I rode along the peninsula with Godwyn floating beside me, next to Rennala who remained on her miniature moon.
The first thing we noticed was the lack of bodies scattered along the road. The bloodstains and ruins were still there, but both sides of the conflict had already collected their dead.
The Misbegotten we met on our way did not attack us, but they were wary, eyeing us suspiciously, ready to draw their weapons.
I did not pay much attention to this; it will take time for Kenneth and the Leonine Misbegotten to put their part of the negotiations into practice, so I stayed out of the way of the Misbegotten and focused on exploring the peninsula.
We explored the route to Castle Morne calmly since we had not had the chance on our unfortunate previous visit to the great fortification. I obtained smiting stones, a golden seed, a complete map of the peninsula, and an ash of war ash for my bow carried by a scarab beetle.
Looking at the map, Rennala and I determined that our next stop would be Ailing Village, near the Morne Tunnel, where we might find some survivors of the revolt, or at least something useful.
With our destination in mind, we headed towards the Forest Watchtower, following the dirt road until we reached the outskirts of the village, close to the tree line. We spotted the houses roofs and a church at the top of a hill.
Therefore, I dismounted Torrent, sending it away, and Rennala stepped out of her moon. We approached the village, talking about what questions we should ask its inhabitants, but our conversation died the moment we set foot in the village and found a dreadful landscape.
It was as if a dragon had set fire to the village, plants, buildings, trees, and animals became grey ruins or charred, unrecognizable corpses. Strangely, there was a group of people amidst the bodies and slowly crumbling ruins.
The people prostrated themselves around a huge bonfire, with a crucified person burning in the scorching flames, covering their faces and screaming incoherently as they struggled.
Rennala and I exchanged a serious look, nodded, and drew our respective weapons.
I pulled the Grafted Blade from my bottomless bag and readied my staff, darkness rushing through the spinning rings, simultaneously; Rennala summoned her staff with a blue flash, its tip glowing faintly with magic.
We approached the group of people with slow, careful steps, the burnt grass and ashes crackling slightly under our feet.
One of the people rose from his prostrate position, throwing his head back amid screams. I spotted something shiny between the gaps in his fingers that hid his face.
However, the person stopped their bizarre actions as soon as his head came back down and he had a view of his surroundings, staring at Rennala and me.
Suddenly, the person let out a shrill scream, uncovering his face, and revealing a pair of flaming eyes, enveloped in a yellowish-orange flame that burned out of their sockets.
"Alden, kill him, now!" Godwyn shouted, manifesting himself unexpectedly, with a fear and concern I rarely saw.
The shouts drew the attention of the people nearby, and soon all the survivors of whatever had happened in this village stood up, revealing their pale, slender, and worn forms, and picking up various tools to use as weapons, kitchen knives, woodcutters' axes, pitchforks and much more.
All these people shared one characteristic in common, a pair of flaming eyes. The first one who saw us earlier raised an axe as he shouted, but I cast a Dark Orb in his direction before he could finish his action.
The spell closed the distance at great speed, lifting the ashes in its path and hitting the villager in the chest, destroying his head and the left side of his torso in an explosion of darkness and blood.
The remaining villagers did not care about their companion's mangled corpse and advanced towards us before the body hit the ground, although they did not get far. I cast a second Dark Orb, hitting a villager in the head, reducing him to a red stain on the ground with a dark explosion.
Rennala bombarded two villagers with basic spells; the glowing projectiles tearing chunks of flesh and bone from the crazed onlookers, sending them tumbling to the ground until the damage proved too much and the life left their bodies as the flame in their eyes went out.
Three of the villagers ran towards me, throwing clumsy blows with the tools they carried. Their screams conveyed no message and the flames in their eyes bothered me, as if I stared directly into the sun, but I dispatched them without difficulty.
I cut down the two closest to me with a swift blow from the Grafted Blade. I heard the metallic creak of the sword cutting through the air, followed by the sound of sliced flesh, spilled blood, and the crack of broken bones.
It was a clean cut, the upper torso of both villagers remained in the air shortly, while their legs fell to the ground. I raised my sword again and struck the third villager, hitting his shoulder and cutting him diagonally, achieving a similar result to my previous opponents.
Soon the whole village went silent, the only noise being the crackling of the fire. The flame in the villagers' eyes extinguished, and their bodies disappeared into runes and souls, the red-stained ground the only proof of their existence.
"What, in the name of the gods, has happened here?" I asked myself, observing my ruined surroundings.
"I wonder the same thing." Rennala replied, observing the ruins with doubt and suspicion.
We both seem to wonder what happened here, but it is a mystery, except to Godwyn. I doubt it is a good thing if his worried reaction means anything, but it cannot be pleasant if it was enough for Godwyn to show real fear.
Currently, the demigod in question paced back and forth, swirling a goblet of wine in one hand as he held his chin in deep thought, muttering words to himself.
"Shabriri... Merchants... Three Fingers... Mother... Capital... Flame."
I tried to get Godwyn's attention subtly, but the demigod showed no reaction, no matter how hard I tried, not even when I stopped in front of him and he ran through me like a spirit.
Any cruder method will call Rennala's attention, which would have resulted in the creation of a motive for my unusual action. Therefore, I left Godwyn aside and advanced through the village, walking towards the church with Rennala following me.
"The villagers didn't show any pain or reaction to our attacks." I said, breaking the tense silence.
"I agree, and the flame in their eyes was unnatural, clearly magical, and certainly related to what happened here." Rennala replied.
"They were drawn to the flames and consumed by it, resulting in some kind of madness." Hm... Not unlike the hollows, I encountered in Drangleic.
Our conversation not only left us with more questions than answers, but eventually, we made our way to the church, only to find four smaller rats surrounding a giant rat, all with eyes engulfed in flames.
"Well, it seems that animals are also affected by this mysterious flame." I muttered, lighting my pyromantic flame.
"Nothing we can't handle, but I wonder if this flame is a type of magical disease to spread in such a way." Rennala replied, preparing some spells.
I cast Flame Swathe and a small fireball appeared in the middle of the group of rats, floating for a few seconds before spinning rapidly with a high-pitched hum as its glow intensified, bursting into flames shortly afterward.
The rats squealed as the flames touched their bodies, burning their flesh and tearing the smaller rats apart with the explosion. The giant rat survived the initial attack, although badly burned to the point of being almost unrecognizable.
Rennala conjured a crystal fragment, sending it toward the rat. The crystal closed the distance in a blue blur, piercing the rat in its right eye with a wet noise. The rat fell to the ground in mid-run, its body going limp and the flame in its remaining eye going out, soon all the rats disappeared, similar to the villagers.
Rummaging through the church, we found a Sacred Tear, which I promptly kept in my bag to improve my flasks, and probably the cause of the calamity that befell the village, a paper sheet demonstrating the Incantation of a jet of orange fire shooting out in an arch.
I read the teachings on the paper sheet, trying to understand the point of the Incantation, but the burns made it almost impossible to understand, but I did discern a few solitary words.
"Alden, burn that paper sheet." Godwyn spoke seriously, manifesting himself next to me, staring at the Incantation as if it were the worst of the monsters.
Normally, I would have questioned why, but Godwyn's seriousness was all the explanation I needed. I lit my flame, burning the paper in my hand and reducing it to ashes.
"You'll explain to me what happened here, won't you?" I whispered to Godwyn.
"Yes, during our journey. Now let's go, I don't want to stay here any longer than I have to, this place brings back bad memories." Godwyn whispered before walking out of the church, gradually disappearing.
"We have our explanation, someone used a dangerous Incantation that got out of control and infected the inhabitants and animals of the village, driving them mad." I said to Rennala as we walked out of the church.
"Hm... That is a very shallow explanation, dear. Incantations don't usually spread like a disease, although madness happens more than I like to admit." Rennala replied, frowning and squeezing her staff, hard, making small crystals come out of the ground.
"We can look for answers in the academy library if you wish, but I suggest we leave this place, this tragic sight is getting to us." I suggested before Rennala's magic got out of control again.
"I agree. I don't doubt that there's something about orange flames and madness in the academy tomes, but my head hurts just thinking about going through so many books in search of something so specific." Rennala muttered angrily.
"Ha! I share the sentiment!" I laughed lightly, calling out to Torrent as Rennala returned to her moon. So we returned to our exploration of the peninsula.
I glimpsed something out of the corner of my eye, my Pyromantic Flame glowing. I do not remember lighting it, so I quickly put it out before I started a fire, but my hand itched after that.
-XXXXXX-
"What you saw was the result of the influence of an Outer God known as The Frenzied Flame, an entity opposed to the Greater Will, representing Chaos rather than Order." Godwyn spoke seriously, as we rode. His face locked into a statue-like expression but with a worried glint in his eye.
"Another Outer God, how many of them are there in the Lands Between?" I asked, searching my mind for what little I knew about such beings.
"I have no idea, although some exert more influence than others, like the Formless Mother, and the God of Scarlet Rot, but the Greater Will remains the dominant Outer God, although there are theories that the Greater Will and Frenzied Flame were once a single being that split in the past, as both communicate via fingers, forming a complete hand."
"I believe that should be considered heresy." I asked, already knowing the answer.
"It is a heresy of the highest degree for the few who possess such knowledge. It is believed that Shabriri, The Slanderer, and the most reviled man in the Lands Between, was the first to be influenced by the Frenzied Flame after having his eyes gouged out."
"Shabriri, didn't Irina mention him before?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes, Shabriri became a kind of bogeyman after his execution for heresy. It is the story mothers tell their children. Behave yourself or you'll be taken away by Shabriri, he hates disobedient children." Godwyn replied, making the voice of an angry mother accompanied by exaggerated gestures.
I laughed at the display, making Godwyn share my reaction, but we soon returned to the conversation.
"Shabriri is dead and that's a fact, but the Frenzied Flame still seeks vessels for its power to destroy the world. You saw what happened in the village, someone got their hands on a Frenzy Incantation and infected the whole village with madness, a tiny fraction of the power of an Outer God."
"Destroy the world? Why?" I asked in surprise. I'm no stranger to the risk of the end of the world, because that's what they say will happen if the First Flame goes out, with the coming of the Age of the Dark, but knowing that the world could have ended and I wouldn't even know why, disturbs me.
"This is a mystery, Shabriri is dead and the Three Fingers is sealed in the capital, so no one can communicate with the Frenzied Flame to know its motives. Which begs the question, how, in my mother's name, did someone get a Frenzy Incantation?"
"I suppose that someone gave the Incantation to the poor villagers, but whom?"
"That may be a hopeful thought, but I pray that this person is a fool who doesn't know what he's doing, because if he isn't... Well... A lunatic with a plan is more dangerous than a lunatic without one. There are things in this world that should be left alone and forgotten."
I thought deeply about Godwyn's words. The strange reaction I got from my flame earlier did not seem worrying, but I have my doubts after Godwyn's explanation.
I will tell you the truth, I would rather have my worries unfounded than hide them from the demigod and betray his trust. We have been through a lot together, I think it is time to return the favor and be more open with him.
"Godwyn, I don't want to worry you, but my Pyromantic Flame has been acting strange since we left the village." I said worriedly.
"That glowing thing in your hand that you use to conjure those pyromancies?" Godwyn asked, staring at me with wide eyes.
"Yes, but there's a possibility that it's nothing. I've destroyed the Frenzy Incantation, but my flame is flaring up without my command and my hand is itching as if I have an allergy."
"Hm... I've witnessed your magical abilities, I don't doubt that you can master the Frenzy Incantations, because you're not an amateur, but if the problem with your flame is what we think it is, you can't let yourself be consumed by madness and despair, because that's what the Frenzy Flame feeds on."
Madness and despair, not unlike what it takes to become Hollow completely.
"I'll do my best, Godwyn. This may sound strange, but I have experience in dealing with this kind of thing." I laughed nervously, trying to reassure the demigod, but my attempt to lighten the mood proved ineffective as Godwyn stared at me worriedly.
"Just be careful Alden, losing you would be a tragedy. I'd return to my solitary state, and I've lost count of how many centuries I've stayed that way." Godwyn spoke before disappearing.
I brought a hand to my chest, stopping above my tight heart. Hm... Therefore, this is real regret. What a disturbing feeling.
-XXXXXX-
We found a Crystal Tear that increased my faith in a vessel surrounded by poisonous flowers near the shore, and the rest of the journey went without problems. That is until we had to pass through the Lesser Erdtree to cross the peninsula.
-XXXXXX-
The Erdtree Avatar slammed its staff into the ground, cracking the earth, followed by a small tremor. Sending a sacred shockwave through the ground and creating a luminous orb above its non-existent head soon after.
Rennala and I repeated our previous strategy and ran in opposite directions while conjuring spells towards the Avatar.
The large wooden creature focused on Rennala, approaching with heavy, thundering footsteps. Simultaneously, Rennala bombarded the Avatar with a flurry of crystals, piercing the monster with a series of cracks, resulting in a shower of wood splinters.
The Avatar raised its staff above its head, trying to hit Rennala with a crushing blow, but the Queen of the Full Moon wrapped herself in her miniaturized moon and floated away from the attack, sending the moon in question towards the Avatar after she left it.
I, on the other hand, ran behind the Avatar, leaving the holy projectiles behind, hearing their humming cut through the air before piercing the ground with a muffled noise.
I lit my flame and charged a pyromancy. I watched as the flame in my hand intensified into a brilliant red, the result of chaos pyromancy, and threw a large Chaos Fireball towards the Avatar.
Rennala's moon and my fireball hit the Avatar simultaneously, creating a mixture of a beautiful starry sky and a boiling tide of fire and lava as the Avatar roared in pain.
The Avatar had a huge hole ripped in its chest, courtesy of Rennala's moon, while my pyromancy started a fire in its back, which slowly melted away. The Avatar roared in fury, and leapt with all its might, leaving destroyed pieces of its body behind in the process, creating a shower of wood and ash.
We knew what it intended, so we moved away from the Avatar before it hit the ground. The Avatar landed with a thud, shaking the plain and tearing off more pieces of its crackling body.
Fortunately, Rennala and I stayed far enough away from the holy wave that followed. We met in front of the Avatar and prepared our respective attacks. Rennala accumulated magic at the tip of her staff while I prepared another pyromancy.
I half-closed my eyes upon seeing the yellowish hue of my flame, but I was too late to cease the piromancy. Let us see if Godwyn and I were right, and to my surprise, my arm shook as my fingers twitched.
I grunted in pain as uncontrolled sparks wrapped around my hand, snapping in the air, and a burst of yellowish fire shot out of my flame instead of the Forbidden Sun I had intended to cast.
My arm flew back thanks to the unexpected recoil of the Incantation, but I remained firmly in place. I felt a strong, momentary headache and burning in my eyes, probably the price to pay for using the Incantation.
Both attacks advanced towards the rising Avatar. Rennala's magic beam pierced the Avatar's belly, opening a smoking hole to the other side.
The Incantation, meanwhile, hit the Avatar where its head should have been. There was a yellow flash followed by a buzzing sound and the crackling of wood. When the light subsided, there was a molten semicircle stretching from the top of the Avatar to its chest.
The Avatar stood for a few seconds before falling forward like a felled tree, disappearing into runes and souls, and leaving two Crystal Tears behind.
I took the two tears and put them in my bag, but I was surprised when Rennala approached, grabbed my hand, and raised it in front of her face, putting me on my tiptoes.
"That damned flame got its claws into you, how? You destroyed the Incantation!" Rennala exclaimed, analyzing the yellowish sparks with a crushing grip on my wrist.
"I theorize that I only had to read the contents of the Incantation to be affected by the flame, it only took a glance. That flame spreads like a plague." I replied, stepping back and slipping out of Rennala's grip, much to her surprise.
"Do you feel anything different, any pain or discomfort?" Rennala asked worriedly, holding out a hand.
"No, I just felt the initial shock of something so unexpected, but apart from that, I'll be fine if I don't cast the Incantation again. But I still want to visit the academy library in the future; this flame is something that can't be ignored." I replied, allowing Rennala to hold my hand and observe the flame.
"Are you sure you can continue, dear?"
"Yes, I am." I sighed tiredly, giving Rennala a reassuring smile. Her grip on my hand increased, making me shiver, but she did not insist on her questions.
"Rennala, I'm being serious, I want to find out more about this flame." I reaffirmed my objectives to the queen.
"I believe in you, but I'm afraid you'll end up like the villagers." Rennala replied with a disturbing glint in her eye, her posture shortly returning to the madness she had demonstrated at the academy.
"Don't worry, my mind is a fortress and my will is indestructible, besides, I'll get up if I fall in battle, as I always have." I replied, reaffirming that everything was fine, but I could not erase the hint of doubt in the back of my mind.
-XXXXXX-
Our exploration took us to the Church of the Pilgrimage. An image appeared in my mind as we stepped over the hill. I saw this place before, the painting in Stormveil.
I found a ghostly painter while exploring the area and received the War Hawk's Spirit Ash when I touched it. I also found a second Sacred Tear in the church. I put both items in my bag and continued my journey.
-XXXXXX-
We headed south, finding a Winged Scythe in a chest in a set of ruins, where my companions questioned my habit of hitting chests once again.
We moved on towards the Fourth Church of Marika, where I found a third Sacred Tear and Rennala made a point of destroying the statue of Marika in the church with a disturbing smile on her face, although she remained in a good mood for the rest of the travel.
Other than that, our exploration of the peninsula was strangely quiet. We explored ruins, abandoned buildings, and caves, where we had an unexpected encounter with a gigantic Rune Bear that we assaulted with spells.
We spotted the majestic giant mausoleum walking in the distance with ghostly soldiers surrounding it, talked to merchants, and had a friendly meeting with the Demi-Human Queen of the region, as some members of the academy presented her with a staff as a sign of peace.
Unfortunately, we did not find the other half of the medallion, so the elevator remained inactive. I wonder if I should take the more difficult route to the plateau, but there is still Caelid to go and Radhan...
How will I face Radhan with Rennala by my side? How will I explain that we have to kill her son? Will her mind break even more? I think... I think it is time to try to cure her madness.
I used the grace of the fourth church to return to the Round Table, we have a lot to do. Visit the academy library, upgrade my equipment, find the other half of the medallion, and try to cure Rennala.
Then the golden mist enveloped us, sending us to our destination.
-XXXXXX-
There is something wrong here. That is what I thought when I set foot on the Round Table.
Someone extinguished all the candles and torches, leaving the rooms and halls in darkness, and no one stood around, leaving the Round Table in complete silence.
Looking around, I did not spot Rennala anywhere, but the sound of footsteps caught my attention. I felt a tingling in my body, the sign of an invasion, and soon the silent man that stood near Gideon's office appeared.
I believe his name was Esha, the man wore black armor adorned with bones and carried a skeletal fist in one hand and a staff in the other, he also glowed red like an invader.
"Well, that's unexpected, but not surprising. A supposed ally turning out to be an invader is not uncommon to me. What do you wish?" I asked, holding up my staff and lighting my flame.
However, I did not get an answer; Esha swung his staff, conjuring a spell. Purple energy formed at three points on the ground, tearing off chunks of stone with a crash, and forming three floating boulders, sending them towards me right after.
The boulders closed the distance quickly, but I moved faster, casting Chaos Fireball and throwing it towards the boulders. Both attacks collided in mid-flight, creating a boom followed by a flaming explosion and stone rain, resulting in a smoke cloud.
I prepared for my opponent's next move and did not have to wait long before Esha leaped out of the smoke cloud, his fist shrouded in red energy.
I used the ash from my staff as soon as Esha approached. My weapon spun swiftly in the air, hitting Esha repeatedly and forcing him backward. I called the staff back to my hand and stepped forward, casting Great Combustion directly into the face of my stunned enemy.
A flaming eruption surged from my palm, throwing Esha backward until his back hit the center table. Esha stood on shaky legs, leaning his body on the piece of woodwork.
Esha cast another spell and a purple projectile hit me in the chest, pulling me forward at an absurd speed. I spotted Esha's glowing fist approaching again, but it was a fool's endeavor.
I swung my arm, parrying his blow with my staff, aimed my pyromantic flame at his chest, and cast a Fire Whip. A flaming spiral consumed Esha's body, advancing like a wave to the center of the table, where it started a fire.
I saw the smoky, gray trail left by my pyromancy when the flames and smoke dissipated. More importantly, Esha's upper body was no more. Leaning forward, I looked inside what remained of the armor, hoping to find blood and organs, but there was nothing, the armor was empty. Hm... A possible puppet.
I had to leave my thoughts behind, as the golden mist enveloped me again and I found myself at the real Round Table, bright, clean, and with its usual inhabitants, or not, as there were new faces here.
However, there were things that are more important now. I ignored the greetings of those who were familiar, and the curious glances of strangers, and marched towards Gideon's office, feeling a little worried that I did not found Rennala.
I found Esha's armor and weapon where he used to stay. I put the weapon and armor, except for the helmet, in my bag, then kicked the large double doors of Gideon's office, surprising the All-Knowing.
"What do you think you're doing?!? I hope you have an explanation! Have you gone mad?!?" Gideon demanded angrily, slamming both hands on his desk as he quickly rose from his hunched stance.
"Explain it, now!" I demanded too, raising Esha's helmet in front of the Tarnished.
"Oh, please sit down; we have a lot to talk about." Gideon replied, pointing to a free chair.
END OF CHAPTER