Just a quick update. I'm really sorry for the delay, the end of the year tends to kill my productivity, since it's when my depression tends to get bad. I don't plan on calling for a full on hiatus, just saying that updates are probably going to be even more irregular than before. Apologies once again.
Just gonna edit this in: the quest is on a temporary hiatus until mid-December, as I have finals then that I do need to try and focus on. The good news is that once all of that is sorted out, I'll be able to continue.
 
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Firelink Shrine 17: Kemuri
So it needs a name then? The last thing you got to name was your pet fish back in elementary school; you always wished your apartment building wasn't so strict on pets, although Oktavius von Guttenberg was truly the noblest of pets for the few years he lived.

You consider the options, resisting the temptation of giving the bird a silly name. What are some good options?

Well, it is a small black bird; you could just be unoriginal and go with "Kuro," although you'd probably lose any future naming privileges if anyone found out. Maybe you could work with a foreign language like you did last time? Well, last time you just grabbed some cool sounding names, but maybe you could make a reference? Maybe if you had access to a computer you could, at least. Damn, this is proving harder than you'd thought, you realize as the small little crow stares up at you blankly.

Thinking quickly, you turn back and glance at the little bird. The nest it's in seems to be set in some sort of hole in the roof. Kind of like a chimney? You can work with a chimney. Chimney's make smoke. Smoke is black.

"Kemuri." You say aloud with a nod, smiling to yourself with your quick thinking.

"Me, me... Kem muri?" The bird seems to ask.

"No, Kemuri, it's just one wor-" you try to interject, before the little hatchling begins flagging its wings violently. At first you're filled with concern, before you realize that it doesn't seem upset. Rather, the hatchling is cheering, or close to it as a baby bird can manage.

"Kem muri, Kem muri!" the hatchling squeaks out happily, as its tiny wings beat against the twigs and reeds that make up the nest, which easily ignore the hatchling's repeated abuse with nothing more than a light shake. You didn't think birds could actually look so happy, but it seems you were proven completely wrong, not that you're complaining. Just looking at it being adorable is nice enough.

After a few moments, the newly named Kemuri finally calms down, and stares at you. You'd think a giant bird, whether a baby or not would be something scary, but

"You, you, come-come!" Kemuri says, as it walks towards the edge of the roof, its tiny talons lightly tapping against the roof tiles. You follow behind Kemuri, a bit confused at what the bird seems to be-

Then Kemuri takes a step off the side of the ledge.

(Super Important Roll That Definitely Matters: 6/100)​

Instinctively, you throw yourself forward right behind the bird, before you realize that you put a bit too much force into your jump. You see Kemuri flap its wings and descend safely to a lower level of the roof you hadn't even noticed, before the sight vanishes and instead fall face first into the ground. A nearby group of Hollows panickedly flees from you, although one stays behind and blankly stares as you slowly push yourself off the ground with a groan. You're greeted with Hawkwood standing at the shrine entrance, his face somewhere between concern and stifled laughter.

"There's a bird on top of the shrine and it's really cute and it almost fell and I tried to stop it but I fell instead!" You blurt out without thinking. Hawkwood opens his mouth, before freezing, unsure of what he actually wants to say. After a moment he just shakes his head and walks off.

After a moment to brush the thick layer of dust that your impact blew up off of yourself, followed by some brief internal screaming, you leap back up onto the roof, something which, in hindsight, you could've just done from the start, but whatever. You land on the ledge you hadn't noticed, finding Kemuri waiting for you in front of an entrance way.

"You, you, be careful!" Kemuri squawks. It hops over to you, looking over you to make certain that you aren't hurt. While you appreciate the thought, your not sure if a bird would know much about human biology, and any injuries you did have have already healed up, thankfully. Seemingly satisfied, Kemuri turns around, and begins to go inside.

"I was trying to help!"

"You, you, not bird! You, you, fall-fall!" Kemuri chirps out

"I just wanted to be sure you didn't get hurt!"

As you follow the little bird back inside, you realize that you're on an elevated level of the shrine that you had thought to just be decoration. The circular area has two paths crossing over, forming a cross shape. Kemuri fearlessly steps onto the aged stone that composes the two beams, as bits of dust and ash, built up from however long it's been since something alive was here last, slowly descend to the ground below. Looking down, you spot the Fire Keeper, who you give a quick wave to, to which she waves back.

Kemuri reaches the far side, which ends at a stone wall, before a quick peck causes part of the wall to vanish, revealing a path way.

"Deed-a-reedle, deed-a-reedle!" Kemuri calls out, before the little bird flaps its wings and flies off, most likely to head back to the nest to rest, although you won't deny you're sad to see Kemuri go so soon. As you walk across the beam, you spot an Estus Shard, which you happily pocket, before you drop down into the newly exposed room, which is revealed to contain what a treasure chest. Pulling it open, you find a shiny silver ring that effortlessly fits to your finger.

Gain 1 Estus Shard and 1 Covetous Silver Serpent Ring

[] You've been putting it off enough; it's time to head back to Lothric.
-[] Head for the Undead Settlement
-[] Head to the Cathedral and see what you'll find up the ladder.
[] Check out the tower while you're still here.
[] Go and fight the Sword Master. What could go wrong?


Silver ring depicting a snake that could have been, but never was, a dragon. Fallen foes yield more souls.
Snakes are known as creatures of great avarice, devouring prey even larger than themselves by swallowing them whole.
It is said that the serpents have long since passed, but their plots continue to this very day. Is it any wonder that even a trace of their greed could be so powerful?

Author's Note: Hope everyone's enjoying their New Year's! I'm finally getting out of the funk I've been stuck in, so updates will now resume. Apologies once again for the absence, and thank you to everyone reading.
 
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The last thing you got to name was your pet fish back in elementary school; you always wished your apartment building wasn't so strict on pets, although Oktavius von Guttenberg was truly the noblest of pets for the few years he lived.
Pfffff that's a name alright. And Sayaka turns herself into a pancake, that's hilarious.

[X] Check out the tower while you're still here.

Now it has been a while, but I think there's still stuff to find here?
 
[X] Check out the tower while you're still here.

Pfffff that's a name alright. And Sayaka turns herself into a pancake, that's hilarious.

[X] Check out the tower while you're still here.

Now it has been a while, but I think there's still stuff to find here?
Well we get to meet Patches, grab a Firekeepers soul and experience horror at a tower filled with Firekeeper bodies
 
[X] Check out the tower while you're still here.

Cute.

[] Go and fight the Sword Master. What could go wrong?
Alright, so my plan is to have him stab us and get his sword stuck, then we beat him up.

Or we could go for the simpler option of dropkicking him off the cliff-edge.

... I'm reminded how much Grief sucks. We can't even really practice our magic that well. We need to figure out how to Sword better.
 
[x] You've been putting it off enough; it's time to head back to Lothric.
-[x] Head for the Undead Settlement

Let's go explore more, also, huzzah! It's back!
 
[X] Go and fight the Sword Master. What could go wrong?

It 'aint Dark Souls without a few humbling defeats to build character. :V

And, if we win, we get a shiny katana.
 
Pfffff that's a name alright. And Sayaka turns herself into a pancake, that's hilarious.
Sir Oktavius von Guttenburg, Knight of the Sea and Lord of the Depths, was indeed a name; the name of the bravest pet one could have ever asked for ;_;7

Alright, so my plan is to have him stab us and get his sword stuck, then we beat him up.

Or we could go for the simpler option of dropkicking him off the cliff-edge.

... I'm reminded how much Grief sucks. We can't even really practice our magic that well. We need to figure out how to Sword better.
The greatest combat strategy: one in which you plan around being immediately stabbed.

It 'aint Dark Souls without a few humbling defeats to build character. :V

And, if we win, we get a shiny katana.
Until you've been smashed and shocked into char-roasted hollow by Fatboy and Slim, you haven't played Dark Souls.

Let's go explore more, also, huzzah! It's back!
Sorry for keeping everyone waiting, and thank you for continuing to read!

I'd like to think that a master undead swordsman would think of such an obvious trick, and so would have already come up with a counter for when another undead tries it.
You have to factor in whether his bullshit shonen counter move will be practical or more likely to end up getting himself killed. It's a good 40/60 split if I had to guess.

Yessssss
Cute bird and Sayaka pancake was worth the wait!
Thank you for helping to get me motivated to write again, by the way. That thread may not have been meant for that purpose, but it still helped me out.
 
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Sir Oktavius von Guttenburg, Knight of the Sea and Lord of the Depths, was indeed a name; the name of the bravest pet one could have ever asked for ;_;7
F
You have to factor in whether his bullshit shonen counter move will be practical or more likely to end up getting himself killed. It's a good 40/60 split if I had to guess.
Even if it kills him, both sides are just going to get back up later. The important thing is that Sayaka dies first, because then it's still his win.
 
[x] You've been putting it off enough; it's time to head back to Lothric.
-[x] Head for the Undead Settlement


It's probably not time sensitive, but it would be nice to get that hanging plot thread over with sooner rather than later...

Not like the tower is going anywhere anytime soon right?
 
Vote closed.
Edit: Spent the weekend coughing my lungs out. Post should come either Monday or Tuesday. Yeah, still sick, but finally starting to feel better. Update coming tomorrow.
 
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It's probably not time sensitive, but it would be nice to get that hanging plot thread over with sooner rather than later...
Why do I get the feeling Sayaka's going to assume Loretta only died because we were too busy messing around at the shrine? She's pretty prone to taking things at face value, after.
That's the kind of thing I expect from the combined shittiness of Dark Souls and Madoka Magica and I look forward to the Sayaka bully it will inflict. :evil:
 
Why do I get the feeling Sayaka's going to assume Loretta only died because we were too busy messing around at the shrine? She's pretty prone to taking things at face value, after.
That's the kind of thing I expect from the combined shittiness of Dark Souls and Madoka Magica and I look forward to the Sayaka bully it will inflict. :evil:
It's kind of easy to tell how old corpses are, in a 'was this a few hours or a few weeks ago' sort of way. Even speedrunning doesn't cause Loretta to be alive in the Undead Settlement, so I somehow doubt that we could have changed that in the, what, few hours we've been back at the shrine? It hasn't been long.
 
Firelink Shrine 18: The Bell Tower
Slipping the ring away to worry about later, you decide to turn back around and head to the bell tower. A quick leap brings you back up to the rafters you had just dropped from. A quick walk across the stone beams that bridge the gap over the room brings you back out to the roof. Kemuri seems absent when you pass by the nest, but there's definitely more than meets the eye with that bird. That's for some other time though, you think.

You jump up to the pathway between the two towers, before landing, bits of the masonry falling from the sides from the force of the impact. You wait a moment, to be sure the walkway isn't about to collapse and send you falling, but you quickly determine that it's still stable. Walking ahead, you pass the already open door to find... more of the same gray rock as everywhere else.

At least this time the structure is a bit different, with a platform in between two openings that seem to descend to the ground floor on both sides. You weren't sure what you were expecting, but you'd hoped for at least a little something; anything really. By this point the disappointment is entirely muted, so you push past it without any difficulty and continue, carefully avoiding the many bits of chipped and crumbled stone rubble which line the platform.

Stepping on to the lift feels like something out of a movie with how old everything seems to be. It's like your exploring ancient ruins... well, you are, so that does make some sense. "Never thought I'd be doing archaeology work." You say with a laugh as the elevator begins to rise after several moments of groaning and clanking from whatever mechanism controls the thing. Being a detective maybe, but definitely not anything along these lines.

After several moments of rapid movement, the elevator finally slows to a crawl, before it finally stops at its destination. Stepping off the elevator, you feel a stiff breeze push past you, robbing you of heat. One step off and you're already shivering, wonderful. You turn to find yourself at a flight of stairs, which you ascend with little difficulty, and finally you find yourself at the top of the tower. Three things immediately stand out to you. Firstly, the bell itself. The thing is massive, with just the clapper itself being at least 3 times your height. No wonder ringing that thing can supposedly wake the dead. Secondly, is just how high up you are. You spot what you quickly now realize to be Lothric Castle.

Lastly, and most importantly, there's a corpse lying beneath the bell, a faint glow radiating off of it. The fact that stumbling upon random corpses has become so common place that you no longer physically recoil at the sight of one disgusts you, but there seems to be an abundance of the things everywhere you look. As you approach the body, something drifts over to you, landing gently in your hands.

Soul of a Fire Keeper who is said to have returned from the Abyss.
The Fire Keeper preserves the bonfire, and serves its champion. She is said to have once soothed and accepted the Dark Sigil, which is thought to have left her soul forever tainted.
And yet, her soul, rumored to have been born of dragons, will one day embed itself in the bosom of yet another Fire Keeper, as it always has and always will.

It looks like a soul, you quickly realize, but it's... different. More weighty, and yet thinner. Darker, and yet brighter. It seems almost as if it were a contradiction itself. The soul sinks into your hand before you can respond, but it doesn't seem content with sticking with you, although you aren't sure how you get that idea.

You walk over to the edge of the bell tower, and gaze out at the horizon. You quickly spot the arena where you had fought Gundyr, as well as the path along the cliff-face that you stumbled down in a confused daze. Both feels like they happened so long ago, it's weird. Wait. If you woke up first in a ditch over there, that would mean you woke up almost directly below Lothric Castle. You aren't really sure what to make of that.

Groaning in annoyance at even more confusing questions, you head back to the elevator, glad to get out of the cold finally. You stomp on the pressure plate, and the elevator is sent tumbling downwards. As you step off the lift platform, your head is already aching from trying to figure out what's going on.

And then the door slams shut.

A light chuckle quickly draws your attention to a man, who if you could sum up in one word, you'd go with smug. His bald head, despite being perhaps his most recognizable trait is wasn't what keeps your attention. No, that would be the shit-eating grin he sports without a hint of shame. "Sorry, friend." The man says as if he was holding back a laugh after a particularly funny joke.
"Be more careful!" He adds, not even giving you a moment to respond. "By the gods, curiosity is going to kill you kittens. Some places are better left alone, you know. Oh, sorry, am I a tad too late?" He quickly finishes with, before breaking out into laughter.

How do you respond?
[] Write in


Author's Note: Nothing can contain Miyazaki's OC, not even unfulfilled requirements. He is Unbreakable, after all. Sorry for the delay, I'm still sick as of writing this update, but I'm finally feeling well enough to not be actively miserable, which means I can't make up bullshit excuses to lie around and be unproductive. At least without feeling bad about it, I mean. So basically, guilt can be useful at times.
 
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"Never thought I'd be doing archaeology work."
You're a regular Lara Croft, Sayaka.
The fact that stumbling upon random corpses has become so common place that you no longer physically recoil at the sight of one disgusts you, but there seems to be an abundance of the things everywhere you look.
You think this is bad? Just wait til you're thankful the bodies laying around aren't anyone you know.
A light chuckle quickly draws your attention to a man, who if you could sum up in one word, you'd go with smug. His bald head, despite being perhaps his most recognizable trait is wasn't what keeps your attention. No, that would be the shit-eating grin he sports without a hint of shame.
Who's this knucklehead?

[X] "What's your problem? You better not have locked that door, I've got places to be and that might slow me down for like, a few minutes."
 
[x] Throw a sword between the bars at his face.
-[x] Then go up the elevator and climb down the side of the tower (using summoned swords as climbing picks)

I always found it odd that Patches would do this whole 'taunting' people that he's captured bit, when ranged weapons are incredibly common in Dark Souls. How has he never gotten a homing soul mass to the face?
 
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[X] "What's your problem? You better not have locked that door, I've got places to be and that might slow me down for like, a few minutes."
 
[X] "What's your problem? You better not have locked that door, I've got places to be and that might slow me down for like, a few minutes."

Not really sure what his plan for us to die in there was, actually, even in the game itself. Homeward bones are a thing, and all. At least the first pit he threw us down had hollows in it, that was a respectable attempt.
 
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