Three more chapters, but first, have you taken a look at the TV Tropes Mary Sue page? There's several basic categories that Sues can fall into, usually multiple at a time. Meru, as you've noticed, has had a bit of a growth into a Mary Sue. While she could have simply been written off as a Japanese girl who was rather naturally good at fighting at the beginning, she's, um, managed to pick up some luggage along the way, let's see...
- Black Hole Sue: Everything's about me! While Meru was showing signs of this around Chapter 7 by being tied in to everything as well as before that with characters automatically trusting her and her dominating the battlefield, the world didn't quite bend to her will until Chapter 12 where she starts getting powers out of the ass that would have been useful much earlier in the story and begins to start saving who she pleases regardless of whether or not it makes sense story-wise.
- Purity Sue: Since the beginning. People automatically like and trust her from the get go, no matter the insanity she spits out and as you saw last chapter, she's gained an aversion to fighting despite constantly mowing down hordes of faceless dudes, meaning she's quite a peaceful young lady.
- God-Mode Sue: Not quite at the beginning, but it quickly makes itself apparent that she's more than just really competent when her telekinesis powers appear along with repeated mowing down of enemies all around. It takes a bit of a back seat when Ike's on scene, but she's still able to match him pretty well despite his many more years of fighting and training using only her blade. By endgame, she's a storm of violence.
- Mary Tzu: Surprising subverted. Despite the fact that I'll apparently never know what was on that note at this rate (and it really shouldn't be driving me this insane), much of the large scale plans she has are either semi-decent or fail.
- Jerk Sue: Averted, she's a nice girl!
- Copy Cat Sue: Not at the beginning, but she's been picking up traces of this, namely after Micaiah, she picks up light magic and then healing powers, minus the drawbacks. Still, nothing too blatant.
- Possession Sue: Averted, Meru's her own character.
- Relationship Sue: Averted by pairing her up with another original character. Of course, Fayt's about as boring as they come.
- Sympathetic Sue: As of chapter 7, oh yes. More jarring since at the beginning she wasn't exactly shown to be a broken soul or something. She grows out of it quickly enough thanks to the single contribution that Fayt makes to the story.
- Villain Sue: Averted, she's full heroic.
- Fixer Sue: As of the Black Knight getting brought straight back to life after being brutally beaten by Ike? Yeah, I'd say so. Not too much though, she hasn't been whipping out the magical fix to much due to the nature of the fan fiction and how on rails it is.
Eh, overall, not that bad. I've seen far worse, on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being maximum Sue, I'd say 5.2. Outside of being virtuous, tragic past, and holding title as resident uber fighter, she hasn't done much to control the story and derail in her own direction, leaving her mainly to sound sort of inspiring and chop off limbs.
Story time!
Miyako: yea why r u so worry.
Meru: not worry, pissed off.
Miyako: again why?
Meru: because this is the chapter I kept dying! Despite it's MY story it still pisses me off because that dragon kept killing me. How can it kill with a hit of of 18 and a critical of 3? That like a slim to none chance of killing me five times in a ROW!
For the record, this is a contender for the hardest mission of Fire Emblem 10, all it is a map full of big honking dragons that are absurdly strong in all areas, tank like a bunch of bosses, and hit like several dozen freight trains. There's no clever strategy to beating these guys, it's straight up meeting them toe to toe and taking it.
...which is going to make Meru's existence all the more jarring.
Meru: AHHH! –starts going on a rampage-
Miyako: Holy crap!
How many rampages have these frame segments had?
When I finally caught up I saw the group standing by the next flight of stairs. "Hey! Guys!" I yelled panting as I run.
"Meru, where were you? I was worried sick!" Fayt worriedly came up to me.
Hey, question, why did you leave her in the first place? Seriously man, the only conceivable reason the team has for leaving Meru behind in just so she can get her chance to heal that fucker in the black armor without Ike or anyone else seeing.
"Really Fayt…"
"How dull. Well' I don't see any enemies nearby. I know! Would you like me to tell you a story as we climb?" Yune said excitingly.
"What kind of story?" asked Ike.
The boring and huge varieties, prepare to skip a lot of unnecessary text.
"The story of the grand creation? Heard it. Wake me when it's over." said Tibarn.
"The girl was you, right, Yune? Or are you talking about Ashera?" asked Ike.
"Both, really...and neither, actually. At first, the girl was excited by her new world, and she thought of little else. Then she started feeling lonely. Everyone, every being she'd created, was different from her. Not a single person that could truly understand her. All alone, she grew sadder and sadder, crying for thousands of years. Then some creatures began to grow and change, becoming more clever and sophisticated. They tried to comfort the girl and eventually grew closer to her... That was the birth of the Zunanma. They were your ancestors...beorc, laguz, everyone." said Yune.
"In Begnion, we are taught that the Zunanma were human—Uhm, I mean...beorc ancestors... ...It makes me wonder what else in my country has been warped beyond recognition." said Sanaki.
"It's possible that the truth was simply misunderstood. Like the way everyone calls me a dark god... But let me continue... The Zunanma worshipped the girl as their own goddess. They said her hair was as striking a color as dawn's first light, so they gave her a name... The Goddess of Dawn. She was a much-loved goddess."
"The Goddess of Dawn..." said Ike.
"The Zunanma continued to evolve and change, giving rise to a variety of races and tribes across the land. Naturally, each of the races thought their own was superior to the others, and conflict arose between them. The goddess tried to make peace among her people, but nothing could stop the warring Zunanma. Trying to separate the factions, the goddess gave them different names, laguz and beorc... But this only intensified their conflict. And then...the great flood occurred. The goddess was only trying to bring an end to the fighting. But her power was so great that all the continents were drowned in the flood, all except Tellius."
"Are you sure about this story? It's very different from the histories that we've each been taught."
"Among beorc nations, we only know a vague fairy tale about the dark god stirring up a great disaster," said Elincia.
"Neither the laguz nor the beorc have an accurate description by the sound of it. I wonder where the story got twisted," said Kurthnaga.
Well, wasn't that fun? Let's get back to Meru painting the tower red.
"…Fa-…Father?"
'This just isn't my day.' I thought slapping my forehead.
"Huh?" said Ike.
"My father... Just beyond these doors, my father is waiting," said Kurthnaga.
"Dheginsea, king of Goldoa... He's supposed to be one of the three who defeated the dark god...Yune."
"He has been blessed by Ashera. Not only that, but it's a powerful, resilient blessing from long ago. He may be nearly impossible to defeat. ...Let's get everyone together. There's no better time than now. I was hoping to avoid this until we reached Ashera... Actually, I hoped not to have to do it at all... But she's left me with no choice. I will give you the blessings of Yune, goddess of chaos and freedom. In their natural state, the attacks of mortal creatures have no effect on divine beings. When Ashera set out to defeat me, she gathered her strongest warriors and bestowed on them some of her power. This is called the Goddess's Blessing... She empowered the dual swords of the beorc swordswoman, Altina. The laguz warrior, Soan, and Dheginsea, the leader of the dragon tribe, were also blessed." said Yune.
Okay, just so you get an idea for how hard this guy is to kill, let's compare his stats alongside Ike, who you should know by now is a freaking awesome unit.
Dheginsea: HP:100 Strength: 50 Magic: 26 Skill: 36 Speed: 30 Luck: 30 Defense: 50 Magic Resistance: 46
He has triple digit HP, enough strength to tear through a wall, enough skill to consistently hit just about everything that isn't specialized in dodging, fast enough to keep up with everyone that isn't specialized at going fast, lucky beyond all reason, and has enough in the two defense stats to survive a nuke in the face.
Ike's Capped Stats: HP: 65 Strength: 37 Magic: 15 Skill: 40 Speed: 37 Luck: 30 Defense: 32 Magic Resistance: 23
Note that there's only two areas where Ike manages to out do Dehginesa and that's skill, which is accuracy, and speed, which Ike isn't exactly likely to get up to max anyway. And those are the capped stats, Ike is not guaranteed to make it to that level of power on his own in any play through, you'll have to supplement him with some rare stat increasing items. Also keep in mind, Meru was able to apparently match Ike evenly the last they fought. Just something to keep in mind.
Did we mention that Sakura is also magical and goddess blessed now? And that suddenly Meru remembers her family had a sword that looked like Sakura? That's right, she now has a magical blade on par with Ike's Ragnell and the Black Knight's Alondite. Just letting you know.
"Micaiah? Are you feeling all right? You don't look so good," said Sothe .
"...I'm fine. Thank you, Sothe." said Micaiah.
"What happened to Yune?" asked Ike.
"She's sleeping. She wants us to take it from here."
"All right... If we're all set, let's move out."
"Meru, are you ready?" Fayt asked me.
"Yeah. Come on let's do this!" I said determinedly.
We're having Dragon Steak for dinner tonight. Oh yeah!
I'm plenty used to these sorts of things by now that I don't even bat an eye.
"Don't you dare preach to me, you dried-up old fool." said Tibarn.
"We have betrayed our vow to our goddess. We should have learned, but the fighting never stopped. Now we must pay for our crimes. We must take responsibility, and accept Ashera's judgment." With that Micaiah walks forward.
"No! You don't understand! It wasn't the war that awoke the goddess! It was my song... The galdr of release freed the goddess!" yelled Micaiah.
"...You can't expect me to believe that. We will wait here patiently for the punishment we deserve. If you are unwilling to await judgment..." Then a yellow flaming light envelops him. "You will stand against... The greatest of all dragons!" Then the light explodes in a ring and a bolt of lightning around Dheginsea and pools at his feet with surges of electricity, revealing an enormous dragon; a whirlwind of light then surrounds him.
Okay, who's ready for more Purity Sue crap from Meru? Brace yourselves.
"It's no use, Kurth. We have no choice but to fight. We must reach the goddess, and not even the king of dragons can stand in our way," said Ike.
"Is violence the only to solve this? Why? Why does it have to come to this?" I said with my head down.
"You despise fighting don't you?"
"Despise is too kind. More like hate. But most of these people only know how to communicate through violence. Right now it's best for the world."
"Meru…"
 |
What's Meru's kill count by now? It's got to be triple digits, right? And this is the second time this has come up, the first one being clearly an instance of our friend the Black Knight wearing leather pants. But that's alright, Meru can heal everyone up after cutting them down, right?
Right?
...
"We'll try Meru."
Good fucking luck with that, they're freaking DRAGONS.
"Fools! By denying your judgment, you merely rush to your death," said Dheginsea.
"Please. I heard enough times hearing that already."
"You! It couldn't be! Rein?"
"How do you know my mother?"
"Your mother? I see. You bear great resemblance to her. What is your name?"
"I won't give my name to people like you. Who just resorts to punishment without doing anything."
Because you know, dragons really aren't that tough for Meru. Also, that last line makes me wonder if there's some sort of political subtex- BWAHAHAHA. Oh, yeah right. Let's get this crap over with.
"Right now I'll let you know, my mother and I are not from this world. I fight to the end if I have to."
"You'll soon beg for mercy."
"Don't make me laugh. If you knew my mother, she would never have wanted this. And plus I'm not planning on begging."
 |
 |
Well, that was anti-climatic as all fuck. Because you know, a boss that is rightfully crushing Ike using just one hand would be easy pickings for Meru.
"Father!" exclaimed Kurthnaga. Dheginsea then straightens himself up.
"Don't lose your head now, boy. This wound... This is nothing. Your power... How could you defeat me? I was blessed by Ashera herself..."
"I gave them my blessings." Micaiah walks forward towards Dheginsea.
"Yune? Is that you?"
"That war long ago... I'm so sorry. You were right to fight against me. I was young and immature. The great flood was a result of my unchecked emotions."
"You don't have to apologize, Yune. I always knew that you weren't actually evil... You were just too powerful."
"So why did you choose Ashera again? I had hoped that this time you would join me to help protect the people."
"I'm sorry, Yune. But I've done worse to you... Long ago, we made a vow before the goddess Ashera herself... We vowed that we, the laguz and beorc, would never commit the same genocidal sins. We didn't keep our promise... And for that reason I was committed to accepting my just punishment."
"Silly, stubborn, old scalebag... You just don't know when to quit... You need to lighten up a bit."
'I should stay out of this and I need to rest.' I thought breathing heavily.
Well, you know this has been Meru's toughest fight yet seeing as she's simply breathing a little harder. What will the author do to step it up next time? Maybe Meru will be breathing hard and have a slight cut.
"Don't worry about it, Dheginsea. I caused enough trouble for you, so I'll forgive you just this once." Yune replied.
"I'm pleased to hear that." Then he stands. "Gareth! Gather our survivors. Kurthnaga is their commander from now on."
"Understood, sir!" said Gareth.
"Nasir... You followed your sovereign very far for having once left your country in disgust. ...I give you my sincerest thanks."
"No, my lord... Unaware of my own king's true heart, I did what I thought had to be done... I apologize." said Nasir.
"Ena... I would like to tell you only that I wish you the greatest happiness in life."
"Thank... Thank you, sire." Ena said. Dheginsea then turns to Kurthnaga.
"Now then, Kurthnaga... Get these men moving. I will remain here, for I cannot move."
"Yes, Father. We will stop Ashera. Wait here for our return. We will be back."
"...Yes, my son. I'll be waiting. My queen... Rajaion... I will soon join you. My lovely Almedha... Cherish...life..."
"It's happening again... Whose memory is that? Something feels so...familiar about it. Is that... Is that your memory?" asked Yune.
"Father! ..." Kurthnaga shouted.
"Kurth... He's gone..." said Ena
Don't worry guys, we've got Meru on scene. She can totally bring him back.
But she won't.
"Kurth…" I said sadly.
"Meru, what were you doing back there?" Fayt came up to me.
"J-just thinking and w-wondering…" i stuttered
"Meru…"
"Really Fayt, it's nothing you should worry about."
"But-"
"Hey cheer up! Come on or we'll get left behind." I then left to catch up with the group.
"You're one to talk."
You sad about him being dead? He's right there, revive him, you can totally do it. Just poke him a couple of times and he will be brand spanking new and the rest of the game will be an even easier piece of cake.
Miyako: -sighs- jeez you could've let me done it.
Meru: I can't trust you with anything!
Miyako: where's yuri btw, you never told me.
Meru: I'll tell u later anyways hope you like this chapter and u know the rest.
Both: BYE!
Well you know, besides the hardest boss in the game being a cake walk for Meru, I've got nothing to say.
