Author's notes: Ugh. I was so tempted to just make these first three chapters into one prologue, but I hated the way it flowed. At this point I just really really wanted to get the character/story introduction out of the way, so I didn't enjoy writing this part as much as I originally envisioned I would've. I did my best to revise this chapter after my girlfriend noted how rushed it felt. Get used to subsequent chapters being much longer and better. Maybe one day I'll git gud at introductions…
Chapter 3 – The Mysterious Third – "This Really Shakes Things Up!"
Now then, doesn't that add a bit of clarity? I assured you it would all make sense in time, did I not? At last, the stage is set. Our two heroes have been united, standing before the threshold of the decrepit kingdom. Let's just hope for our sake that they can work together for the greater good, hmm?
20th of Rain's Hand
Things Betwixt
Knight LoveGame couldn't help but be taken aback by what he had witnessed moments ago. He shakily rose from his crouching position and identified himself. "…Er, yeah! That's my name, all right! What's it to you? I wasn't aware I'd be getting help on this journey. …w-wait, how the fuck do you know my name?! Who are you, lady?!"
"From the looks of it, your only chance of completing your mission in one piece." she said in a slightly annoyed tone. "You may address me as the Lord Protector, Ilia" She said, adjusting herself to her new title. "This may come as a shock to you, but I know all about your undead curse. You seek a cure, correct?" LoveGame nodded in accordance, his look of surprise still very evident. "At the behest of Master Xoxar, I, Ilia, have been assigned to be your escort throughout your journey."
LoveGame blushed a bright red and clenched his teeth. "W-what?! Listen, lady. You're not half-bad looking. A solid seven at best, b-but I'm not ready for that kinda-"
Ilia gave the knight a firm open-handed slap, leaving a red mark. "Not that kind of escort, quarter-wit! Where were you raised?!"
LoveGame rubbed his cheek and noted to himself, "Man, I've gotta invest in a helmet…" He then turned to Ilia and took her question literally. "I hail from Wes'Sv'Urginiah, of course! Not sure whatcha mean by 'raised', though. I dunno shit about my family, to be honest. The King's knights raised me so I could fight for them in the event of a conflict." he explained.
Ilia put one hand on her forehead and sighed. "That explains so much… Listen, I was surrounded by geographical tomes for most of my life. I know a thing or two about Drangleic, and if you couldn't tell, it doesn't appreciate newcomers too much. You won't make it anywhere without my combat expertise. So you'd do well to stay on my good side, got that, LoveGame?!"
LoveGame clenched his fist and gave an angry look. "Hmph! I don't want help. Especially not from some weird stranger like you! I'm the fearless knight, LoveGame! I can handle myself against anything this land has to pit me against. For someone of my caliber, you'd just be extra baggage."
Ilia's face grew red with frustration. She grabbed the knight by the cloth of his armor. "Pride is a real ugly thing, y'know that?!" she shouted to his face. "LoveGame, I'll be honest." she continued, loosening her grip and toning down her voice. "I'm not thrilled about this either, but this is my mission too, and it's important to me. What would I tell my master if I just turned around and left now?"
LoveGame put his finger on his chin pensively and then held it up. "You drive a hard argument…Ilia, was it? Honorable Knight LoveGame accepts your offer of partnership. 'Sides, I could really use someone to talk to on my quest!" he said, beaming at her. Ilia stared daggers back at the knight.
"Whuh? Grow a sense of humor, lady! I won't deny it, you seem plenty skilled, and I admire that flashy style of yours. But those guys were damn near falling apart as it was. You'll have to show me-"
"Let's get this straight right now; I have nothing to prove to you. You don't exactly have many points with me, but from what I understand, your time is dwindling even now. The kingdom's entrance is upon us, so there's no sense in chatting here. Hopefully we'll find some kinda settlement." She pointed to the mouth of the rigid, angular cavern that trickled out white light.
"Okay, okay." said LoveGame, sheathing away his weapon. "I'm supposed to meet up with the Herald not far from here, so your hope may not be for nothin'. Oh, yeah, if we're going to work together…" the knight held out his fist and grinned. Ilia immediately picked up on the gesture, and followed suit with a fist-bump.
With Things Betwixt behind them and the wind at their backs, the newly-formed duo traversed through the cave. Scattered on its floor were orange soapstone messages left from fissures between other worlds. Each one was filled with grammatically questionable words of encouragement, perhaps to fill novice travelers with determination. LoveGame quickly became distracted by them and darted around the cave, bending down to read each one. "Aww! Look at these, Ilia! They're writing all these nice things to wish us good luck!"
"…you'll damn sure well need it." Ilia said under her breath, as she followed her new and unwitting companion out of the cave. Dark gave way to soft, orange light as they emerged from the limbo into the living world of Drangleic.
Majula
Majula was a heartbreaking, melancholy sight. Somewhere between beautiful and derelict, it was a settlement built on a large cliff overlooking the North Sea, where the giants once crossed over to wage war with humanity. Looking off of the cliff's edge, one could observe a gorgeous, perpetual sunset, making the sea glisten like an undulating azure gem. Buildings and other stone structures stood on the plain in a sad, crumbling state. Most were still functional, though the majority had long decayed and been shoddily repaired with wooden beams and cloth. Majula didn't have much documented history; it was simply where each and every transient soul seemed to end up, resulting in the town's eventual settlement. In Drangleic, it was the closest thing to a safe place
Its residents were few and far between, but each one was more unique than the last. This included an introverted blacksmith, a timid armorer, and a sentient cat capable of human speech. It could be reasoned that the Herald whom the fire keepers spoke of could reside here as well…
"Whoa…" LoveGame mused as he took in the sights upon entering through what was left of the arching main gate. "…this really is Majula, eh?"
Ilia chimed, "Looks like it's seen better days… There was hardly anything in my tomes about this... Such a shame."
LoveGame and Ilia continued further into Majula, sizing up every last structure, entrance, and exit. LoveGame checked inside the buildings that weren't securely locked, but found no one calling themselves a herald. Scanning the horizon, he could just make out figure staring out at the vast sea with their back to him. "Ah! I should've known someone critical to my quest would be standing somewhere scenic in an attempt to look mysterious and edgy." He approached the figure, and upon closer inspection, they had a striking emerald-green cloak, lightly undulating in the breeze.
Without hesitating, LoveGame tapped their shoulder. The person turned around, revealing herself to be a young woman with auburn hair and heterochromatic eyes, one of which was partially obscured by her bangs. LoveGame began to blush a bit and leaned toward her, smiling and raising an eyebrow.
"Heyyyy. Doin' anything tonight, babe?" he inquired, as smoothly as he could with his hands clasped together. "Oh, you know where I could find a herald? I'm on an important mission right now, but after I get back and get some alone time away from this weird lady, we could-" He failed to notice that Ilia was directly behind him.
His poor attempt at flirting was suddenly interrupted by Ilia, dragging him away aggressively. She scratched the back of her head and spoke with a nervous grin. "I'm ever so sorry about my…er… dear friend LoveGame, Ms… Who are you?"
The pale woman introduced herself in a light, soft voice. "I am the one who you seek, Knight LoveGame. You may call me the Emerald Herald. If I am correct, you are the next true monarch, are you not?"
LoveGame gave a thumbs-up. "You got it, girl. Why does everyone keep calling me that, though? I'm just Knight LoveGame."
The Emerald Herald pointed at him. "Here in Drangleic, it is said that the bearer of the darksign shall seek a cure and ascend to monarchy. If you are ready, I shall lay your path out before you."
LoveGame shrugged slightly. "I guess so. It's a step-up from wandering around this place like an idiot." From her cloak, the herald produced an emerald flask teeming with some sort of bright orange liquid. She handed it off to the knight, taking great care not to drop it or spill any of its precious contents.
"Sweet! Purple drank! Hmm, or is it Sunny D? Sunkist? Mountain Dew? I forget what they call it these days, but I bet it'll come in handy. Thanks a ton!" exclaimed LoveGame as he added the flask to his belt.
"That is known as the Estus Flask. Imbibing from it will not only slake your thirst, but close your wounds. Its healing properties have earned it a reputation of a favorite among those branded with the curse since days long past. If ever it runs dry, you simply need to rest at a fire." She cleared her throat and continued. "Listen well, LoveGame." The knight did as she said and leaned in attentively.
"Seek souls. Seek King Vendrick." She stated plainly.
LoveGame scratched his head in confusion. "Excuse me? I get that you're trying to help, but you're gonna have to elaborate a little."
She did as the knight said, understanding his worry. "Do not take this as an insult to your abilities, but your soul is far too weak to reach the King in your current state. There is hope, however. Seek those whose names are unutterable. The four Old Ones. Defeat them and you shall be blessed with unparalleled strength. One, locked away eternally in the Sinner's Rise. One, beneath the magma in the impenetrable Iron Keep. One, deep within the mines of Brightstone Cove. And one, far underneath the world in the Black Gulch.
LoveGame nodded as she continued. "When you have slain these great soul bearers, return to me and I shall guide you further." Her voice began to grow more monotone as she explained more things about Drangleic's history in lengthy detail. LoveGame began to zone out. "Blah blah Giants blah Dragons blah blah and they kept referring to me as their waifu." was all LoveGame managed to catch of the woman's unengaging diatribe as he focused his efforts on running around Majula collecting all the phat loot.
"…What was that, again?" LoveGame said as he returned to her, having only taken away a vague outline of her words.
"Never mind all that!" said Ilia, annoyed. "You heard what you needed. I propose we set out for The Forest of Fallen Giants, former battleground of the human-giant war. It isn't too far from here." She said, pointing to a large stone fortress bearing a giant human statue on the horizon. If we get going now, we should have time on our side."
"Ugh, now?!" groaned LoveGame as he lit the lone bonfire and rested at it for a moment. Feeling suddenly reinvigorated, he quickly changed his tune. "Whoa, I feel like I just woke up again. So much for 'a journey without rest', hmm?" The knight sprung back up and joined his new protector. "Just through here, right?" LoveGame confirmed, following Ilia through the remains of the old structure by the gate. Before she was out of sight, LoveGame called out to the Emerald Herald. "Hey… I just wanted to let you know, you can count on me, herald! I don't break a promise, ever!"
With that, the duo set out, prepared to put themselves into real danger for the first time since their arrival to the cursed kingdom. However, not all of their threats were those native to Drangleic. Watching them with great intent was a lone man, peering down from the roof of the large two-story mansion that stuck out from Majula's cluster of buildings. His face was entirely obscured by an elite knight helm with red smoke rolling out of the holes in the front, and a large, fluffy blue-and-white robe of the Lindeldt clerics that looked like it was at least a few sizes too big for him. The man holstered a large mace on his hip and appeared to be barefoot.
Thinking out loud to himself, he spoke with haste in a baritone voice. "Oh, okay then… So he's got himself a little girly-friend now… This really shakes things up! Now I get to kill two people!" he exclaimed excitedly. "Hmm… better hustle, though. They'll likely reach Cardinal Tower soon, so I'll take the ol' shortcut to the Giant Lord's battleground. Hahaha, this is too perfect! They'll need that key to get through, and that's considering the knight could even make it that far."
He leapt from the building and sped off in the direction of the old fortress. "Alright, time to go to work!"
