Chapter Nine - Embers of Reformation
The remaining leaves of the Haligtree shifted from one color to the next as season after season passed. During that time Miquella had been safely ensconced within its heart once more, and was already starting to recover, albeit very slowly. Still, the effect his presence had on the tree itself was noticeable. Already there were less pests stalking its boughs, madness seemed to slowly dissipate, and the areas that had once been affected by Scarlet Rot either sloughed away or were gradually returned to their formerly pristine state. Malenia and Freomund had not been idle during this time either, both of them doing their own parts to organize the remaining forces and clear more hostiles from the tree.
While that was going on they had also begun to turn their attention ever outwards to Leyndell and beyond in the hopes of gathering other survivors and enlisting their aid in clearing some of the ash from the capital, in addition to restoring order to other places throughout the Lands Between where applicable. Limgrave was perhaps the easiest, though Stormveil still proved to be a font of resistance. Beyond that there was the Weeping Peninsula, Altus Plateau, and Liurnia, all of which had been reclaimed to varying degrees. Other regions such as Caelid, however, would not be given a foothold any time soon - and the same went for the Forbidden Lands.
Granted, those lands had never truly been a part of the Golden Order to begin with, although it appeared as though Freomund wanted that to change with the advent of the new age he intended to usher in. What exactly this age would entail he hadn't worked out entirely just yet, other than the removal of Outer God influence and the unification of all peoples inhabiting the Lands Between that is. A grand plan for a bright new future if ever there was one, but also one that would need to be enacted at a much later date for feasibility's sake. When the time finally did come though, Malenia would be there to help her husband build it - with her bare hands if need be.
Until then the two of them would keep watch beneath the fiery shadow of the Erdtree, rebuilding when and where they could, and consolidating power where they could not till such time as Miquella should awaken.
Well… that was the plan anyway.
But when the Empyrean in question had failed to emerge from the confines of his cocoon near the end of winter, Malenia and Freomund alike had started to get just the teeniest bit worried.
"He should have emerged by now," Malenia muttered as she nibbled her thumb. "Something's wrong."
Freomund stroked his chin as he examined the cocoon, his expression thoughtful.
"Could this have been Mohg's doing? Some kind of countermeasure to spite us in the end perhaps?"
Malenia shook her head.
"No, it's not that," she said, resting her hand upon the cocoon's gnarled surface. "If he had done something I would have sensed it. The work of his accursed god is something I'd recognize anywhere, for we are - were - of the same root. At least as far as power is concerned."
Heaving a frustrated sigh, Malenia took a step back, looking at Freomund from over her shoulder as she did so.
"This is something altogether different."
"So what should we do? We need to get him out of there somehow."
The two of them lapsed into a lengthy silence then, only for Freomund to break it with a possible course of action. It wasn't one he was certain would work, but at this point he figured it was worth a shot, as they could hardly be expected to cut off the Outer Gods from this world - and thus make the Elden Ring's power safe to use - without Miquella's help.
"I might have a solution," he said, meeting his wife's inquiring gaze. "I did some favors for a monk named Jigo a ways back. The man had a weakness for alcohol, you see, and had requested my aid in procuring a specific set of ingredients so he could make a liquor with magical properties he called Dreambrew."
Freomund made a little gesture with his hand as if to emphasize the point he was getting at.
"Well one of the ingredients was a distillant of Dream Mist, a kind of bluish cloud created by sleeping beings. I ended up collecting it from slumbering animals all over the Lands Between, and when I finally delivered it to Jigo he gave me one of those brews. I used it on that merchant in Limgrave, Kalé, and it not only put him to sleep but, well…"
He gave his lover a significant look.
"...it let me peer into his dreams. And I think it will allow us to do the same for Miquella with a bit of tweaking. Hell, if we take a higher dose we might even be able to enter his dreams and work out what's wrong ourselves."
Malenia blinked.
"That might just work, but…"
She crossed her arms.
"Do you even know how to make this concoction?"
Freomund nodded, much to her surprise.
"I might not be a master shipwright," he proclaimed with an air of smugness. "But I know my stuff when it comes to magic, brewing, crafting and cooking. Well, that and fighting obviously. Plus I watched Jigo make the thing, so I have a decent grasp on the amounts required for each ingredient."
He shrugged.
"From there it's merely a matter of adjusting the tincture's potency until we find something that works."
Now it was Malenia's turn to smile as she closed the distance between them and tilted Freomund's chin upwards with her forefinger and thumb.
"Why you clever bastard," she murmured, staring down at him through lidded eyes. "Is there nothing you cannot do?"
Freomund smirked and leaned closer.
"Well aside from resisting your charm, I can't sing to save my life."
Twas quite true. Her love was absolutely horrendous when it came to lending his voice to song, as a demonstration with some of her men one night had proven. They'd gathered round fires to celebrate the return of their lord Miquella and, after food was had and drink consumed, some of the more musically inclined among them had fetched instruments and begun to play. Then, as Freomund was making his way back to their shared quarters, the men had invited him to join in on the festivities - not realizing what a terrible mistake they had made until it was far too late.
They knew better than to make such an offer again after that.
"And yet neither of these things lessens your magnificence a bit, husband of mine," Malenia said, bending down to plant a light kiss on his forehead. "But as tempting as this distraction is, we waste time that is better spent on creating this brew of yours."
Stepping away, she made her way over to the glade's entrance with Freomund trailing close behind.
"Agreed. The sooner we finish our foraging, the sooner we can rouse your brother from his slumber."
With that the two of them set out, stopping only once to procure some more supplies from the fortress above, before departing the Haligtree forthwith.
I-X-I
About a day or more of ceaseless trekking saw the two of them arrive in the Altus Plateau at last, looking for all the world like the picturesque battlefield it was, albeit with a bit less clutter and far more camps. Friendly camps at that, given the banners they flew in honor of the Haligtree. While a very encouraging site to see, as it basically confirmed the progress their forces were making in the region, these camps weren't what the Empyrean and Elden Lord were here for on this particular occasion. No, right now they had some mist to collect.
"Keep your eyes peeled," Freomund said as they stalked through the grass. "Bears, wolves, sheep. Anything that's asleep and emanating a blue mist is fair game. Keep in mind that we need at least five distillates to make the potion."
Malenia nodded, but caught herself midway when a question sprung to mind.
"How are we supposed to collect this mist exactly?"
Freomund retrieved an empty decanter from his pack and jiggled it.
"Just pass an empty container through it and put the stopper on the end. Simple as that."
Another nod followed by concentrated silence as they stumbled across a sleeping turtle. Working deftly, Freomund took the decanter and passed it through the mist before putting the stopper back on and slipping it back into his pack.
"One down," he whispered. "Four more to go."
Pushing forward the two of them went from sheep to bear, to wolf to land octopus, until every bottle they had was filled. Their task completed, Freomund and Malenia prepared themselves for the long journey back north to the Haligtree, setting off just as the sun reached its apex in the sky.
I-X-I
"The Dreambrew's almost done," Freomund said as he mixed the distillates they'd collected in a cauldron. One that had been graciously provided by the troops, being elevated from its former status as holder of stew to churner of tinctures.
"A couple more stirs and we'll be golden."
He grimaced.
"Sorry, that was a bad pun, even for me."
Malenia could only give him a slight smile in response, as the majority of her mind was preoccupied. Which was understandable all things considered. She finally had a real chance at getting her brother back into her life for the first time since they were children, and with a completely new dynamic spun into their relationship thanks to the elimination of her curse. At that point Freomund doubted there was a single person on the planet who wouldn't be a little distracted.
"Alright," Freomund said after a few more minutes had passed. "It's done. I've gone with a low dose for now, so we shouldn't be out for too long. Just long enough to get a good starting point."
He took out two bottles and filled them with the mixture, passing one to Malenia before pressing the rim of his own to his mouth.
"Ready?"
She nodded.
"Okay, let's do this."
Throwing his head back, Freomund downed the brew in a single go, and Malenia did the same. Barely a minute later and the two of them had fallen into a deep - almost deathlike - slumber.
Author's Note: And here's chapter nine! The next one up will be our very own Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath as our duo works out some of Miquella's more subconscious problems. At least that's the plan anyway. As always the exact details could change during the actual writing process. Also, I decided to reintroduce that unused quest from the network test because it seemed to play a more integral part to the game before it was cut. That and it just sounded like a cool lore friendly way of letting Malenia and Freomund get into the most fearsome Empyrean's head.
Finally, to those who are still reading along thus far, thank you. Your viewership is greatly appreciated.