I reached out and patted Aurelia, the spirit jellyfish, on her bell-shaped body. I had wanted to test out the spirit calling bell and it was a fascinating sight. Once I rang it, a glowing, blue jellyfish was summoned right in front of me. Aurelia first "looked" at me almost as if in surprise and then let out a cute trill as I pet her.
"Hey, Aurelia, I'm Nathaniel. Your previous master put you under my care so it's good to finally see you." She floated around me and bounced up and down in the air. Aurelia was a very bubbly spirit. She liked to bump into me playfully and let out adorable chirps. "A playful one you are."
I had teleported out of the Roundtable Hold to go find a man named Patches. Supposedly, he was a trickster of sorts. At least, that's what I heard from Gideon. So my plan was to just get in, get the shackles, get out. I would like to minimize interaction between any shifty people as much as possible.
"So, Aurelia, what do you think about going on an adventure?" The jellyfish gave an affirmative chirp. "All right, let's do this. First off, we need to find Murkwater Cave. According to the map I have, it should be around here."
Melina had given me a map of Limgrave and I arrived at Murkwater River. I stood atop a cliff looking down at the wide ravine. A broad but shallow stream ran through the length of the ravine and I saw a flow of heavy wind coming up from the ground. That looks to be my way down.
I hope I had enough runes. Melina had explained to me that monsters and people carry a select amount of runes and I would be able to take them if I kill them. I was still not accustomed to death. Killing soldiers of Godrick still made me want to vomit even though they're actively seeking to hunt me down. However, Melina explained to me that death was vanquished from the Lands Between due to Queen Marika removing the Rune of Death from the Elden Ring. There was a whole lot that went over my head when Melina started talking about the Elden Ring but I remembered the gist of what she was saying.
This did not ease the thought of slaying soldiers for runes. When I cut them, they bled. When I kicked them, they were bruised. They were still normal people to an extent. Just because their spirits will eventually return to the Erdtree and revive doesn't really make it any better for me. And to be honest, I was still not experienced enough to casually go around cutting them down.
So I resigned myself to hunting animals, mainly sheep. Now, don't get me wrong, I feel bad about killing these sheep as well. But those sheep are vicious, man! Don't even get me started on rams! They are terrifying! You think there's just one but no there's always more waiting to emerge from the shadows! They bite, they headbutt, they kick! I would take on thirty soldiers of Godrick before I would face ten sheep. Of course, an exaggeration but my point still stands.
The profit from hunting all those sheep was a good thousand runes. Hopefully, that would be able to afford me some measly shackles.
"Okay, I might be crazy," I said to Aurelia, "But do you think that if I jump into that wind geyser thing, I would be able to land safely in the ravine?"
The spirit hummed to signify that my idea might have some merit.
"Are you one hundred percent sure?" The jellyfish pushed me toward the cliff right next to the wind geyser. "All right, here goes nothing."
I leaped off hesitantly and barely made it into the flow of the current. Thankfully, I began slowing down as I descended. I landed in the marshy ravine to see Aurelia float down towards me.
"Must be easy to have flight," I said and she warbled enthusiastically. Hopefully, nothing would attack me. All my equipment was still in the shop. Master Hewg said that "perfection doesn't come quickly". He could've at least given me some spare stuff besides the miniscule dagger he gave me to hunt sheep! But I reminded myself that I wasn't trying to kill anything. All I was doing was going to buy an item.
So I trudged through the extremely shallow stream. There was some plant life growing on grass patches that grew on the side of the small creek. Vines were lined up against the crags of the gorge. Lush flowers, blue and indigo, were shining in the light of the Erdtree. However, all of this beauty was detracted from by the gray, cloudy water that looked like it belonged in a sewer.
"Now where is the entrance?" I walked around for a good amount of time until I finally found the entrance of the cave obscured by the shrubbery and vegetation. I looked hesitantly at Aurelia and she urged me onward. She brightened up the dark passageway of the cave. The hazy blue glow that she emitted was the only reason I didn't get lost.
Finally, we found a large, spacious area that looked to be occupied. This must be it! There was a warm fire with stools sat next to it. Bags and boxes of loot were scattered all over the place. Barrels full of runes were placed at the sides of the cave. Aurelia let out an excited cheep as she saw it. Since no one was around, I decided to search through the place. I looked into a chest on the ground but before I could get a good look at what was inside, I heard a voice call out to me.
"Well, well, well?" it said, "Thought you'd just help yourself to a man's personal belongings? You scheming little thief. The gods demand repentance!"
A pale, vampire-looking figure emerged from the darkness wielding a scutum and spear. He charged at me with frightening agility considering the heavy weapons he was holding. I dodged out of the way, cursing myself for not bringing gear.
"Hold it!" I shouted, "It wasn't what it looked like."
"Begone!" He thrust forward at me again.
Then he stopped. A flash of dark purple flew across the room at him and erupted into a cloud of royal violet. After it cleared, I saw a thick sludge coat his entire face and chest. His mouth was agape as he began hyperventilating. It didn't take me long to see that it was Aurelia who launched a stream of poison at him.
He immediately began coughing as he fell to his knees, dropping all his armaments. The man clutched at his throat as he struggled to breathe.
"Please, I surrender!" he shouted. Really? He yielded pretty quickly.
"Aurelia," I said, "Will that poison wear off?" The jellyfish whistled in affirmation. "So he's not going to die, right?" Aurelia, again, tweeted as if to say yes.
I crouched next to the bald, ashen man and said, "Is your name, by any chance, Patches?"
"That would-" He began having a wheezing fit. "That would be me!" Ah, crap! Aurelia just poisoned the man I needed!
"Oh, shoot!" I said in alarm, "Uh, don't worry. Aurelia told me that the poison will wear off before long… probably."
"That damn jellyfish," he cursed.
Aurelia took offense and began preparing another shot of toxin.
"Wait, wait, please!" Patches begged, "I truly do surrender! White flag and all!"
"Aurelia, calm down," I said, gesturing for her to stand down. Aurelia begrudgingly stopped and floated down next to me. Wow, Aurelia was amazing.
"You might not want to mess with my jellyfish," I told him, "Just a word of caution."
"I figured," he said.
Soon, his coughing and choking ceased and with an enthusiastic gasp of air, he sat up and faced me.
"You're gonna spare me?" he asked as if confused we didn't kill him.
"I see no reason not to?" I asked, equally confused. Did he want us to kill him?
He gave a cheshire grin and said, "I knew you wouldn't. You're a man of reason, through and through. Well, not merely a man. I can sense that you're Tarnished like me. Now, how did I get that wrong? I took you for demi-human, or some such." Is that an insult?
"You still tried to murder me," I said.
"Ah, it's water under the bridge, my good friend. Forgive me for my misunderstanding. It was an innocent mistake, I assure you. Now that we've made up, how about we play nice with each other?"
Aurelia angrily shoved him over.
"Tell your jellyfish that I'm sorry!" he said. I urged Aurelia to calm down and she happily cheeped when I nuzzled her with my hand.
"I'll forgive you," I told Patches, "I just came here to ask something of you."
"And what might that be?"
"I'm here to buy something."
"Well that's just brilliant. I do have a whole set of things that you can buy. I'm thinking about starting my own shop. I don't want to keep being a bandit forever. It's bloody terrifying to me. I'm a free-spirit, nomadic you may say. So how about you be my first customer, Tarnished?"
"That's just great," I said, "Do you have omen shackles? Specifically ones that bind an omen called Margit the Fell."
He gasped, "How did you know?!"
"Sir Gideon told me."
"Ah, I guess he does know everything," Patches said, "Well, I have no particular use for the shackles. You can have them for, uh, let's see… five thousand runes."
"Five thousand?!"
"Yes, five thousand."
"Sorry, but that is such a scam," I said, "I only have a thousand runes or so. Five thousand is way to much for just some shackles."
"Well, it is a lot for an inexperienced Tarnished like yourself. Strong Tarnished can just kill a few trolls and that would be enough."
"Can't you give it to me for just a thousand?" I asked, "That's all I have." Patches sighed and looked at me with a disappointed glint in his eyes and then he shifted his focus to Aurelia who just floated silently.
Patches said, "Honestly, five thousand was just a starting price. I don't really care about the shackles and a thousand runes is good enough for me. I'm willing to help a fellow Tarnished out."
Relief washed over me. "Thank you so much!" I said.
"It's the least I can do. Especially since you must be having a hard time adjusting to the Lands Between. Very different from Earth isn't it?"
I stared at him.
"Um, what did you just say?"
"Did I say something wrong?"
"No, no, just… what did you say?"
"That the Lands Between must be very different from Earth." He knows about my world! But how is that even possible?! Who was this man? Not even Melina knew what I was talking about when I brought up Earth.
"How do you know about my world?" I asked, frozen from disbelief.
"My name is Patches," he said, "And I've been to many of the universes that FromSoftware has created. I know about Earth, just never been there myself."
"FromSoftware?" I asked.
"The company that created this world. What, did you not see who made the game called Elden Ring?"
I scurried up and backed away from him a little, "Who are you?!"
"Patches," he said, "That's just my name."
"Tell me how you know!"
"I'm a program, or at least I was, created by FromSoftware and I've been given some sort of special knowledge. The lay people of the Lands Between know nothing about Earth. It's odd that a world like this can exist. Everyone here in the Lands Between is flesh and blood. But you, you're different. Flesh and blood just like the others. However, you're not from here, I could tell from the beginning."
"Wh-Wha-What?!" I stuttered.
"I don't know how you're here to be honest," Patches said, "I just assumed that this was my reality only." It was weird. Really, really bizarre to be hearing this. I didn't really question how any of this was possible. I couldn't because I needed to survive. But when confronted by a semblance of what was normal, a semblance of my previous reality, I just couldn't comprehend or fathom any of it.
"What do you mean by that?" I asked, "What do you mean you assumed it was 'your reality'?"
"I was born into the world of Demon Souls, another game created by FromSoftware," he said, "I lived out my life like any normal person would. However, I began getting hints of knowledge in my mind that I wasn't like anybody else. Later in life, I was being transported into different 'realities'. Eventually, in this world, I finally realized that I was a piece of code programmed in some sort of game. The Lands Between really changes you, ya know?"
"Does this mean I'm in some sort of simulation?! Is anything here real?!"
"Oh, believe me, it's real," Patches said, "That's what's strange to me. None of the other entities or places in these games are fake, yet they were originally just part of a video game. Humans and creatures with substance to them in a reality separate from yours but just as real. Odd isn't it?"
I was at a loss for words.
"Oh, come on, don't tell me that this of all things surprises you. You're in a world where magic and fantasy monsters lie in wait for you. Are you honestly telling me that you're baffled by someone having knowledge of your previous world?"
"I am," I said, "But most of all, I'm relieved."
"How come?"
"To have someone who knows a little bit of what I know is vindicating. It's hard having your entire world being turned upside down. I'm happy to find someone who knows where I came from. Someone who knows of my home."
"I may not be the only one," Patches said, "I believe that the Greater Will must know of Earth because it called you here."
"I see," I said, "Tell me more of what you know. What do you mean that this world is real? It's fictional, correct?"
"Well, you see, it's complicated. FromSoftware created this world called Elden Ring and the video game is simulated, it's not real. However, this isn't merely a game. The world you're in right now is not at all simulated. There's been a weird metaphysical anomaly that has occurred where a copy of the game's world manifested itself into the real world. So far, Elden Ring is the only game to which this has happened."
"Why is Elden Ring so special?" I asked.
"I'm not so sure," Patches replied, "I have limited capabilities to search for those answers."
"Why are you so special? Why do you possess knowledge of Earth?"
"I'm unique in the sense that I was a recurring character in FromSoftware games. The developers gave me exclusive knowledge encoded right into me. But now I'm flesh and blood and I can actually think for myself in this world. Memories of when I was still just some character started coming back to me. Every game I was in, I have memories of. And now I'm here."
"How do I know you're not lying?" I asked, "Sir Gideon told me you were a trickster."
"I just poured out my heart and backstory to you and you say that?!" Patches cried, "I know that I'm a liar and a thief and I still am. But I wouldn't have the knowledge that I have if I wasn't telling you the truth."
"I suppose that's fair," I said, "And I'll take anything I can get. Anything to connect me to home, I'll take."
"That's a rather naive way to look at things."
"True," I said.
We sat in a silence for a while. I was thinking about him and I could sense that he was thinking about me. Who was he?
"Well, we have to carry on with business," he said, taking out a talisman that was pulsating with faint golden magic, "This is the shackle you are looking for."
I tossed Patches my bag of runes and he handed over the amulet.
"Thank you," I said, "I should get going."
"You were definitely a strange part of my day," Patches said, "I never would have guessed that a person from Earth would be transported here."
"Neither did I," I said, "But here I am."
"We'll meet again, Nathaniel. People like us who hold knowledge of other worlds must stick with each other."
"Certainly," I said.
"Be on your way now," he said.
"Goodbye."
"Tarnished, what art thou thinking?" A familiar sight greeted me: Melina was looking at me concerned. I've been sitting in a quiet field in Limgrave ruminating for the past few hours on what Patches told me. Suddenly, I had a different outlook of everything. The world felt so much more alive. I felt a lot more sensitive to things. It was like I had a more clarified perspective of the Lands Between.
"I met Patches," I told her, "And I got the shackles."
"That is good news, is it not?"
"He told me many things," I said, "And they worried me more than I thought they would."
"What did this merchant say?"
I looked at Melina, debating whether I should tell her what I heard from Patches. Then again, Melina was the person I trusted most with this. She's the only one I've told about my origins.
"Patches said a lot," I said, "But the most important thing is that he knew about where I came from. Earth."
"That is wonderful," she said, "Thou hast someone to speak with on the matters of thy homeland."
"But Patches said other things that I still do not understand. He told me that this world is real."
"Of course," Melina said, "Dost thou not believe that the Lands Between is real?"
"Let me tell you something, Melina," I said, "This world was originally created by the minds of people looking to tell a story."
"What dost thou mean?"
"That the world we're in right now is an exact replica of the world from… a story. It was once fictional, now reality. I don't know how that is possible at all. Some sort of fantastical event must have caused the Lands Between to come into existence."
"I still do not understand."
"I don't either!" I said, "And it's all so confusing that it makes my mind implode. But it doesn't matter in the end. I'm still here. This is my life now."
"Thou'rt not alone in the fog of confusion," she told me, "I understand thy wishes to comprehend thy circumstances but insight might never come."
"I know," I said, looking up towards the sky, "Patches just made me think. How did this world come to be? How and why am I here? Thoughts like those began popping into my head after meeting him. I blocked that all out before but now that I've met someone who knows things that I alone only used to know, I can't help but wonder."
Melina sat down next to me and I could see that she was examining my face. An aloof caringness was what struck me about her. Her eye and posture were distant from me; Melina never really had much of a spark in her eye. She never exhibited any sort of excitement, joy, or carefreeness, at least not to me. However, I could feel her solicitude whenever she chose to present it to me. Of course, it was part of her job. She needed me to get to the base of the Erdtree. But it never felt like she was doing it solely for that reason. It was as if she genuinely cared and that was a foreign feeling.
"I hate being clueless," I told her, "But it's the feeling I'm most acquainted with. It doesn't matter what world I'm in. My world, a fantasy one, a utopia, dystopia, anything! I'm still the same oblivious man."
Melina laid a reassuring palm on my shoulder and said, "Wisdom does not come quickly. It is as hard to grasp as a fickle wind. Do not castigate thyself for not having it."
"You're the most reliable source of common sense and advice that I have," I told her, "You are amazing," I said bluntly.
"I appreciate thy faith in me," she said.
I laid down on the lush grass and glanced up to the unending sky above. Melina unwounded as I could see her muscles untense and her firm poise loosen. I glanced up at her watching the distant sun. Rays of light illuminated her facial-features with bright white making her look like she was sent from above. Her hair flowed in the light breeze as if the wind purposefully chose to make her look as regal as possible. Melina's eye was one of a sentinel, calmly staring and revealing nothing.
She stayed here with me. That was what I was most grateful for. Melina was admittedly a highly practical being and had the might of an unassailable fortress in a fight. So it was weird to see her like this: just quiet. She wasn't comforting me, not telling me where I could do better, not planning our next move, not fighting with an impenetrable defense. She was just sitting with me in a pure, unadulterated quiescence. In this moment with her, I felt my mind ease itself even if only by a little. There were things still left to do. Many, many things. But laying here in the serene meadow with Melina sitting next to me, it felt as if I could relax.
"Melina," I addressed.
"Yes, Tarnished?"
"Will everything be okay?" I said. Every part of my being protested asking that question. It made me seem like some helpless child questioning their mom if they're going to be all right. It wasn't exactly far from the truth but I was still hesitant. "Challenges are laid ahead of me, all of them seemingly unconquerable. This world is unconquerable. My own world was unconquerable. I haven't had a particularly good start."
Melina continued to look forward. "I know not whether thou shall rise above thy situation," she said, "But I do know something. Thou must persist. When looking into the abyss, thou must not blink. Once in the shadow of death, do not falter. In the seas of calamity, thou must be its master."
"I'm scared of trying," I said. She leaned over, her face right above mine, blocking the sunlight. "I don't want to pursue a dangerous life but it's the only way I can get back to my home. Fear is always in the corner of my mind whenever I'm awake, for every waking hour."
"Let me tell you something, Tarnished," she said, "It is the words from the mouth of Roderika that I speak. 'It doesn't matter if I am scared. I just need to do it,' she said to me. Dost thou understand that thou taught that to her?"
"Seriously?" I asked. Man, her face was rather close.
"It is truth I speak," she said, "Dost thou intend to become a hypocrite? Tarnished, thou needs to take thy own advice. Go forth into this world with fright and terror in thy heart. It is normal to fear. Nevertheless, do not allow thy dread to lead thee down a dark path. There may be days where thou will weep. Some days thou might lose the will to carry on. But, Tarnished, I beseech thee to remember that thou'rt not companionless. I remain."
That is until you go.
I didn't let myself get caught up in the fact that Melina eventually would have to leave me as Melina brought two fingers up and flicked me on the forehead. Did she just act… playful?
"Sorry," she said, "I thought that gesture would have lightened up the mood."
I swiftly flicked her on the forehead as well. She recoiled and was no longer right above my face and I chuckled to myself at her. Melina could be extremely endearing at times.
On a more serious note, she was right. I knew that she was correct. My fear may never go away no matter how much I wish it did. But I need to be brave if I want to get back home. It didn't matter if I thought the circumstances I was in were unfair. It didn't have to be fair, it was just the way things were. What was I going to do about it? Well, we'll see. But I need to be strong on my own. No one ever teaches you these things. I never learned how to be brave or how to be tough and unflinching. Perhaps there can be no teacher of these things other than suffering and trials. It seems to me that one cannot learn bravery without confronting fear itself; one cannot learn selflessness without sacrifice; one cannot learn many things without the pressure and belligerence of life.
I was still learning and sometimes it will be hard. But today, I was reminded of the thing that I was moving toward. It isn't just a fruitless struggle that will yield nothing. Patches was a glimpse back home. He was not of Earth but he possessed a distinctive knowledge of it. A flicker of what I was doing all of this for. A gleam of my previous life lied just beyond hardships yet to come.
I don't know who Patches is. He didn't come off as a thief but I guess that's what the best tricksters do. I might be gullible in believing him but I can't help be feel that he's telling the truth. His voice when he spoke of who he was and what he knew radiated a substantial fear and respect for the cosmic forces behind his very existence. Patches' eyes turned dim when recounting what he used to be, a fictional character in a game franchise. Now he was real. Regardless of how, he was a conscious human being.
Same as Melina.
Again, I gazed at Melina. Her breathing was slow with her mouth slightly agape as she took in the majesty of the Lands Between. Suddenly, I felt nervous. Not a bad nervous, though. I wasn't anxious of Melina at all. It was just that I suddenly felt aware of every little movement that she made. I noticed when she moved her arm ever so slightly to adjust her posture while sitting. I noticed when she tilted her head to the left. I was extremely aware of her general presence which was peculiar. Looking at her fair face led to some feelings of timidness within me.
This moment seemed to go by so slow, but that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Laying down with Melina sitting next to me, both of us watching the tranquil plains, was peaceful. It was peaceful. I couldn't remember any time where I felt like this. The bustling yet monotonous life I had back home never allowed for times like this.
I will be brave. I will try hard. I will traverse the rocky and dangerous path, not only to get back home but to also protect moments like these.
