Ever since they came to this accursed town, it was one nightmare after another, never ending in its horrors. Connor pulled the thinner version of the Holy Blade from the beast that had once been a resident of this diseased and cursed city. Reaching up with one hand he pulled the cloth that covered his lower face down so he could get a decent breath. However, the unfiltered air reeked of rotting flesh and despair, he was beginning to lose hope that this cursed town would ever return to its former glory. Not that he'd seen it before everything had went down. All the evidence he found pointed to some mystical source, otherworldly and yet he wasn't certain the secrets the church kept from them. What could turn people into such monstrosities. What exactly was in this cure all blood?
"If you keep losing yourself in your head, Connor, something might sneak up and get you." Collin's gloved hands grabbed at his shoulders, giving him a playful shake, rousing him from his thoughts. Connor shook his head, taking out a rag from his long coat's pocket to wipe his blade clean of the rotting blood. He had woke up on a table beside Collin, with no real memories of a previous life. When they had stumbled out of the exam room they had been assaulted by a creature they had never seen before, either due to memory loss or the vague knowledge that something wasn't right. Together they slayed the beast and had become inseparable ever since. It was a good thing too, in this hellish realm, help was hard to come by and danger lurked around every corner.
"Why else would I keep you around Collin if not to watch my back?" Connor retorted as he sheathed his blade across his back once more. Collin was in the same hunter garb as he, making them almost identical, their dark attire and tattered hats making them look almost like wraiths in the night. They might as well be, they worked together in near silence, traversing the streets in some vain attempt to cleanse this town of all the vile creatures that inhabited it. It had taken some time, but he soon realized that these were no beasts that had crawled out from the unknown depths of horror stories, but they had indeed once been townsfolk, losing their minds to the old blood and disease. If it had only been crazed townsfolk and transformed beasts of medium size though, it maybe wouldn't be so difficult.
Connor walked up the crumbling steps before him, the architecture had once been grand but now lay in ruin. He'd been up these steps time and time before to face the beast that lay inside. He didn't know how or why, but he was not allowed to escape this nightmare as every time he died, he would return and he kept the memories of each death, no matter how brutal or painful they were. Collin seemed to be able to appear like it didn't bother him, but Connor knew better, he could see the fear every time they woke up in the graveyard, gasping for air as f taking a breath for the first time. It was taking a toll on them, both tried to be steady and strong for the other while the suffered in silence. What else was there to do? They had tried to find a way to escape but the only way out was a destroyed bridge over a bottomless ravine.
Connor looked up at the great doors that lead inside where the great white beast lay inside, waiting for them. However, this time there was a hunched figure, it didn't seem like the usual townsfolk, not with that blade in his hand. It was far too well crafted to be something a simple townsperson would have. It could only mean another hunter, they hadn't run across another hunter yet, only heard stories on them from the ill, still sane but dying remnants of the townsfolk. Connor took a few quick steps up the stairs, it appeared the man was injured, had he gone to face the beast inside alone? A dangerous feat seeing how Connor and Collin had yet to defeat it even with their combined power.
"Greetings, are you a fellow hunter?" Connor called out, not getting too close, trust had been something he didn't hand out too freely these days, not when he watched seemingly weak humans morph into ravenous beasts before his very eyes.The other hunter went into a coughing fit, making Connor quickly step back, Collin seemed to stay one step behind Connor, moving back as well. Already Collin had his hands reaching for the beastclaw weapon at his side, far less trusting than Connor. Connor didn't want to have to fight a hunter, he thought by some miracle that hunters would be immune to the change. Collin seemed to play a even balance with his partial transformations and returning back to normal once the fight was done. The hunter before them slowly straightened up, looking over at them and Connor could see the madness in his eyes.
Before Connor could even pull out his blade, the other hunter lunged down upon him, withdrawing his blade in the desire to cut Connor in twain. Collin was faster though, shoving Connor to the side as the beast claw was already in hand, his arms rippling with corrupted beastly power, fur sprouting out from the busted seams of his long coat. Sparks flew in the dimness of the eternal night as the blade scraped harmlessly off the skeletal remains that created Collin's weapon. By then, Connor had already drawn the smaller blade from its larger sheath. The sheath in itself could be used as a larger sword, but he reserved that for larger beasts or slower moving targets. The hunter before them was quick, needing the smaller, single handed blade. The terrain they were fighting on wasn't the best either, the deteriorating steps that threatened to crumble beneath their soft leather boots, uneven and difficult to gain balance on. However, the two worked with practiced skill even with such odds against them.
Connor and Collin began to fight back, Collin with brutal and quick slashes that would leave grievous wounds with no real precision while Connor slices and stabbed with more precise movements, their tactics were to bleed their opponent to a weakened state. However, even with the both of them and their well timed execution, the other hunter seemed to be handling both of them at the same time with ease, speaking volumes of his expertise and experience. The other hunter even managed to land a few strikes of his own on the pair, but it didn't deter them. In this world it was fight with everything they had, even to their last breath because mercy didn't exist here, only death. Connor took a step forward to make a downward slice with his blade, only to find the stone stair beneath his foot crumble beneath his weight, sending him stumbling down the staircase after losing his balance.
With only Collin, the hunter had and advantage, especially with Collin briefly distracted by Connor's disappearance. The stranger kicked out, slamming his foot into Collin's chest sending him over the side railing, Collin crashed into the decayed garden below with a heavy thud. The hunter began to make his way down the steps, dragging his blade across the stone as if he wasn't all there, the only target left in his sights now was Connor who was slowly pushing himself up to his feet. Connor's lifted a hand, swiping the blood from his busted forehead out of his eyes, attempting to clear his vision so he could attack the man coming for him. It was difficult as he wanted to pass out the moment he pushed himself up onto his feet. Even though he knew he'd only come back, Connor didn't want to die, it was painful and each time it wore away at his sanity. However, he couldn't see himself winning this, without Collin at his side against a formidable foe, there wasn't any chance. Fear skittered up like a chill along his spine as he braced himself for another death.
The other hunter seemed to sense Connor's despair and grew more confident in his insanity, bold strides as he raised his blade to impale Connor upon it. Before he could, there was a slight glimmer of steel that Connor barely caught sight of in his light headed state. The man paused, the sword falling from his limp fingers, clattering to the stone at their feet. Soon after, the head rolled forward off his shoulders to land with a soft thud beside the fallen blade. The rest of the body fell to its knees before Connor as if praying for mercy to him, only to be nudged aside by a black leather boot. Connor looked up to see a eerie sight, a man stood before him with a bone white skull of a bird concealing his face. It was the last thing Connor remembered before he himself crumbled to the ground, losing consciousness.
When Connor came too, his head was pounding, a sign that he hadn't died. When he tried to push himself up into a sit, a firm hand pushed him to return to laying on the bed. "Collin?" Connor asked in confusion, the room was dark and it made it impossible to see who was there. A match struck, giving little light before it was held into a oil lantern, the oil soaked cloth flared to life, making the room brighter. He looked up at the figure sitting beside his bed, the facial features were familiar but he was definitely not Collin. Gray eyes stared down at him coolly with a tinge of concern. His attire was near pitch black with a mantle of raven feathers gracing his broad shoulders. Connor frowned, this was a stranger but he didn't seemed maddened like all the rest, while that was a curious thought, Connor had more important questions to ask.
"Where's Collin?" Connor demanded, since the man had insisted he remain laying down, which was for a good reason since Connor felt on the verge of passing out again. The stranger grabbed the lantern and held it up, illuminating the room more to reveal Collin was still passed out on another bed nearby.
"He landed on spikes when he fell, he is lucky to be alive." The low voice easily slipped past those lips, quiet as to not to disturb the sleeping Collin. Connor wanted to get up and check on Collin himself though, they'd been through so much together that it was difficult not to reach out for him. "He will be alright, I've tended to his wounds and now all he needs is just some rest for now." The man reassured, making Connor's eyes turn towards the stranger again, studying him. What motives did he have in saving them? Connor had yet to meet anyone who didn't outright attack them or wanted something from them.
"Who are you? Why did you save us? What do you want?" Connor pressed for direct answers from the mysterious man who had cleanly cut a man's head off with one swing of his blade. Though the crazed hunter had been distracted with Connor, but still, the feat was impressive.
"My name is Conrad, I am a Hunter of Hunters. I make sure to end any hunter that falls from grace, though lately... it has been quite a busy schedule." Conrad frowned a bit, looking down at Connor with tension making his lips turn into a thin line. "I have been following the pair of you for some time, Most hunters do not last as long as you have without falling into the madness. Though, the more I watched the pair of you interact and move in tandem, I must admit I grew a little envious." Conrad admitted, glancing away briefly as if ashamed of having such a feeling. "I would like to offer my assistance to you two, I only ask to be able to remain at your sides."
Connor turned his head away from a moment, his fingers fidgeting with the hem of the blanket covering him, a habit he had whenever he was in thought. His first instinct was to not trust Conrad, mostly because it was hard to trust anyone in this hellish place. However, if he stopped trusting people, stopped trying to help others, would he be any better than the mindless beasts crawling the streets? He'd set out to clean Yharnam, to return it to whatever glory it had been before, to help those in need. Not only that but Conrad had exceptional skill, to be trained to fight and kill hunters who were already highly trained for combat. It would be a valuable asset to have around, their chances of dying would diminish. Finally, Connor turned his attention back on the patiently waiting Hunter, his gaze steady and firm.
"I think it would be wise for us to stick together. By the way, my name is Connor and that's Collin, pleasure to meet you, Conrad." Connor nodded firmly to reaffirm his decision, in this nightmare, he needed more help, needed help to keep himself and Collin safe. Another blade, an experienced one might help them escape this hellscape and return to something more peaceful, though Connor couldn't remember a time that wasn't pure madness.
