The Hunter opened his eyes and found himself staring up at the sky, with the bright sun shining directly above him. He couldn't help but crack a smile upon seeing the sun. How long had it been since he last saw that beautiful burning orb in the sky? How long had that seemingly eternal night of the hunt lasted? It could have been anywhere from a few weeks to several eons with Formless Oedon ensuring the Night of the Hunt lasted forever until his poor still born child, Mergo, was finally put to rest.
His smile fell as he realized something that terrified him. Why could he remember the hunt? He submitted to Gherman's mercy. He had fulfilled his end of the contract! Why could he still remember everything?! It should have been like little more than a fading dream to him!
Panicking, he pushed himself up and looked down at himself. He found himself still wearing his Bone Ash armor. His threaded cane and flame sprayer were both attached to his hips at the moment, ready and waiting to be used.
A sense of cold dread filled him. It seemed that despite the Night of the Hunt being over, his time as a Hunter was not yet done. "I see… Very well…" He muttered in grim resignation.
Taking a deep breath through his nose he smelled the scent of blood and death. He could tell it permeated this entire city, though not nearly to the same extent that it had permeated Yharnam. The scent in this particular area was somewhat faded but still present. Someone had died in this very alleyway just a week or two ago if he wasn't mistaken. With all of his vast insight, he could easily see past the veil to look at the slowly fading imprint the victim's soul had left on the world before the victim's death, repeating the victim's last moments. It seemed that they had been shot in the chest by someone and were left to die. Unfortunate, but not particularly relevant to his current situation, and completely irrelevant to his hunt.
He began casually walking away. Exiting the alleyway he looked around and saw himself surrounded by tall buildings with architecture unlike anything he had ever seen before. Crowds of strangely dressed people were walking around on the large solid gray slabs of stone lining the ground. Metal carriages without horses rolled down what appeared to be roads made of black and yellow gravel. Large lantern posts unlike anything he had ever seen lined the black gravel roads and he couldn't help but wonder how people reached the lanterns themselves to light them every night considering how unreasonably tall they were and the fact the lanterns themselves hung over the roads on the ends of what appeared to be metal poles.
And oddly enough he didn't see any Amygdalas or any other forms of Great Ones anywhere, which came as a shock to him considering the sheer amount of insight he had. They just weren't there. But why? This was clearly a city, and the Amygdalas were usually everywhere in major population centers. He couldn't help but find the fact they were entirely absent mildly concerning.
People in the crowd seemed to notice him and started backing away in fear. Some reached into their pockets and pulled out strange devices that they pointed at him. When nothing came of them pointing the devices at him, he decided they weren't a threat and continued on his way, the crowd parting around him as he walked. He could smell their fear and uncertainty and wondered why. Did they know he was a hunter? It was a possibility, but his gut was telling him 'no'. Then was it the way he was dressed? Perhaps. His bone ash attire was indeed quite terrifying. Perhaps he should have changed before leaving the alleyway.
He shrugged mentally. He honestly didn't care if they feared him. Many people were terrified of him back in Yharnam due to the fact he was a hunter. So why should it be any different here?
Continuing walking randomly through the strange grid-like streets he noticed something. A subtle rumble from under the ground that was steadily growing in intensity. At first he thought it may have been a normal earthquake, but… no… It was increasing too steadily for that. Instead of coming in waves it was just one constant shaking that was somehow growing stronger.
As it kept growing in intensity the hunter decided to shove his threaded cane into the void, causing it to vanish in a puff of mist. He then drew the Holy Moonlight Sword from the void and ran his hand along the blade causing it to transform into its true form. He didn't quite know what to expect here, but he wasn't about to take any chances.
The ground shook, and shook, and shook. Buildings started collapsing from the intensity of the shaking. People started screaming and stumbling as they tried to keep their balance. The ground began to crack and split open.
Maintaining his balance with supernatural ease, the hunter stepped away from a crack forming almost directly under him and looked directly towards where he could already see the epicenter of the earthquake was. The ground at the epicenter split open and lava came blasting out as a massive horned abomination nearly fifty feet tall burrowed its way up out of the ground. It had gray leathery skin covered with fresh magma and obsidian-like crags, some of which reached ten feet in length. Its body was a musclebound caricature halfway between a human and a bear. Its claws, if they could even be described as such, were merely mangled growths of obsidian-looking material and its arms were as thick as oak trees. In a gap between two obsidian-like horns was a single red, glowing eye. Its mouth was a jagged gap, lined by irregular horn-like growths.
It roared furiously and slammed its claws together resulting in an explosion of force that caused buildings in a wide area around it to completely collapse. People and horseless carriages nearby were effectively vaporized from the sheer force of it.
For the hunter's part, he had withstood worse. Much worse. Stabbing the Holy Moonlight Sword into the ground he held himself firmly in place and resisted being blown backwards.
Breathing in through his nose he smelled the creature, as far away from him as it was. It had blown quite a bit of its smell towards him when it exploded with force. Sulfur and burning magma permeated the air, but the hunter ignored them. Those weren't what he was looking for. Sifting past the smell of the sulfur and magma, he detected a whiff of a Kin… No. Not a Kin. Something similar but different… Using his in depth knowledge of the arcane and his near Kin or Great One levels of insight he eventually deduced what it was. A sentient construct with autonomy. And a powerful construct at that. One that could only have been made via the influence of a Great One. Why? The Hunter had no idea. He had never seen anything like it before as the Great Ones never operated this way, to his knowledge. What had these people done to anger a Great One so much as to earn such a harsh reprisal?
The hunter frowned slightly. He didn't like that he was going to have to fight such a powerful creature in the middle of a city on the physical plane. The destruction could potentially be immense. Especially since this one in particular didn't seem to have any regard for human casualties or property damage.
The creature began unleashing a storm of fire, lightning, and raw kinetic energy upon the city annihilating everything around it.
Snarling under his skeletal mask the hunter charged forwards with the Holy Moonlight Sword at the ready. His body easily broke the sound barrier as he moved. He rushed into the storm of fire and lightning without a second thought. Once he got within a certain distance of the creature he quickly discovered intense heat was filling every inch of his body and he was being bombarded with radiation. He gritted his teeth and pressed forwards in spite of this. His insides were just as resilient as his outsides, and he could fight on par with full on Great Ones. Beings who could rend apart the very fabric of reality or bend it to their will to accomplish things mere mortals could never hope to comprehend. Gods. This being was powerful but it was no god.
Once he was close enough, the hunter launched himself into the air and struck at the beast. Stabbing the Holy Moonlight Sword into the obsidian crags of its chest he charged the sword with arcane energy and unleashed a powerful blast directly into the creature causing its entire chest to effectively explode. The hunter allowed himself to be blown back by his own explosion and pulled A Call Beyond out of the void. As he was flying back through the air he used the hunter's tool and unleashed a barrage of miniature stars of arcane energy at the massive burning monster.
It raised its arms to block the barrage causing a series of smaller but still quite deep craters to be blasted out of its obsidian flesh. Roaring in fury it raised its claws up and slammed them into the ground. More of the city was leveled as an even stronger blast exploded out from the creature. The ground shattered, small canyons formed, and lava erupted out of the ground.
Unable to easily stop himself while he was mid air, the hunter was thrown across the entire city by the sheer force of the explosion. He crashed through several dozen buildings before eventually coming to a stop.
He smelled blood.
Reaching behind him, he found his back was absolutely covered in blood. Wiping some off he brought it closer to his face and smelled it. Human. Not his. His body must have pulverized several people as he crashed through the buildings. Unfortunate.
He mentally said a prayer to the Great Ones for those who he had inadvertently killed before getting back up as another earthquake rocked the city. Jumping down off the building, the hunter landed on the cracked stones below and began rushing back towards the fiery beast fast enough his body caused an explosion in its own right and no mortal eye could possibly hope to see him moving.
Once he deemed that he was close enough the hunter pulled Madara's whistle out of the void. His skeletal mask didn't allow him to put it up to his lips but just holding it close to his face and channeling arcane energy through it was sufficient for the whistle to produce its sound and do its work.
A massive nightmarish serpent erupted out of the ground before coiling around and biting the massive burning creature hard enough to crack its stony exterior. The monster roared in agony and unleashed a massive blast of lightning that forced the serpent off of it. The serpent thrashed around for a moment before hissing furiously. It then lunged directly for the massive burning creature's head.
The hunter continued "blowing" into the whistle for some time as the two monsters duked it out. That was until he saw a beam slam into the creature which seemed to outright erase chunks of it. It reminded him of certain attacks he had suffered at the hands of the Amygdala and Rom.
At that point the hunter stopped channeling arcane energy into the whistle and allowed the serpent to go back from whence it came so as to ensure it wouldn't be hit by the beam.
He then summoned the Accursed Brew from the void before charging forwards. Rushing around behind the beast, the hunter leaped up onto its back and began climbing up to its head. It thrashed about, intensifying the heat around it, unleashing blasts of kinetic energy and bolts of lightning to try to get the hunter off as he slashed and stabbed into the beast's back as he continued to climb. Once he reached the back of the monster's neck, he stabbed the Holy Moonlight Sword in and anchored himself in place before spraying the monster with a concoction of curses from the Accursed Brew.
It roared and tried to slam a claw into the back of its neck to get the hunter off of it.
Seeing this, the hunter ripped his sword out of the back of the creature's neck before launching himself up to the top of the monster's head. He then launched himself down the front of the monster's head and proceeded to stab it in its single glowing eye. Letting the accursed brew disappear he summoned the Blacksky Eye to his hand and began unleashing meteor shaped balls of cosmic energy into the beast, blasting massive chunks out of its head. Right as it was about to smack itself in the face in an attempt to crush him, the hunter charged the Holy Moonlight Sword with arcane energy yet again. The resulting explosion was enough to destroy well over half the creature's head.
He was once again sent flying back from the explosion only to be caught mid air by something. Looking, he saw it was a woman. She was quite muscular, had long straight black hair, was wearing strange black attire with a skirt, knee high boots, and elbow length gloves. A symbol of a tower was emblazoned on her chest. She was wearing a wide heavy cape that flapped in the wind.
But none of that mattered to the Hunter. No. From the close proximity, the Hunter could smell the touch of a Great One on the woman and that was what truly caught his attention… Other than the fact she was somehow able to fly.
A hunter? No… She didn't smell like a hunter. Not from the Workshop, nor the Church, nor from Cainhurst. She was not a hunter. But then what on Earth was she? He didn't have the time to think about this. He was going to have to figure it out later.
"Greetings, madam. Thank you for the assistance. It would have been quite inconvenient to have to run back here yet again."
"We're going to have to talk later. For now, do you think you can handle getting close to Behemoth again?" The woman asked.
"Of course! But first…" The hunter proceeded to slash the Holy Moonlight Sword at the creature. A wave of arcane energy that continued to expand in size the further it got away from the hunter rushed towards the monster which was somehow still alive despite having half of its head missing. The wave crashed into the monster and blew a huge chunk out of its entire torso, its chest having mostly regenerated from the first time the hunter had stabbed it. The creature stumbled and even fell over onto its back.
The hunter then let the Holy Moonlight Sword vanish and summoned the Blacksky Eye to his hand. He then began unleashing tiny meteor shaped bolts of cosmic energy at the creature all of which hit with enough force to completely shatter the entire city, had the energy not been so densely concentrated into individual points. The resulting detonations blasted even more chunks out of the creature.
"Alright madam, please drop me." The Hunter requested.
The woman started flying down towards the ground only for the two of them to be struck by a powerful blast of lightning. The hunter growled as the electricity coursed through him. The woman, however, barely seemed to notice. "You okay?" She asked again.
"Yes. It just stung a bit. I've taken far worse than this before." The hunter stated.
Suddenly a pillar of light slammed into the massive creature. It injured it but not nearly as much as the hunter or the man in green and white had been able to. Looking towards the source, the hunter saw another flying man wearing strange white and blue attire. The man continued to blast the creature with more and more beams of light from a distance.
Finally the woman dropped the Hunter just a few feet above the massive creature, which had gotten back up after being knocked over. Snarling, the hunter slammed the Holy Moonlight Sword into its shoulder. This time he didn't stab it and cause another explosion. Rather he cleaved straight down and unleashed a wave of arcane energy strong enough that he actually severed the monster's right arm entirely. It roared as its limb fell to the ground.
Before it could do anything else the hunter slashed again and completely decapitated the monster before slashing yet again and annihilating about half of the creature's torso. At this point it seemed to decide to cut its losses and flee as it bent down and began burrowing back into the ground from whence it came.
The Hunter was forced to jump off its back so as to not be swallowed into the Earth as it fled. He landed in the magma formed by the beast as it destroyed everything. He snarled and began cursing furiously. His prey had escaped!
"COME BACK HERE YOU WRETCHED BEAST! I AM NOT DONE WITH YOU! I'LL FIND YOU! I'LL HUNT YOU TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH AND I WILL PUT YOU DOWN LIKE THE RABID DOG YOU ARE! YOU WILL NEVER ESCAPE ME!" The hunter roared at the shattered ground.
The man in green and white landed next to him followed by the woman in black and man in blue and white. Putting a hand on the hunter's shoulder in an attempt to calm him, the green and white man said, "Just let it go. It'll be back eventually. And you'll definitely have another chance to fight it when it shows itself again. For now, I think we have some things we need to discuss. Would you mind following us back to the main PRT station here? That is, assuming it's still in one piece."
"Fine. But give me a moment. I severed the beast's arm. I intend to take it as a trophy." The Hunter growled before marching off over the broken magma covered ground towards the massive severed arm.
"Uh… Carrying that thing around wouldn't be particularly convenient considering its size." The blue and white man stated, following the hunter.
"It doesn't need to be." The hunter responded as he grabbed the massive arm and proceeded to rip it up out of the lava. Holding it above his head he banished it to the void where he stored most of his equipment, causing it to vanish in a large puff of mist. "There. I have it stored away. Will its size be an inconvenience now that it is no longer even in the physical world?"
"No. It shouldn't be a problem. Now, are you ready to go?" The woman in black asked.
"I doubt it is going to return any time soon, so I suppose I am." The hunter grumbled, glaring at the ground again.
"Good. I saw how fast you could move, even if you can't fly. So just follow us." The woman stated before floating back up into the air. The two men followed suit. The three of them began flying away.
The hunter ran after them, easily keeping pace with them even on foot as he was.
They arrived in front of a particular building within a minute or so. Landing, the blue and white man said, "Thank god it's still intact."
The four of them then walked into the building. The interior was a mess, but not destroyed beyond repair. It would take some work but it could definitely be cleaned up easily enough.
Inside they met individuals who were talking to strange devices that they held up to their ears. The woman in black approached one of the individuals and requested directions. After receiving them, she led the group to a room deeper in the mess of a building.
Said room had a wide circular table in the center with chairs, metal drawers, and pieces of parchment scattered across the ground. The hunter picked up one chair, set it up right and sat down in it. The others quickly followed suit.
"So, I suppose introductions are in order. I'm Eidolon, this is Alexandria, and Legend." The man in green and white said, motioning to the woman in black and man in blue and white.
"Titles, I presume? I doubt those are your actual names." The hunter asked.
"You would be correct. Those are the names we took when we became capes in order to protect our civilian identities." Alexandria stated.
"I see. How convenient because for my part I truly can not remember my real name. However I am a hunter of beasts, in whatever shape they may come in. So if you must call me something, I suppose 'Hunter' shall do just fine." The hunter told them.
"You can't remember your name?" Legend inquired.
"Unfortunately, no. I can't remember anything about my past before… Well it's not important. Let's just say, I had a very long night. And while I have several very vivid memories of the night, much of it is just a blur of blood and violence." The hunter explained.
"Do you remember where you are? Or what year it is?" Eidolon inquired.
"Oh, no. You misunderstand. It's not a matter of remembering where I am. This is definitely not the place I was before. In fact, at the risk of you thinking me a madman, which admittedly is not far from the truth, I have reason to believe this may not even be the same world I am originally from. For example the architecture of the buildings is completely foreign to me. While I am missing my memories of my original life I can and do occasionally get feelings about things that are familiar to me even if I don't know how. Nothing I have seen thus far since I awoke here just an hour or two ago has invoked such feelings in me. Strange architecture, people wearing strange attire, you three wearing even stranger attire, metal carriages that somehow move without horses… It's all very odd to me."
Eidolon, Alexandria, and Legend looked at each other for a moment before looking back at him. "Actually, a little over a decade ago there was a man who made a portal between universes. So you being from another world isn't as far fetched as you might think. That being said, earlier you claimed to have survived worse than Behemoth. Elaborate, please."
"Truly? Interesting… Hm… How much do you know about the Great Ones? Or blood ministration?" The hunter inquired, cautiously.
"We might call them something else… What is a Great One? As for blood ministration, I assume you aren't talking about it in mundane terms. I think I might have an idea of what you mean, but I think it may depend on what you refer to as a Great One." Alexandria inquired.
"Explain your theory first. If you don't already know then I am hesitant to share what I know, as I have seen what people with such knowledge can do with it. And it has led to suffering across the world. I will not risk spreading such suffering here if I can prevent it merely by holding my tongue. Though I will say, I can smell the influence of Great Ones on all three of you…" The hunter stated.
"Alright, in that case I think a Great One is an extremely powerful extra-dimensional creature from outer space and I think by blood ministration, you are referring to injecting the blood of one of these beings into someone in order to give them powers similar to the ones that all four of us have. Am I correct?" Alexandria asked, crossing her arms in front of her.
"Ah, so you do know. Then I suppose it may not hurt to discuss it with you. And, no. Not quite. Great Ones are much more than that. They are gods. Beings that are far beyond mortal comprehension. So powerful they can rend the very fabric of reality with a mere thought or bend it to their will to accomplish things that would drive most mortals insane merely from trying to comprehend them."
The Hunter paused for a moment before continuing, "As for your thoughts on blood ministration, Yes and no. You see the blood can be used to cure any illness, grant immortality, one can quite literally get drunk off the stuff, and much more. Admittedly I've never seen the blood grant powers quite like those you three have but I can not say I'm surprised that it did, if a Great One decided to grant you such powers intentionally and used the blood as a medium through which to do so. Though, it does come with some… shall we say, 'risks'…"
"Such as?" Eidolon asked.
"Addiction, insanity, turning into twisted inhuman monstrosities who have gone mad and have a thirst for blood, and more. Though this is not always the case. You three are an example of it going fine, as am I." The hunter explained.
"So… How much else do you know about these 'Great Ones'?" Alexandria asked.
"Quite a bit. What would you like to know? Though do keep in mind there are certain things I know that I can not tell you." The hunter stated.
"Alright, do you know their motivations? Why would they come to a particular planet and start giving people powers? And why would they destroy it afterwards?" Alexandria inquired.
"That… is a very specific question. Why? Is that something you fear happening?" The hunter inquired.
"You said there are some things you can't tell us. Likewise there are some things we can't tell you. At least not until we're sure we can trust you. So just answer the question." Alexandria told him.
"Very well. In that case… You see, there is one desire that all Great Ones share." The hunter stated.
"And that is?" Legend asked.
"They all wish to have a child. However, the children of Great Ones are always doomed to die. So they all seek a surrogate. To that end, in my world they unleashed a plague that turned most who consumed the blood into beasts who are completely insane. If I'm not mistaken the plague is not intentional but is rather them attempting to help the ones who partook of their blood to ascend so they could take one as their surrogate. I'm not even sure they are fully aware of the suffering they cause as a result as their perspective is just so different from that of a mortal. Maybe it's different in each world or perhaps each Great One has a different approach for achieving the same result so perhaps granting powers like the ones you three have is a method for them trying to induce ascension. As for destroying the world, perhaps if they get tired of waiting or if they deem it impossible for a mortal to ascend, in their grief or frustration they could destroy the world. However in my world the Great Ones did care for mortals and would never harm intentionally on any large scale. They might punish individuals should the individual spite them somehow but that's it. So it baffles me that it would be any different here." The hunter explained.
"A child… So are they incapable of reproducing with each other? Let's say one of them had a mate. They can't give birth naturally?" Eidolon inquired.
"Did you not listen to a thing I just said? They can, at least in theory, but their children are all inevitably doomed to die one way or another. It's almost like a curse. That's why they need a surrogate." The hunter reiterated in an annoyed tone.
"Sorry, just had to ask." Eidolon stated, holding his hands up placatingly.
"Hmph… Fine… But please don't make me repeat myself again in the future." The Hunter requested.
"Alright. You never answered my earlier question. You said you've dealt with worse than Behemoth in the past. What did you fight that's worse than him?" Alexandria asked.
"Oh. Failed experiments to create new Great Ones, Kin, and even a few actual Great Ones. In no particular order I have killed the Amygdala, a lesser Great One of which there are many, the Wet Nurse of Mergo, the stillborn son of Formless Oedon, the poor nameless Orphan of Kos whose mother died before giving birth to it, and the Brain of Mensis." The hunter explained.
"You've actually killed Great Ones before?" Legend asked, surprised by this.
"Indeed." The hunter nodded.
"What is a 'Kin'." Alexandria asked.
"Mortals who sought to ascend by linking themselves to particular Great Ones in a way that the blood alone can not accomplish. However they are not true Great Ones. Rather they are just a step or two below true Great Ones."
"Is it even possible to become a true Great One?" Eidolon asked.
"Of course it is. All Great Ones used to be mortal. Whatever Great One you are concerned about destroying the world will be no different. In fact, there are different levels of ascension. As I said, Kin and Failed Great Ones are just a step below true Great Ones. And there is one Great One in particular who has ascended further beyond even the other Great Ones to the point he has lost all concept of corporality. Formless Oedon. The father of Mergo… Huh… What is…?" The Hunter trailed off as he noticed something strange.
"What?" Legend asked.
"Forgive me, I must take this off so I can get a better look…" There was a puff of mist around his head as the Hunter banished his hat and mask to the void, thus revealing his features. He had blood red eyes. He had ghostly pale skin, naturally silver hair, a clean shaven face, and his eyes were blood red. His eyes had not always been this color, rather they had mutated into crimson red for some reason though he wasn't fully certain as to why. Perhaps it was due to over consumption of blood, perhaps he was mutating from gaining too much insight, perhaps it was something else. Whatever the case, it had no other impact on him than just changing his eye color so he didn't particularly mind.
He squinted at each of the three people before him in turn. "There are creatures clinging to each of you… They are incredibly hard to see… I only just noticed them because one shifted slightly so I started actively looking for them. That is… strange… They can not possibly be in the physical realm otherwise they would not be so hard to see. So I must be seeing the vaguest imprints of their shadows from within a dream or nightmare…"
"You see creatures clinging to us?" Alexandria asked, crossing her arms in front of her and giving him a flat look.
"Indeed I do. Ah, you probably think I'm mad. Well, I could show you my memories so you can know for a fact what I am seeing." The hunter offered.
Everyone at the table stiffened up at that. "No." Legend stated.
"Oh? Why not?" The hunter inquired.
"For all we know, this could be an attempt to master us." Alexandria said, scowling at him.
"Forgive my ignorance but, what is mastering?" The hunter asked curiously.
"Some capes have the ability to control other people's bodies and minds. For all we know this could be an attempt to do the same to us." Eidolon explained.
"Oh. Hahaha! No, no… I could do that any time I wanted without your permission. Observe." The hunter casually waved a hand. "There."
Eidolon began growling and barking.
"What did you do to him?!" Alexandria demanded, suddenly acting a lot more outwardly hostile and projecting her voice in a deeper tone.
"Simple. I made him believe he's a dog. I made you think you're a man. And I made Legend think he's a child." The hunter explained.
Legend began sobbing.
The hunter chuckled and waved his hand again. Suddenly all three of them had their demeanors return to normal.
Eidolon stopped barking and Legend stopped crying.
"Don't do that again!" Alexandria snarled at him, her voice having returned to normal.
"Oh, I won't. It was just a simple trick of the mind with no harm done. You are all completely back to normal. I was just proving a point. You have nothing to fear. If I wanted to control you, I wouldn't be asking. I would have simply done it by now. So do you want to see the memories or not?" The hunter asked again.
"Fine. I'll agree to see them. Just don't fuck with my head anymore. I could have sworn I had fleas…" Eidolon grumbled.
There was a puff of smoke as the hunter summoned a skull to his hand. He then whispered into the skull in the language of the great ones. His vocal chords couldn't make the sound naturally so he had to use his skill in the arcane to warp reality to make it possible for him to speak the words.
After a moment the top of the skull crumbled inwards creating a cavity in the top. What looked like a blue flame emanated from the skull.
"I can make you believe whatever I want with a thought. But this is the best way of actually transferring knowledge. Here, take it and crush it in your hand." The hunter said, holding the skull out for Eidolon to take.
Eidolon took the skull and looked at it hesitantly for a moment before crushing it in his hand. He shuddered as the knowledge bored its way into his mind. It only lasted for a moment before he looked over at Alexandria and said, "Fuck. He's serious. He really can see things around us. And… Now I sort of can too… I think? Though they're really hard to see. It's not nearly as clear to me as it is to him. In fact I might just be imagining it since now I'm actively looking for it."
"Wonderful… So what do they look like?" Alexandria asked, clearly not happy about this.
"It's… hard to describe. I can't think of the words…" Eidolon stated.
"That's partially because you can not see them fully and partially because there are no words in any human language that can accurately describe them." The hunter explained. "I have a hypothesis that maybe these creatures are what are granting you your powers."
"Alright… So, that's a thing. So, would you mind explaining how you know all of this to begin with?" Legend asked.
The hunter chuckled again. "Do you feel like explaining how you know a great one plans on destroying the world?"
"We still aren't sure if we can trust you with that information." Alexandria stated stoically.
"Then the feeling is mutual. You withhold information, I withhold information. It is as simple as that. If it makes you feel better, if there is a Great One who truly intends to destroy the world then I fully plan on killing it before it has a chance to do so. If there is anyone in this entire world you can trust with such information it's me. My duty as a hunter dictates that I must protect the innocent from beasts in whatever shape they may come in. Be they beasts in the form of men, monsters, Kin, Failures, or even the Great Ones themselves. I will not hesitate to put them down like the rabid dogs they are."
"While that sounds good, we need to confer with an associate of ours before we can make that decision." Eidolon stated.
"As you wish. Then do you have any more questions or is that it?" The hunter asked.
"Many. But I'm not sure if you will answer any more at this point. So let's shift gears. I assume you are stuck here in this world. So there are things you are going to need to know. We are going to fill you in on the basics. After that you can ask us any questions you have about this world. We won't be able to answer any questions that we can not answer now, but I assume there should be no problem with that, correct?" Alexandria asked.
"Fine, but I won't answer any questions I wouldn't answer now either. So you are getting nothing more about Great Ones out of me until you deem fit to answer my own questions." The hunter retorted.
The four of them then continued talking for several hours, as the hunter learned everything he needed to know about this new world. He answered a few more extremely basic questions, mostly about hunters leaving out anything to do with Great Ones. He refused to go into any details on the methodology or rituals behind blood ministration, or any other rituals he knew of. As such, they would not be able to use any of the information he had already told them as they would have absolutely no idea how to even begin trying to apply it.
When it was over, the Hunter had officially joined the Protectorate as a new "hero". He wasn't particularly happy about all their laws and rules, but he decided to just put up with them for the time being. At least until this Great One the three of them had hinted at was dealt with.
By the time they had finished their meeting it was already dark outside. The four of them stood up and began walking out of the building. "So, now what?" The hunter asked as they walked.
"What do you mean?" Legend asked.
"I mean, now that I am a 'hero' what am I supposed to do? Will I be staying here in this ruined city? I don't exactly have a 'civilian' identity nor do I have a place to stay. Unless one counts the Hunter's Dream, but I'm not even sure I still have access to the dream. I suppose I could make a new dream for myself but I do need something of a template to base it off. After all, even the Hunter's Dream was based on a real physical location in the waking world." The Hunter explained as they walked through the building which appeared to have been cleaned up somewhat.
"Ah, I see. No. I'll be taking you back to L.A. at least temporarily. You'll probably be transferred to another city later, but for now L.A. is the best option. That way it's easier for us to contact you since I'm based in L.A. You'll be staying in the main Protectorate headquarters until we can find an appropriate city to transfer you to, and until we can arrange housing for you in whatever city we decide on. As for your civilian identity, we'll work with you on that. For your cape name, I assume you are going to want to be called 'Hunter' or something to that effect, right?" Alexandria asked, leaving unsaid the fact it would be easier for her to keep an eye on him in L.A.
"Very well. And yes. While I don't remember my real name, 'Hunter' or 'Good Hunter' is how I was referred to back in Yharnam. So I would prefer something at least similar to that. Huntsman would be alright as well. Just so long as it relates to hunting." The hunter told them.
"Huntsmen… I like it. We'll have to see if it's already taken, but if it's not then that should work fine." Legend stated.
"Hey, I've heard worse." Eidolon commented. "That being said, you really need to look into a different costume. The one you're wearing makes you look more like a villain than a hero."
"Hm. Very well. I have many different outfits I can wear. How's this?" He was then enveloped by a puff of mist as he swapped his clothes out for his Hunter attire with the ripped tricorn and shoulder cape.
"Still a bit intimidating, but better. It should work, I guess. At least it covers your face so it should still protect your civilian identity, when you have one. Still, are you sure your illusions will work to mask your eyes when you're out of costume?" Eidolon asked.
"Positive. One does not get so far into the study of the Arcane as I have without learning basic illusions such as simply changing the color of one's eyes. Hunters' Tools help channel, focus, amplify, and direct the arcane but are not strictly necessary for it. As I displayed when I made you bark like a dog." The hunter smiled at Eidolon in amusement at the memory of what he did to the hero earlier.
"Yeah… I am definitely going to get you back for that. Just you wait. I'm sure I must have a power that will let me make you think you're a dog if not let me turn you into an actual dog." Eidolon said, staring the hunter straight in the eyes..
The hunter chuckled and patted him on the back. "Good man. I know several who would have much less of a sense of humor about it. So if you can find a way to get back at me, I'll certainly take it in stride and we'll call it even. Just so long as you undo it soon after."
"I'll take that as a challenge then." Eidolon stated as the four of them walked out of the building.
As soon as they were outside the Hunter looked up at the night sky and his blood immediately ran cold. He froze in place and stared up at the absolute unholy monstrosity in the sky in absolute horror as grotesque visions of what it looked like up close bombarded his mind.
"Hunter? What's wrong?" Legend asked, as he, Alexandria, and Eidolon noticed the Hunter had stopped moving.
"I… I see it… There in the sky… I see it…" The hunter muttered in sheer terror.
"See what? What are you talking about?" Alexandria demanded.
"The Great One you were worried about… Only… I was wrong… It is not a Great One…" The Hunter muttered.
"Explain." Eidolon ordered.
"You know how I told you there is such a thing as a 'Failed Great One'? And do you remember how I said there are different levels of ascension even beyond the level of the Great Ones? Well… There was one failure known as The One Reborn. The One Reborn is an amalgamate of grotesque misshapen and decayed body parts assembled to form one massive unliving creature, created using an unholy ritual in a failed attempt to create a new Great One… Well… This… thing is much like that. But worse. Much worse. It is to the Great Ones what the One Reborn is to a human. The description I gave you about the One Reborn? Imagine that, but applied to the bodies of trillions of Great Ones all forming one singular horrifying being in a failed attempt to ascend further, perhaps to the point that Oedon himself ascended or perhaps in an ill conceived attempt to ascend beyond even Oedon… I… I don't think I can kill it." The hunter explained.
"You're serious?" Alexandria asked.
"Deadly serious. If I were still capable of doing so, I would have vomited the moment I saw it… I… Now that I'm looking at it, I think I have a better idea of what the creatures attached to each of you are. They're individual Great Ones shed from the body of the amalgamation… Oh, gods, it's horrid. No wonder I've been smelling the influence of different Great Ones on each of you, because each of you have different Great Ones attached to you." The Hunter explained.
"Again, that matches with some of what we already know… Ugh… So what you're telling us is that you actually can't kill it after all. Is that correct?" Eidolon asked.
"Yes. I might be able to destroy one, maybe two of the Great Ones that make it up before it killed me, but it would kill me. And I would only do that well if it didn't notice me at first. And also, what I thought its motivations may have been might not apply to it. Who knows how badly its mind was warped from the process that merged it with so many other Great Ones. It may no longer even be sane… I… I don't know…"
"If you could make a new Great One that's separate from the entity, would it be able to do any better than you?" Alexandria inquired.
The hunter shook his head. "Think of the math. It would be one versus trillions. Or one versus one that is trillions of times more powerful. In fact, that's probably why I haven't seen any Amygdalas or other lesser Great Ones since I've arrived here despite their love of humans and watching mortals. I think whatever Great Ones used to be present in this world tried to stop it, but ended up being assimilated by it… So we would need to make another creature just like it… Just as powerful, but sane and willing to stop it… Given time I might be able to figure out how to merge Great Ones together to make another creature just like it. However, if it's already consumed all the ones we would have had access to then the chances of that are non-existent. But even if we could find trillions more Great Ones somewhere, there's no guarantee they would all agree to merge together and even if they did, I'm not sure if I could guarantee they would come out of the process sane. It… It would require much experimentation to perfect the process and ensure it came out sane enough to want to help us."
"I'm just curious so this is purely hypothetical, but what could you do if you had access to the corpse of a creature just like it?" Alexandria asked.
The Hunter shrugged. "It depends on so many different factors I can not say for certain. But no matter the factors it would definitely be an invaluable asset for the purposes of research. But… there's no way. I can't imagine anything short of another creature exactly like it being able to kill such a being. Or maybe a being like Oedon, but Oedon is the only one who has ascended to the point he has and he does not kill. At least, not directly. And I'm absolutely certain such a beast would assimilate the remains if it did kill another of its own kind. So it's a pointless hypothetical as it's just not possible."
The Hunter's first instinct upon hearing that question was to assume there was a corpse of such a creature somewhere. However, he quickly dismissed the idea as a possibility. They couldn't have one just stored away somewhere. It just wasn't possible. For one thing, it looked to be as large as the moon if not slightly larger, albeit much closer. So the corpse of such a creature would be impossible to store anywhere save perhaps the bottom of the ocean without everyone on Earth knowing about it. And even then, something that massive's body falling into the ocean would cause a global disaster of apocalyptic proportions. But even if it didn't, pieces would start washing ashore very quickly, ocean life would be warped into twisted mindless monstrosities, and all land based life would quickly follow including all Human life. The world would be little more than a post apocalyptic beast infected waste land of truly hellish proportions.
So there was no way such a thing was possible. They could not have such a corpse. So she must have been telling the truth and it genuinely must have been a purely hypothetical question. There was no other possibility that he could think of.
"That's all I wanted to know. So are you ready to go?" Alexandria asked.
"I suppose… There's nothing I can do about that thing so I have no real reason to waste any more time standing around here." The hunter stated, still staring up at the abomination in the sky.
"Good." Alexandria said before walking around behind him. Thrusting her arms underneath his armpits, she grabbed him and began floating up into the air.
"What are you doing?! Put me down! I thought I was going to be following you from the ground again!" The Hunter exclaimed, not particularly happy about being lifted up without warning like this.
"L.A. is too far away for that and there are too many obstacles you could run into between here and there. So as fast as you are it would take way too long for you to follow me on foot. So I'm just going to carry you." Alexandria stated.
"I never agreed to this! Release me at once!" The hunter snarled.
"And I never agreed to you making me think I was a man, Legend never agreed to you making him think he was a child, and Eidolon never agreed to you making him think he was a dog even if it was only for a few seconds, but here we are. So just suck it up and deal with it. Unless you spontaneously develop the ability to fly too, then I'm not interested in hearing your complaints." Alexandria stated.
"What's wrong, Hunter? Afraid of heights?" Eidolon taunted in a joking manner, his intent clearly vindictive but not actively malicious.
"It's not going to be that bad. It'll only take Alexandria a few seconds to maybe a minute or so to fly you both to L.A. And considering you just went toe to toe with Behemoth and won? I'm sure you're going to be fine." Legend said in a somewhat placating tone.
"That isn't the point! Just, release me, gods damn it!" The hunter cursed indignantly.
At this point Alexandria just ignored him and took off flying with no regard for his complaints or wriggling. It only took them about a minute or so, give or take a few seconds, to arrive at the Protectorate HQ in Los Angeles.
Alexandria dropped the Hunter. "There. You can stop your whining now."
"Never do that again." The hunter growled in annoyance.
"No promises. Now I guess I'm going to need to show you to where you're going to be staying while you're here in L.A. Follow me." She started walking away and motioned for the hunter to follow her.
The hunter grumbled in frustration but followed after her.
My notes: Hopefully I do this better than I did the MHA x Worm crossover, which has been deleted so don't bother searching for it. Yes, the Hunter can kill Great Ones and Great Ones are more powerful than End Bringers. Especially since Shards are Great Ones in this story and the End Bringers were created by Eidolon's shard. So, yes, the Hunter has indeed faced far worse than Behemoth and actually killed them. I would put the End Bringer's a step below Kin on the Hierarchy of the story considering the fact that Rom actively held back the Paleblood Moon in order to prevent it from getting closer to the planet. Yes, I am going with the interpretation of that cutscene that Rom was actively holding back the moon.
Needless to say, the End Bringer's are not going to be the main threat in this story. Scion is. And he's immensely more powerful than the Hunter, by far. And that's assuming the Hunter consumed all three 1/3 umbilical cords and is a budding infant Great One.