Once crumbling stones were built up by thick wood. Where one tower once stood, a second had joined. Open entrances were replaced by closed gates, a handful of knights standing between sharpened wooden ramparts just beyond it. Flammable as the rudimentary measures were, few wandering these lands would think of challenging the dominion such an established site offered over the surrounding area.
"Huh, you weren't lying." Onyx said as he lowered his telescope. "I guess that captain of theirs doesn't want a repeat of my last visit."
"This goes beyond that." Kalé said, still looking through his own telescope. "Look to the southern gates. You see the mounted forces leaving?"
Onyx did just that and sure enough, a trio had just left the newly reinforced Gatefront, and they weren't typical knights. The riders lacked the same surcoats, their armor far more rugged with fur draped across their shoulders while their weaponry consisted of axes rather than longswords. No surcoats, coloring, or symbols denoted them as Knights of Godrick.
"Kaiden mercenaries." Kalé said, confirming his suspicion. "I received word that more are on their way. Between the knights' increased patrols and the mercenaries, I'd say they'll be taking a more aggressive approach to hunting down tarnished. Any not allied with the Order will face the same aggression."
Onyx hummed, now seeing firsthand why it was Kalé, distrustful as he was, asked for help. They ducked past far more knights than usual on their way to the Gatefront. Even now, the gathering of trees and bushes around them providing good camouflage could be happened across at any moment, the knights' presence beyond their camp at an all time high.
Conflict had a way of doing away with complacency and, while he may not have gone on some slaughter, it looked like the mere fact that a mere tarnished of all things had effectively rammed his way out of the heart of their camp was enough to shake things up. The knights would be doing far more than holding their position now.
This would be interesting to watch unfold.
"Guess we better get a move on then." Onyx said.
He and Kalé stepped away from the edge of the forest, he rejoining Melina beside Torrent, who's saddle she sat upon while Kalé took his donkey by the reins, carefully leading the way forward. Aside from some unavoidable rustling here and there, they maintained a distinct silence, an ear kept out for knights. Not that it was particularly necessary, Onyx changing their direction whenever they drew close to a patrol, able to pick up on their presences long before there was any real chance of them being caught.
"Another waste of time." Onyx glanced towards Torrent, Marika sitting on his backside, legs crossed and knees aimed towards him. "Thou's main concern is to be rid of me, is it not? Assisting a mere merchant barely surviving on the fridges of what remains will bring thee no closer to that."
"Going to tell me my best bet is doing what you say?"
"It would make for a far more sensible course of action." Marika said with a slight nod. "Reforming the Elden Ring can only prove beneficial to one such as you."
Onyx said nothing, interest in the broken record lost, his gaze instead turning to a sheen ahead that caught his eye. Energy emerged from the greenery. The thin ray, made of a dark gold energy surrounding pitch black coloring, passed tree and foliage alike, rising as it drew closer. It rose past Kalé and his donkey, passing Torrent's mane and hitting Melina's slightly raised hand.
Melina's hand settled as the energy sunk beneath her skin.
More followed, Melina's hand raised to greet each one, more than aware of whatever was going on.
"What's that energy?" Onyx questioned. Melina turned her eye on him, her hooded head tilting slightly. "That stuff you're absorbing into your hand. What is it?"
"…Runes." She said, her answer delayed by thought. "Wars are fought for the largest shards but those were not the only pieces to come from The Shattering. Miniscule runes were spread all over The Lands Between, infusing with all life that came into contact with them. It is something few can perceive."
"And that's what you wanted to use on me?" He guessed.
"Yes." Melina admitted, her eye falling closed. "Runes are possibility. Raw power given form. Though useless on their own in such small quantities, their nature is what allows Finger Maidens to expand the limits of the tarnished. A single shard on its own grants immense power. The one to obtain the Elden Ring in its entirety would be among the closest to godhood." She paused once more, eye opening to focus on him.
"A rudimentary explanation but it should suffice. Does thou comprehend the meaning in the little one's words? The Elden Ring is no more than a container that adapts to its wielder." Marika said. "To one bereft of Grace with a fate untouched, The Elden Ring is an unparalleled tool."
Interesting. Very interesting. Onyx thought. From the explanations he got before, he'd thought it nothing more than an expression of power from figures in the Golden Order's religion. Something to be avoided and perhaps studied from afar. But for Marika herself, the goddess of the whole thing, to describe it in such a way.
It sounded more like the artifacts or enchanted gear he was acquainted with from other worlds. And those had their uses.
Marika's eyes narrowed. She might be able to pick up on his intensified curiosity about the Elden Ring, but that was it. "Has thee reconsidered this pointless endeavor?" He smiled, looking ahead. "Foolishness."
Right now, he'd be seeing Kalé to the place he called the Mistwoods. Maybe drop in on Sellen since that wasn't too far out of the way. After that? He hadn't been sure, not particularly choosey about what he did so long as it gave him a chance to use mana, but The Elden Ring and its shards sounded like they were worth looking into sooner rather than later.
If, and only if, what Marika said was true.
XOXO
"A-Apprentice, what-" Sellen's voice, astonishment betrayed through tone and the drop of her hand, reached him as soon as he raised the door leading into her small study. Kalé had settled down to hide amongst the ruins up top while Melina hung back in the previous chamber, he alone coming to a stop before her. "No, never mind that. It appears that wound of yours has healed."
Her gaze, though hidden beneath the stony visage of her mask, thoroughly examined him from head to toe. Though perhaps stumped by its true nature and possibly the sheer amount of it he had, Sellen was, without a doubt, aware of the mana now flowing through him.
"Quite the impressive presence you have about you now." Quick to regain her composure, Sellen offered him a nod of respect, arms folded in front of her chest and a hand raised towards her covered chin. "But raw power doesn't always translate to skill and certainly not competence, apprentice. A demonstration if you would."
He followed the direction, Sellen's silver staff pulled from his waist and its tip pointed towards the stone wall at the back of the room. His mana moved quickly, the energy flowing from him and into the staff, barely able to reach the sphere of glintstone with all the interference beyond his body. But it managed, a glow coming from the sphere.
A noticeably dark blue glow.
With a slight wave a projectile surrounded by energy of the same color left the staff, moving quickly and hitting the wall. It shattered apart, not so much as a mark left on the wall.
It wasn't just the active disruption of any mana flow beyond his body that brought about such a lack luster result but the material of the staff itself. Neither the staff's metal handle nor the glintstone resting within its length were particularly effective at conducting his mana, even as his energy changed to adapt the properties of the latter. At the end of the day, he would always be the most effective conduit for his own energy.
There'd be no avoiding that, even at his best.
"Hmmm, there was something strange about it, but the end result can't be denied." Sellen said as he lowered the staff. "Congratulations are in order. That sorcery forms the basis for all that will come later and in learning it you've officially entered a world of possibilities."
"What happened to no coddling?"
"A teacher must acknowledge her student's milestones, no? Such things make for convenient benchmarks to track progress." Sellen said, mirth entering her tone only to leave just as quickly as she lowered her hand, a sterner edge taking its place. "Make no mistake apprentice, you are no more than a tadpole in that sea of possibility. Yet without the legs to stand. Remain dedicated in your study and that may yet change."
The brief moment of seriousness faded quickly, Sellen giving him little more than a moment to digest the words. "I assume that is why you've returned? I am prepared to continue your instruction if you wish it."
"Actually, I'm in the middle of something. Helping out a friend." He admitted. "I just wanted to drop by and make sure being all on your lonesome didn't drive you to insanity."
A muffled exhale of amusement escaped her. "I have been here far longer than you would believe. A few months alone is hardly enough to leave my mind addled."
He raised a brow. "It's only been a few weeks."
"Oh?" Surprise and disbelief were quickly suppressed, Sellen offering him a nudge of the head. "Isolation may have altered my sense of time, I'll grant you that much, but you need not worry about my mental state. The sentiment is appreciated, however."
He'd take her word for it. A weaker mind would've long since crumbled under the extended period of isolation she must've experienced, but she showed no signs of such a thing. A testament to an impressive degree of mental fortitude.
Hard not to respect something like that.
"I'll be back after I finish up what I'm handling now." Onyx said, curious as to how far he could take these sorceries with his disrupted energy. "You mind if we set up camp here for the night?"
"As you will, apprentice. You have free reign of the place. In fact-" Sellen took a short look around as she spoke. "-consider this hideaway of mine and all within it yours. Like the staff, I can make no use of it now." She looked back at him. "Though my continued presence here is a nonnegotiable condition, of course."
Onyx mockingly winced. "That was almost a good deal. I'm not sure I want some witch haunting any place of mine."
"Hmph, bold words to say to the one responsible for your teachings." Sellen said with an amused huff. "Rest assured that they will be remembered, dear apprentice."
As he turned to leave, Marika appeared in front of him, trailing ahead as he walked through the chamber beyond the study. "How is that thee made use of sorcery? No communion or contact hath been made with the beings from which that power art derived."
"Magic is magic." He said shrugging. While he could never truly rid his mana of its most basic nature, all things perceptive enough readily able to identify it as a foreign entity, adapting it to mimic the way energy was used by others wasn't much of an issue. As he was right now, it was also the only real way he'd be able to use any mana beyond his body.
When his mana took on properties native to the world he was, that being glintstone in this instance, the disruption he was faced with was lessen.
"Magic is magic?" She repeated. "…and what of the little one's incantations? Wouldst thou be able to replicates such feats?"
He answered in the form of a smile, leaving it at that as he headed up the stairs. He felt her annoyance as she vanished, but curiosity far outweighed it. Perhaps the only emotion that was a two way street.
XOXO
Cloak and short hair fluttering in the wind. The grasp on Torrent's reigns loose. Her expression schooled in that permeant neutrality, just shy of total apathy.
Charcoal pulled back from the rough depiction of his companions, Onyx faintly blew over the page, giving it a once over. The environment could be better detailed, but it was coming along well.
Onyx glanced up from the page of the rough leather bound journal he'd gotten from Kalé, the hairs on his neck rising ever so slightly.
Melina was just ahead, riding upon Torrent as she vigilantly scanned their surroundings while Kalé lead the way from further ahead, opting to keep just far enough away from the main roads that they'd have time to prep for a battle rather than fully cutting through the wilds. Apparently, cliffs would keep them from descending straight into the Mistwoods if they tried.
He narrowed his eyes, focusing on his senses.
Distant gallops. The dull clangs of clashing weaponry. Predators and prey alike creeping about among greenery. He could hear plenty. Smell even more. And yet he could not find what he was looking for.
"Something observes us." Marika said, already beside him. Her suspicion came along for the ride, attempting to outweigh his curiosity about the whole thing. Whatever it was had to be something powerful to set him off like this but subtle enough to obscure their presence almost completely.
The hairs along his neck had already settled but he wasn't about to doubt his instincts. Whatever was watching remained, they beyond his senses but he well within theirs.
Onyx narrowly avoided bumping into Torrent's rear, he and Kalé slowing to a stop, the latter examining the downward trail they were following down towards the Mistwoods through his telescope. He stepped up beside the merchant as his scouting slowed, scope settling on a specific spot ahead.
Onyx followed it, able to make out what caught Kalé eye without his telescope from this distance.
Knights, flying the colors and insignias of Gdorick's soldiers, were engaged in a battle near some ruins with demihumans. Behind those guards, every effort made to safeguard him, was a man dressed in fine robes and a prominent tinge of gold to his eyes that eclipsed that of those protecting him.
Was that a noble of the Order? He certainly looked the part of someone closer to the top of society. The first person he'd come across that that could truly be said about.
Onyx snapped his journal closed, stepping forward.
A conversation with them, if possible, was bound to be of some interest.
XOXO
For those who want to throw any additional support my way and/or just want to read ahead. Currently 10 Chapters ahead -> patr3on .com/Thirdratewriter
(A/N: Onyx saw that his actions were indirectly leading to Limgrave becoming more dangerous for anyone that isn't a part of the Golden Order and only thought, "interesting". If you needed another check about his moral compass and how he sees things, there you go. For all the good he can do for those he takes a liking to, bro is a little iffy in the head in certain ways. Could put him at odds with some characters he'll technically be on good terms with in the far future.
Especially any who subscribes to the idea of great power coming with great responsibility.
Anyways, a number of the game's questlines being started in the next few chapters. Look forward to that. Off to a good start. Hopefully I can manage to upload everyday this week.)