A.N. Hey again Dark Souls Community! Dropping the second installment here. Like I said last chapter certain enemy placements and game mechanics will be changed for plot and narrative purposes, such as permadeath, no teleporting with bonfires (only in specific circumstances), and the use of souls as currency to buy items. This will be a sort of hyper-realistic take on the Dark Souls II narrative.
A hollowed infantryman raspily groaned as it wildly brought its rusted, broken sword down in a telegraphed slash that was easily parried by Hadrian's dagger. The flickering embers of life sputtered out from the hollow's sunken-in eyes when the knight impaled it through the chest and the now dead husk clattered to the earth as Hadrian kicked the body away, drawing out his sword in the process. It was the final hollow to assault him on his way to the base of the giant tree and the man had left a trail of corpses in his wake.
Hadrian stared apathetically at his beaten adversary, whose body and limbs were resting in an obtuse fashion. This was the fate that befalls those who succumb to the curse. To go hollow was to lead a weak, lifeless existence void of any real or tangible pleasure. He found it almost tragic. Just almost.
Fluidly stepping over the corpse, as if it were a natural occurrence for him, Hadrian entered the rather large opening in the trunk of the great tree and had spotted the strange entrance as it had come into view. He found a wooden ladder that ascended to the edge of the cliff he had witnessed earlier, and the thought of turning back suddenly crossed his mind for a moment but surely he had already faced the worst of the trails, and so with renewed confidence he vigorously scaled the ladder.
Reaching the apex and taking in the new sight, the knight found what looked like the remnants of a skirmish as the bodies of hollowed infantrymen were strewn across the ground. The interior of the stonework architecture was even more dilapidated that of what could be viewed from the outside, with crumbling ancient walls that were covered so thick in verdancy one could not even see the cast of gray stone. There was no ceiling and sunlight beat down without rest from the sun's zenithal position. Most peculiar was a lone white-garbed knight that sat resting in the middle of the clearing. The knight was leaning against an assemblage of tree trunks that rose together only to twist and arch outwards in thoughtless designs, reaching well beyond what Hadrian could see.
Taking a tentative first step, Hadrian was unsure if the unmoving man-at-arms was approachable or even alive. He silently armed himself with his dagger, inching closer and closer until he was not but a few feet away. Hadrian saw that the knight's attire consisted of rusted chainmail with a tattered white cape alongside worn metal gauntlets and greaves whose surface was tarnished from age and usage.
"Do you have your wits about you knight? What say you, hmm?" Hadrian spoke, his voice commanding attention. The Heide knight said nothing in response, the only implication of his continuing existence was the slow and shallow breathing that could be heard if one strained their ears hard enough.
A few long tense moments passed before Hadrian let a breath out through his nostrils and shook his head. He turned heel, leaving the mute knight to his own devices. Heading left and avoiding the bodies of the lifeless hollows, he advanced towards a dark corridor that, upon closer inspection, was a dense collection of twisting, interconnecting tree roots that tunneled downwards and opened up to a seemingly underground passageway. Using one arm against the wall for support and being mindful of the many roots that jutted outwards, as if to purposefully trip him, Hadrian journeyed through the descending passage. The lack of sunlight darkened the way, causing the knight to slow his advancement and feel his way forward.
As he reached the end he could see a faint flickering light and observed a simple four cross chandelier that held withering candlesticks on each end, with only two still burning. It was visible through a collapsed wall, which had broken outwards towards him. A mound of crumbled and broken bricks laid at the opening, almost acting as a slipshod stairway.
Crossing over from organic footing to hard stone, Hadrian heard the groaning of more hollowed men, no doubt waiting to ambush an unsuspecting traveler. Taking the left walkway that would undoubtedly wrap around to that room, the knight's trained reflexes saved him from a slash of a corroded blade when he leaped back just in the knick of time. The hollow's strike had come from the next turn in the path and it struck the side of the corridor with a resounding clang, catching the attention of the other hollows in wait.
The cover of stealth blown, Hadrian knew he had to dispatch at least one of them before they amassed in number. Noting how confined the stone corridor was, he rushed in with his dagger and whirled around the corner, deftly piercing the green ghoulish flesh of the hollow's neck and ripping it out along the width of its neckline. He leaned his body backward against the cool and faded milky stonewall so that the jet of blood that erupted from the wound wouldn't splatter him.
A gargle was all that the hollow could produce as it crumpled to the ground, and with life having left its broken body only a growing pool of blood kept it company now.
Drawing his shortsword, he listened intently for the shufflings of the two remaining hollows, one of which appeared from the doorway after a few moments. Leaping towards the unsuspecting victim with his sword poised, Hadrian speared the hollowed soldier's body, the momentum of the attack knocking the hollow backward inside the chamber it previously inhabited and, more importantly, into its ally.
Temporarily without his primary weapon, he altered the grip on his dagger so that the bloodied blade was pointed downwards and quietly stalked into the secondary room. His eyes found the punctured hollow now dead and on top of the only remaining living one, who was struggling to remove the weight of his dead companion.
Hadrian, bearing down on his enemy oppressively, pushed down on the hilt of his sword, making sure the end of the blade tore past dead organs, flesh and ruined armor to administer pain and injury.
The hollow gasped and grunted, a sign that Hadrian had accomplished his ghastly task, and began to flail widely in a sad attempt to remedy its hopeless situation. He pushed harder still and more outbursts of gasps came trickling out from the hollow's throat.
"Tell me hollow," Hadrian spoke, putting a biting emphasis on the last word. "What do you see? Is there some sort of truth or unseen reality that normal men cannot hear or view?" The hollow only reply was with the moans of the dead and dying.
"I suppose not then," He said after a few moments. Hadrian could tell from the hollowed soldier's eyes that there was only a dark insanity dwelling in the depths of its consciousness.
He let a dry, humorless chuckle escaped from his throat. "You only live in a realm of maddening emptiness now, consider my blade a mercy."
As he spoke those final words, the knight shoved the blade down with all his might and wrenched it sideways, not doubt gashing the undead hollow terribly. Another loud groan of pain rose up into the air before the man removed his sword from both of his fallen enemies and turned away to carry on his way. It would take many excruciatingly painful minutes before the hollow would pass into merciful oblivion.
The light from the hanging candlesticks was not nearly enough for Hadrian to see all the way down the long stretch of the hallway before him, luckily there looked to be stairs heading upwards at the end of the passage and dim sunlight poured forth from above, promising a sure-fire course to open sky.
Traveling up the stone staircase Hadrian could see another wooden ladder that ascended to an even higher perch on some grander part of the crumbling hollow-infested garrison.
Once he could clearly see the sky the knight took in the scenery immediately around him and found that he was standing on the lengthy expanse of a moss-covered rampart, with its magnitude reaching several tens of meters towards the way he had come.
Hadrian walked to the edge and surveyed a sprawling breadth of ruin that looked to be teetering on the brink of collapse and yet it was strikingly majestic in its indefatigable struggle to maintain shape. He realized that this fortress must have been an important strategic point to whoever had been in command over it, for it was extraordinarily large in size, almost seeming too gigantic to be handled by the likes of men.
The ladder led to an even more astonishing view of the surrounding area, and rickety wooden scaffolding could be accessed to lower oneself to the ground many meters below. Hadrian's attention was momentarily absorbed as he gazed out at the horizon, an imposing black castle could be seen jetting out from behind a set of ominous crags and even further beyond was the mightily tall mountain range that now seemed endlessly far away, all under the veil of bleak gray clouds.
And for a moment, Hadrian felt a queer feeling of insignificance in the face of such staggeringly large scenery, but it was dashed away by an insistent itching emanating from his back.
Turning away from the breathtaking but strangely foreboding view, the knight bore witness to a hollowed knight trying to sneak up on him and promptly sidestepped the thrust of its slender greatsword when it attacked him. Taking hold of its weathered breastplate and tattered undershirt, Hadrian flung the hollow over the edge to plummet down to the earth below. The unmistakable sound of corporeal form meeting soil could be heard just a few moments thereafter and with his enemy dispatched, the man approached the set of large ornate cast iron doors that blocked the entrance to a tower that reached a mere four stories higher from his current location.
The doors had engravings depicting various flowing patterns of flora that were welded into the metal, however, the designs no longer held their beauty as rust and age had eaten away any formerly held grander.
Hadrian leaned against the cool dark metal, placing one palm on each door and pushed with all his strength. It was remarkably heavy, and Hadrian strained his muscles to even slightly open the way forward.
Digging in with the soles of his feet, he grunted in exertion as he pushed again, refusing to let a mere door bar his advance. The tremendously old hinges creaked loudly in protest, but they relented and the room ahead was revealed as the doors slowly swung open.
Two faded white pillars, wrapped in twisting tree roots traveled up towards the ceiling before a crackling bonfire that illuminated the body and face of a womanly statue carved into the opposing wall.
The heat of the fire was welcoming, the warmth penetrating through Hadrian's leathers as he grew closer. He knelt close to the flames as they licked upwards, never reaching more than a foot or so in length. Resolute to taking a short hiatus from his journey, the knight unburdened himself of his pack and took a long drink of water.
"Quite the land you've come to, eh stranger? Keh heh heh..." A raspy, grating voice spoke.
Hadrian quickly whirled around to find a wizened old hag slouched in the corner of the room, her face and body hidden by a grime-ridden green cloak.
"Oh come now, there's no need to be so jumpy. You seem to be the type of fellow of being able to handle a few hollows, and that's all what's left 'round these parts. Keh heh heh..."
The woman's cackling laughter was cut short by a fit of violent and onerous coughing. Hadrian observed her long boney fingers that seemed almost unnatural in shape when she brought her hand to cover her mouth. The old woman's strangest characteristic was the large roofed wooden crate that was roped to her back. Sacks of unknown contents could be seen from the gaps in the wood and the crate looked to be filled to the brim with them.
"What is a lonely indigent like yourself doing in such a place?" Hadrian questioned, relaxing just a fraction when he could see no visible weapon.
Another bout of wheezy laughter; "Why don't you help a poor old woman and buy something?" She said in an almost pleading manner, making a motion to her wares. "I'll be inclined to tell you then..."
The man narrowed his eyes in incredulity and suspicion. Surely this witch was trying to swindle him out of his coin...but information was a valuable commodity...
"First, tell me your name. Pleasantries should be free, don't you think?"
"My name's Melentia. It's quite clear that you are a stranger 'round here, but all we get nowadays are strangers. Everybody's gone and run off! Keh heh..."
"You know about this place then?" He asked but the hag didn't respond, only outstretching her palm towards him, the wrinkled leathery texture of her skin viewable in the light of the bonfire.
Hadrian realized that he would get nowhere unless he threatened or bargained and the former left an undesirable taste in his mouth.
Pulling out a few gold coins, he made his way over, Melentia chuckling as he did and the old merchant began to pull out an assortment of items.
"What is that?" Hadrian asked, his curiosity provoked at a particularly ancient-looking stone cube that seemed able to fit into a mechanism of some nature.
"This here's a special little thing. A lockstone of Pharros. Used to unlock his contraptions, wherever they may be..."
Pharros was a name the knight recognized, a legend of sorts known throughout many lands as a vagabond who created complex devices for the unlucky and unfortunate. Hadrian had never seen any of the rumored contraptions, but having a key to one would be beneficial should he happen upon such.
He tossed the coins in her waiting palm and took the lockstone in trade. "Thank you kindly Keh heh heh..."
The old hag's laughter and voice were most unpleasant to his ears but he needed the information she possessed. "You have knowledge of this place do you not? Out with it."
"Drangleic's been a pile o' rubble since the war fought long, long ago. When the Giants crossed the sea." Malentia whispered the last part as if these Giants were still present.
"Giants? I've never heard of such things."
The old woman carried on as if she didn't hear him; "They say these trees grew from the remains of the Giants. From each carcass sprouted new life growing into what you see now..." She gestured to the gnarled roots above their heads.
A slight involuntarily chill ran up Hadrian's spine. A forest full of once living beings was macabre, even to him.
"But you know what they also say? "Don't believe what an old hag says!" Keh heh..."
Hadrian couldn't decipher if she was jesting or not, so he decided to ignore such ramblings; "You were talking about the war long ago?"
" Ah yes, it seemed like the battles would never end. Poor folk like myself had nary a place to sleep. That's why I keep all me things right with me."
The knight was now sure she was mad. Surely one could not have lived for such a lengthy period of time, at least not in a way that retained any sense of sanity.
Malentia pointed a gaunt finger at him; "You may travel light, but methinks you bear a burden of your own."
"Do not pretend to know my troubles." Hadrian spat, his eyes narrowing in disdain only to be meet with another croak of laughter.
Seeing no further use for the elderly woman Hadrian returned to his spot by the fire, placing the newly acquired artifact into his pack.
Taking another glance at the fire before him, he noticed the pile of white ash and bleached bones at the base of the bonfire. He realized suddenly that these grim remains were the kindling and fuel for the dark orange flames. The cracked skull sat facing him, its empty eye sockets seeming to stalk him.
'I have not even been to this land for a day and yet madness and monsters are around every corner... What a hellish place this is.'
The creaking of wood and tinkling of a small lantern could be heard as the old hag Malentia rose from her spot. "Well, It's high time that I pick up and move."
Hadrian was positive there was no safe place for someone like her but said nothing as the old woman made her way to the doors. Her livelihood was not his concern.
"I've a bargain for you, next time we meet, my love. Keh heh..."
The coarse laugh rang in his ears many minutes after Malentia had left. He needed to find the answers he sought quickly, lest this land twist him into a gibbering madman...
A.N. Leave your thoughts in a review!
