In the beginning, there was nothing. The world was empty and formless.

For eons, man as we know him did not exist, and the world was ruled by the Everlasting Dragons. The scales on their hides provided them with immortality, and save for the giant ashen Arch Trees that served as their homes, the land was nothing but a gray and desolate wasteland.

... then, seemingly out of nowhere, the First Flame burst forth.

This fire created light and dark — and out of this darkness crept humanity. Thanks to the power of the First Flame, mankind was granted souls and began to evolve. Four extremely powerful souls, known as the Lord Souls, came forth and granted their bearers extreme, godlike power: Gwyn became the Lord of Sunlight, Nito was the First of the Dead, the Witches of Chaos were formed ... and finally, the Furtive Pygmy took its Dark Soul and withdrew into the Abyss.

With the power of the Lord Souls, Gwyn and his followers sought to overthrow the Dragons. With the help of Seath, a scaleless, mortal dragon, Gwyn learned of the Ancients' secret to immortality. With the power of light at his side, Gwyn used his lightning to strip the Dragons of their scales — once weakened, Nito's plagues and the Witches' firestorm eradicated the last of the Everlasting Dragons.

The Age of Fire had begun — unfortunately, it was not meant to last. The First Flame was beginning to die out, and those who had usurped the Everlasting Dragons began to search for a way to keep it burning — though not all were willing to help. Nito returned to his tomb to watch over his Gravelord servants and their work, while Seath abandoned the group to seal himself away in his Archives.

The Witch of Izalith, her daughters, and the rest of the Witches of Chaos desperately tried to recreate the First Flame — unfortunately, their twisted experiment went terribly wrong. The Witch of Izalith and her children were twisted into demons, and their kind spilled onto the world above. Seemingly out of options, Gwyn sacrificed himself to the First Flame, linking it to his soul to keep the fire burning.

Even so, the First Flame weakened, and mankind turned Undead — those afflicted with the curse could no longer die, but would eventually lose their minds in a process known as "Hollowing." Despite this, legends told of a Chosen Undead, who would succeed Lord Gwyn and keep the First Flame alive.

This Chosen Undead would begin their journey in the Undead Asylum. Aided by a doomed knight, the Chosen Undead escaped to the Firelink Shrine and learned of the Bells of Awakening. These bells were said to reveal an ancient being and the path forward towards Gwyn — and after slaying both the Belltower Gargoyles and Chaos Witch Quelaag, the Chosen Undead rung the Bells.

Upon returning to Firelink Shrine, the Chosen Undead discovered Kingseer Frampt, one of the few remaining Ancient Serpents. He informed the Chosen Undead of their true quest: to collect the remaining shards of the Lord Soul and succeed Gwyn. After retrieving the Lordvessel and slaying Nito, Seath, the Witches of Izalith (now living as the Bed of Chaos) and the Four Kings, the Chosen Undead opened the door to the Kiln of the First Flame.

Gwyn, now nothing but a hollow shell of his former self, confronts the Chosen Undead. After a brief, yet hard-fought battle, the former Lord of Sunlight falls.

From here, it is up to the player to choose the fate of Lordran: linking the First Flame starts the whole process over, and the Age of Fire continues. If the Chosen Undead decides to leave without linking the fire, the Age of Fire comes to an end ... and the Age of Darkness begins.

Despite the players' choice at the end of the first game, Dark Souls II assumes that the Chosen Undead linked the First Flame and the Age of Fire continued on for centuries. Countless kingdoms rose and fell, but one managed to stand above all else: Drangleic. Vendrick, a seemingly ordinary man, built his kingdom on the souls of four Great Ones — and, with his brother Aldia at his side, Vendrick ushered in an age of prosperity.

As Drangleic continued to grow, Vendrick was approached by a young woman named Nashandra. She warned him of a looming threat, one that could destroy his kingdom: a continent of Giants sat on the other side of a great sea. In an attempt to counter the threat before Drangleic suffered, Vendrick gathered his army and attacked the land of the Giants — once victorious, Vendrick returned home and made Nashandra his bride.

Unbeknownst to most, Vendrick returned from the Giants' kingdom with a mysterious object, one that granted him the ability to fuse souls in an empty body. Golems were born, and Drangleic entered an age of peace like none before it.

This peace came at a price, however: the Giants, having recovered from Vendrick's attacks, declared war on Drangleic. For generations, man and Giant were locked in a bitter struggle. While the Giants were eventually defeated, Vendrick's kingdom had been destroyed in the process.

With the destruction of Drangleic, the First Flame began to fade once more. However, unlike Gwyn and the Chosen Undead, Vendrick refused to sacrifice himself — instead, he would find a way to keep the fire from ever burning out again. Sadly, it was all for naught.

When Vendrick reached his wit's end, Nashandra revealed her true self: she was no human, but instead a shard of the Abyss. She coveted the First Flame above all else, and Vendrick was her key to ensuring it would never go out. Infuriated and horrified, Vendrick refused to be Nashandra's plaything: he sealed the First Flame away in a chamber called the Throne of Want, then locked himself away in an ancient crypt.

Nashandra had been stalled, but not defeated: she continued to reside in Drangleic Castle, waiting for the Undead, who could fight their way to Vendrick and unseal the First Flame.

Years passed, and the Undead Curse swept over the land. In a desperate attempt to find a cure, an Undead known as the "Bearer of the Curse" risked the trip to Drangleic. Upon arriving, the Bearer is tasked with gathering four Great Souls — only they are powerful enough to break the seal surrounding Vendrick's castle.

The Old Iron King, the Lost Sinner, the Rotten and the Duke's Dear Freya all fell to the Bearer's blade, and the path to Drangleic Castle opened. As Nashandra watched over them, the Bearer discovered what was left of King Vendrick — a hulking, mindless Hollow. However, while Vendrick may not have offered any answers, his ring did — and it pointed the Bearer toward an ancient castle known as the Dragon Aerie.

The ruler of the Aerie, the Ancient Dragon, provided the Bearer with a unique tool: the Ashen Mist Heart. With it, the Bearer traveled into the memories of those who had fallen long ago — and in the memory of the final battle between the Giants and mankind, the Bearer found the key to the Throne of Want. However, after fighting their way back through Castle Drangleic, the Bearer found someone waiting for them.

The Queen of Drangleic had always assumed that, as soon as she had found a way past Vendrick's defenses, the Throne of Want would be hers.

She was wrong.

The battle between Nashandra and the Bearer of the Curse was vicious, but ultimately, it was the Undead human that stood victorious. Like hundreds of years prior, they were given a choice: either re-link the First Flame and ensure that the Age of Fire would continue, or step away from the throne in search of a more permanent solution.

In the end, no one knows exactly what happened after the Bearer defeated Nashandra. Given just how devastated the world appears to be in Dark Souls III, it's entirely possible that the Bearer chose to follow in Vendrick's footsteps ... but until the game's sequel launches, there's no way of knowing for sure.

Thankfully, the wait won't last much longer: Dark Souls III is scheduled to launch on March 26.