Torrent sped through a valley, finally reaching the Weeping Peninsula's entrance, the Bridge of Sacrifice.

The name surely didn't mean anything, right?

We know what story this is...

The Reaper suddenly stood up as Torrent rushed for the barricaded bridge, Godrick soldiers stationed there with a dozen knights and a ballista.

"You rush through, I'll handle the ballista." The Reaper ordered, amusing Melina.

"You're quite admirable when you're serious. I'll leave thee to it." Melina smirked and disappeared as Torrent continued its stride.

With grunts and shouts of confusion, the tranced knights roared as they rushed Torrent with greatswords and short swords.

Melina suddenly dashed past in a misty flurry, throwing several golden apparitions in the shape of blades, lodging into the knights joints and necks. She slid to a halt and flipped back on to Torrent as the whistle of the ballista came flying at them.

The Reaper leapt off and reeled his scythe back, before spinning and deflecting the massive bolt into the endless sea.

With no time to load another bolt, the Reaper continued his spin and used the Phantom Flurry ability to summon his second scythe and throw it forward with all the might of his left arm.

A blue line shot through the ballista, breaking it with a small explosion of magic damage, sending the knights operating and defending it off the bridge and into the sea as well.

Timing his landing to directly fall into Melina's arms, the Reaper panted from the overwhelming exertion of force in his left arm.

Torrent rode smoothly across the bridge and stopped just by a Site of Grace a few meters to the right.

Melina allowed the Reaper to sit up right on Torrent, before the two dropped down and let out a simultaneous deep sigh.

Melina pat the Reaper's back as he soothed his left arm from such a throw.

Melina was deep in thought as he regained his bearings, before glancing to their left. Melina was broken from her trance and looked the direction he was, to see he had spotted a woman knelt beside a stone in distress.

She was quietly sobbing with dirty garments to her name, a blindfold around her eyes. The grime on her clothes was certainly blood, and the Reaper slowly walked over.

Melina watched from afar and saw that he stopped just two yards away.

"Excuse me," He began, feeling it appropriate to announce himself with her disability in mind. "What brings you here? Is everything okay?"

"Oh my! P-Please! Lend me your ear..." The woman begged.

"Of course," The Reaper agreed, making Melina appear beside him to listen herself.

"My name is Irina. I've escaped from Castle Morne, to the south. The servants there have... rebelled." The woman began, matching the info Kalé gave them.

"My eyesight has been weak since birth, so I can't be certain what it is... but I swear I heard frightful howling from all over. My good father secreted me out of the castle, but decided himself to stay. He says it's his duty, as commander."

"I see." The Reaper muttered.

"I... I fear for father's life. The servants are full wroth. Filled with hatred for every one of us. They've since come for every one of the companions I escaped with— they haven't spared a soul. I fear it's no different at Castle Morne...

Please. I implore you. Would you mind taking this letter to my father at the castle? My sole wish is that he escape, even if his honor should be the price. Please," she weakly held out the envelop. "I just want him to be safe."

Her sniffs and cries made the Reaper gently take the letter.

"Understood. I can't guarantee his return, but I shall see to it he receives your letter. I'll do my best." The Reaper nodded, before pocketing the letter into his inventory.

"Thank you... dearly."

~•~

"GHRAAA!"

The Reaper kicked off a Misbegotten and slashed through the next. He spun his scythe around threw it forward towards a crowd of more Misbegotten causing cries and screeches of pain.

The Reaper picked up his speed before summoning his scythe back via the inventory and slashed through a Misbegotten's stone axe, Melina appearing beside him and kicking it away.

Linking arms with her, he swung her around before Melina flew forward and landed past a pack of hounds and a Pumpkin Head, littering their bodies with golden blades.

As she turned around to face them, the Pumpkin Head towered over her and readied to swing it's sledge despite the lacerations.

The Reaper's boisterous yell grew closer as he dropkicked the Pumpkin Head's body away. The two crashed and the Reaper slashed down and cut off its head.

The Reaper didn't let up the assault on Castle Morne. Melina and the Reaper disappeared, reappearing as he ran up a ladder towards the castle wall.

Leaping off the last bar, the reaper saw two Misbegotten with wings closing in on him.

The Reaper dodged several arrows with quick sidesteps before Melina rushed forward from thin air behind him, slashing through the closest one with a dagger.

The Reaper leapt up after her and clashed with the other Misbegotten, their momentum making the two circle around before falling to the ground.

The Reaper slashed upward, the Misbegotten countering with an equally forceful downward slash. The two blades flew back, but with Phantom Flurry, the Reaper spun around and slashed both scythes through its torso.

Seeing more flying Misbegotten archers across the bridge between the castles walls, The Reaper crouched behind a damaged wooden barricade to collect his thoughts. Melina appeared at his side, leaning against his back.

"I've spotted the remaining forces of Castle Morne's defense. Assuming the more regal armor to be that lady's father, he is alive, albeit in danger. We should make haste." Melina urged.

"Damn. I've got the runes to fix that problem, but I don't wanna make such a hasty decision. I'll let you know if it comes to that." The Reaper replied.

The two nodded before she disappeared again.

The Reaper circled out from the barricade and immediately deflected an arrow headed for his throat. With the same slash he spun around and threw his scythe at the same archer, slashing it in two.

Continuing to spin he threw another that circled around to slice the next two archers just as they fired their arrows, leaving the Reaper defenseless.

The Reaped covered his face with his arms as Melina tried to push him forward and out of the way, but the arrows grazed his shoulder and neck.

Unwavering, he summoned both scythes back as he spotted the remaining, yet dwindling forces of Castle Morne's knights at the right wall, while he was at the back.

With the back wall being higher than the right, the Reaper leapt off the side and down below to the horde of Misbegotten clawing and tearing at the shields of the knights crippling defense.

With a leap of faith, the Reaper leapt down to the Misbegotten and slammed onto one's back, before spinning both scythes around and cleaving all their heads off with a shout.

The knights of Castle Morne looked up in shock as the Reaped stood on the Misbegotten's back as its headless body fell alongside its kin in a similar manner.

The knights noticed the small golden ember on his chest and grew skeptical, a man in a black cape walking ahead of the rest as the Reaper unveiled the letter he held.

"To the father of Irina, Captain of the Knights," The Reaper announced, letting his scythes disappear.

The man had wavy hair down to his jaw and a ruffled beard and goatee. He had a fair share of blood on his greaves and gauntlets, his sword stained an unsightly reddish brown.

"Tarnished... by what means does my dearest daughter bring you here? Is she safe?" The captain asked.

"As can be with the state of this peninsula. She is resting by the Bridge of Sacrifice." The Reaper informed.

The man took the letter and nodded with a hint of respect. "My name is Edgar, warden of this castle. Please excuse me." He turned to his men, and ushered them away now that the majority of the threat was taken care of.

The Reaper stood patiently as Edgar read the letter. Moments passed an Melina decided to take it upon her self to appear and lean against the Reaper's shoulder.

"Tarnished, I cannot abandon my post. As Commander, I must assure that the treasured sword of Morne does not fall into the wrong hands." Edgar began.

"That damned Tarnished before you. He usurped us and brought out the foul nature of the servants. His Arcane magic made quick work of most of my men. I can assume he's headed for the fabled blade now.

Should you see her again, and I pray you shall, tell her that her father will retrieve her after he has fulfilled his duty." Edgar requested.

"I'm afraid you'll be first to see her, cause I've got some business with this Tarnished you speak of." The Reaper said with determination. "I've cleared the way back to the entrance. Should you all seek to live another day... leave this to me." The Reaper turned to walk away, and Melina dramatically swiped her cloak out making their exit all the more admirable to the knights.

Edgar gazed at his back as the Reaper walked away and wondered if he should cave into his deepest desire.

•

The Reaper stood at another Fog Gate with Melina at his side.

"Another Tarnished... with malicious intentions..." The Reaper muttered.

"Fret not. Most Tarnished to date are not guided by grace any longer. If no flame is present, neither is their immortality. Grace guides the worthy." Melina explained.

"Worthy...? Of what?" The Reaper asked, but Melina pat his head and faced the Fog Gate. "For another time. We must handle this matter at once. Ready?" Melina asked.

"As I'll ever be." The Reaper nodded.

The two walked through the Fog Gate and the Reaped immediately had to turn his body around and hold his scythe up as a much more ferocious and powerful misbegotten fell from above the isle they stood on.

The Leonine kicked the Reaper back and Melina dashed to his side as a small chuckle left the mouth of the figure siting on a grave in the back of the isle.

The Reaper faced the Leonine as Melina faced the Tarnished, noting their was no flame present.

"Opposers of the Black Flame Cult? Additions to the graves around you?" The Tarnished asked.

"Yes. And yes. Except I'll do the digging!" The Reaper lunged at the Leonine and clashed blades, the two skidding around each other before slashing again and sliding back with glares.

Melina rushed forward for the Tarnished with a white robe over black baggy pants and brown boots, a black cape and white hood, and holding a greatsword conjured by many smaller swords into one blade.

The Cultist stood up and cleaved the Grafted Greatsword forward clashing with Melina and sending her flying back from the weight and force.

She slid back and disappeared, reappearing above the Cultist with several golden daggers falling towards him.

He lifted the blade and blocked them all but felt a nasty kick to his jaw as soon as he dropped his guard. He tried to slash at Melina, but she flipped over the slash and cut his torso with her knife.

The Reaper swung his scythe with a roar and parried away the greatsword of the Leonine, but it used the momentum to leap up and following with a downward-diagonal slash. The Reaper flipped back but threw his scythe forward, slashing the Leonine's shoulder as it retrieved its blade from the sand.

As it winced from the pain, it looked up to see a boot slamming right into its jaw, causing it to roar in pain as it's head recoiled upward, only to see the Reaper catch his scythe from before and slash down with one hand and a glare.

Melina rolled away from a downward cleave, leaping onto a tombstone and standing across the Cultist with a blank stare, the two turned and saw the Reaper standing over the beheaded Leonine, watching as he glanced up at the Cultist.

"Sinners, the lot of you! Going against us will be the last thing you do!" The Cultist held the Grafted Greatsword in both hands and began to growl.

"Black Flame Cult... we need to look into that. I'll handle it from here." The Reaper told Melina as he walked up.

The Cultist screamed as he became enveloped in a red aura, running forward with a deranged glare.

The Reaper swiped out his Physick and took a swig before holding his scythe back with a glare, also being enveloped in a red aura.

"RAGING FURY!"

"OATH OF VENGEANCE!"

The two clashed in the center were sparks of red danced across their blades, bouncing and flying into their vision as their battle for leverage began.

The Reaper and the Cultist began to pace around, slashing at each other with near equal strength due to their enhancements. The two's slashes kicked up sand and tore through graves, but unfortunately one ability had its time limit much sooner.

The Reaper slashed away the Grafted Greatsword, summoning his second scythe and making sure to knock it out of the Cultist's hand. The Cultist tried to use Blood Thorns to shield himself from the double spinning slash but the Reaper's Raging Fury buff proved more than sufficient to tear through and into the Cultist's gut.

The Cultist crashed into a grave and vomited up blood, choking on it in his last moments.

"You filthy ingrates... will rue... the day..." The Cultist decided as his last words.

The Reaped panted as his buff wore off, Melina walking up beside him.

"A job well done, Reaper." Melina pat his head again and he smiled. "Thanks. You did well, too." He returned the gratitude.

"The Black Flame Cult... what are their intentions...? Have you ever heard of them?" The Reaper asked.

"Not in my realm of knowledge, unfortunately. I only know of the basics of Black Flame Magic, albeit not in my arsenal." Melina replied.

"To turn an entire castle asunder. Do they defy this Godrick guy too, I wonder." The Reaper shrugged.

"Should we ask around later?" Melina asked. "You think locals would know?" The Reaper asked back.

"No, but Tarnished know Tarnished. I think it's time I introduce you to the Roundtable Hold." Melina smirked.