It's Fire Emblem like you've never seen it before... Set in a 
Western!

*****

(As the Fire Emblem theme plays in the background, a red-hot 
branding iron burns the title of the story onto an aging map, 
which eventually dissolves into ash:)

***

"Fire Emblem: The Burning Brand"  by Avi


Chapter 1: Cavalry to the Rescue

The next morning, Mark woke up slowly... When he opened his eyes, 
he was first disoriented by his surroundings, but then the events 
of the previous day came back to him in a rush.

After yawning and stretching, he swung his legs off of the cot, and 
pulled on his boots. Grabbing his hat from beside the bed, he then 
stepped out of the teepee to look for Lyn.

He found her at the edge of the settlement. It was still very 
early; the sun was barely above the horizon, yet Lyn already 
appeared to be hard at work... Noticing Mark, she waved him over.

As he approached, he saw she was digging; as Mark got closer, 
he realized that she was digging a pair of graves. Beside her, 
wrapped in cloth, were presumably the bodies of the two bandits 
she killed yesterday.

"Good morning, Mark," she greeted him, her tone cheerful despite 
the unpleasant task she was performing. "Sleep well?"

"Um, yes..." replied Mark, trying to avoid looking at the covered 
bodies. "You should've woken me up... I could've helped you dig 
the graves."

"Don't worry about it; I figured you could use some rest after your 
ordeal yesterday." Leaning on her shovel, Lyn pointed to another 
one propped against a nearby teepee. "You can still help, though; 
I still need to bury them."

"Sure thing." Rolling up his sleeves, Mark helped Lyn carry the 
bodies into the graves, then grabbing the other shovel, helped 
her fill them in with the loosened soil. It was hard work, but the 
plainswoman had already done most of the labour; after about half 
an hour, both of the bodies were buried in the dirt.

"Thanks," said Lyn, wiping the sweat from her forehead. "I managed 
to grab the horses these two left behind... Can you ride a horse, 
Mark?"

Mark nodded. Back East, most people in the big cities usually rode 
coaches, but he had actually learned to ride a horse, as well.

"Good. Then we can both ride over to Burning Gulch for supplies; 
that's the outpost I told you about yesterday. Why don't you get 
your things and we'll head out? I've got everything else we need 
ready to go."

"All right, then." Mark headed back to the teepee to get the rest 
of his things, while Lyn went off to get the horses.

***

It was not long after that that Mark found himself riding alongside 
Lyn, heading north towards the outpost she had mentioned earlier.

Mark soon realized that he'd have to get used to riding for long 
periods of time... Riding for a couple of hours a day was nothing 
compared to spending an entire day on horseback; Mark had a sneaking 
suspicion he'd be feeling sore in unmentionable places, tonight... 

Still, he felt the passing scenery more than made up for it; just 
being surrounded by the waving, grassy plains of the Wild West 
filled him with a euphoria, of sorts.

As they rode, the two discussed about what supplies they might 
need, and other such idle chitchat; after a while, Lyn decided to 
ask Mark about something a bit more personal.

"So Mark, tell me a bit about yourself..." she began. "You said 
you were from a big city back East, is that right?"

He nodded. "That's right."

Mark then found himself telling her about everything; his studies in 
history, his love of all things Western, even his heading out West 
in search of a teaching job and against his parents' wishes. Lyn 
listened attentively.

He had just finished telling her about boarding the train heading 
to El Libre, when he trailed off, lost in thought.

"You probably think I'm a spoiled kid, running away from home," he 
told her, looking sheepish.

"Oh, I don't know," replied Lyn. "It's a fine thing to have a dream, 
and you tried hard to try to achieve it, all by yourself. Besides, 
it sounds like you felt trapped... You just wanted to break free 
from that, am I right?"

Mark's jaw dropped. Lyn had just put into words, his exact feelings 
on the entire affair. "How... How did you know?"

Lyn gazed into the distance. "I'm not sure myself... Instinct, 
perhaps. Perhaps it is because I am from the plains... There is 
a sense of freedom here that I don't believe I'd be able to find 
anywhere else."

Mark followed her gaze. There were golden plains as far as the eye 
could see; he was suddenly overcome with a feeling of tranquility.

"I think you're right," he said quietly.

Lyn then looked thoughtful.

"You know, that still doesn't explain why you were by yourself on 
the plains," she mused. "What were you doing out there all alone?"

Mark would've stopped dead in his tracks, if he hadn't been riding.
He didn't know what to tell her, and he was too ashamed to admit 
the truth... How could he tell this noble warrior woman that he 
had run away from danger like a coward, and nearly died from it, 
despite that?

Fortunately for him, Lyn misinterpreted his stunned silence.

"It's all right if you don't want to tell me," she reassured him. 
"There's some things that people just don't want to talk about, 
and I can respect that."

She then smiled at him. "I just hope one day you'll trust me enough
to tell me."

"Um, thanks Lyn," he replied weakly. Her sympathy only made Mark 
feel worse. Someday, I hope I'll have the courage to tell you what 
really happened, Lyn... he thought to himself.

After this exchange, the two fell silent, as Mark was preoccupied 
with his guilt for some time. In fact, he was so lost in thought, 
that he didn't realize that they had arrived at their destination. 

As they rode through the gate, Mark finally noticed his 
surroundings; as he looked around in surprise, Lyn beamed and swept 
an arm in front of her.

"Well, Mark... Welcome to Burning Gulch outpost, the largest 
settlement in the Sacramento Plains!" 

Mark could tell at a glance that the cities back East could 
encompass this town many times over, but he didn't have the heart to 
tell Lyn that... Still, the place was impressive-looking; obviously 
intended to be a military outpost, the entire town was surrounded 
by wooden palisades, made out of sharpened logs. 

Yet Mark was in for a bigger surprise when he stepped inside the 
town... As soon as he entered, he was amazed to see both natives 
and settlers calmly going about their business; trading, hawking 
their wares, or just walking around town. 

"Amazing..." mused Mark, aloud. "An outpost where both natives and 
settlers alike can work side-by-side together, in peace." 

Lyn smiled at him affably. "Yes, it is nice, isn't it?" Her gaze 
then moved up towards the soldiers patrolling atop the wooden 
palisades, and her expression darkened slightly. "I don't know why 
the cavalry has to occupy the town, though..." 

Mark shifted uncomfortably at this. As a student of history, he knew 
that the relationship between Lyn's people and the cavalry hadn't 
always been so peaceful.

After a moment, Lyn seemed to shake off her dark mood. "Well, we 
should probably be able to buy all the supplies we need, right here... 
Shall we split up, to find what we're looking for?" 

Mark nodded. They had agreed earlier that Lyn should purchase most 
of the supplies, since she knew the going price of most items; Mark 
had even given her some of his cash, to supplement her own funds. 

Still, there were a few things that Mark knew he needed to buy... 
A map of the area, for instance. Lyn might know her way around, but 
he still didn't want to be caught lost in the wilderness again.

He found what he was looking for in the local general store. Although 
the map looked rather worn, it did seem pretty accurate... On it, 
Mark could locate the city of Burnt, where his train was supposed to 
stop; the Sacramento Plains, where they currently were, and even the 
town he was in. 

Satisfied, he paid the storekeeper for the map, and a couple of other 
purchases, as well. 

As he exited the store, Mark saw Lyn in the distance, weighed down 
with various goods, so he headed towards her... While he did so, he 
inspected the map a little further.

Upon closer examination, the map seemed to be one of the entire 
territory of El Libre... The city of Burnt was located to the 
southeast, within the heart of the Burnt Wastelands; to its north, 
was the aforementioned Sacramento Plains. To the west of that, was a 
series of canyons called Atlas Ridge; to the south of there, lay the 
county called La Sienna, which appeared to have many major cities 
marked off in stars: Austin City, Phoenix Rise, Sierra...

He was currently looking at a village at the base of a mountain 
known as Wind Serpent Peak, when he heard a cheerful voice ahead of 
him.

"Well, shoot! Ain't you the prettiest li'l thing that I ever laid 
eyes on?"

Mark looked up, to see a cavalryman on horseback addressing Lyn. 
He might've been impressed at this, his first glimpse of a real 
cavalry soldier up close, if the latter hadn't been hitting on Lyn.

Lyn didn't seem particularly impressed, either. "Excuse me?" she 
replied coolly.

The cavalryman just grinned and tipped his hat at her. "I don't 
suppose you could tell me your name, li'l missy? Or offer me the 
pleasure of your company?"

Lyn tossed her head haughtily. "Shouldn't a soldier have more 
discipline? Where are you from, anyways?" 

Despite Lyn's frosty demeanour, it didn't seem to faze the man one 
bit. 

"Thought you'd never ask, ma'am! I came here all the way from the 
plains of La Sienna; the town of Sierra, to be exact. Home of the 
rootin'est, tootin'est cowpokes around!"

Lyn arched an eyebrow, in reply. "Don't you mean 'pigs in a poke?'"

At this, the cavalryman looked sheepish. "Aw, don't be like that, 
li'l darlin'..."

Ignoring him, Lyn spun on her heel, just in time to meet Mark's 
gaze. "Come on, Mark," she addressed him, under clenched teeth. 
"I have nothing more to say to this... This... So-called soldier."

"Wait!" cried out the cavalrymen, in dismay. "I'm sorry, ma'am, I..."

"Sain! What's going on here?" asked a severe voice.

Mark found himself looking back, to see another mounted cavalryman 
join his fellow soldier... Because of their identical navy blue and 
gold uniforms, there wasn't much to identify one from the other, 
except for the new soldier's red hair and red scarf tied around his 
neck; his companion, on the other hand, wore a green scarf.

"Hey Kent, ol' pardner!" The soldier called Sain greeted the 
newcomer in a pleasant drawl. "What's with the long face? You look 
more ornery than a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs!"

"And why do you reckon that's so, Sain?" answered the other 
cavalryman hotly. "We're still on duty... And you know we have 
orders to follow!"

"Sorry, Kent. You know, I just can't resist a pretty face..."

"No foolin'. It's gonna be the death of me..."

Lyn placed her hands on her hips. "Excuse me, you two..." As both 
soldiers looked down at her, she glared at each one, in turn. "I 
hate to interrupt your little conversation, but you're blocking 
our way. If you two could kindly move your horses?"

"Certainly, ma'am. My apologies," replied the red-headed soldier 
politely. Both soldiers led their horses aside, allowing Lyn and 
Mark to pass them by.

Lyn then gave a curt nod to the cavalryman who had addressed her. 
"Thank you, sir... You, at least, seem to have some manners."

As she said this, the cavalryman gave her a long, hard stare. 
"Pardon me, ma'am," he began slowly, "but haven't I met you 
somewhere before?"

Lyn raised her eyebrows. "Excuse me?"

At this remark, the other soldier couldn't seem to resist butting in. 
"Hey! C'mon, Kent, I saw her first!" 

"Well!" Lyn sniffed to herself. "It seems no one in the cavalry can 
be trusted, can they? Come on, Mark... I've just about had my fill of 
these two!" She stormed off, with a reluctant Mark trailing behind 
her.

"Wait!" protested Kent. "That's not what I meant!" 

As the two civilians walked out of earshot, Kent found himself 
turning on his fellow soldier, in anger. "Now look what you've 
done!"

Sain stared back at him. "What did I do? I was just sayin' I saw her 
first..."

"That's not the point! I reckon that... She might be the one we're 
lookin' for."

Sain's eyes widened. "What, her? Kent, you're pullin' my leg, ain't 
ya?"

"Come on, we have to tail her!" Kent quickly clicked his heels to 
his horse's sides, and started to ride out of town.

"Whoa, are you sure about this?" asked Sain. It was then that he 
noticed his fellow soldier was riding away.

"Hey, hold up there, pardner!" he cried out, as Sain urged his horse 
forward to catch up to his friend's lead.

***

"Honestly! Can you believe the nerve of those two!" stormed Lyn, 
as they rode away from Burning Gulch. "It's like I said before; 
you can't trust the cavalry!"

"I don't know," replied Mark, in a skeptical tone. "I don't think 
that other soldier was actually flirting with you... It was almost 
if..." He paused in thought. "He recognized you, or something."

Lyn snorted in disgust. "How would he recognize me? I've lived with 
the Lorca all my life!" She shook her head. "Come on, let's just get 
out of here, in case they follow us."

"Uh..." began Mark slowly. "I think it's too late for that..."

He turned his head. As Lyn followed his gaze, she could see a 
cloud of dust trailing them, an obvious sign that a group on 
horseback was on their tail.

Lyn's eyes widened. "It isn't those two cavalrymen again, is it?"

Mark shaded his eyes as he looked behind him. "I don't think so... 
There's far too many of them... And I don't think we've done anything 
to warrant a whole cavalry unit after us!"

His companion's expression hardened. "I wouldn't be too sure of 
that..." She then risked another glance over her shoulder, and her 
eyes narrowed. 

"No, I'm afraid it's worse... Bandits!" She had just made out the 
bandanas pulled over their mouths, and sensed their murderous intent.

Immediately, Lyn clicked her heels to her horse's side; Mark quickly 
followed her lead.

"Faster, Mark! They're gaining on us!" she cried out.

But it was no use; it was too late. In no time at all, the group of 
bandits had caught up to Lyn and Mark, and had them surrounded. 

The pack of bandits encircling the two then parted briefly, as a 
single one, obviously their leader, rode up to them.

"Well, ain't you a pretty little thing," he leered, as he paced his 
horse around Lyn. "You're Lynette Windrunner, ain't ya?"

"How... How do you know that name?" gasped Lyn. "Who are you?"

"That's none of your concern, li'l lady," the bandit sneered, 
"since you're about to die..."

Nervously, Mark drew his horse closer to the plainswoman, who had 
drawn her sabre with a grim expression.

"Mark... There's too many of them for me to handle by myself," she 
admitted to him softly. "But I'll do my best to protect us." Lyn 
brandished her sword. "As soon as there's an opening, you ride 
away, all right?"

Mark's eyes widened. "I can't just leave you here, all alone!"

"Don't argue!" she snapped.

"But--"

Suddenly, the blaring of a trumpet call filled the desert air, 
catching both parties off-guard, and distracting the bandits 
momentarily.

"It's the cavalry come after us!" quaked one of the bandits, 
fearfully. Their leader smacked him on the shoulder, in 
disgust.

"Don't be such a fool! There's only two of 'em; we can take 
'em!" he snarled.

Mark and Lyn looked up, and recognized the cavalrymen they had 
run into earlier in Burning Gulch; the one in the green scarf 
was playing a charge in his bugle as he rode, with his redheaded 
companion hot on his heels.

As the bandits milled around in confusion, both cavalrymen 
quickly manoevered their horses in front of the civilians, in a 
protective fashion.

"Gangin' up on this sweet li'l lady?" snapped the green-scarfed 
soldier at the outlaws. "You're just a bunch of yellow-bellied 
cowards!"

Lyn stared at the cavalrymen in surprise. "You two again? But 
why--"

"No time to explain that now, ma'am," replied the redheaded 
soldier briskly. "Stand back! We'll take care of these outlaws."

"No! This is my fight!" protested Lyn, raising her sword. "I 
won't be indebted to any cavalryman!"

"Listen, li'l missy," pointed out the other soldier, "we can't 
just stand by and do nothin', ya hear? We're the cavalry! We're 
supposed to charge in to the rescue!"

As the plainswoman stubbornly set her jaw, Mark gave her sleeve 
a tentative tug. "Uh, we could use the help," he told her. "We 
are greatly outnumbered, and they are trained for this sort of 
thing, you know..."

The redheaded soldier appeared to overhear this exchange. "Well, 
if you won't listen to us, then would you listen to your friend?" 
he queried, turning his attention to Mark.

"Huh?" said Mark, somewhat caught off guard.

"You look like a clever fellow," observed the soldier. "Sain and I 
would be obliged to follow both your orders." He then glanced back 
at Lyn. "I'm Kent, by the way. Would you let us help out, now, 
ma'am?"

Lyn paused for a moment, then sighed. "All right, then," she 
agreed, ignoring Mark's look of dismay. "You two follow our lead. 
Now, let's get those bandits!"

This was easier said than done, as the outlaws had scattered during 
their brief exchange, once they had realized that the odds were a 
little more even, now.

"What in tarnation...?" exclaimed Sain. "Where did those bandits run 
off to?"

"I reckon they're waitin' to ambush us out in the wild," mused Kent. 
"And they know the lay of the land around here better than we do." 

"Hmmm... I might be able to do something about that," said Mark. 
Reaching into one of his saddlebags, he pulled out a short, metallic 
tube.

"What's that?" asked Lyn.

"A telescope," explained Mark politely, as he extended the device. 
He mentally thanked himself for bringing the item with him, though 
he never thought it'd be used for this purpose...

Gazing into the spyglass, Mark carefully scanned the surrounding 
area for a few moments, then spoke up again.

"Looks like five bandits total," he reported to the others. "And 
I suspect their leader is hanging back on the other side of the 
river; upstream, I believe."

"Why do you reckon he's the leader?" asked Sain, curiously.

"He was the one who seemed to recognize Lyn, earlier," explained 
Mark. "And I remembered the clothes he was wearing."

"That makes sense," agreed Kent.

"The closest bandit should be straight ahead of us," continued 
Mark, trying to keep his voice steady. "If all three of you sneak 
up on him, you might be able to catch him off guard."

"We hear ya!" Sain tossed him a friendly salute, and he and Kent 
rode off towards the location of the first bandit.

As the cavalrymen rode ahead, Mark leaned towards his companion.

"Psst, Lyn..." Mark whispered to her, nervously. "You do know I'm 
just a student of history, right? I've never, um, led people into 
battle, before..."

"You're doing fine," Lyn assured him. "Didn't you just tell me 
that you loved studying the history of wars, and their tactics?"

"Yes..." he replied, sounding worried. But reading about it 
and actually doing it, were two completely different things, 
he thought to himself.

Still, under Mark's careful direction, the bandits were slowly 
flushed out of hiding by the group. They hit a couple of snags 
while doing so... 

Sain had been using an ineffective lance against the first bandit 
that he had come up against. After an argument with Kent in which 
Sain had sheepishly explained that he had broken his old sword in
a previous battle, a disgruntled Kent handed Sain his extra blade, 
in order to fight the other bandits.

Shortly after that incident, another small argument broke out 
between the two (Mark began to wonder how the two soldiers ever 
got anything done)...

This time, Sain had nearly been jumped by another bandit in the 
woods; he then received an impromptu lecture from Kent on how 
enemies could use cover to dodge attacks. 

Despite the constant bickering between the two, Mark got the 
impression that both soldiers genuinely respected each other, 
despite their differences in opinion and personality.

Meanwhile, Lyn had just returned to check on Mark, who had been 
watching both of their horses; she had just dispatched one of the 
bandits with her sword.

"Those two are pretty good fighters," commented the plainswoman, 
as they observed the two cavalry soldiers in battle.

"Well, it is their job," pointed out Mark.

Lyn frowned. "Yeah, but still..." She called out to one of the 
cavalrymen, after they had finished combat.

"You there! Sain, is it?"

Realizing that he was being addressed by a lady, Sain turned to 
tip his hat at Lyn. 

"At your service, darlin'!" he grinned. "What can I do you for?"

She pointed at a cut on his arm. "You're hurt, aren't you? Aren't 
you going to do something about it?"

"Oh, don't you worry your pretty li'l head about me, missy... I 
can take care of myself." He winked at her, causing Lyn to raise 
an eyebrow.

"Is that so?" She held up a small earthenware pot. "Well, I was 
going to hand you some of my healing salve for your wounds, but 
since you don't need it..." She turned away. 

Sain's face fell. "Whoa there, li'l missy! My momma taught me 
never to refuse a gift from a lady. I'll take the salve, with 
my compliments, ma'am."

Mark watched as Lyn handed over the salve to Sain (with some 
reluctance on Lyn's part, he thought).

"Ain't you the li'l angel of mercy?" he gushed at her. "Much 
appreciated, darlin'!"

"A simple 'thank you' would be enough..." Mark heard Lyn murmur, 
as she walked back towards him. 

Pretending he didn't overhear Lyn's comment, Mark took out his 
spyglass, to double-check the positions of the remaining bandits; 
he then turned to the plainswoman.

"Two left, across the river," he told her. "One downstream, with 
their leader upriver."

"All right, then," replied Lyn. She signalled the two cavalrymen, 
who rode over to them. "Mark says there are two bandits left, 
across the river. I'll take the one upstream, past the left 
bridge, while you two take the one downstream."

Kent's brow wrinkled. "Didn't your friend say earlier that the 
leader was hidin' up the river? I reckon that Sain and I should 
take care of him, instead."

Lyn's eyes narrowed. "I thought you said you'd accept our orders 
without question, Kent... Or should I not trust the word of a 
cavalryman?"

Kent's jaw dropped, then he hung his head. "You're right... My 
apologies, ma'am. We'll do as you say." At his reaction, Lyn 
looked apologetic. 

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound so harsh..." she told him.

Kent shook his head. "You had every right to, ma'am. I'm a man 
of my word, and as a soldier, I am obliged to follow orders to 
the letter."

Lyn looked surprised at this. "My, you are a very dedicated 
soldier, aren't you, Kent...?"

The cavalryman met her gaze steadily. "Yes indeed, ma'am."

There was a pause as the two stared at each other, until Mark 
decided to break the moment, by clearing his throat.

"Perhaps we should get going...?" he pointed out, timidly. 
"Otherwise, the bandits that are left might get away..."

Lyn shook her head, in order to clear it, while Kent turned away, 
seemingly embarrassed. 

"You're right, Mark," said Lyn. "Let's get going."

***

Kent and Sain rode down alongside the river, while Mark followed Lyn 
upstream until they reached the bridge.

"You wait here with the horses, Mark," Lyn told him. "I'll go take 
care of the lead bandit." He nodded, trying not to look worried.

As Lyn walked warily across the bridge, Mark pulled out his 
telescope to watch her fight.

The bandit leader didn't seem to see her, at first; he was 
staring down river, and Mark wondered if he was concerned about the 
involvement of the cavalry... But as soon as Lyn approached him, 
he finally noticed her; pulling out his axe, he charged to attack.

Once again, Mark found himself impressed by the plainswoman's speed; 
she was able to dodge most of the bandit leader's attacks, although 
she seemed to wear herself out doing so.

As Lyn managed to strike the killing blow, Mark immediately grabbed 
both horses and rode across the bridge.

As soon as he reached the plainswoman, Mark dismounted. "Are you all 
right, Lyn?" he asked, crouching over her, in concern.

She nodded wearily, as she leaned against her sword. "I'm fine... A 
bit winded, but fine."

Mark looked relieved. Just then, the two cavalry soldiers rode up 
to them.

"Are you folks all right?" asked Kent.

Mark nodded. "We're both fine. Did you two find that other bandit?" 
he asked them.

Sain saluted. "Yep. Kent took care of that last snake in the grass."

Mark wiped his forehead. "Thank goodness... I can't believe we all 
got out of that alive," he gasped, breathing a sigh of relief.

***

"Thanks for the help, you two," Lyn told the cavalrymen, as she and 
Mark mounted up.

"Don't mention it, li'l lady," grinned Sain.

"I reckon we should introduce ourselves properly, now that that's 
all sorted out," said Kent. "My name is Kent Morgan, and my 
partner here is Sain Steele... As you know, we're both soldiers 
in the cavalry, but we were actually sent out here from our 
outpost in Sierra."

"Sierra?" asked Mark. "But that's several miles away from where 
we are now... What are you two doing way out here?"

"We have orders to go and find someone," explained Sain.

"Find someone...?" began Lyn slowly.

Kent nodded. "We're lookin' for a Miss Madeline, who ran off 
with a plainsman several years ago."

Mark noticed Lyn's eyes widen, as Kent continued his explanation.

Apparently, both cavalrymen were sent by the Mayor of Sierra 
himself, in search of his daughter, Madeline. Madeline had been 
the Mayor's only daughter; heartbroken that she would leave him 
in such a manner, he eventually disowned her.

According to Kent, the Mayor had just recently recieved a letter 
from Madeline, saying that she, her husband and her daughter were 
living happily on the Sacramento Plains.

"You should've seen the look on his face, ma'am, when he found 
out he was a grandfather," interrupted Sain, with a grin. "I've 
never seen the Mayor look so happy before!"

Kent nodded again, then fixed Lyn with a penetrating gaze. "His 
granddaughter's name is Lynette... And that just happened to be 
the name of the Mayor's late wife, who died at a young age."

"Lynette..." said Lyn softly.

"It was his granddaughter's name that let the Mayor forgive his 
daughter," explained Sain. "He was hopin' that he could meet 
his daughter's family just once, but..." 

The soldier trailed off, as Kent shook his head, sadly.

"We only learned shortly after we arrived at Burning Gulch that 
Miss Madeline died just after she wrote that letter." 

"But we also heard that her daughter was still alive, and livin' 
all by her lonesome on the plains," added Sain.

Kent continued to stare at Lyn, who had been avoiding his gaze.

"I reckoned I knew who you were the moment I saw you... You're 
Lynette Windrunner, aren't you?"

Lyn looked up, to meet his eyes. "Wha... What makes you say 
that?"

"Let's just say that you look a lot like your mother, ma'am,"
explained Kent.

"You mean... You've met my mother?" asked Lyn, in surprise.

Kent tugged at his hat sheepishly. "'Fraid not, miss... But I 
do recall seeing photographs of her in the Mayor's office."

"Only my mother and father ever called me Lynette," said 
Lyn softly, mostly to herself. "The rest of the tribe always 
called me Lyn."

"I thought that I had lost everyone that I held dear to me. 
But now... I have a grandfather? It's almost too much for me 
to take in, at once..." Mark and the cavalryman could only 
gaze at her with quiet sympathy.

"Hold on!" she blurted out, suddenly. "That bandit leader also 
knew that my name was really Lynette!"

"But... How could that be?" asked Mark. "Didn't you just 
say that only your family knew you by your full name?" The 
cavalrymen exchanged a knowing glance.

"He must've be one of Lundgren's hired thugs," growled Sain. 
"That no-good sidewinder!"

"Who's Lundgren?" asked Lyn.

"He's the Mayor's younger brother," explained Kent. "With 
your mother gone, everyone thought that he'd inherit your 
grandfather's money and land. But with you being Madeline's 
daughter and all, now you'd stand to inherit the entire 
family fortune."

"M-m-me?" Lyn stammered. "But I'm not interested in that sort 
of thing!"

"I reckon that Lundgren doesn't believe that, ma'am," said 
Sain, grimly. "That's why we're here... To protect you."

"You should come back with us, to Sierra," added Kent. "It 
just ain't safe for you to be travelling alone."

Lyn cast a worried gaze at Mark. "Give me a moment to think 
about this, all right?" she told the cavalrymen.

Kent opened his mouth to protest, but Sain nudged him, 
causing him to fall silent. 

"Take your time, ma'am," said the soldier, tipping his hat 
respectfully.

Lyn took Mark aside, and spoke in a low voice. "What do you 
think, Mark? Should we go with them?"

Mark shook his head at her. "This should be your decision, 
Lyn. It's your family we're talking about here."

"I promised to protect you, though," she protested. "It'll be 
more dangerous if you come with us..."

"I'd probably be safer travelling with you and two cavalrymen 
rather than by myself," pointed out Mark, wryly. When Lyn 
opened her mouth to object, he then added, with a sigh, "But 
if you're asking my opinion, I think you should go with them, 
too."

"But... You are coming with us, right?" she asked him, in 
a worried tone.

Mark was surprised by her question. "If you'll have me, sure... 
I'd be happy to come with you."

Lyn seemed relieved at his answer. "Thanks, Mark."

The plainswoman then turned back to Kent and Sain. "All right, 
I'll come back to Sierra with you two... But on one condition: 
that you protect my friend, as well as myself."

Kent nodded. "Of course, ma'am."

Sain tipped his hat at her. "Happy to oblige."

Mark found himself blushing at this. "That really isn't 
necessary, Lyn..." he stammered.

"It's part of our job, sir," pointed out Kent.

Sain grinned at Mark. "Don't worry about it, kiddo."

Kiddo? thought Mark, rather annoyed. I'm twenty years old! 
He began wishing (again) that he didn't look so young (or 
short) for his age...

His mood then brightened, as Mark saw Lyn's eyes sparkle with 
more enthusiasm than he had ever seen before.

"Well, then... What are we waiting for, boys?" she asked them. 
"Let's head to Sierra!"

"To Sierra!" cheered Sain. Lyn's excitement seemed to have 
infected him as well, as he reared his horse up on two legs. 

Then the four rode off, heading southwest to Sierra... And 
towards Lyn's destiny.


TO BE CONTINUED...

*****

First off, please don't kill me for Sain's accent. XP (Although, I 
have been told that it is reminiscent of Sain's odd speech patterns 
in the original Japanese, so I'll just have to take their word for 
it. ;)

Oh, and in case anyone is curious about which placename refers 
to what location, here's a quick guide: Burning Gulch = Bulgar; 
Atlas Ridge = Etruria, La Sienna = Lycia; Austin City = Ostia, 
Phoenix Rise = Pharae, Sierra = Caelin. 

(If you're wondering how I got Sierra from Caelin, it was actually 
inspired by the original translation, which was "Ciaran"; in fact, 
it is still written like that on the official map of Elibe!)

***

Copyright, Aviatrix8, 2007. Fire Emblem and all related characters 
are property of Nintendo et al., and are used without permission. 

    Source: geocities.com/aviatrix8