The Godless Age

by Ededdyeded

Unknown years passed as a new tarnished rose from the mud and blood among the bodies of his fellow warriors to enter the lands between. He embarks on a journey of pain, death, impossible odds, love, friendship, truth, and heartbreak in this cruel and beautiful world. For how is a God to be born without great struggle?

5. ARC I: CHAPTER 4

ARC I:

CHAPTER 4: THE STRONGEST OF ALL

LIMGRAVE, WAYPOINT RUINS

Mad Pumpkin Head

Lordan dodges to the left of the Pumpkin Head to avoid its frenzied attack, which sees it slamming its head to the ground with great force due to its hard oval shape helm.

He sips on his blue flask to regain focus while two-handing his curved greatsword. He performs a dash with incredible speed that fades him from view for a few seconds, the same dash Darriwil performed during their fight a month ago. This ability was imbued into the Bloodhound's Fang with an Ash Of war, allowing him to use this skill effectively without the need to learn it.

Lordan dashes through the attack to slide in between its legs to perform a rotating slash that slices both its legs. The Pumpkin Head staggers from the attack on its legs and falls to its knees.

Lordan dashes in front of the Pumpkin Head and delivers a downwards slash to its head. The attack fails as his sword bounces off the oval helmet, as it was not able to penetrate the helmet.

"Ah! Shit!" The Pumpkin Head recovers and punches Lordan hard which sends him flying to the wall behind. He falls to the ground and leans against the wall while the Pumpkin Head recovers to its feet. It then charges to the wall where Lordan was leaning against with its head pointing forward, intending to slam Lordan with its hard helmet.

Lordan dashes out of the way at the last moment and the Pumpkin Head slams itself to the wall, hard. The slam causes it distress as the helmet was vibrating from the impact.

Lordan then dashes behind the Pumpkin Head and climbs on its back. He takes out two throwing knives and thrust them into the Pumpkin Head's throat, blood spills from the knife wounds as it roars in pain.

Lordan jumps back to the ground and ready a dash attack. He dashes alongside a leg and uses the speed to deliver a strong slash, it severs one leg of the Pumpkin Head and causes it to fall to its back.

The Pumpkin Head struggles on its back in pain while Lordan jumps onto its torso. He points his sword downward and stabs down to its chest, hitting a vital spot.

The Pumpkin Head starts to slow its movements and struggle. It soon ceases and dies from the fatal blow.

ENEMY FELLED

Lordan pulls his sword out and feels runes rushing to his body. He examines the room to see a door in front of him and moved over to it. Upon examining the door, he sees that it can be opened by lifting it from below.

Once the door opens, he sees a blue and red-robed woman that was studying a scroll on her desk, she wears a stone mask that resembles a woman with green gems on top her head.

The woman notices Lordan at the door and stands to face him. "Oh. Tarnished, are we? A wonder you should turn up here." She speaks out in a calm manner, clearly not worried about danger from Lordan.

"Yeah... I was just... Taking on that thing." He gestures with his thumb to his back. "Was it one of yours?"

She looks at the body and shakes her head. "No. That thing was merely here as insurance. There are many things in this land that I rather not be bothered by. So I made an agreement to let it stay if it keeps anything out of my way." She sighs at the sight. "Clearly, it was not capable as I thought."

"Well... Are you going to attack me?" Lordan asked while bracing for another fight as he was the intruder to her quarters.

"Do I have a reason to? Are you here to harm or rob me?" He shakes his head in response. "Then we are now associates. I am Sellen, a sorcerer, quite plainly."

"Lordan. Mercenary... Plainly."

Sellen shows interest in his name. "Lordan? Named after the nameless undead hero in the books I presume." She observes him by scanning him head to toe. "Hmmm... Yes, you certainly look the type."

"Look like what type?"

"Like the type to be constantly underestimated. But rise to challenge anyway, despite the overwhelming odds." She makes a compliment before returning to her usual curious but guarded behavior. "Now... Care to explain why you are here?"

Lordan shrugs as he couldn't think of an alternate explanation, he could only give his most simple one. "Honestly? I'm just roaming around for runes and looking for anything that can help. I really didn't think anyone else would be in here."

"Runes and anything that helps? You expect me to believe that you risk life and limb just for runes?"

"Yeah... That's really it." His answer makes Sellen cautious as she had been tricked before. She decides to trust him after seeing that his body language did not indicate signs of lying.

"If you seek something that helps. Then might I suggest glintstone sorcery?" She makes a suggestion while taking staff to her side.

"Sorcery?" Lordan had only read the theories and concepts of the magical arts but never practice nor dabbled in it. "Yeah... Could be useful, but uhhh... I never actually practice it. Can I even use such a thing?"

Sellen moves closer to him and makes a request. "Well, your aptitude does appear...passable. But there is an examination I must make." She stop in front of him, her height was only at his shoulder and it causes her to look up. "Take off your helmet."

"My helmet?" She nods and her request confuses Lordan. "OK... I guess?" He follows her request and takes off his helmet to reveal his face.

Sellen holds his jaw light to slightly turn his face to inspect it. "Hints of Numen features, mixed with common features from outside this lands. Very little, very little reedlander. Very petty as well."

"Uhhh... What are you-"

She lets go and grabs his arm, squeezing his forearm and bicep to feel its firm form beneath his armor. "Strong of arm, capable of a fight without magic." She then moves her hand to his chest and pushes against it, Lordan does not budge from the push. "Strong of body too. Yes... Very strong..." Her tone had a hint of sultry which makes him uncomfortable.

"OK... I think... I think that's enough." He starts to panic when he observes her hand moving down and almost touching his crouch, paranoid after the last incident Gideon told him about between the hold's four women. "OK. THAT IS... That IS enough." He grabs her hand lightly and lets go once it was raised.

Sellen moves back slightly as while Lordan puts his helmet back on to cover his red face. She nods in a satisfying motion at him. "And very vigorous as well... Yes. You are teachable. I just needed to make sure that you had other qualities." She would need to test his Vigor later if possible.

"Quantities that observed from my face and body?" He does not understand the purpose of her physical examination.

"I needed to make sure that you were strong enough to survive the usage of my teachings in battle. I refuse to teach anyone who dies from a single hit." Her reasoning for her examination was explained. Sellen had taught many Tarnished before who focused on magic usage greatly but were too weak to endure a single sword strike. She had often called these students "Glass Cannons".

Sellen then walks over to a shelf and takes out a couple of scrolls to lay out her table. she also passes the staff to Lordan, who catches it without any trouble. "Very well. I will teach you the combat arts of glintstone sorcery to aid your quest. But before we start, one must choose one's masters wisely."

"What do you mean?"

"I was exiled from the Academy of Raya Lucaria, as a reviled, apostate witch. Do you still wish to learn from me?" She asked without hesitation, wondering if Lordan would reject her offer. Most do once they hear of her true identity, and she does not blame them for it.

Lordan shrugs from the reveal, not knowing what she was even talking about. "Honestly, I'm not sure about the whole witch thing. But choosing between learning from a bunch of old men or a woman? Seems like an easy choice."

Sellen laughs from the comparison. "Well, you are a piece of work. Very well. You are now my protégé in glintstone sorcery. But I refuse to coddle. Or cast kind words. Never. Anticipate grievances, young apprentice."

She switched to a serious tone to start her lesson. "First things first. You are a tadpole when it comes to magic. Infantile. Without the legs to walk."

"Obviously... Magic is not exactly my area of expertise."

Sellen nods at the admission. "Exactly. To become a sorcerer, you must first face your ignorance. Now, shall we start learning?" She takes out the first scroll to teach Lordan the basic spell, Glintstone Pebble as it was scripted.

Lordan nods and begins holding the staff forward. Sellen moves to his back and adjusts the position of his arm to match the pose drawn in the scroll.

"Now, focus on the movement of your staff to mimic the actions written down."

They begin their lesson. Lordan would spend a day with Sellen to learn a total of three spells.

---

THE ROUNDTABLE HOLD

Lordan returns to the hold after a few more days out in Limgrave. He patrolled the fields in search of more enemies to face. Taking their runes for himself and turned them into strength as Melina suggested to him. He visited caves, ruins, catacombs, and the open fields in his hunt.

He was now stronger than when he first came here. Stronger than in all his 25 years of age. A quarter of a lifetime of training, skills, and knowledge is all gained within the span of a single month and a half.

He moved around the hold to reach Hewg. Intending to use his services for improvements to his weapons and armor that he salvaged. While walking to the smith he noticed Roderika sitting down on the side, she had set up a mat with books and scrolls laying around. She was currently focused on a scroll and did not notice Lordan approaching, he clears his throat and speaks. "Roderika? What are you doing?"

She looks up in surprise, clearly a bit disturbed by his bloody armor state. "Lordan! Oh! Sorry, I didn't see you there." Roderika soon covers her mouth due to a smell that came from Lordan's current clothes. "It's good to see... You... Ummm... Lordan, I think you should-"

He sighs, well aware of what was bothering her. "Take a bath? Because I literally smell like a dog that hasn't bathed in months?" She nods at the suggestion for himself, not wanting to say it outright to not be rude to her savior. "Yeah... I um... Noticed."

Lordan takes a whiff of himself and groans from the smell. "Yep. Definitely noticed..." He reeked of death and was incredibly filthy due to his time spent outside. Around all of the places he went and rolled in. OK. A bath is required at this point. REALLY.

Roderika nods before asking a question. "Um... Yes. Before you go, Lordan. Are you interested in spirit tuning?" She asks to provide a service to Lordan.

He tilts his head from her offer. "Spirit tuning? You mean for my wolves?" He puts the two facts together and Roderika nods. "Well... I should probably clean up first before I come and learn how to-"

Roderika waves her hand from the idea. "Oh! No no no. Not about teaching Lordan. I can help you increase the potential of any spirit ashes you possess. I am not really at the level to teach yet..." Her tone expresses a form of regret for her lack of abilities. "I can help you. I just require a bit of time and some Gloveworts. They are flowers that bloom within catacombs."

Lordan reaches into his bag and retrieves some white flowers to pass to Roderika. "I assume you mean these flowers?"

Roderika takes the flowers in amazement. "Yes... How did you get them?"

"I kind of uhhh... Went grave robbing in some catacombs." He rubs his head in embarrassment of the confession. "Found some stuff and noticed these flowers. Wanted to give them to you... and to all the ladies who took care of me while I was near death." He turn a bit red from embarrassment on the confession.

Roderika also blushes from his intent with the flower, clearly not expecting such a gesture from him. All she really did at the time was sit beside him and read aloud some stories, hoping he would respond to them.

"Oh... Oh... I... um... Thank you, Lordan. Really. That's rather sweet of you to think of such a thing." She continues blushing from his words. "But um... Maybe it's not a good idea to give flowers to the others that grow from the ashes of the dead."

"Oh." The origin of these flowers causes him a bit of shock. And to think I was going to give to the rest. What a jester I am. "Uhhh... Sorry. My bad."

"It alright, Lordan! I know you meant well." Roderika waves off any concern he has. "But maybe give me any gloveworts you find? They don't last very long once plucked."

Lordan then takes out the rest of gloveworts in storage passing all of them to Roderika. "Here. Just do whatever you need to do. Take your time, I might be here a while."

"Of course, Lordan. And thank you. For saving me."

"No worries." He prepares to leave but decides to ask her about her new prospect. "So... Spirit tuning? Is that what you used to do?"

Roderika shakes her head from the assumption. "I'm still looking for my own purpose. It's not easy, by any means, but it's what I must do. So I started talking to Hewg."

"Hewg? He taught you all this."

"Yes. He told me that I possess some kind of gift? I didn't believe it at first. But... If I do have this talent, and goodness knows it would be my first... I suppose I should try to hone it. Shouldn't I?" She looks to Lordan for her reasoning for learning this talent.

He nods and smiles clearly at her intent, happy that she had found her calling. His thoughts about Irina still haunt him, so a positive outcome for someone he helped was good for him.

"So, I can happily announce that he has taught me the noble toil of spirit tuning. I'm as yet unsure of what I might be able to accomplish, but if I might be any help to you all, I'd certainly like to try." She hesitates on the next words but resolves to continue. "And if there's and a chance to ease the suffering of my dear men who were grafted... Well, I certainly must try."

"Of course, Roderika. I'm happy to have your assistance. Anything helps."

She blushes again from his complement. She gets to her feet and performs a curtsy "Well... Roderika the spirit tuner prentice. Pleased to make your acquaintance. Again." Lordan follows with a small bow.

He decides to move on to his guest room where a bathtub would be available to use. "Well... I gonna clean up. Before Hewg chases me down with a hammer." He remarks on the last time Hewg worked on his armor while it was dirty.

They exchange goodbyes and Roderika returns to her seat. She takes a small bunch of gloveworts and places them in a jar while using the rest to begin the tuning process of the wolves ashes. She smiles with affection for the gift Lordan had intended for them

She had told a small white lie to Lordan about the gloveworts, they do last long, forever in fact. This allowed will now allow her to be given flowers on a regular basis, from Lordan most importantly.

---

Lordan took some time to clean up, perhaps a bit too long. Enjoying a bath was something he often couldn't do, so taking his time was normal when it came to that.

After that, he cleaned his armor with great effort to get rid of all the accumulated dirt, ensuring that every part of it was ready for Hewg to work on. He remembered the last time he presented Hewg with his armor when it was dirty, the Smith was annoyed to no end.

Once done, Lordan made his way back to Hewg with his cleaned wolf armor, along with the other armor sets he retrieved from the Night cavalry and the bloodhound.

He reached in front of the Smith and places the armor sets down at the side of the anvil, while Hewg continues hammering down on the weapon he was currently working on. The action catches the smith's attention, he once again displays his annoyed look to Lordan.

"Well, where've you been hiding? I took you for dead."

Lordan rolls his eyes at the comment, it was not the first Hewg said this. "I'm pretty sure I won't die that easily."

Hewg scoffed at the response. "Not so sure about that, a week ago you were half-dead." He mentions Lordan's incident with Vyke, the incident that almost killed him. "No matter. It's all the same. Lay out your arms, then."

His request prompts Lordan the retrieve his weapons for his two thigh weapon bags. He places the weapons and some smiting stones on the table while placing his curved greatsword on the anvil, wanting Hewg to work on that one first. Hewg takes the greatsword and inspects it with great interest.

"Hmmm... This is well made. The bloodhounds had some fine work done for their weapons." He looks to the remaining weapons include two longswords, a katana, and another greatsword. "Is this all then?"

"There's also my armor." Lordan brings his main armor on the anvil as well. "You think you could use the parts of these two sets to reinforce my own?"

Hewg inspects the two additional sets of armor and comes out with ideas from the top of his head. "These are well made. I suggest you keep them intact in case your main set breaks again. But what I could do, is reproduce the design and some parts from these two to attach to yours. Besides, most of those parts will ruin the weight distribution you are going for."

Lordan was impressed by the offer. "You could do that?"

"It will take time and some extra runes, but sure." Lordan accepts the offer and Hewg moves to start his works. He then remembered about a special request he wanted the Smith to take a look at.

Lordan takes out his notebook and the hand ballista from his enchanted bag, placing the weapon down while holding up his notebook. He flips to find the page he drew the last time.

He finally finds the page and flips the notebook in Hewg's direction. "Hewg. What do you think about making this? Is it possible?"

The book gets Hewg's attention and he takes it to read, his eyes squint to read the descriptions written by Lordan. He focuses on the notes and drawings for a while, reading them with great interest and a hint of amazement. "This is... Very well designed. You drew these?"

"Yep. So do you think?"

Hewg returns the notebook and takes the hand ballista to his workbench, he looks for some tools below and takes out the ones he needs. "Well, I'm no engineer of siege equipment. But based on those diagrams... It could work. We just have to make the parts for it, based on the one we have."

"Don't suppose you want some help?" Lordan offers assistance, clearly interested in the making of his own design.

"You know smithing?" Lordan nods at the question. "It's been a while since I had an assistant. But considering that this is your design..." Hewg sighs but gives in to the idea of another person using his tools for once. "Fine. Then we do this first. Your weapons and armor can wait."

With his permission, Lordan and Hewg get to work on the new weapon they were about to make based on the drawn designs. with Lordan using the workbench to crave out the wooden parts using the ballista as reference and Hewg starting on the smithing of the metal pieces.

The duo worked on the first design for hours, then a few more for the prototype, then a whole day before succeeding in a fully functional model. After which, Hewg started work on Lordan's weapons and armor, leaving Lordan to wait for their upgrades to be completed before he left for the next destination in Limgrave.

---

LIMGRAVE, CHURCH OF ELLEH

Lordan rides on Torrent to reach the church again, intending to seek Kale for more goods to buy. He was currently preparing to face Margit again, after so many weeks of waiting and training. He was now certain that he had what it takes to face him in a fight. He was also wearing an upgraded version of his armor. The "Hardened Wolf Armor" as he dubbed it, was reinforced with the new parts Hewg made with the two armor sets as reference.

But first, It was important for him to prepare. And also test his current strength. And he had the perfect candidate to try it on.

He reaches the church and dismounts Torrent, feeding it berries before it disappears into blue mist again. He spots Kale in his usual spot and calls out to him. The merchant notices him and waves a greeting, happy that Lordan has returned after a long time.

"Lordan. It's been some time. Was beginning to think you forgot about me."

"Of course not Kale. I'm one of your investments, remember? Of course, you are going to get some returns." The merchant laughs at the remark with Lordan and they exchange greetings with a handshake.

"That's very good to know. Now, are you looking to buy or trade, my friend?" He makes an offer from the current items on display, sticking to his profession as a merchant despite the special occasion.

Lordan looks at the display and did not see the items he needs, so he makes a request. "Do you sell bolts, Kale?"

"Bolts? For crossbows? Of course, just let me get th-"

"No. Bolts for a ballista. I need a few of them. The best ones you have."

Kale looks up in surprise at the request. "Ballista bolts? Ah. Yes, I have some. A moment please." He reaches his hand into his mule's saddlebag and pulls out about a dozen bolts that look the same and one that looks different than the rest.

"Here, the few that I have." He takes the special one and holds it up to show. "But this one, I only have one."

"What's so special about it?"

"It's explosive, Lordan."

"Explosive?" Lordan takes the bolt to view it, seeing a clump of Explosive Stone shards on its tip. "Damn, Kale. You never cease to amaze me with the things you can pull out of your ass."

"I always provide my customers with the best services, Lordan. My own policy of quality." He remarks in a proud tone, satisfied by Lordan's complement. "So? How many do you want?"

"All." Lordan makes his purchase request which causes Kale to smirk. "How much is it then?"

"For you, Lordan? Half price." They shake hands to exchange runes and Lordan keeps the bolts in his enchanted bag.

Lordan prepares to leave before Kale interrupts with a question. "So... Where are headed off to next?"

Lordan stops before moving from the question. "I'm going to... test myself on the rider that patrols these parts. Then, it's off to face Margit."

"Margit? You are going to fight him?" Kale asked in surprise. "Well... It's about time someone dealt with that murderer."

Lordan's attention was caught by Kale's awareness of Margit. "You know him? Who did he kill?"

Kale breathes out loudly from anger, anger that was towards Margit. "My people, Lordan. He led a crusade against our great caravan. Killing our young, elderly, ill, and anyone that tried to defend themselves. All because we followed no religion, declaring us as heretics." Kale shifts slightly from the uncomfortable topic. "We were nomadic people. Selling wares as we travel together. We had nothing but each other. But after he and his Night's cavalry hunted us unrelentlessly with raids and ambushes. And after some time... We... Truly lost everything..."

"I'm sorry, Kale. For what they did." He offers an apology for the tragic end of his people. The last part about the Night's Cavalry catches his attention. "Night's Cavalry? You mean riders dressed in black like their horses?"

"Yes... They hunt in groups. picking us off, slowly. Like a wild dog pack, playing with their food."

The revelation that Margit was the leader of the Night's Cavalry enrages Lordan. "Fucker..." He now had another reason to fight him.

"If you truly intend to face him, then I wish you all the best. It is my hope that one day, justice will be served to those who wronged us. Please, Lordan. Make him suffer for all the pain he caused."

Lordan nods at the request, his fight with Margit was now personal, very personal. They exchange their goodbyes and he proceeds out of the church. He moves along the side of the main route that he once traveled before, avoiding any enemies that were currently roaming around.

He soon hears the galloping noise he was searching for, he uses the nearby bush for cover to observe his target that was roaming the area.

The Tree Sentinel, the rider that he once faced at the beginning of his journey and die. The Sentinel was still following its usual route that Lordan once traveled, patrolling to find any intruders in Limgrave.

Lordan checks through his equipment to prepare for a fight. He plans out the best weapons effectively match the Sentinel in battle, choosing weapons that were swift but damaging. He settles for his two longswords, a shield, a katana, and the Bloodhound's Fang.

Lordan steps out of the bush and moves to the main route, the Sentinel facing away from him. He takes out a knife and throws it toward his head, it bounces off the Sentinel's helmet and catches his attention.

The Sentinel turns around from the hit in annoyance to see Lordan with his two swords ready at a distance from him. He prepares his Halberd and gives it a twirl to prepare his arm. The Sentinel rides his horse towards Lordan and proceeds to start their second battle.

Tree Sentinel

Lordan charges into the fight and moves towards of the horse, delivering several slashes to its side while avoiding attacks from the Sentinel as he swings his halberd. They pass by once after their first clash and the Sentinel prepares another charge to pursue Lordan.

His horse charges on at full speed, intending to run down Lordan. They miss again as Lordan dodges to the side, throwing a few more knives their way to further antagonize them. Lordan runs away from him towards the main field, hoping he would take the bait and follow. "That's it. Follow me..." He speaks to himself and summons Torrent to mount and ride.

The Sentinel was surprised by the appearance of Torrent, he had thought that he was the only one with the advantage of a mount. He shakes his head at the display with frustration, knowing that now he was going to be evenly matched in terms of speed.

The Sentinel pursues Lordan as he hoped, trailing behind them from a distance. Lordan maneuvers Torrent towards higher ground. He allows the Sentinel to catch up for a moment before he executes his plan.

The Sentinel closes in behind Lordan and swings his halberd, Lordan ducks his head to dodge the attack as he delivers another swing. He swings multiple times while moving beside Lordan and Torrent to no effect as his attacks miss.

Looking forward, Lordan sees stone fencing ahead as he predicted, a detail the Sentinel did not notice. He speeds forward and Torrent jumps the fence while the Sentinel tries to stop his horse in time. He fails and crashes through the fencing, inflicting some damage to his horse and himself from the impact.

The Sentinel was slightly stunned by the crash and stops for a moment to clear his head. He fails to notice Lordan charging from the side in time. He swiftly brings up his shield to defend but was surprised when he sees Torrent jumping over his head, with Lordan delivering a strike to his helmet with his two swords when crossing over them.

He was staggered from the attack and was hit again on the side where he held his halberd, it was not protected by his shield. Lordan speeds off with a dash from Torrent before the Sentinel could react, starting another chase between the two.

The chase between the two riders ensured with Torrent ahead as it was the faster and more agile steed, the horse of the Sentinel was trying to keep up to no avail.

They reach another spot where the bottom of a stone cliff looms in front of them. Lordan charges the stone wall of the cliff while the Sentinel slows down, not wanting to be tricked again from the first attack.

In a swift motion, Torrent jumps once and turns back in mid-air with its back legs on the wall. It kicks off the stone wall and launches them towards the Sentinel. The Sentinel brings his shield front to block and received a blow from Lordan again that breaks his guard due to the combined force of Torrent's launch.

With the Sentinel staggered from the attack, Lordan rides Torrent to make another pass around the Sentinel. He dashes by and delivers slashes to the Sentinel and his mount from the side, going in and going out of danger with a series of dashes after an attack. His speed allowed him to make several passes which the Sentinel cannot avoid due to his horse starting to panic from the constant attacks and the rapid rate of them.

The Sentinel becomes desperate and tries to swing his halberd to knock Lordan off his steed in any direction that he comes from. The attempt fails again and again as Torrent's speed combined with Lordan's precise timings make them a difficult target to hit, it did not help that his horse was also too distracted to move. He continues to swing and blocks any attack the best he can as he becomes more tired and his horse becomes more uncontrolled.

He soon manages to swing a heavy attack sideways that hits Lordan while he was passing by again for another attack, the swing lands on Lordan's chest and send him flying back and dismounted. The Sentinel uses this chance to ride off to a distance and prepare for another charge.

Lordan falls to the ground hard. He takes out his red flask for a sip and sees the Sentinel charging at full speed, clearly wanting to kill him in the same way last time. He gets to his feet and retrieves his katana while taking a blocking stance.

Block just before the attack lands. The force created by it will be used against the enemy, their own actions will be their downfall.

Yura's teachings on the art of deflecting echo in his head. Lordan takes a deep breath and strengthens his stance. The Sentinel moves a bit to the side and brings his halberd down for an upwards attack, the halberd drags along the ground to create sparks and debris due to its length. Their distance starts to close in and their clash soon occurs.

The Sentinel swings his halberd when near Lordan but was foiled as Lordan fully deflects the attack upon contact to parry him, deflecting the full force of the charge. His guard breaks from the action and his horse brakes suddenly from it due to his halberd hitting it by accident.

Lordan then follows up with a downwards slash towards the Sentinel's hand that was holding the halberd, the slash cuts his wrist, and blood spills from the wound. The Sentinel grunts in pain from the attack and drops his halberd to grip on the wound, riding away from Lordan in the process.

Lordan gives chase on foot and whistles with his mouth loudly and shouts out a command. "Torrent! Ram! Ram!". The Sentinel rides away and turns around once at a safer distance. His intent was to retrieve the halberd he dropped and use it with his other hand. He discards his shield and rides in the direction of the halberd while riding around Lordan to avoid him.

Torrent, who was attracted by Lordan's whistle charges toward the Sentinel from his side at full speed. It remembered the idea Lordan told it earlier in the event that he was dismounted and how it could assist him in the fight.

With the Sentinel fully focused on the halberd on the ground, Torrent manages to start its command. It performs one last dash towards the Sentinel and jumps with great speed and momentum towards the Sentinel from the side. The Sentinel notices this at the last moment but was too late, Torrent rams him directly with its head and horns in mid-air. The impact causes him to fall off his horse and slam to the ground as Torrent made its way back to Lordan.

"Well done! I will take it from here!" Torrent disappears into a blue mist and Lordan switches to his curved greatsword before charging toward the armored horse. The horse of the Sentinel begins its own charge towards Lordan to run him down.

He closes in on the horse and dashes like a bloodhound towards the horse while performing a sideways slash. The slash connects and cuts off two legs of the horse and it falls to the ground, crying out in pain while moving frantically on its side.

Lordan walks over to the downed horse and stabs its neck with a dagger to put it out of its misery. He sees the now dismounted Sentinel picking up its halberd with his other uninjured hand. This was now going to be a fight on foot. The two fighters then charge toward one another.

The Sentinel slams down his halberd forward and misses while Lordan sidesteps with a rotating strike that hit his side. He follows up with several swings sideways and downwards which Lordan avoids with a combination of dodges, blocks, and deflects with his greatsword. They continue their dance of blows, each getting in a hit in between the exchange.

The Sentinel soon grabs Lordan by the neck and throws him aside. He swings his halberd down to his lying position but Lordan brings his sword up to block just in time, leaving them in a locked position.

Lordan musters all of his newfound strength from runes to push the Sentinel away, the Sentinel staggers back from the sudden push which breaks their hold. He gets to his feet and uses the bloodhound's ability to perform an upwards slash with a backflip that hits the Sentinel and moves him to a distance. He follows up with a dashing strike that lands again, as the Sentinel staggers once again.

The Sentinel struggles to stay on his feet as he started to feel tired and in pain from the damage dealt by the constant attacks, with Torrent's attack being the most severe blow he received. He performs a series of wild strikes forward to try and overwhelm Lordan.

Lordan dodges the strikes with ease by dashing around the Sentinel, getting more hits in with each window of opportunity. The strikes soon get slower as the Sentinel tires from the pain and fatigue. It was now the time to deliver his killing blow.

He dashes to a distance and starts running to the Sentinel. He performs another dash and thrusts forward. The sword stabs right through the Sentinel's torso with ease due to the speed of the dash. Blood leaks from the Sentinel's chest wound caused by the impaled sword.

Lordan then grips the sword and performs a backflip while holding it to slash upwards, the move carves open the Sentinel's chest and shoulder causing blood to spill out from the gaping wound.

The Sentinel reacts slowly to the wound as the pain was now screaming through his body. He falls to his knees and sees Lordan charging again. Lordan swings his sword one last time to behead the Sentinel. His head falls to the ground and his body follows, both becoming lifeless.

ENEMY FELLED

Lordan flicks his sword around to clear off the blood. He feels a rush of runes entering his body, the Sentinel's strength was now his. His mood was now greatly improved and he lets out a laugh in disbelief, still unable to believe that he had made it this far.

He thinks of how he fought earlier and was proud of the results. He had delivered attacks that were hitting harder, moving at a faster pace, dodging at precise and calculated moments, lasting longer in a fight, and was capable of thinking of more complex strategies on the fly. He was now truly stronger than before. And yet, a question remains in his mind.

Is he still too weak to fight Margit?

This thought lingered in his mind but it was now clear that he had advanced far enough to rise up to the challenge. He had spent a long time gaining this level of strength. He would not know the answer unless he tries it. It was now or never. "Alright, Margit. I guess it's time."

He summons Torrent and mounts up while sipping on his red and blue flask to recover. He rides away towards the path to Stormveil Castle. Ready to face the Omen once again in battle. But a thought came to his mind, a nagging want that he needs to do before going into the battle he waited so long to do.

He needed to speak to Melina.

---

STORMHILL, CASTLEWARD TUNNEL

Lordan rests at the site of grace in the tunnel once again, intending to turn his new batch of runes into strength. He closes his eyes while holding a hand over the light to think of an aspect to improve. He pondered his choices for a while and finally decided on using all the available runes to improve only one aspect, one that he considered being more important than the rest. The runes imbued into his body to improve his aspect permanently.

He takes a seat back down and looks at his equipment again, ensuring everything was ready for his long-awaited fight. He uses his whetstone to sharpen all his blades to be used and inspects the new supplies he brought from Kale.

He soon takes out the new weapon that he and Hewg crafted at the hold, making sure that it is fully functional. He tests the gear and trigger by nocking it and releasing it, it fires off successfully. He keeps the weapon in the enchanted weapon bag on his right thigh, keeping it for later when he needs to use it for his strategy.

He gets on his feet and checks everything a final time. His loadout was now ready. He just needed to do one more thing.

"Melina? Are you there?" He calls out to her but receives no response. He sighs at the result but does not give up.

"Look... I need to talk to you. I really worried about you, you know? That fight with Vyke ended badly but..." He pauses to think of the right words. "I don't blame you. Not even once. It's nobody's fault, alright? These things will happen once in a while."

He looks around again to see no one appearing, he wasn't even sure if she could hear him. Fear lingered in his mind that she might already to gone. "Just show up and I will... Say what I need to say. Then you can leave if you want, OK? "

"Melina... Come on... Please? Just talk to me?" He pleads to her to appear, a part of him was already losing hope. "I can't do this alone. I need your help, Melina."

"Please... Please don't leave me alone..."

No response or appearance from her ensured. He looked around again and waits for a few more seconds and decides to give up. It would seem that he will need to go on alone, much to his dismay.

"Lordan..."

He turns around quickly at the voice to see Melina standing behind at the tunnel's entrance. Her attire was the same and she was completely unharmed. He breathed out in relief that she wasn't gone as he feared.

"Oh thank gods... You are still around." He approached her but she backs away when he moves closer. A look of fear and shame was displayed on her face as she looks down to try and hide it, he could tell that she was on the verge of tears as her eyes were watery.

"Melina?" He moves slowly this time, ensuring that he doesn't scare her off. He finally reaches in front of her and he places his hands on her shoulders. "Melina... Come on... Talk to me."

She slowly looks up and starts to tear up, violent sobs soon erupted and she leans into his chest. Lordan slowly eases her into a hug as she cries with no restraint. Her hands gripping his armor for dear life. He was now really worried.

"Lordan... Oh, gods... I... I'm so sorry." She lets out a few words between her sobs and struggles to stay composed. "I didn't mean... I didn't mean it... I was just... Scared... I didn't mean for any of that to-"

Lordan interrupted her words with a tighter hug, making sure that he gets her to stop feeling this way. "Hey. Hey. Hey. Calm down... Alright? It's alright. It was my bad, OK? Not your fault. " He often blames himself for even letting Vyke near her.

"But it is... " Her grip becomes harder and her sobs grow louder. "I was supposed to guide you... Protect you from harm... But instead... I almost got you killed... With no way of coming back..."

Her tears start running down her face, staining the cloth parts of his armor. "You haven't even... Got a single great rune yet... And I already failed... I'm so... Useless."

Melina had promised herself to speak to Lordan the day after her conversation with Ranni. But when she had try to approach him a few days earlier, she hesitated. Due to fear of rejection and anger from Lordan. Her cowardice left her ashamed.

He starts rubbing her back to comfort her, even though it seemed useless. He allows her to continue crying on his chest. A part of him promises himself that he would never let anyone reduce her to this state again.

"Please... Lordan... Continue without me... I don't deserve to be your maiden..."

The words that Melina just said bother Lordan greatly. He did not want her to feel this way at all, to think herself unworthy because of his weakness. He was the indirect cause of her distress. If only he was strong enough to fend off Vyke at the time, none of this would be happening.

He gently pushes her back to make her stand upright and uses his hand to push her chin up to face him. "Melina. Look at me."

Melina tries to look away but Lordan continues his attempt and places a hand on her cheek to let her face him, rubbing away any tears with his thumb at the same time.

"Listen. That's not going to happen, OK? We made a deal. I am bringing you to the Erdtree, and that's final."

"But... I..."

"No buts. You are my maiden. I don't intend to continue this journey without one. And the only maiden I will choose is you." He declares his choice, making Melina at a loss for words. "It will always be you. Do you hear me? I will always choose you."

Melina takes a few moments to calm down, she wipes her tears and faces Lordan again. Slowly she starts to smile through her sadness. She holds his hand and their fingers cross. "I... I hope I deserve this."

"You do." He replied with no hesitation. Her heart flutters at his words and they continued to hold each other.

Melina looks to Lordan while holding on as her heart beats faster. She looks to his eyes, they were soft but hardened. She looks at his face, rough yet beautiful like an imperfect diamond in the rough. She looks to his lips, thinking about its softness against hers.

She cares for Lordan, dearly. She had never expected to feel this way about him, despite her instruction to simply help him on his journey and the short duration since they met. He had already done more for her than anyone has in the brief time they spent together, more than anyone else for the past few thousand years.

She reached out to his face and cupped it with affection, feeling warmth despite his cold exterior. He holds her hand on his face and returns the gesture of affection. They both stare into each other's eyes, both knowing what they wanted to do but both were hesitant to move at first.

Melina yearns to lean in, to give in to her wants and his, to take the first step and give in to their feelings. All she had to do was step forward, reach out, and kiss him.

But. She couldn't.

It would be wrong, immoral, cruel, and selfish. She knows too well what it would do to him if she let them go down this road. It was a path of reckoning, one that could break him and the known world itself. She was also told to not let this happen, and the two reasons why it cannot happen.

Melina let go of his face and stepped back, she could feel the disappointment from the breath he let out after their moment. They stand apart for a while before Lordan awkwardly clears his throat.

"So... Uhhh... We good?" Lordan rubs the back of his head while looking down, wondering if he came on too hard. Maybe he had been reading the wrong signals. Hope I didn't screw my chances up with her.

"Yes, Lordan. We are... Going to be fine." Melina reassures him, she was now fully calm and back to her usual self. Her smile was back to its full brilliance and her eyes were no longer filled with sadness. Looking just as beautiful as the day he first saw her.

Lordan lets out a breath of relief and gets back to the task at hand. "Good... Good... Because I think I'm about to freak out." He looks to the exit of the tunnel that leads to the castle, aware that his greatest foe so far was awaiting him.

Melina walks to his side and places a hand on his back. "It is time, Lordan. You are stronger now, stronger than most other Tarnished that came to this point." Her words slowly fill him with determination. "This strength you gained... It is not given or inherited, this is the strength you earned."

"You can do this. I know you can. Bandish the Elden Ring, for all of us."

Lordan takes another breath and starts walking slowly to the tunnel exit. Each step he took fills him with dread as he remembers all the times he experienced death in this area alone. He stops just at the edge of the exit to draw his two longswords and equip his helmet.

Put these foolish ambitions to rest.

The words of Margit echo in his mind and he begins to panic. His hands shake while gripping the swords tight and his breath starts becoming rapid from fear. Thoughts of the deaths he experienced begin to fill his mind, and the idea of a hundred more deaths by Margit terrorized him to the core.

What if I'm not fast enough? What if he comes up with something new? what if the weapon doesn't work? What if-

His thoughts were interrupted when he feels two hands gripping his right to stop the shaking. Melina stands beside him and holds on, he starts feeling at peace and calms down.

She removes his helmet to allow him to breathe better for a moment, before reaching up to place a kiss on his cheek. Lordan looks at her from the action and was unable to speak with his mouth open, caught off guard by the display of affection.

"For luck." She places his helmet back on and gives him a hug. He returns the gesture and lets go to face the exit once again.

Gonna marry her...

He lets out one last breath and moves forward, no longer as slow as previously. Determine to beat the Omen. Today.

"Vargram... Please help me... One more time."

---

Lordan walks to the bridge of the castle and sees the familiar battlefield again. It was completely untouched as if no battle between them had occurred due to the time loop.

He looks around at every spot where he died, knowing the way and pain of each death to the fullest detail. He shakes his head to refocus on the task at hand.

He looks to the castle's walls and waits for the moment. He soon spots the golden light that indicates the arrival of Margit.

"Foul Tarnished."

His words echo again, as they always do when their fight starts. From Margit's perspective, this would always be the first time they meet.

Lordan freezes at the words and begins to breathe louder. He started shaking again, but not out of fear.

"In search of the Elden Ring."

He grips his swords harder and the shaking becomes more unsteady. He was now feeling something more uncontrolled than fear.

Unbridled Rage.

"Emboldened by the flame of am-"

"GET DOWN HERE AND FACE ME, MARGIT! ARE YOU A COWARD?!"

Lordan shouts out in anger to the castle with a volume that was louder than Margit. The words stop and Margit takes his leap, landing in front of Lordan on the bridge with a huge crash.

"So... I see the runt hast bared his fangs..." Margit slowly stands to his feet with the help of his cane. "Greetings... Lordan."

The use of his name surprises him, this has not happened in the previous loops. "You know me?"

Margit grips his cane harder and responds. "I do. Thou art the only one born accursed." He places both hands on the tip of the cane to support his standing. "Falling one of mine own soldiers wast impressive. And so mine own attention did point towards thee, the tarnished who even the odds, the weakling who becometh stronger."

Lordan braces himself for any attacks and takes a battle stance. "My only curse is you. And I'm pretty fucking tired of it."

"Indeed... How many loops did it taketh I wonder? How many times didst thee die by mine own handeth?"

"Too many." Lordan spits out the answer.

"Nay matt'r... I knoweth what I must do." Margit takes the cane by the end and holds it like a sword, taking a battle stance of his own.

"Upon mine own father's nameth. Upon the nameth of Queen Marika. I, Margit shall putteth an endeth to all the heretics that roam our home. I, shall deliver thee death, thee who heralds the Godless Age and the coming of another Ragnarok. Until madness 'r hopelessness doth take thee whole."

Margit swings the cane in a rotating motion and holds it straight. preparing for battle.

"Nay longeth'r, shall the Black taint our Golden Order. Nay longeth'r shall the shepherd be another wolf that led our sovereign astray." He speaks his words with venom and anger.

"Prepareth yourself, Dread Wolf."

Lordan prepares a charge to initiate the fight, determined to end this conflict. Today.

"Oh. I'm ready. How about you?"

Margit, The Fell Omen

Their clash begins and the two fighters charge forth toward one another. Margit swings his cane forward for a horizontal slash which Lordan rolls to dodge before delivering two blows to Margit's legs. He recovers and deflects a few blows from Margit with his two swords, each deflects staggers him due to the inhuman strength Margit possesses.

Margit soon conjures his golden sword for a series of faster attacks. His sword and Lordan's clash in a series of deflects that made Margit unable to land a hit, much to his surprise as Lordan was successfully deflecting each blow with ease.

He decides on a new strategy and delivers a swing with his cane in the midst of his sword attacks. Lordan dodges by backstepping but was caught off guard when Margit delivers another attack in succession by whipping his tail around, knocking him down to the ground.

He then sees Margit conjuring his golden hammer and dodges by rolling back before the hammer slams down on him. Margit takes a few more swings with his hammer by slamming downwards multiple times, each causing large impacts on the floor. Lordan dodges each of the slams with careful precision by backstepping, he eventually creates distance between himself and Margit.

Margit then throws his golden daggers towards Lordan but misses as Lordan sidesteps in between them while charging. They clash again up close with Lordan delivering rapid attacks with his dual swords.

Their exchange of blows lasted for a while before Margit grabs Lordan by his leg and slams him around a few times like a ragdoll. He throws Lordan to the ground again and looms over him.

Margit raises his cane and thrusts it down towards Lordan's torso while he was laying on the ground after the last attack. Lordan manages to catch the upper part of his cane's tip to stop the attack, he struggles to keep the cane from thrusting into his chest as Margit continues to push down with inhuman strength.

"Enough, Lordan. Thy fate is sealed." Margit responds to Lordan's resistance by pulling the cane up swiftly, but to his surprise, Lordan holds on to the cane with great strength. He pulls harder and tries to make Lordan release the cane to no avail.

"Let go, You insolent fool! Let go!" Margit continues their struggle by using more strength as Lordan predicted.

"OK." Lordan lets go of the cane while Margit was pulling hard, the sudden release causes him to fall back a hard fall. This was the first time Lordan managed to make him fall to the ground.

Lordan gets to his feet and delivers slashes to the fallen Omen. Margit takes most of the blows without a hint of pain and defends himself with his golden sword. He conjures his golden spear and thrusts toward Lordan which he blocks with his sword before retreating to a distance.

Lordan reaches for his enchanted quick items bag and pulls out the shackle he obtained. He takes the shackle and slams it to the ground to create a golden rune mark. The mark appears below Margit's feet as a form of a seal and he falls down hard on his front as if being pulled to the ground by chains.

Lordan switches to his curved greatsword and summons his three wolf sprits. They run to Margit while he was trapped and begin biting and scratching on several parts of his body, causing him to let out several shouts in pain.

"Damn these- INFERNAL CHAINS!" Margit slams the seal a few times and breaks it. He shakes off the wolves and manages to take one to throw down the cliffside, leaving only Lordan and his two wolves to battle.

He sips on his red and blue flask to recover and commenced his new assault. Lordan dashes forward with the bloodhound's ability while his wolves scatter to different sides to attack Margit.

He makes several passes on Margit with a combination of slashes while dashing to avoid many attacks from Margit's weapons, most of the attacks were simply phrasing through him due to the speed of the ability. His wolves also managed to get in blows of their own by focusing on Margit's legs to slow him down.

They continue their unrelentless assault before Margit manages to take out the other two wolves after some time. Lordan makes a retreat to a distance and sees a sight that amazed him.

Margit was tired and hurt, the wounds on his body were now more pronounced. His last attempts in the fight have not reached the point where he could reduce him to this state. He was now in a position to actually win this round.

Lordan sips on his blue flask to recover while Margit gets to his feet after recovering. They were in a standoff where both fighters were now wary of one another, a first for Margit.

"Well... thou art of passing skill..." Margit speaks out with hard breaths in between. "Warrior blood must truly run in thy veins, Lordan... As I suspect'd..."

"The fuck's the matter, Omen? Getting tired? Can't keep up with a Foul Tarnished?" Lordan issues his taunt while exchanging his curved greatsword with his Lordsbound greatsword, this one being heavier as compared to the bloodhound's fang but causes more damage.

Margit was agitated by the taunt and returns to his feet, conjuring his golden hammer in the process. "Such arrogance... It shall thy downfall!" He leaps into the air and raises his hammer for a downwards slam.

Lordan sees the attack from below and moves around to try and gauge where the attack would land. He sees Margit starting to descend and prepares to dodge.

He rolls as the slam lands but the large force causes him to lose balance as he timed his roll incorrectly. Smoke was created by the debris and it conceals Margit for a short time while Lordan gets to his feet.

A hammer suddenly slams down in front of him from out of the smoke, barely missing him. Margit advances forward with a series of slams, each one faster than the last.

Lordan keeps on dodging by backstepping constantly and eventually reaches the cliff edge. He looks back for a moment and Margit swings his hammer again. He blocks at the last second and almost loses his balance as his guard breaks. He sees Margit preparing another swing and decides to try a risky move.

He takes a guarding stance with both hands on his greatsword, awaiting Margit's attack to land. Margit proceeds to swing his hammer from above with all the force he can muster.

Lordan guards with his greatsword at the moment of impact, deflecting the hammer with all its force going back to Margit. The move causes Margit to stagger back as the force was too great for him to withstand.

Lordan rushes to his back and lands several hits with his greatsword. He managed to hurt Margit greatly before he was interrupted by a whip from his tail.

Margit turns around and thrusts his can into Lordan's chest to push him back. He then follows up with his golden sword and delivers fast attacks that hit Lordan, before finishing with a kick that sends Lordan flying to the gate's wall.

Lordan hits the wall behind him and lands on the ground. Pain and fatigue course through his body like they once did before. He takes out his red flask and sips on it twice, noting that he only has one use left, one more safety bearing for this round.

He sees Margit approaching slowly with signs of limping, he was seriously hurt as compared to all of their previous fights. But Margit carries on, having the same drive as Lordan to win the battle.

"Nay more games. This ends now!" Margit charges with the remaining strength he has with his cane and golden spear at the same time for a combined thrust. The attack misses as Lordan moves to the side just in time to avoid it.

Lordan makes some distance between them and prepares to execute his plan, he sips on the yellow flask given by Blaidd and moves on. He attacks Margit head on while looking for an opening to use. The pair clash their weapons for a time before Margit swipes his tail again to break Lordan's guard.

The stagger allows Margit to grab Lordan by his torso, causing him to drop his sword. He sticks his can to the ground while Lordan struggles in the grip of his hand. Unknown to Margit, this was a part of Lordan's plan.

Closer! Just a little closer! He continues to struggle as part of the act while reaching into his weapon bag. Margit conjures his golden sword and angles Lordan for a stab.

Just a bit more!

"Thee has't fought well. But tis over..." Margit drives the sword into Lordan's left chest, it goes straight through his armor, and blood spills from the impaled wound. Margit holds Lordan closer as he watches him die from the blade.

"Put these foolish ambitions to rest."

Margit then feels Lordan's hand grabbing his that was holding the impaled sword. He watches in confusion as Lordan drives the conjured sword deeper into his chest while grunting in pain, the blade moves all the way up to the hilt. He pulls out the weapon from his bag and smirks from beneath his helmet.

"No... You."

Margit hears a nocking sound from below and looks down to see the weapon Lordan was holding in his right hand, it was pointed straight at his lower chest.

It was a smaller version of the Hand Balista, one that can be operated with a single hand. And it was nocked with an explosive bolt.

Lordan pulls the trigger and it fires off the bolt, creating an explosion upon impact. The attack causes large damage to Margit's torso, creating a gaping wound where blood and smoke come out of.

"GAHHHH! WHAT DIDST THEE DO?!" Margit throws Lordan to the side as he clutches the wound, shouting and coughing out blood while falling to his knees.

Lordan musters all his remaining strength to take a last stand. He gets to his feet and sips on the last use of his red flask, his wounds heal to a certain degree for him to keep going.

His strategy had been really simple. Use the yellow flask's properties which allowed him to withstand more pain and heal passively for a short period to get the ballista up close once an opening presented itself.

The grab from Margit was unplanned but made for a better alternative, allowing him to get even closer despite suffering a painful stab that would have killed him last time, had he not decided to increase his vigor with all the runes from the Tree Sentinel.

Lordan retrieves his greatsword and keeps it to exchange for his dual swords again. Margit gets to his feet with his cane supporting him while still holding his wound. Both fighters were now pushed to their limits, only one could survive.

Margit holds the cane up as a sword again and screams out a warcry, now more furious and enraged than before. "LORDAN... LORDAN! THEE DIES! TODAY!"

Lordan follows with his own warcry. Ignoring all the pain and fatigue for the last dance to the death. This must be his last encounter with Margit.

"COME ON THEN! COME ON! COME ON!"

They charge forth and clash with great strength and speed, creating sparks and debris each time their weapons collide. With Margit using his cane to match Lordan's swift attack speed, and Lordan using his swords to match Margit's inhuman attack strength.

It was a rare sight to see, a battle between the two. Both are dammed by the same outer god, yet standing at opposite sides. One against and one for the Greater Will.

It was a battle history shall never record.

A battle between two would be gods.

The Dread Wolf against The Fell Omen.

Lordan deflects the majority of the attacks from Margit's cane with great success, he was getting more tired from the constant movements and the lack of respite. In between the deflects he was able to get some stabs in that damage Margit more and more, chipping away at his now injured state.

Margit tries his best to get a hit on Lordan but constant dodges and attacks in between make it difficult to switch between attacking and defending. It did not help that Lordan was also a smaller and more mobile target.

Lordan eventually manages to roll forward to crouch in between Margit's legs. He then drives his swords into Margit's left thigh and causes him to fall to one knee. Lordan rolls out of the way before Margit swipes him with his tail again.

"Nay... NAY... This cannot be... Thou... Thou art supposeth to be the weakest among us... The WEAKEST 'mongst us..." Margit begins muttering words that Lordan could not understand nor care about. He prepares his greatsword and holds it tight with two hands.

He takes a deep breath and strengthens his stance, letting out a scream of frustration, anger, and desperation as he charges to deliver a running thrust.

He stabs forth upon reaching Margit and pushes forward with all his strength. The sword impales Margit on the other side of his chest all the way to the hilt. Lordan then pushes forward again while holding the impaled sword to lead Margit to the cliff's edge.

Margit grabs the impaled sword while being pushed to the edge of the cliff by Lordan. He stops the push with his tail and grabs the sword with both hands, looking directly at Lordan with rage and disbelief. He did not expect to be beaten.

"HOW... DARE... THEE...!"

"YEAH... FUCK YOU TOO!"

Lordan lets go of the sword and lean back to the right to leverage his body strength. He then delivers a punch with all his might to Margit's face, the punch was so strong that breaks both the horn on Margit's head and Lordan's hand upon impact.

Margit staggers from the punch and loses balance, it causes him to step back and slip off the cliff's edge. He starts falling to the abyss below to his death.

"ARGGGGHHHHHHH! LORDANNNNNNNNNNN!" He screams on the way down from the fall as Lordan observes the Omen falling down. He hears a loud crash that echoes from below to confirm that Margit has reached the bottom as the screaming cut off suddenly.

This was his 93rd fight with Margit. And he won.

GREAT ENEMY FELLED

Runes begin to emerge from the abyss and make their way to Lordan, making Margit's strength a part of him.

Lordan falls to his knees and carefully removes his helmet. He breaths hard from the aftermath of the battle and looks around unsure of what he just did, still trying to process the outcome of the fight. A part of him thinks it is just a dream, a cruel trick that his mind was playing on him.

He slowly feels pain returning from his fading adrenaline to confirm that he is indeed awake and had completed his first obstacle. He has indeed defeated Margit.

He was no longer a weakling. He had become stronger, as Vargram said he would.

Tears pool up in his eyes from joy and he laughs loudly despite the pain it caused. He starts shouting in a tone of happiness, and relief. All his efforts were not in vain.

Lordan slowly calms down as his view started blurring a little, due to the injuries he sustained and the fatigue that had built up from the fight.

"Lordan?" He turns around to see Melina walking toward him. She was in disbelief as well while displaying a small smile that slowly fades as she moves closer.

"You are hurt..."

Lordan limps to her slowly with all his energy left while crutching his broken hand. "You... Should have seen... The other guy..."

He falls forward and tumbles hard, causing Melina to rush to his side. His head becomes heavy and his vision starts to darken.

"I did it... I did... I did it..."

Listen to me, Lordan. You do not know it yet. But a day will come.

"Shhh... Shhh... Rest, Lordan. It's alright. The grace will heal you." Melina holds his head and eases him to rest. His body touches the newly formed grace and it begins to heal his body.

You will be faced with a challenge. A challenge so difficult, It will break you. over and over again.

"I'm not weak... I'm not weak... Anymore..." Lordan begins to faint as his fatigue catches up to him.

So I will train you. To fight. To struggle. To fall. To stand. Just as I was trained before, by my master.

"Vargram... I did it... Thank you..."

And when the time is right. I swear. To all the gods. Past and present.

"Vargram... Vargram..." Lordan closes his eyes and slumbers.

You will be...

"Var... Gram..."

The strongest of them all.

I swear it, Lordan. I fucking swear it.

For I am your Shadow. And you, My Empyrean.

---

THE GODLESS AGE ARC II THE GOLDEN BLOODLINE, TAINTED

---

1998 YEARS BEFORE THE SHATTERING

"Where are they?!"

"They killed some of our men! Over that side!"

"Fan out! Search the forest! All of it!"

"The woman must be taken alive!"

The Dragon Order's soldiers shout out amongst themselves and begin to move on. Rags listen out to them while waiting for them to pass, he was currently hiding below an exposed tree root of a fallen tree, seated down with his claymore hidden.

He waits for a few more moments and soon the group leaves to the other way, allowing him to stand back up and carefully move on in the opposite direction.

He examines his current wounds and pulls out another arrow that was in his forearm, grunting from the pain as it was removed. It was one of many arrows he was struck by today.

How many arrows hit me? Around 70? 80? He lose count of the number of arrows he was struck today alone. Most of them hit his back, arms, legs, and chest with some almost hitting his face.

Rags checks his flasks to find them all empty, used up from the earlier encounters when he and Marika faced off with the bulk of the force that the Dragon Order sent to pursue them. He was now running on flumes with his body full of injuries that cause pain when moving and was exhausted from the constant fighting and running he did.

After making a break into the forest, Rags forced Marika to separate from him, saying that he was going to distract them while she makes a run for it to the other side of the forest. They were going to meet there once he manages to confuse them by making them think that pursuing him was going to lead them to Marika.

His trick had worked and now the entire force was busy pursuing him alone, completely unaware that Marika was already safe on the other side of the forest and he was simply bait.

So he led them on a merry chase that lasted for hours, picking them off when they spread out into smaller hunting groups. The sight of their men being killed in the most painful ways Rags could inflict made them more aggressive in their search.

This plan was not without its drawbacks though. Facing them all alone means that Rags was effectively outnumbered a few hundred to one. Stealth and surprise attacks only worked for some time before the soldiers started forming into larger groups to avoid ambushes, each comprising eight to twelve men.

Each encounter also left Rags with new injuries that range from minor to severe. The built-up of injuries was starting to affect him greatly as he was losing too much blood to keep going, combined with the fact that he had been moving and fighting for almost six hours by now.

Rags uses his claymore as support and begins moving off. He was now deciding between meeting Marika at the point they agreed on or staying for a least another hour to ensure that the soldiers were moving and searching at the wrong place. He soon decides on the latter.

One more hour... Just one more hour and I can- His thoughts were interrupted as another arrow strikes his back, forcing him out of his trance. He turns to see another patrol group that just arrived. "AH! Fuck!"

"THERE HE IS! KILL HIM!"

The group's archers begins firing off more arrows while their infantry charge towards Rags with their swords and spears. Rags deflects the arrows and ignore the pain to attack. He swings his claymore with all the strength he has left to cut down the charging soldiers with ease, carving them in half or taking off a limp. He kills the last of the infantry by slicing open his abdomen and pulling his guts out.

The remaining archers fire more arrows while some draw their own swords as Rags approaches. Some arrows manage to hit his shoulder as he fails to deflect them. He reaches the archers and cuts them down quickly before they could respond to his close-quarter attacks.

Rags lean against his claymore and slowly pulls out the new arrows that hit him. He stands weakly and falls to a single knee. It was now clear that he was not going to be able to make it.

"Ah... Shit... Fuck me, this hurts..." He clutches the wound on his lower stomach that he sustained earlier from a knight that was difficult to kill due to his plated armor.

Rags try to get on his feet again, knowing if this was his end, he was going to be going out fighting and taking out as many as he can. He musters the last of his strength and stands with an unsteady motion. Gripping his claymore up with two hands and pointing it towards the direction of more movement.

Two more groups of soldiers soon appear, attracted by the sounds of battle between Rags and the previous group. They charge with their infantry again while more archers take the higher ground.

They attack Rags and try to overwhelm him with their numbers. He fends them off and kills a few of them while more arrows fly his way. They eventually manage to knock Rags down and hold him to the ground while a pikeman takes position to stab him with his spear.

The spearman delivers the thrust but Rags catches the spears tip with a hand he freed from one of the soldiers holding him down. He holds on with great strength as the rest of the soliders push him down to stop his struggle.

"Hold him down!"

"Stab him! Stab him already!"

"Cease your struggle!"

Rags hold on as he feels his strength fading, his grip on the spear was starting to losen as pain and blood loss was too much for him to handle. His vision fades as he was on the verge of passing out.

Dammit... Sorry, Marika... He wonders on which site of grace he will reawaken at. It might be at a location far from her.

His thoughts were interuppted when the pikeman was struck with a golden dagger that was thrown into his chest. The rest of the soldiers turn to the direction of the thrown dagger and were hit by lightning bolts that kill them instantly.

Rags turn in the direction of the new fighting to see the other soldiers fighting Marika, with her golden sword and dagger in hand. She moves gracefully to dodge and avoid their attacks with taking them out with a combination of spells and physical attacks.

She fights the last infantry and kills him by smashing his head against a tree with a conjured golden hammer. She turns to the archer and hurls lightning bolts towards them, they die from the attack.

The last archer of the group comes out of his cover and fires off an arrow toward Marika, it lands on her shoulder and she cries out in pain.

Upon seeing this, Rags pushes himself up with all his might and throws his claymore toward the archer. The claymore sticks into the archer's chest and he falls forward to the lower ground.

Marika looks at the arrow and snaps its tip, pulling out the shaft from the other side. She groans out a sound of pain and moves over to Rags's position in a hurry, worried for his health.

"Rags?! Thank gods! You are alright!" She examines his wounds and notices that he was in a near death state. "Come! There's a sight of grace nearby! Come on!" She supports him by putting herself under his arm and getting him to his feet the best she can.

"I... I TOLD YOU... TO RUN! " He speaks out with impatience in his tone.

Marika ignores his lecture and moves them over to the claymore Rags threw. "And leave you to fend for yourself?! Don't be a fool! I won't do that to you!"

Rags sigh in frustration and let's the matter slide. He limps to the claymore with her help and retrieves the claymore. They soon move at their best speed in the direction of the grace Marika guided.

Rags tries his best to stay awake and move along with Maria's speed. He feels his legs starting to give way and lose feeling, no doubt from the blood loss from all his wounds. The grace was the only thing that could save him now, he just needed to reach it.

They soon reach a small clearing in the forest and Marika moves to a spot in the middle of the clearing. She lets Rags down slowly and reaches out to an empty space, as if reaching out to something.

"Alright, here we are! Rags, touch the light of grace!"

Rags look around to see nothing in the clearing, not knowing where the grace is. "Where... Where is it?"

"What do you mean where is it?! It's right in front of you!"

"I... I don't see it..."

"What?!" His answer causes her alarm. Grace was his last chance to survive his wounds.

"I can't... I can't see it..." His vision starts to blur and he feels himself fading away. "I can't... I..." He tries his best to hold on but could not, falling forward to the ground.

"Rags?! RAGS?!" Marika moves to his fallen side and flips him to make him lie on his back. She shakes him a few times and prepares a healing incantation.

"Hold on! Do you hear me! Whatever you do, stay awake!" She casts the spell and some of his wounds start to mend. But it was no use, his wounds were too great and the healing process was too slow to help him recover.

"Rags! Rags! Stay awake!" He hears her in a muffled tone as his vision continues to fade. "You need to tell me what to do! Tell me what I should do!"

Run. Leave me. RUN. Rags try to speak out the words but nothing came from his mouth, all he could make were grunts and groans that sound like nonsense. More voices could be heard, mostly from more soldiers that found their way here.

He sees Marika as she panics from the situation they were in, unable to decide what to do. She eventually gets to her feet and summons her golden sword, preparing to make her final stand.

NO. NO. NO. NO... NO. She was going to defend him to the end, making her capture imminent. A fate worse than death awaited her once she loses. Rags muster any strength he has to try and get up one more time but fails, nothing would allow him to move anymore.

"Rags... If we don't make it... Know that I will always-" He hears the words she speak becoming unclear, reduced to only muffled words. Rags could not hear the last words she speak. All he could see and hear now was nothing.

Nothing but pitch black.

So this is what dying feels like? It's pretty shitty...

HOW INTERESTING.

A voice speaks in the back of his head. Its tone was demonic and unnatural. And he feels a presence invading his thoughts.

What?

DO YOU WISH TO SAVE HER?

The voice speaks again. It's presence become more pronounced. An image of what appears to be a wolf forms in his mind, shadows cover the details of its form.

What? Who are you?

DO YOU WISH TO SAVE HER?

It asks again without explaining itself.

DO YOU WISH TO SAVE HER?

Yes...

THEN LET ME IN.

GIVE IN TO YOUR HATE.

GIVE IN TO YOUR ANGER.

AS YOU DID BEFORE.

He starts seeing visions of himself killing the soldiers with no restraint from his point of view. He sees himself cut them down with his claymore with ease, tearing them limp from limp, crushing their heads in, chasing them down to the last man as they try to run.

These images continue for a time before he is left with a final vision that sees himself in front of a pile of bodies, all torn and broken with their faces frozen in terror.

THIS IS WHAT YOU WANT.

He soon turns around to see Marika standing among the bodies. Her face displays fear when looking at him. He slowly approaches her while she steps back with her hand raised, saying something that he cannot hear.

What? What am I doing?

WHAT YOU WANT.

WHAT YOU NEED.

He rushes to Marika and pins her down to the ground, she struggles in his grip and screams out words that he once again cannot hear. Tears well up in her eyes as he starts ripping off portions of her clothing.

No... No... NO. NO.

THIS IS WHAT YOU WANT.

He chokes her by the neck to cease her struggle and sees his view shifting up and down in sync with her while feeling a built up of lust and pleasure. More images show up detailing him violating her in different ways, methods, and positions with no restraint.

NO. STOP.

THIS IS WHAT SHE OWES YOU.

A SMALL PRICE TO PAY FOR HER LIFE.

NO. NO WAY. I WOULD NEVER WANT THIS.

A final vision appears in the form of Marika fully naked with wounds around her body while she lays down helplessly in a broken mental state, her eyes lifeless despite her being alive. White fluids were present and stained her body, with some leaking out from her womb.

TAKE WHAT YOU WANT.

TAKE IT.

TAKE HER.

LET ME IN.

LET ME IN.

LET ME IN.

LET ME IN.

Rags becomes distressed as the visions repeat to show the scenes of Marika's violation again and again. He was unable to take it anymore.

NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO.

LET ME IN!

ᛚᛖᛏ ᛘᛖ ᛁᚾ!

⸌ᛁ⸍ ⠃ᛁ ᛁ⸜!

ᛚᛁᛐ ᛙᛁ ᛁᚿ!

ᛚᛁᛏ ᛘᛁ ᛁᚾ!

ᛚᛖᛏ ᛗᛖ ᛁᚾ!

NO! NO! NO! FUCK OFF!

The voice goes silent and the visions cease. No words come for a while as darkness once again fills his vision.

SO BE IT.

WE WILL MEET AGAIN.

FACE TO FACE.

IN THE HOLLOW EARTH.

WHEN THE TIME COMES.

UNTIL THEN.

I SHALL WAIT.

RAGS.

The voice fades completely and Rags feels the presence leave his mind. He starts to regain some sense of awareness as Marika's healing spell takes effect to keep him alive.

He felt cold. Cold like death was on his doorstep. But the cold becomes colder and also warmer. Like both sensations mixed into one despite being opposites.

He starts to regain his sense of hearing and hears the screams of men in pain, panic, and confusion among the voices.

He starts to open his eyes weakly to see Marika holding on to him tight while the area around them burns in flames. Flames that seemed unnatural asd their colour were black and white instead of orange like normal flames.

"Rags?! Just hold on!" She notices his awaking and covers him from the flames. They seem to be avoiding them directly and only burned the soldiers around the area.

After a short while, the screaming ceases, due to the soldiers dying from the fires or them running away far enough. A breeze of cold air soon blows through the area to put out all the flames in an instant.

The air grows colder to the point where their breaths were visible, even when there was no snow in the area. The tone of the environment also becomes a blueish hue.

Marika looks around to check for any more enemies. She lets Rags down slowly and gets to her feet, conjuring her golden sword to prepare for anyone else that might attack.

The sound of footsteps made by a mount could be heard and she turns to the source with her sword raised. The steps get closer and reveal a great elk with a rider on top of it'd back.

"Stop! Whoever you are, do not come any closer!" Marika issues a warning to the rider and the elk stops in its place.

"Stay your hand, maiden. I mean no harm." A female voice speaks out from the rider as she raises a hand to ease Marika. "I am here to assist you. As I just did." She speaks of the flames that helped them fend off their remaining attackers.

Marika takes a moment to ease herself and lowers her sword, it disappears from her hand as she lowers it down. The woman takes the sign as an indication of peace and starts moving forward slowly. She moves into the light to reveal herself.

The rider was a woman dressed in grey robes with a witch's hat that covers her face unless she looks up. She had smooth pale porcelain skin and raven black hair. Her body was slim but robust, and she had a slightly shorter height than Marika.

"Who... Who are you? Why did you help us?" Marika asks the woman. The question causes Rags to look in the direction of their savior while he continues laying on the floor, still weak from his unhealed wounds. His eyes and the woman meet, allowing him to fully see her face.

She was a woman of divine beauty and had gloomy blue eyes. She looks to him with interest and reconition, as if aware of who he is.

She looks back to Marika and begins to speak. "I apologise for the intrusion. I had hear tales of a man wielding a greatsword traveling alongside a maiden who seeks passage to the Lands Between. And upon hearing of the Dragon Order's army making an appearance in this area, I suspected it might be because of you."

"How did you know of us?"

The woman brings her fingers together at the question. "I have my ways. But for now, his survival is of the highest importance. So we must leave. Now. Else they return with a larger force."

Hesitation stops Marika from imminently accepting but she looks to Rags and decides to trust the woman. For now. "Fine... Fine. But first, tell me your name. I need to be able to trust you."

"Very well. If that is what it takes." Rags hear the last of the conversion and start to fade again. His wounds were healing slowly but the pain and fatigue had now caught up to him. He hears the woman's last words and loses consciousness.

"I am the Snow witch, Renna. But there are some who call me the Gloam."

FIN.