A Force I Can't Run From (A Fire Emblem Twisted Tale)

Chapter 8: A Past in Ruins

A/N: Hey! Back at it again and with some good news! With school starting back, I'm able to once again write on the computer and during school free time, so updates should be quicker. I have a couple more outlines done as well!

Anyways, this time I found a way to include the Ashen Wolves! This chapter will mainly focus on introducing them. Let's get to it and I hope y'all will enjoy! 

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Byleth slightly smiled out of relief. Finally some scene of normalcy. She reached for Dimitri's hand. "Come on, we can set up shelter at the monastery." Byleth remarked. "It'll be just like old times!"

Dimitri nodded and followed Byleth. The rocky ledge looking down to the ground below was steep, so the two had to find a detour to get down safely. Further down the edge, the ground sloped down and slowly became level with the ground below the ledge. Once they were in the valley between the hills of the monastery and the surrounding land, Byleth looked up towards the walls to the towns around Garreg Mach. She vaguely remembered parts of this area. In front of her was a river, which flowed around the valley and the cliff walls that stretched up to the monastery grounds. Up above a good chunk of the top of the cliff was missing. That has to be were I nearly fell to my death. Byleth added to herself.

The couple wandered around the cliffside to find a way up to the top. Another slope led them to the bridge uniting the surrounding land and the monastery itself. The gates to the monastery were wide open, which concerned the both of them. The friendly Gatekeeper would lay down his life to protect the gates and not let a single soul in. While the Imperial Army never made it inside the monastery itself, the fact that despite all that the doors remained open was unsettling.

The once lively and bustling marketplace was empty and abandoned. Byleth expected a couple of supplies to be left over from the frantic evacuation, however, every stall was picked over and stolen from. The only weapons left were either broken or crappy wooden ones. Not a single item was remaining at the item shop, only empty concoction and elixir bottles scattered across the broken stall shelves. The blacksmith stall was completely destroyed. The anvil, coal, materials, and tools were all gone, leaving only the stall itself standing and even that would be generous given the atrocious state it was in. The battalion stall was the only stall that wasn't as trashed so far. Loose papers about battalions for hire still floated around in there. The merchant stalls weren't even standing anymore, it wasn't even worth trying to salvage anything from the pile of rubble.

Not only was the marketplace in shambles, there was considerable damage done to the monastery buildings as well. Holes in the bricks, scattered debris, and overgrown foliage from over a year of neglect was everywhere.

Thieves were the only explanation. Word must've traveled fast that the monastery fell and was fair game. Some may have came here for a break from the hectic and chaotic war scene. Others might've plundered the area to make a few extra pieces of gold. Whatever it was, if any still remained, they must be eliminated immediately.

The pond was surprisedly cleaner than what Byleth would've thought. With the state of the marketplace and front gates alone, she expected the pond to be half drained, filled with algae, and very stagnant, however, it was almost exactly how it was left, although with stay debris floating around. Even the fishing poles were still intact, although some were several yards away from the storage stand.

Staring into the pond brought back fond memories. Byleth learned to fish and became exceptionally great at it, constantly bringing back big and rare catches for the dinning hall. Flayn would occasionally join her as well. Although Flayn wasn't as great at fishing, she was more interested in the fish themselves, mostly on how they tasted. The fishing tourney came to mind as well. Everyone gathered around the pond to fish up the biggest catch. Seteth was a little annoyed, especially since it was right before the famous Battle of Eagle and Lion, a mid-year battled that usually is used to showcase how much everyone has grown over the past year. Byleth mentally sighed at the memory and moved on to survey the rest of the damage.