Dream Of Eternity By SlaneeshSaysHi

by lucifuge 101

This story is a copy pasted fanfic By SlaaneshSaysHi on Questionable Questing . com with there generous allowance. For the Link to this specific story go to forum. questionable questing /threads /dream- of- eternity- bloodborne- start- gamer- jumpchain- currently- resident- evil .13184/ remove spaces it is now caught up to the authors work.

139. The Return Of The Old Hunters! P1

As I no longer have a beta reader, anyone interested can send me a message if they want to help!

Yharnam, Nightmare of Mensis.

I had a lot of time to consider where I needed to appear first in my return to Bloodborne, but ultimately there was one place in particular that I absolutely needed to go to first.

Mostly to finally take the last step needed to hold on to an old promise I made.

Thus, I first appeared within the Nightmare of Mensis, right where I fought Mergo's Wet Nurse.

For a time, I just stood there, staring off in the distance at the rising sun. Memories of the long night of the Hunt flashed through my mind, and a part of me couldn't help but feel a complex storm of emotions at the sight of the rising sun.

Finally, after so very long, I had done it. I had conquered Bloodborne, claimed Godhood, gone on to become God-King of the Eldritch…

And at long last, I have returned to Yharnam triumphant.

I took in the lingering smell of Blood in the air, so immensely, achingly familiar, and smiled.

"There's nowhere quite like home, huh?" I muttered.

Not that Yharnam was quite my home, exactly, but… Well, I had endured enough in the name of this damned place that it was most certainlymine.

And it was time to claim it as such.

But first… I walked forward, until I stopped and held out a hand.

I was moving incredibly fast, my own timestream separated from that of the rest of this reality, as Oedon hadn't entered back into this Reality quite yet.

She would do so in a bare fraction of a second… But that was long enough to give me the time to hide what I was going to do for a surprise later.

Ireached out, my form no longer that of a mortal Hunter, but that of my Divine self. Cosmic robes covered my body, my crown upon my head, my cosmic eyes staring far beyond mere mortal limits to claim what I sought.

And there it was. Mergo's soul.

Taking a hold of it through Space, Time, and beyond mere limits such as Life and Death, my lips curved into an immensely gentle smile as I watched the glimmering lights of Mergo's soul in my hand.

"Hello there, little one. The Night is over, and the Nightmares slain. Rejoice, for a new dawn comes at last." I declared softly, before hiding away the soul such that even Oedon's True Self won't be able to see it, while creating a very convincing fake to replace him.

This was my long-thought out plan: In order to finally break the last shackle of trauma over Oedon's heart, I would present Mergo's soul to her, fuse it with one of her egg within her womb, and then fertilize that egg with my seed, making it our son in truth.

After all, Mergo's death and torment was the origin of Oedon's trauma, so what better way to help her heal than to have her give birth to him as our son, without any issue occurring? That should prove more than enough evidence that Oedon can be a mother without worry for her children, and at that point… Well I expect that she's going to give birth to alotof my children before she's satisfied.

Needless to say, I'm very much looking forward to it!

For now, satisfied that this matter was dealt with for the time being, I disappeared, leaving this place for the next person that needed help.

Time to recruit Ludwig and Maria!

The Hunter's Nightmare.

Reappearing within the Hunter's Nightmare, in the same room where I fought Ludwig, I took in the lake of blood and corpses all around, before waving a hand. A moment later, the room was spotless, neither blood nor corpses in sight, and I nodded, satisfied.

Stepping forward to the spot where Ludwig's head had fallen, I smiled warmly.

Finally, it was time to bring back the closest thing to a true hero I met in Bloodborne!

With eagerness, Ireached outonce more, using my Authority over Afterlives and the souls of all beings to find-

There!

With infinite gentleness, I carefully brought the soul back from the realm beyond, and then used my power to embody him with new flesh and Blood until, at long last…

Ludwig, the Holy Blade, stood before me in all of his human glory!

He blinked, once, twice, then his eyes widened in shock.

"What-"

"Peace, Sir Ludwig." I said gently. "I asked you a question, when I was still a mortal man. Now that I am a god… I wanted to give you that second chance we talked about."

Ludwig froze, his eyes wide as he took me in, in my very clearly inhuman self, before his eyes narrowed as he studied my face and a spark of recognition entered his eyes.

"... Sir Aeon? Is that… Is that you?!" his eyes widened as he beheld theTruthof my nature. "You… You Ascended. YouactuallyAscended!" he said disbelievingly, before he started laughing. "You did it! You actually did it! You Ascended to godhood! You did what we all hoped was possible! I didn't think… I didn't dare to hope-!"

He stammered, eyes wide with pure awe and delight as he looked at me with immense disbelief and equal joy.

I smiled gently, before holding my hands upwards… and calling the original Holy Moonlight Blade in within them that I had carefully kept in my Inventory all this time specifically for this day.

Ludwig froze at the sight of the blade, a flurry of emotions passing through his eyes, before his expression softened deeply.

"My mentor…" He whispered softly, his eyes transfixed at the sight of the blade.

"Sir Ludwig. There is so much I need to talk to you about, to inform you of… But above all else, I wanted to ask this question of you." I held up the holy blade.

"Do you still desire to protect the innocents, and strike down the wicked, as you once did? Do you have what it takes to once more wield this blade, now that you are free of the curse of beasthood?" My voice softened, heavy with respect and hope. "Will you join me, as a Hunter of the Dream, so that together we may stand against all the Evils that would see good souls suffer unjustly?"

Ludwig stared at me… and then knelt, his head bowed low. "It would be my greatest honour to serve you, Aeon, the Good Hunter. Now and for however long I will live this second life, I, Ludwig, the Holy Blade, swear to protect the innocents, strike down the wicked, and obey your will in all things."

I smiled warmly. "So mote it be." I declared, Ludwig shuddering as my voice echoed with divine power, and upon his brow my personal symbol bled into existence upon his skin, before sinking into his flesh and disappearing.

I held up the Holy Moonlight blade to him, and he reached out to seize it before pausing just before making contact.

"What about you, my Lord? I once gave this very sword to you." He asked, concern clear on his face.

I chuckled, Damelone's sword form appearing at my waist. "Fear not. I used the blade as a template to create a holy blade of my own making after ascending to godhood, so you may reclaim that which is rightly yours without worry. Long has it awaited the return of its true master." I pushed the sword towards him. "Go, and claim back your Greatness."

Ludwig stared at the sword with almost fearful reverence at the thought of no longer being worthy of it… then, with no more hesitation, he grabbed its hilt and held it up, the blade glowing its signature Arcane green, almost pulsing with joy in the hands of its first and true master once more.

A warm smile spread on Ludwig's lips, the last of his hesitation melting away at the unquestionable acknowledgement of the blade.

"My mentor… To think we would ever be reunited like this…" he whispered, examining the blade with a careful, and yet clearly emotional gaze, his eyes shining with unshed tears as he gazed at his sword with pure joy.

Then he finally looked back at me, and I smiled at the way he stood so naturally with the blade in hand, knowing that THIS was how it was meant to be.

Ludwig gave me a deep Hunter's Bow, his form radiating gratitude and determination in equal measure.

"I am at your service, Good Hunter. What would you like me to do, now that I am returned?"

I smiled warmly. "Well, there's a lot I need to catch you up on. But for now-" I turned and pointed at the lantern. "I would like you to go to the Hunter's Dream. It changed a great deal since I claimed it as mine, but it remains, as ever, a home to all Hunters. Meanwhile, I will go and help Lady Maria as I helped you."

Ludwig's eyes lit up with joy. "Lady Maria? Oh, it would begoodto have the student of Gehrman back with us. And I've heard tales of the Hunter's Dream… Even if it has changed, it would be an honor for me to finally see it with my own eyes!"

He bowed deeply, sheathing his sword in the empty sheath at his waist he appeared with.

Then with a look of deep satisfaction, he looked around one last time at his surroundings, before kneeling at the lantern and leaving this realm behind, never to return.

I smiled happily, delighted to finally have Ludwig back to good health and ready to help me as a Hunter of the Dream.

This… this way something I've been waiting for for a long time now, and it felt sogoodto finally have done it.

Breathing out in satisfaction, I smiled.

Time to get Lady Maria next!

Looking up, Isawwhere the beach holding the body of Kos was, and Isteppedforward, appearing up the beach.

Mariadidn't notice my arrival, lost in thought as she sat on the beach, looking up at the distant blue sky with a warm sun overhead, but as I walked forward I called out to her.

"Maria! I've returned!" I shouted, finding some amusement at the various ways my words were true.

Maria quickly got to her feet and turned, a small smile on her face… before freezing in shock at the sight of my divine self.

"Good Hunter?!" she exclaimed, eyes wide as she looked up at me.

"Hello, Maria. A lot has happened since we last met… Not the least of which is that I Ascended to godhood." I told her.

"Ascended to-" she choked on her own spit, green eyes bulging wide in shock. "You… You actually Ascended? It can be done?!" She exclaimed, looking so stunned a stiff breeze would make her fall over.

"Yes, I did it." I said gently. "I already went and brought back Ludwig, who agreed to become a Hunter of the Dream." I informed her, and Maria blinked before her eyes widened. "You brought back Ludwig? Then-"

She stared at me, a storm of emotions coursing through her.

"You're here to bring me back, too." She realized.

"I am." I told her honestly. "You have done your penance for your crimes. It is time to stop looking at the past… and start looking forward to the future."

I raised a hand towards her. "I would like your help, Maria. I am powerful beyond anything you can imagine… But even I need people willing to help me fight evil. And I would like to request your help." My smile turned more mischievous. "That, and I'd like to get to know you better. I remember quite well what you told me when I left last time, after all."

Maria's pale cheeks burned red at the reminder, but after a moment her green eyes hardened with determination and she nodded, taking my hand. "I am yours, if you will have me."

"Always." I replied firmly, before a mischievous grin crossed my lips. "In more ways than one, too, hopefully."

Maria's red cheeks reddened further, but her green eyes danced merrily at my words. "We shall see." She replied with a grin, before looking me up and down. "You've changed… You're as tall as me, now, at least. And that's not even talking about…" She waved at my clothes, eyes and crown.

"It's a long story." I told her honestly. "I'm not just a god nowadays, I'm the God-King of all eldritch gods."

Maria stumbled, choking slightly. "I-I'm s-sorry, what?!" she stammered.

I shrugged with a grin. "Yeah that kind of just… happened."

She stared. "How in the name of everything holy can that just 'happen'?!"

I gave her a wry smile. "I ended up marrying the Queen of the Eldritch Pantheon. It was a kind of love at first sight sort of thing. Also, I kind of ended up married quite a few times over. For everyone in this world little time has passed, but for me it has been centuries since the night of the Hunt ended."

Maria stared, clearly dumbfounded.

I patted her shoulder comfortingly, even as I internally grinned like a loon at her reaction. "You know what, just follow Gehrman's advice: Don't think too hard about all of this, okay?"

Me name-dropping Gehrman got her attention, as she visibly pushed away her thousand of questions to instead narrow her eyes with a dangerous glint inside of them.

"Gehrman. That's right, I still need to talk with him about the whole 'Doll' thing. Where is he?"

I grimaced slightly. "Dead, I'm afraid. He's the next one on my list of people to bring back." I told her, before explaining the circumstances of his imprisonment inside the Hunter's Dream and our inevitable fight.

Maria frowned as I explained everything, but her green eyes softened as the full details of what Gehrman went through were told, a hand coming to massage her brow as she sighed deeply.

"So I ended up trapped inside this nightmare, and Gehrman ended up trapped inside of another, both of them effectively born of our own making… Aaaaah, like master, like student." she muttered, flinching slightly at her words, clearly disturbed at the similarities.

"Look on the bright side, you're now both free. And this realm will soon collapse into non-existence anyway." I comforted her.

Maria blinked. "Wait, what? What do you mean this realm will cease to exist?"

"Exactly that." I shrugged. "Once you're in the Hunter's Dream, I'm going to bring back Mother Kos and her orphan, and then destroy this realm, since it is a blight upon reality."

Maria stared. "You… want to bring back Mother Kos and her child? After helping me kill the Orphan? And wait, you candestroythis realm?!"

"Yes, yes and yes." I told her with amusement.

Maria stared blankly at me, before throwing her hands in the air, a resigned expression on her face.

"Oh, and why not? At this point, all remaining hopes of sanity for me clearly went out of the window the moment you entered my life. Fine, go do whatever nonsensical miracle you plan on doing, but know this!"

She poke me in the chest with a finger, expression stern.

"I expect you to take me to a good place to eat and have a few dates before I let your insanity consume me and I end up in your bed! If you want me as a mistress, the least you can do is show me a good time before you get to fuck me!"

I blinked, then grinned. "Well, I was planning to properly marry you as one of my wives eventually actually, but otherwise, we have a deal!"

Maria paused, then smiled slightly, her green eyes lit up with happiness. "Actual marriage is… unexpected, but appreciated. Though I so have to ask: When it comes to children-"

I raised a hand. "Don't worry about the curse on Great Ones having children, I destroyed it."

Well, my True Self did that across this multiverse the moment I re-entered this place, specifically, but same thing.

Maria yet again was left staring at me, before she let out a deep, long breath of resignation.

"Of courseyou did. Why am I not surprised?" she grumbled quietly, before nodding at me. "Fine. We can have children, but since you're planning on marrying me, it won't happen until after you put a ring on me. Understood?"

"Yes ma'am!" I said cheerfully, giving her a quick salute.

"Good." she declared, before reaching out to grab the front of my robes and kissing me deeply. I happily returned the kiss, Maria moaning and shuddering as the max level(Kissing)skill did its work, and she quickly pulled back, face flushed, green eyes wild and her white teeth biting into her lower lip as she barely held back a lustful moan of bliss.

Taking a moment to recover, and willfully ignoring my smug amusement at her plight, she gave me a haughty, satisfied nod. "Well, at least you're no bubbling virgin. That's good."

I grinned. "Oh, very far from it. My wives and I have sex every night, I'll have you know."

Maria's mouth opened, before closing. "That is… Hm." she nodded, the red on her cheeks returning. "Obviously, you are as insatiable in the sheets as in the Hunt. I should have known."

"Look on the bright side! Even with all of my wives, my stamina is so limitless that I have yet to ever be exhausted first. And that's not even going into the physical clones I can create en masse…" I cheekily replied.

Maria stared. She did a lot of that for some reason. "Physical Clones…?"

I grinned widely at her, snapping my fingers and creating dozens of clones…

All with only a loincloth at the waist, which did very little to hide the size of my "package."

Maria jerked at the sight, before freezing at the view, an atomic blush flooding her face all the way down her neck and up to the tip of her ears, her green eyes turning wild and her expression turning panicked (and downright thirsty) as she was suddenly surrounded by perfect 20 out of 10 divinely handsome men in barely any clothes allgrinningat her.

"Oh… Oh Great Ones have mercy-" her eyes zeroed on the bulge within one of the loincloths of my clones, and she froze, her voice turning into a high-pitch squeak of pure panic… And lust. "Oh no he's big! He's hot! I'm not ready! Have mercy I haven't even touched myself in what has to be decades, if not centuries! Oh gods, Oh gods,Oh gods-!" She started hyperventilating, which would be more concerning if she wasn't rubbing her thighs together and if her eyes weren't locked on my clone's loincloth.

Laughing, I dismissed my clones, before going up to a frozen and furiously blushing Maria that was quite clearly lost in her own world as she frantically muttered to herself about all the big, strong, naked men who were going to do terrible, terrible things to her!

The way she shuddered in pure arousal each time she muttered "terrible" kind of ruined the idea she wasn't all for it, though.

So naturally, I brought the killing blow by leaning over to her ear and whispering "I can also summon tentacles… Lots and lots of thick, long,hardtentacles that will shapeshift to fill you up to per-fect-ion~!" I purred.

Maria froze.

Her green eyes turned blank.

A trickle of blood ran down her nose.

A hard shudder coursed through her.

Slowly, her head turned to look at me in the eyes.

"... Take responsibility…"

"Hmm?"

She grabbed my robes again and brought our faces almost close enough for our noses to touch, her green eyes wild and a snarl on her lips.

"Take responsibility for all of this, you bastard! If you don't measure up in bed or don't end up fucking me so hard I'll see the cosmos while bouncing on your fat, thick, hard dick-" she took a shuddering breath and continued. "-I'll put my damn sword up your ass so deep you'll taste the steel in your mouth and I'll show you whatfucking someone uplooks like!"

I stared at her… and then grinned.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure to stuff you up with tentacles in all three holes, that way it'll feel like every inch of your insides are being fucked at the same time! Sounds good, right?" I said cheerfully.

Maria shuddered.

"Fucking promises. You better hold them." she hissed, rubbing her thighs together even harder in arousal.

I nodded. Now, I got her all worked up, time to make her go crazy again! Full bulli the Maria! "On another important matter we should talk about before we go into the Hunter's Dream, you remember the Doll? Your 'twin'?"

She frowned at the change in subject, but nodded. "What of her?"

"She's actually the Great One Oedon, deity of Blood and Life." I bluntly told her.

Maria blinked once.

Then twice.

Then-

"She's WHAT?!"

… Oh, wow, she's got a pair of lungs on her! I wonder how loud she can scream in bed!

The Hunter's Dream.

Lady Maria of the Astral Clocktower (or was she? It would soon no longer exist, after all) took her first step within the Hunter's Dream with more trepidation than she allowed herself to show on her face.

Discovering that the Good Hunter had gone and Ascended to godhood had come as a shock, though every other revelations that followed were no less shocking in their own right.

And she most likely was going to contemplate all of them sooner or later, especially now that she was no longer dead thanks to the Good Hunter, but the more important fact right now was who she was going to meet.

Ludwig was there, which was good, as from what she remembered of him he had been a far better man than most in Yharnam. Not a high bar to cross, perhaps, but notable nonetheless.

But the real person of importance was her "twin", as Aeon put it.

Except that she was no such thing, but the goddess Oedon in truth.

… Maria was left wondering when exactly the world had ever been sane, because Gehrman creating a Doll body of herself was bad enough, but learning that it had become the avatar of a Great One was…

What was she supposed to feel over the fact that her face had become that of the Great One formerly known for its formlessness?!

At least Aeon had somehow granted the goddess a proper human body… But that just made things worse, because Maria suspected that she would truly look like the twin sister of the goddess as a result.

Was she supposed to feel honoured? Angry? Something else?

After so long knowing only the monotony of the Nightmare, to experience so many conflicting emotions all over again truly made her feel alive once more, but life, as always, came with its many, many complications.

Death was much easier and simpler, in comparison.

As she walked up the path towards where the goddess and Ludwig were, Maria took in the sight of the Hunter's Dream. She had to admit, it was a beautiful place, with fields of white, shining flowers extending far and wide, tall trees in the distance, and of course a mansion at the center of this realm that would make the cathedrals of Yharnam blush green in envy at the size and clear wealth of the place.

The atmosphere of the realm was also unlike anything she had ever felt. It felt calm, serene, relaxing in a way that Maria struggled to recall anything of the like in her entire life. The closest comparison that she could make was what she felt after the Orphan of Kos fell at her and Aeon's hands, a sense of serenity and tranquility that soothes the spirit of its wounds.

It was a very, very different place from the Nightmare, and Maria couldn't help but relax slightly under the weight of it. She kept walking forward, but slower now, taking the time to enjoy the sights and atmosphere of this realm, looking up to see a sea of twinkling stars in the night sky along with a beautiful silver moon.

Then the sounds of voices echoed further up, and Maria refocused, hardening her resolve to meet the goddess that used to inhabit the doll body her old master had created following her death.

Finally, she saw the two people sitting around a table cheerfully chatting, and Maria stopped, frozen in place at the sight of a young Ludwig…

And of the blood-red eyed, white-haired tall woman smiling at him.

Besides the eyes, everything was so perfectly alike to herself that it took a moment for Maria to gather her wits, having been stunned by the sight of someone so perfectly alike herself. She chastised herself for her failure to keep her composure, no matter how understandable it might have been, before noticing that the sound of voices had stopped.

Maria froze again when she saw both Ludwig and the goddess looking right at her, both giving her warm smiles.

"Come in, Maria. I believe we have much to talk about, do we not?" gently said the Goddess Oedon, and Maria swallowed her nervousness and nodded, taking one of the free seats around the table the two were sitting around.

"Lady Oedon, I…"

"Oedon, just Oedon, my dear." gently but firmly asked the goddess, her red eyes gentle but unyielding, her smile warm and wide. "I must admit, I've been looking forward to finally being able to meet you. The stories that Gehrman and Aeon told me can only help so much." she declared with an eager smile.

"I am but a simple Hunter, and by far not the most successful." Maria argued, for all things considered she had utterly failed to live up to master Gehrman's hopes for her.

Between her and the Good Hunter, she was well aware which of them deserved to be known as his greatest student, and which of them achieved more than the other.

For all the skill and talent that Gehrman and others had praised her with, she had failed miserably to be the Hunter they had wanted her to become.

"A simple hunter?" questioned Ludwig. "I mean no offense, my lady, but I find that hard to believe. Before the Good Hunter, none can be said to have been as great a student to Gehrman as you. Not a day would go by where he didn't give you praises for your skills, resolve and talent."

Maria's cheeks reddened slightly at the earnest words, and that only grew at Lady Oedon's next words.

"My husband holds you in high regards, Maria, and so do Gehrman. And I know both men well enough to know that they aren't the types to give empty praises or give respect where it is not earnt. Humility is good, Maria, but not when taken too far." Lady Oedon told her with infinite gentleness and kindness, but with a hint of hidden steel that showed that she would not accept anything from her except agreement.

Still, Maria couldn't help but feel inadequate. "My achievements are few and insignificant compared to your husband, or even those of my master." she argued.

Ludwig snorted at that. "My lady, I think I can speak for everyone when I say that comparing yourself to the Good Hunter is, at best, an exercise in futility. His is an existence that defies logic and common sense, in more ways than one. And as for Gehrman…" Ludwig let out a sigh. "I'd like to remind you that things didn't exactly go well for him, either. Trapped inside a realm he helped create, limited to only giving advice to the passing Hunters of this Dream."

He looked at her in the eyes, expression deeply sympathetic, and equally unyielding as that of Lady Oedon.

"I know perfectly well what it is to fail to measure up to the standards we wish to hold ourselves unto, and pay the price as a result. But it does not invalidate the rest of our lives, and as we now both have a second chance to make things right, I would suggest that any feelings of failure on your part should be channelled into determination to succeed at this new life, wouldn't you agree?"

The smile he gave her was warm, but Maria could see the silent message in his words.

They had both failed, and yet the Good Hunter saw something of worth in them, enough that he did not hesitate to bring them both back to life and welcome them as his servants.

They owed him to give their absolute best in not proving his kindness wrong, for nothing else was acceptable in the face of the debt of honour they owed him.

Maria nodded slightly of the head, a silent agreement to both his spoken and unspoken words.

Ludwig was right. Whatever her feelings, a debt was owed, and Maria would do her best to see it fulfilled.

Not that she ever expected anything to be able to repay all that she owed him, but that didn't mean that she couldn't at the very least try her best.

"I do." she finally answered.

Ludwig gave her a warm smile. "Good. Then I look forward to hunting with you, Lady Maria!"

"And the same to you, Sir Ludwig." She told him.

The sound of cheerful clapping made them both blink and turn towards Lady Oedon, who was looking at them both with a delighted smile.

"I am glad to see you both so determined and eager to embrace your news lives to its fullest." Lady Oedon said warmly. "And I know that the Good Hunter agrees."

"Thank you Lady Oedon. It is just… a lot of changes to adjust to in a short time." Maria said, still rather lost on what to feel as she saw someone so identical to her being a goddess and married to the Good Hunter, no less.

She was trying rather hard to not think too deeply over just how…accurateLady Oedon's body was when compared to her own. There was a rather chaotic storm of emotions burning in her heart at the thought of Aeon making love to someone so perfectly identical to her, in body if not in spirit, and that was one tangled ball of yarn that she had no desire to investigate… at least for the time being.

Lady Oedon gave her another warm smile, and Maria was left to consider just how perfect that smile was on the goddess' face.

Maria didn't have many reasons to smile in a long time, so to see that bright, happy smile on her own face was deeply jarring.

… It made her envious, too, something that shamed her but that she could do little about. And a little part of her was hoping that, in time, Aeon would be able to make her smile like that, as well.

She glanced at Lady Oedon. A part of her couldn't help but wonder about how Aeon would feel when they will have sex. After apparently years of having sex every night with someone looking so much like her…

Could she even measure up to a goddess in bed? Frankly, she doubted it. It wasn't like she had much experience, besides.

Certainly not anywhere near as much as Aeon had implied he and his wives had.

She held back the urge to sigh. Not only was he a much better Hunter than she was, and now a god-king beside, her "twin" was actually a full blown goddess.

It was hard to find some measure of self-worth in comparison tothat.

Still, it hardly mattered now, did it? She had made her choice. All she could now was to see where they lead.

A small smirk crossed her lips.

Besides, just because she might not win didn't mean that she couldn't enjoy trying her best to match either of them…

Maria might not have been the greatest Hunter to ever live, but she still had strength and stamina in spades.

Victory in the bedroom might be as impossible to achieve as victory with a sword in hand, but that didn't mean that she couldn't make them work for it…

Or that they couldn't all enjoy her attempt at victory.

A shadow of a grin crossed her lips at the question of whether worshipping Gods in bed was blasphemy or the opposite.

Only one way to find out.

For now, she had a goddess to talk to, and despite her very complicated emotions, she couldn't help but be excited at the thought.

As a Hunter, she wasn't privy to the deepest secrets of the Church when it came to the Arcane and the Gods, and yet here was a golden opportunity to get answers to questions that she didn't even know to ask, on top of the ones she had considered her entire life.

For all that the Hunters and the Church had proven themselves to be more beasts than enlightened beings, she still had grown up hearing of the glory of the Gods and of their power and wisdom.

A childish part of her was squealing in delight at the sheer honour of being able to commune with a goddess.

Thankfully, her self-control was good enough to not show off any of that on her face.

Even if, for some reason, Lady Oedon seemed highly amused whenever their eyes met…

Eventually, I got Maria to calm down enough that she went into the Hunter's Dream, grumbling all the way about how the world was going crazy, and she was somehow the only sane one left.

It was both hilarious and adorable to watch.

Still, once she was gone I walked up to the representation of Kos' body in the Hunter's Nightmare, knelt and brought a hand up to her pale body-

"TRUE RESURRECTION."

-and then did a chain-resurrection, using Kos as a link to bring back her son, too.

A new sun shone for a time in the depths of the Hunter's Nightmare as Kos and her child were fully brought back to Life, which was a pretty impressive feat, especially when you consider that Gehrman had completely, conceptually obliterated her soul when he had killed her, centuries ago.

That impossible feat was what made the Burial Blade so bullshit to begin with.

A moment later, mother and child stood before me, clearly shocked at their rebirth…

And then even more shocked as they took in my presence, which to them must feel like what two insects feel in the face of a Great One.

GREETINGS/INTRODUCTION, I told them through Eldritch speech.

The Orphan's eyes narrowed at me.

HUNTER/DESPOILER, he accused.

GOOD HUNTER, I replied calmly.

Mother Kosglanced at her child, shaking her head.

PEACE/FORGIVENESS, she declared, the Orphan clearly unhappy about that, but settling down swiftly. Bringing him and his mother back clearly was a big enough thing for him to be willing to bury the hatchet.

Mother Kos gave me a warm smile.

GRATITUDE, she said firmly.DEBT/RECOMPENSE.

Again, the Orphan glared at me, but after a moment he looked back at his reborn mother and acquiesced.RECOMPENSE, he grudgingly acknowledged.

I smiled.ACCEPTANCE.

RECOGNITION/ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.EAGERNESS, continued Kos, bowing her head in thanks and respect.

OATH/OEDON. I replied. I appreciated that Kos was also deeply grateful for breaking the curse over the Great Ones and their children, but my greatest reason for it was still to keep my promises to Oedon.

REBUTTAL, insisted Kos firmly. Her "voice" softened. GRATITUDE. HEIR. DEBT.

I nodded. If she was so determined to thank me for breaking the curse, I wasn't going to say no to her owing me a whole bunch of divine favors.

ACCEPTANCE, I sent back. I bowed my head.JOY/APOLOGIES/DUTY, I told them.

Mother Kos smiled warmly once more.ACKNOWLEDGEMENT/UNDERSTANDING/ACCEPTANCE. ENCOURAGEMENT. PRAISE.

GRATITUDE, I told her, before turning to the Orphan.

I glanced at the orphan, who scowled at me… before nodding once.WORTHY.

My lips twitched upwards.PRAISE, I sent him, and he preened at the acknowledgement of the difficulty of our fight.

Kos just looked amused.MALES, she declared with the feeling of someone rolling their eyes fondly.

The Orphan and I frowned at her. Somehow, that only made herAMUSEMENTgrow.

My eyes met the Orphan.FEMALES, I sent with the exact same feeling that Kos did.

The Orphan didn't say anything back… but the way he radiatedAGREEMENTdidn't need to be said in order to befelt.

Mother Kos made a sound somewhere between a human's snort of amusement and the sound of a whale's vocalization.

Shaking my head, I nodded at the two, giving myFAREWELL, Mother Kos giving me one last warm smile and the no-longer Orphan grudgingly nodding back at me, before both of them turned into mist and disappeared into the sea, their presences then fading away from this realm entirely.

Satisfied, I turned to look at the entirety of the Hunter' Nightmare, took in one last time the sights of this wretched realm-

And thenspoke.

"EX NIHILO."

A moment later, nothing remained of the entire realm, beyond the memories of its existence.

Going back to the Hunter's Dream, I saw Maria and Ludwig talking with Oedon, their expressions somewhere between fascination and religious awe.

I suppose that made sense. While I may have Ascended to godhood, they had known me while I was human, and they still had to adjust to the fact that I was no longer a mortal man.

Meanwhile, Oedon was a known patron deity of Yharnam since the city's creation, often described, rightfully so, as the greatest of the Great Ones, so meeting her in person was obviously a bigger deal… Or at least, easier to see as such in their minds, considering the pre-existing cultural background.

Either way, Maria was frowning, and looking deeply torn over the subject of conversation, Ludwig being much the same.

"I still can't believe that he made a doll body of me…" muttered Maria.

"Gehrman was…" Ludwig hesitated, then sighed. "No, you are right, my lady. As understandable as his grief was, I do feel he went too far in seeking to bring you back."

Maria huffed. "Hunters going too far, and then things going horribly wrong. What else is new?" she said bitterly, Ludwig flinching slightly before his shoulders dropped, a weary sigh escaping him as his expression turned tired.

"I understand your bitterness, Lady Maria. Such words are indeed, sadly, a good description of our Order's history, no matter the Workshop under which we hail." Ludwig passed a hand over his tired face. "Still, we are only humans. Imperfect beings of flesh and Blood, desperately seeking through our efforts to bring a slightly better tomorrow for those we cherish. Is it not better to at least try to do good and fail, than to not even try and see tragedy after tragedy unfold before our eyes?"

This time, it was Maria who flinched, old pain, regret and guilt radiating from her, before weary acceptance took over.

"A truth that I cannot deny." she acknowledged. "If I had recognized it sooner, then maybe…"

She fell silent, before shaking her head. "No, it matters not. What happened, happened. All we can do is to live with it and keep moving forward."

Ludwig nodded. "Agreed. For all of us."

"Heavy talks already, huh?" I told them, both Maria and Ludwig turning to respectfully greet me while Oedon gave me a warm grin.

"Good Hunter. I take it by your presence that Mother Kos and her child are alive and well once more, and the Hunter's Nightmare is no more?" asked Maria.

"That is correct." I confirm.

Both Maria and Ludwig breathed out deeply. Oedon's blood red eyes stared off into the distance, a pleased smile crossing her lips as I felt her reach out and talk with Kos.

"As I thought. I felt… a liberation from heavy shackles, from deep within me, not too long before you appeared before us, Good Hunter." declared Ludwig, with Maria nodding in agreement.

"I am immensely pleased to know that the Hunter's Nightmare is no more…" he glanced at Maria. "And that the original sin of the Old Hunters has at last been made right."

Maria actually gave me a warm smile at my words.

"Thank you, Good Hunter. For righting the wrongs that should have never happened in the first place, and for freeing us from our sins." she said softly, but firmly.

"It was the right thing to do." I told them.

Oedon, Ludwig and Maria smiled. "Yes, it was, and that is why it deserves praise and acknowledgement." said Oedon, to the clear agreement of Maria and Ludwig.

"Yet again, you continue to stand for righteousness, Good Hunter. I am proud of being able to serve you." declared Ludwig, a warm smile aimed my way.

"And you have my thanks for destroying that cursed realm." continued Maria, earnest gratitude, relief and joy in her eyes. "Nothing good could ever exist from this place, that it is gone is a relief for all of humanity."

"Of course. Now, I'm going to bring Gehrman back. Do you want to be present when he wakes up?" I asked.

Maria hesitated, then her expression turned determined. "Yes. I… have some things I wish to talk to him about."

Ludwig hesitated too, before he glanced at Maria and relaxed. "No, not yet. You two have reasons to be there first. I will wait here, he and I shall talk after you are both finished." I finally said, before glancing at Oedon, a small smile on his lips. "That, and there is still much I wish to learn from you wife, Good Hunter, your journey through the Long Night of the Hunt being at the very top."

Oedon smiled warmly at him… before her smile turned more mischievous.

"You just want to hear all about dear Aeon's adventures, and how he triumphed against all odds, do you not, Sir Ludwig?" she teased him, and Ludwig looked away, unable to look into the twinkling blood red eyes staring at him.

"... In my defence, I always loved tales of chivalry and heroism when I was a child…" he muttered, his cheeks slightly red with embarrassment.

"Then I shall make sure to not disappoint in the recounting of my dear Aeon's heroic victory against the Scourge of Beasts." she declared brightly.

I shook my head with an amused smile. "I'll leave you two with that. Come on Maria, it's time to bring back a grumpy old man."

Maria snorted, but didn't hesitate to follow me as I made my way to the Great Tree where he and I had our final fight.

For a moment, I took in the sights, memories of our battle flashing through my mind… before I walked up to the tree.

The Hunter's Dream had many secrets. This was one only myself and Oedon knew about, simply because we wanted to make sure that Gehrman could rest in peace until it was time to bring him back.

I put a hand against the bark of the Great Tree, a small smile crossing my lips as I felt the presence of the soul hidden within.

My hand sank in the tree like it was made of water, a soft gasp of surprise from Maria showing that she certainly hadn't expected that, before she inhaled sharply when I pulled out a glimmering light held gently but firmly in my hand.

This was Gehrman's soul, hidden here in the Dream ever since his death, left to heal and rest within a dreamless sleep where the metaphysical serenity and healing properties of the Hunter's Dream would slowly but surely wash away and heal the spiritual wounds a lifetime of being the First Hunter brought Gehrman.

And needless to say, he had badly needed that healing sleep.

My smile grew as I took in the soul in my hand, seeing the way it glowed free of the spiritual trauma it once carried. The First Hunter's soul shone with strength and health, the years it had spent in the Hunter's Dream acting like his personal afterlife having done his spirit a world of good.

Satisfied, I called upon my power, Maria looking away as the light became blinding-

And then, there he was.Gehrman, the First Hunter, back in his prime.

Maria gasped, her eyes going wide as she took in the young Gehrman, before her expression softened. "Master…" she muttered, looking at her old teacher with a complex look on her face.

Gehrman stirred slowly, and I smirked at him, gently kicking him in the legs.

"Come on you old bastard, nap time is over, it's a brand new day out there, don't you know?" I snarked.

"I'm up, I'm up, dammit Good Hunter can't you let an old man sleep in-" Gehrman began to grumble, before he opened his eyes and froze at the sight before him.

"... Maria?" he whispered, eyes wide with shock and fragile hope at the sight of his old student standing beside me.

Maria gave him an equally fragile smile, a thousand different emotions and words remaining unspoken on the tip of her tongue as they looked at each other.

"Master." she finally said softly. "It's been… far too long."

"You…" Gehrman swallowed, gaping at her for a moment, before his eyes flickered towards me-

And he froze again at the sight of me standing there in all of my cosmic glory, eldritch crown and robes making it very clear I wasn't exactly human anymore.

The cosmic eyes, too, were a pretty big give away.

"Good Hunter? What happened to you? What's going on? How…"

Gehrman stared between us both, looking deeply lost, and my expression softened.

"I did it, Gehrman." I told him softly. "I killed the Moon Presence… And Ascended to Godhood. I'm the new King of the Eldritch Pantheon nowadays."

Gehrman's eyes bulged, and he quickly stood up-

Before freezing as he took in the sight of his flesh and blood legs, and his newfound youth.

His hands went to his face, feeling the youthful skin beneath his fingers.

"You brought me back to my youth?" he asked me, looking shocked.

"What's the point of phenomenal cosmic power if I can't do a favour or two to a friend?" I said cheekily, Maria clearly restraining a snort of amusement at my words, while Gehrman just stared blankly at me.

Then his lips curled into a wry smirk. "Yes, that's definitely you, alright."

I pouted, crossing my arms over my chest and mock-glaring at him. "What that's supposed to mean? Shouldn't I get thanks for bringing you back young and healthy? Where's my goddamn gratitude, you cranky old bastard?!"

Gehrman snorted. "Still as impertinent as ever, I see. Some things never change."

"I'm the goddamn King of the Eldritch, I can snark however much I damn well want!" I declared smugly.

Gehrman gave me a look. "Clearly Ascension has done nothing to help that unique personality of yours."

Maria brought a hand up to her mouth, trying and failing miserably to stifle her giggling at our banter.

"Oi! My personality is just fine as it is! And I mostdefinitelydon't want to hear that fromyou, of all people!" I grumbled.

Maria sniffed haughtily. "Clearly, I am surrounded by fools and perverts."

Her eyes narrowed at Gehrman, who instinctively stiffen and pale at the expression on her face.

"So, Master Gehrman, how about you explain the whole…Dollthing, as a start?" she asked sweetly, a smile on her face that had as many teeth and as much warmth as a shark smelling blood.

Gehrman, the first Hunter, slayer of Beasts and killer of Kos, promptly gulped.

"... It seemed like a good idea at the time?" he replied faintly, even knowing it was absolutely the wrong answer to give, no matter how truthful.

As proven by the growing glint in Maria's eyes, and the way her mockery of a smile grew.

"Wrong answer. In respect of all that I owe you for training me, I'll give you a three second headstart startingnow." she declared with frankly awe-inspiring bloodlust while drawing her weapon and holding it tightly.

Gehrman didn't even hesitate, disappearing in a flicker of Quickening as he started running for his life.

Unfortunately for him, it was not enough.

Alas, Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

And Maria had a lot of things to get back at Gehrman for, the whole Doll thing being the least of it.

Well, he'll live. The nature of the Dream will make sure of that.

And to be fair, hereallyhad it coming.

It took a while for Maria to stop chasing her old master.

By the time she did, he was covered in cuts and bruises, and his clothes were in tatters.

Maria didn't really care. She had repressed far too much for far too long, and it was time for her to get some payback.

The Doll thing was the least of the sins she wanted to punch him in the face for. What happened in the Hamlet…

Well. Point is, she hadn't understood how much she had needed to run after him, shouting at him for everything he had fucked up for her, foreveryone, until after she was done screaming.

By that point both of them were panting for air, and were too busy gathering their breath to speak.

"Your swordsmanship has improved, from what I remembered it being." finally commented Gehrman, looking at her with a complex storm of emotions in his eyes.

"I had quite a bit of practice in the Nightmare." she replied, and he flinched at that.

"I had wondered…" he whispered, before his shoulders slumped.

"I'm sorry, Maria." he declared, and she stiffened at the weight behind those words, his faze staring straight into her eyes with unyielding steel smothering a lifetime of guilt and regrets. "I'm sorry that I failed you, that I wasn't a good enough teacher to you."

Maria swallowed, feeling her throat become tight at the sudden surge of emotions his words brought her. "Gehrman-"

"Let me finish." he said firmly, and Maria nodded instantly, a lifetime of training by his side making it impossible to not obey.

His expression softened, and he passed a hand over his youthful face, that nonetheless did little to hide the choking weight of guilt and regret in his old eyes.

"I never wanted to see you hurt. When I first took you in, trained you, saw the potential of a great Hunter in you… I was too blinded by my own desires and wants to truly see you as you are, rather than as I wanted you to be. I didn't properly consider what asking you to do terrible things would do to you, who had always been sokind. I…"

He hesitated, looking uncharacteristically fearful, before his eyes turned grimly determined and he kept going.

"I loved you, Maria." he declared, and she froze at both the weight of emotions in his voice and the fact that he had actually come out and said it. "I loved you more than I loved anyone or anything else in my life. I loved you…" He let out a long sigh. "Or rather, my idea of you. Too blinded by my own damn feelings to see your doubts and pain, to fucking caught up in my own selfish desires to see that you needed help, too fucking blind to see you as you truly were, rather than as I wanted you to be."

He shook his head in disgust and self-loathing, the sheer amount of both making her shudder at the weight of it.

He looked at her, and Maria's eyes widened at the tears in his eyes. How long has it been since she had last seen him cry?

She couldn't remember. Has she ever even seen him cry? Or had he kept everything bottled up until now?

Either way, his tears were flowing freely now, and there was no stopping them.

"You shone so bright, Maria." he whispered hoarsely. "I saw your confidence, your passion, your kindness, and it blinded me to the cracks underneath it all. I failed you, Maria, because I was a damn fool too caught up in indulging in a fantasy that could never be too see what was truly in front of me."

He bowed his head, the strength he possessed nowhere to be seen as all that stood before her was a man broken by regrets and guilt.

"I failed you. And I'm sorry. I know that I can't ever apologize enough to make things right, but… I wanted to let you know. You deserved to hear it all. The truth."

"Master." Gehrman froze when she gently, but firmly lifted his face away from staring at the ground to look into her own tearful eyes. "Look at me."

Their eyes met, and she gave him a fragile, weak smile... But also an earnest one.

"You took me in as an apprentice, even when you knew of my connections to Cainhurst. You trusted me, trained me, stood up for me against those who saw me as a threat or someone unworthy of being your student. You-" she swallowed, her voice turning into a whisper. "You gave my life meaning, master, and for that I can never thank you enough."

"Maria…" Gehrman whispered with a voice choked with emotions, and she smiled sadly at him.

"You failed me." she agreed, and he flinched as he struck. "But you never forced me into anything. Even… Even the hamlet-" she choked out the word. "-I could have said no. I could have stood up against all the horrors of it all sooner, I could have done… something, anything!"

She shook her head, before looking back at Gehrman with a sad smile.

"You failed me… But I joined you into staining my soul of my own free will, even if I regretted it forever after. It isn't your burden alone to bear, Gehrman. My choices remain my own, and their consequences, good or bad, are also mine to bear. You played your part… But so did I." She said firmly.

"You-" Gehrman tried to speak, but she cut him off with a finger on his lips.

"Let me finish." She told him sternly, but also in a way that she was pleading for him to let her get it out of her chest. "Even after, I still didn't try to make things better. I let the Church do their horrific experiments without doing anything more than providing a modicum of comfort to those they slowly killed and tormented with theirresearch. I could have… I should have fought to stop it all. The experiments, the research, everything. I should have stood up and fought… But I didn't. Instead I let it all happen, until I broke and could no longer bear it."

She shook her head. "You failed me, Gehrman… But I failedmyselfand everyone around me just as much. And in the end, we both paid the price. So we'll both simply have to focus on getting things right, this time."

A faint smile crossed her lips.

"For some impossible reason, the Good Hunter respects us both enough to bring us back and give us another chance. The least we can do is make sure that he has never a reason to regret that decision. And if nothing else, we both had a lot of time to think things through, and learn from our mistakes." She said softly.

Gehrman fell silent for a long moment, before sighing.

"Aye. It's the least that we all owe him."

She reached out and hugged him, Gehrman doing the same, clinging to her as if she might disappear at any moment.

"I missed you, Maria." he said, his voice muffled as he buried his head into her shoulder.

"I missed you, too." She truthfully replied, hugging him just as tightly as he did for her.

For a moment, they stayed like that, a thousand apologies and gentle words going unsaid but not unheard between them, before Maria let out a shuddering breath and pulled back, Gehrman reluctantly let her go.

They both quickly wiped away the tears rolling down their faces, before smiling faintly at each other.

"Come on, we should go, a new age comes for Yharnam, and I don't think either of us want to miss it." She told him, a little bit of cheer entering her voice as the thought of what the future might hold with the Good Hunter around to make things right.

"Agreed." Gehrman smiled back and both of them began walking back the way they came from, side by side.

Despite everything… It felt so very right to be by his side again.

For a moment, they stayed silent, before Gehrman spoke up, his voice wavering slightly.

"Do you think that, the two of us, we could have…" he trailed off, but she understood what he was asking.

She considered it for a moment, before a sad smile crossed her lips and she gently shook her head.

"It would have never worked. We both would have let our own failures and issues get in the way." She answered honestly.

Gehrman said nothing, before he let out a long sigh. There was immense resignation, sadness and regret in that sigh…

But above all, there was acceptance and a certain feeling of peace.

"Yes. You're right."

He straightened, rising to his full height, a sudden grin coming across his lips that lit up his whole face, his eyes twinkling merrily. There were still lingering traces of regrets in him, but it also felt like he had let go of a heavy burden he had carried for far too long.

"Come on, then. That damn fool of an apprentice will absolutely get himself involved in the craziest shit unimaginable with a smile on his face, and he's going to need some people to watch his back when he inevitably starts rushing straight into the depths of another Nightmare. We might as well make sure we bring him back to the Doll, since those two are sickeningly sweet with one another." He declared with a wide grin.

"Hm… About that. You do know that the Doll is actually Formless Oedon, right?" asked Maria.

Gehrman stumbled, his eyes bulging in shock.

Ah. He didn't know.

Ooops.

"She's WHAT?!"

Maria let out a sigh.Truly, like master, like student, she couldn't help but think fondly, a faint, wry smile on her lips.

A.N: Alright! Here is the next chapter in which we finally return to Bloodborne!

A chapter focused on bringing back the Old Hunters, and dealing with the fallout of them being able to talk to each other.

Also, Aeon went and took Mergo's soul, so that he could have Oedon give birth to him as their son! That was something I had planned all the way back when I first wrote the Bloodborne chapters, so it's been a long time coming. After all, what better way to help Oedon overcome her trauma about having children than to help her successfully give birth to Mergo? It also lets Aeon bring back Oedon's child, and make Oedon even more in love with him (if that's evenpossible, at this point, but no one can argue he certainly is trying his very best to find out.)

As for Ludwig, Maria and Geherman, obviously we'll see a lot more of them all in future chapters, though at least Maria and Gehrman finally had a very important talk. Gehrman was finally honest about his feelings, and was finally able to move on and make peace with the past. Same with Maria, for that matter. Time will still be needed for those two to become as close as they once were, but this time the friendship they'll develop will be much more healthy from the start.

Meanwhile, Ludwig is in the background, vibing with Oedon and his Holy Sword, just generally happy to be able to go and save people once more. He's still going to be off-balance for a bit as a result of the trauma of turning into a beast, but in time he'll once again be the great hero gladly throwing himself against evil for the sake of the innocent, and with the curse of Beasthood gone thanks to Aeon, he'll be able to be the Hero he always wanted to be.

As for Kos and her child, well Kos is very, very grateful to Aeon for bringing her and her son back, and doubly so for the knowledge that True!Aeon erased the Curse the Great Ones were under when it came to having children.

The Orphan is a bit more complicated, as he remember dying while fighting Aeon, but he's also deeply grateful for bringing him and his mother back, so overall he's willing to let bygones be bygones and not start trouble with a god who is far, far more powerful than him now.

IMPORTANT: The new pairing poll is still up, those who haven't yet, please vote, as it will become relevant eventually!

Still, with all that being said, I hope you all enjoyed this update! Next time, Aeon returns to Yharnam and meets back up with a lot of people he hasn't seen in a long time, and who are in quite the shock to see how he changed