Girolduses Journey

Chapter: 14

"She's gone. She's really gone." Was all Giroldus could mutter as he stared into his hands.

"What happened?" Vaeldric wondered aloud

"This bastard of a drake petrified the woman accompanying that man." Sinto said pointing to Giroldus

"Damn." Vaeldric said, "She was a good person too." At that Vaeldric clenched and unclenched his hands, not sure what to do

"I don't usually associate with the likes of you guys but even people like you don't deserve this." Sinto said turning back to Vaeldric

"People like us? What's that supposed to mean?" Vaeldric said lighting the pyromancy flame in his hand

"Figure it out." Sinto said as he threw a smoke bomb to the ground, seeming to disappear into thin air

"That guy was a douche." Vaeldric said as he turned back to the sight at hand "Never thought I'd see the day when the 'powerful and all knowing' Duke of Lordran would lay dead in his own lair." The man laughed but as he remembered the current situation he quickly hushed himself, approaching the woman who stood with her hand on the kneeling Girolduses shoulder.

"Who may you be?" Vaeldric asked

"I am Maerana of Astora. What brings you here?" The woman responded

"Well I originally planned to finish burning this place to the ground and kill the white traitor, but I was beaten to the punch." Vaeldric said, "What happened to Mildred?"

As Maerana opened her mouth to speak Giroldus, who answered as he stood, up interrupted her.

"She was petrified when the dragon used his breath on her." As he turned, Giroldus walked to the dragon's corpse. "Should be any second now."

"What?" Both Vaeldric and Maerana, both equally confused

"The power of the Lord soul he possesses will consume him and burn his corpse, for it cannot occupy a dead vessel." Giroldus said

"That's interesting and all, but shouldn't you be crying or something?" Vaeldric said

"Why would you say that to him?" Maerana said shoving Vaeldric

"Calm down Maerana, he's right, I should be feeling something sad but nothing but rage dwells within me." Giroldus said as he stood, back to them, and watched the fire consume the dragon turning his body to ash, leaving nothing but a small soul, which burned brighter than the others he had seen as it, sat in the dragon's ash.

The soul was soft to the touch and did not burn; yet it still emitted a power he had never experienced. As he turned back to the two who still sat in a sense of awe he addressed them again.

"Now, we need to leave and return to the bonfire that sits in the archives, from there we can go somewhere we can talk." As Giroldus spoke, his voice was not melancholy, but it held no emotion.

"Or, better idea, we could use the bonfire right there." Vaeldric said pointing to his right

"Alright, one moment." Giroldus said as he approached the petrified Mildred "I will beat this accursed land for you, for us."

After this Giroldus joined the other two knights at the bonfire and grabbing each one's hand, teleported them to fire link. When they reached the shrine Giroldus sat down with his back to the decayed wall that sat behind the fire while Vaeldric sat in the crook of the roots of the tree and Maerana took up position where the crestfallen warrior usually sat.

"Now Maerana, I think we should start with what you were doing in that crystal." Giroldus said as he rolled a small pebble in his palm.

"To make a long story short, the white dragon sought to use the power I guard as a catalyst for his immortality crystal, so whilst I slept he had his channelers kidnap me and then he crystallized me." As she told her story she spoke as if she was trying to forget what happened as she spoke it.

"That is unfortunate." Giroldus said as he crushed the pebble in his hand and blew the dust outward

"Man that monotone is really showing your empathy Giroldus." Vaeldric laughed

At that Giroldus stood up and walked towards where Laurentius usually was and as he approached with his head hung low the pyromancer knew something was wrong.

"Where… uh, where's Mildred?" The pyromancer asked with a nervous chuckle

"She's gone, turned to stone by the pale drake." Giroldus said looking up at him "I remember, before we left, you said Mildred had a knack for pyromancy." Giroldus said as he smiled, almost as if he was trying to grip onto the memory and hold it.

"Yeah she uh, she really loved it." Laurentius said, also cracking a smile

"Well I need you to train me the best you can, so I can use it, in her memory." Giroldus explained as he clenched his fists

As he contemplated what Giroldus had said Laurentius decided against refusing him, knowing it would only hurt him more, "Alright. Let's get started." Laurentius said patting Giroldus on the shoulder.

It had been hours since Giroldus and Laurentius had started their lessons and as they finally seemed to cover all there was to know on flame and actualizing the inner self, Vaeldric looked to Maerana who sat in the same position sharpening a strange dagger.

"You think they'll ever finish?"

"If you're so bored why don't you leave?" The woman said not looking up from her dagger

"I could ask you the same thing." Vaeldric replied, "All you've done is sharpen that dagger, don't you have places to see or people to return too?"

"Those I would call family have long since gone, my home has long since burned." As she talked she didn't seem sad, she seemed more concentrated on her weapon than anything else.

"Well excuse me princess." Vaeldric said

"Don't ever call me princess." Maerana shot back almost instantly; as Vaeldric started to respond Giroldus walked back into the small area surrounding the dead bonfire and addressed them.

"I have learned the art of flame as best I can. I am leaving for Izalith soon."

"Would you mind if I tag along?" Maerana said

"I don't see why you would want to." Giroldus said turning to her

"If it were not for the lords I would not have been kidnapped and my home would not have burned." Maerana said

"I'd say that's reason enough." Vaeldric said stretching

"At the end of the day Giroldus, I'm going to Izalith, either with you or without you." Maerana replied sheathing her dagger and staring him in the face

"I'll not have another's blood on my hands, I will not take you into a hell you may not come out of." The knight said stone faced, staring right back.

"Damn, the tension in the air could suffocate a silver knight." Vaeldric said as he stood up "I'll be on my way now, people to see, people to kill, you guys get it."

"I need a favor from you Vaeldric." Giroldus said

"Sure, what is it?" Vaeldric said curious

"Go to the archives and burn them down, like you wanted." Giroldus said turning to him and placing a hand on his shoulder "Don't leave a single book intact."
"My pleasure." Vaeldric said smiling "Good luck buddy, I've heard Izalith is a real pain in the ass."

"Thank you, and good luck to you to my friend." Giroldus said as he left

"Now if you'll excuse me I'll be on my way to hell." Giroldus said as he pushed past Maerana "I'll ask you once more to please not follow me, I do not need your death on my conscience as well."

"Sorry, no can do." Maerana said, "I have just as much a right to revenge as you do." As she spoke she showed how unwavering her decision would be through the tone and stiffness of her voice.

As Giroldus looked to her with pleading eyes he really noticed her for the first time, she wore a gold circlet and a form of the elite knight armor he had never seen, her face was quite beautiful and seemed as if she was from a family of nobles though she showed no indication of such a thing.

"Then I'll see you in hell." Giroldus said as he turned away and walked down to the elevator and began his descent. The approach to Blight town made Giroldus sick to his stomach, not because he wasn't going with Mildred, but because he knew he had failed the denizens on his promise to safeguard her. As he passed the ogres they noticed the lack of Mildred with him and the sad look on his face, causing them to roar out of sorrow. When he reached the elevator he noticed the dogs that usually operated them had stopped and lay down. This caused Giroldus to have to climb down the wheel using its spikes as handles and grips. As he approached the bottom of the wheel, he released and fell into the mud below. The noise he heard behind him sounded as if someone was fighting and as he turned to the old spider lair that he was to make his way through he noticed someone was engaged in combat with the ogres who sat outside. As he neared it appeared Maerana was fighting the ogres and quite effectively at that. One ogre threw a boulder but she slid under it as if gliding on the mud and whilst sliding jumped up and delivered an effectives uppercut to the ogre, crushing his jaw and sending him flying. The second ogre ran at her while rolling his boulder and as she turned to the charging ogre she withdrew a dagger that was blacker than the abyss itself and jumping into the air she sliced into the ogre's head, cutting it in two. As she landed an ogre smashed a boulder into two, using the pieces as hand held weapons, and as he swung she sidestepped his swings and waited for her time to strike, and sure enough after a careless slam down, she sliced the ogre's arm and then slashed his chest with lightning speed, causing the creature to fall and sputter into the mud below it.

"That one is a strong warrior." A heavily eastern voice said from behind Giroldus who as he turned noticed the eastern warrior behind him.

"Who may you be?" Giroldus asked

"I see, though I know of you, you do not know me." At this the man chuckled and replied, "I am Shiva of the East."

"Nice to meet you." Giroldus said extending a hand "My names Giroldus."

"Your reputation precedes you, slayer of dragons." Shiva said

"I'm hardly such, a deformed and dying dragon is hardly a dragon." Giroldus said thinking of the disgusting gaping dragon he had fought before "The Hell Kite above would prove harder to kill."

"Still a dragon is a dragon. Would you be interested in seeing some of my wares?" The man said

"Yes but at a later date, I am on a mission." Giroldus said turning to the old spider den, Maerana no longer in sight "How does she move so fast?" Giroldus wondered

"Then I bid you good luck sir Giroldus." Shiva said as Giroldus trudged forward

"Thank you Shiva, and one more thing." Giroldus said turning to him once more "How did you know me?" At this the man laughed once more

"It is useful to know of potential threats… or friends. I have my ways bernike, do not worry yourself."

"Whatever man." Giroldus called as he continued to trudge forward, and after sometime, reached the gateway to the den.

"One step closer." Giroldus thought as he wandered through the empty and silent chamber, his footsteps echoing. He reached the stairs that led down to the next step of his journey, but as he made his way down the steps and below the second bell of awakening, he wondered how bad it could be.

"It can't be that bad, people like to exaggerate, I'll be fine." Giroldus thought as he reached another bonfire after exiting an old path to a large open area. "See it's not that ba-" Giroldus thought as he was interrupted by the loud roar of a beast. After running to the edge of the small indent he sat in, he looked across the large expanse of lava to a cliff area where a giant monster could be seen coming into view, lava seeped from the monster and fell into the lake of it below, and as it brung a massive limb down, Giroldus wondered what it was trying to smash. When the custom armor of a familiar face came into view, all Giroldus could think was,

"You've got to be kidding me."