126 Abandoned Old Workshop

Third of Umbilical Cord

"A great relic, also known as the Cord of the Eye. Every infant Great One has this precursor to the umbilical cord."

"Every Great One loses its child, and then yearns for a surrogate. The Third Umbilical Cord precipitated the encounter with the pale moon, which beckoned the hunters and conceived the hunter's dream."

Surgit's insight kicked in the moment he inspected the item. He had read about the Great Ones before in some old books. The books generally dealt about ancient myths and legends. That was where Surgit had found his first clues about Yharnam in the first place.

People laughed at his attempt then. Even Surgit doubted himself as he started looking into the matter back then. Now that he had experienced Yharnam in all its magnificent beastly glory, Surgit couldn't help but smile.

On one hand, he had proven all those who mocked him wrong. On the other hand, not only did he get cured, but he also gained strength in the process. This strength presumably came from the blood of a holy medium.

Surgit had heard the story from Alfred before about Yharnam and its relation to the Great Ones. The cooperative hunter told him about how scholars from Byrgenwerth found something in the tombs of the Gods below Yharnam. That discovery alone led to the establishment of the Healing Church.

As to who established the Church, Alfred didn't know. The man only told Surgit what had been passed out to him from his master named Logarius. 'Such an extravagant name for a blood thirsty hunter,' Surgit thought mockingly.

The item Surgit held in his hand was peculiar to say the least.Most people know of the existence of umbilical cords. Unless you are a mother who had just given birth, or just a really curious person, you wouldn't bother remembering what an umbilical cord looks like. (Looking it up on a medical book might turn some people's stomach.)

However what Surgit held in his hand didn't look like a fleshy tube. What Surgit held looked like a fossilized shell. I didn't feel like a fossil though, Surgit could squash the 'umbilical cord' at any moment. On the surface of the object, there were several holes.

Everything about the object Surgit held chilled his bones.'This cord precipitated the pale moon and the existence of the hunter's dream.' Surgit was deep in thought. From his point of view, this meant that the place he was in now was the original.

The description he got from his insight was his only mentor. Surgit decided to treat it as such. Therefore, he took every tidbit of information his insight threw his way as fact. The hunter's dream was an exact replica of the place, even the doll was in there.

However, the dream felt more alive. From the fire crackling inside the workshop's fireplace, to the sweet feminine voice welcoming the hunter home, everything felt peaceful in the dream. 'A dream come true!' The idea came to Surgit like an epiphany. 'But, whose dream is it? Gehrman's? That old geezer didn't even care about that doll, let alone give her life in there. If Gehrman wanted to have his dream come true, then why is he still on that wheelchair? Something doesn't add up here.'

As of late, Surgit found himself deeply immersed in unraveling the mysteries of Yharnam. He felt like a detective, trying to solve a difficult case. This case however contained some dark mysterious power that controlled everything. If the hunter's dream was indeed an imaginary place of peace and freedom, why did he have to hunt dangerous monsters and come back there every time he died? Something terribly evil must have caused all these beasts to plague the city.

What Surgit learned as he grew up was that life doesn't end up as in fantastic books. Good doesn't prevail over evil. Evil doesn't prevail either. It was always a matter of conflict. The winners always proclaimed themselves good while their enemies would be considered evil. Why would a beast kill humans if it weren't for its survival?

From a human's perspective, beasts were bad. From a beast's perspective, a human was necessary food to insure their survival. The conflict between hunters and beasts was the same as the usual conflicts humans have with each other. The only difference was neither seemed to know how to die.

If a hunter dies, he's brought back by the power of the hunter's dream. If a beast dies, it comes back after the hunter dies as well. So if the dream gives hunters a second chance, the same could apply for monsters. So far Surgit was pretty certain that the dream controlled both aspects. 'Unless I don't find something to refute this theory, I think I'm going to think according to this logic.'

Surgit felt trapped in endless death and agony. The only way for him to prevail was to seek Paleblood. Something he still couldn't find any information about. He searched all of the Old Workshop. The only other items he found were a set of clothes identical to what the doll wears and a beautiful hair ornament.

When inspected with his Insight, the item gave off the following information:

"A small, very ordinary hair ornament.

Although it has been lost for quite some time, one can still see signs of the care with which this tasteful ornament was once kept.

Its colour would stand most brilliantly against a head of greyish hair."

'A head of greyish hair? Could it be?' After he made sure that nothing that remained in the workshop was worthy of his attention, Surgit touched the lantern inside the wooden house and teleported. He was back at the same place, but in a different dimension.

"Welcome home good hunter. What is it you desire?" The doll's melodious voice reached his ears. Surgit looked at her and his mind went blank. The resemblance between the two dolls was uncanny. It was as if they were the same thing. One could only twitch one finger, while the other could speak and even manage some extraordinary feats.

Surgit searched in his pocket and took out the hair ornament. Without a word, he just handed it to the doll.The doll looked at the strange item then looked at Surgit. Her porcelain like face didn't show any change in emotions. However, a tear fell down as the doll said:

"What... what is this? I-I can't remember, not a thing, only... I feel... A yearning... something I've never felt before... What's happening to me? Ahh... Tell me hunter, could this be joy? Ahh..."

The whole scene made Surgit feel even more puzzled. He didn't know how to react. The doll was clearly happy to receive the item. On the other hand, nothing apart from the word she said suggested that she was happy. Her voice was as sweet and melodious as always. Her face didn't change, not even a smile appeared on that pale beautiful face.

Surgit could tell that the doll was capable of talking and standing, but he doubted that she could show their emotions at all. 'So that place really is connected to this dream.' Surgit felt like he was given only snippets of information just to irritate him.By now he was sure that even his life was being controlled by some invisible hands.

After all he was part of this reincarnation cycle and nothing he knew of could stop it. It felt like the doll couldn't have forgotten what had made her this happy. For a doll to experience emotion was something exceptional. Surgit doubted that she could easily forget that. She was either faking it or someone must have erased her memory. Surgit's paranoia had reached a whole new level.

He looked at where the tear had fallen and saw that it solidified into an item. He picked it up and inspected it with his insight: tear stone. He pocketed it then looked at the doll. "Tell me dear doll, what do you remember of old hunters that inhabited this dream before?"

***

At the time Francis was about to board the carriage to Cainhurst, another scene occurred in a small wooden house not far from where he was. Gavril was looking at Karla's corpse while scratching his head. He wanted the pendant Francis gave to Karla. On the other hand, the item seemed to have fused with her hands. No matter how hard he pulled, he couldn't get it off her without damaging the gem it contained.

He sighed then placed Karla's body on a wooden chair.The chair was ordinary except from some engravings on its back. The pattern resembled the sigil of the healing church. Gavril sadly contemplated the item in Karla's hand then said: "If I can't use it, then you do," he was looking at Karla's dismembered body.

"This is Yharnam after all, death is a blessing. Don't think I'll give you that after you stole this from me!" Gavril's voice didn't reach Francis as the latter had already left Hemwick towards Cainhurst.

The pendant stone shone. A bright red light emanated from the stone. Soon, the two lions inside the stone started moving. They ran around each other and their speed increased as one chased the other. The circular motion became faster until a golden blur emitted from the stone and it chattered.

A bright golden light covered the house. As the stone shattered, Karla's body disappeared along with the chair. "Bring me back my summons or I will haunt your life forever." Gavril sat in the wooden house and waited.