At times, the story of Elden Ring may seem just as convoluted as the respective ring's Shattering, which led to the unfortunate state of the Lands Between and what meaning was left to salvage after the cataclysmic event. Although FromSoftware included six unlockable endings to wrap up Tarnished's journey to becoming the ring's rightful lord, one fan went above and beyond to manifest another, more satisfactory conclusion. A video showcasing the alleged cut ending that features unused dialogue dataminers found within the game was uploaded to YouTube by a user named Garden of Eyes, only to be confirmed as an elaborate prank a day later.
The video presents a "cut" Age of Absolute ending, where a five-fingered hand makes a ghastly appearance after the Tarnished restores Marika's head to her body. The following scene reveals a burning Erdtree and the Tarnished worshiping the mysterious hand rather than sitting on a throne. A visible discrepancy between the natural flow of Elden Ring's events and a lack of connection to the actual story was a telltale sign that made many enthusiasts question the video's authenticity in the first place.
Despite the Age of Absolute being a somewhat bleak representation of how Elden Ring's story could have ended, it could fit the game's setting if FromSoftware went out of its way to offer a deep dive into a reimagined lore. The foundation for such an unusual ending is already present. This tracks even though some of its notions are heavily based on speculative theory due to omitted links in Elden Ring's general narrative.
Inquiring more about Rennala's and Radagon's origins at the Church of Vows will let the players in on details and philosophies diminished by the Lands Between's polarizing environment. Miriel, Pastor of Vows, alludes that all creation can coexist and join together. This transcends the game's representation of "ultimate good," embodied in the guidance of the Greater Will, and "ultimate evil," portrayed as the unfolding of past events and the precarious position of the Lands Between in the pig picture.
The game goes a step further to physically establish its divergent nature by having the Two Fingers become the interpreters for the Greater Will and the chaotic Three Fingers locked away deep beneath Leyndell, in a place symbolically named Cathedral of the Forsaken. Though one of the six available endings depicts the Tarnished as a vessel of primal chaos after interacting with the Three Fingers, Elden Ring ensures that the acquired "madness" remains reversible. With the help of Miquella's Needle, players can change their fate after completing Millicent's questline and defeating the game's toughest boss, which also provides an opening for the fictional seventh ending.
By and large, order and chaos are not mutually exclusive. Since they are inherently two parts of a whole, an amalgamation of the Two and Three Fingers to bring about equilibrium in the Lands Between is not as outrageous as it may seem. It would, however, pose many questions about the perceived values of the alleged "Absolute" and the Tarnished's willingness to relinquish their title as the Elden Lord, only to become subject to the whims of two elusively conjoined Outer Gods constrained inside an emblematic physical manifestation.
Garden of Eyes' Age of Absolute is a masterfully designed outcome that, in fact, utilizes some of Elden Ring's mined data. However, even as a secret ending, it would not hold much water. While it would make sense for the game to feature an alternate conclusion where the opposing forces come together to birth an age that breaks the world's preset boundaries, FromSoftware's narrative techniques would have to undergo several changes in order to accommodate its inception. For the time being, however, fans will have to make do with Elden Ring's official endings.