Chapter 1: Grustian Expedition (Script)
Synopsis
Once, there was a war known as the "War of Shadows."
An epic battle between Prince Marth's heroes and the Dolhrian
Empire,
which ended with the defeat of the Earth Dragon King, Medeus.
The warriors who had united under the Fire Emblem returned to their
own lands,
devoting themselves to the reconstruction of their homelands.
Among the nations that made up the "Seven Kingdoms of Archanea",
Gra and Grust were devastated.
Altea, Aurelis, Macedon and Talys were left deeply scarred,
and even the mighty Kingdom of Archanea was undergoing restoration.
However, in the palace still shaken by war, one important event took
place.
Hardin, the younger brother of King Aurelis, was married to Princess
Nyna,
becoming the twenty-fourth king of House Archanea.
After ascending the throne,
Hardin aggressively restored the country in the twinkling of an eye,
and formed a powerful army by gathering many soldiers.
He then proclaimed the restoration of the Holy Archanean Empire, and
himself Emperor.
One year has passed since the war with Dolhr.
The world seemed to be moving towards an era of peace.
However, unbeknownst to man, the cogs of destiny had started
spiralling out of order.
Opening
It has been a year since the War of Shadows ended. The war-ravaged
kingdom of Altea
was finally starting to regain stability thanks to Prince Marth's
efforts.
Prince Marth's engagement to Princess Caeda was announced,
and the people of Altea rejoiced, sharing their happiness.
However... Nearing the day of their wedding,
an unexpected letter arrived from the imperial palace, containing an
imperial edict.
"Dear Prince Marth of Altea,
"In the kingdom of Grust, now under imperial rule, a large-scale
rebellion has broken out.
"I request your kingdom's assistance in its subjugation.
"Your Highness is to lead the entire army of Altea and sortie at
once,
"supressing the Grustian rebellion. --The Emperor of Archanea"
The Kingdom of Archanea was Altea's suzerain, so its orders were
absolute.
Forced to comply, Marth ordered the knight Cain to protect his
homeland,
and together with Jagen, the paladin Arran, and the young, newly
appointed knights
left Altea on the Grustian expedition.
Main story
(Opening Scene - Classic mode)
Marth:
Chris, we'll be arriving shortly. This is your first real battle, is it not? Battles will be different from here on out. Defeat on the battlefield means death. Any allies you lose will never return... That is the harsh reality of war. You must take the utmost care not to get yourself killed.
Chris:
Of course, sire.
Marth:
You, and everyone else... It would be wonderful if we could end this battle without losing anyone...
Chris:
Sire...
Jagen:
Sire, we have made arrangements for a transport convoy. We will also have merchants accompanying us, who will sell us weapons and items. I daresay they will be invaluable during battle preparations.
Marth:
Thank you, Jagen. Then let's begin our preparations at once.
(Opening Scene - Casual mode)
Marth:
Chris, we'll be arriving shortly. This is your first real battle, is it not? You must take the utmost care not to get seriously injured.
Chris:
Of course, sire.
Marth:
You, and everyone else; It would be wonderful if we could end this battle safely...
Chris:
Sire...
Jagen:
Sire, we have made arrangements for a transport convoy. We will also have merchants accompanying us, who will sell us weapons and items. I daresay they will be invaluable during battle preparations.
Marth:
Thank you, Jagen. Then, let's begin our preparations at once.
(Map Start)
Jagen:
Sire, this is General Lang, the commanding officer of the occupational forces.
Lang:
Oho, so you are Prince Marth? Glad you could make it here. Since you've come all this way, I suppose I'll let you have the glory of capturing the rebel leader, General Lorenz.
Marth:
What?! General Lorenz leads the rebels?! What would possess him to rebel of all things?!
Lang:
Who knows? I haven't the foggiest idea, and frankly I don't care. Prince. You are to kill General Lorenz, and reclaim the children of the Grustian royal family that he's hiding. While you do that... We will slaughter the families of those who participated in this rebellion and raze their homes to the ground.
Marth:
Are you insane?! They're innocent civilians!
Lang:
"I-insane"!? Young man, are you questioning my orders?! Perhaps Altea, too, plans to rebel against Archanea...?
Marth:
Of course not! That's not...
Lang:
Prince Marth, your tiny country means absolutely nothing to me. Your rude behaviour is merely an irritation. Do not forget that I have the power of the empire behind me: I can crush weak, pesky insects like you any time I wish.
Marth:
Jagen... What in the world is going on here? How could Hardin have entrusted this country to such a vile man?
Jagen:
Sire, I understand how you feel. However, Lorenz has begun a rebellion. That much seems to be true, so we ought to do something about that first. Sire, why don't you try speaking to General Lorenz personally? Allow me to stay by your side and serve as your tactician. Royal Guard Chris! When Prince Marth is in danger on the battlefield, protect him at all costs. That is an order!
(If Chris is male)
Chris:
Yes, sir.
Marth:
Chris, if you're here, I have no need to worry. Let's clean up the bandits, and head to General Lorenz's position!
Chris:
Yes sir!
(If Chris is female)
Chris:
Acknowledged.
Marth:
Chris, I have no need to worry if you're here. Let's clean up the bandits, and head to General Lorenz's position!
Chris:
Yes sir!
(Thief appears)
Bandit:
Oh? A battle, is it? We're in luck, boys! Let's loot 'em villages before 'ey realize what's hit 'em!
(En route to Lorenz)
Lorenz:
Alright, that will do for now... Sir Ogma, please forgive me for getting you involved in this mess.
Ogma:
I am here on King Talys's orders. As such, I will do everything in my power to help.
Lorenz:
I see... Then I have a favor to ask of you. I want you to escort these children to Macedon. These children... Prince Yubello and Princess Yumina, are King Grust's orphans. Please. Take them safely to Lord Wendell in Macedon.
Ogma:
Understood... I will guard these two with my life.
Lorenz:
Thank you, Sir Ogma... Now, Prince Yubello, Princess Yumina, you will be leaving with Sir Ogma.
Yumina:
No! I'm not going! I won't leave you behind!
Lorenz:
Princess... I cannot go. With this wound, I can barely even walk. It saddens me, but you two must go on without me.
Yumina:
You took that grievous wound to protect us... How can you tell us to just leave you behind now?! I will never leave. We will never leave your side, Lorenz!!
Ogma:
What shall I do, General?
Lorenz:
Hmm... this is most troublesome. Princess Yumina is not one to change her mind easily... We will remain here.
Ogma:
In that case, I will find some other way to help you. I will find Lang and bring him down... I will bury him with this sword, I swear on it. General Lorenz, you must hold out until then...!
(Marth talks to Lorenz)
Lorenz:
Prince Marth! So it is you... How unfortunate, that I must fight... the Altean Army and its prince...
Marth:
Please, wait. I do not wish to fight with you. I heard about everything from the villagers. I've heard of all the atrocities Archanea has committed. I promise, I will inform Emperor Hardin of the truth and rescue Grust. So please, lower your weapons.
Lorenz:
Prince... I am grateful for the offer. But, I am afraid that I cannot comply. Prince, you know nothing. Do you think that a man of Emperor Hardin's caliber would make a general out of a man as worthless as Lang without good reason? He called for an invasion: to crush the kingdom of Grust and make it a territory of the Empire.
Marth:
No, it can't be! Hardin would never do something like that.
Lorenz:
I know it's hard to believe. But I'm afraid that, ever since he became emperor, he has changed a great deal. He is no longer the Hardin you once knew. Prince, I have one final request of you. In this stronghold, I am protecting the young prince and princess of Grust. Please, find a way to help them. If you can do just that, I will have no regrets.
Marth:
What... General Lorenz, what are you saying...?!
Lorenz:
Prince Marth... My life in exchange for theirs... By any means necessary, please help them... This is the last thing I will ask...
Marth:
General Lorenz!! ......This can't be happening......
(Village Conversations)
Woman:
I only saw him briefly, but that knight, Arran, looked awfully pale. You know, he's probably hit the wall, so to speak. I doubt he'll get any stronger, no matter how much he fights...
Man:
There aren't any young girls left in this country. They were all taken away by the imperial troops. They say General Lang keeps the really pretty ones to himself. What a dark, insane chapter in Grust's history...
Old Man:
The late King Grust had two children. Princess Yumina and Prince Yubello. They're still young. Maybe thirteen, or fourteen; cute little twins, both of them. In the last war, Gharnef, the Dark Pontifex, kidnapped the twins to blackmail the king. They were taken to Khadein, the city of magic, and locked away in a pitch-black room. At great personal risk, Pontifex Wendell saved them. He took them to a monastery to protect them.
Boy:
General Lorenz took the royal children from Lord Wendell and raised them in Grust. The empire demanded their extradition, but Lorenz was afraid they would be killed, and hid them. The empire branded Lorenz a traitor, and sent General Lang here. Lang did horrible things to find the royal children. That's why we rose up. But, we lost. And now Lang is going to kill everyone in this entire country!
Boy:
I heard that General Lorenz lived in Talys when he was young. Talys wasn't unified at the time, so there were a number of noble houses contending for control. Lorenz lent his power to the young patriarch of one house, and together they unified Talys into one country. Lorenz and that patriarch–now the king of Talys–remain close friends to this day.
Girl:
After the last war, Princess Nyna let this country keep its sovereignty under the rule of General Lorenz. However, as soon as Hardin became emperor, General Lorenz was banished and Lang's troops came crawling in. Lang stole everything from us. He stole our gold, of course, but he even stole our food and our loved ones... Ah... If only General Camus were here! Then we wouldn't have to live in
fear of people like Lang!
(Recruiting Malicia)
Old Woman:
Oh... Please, show mercy to just this child. She's only ten years old.
Marth:
Ma'am, please calm yourself. I am not here to take any children.
Old Woman:
What... You're not imperial soldiers?
Marth:
No... We're not. We didn't come to fight. If there's anything you need, please ask. It's not much, but we can give you food.
Malicia:
Wait... Please, take me with you...
Marth:
Huh...? You're... Are you really ten?
Malicia:
No... I'm a grown woman, but Granny lied so that I wouldn't be taken away by the soldiers. Lang's soldiers are all monstrous. But you're different. You have very sweet eyes. Please, take me with you. I want you to take me away from this country, and take me to yours.
Old Woman:
It's not safe for her to stay here. Please take her with you, and protect her. You can marry her, too, if you like. Malicia is a beautiful, good-natured lady, just like me! I'm sure she'll make a fine wife.
Malicia:
No-no-no! Granny, it's far too early for that! Now you've made Malicia all flustered!
(Fighting Lorenz)
Lorenz:
What?! You're... the Altean army?! So even Altea has turned on us...
(Lorenz Defeated)
Lorenz:
Forgive me, people of Grust...
(Chapter End)
(If Marth Talked To Lorenz)
Elder:
Prince Marth... General Lorenz entrusted everything to you. You spared his life, and even heard him out. We, the people of Grust, thank you. Please, let me offer you a token of our gratitude. Here. We're protecting Prince Yubello and Princess Yumina in this stronghold. I beg you, do what you must to protect our last fragments of hope...
(Ending)
Marth:
You, you're... Grust's royal heirs... Prince Yubello and Princess Yumina?!
Yubello:
Sniff... Lorenz... He's gone. How can we live on without him?
Yumina:
You monsters!! Stay away! You're going to murder us just like you murdered Lorenz!!
Marth:
No, you have it all wrong!! We just...
Lang:
Ah... Prince Marth. You finally caught these filthy traitors.
Marth:
General Lang! Wait, please! These children have done nothing wrong. Allow me to take custody of them.
Lang:
Don't make me laugh. These brats are coming with me to my castle. Besides, my dear prince, you have other, more important, priorities. I have received reports that there has been a military revolt in Macedon, and Princess Minerva has been imprisoned.
Marth:
What...?! How could that happen to Macedon?! I understand my obligations, General Lang. Still, these children... Let them stay with me, please.
Lang:
Prince, do not try my patience! Listen up you two! You're coming with me!
Yumina:
No, let me go!! Yubello... help me!!
Yubello:
Yumina... Yumina...!!
Marth:
Wait!! Lang! Release them at once!
Chris (M):
Sire! I can still save them! Please, just give me the word!!
Chris (F):
Sire! Give me the order, and I'll get them safely back at once!
Jagen:
Sire, don't do it!! You too, Chris! If we oppose Lang right here, right now, we run the risk of being branded traitors by Archanea.
Marth:
But Jagen, are you telling me to simply allow Lang to take them?! I cannot stand for that...
Jagen:
I understand how you feel, sire... But please remain patient for a little longer. If we head to Macedon... then rescue Princess Minerva, Macedon will surely lend us its strength.