Regiis

(Story by former owner, I don't want to erase their hard work) :


The waters ran still in the clear pools of the Tsunami Flats. It was very early in the morning, and not many in the area were particularly roused from their sleep at such an hour. None, of course, with the exception of a sole grieving individual in the area. Soft feet tread over wet sand, descending down into the throes of a nearby temple.

The early hours were what roused Regiis from his slumber. He had been diligent in his routines ever since the spring of last year, for every day he rose early to pray and did not leave his place of worship until sundown, where he trudged home, almost half-tranced, and went to bed early.

Such was the routine of someone who had not heard in days, months, possibly years, from his god. Since he was little, he had heard stories of the great Deity that stirred the seas with his claws, made the waters calm after great storms and roaring skies. The warring between his Deity and his godly rival had also given rise to another flight too, it had seemed.

A young Regiis barely knew what to think of such tales even being real or fathomable, but even he at an early age knew the existence of the deities was no joke. They’d been responsible for managing flight celebrations for so long in his life, and his own Deity made the Wavecrest Saturnalia its best for a long time… at least, until recently, so it had seemed.

A year ago, his Deitiy vanished without warning. It had been an event that shook Regiis to the core, fully ensuring his devotion to the fervent prayer and safety of the Tidelord, wherever he had disappeared to. But to a young Regiis, whose mind was somewhat warped, he quickly began to think his god really was dead. Even so, that never stopped him from believing he was alive, somewhere deep in that ocean blue soul.

He received little judgement for his career choice, especially considering how the waters around him seemed to swirl and convene, a phenomenon many dubbed as “Primal”. The strong water magic Regiis harbored within him found use in his prayers and temple work, and he was both a regular and deeply respected. His unceasing routine served as inspiration to those struggling to believe.

Even now, he still wonders: Is his Deity truly gone? If we pray unceasingly with no response, where has he gone? He shuffles a bit, the soft cloths he wears getting a bit wet from stray tidepool water. He feels his eyes watering up a bit, almost as if he wants to cry, as if he feels the Tidelord is in fact truly dead. His blue soul, submerged in the ocean waves, felt as if it was sinking deeper into the colorless abyss.

His claws clacked onto the hard marble floor of the temple. Shaking off his doubtful thoughts, he took his place, closed his eyes, and began to pray as he always had. Many hours passed, but when he felt himself finally stir from the spot he’d taken, it was not sundown. He felt more water rushing from his eyes than usual, as if he was…

“…Crying. Regiis, you are crying. Is everything okay?” He felt a voice send shivers down his spine, and his claws scrabbled for ground on the floor. Regiis turned solemnly after regaining his grace. “…I think… maybe… he may no longer be with us.” He admitted this in earnest to his acolytes, wiping away the extra water surrounding his eyes.

He sighed and started to turn out of the temple. “I prayed here for years and years to my god… only to find there is no longer a voice to answer my calls to action. Perhaps we should try to find out for ourselves if he is truly still with us.” Regiis folded his wings in on his body and exited the temple. His acolytes followed suit.

The sunlight was jarring. It made Regiis squint a bit as he walked forward, but he pushed nonetheless until his feet started to feel the water lapping up overhead. Dipping his claws in a bit, he then started walking out onto the water. Noticing his acolytes had stopped at the shore, he bade them farewell and vowed to update them on the situation.

Despite his promise, he felt weak. It was impossible to say for sure whether his Deity was still there. The waters were as cold and unforgiving as they’d always been, the icy liquid now lapping up onto his wrists. Deciding to get it over with, Regiis slipped beneath the icy waves, remembering to keep his breath even so that his heart wouldn’t feel as if it was detaching from his chest. He was prone to such anxious fits if his prayers were disturbed, so avoiding them was desirable.

As he sank lower into the dark throes of the Leviathan Trench, he could see dragons gathered below, darting back and forth worriedly. Seeing their concern was making his own body shake. Noticing this, he quickly wormed himself out a bit and kept swimming. Perhaps others were already accepting that…

Keep it together, Regiis, he thought to himself as his shaking body swam down to a place in the trench where he could perch himself and nervously await the news that would come. It was unusual for his concern to run so high, although considering his consistent anxiety when disturbed it was not an unusual event. Still, it worried him.

There were soft murmurs carried on the waters around him, whispers that some were accepting that the Tidelord was truly gone. Regiis laid down and stared up at the murky waters above, the sunlight barely reaching down to the depths where he now sat. Bubbles rose slowly up from the terrifying void below.

Regiis felt a soft whimper escape his lips as the wait continued for an hour, two, three. It felt like days had passed since he’d prayed, and perhaps those he prayed with had tired of his wait and resumed their original routines. He’d never felt this emotion, the fear that shook him to his core, before in his entire life. The pure emotion within him felt as if it could burst and carry up to the barely visible surfaces above.

Shouts of distant dragons broke the overwhelming pressure building up within him, letting it crumble away rather quickly. The cries directed him to sights up above, where hundreds upon thousands of Water clans could be seen overhead. A great prismatic variety of colors and elements, a kaleidoscope of energy at such a dismal place seemed like a wake-up call.

Then, Regiis looked closer. Some of the dragons weren’t of the Water element. Water magic itself still existed… Therefore that could mean only one thing. But even so, it was still hard to believe. The idea that his Deity would vanish on his faithful was too painful for him to stomach. There was no choice in the matter. Regiis had to accept the painful truth.

The Deity that had addressed his kin with such great confidence and given him so much over his many years of long life. Why had it been that he needed to leave now, when Regiis knew he would need him for possibly the rest of his days? It didn’t matter if water magic itself was still around.

The one he had loved and devoted his life to since hearing of those great fantastical tales all those years ago was dead. There was no other way of seeing it. Even so, seeing the rainbow of dragons swimming in the oceans he had once called home was stirring emotions in him he didn’t want to feel anymore. Feeling himself choking up, he took a step back, thoroughly shocked.

He felt himself starting to lose bodily control, his legs buckling under the intense weight of the water at this depth. It was a feeling no self-respecting water dragon would ever feel provided they had enough control over their magic, but it was still humiliating to say the least.

A mind was overflowing with thoughts, thoughts that should have stayed locked away. Why did he even come? What was to gain from confirming the suspicions he’d harbored for so long? He was losing more control of his body now, his wings starting to gently grace the sand below him. Swallowing his tears, he stood straight back up under the suddenly heavy water and burst up from the sea.

Returning to the Flats once more long after the sun had gone back down, Regiis walked slowly to the temple he had worshipped in for all these years, contemplating the news he’d had to stomach in the depths of the oceans. The acolytes were now long gone, and he could barely keep in the droves of inexplicable grief and happiness he felt simoultaneously.

It could be contained no more. He started to flap, flying himself upward into the night sky above the oceans. The winds were cool, whispering the secrets of prophecies long gone and predicted, possibly disproven. The cool breezes tickled his ears like soft laughter; droplets of water graced his claws like the tears of young children.

Regiis lifted his weary eyes to the full moon above, staring it and the tiny yet countless stars in the black skies with sad contempt. He no longer knew what to believe or feel, for now was the time his belief in his Deity was truly being tested. With shaky, uncontrollable breath and weary body, he let himself fall, be reclaimed by the oceans he’d prayed to his whole life.

And it was then that he cried. He let the tears of others touching him drive him to cry too, tears he had not shed in a long time, perhaps ever in his life. His crying was soft and attracted little attention, but now he was able to realize what he was truly feeling – a mix between grief and overwhelming joy.

“If you are truly still alive…” he sobbed, “I am no place if I do not know where you are. Why must you leave us, my Deity…?” He flailed among the calm waves of the Sea of a Thousand Currents, eyes fixated on the lonely skies above. The moon and stars, that which he had seen a thousand times, seemed to be comforting him in this time of unknown.

The night whispered to him that there was, perhaps, still hope in reclaiming the person he’d used to be for all these years – perhaps overcoming that blandness he’d kept in his life for said time.
Even if the TIdelord was in a place no one knew, Regiis would travel to the ends of the earth to find and carry his word.