Many centuries ago in a betwixt nexus…

Opening Song: "Nameless Song" by: Motoi Sakuraba

Gehrman is reading a book over blood arts while I forge some coldblood chunks into the great sword I acquired from killing Ludwig. I find where the layers are and carve out small divots on both sides of the blade with a fine-tooth chisel.

That way when I add a coat of beast blood to the blade, the chunks will dissolve and strengthen the weapon. I also make sure to engrave places along the edge so when the coldblood thaws, it will seep down into the metal and reinforce its ability to cut.

I have been in this world called Yharnam for what feels like an eternity. Many hunters have come and gone. Hunters I called friends here in the dream, but killed out there because they either went mad with bloodlust, or desired what I had.

However, I haven't seen another hunter in a long time. The last one was about… thirteen trips ago. Speaking of which, that needs to be tallied up. I put my stuff down and walk out to the overlooking patio.

From the very top of the workshop walls, all the way down to the bottom are countless rows of times I left the hunter's dream and came back. There were even times I forgot and remembered later, but left it off to avoid overcounting. Since there's no way to possibly tell time here, I've just been counting the tallies as days. There's at least eight hundred and sixty-seven marks on this wall. That's before I lost count.

"Preparing for another hunt?" Gehrman asks as he rolls his wheelchair over to me.

"Yes. I just finished reinforcing my cleaver, and I'm using what's left on the sword." I reply as I find a place to mark at the very bottom.

Gehrman takes the sight of the wall in and lets out a sigh, "We've seen quite a few people come and go within these trips."

"Yeah. Some were…real good people. Such a shame what happened to most of them."

"M, what do you plan on doing when the hunt ends?"

"Well, if possible, I want to go back home."

"Where is home?"

I take a couple minutes and try to truly recall. It's the world beyond this one. That's for sure. My heart starts to bulge as I think of Kagura and dad. I start to feel some kind of happiness as I remember them. Then it comes to me. Dad was building a place for the three of us to stay.

"Well Gehrman, home was a place right beside this gorgeous, crystal green lake. Although it's been a long time, I still remember everything. Dad was building this beautiful cabin that faced the sun every morning. Me and my sister would go out and swim or play in the flower filled valley below. The way the wind came off the mountains and blew through the fragrant flowers, and the smell of fresh, snowmelt water is something I could never forget." I say as I get the physical feeling of fragrant air on my face. The familiar sound of the stream bubbling as it poured into the lake rattles my eardrums and nearly brings me to tearful bliss.

"That sounds lovely. I'm sure your sister and father are very worried about you." Gehrman says with a sincere smile.

"What about you Gehrman? What's home for you?"

Gehrman takes his top hat off, straightens his white hair and softly chuckles, "I never really had a home. This place is all I've ever had the honor of knowing, but if I were to have a place to call home, I think anywhere but here would be quite nice."

"Well maybe when this is all over, you can come with me and meet the family!" I say.

"I don't know if that would even be possible."

"I'm positive it is! You and Maria! I can't wait! I'm sure dad would be thrilled to know you two have been by my side since this all happened! My precious friend Kagura? You two are going to love her!"

"I'm sure we will." Gehrman laughs.

"Gehrman, I owe you an apology. I'm sorry I was so…"

He holds up his hand and urges me to stop talking in a polite away, "it's alright. You were nothing more than a child when you showed up. I didn't expect you to have the best etiquette, nor the best manners. Especially for one that was forced to face the horrors of Yharnam alone. I just want you to know that through those times you got angry, I never felt any ill will. I always knew out of all the hunters I'd met; you would be special."

"Thank you, Gehrman… I was… I was going to say you and Maria are like family to me, but you're more than that." I reply as we both enter the workshop. He goes back to reading while I pick up Ludwig's sword and rub a soaked rag of beast blood over it.

The rocks that rest in the recesses I made dissolve and fuse with the beast blood. Photons of red and black spark from the weapon, and a shiny gloss causes the blade to sparkle when light hits it.

Truly a beautiful sword. Even more so when I have the power to call on its guidance. However, I can't use it that much. Otherwise the voices from the sword overwhelm me, and I lose control for a brief second. They solely exist to prevent me from going mad, and when I've used it too much, the blade punishes me and demands that I rest and regain my sanity from the overwhelming flow of power and knowledge.

I throw the custom sheathe I made for the sword over my back and slide it in. Drawing from the back is normally a bad idea, but Gehrman showed me a trick he learned from the previous owner of this sword. Ludwig built his sheathes a certain way so he could draw from his back, and Gehrman was more than happy to show me his schematics. That way I could use both my saw cleaver and great sword at the same time in a fight.

"Alright Gehrman, I'm headed out."

"The hunt must go on." Gehrman states as I head down the stairs and pretend to walk over to the tombstone that takes me back to Yharnam.

I check to make sure it's clear and quickly run down to the black iron gate that encloses the entire property. Hopefully he wasn't paying attention. The only one that seen me was Maria, but she isn't going to care. As far as she knows, I'm coming down here to rest or test out my new and improved weapons.

The path takes me down to a tree, and a drove of bushes that obstruct the view of the workshop. I hop over the black little fence and drop to the trail below. This should be a very good spot. If Gehrman or Maria stumble upon me, there's always the excuse of just finding a nice place to sit down and accidently falling asleep.

I reach into my side satchel and pull out a stained, leather bag. Black sludge and blood gently seep through, so I put my hand underneath to prevent a mess. It would be harder to explain falling asleep if there were drops of great one blood spattered upon the trail.

I pull out one of the grey, stringy cords and look it over. The thing pulsates and slithers around my arm like a worm. Suddenly, my mind wonders, and I lose hope in myself. Ever since my arrival, I have constantly been eating beasts and drinking blood of every kind.

Some creatures tasted amazing while others were enough to gag a maggot. This spider creature everyone was calling Rom tasted like straight up dirt. Actually, that's an insult. Dirt tasted better than Rom could ever hope to be, but this has got to be the nastiest thing I'd ever considered eating.

The revolting smell is enough to put any crazed soul into an early grave. However, if the books I read and what Annalise told me is to be true, then eating these umbilical cords from aborted great ones will grant me the power to shatter the hunter's dream and return home.

Kagura and dad come to my mind and I finally collect myself. "If it's for them, I'd even do this." I say as I close my eyes and open my mouth.

I clamp down as hard as I can and shove the entire cord into my mouth and furiously chew without thinking. Before the taste tries to sit in, I shove another umbilical cord in. There isn't enough room for three, so there's no choice but to endure it. The putrid taste of rotting, maggot infested meat bites my tongue and brings me to a stop.

I don't know if it's the sudden rush of power, or just the horrid taste of the umbilical cord, but it's almost enough to make me pass out. With all my strength, the wad of gummy sludge slides down my throat and I desperately gasp for air. Two down, one to go. I reach back into the leather bag and grab the last one.

There is a major pop in my mouth as the cord bursts wide open and releases a flow of great one blood. I slam my fist into the ground repeatedly as I constantly berate myself and state that if I want to see dad and Kagura again, then I have to do this.

With no thought, my tongue launches the mash of rotted flesh and noxious blood back and it's finally gone. Although the flavor lingers. I hiccup and a rush of acid and chewed up umbilical cord tries to regurgitate.

I put my hand over my mouth, hold my breath and try to think happy thoughts. A sizable pool of saliva forms within my mouth, and I swallow to force the glop back down. My head shakes side to side without consent, and I let out a sigh of extreme disgust.

I try to stand up, but my knees wobble and I collapse. The color in my eyes fade and the strength in my arms disappear as a gentle and calming wave comes over me.

"Kagura?"

"Yes?"

"I know you are the daughter of heaven."

"That's right."

"And I'm the daughter…"

"Listen to me, where we come from may state we are enemies, but that doesn't mean we have to follow. I will always love you, my dear sister…"

Kagura's voice drifts away, and the smell of smoke fills my nose. My heavy eyes slowly crack open. I must have passed out from eating those umbilical cords, but how long was I out? Not only that, why do I smell fire?

Out of curiosity, my toes flex within my boots and work some feeling into my numb legs. I sit up and stretch. It must have been quite some time because every part of my body is numb. Including my chest and stomach.

Guess it's time to go see Gehrman and tell him what the plan is. Now that I supposedly contain the power to shatter the hunter's dream, we can finally leave. At least I hope anyway. It'd be a shame to eat those cords and not fulfill the prophecies within all those books.

I stand up and walk back up the stairs leading up to the workshop. My heart drops into my stomach. The workshop…It's on fire! Why!? And why is no one doing anything about it!? I sprint up the incline as fast as I can to try and determine how this happened. Maria is just casually standing in the same place I seen her last.

"Maria! What's going on!?"

"Good hunter, you have come. Dawn will soon break. This night, and this dream will end. Gehrman awaits you at the foot of the great tree."

Despite the sudden shock of the only place to call home burning to ashes, relief comes over me. The night, and the dream will end? Then that must mean… eating those umbilical cords was a success! IT WORKED!

"YES!" I yell and cheer as I joyfully hop into the air. Happiness implores me as I wrap my arms around Maria and spin her around as if we were dancing. "Maria! I'm…No… We're going home! Me, you and Gehrman!"

"Where is home?"

"Do you remember when I told you about my dad and sister Kagura?"

"I do."

I take hold of her hand and gently squeeze to try and contain myself, "Well after this all ends, that's where we are going! You're finally going to meet them!"

"I look forward to it. Any friend of my good hunter is a friend of mine." Maria replies.

"That's the spirit! Now, I'm off to see Gehrman!"

My spirits are brimming with vigor and just the thought of seeing dad again gives me goosebumps. How I missed those times he would make a fool of himself just to make me laugh when I was sad, or when he'd rock me and Kagura to sleep in his arms before putting us to bed.

There's a list of things I'd love to do when I get back, but for the first week or so, I just want to be with dad and Kagura. It wasn't until I was taken away that I realized just how much I really loved them, and when I get back should consist of me showing them just how much I care, and that I'm sorry for all those times I was disobedient, or those times I got Kagura in trouble.

The locked iron gates that fenced off the area leading up to the great tree has been opened. Hundreds of white flowers dance under the warm, cinder filled wind, and stone cairns populate the area. I've never been in this part of the dream, but I'm sure this place is special.

Gehrman is sitting underneath the massive tree that's on the other end of the field. I take a deep breath, collect myself and try to approach him without bursting into joy. However, it's extremely difficult knowing we're this close.

"Maria said you wanted to talk to me?"

Gehrman nods, "Good hunter, you've done well. The night is near its end."

I want to come out and thank him for everything he's done for me, but I keep quiet and politely nod.

"Now, I will show you mercy. You will die, forget the dream and awake under the morning sun. You will be freed from this terrible hunter's dream."

My mind comes to a screeching halt. It takes a couple moments to sink in, but then it finally registers. All of the joy and vigor I felt in my soul bleeds out, and the thought of what he is saying infuriates me.

We are this close, and he's telling me that it would be better to give up and die?! And after all those talks and lectures I had to listen to about how he would see me through to the end no matter what! As mad as I am, I keep calm and clear my mind.

"I did not come this far to die now."

Gehrman lets out a sinister chuckle. One that I've never heard before. It almost sounds if he was expecting me to say this.

"Dear oh dear. What was it? The hunt, the blood, or the horrible dream?"

"You know VERY WELL what it is!" I point at him.

Gehrman puts his hands on the arm rests of his wheel chair and slowly lifts himself up. My heart starts to race, but I remain calm and take a firm stance to show I'm not backing down from my decision.

"Oh. It doesn't matter. It always comes down to the hunter's helper to clean up after these sorts of messes."

Gehrman grabs a hold of what looks like a sickle from his left hip. He brings the blade around behind him, and there is a crisp sound of a contraption forming. A handle shoots out from behind him as he takes a brisk hold of it with two hands.

So, this is how it's going to be? After everything we'd been through, everything we have done. It is going to be for nothing. I really wished Gehrman meant what he said about Kagura and my dad, but like everything in this world, it meant nothing. He lied, and it is absolutely tearing me apart.

"Tonight… Gehrman joins the hunt."

I grab my saw cleaver and flintlock and prepare for what's to come. He leaps at me and sweeps with his scythe. I jump back and rush forward. Gehrman brings his scythe around and deflects my incoming attack before retaliating with an uppercut. The blade catches me by my chest plate and flings me up into the air. He swings back around and slams me into the ground. All the air leaves my lungs, and I gasp from the impact.

Gehrman tries to yank me towards him, but I dig my cleaver into the ground and take aim with the flintlock. A thick cloud of smoke explodes from my gun as the quicksilver hollow point flies at Gehrman. He holds his scythe in front of him and splits the bullet in two. I fold my saw cleaver in half and charge into him.

Gehrman blocks the incoming blows. However, I give him no chance to attack. He tries to back off, but I stick to him and continue my assault. Gehrman swings wide and backs off, and I see my opportunity. He acts like he's going to sweep, but halfway though, he changes and swings over headed. I step out of the way and slash.

Red mists out of his right cheek as the saw teeth rip through. He backs off before it can take a solid hold. If he wouldn't have seen it coming, it would have taken his head off. Gehrman breaks the blade off his scythe, puts away the wooden frame and grabs his blunderbuss. I reach around and grab the spare flintlock in my back-hip holster. He takes aim and opens fire.

I jump behind a nearby stone cairn and avoid the incoming shot. Chunks of quicksilver, nails, and makeshift tacks fly in my direction and pound against the stone. Powdered rock dusts the top of my head as I lean out and aim.

A hand grabs the barrel and yanks it out of the way. I pull my cleaver up. Gehrman's sickle scrapes across the body of my weapon and gets lodged in the saw blade's teeth. The both of us fight to overtake one another as we struggle for control of the flintlock. I work my hand over to the side and rip the powder pan off.

Gehrman drives the wooden peg on his right leg into my shin and forces me off balance. He yanks the gun away from me. I pull my cleaver up and block the incoming slash from his sickle. Gritty sparks of old metal rake against one another as he shoves me down and points.

The trigger clicks and for a brief second, Gehrman looks at the gun half confused. I flick my cleaver out and throw it at him. The teeth of the weapon sinks into his shoulder and he staggers back. I reach around, grab my great sword and swing it at his leg. The blade slices through the peg, but Gehrman lifts his other leg out of the way.

He reaches into his cloak and throws something at me. My chest flairs up as several throwing daggers bury their way up to the hand guard. The pain quickly amplifies as I back jump behind another cairn and yank one blade lodged in my chest out and then work my way down to the one stuck in my right thigh.

I lean out and make sure Gehrman isn't going to sneak up on me. Right now, he's working on his leg. He takes his blunderbuss and snaps the end of the stock off and cuts it down with his sickle. Gehrman mounts it to the peg stump and uses a shard of cold blood to mend it together.

I take a hold of the final dagger stuck in my thigh and rip it out as Gehrman returns to his feet. He grabs my saw cleaver, breaks the locking mechanism, and pulls it out of his shoulder. I charge at him and prepare to dodge. He puts his scythe back together and swings from behind his back. I swat the attack down, and the both of us slam our weapons together.

We weave back and forth in between each other's attacks and look for some kind of opening. Gehrman locks my great sword in the neck of his scythe and leans back. I work the blade out and cross it in front of my body. Gehrman throws himself forward and extends his arm.

SHRIIINNNG…

The palm of his hand hits the flat part of the blade. My body helplessly comes off the ground as my sword completely shatters. Gehrman suddenly teleports right where I am about to land and rams his fingers through my left breast.

My mind begins to race as I grab a hold of his wrist and push back. He's trying to grab my heart and crush it. If he does that, there won't be any second chances. The muscles within my chest start to split in half as his fingers dig further and further. For a brief second, the urge to just let Gehrman win is very tempting.

He crushes my heart, and it's all over. Quick and painless. My soul will find its way back to my father, and he'll finally have closure on what really happened to me. Dad can make me into a weapon, or into some kind of jewel he can sell.

The very tip of Gehrman's index finger barely touches the outside sac of my beating heart. A memory within my head triggers and Kagura comes back to my mind. That day we were playing in the valley and asking each other childish questions while dad worked on the house.

"Can you…really love someone like me? Despite where I came from?"

"You will always have a place in my heart…"

Those may just be words of two children, but back then, each other is all we had. Nothing could separate us then, and I will not let something as trivial as this separate us now!

I stomp on Gehrman's scythe and bring my right arm up as hard as I can. My fist connects with Gehrman's chin and he lets go of my chest. I reach into my side satchel, crush a blood vial and sling it in his direction.

Red glass peppers Gehrman's face as he wipes it and tries to quickly regain his senses. I grab his scythe with both hands and slap the release on the neck. The sickle dislodges itself and falls into my hands. Gehrman wipes the blood from his face and tries to stop me.

The sickle punctures his armor and slides up to the handle as it exits his back. Blood softly flows out his chest from the severed arteries of his heart. Many times in the past when I killed someone by putting their heart out, the wound gushed out like a fountain. This however, is different. It's almost peaceful.

Gehrman starts to fall backward, but he lands in my arms, and I brace him up against my knee. Despite his defeat, Gehrman actually looks happy. Red droplets mist from his mouth as he takes one final breath and smiles, "Noctis… somnium diu…(The night, and the dream, were long…)"

"Vale, vetus amicus (Farewell, my old friend.)" I reply as I lay him down.

This rush of different emotions wash over me as I watch Gehrman's body turn to dust and blow away by the indifferent wind. Why did this happen? There was no reason for him to die. A tear rolls down my face, and suddenly, the moonlight plunges the entire area red.

The entire sky is lit up, and the moon has turned a whitish, maroon color. I wipe the dripping tears off my face and stand up. There will be time to mourn when I end this. A huge shadow up in the sky floats down towards me.

As it gets closer, the shadow starts to take form. At first, it looks as if it has a human body with a giant octopus for a head. The creature descends closer and closer, and I realize that's not the case. Several barbed tentacles whip around the creature's exposed spine. Pincer like appendages replace the creature's ribcage and rotting flesh drape over small patches of exposed muscle.

It touches down in front of me and slithers over to me in an instant. Before I can react, it picks me up and holds me in its giant hands. My mind tries to go into some kind of altered state, almost like I want to serve this thing. The promise of power and anything I could ever want fill my mind just as long as I stay and protect this nameless god of Yharnam.

The thought is short lived, and I break out of the creature's grip. A huge wave of power knocks the creature back as I pick up my sword Gehrman broke and his sickle. The moment my hand touches the great sword handle, it immediately forms a huge, aqua green blade. The guiding moonlight that I could only use sparingly at one time.

There is no feeling of impending madness or the desire to consume blood of any kind as I roll the sword around in my hand and point it directly at nameless god. "It would be wise to let me go back home, but I know it can't be that simple, and if killing you is my only way back, then may you return to the hellhole from which you crawled out of."

The creature roars and takes off running at me. I flip Gehrman's sickle upside down and charge. The creature lunges its tentacles at me. I roll under the first one, vault over the second and use the third to launch myself up into the air. The creature crosses its arms and blocks the slam from my moonlight blade with its forearms.

The magic slices through the layers of muscle, but is stopped by the bone. The creature extends its arms and throws me back. I backflip and cut down an incoming tentacle that tries to snag me out of the air with the sickle. As my feet land on a nearby cairn, the creature lunges at me with its hands lifted up.

I jump off as it slams both fists into the ground. A flurry of dirt, stone and flowers erupt out of the impact as a huge tremor rips a seam into the ground that snakes directly over to the great tree. Several more cairns topple over from the aftershock. I bring my arm across my body and swipe horizontally. A huge wave of magic jets out of my great sword and slams into the monster's face.

Brazening fluid sears itself into the ball of tentacles and leaves a huge mark. The creature grabs its face and violently flails around. I land on the ground and drive the handle of my magic great sword into the ground where the blade is sticking up. As the creature gets its bearings, I run up and bait it into following me.

All of its tentacles fly at me at once. I flip the sickle upright and cut them down. My stomach ruptures and pain flows through my entire body as the final tentacle gets past my defense. I keep a firm grip on the sickle as the creature hoists me up into the air. It holds me inches within the hole in its head as it reaches out and touches my face with its gnarled, bony fingers.

Some tears flow down my face as I discreetly place the blade on the tentacle and grab a hold. The sickle cuts all the way through. The sudden rush of pain catches the creature off guard and it reacts to losing another tentacle. Blood gushes all over me as I hold onto the tentacle. It whips up, and the momentum flings me up into the air.

I rip the spiked tentacle out of my gut and chunk Gehrman's sickle. The weapon completely disappears into the black hole of the creature's face, and a geyser of blood floods out. I place both hands on the tentacle and drive it through the creature's skull.

My weight plus the gravity forces it down. Between us is my great sword and with the last of my strength, I reach into the creature's eye hole, yank out the sickle, ram it into the side of its head and pull down.

The magic blade slowly punctures the monster's throat. As it loses the ability to fight, I plant one foot behind me and yank down with all I have. The great sword bursts out the top of the creature's head with so much force that the sickle stuck in the side cuts all the way through and exits out the bottom.

I lose my balance and fall on my back. The creature gurgles and chokes as it thrashes around and succumbs. The thing starts to decay, and a solid stream of red and black blood slowly slithers toward me. I roll over on my stomach, dig my hands into the ground and try to crawl away as fast as I can.

"No more… Please…" I moan.

The blood wraps around my legs and holds me in place. An invigorating feeling comes into my feet. It slowly works its way up to my legs, then my thighs, my chest, and then my head. An extreme feeling of pleasure sweeps me away as I'm washed away by what feels like…power. My eyes shut on their own and this blanket of calming bliss covers me.

My blood boils within my veins as it enters my heart and redistributes itself back into my body. The blood I took from Annalise cleanses me from my previous lineage, and ascending into godhood here has freed me. I am no longer a deity of my world, but of this new one. The curse which bound me from rising up against my enemies has now been broken.

"Are you cold?" Maria asks as she picks me up.

For some reason, her hands feel enormous because what feels like her porcelain thumb is rubbing the entire side of my body. If only I could see what's really going on.

"Oh, good hunter…"

Sewing pins fill my eyes as they crack open. A perfect image of the moon shines through a hole in the ceiling. I look around and see that I'm in what's left of the workshop. The walls are charred black with fire, and smoke still rises off the rafters from above. I'm lying on an old, bloodstained mattress in the corner of the workshop. Maria is sewing patches on what looks like a black cloak.

I look down and see that I have no clothes on my body. All the blood sigils and scars are still intact, and nothing seems to be out of the ordinary. I hold my hands up and clench a couple times. Everything appears to be normal. I grab my hair and pull it into view. It's still got that debonair silver tint.

"You are awake?" Maria asks as she walks over and lays the cloak in my lap.

"Yes. How long have I been asleep?" I answer as I throw the cloak around me and lace it up.

"Quite some time."

Well there is no way of really telling time here, but if it's enough for the doll to say quite some time, then it has to be awhile. Suddenly, it hits me. Kagura! Dad! I can go back! I tie my cloak off and make sure it properly covers my body before standing up and walking over to a mirror.

Okay, how do I do this? Possibly like the lanterns to get back to the hunter's dream? Despite countless ideas, the way I used lanterns to travel is really the only concept I can come up with. Except I'll be using mirrors to go back to my world.

As I reach out, a symbol on my hand forms and glows red. The mirror shatters before I can touch it. What? I pull my hand back and examine it. Is this my doing? Are mirror's too weak to act as a portal, and that I need to find something more stable? As I look closer, the symbol doesn't appear to be anything I've ever seen before.

A thought in the back of my head makes its way forward. My perception changes and deep under the symbol, it reveals itself to me. A unique, seal that looks like a perfectly cut and polished diamond has been placed upon me. Weakness grips my body, and my hand trembles from the sorrow I am experiencing. It saps the stability in my knees, and I collapse to the ground.

"My dear hunter, are you alright?" Maria asks.

"Why… Kagura?" I ask myself over and over as reality sits in.

The tears that were dripping from my face quickly dry up, and my fingernails dig into the floorboard. All the grief, all the misery, and even my love for Kagura is fading, and all I can feel is rage. Hatred consumes my body and soul. The floorboard underneath my hands snap within my palms.

"You promised me…YOU PROMISED!" I scream as I rip a massive chunk of the workshop's foundation out from the ground and chunk it at the wall the mirror was hanging up on. The entire side of the workshop collapses in upon itself.

"My hunter…" Maria says in a calm voice as she reaches out and grabs my hand.

The gentle touch of her porcelain hand slightly alleviates the fury I was blinded by and some clarity comes back to me. I take a deep breath and collect myself. Even though the seal will only last eight hundred years, it doesn't change the fact Kagura was the one that placed it.

I walk over to an old desk and flip it upright. There are some tools that are still intact within the workshop, so I better get to work. I grab a hammer, and a chisel and start hammering away at the desk…

Ending song: "The Ringed City Epilogue" by: Yuka Kitamura