WARNING: Graphic violent details are in this chapter. If you are uncomfortable with reading material, please turn away this instant.

Mist hummed a serene tune as she stirred around the contents of the stew. She couldn't help but be happy; the perilous adventure that she and the Greil Mercenaries traveled was finally coming to a close. There were a lot of troubling skirmishes, but they managed to pull through somehow. She was eager to call it a miracle, but she knew her father, Greil, wouldn't consider that. He'd simply say it was the skill of his comrades that seized the day.

She learned a little after arriving at Gebal Castle that Ike, her brother, and the company had a run through with two of Daein's finest generals; the serpentine Petrine and a mysterious knight cloaked in jet-black armor. It almost seemed like they weren't going to make it, but Ranulf, a high-ranking officer from the kingdom of Gallia, arrived at the nick of time with a platoon of laguz soldiers to rescue the mercenaries from their impossible situation.

She was grateful to Ranulf's heroic rescue. If it wasn't for him, she would have lost her entire family. Fortunately, that wasn't the case.

With the escort mission a success, Mist felt glee and excitement for the future. She was curious as to what the rest of Gallia was like. She remembered seeing Ranulf for the first time and feeling a bit perturbed at his appearance. She never seen the beast-like laguz before, living only in Crimea, a kingdom of beorc, for as long as she could remember. The only thing she knew of the laguz was of the infrequent stories Shinon would speak of during dinner. What he said about them was never any good, and that was her initial thoughts upon seeing them.

Ranulf was a lot nicer than what Shinon made the laguz out to be. She couldn't see him as the "uncivilized, disgusting, barbaric beastmen" that he described them as. Ranulf was a gentleman, especially as he conversed with Princess Elincia. He was pretty casual and down-to-earth, and he always had a joke or two to say during every conversation he was in. Mist found him comfortable to be around, and she felt like that was a good sign for the rest of Gallia.

Right now, the mercenaries were preparing lodgings for their stay at Gebal Castle. She was assigned to assist Oscar with the meal, which was meat stew, courtesy of rations donated by Ranulf. She was excited, to say the least. All they had during their adventure was hard, stale biscuits and smoked fish and meat. She felt like if she saw another biscuit again, she'd die were she stood.

Meat stew was a much needed departure from what they usually had. Oscar had already prepared the broth, and it was simmering over the fire. The aroma of beef, carrots and potatoes sifted through the air, enough to nearly make Mist salivate like a dog. Shaking her head to knock herself out of her hypnotic stupor, she focused at the task at hand.

Oscar had left briefly to see if there were any other ingredients that he could use to enhance the flavor of the stew. Although Mist knew how to cook herself, she was well aware of Oscar's superior skills as a chef, as well as the mercenaries…reluctance to eat what she made. It wasn't bad at all, but from what she was told, her food lack substance. Or, in Ike's words, "not enough meat."

Still, it was fun to help Oscar out in the kitchen. She always learned something new to better enhance her own repertoire, and Oscar always appreciated the help.

It was the least she could do, after all. She had no combat skills whatsoever, so she couldn't actually contribute to any of the fights. In fact, she hated fighting completely. Watching the fights that the mercenaries conduct always made her feel incredibly queasy and lightheaded. When she was kidnapped by bandits with Rolf, although she kept her calm and believed in her brother, she was having difficulty maintaining her sense of balance. The sounds of combat, from the clashing of blades to the gut-wrenching cries of death never leave her, even after the battles are over.

So she couldn't fight. Her father never blamed her, and Ike felt the need to work twice as hard in training, as if Mist was a liability. He would never say that to her, but that's what she often felt.

She dedicated herself entirely to performing tasks needed to maintain the headquarters. She cleaned the rooms, washed all the laundry, took care of the horses in the stable, and cooked for the mercenaries. Everyone was grateful for her domesticate contributions, and it helped alleviate some of the self-doubt she held in her heart.

But when the Daein army forced them to abandon their home, those feelings returned back to her. As a non-combatant, she couldn't help but feel completely useless. She was the one that needed protection again, and she couldn't do anything to help the men in the slightest. She kept her smile and her cheer, if only to hide her self-pity.

Now, with the mission completed, she could return to being the Mist that she was when they were back at the headquarters. She could cook and clean for the men, and feel like she really was helping again.

Her humming grew more upbeat as she thought of the bright future that awaited them. Her family was safe and sound in Gallia, and nobody suffered any severe injuries. It really was a beautiful miracle.

The sound of iron-tipped boots gradually made its way towards the kitchen. Mist knew who these boots belonged to immediately upon hearing them, and turned to talk with her brother.

"Hey Ike! What brings you here?" She asked, stopping her humming for just a moment.

"Oh, Mist. You're on cooking duty today?" Ike responded.

"Uh-huh. I'm with Oscar though, so you don't need to worry."

"What gives you any idea that I might need to worry?"

"Ike, I know how you feel about my cooking. You don't hide it very well."

"I have no idea what you're talking about…"

"Nevermind…" She pouted. Ike always dodged the subject, and Mist always gave up her line of questioning immediately. It was this type of banter that she enjoyed with her older brother. It gave her a sense of normalcy a midst the constant fighting. "Anyways, you haven't answered my previous question yet."

Ike didn't answer immediately. Instead, he frowned and stared at Mist.

"What's on your mind? You know I'm here to talk if anything's bothering you." Mist offered.

"...I'm just thinking…"

"'bout what?"

"Persistent aren't you?"

"That's what little sisters are supposed to do, silly!"

"I suppose you have a point…Alright I'll tell you. I was just looking for Father."

"Father…" Mist trailed off. She was actually afraid of bringing this topic up. In spite of the influx of fortunate news that graced the mercenaries, Greil seemed visibly distraught at something. Of course, he tried to hide his expression, but Mist is strangely attune to the feelings of others. She know something was bothering him, but she didn't want to bother him about it. Unlike Ike, Greil never opened up to anybody, not even his own children.

Greil was always stubborn. Granted, he had the skill to support his stubbornness, but there are times where he would not feel well and he never whispered a word to anybody until it was too late. Mist found it frustrating when he wouldn't trust people with his problems, but it seemed that he was hellbent on keeping his secrets with him until the day he died.

"So you noticed too, huh Ike."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, I'm not trying to say that you could be as dense as a brick, but…"

"That's exactly what you're trying to say!"

Mist laughed. It was a little good to lighten up the mood. For whatever reason, she couldn't help but feel as if something ominous surrounded Ike's expression. Like a foreboding aura, draped with layer upon layer of malice.

"It's just…ever since we left that fort, Father hasn't smiled. He hasn't cracked a joke at anybody in the company, and he's stuck himself in the room. I don't know why. I tried asking him about it, but he wasn't in his room this time when I checked. So here I am." Ike explained.

Mist listened carefully to Ike's analysis of their father's bizarre behavior. "So you're trying to find the reason behind Father's behavior, huh?"

"Yeah. That's why I'm here. Do you know where Father is at?"

"No. I haven't seen him myself since we left that fort."

"Hmm…Why…I just don't get it."

"What're you talking 'bout, Ike."

"Oh, it's nothing. Nothing that concerns you, anyways."

"Are you trying to leave me out of the loop again? C'mon Ike, we're family!"

"I'm sorry Mist. I just don't want to get you involved in all this. I mean, you're already taking all the fighting a little too hard."

"T-that's not true! Besides, as long as I got Mother's medallion I'll be fine."

"Mist…I know you cry yourself to sleep."

"No I don't! I don't Ike! I'm strong!"

"Mist, I heard you sobbing to yourself one night when I went to go to the latrine."

"You…you heard that?"

"Yeah. Ever since then, I've been going by your tent every night before falling asleep. You've been crying yourself to sleep ever since we started this journey."

"But still! I want to help Ike, please!"

Ike just placed his hands on her shoulders. "It'll be fine Mist. Everything will be fine. I'm sure Father's just stressed now that the mission is over. I'll talk with him. So don't worry about it. Okay?"

"But-" Mist didn't get a chance to finish, as Ike subtly tightened his grip on her shoulders. She winced in pain for a second, before he let go of her shoulders.

"I'll keep looking for Father, okay?" Mist nodded nervously in response. "You keep working on the food. I'm sure it'll come out great. This time, at least. With Oscar around, there will probably be some meat this time around!"

Mist didn't laugh. She just stared at the floor, frown encroaching on her face. She continued to stare downwards as Ike left the kitchen, and she continued still, even as Oscar returned to the kitchen. Her conversation with Ike didn't sit well with her, so when Oscar came back to the kitchen she told him that she was not feeling well and she returned to her room. She hoped a small rest would take her mind out of the troubles she was thinking about.

As she laid on her makeshift bed, she felt the tears gradually welling up on her eyes.

"Stupid…stupid Ike." She whispered inaudibly, cursing herself for how right Ike had been.

"Mist…Mist…" Ike cried out in pain, clutching his own innards in vain as he struggled to stay alive from a fresh slash through his abdomen. "Why didn't you protect me…?"

"I-Ike…I'm…I'm sorry…" Mist replied with tears streaking through her cheeks. The grotesque scene in front of her forced her to collapse on her knees. She didn't know what to do at this point. She wanted to save Ike, but she knew that this kind of injury was something you couldn't survive from.

"Why didn't you protect me…" Ike repeated, beginning to crawl towards Mist. With his legs cut clean from his body, a massive trail of blood trailed Ike as he approached Mist. "Why didn't you protect me…WHY DIDN'T YOU PROTECT ME?!"

"IKE!" Mist screamed, rousing herself from the bed. She sat straight up, clutching the air with her right hand as if trying to grab something. The nightmare she just had felt so real to her, enough so to tempt her to crying.

She would never want her brother to die, much less in such a horrible fashion. Yet, she had that nightmare nonetheless. To her, the worst part was Ike's harsh accusations at her inaction. He blamed her for his death, even though she had nothing to do with it.

Mist checked out the window of her room. The sun was beginning to set to the west, blanketing the sky in the gentle cloak of twilight. As the hue of the horizon shifted colors from a dark blue to a night violet, Mist wondered how long she had been sleeping. It had not been too long, it seemed, since she started cooking with Oscar around mid-afternoon.

Mist sighed to herself. Why did she have that dream? Was it because of what Ike said to her earlier? She couldn't have harbored a grudge of sorts from just that, could she? They've had plenty of arguments in the past before; that's just the nature of sibling relationships. Yet she never once wished harm on her brother. The most negative thing she would ever do is call him stupid or stick her tongue out at him.

Sighing again, she turned to move from her bed. Just as she did, her eyes made contact with a pair of deep emerald eyes.

"WOAH!" She yelped, startled at the sudden appearance of this green-eyed person. Losing her balance, she fell right back onto her bed, landing on her back.

The green-eyed girl simply laughed at Mist's misfortune. "Hahaha! Ya gotta pay more attention to ya surroundings Mist!" She continued to laugh, to the dismay of her unfortunate victim.

"Mia…it's really creepy when you stare at a sleeping person like that…" Mist rebutted.

Mia was the newest recruit to the Greil Mercenaries. Ike found her wandering into the fortress when he left to find their father. Apparently, Greil had managed to save Mia after her mercenary company was ambushed by Daein soldiers. She was the only survivor.

Mia…was an odd girl, to say the least. Instead of taking the opportunity to run away from combat, as any normal person would after having their entire party slaughtered, she chose to follow Greil into the heat of combat.

Worst still, she didn't seem too depressed at the prospect of losing her comrades. She was unnaturally cheery and rambunctious, taking her time to talk with everybody in the party, learning their names and trying to get close to them…and asking for a spar. Everyone turned her down.

Mist found Mia's apathy towards her old comrade's plight unsettling. It was true that death was a constant companion for a mercenary, but Greil always made sure to remind his company that they were a family. They laughed together, ate together, slept together, bled together, and did everything they could to be as close to one another as possible.

Certainly some of the mercenaries might have their differences, like Shinon's apparent bigotry towards the laguz or Soren's anti-social attitude, but with Greil, they were family. That was all that mattered.

Still, no matter how Mist felt about Mia's opinions on her comrades, she wanted to get to know the girl. Mia was the only girl close to her age in the company now, and they were chosen to share a room with each other too. She was grateful for the opportunity to get to know Mia a little better.

Even if her first impressions of her was "downright creepy."

"Well, I tried calling out ya name a couple of times, but ya just wouldn't say anything."

"Maybe that's because I was sleeping?" Mist replied with a slightly sarcastic tone.

"Details, details!" Mia responded with a wave of her hands. "Anyways, I figured, 'if she ain't responded, then I'll wait for her!' so here I am!"

"Mia…"

"Yes?"

"It's creepy to stare at a girl when she's sleeping, you know?"

"We're both girls, so its fine!"

"That's not the point!" Mist yelled, exacerbated by Mia's obliviousness to the atmosphere. Her density could give Ike's a run for its money.

Still, Mia's wonky personality was just the distraction Mist needed to get over her strange nightmare. She couldn't help but crack a smile at Mia, who responded with a toothy smile of her own.

"So then, now that you're awake…" Mia said bringing the conversation back on topic. "Let's spar!"

Mist stared at Mia with a deadpan on her face. 'Is…is she serious?' She thought to herself. 'She watched me sleep, waited for me to wake up…for a spar?'

"I'm sorry Mia." Mist answered apologetically. "I can't fight. Rather, I don't really like fighting."

"Huh? Why not? Fighting is really cool ya know. So exhilarating. It keeps the blood flowing!"

"That's easy for you to say. You like fighting Mia. All you've done here since you've came was ask for a spar! Not everyone shares the same thrill of fighting as you do."

"Guess I was caught red-handed." Mia scratched the back of her head and winked at Mist.

'She can't be serious…can she?' Mist thought. She never thought she'd see the day when someone could out-dense Ike.

"Mia, I can't fight!" She repeated. "Every time I see a fight, I get really queasy, anxious, and dizzy. I can't concentrate, and I become really scared." Mist was quite surprised at herself for revealing such personal information to Mia. It wasn't necessary to do such a thing to get the point across, but Mia seemed like a comfortable enough person to confide in. She didn't appear to harbor ill-intentions, and she looked like she could keep a secret if asked.

"Meh. Ya'll get over it. Let's go! I wanna fight someone!" Mia said.

"I'll get over it? What?" Mist asked, baffled at Mia's dismissal of Mist's reservations.

"Mist ya get too caught up on all the unnecessary stuff. It's not good for a swordswoman to worry about stuff like that. It could get ya killed one day! Don't think, just do."

'That was…surprisingly sound advice coming from Mia.' Mist thought. Still, her reservations kept her from accepting Mia's proposal.

"Why do you want to fight me so badly Mia?" Mist asked, genuine curiosity getting the better of her.

"Well isn't it obvious? Ya the daughter of the boss, right? So ya gotta be strong!"

"Mia, there are so many things wrong with that line of logic."

"I mean, the boss is super strong. He's incredible! With that massive axe of his, he took down several armed Daein soldiers at once! Even then, he's got such great form and such skill! His footwork is like a dancer in an opera! I can only imagine him with a sword! Just thinking about it gets me so excited!"

Listening to Mia gush over her father worried Mist greatly. Mia sounded like a girl in love, and that thought made Mist shudder. She loved her father greatly, but she couldn't imagine him with anyone but her mother. Besides, to her, it was weird thinking about Greil falling for a woman old enough to be his daughter.

"And your brother too! Ike's so strong! He looks like he's still learning from the boss, but I could tell from how he is now that he's gonna be a powerhouse when he's done training. He could make a good rival, ya know? We could get good together!"

"Well, if my brother could make a good rival, why not just spar with him? I'm sure he wouldn't turn you down like the others." 'Like me…' Mist thought, leaving that out of what she was saying.

"I tried! I couldn't find him anywhere in the castle. I couldn't find the boss neither. Really sucks, honestly. So lame…"

'Ike isn't at the castle?' Mist thought. 'What happened after our conversation? Did he find Father? I hope so…guess I'll wait until dinner to find out.'

"So, I'm here now. Let's-"

"No."

"Please?"

"Tell you what. Would it make you happy if I just…watched you practice?"

Mia took a moment to think. She seemed to be deep in contemplation in regards to Mist's proposal. While Mia was thinking, Mist took the opportunity to study Mia's appearance.

The most striking thing about Mia's face were her deep emerald eyes. They exuded an exotic impression, almost foreign. Mist couldn't help think they were pretty.

Her eyes were complimented by her shoulder length indigo hair. Her hair was far darker than her brother's, but both still had some shade of blue to it. A white hairband streaked over her bangs, presumably so that sweat didn't get into her eyes during combat. Mist doubted it was to make a fashion statement, even if the hairband actually complimented her hair well.

The similarities didn't stop there. Like Ike, she wore a shoulderguard over her left shoulder. Her's was far smaller than his, but that was because she had smaller shoulders than he did. It just demonstrated how seriously she took the path of the sword.

She wore an orange armless one-piece that reached all the way up until her upper thighs. She had oranger fingerless gloves that matched the orange theme of her outfit, but she didn't wear gauntlets like her brother did. Maybe it was because her arms were smaller? Nevertheless, it was probably the only major difference in attire to Ike. That, and the cape.

She wore black combat boots with long black thigh-high socks. Surprisingly, Mia didn't have too much to protect her legs. No shinguards, or kneeguards, or anything like that. Mist couldn't help but wonder why.

While Mist continued to stare at Mia, she failed to notice that Mia had finished thinking and was trying to get her attention. Mist was so engrossed in Mia's appearance, that when Mia's face was mere centimeters apart from Mist's own, it took several seconds for Mist to register that.

"WOAH!" Mist yelled, falling backwards onto her bed. She flailed her arms to attempt to regain her balance, but failed miserably and landed on her back.

"Ya really need to pay attention Mist. Can't be lost in thought like that, ya know. Could get ya killed!"

'Look who's talking…' Mist thought as she rubbed her back to ease her minor pain.

"Now c'mon, let's go! Sucks we aren't sparring, but I guess I'll take ya up on ya offer. No takebacks, ya know?"

'Mia certainly is a character.' Mist thought, bringing herself up to follow Mia into the courtyard of the castle.

The gentle cloak of twilight soon gave way to the serene shroud of the night sky. There were some gray cumulonimbus clouds gathering in the distance, but the Greil Mercenaries would be safe inside Gebal Castle, as opposed to their usual camping. It was a refreshing change of pace from the constant moving, and Mist took solace in knowing she'll be able to sleep in an actual bed (albeit makeshift) instead of the cold dirt ground like the last few weeks.

After returning from Mia's practice session (and declining every single sparring advance thrown at her), the two girls joined the rest of the mercenaries at the mess hall for dinner. Everybody was looking forward to finally having something that wasn't biscuits and stale meat, as could be hard from the simultaneous growling of everybody's stomachs. The fresh aroma of the beef stew broth was enough to make anybody in the company salivate, a testament to Oscar phenomenal cooking.

There was only one person missing from the mess hall for dinner, and his missing presence could be felt subtly by everybody. Their leader, Greil, did not join the company for the night's dinner, stating that he had something on his mind and that he couldn't be bothered at the moment.

No one took Greil's absence more seriously than Ike did. Throughout the entire dinner, Ike spoke not a single word, keeping to his own thoughts. The atmosphere was starting to worry Mist, but she couldn't do anything about it since her father and brother were not making any efforts to involve her in their lives. All she could do at the moment was curse her own uselessness and hope for the best.

Following dinner, the company all retired to their respective rooms. Almost immediately after arriving, Mia dropped to her bed and began sleeping. Mist was quite surprised at how easily sleep came to the cheery girl. The constant snoring from Mia was a decent distraction from her own thoughts.

Mist decided to just simply stare out into the wilderness from her window. The scent of rain was beginning to accumulate in the air, and Mist could tell that pretty soon there was going to be a downpour. Fortunately, there was no laundry hanging outside, not as if there could be anyways since they had just arrived at the castle. For the time being, Mist was content with staring at the tree branches rustling with the wind.

A series of knocks came from the door to their room. "Coming!" Mist replied quietly, wanting to avoid awaking Mia. As Mist opened the door, she came face to face with Soren, his dark red eyes downcast with concern and worry.

"Sorry to bother you this evening Mist." Soren said immediately.

"Oh, don't worry about it. I was just looking outside the window."

"Tell me," Soren decided to get straight to the point. "Have you seen Ike?"

"No. The last time I saw him was during dinner. I haven't seen him since."

"Did Ike appear off to you?"

"Truthfully…yeah. Ike hasn't been himself since we came here to the castle. I think he's worried about Father, but he won't tell me anything important."

"So Greil's condition is the reason for Ike's current unease, huh?" Soren said to himself. "I figured as much…"

"Did you know about Father?"

"It wasn't hard to deduce that Greil was concerned about something. He had been acting odd since we encountered that black armored knight in the fortress."

"Do you think that-"

Mist couldn't finish that statement as a massive roar echoed through the sky. It was jarring enough to force Mist to cover her ears. There was a loud ringing inside her ears, and it was beginning to hurt her.

"What was that?" Soren responded immediately. "An enemy attack? This roar…it sounds like one of the sub-humans. What's going on exactly?"

The ringing in her ears subsided shortly, easing her mind from the pain she was feeling. But an ominous feeling clutched her heart. She couldn't help but think tonight was going to be awful, with her worries given further strength as the rain began to fall in full force.

"...Mist, grab a torch. I'll awaken the rest of the mercenaries. We have to find Ike and Greil. Quickly!"

Mist did not need to be told twice. Her apprehension for Ike and her father was the only thing on her mind, and the longer she did nothing, the longer that feeling gripped her tightly. Grabbing her cloak from her belongings, Mist rushed out of the castle.

"FATHER! IKE! WHERE ARE YOU?" Mist screamed at the top of her lungs while running as fast as her short body could take her. She continued to call out the names of her father and brother while running the road out of Gebal Castle, but she couldn't hear any responses.

Just as she thought, the rain began to crash down on top of her. She was grateful to have brought her cloak, as it staved off the rain somewhat, but it was only a matter of time before her torch burns out due to the rain. She needed to hurry, otherwise it would get dangerous outside all alone.

Her cries continued to yield no responses, and eventually Mist came across an opening on the road. Immediately, she could tell that there was a battle in the area, as the nauseating iron scent of blood was dominate in the air. The smell of blood made her light-headed, but she persevered through her dizzy spell. She couldn't afford to fall ill or faint…not when her family was in potentially grave danger.

Although the rain was growing heavier, The scent of blood was far too thick in the opening. Someone must have taken a fatal wound, one that would cause massive bleeding. Her fears started to take hold of her, as her heart began to pound incredibly fast. She felt like her heart would just crash outside of her body at the pace it was going. She tried to calm her breathing, but her nervousness prevented her from having stable control over her own body.

Her hands shook uncontrollable, and she accidentally dropped the torch to the muddy ground. Scrambling to pick it up, she noticed an peculiar item sticking out of the ground in the middle of the clearing.

As if mesmerized, Mist forgot about picking up the torch and walked towards the item on the ground. Upon closer inspection, Mist found that the item in question was an ornate, golden sword. It was massive, almost as long as she was. The blade itself was simple, but its golden hue radiated an unnatural aura. Almost mystical. It did not seem to have been crafted by human hands.

In a trance, Mist quietly reached for the blade, when she heard the sounds of asymmetric breathing. Startled, she turned towards the direction of the sound, but no one was there. She remembered that she was there to find her father and brother, so she pulled herself together and decided to investigate the origin of the wail.

Walking slowly towards the increasingly loud breathing, Mist noticed that there was a small line of blood flow away from her, being carried by the rain. There…there was an insane amount of blood flowing outwards. Panicking, Mist ran faster and faster towards the source of the blood.

When she arrived, she covered her mouth as quickly as she could. The smell of blood was sickening, and there was nothing else she could smell. Not the scent of rain, or the aroma of wet grass. The fields were literally stained in blood.

And right in the middle of all the blood, Mist saw with tear-stained eyes, was what was left of Ike.

Ike…was cleaved in half. Just a few paces away, Mist could see his legs laying messily on the floor. Without the torso to support it, it fell in such an inhumane fashion, with the legs facing disturbing, unnatural directions. Suffice to say, his legs were completely covered in blood. It was probably sometime since this happened, but she could tell his legs were completely drained of blood.

Ike himself…

His skin was beginning to turn blue. Without his lower half, his innards began to slowly crawl out of his open wound. Yet…yet he was still alive. His chest was rising and falling rapidly, trying to breath as hard as he could to compensate for his missing legs. It was all for vain, however; he was losing blood much faster than his body could produce. He didn't have long to live.

"IKE! Mist chocked a sob. Ignoring Ike's appearance, she hugged her brother as tightly as she could. Her yellow blouse and brown cloak started to darken, taking on a good portion of her brother's blood.

"m…mist…" Ike whispered. He slowly lifted his hand skywards, as if trying to find his sister. "mist…where are you…I…I can't see you…"

"Ike…I'm right here…Everything is going to be okay…Please, just…just…please…don't leave me…" She grabbed a hold of Ike's weak hands. There was no longer any sign of warmth in his hands. She didn't want this to happen. It couldn't happen. Ike was so strong. He was powerful just like her father. He was supposed to protect her. He couldn't just die and leave her alone. Mist couldn't allow it.

Unfortunately, Ike's life just continued to leave him. Coughing out blood, Ike dropped his hands to the ground. Mist lifted Ike's torso and laid it on her, trying to give him her warmth in an attempt to prolong his life. She couldn't let him die. She had to save him…she just had to.

"mist…" Ike whispered, his eyes clouding up, no longer able to see anything.

"Yes…Ike…" She cried softly. She knew what was going to happen. She couldn't lie to herself anymore.

"I'm…I'm sorry…I…couldn't protect Father…" He coughed out yet another chunk of blood. "I…I…can't…protect…yo…u…" Ike's mouth simply hung open following these last words. Whatever faint grip he had on Mist's hands lost all of its energy. He stared upwards at the gray clouds, unable to see the relentless tears on his sister's face. Unable to hear the loud cries of anguish she yelled towards the apathetic heavens above. He couldn't feel the pressure of Mist's body, as she fell on top of him, succumbing to unconsciousness.

Ike had left this world.

Ike had left Mist alone.

Hey guys. I'm not planning on writing a bunch of Author's Notes, but I needed to explain a few things.

Firstly, this is a rewrite of the prologue. I decided to rewrite the prologue because I felt I needed to expand a few things pertaining to the characters. Some changes include:

-Ike and Mist have a conversation prior to the ending. In the original, they did not speak at all. Also, Ike survives for a few minutes before he dies at the end. In the original, Mist finds Ike dead.

-There is more of an interaction between Mia and Mist. These two characters are going to be the most important characters in the story, so I wanted to start building their relationship at the beginning of the story. For those that are curious, no there are not going to be any romantic pairings. I'm bad at writing romantic scenarios, is all.

-Word count has doubled. I decided to normalize the word count to 6000+ words on the Word Processor that I use (I use WPS Writer). The reason being when it converts to FFN, the word count gets bongled and I'd rather just keep things consistent.

There will be a rewrite of Chapter 1 that sticks to the philosophies I have detailed in these notes. Thank you for taking time to read this fanfiction, and I hope you guys have a wonderful day.

July 8th, 2018 4:16 PM

PS: I was doing a bit of research on Mia's supports to see if my writing correlates with her canon character, and I found that my explanation for why she joins up with the Greil Mercenaries is off. She was actually captured by Daein soldiers and Greil came to the rescue. She follows Greil to repay her debt to him. I'm going to keep my version of Mia's meeting with Greil since I believe that she would actually do such a thing anyways, and this is actually relevant to her interactions with other characters later in the story.

July 12th, 2018 8:02 AM