Hope and Devotion (Chapter One)

Hope and Devotion (Chapter Five)

0o0

Ashe awoke from her deep sleep; her head had rested upon her husband's chest, until he slipped out of bed. She propped herself up, and gave a slight yawn.

Rasler sat at the edge of the bed, moving the canopy of of the way. He turned around, "Sorry for waking you." He let out a sigh, and shook his head. Their bed creaked as he got up.

"It's fine." She replied, studying him as best she could in the dim light. He was unusually terse, and his hands trembled as he headed off to his dressing room. "What happened?"She asked. The situation in his homeland was slowly becoming worse, in the last news they received Archadia was about to invade Nabradia, outnumbering their army three to one, with its sights set on the capital.

"I've been called to a meeting in the war room." He said, putting on a shirt.

"Oh, do you know why?"

He shook his head in reply, "But considering the time. It must be bad." He slipped his metal breastplate over the shirt. "Don't worry about it, and try to get some rest." He planted a kiss on her cheek.

"Sure." She rolled over, and pulled the covers up. Rasler quietly left their room, closing the door behind him. Ashe would have to wait for her husband to return, to hear the news. Women were barred from the war room, and were usually told what the average civilian knew and nothing more, as to not cause them worry. But her husband was willing to keep her informed. She closed her eyes, and tried to fall asleep, but could not. War was coming, and she lacked the power to help. As princess, she was to stay in the palace, while her brothers and husband headed off to protect their people. Meanwhile she would be sitting in her chambers assembling care packages, and embroidering gifts for them. She closed her eyes and attempted to fall asleep.

0o0

Dawn came all too early for Ashe. She had hardly slept ever since her husband left for a meeting. He still had not returned, even though he left sometime past midnight. Perhaps the situation with Archadia's invasion was much worse than she originally thought. She closed her eyes and prayed that was not it.

The door swung open, and Rasler stepped in, his head hanging. He let out a sigh and closed the door behind him. Wordlessly, he slipped out of his armor and into their bed. Ashe sensed something went very wrong, as he was unusually silent, and his eyes carried emotional pain. She sat up, and faced him. "Are you at liberty to tell me what happened?"

He gave a weak nod, "Nabudis has fallen, and the Archadian army is headed to Dalmasca." He swallowed.

Ashe's jaw dropped. "Oh." She had a feeling that the war would turn out like this, but hearing the news was still shocking. Nabradia had the advantage of defending their homeland and knowing the geography, even though they were outnumbered there was the chance of victory. "What of your family?"

"They are believed to be dead, killed in an explosion of mist that destroyed the whole city and the surrounding area." He said flatly.

"I-I'm sorry." She shifted over closer to her husband, and wrapped her arms around him. His heartbeat quickened, and he trembled slightly. "But how?"

Rasler shook his head, "No one knows why or how, just that there was an explosion that killed them all leaving nothing." He sighed, "I still can't believe it. They had the upper hand, why would they even. There were innocent civilians, still there, and my family, all gone." He clenched his fist. "None of them had to die. They enter under false pretense, and for what, to add another jewel to the imperial crown. They will pay for all those innocent lives they took."

Ashe stayed quiet, it was painful to listen and see him like this. In one night, he lost his family and homeland to war which spread like wildfire.