Chapter 12
We arrived back at the Emerald Grove walking through the dusty cave the tiefling refugees called sanctuary from the forces of hell and the Absolute. The place Kagha and her Shadow Druids planned to throw them and their children from. I stormed towards the grove proper, my companions needing to take three steps to my one, I wasn't in the mood to be careful or slow.
As I arrived at the idol, I felt more power being pumped into it. They were getting ready to set off the ritual. This must end now. The door to the druid temple slid open and in the centre of the cave stood Kagha, surrounded by half a dozen rats. Guess she had to make use of them since her viper's jaws were blown off. She saw me approach and sneered. It was then I saw that Rath was with her, and I'm guessing he saw my face because he began looking very worried and quickly summoned four more druids to surround us.
"So, you have returned. I don't see Halsin. The old fool is dead then, good. Now have you come to beg my forgiveness, too little, too late. Leave now, and I would suggest telling the devils to do the same. This grove will be cleansed of parasites before sunset." Kagha said smug confidence dripping from her lips.
It took everything I had not to blast the elf to ashes, but Rath and the other druids needed to know their new leaders' true motivations, "Beg. No. Not my style. I'm here to talk to your loyal followers, I have a letter that they might find interesting."
Kagha's confidence cracked slightly in realisation but didn't fall, "What are you talking about there is nothing from you that will change their minds about our destined path."
Rath looked at me with curiosity and desperation, "What do have to say, wizard?"
"Kagha here has been a busy bee. She's been in contact with the Shadow Druids, it's their plan to seal the grove. And when it is done you will be under their control, with Kagha here as their head of command." I said enjoying every slight blow to Kagha's poker face my words created.
Kagha looked like she was about to mount a defence when the mice around began to glow and shift. Suddenly six humanoid figures stood around Kagha, all wearing minimal animal skin clothing and all covered with a fine layer of dirt. The Shadow Druids, one of them walked right up to Kagha. She was an older woman, about three foot tall, which Gale told me usually meant they were a halfling, with long and matted grey hair and tribal tattoos on her face and arms.
The druid halfling looked at me and said with annoyance, "Tsk. That damned nose of yours has gone poking in our business."
"Mistress Oloden I can explain…" Kagha said quickly.
"Shh-shh. No need. Couldn't be helped." Oloden interrupted sincerely.
"Kagha! Have you lost your mind? The Shadow Druids?!" Rath said with abject shock and anger.
"You and Halsin allowed untouchables into your midst. You defile the grove for the sake of 'harmony'" Oloden said contempt making her words daggers she wanted to screwier him with.
"Oloden speaks truth. Who among you disagrees? Who would see this grove in ruin?" Kagha rallied, looking at the other druids backing up Rath. They began to look between her and us.
"Those, 'untouchables' they plan to cast out to die are innocent people. People who came to you for safety in nature's warmth. You would abandon them to die while you barricade yourselves in with these traitors. Those who would murder a child for the crime of trying to protect her family." I said righteous fury and desperation working in tandem to urge the druids to consider.
Half of the druids looked down ashamed, while the others walked over to join their shadowy counterparts. "The choice is made. Kagha: burn the tainted away. Start with the snitch."
"With pleasure, Mistress Oloden" Kagha said turning a murderous smile to me, green light erupting from her palms, "Any last remarks, wizard?"
I grabbed my blasting rod, lighting both it and my staff with green/red fire, "Bring it, shadow bitch." And with that, the battle began.
It was chaos. It was my party, Rath and two druids vs. nine Shadow druids. Vines and spraying insects were fired, druids shapeshifted into bears and wolves ripped and clawed at each other. But I was focused on one target. Kagha. The murderous Arch-druid and I clashed magics, my fire meeting her summoned earth with an explosion of heated dirt. The sudden cloud of dust blinded me for a moment, giving Kagha the chance to change into a large white feathered owlbear. The creature that was Kagha looked similar to the mother I encountered in the cave except her piercing eyes contained the elf's murderous rage. Kagha swung a clawed paw at me, I turned downwards so it hit my armoured duster, but the blow still launched me across the room and felt like being hit by a petite sasquatch. The owlbear druid jumped into the air and towards my huddled form. I dodged to the side and slammed my staff down on the ground where I was, casting "Arctis Clavus!" A spike of hard ice ripped out of the earth and Kagha had no way of changing her course. The owlbear slammed down on the improvised trap and rolled onto its back in pain, blood soaking its pale feathers. She wasn't done though, so I threw my staff down to the ground, readied my force rings and punched the ice spike deeper into her chest, setting off the rings as I did. Owlbear Kagha's screech turned into a wail as yellow light burst from her and she was just an elf again. I looked at the still form of the Archdruid satisfied. I took a moment to look at my hand. It was red with blood and a part of the bone was sticking out of two fingers. Setting off the force rings while hitting a physical target was not a good idea, and while I couldn't feel the pain, I needed to get this healed quickly. It was during this thought I realised my mistake. Kagha was unmoving, but there was no ice-spike-shaped hole in her. A vine combined with Kahga's leg swept me to my back. More vines came wrapping around my legs, tying my hands down and tightening around my throat.
I looked around me as the vines gripped even tighter. The Shadow Druids were overwhelming my allies. Four of them were trapping Karlach and Astarion who were able to slash and smash at the druid's spells and animals individually with no issue, two on each side meant no cut was without a responding bite or burn, and they couldn't assist the other without compromising themselves. Two of the druids were attacking Gale and like Kagha, were blinding my fellow wizard so he couldn't cast his signature lightning bolt. The last two were fighting Shadowheart, Rath and the other two Grove Druids, but they were probably the most experienced as they both turned into not animals, but tall armoured, ethereal beings made of fire and lightning. The fire being swiped at the group with its flaming sword, while the lightning creature swept its flail in an upward motion creating a whirlwind that cut off the air inside it, leaving the druids and cleric unable to speak their spells.
The horror show was interrupted by Kagha's smiling mouth and maddening eyes, which stared at me with a desperate and furious lust to rip into me. She stared at me right in the eyes. I wasn't sure if the magically inclined of this universe had the same issue with prolonged eye contact as the wizards in my world had, but the eyes were still, as always, a window to the soul. In the soul gaze, Kagha appeared as a beautiful flower, new in bloom. Innocent and pure, but darkness spread ever closer to the flower, rotting all that touched it. All the fears, doubts and misconceptions Kagha ever had over Halsin's teachings, the ill adventures that lead the druids to the grove, and the desire to do something more than sit and wait for balance to settle nature's woes were in that spreading darkness. Finally, the darkness spread to the flower rotting and corrupting Kagha's core, her faith in their god and her teacher. And then the soul gaze was over.
I don't know what people see when they look at my soul, but the general reaction I get from people doesn't fill me with hope it's anything good. Kagha stumbled back, fear replacing the mad bloodlust, "What are you? Why are you here?!" Kagha screamed, her focus waning on the vine spell.
I was able to choke out a simple reply, "I made you a promise." And I ripped my unbroken hand from my restraints, pulled my revolver from my duster and fired at a shock-stunned Kagha. The shot ripped through her throat causing hot blood to burst onto my face and chest. Not only that, but the unfamiliar sound of a firearm also distracted the Shadow Druids enough for my allies to counterattack.
Gale, wiping the dirt from his eyes, shot a massive cacophony of lightning at his two assailants, roasting them into twitching husks. Astarion and Karlach got a second wind and in the confusion killed one of each of their attackers and grouped to fight the other two, soon each had either a limb cut off or a throat torn out. Gale was also able to dispel the cyclone cutting off the druids' and Shadowheart's voices. All my allies descended on the ethereal beings. Flashes of radiant light, lightning and green power flooded my vision until the beings were simply the Shadow Druids again. A human-looking one was bashed about the head with Shadowheart's mace until his skull was caved in, and the final druid, Mistress Oloden was pinned to the ground by tree roots coming out of Rath's foot. The dark-skinned druid looked at the halfling with contempt then turned to his wolf who had lost an ear in the conflict, "Silver. Kill." At his master's command the wolf snapped his jaws on the woman's neck and ripped out a chunk of meat and blood.
I tried to get up but was pushed back down by Shadowheart, who was able to get across the room with a remarkable speed, "Stay down Harry. You have at least a minor concussion, broken ribs and… a broken hand, how did you manage that?"
"Oh, you know. Punched a spike of ice into an owlbear-shapeshifted druid while setting off magic force rings with enough power to launch an elephant. So, the usual." I said with a weak and tired smile
She smiled back at me in half amusement and half annoyance, "You are the craziest person I have ever, and I'm including the ones that I don't remember because they can't be more foolheaded than you."
"Quite the compliment, thank you dear cleric of the Dark Lady."
"Oh, shut up and let me heal you, fool."
I did what I was told, and the injuries of the fight disappeared in a flash of light and heat. Shadowheart went to heal the rest of the survivors when Rath came up to me, "I'm so sorry, the destruction Kagha caused… is inexcusable. She strayed so far from Silvanas' teachings. I hoped Halsin returning would calm her down, but she only used his disappearance to enact this plan."
"It's not me that needs your apologies, or your protection Rath," I said staring at him intently.
Rath looked down in shame, "Of course, the tieflings. They will have a safe harbour here until they are ready to go. But please, fulfil your promise. Find Halsin. He can help you, and we need him if we are ever able to move on from this."
"I didn't plan on leaving him to die, Rath. I'll find the real Arch-Druid."
"Thank you… I never got your name."
"Harry Dresden, at your battered and annoyed service," I said a cheeky grin appearing on my lips.
"Thank you, Harry Dresden."
After getting patched up we went back to the refugees, to talk of Zevlor. We found him at the end of the cave behind another sliding rock door.
When he noticed us, he said, "I'm told the druids have stopped their damn chanting. What happened?"
"Kagha's dead, I killed her," I said a note of dark satisfaction in my voice.
"Really. Unfortunate but if it had to be done… what happens now?"
"Rath has agreed to let your people stay for as long as you need."
"Truly? Ilmater's ashes, that makes things a lot less dire." Zevlor said in intense relief. "We still have the goblins to contend with, but you've given us time. On that note, I have more to ask of you."
"What do you need?" I asked.
"You've bought us some time here. But the goblins are still massing out there. We'd need an army of our own to escort us safely to Baldurs Gate, and while I don't doubt your abilities… you're no army. There may be a way though. Goblins are ill-disciplined- it's unlike them to organise so cleverly. Somebody must be leading them, bringing discipline to their ranks. Take out that leadership, and they'll scatter. It's no small task, but I've seen you all fight, you're equal to the task."
In reaction to this mission, Gale and Shadowheart nodded in approval, Karlach did a fist pump up to the air with a battle-cried 'Fuck yes!', and Astarion whined, "Urgh, it'll take hours to kill them all, we should just go."
I kicked Astarion, who was behind me, in the leg and told Zevlor, "We need to rescue the druid Halsin from the goblins so we'll see what we can do about the goblin leaders."
"Everyone in this camp depends on it. Thank you. We will pay you what we can when the job is done." The mention of payment made Astarion perk back up, guess he's on board.
With our mission clear and location ready we went back to camp, to rest up for the infiltration of an Absolutist cultist goblin camp. Isn't my life wonderful?