Previously on Dark Souls: Morgan fell down a bunch of holes and faced the most horrible monstrosities the sewer could conjure up, but managed to survive it all.
It was time for a short reprieve from the sewers. Nobody likes a sewer level, especially when it’s full of giant rats, horrifying frog mutants, and brain-sucking slimes.
I hauled my tuchus out of the Depths real quick-like, and started making my way towards the Undead Parish. The Depths are huge and confusing, so I don’t know if I’d explored every inch of the place, but I was sad that I hadn’t yet found a shortcut back to Firelink Shrine. Having to trudge all the way back out was a pain in the butt. Maybe there would be one in Blighttown.
After the long journey, I met with Andrei the blacksmith and bought the Weapon Smithbox, so that I could upgrade my weapons without trekking back to the Undead Parish every time. My goal completed, I breathed a heavy sigh and prepared myself to go all the way back to the Depths.
Then I saw the door across from Andrei. Somehow I’d completely missed it the handful of times I’d been there before. On the other side of the door was a huge ruined hall, and in the middle was a giant stone monster who started chucking lightning bolts at me immediately. The bolts were easy to dodge, but trying to get close to score a few hits was a little trickier. The statue monster had a very long staff, and a single unblocked blow was enough to cleave off most of my life. By the time I was able to fell the beast, my Estus Flask was empty and I was about ready to keel over.
Fortunately, that monster is one of the few who don’t respawn after visiting a bonfire, so I was able to skip across the hall and into the Darkroot Garden. A lush, foresty setting, Darkroot Garden didn’t seem so bad. A couple weed monster popped out of the ground and tried to whip me with their vines, but they were about as easy to kill as the basic undead enemies.
It was when I came across a split in the trail that things started going downhill. Literally. I decided to go right first (that seems to be a recurring choice), and ended up on a ledge high above the area known as Darkroot Basin. I saw a shiny item way off in the distance, and started making my way down the long, winding trail, hugging the wall so that I didn’t accidentally slip off into the abyss.
When I finally reached the bottom, it became very clear that this was not a place I wanted to be in for very long. Far in the distance, beyond the trees, I could see something writhing about in the fog. I couldn’t tell what it was, but I got all the information I relly needed: it was big. I should have just booked it right then, but curiosity got the best of me and I started inching closer to get a better look.
Then the crystal golems came out of nowhere and started trying to bash my head in. A pair of them has noticed me, and I could see others lurking deeper into the wooded expanse. These guys were big, but not very quick, and not nearly as tough as they looked. Fighting two at once was a chore, but they shattered to pieces after only a few hits each.
Confident in my ability to take them down, I headed into the trees to try to lure another one over. But before I could get its attention, I heard a strange noise that I couldn’t quite place. I looked up, and saw a cluster of huge water blasts tearing through the trees. I dashed away from them and slid behind a large rock as the projectiles slammed into the ground around me. Maybe finding out more about the giant on the other side of the forest could wait until another day.
I began heading back up the cliffside trail, and about halfway up I saw another shiny item on a corpse on a dangerous-looking outcropping. I carefully made my way over, and nearly took a halberd to the face for my efforts. A Black Knight was waiting just around the corner to ambush treasure-seekers.
I carefully backpedaled up the path with my shield drawn, trying carefully to block the Black Knight’s attacks while keeping my balance. I drew him further up the trail, where there was a more open area to duel in, and started to fight back in earnest. The Black Knights don’t mess around though, and it was looking like I’d need to try to escape if I didn’t want to get cut down.
That plan didn’t work out so well though. As I circled around the knight in an effort to reach the path leading up and away from the basin, I miscalculated a dodge of his blade and lost my footing near the cliff’s edge. Down I tumbled into the blackness of the canyon, wondering where my bundle of souls and humanity would end up. You Died.
Tune in next week for Part 11: Flutter By, Butterfly