Event 7: Holy Warrior
On a night like any other, freezing to the bone in the yard of the Undead Asylum, one Undead dared to look at the stars. The one moment of curiosity sparked the flame in another Undead, and one day the two would leave in pilgrimage. From that day forward, the awakened Undead would chase the star-gazer to the ends of the earth, always remembering the brilliant stars it had pointed to. For many months, they would never meet, each making a name for themselves. When at last they came together, the awakened Undead, Seiko, would try not to cry... And fail... And the star-gazer, Jinta, would try not to succumb to love at first sight... And also fail... But both were bad with words, and may never be able to tell each other the secrets they harbor... The secret devotion that had been there for one all along, and that would grow like starlight in the other, in an instant. In Seiko's memory, the first thing would always be Jinta's pointing finger and the stars she never would have noticed if not for him...
But Lordran has no room for love stories. In Lordran, no matter what you do or how strong you are, despair finds you. A beautiful woman, an honorable knight, a powerful mage, a brilliant adventurer, a Great Lord, an iron willed warrior, or a priest or paladin; in the end, despair always finds you. Great heroes, for ages, have fallen in Lordran. Black Iron Tarkus, Knight Artorias The Abysswalker, Hawkeye Gough, Lord's Blade Ciaran, Dragon Slayer Ornstein, Lord Gwyn, The Witch of Izalith, Quelaana, Havel The Rock, everlasting dragons, right down to every Hollow and Undead. Even the misunderstood villains purged and scorned by the many, who already live despairing lives, such as Knight Kirk or Knight Lautrec, find death in misery. It is this very misery that gave rise to Jinta and Seiko.
From the depths of Blighttown, amidst pus and muck and toxin, Seiko kindled the flame within herself until its strength and light surpassed even the suffocating Abyss. Jinta, thrust into a world he'd never known, held his original faith, the only memory he had, and bowed to the few who would be fooled into giving him the power he needed. Jinta feared not the Lords, nor did he follow some Way of White. He had but one Father, and it was by His power Jinta prevailed. By the very nature of his quest as the Chosen Undead, with any other faith, Jinta would be forced to become a heretic of the highest order. Amidst corruption, blind faith in power, and absolute authority, Jinta had held his faith and made it is strength. "Blessed" by the Way of White and ordered on suicide mission after suicide mission, Jinta never faltered. He had tasted death countless times, and always stood once more.
It was this man, as pure in heart as Seiko, who now stood before her at last. He not only knew of her, but he'd heard of her many accomplishments on the road to meet him. And as he held the power of a holy warrior with unbreakable faith, Seiko held the power of one with an unbreakable will.
"As requested, I will remind you where the four Lord Souls you require reside." Kingseeker Frampt began telling Jinta as much as he knew while Seiko regained her composure.
"So, then, the best idea would be to go for Nito first? It'll be easier than the others, it's close, and I may be able to help out another Way of White follower's mission. Should we not first feed the Lord Soul Seiko retrieved to the Lordvessel first?"
Frampt agreed, and this time Seiko allowed him to take her to the Lordvessel, deep underground. She quickly placed her Lord Soul into the vessel and returned to the surface where Jinta waited. Now that she'd found him, she wasn't leaving. If he meant to go into the catacombs in search of Gravelord Nito, First of the Dead, she would go as well. After all, Undead trembled before Pyromancy. Seiko didn't yet know, however, that Jinta was something far worse for them than a Pyromancer. A short walk away and down a staircase carved into the side of the cliff, and the two were already descending into the catacombs. Out of the darkness, as if waiting for them, came several skeletons given life by foul magic. Three at once came swinging curved swords, all aiming for Jinta first. Jinta walked toward them, not the slightest bit afraid. He drew his own curved sword, a holy falchion, and cut them down one blow each. Their bones shattered so easily, Seiko questioned if they hadn't simply been made of clay.
Not far down and the two reached their first obstacle. A door lay before them, sealed tight and protected by magic from damage. Seiko found a broken wall, and inside a massive mechanism for opening the door. Before she could operate it, however, there was a necromancer she would have to deal with. The old man, his age forcibly extended with magic, saw her as she saw him, and launched a basic fireball at her. Seiko walked right through it, tendrils of the Abyss snapping out of her in the shape of black chains and cutting through the fireball. Seiko drew back a fist and slammed it into the necromancer, crushing him against the wall. She turned to the switch and activated the door, then exited to find Jinta. She found him just outside the break in the wall, sword drawn.
"What was that crash?!" he asked, concerned.
Seiko looked around, nervously. She raised a hand and a fist, planting her knuckles in her palm.
"Oh! Are you alright? Forgive my concern, I just don't know what you're capable of."
Seiko took the opportunity to punch through a brick pillar next to her. It had already been broken from the ceiling, but remained sturdy... Until Seiko sent it crumbling to the ground like any normal person would wave at a friend.
Jinta didn't say anything, and his face was hidden behind his gold paladin's helmet. He sheathed his sword and continued through the door. Seiko stayed behind him.
Through the maze of the catacombs, ever downward, the two proved to be the perfect team for eliminating the Undead. Skeletons killed by Jinta's holy sword could not be raised again by nearby necromancers, and no fireball of those old men could outdo Seiko's blue flames. It wasn't until the two entered a cavern littered with piles of bones and puddles of water that they had trouble. Skeletons wedged into wooden wheels with metal spikes came rolling at them out of the darkness, ready to grind them into ribbons. If they weren't enough, a Black Knight ambushed the two as well. It was Seiko's first time dealing with one, but Jinta had fought them before. Stronger than the Silver Knights of Anor Londo, and holding a black greataxe, the Black Knight didn't care if they were already under attack. The giant frame took its chances, pressing the advantage. Again when Seiko would have retreated to fight from a distance, Jinta charged in. Taking something from his belt in his left hand, Jinta began some incantation. He jumped to avoid a swing from the Black Knight's ax, thrusting a bundle of white cloth forward.
"...Wrath Of The Gods!"
For a moment, Seiko felt like she had gone deaf. An explosion of white light, centered on Jinta, and knocked the Black Knight over, killed several skeletons, and blinded all the others. Jinta landed, sheathed his sword and drew a different one. Holy rapier in hand, Jinta pierced the armor of the Black Knight over and over, moving with grace and skill. He dodged the heavy ax of the Black Knight, trusting Seiko with the skeletons. With no necromancers near, Seiko formed her Flame Bow and rained fire on the rotating skeletons as they approached. Whatever rapier it was that Jinta had, it also allowed him some manner of slashing attacks, which he employed as he rotated around his foe, stabbing and slashing endlessly. In the darkness, his attacks traced white streaks of holy magic as the blade passed through its target over and over. The Black Knight fell long before the last skeleton and Jinta switched to stabbing the skeletons as he dodged them. In moments the fight was over. Jinta's armor, trailing white cloth, had received a few new rips, and the bottom of Seiko's coat was shredded from a near miss, but both were doing quite well.
"Excellently done! Do you feel exhausted at all, or shall we continue?" asked Jinta. He sheathed his rapier in favor of his falchion again, placing the wad of cloth he'd used back on his belt.
"Continue," said Seiko quietly, since just shaking her head may have confused him.
And so they did, walking on until they came to what appeared to be a huge coffin buried in the ground. Inside, piles of books lined the walls, a pool of clear water covered most of the floor, and a bloated figure worked at a table on the opposite end. With no other way down, Seiko and Jinta jumped. Jinta went to one knee, his equipment relatively heavy. Seiko, with her bow, arrows, and simple clothes, landed without issue. That was without taking into account her colossal strength. The figure, wrapped in black cloth, turned from its work at the table, a human skeleton, and threw fireballs at them from the lanterns in its six hands. As Jinta dodged and Seiko threw her own fire to cancel a few of the attacks, the figure vanished. It reappeared behind Seiko, striking her in the ribs with a metal lantern, then in the back with another. She flew forward, face-first into the water. Ankle deep, it was enough to soak her hair and push her face underwater. Seiko lifted her head in time to see Jinta deflect several blows and swipe at the enemy with his falchion. He missed and the figure vanished again. Seiko was getting frustrated. She didn't take kindly to enemies that didn't stay still and put up a fight. When the enemy appeared behind her again, she was expecting it. Jinta would quickly learn to respect her with what happened next.
Seiko caught the first attack, holding the figure's boney arm tightly. Unable to escape, the figure frantically swung at her, its three masked faces squirming. Spikes of Abyss lanced from Seiko's body, morphing through her clothes instead of ruining them, and impaling the figure. It squirmed, still very much alive, but in pain. With her free hand, Seiko summoned a flame and slammed it on the ground, through the water. Pillars of blue flame erupted all around her and the necromancer she held captive. When the mist of evaporated water cleared, Seiko stood alone, holding the charred boney arm of what was left of the enemy.
"M... M'lady?" said Jinta, cautious.
"I don't like cowards..." said Seiko, dropping the arm. It clattered to the watery floor with the melted lantern still clutched in its hand.
"And it's Seiko..." she continued, still sounding annoyed.
"I'll make sure to remember," said Jinta, greatly surprised. He'd known she could hold her own, but he had never seen her blue flames other than the Flame Bow she'd used earlier. And no one yet knew she harbored some of the Abyss.
Seiko took a moment to get out of the water, removing her coat and placing it near a lit torch to dry. Undead or not, being wet and cold this far underground was uncomfortable and unwise. Seiko sat near the torch, now in just her short-shorts and bikini-like top. Her two sacks full of arrows and her sized-down bow rested beside her. Seiko took off her boots and gloves last, drying them with a flame of her own making before setting them aside. Lastly, she began squeezing some water out of her hair and waiting for it to dry.
More concerned with the stacks of books and what the necromancer had been working on, Jinta had crossed the room to investigate. His metal boots blocked out the water as long as he didn't make too big of a splash with his steps. He didn't see a thing that Seiko was doing. He found that the figure they'd fought had been making more skeleton minions, but disregarded the magic it spoke of. Jinta couldn't use sorcery, nor did he want to learn, especially to raise the bones of the dead. He found a journal which detailed several "clerics" who had stolen something and retreated further into the cave system. Whatever they'd stolen, this necromancer saw it as a very important item, and had been building up to follow them. If something strong enough to rule over the catacombs had been building up for what was further in, Jinta thought he and Seiko should proceed carefully.
When Jinta turned to share his findings with Seiko, he was met quite unexpectedly by the sight of her half asleep while waiting to dry. Just by the sight of her, Jinta felt an intense physical attraction. Pale skin in the warm light of the fire, half-dry hair, eyes closed, body mostly exposed. Granted, Seiko didn't have much of a figure to speak of, but were Jinta honestly questioned, he would agree that such a fact only added to her appeal.
To gather his thoughts, and get her attention, Jinta cleared his throat, leaving his helmet on. He had no idea if he could properly hide his expressions anymore, after so long by himself. Seiko opened her bright blue eyes and looked at him, waiting for him to speak. Jinta told her what he'd found, expressing his concern for the clerics that had been mentioned. A group from the Way Of White had been sent to retrieve something from the catacombs, but Jinta feared they were trapped further in. Since they were going in anyway, Jinta planned to help them escape first.
"We should," said Seiko on the subject. "But first, rest..."
"Rest? What about them?" asked Jinta.
"Can't leave... Too tired..."
"Was it all the Pyromancy?"
Seiko nodded.
"Then please, stand. I can help."
Seiko cocked her head in question, but did as he asked.
Once again, Jinta drew the bundle of white cloth from his belt, placing a hand on Seiko's shoulder. Jinta breathed out, relaxing. Again, he recited some incantation, holding the cloth close.
"... by holy Soothing Sunlight," he finished.
As if the bright summer sun had shone through into the depths of the catacombs, Seiko felt a warm light wash over her. In seconds, her exhaustion and sleepiness were dispelled. Just as Jinta had said, it was a very soothing effect.
"Better?" he asked, replacing the cloth on his belt.
Seiko nodded.
"So now we wait for your outfit to dry, then we press on. Agreed?"
Another nod. And a smile this time...
Event 8: Light Devouring Domain coming soon... (Sooner with Rengoku now complete...)
Author Note: Not much to say this time. I was going to include more with this, but I think it's better to save it for the next event. If anyone's ever been to The Tomb of Giants, especially by accident (I got trapped there because I didn't know what it was), you know how terrifying it can be. With all those souls on me, it was a massive relief to find the bonfire not too far ahead. From there, however, I had to save the priestess, and far to early for my level... It was hard, but that's why I love Dark Souls!