Desaix

Desaix is an enemy character in Fire Emblem Gaiden and its remake, Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia. He is the treacherous chancellor of Zofia, and a major antagonist in Gaiden. He is 43 years old.

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Desaix first came into power when an assassination attempt on King Lima IV was exposed and the perpetrators–a branch of the royal family–were executed along with their kin. Desaix, who claimed to have prevented the plot, received Lima IV’s recognition and started to participate in governmental affairs. Mycen, a high ranking general of Zofia, made multiple attempts to reason with Lima IV, but he was stopped by Desaix at every turn. Slowly, Mycen was distanced from the royal family and Zofia Castle. Of course, the general populace was not pleased by these events, but the land's bountifulness made them uncaring as long as they could live in peace, which eventually caused Desaix’s political rise to go unchallenged.

With the king now as Desaix’s puppet, any criticism could be whispered to him and it would lead to immediate imprisonment or even execution. To further consolidate his power, Desaix had conspired several suspicious deaths within the Zofian royal family, then framed Mycen for his crimes, banishing him as a result. Although some Zofian officers stood in his defense, because Mycen originally hailed from the Rigel Empire, his departure was never scrutinized.

As the years passed, the corruption within the kingdom deepened further, since after Liprica’s death, Lima IV’s philandering habits only got worse, eventually leading to the royal villa the remaining children, including Anthiese and Conrad, lived in being set ablaze. Thanks to Mycen, who came rushing to her aid, Anthiese escaped, while it was later discovered that Conrad fled to the Lost Treescape in Rigel. Unfortunately, all of the villa’s other residents were slain by assassins hired by Desaix.

In the year 398, after Zofia rejected Rigel's request for assistance following a famine and drought, both nations entered all-out war. For over a year, the inexperienced Zofian army was repeatedly defeated by the overwhelming Rigelian forces and Rigel steadily crept into Zofian territory. Desaix managed to contact the upper echelon of the Rigelian Army and negotiated a cease-fire in exchange for a large compensatory sum of gold, Desaix to be appointed as Zofia’s chancellor, and autonomy be retained. In truth, he had sold Zofia to Rigel. Collecting wealth and food from the citizens in the name of compensating the empire, heavy taxes were imposed across the nation, with those who opposed their tyranny or were suspected of doing so being immediately caught and executed. The Rigelian Army remained garrisoned in Northern Zofia and tensions continued to grow.

A year after, Desaix triggered a coup d'etat and the the remaining members of the Zofian royal family, including Lima IV, were killed, with the missing Anthiese as the only survivor. Meanwhile, away from the capital, villages and the like became playgrounds for Desaix’s thieving soldiers, giving rise to desperation and poverty, while ruffians gathered and spread in influence.

Around this time, a resistance led by Clive was formed in order to oppose Desaix, though he manages to capture the Zofian knight Mathilda in order to use her as leverage to force his surrender. Eventually, Alm took control of the resistance and reclaimed Zofia Castle. What seemed to be Desaix, however, turned out to be no more than an impostor (which is revealed if the player kills Desaix prior to Slayde). After the battle, his foothold in the Zofian capital was no more. Leaving some of his men behind, his remaining forces retreated back to his fortress in Northern Zofia, while he took the royal sword with him for unknown reasons. When Alm's army arrives in time to save Mathilda, he orders for her to be executed slowly with arrows. Having foreseen their army's approach, Desaix had requested aid from Rigel in order to finally thwart the Deliverance. Despite the aid, however, Alm's forces attacked the fortress and Desaix is killed, with Desaix cursing Mycen for giving the Kingdom to Rudolf's Pup, having discovered his identity earlier.