Prologue: Mercenaries
Loud strikes of wood hitting wood echo out through the forest, accompanied by the sound of a young man’s heavy breathing and grunts as he struggles to overtake his opponent. The young man was dressed in a ragged blue shirt with a red cape, flowing down behind him, his short blue hair flowing as he fought against his opponent. His opponent was a much older man, rugged and weathered, dressed in a dark brown shirt and gloves, his orange cape flowing behind him as he easily deflected the young man’s blows with his wooden sword. The exchange was terribly one sided as the young man tried to even land a single blow on the older man until the older man suddenly thrust the wooden sword at the young man’s chest, causing him to stumble back, falling onto his back with a thud and grunt. The older man sighed and pointed his weapon at the young man, towering over him with countless years of experience in combat showing that the young man was far out of his league.
The older man’s voice was rather gruff but held a tone of playful arrogance to it as he held a small grin, “Well, Ike, you had enough?”
The young man, Ike, grit his teeth, grunting as he sat up and charged at the older man once more, using his wooden sword to try and score a single blow on his much more skilled opponent as the older man stood there with a satisfied grin, seeing Ike’s determination as he easily deflected Ike’s assault with his wooden sword. Ike’s eyes seemed to show a fire the older man was pleased with as their training swords clashed, Ike and the older warrior’s eyes locking as their wooden weapons came to a bind, Ike’s face scrunched with effort as the older warrior grinned with satisfaction. As the two warrior’s stared at each other, one gauging the other’s strength, a soft voice echoed out as the rushing of footsteps grew closer.
Down the trail, came a young girl, waving her hand in her yellow dress, her orange hair glowing like the sun as she jogged toward them, “Dad! Ike!”
Her smile and bright voice filled the forest with a soft radiance as she jogged toward them. The older man slowly lowered his blade from the binded position it was in, smiling softly as he turned to the young girl.
The warrior’s voice softened as he smiled, turning toward her, “Oh, Mist.”
Mist’s eyes beamed as she continued jogging toward them, Ike, seeing the warrior’s attention waver from him, grins as he raises his wooden sword, preparing to strike the older warrior with everything he had. Ike’s voice echoed out as he started to swing the weapon, the older warrior’s face finally turning into a sharpened look as he stepped back out of the way of Ike’s desperate attack. Ike let out a confused grunt as he put far too much power into the strike, expecting it to hit, causing him to lose his balance and stumble forward after missing so spectacularly. Just as Ike caught himself from falling forward he felt a heavy thwack to the middle of his back as the older warrior’s wooden blade connected flat and true against him, making him grunt as he fell forward onto his stomach, his face now in the dirt as his wooden sword rolled away, out of his grip.
The young girl, Mist, stops jogging as she gets to the older warrior, Greil, her father, having watched the entire scene as she was running toward them, “Ike?”
Ike didn’t seem to respond as he had lost consciousness from the moment of impact with the ground.
Mist’s face scrunched with worry as she started to run toward his unmoving body, her voice showing concern, “Oh no!”
Ike laid there, hearing a soft tune, a familiar lullaby being hummed by someone as he lay in bed. Ike’s eyes slowly adjusted to the light around him as he took in the space of a familiar room, his eyes wandering before falling on a woman at his bedside, her hair a deep black with a shade of blue or purple to it, her smile and eyes kind as she noticed Ike’s gaze upon her as Ike’s vision blurred.
He muttered to himself as his eyes slowly opened, seeing the familiar tops of trees in the forest once more, the sky peaking through them, “Mother…”
As he slowly sat up, he noticed a cloth fall from his head as he could still hear the all too familiar tune echoing out toward him. He looked around, slowly, taking in the now much more familiar scenery of the forest, searching for the source of the tune before he saw it. Mist, in a small clearing, not far from him, softly humming as she picked flowers from a patch of grass in the clearing. He slowly got to his feet and walked toward her as she continued humming to herself.
His voice wavered slightly as he heard the familiar tune, approaching her slowly, “Mist… That song.”
Her eyes widened and her smile shone as she looked at Ike, “Ah, You’re up! Bout time!”
She smiled brightly, triggering a memory in Ike as he saw her smile, a gentle and fond memory of the woman he saw in his dream, their mother, Elena. His eyes widened as he looked at Mist, his younger sister, almost as if he had seen a ghost. She slowly stood up and walked to him with a smile on her face.
She noticed his shocked expression and stopped in front of him, “Are you all right?”
Ike blinked as he shook his head, feeling his back, grunting slightly as he remembers how hard Greil had struck him, “Yeah, I’ll be fine.”
Mist smiles as Greil approaches the pair, laughing to himself, “So, the sleeping prince awakens!”
Mist looks to Greil with a frown, her tone slightly upset, “Father! I can’t believe you!”
Greil puts a hand on his hip as he looks at her, Mist continuing to speak to him in her upset tone, “I know those are practice swords, but they’re still heavy! You have no right to be so rough on Ike.”
Greil sighed as he shook his head, “If this is too much for the boy, he’ll never make it as a mercenary.”
Mist furrowed her brows as she spoke, “But-”
Ike puts a hand on her shoulder, cutting her sentence short, his voice firm yet soft with her, “Mist, you don’t have to worry. I told you, I’m fine.”
Greil laughs loudly with a satisfied and proud smile, “You’d better be. Now grab your sword and get ready!”
Mist looks at the pair with concern, “What? Don’t tell me you’re going at it again! But-”
Ike cuts her off once more, this time his face determined as he looks to his sister, “Just until I land a single blow. I’m not giving up until I can get one good hit in on father.”
Greil chuckles to himself as he looks at Ike, “I like your resolve, Ike. But it takes more than a strong will to… Hm?”
The sound of heavy footsteps stomping toward the group can be heard as another young man, rushing toward them catches Greil’s attention. This young man had short green hair and a headband, holding his hair back, his outfit red with leather armor on his shoulders.
The young man laughed as he stopped running, walking closer to the group, “I knew I’d find you here!”
The young man stops in front of Ike with a slightly smug and playful grin as Mist tilts her head to the side, “Hi, Boyd. What brings you here?”
Boyd, the green haired young man grins at Mist, “Nothing special. You said you were going to get the boss, but you never came back. I got picked to check up on you.”
Mist gasps as she’s reminded of her reason for finding Greil and Ike in the first place, “Oh! Sorry, I got caught up with Ike and my father.”
Boyd waves her response off, “It’s nothing. Besides,” he grins smugly at Ike, “I figured I’d get a good laugh watching Ike get worked over by the boss.”
Boyd then stops, his face turning to a bit of shock and confusion as he looks at Ike, ready to train, despite the heavy hit he took before Boyd showed up, “You… look fine. What happened?”
Ike smirked as he picked up his wooden sword, “Nothing at all. Sorry to disappoint you.”
Mist chuckles to herself, “You just missed it. Just a minute ago, he was out cold.”
Ike stopped and looked at Mist incredulously, “Mist!”
She laughs loudly, her smile wide as she shakes her head, “Sorry.”
Greil shakes his head and turns to Boyd, “You came at just the right time, Boyd.”
Boyd snickers at Mist and Ike before his head snaps to Greil as Greil continues to speak, “You can be Ike’s sparring partner.”
Boyd blinks at Greil and then looks between him and Ike, pointing at himself, “What? Me?”
Greil nodded as he put his hand on Boyd’s shoulder, “I’m beginning to think it would be better if he sparred with someone closer to his own skill.”
Ike looks down before nodding, “I understand.”
Ike looks to Boyd, “Thanks for your help, Boyd.”
Boyd finally comes back to his senses as he grins smugly, picking up a wooden axe, “Hmph! I don’t know about this ‘closer to his skill’ business, but I’m ready!”
Ike nods as both Greil and Mist step back, standing next to one another to watch the sparring session, as Boyd and Ike warm up.
After stretching his arms, Boyd grins at Ike, swinging his wooden axe through the air, “All right. I’m ready for you! Let’s go!”
Ike nods as he readies his sword, staring at Boyd with a serious expression as Mist cheers from the sidelines, “You can do it! Boyd’s got nothing! Take him out!”
Boyd stops and looks to Mist in shock, “‘Nothing!?’ I don’t have nothing. I mean, I have- I mean..”
In that moment of distraction, Ike rushes forward towards Boyd, his sword at the ready as Boyd blocks just barely with the flat of his axe. Boyd grits his teeth as he pushes Ike back with strength alone, the gap in skill between him and Ike being infinitely closer than the gap between Ike and Greil were by this single bind alone. The sound of wood smashing into wood echoed through the forest once more as Boyd and Ike clashed, almost evenly, in comparison to how easily Greil was deflecting and stopping Ike’s blows earlier. Both Ike and Boyd seemed mostly evenly matched, but Greil smirked to himself as he could tell Ike was already winning due to his choice in weapon. Despite Boyd having experience as a mercenary with the Greil Mercenaries, Greil’s band of soldiers-for-hire, Boyd using an axe put him at a distinct speed and endurance disadvantage against someone using a sword and due to Ike’s constant training with Greil, he had grown quick enough to catch up to Boyd in skill. As the clashing of wood continued to ring out in the forest, Boyd was already showing some signs of getting more tired as he swung his axe, a few small hits landing on him from Ike’s wooden blade.
Boyd huffed and laughed as he looked at Ike who was only slightly winded from the exchange, readying his axe with both hands, “I’m not done yet. We’re just getting started.”
With those words, Boyd went on the offensive this time, charging toward Ike, launching a heavy swing of his axe at Ike, the swing being more sluggish than Boyd had thought it would be. Ike managed to catch the wooden axe with his sword before sliding it along the edge of the axe, smacking Boyd against the chest with it causing the wind to leave Boyd in a loud huff as he fell onto his back, trying to catch his breath. Mist cheers as Greil nods approvingly from the sidelines. After both Ike and Boyd had caught their breath, Ike held his hand out to help Boyd stand as Boyd winced and rubbed his chest.
Boyd, still catching his breath slightly, “That- that wasn’t too bad.”
Mist laughs at Boyd, teasingly, “Boyd, you’re such a loser.”
Boyd’s face goes red as he looks at her, embarrassed, “Shut your trap!”
Greil shakes his head stepping forward, “Good work, Boyd. That’s enough.”
Boyd sighs and nods, walking to the sidelines, giving Mist an angry look as he stands far from her “Oh, all right!”
Greil sighs and shakes his head as he approaches Ike, “Your swordsmanship was decent enough, Ike. Don’t forget how it felt. It won’t always be this easy.”
Ike stands straight and nods, looking seriously at his father, “I know.”
Greil grins as he holds up his wooden sword, “Now that you’re done warming up, it’s time for you to face me again.”
Ike gives a competitive grin, having a few scrapes from his sparring with Boyd, “I was hoping you’d say that.”
Greil nods approvingly before looking to mist, “but first… Mist!”
Mist smiles and nods, knowing exactly what her father was asking as she runs to Ike with a small leather pouch, “Right here!”
Ike takes the pouch and looks to Mist as she smiles up at him, “Here you go, Ike! It’s a vulnerary.”
Ike slightly opened the pouch to see a green salve like mixture resting inside the pouch, as Mist continued with a slightly sly smile, “I’d recommend using it now, before you fight father. Last time, he knocked you silly.”
Ike opens his mouth to respond but Mist is already giggling as she runs back toward the sidelines to watch. Ike sighs and slowly rubs some of the ointment onto his cuts and bruises as the pain seems to slightly dull as Greil gets in place to spar with his son, Ike.
Seeing Ike applying the ointment to his wounds, Greil nods slowly, “Always take time to heal your wounds- even small ones.”
Ike nods at his father as he puts the remainder of the ointment into his pocket as Greil continues to speak, his eyes sharpening, “By the time you think you’re in trouble, it’s probably too late… Don’t get into that situation.”
Ike breathes slowly as he readies himself, the ointment taking effect rather quickly, helping his bruises and cuts feel numb as Greil nods and holds his sword at the ready.
Seeing Ike ready for him, Greil nods with a slight grin, “Get ready, Ike- here I come!”
As Greil charges, Ike keeps his composure despite knowing he is far outclassed by his father in combat, but determined to get even a single hit in as he clashes his blade with Greil’s.
As the sound of their wooden blades clashing echoed through the forest, Greil smirked as he could feel Ike’s determination through the blade, “Give it your all!”
Ike grit his teeth at his father’s words and grin, gripping his sword tight enough that his knuckles went white, trying to apply everything he had learned to score even a single hit on his father as they started clashing like before, Greil easily defending and deflecting Ike’s blows.
As Ike pressed more into the attack, Greil grinned, “Come on, boy! You going to give me a challenge this time around?”
Ike grit his teeth harder as he started to attack with more ferocity, fueled by his victory over Boyd. Greil continued to block and deflect Ike’s attacks but can tell his son is more determined than ever, today as he raised an eyebrow, watching his movements closely. As Greil watches his son’s movements, he fails to predict that Ike would switch his guard and go for an upward slash, knocking the sword from his father’s hand as he grunts.
Mist and Boyd both look shocked at the scene before Mist runs over smiling widely at Ike, “Ike! You were great!”
Ike shook his head and faced Greil, “Father, you were holding back, weren’t you?”
Mist gasps and covers her mouth as she looks at their father, “What? Is that true?”
Greil grins and puts a hand on his hip, “If you could tell the difference, that means you’re improving.”
Boyd walks over and puffs out his chest, “You know, I wasn’t really giving it my all either…”
Mist laughs and shakes her head, “That is such a lie.”
Boyd recoils and scoffs as he crosses his arms as Mist sticks her tongue out at him.
Ike steps closer to Greil, “So, father, does that mean you finally admit that I’m ready?”
Greil crosses his arms and looks seriously at Ike, “What, to join the company? To take on a job?”
Ike nods as he looks seriously at Greil, “Yeah. I mean, Boyd’s already out there on the battlefield. I’m ready. I’m tired of being a trainee.”
Boyd’s expression becomes serious as he looks at Ike, “Listen, the difference between you and me is that I’m a professional.”
Mist giggles and covers her mouth, muttering loud enough for Boyd to hear, “A professional who just got beat.”
Boyd’s face flushed with embarrassment again, “That was just random chance. Random chance.”
Greil nods to himself, “You’ve got a point, Ike… All right. Tomorrow will be your first day as a full-fledged mercenary.”
Ike’s eyes widen in surprise, “Really?”
Greil clears his throat to tone down Ike’s growing excitement, “But! If I think it’s too much, you’re back to trainee status. You’d better work hard.”
Ike smiles and nods, “No problem. Watch- I’ll catch up to everyone in no time.”
Greil nods with a grin as he starts to head up the trail, “We’ll see. We’d better be heading back to the fort. Everyone’s waiting.”
Ike, Boyd, and Mist all fall in line behind Greil as they head back toward the fort of the Greil Mercenaries. Ike being the most excited as he feels he’s finally proven himself to his father, the one man he looks up to the most.