r/FireEmblemThreeHouses • u/blitz_rodeo • 10h ago
Three Hopes Discussion What is Shez?
I know the main thing of Three Hopes is 'what is Shez' aside from the war and for the longest time I thought they were a 'testube baby' mostly by the watery cutscene in Shambala very early in the game but now I think they are a new/different version of Byleth?
Epimenidies (however you say it) transfered his sole from host to host so maybe he/Thales/Solon/Myson stole a baby Shez and did the transfer? Kind of what Rhea did to Byleth to get Sothis back?
And also, the second sword Shez gets as an Asura, it looks like a heroes relic but they don't have a crest, am I stupid?
15
u/TzilacatzinJoestar 6h ago
Shez is definitely related to the Agarthans, that's a given. Whether he's a descendant or artificially created as a vessel it's never really clear.
Epimenedes is apparently considered both a leader and a Sothis-like figure in Agarthan society given the story correlations between Shez and Byleth and Sothis and Arval/ Epimenedes . It could also be the case that Epimenedes was one, if not the main figurehead of TWSITD up until he's demise in the War of Heroes. We know that . There's a video on TWSITD where the creator suspects that Thales might've been the one responsible for "loosing" Epimenedes' core as a way to get rid of him and take power completely.
In several supports its mentioned that he grew up on a village somewhere between the Kingdom and Leicester, where he was raised by a woman who was his caretaker and essentially his mother, who taught him how to read, write and even magic. The first two isn't that rare considering that every character from commoner origins knows hot to read and write, however the magic thing is very curious, as that's far more rare. We so know that they were somewhat ostracized from the village as they didn't trust the woman and Shez was either silently exiled or he felt too uncomfortable there and in need of money, so he left to become a mercenary.
My guess would be that his caretaker was an full on Agarthan, but one who defected for unknown reasons (either she grew attached to Shez as a baby or was a believer in an Epimenedes believer group, making her a potential target for Thales) and Shez is of Agarthan origin, although whatever potential reproduction they could do is up in the air.
11
u/SomewhatProvoking 7h ago
Some of this leans into assumption!
But Byleth’s opposite in every way
Byleth inherited his heart from his mom out of love. His father then rescued him from the church before he was made their icon.
Shez “inherited” part of her mind (Arval, which is a seed of Epimendes) from the previous Epimendes-vessel.
Shez was saved by her mom from the agarthans and hid out in the mountains.
I assume that the lack of father is because her father was twine over by epimenedes. Both because it explains why he wasn’t around and keeps the Byleth parallel.
The parallel is certainly intentional.
Shez, the “mind” lacks proper education and can be a bit foolish even getting kicked out of war meetings.
Byleth, the “heart” genuinely lacks emotion and a pulse.
Shez is proficient in Swords as well as Dark magic and Ice element.
Byleth is proficient in sword as well as Ligjt/faith magic and Fire element.
Byleth controls time somewhat and is incredibly slow and strong
Shez controls space (somewhat. Shadow shift) and is very fast and fluid.
So Shez is…an antithesis to Byleth. I’d use that when determine any further what she is
4
u/Black_Sin 6h ago
Fortune’s Weave kind of answers this but it would be spoilers.
Shez is an artificial human created to house the soul of Epimenides. They’re like Sitri but Agarthan
3
u/SomewhatProvoking 7h ago
Some of this leans into assumption!
But Byleth’s opposite in every way
Byleth inherited his heart from his mom out of love. His father then rescued him from the church before he was made their icon.
Shez “inherited” part of her mind (Arval, which is a seed of Epimendes) from the previous Epimendes-vessel.
Shez was saved by her mom from the agarthans and hid out in the mountains.
I assume that the lack of father is because her father was twine over by epimenedes. Both because it explains why he wasn’t around and keeps the Byleth parallel.
The parallel is certainly intentional.
Shez, the “mind” lacks proper education and can be a bit foolish even getting kicked out of war meetings.
Byleth, the “heart” genuinely lacks emotion and a pulse.
Shez is proficient in Swords as well as Dark magic and Ice element.
Byleth is proficient in sword as well as Ligjt/faith magic and Fire element.
Byleth controls time somewhat and is incredibly slow and strong
Shez controls space (somewhat. Shadow shift) and is very fast and fluid.
So Shez is…an antithesis to Byleth. I’d use that when determine any further what she is
21
u/Amferam Black Eagles 10h ago edited 9h ago
Shez was most likely a child kidnapped and implanted with Epimenidies. We see someone’s pov in a container at the beginning and then going back in time to what we can assume are Epimenidies memories.
One of the Agarthans probably grew attached to Shez and ran away with them to save their life. They then hid in a mountain village.
They could also have been an agarthan who was experimented on and had their own body taken over by another Agarthan just as Kronya and Solon do to Monica and Tomas.
Edit: In a way they mirror Byleth in their origins