Of Falls and Fate

The two sat beside the beast for a short time. Despite the princess' insistence that they make haste, she didn't complain at their stop for rest. Fighting had tired them, and they would need their strength for what came ahead. Though Nokron was not sure what that was

"Thou hast dawdled enough, priest," the princess declared as if she was not herself sitting on the ground. "We must make haste before the Golden Order arrives."

"And where is it that we're going exactly?"

"We must go into hiding."

The princess included Nokron in this plan whether he approved it or not. "I joined you because you promised a way to return Death to the world. If you want me to continue assisting you, we cannot waste away in hiding."

The girl clicked her tongue. "Had I known that thou art so insufferable, I would have let thee plunge that dagger into thy heart. I made no such promise, and thou wouldst do well to remember that thou servest my ends."

Nokron sighed as he stood up. He didn't know why he still allowed himself to be lectured by her. "Even so, I need to know our next course of action. Unlike your spirits, I am not subject to your will and require it to be communicated to me."

"Fine, fine," sighed the girl. "What thou sayest has some reason in it. I do not know what fate has ordained for us next. I only know that the Golden Order must not learn of the beast's existence, for if they do, they will not relent 'till they have slain it. We must secure its safety in the Forbidden Lands and await the Dark Moon's wisdom from there."

"You look like you are capable of all that on your own. Why do you need me?"

"So many questions," reprimanded the girl. "It should be obvious by now. For one, thou hast seen my disguise and know of my plans. As inconvenient as it is, I cannot let thee out of my sight for now. And two, I need a Nox to teach me how to manipulate silver tears if we are to disguise ourselves on our journey to the Forbidden Lands."

Silver tears were a substance found exclusively in the ravines of the Nox. On its own, it was little more than a flowing metallic liquid that could be used to craft weapons that elongated and bent. Nokron's people had learned to give it life through magic. Doing so allowed it to copy the shape and form of anything the silver tear could see, but also gave it a will of its own. Those who animated a silver tear were more often than not killed by a mirror image of themselves.

The Nox eventually learned to use the substance as a catalyst for their spells, allowing them to simulate this mimicry. Unlike the silver tears, the casters could only mimic non-living objects. The spell's utility was limited, even more so for a priest of the Rite of Death.

"No one mines the silver tears anymore ever since the Golden Order came," Nokron explained. "And as for the mimicry spell, I only know the basics, I'm afraid. Why did you not try to learn from someone in the Ainsel Settlement?"

"None dares teach it. Marika has a dislike for the concept and has forbidden the practice. And even if she didn't, I doubt any would be interested in passing down the knowledge. Most have probably forgotten it. As such, thou will have to suffice."

Without waiting for a response, the princess stood up and nudged the beast forward. To Nokron's surprise, it calmly followed the girl like a trained animal. The two began walking back to the river well.

"Wait," Nokron called. "You've seen the platform. The beast is too large for it. That path won't do."

"We can't take the beast through the Settlement," countered the girl. "If anyone there sees the beast, the Golden Order will surely learn of its existence."

"We don't need to pass through the Settlement." Nokron pointed to the complex network of marble channels above them. "The aqueducts were designed to carry large amounts of water directly from the river. The force of such a current trumps even the mass of the beast. No water runs through them now, and though some of the channels have collapsed, others lead directly to the surface. It is our best option."

"Thou art beginning to prove useful, priest," the princess said as she turned around. "Lead the way. Thou can teach me the mimicry spell as we make our journey."

They stood high above the ground on damp marble channels. Some sections were cracked and unsafe to cross, while others completely collapsed, but Nokron led them through the ancient maze with little backtracking. As they walked, Nokron spoke of his people, of the mysterious dynasty forming far away in the ravine, which the Golden Order was content to ignore, and, as requested by the princess, he spoke of the silver tears and the mimicry spell.

"You then focus your eyes on the object you wish to copy," Nokron rounded up his explanation. "Make sure you remain still after that point."

"Is that it?" the princess exclaimed with disappointment. "What about the proper cadence of the incantation? The intervals between the channeling and the manifestation? Or even the proper positioning of the catalyst?"

"As I warned you, princess, my knowledge of the topic is wanting. You would have to ask someone from the Settlement. I'm sure after a few days of insistence someone would stop their rapturous worship to spare a moment or two."

"That won't do at all," scolded the princess with an air of arrogance. "Art thou not aware, that thou will likely be all that remains of the Nox?"

"What do you mean?" Nokron had expected the Nox to remain as they were for a long time.

"Consider this a reward for thy faithful service so far," the princess declared with an air of pride. "The stars have already spoken of the fate of the Nox. A calamity is destined to befall thy people. Ye will be removed from the face of the Lands Between, and any sign thy people ever existed will all be forgotten."

Nokron did not respond. He was not shaken. As a servant of Death, he wasn't distraught by the thought that the Nox might cease to be. But something about it being declared as fate bothered him.

Since the priest remained silent, the girl continued. "The beast will most likely be the cause of this fall. The influence of anything beyond this world threatens the authority of the Greater Will. When the Golden Order arrives and finds nothing, a reason will be needed to explain the calamity. One way or another, the Nox will be declared in need of further guidance to protect them from these foreign influences. Godwyn will make his home in the ravine and turn it into a hub of Erdtree worship. The marble on the ruins and aqueducts will be used to make new walls for the Golden Order, until all that remains of the Nox will be brought to ruin, and thy people will forget that there ever was something before their demigod."

Nokron still did not respond, forcing the girl to ask, "Does that not bother thee?"

"The only thing that I might take issue with is your certainty, princess. But what you say does not seem impossible. My people died long ago when they gave up who they were to join the Golden Order."

"Tell me about that. I have long wondered how Limgrave fell to the Golden Order. There are stories, of course, but all are painted in a flattering light to the Erdtree. Or perhaps thou wast too young to remember?"

"Quite the contrary, I was an aged man, when the Golden Order attacked the Nox. We weren't their actual target. Marika wanted to continuously spread her Order, and many had fallen to her. The only ones actively fighting them remained the Stormhawks. No matter how many times they assaulted Stormveil Castle its walls never cracked. The storms diffused the spells of the Carians, and their great ballista kept their dragons at bay."

"I know that much," sighed the princess. "How is that relevant to thy people?"

"The Ainsel River and the Siofra River come from the same spring. If you follow the rivers upstream you'll find a system of caves that leads you to this underground source. Unable to cross into Limgrave because of the Stormhawks, the Golden Order invaded us instead. They conquered the Ainsel Settlement, and following the river upstream found their way here."

"Spreading their forces in Limgrave and the Caelid wastes, and separating the Stormhawks into those trapped in Stormveil and those that retreated to the Weeping Penninsula," continued the princess. "The Stormhawks still fight the Golden Order. How come thy people don't?"

"We'd never had reason to fight before. The ravines interested no one, and our more militaristic neighbors knew they had nothing to fear from us. I remember a few wanted to try fashioning an army of silver tear mimics. Most disagreed, fearing what would happen if the mimics did succeed and then turned on us."

The sound of rushing water faded. "Which side didst thou support?"

"Neither."

"Allow me a guess," the princess said with a sigh. "As a servant of death, thou couldn't'st choose a side. The designs of death are so incomprehensible that it would be an offense to it if thou were to even ponder a guess."

Nokron chuckled despite the girl's annoyance. "Even if you remain obtuse, at least you've begun to learn. It was not that I wasn't worried about the Golden Order, but I knew that we were already Graced by the Erdtree. While they couldn't bring our bodies to their tree yet, ghostflame did not claim us."

A stone fell off the side of the channel. Nokron sighed as he continued, "I had faith that my people would not relent to the Golden Order. That despite being conquered we would hold to our values. The Golden Order had little to threaten us with, now that Death was not a risk."

"But that's not what happened, is it?" interrupted the princess. "Why art thouthe only one that remains obstinate? Didst thou not have followers or acolytes?"

"I did, but I did not attempt to lead them."

"Why not?"

"Because it would have been pointless. They practically rushed to the Golden Order upon their arrival, lured by the promise of blessings for their obedience. Had I tried to rally my people to the proper path, all it would have done is alert the Golden Order to my dissension. Separating myself from the Nox, allowed me to continue serving Death among those not yet Graced. Death will have its due, in time. I only need to wait."

"Didst thou never wonder what it would have been like to lead thy people into resistance?"

Nokron stopped as he reconstructed the vision in his mind. "No, not until today. Not until I looked into that moon of yours. It felt as if it told me the exact course my fate would follow. What was that, princess?"

The girl also stopped and moved closer to the beast. "If the stars allow us to gleam our fate, the Dark Moon is the hand that decides that course. It's how the beast was tamed. It's how I was set on this path."

"Do you intend to serve as its vassal then, princess?" Nokron asked, uncomfortable at following the designs of anything beyond Death. "To control everything like the spirits in your service?"

"Tis not an arrogant whim, priest. I know my fate under the Erdtree. Tis writ in the stars that the Golden Order will soon seek to stop their movements, so that they may control the fate of all that lives. If that comes to pass, my fate will be hobbled and my freedom curtailed. I would no longer be able to divine my fate upon the stars, for there would be none there. And I would not be able to seek anything beyond the Greater Will if I had no freedom."

"But would the Dark Moon not be just another order setting the fate all must follow?"

"No," the princess responded as she tried to see the sky above. "I have seen the world the Dark Moon will bring. It is a chill night that leadeth into fear, doubt, and loneliness. It would remove the certainties of order and all that brings souls together, and have them at a great remove. An Age of Stars."

"Is that what you want, princess? If you can leave all that you have known, I applaud you. But I doubt you will be able to do it as easily as I have the Nox."

"For a new age to begin, we must prepare to walk a lonely path. The Greater Will stands in the way of our fate, so we must not let our attachments prevent us from supplanting it." Her voice shook. "I must betray everything I know and rid the world of what came before. But I do not know yet how."

Nokron did not push the girl further. He doubted her resolve, but he could not deny that she had come farther than he ever had. In the end, their goals were the same. Both sought to remove the Golden Order and its influence.

"I've let slip too much," the princess exclaimed, annoyed. "This walk has loosened my tongue. We have more important matters to address."

"What are those, princess?"

"That!" the princess exclaimed as she moved in front of Nokron with her hands on her hips. "Thou still call me 'princess.' As my servant, the only correct title for thee to address me by is 'Lady Ranni.'"

Nokron laughed to himself. Despite being one of the most powerful servants of the Golden Order, every word betrayed her youth. "I can't do that, princess. Unlike your spirits, I am here of my own volition. I will 'serve' you, as you put it, without being your servant."

"Then at the very least call me 'Princess Ranni,'" the girl pouted. "'Tis strange to only hear a title."

"I'm afraid I've grown too attached to just 'princess', princess." When was the last time Nokron had joked so?

"Fine!" Ranni exclaimed, turning around and walking angrily in front. "Then thou will only be 'priest', priest."

Nokron was about to laugh heartily for the first time in centuries. But he had to brace himself instead, as a strong gust of wind almost knocked them off the channel.

Author's Note: If you've made it this far, I'm happy to see the story has held your interest. I hope you enjoyed this small delve into an expanded version of the game's lore, and are looking forward to what is to come, because there is a lot coming in the upcoming chapters. As always, comments are more than welcome. See you all in a week.