Here's another chapter. Got an interesting development in mind, here. Also, made up another part of brainwashing for this fic because, let's face it, the brainwashing spell Thales uses on Edelgard in Azure Gleam came out of nowhere if you ask me.
Disclaimer: Fire Emblem was created by Nintendo. Intelligent Systems.
Lord Karu's Madness, Zadiria's Gambit
As Dawn rose, Byleth, Shez and everyone else headed to the Mess Hall for breakfast. Shez had volunteered to help the cook make a large enough meal for everyone in the Monastery. The Kingdom leaders were still surprised by yesterday's revelation, but opted to keep quiet on the matter, as their kingdom was only officially recognized as such by the church.
While Shez was helping to make omelets, Dimitri was having a talk with Rodrigue, Ferdinand and Edelgard. The former Emperor was pleasantly surprised that Hubert is alive, but horrified that he is being experimented on in the stronghold of Those Who Slither in the Dark.
"So if unifying Fodlan could ensure a lasting peace, how do you propose we negotiate this with the Alliance?" The former Duke of Faldarius asked.
"I've been giving that some thought, I just hope that Claude will see reason" The king replied, it was hard to tell whether or not the Alliance Leader will still turn against the kingdom and the church.
"He is a fickle man" Edelgard commented"If we must, we can have someone watch over what goes on in the Alliance territories."
"Hey now, am I really that ruthless?" The dark-haired Alliance leader commented as he came to sit with them"I want what's best for Fodlan as much as Lady Rhea does, but I'm not too keen on trusting her, yet."
Dimitri looked at him thoughtfully, speaking softly so that only Claude can hear lest the Church members catch wind of this conversation and take offense"Still, without Rhea's leadership, I would potentially lose the right to rule Faerghus. And as of now, our true opponent is the last remnants of Those who Slither in the Dark."
'Right, because your family owed her a debt. One of many reasons the King of Faerghus can't betray the church' Claude thought. He still had his doubts even after hearing about Sothis and a bit of the church's and the Ashen Demon's history, but he decided to keep an open mind and reevaluate his opinion of Rhea for now.
Shez finished making the omelets, inspecting her hard work before helping to serve the food, taking some for herself and sitting near Byleth, Jeralt, Seteth and Flayn. Jeralt commented"Looks great as always, maybe I will treat you to a drink next time."
"I'd have to pass, can't have both of us getting too intoxicated" Byleth commented as he took a bite of his portion.
The group ate in silence with the rest of the Leicester, Faerghus, Church and Adrestia combined forces, most commenting on Shez's cooking. After finishing breakfast, the leaders went to the conference room.
Rhea sat at the head of the table while Catherine stood near her for protection. The archbishop invited Byleth to sit near her, to which the green haired mercenary accepted as he and the others took their seats.
"The time is at hand to ensure that Those Who Slither in the Dark never rises again, but I also need to inform you that I have taken the words of the Goddess into consideration" The Archbishop announced.
"Well, I thought about it" The Alliance leader spoke"I'm planning on going to Alymria. Since you seemed to be fine spilling the beans about the Ashen Demon and some of the church's secrets, I guess I should tell you mine."
"Now that you mention it" Lorenz commented"You were pretty chummy with that Alymrian general who fought with us at Fort Merceus."
"Well, he and Hilda's brother Holst are drinking buddies, I invited the both of them for a drink, they were hitting it off" Claude explained, skirting around some details.
"An Alymrian general and an Alliance noble becoming fast friends is news to me, I know that the alliance has had problems with the Alymrians" Rhea stated.
Shez nodded in agreement"Yeah, probably the first time we all heard of this."
"There's more" Claude continued"I have another name: Khalid, my mother is married to the king of Alymria."
"So you're a prince?" Shez asked.
Claude nodded"Yep." He let the information sink in before continuing"So what's the plan for Fodlan's future? Since I'm going to Alymria when this is over, I might as well give the Alliance territories back to the kingdom."
Dimitri looked at him, a mix of surprise and suspicion"That's quite amicable of you, given our disagreements back in Zahras and at Fhirdiad."
"Just putting us back together, Leicester was originally Kingdom Territory after all" Claude smiled.
The other Golden Deer were surprised by the news, Lorenz was especially shocked"So you're abandoning the Alliance?"
"Enough" Rhea spoke"Claude has made his decision. As for today's official agenda, the complete extermination of Those Who Slither in the Dark, I assume one of you among the Black Eagles knows where the stronghold is."
Serena nodded"Its in Ordelia territory, possibly in the mountains, judging by the traces of their sorcery from near Fort Merceus."
"I shall partake in this battle" Edelgard stated"If Hubert is there, then I have to be there to help save him."
Petra smiled"I will be taking part in this battle, myself."
"Count me in" Ferdinand stated.
"Myself, as well" Dorothea pitched in.
Dimitri nodded"I will have Dedue, Felix, Ingrid, Sylvain, Shez and Byleth join us."
Rhea took the moment to announce"Catherine, Flayn, Seteth and I shall accompany you. As Archbishop, its my duty to see to it that justice is meted out on our enemies."
"Rhea, are you certain?" Seteth asked.
"I must" Rhea replied, resolutely, then turned to Jeralt"Jeralt, I would like you to join us."
"Lysithea, Leonie and Lorenz will tag along with me, least I can do is help" Claude smiled"I also thought I'd ask the Ashen Wolves to join us."
"I can't really say no" Jeralt added"Besides, my mercenaries still have a contract with Dimitri until the end of the war." He refrained from mentioning that part of his agreement with the kingdom originally was that Rhea and the church were not to find out about him and Byleth.
Rhea stood up first"Now that we've determined who among us shall go confront this Zadiria individual and ensure that Those Who Slither in the Dark never strikes again, we will make our preparations at once. Byleth, could you follow me to the Holy Mausoleum?"
"Sure, what for?" Byleth asked.
"Isn't that place only available to the public on the Goddess's Rite of Rebirth?" Shez asked.
The Archbishop nodded"It is, but under the circumstances, there is something I must show him. Dimitri, Shez, Catherine, I would like you to accompany us."
Shez, Catherine and Dimitri nodded and followed Rhea and Byleth. The small group headed into the cathedral and went into the mausoleum. Shez was curious"So what are we going to find there?"
"A relic which was buried with the remains of the Progenitor" Rhea replied as she continued leading"Byleth, you have the Crest of Flames, do you not?"
"I don't know" Byleth shook his head.
"I believe that you have the qualifications as you bear the very soul of Sothis" The Archbishop assured him as they continued"The Crest of Flames was bestowed upon you when you when I had Sothis's crest stone embedded within your heart."
Byleth was stunned"I see." He quietly continued following.
The group headed to a large treasure chest which was magically sealed. Rhea stopped"That which was sealed here is a blade that was formerly wielded by Nemesis, the King of Liberation."
"Nemesis?" Shez was curious.
"Nemesis was an ancient king of mankind who once saved Fodlan from evil gods" Dimitri supplied"But he became corrupted and mad with power, so Seiros had to put him down."
Rhea nodded"That is what was long passed down since the War of Heroes."
Sothis was not happy"That version of history feels like a lie, yet I don't know all of the details, I suppose I was dead before the war of heroes actually began."
Shez was astonished"So the goddess's sword was sealed in this room, right?"
"Seems so" Byleth commented.
Rhea dispelled the seal on the chest and opened it to reveal a dark yellowish blade that was jagged on one side with a hilt that had curved edges and a hole in the center of the hilt.
"This is the blade in question?" Byleth asked.
"Yes, it is the Sword of the Creator, it has not been wielded since Nemesis's defeat" Rhea replied.
Sothis felt a little uneasy"This relic feels important to me... Rhea, you would offer this as tribute?" She murmured, keeping her thoughts to herself.
Byleth looked at the blade, astonished as it suddenly glowed"Hm?"
"I've no doubt that you are perfectly capable of wielding the weapon, I also trust that you would not misuse it" Rhea explained.
"Are you sure its okay for me to take it?" Byleth asked, uncertain.
Rhea nodded"You have my trust. Now, we should go make our preparations."
They headed back outside and met up with the others at the courtyard. On their way, Byleth handed his Knight Captain's sword to Shez"Here, you may need this more than I do, right now."
"Oh, thank you" Shez responded, her own blade was getting pretty worn.
Edelgard, Claude and Yuri greeted the four, the Leicester Alliance leader grinning"So, what kept you?"
"This" Byleth showed the others the Sword"Rhea wanted to show me and Shez the Sword of the Creator and lent it to me."
"Its quite a blade" Edelgard commented.
Seteth walked over to Edelgard, handing over her now repaired relic"Here, I had the blacksmith use leftover Agarthium Ore to repair your weapon as best he could, it should suffice."
Edelgard nodded her thanks, accepting her weapon back as the others formed ranks.
"May the Goddess continue to watch over us all, let's move out" Rhea stated, leading the way with Byleth, Catherine, Jeralt, Dimitri and Shez following closely behind them. As they arrived at the great bridge, Shez took a moment to speak with Edelgard.
"So what exactly did Those Who Slither in the dark do to you?"
The former emperor was hesitant to answer, but sighed"Lysithea and I each had more than one crest imbued within our bodies, the result is that while the extra crests made us stronger, our lifespans were shortened and our hair turned white."
"Perhaps it can be reversed, we'll have to find out" said Seteth"After this battle, I will talk with Professor Hanneman about a way to remove the extra crests, but be aware that it might take some time." Even he and Rhea found the Agarthans' experiments to be very barbaric.
"I'm hoping to find answers where we're going, either way" Edelgard said, determined.
Ricard was on watch at the mountains near the underground city, glancing ahead as he pondered what Zadiria has in store next. One of the imperial soldiers who sided with him walked up"Sir, we've set up surveillance as Zadiria suggested, preparations for the trap have been made."
"Excellent" Ricard nodded"Carry on, Waylon. I'll go guard our witch and her puppet."
The soldier nodded"Yes sir. But I'm not so sure she can be trusted. Plus, we know what she's done with Marquis Vestra."
"Oh, no need to worry" Ricard chuckled"We share a similar aim The church is doomed to defeat either way, for I've been told we have an ace in the hole that's been dormant for over a thousand years." The way he spoke unnerved a couple of his subordinates"She placed quite a surprising amount of trust in me." Though, he supposed, that may have been due to having borne the child of one of the surface dwellers that Those who Slither in the Dark so despised.
The combined group of the Church, Kingdom and Alliance continued into Ordelia territory. Claude sent Leonie to scout ahead as they set up a temporary camp to rest for a bit before continuing on, Jeralt accompanied the orange-haired Cavalier to keep her safe.
While Shez and Dorothea prepared some bread and soup for lunch, Rhea took this chance to continue to speak with Byleth. The Archbishop spoke""For all these years I have acted as proxy to you, no... To Sothis, the Progenitor god. I thought she would be what's best for Fodlan."
"She told me that she does not remember everything, despite remembering you" Byleth commented"And... What, may I ask do you want of me?"
Rhea fell silent, still struggling to come to terms with Byleth's individuality and Sothis not returning in full, though she still saw Sitri as her daughter and thus saw Byleth as a grandchild. After a moment, she said"As one who harmonizes with the goddess, you have the potential to succeed me as Archbishop of the Church of Seiros and Guardian of Fodlan."
"Rhea, do you know what you are saying?" Seteth, who was nearby, asked"He has fought alongside Jeralt for the Empire until they joined us after we slew Randolph and only recently sided with the Kingdom. This fact alone hurts their credibility in the eyes of many who were truly faithful to the church."
"And as if that wasn't enough, I know nothing of the church's history save for what you told us" Byleth added"I've too much blood on my hands, fighting is all I am good for. I am not qualified in any way to lead a religious organization like the church."
Rhea blinked"That may be true, but the fact you have bonded with Shez and found steadfast allies in Alois, Flayn, Seteth, Dimitri and Leonie all but shows your inner leadership qualities, plus your courage and determination are great. Please consider this, I would very much like your and Jeralt's help to preserve the peace in Fodlan once Those who Slither in the Dark are gone. And Seteth, please be silent."
"She should've accepted that I was gone long ago, I once told her that if we are no longer together in this plane of existence, we may find each other amongst the stars of the heavens" Sothis ranted, then said more softly"Plus, I was content to travel Fodlan with you from within. Still, if she wants our help that badly, then why not go for it? Its not like you can't fight to preserve peace as you can in wartime."
Byleth took a minute to think on this, then said"I would have to speak with my father about it, but I could perhaps join the Knights of Seiros, or if my father and I wind up continuing to work for the kingdom, I may join House Blaidyd's private army, which may end up taking on the task of keeping the peace throughout the continent and be of use to the church in that way. Dimitri and Shez could certainly arrange something to the latter's effect if we asked. With enough experience and if I were to study the history of Fodlan, I may consider becoming your successor. I can't make any promises, either way."
"Fair enough, I suppose you would still be protecting Fodlan in this way" Rhea nodded, somewhat hesitantly"All the more befitting of one with the goddess's powers."
Leonie and Jeralt returned to the camp right as Shez was done preparing today's lunch. The orange haired cavalier addressed Claude"Imperial renegades are strangely stationed in front of a mountain to the southeast."
"That may our destination, then" Edelgard nodded as she received her portion.
As the group ate their meal, Byleth took a moment to speak with Jeralt and Dimitri, explaining what Rhea had asked of him and what he suggested he could do. Dimitri was mildly surprised"Well, if Captain Jeralt is willing to stay with the kingdom after the war, I could certainly incorporate his mercenaries into my private militia."
"If the choice is either staying with the Kingdom, the church or leaving the continent behind, I suppose I can stick around the kingdom" said Jeralt, thoughtfully as he ate his portion of lunch. Continuing to hide from the church was now pointless, regardless of what he wanted to do.
"Then you would be willing to extend your contract?" The king asked.
The veteran mercenary nodded"As I understand, House Blaidyd's private militia would be primarily regulated towards protecting the countryside. It wouldn't be much different than what I was already doing."
"Indeed not" Dimitri confirmed"Even in peacetime, we'd still need to worry about bandits and potential rebellions. Also, if the Archbishop decides to allow free passage to and from neighboring countries, there's always the possibility that there will be those who were disgruntled at having lost family and friends in skirmishes with Faerghus and Leicester. It will take time for a lasting peace to be ensured."
The group finished their meal and made ready to resume their march.
Within the underground city, Zadiria was in the main room with several remaining Agarthan soldiers and mages. Privately, the witch thought to herself'This may be my final stand, but I shall not simply leave the above world to those beasts...' And yet, she retained something of a softer spot for Shez.
Ricard shortly came in"Lady Zadiria, the outer defenses are set, the trap will soon be sprung."
"Excellent, as for our "Tactician" friend" Zadiria looked over to where a certain dark-haired young man with dark clothes was stationed, although his hair was now somewhat grayish as the Agarthans had made to try to empower his crest"We'll just have to see how well my mind control spell works with him."
"As I recall, you presented it to Lord Arundel and suggested that he could find a use for it" The blond man commented.
Zadiria chuckled"Ah, yes, Thales was mostly successful with that spell. It was quite difficult for me to conduct the necessary experiment on Vestra. Though I thought of an alternative and imbued one of a special headpiece with the spell."
The aforementioned young man groaned, struggling somewhat with a new mind-control silvery mask that the witch had forcibly imposed upon him'How much longer must I endure this...?' He thought, internally.
"He must have been a tough one" Ricard commented.
Zadiria nodded"He was. He has a strong will, just like the Adrestian Emperor" she then caught herself"Heh, well the Empire is no more. All we've left to do is carry out one last task."
"Indeed" Ricard smiled"I must say, it was good to work with you for the short while that we had. But alas, do all good things come to an end."
"The feeling is mutual" Zadiria smiled softly"Now let us make our preparations, I suspect that our enemies are very well on their way. And know this, I want the one called Shez alive. If we can recapture Edelgard for our purposes, all the better."
Ricard nodded and left the room to wait'Score, that silly witch. Thanks to her, I have the technology and access to the means to destroy the so-called Church of Seiros and Those Who Slither in the Dark for good. Then I will rule Adrestia's remains and start a new empire' he thought'Too bad I won't share this with you and Marquis Vestra, Lady Edelgard.'
Shez, Edelgard, Dimitri, Claude, Rhea and the rest of their group approached the mountains which concealed the way to the stronghold of Shambhala. Sure enough, they came upon what's left of Ricard's battalion and a small squad of Agarthan mages.
"Seems like a tough lot" Yuri, the leader of the Ashen Wolves commented"Ah, well. We'll get through this one way or another. Hapi, do your thing."
"Fine" The red-headed woman sighed, resulting in a couple giant wolves, giant eagle and a sandworm coming onto the scene, surprising the soldiers lurking in front of the mountains.
"What the!?" Waylon, the imperial captain serving under Ricard gasped.
As the soldiers moved to engage the monsters, Rhea addressed her group"Some of you will have to remain to clear out the monsters and take down the soldiers. The rest of us will proceed to the location of the Dark Mages' stronghold. I shall go with the group attacking the stronghold itself."
"Count me in" Shez piped up.
"I'm going in" Dimitri said.
Edelgard nodded"I'm going in, too."
"I'm in" Claude grinned.
"Byleth, what about you?" Shez asked.
The Ashen Demon nodded"It will be easier for me to help protect Dimitri and Rhea that way."
"Count me in" Felix grunted.
Dorothea stepped up"I'm in."
"I, as well" said Ferdinand.
"Then its settled" Rhea looked ahead"We shouldn't move in too big of a group, after all. Catherine, I would like you by my side."
"Leave it to me" the blond knight grinned.
As Leonie, Jeralt and everyone else battling the soldiers and monsters spread out to clear the area, Rhea and Dimitri started to lead their group towards the entrance to Shambhala.
Waylon and four elite Calvary tried to block the way"I don't think so."
"Byleth, try out your new weapon" Rhea suggested.
Byleth obliged, readying the Sword of the Creator and moving in to slash at the four soldiers, the blade itself stretching like a whip to hit all four of them at once, knocking them down.
"Whoa, that's cool, mind if I hold it sometime?" Shez asked.
"Only if you want to turn into a mindless beast, we're taught that its what happens if you don't have the appropriate crest to match the relic" Felix grunted.
Dorothea finished Waylon off with Elthunder"Okay, the way should be clear."
Leonie and Jeralt fought side by side, killing off any imperial Calvary troops. Dedue, Flayn and Seteth faced off against the demonic large wolf while Petra, Ingrid and Sylvain engaged the giant bird.
"See if they like this" Constance channeled her magical power to cast a barrage of spells at the monsters and imperials.
A Myrmidon tried to sneak up on the blond mage, only for Balthus to rush in and knocked the myrmidon down"Nice try."
Petra dodged as the giant bird clawed at her and slashed at it while Sylvain and Ingrid double teamed it, the monster flew back and tried charging at Ingrid, only for the Pegasus knight to dodge and finish it with Luin.
Dedue interposed as the wolf lunged, giving Flayn an opening to blast it with a Shine spell. The monster was about to lunge when Seteth swooped down and sliced it with his ax, knocking the giant wolf down.
The giant earthworm burrowed down and tried to lunge upwards at Lysithea, who dodged and cast Dark Spikes at it, the monster staggered but tried to lunge again when Leonie charged in and sliced it, cutting it down.
"This strategy seemed to have worked" Seteth observed as the rest of his group started taking down the remaining soldiers.
Yuri smirked"No kidding."
Rhea's group headed through the teleporter that led to an ancient, illuminated underground city. Shez and Byleth looked around for signs of trouble, while Dimitri and Catherine remained close to the archbishop.
"So this is where Arval was created, and I..." Shez trailed off, she didn't have any fond memories of the place.
A mage spotted the group"Intruders" he sent for one of the Agarthan soldiers stationed in to let Zadiria and Ricard know before moving in, about to cast his magic when Byleth slahed his new sword forward, the tip stretching to hit the Agarthan mage, knocking him down.
"It certainly is quite a blade, sure you don't need the rest of us?" Catherine teased.
Byleth shrugged"I'm just one man."
The group continued on until they encountered a Titanus and a squad of Agarthan soldiers. Zadiria teleported in front of the group"Well, well, fancy seeing you all stumble into Shambhala like this, I was certain you'd fall for Ricard's trap."
"Too bad for you, we had a trump card, Hapi and the others made a diversion" Shez quipped.
Zadiria shrugged"Oh, yes, that unlucky gal who has the ability to summon monsters when she sighs, thanks to the experiments that were conducted on her."
"Zadiria, is it?" Rhea's eyes narrowed"Whatever your ambition is, the goddess will render her judgment unto you for your and your people's crimes."
"Scary" Zadiria chuckled"And pleased to meet you, Archbishop of the Church of Seiros" she said sarcastically"In addition to this Titanus, I am bringing forth another old friend from the surface, you may even know him."
The brainwashed dark haired man who now had silvery streaks in his hair and a couple of mages stepped forward.
Edelgard paled"Hubert... What have they done to you?"
"Ask him anything you want, my spell is stronger than Thales's" The dark witch boasted"Shez, you're coming with me."
"I don't think so" The purple haired mercenary retorted.
Zadiria promptly teleported in front of Shez and grabbed her by the neck"You've no choice."
Dorothea cast a fireball, knocking Zadiria back and forcing her to relinquish her grip"Let Hubie go!"
"Gladly, but first" Zadiria smiled"Here's something else to keep you lot busy" she signaled her troops to activate the remaining Veskams, surprising the group"Win or lose, I still have a trick to deal with you beasts and that glorified Archbishop."
"We have to find the controls, after we take down that Titanus" Dimitri readied himself.
Shez nodded"I got this."
"Funny" Zadiria grabbed Shez and warped downwards"The rest of you see what you get!"
Dimitri promptly attacked the Titanus with his lance, dodging when it shot a laser at him. Dorothea tried her luck next, zapping it with Elthunder while Felix and Catherine rushed it with a powerful slash of their blades.
In the main room where Zadiria had been staying, the witch warped in with Shez, tossing her backwards"I've tried to break your spirits a couple of times before, so now it seems that regrettably, I must now break you."
Shez got up and readied her blades"So you've been planning to destroy the Kingdom, the Alliance and the Church now that the Empire is finished?"
"Only to cleanse the beast-infested world, after which I shall create a new order" Zadiria cackled"But fear not, I am not a monster, any civilians that I deem worthy of this new order I am creating will be incorporated. I will finish Lord Epimenides's noble work, once and for all."
Shez stood her ground"Now that is what I will have to really call BS on. You can't rule the continent if you destroy most of it. Dimitri, Byleth, Sothis, Claude, and even Rhea and Edelgard, I will keep them safe from the likes of you!"
"You would have been an excellent asset had you been on our side" Zadiria whispered, then said out loud"Its time for us to settle the score, I won't permit anyone to interfere with our fight." She then put a barrier on the door.
"Fine by me, its not as though I feel all alone" Shez readied her blades"I don't need anyone else, I can defeat you with my own two hands. And Arval's too, I still have what's left of her power."
"Bold words, child" Zadiria summoned a dark blade, her other hand crackling with dark magic"Let's decide once and for all which of our convictions hold true." She darted forward with a swing, which Shez promptly parried before kicking her opponent back.
The Titanius staggered and was about to lunge at Dimitri when Dorothea zapped it with Elthunder, giving Dimitri an opening to strike it down with Atrocity. Claude had meanwhile shot down a couple of mages.
"Hubert" Edelgard stood before the brainwashed mage"You know me, you cannot let yourself be a puppet for Zadiria's ilk."
The man clutched his head, groaning as the mask shone with dark power"Its no good... Zadiria's spell is too powerful..." He gasped"What's more, my crest... Was forcibly enhanced."
"Don't give up" Dorothea cried.
Hubert gasped as the dark magic formed dark aura orbs which were cast at the group, Dimitri got in front of the group to intercept the dark magic, which staggered him slightly.
"I know what Zadiria did" Rhea stood back"We have to destroy that dark artifact that is messing with his mind. If we keep fighting, we could weaken the spell sufficiently, its the only way to save him."
Hubert cast dark spikes, driving the group back. Dorothea cast fireballs to distract him while Edelgard and Ferdinand made their way forward. Felix had taken to fighting off a couple Agarthan soldiers in the meantime.
Edelgard thrust her shield at the brainwashed mage, knocking him backwards which caused a bit of the dark magic to break a part of the mask"Hubert, remember who you really are."
"Lady Edelgard..." The mage gasped, regaining enough of his free will that he can now resist the spell on his own"I am happy that you're safe... As for this accursed relic" he ripped what is left of the mask off"It can take the Agarthans' vile magic to the abyss for all I care" he cast it aside.
"Hubie" Dorothea was relieved.
Edelgard smiled"Welcome back, Hubert. I'm sorry that we couldn't come for you, sooner. And listen, I was wrong about the church, they are not as evil as I had initially believed. Rhea is not so different from me."
"You mean Thales lied to you about it?" Hubert was stunned.
"Zadiria is our enemy, now" Ferdinand explained"And she just nabbed Shez, we have to save her and kill the witch and the traitor, Lord Ricard."
Hubert groaned as he fell to his knees for a bit"Forgive me, my so-called enhanced crest is draining me of my strength every time that I fight. I don't know how long I will last" he stood up"But I will assist you in putting an end to Those Who Slither in the Dark once and for all."
"Thank you" Edelgard smiled at her friend while Dorothea hurried to administer an elixir to Hubert.
The group headed deeper into Shambhala, where Ricard and the rest of the Agarthan troops and a handful of Imperial Remnants waited. Ricard stood in front, smirking"Lady Rhea, Emperor Edelgard, King Dimitri, pleasure to see you."
"Why are you helping those twisted snakes, Ricard?" Edelgard demanded"I thought you would be aware of how dangerous they are to the people of Fodlan."
Ricard chuckled"Heh, Funny that you should ask, Lady Zadiria and I share the goal of eradicating war and the false Archbishop from Fodlan, you would be surprised by what lofty lengths the witch would go to achieve what she seeks. As fickle a creature as she is, she certainly has no qualms about using surface dwellers if it fulfills her purpose."
Hubert shook his head"The way Zadiria had assisted Thales in his takeover and abducted me, Ferdinand and Lady Edelgard, as far as I am concerned, she's no better than Thales and the rest of his ilk."
"She craves a new order and the death of the enemies of her people, nothing more" Ricard smiled wryly"And amongst the rabble today is the Ashen Demon? I knew from the rumors that you would be a formidable opponent for Berling and her pitiful band, but I must say I underestimated just how strong Jeralt's mercenaries are."
Byleth gripped the Sword of the Creator tightly"And in doing so, you tried to have me and my father killed. Berling certainly looked as though she was willing to do just that, though she was only doing her job of trying to stop my father's group and her mercenaries failed, I almost killed Shez when she was obviously not going to back down."
Ricard smiled, drawing his blade and hoisting his shield"I've said enough. Now, insects, we begin this prelude to a new order! When this is through, I shall slay Zadiria myself and then take over Fodlan!" With that, he send forward the remaining soldiers and activated the nearest Veskam.
"Crafty prick" Claude grunted, going to quickly shut down the weapon.
Edelgard parried as Ricard rushed her, Hubert took this chance to knock the traitorous noble backwards with Lightning. Rhea, Felix, Dorothea, Ferdinand and Catherine engaged the remaining soldiers while Dimitri went to back Edelgard and Hubert up.
Zadiria warped to the side to cast a flurry of dark spikes, which Shez dodged out of the way of by warping herself and retaliating with a dual slash. The witch dodged both attacks and retaliated with Hades, which the purple haired mercenary dodged and countered with a thrust, barely nicking her opponent.
"Not bad, not bad" Zadiria cast a couple of high powered Bolganoe spells, which Shez barely managed to dodge and counter with Blizzard, putting the flames out. Zadiria rushed forward with her dark blade and swung at Shez's chest, which Shez managed to parry with both her own blades, resulting in a deadlock.
Ricard snarled, signalling another Veskam to fire, prompting Dorothea to go find the device to shut that one off. Byleth came forward with a slash, which the blond parried with his own sword before kicking back. Dimitri took this opportunity to join in with a thrust, driving Ricard backwards.
"You gravel maggot!" Ricard yelled, slashing horizontally twice, driving Dimitri back in turn. Byleth slashed Ricard across his thigh, which was followed by a strike from Edelgard. Ricard staggered from both blows, snarling in frustration as he rushed in for a jab and a thrust at Edelgard, who parried and drove him back with a horizontal strike of her own.
A couple of Myrmidons attempted to back Ricard up, only to be intercepted by Dimitri and Felix.
Zadiria shot Shez with a blizzard spell, driving her back. Shez staggered, but recovered quickly enough to go in for a quick slash and a thrust. Zadiria warped again and tried coming at Shez from the side.
"Two can play that game" Shez dodged by warping herself and slashed Zadiria, staggering the witch.
"Good, you're more than living up to your legacy, despite choosing to fight against me and the rest of my people" Zadiria grunted, casting Hades. Shez narrowly dodged, going in for a combo, which Zadiria teleported out of the way of before coming at Shez with a downward strike, driving her back.
Dimitri and Felix took down the Myrmidons easily while Edelgard and Hubert kept Ricard and another Imperial General occupied. The blond noble sneered and slashed at Edelgard, which she dodged and retaliated with a horizontal strike, driving him back. Dimitri rushed forward and slammed his relic into Ricard's chest, staggering him.
Two remaining Agarthan dark mages started to cast their spells, only for Claude's arrows to come showering down, killing the mages, the Alliance leader had managed to shut down one of the Veskam.
"I'm not done yet" Ricard gasped, downing an elixir and thrusting at Dimitri, who dodged and retaliated with a couple quick horizontal strikes. Edelgard pitched in, striking Ricard's shoulder with her ax. Ricard narrowly avoided dropping his weapon and struck again at Edelgard, who dodged.
Claude jumped down from the platform where the controls to the veskam he shut down was and shot at Ricard, staggering the blond. Ricard scoffed as the arrow sunk into his shoulder and made to attack the Alliance Leader, only to be intercepted by Dimitri.
"This ends now" Rhea stated as she took down an Imperial Fighter.
Ferdinand rushed Ricard, driving him back. Ricard dodged and attempted to swing at the orange haired nobleman, only for Hubert to blast him with Dark Spikes.
"You think... That this is over?" Ricard gasped"The Agarthans still have one more... Trump card..."
"Whatever happens, we'll face it head on" Byleth stated.
Ricard tried one last time to get at Edelgard, only for Claude to shoot him with another arrow. Dimitri finished the job by darting forward and tearing down the madman with an Atrocity combo, causing the man to collapse from his wounds.
Rhea looked at the doorway ahead"Shez must be in there" she walked forward to dispel the barrier. As soon as she was done, Byleth and Dimitri hurried into the room beyond with Rhea, Hubert and Edelgard. Shez and Zadiria were still locked in combat.
"Hm?" Zadiria stepped back"I see Ricard wasn't as tough as his boasts. And you managed to free Hubert, I see."
"Its over, Zadiira, Those Who Slither in the Dark shall trouble Fodlan no longer" Edelgard held up her ax.
Zadiria merely responded by casting Dark Spikes at Edelgard and Rhea, prompting them to dodge. Shez seized her chance and slashed Zadira, wounding the witch.
"Ah..." Zadiria gasped, surprised as she placed a hand on her wound"Well done... Shez."
Shez stood over her fallen opponent, lowering her blades"I have a question for you, how can we extract the extra crests from Edelgard and Lysithea? Hubert also needs to have his crest returned to normal."
Zadiria stepped backwards, taking a few raspy breaths"The experiments were done solely to strengthen the test subjects. Even the most clever of Crest Scholars would have a time figuring out a way to reverse the process. I wanted to help Edelgard and Lysithea as the only Agarthan who had a conscience after the war between Agarthans and Nabateans in what would be known as the war of heroes, once the Empire had won" She then winced in pain"But my research is mostly incomplete, although I stored my notes in a room in the Imperial Palace. Plus, it wasn't easy going about it behind Thales's back."
Shez put away her blades and offered a hand"Zadiria... No, mother, why not continue your work on reversing the side effects of crest experimentation? I will give you my elixir. You could continue to pursue a noble path."
"You would forgive me?" Zadiria gasped"After what I've done...?"
"You still would face judgment for your crimes" Edelgard told the witch, bitterly"But I am grateful to have you cooperate, nonetheless."
Rhea closed her eyes in contemplation"Then perhaps you can atone with your life, but with restrictions."
Zadiria shook her head"I have shed my share of blood during the experiments done to create a vessel for my ancestor, Lord Epimenides." She looked one more time at Shez"Its high time we said our farewells, I only wish we could've had a normal relationship, if only the war of heroes never happened in the distant past and our ancestors got all high and mighty."
"You were goading me into killing you all this time, weren't you?" Shez asked, bitterly"I may not look upon you as fondly as I did on my adoptive mother, the woman who raised me. But we're still bound by blood, I kinda respect that."
Zadiria chuckled"How very much like your father you've become, Shez. But yes, the time of the Agarthans was bound to be over sooner or later, even if we had won, our civilization would never have truly recovered. We were few enough in number that it drastically weakened the gene pool." She knelt down, channeling her magic, looking up one more time"Take good care of her" she wheezed at Byleth, smirking as she summoned the remaining javelins of light.
"She's gonna destroy this city" Edelgard stepped back.
"We must hurry back" Dimitri turned to go.
Rhea promptly transformed into a mighty white dragon and flew to intercept as many of the javelins as she could, taking a few hits as she blasted a few while most of the group evacuated.
"Rhea, that is very reckless of you!" Sothis shouted from Byleth's body, using her power to warp Byleth onto the Immaculate One's back in order to knocked back as many of the javelins as they could, the sword taking minor damage as they worked.
Rhea had meanwhile taken quite a bit of damage and lowered herself onto the ground, exhausted. Nearby, Zadiria had been crushed by a pile of rubble, her eyes closed with a startling smile lingering on her face.
"She must have truly been happy to have me as her daughter, that just really complicates things" Shez shook her head"I still have really complicated feelings about this."
Byleth got down so that Rhea can change back. The Archbishop was weakened, taking a breath as she smiled at Byleth before drifting off, unconscious from the ordeal.
Edelgard looked at Rhea with mixed feelings.
"I will carry her" Byleth picked up Rhea's inert form gently.
Shez moved as much of the rubble as she could, grabbing Zadiria's body.
"What are you doing?" Edelgard asked.
"I'm going to give her a proper burial, that's what, its the least I can do" Shez replied, lifting Zadiria's body and just managing to move it from the rubble. The room was still shaking, so the group rushed out as fast as they could.
Finally got this thing up. I managed to pull quite a sob story for Zadiria, lame I know, its honestly not that different from what Engage did with Sombron and Zelphia. I again apologize if certain things made no sense, but again, that mind control spell in Azure Gleam was out of left field.
Well, I'm nearing the end of the road, just a couple more chapters. I know its been short so far, but what can I do?