Disclaimer: I don't own Dark souls or Akama ga kiru

Soul of an unkindled

"Ashen one, hearest thou my voice still?"

Those were the last words the Unkindled heard before the age of Dark officially started. The Firekeeper had snuffed out the last flame, and they were both lost within the unending darkness. Had they been fully consumed and become one with the dark? Or perhaps simply corrupted like previous walkers of the abyss. The Ashen One knew not what had become of him, the Firekeeper, or the word around them. Had they somehow made it to shelter to wait out the dark? He did not know. He could not tell, nor did he really care at the moment. The unkindled thought of himself as a decently thoughtful individual. He had felt great sorrow at his friends passing, such as Siegfried, and Anri. However it had been a long time since then, and the world of arieandel, plus the fight with the Soul of Cinder had made him temporarily callus. Or perhaps it was the unknown centuries that had passed that made the Ashen one somewhat callus at the moment.

"Ashen one?" The Firekeeper's voice called out from the void, and he was thoroughly surprised to hear her voice. "Ashen one, we have visitors." At her words, the unkindled got up from his prone position on the stone floor he now realized he was on. A copious amount of ash came off of his undead legion gear as he stood, and he found himself in a familiar place. The firelink shrine.

It looked exactly the same as the last time he had been here, but it was as dark as the other firelink shrine. He was next to where the bonfire should be, but instead of the warm fire welcoming him, it was instead a cold husk, and offered no respite. He turned behind him, sensing a presence, and saw the Firekeeper. She was sitting on the steps, as she usually would, and looked no different than before.

"Where?" The unkindled asked her, his cool voice echoing in the silence, and she looked toward the main entrance to the shrine. It was covered by solid rock, but He could still hear the sounds of pickaxes against rock. Whoever was doing that, was trying to get in. He went down the hallway where the shrine maiden usually was, but only found a chair with what appeared to be the outfit of the soul of cinder. The unkindled grabbed it, and found where Andre would normally smith. Instead of the blacksmith, there was the greatsword of the soul of cinder, and from the looks, fully upgraded. Upon inspecting the thrones of the lords, he found the transposing kiln resting upon lord ludloth's throne, which he grabbed, as such an item would be quite useful. Aside from those three items, there was nothing else of note in the shrine. "How did we get here?" He asked the Firekeeper as he approached her.

"I...am unsure, but I believe we made our way back here after the first flame was extinguished." She tried to explain. "However my memory hath not returned to me clearly. Perhaps that is for the best?" The Firekeeper couldn't help but feel somewhat useless in this situation, but there was also something else on her mind. "Ashen one? May I trouble thee for a moment of thoust time?"

"Of course, what is it?" He responded.

"I feel different from before, as if there is something bright burning inside me, something that was not there before." At her words, the unkindled got closer, and felt the familiar energy of a bonfire from her, but that shouldn't be...His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the stone of the firelink's entrance breaking, and fire light peering through into the shrine. The unkindled searched his bottomless box, and pulled out his basic knight gear, along with a short sword, and his knight shield. While it wasn't his best weapons and armor, he did not know what kind of enemies he would face.

I would rather not show all of my cards if these people aren't hollows. He reached the top of the stairs, and walked into the firelight that was coming through the new opening. The stone finally broke away enough to walk through, revealing a carved out cavern, lit with torches that lined the walls of the cavern. In front of him was a large man with a pickaxe, and he looked at the unkindled with surprise. There were also two other people in the cavern that held what appeared to be broadswords, and given their identical uniforms, they were probably part of some sort of military style group. Possibly soldiers of a local government. They looked at me with surprised expressions, and I continued to stand there, waiting for them to do something.

"Well!? Did you three finish yet? Why re you stopping?" A voice yelled from further down the cavern, he rounded the corner to the part of the cavern I could see. I saw that he was a relatively young man, probably early thirties, and he wore what was clearly an officers uniform. He wore a white duster like jacket, and decorative shoulder pads adorned him. He noticed my presence, and like his subordinates, he was completely surprised. "What the hell!?" he exclaimed. The officer could not believe it, this should all be rock, and if there was a cavern of some kind, there shouldn't have been someone alive in it! After he had broken the silence, his soldiers got into defensive stances against the unkindled, and the large worker backed up to behind the soldiers.

The ashen one brought his shield up against the new hostility. The soldiers approached cautiously, and he could see their trepidation. These undead were visibly afraid, and this was a huge advantage for him.

"Stop!" The officer cried, he had seen his fair share of battles, and this particular person looked well trained. Not to mention his armor and weapons appeared to be of top quality. "He hasn't shown any hostility, lets just talk this out." The soldiers backed down, and so did the armored person. The officer approached, and smiled to the stranger. "My name is captain Armin, officer of the empire, what is your name?"

The unkindled had not expected the sudden hospitality, but it was not unwelcome, perhaps these undead were not hollowed at all, they certainly didn't look hollowed. He appraised the men in front of him, and saw that the large man with the pickaxe had backed up almost to the back of the cavern, his attitude betraying his build. He faced the officer, and saw the curiosity in his eyes. Seeing no hostility at the same time.

"My name...is Adrien."

The initial contact with the 'empire' had been shaky for the ashen one, but thankfully the local captain was nice enough to offer him a place in the small fortress that was located above their heads. He had informed them of the Firekeeper, and the were more than happy to let her come up as well. Although when the soldiers saw her, they were awe struck with her beauty. A quick glance from the unkindled made them look away, and fear for what might happen if they even thought about her. Currently the Ashen one and the Firekeeper were taking residence in an empty barracks room.

Which brought Adrien to his revelation, this 'fortress' was understaffed, and was most likely frequently attacked as well, given the state of the temporary wooden walls that surrounded the stone building we resided in. The building was of decent quality, but it was clear that the attacks on the structure were doing a number on the old building. Who had been attacking the fortress he had yet to find out, but he figured it was another army of some kind. The firekeeper was currently sitting on the bed within the room the captain had provided. She had not said much, but the unkindled could tell she had been thinking, and observing, much like he himself.

"Ashen one, are we in Lordran?" The Firekeeper suddenly asked, and he looked toward the blind woman before sighing.

"No, I do not know where we are in all honesty. It does not look like Lordran, nor does it look like the outside of the shrine, nor does it have the feeling of Arieandel or the Ringed City. I believe we are in a new era, in a new place." He responded. The Firekeeper had often heard of the unkindled's exploits, mostly by the undead himself. So she knew of what he talked about when he said Arieandel and the Ringed City.

"I believe thoust is right, I do not since the curse of the undead within any of these peoples." At her statement, Adrien looked at her shocked. Had he truly been conversing with mortals this whole time? If this was the case then perhaps they did not know he was an undead? This had to be the case, as he had heard stories of the cursed undead being cast out, and discarded from their homes, seen as monsters. If the soldiers around him had even thought he was an undead, he would not have made it far into the barracks.

At that moment Captain Armin came in.

"I see your both getting comfortable, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you some questions." At Armin's words, Adrien nodded. "So how exactly did you two get into that cavern? Or I should say, chamber, because my men explored the inside of your uh...residence."

"We had been there, it was not underground before." The unkindled answered honestly. "I do not know of this place." He said, referencing the fortress around them. "I believe we are largely clueless to the world at this time." At his words, the captain seemed shocked, but restrained his expression.

I suppose if they were under there, and the had only now come out of that place, I guess its not surprising. But how on earth did the survive for that long!? Perhaps an imperial arms? The captain thought. "I...see. Well then, how did you survive underground for so long? My men saw no evidence of any food stuffs in your chamber."

"To be honest, I am not sure, I am also unsure how we are able to communicate, to think language would have not changed after so long." While yes the undead did not require food and water, the darkness should have taken both him and the firekeeper long ago. At Adrien's words, the captain seemed to realize the same thing, and looked contemplative.

"Well, whatever the case, I believe the answers will be revealed eventually. If they are meant to be. I must ask however, how long are you planning on staying here?" While they could be a drain on precious resources, this man looked to be experienced, and could be a turning point if the revolutionaries attack again.

"I think, only a few days, you have been experiencing frequent attacks, have you not?"

"Yes, how did you know?"

"Most of your defenses are temporary, and this stone structure shows evidence of recent attacks. Who are you fighting, if I may ask?"

"Revolutionaries, they seek to overthrow the current ruling emperor, and establish a new empire. To one degree I can't blame them, I've seen the capital, and the corruption within, but Its still my empire too. I will defend it at all costs. They have been attacking regularly, and we have not been given the reinforcements necessary to hold this position." Adrien nodded. Then my concerns were founded. Adrien thought.

"I understand, thats why I may not stay long, the Firekeeper is not experienced in combat. I fear for her life if your enemies attack again." The captain nodded in understanding, however something about the lady in the room made him curious.

"I see, why does she wear that mask over her eyes? Also, Firekeeper?" Before the Ashen one could respond, the Firekeeper spoke first.

"I am the Ashen one's humble servant, I care to him, and serve him any way he desires, that is my duty." The Firekeeper explained.

"I...see..." The captain stated. So she's that kind of servant. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. "...and the mask?"

"She is blind." The Ashen one said flatly. The captain visibly shrunk in embarrassment.

"Ah, I see, well if you want we'll have food ready in the mess In a few minutes. Your welcome to join us." He said somewhat awkwardly, and left the room. Adrien looked back to the Firekeeper.

"I believe you are right, he did not suspect I was an undead, nor did he seem to know what a Firekeeper is. Also, try to describe yourself as a servant differently, I think he got the wrong idea about you."

"As thou wish, Ashen one."

The next day the unkindled and the Firekeeper explored the compound they had been staying in, the Firekeeper staying close to Adrien's side. The cool wind brushed against her hair, and the grass underneath her bare feet felt great. The ashen one described to her In sparse words the appearance of the Fortress. Worn, tired, and surrounded by a forest that threatened to take the land the fortress was on back into the grasp of nature, that was the sate of their temporary home.

"Are you sure about this sir?" A sergeant asked captain Armin, as they watched the knight and his servant wander the fortress.

"Yes, we need all the help we can get, even if we don't know them, we haven't received reinforcements in months. This man shows experience as well, I believe he will be useful, and perhaps even game changing." At the captain's words the sergeant looked at him curiously. Without turning to face him, the captain continued. "He seems different, its like there is a power he possesses...I am not in support of the actions of the capital, I am only still serving because I want to protect my family. If he could make changes at the capital, maybe this seems too optimistic, but perhaps he might solve all of this trouble." The sergeant was shocked, but then the captain laughed. "Maybe I'm just thinking too much, go get the report from our scouts, I heard they had returned." The sergeant saluted and left.

The ashen one was currently in a courtyard like area, in front of the main gate of the fortress. The Firekeeper was laying on a grassy area outside of the courtyard. A butterfly approached the lady, and sensing the insect, held out her hand. The butterfly landed on the Firekeeper's hand, and it seemed to be curious about the pale woman. She could not see it, or see the Champion of ash, but she could sense the presence of both, and in the butterfly's case, could feel it. The unkindled approached her slowly, and the butterfly did not stir.

"Do you enjoy this place?" Adrien asked the Firekeeper, as she continued to hold the butterfly. "It seems more peaceful, and lively than the shrine was."

"I do, its so beautiful here, I feel so much more around me. Perhaps the whole world is like this?" The Firekeeper asked hopefully. "Although, I feel great darkness coming from far away. The darkness of mankind resonates from a city. A city that even I can see." At her words the Ashen one looked toward where he thought she might be referring to. If such a place exists, then perhaps that is why we are here in the first place. Adrien thought.

Both the unkindled and the Firekeeper continued to wander the fortress, mostly enjoying the relative peace in the place. However the overwhelming feeling of dread and anticipation was not lost on them. These soldiers were expecting another attack, and given the looks some of the soldiers had, it did not seem like they expected to survive another assault.

"And what of the report?" Captain Armin asked, as his sergeant and the scouts stood at attention before him. They were currently in his office, and would have been there sooner, but the scouts had to be released from the doctors.

"This next attack force is larger than any others we had faced previous, it seems they are intending to wipe us out with the next assault." One of the scouts said, his right arm currently in a sling, and a bandage was over his left eye. "It was a miracle that we survived when they spotted us."

"I see, well good job men, you both deserve some rest, go and get it." The captain responded. At that the two scouts left, and left the sergeant with the captain. Armn put his face in his hands, and got up from his chair. He looked out the window at the setting sun, approaching the horizon. "I fear this may be our last night here sergeant. Have the men ready themselves, prepare and fix everything that isn't already in top condition." The sergeant gave a hard expression and saluted before leaving the captain alone. He spotted the knight and his servant on the ground overlooking a large tree within the fortress boundaries.

"I suppose we'll see how good of a fighter you are by morn, for they will undoubtedly think you are a part of the empire. I simply hope we do not die in vain." The captain turned away from the window, and headed out of his office toward his quarters.

Within their temporary residence, the unkindled examined his gear within his bottomless box. The Firekeeper was currently trying to understand the new feeling within her chest. Perhaps this had something to do with the first flame. The Ashen one had been examining his gear all night, both of them being undead, they did not technically need sleep to function. Perhaps she could ask him?

"Ashen one? May I ask thee thou opinion?" At her quandary, the ashen one turned to her, and nodded. "I have a strange feeling within me, that burning feeling I told you of before. It does not hurt, but instead it filleth me with a strange energy." The unkindled remembered what she had said when he had first woke up, and walked over to her again, once again feeling a bonfire within her.

"It feels as if you are a bonfire, but its different from every other bonfire I've encountered." The Firekeeper nodded.

"I believe this might have something to with the quenching of the first flame." The Firekeeper said, and at her words, the Ashen one seemed to put some pieces of this puzzle together. Suddenly the sound of horns, and men yelling could be heard outside. It appeared as though another attack would be taking place sooner than the undead thought. It was time to leave.

"Take this, I'll be back." Adrien said, before giving the Firekeeper a dagger, and leaving the room. The Ashen one headed toward where the main gate was, seeing that something was ramming against the wooden gate, attempting to gain entrance. He passed the gate, and located the captain not too far away. "I wish to leave." The unkindled said curtly, having reached Armin. The captain dismissed the men he had been giving orders, and addressed Adrien.

"I'm sorry, but the only way any of us are getting out of this fortress, is either in a coffin, or covered in blood. They have us completely surrounded now, and they have a huge battering ram, aiming to take down the gates. You can either help, or wait for them to find you, but if I may ask, I would request your help. We need as much help as possible." After the captain's explanation, the unkindled stood there, and did not respond immediately. Eventually the unkindled turned around and walked back to his quarters. The captain's spirits immediately fell.

"We'll see I suppose." The unkindled said, before continuing onward. As he was walking along side the wall of the fortress, heading toward his room, the tops of ladders appeared at the edges of the walls above him. The invaders were climbing the walls. Soldiers on the wall had been shot with arrows, evidence by their bodies, which had fallen off the walls, and now littered the ground around him, the blood staining parts of the previously green grass.

Revolutionaries climbed from the ladder, to the wall, and seeing there were no other defenders on the walls around them, went down to the ground. In total, there about twelve of them, in various states of armament. The best of the soldiers was a large man equipped with a large gladiator style helmet, some shoulder plates, and wielded a halberd, but other than that, not much armor was on him. The worst of the soldiers only wielded two large daggers, and seemed to be looking for a fight.

"Hey look theres one more!" One soldier shouted, getting the attention of the others, all of them looking at Adrien. "Why don't we take him down before move for the keep?" Another said cockily. The unkindled drew his sword, and readied his shield, if these people wanted a fight, he would give it to them.

"I am not a part of the empire, nor do I wish to fight you, let me pass, and I will ignore you." The unkindled said, and the revolutionary with the two large daggers got close to him.

"HAHA Yeah right, I think we'll just take your armor from you now, besides what are you gonna do? Its twelve on one." After this statement the invaders began circling the undead, but the one with the two daggers remained where he was. "Lets see what you can do!" The eccentric man rushed forward, aiming to jump onto the Ashen one, however the Ashen one waited only a moment, and right as the man was at the height of his jump, the undead thrust his short sword forward, impaling him. The man was shocked, and so were his comrades, eventually the man died while still impaled, and hovering a couple of feet off the ground. The Ashen one had kept him there, surprised at how easily he had killed the man.

These men must be mortals, even weak hollows wouldn't have died that quickly. The Ashen one thought. Another soldier attempted to strike at him from behind with a sword, but sensing the attack, dropped the corpse that was once a man, and slashed horizontally. He hacked off both of the man's arms when he had done this. The soldier screamed wildly, before the undead finished him off by decapitating the poor soldier.

"Bastard!" The largest and most most heavily armored one yelled, and attempted to strike the undead from behind. With inhuman speed, the undead turned around and blocked the attack with relative ease. "How the hell?" if this was an undead, then perhaps the undead would have been impressed with himself, but not only was he stronger than average undead, he was fighting mortals. Even the weakest undead could easily overpower the strongest mortal. These people didn't know any better, and they simply saw one of the strongest people in this army, be easily stopped by some random knight.

Wordlessly the Unkindled struck the large man, instantly cutting through the man, and killing him almost instantly. The armor did nothing, and blood now thoroughly coated both the undead's sword, and the ground around him. Next two soldiers struck from his front at the same time, he timed the strikes, and managed to kill one while he was striking, but the other one hit his helmet. He did not react to the strike, instead he simply swung again, ripping through the other one's flesh. The strike to his helmet had done nothing because of his armor, and his inhuman resistances.

Five down, seven to go. Another two attempted to flank both his sides, as the Ashen one counted. Using the dexterity he could muster, he jumped up, kicking one of them in the head, and blocking the attack of the other one. The ashen one thrust his sword into the first one, and quickly spun around, and, while twisting his body, decapitated the other, all in one swift motion.

"Rush him!" One shouted, as all but one of the soldiers rushed the undead. Thye had all made one big mistake however, they had all attacked at once. Timing the attacks perfectly, the unkindled parried all of them at once, and followed up by decapitating them all. Blood poured from their wounds as the bodies tried to supply their non-connected heads with the life giving liquid. Souls reached Adrien, each soldier not giving many.

The last one remaining was shaking violently, and could barely stand because of the fear that had been driven into his heart. This man...he's not normal, he must be an imperial arms user, theres no other explanation! I need to report this! As these thoughts ran through the man's head, he realized he had been frozen, and the knight could have easily killed him. Once he regained his ability to act, he immediately ran back up onto the wall, and back down the ladder to the other side.

The ashen one sighed, as he slightly regretted having to kill these men, but they had brought it upon themselves. Adrien continued toward his room, and thought about what might happen now. That survivor will most likely report about me, and I'll become a target for the revolutionaries. Perhaps I should go to the capital. Considering what I just did, theres only one group of people around here that can help me get there. He reached his room, and he opened the door to find the Firekeeper in the same place he had left her.

"Ashen one, I smelleth blood, ist thoust alright?" The Firekeeper asked, with concern in her voice.

"I'm fine, thats not my blood. Juts stay here, I'm going to help out our situational allies." At this, he left, seeing no soldiers of any kind around, he was confident the Firekeeper would be fine for now. Then he left to join the fray. There wasn't much else to say, the Firekeeper knew what he was about to do, and he did not have time to explain anyway.

"Captain, they're breaking through!" One soldier yelled, as another arrow barely missed the poor sod. Captain Armin was simply overlooking the scene, his dead men laying on the ground due to archer fire. Several men were trying to hold the door as the battery ram on the other side continued to pound against the wooden gateway. Others were treating the wounded, and more were firing arrows back at the attackers, with little luck. There wasn't much he could do in this situation, his men were doing they're best, but if they got pushed back to the keep, then there would be little chance of them surviving. Like there was already.

The sound of splintering wood signaled the invader's success, and the battery ram burst through the door, sending the men trying to hold it back flying. The soldiers on both sides clashed, but it was clear that the revolutionaries were winning. The imperial soldiers were too tired from the constant attacks, and had little to no faith in their survival. That all changed when the mysterious knight came to their aide. He cut down two of the invaders with ease, and using the momentum, kept swinging, tearing through the enemy ranks.

One after another they would fall, wether by impalement, dismemberment, decapitation, or simply large gashes and wounds, the invader's blood continued to flow onto the ground due to Adrien. The battle had been pushed back to the courtyard, even with the undead's help, the enemy's overwhelming numbers were still a problem. There were multiple instances where Adrien had to roll in-between soldier, and their ranks in order to escape being trapped between them. So now both the renewed defenders, and the now wary invaders were staring each other down in the courtyard, seemingly at a stalemate.

"I heard there was a problem on the front." A voice called, and the owner of it stepped forward from the invader's side, revealing a young man with a shield and sword with expensive looking armor everywhere on him except for his head. "It appears as though the empire has finally sent some reinforcements, in the form of one man. Is that all they could spare to this pathetic group of me?" A great deal of malice was laced in his voice as he stared down Adrien.

"Be careful Damien, he's killed a lot of our men." A solder said to the man that had stepped forward, Adrien took note of the experienced look he gave him. This warrior was not going to be as easy to defeat as the others.

"We'll see how careful I need to be." Damien then walked forward, and the undead mirrored his action, and lowered his shield to an unguarded position. "Its good to see another worthy opponent. This will be enjoyable." At his words, the undead bowed to him as a sign of respect. While he wouldn't say it, the undead could tell that this man would still be easy to kill. He seemed experienced, and confident, but Adrien's status as an undead would still be too much for him to handle. The warrior mirrored Adrien's action, and readied his shield. The undead put his shield on his back, and took his sword in both his hands.

They circled each other, Damien with his shield up, and his sword peaking over it, and Adrien keeping his sword in the signature straight sword stance. Once in range, the undead stepped forward twice, and thrust his sword upward, and broke Damian's guard, but the sword kept going, and almost thrusted through the man's head. He had backed up a step, just enough to avoid the deadly blow. The undead kept on the offensive, slashing at the man, however Damien just barely managed to avoid each one. Adrien stopped when he was running low on stamina, and took a moment to analyze his opponent. The soldiers had been watching the whole time, all of them in awe of the undead's skill.

"It appears that I am out of my league." Damian said, breaking the silence that had filled the courtyard. "Your no normal man, you have an imperial arms don't you? That would explain your strength and speed. No matter, Even if I am defeated, we will take this fortress." Several men from both sides gasped at his words.

"What is an imperial arms?" Adrien asked, which made another bout of silence encompass the area. Once again it was broken by Damien, who bursted out laughing, making the undead, and several of the men confused. Imperial arms? Is that some kind of weapon, and why is he so amused? The undead's thoughts were interrupted by Damien speaking.

"You hold power that could rival rival a whole army, and yet you do not know what it is? That is just so funny to me." Damien laughed, and then rushed the undead. Adrien dodged every strike, and once a sufficient opening had shown itself, he struck back. Damien's blood went splattering across the stone yard, as the undead inflicted a nasty gash on the man's side. "Well, I should have expected this, at least I can say I fought an imperial arms user, and lasted more than a minute. Thank you for this duel...Knight." After this, the man slumped forward, as a decent amount of souls entered Adrien's body. The undead observed the body for a moment, before facing the rest of the invaders.

"I would suggest you leave, before you suffer the same fate." Adrien said eerily, and the invaders took a moment to think about his words.

"Damien wouldn't have wanted us to flee! We're taking this fortress one way or another!" One of the soldiers shouted. Suddenly a hail of arrows rained themselves down on Adrien and the other defenders. Adrien brought his shield up, and easily blocked the incoming projectiles. The imperial solders were not so lucky. Some of them got hit, some of them got lucky, and others were able to bring their shields up just in time, if they even had shields. The sound of boots rushing got the Ashen one's attention, as it was from his back, instead of where the invaders would have rushed. More imperial soldiers showed up, each with strange metal staves in their hands. Including the captain himself, who had donned a much more appropriate set of armor.

"Open fire!" Armin yelled, and the soldiers with guns lit up the revolutionaries like a Christmas tree. Many died in that hail of bullets, as the undead looked on with awe. If they have this kind of technology, then why don't the just equip every soldier with one? Perhaps... it is too expensive? The undead though this as literal droves of enemies were cut down. Just as suddenly as it started, the firing stopped, and the invaders were able to somewhat re-cooperate. "Men, Charge!" While he certainly wasn't obligated to follow the captain's orders, the undead was not going to pass up the opportunity to attack an enemy who's guard was down. He rushed the closest man, and jumped onto the soldiers chest, shoving him down. Adrien stabbed the man while he was down, and slashed the next closest soldier, killing him as well. Adrien kicked the next man in the stomach, and slashed another, who managed to block the strike, but the guard was broken. He grabbed the same man's head and thrusted his sword into the man's stomach. Blood spewed onto the undead''s armor, and he backed up, to stab the first man in his head.

The Defenders fought ruthlessly, and the invaders were having trouble fighting them off due to the additional reinforcements, and due to the undead's skill. Although the imperials still suffered casualties, the revolutionaries were now losing badly. Eventually they were driven back to the gate, where their line shattered, and they fled back to wherever the had come from. The soldiers got to work packing fixing the gate, and the undead stood guard to make sure they could do so in peace.

It took all of the rest of the day, but the soldiers had managed to somewhat replace the door. Although it was still very temporary. That night the imperials celebrated with drink and song, while also mourning their dead. Although considering many of them had expected to die that day, it was unsurprising that the happiness was more prevalent than the sorrow. The undaed joined in some of the drinking, but mostly stayed out of the celebrations, although many of the soldiers had praised him for his skill and bravery, many of them also just as curious if he had an imperial arms. Eventually the unkindled managed to sneak away from the party, but someone was waiting for him.

"Thank you, Knight Adrien." Armin said with humbleness. "If it wasn't for you, all of my men, including myself would probably be dead, or captured." Adrien simply nodded in acknowledgment. "If there is anything I can do to repay you, simply name it."

"Actually there is one thing I require." Adrien said, which got the captain's attention. "I need passage to the capital."

"Are you sure about this? The capital is not a very friendly place, even to those of us aligned with the empire, unless you have the kind of morals they do, and you don't get in their way, I doubt you'll find much success there." Armin warned as he helped saddle Adrien's horse. The undead had been concerned to ride such a beast, especially since he had never sone so. This had surprised the captain, and Armin had given him a few lessons in horseback riding the day earlier in preparation for the journey. The Firekeeper would have to ride on the same horse, as they could only spare one of their few horses.

"I'm sure, Its the only place I can feel myself making any kind of difference." Adrien said curtly, and the Firekeeper approached the horse's head, the two seeming to be very interested in each other. "I have no real connections to this world, I might as well make some with the higher ups." Adrien looked to the captain, who was holding something out to him. It was a letter, rolled up with a blue ribbon, and sealed with a similarly blue wax emblem. The undead took it, looking at it with interest.

"Well, you certainly made a difference here. That right there is an officer's seal, if you need anything within the capital, this can get it for you in a heartbeat. Just don't give it away." Adrien looked at Armin for a moment before nodding in gratefulness. Two soldiers helped the Firekeeper onto the horses back, and following the captain's orders from the other day, he hopped onto the horses back, his armor seemingly bothering the horse little. "Be careful, and watch your back, if you make friends, theres a good chance the might stab you there." Once again Adrien nodded in thanks, before he left the Fortress from a secondary entrance they had made so the undead did not get caught by the revolutionaries. Setting off with a map the captain had provided, the undead and the firekeeper headed toward the capital.

A knock was heard as Najenda just finished packing to go back to the capital. She sighed, ever she had returned to headquarters she had been repeatedly asked about the success of missions, and the status of the capital and Night raid. It seemed even though she should have left a few hours ago, they still had more questions, or reports, she had gotten plenty of those. The one-eyed one-armed former general of the empire stepped away from her bags and papers, to the door to her room.

"What?" She asked annoyed as she opened the door, only to see two men, one who had the unmistakable mask of a revolutionary spy with who appeared to be an ordinary soldier. "Make it quick, I need to leave."

"Of course." The spy said, his older experienced voice telling her hat this was important. before handing her a drawing of a knight's helmet with a smaller depiction of what appeared to be his full suit, and other parts of the armor to the sides. "This knight defended the imperial fortress of stand guard during a final push on it, which would have brought it into our hands, but apparently the actions of this knight pushed the favor of the battle in the empire's side. This soldier was the sole survivor of twelve that attempted to infiltrate the keep from the side, and flank the imperials. Tell her what you saw son."

"I-I saw him kill all of my comrades in no time. He didn't kill me, and I managed to escape, but he took down some of our finest with ease. I can also confirm that he killed Damien, the finest warrior in our battalion. From what I heard, he also killed him with relative ease." The soldier finished, and Najenda looked at the drawing once again. "If I may ma'am, I believe he might be an imperial arms user. He just was too fast for anyone normal."

"Is this your opinion? That he wielded an imperial arms?" Najenda asked the soldier, who nodded. "Well, I appreciate the info, but I'm headed to the capital, why do I need to know?" The spy spoke up at her inquiry.

"Because scouts reported seeing a knight on a horse with an unknown female heading toward the capital from the fortress. When the scouts were shown that picture, they were sure it was him, it would appear the empire wants him in the capital for some reason. Of course that would be yours and night raid's territory." At the spy's words, Najenda's eyes widened slightly, and she once again looked at the picture.

"Noted, but unless he directly stands in the way of night raid operations, he will be considered a secondary target." Najenda stated, and the spy nodded in understanding, the solier on the other hand looked offended.

"But ma'am! At least a hundred soldiers fell to that man! Your just going to let him run free!?" Both Najenda and the spy looked at the solder for a second, before she responded.

"And a thousand more will die tomorrow if we don't stamp out the corruption in the capital, I understand how you feel, I really do, but I've never heard of this man, nor seen his armor anywhere else. Given that information, he doesn't seem to be directly responsible for any crimes being committed. Not to mention, you said it was your opinion that he had an imperial arms correct? Which means that he might not even posses one." Najenda paused to let her words sink into the soldier. "I promise that If I can, I'll make him pay for what he's done, but right now we need to focus on catching the big fish, alright?" To this, he soldier nodded, and bowed.

"Yes ma'am, I'm sorry for bursting out like that!" The soldier said apologetically. Najenda simply laughed.

"I said I understand, now go get some rest, you've earned it." At that, the spy escorted the soldier back toward where his quarters would be. She closed the door, looking at the drawing once more, before putting it with the other targets. "Well, this will certainly be a busy time for us won't it?" She said to herself, before getting the rest of her things ready to go.

"Ashen one, dost thou truly think this capital is the best place to go?" The Firekeeper asked,and the undead looked around him at the night, the sun had set, and he had let his horse sleep for the night. He knew that it needed to sleep, so he figured a stop would be beneficial. He saw the Firekeeper on the ground, lying on her side, with her arm propping her upper body up, much like Irene or Karla.

"Right now? Yes, if there is any reason as to our surviving, and our being here, it would be there." He responded, and he looked up to see the moon and the stars, the moonlight doing little to light their place on the forest floor. His gear was no longer covered in his victims blood thanks to a stream he had found near the fortress before he had left. The little moonlight that shone through the trees reflected off his armor, and reminded him of a certain sword within his bottomless box. He looked to the Firekeeper once again, before resting across from her, content to be in her company as they eventually drifted off to sleep. A sleep that was long overdue.

Author's notes

This is my first attempt at a crossover, I'll do my best, but constructive criticism is always welcome. I've been wanting to do a crossover for a while, and I settled on Dark souls and Akame ga kill because I love the anime, and I love the game. While I could have done Skyrim or Fallout I feel like I would have wound up making my character OP, cause thats how my characters in the game are lol.

So I will be updating my other story still, but I've started this one just so If I get a writers block with one chapter, I can work on the other story's chapter instead. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed, and as always...

Thanks for reading!