Safe and alone, I absorb all the souls from the soulmasses I picked up - the enormous one gives more than the other two put together, and the amount I have now is staggering. Anything could be achieved with all this, anything at all. With a humanity also burning inside me, and no other use for it, I kindle this bonfire to full strength. Kaathe watches me impassively from the edge of the fire's range.
Before I use the souls on myself, I take them, first to the giant in Anor Londo (since he sells all the titanite material I lack), then to Andre (so he can ascend it to the needed level [I actually have to talk to him, then go back to the giant to get what I need, then go back to him again]), then back to the giant (to be able to buy the rest of the needed material), and finally to Rickert, and use the souls to buy and use titanite until my bloodshield is a magic bloodshield +10 - this eventually takes the slab of blue titanite I found in the crystal cave, and yes, in the end, it does prove to be worth it. Unfortunately, the chunks of normal titanite I've gathered don't help in this endeavor, only regular and large shards do, and I have no means of breaking the chunks down. Also, I put on the Cloranthy Ring a little ways into the trip, just to keep things moving; after getting help from the giant, I have to use the bonfire outside the chamber where the illusion of Gwynevere used to be, and this is how I discover that those two Undead who were probably Blades of the Darkmoon are definitely gone for good, more's the pity. Andre and Rickert both comment that they can't make use of the embers I'm carrying - Rickert even calling them "shoddy" and suggesting an old smith out in the country - and the giant doesn't say anything about them at all; as I thought, it's that skeleton smith that wants them. But will I ever need his help? I don't think so…so I won't bother with him. And, in the end, I discover that I didn't need to spend all those souls buying and using large shards of titanite, because the shield has to be at +5, not +10, to be ascended to a magic weapon - tens of thousands of souls wasted. Still, the trip is worth it; as I suspected, being imbued with magic strengthens the shield's defense against magic - not nearly to the level of the Crest Shield, but still, a bit better than before.
After all that, I still have plenty more than enough souls to strengthen myself, so I do, working towards being able to use the Moonlight Greatsword - I'm close! That done, I think of Logan, and decide to go visit him; with my other allies dying left and right, I have more than enough reason to be concerned now. Sure enough, he's gone from his spot. But where is he? It would have to be a place where nothing could attack him - he's a peaceful fellow - and he wouldn't go back into the cell tower for any reason…that leaves the crystal cave, the grove outside, and the place where I first found Seath. The grove is closest, so I check there first. He's not here, but I do find a golden golem standing out in the middle of the space - I have to kill a couple of blue ones before I have the golden one to myself, but since it wasn't here before, it's probably worth killing. It's a pushover, and a final jumping attack kills it; when it disintegrates, someone is standing where it was. For a moment, I think it's Siegmeyer - it looks just like him, in the Catarinan armor. When I walk around to face the person and they speak, though, I find out that it's actually a girl.
"It was you who rescued me?" she asks, her voice muffled by the onion-shaped helmet, just like Siegmeyer. "Why, thank you. I am Sieglinde of Catarina. I don't know how I ended up in that crystal…It wasn't terrible in there, but I could hardly move. I must think of some way to repay you."
Fresh blood. "If you don't mind, I can think of something…I'll come to collect later, if need be," I tell her, the Dark Hand pulsing under my skin.
"Oh! Have you seen my father?" she asks abruptly, apparently unbothered by my statement. "You wouldn't miss him. A suit of armor, just like mine?"
A suit of armor just like hers. Her name is Sieglinde…"Lin", Siegmeyer had said as he was dying. Could she be…? "I…think I have, yes," I say cautiously.
"Thank goodness!" she exclaims, relief dripping from her voice. "I knew he was here somewhere. Well then, now I must find him. Thanks again, truly. Now if he'll just stay put, and keep out of trouble."
It's a bit late for that, but it's really not my business to tell her. Maybe after I've sucked her dry…For now, I give her a knightly bow, and go. A blue chunk of titanite I didn't notice when I took down the two blue golems glimmers for me to pick up on the way back to the ladder up to the tower. Logan isn't here, and I don't want to explore the crystal cave unless I must; that leaves the room at the top of the tower where Seath used to be. Apart from one arrow catching me, nothing happens on the way up; I drink from my Estus Flask when the lift brings me to the top just to be safe. Then, I climb to the top of the stairs, look through the doorway, and see Logan…naked except for a loincloth and his big hat.
Oh dear. His catalyst and shield are drawn, and he'll probably attack me like Solaire did - he's not Hollow, his skin (which I can see far too much of) is full and healthy, but whatever sort of madness has struck him, he's almost certainly unstable. Raising my shield, I walk into the room to meet him. He says nothing, just comes at me and attacks. Most of the fight, he keeps his shield up, a small leather one; he only moves it to swipe with a sword or raise his catalyst to cast magic. Only once do I let him finish casting a spell; it's something identical to that beam of power Seath breathed across the ground to make crystal spikes sprout up. Other than that, I don't give him a chance to attack, and after three total swipes of my sword, he's dead. Still he says nothing as he falls and fades away. Where he was, he leaves behind his big hat and his catalyst - which has become crystallized - and the magic he was using: White Dragon Breath, a powerful and hard-to-use spell that does indeed mimic Seath's magic, though the crystals don't curse. Something about his infatuation with Seath the Scaleless drove him to this, of that much I am certain; I can't use any of the things he leaves behind, but that's okay.
Looking at this magic, I remember that Dusk of Oolacile still has some spells to teach me, one of which being a repair spell worth its weight in souls, and the other two seemingly useless but definitely affordable to me now. I go to see her, transporting myself to the church bonfire and going down through the outer edge of Darkroot Garden. Overconfidence nearly gets me killed with the blue crystal golems outside the lake, as they fall in three swings of my sword, but I cut them down. Dusk greets me happily, and I learn all the rest of her magic. While I'm here, I jump in the lake to clean off - I've been to the top and bottom of the world, I'm sweaty and filthy. As I clean up, I think on it, and realize Griggs offered a spell that Logan didn't; I'm collecting magic anyway, I might as well see if he'll give it to me. Did Ingward have a magic, too…? If so, will he give it to me even though I'm a Darkwraith? Well, there's no harm in checking.
Really, I'm just looking for things to do. It's hard to believe how close I am…the soul of the Witch of Izalith was right in front of me, though I didn't go for it - once I have that, I will be able to face and kill Lord Gwyn; I need to be sure I'm ready. Miracles aren't for me, and pyromancy is too limited; the least I can do is learn all the magic in Lordran. Will it help me? Maybe not, but it won't hurt to try. Relatively clean, I run down to the bonfire outside drake valley to dry off, then take it to Firelink Shrine where Griggs still waits.
"Can you teach me more sorcery?" I ask him.
"Oh, hello," he says. "Well of course I could teach you more sorceries, but…now that you've found Master Logan, I don't imagine I can be of much help."
"You can," I assure him, not feeling a need to tell him that I just put Master Logan out of his madness-induced misery. There's one spell here I didn't know, Aural Decoy; it's cheap, and I buy it. "Thank you," I tell him.
"All right. That'll do it," he says. "That should help you on your journey. May we meet again."
We probably won't, as I have everything I could possibly want from him now, but I don't say that. Instead, I go down to the New Londo Ruins, where I now feel more at home than ever, using a cursed arm to cut through the ghosts that stand in my way. By no means am I careful, running into rooms without killing anything I know will be behind me and swinging my sword, but only one drink of Estus gets me to Ingward - it also only takes the one cursed arm, but two ghosts give me two more each on the way.
"Magnificent," Ingward says when I approach. "You defeated the Four Kings. Impressive, even for a bearer of the Lordvessel. And with this, my purpose is exhausted. I have not seen the sun for a long time. Perhaps I could do with a change…"
And that's all. He doesn't offer me anything, not even to break a curse if I have one. What's more, his words make me uneasy - no matter that he doesn't seem to realize I'm a Darkwraith and am following Kaathe, moving from a long-held place has meant only death for the other people I've recently seen travel. Slightly concerned, I return to Firelink Shrine. It's not really a problem - he would have served Lord Gwyn, he helped seal away the Four Kings and Darkstalker Kaathe with them - but still, all this change really makes the fact that I'm near the end sink in. After I rest at the bonfire in Firelink Shrine, however, I turn around, and see a patch of red among some of the still-standing ruins. Ingward is here now! Still uneasy, I approach him.
"Hello," I say hesitantly. "How…are you?"
"Oh, hello," he says cheerfully. "The sunlight made me wince, and now I've come back to this dark hole! So what brings you here? I will help you in any way I can."
"Do you know any sorceries?" I ask him.
He knows one, just the one - a spell to counter curse buildup. It's cheap, so I take it; with that, I have obtained all of the sorceries in Lordran. Sure, I can't use a fair amount of it, but I'll have a lifetime - an eternity - to improve and master them, as the Dark Lord.
I bid Ingward farewell, and he nods in return. Then, at last, I go back down to the firelands - it's time to get that last soul. Resting at this point is out of the question - I'm so very, very nearly there! In my eagerness, I'm so fast to go that I actually see the lift rise up to the bell tower as I run out to use it - before, it was up by the time I got there. The shortcut is open now, and just as I'm descending the first root, I think to equip the Slumbering Dragoncrest Ring and ready Hidden Body so I can sneak up on the crystal lizard. Two hits of my sword are all I manage to get on it, it escapes me at the last minute; I don't care. The headless demon is back, so I cast Hidden Body again and run past it - I don't want to bother with it right now. This gets me past it, and then I swap out the Slumbering Dragoncrest Ring for the Flame Stoneplate Ring, cut my way through a bunch of fire-breathing statues, and make it to the wall of white light nearly unharmed.
The last Lord. This will be tricky, she warns me, but at this point, she can't hide the solution from me. It is a trick - hardly a fight, more like a puzzle. On the other side of the white light is a ramp; I slide down it, down and down and down, and at the bottom, I discover the source of all these weird roots: the Bed of Chaos, a creature apparently made from roots and fire. Two orbs of orange light flank it, and I know I need to destroy them. Not even taking the time to look at the beast with fingers and a face made of rooty tentacles, I run to the right; once I'm sheltered among the roots twisting around inside the orb, I swing my sword at the branches in front of me, bashing my way through to where something glows, and I break it. Fire erupts on the monster's back, and claws sprout from the flames; this was expected, but when I try to run to the other side, the floor crumbles right in front of me as a claw swipes me, and I fall to my death - though I could have survived the hit.
One down - I just have to break the other, then work my way into its core. Back at Firelink Shrine is where I rise, but that's okay, it's not too much further away from my destination than the closest bonfire; I use a Humanity sprite, then descend. This gives me another chance to catch the lizard, and I try the same tactic; I get it this time, and get two chunks of twinkling titanite - whether or not I'll ever use them, I don't know, nor do I care. Nearly 20,000 souls were at my death spot, but really, those don't even matter to me anymore - I just want to get to the end. The headless demon hits me in the back once, but I keep running, dodging lighting by sound and drinking from my Estus Flask to be safe. When I get to the wall of white light again, I'm a bit more hurt than last time, but another drink of Estus fixes it.
After I slide down the long, long slope this time, the first orb is already broken; I don't bother trying to recover my death spot, I just head for the one to my left - the souls don't matter compared to what I'm really here for. The ground crumbles under my feet, though, and I fall to my death. That's okay; now my death spot will be on the way. I use another Humanity sprite, then go back again. No need to worry about the lizard this time, I only use the Slumbering Dragoncrest Ring and Hidden Body to get past the headless demon. So close…so close…! I'm so eager, I accidentally cast Fall Control a second time when I get to the bridge, and I have to wait for it to wear off before I can cast Hidden Body, because those spells can't both be active at the same time; the wait is agony. It almost doesn't matter anyway - the demon very nearly kills me. Still, I survive, and I take a drink of Estus and keep going. Another swig of Estus before the white light is all I need; my death spot is even at the top of the ramp!
This time, I'm a bit slower in how I proceed, and I avoid falling into the holes that open up, though I'm very close at one point. Cautiously, I dodge, and dodge, staying on the outside edge…when I get close to my goal, the gap in the floor splits all the way across to a root by the wall, blocking me. "Damn," I mutter, running back around. "Damn, damn, damn…" Taking the inside path brings me within range of the monster's long, rooty fingers, and it swipes at me. Once, I survive, drink Estus, and run; twice, I survive, drink Estus, and run; thrice, I block it, and then I'm there. Again, I smash my way through branches to the thing that glows, and it breaks. More glowing, clawed roots sprout from the fire on the beast's back. Yes, I'm so close…While I try to get ready for what I need to do, it starts summoning fire storms that erupt through the floor; I figure I'm safe here, way in this corner and out of its reach, but I turn out to be wrong, and I die.
It's fine, it's fine. Both orbs of force are broken now, and the floor is crumbling…the only thing left is, well, tricky, and I'm not sure I want to use Humanity sprites for this part when the last step is so fiddly…but damn it, I've come this far! Casting caution to the winds, I use my second-to-last Humanity sprite. Who knows? Maybe Ingward can spare some humanity later, if it comes to that.
Down again. I slip and fall off the first root, but Fall Control is still in effect, so it doesn't matter; maybe I'll do it this way in the future, if I ever do have to do this again. That headless demon always tries to kill me, and it always fails; a swig of Estus to heal me from what it does manage to do, another to heal the few burns I get from the statues, and I'm at the monster again. Here's where things get tricky: I can't hit this monster, but it has a weak spot hidden underneath it, and striking that with anything will kill it instantly. Getting to it, though, is tough; it's only possible when most of the floor has crumbled, and requires landing on a certain root growing beneath the floor - meaning one way or the other, I have to jump, and I'll succeed or die. That is, if I even manage to get close enough to try to make the jump at all - the spot I need to jump through is within the beast's fingers' range, and they can knock me off-course easily if I don't time this perfectly. It won't be easy…but she did it, so I can too.
When I get to it, the floor hasn't broken where it needs to yet; I have to get close enough for the monster's rage to shake it loose. This costs me a couple of hits, but I heal with Estus, and then the floor crumbles. Immediately, I run back, out of the way of the hands, and look; there's the root, right there in the middle, that must be it - it's flat and wide, I can stand on it, I know I can. All I have to do is jump to it…and this is the problem: as with my attempts to return to the Northern Undead Asylum, jumping doesn't come easily to me. Though I do time it so that the monster doesn't hit me - that part's easier than she made me believe - I barely catch the edge of it before sliding off to my death.
So close! One Humanity, one last try, that should be all it takes, right? Now that I've seen what I have to do, I've learned it, I can do it. This time, I jump down to the lair of the jumping beetles, not even bothering with the root, since I have Fall Control in effect; whether or not this is faster, I can't say, but I don't care. Along the way, I practice jumping, and am somewhat confident in my ability by the time I'm there. Neither the headless demon nor the fire-breathing statues manage to touch me this time, and I don't even remember to take off the Slumbering Dragoncrest Ring until after I traverse the wall of white light; this must be a good sign. It's the Cloranthy Ring I equip now - my biggest challenge now is jumping, not fire, so I might as well. Will it cost me? Maybe. Time to find out.
No use; I get caught between the root fingers and the flaming spikes, trying to drink Estus to keep myself safe rather than taking any opportunity to jump. All I accomplish is to recover my death spot; then, root fingers swipe at me, and a spike impales me, and I die.
Now I'm Hollow, with no means of recovering. Or is there? Ingward's here, and that Catarinan girl is at the Duke's Archives…she said she owed me, and I think it's time to collect, so I go there first. When I go out into the grove, though, she's gone. Where is she?! Something inspires me to check the underground lake, I don't know what; desperate, I try it. I warp to the dragon and run all the way to the bonfire at the other end of the lake, but Sieglinde isn't there. In that case, she's nowhere, I'm told. How do I know this? It doesn't matter. Desperate, run over to Ingward.
"Sorry old man," I mutter, and I take out the Dark Hand and grab him.
"What? No!" he gasps as I suck out his life. He does indeed have humanity to spare, and when he stands, like all the others, he doesn't say or do anything about what I just did, though he must know what my use of the Dark Hand means.
Alright, my problem is fixed, for now at least; time to try again. Like last time, neither demon nor statue manages to so much as touch me, so at least I have the path down. Now…I slide down again. Will this be it? I'm so excited, I nearly forget to swap out the Slumbering Dragoncrest Ring for the Cloranthy Ring. Everything lines up perfectly…except my jump - I jump, nearly get it, but just barely slip off.
That could not have been closer. Another humanity from Ingward ("What are you doing?!"), and I go down again. Any closer - any closer - and the last Lord Soul is mine. Yet another flawless trip, and I'm there again. This time, my jump is perfectly lined up, but the monster's hand knocks me out of the way, and I die. Damn it!
One more time. I hope Ingward doesn't run out of humanity before I make it…This time, all he says is "Cease!", and then it's back down to the pits of hell. The run isn't perfect this time - the demon almost kills me, and one of the statues burns me - but I make it, and that's what matters. Somehow, though, a claw knocks me down, and then a hand swipes me before I can even get up, and I die instantly.
Ingward's an old man, he can't have much more humanity to spare…and that means I need to go do something she used to do all the time: Humanity farming. There's a spot right next to the bonfire in the sewers where ten undead rats are swarmed, and killing them over and over gives plenty of Humanity sprites. Ahead of time, I suck out the last of Ingward's humanity ("Stop that!") to increase my chances of finding the sprites - not use it, at least not yet - then go to the sewer bonfire and do as she suggests. Greed is part of human nature, and the more humanity burns within a person, the more loot they can amass, that's just how it works; shame I only have the one. Still, doing this doesn't give me a lack of souls, either - I get 780 per run, between the ten rats and the one ragged Hollow outside the door, and if I do this enough times to be able to strengthen myself, I should have plenty of sprites *and the ability to use the Moonlight Greatsword! That's how she used to do this, anyway.
Run out, swing at Hollow; chase five rats into corner, swing until they're all dead; run to box, let rat jump out, kill it; chase rat off ledge, plunge-attack it; kill remaining three rats; run back to bonfire; repeat. Always check rat corpses to see if they're glowing before moving on. Again and again, I run through the same section of sewer. Instead of getting tiring, the repetitive task is oddly relaxing, and I find myself falling into a sort of trance. The runs start to blur past…After sixty-eight goes, I have enough souls, but I do it two more times to take it to an even 70, since I figure my equipment's getting pretty beat up by now and needs to be repaired. My next moment of full consciousness is back at Firelink Shrine.
You're welcome, whispers a voice from my pendant.
I blink the pseudo-sleep from my eyes. You did that, I think, amazed. I would never go to all that trouble, that was you.
Yes.
Shaking my head, I check to see what I got; I find a whole thirty-eight sprites in my supply. It seems to her like it should have been more than just barely over half the number of times I did runs, but when she did it, she had a special ring that boosted avarice, a ring she happened upon in Sen's Fortress that I am not going to go looking for. All the same, this should be more than enough to get me through whatever lies ahead. In celebration, I repair my equipment, restore my body with the humanity I took from Ingward hours ago, then strengthen my essence so that I can properly wield the Moonlight Greatsword…or I would, had I not slightly underestimated how many souls I needed to repair all of my equipment. But it's okay, the Hollows just outside this spot are enough to make up the difference; sheepishly, I grab what I need, then finally do what I meant to do all along.
The Moonlight Greatsword is huge, and I have to rest it on my armored shoulder just to carry it around, even now that I'm capable of using it properly. It's still a beautiful weapon. Maybe I'll never use it, but just being able to feels like a triumph. For now…to the pits of hell again.
A first for me: The headless demon manages to hit me, even nearly kills me, but none of the statues manage to so much as singe me. Then it's back to the slope; I slide down, and my death spot, oh, it's still here! Just need to make the one jump - I can do this…but not this time; I miss.
Okay, again - I have all the tries in the world now. On the way, I try practicing precision jumping with the roots growing out of the ground in the jumping beetles' territory; by the time I get through, I think I'm at least competent. Not a scratch on me, and I'm back again. Lining up the jump, timing it…and…yes! This time, I get to the root. I'm not out of danger yet, though - now I have to run under the mess of wiggling root-tentacles that is this monster's face. It manages to swipe me with its hand once, but I survive, and I don't fall off; I take a drink of Estus and keep running. This brings me to a long passage thickly blocked by brittle root-branches; I smash and smash and smash my way through, until I reach a large, black, burning thing. Before I do anything, I try to get a good look at it, figure out what it is - is that black fire and orange fire, or is it a black thing with orange fire? - but my hesitation gets me hit with a fire storm blast. Somehow, I survive, and I take a swig of Estus to be safe, then swing my sword. The thing turns out to be some sort of bug, and one blow causes it to squirm and writhe in death throes, then disappear, leaving me with the Lord Soul. Where the bug thing was, a bonfire appears.
Wow. At last, the final piece of the puzzle is in my hands. I sit down, use the souls I get from my victory, then stand up and take a closer look at the burning core of power, to see what story it might tell me. The Witch of Izalith apparently tried to duplicate the First Flame - the great Flame that Gwyn (and later, my love, as well as others) sacrificed himself to create, to keep the Age of Fire from ending - but instead created an abomination of chaos and fire, the mother of all demons. Was that bug the mother of all demons? Either way, this is a powerful soul…and it will fill the Lordvessel.
