[center][h3]Above the Under - Wasteland of Buried Churches[/h3]
[b]Starring:[/b] Ganondorf ([@Double])
[b]Word Count:[/b] 2,668
[b]Exp:[/b] 3[/center]

By now, it seemed to be late afternoon, with the shadows of early evening beginning to stretch as the sun grew low in the west. At this point, it had been days since any of the Seekers who ventured into the Chasm had seen the sun or the sky, and for Ganondorf, it had been far, far longer. In the depths of the earth it was impossible to measure night or day by the passage of celestial bodies above, so losing track of time was all too easy, allowing hours, days, weeks, even years to run together like rain in the Home of Tears. How long had it been since Ganondorf had felt the sun’s warmth? Or filled his lungs with fresh air? The air here was crisp, and a little thin. To anyone with worldly knowledge, it would be obvious that this desolate place lay at high altitude. Probably somewhere within the immense mountain range beneath which the Under existed. Around the new arrivals stretched a rugged, rocky, uneven wasteland, dotted by countless ruins of what were once glorious cathedrals and church spires. These formerly splendid edifices, erected in fervent reverence, had been laid to waste by some manner of seismic activity. Now only sad, cracked, hollow husks remained, many bowed over as if in silent penitence. No straight roads connected them, and the twisted trees that eked out a living here clutched at the unyielding heavens with leafless, finger-like branches in desperate prayer.

[center][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfytZybUKEk&ab_channel=Bysig][img]https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/031/825/601/large/jesus-campos-jimenez-nerkin-iglesias-enterradas-bg1-artstation.jpg?1604687969[/img][/url]
[i]Click for music[/i][/center]

And yet, something rather deific in appearance could be glimpsed on one of the lower peaks that ringed this ominous place. A huge, golden [url=https://i.imgur.com/SpjvAan.jpg]wheel[/url], not unlike a giant coin emblazoned with a smiling face, hung in the air there. Even from this distance, a crowd of people could be seen gathered beneath it. Petitioners, maybe. They were not as much of a concern as the other wanderers in these wastes, if those wretches could even still be called people, and not shells possessed by inhuman zeal. These monsters included the [url=https://i.imgur.com/BiIRdHr.png]Phalaris[/url] with javelins and bronze bull helmets, gruesome [url=https://i.imgur.com/gtR83za.png]convicts[/url] wielding the same rocks with which they were stoned to death, beheaded [url=https://i.imgur.com/mi9Lssc.png]shieldmaidens[/url], and more. Most horrible were the [url=https://i.imgur.com/r0zwqVj.png]guardainfantes[/url], naked giants adorned with little girls in dresses, who carried as weapons the carcasses of deer.

The Gerudo King had to be careful. He could lose track of time from just standing here and drinking in the twilight skies and fresh, seemingly mountainous air. But they had somewhere they needed to be. Much as he wished he could take this opportunity to rid himself of the Under, that meant shying away from slaying the Guardian. He couldn’t do that, not if Ganondorf wanted to eventually take the fight to Galeem, anyway. Better to pick apart the being’s pets and followers in order to weaken and reduce his power before going in for the kill. If he remembered the black coated girl’s words correctly, then the Seekers needed to look for a place called Mercy Dreams. That probably meant looking for a route that leads back underground.

Ganondorf could spot a few landmarks dotting the area. They were mostly temples, or churches, probably in dilapidated ruin judging by the state of the nearest one he could see most clearly. But there was at least one that looked promising, a big one way off in the distance. Impossible to tell what state it was in from this far away, but at least it was a start. Ganondorf considered heading toward the giant golden wheel at first, thinking someone there could maybe provide information. But it was honestly hard to tell the difference between people and hostile monsters. And the last thing he was in the mood for was wading into what could be a horde of hostile enemies.

[color=797979]”There.”[/color] the Gerudo King said, pointing a finger in the direction of the largest cathedral looming in the distance, [color=797979]”The smaller buildings are probably in ruin. And that one is big enough to be the most likely to have an entrance to the underground within it.”[/color] he reasoned. And after saying this, he took the lead and forged ahead. They had a ways to travel, and Ganondorf preferred not to be out in this rugged wasteland after dark. As such, he kept his conversations to a minimum in order to focus on keeping a good pace.

After they had gone a short distance, the Seekers found themselves accosted by two trios of stone-throwing Convicted. Jesse and Rubick were able to dispatch one trio easily enough. And as for the other one, Ganondorf needed only to summon his Moblin archers to shoot them down. So far so good, but Ganondorf wasn’t about to let himself become complicit. He had a feeling that was only the start, and things would get a little tougher the closer they got to their destination. At least that was always how it seemed to go, anyway. They continued and after a bit longer found themselves facing a headless woman wielding a sword and carrying a tall, massive tower shield that looked more like a giant slab of stone. But he stepped forward and drew his twin greatswords, prepared to deal with this enemy personally. The Shieldmaiden’s shield made it difficult to find an opening. But after trading a handful of attacks, Ganondorf parried one of her light slashes. He then crouched and spun himself into a leg sweep that managed to catch the creature by her legs. This sent her sprawling backward onto the ground, where she was also crushed under the weight of the heavy shield she had been wielding.

The next encounter some time later was against a pair of javelin wielding men with brass helmets shaped like ox heads. The Phalaris initially attacked by keeping their distance and throwing their javelins. But those were telegraphed and easily avoidable. Ganondorf drew his swords and charged forward, resulting in one of the Phalaris rolling out of the way while its compatriot had its head lopped off by a sweeping slash of the Gerudo King’s blades. Nearby, the moblins opened fire on the second Phalaris, distracting it long enough for Ganondorf to get close and impale it with both his swords, then he wound up a Warlock Punch and knocked the helmet and head of the enemy right off its shoulders. This was essentially how all battles went. Foes would approach, and Ganondorf would make short work of them usually with a hard hitting finisher. And those that he didn’t battle, were similarly dealt with by Jesse or Rubick.

As for the travel, Ganondorf was always trying to maintain a brisk pace. It was true that the Seekers were occasionally interrupted by attacking monsters, but overall they were able to make good enough time. And with the sun hanging low and just about gone, the Seekers would at least stand before the large [url=https://demonssouls.fandom.com/wiki/Tower_of_Latria]cathedral[/url] they had been trekking toward.

[color=797979]”Hm, seems I was right about it being in ruins along with the rest of the buildings.”[/color] Ganondorf observed. The whole building looked aged and dilapidated. The stone brickwork looked grimy and cracked in places. And the mist that filled the area gave the place a feeling of dread and unwelcome. But the Gerudo King would not be deterred. He and Jesse had come this far, and there was no point in turning back now. There were a handful of staircases, some even leading downward into what Ganondorf assumed was the Under. But the last thing he needed was to pick the wrong route and end up in some place far away from his actual destination. And so this, he felt, wouldn’t be as simple as it seemed.

Not helping matters was the large numbers of… [url=https://demonssouls.fandom.com/wiki/Prisoner]people[/url] - for lack of a better word - milling about around the cathedral. They looked so deathly and gaunt one would wonder if they could even be called people at all. But they didn’t appear to be the masters of this place. Instead, that role seemed to be fulfilled by other creatures. [url=https://demonssouls.fandom.com/wiki/Mind_Flayer]Men-like beings[/url] with octopus- or squid-like heads wrapped in what looked like robes made of tendrils or tentacles. They appeared to be the overseers, almost watching over the human-esque creatures like wardens lording over prisoners. And there was something else above all of that. Suspended by chains in one of the tall towers was a large… [url=https://i.imgur.com/C7Lv5rM.png]heart[/url]? It sort of resembled one, but it was difficult to say. But even from this distance, it was obviously a grotesque and disgusting thing to look at. Ganondorf could only imagine what someone like Sectonia would think when looking at it.

The chains the heart was suspended on looked like they connected to a series of mechanisms, the controls for which were probably scattered about in key locations, [color=797979]”This gives me an idea…”[/color] Ganondorf mused to himself, then got to work. Since he wasn’t sure any of the staircases were a safe enough route to take, the Gerudo King would instead make a route of his own. And destroy that accursed-looking blight of a contraption while he was at it. And it wasn’t long before the denizens of this cathedral became aware of the intruding Seekers’ presence. When that happened the Prisoners set about to defend the area at the orders of their Mind Flayer masters. In fact several of the Prisoners started clumping together to form floating [url=https://demonssouls.fandom.com/wiki/Prisoner_Horde]hordes[/url] with what looked like single glowing eyes that fired dangerous looking rays as a form of attack.

Ganondorf wasted no time, and immediately summoned both his Moblins and his Phantom Self as a means of bolstering his and Jesse’s numbers. The summoned minions went to work, with the Moblins managing to hold back approaching Prisoners while Phantom Ganon went to work against one of the Prisoner Hordes. Ganondorf himself soon became focused on engaging an approaching Mind Flayer, drawing his twin greatswords in preparation for battle. The Mind Flayer attempted to fire a soul ray that Ganondorf was able to side-step out of the way of. He then charged forward with his swords, but was caught by an unexpected electric attack that left the Gerudo King momentarily paralyzed. The Mind Flayer grabbed at Ganondorf with its tendrils, no doubt preparing some kind of deadly attack. But before it could execute that attack, tendrils became riddled with bullets fired from nearby. It was Jesse, using her Service Weapon to give Ganondorf enough time and cover fire to recover from the paralysis. And then the Gerudo King quickly impaled the Mind Flayer on both his blades before yanking them both out in a horizontal cross slash that left the creature dead on the ground, cleaved in two.

[color=797979]”My thanks.”[/color] said Ganondorf to Jesse, who was already turning her attention to providing cover fire elsewhere in the battle.

As for Ganondorf, he pressed forward, having and cleaving his way through swathes of Prisoners as he went. Eventually he came upon an old lever that he thought might be connected to that big heart. It was guarded by another Mind Flayer, but unlike the first time Ganondorf was now wary of the paralyzing electric attack and was able to avoid it this time around. Once he was in melee range, the Mind Flayer attempted a shockwave attack. This pushed Ganondorf back a few paces, but the towering Gerudo warrior would not be so easily overcome. He simply pushed forward using his immense strength and soon enough the Mind Flayer’s head was rolling on the floor. After that, he was able to force the level down. That caused a chain reaction in some of the chains, but it alone didn’t appear to get the job done, [color=797979]”Then I guess I’ll just have to find another.”[/color]

Ganondorf fought his way down a corridor, this time having encountered many Prisoners and a single Prisoner Horde. The Prisoners may as well have been child’s play for him to deal with. But that Prisoner Horde kept firing its soul ray and preventing Ganondorf from finding an opening to approach it. So he enlisted some aid, and summoned one of his Strikers: Blast Hornet. The reploid took flight and used his aerial superiority to easily avoid the soul rays. He then came crashing down onto the Prisoner Horde with his Stringer Attack. It wasn’t a killshot, but it damaged the monster and kept its attention long enough for Ganondorf to come charging in with his swords. A few strokes later and the Prisoner Horde was reduced to a pile of bodies on the ground. Not long after Blast Hornet vanished, Ganondorf felt the rumble of mechanisms and could see some wavering in the chains suspending the big heart in the distance. Last he saw her, Jesse was providing cover for the Moblins. This was likely their doing, [color=797979]”Good. Another one bites the dust, it seems.”[/color]

At last Ganondorf found another lever. It was guarded by two Prisoner Hordes and a Mind Flayer. Ganondorf was starting to grow tired of these games. He summoned Riptor and sent the dinosaur charging straight ahead. He then hurled his swords at the Prisoner Hordes before they could fire their soul rays. And Riptor herself was quite agile enough to dodge the single remaining ray that was fired by the Mind Flayer. Ganondorf himself was advancing immediately after, deciding that now was as good a time as any to unleash the Darkness he had been building up in his weapons. He leaped in the air and came crashing back to the ground with a Warlock Fist that unleashed an explosive wave that enveloped the two Prisoner Hordes and eviscerated them. Then he grabbed his swords and charged the Mind Flayer who was too distracted by Riptor to stop the Gerudo King from practically hacking it to pieces. Riptor vanished and Ganondorf then activated the lever.

Either that was enough or perhaps Jesse had pulled another lever elsewhere. Either way he looked up and Ganondorf could see the suspended chains giving way one after another. And in moments the big heart came crashing down from the tower. With a huge rumble and boom it impacted the ground and forcibly created a gaping pit that could serve as a suitable route back down into the Under. By this point there was too much chaos and the enemies in the area weren’t even trying to stop him. Instead many of the Prisoners were attempting to flee en masse, which would also keep the Mind Flayers busy.

Minutes later, Ganondorf was running toward the newly opened pit and made a giant leap right into it. He could even see Jesse doing the same from another angle. And while Jesse could use her levitation to slow her descent, Ganondorf had no such power. But he [i]did[/i] have something else, and when he needed it the Phantom Familiar teleported directly to Ganondorf and he was able to grab hold of it from below it. As long he held on, the Phantom Familiar would glide him back down into the Under safely. And naturally Jesse was able to levitate herself down. And down they went. Further and further until they could no longer see any sign of the surface they had descended from. But soon they could spot it down below. From one prison, directly to another, the pair of Seekers eventually touched down and found themselves staring at the entrance to Mercy Dreams.

Ganondorf retrieved the linked pearl earring that he had been given by Primrose during their stay at Pizza Tower and he put it on his right ear. If he remembered right, he was supposed to squeeze the pearl to activate it, [color=797979]”It’s Ganondorf and Jesse.”[/color] he said, sending a message to any of the Seekers who would be able to hear it, [color=797979]”We were a bit detoured, but we made it to the Prison. Where is everyone?”[/color]