If this is the first time reading this, then i hope you enjoy. Otherwise know that this story has been rewritten. More on that on chapter 6
The ashen one felt his arms tremble from exhaustion, yet still kept his blade steady, for on its opposite end lay the last lord of cinder impaled. His strength failing him at last, he stared back lifelessly as he slowly turned to ash and fell apart.
Without the support, the blade fell to the ground and was dragged through it, as the ashen one took shuddering steps forward. He slowly approached the first flame, which was more of a bonfire now, despite its grand name. Next to it he found the reassuring glow of the runes that would summon the firekeeper to him, as they had agreed upon.
He fell to his knees as he stabbed his Zwei-hander into the ash for support and looked towards his target: the first flame. Gazing into it, he reflected on the journey that brought him here. He thought of all the companions he met along the way, always struggling to complete their own journeys despite the countless hardships they faced. He remembered the small moments of merriment and celebration after defeating a strong foe through jolly cooperation. From fighting Yhorm with the help of Siegward to Aldrich with Anri. A smile threatened to form on his undead face, before it quickly turned bittersweet, remembering once more how few of them remained and fewer still actually reached their goals.
He remembered all of his own struggles as well. The countless enemies he had to slay to get here. The abomination infested graveyards, crab infested swamps and poisoned bogs he had to traverse. Especially, the swamp that combined knee deep poison with curse spewing basilisks… sigh.
Most of all, however, he remembered the deterioration. Every place he visited was in a state of decay. Dilapidated and abandoned architecture lay everywhere without anyone to care for it. Most of the people had already died after all, corpses piled high, filling entire buildings and fields. The few that managed to survive through it all were usually insane and feral…
Even the demons, for all their ferocity and power, that could once repel even the gods, had essentially gone extinct. With the death of both the old king and the princes, there was no-one left to fuel the chaos flame and once it burned out, no more demons could ever be birthed again.
Ushering in the age of dark was similar in that way. Despite some also calling it the age of man, he didn't doubt that it would cause the deaths of most, if not all of the few remaining people that were still trying to live in this broken world. Oolacile was a poignant example of what was to come in this age.
He resented having to make such a choice, any choice for that matter, but especially this one. Part of him, exhausted and frustrated, was tempted to just burn himself and leave it to whoever came after. A part that grew every time his search for alternatives came up empty again and again. And yet, another still bigger part wouldn't allow him to take the easy way out. Whether he liked it or not, wanted it or not, it was his responsibility and he would see it through.
Firming his resolve, he turned towards the glistening runes and reached out towards them.
They glowed briefly, before the fire keeper materialized in a brief flash of light. Dressed as always in her black dress, with dark bandages wrapped around her arms and a silver tiara covering her eyes, matching her long silver-like flaxen hair, tied in a braid behind her.
They looked at each other briefly, confirming the others intentions, before the fire-keeper finally spoke.
"Ashen one, has thine decision been made final?"
He looked at the first flame one last time, before turning back to her and nodding slowly.
Her hands shook slightly, but steadied before long and she responded heavily.
"I understand"
Carefully, as if cradling a life ever so small and precious, the firekeeper reached out towards the first flame. Sinking her hands into the ash beneath it, she carefully pulled it out and cradled it between her delicate fingers, as she watched it slowly dying.
The ashen one felt like he was intruding on something private, something sacred and looked towards the dimming sun instead. Compared to bringing about the age of dark this was ultimately inconsequential. He knew. And yet, forcing the fire-keeper, who supported and cared for him every step of the way, to forsake the duty she had given her life to, filled him with equal amounts of guilt.
Ending the age of fire had a greater purpose after all. Implicating the fire-keeper this way, however, was simply a result of his lack of ability. Unfortunately, he couldn't extinguish the first flame on his own…
Before long, the fire-keeper started speaking softly.
"The first flame quickly fades. Darkness will shortly settle."
She closed her hands around the flame as the world grew dimmer and dimmer.
"However… one day, tiny flames will dance across the darkness. Like embers linked by Lords past."
And just like that, the world was submerged in darkness.
A legacy, countless of millennia old, had just reached its end. A silent and pathetic end.
After a couple moments in the quiet darkness that had settled, the hesitant shuffling of clothes could be heard, followed by a whispering voice.
"Ashen one… hearest though my voice still?"
The fire-keeper had reached out towards him, asking silently for his hand.
The unkindled, slowly took his hand off the blade, but hesitated. He felt a sense of wrongness, of unfairness in accepting the comfort of her touch, after everything. Still, he would not reject her offer, so, perhaps for the last time, he reached out and carefully placed his hand on top of hers.
He could feel their hands tremble slightly, though he could not tell who caused it.
The firekeeper then reached out her own and gently grasped it between them. Feeling the warm metal of the embered undead, she squeezed them reassuringly and smiled a comforting yet melancholy smile.
The ashen one tightened his own for a moment, trying to offer comfort of his own, if at all possible, before relaxing into her touch and slowly closing his eyes.
And so, they fell into a deep slumber and were slowly encased in ash, that would hold them in the darkness for ages to come.