Near the final end of the Age of Fire, the slave knight called Gael traveled to the Ringed City, seeking the Pygmy Lords to gain their blood. Those that did not leave were enslaved by the Gods, which eventually became reverence, or were buried. While they put on a show of service to Gwyn, they still despised him and the Gods, and subtly defied them in some ways.

Those 'pygmies' that retreated to the Ringed City brought the Dark Soul with them, with the lords of the city separating its original essence and keeping it safe from harm, and putting a spell on Filianore to keep the city immune to the erosion of time. He also gave them his youngest daughter, Filianore, and promised her that he would come for her one day. Most Humans would turn to serve the Gods, while a small group relocated to the Ringed City, gifted to them by the 'Great Lord' Gwyn. But the Humans were betrayed and their contributions unrecorded, and upon them the Gods placed a seal of fire, later coming to be known as the Darksign. When the other Lords took to fighting the Everlasting Dragons, they conscripted the Humans, who forged quasi-living arms and armor in the Abyss. These dark-souled beings risen from the Abyss, called Humans, each bore fragments of the Dark Soul. Using the Dark Soul, the Pygmy created black sprites of darkness called Humanity, who was given to his descendants, who became the humans. While the other three ' Lords' chose larger souls, there was a fourth, a lowly and forgotten being known only the Furtive Pygmy. From the Dark came beings (Hollows) who claimed souls near the First Flame 4 of these became the Lords who claimed the mightiest and most brilliant of souls. Lore Дuring the advent of Fire, the concept of Disparity came into existence, and with it the Dark and the Light. It is discovered that the Dark Soul carries the power necessary to create a painted world, and the painter of the next incarnation uses this 'pigment' to paint a cold dark world on a canvas to escape the current painted world, once two Unkindled (Elfriede & the Ashen One) arrive and ignite the flame that burns its rot away. In terms of passive uses, bearers or close descendants of the true Dark Soul via its Blood - such as the Pygmies - have increased longevity, though it does not seem to truly render mortal bearers immune to age and death. The Darkwraiths used this power to steal Humanity from their victims.

This is the legendary power of the fabled Dark Lord, used to gain humanity from others. The Dark Soul is also linked to the Dark Hand, and by extension, the art of Lifedrain. Chief among these is the Human race, but lesser creatures are said to have also risen from the Dark, such as the White-faced Locust. Most notable of its functions is the power to animate life and raise sentient beings from the Abyss, for the Dark Soul is the only Lord Soul which is intrinsically tied to the Abyss, as well as all other forms of life barring the Everlasting Dragons. Any fragment of the Dark Soul that separates from the original can be fueled by emotions and willpower, and increase its usable power, making it potentially the mightiest of the four Lord Souls. Capabilities Дue to it being a Lord Soul, it could imbue its bearer with the ability to channel different iterations of Disparity, in this case being the power of Dark. One of the Pygmy Lords, last bearers of the true Dark Soul. However, this conflicts with later descriptions. In the introduction to the first Dark Souls, it is depicted as a small, reddish flame like a candle. The Dark Soul, one of the unique Lord Souls, was claimed by the Furtive Pygmy, the ancestor of the Chosen Undead and Humanity.

Dark soul coc s4