Byleth was once more left with more questions than answers. These faces were faces he did not recognize, but he felt that he should. They were all important; extremely so. He knew that without a shadow of a doubt. Yet… he could not recognize them. Their faces were blurry, hard to see… But, given the knowledge Edelgard had given him, he could at least extrapolate who one of those faces belonged to.
These things that he saw, things that no mortal should be able to see, were more like pieces to some unknown puzzle than they were true visions. With each image, the overall picture did not get clearer. As the puzzle slowly began to come together as more pieces were given, Byleth could not discern what the end picture might reveal. Instead, it only grew more confusing.
Except this time, he did not have Sothis to guide him to the correct answer.
When Byleth came to, he realized he was on his back. There was something warm and soft beneath his head. He could not feel the outside world, however. There was no wind, nor did he feel the sun's natural light tickle his cheeks.
He guessed he was in a tent. He knew there was someone with him.
When Byleth prepared to open his eyes, he felt a hand run through his hair.
He stopped.
He recognized that touch immediately.
"Forgive me, Byleth," Edelgard sighed. "I feel as though I stole you for myself."
Byleth kept his eyes closed. The curiosity he had in where this was going won out over all else.
"The others all elected to watch over you through the night, but I sent them away to rest," Edelgard continued, oblivious to the fully awake professor. "I was being selfish."
It was then that be became aware of the fact that it was not a pillow his head was resting on, but Edelgard's lap.
"There are just… so many things I wanted to say to you. So many things I have yet to say or do. I didn't want to miss my chance; not again," she confessed.
The hand running through his hair paused.
"It's always been difficult for me to… open my heart to another. Though I may now get to walk beneath blue skies and feel the wind on my cheeks, my heart never left that prison. I left it behind, locked away beneath the ground."
Her hand moved down the side of his face, her touch lighter than a feather, to cup his cheek.
"Part of it will always remain there. Part of it I'll never get back, lost with the lives of my siblings, but… With each passing day, the fear I have in letting others in has slowly diminished. With each passing day, it gets easier and easier."
Edelgard paused, her thumb grazing his cheek.
"I am beginning to wonder if a day might come where that fear will no longer exist. If a day might come where others might see the me that only you have."
Byleth suddenly felt extremely guilty. It felt as though he was listening to something he shouldn't have. Edelgard might balk if she knew he was awake and listening to all of this.
"When you were lost, I prayed that you would return to me. I prayed that I might get one more chance to tell you these things," Edelgard murmured. "While I believe it was your strength that brought you back rather than some prayer of a broken girl, I will honor my word."
I should let her know that I-
"I love you, so very much, Byleth."
Again, he stopped.
"Always remember that."
Her hand began to run through his hair once more.
Byleth knew he should open his eyes and tell her he was awake. He knew he should.
But, at this moment, he was so incredibly… comfortable. Edelgard's hand was soothing. The makeshift pillow he was laying on was surprisingly soft and comfy. Her words set him at ease, warming him more than any blanket could have.
Before he knew it, he was drifting off to sleep once again…
When Byleth awoke next, he was unsure of how many hours had passed. He was still in the same tent, his head still resting on Edelgard's lap. Her hand was still tangled in his hair.
This time, he did not hesitate in opening his eyes. He hadn't planned on falling asleep again and felt incredibly guilty for doing so.
When his eyes opened, the world was blurry. Everything was hazy, hard to see. The walls of the tent felt so far away. He could see Edelgard hovering over him, but for some reason, it looked as though there were a pair of horns protruding from the sides of her head. Her outfit almost seemed entirely red instead of the uniform he always remembered seeing on her.
When Byleth blinked, his vision became clearer. He must have been seeing things, as the Edelgard that was before him now was the same as always.
"Hello, Byleth," Edelgard greeted him, her expression soft and gentle.
"El."
"You're smiling," she noted, a small grin of her own forming.
Byleth blinked.
"Am I?" He asked, a hand lightly prodding his cheeks. When he felt the groove of his lips, Byleth exhaled. "That's a relief."
Edelgard tilted her head to the side, her smile wavering. Confusion flashed across her eyes.
"A relief?"
That's right.
She wouldn't know.
Regretfully, Byleth sat up. The warmth of Edelgard's lap still lingered on the back of his head. He wished he could have enjoyed that comfort for a few minutes longer, but he had already wasted enough time as it was. The time had come to explain it all to her, and he couldn't let her wait any longer.
Sothis had warned him; warned him that she might not understand.
But he had to try. No longer could he keep her in the dark like Rhea had done to him.
"Where are the others?" Byleth asked, looking around the surprisingly spacious tent as if he might find them there.
"Presumably sleeping," Edelgard replied. Her smile had faded as her brow began to furrow. "What is it, Byleth?"
"Is it that late already?"
"It's well past midnight." She nodded.
Had he truly slept that long? How tired was his body? It didn't feel that way, not at all in fact, but perhaps the toll of Sothis's powers put a greater strain on him than he realized.
…Had Edelgard truly sat here with him that entire time?
"Does this have something to do with your… transformation?"
Byleth's eyes widened, glancing back at her.
"It does," he admitted quietly, lowering his head. "I wanted to tell you all together, but perhaps it is better this way. You should be the first to know, after all."
Edelgard shifted her weight. His cryptic way of speaking was probably worrying her.
"Before I got sidetracked and you lost consciousness, you mentioned there was something you wanted to tell me. Something that you've been hiding."
She paused, her gaze moving to his hair and eyes.
"Am I safe in assuming that 'something' is related to your… change?"
"You would be right."
Byleth sighed, looking down at his hand.
"I suppose… it would be easier to show you."
Like he had before with Hanneman, Byleth manifested his Crest. A light hovered in the palm of his hand, just as it had back then.
Edelgard paled considerably as the light of his Crest washed over her face, basking her in a dim, golden glow.
The Crest he manifested was the Crest of Flames he always bore, but it was hardly the little symbol it was back then.
A yellow rune shone in the palm of his hand. In its center, was a hexagon. Within that hexagon, was a triangle. And within that, was the Crest of Flames. While his Crest stayed still, the rings and circles within the rune spun. Words, some written in an ancient tongue, and some not, rotated around the Crest of Flames as though it was the sun.
What Byleth held in the palm of his hand was not simply his Crest, but the sigil of the goddess.
Edelgard's pupils followed the engravings as they moved. While the words that could be understood were still hard to decipher, she read them closely. Her lips mouthed the words 'goddess' and 'mother of all.'
"W-what…" Edelgard breathed. "What is this?"
"It was not I that was able to escape the darkness that Solon trapped me in. In truth…"
Byleth closed his hand, and with it, the goddess's sign disappeared. Edelgard blinked dumbly as the light faded.
"The goddess, Sothis, gifted me her power."
And that's that! Next chapter, we'll start right where we left off. Trust me when I say I REALLY wanted to finish this conversation here (sorry for the sort of cliffhanger), but what I had written following this just didn't meet the quality I would expect from a scene of this importance. This coming conversation is so VASTLY important for Edelgard that I don't want to settle for some rushed job here.
Edelgard and her faith is truly a fascinating facet to her character. I could honestly discuss it for like, thousands of words, but that's too lengthy for this humble AN. So, this is where I give the biggest of shoutouts to captainflash89, who has written some amazing and wonderful analyses on Edelgard, her faith, and a whole bunch of other stuff. A lot of the Edelgard work these past few chapters have been heavily influenced by it! If you ever find yourself on Reddit, check out the Edelgard sub. It's a fun little place.
Now, on to the final thing I want to discuss:
My man, Byleth.
I absolutely love this part. It's probably my favorite theory/head canon/what have you regarding his character.
Given Sothis's role as "The Beginning," it is a fair assumption that Byleth might be "The End." The meaning of his name could certainly point to this, as could his role in the story and in his students' lives. Byleth, literally, brings about endings. He has a nickname for the way in which he kills- another, more literal sense of the word. He helps so many characters in this game (depending on the route, of course) achieve resolutions. And, now that I think about it, he also ends a bunch of characters, in the literal sense of the word. I mean, he kind of ends Sothis there (but not really).
And, of course, as we all know the final chapter of Crimson Flower is called "To The End of a Dream."
Sothis being "The Beginning" and Byleth "The End" is so damn cool to me that it will be something I run with here, as you can tell.
Which brings us back to Byleth's long journey for answers of how he came to be, or what he might be. But more on that later!
Welp, thanks for reading everyone! Again, expect more Edelgard and for me to discuss her a little more come next chapter. See you all next time!
