[Fire Emblem Fates Novelization.]
Nohrian twins Princess Kassandra and Prince Norton have been estranged for six years: separated by stone, distance and hearts. When they're kidnapped by Hoshido and told of their true lineage, they're suddenly drawn...
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Princess Kassandra of Nohr
Five days of riding alone felt almost as long as my time spent in the Northern Fortress.
I hadn't really thought about how empty Nohr was until that journey. There had always been something else filling my thoughts. The first time I'd ridden through the country, it was excitement at seeing Castle Krakenburg and being able to live with my siblings. When I'd been travelling to the border with Norton, I'd focused almost entirely on trying to bridge the distance between us. And when I'd ridden back to the castle with Xander, all I had been able to think about was the choice I'd made to be with him.
But now I was alone and in charge, neither of which I'd been before. I had to stop Zodiac and consult my map almost every half hour to check if I was going in the right direction. It wasn't like there were many people around who I could ask for help. Nohr was mostly wasteland that stretched for miles, with only two variations: dark forests and desolate towns.
I knew that people lived in the latter, for I did occasionally see someone on the road or a curtain twitching in a window. But mostly, the world was so empty that I felt as if I was riding through one never-ending graveyard.
When I rode past my first Dusk Dragon temple, I realised that I was.
It was a long, black, crumbling building, with thick spikes protruding from all sides. A body hung from each, heads drooping over the ropes around their necks.
Chills raced down my spine. I looked around. There was still no one to be seen on the dark streets, but my instincts were screaming for me to flee. I shifted, preparing to kick Zodiac into a gallop out of town.
At the last moment, I changed my mind. I was Princess Kassandra of Nohr. And my people were dead.
I rode up to the outer wall that surrounded the temple, and I watched the bodies swing in the cold breeze. The whistle of the wind and the creak of the ropes was the only sound apart from my breathing.
The bodies were fresh -- fresh enough to be identifiable to their loved ones. They all looked Nohrian.
I remembered the first words Norton had spoken when we'd met again in Castle Krakenburg. "Our mission was successful. The rebels have been exterminated."
These bodies couldn't have been his work, but truly understanding Captain Norton's achievements turned my blood cold. He'd killed our people...and displayed them.
These Nohrians must have been rebels. But what had they rebelled against? Had they been a danger to my family? Or had they simply not followed an order -- like me, Xander, Camilla, Leo, Elise, and even Norton?
Again, I promised myself that I would change things. Again, I told myself that it couldn't be now. I had to be part of the family to make a change, and if I didn't succeed in my own mission, I'd end up on a spike.
