More to discuss and more to reflect on. And more that I've probably messed up at.

Chapter 16 – New Plans, New Professors (Guardian Moon)

"Once again, I must congratulate you all for your efforts in yesterday's battle," Seteth said to the others as they sat in the war room of the monastery. "I must admit I was skeptical at our odds of success, but thanks to your efforts, Garreg Mach Monastery remains in our hands, for now. However, the real fight has only just begun…"

"Indeed," said Felix. "We may have won this time, but the Empire won't take this lying down. They'll be back, and in greater numbers next time."

"And with what remains of our forces, attempting to fend off the full might of the Empire will be extremely perilous," said Ferdinand. "We are in dire need of additional troops."

"We have additional forces that will arrive from other parts of Fódlan in a week or so," said Alois. "But even with them, we'd still be only looking at around 1,100 soldiers who can fight."

"Only that much?" asked Annette.

"Our forces across Fódlan have been hunted by the Empire and those loyal to them for five years," said Seteth. "When the war began, the bulk of the Central Church's army was fighting with the Western Church. The Empire, led by Count Bergliez, routed them near Arianrhod. Few survived that slaughter on either side of the Church, and many who escaped were hunted down in the following years."

The mention of his father made Caspar grimace. The others could tell he was still mourning the death of Randolph.

"Caspar, are you going to be alright?" asked Byleth.

Sighing, Caspar said, "I'll manage. It's just… I never thought I'd have to fight family… I guess it can't be helped, seeing as how I've left my own territory and all. But… if my father or brother get involved? I dunno… I really hope I won't have to fight them."

"So long as the Empire is our enemy, we cannot avoid fighting those we are acquainted with," said Ferdinand. "Though I suppose I have it easier since my house is no longer on the Empire's side."

"At least we won't have to fight anyone from the Opera," said Alicia as she cradled her left arm, which had been bound in a sling. Flayn had healed her fractured bones, but the brunette still felt quite tender from where she had crash-landed.

"Hmm, I don't think I care if my own house falls," said Linhardt.

"Gee, how lucky for you, Linhardt," Leonie said sarcastically.

"Well, I don't mind at all. Really!" said Bernadetta. "My father's already gone, and I had no friends back home anyway. Oh, but I do wonder how Mother is doing…"

"It does not give me happiness to know that the people of Brigid will be involved," said Petra.

"What do you mean, Petra?" asked Dorothea.

"My people have been forced into, er, vesselage under the Empire. They have already sent warriors to aid the Empire."

"That's 'vassalage', Princess of Brigid," corrected Constance. "Regardless, as the last remaining member of House Nuvelle, I will never throw my lot in with the Empire."

"I will not be throwing the lot in with the Empire either. I will be siding with you all."

Byleth and Dorothea smiled at this.

"As will I," said Lysithea. "My family may support the Empire, but I will not. I will not rest until Edelgard's regime has fallen!"

"Same here!" said Annette.

Felix nodded in agreement.

"Same here, too!" said Lana, with Cia giving an affirmative "Hmm~" and Brigitte giving a thumbs-up.

"You've got my support, and that of the rogues of Abyss," said Yuri. "Empire's not exactly good for business these days anyway."

"Each of our situations is unique," said Seteth. "What we share is companionship and the will to fight as one. Lady Eisner, you are the heart of our efforts. We will support you as best we can."

"Thank you, everyone," said Byleth.

"We still have to worry about our numbers," said Shamir. "Even if we had the Church's full army, we'd still be badly outnumbered by the Empire."

"So we'll get some help," said Anna, prompting everyone to turn to her. "We should send messengers to any lords we can trust in the Kingdom and Alliance and see if they're willing to pitch in. That sound good?"

"I agree," said Byleth. "We can't just sit idle."

The others voiced their agreement with Anna's suggestion, but then Dorothea said, "I don't know…"

"What's wrong, Dorothea?" asked Bernadetta.

"We're already dragging so many into our fight against the Empire. We won this time, but can we really win in the long run? If we fail, we'd be dragging down anyone else who aids us."

"Don't you think we've already covered that, Songbird?" asked Yuri. "We already know the risks. Anybody who joins us will know too."

Dorothea was about to protest this, but realized she wasn't going to get anywhere with it. Yuri was right. It was their decision to make.

"You're right… Sorry, everyone."

Turning back to Anna, Shamir asked, "So, Anna, who are you planning to ask?"

"Sadly, House Charon is out," said Catherine. "We can trust them, but they have no help to offer."

"What about the Loyalists?" asked Byleth. "Surely Dimitri would help us."

"I doubt it," said Felix. "The boar only cares about the death of the emperor, not the suffering of the people. You'd be wasting your time trying to reason with him."

"Felix!" Annette hissed.

"You know I'm right, Annette."

Before Annette could reply, Byleth said, "We'll send a messenger to the Loyalists in any event. If there's any chance that Dimitri will help us, we should take it."

Felix scoffed and said, "Then I hope you're ready to be disappointed."

"What about the Alliance?" asked Flayn. "Could we not ask Claude for his aid?"

"I don't know if it would be that simple," said Lysithea. "Claude has been trying to maintain a fragile standoff between his forces and those of House Gloucester so that the Empire does not invade in full force. If he sent us any assistance, Count Gloucester could seize the opportunity and weaken his position."

"Well, I know one person who'd definitely help us out," said Leonie. "Judith von Daphnel. Her house has stayed neutral in the war, and her territory's been untouched so far."

"Yeah, Judy would definitely help us out," said Catherine. "Hell, I'll speak to her myself about it. She and I go way back."

"I would appreciate that, Catherine," said Byleth.

"In the meantime," said Seteth, "it would be worthwhile for us to train our volunteers. They will need to be ready for the battles to come." Then, glaring at the four divas, he added, "That includes the four of you."

"Huh? Us?" Lana asked in confusion.

"We didn't do that bad, did we?" asked Alicia.

"If I may be so frank, Miss Melchiott," said Seteth, "your performance in yesterday's battle was embarrassing."

"H-Hey! It's not my fault! My Pegasus wouldn't listen to me!"

Seteth was about to speak again when Byleth interrupted, "Seteth, please. Criticizing them isn't helping." She then turned to the four divas and said, "I understand you all think you are capable enough for battle, but there's a difference between raw talent and proper training. Talent alone isn't enough against someone with years of experience and learning."

"So, who's gonna teach them everything they need to know? You, By?" asked Anna. "You've already got your hands full with everything else."

"I'll figure something out."

"Well, why not let the rest of us give them some instruction?" asked Alois. "I think I could show Miss Stark a thing or two about fighting with an axe."

"I would be honored to teach what I know about healing to Lana!" said Flayn.

"R-Really?" Lana asked in surprise.

"If the two of you are going to show the others how to fight, then I would be willing to assist," said Lysithea as she looked at Cia.

"Wait, you?" Cia said in confusion.

"Does the thought of learning from someone younger than you make you uneasy?"

"W-Well, I… Uh… Oh, whatever. Fine. I'll follow your lead."

"As for Miss Melchiott, I think it would be best if I instructed her personally," said Seteth. "And it appears I will have much to teach her."

As she looked back at Seteth, Alicia felt a cold chill run down her spine.

"Let us not forget our other volunteers," said Ferdinand. "They too will need to be trained for whatever the future holds. I will do my part for any who wish to join the ranks of our cavaliers."

The others voiced their agreement, offering their service and expertise in various combat roles.

Then, in a joking tone, Leonie said, "Guess you guys are gonna have to start calling me Professor Leonie. Hehehe…"

With a snort, Caspar said, "Professor Leonie?"

"Yeah, it'll be like we're the professors now," said Annette. "Felix, you should teach too!"

"You cannot be serious," Felix said in exasperation.

"I absolutely am! You could show our people so much about swordsmanship."

"An impeccable notion!" said Constance. "Any among our forces who wish to learn of sorcery may ask it of Professor Constance von Nuvelle. Ohohohoho~!"

"Sure, go right ahead, Shady Lady," Yuri said in amusement. "You'll have to spend a lot of time out in the sun, though."

This prompted a flustered "Erk!" from Constance, which prompted the others to chuckle at the thought of her teaching in her pessimistic state. Even Byleth found herself softly laughing.

"D-Don't ask me to teach!" said Bernadetta. "I'm still not really good with people."

"I am afraid I must also be asking for the not teaching," said Petra. "My skills are needed for hunting. We are needing more food."

"Count me out as well," said Linhardt. "Having to answer so many questions would be much too bothersome, and I have my research and… sleep to focus on." Linhardt yawned as he said this.

"I… don't think I'd be very good at teaching," Dorothea said uneasily.

"All the same," said Seteth, "we should take the opportunity to learn from each other and hone our skills. Even you, Lady Eisner, could afford to improve your skills.

"Me?" Byleth asked.

"I did not see you bearing the shield that Lady Rhea left you."

"I'm not used to fighting with one. They're heavy."

"Hence why I suggested you receive instruction on wielding one. One is never too old to learn something new."

"Seteth's right," said Alois. "I could also show Annette a thing or two about wielding a hammer if she's going to be using the Relic of House Dominic."

"You'd do that, Alois?" Annette said appreciatively.

"Absolutely!"

"Speaking of which," said Felix, "Lysithea, you could afford to learn a thing or two about wielding a blade."

"Me?" Lysithea said in confusion. "Do I look like someone who could handle a big broadsword?"

"A dagger, perhaps. You need to be able to defend yourself if someone reaches you. The enemy won't give you the luxury of time for your spells."

"I see your point."

"So, By? How does that sound?" asked Anna.

"I… appreciate the assistance," said Byleth.

…

"Wasn't that nice of them?" Dorothea asked Byleth later that day. "Offering to do some of the teaching in your stead. That's something I never thought I'd see."

"Yeah… me neither," Byleth with a hint of disappointment.

"What's wrong? Aren't you glad that you'll get some more time to yourself?"

"It's not that. It's just… when I was teaching you all five years ago, I… I really enjoyed it. It made me happy to know you were all learning and becoming stronger."

"Oh… now I get it." Dorothea grinned and said, "You're disappointed because you wanted to do all of the teaching by yourself, right?"

"That's…" Byleth sheepishly sighed and said, "Well, maybe. But I know it's better this way. I can't lead an army and do all the teaching on my own. We all must work together if we're going to prevail against the Empire. General Randolph's army was just the beginning."

Byleth's last sentence soured Dorothea's mood. She had been trying to take her mind off the battle. She turned with a sigh.

"Is something wrong?" asked Byleth.

"It's…" Sighing again, Dorothea said, "So many people are dead because of us. Men and women with friends and loved ones back in the Empire. And we killed them… we slaughtered them… just to keep our friends and loved ones safe. I know there was no other way, but still… does that really make it right? Does our survival justify all the killing? General Randolph's army, once we gained the upper hand, were put in the same situation we were in hours before. They were just struggling to survive, and we massacred them."

"Dorothea…" Byleth took a seat next to Dorothea as the diva sat down on a bench.

"I know they were soldiers. I know they had probably already killed people who begged for mercy. But how merciful were we to them? We subjected so many of them to a horrible, painful death, and we called it necessary. We said it was the right thing to do. But in the end, we're just like them. Murderers who think we're killing for a 'just' cause."

Byleth wanted to object, but she hesitated to speak. Dorothea's words, however harsh, were undeniably true.

"I'm no better," Dorothea said in self-loathing. "I was begging Randolph to let us leave in peace, and then hours later I was trying to kill him while his men burned to death around me. Nine of his people are dead at my hand."

"You're right, Dorothea…" Byleth said after a short pause.

"Huh?"

As Dorothea looked at her, Byleth took a deep breath and said, "You're absolutely right, Dorothea. We slaughtered them, the same as they wanted to slaughter us. And we're telling ourselves that it was for a good cause. But… that's what makes war so terrible. We have the best intentions, yet our actions lead to further bloodshed and death. And I… I wish there was some other way. I wish we didn't have to kill Randolph and his army."

"Then why? Why do you plan to keep fighting the Empire?! Why do you plan to keep adding to the piles of bodies across Fódlan?!"

"Because I want the fighting to end! I want there to be peace again. And I want for those who survive to learn from this tragedy, so that Fódlan will never have to repeat it again. But we can't have peace without sacrifice."

Byleth then stood up and walked over to a nearby window. She looked down at the courtyard below, watching as Ferdinand and Leonie demonstrated various spear techniques to the soldiers and volunteers. Several were still in bloodied bandages from the previous day.

"I know you want peace without bloodshed, Dorothea, but I can't make that happen, even with the power of the Goddess within me. I want it as badly as you do. But here I stand, leading this tiny army against the legions of the Empire. I look down at those men and women, wanting to keep them safe, and knowing I'm going to send so many of them out to die. All I can do is… is have faith that it will be worth it in the end. All the death, and sacrifice, for peace."

Dorothea opened her mouth to speak, but as she did, she looked at Byleth and saw thin tears starting to stream down the archbishop's face, her green eyes wide open. Dorothea's words died in her throat as she witnessed her dear friend's pain.

"I'm sorry, Dorothea. I'm sorry that this is my answer. But it's the only one I can give."

Dorothea said nothing to this, knowing Byleth meant no ill toward her. Pangs of guilt filled the diva's heart at forcing her teacher to answer such difficult questions.

"You don't need to fight beside us, Dorothea. I won't force you to–"

"No, no, Byleth," Dorothea interrupted. "You're right. We can't have peace if we don't fight for it. I just… I just didn't want to accept that. But you need me out there. You all need me. So please, stop telling me not to fight anymore."

Byleth froze for a moment at hearing these words. Then, looking at Dorothea, her tears began to flow far more strongly as she knelt before the diva.

"I'll be there for you, Byleth," said Dorothea, "so we can end this war."

Now truly crying, Byleth said, "I'm so sorry, Dorothea… Thank you…"

Dorothea said nothing more to Byleth as the archbishop wept with guilt.

Try putting yourself in Byleth's shoes. You were trying your utmost to keep your close friend from joining you in your crusade against seemingly hopeless odds, and now she's thrown her lot in with your army. That's gotta suck, right?

Dorothea's highlighting of their hypocrisy was very hard to write, especially while doped up on painkillers and dealing with tension headaches. Seriously, this back issue of mine fucking sucks. But, on the bright side, some of the medication I've been prescribed is working now, and I've been given some physiotherapy techniques to get started. I just have to hope they'll fix the issue so I don't need to dope myself up for months and screw up my writing (not to mention my liver). But having chronic tension headaches is just fucking awful.

Also, in response to the guy whose disrespectful reviews I've been removing, I can see why you think I'm screwing up Byleth's character. In your mind, she's supposed to be an unstoppable warrior and, basically, a living god. While that may be the case in the game, I am deliberately trying to NOT have her be this invincible warrior who could win an entire war solo. That'd be making her a huge Mary Sue. I am instead trying to make her more human, more relatable, and thus weaker than she is reputed to be. So, I'm sorry if you don't like that, but it's my decision to not make her invulnerable or unbeatable. That doesn't mean she can't be a badass. In fact, making her fallible and vulnerable makes her triumphs all the more worthwhile.

So PLEASE, try to be a little more respectful with your anonymous reviews. Otherwise, I'll be turning on the review moderation feature, and you'll have to log in to post your criticisms.

For the next couple of chapters, we're going to once again look at the Imperial side, specifically following Ladislava and her Black Eagles. It'll be an opportunity to flesh them out a little, so I hope to do it right.