Chapter 21 - Castle Morne
Godwyn, Rennala, and I crossed the great stone bridge over the sea after clearing it from Godrick's men, thus giving the refugees safe passage.
Speaking of refugees, we passed a long line of them, men, women and children of all ages, dirty, wearing worn clothes and carrying what they could into wagons and horse-drawn carts. Everyone was talking and arguing simultaneously, creating a cacophony of voices.
As soon as they saw us pass, they flinched in fear, raised their hands towards anything that served as a weapon or just stared at us with a mixture of curiosity and surprise.
I left the refugees behind and took a good look at the region around me, the peninsula was rocky, made of a gray stone, the ground and the air were humid, probably due to the constant rains that occurred in this place.
The sound of waves crashing against the peninsula could be heard in the distance, but it was mixed with the sound of something else. A sound I knew very well sounds of fighting.
Riding further into the peninsula, I came across a familiar sight, corpses strewn across the road. There were two types of corpses, one type was of humans wearing armor and the other type was of humanoid creatures but with strong animalistic features, some of them reminded me of Hewg.
"Hey, Godwyn! What are these beings? They look like Hewg." I asked the demigod who floated beside me as we advanced.
However, Godwyn remained silent, the only noise being those mentioned before and Torrent's gallop. I saw several expressions flit across Godwyn's face, anger, sadness, doubt and more as he made a series of grimaces.
"Godwyn?" I called again.
This snapped Godwyn out of his stupor as he slowly turned towards me, a serious look on his face and lips pressed together in a thin line, after a few seconds of silence the demigod disappeared.
What was that? I may not have known Godwyn for that long, but this behavior is unusual.
"Godwyn?"
But there was no answer. Damn it... I guess I can only hope that he returns.
I rode in an uncomfortable silence, and as I kept going. More corpses covered in wounds and signs of fight littered the road.
I continued like this for a long time, until something that didn't fit this death scenario got in my way. There was a girl sitting on top of a rock, next to a site of Grace.
She had light blonde hair, wore a bloodstained dress and a band over her eyes.
As I approached with Torrent, the girl turned her head in my direction.
"Hello? Is somebody there? Lend me your ear for a moment, please." The girl spoke in a worried voice, almost pleading.
I got off Torrent as Rennala came out of her moon and landed beside me, together we approached the girl.
"Yes? How can I help you?" I asked.
The girl jumped a little in surprise after hearing my voice, but placing a hand on her chest and letting out a sigh of relief, she returned to her speech.
"My name is Irina. I escaped from Castle Morne to the south. The servants there... rebelled. I don't really know what happened; my vision has been weak since birth... But I swear I heard scary howls from all sides. My good father sent me away from the castle, but he decided to stay. He says it is his duty as commander."
Rennala and I stared at each other for a few seconds with a look of understanding.
"Looks like we found the site of the demihuman revolt." Rennala spoke in a serious tone.
"Well, Kenneth asked to find out why the demihumans rioted. Maybe Irina can tell us more about it?"
"Excuse me if this sounds rude, but is there anyone else here with you?" Irina asked, cocking her head to the side.
"Oh! I don't think we've introduced ourselves! My name is Alden and the lady beside me is called Rennala."
"Radagon, dear. It is rude not to give your real name when introducing yourself." Rennala said as she put her hand on my shoulder and scolded me as if I was a child.
"Rennala and Radagon? Is this some kind of joke? Does my poor eyesight entertain you two to the point where you try to trick me? For I assure you, I may not see well, but that does not make me a fool, my mind is as sharp as ever." Irina said in an irritated tone, teeth clenched and posture rigid.
Rennala and I both flinched at Irina's scolding and giving each other a quick glance, we understood how impossible this situation must seem to her.
What are the chances that Rennala and "Radagon", one of them known to isolate herself in the academy and the other missing, are taking a walk on the Weeping Peninsula?
Congratulations Alden! For accidentally almost taking advantage of a blind girl, alone in the middle of nowhere. One more item for your big list of shames!
"I believe there has been a misunderstanding, I am the real Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon and the one beside me is my husband, Radagon." Rennala said as she offered Irina a nervous but friendly smile and held her hand out to me.
"Yes! And I am Shabriri, The Slanderer! If you are not ashamed of trying to deceive a person going through difficulties, I recommend that you leave and stop wasting my time! I will wait for someone who is willing to help me." Irina said, crossing her arms angrily and turning her head away from us.
"But… But… I'm being truthful…" Rennala held out a shaky hand to Irina as she muttered apologies.
I put my hand on Rennala's shoulder, or at least I tried to, as it was a difficult task given our height difference. Rennala turned to me and I shook my head.
Passing Rennala, I approached Irina.
"I would like to apologize on behalf of my partner and myself. She didn't lie when she said we were called Rennala and Radagon, but those are just the names our parents gave us in honor of these great historical figures from the Lands Between, but my friend tends to take that joke too far. Now back to the beginning of our conversation. How can we help you?"
Irina let out an irritated huff before uncrossing her arms and glaring at us. Even wearing that band over her eyes, I could feel her gaze trying to dig a hole in my forehead.
"Fine! At least you are polite, unlike a certain someone!"
Rennala winced at Irina's jab.
"As I was saying... I... I fear for my father's life. The servants are furious. Full of hate for each one of us. Since then, they've hunted every one of the companions I escaped with. They didn't spare a soul. I'm afraid it's no different at Castle Morne... Please, I beg you. Would you mind taking a letter to my father at the castle? My only wish is for him to flee, even if his honor is the price. Please… I just want him to be safe…".
Irina pleaded as she leaned towards us and clasped her hands in front of her face.
"Hm… Listen, despite our previous interaction, what I'm about to say is true, but you might not believe it. I am here in the name of Kenneth Height of Limgrave, he wishes to help the refugees and establish diplomatic relations with the demihumans, but news of the uprising has reached him, so I have been sent to investigate the reason for this."
"But what wonderful news! I'm grateful for your assistance, but I believe there's been a mix-up, it's not the demihumans who are rioting, it's the misbegottens." Irina spoke hopefully.
"Misbegottens?"
"You don't know what they are? From what I've heard, demihumans and misbegottens look alike, but in the end, they're completely different beings."
"I'll have to go to Castle Morne anyway, so it doesn't matter who's rioting, my job is to find out what's going on." I shrugged.
"Thank you very much. So please take this." Irina spoke with joy in her voice and handed me a letter with a wax seal. I accepted the letter and put it in my bag.
"Give it to my father, who remains in the castle. His name is Edgar, he can be stubborn but I'm sure he'll change his mind." Irina spoke.
"No problem, as soon as we reach the castle, we will go in search of your father." I got ready to call Torrent, but stopped as soon as something came to my mind.
"Tell me. Are you here alone?" I asked Irina.
The girl lowered her head as her face contorted into a frown "Unfortunately yes. My father and his soldiers are still fighting in the castle and misbegottens killed my escort. I'm on my own now."
"This is not good. We can't allow you to be here alone, let alone during an revolt. Honey, one of us should stay here while the other goes to the castle." Rennala suggested.
No! No way! I will not leave Rennala alone out of my sight! On the other hand... I can't leave Irina alone either, I don't see any weapons on her and her poor eyesight doesn't help her a bit.
If only we had one more person to keep an eye on Irina... Wait! We have!
I touched Grace next to Irina and called my maiden.
"Melina? Can you come here for a minute?"
In a cloud of golden particles, Melina materialized in front of me as she removed her hood.
"Glad to see you again, Alden. It has been some time." Melina spoke as she smiled lightly.
I lifted the front part of my helmet and smiled back, "You could say so. The last time we saw each other was before I entered the academy. What have you been up to?"
"Not much. I just heard the news and rumors of my tarn... I mean, Undead deeds."
"Seriously? What kind of news?"
"That a certain Undead acquired a second Great Rune and defeated several monsters around Liurnia, but the strangest part is that you are said to be traveling with Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon. But I figured that could only be exaggerated rumors, didn't it?"
Melina asked with an amused smile and a small chuckle.
"Oh! The rumors are correct, I am traveling with Rennala and she is right there!" I pointed to the Queen in question.
"Hello!" Rennala smiled as she waved at Melina.
I heard Melina make a strange noise as her eyes widened and she looked up into Rennala's face.
"Come on! Let me introduce you to Rennala!"
I held Melina by her hand, I felt that Melina was covered in sweat and was shaking a little, and then I took her towards Rennala. However, for some reason, I was having a hard time accomplishing that task, looking back I saw Melina's boots making a deep line in the ground as I pulled her along.
Eventually placing Melina in front of Rennala, the Queen offered Melina a gentle smile while Melina gave a nervous smile with sweat trickling down her face.
"Greetings! I don't think we've met." Rennala greeted Melina.
"I-likewise, Majesty." Melina stammered nervously.
After exchanging greetings, the two faced each other with nervous smiles in the midst of an uncomfortable silence. Realizing the awkwardness of the situation, I decided to break this silence.
"Rennala, this is Melina, the Maiden who has been assisting me on my journey to solve the situation in the Lands Between." I said as I pushed Melina lightly, causing her to stumble towards Rennala.
Rennala's smile widened upon hearing this.
"Oh! My dear told me about you! On behalf of the Carian Royal Family, I would like to thank you for your services." Rennala replied, leaning forward and looking Melina in the eye.
"I'm grateful for that Your Majesty and… Wait! Dear?!" Melina screamed, looking away for a moment, and then returning after processing the information.
"Exactly! My darling and I are traveling together through the Lands Between, trying to regain control of our lands and try to lessen the damage caused by this war." Rennala said as she hugged my arm and smiled with her other hand on her cheek.
I just sighed, feeling an abysmal emptiness inside. Maybe the curse is getting to me again?
Melina looked at us in surprise, her one open eye twitching nervously, her mouth opened and closed but no sound came out. Slowly Melina raised a trembling finger in our direction.
"It's a long story." I said nervously.
In the end, Melina took a deep breath and letting out a long, loud irritated sigh, she composed herself.
"Alden. I won't judge your tastes and I don't care if you roam around stealing other people's ex-wives as long as you keep your end of the bargain. But why did you call me here?" Melina said irritably.
"It's not what you are thinking! Rennala and I are going to Castle Morne to find out what's going on with the Demihumans, but we need someone to protect Irina while we're away. She has poor eyesight, so she can't do much to protect herself."
Melina's gaze softened as she saw the girl with the band over her eyes.
"I understand. Thank you for calling me here. I promise I will do my best to protect her."
"Thank you so much, Melina."
"Another thing. I believe you are mistaken, as there are no demihumans in Castle Morne. Just humans and misbegottens. I've also heard news that Castle Morne has recently acquired an abundance of strange weapons and those weapons are likely to be in the hands of the misbegottens now. I believe you understand what that means."
"Yes. Thanks for the information." Again this differentiation between semi-humans and these "misbegottens". Are they the Hewg-like beings I met along the road? If so, why this name?
"You're welcome, Alden. Now if you'll excuse me. You must be Irina." Melina asked the girl sitting on the rock.
"Yes, Miss Melina, I'm sorry, but I couldn't help but overhear the conversation. So are you the one who will stay by my side for the moment?" Irina replied, turning to Melina.
"Yes. I hope we can have a pleasant conversation in this brief time that we will be together." Melina said, smiling and taking a seat next to Irina.
"Likewise, Miss Melina." Irina returned the smile.
Smiling and waving goodbye to Melina, I called Torrent and Rennala returned to her moon. Together we headed towards Castle Morne.
In addition, what we found on the way were even more corpses. There was a wrecked, blood-covered wagon in the middle of the road, and around that wagon were demihumans, or misbegottens mutilating dozens of human corpses.
Each of the misbegottens slashed at the corpses with their great cleavers, severing limbs with a metallic crack followed by the sound of flesh and bone being cut, and a spray of blood being thrown upward.
Amidst the blows, the misbegottens raised their arms and roared towards the sky, the small wings on their backs flapping frantically as their mouths enlarged to inhuman proportions.
A bleak sight, but not the worst thing I'd seen in my life.
And I shook Torrent's reins, sending him riding forward. As we approached, the noise of the gallop caught the attention of the misbegottens, turning towards us and roaring right after; the misbegottens flapped their wings, propelled themselves upwards and fell towards us, their cleavers ready to sever our limbs.
However, they never had that opportunity, I quickly reached behind my back, grabbing the hilt of my staff, held it in front of me, pointing it at the misbegottens, and casting Dark Orb, hit the first misbegotten in the stomach.
The sphere of darkness ripped through the air at great speed before hitting the first misbegotten, causing him to roar in pain and creating a small explosion of darkness followed by a high-pitched buzzing sound.
The misbegotten shot through the air before hitting the ground, kicking up a small cloud of dust. The misbegotten went still, but I noticed he was still breathing.
Upon seeing what had happened to their companion, the other two misbegottens let out shrill roars in our direction before charging forward at a furious run.
With hurried steps, the misbegottens tried to close the distance between us, but Rennala conjured Glinstone projectiles from within her moon. The small blue crystals flew quickly, leaving bright blue trails in the air and hit the misbegottens in the center of their foreheads.
Upon hitting the misbegottens, the crystals shattered with a sound similar to glass. The misbegottens had their heads thrown back by Rennala's spell and with a choking sound in their throats; the misbegottens fell back to the ground with a loud thud. Completely unconscious.
Looking around, with my staff at ready and abyss magic running through its spinning rings, I realized that there was no one else around. Well, I'd rather not kill any misbegottens until I find out the story behind what's going on. I would hate to cause a diplomatic incident on my first day of work.
Grabbing a morning star from the wagon, Rennala and I moved on.
The passage we were in had become a valley of rocky walls that gradually led us down. It was still quiet, the only sound being Torrent's hooves hitting the ground, creating an echo through our path.
Eventually we reached a large rocky plain covered with grass and some lonely trees, a layer of fog hampered our vision, distorting what was in front of us, but even so, I saw the great fortification that was Castle Morne.
Reaching my hand into my bag, I pulled out my binoculars and took a good look at the amazing building in the distance. The castle appeared to be built into a large rock. Its great gray stonewalls and towers created an air of grandeur, but I grimaced as I took in what was displayed on the walls.
Dozens if not hundreds of human corpses, some wearing servant clothes and others armor. Their faces pale and stuck in anger or horror. All hanged or impaled on wooden constructions mounted on walls and towers and next to them, misbegottens roaring into nothingness.
What the hell is going on here? What caused the misbegottens to riot in such a way?
I had little time to think as something else caught my attention. Something in the distance was moving through the mist. Something big. I heard a series of familiar snaps, snaps of rope, wood and metal, similar to when I used a Greatbow.
Suddenly something broke through the mist, opening a hole in the shape of a perfect circle. My eyes widened at what I saw. A gigantic stone and metal arrow, bigger than a tree, was coming towards me at an absurd speed.
The arrow swirled in its flight, creating a visible spiral of air and mist around it. As it got closer, the hum of the arrow cutting through the air became more audible.
I let out a high-pitched scream that I'm not proud of. I fumbled to remove my chime from my belt, but gripping the object with both hands. I cast Wrath of the Gods.
A powerful shock wave erupted from my body, creating a rumble as the air and earth were violently pushed away by an overwhelming force, cracking the ground and raising a cloud of dust.
The gigantic arrow was also caught by the shock wave and releasing a large metallic crack, the huge piece of steel had its trajectory deviated to the left where it hit a large rock.
The impact generated a thunderous noise, before the rock cracked and exploded into hundreds of pieces as the arrow pierced it and it continued flying for some time before falling into the sea and letting out a loud splash amidst the waves.
The great shape was moving again, with the mist out of the way, I saw who had fired the arrow. It was a golem the size of the Giant Lord, holding a bow slightly smaller than its body and a large quiver of arrows on its back.
The golem nocked another arrow to its bow and with a series of snaps, drew back the string and took aim at us again.
"HÁ!" Wasting no time, I flicked Torrent's reins, making him neigh and bolt toward the castle, Rennala following me on her moon.
I made Torrent go to the right, going behind some rocks, simultaneously, the golem accompanied us with his bow. The golem disappeared from my field of vision as we took cover behind the rocks, at the same time; I heard the sound of the arrow being fired.
The hum of the large approaching projectile grew louder, but I did not stop riding towards the castle. I didn't look back when I heard the arrow hit the rocks where we took cover earlier, but I had to duck my head when shards of stone flew over me and landed on the ground just ahead.
"HÁ!" I shook Torrent's reins again, making him neigh loudly and ride faster. I noticed that the golem put another arrow on his bow, but we were close to the castle.
I picked up my staff again and prepared a spell, soul magic ran through the spinning rings of my staff, covering them in bright blue light and tiny crystals.
With a war cry and a swing of my arms, I sent a series of Crystal Soul Spears towards the golem. The huge magic spears crossed the clearing towards the golem, leaving a bright blue trail with floating crystal shards falling to the ground like snowflakes.
The spears hit the golem in the arms, chest and neck, each impact creating a bright blue magical explosion, followed by shards of crystals being thrown away along with stones that were once part of the golem's body.
My spells caused the golem to struggle and accidentally let go of its bowstring, releasing the arrow and causing it to miss. The great arrow hit the ground a few meters to our left, creating a blast as it pierced the earth and hurled chunks of soil and grass everywhere.
The golem had recovered from my attack and was preparing another arrow, but this time it was Rennala who launched an attack, with a leap the Queen of the Full Moon left her moon, sending it towards the golem's head.
The miniature moon closed the distance to the golem and hit it on its head, with a burst of blue light and bright stars, the golem's head was thrown back, shattered into pieces, then the golem began to fall along with the fragments of its face.
The golem's large form fell like a cut tree, its back slamming against the castle walls, creating a loud crash of shattering stone.
Cracks appeared and expanded across the wall as the golem slowly slid against it towards the ground, until it came to a sitting position, disappearing into runes shortly thereafter.
The only proof that the golem was there was the outline of its body imprinted on the castle wall.
With the golem out of the way, Rennala and I made it to the castle, uninterrupted. We climbed a stone staircase and reached the main entrance where I touched a Grace and entered an elevator shortly thereafter.
Stepping on the pressure plate, the elevator started to rise, giving us a few minutes of peace.
"That was fun." Rennala said as she smiled at me and twirled her staff in her hands.
"Unfortunately I cannot agree. When I saw that sadistic joke of an arrow coming my way, I thought my heart would stop." I said as I let out a relieved sigh and brought my hand to my chest. That is, if my heart was still beating.
Haha! Undead joke! Since when do I have a sense of humor?
Rennala and I had small friendly conversation, but our faces twisted into grimaces when we heard the sounds of fighting coming from above us.
"Any idea on what awaits us?" Rennala asked.
"Hm... Lots of angry misbegottens and probably what's left of the castle's forces fighting each other." I replied as I removed my Uchigatana from its scabbard and readied my staff, magic flowing through the rings.
"So nothing out of the ordinary for a slave revolt." Rennala replied, readying her staff as well.
"Yes… Slaves… Wait! What?!" I turned to Rennala in surprise, but as if the gods were playing with me, the elevator chose this exact moment to reach its destination.
In addition, what I saw made my stomach sink. This was surprising, considering where I'd been.
Death and ruins, those words could describe what lay ahead of us. The large courtyard at the entrance to the castle was littered with corpses, both human and misbegotten. All with signs of fight and covered in cuts and arrows.
On a ramp made of rocks, dirt, wall debris and corpses, a group of misbegottens roared to the heavens while swinging their cleavers in the air. At the top of this ramp was a large bonfire with human bodies being burned in a gruesome display.
I figured this ramp led deeper into the castle, but to get there, we'd have to go through the group of misbegottens. Taking a closer look at the courtyard, I spotted a pumpkinhead sitting on the far side, his back to the angry misbegottens.
Hm... I think I have a plan...
"Rennala, I..."
However, I stopped my speech as soon as I saw the queen's face, eyes glazed over the scene in front of her, her hand tightening on her staff to the point where the wood creaked, and she clenched her teeth, making a loud noise. The supernatural wind came back and glintstone crystals began to come out of the ground near her feet.
No! Not now! This scene must have been too heavy for her! I'm not calling Rennala weak, but her mind isn't in the best of shape, and that's an understatement!
Wasting no time, I put my plan into action, quickly picked up a stone from the ground and using my superhuman strength granted to me by the thousands of souls in my body, I hurled the stone towards the pumpkin's head.
CLANG!
With a bell-like noise, the stone turned to dust as it hit the back of Pumpkinhead's helmet. Letting out an irritated grunt, the pumpkin head stood up and directed its rage at the nearest target, in this case, the misbegottens.
With heavy, fast and angry steps that made the ground shake a little, the pumpkin head advanced towards the misbegottens while twirling his flail in his hands.
With a swing of his arms, the thorny end of the flail hit a misbegotten on the side of the head. With a wet splash of blood and a crack of bones breaking, the misbegotten was sent flying away with a spray of blood marking his path.
The misbegotten rolled for a while as he hit the ground, his bones creaking as they broke with each leap he took as he landed until he stopped dead, part of his head crushed by a blow he hadn't expected.
It took the other misbegottens a while to understand what happened, but as they processed the information, they let out furious roars towards the pumpkin head before propelling themselves upwards with the beat of their wings and plunging their cleavers towards their enemy.
Then the pumpkinhead and the misbegottens got into a fierce fight, pulling away from the ramp and opening the way for us.
Wasting no time, I grabbed Rennala's arm and pulled her toward the ramp, but as I ran, I heard a series of crashes behind us. Looking back, I saw a line of huge glintstone crystals violently erupt from the ground and rush towards us. Moreover, they didn't seem to stop.
To hell with it! With little effort, I grabbed Rennala back and lifted her above my head. It must seem like a ridiculous scene to an outsider, but for me it was a matter of not being squashed.
With a scream of determination, I broke into a run up the ramp. The sound of crystals coming out of the ground and followed by a tremor, right behind me. As soon as I reached the top of the ramp, I ran left, crossing a destroyed wooden barricade, and entered a room in the castle.
I heard the sound of the crystals hitting the castle wall outside at the top of the ramp, but I accelerated my run as the aforementioned crystals broke through the wall in front of me, and threatened to stop my advance, I managed to pass, but finally the crystals stopped as they hit a sturdier wall behind me.
Heaving a sigh of relief, I had my attention diverted by the voice coming from above me.
"Honey, I don't mind being carried around like this, but this isn't the place for it." Rennala said shyly as I held her.
Letting out a nervous stutter, I quickly set her on her feet.
"Thanks." Rennala thanked me with a red tinge to her face, but I saw her eyes widen as soon as she saw something behind me, probably the glintstone wall.
"What happened here?" Rennala asked.
"Don't you remember? Your magic went out of control for a few minutes."
"My magic? Have I lost control of my magic? Me? Honey, don't be silly. I am not a novice sorceress; losing control of my magic is beyond me." Rennala responded with a big shaky smile and a twitch in her left eye.
Better, agree before she has another relapse.
"Of course! You are right! How could I doubt you? Clearly there is a logical explanation for the glintstone wall behind us, but as I am not an expert in this branch of magic, so I have no idea how to explain it!" I said with a nervous laugh.
"How nice of you to know." Rennala said as she patted the top of my helm.
I sighed again; it's getting harder and harder to maintain this farce.
With our little conversation over, we continued forward, descended a set of wooden stairs and arrived at an outer area of the castle where we spotted a soldier fighting two misbegottens.
Unfortunately, we couldn't do anything when the misbegottens cornered the soldier, causing him to fall to his death, but not before the soldier grabbed the two misbegottens and took them to the beyond together. I heard a mixture of screams and roars before the sound of flesh and bone breaking reached my ears.
Suddenly I felt runes and souls entering my body. The situation here is ugly, ugly to the point where warriors die and try to take their enemies with them.
Rennala and I stared at each other, grim expressions on our faces, but it's no use to cry about it. We have to move on. Beside us was a large wooden ladder, climbing the side of a tower. With Rennala holding me in her arms, she propelled herself up, similar to that time in the catacombs and mines.
Again, as if sadistic gods were watching us, we were faced with another bleak scene. We were on the castle walls, the same walls covered with hanged and impaled corpses that I saw through my binoculars.
Next to us, there were soldiers and misbegottens fighting. The two sides clashed furiously, exchanging blows, insults and roars. The sound of steel clashing against steel and flesh being cut echoed off the castle walls against an overcast gray sky.
I also noticed that some members on both sides were carrying some of my weapons.
"So how do we solve this situation?" Rennala asked beside me.
"Just try not to kill the humans and misbegottens. Maybe we can find someone who can tell us what the hell is going on here." I said sheathing my Uchigatana and hanging my staff across my back.
"Will you fight barehanded?" Rennala asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yes. I'd rather avoid making a mistake while I'm acting on Kenneth's behalf; it's also been some time since I've practiced hand-to-hand combat." I replied while cracking my knuckles.
"Just try not to get hurt." Rennala said worriedly.
"Don't worry nothing I haven't done before."
"That doesn't calm me down one bit."
After we ended our dialogue, Rennala and I dashed towards the fight that took place in front of us. I approached the first soldier who was fighting a misbegotten; the soldier had my Heide Knight Sword.
Without the soldier noticing, I grabbed him by the shoulders in the middle of an opening in one of the misbegotten's strikes and turned him towards me.
"What?!"
The soldier screamed in surprise, but his scream was cut off as I pulled my fist back and punched him in the face hard enough to leave my fist print on his helmet, making a metallic noise mixed with the sound of his nose breaking, and sending the soldier flying away shortly thereafter.
The soldier hit the misbegotten he was fighting in the stomach. With a roar of pain and surprise, the two were sent flying and only stopped when they reached the battlements of the castle.
Approaching the two, I grabbed the sword and another of my weapons that the misbegotten used. My Giant's Stone Axe. I put both in my bag and continued advancing along the castle walls.
"Stop!" One of the soldiers shouted. Approaching me with my Thorned Greatsword in his hands.
Swinging the sword towards me, the blade was enveloped in lightning that crackled through the air, but the strike never arrived as Rennala's staff came flying in a blue swirl and hit the man in the side of his head.
With the sound of his helmet being dented, the man was sent rolling across the floor, when he stopped; I took my sword from his hands and tucked it in my bag.
As the staff returned to Rennala's hands, I spotted a misbegotten approaching from behind, and he was carrying my Demon Great Hammer.
I quickly ran towards Rennala, the queen gave me a look of surprise as I approached, but I didn't have time to stop. Pushing past Rennala, I charged toward the misbegotten.
Letting out a mighty roar, the misbegotten raised the hammer above his head with both hands and brought it down towards my head with the intention of crushing me.
I quickly rolled out of the way, dodging the blow and causing the hammer to hit the ground, with a loud crack breaking stone, accompanied by a slight tremor, the stone floor cracked with the misbegotten's superhuman strength.
Seeing that he had missed, the misbegotten roared before letting out a grunt of effort and trying to hit me again with the hammer, the weapon dragged along the ground, forming an arc of destroyed stone in its path before lifting and coming towards my left side.
I quickly took a step forward, bringing the hammer handle within reach, and then simply grabbed it, stopping the misbegotten's attack. I felt a slight gale pass through me as soon as the attack stopped.
The misbegotten stared at me in surprise, his eyes wide and mouth open, but he quickly snapped out of his stupor and tried to snatch the weapon from my hands. He leaned back, pulling the hammer with both hands, using all of his strength, while I just stared, unimpressed.
Eventually the misbegotten flapped his wings, but his effort was in vain, as I didn't move an inch. Tired of this display, I pushed the hammer forward, causing the butt of its handle to hit the misbegotten in the stomach, causing him to drop the hammer, fall to his knees and clutch his stomach in pain as he spit blood.
I gave him a quick punch to the side of his head, knocking him unconscious, and then rested the hammer on my shoulder as I checked on Rennala. The queen swung her staff like a twin blade, leaving bright blue streaks in the air.
With swift blows, Rennala hit a soldier in the side of the head, causing him to let out a cry of pain before he was sent rolling to the ground. A misbegotten flapped his wings and flew towards Rennala, but the queen thrust her staff upward, hitting the misbegotten in the stomach.
Creating a small magical explosion resembling a cloud of blue smoke, Rennala made blood run out of the misbegotten's mouth as he was sent flying away.
Giving a quick nod to Rennala, we climbed another wooden ladder, reaching a higher section of the walls, part of the wall broken, and giving access to the courtyard below where a crowd of soldiers and misbegottens fought.
Hm... Well, since I got my hammer back, I guess there's no harm in using it.
"AAAHHH!" With a war cry, I leapt into the courtyard with the hammer raised above my head.
"Dear!" I heard Rennala scream behind me.
As I fell, some soldiers and misbegottens noticed my shadow forming above them, for a moment both sides stopped fighting and looked up.
I saw his eyes widening and his mouth opening to see me.
"By Lord Godrick!" A soldier screamed in fright.
"RRROOOAAAAHHH!" A misbegotten roared as he tried to get away.
"Who is this madman?!" Another soldier screamed as he tried to run away.
Another misbegotten turned to see what the commotion was about, only to be frozen and wide-eyed.
Unfortunately, for them, I was already close to the ground; I immediately swung my hammer down, hitting the courtyard floor. What came next was a huge shock wave that rocked the area, creating a crater full of cracks in the stone floor and sending everyone flying away.
Stone shards fell like rain as I rose from my kneeling position, just as I lifted my head; I saw an arrow wreathed in magic coming towards me from the other side of a section of the wall.
But the arrow was intercepted in its flight by a spell from above, the two exploded into a bright blue cloud in mid-air, looking up, I saw Rennala floating slowly towards me, the queen landed safely beside me.
She gave me an annoyed look before hitting me on top of my helm with her staff, making a bell-like sound. I clutched my head in pain as I saw double.
"Why did you do that?" I asked, recovering from the blow.
"This is for you to learn not to do it again!" Rennala scolded me with an irritated look.
"Okay... I'm sorry..." I mumbled irritably.
Nevertheless, back to what was important; in front of us were dozens of soldiers and misbegottens fighting, a cacophony of screams, insults, roars and growls echoed from all sides as the combatants exchanged blows.
Blood and body parts flew through the air, staining the stone of the castle red. In addition, flying above it was a misbegotten flapping his wings while holding a silver bow in his hands. My Dragonrider Bow.
The misbegotten roared at me before putting another arrow in his bow, but he never got the chance as Rennala sent a series of Glintstone projectiles towards the misbegotten, hitting him in the stomach and head, sending him crashing into the ensuing fight right below.
Now to clear the path in front of us, I started to run towards the fight, accumulating momentum, as I approached, I changed my advance and started to spin with the hammer in my hands, when I thought it was enough, I released the hammer, making it fly towards the combatants.
Some stopped when they saw the big weapon coming towards them, but they weren't quick enough to react and ended up being thrown away, in a mix of bones breaking, curses, screams and roars of pain, the misbegottens and soldiers were left unconscious, probably.
Like a sea being opened, the path was cleared for us; the hammer hit the ground a few times, like a stone bouncing on the surface of a lake, after leaving a series of holes in its path, the hammer stuck into the castle wall, leaving a hole full of cracks.
Now with the path clear, Rennala and I crossed the bridge, on the way I retrieved my bow and hammer, keeping both in my bag. Rennala and I advanced through the castle without much difficulty, the few soldiers and misbegottens that stood in our way were easily defeated.
Our advance ended up taking us to an isolated tower with a wooden staircase built into its side and at the top of the tower, we found a man sitting on a wooden bench.
The man wore silver armor with cuts and dents; he had tanned skin, long black hair and beard. He had a tired face and was breathing heavily as he held a halberd at his side.
As we approached, the man glanced at us, but his eyes widened as soon as he saw who accompanied me. Immediately he adjusted his posture, standing with shoulders raised and chest puffed out.
"Majesty! To what do I owe your wonderful presence in my humble castle?" The man said proudly, but I noticed the nervousness in his voice.
"Let's cut the courtesies and get straight to the point. Who are you and what is happening here?" Rennala demanded seriously.
The man took a step back, but held his ground, so he answered.
"I am Edgar, in charge of this castle ordained by Lord Godrick himself." The man now known as Edgar spoke.
Therefore, this is Irina's father. In addition, he is in Godrick's service. This can be a problem.
"And to answer your second question, the misbegottens rebelled. They gave me good service, or so I thought, but it looks like it was all an act. Foul creatures, as they say. And it's true that they are foul inside and out. I'm sorry to disappoint you, but whatever you came here to do, I'm afraid Castle Morne won't hold out much longer. Take that by way of apology."
Edgar said with a sharp change in his voice, when talking about the misbegottens he took on a disgusted tone, a look of hate on his face.
"Well, it doesn't surprise me, since you servants of the Golden Order treat them worse than slaves." Rennala responded with suppressed anger.
"Misbegottens only get what they deserve, they are filthy and impure creatures, their existence is an offense to Erdtree and they must be treated like the monsters they are, just as it was decreed by the Golden Order." Edgar replied.
"Apparently you are nothing but a fool who does not understand the meaning of your own words. Do you feel pride in following a religion that demands the enslavement and cruelty of those deemed impure?"
I could see that Edgar was about to rebut Rennala's argument, but I didn't allow it. I had already seen several examples of persecution of the undead, genocide, imprisonment, enslavement, torture and now there was a man defending these attitudes in front of me.
I think that's enough. With quick steps, I advanced towards Edgar.
"What are you…" Edgar turned to me as I approached, but I didn't allow him to finish speaking.
With a quick kick, I knocked the halberd out of his hands, Edgar let out a cry of pain and surprise as he grabbed his injured arm, but before he could recover, I grabbed him by the shoulders and pushed him against the edge of the tower, putting him against the battlements.
"PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT I'M ABOUT TO SAY HERE YOU BASTARD! DO YOU HEAR WHAT YOU SAY?! YOUR SLAVES REBELLED! YOUR SLAVES! DID YOU REALLY THINK THEIR LOYALTY TO YOU WAS REAL?! IF SO, THEN YOU ARE BLINDER THAN I THOUGHT!"
"They…"
"I HAVE NOT FINISHED!" I replied as I punched one of the battlements beside Edgar's head, the stone cracked, broke with a loud noise and fell into the castle courtyard below.
"PEOPLE LIKE YOU MAKE ME SICK! TREATING A GROUP OF PEOPLE AS INFERIOR, LIKE MONSTERS! I SHOULD THROW YOU TO THE MISBEGOTTENS DOWN BELLOW!"
"Lord Edgar!" A scream accompanied by a series of footsteps came towards us, turning my head; I saw a series of soldiers with weapons drawn.
"Even if you are accompanied by the Queen of the Full Moon, Lord Godrick will not overlook your boldness, knight!" Edgar replied with a smug smile.
"GOOD! THERE IS ONLY ONE PROBLEM WITH THAT! GODRICK IS DEAD! I KILLED HIM!"
This caused Edgar's breathing to stop for a moment and the soldiers drew back in surprise.
"Lord Godrick is…"
"OH! DIDN'T YOU HEAR THE NEWS?! I BREAKED IN STORMVEIL AND FINISHED GODRICK, HE DIED LIKE A COWARD, LIKE A DOG! BELIEVE ME, YOUR LORD IS DEAD AND NOBODY WILL COME TO HELP YOU! AND IN THE END, WHAT CHANCE DO YOU HAVE AGAINST ME?! I KILLED A DEMIGOD AND RENNALA IS WITH ME! WHAT CHANCE DO YOU HAVE?! DO YOU WANT TO TRY YOUR LUCK?!"
I punched another battlement on the other side of Edgar's head, and with a loud clatter, the stone fell into the courtyard below.
A tense silence filled the room, Edgar sweating profusely as his gaze shifted between Rennala, the soldiers, and me.
BOOM!
CRASH!
Lightning and thunder ripped across the sky, a storm was coming, gray clouds were gathering above the castle. A series of coincidences is happening today. Is there really a god watching us?
Taking a deep breath, I tried to lessen my anger, but even with my barely contained emotions, I kept talking.
"I just don't kill you because your daughter begged me to deliver a letter to you!" I replied as I took the letter out of my bag and slapped it against Edgar's chest.
I felt Edgar shiver in my hands, his eyes now focused on the letter I held against his chest. Letting out an angry growl, I released Edgar, making him fall to the ground.
I saw him fumble to pick up and open the letter, but after doing so, his eyes quickly ran over the content written on the paper. Edgar drew back in surprise and was silent for a few seconds.
"Put your weapons down…" Edgar said to his soldiers.
"But Lord Edgar…" One of the soldiers stammered.
"THIS IS AN ORDER!" Edgar shouted, making the soldiers jump in surprise, but they did as ordered.
"Thank you anyway. I am in your debt. But I still can't leave. Even if the castle falls, as commander, I must remain. To ensure that Morne's precious sword does not fall into the wrong hands. If you see Irina, tell her. That her father will come for her, once he has done his duty."
Edgard said to me as he got to his feet. The man retrieved his halberd, tucked the letter into his armor, and smiled sadly.
Seriously? Is the duty of looking after this doomed castle that important to him?
"Where is the sword?" I asked Edgar.
"You don't have to worry about it; it's not your obligation to..."
"Do you want me to repeat what I just did here?"
"The sword was carried by the biggest of the misbegottens, the one who started this rebellion. He went to the shore on the other side of the castle and hid in a group of ruins." Edgar replied as he swallowed hard.
"Gather your men and leave the castle. I'll go after your precious sword and in the process, maybe end what's going on here. Or would you rather die for a stupid reason and leave your daughter without a father?"
"I… I understand. I wish you good luck in your endeavor. Men! Castle Morne is beyond saving, let us leave this place and start again in another! Let's not waste our lives for something that has already been lost!" Edgar shouted, raising his halberd in the air.
"YES LORD EDGAR!" The soldiers responded, raising their weapons as well.
Then Edgar walked past me, muttering thanks, and he and his soldiers descended the tower and began preparations to leave the castle.
Meanwhile, Rennala and I went in search of the sword and the one who led the rebellion.
-Shore of Castle Morne-
Rennala and I walked through the castle towards the shore, on the way we encountered more misbegottens, luckily, most of them just ignored us, preferring to be left alone, but unfortunately, we caught sight of the cells where they were kept.
Dark, cramped rooms, walls and floors covered in bloodstains, cages, chains and torture devices everywhere. I grimaced as I remembered the whip I picked up along the way.
Now we found ourselves on a beach full of spirit jellyfish in front of a ruined tower with a wall of golden mist in front of it.
However, when I got here, I realized there was a problem, communication, and I couldn't understand what the misbegottens were talking about, if that series of roars and growls they let out meant anything. Hewg was the only one I found who could talk.
Well, it's just a theory, but maybe I have something that can help me understand the misbegottens. I equipped my Ring of Whispers.
"Rennala, could you wait here while I take care of this." I asked the queen beside me.
"Why? What if it's dangerous?"
"Don't take this the wrong way, but your figure is a little threatening."
"Am I threatening?" Rennala asked sadly.
"A little." I replied as I brought my index and thumb together.
"I understand, but be careful."
"Leave it with me."
Therefore, I walked through the golden mist and on the other side, I found the misbegotten.
He was bigger than I was, but smaller than Rennala. He had a well-built body but walked in an arched way, he had claws on his hands and feet and a long tail. His most distinguishing feature was the large mane of red hair surrounding his humanoid face.
The misbegotten also held a sword in each hand, in his right hand he held a large sword that looked like it was made of smaller swords forged together, while in his left hand he held one of my best weapons, one of my favorite swords. My Majestic Greatsword.
As I approached, the misbegotten turned to me and let out a series of grunts and growls, surprisingly I understood what he said.
"Don't you fools give up?! No suffering and humiliation you caused is enough anymore? Are you willing to fight to the last man for a piece of steel?"
"You are mistaken. I'm not part of Castle Morne's forces; I'm just here to talk."
"Lies!" The misbegotten roared as he placed the sword made of smaller swords in front of his face and let out a mighty roar, being surrounded by a greenish aura.
Then he leapt towards me, spinning in the air and trying to slice me in two with the Majestic Sword. I rolled out of the way and the sword hit the ground, kicking up a cloud of sand and leaving a gash in the floor of the islet where we were fighting.
"I'm telling the truth! I want all this bloodshed to end, but you have to listen to me!"
Roaring in rage, the misbegotten whirled his body, dragging the Majestic Sword close to the ground; his quick swings making him look like a red blur as the sword created a small tornado of sand around him.
As soon as the sword approached my legs, I leaped, making the blade pass under my feet, as soon as the attack stopped, I stepped on top of the Majestic Sword, sinking it into the sand and pinning it against the ground. .
"You must think I'm a fool! I won't believe your words, you humans are all the same, thinking you're superior, you just want to see us suffer!"
Then the misbegotten swung his other sword at me, intending to decapitate me. At high speed, the great mass of silver steel came towards my neck, but before the attack got too close, I landed a powerful punch to the misbegotten's chin, stopping his attack and sending him back.
I got off the sword, allowing the misbegotten to continue using it to fight. Shaking his head, trying to recover from the blow, the misbegotten's eyes soon focused on me, letting out a roar, he ran towards me.
His footsteps left deep footprints in the sand as he held the Majestic sword at his side and pointed it in my direction. I raised my fists, preparing for the attack, as soon as the sword approached, I raised my right arm, allowing the sword to pass under it and landed another punch on the misbegotten's chin.
I heard the sound of something cracking mixing with the metallic noise of my gauntlet, the misbegotten walked away while covering his mouth with one of the firsts that held the sword, a red liquid dripped from behind it and stained the sand red.
Then glaring at me, the misbegotten removed his fist from the front of his mouth and spat a tooth onto the ground, the tooth sinking into the sand like a dart fired by a crossbow.
"Please stop! It doesn't have to be like this! Let's talk!"
"It only ends when one of us is dead! I want revenge! I want justice! For all of us who were killed! I will kill! I will kill until everyone learns to leave us alone!"
"Hm… I'm sorry, but I can't allow that. This is not the right way to solve this."
"Then just die or get out of my way!"
"I can't do that either. You are as stubborn as the lord of this castle, but I made him listen to my words, I just need to use a little more strength to make that thick head of yours understand that I mean no harm." I said cracking my knuckles.
With another roar of fury, this one visibly pushing the air and raising a great cloud of sand, the misbegotten charged again, raising both swords above his head, he tried to tear me to pieces.
The two swords glinted amidst the few rays of sunlight that made their way through the dark storm clouds that covered the sky. It was like a living representation of a painting that would be placed in a nobleman's mansion.
The sea was getting dark and agitated, waves threatening to consume the islet where we were. The wind grew stronger, swaying the mane and the few flags and pieces of cloth stuck to weapons planted in the ground.
I saw the fury in my enemy's eyes; it was as if time had slowed down, his shaggy mane covering his face caught in a mixture of anger and sadness.
It was a pity that it was time to end this. I brought both hands together, making a hammer with my gauntlets, so it was as if time had returned to normal, quickly, in a flash of silver, it hit the misbegotten in the chin, faster than his attack reaching me.
The moment it hit my enemy, lightning decided to fall from the sky, hitting the sea near the islet and making a strong white light blind us for a few seconds, accompanied by a deafening roar.
When the light disappeared, time slowed down again, this time the misbegotten was bent over, his head close to the ground, trying to recover from my attack, I felt a little sorry for my enemy with what I was about to do.
I raised my hands above my head, forming a hammer again, I saw the misbegotten staring at me, blood pouring from his mouth in rivers, his eyes widening in surprise and fear, and he slowly looked away as he shielded his face with one hand.
Then I launched my attack and another bolt hit the sea, when the light and noise disappeared, the misbegotten was lying on his back in the sand, blood pouring from the top of his head and mouth, his swords lying in the sand at his side, but his chest still rose and fell.
I stowed the swords in my bag and removed my chime from my bag, then approached the misbegotten. His eyes opened slowly, so he was still conscious.
I pointed my chime at the misbegotten's face.
"Let's talk."
-Castle Morne-
Rennala and I walked out of grace at the entrance to Castle Morne. The misbegotten now identified as leonine misbegotten resting on my shoulders after receiving some healing miracles. By the looks of it, he had no name; he was born a slave and never given one.
As if we didn't have enough problems, we found a commotion in front of us; a crowd of misbegottens had their backs to us, letting out a series of screams that I could now understand.
"Go away!"
"Leave us alone!"
"I will finish you bastards!"
We approached the crowd, the misbegottens turned towards us with their weapons raised, but stopped as soon as they saw I carried their leader. We made our way through the crowd to the outside of the castle where we found Edgar and his men with weapons drawn and ready to fight.
"Are you still here?! Was I not clear enough on what you should do?!" I demanded to Edgar.
"It's not our fault, these filthy beings tried to attack us!" Edgar spoke as he pointed his halberd at the misbegottens.
"This only happened because you guys treat us like garbage!" One of the misbegottens screamed.
"What did you say creature?!" Edgar demanded.
"ENOUGH!" I screamed as I punched the ground with my pyromantic flame, my punch was strong enough to crack the ground and raise a cloud of dust, but the real attack came later.
The ground began to shake as if an earthquake was happening, then the grass began to burn and the earth began to melt as glowing red circles formed on the ground.
Then the earth split open violently as huge pillars of fire erupted from the ground and rose towards the heavens. The air boiled and the grass caught fire as lava oozed out of the pillars and caused the two conflicting forces to retreat in opposite directions.
As if that wasn't enough, lightning split the sky and it started raining right after.
"You! You leave Castle Morne! This place belongs to the misbegottens now! Go see your daughter at once, Edgar!" I pointed to the man in question, he tried to counter me but no words came out of his mouth and he looked away in embarrassment.
"You! Your leader and I have reached an agreement! I know someone who is willing to listen to you and make peace with you, but I need you to calm down! Killing everyone won't make you any better than the people who tormented you!" This time the misbegottens tried to refute me, but they were silent.
"Did you understand?!"
"No fighting!" I pointed to Edgar.
"No fighting!" I pointed at the misbegottens.
"I'm leaving and when I come back I want to see the soldiers away from the castle and the misbegottens inside the castle! And if any of you are still fighting I swear I will make sure there isn't a castle for you to go back to!"
"This man. Kenneth Height. Will he hear us?" The leonine misbegotten asked me, still leaning on my shoulder.
"Perhaps. He's not a bad person. But even if he doesn't want to hear it, I'll make him hear it."
"Thanks."
"Don't thank me yet."
I released the leonine misbegotten, allowing him to return to his friends, then I called Torrent and Rennala returned to her moon. I was about to leave, but Edgar cut me off again.
"But what about the sword?" He asked hesitantly.
"The sword is mine now! I'll take it as compensation for all the trouble you've caused me! Do you have a problem with that?"
Edgar was silent.
"I imagined. HÁ!"
With a swing of the reins, Torrent rode away; I'm going to check on Irina and Melina before heading back to Fort Height. Gods know how stressed I've been today, seeing some friendly faces should calm me down.
END OF CHAPTER
Hello! It's been a while, hasn't it? Well, I know it took a while, but I've finally updated this story. Honestly, this chapter took a lot of work to write, ten thousand words, but I'm happy with the result.
As you can see, Alden got a few more weapons from Drangleic, I've been trying to match the weapons to the locations they're found, but some just don't fit well enough with the general story of the Lands Between to have a proper location, but I've got plans for the location of others.
Leave your comments on what you think of the story. Critics and suggestions are welcome.
Until the next chapter!