I'm falling.
My world spins, a feeling of vertigo makes my stomach do flips. I catch single frames of reality in the swirling chaos, alternating between the two as my arms mindlessly flail about me. Swirls, Melina's aura chasing after me. More swirls, a wall of storm disturbed water rapidly approaching me. Swirls, I lose grip on my sword; swirls, lightning flashes overhead. Swirls, aura, swirls, water, swirls, aura, swirls, I slam into that water.
Frigid cold rips away the last body heat I had, my ears get muffled from a mix of escaping bubbles and churning liquids. It stings my nose, enters my lungs when I got the wind knocked out of me. My dislocated shoulder slams into a gravel floor of the lakebed, I hear something crunch. I don't know how I find which way is up, but I kick off the lakebed as debris and a dull blade come sinking down to the bottom with me.
I can't see, and even when my head breaches the surface, the darkness is encapsulating. I reach the surface faster than I expected, I nearly fall back in as I rocket up and out from the churning water. I sputter, I cough. Foul tasting water spills from my mouth; it stings my eyes. My slick hair clings to my face, a seemingly endless stream of frigid water dribbles down my chin. Wind sends waves into whitecaps, pummeling me about in the torrential rainfall. I'm in a shallow part of the lake, the water level barely makes it past my waist. Despite the fall, and the minimal water, nothing feels broken.
But I can't calm my nerves.
I lost hold of my sword.
My head whips back and forth, the raging tempest drowning out every form of sensation.
"My sword!"
I shout over the raging winds, my head whipping about for any sign of that brass blade. I can't see anything in these dark waters.
"Melina my sword! Where is it?"
Her aura flashes brightly inches from my face.
Leave it! We need to run!
"But-"
A shining blur slams down in front of me, with a force enough to make the air quake. My eyes widen behind my shielding forearms, my hair whipping back from the pressure alone. Kicked up waves fall away, and a golden monster appears, standing unhindered in a self-made crater. The massive horse unphased, knight merely staring at me. Cleanly chopped trees and pulverized boulders come crashing down all around him, giving his towering figure a background of white caps and partly submerging canopies against a sheer cliff face. Despite the sap and dirt that coats his armor, the wind that catches his cape and the rain that drips down his visor, he stares right at me, his halberd spinning as he gives a small flare.
"Tarnished."
His voice grips my heart, makes my back go cold.
That fall, there's no way.
I run, fighting against the water that restricts every step I take. I'm splashing wildly, flailing my arms to fight for balance.
Melina! Melina talk to me! What do I do!?
The Sentinel prepares to charge, Melina hesitates. Never have I thought the absence of a voice would fill me with such terror; I'm practically crawling away at this point. I'm grasping at straws, mania plaguing my movements. There's no way to defeat that thing. Even if I had my sword… that armor…
There's no way.
Even if I had a gun, a missile launcher, even a tank. There's no way I can defeat it.
I can only run, it's all I can think of. But I don't even know where I'm running to. I can't see anything further out than a stone toss away, can't tell right from left. The Erdtree obscured in clouds, the moon's light can't reach down here. The howling wind, the rolling thunder, the thump and splash of an approaching gallop. I struggle to live, struggle and grasp to find a light in this darkness. The lake gradually becomes shallower, becoming a level near the ankles, and I can begin to run in earnest. But escaping from a knight on calvary on foot?
It's a pipe dream.
There's no way.
Melina?
...
Melina answer me! What do I do!?
...
"Melina!"
…I don't know…
It's a voice in my head, devoid of emotion. Yet I can sense it. Improper english, a first for her. I can feel regret in her words.
The hooves approach, the Sentinel rears his halberd. He let's out a deep grunt, sure in his swing. I can't evade in water like this, I couldn't hope to roll or duck out or sidestep. I can hear it in Melina's words.
Destined Death is upon me.
I'll be part in two, I might feel it, might not. I will die, Melina will perish. Her death on my hands, my own death because of my own foolishness. My foolishness, it's because I'm a fool.
What a horrible way to go.
I'm sorry.
The halberd comes crashing down, I trip over something and fall.
Blade meets flesh, muscle and bone parted cleanly.
A shriek reverberates across the lake...
It's not coming from me.
GRRRAAAAAAAUUUUUGGGH!
It's a shrill roar, a noise that I can feel in my bones. I unconsciously go to cover my ears while kneeling, and that's when it dawns on me.
I'm still alive.
The hell?
Lance?
I rise to me feet; did I pass on without noticing? Wind still howls, rain still pours down.
No, I'm not in heaven. It's quite the opposite.
The Sentinel behind me lets out a grunt of surprise, his horse rears back in a frightened brey. I only partly notice them; my eyes are glued forward.
A building rises from the lake…
No, it's not a building.
Buildings aren't covered in scales.
Buildings don't have talons as long as spears, legs as thick as trees, and a wingspan that rivals a basketball court in length. They don't have a serpentine tail that bleeds from the tip, don't have an angular head composed of twisted horns and snarling teeth.
It's no building.
"Agheel!" The Sentinel blurts out. "Stay your ire, I seek no quarrel with you!"
I freeze up, a guttural growl sounds from the heaving silhouette. Lightning flashes far away, I get a fleeting glimpse of a primeval entity craning its long neck toward us.
Melina's aura floats unmoving next to me, her flashing slow and faltering.
Lance. Run. Please.
Rolling thunder echoes.
I can't register her words, something warm runs down my leg.
A claw tipped wing slams down onto the ground, a low hiss makes the hairs on my neck stand. That growl grows louder, a tail lashes back and forth, skimming over the lake surface. Dripping water and algae, a monster of myth has risen from the lake.
Curling flames leak from his gnarled maw, firelight illuminates everything around him. I can see his beady black eyes, see his wickedly sharp teeth. He looks over the Sentinel and I with a rabid glare, his head seemingly levitating in the realm of his own firelight.
A large cavalry knight behind me, and a dragon ahead of me. I'm standing dumbstruck between two titans.
The tip of the dragon's tail has been cleanly severed; I can only be certain what has happened.
Out of the frying pan, and into the-
The dragon's maw snaps open with a vile squelch, and a roar that makes my hearing strain erupts from behind rows of teeth. With it, flames come, they come in abundance. Its light nears my eyes, its heat threatens to reduce me to charcoal. Nothing more than a reflex; I dive out of the way.
A pillar of fire lunges for the Sentinel, he can do nothing but defend. Fire slams against that round shield of his, curling flames lap at its edges. It deflects every which way like a violent splash of a powered hose, lighting up the lapping waves and the stormy night sky with the vibrant colors of a sunset. Its heat is so intense, it's like my back is on fire. It feels like the water around me is boiling me alive, I do everything I can to scramble away in the shallow depth. I power to my feet as the flames subside, my skin looks bright pink all over. I grind my teeth until the searing pain subsides.
Melina, where am I going?
She's slow to answer, she must be watching the battle that has begun behind me.
I… Go left, make for the shore.
I can't see what she must see, but I listen. What she sees is a clash.
The dragon, Agheel, charges the Sentinel, biting onto the rim of his shield. The beast's weight pushes the Sentinel back, his horse can do nothing but whip its head about and whine. The Sentinel retaliates, and forces Agheel off, before swinging his halberd about. Agheel leaps back, his wings exerting a mighty gale to create distance. Flames begin to curl at the corners of his maw, the Sentinel charges.
I'm running, fighting to keep my footing. The dragon lets loose his flames again, some of the blaze strays this way. I don't stop, I thank God on high that I'm a runner.
Agheel takes to the skies, swiping at the Sentinel with large black talons. The Sentinel's horse takes a slash to the head, it staggers backward. That halberd comes about, striking Agheel near the chest. The dragon snarls, and loops about above, before crashing down, the Sentinel narrowly dodges.
The two sides exchange blows, sounds of roaring flames and shearing metal fills my ears.
A hiss and a growl, a grunt and a brey. The whoosh of a swinging halberd, the noise of blade against flesh.
I don't pay attention, I follow Melina's aura without a wavering thought. The ground feels like an earthquake is happening, I'm nearly snuffed out when the clash finds its way toward me.
Stop! Melina yells, I comply.
I'm glad I do, a hoof as thick as I am slams down inches from my face.
Wind blasts my back, Agheel's silhouette whisks by overhead. The Sentinel's horse jerks to the side, a sound of metal twisting and flesh tearing assaults my ears.
The horse lets out a mortifying cry, before collapsing. I dive out of the way of a falling body the size of an elephant, tasting algae and smooth stones when I land face first in the water.
The Sentinels tumbles, losing grip of his shield, which practically rolls away; becoming obscured in the darkness. His rolling body splashes water everywhere; he's dripping wet when he rises to his feet.
Agheel lands in front of him, that tail nearly knocks me down. The Sentinel, with only a halberd in hands, looks toward his horse with disdain. His armor has multiple gashes in them, an entire part of his left pauldron is missing. He heaves with deep breaths, holding his halberd with two hands. Agheel, with a deep cut on his chest and neck, has blood leaking from his maw, it's not his blood. The horse struggles in vain under Agheel, letting out wail after shrill wail. The dragon stomps once, a muffled snap sounds out from within the horse's neck. It spasms, it twitches, and it goes still.
A great deal of runes leak from its bloodied body; they make a beeline for me. The runes leech under my skin, disappearing from view. Agheel doesn't take notice, but the Sentinel does. He looks right at me, a wing and swaying tail between us.
"Tarnished. You…"
He trails off, I don't think I want to know what he won't say. I can't see his eyes so I can't tell how he feels. But based on his posture, and the way he stares at me, even when an opponent is standing in front of him… He would slowly tear me limb from limb if he got his hands on me.
Agheel stalks off to the left, circling the downed Sentinel. He opens his maw, hissing as he moves like a cross between a serpent and a tiger. The Sentinel breaks his glare at me, facing the black dragon that looks for an opening. He growls, twirling his halberd in an act of flare.
"Very well. Come, Agheel. If you yearn death, then I shall grant you it!"
Agheel roars, the two sides collapse in on one another.
Go now!
Melina doesn't wait, she darts ahead.
Agheel bites down when the two collide, the Sentinel shoves his weapon's shaft into that snapping maw.
He wrenches it right, striking Agheel with the blunt end, before wrenching left, catching him in the jaw with the halberd's axe head.
The dragon hisses, recoiling.
The Sentinel doesn't relent; he stabs the beast in the eye with his weapon's spear tip.
I duck under a swiping wing, nearly losing my footing as I evade a massive halberd's windup swing. Fire paints the sky, the Sentinel strikes Agheel with a clenched fist directly above me, nearly on beat with flashing lightning.
Thunder crashes down onto the four of us.
The Sentinel's armor looks like it's glowing in areas, steam and smoke rises off him, his cape is on fire. Agheel snaps onto his dominant forearm, jerking it like he planned to rip it off. In an act of unreal strength, the Sentinel grabs Agheel by the horns with his free hand, and spins about face with a shout of adrenaline.
"GRRRRRRRAAH!"
That reptilian body, longer than a bus and heavier than a semi, is swung slowly over the Sentinel's shoulder, crashing onto the lakebed like a length of heavy chains. Scratch that, crashing like a sledgehammer onto cheap plywood, I'm knocked off balance solely from the vibrations it causes. Agheel loses his grip and is nearly speared through the neck. In a blur of movement, the dragon flashes to his feet and snaps at the Sentinel, forcing the knight to retreat.
Wind pummels my frail body, tumultuous waves snap at my pumping legs. It feels like I'm trying to escape a collapsing building in the middle of an active warzone.
The brawl between titans recedes, before overlapping with my fleeing form time and time again.
Agheel bites and kicks and scorches, the Sentinel charges and pummels and chops.
Roars and grunts, stomping legs and gnashing teeth.
Agheel pins, the Sentinel repels.
The Sentinel falls, Agheel pounces.
I don't know when my legs found land, don't even know when I made a beeline for the Stranded Graveyard through the outer borders of the forest. Don't know when I scrambled past the hill with the Site of Grace, don't even know when I collapsed from exhaustion within the Stranded Graveyard's entrance.
I only know, at some point, thousands of runes sought me out back in the forest, and I swear I heard a triumphant roar echoing in dark.
It came from Agheel, and it mixed with the howling winds of the night.
Sometime during the night, I passed out.
I didn't think I would've been able to sleep, but here I am. I'm lying in a position like I was knocked unconscious, I only began to stir when morning sunlight illuminated my eyelids. I squint when I open my eyes, slowly working up to a sitting position.
Everything feels sore.
My back stings from a massive second-degree burn, my skin feels clammy and itchy. My arm relocated itself sometime yesterday; I was too pumped up on adrenaline to notice. If I had to guess, it was when I fell, at such a height that simple waist deep water wouldn't suffice to cushion.
Despite the fall, despite getting caught between a murderous giant and a territorial dragon, I'm alive.
The number of times I almost died; I would need more fingers on my hands to count the amount.
So many moments, so many times, when my life would have been snuffed out. But, I survived them all.
I can chalk up some to Melina watching my back for me, chalk up other to my reflexes.
But there were two times, two times when I should have certainly died.
If not die, then at least break a bone, or lose a limb.
It was dumb luck. I'm lucky, too lucky.
Lucky to the point that I feel like someone's watching me, dictating my movements. Not like Melina; something more.
…
Whatever.
I'd rather not make myself paranoid, I have enough problems already.
Good morning.
Seems a little glowing light noticed my drunken awakening.
Hey.
Are you well?
…More or less.
Melina floats about in front of me, falling silent besides a constant twinkling noise.
…I… would like to apologize.
Silence.
I take in a deep breath; it comes out in a pained sigh. I work up to standing. My stomach growls, but I'm nowhere near thinking about food.
"Come on, let's talk in person."
Melina follows me outside, trailing behind me like a guilty puppy.
The ground is damp, it gives a squelching noise with each step I take. Morning birds are singing and fluttering about, but I can't see any critters on the ground. The Erdtree stands in all its splendor, the castle that lies northward glints in the morning sunlight. Everything looks glossy and wet.
I spare a look near the lake. It's not too far from here, though it's hard to make anything out. I swear I spot something golden shining amongst the bog-like surface, though I may also just be seeing things. It was a vicious battle, like something I would only see in movies. My ears still haven't fully recovered, though that changes when I take a seat near the Site of Grace.
My aching joints soften, hearing becomes crisp and clear. My back returns to its normal state, my uncomfortable night of sleep becomes nothing more than a bad dream.
Melina's aura grows and takes shape, before it becomes full of color. Melina herself; she doesn't kneel down like she normally does. She stands silently, her one open eye staring solemnly at the floor. I sit and stare at the breach, taking a mild glance at where I left my armor.
…
Forget it, it wouldn't of mattered if I was wearing it or not. It probably would've been the death of me instead.
We stay in silence for nearly a whole minute.
Finally, a voice rings out. It comes from me.
"Sorry."
Melina starts.
Sorry?
What could Lance possibly be sorry for? It throws her off, and she snaps her attention to the young man sitting down next to her. He looks to be mad more than anything else, why does he apologize?
"Why?"
It is all she can think of saying; she was not expecting things to go this way. Lance stays quiet, though his mind is a torrent of memories flashing by like a current in a river.
Memories of the previous day, terrible sights and violent experiences. Memories of his first day here, and some memories of his battles in the caves underneath where they are now. And, amongst it all, memories of his life prior to becoming Tarnished.
Pleasant memories, though he seems to get sour thinking about them.
He chews on the inside of his cheek. He chooses his words carefully.
He makes eye contact with her, a look of conviction has stricken his otherwise carefree face.
"I'm sorry, because I've been careless."
Melina furrows her brow, Lance continues.
"Yesterday, that whole thing with the Sentinel, it could've been avoided if I was more cautious."
He casts his eyes toward the forest.
"I wasn't being cautious in the slightest, I even let a fully armored knight on a horse sneak up on me."
He holds out a hand, counting down fingers with a berated voice.
"Not only that, but I didn't listen to you, and I fell off a cliff." The thumb goes down.
"I was helpless in the water, and I only survived because of a fluke." Pinky.
"That dragon attacked the Sentinel instead of me, so I was spared." Ring finger.
"The only reason I was able to escape was because of who guides me." The middle finger.
He finally looks at Melina, pointing his remaining index finger at her.
"That guide is you."
Melina clenches her hands into fists.
"But I failed you, Lance. I was unable to sense the Sentinel's presence, and I knew not what to do once you fell."
She decided she was going to be Lance's guide. Was that not her conviction?
"It's my fault I fell in the first place." Lance remarks.
"Yet you would have most likely been slain if you had stayed in the forest." Melina counters.
"I panicked, and I made a false decision." Lance shrugs it off. "We both made mistakes."
He sits back, taking in the view of the Erdtree's outermost branches high above.
"But we're alive, and that's all that matters."
Before Melina can say anything else, he stands and faces her.
"I don't blame you, and I have no right to. After watching over me and putting up with me for days on end, I couldn't possibly say anything that wouldn't follow me to heaven's gates. You did everything you could to keep me alive, and you succeeded. I failed and stumbled time and time again, I haven't been able to do anything unless you told me to do it first."
He gives a small bow, which looks silly. But Melina understands the gesture.
"I am in your debt, so please, don't feel sorry."
A small smile creeps across Melina's lips, but she quickly chases it away. She failed him, that much is obvious to her. She cannot let herself become flustered when Lance needs her most, not again.
Yet, that fragile confidence; it has strengthened. In the fires of facing death and escaping with his life, Lance did not break.
He has not broken down and cried, has not pleaded for home or blamed Melina for everything.
And as he apologized, his thoughts did not contradict him, they were perfect echoes of his words.
He has grown.
Melina lets out a breath she did not know she was holding; it comes out as a sigh. He has come this far, why should she have trample on it to say her piece? She can leave this as it is.
"I will not."
Melina answers me, and I nearly breathe a sigh of relief.
"Thank you."
I raise my head, biting the inside of my lip. I know I'll regret this later. I finally got a taste of what this world can provide, and all I did was run away. Facing such monstrosities head on is a different beast of its own. The road ahead is treacherous and might hold nothing but pain and misery for me. Yet, when my mouth opens, I dash away the fears.
"I promise I'll get stronger, so strong that you won't have to baby me anymore."
Melina gives a nod.
"And, I promise that I will watch over you, and bring you to the semblance of Elden Lord."
Then it's settled.
I go quiet, Melina reads something on my face.
She may also tell from the thoughts swirling around in my head, because she cocks her head.
"Is there more?"
I take a deep breath. There's more.
That Sentinel, why was he in the woods?
I've thought about it, and while I haven't given much time to think about it, no reasonable answers come to mind. What's more, he came straight to me, and attacked without saying anything to begin with. There's a chance he was patrolling and spotted me…
In the middle of a thunderstorm, at night, in a forest?
Not likely. Only fools go out in a storm like that, present company included.
As I'm mulling things over, Melina watches me intently, like my face was a screen where she can view my thoughts and assumptions. By how her facial expression's turning to a darker tone, she's probably catching onto what I'm suspecting.
Maybe he saw Melina's aura, her light is definitely noticeable. But seeing a light like that isn't uncommon, even the falling leaves of the Erdtree glow like that. There's no reason he would have decided to chase after the light, unless he knew of me, and knew of Melina.
I haven't been in this world long, Varré was already long gone, wanderers are not intelligent in the slightest.
There's only one other party, and if they sent something like a Sentinel for me, they could send something stronger next.
It's a hunch, I may be overthinking this.
I'll be lowering myself to being a murderer if I follow through, and of course I might just die in the end anyway.
But still…
That knight.
Melina connects the dots before I speak, I speak anyways. If she understands, then there's no need to explain. I skip that, and go straight for my intention, and my conviction.
"Melina, someone knows of your existence, and they want me dead. If we hope to survive, we need to act fast, before they beat us to it."
Who am I? Saying such things? A recent high school graduate that played games in his room not even two weeks prior. What am I saying?
…
To hell with it.
I'm done being scared. I'm done thinking about my conscience. And I'm done being a bottom feeder that scurries away at the first sign of trouble. I'm stuck here, and there is an enemy that wants me dead. If I have the means to do so, why not beat them to the punch?
Lord, forgive me, but I wish to live, through any means necessary.
"That knight, Roard. His soldiers, the entire outpost. Melina, I need you to teach me how to fight, but not just how to swing my sword."
I lean in, Melina looks like she's paling.
If I want to survive, I can't just be a mere kid, raised in the 21st century, swinging a sword around. I can't be a child used to hygiene, three square meals a day, and a soft bed to sleep on. Used to people pulling their punches, used to rules of engagement followed through with words instead of fists and blades. I can't be a technology dependent, sedentary, parent leeching infant.
I need to be more.
If I value my life, I can no longer hope for fair rules, hope for boundaries, or hope for mercy.
I have to be more.
I have the mindset; the Sentinel's death gave me the runes. All I need now, is the first step.
"Teach me warfare. I need you to teach me how to kill."