I'm hurrying to get this chapter done before final rush. And guess what?
More Raziel torture! Yay! Well, not really. But on the bright side, this is
the last damn reminiscing chapter! I swear! I am getting so sick of writing
these!
BTW I'm going to be switching between three POVs: A 1st person Liaedra, a 3rd person Imoen, and a 3rd person narrator. Hope I don't confuse ya.
sammie teufel: Yeah, I am being a complete jerk to Raz. But I beat down my characters, but I'll be nice to her later. Much later, really..... Yeah, and I love Sare..... he's actually my favorite character, even if he is a bit of an evil bastard. I almost wish you could have a romance w/ him in the game, but he's your brother so that would be a bit weird..... And as for Quinn, I love having a complete jerk in my stories that I can later humiliate and hopefully kill. Except for Quinn is a god, so that might not work out too well........
Archyou2: I think I want a mace now.......
Disclaimer: Think of your own. I'm sick of writing these things....
Liaedra opened her eyes and yawned. It was the dusk of her second day of travel. She was just emerging from the all-encompassing woods that surrounded the village and kept it from harm.
She sighed and looked around. She was on a hill just outside of the forest. She could see far from here.
She smiled at seeing the usual sights one sees around a forest. To a ranger, they were precious. The soft dying song of the birds, the occasional whistle of the wind, and the slightest rattle of the leaves and grass were a symphony to the young elf.
She turned, overlooking the forest, seeming to memorize it's ever detail. Her eyes ran lovingly over each tree, then widened.
A large pillar of smoke rose from the center of the forest.
Right where the village was.
That was not supposed to be there!
Liaedra automatically thought the worst and ran back into the woods. She ran quickly, dodging trees and bushes, running as fast as she could. A few branches hit here face and cut her, and her arm felt crushed as it hit a tree. But she ignored these things, and rushed on with blind resolve straight through the woods to get to the village in time.
She broke through the trees into the clearing and stopped, panting.
The village was completely destroyed. There was not a building left standing, not a single sign of life.
The little village that had been Liaedra's home, Oris's home, and her beloved Elysia's home, was gone.
Imoen choked as she watched the scene. Horrific..... How could her friend be allowed to suffer so? But even as she thought this, something changed in the scene....
It was Liaedra's view. It was Liaedra's mind. They were hearing Liaedra's thoughts.
I was too late.
In one day, someone had destroyed the life I had been rebuilding for a whole year.
I had failed.
It was gone.
I stagger into the remains of the village. There was smoldering rubble and debris everywhere. All the buildings, all the things tat made this a village, were destroyed.
I trip over something soft and look down, then choke and fall back.
It was a body.
It was one of the farmers..... what was his name? He always brought something for Elysia.... his name....his face, a melted mass of flesh.... Oh Gods, why can't I remember his name!
I stumble away numbly, shaking uncontrollably. I walk shakily through my old home. Dead face after dead face greet me. Each was someone I knew, and memories of my interactions with them flash across my mind.
The wander until I reach what was once Oris's hut. In front of it were the beaten, bruised remains of Mira. I give a sharp cry. Gods..... I had never meant those things I said about here! I did not want her to die this horrible death!
Take this all away!
It is Oris I find next. He is burned as if he had been hit by a thousand acid arrows. I retch, and throw up in a nearby bush.
It was all too much.... My beloved friend, Master Oris, lifeless in front of his house, which had been torn to shreds. All his many trinkets were strewn and broken, completely defiled on the ground. I saw one, my favorite, a little ceramic black wolf, shattered. Its head lay next to Oris.
But Elysia.... where was Elysia? The poor child! She couldn't be dead!
I had a flashback. Oris telling Elysia something...... telling her to hide in that little cave in the woods, near where she and Mira had found my half- dead form a year ago! She might be there! She might be alive!
Despite the fact that I am shaking, I run all the way to the hidden cave. I reach it and push apart the bushes that hide the entrance. I look around quickly. It is night and dark in the cave, so I am even more grateful for my inherited infravision.
"Elysia!" I shout, looking around the cave. "Elysia, where are you? Are you here?"
"Liae?"
I rush towards the soft whimper I had just heard. It was Elysia! I would know her voice anywhere! I find her, shivering and huddling under an outcropping of rock. She crawls out to me when I come towards her.
"G...g....grandpa told me to run to the hiding place, so I ran and ran and there was all this screaming and shouting!" whispered Elysia, obviously traumatized.
"Hush, love, its all right," I say softly, pulling her to me, She wraps her arms around my neck and I hold her close, cradling her in my arms.
"They're all dead, aren't they!" she said, sobbing. "They all died! Why?"
"I don't know, love," I whisper, tears leaking from my eyes. "But they won't get you, I promise."
And so I sit there, rocking the little girl who had just lost everything, in my arms. It was too like when my village was destroyed..... but I had been an adult then! Children should not have to suffer such!
I curse the Gods for allowing this to happen to a child. And once again, I curse Quinn, for obviously not caring what happened to those I love.
We sit like this until the break of day. As the sun rises I shake Elysia gently.
"The sun is rising, love. We have to wake up," I say.
"Wh..... wh....where is the sun?" whispered the girl.
I looked at her, confused. She lifts her face to me and the light hits her eyes.
Her milky white, unfocused eyes.
She was blind.
"El," I said in a shaky voice, "how did you make your way here?"
Elysia sniffled. "It was too dark to see. Something got in my eyes while I was running... it burned. But I knew the way so I felt my way here. Why, Liae? Why can't I see the sunlight? Liae? What happened to me?" Her voice has taken a frantic tone.
I am almost glad she is blind, because she can no longer see the tears rolling down my face.
The scene faded, and Imoen became aware 0of herself again. She was no longer one with Liaedra's past self.
"Why did you do that?" growled Sarevok.
"I thought it would be easiest to demonstrate Liaedra's pain through her own thoughts. And as she is asleep nearby, and still contained in this dimension, I decided to draw off what he saw and felt that night. I do believe it had the desired affect," explained Amuana.
"Is she alright?" asked Sarevok, a little overly-concerned for Raziel.
"She will be fine. She has not been made to relive the experiences, and the memory-taking has tired her enough that she will experience a dreamless sleep for a while yet."
"So.....what now?" asked Kelsey.
"There is yet one more thing I would show you," said Amuana.
The darkness shifted once again to another scene.
It was dark and stormy. Rain fell, but there was no lightning. It looked.....cold.
A castle loomed in the landscape. A figure, heavily bundled, walked towards it. Lanterns lining the bridge over the moat to the castle's huge doors. The figure's face was carefully concealed, and he or she was cradling a small figure in his or her arms.
Imoen gasped in realization.
"What?" growled Sarevok.
"Can't you see?" she said. "That's Candlekeep!"
The doors opened. Several cowled figures walked out to meet her.
"What is it you wish, stranger?" said the front most one.
The figure moved a wrap from her face, exposing her eyes and mouth.
It was Liaedra.
"I knew two people who grew up here. Imoen and Tarquinn," she said.
The people looked at each other, then back at her. "You knew the Bhaalspawns?" said a female sounding figure.
"I traveled with them for many years."
"Why are you here?" said the supposed leader again.
Liaedra moved closer to them, and moved the figure in her arms so that the light hit her face. It was Elysia. Her eyes were closed in peaceful sleep.
"This girl was a charge of mine. I.... failed her. She is very young, but has amazing potential as a mage, but was blinded in an attack on her home several years ago. She lost all her family and friends, except for me. But I can care for her no longer. I want you to take care of her."
The figures conversed among themselves. They turned back to Liaedra.
"What do you want for you?" asked the woman, suspiciously.
"Nothing, save the assurance that she will be safe, and perhaps the occasional visit," said Liaedra softly.
The figures conversed again. Then the leader turned to Liaedra, his arms held out.
"We will take her," he said.
Liaedra nodded and handed the small girl to the man. "Her name is Elysia. She is very quiet, but a complete angle. And please don't remove her necklace from her. It will protect her."
The man nodded. "Very well. Might I ask your name?"
Liaedra thought for a moment. "Elysia knows me as Liaedra, but you will know me as Raziel."
The figure nodded, showing no sign of confusion at Liaedra's statement. Liaedra bent over the figure in the man's arms and kissed her head.
"Fare thee well, Elysia. I will see you soon," she whispered.
The figures withdrew with Elysia and retreated to the sanctuary of Candlekeep. Liaedra stared at the closed doors for a moment, then turned away, drawing her wrapping closer around her face. She looked up at the cold, dark sky.
"Where you listening, Quinn? Remember the name Raziel. The elf Liaedra that you loved were dead. Raziel has taken her place in this world," she whispered with an amused, morbid tone.
Liaedra walked off into the cold darkness. Her voice echoed through the night.
"Everyone will know the name of Raziel the Destroyer, even you, Tarquinn."
BTW I'm going to be switching between three POVs: A 1st person Liaedra, a 3rd person Imoen, and a 3rd person narrator. Hope I don't confuse ya.
sammie teufel: Yeah, I am being a complete jerk to Raz. But I beat down my characters, but I'll be nice to her later. Much later, really..... Yeah, and I love Sare..... he's actually my favorite character, even if he is a bit of an evil bastard. I almost wish you could have a romance w/ him in the game, but he's your brother so that would be a bit weird..... And as for Quinn, I love having a complete jerk in my stories that I can later humiliate and hopefully kill. Except for Quinn is a god, so that might not work out too well........
Archyou2: I think I want a mace now.......
Disclaimer: Think of your own. I'm sick of writing these things....
Liaedra opened her eyes and yawned. It was the dusk of her second day of travel. She was just emerging from the all-encompassing woods that surrounded the village and kept it from harm.
She sighed and looked around. She was on a hill just outside of the forest. She could see far from here.
She smiled at seeing the usual sights one sees around a forest. To a ranger, they were precious. The soft dying song of the birds, the occasional whistle of the wind, and the slightest rattle of the leaves and grass were a symphony to the young elf.
She turned, overlooking the forest, seeming to memorize it's ever detail. Her eyes ran lovingly over each tree, then widened.
A large pillar of smoke rose from the center of the forest.
Right where the village was.
That was not supposed to be there!
Liaedra automatically thought the worst and ran back into the woods. She ran quickly, dodging trees and bushes, running as fast as she could. A few branches hit here face and cut her, and her arm felt crushed as it hit a tree. But she ignored these things, and rushed on with blind resolve straight through the woods to get to the village in time.
She broke through the trees into the clearing and stopped, panting.
The village was completely destroyed. There was not a building left standing, not a single sign of life.
The little village that had been Liaedra's home, Oris's home, and her beloved Elysia's home, was gone.
Imoen choked as she watched the scene. Horrific..... How could her friend be allowed to suffer so? But even as she thought this, something changed in the scene....
It was Liaedra's view. It was Liaedra's mind. They were hearing Liaedra's thoughts.
I was too late.
In one day, someone had destroyed the life I had been rebuilding for a whole year.
I had failed.
It was gone.
I stagger into the remains of the village. There was smoldering rubble and debris everywhere. All the buildings, all the things tat made this a village, were destroyed.
I trip over something soft and look down, then choke and fall back.
It was a body.
It was one of the farmers..... what was his name? He always brought something for Elysia.... his name....his face, a melted mass of flesh.... Oh Gods, why can't I remember his name!
I stumble away numbly, shaking uncontrollably. I walk shakily through my old home. Dead face after dead face greet me. Each was someone I knew, and memories of my interactions with them flash across my mind.
The wander until I reach what was once Oris's hut. In front of it were the beaten, bruised remains of Mira. I give a sharp cry. Gods..... I had never meant those things I said about here! I did not want her to die this horrible death!
Take this all away!
It is Oris I find next. He is burned as if he had been hit by a thousand acid arrows. I retch, and throw up in a nearby bush.
It was all too much.... My beloved friend, Master Oris, lifeless in front of his house, which had been torn to shreds. All his many trinkets were strewn and broken, completely defiled on the ground. I saw one, my favorite, a little ceramic black wolf, shattered. Its head lay next to Oris.
But Elysia.... where was Elysia? The poor child! She couldn't be dead!
I had a flashback. Oris telling Elysia something...... telling her to hide in that little cave in the woods, near where she and Mira had found my half- dead form a year ago! She might be there! She might be alive!
Despite the fact that I am shaking, I run all the way to the hidden cave. I reach it and push apart the bushes that hide the entrance. I look around quickly. It is night and dark in the cave, so I am even more grateful for my inherited infravision.
"Elysia!" I shout, looking around the cave. "Elysia, where are you? Are you here?"
"Liae?"
I rush towards the soft whimper I had just heard. It was Elysia! I would know her voice anywhere! I find her, shivering and huddling under an outcropping of rock. She crawls out to me when I come towards her.
"G...g....grandpa told me to run to the hiding place, so I ran and ran and there was all this screaming and shouting!" whispered Elysia, obviously traumatized.
"Hush, love, its all right," I say softly, pulling her to me, She wraps her arms around my neck and I hold her close, cradling her in my arms.
"They're all dead, aren't they!" she said, sobbing. "They all died! Why?"
"I don't know, love," I whisper, tears leaking from my eyes. "But they won't get you, I promise."
And so I sit there, rocking the little girl who had just lost everything, in my arms. It was too like when my village was destroyed..... but I had been an adult then! Children should not have to suffer such!
I curse the Gods for allowing this to happen to a child. And once again, I curse Quinn, for obviously not caring what happened to those I love.
We sit like this until the break of day. As the sun rises I shake Elysia gently.
"The sun is rising, love. We have to wake up," I say.
"Wh..... wh....where is the sun?" whispered the girl.
I looked at her, confused. She lifts her face to me and the light hits her eyes.
Her milky white, unfocused eyes.
She was blind.
"El," I said in a shaky voice, "how did you make your way here?"
Elysia sniffled. "It was too dark to see. Something got in my eyes while I was running... it burned. But I knew the way so I felt my way here. Why, Liae? Why can't I see the sunlight? Liae? What happened to me?" Her voice has taken a frantic tone.
I am almost glad she is blind, because she can no longer see the tears rolling down my face.
The scene faded, and Imoen became aware 0of herself again. She was no longer one with Liaedra's past self.
"Why did you do that?" growled Sarevok.
"I thought it would be easiest to demonstrate Liaedra's pain through her own thoughts. And as she is asleep nearby, and still contained in this dimension, I decided to draw off what he saw and felt that night. I do believe it had the desired affect," explained Amuana.
"Is she alright?" asked Sarevok, a little overly-concerned for Raziel.
"She will be fine. She has not been made to relive the experiences, and the memory-taking has tired her enough that she will experience a dreamless sleep for a while yet."
"So.....what now?" asked Kelsey.
"There is yet one more thing I would show you," said Amuana.
The darkness shifted once again to another scene.
It was dark and stormy. Rain fell, but there was no lightning. It looked.....cold.
A castle loomed in the landscape. A figure, heavily bundled, walked towards it. Lanterns lining the bridge over the moat to the castle's huge doors. The figure's face was carefully concealed, and he or she was cradling a small figure in his or her arms.
Imoen gasped in realization.
"What?" growled Sarevok.
"Can't you see?" she said. "That's Candlekeep!"
The doors opened. Several cowled figures walked out to meet her.
"What is it you wish, stranger?" said the front most one.
The figure moved a wrap from her face, exposing her eyes and mouth.
It was Liaedra.
"I knew two people who grew up here. Imoen and Tarquinn," she said.
The people looked at each other, then back at her. "You knew the Bhaalspawns?" said a female sounding figure.
"I traveled with them for many years."
"Why are you here?" said the supposed leader again.
Liaedra moved closer to them, and moved the figure in her arms so that the light hit her face. It was Elysia. Her eyes were closed in peaceful sleep.
"This girl was a charge of mine. I.... failed her. She is very young, but has amazing potential as a mage, but was blinded in an attack on her home several years ago. She lost all her family and friends, except for me. But I can care for her no longer. I want you to take care of her."
The figures conversed among themselves. They turned back to Liaedra.
"What do you want for you?" asked the woman, suspiciously.
"Nothing, save the assurance that she will be safe, and perhaps the occasional visit," said Liaedra softly.
The figures conversed again. Then the leader turned to Liaedra, his arms held out.
"We will take her," he said.
Liaedra nodded and handed the small girl to the man. "Her name is Elysia. She is very quiet, but a complete angle. And please don't remove her necklace from her. It will protect her."
The man nodded. "Very well. Might I ask your name?"
Liaedra thought for a moment. "Elysia knows me as Liaedra, but you will know me as Raziel."
The figure nodded, showing no sign of confusion at Liaedra's statement. Liaedra bent over the figure in the man's arms and kissed her head.
"Fare thee well, Elysia. I will see you soon," she whispered.
The figures withdrew with Elysia and retreated to the sanctuary of Candlekeep. Liaedra stared at the closed doors for a moment, then turned away, drawing her wrapping closer around her face. She looked up at the cold, dark sky.
"Where you listening, Quinn? Remember the name Raziel. The elf Liaedra that you loved were dead. Raziel has taken her place in this world," she whispered with an amused, morbid tone.
Liaedra walked off into the cold darkness. Her voice echoed through the night.
"Everyone will know the name of Raziel the Destroyer, even you, Tarquinn."