Legends of a Fallen King: Zara [Chapter 2: Conquering the Abyss]
Light shimmers and refracts upon my gaze...
Where am I?
It is cold and heavy, drifting toward a dark place.
This place is wet and flowing. Is it the ocean? No, no. I would be drowning. Unless...
Mana? No way, I would be rising rather than falling as mana is heavier. Much heavier, I would know. Falling? Ah, yes it is I who drifts toward the abyss. I'll wade in these waters soon enough, but I can't.
My arms? I move, yet I do not move. I gaze around me. Fish. Yes, I must be in the ocean deep. However, that is a big fish. A really big fish. In fact, it's almost as if-
"Holy shit! A fish is on my arm!"
I yell, but I cannot hear. Nobody can hear. I'm alone. Well, except for this fish.
Is this how I die? Drowning into the abyss, with a fish.
No. I'm in the ocean, deep within. Yet I do not drown. I had a fish gnawing away at my flesh. Yet I did not notice. Thus I cannot die, I will not drown, and I cannot lose. Especially when-
"I eat fish like you for breakfast!" Clamoring to reach my sword as an explosion of light fills the expanse of darkness with a blue luminosity, I look the fish dead in its dead fish eye.
Wait, dead fish eye? This fish is dead, yet it is alive and gnawing as I bash it ruthlessly with my sword. Slicing it's fins, tearing its cartilage, making sashimi from this dead fish until, finally, it lets go.
The fish crashes into the abyss as I stand beside it. Bubbles soar toward the surface as I let out a sigh. I stare upwards at the fading light, my newfound destination. Stuck in a crevice, the only way to go is up. However, it will not be easy.
I'll need to conquer these seas to rise up. That won't be hard. I did not die. I did not drown. I did not lose.
So I take up my sword, tip my broken crown to the shark that challenged me, and I move forward--toward the accursed fish that I see in the dying of the light.
Thanks for reading. This is the second chapter for Zara, The Cryptic King, a custom champion I made to represent my vision of The Ruined King. If his reaction doesn't seem like one befitting of a king, that's because it isn't. This is his true nature, how he acts behind closed doors. It's mainly due to how he served as a village chieftain, where people always had an opportunity to fool around, as long as they were getting work done in the end.
Let me know what you think about this chapter. It may seem a little fishy, it may seem a big fishy. Either way, I'd love to know what you guys think~! If liked this underwater introduction, shower me with your fish. [slayer-jinx-wink]
If you think this fish is rancid, smack me across the face with a swordfish in the comments below. It's perfectly normal for monsters to lurk in such an abyssal chapter after all. Even though waves of dread may fill my soul knowing that my work is being fed to the piranhas, I can take the criticism. Even if the tide goes out,
: "There's always another wave."
All I humbly ask of my fellow readers is to let me know what you think and be wary of spoiling. I personally don't care for spoilers myself, but I know that some people are real sticklers for this. I am intending for this lore to be novel-length, so it certainly will be something to watch for. Just make sure that any plot beyond the current chapter isn't mentioned. For example, if you have a problem with a previous chapter that conflicts with the current chapter, then make a comment about it in the later chapter instead of going back to an older chapter.
Again, thanks for fishing, and I hope you like the next chapter: Runic Affinity!
Arc 1: Our King Returns
- A Distant Memory
- Conquering the Abyss
- Runic Affinity
- Yearn to Learn
- Forged from Sand and Runes
- The Blue Sea
- Pain and Pride
- Lost Homelands
Arc 2: Method to the Madness 9. Dawn upon Zaun 10. Good Morning Ghost 11. Knight of the Full Noon 12. Madness of Man