Of Storms and Hawks
The Storm Ruler had indeed kept his word. Two days after their imprisonment, he had come personally to tell them that Godwyn had almost crossed into the Peninsula, just to get to them. Nokron had been pleased to see them gain the Ruler's trust, while Ranni had only complained about it.
The main walls of Castle Morne were built atop a hill that touched the ocean. The castle's lower levels were attached to the side of the cliff, safe from any incursions or projectiles. The cell that housed them was in the middle of this cliff. It was a generous space for prisoners, but they did have to share it with the beast. Nokron was thankful it had no bodily needs.
The days passed with Ranni cursing her fate, the Storm Ruler informing them of the situation, his daughter taunting and insulting them, and the relentless sound of rain pouring daily. It had given Nokron time to reflect. So much had happened in one night it hardly seemed real. His interrupted sacrifice, the beast's original form, Godwyn, the Deathbird. So many events that defied what he knew of the world. That did not happen often to an old priest who had lived centuries. But Nokron did not mind the conflict in his mind. It had brought him purpose; something he had had little of for centuries.
Even though Ranni liked to claim he was her servant now, Nokron continued to help her because he desired to see the Golden Order dethroned. He wanted to say he was doing it for the Rite of Death, but even though it hurt him deeper than anything ever had before, he couldn't believe that anymore. When he had just become a priest, Death was all-encompassing, as natural as life itself. Now it had changed with the world. It no longer commanded servitude. There no longer was a Death to serve.
So why was he here then? For the fate the Dark Moon had laid for him? For the Nox? For the Stormhawks? Or was he the one fooled and actually serving Ranni?
He couldn't say. But fate would soon force an answer unto him, and even if he could not serve death anymore, he could still retain what he learned from it. So Nokron was at peace. Accepting whatever came, patiently waiting for news from the Storm Ruler.
And news did come. A week after their imprisonment, the Golden Order had positioned themselves across the Peninsula. A battle was imminent, but the Storm Ruler did not grant them freedom still.
The rain had finally relented after days of falling when the two heard the first ballista bolt fire and the roar of a dragon.
"I do not like this," Ranni spoke, uneasy for the first time in a week. "For the battle to proceed without much guidance from the stars… the Stormhawks invite failure."
"It has been many centuries since even your royal family relied on the stars, princess," Nokron responded.
An explosion shook the cliff. Nokron tried to shake off the dread by continuing, "I am curious. How does a scion of the Carian Royal Family, become so familiar with ice sorcery?"
"A bold question," Ranni responded, turning her nose up. "But thou hast served me with loyalty. I shall tell thee. When my mother showed me the Moon for the first time, I sought to understand it more. The Erdtree blocked any view of the stars in Liurnia, so I turned my attention to a land very familiar to my ancestors."
"The Forbidden Lands," Nokron remarked as the cell shook once more. "It seems you are well versed in defying the Golden Order, princess."
"My father holds it in high regard, but I never saw what he sees. But for his sake I have not fully abandoned it. Even if fate calls me elsewhere, I wish to believe in his love for my mother. It's because of him that Carian magic was accepted into the Golden Order. Perhaps I can include the Golden Order in the coming Age of Stars."
"If you do not hate the Order, then why do you risk everything to stop it?" Nokron asked, confused.
"The Golden Order gives many the comfort they seek. But I have no interest in following the Greater Will. I only seek my fate, writ in the stars. And it requires me to be here, and the Erdtree defeated."
Ranni's voice was uncertain. The princess was still young in the unnatural lifespan of the Erdtree. The conflict between her feelings and what she believed was her fate was apparent, even if she did not admit it.
The ground shook again. Screams from above assaulted them, muting the sound of ballista firing. Until the screams got closer, and Nokron saw a soldier falling down the cliff. The two rose to their feet, and the beast got uneasy at that.
A heavy set of wings created a gust of wind that was felt even through the cell, and Nokron knew what was coming.
"Get down!" he yelled, as the ceiling above them shattered. Fortissax crushed the walls around them with its claws. The dragon's sheer size made the cell feel minuscule, its whole body towering over them.
Had the dragon wanted to kill them, it would only need to breathe fire and they would be slain. But instead, it grabbed the beast and Ranni in its claws. Godwyn dismounted the dragon, and furiously paced to Nokron.
Before Nokron could even move his hand, Godwyn pushed him against the wall, holding him by the hem of his robes. "What did your unholy creature do to Fortissax?" It was more a demand than a question.
Nokron moved his eyes to the dragon. Fortissax had indeed suffered from its battle with the Deathbird. Its scales, where ghostflame had touched them, had turned black. Whenever lightning flashed on its scales some of the bolts were darker than the others.
"Its scales are charred by ghostflame," Nokron got out. "It's a miracle the fire did not touch all of Fortissax, for those wounds will never heal."
There was no trace of the calm and patient Godwyn that Nokron had come to know. He had dissolved into pure rage. He drew back his hand and sent an armored punch to Nokron's stomach. The priest felt he would faint.
"Let me reiterate, heretic. You're gonna tell me exactly what your tainted flame does, and you will do whatever it takes to remove every single mark of death on Fortissax. Then you're spending the rest of eternity in an evergaol. I'll rephrase my question, and you'd better give me the answer I want. How do I remove the taint of death from FORTISSAX?!"
Ranni was struggling, but the dragon only growled at her, flashes of lightning coursing through its scales. "Death is inescapable, golden one. It's now a part of it and always will be. There is nothing it can do to escape it."
"I won't let a hopeless heretic like you, tell me to accept death. I will not rest till every taint of your accursed blight is gone from this world." Godwyn pulled back his arm again. "Even if I have to beat it out of you!"
This time, the beast squirmed. Fortissax charged lightning through its claws, and the beast bellowed in what looked like pain. Nokron kept his composure as best he could, as Godwyn struck him again.
The beast clicked its mandibles with frantic speed. Fortissax, not wanting to repeat what happened on the aqueducts, readied a breath of fire in its mouth and spewed it at the beast. But the flame came too late. A void, like the one on the bridge, stood between the beast and the dragon, absorbing all the fire.
That on its own would have only postponed the beast's death, but instead, another void appeared behind the dragon. It spewed the same fire that Fortissax had breathed. While its scales could resist the heat, the wings were vulnerable. It was only a momentary flinch, but the dragon loosened its grip.
The beast freed itself and turned to Godwyn. Before the demigod could react, the beast's tail elongated and thrust toward him. In the next second, it pierced his heart.
Godwyn looked down, as blood came out of his mouth. Demigods were said to be protected by the Greater Will itself, and that nothing on the Lands Between could hurt them easily. But the beast's stinger went through him like it would any mortal.
Fortissax released the most pained roar Nokron had ever heard. A lightning spear, touched by death, formed in its hand. It was aimed straight at him.
In the ensuing chaos, Ranni slipped a hand free and sent a gust of cold wind to the dragon's head. The frost made the dragon stop, moving its head back to escape it. Nokron wasted no time and drew the Mark, releasing a rancor of spirits straight at the dragon. Even the beast was now clicking its mandibles, hitting Fortissax with rubble and stone.
Fortissax roared in pain, the assault becoming too strong for even it to bear. Pushing through the onslaught, it clawed for Nokron. With its movement slowed by the ice on its scales, Nokron was able to dodge the claw and renew the attack. But the dragon hadn't been aiming for the priest. It instead clutched Godwyn's dead body. With its companion rescued, the dragon swung its wings and retreated.
Even after the dragon left, the air was tense, as if they expected more to come. Footfalls sounded from the towers. Nokron feared they were more enemies, but was met with relief when he saw white armor instead of gold.
A small contingent of knights had been sent to accompany the Storm Ruler. Despite the rubble around him, he surveyed it with a neutral look on his face and crossed his arms. "The golden bastard's dragon got past us. I've rarely seen a warrior charge with such ferocity. I was certain you'd be little more than charred corpses by now, but it seems you two truly have a warrior's heart. I would congratulate you on warding off his attack, but we need to leave before he returns."
"Godwyn is dead," Nokron said simply. It was not a true death. He would return to life when Fortissax returned his corpse to the Erdtree. But by then this battle would be over.
"Impossible!" the Storm Ruler seemed surprised for the first time since they had met. "No mere blade can land a mortal blow on a demigod who is not already weakened."
"No mere blade landed the blow," Ranni responded, pointing to the beast's stinger, now coated in blood.
His eyes widened. "It is true then? The beast can actually fight the gods?"
"It can," Nokron responded, finding himself emboldened. "And it is a mistake to keep us here as the Golden Order assaults your castle. Certainly, you have seen enough to have faith in us."
"Our laws demand that the kin of the fallen challenge you for the honor of the ones they lost." The Storm Ruler dropped his hands and turned around. "But some might be moved to pardon you if they see you fighting by their side. Or fear your beast's actions upon your death. Come. Join us on the ramparts."
Before them was a sea of gold. The Golden Order army had overrun the hill in front of the castle. Corpses of soldiers and dragons littered the road and shore. The Golden Order kept their siege weaponry out of the range of the Stormhawks' ballista.
Nokron's people didn't have any form of training in the art of war, but even he could recognize a stalemate. Or what would have been one were it not for the beast's power.
Its humanoid face looked back at him. There was no malice in its gaze, but Nokron couldn't help but feel uneasy. He was lucky the beast had grown attached to him and Ranni.
"Thou'st negotiated a ceasefire with them?" the princess asked, her learned eyes seeing more than Nokron would in a lifetime.
"Ay," the Storm Ruler confirmed. "Our messengers have agreed on a place to meet. Godfrey is known to want to settle matters in single combat. No doubt he'll seek to challenge me."
"Which surely you will refuse, father?" the woman seemed to have grown some sense, her words a question this time.
"Perhaps I will not." A soft wind blew as they watched the enemy forces looking back at them. The Storm Ruler sighed. "But I know everyone here will defend this castle till the last, even if I was slain. Especially with the beast at our side."
"The Golden Order's odds of victory seem slim," Nokron remarked. "They would suffer heavy losses from the ballista if they approached."
"Ay. But they say Radagon is among them." Though Ranni was keeping her identity a secret, she couldn't help a stifled breath escape her as the Storm Ruler spoke. "They say he inspires such faith in the Golden Order, that before their peace with the Carian Royal Family, his soldiers charged with him through all manner of deadly magic."
Looking more carefully, Nokron noticed a stout red-headed warrior among the assembled army. So far away, he was little more than a red dot in a sea of gold, but Nokron saw that Ranni had been staring at him the whole time.
"Should they reach the castle, we will require your help. Command your beast to attack when the army is at the gates, witch. And no earlier. If it truly is the tool we need to defeat the Golden Order, then we cannot afford to use it too early. No doubt I will be here to give the order, but if something should happen during the parley, only attack when the enemy is undeniably committed in their assault. When they cannot turn back to save their lives."
The words cut at Ranni, as if intentionally chosen to shake her confidence. She balled her hands into fists.
The Storm Ruler walked to a wooden platform, the loud battalion silencing themselves to hear their leader. His words boomed through the castle, as if carried by the wind. "Warriors! The Golden Order has finally declared its pitiful challenge upon us. I now go to speak to their Lord Godfrey. But I do not call upon you to have hope of a quick end. I call upon you to fight for the land of our forefathers! For our kin surrounded in Stormveil Castle! For your children and all that will come! So that a true storm may ever remain in Stormhill!"
The soldiers cheered as the Storm Ruler left the platform. He said nothing when he passed by Nokron, only nodding slightly. The crowd continued cheering, up until the Storm Ruler and his daughter disappeared from view, descending to meet with Godfrey.
Despite the confidence of the soldiers, Nokron knew something needed to be resolved. Ranni's eyes hadn't moved, even as Nokron no longer saw the champion. "Do you think you're ready? I doubt the beast can spare your father even with the understanding between you two."
Ranni responded with a bitter voice, "So what dost thou suggest, priest? That I slay my father without a shred of remorse?"
Nokron moved to stand beside her, watching the army as she did even if he did not see her father. "It is as you said, is it not? '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.'"
Ranni gritted her teeth. "I know my words, priest. I need not be reminded of them. Fighting my father was always a possibility, but it never involved him being taken by the beast's void."
"There are perhaps more than a thousand soldiers here, Ranni," Nokron said her name for the first time. "If you do not help defeat your father, then they will. And if they cannot, then all we did was for nothing. When we topple the Golden Order, death will return to the world, will it not? Death comes for all, Ranni. Today is your opportunity to embrace that. Do what needs to be done, for death will not be delayed. Not for you. Nor for your father. Nor for the soldiers in the ramparts with us."
Realization flashed in Ranni's eyes. "Do not even think about it, princess! Reluctance to kill is one thing, but to betray the soldiers comes not into consideration. You saw your fate in the Dark Moon. You know we must do this. And you know what awaits you, should we fail."
Nokron had hoped the words would shake her, but she still looked to the side. Her eyes were watering, the conflict inside her laid bare. "I cannot! I cannot kill my father! I cannot leave those closest to me behind!"
She turned to the beast and rushed to it. Even if the soldiers knew what she was about to do, they had kept too wide a berth from the beast to stop her. Nokron grunted in annoyance and gave chase to the girl.
But it was too late. Ranni reached for its head, which was now almost twice her size. She whispered to the beast, sweeping her hand forward. Nokron pulled her away only a moment after. The beast bellowed, and he knew that he was too late.
It did not click its mandibles for long, before a giant black void materialized between them. Had the beast been a mere few paces away, the Stormhawks could have killed it; struck it with an arrow of bolts before it could pull them into the void. But their leader had allowed it into their home, and none could turn their weapons in time.
Nokron and Ranni stood right next to it unaffected. It was fortunate it spared mercy for the two. Not even the screams of the soldiers could be heard as they were pulled to their doom. The void held on to the voice of those it grabbed, leaving nothing but a mute terror escape it.
In less than a minute, one of the last armies standing against the Golden Order, had been reduced to nothing. Nothing but wind and fallen weapons.
The beast bellowed once more as its appendages grew into a set of hands almost as long as its trunk. Its tail now hung in the air, as if it was weightless. This new balance allowed it to support itself on its hands, but it did not help make the creature less uncanny.
Nokron turned to look at the Golden Order. If they realized what had happened, the army gave no indication. And for the first time, Nokron began to lose hope. The beast could slay gods, but it could not survive an army.
He turned to Ranni, trying his utmost to rationalize her betrayal, but she wasn't there. She had walked to the beast again.
Nokron's heart filled with terror when its mandibles clicked. In an instant, his vision went black, and he feared the worst.
He'd been taken into the void.
Created with Sketch.
The Storm Ruler stilled his breath when he reached the gates. Even the greenest of warriors knew the importance of controlling one's breathing. Age had told him that it mattered beyond the battlefield as well. For the first time in years, he did not know if he would return. The castle deserved a moment's reflection.
He let go of that breath and willed himself forward.
A terrifying bellow came from above, making him stop before the threshold. His fears had become a reality.
"Wait for me here, father," his daughter declared. He could see her eagerness but also saw the pride which narrowed her focus. "I will cut that nightling's head myself if he and his beast harmed a single one of our soldiers."
Even though the Storm Ruler knew his daughter needed a reminder of patience, he himself strode past her up the castle. Time had a way of teaching a man when a situation had become dire, and now it was shouting it at him.
But his mind could have never imagined what he saw.
Leading his people came with its mistakes. He'd seen men dead on the ground from his wrong judgments before.
But there was nothing. No one. Not even the priest or the witch. Not even the beast itself. The only proof his army had ever existed, was the weapons that now littered the ground.
The battle was lost before it had begun. Had the priest always intended to betray him? Or were his wishes genuine, but ultimately not enough to control the beast?
It hardly mattered now.
"No…" His daughter shuddered. Mere moments ago she had been willing to meet the beast head-on. She had never seen such loss. He could not expect her to withstand it when it had even shaken him.
He could only do what needed to be done.
He bent down and picked up one of the fallen blades. "Go to the secret passage and escape. Whatever soldiers were not on the ramparts are to follow you."
"Father…" she wanted to refuse him but did not know how. "You can't mean to fight them all."
The Storm Ruler had lived a long life. But now it all felt so small. His heart was burdened by an ocean of anger and regret. At having to say what he would to his daughter. For having led his people to their doom. For not having been strong enough.
"You will leave, daughter," he commanded, calming the storm he felt inside, saving it for his foes. "I told my soldiers to fight, and they pledged to me their blades. Though they cannot carry them now, I will graft them into one, and fight with all the strength of the Stormhawks."
"Then let me stay. We will fight-"
"You will do no such thing!" he roared, feeling the control from his voice slip. "So long as you live then the Stormhawks have a future. Stormveil stands, and so do our people. Survive. Do whatever you must. If you must join Godfrey to do so, then so be it. And when the time is right, you will return our people to rule here. And if not you then your child. And if not them then their child."
His daughter, so brash and abrasive, looked nothing more than a frightened child to him. The father inside of him told him to comfort her. But the warrior inside had already sworn vengeance. To the priest and his beast. To the Golden Order. And to all that had brought about this day.
"LEAVE!" he shouted his last words at his daughter, who ran in tears.
He would fight them all with the blades of his people as one. To his last breath.
He no longer controlled his breathing. Rain began falling as he picked up the next sword. With every blade, the water poured stronger.
Author's Note: Hey there! Sorry for the overdue delay on this one. I hope I haven't lost you all. To make up for it, expect two chapters next week as we move into the story's climax. I hope you're as excited to read it, as I am to share it with you.