Awakening Through Dawn

A Fire Emblem Fanstory

By: Thomas A Hawk

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor any characters in this story.

It was a cool and crisp morning atop the tall, flat peak. The mountain was shrouded by clouds on all sides, revealing little of what lay beneath the blanket of white save for the sharp pointed peaks that broke through the cloudline all around. The air was clean and plentiful—Priam took a deep breath as if to savor it, to draw in the energy of this unknown land. He wore his heroic armor of blue and silver, battered and worn from travel and combat through this strange realm, as well as from his countless battles from long in the past. The dark grey headband he wore kept his flowing mane of deep violet-blue hair back, allowing it to rest upon the tattered remnants of the red cape wrapped around his shoulders. Planted in the ground just in front of and to the side of him, his hand firmly gripping the cross guard, stood the mighty blade Ragnell. Long worn and cracked from age, the blade had been restored to a fresh splendor when he first arrived in this place, restoring its golden blade from the pale yellow it had been reduced to.

He had departed on a journey through the Outrealms following the war against the Grimleal and the defeat of the Fell Dragon Grima by the blade and tome of Exalt Chrom and Grandmaster Robin. The realm had simply grown too peaceful for the kind of person he was. His former comrades in arms now fancied trips to harvest festivals and beach vacations, allowing their talents to dull along with their wits. Only the Exalt himself ever proved a true challenge to Priam's might, but his position as ruler of Ylisse simply no longer afforded him the time to spar as often.

There was nothing left in that realm for him. He had traveled those lands, fought and defeated every foe he had faced save for Chrom... that peaceful world felt empty and meaningless. So he had left it behind and departed through the Outrealm gate in search of new foes, greater challenges.

During an incident caused by a simple misstep during his travels, Priam had happened upon a strange elderly fellow calling himself Hubba. While avoiding the dirty old man's attempts to con him into helping retrieve strange-looking cards of scantily-clad women, Priam did learn a very... enticing bit of news from him.

The realm of Tellius, long after the Mad King's War, long after the War of Dawn. The realm his ancestor hailed from. Surely no greater foe awaited Priam than the legendary Radiant Hero himself. Priam made that realm his next destination—every foe he had clashed with during his dimension hopping had fallen like wax candles before a bonfire. He searched long and hard in this realm, following every rumor, every scrap of information he could find in pursuit of his greatest rival. His search lasted many months, took him hundreds of miles even across the sea... but eventually, Priam found the Radiant Hero himself, living in a simple shack at the base of the mountain range.

Ike was every bit the hero Priam believed him to be. He was tall and muscular, perhaps even handsome in a rugged and unrefined way despite his aged appearance. Priam could practically see his own reflection within this man's eyes. He did not speak when Priam addressed him, however, only maintaining a cool, steely expression as Priam explained who he was, from where he had come, and most importantly, WHY he had come. Any verbal interaction that occurred happened between Priam and Soren, the prickly mage that was sharing the shack with Ike.

Both stood opposite him now. The green-haired wind mage simply wore a brown cloak, his pale fingers wrapped around the wooden shaft of a physic staff. Ike was garbed in his significantly more impressive vanguard's armor. The set was beaten and worn down much like Priam's was—clearly the Radiant Hero had seen many battles since the end of the War of Dawn. However, one thing was off about his adversary's appearance. Priam has expected Ike to wield the Ragnell of this world, but instead the man had an ornate, long-handled, double-headed axe resting over his shoulder. He had come to test his swordsmanship against the Radiant Hero, not batter him senseless due to the natural disadvantage axe fighters had against those who wielded blades. Priam made his discontent known with a scowl, gritting his teeth before shouting across the open peak.

"Radiant Hero! Where is your sword?!"

Ike said nothing in reply. He simply returned Priam's glare with a cool, unflinching gaze... then he lifted that massive axe, the Urvan, from his shoulder. He grasped the heft with his remaining free hand and leveled the weapon at Priam, legs shifting to a wider stance.

"You begged for a single fight with Ike," Soren stated coldly. "You will get a single fight with Ike. Blame yourself for lacking specificity."

"Pesky little..." Priam began, only to cut himself off. Sword or no, the man standing before him WAS the Radiant Hero. Their duel WOULD be the truest test of his mettle that there ever was. This man, regardless of the weapon in his hands, was his final rival. That thought alone convinced Priam to clamp his jaw shut, yank Ragnell from the ground beside him, and point the tip of the golden blade at his opponent as the sun began to crest the horizon, signaling the truest hour of dawn.

He would have his duel here and now.

A stiff, cool breeze blew across the peak as ancestor and descendant faced off, lifting their capes and filling the air with the sound of cloth flapping on the wind. Priam took another empowering breath of that mountain air, feeling the energy of the world around coursing through him. He'd never been more prepared in his life. His opponent would be the toughest he'd ever face... but as always, defeat was a far away thought to him.

"By the Blue Flame!" Priam roared, lifting Ragnell above his head and slashing the legendary blade downwards with a single, powerful stroke. The blade hit the ground and split the earth, causing a bright blue beam of energy to erupt outwards and rapidly shoot across the peak towards the Radiant Hero. Ike dodged the beam with a quick sidehop, not even glancing back as it rocketed off and exploded against a boulder several dozen yards back in a shower of debris, then rushed to meet a charging Priam in the center of the rocky plain. Prism grinned wide in excitement as they neared one another, lifting his blade to meet his greatest foe's axe, and then—

—Priam awoke in a somewhat soft bed, his head aching something awful. He shot upright with a groan, clutching at his forehead and cracking his eyes open to take in his surroundings. He was back inside Ike's shack.

"W-what?! When did I—"

"Ah, the 'descendant' awakens at last."

Priam scowled at Soren's voice, seeing the mage on a chair against the far wall, a thick tome in his lap. Ragnell leaned against the wall to his immediate right.

"What happened? Where is he?"

"You don't remember? Hmph... He beat you like a drum. Ike never goes easy on anybody."

That was what happened? Why couldn't Priam remember?! Had he suffered so severe a blow that he had forgotten the entire battle? The entire reason he'd traveled across dimensions?!

"Your form." Priam blinked and turned further to the left, seeing Ike step out of a small room in the back—a food storage, from what Priam could tell. Those first low, calm words that left Ike's lips were the first Priam had heard him speak... at least, as far as he could remember. "You definitely have some of my father's technique with you... but you began your training as a myrmidon. I've fought many. They always approach a fight the same way."

That statement was spot on... had the Radiant Hero truly been so versed in the art of combat that he could recognize Priam's origin even past all the growth he'd gone through since choosing the path of a mercenary? He had to know more...

"I demand a rematch, Radiant Hero."

"No. And stop calling me that."

"W—?! What do you mean, 'no'?!"

"You won't learn anything you want to learn, and Ike will just batter you into the dirt again. You can't match him."

Priam opened his mouth to argue with the mage, but a single look from the Radiant Hero shut him up. He hated to admit it, but... before, he had thought them equals in strength and technique. Now though, now it was clear just how wide the gap between them truly was. Priam has never felt so completely outmatched... not even when facing that bear in the woods when he was twelve.

"All this time... I came all this way..." he growled, hanging his head in frustration. He looked up as he heard footsteps, and saw Ike holding out some bread for him.

"Eat, and let's talk."

And talk they did, for nearly three hours. Priam explained the length of his training, his tutors, the battles he had fought, foes he had bested... everything. Ike sat more or less silently, and Soren occasionally piqued in with a snide remark. Eventually, Priam's explanation came to an end.

"...and that is all of the training I have committed myself to. I mastered the blade, the axe, and the bow. I can fight on foot or horseback—I was a natural at the latter, though I preferred the former. I have defeated enough men and women to number armies."

"Quite the decorated career," Soren said nonchalantly, sipping at a cup of hot tea while Priam and Ike had busied themselves tearing into hunks of fire-charred meat. The three were now seated around the table in the middle of Ike's shack, illuminated by the light from outside as well as a roaring fire in the furnace to Priam's left. It was a cozy place, if a bit cramped. "I suppose if I'm curious about one thing, it's this—how exactly did you come to possess Ragnell?"

"It was passed down to me by my father, and his father before him. It was our one connection to the Radiant—to Ike, apart from his fighting style," Priam explained between bites of savory, juicy steak. "Proof that we are his descendants. That is why I am... confused. You were not holding this blade. I see no family here, no spouse, no heirs... no Ragnell."

Ike exchanged a brief glance with Soren, then shrugged.

"I don't have it anymore."

"You... don't... what?" Priam asked incredulously. That couldn't be possible... all the legends stated the weapon he brought to this realm was the blade wielded by the Radiant Hero! The blade used to strike down the Mad King of Daein, to kill the goddess Ashera! The blade was Ike's!

"Gave it away years ago, haven't seen it since," Ike continued, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "Never married either. Don't really intend to. Romance just doesn't interest me. No kids, no other family... well, there's Mist, but she lives in Crimea with Boyd. Haven't seen her in years."

"That's not... but then, if you didn't..." None of this made sense! He was Ike's descendant! He inherited Ragnell! But how could he inherit the blade from a man who had no children of his own? It didn't add up... but Priam has begun to doubt his heritage for the first time in his entire life. Ike seemed to notice this as well.

"Priam. We aren't related. You might look a bit like me, but... it's probably just coincidence."

"Then if not you, then... then who? I've lived my whole life believing YOU were the one from which I was descended! I have lived my days emulating the Radiant Hero! That you say these things to me now goes against everything I've ever lived knowing!"

"Stop shouting, you'll break my ear drums," Soren complained with a dour expression. Priam gritted his teeth at the mage, only to realize he had pushed himself up from the table and was glowering over the other two. He slowly allowed himself to sink back into his seat, resting his head in his hands.

"Who am I...?"

"Pretty insistent on this whole 'legendary descendant' thing, aren't you. So Ike isn't your ancestor. Good thing too—if you actually WERE related, any respect I would have had for you would have gone out the window the moment Ike floored you in one blow."

"Still your tongue, breeze blower! I refuse to be insulted like this by a fragile mage!"

"What are you gonna do, punch me? Try that and I won't tell you who you're actually descended from."

Priam made to raise himself from his chair again before Soren's words clicked with him, causing him to freeze in place. Ike spared a glance towards the mage, furrowing his brow, but after exchanging a look with him the light of realization came to Ike's eyes as well.

"Oh, of course... yeah, now that I think about it, that almost makes too much sense."

"What makes sense? I do not understand..."

"If it'll get you to leave quicker, then I'll help you understand," Soren sighed, looking intently at Priam. "It all starts with what happened to Ragnell..."

Seven Years After The War of Dawn...

"There it is! At long last!" Mia grinned, planting a hand on her hip and the other on the leg of the man seated on horseback beside her.

It was late in the evening already—she and Rhys had been traveling from the last town for hours now. Fortunately they hadn't run into much trouble, nothing that her trusty Resolute Blade couldn't handle with a critically-placed swing or two... and that made the journey easier on Rhys too. The cleric had always been frail and more than a little terrified of horses, so he wasn't able to keep up with her on treks like this until he learned to ride after about four years of her poking and prodding him into doing it.

And it was WORTH IT, the Trueblade gleefully reminded herself. Her fated archrival certainly DID look dashing atop that brown mare. And he'd picked up on it so quickly too! A natural horse rider, he was. His priestly white robes, though stained in some places by grass and dirt, flowed elegantly in the wind, matched well by his soft and pleasant demeanor. His parted orange hair matched his eyes, filled with care and compassion. Sometimes Mia forgot that such a fair and gentle guy could command the devastatingly powerful Rexaura spell.

"It's been a long time since we've seen Commander Ike..." the Saint mused, glancing away from the small shack ahead of them and down at Mia. "I doubt he's changed much."

"If anything he's just gotten beefier! Everybody knows how jacked he got between the last two wars, and that was only a three year gap. It's been more than twice that now!"

"That is... a rather frightening thought," Rhys chuckled nervously. Mia shot him a cheerful smirk and patted his leg before proceeding forwards towards the home. Her violet hair had grown out a bit in the last few years, which she wore down her back, and her bright green eyes were as vivid and determined as ever. She'd kept up on her training all this time, traveling across Tellius and beyond to challenge warriors of both beorc and laguz while honing her skills. She's even managed to best Stefan! She now bore a scar on her left cheek from where the claw of King Skrimir had grazed her during a friendly bout at the royal palace of Gallia, but otherwise she figured her features were more or less the same. She never really fret over things like that though—the details were never that important to her anyways. Point was, she'd spent these last few years becoming the best sword fighter she could be... but there was always one person she could never match. She'd gotten close, sure, but even after three years of daily sparring matches she had yet to defeat Ike even once.

That's why she was here now. That losing streak was about to be broken.

With a confident spring in her step Mia raced ahead, hearing Rhys let out a shocked yelp as she cleared the space between them and the house in no time, and then leapt up into the air as she neared the door. The bottom of her boot slammed into the wooden barrier with enough force to snap it off its hinges, and Mia rode the door into the house as it fell, noisily slamming into the floor with the sound of cracking wood.

"Boss!" She exclaimed, immediately pointing her finger toward the two figures seated at the table just ahead of her. Both had risen immediately in response to her less-than-subtle entry, with Ike having a hand on Urvan's handle while Soren had procured an Excalibur tome from his sleeves, but upon recognizing her both seemed to relax a touch. "I challenge youuuuuu...?"

A sudden feeling of wooziness overcame her then, and the Trueblade toppled over to the side, leaving vanguard and sage to stare at her with confused expressions... up until Rhys poked his head into the house, his eyes immediately landing on Mia.

"Uuuuugh... stomach... so... empty..."

"Ah, I was afraid this might happen... she insisted on walking this whole way. And on not stopping to eat."

"Always lost in her blades..." Soren mumbled, putting his tome down with a sigh. Ike smirked lightly though.

"Well Rhys, you may as well come in. Door's open."

After feeding Mia and revitalizing her, the two properly explained the purpose of their visit to the former Crimean commander's abode—one last showdown between trueblade and vanguard. Soren scoffed at the idea, but Ike gave her a simple smirk in response.

"I'm always willing to spar, but remember—"

"—you don't hold back. Just what I was hoping to hear, boss! Ooh, so that's a yes?! Yes! How about we duel first thing tomorrow at dawn? Please? You know me! I LOVE dueling at dawn!"

"Fine by me. But... I broke Ettard fighting bandits a few months back, so I don't have a sword. Mind if I use Urvan?"

"Pfft, and give me the advantage? Not happening! We're fighting on equal terms!"

"But I don't—"

"Oh, don't you worry about that! I've got something real special lined up!"

The next morning the four of them trekked up the steep mountain path, Ike in his vanguard armor, Mia wearing her orange trueblade coat, Soren in his green cloak, and Rhys in his white robes, atop his brown mare. The large saddlebags on either side of him seemed to catch both Ike and Soren's eyes, but Mia kept her lips happily zipped shut up until they arrived at the naturally-formed arena. After helping the saint dismount, Mia removed the saddlebags and procured a single sword from each. She turned and tossed one towards Ike, the golden blade rotating once in full before sticking in the ground in front of him.

"Ragnell? And Alondite too? How did you get these from Sanaki?"

"The apostle was troubled by your departure, Commander," Rhys elaborated. "She gave you Ragnell as payment for your service in the War of Dawn, but you returned it without a word. She intended for you to keep it."

"So when she found out about my little trip, she told me to bring it to you!" Mia grinned, lifting Alondite's silver blade to rest over her shoulder. "Officially she let me borrow Alondite to make sure Ragnell got to you safe and sound... Unofficially, Sanaki wanted to know who won."

"So a fight with legendary swords, is it?"

"I want a real fight with you, boss. No holding back at all! Nothing but the best weapons could do for a duel like this!"

"You have to be joking... This is so far beyond 'no holding back' that I'm almost certain someone is going to die," Soren sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in irritation.

"Not with you and Rhys on standby with physic staves we won't!"

"Did I just get roped into this mess too?"

"She has a way with doing that," Rhys laughed sympathetically, scratching at his cheek before passing off one of many staves he had to the wind sage.

After making sure Rhys' horse was secured and wouldn't spook, Mia and Ike proceeded to stand opposite one another in the middle of the peak about fifteen yards apart. The trueblade stuck her sword into the ground beside her, raised one arm above her head, and gripped her bicep with the other, getting a good long stretch in before swapping limbs, then letting both drop loose and limber at her sides. She then pulled Alondite free, swiping it through the air on either side of her once to get a feel for its weight.

"The last time I faced someone holding that sword, it was my final duel with Zelgius," Ike mused, staring intently at the ornate silver-bladed sword in Mia's grasp. He then glanced down at Ragnell, running his hand along the flat of the holy weapon's blade. "That was the greatest fight of my life."

"I remember. While we were all resting after that, you walked up to me with this and said 'take it, I don't trust anyone more with this blade than you, Mia'," the swordswoman smirked. "And if you thought I was good then, just wait until you see this graceful whirlwind of steel in action now! The Black Knight'll feel like a chump compared to me!"

"That's quite the boast... then again, I did teach you some of my father's swordfighting skills, didn't I? It's been seven years... Now I'm really looking forwards to this," Ike replied, pointing Ragnell's tip towards her. Mia mimicked the gesture with a brazen grin, the light of the morning sun glinting off Alondite's edge. Ragnell too caught the light, and then—

"Begin!"

"The fight between them lasted about three and a half hours," Soren said, glancing at the golden blade behind them. "At the end of it all Rhys and I had broken no fewer than a dozen physic staves between us, and we had to call the fight a draw before either of them killed each other. Oddly, Mia seemed satisfied with a tie."

"She fought you to a standstill?" Priam asked with wide eyes. "But... but she was just a mercenary in your company!"

"And before I was commander of the Crimean Liberation Army, I was the greenest mercenary there had ever been," Ike affirmed. "We all start somewhere."

"In any case, Mia and Rhys left after a couple days. She tried handing Ragnell over to Ike as per the apostle's orders, but... Ike insisted she keep it."

"You... why?"

"I had no need for a sword that powerful. Still don't. I'd rather it stay somewhere it can be used for good, with someone who will use it for good."

"Anyways, before they left Rhys said he was setting up a school in Greil's Retreat, and Mia said she and Rhys were going to tie the knot."

"Wait, she did?" Ike asked, turning towards Soren. "I don't recall that."

"She was going on and on about how Rhys was her archrival because she couldn't bring herself to raise a blade against someone she loved. You saw all the lovey-dovey looks they were shooting each other."

"Huh. Must have missed that."

"That's probably for the best. It was disgusting."

"So... this Mia, is a violet-haired myrmidon who learned some of Greil's techniques from you, that has a fixation with early morning duels, who values combat ability over anything, that eloped with a man with natural talent for horses, and who you knowingly gave Ragnell to."

"Yup."

"Then you think SHE'S my ancestor?" Priam asked.

"It's more of a possibility than Ike," Soren sighed. "It's a guess as good as any. At the very least it's a lead. Besides, as much as I hate to admit it, your bladework reminded me of both Ike's and hers."

"Then maybe they—!"

"We didn't."

"Oh." Priam paused in thought, momentarily deliberating on what he had learned. After a few moments, he grinned, then pushed himself upright. He immediately went from the table towards Ragnell, taking the blade into his hands before going about to gather the rest of his belongings.

"And where are you off to in such a hurry?" The mage asked.

"I have a destined duel with the Lady of Blades ahead of me!" Priam grinned in response, pushing his way out the front and mounting his horse. The news troubled him far less than he believed it would... perhaps he had no relation to the Radiant Hero. And yet, he may share some relation to one worthy enough to be his equal. That might be good enough for him...

...but he'd know for sure the moment their blades crossed.

Author Notes: Please review! So this is the first Fire Emblem based work I've ever done... I'm a little unused to using already-established characters in my works, but hopefully they didn't seem too far off from their in-game personalities.

This entire story is basically the culmination of every rumor and theory I've heard combined with my own thoughts on the matter of Priam's lineage. What I settled on was a story that acknowledged as many of them as I could think of, and with my own two cents thrown into the mix.

I recently delved very deeply into the character of Mia, one of my favorite characters in Tellius, and I found some pretty fascinating stuff that supports this claim. She DID train under Ike after the Mad King's War, specifically mentioning wanting to learn about how he fights with a sword, and her higher bases and growths in Radiant Dawn DO suggest she began to incorporate Greil's fighting style into her own... and her supports with Largo and Rhys cement her philosophy and give her a pretty reasonable ship to sail on respectively, the latter of which Ike does not have. Sure, the whole "Rhys is a master horseman" thing was a bit of an ass pull, but I wanted to include whatever evidence I thought supported my theory as I could include, and Mia did recommend he learn in their A support in Path of Radiance. Thank you, PoR supports!

And then I looked at Priam in Awakening. His primary reclassing option? Myrmidon. One of his alternate promotions? Bow knight. His philosophy? Very "might makes right", with an emphasis on one's constant improvement. He also has a tendency to get very excited about weapons and warfare, not entirely unlike Mia's own excitability. So after all that research and dot-connecting, I settled on this theory—Mia, not Ike, is Priam's ancestor!

And in case any of my long-time readers are at all concerned, worry not, I am still working on the next Monster Hunter fanfic. It'll be ready soon!

I hope you enjoyed my little theory/story! Let me know what you thought, my faithful reader!