A/N: Day 31 of no notifications/emails on the website. T_T
Follow me through the app, if you can. We're getting notifications over there at least.
As for the older web/desktop version...I don't think this is getting fixed anytime soon. Fictionpress twitter is imploding with nearly 700 people demanding answers from the admins and getting none. Its a crying shame, but at least now I know why, given the site slowly breaking/dying. Everything is still bugged to heck with notifications/email alerts and its driving me mad.
More than a month of this, with no fix from the admins, and the web/desktop version is getting progressively worse. But hey, the app works right? Only problem is, some of us can't us the app, or don't wish to. That's a lot of people not getting alerts AND KILLING MY MOTIVATION TO WRITE. Because folks can't see chapters, which means less feedback, which hurts even more.
Its driving me batty, and as a result, I'm also posting on other sites. I can't take much more of this Fanfiction mess, but I'm trying to endure because I love this site...
Alas, in other news depression's starting to hit real hard these days. Seriously. Like a sledgehammer paired with concrete. Sometimes I wonder why I do anything at all. can't claim to understand what's going wrong with my head anymore. I don't even know why I'm feeling this way! One moment I'm fine, then my mood craters for a few hours, then I'm back again for a bit, and the cycle repeats. On and on, round the bend, forever and without end! Its rather annoying; as though I've become a prisoner in my own mind sometimes.
Sure, what's one more mental problem on the pile. Not like I don't have enough, what with already being this old. Feels like every day is a battle sometimes. Meanwhile, my doctor insists that I'm fine. Take a health walk he says. Go fishing. You'll be fine.
But for now, I'm still here, still writing.
As ever, I own no quotes, references, quotes, themes or memes! They're simply tributes to legends far greater than I.
I'm just an old man who writes as a pastime. I don't make any money doing this, not a single cent. This is ALL done for free.
Time and feedback will determine if this remains a story. Simple as that. In other words...its up to YOU, the reader. Do let me know~!
Lastly, a warning. We've got a Sukuna moment here. You all know the one...but the question is...
...who's about to lose it? You may think you know, but the answer might surprise you.
Also snuck in an El Dorado line here for shits and giggles.
I wonder if anyone will recognize THAT old reference?
Because if you can't have fun while writing..
...what's the point?
"Heeey, what's the matter? You're not finished already, are you? That's it; come on, try harder.
Why are you still lying there? TRY HARDER. Before I get tired, I'll play with you awhile.
Hmm? You look happy. Want me to praise you? Honestly? Its almost pathetic.
Neither you, nor these fools have any idea what a god is capable of.
Shall I educate you? Watch closely now.
This is what a REAL god can do."
~?
Try Harder
Naruto smiled.
He hoped it looked like a nice smile.
These days, he truly could no longer tell anymore.
Maybe it came with being a god; perhaps it was something of a disconnect on him part; the result of living as "Godwyn" for so long with naught but Kurama to truly understand him. Tiche often said his smiles were scary. Lansseax claimed they were wonderful. Fia simply said he needed to try harder. Perhaps that was the case. Surely one of them had to be right? Maybe he wasn't trying hard enough; maybe he just needed to be more vocal to get his point across. Semantics, he supposed.
It's tough to be a god.
Regardless, he plastered his most winning smile to his face and beamed at those assembled before him.
"Thank you for coming." he addressed those assembled before him. "I do hope you all understand why I've brought you all here...?"
A small sea of familiar faces stared back at him, seated around the Roundtable Hold. Tiche and Lannsseax sat on either side to flank him, with Fia stood behind him like a watchful shadow. Each ready to act; to leap to his defense at the slightest provocation.
Somehow, he doubted that would be necessary.
One had but to listen to hear the cheers of the crowd above baying for blood to know that they were safe. The single matches were commencing, finals all. He had a bye in his own round, so there was no need to hurry unless the combatants proved particularly punctual and finished one another off quickly.
And besides, he'd already bested all those seated before him.
From lands far and near, he found himself facing many of his former foes. Artorias and Quelaag, Ornstein nestled among one another, talking amongst themselves. And there at the far end of the table, cradling the stump of her arm while still looking quite lost, Emma stared back at him warily.
Flora was notably absent from this little gathering, but he didn't much mind giving her up-and-coming match; nor was he quite sure he could count her as an ally just yet. Rykard was also late to arrive but that was to be expected given his injuries. How he intended to fight in the upcoming rounds was beyond him.
As to Fortissax...ah. There he was.
Lansseax's dear brother shouldered his way inside in human form, ducking beneath the low arch to enter. "I hope I'm not too late."
"Not at all." he beckoned him to a place of honor beside his sibling. "We were just settling in ourselves. A thought occurred to him. "How did your fight go?"
The elder dragon licked his lips and looked rather pleased with himself. "It was a spectacular fatality."
Across the table, Emma turned green.
Lansseax merely rolled her eyes at him. "Sit your scaly butt down, brother of mine."
Fortissax didn't need to be told twice.
No one dared argue otherwise.
"Alright, then." he considered his defeated foes from other realms, regarding each like the opportunities they were. "I brought you all here for a reason. Lets talk."
Ornstein sniffed. "I see no reason for any of us to cooperate with you at this time, godling."
"Really?" his grin grew an inch. "And what makes you say that, hmm?"
"Because you show mercy where none should be shown."
Naruto felt his smile crack like so much brittle glass.
Emma's goblet bounced off Ornstein's helmet.
Almost simultaneously Quelaag promptly thumped the battered knight over the head while, Artorias delivered a swift elbow to his comrade's ribs.
Their efforts, admittedly noble though they were, came just a moment too late.
A strange, unfamiliar emotion curdled in Naruto like so much sour milk.
It felt like anger. How quaint. He'd not felt it in so long.
"Godwyn" palmed his face to stifle a sigh.
"Is that so?"
Fia sighed softly. "Oh, dear...
Tiche must've seen his expression; because she shied away.
Lansseax did no such thing. She leaned into a bemused Fortissax, chin resting in her hands and grinning from ear to ear, content to watch the carnage unfold.
Of course someone would immediately protest; because it wasn't like he was doing this out of goodness of his heart or anything. No, sure, lets be suspicious. That's great. Just great! After all isn't it easier to distrust anyone and everyone around you than to believe that somewhere, someway, somehow, there might be SOMEONE who genuinely wants to do some good in the world?
"Careful. Your hubris is showing."
Ironically, it was that remark from Kurama which steadied him.
He inhaled deeply, exhaled through his nose, and fixed the lion knight with a withering glower.
"I could have killed you today, ya know." he let his gaze roam over his former foes. "Any one of you. Instead I saved you. All your miserable little lives. Did you think it was from lack of skill?" his head tilted when the great dragonslayer tried to argue, silencing him with but a gesture. "It would have been easy, effortless even, to turn my weapon, to strike a little harder, to be a bit more thorough. But I didn't." Rather than barrel onward in a roaring red rage he paused now, truly letting the weight of his words sink like an anchor. "Everyone in this room is alive because of me; because I let the lot of you live. Think very carefully before you accuse me of pointless mercy; next time you might not have a tongue to say it."
The silence spoke for itself.
"There!" His cheeks dimpled in a smile he no longer felt. "Isn't that much better? All out in the open."
Artorias found his voice first, bless his simple soul. "You, my friend, are a proper scary bastard, I hope you know that.
"Oh, I know." he bobbed a nod the knight's way. "Really, I do. Lucky for you I'm one of the good ones, eh?" When no one dared object, he tapped a finger on the table and conjured a scarlet spark, causing his former foes to flinch. "Now, why don't the four of you sit down, shut the hell up, and let me tell you how I can grant your every heart's desire.
Quelaag found her voice at last. "And what would the price for this be?"
"No price at all." he granted her a warm smile. "I'm a god. Gods are generous. This is my gift to you."
"I can't accept that." Artorias shook his head. "There must be something you want."
"Well, there is one thing I would like, I suppose...
He had them after that.
At the end of the day, everyone wanted something.
The wished offered by the Greater Will was merely the portal to it.
Some might call this treason. Perhaps it was-no, it almost certainly was.
With this, the Greater Will's days were done, its hours numbered. It was only a matter of time now...
(.0.0.0.)
"Well done. You played those fools like a fiddle."
Flora was waiting for him outside the hold wearing a smile of sensual sin. Had she a tail, Naruto suspected it would've been wagging. As things stood the self-proclaimed goddess simply seemed smug. He wondered if she'd been listening in on him with a spell of some sort. It seemed like something she would do-but no, her words stuck with him.
"I wasn't controlling anyone."
"Certainly not," she felt seamlessly into step with him as they quickly climbed the steps back the arena, "You only intimidated them, manipulated them into following your way of thinking by offer them their heart's desire, while simultaneously leaving them feeling indebted to you, thereby securing their loyalty for all time." a bright iris winked his way. "I would've beaten them into submission myself, but you only needed a few words. Well done indeed."
Heat crept up the back of his neck. "Do you have a problem with that?
"On the contrary," she cooed at him, "I approve."
...what is it you want?"
"Many things." she gave his arm a brief pat. "You'll understand in time. My first match will begin soon, if you have an inclination to watch."
Was that a warning or invitation?
She trailed a hand across his chest. "Do take care not to die."
Marika's voice ran out from the stands above, cutting through his thoughts. "Flora shall face the Orphan of Kos! Combatants! Present yourselves!
His brow furrowed. Orphan of what now...?
"I suppose that's my cue."
Her peace said, the moon goddess released him vaulted down into the arena, dark dress fluttering beneath her.
He glimpsed her opponent and grimaced. She was facing a gaunt pale beast of a man, humanoid, but only just. Tall and gaunt, white and withered, with not so much as a stitch of clothing to its name, the ghastly creature somehow managed to appear both old and young all at once. Whatever that thing was, it looked angry. The fiendish festering flail gripped in his right hand only further served to emphasize the contrast. Its body shifted oh so listlessly from side to side, seemingly ignorant of the world around it.
Honestly, it was akin to beauty and the beast, though with Flora, he couldn't be sure which was which.
"Little orphan." She tilted her head, regarding the beast like a hunk of meat. However did you escape that nightmare...?"
It snarled savagely at her.
"Hmm." thumbing her chin, the goddess of the moon took a step forward, then another now, beginning to circle it as a tigress would her prey. "It seems the Greater Will is more of a meddler than I thought. No matter. You know not what a true goddess is, and your essence shall only make me stronger-
"YEOW!"
Whatever it was, the Orphan was fast.
And loud. It certainly knew how to scream.
All its speed and strength availed it exactly naught.
Flora flicked her tongue and hair unfolded into a seething mass of dark tentacles, catching its limb, flail and all.
A savage twist of her head levered the Orphan into the ground, where she stomped down, grinding her bare foot into his face.
"Heeey, what's the matter?" she sneered down at it, digging her heel into its skull. "You're not finished already, are you? Come on, try harder." Another stomp followed, drawing a cry of pain from her victim. "Why are you still lying there? Didn't I tell you to TRY HARDER. Before I get bored, I'll play with you awhile."
The Orphan lashed out, lopping off her leg at the knee.
"Hmm?" Flora considered the bloody stump with a detached air, effortlessly balancing on her remaining limb. "You look happy. Want me to praise you?"
The enraged creature screamed and dove at her, lashing about in a furious frenzy.
One should not be able to doge so easily while standing upon a lone leg.
Flora did just that.
A burst of energy was Naruto's only warning as he watched from afar; her limb regrew in an instant and a single kick sent the Orphan sprawling. It struck the ground once with a yelp, bounced, then crashed headlong into a wall, cratering it spectacularly. Even from here he heard its bones break.
"Honestly? Its almost pathetic." Flora lower her leg then kicked at the air again, uncaring of the show she'd inadvertently given the audience. "Neither you, nor these fools have any idea what a god is capable of." A quick hop, skip, and a jump brought her back to the pinned Orphan. "Shall I educate you?"
It tried to tear itself free from the wall, growing larger as it did, sprouting hideous white wings.
Flora rolled her eyes and smacked the Orphan across the face, both breaking its neck and paralyzing it in the same instant.
"Is that all?" she scoffed at its frozen form, disappointed as one might be toward a broken toy. "Pitiful. Absolutely pathetic. You can't even transform or regenerate properly. You're a failure after all, it seems. I suppose there's no use in prolonging this any further...
She stabbed a hand forward.
Naruto knew what was about to transpire.
He could sense her murderous intent clear as day. His eyes widened. "Don't-
He knew Flora heard him because she looked right up at him and moved that much faster. She tore the orphan's still-beating heart from its chest, raised it to her mouth and took a great big bite out of it. He felt the very instant her strength increased. Alas, the same could not be said of the poor Orphan. As he looked on the abomination fell to its knees with a whine and smoldered away into dust. Hopefully it would finally know peace at last.
Grinning ear to ear and wearing a red smile, Flora turned and held up her prize like some sort of grisly trophy.
"Old gods and new! Hearken to me!" she threw her head back with a cackle, "Behold your champion!"
Naruto palmed his face. "She's gonna be a problem...
A/N: The Moon Presence claims another victim.
So, what say you? Should this continue? Would you like weekly updates?
Feedback is imperative and essential to all things, especially the Elden Ring stories.
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.
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~!
Previews are mostly the same, don't want to spoil things.
And yes, I'm quite aware of Lies of P.
So many good Soulslike games
(Previews)
Laxasia the complete, eh? Take that armor off. You look ridiculous.
A bolt of of electricity ht him. He grinned.
Heh. It tickles."
This was the moment.
"Now! Attack him!"
The ringleader laughed. "...did you really think I would be foolish enough to face you alone, Godwyn? I already told you. I brought friends. And you...you've made enemies."
Naruto exhaled slowly. Shrugged off his cloak. The navy garment fell to the ground, exposing his bare chest.
The Bolt of Granssax spat scarlet sparks in his grasp, eager for action.
Azure eyes shimmered into cold crimson.
"You should have brought more."
Clap.
They froze.
Clap. Claaap.
"No. How...?!"
Clap. Clap. Clap.
He stepped out of the shadows, still smiling, still clapping.
"You know what they say; what's dead may never die. Unfortunately for you, I've died before...
He should be dead.
Why?! Why wasn't he dead?!
...I know your kind. You never learn...unless you're made to learn."
As they looked on aghast, Godwyn dragged himself up onto one knee. A hand rose. Tore his bloody robe away.
"Very well." he exhaled slowly, a low burst of steam leaving his lips. They couldn't see his eyes, not with him hanging his head like that. "I've given thee courtesy enough...
His back glowed gold. Then a monster burst forth.
"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...
Such a ritual would undoubtedly grand her the freedom she so sought...but it meant he would die.
Ranni shook her head furiously, red hair swaying side to side. "No, no, no! I can't...!"
Do you hate them?
How could he hate the twins? Miquella and Malenia were his half-siblings and 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...
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 WILL remain onsite-but it won't be continued. I'm working two jobs with no end in sight and 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~!