Elden Ring: The Deaths of Tirek

by Blackdrag-rose

Wolf Quest

Tirek found that the path he and Blaidd had to take took him back to the bridge he had crossed earlier and then head to the south along another road, this one having all sorts of enemies for him to keep an eye on as he followed the Grace that was leading him to Darriwil's location. There were a number of Hollows and Soldiers on the path, some patrolling at random, a fair few working on some of the ruins that were randomly scattered around Limgrave, and a large force moving with a pair of Trolls that were pulling along one of the large treasure containers. In addition to that he found a few Brutes riding around the area as well, each one looking like they were ready for a fight and would cleave his horse in half if he got close, but none of them were his target right now, as his guiding light seemed to be going beyond them. Still, that didn't mean they could get away without stopping and doing battle, much to his annoyance since he wanted to help Blaidd out, he might get an item that would aid him on his quest, but it gave him a chance to get more Runes before another powerful creature.

It also gave him a chance to see Blaidd in battle as he lifted his greatsword with ease and rushed into the fray, where one of the Brutes fell as he jumped into the air and stabbed him with a downward slash, before spinning around as he cut down three Soldiers that came at him. While he did that Tirek turned his magic on some of the other Soldiers and Hollows that were approaching the wolfen figure, while making sure not to hurt his ally, as he wasn't sure if the arc spell would hurt those on his side and didn't want to test it out while Blaidd was nearby. He was impressed by the figure's fighting style, he was like a veteran who had spent years perfecting his art and how had a chance to demonstrate his skills while cutting down those who opposed him, even though these guys weren't worthy foes for someone like Blaidd. Still, the two of them were able to carefully draw out and deal with all of the enemies that were in front of them, in fact Tirek was sure it had taken no time at all thanks to his new companion, granting him a good deal of Runes, not as much as a powerful foe, but he was glad to have all of it nonetheless.

"I know you use magic, but you might want to take the contents of the carriage." Blaidd commented, as while he was far more interested in taking down Darriwil, for reasons unknown to Tirek, he also wanted to help the figure out a little while they were on this quest, before either confirming or denying that he knew where his target was located, "You might not need the weapon that's being transported, but you can sell it to a merchant for a fair bit of Runes if you are ever need it... or if you desire to change up your style."

Tirek raised an eyebrow for a moment as he found the chest in question and discovered that there was a greataxe inside it, a weapon that had a large axe head on a long handle, making it two handed, though for right now he pocketed it as he rejoined his companion and headed down the road in front of them.

"I don't think I'll need it, but thanks for the information. On the matter of Darriwil, the bits of light are pointing that way," Tirek said, gesturing in the direction in question, which seemed to be going towards another area of Limgrave, based on the map pieces he had recovered so far, though right now there was no telling if they were close to the location it was pointing out or if they were still far from it.

"Towards the Weeping Peninsula? Interesting." Blaidd stated, something that told Tirek that he must not have checked out the area he was being beckoned to by the force behind the guiding light, or if he had done so he hadn't found anything of interest during him time over there, but at the very least he was willing to humor him and not call him a liar.

Tirek said nothing to that as he and Blaidd found a few more Brutes, Soldiers, and Hollows standing in their way, where they lashed out at their enemies, him focusing on casting spells while his companion hacked and slashed his foes apart in a matter of seconds. This time it was more about removing enemies from the path that they were following, and getting a fair bit of Runes in the process, though Tirek kept an eye out for another Grace spot, because if Darriwil was one of the many powerful creatures who dotted the landscape he wasn't going into battle with his Runes. He did obtain some gear from the Brutes, like their armor and boots, though it was all added to the pile of things he wouldn't use, not unless he had a good reason to actually change up his style and forsake focusing on magic. Blaidd, on the other hand, didn't care all that much about the loot they were getting and let Tirek take all of it, like his gear was better than what they were finding, and Tirek assumed it was based on what he had seen so far.

Fortunately they found a Grace near what appeared to be the base of a hill, causing Tirek to let out a sigh of relief as he activated it and sat down, to make sure this was where his spot was set, before he considered how to allot his Runes this time around.

"If you don't mind me asking, what are you doing?" Blaidd asked, as he had heard stories of what the Tarnished were able to do, see the light of Grace and even rest at locations that allowed them to restock their supplies, their flasks anyway, and this was the first time he had actually seen such a thing happen.

"I'm setting what I call my 'spawn point', where I'll return in the event of my death... this world loves to kill me, based on all of the deaths I've had so far." Tirek replied, which was the truth when he considered everything that had happened to him since he arrived in this forsaken world, before he focused on what he had been doing before Blaidd said anything, since he wanted to make sure his Runes were spent before they did anything else, "I'm also using the Runes we obtained since leaving the Mistwood to empower myself, just in case Darriwil is a powerful creature like I think he is... those foes tend to have a lot more Runes than a normal creature, but they hit far harder as well. Basically, I want to make sure my Runes are spent before we find him... wouldn't want to lose any of them."

"Forgive me for asking but... how can you do that? You are, as an annoying man keeps saying when I see him, 'maidenless', or whatever he calls it." Blaidd inquired, as Tirek fascinated him more than he was willing to admit, but the fact that he was able to turn his own Runes into strength without actually having someone else do the work for him, and he felt that his own master would be interested in this when she learned about him.

"My maiden granted me this power before she faded away." Tirek answered, though while he had no idea if such a thing was even possible among the Finger Maidens, the transfer of power into their Tarnished champion, he wasn't about to say anything that he might come to regret, but Blaidd seemed trustworthy and he suspected that he could entrust this sort of information to him, "Whenever I fight a powerful creature I make sure I have no Runes on me... it makes it so that I can focus on the fights and not have to worry about my death marker."

Blaidd said nothing to that as he listened to Tirek talk, in fact he seemed to be stronger than what he was a few moments ago, before they headed up the hill, ignoring the battle off to their right where some Soldiers fought some Demi-Humans, and came to a stop at a familiar sight, one of the round indents with the stony worms around it.

"A gaol... interesting." Blaidd said, confirming that these were, in fact, prisons, Tirek recognized the word, and once they confirmed that this was where the guiding light had been leading them to he stepped back as Tirek activated the seal that dragged them both inside the gaol, only for him to growl as he felt something oddly familiar, "He's here."

Just like with the Crimson Knight, or whatever that foe was called, a newcomer phased into existence in front of them, a black armored figure who seemed to be low to the ground, almost like a dog in a sense, and he carried a curved blade in his right hand, a greatsword of some kind. As Tirek stepped forward, however, Blaidd held an arm out, stopping him in his tracks, before gripping his own weapon as he and Darriwil locked eyes with each other, or at least it sure seemed that way since he couldn't tell with the odd helm that their target was currently wearing. The two stared at each other for a couple of seconds before rushing at each other, the air vibrating as their weapons collided, where Tirek found that Darriwil's had a blood enchant on it, like his new dagger, while Blaidd's seemed to possess the power of ice, or maybe frost, as the air seemed to get a little colder as he activated it. At this point Tirek wasn't even surprised, the weapons of this world seemed to have two modes, one without their enchantment and one with whatever they were enchanted with, or at least if they had one to begin with, and it was up to the wielder on which one their weapon took at any given moment.

Even though he knew Blaidd didn't like Darriwil, given what little he had heard about the figure, Tirek felt like he might be watching a dance of sorts between two equally skilled fighters, each one going from offensive to defensive in seconds as the other assumed the role that the other had been filling. It really made him wonder what crime Darriwil committed to make the wolfen warrior follow him to the ends of the world, or at least the continent, before he realized that they might have served the same master and that Darriwil might have been planning on betraying his master, causing Blaidd to give chase for so long. Even though he didn't understand such a thing, in fact he was the master of his own fate and had no real desire to be ruled by someone else, he guessed that for Blaidd the thought of someone betraying his master was one of the most vile things anyone could do. Of course he was sure that his companion would keep the information to himself, so this subject was better left in the dark as he watched the two clash with each other, where he noticed that the battle was starting to move in one person's direction, Blaidd's.

The frost enchantment was working far too well, in fact he was sure that it was weakening his foe with every swing of his large weapon, to the point where Darriwil slipped up and Blaidd seized the moment to split him in half, causing him to drop his curved greatsword as his body quickly faded away, the power surging into Tirek's chest.

"Finally... I can return to Mistress Ranni with good news." Blaidd said, letting out a sigh of relief as he swung his sword, the motion clearing the blood from it in seconds, before returning it to it's place on his back as the magic that fueled the gaol disappeared before Tirek's eyes, even though the wolfen warrior's statement caught his attention.

"So, about that reward... I was wondering if you'd accept traveling with me for a time, taking out a few more creatures or caves as the payment for helping you find Darriwil." Tirek commented, where he picked up the curved greatsword, making it look like he hadn't heard Blaidd's comment about 'Ranni', who he was sure was the four armed lady he had met not that long ago, the one who gave him an alias when she handed over the Spirit Bell.

"I suppose that's acceptable. I can wait a while before making my report." Blaidd replied, though he had to wonder why the figure had an interest in traveling with him, despite the fact that he could hazard that it was to have someone like him be the focus of his enemies while he fought with his spells, a standard in the adventuring circle from what he had heard in the past, "So, where to first?"

"I've got a dragon in mind that needs to die... after that, we'll see." Tirek said, as while he wanted to go to Margit with his new companion, because it might tip the odds in his favor to have someone match the figure's speed, he figured that such a thing would be pushing his luck and decided to focus on his other targets until Blaidd told him the payment was finally complete.

Blaidd nodded his head and together the two of them headed down the hill, heading for the lake that held the dragon that had killed Tirek not that long ago, who was looking forward to gathering more power to tear down his obstacles and the dangers that he would encounter in the near future.

Comments

[Moka Mcdowell]

Hahaha, Tirek discovers co-op

[Blackdrag-rose]

11670737 Oh yeah, and with one of the best companions in the game no less.

[ThrowingPotato]

Damn this is a thick chapter