I dream.
I dream that I am falling.
I dream that I am plastered against my bed, while staring down into the sky, holding on for dear life.
I dream that I somehow let go.
…
Wait.
Shit I'm actually not dreaming
FUUUUUCK
…
…
Ok, that woke me up. Thank goodness I wasn't higher up.
The impact still made me breathless.
Think later, float to surface now.
…
Floatation complete, assessing damage.
…
I'm ok, I'm definitely ok. No broken bones, just a body made entirely of aches and pains.
Where's the shoreline.
It's…that way.
Swim.
I wish I wasn't so exercise deprived.
…
No point working yourself out to exhaustion, take it nice and easy.
Inner self is right. Take it slow.
Battlecruiser operational.
...
Ok, shoreline reached.
Ugh.
Water tasted salty.
…
Salty?
I'm on a coastline somewhere?
Well shit.
It's also not night.
Double well shit.
It's…well it's about as spring as it is at home.
Uh…
Great.
…
Let's…walk. Yeah.
…
Man, and to think I enjoyed walking in a thunderstorm when I was little.
Seriously, one minute I doze off reading webcomics and the next I'm walking down a dirt road dripping wet in the middle of god knows where.
…This sounds awfully familiar.
Like Asleep.
Yeah.
…
Hope the guy keeps going. His work is good.
Not like you can read it in…here…
If we're drawing parallels I might actually be in the Fire Emblem-verse.
If only I was in the Fire Emblem girls universe instead.
It would crash painfully on your head every time you open a map, unless you hit start to skip the sequence.
I don't have a start button, but I think it would still work.
You would probably have become a girl in that universe.
…Yeah that might cause some problems.
…
Woo I found a house.
Well, a house attached to a farm, growing...something.
It looks…wow I'm actually getting a little nostalgic. It reminds me of my grandfather's house, only...smaller and less...white.
Focus.
Let's see… ah ha, person sighted.
Alrighty then.
"Hello there!" No need to get totally antiquated now, do I?
You're assuming they speak English instead of, say, Japanese.
I'm fucked either way, so who cares?
…
I don't have my glasses so I'm horribly shortsighted right now.
So how did you know it was a person?
Moving shape, odd mismatched colors, fairly tall.
…
Wow my eyesight has degraded since 8th grade.
You're like double that age now.
Well, yeah, but still.
"Greetings to you, traveler. You look…waterlogged." She said, somewhat warily.
I laugh. It sounds forced, which it is. "I had a small incident on a boat." A small giggle from the lady. "Can I trouble you for some information?"
I hear a gruff voice behind me. "Oh, a traveler? What kind of information do you need?" Must be the husband.
"Well, where am I?"
Momentary silence.
"You're on the eastern border of Ylisse, young lad."
Eastern border?
So we're nowhere near Tutorial Town then.
Shit.
"Ah, I see. Uh…"
"Are you alright?" I think he's worried about me squinting like nuts.
"Yes, I seem to have lost my glasses." This could be really bad, especially since I don't have the means to pay for a new pair.
"Ah, I see…here, wait a moment."
…
And then he puts something into my hands.
"I'm not much of a magic person, but I found this in my house earlier today. Naga must look out for you." He laughs.
It's a pair of glasses. Built like my good ones, but…heavier.
Oh well. It means I can see clearly now.
The rain is gone~
"Why don't you come in for a while? The day's still young." I can see his…concern?
You fell off a boat and had no idea where you were.
Ok, fair point; anyone sane would be worried.
"I really shouldn't; I need to be somewhere else, and being this far off course isn't going to help me." I bow my head. "I thank you for this gift and your hospitality, though."
He scratches his head. "It wasn't mine, and my wife's never seen it before. So it must be yours."
...Ah, the joys of being untainted by the internet.
I wave them goodbye.
In retrospect I have no idea where I'm going.
Should've asked for a map.
…
…
…
Ah ha, a town.
Good timing, too. It's getting dark.
…
…
Well, I guess this means I hit my first roadblock. Number one, I have no money.
Number two, I have no idea where I am.
Number three, I have no idea if I could survive where I am.
…
Man, this is like, so bad it swings clear around to hilarity.
On the plus side I scored some free food from the church. It's just bread but better than nothing.
But is it gluten-free?
What is gluten, anyways?
Should've looked that up when I had a chance, I suppose.
…
…
BOOM.
…
That didn't sound normal.
Look up into the sky.
There're no giant glowing eyes of doom and apocalypse. Good.
So it means…
Shit, I need a vantage point.
Oh well, come out into the main streets from the side ones.
…There's a fire in the town.
There're multiple fires in the town.
Who the fuck sets fire to a town
I mean really
Brigands, duh.
"Everyone! Hurry and put out the fires! Leave the bandits to us!" I hear…it sounds like…swivel head, peer.
…Yeeep. It's Stahl, in his green cavalier armor. Stahl plus some foot soldiers, probably local militia.
Still, Stahl was all the way out here during the prologue, I see.
Stay focused. Bandits are afoot.
Let's see…I can hear screaming, I'm guessing the bandits are a cause of it.
You don't say.
Weapons, weapons…That's a pole. Spear. Good enough.
…
Laughter. Terrifying laughter. No voice actor can do that justice, my goodness.
Here they come!
The foot soldiers are…not bracing against the charge What the fuck are you guys doing
Dying. Dying is what they're doing. The first charge against the soldiers gave the brigands the advantage of momentum and the soldiers just couldn't make up the difference. Much screaming ensues.
These militia are not battle tested, obviously.
You're not, either.
Point. Which means I'm probably going to die horribly.
Bandit saw me.
Adrenaline time.
The man is running…running…
Jumping…
Ok.
Step deep in forward, brace with shoulder.
Bandit jumps into the spear, and it promptly breaks into the man's ribs.
I was expecting it to be better. Shit.
Axe head overshot. Good.
Readjust the grip. I now have a shiv instead of a spear.
Left arm, back hand punch into bandit face.
Bandit recoils. I guess his surprise overrode his adrenaline?
Fine, continue the attack!
Wood shiv into the man's throat!
Woo, blood everywhere.
…
Shaking now.
Second guy coming in. How many of them were there? Twenty?
Pick up the axe the guy dropped, watch the enemy closely.
…He's swinging in sideways.
RUSH
FULL BODY TACKLE
Ok that axe hit, fuck. Not a full contact hit, but still, fuck.
Left arm is now non-responsive.
Spin on the spot with the axe, and…
My axe to your stomach!
Axe is now stuck, and the bandit is not down.
SHIT
Enemy axe
Backstep fast fast fast
Whew.
His swings are slower.
Second swing, coming from the right.
Step in hand-chop to the back of the enemy attack arm elbow. Uppercut on the elbow as well. He drops the axe.
Left arm elbow to the side of the ribs.
Left arm elbow again to the back of the head.
Right arm punch punch punch punch punch punch
Right to the stomach!
Coup de grace: Step out, left arm cross to the back of the head.
He's down.
Whew.
…
All the other bandits are dead.
I guess the militia was better than I gave them credit for.
…
Stahl's sword is bloody as hell; I guess he killed most of them.
Man is badass even before he gets twenty levels of strength, health and defense. Nice.
"Thanks for the help, man." Stahl breathes out. "Sumia was right on the money with this intel." He says as an afterthought.
So Sumia's trainee experience involves scouting...smart, if she's going to spend most of her time in the air.
"Darling," Ah fuck, Maribelle. "All the fires have been extinguished."
Maribelle, Maribelle…oh how I am mildly irritated by you. You and your parasol, and your uppity attitude.
"Who's this?" She says after she rides up on her high horse.
If the lighting was any better I would say she's looking at down at me.
"A traveler who's experienced some boat issues." I say with a slight bow. She's nobility, might as well play the part. God do I not like her.
"I see…" Sigh. Seriously, sigh. "You're quite…" I guess she's looking at the guy rolling on the ground, because punches from a skinny arm not aimed at a vital isn't really fatal. "…skilled, for a mere traveler."
Well…
I shrug. "I make do with what I have."
Stahl laughs. "Well, either way, the Shepherds thank you for your assistance towards Ylissean peace." Some cheers around.
Well...I know what the Shepherds are, but I'm a traveler, so...
"Shepherds?"
Maribelle sniffs. "We are the elite knight unit under direct command of the Prince of Ylisse, responsible for keeping the peace within our fair nation."
I want to strangle the woman. How does she sound so…arg, all the time?!
She sighs a little bit. "On behalf of the Shepherds, this is for you." She hands me a book.
Uh…
Wait.
Aaand she rides off.
"Come visit us if you're in Ylisstol in the future. The Shepherds could use a resourceful man like you." Stahl says as he rides off.
Resourceful? I broke a man's arm and punched him until he collapsed. I'm not sure how that fits with the definition of resourceful.
Speaking of the unconscious guy, the militia carried him off. I feel slightly sorry for him.
…
So what's this book?
…
I can't read it in the middle of the night. Right.
"Hey lad, got a place to stay for the night?" I hear a voice behind me.
It's…the innkeeper? All the NPCs look alike.
"I could certainly use one." I laugh a little bit.
He laughs harder, clapping me hard on the back. "Come with us then, it's on the house."
…
…
Well, you killed a man today.
Yeah.
Any feelings about it?
After cleaning the blood off my hands…
No, not really; the man made his choice and paid for it. I mean, I'm still shaking, but...
He could have had friends, family, and so on.
And he had no issues with endangering other people who also had friends, family, and children. His relatives are not responsible for his choices.
...
Sleepy time.
…
…
…
Beds in the pseudo medieval-era are pretty nice, I have to admit.
Then again I guess cotton hasn't changed all that much.
…
[Next day]
…
Now then, I have a map, from a bookseller that I apparently befriended somehow by punching a different man nearly to death.
Ylisstol is…that-a way.
…
Being a ground pounder sucks.
…
So what's this book Maribelle gave me?
…
It's…filled with geometric pictures.
I wish I had a calculator.
Well, I can do trig inside my head, but I'd rather have a calculator.
First world problems.
So much.
"Oh my, now isn't this a surprise."
…
Right.
We're on a major road.
And people travel on major roads.
"I didn't know you were headed to Ylisstol, uh…" Stahl said, stopping short when he realized he didn't know my name.
Hmm…
Eh, why not.
"Ash, at your service." I say, complete with a little bow.
"Charmed, I'm sure." Man, if sarcasm could be bottled for money she'd be…well, richer than she is. "I am the lady Maribelle, pleased to make your, um, acquaintance."
Oh yeah, she's actually not totally pompous; only pompous most of the time.
"And I'm Stahl. Nice to meet ya." Stahl extends a hand from his horse, which I gladly shake because Stahl is a cool guy.
Also he's actually got a strong grip by virtue of actually doing manual labor.
I didn't know fighting counted as manual labor.
Potato potatoe.
Poor Dan Quayle.
Whatever happened to him nowadays anyways?
"Lady Maribelle," I say, with as much sarcasm I could slap onto a four letter word as I can. I don't think she got it since she sat up a tad straighter. "Mind telling me what this book is?"
Ha.
Right. She's big on diction, and I think I just failed, like, every last one of her checks.
But thankfully Stahl stole her thunder. "It's a book on basic magical theory she received back in town as a thanks for her healing."
Stahl earned himself two (light) bonks to the head during that sentence.
Maribelle tossed her hair, as a proper lady is bound to do. "I shall not touch combat magic until my Troubadour training is complete. You, on the other hand, seemed a perfectly reasonable recipient for this spell book."
So Fire Emblem spells are somehow based on trig.
Still, might want to refrain from using it until you can get someone like…what's her name. To teach you.
Miriel.
Yeah.
"So this spellbook doesn't actually cast, it's just a trainer?" I ask nobody in particular.
Might want to start walking again.
Yeah.
…
…
"A small child gave this to me as a present, and it bears no use to me, a staff wielder. Thus, it is better served bringing knowledge to another." Maribelle said once I asked her why she's giving it to me. Seems oddly cold for her, since I know she has a heart thanks to her social supports…
"Don't question it." Stahl whispered. Well, fine. She's a little terrifying when angry.
…
Well, I guess I just encountered my second roadblock.
Everyone speaks English, but the written language is marginally different.
This is gonna suck really, really hard.
...
"It's not all that uncommon to be illiterate, mister adventurer." Maribelle says with a wide but oddly non-evil-looking grin. She just looks smug.
…
Wait, what?
Remember that Fire Emblem is, at its core, still a semi-medieval era story. Literacy is reserved for the rich and ruling elites.
…
Since the majority of the main cast tend to be nobility it was never an issue, huh…
It was in the Nino Merlinus support in seven.
Yeah, but otherwise the issue is more or less glossed over.
…
Which means non-religious based slavery, diseases, and all the other fun medieval things are a high reality.
"Oh, did I say something wrong?" I hear Maribelle say, a little taken aback.
I think my facial expression changed pretty hard if she sounds surprised.
…
Well, let's take a moment and think about this. The presence of magic, especially restorative magic, implies that diseases are comparatively less of an issue in here than it is in the real world.
And at the same time the staff's 200 gold a pop. I don't see a lot of people wandering around with that much gold just lying around, unless they were the bad guys.
Yeah, the common man in Fire Emblem games have never been portrayed as being anything remotely close to being well off.
Serfs at their finest, I see…
…No point jumping to conclusions before I see anything.
"Are you done debating with yourself?" Stahl asked a little uncertainly.
I blink. "Yeah, I'm done. What gave it away?"
He chuckled. "You were muttering under your breath about the price of a restore staff and…serfs? Mind if I ask what a Serf is?"
Well, shit. Cat is…
Cat is out of the bag.
Deploying emergency cardboard box.
"A term I once heard used for a poorly paid servant." I say with as much "I don't care" attitude as I can manage.
"Around here we call them peasants." Maribelle says almost instinctively before blinking in surprise. Well, she is a noble.
…
A horse comes up from in front of us, and it's…Sumia?
Let's see…yep, looks like Sumia. She's missing her Pegasus knight armor and is wearing something light and leather-looking in exchange, but it's definitely Sumia. So she's a Cavalier now?
She's scouting, remember? She doesn't get her Pegasus until chapter 3.
Oh yeah.
…
Stahl and Maribelle waves goodbye and rides on ahead.
…
And I get to bury myself in the book until I walk into something.
Wonderful.
…
Ok, since I'm actually alone right now I can make some assessments.
Number one, it's the Fire Emblem universe; that much is obvious.
Number two, I've arrived at some time prior to the Prologue, considering how there wasn't bright glowing eyes of doom during the first night.
Number two point five, It's fair to say I've arrived quite a few days prior considering the difference in Sumia's equipment and locational differences, which means if I don't reach a walled town prior to giant glowing eyes of doom I stand a serious risk of being killed out in the open.
Number three, I'm wearing a set of local clothes as a reward and I got to trade the brigand axes for a spear.
The odds of you using it in any serious fashion is literally zero.
Better than a sword, since I can't use it at all.
You actually have some training with a sword though.
Number four: Magic is a thing, and odds are if I want to be alive I need to master it, learn it inside and out.
…
Number five: By being here I've changed the flow of the story already, the question depends on how much it's changed, with the worst case scenario being…
Number six: I have zero reason to believe that this is the default timeline instead of the one that leads down into the Future Past DLCs.
…
Well, shit.
And, of course, number seven, I'm still technically illiterate.
…
…
…
Y'know, I have to give props to the people who built their inns within one day walking distance of each other.
Makes things so much easier; probably get more business because of that, too.
Those inns would probably be the first things to burn to the ground once the invasion begins.
Let's see...inside the inn is a handful of travellers, and sitting in the corner is a man in a pointy hat burying his face in a book.
Well, not my problem. A maid comes over and I order some food. Vegetarian fare, pretty decent.
…
…
Why do weird vapor zombie monsters enjoy setting things on fire, anyways?
It's kind of a given for most things. Everything just suddenly catches on fire when bad things happen.
…
…
Speaking of catching on fire…
The invasion of the glowing eyes of doom is starting a little earlier than I thought, if the sudden change in lighting is any indication.
…
Shit, Asleep wasn't kidding. They're literally everyWHOA
Ground has fractured.
Get out of the building, now.
How can you save yourself by running outside into zombies?
"Everyone out of the building! MOVE!" I need something closer to an army.
…
Let's see…there's around ten people total, myself not included.
There were more during dinnertime.
…
Look up…wow, it's really, freakishly bright.
Not gonna lie, this is utterly terrifying.
Between the ground fracturing and the sky pooping out zombies, nerves are being lost left and right.
…
And the first zombies land.
…
We are so fucked, we are SO fucked.
"Grab whatever weapons you can find. We're getting out of here." I say to the others.
Eyes up front, zombie incoming.
He's got an axe. Since he doesn't bleed, we'll just stab him until he goes down.
Side swing incoming, backpedal hard.
Swing misses, alright, step in, jab!
Hit confirmed. Zombie gives no fucks.
Having no pain receptors will do that. It's a tougher than I gave it credit for, too; hitting the body feels like crashing into a few layers of leather. Pull spear out, and WHOA ok that was close.
Having no pain receptors will let it do that.
"Don't let your guard down!" Mystery person behind me says, and the Zombie thing bursts into flames. The mage.
…Actually, that mage sounded rather familiar. Now's not the time to worry about it though.
…More Zombies.
God that's a lot of them.
"What in the name of the Gods is going on?" A man yells behind me. The Zombie Apocalypse is going on, pay attention. "What are those things?!"
Yeah, yeah.
"Yell later, focus now." I say to him. Good thing the Risen are actually pretty quiet at a distance.
Which is a problem if you think about it.
Worry later, kill now. "Where's the nearest village?" I ask the gaggle of people.
"Down the road, that way." A man says behind me, pointing to the direction I travelled from. Figured as much.
I point to the other direction of the road. "Good, we're going in the opposite direction." More Risen, and looks like they noticed us.
The Risen as an individual is pretty ignorant of their surroundings, I guess? How do they hear or detect, anyways?
Focus.
Right.
"What, why?! The village is safe!" The man yelled.
I shake my head and point to the Risen. The fact that we can easily see each other in the dead of night due to the glowing eyes in the sky is...utterly horrifying.
"We head to a village, we drag all of them with us. Think you can kill every last one of these bastards on the way there?" Silence. "Didn't think so. Form up, and get ready." We're all pole arm users, for some rather loose definitions of a pole arm. "If you can't stab, just whack them with the stick."
Some affirmatives. Well at least I'm being listened to.
"Oy, mage." I need his help.
"I'm here." He says. He sounds really familiar, not gonna lie.
"I need you to pick off every Risen we stop. Think you can do that?"
I hear a smirk. I think it was a smirk. "Something like that is well within my capabilities."
…Laurent? It might be Laurent. Small world if it is.
Risen are coming closer now. One or two is charging.
"Fight them as a group, don't get separated, and most of all, don't run; if you do you'll just be surrounded and cut down."
Mage behind me opens fire and burns a Risen to the ground. Three more are charging in.
The fire caught the attention of more Risen though, so we're against…what, twenty, thirty Risen? Sheesh.
…
The Risen are actually charging at me, aren't they?
Welp.
We're against…sword, sword, spear. Ok.
Jump out of the way, get nicked by a sword.
Ouchies.
I'm faced against…one of the swords, the other two went for the other folk.
Said other folk have spread out and are haphazardly trying to stab the Risen, while said Risen swing wildly at them in return.
My Risen is…jab DODGE to the RIGHT and OH MY GOD
Sword is so much harder to deal with than an axe. WHY THE FUCK IS THIS SO FAST
I WISH I PLAYED MORE DARK SOULS
AAAAAAH
UH
OK
NERDBOY DESPERATELY NEED HELP
No help comes to someone YELLING in his MIND.
AAAAAAAAAH
…
…
He's been doing nothing but OH LORDY jabs for the past few hits and DODGE MORE
Ok
Ok
I can do this
Backpedal hard and keep the weight on the toes.
I'm so glad I don't have armor on now.
Risen is chasing.
God I hope they die to pierce damage.
Risen jab!
Spear forward, brace, aaaand…
Thunk.
Wow. They're like…bad AI. Risen just impaled himself on the spear.
And vanished in a puff of smoke.
…
Was that a critical hit?
I hope it wasn't a crit.
We can kill them a lot easier if that wasn't a crit.
Second one incoming.
…
Lunge forward with spear.
Thunk.
Another chest hit.
I guess all they have are basic motor skills?
Or there's a cool down period for coming through the giant glowing eyes.
Said giant glowing eyes have vanished. Now all that's left are the light of the moon and the stars.
I wish we had a fire.
…
I can't believe I just wished for something to be on fire.
…
Look around...it sounds like the majority of the battle has finished.
We gather around again.
...
Mage ignites a small fire on the tip of his hand, we huddle around the tiny fire to prevent it from being seen and to give ourselves a little something to calm down with. Let's see...
We're short two bodies, and I can't tell how many Risen are left, but we killed all the ones attacking us and the rest aren't paying attention anymore. We had thirty, but if nobody's fighting anymore then we're left with zero?
Probably not. We're a fair distance from the two dead guys.
I guess that means we abandoned them without even knowing it.
"Shit. Alright, let's get out of here." I say in a slightly-loud whisper. "Do we have any torches?"
"I got one here." One of the men says, tapping something on his belt. "Sure it's a good idea to light it right now?"
…
"Probably not. Keep together and let's move."
…
…
…
I can hear the shuffling of feet and breath, and very muted small talk between some people.
I really wish that nighttime in reality would be as bright as nighttime in Hollywood.
On the plus side I don't hear any Risen anymore.
I'm a little confused as to why that's considered a plus.
…
Although to be fair this is a lot like being at my grandparents in my childhood, where the skies were clear enough to see the stars and not covered with a layer of whatever is floating up there now.
So it's bright enough to see shapes but not enough to see faces.
…
…
…
I raise a hand. I don't know how long it's been but no more small talk is going on.
All the footsteps stop, and I hear...
"Anybody else hear that?"
Sounds like combat.
"Yeah; sounds like cavalry. Not too far away from here." The mage said, pointing with his arm so we could see it to a direction off the road.
"Are we going to get involved?" One of the other men said with an unusual amount of indignation.
"We should; if the things they're fighting against wins they might catch up to us if we leave them alone." I shrug in the darkness. I don't think anyone saw that. "Besides, cavalrymen usually aren't poor like the rest of us."
I heard a few chuckles; nobody found that funny but we're a little bit terrified right now.
"Alright, lead the way." The mage nods (I think) and heads forward.
…
Yeah, definitely sounds like combat. If only because the Risen are being very loud about it. I can hear a horse every once in a while though.
Who do you think have horses way out here and the combat power to fight?
It would be our luck if it was...
…
Yep, it's Stahl.
Raise your hands if you're surprised.
He's guarding what looks to be a…
Ok who builds a shrine to a patron god this far off the beaten path? At least it's well lit, I guess…
There're probably civilians in the shrine.
Makes sense; otherwise why protect it?
"Everyone form up, we're going to charge into the enemy ranks and take the pressure off of that horseman."
"You sure about that?" Is that the same guy? He sounds about as skeptical as the guy that was indignant. Same levels of "I don't want to do this" in their voices.
"You're free to leave if you want." I shrug. The "Go ahead and die on your own" I didn't say instead was palpable.
…
Alright, nose towards the Risen…and…
Move the feet!
...
Fifty paces!
LEEEEEROY
...
Fourty paces!
OH GOD THIS WAS A HORRIBLE IDEA WHY DID I EVER AGREE TO THIS
YOU GAVE THE IDEA YOU IDIOT
I DIDN'T THINK FAR ENOUGH AHEAD
Thirty paces!
…
Count of Risen: twenty or so.
Stahl is…yeah his horse is dead. No shit Sherlock, why were you mounted while protecting a stationary target?
Probably didn't have the time to dismount.
Twenty Paces!
How long was he fighting?
Where's Maribelle and Sumia?
…
No time to worry about that, making contact…
NOW!
.
.
.
{ === + === }