(Author's note: Please feel free to review this story, any criticism you would like to add to the story would be greatly appreciated. Tell me what you like about the story or just something that needs to be fixed or tweaked to make the story more immersive or enjoyable. I'll try and update the story with new chapters daily or every two days for as long as I can. Enjoy!)

Dark. Dark was all that remained after the fall. The abyss was a familiar prison. A path that I have walked before. The horrors that lay there were twisted beyond all comprehension. I barely held on to the sanity that was slowly leaving my person. Before that which lay below the surface was guarded by the Abyss Watchers. The once noble class of knights who fell to the horrors that they attempted to contain. As per my duty I slayed them in my quest to link the fire. They had become mad in performing their duties. The abyss finally took hold of their senses, their duties forgotten. Only the thirst of bloodshed fueled them. They proceeded to destroy themselves, killing each other for centuries for the power of the wolf's blood. The blood of the wolf gave them immense power, a power that fleeted from one individual to another for those who had sworn themselves to the blood of the great Farron Wolf. I have encountered such a power once in that battle, and narrowly escaped with my life. Beyond the arena of the Abyss Watchers lay the Catacombs of Carthus. The stinking, unholy underground that separates this life from the next. That is where I encountered the fallen lord. He who wished to gain the trinkets and desires of this accursed world through endless war and plunder of the degrading kingdoms that littered the old world. In the end, none of these possessions could save him from the abyss. The darkness and its horrors consumed him. He cried out to the gods for protection in hopes of warding off the monstrosities that were calling for his blood. I broke these gifts bestowed upon him from the gods. Three golden bracelets that kept him from the abyss where taken in order to pursue my own destiny and open the door to the land of the endless moon. My destiny to take the souls of the lords of cinder. They were the guardians of their own age as I am for my own. I fulfilled my duty in the end. I have lost many of my companions through my journeys to find the lords. I remembered the words of a fellow knight whilst on my journey, "you face death… enough death to leave you broken... time and time again". Those words held true. Anri, the good-hearted knight, succumbed to madness and became hollow. In the end, I could not save her, with tears in my eyes I put her down, no one should have to live in such agony. Grierat, the noble thief, fell in the sewers of Anor Lando. In the end, I never told him how much his optimistic glow warmed me. Sirris of the Sunless Realms, who fell on her own accord next to the grave of her grandfather. In the end, I never thanked her for her valiant assistance with the unwilling princes of Lothric. Siegward of Catarina, the onion shaped friend who fell at the conclusion of his duty. He always knew how to give me the determination to continue on my own duty. In the end, I never told him how much I valued his friendship.

In the end, there was silence.

In the end, I couldn't save my friends.

In the end, I was alone.

I pondered at the top of the ashen peak beyond the darkened bonfire, pondering my next move. I began my decent down the peak. I began to wander the ashen wastes, alone and solemn. I do not know how long I traveled. Ash covered my entire form. My once shinned and polished armor became blackened with the endless sea of grey under the blackened sun. I paused and fell to my hands and knees in my exhaustion. I did not wish to go on. Those words entered my mind yet again, "enough death to leave you broken". I was broken, the weight of this sheer loneness penetrated my very being. There was nothing left in this world for me. No friends, no duty. Only the endless sunset met me with embrace. As I gazed upwards, I looked upon a mountain jutting out of the wastes. Its peak gazed upon the sea of ash in a shadow that darkened the western approach. With indifference, I headed toward the mountain.

The accent was steep and my suit of armor was wearing on me. It was the last shred of identity I had left. It was an armor of a lowly knight, fashioned from solid iron. It might have been on the heftier side compared to the others of their ilk, but as such offer great physical absorption in exchange for its imposing weight. It had been with me since I awoke out of my sarcophagus before I faced Ludex Gundyr, a lord of his own age who failed to awake at the tolling of the bell. He instead awaited to test the mettle of those of ash who would later follow him. As the assent became more and more steep I began to thrust my sword into the softened earth that appeared midway up the mountain as the ash began to fade. Near the top of the peak my sword failed to pierce the earth and I lost my footing. I began to fall. For how far I am not certain, no light penetrated the cavernous hole I was now being consumed by, only darkness met my gaze.

Perhaps this is the end.

The sweet release from this horrid world that had taken everyone I cared for from me.

Perhaps this is where my duty ends.

Then there was silence and darkness consumed all senses.

As I plummeted I began to reminisce about what I was, who I was before I awoke in this land of monstrosities. I had a name once, as to what it was I do not recall. I remember an encompassing battlefield. I remember the screams of the dying, the pungent odor of the dead that affronted the senses, I remember the panic in my heart. I was a squire to a kind and gentle man, alas I cannot recall his name either. I do remember his gentle touch, a tap on the shoulder that would signal that I had performed well in my practices. Indeed, he was a paternal guardian over me. I do not recollect my parents, I have none of those memories to cling to. I believe I was sixteen years of age when that day arrived. The day that I fell, it was during the harvest season, or perhaps the early coming of winter? I cannot say with certainty. My master, the gentle knight, called for me in the armory. I did as I was instructed and made my way to him. He spoke to me, "By dusk we will be attacked by a neighboring kingdom, they hunger for our land and the king hath called upon every able-bodied man to join him in his defense… which is why I am bestowing upon you this set of armor." With this he turned around and lay in my hands the helm that I wear to this day, I could feel reservation in doing this in his voice. It was silver and polished, made of iron, its metal gleaming in the midday sun. I felt both astonished and confused at his notion. To become a knight of this realm took years of training, I had not heard of another child being knighted. "Sire, how doth know that I am of honorable or strong enough of character to accept such an offering?" At this he gave a small chuckle. "I hath raised you since thou were a small child not higher than my leggings. I hath seen you train, you have the passion to become part of my ranks young one." My heart was swelling with pride at the thought of going into battle with the king's knights. I hugged him and thanked him repeatedly for this most precious of gifts he bestowed upon me. As I let go he told me, "Now remember everything I hath instilled into you, what lies ahead will test you mentally, physically, and emotionally. I wish for you to contain thyself to the rear ranks, if it looks as though the day is lost, run away, Doth thy understand?" With this he pierced me with great seriousness. I agreed to this condition. He embraced me yet again. I should have listened.

At dusk, we treaded to the open field that had been the agreed upon location to do battle, it was not even a mile from the outer walls of the castle. I had done what was asked of me by my master and stood in the fifth row of the ninth column of knights that had met to do battle that day. We stood in the open grass field for a time. Only the rustle of the fallen leaves around us stirred. The silence was finally broken at the call of a bugle from the other side of the field. With this there was a short pause. Tension filled the air as to what would come next. A knight from the column next to mine shouted, "GAZE UPON THE SKY LADS! MAKE READY!" With his I turned to face the orange colored sky turn blackened with the metal of falling arrows. I turned my iron shield upwards to protect myself. Arrows pounded my shield with an almost unrelenting force, amidst the screams of those who hit by the falling projectiles. As quickly as it had started the volley stopped. I turned my head besides me and noticed that almost the entire rank had dissolved into nothing. Arrows jutted out of the ground and out of the corpses of those who fell. I began to feel panic rising from my stomach. An insatiable plea from my mind to flee. But I had a duty to fulfill. We were the king's defenders, his most honorable of knights. No… I will not leave this place, I will stand my ground and face death with honor than desert as a coward. Others of my rank believed otherwise and some fled behind the ranks. Out of the five ranks of my column before the arrow volley only 2 remained. I ended up in the front rank of my column despite what my master had told me to do. After a pause that seemed like ages pasted, another bugle sounded into the growing silence. Some of the men beside me began to shake, some muttered prayers of protection, others stood there silently… awaiting the force that stood beyond the call of the bugle. With the end of the call I could feel the earth move. Something with the force of a thousand footsteps was pounding the earth. The sun began to set. The world becoming dark. A cold breeze filled the air as an omen of what was about to unfold. We peered into the dark, with the vibrations growing and growing in strength with the passing moments. Some of the men beside me began to cry, tears running down their shaking forms. I feared for what was in the dark… of what possess the power to move earth itself. There, in the dark. I could see a form, a massive shadow moving toward us with speed. I peered into the dark, searching for finer details. They were cavalry… knights carrying lances twice their size and pointed to a sharp bite at its end. All of them pointing toward our ranks. In the dark, I heard a man's gruff voice cry out from behind me, "MAKE READY MEN! THIS IS IT! THIS IS WHERE WE MAKE OUR STAND!" With this myself and my rank raised our shields and presented them at the ready toward the oncoming horde, our spears pointed forward in the spaces between each other's shields. As they came closer I could see their details, I could see the pointed horns that protruded out of their helms, I could see the blood red cloth that covered their rides, I could see the black of their armor that shadowed the night. I raised my spear in defense as they neared my rank. In mere moments, they clashed tearing though the rank. The sounds of guttural screams and metallic clashing met with the roar of the cavalry. My spear pierced the first knight through the chest, taking my spear with him as his mount carried his body further into the ensuing fray. I began to reach for my sword that was sheathed to my belt when my body froze. The rest of my body refused to move. My neck felt hot… I couldn't breathe… "Thou shall find thy rest here, boy." A raspy and calm voice sounded from behind me. My world soon went dark. I awoke to the tolling of the bell. I couldn't speak when I climbed out of my coffin. I made due with gestures and messages afterword, I haven't since found my voice.

I cut back at the predicament at hand.

Am I still falling?

Perhaps this is an endless…

A hard surface brought an end to my questioning and darkness enveloped me once again.

I soon awoke to notice a small ring of light around me and darkness beyond that. The abyss… have I been consumed by the abyss? Have I fallen, just as the consumed king had? Is this real death? Is this what awaits us all accursed undead at the end of our duties or have been swallowed by our own madness? I tilted my helm to the ground. Bright yellow pedals met my gaze. I slowly lifted myself to my feet and grabbed my iron greatshield and sword from the ground. I was enveloped in darkness. This was unlike the abyss I have seen before that was littered in the bones of knights and troubadours past who had fell to the monstrosities that made their resting place there. It almost seemed… peaceful. A calmness overcame me. A calmness I never had felt before. I decided that it would be most wise to continue through the darkness. The air was still, and not a soul stirred. I continued aimlessly in the darkness until a voice broke its vail.

"Howdy!"