Chapter Text
She placed the last of the Crest Stones in her bag, and it weighed heavy in her hands. The Holy Tomb was thick with dust and the scent of the dead, and she almost regretted that they weren’t the first grave robbers to desecrate the forsaken place.
“Is that the last of them?” her companion asked.
“Yes,” she said. “The others are gone.”
He opened his own bag to count, and she secured hers inside the larger stolen satchel at her side. She waited for him, and he came away from his counting with a sigh. His steps echoed in the vast room, and he sounded as if he were a voice speaking in her very head when he kneeled beside her.
“We will have to make do with what we have.”
“No other choice.”
She reached out her hands, and he took them without hesitation. He did not question the safety or her ability, either. He said, “No other choice.”
And she began it.
-
Edelgard can’t help but drum her fingers on the log she was sitting on.
The opportunity had been too perfect when she first heard it—bonding for the three house leaders away in the woods with only a new skittish professor, fresh out of the academy, as their guardian.
Dimitri prods at the fire he constructed with a large stick, while Claude lays flat on his back in the grass and Edelgard taps.
The sense of anticipation in the air is electric, even if Edelgard is the only who can feel it. The fastest, least bloody way to the unification of Fodlan is moments away, and only the raw guilt she had yet to completely grind under her heel tempers the buzzing in her limbs.
Dimitri is barely containing his beaming at the fire he built all by himself, and Claude is humming some offbeat song she’s never heard. Edelgard bites her lip and taps.
“It is getting late,” Dimitri says. “I think I will put the fire out for the night.”
“That’s a shame,” Claude says from his spot on the ground. “You spent like an hour building it, and we only used it for twenty minutes of cooking. You were so proud when you got that first spark, too.”
Dimitri coughs into his hand. “Well, yes, but I will take this as a learning experience. Still, my efforts aside, it would be best for us to rest soon.”
“Hey, wait,” Claude leans up on his elbows. “I thought of one more purpose our campfire could serve before you put it out of its misery.” He grins. “That is, if you’re brave enough.”
Dimitri frowns but sets aside his makeshift poker. “Claude, I would prefer to refrain from being involved in any of your schem—”
“Relax, your highness,” Claude says. “No mischief making tonight for me—well, maybe for a few ghosts.”
Dimitri furrows his brow while Claude waggles his. “Do you mean ghost stories? I suppose… that is acceptable.” He nods, crossing his arms. “Alright, very well. Carry on, Claude.”
“Sure thing,” he says, slowly pulling himself to his feet and stretching his back out. “Hey princess, you still with us?”
Edelgard jolts at the sound of her name. “Hmm—were you saying something?”
“Someone’s distracted,” Claude says, settling to sit on the log across from them on the other side of the remains of Dimitri’s campfire. He leans forward just enough to send shadows up and running across his fate. “Or are you already on the look out for bumps in the night?”
Dimitri turns to Edelgard with a genuine look of concern while she rolls her eyes. “Edelgard, if you truly do not wish to participate, there is no need to force your—”
“I’m not afraid of whatever childish story Claude has in mind,” Edelgard replies. “I just thought I heard something off in the distance—that’s all.”
“Ooh, something lurking in the bushes? All the better for setting the mood,” Claude says. “Now I’m also going to make the assumption that you two sticks in the mud don’t have anything good in store, so I’ll start.”
“Actually,” Dimitri says. “Mercedes—one of my housemates—she is rather fond of ghost stories. I doubt I’d be as good a teller as her, but… she did mention one the other day that stuck with me. Apparently it’s been attracting quite a bit of attention lately in the villages around Garreg Mach.”
Claude sweeps a hand towards him. “The floor is yours.”
Dimitri nods and surveys both of them one last time before straightening his shoulders. “I’ll preface with the fact that when I asked Mercedes of the story’s origins, she didn’t know. It just seems to be a word of mouth legend.”
“Ooh, a mysterious tale.”
“But rest assured—I am sure it is a work of complete fiction. It,” he frowns. “It would simply be too bizarre not to be.”
Edelgard doesn’t take her eyes off the woods, looking for a flash of steel and straining her ears for the sounds of crunching boots. “I’m sure it’s very interesting. Start at the beginning will you?”
“That is what I intended,” he says. “Anyway, supposedly—again, I am sure this is a work of fiction—there exists a cult of sorts who lurk in the darkness.”
Claude hums. “Alright, decent start. What horror is our mystery cult up to?”
“They, themselves, are the horror,” Dimitri says. “Their skin is as white as freshly fallen snow, and their eyes vary from beady red to pitch black. And those are the more normal characteristics. Others possess… even more inhuman features—claws, scales, pulsating veins, and bulging eyes.”
“Starting to see why they operate in the shadows. Other than, you know, that kind of being what cults do.”
“I’m afraid you are mistaken, Claude,” Dimitri says. “What makes this group truly frightening is their ability to change form. In the night, they stalk people—well regarded merchants, minor nobles, guards with important sets of keys—and drag them off into the dark to steal their faces.”
Edelgard blinks. “What?”
“Ooh, looks like that caught her interest. Keep going, Dimitri.”
“Uh, yes. What happens is… they strip their targets of their faces and skin, and come morning they walk around in their clothes, having completely replaced them. The victim’s friends and family never realize they’ve been killed and their murderer is among them, until they discover their faceless body in the woods. In other cases, years pass with no one realizing a thing, and when it no longer makes sense to keep the same disguise, they move on, claiming a new victim and once again blending in amongst the people.”
Edelgard frowns. “Where did you say you heard this story again, Dimitri?”
“Mercedes said she heard it from a few villagers, who,” he furrows his brow. “Who, ahem, supposedly knew someone who heard of the appearance of a strange masked individual roaming the woods.”
Claude hums. “Heard it from my friend who heard it in the village market who heard it from travelers in another village—yeah, that sounds about right. Also why would a face stealer wear a mask?”
Edelgard opens her mouth to object, but she hears a slight crack in the distance before she can speak. It’s only because she’s looking for it does she see the bandit’s shadow shifting over the trees behind Claude.
“That’s part of the legend, too,” Dimitri says. “Their leader is a strange masked individual who always comes and goes in clouds of darkness. Given that they haven’t stolen an identity, one can only imagine how truly horrifying their appearance is behind their mask.”
“Okay, creepy-ish,” Claude says. “I’ll give you a four out of ten.”
The bandit takes a step closer, and Dimitri must catch sight of their shadow grazing the edge of the clearing from the way he stiffens.
“Claude,” Dimitri whispers.
“What? Too harsh? Alright, since it was your first time—”
“Behind you!”
Edelgard leaps to her feet at Dimitri’s shout, and Claude lunges to the side just in time for an arrow to go sailing right through where his heart was.
“What is—” Dimitri starts to say as the bandits take their first steps out of the woods.
“Run!”
Claude becomes a yellow blur, Dimitri scrambles after him, and Edelgard realizes this isn’t going to go as planned.
-
Byleth’s head is spinning, but she knocks the bandit leader to the ground easily enough now that she knows how he’ll charge. The world is slightly blurred at the edges, but her vision reorients itself quickly enough as the bandit scrambles to get his footing again in his retreat, axe now safely on the ground and out of his reach.
The girl behind her, Edelgard, lets out a sigh as she pockets her ornamental dagger. Byleth is aware of the new flow of time, but she still can’t help but take a moment to scan her for any injuries that slipped her notice. She still feels dizzy, but the slight smile Edelgard gives her with her demure, “Thank you,” is enough to clear any lingering hesitation Byleth had over the use of her strange new power.
The other two, Claude and Dimitri, hurry over. “Edelgard!” Dimitri calls. “You are unhurt?”
“Looks like she’s in one piece to me,” Claude says.
Byleth begins to inspect them for any battle nicks and bruises as well before taking one last glance to ensure the bandit leader truly is running off and away to cause trouble elsewhere.
It’s dark, but the clearing they’re in is bathed in light from the nearly full moon and the additional torches the people of Remire were kind enough to lend them. But even if it weren’t for the light, his panicked, crunching footsteps through the dew soaked grass and labored breathing makes him a beacon of attention.
Byleth is about to turn away again when Sothis’s whisper rattles her head. “Look, there is another.”
She barely resists startling at the voice—and Sothis gives her a chiding sigh at that—but Byleth still follows her directions dutifully enough.
The bandit leader is scampering off towards the forest’s edge and a silhouetted figure that had escaped Byleth’s cursory notice. The hooded figure is amorphous in their black cloak, and barely any light clings to their shapeless form.
“They blend in rather well, do they not?” Sothis says. “I can scarcely believe I noticed them at all—though I suppose if I can turn the flows of time, simple lookout duty is far beneath me. Though that’s enough time for congratulations. Keep on your guard—I’m getting… rather sleepy… My power may not be able to…”
Sothis’s voice drifts off, and Byleth raises her blade anew.
Edegard is the first to notice. “Is something—”
“There are more.”
The bandit reaches the figure standing just out of the moonlight’s reach. Despite the distance, Byleth hears his shriek loud and clear. “You didn’t tell me the fucking Knights of Seiros would be here! This wasn’t part of the deal!”
Byleth stays focused on the exchange before her, but she hears Edelgard shift to her side to get a better look as well. “Who is…”
Claude notches an arrow. “Looks like their boss came to the rescue.”
Byleth holds out her arm, shielding all three of them behind her. “Wait.”
There’s a flash of silver at the shadowed figure’s side, and Byleth only realizes they’re wielding a sword once they dart forward to plunge it into the bandit’s chest.
The figure withdraws their now gleaming red blade in one clean motion, and the bandit lets out a gurgling death screech that carries through the suddenly still night.
Dimitri’s breath catches in his throat behind her, the figure’s actions somehow seeming far more ruthless than the combat they had just engaged in moment’s prior. Byleth lowers her voice, “stay behind me.”
The bright blood decorating the figure’s sword shines when it catches in the flickering torchlight. The streaks of blood, Byleth thinks, perfectly match the only other splash of color on the figure, flashes of red on their otherwise blinding white mask.
Edelgard is frozen. Dimirti’s voice carries in the suddenly dead silent night. “I-I do not understand. That man said they were working toget—”
The figure snaps towards them at the sound of his voice.
They kick off the ground, charging so fast that they shift in and out of Byleth’s vision. But Byleth moves on instinct, using her arm that had been held in front of the assembled nobles to shove them all another step back. She holds her sword in front of her and prays that the drum of hoof beats in the distance will hurry up.
The figure leaps at them, blade soaked in blood held high, and they crash down to meet Jeralt’s sword as his mount skids to a stop in front of Byleth.
The figure bounces back at the contact, remaining upright even as their feet skid backwards across the empty field. Jeralt lets out a low laugh. “Looks like I made it just in time. Kid, this one seems a little out of your league. I can take it from here.”
Byleth nods. Behind her Claude, grabs both of his stunned companion’s by the arm and forces them a few more feet back. “You heard him. Let’s just sit back and watch for now.”
“Good idea,” Jeralt says with a snort. He turns his lance on the masked figure. “You’re probably inching to fight someone a bit tougher than those noble brats anyway, right?”
He isn’t met with a verbal response, but the figure straightens and holds their sword to their side. The moonlight touches every part of their smooth, white and red mask, and they remain completely silent as they tilt their head, not at Jeralt but behind him. The eyes are obscured on the mask, but Byleth feels the hair on the back of her neck standup as their gaze rakes over her.
Jeralt notices where their focus is, too. “If you’re going to try and sneak around me, don’t even think about it. I’ve been pulling tricks like that longer that you’ve been alive.”
They tilt their head back, as if to examine Jeralt. Then, they take one step back before a flash of darkness overtakes where their body had been.
Jeralt shakes his head. “Figured something like that would happen.” He turns back to Byleth. “Still, good work with the small fry, and sorry for the late arrival. Ran into someone I was not expecting.”
Byleth simply nods, and Jeralt accepts her silent acknowledgement as he dismounts his horse.
Dimitri lets out a sigh. “That certainly was startling. What luck we ran into a former Knight of Seiros out here in the woods of all places.”
“Bit of a shame they ran away,” Claude says. “Guess the Blade Breaker’s fighting prowess will remain a legend for now.”
Byleth looks past them to Edelgard, white as a sheet and eyes locked on where their mysterious attacker had been. She’s visibly shaking and takes one staggering step towards where the stranger had been. Byleth senses she’s on the verge of collapse and lunges forward to catch her by the shoulders.
“Whoa, Edelgard,” Claude says. “You alright?” Then to Byleth, “Guess she was more shaken up than I thought.”
“We were just attacked by a pack of bandits in the dead of night, Claude,” Dimitri says, hurrying to her other side. “We are the odd ones for not being unsettled.”
Byleth pays their bickering little attention, too concerned by the girl she saved twice now shivering in her arms. Below their chatter, she whispers as comfortingly as her monotone voice can manage, “I’ve got you.”
Edelgard slowly raises her head to meet her gaze and the fear in her eyes dissipates. “Y-Yes,” she says, taking a breath to regain her composure. “Thank you.”
“Can you stand on your own?”
“Ah—oh, yes, of course.”
She’s still noticeably pale, and she wraps her arms around herself protectively as soon as Byleth takes her supporting arms away.
Jeralt casts his surveying gaze over them. “Take the time to pull yourselves together now. This peace and quiet isn’t going to last for long.”
Byleth takes her eyes off of Edelgard just long enough to raise a questioning eyebrow at her father. A boisterous shout of “Captain Jeralt!” is her answer.
The nobles—students Byleth officially realizes—recognize the man, Alois, who recognizes her father. All seems to be well, though Edelgard keeps herself trapped in a tight hug and her eyes wander the forest’s edge.
Byleth notices another shiver run through her and shrugs off her coat.
Edelgard is protesting before she even extends the garment towards her. “Oh no, I couldn’t possibly. Besides, I really am fine now.”
Claude circles around them. “It’s not the cold that’s bothering her. It’s the ghooosts.”
Edelgard shoots him a glare that he responds to with a laugh. “You’re not funny. I simply want to return to the monastery as soon as possible to issue a report about our attacker. Unless you would like to scour the woods for them yourself?”
He laughs. “Princess, if you want me dead just say so. No need to play games with me.”
“Claude,” Dimitri intervenes. “I think that is quite enough. Perhaps we should speak of something else. We have quite the walk ahead of us, and focusing on something to calm our nerves may be for the best.”
“Else I might lose my head, and we’ll be down a professor and house leader. I hear you,” Claude says. “But if you’ll allow me one last question on the subject—Byleth, I’d like to hear your thoughts on our little incident.”
Byleth lets them walk a few paces in silence as she thinks it over, and part of her wishes Sothis—so new in her head—was awake to help with an answer. “They were strange.”
Claude raises an eyebrow. “Is that it?”
“Strong,” she says. Then, after a brief look over of the three of them, “stay out of the woods.”
Claude gives her another one over, and Byleth is vaguely aware she just failed some sort of test. “Enlightening,” he murmurs to himself.
Dimitri apologizes for Claude’s behavior, and the boy in question strays a few steps ahead before circling back their entire walk to the monastery. Edelgard never looks anywhere but forward.
At the gates of Garreg Mach, Alois shuffles the students away, and Jeralt pulls her aside right as she makes eye contact with a woman bearing eerie green eyes.
-
Edelgard excuses herself as soon it’s not blatantly suspicious to do so. Dimitri worries for her wellbeing, and she wastes precious time assuring him she isn’t about to keel over without his watchful eye.
She keeps her strides as nonchalant as possible on her walk across Garreg Mach to her dorm, but just like the electricity she felt that night, there’s a new thrum racing through her pulse. She unlocks the heavy door to her room, locks it again once she slips inside, and pulls out her second set of keys for the chest lodged as far under bed as she could get it.
The locks are as intricate and unpickable as possible on purpose, and Edelgard always thinks they aren’t worth it whenever she finds herself fiddling to retrieve her disguise.
This time, more than ever, she grows impatient, even as part of her prays that the locks have somehow done their job in spite of what she witnessed that night. She unlatches the straps, nearly flinging the lid open, and sees inside her secret chest that the Flame Emperor’s Mask is exactly where she left it.