162GOOD MORROW, DEAR READER!
Glad you decided to give this little tale of mine a read. I'm writing this as a sort of challenge from a reader of mine who asked if I could give writing a Dark Souls story before during the great event of Gwyn linking the fire.
I thought the idea sounded pretty fun and I haven't seen many Fic's with this premise, so here we are with the little fun I've put together.
I hope you boy and girls enjoy the read.
Warning: Supreme Gamer is merely a weeb with a deep love of Dark Souls. If this story is actually a mimic in disguise, he takes no responsibility. You have been warned.
Parties.
She'd always held a distaste for them.
The gathering of aristocrats and noble bloods surrounding themselves with gaudy drinking glasses, fanciful decorations and expensive clothing. Someone was playing a soft tune on the piano on the other side of the room to complement the dancing upon the ballroom floor, while servants made the rounds with pallets of small edibles to those who chose to stand around gossiping with one another.
It simply wasn't a place she found comfort, nor had much interest in.
But she really didn't have a choice in being here. Gwyn had ordered her to come and try to "Relax" a little. So she was duty bound to obey and show up. But she was hardly enjoying herself with everyone avoiding her like they did.
"Hmph. Other than a few glances when I'm not looking, no one has the nerve to even try to strike up a conversation." The woman thought to herself with a sigh as she took another sip from the glass of champagne. "What a waste of my night."
Just as she had the thought, the visage of a young man walked through the middle of the room. A human. Dressed in the uniform of a waiter with a small platter of shrimp delights pinned with toothpicks in tow.
She wouldn't have paid him much mind if not for the fact that he seemed to cross the entire room with the direct goal of reaching her. He mingled and smiled to others along the way, but there was no denying it the was headed straight for her.
Once he got a bit closer and she appraised him a bit, she saw that he didn't look half bad in appearance. If not a bit on the younger side, he'd accomplish the "Butler Fantasy" well enough to be able to catch a woman's attention.
Though, she was not one to be wrapped up in such thoughts.
"Shrimp appetizer, ma'am." The server asked, only to receive a dismissive nod for him to move on. But the butler remained in place with a pleasant smile on his lips. "I thought it might help with that scowl on your face."
She froze up for a moment as if she need to mentally check if she just heard that right, before turning an accusatory look in his direction.
"It's a party, ya know. It's a shame to see a nice-looking woman alone on a night like this." He said brightly.
For a few moments, she merely stared at the man. Somewhat expecting to scare him off with her silence but remain he did, looking none too perturbed.
"Do you have any idea who I am?" she asked.
"Black hair, yellow eye's, giant wings. Pretty sure there's not a guy here who doesn't know who you are." The butler exclaimed without missing a beat. "That's probably why they've been talking about you all night."
"Have they now? And pray tell, what have they been saying." She asked, only a bit curious.
"Nothing you probably wouldn't expect. "I can't believe she's here", "She's more beautiful than I'd heard", "Maybe if I showed up with shrimp, I could break the ice and talk to her a little". Those sorts of things." The man said with shrug and a bashful look in his eyes.
Admittedly, this earned a smirk and a small laugh from her. So he was trying to flirt with her then? Imagine that. A human coming to her with such intentions.
"Heh, heh, I see. Well, I suppose I wouldn't hurt anyone's chances showing up with a bit of food." She said with a bit of amusement in her voice as she gestured him closer. Grabbing one of the shrimps from the platter and devouring it in a few bites.
Visibly pleased at hearing her words, the servant decided that she didn't seem apposed to talking a bit further.
"So you seem a bit out of place here. I take it that this sort of gathering isn't really your usual thing?" the butler asked plainly.
"Not at all. I prefer my outings to involve a bit more…heh, excitement. Perhaps with a sword or two. It certainly wouldn't involve talking with a servant." She said a bit pointedly with a knowing smile on her lips.
"Well, its always good to try new things. And besides, who's to say a servant can't offer a bit of fun." The man responded with a smirk, once again not losing his nerve around her.
"And how is it that you find the time to be so sociable? Do you not have a job to do, human?"
"That's not a difficult problem to solve when you're standing next to the scariest person in the room. Watch."
The butler pointedly turned towards other patrons in the room who clearly sought one of the small shrimp on his platter, but after seeing that gesturing to him might draw the attention of the woman at his side by accident, they all quickly turned around and pretended not to see him.
He turns back to her with a an amused smile on his lips.
"See? For gods, they don't really have a lot of back bone. Guess they'd all rather just pretend they don't see you, huh?"
"Heh, their loss." She laughed as she took another sip of the champagne in her hand, not at all bothered by others thinking of her. "I'd probably be bored to tears by such men anyway. Well…even more than I already am by being here."
"Oh? Well, would you like to do something that would actually give this party something to talk about?" the butler asked with a knowing look in his eyes, earning her curiosity.
"Such as?"
He places the platter he was holding on a nearby table and straightens out his tux before approaching her person.
He stops at arm's length away and looks her directly in her inhuman, yellow split pupils.
"May I have this dance?" he said as her extending his left hand and bowed slightly.
All at once, half the party goer's stop what their doing and take in the ridiculous sight of what looked like a human asking her for a dance.
After a few seconds past and she fully took in the sight before her in surprise, a few stifled chuckles were all that could be heard as her body shook with the effort to contain her giggling. But it quickly became apparent that she couldn't hold it in and let loose laughter so loud that it echoed across the entire hall.
"Pffft, ahahahahaha! Oh, hahaha!" she laughed uncontrollably as she threw her head back and placed a hand on her stomach. It was only for a few seconds that this continued, but it might as well have been an eternity for the human before her. "Eh, heh, heh, Oh. Oh my. You certainly are a bold one to ask such a thing. Tell me, human, what is your name?"
"It's Kaylen." The butler said the red in his cheeks showing his shame.
"Well then, Mr. Kaylen, I'm sorry to say that I don't know how to dance. So I'm afraid I'll have to decline." She said as she whipped a tear from her eye, never losing the amused look in her face for even a moment.
"Heh, well, that's a relief because neither do I." Kaylen laughed. "Don't tell me the legendary Velka is afraid of making a few mistakes to try and learn."
Once again taken aback by his boldness, the goddess clad in a beautiful white dress decided why not humor him.
"Hm…Very well then. Whats the worst that could happen?"
She placed her hand in his gently as a show that she was serious. Smirking victoriously, Kaylen closes his fingers around hers.
He hoped she couldn't feel his pulse through his fingers; his heart was beating like crazy. Despite what he was saying, he actually had to work up no small amount of courage to talk to her. After all, it was no secret that she was probably the most dangerous creature in all of Anor Londo, save Gwyn himself.
Doing his best to keep his breath steady, the two of them find an open spot in the ring of dancing couples. He slowly loops his right arm behind her and puts his hand on her back as she lightly places her left on his shoulder.
Now all there was to do was listen to the music of the piano, watch the others and try to dance.
"U-Uh.."
"Nnn-"
They weren't in sync at all.
He stumbles; she trips. They were fighting just to keep their balance. Velka is first and foremost a warrior, so it shouldn't be a surprise that dancing wasn't her thing. And Kaylen was…well, it wasn't a surprise that dancing wasn't his thing either.
Thump. Velka's head hits him square in the chest. If he didn't do something soon, the moment would lose its amusement. But what? A nervous chuckle escapes his throat as he tries to think of something.
"Calm your mind. Do not try to lead by pulling her with your arms."
"!"
A blond woman walks across the dance floor and comes close to them just as the two were trying to find their feet. Her eye's were sharp and held not a single trace of emotion. Neither Velka nor Kaylen even realized she'd approached until she decided to speak and surprise them both.
"Ciar-?"
Before Velka could finish, the woman placed a finger to her lips in a gesture of silence. She then heedlessly beckoned to a random male god to come to her on the dance floor. The man pointed to himself to confirm that she meant him, before awkwardly making his way towards her.
Without hesitating, the woman takes the man and begins showing the proper way the dance as done. The random man was blushing and hesitant, but her precise movements guide him effortlessly around the floor. They step towards us, and the strange woman and Kaylen were back-to-back as she whispers more advice into his ear.
"Relax your shoulders. Take your eye's off your feet and look ahead." She instructed.
"Um, might I ask who you are madam?" the random man awkwardly chimed in, only for the woman to guide him right past the two. A bead of sweat rolls down Kaylen cheek as he desperately trys to decode her instructions.
Velka was listening too. Their feet start to line up.
"You're warriors-look at each other. Discern each other's movements with your feet and communicate with your eyes. No techniques are necessary, only advance and retreat."
The woman's words echo through Velka's mind for a moment. She spoke that they were "Both" warriors? Wasn't this human just a servant? As if in response to this thought, she saw that Kaylen smirked a little. He caught her words as well but did not move to explain himself.
And so the two, then moved forward as if they were combatants sparing with one another.
He desperately tried to read her attacks, figure out where she's coming from, and defend. How would she follow, what is she aiming for? It all comes down to that first step and moves on from there.
He looks into her eye's, a mesmerizing yellow glistening in the moonlight. Neither is sure who breaks down first, but they both suddenly smile.
-Right?
-Left, please.
Uneven at first, then slowly but surely, then finally they move in unison.
They didn't need to speak; their eye's and subtle movements do all the talking.
The woman who helped them find this rhythm smiles. She must think they were okay on their own now, because she and the man she grabbed glide away to another part of the dance floor. Within seconds, she seems to simply vanish out of sight as if she was never there at all.
Each god that stood within the party stared at two mismatched pair. Each one understanding fully who Velka was, but for the life of them, labored to understand why in the world she was smiling while being taken by the hand of a human.
"I suppose I was wrong…"
"Huh?"
"I'd always scoffed at acts such as this. Always saying it was a bore and never deigning to take part in the act…" He watched Velka's lips move. They were about the same height, so talking face to face was easy. "But I was wrong. This is quite enjoyable to do with another."
"Really?"
"Yes."
This was unexpected for her.
When she said she scoffed at things like this, it was an understatement. It feels so foreign to find such enjoyment with a mortal such as him in doing something such as this, but a smile grows on her face ad she could feel her lips loosening with each passing moment. He smiles too, enraptured by the sight of her.
"I'm glad I took a chance to try something new tonight…Thank you."
She shyly glances down, then looks back up at him with a beaming smile.
For a moment, she was a far cry from what her reputation in Lordran painted her to be. Her pitch-black locks flow in perfect time with the music.
He loses himself in the sparkle of her golden eye's as the thought crosses his mind the he must be the luckiest person alive right now.
Their steps slightly better than before, they spin in place, matching the other couples on the floor. All the beautiful people and perfect dressed attendee's still stared at the scene of the two of them. The chandeliers up above give the illusion of a starry night as they both ignored them and continued to dance, the moment feeling like a dream.
BOOSH
Unfortunately, it would not last as what sounded like an explosion sounded off on the other side of the hall.
"What the hell?" Velka said as she turned towards where the noise sounded, only to see that a large amount of smoke was pouring into the ballroom. Causing all the party goers to gasp and go wide eye's at the sight.
"FIRE! FIRE! EVERYONE PLEASE CALMLY GET OUTSIDE TO SAFETY!" Kaylen shouted, getting the crowd of gods moving into action and headed towards the nearest exit in a hurry. He then turned towards the goddess. "You go too, lady Velka. It's my job to guide all attendees to the nearest exit in an emergency like this."
"Right." She nodded, far calmer than everyone else in the room.
Watching him travel deeper into the chamber, Velka started to follow the flow of the crowed and began to make her way towards the exit.
Just as she was about to make her way through, she was suddenly struck with a thought.
"Wait a minute…Why would a human be trusted with a task such as this? Wouldn't it make more sense to entrust it to entrust it to one of our kind?" she thought to herself. It was no secret that god were stronger, more resilient and simply far more capable of handling such an emergency in place of a human. So why?
As the number of people dwindled in the ballroom, Velka turned around and managed to spot the back of the butler in question rounding a corner, seemingly not doing anything to guide anyone to an exit.
Listening to her instincts to following behind him, she made her way through the crowd and traveled along the same path he'd just went.
As she traveled along, she saw that he was heading further inside to where the smoke was originating along an incredibly long hallway. But that doesn't make sense. Judging from the intensity of the smoke, heading directly towards the source would place him in needless danger of being caught in the fire and burned alive.
Continuing to follow, she soon reached a point where the thickness of the smoke was so great that to proceed further would no doubt place her in front of a roaring flame. But she was certain he had to have gone this way for there was no other path he could have taken that would have gotten him out of her sight.
So once again trusting her instincts, she covered her mouth with the sleeve of her dress and pushed forward through the smoke to find…
…nothing?
Past the thick layer of smoke, there was no roaring flame, nor scorching heat. There was only the remnants of what was undoubtably a large fire that appeared to have been put out immediately before it grew to out of control.
"What?" Velka said confused, not really sure what to make of this.
Almost as if responding to her thoughts, further down the hall was Kaylen. Walking out of a double door struggling to carry what looked like a heavy box of something.
"Hey! What's going on here?! What are you doing?!" Velka called out demandingly, causing the servant to turn towards her with a surprised look etched across his face.
"Uuuuh…" was all he said through wide eye's before sprinting off as fast as he could in the opposite direction of the goddess.
Not hesitating for a single moment, Velka took off after him, running directly past the box he was carrying but having no time to check its contents. She didn't know what he was up to, but he was clearly guilty of something since he was running away.
Even if he started out far ahead of her, even if he was the one who'd gotten a head start at picking up speed, there was quite frankly not a single chance in hell that Kaylen could outrun Velka. It was just that great a physical difference between a god and a human.
While what he was doing was sprinting, it would be more accurate to call what she was doing bounding forward across the floor of the hall. Covering ground far faster than the human she chased was.
Kaylen had exactly five seconds, tops, before the goddess caught up and apprehended him.
Luckily for him, at the end of the hall was a large glass window that led directly outside.
CRASH
Suddenly, Kaylen pushed for one last burst of speed before he hurled himself at the window, shattering it and jumping straight through the opening.
"Fool…" Velka thought upon seeing the mans recklessness, more than confident that it wouldn't save him.
Leaping through the window herself, the goddess no longer needed to run on foot after him. If the massive wings that she bore on her back told anyone anything, it was that he'd only worsened his chances of escape by taking the chase outside.
Spreading her wings wide, it took only two flaps before she was lifted off the ground and made her way airborne into the night sky.
With the birds eye view she now held, Velka felt comfortable letting her prey run for a little while longer to tire himself out in a pointless attempt at escape. She watched for a few minutes as he zig zagged through the city streets, seemingly at random, before traveling down a random alleyway and coming upon a dead end.
Without her doing much of anything, he'd cornered himself.
The goddess dived from the air and landed gracefully behind him, cutting off his only path of escape and dusting off her dress in a relaxed manner that that said she didn't even get her heart pumping chasing after him.
"Leaving so soon? And I thought we were getting along so well." Velka said nonchalantly.
"Okay, I know this looks bad, but I can explain." Kaylen said nervously.
"Save it. I have no time for whatever lie you will fabricate. You will be thoroughly questioned once the evidence of your crime has been examined." Velka said firmly, leaving no room for argument. "Now your either going to come with me peacefully or I will be forced to make you. Know that any resistance is futile and will be dealt with harshly."
Hearing this, Kaylen released a sigh that said he knew that he it was over and he'd been caught.
"Okay. I understand…but before I go with you, can you please grant me one small request?"
The goddess hesitated for a moment before answering.
"Speak."
Kaylen gets down on both knee's and places a hand inside his tux. Velka was on guard for any tricks, but quickly relaxed once she saw that what he was retrieved was merely a piece of parchment and pencil.
"I need to write…a farewell note to my little sister."
For the barest hint of an instant, his eye's flick upwards to look at his surroundings. There was nothing but a large dumpster and a scant few pieces of trash along the ground, and the only way out was directly behind the goddess.
"Your sister?"
"Yes…we've always been very close. I know I'll face a heavy punishment once you've discovered what I've done, but I don't want to leave her without an apology. She's always had a very serious illness and has lived her entire life just barely hanging on. That's why I made that mess at the party. To create a distraction to see if I could find anything to help her."
Velka's eye's softened for a moment at hearing this.
"She's with a local healer now. Without me in her life, she's alone and will have to look out for herself. I need to prepare her for that." Kaylen said as he began writing something down on the piece of paper he carried.
At this, Velka had to speak up towards Kaylen's actions.
"If you truly cared for her, you would have found a better way to help than this. What were you hoping to find by risking a fire at some fanciful gathering? Do you think she would wish for you to commit any crime on her behalf, you fool?" Velka reprimanded with narrowed eye's at the kneeling man. "*Sigh*…What is her name?"
"H-Huh? Her name? Its…Valery…" the human said lowly.
"What?"
"U-Uh, Velvet. Her names Velvet."
"Hm...Velvet. That's a nice name for a young woman" the goddess said with a nod of her head. "Hm. Since no was actually harmed, I will mention this information when your punishment is being considered. But do not expect leniency. It is never acceptable to commit a crime, even considering the position you find yourself in."
"I understand and thank you so much. So now…here." Kaylen said as he folded the paper he's written on and stood up to his feet. Extending the parchment towards the goddess fearlessly. "I'd appreciate it if you gave this note to her."
Velka looked at the paper without saying a word for a moment.
"Come on, please say yes. There's no one else I can turn to for this favor. It isn't much to ask and I'm not gonna be around to do it myself." Kaylen pleaded. "When I'm gone, she'll have no family left."
Hearing this and once again releasing a remorseful sigh, the goddess gently took the paper from his hand and opened it.
The very instant she finished reading what it said did her eye's shoot wide with surprise, before morphing into a sharp and piercing glare.
"What is this?!" was all she could say before something round yellow was suddenly thrown at her. Her mind was quick to identify it as a flask, but it was far to late for her body to react in time.
ZZZZZZ-BANG
A blinding white flash broke the utter blackness of the night shadows, but just for the briefest of moments. It was not a bolt of lightning, streaking through the air and able to harm her, it was more like an almighty camera flash that blanketed everything at once.
For a higher being like a god, who's senses were far sharper and keener than a humans, this wasn't simply a moment of being thrown off her focus. It was her senses being completely overwhelmed on all sides. A fierce and sharp ringing resounding through her ears, deafening her, and flashes of white being all she could see, forcing her to shut my eyes and keep her palms pressed into them to protect herself.
But the worst part was the sensation that hit her last, the smell.
It was nauseating, putrid and overwhelming to her nose. It turned her stomach on its head and almost caused her throw up a little in her mouth with how bad it was.
But after a few moments, when her vision and hearing finally settled and returned to normal, Velka swept her gaze across the ally to see that she was now completely and utterly alone.
But more importantly, she saw that her hair, her dress and her beloved wings were now drenched in a thick, sticky white substance that seemed to hold a bit of heat to it.
"What in the-? UGH, ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! HURGH! OH MY GOD, IT STINKS!" Velka shouted to the heavens at realizing that whatever she was covered in smelled like something died and shat itself. Not to mention, it brought her appearance to shambles. "YOU'RE A DEAD MAN, YOU LITTLE SHIT!"
With that, Velka spread her wings and jumped into the air, intent on completely butchering the human that had done this to her.
She would go on circling the night sky for over an hour with a murderous look in her eyes, but for the life of her she couldn't find a single trace of where he went.
And Kaylen? Well, after hearing her declare him a dead man, he was more than content to spend the rest of his life cowering inside the dumpster of that alleyway.
Eventually, though she was still pissed off beyond explanation, Velka made the decision to leave the area and return to the cathedral where the party she attended was held.
Walking through the crowd of people who still waited outside for word of anything and noticing more than a few of them cover their noses in disgust as she walked by, Velka made her way inside where she saw him carrying a box.
Only to find that said box was now missing. Traveling through the door he came through before, she found that it lead to the kitchen and that it had been cleared out of everything from food to spices.
It was then that she realized what had happened and it only served to infuriate her that much more.
"He wasn't alone. HE WAS LEADING ME AWAY THE WHOLE TIME!" Velka thought to herself a as she bared her teeth and snarled angrily at having been completely duped and made a fool of.;
It only simmered and grew that much further as she wondered if that whole scene of dancing and chatting her up was meant to ensure his scheme went that much smoother. The scene she caused by being with him drew everyone's attention to one place. Once she thought about it, she realized that she'd been thoroughly used and played.
Eventually, she could contain her outrage no longer and released a booming scream of rage that was so loud that not only did it frighten the party goers into leaving the scene and running home, but its echo reached all the way back to the ally where Kaylen was still hiding. Causing him to tense up and realize just how badly he'd just royally pissed off one of the most dangerous people in all of Lordran.
Jumping out of his hiding spot with a bit of dumpster juice staining his tux, he made a break for it.
Leaving behind only a single scrap of paper that had a simple message written on its face:
"I Lied. :-P"
HOLD IT! ONE SECOND BEFORE YOU HIT THAT REVIEW BUTTON!
Firstly, I wanna say that I had a blast writing this story out and just having fun with it. Depending on the reception, I might even decide to keep it going as I really like the premise of a pre-war story unfolding with Velka and other gods. Especially considering that I could expand on the War with the Darkwraiths, the demons and a whole list of other fun little things.
Secondly, before anyone says anything, Kaylen is just an OC that I made up. I have a bunch of fun little idea that I could attach to him, but this chapter was pretty much just a fun little test run to see if I could make a good premise on things.
And thirdly, In case you guys haven't figured it out, the person who help Velka and Kaylen dance was Ciaran. Just a fun little addition to have her ninja her way in and then vanish after helping. XD
Well, that's all I have to say about this fun little test run.
Feel free to leave a review and tell me what you guys thought about the story. Should I have been a bit more descriptive about Velka's appearance? Did it seem like she took a liking to Kaylen to easily? Was Kaylen's escape reasonable?
Honest opinions are always appreciated as I'm always looking to improve my style of writing, so don't be shy in telling me your thoughts about things so far.
This is Supreme Gamer, Signing off.