Fire Emblem: Children of Light

Chapter 10: A Talk

  Aurelio and Galatea lay asleep in the sand. The clearing was silent; nothing moved, the wisps didn't dance, the lake was still. No noise could be heard from outside the safe threshold of the clearing, it seemed that the entire forest was just as dormant as they were.

  Rolling over onto his side, Aurelio mumbles softly to himself and weakly opens his eyes. His head ached and his whole body felt like it was quaking. Perhaps he'd had more to drink then he initially thought. He could hardly remember. The last several hours were a loud haze pounding against his skull. His mouth felt dry, and so using all the strength he could groggily muster, Aurelio crawls over to the edge of the lake.

  He takes a small lap at the water and immediately jerks back. The taste was appalling. The still water of the lake tasted metallic, tasted and smelt of blood, and Aurelio wondered if his hungover brain was playing tricks on him or if the water really had a reddish hue to it. He swears quietly to himself and lays back down in the sand. He wondered what time it was and whether or not he needed to get up and ready. Was it morning already? No, if it was, surely Ian and the others would come looking for him. Aurelio figured that it must still be dark and that they were still asleep, until a realization crossed his mind. The thick, thorny recesses of the forest stretched on for nearly a hundred miles or more. What if they had come looking for him and had gotten lost? What if they were captured by enemy forces, or worse, that strange woman with the strange sword?

  Aurelio quickly jolts up--immediately regretting so as it made his head spin more--and stumbled about in the sand for his clothes. Having found his missing garments, he sleepily clambers into them and then tries his best to stand. His dizziness was fading, though his head still felt like it was going to split. He takes and deep breath and sighs. Because of the attack--a distant memory that happened merely a few hours prior--his sister and teammates were worse for wear. He had to be strong for them. Someone had to take charge.

  Aurelio looks around and sees the wisps. They were beginning to dance again, much more fervently than they had the night before. Faint ripples began to form on the lake's surface, spreading out from the center only to gently crash against his feet. Aurelio looks out, and standing on the water was a figure. Were the mossy statue once stood was the figure of a woman who glowed with a faint light. He rubs his eyes and then looks out again, not believing the sight. The woman had fair white skin, shimmering golden eyes, and slender ears that ended in points. Her long, flowing brown hair, accented with streaks of white and green and decorated with white and gold flowers, came down to the heels of her feet. Aurelio was most taken aback by how much the woman resembled Callista, or rather, how much Callista resembled her. Should the woman's face be filled with a youthful, carefree luster rather than a regal, solemn expression, the two would look identical.

  "H-Hello..?" Aurelio says, still in disbelief.

  The woman steps forward, the water rippling softly with each step. With the fade of each wave, a small bloom of white flowers takes their place. She steps down onto the shore and looks at Aurelio. Aurelio looks back up at her. She was nearly twice his height, if not taller.

  "Good morning Aurelio." She smiles and bends down, gently touching his forehead. Immediately, a strange, motherly warmth fills Aurelio and his hangover completely vanishes. The light left him feeling completely new, completely revitalized.
  "H-How do you know my name?" Aurelio asks, dumbfounded.
  "I know the names of everyone in this land." The woman says. "Their desires, their yearnings and their toils. I know everything about my children."
  "Children..?"
  "Do you not recognize me?" She says, sounding surprised. "I am Meru, the light of this land."
  "Y-You're Meru? I don't know what to say..." Aurelio chuckles in shock. "Why... why are you here? Why do you appear before me?"
  "Your family has served me for generations, and in turn I have guided their paths and blessed them with great fortune. It seems that your path has become muddy, and at a very inopportune time as well."
  "What? What do you mean?"
  "Look here."