The air buzzed with an almost electric energy as the crowd flowed like the tides of the sea, the shadow of a large building looming over them. They all looked happy, or a tad nervous. Not that anybody could blame the nervous ones, it was a pretty sizable event, and people from all over the world had been making their way to and from the area.
After all, It was a gaming convention! A place where nerds can meet their favorite creators, dress up in cosplay, or just interact with their fellows. Everyone could feel the excitement in the air, thick and palpable. Not one wanted to be left out of the momentous gathering of geeks.
Except, save for one. Which would just happen to be me. 19 years old, Socially awkward, hasn’t-seen-the-sun-in-days me. I was completely out of my element here, and fear gripped me like a vice. Of course, I was fully aware the fear was irrational, but it still held me in its paralyzing grasp as the crowd milled around me.
I was like a rock in the middle of a stream. Nobody paid me any mind, simply going about their business as they made their way to the convention building. To me, the whole thing was incredibly daunting. I had no friends to come with, and the mere concept of making friends in real life mortified me. So I stood there as stock-still as I could, hoping I would get some breathing room anytime soon.
20 minutes came and went, and I was still standing there, the crowd barely diminishing in size. Go figure for one of the largest nerd events on the planet. I was just lucky I managed to shower the night before and get some deodorant on me, or else I’d be drowning in self-consciousness right about now. Regardless, I couldn’t stay here. I had to, at the very least, find a place to sit down.
As I began to move, the crowd that once flowed around me got the inclination that I was entirely ready to merge with them. I was not. I bumped into several people as I tried to make my way out, my face flushing considerably as I spouted profuse apologies in passing. This was already a terrible experience, and I internally chided myself for ignoring all the possible ways this whole thing could go wrong. I just hoped nobody was going to scream at me.
Which, was of course, another baseless fear. I had a lot of those, but even though I was good at acknowledging them, it didn’t really make them any easier to deal with. Luckily enough however, I no longer had to deal with the crowd of nerds as I finally made it out. I soon found myself a nice spot to sit against a concrete wall, content to simply watch the crowd mill about. I resolved myself to go inside once the crowd had gotten to tolerable levels.
But, that little thought had me waiting there on the hard concrete for 3 total hours, my rear end seriously unhappy with how uncomfortable my sitting place was. But at least the crowd had thinned significantly in that time, so it wasn’t a total loss. Getting up with a groan, I briefly popped my neck and began making my way to the convention doors, taking out my visitor ID card for security to scan when the time came.
The little social interaction with security passed with no hiccups, despite all the intrusive thoughts telling me otherwise. I quelled them with little difficulty as I turned my attention to the swathe of fellow gamers, intricate cosplays, and developer booths that littered the convention.
I spent hours just lurking around, never really approaching anyone, fine with just watching from the sidelines as the cosplayers and their friends struck poses and horsed around with each other. I watched fans interact with their favorite dev teams, asking the tired developers more questions than they could answer. During the whole ordeal, I could feel a bemused smile tugging at my lips, but instinct told me to remain stone faced, and so I did.
The entirety of my time at the convention was spent doing that.
As the day came to a close and the visitors began filtering out, I could feel an unexpected weight lift from my shoulders. It was finally over. While enjoyable, it was wildly outside of my comfort zone. Maybe I’ll come to another one of these someday. Maybe. Who knows? I may never come back to one of these ever again. The whole experience was incredibly draining.
My thoughts began to cloud over as I walked back to my hotel room, but that little daydreaming session was cut short as I heard a curt ‘psst’ come from the alleyway to my left. I turned as quickly as I could to face whatever was there, and soon saw a man dressed up as The Merchant from Resident Evil 4, hunched over and beckoning me into the alleyway.
“Theodore Goobins, What a pleasure it is to finally meet you!”
My entire body locked up. How did he know my name? I wasn’t even wearing my visitor card. Was he watching me during the whole convention? No, that’s absurd… But how did he know my name? I needed answers, and I needed them now.
“H-how do you know my name, and who are you?”
I asked, visibly uncomfortable with the situation. The merchant simply laughed and waved me off, as if I had asked a silly question.
“Never mind that, Mr. Goobins! Come, come, I have some Items I think you’d love to get your grubby little hands on,” He said excitedly, continuing to beckon me into the alleyway.
The more I thought about refusing the more nervous I got, thoughts beginning to delve into what he’d do if I said no. I never wanted to get wrapped up with shifty people before, and this guy was the shiftiest person I’ve ever met. But I didn’t really have much of a choice now, did I? Who knows what he’d do to me…
I took short, hesitating steps into the alleyway, following him from a slight distance as he led me down a winding corridor of brick and concrete. I was pretty sure that this wasn’t how alleyways worked, but that train of thought was quickly nipped in the bud as we arrived at a square room with a table smack-dab in the middle of it.
The merchant found his spot behind the table, and spread his arms wide over the selection of items there. It really was quite the spread! There were a lot of items I recognized, and they were very high quality. The price tags attached to them clearly showed that, too. My respect for the man went up considerably, making the fear I felt somewhat smaller. As shifty as he was, he had items of great quality.
As I was hunched over looking at what he had in store, my eyes landed on a crown I was very familiar with. The crown itself was angular and sharp, like claws reaching towards the ceiling, glowing a deep cyan with the LED lights that had been expertly placed inside. Even though I couldn’t see his face, I could swear he was smiling.
“Something you fancy catch your eye?” he asked, his voice laced with barely contained mirth. It was odd, sure, but maybe he was just eager to finally get a sale. The table looked rather full, which was a clear sign that nobody had bought anything from him. That revelation shocked me, truly, it did. His replicas were so well-made, it was insane that he had such a hard time selling.
Though, one good look at the surroundings was reason enough for that. He was so tucked away from the convention area, I was equally unsurprised to find that nobody had found him yet. I gave the price tag on the crown a peek and grimaced. Nearly a thousand dollars. Quite pricey for a prop…
“I-I’m sorry, as much as I’d like to get this, it’s way out of my budget.” I said sadly, moving back up to my full height. The Merchant didn’t seem too perturbed though, as he had chuckled, shaking his head as he picked up the crown.
“Don’t worry about such a silly thing. Instead, how about we make a deal?” He said, leaning forward, his torso above the table as he looked me in the eyes.
“What kind of deal?”
“Oh, one you’ll find quite agreeable. I give you the crown, and in return, you give me entertainment.” He held out his hand to me, and I immediately felt the air begin to vibrate. It was odd, but nothing I paid much mind to, as my thoughts were focused on the conversation.
Entertainment? What did he mean by that? I really hoped he didn’t mean anything sexual, because no matter how much I wanted that crown, never in a million years would I do something like that for a prop.
“What kind of e-entertainment?” I couldn’t keep the nervousness out of my voice as I asked, taking a small step back. He seemed to notice this and began to laugh, the sound ringing in my ears in an unnatural fashion. This whole situation was beginning to deeply unnerve me.
“Certainly not the kind you’re thinking of, Mr. Goobins. I mean I’m simply going to watch as you play.” He said, wiping a mirthful tear from his eye as he finally calmed down.
Play. Oh! He wanted me to stream as I played! That was easy, but… Why? That’s such a small thing to ask for, and I wasn’t even a good player. Casual at best. Nothing special, or at all worth watching. I heaved a sigh and took another step back, giving him a weary look.
“I’m sorry, man, it really wouldn’t be a fair deal on your end. Nice meeting you, though,” I said as I began to leave. The vibration in the air seemed to intensify for a split second as I turned my back.
“WAIT!” The merchant yelled, a hand materializing on my shoulder. I flinched and turned my head to look at him.
How did he get there so fa-
“Don’t you want a second chance, Mr. Goobins? A fresh start?” His words interrupted my thoughts.
I froze in place as I quickly looked away, my breath becoming shaky. He already knew my name, but now, my thoughts were gripped with fear. Had he somehow found out? How could he have possibly found out!? Had he been stalking me? How did he know? HOW DID HE KNOW? HOW DID HE KN-
“This is a chance for a fresh start, Mr. Goobins. Just like you always wanted.” he interrupted my train of thought once again, his voice cutting through the tension like a hot knife through warm butter. I turned around to face him, the crown in his hand glowing even brighter than before. His other hand was still outstretched, waiting to be grasped in a handshake.
A fresh start for me wasn’t possible. Not unless I left this hellish planet behind. But, I really had nothing to lose from this. I audibly gulped, looking at his open hand with trepidation. Every instinct in my body was screaming at me to run, to leave and to never look back, but my heart wanted to take his hand, to see what kind of ‘fresh start’ he was offering.
Guided by the wild beating of my heart, I grasped his hand with mine, and shook it. The merchant’s eyes went wide with glee as I did so, pressing the crown into my other hand.
“I cannot wait to see what kind of shenanigans you get up to, Mr. Goobins.”
And with that, my world went black. I could feel the sickening sensation of being thrown, but no matter where I looked it was just black. I screamed, terrified out of my mind, unable to fully grasp what was happening as I went hurtling through the seemingly endless void.
This went on for a solid 30 minutes, and my screaming had long since stopped. I slowly yet surely collected myself, and came to one conclusion. I was going to die. With this revelation, an odd calm washed over me. Maybe the merchant tricked me and pushed me down some super deep trap door in the floor I didn’t see beforehand. No hole was this deep, but it was the only logical explanation I could come to. I closed my eyes, and a light smile graced my face. I could finally rest. No more week-long bouts of self-loathing, no more guilt, no more hurting myself in the wee hours of the night when the shame got the better of me. With my death... I'd make it all right.
Or at least, that’s what I had hoped. He did say fresh start after all.
Suddenly, the sensation of falling had vanished as if it were never there to begin with, and it was replaced with dusty smells and a cold wind. I slowly opened my eyes, and I was greeted with the sight of what looked to be an extremely dilapidated throne room, weak sunlight filtering in through the broken ceiling, snow covering parts of the floor. Piles of rotting timber and dusty old bricks were littered across the large room, and once beautiful tapestries hung ragged from the walls, any discernible symbols worn away by the passage of time. It took me a second to realize that I was at the very far end of it. On a throne, that seemed to be one of a pair that sat there.
As I looked down to inspect the throne, the state of my seat became the least of my concerns as I laid eyes upon my visage. I was clad in dark, gnarled armor that just screamed ‘tyrant’. I stood up, looking at my gauntleted hands with a mix of worry and awe. Not only did I look entirely different, but I felt different too.
I felt powerful. I felt strong. I felt utterly unstoppable, as if I could simply take what I want, when I wanted it. I could feel the excitement begin to take over as I finally recognized who's armor I seemed to be wearing. The things I could do! The legions I could bend to my will! The mountains I could CRUSH beneath my might! I could teach the world to fear my name. I was Sahn-Uzal. I… was Mordekaiser. The Iron Revenant, and Lord of Death.
I felt the zeal for conquest begin to rise within me, threatening to overwhelm me. But this glorious feeling was quickly swept away by the all-consuming apathy that soon returned once it realized I was still quite ‘alive’. I fell back onto my paltry throne, my arms as heavy as the old stone around me.
‘No you aren’t, don’t be so full of yourself’ I thought bitterly, heaving a great and dreadful metallic sigh as I slumped in my throne. Sure, I certainly looked like him, and most likely had his abilities, but these were some large sabatons to fill. I was nowhere near the man that the real Mordekaiser was. Sure, he was evil, but he had a purpose. Conviction. A will to never fade. Me? I’m just a drifter on life’s current, wanting nothing more than to forget the past.
I stood from my throne once again and began to walk the length of the throne room, slowly making my way towards the great wooden doors. Each footstep was filled with undead strength, and the rumble of my newfound power caused the ground to shake lightly with each heavy footfall. I was wholly undeserving of it. I pushed the doors open with no effort at all despite how large they were, and stepped onto a platform that overlooked a grand hall, with six doors lining the way, three on each side of the hall itself.
I made my way down the stairs from the platform, and mentally noted the two giant tapestries that hung from the ceiling. Horses, it'd seem... Well, horses with wings and a horn. One tapestry was yellow, and the other was a royal blue. A quirky choice of decoration, but who was I to judge? In my youth, I probably would've chosen something edgy. I soon strode my way across the hall, folding my hands behind my back as I gazed at the doors I passed. I made a quick mental note to explore those once I got done looking around outside.
Approaching the doors, I unclasped my hands from behind my back and pressed against them, opening them slowly as to not damage the aged wood. Though they seemed sturdy enough on second thought. The light of the sun glared down at me as the doors fully opened, giving me the view of a yard coated in a thick layer of snow. The sight of the fluffy whiteness helped ease my heart. I always loved snow, how it glittered in the sunlight, the tranquility of it... I smiled slightly beneath my helmet, enjoying the little wonders that the world had to offer me.
It felt a bit cold, but comfortably so, as if I were bundled up and protected from the harshness of it. I simply waved it off as a magic thing and went along my way, exiting the castle proper to stand upon the steps of what I was sure to have been a once great stronghold. The castle I appeared in seemed to be stationed in the midst of a giant forest, trees stretching around me like a veritable sea of snow-covered evergreens and willows that strangely haven't lost their foliage.
Looking back, the sheer size of the place and how ornate it was made me think about it's likely long and storied history, and more importantly... Just where the hell was I? A place like this definitely would've been famous, and definitely well cared for. Maybe I was the first one to discover it? No, no, that's absurd. I banished the silly thought as I continued, walking down the stairs and onto the field. I soon noted that the castle sat atop a sort of island, detached from the rest of the forest due to the presence of a ravine that seemed to stretch all around it.
Well isn't that just neat.
Looking for a way across, I soon spotted a rickety, wooden bridge that swayed slowly from side to side in the wind. It was pretty obvious, even at first glance, that the rotten wooden planks the thing was made up of weren't going to be able to hold my weight in ANY capacity. I grumbled slightly, cursing my bad luck. It seemed I'd need to find another way to get across... Or I'd just need to jump, which, depending on how powerful my legs were, could be a lot easier than it looks.
Turning with a huff, I made my way back into the castle, making sure to shake the snow from my boots as to not... Make the already damp floors wetter? It was purely out of habit at this point. But that wasn't my chief concern at the moment. What I needed was to get my bearings. As soon as I do that, I can sit down and get to thinking on my next move.
It was time to explore the castle itself.
As I strode into the main hall, I gave each door a good long look before coming to a complete stop in the center, hands on my hips as I considered which door to go through. Most doors were still on their hinges, but some were askew, and one was simply gone entirely. I could feel my train of thought starting to wander down the path of wondering what happened to the missing door, before my eyes caught a glimpse of a piece of paper that sat nestled underneath one of them.
Taking a few long steps to get there, I pulled the paper free and gave it a good look-over. It was in English, that much I knew, but... Barely legible. Time really did a number on it. Sighing, I let the paper fall from my hand before I looked towards the door I rescued it from. Might as well check there first.
Opening the door, I was greeted with a short hallway, that quickly opened up to a rather large library. The place had a somewhat strong scent of mildew and dust, overturned wooden tables strewn about the space. The books in the shelves seemed to be relatively clean and well preserved, I quickly noted... Odd. One would think that the books would be the first to crumble.
On the only upright table sat a rather thick tome, one that seemed to be covered in dust as I would reckon an ancient book should be. Brushing the layer of dust from it's cover, It was revealed to be a compendium. 'Royal Sisters Library Compendium: A-Z'. Jackpot. Opening the aged tome carefully, I set about reading for any maps that might be here in the library...
A boring 15 minutes later gave me some results!
There were indeed a few maps in the library, though where is the question. The names of the maps were odd, though. Maps of someplace called... 'Equestria'? There wasn't any country I knew of by that name. A strange feeling of excitement and hope began to bubble up from my chest, my breath becoming shaky as I immediately began the search for the maps in question, not even bothering to take note of the giant broken Pegasus-unicorn statue.
It took some time of course, tromping through the ancient library, but I eventually came across my quarry. Nestled neatly in a square shelf was a bundle of large scrolls, with a small metal plaque underneath reading 'maps'. Gingerly sliding one out of it's resting place, I brought the map over to the table, and spread it out. What I saw nearly made me cry, if it weren't for the fact I no longer had tear ducts.
The map, albeit obviously dated, was a map of a land I've never seen before. A whole new world. While it mostly detailed the landmass that I was sent to, in the four cardinal directions it labeled other countries. The Empire of Griffonstone to the east, The Islands of Minos to the far west, The Nation of Zebrica to the south, and someplace called 'The Crystal Empire' way up north. Gently letting go of the map, I took a few deep breaths, before the sheer joy in my soul erupted out of my mouth in the form of a jubilant cry.
"YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES" I bellowed with my face to the ceiling, the sheer power of my voice causing the dust to become unsettled and the stone to shake ever so slightly. This was it! A brand new start in a brand new world! The prospect of being here was simply far too exciting. Maybe I'd get to meet some fantasy races! Like dwarves or elves! Maybe even DRAGONS! I rubbed my gauntleted hands together giddily as I exited the library, unable to stop the giggles leaving my mouth.
Maybe I could fix up this place someday! That’d certainly be nice. But before doing any of that, I’d have to meet the locals of this world and somehow convince them that I’m not as mean as I look. But that involved actually interacting with people. So, no, that was off the table, as much as I’d love to meet all the different races this place surely had to offer. I mean, it was a fantasy world, right? There just HAD to be fantasy races, too.
But as I reentered the throne room after making my way through the main hall, my excitement was replaced by a profound sadness as I looked upon the twin thrones. My thoughts soon drifted to him. I... I didn't deserve this second chance. HE did. This... This wasn't right. This was UNFAIR. Unfair that I was given this second chance, when I knew of someone who deserved it far, far more than I did...
But I had no right to complain about fairness.
I walked up the steps to the thrones and sat down in one of them, my shoulders slumped, my arms heavy. I sat there, stewing in my guilt for who knows how long. I didn’t even realize the sun had gone down while I was neck deep in self-loathing. But something inside me was constantly battling with those thoughts, raging against them, speaking of the greatness I could achieve now that I had a new chance at life with powers beyond my comprehension. It was a difficult internal struggle, but one that the new voice soon found itself on top of.
Maybe my... Redemption, if I was even deserving of it, could come through doing good for the world. Use these necromantic powers for the betterment of others instead of ill. The new voice grumbled at my pathetic ideas for the powers I now wielded, mumbling something about how they should be used for conquest and subjugation, not helping the weak. I quieted the voice by continuing to think of all the good I could do, beginning to daydream of heroism and perhaps romance.
I chuckled ruefully to myself. Who would ever love a monster such as I? The notion itself was absurd, and the voice seemed to agree, saying that I didn’t need love when I had power. Although I didn’t agree, I didn’t respond to it, simply content to sit there in my decrepit throne of stone. I studied the chamber as I sat there, taking it all in, wondering if I should make this my ‘base of operations’ or something of the sort. The idea certainly had merit, and it’s not like anybody owned the place.
Internally, I resolved the area as mine, and almost immediately afterwards, I felt a shift in the air. The night outside seemed to grow even darker as a rumbling began to grow from within the castle walls. I sat up on my throne, concern flooding my very being as I watched the castle shake. Was it an earthquake? An avalanche? Just what the fuck was happening!? Was I already going to lose my castle?
I watched as the piles of stone bricks and rotting timber began to float up, held by ghostly energies. The stone bricks found homes within the empty spaces in the walls, and the rotting timber seemed to meld together and harden in the rafters and wooden supports above, turning a beautiful shade of ebony.
The castle seemed to come to life as it repaired itself, tapestries fluttering wildly as their fabric was mended and their colors were changed to match my own. With a fierce glow, a symbol was emblazoned in the center of the tapestries, A jawless human skull that donned the wicked, gnarled crown belonging to the name Mordekaiser. Torches burst to life with a deep, cyan flame, bathing the throne room in a ghostly light, and the long, red carpet slowly mended itself in one big ripple, the red shifting into a royal blue.
I stood breathless as I watched this all unfold, a sound like crumbling stone and burning fire prompting me to turn around to gaze upon the thrones, which were also in the throes of transformation. Spectral fire consumed them, charring them as they molded themselves into something new. Soon enough, the transformation was complete, and i was left with a large throne of darkest stone, a plush cyan pillow resting within the seat. Two braziers of gnarled metal formed at the sides and blazed with the same ghostly fire that rested in the torches.
Before I could even sit back down to see how it felt, a flash of light brought forth a fluttering piece of paper, which I caught deftly. Seemed my reflexes had improved as well. Straightening out the paper, it appeared to be some kind of letter that read;
‘Salutations and good tidings, Mr. Goobins! If you’re getting this, you’ve claimed a building as your own, and as a little gift from me, I placed a spell on you that would instruct your abilities to renovate the building to better fit your tastes! This is something you’ll be able to do in the future on your own once you learn how to control your new powers. But for now, enjoy~!’
I chuckled as I finished reading the letter, shaking my head as I placed it in one of the braziers to burn. I was once again in that merchant’s debt. Maybe someday I’d be able to repay him, but for now, I was going to enjoy the gifts given to me, and rest. Sitting in the throne, I marveled at the fact that I could feel through the armor and how nice the seat was, as if my armor was a second skin. It was as if my very flesh was merged with the iron.
Because it was, of course. I didn’t have a material body anymore. I ruminated on this for a bit while I marveled at the improvements to my castle. My old internet friends would’ve called it edgy beyond belief, but I quite liked it. It was very well-put together, and if I was going to try and fill the sabatons left to me in my own way, I may as well have a base of operations that was befitting of my station.
It’d certainly be intimidating for anyone that wasn’t me. The whole vibe was dark and imposing, as if you just accidentally wandered into the final boss’ lair. I couldn’t wait to see the reactions of the first people to gaze upon my home. Though it filled me with equal amounts of dread. I didn’t want to get attacked or anything. Even though I’m a hulking mass of Iron and necromantic energy, I don’t want to fight anyone unless I absolutely had to.
I wasn’t going to raise my hand against anybody. Not again. At this thought, I slumped in my throne, heaving another metallic sigh as I watched the daunting doors to my throne room. I wasn’t in a rush to repeat any past mistakes, and I most certainly didn’t want to get chased from my home.
I silently wondered what adventures this world had in store for me, and if I had the courage to take them on.
﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌ꕥ﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌
In the opulently natural halls of a giant tree, a deer-like creature rushed through, startling servants and visitors alike as he sprinted with all his might. He burst through the throne room doors, guards watching him with alarmed eyes as he made his way up to the thrones of wood and wicker. As he approached, he slowed his pace significantly, skidding on the floors. The two regal looking deer sitting upon the thrones eyed him with concern instead of offended indifference that royalty usually bore.
“THE OLD CASTLE! S-S-SOMETHING'S HAPPENED TO IT!” He reported fearfully, his lungs absolutely burning with exertion. He collapsed where he stood when exhaustion overcame him, his cervid form hitting the floor hard, chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath. The guards rushed to his aid, helping him stand and face his monarchs.
The Regal Elk King looked to his wife and back to the tired deer, his eyes now filled with barely disguised worry. The Queen opened her mouth to speak, her voice laced with disbelief.
“What do you mean something happened to it? Constable, Explain what you saw.” She asked, her fierce eyes boring into the constable's.
“When me and Daisyheart were on patrol on the northern border, we saw the castle of the two sisters begin to change! It was wreathed in dark magic and repaired itself as if it were alive!” He spluttered, clearly shaken up from the incident.
“Where is your partner, Constable?” The King asked, not seeing Daisyheart anywhere present. He had a look of grave concern on his face, as did his queen.
“She stayed to watch it for any further changes, and sent me here to report. I came as quickly as I could.” He replied, his voice steadying as he got his breath. He was a total mess, dripping with sweat. It seemed he truly sprinted all the way from the northern border to the palace. The King’s face softened with sympathy for the poor stag.
“Go get some rest, Constable Brambletail. You’ve more than earned it. Clover, my love, we must gather the guards. It seems we will have to put their training to the test.” He said, turning from the tired stag to his wife, the Queen. She replied with a grim nod before shouting orders to the servants and present guards. The King immediately began writing a letter to Princess Celestia, hoping that the centuries of neglect hasn't harmed their friendship.
After he gave the letter to a royal messenger to deliver, he sighed. Developments like this were always bad for his already declining health. Had he been in his prime, the King would've- Suddenly and without warning, a dagger of pain pierced the King's heart, making him nearly double over. His Queen rushed to his side, holding him up, her face filled with worry. The King assured his wife that he'd be fine, gently separating himself from her embrace.
He had to be strong. For his people. The King could not afford to show weakness. Not now. Not with a potential threat looming on the horizon. As he straightened his posture, he heaved another sigh, hoping beyond hope that whatever Princess Celestia had in her back pocket would deliver his people from danger.