Morgan-Maura- means dark

Morgan ran up to the Mila Tree from the docks of Valm Harbor, cursing under her breath. Those three can't be planning on leaving, too. Lucina was one thing, but none of the rest of us have been born or anything! As she rounded the crest of a hill, she pushed harder as she saw the three figures she recognized well, she could barely hear a voice she didn't recognize.

"Ingio, Owain, Severa. Hm.. odd, I expected one more, ah I think she's coming now." The mysterious voice she managed to link to a fourth person, wearing a hood and exuding a similarly mysterious power. If Mother knew of this man's power...

"She?" Severa hissed

"What fair maiden could be our comrade?" Owain questioned, like I would let you three leave without explaining anything!

"I think it's pretty clear Mor-" Ingio was interrupted as Morgan slammed into him, seething with anger.

"How could you leave me behind! You never told me anything about this! Did you expect I would let you leave without a word?" Morgan immediately began questioning Ingio. If it's anyone's idea, it would have been his. Morgan would have gone on further, before the mysterious man intervened.

"Morgan, I called the three of them here, and intended to speak with you as well, but there were… complications." The mysterious man seemed to have trouble finding the word.

"They still should have said something." Morgan never broke her glare.

"I asked them not to say anything to anyone, they weren't aware of the fact you would be involved. I suppose now, everything is alright though." Morgan turned to him with an even icier glare.

"Who are you anyways?" If the man was affected by Morgan's glare, he certainly didn't show it.

"Yes, I suppose I should catch you up to speed on what's happening. My name is Anankos, and I need your help to save my kingdom." Anankos acted too nonchalant about what was happening for Morgan's tastes, she couldn't read him, and the power surrounding him wasn't helping his case either.

"How can I trust you? You seem to be powerful yourself" The question was more to Morgan herself than the man, but he reacted calmly.

"I understand your doubts, but I need you to trust me on this." Anankos looked Morgan dead in the eyes, and from him she could feel a small amount of human emotion.

"Morgan, I think we should trust him." Ingio's voice admittedly calmed Morgan down a bit. If they trust him, I guess it's fine.

"Very well then, but I'm keeping my eyes on you." Morgan decided.

"Okay, then. Ingio, Owain, Severa, Morgan. Are you ready for this?" Anankos asked, out of final conformation.

"Yes, my fell hand is ready." Owain piped up first as usual.

"Naturally." Ingio stood confidently, prepared for whatever happened next.

"I suppose." Morgan gave Anankos a warning look. Try something, I dare you.

"Let's get this over with." Severa said in her usual bored tone.

"Then let us begin." What happened next was a blinding light accompanied by a deafening roar that sounded too similar to Morgan's nightmares.

"Wh- What just happened?! Why did you change the color of my hair!" Morgan looked around and sure enough, Severa and Ingio's hair colors had changed, while Owain's had not. Interesting, I wonder if it's permanent. And Severa brings up a good point, what's the point of changing our hair?

Morgan had to physically tear her eyes away from Ingio and Severa's heads as she pulled down a clump of her short bangs so she could see them, but like Owain, her hair color hadn't changed. When she pulled her hair down though, her sleeve dropped revealing something that she was not expecting. "The Mark is gone." The words were music to her ears and she checked over both her arms to be sure of it. "It's actually gone." She could feel tears well up in her eyes.

"So is my Brand!" Owain's voice broke her out of her stupor, and she glanced to the side, only to see the blue birthmark on Owain's shoulder was gone. She looked into Ingio's eyes to see that, his was gone too. What kind of magic is this, to be able to remove the Brand of the Exalt and my Mark, scars bestowed by gods? The amount of times I've tried to remove the Mark has been lost on me, but he just removed it as easy as using a tome.

"That's, um, some powerful magic you've got there Mr. Anankos." It was clear Ingio was at a loss for words, as he moved to hold Morgan as she began shivering, from what emotion, Morgan wasn't sure anymore. Ever the gentleman, isn't he?

"I thought it wise to alter your appearances before we depart for our destination. Any characteristics that could hint at your true lineages must be kept hidden. The least I can do is lessen the burden you three shall endure for taking on this task." Anankos acted as though the mental breakdown Morgan was going through was normal.

"Drat, I really liked the color of my hair" Severa seemed to break the mood, causing Morgan to shoot her a look through still-misty eyes.

"Too bad, ginger really was your color. At least your outfits will look cuter, maybe you'll actually spend a normal amount of clothes because of it." Morgan shot half-playfully, as Severa glared at her

"Don't worry Severa, that new color is still rather fetching on you!" Ingio calmly tried to diffuse the situation before getting jabbed in the side by Morgan. Flirting again, I will find someway to get you to stop that, if it's the last thing I do.

The two of them didn't even notice as Owain walked over to Ingio and put a hand on his shoulder."Still as much of a flirt as always, least that's consistent. Not even the war could change that." Not gonna stop me from trying.

Anankos waited until the group of warriors were a bit calmer and focused before moving on. "Now that I've altered your appearances, you'll need new clothes and powers. Finally, the last step will be to create new names for the four of you."

Owain took an auditory gasp. "New names?! You're joking!" Whether it was excitement or surprise in the myrmidon's face, Morgan couldn't tell.

Anankos calmly looked over to the swordsman before saying,"I am not. I'm afraid abandoning your real names is a necessary precaution."

Owain's face practically light up, once again, Morgan couldn't tell."So basically we must hide our true identities in case the worst happens…. A shadow warrior of darkness living under a false identity- I could get used to that!" Excitement, definitely excitement.

Ingio looked a bit more concerned than Owain. "Um, Mr. Anankos, since you're having us change our names and appearances...that means this task you're asking of us is incredibly difficult and dangerous. Correct?"

Anankos showed a small frown at the question, but nonetheless answered,"You are correct. I need you three to travel to another place and time to fight for me. It is a world where fates intertwine. A world of choices and consequences. I truly hope the fates are kind to you there, because if they are not...then death awaits you all."

"Death?!" Morgan grasped Ingio's arm in order to support him.

"But we finally achieved peace here! I can't go DYING before I've had time to enjoy it!" Father and Uncle Chrom are still working on the complete peace thing. Morgan decided to let it go, not too many people are aware of the continued peace talks in Plegia and Valm after they were handed back to their original rulers.

"She's got a point! Dark missions are my specialty, but to risk my life again…" Owain's face visibly darkened.

"I'll admit, this was seeming too good to be true, I guess we should have expected this." Morgan smiled in light of the news she was just given.

"I see. I cannot your reluctance is unexpected. I will not force any of you to go. You have every right to refuse my request." Anankos's frown deepened, until Ingio spoke up.

"Wait! Who said anything about refusing?" Anankos looked at Ingio in surprise.

"Yeah, I never said I wouldn't go. It's just a shame, is all" Anankos's frown slowly disappeared.

"Have you met my family? The threat of death doesn't scare me." Morgan looked to Anankos with a small smile.

"Though I doubt there's much reward in it for us, I will lend you my unholy strength!" Owain thrust his hand into the air as a bit of confirmation.

Anankos was truly flabbergasted, he attempted to regain his composure before he asked,"You agree to my request? I must ask… Why?"

Owain was the first to speak up, "Well, it's clear you're in a real mess. You need us."

Anankos went into deep thought, his brow noticeably furrowing under his hood.

"Look. We may be young, but we have a lot of experience on the battlefield. And we've all been through a lot. We can tell when someone really needs help." Severa spoke up next.

" It's true. And when someone truly needs our help, it's not in our nature to refuse. The stakes are high—that much is clear. We want to help in any way we can. Even if it all turns out to be a lie, we're choosing to believe in you." Ingio stood proud, confident.

"We aren't saying we understand exactly what you're going through, but we'll do what we can to help." Morgan was the one to snap Anankos out of his doldrums.

"...Thank you, young heros." Anankos finally said, bowing his head low.

"I wasn't quite sure if I could trust you, but after talking, I'll be glad to help you." Morgan smiled.

"You looked pretty suspicious when we first met too, hiding your face. I never thought someone like you would come calling for us at the castle walls!" Severa exclaimed, gesturing slightly. You three are going to explain this to me later.

"The first thing out of your mouth was 'Please save my kingdom!'. Even if you wouldn't tell us any more, that certainly got our attention." Owain said, similarly gesturing.

"Yeah, the most we could get out of you was when and where to meet you. "If you trust me, follow this map and meet with me on the night of the next full moon." It was all kinds of mysterious! How could we refuse?" Ingio laughed, Need I remind you, this is the same way you got robbed, twice.

"I am sorry for keeping you in the dark, especially you, Morgan." Anankos bowed his head again.

"It's fine, I understand." Morgan put her hands up.

"Meh, no worries. But there's one thing I still don't understand... Why did we have to travel all this way to another CONTINENT to get more info?! You realize most people wouldn't be able to manage that, right?" Severa asked annoyed. Yeah that was annoying, I nearly missed you guys from running off.

"Haha, I am sorry about that too. Still, you all came, nonetheless." Barely

" I suppose being heroes is our birthright. Or maybe we crave the thrill of conquest...the seduction of revelation. No, I think it's just that we can't bear to abandon someone in need. But if we find out you're taking advantage of our heroic nature... I hope you're prepared to face the consequences." Odin threatened. Especially with me, I'm told I can be rather vengeful.

"I understand. I have no intention of deceiving you or taking advantage of your generosity. As heroes who defeated the Fell Dragon Grima, you deserve far better." Morgan visibly flinched, How did he know?

"Um, did we tell you that? I don't recall telling you that…" Ingio stuttered, They didn't tell him, how does he know?

"Again, I must apologize. Knowing you three come from a desolate future… It pains me to involve you in another war." Anankos bowed his head apologetically, He knows that too? Even I wasn't aware of that until Father told me!

"You even know we're from the future?! Just who are you Mr. Anankos?" Ingio questioned, angry and afraid.

Anankos began to sputter "I…"

"Go on! Spit it out!" Severa hissed.

"Severa! Get down!" Anankos found his words in time to warn the swordswoman, she flinched at the sudden outburst and Owain tackled her down, narrowly avoiding a sword slash that was aiming for Severa.

"Wh-Who is that creep?" Severa angrily hissed,as she and Owain quickly stood back up.

"No! This cannot be! They must have caught wind of my plans!" The power surrounding Anankos flared in anger.

"What are these things?! Zombies? Risen?!" Owain yelled, clearly sweating.

"No, I don't think so. We can sense them, but we can't see them. They clearly intend to kill us. But why?" Ingio and Morgan ran to support their friends.

"I'm afraid the fault is mine." Anankos sighed.

"What do you mean?" Ingio turned back, keeping aware of the growing number of enemies.

"Listen carefully. Those warriors are from another world. They followed me here. I didn't want to affect this world any more than necessary, but-"

"What kind of world do you live in if there are these creepy jerks like those around?!" Severa interrupted, beginning to move into a circle with the other warriors.

"I… can't tell you that. Not yet." Anankos looked to the side in shame.

"Even if you could, we don't have the time. I don't care who they are - we can't let them harm our world!" Owain's voice pierced the air.

"You can tell us after we take care of these things!" Morgan began to charge one of her trusty Nosferatu tomes.

"They're right! We can discuss this over a nice cup of tea later. And besides, we already said we believe in you, we meant it!" Ingio's words shocked Anankos back into reality.

"That's sweet and all, but can we start fighting already?!" She's right, why haven't they attacked us? If they all charged after surrounding us like this, we'd be doomed! What are they waiting for? "We said we'd take the job, so let's get to it! BUT, after this is over, you better answer all our questions. And I mean ALL!" Severa prepped her blade to attack, waiting for the signal.

"Yes, of course. You have my word." Anankos turned his eyes to the battlefield surrounding them.

"Good, is everyone ready?" Morgan didn't have to look to see them nod, the first spell had been cast.

About five minutes into the scuffle, Morgan found herself in a small area with only a couple enemies with Owain, the swordsman was holding of an armored General with his Levin Sword, Morgan quickly cast a Thunder spell, and the General dissipated into water. Morgan ran to Owain, and noticed he was staring intently at his shoulder. "The Brand missing really bothers you, huh?"

Owain simply looked at his friend with a hint of sadness in his eyes. "It's so strange, if it was there, I never would have thought twice. Now, the fact it's gone is constantly set on invading my mind."

Morgan put her hand on his shoulder, where his brand used to be, and spoke looking directly into his eyes,"Don't forget, you aren't the only one that the magic changed, Ingio's Brand is gone too, so is my Mark, you don't have to worry about it."

Owain looked at her sadly, "Morgan, you were glad the Mark disappeared, and you didn't exactly see Mom break down in joy when my Brand surfaced, it's sorta a big deal to me, you know?"

"I know, but remember, with or without the Brand, you're still you, and without the Mark, I'm still me. No moping, it doesn't suit you, after all aren't you the hero Owain Dark?" Morgan could see his gaze slowly get stronger in determination, a small smile creeping across his face.

"Thanks, Morgan. I really need that." Owain turned before breaking into a dramatic pose, hand over face. "The power in my blood is the same, and it hungers for battle!"

Morgan watched as Owain ran off into battle with a small smile, pleased with herself.

"Now then, where are the others?"

After pushing her way through a line of Fighters, Morgan found herself back to back with Severa.

"What are these things? They just appear out of nowhere!" Severa cursed, drawing her blade from a Knight's armour.

"They seem to be coming from the water." Morgan hissed, blasting another Fighter with a quick Nosferatu spell.

"At the freaking MILA TREE, where there's water every two feet, just great! Morgan, you're the brains here, any ideas?" Severa slashed at a Wyvern Rider approaching, which Morgan then blasted with Thunder.

"They seem to have no will of their own, like Risen, so if we take out their commander…" Morgan trailed off so she could blast another approaching Fighter.

"They all turn into puddles, but where's the leader?" Severa hissed, blocking an axe before slashing the Fighter who swung at her.

"Probably somewhere where they could overlook the battle and still give orders, while being somewhat protected." Morgan blasted a Nosferatu spell at an incoming Knight, and used her little spare time to look over their battlefield, now that she had an idea of where to look for. "The top of the roots. It's the most likely place for the commander to be, we have to work our way up there."

"Got it, I'll see if I can find Owain and give him the news, you find Ingio. You tend to have a knack for that." Severa began to cut her way through the wave of enemies, as Morgan blasted her way through the opposite side.

Morgan blasted a group of three Wyvern Riders as she ran up the roots, two of the Wyverns were taken out by her Thunder spell, but the last merely sped up, unflinching. The Wyvern Rider had raised its axe and began to swing down when the wyvern suddenly screeched and disintegrated, taking the rider with it. Mount and rider are one being, good to know.

Morgan glanced to see her savior was none other than Ingio, wielding a Steel Sword dripping with water.

"Ingio! We need to disrupt these thing's chain of command! That's the only way to end this!" Morgan yelled to the Mercenary, as he ran to her side.

"Brilliant as ever, love. Have you figured out what they are?" Ingio gave a flirty smile to the Dark Mage as she blasted an incoming Knight. Focus on the battle, if you lose your head because of flirting, It's all your fault.

"If I had to guess, these things are a complicated magic spell, creating an unyielding army capable of regenerating infinitely, at different rates." Morgan blasted an incoming Fighter as Ingio slashed a Knight until it disappeared.

"Different rates? Is that why there aren't as many Wyvern Riders, and so many Fighters and Knights. Although magic would explain why instead of blood, they spew out water. Think it's safe to drink?" Ingio laughed.

"You can take that risk, but I'd rather you don't die because you drank enchanted water that regenerated inside of you." Morgan laughed as well, especially after Ingio looked at his drenched clothes with a horrified look.

"Gods, that's a thought." Ingio snapped out of his doldrums in time to avoid a slash from a Fighter.

"Anyways, I think the commander is at the base of the tree, if we defeat them, the others should dissolve." Morgan grabbed Ingio's arm and began to pull him toward the base of the Mila Tree, blasting a few Fighters on the way.

As Morgan and Ingio approached the top of the roots, Morgan noticed a few flashes coming from the side, meaning Severa had found Owain and the two of them were also pushing forward. The four of them eventually reached the base of the tree, where enemies were beginning to thin.

"Morgan, are you sure the commander is up here? There doesn't seem to be many defending up here." Severa gasped, beginning to tire.

"Absolutely, if anything it just proves it. If there were a lot of soldiers here, the commander wouldn't have a good view of the battlefield." Morgan said in between breaths.

As if the gods were to answer their prayers, the four quickly came across a lone Swordmaster, wielding an odd shaped blade.

"By the looks of his weapon, it's designed to be light so it won't slow him down, and able to deflect blows more easily, but it also leaves him open for stronger attacks." Morgan scanned over their opponent looking for more information she could use to their advantage.

"..." The Swordmaster merely drew his blade and pointed it at Morgan.

"Ah, it seems our foe has some honor! He wishes for a duel against our fair Morgan, the Dark Mind!" Owain exclaimed, if Morgan wasn't completely focused, she would have berated him for calling her 'the Dark Mind' again.

"Fine. We'll see, his might, or my magic." Morgan quickly blasted the Swordmaster with a Nosferatu spell, which he flipped gracefully away from, before coming closer to slash Morgan.

Morgan was barely able to avoid the sword, getting a cut on the cheek, but quickly blasted him with another Nosferatu spell, willing the dark magic to heal her wound with her opponent's life energy. The Swordmaster quickly recovered and tried to slash Morgan again, but she could now read her enemy's movements better, and avoided the blade neatly, before blasting him with a Thunder spell. Try as he might, the Swordmaster couldn't cut Morgan again, every time she would barely dodge and blast him with a weak spell, slowly whittling down his will and life force. After about five minutes, Morgan blasted the Swordmaster with a final Nosferatu spell and he fell to his knees, unable to stand. Morgan took the opportunity to blast him with a few more Thunder spells and he fell on his face.

"We must... retreat …. for now" The Swordmaster slowly dissolved into water.

"That settles that." Morgan used the vantage point to overlook the battlefield, and one by one enemies began to dissolve.

"Point for the tactician, score Ylisse twelve, Plegia two, and other countries none." Ingio joked, When was the second time Plegia won?

"A battle for the ages! Truly!" Owain yelled. "If only I were a part of it."

"I probably could have done that." Severa spat.

The four of them hiked down the roots once more to meet a grateful Anankos.

"You prevailed. I am pleased to see you live up to your reputations." Anankos said as the tired warriors walked to him.

"Yep, that's the last of them. They were no match for us!" Owain gloated, raising his Levin Sword tiredly.

"Glad that's over! It seems they didn't cause any permanent damage." Ingio sighed, as Morgan leaned on him for support.

"I'm curious how they were able to form from water." Morgan mumbled, more to herself than anything.

"Yeah! All right, mister. A deal's a deal. Start talking! Who were those freaks anyway? And who, may I ask, are YOU?!" Severa hissed, hand on Owain's shoulder.

"I will tell you all you wish to know, Severa. However… I cannot answer your questions until we reach my kingdom." Anankos put up his hands in apology.

"Huh?! Why?" Severa seemed slightly annoyed by this development.

"If I tell you all here, I shall vanish from this world. There is a curse that protects the information you seek." Anankos looked down in defeat, as if he didn't want to share that information.

"A curse?" Ingio shot upright.

"Not that uncommon, Mother has a few of them for things she doesn't want Father to know, but they don't cause you to disappear, only go mute for a good part of the day before you can tell Father." Morgan seemed to be the only one unbothered the curse. But to have one about an entire country, that would take and incomprehensible amount of power

"I'm afraid so." Anankos bowed.

"Fine, if that's how it is, then let's get moving. We won't know what we're dealing with until we have all the details." Owain shifted his weight.

"I am sorry for the secrecy. As an apology, allow me to reward you all in advance. What sorts of things do humans like... Longevity? Eternal beauty? Incomparable wealth?" Anankos asked, bewildering the group.

"HUH?! L-longevity?" Owain stuttered, dropping his sword.

"Eternal beauty?! How can you say that with a straight face?!" Ingio said, his face burning a deep pink. Hehe, too easy to freak him out.

"Why is that making you blush, Ingio?!" Owain yelled, also blushing.

"Quiet, Owain! You're blushing too!" Ingio snapped back at his friend.

"You too are totally missing the point! Those "rewards" are impossible! Longevity? Incomparable wealth? Who do you think you are- some kind of god or something? Severa hissed, glaring at Anankos.

"Well… I have been called one in the past." Anankos looked down in shame, clearly not a good part of his past, or his happiest moments.

"That would explain how you were able to get rid of the Mark and Brand of the Exalt." Morgan murmured.

"Huh?! I...see. But if you have that kind of power, why do you need our help?" Ingio asked.

"That's…" Anankos trailed off.

"Hmm. He probably can't say because of that weird curse he mentioned. All right. Give us the goods, and let's get out of here." Severa's glare lessened slightly.

"I can't wrap my head around all this. Longevity sounds nice, but it will be a long time before we can appreciate it." Ingio put his hand on his chin in thought.

"If there's anything else you desire, you only have to name it." Anankos spoke nonchalantly.

Morgan went into deep thought, Anything? I guess that would include my memories, but do I really want to remember?

Owain raised his hand, "Actually… Just out of curiosity…. Can you bring people back to life? Or is that too much to ask for?" Owain, even if he could, they would likely be back as Risen, or worse.

"Are you crazy, Owain?!" Severa clearly shared Morgan's sentiments.

"You're not going to like this, Severa, but I was thinking the same thing. I'm sorry, but I want to know too." Ingio looked over to Severa with disdain in his eyes.

"N-no need to apologize. I mean, I've thought about it countless times too. If only I could have my real parents back again... Not the ones we helped save, but the ones I grew up with…" Severa looked down in sadness. Right, I'm the only one who didn't watch my parents die, or at least i don't remember it.

"So, Anankos? Can you bring back our loved ones?" Owain asked hope in his eyes.

"I am truly sorry. It is not possible to bring the dead back to life. Such a thing is beyond even my power." It seemed even Anankos was saddened by this. He must have lost someone rather dear to him.

"That's what I thought you'd say" Owain sighed, his shoulders slumping, but Ingio quickly recovered, determination burning within him.

"Then... What about restoring a world that's been decimated?"

"What do you mean?" Even Anankos was confused by the sudden idea.

"There's a place we couldn't protect. Our original timeline, to be precise. But if it was filled with flowers and plants again... Well, then at least it would look as nice as it did when it was at peace. It may seem small, but it would bring hope. That's not nothing." As Ingio spoke, Severa, Owain and Morgan perked up, catching on to the idea.

"That's not a bad idea. And I want gravestones too. Gravestones for every person who died in that world. Nice ones." Severa piped up.

" Yes. It would mean so much to me to make that world beautiful again...and create a proper memorial for all those who were lost. Even if we could never see it with our own eyes...at least we'd know we did something to improve the world we came from." Morgan could see the determination in Owain's eyes.

"Even if I don't remember it, I want to help the future we left behind. From what everyone's said, it needs this more than we could use any other reward." Morgan spoke, surprising even herself.

"Is that really all you want? That means you'll be risking your lives for a reward you may never see. You'll have no way of knowing I even did what you asked." Anankos asked, but the warriors had already decided.

"Like I said, we couldn't justify anything over the amount of people this would help." Morgan answered almost immediately.

"Mr. Anankos, what you said is true, but this is what I want." Ingio spoke with utmost confidence in his words.

"Me too." Severa said.

"Yes, me too. It's the most we could do for that world." Owain looked to the others to see they all shared his conviction.

"Hmm... Very well. I shall restore the earth of your hopeless future. And I shall create gravestones for all who died there. As a keeper of ancient knowledge... As ruler of the world when it began... With my power, pure and righteous, I bless the world of these warriors…" Anankos began to chant as a bright light erupted from his body, blinding everyone." It is done… The land is blossoming once more. I have granted your request"

"Thank you. It feels as though a great burden has been lifted." Severa held her hand to heart.

"It does. Thank you, Mr. Anankos." Ingio let out a deep breath.

"Sorry for saying that it didn't look like you could award us with much" Owain apologized, rubbing the back of his head.

"Don't worry about it." Anankos laughed before his face took on a confused look.

"What's wrong?" Owain was the first to ask.

"I… heard voices.." Anankos trailed off.

"Voices?" Severa's asked.

"When I blessed your world...I sensed the presence of a certain tactician. I set up a grave for that person and those they were closest to. Though their bodies are long gone, I felt it was the right thing to do. And just now... I heard their voices." Anankos whispered, causing the warriors gasped, Morgan actually felt faint, and leaned on Ingio for support.

"That could only be-!" Severa cut herself off, not wanting to finish her sentence.

"Yes, it is most certainly the ones you are thinking of." Anankos decided to finish Severa's thoughts.

"So, um… What did they say?" Ingio dared to ask, holding onto Morgan.

"'Thank you.' Over and over again. With joy...and with laughter. They also said, 'Safe travels.' And one more thing... 'We're always watching over you, no matter where you are.'" Morgan could feel Ingio began to shake.

"Father... Mother…" Ingio tried to hold back tears, to no avail. Morgan could hear Severa begin to sniffle. She dared to look at Owain, Gods, Owain. He was holding his wrist, tears and snot dripping down his face, he seemed as if he was about to drop to his knees. Anankos decided to let the warriors calm themselves before he spoke again.

"Before we journey to my kingdom, I wish to give you something." As Anankos spoke, he pulled out a small translucent orb.

"A tiny crystal ball?" Owain spoke, his eyes still red.
"Listen well. When your work is done, if you wish to return to your true home… use this, and you may do so." Anankos explained.

"What?!" Ingio was flabbergasted.

"That crystal has the power to transport you through space and time. After you complete your mission, you can use it to return here. Or, if you truly desire it, you can return to your own time and world. However, know that it can only be used once." Anankos warned them.

"So if we decide to return to the future we can never come back here again?" Severa went deep into thought.

"Yes. It is taboo for humans to travel through time as it is. Even I do not have the power to break this rule anymore than I already have. That the god of this world had the power to transport so many of you... leaves me in awe." Anankos answered simply.

"Well, not without consequences…" Morgan's brain went to the large number of Risen that followed them from the future. Quite a thing to wake up to, and I hear most of the others had similar problems.

" I never thought we'd be able to go back. But…" Owain trailed off, allowing the others the others to pick up where he left off.

"That would mean leaving everyone here. I couldn't go back without them." Ingio muttered, finishing his cousin's sentence.

"But we could visit our parent's graves… Leave flowers for them…" Severa also trailed off.

Morgan willed herself to stay quiet, as she didn't have so great a connection with the world that was restored.

"You need not make your decision now. Consider your options carefully. You may wait until after you complete your mission in my world." Anankos broke the silence Morgan left, and upon speaking, Owain brought up with his own rallying cry.

"Yes! Let's save the world. Again! As many times as it takes" Owain struck a dramatic pose, much to Severa's dismay and annoyance.

"What are you saying, Owain? This is not time for theatrics!" Severa hissed, but Owain was unflinching.

"You're wrong. All we need to think about right now is helping our friend here. There's no point thinking or worrying about the future just yet, right? We have a mission to complete first. Then we can decide what to do. After all, the four of us are going together. We're a team. We'll have plenty of time to think it through and talk things over." Owain struck another, even more dramatic pose.

"Owain... You are fascinating. You're right, too. Now is not the time to pine over our old world, or to miss our current one. We've already received a better reward than we could have hoped for. So for right now, for Mr. Anankos... Let's join together and focus on the task at hand!" Ingio smacked Owain on the back.

"Leave it to Owain to bring morale up. Let's go save this world, wherever it may be. If there is a problem we can help solve, we'll do it with all of our might!" Morgan rose to the occasion.

"Yeah! Our parents even gave us their blessings and their thanks. I'll...always cherish that thought. Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go, Anankos! We're counting on you!" Severa cheered.

"Thank you, young warriors. I am counting on all of you as well. I shall begin the process of transporting us to my world. Please have patience. It may take some time." Anankos nodded.

"Ok! I'm ready whenever you are!" Owain had a smile on his face.

"Alrighty! We'll be waiting over there." Ingio pointed over to his left, to a clump of rocks they could sit on.

"I'll get to work on some ideas while we wait." Morgan's mind was already racing.

"Just call us when you're ready!" Severa called behind her as the four of them began to walk off.

"Morgan, please wait." Anankos called after the tactician when she went with the others. "If you wish to use the powers bestowed by the Mark that I sealed away, use this. If you even wish, you could give another person to bestow that power to them." Anankos handed Morgan a strange artifact that vaguely reminded Morgan of a Second Seal.

Morgan accepted the device with a mumbled "thank you", already deep in thought. I don't want to use those powers, never liked them. I wouldn't want to put that on anyone else, but it might make a good last resort if it comes down to it.

Chapter 1: Hidden Truths 1 : Complete

A/N: I've decided on the name for Morgan's Fates persona, and that will be Maura. I thought it sounded nice for a Fire Emblem dark mage and it means "Dark" which sorta fits the idea I'm going with for Morgan. I going to try to keep the conversations as close to canon as possible, but I will change a few things that make no sense to me, such as how Anankos finds the Fell Brand. Basically this fic will follow Maura through the Revelations path(NOTE: Any Chapter in the game that doesn't include Jakob/Felicia will not be included, as Morgan will not be present), including a few chapters for backstory for the Awakening retainers, such as the tournament revealed in Camilla's Support with Selena, Supports, I have a few ideas including Subaki, Hayato, Niles, Takumi, Leo, Ryoma, Oboro, Jakob, Xander, Nyx, and the other returning characters, or the My Castle stuff. The Italics will be used whenever Maura/Morgan is thinking and are actually really fun to write. So for the purposes of this fic, Ingio will be Chrom's son, Owain is Henry's, Severa is Gaius's daughter, and Morgan will be Tharja's daughter. I thought that her classes should be Dark Mage and Archer, which fits the idea that the other Awakening retainers have, one Nohrian and one Hoshidan class, plus Noire is an archer, so I kinda like it. I hope you guys don't mind, but I'm gonna have a few headcanons that I might use involving Morgan's relationship with godly dragons, nothing major just sorta like "Morgan can sense Dragon Veins, even after the First Blood effect wears off." Really most of them you could also just explain away because she's a gifted mage, take your pick.

Until next chapter, any constructive criticism and reviews are appreciated. If you have any ideas for Supports or things, feel free to tell me!