Chapter 41: Truth of the Flame
"What?" Erik could not believe his ear. Her husband had been a god?
"I'm sure you've heard the legends that Shulva was built to worship a dragon that was sealed beneath it. That is a lie. My dear Faraam built this place to imprison him, but also to respect a worthy foe. He was an honorable man, if nothing else," Elana said with a soft sigh.
"But then that bastard Sir Yorgh got it into his head that the dragon was the secret to my husband's Godhood and tried to steal its blood. That idiot staged a coup and tried to remove Faraam's lance from its body to steal the ichor. But a true dragon has no blood, so all his tampering with the seal did was awaken Sinh," Elana growled, her mood turning dark.
"I should have wiped out House Osteria years ago. I'd seen that family's arrogance and lust for power but they were too clever. That arrogant bastard is dead now at least and his wretched family scattered. And my dear Faraam was wounded deeply. I used my magic to teleport him to his old homeland of Forossa so he could heal while I sealed the city and Sinh."
Erik blinked then tried to wrap his mind around all of this. House Osteria had caused the fall of Shulva by awakening an Ancient Stone Dragon? The very people he had worked for and dedicated his life to? They had done all this? And Faraam was her husband? What?
"Sister, he is not meant to know this! Not without the Crowns!" Nadalia shouted, striding over to her older sister. With a contemptuous wave of Elana's hands a crown appeared in her grasp and she all but tossed it at the Undead who fumbled with it before holding it close to his chest.
It was smaller and less ornate than the crowns of Ivory or Iron. In fact, this crown looked more like a traditional crown than the other two. The once bright metal was tarnished and dull but retained a presence of power none the less, and the gems glittered with magical power.
"There, now he has three out of four of them. Oh don't give me that look, I can feel the presence of your own crowns on him as well as the four original Lord Souls. Besides, what good has it done us or the Darksun to keep the truth from the Chosen Undead? Faraam was so furious he tried to kill that hermaphrodite, remember?"
"I do. I also remember him not even coming close to winning," Nadalia sneered. "There's a reason we keep these secrets, Elana! The truth is dangerous! And if we're speaking about people finding out the truth, what about Goln, or Tarmin, or Sedar? What about Gwyn's own son who turned on his father due to this knowledge? How about fucking Aldia? Do you not recall those people who nearly doomed us and the world thanks to what they learned? And one of them is still trying to screw us over! The Mad Duke still lives somehow, despite what Vendrick and the Darksun did to him!"
"I would expect this cowardly behavior from Alsanna, but not you, Nadalia."
"Do not speak of me as if I am not here, Elana!" The High Priestess of Eleum Loyce shouted.
"Then what would you suggest, dear sister? Do we hide the truth and potentially cripple the next set of deities and rulers or do we let them wallow in blissful ignorance and risk letting the First Flame go dimmer with each Cycle?!" Elana retorted. The three sisters had reverted to their true forms during their argument, causing the pair of male Undead to step back in fear and shock.
"Um, you don't have to tell me if it is this big a deal," Erik protested, only for the three Sisters of Dark to focus on him.
The siblings shared a look before sighing and reverting to the human forms.
"Apologies, Erik. We lost ourselves. This is a very touchy subject for us," Alsanna said softly, staring at the floor in shame.
"Then don't tell me anything! Seriously, it's fine!" The chef's protests were heard but ultimately ignored.
"As much as I hate the idea of revealing the whole truth, there might not be any other choice. Never before has the First Flame become so tattered and weak in a Cycle. I fear Elana may have a point. Perhaps if you know about everything you'll be able to help find a better solution," Nadalia said with a sad smile.
"Besides, you're not like the others. Even if we tell you the truth, you'll be able to handle it. I'm sure." With a flick of her wrist Benhart suddenly collapsed. Erik rushed over to the knight's side, and let out a relieved sigh when he saw he was asleep.
"I'll apologize later. We can afford to let you know, but anyone else would be pushing it. He'll be asleep for a bit, and Elana and Alsanna will set up a barrier of Silence just in case." The Embodiment of Loneliness took a deep breath before continuing as her siblings did just that.
"When the First Flame starts to fade, the Curse of the Undead is born. It infects the living, mainly humans, because they are born of Manus's Dark Soul. Our father's soul. I am sure you have questions but for now just listen and we can talk about our family later," Nadalia promised.
"Creating the Undead is an important process in the Flame's lifecycle. Your immortality is a form of pseudo-divinity, and also how mankind was before the First Flame. You become linked to the First Flame through the bonfires, and slowly change in preparation for becoming its next, well, avatar."
"How do you mean?" Erik asked, confused, and Nadalia's stroked her chin.
"Basically, you are to become a God," Nadalia said at last, and the chef's jaw dropped. "Allow me to explain; a God is simply a being who has been given a fragment of the First Flame in place of a soul. An Undead has no true soul anymore. It merely lingers in their body, though they can absorb others for power. Thus, losing one's life and soul and becoming Undead is all to prepare a select few for their ascension to divinity."
"The current pantheon are just a collection of people who were Undead during the last Rekindling Cycle and were elevated for being the most compatible. Not all Undead can become a God, and no Hollow can either. Not all who become Undead do so because they might be worthy as a God. But there are a rare few who can and will become divine. 'Monarch Candidate' is merely the current title given to an Undead who may become the one who links the Fires and becomes the first of the New Gods. The title was the 'Chosen Undead' for the first cycle, and before this one it was something else: 'Undead Champion'. The worthy being is incinerated and remade from the First Flames into a new body, thus resetting the cycle by becoming both fuel for the ascension and the care taker of the world so that in time the next cycle can begin unimpeded."
"You're serious," Erik said, slowly. Nadalia simply nodded.
"Then why wouldn't anyone tell us this?! Why did the Emerald Herald not inform me that this is what was expected of me?!" Erik shouted.
"Would you have believed her if she had?" Alsanna asked, speaking for the first time in a while, and after a moment Erik begrudgingly shook his head.
"I doubt even she fully knows the truth. Or anyone other than a select few gods and my own family. We exist outside of the First Flame's order. We are its Shadow and the Darkness waiting beyond. We have existed for countless eons, and know truths none other may," Alsanna said, continuing some of the explanation.
"When it wanes, we in turn grow in power," Elana grumbled, her perpetual frown becoming sharper. "But when the First Flame is rekindled we become powerless and weak, and so hide ourselves so as not to be hunted down by zealous fools."
"Alright, I understand that. Becoming a god? I can barely believe it. But why hide it? Wouldn't the reward of being a deity attract more potential successors for the First Flame?" Erik inquired.
"Too many cooks spoils the broth. As a chef you should understand, right?" Nadalia's words rang true to Erik's ears. Elana looked surprised that the Candidate this time was not a warrior but she let it go.
"Too many people trying to reach the First Flame would be catastrophic. And if people knew that becoming Undead meant they might achieve godhood countless Doomsday and Murder cults would spring up. That's the origin of Nahr Alma, after all. That kill-happy man started the Brotherhood of Blood in the last Cycle to find worthy people to become Undead and then gods in a new world order. It was sheer bad luck he himself managed to gain deity status when the Flames rekindled," Elana went on.
"So who is this 'Darksun' you keep mentioning. I've also heard that title from a crow-woman by the name of Ornifex." Erik's words made the Squalid Queen grit her teeth.
"The Darksun is the last god from the First Cycle. Born of Gwyn, King of Sunlight, he was the third and youngest child. But he was born under the Sign of the Moon, meaning he should have been born as a she. Things happened, the brat suffered 'treatments' to turn him female, and in the end only he survived out of the entire Pantheon. Turns out all that weird stuff Seathe and his father did to him separated him from the Cycle so when the First Flame faded, he was spared the effects of losing his godhood." There was enmity in Elana's words as she spoke of this being.
"He usurped position as the God of Justice from his aunt, Velka, and now leads her servants the Crow-kin, Pardoners and the elite hunters of sin, the Blades of the Darkmoon. For a long time the brat was psychotic about ensuring the gods were in charge of everything. Anything that threatened their sovereignty or the First Flame was hunted down."
"For our family, being born of Manus was a sin in his eyes and he feared the power of the Abyss might one day swallow up the First Flame. I'll admit, for a while we may have fought him and been enemies. We may have tried to destroy the world a few Cycles ago. Oh don't give me that look, we mellowed out. To an extent, he did as well." Elana rolled her eyes at the look of horror on Erik's face. Try and destroy the world once or thrice and no one seems to forgive you for that!
"Our early days were a dark time for us," Alsanna said with a bit of embarrassment. "We were fractured and still struggling to become whole and develop separate identifies from what our father bestowed on us. The Darksun was a bit of a… well…"
"He was a pansy ass bitch who wanted everything his way," Elana said bluntly, causing Nadalia to snicker and then high-five her Wrathful sibling.
"Preach it, sister! But seriously, he has a real control issue. Though for the past few Cycles he's been content to let things play out without much interference."
"And what about the person who was the first person to rekindle the Flame? This 'Chosen Undead?'" Erik asked, his soul tingling at the words.
"From what we gathered, he killed some of the gods who had gone mad, stole their Lord Souls, and used them to restore the First Flame. He was then immolated and reborn as a god. The Darksun then became his advisor, the Cycle continued, and then history repeated itself. The end," Elana said with a tone of disinterest.
"We never knew him. He existed before our time. But Gwyndolin, that is, the Darksun, always spoke fondly of the Chosen Undead. What was his title? Oh, that's right! He was known as the God of Peace! But Gwyndolin said his name was *&!%."
Upon hearing that name Erik felt something in the depths of his soul burst to life. He didn't even have time to utter a sound as he blacked out, memories consuming him.
Most of it eluded him, but he could make out a number of voices. Voices that belonged to people he had cared for once, long ago.
"Thou who art Undead art Chosen…"
"There are two Bells of Awakening…"
"Quelaag, dear sister, is that you…?"
"This land is peaceful, its inhabitant's kind…"
"I am the Darksun, guardian of my father's legacy…"
And lastly, a voice so full of hope and cheer that Erik couldn't help but smile as he faded.
"Praise the SUN!"