Childhood + Adolescence: 

Birth & The Ashen Demon

“Emotions are strange but I am not devoid of them..”

 Born to Jeralt and Sitri on the 20th of the Horsebow Moon 1159, Beresu lost her mother shortly after her birth. Sitri was buried at Garreg Mach Monastery. Some time after her death, Jeralt left the Knights of Seiros and took his newborn daughter with him to travel Fódlan. He later became a mercenary and started his own mercenary company. During her childhood, Jeralt shared little information about the world, the Church of Seiros and especially his past. Beresu never learned her true birthdate, Jeralt claiming she was born to a woman who supposedly died of illness. As a child Beresu was very active and always got herself into trouble due to her adventurous spirit. Although Jeralt wanted to give her a safe sheltered life he found it impossible to settle due to his line of work which was the only thing keeping them from poverty. Furthermore he never wanted to part from Sitri’s last gift to him. In his heart he wanted to protect Beresu from the Church he feared would one day hunt her down. Jeralt did the only thing he could think of and trained Beresu in combat. Eventually, by her own choice and Jeralt’s permission, she joined his band of mercenaries and gained a fearsome reputation in her adolescence for her unflinching courage in battle. She would soon be known as the "Ashen Demon". Due to her unusual childhood she couldn’t understand the distinction between a friend and an ally. To her they were one in the same.

Adulthood Part I: Academy Days

 “They all had a glint in their eyes. Even back then they were alone in their burdens..”

 Woken up from a strange dream Jeralt reminded Beresu that their next job would bring them to the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, but a sudden uproar occurred when three students from the Officers Academy, Edelgard, Dimitri, and Claude approached the two, seeking assistance with bandits who were trying to kill and plunder the trio. The three lords, with the aid of Beresu and Jeralt, managed to dispatch most of the bandits. When their leader attempted to kill Edelgard, Beresu recklessly dashed forward to take a blow in her stead. Just as Beresu was about to die, time froze and Beresu encountered Sothis, the green-haired girl from her dreams. She and Beresu realized that they could rewind time to prevent Beresu's impending demise. The flow of time reversed, and Beresu was able to push Edelgard out of the way and disarmed the leader. Reinforcements from the Knights of Seiros shortly arrived afterward and one of there members, Alois, recognized Jeralt. He invited the two to visit Garreg Mach Monastery, and they complied. Before departing, Beresu conversed with the house lords, each of them impressed by her skill. On the way to the Monastery Beresu engaged in lively conversation with the interesting trio. Her subdued glee stemmed from rarely interacting with people around her age.

 Upon arrival the Archbishop of the Church of Seiros, Rhea, thanked Beresu for saving the students. Impressed by her skill, she offered Beresu the opportunity to teach the students of the Officer's Academy as a professor. Despite Jeralt's wariness, Beresu accepted the position after Jeralt himself was asked to rejoin the Knights of Seiros. After years of cutting down enemies she wanted to know what it was like to really be a part of other people’s lives in a meaningful way.  However Jeralt privately warned Beresu not to trust Rhea. Having took Jeralt’s words to heart, from that point on Beresu often scrutinized Rhea’s actions and kept a wary eye on her. Later one of Beresu's fellow professors, Hanneman, asked Beresu to use his special device to determine if she held a crest. To both their astonishment, Beresu possessed a never before seen crest. Its mysteries helped further Beresu’s curiosities seeing that crests held meaning within the Church and all of Fódlan.

 After taking time to talk to the three house leaders and learning more about the students in each of their houses, Beresu chose to serve as the professor of the Blue Lion House led by Dimitri, future king of the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus. From then on she would instruct them primarily in combat as that was her specialty as a mercenary. Alongside that she also worked with her students to polish other aspects of their education. As part of their duties, Officer Academy students were given tasks each month by the Church. The first month was a true bonding experience as Beresu led her class to victory in the mock battle of Eagle and Lion. By the second month they were tasked with a real combat mission and it was this first mission that marked the beginning of a long string of events behind a greater conspiracy. In later months Beresu visited her mother’s grave with Jeralt for the first time since coming to the Monastery. Although she felt no real grief over the woman, she understood how deeply her father missed her. Jeralt then showed Beresu a ring he had given to her mother and promised to give it to her one day so that she could give it to someone she loved. That month Beresu’s class was tasked with recovering a Heroes Relic, a weapon said to have been forged by the Goddess herself like the Sword of the Creator.

 In a later month several Academy students began going missing after exploring a nearby abandoned chapel. Beresu, her class, and Jeralt investigated the ruins only to encounter several students being attacked by monsters. They were able to defeat the monsters, but discovered that the beasts were actually transformed students. Among the students rescued was Monica, who thanked Jeralt. However, with his back turned, Monica took out a dagger and plunged it into his back. Beresu desperately used Divine Pulse to prevent his death, but Thales, an enemy, appeared in the rewound time and deflected Beresu's attempt to stop Monica. Unable to prevent his assassination, Beresu held Jeralt as he died. His last words noting it was the first time he had ever seen his daughter cry. Despite death being a prevailing part of her life, the loss of her father made Beresu realize that nothing is more agonizing than the death of a loved one. It was the first time she wished she had been born without emotions. In the aftermath, Beresu fell into a disparaging grief as new emotions wracked her body. With time and patience Dimitri was able to provide comfort to Beresu and implored her to keep moving forward as Jeralt would have wanted that for his only child. Honoring her late father's request, Beresu uncovered his diary and it recounted his growing distrust in the Church and Rhea. It also covered Beresu’s infancy. He also left behind Sitri's ring, which he wanted Beresu to have in order to give to her lover when the time came for her to find her own happiness. However such an idea seemed so distant when she would never hear her father call her “kiddo” again. In this dark chapter she had grown closer to Sothis and Dimitri.

 After she recovered somewhat emotionally, the Pegasus Moon month held a grand ball held for the three houses to dance with one another. At the request of each of the house leaders and her class, Beresu danced with each one of them. Dimitri being her favorite. That night the Blue Lions gathered to reminisce about their year. They realized that their time in the school would only last for a little while longer so they all decided that they would meet again together as a class in five years for the Millennium Festival. Dimitri, alone with Beresu, revealed that he and Edelgard are step-siblings, though they only spent a short time together. Before she left, he gave her a dagger as a present to which Beresu found silly but endearing. 

 Nearby, he caught a glimpse of the Flame Emperor conversing with Thales. When he stepped in to confront them, the two teleported away, but Dimitri discovered a dagger on the ground where the Flame Emperor was.

 After learning the whereabouts of Kronya, her father's killer, Beresu confronted her in the Sealed Forest, bent on revenge, and with the assistance of her class, they cornered her. However, Solon appeared and sacrificed Kronya to activate a ritual, sending Beresu into a dark void. As Beresu and Sothis were left helpless, Sothis remembered that she was the true progenitor god of Fódlan. With no other means to escape, Sothis volunteered to merge with Beresu, granting her the full extent of her divine powers, but at the cost of her consciousness disappearing from her. Their resulting fusion caused a surge of power to erupt around Beresu, turning her hair light green and unlocking the true power of the Sword of the Creator. The sword was able to cleave a portal back into Fódlan and Beresu used it to kill Solon. Although justice had been served, it did little to soothe the grief of her dead father. Furthermore Sothis’s ‘death’ added to her inner sorrow. To make matters worse those outside of her class began to question whether or not Beresu was ‘herself’ which led to a minor identity crisis as she tried to convince others that she was still herself.

 Upon returning to the monastery, Rhea led Beresu to the Holy Tomb to sit on the throne to awaken her true power but in reality sought to reawaken Sothis as the dominant soul. Suddenly, the Holy Tomb was besieged by the Flame Emperor and some hired bandits determined to steal the Crest Stones stored there. The Blue Lion class was able to stop most of the bandits and recovered as many Crest Stones as they could. Left with the Flame Emperor, during a great clash, the mask of the Emperor was knocked off, revealing that Edelgard had been the Flame Emperor the entire time. The revelation of the Flame Emperor's identity as Edelgard caused Dimitri to snap as his suspicions were confirmed that the two were one. Having believed to have caused the Tragedy of Duscur which resulted in the death of his father, his step-mother (Edelgard's birth mother), and countless others, Dimitri flew into a berserker's rage that not even Beresu could not quell. With Edelgard’s intentions revealed, she retreated and her first act as new Emperor of Adrestia was to declare war on the Church of Seiros.

 Beresu led the Blue Lions as the first line of defense against the Empire, even facing off against Edelgard herself. Edelgard regretted not having Beresu on her side and the two clashed, but Beresu emerged victorious. A sudden second wave of Adrestian soldiers charged the monastery and its worn soldiers, forcing Rhea to unleash her true form as a dragon. Seeing her struggle against Demonic Beasts, Beresu went against her orders and tried to help her. Thales then appeared on the battlefield and casted an orb of magic, causing Beresu to plummet over a cliff into the valley below the monastery. Eventually the Monastery lost the battle and the students, faculty, and knights were forced to evacuate, especially with Rhea and Beresu having gone missing in the aftermath. Many would search for her, but none were able to find Beresu’s body.

Adulthood Part II: War
 

 “It felt as if no time had passed..”

Beresu miraculously survived, being discovered in a river near a village where a villager informed her that five years had passed. Not knowing what else to do Beresu headed back to the only place she felt at home: the Monastery-- which was now in ruins. There she encountered a solitary figure, a battle-worn Dimitri. Feral and haunted by his past. Beresu couldn’t believe her eyes. The five years had changed the once chivalrous prince into a ruthless and frigid warrior. Believing Beresu to be yet another specter of an important loved one he failed to protect, Dimitri headed into a local village near the monastery that had been pillaged by bandits, bent on dealing justice to them. Beresu, unable to wring him in, followed him. Together they fought off a horde of bandits. As the battle unfolded, Gilbert and the Blue Lion core members joined the fray, fulfilling their promise to reunite. The Blue Lions are elated to have found not only Dimitri, but also Beresu who was missing for five years. The sole member still unaccounted for was Dedue, who was supposedly executed after helping Dimitri escape the Kingdom after he was sentenced to death by the Kingdom's current leader, Cornelia.

 With the Monastery back under their control, they used it as their base of operations as they sought assistance from the few Kingdom nobility resisting Cornelia's rule and plotted to kill Edelgard to stop her conquest. Dimitri, consumed by his quest for vengeance, led the army into aggressive battles against Imperial Forces. Beresu followed along with Dimitri's initial goals to attack the Empire, but the forsaken prince's actions became more and more reckless. Due to both Gilbert's wisdom and Beresu's guidance, Dimitri's choices were mitigated enough that the others were not put entirely at risk. 

 At this time Dimitri became a recluse and spent his days in self isolation within the destroyed church of the Monastery. Beresu did her best to console and comfort Dimitri but nothing she did was enough to break him from his guilt and sorrow. Despite the setbacks with Dimitri, Beresu reconnected with her other students and she formed a deeper bond with Seteth and the rest of the staff. With Seteth seeing Beresu as her own person he divulged certain information regarding his and Flayn’s identities as well as information about Rhea herself. Although secrets still lingered, Beresu learned to trust Seteth and Flayn and saw them as family like she does with the rest of the Blue Lions. 

 With the full Blue Lions house reunited and the Great Bridge of Myrddin under their army's control, the event forced the Empire and Alliance to meet Beresu and Dimitri's army at Gronder Field in a situation that echoed the mock battle from five years prior. The clash of the three armies led to many casualties. Many of them have been performed by Beresu to prevent her students from slaying old friends. Every death took a toll on Beresu’s heart. The Blue Lions emerged victorious, forcing Claude to retreat and his surviving forces to retreat. Edelgard was severely wounded, but was able to escape. Dimitri vowed to chase after her by himself but Beresu, Gilbert, and Rodrigue stop him from going off on his self-imposed suicide mission.

Suddenly, a young girl rushed onto the battlefield and attacked Dimitri, inflicting a heavy wound. Just as she was about to deal the killing blow, Rodrigue stepped in and sacrificed himself, allowing Beresu the opportunity to kill the girl. This moment became a turning point for Dimitri as Rodrigue absolved Dimitri of any guilt that he may have imposed on himself by the deceased. As a heavy rain fell, Dimitri was left to wonder about his purpose. Beresu extended her hand to him, offering to continue to guide him on his path not just as his teacher but as his family. With the weight lifted from his shoulders, Dimitri returned to his old self and became more objective in his goals. He decided to first restore the rule of the Kingdom back into his hands, killing Cornelia and formally claiming his birthright. Though he was nervous to greet the masses, Beresu encouraged him to face them and Dimitri found the people of Faerghus eager to see the return of the true king. Regrouping in the Monastery, Dimitri once again joined his friends and comrades in social interactions. Back together again he sought comfort in Beresu and Beresu equally returned the feelings. 

 With the Kingdom back in their hands, Dimitri began the assault on the Adrestian Empire to stop Edelgard, though this time, he was willing to parley with Edelgard. Claiming Fort Merceus by defeating the Death Knight, Dimitri dispatched a messenger to Edelgard, asking her to parley with him in person. Edelgard heeded the request and met him and Beresu. Edelgard declared her vision for Fódlan and refused to ally with Dimitri seeing how Beresu became the embodiment of the thing she sought to destroy. No matter how much Beresu pleaded to her to change her mind the Adrestian Empire was set on their annihilation. Heartbroken that the two must cross blades, Dimitri returned the dagger she dropped five years earlier and the two departed to prepare for their final battle.

 The assault on Enbarr marked the start of the final battle as the Kingdom army overwhelmed the Empire's forces (now being joined by Claude’s forces after the dissolution of the Alliance). Cornered in the castle, Edelgard unleashed her dual Crests, transforming her into a hideous monster, granting her incredible power. The combined forces of Beresu, Dimitri, and the Blue Lions eventually take down Edelgard, causing her transformation to dispel. Left mortally wounded, Dimitri offered his hand to her and another opportunity to help him build a better future for Fódlan. Edelgard instead threw her gifted dagger at Dimitri, striking his shoulder just as he stabbed her with Areadbhar, finally killing her. The group departed the empire having ended Edelgard's ambitions. 

 “The war is over.. But the cost to its end haunts me everyday..”

 With the war over, Rhea, weakened by her time in imprisonment, stepped down as Archbishop while Beresu, albeit reluctantly, assumed the title, leading the Church of Seiros. However under her leadership various customs and practices revolving around crests drastically changed. This having been helped by Claude whom she convinced to remain by her side. Dimitri formally became the king of Faerghus, which now comprised the entirety of Fódlan. Together the former teacher and student help to lead Fódlan into a better future. Although she harbors feelings for Dimitri, Beresu has yet to propose to him. Dimitri, sensing Beresu’s internal struggle, has yet to make his feelings known as he fears it will strain the bond between them. Although Claude often reassures Beresu that she deserves happiness too, the archbishop feels it’s not her place after the crimes committed against former students. In their time together, Beresu and Claude uncover the secrets of the Church and Rhea’s role in all of it.

 In one final act of personal vengeance, Beresu, with Claude by her side, visits Rhea in her place of solitude. There they confront her with the truth and Rhea confesses her sins only to proclaim that her only regret is that her plan had not worked. In her madness she urges Beresu to sacrifice herself and bring Sothis back. Seeing that the woman is beyond help Beresu executes her with Claude as her witness. Claude promises to keep her secret and the two dispose of the body and soon it’s reported that Rhea had willingly disappeared.

 As of now Beresu splits her time between tending the Church and aiding Dimitri in the Holy Kingdom. Dimitri also moves back and forth between the Holy Kingdom and the Church. Sometimes the visits are business and other times they are for leisure. Beresu makes it a habit to have monthly reunions with her Blue Lion class. Outside of the reunions she’s always there for her students/friends when they need her. They are her core support system beside Dimitri, Claude, Seteth, and Flayn. Time is also set aside to aid the poor, rebuild the continent, and support the fallen students of Garreg Mach Monastery during Beresu’s time as professor. The majority of the people see the new Archbishop as a favorable figure though certain individuals/groups hold grudges. Despite everything Beresu has accepted her new role in Fódlan and strives to ensure the security and prosperity of all who reside there.