The Ballad of Belos
Chapter One: The Revenant
The being that would one day be known as Belos was born from his mother's bile sac.
The organ, untouched for thousands of years, one day began to pulse, as though life had been restored to the titan's long-dead heart. Life was indeed within the bile sac, but not the titan's own. Like a chick breaking free from its egg, something began tearing its way through the organ, sending a deluge of magical bile to the floor below, where it accumulated into a pool.
Through the small tear emerged a hand, pale and skinny like that of a corpse. Long fingers tipped with claws pulled the tear open further, out of which came a face. Sunken black eyes and a fang-filled mouth entered the light of the outside world-not that the inside of this cave was much brighter than the creature's cocoon. The wider the tear grew, the more bile rained down to the floor. Eventually, the creature's full body emerged, skeletal and slender. As before, a corpse was the most apt way to describe it.
With nothing below to support him once he was free, the creature fell down to the floor, landing in the pool of bile. Screeching in indignation, he splashed around in the green liquid until he was able to right himself, climbing out onto dry land. Now, he was able to see just where he was.
The creature looked around the cave he found himself in. Dark and damp, the faint shape of a ribcage could be made on the far end of the cave's walls. Behind him lay the bile sac he had emerged from, and the pool of magical bile that still flowed from it. Attached to it, forming the back wall of the cave, was an enormous heart, as still as stone. What little light that crept into the cave did so from a small opening near the roof, far too small for him to see anything through it at this distance.
It was then that the creature made his first conscious decision. Attracted to the light, he decided to make his way towards the opening. With far more grace than one would expect from any sort of newborn, he climbed up the side of the heart, coming to a stop at a small alcove at the top.
It was then that the creature made his second decision. Having just now realized how exhausting both tearing his way through the bile sac and climbing up to this alcove were, he decided to sleep. Fortunately, the alcove provided the perfect place to bed down for the day-or night, he wasn't sure.
As he settled down for a rest, the creature noticed that he was still covered in bile from his plunge. With no other way to remove it, he experimentally dragged his tongue across the back of his hand. Once content that the substance wasn't poisonous, he proceeded to lick himself clean. Though the taste left much to be desired, something about consuming the liquid left him feeling invigorated, somehow. Still, it wasn't enough to ease his exhaustion. Before he closed his eyes, one might have noticed that the formerly black orbs now had a slight red glow to them.
The creature wasn't sure how long he had been asleep. Upon waking, he realized that the light shining through the opening had shifted slightly. He yawned, revealing a mouthful of fangs. No longer fatigued, the creature worked his way through the hole.
He was forced to squint as the light bombarded his eyes, which were only used to darkness. Once through, he held up a hand in front of his face, creeping slightly forward. After a moment, and his eyes had adjusted, he now found himself in another, smaller cave. The sun, low on the horizon, was shining directly through the large entrance. Still unable to see past the glare, he made his way out of the cave and into the outside world.
The creature was given his first look at where he resided. The cave from which he emerged was located near the top of a large mountain, which itself was at the center of an island. Trees sprouted from the side of the mountain, at the bottom of which were several miles of sprawling plains, all of which were surrounded by a purple sea. The creature paused for a moment as he took in the sight. Then, a growl that hadn't come from his throat informed him of something new.
Although this was his first time feeling hunger, his instincts were more than enough to tell him what should be done. After a few experimental sniffs of the air, the creature bounded down the side of the mountain in search of sustenance. As he listened for potential prey, his thoughts kept returning to the bile he had tasted earlier. But he knew it wouldn't be enough to sustain him. Although he knew very little, he did know that what he craved was flesh.
He soon reached the foot of the mountain. Down here on the ground, All sorts of new smells and sounds reached him. Sounds of running water, of wind through the leaves, of birds overhead. Smells of pine needles, of seawater, of the woods-of fresh meat. He leaned lower to the ground, trying to find the source of this scent. It was faint, almost too faint to follow. But it was slightly less faint in the direction of the plains off in the distance. The creature followed the trail.
After an uneventful trek through the woods, the creature soon found himself staring at a herd of large horned animals lazily grazing in the fields. Something about these animals seemed familiar to him, even though he knew he had never seen them before. Familiar or not, the smell had led him towards them, and he was not about to return to the cave on an empty stomach. He approached, low to the ground to hide among the grass. A few of the animals glanced around, as though they had detected something, but were unsure of what.
The creature made his way towards a smaller animal, separated from the rest of the herd. Even though it wasn't as large as the others, it still had enough meat on its bones to provide a filling meal. More importantly, it would be far easier to take down, provided he could get the jump on it. Luckily, it seemed unaware of his presence as he crept closer.
The creature made his move. He pounced, latching on to the animal and biting down. The entire herd began to run, leaving the smallest member behind. Although it tried to run as well, the creature continued biting and clawing at its vital organs, until it was too weak to go any further. The animal collapsed, dead. The creature got off to admire his kill.
He could only admire for so long. He began hungrily tearing into the animal's flesh, swallowing chunks of meat whole. By the time he had eaten his fill, he noticed that barely anything other than bones remained. Apparently, he had been hungrier than he thought. It made sense, given that this was the first meal of his life.
Life. There was something he hadn't thought about before. Now that he really had time to think about it, he realized he didn't know where he was. Not so much on the island, but more in relation to that-where the island was, more accurately. And the more he thought about that, the more he realized that this was an odd thing to be thinking about.
You see, this creature was noticing that he was gifted with a very strange phenomenon. One known as sentience. He was not a mere animal, but was able to ask questions, such as the previous one. For the first time in his short existence, he began pondering not just where he was, but who he was, and why he was there. He had never so much as glimpsed a creature anything like him, even in the cave he had been born in.
The creature paused his wondering for the moment, thinking that it would be easier to ponder these things back home. Despite his full stomach, he found himself no less agile as he made his way back up the mountain, carried by his long limbs and fingers. A sound caused him to briefly turn around: the grazing animals from earlier had retaken their place in the field, seemingly unbothered by the fact that one of their own had been ambushed and killed in that exact spot. It would seem that finding food would not be much of a problem on this island.
Once he returned to his cave, the creature decided that he had earned another rest. Before he could lay down again, he heard something-or rather, felt something-coming from down below. A hum seemed to be coming from the pool of green liquid next to the unbeating heart. Almost calling him, beckoning him. He descended into the lower cavern and made his way beside the pool.
Remembering how tasting it had made him feel earlier, he took an experimental drink. Almost instantly, any sort of fatigue and heaviness that he had been feeling from his excursion had vanished. And it wasn't just that: The hum now seemed to be coming from within himself as well. He took another gulp. Now, the hum was coming exclusively from him, the pool having gone silent. It was as though this bile, this essence he had somehow come from, was what gave him life. More than food, water, even air. Having drank his fill, the creature returned to the small alcove in the upper level.
And so, this went on. Days became weeks. Weeks became months. Each day, the creature would venture out of his caves and into the wilderness of the small island. Some days he would hunt another of the horned animals to eat, but he found that a single one was enough to keep him fed for days at a time. When he wasn't feeling particularly hungry, he would venture out to unexplored parts of the island he called a home.
Down at the foot of the mountain in the center was a lush grassy field, bordered by hills on one side and a forest on the other. The horned animals would seldom venture into the forest, but the hills were their territory. The creature found this out when he attempted to get close, and was met with resistance in the form of bellowing and lowered horns. He steered clear of the hills from then on, but the fields were neutral ground. He would hunt a single animal once every few days, and they seemed never to grow wise to his attacks.
The forest was dense and good for scouting targets ahead of a hunt, but little else. The small animals that darted through the undergrowth and jumped across the branches were too small to be a decent meal, even if it was worth the effort to catch them. None of the plants had any value as food, either. Some of the trees bore bright red, conical fruits that some of the small tree-dwelling animals seemed to love, but the creature found them too bitter to enjoy.
Behind the mountain, there was a smaller forest. It was much the same as the other, with the only difference being that it had a lake in the middle. Despite frequent ventures into its depths, the creature found that there was nothing below the surface. Its water was crystal clear, though, so it was here that he ventured whenever he was in need of a drink. It was in this same water that he first saw his reflection. Although he knew it was himself, he still felt that something was strange about it. It was as if he knew he did not always look like that. What it was he previously looked like, if this feeling was even warranted, he didn't know.
There was another lake not far off that was much more interesting. Technically, it was fed by the ocean, so it was more of a bay, but the creature had little mind for details such as this. The water wasn't fit for drinking, but what it did have was numerous fish that had swam in from the sea. These fish were easily snatched up out of the water, and served as a salty meal on the days when the creature wasn't up to a hunt, or was in the mood for something other than red meat.
Sometimes, when the skies were particularly cloudy, they would open up and a terrible burning would fall from above. The first time he was caught in this acid rain, the creature hissed indignantly at the sky, as though his anger could cow the heavens above into submission. He soon learned that this was not the case, and so retreated back to his cave. He learned to stay inside during rainy days, and to take cover in the forest when caught by a sudden storm.
One day, the creature saw a raven. A thoroughly unremarkable experience for any, but something about it stirred up strong emotions within him. He had seen plenty of birds before, but this one was different. Its pitch black feathers stood out against the sky behind it, and something about its beak, the way it curved slightly downwards below its eyes as it looked at him, unnerved him. Unsure of what to make of these feelings, or why he was even feeling them, the creature did the only thing he could think of, and ran at the bird, screeching angrily. The raven simply flew off as he reached the side of the tree, hammering against the trunk with his fists.
Once the bird had left, he felt himself calm down. Now calm, he silently pondered why this animal had made him so angry. The only thing he could think of was an image, burned into his mind, of a raven's face, glaring at him from shadows. Why he could remember this and nothing else was beyond him, so he put it out of his mind. He returned to his home, unaware that when he had been consumed by his anger, his eyes had taken on an icy blue glow.
As time went by, the creature felt his mind being filled with everything that the island had to offer. After months of growing accustomed to what amounted to his entire world, he soon grew curious as to what lay beyond it. He had never seen anything to suggest that there even was anything beyond this tiny island in an endless purple ocean, but something inside of him knew that there was. Often, he would find himself seated atop the enormous skull that formed the mountain's summit, staring off into the horizon. Although nothing but waves met his eyes, he knew that there was more to this world.
He had no reason to think that there was. Even if the island wasn't the whole world, it was his world. He wanted for nothing, faced few hardships, and yet he always found himself staring over that horizon. Perhaps it wasn't that he wanted more of what he already had, but that he wanted what he could never get: answers. Who was he? What was he? How and why was he on this island? As long as he remained here, he would get no such answers.
When the thoughts he had became too much for his head to hold, he decided he had to get them out. One day, he ventured down into the deeper caves where the bile pool was located. But for now, and approached one of the cavern's vast, blank walls. The image of the island which he called home danced in his head, so he brought it out. Using one of his claws, he scratched a single line across the wall, representing the horizon. He then added a curved line to represent the mountain, adding the eyes, teeth, and horns of the skulltop. Next was a circle above it: the sun. And finally, he drew himself atop the mountain. It was just a crude sketch, a single line for a body, with four smaller lines as limbs, and a circle for a head.
Stepping back, the creature admired his handiwork. Something about having put his thoughts into the physical world in some form made them much more...the only way he could describe it was 'solid.' These were no longer fleeting thoughts, but concrete ideas, and his engraving stood here as proof to that. Now, if he should go anywhere, and someone else was to come here, they would know that this island had been his.
As time went by, the creature's collection of cave art grew. They became more and more detailed, the creature's likeness being unmistakable. The wall was soon covered in pictures of all the island's creatures and detailed maps of every inch of the entire land, from lake to beach, forest to plains. Drawings of the mountain, of the burning rain falling onto the trees and of the still heart that watched over him at night. Sketches of the bile sac dripping its nectar into a pool, and of himself consuming it. One drawing was simply a collection of pinpricks, which a sharp eye would be able to recognize as stars in a space of the night sky. And another of that raven. Despite the emotions the bird stirred up within the creature, this one seemed to hold a sort of reverence. It was separate from the other etchings, a ring of blank space surrounding it like a halo. In the creature's mind, he felt that he just didn't want to crowd this particular drawing, as though it was supposed to stand out, supposed to draw attention. The image of the bird's curved beak and vacant, black eyes filled him with anger...and yet, a quiet sort of longing as well. But a longing for what, he could not say.
Before long, months became years. As the bile pool continued to drain, and the walls continued to be filled with etchings, this simply became yet another part of the creature's routine. The questions about his existence that had once dominated his mind were now nothing more than a dull whisper; not as pressing as they had once been, but ever present, ever remaining. He only occasionally ventured to the skulltop to watch the horizon.
And this was it; his island. Not just the island where he lived, but his island, as he was its undisputed king. He was the only one who could decide his fate. All other beings present submitted to him, knowingly or not. Nothing and nobody was present to challenge his rule.
Until the day the others came.
It was a day like any other. And yet, the creature could tell right away that something was wrong. The horned animals grazed as usual, the forest was filled with the same smells and sounds as it always was, and yet, he felt something inside him that something dangerous was approaching. He had nobody to consult on this feeling, so he returned to his cave to consult the heart.
Still as always, but the pool of bile hummed. Or rather, what was left of it hummed. After all these years, the pool had slowly but surely been reduced to little more than a puddle. Although he wasn't sure why, the creature knew that without bile, he was no better off than he would have been without food or water. Perhaps this was the source of the feeling gnawing away at him? No, he had known of this for some time. Whatever was wrong, it was new. He left for the very top of the mountain, where he could survey the entire island.
The creature scanned across his territory several times, but found nothing out of the ordinary. The feeling persisted, so he continued to search, but turned up nothing. It wasn't until his gaze turned to the horizon that he found what he was looking for. It almost escaped him the first time, a mere speck in the distance. Off in the ocean, something was darker-colored than the purple seawater. Upon seeing this, the creature lowered himself as his lips peeled back into a snarl. His eyes locked on this vague shape, and he rushed down the mountain towards the shore for a better look.
Standing on the beach, the mysterious object became clear. A massive wooden shape floated closer and closer to the island, with wings of fabric catching the wind to pull it to its destination. Once again, something in the creature's subconscious memory told him what this was: this was a ship. Someone was coming to his island. For the first time in years, he would meet someone else. Another being. A person. And this thought filled him with fear and anger. He returned to his cave to prepare for their arrival.
Several hours later, as the sun set over the horizon, the boat had landed not far from the shore. From his hiding place, the creature could make out what sounded to be a group coming inland. A cluster of unrecognizable voices floated up the mountain from down below. His curiosity and anger grappled within him. On the one hand, these strange beings were invaders to his land. And yet, on the other, what if they were more like him? He would never know if he stayed here. His thoughts internally grappled on whether to approach the strangers, or to attack them. He settled on a compromise, and headed out to assess the situation.
A glowing light at the foot of the mountain and just at the edge of the forest drew the creature nearer. A small fire, around which the new beings sat. Just as before, some deep part of him felt sure he recognized them. They were dressed in heavy clothes, and one of them held a map, around which they were discussing something in a language that sounded so alien and yet so familiar. Although the creature couldn't understand what they were saying, he could still space out the sounds that they were making. He experimentally opened his mouth to mimic the sound: "Rrraaahh…"
Bad idea. As soon as a strange noise came from the darkness of the trees, the pointy-eared beings leapt up from their spots. A few of them shouted in alarm, while some drew clowning circles with their fingers that hovered in front of their hands, aiming them into the darkness. The creature, sensing danger, retreated further into the woods, but only made more noise by snapping twigs and rustling leaves. A few of the more brave ones left their fire behind, illuminating the forest with orbs of light as they searched for the source of the noise.
The Boiling Isles were far from the only land made up from the body of a dead titan; just the biggest. Numerous islands dotted the Boiling Sea, which many adventurers made a living exploring. That was why they had come here: a research expedition, funded by a man named Talus Archibald. There was nothing to suggest that this island was inhabited...and yet, that sound couldn't have been made by a mere animal.
The small group of witches travelled deeper into the woods, light spells splitting the darkness as they searched. Scientific curiosity proved stronger than their nerves, as most of them simply wanted to know who, or what, it was that had spoken. And much to their misfortune, they soon found it.
One of the young researchers let out a cry of alarm, nearly tripping over himself as he stumbled away from one particular tree. The others, just as alarmed, shone their lights over towards the tree, before aiming them upwards. Up in the tree's branches was a pale, skeletal creature, bearing far too close a resemblance to one of them for comfort. Almost all of them drew the connection to an emaciated corpse. Although its appearance was more than frightening enough on its own, two or three of the party seemed to know exactly what it was. They were the senior researchers, and knew more about this world as a whole and some of the other researchers knew about the Boiling Isles. And they were also the ones who were most frightened of it.
What happened next was all a blur. Nobody knew exactly who it was that had fired first, but a spell had been hurled towards this corpse-like beast. Its terrifying screech split the night air as it leapt down from its perch towards them. Now all of them joined in, firing spell after spell at the unknown terror, which only seemed to anger it further. Worst of all, the monster's eyes lit up with an icy blue as it sprinted in their direction.
The creature would have been more than content to retreat back to its mountain home had he not been provoked. But the moment that stinging sensation had exploded across his chest, he was consumed with rage. He launched himself down towards his attackers, doing everything he could to destroy them. Disoriented as he was with the pain from the projectiles colliding with his skin, he nevertheless clawed at anything he could reach. Everything was a blur, though he could tell that his claws made contact several times. A few of the creatures made the same sound over and over: "Revenant." He didn't know what it meant.
Everything happened so fast. Before long, the beings realized that their attacks were having no effect on the creature, and retreated towards the fire. Although he sent one last enraged shriek in their direction, the creature did not pursue. Though the spells seemed outwardly to have no effect, he was nonetheless fatigued from the constant barrage. He sank to the ground for a moment to catch his breath, when his eyes caught something. There, laying on the forest floor, one of the beings sat, lifeless. His claws had struck this being in his rage, dealing a killing blow. He cautiously approached to confirm his kill. Its youthful features were left frozen in an expression of terror; the creature felt a twinge of regret passing through him.
However, a kill was a kill. After taking a moment to make sure that the other beings would not be returning, the creature lifted up the body, and carried it back up the mountain. The light of the fire had been put out behind him, and he could hear the telltale sound of the party returning towards their ship. Part of him, beneath his animal instincts, hoped that they would find a way to honor their fallen comrade. He soon reached his den, carrying his kill down to the floor.
Having grown hungry from the brief battle, he began. Any sense of recognition of this being was pushed deep down inside of him. A kill was a kill. Meat was meat. However, he soon stopped. This being was far different than the animals he regularly killed for food, and not just for the obvious reasons. For a moment, the creature just stared at what he had uncovered. As though in a tiny facsimile of his very home, attached to the being's heart was a sac of bile, just like the kind he regularly drank his fill of. He glanced over at the nearly-dry pool, and back to the one before him. He bit into it like a ripe fruit...and it proved just as juicy. His eyes glowed red as he devoured the organ with vigor. These beings had bile. The kind that could replenish him. It seemed that he may not run out after all.
Having eaten his fill, the creature headed up to the small alcove that was his bed. Now that he was alone, he repeated that strange word the beings had said. "Rrreh...haaaah...nnnahhh…" The meaning of the word 'revenant' still had not come to him, and yet he had the unmistakable feeling that they were referring to him. That he was this revenant of which they spoke. His thoughts on the matter were brief, as sleep soon came to him.
For the next few days, the beings were far more cautious in their approach. Rarely travelling in smaller groups, they stuck together, and set out almost exclusively during the day. For his part, the creature avoided them as well, consciously hunting on the other side of the island from wherever they were. Even he wasn't entirely sure why he did this. This was his island, and they were invaders. But for one reason or another, he avoided conflict.
The beings explored every part of the island, except for the mountaintop. One way or another, they had discerned that this place was the creature's lair. Everywhere else they combed thoroughly, marking their discoveries down on maps. Sometimes, the creature's curiosity got the better of him, and he crept up to spy on the goings-on, though he made sure to stay out of sight. Although still no expert in their language, he had slowly grown able to parse out the sounds that they made.
"And that does it for the south side," one of them said. "I estimate just another day or two and we'll be able to return."
"About time, too," another one said. "I don't want to spend one day longer than we have to. If it had been up to me, we'd have left here long ago. Talus had better pay us double after dealing with that...that monster."
They were leaving. The creature was able to tell that much. Soon, they would leave, and the island would be his again. As it should be, as it had always been. And yet, a part of him was concerned. For so long, he had wondered about the outside world, what was beyond his island. Was he really so happy that they were going? Upon returning to his cave, he made his way over to the wall, and added another drawing to his collection. The ship. Far from his best, it resembled some of his older work: a mere triangle to represent the boat, with a line for the water. But he was too deep in thought to put much effort into his drawing. His mind raced with the possibilities. He had established by now that he could be fairly stealthy when he wanted to be. But could he maintain that in such a confined space? How long would the voyage be? Even if he could, would it even be worth it?
All it took to answer that question was a glance at the bile pool. Once a veritable pond filled with that glowing green nectar, all that was left were a few dregs, barely enough for a drink. If he stayed here, he would not survive. He had no choice.
The creature returned to the outside. From his perch, he could see the ship there on the docks, ready to carry him away to a new world. It would no doubt be risky, but all he had known thus far had been contentment. If anything, some risk would be welcome.
"Reh...vah...nant…"
He had made up his mind. Making sure the other beings weren't nearby, he made his way down the mountain and towards the vessel. Although it was possible that this new world offered him survival, in truth, his decision had been mostly made by the offer of something even greater:
Answers.
AN: In honor of season 2 being announced, I give you my latest project: my take on an origin story for none other than Emperor Belos! Obviously, this is probably going to be massively contradicted by canon, but I'll try and keep it a balance of the two. And speaking of which, expect Owl Chronicles to continue some time in the near future as well. But in the meantime, hope you enjoy!