章 1: Melina
A/N: This fic is complete on all of my other websites, but I've decided to post it up here as well one chapter a day until it's done. If you want to read ahead, you can go check it out on QQ, HF, FF, or AO3!
Give it a try and let me know what you think!
-x-X-x-
There are many Tarnished in the Lands Between. More than in the past, but not quite as many as before. This might have seemed like a contradiction, but there was truth to the words all the same. Tarnished Hunters, Godrick the Grafted's ilk, and other ne'er dowels, chased down fresh Tarnished wherever they could be found. It made Limgrave quite the unfriendly place to be a Tarnished these days… but still no less friendly than anywhere else in the Lands Between.
Yes, there were many Tarnished in the Lands Between, but only one Tarnished was HER Tarnished. Her chosen champion, the one who Melina had decided to pin all of her hopes upon. She'd been looking for such a Tarnished for quite some time now. After watching this one for the past few hours, she knew… he was her Tarnished.
He'd woken in the Chapel of Anticipation, and immediately went on his way. Clad in the armor of a veteran, wielding a simple Claymore, he'd strode forward, seemingly fearless even in the face of danger. And oh, was there danger awaiting him. The Grafted Scion that made its home near the Chapel of Anticipation would be a match for most of your average Tarnished. It was, after all, made to be greater than the sum of its parts…
Yes, each Grafted Scion was made of the leftovers from the Tarnished that Godrick the Grafted's Tarnished Hunters captured and brought him. Those he deemed unworthy of being grafted upon himself, but that were not so weak as to be turned into little more than chow for the dogs. Those were what became Grafted Scions. Made up of dozens of Tarnished, they were powerful monstrosities… and incredibly dangerous, to say the least.
Melina expected to watch her chosen Tarnished put up a decent fight, but ultimately fall to the Scion. She would then swoop in to retrieve him and bring him where he needed to go. From there, things would begin to take shape.
Except, the first upset to her plans came when the Tarnished she'd been drawn to, faced off against the Grafted Scion… and prevailed. Rolling away from its blows, dodging every swing of its wild, flailing limbs, easily avoiding its leaps and slams and snarling energized movement, the Tarnished… dispatched the Grafted Scion in what felt like the blink of an eye.
It's more like half a minute, but even still, Melina is a little taken aback by the speed with which her Tarnished dismantles the grafted monstrosity. For a moment, she's amazed… and worried. How is she to bring the Tarnished where he needs to go now that he's hale and hearty? Will she be forced to approach him earlier than intended?
… Thankfully, no. The Tarnished dispatches his foe with ease, and then promptly moves through the doors onwards, and subsequently falls off of an unstable cliff-face as it collapses out from under him. The drop leaves him a twitching heap of limbs at the bottom of said cliff, and for a moment, the juxtaposition between him destroying a creature like the Grafted Scion without a single injury, and then… falling for such a simple thing, leaves Melina speechless.
But only for a moment, and then she's moving, Torrent taking her to the fallen Tarnished, so they can… relocate him to somewhere safer, where he can recover from his grievous injuries and begin his journey.
Melina is almost grateful for his little tumble. Everything… everything is still going according to plan.
-x-X-x-
As her Tarnished settles down at the Site of Lost Grace located outside of the Stormgate, Melina doesn't hesitate to approach him. She cannot, too much is at stake. He looks to her, even as she materializes, appearing out of nowhere. While there is a hint of nervousness to her, she quickly tamps down on it… she cannot afford to show a single ounce of uncertainty here, in this critical and crucial moment.
And so, she steps forward, doffing her hood and descending gracefully to her knees, exposing her pretty features, her one eye open and the other closed as she gazes upon her Tarnished quietly for a moment before speaking.
"Greetings, traveler from beyond the fog. I am Melina. I offer you an accord."
Her Tarnished cocks his head to the side at that, staring at her unblinking. For the briefest of moments, she flounders. Will he not speak? DOES he not speak? No matter. He has not drawn a weapon, nor attempted to chase her away. If anything, he seems attentive and interested in hearing what she has to say.
Letting the pause hang, Melina continues a moment later.
"Have you heard of the finger maidens; I wonder? They serve the Two Fingers, offering guidance and aid to Tarnished such as yourself."
She pauses here, holding back a wince. She knows how her next words will sound but can think of no way to possibly soften the blow, besides to rush through and offer him succor in his time of need.
"You, I am afraid, are maidenless. But I can play the role of a maiden. Turning rune fragments into strength. Aiding you, in your search for the Elden Ring."
She rushes the words out, and then pauses again, wanting to make sure they sink in, wanting to make sure he understands her offer. She doesn't think her chosen champion is simple or slow or anything like that. No, his eyes speak of an intelligence that she can admire. Still, this is too important to make a mistake. This is where it begins, hopefully. This is… everything.
"You need only take me with you. To the foot of the Erdtree, and no further."
A small, white lie. It could even be true. Perhaps the foot of the Erdtree is all she will need. Melina, in her heart of hearts, suspects that she will require more assistance from her Tarnished than that. But that can be a new accord. For now… the foot of the Erdtree will do.
"What say you, ye Tarnished? Do you accept my accord?"
Silence hangs in the air as she waits with bated breath to hear his response. Silence continues to prevail, as her Tarnished smiles and nods his agreement without saying a word. Hm, the strong silent type, eh? Well… that was fine too. She could work with that, she supposed. She did not need to hear his voice for the pact to be made.
"Then it is settled. Summon me by grace such as this and I will help you turn runes into strength. Ah, and one other matter. As my champion, I bequeath to you this ring. Use it to aid you in your travels across these lands. It will summon a spectral steed named Torrent. He has chosen you, so treat him with respect."
Handing over Torrent's whistle, she watches as the Tarnished reaches out with a solemn, serious expression on his face, taking it from her and slipping the ring-like caller onto his finger. Melina lets out a shuddering breath as he does so, before cutting it off and hoping he hasn't noticed. She will miss Torrent, if she's being honest… but it's fine. She will never truly be too far away. And she… never truly needed the Spectral Steed to traverse these lands anyways. He simply made for good company.
In the ensuing silence, as companionable as it is, Melina feels the need to fill the void with something. The Tarnished has still not asked HOW she will help him turn runes into strength, and she was expecting him to do so straight away. Now, she's not sure he will at all. He is… quiet. Mute, perhaps? But no, she doesn't get that impression from him. He CAN talk, she's sure of it. He just… chooses not to.
Well, Melina still has things to say, if nothing else. Gesturing to the Site of Lost Grace between them, she clears her throat and explains quietly for the sake of her Tarnished.
"This tiny golden aura is a grace of the Erdtree. This light once shone in the eyes of your Tarnished brethren. But now, it is all that guides you. Or… so I hear. The rays of grace, that guide you through your burden. Do you see them, I wonder?"
Her Tarnished smiles that same fond smile from before, and nods. Good. That is… good.
"Upon the cliff above, in Castle Stormveil, is a shardbearer. A demigod who inherited a fragment of the shattered Elden Ring."
Melina can't help but sneer a little as she says the word 'inherited' in a derisive tone. Godrick the Grafted had inherited nothing he had not taken like a thief in the night. All of Marika's children had… no, it was no matter. If all went according to plan, it wouldn't matter at all before long.
"If the rays of grace signal towards Stormveil Castle, then the Elden Ring beckons you."
Here, Melina pauses meaningfully as she gazes at her Tarnished.
"As an ally by pact, I pray that you are fit to face the challenge presented by the guidance of the Ring."
Her tone is pointed, and questioning… and apparently gets the point across. Her Tarnished still does not speak, but his smile grows fonder still, if that's possible, and he holds out a hand towards her in offering. Melina does not flush, she does not color or show an ounce of her embarrassment. No, she contains such reactions, and instead holds her head high.
"Shall I turn your runes into strength then? Let my hand rest upon yours, for but a moment. Share them with me, your thoughts and ambitions, the principles you-!"
Her hand reaches out and touches his in the midst of her speech, only for Melina to cut herself off at what she sees. Her eyes widen, and her mouth drops open as she experiences true, unfiltered shock and surprise for the first time in… a long time.
Not all Tarnished were created equal. Not all Tarnished came to the Lands Between as weak and helpless, and not all came with the same skill sets, the same starts. After observing his battle against the Grafted Scion, Melina had known her chosen Tarnished would be strong.
She had not known he would be THIS strong.
… He has no need for her. It is a startling thought, one that sneaks up on her and takes her by surprise, but it is true all the same. The Tarnished seated before her has no need for… for her ability to turn his runes into strength. He has no need for runes. His potential… is fully realized. Melina has never, in all her life, seen anything like it.
She's observed plenty of Tarnished, touched their strength and skills and traced the paths of their principles and ambitions. She's taken in specialized fighters who are each incredibly powerful in their own individual ways, be it with the sword, sorcery, or even incantations. But all of them had weak points, all of them had unrealized, unrecognized potential. It was give and take, as life often was. For growing so strong in one direction, they sacrificed the possibility of growing just as strong in another direction.
But not this Tarnished. Not her chosen champion. As said previously, his potential was fully realized… in EVERY direction. The runes that everyone else sought after to increase their strength, the miniscule shards of the shattered Elden Ring, that might as well be tiny grains of sand for all that they were the most valuable thing in the Lands Between… were meaningless to her Tarnished.
Sitting there speechless, Melina doesn't know what to do or say. He had to know he was showing her this. One did not get as powerful as he was without being… aware of such things. But then, who was his maiden? Where had he gotten so many runes? No… he truly had just arrived in the Lands Between, Melina had been following him since he showed up. There was no way she would not have heard of him before now, if he had gained this strength here.
Which meant… he gained this strength elsewhere? How? Where? Why was he here now? To become the Elden Lord? Out of everyone… he might just have the best shot of claiming the throne, even if she were to abandon him here and now. Not… not that she would. He was perfect for her purposes, more than she ever could have guessed. She just… wasn't expecting this.
Her mouth opens and closes wordlessly a few times, before the Tarnished shocks her into silence with his next action. His one hand still held by hers, he reaches out with the other… and caresses her cheek, rubbing his thumb along the mark that comes off of her closed eye. Melina's breath hitches… and then he's gone.
Pulling away from her and the Site of Lost Grace, her Tarnished rises to his feet. He stretches for a moment, rolls his shoulders… and then uses Torrent's Whistle, hopping up onto the still-forming Spectral Steed's back as if he was born to it, as if he'd been doing it all his life and this… this was little more than another day for him.
As he rides off, Melina can't help but smile a small, hidden smile as she puts her hood back up and rises to follow. Her Tarnished was more capable than she had thought possible, but it changed nothing. She would still help him however she could, and attempt to guide him along his path, so they, together, could reach the Erdtree. She would-
Wait. Melina stutters as she slowly begins to discorporate, fading from view in order to follow after the Tarnished in her incorporeal form. Only then, as she's beginning to fly after him, does she realize… he's going the wrong way. He's going the opposite direction of Stormveil Castle and the rays of grace that are trying to direct him.
As he gallops off into the distance and she hurries to catch up, Melina wonders for the first time, but certainly NOT the last… what exactly is going through her silent Tarnished's mind.
-x-X-x-
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