Maidenless No Longer (Elden Ring)

Bonus Chapter #2: The Wedding Pt. 1

Right. Yes. Aha... of course.

"I welcome you all, to the Church of Vows. I am Miriel, steward of this sacred chamber."

The large turtle glances around at his surroundings and clears his throat.

"My apologies, for the unseemly state of affairs. I imagine you all know the origin of this place, yes?"

Lady Nepheli steps forward and bows her head in greeting.

"We do, Pastor Miriel. Tis why we're here. You have before you the Lady of Limgrave and her Court... as well as the Elden Lord who has brought us altogether. It is our intention to be wed this day, the seven of us."

... Weird, but not a sin he supposed. Indeed, twas Miriel's belief that heresy was not native to the world, but simply a contrivance. All things could be conjoined... ah, not that any of these fine people likely wanted to receive a lecture from him. No, they wanted him to join them all in holy matrimony.

It did make Miriel wonder what was going on in the Capital. Last, he'd seen, the Erdtree was on fire! But then, soon after, in the following weeks, the fire had gone out and the Erdtree had not burnt, not fully. Then, there was this new Elden Lord... the very same man who stood before Miriel now. And yet, the only other two Elden Lords Miriel had ever heard of were Consorts to the God, Queen Marika the Eternal.

Where was she in all of this, that she was allowing her newest Lord to marry these six mortal women? Ah, but more importantly, was it Miriel's place to question the latest Elden Lord's decisions? No, of course not. He was the steward of this Church, no more, no less. And as the Pastor of Vows, he had a duty to bring together anyone who wanted it.

"Very well. I assume you have the rings?"

Lady Roderika is the one who answers that, stepping forward with a wide smile and unfurling a handkerchief to reveal seven exquisitely crafted wedding rings inside. Each of them seems to be specialized in some way, even Miriel's ignorant eyes can see that, though he cannot guess at what the customizations mean.

"Yes, they're right here. Crafted by Master Hewg himself, if you've ever heard of him."

Miriel blinks slowly, before offering the pretty blonde a soft smile.

"Unfortunately, I have not, my dear. But they appear to be quite the finely crafted pieces all the same."

Lady Roderika's smile falters for a moment, before resurging as Miriel pays a compliment to her 'Master Hewg'. Clearly, she appreciated him for more than just his skills as a jeweler. Regardless, with the rings present, there's not much left to do but begin.

"I assume, given your combined presence on this day, that you all want one ceremony? Or is it to be six different ceremonies?"

Please say just one. He's not sure he has enough sermons for six weddings back to back without repeating himself, and that would be dreadfully embarrassing. Thankfully, Lady Nepheli nods her head in easy agreement.

"Just one ceremony shall be fine. We do not simply share our Lord... we share each other as well."

Oh dear. How very forward and blunt. Why, if he were a century younger, he'd be blushing up a storm right now. As it is, Miriel simply rests his eyes for a moment, humming to himself.

"Mm... very good. Please, arrange yourself as you wish."

They do so, eagerly. When he opens his eyes next, they are arrayed before him with the Elden Lord in the center. To his right is Lady Nepheli and to his left is Lady Irina. Past Lady Nepheli is Lady Roderika and then Lady Fia, and past Lady Irina is Lady Zorayas and then Lady Millicent. All of them stand at the ready, anticipation thick in the air as they stare at him.