*Blizzard ambience

**Premonition (FE15 OST)

***The Task at Hand (FE10 OST)

****The Devoted (FE10 OST)

*****Battle of Pride (FE10 OST)

******Victory United (FE9 OST)

*******Dreaming of Home (FE9 OST)

*One of the few physical possessions the First Dragons had for themselves- their dragonstones- were used exclusively by their owners for a very good reason; as it regulated their immense levels of power, it allowed them to switch effortlessly between their true forms and their human ones. As much as some of them may have chafed at being confined in the guise of these frail little creatures, that very same fact made it far more difficult for Selenos to track his fellows. None were exactly sure what would happen should a dragon attempt to add the power of another to his own, but none were convinced that any good could come of it. However, given the fact that Selenos and his human both, in addition to their twisted, symbiotic relationship, both seemed to only grow more powerful with each passing day. This could be expected given that the former was a dragon, but the fact that a human- even the most unusual one- possessed such an attribute, was quite alarming to the elders. And given that one of their own was struck down by the demon thief at all, even Lord Moro, a fairly cautious, conservative soul, was forced to at least concede to one of the young upstart's experiments, he volunteering himself as a test subject. For this reason, Moro, Puros, Hudatos, and Amaterasu all had gathered in Kervanos' isolated sanctuary, high in the northwestern peaks.

"Now, no matter how much pain I seem to be in, do not, I repeat, do not, try to pull me away from the stone." Anankos instructed. "But if I lose control and start to lash out at any of you-"

"We understand, hatchling." conceded Moro. "We are with you; regardless of the outcome."

While obviously unable to test it until now, just from his studies of their world, its structure and function, and his knowledge of his own kind, was able to formulate a specific hypothesis; that a dragon could transfer his or her power to another via their dragonstone. They had been doing it for many, many centuries with the humans, granting them a sliver of a fraction of their own power to little ill effect, so the young upstart naturally assumed that the same would (probably) hold true for his kind, as well. While a proud, powerful individual who would have never agreed to such an experiment in his lifetime, they all knew Kervanos to nonetheless genuinely care for their world and their people inhabiting it- if they needed his own power added to theirs, the very last thing Kervanos would fault them for was using his power to save their world from the demon thief whose fanatics had largely succeeded in brutally exterminating his people.

Still, the crackling electricity and sheer power radiating from stone hovering on the altar, gave even Anankos, the very last thing from a weakling, pause. Even from his dragonstone, the upstart could feel the intensity and power the Thunder Dragon had been known for to all of them. What would happen if it worked, he wondered to himself anxiously. What would happen if it did not? What other choice did they really have?

Inhaling deeply as he steeled himself, Anankos slowly inched his very-human extremity towards the stone. Even tapping it with his fingertip was painful; clasping it in his hand was sheer, screaming agony, making just as much an effort to keep himself standing as to keep Kervanos' stone in his grasp. But he had to maintain his focus; it was essential!*

Shrieking in terror, Amaterasu attempted to come to his aid, only to be forcibly impeded by the fire and water elders. "Are you daft, girl?" Hudatos admonished.

**Describing the mind-shattering pain as overtaking every cell in his human form would be far too weak; comparing it to every cell in his true form being scalded by lighting was more accurate. Even in spite of all this, with the Thunder Dragon's power assaulting his very being, Anankos felt a number of sensations; the dragonstone owner's pride at his people's thriving, even in this harsh, isolated environment, his joy at the festivals held in his honor (or for life itself!), sharing in his people's concern as the western zealots marauded across the continent, and his rage at the demon thief's injunction to annihilate his people and the ambush perpetrated against him. Whatever hesitation he may have had about his role in this cosmic conflict was utterly obliterated at this moment; he knew now, without a doubt, that his duty and purpose was to protect this world and its inhabitants- to protect this world and its inhabitants from his old friend and his pet demon who had been terrorizing and murdering a bloody swath across it.

After ten or so seconds (which felt like ten minutes to the onlookers), Anankos collapsed to the ground, releasing the now-dull, powerless stone from his grasp. Finally releasing Amaterasu, the Solar Dragon rushed to his limp form, cradling his head worriedly. "Anankos, Anankos!" she cried. "Please, wake up! I've already lost my brother! I-I-I can't lose anyone else!"

Puros glanced concernedly at the other two elders. "Is he-?"

After several seconds more, Anankos came to, groaning as though he'd woken up after an extraordinarily-long, satisfying nap. "Ngh...A-Amaterasu...did it work...?" Amaterasu's face lit up with joy and relief as her friend opened his eyes again, the elders crowding him."Oh, Anankos! You're alive!"

"Are you alright, hatchling?" inquired Moro wearily.**

For the first time in what felt like ages, the young upstart flashed a smile. "I'm actually feeling pretty good, Lord Moro." he admitted slyly. "Better than I ever have, in fact."

Catching Hudatos' eye was the dragonstone formerly belonging to their thundering kinsman. "Well, well, boy." he remarked, tossing the stone as though it were a small ball. "It looks like your little experiment was a success. Seems that proud old lizard did think you were worthy, after all."

Puros turned to his elder. "Well, what shall our next course of action be, milord?" he inquired politely.

"Ah, let's let the lad have a bit of rest before we fuss over our next move."

***Of course, she'd realized it on some conscious level, but in the ensuing weeks, Hana was made very much aware of just how much work it was to administer and command even a unit of this small size; whether sending envoys across camp for procurement of resources, petitioning her superiors for assorted (occasionally contradictory) permissions, and designing drills for their specific combat specialties (among other tasks) was probably the most trying endeavor the swordswoman had ever undertaken. Even with the help of Hideaki and Haruka, it was still quite a challenge. Hell, the punishing physical regimen she'd designed herself was probably the easiest part of it for Hana.

Having sent the husband-and-wife blade masters into the dirt for the umpteenth time that morning, Hideaki groaned in pain, dragging himself to his feet, away from the point of Hana's wooden practice blade. "How many lifetimes have you been studying the sword for anyway?" he inquired half in jest.

"About since I could walk." Hana replied, her tone very matter-of-fact.

Haruka raised a confused eyebrow. "And your father and uncle taught you to use a blade, correct?" she inquired.

"That's right!"

The elder swordswoman closed her eyes in contemplation, as if querying how a lass of her age would have found the time, let alone inclination, to become this skilled with a blade. "I believe my father was acquainted with yours and your uncle. And he spent- no, never mind."

As Hana took her leave of the couple, Hideaki muttered to himself reflexively. "That wasn't like fighting a human being...it was like fighting ten of them...at least!"

"Exactly who was her father again?"

"Musashi of Mutsu, why?"

"He was good- probably one of the best to ever take up a blade- but even he didn't fight like THAT."

In spite of his confusion about her exact origins, Hana still found the common, easygoing swordsman and his wife both comforting presences and a fine tutors in regards to the finer points of commanding a unit, even a small one, still just as fascinated by her efforts in the midst of the unfortunate Nohrian reconnaissance-slash-raiding parties they engaged as live exercises, more often than not remarked upon when they made camp for the night.

"That was some interesting swordwork!" complimented the common swordmaster's adjutant. "It almost made me feel sorry for that bastard- almost."

"But what was with your insistence upon salvaging that armor anyhow?" inquired Haruka.

Attempting to examine the finer details of the bloodstained suit of Nohrian armor by the fire's light, Hana found herself drifting in and out of the conversation. "Oh! Well, I have SOME training as a blacksmith- I'd like to customize our weapons to do as much damage as possible to their armor- even if we don't have casters available."

Under the chattering of his subordinates, Hideaki gave a scarcely-visible smile of approval. "Unconventional thinking- I like that."

"And besides," Hana continued. "as we all know, they have different types of armor- some weapons needing different attributes to be most effective against them."

Hideaki scoffed at this obvious fact. "Try convincing Lord Nogi about that." he complained, frustration with his scarred commanding officer apparent. "He's a good man who's been like a father to me, do not misunderstand me. But he's just TOO cautious for his own good!"

Then again, it of course went without saying that some of her technical subordinates resented taking orders from a young woman of seventeen or so, regardless of how unusual she may have been. Of course, for all of her admitted harshness in running drills, many of those same men (to say nothing of the others) were at least in part, won over by Hana's determination, inhumanly-hardworking attitude, and sincerity. After all, very few of them, even those who had previously made their living in the army, could testify to having a commanding officer who would literally work shifts at the smith's forge and give their recommendations about the most effective modifications for the tasks at hand.

"Yeah, you'll want to straighten this point out. I can take care of it for you if you want."

"It'll be a little heavier, but I think reinforcing this spear tip with steel would work wonders."

"Hmm, with your body type, I think you'd get more out of adding some more weight on the other end of the club."

"I'll swear by these knives, I carry them myself all the time- tools, backup weapons- only your imagination is the limit!"

The soldier, a young man (no older than sixteen at the very oldest) whose particular forehead shape gave him a noticeable appearance of permanent surprise and anxiety, nonetheless smiled as Hana returned the cloth bundle containing his spear, along with the complementary blades. "Th-thank you, ma'am."

It was of course, a vital aspect to the swordswoman's success in her new position that she leveraged these traits in addition to her personal magnetism (that mind you, she'd never been previously aware of) that would ultimately prove essential to the unit's future successes. This would mainly manifest as merely taking an interest in the lives and persons of those under her command, no matter how grave or trifling their concerns may have been; such as following one afternoon's close combat drills, Hana was stopped by a familiar face in the stocky archer.

"Uh, ma'am- Lady Hana-" he began, apparently more confused than even his commander. "About yesterday's yumi drills..."

The swordswoman's face was suddenly illuminated. "Oh, yeah!" she exclaimed. "We've met before...what was it...?"

"Ishihara, ma'am. Kaito Ishihara."

"So, what about the drills? Any questions? Truth is, Lord Yosuke might actually be able to answer them better-"

"With all due respect, he really couldn't. It has to be you."

Hana crocked her head sideways in confusion. "Me? Sure, what's up?"

"You did it again yesterday." remarked Kaito blankly, as if trying to decipher the riddle from her face. "Struck all of them- dead center- like it was nothing. How did you do that? Lord Yosuke or even my father in his prime couldn't have pulled that off.

"Well, it was-"

Now quite perplexed herself, Hana would have liked to say "it was nothing." After all, muscle memory was something she was well-acquainted with. But it was the sword she'd taken up since she could walk. How on earth did she manage to develop those particular muscles with that particular motion so strongly, let alone the superhuman hand-eye coordination to complete these feats with a bow AND only have been training with the sword with any regularity for the past fourteen or so years? Physically (as Kaito pointed out), it should have been an impossibility.

"Let me think about that for a bit." the swordswoman answered, scratching her chin with a perplexed, mildly-troubled expression.

Still, her duties as the technical commander of the unit encompassed more than simply seeing to her subordinate's training concerns- she'd witnessed first-hand just how callously the average Nohrian commander treated his men, their main motive for advancing being fearing their own officers than hating the enemy in front of them. Yes, Hana was very sensitive to the concerns of those under her, as a certain pale, redheaded sky knight could confirm one night before the torches were put out. "U-um, excuse me, Lady Hana." she began politely.

Hana's heart briefly leapt into her throat as she recognized the voice's owner. "Oh!" she exclaimed, a twinge of guilt in her voice. "I didn't notice you there..."

"Yua, ma'am." she introduced.

"So, did you need me for something, Yua?"

Deliberately not making eye contact with her superior, Yua's expression was transparently downcast. "I-If I'm out of line, commander, just say so-" she prefaced gingerly. "But, my cousin- w-what exactly were his final hours like?"

"You don't want me to answer that." Hana remarked bitterly. "You really don't."

"Please, ma'am! At least I would know, one way or the other."***

Defeated, the swordswoman sighed tiredly, bitterly recalling the increasingly severe and sadistic humiliations-slash-tortures inflicted upon her erstwhile partner by the gloating Nohrians. "Like I said, there's no doubt in my mind that he saved my life in doing this." prefaced Hana, as though it would possibly soften the blow. "Because I really can't understate the level of hatred these ani- Nohrians- have for "savage" men. People like us fall into their power- unless you're EXTREMELY lucky like I was- you already know what's going to happen to you, more or less. But the men? They GO OUT OF THEIR WAY to come up with sick ways to torture them."

Unlike with her liege or even her elder brother, here, Hana was far less inclined to censor her accounts of the acts of Nohrian sadism she'd either witnessed firsthand or otherwise heard tales of occurring. Burning men, women, and children of all ages alive was a popular pastime. Along with impalement of prisoners of war or civilians who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Hell, she'd even heard of them skinning Hoshidans alive on occasion. So Yua was, not surprisingly, visibly relieved at the quick, relatively painless death afforded to her beloved cousin. Not unlike many of her countrymen and women, for all their differences with the neighbors, Yua had the tendency to think of people as fundamentally good by nature and her cousin shared that view, apparently.

"To his very last moment, he kept insisting that they're really not that different from us." Hana scowled. "What a joke. He may not have thought so, but they basically consider themselves a separate species from non-Nohrians. On some level, Subaki must have known that; he was trying to protect as many people as he could, even without his weapon."

Yua's expression turned downcast-but-somehow-steeled once more. "I see...thank you, ma'am." she conceded. "My cousin was trying to protect you and as many of our people as possible. Allow me to do the same for as long as you'll have me or as long as I can hold a weapon."

Hana gave a sisterly smile as she placed a hand on Yua's shoulder. "Perfect!"

***Still, not all of her interactions with her subordinates were so heavy or dramatic, but still revealing nonetheless. About ten days into her new command, after leading some sword drills; it was not unusual for Hana at all to continue to practice well after she dismissed the others. With a very full day of her ahead already, the swordswoman decided to cut it a bit short- only about ten or so minutes afterward, looking forward to a cool, refreshing bath in the nearby stream.

Perhaps as a practiced skill, Hana, much as on the battlefield, had a very light, unobtrusive step, even to the point of only being lightly acknowledged by most of the women gathered there, most of whom by now were redressing themselves.

"Oh, commander! You scared me half to death!"

"Morning, Lady Hana."

"Commander, I didn't get the wrist movements at the end of the last drill. Can you show me sometime?"

Her armor and blade already placed along the river bank, Hana rolled her eyes as she stripped off her garments, folding them neatly before setting foot into the river. "If you really need it, sure." she conceded, most unamused. "But I still don't see how someone as bright as you doesn't get it, Matsumoto."

Hana lathering herself up with the soap she'd use, it was always a little jarring for her bare flesh to come into contact with the stream's chilly waters; nonetheless, it was always somewhat enervating. The swordswoman taking her time to adjust to the water's temperature, another of her subordinates seated upon a nearby rock fixture, whistled appreciatively- albeit not precisely in the respectful manner with which one would address a superior officer. "Damn, commander!" exclaimed the woman. "Your swordplay isn't the only thing that's the finest in the camp!"

Coloring slightly at the water temperature and embarrassment at the sheer shamelessness of her flirting, Hana grimaced. "T-thanks, I guess, Tomoe."

Tomoe Inazawa was an interesting woman on a number of different levels; about twenty years old, raven hair cropped into a bobcut, fierce, determined eyes, powerful limbs and oddly-barrel-chested, another unusual trait of hers became far more pertinent as she emerged from the water not too far from Hana. "Oh, you're too modest, commander!" she exclaimed. "After all, a sexy woman in power who can out-swordfight pretty much anyone? What's not to love?"

"Really, thank you, I guess. But-"

Tomoe smirked, noticeably closing the distance between them. "Besides, it's supposed to be getting kinda chilly soon. If you ever want a bit of company for a night, just let me know, commander."

Face now visibly reddened, Hana turned away from the other woman, not least of the factors being the height difference putting Tomoe's bust more-or-less directly in her line of sight. "You're not bad-looking by any means, Tomoe." she prefaced. "But I'm kind of in an odd place already- and I don't want to be seen as giving anyone special treatment, especially because-"

"Because we both like women?"

"Yeah, basically."

Hana took several watery steps away, staring off pensively into the sky. "Besides, I already have someone. They're- she's pretty far away from here right now."

Nodding as she took in the very good points, Tomoe smiled slightly. "Nah, I get it. You're a real stand-up gal, commander." she remarked understandingly. "That said, the offer's always open. Hell, it doesn't even have to be about sex- we could just talk if you need it."

"Thanks, Tomoe. I really mean it."

And Hana truly did; after all, the women she knew personally and for a fact to have her particular affliction, she could literally count on one hand. Four if one counted (possibly) Kagero, but given that she'd previously been with Saizo, she kind of doubted it.

One thing that her mother, father, and uncle alike all despised (the latter referring to it as "probably one of the most cowardly things you could do.") however, was lying- and they went out of their way to impart this disgust into Hana's mind. Still, it wasn't technically a lie to turn down Tomoe by claiming she did actually have someone already or that she was far away; it was more wishful thinking than anything, she reassured herself.

With all this said, Hana was never exactly the type of girl- even less so a young woman- to get caught up in her own affairs. And this continued determination to her given cause was to prove extraordinarily fateful come as another week passed and the autumn air chilled noticeably. Apparently, Lord Nogi had gotten over some of his initial skepticism about her proposal after his inspections over the past several days, if Hideaki was to be believed. "For someone delivering good news, you don't sound that thrilled." Hana remarked.

The swordsman sighed. "Either we've known each other and worked together too long, his mood is contagious, or both." he replied. "But Lord Nogi has seemed rather troubled the past week. I'll see what I can get out of him, but I wouldn't get my hopes up."

And surely enough, within a couple of days more, Hideaki was able to pry the concerns from his mentor; not-so-secretly hoping to catch as much of the conversation as possible without technically eavesdropping. And surely enough, a portion of the conversation was exceptionally relevant to her hopes and interests.

"Ill-gotten or no, the man's wealth allows him to put more resources into the field than most of his fellows." the old commander reiterated. "Supposedly, the only wealthier noble family in their country is their royal one."

"And I'm telling you, milord!" resumed Hideaki, now sounding somewhat annoyed. "We have now a golden opportunity to do some real damage to Nohr; one that may not come around again!"

"And if your gambit fails and the duke's forces haven't taken as much damage from attrition as you and some others propose? You've led men into battle plenty of times; are you honestly prepared to look mothers and fathers, wives and children in the eye and tell them you threw away their lives on a hunch? From what we know, this Duke Guillaume has the resources to put armies of his own into the field!"

Already kind of irritated by Nogi's excuses, with the mention of the duke, Hana had heard enough, taking care to approach the tent as inconspicuously as possible. "No, it wouldn't be throwing their lives away." she insisted, leaning against a stack of crates.

The old commander was visibly shocked by her sudden appearance. "Oh!" he exclaimed. "Young Lady Hana! Didn't notice you there!"

"No, it wouldn't be throwing their lives away." Hana repeated. "And it wouldn't be just a hunch. You literally allowed me to form this unit with one purpose; get behind the enemy's lines, do as much damage as quickly as possible, and get out. Sir Hideaki is exactly correct about the opportunity we have."

Nogi scoffed irritably. "Are you daft, girl? What you've accomplished so far is impressive, but not THAT impressive! Especially if our supplies remain-"

For some inexplicable reason she could not- nor would she ever be able to- place, something about the litany of excuses was just inexplicably and particularly irking Hana this evening. Perhaps it was the accumulated tension of the situation, Nogi's dithering, overly-cautious response, some combination of the two or any other number of factors, but the swordswoman, once again, most unlike her friendly, generally-easygoing self, slammed her fist into the table near Hideaki. "Oh, hang your supply lines!" she shouted. "You gave me an order to train a unit like this, in a situation where it would be REALLY useful and you won't even let us prove our worth! What sense does that make?!"

"There is a reason for that!" the old commander bellowed in response. "Gods, you're just as stubborn as your father and uncle, girl!"

Knowing fully well she was very close to being insubordinate, if not already there, Hana, massaging her temples in frustration, took notice of the blade holstered on Nogi's belt. "That's a fine sword, sir." she resumed, somewhat calmer.

"Of course it is." answered Nogi, one eyebrow raised cautiously. "Passed down from father to son from time immemorial."

The young woman's expression turned stony, more than anything. "But it's worthless to you, Lord Nogi. It may as well be a stick for all the good it's doing Hoshido."

"What are you on about, now, girl?"***

"A sword wields no strength unless the hand that holds it has courage." Hana recited very matter-of-factly. "Something my father and uncle always said, but I never really appreciated until just this moment; also passed down to us as long as anyone can remember."

Somewhat disarmed by his arguably-justified dressing-down, the old commander was still not entirely sold on the proposal. "It will be dangerous and costly." he reiterated upon the obvious. "Especially since I have to babysit you and this one-"

"I don't need you to 'babysit' us, Lord Nogi. If my suspicions are right, I just need you to do what you were already discussing; hold a defensive line; we'll take care of their supplies and the duke."

Failing to find any more holes in the proposal which he could pick at, Nogi sighed tiredly. "Do you agree with this one, boy?"

"Of course." Hideaki answered. "Naturally, Lady Hana, Haruka and I have discussed this at length."

Once again, the grizzled old warrior gave a sigh of defeat. "Fine, fine." he conceded. "But you're not getting anything extra for this effort. According to our intelligence, the duke's caravan is to continue on in five days, first thing in the morning. If he escapes, I'll have no more of this foolishness."

The common sword champion gave a slight grin, a rare occurrence. "I knew you would see it our way, old friend."

Nogi dismissing the arguably-insubordinate pair, Hideaki was most impressed by the display. "I have to hand it to you, young Lady Hana." he began, some hint of a satisfied smile on his lips. "That took some ball- well- you know what I mean- more than any man I've ever-"

Hana, however, was rather unamused, but not for the reason one might expect. "If you've time joke, you've got time to prepare." she reminded. "I'm going to order Yua and some of her friends into the air- just to double-check my suspicions. Meanwhile, I need your help gathering every piece of scrap wood we can spare- everything that's not already marked by the engineers- find it."

Even though she knew better of course, the woodland sounds of a certain forest expanse in western Hoshido seemed somehow muted to Hana. Perhaps it was her mentally blocking out the chirping of the crickets and hooting of the owls in order to visualize and prepare for any possible outcome? Or six of her twelve assigned subordinates- swordsmen, pike wielders, and the odd dismounted sky knight- whispering among themselves nervously? Perhaps it was some combination of both. But the fact remained that there was a certain tension in the air everyone was ready to see resolved, one way or another.

"Lady Hana!" whispered one of the spearmen nervously. "D-did you hear that?"

"Yes, I did, Chiharu! It was some animal or another!"

"Ma'am, what if it wasn't?" inquired one of the swordsmen, just as nervously.

"We ALL would have noticed if it was the enemy, Ida! If you're that nervous, just stay on Hisaya and me!"

"Ma'am!" interjected Kaito. "Hear it?! That's the signal!"

Surely enough, with the Nohrian sentry in the distance lighting one of the torches, the sound of firecrackers echoed through the forests. Also just as surely, the Nohrian seemed to be inquiring with his fellow as to the sound's exact origin.

****"Alright, go!" Hana ordered. "Exactly like we rehearsed it!"

Kaito immediately drawing back an arrow, he sent two in quick succession to send the sentry and his friend to meet their maker. "Chiharu, Hikari, Iguchi, follow it up and secure it!" ordered the swordswoman, hand on her own weapon as she and her remaining subordinates proceeded up the path towards the fork, the former team taking great pains to make the scene as nondescript as possible- save for Kaito and his protege, Minamoto- taking up the twin sentry points, of course, ready, willing, and very able to rain down death upon the unsuspecting enemy.

The sleepy, disoriented, poorly-motivated Nohrian pikemen were little match for the troops Hana had spent countless hours drilling ceaselessly; once their commander took to the battle in earnest, this disadvantage became even more lopsided, Hana, as she was wont to do, cutting a bloody swath through the enemy formation; their panicked commanders screaming and cursing at their troops to create an actual formation did little good, seeing as Hana, her proteges Ida and Hisaya, went out of their way to silence said commanders without fail. With no commanders to send runners to make clear that they had been caught in a trap within another enemy trap, the outcome was predictable.

One segment of the enemy forces dealt with, Hana instructed her forces to swing back towards the makeshift barriers erected to cover the archers, the light, both natural and manmade giving them an excellent vantage point to pick off Nohrian infantry. She and Ida picking off a formation of axemen menacing Kaito's eastern tower, the archer gestured approvingly. "Thanks, Commander, Ida! You two really saved-"

Squinting his eyes, as though he were afraid of mistaking it, the bowman's eyes widened in relief- there were in fact, blue flames emanating from the towers across the tree line. "Ma'am! The signal's gone up! Inazawa and her men have their end!"

Operating on too much adrenaline to actually be feeling any fatigue, Hana grinned at the archer. "Excellent!" she congratulated. "Same to you, Kaito!"

"We should be good for now, Commander. The rest of you, focus on the enemy behind us!"

Hana did not need to be told twice to rally her troops deeper into the forest and close in on the Nohrian supply dump and their commander, their hastily-deployed reinforcements, while having adapted slightly to some semblance of a formation, were scarcely much better off as they were cut down, the swordswoman of course, making their unit captains a priority target.

"Hmph, not so tough now, are you bastards?" sneered Ida, swinging some Nohrian blood off his blade. "Against actual warriors instead of women and children?"

"No, they're not." Hana answered, some grim sense of satisfaction. "But stay alert; there's a clearing just ahead I'm not too sure about.

Exactly as reported by their airborne scouts, the Nohrian infantry seemed to have a difficult time with negotiating these particular forests- the dampness of the environment largely preventing their fire tomes from taking. Needless to say, even with minimal intervention by their commander, it came as little surprise that these particular Nohrians were dealt with fairly quickly with their fellows flanking their enemy from the nearby foliage.

"Alright, great job!" congratulated Hana, driving her blade into the chest cavity of one of the prone enemies for good measure. "But stay alert! This isn't over yet!"

Her pallid face seeming somehow more so, Yua's expression seemed somehow vindicated nonetheless. "Lady Hana!" she began. "Exactly like we suspected! Enemy armor advancing to provide support!"

"Perfect!" the swordswoman remarked sincerely, sheathing her regular blade for the alternate, armor-piercing sword. "Anyone with a spear, fan out for defensive positions! Again, just like we rehearsed it!"

The forest was too thick to even attempt to make use of their preferred cavalry charges and one could literally hear the heavily-armored, Nohrian soldiers coming long before they were visible. That said, the enemy's commanders, arrogant as they may have been, were by no means stupid, their wyverns and mages deployed beforehand in order to soften up a force they assumed far heavier than it was. Of course, this is exactly what Hana and her swordsmen were counting on, to say nothing of Kaito and his archers who sent most of the great beasts and their riders plummeting to the earth before any real damage could be done- the odd ones who did get through, Hana dealt with herself.

The moonlight was not exactly bright enough to illuminate the clearing completely, but for her part, by the time the skirmish was over, Hana counted some fifty Nohrians lying dead or dying, apart from the isolated stragglers (who were of course, to be shortly eliminated) routed from the clearing. "Is everyone okay?" she inquired to general murmurs of agreement.

"I scratched my chin after tripping over one of their knights!" claimed a pikeman- Iguchi- jovially.

This statement was met with groans, playful admonitions and assorted ribbing from his fellows, in addition to a hacking, bloody cough from one of the Nohrians, inching towards his fallen comrade's bow before Ida halted him with his boot against his chest, producing a kodachi from his belt with which he slit the Nohrian's throat. "Now that we've got THAT out of the way-" he remarked.

"Let's continue." Hana finished for him.

The general thrust of their advance could be best described as a sort of two-pronged feint; Chiharu, his pikemen, and Tomoe (acting as her commander's proxy) were to lure a fair portion of the Nohrian force as deeper into the forest as possible while the main force- comprised mainly of cavalry and wyverns- would be drawn to the false campsite- where a wall of metal and magic would await them before they were enveloped and destroyed completely. As for the actual active phase of warfare, it was of course, a noisy business, even on the best of days. But there was something particularly...chaotic about the audible racket emanating from the southern portion of the woods. The green fireworks being sent up into the sky from the same general position indicated to Hana that the enemy had walked directly into the trap and were only now starting to realize it far too late.

****"Alright, there's the other signal!" Hana informed. "We're not far from the campsite now at all! Again, just like we rehearsed it. Split up into two teams; Iguchi, once protect Kawamoto and our other casters- take up your positions while the enemy is still disoriented by the fires; we'll swing back around to help shortly along with Hideaki's reinforcements from the south."

Both men murmured in general agreement, the mage Kawamoto hailing from a province the Nohrians had scoured with fire largely already.

"Ida, you and the other half are on me." she instructed. "Just be judicious with your targets- anyone who can make these guys' lives any more difficult."

"Got it, commander." the normally-surly swordswman answered excitedly. "Anything else?"

Hana's usually-kind, benevolent expression took on a ferocity her troops had only seen anywhere close to during her harshest training sessions. "You wound some Nohrian noble, don't kill him- bring him to me."

Truth be told, Guillaume had been having something of a rotten month, due in no small part to his supply being nearly impossible to replenish. For all the (exclusively negative) traits his people attributed to the Hoshidans, they, for whatever reason, seemed to resist the idea of being enslaved by their "betters" and resist it violently- be they nobles or the lowliest, unarmed peasant. And what with his men coming under almost-constant attack, it would be enough to ruin anyone's time in the godsforsaken country. When the duke was finally roused from his failed attempts to sleep, he was of course, less-than-pleased with the outcome, having been assured that the sounds of combat were far afield of his camp. "Oh, what fresh hell is this-?" he groaned, pushing back his ornate tent's flap.

*****He'd thought he'd smelled smoke, but Guillaume was kicking himself for not realizing one thing- it wasn't their mages burning the savages, it was his own camp! Then again, he'd had a very immediate problem. "Hi, there." Hana said, unusually blankly as she twirled the blade of to her side in preparation for battle. "So, you ready to pay for your crimes with your worthless life?"

The duke stammered anxiously as he searched for some way- any way- to talk his way out of this mess. He was never a fighter in the slightest, and only those especially magically-gifted like Matteo or the king could manage to cast without verbally uttering the incantation.

"S-surely we could w-work something out..." he remarked cravenly. "I-I mean, I'm sure your f-father or uncle or brother would l-love some of my merchandise...girls...boys, whatever they'd like!"

Hana's expression was less angry or disgusted, but more as if to ask are you kidding me? "Really?" she inquired, readying her blade. "THAT'S how you're trying to get out of this? Offering to sell me my own people as slaves for my father and uncle who were murdered by you Nohrians?"

For some inexplicable reason, Guillaume's pathetic face lit up momentarily. "Oh, look right there!" he remarked. "To your left!"

Well aware it was a trick, the swordswoman nonetheless glanced off to her left just to be sure as Guillaume muttered a frantic, hurried truncation of an incantation. "Bolganone!"

At the first inkling of the tremor, Hana sprung gracefully from the site of the fissure erupting in the ground, the magma spewing forth only illuminating the forest and her target's position even more, much to the caster's horror.

Even someone with as pampered an upbringing and more concerned with money like Guillaume knew that losing track of something (or someone) willing, ready, and very able to kill you was never a good sign, the cowardly duke attempted in vain to make his way to reunite with his troops, only to find the commoners' tents in flames and full of the dying and the dead, the still-living fighting a desperate, losing battle against the "savages."

Cursing frantically to himself, Guillaume, at the sound of some nearby foliage rustling, began to mutter just-as-frantically the damnably-long incantation, setting fire to the thicket, hoping against hope it was his pursuer.

Although the carnage and his own heartbeat made it exceptionally-difficult to pick out the voice taunting him. "That's enough, you bastard."

Exactly as some part of his mind had feared, the duke was in fact, looking in the wrong direction. From the foliage directly behind him, Hana sprang forth, driving her weapon into the left half of his black-hearted chest cavity with both her own strength, speed, and momentum.

Coughing up a good deal of blood as he finally recognized what had transpired, Guillaume fell to his knees, gaze turned balefully to nowhere in particular. "Please...no...not like this...!"*****

Rolling the reprobate onto his side after removing the blade, Hana drove the weapon into his black heart once again for good measure. The flames provided the light to detect what she was after; surely as night turned to day, on the corpse's belt, the swordswoman located his most prized possession, his purple, intricately-embroidered coin purse.

******"Ma'am! Excellent news!" reported Iguchi. "The enemy's levy has been routed and their reinforcements have been blocked!"

Hana beamed. "Perfect! The enemy commander is dead and I've retrieved what I needed!" she reported in return. "Was any of his 'merchandise' recovered?"

"Yes, ma'am! We recovered some fifty souls around where they were keeping their livestock. They're being transported back to camp as we speak."

"Good work, everyone! Send up the fireworks! Whatever we can't salvage, burn before we leave! Let's see how they like it!"

"Alright, you heard the lady, move!"

"Woo! My first battle! My first real battle!"

"Shut up, Iguchi. They're not all gonna go like this."

When her unit did finish with the duke's camp and enemy wounded and they met back up with the others, the first to encounter Hana was a rather-humbled Lord Nogi, his pensive expression visible even though the dimly-lit forest. "This is awkward for me to say," he began, scratching the thinning hair on his scalp. "But I apologize for treating you so dismissively, young warrior. It seems you're the real deal, after all. Musashi and Tomokane would be beaming with pride if they could see you!"

Still high off of the worst black eye she had given their difficult neighbor in a long while, Hana beamed. "Oh, it's all in the past!" she assured. "I know how it is- you know how much time I spent sparring with my brother and his friends as a girl?"

The old lord gave a hearty laugh at the truth of this assertion. "That is true! I suppose less changes from the days of those boyhood contests than we'd care to admit."

"So where do we go from here?"

"What else? We whittle away at Nohrian strength until the momentum turns to us and our allies."

Needless to say, back at camp, raucous celebrations had sprung up at the (confirmed) news of their mutual oppressor experiencing another blow from which they would be hard-pressed to recover, all the while buzzing about this new unit that had infiltrated Nohrian lines, eliminated the slave-trading duke and done irreparable damage before withdrawing. Despite having gone, in the space of little more than a month, from that weird noblewoman from the backwater northern provinces to the toast of the camp, Hana largely spurned indulging in the hero's welcome afforded her in lieu of some business that required addressing.

"Excellent work." congratulated Kagero, examining the bloody purse taken from a now-very-deceased Duke Guillaume. "With this, we've made one thing very clear to even the dullest noble in that country- evils have consequences."

"Have to give you your credit." conceded Saizo. "You're WAY more hardcore than you let on."

"Nice compliment, for you, Saizo." she answered. "I guess."

"So what will you do from here?" inquired Kagero. "I do feel guilty about taking you from Princess Sakura's side, but your subordinates adore you and a unit like this- would be extraordinarily useful."

While her first instinct was, of course, to return to the princess' side, before Hana could answer the question verbally, she had to wonder- what was she going to do exactly, anyway? True, she could leave the command of this unit in the hands of someone else- Hideaki and Haruka were very capable in their own right- but the fact that these were HER troops, damnit- the motley collection of determined Hoshidan misfits to whom she'd come to be as a stern-but-benevolent elder sister- proved a powerful pull too. It simply felt RIGHT to her

"Do either of you have any paper?" she asked finally. "I need to give this some thought."

Kagero allowed herself the extremely-rare hint of a smile. "Of course. You shouldn't feel the need to decide just this second."*****"

*******Not far from the tent from which she'd initially been assigned, Hana retired to her cot, a quill, some ink, an old tome for support, and some of the finest stationery she could locate given the circumstances, beginning to scribble out her thoughts- and an assurance of her continued mortality- to the one person she'd missed the most this past couple of months. "Hey, Sakura! I know what you're thinking, and I'm fine. Better than fine, in fact! I can't go into too much detail in case this gets intercepted, but..."

Hana spent the better part of an hour pouring her feelings onto the paper in front of her, detailing (within reason, of course) her trials at the camp and exploits in leading this experimental unit, able to perfectly anticipate- even see and hear- her princess' reactions and body language as though she were sitting right there. "...Anyway, with how things work and how we move around, we should get to see each other again pretty soon! Take care of yourself, Hana."

Still, there was something...missing about the letter that Hana could not quite place. And it was irritating her more and more as she scanned the paper again and again, seeking out any and all imperfections. After the tenth or so rereading of the letter, she could finally place what it was that bothered her about the composition to the point of rewriting it completely- identically save for the parting salutation. Her conversation with Tomoe and her own preexisting anxieties dueling in her mind, the former aided by the ambiguity of the term, Hana finally finished her letter. "...Anyway, with how things work and how we move around, we should get to see each other again pretty soon! Love, Hana."*******

For many years now, he'd been training with this spirit, specter- whatever one wished to call it. While having grown into a man of some distinction in his own right with a family of his own, Yatsunasa still retained a sort of awe before his guide- with how distant a man his father was, truth be told, the mysterious warrior actually proved himself as more pivotal a paternal figure in his life.

"I must give you your due, young man." said the spirit, how impressed he was apparent. "Out of all the students I've ever trained, none of them have been able to master all of my secret skills!"

Yatsunasa smiled tiredly, leaning somewhat on his weapon. "Well, it wasn't easy, that's for sure."

"Now, I know you'll doubtlessly want me to teach you more, but-"

"But what?"

"I have imparted to you all the knowledge about the sword my many years and battles have granted me. I do sincerely believe that you and your sons are well-prepared to face the Prince of Darkness and not a moment too soon at that!"

Yatsunasa's expression turned somewhat downcast, reflecting upon all his responsibilities as lord of these lands among other things. "But that's the problem." he reminded. "I don't FEEL ready. Surely there must be SOME wisdom you've left to impart to me!"

"No, I truly have taught you all I know. But before all, recall what I said-"

Already a rather spectral figure, the heroic specter seemed to fade in and out of existence, his goddess' voice ringing in his ears, warning him of the imminent threat ("My champion, the seal is broken! Come quickly! The shield-demon is loose once more!").

The spirit began too murmur questions and swears to himself before a very concerned, if not downright frightened, Yatsunasa. "Wait, what's happening?!" inquired the young lord. "Is something wrong?"

"The demon I mentioned! It's returned! My world- it's in just as much danger as yours!"

"What was it you meant to tell me?!"

"What I've been saying from our first meeting! A sword wields no strength unless the hand that holds it has courage!"

For all the progress he'd made and how far he'd come not only with the blade, Yatsunasa still despaired of the prospect of losing his longtime mentor and teacher, especially with the news coming out of the south and west. Still, for all the emotions he felt- confusion, fear, and a bit of anger- Yatsunasa still wracked his brain, searching for a pertinent question. "But if I'm not chosen?" he inquired at last. "How will I know?! How will I know who does have your spirit?!"

The shade was now just as much ether as corporeal presence as he spoke his last words in this strange world. "Look for the mark of the gods!" he instructed. "Look for those fated three...always three...never more...never fewer...!"

Awaking with a start, Yatsunasa found his heart pounding and mind racing, almost like he'd just participated in another great battle. Breathing still heavy, the lady of the manor noticed her lord's distress as she rose from her futon at his side. "Ngh, what's wrong, my love?" she inquired, rubbing her right eye absentmindedly.

"N-nothing." insisted Yatsunasa abruptly. "It's nothing. Go back to sleep, Akaiko."

His wife groaned sleepily, slinking back into her bedding. "Alright, if you're certain, milord..."

While Akaiko was a famously heavy sleeper, the abrupt nature of his vision, as well as his preexisting anxieties prevented Yatsunasa from returning to sleep for the rest of the night, instead electing to pace the estate restlessly, his favorite blade at the ready, pondering his mentor's last words to him. Fated three, mark of the gods? What on earth did those even mean, he wondered angrily. The heroic spirit was always somewhat verbose, but speaking in outright riddles?! That was probably the least helpful thing he could have said! Recalling what the fanatics had done to the tribe of the thunder worshipers, Yatsunasa shuddered in disgust, electing once again to make his rounds, following up with checking up on his children.

Ironically, he would not be made aware of it for many years to come, but interestingly enough, the solution to his despair and answer to his (and the world's prayers) dozed peacefully in a bassinet in her parents' chambers, not a care in the world, completely oblivious to the monumental destiny that had been meted out to her, let alone the two other souls bound to her by the gods (which gods?) themselves. For all his frustration with his spectral mentor, in order to locate the answer to the riddle, Yatsunasa need only have checked his infant daughter's left hand and the sometimes-conspicuous, golden, triangular birthmark upon it...