As usual, I don't own anything that obviously belongs to their respective owners. I own only the OCs and anything else that pops out of my head during the duration of the story. Now that's outta the way, kindly move on to the content, shall we? Especially since this is my first Fan-fiction of this amazing series.
Dark Souls: Seeker of Souls, Inheritor of the Dark
Arc 1: Bells of Awakening
Chapter One
From the Undead Asylum into Lordran
Many centuries ago, In the Age of Ancients,
The world was unformed, shrouded by fog
A land of grey crags, archtrees, and everlasting dragons
But then there was Fire
And with Fire came Disparity. Heat and cold, life and death, and of course.. Light and Dark.
Then, from the Dark, They came
And found the Souls of Lords within the flame.
Nito, the Old Dead one who granted the world Death...
The Witch of Izalith, and her daughters of chaos, who granted the world Life...
Gwyn, the Lord of Sunlight, and his faithful knights, who granted the world Order that shined as bright as the incandescent Sun...
And the Furtive Pygmy, The Old Dark one, so easily forgotten, who granted Humanity to the world...
With the Strength of Lords, they challenged the dragons.
Gwyn's mighty bolts of Sunlight pierced and peeled apart their stone scales with little effort...
The witches weaved great firestorms upon the Dragon's sanctuary, the archtrees...
Nito unleashed a miasma of death and disease upon the exposed flesh of the Dragons...
And Seath the Scaleless, The Old Pale being, betrayed his dragon brethren, and the dragons were no more
Thus began the Age of Fire... The Age of Light... The Age of Gwyn...
But soon, the flames will fade, and only Dark will remain
Even now, there are only embers, and man sees not light, but only endless nights
And amongst the living are seen, carriers of the accursed Darksign... The Undead...
Yes, indeed. The Darksign brands the Undead. And in this land... The Undead are corralled and lead to the north, where they are locked away to await the end of the world...
...This is your fate...
A lone figure, clad in black tatters that bared semblance to a shirt and a pair trousers, sat quietly in her locked cell. She resided in the Undead Asylum, a prison that was built to lock away the Undead, now stood long forgotten by the world. She was not chained up to the wall, for there was nowhere for her to go. She looked outside her cell door at the sound of footfalls to find a wandering Hollow staring at her for a moment, its shriveled eyes glowing red and its pink fleshy face forever grimacing face donning an expression similar agony, before it departed, wandering aimless in the Asylum as do many Hollows do.
She played with her ebony colored pigtails for a bit, her reason of doing was unknown even to her. And yet, she did so despite her ever waning memory. How has it been since she's been here? A year? Impossible, it seemed too long to be a simple year. A century, most likely? Possibly, yet she did herself could not bring herself to either focus or care about the matter. Her eyeless socket then twitched and without a care, she scratched the bare inside of the socket, not truly caring if she drew blood from doing so.
Sometime later, her nose then itched at the damp musty air of the Asylum. A frown had deepened from that, she was tolerable to the horrid stench of the Asylum despite the Hollows constantly leaking... Substances... once in a while. Not only that, she heard another Undead attempting to break open its cage doors for a moment before the Undead stopped the action. At least for now. While she has been here, she had heard the attempts of other Undead escaping their cells from her own cell, but to no avail for them. The doors, despite being rusted from years, were firm enough to prevent escape. She, herself, has learned for herself. Over time, the Undead that attempted escape soon turned Hollow from the crushing disparity of their futile efforts of escape. But even still, she would hear them banging against the barred doors as continuing their futile attempts to obtain freedom.
Releasing a sigh, she laid down upon her bed of hay, hoping to sleep the day away as she usual does. Fate, on the other hand, had plans for this certain Undead. A noise coming from above her cell had awoken her from her brief slumber. Curious, she looked up to see a Knight looking inside through a small traphole in the ceiling. She blinked in surprise and fascination, despite lacking eyes in her condition, which didn't last long as the Knight dropped the corpse of a dead Hollow into her cell. Her sockets went back to the knight, who merely gave her subtle nod before he walked away.
The Undead female rose from her bed of hay and looked at the corpse. As she neared it, she kicked it with her bare feet to see if it was dead. Satisfied at the answer of no movement from it, she then noticed a key attached to its waist-cloth. She then looked from the key to the cell before she felt a puzzle complete itself in her mind. Without hesitation, she snatched the key from the corpse and placed it into the lock of her cell door. A moment later, a click was heard and the door fell open, its hinges breaking off as it hits the ground with a thud.
Blinking, she stared at where the door was, a strange feeling swelling up in her body. Whatever the feeling was, she did not know nor did she care at the moment. Curiosity taking her, she walked out of her cell and down the dimly lit hallway, her bare feet thumping against the cold stone floor. As she was halfway down the hall, she looked to her right to see another Undead staring at her through its cells.
She could tell the Undead was female as she spotted red wavy hair underneath a brown hood. How she knew was lost to her, unfortunately. She spotted that the Undead was cloaked in brown leather and clothe with metal based over Undead continued to stare at her until she realized what it wanted. Sliding the key into the Undead's cell, she departed. Out the corner of her eye, she could spot a large green obese creature.
Approaching the top of a stairwell, she noticed another Hollow sitting in the water, staring into the nothingness of space. She ignored it and was meet with a rusty ladder not too far from the Hollow. She climbed the ladder with caution, in hopes that she does not cause the ladder to fall apart. Fortunately, she reached the top without the ladder collapsing. She soon walked into a small courtyard where a charred blade sunken into a pile of ashes and bones stood in the center of the courtyard. She didn't know why, but she felt peace at the sight of the blade.
Cautiously, she approached the blade and held her right hand out to touch it. Suddenly, a spark was heard, surprising her as she fell back upon her lower posterior, and a small flame appeared, surrounding the blade. Before she had time to think, a strong warmth washed upon her body, rendering whatever worries she had to cinder. Her body relaxed, her mind had blanked, and her senses were appeased by the warmth of the flame. She was too enveloped in the warmth to notice another Undead resting by the flame until she felt a hand upon her shoulder. She turned from daze of warmth to see the red-head Undead from earlier sitting right next to her.
The two stared in silence, as if communicating with eyesight, until a loud crash was heard not to far from them. They looked up to the east-south of the courtyard and heard the clanking of armor meeting brick. Without a moment's hesitation, the two Undead jumped to their feet and approached the large doors of the Asylum. The ebony haired Undead pushed the one on the right as the left was pushed by the red head. As the doors opened, a barren room was exposed to them, ringed with columns and gold vases that were scattered and broken across this room, and there was another large doorway, most likely the way out of the Asylum. They pressed forward, an unsettling feeling crawling up their wrinkled skins. At the first five footfalls of their entrance, the doors behind them closed, alarming them of danger ahead. Before long, a large green obese creature similar to the one from earlier jumped down, further increasing their alarm.
The beast leaped at the two, its great hammer high above its head. The red head Undead roughly shoved the black-haired Undead out of the way of its hammer, taking the full brunt of the damage. A raspy cry of pain emanated from the red head, much to the other raven head's worry. The beast then redirected its next swing to the other Undead, but she dodged to the right just in time and scrambled over to the red head. In the midst of her dash, she noticed an open door at the far left of the room, steels opened in a welcome matter of escape. The red head climbed to her feet and felt the grasps of the ebony haired Undead. Not too long after, she was then dragged to the door that welcomed escape as the bars closed behind them. They looked back to see the beast glaring at them through the bars, unable to do anything.
They sighed in relief as they walked down the stairs and were greeted with another sword sunken into a pile of ashes. Without hesitation, they rested for a brief moment, reinvigorated by the warmth of the fire. Their respite was interrupted by the sound of hammer slamming against the ground. Shaking off their moment of peace, they ventured forward in the Asylum, but not with the red head getting shot in the shoulder by the Hollowed archer ahead. She glared at the Hollow in spite as she charged ahead.
The black-haired Undead female followed, but not before finding a pile of confiscated weapon in a slightly flooded room. Instinct taking her, she grabbed a Longsword and a small metal shield with a blue tint. She faintly heard the words 'Heater Shield' cross her mind. She turned her attention to the red head who had found a Battle Axe, which she had used to kill the Hollowed archer, and a red round shield with a spider painted on it.
They stared at one another for a brief moment before they both nodded in acknowledgment. As they pressed forward, they came across a hallway overlooking at the small courtyard. The red head went left to find a broken staircase, but she noticed a corpse upon it which was unfortunately out of her reach. The ebony haired one came across a dual staircase on the right side of the hallway. She walked downstairs first the moment she noticed a door leading back to the sword in the ground and opened it. The red haired walked upstairs to investigate, only to nearly to be crushed by an incoming boulder as she rolled off the stairwell and landed on the ebony-haired Undead. The boulder instead crashed through the wall, leaving a large hole in it.
The red head rolled off of her companion and stood up, curiously walking over to the hole. The ebony haired followed suit and was greeted with the sight of the Knight that handed the key to her. Worried, she walked over to the Knight who turned to them. As she came closer, she noticed the Knight was lying against a bed of bricks and there was hole in the ceiling, light leaking in as it shined upon him.
"...Oh, you two... neither are not Hollow, eh? Thank the Gods. I'm done for I'm afraid." The Knight trailed off before he coughed. They both watched as blood leaked from the holes of his visor. "I-I'll die soon, then... lose my sanity. I can feel it coming..."
The two Undead females looked at each other, feeling dread and pity for the unfortunate Knight. The Knight then continued "…I wish to ask something of you two…
…The three of us, we're all Undead… Hear me out, if you could be so kind?"
A moment of silence washed over them before the raven-haired Undead nodded in compliance. The red haired followed after suit. The Knight sighed, hope and relief visible. "You two... are Godsends to be here. I am Oscar, Knight of Astora. Regrettably, I have failed in my mission... But perhaps both of you can keep the torch lit. There is an old saying in my family... Thou who art Undead, art chosen... In thine exodus from the Undead Asylum, maketh pilgrimage to the land of Ancient Lords... When thou ringeth the Bell of Awakening, the fate of the Undead thou shalt know. Well, now you know... And I can die with hope in my heart..."
The hands of the ebony-haired Undead gripped tightly upon her Longsword. She didn't know why, but she felt like she knew this Knight personally. She felt that it was wrong for his end to come. She felt a flame burning in her heart. She faintly remembered a flame like this. She faintly remembered its name... Hate.
"Ah. Before I forget... Here, take this. An Estus Flask, a Undead treasure." The Knight, Oscar, said as he weakly gave them dull green flasks, five for one, five for the other. "Oh... and this..." The duo was given a key from the dying Knight of Astora. A key to what, they did not know. "Now I must bid you two farewell. I would hate to harm you after death.. So go now... And thank you." The two Undead females were walking out of the hole before the black haired one stopped and walked back to Oscar. The Knight turned to her, her Hollowed appearance illuminated by the light.
"...Do you remember? Do you remember the days you looked at me and told me, that you will become a Warrior just to fight alongside me? I... laughed at the childish notion of your ambition. ...Most likely not. It had been four years since you've been taken away. Four years since the Darksign took you. I..apologize. I apologize that I could nothing to convince my Lord to let you go. I apologize for being unable to save your family. And most of all, I apologize that I was... weak. Dominique, do you... promise that you will keep the torch lit? Not just for my sake, but for the sake of your family?"
She blinked at the name. Dominique... the more she played around with that name, she felt a sense of familiarity with it. She felt like... she remembered something she had forgotten in her apparent four years of imprisonment. Dominique stared at Oscar, her head swimming with questions. Yet she felt the need to find out for herself rather than the words of a man with little time. Then again... doing such will most likely cause to regret. She thought about the possible answers she could receive just from this knight being alive long enough for her to remember who she was before the Darksign had taken what made her Human. Who she was before her memories had deteriorated from her imprisonment.
To Oscar's confusion, Dominique walked closer to him and, much to his surprise, lifted him off the pile of bricks. Oscar hissed in pain at the sudden movement while Dominique grunted from the weight of his armor. With incredible effort, Dominique carried the Astoran Knight to the blade in the courtyard, not without the astounded look on her red head companion's wrinkled face. She mentally cursed the man's armor for being so ungodly heavy. A sigh of relief came as she unceremoniously dropped the Knight near the sword, armor clanked as it hit the ground.
Fortunately for him, he landed on his back yet at the side, unfortunately, he felt severe pain rise up from fall as he groaned in response. Dominique placed her palm near the fire and the air was then filled with warmth, reinvigorating the Undead surrounded the blade. Oscar, himself, had felt the healing force of the fire and before long, his wounds had completely healed and he was able to sit up with his own strength. Oscar then flexed his arms, testing it out for pain or any signs of broken bones. Finding none of the sort, he turned to Dominique, who gave him a small smile.
"I thank you, Dominique. You have saved me. I am in your debt. If you had of come, the Asylum Demon's work would of been done completely." Oscar said. Dominique nodded at that. The red head watched the scene from a small distance, surprised to know the charred blade can prevent the Knight's death and can fully heal wounds. Oscar then noticed the red head and gestured her to come closer. Oscar then rummaged through his beltpacks for something, but what? They did not know.
"I have a gift for both of you. Here take these." Oscar said as he pulled out two black sprites emanating a white aura. They looked at the item curiously before they each took one. They didn't know what it was, but it was warm and was pleasant to touch. They felt warmth emanating from the sprite as their bodies started to pulse and before they knew it, their hands instinctively crushed the sprite. The particles of the sprite danced around them, their eyeless sockets filled with wonder before the particles of the sprite entered their bodies. Out of instinct, their hands roamed about their bodies, inspecting for any difference, but to no avail, which was fortunate for them.
"Do not worry. The Humanity sprite has entered your souls. Humanity is invaluable to Undead everywhere. Humanity is what grants Undead the ability to revive to their Human state, but this only accomplished at the bonfire." Oscar explained. The two females looked at him for a solid minute before the red haired Undead decided to test this. Standing up on one knee and with her head, she placed her hand upon the bonfire and imagined herself as a Human. Before long, she was enveloped in white particles, much to Dominique's surprise. The particles covered every inch of her body for a short moment before they dispersed, revealing a young woman in her late teens with fair skin, and crimson red irises. Dominique didn't recognized the woman until she realized it was her red head companion as soon as she noticed the clothing she donned had not changed.
"...Amazing. I'm... Human. I'm... I'm alive... I-I can talk again..." The red head stammered, flexing her now smooth fingers and caressing her skin, amazed and joyful to feel alive. Oscar smiled underneath his helmet at her reaction.
"Yes, you are. You were probably feeling the emptiness of being in a Hollowed state. When an Undead dies, they gradually lose their sanity along with their Humanity at every death they have experienced. When an Undead has died for too long, all that is left of them is an empty shell that only wields an unsatisfiable hunger for Humanity and the muscle memory from their experience in combat. That shell is called a Hollow, miss... Um...Pardon me, but I do not know your name, madam." The red head looked at Oscar and regained focus. Clearing her throat, which is a feeling she missed so much, she replied, "I am Asuka. Asuka of the Delta Mountains."
"I figured judging from your attire. I have seen a fair amount of Brigand bandits in my travels through the mountain side. All of them wearing the same attire as you."
"Ah, I am not surprised in the least. No hard feelings?" Asuka replied, scratching her head sheepishly. Oscar chuckled as he responded, "None at all, Asuka."
Dominique watched the Knight and Bandit make amends to each before they both turned to her. She looked back and forth between them before realizing it was her turn to revive. With a nod, she walked over to the bonfire, following Asuka's example, and before long, she revived to Human. Dominique blinked, her eyeless now holding caramel brown irises, her skin unwrinkled and showing its smooth dark tone. If looked at closely, you should be able to spot freckles running across her nasal ridge. Her warm hands caressed the very skin she now possessed, immersed in its smoothness. Oscar chuckled at the sight while Asuka rolled her eyes.
A loud crash was heard, shocking the trio as they looked at the doors leading to the Asylum Demon. They all looked at each other and nod in compliance. Oscar rose to his feet, his armor clanking in resonance, and stated, "Let us go. We have an Asylum to depart from."
Asuka and Dominique complied as they followed Oscar. The trio walked up the stairs where the boulder nearly crushed Asuka and found a Hollow wielding a broken sword staring at them. It clumsily walked over to them and attempted to swing its broken weapon, but Oscar parried the strike and riposte, ending the dredging's life with a stab to its heart. They walked over its corpse and made way to the balcony with the key Oscar had given them.
Dominique spotted a corpse holding a tattered piece of cloth. Curious, she grabbed the cloth and examined it, her head tilting in confusion. That moment of curious granted her an arrow to the back. She turned to see another Hollow archer, this one accompanied by three other Hollows. The two Hollows wielding broken swords charged at them in wild frenzy while a Hollow wielding a longsword and shield stood watch. Oscar and Asuka easily took out the two dredglings while Dominique took out the archer. Noticing Dominique had decreased the gap, the armored Hollow charged at her with a thrust of its longsword.
She blocked it with her Heater Shield just in time, but she was not ready for the knockback. The Hollow was easily a stronger version of the dredglings from earlier. Seeing the thrust knocked her back, the Hollow bashed its shield against hers and stabbed her abdomen before she had to recover. Dominique hissed at the pain in his left abdomen, but she ignored it as she swung her sword, but the Hollow blocked it. Irritated, she kicked its shield and was surprised at the fact the shield had little stability. Oscar then took the kill via backstab, much to her chagrin. She sighed at the sight of the Hollow's corpse as it eyes dimmed before she took a sip of her Estus Flask, the warm liquid closing her wound instantly.
With the Hollows taken care of, the trio looked their left to see a fog wall in the opening of the wall. A roar was heard from the other side, undoubtedly from the Asylum Demon. Dominique's eyes glared at the fog wall in spite, looking very much ready to kill than usual. Oscar looked towards the females, who merely nod in his direction.
Taking note of their compliance, Oscar touched the fog for a few moments before he walked through. Asuka followed after, her battle axe ready to kill, and Dominique followed last, her hate for the Demon strong enough to kill just by looking at it. As Dominique walked in, she instantly noticed that they were on a small balcony overlooking the Asylum Demon. The three Undead and the Demon stared at each other for a moment, which was awkward in Asuka's taste.
"...What now?" Asuka asked no one in particular. Oscar only replied by jumping of the platform and rammed his sword into the Demon's face. The creature let out a roar of pain and anger as Oscar pulled his blade from its face and jumped. Asuka shrugged at the subtle answer and followed Oscar's example. The beast roared once more as Asuka released her battle axe from its forehead. Dominique followed suit, but the demon wasn't going to let it happen a third time. It jumped back, letting her hit nothing but empty stone ground. Dominique growled at the beast, but it growled back. The Asylum Demon swung its hammer at the trio, who rolled away from the site of impact.
Oscar was the first charge at the beast. It retaliated by swinging its hammer in a large arc at him, but Oscar sidestepped the attack and landed a blow at the beast. The beast roared in fury and charged, but its large girth was showing heavy disadvantages.
Asuka ran towards Oscar's previous position and hacked away at its gigantic lower posterior, annoying the beast and as it attempted to slam Asuka to the ground. Sadly, the swing of the hammer was slow enough for Asuka to get away. Oscar charged once more, wielding his blade in both hands at he slashed at its left leg. Oscar suffered the consequence of such by meeting the face of the hammer as it smacked him into a pile of pottery. Dominique rammed her Longsword into the monster's left bum cheek, much to the pain and severe annoyance of the Asylum Demon as it flew up in the air with its tiny wings before it attempted to crush her with its own weight.
Dominique saw the move coming just in time to roll out of its way, but the shock wave of the attack made her stumble back a little, giving the Demon the opportunity of smashing her into the ground. Dominique groaned in pain as she attempted to get up, but the Demon smacked her into a column before she could recover her bearings.
Oscar recovered his and kept a steady gait towards the Asylum Demon, which of who had noticed him. Leaping towards Oscar with hammer high in the air, The Asylum Demon roared in rage. Predicting such a move, Oscar rolled out of its path and placed a thrust of his straight sword to its side. The Demon growled and attempted to smash him, but Oscar was faster than the hammer.
During its swing, Dominique rolled in and was lucky enough to chop off its tail. The Demon screamed, it didn't roar, but SCREAMED. Oscar, Asuka, and Dominique covered their ears at the high pitched screech that echoed about the entire Asylum. Dominique then decided to take a risk. With a scream of her own, she charged at the Asylum Demon, but she didn't swing her sword, much to Oscar's and Asuka's confusion. Instead, she spread her legs apart at the last second and tossed her longsword, which made contact with the Demon's forehead. The screaming ceased, the beast looked at the sword implanted in between its eyes before it collapsed onto the ground. They could make slight twitching coming from the beast before it ceased all movement.
Oscar blinked before he asked no one in particular, "Is it... dead?"
"I think so..." Asuka said, uncertain to say the least. For all they know, it could suddenly jump back to its feet and kill them while they're caught off guard. Dominique stared at the creature before she walked over to its corpse and kicked it. The beast made no movement whatsoever until it suddenly dispersed into white particles, alarming all three of them.
"...!"
"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL?!"
"BY THE LOCKS OF GWYN'S BEARD!"
The three watched in shock as the corpse dissipated into white motes that somewhat resembled snowflakes. As the corpse had fully dissipated, the three had soon regained their composure from the astounding sight. There was nothing left of the Asylum Demon except for for the key leading to exit and Dominique's longsword.
The trio looked at each other in revelation at the previous sight.
"...Well, in any case, there is nothing obscuring our path. Let us depart." With a single push, the doorway opened, revealing a narrow path up a cliff. Dominique and Asuka smiled gleefully. They were finally out of the Asylum. They both ran out with Oscar calmly walking after them, reaching the end of the cliff. Their smiles faded as confusion took hold of them at the sight of a large nest.
"...So, um, where to?" Asuka asked as she turned to Oscar.
"Well, I arrived to the Asylum with the assistance of a large crow. Just curl up into a ball and the crow will take you from the Asylum." He answered. Oscar received questioning stares from Asuka and Dominique, obviously questioning his sanity. Oscar sighed and replied, "If you look at our surroundings, how else is it possible for the Undead to reach the Asylum nowadays?"
Oscar did raise a good point. There were very little options for anyone to reach the Asylum. Amongst the options were scaling the sheer cliff walls of the Asylum, but by the look of it, it was near impossible to do such an act for anyone, Undead or no. Asuka and Dominique made brief eye contact with each other before they did what Oscar instructed them. Now all they had to do was wait.
A near hour had passed since the Demon's defeat and Asuka was weaving back and forth with great impatience. Dominique, on the other hand, was the more patience of the two females. Oscar looked in the distance, obviously anticipating something to come by. Minutes have passed as they awaited for this crow that Oscar claimed about to appear. Nothing had appeared in the past hour, much to Asuka's annoyance.
"How long do we have to wait? It's nearly been an hour." She growled.
"Patience, Asuka. It will come. Unless you have gall to climb mountains." Oscar stated. Asuka huffed in response and continued questioning Oscar. Dominique remained silent as ever, watching the view of the snowy mountains in the distance, her mind wandering off to several thoughts. Most of them, being about herself.
'It had been four years since I've been here, in this dreadful Asylum. If that is the case, why is that I can barely remember anything about myself? Four years certainly haven't been that long. It is impossible. ...Is it that my mind had Hollowed faster than I am? If that is so... what would be left of me if everything fades away?'
"Dominique? Dominique, are you listening?" She jolted at the sound of Oscar's voice and shook her head. Oscar sighed before he began, "As I was saying earlier, I will take your place curling up in the nest to ease your efforts to attempt to hold me while the crow transports us away from the Asylum. Asuka and I will hold onto you instead."
Ever silent Dominique stared at Oscar for a moment before she nod in agreement and stood up. However, in the midst of such, a shadow loomed over the three. Dominique turned to see an open talon reaching out towards her. Oscar moved quickly and pushed her aside in time for the talon to grab him. Asuka was effortless grabbed by the other one while Dominique was carried by the collar of her tattered shirt by the crow's beak before it tossed her in the air, having her land upon its back. The crow screeched before it flew away from the Asylum, Dominique clutching tightly upon its feathered hide. Now the question remained for her...
"Where the bloody hell is it taking us?!" Asuka practicality screeched to no one in particular. It became obvious that Asuka was frighted to death by the sight of heights. Oscar stood calm in midst of flight, silent for a short moment before he replied, "It is taking us to the Land of the Ancient Lords..."
"Land of Ancient Lords? Wait, you mean it is taking us there?!"
"Yes, our destination and the location of the Bell of Awakening is the birthplace of Lord Gwyn... Lordran." Oscar answered. He then attempted to get a view of Dominique, but to no avail. Instead, he called out to her.
"Dominique!" She turned to her name being called,"You never answered my question. Do you, Dominique, proclaim that you promise to keep the torch lit? Not just for my sake, but for the sake of the ones that love you and the ones you cared equally as much?"
The silent girl stared for a moment, her decision wavering for a short moment. She then thought of the fact that Oscar knows of her, meaning she'll possibly remember some bits of her past. With temptation of answers strong in her heart, she replied, "Yes. I will keep the torch lit."
Oscar smiled at the answer and looked on ahead, hope filling his heart. Only silence save for the flapping of the crow's wings as they were transported from the Undead Asylum to Lordran, the Land of the Gods. The Land of Gwyn, Lord of Sunlight.
Only, in the ancient legends it is stated, that one day an Undead shall be chosen to leave the Undead Asylum, in pilgrimage, to the Land of the Ancient Lords...
...Lordran...
Dominique's eyes watched the world fly by as the crow lead them to Lordran. It had been a full day since the battle with the Asylum Demon. Oscar and Asuka surprising fell asleep despite the fact they were curled up into a ball by the crow's talons. Dominique felt little need for sleep. Being locked away in the Asylum had deteriorated many Humane urges she had. Yet she would find herself having the need to sleep or hunger once in a while. It was irritating and disgusting since she had to dine on the corpses of rats to get rid of the hunger. she would even have to urinate in a decomposed bucket that obviously had seen many uses from previous inhabitants of her cell.
Dominique's face twisted in disgust and frustration of such memories. Despite her tolerance gained from her time in the Asylum, it doesn't mean that she didn't find it disgusting. She faintly remember memories of promising her to escape the despicable place. She was truly thankful that Oscar was kind enough to help escape. She soon repaid him by saving his life, though she truly did it for answers about her past. A selfish reason, but for Dominique, it was viable reason.
'Once I know what about my past, I'll leave Oscar to his mission. I only told him I'll keep the torch lit only to find out about my memories. Once that is done, he is of no use to me...' Dominique thought.
'How could you...? He helped you... You pitiful little wench...'
Dominique blinked. She turned around to see the source of that voice. She then noticed a feeling developing in her bosom. It was...unpleasant. It feel like something was niggling inside her bosom, provoking some sort of feeling in her. She didn't know what this feeling was. She didn't remember such a feeling when she was imprisoned in the Asylum. She soon shook off it off as her sanity waning as she is wasting time on this bird.
After a while, Oscar and Asuka started to wake as soon as Dominique saw small ruins surrounded by a forest not to far away. Oscar looked ahead and was pleased to see their destination not far ahead. The crow descended as soon as it approached the ruins and abruptly dropped the trio below in the center of said ruins. Asuka landed face first while Oscar landed on his feet and Dominique stumbled before regaining her balance.
"Ugh... The Gods must despise me enough to do this to me." Asuka groaned as she slowly crawled to her feet, her face aching from the abrupt fall. Dominique inspected the ruins around them. From looks of the ruins, it faintly resembled a shrine. A shrine for who, she didn't bother caring about such. She was only happy to know that she had solid ground to receive answers from Oscar. Plus there was a convenient bonfire nearby for her to place her thoughts together while she is here. That was until a soft laugh broke her thoughts.
"Well, what do we have here? You must be the new arrivals. Let me guess; Fate of the Undead, right?" A voice spoke out. Dominique quickly reacted and shakily drew her longsword, eyes darting around the area until they fell upon a man in full chain-mail armor, an amused yet solemn smile on his face. She cautiously approached him, her eyes locked hard and sword ready to kill should this man hinder her progress.
"Don't even think about it. You might regret it." The man chucked, knowing full well she barely knew how to wield her sword properly just by the look of her. Dominique growled in retaliation at the comment. Oscar placed himself between them and stated," Dominique! Do not attack this man! He means you no harm."
Dominique stared at Oscar, contemplating over whether to ignore him and kill the man or follow his word. Her mind then went back on the fact that he knows her past and she needed to know who she was before she turned Undead. She cogitated her thoughts in order long enough to focus on the goal of even being here. If Oscar was dead, she would have nothing to learn about her past self. A grunt was then released as she sheathed her sword and complied.
Asuka was too busy worrying about the pain her face was enduring to care what was going on with the two warriors and fellow escapee. She sighed before she walked over the bonfire to relieve herself of the pain. The warmth of the flame soon spread across the area, which was a boon for Oscar as he noticed Dominique physically relaxing, any sort of hostility towards the man fading as the warmth roamed about the area. Oscar then took the opportunity to answer him.
"You already know the answer, Crestfallen." Oscar voiced. The Crestfallen merely chuckled somberly at the indication, obvious to Oscar that he found the quest pointless. Oscar stared blankly at the man, uninterested in his words of declaring his mission impossible.
"Heheh, well, you're not the first. You and your companions should've rot in the Undead Asylum... But too late now." He shrugged, obviously not caring in any sort of manner. Dominique's eye twitched at his sense of carelessness, already annoyed by him. She then started to regret not cutting him down. "Well, now that you're here, let me help you out."
"No need. We know that we must ring the Bell of Awakening to -." Oscar didn't get finish that sentence as the Crestfallen interrupted him.
"I beg your pardon? It seems you have been misinformed, Sir Knight."
"How so?" Oscar challenged, holding back any sign of irritation towards the warrior who rudely interrupted him, though he was curious at the same time of what he had to say about the Bell of Awakening.
"There are actually TWO Bells of Awakening. One is up above in the Undead Parish, guarded by fierce Hollowed Knights of Balder while the other is below in the Gods forsaken cesspool known as Blighttown." Oscar's eyes widen under his helm. He was only truly aware of the one in the bell in the Undead Parish, but unfortunately for him, there was another in the infested grounds of Blighttown. His eyes then narrowed when the idea of deception came to him.
"You claim that there is another bell and it resides in the plague-infested Blighttown!? Surely you jest, Crestfallen!"
The Crestfallen warrior merely smirked and replied, "Whether you believe it not, one thing is for sure; I would die again if I step into that cesspool." Dominique then noticed his shudder at the mention of Blighttown, obvious telling her he had an unpleasant experience with that location.
'It truly can't be that horrid of a place...' She mused. She then suddenly felt like she just uttered complete heresy around the moment those words were in consideration. Another thought that crossed her was the warrior's words of them not being the first. 'If we're not the first, then who are the first before us?'
"How exactly do we get to the Undead Parish?" Asuka asked from her position, interested on the topic of the Bells of Awakening. The reason for interest was simple for Asuka to remember; Adventure and finding decent loot to improve her chances for survival. Hey, she was and still is a Brigand. It was habit she enjoyed in her career during her short lifetime in the Delta Mountains.
The Crestfallen warrior stared at Asuka as if she was an imbecile, but conceded nonetheless, "It's simple. You have to reach the Undead by going through the waterway leading to the Undead Burg over yonder."
The trio looked to the right to a chasm and an ancient bridge-like waterway leading to the Burg. Their eyes focused on the stairs leading to the waterway, which will lead them to the bell beyond the Burg.
"Well, that's cleared up. Mind telling us where we are? We're aware we're in Lordran, but where IN Lordran?" Asuka furthered questioned.
"Hmm, you want to hear more? Oh, that's all we need. ANOTHER inquisitive soul..." The Crestfallen grumbled in annoyance.
"It is better to be inquisitive than dead..." Dominique huffed. The Crestfallen merely sighed in response and Oscar decided to answer on his behalf.
"Well, this place is known as Firelink Shrine. It is a refuge for the Undead that come to Lordran, whether they be willing or not. Many Undead have rested at this very bonfire. Among them are Black Iron Tarkus of the Berenike Knights, Big Hat Logan of Vinheim, and a companion of mine and fellow Astoran Knight, Solaire."
Asuka and Dominique raised their eyebrows in interest at the names mention, mostly this Solaire of Astora. They were surprised to know Oscar had a companion with him in Lordran. Perhaps this is fate telling them that the road ahead isn't as bleak as they expected it to be.
"Yes, yes. The legendary heroes have once shared this bonfire, but one by one, they never came back. All just to complete a fool's errand." The Crestfallen chipped in, solemn as per usual. Dominique sighed in response.
'You truly must want to be a thorn in my side, eh? Well, you are succeeding in your efforts...' She deliberated in utter annoyance.
"Well, we're not letting that stop us. We WILL ring the Bells of Awakening and we WILL succeed." Oscar stated in a matter of fact tone of voice, much the Crestfallen's amusement.
"Fine, fine. All to each own's entitlement. Just do not say I didn't warn you..." The Crestfallen stated before he laughed maniacally, causing Oscar and Dominique to raise an eyebrow while Asuka slowly backed away at the laugh.
"Well, that is settled. Asuka, Dominique, let us prepare. A harsh journey undoubtedly awaits us." Oscar announced. Dominique and Asuka looked at each other before shrugging. Dominique started wandering Firelink Shrine for items and not too long after she entered the arch pathway in the middle, she spotted a large man donning a mix of leather and chainmail armor. She also took note of the blonde bowl hair cut he donned.
Curious, she cautiously approached him, noticing the spiked mace in right hand and the shield in his left. The man noticed her as soon as she was within a five feet distance. Before she could even make a move the man soon spoke.
"Oh, hello there. I believe we are not acquainted? I am Petrus of Thorolund. Have you business with us?… If not, I'd prefer to keep a distance, if possible."
'Us? Who's us?' Dominique inquired. She turned around to find any signs of accomplices, but found no one else but the man, Petrus, standing here. With eyes narrowed, she waved him off as a madman and continued onto the ruins. Before she could make it halfway up the stairs on her right, Petrus then called out to her.
"Dear miss? Mind if I have another word with you?" Dominique stopped and looked at the man with a stare filled with little interest, but complied to hear what else he had to say. Approaching the man once more, she tapped her bare foot with impatience. "I realized that I that we retain our distance, but I also want you to know that it is not meant in ill-will. Here, take this. As a token of peace."
The man known as Petrus gently grabbed Dominique's right hand and placed a small copper coin in her palm, much to her confusion. She stared at the strange coin for a moment before her eyes went back to Petrus, who merely said, "No, go on. It's for you."
A brief silence was apparent as Dominique just stared at Petrus for a moment before he noticed her unmoving figure. "You again? Oh, I know. How about this... I have to await my companions here anyway, so, what if I were to teach you some miracles? Would that please you?"
"Miracles?" She uttered, unaware of the foreign word's meaning.
"Yes, Miracles. They are the tales of the Gods who brought about revelation. We Clerics unleash the power of these tales with the scrolls inscribed with those very tales. Do you wish to learn such tales?" Petrus voiced. Dominique blinked at the information given to her. From what she gathered, these 'Miracles' were the power of the Gods given to those loyal to them. Dominique found it tempting to take him on his offer, but there was something about that didn't appeased her. Before she could voice this, Oscar had 'suddenly' decided to chip into their 'conversation'.
"I am sorry, but it is clear that Dominique has no such faith to use even the most basic of your miracles, Petrus. But I do wish for a scroll that would assist us on our journey."
"Let me guess; The Bells of Awakening?" Oscar nodded at Petrus's surmise. Petrus merely sighed in response. "Many Undead have come and gone to try to ring those bells. I am surprised yet saddened to know there are still some brave yet foolish souls willing to try where many failed."
"We have no proof of such, Cleric. We can only assumed they have been halted by the Hollows that guard the bells."
"That could be a possibility, but I have traveled to the Burg once and the Hollows were hardly a threat. I do not know what lies beyond the Burg though, but I fear that it may be a fruitless attempt if the others have not returned." Petrus claimed.
"Even so, we mustn't give up just from their disappearances. We must remember that time is convoluted in Lordran." Oscar stated in a reminding factor.
'Convoluted?' Dominique inquired.
"Yes, that is true, but-."
"I have had enough of this conversation. I request the scrolls of the Miracles Heal and Seek Guidance." Oscar stated, ending the matter. Petrus sighed at that and complied. Dominique watched for a moment before she jumped at the sight of glowing white orbs emanated from Oscar's hand and drifted over to the hand of Petrus. Oscar was then gifted with two scrolls from Petrus and departed, dragging her away in her astounded mindset.
"Dominique, I implore you to stay away from Petrus." Oscar said, snapping her out of her mindset. Dominique stared at Oscar questionably. From what she gathered in little minutes of her interaction, The man Petrus means no sort of harm towards her. Oscar noticed her curious stare and replied, "I am well aware that he is a Cleric, but when I first arrived here, I felt something... sinister about him. It was obvious he was hiding something from the Undead in Firelink Shrine. Should he try any attempt to make conversation, make it as short as possible."
Staring at the Astoran Knight, she did had a faint feeling that there was something about Petrus she didn't like. There was a certain... balance of him that implied to her that he will hinder any sort of progress while she is here in Lordran. Without a word, she nodded at his words.
"Good, now that we are in agreement of the subject..." Oscar trailed until he guided Dominique to the archway on the left of Firelink, where this section was flooded and columns were knocked down from days of decaying usage, this was where Oscar gently pushed towards the water. Confused, she turned to him, expecting an answer.
"It is best that you bathe here. Asuka will join you shortly. Also, there is a corpse on the upper ridge of this section. I believe the corpse is female and should provide you some form of clothing. I do not want you to be encrusted in dirt and in tatters for the entire quest." Oscar advised before he departed.
Dominique looked down at herself and realized that he was right. Her tattered clothing revealed a great amount of unprotected skin covered in the filth and blood of the Undead Asylum. A small nibbling feeling crawled about her body as she looked at filth-infested figure. With out hesitation, she removed her tatters and plunged into the water, her flesh bared for the world to gaze upon.
The pool was cool, much to Dominique's surprise as she emerged from its cool body. Her body soaked from head to toe, she released a sigh of bliss as she drifted about the pool. Asuka soon walked into her little blissful trance and rolled her eyes at the sight. She just removed her clothing and dived in, the splash surprising Dominique out her trance. She looked over the source to find an equally bare Asuka.
"Hello!" Asuka waved. Dominique waved back, only in an awkward matter. Her eyes couldn't help but inspect Asuka's figure. Asuka was off average height of a woman her age, standing at about 5'7 while Dominique stood at 5'1. She noticed that Asuka was very slim in her physique and her body was fairly athletic as she noticed abs faintly appearing on her stomach area. Her eyes roamed up and narrowed to see her chest was fairly at 9 inches while her own was at 7.9 inches despite their body frames were similar. The only differences were that her hips was around 7.7 centimeters while Asuka's were about 9.5 centimeters. Her observation of their bodies differences was interrupted when Asuka spoke once more.
"So, how was your time while the crow like? You know, not being cramped up in its talons for a full day?" Asuka nudged, obvious she was feeling somewhat implying that Dominique was getting a form of special treatment. She raised an eyebrow at that accusation, finding nonsensical that she would be treated like someone special.
"...It was... somewhat pleasant, I suppose." She trailed, obviously awkward in the way of conversation. Who could truly blame her? From she learned from Oscar, her time in the Gods forsaken Asylum was four years at the least. There was very little interaction with anyone that talk which cause whatever skill she had in social interaction to fade. Asuka noticed this and asked, "You truly haven't talked to anyone or anything in four years you were there, huh?"
Dominique merely shook her head, much to Asuka's chagrin. A sigh of annoyance was heard as Asuka looked skyward.
"This is truly going to be an awkward conversation..." She murmured before she shook her head. Clearing her throat, she attempted conversation once. "SO... how are you liking your freedom so far? I love mines excessively! It feels so good to be out of that Gods forsaken prison! Never in my life did I think I miss the smell of fresh air, the sun shining high in the sky, and the feel of grass and water beneath my feet!"
To emphasize this point, she deeply inhaled the air and exhaled, pure bliss and tranquility glazed upon her features. Dominique blinked at Asuka's energetic words. She knew the Asylum was a horrid place, but she didn't find that horrible. Then again, her memories did wane over the four years in the Asylum, so who was she to say?
It was a moment later that Asuka noticed Dominique's slightly surprised face that she calmed down and continued speaking, "Sorry, I am just thankful to be able to leave. And it's all thanks to you, kid."
"...You're welcome..." Dominique said, albeit awkwardly. This only amused Asuka as she laughed in response, much to Dominique's confusion and annoyance.
"Sorry, I just find it fascinating that you're just being fairly quiet in your responses. I guess that's an interesting aspect about you." Asuka defended.
'...What a strange woman...' Dominique thought. Time soon past by quickly as the two females began conversation, albeit mostly one sided due to Dominique's quiet nature. Dominique learned a fair amount about Asuka through the conversation, learning that she can very generous yet somewhat brash to her allies as she recalls her years in the Brigand Spiders. She recounted all the treasures she looted off of Nobility and Royalty alike with her companions. Asuka even reluctantly admitted that she had taken lives in her career, something she wasn't personally proud of, but the mountains were harsh and she had little choice in the matter. The conversation ended quickly on that subject as Asuka decided to spend the rest of her time bathing.
In midst of the bath, Asuka had soaked her Brigand uniform and let it dry soon after while Dominique decided to see what was upstairs. As true to Oscar's words, there was a female corpse and Dominique noticed that it was wearing armor. With a subtle nod of respect towards the dead female, she stripped and pillaged all items off of the corpse.
Dominique had found at least ten firebombs, five throwing knifes, and four Humanity sprites on her. She soon pillaged the corpse of its armor, undergarments included since hers were long tattered, and changed into them. She now donned a dark green leather short sleeved tunic that covered her torso and abdomen with a belted green leather skirt with thick leather straps and several pouches attached to the belt, a silver shoulder guard and a silver metal plated glove adorned on her left arm while a black leather wrist length glove on her right, and her feet were clad in knee-high sandals with metal plates protecting the forelegs attached to the solid black leather straps of the sandals. She soon then found a tower kite shield near the corpse and decided to take it as her own, discarding her heater shield in the meanwhile, and tore the tatters she once wore and wrapped them around her neck, letting flutter to wind like a miniature knight's cape despite its rugged appearance. She was fine with it, a childish notion coming across her head that it would cause slight intimidation to those that would hinder her progress while she was in Lordran.
'Speaking of which...' Her thoughts started before she made way to Oscar of Astora, who was currently resting at the bonfire, awaiting both her and Asuka. As she approached, she was surprised to see Oscar's face for first time as she noticed he was without a helmet. Oscar possessed short golden hair with blue irises, fair skin, and a handsome face filled with youth. Dominique could of sworn she felt her cheeks heat up at the sight of Oscar's face before she shook her head to regain her senses, much to Oscar's confusion. Dominique cursed her reviving female hormones.
"Is everything fine with you, Dominique?" Oscar asked, oblivious to Dominique's brief hormonal struggle. A sigh released, Dominique then got to the point at hand.
"Oscar, can you... tell me anything about myself before I turned Undead?" She asked in the most pleading manner she could muster. Oscar stared at the female for a moment before he started speaking.
"Six years ago, your parents arrived in Astora to settle in and start a new life. Your father encountered me by chance when he applied to become a knight in order to support his little named family. It was a fierce year for your father as he struggled to fulfill his duties as a low ranking knight. He was constantly looked down upon from the higher ranking knights because of his heritage from Catarina and your mother's heritage from the Far East. Despite this, he persisted through the obstacles and before long, he was granted a rank amongst the Elite Knights of Astora. While many weren't pleased with this, there was a small few of those Elite Knights who granted him a welcome into the ranks. I, myself, was one of them." Oscar trailed for a moment as if remembering something before he continued.
"With his new rank, your father was able to bring small fortune to your family, which was more than enough to sustain life in your household. Months had passed and I was invited by your father to meet the family he strived to support. That was the day I met you, a child eager to become a Warrior just so she could fight at side the man who showed the little support he could give to her father in his times of trial. How happier those days were when I looked back, but sadly, such happiness must come to an end at some point. About a year later, the Darksign surfaced and those who had died were revived as the Undead. You became a victim of the Darksign on the day you were taken by sickness. The Lord of Astora ordered your father to kill you in order to prove his loyalty to the kingdom. Your father in response refused and your mother resisted, which then led to their untimely death by execution for treason. You were then sent off to the Asylum not too long after and that the last Astora saw of you. I decided to rebel against my Lord to find you sometime I was branded by the Darksign. I arrived in Lordran by boat just before I was found out. The action had led to me freeing you from your cell and allowing us to be here now, looking back at the past."
Dominique's mind processed those words shared to her. Her father, a Catarina immigrant, arrived in Astora with her mother, an immigrant from the Far East, to start life anew. It was apparent to her that she was born sometime before the events Oscar had talked about. Her father struggled in his career as a low ranking Knight in order to reach the higher ranks to give their little known family a fair amount of fortune to have a smile on their faces. Those days ended the day she died of disease and before she knew it, all of the happiness she couldn't remember was now long gone along with her parents.
She then clutched her chest, feeling the same niggling feeling she was feeling earlier. She soon remembered this feeling being called guilt. Guilt for thinking of leaving Oscar to fend for himself the moment she got the information she wanted and guilt for being the cause of her parent's death. She then felt completely shameful for thinking of such treacherous thoughts that her head was hung as she mewled over the story of her family. Oscar noticed this depressed aura emanated from her and placed a hand on her shoulder as a small way of saying all will be fine one day. Dominique gently removed the hand from her shoulder, appreciating the small show of support.
Sometime later, Asuka came by the bonfire and noticed the depressed aura surrounding Oscar and Dominique and was later informed of Dominique's family and their unjust demise. Asuka looked at the girl with pity, much to Dominique's discontent. The three sit by the bonfire, their thoughts focused on the journey ahead although Dominique had other thoughts in mind. She got what she wanted, now she didn't know what to do next. The only thing she could do for now was accompanying Oscar and Asuka to ring the bells until this torch was lit. This continued even as night descended. Oscar and Asuka fell unconscious in the midst of their thoughts while Dominique was wide awake, still pondering over the story Oscar had shared with her. All she could ever think about was her parents and how they would of been alive had she not turned Undead.
Though she couldn't remember her parents, she still mourned for them that night as tears briefly streamed down her face, forever remembering their selflessness and loyalty for family as they attempted to protect. But deep inside, she knew that she will forget their story of sacrifice to preserve her life, but for how long? Only the convoluted time in this accursed land of the Undead will tell. For that is the fate of the Undead, the fate she was unconsciously aware of.
For now, this is chapter one. It is not the best quality I can muster, but the story will improve over time. All right, a few notes here.
1. Dominique will be the protagonist who mostly silent but will speak. She will mostly mental vocal in her dialogue. Also, I do plan on making her aggressive as her journey goes on, so I can try showing how brutal she can be. Also, I'll improve her lore a bit more since I am currently NOT satisfied with how I executed it in this chapter. I was going with Silvermont's example of dear friend here. Oh well, I am going to expand the depth of her backstory later. Same with Asuka and Oscar later on.
2. Oscar is alive because I despise the fact he dies within the first ten seconds of the game as does everyone else on their first playthrough. He deserves a better role, which is why I am now giving that chance. Truly, I couldn't resist the opportunity of give Broscar the chance of making himself as much as a bro as Brolaire.
3. Asuka is a female character I created while I tried out the Bandit class and I have to say, The Bandit class is a BEAST! It has high stats on strength, fair vitality, faith and intelligence, and a SWEET shield that blocks 100% of POISONS AND TOXINS! I was in love with the class instantly when I tested it. Even went through the starting set at +9 (Minus the Four Kings for obvious reasons). Bandit OP, pls nerf From.
Oh wait, they nerfed the hell out of it in Dark Souls 2! I hate the fact the Bandit is now good for Dexterity builds, but I managed to stay with Strength, Faith, and Intelligence whenever I chose the Bandit. Oh, the Warrior, Sorcerer, and Knight are also OP, especially on the first playthrough.
4. Asuka will not be the last of my created characters to appear in the story. There will plenty more ahead.
5. I will think of alterations of the story to make it unique, such the DLC content when they reach there. Dominique is going to be the most excited about it. Mostly because of Artorias.
6. Dominique's armor is a mixture of the Hard Leather set (DaS1), Knight's set, Falconer Set (DaS2), and Agdyane's set (DaS2). This unique set will be donned by Dominique for until better is found later in the game. If you find it okay for her to wear, kindly say so.
A little surprise for you guys. I've never heard of Dark Souls in the past four years of my life. I've recently got in the Souls series a month after I graduated Irmo high school. The main thing that got me interested into the Souls was when I came across Dark Souls II, but instead of playing it (The thing was too flipping expensive for my tastes!), I looked for the first one instead and just by luck, I found Dark Souls I and bought it with no regrets. The best way to summarize my experience; The most mind blowing, epic, and frustrating gaming experience in my life!
Truly, I was close to putting down the game for good until I decided to be smart by swallowing my pride to look up a guide for the game. I mostly used the guide for The Capra Demon (Dem Dogs), Blighttown (Hated that place on my first playthrough, nowadays I just breeze on through with little problem.), Anor Londo (The Silver Knight Archers and Smough & Ornstein. Nuff said.), Tomb of the Giants (I still LOATHE that place with a passion. The goddamn Skeletal Beasts! I lost 90K I managed to earned through NG+2 PvE only because of those things! And I was wearing fully upgraded Elite Knight armor at that! WHAT THE FLYING HELL, MAN!?), and Lost Izalith (I got lost so easily in that zone.).
Everywhere else, I've managed to get through with mostly luck and looking around for treasure. Overall, the game was one I constantly find myself playing more anything I've got and now I decided to make a fan-fiction after playing Dark Souls for at least a hundred hours of playing it. Mostly for the hell of it all. I hope you enjoy it so far since this is my first Dark Souls fan-fiction.
I do plan on improving throughout the story. Constructive criticisms are fully appreciated if you present them in a professional manner. Any form of unprofessional advice will be ignored entirely.