Where to start… I very much enjoy authors notes. I wrote this lying on my bed in the throws of cruel, cruel insomnia. Hmm, the 'interestingness' that is referred to here doesn't have any relation to Bhaal, it more relates to the reason why the baby is blue. Yes, I've written some other things to go along with this, but I don't like them yet, so they won't be posted for a while if ever. I have a love/hate relationship with the word justice. I adore the way it feels as one is saying it, I enjoy the sound of the word, but I am disconcerted by its meaning. I personally believe that it's just a socially acceptable word for revenge. I however do support revenge, healthy and all. Or perhaps I'm just making myself out to be a nastier person than I am. You'll never know. Supplice is actually french. I believe it means torturous, I just think it's a much nicer word, so I used it. Also, I'm pretty sure 'Ta laito' means 'the baby' in elven, and nosse is family. mela en'coiho is to mean love of his life and tari to mean queen. Amandil and Istar mean priest and wizard respectively. It's from a dictionary that's a bit Forgotten Realms and a bit Middle-Earth. I'm not truly content with the introspection bit, if anyone knows a way to improve it I would be grateful for any suggestions. Oh, and nothing romantic is meant to be implied between the figures, I've been told it rather read like there was. Of course, the beta could just be a pervert (said with love). I do realize that I used the word justice far more than I needed to I liked the way it made her sound though. And I do realize that the BG timeline would likely have had these elves exiled much longer ago, but if you do look at the official timeline, it's already messed up.
That is all. Well… on with the story.
Gorion rushed through the underbrush. The babe in his arm had been peacefully sleeping but was now squirming in a distracting manner. It was getting cold; he hoped he would find the city soon.
He stepped around a fallen branch and into a clearing. The sense of wrongness hit him as the baby's fist did, though with much more force. There at the edges of the clearing were two beings curled against each other. They looked to be elves but they were very pale and the tips of their long ears were curling, as though from rot and decay.
The male ceased his whispering to the female and turned his head to Gorion as a startled rabbit would. The female curled farther into herself and the male stiffened.
"Greetings" Gorion called cautiously. "Greetings" the male responded, the word sounded as though it was foreign to him. "What" the female demanded from her position on the ground "are you doing here?" "I seek aid from the nearby elven settlement" Gorion responded "Suldenesselar, under the guidance of Queen Ellesime."
The male stiffened further, a blank look coming over his features. "Why?" he demanded at the same time the female threw her arm out and pointed to the left.
"There" she cried "There you shall find your merciless saviors! With their self-righteous justice and supplice punishments." "Justice" she ranted "Justice as she said must be done, but what of when the justice exceeds the rights of the just? When said justice makes the just cower? When justice is unjust it must be justified! The justly ruined must find justice for their ruin and the justly ruining shall, they shall rue their acts of justice!"
"Sister" the male snapped, the timidness gone from his voice "Justice is a parody. Justice is revenge in a mask. It is the 'good people' giving into their baser, sadistic, urges. There really is no justice." He smiled "But we shall have our 'justice', yes."
It was at this moment that a piercing wail split the air. The apparently elvish figures cringed and -for the first time- the female noticed the babe in Gorion's arms.
"Ta laito, it's blue" She stated and in a second the male had jumped up and stood before Gorion.
"Amazing" he said, wonder still in his voice even after the ordeal that he had recently suffered. "I have never seen one of these before". He examined the baby in the same way that an insect enthusiast would a rare species of beetle. The baby giggled as he ran one graceful finger along the curve of its long ear, and, as he was retracting it, grabbed the didgit in a small, purplish fist.
He felt them upon him and looked into the babe's eyes.
They were green, green like those of his former lover. At the thought of her a barrage of memories and emotions assaulted him. Joy, love, betrayal, pain, and a fear that someday he'd lose even the memories, the final reminisces of his past, for he could sense his emotion becoming less tangible every day.
Her eyes had been like the leaves of the great tree, so full of life and vitality. The babe's he thought, were actually more like emeralds, or the coloured glass in the windows of the temple as the light shone through. They were intriguing, like the rest of this creature.
It -he looked downwards- She, would probably have some incredible exciting life. He felt something that could perhaps have been as spark of jealousy. Yes, she would have to face discrimination but she would automatically stand out in the world as 'special'. She wouldn't have to work to be noticed.
Yes, he knew that he was brilliant, but he had to put forth a great deal of effort for anyone else to know it. For anyone to give him a chance to truly succeed. He remembered sneaking around the backs of the priests quarters when he had been younger to procure tomes that he would not have been permitted to read. Had he come from a more established nosse, or had he been as obviously special as this child was, he was certain that he would have discovered many things sooner.
They had realized that he was special of course, after a time the amandilrem and istarem had taken an interest in him, he learned quickly and well. He had even created several spells. And eventually he came before his tari, and she, mela en'coiho, had truly realized his potential. Or so he had thought.
He was brought out of his revere by a touch to his back. The baby released his finger and he turned to face his beautiful sister.
"We should leave," she declared "get out of here." Her eyes were focused on the old man.
The male figure nodded and took the female's hand. They turned to leave the clearing but at the edge the male turned back.
"You will not find a permanent ally there" he said "Suldanesselar is in disarray and cannot afford any more association with" -he looked pointedly at the babe- "dangerous creatures." He paused for a second "Tell me her name."
Gorion ignored the lack of manners in this last demand and thought a second. His thoughts, as they so often had recently, went to the babe's mother. "Siarannia" he decided with finality. She would not be her mother, but he could tell she would at least resemble her.
The male nodded as though he approved of the appointment and turned again. Together the figures moved out of the clearing.
Gorion watched them go. He hoped that he would not regret not examining the incident further. But he had a task to complete.
He looked down at the babe in his arms who looked right back at him. He hoped that Suldenesselar wasn't in too much trouble.
He turned in the direction he had been pointed and rushed onward through the underbrush.