NVega

Dark Souls II is a game about cycles. The fire fades, the curse strengthens and the kingdom dies. We find ourselves thrust into the heart of this series of events. Shanalotte, child of the dragons was brought into this world for one reason: To put and end to the curse. However, the dragons failed. Shanalotte was not able to cure the curse, but due to her nature she persevered so. We find her, or at least an illusory incarnation of her, in Majula. Her goal now is to guide undead towards the king in hopes that the throne is reclaimed and the fire is linked. Once this happens souls will flourish anew and the curse will fade once again, marking the beginning of a new cycle in the Age of Fire.

However, where there is light there must be dark. Manus, Father of the Abyss was vanquished by the chosen undead long in the past. But a being this powerful never truly dies. Fragments of Manus coalesced into physical form creating multiple manifestations of the Father. Our primary antagonist, Nashandra, is one such piece. If the cursed one reclaims the throne and links the fire, then the dark will once again fade back into the recesses from whence it came, at least for a time. Nashandra wishes to bring about the Age of Dark, true to her origin.

To fulfill this quest the cursed one must slay the four great ones and collect their souls. The Lordvessel, once containing four of the most powerful souls in existence, is left shattered in the manor basement. The original names of these souls are unutterable, The Dead One, The King, The Witch, The Paledrake. These souls are so powerful that they even distort space and time around them. Over the eons the power radiating from these souls has razed the earth. The kingdom once known as Lordran collapsed and on its hallowed ground was built another, and another. Until finally the lost kingdom of Olaphis fell and gave way to the rise of Drangleic. Each time kindling the fire, and each time it fading and the curse strengthening. Over time the four greatest souls in existence warped the land and formed it as it is, just as they did to the unformed land when the Ancient Ones fell.