A/N: Feels good to get back to this.
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 ain't popular? Well, I won't be able to continue it, sad as that may sound. 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.
Only a few questions this time around. Some of which irked me right and proper.
Q: Update schedule?
A: No. You've asked too many times, my friend. Wait until November.
Q: I don't get it. How have the Lands Between changed?
A: Its already been explained, clearly, but this chapter delves deeper into it. This iteration of "Godwyn" isn't just loved by the Dragons, after all.
It may may Tiche unhappy -Alecto simply doesn't care- but her lord's doing his best to win over all the peoples of the Lands Between.
Q: How do you update so quickly?!
A: Dedication. I have to make sacrifices, steep sacrifices, in my personal time to crank these out the way I do.
Sometimes I want to take a break, but that would mean letting everyone down...
Q: Just how many kids is Naruto/Godwyn going to have?!
A: In a word? YES.
Alright, I've kept you long enough. Lets pick up where we left off, eh?
As ever, I own no references, quotes, memes or themes. Not a wit or a one. They're merely tributes.
I'm just a humble author trying to make his way in this wild world, one word at a time, trying to make folks smile in these crazy times.
"I'm talking about reforms, here. We could draw the albinaurics and the misbegotten into the fold. Hugh would be a great help there, to say nothing of the sirens and the trolls."
It will all come to naught in the end, Godwyn. Let it be."
"I will not!"
"Yes, you will.
~?
Leave it all Behind
...another one?"
"Yes, my lord. Just like the last."
Naruto felt his right eye begin to twitch. "How many does that make this time?"
A faint rustle of parchment behind him. "That would be nine today alone, my lord Godwyn."
THUNK.
"Fiiiaaa." Naruto's head kissed his writing desk with a dull thud and a whine besides. "Why do you do this to me?"
Dappled sunlight poured in from the open window of his chambers, warming his bare back. It was just too hot today to wear all of his heavy robes. He'd settled for a dark blue tunic across his waist, leaving his long golden hair slung over one shoulder.
Time had passed, as all things do. Twelve months. An entire year gone in a flash. It seemed like such a short while, yet it had flown by all the same. Just as the Lands Between were a' changing, so too was he forced to do adapt or rising being left behind.
Unfortunately none of these thoughts did anything to abide the migraine currently pounding through his temples.
"There, there." Fia's delicate hand stroked the small of his broad back. "Surely it isn't that bad."
A muffled groan rumbled into the wood. "It really is."
"Is it?"
At least he could vent here in the sanctity of his chambers. "Yesssss. How am I going to corral all these people?!"
"You could try leading them in pryaer-
Naruto's head snapped up, glaring golden daggers at his consort. "No."
"Why mot, my lord?" Fia's smile was coy beneath her hood. "You might not find leadership so unpleasant."
"It isn't the "leader" bit I'm worried about...
The problem was twofold; first, he'd accidentally founded a cult. Second, said cult was currently swarming with people, each of whom wished to serve him and his allies. He hadn't even realized the latter at first, not until the year was out. For you see, this wasn't just any cult, oh no, couldn't have that. Couldn't be simple now, could we?
No, he'd gone and founded himself a dragon cult. He and Lansseax. Fortissax too. Many saw their spells during what folks now called the Dance of Dragons. They'd witnessed their might firsthand, but most also assumed -incorrectly!- that HE was the one to learn from. So came the cultists and knights, each eager to learn the art of lightning from him.
And why not?
In their eyes he was Godwyn the Golden, First of the Demigods. He who singlehandedly repelled a dragon army from the gates of Leyndell. He who faced their dread dragon generals in single combat. He who bested them both. He who changed the very weather, called blue lightning -Kirin!- down from the heavens above to smite them a mighty blow.
He, he, HE! It wasn't funny! More fools they!
Lansseax had warmed to their "worhsippers" as only a dragon could. Even now she was down in the courtyard teaching them the ways of tooth and claw and scale. Some said dragons lived for treasure. And perhaps they did. In her eyes, this "cult" was her treasure. Let the faithful come, she said. Bah! What did she know! Greedy dragon just wanted to breed and bask!
Fia had been of no help at all; if anything she'd only encouraged such.
That made her...what, his secretary? High priestess? Probably the latter. And Fortissax...
"Where is he, anyway?" he frowned, realizing the clever wyrm wasn't anywhere to be found for once. "I haven't heard from him in the last two days."
"I believe you sent him to formalize the treaty." Fia opened a scroll and considered the hastily scrawled notes within. "Ah, yes. Here it is." she read at length while he worked. "He's gone to speak with the Omens in your stead, my lord." even after a year she wouldn't stop referring to him as such. "You sent young Morgott and Mogh down with him, remember? The better to speed the negotiations?"
Had he? Everything blurred together sometimes. No, he remembered now.
"Right, right." He opened another scroll and consulted his notes anew. "Alecto went to speak with the sirens, right? Did we ever manage to wrangle Oleg and Kristoff after her?"
...we did, my lord. Her last report indicated they joined her in Limgrave."
Here at last, a weary smile touched his lips.
"Good." At least she wouldn't be headed into their den unprotected. Alecto was a vicious fighter and a dab hand with knives, but an escort wouldn't be remiss. She'd need some help bringing them into the fold.
The Golden Order didn't much appreciate him poaching their knights, but really, what were they going to do? Say no? He was the son of Marika and Godfrey. They couldn't. His name opened doors, both to those wished to serve and those seeking glory. Engvall had been a prime example of the former. D, the latter. He'd yet to find a proper use for that one after he'd antagonized the Albinaurics. The twinned knight was a skilled swordsman, but his fervor concerned him. Still, who was he to turn away allies? All were welcome in these trying times.
A letter landed on his desk. He cast a baleful look at it; or rather, the broken blue-wax seal that once bound it. His lips pursed into a thin ine. "Is that what I think it is?"
"Indeed." Here at last, Fia's smile was a little chagrined "We received another letter from the Albinauric embassy this morning."
"This again?" Naruto cringed, despite his best efforts. "If this is about that damn tourney next week, tell them they can compete in the joust. Loretta's the only one of their kind who can stand for a reasonable amount of time. Wouldn't be fair to them, otherwise."
After nearly a year of persistent pestering, Godfrey -Dad!- had finally gotten his heart's desire. In seven days time, Leyndell would be hosting a great tournament; a tourney of combat unlike any other. Anyone who could reasonably hold a weapon would be welcome. It would draw warriors and rogues and sorcerers around the continent. Anyone who was anyone would be there.
The prize? An audience with the Greater Will itself...and a wish.
Even the Demigods would be taking part in their own, separate bracket.
He was rather looking forward to testing himself against the rest of his family. Morgott and Mohg were still much too young, as was Ranni, but Rykard and Radahn showed promise. Morever, he had his own reasons to be there. He might be able to scout promising warriors for his cause. He'd heard a fascinating rumor of a blind swordsman...
Fia coughed, drawing him from his daydream of duels. When he looked up, he found her looking away. "That letter...isn't about the tourney."
Naruto glanced back to the letter. Snatched up the letter. Read the contents within. "...another marriage proposal, huh? Who is it this time?" He gave it a passing glance. Latenna? Never heard of her."
Displeasure radiated off his companion in palpable waves. "Indeed. How very impudent of them."
Nope. Not touching that subject with a ten foot pole."Can't we just send someone else?"
"We have tried. Engvall was rebuffed. They refuse to speak with anyone but you."
He chuckled. "Because they want to try and force a bride on me."
"You have allowed them to become bold, my lord."
Naruto's head kissed the desk again.
"Screw this shiiiiiit."
He was trying to bring the Lands Between together, hold them together, KEEP them together, and yet in some ways failing. Most wanted to toady up to him. Others sought his teachings. Still more were convinced he would succeed Marika someday; and so sought to shove their daughters at him in the vain attempt of tying themselves to the Golden Order. Lansseax and Tiche might have something to say abut that. Fia certainly would. He had no interest in marrying for the sake of heirs; no, this farce made the genuine bonds he had formed all the more precious.
Kurama chortled softly. "You say that, but you love the idea of little golden-haired children running about."
'Quiet, you. Ya just want kids to dote on.'
"Can you blame me?"
"You're swearing an awful lot today." Fia ran a hand across his chest, drawing him from his musing once more. "I rather like this crass side of you, my lord."
He grunted into the cold wood. "At least someone does...
Her hands shifted on him pushing him upward, nudging him into an upright position once more. Naruto allowed it. He knew what she was after this time, but didn't bother to resist, not even when she sat in his lap. Her body was warm through her thin robes. She threaded her arms around his neck and shook hers, sending her hood flying back. Her forehead brushed against his, bringing with it the faint scent of perfume and another, lingering scent he couldn't quite identify. Golden strands of hair tickled his nose as her lips brushed his.
"I am yours as always." she scooted closer, breath warm on his face. "You need not maintain the facade when we are alone." another kiss, long and lingering. "Shall I ease your distress?
His arms tightened around her waist, fingers biting into her hips. Fia made a pleased noise.
And the door crashed open.
"I have returned!" Tiche sauntered in, robes swaying, brandishing a sealed letter in hand like a blade. The other swept out, closing the door behind her. "I bring news from...from...your...
She trailed off. Paused. Took one look at Fia and clicked her tongue.
The deathbed companion pivoted in his lap and tilted her head, the very picture of innocence. "From...?"
His handmaiden hissed. "Away with you, rotten witch. There's work to be done."
Fia didn't budge. "I am doing just that, dear handmaiden."
Tiche twitched. "And what work do you speak of?"
"Comforting our lord, of course." Fia made a show of draping herself across him. "Something you have not done as of late."
Tiche went for her knife.
Naruto stilled the taller woman with a look. "Tiche, no. You can't stab her."
...not even a little, my lord?" she remarked, earning a black glare from Fia. "I promise she won't feel it."
"No." he shooed Fia off his lap and stood. "What's the letter you have there?"
Her face closed down. It was his first and only warning. "This is from-
A fist thumped against the door. Slammed. Once. Twice. Thrice.
Tiche turned a baleful look upon it. "Begone! We're busy!"
Another knock echoed out, far weaker than the last.
"Godwyn." A familiar voice rasped. "Please...
Naruto bulled past Tiche and, heedless of his handmaiden's protests, opened the door it without a second thought. Something slammed into his chest. He rocked back on one foot, flinging his chakra to the fore in case of attack. Couldn't be too careful in this day and age. It wouldn't be the first time someone had tried such.
There was no attack. It never came. The intruder slumped against him with a sigh.
"My apologies." they croaked out. "I'm sure I must look a mess...
Belatedly, he recognized that shock of red hair. "Rykard?"
His half-brother looked absolutely haggard, his beard unkempt, hair sticking out at wild angles, robes torn and singed. A wicked cut had been carved into his chest hip, and it bleed profusely. He clung to him for a moment in confusion, not quite comprehending what had happened. But once he had...!
"Fia!"
She scrambled over and grabbed Rykard's right arm, a healing incantation already spring forth from her fingetips. Tiche joined her. Together they wrestled him down into a chair.
"Are you...alright?"
"I'll be fine." Rykard flopped down, uncaring as he bled all over the chair. Beneath their tender touch, his wounds were already beginning to close. "I've been elevated to a demigod. My siblings with me."
Confusion bloomed in Naruto's heart. It still didn't explain his battered state. "Congratulations...?"
Rykard gave him a baleful look. "You haven't heard?"
"Heard what?" He laid his own hands on his half-brother's wounds to help speed the healing. "I've been trying to get this Truce off the ground."
"Your maiden didn't tell you?"
Tiche whined, eyeing the letter she'd hastily tucked into her sash. "I tried! You came barging in before I could!"
Enough. "Will someone please tell me what's going on?!"
"Godfrey is gone."
Naruto blinked slowly.
The words settled in a moment later.
With them an odd, sickly weight lurched deep in his chest. "What...?"
"Marika exiled him in the dead of night." Rykard hissed a little as the wound cauterized. "Stripped him of his Grace, called him Tarnished and hounded him from the capital. You did not know this?"
No, he didn't. He'd slept like the dead last night after a tumble with Lansseax. Hadn't heard a thing.
Panic bleated across his mind.
Kurama tried to stave it off. "Calm down."
Calm?! How could he possibly be calm after hearing this?!
Naruto jolted to his feet. Everything swayed. "He left? Without saying anything?
No, no, no. That wasn't right. That couldn't be right. He stretched out his senses, trying to find him, desperate to prove Rykard's words a lie. Nothing. He couldn't even sense him anymore. Wherever he was, he'd moved well beyond the Fog, past the Lands Between. Godfrey really was gone. It was a slap in his face; one he'd not seen coming. The old man had hinted as much last year before, warned that he might leave, yet to do it so suddenly, without so much as a goodbye...
They were finally getting ready to throw that tourney he'd mentioned way back when...
Trust in your mother.
How could he possibly trust her after this?
"That is not all." Rykard tried to rise. Fia forced him back down. "My fa-!" he paused abruptly, all but biting off the word as his wounds protested-choking on it in a way he hadn't before. "Radagon has been recalled to the capital to serve as the second Elden Lord. He has divorced my mother to wed yours..
His throat closed. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."
"You truly didn't, did you?" Those golden, serpentine eyes glared at him for a long moment, weighing the truth of his words. They didn't find him wanting. "Then we have both of us lost our fathers this day." his face closed down further. "What we once spoke of before...do your thoughts still hold to that course?"
Rebellion. Some might even call it treason. It may very well be.
And yet. Something stirred in him. It felt like anger.
"They do."
"I am of the same mind. Mother is a mess." Rykard palmed his dirty face and swept his hair back, trying to fix his hair and failing. It only left him looking all the more haggard. "The last I saw of her, she was beside herself." His brow furrowed. "I like it not, Godwyn. This is not at all like my father. It is too sudden." his hands clenched into fist atop the chair." I suspect a spell of some sort, a compulsion perhaps...or even the Greater Will at work. Father is not himself. He would never raise a hand to us."
Was it possible? Naruto chose silence. "How are Ranni and Radahn taking it?"
"My dear sister is furious. She nearly attacked Radagon after...well." he did not speak of the beating he'd endured. It went without saying. "Radahn, however," A loathsome look flashed across his wounded face. "He was not there for what I suffered, but he remains loyal to the golden order. To Father. We mustn't tell him of this. He would surely betray us."
One thing still bothered him. "Why would he do this?"
"Why?" Rykard turned his head and spat. "Why wouldn't they? They want their precious Empyrean." there it was. The truth revealed at last. "Perhaps the Greater Will sussed out your mother's plan, if there was one, and moved to counter. It changes naught in any case. They will tighten their stranglehold on this world until none remain to challenge them.
Naruto peered at him for a long moment. "Even so, you would rise against them?
Rykard drew himself up as best he could. "Even so."
...nothing ventured, nothing gained.
What did he have to lose?
Naruto told him his plan.
(.0.0.0.)
Rykard considered his half-brother for a long, poignant moment.
What he proposed was tempting. The words, even moreso.
"Some might call this blasphemy, brother."
"And what if it is?" Godwyn continued to pace, eyes blazing. "Its the right thing to do, that's what this is. I won't put innocents to the torch to satisfy some higher power and I certainly won't stand for this. If the Greater Will would do something like this, who's to say it won't target Morgott? Or Mohg? Or even me? No." His eyes blazed red for a moment before bleeding back into gold. A trick of the light perhaps? "I won't let that twiggy-tree-god get away with this.
Tiche concealed a laugh behind her palm. Rykard nearly shared the handmaiden's mirth. Twiggy-tree-god? How the Elden Beast would seethe to be called such.
He would have to warn Tanith. Her own life might be in danger.
Godwyn's often-silent Fia concealed a giggle between her fingers. "You certainly don't lack for imagination, my lord...
...on that, we are in agreement." his visions had shown him much. He'd seen into the heart of the Erdtree before this. He knew what lay within...and the lie perpetuated by the Elden Ring itself. Now it overstepped itself for the last time. "I know naught what the Greater Will intends for my family, for Ranni, but if the Two Fingers now think they can claim my sister like some cattle...
"We're in agreement, then." Godwyn turned to face him, naked relief writ across his handsome face, but also concern. "We certainly can't tell Radahn about this."
"Certainly. He's a good lad, but far too loyal to the Order." To father. To that THING in the tree. "He won't understand. He may be unable to."
A cold smile spread across Godwyn's face. "But we do, don't we?"
Rykard glimpsed something in that instant. Godwyn's facade cracked, his mask slipped, and he glimpsed the power within. He'd always know Godwyn was greater than him. Than all of them. He was the Firstborn, greatest of Marika's children. Anyone able to tame the dragons was a force to be reckoned with. But here in this moment his vision pierced deeper. And what he saw there, in his heart of hearts...
It terrified him.
Rykard shook his head with a rueful chuckle to mask his fear. "I don't know why I'm surprised. Truly, your arrogance knows no bounds."
Godwyn scoffed. "Its not arrogance if I'm right. Stay. "Why don't we sit down and talk things out?"
...very well."
"Wait, that actually worked?" His half-brother almost laughed. "Usually I have to knock some sense into someone before they listen!"
A red brow rose. "Would you rather we fight to the death until we come to an agreement, then?"
"No, no!" he waved his hands. "By all means! Sit! I've some ideas to run by you...
Relucantly, Rykard complied with his request.
Thus was their fateful alliance formed.
In this moment, the Fall began.
A/N: And so the rebellion begins.
Marika made her plan, but the Greater Will countered it.
Yes, that tourney I mentioned will still be a thing...if this continues.
Still want this to be a story? Yes? No? Maybe so? Make yourselves heard!
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 here, have some previews I've been pecking away at.
As ever, a warning to one and all. Spoilers, spoilers, and SPOILERS~!
I've tried to cut those out as best I could, but you'll see...
References ahoy, had a lot of fun with these.
Tribute to Accelerator as well.
(Previews)
Naruto opened Godfrey's last letter to him. And he began to read.
The tournament will proceed as planned.
"Will that oaf Godwyn be there?"
...he shall be."
"Good."
"That's not fair! He's the First of the Demigods! How are we supposed to fight something like that?!"
A golden hand closed around the back of their head. "You aren't."
Face met wall.
"If the Golden Order would commit such atrocities, then it needs to change!"
"I agree," he patted her head, "but this ain't the way, little Ranni.
She squirmed out from under his hand.
"Is that why you and Rykard are skulking about?" She glowered at him when he didn't answer. "I thought so. I will NOT be bound to that thing, Godwyn!"
He agreed on that front. He didn't want her being bound to the Two Fingers either. He feared for what it might do to her and Blaidd. Radahn was fervently loyal to the Golden Order, and Radagon with him. By that same measure, Maliketh was loyal to Marika who...well, he still wasn't certain what her schemes were. She likely favored the Golden Order...didn't she?
Of course, their group was not without its own allies. Even if he couldn't convince Ranni to join them yet.
In their corner they had Tiche and Alecto -he assumed- alongside Lansseax and Fortissax, to say nothing of Rykard and Tanith. In Godfrey's absence, the Crucible Knights answered to him. Morgott and Mohg were likewise loyal to him alone. One couldn't forget Fia, of course, to say nothing of his more...erstwhile allies at present. As for the twins...well, Miquella and Malenia were still much too young to know their true loyalties. Not even three years old and the poor tykes had their own illnesses to grapple with.
Everyone was taking sides, and he feared what was to come. Dark days were ahead.
"Evens so, you can't just go around killing everyone who upsets you."
She scoffed. "Would you rather I seduce them like you do?"
"One time!" he flung up his arms. "I did it one time!"
"T'was more than once!" he didn't miss the smile on his half-sibling's face. "Shall I count them?"
...please, don't."
A dragon fell from the sky.
"You would defy the Golden Order?"
"Nope." he hefted the Bolt of Gransax. "Just you. Face me."
Ranni shook her head furiously, red hair swaying side to side. "No, no, no! I can't...!"
A dragon's roar split the air.
"PUSH!"
"Its over...What should I do now...they'll follow me...
Footsteps echoed, deep in the dark. "You'd be right about that."
They rounded with a yelp. Paused. Laughed now, when the saw the state of him.
"Look at you! Godwyn the golden! Wounded and bloody! What can you possibly do in that state?!" More laughter. "Ha! That's what you get for protecting others! Weakling!"
Low laughter filled the sewers. "If you actually believe those words, you're pitiful. Honestly, you deserve a hug. If my last life, I woulda given you one...
Their smile died an ugly death. "...what?"
"Its true I'm not in the best shape at the moment." The first of the demigods pushed himself upright, uncaring of his mangled arm. "I can't even feel my right side anymore. "However." He lifted his head and ran a bloody hand through his long hair. "Just because I'm a little weaker, doesn't make you stronger now, does it?"
He stepped forward. They flinched. He saw it. Grinned.
"Sorry. There's only one ways to proceed from here onwards." two steps now. "Cuddle up, tremble in fear...AND RUN."
"R-Run?"
"That's right. Run away. And never return." he paused. Considering. "Or you could try and kill me now. Who knows. You might even succeed...
EDIT: Hey, you made it! Thanks for reading!
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~!