Hello fellow Conan players. As someone who loves this game and has gone through the original map twice, and Siptah thrice (left a review earlier here), I somehow felt the need to add some fan fiction. Just to show the developers that there are people who deeply care for this game, and have hope for its future. So here it is! My Conan Siptah fan fic! Enjoy, or hate. Either way it was fun to write! Feel free to leave a comment (If its constructive it can help me improve my writing.) If this should have been posted somewhere else, then I apologize.
(Fixed some spelling errors. Will stop updating it now, sorry.)
The vault.
Before us a great double door rested on ancient hinges. Runes that had been carved in some unholy language decorated it from top to bottom, pulsating as if this devilish place had its own heart. A cursed heart. A strange humming accompanied the glow and spoke into our souls with words of malice. We could feel the corruption creeping into our bones. The cold of the other side. But in the quest for survival, this was, perhaps, a path to surviving another day.
A ragged and torn group of men we were. From different parts of the world, but united in a struggle for survival. Five strangers, but already brothers in blood.
Mere days ago, we washed up on different parts of the vast beaches surrounding this cursed island. Our first meeting wasn’t exactly friendly. At first suspicion and survival instinct had led to threats and drawn weapons, makeshift such as we could find them. But a broken oar could still smash in a skull, and a cracked metal hoop from a barrel could slice a throat as good as a knife. So, we seized each other up from a respectful distance. After a while, and with adrenaline levels dropping, we replaced weapons with words. Thus, it was decided that wherever the hell this was we stood a greater chance at survival together, than in each for his own.
We had been right in that. Still, we were ten men when we met. There is no mercy on this island. Now we were five. Moving inlands a living tree had smashed Hoi from Hyrkania to a bloody pulp. He had just walked up to it to pee, when it came alive and put its great fists down upon him. This was no fight for makeshift weapons though, so we swiftly made way further inlands, leaving the beast undisturbed in its primeval slaughter.
Shortly after we came upon a makeshift pirate camp. Makeshift… this whole god forsaken place was makeshift. There were no roads, no houses, no statues of gods, known or unknown. What there was where many survivors from other storms, trying to create a resemblance of a home. This one rested on the top of a broken ship. Theirs? We didn’t ask. As night fell, we crept towards it, hoping to gather something more useful than pointed sticks to survive with. The guard watching the rope bridge to the entrance was distracted by one of the many wild dogs infesting this island. So, we took our chance.
The other pirates in the camp were probably used to the dogs being chased away, so they took no notice of the noise we made. Then, a rusted piece of storage metal cutting the guards breath barely made any. And then we were upon them like wild dogs ourselves.
We lost three more that night. An armour-clad giant with a mace sent two or our own to Crom with swift strikes. I had not even had the chance to learn their names yet! Our weak weapons could not penetrate his iron hide. But as he turned his back towards me and planted his mace in the face of Ulfar the Hyborian he was made to regret leaving one part of his body without armour. His head! A second later it was destroyed by the heavy oar wielded in both my hands. The fight won and the loot was ours!
Some time later we left the camp and continued our journey, now clad in something that protected us, and with weapons with sharp edges! Compared to waking up disoriented with sand in our mouths we now felt invincible.
That feeling ended an hour later. While walking up a small mountain ridge suddenly, out of nowhere, a black bear ripped the head of the other Hyborian in the group, Rexor. Facing a bear is no playtime even clad in armour. But the beast seemed happy to feast on its prey, and we heard it calling its kin with a loud growl, so we silently slipped away once again. Survive above anything else.
Then we saw it! As dawn was approaching the glow of its runes made all our eyes fixated upon it. It was the first structure not made of debris and trash. We could not take our eyes from it! It was mesmerising. What riches would not a place such as this hold?
Just the creation of a double door such as this would have cost a fortune worthy of a king. Dreaming of the treasures hidden in there, then when we got home, we would be treated like kings too! Fools we were! Survival instantly forgotten and replaced with greed.
As the great doors opened, we entered a large chamber with freshwater pools on each side. We quickly quenched our thirst and filled our water skins. Carefully we moved past strange sigils towards another large door. Clearly this was not made by man. It should have been dark in here too, but someone had tended to the lights. We were not alone.
Behind the door a dark staircase awaited. Adorned by marvellous carvings in materials similar to obsidian, but probably not made on this earth, it beckoned us to step further down into the abyss.
As we descended the fires burning in numerous braziers cast dancing shadows on the wall, making us feel like we were surrounded by dancing demons ten feet tall! But the threat to our existence was not some devilish giant.
At the end of the stair a great chamber was laid bare. Pools of water was spread here and there, and piles of bones, human bones, too! Just a few steps away from our party a small humanoid were chewing on the rest of what once probably was a human arm. Surveying the chamber, we saw a handful more of them. Their skin was scaly like a lizard, and their teeth and claws sharp. Still, their lack of height gave us confidence so we charged.
The fools we were.
The first creature we reached rose and charged itself at Osric. A furry of claws came next, too fast to follow, but instantly followed by the screams of Osric. The primeval rage of it all stunned us. As his eviscerated flesh laid bare on the ground the creature turned towards us and bared its teeth. With screams of men defying death, we charged. Our numbers proved too much, and it was soon disposed of. But then the rest of the chamber had noticed us, and the other goblinoids charged!
As the gods willed all of us were battle trained and then discipline kicked in. Two of us formed a shield wall towards the attacker, and myself and Aoitai, another Hyrkanian, used our bows to pin their advance with deadly arrows. And so, we moved, chamber by chamber through the demonic vault of the goblinoids. A wall of steel with sharp swords drawing blood while protecting the fierce bite of the bows behind it.
Room by room, kill by kill, we advanced. With the gods by our side no one died. Thalsa Deem got a bad cut in his right thigh, something to tell the grandchildren about by the fire for sure. And Aelric almost had one of the stocky creatures tear out his throat, but got saved by my arrow in the last second.
Then we came upon the final chamber. Cuts and bruises covered our bodies. Blood stained our clothes. Adrenaline all but spent. The looted pirate armour felt like blocks of lead, pulling us down, asking us just to lie down and rest in our graves. Still, we pushed on.
As we entered the last great room, we saw the king of this place watching us. Great horns crowned his skull, and his chest was covered in circular tattoos, almost looking like two snakes facing each other. His skin glowed as if red hot lava was pulsing through his veins.
We moved in as a unit. The unit that had brought death on our enemies so far! With a roar the king slapped his head and then charged. The impact threw Aelric and Thalsa Deem to the sides. Makos arrow missed, and then the king unleashed a flurry of claws making Mako evaporate into a cloud of blood and gore. I threw myself to the ground as I saw my companion being torn into nothing!
I saw Aelric getting back up on his feet. Thalsa lay still, probably dead. Then the beast turned and with one heavy hand he tore Aelrics shield in half and removed his head behind it in the same stroke. As his limp body hit the floor, I was sure my death was to follow. But somehow my hands moved without my command and let lose my last arrow.
As the creature turned to me and roared, it flew through the air and into the creatures open mouth and penetrated its brain. A large thud followed and then a silence that seemed to last for aeons. Then the sound of my own breath brought me back into reality.
All dead, but not me. Somehow, I was still alive. So, I ventured forth towards the last door, that now opened upon the daemonic king’s death. A small room with three chests awaited me.
In the treasure chamber I found more than I could dream of. Chunks of an unknown metal called Eldarium (green, but containing green fire inside it!) Recipes for making weapons hitherto unknown to men. Rare resources needed for advanced weaponry and armoury. I now had in my hands not a treasure of kings, but one that could make a king!
When touching a black orb in the middle of the room a tale was laid out before me. A tale of beasts working together to thwart the threat of man, and instead subdue them, enslave them! But this vile tale told me something of value. This vault was not the only one!
When I made my way out of the vault nightfall was already closing in. I carried my bounty in a, for once and unfamiliarly, stride toward the nearest beach. There were fewer deadly beasts there, and perhaps new companions?
Soon I saw a campfire, and some shapes of human gathered around it. Then I stopped and waited. Watching in silence. When dawn approaches, I will present myself for them. Perhaps they will try to kill me, and I will have to kill them. Or they will see the need to cooperate for survival. Which way it may go, I will find more of this “Eldarium”, build better weapons, survive and thrive. And then I will make my way home and return, not as a king, but as a Queen! Because I am Valeria of the blade, and I will survive and shape my own future!