"Hmm…"
Byleth heard a quiet voice mumble, but she chose to ignore it.
"Miss…"
The same voice mumbled again, but still Byleth opted to just ignore it and return to sleep.
"B-Byleth…"
"Shh… Ayra. We need to be quiet for Miss Edelgard and Miss Byleth."
A different voice this time. A voice that sounded familiar in Byleth's sluggish state. Slowly she opened her eyes and saw that Ayra, Priscilla and Astrid were standing next to each other as they watched on both Byleth and Edelgard.
"Hmm… good morning, girls." Byleth groaned out as she smiled at the three children.
"A-Ahhh! W-We're so sorry, M-Miss Byleth." Stammered a small, scared voice coming from Astrid.
Byleth raised her hand and patted the young girl's head. "Hey, it's alright." Byleth spoke softly as she smiled at the three girls. She looked around and didn't see the rest of the children. "Where are the others?"
"Miss Ingrid, Miss Dorothea and Miss Petra came by to see where you were, as Mr Ferdinand and Mr Hubert couldn't find you both." Ayra said as Astrid and Priscilla nodded their heads.
"They were very worried, but as they saw you and Miss Edelgard, they wanted to give you both some rest. They took them to explore the castle. We stayed behind to tell you that Miss Bernadetta had said that the other lady she found had woken up. Mr Hubert and Mr Ferdinand are with her."
She's awake!?
"I see… I better go and catch up with them."
Byleth looked to her right and saw that Edelgard was resting her head on Byleth's shoulder. A smile settled over her face as she carefully lifted Edelgard into her arms as she stood up. Carefully looping one arm under Edelgard's legs and the other carefully supporting the Emperor's head. Byleth pressed her lips onto Edelgard's forehead, before turning her attention to the three children.
"Why don't we make sure the Emperor gets her sleep, first? She never gets a chance to properly rest."
The three children enthusiastically nodded their heads. They jumped to their feet as they walked ahead of Byleth for a few moments. Pricilla held tightly onto Ayra's hand, who in turn held onto her sister's hand. The three were mesmerised by the hallway they were in as they looked around at the paintings. The three stopped once Astrid noticed one painting in particular. Byleth had managed to catch up to them and saw what had captured their attention.
A painting of a large family with two adults and eleven brothers and sisters. Then it hit Byleth, who these are as soon as her eyes gravitated towards Ionius IX. Her eyes then gravitated towards the children in the painting until she found Edelgard. With long brown hair put into pigtails tied up with purple hair ribbons.
"Do you know who they are, Miss Byleth?" Astrid asked as she lightly pulled on Byleth's coat. Ayra and Priscilla looked at Byleth with innocent expressions. Byleth smiled at the three.
"I do. I haven't met them personally, but El-uh Her Majesty has talked about them. She… She misses them all a lot." Byleth spoke with a sombre smile. She then looked down the corridor and continued walking.
"Come on, her Majesty's room is this way." Byleth said as the three children quickly ran to keep up with the Swordswoman.
Byleth had gently placed Edelgard in her shared bed with the Swordswoman. With a kiss on her forehead, Byleth wrapped the bed covers, so she could feel warm, yet not overly constricted. Just how she likes it.
Byleth and the children left Edelgard to rest, before leaving a note to explain where she was, as they made their way towards the infirmary to meet the newly awakened mysterious woman.
Once there Byleth saw Monica outside of her bed and making experimental steps. Byleth and the children stopped for a moment to watch her. She was steady on her feet, but she still took her time slowly navigating around her room. A small smile appeared on her face as Monica's eyes met hers. Byleth waved at the mage as she slowly made her way back to the bed. Monica's cheeks darkened as she nervously waved back. Priscilla, Ayra and Astrid tried to jump to see who Byleth was waving at, but the window was too high to see out of.
Byleth moved on as she came to Shez's room and met Ferdinand and Hubert. Looking on into the inside of the room; Ferdinand, Hubert, Byleth saw Bernadetta happily talking to the purple-haired woman.
"Learned anything from her?" Byleth asked.
Hubert shook his head. The bandage covering his right eye had been replaced, and the remnants of his eye cleaned to avoid infection. "We were waiting for Lady Edelgard and yourself."
"We decided to let her Majesty rest a little longer, didn't we?" Byleth said as she turned her attention to the three girls.
The three in question all nodded their heads. "Miss Edelgard was very tired, and Miss Byleth said she doesn't sleep much, so we were extra quiet for her." Ayra said as her older sister, Astrid and Priscilla agreed with her.
A smirk forms on Ferdinand's face. "We've been trying to get her to sleep more for quite a while now. Who knew all this time, she just needed a group of children to get her to rest."
"That may be the case, yet…" Hubert trailed off as he turned his attention back towards Bernadetta and the other woman. "I would feel more reassured once we know her allegiances."
"Hmm…" Byleth agreed as she watched the other woman make Bernadetta laugh.
Something that Astrid noticed. "She can't be mean if she's making Miss Bernadetta laugh."
Then an idea sprang to Ferdinand's head. "Did you meet her while you were all… there."
Even at their younger ages, the three children immediately understood what he meant. The three however shook their heads. "We were not allowed outside of that room you and Miss Edelgard found us in." Ayra said as she squeezed tightly to Priscilla's and her older sister's hands.
"I overheard them say that she is their key to defeating something called… Fellsky? Fellmoon? What was it again?" Astrid thought to herself as she tried to think of the name.
However, there was only one name that sprang to mind for Byleth, Ferdinand and Hubert.
"Fellstar." Byleth answered. "It was the name Solon gave me after I fused with Sothis. After I gained the power of the Goddess."
Hubert nodded his head. "If their plan was to use her as a pawn to remove you from play, then she may still yet prove to be a threat."
"I fear that I agree. There are too many unknowns surrounding her. We cannot take the chance." Ferdinand agreed with Hubert but took a glance at Byleth and knew that something was up. "You're not sure?"
"I…I want to give her a chance. Even if she is only after me, I still want to talk to her. She was held captive there just like Monica, so she may be willing to join us." Byleth answered trying to convince her friends. The children were already on her side as they nodded their heads agreeing with the swordswoman.
Ferdinand turned his head towards Hubert. The latter sighed, before turning his attention back to Byleth. "She gets one chance. For Lady Edelgard's sake, please don't make me regret it." Hubert pleaded to the Swordswoman, who took it seriously.
"If I felt it would jeopardise her goals or even her life, I would not even consider it. Still, thank you Hubert for trusting me." Byleth said as she grabbed onto the door handle and pulled the door open.
A smile settled over Byleth's face as the children followed after her. "It's good to finally see you awake. You had everyone worried you would never awaken." Byleth turned to Bernadetta and the archer happily smiled at the swordswoman and nodded her head.
Byleth was about to speak again but was cut off from the woman in the bed.
"You're Byleth right? Byleth Eisner." The woman says as her attention was drawn straight to the swordswoman.
Byleth's eyebrows twitched. "Ah, did Bernie bear already introduce me?" However, the woman did not look like she agreed.
The woman shook her head. "Bernadetta here has been filling me in on things. I remember… flashes of images. Images someone put in my head of you. But you had green hair and your eyes glowed… Fellstar. That word was ingrained in my head. Something that was my only goal to follow. I was supposed to fight and kill you."
"So, Hubert was correct. You were made to kill me." Byleth said to herself, but at that moment she felt little hands hold tightly onto her cloak.
She turned her head and saw the worried frowns of Priscilla, Ayra and Astrid. She smiled at the three before softly rubbing their heads.
"Bernie, could you take the little one's out. I bet they're hungry." Byleth asked as at the exact same moment the stomachs for all three young girls rumbled.
Both Bernadetta and the bedridden woman giggled to themselves. The archer then picked up both Priscilla and Ayra into her arms, their heads resting on both sides of her chest.
"Let's go see if we can get you three something filling." The two younger girls cheered; Astrid however remained a bit hesitant.
"Go on. We'll be fine. There's nothing to worry about." Byleth spoke sweetly as she patted Astrid's head once more and motioned for her to join Bernadetta and the others. The little girl eventually agreed, but still looked a little reluctant to leave.
As Astrid followed Bernadetta out of the room, both Ferdinand and Hubert entered. "It's good to see you finally awake. You must be relieved to see some friendly faces." Ferdinand said as he smiled at the woman.
Hubert however jumped in before she could speak. "That remains to be seen where her allegiances lie."
Byleth remained silent for a few minutes but finally spoke again. "Do you still have those flashes in your head?"
The woman shook her head. "Whatever happened when you pulled me out of the pod, your friends said I was in, severed that connection. They're just memories now."
Hubert was still not convinced. "Meaningless words."
"Believe me, I understand. I would be suspicious of me too. I'm a complete unknown. Why take the chance on someone like me, who was created to kill you and serve as a vessel for an Argathan scientist called Epimenides, but I just want to help. Bernadetta told me that they captured those children that were with you." The purple-haired woman said, turning her attention to Byleth.
"She told me that the Agarthans performed experiments on them. I know you don't have to believe me, but I want help, they engrained their plans in my head. They plan to resurrect someone called Nemesis and bring back his army through sacrificing the people of Fhirdiad. They're planning to create replicas of weapons forged from the bones of someone called Sothis. Please, just let me help."
Both Ferdinand and Byleth were stunned by this, while Hubert stood thinking about what the woman had to say.
"That… does align up with what my spies have sent me, though that last one is… troubling." Hubert concluded as he turned his focus back to the Woman in the bed. "Tell me your name."
"It's Shez. Sorry, I don't remember my last name. That was the name that never left my mind. It was the name that spoke the loudest, you could say." Shez said.
"Very well." Hubert closed his eye and sighed before finally walking off. It took Shez by surprise, but Ferdinand and Byleth just rolled with Hubert's distant actions.
"You'll get used to it." Ferdinand spoke with a smirk before he too left the room. Leaving just Byleth and Shez alone.
"So, what's going to happen now?" Shez asked.
"You can join us, or we can turn you loose, but as you insisted that you wanted to help out, so welcome aboard." Byleth said as she held out her hand.
Shez cautiously looked at Byleth's outstretched hand. "It can't be that easy? I could have made everything up or been lying to you and been siding with the Argathians."
"It's why we sent Bernie in first." Byleth answered as she lowered her hand. "She can get to the root of a person's being. Who they are, and what they're like. And you got Bernie's approval, so that's good enough for us."
Shez still didn't believe it. "Still, it can't be that simple. How does she even decide?"
"Her father has put Bernie bear through more than a father should." Byleth's whole expression darkened but softened soon after. "She knows what to look for when assessing a person. Who they are and what they're like."
"Everyone in the army trusts her, even Edelgard. She's like a sister to me, and I to her, so I trust unconditionally." Byleth answered for Shez.
"I didn't think my life would be decided by her when I woke up." Shez said as she stretched her arms high above her head. Audible pops echoed in the room as Shez's shoulders cracked as her long purple hair rested on her chest. "Still, I want to help out any way I can." She held out her hand to shake, something that Byleth reciprocated with smiles on their faces.
"Good to have you with us, Shez. Bernie bear will come back shortly to get you something to eat." Byleth said as she stood up. "Try to get some rest in the meantime."
Shez nodded her head and settled back into bed. With a small smile and a wave of her hand, Byleth left the room and let out a small sigh of relief.
That's one less problem to deal with. I'm glad that Shez was more than willing to join us. Now all that remains is just wait for the others return, so we can plan our next moves, though hearing Shez mention the Argathians attacking Garreg Mach is troubling. Hubert is sending his spies and Leah, sending soldiers to investigate. I hope Yuri, Constance, Hapi and Balthus are alright.
Byleth rubbed her temples as she tried not to think about the danger her friends are in.
I better check in on El. She'll need to know about Shez.
As Byleth made her back to her shared quarters with Edelgard, a concerned guard approached her.
"Is everything alright with the Emperor? I've overheard her coughing a lot."
Immediately, alarm bells started to ring out in Byleth's head.
"El…"
Without wasting any time, Byleth ran into her room and burst through the door.
"El!" Byleth's eyes searched around her room, frantically looking for her love.
She could not find her in her office, so she delved deeper into the room. It wasn't until Byleth made it to her bedroom, that she finally found her love. However, it wasn't the only thing she found.
As Edelgard sat with her legs pulled tightly against her chest as her arms wrapped around them, there were bloody tissues that surrounded the Emperor on the bed.
"El?" Byleth called out to her quietly to not frighten her.
"..."
No answer. Edelgard was stuck in her own world.
Byleth slowly approached her and sat on the bed. She then slowly held onto Edelgard's hands and softly squeezed them.
"El…"
Edelgard's eyes slowly drifted to Byleth.
"My light…" Edelgard whispered out as she repositioned herself and rested her head against Byleth's chest. She wrapped her arms around Byleth's back. Byleth returned the embrace as she rubbed circles into Edelgard's back.
"As you can see… it's getting worse."
The two were silent as the minutes dragged on.
Then Byleth spoke up, squeezing tightly to her love. "We'll find a way to cure this. I swear it, my love. My heart. My whole being."
Edelgard was silent as she buried her head further into Byleth's neck. They stayed like that, hearing birds twitter outside and the clanking footsteps of armoured boots as the soldiers trained.
However, the silence was quickly broken as the pair heard rushing footsteps heading towards their room, then frantic knocking.
"Edie! Byleth! We need to talk, it's urgent." The pair heard the familiar voice of their Songstress friend and headed towards the door. Once Byleth opened it, she saw the frantic and worried faces of Dorothea and the maid that was in charge of the children, Francesca.
Ignoring the state of address both Byleth and Edelgard were in, Dorothea ploughed ahead. "Edie, it's the children. Kain, Ayra, Pricilla, Vanessa and Katarina have collapsed."
Both Byleth and Edelgard's mouths hung open and they could barely make a sound. It was as if all the air had left their lungs.
Somehow Byleth managed to speak first. "H-How are they?"
"Stabilised for now. Hanneman, Manuela and Linhardt are seeing to them." Dorothea answered. "They believe it's the result of the crest experiments."
Both Edelgard and Byleth clenched their hands into fists.
"I'm so sorry, your Majesty." Francesca apologised as she covered her face with her hands. "I looked away from them for a moment to talk to Miss Dorothea and Miss Bernadetta and then we heard screams as we found the little ones on the floor."
Edelgard slowly raised her hand and placed it on Francesca's shoulder. "It is alright, you did everything you could have done."
Francesca slowly removed her hands from her face, as the others saw tear stains rolling down her face.
"Are they in the Infirmary?" Byleth asked.
Dorothea nodded her head. "Yes. It's why they sent us. They need your help."
"I'll do what I can." Byleth nodded her head as she squeezed tightly to Edelgard's hand.
"Mmm… Miss Byleth."
The four heard a small quiet voice down the corridor. They ran to see who the owner of the voice belonged to but were shocked to see that it belonged to Astrid.
The girl was unsteady on her feet. One hand was holding her up as it pressed against the wall. The other was against her head. Her face etched in pain.
"Astrid!" Both Byleth and Edelgard yelled as they ran towards her. Though as the pair got closer, Astrid's footing got a lot more unsteady.
Byleth ran as fast as she could and slid on the marble floor, and thankfully managed to catch Astrid before the young girl collided with the ground.
That was when Byleth noticed it. Something that frightened her. She saw blood rushing down her small nose.
Her heart froze and sank into the depth of her stomach.
"Edelgard… we have to go, now."
