Kiran stood within the summoning circle, Briedablik in her right and left stood Alfonse and Sharena, respectively.

Typically, Kiran, a habitual hoarder, kept the orbs locked away where she nor anyone else would be inclined to use them. Today, however, she felt the Briedablik speak to her in a way she hadn't felt since the last summoning of a Brave Hero. The Briedablik wanted her to summon; it promised the arrival of a new hero.

After taking a deep breath, Kiran brandished her "weapon," activating the pedestal. The orb set in the center glowed a light gray.

A colorless unit, Kiran thought, a cleric, I hope.

"Kiran," Alfonse interrupted her thoughts, "Is something the matter? You seemed eager to summon this morning."

Sharena chimed in, "Is it a special new hero? Someone we've never met? Oh, I can't wait to meet them!"

"Haha, something like that. I've just had a strange feeling about it, y'know? Like this will be different from even the Brave Hero summons."

"There's no need to fret. I'm certain the Briedablik only has good intentions." Alfonse gave her a reassuring smile.

"Tell that to the RNG gods."

"The what?"

"Nevermind," Kiran raised Briedablik and pointed it at the orb, "Here goes nothing."

Once she pulled the trigger, the pedestal was engulfed in a bright light. As it faded, it revealed the form of a woman. She wore a blue dress and white fur wrap appropriate for colder climates. Her light blue hair flowed down to her waist, and her head was crowned by a braid, accented with white flower pins on either side. The woman looked about, blinking her blue eyes in confusion.

"Wh-where-"

"You're in the kingdom of Askr," Kiran explained. "Here, we fight alongside the Order of Heroes for the peace of all realms. You were summoned here as a hero."

"A hero? Me? But I do not fight!" The woman held a hand to her chest, her face reflecting her bewilderment.

Sharena jumped forward, "Don't sweat the details! My name's Sharena! This is my brother Alfonse and our summoner Kiran! What's your name?"

"O-oh, I am Rinea." Now she seemed more surprised than confused.

"Nice to meet you, Rinea!" Sharena smiled with a radiance only she possessed. "I'll show you around!"

In a moment, they disappeared into the castle, leaving Alfonse and Kiran behind.

"If Rinea doesn't fight, then perhaps she's a cleric, though I didn't see her carrying a staff." Alfonse commented, but Kiran remained unresponsive. "Kiran?"

She brought a hand to her face, covering her mouth, eyes full of concern. "Rinea… She's the one Berkut's been looking for."

"Where are you, Rinea?"

The Order of Heroes was full of strong and brave heroes from every realm imaginable. This meant every now and again, someone particularly strange would appear. No shortage of villains already joined their ranks, but among the evil, none could compare with the uncanny behavior of the Fallen Heroes.

"I know you are here, Rinea."

Among them, Berkut stood out as reasonable, yet completely insane. One moment, he speaks of power, of sacrificing oneself to Duma; the next, his eyes go blank and his demeanor changes. Once he becomes manic, he cries out "Rinea, Rinea!"

"Rinea, do you hide from me? Do you fear me?"

Berkut shambled about the castle, Kriemhild in hand, casting fierce glares at whoever passed him. Word of Rinea's arrival traveled quickly around the castle, and the moment it reached Berkut's ears, he set off in manic rage, screaming her name.

By nightfall, he still had not found her. Even he, filled with thoughts of power, began to feel discouraged. Could it be, she was avoiding him? Was she afraid?

Or was she watching him, laughing at him? Prince of nothing, heir to nothing. Nothing.

No, that Rinea only lived in his nightmares. His Rinea, the true Rinea, gave him warm smiles. She embraced him beneath starlight, sharing her heart with him. As they danced, it forged an undying bond between them, one of true love.

That Rinea was here, in this castle.

So why could he not find her?

More rage boiled inside him, causing Kriemhild to tremble in his straining grip. As he raised his cursed lance, he screeched, "WHERE IS SHE?!"

With all the power inside him, Berkut lashed out at the walls, ripping into solid brick. "WHO DARES KEEP HER FROM ME?"

"Lord Berkut!"

He froze. He knew what he was hearing. He knew what to expect. And yet, he could scarcely believe it.

Once he turned and confirmed who he heard, a smile spread wide on his face.

"Rinea."

Berkut opened his arms to invite her into his arms, but she stood still, eyes wide, a hand over her mouth. Seeing her frightened state caused him to chuckle. "You need not fear me, Rinea. Through Duma's power, I will become an emperor and you will rule by my side as empress."

As he stepped forward, the dark, suffocating aura around him forced Rinea back. She shook her head, "I never wanted this! I never wanted to be empress!"

Tears streamed down her face, but the Berkut before did not seem to understand. His outstretched arms sunk to his sides as his smile faded away.

"You… Do not want me?"

Rinea's sobs halted enough for her to meet Berkut's eyes. In them, she saw pain and a deep, deep longing.

"No, that's not true, Berkut. I need you, not your title. To me, you are enough."

Still, Berkut's betrayed stare did not change. Rinea felt her heart breaking for this man, the man she loved, who lost himself in an abyss of power.

"Oh, Berkut…"

Rinea reached out and cupped his face in her hands. Gently, she guided him forward, resting his head on her shoulder. Again, she was beset by tears.

"Oh," she cried, "Berkut!"

In her arms, he kept still and silent. A soul-piercing sense of heartbreak tore through him.

Berkut began to cry.

"Oh… Rinea…"

Behind the castle stood the castle gardens. Once a forest meant for training, it was converted upon construction of the training tower, which provided a greater variety of terrain to help train heroes.

The trees looked blue in the moonlight, which speckled the ground through the Rinea, it reminded her of home and how she would dance in the grove at night, free from duties or expectations.

However, she harbored a different reason for visiting this night.

Deep in the gardens where the trees were thickest, far from prying eyes, she found him. He sat on a garden stool with his unarmored back towards her; if he noticed her presence, he did not make it clear.

"Have you come to disavow me?"

Rinea shook her head, "Not at all, Lord Berkut. When I heard you were here, I wanted to speak with you."

Berkut turned his head ever so slightly. "Then you are here to rebuke me?"

"Lord Berkut, please-"

"You have seen him, have you not? Or rather, you have already seen me?" His voice, laced with venom, escalated in volume.

At his harshness, she lowered her gaze to the moon-flecked ground. "I have seen him…"

Berkut paused before responding, quieter than before, "Then why have you come here? If you have seen him, you should know better than to consort with the likes of me."

Her hands, folded in front of her, fidgeted. She knew Berkut to be fragile of mind and ego, and she feared what the wrong words would do to him. Yet, she could not stay silent.

"It is because I love you that I must see you, Berkut."

The moment he heard the words "I love you," Berkut stiffened, his folded hands shaking in his lap.

"You are a fool to love me," Though his voice sounded bitter, Rinea felt it from a place of self-loathing. "My title means nothing, and even with power, I am still nothing."

Rinea clutched her hands to her chest then took a deep breath. Once her heart and mind felt steady, she took a step forward. With a firm, yet gentle, tone, she spoke, "Berkut, look at me."

For a few moments, it seemed he would not heed her command, but soon, he turned to meet her eyes. She looked as angry as someone with a gentle disposition could manage. However, determination shone in her eyes brighter than her anger. It struck Berkut's heart with an unfamiliar feeling, tightening his chest and filling his stomach with anxiety.

"I don't care how much or how little power you hold because I love you. I do not love your strength or power or title, I love you. Please understand that nothing can change that."

Berkut felt his heart skip a beat, but someone like him could not accept her words: He didn't deserve them.

Suddenly, Berkut rose to his feet, turning just as abruptly to face her. His face was wrinkled with shallow rage, but his eyes held no fire.

"Do you not know what he did? He took the Rinea of his world and sacrificed her! How could you love me knowing I will throw you away for my own gain?!"

"Because that is not you! I know your struggles, how much your title means to you, but I also know that the Berkut I love would not harm me unless he truly lost himself."

"But you would not love me were I so lost."

"That is not true!" Rinea rushed forward and snatched up Berkut's hands, "Even then, I would still love you!"

Berkut's eyes widened in shock. "You can't mean… You would return to your world, to your Berkut knowing your fate?"

Without hesitation, without averting her eyes, Rinea answered, "Yes."

His entire world began to change in an instant. Rinea loves me… She truly loves me… The doubt that always festered in the back of his mind faded away as a jumbled mess of emotions flooded his heart. A great sense of melancholy and heartbreak filled him, but the joy at the forefront of it all overwhelmed him.

As Berkut spoke, his voice cracked, "Why?" His hands shook in hers. He tried to ask her, why him? What about him did she love? But all he could say was "Why?"

Rinea's stern expression melted into a warm smile, provoking the storm inside him to intensify. His heart couldn't take much more.

"You are confident, which makes me feel assured. By spending time with you, I feel myself growing confident too." A blush rose to her cheeks. "I think it's admirable that you want to become strong on your own, but I wish you would rely on me a little."

Confident? Strong? Right now, Berkut felt like neither of those things. He became a general out of necessity, out of destiny. He held the birthright of Heir to Rigel, or so he once thought. What did confidence and strength matter if he was a nobody?

Somehow, Rinea's sincere praise felt like sharp blades in Berkut's conscious. He couldn't stand to look her in the eye any longer, so he diverted his attention to his hands cradled in hers. They were so small, so delicate next to his that he wondered what it meant to rely on her. She would not join him in battle, after all.

"And of course, you danced with me."

Rinea's smile beamed like the moonlight above them. What she said, it was so simple, and yet…

Where did his tears come from?

When his vision began to blur, Berkut dreaded what came next. A sob surged out and he felt ashamed, which fueled his outburst further. He despised himself for acting so unbecoming in front of Rinea.

Rinea, on the other hand, did not view him with disgust, but instead with concern that didn't belittle Berkut the way pity did. She drew in closer, releasing his hands so she could reach up around his neck. As she reached, he leaned down into her embrace, burying his face in her shoulder to muffle his childish crying. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling them closer together.

They swayed back and forth to the music of the breeze rustling the leaves, the crickets chirping in the brush. Rinea ran her dainty fingers through his hair, which helped put him at ease. Berkut squeezed harder, still hiding his face in her shoulder.

"Oh, Rinea!"

AN: I wrote this a week ago, but as soon as I saw who the new heroes might be, I had to post this. Thanks to my little brother who read this and said "yeah, it's good."

As usual, feedback is welcome. I plan on writing an epilogue and a bonus chapter, but with school in full swing, it may take a bit.