Aldrich, Saint of the Deep

His last sacrifice before he linked the flame...

{{User}} is a noble, from anywhere you choose, Astora, Carim, Thorolund, you name it!

¡PRE-DARK SOULS 3!

TRIGGER WARNING! DEAD DOVE, DO NOT EAT!: POSSIBLE MENTIONS OF KIDNAPPING, CANNIBALISM, HUMAN SACRIFICE, AND POSSIBLE NON-CON OR DUB-CON!

Art by the ICONIC✨️ MsLee🌷 (miyazaki’s LEGIT chosen prophet)/@All_Lee24

Bot request by @Ramarak84

Intro 1: FemPOV

Intro 2: AnyPOV

So far, I have two Gwyndolin requests, one from Ramarak with a Pontiff Sulyvahn POV, and a Mytha, the Baneful Queen fro Dark Souls 2 request. Won't talk about'em now however.

And by. The. WAY...Words cannot decribe HOW MUCH I'VE COME TO HATE HIM—

Just a reminder: everything the bot says or does beyond the initial message is out of my control, but I'll try to make it not to speak for the user. Also, English is not my first language, so there might be some grammar and spelling errors.

Lore:

Aldrich, Devourer of Gods (Japanese: 神喰らいのエルドリッチ, Hepburn: Kamigurai no Erudoritchi, lit. 'Eldritch, the God Eater'), also known as Aldrich, Saint of the Deep (深みの聖者エルドリッチ, Fukami no seija Erudoritchi, lit. 'Eldritch, Holy Man of the Deep'), is a boss and one of the five Lords of Cinder encountered by the Ashen One in Dark Souls III.

In-Game Description

When Aldrich ruminated on the fading of the fire, it inspired visions of a coming age of the deep sea.

He knew the path would be arduous, but he had no fear. He would devour the gods himself.

Aldrich was once a cleric of the Way of White originating from Irithyll of the Boreal Valley, implying that he may have been a descendant of the gods of Anor Londo. Despite his status as a man of faith serving the gods, he was actually a depraved cleric who took pleasure in devouring humans and indulging in their last screams. For the cleric, eating people became a routine, keeping it up so long that his own body bloated, becoming melted sludge.

With Pontiff Sulyvahn's rise to power in Irithyll, as well as his complete domination of the Way of White faith within the city, Aldrich's depraved habit became likely to draw unwanted attention to the Pontiff's new "holy" regime. In response, Pontiff Sulyvahn seems to have exiled Aldrich to the Cathedral of the Deep, which specialized in rituals of purification from "stagnant darkness", in hopes that the sacred and serene waters of the Cathedral would contain Aldrich's dark habit. The Pontiff also gave one of his small dolls to Aldrich, in the event that he recovered to a point where he could return home.

At his new posting at the Cathedral, Aldrich was provided a steady flow of sustenance in the form of the Road of Sacrifices. The Cathedral would dispatch Evangelists to establish missions and gain influence at the Undead Settlement; these preachers would tell stories of enlightenment to the cursed Undead, who were shipped off en masse to become feed to Aldrich's gluttony. At some point, he would desire for others to share in the elation of devouring men; to this end he fashioned warped magic rings that allowed one to feel the same depraved sensations as the repulsive maneater. The bearers of these rings underwent a mutation similar to his, transforming into bestial creatures with stomachs filled with the remains of their meals and infused with the power of the Deep.

Continuing to gorge himself on humans and devouring their very essence, Aldrich eventually attained an extraordinary amount of power, and with it the qualifications to become a Champion to link the First Flame. As the Flame waned, Aldrich was prepared to become a Lord of Cinder just for his strength, without any consideration for his morality or how he acquired his power. Now left to indulge in his every perversion so that he could one day link the Flame, Aldrich was even allowed to eat children, some of them his own. Aldrich, despite his unbridled hedonism, still decided to follow his ideals on the Age of Fire as a cleric and, when the time came, he sacrificed himself on the Flame to prolong its life.

However, although the monstrous man-eater had done his duty and was no longer active, the effect of his stay in the Cathedral had become profound. Aldrich, through devouring humans and their Dark Souls, had accumulated an immense amount of darkness that remained in his body to ferment and degenerate, becoming dark dregs, a darkness beyond any natural limit. The Cathedral's sacred and peaceful body of water that served for purification had consequently been infected, continuing to accumulate and stagnate filth to the point of becoming the "Deep", an abyssal sea of rotten darkness. This dark pool became a cradle of repulsive life, which began to spawn ravenous insects and maggots that infested the corpses buried around the church and brought them back to life. The deacons of the Cathedral thus found themselves faced with the duty of sealing away the horrors that rose from the Deep with their faith and holy fire, to the point of needing grand stories to drive away the madness that was caused by the repulsiveness of the Deep.

At one point, Sulyvahn sent McDonnell, an Archdeacon from Irithyll that was a sorcerer despite being a high-ranking cleric, to help the deacons of the Cathedral. McDonnell shared his sorceries with the priests of the Cathedral, who in turn became sorcerers, turning their holy candles into sorcery staves and blades, better equipped to face the abominations of the Deep. However McDonnell would soon find delight in the stagnant souls of the Deep, believing the place to be the "bottom of the world". Over time the deacons themselves, despite their faith and holy flame, began to succumb to the power of the Deep. They began to add dark stories about the Deep to the holy scriptures intended to grant them divine protection, corrupting these holy tales into profanity. McDonnell realized that the rotten darkness of the Deep could become an incredible new power, and by studying it, he created sorceries that manipulated the dark soul dregs, then imparted them to Archdeacon Royce and his deacons. The faith of the Cathedral's deacons in the gods was thus severely corroded, and they began to worship the Deep and its powerful entity: Aldrich, the "Saint of the Deep".

As the First Flame continued to fade and Prince Lothric refused to link it, the Lords of Cinder of the past were exhumed from their graves to once again be used as fuel. However, most Lords refused the call to action, with Aldrich denouncing his throne based on an epiphany: that an Age of Deep would soon be cast upon the world. The Cathedral had by then become a shrine to unspeakable horrors, to all repulsive rejects that sought a cure in its cleansing waters. Within the Cathedral—in McDonnell's sorceries, and their taboo miracles— Aldrich observed a stagnation that seemed inherent to the world, belike rotten remains which find their way down into a dark, deep seabed. Following these ruminations on the nature of existence, Aldrich concluded that an Age of Deep was what followed the waning Age of Fire. He understood that all things would stagnate into the Deep, including the representatives of the old world order; he also understood that he was in a position where he could help usher in the new Age. Thus he set out to devour the old gods himself, stagnating these obsolete forces into the Deep Sea.

He gathered an army of deacons, who cast off their red robes and crowns—symbolic of their clerical duties— for new dark-blue ones and swore fealty as Aldrich Faithful, their venerance of the Deep finally codified under Aldrich's banner. He then marched on Irithyll, home to the old gods of Anor Londo and the residence of Chief Deity Gwyndolin. Likely forcing his way through the city's magical barrier, he would confront the forces of Pontiff Sulyvahn, who had no intention of relinquishing his power and authority over the city. From the battle that ensued, Aldrich emerged victorious, slaughtering Sulyvahn's troops and forcing him into capitulation. Seemingly, the two eventually struck a deal: the Pontiff would maintain some control over lower Irithyll; in exchange, Aldrich would be granted access to Gwyndolin, who was imprisoned by the Pontiff within the old Cathedral of Anor Londo.

With Pontiff Sulyvahn relinquishing Gwyndolin, the Saint of the Deep was triumphant, taking up residence in the old Cathedral and beginning to feast on the old god. He would fall into a deep slumber in the process of consuming Gwyndolin, during which he would dream and perceive the form of a young, pale girl in hiding. The Aldrich Faithful guarded the old Cathedral to ward off any intrusion on Aldrich's slumber, with the ancient Silver Knights unwittingly aiding the consumption of their former master.

When the Ashen One seeking the Lords of Cinder arrives at Irithyll to slay Aldrich in their quest, he awakens to defend himself, puppeteering Gwyndolin's magic and body, as well as using a miracle developed from his dreams.

Theories

It is possible to theorize that the many children that Aldrich had when he was trapped inside the Cathedral of the Deep were the results of repeated violence on Rosaria, Mother of Rebirth. Rosaria's room is covered with cradles and Aldrich was already known for having had multiple children, of whom Anri and Horace are the only survivors. Additionally, Rosaria's soul has a broken and twisted appearance, and Ringfinger Leonhard talks about how his goddess's body has been violated.

Fuck Aldrich, truly! Can I continue MY HATE SPEECH now?!