Then there was light.
Nathaniel caught himself shouting, a hand coming up to protect himself from the sudden flash of illumination suddenly enveloping them.
This world makes no sense, first you're in one place, then another, there's nothing governing it! Biting down both his frustration and his shout Nathaniel forced his hand down, trying to see where they were this time.
The ground was stamped dirt...or rather an illusion of it...a road. Nathaniel frowned at it, as he did at the high grass on either side. Just illusions, nothing real...Yet it looked real, he had felt his surroundings and felt it to be real...how did one know the real from the unreal in such a world? It was a frustrating thought, with an equally frustrating answer. He knew it wasn't real, it wasn't the sudden shifts of the world, not even the fact that some things just didn't look like they should...but a clear sense of things not being real...that simply was there, like a itch just behind his shoulder blades.
It was galling to think he couldn't understand it better than that.
He found his gaze drawn to Velanna, finding the mage smirking at him with a teasing glint in her eyes, her mouth curved in a nearly wicked way. Clearly she was enjoying his frustration, the idea of him being lost...of her being the guide.
Normally Nathaniel would have frowned at it, or more likely, ignored it, not wanting to give her the satisfaction of seeing that she was getting to him.
Now however, he found his face blank, a hand coming up to his face, brushing his lips carefully, still feeling the imprint there, as if he'd been marked.
She kissed me...
Velanna's smirk faltered as she saw his movement...then turned into a smile, a careful, yet real smile.
Nathaniel felt his breathing slow.
Then the moment was over, the elf turning back to the road, yet inclining her head towards the Commander as she spoke, voice tinged with a surprising amount of concern, considering who was speaking: "Lynn are you...?"
The other elf shook her head. Now back in her silvery plate armour she looked a bit more solid then before. Yet there was a definite slouch in her stance, her head hanging low, her eyes red-rimmed and dark as they stared into the distance. A grunt and she pulled up her helmet, her words clipped: "I'm fine."
The helmet snapped into place.
The elf straightened, her head rose.
It was nothing but feigned bravado, a lie.
A lie she's telling herself... Nathaniel grimaced, remembering the lie he'd told himself not too long ago...and found the others in the group grimacing as well.
"Let's go." The Commander moved, forcing the others to follow or be left behind, compelling them to shift their focus away from her, to focus on what was ahead.
Nathaniel only did so reluctantly. How long until she snaps? She's on the edge, anyone can sense it, and if she does break apart...what then? I can't just take command, not without any agreement that it should be so. And with disaster looming...we need her, however broken she is... Should we try to help her? To heal her, if only a little...or would trying it break her? There's no good options...
He shrugged, forcing himself to focus. Such thoughts are meaningless unless we get out of here.
The road ahead wasn't long, the end plainly in sigh, a round yard in the centre of a healthy-looking village, one end dominated by a surprisingly familiar building...
The...village? The mansion? But we're not in the real world... Nathaniel shot Velanna a questioning look but found no answer in her back as the woman remained focused on the approaching sight. Yet there was a clear hint of tension in her shoulders...Nathaniel unslung his bow, finding the silent Sigrun and Mhairi drawing their weapons too as they huddled closer to the rest of the group, no doubt as uncomfortable with the surroundings as Nathaniel was.
The angry voices suddenly calling through to them did nothing to ease that tension and Nathaniel smoothly nocked an arrow onto his bow, eyes narrowing at the sight before him becoming clear as the group came closer.
The gate of the wall surrounding the mansion was closed, as it had been in the real world. Yet before it was no half-rotten corpse, instead there was a gathering of what had to be villagers...despite Nathaniel knowing they couldn't be true villagers. He shot Velanna another questioning look and found the woman having cocked her head to the side in an oddly Lynn-like gesture of puzzlement.
Their angry shouts were aimed at the closed gate, closed fists being shaken at the lit windows of the mansion. Nathaniel couldn't help but think of the villagers Lynn had killed, the scene was so...similar. He eyed the Commander, but saw no sign of her seeing the resemblance as she marched forth, apparently unfazed by the sight.
Then a voice, different than the villagers, unearthly without being malicious, called out: "Show yourself baroness! You cannot hide in your mansion forever! Come out and face Justice!"
"We've been here long enough!" A villager agreed even as others startled moved aside before the new arrivals, revealing...something...standing before the gate at the head of the angry villagers.
It was shaped like a human, a human in full armour and with a sword drawn in his right hand while his left was raised in a clenched fist against the gate. Yet it was clearly not human, its body nearly transparent, a white glow surrounding the edges of its body, as if they were barely able to contain it in its current shape.
And righteous fury was practically seething from it, a palpable emotion that rolled over Nathaniel as he approached, the only reason he knew it wasn't his own feelings being the sheer intensity of it...inhuman in its power.
Nathaniel didn't have time to ponder the strange creature, nor the scene, however, as one of the windows to the mansion swung open.
Revealing a woman.
I...don't understand. Nathaniel shot Velanna a helpless look, feeling lost, but the woman ignored him, eyes intense as she watched the events, seeing something he perhaps couldn't with her unworldly senses.
The new arrival was easy to read however. Her skin was as pale as Lynn's, but made so by white powder, further intensifying the already thick black colour painted around her eyes and the clear blush on her cheeks. Her hair was carefully arranged and cut to make her face look narrower then it really was, as well as topped by a thin golden crown. That combined with her carefully plucked eyebrows, the haughtily raised chin and the sneer on her darkly painted lips and there was not a shadow of a doubt that they were looking at a proud noble. A far too proud noble.
"Have we not been through this already spirit?" The woman's voice was a sneer, full of contempt as she looked down at the glowing man at the head of the wide-eyed villagers now all staring at the approaching group, staring with hope...? "These are my servants, leave my lands and myself alone!"
The glowing creature shook its head, wearily, no doubt having had the discussion before. How many times Nathaniel didn't dare guessing... "Death should have freed them from servitude! You were unjust to them in life, and doubly so in death! You shall release them and face your punishment! Face Justice!"
The sneer never left the woman's face as she scoffed at the creature. "They are mine by right and you cannot take them from me! Begone spirit, or I will stoop to do to you what I've desired to do for ages!"
"Try it!" The spectral shape raised its sword, eagerness rushing into Nathaniel, eagerness for battle. "Justice will prevail if you come down foul creature! Come down and face your judgement!"
"I think..." The woman's voice trailed off as her eyes moved to focus on the new arrivals, so clearly standing out among the villagers move aside before them. For a moment her arrogant sneer disappeared. "...not?" It returned with renewed force a moment later: "Ah, so they got free did they? The darkspawn told me so...should have known..."
Darkspawn? The one who sent us here? Nathaniel found himself clenching his bow tightly, judging the distance to the window above, wondering if he could put an arrow into the woman and be done with it, or rather...if such a thing could actually hurt her. Then again, don't know if that's the right course of action... He looked to the Commander for orders.
And found none as the elf approached the gate, head cocked to the side as she eyed the glowing creature that now turned to face them, her tone guarded: "And you are?"
The creature bowed its helmet-clad head, an oddly courteous gesture for something not truly human. "I am the spirit of Justice, these villagers are unwitting slaves of this monster of a woman, dragged with her to serve her in death." It gestured for the now silent villagers clustering around them, eyes dark and desperate, desperate for...relief. Nathaniel winced at it. To desire death...I have a hard time imagining it. He shot the Commander a short glance at the thought.
"I only wish to leave this place." Lynn replied, tone cold and uncaring, yet with an undercurrent of weariness, perhaps sensing what was to come.
Nathaniel almost felt himself echoing her weariness. Why can't we ever do something that doesn't end with a fight?
"This place is held together by the will of the baroness." The creature gestured up at the woman still sneering down at them. "If we slay her I will free these poor victims." it gestured to the still silent villagers, many who seemed to be...wavering? Nathaniel frowned and shot Velanna a questioning look, finding the elf pale and frowning as well, puzzled by...something. Wish I had magic... "And if you help me fight her, I will return you to your world, it's only what is Just."
A barely perceivable shrug of the Commander, voice tired: "Figures..." Another shrug, her back straightening, voice dark: "You have a deal spirit, betray me and I will hunt you into oblivion."
"I am no demon." The creature bowed its head, almost looking...solemn. "I will honour our covenant."Even as it spoke the words one of the villagers stumbled, an odd groan escaping him as he moved a hand to his head.
Nathaniel frowned in worry, wathcing as a female village stumbled onto one knee, a hiss slipping from her lips. Lynn merely scoffed, ignoring the confusing changes in the crowd, despite probably being aware of it, in contrast to the oblivious Justice: "You better."
Then the villagers fell onto their knees, hands coming to clutch their heads as howls of pain escaped their mouths.
Nathaniel froze, a sudden fright washing over him, paralysing him.
A growl of rage escaped the glowing creature as it whirled to face the mansion, head craning to glare up at the window where the baroness grinned down at him in victory. Her tone arrogant: "You have allies now spirit? You think you are now strong enough to face me? Allies are a weakness creature...and now you have forced my hand." The grin turned vicious. "I'm going to enjoy this..."
With that the powdered noble reached back and wrenched, pulling the darkspawn that had sent them into the fade into sight.
It was a sad sight.
Its dark chainmail was rent and torn, dark blood crusted over both armour and its pale face, its dark eyes dim and unseeing, the monster wavering where it stood, as if drunk.
Its arms hung to its sides, broken and useless, white bone sticking out through broken armour.
Nathaniel almost found himself pitying it.
"Now you will pay the price for your incessant care for my servants." The woman held the creature with its left hand as the other was raised high...and extended...morphed.
Nathaniel found himself taking a step backwards along with Velanna. Mhairi made a sign of protection while Sigrun merely chuckled and eyed the change with childlike interest.
Lynn simply stood there, resignation made flesh.
In moments the baroness' right forearm was a black claw, longer then her original arm, tipped with curving blades of black bone and scales. Her grin was oddly extended, showing pointed teeth as she spoke, the voice strangely bass in tone all of a sudden: "You want them? I will give you a chance to free them...shame you won't survive it."
A deep chuckle...and the woman that wasn't really a woman any more plunged her claw into the chest of the darkspawn, drawing a strangled howl out of it before it simply shuddered and collapsed against the claw in its chest. Somehow the baroness was easily able to hold the far larger creature upright as she dug deeper into the dead darkspawn's chest...a whispered chant escaping her lips.
"This can't be good..." Sigrun's mumble was barely perceivable as the air grew humid, a cold wetness suddenly pressing against Nathaniel's face, even though he couldn't see any reason for it.
The woman pulled her claw free in an explosion of gore, freeing a still beating heart from the darkspawn's chest, a victorious grin on her face as she looked down at the group beneath her. "I free you all...enjoy it for the brief moments of life left to you."
The heart in the woman's clawed hand suddenly glowed with sickly green light...
Should have shot her when I had the chance...
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Thanks to Abydos Jackson for her continued support.