A Crusade Of Fire

by Lucius-RC-75

The Flame is dying and the last battle between Light and Dark approaches, the Lords have awakened from dead in a last attempt to light the fire and several Unkindled rise to defend it, one in particular is bent in becoming a Crusader Of Fire to defeat the Abyss once and for all... And with the looming threat of Pontiff Sulyvhan and The Deep, it will be a challenging last Crusade

7. The Deep Lord

A Crusade Of Fire

By Lucius RC

A/N: Hello there! Hope you're ready for a new chapter of a Crusade Of Fire!

This Chapter we will delve into Aldrich's return to Irithyll and Anor Londo, as well as Pontiff Sulyvhan and his sinister plans! Also, for you to picture the starting scene better, the song the Choir is singing is basically the Soundtrack of Deacons Of The Deep and Pontiff Sulyvhan boss fights mixed

Now, to answer some reviews:

RC: Hoh! That strategy sounds quite good, I should try it sometimes! A shame that I just killed the Deacons Of The Deep in NG before seeing this review : ( but hey! Charging like a madman and hacking away at everything that moves is much more fun!

Derek: Yeah, I felt that too, it lacked the epicness of other chapters and most of the emotion, I just couldn't give Yhorm a good personality : ( and the lack of lore of the Profaned Capital also made it hard, I hope that in future chapters I can give him a better personality, and oh? I would love to hear more about lore! Most of the lore I've found on him points towards him being the Firstborn, but I've never heard of him attacking the Abyss! I would love to hear more about it

Cosmic Guardian: Indeed, I feel exactly the same! Damn ungrateful bastards, I feel so bad when I kill Yhorm…. All of the Lords Of Cinder fights are so tragic and nostalgic… except Aldrich, fuck Aldrich, I love to kill that bastard

Togekiss: Why thanks you! And I did considered adding Siegward or referencing him, but at the end couldn't find a way to, but, as Ludleth says: Freth not, Freth not! For Siegward will appear soon enough!

With those lovely reviews answered, lets begin!

FORWARD!

Chapter 6: The Cathedral

The strong and loud voice of the singing Choir filled the building as Pontiff Sulyvhan entered through the massive doors holding a golden candlestick with burning black candles on his hands, Aldrich scanned his old friend through the eyes of Gwyndolin as he advanced, the usual decorated and ornate white robes, the metal helmet and the crown that depicted roots, and the twin Greatswords sheathed safely on his belt

Archdeacon Royce walked a bit behind Sulyvhan, holding both his long scepter and a candlestick of his own, The Devourer noticed that the other two Archdeacons were missing, a shame! He always thought Mcdonnel or Klimt would be the ones to survive, but alas, it appeared that the fragile human with the long white beard was the only one who lived and remained faithful to him

The Deacons of the Deep advanced in a procession behind the two leaders of the Church, all of them attired in their purple and red robes and with golden candlesticks on their hands, singing the Hymns dedicated to Him alongside the Choir as they walked, and further behind them several women, mostly fat, old and attired in black and white robes advanced, the Evangelists of the Cathedral

At the end of the procession the muscle of the Church advanced, the thin and cold Pontiff Knights, with their golden crowns and curved swords, the Cathedral Knights in their extremely heavy armor and weapons, and finally his Faithful, several Undead warriors and heroes who had taken the sacred duty to defend Aldrich in the Cathedral

"Ah, how I missed this…" Aldrich muttered to himself as he looked at the benches now, all the important people of Irithyll kneeling in front of the benches to adore him, and he could see the fire of countless candles outside the Cathedral, where all the common people of the frozen city had gathered to worship their God

He had to admit that the only reason he had spared Sulyvhan's of his revengeful wrath was this, the ability to presence and feel one of the rituals in his honor yet again, he looked forward to the end of it, when all the presents would offerSouls to him, as well as several spells to strengthen him and his powers… although when it all ended, the Pontiff would need a REALLY good excuse if he wanted to be forgiven for his sins

The black mass that was his body began writhing and squirming, his own version of flinching, as he remembered the sin of the Pontiff, how had he dared?! He trusted the bastard, but he tricked him and forced him to become a Lord, they were supposed to end the Fire, not to extend it! But he had to be so foolish and short-sighted, he was blinded by his hunger… but he had learned from his mistakes, and they wouldn't be repeated again

He was brought back from his daydreaming as the procession began depositing their Candleholders in a circle around him before they all knelt in a circle around him, beginning to chant as Sulyvhan advanced forward with a big vessel in his hands, designed to look like the legendary Lordvessel that was lost long ago, only this this Vessel was dark-colored and for a completely different purpose

The Pontiff raised his hand to and a big, strong glowing soul appeared in his hands "For you, Saint Aldrich, the soul of Sir Virdos, a quite powerful and influential Royal Knight of Lothric, one of the mayor leaders of the kingdom in the Prince's absence! He was killed recently, so the soul is still fresh, just as you like" Sulvhan said in his usual calm and cheerful voice, before lighting a fire in the Vessel using a pyromancy and casting the soul into it, Aldrich giving a small nod using Gwyndolin's body as a response and raising his hand to grant a small aura on Sulyvhan's head, his Blessing

The ritual took hours, every member of the procession offering souls, gifts, artefacts, Humanity sprites, Estus, and several other things and taking a few minutes to speak to him before being granted the Blessing of the Devourer Of Gods, time always flew when he did rituals, especially if they were in his Honor, he didn't learn until the end of it that the ritual had taken a whole week to complete, and that all the people of Irithyll had participated in it, except the slaves, who loathed him

But Aldrich wasn't even tired, he had slumbered for a whole Age after all, and as he took the Vessel with Gwyndolin's hands and absorbed the power of all offerings made to him, the need for rest disappeared completely and he felt powerful, more powerful than usual, oh how he loved the power!

Only Pontiff Sulyvhan, Archdeacon Royce, Maria the Head Evangelist and Sir Voreas of the Pontifical Knights remained by now, and Aldrich, after finishing his meal, rose in his full glory to speak to all of them "Step forward, Sir Voreas, and tell me how the war with Lothric fares" He said in his deep and powerful voice, using the mouth of the Dark Sun to speak, he had only recently learned about all that had happened during his slumber: the war against Lothric, the fading of the Flame, the rise of Londor… and the return of the Lords Of Cinder

Sir Voreas advanced forward and knelt before him, he was a man in the usual attire of the Pontifical Knights, but more decorated and ornate, a bigger crown on his head "Oh most glorious Saint, We hold the advantage in the current war, the Outrider Knights and our Armies have overrun most of Lothric, the fools are caught in their little civil war even now and our Knights are all over the place, our soldiers control several strategical points, Sir Vordt stands guard in the High Wall to ensure no reinforcements arrive and that nobody goes out, The Dancer stands guard in the entrance to the Castle, thus ensuring the Prince doesn't escapes, and we have Knights stationed in the Grand Archives and deep inside the Castle, in no time all of Lothric will be ours and the Princes will be yours to Devour" the Knight said proudly while kneeling, Aldrich smiling pleasantly and granted Voreas his blessing before dismissing him, beaconing Maria next

The fat lady knelt before him and smiled at him before speaking "Lord Aldrich, The Cathedral completely dominates the Undead Settlement and most other villages and settlements of the Kingdom, that ensures that your domain will be secured, the Age Of The Deep will soon arrive!" she said proudly

"Perfect, several Unkindled will surely pass through the Settlements, so make sure that none of them makes it out of there, I don't want a single unkindled who isn't one of my Faithful to reach Anor Londo, leave for the Settlement and continue evangelizing the population… Archdeacon Royce, your task will be the same, guard the Cathedral and watch my Coffin… and ensure the Abominations are contained" Aldrich said, granting both of them His blessing… and soon only him and Sulyvhan remained

"Ah, Sulyvhan, looks like you have taken care of my domain so well… hah! You even took the crown and ruled supreme without even trying to bring me back, you bastard" Aldrich said once they were completely alone in the Cathedral, beginning to slither like a snake towards the Pontiff, who nevertheless remained completely calm and undisturbed

"Aldrich my old friend! Surely you don't think that I am doing this out of power and ambition? You are the Saint of the Deep, you are no fool!" Sulyvhan said with an almost paternal chuckle as he advanced forward "I took the heavy burden of the crown and the massive strain of power not for personal ambition, but to serve you and the Deep! Surely you didn't expect me to let Irithyll fall into anarchy?" the Pontiff said as, to Aldrich's surprise, he placed his hand on his body and patted it

The Devourer was truly in a loss of words, he knew of Sulyvhan's serpent tongue and had known It for many years, yet it never ceased to amuse him, he almost trusted his words, almost "If that's so, if you wished to serve me so much, then WHY DID YOU TRICKED ME INTO BURNING AS FUEL TO THE FLAME AND BECOMING A LORD OF CINDER?! YOU BETRAYED THE DEEP BY FORCING ME TO PROLONG THE AGE!" He said, lumbering over the Pontiff, a massive blade made of Deep magic appeared in His hands as he looked at Sulyvhan fiercely

"ALDRICH! What is that attitude? You're the Saint of the Deep, the Devourer of Gods, don't be stupid! Surely someone of your power should act differently! Can't you see the Glory of my plan? Can't you see the bigger picture?!" Sulyvhan said with a grunt, finally backing away and placing his hands on his swords, and Aldrich slowly lowered his own blade to hear him out

"I casted you into the flames so we could be ready for the Deep! It was necessary to prolong the Age for a last time! And you were the most powerful being on the land, the only one who would ensure that this Age continued for a massive amount of time, we weren't ready back then for the Age Of The Deep! But we are now! We have made all preparations, as soon as you finish devouring Gwyndolin and all the remaining Unkindled and Lords of Cinder, you will devour the First Flame as well, and you will devour the Great Souls of the Gods that were lost long ago, you will devour the remnants of the Ancient Dragons, and you will devour the Abyss and, with your immense power, you will bring forward the Age Of The Deep, the Age of deep and murky seas! And your faithful servants will follow you and you will reign eternally!" Sulyvhan said, slowly beginning to walk towards Aldrich until he was face to face with him

Aldrich considered devouring the man right there… but… his words made sense, he may have a silver tongue but it all made sense, yes… he would be the supreme god! He would be omnipotent, he would rule the Age Of The Deep! The curse of the Cycle would disappear forever… but Sulyvhan was too dangerous, he would have to disappear as soon as his purpose was meet, after that he would devour him, absorb his power, and rule supreme!

Little did he know, the same thoughts passed through the Pontiff's mind as well

"So be it then, I forgive you and let you live… for now, the true enemy lays not within ourselves, but outside, in the First Flame and in the Abyss, but I do have a last question for you, my good friend… why, after all this time, when numerous kings and queens have fallen in Lothric… you are still alive and well?" Aldrich said as he looked at him curiously

A loud laughter filled the church as Sulyvhan removed his mask, revealing the face of old man with white short hair and a white full beard, before he rose his hand and showed him a ring, Aldrich recognized those rings, they came from the Hollow Kingdom, from Londor… the Pontiff removed the ring and his face changed to that of a Undead

"You see, my old friend, The Curse isn't exactly a Curse when you have a clear purpose… and by the time the Deep comes, I shall not hollow, for the Cycle will be dead" Sulyvhan said with a crocked smile before putting back the ring, his face coming back

"Truly, you're wretched… I shall depart for the ruined Cathedral of Anor Londo, and there I will finish devouring Gwyndolin, I expect Prince Lothric and Lorian, as well as all the Unkindled and Lords of Cinder you can gather, to be waiting to be devoured by the time I am done, farewell" Aldrich said, sickened by the man he once considered his friend before beginning to slither away, towards Anor Londo

"Farewell, my friend, Farewell… may the Deep bless you" Pontiff Sulyvhan said with a smile and a wink before placing his mask and crown back into his head "and may you enjoy your last meals"

A/N: THE EEEEEEEEEEEEEND

Now, I really loved how this chapter ended! Specially the scene of the Ritual to strengthen Aldrich, I loved it! The Deep and all its ramification has intrigued me a lot ever since I got the name, I don't love them like I love the Abyss Watchers, its more like the attraction you feel towards a badass villain! You love the way they look and the concept, but hate them a lot

Pontiff Sulyvhan and Aldrich were the bosses I most enjoyed killing, they are both so wretched and evil… its pleasurable to stick swords up their asses! You know, most guys have a lot of problems with Sulyvhan and Aldrich, but I found no problem with them tbh, killed the Pontiff in my fourth try and Aldrich in my second

And at the same time, most people didn't had any troubles at all with the Crystal Sages, yet it took me a shitton of hours to be able to defeat him!

Anyways, next chapter we will see Sir Joseph begin his journey across Lothric and the Lands of the Lords to link the First Flame, the major plot will begin appearing in these upcoming chapters, so buck your belts and get your refreshments! For the real fun is about to start!

And you will get quite a big and unexpected surprise next chapter!

See you next time!