Two years later, in the year 648, Ike and Elincia were wed in the Courtyard of Melior and, despite Ike's glowering, Sephiran was in attendance. While everyone around the Prime Minister of Begnion was thoroughly occupied with the business of celebrating until they dropped, Sephiran himself was pensive. He was silently praying to Ashera that his gamble would pay off.

And, quite a gamble it was.

Sephiran had a rare gift of perception, though he sometimes found it difficult to put into words. He had the ability to perceive, in a limited way, how people could impact the future and he could perceive the connections between such people and the effect of those connections. When he met Ike, as had happened in the past, a lattice had formed in his mind's eye. Ike was a shatter point, a man who would literally build or shatter the future of Tellius. And, he had perceived a tangle of fault lines of destiny binding Ike to five people: The Black Knight, Elincia, Greil, Ashnard and Sephiran himself. These five, for even the memory and legacy of those whom were dead could have influence, would guide Ike to become either the new hope of Tellius or Tellius' worst nightmare. The fault lines in the lattice bound all their lives and futures together for good or ill. (1)

Though Sephiran could not always interpret the significance of the connections he perceived, and had only his own judgment to rely on for calculating how and when the proper move could be made, his perception never failed to show him something of vital importance. Not long after Sephiran first met Ike, he'd had a second vision. This time Sanaki was the shatter point and she was connected to Ike, Elincia and, astonishingly enough, the extinct Serenes Herons. (2) On one sheer plane that destiny might reach was the symbol Ashera's Divine hands spread as if offering an embrace, a sign of absolution. On the other sheer plane was the image of dark thunder clouds, which Sephiran believed to symbolize everlasting misery. This had baffled Sephiran since the Serenes Herons were believed to be extinct but when Ike discovered Reyson and Leanne, and Leanne somehow persuaded Reyson to make peace with the Apostle, destiny traveled along the fault line to Ashera's absolution. Sephiran's perception was a mystery even to him, but he knew better than to ignore it.

The lattice he perceived now was equally perplexing and, perhaps, even more vital. The sheer plane of the lattice that included the shatter point where Ike laid, was connected to two others and the right strike would move destiny in one direction or another. On one sheer plane that destiny might reach was Greil's axe Urvan, which must've represented the Greil Mercenaries, and another sheer plane bore the image of a wedding ring and a crown which represented the event unfolding between the Lord General and the Queen. And, those sheer planes gave way to two others: one was the image of the banner that Ike had seen in his mind's eye on the night at Serenes Forest and on the other sheer plane was Tellius in flames.

Though these images were fairly self explanatory, the connection between them wasn't. The right strike, the proper action, would unlock the potential of the shatter point. And, that would send a crack from the shatter point to one sheer plane, to either the Greil Mercenaries or the Throne of Crimea, and from there either to peace or devastation. However, the sheer planes were marred with flaws that could nudge an unfolding destiny down the wrong path. Those flaws, he supposed, were what he'd feared would arise from Ike's story: Envy. By now, everyone knew about Ike: the Mercenary who became a hero. Such a story, Sephiran knew, would breed envy and ugly ambition in those who were jealous of Ike's power and prestige. That, perhaps, was Ashnard’s contingency plan: if Ashnard could not embroil the continent in war then his slayer might do so without realizing it. And, Sephiran feared that if Ike received all that and then discarded it that it might fuel the flames that were already crackling to life.

When Sephiran realized that Ike had become enamored with Elincia, he saw an opportunity. He also saw that Ike was different from any Noble that he'd ever met. Ike had an understanding of the people, especially the Laguz, that the so-called knowledge of the Begnion Senate could not match. Ike was also unafraid to bend the rules if it was for the better. And, his uncanny charisma granted him the loyalty of countless people. Ike was very different from any Noble, in some ways he was better. Vastly so, some would say

He needed to be kept in play on the eternal journey towards a better future.

Sephiran decided, again as he sometimes did in the past, to use his influence upon the shatter point. Perhaps, if Ike married Elincia and used his traits to guide Crimea into the future that King Ramon had dreamt of, then maybe the people might warm up to him when they saw the good he did with his power. And, possibly, the flaws marring the lattice would smooth away. And, perhaps, that would be the gesture needed to guide the future to peace, unity and prosperity and away from Ashnard's vision of hell.

But, that was an exceedingly large 'perhaps.'

And, he wouldn't know if his gamble had worked until either a golden age dawned or until Tellius turned into a pyre of blood and nightmares. What Sephiran had done had either extinguished the flames Ashnard sought to ignite or had given those flames more fuel to help it burn. And, for now, all he could do was try to enjoy himself, wait and pray that he hadn't just signed the death warrant of all Tellius' peoples.

What Sephiran didn't know was that the first move had already been made. In Ike's borrowed chambers in the Castle was a display rack on which he exhibited the greatest three of his trophies. The first was Ragnell, the sacred blade that he'd used to defeat the Black Knight and slay Ashnard. The second was Alondite, another sacred blade that was Ragnell's counterpart which had been the Black Knight's weapon. The third was the Black Knight's helmet, black colored sacred metal that only a sacred blade could damage, caked with dried blood from the battle with Ike.

Ragnell was still there. But Alondite and the Black Knight's helmet were not. (3)