(A/N): Hello! Loomin here with a story that some of you might or might not have expected. I've been making chapters for this story for almost two months and is a success in AO3. I decided to put this also in Wattpad because there aren't a lot of Elden Ring fanfics here so I'm putting this story here as well! Enjoy! 

Chapel Of Anticipation

It all started with a blink.

One blink.

Darkness.

Two blinks.

Still darkness.

Three blinks.

...

.

.

.

.

.

.

'I'm sealed shut...'

Matthias realizes his situation and tries to move his arms horizontally. To his surprise, his hand hit the solid stone and felt his fingernails scratching the surface. He quickly retracted his arms to his side again, but this tine, he moves his arms vertically in a slow and steady fashion. Feeling the cold surface of stone again, he began to push off the lid aside, just enough for his body to exit the coffin. After pushing the lid aside, he pushed himself out of the coffin and stepped onto the cold, stone floor of the chapel.

That's what he thought was going to happen until he flopped down beside the stone coffin, and couldn't get up.

"Damn it all!" He exclaimed, as tried to move his legs. Who knew that sleeping inside a coffin for bloody knows how long will render your lower extremities useless?

"Now I know how the Albinaurics feel when they suddenly lost the ability to move their legs..."

Mattheas, the man that he was, will not stand idle. For he dragged himself across the stone floor of the chapel. In his search for clues to how he ended up in such a state, Mattheas felt appalled when he saw a dead maiden's body slumped near the chapel's door. There, he found a Wizened Tarnished Finger, and a written letter. He grabbed the finger and read the letter. It says:

Mattheas, the Fellsword. The Lands Between needs you more than ever. The Elden Ring has been shattered, and the Lands Between is being torn apart by Queen Marika's children. Without your intervention and guidance, each of them declared war on each other. Please. Wake up. We need your strength, your grace, and your courage. To face the darkness that is yet to come in the Lands Between.

The moment he finished reading the letter, the feeling in his legs returned, and stood up. The shock, the fear, and grief hit Mattheas too quickly for he found himself kicking the double doors of the chapel and rushed outside.

Mattheas stopped when he saw the Erdtree, still standing tall and glowing in the night sky. His initial panic dies down and frowned at the current display of the Erdtree. It was supposed to be burning bright as the sun, a beacon of light that pierced the darkest corners of the Lands Between. Instead, the tree is glowing, its rays of golden light seems weaker than the last time he saw it in person.

"What have they done?" Mattheas asked himself as he turns to the left and began walking. He tried to get a good view of the main land, but the surrounding fog was thick for Mattheas to see through the other side. So he gave up and kept walking. After he crossed a bridge and reading all the messages that are left behind by others. (Why the fuck are they saying 'try finger, but hole'?)

Mattheas came across an open space with a large statue of Queen Marika facing the entrance. This abandoned worshipping ground felt off for a seasoned warrior such as Mattheas, as he instinctively reached out for his short sword and buckler. He moved slowly towards the center of the area until he saw something jump out of the sky behind Queen Marika's statue. He looked up and immediately rolled to the right as a giant sword came crashing down on where he once stood. The warrior quickly backstepped away from his opponent and got a good view of whoever he is fighting.

He wished he never knew what he was fighting.

It was an abomination. A spider made up of multiple arms and legs and a face that only a mother could love. It held a golden sword and a golden great shield, a green robe covering the rest of its impulsive body.

'Grafting? I remember hearing about it from the knights of Leyndell. A pathetic attempt to make a person strong by grafting limbs into their body. I see that such an abhorrent practice exists to this day.'

Mattheas began to run towards the grafted abomination, dodging and jumping from the abomination's attack. When Mattheas got close to it, he raised his short sword and stabbed the abomination in the eye. At first, he thought that the grafted abomination was done for, but was later proven wrong when it raised its head to look at Mattheas in the eye.

There were multiple faces looking at him. A man, woman, and a child's face looked at Mattheas with such bloodlust and rage etched on their faces. Before the warrior could react, the abomination lets out a screeching roar made up of different pitches of tones. Mattheas was sent tumbling back to where he stood before the grafted abomination appeared and quickly got back up. However, he was in a bit of a daze due to the ear piercing screech, dulling his senses significantly.

The warrior and abomination circled around each other, waiting for the right moment to strike each other down. For some reason, he told himself if he revealed his identity to the grafted abomination, it would immediately recognize him and stop fighting. He knows that this sounds akin to one of those snobby noble warriors back in his day. So, he put his plan into action.

Mattheas abandoned his battle stance, and stood tall, pointing his bloody short sword at the abomination.

"You there! Stop this foolishness at once!"

The monster looks at Mattheas, confused, and lowered its guard as it payed attention to Mattheas.

"I am Mattheas, the Fellsword! Radagon's Regent and the Caretaker of the Demigods! You will kneel!"

The grafted monster blankly stares at Mattheas.

"If you come any closer, I will be forced to use a weapon that has slain hundreds of thousands of warriors and monsters alike!" He said as he backs up a few feet away, his back almost at the edge of the cliff.

"Don't do you dare come forward! Don't you dare! I swear I will-!" Mattheas' monologue was cut off when his boots hit a piece of rock, making him stumble backwards, and rapidly shouting curses at the night sky. Finally, the embarrassing act came to an end when he falls of the cliff, letting out an ugly cry before his voice can be heard no more.

Meanwhile, the Grafted Scion scratches its heads using its multiple limbs, trying to comprehend the events that had just transpired. The Grafted Scion hoped that he would never see that guy again.

~~x~~

Melina was out of words when her chosen Tarnished revealed his identity to the Grafted Scion. She didn't expect her chosen Tarnished to be a legend, and had a direct connection to not only Radagon, but also Queen Marika's children as well. Wait, then how is he Tarnished? This makes no sense. He should have the guidance of grace automatically, given that he served alongside Radagon. But how did he lose the guidance of grace? Where was he when the Shattering happened? Or the Night of the Black Knives? Did he lose the guidance of grace beforehand? Or was it afterwards?

So many questions swirled around Melina's mind as she looks down upon Mattheas' unconscious body. Torrent, the spectral steed, huffs as he uses his snout to nudge the unconscious warrior's hands.

"Don't worry, Torrent." Melina says as she gently lays a hand on Torrent. "Fortune is on his-?!"

"AAAHHH!"

Came Mattheas' cry as he woke up unexpectedly from a long fall. Torrent jumps away from surprise, and Melina almost suffered a heart attack.

Melina went from surprise, irritated, and confused as soon as he took off his leather chestpiece. Her chosen Tarnished began to frantically scan his body for something of great interest until he stops as soon as his finger touched a golden needle embedded near his heart. The Kindling Maiden's right eye went wide as soon as she saw the needle.

It was Miquella's Unalloyed Needle. A needle that had the ability to cheat fate and ward away the meddling of Outer Gods.

Mattheas has one embedded in his chest.

Just how close was he to Miquella, the Unalloyed? If he was, was he also close to his twin sister, Malenia, the Blade of Miquella? How close was he to the other demigod children?

"Oh, thank goodness. Miquella's gift isn't broken in two, or else Malenia will slice me in half. Like she can, I always parry her blows, anyways. Will never forget the frustrated look on her face when her stance is broken." Mattheas spoke with a sincere smile on his face, as if he remembered something fond from his past.

It wasn't until later until Mattheas looked up to see Melina and Torrent. The former being shocked by the casual mention of the twin Empyreans. The two of them stared at each others eyes before Mattheas uttered a single word.

"Oh."

Oh indeed.