//------------------------------//
// Secrets in the Darkness 
// Story: Dark Souls 3: Cinders of Power 
// by Blackdrag-rose 
//------------------------------//

"Okay, let us see what else is hidden beneath the castle's foundations," Tirek stated, because he, Sarana, and Martok only needed a moment or two to rest and recover from their battle with Oceiros, the Consumed King of Lothric Castle, as none of them had been weakened by the previous fight, despite their foe's best attempts, though as he said that he noticed that both of his companions nodded their heads, showing that they understood what he was saying, to which the three of them got up and headed for the locked door that was near where the bonfire had been resting.

One thing that Tirek noticed was that the door in question appeared to be a heavy stone of some kind and it had what he guessed was some of the ancient writing of this world on its surface, though since he didn't care about it, and Sarana had no idea what had been written on the door, Tirek nodded his head and Martok pressed his hands on both sides of the door, pushing it open with all of his might, like some of the other doors they had opened since this quest began, which revealed a passage of some kind that lead to whatever secrets the mad King had been guarding, even though he knew that Sarana would say he wasn't guarding anything. The passage had a set of stairs that they walked down without wasting any time, though that was when the three of them noticed that there were a few dead bodies that happened to be lining the way forward, only they seemed to be the serpent knights from the mountain temple Tirek had opened the way to with his Space Stone while he and his companions were hunting down Yhorm, who seemed to be the weakest of the Lords of Cinder, which only made him wonder if they might discover something interesting down here, one that was linked with the area that he did want to explore at some point before the end of this quest. While the three of them followed the path that was in front of them they made sure to keep their eyes open for any hidden enemies that might be waiting for them, because despite the fact that all of the serpent knights appeared to be dead they knew looks could be deceiving, especially in this world, and that there could be some living enemies for them to fight as Tirek had them delve deeper into the depths of the castle's foundations, all so they could find whatever secrets the royal family had left behind, though once they were done in this area he knew they would head back to their main objective at long last.

As it turned out there happened to be one of the serpent knights wandering around after they turned around a short corner that was in front of them, though it appeared that the creature had no idea that the three of them were even there,  which was rather odd since Tirek was sure that it was a guardian of some kind and figured that it would be more wary of what was around it, though he said nothing as Sarana rushed forward and cut the serpent knight's neck with one swift slash of her weapons, opening the way for them to move towards the area it was guarding.

"After seeing what they did outside that temple, I was sure this one would have attacked us on sight," Sarana said, as she had been expecting the serpent knight to attack the three of them when it noticed them, but that had to mean that its eyesight had to be gone or something, though she knew that Tirek didn't care about whatever the creature had been up to as they walked beyond the area it had been guarding and walked into the chamber that happened to be in front of them, just so she and Martok could satisfy Tirek's curiosity.

The chamber, as they discovered, was of a decent size and the walls appeared to be made from fragments of stone tablets, or possibly whole tablets that were put into slots, though while Tirek couldn't read the language that was on them he did notice the large chalice that happened to be resting in front of them and spotted a corpse that happened to be right in front of it, assuming a meditation stance that seemed important in some manner, but he allowed Sarana to loot the chest that was off to their left as he climbed the stairs that were behind the chalice. From what he could tell this area did seem to be designed like a dead end, one that would cause adventurers and the other Unkindled to turn around and leave the area, almost like there was something hidden in this area, hence the reason he walked over the lone chest that was in front of him and approached the wall that was opposite of the entrance, where Tirek tapped the wall for a moment and his magic rolled over it, causing the illusion to break apart before his eyes and revealed a short passage that seemed to lead outside. Tirek grinned for a moment as he walked through the passage and came to a stop when he reached the end of the path, where he was joined by Sarana and Martok a few moments later, though that was the moment that he noticed a very familiar area that happened to be in front of them, as it looked a lot like the Cemetery of Ash that he had appeared in some time ago, at the start of this quest, only it was totally dark out, like the Flame had been snuffed out and the Age of Dark had risen in this area, either showing them an alternate world if no one attempted to Link the Flame, which was bleak as they stared at the darkened area, or it could be showing Tirek that they had failed, where he was willing to believe that the former was correct and that this was an alternate reality of some kind. From there he jumped into the air and started to slide down the short cliff side that was in front of where the end of the passage had been located, something that was followed by Sarana and Martok doing the same thing, even though Tirek found that there was some light being given off so they could see the path that was in front of them, though not enough to light the entire world, but once the three of them were back together they walked forward and carefully explored the area they had discovered.

The first thing the group found was a bonfire that would save their progress in this version of the Cemetery of Ash, where there hadn't been one in the original cemetery and that meant the bonfire Tirek and Sarana had first rested at, the one that allowed him to learn about these things, would likely be gone, though once it was lit the three of them moved forward and headed up to the fork in the path, where the path to their left seemed to head to where he had arrived in a long time ago while the path on their right seemed to be the one that would lead them to where the first powerful foe had been found. Along the way Sarana picked up one of the shriving stones that they just stuffed into their pack and left alone, but when they reached the fork in the path they decided to see if there was anything interesting for them to collect down to their left, something that allowed them to see that there were four corvians standing around a coffin and none of them seemed to even notice them, or if they did it didn't seem like they cared all that much, which was why Tirek used a few Fire Orbs and knocked all four of their foes backwards, something that allowed Sarana and Martok to rush forward and cut into their foes, eliminating them in a matter of seconds. What Tirek found was that three of the corvians had been carrying scythes, just like the one he had taken from them some time ago, while the main one was a sorcerer of some kind, before he found a ring that seemed like it would increase the power of one of the flasks they had access to, so he pocketed it and they returned to the main path, something that allowed them to head into the area that they found their first flask in at the start of their journey, though now that they confirmed that there were enemies in this area all three of them kept their guard up as they waited to see what else was in this area. One thing that was interesting was that there happened to be a lost soul near the stone chalice that was in the center of this area, yet another one that Tirek collected for their collection, before he found that the enemies of this area happened to be the grave wardens from the outside area of the Cathedral of the Deep, or at least there were two or three of them in this area, though they were joined by the dogs that seemed like they were totally dead, something that caused Tirek to hurl a number of Fire Orbs out into the area they were fighting in and blasted their foes backwards.

Once he knocked their enemies around with his spells, even if he only did it for a few seconds and limited his power in the process, he let Sarana and Martok clear them out with a few swings of their weapons as he explored the side path that was near where some of the dogs had been resting, which would have taken them to where a large crystalline lizard had been located back in the Cemetery of Ash, though as he entered the side area in question he found two of those creatures hanging out near the back rock wall of the area, but since they didn't seem interested in him he turned around and left the pair alone, mostly due to the fact that he could likely assert his dominance later, once he had cleared this area out, after he and his companions investigated this twisted area. From there he returned to where Sarana and Martok were standing and they headed through the opening that had lead them to the first bonfire they had used in the past, but as they walked up the hill in question, so they could see the darkened area that was out in front of them, Tirek felt the change in the air and watched as an Invader, a lady that was carrying a staff, appeared near where the first bonfire had been located, as if she was trying to stop them from getting to the area that was off in the distance, which appeared to be a darkened version of the Shrine. Interestingly enough their foe was using crystal versions of several of the spells Tirek had used over the course of his quest through this world, as in she sent out a burst of crystals into the air that rained down on the area they were standing in, summoned crystal spheres that would fire out at them, and loosed a burst of magic that was surrounded by crystals at them, though for the most part Tirek used his magic to parry the attacks as he opened the way for both of his companions to get close to their foe. He had to admit that this Invader had some decent strength, but she was nothing in comparison to some of the enemies that they had fought since this quest started, especially when he considered what had happened when he fought Aldrich or Elfriede, so it was rather easy for them to bypass their foe's defenses and Sarana scored a few good hits on the lady, who, in an odd decision, actually threw herself over the ledge to get away from them, which was hilarious when Tirek considered everything.

From that point forward the group followed the path that was between the area the odd Invader had appeared in and the structure Tirek had faced his first powerful creature in, though as they did that the weaker wardens that had been the first enemies they had encountered appeared in their path once more, where Sarana and Martok lashed out at their foes while Tirek kept his magic at the ready, cutting them down as they moved towards their destination, even though that did give them some decently sized souls in the process, something that stopped when they reached the opening and found that Gundyr was in this area, only he seemed slightly different this time around.

"Ah, it appears that we have found another version of Iudex Gundyr to fight," Tirek remarked, though even as he said that their foe shifted for a moment and rose from the area that he had been kneeling in, for however long he had been in this area, and gripped the halberd that was his weapon of choice, while at the same time Sarana drew her blades and held them at the ready while Martok readied his greatsword, where he debated which element he should use this time around, as he had no idea which one their foe was weak against, before he shrugged for a moment, "Very well then, let's remove him and see what's in the dark Shrine that he's guarding."

It was in that moment that Martok ran forward and drew the attention of their foe, where he rolled out of the way and let the head of the halberd hit the area that he had been standing in a few moments ago, before lashing out with his own greatsword as he tried to cut into Gundyr's chest, where it seemed like he he did some decent damage despite the fact that it didn't pierce the armor and it was followed by their foe kicking him in the chest, knocking him backwards a tiny bit as Sarana moved into the area and hacked into his back for a few seconds. As that happened Tirek moved to the side and loosed a Fire Orb right into Gundyr's chest, where it looked like it didn't do a lot of damage and that meant their foe wasn't weak to his Fire based spells, though he moved out of the way so he could avoid being crushed by the elbow bash that was aimed at his face, showing him that their foe had more attacks in store for them and that they had to be careful, which he was fine with since this was how they tackled the foes they had faced so far. That especially came true when Gundyr took a moment and jumped into the air, where he seemed to pause for a few seconds before rushing down to the area that Sarana was standing in, who rolled out of the way as their foe crashed into the ground and had to yank his weapon out of the hole he had created, though it was that opening that allowed them to lash out at him, even though this time Tirek took a moment to gather his magic and hurled a shadowy sphere of energy that slammed into his foe's back, which did nothing this time around, meaning Gundyr was resistant to Dark based spells, something that he wasn't okay with but would have to accept as his companions got away from their enemy. Based on that Tirek realized that Fire only did a decent amount of damage and Dark did nothing, leaving him with Ice and Lightning based spells, which was when he gathered his magic for a few seconds, even if he had to move so he could avoid the incoming halberd bash that was coming his way, where it was easy to see that this version of Gundyr was more aggressive than the other one they had faced, so it was a good thing he seemed to be switching between the three of them, because Tirek was a little concerned that if Gundyr focused on one of them it would be bad for the individual in question.

The Ice Burst that Tirek fired a few moments later seemed to slow down Gundyr's movements for a few seconds, as if he was weak to the element in question, though to be on the safe side Tirek also channeled a Lightning Spear and sent it flying into their foe's chest, which did seem to leave a lightning mark on his chest and caused him to stagger, meaning that Tirek might have discovered something interesting, their foe was weak to two of the four elements that happened to exist in this world and it gave him multiple spells that he could use against Gundyr.

One thing they had to be worried about was the powerful swings that came from when he used his halberd against either them or the surrounding area, especially since when he used the latter he pulled his weapon free and the pieces of rock rushed outwards like projectiles so he could hit whoever he was targeting, and there was the fact that their foe could slam the base of his weapon into the ground near his armored feet, something that created a small shockwave of sorts to knock back whoever was near him and open their defenses so he could swing at them. Gundyr even seemed to enrage after some time, or at least that was what Tirek assumed when he noticed the sinister red glow that suddenly appeared in the warrior's eyes, which was the moment that Martok switched to attacking their foe once whenever he dodged an attack, as it seemed like Gundry lashed out with a kick whenever he did that attack and both Tirek and Sarana followed his lead when it was their turn to engage their foe, because he was a dangerous opponent and they needed to be careful, due to the fact that Tirek almost believed that they were fighting the version of Gundyr that was in his prime, instead of what he and Sarana had faced in the past. As they did that, however, Tirek made sure to apply as much pressure as he could with his magic, switching from blasting Gundyr with his Ice Burst and Ice Hail, so he could slow their foe down and open a few holes in his defenses, and hurling Bolts of Lightning and Lightning Spears at his back whenever Gundyr turned to swing at either of his companions, something that worked to their benefit and was incorporated into their pattern without delay, as it would allow them to turn the tide against their foe. Gundyr staggered for a moment while the barrage of attacks hit him, even though it didn't appear like he was actually taking all that much damage, and continued to lash out at whoever was the closest to him, but Tirek quickly noticed that they were actually turning things in their favor as he blasted their foe right in the back and allowed his companions to lash out at him without wasting time, cutting into his arms and legs while also aiming a few swings at his chest, to maximize the damage they were dealing to him, before their foe collapsed before their eyes and broke apart, the energy transforming into a soul of power.

With Gundyr defeated Tirek, Sarana, and Martok watched as a bonfire appeared nearby and they lit it, allowing them to rest for a few seconds and regain any energy they had spent on the fight, even though Martok walked over to an area that was near the entrance of this area and returned to where Tirek was sitting, revealing what appeared to be a spear of some kind, a glaive to be exact, something that they added to their pack before facing the door that Gundyr had been in the middle of guarding, because Tirek was interested in what was on the other side of it. While they walked over to the large metallic door that would take them to the darkened Shrine, and Martok pressed his hands against the door, Sarana informed him that the glaive was a weapon of the Black Knights, an ancient group of warriors that wandered the land and fought demons, something that was interesting given the fact that they had seen what was potentially the last demon in the depths of Smoldering Lake, but that was the moment Martok opened the door and they stepped through it, finding a path that would take them straight to the Shrine that was their destination, an identical one to what they had seen when they walked up to their main base of operations. As they stepped through the opening Martok had created, however, that was the moment that Tirek spotted a knight in black armor, one that reminded him of the one they had seen in the same area he had seen the last demon in, like a blackened version of the knights that guarded Anor Londo, though while the one that was in front of them had a shield and an axe while a second one, who was closer to the entrance of the Shrine, had a greatsword in place of the axe, but Tirek was sure that there were one or two more knights guarding the area that they were investigating. Based on what he had seen of the silver knights, who had been rather powerful in their own right despite the fact that they had dominated them, it was easy to tell that these knights would be a pain if they started to fight him and his companions, even though he knew his magic would wipe them out if he decided to do so, though that was the moment he weaved his magic through the air and tried something he hadn't attempted yet, where he shielded them from the foes' sight and they seemed to vanish, as this was an Invisibility spell, one that hid them from the knights so they could walk forward without getting into a fight.

Of course they had to be careful, as the knights did stop when they heard Martok walking due to the heavy nature of the armor he was wearing, though that fact was perfect for Tirek and Sarana to slip into the area that the entrance was in and waited for Martok to join them, and once he managed to make it passed the knights, how Tirek would be questioning for some time, the group walked down the steps and discovered that this Shrine was truly a darker version of the one they were used to, which made sense given what they had seen outside the building, before they noticed that no one was here, as in Ludleth, the crestfallen knight, and everyone else seemed to be gone... until they walked down to where the bonfire had been in the main Shrine and found that one person was here, the Handmaiden that sat in the chair.

"Well, would you look at that deary, a group of lost lambs have wandered into this shrine, without a peep or sound from the bell." the Handmaiden commented, where Tirek was sure that the 'deary' part of her comment was her talking to herself and not to one of them, which was perfectly fine since there was no telling how long she had been sitting here with no one to talk to, so it was possible that she had gone mental at some point, before she tilted her head as she sighed for a few seconds, "Well, you should know of my purpose, if you've come here without the bell sounding at all. What can this old handmaid provide the three of you with?"

"I require nothing, though my companions might say otherwise," Tirek replied, because he really had no desire to talk to the Handmaiden, while at the same time it was possible that Sarana and Martok might check out what she had, just to see if there was anything they might need for the future, though that was followed by him glancing at the area they were in as he kept his eye open for anything that might be useful, where the first thing he did was head for the area that the bonfire was located in, or at least in the main Shrine anyway.

Tirek really didn't find anything near the center of the darkened Shrine, save for a fragment of the coiled sword that he and Sarana had pulled out of Iudex Gundyr's chest when they entered the area he was guarding, though as he checked it out he came to the conclusion that the blade had a bit of power to it, something that seemed similar to the homeward bones he and the others had picked up over the course of their quest, meaning it likely had the same function and would return whoever used it to the last bonfire they had used, which was irrelevant thanks to his Space Stone. Even so he made sure to slip it inside his pack, since he knew his companions, or at least Sarana, would want to take some stock of what the three of them found in this darkened Shrine, even if he was sure there wasn't a lot in this place, though once he did that Tirek continued to explore the rest of the structure as both of his companions finished speaking with the Handmaiden, as he could see Martok heading for the area the blacksmith was usually in and Sarana seemed to head for the empty thrones for some odd reason. As Tirek carefully explored the lower area of the Shrine, where all of individuals they had recruited were resting in the main Shrine, he noticed that there was no one else in this version of the Shrine, and what he found was that there was no one in Yuria's part of the Shrine, before he considered what might be on the other side of the area and walked over to where the blind girl rested, where he paused when he spotted what appeared to be a wall that stood in his way, which he knew wasn't in the main Shrine. In that moment he raised his hand and smashed the illusory wall that was in front of him, revealing the area that the blind girl rested in, when he thought about his version of the Shrine, though in this darkened version of the world it appeared someone else called this area home, as it seemed like the Fire Keeper had been sealed away in this area, like their final resting place or something, before he noticed that her eyes had been ripped out of her head and had been stored in a small container of sorts, though there was a bit of power resting around them, almost like the Fire Keeper soul he had given their own Fire Keeper some time ago.

In that moment a thought came to his mind as he collected the eyes that were in front of him, making sure to pocket them in seconds, before he turned around and headed back to the main part of the Shrine so he could regroup with them and see if they found anything useful, which was unlikely, though it was easy to find them standing near the entrance of this Shrine and they informed him that they had acquired nothing of interest, so he reapplied the Invisibility spell and they walked back to where Champion Gundyr, as Tirek was going to call this version of Gundyr, had been resting, so they could teleport themselves back to the main Shrine.

"So, I take it you're ready to invade the castle?" Sarana inquired, speaking when they returned to the Shrine, as there was a reason Tirek had come to this place, instead of heading back to the area the Dancer had been in, and she was a little interested in seeing what that something was, especially since it seemed like there was a reason for everything Tirek did, or at least that was how it looked to her, while at the same time Martok said nothing as they returned to the Shrine and started to walk away from the bonfire, simply waiting for Tirek to tell them what was going on.

"Not yet, as there are a few things I must do first," Tirek stated, though in that moment he stopped by the Fire Keeper for a few seconds and withdrew the container he had found inside the darkened version of the Shrine, which caused both of his companions to pause for a few seconds, as they had no idea that he even had them in the first place, though as he did that he turned towards the Fire Keeper and held his hand out for a moment, "Fire Keeper, I have something for you, to help you fulfill your duty."

"Ashen One... no, Lord Tirek... are these... eyes?!" the Fire Keeper inquired, showing that, even though she seemed to be blind in some manner, that she was able to see and understand what was around her and inside those that stood right in front of her, the latter being how she tapped into one's power to turn the collected souls into power, before she bowed her head for a moment, as if she was grateful for what she had been handed, especially since she took the container from him without delay, "You honor me, my Lord, for giving me the very things that we Fire Keepers lose when we take up our role as an aide to the Unkindled of our world... however, as I hold onto their container, I must tell you that it is forbidden for a Fire Keeper to have eyes in the first place, and that these eyes reveal to me, through a silver of light, images of this world being plunged into darkness, creating a world without light, brought on by one's betrayal... is... is this the world that you want to create?"

"No, I do not wish to create such a world," Tirek replied, though while it was interesting to see that the Fire Keeper had seen a vision of the world they had just been in, or at least that was what it sounded like, he wasn't interested in creating such a place and held a hand up to stop her from saying anything else for a few moments, due to the fact that it was very possible that she would have asked him to kill her, as he needed to say something before he moved onto the next thing he had come to do, "The reason I have given you those eyes isn't for the vision they would show you, rather its more due to the fact that when I gave you the soul of the other Fire Keeper, after we killed the Abyss Watchers and before we even started our trek through the Catacombs of Carthus, your power was doubled, if not tripled, from absorbing the soul we had found at the top of this Shrine's tower, so I figured that if you took in the part of another Fire Keeper, and took in the soul as well, your power would be boosted to new heights in the process."

"Why go through the effort to do that?" Sarana asked, because she really wasn't seeing the point of Tirek boosting the power of the Fire Keeper to such heights, mostly due to the fact that the lady in question didn't fight and would certainly die if she stepped into the field of battle with the three of them, so she was hoping her new Lord had a good reason for wanting to waste time on someone like the Fire Keeper, in the sense of empowering them and not using the lost souls the three of them had collected to empower themselves for whatever the future had in store for them.

"Because of these," Tirek remarked, where he held his hand out for a moment and the pouch containing the Stones he had created earlier opened, allowing the blue and green gems to float out into the area that was above his palm as the Fire Keeper, despite her blindness since she hadn't actually put the eyes into the empty slots that her eyes had been in, as the eyes were considered the windows to one's soul based on who was asked, before he focused on what he had to say to both Sarana and the Fire Keeper, "I made these two Stones, a Space Stone and a Time Stone, from the powerful souls of two of our enemies, who shall not be named, and I have the suspicion that I might be able to make another one from yet another powerful soul, one that can manipulate the souls of this world..."

"I see... my Lord, you wish to turn my power into a weapon to use against your enemies," the Fire Keeper said, where her tone showed them that she understood what he was saying, or rather what he was implying with the words that he had said, before she raised her empty hand and removed the silver visor that was resting over the upper part of her face, where she dropped the visor and turned around for a few seconds as she fiddled with the eyes, something that caused the group to wait for a few moments, since they were curious as to what she was doing, before she turned around and faced them, allowing them to see that she had slipped the eyes into her empty sockets and could see now, "Very well, allow me to offer my empowered soul and my services to your quest, my Lord, if that is what you truly desire."

Tirek was slightly taken aback by what he was hearing, mostly due to the fact that he was expecting the Fire Keeper to be stubborn and hold her ground against what he had been suggesting, but before she got cold feet, since he was thinking that was the version of the saying in this world, Tirek weaved his magic through the air and made sure that it wrapped all over the area that the Fire Keeper was standing in, who closed her eyes as he did that, showing that she was letting him do what he had planned on doing from the moment he returned with the 'forbidden' eyes, before the Fire Keeper was quickly engulfed in a blinding light and when that faded the three of them found an orange gemstone resting in her place, which was the same size as the other two he had. With the Soul Stone complete, as that was the name he was going to give it, Tirek held a hand out and it floated over to the other to the top of his palm, where the other two rested, though instead of putting them inside his pouch, like he did after they were completed and tested, Tirek walked down the nearby stairs and headed over to the area that Yuria was standing in, as there was something he needed to retrieve from her, before he went over to the blacksmith and asked him something. Sarana and Martok followed after him, as they were curious as to what he was doing and why he needed more than two powerful Stones, though neither of them were remotely saddened by the sudden loss of the Fire Keeper, as at this point they knew that nothing really stood a chance against them or Tirek's power, especially the latter, and they weren't the only ones that felt that way, as none of the other residents of the Shrine seemed bothered by her disappearance, before they came to a stop as they found the area that Yuria was standing in, no doubt meaning there was something that Tirek needed to tell her or ask her before they moved forward and headed back to the castle that the Twin Princes were hiding in.

"My Lord, I was not expecting you to return so quickly," Yuria said, making sure to do her usual bow while she spoke, even though when she raised her head she noticed the three Stones that were floating above Tirek's hand and that was when she tilted her head for a moment, just small enough that both Tirek and Sarana noticed it, but they said nothing as they waited for her to speak, even though the latter had no idea why they were even here at the moment and would no doubt learn what that something was in the next couple of seconds, "What can I assist you with at this time?"

"I need Orbeck's ashes," Tirek stated, though as he said that he raised his other hand and their shared pack opened a few seconds later, where Sarana and Martok watched as all the crestfallen souls emerged from the pack and floated in the air around him for a few seconds, even though he was focused on what he was doing, talking to Yuria, and less on what his companions were thinking about at the moment, "After discovering the power of two of these powerful Stones, and I have a few ideas as to what the third can do, I thought about what other Stones I could create and realized that Orbeck, despite his desire to become the Lord of Hollows and usurp my position, had a rather intelligent mind and, if I combine his soul with these souls, who belonged to powerful warriors or fallen Unkindled, I can create another powerful Stone that will let me smash my way through the guardians of the castle."

Yuria stood still for a moment, apparently thinking about what she had just learned, before she nodded her head and pulled out the container that she had put Orbeck's ashes in when Tirek gave them to her earlier, which was when he took the ashes and walked out to a larger area for what he was going to do, the area that the bonfire was resting in, though as soon as he reached the area in question he tossed the container into the air and grasped the Time Stone as he activated its power, where the ashes swirled around each other as they reformed the individual in question. Yuria, who had followed him and the others up to the area that he had picked out for this motion, was likely surprised by what was going on and so was Orbeck, who had just enough time to glance down at himself before Tirek grasped him with his magic and suspended him in the air as the Time Stone died down, but that was the moment that his new Soul Stone glowed as he grasped his target's soul and the crestfallen souls that were floating around him. It was in that moment that Orbeck's soul glowed just as bright as the Fire Keeper had done when Tirek transformed her into the new Stone, where his life ended as his form was broken down into a brand new Stone and the crestfallen souls rushed forward to lend it their power, where he was merging many souls into one, just like he had done in the past, and when the light cleared there was a yellow gemstone in the place where Orbeck had been floating a few seconds ago, a brand new Mind Stone, something he would test once he and the others left this place. With that done Tirek let it float over to where the other three were floating, causing a smile to appear on his face in the process, but before he said anything he walked over to where Andre, the blacksmith, worked, because based on what he knew the blacksmith was rather skilled and that he was the only one that might have the skills to do what he was thinking, something that would allow him to truly channel the power of these Stones without having to use his magic to activate their power.

"Ah, Lord Tirek, I was wondering when you would come and talk to me," Andre commented, where he stopped what he was doing, which had been hammering a weapon back into shape even though he didn't have an actual workshop to work with, something that could be fixed based on what Tirek and his companions had seen over the course of their quest for the Lords of Cinder, and glanced at the area that he was standing in, even though he did look at the Stones that were floating near the one he was focusing on, "so, what can I do for you?"

"I was wondering if you could forge a special pair of gauntlets for me, one to contain and use six Stones of Power in combat, while the other is just to make a matching set," Tirek replied, something that caused his companions to tilt their heads for a moment as they listened to what he had to say on the matter, since everything he was saying was new to them and they were interested in what else he might have to say, where he shifted his hand and caused the four Stones to float over to where Andre was sitting at the moment, "the blue one contains the power of Space, the green controls Time, the orange one manipulates Souls, and the yellow one is supposed to manipulate the Mind. I would like the left gauntlet to be the one to wield the full power of these four Stones and two more that I'm thinking of making in the near future, as in a Power Stone and a Reality Stone... can you make such a weapon?"

"Hm... maybe, but not with any of the metal that I have access to," Andre stated, where he took a moment to study the four Stones that were in front of him and listened to what Tirek had to say about the powers they commanded, which was when he glanced at his own forge for a moment and realized that it wasn't large enough for what Tirek had in mind, as it was only an anvil and not much else, before he returned his gaze towards the being that was standing near him, "to make such a weapon we would need the metal of the gods, the metal that was used to create some of the strongest weapons in our world, and from what I know there are only rumors of where one can be found, in someplace known as Archdragon Peak, in the hands of a warrior called the Nameless King... and to work it I would need to take some things from the castle, to replace this workspace with a more appropriate workspace."

"Good, then go do so," Tirek said, where he pocketed the Stones that were in the air and sealed the pouch, before he turned towards his companions and Yuria, who seemed interested in what he had to say next, especially since they had no idea what he was planning this time around, even though he was focused on the bonfire and the area he had seen when he used the Space Stone to take him, Sarana, and Martok to a new place, "We'll be back as soon as we have what you need to make my gauntlets."

Tirek had no idea that the temple area they had found was Archdragon Peak, though he knew it was the area that the blacksmith was talking about because it was the only place in this world that had a number of dragons flying around it, not counting the part of Lothric that a few of them had been resting in, though as he thought about that he headed for the bonfire and readied himself, as he was sure that he, Sarana, and Martok would have to fight some skilled enemies so they could find the one he was looking for, before they resumed their main quest.