The Ashen Keeper

Chapter 143

She walked out the door still holding that blood-stained scythe. Normally, she would have cleaned it but right now, she was in no mood to do so. She felt like a puppet following the flow of fate. It felt great since all she had to do was kill whoever pops up.

Outside, she saw lady Maria. She was not standing but sitting on the ground with her legs crossed. Her face still showed no emotions. It was a look that suited her far more well than one would expected.

She wasn't standing out sitting on a throne but she was down to the earth straight up sitting on the ground. Her eyes were at a small being in her hands. It was Morris. Though, no emotions can be seen, her hands were more honest.

She kept teasing the small beast and tickled him in various positions. Morris was obviously happy with that squirming around in her hands. She would occasionally stop moving around her hands to brush her hands that are covered with gloves over his fur gently.

She looked up into her eyes as she must have smelled the blood. If she was surprised or felt any other emotion, he did not show it at all. She just stared at her for a while before standing back up without letting Morris out of her hands at all.

"Follow me, Ms. Keeper. I shall show you your next trial to win back the non-physical realm.", she turned around as she waved her hands.

A veil of mist similar to the one she just went in appeared. She did not even had to walk far. Her next trial was right in front of her to proceed. But, she did not just walked in. While that was what she would like to do, it was foolish to do so without preparations.

"You must keep in mind, Ms. Keeper that fighting physical beings would not help in trying recover the immaterium. Realm of the non-physical and the unknown. What lies beyond is not just killing beings that cross thy path."

"Then, what should thou have me do in this trial? I'm afraid I'm having a hard time understanding what I will be doing in this trial."

"No body knows what the Great Ones desire. Not you, not me and in some cases, not even they are aware of what they want. I present to you the truth and only the truth. I do not hold knowledge of what lies beyond this veil of mist. Only that it is your trial."

It would be unwise to proceed without know what lies beyond this but it would be ridiculous to not go in due to the fear of death in the first place. Everybody wants to live a long and happy life with no struggles but such things is near impossible.

He who possesses a long and life with little struggle can be said to possess one of the rarest treasures of life. If she had wished for a long life, she should have kept herself hidden away in the first place.

She remembered joining the avengers to repay her debts to Fury and she had no more obligations to do so anymore. She had kept taking the initiative out of her own will or due to the circumstances.

Why risk herself in an unsure battle. She did not even know if there would be a battle inside the grey veil of mist. It was for the sake of survival that her way changes. She has been shaped by the tiny coincidences and the encounters since birth to make the way she is currently.

Flames rise around her as it burned away all the dregs and repaired her clothes that were damaged in battles. Blood evaporated as her hidden injuries healed back. She did not know what lies beyond the mist but it is inevitable to go in after all. A little preparation could not hurt.

Holding the scythe over her shoulders she walked in with her guard raised to the maximum. She came face to face with room with nothing but a bed. The bed was nothing special and the room had neither doors nor windows.

Both the floor and walls appeared to be made of concrete. They were in a grey dull colour. She touched one of the walls to check things further out. She could feel the wall. She could touch it. She knocked at it to be responded with the sound anyone would expected to her when knocking a wall. There was nothing special.

The room was dark but it was still lit with an unknown light source. She checked the bed to see that it was nothing special either. The floors, the ceilings, nothing was out of place. It was just a room. What is she supposed to do here?

She put the scythe in her hands as she slowly dragged it along the wall. It left scratches but they all disappeared after a while as if nothing had ever happened. And then it hit her, that the bed was there for a reason.

A bed serve one purpose currently and that was to sleep. She gets it now. A physical bout to win back the physical realm and to win back the realm of dreams and nightmares, she must first sleep. After all, while daydreaming is a thing, only a real sleep would produce an actual dream or nightmare.

She tried to make herself relax. She did not think that this was the only way to get to Yharnam but currently there was very little she can do. Teleportation was blocked. She could probably destroy the room outright but she had huge doubts on whether it would do anything.

It would be the first time she had slept in a long time. She absorbed the scythe back into her soul to keep it there. She was already clean before coming here. It would be a lie if she said she wouldn't want to rest for a bit.

The tension she had was released as there was currently nothing to threaten to her. Holding the blanket up, she slipped under covers and closed her eyes. She slept there right away to traverse the land of dreams and nightmares.

She opened her eyes to find that her body was unfamiliar to her. She had possess another body. She had no idea whose it is but it appears she was still a woman with long blond hair. She was wearing unfamiliar clothes. No, it was normal clothes just as one would expect from an average civilian.

She was sitting on a chair and in front of her was a meat pie. She could not tell what meat it was for the time being. She was also inside a house with rundown walls and cracks. She was observing this unfamiliar surrounding when she heard a door open.

From there came footsteps. They were light as if they were children. She turned her head around to see two small boys. They looked unfamiliar to her. They were wearing clothes that resembled to those in the 18th century during the industrial era on Earth.

The blond boy had an unruly look on his face ready to lash out while the boy with black hair had a calm face resembling a mature man. But she could see some similarities between them. Both physical features and the look in their eyes. They were concerned for her somehow.

"Mother?", the boy with the black hair called out.

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This is Chapter 143.

Sorry for the long delay. I had a writer's block but I know what to do now.

Tell me what you think about this chapter.