I am just about done here with this fic, wish I could submit this as potential DLC idea for the continuation of Azure Gleam's storyline, though even if that were possible, I'd probably have to do something similar for Scarlet Blaze and Golden Wildfire if they did consider making DLC continuations, not that Scarlet Blaze leaves much more to work with than Azure Gleam, and Golden Wildfire could potentially have things not end well for Claude. Not to mention they'd have to find a replacement actor for Ferdinand. And they'd likely insist on make the stories more bittersweet due to not wanting a golden ending, oh well, not like I can really do anything except mess around in fanfics.
I realized I may have gotten my facts mixed up last chapter regarding Shambhala's location, Goneril probably was the location of that area, I haven't played Three Houses in too long. I think I accidentally spelled Gloucester wrong a few times.
Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Fire Emblem.
Shades of Fodlan's History
The group barely made it out of Shambhala which largely collapsed, taking most if not all of the remaining Those Who Slither in the Dark affiliates with it. Above ground, Seteth, Jeralt and the others who remained behind had managed to defeat the Imperials and Agarthans on the surface. Seteth looked over at the group and paled as he saw Rhea's unconscious form"Lady Rhea!"
"She's wounded" Byleth informed the dark green haired man"In her last moments, Zadiira made a final indirect attack on us with the javelins of light, Rhea took the bulk of the javelins for us."
Seteth nodded"At least Those who Slither in the Dark are no more, but we should get back to the monastery quickly, Rhea needs rest and proper treatment. Shez, may I ask why you are bearing that Agarthan woman's corpse?"
Shez looked down"She is, or was my birth mother, the least I can do is give her a burial in the village I spent my childhood in. The woman who raised me was more of my mother than Zadiria was, but Zadiria told me before she died that she wanted to find a way to reverse the side effects of the crest experimentation if Adrestia had won. There are notes on it at the Adrestian Imperial palace. We may not have gotten direct answers, but maybe we can help Lysithea and Edelgard. But for all I know, Zadiria really was a nice woman before the war of heroes, and maybe Epimenides himself used to be kind, as Arval mostly was" she smiled sadly.
"I will send for someone to have the notes brought to the monastery for examination, then have Hanneman research the subject and work out a way to remove Lysithea and Edelgard's extra crests" Seteth stated.
"I'll take Zadiria's body to that village for you" Claude told Shez"If that's where you want her buried."
Shez nodded"It is, and thank you" she then told Claude the apparent whereabouts of the village.
Claude took Zadiria's corpse from Shez and rode on his wyvern to the village"See you all back at the monastery!" he called.
Shez, Dimitri and the others started heading back to the monastery. Edelgard took the time to bring Hubert up to speed on the events that transpired while he was in captivity. The dark haired mage was astounded"Had we the wrong idea this whole time?"
Edelgard shrugged"It seems so, the fact that Rhea risked her life for everyone has convinced me that she is not as evil as I thought she was. I can't even begin to tell you how relieved I am that you're okay, Hubert. Most of us thought you were dead, especially your sister."
"When Thales enacted his coup, I must admit that I half-expected it, especially after we ousted him from Enbarr" Hubert sighed"I only regret that I failed to take proper precautions in case he tried anything."
Edelgard held his hand"It wasn't your fault, and now all of Fodlan can enjoy true peace now that Those Who Slither in the Dark are no more, and yet I am still confused about the church."
"Either way, its not like we're getting off lightly" Hubert commented.
"Indeed not, Lady Rhea has decided Edelgard will spend the rest of her life in Faerghus, and I decided her and some other volunteers will serve as the Black Eagle Penal unit" Dimitri explained"Petra will be allowed to return to her people, and I'm considering having Ferdinand help with managing the former imperial territories."
Hubert was astounded"If its to be a part of our atonement... So long as I am with Lady Edelgard, you will hear no qualms from me. I assume that Fodlan now mostly is under the control of the kingdom and the church?"
Dimitri nodded"It is. And once Rhea recovers, perhaps she could tell us more about the crests and relics. Also, we've learned recently that the goddess walks amongst us, inhabiting the body of who we knew as the Ashen Demon."
"I see" Edelgard took a moment to process it"I don't suppose she'd be willing to tell her side of things."
"We'll see" Dimitri said.
Unknown to the group, what was left of Ricard's soldiers and a couple Agarthans who had barely survived the battle were gathered around a large capsule among the rubble of Shambhala.
"The egotistical beast Ricard and Lady Zadiria are no more" murmured one of the two mages"Yes we now must activate our last trump card, we can still carry out Thales's plans."
"Are you sure?" An imperial archer asked.
"Silence" The Agarthan, Zane scoffed as he uttered a spell to stir up the power of the crest of the being within the metal coffin in the capsule, the room shook once more as the lights on the metal coffin lit and a pair of burly arms broke the coffin's chains, a man with white hair and a beard, a flowing jacket with pants, an exposed chest and spikey armor pieces that covered his shoulders emerged, he also bore a cape.
"Seiros" the man growled.
"Nemesis" Zane spoke"We've managed to reawaken you, for you still have a purpose: The Church of Seiros, the Alliance and Faerghus."
The resurrected man's eyes narrowed"Seiros still lives, then."
"As does the Ashen Demon and that meddlesome mercenary, Shez" Zane replied"And I now present to you this" he nodded to one of the remaining soldiers who walked forward, bearing a dark version of the Sword of the Creator.
Nemesis took the blade in his hand"We ready ourselves, now."
Zane chuckled"Indeed. We've taken liberties of also reviving the Ten Elites using ancient magic, they will be the vanguard of your new army, I and my associates will naturally accompany you. I will assemble what's left of my soldiers. The Monastery is our objective, along the way is where we destroy all in our path.."
Nemesis smiled wickedly"Then I will have my revenge."
A week had passed since the group returned to the monastery, Rhea was taken to her room on the third floor of the Cathedral where Mercedes and a couple of clerics tended to her. Shez, Byleth, Dimitri and Edelgard spent their time recuperating and training here and there. Claude had returned the day before to let Shez know that Zadiria's body is now buried next to her husband's, the villagers had decided that its only right, for Zadiria must have loved Shez enough to allow her husband to spirit her away from Shambhala so she wouldn't have to go through anymore experimentation.
Dimitri, Edelgard and Claude had since elected to remain in the monastery until Rhea recovers, mostly spending some time training or just generally hanging out. At the courtyard, Shez, Dimitri, Byleth, Leonie and Jeralt were currently enjoying some tea together, Byleth had had to repair the Sword of the Creator using leftover Argathm Ore. Alois and Dedue joined them a moment later.
"So what do we do once things have settled down?" Leonie asked.
"It certainly means less work for us mercenaries" Shez admitted"But its not like I have any plans on abandoning House Blaidyd's militia."
"Glad to hear it" Dimitri said"Besides, there's I'm sure there's still plenty of work available for everyone."
Alois chuckled"No doubt about that, its not as though we're all gonna DIE of boredom."
Jeralt bit back a laugh at Alois's bad joke"That's true."
"And how are things between you and Catherine? I heard that you two have been sparring together recently" Shez commented at Dimitri.
The king thought about his reply for a second"Well, she and I started courting recently, although we've yet to discuss how we might proceed with our relationship. She said she may return to Fhirdiad if she can."
"Sounds like your majesty has a crush on her" Leonie teased.
Dimitri cleared his throat in embarrassment and finished his tea.
A knight came into the courtyard shortly after"King Dimitri, Lady Rhea has reawaken and has summoned everyone to the cathedral."
"Oh, good" Dimitri was relieved as he stood up"We'll be there."
The group headed into the cathedral where Rhea, Claude, Edelgard, Seteth, Flayn and the former Black Eagles and the rest of the former Golden Deer and Blue Lions waited. Rhea's wounds were mostly healed. Catherine and Cyril stood close to her.
"How are you, Lady Rhea?" Dimitri asked.
"It would've been worse if not for my mother and Byleth" Rhea replied grimly.
Edelgard looked at Claude, then glanced at Rhea"There's something that has been on my mind recently since you helped us, what was the meaning behind the Crest System, and why did you continue to uphold it?"
"The time for secrets has passed" Sothis spoke to Rhea through Byleth's body"And you already spoke a little about Nemesis and the so-called Sword of the Creator, Seiros. Everyone: There is something I would like to explain. Whatever history you'd been told thus far, it has all been a lie."
Everyone else except Rhea, Flayn and Seteth was shocked, some murmuring to themselves. Dimitri recomposed himself after a moment"May I ask what you meant, Lady Sothis?" It was awkward to hear the Goddess speaking through a man's body if he was honest.
"Just Sothis is fine" Sothis responded gently"I've had time to contemplate on whether I really wanted to let the truth behind Fodlan's history to be known, especially now that we no longer have to worry about the Agarthans, who you know as Those who Slither in the Dark. Rhea, would you care to explain why you named Nemesis as a hero?"
Rhea reluctantly nodded"Nemesis was nothing more than a common bandit, one who served as a tool for the Agarthans' nefarious desires. Perhaps further storytelling is necessary for all of you to understand what I am saying: A thousand years ago, Saint Seiros and her compatriots Cichol, Cethleann, Idech and Macuil fought against Nemesis, who slew Sothis and desecrated her body, it was turned into what is now known as the Sword of the Creator."
"What?" Byleth was shocked as he regained control over himself"But then why did you give it to me?"
"Because" Rhea said softly"I had to be certain as to whether you truly wielded the power of the goddess. The sword is not the only one of its kind that the Agarthans had made and given to Nemesis and the ten Elites, the ten elites were, in truth, his allies and fought alongside the Agarthans against Seiros and the Empire, which had just been founded. My name at that time was Seiros, the relics you wield were created from the bodies of the Nabateans, the Children of the Progenitor God."
The group present were very surprised, some even a bit disturbed to hear this. Edelgard and Claude were even more surprised at this revelation, so Rhea was also a victim of Those who Slither in the Dark.
"So that means" Hubert took a moment to process this"The Church of Seiros was never truly evil, merely victims of circumstances largely beyond their control."
Edelgard nodded grimly"The true villains this whole time was Those Who Slither in the Dark. I see now that I was too hasty in my judgment. But then why was Nemesis called a hero if he truly was nothing more than a pawn and a thief?"
"At the time, when I, as Seiros rewrote history, Nemesis and the Ten Elites were viewed by many among the people as heroes, and thus so had to keep this in mind to ensure a lasting peace" The Archbishop replied"I also did it to encourage the use of crests among the descendants of the elites. I allowed them to keep the relics, too, despite them having been made of parts of the deceased Children of the Goddess, I know this because I am among the last few of the aforementioned Children of the Goddess."
Claude was at a loss for words for a moment, he couldn't believe that he misjudged Rhea so badly"I suppose if the same happened to my people, I'd be very salty about that, too."
Edelgard felt a twinge of sympathy for Rhea, her own siblings and herself had been experimented on by the vile Agarthans"But still, the crests have caused a lot of suffering. Too many had their lives ruined."
"It was the nobles' own choice to let things get out of hand like they did, Rhea merely encouraged the usage of crests, nothing more" Dimitri pointed out"Either way, perhaps we need not discard the Crest system entirely, yet still" he looked at Adreadbhar"To think these relics had been crafted from an ancient race, the very bodies of innocents" he sighed"I do not know if it feels right to keep using them any longer."
"Thunderbrand has served me well" Catherine said, feeling a bit guilty herself"But now that I know the truth behind its creation... I don't want to even think of what the spirits of the ancient Nabateans think of us."
Rhea placed a hand on Catherine's shoulder, then addressed Dimitri"Even should you cease to use the relics and instead bury the remnants of the innocent beings from which they were made, thieves may once again try and steal them for their power. There is no guarantee they will truly be protected from being disturbed again. To maintain stability, the people must know that the descendants of the Elites watch over the land."
"I think we should keep this truth to ourselves, at least the part about the Elites" Rodrigue suggested.
Dimitri nodded"I agree, this information will probably again throw Fodlan into chaos. The Crest System will be altered so that it is no longer required, which means that that crests and the associated relics will no longer be viewed as necessary, anyone can become a leader, regardless if they bore a crest or not. And most certainly anyone can prove their worth, even without crests, Miklan demonstrated as such when he died in battle. And Shez would be no more or less capable if she did not have the power given to her by Arval."
"I wouldn't have lasted as long without Arval, though" Shez murmured"Byleth would have killed me, and it probably would've been Jeralt and his mercenaries who saved you, Claude and Edelgard from the bandits who attacked you instead of me, Dimitri."
"And events in Fodlan may or may not have transpired differently in that case" said Rhea thoughtfully.
Just then, Nadar and a couple Alliance Troops entered the room"Hey, we got bad news from House Goneril!"
"What?" Claude turned"What happened?"
"An unknown force has steamrolled right on through the alliance like it was no trouble, Holst and some troops went to intercept them after being warned by Count Glouster, but they were largely wiped out and Holst was badly hurt" Nadar informed them.
Hilda paled"Oh no!"
"Did you see what they consisted of? Sounds like they are too organized to be Imperial or Agarthan remnants" Claude inquired.
Nadar nodded"Yeah, and I had to ditch a few of Almryan troops just to get out of there and warn you guys, they are slowing the unknown army down, but not by much. Their leader seemed to be a beefy guy wielding a dark version of that interesting looking blade the Ashen Demon has there."
Rhea frowned"By that description, this can mean but one thing..."
"You mean that Nemesis guy is somehow back from the dead?" Shez asked.
"Its too soon to know for certain, but its very likely" Rhea replied"The Agarthans had immense technology and magics."
"Is Holst going to be okay?" Claude asked.
Nadar nodded"Yeah, I think so. I sent a carrier pigeon to the Apothecary in Enbarr, she and, a couple soldiers and a cleric are on their way to provide relief. And by the unknown army's path patterns, they may be on their way to Garreg Mach."
Seteth was not surprised"Most likely Nemesis would want revenge on Seiros on account of his defeat a thousand years go. Possibly, someone from Those Who Slither in the Dak reanimated his corpse."
"That guy's gonna have to pay for what he did to my brother" Hilda said, angry at the encroaching army.
"And we'll do just that, we can't let that zombie run loose" Claude piped up.
"If we hurry, we can intercept that rogue force at the Caledonian Plateau" Rhea said"I will come on this mission."
"But Lady Rhea" Seteth protested"You only just recovered from your injuries."
"That may be so" The Archbishop admitted"But I cannot stand idly by. Seteth, you, Flayn and Catherine may accompany me for this battle."
Edelgard shrugged"I'm coming along, too. Hubert, you will join us as a Tactician. Caspar, Dorothea, Ferdinand, I am counting on you as well."
"On my honor" Ferdinand nodded.
"I shall do what I can" Hubert nodded.
Dimitri looked at Shez, Jeralt and Byleth, who silently nodded to the unspoken question and looked at Rhea"Our mercenary friends and I shall join you, too. I also want Sylvain and Ingrid to join us for the battle."
"I'm up for it, myself" Felix grunted.
"I'm coming" Dedue said.
"That monster will be as good as undead when we're done" Alois joked"I'm coming along."
Claude smiled"Hilda, Leonie, Lysithea and I are coming, too. Might wanna bring Jeritza and Mercedes as well."
Rhea nodded in agreement"Then its decided, we must destroy this encroaching army and bring peace back to Fodlan once and for all."
The group got ready and headed out of Garreg Mach towards the Caledonian Plateau. When they arrived, they saw a powerful force of ten warriors, a couple of them mages and a certain white-haired so-called liberation king. The last of the Agarthans and a few imperial renegades were among their number.
Rhea surveyed what could be seen of the ten fighters and the mostly undead army"The Ten Elites, they also appear to have been resurrected, but to a limited degree."
Shez looked at them"They certain mean business."
"Are they for real though?" Claude was still a bit skeptic"I mean, they lived a thousand years ago."
Hubert observed the land"The area seems to be covered by a toxic swamp. We'll want to tread lightly."
"They seem to be using dark versions of our relics" Hilda said, riding on her Wyvern.
"It'll be difficult to get at the enemy's leader" Byleth commented.
"That swamp doesn't appear to be natural though" Hubert pointed out"One of the mages here must have created it. If we take out that mage, we can cross safely, and even then, we'll want to eliminate the so-called Ten Elites before we can get to their leader."
"A few of us will want to mop up the remaining soldiers they brought" Jeralt pointed out.
Rhea nodded"Then this is what we'll do: Most of us will attack the Elites' abominable living corpses and destroy them. Shez, Leonie, Jeralt, Alois, you got the remaining soldiers. I will distract Nemesis by challenging him to a rematch."
"Are you sure?" Byleth asked.
"There's no need to fear for my safety, I have defeated him before" Rhea replied, reassuringly"Nemesis!" She called out to the encroaching army"I will send you back to the grave!"
"Seiros" Nemesis growled, marching towards the Archbishop.
Edelgard, Catherine, Dimitri, Felix, Sylvain, Ingrid, Seteth, Flayn, Caspar, Ferdinand, Hilda, Byleth, Dedue and Lysithea made their way forward to engage the Ten Elites while Shez and her group went to attack the remaining enemy soldiers.
"Oh ho, so they think they can outsmart us, eh?" The Agarthan mage, Zane sneered, readying a dark aura ball. Jeralt and Leonie narrowly avoided it while Alois got up close to a couple Imperial Lancers and cut them down. Shez darted at a nearby archer and took him down.
Zane warped back to cast Arc Thunder, which Shez jumped back from. Jeralt rushed forward and ran Zane down with a powerful thrust, killing him.
Rhea and Nemesis made their way to each other, blades at the ready. The Archbishop raised her blade as Nemesis made a swing at her, she dodged and swung back. Nemesis jumped back and tried to swing his sword like a whip, the blade extending. Rhea narrowly ducked, racing to counter attack with a slash, Nemesis intercepted her with a kick, knocking her back.
What appeared to be Fraldarius and Charon charged at Felix and Catherine, the two of them jumped back. Ingrid joined in by rushing and slamming Fraldarius with Luin. Felix blocked at Charon made a few slashes at him and slashed back, Byleth immediately charged forward and slashed Charon, knocking him down.
Lamine cast a spell at Edelgard, who narrowly dodged, Caspar rushed forward to punch at Lamine, who narrowly dodged it and razed him back with her spell. Flayn hurried to heal Caspar while Seteth flew in to cut down the zombified Lamine, dispelling the swamp.
Rhea regained her balance just as Nemesis tried to rush her with a punch, dodging to counter with a stab of her blade, driving the zombie king of liberation back. Nemesis grunted and whip-slashed at Rhea again, the Archbishop dodged and retaliated with a kick, staggering him for a second.
Catherine meanwhile was dueling Daphnel while Lysithea disposed of Dominic with Hades. Felix and Hilda made their way towards Gautier while Dimitri attacked Glouster, thrusting him once he had an opening.
Catherine dodged as Daphnel made a swing at her, countering with a couple of quick slashes of her down, taking down the zombie. Gautier rushed Felix, who narrowly dodged, getting slightly grazed. Hilda swung her relic weapon, knocking Gautier off his zombie horse.
Blaidyd seemed to notice Dimitri and rushed at him, Dark Adreadbhar ready. Dimitri dodged and jabbed back at the shadow of his ancestor. Dedue stepped forward to strike at Blaidyd, who narrowly dodged.
Claude shot Riegan"Heh, not so hot are you?"
Reigan narrowly dodged, firing back. Claude dodged it and maneuvered his Wyvern closer to the clouds, firing two downward shots from Failnaught, piercing Riegan and wearing him down enough for Hilda to join in with a horizontal strike, knocking down the zombie.
Nemesis thrust his blade at Rhea, who narrowly dodged and swung at him twice. Nemesis blocked and kicked again, prompting Rhea to jump back and sucker punch him in the gut, knocking the zombie king back enough for her to get a swing at him, slashing him in the thigh, staggering him slightly.
Goneril was about to join in the fight when a voice rang out"Hey! You zombies think you got me down for good?" It was Holst, he was still injured, but joining him was Cassidy, a couple of healers and some soldiers from House Goneril.
"Holst, you okay?" Hilda called.
"Yeah, not about to let myself miss this fight" Holst readied his blade"I just got an elixir and had a mend stave administrated so I'm good."
"Be careful" the Apothecary said, standing back.
Goneril lunged at Holst, who narrowly dodged and swung, cutting down the zombie. Holst and the soldiers then went to assist Shez, Jeralt, Leonie and Alois in taking down the remaining troops that Nemesis had brought.
"Thanks for the backup" Shez commented, taking down an imperial soldier before going to help Rhea, Byleth was following suit.
Luin, the zombified pegasus knight flew at Ingrid, prompting the Pegasus knight to dodge, Sylvain came at Luin, driving the zombie back. Claude pitched in by firing an arrow, shooting Luin down.
Blaidyd jabbed at Dedue, who parried, distracting the zombie enough for Dimitri to strike at the zombie twice and stab him. The king sighed"Never thought I'd get to fight a corpse of my ancestor."
Nemesis knocked Rhea back with a kick of his own and was about to slash at her again when Byleth and Shez came at him. The Liberation King growled"Weaklings, none of you have the courage to face me in lone combat."
"Coming from the guy who destroyed my body while I was sleeping and had a sword made from my corpse and only got stronger because of the Agarthans, the pot just called the kettle black" Sothis retorted.
"Impossible" Nemesis gasped upon hearing the voice, he then noticed Shez's empowered self"Epimenedies... how?" He was confused upon seeing the markings on Shez's face.
Shez readied her blades"You must have gone senile, Epimenides was a guy, and the power you see is what Arval gave me" she readied herself. Nemesis growled and swung his blade at all three of his opponents. Shez, Byleth and Rhea dodged. The two mercenaries went in for an X-strike, slashing Nemesis across the chest, staggering the former bandit enough for Rhea to rush in and cut him vertically, fatally injuring the zombie-liberation king. Nemesis toppled over onto his back, his body once again becoming lifeless.
To the surprise of the rest of the group, with Nemesis dead again, the bodies of the ten elites disintegrated into dust. Rhea surveyed the battlefield"Well done, all of you. Nemesis is once again vanquished."
"He wasn't so tough" Shez boasted.
Dimitri and the others caught up. The blond king smiled"So now, a new dawn can truly begin for all of Fodlan."
"No arguments there" Claude agreed"All that's left for me to do is return to Alymria. From there, I'll do what I can to help improve relations between the Alymrians and the people of Fodlan."
"Let us return to the monastery, I'm sure everyone has earned a celebratory feast for once again returning peace to our fair continent" Rhea smiled, then turned to lead the way home to the monastery.
Sorry if the battle seemed rushed, too many characters. Plus, Nemesis was a fairly straightforward final boss once the Elites went down in Three Houses's Verdant Wind route. As for Rhea and Nemesis's rematch, I felt that was deserved. Last chapter will be the epilogue. I hope its been enjoyable. I even through Holst in for the heck of it. I also mostly forgot about Alois, now that I think about it, so I included him last minute.