A/N: Thanks for sticking around. Just wanted to say that to everyone.
Updates are still coming along nicely, I'm just exhausted bouncing back and forth between two jobs. Also need a haircut, but I don't have the money for that this week.
*Siiiiiiiiiigh*
As my fifteen year anniversary on this site draws ever nearer, I find myself reflecting on the little things in life. What was once a lazy pastime meant for me and a few friends really grew and evolved over time. There are days when I look back on the last fifteen years here and I wonder if anyone will remember me; if I made an impact, despite never making a single cent on any of these stories. Some days were happier than others, and some stories I enjoyed writing WAY too much; to the point where I'd stay up all night working on them.
And of course, there are times when I look to the future and wonder what will become of things when I'm gone.
Of course, I try not to dwell on the latter overmuch; I'm still alive and still writing. In an ideal world, I'd like to keep doing so for as long as I can. But old age is catching up to me and these days, the world is filled with so much madness and death. The recent earthquake in Turkey/Syria serves as a terrible example. Even before that, so many friends and fellow writers I once knew are gone, now. Will I still be here in twenty years? Ten? Five? Its a chilling thought. But for now, I'm still here, still writing.
Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this story, and others. Meaning folks don't like this, it won't be continued. If the story itself ain't popular/well-received...well, I won't be able to continue it. I'm working two jobs, holidays are here too, meaning I barely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy.
So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them I cannot write a single word. Simple as that. Working nearly all hours of the day keep me absurdly busy, and I can't bring myself to write something folks don't like.
No questions this time around. Gotta keep it interesting~! Alright, I've kept you long enough!
Alright, I've kept you long enough. As ever, I own no references, quotes, memes or themes. Not a wit or a one.
They're merely tributes to legends and myths far greater than this weary old man...
Here we go. Time to meet an old friend near and dear to our hearts~!
"What is better - to be born good, or to overcome your evil nature through great effort?
I won't lie. I've been tempted a time or two. To give in. To have power.
But I'm better than that. Its our turn. NOW WE RISE."
~?
We Rise
Stormveil was home to all manner of men and monstrosities.
In the absence of its long lost lord, a pack of bandits had infested the castle keep and made it their own. If that weren't enough, a great many of them had taken to taming-breaking!-beasts for their amusement; wretched feral creatures with weapons welded unto their limbs by heavy chains, weapons they wielded to devastating effect against any who dared to assail their home. There could be no sparing such wretched creatures after what their masters had done to them. They were forced to put them to the sword wherever they encountered them. Not only them, but these wicked men and women who knew only how to take from one another, how to hurt, and never to heal.
Made his blood boil, that it did.
Under any other circumstance Naruto might've pitied them...no, wait. He didn't. Violence was both answer and the question here.
That wasn't to say the enemy put up a proper fight of course; theirs was a strong party, properly skilled and trained alike. victory was never in doubt.
"Kill the kid!" one of the bandits brayed. "Kill him before he-ach?!"
He died gurgling on seven inches steel as wickedly curved daggers punched up through his chest. Naruto rode the man's corpse to the ground, watching the light drain from the man's eye. He stared down at the slack body beneath him, making certain it wouldn't rise again. This far from Leyndell there was no need to restrain himself, no need to hide his power properly. Destined Death sang with him when he fought; any who died to his daggers remained that way, dead forever.
Satisfied, he rip his weapons free and move onto his next victim. That one died instantly, too. They all did. Each was a quick death, silent and deadly. It was more than they deserved.
His foes were the lucky ones. Maria took her time with her opponents, boiling them alive with her burning blood.
Least lucky of all were those who faxed Alexander. Being beaten to death was a poor way to go.
Naruto stomped over another corpse and stalked up the steps leading to the central keep. His comrades waded in after him, Maria on his right, Yorshka lingering at his left, while jolly Alexander brought up the rear. Oleg's twinswords and Engvall's spear made short work of any stragglers that sought to harry their flank. Together, the six of them cut a bloody path to the keep.
It was here that he learned his Shadow was no weak wallflower.
"You needn't put yourself in undue danger, my lord." Yorshka whispered softly as he intercepted another bandit that sought her heard. "I am not so weak as I appear."
He risked a glance back as he stopped another man's heart. Was she weak? He had no way of knowing how weak or strong a Shadow was, least of all her. He scarcely knew her, after all. What few Shadows he'd seen were few and far between. Blaidd had been a powerhouse, yet Godwyn's was the opposite, to say nothing or Miquella and Malenia's ilk. Who could say what Yorshka was capable of?
"Be that as it may-
The dragonling's tail cracked out, tripping up a would-be-killer that strayed just a bit too close. The battered bandit stumbled and she stepped into catch him before he fell. Her foe found no succor in her arms. Clawed fingers scythed forth, cleaving his head clean off his shoulders in a grisly display. Her point made, she whirled and kicked his corpse aside as one might a straw doll. It struck a wall and left a sizable dent in the mortar.
His meek Shadow turned a smile upon him. "Thou wert saying?"
Naruto whistled in return. "I stand corrected!"
What followed was a slaughter.
Almost anticlimactic, really. None of the squatters provided a proper challenge for any of them. If this band of brigands had a leader, he never met them. Perhaps they fled ahead of them. Didn't matter. In short order the rest of the bandits and their "pets" were put to the sword, their bodies piled high to be disposed of later. None would rise again.
Conquering the castle was the easy part. Holding it, he soon learned, would prove another matter entirely.
Strictly speaking the walls of Stormveil were sound. Many a ballista had been left unmanned during their attack, lacking proper ammunition, but the gate still worked well enough; they were quick to close the latter behind them to prevent further egress by any would-be invaders.
From there the rest of the day descended into mind-numbing minutia.
Seek the bounty beneath Stormveil, the Greater Will had told him. Seek it and prosper. Naruto found himself tempted to do so here and now, but this wasn't the time. There was much work to do and precious little time in which to do it. Repairs to assess, inventories to check, filthy rooms to clean and corridors to clear, not to mention checking the larder. If their "guests" had raided it they were in for a rough few weeks. They clearly did not care for the state of the castle, and he held little hope they'd left the latter untouched.
All this had to be done before Winter, less than three months away.
If they couldn't affect some semblance of repairs they would starve-or freeze. And wouldn't that be an ignoble end for him and his allies after all this? Marika be damned, he must make this work. He couldn't fail here and crawl back to Leyndell. He wouldn't-absolutely not. He refused...
.
...
...and what was that noise?!
A distant ringing caught his ears as they cleared yet another room; it came from an adjacent wall not three paces ahead, a steady clang-clang-clang punctuated by the odd grunt and growl as someone or something struck steel against steel with relentless determination. Maria and Yorshka each tensed at his side, immediately moving to protect him. There was no need. At first brush one might mistake it for combat but no, that wasn't the sound of two men trying to kill another. If anything, it sounded like...
He touched the wall, only for his hand to pass clean through it.
An illusory wall. Clever...and so very curious.
Maria scowled at him. "Don't you dare."
Alexander rumbled a laugh. "I'll just wait out here, shall I? I'm much to large to fit through there."
Naruto flicked a glance over his shoulder. "If you're after the bodies, you can have them. That's how you jars get stronger, right? Take Oleg and Engvall with you. They can help you find some choice corpses.
"Quite so!" the warrior jar boomed a laugh and trundled off. "By your leave, then!"
Stepping through the illusion he found himself standing in a large, messy alcove. Heat assailed his face and he soon saw the source; a blazing forge littered with blades. An old scaly misbegotten -a smith!- stood hunched over an anvil, bare-chested, wearing naught but a tattered red cloth about his waist. He paid them no mind, muttering to himself, relentlessly hammering at a weapon with his hammer. He couldn't see what it was at this angle, only that that it was quite large. Downright massive. Seven swift strokes assailed the superheated metal into the desired shape, one after the other, without pause.
Belatedly, he noticed something else; the misbegotten's legs were chained to the wall, his bindings stretched taut just to reach the smithy.
"Piss off, Marcus." the creature growled once, but didn't look up from his work. "I'll have your axe ready tomorrow, and not a damn minute sooner."
Naruto coughed into a fist. "I don't know any Marcus...
"Hrmm?" the misbegotten paused. Looked up. Squinted at him now. "Well, well." a trembling hand set his hammer down. "A demigod, as I live and breathe. Didn't think you noble sorts left the capital." his scaly old brow furrowed further, noticing the blood on him and his companions. "Heh. Seems 'ol Stormveil's under new management. Not bad for a buncha exiles."
Oh, dear.
Yorshka absolutely hissed.
Maria bridled beside him. "You will address my lord with respect-
Naruto waved her down, made curious by the man's blunt speech as much as his insight. "You can tell?"
"Ain't hard to tell." the old misbegotten shrugged and returned to his task. "Your kind never come down to Limgrave anymore." his hammer descended upon the long haft of the axe once more with a hearty clang. "You're either an exile, or off yer head. Probably the latter if m'being honest."
He quirked a pale brow. "Any other insights you'd care to share with us, sir...?"
Kurama rumbled a laugh. "Interesting. I like this old geezer."
Of course he would...
"Name's Hewg." The misbegotten looked him up and down. Sniffed once. "One of Godwyn's are ye? You have that air about ya. Which means...ah." Hewg snapped his fingers as realization dawned. "You must be Godrick." he granted him a wry grin, visibly preening at the carnage he'd caused. "Runt of the Litter, was it? Seems this runt has fangs...
Clever old man. Dangerous old man.
Unbidden, he recalled a warning Ranni had once given him.
"Beware of the old man in a profession where men usually die young."
Misbegotten usually lived short, brutal lives, growing stronger as they aged. That one had endured so long, let alone as a smith...that was worthy of respect, if not caution. His gaze strayed back to the taut chains binding the old man's ankles. They were old and rusted. He'd been here for a terribly long time.
"What's your story, then?" curiosity got the better of him, loosening his tongue. "Why are you here?"
"Same reason as you, I suppose." Hewg rumbled a bitter, fearful laugh. "I made the Queen angry. Suppose you could say I made a weapon she didn't like." his chained tail twitched, shoulders shuddering as he recalled some distant, unknowable memory. "She broke me and cast me out the capital for it. Bandits found me soon thereafter." a shallow bow followed his words, as best the chains allowed. "And here I am." One finally raspy laugh wracked the old man's back, ending in a low cough. "Are you going to kill me, now? Finish what she started all those years ago?"
Maria laid a hand on the hilt of her blade. "If you desire such a release, I will gladly grant you it."
"No!" Yorshka shook her head. "We must free him! He's as much a victim in this as us!"
"Perhaps," she allowed, "But he desires death. I can see it in his eyes."
"You cannot claim to know such a thing!"
"Enough."
Naruto flicked a hand out and the chains binding Hewg shattered like so much glass.
"Huh. Thanks for that." The old misbegotten stood and stretched over his anvil, popping his back. "Had a nasty cramp. Seeing as you were kind enough to spare me, I'll give you a warning. A woman in black came through here earlier, looking for you. Said something about waiting. Dastards threw her in a cell. Might wanna steer well clear of her."
"And you?"
Hewg considered him for a long moment. "What about me?"
He really was going to make him say it. Fine, then. "I'm asking what you'll do now?"
"Oh!" Yorhska hopped in place. "Say you'll stay! We'd be honored to have a smith of your caliber!"
...hrrmph." the curmudgeonly old codger took one look at his Shadow and...actually listened. "No need to beg me, girl. Don't really have anywhere else to go. Although," He looked past the lot of them, to that weapon left untended upon his forge, still unfinished. "I'm thinking I might have use for that weapon I was working on after all...
Naruto squinted at it. "You're giving me that ax?"
"Aye," Hewg preened. "A weapon fit for the Prince of Stormveil."
He guffawed, incredulous. "The damn thing's bigger than I am! And its still not finished!"
"You'll grow into it Lord Godrick," the surly bastard clapped him on the back. "Of that I'm certain."
Bloody bastard was enjoying this, he just knew it. Another gift. Another thing to worry about. There was much to be done.
...screw it. Only one thing for it, then. He'd have to bend the rules.
There was work to be done, and he'd spent more than enough time dragging his feet. No more.
He had the beginnings of a support structure here; it fell to him to build upon it.
For that, he'd need hands. A great many hands. Hands aplenty.
...fine. Follow, if you want. I've got work to do."
His peace said, Naruto performed a quick about-face marched out of the alcove. Maria and Yorshka hastened after him-for once he left them behind, his ears deafened to their words as he considered what he was about to do. He'd refrained from playing this card for some time now, but there was no point keeping it up his sleeve any longer. Down the hall he went, leaving them in his wake until he reached the courtyard proper.
They'd be terribly cross with him for startling them like this, but forgive him in due time.
He let his gaze rake across the yard, its dying grass and pitted stones, the moldering corpses strewn about. He could see already Alexander trundling his way, flanked by Oleg and Engvall, the trio doubt alarmed by his sudden exit. Even Hewg had limped out of the castle after them, shielding his face from the sun with one arm. These were his allies. His followers. It fell to him to protect them. Look after them. Give them a safe place to live, secure from all the worries of the world.
He wouldn't let them down.
A crisp fall breeze stroked his face, tugging at his hair. He closed his eyes and reveled in it, tilted his head back, exhaled softly. From there he crossed his fingers and marshaled his chakra. It came to him in a heady rush, eager to be used after so long. Kurama boosted it yet further, until...!
Alexander guffawed. "I say!"
Yorshka gasped. "My lord Godrick?!"
Maria made a rare noise of appreciation. "Well. You really were holding back all this time...
Of course he had been. Discretion was the better part of restraint. He'd practice the latter for years now. No longer. When he opened his eyes, he found himself gazing upon an army, one hundred strong clones, all wearing his face. They stood before him, awaiting his orders, his own private army.
"Alright, boys!" he thrust a fist into the air. "There's work to be done! Lets get to it!"
A hundred voices cried out in unison.
And so it began.
(.0.0.0.)
He found her cell soon thereafter.
Rusty hinges squeaked, snapped now, as he tore the door from its hinges.
The woman awaited him sprawled within, wrapped in a black robe, just as Hewg had said. She smelled of Death.
...I greet thee, heir of Godwyn. Thank you for coming alone." although she lacked the strength to stand after the torture she'd endured, her smile still held its gentle, mature charm. "Long have I waited here for you."
It certainly looked like it. She'd taken a terrible beating; one of her legs was bent the wrong way and she had an awful black eye besides. Just looking at her injuries stirred something in is soul. He found himself tempted to bring the bandits back, if only to kill them a second and third time besides.
"Are you alright..?"
"You do not know me, but I was told of you." she dragged herself up into a sitting position, wincing only a little when he knelt before her. "My name is Fia. I carry your sire's last will and testament...oh!" her words piqued into a gasp as he laid healing hands on her. "That feels...quite nice actually." a tiny gasp fled from her lips as her leg snapped back into place. "I was unaware you possessed such a talent."
"Words can wait," he offered her an earthen cup of water and went to work on her eye. "Drink first. You've been here for days."
"Kind of you, but unnecessary." She shook her head. "My health is not important. My task is of paramount-mmph?" He pressed the cup to her lips, muffling her words. "Mmgrl?"
"Drink," he hummed with a thin smile, "Or you'll be made to drink."
"Ha!" She giggled instead, likely more than a little delirious from lack of food and water. "You truly are of his blood. Always thinking of others before yourself. Very well." She drained the cup, then, when she was certain he wouldn't offer her another, reached into her robe and withdrew a sealed piece of parchment. Trembling fingers pressed it into his hands. "Here. For you."
Naruto broke the seal without a second thought.
From there, he began to read.
Then came the laughter.
(.0.0.0.)
The first peasant arrived a week later.
A man and his daughter, a sickly girl carried on his back. He asked for aid. Healing. The blessing of the a demigods. Blessings were given, the girl mended, and the two of them afforded a place to stay. They were the first, but they would not be the last. Word went out to the surviving hamlets, what few scattered towns remained in Limgrave despite the scourge.
Before long, folks came to visit. People. Peasants. Supplicants all, begging for his aid, his intervention, his wisdom, his resources.
Marika was laughing at him back in the capital.
Naruto knew she was.
One and all they came to the castle in search of shelter. Many were willing to work so long as they had food in their bellies and a roof over their heads. A lesser lord would've left it at that. Naruto did not. He paid them for their labor, each and every one of them.
And there there was coin and runes to be had, so too did the merchants come. Two at first, then more, drawn by the promise of protection, profit, and the chance to pawn their wares.
Within three moons a thriving community sprang up within the castle as well as without. All this from a single act of kindness. Stormveil began to thrive.
Marika wouldn't learn of the castle's revival until many moons later. And when she did...?
Some said her shrieks could be heard clear across the Lands Between.
So too, could the laughter of a boy.
Runt of the Litter.
A/N: Aaaand scene.
We'll see what Godwyn's letter said next chapter.
Best boy Hewg is here. Must protect that cranky old bastard.
And let us not forget Fia! Younger this time around than the one we met, but still the giver-of-hugs.
Well, what say you? Should this remain a story or not? It'll likely be rated M with Mature themes, lemons, character death, and the like.
Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this particular story, and others.
If folks don't like this, it won't be continued. Meaning that if the story itself ain't popular? POOF! Gone. Completely. I'm working two jobs -might need a third soon!- so I barely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy. So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them I cannot write a single word. Simple as that. Working nearly all hours of the day keep me absurdly busy, and I can't bring myself to write something folks don't like.
Aaaand there we go. As ever, reviews keep me alive. Without them, I cannot write. So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...
...Review...Would You Kindly? And have some previews -potential blot bin things- that I'm working on.
Things that may or may not become stories in the far flung future.
(Previews)
Guess who?
"Now we wage war. Send a raven to Lady Rennala. I've got an idea...
How did he do this?! Who helped him?!"
"No one. I warned you, but you would not listen. You underestimated him."
Of course I underestimated! He's a weakling! The runt of the litter, shame of our lineage!
"Art thou happy now? Art thou pleased? Art thou...enough. I'm tired of talking like this." he wiped a bloody hand through his hair, staining it red. "No more games."
A shadow plummeted from the sky. Naruto recognized its shape far too late and roared a warning. "DRAGON!"
The beast landed with a thunderous boom, blasting everyone backward...everyone, save him.
Its scales were blackened its body twisted. Its very soul reeked of Destined Death.
"You," it rasped, "Descendant of Godwyn...I would have words."
Naruto tilted his head. "Fortissax...?"
The army prepared to march.
"Lord Godrick!" A servant swept the tent flap aside. "Lady Malenia has made contact! She wishes you to meet her on the field of battle alone! Failure to comply will see the city put to the torch!"
"A challenge?" the giant stood slowly in the shadows, sun glinting off his bare, broad chest. "Alright. Fetch my ax."
His servant paused, not quite comprehending. "My lord? Surely you don't intend to meet her demands?
"Of course I do." Bright eyes burned bright in the gloom, one sapphire, the other scarlet. "Don't you know its rude to keep family waiting?"
"What is this?!
Not so fun when the shoe's on the other foot now, is it?
You once told me to lick your boots. I'll take a page out of your book. I command thee...KNEEL."
"Long live the Age of Reunion!"
...stop throwing concubines at me, Gostoc!"
"A lord must have heirs, sire. You are no exception."
"I understand that, but seven is way too many! I'd be happy with three!"
"You're weak, boy. Though thou art a descendant of Godwyn and Godfrey. You'll never measure up to them."
Young Godrick -Naruto!- swept a hand through his silver hair. "I do so love being underestimated."
That smile worried her.
"What's wrong?
Morgott grunted as a boot stomped down on his throat, pinning him in place.
"You were talking a good game a second ago." A golden ax swept down, shimmering in the light of the sun. "Then I blew your legs off." The giant reached down. Squeezed. "What was that you called me, old man...? I believe it was something along the lines of being a Runt? Well, now...
"THE ERDTREE IS MINE."
EDIT: Hey, you made it! Thanks for reading!
I hope the admins fix this system.
This sudden change is driving authors away in droves; because no one knows, since not all of us have Twitter, which means most aren't even aware; as a result, they think we're not updating, and they don't read or review...which makes us write even less...So here we go. The fate of this story depends on you, the reader. No reviews? No inspiration. No inspiration? Sad writer. So speak up! Your words matter! That's no joke!
Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this story, and others. Meaning, if folks don't like this, it won't be continued. If the story itself isn't popular? I'll likely discontinue it. I'm working two jobs -holidays are kicking my ass!- so I barely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy.
So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them I cannot write a single word. Simple as that. Working nearly all hours of the day keep me absurdly busy, and I can't bring myself to write something folks don't like.
Looking forward to chatting with you all when I get back from work~!
R&R~!