AN: I had some free time and most of this was already written, so I thought I might as well post it.
It has been ten years since the ancient earth dragon Grima awakened from his millennium long slumber and brought the world to the edge of ruin. The mortal kingdoms that once covered the world have been all but crushed by the power of the God of Death and all those strong enough to challenge him silenced. Massive hordes of vile Risen creatures, animated from the remains of those who tried to resist the Fell Dragon's onslaught, have overrun all but a handful of human holdouts. The great armies that once marched across the land have been reduced to rag-tagged bands of raiders desperately fleeing the might of Grima and his servants. Not even the most fortified of their remaining strongholds offers anything except a temporary sanctuary as the fanatical followers of the Fell Dragon have infiltrated all levels of mortal society, from the smallest village all the way to the courts of the realm's kingdoms. Besieged with within and without, only the most determined and resourceful handful have survived a mere decade of Grima's rule.
The once seemingly unstoppable Valmese Empire was the first to fall, not only to the power of the Fell Dragon, but also the machinations of the insidious Grimleal Cult dedicated to his awakening. The death of Emperor Walhart the Conqueror at the hands of the naive and headstrong young Exalt Chrom of Ylisse shattered the unity of the only force that could challenge the Fell Dragon. With the death of their charismatic leader, the empire quickly fractured into a chaotic collection of warring states, each led either by one of the empire's former warlords or a rebel faction too scared of the Conqueror's might to challenge him while he still lived. In their disorganized state, these scattered factions were no much for the Grimleal and, one by one, the Valmese Empire was slowly rebuilt in service of the Fell Dragon under the leadership of the self-proclaimed Emperor Excellus. The only organized opposition to the forces of Grima is the besieged kingdom of Zofia, whose lands are constantly ravaged by brigands, Risen and cultists. The only sanctuary remaining is the crumbling Zofia Castle, where rumors of an ancient power dating back to the founding of the original Valmese Empire have given the people a small measure of hope, but which have also attracted the attention of the Grimleal.
Across the ocean, the fallen Kingdom of Plegia has been completely consumed by the power of the Fell Dragon, whose dark magic has twisted the land itself into a corrupted wasteland filled with roaming packs of Risen monstrosities. The people of Plegia have been driven mad by their prolonged exposure to the resting place of the Fell Dragon and almost every man, woman and child has joined the ranks of the Grimleal under the control of an unknown entity now residing within the ruined Pregia Castle. The massive skeletal remains of the Fell Dragon are long gone, leaving behind a massive crevice within the ground from which entire hordes of misshapen beasts crawl out of to feast upon the enthralled citizens of the kingdom. The Grimleal have turned the infamous Dragon's Table into their stronghold and offer daily human sacrifices to the Fell Dragon to continue strengthening their master for some unknown purpose. All those who do not submit to the Grimleal are brought before the dark shrine and ritually slain, but, with a dwindling number of potential victims, the Grimleal have even turned against some of their own, butchering once loyal cultists without a moment of hesitation. Some members of the cult have attempted to flee, but they are ruthlessly hunted down by their former comrades or forced to leave as exiles due to the hatred they face among other refugees.
To the north, on the plains of Regna Ferox, a massive civil war unlike anything the country has seen in recent memory is being fought between the East and the West. The death of the Great Khan Basilio at the hands of Walhart a decade ago has shattered the short-lived unity of the country. Flavia, Khan of the East, attempted to name herself the new Great Khan with the blessing of her predecessor and comrade-in-arms, but her ascension was blocked by a coalition of Western tribes who denounced her attempt to grab power as treachery and even alleged that she was responsible for sending their beloved Khan to his death, along with thousands of other Feroxi soldiers during the war. Faced with civil war, Flavia had no choice but to host a new tournament to decide who would become the new Great Khan. To her horror, however, the champions who appeared at the duel were nothing more than common brigands backed by agents of the Grimleal. During the fight, Flavia's champions soon began to fall victim to suspicious deaths ranging from poisoning to assassination. Realizing the threat of allowing Ferox to be ruled by puppets of the Grimleal, Flavia declared the entire tournament invalid and marshalled her forces for the civil war that she knew the Grimleal wanted all along. Supported by traitors within Flavia's own army, entire legions of sell-swords hired with funding from the Grimleal and hordes of Risen creatures, the so-called 'Twin Khans' Victor and Vincent have conquered almost all of Northern and Western Ferox. Despite support from her old allies from Ylisse, Flavia's forces have been steadily driven back into the Southeastern corner of the vast kingdom, where they plan to make one final stand at the fortified stronghold known as the Longfort with the support of their Ylissean allies.
Across the border, however, Ylisse finds itself on the verge of collapse as the number of Risen attacks on towns increase at an alarming rate, while more and more bandits pour across the Plegian border, preying on the refugees attempting to flee from the undead hordes. The deaths of the charismatic young Exalt Chrom and his wife during Grima's resurrection was a crippling blow to the kingdom's morale that it never recovered from, especially so soon after the death of Chrom's beloved sister, Emmeryn. With Crown Princess Lucina still a child, Princess Lissa was forced to ascend to the throne, but, at her coronation, the Hierarch of the Faith, the most trusted adviser of the former Exalt Emmeryn, refused to give his blessing to his old friend's sister and accused Lissa of having no claim to the throne due to her illegitimate birth, as evident by her lack of the unmistakable Brand of the Exalt that all those of the royal bloodline possess. The Hierarch than revealed that the true heir to the throne was the secret son of Exalt Chrom, who has been taking refuge in Plegia under the protection of the Grimleal. Realizing that this is just an attempt by the Grimleal to take over Ylisse, Lissa and the rest of the Shepherds refused to acknowledge the so-called 'Exalt Morgan' and prepared for the inevitable war with Plegia. Sure enough, their ancient nemesis immediately launched a massive invasion of the Halidom with the full support of the Grimleal. The kingdom itself was fractured between those who believe that this schism is simply a lie created by Plegia to justify an invasion of Ylisse and those who believe that these claims hold merit, either due to their own secret loyalty to the Grimleal or a mistaken trust in the corrupt Hierarch of the Faith.
Across every continent and in every kingdom, the agents of the Grimleal work to bring the world to an end in accordance with their insane master's vision. The faithful look to the Dragon Goddess for aid, but her silence and the destruction of the sacred Mila Tree has shattered the faith of many once loyal followers, leaving them vulnerable to the insidious lies of the Grimleal. Hope that the imminent end of the world can be averted is rapidly fading, but, using the last of her energy, the Dragon Goddess has embarked on a desperate plan…
You grew up in this time of chaos at the end of the world. Your name is:
[ ] Write-In
(AN: Recruit and Scoundrel are male. Squire, Apprentice and Heir are female.)
...And you are:
[ ] Squire
"On my honor and life, I pledge to protect the innocent and combat evil wherever it might take root. From this day until my last, I will serve the Exalt and the Halidom with all my heart."
A young noblewoman of Ylisse whose family has loyally served the Exalt and the Dragon Goddess for generations, she was trained from childhood to become one of the gallant knights of the Halidom.
Inventory: Iron Lance, Gradivus, Vulnerary
Available Classes: Cavalier, Soldier, Knight, Pegasus Rider
Story-Line: Defend Ylisse from foreign invaders and swelling hordes of Risen monstrosities as one of the newest members of the Shepherds under the command of the young Princess Lucina, niece of the Exalt Lissa.
[ ] Recruit
"These outsiders come into our home and dare to tell us what we need to do? Listening to them is what caused this mess in the first place. I will not spill our blood on their wars any longer."
A young nomadic tribesman from Regna Ferox whose clan has fought across the continent for generations, he has become so accustomed to war that you view it as simply a part of life and the natural state of things.
Inventory: Iron Axe, Gules, Vulnerary
Available Classes: Nomad, Mercenary, Fighter, Apothecary
Story-Line: Help guide your tribe across the plains of Regna Ferox in order to escape the corrupted followers of the Khans of the East and then decide the part your people will play in the civil war.
[ ] Apprentice
"I will have my revenge against the Grimleal, with or without you. I'm not pretending I care about your people, but if you want them to live, then you better listen to what I have to say."
A Plegian orphan whose parents were killed in the Mad King's war against Ylisse and was raised by the Grimleal, she was trained by them in the magical arts to help advance their agenda but deserted them when the Grimleal turned against their own.
Inventory: Nosferatu, Imhullu, Concoction
Available Classes: Mage, Shaman, Cleric, Troubadour
Story-Line: Earn the trust of the Plegian resistance movement and use them to help you get your revenge against those who kidnapped you as a child and then tried to murder you when you learned the truth.
[ ] Scoundrel
"This 'war' has been over for ten years, ever since that dragon killed everybody. There is no war, just survival, and you don't survive by making yourself a target."
A former street urchin who grew up in the shady back-alleys of Valm and had to struggle just to survive to the next day, he quickly picked up a wide array of useful skills that allowed him to become rather infamous in his home district.
Inventory: Bronze Dagger, Rift Door, Concoction
Available Classes: Thief, Merchant, Myrmidon, Archer
Story-Line: Help guide a band of scattered refugees through the war-torn continent of Valm, where warlords fight over ruined cities and burnt down villages while the Risen rampage unopposed across the countryside.
[ ] Heir
"As the rightful heir to the Kingdom of Valm and by the grace of the Twin Gods, you will order your people to lay down their weapons and swear allegiance to me or I will destroy them."
A direct descendant of the ancient king who founded the original Valmese Empire and the heir of a fallen royal house that was annexed by Walhart, everything she had accomplished was judged by the nigh-unattainable standards of a mythical hero.
Inventory: Royal Sword, Falchion, Elixir
Available Classes: Lord, Tactician, Dark Mage, Wyvern Knight
Story-Line: Reclaim your birthright as the ruler of Valm while protecting your subjects from the followers of Grima and other pretenders who seek to claim the ancient empire founded by your ancestor.
AN: This is an old idea I've tinkered with for months now. I thought about reworking it for Fates, but, now that I actually played it, I realized how bad the story was, so I'm sticking with Awakening. There will be a future choice to jump to another world, so that option is still kind of there, if you guys really want to go down that route.
Next update will be geared toward selecting your stats and starting abilities.