Slaughtered
Title: Slaughtered
Author: Evan
Word Count: 395~
Prompt: Woman King
Game: FE8
Characters: Seth, Eirika
Warnings: death and general non-cheeriness
Seth watched her change, day by day. The softness in her eyes faded some, but not completely. Her hands were calloused now; marred with scars and scabs and ugly, blood caked nails. Her mother’s ruby ring looked sickening on her bony finger. He noticed the straightness of her hair and how it had lost its luster. Eirika’s cheeks had sunken in far too much. Seth was sure under her armor that he could trace the outline of every rib.
The war killed so much of her. All that was left was a rundown shell of a woman.
The troops were tired. Morale fell lower with the passing days. It had been a little over three weeks since--
“But your Highness, charging into Grado now would be suicide,” Kyle stated. Seth saw the anger flash over her. He saw her temper winning, the walls of her reserve shattering.
“We march at dawn. Rest well.” Eirika turned and pulled the tent flap back to exit.
Forde shifted his weight, and mumbled, “Ephraim wouldn’t be so foolhardy.”
She stopped. “Ephraim is dead. Perhaps if you had been paying more attention to your Prince’s life instead of your drawings, he would be the one leading this army. But he’s not. He’s dead. Slaughtered. And that is on you. Fall in line with my orders, or formally renounce yourself as a knight of Renais.”
Seth reached for her arm, trying to calm the storm in her. She jerked away from his touch and left. He glanced back at his subordinates, and followed Eirika. Her gait was uneven and hurried.
“Eirika.” His voice was commanding; it was chilling and much harsher a tone than he’d ever used with her before. She didn’t pull away when he reached for her again.
“Are you here to undermine me too?”
“No. But you’re killing yourself. And ruining the respect your soldiers have for you won’t bring Ephraim back.”
“He wouldn’t be dead if they had just followed orders! I can’t be so soft anymore. They will follow me or leave. Either way there will be no more blood on my hands. Ephraim would have been the best king Renais ever had, possibly better than Father. And now she only has me. I refuse to let Renais die because I am too weak to restore her.”
Author: Evan
Word Count: 395~
Prompt: Woman King
Game: FE8
Characters: Seth, Eirika
Warnings: death and general non-cheeriness
Seth watched her change, day by day. The softness in her eyes faded some, but not completely. Her hands were calloused now; marred with scars and scabs and ugly, blood caked nails. Her mother’s ruby ring looked sickening on her bony finger. He noticed the straightness of her hair and how it had lost its luster. Eirika’s cheeks had sunken in far too much. Seth was sure under her armor that he could trace the outline of every rib.
The war killed so much of her. All that was left was a rundown shell of a woman.
The troops were tired. Morale fell lower with the passing days. It had been a little over three weeks since--
“But your Highness, charging into Grado now would be suicide,” Kyle stated. Seth saw the anger flash over her. He saw her temper winning, the walls of her reserve shattering.
“We march at dawn. Rest well.” Eirika turned and pulled the tent flap back to exit.
Forde shifted his weight, and mumbled, “Ephraim wouldn’t be so foolhardy.”
She stopped. “Ephraim is dead. Perhaps if you had been paying more attention to your Prince’s life instead of your drawings, he would be the one leading this army. But he’s not. He’s dead. Slaughtered. And that is on you. Fall in line with my orders, or formally renounce yourself as a knight of Renais.”
Seth reached for her arm, trying to calm the storm in her. She jerked away from his touch and left. He glanced back at his subordinates, and followed Eirika. Her gait was uneven and hurried.
“Eirika.” His voice was commanding; it was chilling and much harsher a tone than he’d ever used with her before. She didn’t pull away when he reached for her again.
“Are you here to undermine me too?”
“No. But you’re killing yourself. And ruining the respect your soldiers have for you won’t bring Ephraim back.”
“He wouldn’t be dead if they had just followed orders! I can’t be so soft anymore. They will follow me or leave. Either way there will be no more blood on my hands. Ephraim would have been the best king Renais ever had, possibly better than Father. And now she only has me. I refuse to let Renais die because I am too weak to restore her.”