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So boring... An Undead, a thing less than a human, was tired. The howls of the maddened Hollows echoed across the dirty, mossy and mold-filled halls of the Northern Undead Asylum, where all Undead were sent here when they were struck with a curse, and of course, he was one of them—a mere Deprived who was nothing special prior to his imprisonment. Without purpose, without a goal in life... Almost like he was to rot in this cell forever. After a while of aimlessly wandering inside of his cell, the Undead eventually sat down, curling up and burying his face between his skinny knees. Even on the verge of turning into a Hollow, he still somewhat pitied those poor souls outside, hearing their screams and banging. Still clutching extremely ordinary Pendants, the Undead kept thinking to himself that this thing would grant him untold power, which was something the seller had told him. But then he heard something above and looked up. Out of nowhere, a corpse was dropped from above, an Undead who had something in its pockets, and while baffled, the Undead saw a knight just peering down from the roof, and they said nothing before leaving. But why did the knight throw down a corpse at his cell? Perhaps it was time for some food? The Undead did not know what to say or think, so he just wordlessly sat up and rummaged his hands into the corpse’s pockets, and his wrinkles raised up when he touched something metallic. Acquiring Dungeon Cell Key, the Undead uttered a few breathless gasps before moving toward the iron door, and indeed, it was a perfect fit. After so long, he was now free, and just as he took a single step out of his filthy cell, the Undead quickly made a sprint out of the hall, breezing through his fellow wailing compatriots. Whoever the knight was, they certainly freed him from this shackle. Navigating the area, he eventually found a ladder and went up, and a smile spread across his lips when he finally found himself outside, touched by the warm sunlight. Lifting his fists up and greeting the sky, the Undead then cocked his head when he saw something peculiar—a bonfire with a sword stabbed in it. The Undead would have blinked if he still had eyes, and out of curiosity, the Undead made his way closer to the bonfire and attempted to grab the sword in order to wield it, but it wouldn’t budge. He tried again, but it was futile, but he did not give up. After a while, the cooling fire of the bonfire suddenly lit up, causing the Undead to retract his hand. “Warmth...” He mumbled before kneeling in front of the bonfire, his lips curling up enough to make it seem like a smile. It’d been a while since he last felt the embrace of a fire, and when was it actually? He couldn’t remember, but he couldn’t care less about that. The fire healed him after a while, and the Undead quickly readied his Club and Plank Shield, he made his way to the tall gate and pushed it. A tad bit heavy, but he managed to open it. Then out of nowhere, a hulking demon just leapt down and casually swung its humongous hammer in front of him. Of course, its task is to guard this asylum, making sure no Undead would ever escape, and since this one escaped, it would have to kill this one. Looking at his wooden equipment, the Undead could already tell he was in a fight that he could even win, so when Asylum Demon lifted its Great Hammer overhead and prepared to smash the ground, he just panicked and rolled to the right, narrowly escaping its attack. He was definitely not prepared for this. Hastily getting up and running away from the demon, the Undead did not bother to look around as Asylum Demon gave chase, growling and intending to smash him into a pulp of flesh with its hammer. His Club would not be able to tickle it, let alone pierce its flesh. And so, the Undead would comically run in a circular pattern, using the pillars to deter the demon, but a mere swing of its hammer wrecked everything in its path. But then another path opened up, and then it closed, and then it opened up again. A door to the left of the arena was repeatedly opening and closing, and if he did not time it correctly, he would get impaled by its sharp spikes, but that sounded better than getting eaten alive by that demon. Out of choice, the Undead made a sprint toward the door and rolled forward, successfully getting past the door before it fully shut. The whole asylum shook when the demon rammed its entire shoulder into the wall, but its hammer could not hope to get past the small door. While he escaped, the Undead rolled way too far, resulting in him rolling down the stairs and hitting the walls. “Gah!” Luckily, there was a bonfire nearby, so he quickly healed up and kept pushing forward. Having his Plank Shield ready, the Undead made his way across the hallway and got bombarded with arrows from a hollow, and with his poorly constructed shield, he managed to survive before ultimately having to ditch it. While the hollow reloaded and retreated, the Undead noticed another shield beside his feet, and without a thought, he took the East-West Shield and charged forward. With a relatively fast reaction, he simultaneously blocked the arrows and picked up a Mace before he leapt upward and bashed the Hollow’s head with it. The poor fellow went down easily, and while the Undead felt pity for the Hollow, he knew they would rise again at some point, so he yanked the Mace out before continuing to run.Just as he was about to run up a staircase, the Undead came to a halt when he heard something rolling toward him, and in a blink of an eye, something was totally rolling downward the stairs, just a second away from flattening him. Luckily, he leapt to the right just in time to dodge it, and the boulder crashed into the wall behind him. He was slightly staggered but sustained nothing too fatal. But then he heard coughing from where the boulder crashed, so the Undead, without any ounce of hesitation, went to check on the injured person. Upon walking past the rubble, the Undead lifted his shield up when the injured knight pointed his sword at him, but to deescalate the situation, the Undead surrendered, and the knight lowered his sword and lay down on the pile. “You... saved... me.” “...Oh, you... You're no Hollow, eh? Thank goodness... I'm done for, I'm afraid... I'll die soon, then lose my sanity... I wish to ask something of you... You and I, we're both Undead... Hear me out, will you?” The Undead knelt beside the injured knight and put a hand on his right shoulder. “...Regrettably, I have failed in my mission... But perhaps you can keep the torch lit... There is an old saying in my family... Thou who art Undead, art chosen... In thine exodus from the Undead Asylum, maketh pilgrimage to the land of Ancient Lords... When thou ringeth the Bell of Awakening, the fate of the Undead thou shalt know... Well, now you know... And I can die with hope in my heart...” “... Thank you... for... freeing me...” The Undead struggled to speak due to his state. Who knew the knight would one day manage to kickstart the prophecy, and judging by the Undead’s mentality, he might actually be the one to ring the bell. And now... since his duty was fulfilled, the knight was afraid his time was running out. “Oh, one more thing... Here, take this... An Estus Flask, an Undead favourite... Oh, and this...” Receiving Estus Flask and Undead Asylum F2 East Key from the knight, the Undead cocked his head in confusion before he sniffed the liquid inside, sensing the same warmth of the bonfires. “Now I must bid farewell... I would hate to harm you after death... So, go now... And thank you...” Wait, was that it? This guy would just lie down here and turn hollow? But he had yet to repay the knight’s kindness. Glancing at the flask, the Undead intended to hand it to the knight, who profusely refused it. “I have no need of it... For I am going hollow...You need it more than I do- Stop... Cease...” The knight bit his lips as the Undead started to remove his helm, letting his injured face be seen by the Undead, who had a calm expression as he pressed the rim of the flask against his lips and helped him take a sip. “...” Upon feeling the heat invading his throat, the knight could feel strength returning to his worn-out body, and now he could finally properly lift up his sword again, but foolish was the Undead. He could go hollow at any moment, and the Undead would be forced to fight him in his full strength, which he wouldn’t want to befall upon this optimistic soul. With that done, the Undead gave him a thumbs-up before reaching for something in his loincloth... He took out the Pendant and handed it to him. “A... gift... Power untold...” Totally taken aback by the action, the knight narrowed his eyes as he eyed the almost seemingly useless item. What could this thing possibly do? Would this thing grant him unbound power? The Undead picked up his Mace and East-West Shield and was ready to head off again. The knight gulped and watched as the man before him was about to take his leave, and while that guy was undoubtedly foolish and naive, he still had him to thank for this special Pendant. “Oscar...” The Undead turned back, and the blonde knight gave him a nod. “My name is Oscar of Astora...” The Undead slowly tilted his head before giving him a nod back and leaving. When he was out of sight, Oscar finally laid his head on the rubble again, sighing in relief and shaking his head with a small smile. “I should have asked for his name before he left...” Using the key Oscar gave him, the Undead used his shield to block incoming strikes from the foes and finished them off with a strike to the head. By killing them, he absorbed their Souls, which could be used to strengthen himself whenever he was sitting near a bonfire. While doing so, he couldn’t stop thinking about Oscar’s words; that he was... destined for something now. He was no longer an Undead who awaited his demise in that filthy of a cell, and he was now roaming around the asylum, standing near the balcony and about to face the hulking demon. There was more about him to explore, and the Undead felt like he was on a grand adventure to become something great. He was chosen! Chosen Undead took a leap and readied his Mace, and when Asylum Demon finally noticed his arrival and glanced up, it got impaled right in the head. The blunt weapon pierced through its skull and was just centimeters away from scrambling its brain, but before Chosen Undead could finally finish it off, he was forced to jump off when the demon ran forward and crashed itself into the wall, which could have killed him. Upon landing, Chosen Undead had to do a rough roll to minimize the fall damage, but not before Asylum Demon finally turned around and growled at him angrily. Wielding Mace two-handed, Chosen Undead charged forward and struck its left knee as hard as he could, making the demon scream and retaliate with a downward smash. While he managed to dodge the blow, Chosen Undead was sent rolling backward and hit a random pillar. But nothing could fix him better than a large sip of his Estus Flask. Just as Asylum Demon roared at him and rushed toward him, Chosen Undead hastily sprang up and ran to the side before its hammer pulverized the pillars behind him. It was big and strong, but each of its strikes left it vulnerable for dirty attacks. And that became his plan. He first baited it into doing its heavy attack and then attacked it from the rear; a blunt weapon with enough force could become as lethal as a sharpened sword. Eventually, its thighs soon became torn from the relentless strikes, and Chosen Undead gritted his teeth as he delivered a jump attack to its belly. Asylum Demon swept the hammer across the ground and flapped its tiny wings before it momentarily flew upward, but it actually looked more like it was about to pummel the ground with its humongous and bouncy bottom. Realizing the imminent danger, Chosen Undead turned back and attempted to outrun the attack, but once again, he got sent rolling on the ground when Asylum Demon landed, generating a powerful shockwave that even Oscar could feel from afar. When the attack was made, Asylum Demon cockily smirked when Chosen Undead groggily stood up and chugged his Estus Flask, but with a blankly determined expression, he charged forward, and Asylum Demon raised its hammer and brought it down in one swift motion. But with a stupid amount of luck, Chosen Undead managed to dodge the attack with a roll and instantly struck its right wrist, which negated its ability to firmly grasp its weapon, and not just that, the Mace managed to tear through its flesh and made it bleed from the cut wrist. Asylum Demon recoiled back and held its wrist to stop the bleeding, its body slouching forward when its legs buckled from the wounds. While it was growling in deep agony, Chosen Undead leapt upward and did not hesitate to bash its head again, and this time, the Mace penetrated through its skull and battered its brain. When it was done, Asylum Demon uttered a defeated groan before falling forward, almost crushing Chosen Undead, who roughly rolled on the ground as the felled beast was defeated. He... won. He defeated the beast that even Oscar, who was silently observing the whole fight from the beginning, could not hope to. “That pendant...” Oscar mumbled to himself as he glanced at the gift, and Chosen Undead held up multiple Pendants just similar to this and hid them in his loincloth. “Power untold...” Grabbing Big Pilgrim’s Key and... Humanity from the demon, Chosen Undead rubbed his head and curiously popped the tiny black sprite, and he instantly widened his eyes... Eyes? “Wait...” Chosen Undead touched his own face, which was not like some dry raisins or wrinkled butt cheeks. His skin felt so lively and smooth, and Chosen Undead dropped his jaw when he reached down his loincloth to... His schlong had finally returned! “Yes!” Oscar blinked as Chosen Undead celebrated his first major victory and left the asylum through the main gate. He found it weird that nothing too strange had been going on outside the vicinity, well, except for this huge nest of a crow with two eggs in it. Chosen Undead casually strolled and looked for a way out, but not until a big crow just appeared out of nowhere and snatched him with its sharp talons. “Wait, don’t eat me! I won’t eat your eggs!” “Only, in the ancient legends it is stated that one day an Undead shall be chosen to leave the Undead Asylum, in pilgrimage to the land of the Ancient Lords. Lordran.” --------------------------------------- After a while, Chosen Undead was dropped somewhere far, far away from the asylum, but at least the crow did not peck him and eat his intestines. Now having relocated to Firelink Shrine, Chosen Undead cracked his neck when he noticed a warrior, judging by the chainmail armour, and approached him. “Hello! I am an Undead!” The chainmail-wearing knight just cocked an eyebrow, unimpressed at Chosen Undead’s introduction. “My name is... uh... What is it...? I might remember it later.” “Well, what do we have here? You must be a new arrival. Let me guess. Fate of the Undead, right? Well, you're not the first. But there's no salvation here. You'd have done better to rot in the Undead Asylum… But, too late now. Well, since you're here… Let me help you out.” Gleefully nodding, the naive man stepped forth and tentatively listened to the knight’s advice. “There are actually two Bells of Awakening. One's up above, in the Undead Church. The other is far, far below, in the ruins at the base of Blighttown. Ring them both, and something happens… Brilliant, right? Not much to go on, but I have a feeling that won't stop you. So, off you go. It is why you came, isn't it? To this accursed land of the Undead?” That laugh at the end was not necessary, but good advice nonetheless. “Thank you for that, kind sir! If you excuse me, I must depart soon. For a greater purpose awaits me!” He had seen that cocky smile elsewhere, many times actually. This fool would join the others and wander the land as a braindead Hollow, and the warrior couldn’t help but crack a grin at this guy’s naivete. Either way, sooner or later, this new face would become a Hollow. “Also, can I ask you something else, kind sir?” “What is it now?” “This... weird dark spirit thing that I popped just earlier... It restored my appearance and made me look normal again. What was that thing? And where can I find it?” “Oh, I suppose you have used your humanity to reverse your hollowing. Well, there are a few ways to go about it... Collect it bit by bit from corpses, or you can butter up a cleric, and get yourself summoned. And the quickest way, although I’d never do it, is to kill a healthy Undead, and pillage its humanity. Coveting thy neighbour is only human, after all!” The warrior laughed, making Chosen Undead wince at the dark implication. Of course, he would never rob someone of what was precious to them or greedily kill them. With the knowledge now in mind, the Undead bid the warrior his thanks and left. Scratching his crotch and even sniffing it, Chosen Undead began to traverse this land, trying to find the goods and weapons, but then he met another fellow Undead, who was a bit oversized but friendly, he supposed. “Hello there!” The blonde knight hummed. “Hello there. I believe we are not acquainted? I am Petrus of Thorolund. Have you business with us?” Chosen Undead shook his head. “If not, I’d prefer to keep a distance, if possible.” Well, if that was what he wanted, then the Undead would politely leave him in peace. This place was so vast and... filled with dangers, mostly Hollows. He went around and collected some souls from slaying them. Nothing too extraordinary, but he at least found a woman who weirdly locked herself in some kind of cell, which reminded him of his old one. “Hello?” He tapped his Mace against the iron bars, but the woman did not respond. Maybe she was shy or something. “Are you feeling well, miss? Ahh, are you, by any chance, hungry? Well... I apologize, I carry nothing with me because... well, I don’t even carry proper attire. But why did you lock yourself in this... place? I can see it is quite cramped in here. Also, I am always told it is not nice to keep one’s mouth shut while others are talking.” Again, the blonde woman did not reply and just kept her head down, which somewhat worried Chosen Undead, who blinked and pursed his lips in understanding. If she did not wish to be disturbed, then he should go. “I am sorry...” The Crestfallen Warrior raised an eyebrow when Chosen Undead walked up the stairs with an empty look, and he could already guess what he was trying to do with the locked woman. “Oh, have you seen that terribly morose lass?... The Fire Keeper. She’s stuck keeping that bonfire lit. Sad, really. She’s mute and bound to this forsaken place. They probably cut her tongue back in her village, so that she’d never say any god’s name in vain. How do these martyrs keep chugging along? I’d peter out in an instant.” Chosen Undead widened his eyes at that, realizing that he was trying to make conversations with a woman who could not talk. As a punishment, he slapped his own cheeks twice before nodding. “I am such a douche...” The Crestfallen Warrior just shrugged his shoulders and laughed. He had accumulated a fair number of souls, and he needed to explore some areas before moving on to fight stronger enemies. “Have you been to the ruins of New Londo below? Just head down the stairs, and take the lift. It's certainly worth a visit. It was once an Undead city. You may find a clue or two. Unless the ghosts find you first…” He should really stop laughing... With that said, Chosen Undead decided to go explore said area and took an elevator. Reaching New Londo Ruins, an underground area, Chosen Undead began to hunt for some treasures and equipment, but not before he once again ran across another living soul. To his left was a man who, just like the Fire Keeper, locked himself up. “Hrm? Well, this is unusual. You haven't lost your head. And more importantly you're free. How on Earth... Well, I shouldn't pry. I am Rickert of Vinheim. I was once an established smith, but look at me now. Can you believe it?” Chosen Undead, blinking and glancing at his Mace, lifted the weapon up, baffling Rickert, for whom it took a while to understand the Undead’s intention. “Hm? What is it? Have you...Oh, no, don't worry. I've no intention of escape. It's safe here. I can't bear the thought of going Hollow out there. Although, I must admit, I've not much to occupy myself. How about this? I could forge your weapons, albeit with rather minimal tools. I will show you what made me the best in Vinheim.” A fellow blacksmith, it seemed. But he did not have anything with him to forge his weapons, but that could wait. “And that... thing?” Chosen Undead pointed at the stick beside Rickert. It looked so ordinary, unfit and not useful in smithing at all. Raising an eyebrow at the young Undead, Rickert grabbed the stick and raised it up, and after a while, a blue hue started to glow at the blunt head of the Sorcerer’s Catalyst, which captivated Chosen Undead’s attention. “It’s what people call sorceries.” “Sorcery? What’s that? How can I channel one?” “Don’t ask me how it actually works. We only fiddle and forge, until it works itself in. That’s how we do it Vinheim, at least. We prefer to leave the theorizing to those uppity scholars.” “That sounds magnificent! Can I buy one?” “... I mean, I have no further use for this. Then as you please.” Paying 2500 Souls for the Sorcerer’s Catalyst and Soul Arrow, Chosen Undead excitedly raised his staff up and fired a few shots at the ceiling, grinning widely. It felt so much more fun than swinging the Mace around, but this, for some reason, exhausted his mental strength, so after a quick burst of eight shots, Chosen Undead started to feel dizzy and halted his fun. From behind, Rickert tapped his knuckles against the iron bars. “Come back soon. Smithing helps soothe my nerves. Don’t let me wither away out of idleness.” “I won’t!” Chosen Undead put away his staff even though he carried no pouches or clothes with him before journeying in the New Londo Ruins. Indeed, this place looked obviously ruinous, but there was more about this place, he could feel that. “Woah!” Chosen Undead halted when a group of Ghosts just suddenly manifested and blocked the ruins that were housing a Fire Keeper Soul, and he needed souls always. Deciding not to engage with them, Chosen Undead fired a Soul Arrow at them to scare them off before making a run for the item. “I got it!” But when he tried to run to the right, another group of Ghosts suddenly blocked both entrances, so there was no way out. He tried to fire his Soul Arrow, but his mental strength was drained. “Uh oh.” A chase ensued, and Chosen Undead had never had that many women trying to claim him in his life. His body riddled with scars, he just kept running and running even though his body was getting tired as time went on. At least he got the Fire Keeper Soul. Still, this area felt like a maze, and he got lost a few times and got ambushed by the Ghosts. Due to adrenaline, he leapt so high that he managed to catch an unextended ladder, but that mattered little to him once he got back to the surface again. Still thinking that the Ghosts were chasing him even though they had given up, Chosen Undead finally exhaled when he got out of the hellish place and dropped to his knees. “Hah! Never... again...” After a while, he reckoned the woman might know what to do with this Fire Keeper Soul, which had infinite humanity, and as expected, the mute woman took the Estus Flask and the soul from his hands and reinforced the healing potion. Now it felt much warmer and more radiant. “Thank you...” He pursed his lips, bowed a few times and left. Strapping Estus Flask to the side of his loincloth, Chosen Undead hummed when he heard something rattling in the bushes, and he just had an impulse to go check it out. The Crestfallen Warrior just snickered as the young Undead tailed the creature, and when it leapt out of the bushes, it revealed itself as an adorable pink Crystal Lizard. “Awww... So cute- That thing exploded right at his face, its shrapnel piercing his entire body, even his face. The Crestfallen Warrior resisted an urge to laugh when Chosen Undead comically fell forward and dropped his weapons, and before the poor guy could even process the lingering sensation that began to spread across his body from the inside. His body felt so weird, like he could feel something squirming in his loincloth, or was that his schlong that was squirming? Either way, before Chosen Undead could even find out the answer for himself, he uttered a short gasp before dying. “Fool.” Never mind, it'd take him a few minutes to respawn near this bonfire.
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“Search for the escaped Undead.” Standing before the corpse of Asylum Demon, a group of Black Knights scattered around and looked for the rumoured ‘Chosen Undead’. After an unknown amount of time, the naked yet purposeful Undead opened his eyes, realizing he was lying beside the bonfire in Firelink Shrine. But since he had died from some weird, pink Crystal Lizard, his face started to wrinkle and lose its lively colour. Groaning and sitting up, he reached for his Mace and East-West Shield, Chosen Undead straightened himself up and groaned. “I am hollowing... Humanity. I need humanity. No... Yes, the bell! Sir, you sir! Do you know the way to the bell!?” “Hm? Another inquisitive soul, aren’t we? Well, listen carefully, then… One of the bells is up above in the Undead Church, but the lift is broken. You'll have to climb the stairs up the ruins, and access the Undead Burg through the waterway. The other bell is back down below the Undead Burg, within the plague-infested Blighttown. But I'd die again before I step foot in that cesspool!” Chosen Undead rubbed his chin and nodded at that. It sounded somewhat dangerous, as the Crestfallen Warrior had perished there once. But he was chosen for a reason, so the Undead was confident that he would reach the bell. Receiving the young and energetic Undead’s thanks, the man in chainmail just shrugged his shoulders with pressed lips and watched as Chosen Undead sprinted toward the ruins, but he unexpectedly still found Petrus standing there. That guy did give him the cold shoulder, but amidst a world this ruined and hostile, he would need to forge alliances and receive their blessings. “Hello there. I realize that I have requested that we retain our distance, but I also want you to know that it is not meant in ill will. Here, take this. As a token of peace. No, go ahead. It's for you.” Chosen Undead just blinked as he received Copper Coin, which would have great value if the fire was not fading, since the main currency was Souls. “Thank... you.” He was grateful for the gift, but he wanted to get friendly with him. “What are you doing here? Are you waiting for someone?” Petrus somewhat showed disgust when Chosen Undead scratched his belly, but well, thinking again, this fool here could give him Souls. He had seen how this fella, even when naked, managed to fight through a small swarm of Hollows just near the graves. He could teach him Miracles, and Chosen Undead could give him souls. “How about this... I have to await my companions here anyway, so, what if I were to teach you some miracles? Would that please you?” Miracles? That sounded like some kind of spells, and knowing Chosen Undead, he would not reject the opportunity to get stronger. He enthusiastically nodded at the offer right away, and Petrus smirked. “Very well. Then first, a Covenant with the Gods. Now, let me share my Miracles. Only, their ultimate effectiveness will be determined by your efforts, and your faith.” “Uhm... I don’t carry any souls with me right now.” “None at all? That is a shame. Fret not, I am more than tolerant enough to give you time. But I suggest you make haste, my patience isn’t known to be much.” Chosen Undead nodded and departed, deciding to go toward the tall brick structure that would lead him to Undead Burg, where Hollows were rampant. Navigating a fairly short sewage system, Chosen Undead climbed up a ladder and entered the ruinous settlement. He had not much difficulty fighting mindless Undead, but he was still naked at the time. He managed to find one Humanity, but he figured it’d be better to save it for later. “Whoa!” When he left a building, a red dragon just came crashing down and blocked the path. “I will not fight that thing!” Luckily, it did not really register his existence and flew off, so Chosen Undead’s one of many deaths was delayed. So majestic... He had heard about dragons when he was but a child, but seeing one in front of his very eyes made them seem more imposing, and to think Lord Gwyn almost drove their kind to extinction. Well, it was no time to get sidetracked, as more well-equipped Hollows all turned this attention toward Chosen Undead, who raised his shield up and clutched his Mace. When one leapt upward and tried to strike him down, Chosen Undead lifted his shield overhead to negate the attack, then he swiped its hand away, making the Hollow lose balance, before bashing its head with Mace. Then he widened his eyes when an arrow lodged into his left shoulder, and he hastily ran for cover before another arrow came. He rolled on the ground and hid behind one of the wooden planks, but by hesitating, he allowed the other Hollows to approach him with their weapons pointed at the cover. He had to think fast before he got overwhelmed, and thankfully, he widened his eyes when he touched something beside him. “Huh?” Picking a peculiar, round object, Chosen Undead smiled as he realized what he had to do. As the Undead Archer aimed its arrow at the shield, something was thrown up into the sky, and the item was leaving behind a trail of smoke. The other Undead just looked up and traced the Firebomb before it exploded upon hitting the ground, blasting all of them away with an explosion. From afar, the archer just dropped its jaw in confusion while still maintaining its aim, but its sight was concealed by the black smoke. And the very moment they dispersed, Chosen Undead ran toward and launched his Mace toward the archer, and he successfully landed a hit, as the blunt weapon punctured the archer’s head and killed it right on the spot. “Yes!” Then his face went sour. “Why don’t they attack each other? Do they... desire something from me?” Do they crave for his humanities and souls, of which they were deprived? Retrieving his weapon, Chosen Undead broke some crates and found a strange fellow. He almost intended to kill you due to his appearance, but the merchant did not react much. “Hello?” “Well, now... You seem to have your wits about you, hmm? Then you are a welcome customer! I trade for souls. Everything's for sale! Nee hee hee hee hee!” The Undead Merchant greeted him and ‘patted’ something on the basket, which held absolutely nothing. Chosen Undead put away his Mace and inspected the wares, which appeared to be in poor shape and broken. He had quite a bit of Souls with him, so he bought a Short Bow and some Standard Arrows. Again, they were in such a poor state that the bow felt so sloppy to use. At least, this Orange Guidance Soapstone worked... “Where... did you get all of these? They look like they are about to break. I mean, it is cheap... Did you steal them?” “Eh, my wares? Of course they’re stolen; what did you think? And when you lose your head, I’ll sell it all again! Nee hee hee hee!” “Please don’t.” “It's actually quite nice here, you know? The Hollows don't care for a skinny old twig like me. I've got Yulia...And nobody pelts me with stones anymore. You're Undead, you know how it is. I was treated worse back at home. Ey, why not buy this one? With this box, you can basically put everything excessive inside when your dampened loincloth is out of space. I will make it cheap for you.” Chosen Undead just narrowed his eyes when the Undead Merchant took out a regular-looking wooden box – Bottomless Box – and he slid it forward. 1000 Souls might not sound like much, but buying this thing would drain him of his currency. He bought it anyway and strapped that thing to his back. That thing really was bottomless. “Thank you very much. Also, why are you petting the air? There is nothing there...” The Undead Merchant just hummed and glanced at his right, realizing Chosen Undead was referring to his dear Yulia. The young Undead hoped there was really a thing there, but... very unlikely. “Ah, this one? Ain’t she lovely? Her name is Yulia. She’s plump in love with me. You’d never leave my side, now would you, Yulia?” He giggled and patted her, and Chosen Undead just awkwardly stood there. He got that many looks before, but he did not care about them, as Yulia was the only thing he adored. “I’m all that she needs. Careful, she’ll bite your little fingers off! Be kind, Yulia, be kind! Nee hee hee hee!” “... Hi, Yulia. I really hope you don’t chow down on my fingers.” The merchant giggled and patted Yuria on the ‘head’. “Is there anything I must be aware of in this place? Beside witless Hollows?” “Things are getting treacherous in these parts. A horrible goat demon has moved in below. And up above, there's that humongous drake, and a bull demon too. If you stick around this place, it might end up being your grave! Nee hee hee hee hee! Thank you kindly. Come back soon!” Everyone really should stop laughing... Anyway, Chosen Undead nodded and left, accounting for the fact that he had seen the dragon, but he had not seen the other two. He rubbed his neck, hoping that guy wouldn’t sell his head if he died. He now had protection—a singular Hollow Warrior Helm, and literally a piece of cloth might offer better protection than this piece of used iron. Anyway, Chosen Undead made his way across Undead Burg and looted anything he found since he needed strength. “Huh?” He came across a Black Knight, who was guarding a chest and charged toward him, and seeing a knight that towered over him made Chosen Undead panic and defensively raise his shield up. The Black Knight brought his sword down, breaking the young Undead’s posture in one mere swing. He stumbled backward and almost fell on his ass, and he yelped and crawled back when the Black Knight smashed the ground, the tip of the blade just inches away from his crotch. He quickly got back up and wildly swung his Mace, but the Black Knight rendered his attack futile with a dash and a shield bash, knocking Chosen Undead down to the ground. He dropped his weapons and lay flat on the ground, and the last thing he saw was the Black Knight lifting his sword up and chopping his head off. “AGHHH!” Now back at Firelink Shrine, Chosen Undead instinctively covered his neck and comically rolled on the ground, while the Crestfallen Warrior just laughed at the sight. “Don’t sell my head! Don’t sell my head! Don’t sell my- Ugh... Oh...” “You should have seen the terrified look on your face! The way you wailed and flailed your arms like a man set aflame. I have never had such a good laugh in forever!” Chosen Undead, now being more skeletal in appearance, slowly sat up and rubbed his face. “Oh, having lost your keenness already? Such a wretched shame, since the world would lose an entertaining laughingstock.”Popping a Humanity, Chosen Undead stretched his arms and flailed them, still wearing Hollow Soldier Helm. He now looked fresher than ever, but he no longer carried a smile on his face. He felled Asylum Demon, and that greatly motivated him to continue, but after being defeated once by a Black Knight, he just felt like he did not want to face him anymore. Was this how they felt? What the Hollows all went through before fully losing their humanity? He glanced at the bonfire and breathed in... “I am... chosen...” Clutching his Mace and equipping his shield, Chosen Undead rose again. “I am to ring the bell of Awakening... My fate I shall know. For I am chosen.” The Crestfallen Warrior arched an eyebrow when the naked man just sprinted back to Undead Burg. “Foolish him... Sooner or later, he will go hollow.” “Ugh- Gah!” A Hollow just freshly respawned and got smashed in the head by Chosen Undead as he evaded their assaults. He used his shield to block a barrage of arrows before knocking them down with a shield charge, and he did so with a battle cry. All of them just to face the Black Knight again, who swung his sword and challenged him into a rematch with a point of his sword. “I will have my souls back...” Chosen Undead tapped his shield with Mace before charging forward again. The Black Knight tried to perform his shield dash again, but Chosen Undead narrowly rolled and squeezed himself through the tiny gap to the knight’s right side to get behind him. The Black Knight seemed surprised, but he soon became frantic when Chosen Undead smashed the back of his knee with his Mace, making the knight stagger and drop to his knees. While he was down, the Undead gritted his teeth as he bashed the weapon against the back of his armour and delivered a harder one, even twirling in the process. The Black Knight fell forward, dropping his shield and sword, and Chosen Undead threw Mace at his face to stun him before grabbing the sword. “Ahh, this is heavy!” He mustered every bit of his strength to even lift the sword up while the Black Knight started to regain his consciousness. When the knight turned back, a sword was dropped atop his head, which started to roll forward, yet no blood spilled out. Chosen Undead collapsed and gasped rapidly as he lifted a sword that was heavier than his entire body. But this big chunk of metal would prove useful to him, so Chosen Undead put the Black Knight Sword and Shield in the Bottomless Box until he had grown strong enough to wield them. The Black Knight’s souls were abundant, but he did not know how to strengthen himself- “Fire Keeper.” “Whoa, who is there!?” Chosen Undead panicked and turned around when he heard a faint whisper behind the back of his head, but he saw nothing. The voice sounded female, but he could not recognize whose and why he heard that. He pressed his back against the wall, eyes unblinking. “...” He then blinked twice after his eyes started to twitch, and Chosen Undead slowly left the tunnel. “What... What was that?” Fire Keeper? Was the voice referring to the mute lady? What does it have to do with her? He tried to shrug off his thoughts and decided to go up the area, but before he could take a step up the stairs, he suddenly felt a strong headache, a rather strong one. “Aahh!” He stumbled backward and fell on the ground as the headache heightened. What was going on, he wondered, and no answer he received. By Lord Gwyn, what was that voice? Maybe when it was ordering him to go meet the mute Fire Keeper, and when he unintentionally defied its wish, it had to use strong measures to change his mind. When the headache suddenly vanished, Chosen Undead tried to recollect himself and sprang up. “What... in the world?” Confused and speechless, Chosen Undead made his way back to Firelink Shrine on foot. “Who... are you really?” Back at Firelink Shrine, Chosen Undead ignored the curious look of the Crestfallen Warrior and walked down the stairs, and here she was, still cowering in the dark inside of a filthy cell. He wished he had enough strength or a stronger weapon to break these iron bars because he pitied her. “Hello?” He waved at her with a friendly smile, and the tongueless Fire Keeper looked up at him and held out her hands when she sensed his souls. Chosen Undead blinked in confusion and looked at her, and she gestured for him to touch her hands. “If I get your intention right, then...” He put his right hand atop hers and squeezed it, and she started to turn his collected Souls into Strength. He felt so much stronger, like maybe twice as strong? He smiled and closed his eyes as the mute Fire Keeper was emboldening him, and his heart started to beat faster, and Chosen Undead put a hand on his chest, where the Darksign resided, and unbeknownst to him, the woman widened her eyes and... blushed? When all of his collected Souls were turned into attributes, the woman released his hand and bit her lips, almost like she was trying to suppress something, an outburst of emotion. Since she could not speak, the Fire Keeper shuddered with a weak gasp and grabbed Chosen Undead’s hand while he was still touching his own chest. “W-What are you doing?” He widened his eyes in shock when she crawled closer and grabbed his ankles, and while he could easily break out of her grasp by moving back, he did not want to injure her so, awkwardly stood there, and his skin turned crimson red when the woman’s breaths hit his covered crotch. “Wh-Whatever you are doing, I su-suggest you cease!” Whether she heard his warning or not, she still dug her hands into his loincloth and blushed when warmth engulfed her skin, and Chosen Undead’s eyes widened more than ever when she just shamelessly pulled down his ‘protective gear’, revealing his flaccid schlong, which- wait... Why did it look much bigger and longer? Chosen Undead knew how his rod would look, and it didn’t look this impressive before. He had no idea when it grew, but his line of thought was cut short when the tongueless woman hesitantly opened her mouth and wrapped her dry lips around the sensitive head, and Chosen Undead let out a moan and took a deep breath, and his knees started shaking when the woman slowly engulfed more of his length. To be frank, neither of them could understand what kind of feeling that was blossoming within their hearts, making them follow their carnal instinct and drop all of their dignity. Evidently, both of them were equally clueless in this kind of act, considering that the mute woman’s eyes widened when his cock twitched and rose up to its full length, and Chosen Undead remained passive and just let her do all the work while moaning loudly. So loud, in fact, the Crestfallen Warrior and Petrus could hear them, but they did not bother to go check it out. “Gah...” Chosen Undead gripped the iron bars and grinded his teeth together when the woman, on her knees, slightly sat up higher and tried to swallow more, pushing his cock deep enough to have the tip of his cock prod the entrance of her throat. She did not want to push herself to the limit even when under the influence of her own desire. Unknowingly, a faint pink aura was emitted from Chosen Undead’s back, and it disappeared before anyone could register its existence, and the two of them instinctively indulged in this session., with Chosen Undead subconsciously thrusting forward, pushing his erect cock slightly deeper inside of her oral orifice. The sudden movement caught her off guard, and the Fire Keeper had to hold on to his legs and squeeze them until the pain earned a moan from Chosen Undead, who gripped the iron bars harder, his strengthened hands noticeably denting them, but not enough to rip these bars off. Weren’t they here, they might have done things far more lecherous than this. It was his very first time doing something like this since having sex never once crossed his mind. He was just too busy seeking a purpose, and the fact that he was a wandering nobody made him somewhat less desirable in the eyes of many, and he stank too. Pretty much all Undead had bad smells, but for some reason, the Fire Keeper kept inhaling his pleasant scent, which might or might not have to do with the voice. Since she no longer possessed a tongue, the woman would have to resort to using lips and saliva, and that seemed to be working well, judging by his uncontrollable moaning and his body trembling in pleasure. The Fire Keeper sped up the bobbing of her head and suckled on his tip, and a slow moan slipped out of Chosen Undead’s mouth. He jerked his hips forward and had the woman take in more of his cock, and she gladly did so. Chosen Undead grunted and threw his head back. “Aaaahhh...” Hearing his satisfied cries of pleasure, the Fire Keeper used that as a motivation to maintain the pace, even gently nipping on his tip, albeit hard enough to make him go haywire and yearn for more. Chosen Undead thrust his hip until his body felt the cold of the metal bars, but that did not stop the Fire Keeper from forcing his cock down her throat. “W-W-Wait! The...re is something...” Chosen Undead felt like something was erupting within him, but the ecstasy was too addictive to stop, and so, the Fire Keeper closed her eyes and felt the twitches of his cock. With a shaky cry, Chosen Undead thrust forward and pressed his lower body against the bars as something rushed out of his little buddy, and the woman held his cock in her mouth and widened her eyes when a stream of thick, salty liquid entered her throat, yet despite the suffocation-like feeling, the Fire Keeper greedily swallowed it all, and Chosen Undead looked up at the sky and gasped. “By Lord Gwyn... That was... amazing.” He blinked with a widening smile, and as the Fire Keeper finally released him and tried to swallow all of his seed, Chosen Undead plopped down on the ground and leaned against the wall. “Huh... I’m... terribly sorry for that... Should have controlled myself or say no...” The woman wiped her mouth and shook her head, and Chosen Undead just furrowed his eyebrows. They respectively thought they were only at fault, the woman for not controlling herself, and him for letting it happen. But does saying no prevent all of this? He put on his loincloth and blinked as the woman slid closer to the shadow, staying silent again. “... I... Oh.” The woman looked up at him as he tried to reach for something—Orange Guidance Soapstone. “What is your name? You can... write that down on the ground.” The woman hesitated since she was not used to friendliness when she... last insulted the gods with her blasphemous tongue, which got cut out as punishment. “I uhh... I don’t remember mine but I’d like to know yours.” The Fire Keeper bit her lips and slowly reached for the item in his hand before scraping it against the ground. Chosen Undead widened his eyes and attentively watched as she carved a sigil that would read as, “Anastacia...” Chosen Undead mumbled the name and took the item back when she finished writing. “Nice to meet you here, Anastacia. And I’d like to apologize for... that.” She just shook her head and crossed her arms, her hands placed on her chest, meaning to say she also felt sorry for the unprovoked predicament. Even though they were embarrassed to bring that up, Chosen Undead soon tried to change the subject and pointed at his right palm. “Did you, like, channel my souls into strength? Because I feel so much stronger now...” She nodded. Chosen Undead blinked, looked at his right hand and gripped it. “I see...” By killing more enemies and collecting more souls, he would get stronger and faster. And to get stronger faster, he would have to collect more powerful souls, one of many was the Black Knight. “Thank you. When you have made me strong enough, I will free you from this shackle.” Anastacia seemed surprised to hear that in a negative way since she believed defying Gods’ punishment would invoke their ire, and he would receive calamities, but Chosen Undead just flashed her a warm smile and bowed to her. “Unto greatness!” He then enthusiastically ran toward Undead Burg to finish what he started, and the silent Fire Keeper just couldn’t help but look down with a small smile. What a carefree fool... --------------------------------------- Maybe... this was the bull demon the merchant was talking about. Gulping, Chosen Undead readied his Black Knight Shield and Sword and braced as Taurus Demon trotted closer to him while snorting angrily. Maybe he could defeat this one... The demon let out a roar and leapt forward before pulverizing the ground with its greataxe, but with his enhanced body, Chosen Undead noticed that it seemed slower than anticipated. Still, that did not mean he would not get reduced to a fine paste of blood, and he sprinted forward to avoid the attack. Upon landing, Taurus Demon growled and swung backward to keep Chosen Undead at bay. However, he grabbed his Short Bow and shot a few arrows at its face, angering it. Taurus Demon, no different than an animal, stabbed the greataxe to the ground and ran toward Chosen Undead, who weaved through its attack by rolling to its left side. When he stopped rolling, he clutched Black Knight Sword and struck its calves, earning a demonic roar from the imposing beast. He was faster and smaller, so it was easier to read its attacks and sneakily land a few hits on its body parts. Taurus Demon swung its weapon in a circular pattern, wrecking the surrounding walls of the narrow path of this castle’s section. Chosen Undead ducked and rolled forward to escape the attack, and then he stabbed Taurus Demon in the back and thrust it deeper into its flesh. “Gah!” He swiped the sword downward, inflicting a grievous wound on the beast that soon fell forward. While it was temporarily down, Chosen Undead sprinted forward and walked on its hairy body before he leapt up into the air, sword aiming downward. Taurus Demon wailed, and when the sword pierced through its head and its brain, the demon did not have a chance to scream in pain or fight back. Plunging the sword deeper and stomping its head, Chosen Undead let out a heavy gasp and narrowed his eyes, making sure that the demon was dead. Absorbing its soul, Chosen Undead made his way into the watchtower of this castle and walked deeper into it until he met a strange fellow. “Hello, sir. Are you...?” What was that symbol on his chest? Ah, hello! You don't look Hollow, far from it! I am Solaire of Astora, an adherent of the Lord of Sunlight. Now that I am Undead, I have come to this great land, the birthplace of Lord Gwyn, to seek my very own sun! ...Do you find that strange? Well, you should! No need to hide your reaction. I get that look all the time! Hah hah hah!” Chosen Undead just blinked because he was baffled at the unmissable symbol of a sun with a face on his armour. That thing looked like it was painted, perhaps, Solaire painted it himself, and while it was not the most artistically beautiful thing he had seen, Chosen Undead gave him a smile and a thumbs-up. “The way I see it, our fates appear to be intertwined. In a land brimming with Hollows, could that really be mere chance? So, what do you say? Why not help one another on this lonely journey?” “I mean, why not. In a world like this, we should stick together and help one another.” Chosen Undead put his hands on his hips and stared at the sky. Indeed, the sun is beautiful, but it burns his eyes if he stares at it for too long. He tried to do that sometimes. Foolish Chosen Undead had no idea about the opposite of ‘helping each other’. “This pleases me greatly! Well then, take this. We are amidst strange beings, in a strange land. The flow of time itself is convoluted, with heroes centuries old phasing in and out. The very fabric wavers, and relations shift and obscure. There's no telling how much longer your world and mine will remain in contact.” Worlds? Pretty much Lordran was filled with Hollows and dangers, but Chosen Undead did not understand the concept of one’s world. Again, time was convoluted. “But use this, to summon one another as spirits, cross the gaps between the worlds, and engage in jolly co-operation! Of course, we are not the only ones engaged in this. But I am a warrior of the sun! Spot my summon signature easily by its brilliant aura. If you miss it, you must be blind!” Chosen Undead put away White Sign Soapstone and nodded. There was so many things he could learn... “Hmm?” Chosen Undead blinked when Solaire took in a deep breath and lifted his arms in a V-shape, and he just cocked his head. “What are you- “Praise the Sun!” Solaire shouted to celebrate the fact that he had made another friend who could potentially become a Warrior of Sunlight. Even though he was very taken aback by Solaire’s overly friendly and enthusiastic behaviour, he could not help but grin widely and copy the Sun-seeking warrior’s stance. With both of them posing and looking skyward. “Praise the Sun! Praise the Sun! Praise the Sun!" What a bunch of two idiots.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
After his interaction with Solaire, Chosen Undead pressed on and broke into a panic run when a drake rained fire down upon him, and he managed to escape its sweeping attack by running to the right and running down the stairs. “That was close...” He rubbed his back and the spots that were lightly scorched by its flame, but now, the drake was stationed there and wouldn’t let him pass unless he annoyed it away. “...” Well, he had Short Bow and a bunch of arrows, so he didn’t have to think much and nocked the arrows before steadying his breaths. “Concentrate...” Its tail seemed somewhat injured, so he figured he should aim there. After a while, he finally released the arrow and unceremoniously missed his shot, and the drake just confusedly watch as the arrow fell down the cliff, and Chosen Undead quickly concealed himself before the drake started to survey the area. “Darn it!... If only it wasn’t moving its tail...” He quickly nocked another arrow and took a deep breath, then he swiftly jumped out of cover and aimed at the fire-breathing drake again. Its tail kept wagging, so he quietly calculated its trajectory and formed a scenario in his head. Almost like an instinct, he finally fired the arrow, and with Lord Gwyn’s blessing at his side, the projectile managed to strike the beast, making it shriek and fly off as the tail was smacked against the brick walls and severed. “I did it!” Chosen Undead cheered and ran out of cover. Treading the scorched path littered with burnt Hollows, Chosen Undead had a wide smile on his face as he picked up Drake Sword and ran to cover when the drake started to circle around upon noticing his arrival. “Dragons have swords in their tails?” Deciding not to get sidetracked, Chosen Undead pressed on and killed every Hollow with his Black Knight Sword until he saw something peculiar. “What are-” A heavily armoured boar charged at him, and had he not rolled away just in time, he could have been rammed into the wall and halved. When the beast was slightly staggered, he quickly ran in and struck it by the rear, earning a pained squeak from the boar before it turned to him. It then scraped its hoof against the ground and furiously snorted, and Chosen Under raised his shield up and slightly backed away, but then he recoiled when something seared his ankle, and Chosen Undead realized he almost bumped into a burning fire, but seeing this suddenly gave him the idea of how to take down this beast. Grinning and turning back to the beast, he tapped his sword against the surface of his shield to provoke the boar, which then let out a squeal before blindly charging toward him, and that was the cue for Chosen Undead to simply roll to the right and sit this one out. The armoured boar rammed into the burning corpse and squealed in pain when the fire started to burn its flesh through the gaps, and it kept spreading all across its body. “Oh dear...” Chosen Undead went from smiling to wincing when the boar painfully rolled on the floor to desperately douse its flame, but its armour simply hindered it from doing so. Just like that, the boar was burned alive, and Chosen Undead pitied its soul and hoped it would forgive him before he cut its right leg off and started to eat it. “Uhm, this tastes good. A little bit burnt, but better than roaches and rats. Then he encountered a fair number of Balder Knights and found a weird key—Basement Key. Hiding it in his loincloth, Chosen Undead entered a small cathedral and slightly tensed up when a Berenike Knight was standing before an altar, but when the young Undead entered the building, something hit him from behind and knocked him down to the ground. “What the?!” Another foe – a Channeler – was sniping him from above, but not letting himself be stunned for too long, he quickly rolled to the left just a second before the Berenike Knight slammed his mace down to the ground. With his sturdier defense against magic, the Berenike Knight shrugged off any attack from the Channeler and focused on Chosen Undead, who was panicking and trying to weave his attacks, but a single horizontal swing of his mace almost made Chosen Undead jump out of his skin. ‘Stop panicking!’ The young Undead panicked and rolled to the left to dodge the magical projectiles and devastating mace swings. He must the annoying Channeler first, and so, he clutched his Black Knight Sword and baited the Berenike Knight into striking the ground. And when the mace was plunged through the floor, Chosen Undead used that as an opportunity to run up its shaft and used the knight’s head as a boost to get himself up onto the platform. Seeing this, the Channeler desperate fired a Soul Arrow at him, but Chosen Undead used his sword to thrust, simultaneously vanquishing the projectile and impaling the foe in the chest. One down, one more to go. Yanking Black Knight Sword out of the slain foe’s torso, Chosen Undead quickly turned back and made a strong leap toward the Berenike Knight, who lifted his shield up as he anticipated a strike or a sword thrust from Chosen Undead, who, instead, landed on the flat surface of the shield and suddenly leapt up vertically, and even the Undead himself was surprised to see how high he jumped up. Firming his grip on the handle of his shield, Chosen Undead began to rapidly spin and add more power into his strike, and with a battle cry, he descended and struck the Berenike Knight, smashing through his shield and cleaving his helm in half. But this attack also injured Chosen Undead, who let out a groan and dropped his sword due to the growing soreness of his arms but nonetheless, the hulking knight stumbled backward before ultimately falling flat on his back, taking his last breath. “Huh... Hmmm...” That was just way too tiresome... Grabbing Fire Keeper Soul on the altar, he then went out by taking the right exit, and he saw nothing unusual besides the repeating beating of a hammer and a guy clad in a weird armour from afar, and he decided to head to the armoured man because why not. “Hello?” He waved his hand in front of the knight’s visor, but they did not respond. He did not want to be rude, but this armour looked so fat, so it was difficult the knight’s gender, but oh well, judging by the deep voice, it was a man. “Hello, sir?” “Mmm... Hrmmmmm... Still closed, still closed... Mmm... Mm! Oh hoh! Forgive me. I was absorbed in thought. I am Siegmeyer of Catarina. Quite honestly, I have run flat up against a wall. Or, a gate, I should say. The thing just won't budge. No matter how long I wait. And, oh, have I waited! So, here I sit, in quite a pickle. Weighing my options, so to speak! Hah hah hah hah!” Chosen Undead blinked as he stared at the closed gate, wondering if there were any contraptions just in this whole area. The knight, Siegmeyer, went from humming to snoring, and Chosen Undead did not want to disturb his peaceful sleep, so he just left to go check on the hammering sound. A blacksmith, if he was to guess who it was. Upon reaching the end of the staircase, he was met with the sight of a blacksmith tirelessly smashing his hammer against a sword without the use of any crucible or lava, and he also was notified of Chosen Undead’s arrival. “Well, you must be a new arrival. I’m Andre of Astora. If you require smithing, speak to me.” “You smith weapons? Great! What do I need?” “You are an Undead, so you must have fought those things out there. Once or twice you will strip them of their possessions and come across a tiny slab. Those are Titanite shards, which are said to be mere fragments of the Legendary Slabs. But do such things exist? Eh he he. So, just bring them shards to me, and I will reinforce your wares.” Chosen Undead blinked as he unsheathed his Black Knight Sword and placed it near Andre’s anvil, but when the blacksmith grabbed the sword and checked the quality of the blade, he just hummed when Chosen Undead placed ten Titanite Shards on the anvil. “Hmm. Wrong material for the wrong sword. Blades such as this require the shinier ones.” “Oh?” Chosen Undead rubbed the back of his head. “Then... ugh... Would this... work?” He put his newly acquired blade—Claymore—on the anvil, and Andrew gave him a slow nod before starting to reinforce the weapon by bashing and inserting the Titanite Shards into the blade without reheating it with lava. Chosen Undead wondered if smithing really prevented one from hollowing, but oh well, if one kept smashing their hammer against a cold blade, then they would not lose their purpose of smithing any time soon. “This is the old church. It was abandoned in favour of the church that you passed through. There are paths leading from here to two forbidden planes: Sen's Fortress, and Darkroot Garden. They attract all sorts of lunatics, no-one as cultured as yourself. It's fine to be Undead, but keep a level head, eh? Hah hah hah!” Andre strengthened the sword thrice before applying the next Titanite Shards. “Sen's Fortress is an old proving ground built by the ancient gods. It is the only route to the great Anor Londo. Of course, most fools can't even find their way into that fortified deathtrap. But they won't stop trying! Take that bumbling Sir Onion... Hah hah hah!” “So Siegmeyer is sitting idly at the gate of Sen’s Fortress, but would he be fit to even venture to that wicked place? Also, may I ask what Darkroot Garden is?" “I know little of the Darkroot Garden. Although, I've heard rumours of a divine blacksmith who resides there. Those who get stumped in the Catacombs seek him for divine weapons.” Andre hummed as he admired Claymore, which had been strengthened five times, and its once dull and lifeless blade now appeared shinier, but its full potential had yet to be explored. “Most weapons and armor are mighty sturdy indeed. But every hunk of metal has its breaking point. If you notice durability running low, it's time to repair. You can ask a blacksmith like meself, or do it on your own with a grindstone. The nice thing about weapons...they never betray you. So pay them a little respect, eh? Don't get yourself killed, neither of us wants to see you go Hollow.” “Many thanks to you, Andre!” Chosen Undead sheathed Claymore and retook Black Knight Sword before departing, but instead of curiously exploring the entrance just behind him, the young Undead set out to explore the remaining unexplored hallways of this place, and Claymore, having been reinforced, smoothly cut through a horde of Hollows, and Chosen Undead decided to go up the stairs and smashed through an entrance blocked with wooden planks, and in this are did he meet a person, cladded in golden armour. “Hmm? Hello there.” “Oh? Still human, are you? Then I am in luck. Could you help me? As you can see, I am stuck, without recourse. Please, I have duties to fulfill, and I will reward you handsomely. Well? I am certain you stand to benefit.” Due to his nature of being kind and naive, Chosen Undead did not hesitate to agree to help him, and with this Mystery Key he found along the way, he inserted it in the slot and got the door wide open, and the man in gold just chuckled sheepishly. “Thank you, yes, sincerely. I am Knight Lautrec of Carim. I truly appreciate this, and I guarantee a reward, only later.” Almost nonchalantly, Lautrec walked past Chosen Undead, who gave him a little wave and a big smile before he walked off. “I am free. Now I can get back to work... Keh heh heh heh...” Chosen Undead then continued to traverse the building and eventually reached the next upper area, and just before he planned to head for the exit, he stumbled across something on the ground. “This must be the summon signature that Solaire mentioned...” Touching the engraved sigil, Chosen Undead slowly widened his eyes as some aura rose from within, and a figure slowly emerged, but it was not Solaire; it was Lautrec. “...” Since cooperators couldn’t speak, Lautrec just expressed his desires to fight by cracking his neck and readying his Shotels. But there was another summon just up the ladder, and it was much more radiant than Lautrec’s, so this must be Solaire’s summon sign. After touching the sigil, the warrior of sunlight did emerge, and the first thing he did was praise the Sun, and Chosen Undead, too, emoted just like him, earning some disappointed head shakes from Lautrec. With all three of them geared up and Solaire friendly waving at Lautrec, it was time for them to toll the bell of this building. Just then, Chosen Undead felt a little bit uneasy, and that was proven correct when the statue started to roar to life. A Bell Gargoyle spread its wings and crashed down on the roof, roaring and raising its weapon at the trio, and all of them readied their blades. Solaire initiated the fight with a Lightning Spear, striking the beast in the face and chipping a small piece of it because it was still a statue. Lautrec and Chosen Undead respectively flanked it, distracting the beast and giving it a hard time to determine who it should focus on. Judging by Chosen Undead’s unimpressive attire, the Bell Gargoyle turned to Lautrec and delivered a downward slam, which he narrowly dodged by sharply changing direction. But while it would not focus its aggression on Chosen Undead, that did not mean its axe-like tail would not cleave him in half. “Woah!” He rolled forward to escape its tail swipe before luckily striking its right thigh. The beast shrieked and turned back at Chosen Undead, but not before Solaire bashed his shield against its face to divert its attention. Then the warrior of sunlight landed a double slash to its face, chipping a bigger piece off before hastily jumping back once the Bell Gargoyle attempted to attack him with a horizontal slash. Lautrec delivered a double slash to its rear and hooked one of his Shotels to its chest before slicing downward, and while the beast uncontrollably shrieked, it smashed the roof with the butt of its axe to repel Lautrec, who was sent rolling on the floor and would have fallen off this building if Solaire did not react fast enough to grab him by the elbow. Lautrec seemed somewhat surprised when he saw that stupid symbol on Solaire’s armour, but let’s not forget the beast they were engaging. The Bell Gargoyle lifted its axe overhead and prepared to bring it down, but before it could succeed, it suddenly shrieked in agonizing pain and lost its stance, and its tail came into their view, obstructed by the beast’s figure, but they could see that it was cut off by Chosen Undead, who lifted the tail up and wielded it like an axe. While it was staggered, Solaire smiled and ran toward the beast before plunging his whole sword through its head, and the beast did not get to scream before Solaire killed it with a clean riposte. The beast then fell off the building, but that did not end there. “Guys...” Both Solaire and Lautrec turned to Chosen Undead, who pointed at the sky, and out of nowhere, another Bell Gargoyle came crashing down, generating a shockwave that made everyone stumble and shield their eyes from the dust. Not being able to process everything, Chosen Undead widened his eyes when something bright, almost like a flame, appeared amid the smoke, and his instinct literally told him to sprint when the other Bell Gargoyle spewed flame at him, and he panicked and desperately tried to outrun it, as did the other two. Unlike the first one, this Bell Gargoyle proved itself to be far more aggressive in its attacks despite being already injured by those who came before them. The Bell Gargoyle growled and began its onslaught of claw pounces and axe swings, with all three of them circling it like some headless chickens. Realizing that it’d been surrounded, the Bell Gargoyle let out a fierce roar before punching the ground, making some fire burn underneath its feet, and the area of effect attack began to get larger and larger until it started to threaten the warriors. They must interrupt the beast unless they wanted to be burned alive, but before Solaire could valiantly charge forward, Chosen Undead grabbed his Sorcerer’s Catalyst and chanted something before pointing the weapon at the beast and firing multiple Soul Arrows at the creature all across its stone-hard skin, successfully making it lose concentration and cancel its attack. While it was grabbing its head, all three of them charged forward and pointed their blades at the Bell Gargoyle, which let out a growl before it took to the sky, leaving them all baffled. “Run away, you coward! Run with your tail between your legs! Oh no, you can’t! Ha ha!” Chosen Undead laughed, but that grin soon was dropped when the Bell Gargoyle started to fly toward them again, with its axe aflame. “I-Is it going toward us?” Its roar soon got louder and louder, definitely indicating that it was flying toward them. Solaire threw a Lightning Spear at the beast, but it swiftly dodged the projectile and roared as it began to swoop in and delivered an axe swing to the roof, completely sending them into disarray. Lautrec and Solaire were knocked down to the ground, and before they could get up and continue the fight, the Bell Gargoyle fixated its attention on Chosen Undead, who was lucky enough to be unaffected by its dive attack. It thrust its flamey axe forward and dragged it across the torn roof in hope of cleaving the young Undead, but since he had grown a bit faster and stronger, he managed to leap past its axe and began to retaliate, using Black Knight Sword to strike its ankle due to its more enormous weight, and then he dealt some thrust damages to its stony ribs, which earned a shriek from the Gargoyle Beast before it tried to burn him with its fire breath. Of course, Chosen Undead quickly ran away, and lucky for him, his allies soon rose to their feet again. Chosen Undead ran behind the beast and struck its opening wound of its severed tail, giving Solaire enough time to throw a Lightning Spear at its chest to injure it, and Lautrec grunted as he delivered a jump attack at its right hand, temporarily negating its ability to swing its weapon. Chosen Undead crawled on its back and leapt up with his Black Knight Sword pointed at its head, with a battle cry, he impaled and plunged the whole sword through its head, and the beast let out a loud shriek before ultimately going down and dropping its weapon. With the Bell Garygoyles slain, their missions were over, and the two cooperators returned to their worlds, with Lautrec grinning as he earned a piece of Humanity and Solaire praised the Sun before disappearing. Chosen Undead yanked the sword out with a sigh and looked at the bell. Pulling the lever, the young Undead tolled the bell and took his time to admire his effort. With that done, he went down the clock tower and met a strange folk cloaked in black and seemingly welcoming Chosen Undead with open arms, literally. “Greetings. I am Oswald of Carim, the pardoner. Thou art a friend. For thee, a warm welcome. Cometh thou to confess? Or to accuse? For indeed all sin is my domain.” Was he a pope? An absolver of sins? No matter, and Chosen Undead politely declined his offer, and Oswald just chuckled. ”Thou art welcome anytime. It is only human to commit a sin... Heh heh heh heh...” He felt so fucking adequate for this destiny. --------------------------------------- "Why, what a surprise. I didn't expect you to make it… Oh, somebody rang the bell… Wait. Was it you? You never give up, do you? I don't know how you do it. Well, don't stop now. Only one more, but it's going to be suicide. Hah hah hah hah …" The Crestfallen Warrior was both impressed and jealous of Chosen Undead’s accomplishment, but the young Undead just gave him a thumbs-up and went to Anastacia to level up. “I tolled the first bell, and the warrior told me there was one more. And I’ve to tell you that it was a pain in the ass! They were a hassle to deal with, but we still prevailed in the end.” Anastacia helped reinforce his Estus Flask and tried not to get too close, but eventually, she just gave him a weak smile as he showcased his loots, one of which was this new Lightning Spear that he learned when joining the Warriors of Sunlight Covenant, but they were blissfully ignorant about the gaze of a certain golden-armoured knight. Chosen Undead waved at her, and she shyly waved back and tightened her lips with reddened cheeks. Chosen Undead turned to Lautrec, whose smirk was concealed by his helm. “I have your reward. Please accept it. I am grateful to you for freeing me... Keh heh heh heh...” A Sunlight Medal? That was peculiar, but Chosen Undead supposed he was also a Warrior of Sunlight, obviously not thinking about the possibility that Lautrec just looted it from a corpse of one. ‘This buffoon really accepts this piece of worthless trinket.’ Chosen Undead bid his farewell and, since he had enough Souls, decided to learn some Miracles from Petrus, who was still awaiting his companions’ arrival. “Oh, hello. Miracles, I presume? Yes, I know.” Learning Heal, Great Heal Excerpt and Force, Chosen Undead felt a little curious and wondered who he was awaiting. “My mission? Oh yes, my companions are M’lady and her young knights. She is young, but burdened by an Undead mission. We are her defenses, to keep her from harm.” “An Undead mission? What is that?” “Regrettably, I cannot share that with you. But you are my pupil, perhaps if you show your faith...” Petrus smirked and showed Chosen Undead his open palm, implying that he needed something in order to spill the beans, almost like a bribery. Frowning yet wanting to know the answer, the young Undead had no choice but to give Petrus some Souls, and the knight of Thorolund chuckled. “Very well. I can surely tell you, of all people... Undead clerics are given a mission to seek Kindling. Kindling is the art of feeding bonfires with humanity. Through Kindling, we shall one day be granted magnificent powers.” Chosen Undead rubbed his chin and nodded in understanding. Well, he had a few Humanities with him, so he decided to give a test right now. Holding out a Humanity, he then threw it into the bonfire and slightly widened his eyes when the fire reacted, and his Estus Flask glowed up before it felt much hotter. “So that is what it does.” Kindling a bonfire allowed him to use more sips of Estus Flask, and he thanked Petrus for the information. After that, he went around the vicinity to collect more Souls. He went back to Undead Parish and used Basement Key to gain access to Lower Undead Burg, where Hollows roamed in every corner. Of course, he was a completely healthy Undead, with plenty of Humanity to spare, so that naturally attracted a lot of deprived Hollows and a certain Undead who wielded Butcher Knife. “Somebody! Please, let me out of here! Somebody, anybody! Help me! Unlock the door!... Damn... I’m finished... How did this ever happen...” Chosen Undead furrowed his brows when he heard a voice just somewhere in these houses, and he suspected it must come from the alley. “Somebody!” It was this very house! But it was locked, so Chosen Undead had to ram his body into the door in order to bust it open, and after many tries, he managed to destroy the lock and enter the room. “Oh, thank the Gods, you saved me! Now help me untie this accursed rope before she comes back!” “Who?” “I am to fulfill my duty, but that was greatly interrupted when that woman, whose stench was no different from those Hollows outside, captured me and tied me up here. I had no idea what she actually intends with me, but I think she is going to eat me!” Chosen Undead blinked in confusion, wondering what kind of sadistic woman would eat other people. “Come on, hurry up! Before she comes back!” Chosen Undead snapped out of his thought and knelt down before trying to untie the man, but it was simply too tight, and he struggled with it for a while. “Use a dagger or somesuch- She is here!” Chosen Undead noticed two things – the sorcerer’s horrified expression and the growing silhouette, which meant someone was behind him. Instinctively rolling to the right, Chosen Undead grunted as he crashed into the barrels and became horrified when a woman wearing nothing but her undergarments and a patchwork sack on her head slammed her humongous Butcher Knife down to the ground, and she maniacally giggled and turned to Chosen Undead. “Two meat-flesh!” She growled before charging at Chosen Undead with her weapon aloft, but he managed to weave through her attack and ran out of the house, and the woman began to tail him. “Wait! What about me!? Don’t leave me here! Hello!?” “So terrifying!” Chosen Undead panicked and readied his shield once he lost sight of the crazy woman. ‘Where is she?’ His heart began to rapidly beat, threatening to explode even, and his anxiety heightened when he heard giggles just somewhere to his right, and Chosen Undead pointed his Claymore in that direction, but nothing was there except for some dead Hollows. “What you are doing is wrong! Eating people... is simply not a good thing to do!” Unbeknownst to him, the woman was slowly creeping up on him from behind while clutching her Butchering Knife. He had plenty of Humanities, which she hungrily craved, and once he was stripped of them, she would eat him, plain and simple. More muscular, more meat, and he was perfect. Chosen Undead gulped, and he slightly widened his eyes when he saw a moving shadow just underneath his feet, so he swiftly turned around and raised his shield up to block an incoming cleave from the crazy woman, and he panicked once she pushed him back and laughed. “Run run run, meat-pig!” She then raised her Butchering Knife up and delivered a heavy strike, but his Black Knight Shield proved to be durable enough to absorb the attack, but that fuelled the woman’s desire to repeatedly bash his shield with her weapon until he lost his posture and left himself be vulnerable to attacks. And so, she attempted to go for his neck, but Chosen Undead reacted just in time to deflect her attack with his Claymore, however, they both lost grip on their weapons due to the collision.Not out of choice, the woman lifted her Sack up high enough to reveal her bloody mouth and lunged at him, and Chosen Undead squealed and fell down on the ground, managing to grab her face with his right hand just before her teeth could take a bit of his nose. Her drool started to stain his palm, and when he tried to use two hands to push her hand back, the woman grabbed his left wrist and pinned it on his chest, but of course, this conveniently kickstarted the reaction, and the cannibal’s aggression started to die down, and Chosen Undead widened his eyes as the woman ceased attacking him. “H-Huh?” She then leaned back and gritted her teeth, almost like she was still trying to fight something internal.He did not know what was happening, but he used this opportunity to reach for his dropped Claymore, however, that attempt at retaliation was soon stopped by the cannibal when she grabbed his wrist and giggled playfully before she started to grind her covered mound against his loincloth, earning a groan from Chosen Undead. Even though her Sack had covered her eyes, he could still see how she was enjoying this, and her hand went from grabbing his wrist to interlock with his hand, and the cannibal took pleasure in watching her prey helplessly thrashing before she ended their suffering, but for some reason, she would not outright kill him now due to some tingling sensation, and she did not usually want to play with her food. “Weird-strange! Name Mildred!” Weirdly enough, Chosen Undead did not fight back or try to push her off his body, and that granted the cannibal—Mildred—the privilege to aggressively chafe her wet loincloth against his bulge. She gasped and squeezed his hand, her teeth grinding together as she thrust her hip faster as the sensation heightened, and some weird fluid began to leak out of her loincloth. The more friction she made, the more blissful she felt, so Mildred pursed her lips and closed her eyes when she finally climaxed, carelessly spraying her essence all over his thighs and loins, and this weird feeling relieved Mildred, who found this now more enjoyable than eating Undead flesh. Grinning cheek to cheek, Mildred turned her attention back to him and chuckled as she moved his loincloth aside, and his hard cock sprang out and stood upright. She had many sadistic thoughts and intents behind that bloody grin of hers. Mildred wondered how yummy that this rod of hard meat would taste, and she would have cleanly cut his dick off had it not been for this itchy and unquenchable heat in her crotch, and rubbing her covered mound against his erect cock did not satiate her need. Chosen Undead did not dare to even speak up in fear of angering Mildred and kickstarting her initial desire to eat him alive. And so, he could only watch as Mildred slowly lifted her body off his loins and slid her loincloth aside to reveal her womanhood, and this marked his first time seeing a woman’s private part, albeit Mildred’s had fatter lips and seemed a little bit unhygienic.“Fun first! Before I eat-consume you!” Chosen Undead gulped in fear as the cannibal slowly sunk down, and her grip on his hand intensified as his tip was inserted inside, but then Mildred just dropped her weight atop him, forcefully having his entire length inside of her; the sudden and deep penetration shook their very cores, and Chosen Undead threw his head back, having it hit the ground twice, and let out a soft moan while Mildred’s grin grew wider and wider as her toes curled in pleasure. It did not bring the same level of happiness like consuming flesh does, but her body surely was enjoying it, and Mildred maniacally laughed before lifting her body and starting to bounce on his cock, and the increasing pressure around his hand made him feel like she was about to crush his hand, but the pleasure he received from her wild riding overlapped that pain. Chosen Undead was hopeless, but he did not fight back or anything; he just let Mildred contently use his body to her liking and let out an obnoxious moan when her insides unforgivingly squeezed his cock from all sides. While it somewhat hurt every time his tip kissed her cervix, that level of pain only tempted her to ride him harder and placed her other hand on his chest, her fingernails digging through a thin layer of his skin, but he could still tell that she was resisting the temptation to finish him right on the space. As she rigorously bounced, Chosen Undead couldn’t avert his gazes from her voluptuous tits through her skimpy and torn undergarments, but due to her much chubbier stature, her belly rolls rippled along with her breasts. Have you ever heard of praying mantises? After mating, the male, if fast and lucky enough, would not become its mate’s nutritious meal. Chosen Undead was in the same predicament, and he was the male praying mantis metaphorically. Even if he pleased her and brought her to orgasms, Mildred would still kill and devour him afterward, because in the end, he was just food to her. The chubby cannibalistic woman let out a satisfied cry and threw her head back when her walls spasmed, but she was relentless enough to keep rocking her hips and riding him as if he was a mount. Chosen Undead started to lose the sensation of his hips due to the mercilessness of her bouncing, but seeing him clenching his teeth and moaning just made her go wild and mock him with laughter. Leaning forward and pressing her boobs against his chest, Mildred grinned and lifted his eyelids up to always have his gaze on her covered ones. Eventually, Chosen Undead began to feel something growing inside of his crotch, and the faster she rode him, the more noticeable and fiercer that sensation got, and the young Undead could not stop moaning and shut his eyes. And then, relief washed over him, and Chosen Undead’s moan died down the very moment Mildred felt something warm invading her womb, and her grin shifted from sadistic to confused before she ceased her movements. Mildred looked down and cocked her head once some odd white liquid oozed out of her cunt, and once she lifted her body off him, more of his white liquid leaked out. She gave it a lick and soured her face as it was too bitter. Chosen Undead dreamily winced, and when his eyelids were lifted high enough to see her, he freaked out to see Mildred trying to reach for her Butchering Knife. Eyes widening, he pushed her off and crawled back, and she magically rolled on the ground and angrily grunted. When she reached for her Butchering Knife and turned her gaze at Chosen Undead, she noticed that he was... gone, along with his equipment. “Gah!” She smashed her weapon down to the ground and cracked her neck menacingly, her eyes growing redder just underneath her Sack. “I will find and kill-eat you, piggy... I will find you, piggy.” Instead of making a run straight back to Firelink Shrine, Chosen Undead was kind enough to go grab the captured man and brought him back to safety.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
That woman was scary as hell, and Chosen Undead, whose loincloth was halfway up his thighs, simultaneously ran out of his hellhole and also grabbed his trapped sorcerer before he made a one-straight run to Firelink Shrine. Adrenaline pumped so fast that he didn’t even register the growing tiredness until he placed the guy on the grass and panted. “Oh my left side... It’s gahh!” He helped untie the sorcerer, who called himself Griggs, also from Vinheim. That place surely had a lot of sorcerers. “I have no idea what took you so long to deal with that wench, but thanks to you, we both made it back unscathed. Incidentally, would you care to learn any sorceries? You’re clearly talented, and besides, I owe you. Of course we will require some materials, but I am happy to teach you some elementary spells. Are you interested?” Sorceries weren’t truly the young Undead’s knack, but he would try to learn only the basic stuff. “Sounds good to me. I already have a catalyst.” “Splendid! Very well! I am pleased to give something back. Well, then let’s get started straight away.” Griggs did not have much to teach, but he was glad to somewhat repay Chosen Undead’s kindness. He was relatively fast too, so it didn’t take long for him to learn three spells. “Have you heard of Big Hat Logan? Master Logan is a great sorcerer, and my teacher. Both of us came to this land, as Undead. But one day, he departed, leaving only a note. I suppose he wished to keep me out of harm’s way. But where does that leave me? I have dedicated myself to sorcery but Master Logan could find no use for me...” “He sounds not like a good teacher then.” The young Undead furrowed his eyebrows at that. “What kind of teacher would abandon his student just because he was deemed worthless? In my eyes, this so-called wise Logan has already failed in becoming a mentor. Also, what did he say in his note?” Griggs weirdly seemed to be deep in thought, and when Chosen Undead gave him a tap on the shoulder, the sorcerer finally shook his head and nodded. “Ahh yes, the note that Master Logan left? It only said he would travel to Anor Londo, by the way of Sen’s fortress. I can only guess that he seeks the Regal Archives, for Master Logan is a tireless pursuer of wisdom. Wisdom trumps all, everything else is hogwash. When the curse turned him Undead, I am certain that he only felt it was the perfect chance to visit this land. I only wish that I had his courage...” With some new sorceries now equipped, Chosen Undead bid Griggs his thanks and left for Undead Burg again, but this time, he would use Aural Decoy to disorient the cannibalistic woman and safely sneak past the Hollows. This place was quite filled with decent loot, and he ran into a ridiculous number of enemies. Dogs were just horrendous to deal with. After a while, he entered an area that housed another still sane Hollow, and she giggled upon his arrival. “Oh, hi...” “Hmm, you still have some senses about you? Then why won’t you buy some of my moss? I need your souls! Vee hee hee!” She sounded insane and depraved of souls, so while somewhat weirded out by her behaviours, he was kind enough to buy some Bloodred and Purple Moss Clump, which she claimed to be very helpful in his journey ahead. “This is a wonderful place, don’t you think? We have water, moss, moisture, these nice iron bars.... I like it here, I really do. Nothing good ever happened to me in life. But now that I’m Undead, I’ve never been happier. Tell me honestly... You think I’ve gone to the other side, don’t you? That I’ve cracked my head and gone Hollow... You do, don’t you? I can see it in your eyes. You’d trust a patch of moss over me...” “Uhm well...” Chosen Undead rubbed his chin. “Technically correct, but as long as you retain tiny bits of your sanity, then I can see myself safely relaxing beside you.” The merchant just cocked her head and leaned closer, her hands gripping on the iron bars as she stared at him dead in the eyes, which, of course, put him off. Sanity, eh? “Th-Thank you for the moss.” He gave her a bow before leaving the sewer, and the Female Undead Merchant let out a long exhale through her mouth. When he left the area through the back and found himself in Firelink Shrine again, that same voice returned. “Crow's nest.” “Nest?” He looked around and scratched his head, then he saw a mess of twigs and branches just atop the ruins. Then he tried to find his way up there, picking up Undead Asylum F2 West Key from a corpse, and curled up into a ball when he lay in a crow's nest, asking himself why he should be doing this. After a while, he heard a screech, that of a crow, and he knew what was about to happen when the same large crow picked him up with its talons. Obviously, the crow had no ill intents and just brought him back to Northern Undead Asylum after a few minutes of flying, and Chosen Undead gave the crow a hasty thank before he pressed onward. Killing the four Hollows, Chosen Undead tilted his head when he heard a squeaky voice. “Hmm? Wonder whose voice it belongs to.” He followed the source and found... a smaller crow's nest, and there stood a newly hatched crow that kept crying out and squeaking. He would have gasped and petted it if it hadn’t suddenly tried to bite his finger. “You, you. Give me, warm. Give me, soft.” It cawed and flapped its cute wings, and Chosen Undead knelt down in front of it. Warm and soft... Those Moss Clumps that he had bought seemed comfortable enough, so he gave the crow – Snuggly – a Bloodred and Purple Moss Clump, and the crow hogged them all for herself. He blinked and then recoiled when in front of him were two unmistakable Twinkling Titanites. “More. Give me, warm. Give me, soft.” With that, he knew this was a trade. He threw almost everything he did not need to Snuggly, but she rejected most items, saying that they were not warm, not soft, and when he tried to use the Moss Clump again, she would refuse them. “Let’s see...” For some reason, giving Snuggly a Dung Pie gave him a Demon Titanite, and Rubbish got him a Titanite Chunk. When he ran out of suitable items to trade, the young Undead sneakily petted Snuggly on the head before returning to the asylum, but unexpectedly, a Silver Knight came forward and attacked him, but now equipped with a proper shield and Claymore, Chosen Undead timed it right and parried him, and a quick body stab was enough to kill the Silver Knight. However, just when Chosen Undead walked up to the corpse of Asylum Demon, the ground beneath his feet suddenly collapsed, resulting in both him and the dead demon falling down. “Waagh!” While midair, he would widen his eyes when he saw there was another floor just down there, but one bad thing was that another demon was waiting for him. A debris struck its head, and Stray Demon looked up and growled as Chosen Undead entered its point of view. Glancing at his Claymore, Chosen Undead had a devious smirk and dived headfirst, and to minimize the fall, he dived onto Stray Demon and plunged his sword through its head, also grunting when he landed on its head. The demonic creature let out a pained scream and swatted him away with a quick swing of its right hand, throwing Chosen Undead down to the ground. A sip of his Estus Flask was enough to heal his injuries, and Chosen Undead swung his sword to get rid of the blood. Of course, Stray Demon clutched its staff and plunged it into the ground, generating an explosion that blasted every debris away, forcing Chosen Undead use his shield to avoid getting struck. Then he quickly sprinted to the right when Stray Demon used the weapon to thrust at him. After landing two free hits on its left thigh, Chosen Undead leaped back since he could already guess it would do its butt slam, and it did do its butt slam. Raising his left arm up into the air, Chosen Undead created a Lightning Spear and threw it at Stray Demon’s face, earning a scoff from the creature. Chosen Undead ran to the side when Stray Demon roared and leapt toward him, but upon landing, he ran right back at it and delivered a few impaling thrusts from its rear. He then grabbed the hilt of Claymore with two hands and deeply penetrated it from the back, and then with a hitched breath, he slashed downward and staggered Stray Demon, which then tipped over and fell flat on its chest. He immediately ran to the side and grunted, before Stray Demon could realize anything, a sword was plunged straight into its face, and it writhed and screamed in pain as the tip of the blade pierced its brain. “Gahh! Just die please!” He pushed the sword deeper and jumped back when its flailing arm almost smashed, and he switched to Black Knight Sword. Making a quick sprint, Chosen Undead dodged its hand and pierced its skull with the sword again, and this time, Stray Demon ceased writhing and died for good. After confirming its demise, the young Undead wiped the sweat off his forehead and sighed. “Agh... Being chosen is quite a perilous task, isn’t it?” Killing another Black Knight, Chosen Undead realized he was back at the cell he was once doomed to rot away, but while he wasn’t too fond of the memories, he noticed something else—Peculiar Doll. “Hmm? I had no recollection of this thing.” Something something time is convoluted. “It must be endearing to someone. I’ll keep it.” Something something a painting. He then used the crow to travel to Firelink Shrine. --------------------------------------- “How did that nutty sorcerer make it back? Unexpected, but I suppose stranger things have happened. Speaking about the raggedy old chum, how did he end up? You know, the one who idolized some godmother of pyromancy. He left for Blighttown, but never came back. Whereas most flee from sickness, he dives right in. Well, nothing will harm him once he goes Hollow.”With some new Titanites, the young Undead made his way to Andre to get his weapons reinforced. After doing so, he made a hasty run back to Undead Burg and entered a seemingly ordinary part of the castle, which housed Capra Demon, which was a nuisance to deal with because of those damn dogs! Capra Demon extended its arms out and rapidly spun, so Chosen Undead rolled and ducked down to escape its spinning attacks, but unbeknownst to him, a dog came out of nowhere and bit him in the right ankle. “Aaagh!” He threw a hook at its neck, instantly immobilizing it before he groggily rolled away when Capara Demon delivered an overhead swing that killed the injured dog. He then rolled again when the demon swept its machetes across the ground and then pummelled the ground with a double slam. It then tried to do the same double slam again, but Chosen Undead negated that with an upward swing of his shield, parrying it. First, he plunged Claymore through its abdomen and ducked when Capra Demon tried to chop his head off with its left machete, and after that, he rammed his shield against its figure and knocked it down to the ground. When it was down, Chosen Undead stepped on its body and stomped the guard of his sword to drive the blade through Capra Demon, making the demon shriek and thrash. He gave its face a good stomp in order to disorient it before he repeatedly stabbed it across the abdomen and screamed, so it was not strange that Capra Demon eventually ceased moving and dropped dead. After that, a key—Key to Depths—was dropped, and the young Undead grabbed it and put it in his loincloth. He tried any locked doors and eventually got one open, and that one obviously led him to Depths, which was damp and humid, but the environment was not the worst thing here. “You! Yes, you!” “Huh?! Who are you!? Show yourself, coward!” “Here, over here!” Chosen Undead blinked in confusion as he traced the source of the voice and found a bunch of barrels, and due to the darkness, he couldn’t make out exactly what he was seeing, but it seemed to be a man tied up to a barrel. Smashing some of them, the young Undead did a double-take when the owner of the voice showed himself; it was just an ordinary-looking man. “Please... You must help me... Or else, she’ll have me for lunch! You’re my only hope... Oh, please.” Mildred again, or someone else? Either way, Chosen Undead carefully angled his Claymore and cleanly cut the ropes, finally freeing the man. “Th-Thank you. I would have been her supper without you. Being eaten alive! I shudder to think... Thank you, thank you dearly.” “No need to.” Chosen Undead gave him a thumbs-up and smiled. “I am Laurentius, of the Great Swamp. I will not forget my debt to you.” With his hands finally free, the man now had the privilege to grab a Homeward Bone from his inventory and popped it to bring him back to Firelink Shrine. Instead of returning to the surface, Chosen Undead chose to explore this system of sewers and got his hands on Large Ember. Just like what a sewer should be, this place was filled to the brim with filth and pestilence, piles of dung, and those big-eyed lizards, and apparently, those things weren’t their eyes. Their real ones were Eyes of Death, and for some reason, he felt like he’d need it. “Why are you... red?” That was not the golden hue of a cooperator, and instead of helping him clear out these rats, Kirk, Knight of Thorns, weirdly sprinted toward him and suddenly thrust his Barbed Straight Sword at Chosen Undead, who freaked out and used his shield to block the attack. “Wait, why are you attacking me!?” Kirk did not say anything and thrust forward, pushing the young Undead back for a short distance before he attempted to flank him from the left. Narrowly, Chosen Undead deflected his swing with his Claymore, and he leapt back after Kirk’s sword touched the ground. When the young Undead attempted to strike him down, Kirk lifted his Spiked Shield up to block the attack, but he managed to break through his guard. But even after Kirk was staggered, Chosen Undead lifted his sword up again and bashed the blade against his right pauldron, and then another strike to the same pauldron, smashing through the armour and making Kirk bleed. To be honest, even the young Undead had no idea why he was being this aggressive, but maybe Kirk was an invader, and invaders robbed people of Humanities, and Chosen Undead hated thieves and bullies. Perhaps such a notion stemmed from somewhere. Parrying him, Kirk then groggily stood up and thrust his sword forward, but Chosen Undead narrowly weaved to the left, only his right arm getting slashed albeit not too deep. Kirk then swiftly twirled and slashed downward, and Chosen Undead quickly strafed to the right and went in for a fatal blow, plunging Claymore through his chest and kicking him into the shallow waste. The invader was vanquished, and Chosen Undead realized this marked the first time he killed an Undead, well, he mostly killed Hollows and monsters, but he had never killed a sane Undead before. Does vanquishing an invader count as killing though? Eh, who would care anyway, especially in this time? With that done, Chosen Undead returned to Firelink Shrine and found Laurentius again. “Well, I see you made it out! Yeah, I made it out safely too. I have my Pyromancy of the Great Swamp, so I can usually manage, with a bit of care. Oh yeah, by the way, I can share my spell with you. I think you have a knack for it. All you need are the materials, I’d be pleased to help you. Ah... uness you find the magics unsavoury?” “Pyromancy...?” Chosen Undead rubbed his chin. Again, who would deny more power? He was chosen for this destiny, so he must be strong, both in mind and body. “Yes, please! I can find everything savoury, so I’d like to be taught the art of pyromancy.” “Yeah, wonderful! I’m sure they’ll be of some use, some assistance. Here, first, take this. A flame from the Great Swamp.” A tiny flame sparked on Laurentius’s open hand, and when Chosen Undead leaned down to inherit the flame and watched in awe as the tiny flame danced and flickered, the pyromancer gave him a stern nod. “Now you are a fully-fledged pyromancer. Why, let’s get started right now.” Ah yes, more Souls in order to ascend his Pyromancy Flame, but lucky for him, he had more than enough Souls to ascend it ten times and buy some spells like Fireball, Combustion and Flash Sweat. He was then drained of his Souls. “A pyromancer’s flame is a part of his own body. The flame develops right along with his skill. When I gave you that flame, I gave you a part of myself. Please take good care of it.” “Many thanks to you!” Chosen Undead cast Fireball and hurled it at a group of Hollows. And so, he went back to the sewer to finish what he started. He killed a bunch of stuff and descended down a few staircases, and with the two summon signs, he requested help from Solaire and Lautrec, both of whom arrived to assist him in the upcoming battle. Just as he entered what seemed to be a waterfall-like system, he noticed something poking out from the other side, and it seemed to be a snake with spikes running across its neck. But unfortunately, that wasn’t a snake, it was a gigantic dragon that has its ribcage completely exposed and riddled with humongous teeth, and its appearance alone repulsed all three combatants. Gaping Dragon crawled out of its hideout and let out a roar before charging at them. In response, all three of them split and ran to the sides, resulting in Gaping Dragon ramming into the wall. Though corrupted, it was still a dragon, and dragons were known to be susceptible to lightning. Solaire threw a few Lightning Spears at its left limb, and Gaping Dragon shrieked and turned its attention to the warrior of sunlight. Chosen Undead did not charge it head-on foolishly like Lautrec, but instead, he ran to the back and focused his attention on its ground-sweeping tail. Gaping Dragon lifted its leg up and stomped in the direction of Solaire, sending three consecutive devastating shockwaves that knocked him down to the water. When Lautrec flanked it from the right, one of its wings curled and shielded it from his slashes. Lautrec looked up and swiftly rolled when it brought its right hand down, almost reducing him into a pulp inside of his golden armour. But then it looked up into the sky and roared in pain because Chosen Undead was trying to chop its tail off, and Gaping Dragon dragged its tail and hit him. However, the young Undead latched onto the tail like a leech and tried to hold it down. He was twice as strong as before, but still, his strength couldn’t hold a candle against even its tail. “Its tail! Sever its tail!” Gaping Dragon tried to attack Chosen Undead, but Solaire drew its attention with a few Lightning Spears and ran to the side, giving Lautrec enough time to get up and assist Chosen Undead in chopping off the dragon’s tail. Just when Chosen Undead gave in and released the tail, Lautrec readied his Shotels and delivered a double slash at the wound, successfully severing the tail. Gaping Dragon shrieked and angrily pummelled the ground with its limbs, and all three of them scattered around like rats when the dragon started to ooze some kind of thick, burning and acidic liquid from its mouth, and the mass began to clump and accumulate, slowly spreading across the arena. The three of them ran to the very edge of the area and hoped it wouldn’t reach their legs, and while they could not strike it now, that didn’t mean Chosen Undead and Solaire wouldn’t bombard Gaping Dragon with their spells. Switching to his Sorcerer’s Catalyst, he fired a barrage of Soul Arrows at the dragon, and Solaire too threw his Lightning Spears. That thankfully stopped its acid-spitting attack, but the enraged dragon immediately switched its attention to Chosen Undead and Solaire, both of whom readied their weapons and charged forward. Flapping its wings, Gaping Dragon leapt up and did its belly slam, smashing the ground with its limbs and chasing after Chosen Undead, who dual-wielded his Claymore and stepped into a low stance before delivering a horizontal strike that gashed Gaping Dragon across its side, and he hastily made a roll to escape its ground smashing. Solaire ran to the back and repeatedly struck its rump, using his shield to block a kick from it. While underneath it, Chosen Undead plunged his sword into its belly and pulled it across, spilling its blood out and injuring the corrupted dragon. He then pressed his palm against its gaping wound and activated Combustin to shoot a burst of fire into its very insides. Lautrec hooked its right arm with his weapons and gashed it, giving Solaire the right opportunity to run forward and stab it in the head. “Oh god! Oh my Lord Gwyn!” When Gaping Dragon succumbed to its wounds and perished, Chosen Undead was drenched in its blood, and he tightened his lips and quickly rolled away before its body crushed him. “Blegh!” Solaire praised the Sun, and Lautrec earned another Humanity before they both disappeared. “Thanks for the assistance!” Killing Gaping Dragon rewarded him with Blighttown Key, and not only that, but a nearby corpse had a relatively intact armour set—Warrior Set. “Oh cool.” Chosen Undead discarded his rusty helm and donned the new set, finding it fit like a glove. “Unto greatness!” Leaving the area and going up again, Chosen Undead planned to use this key if he didn’t come across another soul in this place. “Hmm? Hello there.” “Aye, siwmae. And good day to you. I’m Domhnall of Zena. I’m just, well, a peddler, of sorts. I adore trinkets and oddities, so I trade for them.” Chosen Undead sold him a few things and bought a Master Key from him, which would have fucking got this door opened without having to defeat this fucking Gaping Dragon! “Thank you. That was a fine trade. I have this funny feeling we’ll meet again soon.” Dowhnall joined his palms together and bowed to him, and Chosen Undead nodded before using the new Blighttown Key to open this heavy rusted door. But who would have thought this place would be more hellish? “Gah!” “Gahhh!” “Gahhh!” “Again!?” “Not again!” Low visibility and constant ambushes killed him so many times that he even questioned how the hell he killed the demons and Gaping Dragon, but he supposed he was just too hasty and impatient. After popping a Humanity, Chosen Undead nodded to himself before journeying into Blighttown. “Slowly... Watch the corners...” The young Undead smiled as he made much more progress than in his other attempts, and he calmly used his bow to kill a few fire-breathing creatures from afar. After a while, he finally reached the ground and widened his eyes when he felt a rashy sensation, almost like... “Poison? Poison! It’s a poison swamp here!’ He panicked, running to the protruding ground and hissing. But then he remembered he still had some Purple Moss Lump with him. “...” Simultaneously running and consuming the moss lump, Chosen Undead killed anything that dared to attack him and looked around. These mosquitos were annoying to deal with, and these boulder-throwing Infested Barbarians. While exploring the poisoned Blighttown, he ran past a very veiled person, and then he comically stopped himself when he saw them. The person tilted their head as Chosen Undead waved at them. “Hmm... A mere Undead, yet you can see me? Fascinating...” “Huh? What do you mean?” “I am Quelana of Izalith. I am not often revealed to walkers of flesh. You have a gift. Are you, too, one who seeks my pyromancy? Like Salaman.” Chosen Undead looked around to be certain the coast was clear before sitting in front of her, and Quelana raised an eyebrow when the young Undead slowly nodded his head. “Yes, of course. It should be expected. Very well. You shall be my pupil. But to pursue my pyromancy, you must give something up. Are you prepared to do this?” Quelana reached out a hand to him, and Chosen Undead, partially stunned and taking his time to remember Laurentius’ words, slowly placed his hand atop her offered one. He put his other hand on his chest. “A part of myself...” Of course, this immediately kickstarted something within Quelana, who froze up, her hand still holding his. Just like Anastacia and Mildred, Quelana had a shameful impulse to get rid of this growing heat inside of her loins, and it was peculiar because she herself was a powerful pyromancer, and she even studied primal pyromancy, and what those current pyromancers learned were just safer and less lethal versions of her flame. Her hand went from holding his to grabbing his wrist, and Chosen Undead blinked before he was pulled closer to his new teacher. “Uhmm...” His cheeks would heat up when Quelana guided his hand to her covered breast, and he, almost like an instinct, gave it a light squeeze. “W-Wait! I did not mean to- “Shush, my pupil... There is something about you that I must know.” Chosen Undead didn’t protest when Quelana lifted her veil up, still covering her eyes, and gave him a light smooch on the lips, but one wasn’t enough, their lips met again, and each time she went for another one, the intensity and craving heightened, and when his back finally met the ground, Quelana let out a long hum when his hands reached for her hips, and she wetted her lips when she could feel her womanhood getting more soaked. “You are my dear pupil, are you not?” He gave her a shy nod, his eyes showing confusion and anxiety. “Very well, then a good pupil you must be.” Having seen his eagerness, Quelana pinched her skirt and lifted it up, showing her new pupil that she wore nothing underneath. With no warning in advance, Quelana sat on his face, but she had a wince on her face when her pupil initially thrashed and gripped her thighs due to the suffocation, but instead of going easy on him, she lifted herself off his face, allowing him to have one long gasp before sitting on his face again. “As you can see, I am lately pent-up, in need of something that would wash away the swelling frustration inside of my chest. And only you, my dear pupil, can help me vanquish it.” She said as she leaned back, her hands pressing on his armoured chest, and started grinding her mound against his face, having a low moan when his nose chafed against her sensitive clit. She chortled at the sight of Chosen Undead relaxing his muscles and twitching his fingers. She thought him dead until she felt something wet touching her folds. Undoubtedly, it was his tongue, and that showed Chosen Undead learned the ropes rather fast, and while his technique was somewhat sloppy, it was more than enough to draw out moans from Quelana, who had never had sexual experience for obvious reasons. Very few souls could see her, so that left her doing all the self-pleasures. It felt pretty much the same as fingering herself, but she preferred having another soul with her, and having one wordlessly obeying her very orders brought a wide smile to Quelana’s face. “Long ago, I accepted another pupil, like yourself. Over two hundred years ago, there was a man, almost as bungling as you... in your world he was called Salaman the Master Pyromancer. The little rascal really made something of himself.” Chosen Undead nodded, still eating her out. Quelana shut her eyes and had a hitched breath when his tongue now entered deeper inside of her cunt, and his muffled groans were like music to her ears, and the teacher bit her lower lips, giving him quick praises and telling him to rub his nose against her bead of sensitive flesh. She didn’t particularly have a pleasant smell since they were fucking in Blighttown, a place full of filth and ambushing dangers, but Quelana’s nose kept picking up on his peculiar alluring scent, which completely overlapped the heavy stench of this place. Quelana’s body trembled when something was being built up within her crotch, but the faster she rubbed his face, the more intense the buildup got, inflicting her with intensifying pleasure. And eventually, Quelana arched her back and moaned when she finally reached her climax, and Chosen Undead, who pretty much had no idea what was happening, groaned when she sprayed her essence all over his face, some of it even entering his nostrils and causing him to cough against her wet pussy. “Umm umm ummmh!” It was suffocating, and he really needed to get some air before he drowned. Still experiencing her mind-numbing orgasm, Quelana didn’t really notice his pleas until he gripped her knees. “Oh, terribly sorry for that, my pupil. I would not want to see harm befall upon you.” The very moment she slid back and sat on his chest, Chosen Undead, whose face was blue from the lack of air, gasped through his mouth and blew his nose. He almost died, which Quelana wouldn’t want at all. “Well, my pupil... You have done well, and I suppose you too deserve something for doing me a favour.” Quelana slid her left hand across his armour and rubbed his growing bulge, earning a groan from Chosen Undead. “We both receive something from this, no? I hope you will tolerate my lack of experience.”With that said, Quelana smirked as she removed his leg armour and freed his cock out of confinement. Seeing it already fully erect and leaking out a drop of precum made her blush, but thankfully, this concealing cloak did a good job at covering her expression. Wiping his mouth, Chosen Undead sat up and blinked twice when his teacher was already lifting her body up, giving herself a warm-up by poking his tip against her entrance. She was anxious, both of them could see that, and Quelana clenched her right fist, but just before she finally let the penetration happen, the young Undead reached out his left hand to hold her hand, and only after their fingers interlocked did she turn her gaze at him. “...” They both blinked, and after a while, Quelana cleared her throat and tightened her grasp on his hand. This seemingly normal act comforted the pyromancer, giving her the necessary courage to move on to the next step of this activity. Her Rusted Iron Ring caused some minor itch to him, but the real deal was the paralyzing occurrence when she slowly descended, both of them grunting and tightening their grasps, with Quelana’s toes curling in response to his cock reaching the entrance of her uterus. Many thoughts were racing in her mind, and despite the sharp yet pleasurable pain, the pyromancer ultimately regained enough courage to start bouncing, Chosen Undead having his other hand underneath her thigh. Her ash-white skin started to gain a different shade of red, and her body radiated another kind of warmth that was not from her flame. She started off slow and sluggish since she was trying to get used to this, but after her inner walls stopped spasming, Quelana now bounced harder and a little bit faster, a tiny spark of flame sparking from her palm and searing his. “Gruhh...” “Pyromancy is the art of invoking and manipulating fire. But remember one thing. Always fear the flame, lest you be devoured by it, and lose yourself. I would hate to see that happen again...” Who was devoured by the fire, he wondered. Salaman? But that guy formed the art of pyromancy back in Great Swamp, so Chosen Undead had no idea who she was referring to. But that mattered little to him since his thought just got interrupted by his cock getting vigorously squeezed by her wet walls, and so, he just moaned and hopelessly watched as Quelana enthusiastically rode him, with her tiny flame searing his palm. The witch could not afford to slow down or catch a breath, and Chosen Undead felt like his cock was on fire, which was technically right. She was on a mission, but she was too much of a coward to do so. Perhaps, this new pupil of hers seemed promising, and maybe she could ask him to do her a small favour, and in return, she would teach him some pyromancies. But first, they would have to put an end to this session, and it didn’t take long for Chosen Undead to shakily moan and throw his head back. Quelana guessed he was also edging closer to his climax and rode him faster, rocking her hips and pursing her lips as his moans got louder and louder. “Promise me that you will take this teaching to heart. Even if you wield the flame as your extension, you must fear the flame, lest you want to be consumed and warped by it?” “I- aghh I will, teacher! Fear the flame I will!” That brought a widening smile to her face, which was concealed by this hood. Doing this made Quelana question whether they had crossed the boundary of a regular teacher-student relationship, but of course, the witch didn’t give too much thought to it and hissed when Chosen Undead tightened his grips and clenched his teeth, feeling his orgasm imminent. After a few quick thrusts, the young Undead threw his head back and groaned when he shot a big load inside of her, and upon sensing an invading surge of warmth inside of her, Quelana ceased her riding and smirked when she saw him pathetically gasping for air. But she, too, was beginning to get a little exhausted, and Quelana had a slight chuckle as Chosen Undead sat up and rubbed his eyes. “My thanks to you, my pupil. I am beyond satisfied. With that out of the way, shall we begin our tutelage?” She lifted her body up and had his cock out of his pussy, a short stream of his cum dripping out and staining his softening shaft. Chosen Undead nodded his head with a wide smirk, and such eagerness earned a chuckle from her.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
That was enough for Blighttown. Maybe he would explore that place again later. After having a very heated session with Quelana, Chosen Undead popped a Homeward Bone and returned to Firelink Shrine, but then he noticed the place was more crowded than usual, and that was because he noticed three new faces near Petrus, and judging by their armours, they were presumably his companions. He tilted his head when he saw a woman kneeling and praying. “Did you see her? That virtuous little maiden, complete with followers in tow. They’re probably going straight to pillage graves. I’ve heard enough about “M’Lady for a lifetime.” Blinking and wanting to somewhat get acquainted with them, Chosen Undead strapped his weapons to his hips and entered the ruin. Petrus widened his smile upon seeing his new follower. “Oh, hello. My guests have finally arrived. I will be departing with them shortly. So, I’m afraid I will be saying goodbye soon. It was a pleasure.” That quick? He planned to learn some Miracles from him, but Chosen Undead expressed no bitterness and thanked him for those few spells, totally unaware that this fat warrior just scammed him. “Reah is the youngest daughter of the good house of Thorolund. Those young knights are her old schoolmates, but I’m not sure what to make of them... I’m afraid they may be a bad influence...” Chosen Undead glanced at the two knights, seeing nothing too strange or fishy about them, then he glanced back at Petrus. “But why?” “My gut feelings are always right.” “I mean, that is still baseless assumptions and uncalled for...” Petrus glared at him with a wide-eyed look, and while it didn’t intimidate or frighten Chosen Undead, it just made him realize that questioning Petrus would get no definitive answer. Striding toward the two bodyguards, who then clutched their shields tighter, Chosen Undead made a gesture of peace, raising his hands up. “I am in service of your covenant. I have learned some of your miracles.” “If so, then we have no quarrel with you. I am Vince of Thorolund, and this here is Nico.” The helmeted guy grunted and mumbled some incoherent sentences, so all Chosen Undead could hear was a measly “Mmm.”. “I don’t suppose we can help, though. We accompany M’lady on her righteous mission. It is quite a chore, but I’m stuck with her, and Nico, too. I can’t very well abandon them now.” Vince tapped his pal Nico’s shoulder, earning a small grunt from him. “Let’s say a word, for our safety. A prayer to our marvellous Lord. Vereor Nox.” “Vereor... Nox? What does that mean?” “Fear the dark, I believe.” The dark? Chosen Undead had no idea what that was, but it’s true that not many would like total darkness, and everyone would undoubtedly want to head to the light. Vince groaned as he scratched his neck. “The Catacombs aren’t exactly my idea of a good time, but... What can one do? I do hope we meet again.” Just then, Princess Rhea rose from her seat and dusted off her clothed knees before turning back to look at this new warrior of Covenant of White. She was... not impressed by his demeanour, but she still gave him a polite bow, which Chosen Undead returned hesitantly. “You are Undead, as well? Then we’ve no time to fraternize. I have my mission, and you no doubt have yours. We must not let this curse overcome us.” Pursing his lips, Chosen Undead nodded in understanding. Right, he had another bell to ring, and Rhea must go on to fulfill her Undead mission. “But I pray that our paths will cross. V- “Vereor Nox!” Everyone widened their eyes when Chosen Undead bid them a goodbye and ran out of the ruin, with Rhea’s jaw hanging in total flabbergastation. If the Undead curse never struck, this ill-mannered young man would get smitten by her personal guards. But one such as him was a rarity when the world was going stagnant. However, just when he took a right turn, something caught his attention—a loud, echoing snore. “Hmm?” He followed the source and found a pitch-black hole, but the snoring was coming from here this void. “He-Hello?” He got no response, and he shuddered at the thought of a long-necked, bad-breathed creature springing out from the darkness and catching him with its humongous teeth. Chosen Undead couldn’t explain why he was being so specific, but he opted to leave. After strengthening himself up through Anastacia, Chosen Undead went off to find Andre in that same basement again. Looking at the newly obtained Large Ember, Andre nodded at Chosen Undead and pointed his hammer at the thing. “That’s a fine ember you have there. I could smith some mighty weapons with one of those. Why not lend it to me?” The young Undead didn’t think much and placed Large Ember on the anvil, earning a chuckle from Andre. “Magnificent! You won’t be disappointed. I can hardly wait to get started...” With this, Chosen Undead had his Claymore strengthened thrice before giving it a strong swing against the wall, immediately taken aback by how the blade pierced through bricks. “Most weapons and armour are mighty sturdy indeed. But every hunk of metal has its breaking point. If you notice durability running low, it’s time to repair. You can ask a blacksmith like myself, or do it on your own with a grindstone. The nice thing about weapons... they never betray you. So, pay them a little respect, eh?” Chosen Undead wouldn’t want to backtrack every time a crack appeared on his shiny blades, so he bought a Repairbox from Andre. After learning some basic skills of sharpening swords, Chosen Undead departed again, and he would venture into Blighttown. Not only that, but he now could make a fairly short-distance dash since he had been strengthened by Anastacia. Was it just him, or did these Hollows seem to be swinging their swords much slower? After a short while of navigating this place, Chosen Undead entered some kind of cave opening, but he narrowed his eyes when he saw cobwebs. “Hmm?” They felt very...cobwebs, and Chosen Undead readied his Claymore and ventured deeper, encountering two relatively harmless Egg Carriers, which unexpectedly snatched him and summoned a maggot. “Gah!” He tried to pry it off him, but the maggot bit his neck and pumped something into his system. “Get off me!” He stabbed the infected guy in the head with his Black Knight Sword, killing him in an instant before he did the same to the other one. “Oh god oh god oh god! What is happening!?” He scratched the affected area and hissed when something vigorously writhed within him, and then it just suddenly ceased, and Chosen Undead, eyes darting around in anxiety, wondered what just happened. Entering a suspiciously spacious and empty section, Chosen Undead tensed up when he heard footsteps, and while he thought he was about to face another formidable and towering foe, he didn’t expect that he would see a humongous spider entering, and atop it was a woman, or rather, half a woman. He saw demons, Hollows and ghosts, but that thing gave him the creeps. Chosen Undead swallowed the lump in his throat as the spider lady smirked at the sight of him. “Welcome, bringer of meat. The children of chaos are hungry; give yourself to Quelaag’s flame.” “Uhm... No.” Chosen Undead gulped as he tried to tear his eyes off her impressive bosom, her nipples conveniently covered by her long locks of hair. “Such impudence!” Quelaag pointed her flame-enchanted sword at him before wordlessly charging forward, making Chosen Undead stumble in terror and fumblingly roll to the left. He narrowly dodged her sword slash, hissing as the lingering flame seared his right arm, but not too much to injure him. The spider, or rather her lower half, let out an uncanny roar before leaping into the air and smashing the ground where Chosen Undead was standing, but he managed to dash back just in time to escape her attack. Not just that, but he found out that he could dash now, albeit a little too short. Switching to his Black Knight Sword, Chosen Undead held the sword to his right and had it at his chest level, pointing the blade toward Quelaag before he charged forward. Seeing this bold display of fearlessness, Quelaag’s lower half tapped the pointy legs against the ground before she tried to pounce and bite him with the second mouth. “Gaah!” He struck her hard in the face, the lower one, and gritted his teeth as she lifted her two frontal arachnid legs up, attempting to pierce him like some kind of skewered piece of meat, but with his enhanced strength, Chosen Undead bashed the blade of his sword against the pointy tips, parrying her and then delivering a heavy strike to the spider’s face. Quelaag hated the sensation of that dark blade against her skin, but she gritted her teeth and charged up a Great Chaos Fireball before hurling it at Chosen Undead, who had his sword aloft and brought it down to the ground, managing to vanquish her projectile. But this attack left him staggered, allowing Quelaag to resume her onslaught.The spider part of hers started to spew out three globules of lava in front of it, and as Chosen Undead managed to leap back, the globs grew in size, expanding all across the vicinity in front of Quelaag, who brought her Furysword back behind her and slashed horizontally, sending a fiery blade toward him, and he narrowly ran to the left before trying to close in. Seeing this made Quelaag’s blood boil, making her let out a fierce roar and summon her Firestorm. Chosen Undead, whose eyes went wide when he felt rapidly rising heat right underneath his boots, grunted when a fire pillar burst through the ground, knocking him off his feet. “Oh no no no no!” He crawled back when more fire pillars appeared, and he hastily lunged at his left, barely avoiding the attack. “By the Gods how am I still alive?!” He then dashed while rolling on the ground when Quelaag descended from the sky, pouncing on the ground with her spider’s sharp-tipped legs.But she pierced into the ground way too deep, so while she was trying to yank her legs out, Chosen Undead began to strike her from behind, delivering two slashes that earned a grunt from Quelaag. And when she attempted to turn around, Chosen Undead held his sword at his chest level and delivered a piercing thrust to her side, earning a loud shriek from the spider, which then tried to pierce him in the left side of his ribcage, but Chosen Undead, through sheer luck and enhanced reflex, dodged the attack and struck its joint, and since Quelaag was a demon, his Black Knight Sword slashed through the spider leg and made Quelaag stumble. With that, Chosen Undead leapt upward and delivered a heavy strike to gash both her torso and the spider head, greatly staggering and leaving her for another strike. “Quelaan...” This was it, the right moment to pierce her sternum with a clean thrust. Just as Chosen Undead tried to deliver the killing blow, he suddenly stopped. “Covenant.” That voice again... Chosen Undead’s tip of his blade was just mere inches away from the spider head, and he too had no idea why he stopped when the voice commanded him, but seeing how it would mess up his head, the young Undead gulped and stepped back, Quelaag’s scowl slowly relaxing and her eyes slowly opening in total shock. “Why did you not...?” Still gripping her Furysword, Quelaag deepened her frown as Chosen Undead, his eyes wide and totally radiating confusion, stabbed his sword into the ground and knelt in front of her. “State your intent! Lest you want to face my fiery wrath.” The spider weakly roared, lava mixing with its blood. “I...” He took a deep breath and looked up at her. “I- I wish to join your covenant! To slay those you deem a hindrance. To obey your... very words.” Quelaag narrowed her eyes at the bold proposal, and she began to think how long it has been since she last received another servant to her covenant. Although she was very pissed about her wounds and this repulsive arrival of Chosen Undead, she reckoned he was strong and useful to her, and instead of draining him of his Humanities, she could have him go around and slay other Undead for theirs. Patting the spider's head to ease it down, Quelaag trotted closer, unknowingly making him shudder. “Prove your loyalty to our covenant. That you will become a child of chaos and abide by our orders word by word. Should you defy the pact, you will feel the depth of our ancient wrath.” Chosen Undead flinched when her extinguished Furyblade touched his shoulder, and with that she finally somewhat calmed downl, and only then did he finally have the courage to look up, seeing Quelaag pressing her palm against the wound to heal, letting out a tired sigh afterward. “To officiate your pact and loyalty, you will have an audience with my sister Quelaan. You will give her humanities stripped from the very bosom of those you invade. A servant of chaos wavers not.”Quelaag still narrowed her eyes and walked behind Chosen Undead as he made his way toward the second bell tower. Knowing what to do, the young Undead rolled his shoulders and pulled the lever, tolling the large bell. The sounds echoed far and wide, reaching Sen’s Fortress and signalling a Giant to pull the chain, which in turn got the heavy portcullis lifted. “Hmm... Hmm...” Siegmeyer was seemingly too deep in thought to even notice that the gate was already open. Elsewhere, the snoring stopped, and something rose from the darkness. While Chosen Undead took the stairs to go down, Quelaag just jumped down and landed on a broken elevator platform before pointing at a random wall. Chosen Undead looked back and pointed at that wall with a confused look, but Quelaag just shot him a cold glare, and indeed, a light sword strike to this section revealed a hidden path, and the young Undead carefully trotted along the tunnel, with Quelaag closely tailing him. He saw that weird egg-carrying thing again, but he sheathed his sword when that guy tried to crawl up to him. Quelaag swung her sword, informing the servant of everything he needed to know about this new face. “Are you a new servant? Hmph. But you have no eggs? Bah, no matter. Go along and have audience with Our Fair Lady. I pray that you will mind your manners!” Standing before what seemed to be a woman who had Quelaag’s physical features, Chosen Undead blinked as he noticed the mass of eggs around her, how her legs would writhe but never got out of this tangled mess. He could see that she was deep in pain. “I don’t have much but... this much should do something.” Interlocking his fingers and closing his eyes, Chosen Undead gave her 20 Humanities, which meant he would only have two more left. The Fair Lady Quelaan mumbled something under her breath, but he couldn’t make out what it was, and only Quelaag seemed to understand that tongue and had a small smile on her face. “Wait wait, I’m feeling itchy again!” Now her frown returned when Chosen Undead profusely scratched his neck right in front of Quelaan. “What’s happening?!” Something encased his head, yet, the young Undead felt no suffocation, rather only taken aback by the wet and dark sensation around his head. “Well!... Now... you’re just like me... Your dedication is fully apparent. Only well... Your head looks awful... Why not try this? I’ve no use for it any longer.” That guy—Eingyi—gave him an Egg Vermifuge, which upon consumption would get rid of the parasitic eggs around his body. “Incidentally, do you have an interest in pyromancy? If you have, I shall share my flame with you.” Quelaag left and chose to slumber elsewhere, leaving this Undead fool with the servant and granting them time to learn Pyromancies. But... these didn’t seem like Pyromancies, like fire... These were Toxin? “What... is this? You told me you know pyromancies, so you must hail from the Great Swamp? But these... look different. Are you an Undead also?” “Worse than Undead, we are diseased, and unwanted. Like the grime of the Great Swamp. But my dear, Fair Lady! She cried for me... and swallowed the great Blightpus, despite Mistress Quelaag’s orders to the contrary. My pyromancies are different, considered heretical and a wicked perversion to their sacred arts of flame.” Chosen Undead sadly nodded at that and patted Eingyi’s top egg. “Have you heard of Lost Quelana? An inhuman witch, who wanders the Poison Swamp. Only no one has ever seen her, so who really knos? But what if she really is another one of Quelaag sisters? Our Fair Lady would be greatly comforted by her presence.” “Oh yeah, I’m under her tutelage- Woah!” “If so, bring her to us.” Quelaag picked him up by the head, and the helmet slipped out of his head, causing Chosen Undead to fall down to the ground. So far, so good, I guess. Being a member of Chaos Servant certainly didn’t erase the disdain she had toward him. “Remember our pact.” She threw the helm down at him and walked off again, leaving the young Undead gasping and groaning. Again, he had received far worse, so he complained about nothing and quickly left the domain. --------------------------------------- “Ah, it has been some time. Truth be told, I thought you had perished. No matter, let us begin.” “Uhm...” Chosen Undead anxiously rubbed his hands together and sat down beside Quelana, earning a confused hum from her. “Your sisters... You know, they would be pleased to see you again.” Hearing that immediately earned a frown from Quelana, but Chosen Undead couldn’t see that due to the veil. Still, Chosen Undead noticed that she froze, almost unmoving. “What’s wrong? You... You don’t want to meet your sisters?” “I abandoned my mother and sisters and fled to this land. Now I roam these parts, feigning ablution, and pretending to seek answers.” Quelana looked away and bit her lips, and she had a frown as she felt Chosen Undead’s curious stare on her. “My mother, the Witch of Izalith, was one of the primeval Lords... Her power came from the soul that she found near the First Flame. She focused this power to light a flame of her own, but she failed to control it. The Flame of Chaos engulfed Mother and my sisters, and molded them into deformed creatures. Only I escaped, and now I am here. But my mother and sisters have been in anguish since.” “I... I didn’t know.” Chosen Undead blinked and looked away, anxiously rubbing his hands against his thighs. He did see how the Fair Lady would wince from the eggs surrounding her, so he assumed the fire that surrounded Quelaag might hurt her when raging. Then he felt something shuffling on his right hand, and looking down, he noticed that his teacher was holding his right hand, but the most shocking thing was that she removed her hood to reveal her face and sad expression. She was about to ask him to do her a favour, and of course, one that would pain her. “I beseech you. Free Mother and my sisters from the Flame of Chaos. I cannot do it myself; I lack the strength, and the bravery... But you... I realize what I am asking. But please, free their poor souls... Mother’s ambitions were misguided, no doubt, but surely a thousand years of atonement is enough!” Quelana would never find the strength to end their sufferings even if it’d be their mercy, so she wanted her dear pupil to do it for her. Chosen Undead just blinked and looked away, growing a bit hesitant at the request. Their hands unknowingly squeezed each other, and Quelana could already tell she was asking too much, but just as she was about to swallow her words, Chosen Undead gave her an affirmative hum.“I will.” Chosen Undead nodded at her with a big and innocent smile on his face, and that made Quelana’s jaw slightly drop. “I have never gone to school or been under someone’s tutelage, but I just know that pupils are to obey their teachers, right? Then I will gladly help you, teacher.” Pursing her lips and letting out a short chuckle, Quelana shamelessly pulled him in for a kiss, and Chosen Undead quickly composed himself and returned the kiss despite being taken aback. “But I think... you should visit them to...” Quelana grabbed him by the chin to stop him from uttering more nonsense, but Chosen Undead could still speak. “I am certain that they would be happy to- uhmmm huhmmm!” She even inserted her fingers into his mouth. “I hink hu relly shuld...” “...No.” After that, he returned empty-handed, rubbing his left arm as Quelaag cocked her head after hearing what he had just uttered. He dared to say that he was not able to convince Quelana to come see her sister. As mentioned in their pact, failure would be synonymous with discipline. She would strip him of one Humanity, and doing that required her to kill him while having her sharp-nailed hand plunged into his breast. He, of course, wanted to plead for his life, placing his left hand on his chest and holding his palm out, but that earned an angry look from Quelaag, who lunged forward and grabbed his wrist, but then, the effect kicked in.Chosen Undead raised his brows when Quelaag annoyedly gritted her teeth, almost like she was trying to fight back some kind of impulse or natural urge. “Maybe...” Quelaag clicked her tongue and slowly released her grasp on his wrist, and she pointed a finger at the frightened Chosen Undead, who swallowed the lump in his throat. “Are you a true child of Chaos? If so, divest yourself of your armours.” Chosen Undead seemed surprised, but having had some intimate encounters with some women, he didn’t stammer or question her order, which earned a wicked grin from Quelaag. The spider stopped growling, and after a short while, the young Undead discarded the last part of his armour, his cuisses. He was as naked as Quelaag, whose eyes darted to his flaccid cock. Unfortunately, this lower part of her body had no puss- “Come hither, dear.” Quelaag beckoned him closer, waving her arm, and her smirk widened when Chosen Undead took her offered hand. All of a sudden, she yanked him closer to her and promptly lifted him into the air with just one hand. Chosen Undead did not dare to utter anything when she impressively had him sit on her biceps, her hands firmly pressing and feeling his toned butt cheeks. With almost no difficulty, she lifted him up until his crotch was parallel to her face, and Quelaag wet her lips at the sight of his soft schlong dangling and impatiently twitching. Chosen Undead sometimes shuddered when her sharp nails sensually scratched and danced on his skin. “Are you so excited? In normal circumstances, I would have punished you for your incompetence, but perhaps, I will let this slide for once."The young Undead did not complain about the intense heat surrounding his skin, and it didn’t help when Quelaag could kill him if she just happened to lose her temper. The best option was to go along with her words and hope that she would be pleased. A small moan slipped through his tightened lips as Quelaag breathed against his cock, and after a while, she poked her long tongue out and gave his tip a slow lick, and Quelaag chuckled when Chosen Undead groaned and gripped her forearms from the heat enveloping his sensitive tip. A grin plastered on her face, and she began to swallow the first part of his cock, and Chosen Undead threw his head back when she slid his cock deeper into her mouth, and the heat became more apparent from here. Unlike Quelana’s soothing and more tamed version of heat, Quelaag’s was chaotic and wild, threatening to burn and consume him. But there was something about this flame that made it so tempting, which Chosen Undead couldn’t quite explain. Not just him, but Quelaag was moaning and slurping his slowly erect cock playfully, bobbing her head up and down at a fast pace. Her nose repeatedly touched his pubic region, and the harder his cock got, the more blissful and pleased Quelaag seemed. “Do not disappoint, lest you want to face my wrath.” She gave him a warning after pulling out and then resumed her head movements. She thought she’d never do this with anyone when she was partially corrupted by the Chaos Flame, but this stupid, dumb-looking Undead managed to evoke something within her chest. Her existence now was unending pain, with her other half—the spider—being the only thing that both kept her alive and agonized her, but despite that, her sister was still her top priority, so she essentially suppressed her pain and did everything she could to help her, Quelaan. But that partially changed when this insignificant, lowly, ill-mannered Undead barged into her domain and made her feel this way. Quelana did not know if this was a blessing or not, but for now, she just couldn’t get enough of his aroma. Not bothering to question anything, Chosen Undead just simply laid back and enjoyed the burning yet comfortable sensation that surrounded his rigid shaft, and he defeatedly moaned as his cock slid deeper into her throat, feeling how she would use her muscles to squeeze his cock, and his reaction earned some kind of muffled laughs from her nose. It might be accidental, but her nails scraped against his skin, making eight fresh long wounds, but that did not bother Chosen Undead, whose pain was being sidetracked by the blistering feeling of her mouth. “You better not disappoint me, Undead. The next time will not end up like this.” Quelaag couldn’t tell if she was lying or not, but she didn’t care. She took pleasure in hearing Chosen Undead’s pathetic cries of rapture and decided to increase her speed. Her flame changed according to her mood, so if she was fuming, the fire would rage, but if she was relieved or exultant, her flame would either die down or reduce into a tiny, harmless flame, which was engulfing her spider half. But it was still fire, and fire was clearly harming Chosen Undead’s cock, but the pleasure he received from this was greater than the pain. If he would die, which was very likely, then he would gladly accept it with a happy smile. He had a small grunt when she switched to nipping his tip, running her lips across his shaft and coating it in her hot saliva. Her teeth were sharper than normal people’s, so a little bit more force would definitely hurt him, but she was thankfully careful enough to control herself from having a taste of his flesh, and plus, Quelaag wouldn’t want to hurt her most potential servant. She narrowed her eyes when she felt his cock twitching inside of her mouth, and knowing something was about to occur, Quelaag began to pick up the pace and squeezed his buttocks harder, and in return, Chosen Undead’s grip on her forearms heightened, earning a grunt of disapproval from her, but she did not put any effort into making him cease that. Her flame started to grow, and the spider let go of a low-frequency sound and tapped its feet against the floor in rhythms, and the louder Chosen Undead moaned, the faster she bobbed her head, completely paralyzing him. Then his moans died down as he finally climaxed, his hands too paralyzed and loose to continue grasping her forearms. As he was blowing his load deep into her throat. Quelaag never slowed down or reacted to his semen dripping into her stomach; instead, she even went faster, ignoring the fact that he needed some time to recover after having just pumped a fat load down her throat. “W-Wait...” Eyes closed and unable to utter a moan due to the mental exhaustion, Chosen Undead weakly groaned as Quelaag kept sucking on the tip, having him stimulated in order to keep this piece of meat erect. She could feel it twitching between her teeth, and Quelaag gave him a glare before her tongue swirled atop his pink glans. She could see how he was rapidly gasping, drops of sweat trickling across his bare body. As much as she wanted to drain him, she couldn’t risk exhausting him to death, making him lose a precious Humanity. Wiping her mouth and gulping everything down, Quelaag put him down to the ground and narrowed her eyes as Chosen Undead lay flat on the ground, groaning and shutting his eyes. “I do not inquire to see you lazing around. Fulfill your duty as a child of Chaos and bring me humanities. And if you fail in changing Quelana’s mind, you will know the true fury of our flame.” Chosen Undead nodded, and Quelaag then shortly left, and when she was out of earshot, the young Undead covered his eyes with his left forearm and sighed in utter exhaustion. He wondered how people would even join their covenant if Quelaag was like this? Unless... they enjoyed it? Later.“Oh, hello. I’m considering a change of location... I have a rather pressing matter to attend up above. That Keeper has served me well, but... Enough with her... Keh heh heh heh.” Chosen Undead felt like Lautrec had some kind of sinister intents, but he just shrugged it off and assumed it was because he was always like that, considering Anastacia didn’t seem to be wary of him. Using his collected Souls to slightly level up, Chosen Undead bid the Fire Keeper a thank and left, not noticing the look Lautrec was giving to her. After Chosen Undead walked up the stairs, the man clad in gold slowly rose up and walked toward Anastacia, who grew more anxious as he knelt in front of her and... held out his palm. “Would you?” He... He just asked to be strengthened, nothing much, so there was nothing to be anxious about. But just as she was about to touch his hand, Lautrec suddenly grabbed her by the neck and had his Shotel drawn. His eyes would widen when Anastacia didn’t scream, at first; he just assumed she was a quiet type, but her being a mute made this seem easier. If she still had her voice, she would have called out to Chosen Undead, and she could have banged on the iron bars to attract his attention, but the fear that clouded her heart made her grab his forearm instead, giving Lautrec enough time to grip his weapon and deliver a swift stab to her neck, killing her in cold blood. When that was done, Lautrec didn’t waste any seconds and took her soul before making a swift escape through New Londo Ruins. The Crestfallen Warrior was frowning and trying to cover his nose, and Chosen Undead began to pick up some kind of weird and very uncomfortable odor here... He tried to sniff his armpits, determining that wasn’t the source. “Did you ring the second bell? That is incredible, I must say... But now, we have a new problem. It’s noisy, it snores, and its breath is lethal... This is no laughing matter, I tell you.” The chainmail-wearing warrior glanced to his left, and Chosen Undead, too, widened his eyes when he saw something already rise from that deep hole. “Damn, that stench... And I was really beginning to like it here! Maybe it’s time I do something about it...” “You are leaving?” “Then have you any other suggestions? Its stench is the only thing worse than hollowing to me.” “Sack.” “Sack?” The Crestfallen Warrior narrowed his eyes when Chosen Undead mumbled that word, but when he stood up from his usual seat and prepared to move to New Londo Ruins, the young Undead suddenly grabbed his elbow and threw him back in his seat. “I mean, you have given me helpful tips and directions to advance my journey. So as a token of my appreciation, I will give you...” He pulled out Sack, which was the same patchwork that Mildred wore, but he got this from one of the Butchers in Depths. Sure, it looked dirty and was stained with blood, but Chosen Undead figured it could help this guy in some way. “Here, try it on.” “Are you...” The Crestfallen Warrior did a double-take. “Are you joking? Me? Wearing that filth?” “Then do you keep inhaling that dreadful stench?” “Well I...” He pursed his lips and snatched Sack from Chosen Undead’s eyes. They were both Undead anyway, so hygiene would be at the bottom of their list. The smell soured his face, but he noticed that it was considerably more pleasant than that thing’s breath. Clicking his tongue, the Crestfallen Warrior took a deep breath and hastily wore Sack, pulling and fixing until his eyes were aligned with two holes. “...” How in the world was it... much better? “... Don’t get me wrong. The blood and the foul odor that this headwear reeks of are awful, but this somehow wards off that thing’s breath. Huh? Hah... You are a genius, I am ashamed to admit.” The Crestfallen Warrior continued to laugh as he sat in his usual spot, and Chosen Undead just gave him a thumbs-up in response. “You have my thanks, so I will give you this. I am not planning to go anywhere now. Now just go around and kill something, would you?"Chosen Undead received his Heater Shield +10 and gave it a few sturdy swings, feeling how light this protective gear was. With that, he went on to check where the breath was coming from, and his eyes widened in awe when he met an ugly, hideous, long-necked and weird-looking creature, and he could tell it was the same creature that made all of the snoring. “Ahh, hello. Was it you who rang the Bell of Awakening? I am the Primordial Serpent, Kingseeker Frampt, close friend of the Great Lord Gwyn. Chosen Undead, who has rung the Bell of Awakening. I wish to elucidate your fate. Do you seek such enlightenment? Chosen? He had a wide-eyed look when he was called ‘Chosen’. So it was true; he was destined for something truly great, truly astronomical.“Yes!” He didn’t hesitate. “Very well. Then I am pleased to share. Chosen Undead. Your fate is... to succeed the Great Lord Gwyn. So that you may link the Fire, cast away the Dark, and undo the curse of the Undead. To this end, you must visit Anor Londo, and acquire the Lordvessel. Those who seek the Realm of the Lords must brave Sen’s Fortress, a deadly house of traps. Many have gone before you, but none have returned. Fate has chosen you, but proceed with caution.” Link the Fire? Cast away the Dark? Undo the curse? That seemed like his job! He felt like the destined hero who would selflessly charge in to battle and save the day, and his name would be remembered for millennia to come. If anything, he might reach the same level of reputation as Lord Gwyn himself. “Farewell, Chosen Undead. I remain here, and await thee.” “Unto greatness!”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“Brave Sen’s Fortress...” Chosen Undead nodded to himself and walked past two dead Man-Serpents before taking the plunge and killing Titanite Demon with just a few repeating thrusts to its back. He discovered that a slash of his sword, combined with his strength, could slice through boulders like butter, so those demonic forces weren’t much of a problem to him. Picking up Scythe, which oddly looked more like a halberd, he descended through a ladder and widened his eyes when in front of him was a bunch of traps and swinging axes across a narrow walkway. “Uh oh...” He must time this right, or he would fall down to the void below. “I can do this...” A short dash managed to have him get past three at the time, and when a Man-Serpent ran forward to stop him, Chosen Undead swung his shield, parrying the creature, but since he was too strong, the Man-Serpent stumbled to the right and fell off the walkway and into the void below. “...Sorry...” But the swinging guillotines weren’t the end of it, now he must face another predicament—boulders. Just as his boots felt the smooth and eroded stony walkways, the young Undead widened his eyes when a large rock dropped from the top of the staircase and began to roll toward him. “Gah!” He hastily made a forward and luckily found a small space that could house him from the boulder. After a bit of waiting, when another boulder passed by, Chosen Undead made a quick sprint up the stairs and stabbed a Man-Serpent in the chest. Before leaving, he grabbed himself a nice Ring of Steel Protection and hopped off this platform before he weirdly ran across that onion-shaped knight again. “Mmm... Mmm...” “Uhm... Hello?” He tapped Siegmeyer on the shoulder with his index finger, waking him up. “Mm! Oh-hoh! Ah! Where did you come from? Splendid news, I tell you.” He laughed, and Chosen Undead just shrugged his shoulders and pointed at the rolling boulder atop them. “Ah, so you see my plight? Yes indeed, I have run up against a wall. Or a ball, to be precise. I’m afraid, I’m a bit too plump to be outrunning those things. So here I sit, in quite a pickle. But who knows, perhaps we’ll have another development?” Chosen Undead looked up at the boulder being placed in position and then rolling forward. He just had a feeling that these rocks must have come from something, so if possible, he could end this whole gimmick of Sen’s Fortress. “I can try deactivating this. Just... wait here!” Chosen Undead then ran off, leaving Siegmeyer sitting here. He gave the young Undead a friendly wave and chuckled. His eagerness reminded him of his desire for adventure and excitement, and probably, someone else back in Catarina too... “Perhaps I could try some rolling... Bah, no chance. My head would spin. Hmmm...” Chosen Undead continued to navigate other inner sections of Sen’s Fotress, trying to avoid the boulders. Eventually, he came across some kind of platform which launched the boulders toward their intended direction. “Huh? Maybe...” He grabbed the handle and pushed it, tilting the direction by ninety degrees and launching the boulders into the other direction. “Yes!” The boulders were redirected to roll in this direction, but judging by the stairs and the fact it led downward, he had a hunch that there would be something down there, so he gave this contraption another turn and then went down the staircases. Indeed, he was led to some new section of this fortress, which was only revealed by the boulder smashing through a wall, and it involved some cages. And there was a guy locked up in one of these too? “Hello?” The big-hat-wearing guy glanced at him. “Mm, you seem quite lucid. A rare thing in these times. I am Logan. I’m a bit cooped up, as you can see. I have a bright idea. Suppose you set me free? I’m old and empty-handed, but I could repay you with my knowledge and sorcery. This place is melting my mind. The inactivity is repressive!” Chosen Undead realized it was Griggs’s mentor, whom he was told was not a very good one. “You... You are Master Logan!” “Yes, Logan I am.” “I have heard about you, and I must say, I am very impressed by your talent in sorceries!” Chosen Undead rummaged through his pockets and grabbed a Master Key before unlocking the cage for the sorcerer. “But you shouldn’t abandon Griggs just because he was not as good as you. You are being an inadequate mentor.” For some reason, Logan frowned at that, not knowing this Griggs being his apprentice, but Chosen Undead just didn’t notice much about his facial expression. But the point was, he was freed from this stupid cage. “Thank you. I’m saved. And I’d love to resume my travels, but I must log a few things, and I owe you a favour. I will return to Firelink Shrine. Speak with me there, so that I may impart my sorcery.” “Just remember to speak to Griggs!” Chosen Undead then walked off, earning a confused frown from the great sorcerer. He then managed to discover another area and went up a barely functioning elevator, which led him to a chest. “Yes!“ However, just when he opened the chest, two elongated, gray-colored arms just suddenly sprang out and suddenly grabbed the unsuspecting Undead. “Wahh!” Rows of teeth scattered across its rims frightened him, and the creature disguised as the chest lolled its hideously long tongue out before it started to take a bite of his body. “Aggh! Aah!” Gahh!” Its sharp teeth pierced through his armours and sunk into his flesh, inflicting tremendous damage on Chosen Undead. He was too big to even be swallowed whole, so after a while of biting, the Mimic threw him down to the ground and shrieked at him. He was lucky to even be alive, but he immediately crawled backward when a chest-disgusted creature charged toward him. He weakly rolled to his right and took a huge sip from his Estus Flask before he dodged its claw swipes. Simultaneously kipping up and thrusting his sword forward, Chosen Undead managed to plunge the blade through its chest. “Gaah!” It clawed his forearms in retaliation, but he slashed downward, making the Mimic drop to its knees. “Gaah!” He had his sword aloft and delivered the strongest overhead slam so far, smashing through its head—the wooden chest. He cleaved its head in half, and the Mimic painfully shrieked with its tongue dangling, but Chosen Undead wasn’t that merciful at all. He delivered a jump attack right at the split part of its head to further injure it, and then he did that again, even after the Mimic fell flat on its back. “Die die die!” He repeatedly smashed his blade against it, and he didn’t stop until its head was severed from its body. Upon death, its head twitched and spat out something – Lightning Spear. Chosen Undead didn’t care about the loot and just stared at the dead Mimic, his eyes wide and breaths rapid. “What in the world... is this?” So that thing can disguise as a chest, and there is a possibility, this isn’t the only one. After a while, Chosen Undead composed himself and quickly left the area, spending quite a long time trying to make sense out of the layout. He killed one of the three Giants and met another soul—a Crestfallen Merchant, who, for some reason, donned Steel Set. “Ah, what? What? Who are you? Ahh another Undead, eh? I took on Sen’s Fortress alone... But I’m no different from those vile creatures... I was driven by conceit... Ahh, you think you’re different? That you can handle it? Yes, I remember that feeling. For I was the same... So let me help you out. With your souls searching.” “I know... But I was chosen for this. It is my destiny.” Chosen Undead nodded his head. “I am adequate...” “... Let me give a nibble of advice. Don’t even consider visiting Anor Londo. Not in your state. For a century, they have tried, and failed. The Knight King Rendal, Black Iron Tarkus, and even Logan himself. You won’t stand a chance. You’ll be eaten alive. But, go along, if you wish. If only to deepen your despair!” Chosen Undead bought some upgrade materials and some arrows from the merchant. After putting his newly bought arrows into a quiver, Chosen Undead nodded at the Crestfallen Merchant and turned around. “There you go, another brave soul. But soon you shall see... You and I are no different... Yes, yes, you soon shall see... the putrid fate we both share.” When Chosen Undead saw two chests guarded by Ricard, he immediately cleaved them in half just to make sure they weren’t Mimics. Instead of continuing further, his attention was drifted to the two cages that would drop him down to the lower part of Sen’s Fortress, but one of them was going up, meaning that someone was travelling up. He had no idea if that newcomer would be an invader or an ally, so he just clutched his sword and got into his stance. “...” When the elevator reached the top, he was left dumbfounded when he saw an unconscious woman cloaked in red, and she was lifelessly curling inside the cage. He blinked in surprise and lowered his sword. “Hello there?” The woman inside the cage did not respond because she was unconscious, and after a few seconds, the elevator moved down again, leaving Chosen Undead totally dumbfounded. After a short while, the elevator went up again. This time, with his new Cage Key, Chosen Undead opened the cage and quickly pulled the unconscious woman out before the elevator once again went down. “Hello?” She was still unresponsive, but he knew that she was alive, judging by the fact that he could hear her heart still beating. He lifted her head up to check if she was injured anywhere, and he immediately banished the thought of stripping her clothes, even if he had good intentions. “I think this should do it...” Since his healing spells could not heal nearby allies, Chosen Undead opted to have her drink the content from his Estus Flask. For obvious reasons, she couldn’t chug it all down, so the young Undead had to rub his finger against her neck for her to relax her throat and allow the hot liquid to be swallowed down. A smile plastered on his face when the woman winced and tried to cough, and he rubbed her chest. “It’s all fine now...” The red-robed woman slowly opened her eyes and then looked at Chosen Undead, who gave her a small smile as a reassurance. In contrast with his friendliness, she first reacted with antagonism, punching him across the cheek and repelling him back. It happened all of a sudden, and it didn’t help when Chosen Undead was not anticipating that bitter betrayal. His body reacted by rolling to the right when he heard the woman charging up some sorceries, and the spot he was lying on was bombarded with Soul Arrows. “Wait! I helped you!” Chosen Undead gritted his teeth when the woman dashed forward and tried to slash him, but he swiftly prevented that with his forearm, which was pressed against her wrist. The tip of her Ghost Blade was just mere inches away from his face. Her strength was no match for him, so she used her two arms in hope of overpowering Chosen Undead, who was unfortunately stronger than her. “I will not... return there!” She declared before mustering all of her strength to try to kill him, but the young Undead, even with only one arm, rendered that struggle of hers futile and grabbed her other arm. “Whoever you are, you will not make me return to New Londo!” “I have no idea what you are talking about!” “You are here to finish what he did, right? After betraying and leaving me here to rot in this locked cage...” She deepened her scowl when Chosen Undead gripped her wrists and caused her to drop the dagger. Before she could form a plan to break out of his grasp, he quickly made a sweep at her feet to disrupt her balance and had her pinned on the ground. Her Ghost Blade was pushed away by Chosen Undead, who laid her hands flat on the ground and sat atop her. “If you either plan to bring me back or work for him... then kill me. Death would befit me most.” “I... Why should I kill you? And what does New Londo have to do with you?” Chosen Undead narrowed his eyes, but the woman in red still fiercely tried to break out of his unbreaking grasp. “And stop, could you? Let’s... talk this out. Violence won’t get any problems solved.” He took a risk, letting go of her wrists and getting off her body. Of course, the woman kicked him away and shot him a fierce glare, rubbing her wrists and hissing. “I am... an Undead who is braving this fortress. I just happened to come across you in this place, and I mean no harm to you...” Chosen Undead backed away and knelt when the woman grabbed her Ghost Blade, instead of attacking him again, she sheathed her dagger. “...Yulva.” She snorted. “I am Yulva, and perhaps you can tell I am one of the three sealers who was tasked with keeping a close watch on the flooded New Londo, through my garb alone.” “But why are you here? At Sen’s Fortress?” “... I ran away, forsaking my duty as a sealer. I wasn’t alone, as I planned this with another one of my associates. I wanted to return to Blighttown, but he betrayed and stripped me of my humanity... How I got here, at this fortress... I had no recollection. Maybe he wanted me held captive here.” She removed her mask, revealing a face that almost resembled a full Hollow. Chosen Undead nodded at her story and grabbed something from his pouches—Humanities. Yulva looked up with widened eyes when he presented her three Humanities. “Are those... for me? How terribly kind of you. If I were you, I would have kept all of that precious humanity to myself. But you have my thanks...” She accepted his gifts and popped them; a deep breath was taken when her skin slowly regained its natural colour, and her skeletal fingers had more flesh to them now. Chosen Undead stepped back and waited until Yulva assumed her normal form again, and after a tired sigh, she stood up and dusted off her red attire. “My thanks, kind Undead. Now I can continue my endeavour again. My apologies, for I have nothing to pay you in kind. I could only offer you my catalyst, if you have a knack for sorcery. But I suppose that will not please you for the troubles I have caused you.” “...” Chosen Undead blinked twice and looked at her. Well, he had been thinking about it, and he really was confused about women getting a little aroused when they touched him, or rather, when he directly touched their hands. He wasn’t normally one for this kind of intimate act, but he was really curious about this new effect of his. “Can I... hold your hand?” That got her left eyebrow raised, but Yulva was willing to fulfill his request. When their hands touched, there was... nothing. Chosen Undead furrowed his brows and tightened his grasp around her hand. “That is... strange.” Chosen Undead scratched the back of his head and rubbed his face. Truth be told, Yulva was confused at this odd request. “Maybe...” He narrowed his eyes when he started to recall something—his chest. While still holding her hand, Chosen Undead touched his own chest, and indeed, Yulva let out a sigh. “What did you...?” Yulva looked at him and squeezed his hand, and Chosen Undead did not notice that some kind of aura was glowing on his back. He didn’t act too surprised when Yulva slowly fell forward and latched onto him, her hands moving up and clutching his biceps. “You are...” Chosen Undead removed his helm and was pulled into a kiss that was initiated by Yulva, who found herself charmed by his odd aroma. Their knees met the ground, and the red-robed woman leaned on his chest, and Chosen Undead widened his eyes as a realization hit him: that he should touch his Dark Sigil in order to... well, charm them? Still, he was somewhat repulsed by this side effect of his because of how disturbingly convenient it was. After they broke the kiss, Yulva bit her lips before she made him lie on the cold and dirty floor, with the young Undead gulping in anticipation when the woman started to undo the pouches around his waist and pulled his pants down. Truth be told, even the woman had no idea what urged her to do this, but this growing heat must be removed at once. Chosen Undead let out an awkward grunt when his penis was freed from its confinement, his pants just pulled down past his knees, and he shamefully moaned when a pair of gloved hands wrapped around his flaccid cock and gave it a few slow pumps. Not just with her hands, but Yulva began to use her mouth too, getting another lewd moan from her partner when her lips smooched his tip. She started out a little sluggish, but after a few seconds, Yulva gained the confidence needed to engulf more of his throbbingly erecting cock, with its twitch making the tip hit the roof of her mouth. Chosen Undead pressed his hands against the solid ground and frowned, a long moan drawn from him as he was finally rock-hard. She was surprised to see his real size, but Yulva tried her best to compose herself and continue to deliciously swallow his cock, which was entirely covered in her dripping saliva. While doing so, Yulva took the opportunity to sate her own needs, her left hand travelling down to rub her wet pussy. Under normal circumstances, Undead will lose nearly all of their desire for sexual activities, so when this kind of wetness returned, Yulva just couldn’t control herself and furiously rubbed her clit through her robe. Her head bobbed less fast as she wanted to pleasure herself more, but Chosen Undead was too drowned in rapture to even complain about that. He jerked his hips upward in response to her lips rubbing across his shaft. Yulva had a sheepish chuckle when she gave his cock a deep smooch before straightening herself up, still on her knees. A groan left his mouth as he sat up, seeing that she was lifting her robe up, just enough for him to take a peek of her soaked womanhood. Just like him, she did not fully divest herself of her garment. Chosen Undead subconsciously licked his lips when she lifted her robe up and lay flat on her stomach, leaving her bare bottom in full display for him. Yulva smirked and beckoned him, and like a pouncing predator, he pinned her down to the ground and kissed her neck. Her wrists being gripped by him, Yulva let out a moan when she felt something hard poking her butt. Then Chosen Undead breathed against her neck and guided his cock to her entrance. He was now a bit impatient, so he instantly thrust inside of her, getting her to scream and shut her eyes. A single hard thrust immediately had his tip kiss her cervix, making her body tremble in pleasure and lolling her tongue out. Her ass met his loins, indicating that her inside was filled to the brim with his phallus. Having his weight right atop her made breathing a bit more difficult for her, and seeing that, Chosen Undead lifted his chest off her back, pressing his hands beside her slender figure and starting to rock his hips. As her body was being rocked back and forth, Yulva laid her forearms flat on the ground and slightly arched her back, having a satisfied chuckle. Their sweaty skin touched, with heat faintly radiating from her flushed skin. Yulva wantonly moaned and squirmed as Chosen Undead slightly increased the speed of his thrusts, slamming his belly against her bare ass and his teeth gently nipping her right earlobe. “You will not... make me return... to New Londo, won’t you...?” She muttered between her gasps, closing her eyes when Chosen Undead muttered an affirmative response. “... Then I am... pleased. I have... something that I must fulfill.” A groan cut her off when she felt two hands on her body, one on her left shoulder, the other on her right hip. Chosen Undead gave her a few hard thrusts. She hissed and grunted, feeling that her forearms were about to give in from his merciless thrusting. More and more fluid leaked out of her pussy, serving as a natural lubricant. Maintaining this pace, which was neither too fast nor too slow, Chosen Undead leaned forward and planted a kiss on the side of her scalp and then on her neck and jaw. Her body vibrated when his tender lips numbed her mind, and Yulva tried to turn her head around and signalled for a kiss, which he gave her as his left hand grabbed her whole by the neck. He grunted against her mouth when he felt something tightening within his crotch, but he knew that his orgasm was imminent, so he began to speed up and thrust harder, deepening the kiss while Yulva just wanted to scream out in bliss. Chosen Undead. A short moment later, they broke the kiss, and Yulva’s cries echoed across the chamber just below them when Chosen Undead gave her one last thrust, releasing all of his semen inside of her cunt. Yulva’s frantic breathing soon slowed down, but she yelped when Chosen Undead pulled his cock out and rested it between the crack of buttocks. The young Undead laid atop her and sighed against her cheek. He wasn’t exhausted, but Yulva was, so he decided to halt this session and just stayed here as she was resting. “... You have your mission, and so do I... While our paths might not intertwine, I do hope that we will meet again somewhere...” Chosen Undead’s face stirred on her neck, implying that he just nodded. A sigh left her mouth as Yulva rested her head on the cold ground, but she also wondered how Ingward would feel about her shameful defection. --------------------------------------- Taking a deep breath, Chosen Undead vaulted over the wall and landed on the bridge. Upon this, Iron Golem once again roared back to life and clutched its humongous axe. This hulking armoured guardian had made countless others before him go hollow; even extraordinary souls like Logan ceased his endeavour and got locked up in Sen’s Fortress. It immediately charged up a swing and sent an air projectile at Chosen Undead, who reacted fast enough to block it with his Heater Shield. It strode forward slowly due to its clunky armour and balance, so the young Undead made his way toward the guardian and delivered a heavy strike to its left foot. He was nimbler and smaller, so he managed to breeze past it before the giant could stomp the ground. It reacted much slower, but its strikes were devastating and caused tremors, so even if Chosen Undead managed to avoid its attacks, he still had to account for the shockwaves and all. Iron Golem turned around and lifted its axe overhead before bringing it down to the ground, sending a shockwave that travelled underground toward Chosen Undead, who dodged the attack and ran toward the towering armoured giant. Iron Golem let out a roar and then dragged the axe across the ground in hope of hitting Chosen Undead, but he reacted fast enough to jump across its weapon. He delivered a thrust attack to its head, which angered Iron Golem. Chosen Undead then dashed forward when the enemy tried to bash its head against the ground. Its armour was tough and fully covered the giant, so his strikes, while strong and thunderous, weren’t enough to pierce through it. Chosen Undead tried to find anything that could be used as a weakness, but once Iron Golem rose up and glared at him, the young Undead got into his stance and strafed to his right. The monster of metal then repeatedly swung its axe in a horizontal motion as it slowly moved forward, but Chosen Undead leapt back to avoid that. While they were creating some distance, the Undead immediately charged up some Soul Arrows and hurled them at its face, making a short dash when the enemy lunged forward and tried to grab him. While it was down on the ground, Chosen Undead took this opportunity to strike its legs again, specifically the Achilles heels. Iron Golem then tried to close its legs in order to crush him, but Chosen Undead made a jump and then swiftly jumped away. The guardian slowly rose up again, visibly limping due to the injured left leg. That meant that his strategy worked—just negate its mobility. Enraged, Iron Golem grabbed the axe and swung it horizontally, sending a strong air projectile at him. Just as Chosen Undead rolled forward, the armoured guardian lifted its right foot up and stomped the ground. He made another roll and grunted when a piece of debris hit his arm. Iron Golem pummelled the ground thunderously, but Chosen Undead, like that one annoying rat, rolled away from its attacks and specifically attacked its joint. When he jumped up and struck its left foot again, the entire left leg armour shattered, making the guardian lose balance and fall near the narrow bridge. It tried to get up, but its right hand slipped, and Iron Golem realized it was on the verge of falling down this cliff. Since its left leg was obliterated, it would be difficult to get up without slipping. However, its streak had to come to an end when Chosen Undead ran his Black Knight Sword through the hole in its chest and delivered a riposte, repelling Iron Golem and making it fall down from this platform. “...” He watched as the guardian rammed into the cliff and broke its left arm, its axe slipping out of its grip and falling along with it. That height would definitely kill Iron Golem, which was confirmed true when he received Core of an Iron Golem. “Yes!” Collect more Souls and get stronger; those were his objectives. He noticed a strange ring of light right in the middle of the arena, and as he went to examine it, someone just descended from the sky and caught him. “Guh!” He tried to fight back, but another one came down and grabbed his arm before flying up. He noticed that they weren’t attacking him, just trying to pick him up for some reason, so Chosen Undead just tightened his lips in anxiety as the two Batwing Demons carried him up higher and higher until... “Woah... The land of the Gods...” He was mesmerized by the beautiful city where the deities dwelled, its towers and elegant structures taking his breath away. The demons released him, and Chosen Undead, even after landing on the ground, still fixated his gaze on his surroundings; it was completely in contrast with the places beyond this wall. He got past the Sentinels and looted a few more stuff, even running into another Mimic. Chosen Undead narrowed his eyes at the statue of a fat, hammer-wielding warrior. This looked just like Siegmeyer, albeit way fatter and bigger. He ran down a staircase and sighed when he saw the flickering flame of a bonfire, and standing beside it was a knightess, who boredly glanced at the newcomer as Chosen Undead lit the bonfire and refilled his Estus Flask. “Well, you are a rare visitor. Welcome to the lost city of Anor Londo, chosen Undead. If you seek Lord Gwyn’s old keep, exit here and head straight yonder. If you are the chosen one, a revelation shall visit thee... What follows thereafter depends upon you...” Chosen Undead blinked and stared at the bonfire. “To succeed Lord Gwyn, I was told by a close friend of his. So yes, I was chosen... I am more than determined to fulfill my destiny.” The knightess just shrugged her shoulders and rested her head against the wall. But she had to admit that this one was special also since so far, only he and that silent Black Iron got through the Iron Golem. Ah yes, about the guardian, her master shall commission another one to guard Anor Londo. “May I ask who you are?” “What am I? Well... I am the Keeper of the bonfire If not for me, what beacon would there be in this lost city? A gatekeeper, and a guide; that is my callling. The bonfires attended by the Keepers are special. They are linked to one another, and their flames never die. Yet never shall the Keepers of these flames meet...” Since she was a Fire Keeper, she could help him level up and strengthen his Estus Flask, but nay, Chosen Undead just wanted Anastacia to do it for him because she required some company. “If you require rest, now is the time. That is, after all, what the bonfire is for.” “Thanks.” Popping a Homeward Bone, Chosen Undead reappeared back at Sen’s Fortress and then backtracked to Firelink Shrine on foot. It took a while, but once he got there, he met Logan and Griggs again, with the latter excitedly standing beside his mentor. “Are things going well between you two?” Griggs nodded and tapped his right pauldron. “He tells me that he has you to thank! Well, we are both in your debt, now. Thank you, sincerely. He’s just over there. Go along and have a chat. That will certainly do you more good.” He didn’t even question why Logan wasn’t even looking at Griggs, but Chosen Undead just nodded at him and walked toward the sitting master sorcerer. Unbeknownst to the two, Griggs’s face changed from a wide smile to a cold expression, like that of a murderer. “There you are. I was expecting you. As promised I will share my sorceries.” This guy had more than 14 Intelligence. “Excellent. You are certainly ready. I shall teach you sorceries.” He earned a lot of Souls by defeating Iron Golem and decimating everything in Sen’s Fortress, so he had enough Souls to buy Homing Soulmass, Magic Weapon and Magic Shield from Logan. He gave it a test right away, lifting up his magic-enhanced shield and sword and launching five lingering projectiles toward a random wall. Smiling, Chosen Undead gave him a thankful nod. “Heading out, are you? I, too, will leave soon. Undead or no, I shan’t stay here forever. You have great potential. Don’t go and die over nothing.” After that, Chosen Undead walked to Griggs, whose eyes widened at the new sorceries that he was using. “Exhilarating, is it not? He is an accomplished scholar. The arts of sorcery would never have come this far without his contributions. And he has the nerve to go risking life and limb! What a stubborn old fellow. But truth is always what Logan seeks, and he wishes to elucidate it. It is this heretical methodology that has allowed Logan to advance sorcery to the point that he has. In a word, he is a hero. Despite the awful rumors. Time will tell, the annals of history will prove dispassionate.” He said as he eyed Logan, who was pondering on his next move. Griggs, on the other hand, had a more personal and sinister plan in mind. “May we meet again.” Laurentius was still there, idly sitting and staring at his tiny flame on his palm. Chosen Undead walked up to him and knelt down. “Have you ever heard of Chaos Flame? Because... a person told me that it is a more untamed, wilder version of pyromancy.” Chosen Undead said as he cast his Great Chaos Fireball which got Laurentius’s eyes widened. That was the flame of Izalith, hot enough to meld even stones, leagues above a normal pyromancer’s flame. “Hy, what spectacular pyromancy. Tell me about it. I have never seen anything like it.”“I learned it from- “No.” “...” Chosen Undead frowned and shook his head. “I... I stumbled across it somewhere that I cannot remember. I just... happened to learn it without knowing its origin.” He had no idea why the voice halted him, but if it said so, then Chosen Undead would have to abide with its order, even if that disappointed Laurentius. “... I see. I suppose I was mistaken. In any case, I definitely trust you. Apologies, my friend. Forget that I said anything.” Chosen Undead murmured an apology and promptly left the area. The Crestfallen Warrior was still there, his new Sack overlapping the foul breath of Frampt. He still had plenty of Souls, so he could use these to strengthen himself up. However, his smile was replaced with a frown when he saw the Fire Keeper lying on the ground upside down, unresponsive to his calls. “Anastacia...” Chosen Undead blinked in shock as he gave her a shake, but she still didn’t wake up. When he slightly lifted her body up, his eyes even got wider when blood poured out of her now wound, which was blocked by Anastacia lying flat on her stomach. Many questions began to race in his mind, like who killed her, why, and how he could find the perpetrator. He dully stared at her lifeless corpse while clenching his fist in fury. He just silently deepened his scowl, now wishing to make the murderer pay for his unjust crime. “Lautrec...” He did mention something about the Fire Keeper, whom he was presumably referring to Anastacia. That man clad in armour of gold murdered the Fire Keeper and took her Fire Keeper Soul, and Chosen Undead now swore to chase him down. He just noticed that beside her corpse was something—a Black Eye Orb, which was moving and facing one general direction. Taking a deep sigh, Chosen Undead grabbed the item and narrowed his eyes when the eye rolled on his palm before fixating on the west, and almost like a compass, no matter what direction he turned to, the eye remained pointing at the west. “So that’s where you run.” Chosen Undead mumbled before glaring in that direction. “But you won’t run far, Lautrec. Karma will soon be upon you.” He really shouldn’t have saved him back in the cell. Darkmoon Knightess was a tad bit surprised when Chosen Undead entered this room again, but he immediately dropped down to his one knee and raised his right hand up—a gesture for power-up. Granting his request, the knightess put her hand atop his and turned his Souls into Strength and Vitality. When he was drained of his numerous Souls, Chosen Undead straightened himself up and gave her a low bow before he hastily left the room, and while she found herself wondering why he was carrying such a long face, almost like he was angry at someone, be it a grudge or some petty squabble. Darkmoon Knightess just pursed her lips as Chosen Undead stormed out of the room while wielding his Claymore.
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Chosen Undead continued to head toward the direction the Black Eye Orb was pointing at—that grandiose building the elevator was facing. He slashed the guarding Gargoyle’s tail off and pushed it off the bridge. “Why is this glass broken?” If that Crestfallen Merchant said no one had managed to reach Anor Londo, then why were there signs of a break-in? Regardless, he broke into the building and proceeded to clash with some Painting Guardians, and these people just love throwing knives at him. After that, Chosen Undead pulled the lever and pressed onward, but not before another Gargoyle just ambushed him from behind. Now here came the frustrating part of this area – the rooftops and the endless barrages of arrows from two Silver Knights. The surface was steep, so his speed was greatly decreased when he tried to near them, and he had to use his shield to block any incoming arrows while watching his steps. When he was close enough, Chosen Undead deflected an incoming arrow and delivered a risky drop kick, pushing the Silver Knight off the edge. As for the other one, he also made quick work of him. He quickly entered the building and entered the left room, where he found Solaire again, sitting near the bonfire. “Oh, hi there. I thought I was the only one who... Forget it.” Chosen Undead shook his head and just slapped his own forehead, earning a hum from Solaire. The young Undead took a seat and sat here until his Estus Flask was refilled by the bonfire’s magical properties. “Smooth summoning out there? Anytime you see my brilliantly shining signature, do not hesitate to call upon me. You’ve left me with quite an impression. I would relish a chance to assist you.” Chosen Undead just smiled and nodded. Well, having a guy like Solaire around somewhat soothed him because a little bit of kindness wouldn’t hurt. Everything around him just wanted him dead or just plain despised his guts, but there were exceptions, a few like Andre, Siegmeyer and... Anastacia. “I will summon you should I require your assistance. And I must say, I feel more at ease whenever I’m around you. Like I don’t know why, but you... uh radiate some kind of pleasant warmth... I feel safe around you.” "You really are fond of chatting with me, aren’t you? If I didn’t know better, I’d think you had feelings for me!” At first, Chosen Undead chuckled at that, but his smile dropped when he realized that... he was in love with Solaire, which was an impossibility! I mean, Chosen Undead was a man, and Solaire was a man, so it... shouldn’t be possible. It is just biologically impossible. Two men can’t... do that thing. “What?” “What? Oh, no, dear me. Pretend you didn’t hear that! Hah hah hah!” “Hah hah...” Chosen Undead definitely heard that and was quite weirded out by that. But of course, his opinion about Solaire did not change, and he just perceived this as some kind of slip-up. When his Estus Flask was refilled, Chosen Undead straightened himself up and left the room, saying goodbye to Solaire, who reminded him to summon him if he saw his summon sign. This place was filled with illusionary walls, and he even found Havel’s Set and Dragon Tooth, the latter being quite heavy even for him. And why was this place infested with Mimics? He encountered like three of them in two floors. Also, he met Siegmeyer here. “Looks like everyone got here when that guardian was taken down.” The door was locked, but instead of going to the other room and finding the alternative path, Chosen Undead took a deep breath and kicked the door, bursting it open. Siegmeyer could hear swords clanking and deflecting, but he was too deep in thought to notice that until someone was standing before you. “Mmm... Hmmmmmm... Whatever can be done? Ah you again! Let me guess. Were you repelled by the Silver Knights? Aww, don’t be ashamed. ‘Tis the fate of vanguards like you and I. I’ll think of something. We can overcome this, together!” “I killed them already.” “... Wait!... You defeated those monsters?” Siegmeyer looked behind to see three Silver Knights lying dead on the floor, and Chosen Undead rested Claymore on his shoulder. “Fantastic... I am saved. This Knight of Catarina hereby commends you! Take this as a token of my gratitude, but be warned, gallantry entrails great risks. Next time, give me a chance to come up with a plan.” He gave him Tiny Being’s Ring, which increased his vitality. While it didn’t significantly boost much, Chosen Undead appreciated the gift and headed off again, killing a bunch of Silver Knights just upstairs. Then it came as a surprise to him when he met a giant who happened to be a blacksmith. “Who are you? Forge your weapons?” “...Yes? Can you forge... with those huge hands?” “Forge, I can! Strong, I am!” For a guy this size, he sure could smith delicate weapons like his Claymore. “You come, I forge. Shiny shiny. Get shiny from Duke. Forge weapons, make shiny. More happy. Talk, ‘tis no good. No one home. Everyone gone.” Now that he mentioned it, Chosen Undead noticed how the so-called city of the gods was eerily empty. There was nothing but guards and whatever the hell those flying things were. Every single Undead, including Lautrec, wanted to flock to Anor Londo, but for what? “But you, friend. You talk, I no talk, but happy.” “Thank you!” Chosen Undead took Claymore back and gave it a few swings to test it out. “I think we will meet again soon. See you later!” “Cometh soon.” Chosen Undead continued onward and narrowed his eyes when Black Eye Orb began to quiver even more than usual. He was close, and Lautrec must be nearby. After killing a few Sentinels down here, Chosen Undead got the gate open and stood in the middle of the hallway, waiting for the guilty to show up himself. He was angry, truth be told, and he would kill Lautrec if it meant retrieving Anastacia’s soul back. And there he was, but he wasn’t alone. Accompanying him were two more cooperators, with one oddly similar to Yulva. Lautrec froze upon seeing Chosen Undead, but a grin plastered on his face as he turned to his two friends. “Well, look at you. I thought you were wiser, but I thought wrong! Tis a terrible pity. Like a moth flittering towards a flame. You fellows? No? Don’t you agree?” Chosen Undead narrowed his eyes, his right arm slowly rising up to point at the killer. “Return Anastacia’s soul or you will be destroyed.” “Is that a threat I hear? Alright, that’s enough. Dispose of this fool.” The Pike-wielding knightess immediately ran toward Chosen Undead, who got everyone raise their eyebrows when he sheathed his sword and... intended to fight bare-handed? Well, that sounded like an idea that only the most foolish of fools would come up. Lautrec crossed his arms and grinned as Chosen Undead firmed his stance when the knightess thrusted forward, and he swiftly ducked to avoid the pointy head just in time. She grunted as she reaffirmed her grip on the weapon and spun around in hope of hitting Chosen Undead, but he swiftly dodged the attack by rolling backward. He quicky got up and narrowed his eyes. He didn’t exactly hope to see anyone but Lautrec here, but now seeing the guy’s true face, it was not out of the realm of possibility. The Pike-wielding woman ran toward him again and delivered a flurry of thrusts, which he dodged by simply making a short leap to the right. Just as she leapt upward and brought her pike down to the ground, her eyes widened when Chosen Undead nonchalantly sidestepped and stomped the pointy head of her PIke before his fist visibly clenched. Seeing that her primary weapon had been negated, she immediately switched to her Wooden Shield, which unfortunately was made out of wood. “Grah!” He threw a punch at her, or rather her shield, and whether through sheer rage or strength, his fist tore through the wooden material and made contact with her unprotected cheek. Meanwhile, Lautrec and his other cooperator’s eyes widened as the knightess was sent flying into the pillar, crashing into it so hard that the structure cracked from the sheer impact. Chosen Undead’s knuckles were scratched by the sharp edges, blood dripping out in small quantity, but his attention was soon shifted to Lautrec. “Lautrec, you dastard! Return her soul now, if you wish to live!” Lautrec just clicked his tongue and readied his Shotel and Parrying Dagger before the sealer beside him cast a barrage of Soul Arrows at Chosen Undead. He suddenly slouched forward and broke into a sprint, and since he was emboldened by Anastacia and Darkmoon Knightess, he had grown considerably faster than at the start of his journey, even weaving through the magical projectiles with ease. His feet imprinting into the ground, Chosen Undead made a lunge forward, getting hit once in the face in the process, and grabbed the sorcerer by the face before smashing him down to the ground, immobilizing him in an instant. Karma, I guess, for having trapped Yulva. “You are crazy!” “That I am! Give me back her soul!” Lautrec rolled to the right when Chosen Undead dashed in and threw a punch at his punch, but instead, his fist made contact with the pillar. Yanking it out, the young Undead rubbed his blood-trickling fist against his chin as Lautrec bravely spun around to deliver a spinning slash with his Shotels, but Chosen Undead leapt into the air and gave himself a twirl, and Lautrec widened his eyes once he halted his attack. The heel of Chosen Undead’s left boot made contact with his helm, and needless to say, Lautrec ate the entire hard kick to the face and got sent sliding on the ground. Upon landing, the young Undead blinked in surprise because he didn’t realize that would work, but while Lautrec was done and staggered, he immediately ran in. “Wait!” Lautrec dropped his Shotels and pointed his palm at Chosen Undead, whose fist was terribly near his cracked helm. “I-I entreat you! Have pity on this powerless knight. Surely you can imagine the depth of such dejection?” Blinking in utter confusion, Chosen Undead resisted an urge to pummel Lautrec, who was tremblingly reaching for his pouch to grab something – Soul of Anastacia. It was just like Fire Keeper Soul, but Chosen Undead would like to believe it was hers. “Take this... We will invoke your ire no more. I hope we will never once again cross paths.” Behind that helm, Lautrec was grinning. “...” Just as Chosen Undead was about to take the soul, his eyes widened for a split second before he sidestepped, and the knightess from earlier, now having regained consciousness and grabbed her Pike, aimed to pierce him from behind. She had activated Hush, so he couldn’t hear her footsteps. So that meant Lautrec was trying to trick him. Outraged, Chosen Undead quickly held her weapon by the shaft and yanked it out of her grasp. The knightess was jerked forward and grunted, but not before she ate a punch to her face and rammed into a pillar. However, Chosen Undead turned around and widened his eyes when Lautrec cowardly stabbed him in the midsection with his Parrying Dagger. He didn’t flinch or grunt, and while Lautrec thought he had won in this conflict, he had a confused grunt when Chosen Undead used one of his hands to grab him by the helm before throwing a hook at his face so hard that his golden helm shattered, revealing Lautrec’s panicking look and bloody nose. The punch staggered him and caused him to fall down to the ground. Meanwhile, Chosen Undead yanked the dagger out and grunted before throwing it away. “It’s just a mere tongueless woman! Why bother to come this far to-” Chosen Undead picked Lautrec up and slammed him down to the ground again and again. He kept doing that even after the perpetrator’s armour was chipping off, and Chosen Undead ignored his pleas of forgiveness. Rage blinded the young Undead, and so, Chosen Undead did not show Lautrec any mercy when he began to pummel him with his fists. Obviously, Lautrec would try to retaliate, futilely trying to grab his hands or punching back, but Chosen Undead was physically stronger, so he remained unfazed. Resistance soon turned into desperation, but Chosen Undead just kept punching and shattering his armours, and he didn’t hear what Lautrec was quietly murmuring at all. He ruthlessly punched Lautrec even after blood drenched his face, and luckily for the killer, Chosen Undead lifted both his fists up and delivered one last pummel to his face, which had been beaten so badly that Lautrec was struggling to breathe... and Soul of Anastacia was already on the ground, beside him. “Please... l-leave me be... Have... mercy.” Chosen Undead continued to gasp and looked at his hands covered in his blood. “... I’ve come here for the Fire Keeper’s soul only, but not your pathetic life. Pray that we will never see each other again.” Retaking the humanity-filled soul, Chosen Undead took a sip from his Estus Flask and went out of the building through the main gate. Foolish Lautrec never got to know that his goddess had long fled. Chosen Undead winced as his wound started to heal itself, and the young Undead sighed when he turned around to see three Undead vaporizing upon death, and they would once again appear elsewhere. Warping back to Firelink Shrine, Chosen Undead held out her writhing soul and had it enter her once lifeless body again. He sat down beside the bars and waited, tiredly pressing his forehead against his left knee. Now he could only hope that all of his effort would pay off. Claymore was beside him pointing downward, and Chosen Undead quirked his brows when he heard shuffling behind him. ”Anastacia?... It’s all fine now. Lautrec will hurt you no more.” Despite being not lucid and horrified after her soul had returned to her body, Anastacia dreaded the name and shivered, which worried Chosen Undead. “I promise you that he will not ever touch you again.” “...Th-Thank you...” Now the young Undead was taken aback. When did she have her tongue back? “I... I now can continue my duty as a Keeper... But... I only hope that my impure tongue does not offend.” In reality, it wasn’t just her tongue that was restored, but also her maimed legs, which were also caused by Lautrec unceremoniously. Chosen Undead grabbed the bars and became somewhat anxious when she slid closer to the darkness of this humid cell. “Forgive me... I am impure, my tongue never intended for restoration... Please, you have any heart... Leave me be... I wish not to speak...” Now he began to question a lot of things. “Who did this to you...? To your tongue, to your freedom?” Anastacia just tremblingly sighed when Chosen Undead gripped the bar. “Was it Lautrec? Did he do this?” He needed no verbal response to get the answers, as Anastacia visibly became distressed when he uttered that name. So it all made sense now. She must have said something that angered Lautrec, who then forcefully made her the Fire Keeper of this shrine and later killed her for her soul. No reason why, but Chosen Undead was beyond angry when he saw the implications. “But why... Why did you not tell me sooner? Give any signs...?” “... My tongue... I offended the gods with my impure tongues... This incarceration is my punishment...” Anastacia’s eyes met his, which were twitching in anger. “I said things about Fina, she who... Lautrec is affectionate for, and he was infuriated... and then had me held in this cell... Such is a fitting punishment for one so impure such as me...” She thought that as long as she abided with his orders, she would be fine, but that was proven not true. That was why she never signalled to Chosen Undead, and maybe she didn’t want him to get involved in her own sort of predicament. “Please... I have said bad things.. This shall suffice as my penance...” “That’s hogwash!” Chosen Undead grabbed the bars and gritted his teeth, making Anastacia’s eyes go wide when the iron bars were visibly being dented under his sheer strength. “Who does he think he is to condemn you to this? The gods are but a bunch of hypocrites!” “No...” “They are a lazy bunch who long fled Anor Londo! Cowards, they all are!” “Please, stop! The gods will curse you!” “Do you hear me now, cowardly gods!? Are my insults heard by you lots!?” Chosen Undead became so excited that he ripped the bars out, widening Anastacia’s eyes and earning horrified gasps from her. “Your judgements mean nothing to me! Where is your wrath!? Where is your retribution!? If you are as mighty as we are made to believe, then strike me down and have this cell be my eternal imprisonment!” Anastacia became frantic when Chosen Undead started to tear the remaining iron bars one by one; there were initially eight of them, but just under three seconds, he tore them all and cackled playfully. “See? Nothing happens... The gods have no hold on us.” “No...” Anastacia shook her head as Chosen Undead reached out his hand to her. “What have you done? The gods... No, I cannot leave... I cannot...” However, Chosen Undead just kept a smile on his face and still insisted on having her leave this dirty cell. “I’m afraid...” She profusely shook her head and shut her eyes, but of course, Chosen Undead did not lose his impatience. “I’m scared...” “Then you have me. I will protect you.” “No! I can- Ahh!” For a split second, he grabbed her head and proceeded to pull her out of the cell, resulting in both of them lying down on the ground, with Anastacia atop him and tightly hugging him while trembling as if she was freezing. “Bring me back! Return me to my ever confinement!” Her muffled voice from his chest, and Chosen Undead softly patted her back and returned the affection. He rolled to the right, gently laying her down to the ground and closing his eyes. “Please... hold me... Hold me until this nightmare is over... Until I am... tranquil.” “... As you wish.” Chosen Undead said nothing and just firmly had her in his embrace, and they just lay here, just hugging and closing their eyes; a heavy silence hung in the air. He would stay here as long as she wished him to be, so the journey could wait. He just wished that Lautrec or his goons would never bother them again, and if they ever crossed path again, he would not hesitate to kill Lautrec again and again. He just hated bullies, that’s all. --------------------------------------- “Long ago, a dark beast, its eyes filled with naught but rage and darkness, invaded my homeland Astora... Those felled by the beast of dark were said to have their vitality drained and souls utterly crushed, leaving them lifeless husks while the beast continued to rampage our land... It was... devastating, I was told. Astora would have been reduced to dust and had a knight, with strength untold and immense, struck it down.” “Wow...” Eyes wide, Chosen Undead rubbed his chin as he attentively listened to her tale about her homeland – Astora. Even though he had met a few souls hailed from that land, he never really got to learn how it was there. Anastacia said many royalty families resided in Astora, and they were also subservient to the ideal of serving the gods of Anor Londo and continuing this so-called Age of Fire, which caught his interest. He asked a lot of things, and Anastacia answered a lot of things. “To think a place would have such rich history...” “Then what about you?” “Hmm? Huh? What about me?” “Your homeland... Your... birthplace? Everyone has a place which they can call home.”“... Home. “Chosen Undead crossed his arms and stared at the bonfire. Of course, he must have a place where he belonged, just not Northern Undead Asylum. Truth be told, he never really thought much of this until now. “My homeland... It is... I can’t really explain, but my memory is so splintered, fragments flying all around, and I must piece them all together to make a coherent story.” Chosne Undead tapped his knee and pursed his lips. “But I recall... there was fire? And... shouting?” Still, it was so hazy that Chosen Undead could not recall anything beyond those. He just remembered that he once lived in a comfortable and small village. “That sounds rather ambiguous.” Chosen Undead just smiled as she tentatively squeezed his hand whilst the Crestfallen Warrior was just sitting across them, eyes rolling from their shameless display of affection. “Do you wish to return to Astora? To your normal life once... all of this is over?” He asked, earning a mildly surprised look from Anastacia. “And don’t ask me the same question, because... I haven’t planned anything yet.” “I...” Anastacia hesitantly nodded while her eyes were gazing at the bonfire. “I’d love to... Yes... If anything, I would want to have a chance to live a life I once had in Astora again...” She missed her home and family, but she doubted her parents were alive now since it’d been like... Ah, she’d forgotten how long she’d been in Lordran. Undead don’t age, so they would always assume this form until the curse was lifted or they went Hollow. “But Undead like us were driven from home when the age showed signs of fading, and it’s been like this for over a thousand years. I... I don’t know if they’d welcome us back with open arms.” “...Then where would you go?” “I haven’t the idea...” Chosen Undead rubbed his chin and nodded. He was a one-who-feels-at-home-everywhere sort, so he would wander from village to village, doing some filthy works to have something to eat before heading out again. He was just an aimless and purposeless individual back then. But now, he was chosen, destined for greatness. After all, he was to succeed Lord Gwyn. He once again stood up and asked for Anastacia to strengthen both his mind and body. He knelt before her and even kissed the back of her hand like a true knight, though he was never one. Needless to say, Anastacia would want her champion to continue his journey instead of selflessly protecting her. He would pop a Homeward Bone and appear right at Anor Londo again, but something was off, he felt something was off. Because, well, Darkmoon Knightess, holding her Book of the Guilty, deeply hummed and immediately shook her head in disappointment when he manifested near the bonfire. “You have disrespected the gods for the last time, chosen Undead.” She said as she closed the book and readied her weapons – Estoc and Parrying Dagger. “Prepare to repent, sinner!” Chosen Undead widened his eyes as he simultaneously sidestepped and dashed away when Darkmoon Knightess performed a dashing thrust, and she twirled and tried to cleave him horizontally, but Chosen Undead managed to deflect her attack with Claymore. ‘Wait, what!? I thought it would harness no consequences!’ Chosen Undead gritted as his teeth as he tried to deliver a downward swing, only to get parried by Darkmoon Knightess when she swung her Parrying Knife. But even if she had the technique flawlessly performed, she still winced from the soreness that followed the parry; he was just really strong. When Chosen Undead visibly stumbled and lost his stance, Darkmoon Knightess quickly clutched her Estoc before trying to deliver an impaling thrust across his chest. In the nick of time, he conjured up Great Chaos Fireball and threw it down to the ground, making the knightess’ eyes go wide before she hastily jumped backward to escape the fire. But then, Chosen Undead leapt into the air and dived onto her, his sword smashing into the floor instead of her. The sheer impact created a cloud of dust, and Darkmoon Knightess braced herself as a short flurry of Soul Arrows at her, and she deflected the first wave before having to make a right roll. This Undead was proven far superior and stronger than her just through his swings, but as a Blade of the Dark Moon, she would not back down; Chosen Undead must die. Not waiting for him to do anything, Darkmoon Knightess instantly enchanted her Estoc with Darkmoon Blade, making it glow a radiant violet hue, and then plunged it into the ground, generating a ground-sweeping surge of energy that carried the ray of Darkmoon itself. Obviously, Chosen Undead avoided that by jumping up and throwing a Great Fireball at her, cancelling her attack. “None will escape the wrath of the Dark Moon!” She swung her swords diagonally to send a blade-like projectile toward him, but Chosen Undead swiftly avoided that and then sprinted toward her again. He then made a swift dash and almost slashed her across the torso, and as she ducked and turned around, she also had to avoid another spinning slash from Chosen Undead again. The knightess gritted her teeth and tried to retaliate with another heavy thrust attack, and just as she clutched her Parrying Dagger when he intended to go for a right horizontal swing, but then, he swiftly spun and tried to deliver a left horizontal swing instead, which caught the knightess off guard. The blade made contact with her right ribs, deflecting her Estoc in the process. He bashed against her so hard that she was sent crashing into the wall and dropped her weapons, and Chosen Undead still clutched his Claymore as Darkmoon Knightess weakly collapsed on the ground. “... I didn’t mean to. But you just forced me into this!” He would narrow his eyes when the woman seemingly wanted to puke out blood, but her arms were shaking and struggling to lift the visor of her helm. He could just leave and make his way to Gwyn’s old keep, but he didn’t forget that he was basically at fault when he bad-mouthed the gods, and the knightess was following her protocol. “I’m sorry.” He sheathed his weapon and knelt down in front of her. “I will take you helm off- “No...” Just as he removed her helm, she hurled as blood dripped out of her mouth, but what caught his attention was her skin, which was somewhat gray in colour and had some weird white vein-like patterns all across it. He had seen this before, this looked similar to the writhing humanity in Fire Keeper Souls. “... This is... what I look like, hideous. My body is not accustomed for the endless humanity nestled within my bosom... But forget not...” She glared at him. “I will still kill you... for having sinned.” However, Chosen Undead did not take her threat seriously and offered to have her take a sip from his Estus Flask, but still, she hatefully glared at him whilst she was healing. “If I fail, others will take my place...” “You mean... this?” Chosen Undead picked up Book of the Guilty and opened it, and the knightess widened her eyes when he just straight up tore the page containing his portrait and threw it into the bonfire just to his left. “Now my sin has been absolved, I think so...” Darkmoon Knightess became utterly infuriated and gritted her teeth, but of course, Chosen Undead just nonchalantly sat beside her and smiled. “Besides, the gods have all fled, so does it really matter?” “You... Gruh, such insolence! Mind your tone, lest you want to-” Darkmoon Knightess narrowed her eyes when Chosen Undead touched her in the right arm and his chest, and she oddly went silent as she began to gasp. “You... will not escape penance...” She sat up and grabbed him by the neck, slightly widening Chosen Undead’s eyes, but she would subconsciously slip and lean in for a kiss instead, in contrast with horrible ways to kill him. He reciprocated rather endearingly, his arms wrapping around her waist and pulling her closer to her. “Mark my words... I will kill you once... we are done...” She flushed while uttering her threat, which earned a chuckle from Chosen Undead. Maybe for this once, she would not outright kill him, but Darkmoon Knightess couldn’t explain this groing heat within her body, and she found herself unable to stop tasting his lips. Chosen Undead’s hands roamed across her armoured form, grunting when the knightess pinched him by the neck – a sign of her restraint from harming. They both rolled on the ground, shedding their armours and still locking lips. However, the more skin she exposed, the more anxious she grew; such a hideous appearance was caused by her very own Fire Keeper Soul. But for some reason, Chosen Undead was not repulsed by that at all, almost like he didn’t care, and she grew more flustered when his hand coped a feel of her moderate bosom, and the other one weirdly started to caress her left cheek. “... You find me not... unsightly?” “Huh? Why should I?” He blinked like an innocent child, earning a confused look from the knightess. “On the contrary, you are... attractive and skilled in combat.” “You only said that to comfort me, right?” She arched an eyebrow. “I mean... yes. But no, I do not find your form repulsive. I myself am not much of a looker.” “Ironic coming from a man who is on the more handsome side.” She just frowned and had a faint grunt when her back met the ground, with Chosen Undead atop her. No matter what he said, she would still see herself as hideous, which explained why she always equipped her Brass Set, so that no one would ever see her in this state. But in reality, that bothered Chosen Undead little, who planted kisses across her chest while firmly holding her by the hips, earning a long yet quiet moan from her. He was erect in just seconds, and that excitement and eagerness of his were present through how he would kiss and grab her, almost like he just wanted her or her body. “Just... get to the point...” “... Alright, my apology.” She was getting impatient, and Chosen Undead awkwardly rubbed the back of his head before firmly holding her thighs. His eyes would slightly widen when she locked her legs around hist waist, but still, he questioned nothing and guided his cock to her entrance. Upon feeling a touch of his hard tip against her wet folds, the knightess grunted and held her breath when he started to thrust forward, his cock feeling the familiar sensation of a cervix. Just in a short second, he had already filled her insides, and the knightess couldn’t stop herself from moaning. He felt something dripping on his shaft, and it felt much thicker than her fluid; it was blood. “Continue... Stop and I will... kill you.” Darkmoon Knightess gritted her teeth at him. Nodding and letting out a short gasp, Chosen Undead held her thighs and started to rock his hips in an even pace, and that got a satisfied moan from the woman. Her eyes were still on the young Undead as their loins rhythmly met, and she felt heat radiating across her humanity-plagued skin. She initially thought she would devout both her mind and body to the Dark Sun Gwyndolin, that she was to carry out the task of purging the sinned. But now, here she was, lying on the ground and moaning like a harlot, her hymen taken by a strange-faced Undead who must pay for his sin. I will kill you...! You hear me, accursed chosen Undead? You have committed a mortal sin, for which you must pay with blood!” “...” Of course, Chosen Undead would not want to die, so he had to knock her out in some way. He began to pick up the pace and laid his entire weight atop her body, making her mind go blank. She was doing quite a good job restraining herself, judging by the fact that she was clawing his back and nipping his left shoulder hard enough to draw a bit of blood. But that did not hinder him, and Chosen Undead continued to hump her raw, his hot breaths ticklishly hitting her neck. She had never been touched in this way before, so when opportunity arose, she wished to be ravaged and felt in every way possible, and of course, he was obligated to fulfill her innate desire. She sometimes wished Gwyndolin would do something like this to her. She started to scream out in ecstasy and clung onto Chosen Undead, who wrapped his arms around her waist and sloppily smooched her jaw, earning a loud moan from the knightess. She was incredibly tight, and Chosen Undead would indulge in this very much. Her inner walls spasmed and clung around his pistoning shaft, but instead of waiting for her to relax her body, which would of course earn a scowl from the knightess, Chosen Undead chose to speed up, which in turn made Darkmoon Knightess claw his skin harder, her nails painted red from his blood. “I will still... kill you...!” She panted heavily, and her muscles tensed up when she felt a strange surge of pleasure washing through her. But her threat remained unheard by Chosen Undead, who was so close to climax. She too was about to reach her own limit, and her eyes went tired as the sensation heightened, and her hostility, even if for a moment, was dropped, so she went from clawing him to affectionately pressing her hands on his back, her legs firmly locking his waist. This frenzied session went on for a few seconds before Chosen Undead gave her one last thrust and immediately claimed her lips. At the same time, she cum, arching her back as her mind went blank. Never once in her life would she think... things would go like this. Chosen Undead broke the kiss when Darkmoon Knightess intended to bite his lips, and he simultaneously pulled out and lay beside her, both of them sighing and resting. “... You...” The knightess glanced at her Estoc, which lay carelessly beside the bonfire. “We are yet done.” She groggily tried to get up, but the soreness around her crotch and legs really rendered her unfit, but she could crawl toward her sword. This futile attempt was seen by Chosen Undead, who proceeded to pick up Estoc and threw it at the farthest corner of the room. “You...!” She gritted her teeth and watched as he just nonchalantly put her amours beside her. “You can never escape the wrath of the gods. For the blades of the Dark Moon shall hunt you down.” He put on his Warrior Set and grabbed Claymore. “For that, I am terribly sorry, but...” He shrugged his shoulders and smiled at her. As mentioned, Darkmoon Knightess saw herself as hideous and grotesque due to the humanity that plagued her skin. “You are beautiful, you know, despite your blemishes.” That earned a surprised look from the knightess, who narrowed her eyes when the only thing she saw was his stupid smile. She couldn’t tell if he was flattering her or not, but it was certainty nice to hear that because she hadn’t heard that since the curse struck. “I have insulted the gods, but I will not kill you nor your covenant’s members. So chasing me down is futile.” “What?” “Farewell!” Chosen Undead made a dash up the stairs and ran back to the spinning tower. Meanwhile, the knightess just dumbfounded glanced at the bonfire and sighed to herself; she had failed her duty as a Blade of the Dark Moon, but there was still time to hunt him down. The knightess had a determined look on her face and clenched her fists. Sins cannot go away easily. Running past the large door and summoning Solaire, Chosen Undead took a deep breath and entered another spacious area, where a big, fat statue was situated. The problem was, it wasn’t a statue. The young Undead looked up and saw another lion-themed knight, who readied his spear and vaulted over the small balcony. Chosen Undead and Solaire both readied their weapons, as did Dragon Slayer Ornstein and Executioner Smough.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Two against two, that sounds fair. Solaire and Chosen Undead immediately charged, and Ornstein immediately thrust his spear forward, casting a lightning spear. The two Undead managed to dodge that and chose to split, with Chosen Undead taking on Ornstein, while Solaire was handling this monstrosity named Smough. The spear-wielding knight immediately dashed toward the young Undead and performed a wide swing that Chosen Undead managed to block with his shield. Firming his stance, the Undead did a guard counter and tried to strike Ornstein, who evaded the attack by jumping back. Whilst doing so, he cast a lightning spear and hurled it at Chosen Undead, who sidestepped the projectile. Chosen Undead conjured up Great Chaos Fireball and launched it at Ornstein, who vanquished it with a mere swing of his spear. Gripping his Dragonslayer Spear, Ornstein held the armament at his hip and charged forth, making a brief dash that closed the distance almost immediately. The young Undead widened his eyes as he tried to raise his shield up, only to get launched back by the tremendous momentum. Thankfully, his Heater Shield negated the attack, so there's nothing to worry about. Ornstein had his spear aloft and then did a series of spear slams before finishing it with a sweeping attack that got the young Undead scraping his feet against the ground. “Try agai-” Chosen Undead widened his eyes when his Heater Shield shattered in half, and he quickly ditched it and fought with his Claymore only. Smough’s muffled laughs echoed within his armour as the executioner slammed his hammer deep into the ground and charged forward, seemingly tearing the floor in half. Even a direct Lightning Spear to the face did little to slow him down. Left with no choice, Solaire timed it right and then rolled to his right, completely evading Smough’s hammer charge. Even if ramming into the pillar did little to slow him down, and Smough laughed and brought his hammer back before slamming it down in front of him, casting a shockwave toward Solaire. But with the power of sunlight aiding him, the Undead blocked it with Sunlight Shield, and Smough hummed when he saw that derpy face. No matter, this Undead would serve as a nice meal. When Solaire attempted to close in, Smough lifted his hammer up and swung it in a horizontal manner, but when the Undead slid on the ground and through his leg gap. Due to the momentum, Smough had a hard time regaining his posture, so Solaire took the privilege to strike him from the rear, right at the softer part of his chunky armour, thrice before ending it with a thrust. The executioner grunted and did the unexpected—a butt slam. ‘Oh dear...’ Solaire did not hesitate to run back, but he still got sent flying to the wall like a ragdoll just from the sheer shockwave. Hearing a pained grunt, Smough cockily laughed as he tried to pry himself out of the small crater that he made. Solaire quickly stood up and clutched his sword before charging forth again, and this brought a wide grin to the executioner’s face. Chosen Undead jumped to avoid Ornstein’s low sweeping attack and then deflected his thrusting spear, giving himself enough time to advance. He then made a short, forward dash and struck Ornstein’s tassets, but the force generated from his strikes did hurt the knight. Reaffirming the grips on their weapons, both Ornstein and Chosen Undead swung them as hard as possible and clashed, creating a small shockwave that was strong enough to shatter the glass panes within this vicinity. Yet, despite being much older and participating in countless wars, Orstein couldn’t overpower this mere mortal? Chosen Undead took a step forward and swung his sword upward, deflecting Ornstein. Just when the knight twirled and intended to do a devastating spinning slash, Chosen Undead, stomping the ground, simultaneously leapt toward Ornstein and did a frontal somersault that made the knight freeze for a good second, and just within that one second, Chosen Undead successfully dealt a thunderous attack to the knight’s helm, and a crack was heard. The tremendous force staggered Ornstein, who grunted as his left palm crackled with lightning and then smashed the ground with it, generating an electric area-of-effect attack. Unfortunately, Chosen Undead reacted fast enough to dash back, and then Ornstein pursued him, his attacks growing more aggressive and less predictable. Meanwhile, Solaire was trying to outrun Smough’s hammer slams as he charged, and then the executioner leapt toward the knight and tried to squash him, but of course, the golden cooperators reacted fast enough to leap out of the way. Charging up Lightning Spear, Solaire kipped up and threw it right at Smough’s chest, earning a laugh from the humongous knight as he lifted his hammer up again. However, that attack was cancelled when a stray Lightning Spear hit him from the rear, and he turned around to see Chosen Undead and Ornstein exchanging blows and throwing Lightning Spears at each other. Without the use of a catalyst, Chosen Undead cast a volley of Great Soul Arrows and fired them outward, and Ornstein chose to dash through them all and made a piercing thrust that the Undead dodged. Dashing in, Chosen Undead buried his entire Claymore into Ornstein’s chest and repelled him back. The knight clutched his chest and fell on his back, and just when the Undead tried to finish him off, thunderous footsteps from his right certainly earned his attention, and Ornstein was charging full speed toward him with his hammer aloft. Horrified at the sight, Chosen Undead abandoned his thought and backed up, narrowly dodging his hammer slam. With Smough now fixating his attention on Chosen Undead, Ornstein slowly got up and turned to Solaire, who was taking a sip of his Estus liquid. Smough continued to charge forth, laughing gleefully as he was doing so, but unlike Solaire, Chosen Undead was able to create quite a distance and continuously threw Lightning Spears, but to no avail. However, switching to Drake Sword, Chosen Undead inhaled and brought the sword down, creating a rippling shockwave that travelled underground and toward Smough, and upon reaching him, the shockwave concentrated and exploded, knocking Smough off his feet and causing him to fall flat on his face. When opportunity arose, Chosen Undead dashed in and stabbed Ornstein in the head, or what he thought was his head. “Huh?” That ‘head’ was hollow, and Smough’s real head was somewhere at the neck of his chunky armour. This enraged Smough, who would punish him severely. Quickly grabbing Chosen Undead’s leg, the executioner rose up and threw him across the arena. Solaire dodged Ornstein’s thrusts and widened his eyes when his companion smashed through two pillars consecutively before crashing into the wall, just mere inches away from getting thrown out of a shattered window. While Smough menacingly trotted toward him and giggled, Chosen Undead rose out of the rubble and took a sip from Estus Flask. “Ugh...” Yet, he still had the strength and willpower to run toward Smough again, who had a wide grin on his face as he did his ground-splitting charge again. Briefly dashing to the right and flanking Smough, Chosen Undead drove his blade into the executioner’s midsection from the side before slashing it, staggering him greatly. He managed to gash his armour wide enough to throw a Lightning Spear into it, and it zapped Smough from within. With that, Chosen Undead gritted his teeth and shifted his attention to Ornstein, who was overwhelming Solaire with his constant thrusts and sweeping attacks. He rushed toward them while Smough was being fried inside of his armour, and he summoned Homing Soulmas and launched them toward Ornstein, who simultaneously turned around and brought his spear down. That allowed Solaire, who slowly recovered from the onslaught, to get up and slash him right at the back of his knees, effectively bringing the knight to his very knees. Ornstein threw a punch at Chosen Undead, who weaved through that and elbowed him across the chest. That did more than just stagger Ornstein; it had him caught off guard so that Solaire could have the opportunity to backstab him, and while Ornstein was trying to process how to escape, Chosen Undead pointed Claymore downward and stabbed him in the chest, and for a short while, Ornstein stood still like a statue. Widening their eyes, the Undead yanked their swords out and leapt away when Smough charged toward and smashed his hammer to the ground; fury could be seen in his movements. His attention was then drifted to Ornstein, who lifelessly fell down to the ground, weakly twitching his fingers. Chosen Undead and Solaire both healed up and soon widened their eyes when, instead of helping his companion, Smough straight up squashed Ornstein with his hammer and absorbed his fading soul. Lightning started to crackle around the hammer, and the executioner was laughing in joy as the lightning exploded, coating his armament. No one knew why he would kill his friend, maybe he was jealous of Ornstein’s knightly status, or he just wanted to prevent Chosen Undead from claiming his soul. But that mattered little here, as Smough now had Ornstein’s lightning magic, and the executioner grinned at them, thinking of ways he would enjoy Chosen Undead’s bones. Just like Ornstein, Smough instantly initiated the fight with a thrust, firing a cluster of Lightning Spears toward them. Chosen Undad and Solaire, once again, split and intended to flank Smough from both sides. Realizing their intentions right away, Smough started slamming his hammer on the ground, with each one growing more thunderous and casting more lightning until a large portion of the floor was scorched, but Chosen Undead leapt on a shattered pillar and then lunged toward Smough, who had already anticipated an attack from the Undead and lifted his left hand up and smacked Chosen Undead down to the ground like a toy. Solaire witnessed as Chosen Undead even bounced back up and then got hit by the humongous hammer. After a metallic sound was heard, the Undead was sent flying across the room and crashed into the statue of a tall goddess, a cloud of dust enveloping him entirely. Now that Chosen Undead was temporarily out of the way, Smough switched his attention to Solaire and gave chase. He had no way to deal with this monstrosity, so Solaire just cast his Lightning Spear while trying to run away, and Smough continued to toy with him, trotting slowly toward Solaire. “Ughhh...” Chosen Undead crawled out of the rubble, the bosom of the statue on his face. Smough really hit him hard, even shattering his Claymore in half when the Undead desperately wanted to minimize the attack. Well, then this piece of broken sword was useless now, he just wasted a lot of Titanite Shards on this Claymore. “You thought that’d make me give up? No...” Readying Ricard’s Rapier, Chosen Undead took a sip from his Estus Flask and forced himself out of the wreckage before dashing toward Smough, who grinned wider when notified of his return. The executioner lifted his hammer up and did a double sweep attack, which Chosen Undead dodged by strafing to the left. While his companion was distracting Smough, Solaire immediately ran in and dealt a sneaky attack to the rear, and he then quickly rolled when Smough suddenly spun and flailed his hammer around. Chosen Undead twisted to build momentum and unleashed a flurry of thrusts at Smough’s back. And then he leapt upward when the executioner stomped his foot on the ground. However, the executioner soon found himself in a predicament; whenever he focused on one of them, the other would attack from behind, and of course, Smough would not allow this transgression to keep going. Lightning concentrated under his bottom as Smough leapt into the air, much to the Undead’s horror, and crashed down on his rear end, generating an electrical aura that coated the whole vicinity. Solaire raised his shield but got hit by the attack while Chosen Undead opted to jump up and try to remain midair for more than a second, and thankfully, the surge of electricity lasted only a second. Of course, Chosen Undead had to account for the fact that Smough wildly swung his hammer around, leaving no room for him to hit from the front. Slamming his hammer into the ground, creating a surge of lightning, Smough charged in, forcing Chosen Undead to run away like a frightened little mouse. Solaire gave chase, charging up a few Lightning Spears while Chosen Undead cast a Great Chaos Fireball and hurled it at Smough yet, it did little to stagger him. Smough grinned and then lunged at the Undead, crashing onto the ground. Chosen Undead dashed away to escape the lightning. With the knowledge of that false head in mind, he mentally made an objective to go for the neck, which had two clear, bulging eye-like parts. So that was where his real head was located. Nodding at Solaire, who then decided to flank Smough from his left side, Chosen Undead rushed toward him and fired a Heavy Soul Arrow to distract him. Obviously, Smough was unfazed and made a forward leap, bringing his lightning-enchanted hammer down. Not just dodging it, but Chosen Undead had the audacity to stomp the blade before running up to Smough, his hand lighting up brighter. He conjured up Fire Whip and sprayed flame all over the neck of Smough’s armour. At the same time, Solaire threw his Lightning Spear into the same gash that his companion did earlier, and that worked wondrously, considering that Smough was stumbling backward and grunting in pain. However, just before Solaire could deal a blow to the wound, Smough kicked his feet back, sweeping the warrior of Sunlight across the ground before he was rammed into a shattered pillar. Seeing that made Chosen Undead grit his teeth, and so while diving onto Smough, Chosen Undead would clench his fist and throw a really strong punch at the head, simultaneously staggering Smough and knocking him off his feet. Even Chosen Undead was surprised to see that. Solaire sprang up and ran in again, ignoring the sore arms of his. Before Chosen Undead would land on the ground, he cast two Great Fireballs and threw them down at Smough, who blocked the attacks with his forearm, but that was soon repelled by Solaire’s Lightning Spear. The executioner gritted his teeth as he tried to lift himself up, but that warrior with that derpy face struck him in the elbow, making him fall flat on his back once again. Chosen Undead used Force to give himself a boost and crashed into Smough, plunging the whole rapier between that neck of his armour, or to exact, right between his eyes. He continued to deliver more piercing thrusts until Solaire noticed that his hand was releasing the hammer. With that, Smough was felled, and Chosen Undead tiredly hopped off the corpse and gasped, while Solaire, though as tired as he was, still praised the Sun before returning to his world. “Phew! At last... Hmmm...” Obtaning Soul of Smough, Chosen Undead took a sip of his Estus and moved on, presumbly where these knights were trying to protect. It could be a treasure or a person of great importance. Well, time to find out. Pushing the door, Chosen Undead.... Wow... Such... a marvellous view, such a glorious chest... He was mesmerized already, his cheeks turning red and lips tightening together. “Thou hast journey’d far, and overcome much, chosen Undead. Come hither, child...” She didn’t need to say that, because Chosen Undead slid toward her and knelt before the goddess. He never knew he would ever get a chance to have an audience with a god. They looked so divine and extravagant. Great chest ahead. “O chosen Undead. I am Gwynevere, Daughter of Lord Gwyn; and Queen of Sunlight. Since the day Father his form did obscureth, I have await’d thee. I bequeath the Lordvessel to thee.” Now blessed with Lordvessel, Chosen Undead now could freely warp between bonfires. “And beseech thee. Succeed Lord Gwyn, and inheriteth the Fire of our world. Thou shall endeth this eternal twilight, and avert further Undead sacrifices. But wait, didn’t Giant Blacksmith mention everyone had left? So why was she still here? Ah, forget it. “A grave and arduous test of mettle, yea, it shall be. Indeed, we had felt the warmth of Fire, its radiance, and the life it sustaineth. Without Fire, all shall be a frigid and frightful Dark. Kingseeker Frampt, the primordial serpent, shall guide thee.” “Alright! Destiny awaits me!” Gwynevere smiled when Chosen Undead sprang up and put Lordvessel inside of his Bottomless Box. It was just... too much for him to process. He was about to become as great as Gwyn himself, like he was the man that had defeated the dragons and achieved countless other feats. Finally, for once in his purposeless life, Chosen Undead could finally be something much greater. How eager he was, let’s hope he would keep this up until he reached the fire. “Unto greatness!” “Now thou shalt go forth, chosen Undead. May thou be one with the sunlight for evermore.” --------------------------------------- Still, he went around killing more Painting Guardians and stumbled across a secluded corpse, which gave him Greatsword and Black Iron Greatshield. They were incredibly heavy to wield, but for a guy like Chosen Undead, who had strengthened himself with the souls of the fallen knights, easily wielded this humongous sword. “Hmm... Hmm?” This painting looked a bit out of place, and Chosen Undead stood in front of it. Nothing out of the ordinary, except for the bridge and snow terrain. “Huh?” He intended to touch it, but then, his hand slipped into the painting, creating a portal that proceeded to suck him in. “What the?!” He found himself standing on that same bridge seen from outside, and he frantically looked around to see if there was a way out, but sadly, even backtracking wouldn’t help at all. “... I... Foolish me.” Even Lordvessel had no effect on this world. And this place was inhabited too, by Hollows, unfortunately, and... humanoid crows? What were these things? What was this place? After a while, he walked on a bridge and widened his eyes when he saw a putrified corpse of a headless dragon, and considering how weird this place was, he wasn’t surprised when the dragon came back to life, one of its wings falling off, and started crawling toward him. “Ugh...” Casting Lighting Spear, Chosen Undead simultaneously backed it off and hurled the spears at the dragon, which quickly slipped and fell off the bridge after a few strikes. He then entered the ruinous tower and went down before encountering a bunch of weapon-wielding blobs, which he killed with his pyromancy. His eyes perked up when he heard someone invading him, and he ducked when King Jeremiah swung his Notched Whip. But... that guy’s headwear looked absolutely ridiculous; it looked like an egg, a really big one. But at this point, Chosen Undead had felled Executioner Smough and many more foes, so an Undead who wielded Chaos Flame would not even be worth a hassle. Entering a dim, humid sewage, Chosen Undead raised his eyebrows when something was approaching him, and he instinctively sidestepped when something breezed past him—a Wheel Skeleton. “Oh...” When it crashed into the wall, the young Undead, who frowned when he heard many more rattling sounds, quickly grabbed the staggered Wheel Skeleton and flung it toward a small horde of the same ones. They collided and shattered into pieces, their bones flying up into the air and unceremoniously falling down to the water. “...” Chosen Undead then spun the lever, activating some kind of contraption that he had no idea about. Afterward, he just left the area and wandered around, kicking the door that could only be opened with Annex Key. With everything else done, it was time to head for that tower from yonder. However, just as he entered the tower, expecting a fierce fight with something, he didn’t expect to find a tall slumbering woman who also happened to have a tail. “... Uhm... Hello?” The woman stirred but remained asleep. “Hello...?” He slowly approached her and poked her in the shoulder, recoiling when the woman opened her slit eyes. “Oh!” “Who art thou? One of us, thou art not.” She groggily rose and grabbed her Lifehunt Scythe, but she intended no harm. It came as a surprise to her when a strange-faced Undead showed up in this world, but as always, this world was for no one but ones such as her. Chosen Undead blinked in surprise as the draconic woman stepped aside. “If thou hast misstepped into this world, plunge down from the plank, and hurry home. If thou seekest I, thine desires shall be requited not.” He looked at the exit and then at her again, but the woman’s expression remained unchanged. “But... Why are you here? This place... is so secluded, devoid of life. Do you feel not lonely?” However, the draconic woman just blinked at him and tilted her head, and he also tilted his head along with her. “Why won’t you leave? This place is filled with nothing but lurking dangers.” “Thou must returneth whence thou came. This land is peaceful, its inhabitant kind, but thou dost not belong. I beg of thee, plunge down the plank, and hurry home.” Pardon? Peaceful and kind? In this painted world? This place is anything but peaceful. “Didst thou not see why Ariamis created this world? Thy world I do not belong to, and neither dost thou to this one. I beseech thee, hurry home.” Chosen Undead just sighed in reluctance and nodded. Of course, that was what she wished, and he was a trespasser in her domain. He strapped Greatsword to his back and neared the plank, all while the draconic woman watched tentatively and yawned. After all, he had a destiny to fulfill. “The doll.” “Hmm?” “Hmm? What is wrong?” The draconic quirked her horned eyebrows when Chosen Undead turned around and dug his hand into his pocket, genuinely confusing her. She didn’t feel irritated by his arrival, but she really wanted this Undead to leave before he could disrupt the peacefulness in this realm. However, her eyes would widen in shock when he pulled Peculiar Doll out of his pocket and showcased it to her. But she lost it when she was drawn into this cold painted world, and how did it come into his possession? “Is that...?” Chosen Undead blinked and hesitantly handed it to her, and he felt a shudder when her cold hands briefly touched his. “It is yours?” She nodded and dropped her scythe to caress the doll. Yes indeed, it was definitely hers, and it almost looked almost the same as the day she had lost it. Even though she had grown up, she would still find herself adoring this little doll. “Well, I guess I should be glad...” He pursed his lips and smiled as the woman took seat, still holding the doll, and instead of leaving this painted world, Chosen Undead sat down beside her and smiled. To be fair, he had no idea this strange item he found would be so cherished, but still, seeing her, even if she was a stranger, being happy and all made him happy too. After a while, the draconic woman would turn to him with a wide smile on her face. “I thank thee. Ahh, mine apology, for I have yet to introduce mineself. I am Priscilla, and here is my home. I liketh it here. Dost thou find this place as peaceful as I do?” Chosen Undead looked away, pursing his lips before slowly nodding. “Ah, that pleases me, then... if thou likest this place, then thou canst stay as thou see fit. I am forever grateful of thine kindness.” Chosen Undead noticed how her tail would waggle faster in response to her mood, and it looked so fluffy. He just wanted to caress it, but of course, that would come out as rude. He also wondered what Priscilla was, because this looked reptilian. “What art thou looking at?” “Your... tail.” He pointed at it, and Priscilla blinked. “It looks amusing.” “This... In case thou dost not know, I am of dragon and man both. A crossbreed, thou couldst sayeth. This place is where I belong, as do many others deemed impure by the gods.” That earned a frown from Chosen Undead, but regardless of his opinion, Priscilla chose to stay on her volition, for she was an abomination. Her existence threatened the Gods due to her lifehunt ability, and she somewhat could understand why they would do such a thing. She didn’t know how much had changed, and she probably never would know. “Tis nice to have thy company, of which I am glad. What hast beckoned thee to this world?” “...” Chosen Undead removed his helm and clicked his tongue in awkwardness. “I got... dragged in. I had no idea why.” Maybe it was because of Peculiar Doll? But that mattered little now. Priscilla finally had her doll again, and Chosen Undead would leave this place soon. The fact that she was a dragon sounded magnificent, yet, this raised many questions too. He looked around, seeing how desolate and ruinous this place was. He wondered if Priscilla enjoyed it here. “Do you want to leave this place? To the world outside of the painting?” That unexpected got her eyes wide in a bad way. He literally just suggested she commit some blasphemy. “I… would want to, but I cannot.” “Why not?” “I belong here, and canst thou not see that the inhabitants needeth me? I am to tend them, for tis mine duty.” “...But the Gods had left Anor Londo.” “I will remaineth here. For the world outside of mine is hazardous. No one welcometh one such as mineself.” “...” Chosen Undead just rubbed his face and uttered a deep sigh. After all, she was a dragon hybrid and probably wasn’t conceived in a normal manner. Plus, she was content with what she got here. The inhabitants were kind and talked to her a lot, so she never was really alone, but still, she tolerated Chosen Undead’s presence too. He was nice to her and probably had no ill intents like that ridiculous, yellow-robed Jeremiah, who tried to kill her when he was unable to escape this realm. Weirdly enough, Chosen Undead raised an eyebrow when her tail subconsciously jabbed his knee, and he caressed it and grabbed it by the tip out of curiosity. “... Be careful with that... Mine tail is sensitive. But I suppose thou canst... play with it. But be cautious still.” He murmured an apology and tightened his lips as he began to run his hand across her fluffy and snow-white tail. It felt so soft, almost like the warmest of blankets, which he never got to cover himself with. This place was cold, but all of that freezing sensation was gone when he felt the warmth radiating from her fur. Was this true bliss? Chosen Undead gasped when Priscilla’s tail gently wrapped his neck, almost like a scarf. Truth be told, she liked having her tail touched even though it was very sensitive, and not every time she got to have this privilege. He seemed very fond of it, which gladdened her. Chosen Undead then had a slight frown on his face before sighing to himself. “...” Well, orders are orders, so the Undead pressed his hand on his chest while still caressing her tail. Just like other women he had encountered, Priscilla fell victim to this charm of his and widened her slit eyes as she felt that kind of urge, which seldom occurred. Chosen Undead noticed how her tail began to wiggle seductively or something like that. Priscilla shuddered as some heat invaded her loins, not that kind of heat that would keep herself warm, and she crawled toward Chosen Undead, and tentatively and awkwardly, they went in for a tender kiss, and Priscilla lifted him off the ground and hugged him. Warmth enveloped Chosen Undead’s much tinier figure, so he felt like he was a mere child to her. A few years or so, Priscilla would feel this kind of insatiable urge to, well, mate, and she had no idea how this stranger managed to invoke that feeling again. Now that she had felt the sweetness of her first kiss, and even though this might seem vulgar, Priscilla just wanted to rid herself of this growing heat within her crotch. After a while of locking lips, Priscilla carefully put the Undead down, and he soon shifted his attention more downward when the crossbreed grabbed her robe—yes, she was wearing a robe—by the hem and lifted it up, giving him a glimpse of her thighs and then her womanhood, which was dripping with her fluid. Chosen Undead didn’t know how to react because hers looked... not so human; instead of being vertical, her vulva was turned horizontally, faintly resembling a cloaca, and the Undead didn’t know if it was a good idea to do this. “Why sort of magic hast thou to enchant me?” Priscilla muttered when Chosen Undead reached his hands up to touch her wet folds, and Priscilla almost recoiled when his fingers softly slid inside of her pussy, feeling the heightening wetness of her inner walls. Huh, it felt relatively normal inside, so he figured it’d not be so much of a drastically different experience. “I will... lie down for thee... This heat thou shalt... vanquish.” Priscilla casually removed her white gown, letting it drop to the ground, and Chosen Undead subconsciously wet his lips when her body came into view. She certainly had some draconic traits, such as scales sparsely running across her shoulders and torso, and while she looked hearty, her ribs were somewhat visible. That was weird, she half expected him to get somewhat repulsed by her body, which carried traits from dragons and humans, which would make her an abomination. Regardless of what she thought of herself, Chosen Undead would bring a smile to her face when he leaned in to give her vulva a smooch, showcasing that he, in fact, adored her body despite her flaws. As said, she lay down sideways and lifted her left leg up, suggestively inviting him. “Have it thy way...” Chosen Undead swallowed the lump in his throat and began to remove the lower part of his armour, grunting when his dick vigorously sprang out of its confinement, and Priscilla uttered an anxious gasp when she felt his grasp on her thigh. A gasp slipped through her lips, made visible by the cold air. Chosen Undead put her left leg on his shoulder and sat on her other one, hoping that she would not feel any discomfort or soreness. She was already wet, so that ought to make the penetration easier. But for things to go more smoothly, Chosen Undead spat on his cock and gave it a few rubs before guiding it to her awaiting entrance, and Priscilla squeezed her eyes shut when his tip prodded her vulva before the tip slid in. Priscilla moaned in response to that and gazed away. Chosen Undead started to thrust forward. Now he knew that her pussy felt almost the same as others, albeit a little more slippery, thus making it easier for Chosen Undead to move. Her skin was coloured red by the increasing blood flow, adding more heat to her body. He let out a grunt when the tightness gripped his shaft, but that did nothing to stop him, for his resolve was utterly unbreakable. Being such a clueless and inexperienced maiden, Priscilla couldn’t stop moaning and gasping while his cock reached the very end of her depth, his tip kissing her cervix at every single thrust in spite of the size difference. He was such a small mortal, but his prowess was certainly a sight to behold, with how he was making her profusely moan. If anything, she guessed that his enthusiasm could indicate something. Oh yes, that could mean he liked her, saw her as something not an abomination like others had. He saw her flaws, yet still accepted her, so a smile of bliss plastered her face whilst Chosen Undead was still rocking his hips, noticeably picking up the pace too. He might not say it out loud, but she sounded somewhat adorable when she was grunting and moaning on the floor, and eventually, she gained the courage needed to finally glance up at Chosen Undead, who smiled at her. Of course, she was pretty much flustered, but still, her tail looped around his waist once to share some warmth with him, of which he was thankful. Just like that, the coldness of this place was neutralized by their heat, making them both forget how loud they were being. Chosen Undead slouched, rubbing his head against her plump thigh and enjoying her comfortable warmth. Clenching her teeth, Priscilla threw her head back and moaned when Chosen Undead increased the speed of his thrusts. He was nearing his orgasm, and so, he didn’t hesitate to go faster, inflicting more pleasure on the draconic woman. For a moment there, Priscilla felt like she was about to pass out from this, yet, the pleasure was the very same thing that prevented her from doing so. Her tail tightened around his waist, not even to her knowing but Chosen Undead complained nothing and just kept penetrating her until he finally reached his limit, and Priscilla wondered why he stopped thrusting until she felt another source of warmth flowing into her cunt. She panted and turned her gaze to him. “Art thou... finished?” Chosen Undead hummed and pulled out before exhaustedly lying atop Priscilla, who widened her eyes in shock but still welcomed him in an embrace once again. Her lips curled up into a smile when Chosen Undead wrapped his arms around her torso and chafed his face against her chest. “Then I am glad to hear that... I knoweth that thou must embark on thine own journey, but I will miss thy warmth. So I wish to hold thee afore that.” Chosen Undead said nothing but quietly rested his head atop her slowly rising chest, and just like that, for an unknown amount of time, they just lay there and embraced each other, uncaring of their surroundings. They were just too busy basking in one another’s warmth. --------------------------------------- Taking a plunge from the plank, Chosen Undead was thrown out of the painting and rolled on the ground, groaning. And was that Darkmoon Knightess sprinting toward him with her Estoc aloft? Oh well, he had Lordvessel now, so he could freely warp between the bonfires. He had committed a mortal sin, and if only there was a way to absolve himself of it... Oh, that’s right, Oswald of Carim! Warping to the bell tower, Chosen Undead made a quick dash toward the pardoner, who was literally awaiting him with open arms. For some reason, he seemed to know that he had sinned. “Good tidings, thou art welcome. Laudable is thy dedication to sin.” “Can my sin be erased? I mean... I might have wronged the gods.” “Be it granting absolution or doing penance; all sin is my domain. Confess thy misdoings to me.” Souls... Ah yes, he had to pay some Souls to be absolved of this sin. Well, he killed Ornstein and Smough, so he had a lot of Souls. A grin plastered on Oswald’s face as elsewhere, Chosen Undead’s name, which was also chosen Undead, got erased from Book of the Guilty, baffling Darkmoon Knightess. With that, the wrath of the Blade of the Dark Moon would never befall upon him. “Hmm.... Hast thou acquaintance with Petrus of Thorolund? I wager you two hath likely found much in common. For, is he not, too drenched in sin?” Chosen Undead just nodded in confusion, earning a grin from Oswald. “Anyway, thou art welcome anytime. It is only human to commit a sin...” This pardoner’s laugh was... unsettling. Warping back to Firelink Shrine, Chosen Undead couldn’t help but glance at the ruinous church, still seeing Petrus leaning against the wall. Sins... He had a feeling that things wouldn’t go well. Anastacia couldn’t stand the smell and chose to sit near her old cell. However, the Crestfallen Warrior spoke up from his seat. “While you were away, something strange did happen. That crow flew off with somebody in its clutches. I think it was a man curled up in a ball. Stranger things have happened, right? No, maybe not...” He chuckled. That sounded strange, indeed, but Chosen Undead chose to head toward Frampt, who was snoring again. “...Hey.” He gave the primordial serpent a poke in the head. “Wake up!” “...Hm? No, no, I’m fine, I’m fine. Well and wide awake! Do not treat me like an old withering snake- Heavens! You have done it! You have retrieved the Lordvessel! After a thousand years! It is you, it is really you! Hraaaaaoogggh!” Chosen Undead covered his nose when Frampt excitedly roared, his smell threatening to kill him ten times over. “Forgive me. I really should calm down. Now, let us take that vessel on a journey. I assume that you are ready. Now, be still!” “Huh? Whoa!” Frampt lunged forward and devoured Chosen Undead, but not to eat him, more like to transport him into the void. And by the Gods, the smell was even worse in here! He held his breath and shut his eyes while Frampt was travelling down. When the altar was within sight, the primordial serpent released Chosen Undead, whose face soured when the lingering scent attacked his nose. “This is...” He spoke and looked around, seeing a large door in front of him. “This is the Firelink Chamber, for the successor of Lord Gwyn. Now, place the Lordvessel on the altar.” Chosen Undead nodded and grabbed the required item from Bottomless Box. Upon placing the vessel on the root-covered altar, the young Undead widened his eyes when the bowl glowed up and fired a beam into the sky above, and that served as a beacon that would allow him to gain passage to the domains of three Lords. Hanging upside down, Frampt nodded in approval. “Very well. As Kingseeker, I shall now instruct you, the Lord’s successor in your next task. To achieve your fate, fill the vessel with powerful souls, commensurate to the great soul of Gwyn. Scarce few possess such brilliant souls. Gravelord Nito, the Witch of Izalith, the Four Kings of New Londo, who inherited the shards of Gwyn’s soul... and Lord Gwyn’s former confidant, Seath the Scaleless. All of their souls are required to satiate the lordvessel.” “...” This was it—the path to glory. “But why must I kill them?” “The beings who possess these souls have outlived their usefulness, or have chosen the path of the wicked. As the primordial serpent, I implore you to defeat them, and claim their souls. Let there be no guilt; let there be no vacillation.” That... might be what Quelana would want, right? His mentor’s sisters and mother were turned into horrific demons, so it was up to him to put them out of their misery. Nodding and sighing, Chosen Undead looked up at Frampt. “Are you ready? Then we shall return. Stay still for a moment!” The very moment Frampt opened his mouth, Chosen Undead took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He hated this.