"Why do you seek to become Elden Lord?"

It was a simple question. Most Tarnished would have answered quickly; it was the title they all strove to achieve and what they risked their lives for. However, the Tarnished in front of him responded to his question with another. "Why don't you?"

Alexander crossed his arms. "I am a warrior. I was made for blood and battle. Being a lord would take me away from my purpose."

"Not necessarily." The Tarnished replied. "Godfrey was Elden Lord, and he fought all over the Lands-Between. Queen Marika would enjoy having another strong warrior by her side."

"You are also a talking jar," Blaidd added, sitting beside them. "Quite a different creature from the likes of Godfrey or Radagon. She might find you charming."

Alexander scoffed. "Charming. Yes, that is the word to describe a warrior."

The Tarnished laughed. "That charm was why I helped you out of that hole."

Alexander wobbled sheepishly. "To which I am still grateful."

Blaidd smirked. "What hole?"

"Nothi-..." Alexander started.

"Funny you should ask," The Tarnished interrupted. "I was traveling through Limgrave when I first met Alexander. He had planted himself in the ground to the point he couldn't get out."

Blaidd looked at the warrior jar with a confused smile. "How?"

The Tarnished could hear the swooshing of Alexander's innards as he shook in embarrassment. "If you must know, I fell."

"Fell off what?"

"You know, that bridge by Stormveil Castle?" The Tarnished asked. "The one leading to the Divine Tower?"

Blaidd paused, recalling such a bridge before chuckling. "Indeed, quite a height to fall from. But how? You don't strike me as uncoordinated."

"Those damnable Warhawks!" Alexander roared. "They chased me from the castle to the bridge. I was not about to be damaged by a flock of pecking, screeching vultures, so I leaped to escape them. Hence, the hole our friend found me in."

The Tarnished laughed. "You can imagine my surprise. At the time, I had not seen any living jars before. So, I am looking all over the place, trying to find whoever is calling out for help and overlooking the giant piece of pottery wedged into the ground like a boulder."

Alexander's laugh joined with theirs. The absurdity of their first meeting was undeniable. "It is not my fault you fail to notice the obvious."

The Tarnished crossed his arms. "I'll have you know I have the eyes of an eagle."

"Yes, and the brain of a goat." Blaidd continued. "When we first met in Mistwood, he was sneaking everywhere to find me. Most people would have looked at the ruins at some point, but not him. I had to throw a rock to get his attention."

"I was trying to make sure that bear stayed asleep!" The Tarnished defended. "Those bastards are relentless. Worse than the birds if you ask me."

Alexander's chuckle grew into a hearty laugh along with Blaidd's at the Tarnished's expense. It was an unusual sound in these red wastes but far from unwelcome. By the looks of the place, Caelid hadn't heard laughter in a long time.

The Tarnished eyes scoured the horizon for potential enemies, but nothing fell within his gaze. He, Alexander, and Blaidd had been pretty thorough in dealing with the local wildlife, but he got the impression much worse awaited them in this dying land. Warriors of Malenia and Radahn. Glintstone Sorcerers of Sellia. Dragons. And perhaps worst of all, the Scarlet Rot bursting out of Aeonia and threatening to swallow everything around it.

"Don't suppose you saw or smelled anything while scouting?"

"Just that poor dog." Blaidd gestured to the corpse of the animal behind him. What had once been a large, starving mongrel had been turned into this evening's meal for them. "Didn't taste very good, though.

The Tarnished nodded just in time for Alexander to speak again. "You failed to answer my question, you know."

"I did?" The Tarnished asked.

Blaidd glanced back and forth between them. "What question?"

"Why does he want to become Elden Lord?" Alexander repeated.

Blaidd furrowed his brow. "Come to think of it, he has not told me either."

"Really?" Alexander leaned toward him. "I would have thought you knew,"

The Tarnished shrugged. "He never bothered to ask, so I did not say."

Blaidd glared at the Tarnished as Alexander chuckled. " Be that as it may, I am asking, and you continue to avoid the question."

The Tarnished sighed, "It's the goal of every Tarnished."

"Broadly, yes," Alexander said. "But I am not asking every Tarnished, just you."

"What makes me so special?"

"You fight with ferocity and honor. I've yet to see you beaten in battle, and you are the one who defeated Margit the Fell and Godrick the Grafted."

"We killed Godrick." The Tarnished corrected.

"You are the one who finished him, mate." Blaidd pointed out, "Same goes for Darriwil. I would have had a tough time without you."

"Bloodhound Knight Darriwil?" Alexander asked, seemingly familiar with the name. "That must have been quite the fight. Surely not as dangerous as Margit, though. Bloody Omen."

While Blaidd and Alexander debated the grueling ordeals of Darriwil and the Fell Omen, The Tarnished beside them went silent.

The question asked by Alexander clung to his mind like an angry crab. Could he have been so foolish as not to have an honest answer? To have traveled across the Badlands, the sea, and now The Lands Between to become Elden Lord and not know why he wanted was so shameful that it bordered on laughable. Every Tarnished had something to accomplish with the title of Elden Lord. Was he alone in not knowing what to do if he achieved it?

The Tarnished looked out into the horizon yet again. The red skies of Caelid were beginning to darken, and the hills and dead trees around their grace site began to fade into darkness. Remarkably, a few stars managed to pierce through the veil of shadow above them, trying to restore some sense of beauty to a land long since bereft of it. The thought was childish, yet he liked how hopeful it sounded.

"Do either of you know what Caelid used to be like?" The Tarnished asked back to his battle brothers. "Before the Shattering?"

Blaidd and Alexander glanced at each other.

"I stayed in Jarburg most of my life. I would not be able to tell you."

"As did I in Liurnia," Blaidd said. "I had never been to Caelid before to the Shattering."

"Perhaps I could tell you."

The new voice spooked Blaidd, who quickly grabbed his weapon as Alexander heaved himself off the ground and assumed a fighting stance. The Tarnished's handwave did little to calm them as a hooded figure materialized across from them. "Apologies. I did not mean to frighten you."

Alexander huffed. "Frighten? My dear, nothing frightens me."

Blaidd smirked. "Except birds."

"They're dangerous! Not frightening." The jar retorted, much to the figure's amusement.

The Tarnished chuckled as the figure knelt beside him. "Melina, if you want to put them at ease, you could lose the hood."

Melina's chuckle did the trick as she followed the Tarnished's recommendation. As Alexander sat back down, Blaidd studied the newcomer. She did not have the bearing of a trained sorcerer, yet her magic must have been impressive to have avoided detection this entire time. Her dim pink hair drew attention to her face, yet one eye remained mysteriously closed behind either a rare birthmark or a magical seal.

"Alexander, Blaidd, meet Melina. My Finger Maiden."

"Not quite." Melina corrected. "That would require that I serve the Two Fingers."

"Who do you serve?" Alexander asked.

"I have an accord with the Tarnished before you." She replied. "Beyond that, I will not say."

Alexander grumbled at the non-reply as she looked to the wolf warrior next. Blaidd expected her to say something, but she quickly returned to the Tarnished. "You mentioned wanting to know about Caelid."

The Tarnished nodded. "It must have been different once. Before the Shattering."

Melina breathed and stretched her hand towards the pillar of grace at their feet. The light of the Erdtree rippled and shifted as it morphed into a painting of sorts. The trio watched as the image began moving.

"Caelid was once vibrant land. Before the Golden Order, the Dragons had called it home, and once Godfrey had driven them far to the west, the town of Sellia began to seep the land with magic. By the time of the Shattering, it was similar to Limgrave, if not a bit more hostile."

The painting shifted again until two figures occupied the space. "When the Shattering swept through the Lands Between, Malenia and Radahn's battles scarred the land beyond recognition. This dying patch of earth is what remains."

The painting faded at her words until only the light of grace illuminated the darkness.

The Tarnished looked back to Melina, "The Shattering. I wonder if anyone gained anything from that war."

Melina hesitated, but the Tarnished did notice her eyes flicker over to Blaidd. "I would not know."

Blaidd noticed it, too. He let out a low growl at the maiden but otherwise kept still.

"In any event," Alexander interrupted. "Perhaps you could help us get an answer from our friend here."

"To what question?" She asked.

"Why does he want to become Elden Lord?" The jar continued. "He, himself, does not seem to know the answer."

Melina raised an eyebrow at the Tarnished, causing him to rub the back of his neck. "I wouldn't say I don't know."

"How would you say it then?" Blaidd nudged. "Surely, it's not something silly like wanting queen Marika.

The Tarnished chuckled. "Give me some credit. I want to talk to a woman before sleeping with her."

"Then you seek to accomplish something with the title," Alexander pointed at the Tarnished, "What is it you wish to do?"

The Tarnished pondered the question yet again, but this time, he had the outline of an answer. The vision from Melina might have finally cleared his thoughts. "It's childish."

Blaidd smiled. "Now I have to hear it."

The Tarnished sighed. "I guess I want to help."

"Help?" Melina asked.

"Yes, I want to help the Lands-Between."

Alexander tapped the ground with his hands. "Help it how?"

"Anyway, I can." The Tarnished replied. "Have you two ever been to the Badlands?"

Blaidd looked to Alexander, who rattled before he shook his head. "I haven't had the pleasure."

"There is no pleasure out there." The Tarnished said. He stared into the point of grace, recalling the bleak landscape he had once called home. "It is a barren land with monsters and mortals too numerous to count. Rock and desert stretch out over the horizon, and the sun sets you aflame when it shines undaunted."

Melina folded her hands into her cloak. "How does one live in such a place?"

The Tarnished tapped the katana at his side. "By killing almost anyone you don't know."

Blaidd chuckled. "It doesn't sound all that different from here."

"Maybe." The Tarnished conceded. "But when I was young, my mother told me stories of a place not mired in conflict. A land of calm and peace that anyone of any creed or order could call home and live well. When grace returned to me, I thought I might find that place across the fog."

"I imagine you were disappointed."

"A little. I knew of the Shattering, but I had hoped..." The Tarnished shook his head, thinking about where he was and what had become of Caelid. "Like I said, childish."

Melina bristled at the word. "Yearning for peace is not childish."

The Tarnished blinked at her and smiled. "Thanks. I thought you might be slightly disappointed in trusting someone this naive."

Melina allowed herself a weak smile. "Torrent is the one who chose you. If he values your naivety, I will not speak against it."

With that, Melina's form flickered until she vanished entirely.

"Does she just come and go as she please?" Alexander asked.

The Tarnished nodded. "She's strange, there's no denying that." His eyes darted between his two companions. "Then again, I wouldn't call us normal, either. And I wouldn't have made it this far without her."

A comfortable silence fell on the three before Alexander spoke again.

"An Elden Lord who helps the Lands Between. That would be a strange sight, indeed."

Blaidd scratched his cheek. "Sure does. But at the same time, I wouldn't mind seeing it."

The Tarnished sighed. "Don't get your hopes up. We'll soon be asking General Radahn his thoughts on the idea."

A/N: I was playing some Elden Ring when this little exchange popped into my head. Hope you enjoyed it.