Pthumeru Chalice Dungeon

The horrid stench, mud caused by the mixture of blood and dirt; instead of water, rivers flew in a crimson color. Blood everywhere and creatures that roamed the place didn't seem to mind the blood at all. It looked like it had become their natural habitat.

Surgit saw some creatures that looked like humans, tall as an average human being and almost naked. They had loincloth that covered their private parts but their torso and legs were exposed. They had no hair on their bodies and their skin was as pale as a full moon.

They were skinny with no muscle tone. The skin on their bodies seemed to cover just bone. They held scythes and patrolled the vast expanse of the first level of the Pthumeru labyrinth. As they moved, they moaned and their bodies twitched from one side to the other. Surgit had the impression that he landed in hell.

The labyrinth in which he found himself was the first of many other deeper levels. He understood from some cryptic descriptions he had found at the entrance of the place that the labyrinth was composed of three main buildings. A makeshift map was carved on a wall detailing every level and the way to access the other.

What he understood from the strange drawings was that every level had some kind of contraption leading to the lower one. In order to access the chamber where the contraption was constructed, he needed to activate smaller contraptions in each main building.

As soon as he stepped inside the real labyrinth, he realized the evil plans of the architect who had made the place. They would give its explorers hope, showing them the lever in a meticulous drawing which was linked directly to the door giving access to the contraption. But reaching the lever was another story.

The door leading to the main lever was close to the labyrinth's entrance. However, the door was sealed. On closer inspection, Surgit saw that the door's seal was composed of interlocking bars. The design of the gate revealed intricate craftsmanship.

Some bars extended from the top of the gate all the way down and connected to holes on the ground. Others were horizontally aligned and connected to other holes on the gate's side. Surgit tried to cheat his way in and force the bars open. A shockwave sent him several feet backwards until his back hit a wall though.

Surgit injected a blood vial into his bloodstream then stood up. 'That wasn't worth it,' he thought as he reluctantly tossed the empty vial in his pocket. He looked at the wall he had just crashed into and saw some strange characters. It looked like some ancient glyphs from a forgotten language. He closed his eyes and inspected the glyphs with his insight. To his surprise, he was able to translate most of them; although the translation didn't come in words, but in thoughts.

It was as if someone thought about the color red. They wouldn't think of the word written in Latin letters, but of the actual color. Surgit felt the knowledge from the glyphs being transferred into his mind. The gist of what he learned was:

'Poor hunter, you are now in the Gods' domain. If you wish to return to the world of the living, make sure you open the first seal.' The knowledge came to Surgit's mind as he contemplated the glyphs with his third eye. He was able to maintain his insight for longer since he had gained a new title.

'If one wishes to open the seal to the labyrinth's first level, one must defeat the guardians. The mighty guardians keep the Gods' domain safe from lowly hunters. Worthy warriors will be rewarded echoes, while the weak will be devoured by the Gods' minions.'

Surgit opened his eyes, he longed for a challenge that would test all his abilities. He smiled as he turned towards the horrifying tombs. He had learned about this place in books and always thought about it as a legend. To see it with his own eyes was an achievement he could have never dreamed of.

He turned to have one last look at the stone tablet on the wall. There were more glyphs that needed translating. He closed his eyes again and resumed reading. 'Beware of the watchers!' The last glyph said. Surgit had never heard of the watchers. Perhaps, this referred to the guardians of the tomb. He shrugged and moved forward.

Surgit observed the strange enemies that looked like people inflicted by some strange disease. Their bodies transformed. Unlike the beasts inhabiting Yharnam, these ones had neither fur nor hair on their bodies. Some even had rotten flesh visible on their arms, chests or legs.

They moved aimlessly around and held weapons of different sorts. Most of them had scythes, but others also held swords or axes. Their bodies seemed too weak to hold a weapon and yet they had them.

As soon as they heard him approaching, they turned towards him and charged. He found no difficulty in ridding himself of them. What disturbed him most was the smell of their live bodies, let alone the dying one.

Their smell was rotten and he had a sour ball stuck in his throat once the dying foes fell to his side. This place had nothing godly about it. He wondered why anyone would call it the tomb of Gods.

From the vast expanse where bloody rivers flew around, Surgit had seen the entrance to a small building. It was like he was standing on a hill and heading towards some catacombs. Only the hill was underground and the air was damp and smelled of death. It looked like one of the main buildings he had to access.

Surgit got the feeling that he was exploring the lands of dwarves that he had read about long ago during his time at school. He loved the idea that some people, smaller but tougher than humans, could live underground and build civilizations in there. At that moment, the idea became repugnant to him. How can anyone live underground without the possibility of breathing fresh air?

He went through the first door and took the stairs that led directly down towards a large dark room. The room was rectangular and he could see three doors apart from the one he had come from, each leading to a different direction. One of them was closed by a metallic gate and there was no possibility of opening it manually.

He suspected that it was the door leading down toward the guardian of the area. "Of course, nothing can be that easy for me," he muttered as he looked the other way. The other doors led towards the labyrinth, he concluded. He knew that once he took one direction, it would be difficult for him to trace his steps back.

At least the closed door was marked by two statues on each side, which made it unique. If he ever walked in circles and came back to that room, he would recognize it by the statues. Each statue held a tablet and faint glyphs could be seen on each one.

Bigger glyphs at the top of each tablet were visible enough for Surgit to translate their meaning. As he used his insight to inspect them, the glyphs read: 'Beat the guardian to reveal a secret.' Surgit swore the translation had revealed a face, winking at him in his mind.