The Warrior King

So… In a fit of madness, I decided that 'A King and a Swordmaster' should be a series. Basically, welcome to Souls of Heroes, where I write down lore theories of myself and others, and make them more… story-like. Today, we explore the tale of one of the most interesting romances in gaming history, The Ivory King and Elsanna, fragment of Manus.

Best Song for this Story: Skillet- Whisper in the Dark

This story was written for the DSS's Soultine event.

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The Ivory King was pleased with himself.

After the fall of Forossa, he had set off, adventuring through the lands, gathering followers and fellow warriors, all of whom pledged themselves to his blade. He took it upon himself to find them a new home, and now he had. On these frigid, windswept glaciers, they would found a mighty city, built of the stone found naturally beneath the ice, protected by the sheer walls of ice and a band of some of the mightiest warriors in existence.

Yes, he felt he had permission to be proud.

Even now, mere weeks after their arrival here, after the treacherous scaling of the glacier, they were making great progress in their construction of their new home. Multiple buildings had already risen over the ice, constructed of simple but elegant beige stone, and held together by mortar made of the ice itself.

The strange creatures that dwelled in this land would have been a problem, but the Ivory King and his new knights were powerful in both mind and arm, and repelled the attacks of the strange horned beasts, and even the monstrous cat-creatures that swarmed and tore at the innocent people who followed them.

Then the screaming began.

Screaming, interrupted by bestial roars, deep and loud roars. Something big. The King turned and ran towards the sound, drawing his weapon, the silver blade gleaming in the sun. He leapt over a stack of bags of food, and rolled, before rising to his feet and seeing his opponent.

It was big, standing almost twice the height of the king, but skinny… no, not skinny, wiry. Very wiry. Thin arms banded with muscle held twin iron blades, each the size of the kings blade, easily. But its most terrifying feature was its head. It looked like a goats skull, with massive horns that added an easy foot to its height, and made it look even more terrifying. Beady red eyes poked out from the eye holes, making the king wonder whether the beasts head was the skull, or if the skull was merely a helmet.

Then he had no more time to wonder, because its monstrous maw opened up, and it roared again before charging, both blades raised over its head. The Kings reflexes saved him, as he rolled beneath the incredibly distanced leaping swing, before spinning on his heels and slamming his blade into the back of the beasts shins.

It roared again, this time a higher pitch, no doubt due to the pain, before whirling around faster than the King could comprehend, massive iron blades slashing the air where he used to be. The king had leapt into the air, inhumanly quickly, and hammered his blade onto the top of the beasts head. The skull cracked, and bone and blood flew through the air as the king finished his leap, rolling onto the ground behind the monster, which staggered forwards a few steps like a drunk before collapsing to the ground.

The king watched as the beasts body twitched, before one of his followers, a knight by the name of Janos, walked tentatively up to it, weapon held in his right hand, before he brought it down onto the creatures neck, stopping its movements. The King stood for a moment, before walking to the hole which had opened up in the center of the glacier.

He looked down it, and words flashed through his mind, spoken by a Scholar of his homeland. He had heard them as a small boy, and now they reemerged into the forefront of his mind.

"Gaze not into the Abyss… lest the Abyss gaze back."

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A scream echoed through the frozen wastes, and naught but one man answered it. The King sprinted through the snow, hearing the cries of a woman, which spurred him on, putting on a burst of speed.

He had been touring along the edges of his city, a simple jog to keep himself in shape, something he watched carefully. He had had his blade with him, for he never let it leave his side, and his armour on, for what use was exercise if he did not mimic the conditions of a battle?

"Help!" The cries echoed, the King hearing them once more.

He jumped over the last of the snowdrifts in his way, the blizzard seeming to intensify as he did, as though trying to stop him from saving her. He fought onwards, drawing his weapon and leaping into battle. The woman lay clad in little more than a torn robe, a cloak laying upon the ground several feet away.

She sported several cuts across her side, and a small chime, commonly used for casting miracles, lay in the snow by her side. He tore off his own cloak, revealing his armoured form, and raised his weapon, finding her attacker. Another of the massive cats.

"Come on then, you big ugly ball of fur! Fight me!" He roared, taking up his blade in a two handed grip.

The creature roared back, and the two began their fight.

The beast pounced at him, practically flying through the air, but was surprised when the King practically mimicked the attack, jumping at him. The two met in midair, the kings weapon slashing twice. The first slash was across the cats face, slashing its snout. The second slash was across its forehead, the blade biting deep and digging into its skull. The cats momentum and weight beat out the Kings, however, and they were sent plunging to the ground.

The King spun on the creatures face, tearing his blade out as the fell, and using the momentum to kick off, leaping high above the plummeting form of the monstrous cat. It slammed into the ground, and rose shakily to its four paws, searching for the human who had dared deny it its meal. Then the King came plummeting to the ground, blade facing downwards and spearing the cats head, and the cat felt nothing more.

The King drew his blade from its fleshy sheath and jumped down from the top of the monster, cleaning his blade on its fur before turning to the woman he had risked his life to save.

The woman was still laying on the ground, awestruck by the demonstration of martial prowess she had just seen. The King reached a gauntleted hand out.

"Are you quite alright, madam? What is your name, and what are you doing out here all alone?" He asked, as he looked at the woman more closely, realizing her legs were badly gouged by the cat.

"I… I am Alsanna…" The diminutive woman replied, and despite her voice being barely more than a whisper, even then it trembled with fear. "I… I fear I cannot walk."

"Well, I'll just have to carry you then. Here." He said, draping his cloak over her, before picking her up with both arms, weapon sheathed on his back.

"I… thank you… who are you?" Alsanna asked, eyes focused on this mysterious man.

"The Ivory King, at your service, m'lady."

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"My lord, there is something deeply, deeply wrong with her. She hadn't bled out by the time you brought her back, and she regenerates at a worryingly fast pace. We had barely even applied bandages before she was fine."

"I do not care."

"My lord, please! We believe… Sorceror Navos believes she may be an… an Abyss creature."

"I don't care, Commodus."

"You are blinded by love, my lord. All our tests are final; she is not of this world! She will likely try to kill you!"

"Then let her. She was helpless, Commodus, and needs aid."

"Then let her wed one of your knights, then! You will take her for your bride, as your queen, when you have barely known her for a week?"

"I love her, Commodus. I don't care what she is, I only care for who she is. You see the difference?"

"But, my lord…"

"No Commodus. She loves me, and I love her. The wedding is planned for next month. I will take her as my queen, and you cannot stop me."

"That does not matter."

"Very well, my King."

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"Please… don't leave."

"I must."

"What will the kingdom do without you? What will I do without you?"

"You will do what you have always done. Survive."

"I… I'm not strong enough. I can't lead them."

The Ivory King turned at that, looking his beloved in the eyes before dropping to one knee, putting himself at eye level with his kneeling queen.

"Yes, you are, and yes, you can. You must believe in yourself."

"I can't… you know who I am! I am the literal embodiment of my fathers fear! I can't not be afraid!" She yelled, rising to her bare feet.

"Alsanna, I can't stay by your side forever. I must go, I need to seal the gate."

"I won't let you! You have a duty to your people as well as me, and you can't just abandon us!"

"Alsanna, you're being selfish!"

"You think I'm being selfish?! I have stood by your side for years, through dozens of attacks by the creatures of that pit, and now you just want to go off on some adventure down there, just leave me?!"

"I WILL DO WHAT I MUST TO STOP CHAOS, EVEN IF IT MEANS EXILING MYSELF TO THAT HOLE! I SWORE I WOULD STOP IT AT ANY COST, EVEN MY OWN LIFE IF I MUST, AND NOW I MUST! SO NO, I AM NOT LEAVING YOU!"

Alsanna fell to her rear, scurrying away from the roaring King and his voice, that voice which had sent even the mightiest of foes running for their lives. Her eyes teared up as she felt her fear overwhelming her anger. She curled up in the shadow of the throne, eyes affixed on the terrifying entity that was her King.

The Kings scowl softened, and he blinked several times, forcing back his anger. He stared at his terrified queen, trembling beneath her stone throne.

"Alsanna… I… I'm sorry." He said, kneeling down. He knew how to deal with these moments at this point, from experience, to his shame. Keep your distance, try not to startle her, and keep her calm. "I shouldn't have gotten so upset. I still must do this, however."

"It… it… go. Go before I try to stop you. And know… you go with my blessing, and my love." She replied.

"Farewell, my love."

"Goodbye…" And with that he was gone, the love of her life, the King of Eleum Loyce, taken by Chaos.

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So go now, Chosen Undead. Free the king from his torment at the hands of Chaos, and claim the Ivory Crown for your own. Do not falter and do not fail. For if you succeed here, you succeed forever.

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Thanks for reading, and please review, telling me if you want this to be a permanent fixture.