Honor Above All

Sideblog for some Fire Emblem (primarily Jugdral) OCs 18+, SFW/NSFW interactions Please read the rules.

[devotionwing]

Finally finished a new drawing of Gen 2 (FE4/FE6) Galen. Not pictured : Brahma, the big red dragon he rides.

Shading green is such a pain in the ass.

[devotionwing]

solarcrusades :

@devotionwing​ | Nyes hello gaylen

     And what exactly was a Thracian doing here, out of all places? It made the sage somewhat worried- perhaps, due to the rumors he had heard about them. Though, it was only a worry and not a fear- after all, he had his fair share of fighting against mounted– no, flying– units. Eyes narrowing, the blond sat upon the branch he had been standing on before he heard the other arrive- a bit hard to not hear that one with such a huge beast for a mount. A sigh fell from Eirian’s lips.

   He would only become hostile if the other showed any hostility. So jumping off the branch, he landed on his feet rather quietly- something to thank his ability to use his own magic to silence himself- before moving toward the bushes and eventually just coming out to the pathway.

              “..I didn’t think that your kind would be found over here.”

“Calm, Brahma.”

     The green-haired rider coaxed the dragon as it landed, the large red beast allowing itself to stretch in an almost cat-like manner before folding its wings along its back. The rider slipped off and gave his mount a firm pat along the neck, taking a moment to stretch himself before noticing his beast hadn’t truly relaxed.

      Just as Galen turned to follow Brahma’s gaze, the young man stepped onto the path and made himself known. The rider gave a sigh - of course someone would be here - but at least he didn’t seem immediately hostile.

“Our kind, eh?” He’d immediately wave off the notion with a flick of one wrist and a shrug. “Patrols are common, are they not? What I didn’t expect was someone hanging out in the bushes of our usual lunch spot. Now you’ve got Brahma here all worried, kid. All the poor thing wants to do is take a short rest of his wings an’ now there’s someone interrupting our quiet time.”

[devotionwing]

Revenge {Sentence Starters}

"The greatest weapon anyone can use against us is our own mind."

"Sorry to interrupt your regularly scheduled plotting."

"I should have left months ago but, you know, life gets in the way."

"Memory lane isn't exactly a road I like to go down."

"Justice, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder."

"It's just an engagement. Anything can happen."

"Please don't say you're sorry. You, so clearly, are not."

"Apparently when you have a fight with a friend you're supposed to apologize."

"When deception cuts this deep, someone has to pay."

"As of late I find my perception is blinded by only one thing. Revenge."

"And here I thought you were offering me a way out of this."

"Why are you so interested in this girl anyway?"

"Don't let them see your weakness. That's the first thing they'll use against you."

"Trust is the one luxury I cannot afford."

"The worst betrayals come from those we trust the most."

"Thanks for picking me up on the street corner like a prostitute."

"What I want is someone to hang out with this summer."

"I'm sick of the same. I want different."

"What a waste of humanity."

"When everything you love has been stolen from you, sometimes all you have left is revenge."

"It's hard to know who to trust when it comes to money."

"Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves."

[devotionwing]

Profile: Galen

Appearance: Generation 1 (Fire Emblem 4 Gen1 / Fire Emblem 7) Age: 16 years old

(minus the faded Holy Mark for Elibe verse)

Generation 2 (FE4 Gen2 / FE5 / FE 6) Age: 34 (FE 4/5 G2) 36 (FE 6)

FE 6/7 Bio: Class: Dragon Knight ( Wyvern Rider , Gen1) Dragonmaster (Wyvern Lord, Gen2)

A loyal dragon knight of Bern, although he has a bit of a reputation for being lazy. Rumored to be a bit of a troublemaker, his results on the battlefield are what keep him employed.

Although he is rather cordial towards Eliwood’s forces as a teenager, as an adult he has become jaded by the reality of war and , unless otherwise convinced, likely dies facing Roy’s army.

FE 4/5 Bio: Class: Dragon Rider (Gen1) Dragonmaster (Wyvern Lord, Gen2)

An young, idealistic and loyal dragon rider of Thracia, Galen somewhat idolizes King Trabant and his efforts to improve / save Thracia from their state of poverty. Together with his lover they join the flight of riders that ambush Cuan and Ethlin in what will later be known as the Yied Massacre. As they fly on to attack Sigurd’s army they are quickly struck down by Levin. 

Here he should have been fated to die, but an older merchant woman stumbles upon Galen and two of his companions and takes them back to her home, impartial to their part in the war. In the end Galen is the only one of the group to not succumb to his wounds and after a long recovery period eventually makes his way back to Thracia.

By Celice’s time he has seen a couple promotions in rank and serves dutifully as a general in the army. Upon encountering Leaf (princeoflenster) and mistaking the disguised prince for a Thracian citizen he tries to lend him his aid. 

Although he has started to question Thracia’s place in the war and whether it will solve their crisis he is not willing to risk the country’s reputation by defying the empire. It isn’t until the Princess Altenna defects that he begins to reconsider his own actions. In the end, he decides to act upon what he believes to be best for Thracia’s future...

[devotionwing]

tl;dr:

Dropping canon muses from this sideblog. Will be focusing MOSTLY on Galen (FE4/5). Will be adding profile pages to match down the line.

One muse is being moved to another sideblog for the sake of organization.

[devotionwing]

URL Change

grandeurwings -> devotionwing

[devotionwing]

@feignedblood

 “For showing your face? No, no of course not. Why would you ever think something like that?”

   Despite his words there was a dark look on the mages face, all anger and hatred and pain. Shadows seemed to cling to the edge of his form, more of them gathering as his emotions swirled and twisted. The past year had given him more control over himself, but when faced with Galen.. he seemed to lose it all in an instant.

 “It’s not like I spent an entire year cursing your name and wondering what I had done to make you get tired of me and vanish like that. It’s not like I spent a year trying to get the fuck over you. I definitely didn’t spend all that time looking for you or trying to figure out why everyone I ever fucking care about just.. disappears.”

   Each word was laced with equal parts venom and badly buried heartache. No matter how hard he’d tried he hadn’t been able to move on like he knew he should. It wasn’t a good choice, to make someone such an important part of his life. That was something he should have learned the first time around. But no, he had done it again with Galen and had suffered for it.

   He walked forward slowly, the shadows seeming to dance like fire in the light breeze. As soon as he was close enough he reached out, fingers tracing the new scar on Galens face with a gentleness that didn’t match his anger. For a moment it seemed he was going to try and take a less violent path to this reunion. But as soon as he reached the end of the scar he pulled his hand away and brought it down across his face in a hard slap.

 “You abandoned me to a world I wasn’t ready to face alone, and you have the balls to just.. show up like nothing happened? Congratulations on being the biggest fucking prick I’ve ever had the misfortune to fucking deal with.”

   The light breeze picked up in intensity, swirling around the two of them with great force. He shoved Galen away, letting the strong winds pull him off his feet and throw him across the field. There was no sense of satisfaction in the action. It didn’t make him feel any better. But it did give him a small moment to wipe his eyes without Galen seeing that he was starting to cry.

 “You know what the worst part about it all is? The worst part about this whole stupid situation? I still don’t fucking hate you. I should, I’ve tried so fucking hard. But I can’t. I can’t..”

   His voice cracked and wavered as he spoke. His emotions were too strong for his words to contain and he couldn’t keep himself sounding steady. All he wanted to do was beat Galen senseless until he got a proper apology and an explanation. The little card that he’d gotten a few days before didn’t count. Just writing something didn’t make it true. He wanted to make Galen take responsibility for the problems he had caused, but he couldn’t will himself to move.

 “I don’t forgive you. I don’t even know if I can..”

     Being tossed across the field and slapped wasn’t exactly outside expectations for the encounter. As the dragon knight hit the ground he let out a small grunt, Brahma simply watched the motion with a tilt of his head and a swish of his tail. After a moment Galen sat up and shifted to get to his feet once more.

“You don’t have to. Forgive me, that is.” 

      He shook his head softly as he reached back to scratch his head. Aoba didn’t hate him, an incredible revelation considering -- wait, how long had it been for Aoba? The man had mentioned... wait, a year? Only a year?

What then had...

“...The past fourteen years I’d... well, I’d worried about how fast I was dragged away. You probably won’t believe me but it wasn’t... I didn’t want to.” It didn’t change what had happened though. He also could have tried to return sooner, but he also couldn’t turn his back on his country once he’d returned. 

      Even so, moments like this were enough to make him grateful that he’d chosen to live. Back then he’d almost made the choice to die with the rest of those from his time (save Sir Hannibal, perhaps), to allow those remaining to move forward without the influence of the past generations. It had been then that his prince had instead convinced him that his help was still needed and that renewed faith in himself that had led him to seek out the other things he’d left behind.

“Had I known I’d be taken away as suddenly as I’d arrived, well, I’d not have dared get close to you like that. It wasn’t fair at all, I know that. I know what it’s like to just... just lose someone, and then it happened again when I was dragged back.” It took him enough effort to finally look away from the emotional mage, trying himself to not tear up any further.

      It was then that Brahma finally had enough of the men talking and bounded over to Aoba and gave him a big, slobbery lick, tail waving behind him with a high trilling chirp.

[hushesofathunderingwind-blog]

{☾} Maybe it wasn’t pathetic, and if nothing else, it wasn’t like Sety didn’t consider him lucky to have a surviving parent at all. It was another story entirely with Fee, but most of the others either couldn’t find their parents or their parents were long gone. There were plenty of times Sety wondered while among Leaf’s former army how Nanna got along with her own father. Fin had shut himself off in such a similar way as Levin had, but he prioritized his children and adoptive child more than absolutely anything.

Even as strong as Sety was, it was difficult not to find himself relying on Levin. It was because that presence was there that he desired to be allowed to rest for once. Likely, Galen felt that when he was in his mother’s company, and that was something Sety could never feel again. What Sety knew now was something Galen would never know. At this point in the man’s life, his feelings around his father would be far different than Sety’s were for his own. Galen didn’t need to feel that way anymore. He was an adult and relatively respected in his country. He didn’t need to feel clingy and impulsive. 

Not that Sety could say for sure Levin was hiding from him; nor could Galen deduce that for himself. For as peace loving and family like as Silesians were, Holsety blood or not, they had more problems to sort out than most countries seemed to. It was odd enough that Galen inherently came from two completely opposite countries and somehow ended up in the middle of those attitudes. Not that Silesians weren’t as proud, but they had never gone to such lengths for money.

“I don’t want him to elevate me. Well… more accurately, I’m still one of the most prominent people in this army based on strength and intelligence, and I’m only grateful for that because it lets me near him. Otherwise… he wouldn’t be near me at all.” For all the downsides there were to having such incredible power, it at least gave him the chance to see how his father acted when the situation was not about family. He really was doing his best to keep this army moving, and Sety couldn’t, and wouldn’t, fault him for that.

What he and Fee wanted most, though, was for him to actually spend his free time near them at least once in a while. At least in Fee’s case, that seemed to be a big portion of the problem. Galen fit right in with the other holy bloods in this army though - many of them were missing at least one parent. Some of them were lucky the fate of their other parent was unknown. Lester and Lana seemed to have grown up more like himself and Fee had, and even then, all of those from Isaac were lucky to have had Shanan and Oifaye by their sides.

“…Could you not suggest that theory for yourself as well though? Yet… my father has no reason to avoid us in that case. It’s obvious we want his attention, isn’t it? If he’s avoiding us because he doesn’t know what to say, isn’t it… easier to just say that? For you… that can’t even happen. Your father is not just unknown to you, but he doesn’t even have the chance to know how you feel. Someone like me, who still has any family at all… I don’t understand why family wouldn’t want to be together.” {☽}

[devotionwing]

“Hah, I’m not even sure if my father’s still alive but I can’t think of a single Thracian who would let a thought like that get between them and their children. If he lived and if Ma told him about me.. well, he probably didn’t care.”

      Unfortunately it was different than Sety’s situation, where the boy’s father was right there but seemed so distant still. Although Levin had apparently helped raise his children the distance between them had become more than a simple rift.

“I can’t say I understand it either, why family wouldn’t want to be together, but perhaps...”

      There were other ways to think of this as well. He’d seen it time and again in Thracia, the country’s warrior-like society far too understanding of the meaning of death and loss. The habit of not naming an infant for so many months til one was certain of its survival, the tendency to form more superficial relationships as one grew older... it was rare to have more than a couple close family members or friends.

“There’s also the possibility he fears your deaths. Not because you are weak, but because it is an inevitability of war... I don’t claim to know him well enough to say, it’s all speculation, but if he’s suffered enough losses the fear of facing more could be what led him out here in the first place.” He had abandoned his ill wife, had he not? Even if she hadn’t been terminal, the heartbreak that followed surely must have been. Yet the fear of loss was the reason many people he knew didn’t get too attached -- Galen himself included. Aside his mother he refused to build any further bonds.

He would not repeat that youthful folly.

“Whatever the reason for his distance is, I doubt it is because he lacks love for you. ...I only wish I could be more help, Prince Sety. Unfortunately, my attempts to speak with Lo- Levin -” he cut the title off, recalling how the man had insisted upon it, “my attempts have fallen just as flat. To me, he seems an entirely different man.”

[seisennozetsubou-moved-blog]

A light sigh was let out at those words, though there was no surprise. That army was hired by Grandbell… Of course they heard the rumors and none of the truth. Now that that information was leaked to Thracia though, that was one more country that had heard those lies. This wouldn’t be something they could simply erase now with all those royal court members spreading those rumors… Their influence was strong due to their positions, and with those guys ganging up on them like this…

“Anything your higher-ups told your squad was told to them by Grandbell’s higher-ups. So… yeah. You were fed false information by those scum.” They surely knew Thracia survived off mercenary work. They used that to their advantage just like they did everything else… They drove Sigurd into a corner, and anyone with him. Not that it mattered in Levin’s case, because he knew if he simply waited to fight back that those guys would aim for Silesia eventually too. Either way… it was war for him.

It was war for more than just him in the end though. From the actions the royals of Grandbell had display over a year ago, they were definitely aiming to take Agustria. Verdane… was also likely in their plans. For them to hire Thracia probably meant they intended to use Thracia as some “allied” force. Ultimately though, they were nothing but pawns. They would be hired as mercenaries, and it would spare Grandbell’s men the casualties. It was a perfect setup for such cruel men.

“I would say I would heal them, but… they wouldn’t want to see me if they remembered my face. As for Ethlin… I guess for me, it hasn’t really sunk in yet. That such a lovely young girl was really killed because of the person she married… Actually, I… hadn’t even heard anything about their child being there.” That girl… Altenna? She was there? Why had they taken their child? While he was sure they had their reasons, to take such a young child to a desert when she would have been safer where she was in the first place…

“I can’t say I understand why they would take a child to what was bound to become a battlefield… but I also don’t understand your King’s motivations to attack a woman and her child. If that had been me out there, and someone threatened my infant son… honestly, I probably wouldn’t have been able to stop myself from slaughtering every enemy. Cuan… must have felt the same way. But then, I wasn’t so out of my mind that I took my son to a battlefield, either. I know you guys aren’t well off in your country… but for your King to go so far as to harm people that won’t even benefit your country’s situation… I can’t understand that.”

[devotionwing]

“It was beneficial to Thracia. Once bound by marriage a woman as just as much a threat as the royal she wed. Discriminatin’ based on gender isn’t very Thracian.” Probably the only reason Galen could justify it, that and how their King had left with the infant Princess and Lenster’s holy weapon... ah, it had been very beneficial, probably enough to justify the loss in manpower.

     Given who had hired them, they probably weren’t meant to survive. His standing here with  groceries in hand for the woman who’d aided him was little more than a miracle. Pawns or not, what choice did they have when it came to earning money back home? The promise of that much money and being outfitted with new weapons and armor was enough to make the decision an easy one.

Finally getting to destroy the Lance Ritter was the cherry on top.

“In the end I guess it doesn’t matter if they were lyin’ or not. We know y’all call us jackals an’ hyenas or whatever.” He gave a light shrug and quickly hissed as the pain shot back through his arm and body. Damnation, why did he have to be the only one well enough to stand?! Even though he knew the other two definitely wouldn’t stand to allow Levin’s aid (Thracian pride is a terribly stubborn thing), Galen found himself wishing they would. 

“You’re right though, they’d just reject your help. Can’t be changed, I suppose. S’a shame... I don’t wanna lose ‘em, but... I guess maybe a couple good meals an’ we’ll see. Tch... if I didn’t have t’ go home to Ma I wouldn’t be tryin’ so hard myself. But without me she’d just... well, can’t bear to think of it. 

...a son though? You seem a bit young t’be a father.”

[devotionwing]

@hushesofathunderingwind​

{☾} Then why was it like this…?

For someone who had met that man years ago, when the previous war was just about at its end, he wouldn’t understand the details. He wouldn’t understand what had gone on between that time. There were times Sety considered it was something akin to trauma, but wouldn’t that make him more protective of his family? After what happened to his aunt during Silesia’s civil war, as told to him by his mother, wouldn’t he want to protect his family and be sure they all survived…?

Still, Sety really had become that hope for others. Among those in the Liberation Army, the Silesian prince was by far the most aggressive and brash. He had the power to do what he did though, could stand alone and still survive squad after squad attacking him. He couldsurvive… and that was far more than most of the adults in the last war could say. Even if he didn’t exactly approve of the way most people saw him, the way most people perceived him, it wasn’t untrue that he was a natural leader.

How much had Levin told this Thracian? Their meeting was supposedly brief, but the now Silesian king had apparently mentioned his son to the man during that time. Fury had told Sety that Levin had had the hardest time parting ways with him as an infant after what had happened in Silesia, that he hadn’t wanted to let go of his family after having done so once already. The fact was, Levin had truly loved him in the past, and that wasn’t to say he no longer did, but he lacked any showing of that affection now.

“I don’t know what he told you back then… but if that was what he wanted, his wish has happened.” So why did Sety have to be just like everyone else to him? Another major holy blood in this army capable of taking down the Empire? Sety had struggled with this even more after meeting Galen, and he wouldn’t be at all surprised if the Dragon Knight had long caught on. More was expected of him not because he was the son of the adviser, but because he had the capabilities to help this army win.

By now, Sety couldn’t even imagine the kind former Silesian prince that the people had loved so much. He couldn’t imagine what the person Galen had met was like. Even if he asked Levin himself, he would brushed off entirely. How did one explain some odd idea of love such as watching someone from afar when they were right beside them? Why did Levin feel the need to hide any feelings he might have?

“I don’t know anything. I don’t know if he’s proud to see what I’ve grown up to be. I don’t know why he doesn’t scold me when I do something he doesn’t approve of. It ends up relating to whether or not it benefits our army. I won’t ask you to talk to him about it… because I know he’ll brush you off and make you drop the subject. I’ve grown so selfish out of desire to just be acknowledged by him at all that I’m… okay just being able to stand where he can see me, and where I won’t lose track of him. It’s a bit pathetic, if you ask me… how desperate I wound up being just for my own father’s attention.” {☽}

“You shouldn’t think it as pathetic, Prince Sety.”

     What sort of child didn’t long for their parents’ attention and approval? It would be strange had Sety not desired that sort of acknowledgement from his father, especially as distant as Levin had become -- a far cry from the personable and actually rather friendly young man Galen had met all those years ago. A man who’d taken his time to mend Galen’s wounds despite being the one who had inflicted them in the first place.

“I can’t think of anyone who wouldn’t want their father’s acknowledgement, no matter how distant he appears to be. I ... haha, I wouldn’t have known such a thing though had your father and I not discovered our shared blood.”  Although Galen was only a minor blood he had learned back then rather valuable information that the next heir to the Holsety bloodline had already been born. Learned, and then promised the boy’s father to keep it a secret.

Well, it wouldn’t do if opening his big mouth had led to the death of a child.

“I can’t tell you how much I’ve done hoping my father would step forward and make himself known. All Ma ever said was he was another Dragon Knight, nothing more. Not a description or if he was still alive. For a long time I thought if I distinguished myself enough in the army he might acknowledge me, but I don’t even know if he still lives.”

“I know it might not be the praise you’re expecting, but I believe in his own way he’s acknowledging you. In his current position he probably can’t elevate anyone to personal importance, such thinking might be a critical failure to a tactician whose goal is to place the next Emperor on the throne.

Even if he can’t say it for some reason there’s a reason he looks to you as capable and I don’t think it’s just your holy blood.”

     Even if he’d never understand why Levin had changed so drastically over the years he couldn’t say the man was wholly closed off yet. If he hadn’t wanted to acknowledge his children he wouldn’t so much give them the time of day.

“I do believe he sees you, but I’ve a second theory... maybe he feels he doesn’t deserve to get close to you.”

[devotionwing]

“Ho~? You said do not burn it down? My, you should have been more specific, it is not as if I can undo a good razing.

Now now, no sense in frowning like that. Just cut the losses and move on, right?”

[princeoflenster]

Leaf didn’t like that he had started moving closer and backed up, nearly ready to pick up the sharpest rock he could find and throw it. It didn’t matter to Leaf why this man’s allies had gone missing, and if this had anything to do with Fin being involved, the men were no doubt dead. He had seen Fin when the man become angry, especially when in contact with a Thracian. He showed no mercy, and Leaf understood why.

“It’s my fault he didn’t come running for me. He told me not to leave my spot and I left to look for him because he took so long. And don’t call me dumb just because you’re older! You Thracians are all so condescending!” Fin would surely panic when they reunited, but next time he would definitely listen to him.  It was nothing above unfortunate to run into an enemy soldier, and even if he was boiling with anger he wouldn’t show, he was also terrified.

It wasn’t wrong that he was in danger, but his mind was a little too scattered to calm down to think about this. Too many possibilities were occupying his thoughts, followed by what ifs and things that kept him from continuing on. Things that ranged from if they found Fin, if they didn’t… It left the child prince too concerned to really do anything. Finally, he decided there was only one thing he could come up with.

“I’m going to look for him myself! You can follow me, but he won’t trust you’re really helping me! You’re just following me. But… if you’re doing it to get close to us, he’ll notice!” He waited, not turning around after he spoke. Until the stranger made the first move to begin walking, he wouldn’t go anywhere. There was no way he would turn his back with an enemy right there, and if he was right that he could just overpower him, the man didn’t need a weapon to do that.

[devotionwing]

“Yea, get close t’ someone who probably just wants t’ stab me. That’d be a clever plan, kiddo.” Galen shrugged as he started walking ahead of Leaf, arms crossed before his chest as he moved. The child was definitely right to be cautious - judging from the situation he was worth more than a small purse of coin and had it been one of the less moral soldiers this situation would have been well and over.

“I’ve never had it in me to attack kids, anyhow. Few years back there was a chance I could’ve turned in a small babe for a huge fortune and I couldn’t bring myself t’ do it. Not knowing they’d probably’ve killed the poor thing.”

      He gave a light shrug as he glanced down to make sure the boy was still nearby. Gods help him if he lost track of the child, he wasn’t about to be responsible for that sort of disaster. “Tho... leavin’ your hiding spot is dumb regardless of age, kiddo. Still, you’re pretty clever. Why don’t you have a better weapon on ya? I’m sure even someone small like you could do some damage if you were cornered.” At the very least teach the kid to shoot, he thought. Galen sighed and shook his head once more, figuring it wasn’t really his place to critique another’s upbringing when his own had been so non-standard.

       After an extended silence he stopped again. It really was likely others might fly overhead looking for him, wasn’t it?

“....If you hear anymore flyin’, hide. I’ll pretend I didn’t see ya.”

[seisennozetsubou-moved-blog]

How many years had it been? They had been here for what seemed like forever, more of them arriving as time went on. Very few had simply never shown up, but the amount of them that had was almost insulting. They really had all failed, and there was only one thing that worked up an arrogant attitude from Cuan again. All this time it had been friends and good overall good experiences, but to see a longtime enemy here made him even happier. To be here meant to be dead, after all.

“Ha… Even you’re here? Someone like you died with regret?” It was both unexpected and amusing, but for Trabant of all people to show up here was better than anything he could’ve hoped for. His children… Fin… Lenster… Manster… They were safe from his tyranny now that he was here, and while he wasn’t too pleased seeing the man’s face again, he was certainly pleased that it meant those in the real world, the living world, would not be dealing with him anymore.

In a place like this, where weapons were commonplace as one would expect at a military academy, Cuan felt no need to raise a weapon to him. They were already dead, and as much as Cuan would have loved to get a few good stabs in, everyone here for some time now already understood you couldn’t kill someone in this world. Injure, yes… but they would only wake up in time if they were “killed”.

If what they were each looking for was what would relieve them of being here, well, Cuan could say this was one thing that would help do so, but at the same time, there was another kind of satisfaction. A satisfaction that he had not realized would only continue his time here; one that was bitter and nearly wanted to continue the longtime rivalry. Indeed, Cuan was not normally one to think like that… but after losing all his men in that attack, and even his wife, Cuan would at times shake in anger in this world as he wished to shove the same treatment onto the Thracian King. 

That kind of suffering was impossible here though, so while it was a blessing for Cuan’s sake, he wouldn’t able to achieve the manner of revenge he sought. Not that he would have, say, murdered someone uninvolved in the issue as Ethlin was, being only involved in Lenster by marriage. No, he would have aimed only for Trabant in that, not wanting to harm a woman with a child. Still, if Trabant was here, he would have to find his own means of achieving his wishes in this world. The people here were also apparently attacked by the Thracians, so Cuan had been told soon upon arriving here. They were not his friends… leaving him to find his own salvation here.

[devotionwing]

     The Thracian King had spent a few moments bewildered with this circumstance. The last thing he recalled was the sight of his downed dragon as he fell from its back. It wasn’t as though he’d intended to survive that battle; yet he had also held hopes of taking at least one of the enemy’s nobles out. Unfortunately it had been nothing more than a few mere soldiers to fall by his lance before the javelin had struck his beast in the heart, and then moments later a blade plunged through his chest.

      Clearly he was dead. That was no question. It was the reflection he saw in the academy’s windows that left him puzzled - one a near two decades younger. A face less marked by the stresses of ruling and war, with fewer faint scars lining his features. The voice that cut into the silence behind him soon clarified why, perhaps. So he was more easily recognizable to the others here.

       Regrets...? He suppose he did have many but had never spared the moment to think about it. So he had died unsatisfied, despite his acceptance at the brutality of life? How uncharacteristic, he felt. Uncharacteristic, but oh so human.

“Ah, so it’s you.” He turned to face the Prince he had dispatched so many years ago and carefully studied the other man’s expression. There was no hiding Cuan’s satisfaction at his death and by all means Trabant couldn’t blame him, even as frustrating as that smug look was.

“You wouldn’t know the start of it, Prince Cuan. I trust you’ve been well, all things considered.” In the same way Cuan couldn’t hide that satisfaction it was impossible for Trabant to hide the smug and taunting tone to his voice. Even if he were here now in the same place it didn’t change the fact that he had dispatched the younger man near two decades ago. He had indeed taken everything from Cuan, and those that had survived the Prince and his wife had finally settled that score.

“How very poetic that the last thing I see in life and the first I see here are nearly the same face. If I had any reason to care I’d be disgusted with my luck.”

[princeoflenster]

Those words didn’t make him feel any bit more safe, and he backed away again. As far as Leaf was concerned, this was obviously a trap. If he caused a commotion, anyone nearby, including Fin, would hear. If there was a village nearby or anything similar, it would cause problems for him if he was spotted kidnapping a child. Inviting his own help to the boy would make things much more efficient, and there wouldn’t be force involved.

Pretend friendliness, too. After all, there was no way a Thracian Dragon Knight of all people would be friendly to an enemy if he knew who he was speaking to. The look in his eyes told Leaf he at least knew the boy was not from around here, and even if he didn’t know his exact identity, it was always possible he could be brought in for questioning and found out from there. There were too many possibilities.

“I don’t need to go with anyone. I’ll find him by myself.” That was why he was out here to begin with, so why accept this person’s help? On top of that, he couldn’t let Nanna be put in danger either. There was no way Leaf was going to lead an enemy to his family. After already losing his home, he wouldn’t be able to stand losing the only two people he even had in life. Besides, he knew Fin wouldn’t take it well if he saw Leaf next to an enemy.

“Besides, he wouldn’t like you! He wouldn’t believe you were trying to help me, either!” Even as he insisted so strongly, his legs were definitely shaking, and he really just wanted to run away. This was an adult… and he had more of an idea of how to handle this than Leaf did. On top of that, if he allowed those two to meet, there would only be problems. Leaf knew of the hatred and disgust Fin felt regarding these men, and there was no way it was in anyone’s best interest for them to meet. “I’ll find him myself! That’s why I’m out here anyway… and… if I’m going to starve to death, it’s a lot better than being led into a trap and dying!”

[devotionwing]

Sharp kid...

     Galen shook his head softly as he continued to approach Leaf. It wasn’t an acceptable scenario to leave him out here alone like this, not with what was going on out there right now. It was entirely possible things could go south fast if they didn’t approach this carefully.

“You’re right to be cautious, so I’ll be level with ya, kid. The reason I’m out here scoutin’ alone is because the last two men to patrol this area didn’t return. Now I’m not sure why that is, that’s just why I’m here. I’m guessin’ if you’re this wary of me then whoever your caretaker is... well, wouldn’t he have come running at the sound of Brahma’s wings?”

      Brutal honesty truly wasn’t Galen’s forte but at the moment there was little time for fooling around. With a side glance back to his companion and a wave of his hand he dismissed the dragon (and his weapon), the red beast flying back up above the trees until he was called again.

“I know ya don’t wanna trust me, but what reason would i have to try trapping a kid I could simply overpower? Either ya let me help you or I go lookin’ for what happened on my own, but the odds of you survivin’ are far lower if you stay out here by yourself. If I don’t return right away, more will come and...

...Well, I have personal reasons to want you alive an’ out of their hands. Enough to sacrifice my own potential promotion, y’know? So let’s stop playing dumb and cautious, put on our big boy pants, an’ go see if your missin’ friends aren’t too terribly hurt out there before folks that aren’t so kind do find ‘em.”

[devotionwing]

@princeoflenster​

This man… had one of those beasts with him?

At the moment, he had lost sight of Fin, and the child was beginning to panic in his search for him. He had only insisted he was going to the river to get water, as right now, even if it wasn’t the best source of water, it was their best chance for survival. It had been a while though, and the brunet had started to wonder if maybe he had run into trouble. Despite that the knight had told him to stay where he was, if it turned out something had happened to his guardian, he would only die if he stayed in one place for too long and Fin had simply never come back.

Not only that, but if Fin was in danger, he would want to help. Leaf was tired of feeling like nothing but a weight on Fin, but there was hardly anything he could do. While he could no doubt lift a sword, it was difficult trying to truly fight with one. Now that he stood here in front of this Thracian, if he was recognized, now would be the best time to actually know how to fight. Even then, the small prince wasn’t sure he could honestly take a life.

“I… Who are you…? Why did you land near me?!” He found himself backing up more nearly with each word, and even without the stranger speaking yet, he was still beginning to panic even more than he initially was due to the absence of his guardian. If this person recognized him, he was probably done for. Despite his age, he was raised with the knowledge that a Thracian would show no mercy regarding his life, no matter how young he was at the time.

The sight of the beast before him alone was enough to make his heart pound, and his eyes shifted just to keep from coming into contact with it. The thing was huge, and far larger than him. There wouldn’t be a way to escape this thing easily at all, but the more he looked at it, the more freaked out he grew. “I haven’t done anything wrong, so… you can… be on your way…”

This child...

     It seemed to be an impossibility that he’d stumble across this person at this time. There was little mistake that the child before him was the same person he’d helped hunt down when that child would have been little more than an infant... the same boy whose parents he had helped slaughter all those years ago.

     Galen couldn’t deny that he was tempted now to snatch up the child and haul him straight back to his King. There was no doubt that turning him in now would ease his own financial burdens, not to mention secure a promotion... and yet he could only imagine what would happen were Princess Altenna to discover her true brother’s fate. A heavy sigh saw him slipping down from the red wyvern’s back, lance secured safely at the beast’s saddle. Arming himself now... that would do no good. 

“You’re.... lost, aren’t you?” The dragon knight shook his head slowly. He’d promised to not break the young Altenna’s heart further if he could help it, not when he couldn’t bury the gnawing guilt in the back of his mind. It was just my job. He reassured himself. It was necessary for Thracia to grow, but right here... killing this child wasn’t necessary. It would do no good, not with the way things were now.

“It’s okay, kiddo. If you’re lost I’ll help ya find your way back to whoever you’re supposed ta be with. Can’t in good conscience leave a kid alone out here. Aahhh, don’t worry about Brahma there. He looks scary, but he’s about as dangerous as a puppy. He ain’t gonna chase you.”

       Maybe... he’ll just pretend he doesn’t know who this person is. Or would it be okay to let him know? It might just scare him further, wouldn’t it...?

“You’re probably lookin’ for someone so let me help ya out a bit. If anyone tries t’ snatch you up or anything Brahma here will stop ‘em. We’re not fond of anyone out to hurt kids, y’know.”

[devotionwing]

{FIN TO GALEN PLEASE, PART TWO, WITHOUT TUMBLR EATING THE ASK} "So... I guess for the singles, it's us and our countries on this romantic day, eh?" Talk about another meaning to being married to your country.

“Seems like it but at least the young ones are enjoying their day. Want a drink? King Arion gave me this wine and although it’s probably a pity gift underneath his gratitude I’m not gonna let it go to waste. Not much for big formal events anyway...”

[devotionwing]

A small box of chocolates had appeared on Galens pillow, accompanied by a little bouquet of wildflowers. He didn't know much about the holiday, just what he'd overheard women in the city had been saying. It was supposed to be about celebrating love and the like, showing people who were important how important they were. And while he wasn't a fan of holidays as a whole, having never experienced them before, Galen was important. And this was how he showed it.

“Flowers...?”

      It had been a long time since someone had gone out of their way to give him a gift on this holiday and while he wasn’t entirely sure what it meant, the dragon knight had a good idea of where it came from. He’d have to say thanks later and perhaps find a gift of his own to give, at least he figured as much as he picked up the flowers and held them to his face to smell them.

       This Ylisse was beautiful, as was the variety of life it carried. It was nothing like Thracia at all, was it? But thanks to Aoba’s company, lately it had begun to feel a lot more like home.