elden ring au, loosely based on malenia and ranni's lore.

deep within the crevices of the lands between, a slumbering figure lay atop a bed of rot. afflicted with the curse of decay since birth, the sickness festers, eating away at her limbs and any essence of life one might hold. one might assume the worst upon sight of the poor soul but that is unlikely of the traveller who has just set foot in the cavern.

her footsteps are gentle yet the splashing of water as her feet meet the waterlogged ground is enough to disrupt the isolation of the rot-filled creature. the figure stirs from her place beneath a decaying willow; long, raven hair falls over her eyes, obscuring her face from the unwelcome visitor.

“leave,” she rasps, “before the rot claims thee.”

the traveller continues forth with persistence, casting aside the warning in favour of obtaining what she requires. “i seek a vassal, one with the nascence of godhood.”

the figure stills, a rage boils with gradualness at the mockery in her words and she mutters, “what thou seek does not lie here, the rot is beyond the purview of the greater will.”

“if that is so, it too is beyond the purview of the two fingers.” the visitor comes to a halt mere steps before what once was a person, “stories of one harboring the rot yet never succumbing to it, if not born of empyrean blood, then pray tell thy continued existence.”

a slow exhale is heard from the creature, “it will soon claim all of me, or has the rot taken thy sight too?”

“it has not,” the traveller chuckles as she kneels before the broken figure whose limbs have been devastated by rot. nothingness rests in the stead of a right arm and left leg, leaving her as a mere husk of a being. “the scarlet rot was placed within thee as an everlasting consequence of thy lineage and i have come to offer thee respite from it.”

mentions of her lineage seem to bring forth a reaction from the figure, “this ancient plague has no cure, meddle and thou shall know regret.”

“what i offer is not a cure but a means of halting it. i cannot return what thou have lost, but should thou agree to enter in my service, i promise to make thou whole again.”

a resounding silence echoes through the empty cavern, the creature unsettled by the promise of impossibility. “there are plenty with the same affliction as mine, why choose me?”

“thy unwillingness to allow it to claim all of thyself, a manic vassal is of no use to me.” the traveller’s lips curl and she extends a hand over what remains of the figure’s left hand, “what say thee? joohyun the severed, will thou embark on this journey with me?”

the sound of her name being spoken after years would bring light back into her eyes if the rot had not stolen it. holding the promise of wholeness close to her, joohyun speaks, “i believe i am owed the name of the one i serve.”

“seungwan,” the traveller whispers as she pulls a golden needle from a pouch beneath her robes, “with this, thou will become my blade.”

a needle crafted from unalloyed gold is inserted into the rotting flesh of joohyun’s right shoulder, ceasing the affliction of scarlet rot all at once whilst turning her into a weapon against the greater will.

with the aid of her new mistress, joohyun is forged into a new fate. her flesh crafted from unalloyed gold draws out the unparalleled strength of a demigod. her dignity, pride and all that the rot has taken from her flourishes under servitude to seungwan, an empyrean whose vassal was rescinded by the fingers.

the reason is not made clear to joohyun until the shattering of the elden ring; defying the two fingers, and by extension, the greater will, comes at a cost.

demigods from across the lands rush forth to obtain fragments of the ring, seungwan and joohyun included. the great runes of the elden ring bestowed upon them great power and greed befitting of gods. without order, war is soon to ravage the lands as many will try their hand at uniting the lands between in the absence of the queen.

the ambition of ruling lies within many, but only a handful may succeed — empyreans with a consort by their side and a vassal behind them.

seungwan has seen this day coming; plans that she set in motion have played a hand in the shattering. her true reason for seeking joohyun out years ago is not solely for a vassal worthy of her but rather to forge an alliance with a fellow forsaken empyrean.

“does thou wish to be a lord?” seungwan asks in the coldest of dawns, the lands stir with unease at the abrupt question but it does little to phase her vassal.

the warrior continues in the polishing of her blade, “if the mistress wishes it so, then i will oblige.”

a hand resting upon hers halts the repetitive motion, “thou’rt my blade, but do not forget the empyrean blood of thine. the right to the elden ring glows as strongly within thee.”

“an ambition like that belongs to the gods,” joohyun simply states, “none in the lands between will accept a rot-filled lord.”

seungwan sighs softly, taking joohyun’s hand into hers, thumbing the ragged skin where the rot did not fully consume. “cast aside thy visions of rejection, what does thou desire?”

the rot has taken much of her being and while seungwan has mended her, the thought of claiming the elden ring for her own has never been considered.

“i desire to bring thy plans to fruition. take the crown, mend the elden ring as thou hast for me.” joohyun’s tone tints with sincerity before she drops her voice, “or deliver us of the greater will and be rid of it.”

seungwan smiles, her plans weighed on what her vassal desired. to be a lord, or to be a god, these things differ not should they rid themselves of grace.

“become my consort, my vassal and my lord. that is all i require of thee.” 

without a ring to bind the two, joohyun lifts the soft hand of her maiden and presses the skin to her lips. a vow she will uphold until the end of her days, she will bloom into the goddess of rot in servitude of seungwan the golden.

: ) : ) scarlet rot more like brain rot!!!!