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The Scouring
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| “ | Man and dragon once coexisted in harmony. However, man shattered that harmony with a sudden onslaught. A great war now known as the Scouring was fought for dominion of the land. Losses were tremendous for both sides, and in this war the very laws of nature itself were twisted and distorted, bringing chaos and unease... Defeated and humbled, the dragons disappeared from the realm. Mankind then began to rebuild and repopulate their newly won land. A millennium has passed since then... | ” | — The Opening of Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade |
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The Scouring (Japanese: 人竜戦役 Human-Dragon War) was a war that occurred in the ancient history of the continent of Elibe, happening 1000 years before the events of Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade and Hasha no Tsurugi, and 980 years before The Blazing Blade. The war was fought between mankind and dragons, and while the details of what exactly caused the war are uncertain, what is known is that humanity was the one who initially declared war.
Most of Elibe's residents are familiar with the story of the Scouring; however, the widely-related version of the events differs significantly from the true history of the war, framing dragons as the cause. The first modern Elibean to learn the true history of the Scouring was King Zephiel of Bern, who incited a war of his own, the Disturbance of Bern, in order to rectify its outcome and return Elibe to dragon control.
Contents
Overview
Early stages
When mankind declared war on dragons, the two sides clashed in battle. Though many humans were killed at the dragons' hands, they still vastly outnumbered the dragons due to their superior ability to reproduce. Eventually, this numerical advantage overwhelmed the dragons. In order to compensate, the dragons sought to create a demon dragon capable of producing the soulless war dragons as soldiers.[1]
The demon dragon
However, the divine dragon tribe, who would have to subject one of their own to becoming the demon dragon, refused, as they considered the idea of a demon dragon an affront to nature. This conflict led to the divine dragons fleeing altogether and withdrawing from the war. Most of them could no longer be found, but one divine dragon, Idunn, hesitated in fleeing with her tribe and was captured for it.
She was transformed into a demon dragon by force, though Idunn refused to obey the dragons' commands. To nullify her resistance, they destroyed her soul.[1] The subsequent creation of the war dragons allowed the dragons to turn the tides of war.[2]
The legendary weapons
Mankind came to learn of the demon dragon's existence. With their numerical advantage nullified, mankind focused on creating weapons capable of slaying dragons. These were the eight legendary weapons, entrusted to humanity's strongest warriors who came to be known as the Eight Legends.[2] With these weapons in hand, the Eight Legends advanced into what would become Bern, where the dragons resided. When they charged upon the Dragon Temple, however, a terrible calamity occurred.
Ending Winter
This calamity was the Ending Winter. When the immense power of the legendary weapons clashed with that of the dragons during their battle in the Dragon Temple, the laws of nature collapsed.[3] Many strange changes to the environment occurred during that time, such as snow falling in summer or stars shining during the daytime, affecting the entire planet.[4] Nature itself was weakened, making it impossible for dragons to maintain their forms. As a matter of necessity, the dragons sealed their power into Dragonstones and became the humanoid manaketes, since the human form took the least amount of energy to sustain under the new natural laws.[5] Few human legends of the Ending Winter remain, which solely blame the energy released by the dragons as its cause.[3]
The dragon's defeat
The manaketes were much weaker in their human forms, and thus easily slaughtered by the humans.[5] After the Eight Legends defeated the dragons' leader, they advanced deeper into the temple and found the demon dragon. However, with the leader dead, Idunn no longer had any orders to follow, instead remaining still and mute on the spot. She only retaliated on instinct when the Eight Legends raised their weapons. Hartmut put a stop to his fellow warriors' attacks. He used the Binding Blade, a weapon even stronger than the legendary weapons, against Idunn. The Binding Blade sensed Hartmut's desire not to kill Idunn, and so the blow that Hartmut inflicted put Idunn to sleep rather than killing her.[6]
With nearly all dragons involved in the battle dead and the demon dragon sealed, the Scouring came to an end with mankind as the clear victor.
Aftermath
Due to the Scouring's massive impact on Elibe's history, the end of the Scouring became year 0 of the Elibean calendar.
Sealing of the legendary weapons
Following the Ending Winter, the humans became aware of the terrible power the legendary weapons held. To keep the weapons from human hands, the Eight Legends sealed the legendary weapons away in scattered locations across Elibe.[7] The weapons' resting places were hidden, riddled with traps, or both, as well as under an additional magical seal cast by Bramimond of the Eight Legends.[8]
This seal was broken in the year 980 as Eliwood, Hector, and Lyn sought weapons to defeat the sorcerer Nergal, though the weapons were returned to their resting places after. During the Disturbance of Bern, the united army lead by Roy of Pherae competed against Bern's army over possession of the weapons. Roy successfully obtained all eight after defeating Zephiel, in addition to the Binding Blade, which he then used to open the Dragon Temple and free Idunn.
Potentially because of their time spent sealed, the legendary weapons greatly diminished in power over the years, to the point that the risk of another Ending Winter no longer exists.[9]
The Eight Legends
Many of the Eight Legends went on to found the modern nations of Elibe after the Scouring. Saint Elimine founded Etruria and left behind the Elimine Church. She was said to have ascended to heaven.[10] Roland founded Lycia, and his spirit protected his weapon, Durandal, until it was briefly used by Eliwood in the year 980, whereas Durban founded a warrior clan on the Western Isles, and his spirit protected Armads until it was used by Hector at the same time as Durandal. Hanon's fate is unknown, though her weapon, Mulagir, was hidden in her homeland of Sacae.
Hartmut founded the kingdom of Bern, entrusting Eckesachs to his descendants, though the Binding Blade was hidden in the Shrine of Seals. Its seal could only be opened by the Fire Emblem, a gemstone Hartmut also left to his descendants.
Only Athos and Bramimond survived, both for nearly a thousand years. Athos traveled the land, eventually coming across Arcadia together with his peer Nergal. He and Nergal erected a barrier to protect Arcadia, and Athos settled there for many years.[11] Bramimond, on the other hand, remained in slumber beneath the Shrine of Seals together with its weapon, Apocalypse. Athos perished during the final battle against Nergal in the year 980, with Bramimond following suit after.[12]
The legacies of the Eight Legends were pivotal in shaping Elibe, and informed the conflict that would follow in the year 1000 with the Disturbance of Bern.
Survival of the dragons
Though many dragons died during the Scouring, some survived through various methods.
Some humans and dragons wished to remain living in harmony. This group established a hidden village in the Nabata Desert of the Missur Peninsula, where they remained isolated from the outside world.[13] Many half-dragons came to call the village of Arcadia home under the protection of a line of Guardians.[14] About 500 years after the Scouring, Arcadia came under the protection of Athos of the Eight Legends,[15] and the village largely remained in secrecy until the Disturbance of Bern, when it was discovered by Bern's forces.[16] It also served as the resting place for Athos' legendary weapon Forblaze.
Other dragons fled the entire world altogether, and passed through a portal known as the Dragon's Gate, though many dragons were lost during the trip. Among these dragons were members of the fire dragon and ice dragon tribes. Humans also exist in this other world, but the two peoples found peace after only skirmishes. However, the exact nature of this other world remains a mystery.[17] Only dragons, or those of draconic descent, can open the gate and pass between worlds.[18]
The dragon Jahn was the only one to survive the battle in the Dragon Temple,[19] where he remained in hiding to recover from his wounds until King Zephiel of Bern reawakened Idunn.[20]
Human legends
The tale of the Scouring is taught to most humans in Elibe. However, the legend as told by humans solely blames dragons for causing the Ending Winter. Though it is known as the point in time in which dragons began taking human forms, the reason for this was lost. In the year 1000, only withered scrolls remain that testify to the true course of events.[21]
Trivia
- During Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade, the following living persons were also alive during the Scouring: Athos, Bramimond, Jahn, Nergal, Ninian, Nils, and Idunn.
- During Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade, which takes place 20 years later, the following of the previous list are known to have died: Athos, Bramimond, Nergal, and Ninian (if she stayed with Eliwood).
Etymology and other languages
| Names, etymology, and in other regions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Language | Name | Definition, etymology, and notes |
| English |
The Scouring |
Occasionally referred to as "The Dragon-Human War" in some dialogue.[22] |
| Japanese |
人竜戦役 |
Human-Dragon War |
| Spanish |
La Batida |
The Beating |
| French |
Le Purgatoire |
The Purgatory |
| German |
Die Befreiung |
The Liberation |
| Italian |
Sterminio |
Extermination |
| Portuguese |
A Batida |
The Beating |
| Traditional Chinese |
人龍戰役 |
Human–dragon war |
Gallery
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Official artwork depicting the Scouring from Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade. -
The Scouring, as depicted in the opening of Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade.
References
| Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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