Part 1: White Clouds

The Power of Ki

"Is….. that all of them?"

"Yeah, I think so."

Both Sitri and Jeralt were panting hard and sitting on the ground which was littered about with corpses. They had managed to dispatch every one of those robed figures that had attacked the Knights of Seiros. Jeralt sighed, as he sheathed his sword and adjusted his gauntlets. They had come loose overtime from the constant punches and swinging of his sword. But he had one thing on his mind. Who the hell are these guys?

He got up off of the ground and spotted the corpse of one of the figures and decided to try and see if there was anything that could give any leads to the identification of the attackers. He kneeled down and started searching the pockets of this corpse before he found a medallion on his person. It was in a teardrop shape but it was the symbol emblazoned on it that made him concerned. An arch surrounding a circle with an eyeball in the middle. There were many fine details on this medallion. But this unsettled Jeralt to no end. "This is some creepy cult stuff…. was it because we are part of the Church? Is that why we were attacked?"

That's when he heard a groan and the sound of something hitting the ground. He wheeled around to see that Sitri had collapsed and was coughing violently. Her adrenaline was completely gone and now her condition had caught up with her. Jeralt dropped the medallion and quickly ran over to her, kneeling on the ground. He rested her head in his lap as she managed to get her breathing under control. "That was….. a very risky stunt you pulled Sitri. You know how bad your condition is. But you came anyway?"

She let out a weak cough and smiled up at him. "I…. didn't want anything to happen to you. I care about you, you know? If I didn't get here on time…"

"Hey, none of that speculating. What matters is that we're alive right?" He gave a smile to Sitri who turned away blushing. But she smiled back as a feeling in her chest came up. A feeling that she had for a while but couldn't say. Maybe now is the right time to say it.

He then pumped his fist and smiled. "And hey, what would I do without my best friend huh?"

…What?

Sitri sat up with her hair covering her eyes as Jeralt was confused at the sudden change of mood. "Sitri? Are you-"

WHACK!

Jeralt suddenly found his head buried in the dirt with a large throbbing lump on his head from where Sitri hit him with a very annoyed look. "You are so insufferable Jeralt Eisner!"

A new voice entered the scenery that was booming across the fields. "The Knights of Seiros have arrived- what in the name of the Goddess happened here?!"

Sitri turned around to see Alois and the Knights of Seiros had arrived, and they were looking around at the amount of corpses that littered the battlefield. Alois stepped forward and gave a stern look. "Miss Sitri, that was a very foolish move you made by coming to the battlefield. You know your illness so kindly don't get in trouble-"

He froze seeing the deep scowl on Sitri's face as she held her hand out behind her and fired a Ki attack that caused a massive explosion and completely vaporised the robed figures. The Knights all cowered in fear as Sitri took off her scouter and glared at Alois. "Do I look like I'm in trouble? I did your job in half the time. Now get out of my way."

She barged past Alois who just stared at her retreating figure, wondering what's wrong with her. That's when he heard muffled groaning and saw Jeralt trying to get his head out of the ground which caused Alois to panic. "Captain Jeralt! Are you okay?"

He sprinted over to his Captain and hoisted his head out of the ground as Jeralt was spitting out dirt that had gotten into his mouth. "I'm fine. Though I'm wondering what I said to piss off Sitri."

"Well if I may Captain, it is possible she is experiencing the woman's monthly routine-"

Alois didn't even get to finish his sentence as a stone collided with his head sending him tumbling to the ground. Sitri was glaring in the distance at the two as she turned her nose up and marched away, barging past the cowering knights. Alois groaned rubbing his head as a large lump formed on it just like Jeralt. "The scoundrel! She attacked the Knights of-"

"Let it go Alois. I'm not sure what I did, but I know it's best not to antagonise her when she's angry. Sometimes I forget she can wipe out the entirety of Fódlan."

The pair turned around to see the scorched battlefield, with no bodies in sight which didn't bode well with figuring out the identity of the attackers. Alois rubbed his limp and groaned. "That woman just made this investigation impossible to figure out!"

"I have a feeling that this isn't the last that we will be seeing of them. Though, I guarantee that they will be more hesitant when it comes to attacking out of the blue like that. We do have Sitri to thank for this, as we would've been dead if she didn't show up."

"Why Captain, you sure do seem to respect her a lot." Alois said with a wide grin as he jabbed his Captains ribs. "Do I sense a wedding in the future?"

Jeralt cheeks went red at that suggestion as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Don't be ridiculous Alois. I'm merely just acknowledging her skills and strength."

"But your cheeks were red!"

"Drop it Alois. That's an order."

Meanwhile, Sitri had stormed off to the carriage that had Lady Rhea in it who did not look happy at the moment. Both of the women inside glared at each other as Sitri spoke. "I'm not in the mood for a lecture Archbishop. So whatever you have to say, save it for later. I saved your knights and your Captain."

But Rhea just sighed heavily in return and gave a weary smile. "No, I should apologise. You did the right thing in going after them. I forget that you're a lot more powerful than anyone here. Just… please think before you act next time. I don't wish to lose you after going through so much to save your life."

Sitri sighed and looked at the floor of the carriage as she saw the Monastery come into sight. "I suppose I could've handled the situation better. Very well, I'll keep myself in check in the future. Archbishop, would you care to join me for tea when we return?"

Rhea smiled brightly at the offer and clasped her hands together. "I would love nothing more my child."

They sat in a comfortable silence with the gentle rocking of the carriage easing their nerves. "…So what happened between you and Captain Jeralt? You seemed angry at him."

"Ugh, don't ask. That man is impossible."

…

"And you are positive that there were no survivors?"

"No, my Lord. They were all completely wiped out."

Two figures were speaking in a dark, dimly lit room as the one sitting on a throne stroked his beard in thought. A pause hung about the air before his face gave way to a smirk. "Good. We now know the power of that woman. Tell me, how are we doing on gathering data on her vessel?"

"It is still taking some time my Lord, the technology on this vessel is far more advanced than our own."

The white skinned figure rose from his throne and walked up to the subordinate and placed a hand on his shoulder. "See that you do. We made the right choice in salvaging that vessel. The data that is in there can bring our plan to fruition."

"Well actually, Lord Thales. We do have one subject of data salvaged."

Thales raised an eyebrow and motioned for the subordinate to continue. "It is a form of spiritual energy called Ki."

A wide and unsettling grin appeared on Thales face as he leaned forward. "Continue."

…

"Professor Manuela! On your left!"

Manuela grunted as she managed to roll out of the way of a bandits axe swing, the force being enough to dent the ground in front of her. This was not how she imagined this mission to go. She thought calling in that favour from Hanneman to switch houses would've been a genius plan. But now she was missing the simplicity of the chaos from the Golden Deer.

…

"What? You cannot be serious Manuela! The decision has already been made!"

Hanneman was in his room writing about his latest findings in Crest research. That was when Manuela came in and demanded they swapped houses. She let out a chuckle and pulled out a slip of paper between her breasts and waved it in his face. "Do you remember that time that you asked, no- BEGGED me to spend three months worth of salary for a ridiculous artefact for your research? And you said I can ask for any favour?"

Manuela smirked and slammed the paper on his desk, and revelled in the nervous, sweaty look on her colleagues face as she placed her hands on her hips. "Well, I'm cashing it in! You will lead the Golden Deer, and I will lead the Blue Lions!"

"But this is preposterous! We have missions assigned in a couple of days, we would have to relearn strategies!"

"Then you better get to work on devising a lesson plan. Have fuuuun!" She sang while waving goodbye with a big grin as Hanneman slammed his head onto his desk with a giant groan, not believing what just happened.

Manuela pumped her fist in the air and jumped for joy. Finally! She can actually get lessons done. It wasn't that she hated the Golden Deer, far from it. She just felt like the Blue Lions would be a better class for her to teach. Things were finally looking up!

…

"Why couldn't I just stay with them?" Manuela groaned as she cast Nosferatu on the bandit that attacked her, draining his life away and in the process restoring her stamina. She stood back up and dusted off her clothes before turning back to the students she was leading.

They were assigned to dispatch bandits in the Red Canyon, the same kind of bandits who attacked the house leaders. But Manuela didn't notice that an archer had snuck behind and notched an arrow, and by the time she turned around she couldn't react in time as the archer prepared to fire. But then a lance whizzed past her head and impaled itself on the archer which threw him back and killed him.

She turned around to see a Dimitri had made a lance out of his Ki and actually saved her life. He bowed to his teacher and smiled "Please be careful Professor, we would hate to lose you."

"Focus boar! We almost have this!" Felix growled slashing a bandits chest open with his iron sword before blasting him away with a Ki attack."

"I got you Mercie!" Annette yelled diving in front of a Mercedes and forming Ki around her body to act like armour as the axe that swung toward them shattered upon impact.

"Thank you very much Annette." Mercedes beamed and healed her friend from any damage she took so far.

Somehow, this was more chaotic than the Golden Deer. But if it wasn't for the Ki training they did, then they would be goners.

"…I need to thank Byleth after this is over."

…

"That should be the last of them." Claude said wiping sweat off his brow and gave Hilda a high five while watching her do a little victory dance.

"Yeah we fended them off!" She cheered. Hanneman however, was staring right into Claudes eyes who backed away nervously.

"Now, now. I'm not going to hurt you. I just wonder if your Crest helps with this Ki that you use…."

"I-I wouldn't know." Claude chuckled trying to get out of this. "I just use Ki."

He watched his Professor walk away scribbling on his notes and Claude saw Lysithea talking to Leonie and had an evil grin on his face.

"What are you planning? I want in." Hilda smiled standing next to him.

"Hang on a moment, I'm going to try something." Claude produced a ball of Ki from his hand and hovered it in the air and started to control it. "This'll be so good."

He hovered it behind Lysithea and started making noises which made her freeze in fear. "OoOoOoOoOoOo…."

Lysithea turned around and shrieked loudly seeing the ball. "AAAAAAAAAAH! IT'S A GHOST! RUUUUUN!"

Claude and Hilda were on the ground laughing watching the girl run away screaming as Lorenz huffed. "This is not how someone of your station should be acting."

"A fascinating ball." Ignatz said adjusting his glasses. "Like a fairy. It feels warm too."

Raphael scratched his head and poked it but retracted his hand while clutching it. "Ow! It hurts to touch it!"

"You know, she's not going to be happy." Leonie pointed out munching on an apple.

"CLAUDE VON REIGAN!" Lysithea screamed sprinting towards him with red cheeks.

"See?"

"And with that, I better run." Claude said laughing. "Hopefully she's not used to the weighted clothing just yet." He saluted his team and ran away with the younger girl not far behind.

"YOU GET BACK HERE RIGHT NOW, IT'S NOT FUNNY!" Lysithea yelled while flailing her arms.

…

"Why are we meditating?!"

Caspar groaned loudly as he stood up when attempting to do mental training. Edelgard, Petra and Jeralt were side by side trying to ignore Caspar and focus on meditation. Jeralt opened his eyes and glared. "Like I said many times, mental training is just as important as physical training."

"If you're not going to contribute, then go away." Edelgard said with her eyes still closed. "I'm sure Ferdinand can help you with sparring."

"I would be honoured! Come this way Caspar!" Ferdinand smiled.

The rest of the Black Eagles just watched as Dorothea pursed her lips. "Never tried meditation."

"It is most beneficial for the mind." Hubert explained stating at Edelgard. "Lady Edelgard has been doing it even before training due to her lifestyle causing so much stress."

"I wish I could live stress free…." Bernadetta mumbled looking at the group.

"It's good to know that Linhardt decided to try meditation too." Dorothea smiled looking over to her classmate. "Look at him. So relaxed, he must be in a zen like state-"

"Zzzzzzzzzzz…"

A giant sweat drop formed on Dorothea's head as she placed her hands on her chin. "Never mind. I should've known…."

Jeralt however, was distracted on his training. Because he could sense Byleth and Shamir fighting. And it didn't seem to be going in their favour.

'Kid…. be careful.'

…

Meanwhile, Byleth and Shamir were fighting the cult figures who had attacked the town they were assigned to investigate, and this was honestly harder than they realised.

Byleth was able to fend them off, that much was certain. But the problem was that their weaponry were able to hurt her, and severely damage Shamir too. They had to be careful if they were going to win. Byleth punched a Cultist in the stomach before using the knife dropped to stab him in the neck. Another one tried to jump her and grab her tail but was shot in the neck by an arrow.

"I'm fine Byleth, just try and take them out! I'll pick off any stragglers!" Shamir yelled shooting another arrow between one of their eyes causing a body to flop to the ground. Byleth nodded and closed her eyes before jumping in the air and charging Ki into her fists before dropping down and slamming it into the ground, causing bodies to fly in all directions.

Shamir grunted as she realised that she had no arrows left. "Right. Time to see if this will work."

She pulled back the string on her bow, and while she did that a line of Ki formed to resemble an arrow. Shamir then released it but missed a target. No matter though, she directed it with her hand and it curved around stroking the target in the back of the head. She pumped her fist smiling at that ability. "Alright, now we're getting somewhere."

At the back of the battlefield, the leader just shook his head with a small chuckle and pulled out a dark crystal pulsing with energy. "It's adorable how they think they can win. It's time for Project Goliath to come into effect."

He approached a wounded fellow cultist and knelt down beside him. "Do not fail Lord Thales, Goliath."

With that, he shoved his hand in the wounded mans chest as the crystal started to fuse into his body and pumping dark and red energy in him. The man screamed loudly as his body started transforming and getting bigger.

Byleth had just kicked a cultist into a rock and fired a Ki blast into another ones face, before her head throbbed sensing a powerful Ki source. She grunted in pain clutching her head. "What the hell?"

She slowly turned around and gasped as she saw a man grow up to 8ft tall and had giant muscles on his body. His robes torn to shreds leaving only pants on him to preserve any dignity. But what really stood out was a dark purple aura around him as well as his eyes glowing red. The leader smirked and pointed to Byleth. "Go Goliath. Kill her."

Goliath thumped his chest and let out a massive roar that echoed throughout the sky and started charging. He ended up knocking away his fellow cultists but all he was focused on was his target, who just stood there dumbfounded. She couldn't move at all. She couldn't believe this much power existed.

'Snap out of it you idiot!'

Byleth blinked, hearing Sothis shout at her before jumping away just in time before the Goliaths fist slammed into the ground, causing a crater to form as if a cannonball has struck the earth. Byleth was afraid now. One wrong move and she was done for. But that moment of thought proved to be costly.

That's when she screamed as she was grabbed by the throat as the Goliath started choking her. Shamir was trying to get to her but was surrounded by cultists who threw her to the ground. "BYLETH!"

Byleths body went limp as her throat was crushed by the Goliath. Her vision went blurry as he tossed her to the ground. However, just before her life faded away, she made one final thought in her mind.

'Divine…. Pulse…. 30 seconds….'

Then everything froze and slowly everything around her started turning back in time. Byleth collapsed to the floor wheezing and holding her neck, being able to breath as her injuries started disappearing. She was alive. But barely.

'That was way too close for comfort. I thought you were going to be careful you idiot!'

She turned around to see Sothis was there and looked down, realising her hands were shaking. She almost died. "I'm not sure if we're going to win."

Sothis had a sad look on her face as she placed a hand on Byleth's shoulder, looking at the Goliath slowly going backwards along with the rest of the surroundings. 'Plan for every possibility. Try going for the leader. If he falls, then the others should follow. Time will resume in 5 seconds. Make it count.'

Byleth gave a nod as she was back in her original spot from where the Goliath was about to grab her.

5.

She clenched her fist and stared at the mutated human.

4.

His hand slowly went towards her as time started to resume.

3.

Her eyes narrowed and she cupped her hands in front of her.

2.

A bright ball of Ki formed at her hands, with it growing bigger and bigger as the Goliath loomed over her, ready to take her life a second time.

1.

She grinned at her opponent before screaming the words. "ASHEN BLAST!"

The ball shot of her hands and collided with the Goliaths chest as it sent him flying a couple of feet, before she clenched her fist and watched as the ball exploded causing a huge explosion. The battlefield was silent as everyone waited with baited breath to see what the aftermath of that attack was.

The Goliath was laying on the ground as he groaned in pain. He had scorch marks all over his body, but… to Byleths horror, he wasn't down at all. He picked himself up and his eyes trained on Byleth. He clenched his fists and growled lowly in anger.

"Hurt….. rip… and tear…"

'How tough is this guy?' Sothis screamed. 'He may be injured, but don't let your guard down!'

Byleth gulped as she dodged a swing from the Goliath, wondering how she was going to get to the leader. All she could do was fight for now. His Ki was pulsing sporadically as he roared again swinging towards Byleth, but she vanished in thin air and slammed her elbow onto his neck, forcing him on his knees as she slammed her foot on the side of his head, bending his neck to an unnatural angle while Byleth landed on the ground after that kick.

"Right… that should be enough to finish the job."

"Rip….. and tear….."

Her eyes widened as she turned her head to see him snap his neck back into place. "You're kidding…."

But before the Goliath could charge, an arrow struck his back which angered him greatly. Shamir was there as she had her bow out. "Byleth! Take the leader down! I'll handle it!"

"Are you sure-"

"Just do it!"

Byleth hesitated on leaving Shamir to fight this thing, but knew she was right. She had to defeat the leader, and this Goliath was only getting in her way. "Sothis, how many Divine Pulses can you do?"

'For now, I can only do three more. My power is too weak right now, so please be careful.'

"Noted. Thanks."

She kicked the Goliath in the head as Shamir hit him in the chest with her elbow, the cultists all gathered around the fight between those two, while Byleth got through the crowd and stared down the leader who had his tome out and glared at her. "You will not leave here alive, Monkey Girl!"

"Wrong. I have my students to return to. And I won't leave you here while you hurt people for your own selfish needs!"

He grinned as his tome glowed black with a dark aura. "Goliath will take care of you two. Now come!"

Byleth nodded and charged at him, but was unable to hit him as he had a shield around him, a shield that was too tough for her to break through. He swung his sword and managed to cut her arm as she screamed in pain. This was an entirely new feeling for her. She hasn't ever felt pain before.

But strangely… her blood was boiling in excitement. This was it! This was a great fight with stakes! This was what she was looking for as she had a feral grin on her face which unnerved the leader as he cast an orb of dark Ki. Byleth dodged it and hit the shield again to do avail. That's when she had noticed something. The shield was in a diamond formation. Could it be possible that there were weak points?

"Byleth!"

Byleth turned around and her eyes shrunk in horror as the Goliath had Shamir in his hold and shot a dark Ki blast straight through her chest, killing her instantly. He grinned in delight dropping the limp corpse to the snow covered ground and turned towards Byleth. "No… Divine Pulse! 10 seconds!"

Her surroundings shattered like last time and started rewinding just to when the Goliath charged his Ki blast and she fired her own which struck him on the back, distracting him. Which is what Shamir needed as she kicked his head causing him to let go of her arm and she backflipped away readying her bow.

Byleth then yelled in pain as an arrow struck her in the shoulder as she whipped her head to see an archer behind the leader taking pit shots at her. She quickly dispatched of him with a Ki blast and ripped the arrow out of her shoulder, cringing at the pain it caused as she tried to stop the bleeding. But the leader wouldn't give her that chance as he launched another dark orb. Byleth grit her teeth and slapped the orb away causing it to slam into a tree. She hissed in pain clutching her hand as that attack was painful to the touch and she full on hit it away. The leader just smiled and his tome just radiated dark energy while staring down Byleth.

"Impressive. But you two won't last long."

"AAAAAAARGH!"

"No! Not again!" Byleth yelled turning to the scream of pain.

Shamir was kneeling on the ground as the Goliath ripped her arms off as she fell back onto the ground. The Goliath then slowly formed a giant sword from his Ki and stabbed it into her chest. Shamirs eyes filled out and Byleth screamed the command.

"Divine Pulse! 5 seconds!"

She wasn't going to let Shamir die. Sothis appeared next to her again, but this time she looked completely exhausted and pale. 'Remember! I can only do one more! I already….. feel weak….'

Byleth growled as she ran up to the Goliath and jumped on his back and charged a Ki blast in her hands before she yelped being thrown back by the Goliath. But she bought Shamir enough time to get out of the way and shoot arrows at the Goliath as he roared in pain. He was being slowed down with each blow, but he was still more powerful.

He tried grabbing Shamir again but she flew in the air and tried shooting arrows. He roared again and grabbed a fellow cultist and threw him in the air which collided with Shamir causing her to land hard on her back as she coughed up blood from the impact. "Come on Shamir… stop letting him push you around!"

"Rip! And tear! Rip and tear!" The Goliath roared as his aura flared up before he punched the ground, with the shockwave throwing Shamir in the air. Byleth gasped as she tried to stop the Goliath but screamed when the cultists tackled her to the ground as the Goliath fired a beam from his hand and it impaled her in her chest as Byleth watched her partners eyes dim down once again. Shamir flopped to the ground, life gone from her eyes. Byleth roared as she shouted to the sky.

"DIVINE PULSE! 10 SECONDS!"

Sothis was once again next to her, but now fading away as she coughed weakly. 'That's…. the last one…. until I can recover. Make it count…'

With that final warning, Sothis disappeared entirely. Byleth couldn't feel her presence.

Byleth was angry now as just like before, the cultists all piled on top of her. She let out a roar and used her Ki to throw everyone off of her and flew towards the Goliath, tackling him to the ground as Shamir managed to recover. The big man roared and threw Byleth off of him, while Shamir panted clutching her shoulder. "Right. No more tricks. I'm taking you down, you dastard."

Byleth yelled in pain as a knife struck her leg which the leader held. She grit her teeth and narrowed her eyes before punching the top of the shield, which caused it to crack. "I knew it. There are weak points!"

So she started whaling on the sides and tops of the shield as it cracked more and more, with the leader looming worried as he tried punching yet couldn't. Byleth had a feral look in her eyes as she punched the shield again and again and again, until her final punch shattered it. The leader fell on his back as Byleth grabbed him by the throat and lifted him. "You're finished."

"If anyone is finished, it's is your partner."

Byleths eyes widened as she whipped her head around. Shamir was tossed on her back and rolled out of the way of the Goliath's foot that would've caved in her skull, as she grabbed a fallen cultists knife and stabbed the Goliath in the leg with it. He roared and backhanded her which made her vision blurry from the impact as he pulled the knife out of his leg.

He formed the giant sword made out of dark Ki just like the last time he killed Shamir and swung in a wide arc, killing cultists around him, but Shamir used her bow to take the brunt of the impact. Unfortunately, it split in two and threw her back again on the ground. But with a sudden surge of adrenaline and no bow, she charged with a broken end and tried to stab him. The Goliath just grabbed her hand and head butted her sending her crashing on her back.

Byleth watched in horror as the Goliath picked up Shamir by the throat once again and looked towards the leader with an uncharacteristically calm look. The leader in question grabbed Byleth so she couldn't run away and grinned. "Do it! Kill her!"

The Goliath turned to Shamir and was about to crush her throat when Shamir suddenly punched his face.

But this time, he went limp and fell to his knees. Shamir was still standing with her hair covering her eyes. Everyone was confused and the cultists were horrified. What just happened? That's when Shamir grabbed the Goliaths head and pulled her left arm away, showing a Ki blade over her wrist embedded in his eye. It dripped with blood as he collapsed, dead with no Ki feeding him anymore. She won. And the Ki blade disappeared from her wrist as she growled, while looking around at the cowering cultists.

"Anybody else want a piece?! Huh?!"

"S-She killed the Goliath! It can't be!"

Byleth gave a tired chuckle, absolutely relieved to see her partners victory as she then glared at the leader, with a Ki blast in her hand. "We have some questions to ask you. You will come with us. Do not resist."

But the leader just laughed loudly, not caring he was being threatened. "This is just a temporary victory. We got all our data on Goliath, and effective he was. Next time, you won't be so lucky. You freak. Brothers! Join me!"

That's when Byleth saw a capsule on his tongue as he bit down on it. She started shaking him trying to get him to spit it out but his eyes rolled back with foam coming out if his mouth. She dropped his writhing corpse and stepped back in shock. "Cyanide…"

Shamir saw everyone drop dead as they also took the cyanide and toon their own lives as she fell to her knees. She grunted and shook her head. "Cowards…."

"Shamir…." Byleth coughed while holding her shoulder as she also fell to her knees. "Let's find…. The Mayor…."

But her vision blurred and now she was face down in the snow with Shamir chuckling and fell down too, her own vision darkening. "We did it…"

In the distance, the Mayor slowly got out of the place where the children were kept and looked around for any Cultists. A little girl clutched at his leg and whispered. "Are the bad people gone?"

His face slowly gave way to a smile and he laughed. "They actually did it. They did it!"

That's when the townsfolk all came out of their homes, choosing to stay inside once they heard the battle and slowly walked out to the clearing and saw all the fallen bodies. But then a woman gasped when she saw the little girl clutched to the Mayors leg. "My baby!"

"Mommy!"

The families of the children started running towards them and the children weren't going to just stand around, as they ran off to their parents arms. One of the mothers walked up to the Mayor holding her daughter and smiled. "Mayor Shepherd, thank you so much."

"Oh do not thank me, my dear. Thank the Church."

As if he snapped out of a trance, Shepherd realised that he forgot about their saviours. "Everyone! Find the two Mercenaries!"

"They're over here Mayor!"

He trudged on through the snow and saw the unconscious forms of Byleth and Shamir. He smiled in relief to see that they were both safe. But they were injured and needed immediate medical assistance. He turned to a couple of the men and nodded towards the pair. "Get them to the inn, and the doctor will be with them soon."

A bunch of men picked the two up and Shepherd stopped them. "Be careful. They're heroes."

…

"Wake up."

…

"Wake. Up."

…

"Oh for crying out loud, would you open your eyes already?!"

Byleth's vision blurred as she found herself completely surrounded by darkness. She hissed in pain holding her head and got herself into a sitting position.

"Finally, your thoughts are awake at least."

She looked up to see Sothis sitting on her throne, just like the first time Byleth met her. She now realised where she was. Back in her thoughts alongside her spiritual partner.

"That was much too close for comfort. We almost didn't make it out of there alive. You're lucky that Shamir had that Ki blade on her wrist or else you both would've been goners."

That's when Byleth noticed Sothis had a few cuts and bruises of her own and had a bandage on her shoulder. Sensing her confusion, Sothis explained to her.

"We share experience, you and I. Unfortunately for me, that means I have to bear your scars. Especially your shoulder injury."

She hissed in pain as she tried to move her shoulder, but doing so only made the pain worse. Byleth was still sitting down and had one question on her mind. "How long have I been out?"

Sothis leaned back on her throne and purses her lips in thought. "Hmmmm… well, you're still out technically. Only your mind has woken up so far. But even then this has been three days since we both lost consciousness."

"THREE DAYS?!" Byleth yelled standing up abruptly which caused Sothis to cringe and clutch her head.

"Please do not shout, I'm not fully recovered myself."

She then took a deep breath and nodded. "But yes, that battle did quite a number on your body. I guess since it was the first time that blades and arrows actually hurt you, it was a little overwhelming."

Byleth looked down as she remembered those weapons. "They were enchanted in a way."

"Indeed. I saw the hexes that they sported on their blades. Definitely dark magic, and yet not one that I am familiar with. But there is a bright side to all of this. We saved many innocent lives, and it's a good job that Lady Rhea sent us to do this, otherwise some unfortunate souls may have met with a terrible fate."

"I suppose you're right."

"But that brings us to another problem." Sothis said narrowing her eyes. "You need to train that tail of yours. If Shamir didn't show up at the right time, you would've been dead. It's high time you stop ignoring that vital task."

"But I don't even know where to start!" Byleth yelled crossing her arms.

"Such an impatient child… it's like training your biceps or your core. Your tail is just another muscle, and you need to exercise that muscle to get it stronger."

Sothis then clapped her hands together and gave a smile. "And when your body gets stronger, then our bond deepens, and then I have more power to assist you with Divine Pulses. It's like a rolling snowball effect. You understand?"

Byleth nodded, but then found the darkness closing in on her as Sothis leaned back again. "And like that, it appears you'll be waking up soon. Be careful, and remember what I said."

…

Her vision was blurry at first as she tried adjusting to the light that was around her. She tried lifting her arm to cover her eye and give her vision relief, but hissed in pain as a sharp pain ran through her shoulder. Eventually though, her vision adjusted and Byleth saw her surroundings. She was in her bed at the inn. But unlike her state when talking to Sothis, she was in pain everywhere.

"You're finally awake kid."

She turned to her left to see Jeralt sitting on a chair next to her bed, with a very relieved smile. And did she detect some tears in his eyes?

But he just wiped his face and laughed quietly. "You gave me quite a scare when a messenger from this town came with the news of you and Shamir."

Byleth tried talking but her throat was completely dry and all that came out was a weak cough. "Here, drink some water. It'll help."

He brought a glass of water over and got it to her mouth since she was incapable of doing so by herself right now. Or rather he didn't want her putting unnecessary strain on herself. But she was grateful for the assistance and soon the glass was empty. He placed the empty glass on the table and sighed. "Now, what were you trying to say?"

"How…. are the students?"

Jeralt chuckled and shook his head. "They're beside themselves with worry. They begged Lady Rhea to let them come with me. But I told them to stay put. After all, they had just gotten back from their own missions and I wanted to make sure you were okay. But hey, you seem a lot better than a few days ago which is very surprising."

He helped Byleth into a sitting position as she groaned from her aching muscles and tried moving her shoulder, but to no avail. "You reckon?"

"When I got here, you were pale and shivering. Shamir in the other hand, still hasn't woken up. How do you feel kid?"

"Aching, sore, my shoulder is in searing pain." But then her face turned thoughtful as she looked down at her hands. "But I feel… stronger. Like I came out of that battle a lot more powerful than before. Does that make sense?"

"That's definitely from your mothers side."

"…..Yeah. Hey dad, did mom ever tell you about her life?"

Jeralt stiffened at that question and rubbed his head. "Your mother told me a lot of things. Things that she didn't want you to know just yet, until the time is right, you know?"

"Oh…. I see." Byleth muttered looking down, clearly disappointed. But Jeralt then ruffled her hair gently, and he smiled.

"But I think I can let this one go, since you've experienced it. Your mom had some interesting biology, the tail being one of them. And another one being something called a Zenkai Boost."

Byleth tilted her head at that name and he took that as a cue to continue. "Basically, when you're at deaths door and you recover from that, you gain a boost in power. You felt it yourself right? Well, you experienced a Zenkai Boost."

Then his eyes turned dark as he took something out of his belt and held it out to her. She instantly recognised it as the weapons that the Cultists used. "This is what hurt you?"

She gave a nod and he sighed tucking it away. "We will discuss this with Rhea and the other staff members once we get back. If this is something that actually injured you, then we're dealing with something dangerous. But that's only until both of you recover. I already sent a report covering the basics but we need you and Shamir to give more details."

He then turned away and walked towards the door. "I know you hate being confined to one space, so feel free to move about only if you think you can do it. I'll tell the doctor that you might want fresh air, okay kid?"

Byleth gave a small smile and nodded at him and Jeralt smiled back. "You did the right thing kid. You saved innocent lives. Now take it easy."

With that parting sentence, he closed the door and left Byleth on her own again. She got a better look at herself now that she was sitting up. She had a sling on her right arm, where her shoulder was bandaged up. If she had to guess, then that was going to leave a nasty scar by the end of it. She then spotted a hand mirror on her nightstand and picked it up to examine herself.

Her hair surprisingly looked normal, but she guessed that was the work of the people taking care of her. She had a band aid on her left cheek and a cut just under her eye. Then she realised that she wasn't in her normal outfit. Rather, it was a white nightdress that loosely fitted on her body. But it was very comfortable so that was a bonus.

Byleth then looked over to her right and saw a variety of gifts and cards next to the bed. If she had to guess, then that was her students trying to give support. She noticed three cards with very distinct symbols on the wax seals. An eagle, a lion and a deer. She should've known. "They really do care for me huh?"

She opened the one containing the eagle symbol and sure enough, it was a letter from Edelgard, along with Caspar and Petra.

[Dear Professor Byleth,

I hope that your recovery is quick and easy. We are all wishing you well and to show our support, we sent some flowers for you. We hope that you like it. – Edelgard.]

[HEY PROFESSOR I HOPE THAT YOU KICKED BUTT! NOBODY MESSES WITH YOU, OR ELSE THEY ANSWER TO ME! – Caspar.]

[Greetings Professor. I am hoping you are getting well very quickly. I look forward to be seeing you. – Petra.]

Byleth smiled to herself and looked over to the windowsill and saw a bouquet of carnations sitting there. It was a nice and thoughtful gift. She then opened the one with the lion symbol and started reading.

[Hello Professor Byleth,

We were all deeply concerned when we heard about your condition. I hope that the cake that we sent had reached you. We have been keeping up with our training so do not worry about that little chestnut. – Dimitri.]

[Hello Professor,

I have been keeping up with my training. I expect a sparring session once you are recovered. – Felix.]

[Hi Professor!

I was so worried when I heard about you! I hope you like the cake, but it was mostly Mercie who made it. I kept on burning it and myself…. but I've stopped tripping over barrels, so that's a good sign right? Anyway, I should stop rambling. Get well soon! Oh, and Miss Shamir too! – Annette.]

"Felix is as blunt as always." Byleth grimaced but smiled at Annettes side of the letter. There was also a cake on a table with a glass case covering it to keep any insects away… with a slice missing. "Was that you dad?"

She shook her head and opened the last one, already knowing who it was from.

[Sup Teach!

Didn't think you of all people would be recovering, but hey, I've learned to expect the unexpected since I've met you. Their Highnesses have been distraught with worry when they heard the news, but I knew you'd pull through. We sent a bag of sweets over for you, hope you like it. Anyway, take it easy for now. We'll be stronger for you coming back. – Claude.]

[Claude made me give up my secret sweet stash! But, they are amazing chocolate bon bons that I need to special order, so please appreciate them. But also, get well soon. – Lysithea.]

Hi Byleth,

I was surprised to find you were hospitalised. I guess we should prepare for anything if our foes are getting that strong. But please rest until you've recovered. You know how worried Captain Jeralt. I'll take this time to catch up to you, so watch out! – Leonie.]

Sure enough, there was a big bag of candy next to the cake. Though Byleth wondered if she should be afraid that Lysithea cared more about her sweets than people. That's when Jeralt came back in and Byleth narrowed her eyes whilst looking at the cake. He just held up his arms in defence.

"Hey, you know I'm a sucker for cake and that looked too good to pass up. But I wanted to check up on you, you okay?"

"Actually…. I want to take a walk. I want to visit her."

Jeralt sighed heavily and nodded going over to her side and helping her out of the bed. Byleth sucked in air through her teeth as her legs were telling her to stop. But she leaned on Jeralt for support and he slowly walked her to the door. "Just one step at a time kid."

"…..Dad, there's training I want to do."

"Oh no, not while you're still recovering."

"I'm talking about my tail."

She looked down while hobbling over to the door. "I almost died because one of those cultists got my tail. I never felt so helpless in my life. And I'm sick of hiding what I am, so please. Help me train my tail."

"….You promise to just train the tail?"

She nodded as they exited her room and Jeralt nodded. "Okay, but we do it one step at a time."

"Miss Eisner, you should be in bed!"

The father-daughter pair turned to see a doctor rush up to them. Jeralt just waved his hand. "I'll stay by her side, but she gets restless if she gets cooped up. She just wants to test her body."

But the doctor just adjusted his glasses examining her. "Incredible. Already walking after just waking up. The Goddess must have blessed you! Very well, but you better not let her out of your sight!"

"Relax, she wants to visit Shamir."

"O-Of course! Right this way!"

He then lead the pair over to the room across the hall and slowly opened the door. Byleth took a deep breath and requested to be alone with her. The doctor was about to protest but Jeralt quickly shut him up. "Go ahead kid, just shout when you're ready to leave."

Byleth nodded and slowly hobbled in the room and saw Shamir, still unconscious. And like Byleth, was pretty beat up.

She had a bandage over her head, which reminded Byleth of the numerous blows to the head that she took during her fight with the Goliath. On top of that, there was a huge burn on her left arm from where a fire spell managed to hit her. Other than that though, she seemed okay. Probably because Byleth kept turning back time in order to protect her.

Byleth grunted in pain as she managed to sit on a chair, and watched Shamirs sleeping form. She looked so peaceful, despite the condition that she was in. But it would not made Byleth sad, looking at her. All the times she saw her die. It would be enough to make her not sleep. "This was a disaster."

Sothis appeared on the chair next to her and looked down. 'We couldn't have known.'

"We should've. No, I should've known….."

'You cannot know everything. That's just part of life. Believe me I know. I mean I can barely remember my past, but I still manage to live on.' Sothis explained as she adjusted her own sling as it snagged on her dress. Byleth just looked at Shamir, and then looked at the spirit next to her.

"Then let's find out."

"Wait, what?"

Byleth gave a smile and pumped a fist. "When we recover, let's try and jog your memory. There's got to be something that we could do to help. Besides, I have to repay the favour for you don't I? We would be dead multiple times if it wasn't for you."

Sothis was honestly speechless. She honestly never expected an offer to actually find her memories. But her face gave way to a bright smile and she nodded. 'Yes! Let's do it! Perhaps we can look into the library back at the Monastery.'

With that goal set in mind, Byleth stood up and started hobbling out the door, which confused Sothis. 'What are you doing?'

"I gotta train my tail! Like you said, it's a glaring weakness!"

'….Of course you do. I shouldn't even be surprised.'

Once Byleth got out of the door, she looked at her gown and focused Ki onto her finger and cut a hole in the back. And with a little freedom, she allowed her tail to go through the hole. It honestly felt amazing to not keep it hidden. Now that she was going to train, she didn't have to hide who she was.

"Wow, you look just like your mother now. You know, aside from the bandages and wounds."

She turned around to see Jeralt standing there holding a light set of weights, and behind him was the doctor who was babbling to himself with a bewildered expression. "A tail! She has a tail!"

The pair just ignored him and Jeralt gestures to her room. "If you're ready, let's get started on some training."

"Okay dad!"

The doctor watched them enter her room and just slumped on the floor. "I'm not getting paid enough for this."

…

"It seems that project Goliath was a failure my Lord."

Thales grinned sitting on his throne while sipping wine as he looked at Solon. "On the contrary. It was a remarkable success."

This confused the elderly man as he was currently communicating with Thales through a stone meant to relay messages. "How so?"

"It's simple. We have the calculations necessary on how much Ki to implant in hosts without sacrificing their mental health."

Surprise was on Solons face as he gasped. Was it possible that it was time? "Does that mean?"

"Indeed. We can move onto the next phase. But first, we need to… tie up loose ends. Specifically with Edelgard. We need to make sure she doesn't get too cocky."

"Yes! I'm sick of her attitude!" Solon growled. "She's lucky we need each other-"

"I think that'll change soon." Thales responded sipping more wine. "But first, we wait. And plan. The Western Church and Lord Lonato are already doing the job for us to stir some chaos. We can use this to our advantage and get in the tomb under the Monastery. Your orders remain the same Solon. And I think we should…. 'assist' Lonato. You will hear more later."

The elderly man bowed as he then cut off communication. Thales was now alone and sipped at more wine and looked at his researchers and scholars analysing a certain space pod. And it looked like they found some information. "Lord Thales! We found information about the Saiyans!"

"And what information is that?"

One of the Cultists took out his notes and started to speak. "When a Saiyan has his tail, and looks up at a full moon. They turn into something called an Oozaru?"

Thales slowly smirked and leaned forward. "Very interesting….. and what is an Oozaru?"

"A giant ape like creature, according to this scripture."

He hummed in thought while looking down. "So. The monster and that girl are connected after all…. fifteen years ago."

"My Lord?"

But he wasn't listening anymore and looked up at the sky. "A full moon you say? Yes, this gives me an idea…"

…

So guess who saw the Assassins Creed: Valhalla trailer? Yeah, that was my main inspiration for Shamirs fight. Not much Ki techniques but she's not properly trained just yet.

But yeah this marks the end of essentially the 1st mission. I think you all know what the next one will be, don't you? There will be a couple of breathers in between but we will be fighting Lonato next.

I do know who I want the characters to get together with, but I don't think I'll go full on sex scene. Maybe allude to it you know? Or do it in a side story. Let me know what you think. Saiyan Byleth might get around a lot, you know? Definitely bisexual, I mean come on.

But yeah, Thales and TWSITD have plans, and it's a bittersweet victory for the good guys since they're very injured. But Byleth got a Zenkai Boost out of it.

Also, I tried to give a reason how Divine Pulse works in this story. Hope that is okay with you guys.

And yeah, longest chapter to date. We also passed 30 favourites and 40 followers. Let's try and aim for 35 and 45 respectively. And please review, it helps a lot.

Well, I hope to see you guys next time okay? Catch you later.