Notes: My excuse for the delay? Dunno lol. Unlucky page thirteen I guess. It wasn't for lack of imagination or writers block mind you, I just have other stuff going on that's taking up some time at the moment. Call it a short break from writing I guess. I'll try and keep to a once a week update from now on though, this being the exception of course.
Anywho, a special thanks to Italian Empress for adding me to her collection of Baldur's Gate fanfics (whoo!). I was meaning to write a proper response and thanks in return, but I hope this shout-out will do for now. Thanks again!
Demons Within
The ground began to take a noticeable slope downwards as we descended further into the mine. Worse yet was the increasing lack of lighting the deeper we traveled, these lower levels seeming to have little activity from the miners as of late. Eventually we entered another large room that was in near total darkness, myself finally becoming fed up with such minor illumination.
"I've had enough stumbling about in the dark. Ready the torches." I said in annoyance, making sure we waited for as long as possible before we would finally need use them.
Khalid had thankfully prepared these few torches for such an occasion sometime earlier. They were large wooden sticks with their ends wrapped in wet cloth, dampened by slow burning oil the man apparently kept on hand. With the help of Edwin's fiery spell casting we had the torches lit within moments. He gave a smug look of satisfaction as he handed the torch back to me, though I payed him little mind. I took the lit stick after securing my shield to my back. Khalid had taken one as well, following close behind me as we lit the way for everyone else in our group.
"These torches w-will last for only so long Alerac, I have but one m-more for when we return to t-the surface." He explained in his usual stammer. I nodded back once before returning to my thoughts, my eyes once more fixated on the blackness ahead.
Though the flames would not die for some time he was right in reminding me. Should we lose our torches or become lost it was comforting to know we at least had a backup. With most of our group being merely human it meant the majority of us were not blessed with the ability to see in the dark. Without this light the rest of us would be utterly blind, relying solely on those within our group who possessed infravision due to their elven blood. I was eventually taken away from my current thoughts when I noticed the deeper we ventured the more nervous Imoen seemed to become. I had thought her to be a little relieved from the extra lighting, though it seemed to only worry her further. Her sudden words only sought to confirm my suspicions.
"It's hard to imagine how anyone could work down here for days on end in almost total darkness." She spoke nervously, growing more tense as we slowly crept through the quiet place. "Even worse...I have to wonder what other things might live down here as well..." She continued with a frown, quickly jerking her head to look at every shadow that danced around us due to the flames light. Though the majority of our group were hardened travelers it was easy to forget Imoen and I had only been on the road for barely a week now.
"Try not to worry Imoen, I'm sure we'll just find more of these yipping kobolds." I said to her kindly, offering her a small smile for her benefit. The last thing I wanted was to get her worked up over what hid in the dark.
"It is unfortunate really." Viconia remarked suddenly, stealing the young girls attention from me. "I do miss the chittering orbben we drow lived amongst in the Underdark, they were most fond of places like these." Viconia mused as we continued through the black passages, seeming much more comfortable down here than on the surface.
"I even possessed one as a pet for a time, until I grew bored with her of course." She continued, her sentimental memories eliciting a slight smile from her.
"You had a pet?" Imoen asked with a grin, her curiosity quickly overriding her fear of our current surroundings for the moment.
"Yes, her name was olathjallil, which means dark lady in your surfacer tongue." She explained simply, the dark skinned woman's smile soon fading back to somber indifference. Imoen maintained her curious grin, though her look changed to one of confusion moments later.
"Wait, what's an orben anyways?" She questioned with further enthusiasm, though Viconia seemed to grow bored with the conversation at this point.
"Spiders of course. Very large ones." She stated tiredly, the answer apparently obvious only to her. Imoen grew pale just then, another one of her childhood fears forcing its way up to the surface.
"Sp-spiders?" Imoen exclaimed nervously. Viconia seemed to catch notice of her sudden fright, finding new interest on the subject all of a sudden.
"Why yes, fascinating creatures really." She said with a grin. "I still remember feeding her a live duergar slave for her first birthday, she was quite pleased with her gift if I recall." A soft chuckle escaped her lips at the last, seeking to unease Imoen even further.
Imoen's eyes bulged in surprise. "That's...that's horrible Viconia!" she shouted aloud in both disgust and fright. Viconia merely continued to grin, finding amusement in disturbing the young girl so.
"Is it? I merely see it as a reward for my young olathjallil." She said with a shrug of indifference, finding nothing wrong with sacrificing someone it seemed, even if it was a duergar. Though the thought churned my stomach I remained silent, not wanting to continue the conversation any further. Imoen kept thankfully quiet for a time as well, though a sudden crumbling of loose earth nearby startled her anew.
"Jaheira...you don't think there are giant spiders down here, do you?" She asked the half-elf woman timidly, even more nervous than before.
"No." Jaheira answered quickly. "Do not let the drow's ill words fill your mind further, we must stay focused on what lies ahead." She stated unwaveringly, seeming to ease Imoen at least a little bit. Viconia merely gave a snort of indifference, once again losing all interest on conversation.
Our group was silent as we neared another large room, the metal tracks finally coming to an end nearby. It was filled with empty carts and discarded mining tools, though much of our attention remained solely focused on the many bodies that lay strewn about the place.
"Looks like this is as far as the miners have gotten." I commented grimly as we searched the place, careful not to step too close to the bodies of the poor souls who had died here. Many were practically skeletons at this point, much of their flesh missing from their bodies. The putrid smell of decaying flesh hung heavy in the air, though not as strong as I might have first expected. They must have been here for some time.
"What are these marks?" Imoen asked as she stared closely at one of the bodies that possessed almost no flesh at all. Much of the mans bones were cracked and ripped apart, the noticeable indentations into the bone being easy to spot. "It looks like..."
"Teeth marks." Jaheira stated as she studied the skeleton next to Imoen. "Kobolds no doubt, though it should be of no surprise." She explained simply, adding a comforting hand onto Imoen's shoulder in an attempt to ease her a little.
"These idiotic creatures would eat anything I am certain." Edwin remarked in his usual tone of discontent, being careful to avoid his colorful robes from touching the dead miners and guards that littered the place.
Though the scene was horrid we continued our search, myself finding only more reason in dealing with whoever was responsible for all of this. Strangely, I could see no tunnel that would lead us further. For a moment I became concerned, wondering if we might have went down the wrong path at some point. If this was indeed where the miners had left off, the kobolds hideout could not be far. We searched the area, checking all along the hard surface of the wall. I was starting to lose hope, silently cursing myself for possibly missing a secondary tunnel at some point. Suddenly I noticed an overturned mining cart that lay next to a portion of wall, the blackness beyond noticeably different than the earth wall that surrounded us.
"There!" I shouted as I motioned over towards the cart. "Give me a hand with this!" I quickly asked my group as I solely attempted to move the heavy cart, placing my torch and blade onto the ground for the moment.
Minsc and Khalid soon joined me, taking much effort into lifting the thing before we got it back onto the tracks nearby. As we moved it out of the way the path became clear once again. I had to wonder who could have blocked the path with such a heavy cart, the kobolds no doubt could not have possessed such strength. Unexpectedly I noticed something strange, a shimmer of light could be seen in the distance, bright enough as if it were daylight.
"Such light!" Minsc noticed as well, pointing towards the orange glow ahead. "Minsc and friends could not be near the exit already, could we?" The great man bellowed disappointingly, seeming dissatisfied with the thought of our journey ending so soon.
"I do not t-think that is daylight, Minsc..." Khalid spoke doubtfully, mirroring my own thoughts as we slowly approached the bright glowing illumination. As we continued further I could feel the heat within the passageway rising immensely, which only puzzled me even further. I was nearly sweating when we finally reached the source of the bright glowing light, looking to see over the natural stone bridge down below. A long river of flame of all things, right below our feet!
"Wow!" Imoen exclaimed in sudden surprise, much of our group just as shocked by the sight as well. Though it was a considerable distance down the thin line of slow moving magma was clear to see below us, an unexpected and dazzling sight in such a gloomy place.
"Yet another display of natures immense power, though we should stave our awe for the moment." Jaheira commented, releasing me from my sudden amazement. She pointed her staff towards the dark abyss awaiting us across the bridge, the place just as black as from whence we came. I nodded back at her, being the first to begin crossing the bridge. I was nearly half way across the arched stone when I stopped dead in my tracks, suddenly feeling like there was something terribly wrong. With both my blade and torch in hand I looked about the place nervously, somehow knowing that this was not right, that something bad was about to happen.
"What is it Ale?" Imoen asked in concern as I continued to search with my eyes for what bothered me so. I did not answer her at first, instead standing completely still as I tried to locate what was amiss.
"I'm not sure...something is not right, but I don't-" I stopped when I took another step, my foot catching on a thin line of string. I stood confused for a moment when a projectile suddenly came out of nowhere, striking deep into my left shoulder. I grunted in pain as I clutched at the crude arrow protruding from my body, dropping my blade to the dirt. It had pierced straight through my armor, the chain barely providing any protection at all. Already the telltale yipping sounds of kobolds could be heard, dozens of the creatures appearing out from nowhere ahead of us.
"Ambush!" I quickly yelled through gritted teeth, pulling free the small arrow from my shoulder with another pained grunt. I tossed the arrow away, an obvious stain of red the only visible reminder of it ever happening.
Soon both sides responded, our two groups exchanging arrows along with Edwin's powerful spell casting thrown into the fray. The rest of our group closed in, facing the fiendish creatures head on once again. I was the first to engage, hacking one of them apart in a blur before quickly moving onto my next target with a deep thrust into the small creature's unprotected torso. My blood was ablaze again, and this time I could not ignore the powerful sensations of rage within me. I had come so close to death just then, my life nearly ended by a simple trap. I would not let myself die this way, nor would I let Gorion's death be in vain. I WILL have my vengeance!
While I battled the fiends with my mind lost in bloodshed my companions fought just as hard, our party mowing them down without remorse. Minsc was at the thick of it all, the large man surrounded by a group of them after changing further in. He roared heroically as he hacked at them all with his massive sword, one after another, an unstoppable killing machine in his own right. Jaheira and Khalid were nearby as well, fending off the small fiends with both staff and blade. Viconia could be seen chanting from afar, her gaze set intently upon a small group of kobolds moving in to reinforce their brethren. All of a sudden the creatures fell as she finished her chant, their bodies limp and motionless after suffering the effects her spell. Edwin continued casting his own magic as well, letting loose powerful magics with Imoen at his side, wordlessly dropping even more creatures from a distance with her bow. The whole scene was chaotic, the yipping creatures falling before us with pained shrieks as we all fought for our lives.
Another one of the creatures jumped at me from behind, slashing at my leg before I could stop it. I took little notice and instead whirled around, reaching for its neck with my free hand. I wanted to do nothing more than end its life with my powerful grasp alone, squeezing the life from its very body. I indeed felt powerful just then, easily crunching bone as I crushed the life out of the creature. I tossed its limp body off the edge of the natural rock bridge, having it fall down into the stream of lava with an unheard sizzle of searing flesh. Had I not been in a state of mind that only hungered for murder and vengeance I might have felt worry fighting on such a place. One sudden mistake and I could tumble over, facing agonizing death as the flames below sought to consume my body. Instead I gave it barely any thought, continuing my assault on the numerous kobolds that surrounded us.
Many battle filled moments passed as the battle raged on, a delightful satisfaction filling me as I continued to kill more and more of the impish creatures. Though it was not to last, the kobolds eventually realizing the battle was lost as they attempted to flee as was their custom. I managed to snatch another one before it could get away, pinning it to the ground with my arm. This time I did not hide my grin, everyone would know my power and my love for it! The beast continued to yip in protest, pointlessly struggling to free itself from my grasp as I held it down forcefully. With glee I discarded my blood soaked blade to the stone ground, retrieving instead the simple blade Fuller had given me what seemed like ages ago. I quickly plunged the blade into its throat, watching as it tried to speak though its own blood sought to garble its annoying speech. Within moments the kobold finally died, its black eyes staring lifelessly up at me in a frozen state of agony.
Once I was satisfied with its death I returned the small dagger to my belt, standing back up with the unwavering grin still held across my gore spattered face. I retrieved my sword from the ground a moment later as well, the dark murderous feelings within me still ablaze as I wiped clean the blood from my sword with a cloth. I was so caught up with my own cruel thoughts I only then noticed the rest of my group, staring blankly back at me curiously.
My grin faded, replaced with a sudden frown. "What? Why do you all stare at me so?" I demanded them all somewhat angrily, completely unaware of the reason for their accusing looks. No one talked for a moment, though Minsc and Edwin turned their attention elsewhere, finding this was not a discussion they should to take part in apparently. Eventually Imoen stepped up, an indiscernible look on her face.
"What...what's happened to you Ale?" She voiced weakly, both Khalid and Jaheira behind her stared with worry towards me as well.
"What do you mean? Nothings wrong with me, I'm fine!" I snapped back at her, though I could already feel the dark taint releasing its hold from me. I slowly started to make sense of things once more, realizing I had succumbed to the will of the forces inside me all over again. Before I could speak further Jaheira moved beside the young girl, motioning Imoen to move away from me.
"Come Imoen, we still have much searching to do." The woman whispered soothingly to her before stopping to look back at me. Her face was set with confusion and worry, no doubt trying to understand what had just happened with me. If only I knew the reason why myself.
"We will discuss this...at a later time." She said softly before turning away from me, taking Imoen with her as Khalid followed behind.
I curled my fists in anger, though it was only at myself. Once again I was met with the burning hatred and lust for bloodshed from deep within me, and I let it take control, breaking my own promise to not give in. I closed my eyes as I wiped my face tiredly, only then realizing the amount of dark blood that covered my body. It disgusted me. I grabbed another cloth from a pocket and wiped at my face grimly, wanting to rid myself of the dark liquid as quickly as possible. Only at the last moment did I notice Viconia approaching me, a smile across her face.
"You are indeed an intriguing one, Alerac. For a male." She spoke with sudden delight, lifting her hood to fully reveal her face in the glowing light. "I had no idea you could fight so fiercely." She cooed while holding a wicked smile towards me, though I could only return her look with a gloomy frown.
"It is not something I have control over...and my friends..." I explained with deep worry, trailing off with a tired sigh as I looked to where Imoen and the others now talked amongst themselves.
"The byrren merely fear your power, Alerac. These 'companions' you keep will get used to this other side of yours in time, I am certain." Viconia mused with another sultry grin. I wanted to argue against her words but I felt utterly defeated, failing not only myself...but Imoen and everyone else as well. I heaved a heavy sigh, completely unsure of what I might do to at that moment. As if on cue Viconia moved closer, releasing me from my frustrated thoughts.
"Walk with me for awhile, won't you?" She spoke as she looped her arm around mine, leading me away from the stone bridge as we followed behind the rest of our group. Though I felt wholly hollow inside Viconia was of some comfort at the very least. Even in a dark place such as this and with trouble following me to no end, there was at least something to be thankful for I suppose.
Our party walked in silence once more, this time much more carefully so we were certain not to be caught unaware by any more of the kobold's traps. I had lost my torch during the battle earlier, having Khalid now lead our group while Viconia and I followed at the back. She continued to hold quite close to me, offering some form of comfort as I continued to think troubling thoughts concerning what had happened earlier. Even with her support I still felt continuously worried for how Imoen and Jaheira might be thinking of me right now. She even took the time to heal my wounds, though that did little to help me. I tried to push the thoughts away, instead hoping only to be over and done with this dark place more than ever.
Eventually more of the line traps were spotted, though this time Imoen and Khalid went busy into seeing if they could either disarm the traps or activate them without any of us in its path. All the while Viconia and I watched from afar, the two of us making small talk during the downtime.
"Nashkel was the first surface town you had ever been to?" I asked curiously as our discussion drifted back towards recent events, though Viconia merely brushed it off as if it were nothing. My mood had finally began to pick up at last, our talk a welcome distraction from earlier.
"I have traveled for some months now, though not once would I have dared come close to a rivvil village." She explained indifferently at first, though it was obvious she held much malice for the surface races as she revealed further.
"Much of my time has been spent out in the open wilderness, away from the accusing glares of the surfacers. This tactic has kept me safe from harm, for the most part..." She added somewhat hesitantly, drawing away from me some. A tinge of guilt befell me then, feeling guilty for having dragged her into this mess. It was bad enough she was a drow on the surface and an outcast from her own kind, but now she was to travel with a man hounded by assassins as well? Yet another soul I have caused distress for during the short time out on my own.
"I am sorry Viconia, I did not quite realize the risk you have taken by traveling with us." I spoke sincerely, though the woman merely eyed me suspiciously at first. Viconia studied me for a moment longer before answering, seeming to come to a conclusion with something.
"Your words are not without truth Alerac, I indeed take greater risk by traveling with you and your group. Regardless of this, it was my decision in joining you, and the notion of protection amongst fellow travelers does contain its advantages." She added with a slight smile, easing me some of my guilt. Her happier demeanor did not last for long however, as she breathed a tired sigh before continuing.
"And yet still I sleep with the worry that I might be dragged away by mobs of angered rivvin for my supposed crimes. But I suppose it is lessened some with you and your groups presence." She conceded at last. She no doubt felt conflicted with much of her life, I could only wonder. My thoughts went back to when we had first stumbled upon her only yesterday, being chased by zealous mercenaries who chose to judge her by the darkness of her skin alone.
"I may not speak for the rest of my group Viconia, but I still stand by my word." I said after a short time of silence between us, earning the slightly confused gaze of the dusk skinned woman. "I would not dare judge you merely by your race. You are safe with me." I finished with a smile which she returned, though the meaning behind her look was very different indeed.
"An amusing gesture, but I do not need you to protect me, jaluk." She said with a chuckle. Now it was my turn to feel confused by her words. "I'm quite capable of handling myself, I do not need your added pity." Her sudden coolness surprised me. I could not comprehend the reason for her sudden hostility at all.
"It is not pity, Viconia. I merely wish you to know that you can trust me. You are amongst friends now." I pleaded with her gently, though this seemed to only anger her further.
"Trust? Friends? Again I hear these words tossed about so freely, and yet I wonder what the cost for such things might be." She questioned skeptically, denying my words outright. "Who's to say your precious little Imoen isn't ready to stab you in the back and collect the reward over your head for her own?" She asked dubiously, her gaze hard and venomous as she stared back at me.
"You are wrong, Imoen would never-"
"No!" She yelled at me furiously then, our conversation ceasing to be private. "Do you not understand, Alerac? I trust no one. I am friends with no one. I am drow, I only know of hatred and deceit. And you will not deceive me into believing any one of your so called 'friends' would care enough to risk endangering their lives for my sake."
"I would." I offered sincerely, trying my best to make her believe my words as truth.
"Then you are a fool! Khaless zhah waela!" She yelled before leaving me, attempting to reach as far away from me as was possible within the short confines of these tunnels.
I stood perplexed at her sudden outburst, unsure of why she reacted in such a way. I rubbed at my face in frustration, cursing inwardly for practically alienating myself from my entire party so swiftly. I had expected much trouble venturing down here, but not anything like this...
"The traps are disarmed and the path is clear." Jaheira voiced all of a sudden, releasing me from my concerns in an instant. All at once I wanted to say so many things, to explain for my actions.
"Jaheira, about earlier I-"
"Later." She silenced me in an instant, denying me any form of explanation for the moment. "Right now we have work to do." She added a moment later, her emerald green eyes regarding me intently.
"Very well." I sighed, looking back to the rest of my group. They all waited as one, ready to engage with whatever awaits us up ahead. I readied my blade and shield, moving up beside Khalid where he helped light the way. It felt like we were getting close now, the long awaited end to these dark sprawling tunnels.
We would face those responsible, this I knew. I just hoped I would be in the right of mind when we did.
~TBC
Secondary Note: You just know it's been a Viconia heavy page when there's a long list of drow translations at the bottom. And what's with her huh? Talk about running hot and cold. She's got issues man.
Drow Translations:
Orbben - Spiders
byrren - Others
Rivvil/Rivvin - Human/Humans
Jaluk - Male
Khaless zhah waela - Trust is foolish