Disclaimer: Some dialogue used in this Chapter are not my own, and belong to AreaNet and NCsoft, as part of the Guild Wars Franchise.
Authors Note: Ogden, Vekk and Kyte were not referred to by name during most of this chapter because the story is being told from Gwen's perspective.
Chapter Two: Reunion
Gwen invited the three strangers into the Eye of the North and provided them with refreshments and warmth. They claimed they were from the south. Gwen could only remember her past too well. Haunted memories of her time as a Charr slave came flooding back. The people she had lost, the horrors she had to endure while under their command, it brought back too many emotional feelings.
"Are you alright?" the stranger asked.
"I… yes, I'm fine." Gwen replied, snapping back to reality. The human was clearly no merchant or straggler. He was dressed in magnificent silver armour from head to toe. Gwen recognized the make and style instantly. It was armour of a prestige standing, Elite Templar. Gwen had seen it before, but only on the high ranking Warriors and Officers in Ascalon. Whoever this man was, he was of great importance.
"How long have you guys been here?" the man asked, removing his helmet and revealing his short-cut, messy black hair.
"A year or so now." Gwen replied, sitting down at the table with the three individuals. "We've been carefully planning and carrying out stealth missions and investigations throughout the area. We've also been recruiting new allies to our cause."
"Has anyone tried to siege this place?"
"The Charr did, once." Gwen replied, a small smile appearing at the corner of her lips. "We managed to drive them back all the way to their homeland. We run across the occasional Charr patrol, but they haven't launched a second full scale assault since."
"There are many humans here." The man added, looking around the fortress. There were workers and soldiers everywhere. Blacksmiths forged swords, merchants supplied soldiers with goods and tailors were weaving armour.
"This isn't even half our population." Gwen stated. "Our commander, Captain Langmar, took a large force out with her to the Charr Homelands to strike them at the heart."
"Amazing." The dwarf muttered. "To think there would be such a large human population so far north."
"We came across the Eye of the North by accident," Gwen explained. "We've been guarding the place ever since."
"Who'd be stupid enough to try and take such a fortress from such a well organised army?" the Asura asked quizzically.
"We don't think it's the fortress they want." Gwen replied.
"What do you mean?" the man asked.
Gwen hesitated before answering. "Come with me." She said finally. "There's something you should see."
Gwen led the three individuals to the back of the fortress, where a massive doorway was closed off by a large, thick metal door. Gwen nodded to the two soldiers guarding the doorway and they pushed open the door to reveal a large circular room with various tapestries hanging from the walls. The roof of the room was high and magnificent, like a cathedral.
"We call this the Hall of Monuments." Gwen said.
She brought them into the centre of the room , where a great octagonal pool sat, the water within unmoving and completely still.
"This is what we've truly been guarding." Gwen said, motioning to the pool. The man reached down and looked into the crystal clear water.
"I've seen something like this before." He said. "In a book I read during my time at the Shing Jea Monastery."
"In Cantha?" Ogden asked.
"It's a scrying device of some sort."
"That's right." Gwen confirmed with a nod. "We know it has magical properties but we haven't managed to get it to work at all."
"Let me have a shot." The man said, kneeling forward and placing his hand over the water so that it was just hovering. "Often these things are just a matter of concentration."
"Concentration?" Gwen asked. "If the answer was that simple-"
"When I said concentration I meant deep concentration." The man smiled, looking up. "Luckily the Monks at Shing Jea taught me the art of meditation."
"How will we know if it works?" Gwen wondered. She was becoming more and more suspicious of this human. He seemed to have done a lot of travelling in his time, and his knowledge of the scrying pool definitely startled her, but she had to hide her surprise.
"I'll need a moment." He said. Gwen acknowledged his request and took a few steps back behind him, allowing him to concentrate. The asura and the dwarf followed her and took their positions beside her. Gwen watched closely as the man continued to move his hovering hand over the scrying pool's still waters. Several moments of silence past before something began to happen. The water in the pool began to ripple and an image of some kind began to form between the small waves. Gwen, the asura and the dwarf inched forward to get a better look at the vision.
It was a large, fiery cave of some sort. Gwen was sure that the vision was taking place inside a volcano. Suddenly, something began to rise from the lava inside the volcano. It was a creature that Gwen had never seen before. It's body was insect-like, covered in what appeared to be a hard-stone like carapace. It's body glowed with fire, as though lava was running through its body instead of blood. It shrieked loudly, and Gwen had to cup her ears due to the high-pitched scream that echoed off the golden walls in the Hall. That's when the man closed his hand and drew it back, staggering back on his feet and placing a hand over his eyes. As soon as he had stopped focusing, the vision in the scrying pool had ceased and the waters became still once more.
"What in Balthazar's name was that?" Gwen asked, rushing over to the fallen hero and helping him to his feet.
"A Destroyer." The man replied, panting. "We fought them earlier. They've captured the underground Dwarven and Asuran tunnels."
"Amazing." Gwen said, looking at him with astonishment. "No one else has been able to activate the scrying pool until now."
"Just lucky, I guess." He said, giving Gwen a small smile.
"I guess…" Gwen wondered. There was something about this man that was different from any other Warrior that she had encountered. He seemed… special, and even familiar, now that she had looked into his eyes. Whatever it was though, she would have to wait until later to find out. She quickly changed her chain of thought back to the Destroyers.
"These Destroyers," she began. "they're coming this way?"
"Seems like it." The man replied, gathering his thoughts.
"We have to rally the local populace." The dwarf finally spoke up. "The Norn are the only ones that can help us now."
"We can't do that," the asura butted in. "we have no idea how much of the gate network has been compromised!"
"Exactly!" the dwarf replied. "We're on our own now. The battle starts here, today!"
"What do you suggest?" the man asked the dwarf.
"The Destroyers are coming up from the Depths," the dwarf explained. "we need an army. A big one, right now. Please help me convince the Norn to help us fight this threat."
"The Destroyers are responsible for driving my people to the surface, west of these mountains." The asura said. "We should contact them immediately."
"No." Gwen said firmly, entering the conversation. "The Ebon Vanguard needs your help."
"What?" the man questioned, now looking at Gwen.
"The large strike force led by Captain Langmar I told you about," Gwen explained. "They left for the Charr Homelands weeks ago, I have not heard back from them since and I'm starting to fear the worst."
"Why didn't you tell us this before?" the man asked.
"We just met, I did not know if you could be trusted." Gwen said. "But after the events that have just transpired, I'm willing to take a chance." She moved towards him to look him in the eye. "These are your people we are talking about now. I need your help to find them."
"It's up to you, bookah." The asura said. "Which do we do first?" the man turned and walked a few paces back towards the scrying pool, giving a huge sigh.
"I'm always stuck with the tough decisions." He said.
"Just lucky, I guess." Gwen reiterated. A moments silence passed between them as the obvious leader of the three strangers that had only moments before wandered across the frozen lake to Gwen's doorstep, strolled back and forth, making his decision.
"I've weighed up our choices." He said finally, approaching them. "We will assist Gwen in finding the Ebon Vanguard first. Their lack of word is definitely troubling."
"Thank you." Gwen said, showing her gratitude.
"As soon as we're done, though, we will head north to recruit the Norn." He continued. "Then we will aid your people, Vekk."
"We will follow you, wherever you go." Ogden nodded in agreement. The asura known as Vekk did the same.
"I will make preparations." Gwen said. "We will leave at first light."
"Wait." The man said, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder as she turned to leave. "I'm very sorry, we forgot to introduce ourselves."
"I am Ogden Stonehealer, loyal follower of King Jalis and servant to the Great Dwarf." The dwarf bowed.
"I'm Vekk, asuran engineer and one of the finest minds among my people." The asuran said with pride.
"And I'm Kyte, one of the Heroes of Ascalon." The man said, smiling and holding out his hand. Gwen grasped it firmly and returned the smile. The Heroes of Ascalon were a great and popular Guild. Gwen had only heard of them in stories from refugees and travellers from the south. The Guild was said to be led by Mhenlo, a powerful Monk from Serenity Temple. Though most of the Guild's activities were vaguely unknown, the group were responsible for preventing Tyria from falling into chaos on a number of occasions. Gwen felt almost honoured and privileged to have a member of such high esteem standing in front of her. Her smile faded almost instantly as her childhood memories began to flood back to her. She knew the man that was standing before her. She had known him as a child in Ascalon before the Searing.
"Kyte…" she muttered under her breath.
"Yes…?" he asked.
"I remember you." She said, after a pause. "We met before the Searing. Devona brought you to us."
Gwen witnessed Kyte's eyes lighting up as he recalled the past events of his youth. He had been a young recruit training to become a soldier in the Ascalonian Army, when a training exercise went wrong. He had been brought to Sarah, a herbalist and Gwen's mother, in hopes that her treatment would heal him. And it had. In his days of recovery he remembered the bright, cheerful and cute little girl he had befriended before…
"Gwen." He said finally, after a moment of staring into space, he grasped her hands and gripped them tightly. "I remember. Your mother, she took care of me, but you-" he stopped suddenly, almost as though the memories he was having was causing him pain. "-you were taken. Bandits took you away. I never got the chance to see you again…"
"Let us go help with preparations Vekk." Ogden said, shuffling the small asura forward. "I think these two need some time alone." Kyte gave Ogden a small smile as if to say thanks, and then turned back to Gwen, who was shaking just as much as he was.
"What happened to you?" Kyte said finally. Gwen looked away, avoiding his gaze. She felt so much pain and anger, but also relief and joy. The young boy she had connected with all those years ago was a full grown adult now, much like her. All of the terror that she had experienced as a young girl filled so much of her past that she had almost forgotten the good memories she had before the Searing, before she had been separated from her mother. There was so much she wanted to say, so much she wanted to tell him, but she was hesitating.
"Gwen," Kyte began, tears welling in his hazel eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I could not protect you that day. I know I promised that I-"
"No." she cut him off, and brought a gentle hand to his cheek. "There was nothing you could have done that day. I don't blame you for anything."
"After several years I had given up hope," he continued. "I heard the most terrible stories of slaughter and massacres. I feared you were…." He could not say that final word. No, he refused to. During his travels, he didn't want to believe that the small, innocent girl he once knew was dead, but after a while, he slowly began to accept it as the truth. And soon, memories of her became supressed.
"You've grown up." He chuckled, placing a hand on her head, a reminisce of what he used to do all those years ago. Gwen merely smiled and choked back tears of her own, grasping his warm hand in hers. "I can't believe I've found you, after all this time."
"Funny how the world works." She replied, releasing his hand and throwing her arms around him, drawing him in for a big hug. "With all the horrible memories of my past, I'm glad I finally found a good one to hold on to."
"Remind me to thank this Captain Langmar when I finally meet her." Kyte grinned. Gwen laughed and held him close to her, not wanting to let go.
"Kyte," she said. "I have so much to tell you."