After the spoils of yet another long session of hunting, the hunter (who called themselves Dilan Von Xijah at the time) returned to the workshop which housed the peace and sanctuary such a person would need in times such as these. The hunting of beasts was no easy task, and even hunter's became exhausted after a while, even turning into that which they hunt.
The packs of blood they had collected to give to the fine Doll which waited for them, almost always, were filled to the brim, which was always good for the hunter. They could use this to become stronger with the magic which the Doll possessed, though, the taller female was not to be found, anywhere. Dilan looked about the front gardens, which usually always housed the Doll here, but alas, finding no trance of her, they decided to look inside the workshop.
Upon entering, they noticed that all of the books and work materials were everywhere. Alarm shot through their face, as they looked on at the carnage. After this, they soon noticed the Doll, against the small altar nearby, a definite hole through her chest, blood stained everywhere. Regardless of her nature, this doll definitely held blood within her.
"Doll..!" Dilan cried somewhat, as they ran to the female's side, caressing her face, even if it still held the same expressionless expression. "What has happened here?!"
"My dear Hunter..." She spoke, quietly, as though she had held life all of this time. "Another came through here, holding a sword of radiant light, and though they impaled me so, they demanded to know where you were. I... I could not tell them, for I am here to watch over you. To care for you. To love you." Her words seemed to sting Dilan, as though the Doll was a wasp of sorts. "You must not linger, dear Hunter. They wish for your blood. I... I will be fine, do not worry. I will always watch over you. Always care for you. Always love you."
"Doll, no, please, let me help you..." The hunter clenched their teeth, devastated by this attack on their... their beloved. It had been ages ago since they had confessed their love to the Doll, and while it may not have been the best choice to make, it was the right one, at least to Dilan. Unclipping a blood vial from their belt, the hunter soon crushed it and allowed the crimson liquid seeped into the wound at the Doll's chest. It was as they thought, while the Doll was made of wood, the blood seemed to seal the hole shut, preventing further blood loss. The hunter was unsure what blood did to the Doll, but they were certain a lack of it would be fatal to such a being. No... Dilan considered the Doll more human than anyone else. This Doll was a woman, through and through.
"Dear Hunter, you must go. I will be fine. The hunter after you cannot be too far away, perhaps within the gardens by the Grand Tree. You must go, else this dream will truly end, and I..." The Doll did not finish her sentence, as she seemed to inactive, like she had been all this time ago, when Dilan first arrived at this place.
"Gods damn you! Doll! Don't do this to me!" The hunter fought back tears, before they gave her a definite and genuine kiss to the forehead, and then stood themselves up. The top hat and waistcoat they wore certainly were rather fashionable, but in this world, they would provide the means to best many a foe. The threaded cane and hunter's pistol they used to slay beasts would now have to take on that of another hunter, and while inside this dream, it could very well be for the last time. The last death, before everything truly goes blank, and ceases to be. Dilan could not stand even the thought of never seeing her Doll ever again.
Now with newfound determination, the hunter found their way along the path, toward the field of flowers which stood before the Grand Tree. This area was truly terrifying, in the sense that past the fences lay nothing but a murky mist which shrouded anything and everything beyond. While this was somewhat unsettling, the fire in the female's eyes was not lost.
"Ah, 'Dear Hunter', there you are..." Came the voice of someone old, ancient even, as they made themselves known, at the centre of the field. "Such a fine day for you to have come along. Sorry for stabbing your doll, I felt bad while doing it, if it's any consolation." They too were holding a threaded cane, using it more like the cane it was shaped as than a weapon, for now. In their other hand, though, lay a long rifle, which looked too big to use in a single hand, but with everything going on with the bloodborne disease, anything was truly possible.
"How dare you come here, and hurt her like that! I'll not stand for it!" Dilan wasted no time, as she aimed her pistol and fired, a direct hit to the other hunter's shoulder, the blood visibly leaving their body.
"Oh, darling, you've made a grave mistake. Truly, I thought you of better, more diplomatic terms. Alas, we shall never know." The figure seemed to fade somewhat, before a bellowing scream erupted from them, and their form became grotesque in a matter of milliseconds. "YOU HUNTERS, WITH ARROGANCE BEYOND BELIEF, WHO TRY TO TAKE ON THE GODS. BEINGS BEYOND YOU, BEYOND YOUR DREAMS, BEYOND YOUR REALITY. MAY EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOUR DEATHS BE GRUESOME AND LONESOME ALL THE MORE!" Their voice was doubled, tripled, quadrupled even, as an aura of increasing power enveloped their form.
Dilan was truly shocked by this transformation, the once human figure becoming more beast like than anything previously. A core made of several bodies looped, wrapped, sewn together which held several glowing runes as the head was human, with no skin, all muscle and bone exposed. Several arms and legs erupted from their form, holding half rotten corpses of previous hunters and those unlucky to become beasts. This being was something which hunted all, the hunter of the hunters, both human and beast.
Readying themselves, the hunter focused on dealing with the multitude of arms and legs which could definitely end their existence in a matter of seconds. A burst of adrenaline was all that was needed to initiate this fight.
Dilan came roaring in, the threaded cane becoming a whip as it lashed at the many targets which were there to be hit. The being seemed to not react quickly, and the hunter could use this to their advantage. A flurry of strikes saw a few arms and legs fall off, but then came the matter of the corpses which hung from the more major limbs. They were suddenly animated, and surely enough, they dropped off the being like rotten fruit off a tree, and upon getting upright, they were locked onto the hunter, while the being simply began moving back.
"You did this to me!" One of the corpses roared in an inhumane voice, tearing off their arm which seemed to have bones of metal. Now with half an army in Dilan's way, they could not falter in clearing the crowd out.
"You hunters brought about this plague!" Another screamed, throwing an arcane bolt at the hunter, hitting them in the arm, which disabled use of the pistol. Agonising for that moment, Dilan soon got back into her mindset, and began the slaughtering.
The whiplike attacks of the cane were extraordinarily effective in this environment, as the foes tried to crowd and overwhelm the hunter. Each fluid slash was but another way to end this battle, and surely enough, the crying and screaming of the reanimated corpses ceased. Now, the being became enraged. A loud shriek came from its form, as many of its arms and legs began to simply fall off, the resulting blood being something of a relief to Dilan. The free healing was certainly a nice bonus to this peculiar event.
"SO BOLD ARE THEE, TO TAKE ON ONE SUCH AS WE. IN THIS REALM, WE ARE FAR STRONGER THAN YOU, BUT ALAS, YOU FOIL OUR EVERY ATTEMPT. IT IS ONLY FAIR TO TELL YOU WHAT YOU ARE, HUNTER. WHY YOU'RE ABLE TO LIVE, AND DIE, ALMOST ENDLESSLY, IS DUE TO YOUR ORIGINS. YOU ARE NOT HUMAN. YOU ARE A CELESTIAL," The being ranted on, as the arms and legs continued shedding, until finally, only the gruesome core remained. It stood on two legs, and had two arms, just like any average human. The large masses of bodies joined together, however, ruined this image completely. The runes which once flowed around the edge of the bodies had faded, and fell off as the being came near Dilan. "BORN IN THE STARS, YOU WERE," The being now seemed to take on a more pleasant, womanly voice, but alas it was still rather loud and booming in this place. "MADE FOR PURPOSES THAT HUMAN MIND OF YOURS CANNOT COMPREHEND. AT YOUR CORE, YOU ARE ONE OF US, HUNTER. YOU ARE THAT WHICH BROUGHT ABOUT THIS PLAGUE, YOU ARE THAT WHICH BRINGS ABOUT DEATH WHEREVER THEY MAY WALK. WE CANNOT STOP DEATH, ONLY HASTEN ITS ADVANCE. JOIN US, SELF-MADE HUMAN, OR FOREVER BE STUCK IN YOUR IMMORTAL COIL OF INCREASING AGONY AND DESPAIR."
Dilan seemed to step back, as the being approached them, the way they spoke seemed to impact them on a level they really could not understand, not now. An intense pulling urged them to walk into the deathly embrace of the celestial which stood before them, but alas, pure willpower broke through the charade.
As the being noticed the hunter's reluctance, it began to further shed away that which made it more alien than anything. The conjoined bodies fell to the ground, and the field around them was soaked in the blood of this womanly presence which so insisted to feast upon the blood of the self-made human.
"WHAT IS WRONG, DAUGHTER? CANNOT FRONT YOUR MOTHER AFTER SO LONG, HMM? COME HERE, DARLING. WE WILL SHOW YOU TRUE LOVE, TRUE PASSION, TRUE EMOTION. YOU WILL JOIN US. YOUR BLOOD WILL BEGIN THE END OF EVERYTHING. COME NOW, DAUGHTER. ALLOW YOUR TRUE PURPOSE TO BE REALISED!" The being then seemed to grow a body on its back, which cupped its breasts and crotch, and tore away its alluring face, to reveal that of a rotting corpse, festered and diseased, writhing with maggots. "COME NOW! COME NOW! COME NOW!"
"NO! I will not become another one of your pawns! M-mother... Mother! Damn you, mother! I never asked for this! I... I don't even know what I'm saying..." The hunter clutched their head, a strong pain shooting through, before the sound of fire crackling brought them to their senses.
Just behind the celestial, there was a figure with flaming hands, holding a sword of a brilliant golden light. When they came into focus, Dilan only wished to scream in protest, of what they would then do.
The blade suck deep into the celestial, and a sharp sizzling sound ensued. While this was all fine and dandy, this did not mean it was suddenly the end. A long spear of eldritch arcane energy soon manifested, and sunk into the chest of the person who had used the sword. That person, was the Doll.
The hunter rushed at the being, their eyes blazing with fury, before they struck their cane straight through the bosom of their supposed mother, at an angle which also pierced the heart of the body which had manifested after a short time. With that moment, it was all over. Before the body could hit the floor, Dilan was straight to the Doll's side, but before getting there, they noticed a small heart still beating, where the arcane spear ended.
"My dear... Hunter..." The Doll struggled for words in her usual tone, as the hunter clutched her charred hands. "I fear that even I... Have grown a heart in this perilous place..."
"No, stop talking. Save your strength. I'll, I'll..." Dilan went to grab another blood vial, but realised she had used all of them up, and had no way to heal the Doll as she had done earlier. Tearing the arcane spear away scarred the hands of the hunter, but in this moment, they did not mind at all. Dilan sat themselves upon the Doll's lap, looking down at her face, the smile visible again, the crack in the mask enlarged again.
"It is okay... I will always be here for you. Care for you. Love you. Dear Hunter, I may not be able to... Strengthen your spirit anymore, but I believe you are strong enough, even now, to do what you must do. I love you, dear Hunter, she who could... Give me a heart, and purpose..." With that, the Doll died, and Dilan's weeping was heard throughout the Hunter's Dream. They tried to hold themselves together, but it all flowed from here. Some time elapsed, an undetermined amount of time, before they were able to pull away from the dead Doll. Closing her eyes for the last time, the hunter soon stood up, and looked back to see that the radiant sword had completely dissolved the celestial, as though it had absorbed them.
Grasped the handle, Dilan felt the flames begin to engulf her, and then, it engulfed the entire dream itself, as though this was the proper tool to get out of this place. With each second, the flames grew bigger and bigger, before Dilan would surely perish, as the Doll was cremated out of existence.
And this, as some have speculated, was how the First Flame came to be.