Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

For years, Riley and Gortash have prepared their plot. Taking the Crown of Karsus provided the means while carving the “Absolute” symbol into the flesh of her plaything provided a perfect cover. From there, taking control over the Elderbrain was a masterstroke. In one move they have now controlled a force strong enough to enslave the minds of all mortal life in all the planes, and that wasn’t even the best part! The Brain even seemed to be willing to follow her, which meant the other Chosen would not wrestle control of it whilst she lived. While the crown would remain for redundancy sake their plot to control, and in her case destroy, the world was nearing completion, all they had to do was wait.

Riley begins to exit the Mindflayer colony so that she may finally finish her work, her purpose, her destiny! Soon the armies of the Absolute will march on Baldur’s Gate, unleash their fury on all those left in their wake, and Gortash will turn the people of Baldur’s Gate into chattel. From there slaughtering all living beings is only a whim away, how utterly divine. In due time, she would be the last living soul so that she may dedicate the destruction of the world to her god, for her Father! The pieces are almost all in place and now it’s only a matter of time until the prism is found and the game ends.

Though this is not to say all players on the board are playing along perfectly, as standing in front of Riley is her sister, Orin, standing in a corridor. A stone desk being the only true decoration in the room as the sounds of the colony fade from focus.

“What is it, sister?” Riley states,her voice annoyed “You’re not one to appear without purpose, so name it.”

Though the woman who stands in front of her is a Changeling, Orin still bears Fathers blood. “Oh bloodkin, why are you so dull all the time? You bind your blade to the follower of Bane and your murders are oh so mundane. You have made murder ugly.” Orin’s annoyance mirroring her sisters,

“I’ve told you this before, Father does not care for beauty. Have you lost your sense? Or do you not recall the countless other times we’ve grappled with this?” Riley’s grip on the situation slipping as her mind remembers the other dozen or so times Orin and her had this very conversation.

“Has Father told you that? You always flaunt how much he loves you, how proud you are to have his blood in your infernal veins.” Orin paces around, blade in hand. Then she turns into an identical version of Riley. From the red skin to her infernal green eyes, to the curled horns, even down to the monastic disguise she wears and the voice she speaks with, “How are you Father’s favorite? How he carved you of his own flesh and created you into the world? That none are more worthy of Father’s favor than yourself?” Orin’s agitation growing.

“Spit out your point sister or leave me to my plot.” Riley declares, angrily, “like it or not, this is the best way to kill for Father. When I am the last being left alive-”

Orins form reverts from Tiefling and back to Changeling quickly, “-Oh, so you know what’s best for Father? You know that it will be you who stands upon the corpse of the world and offers it to Father? Oh, of course, you will be. You’re his favorite daughter after all. You think you’re so special-”

“Oh, I'm sorry, are you the leader of the Cult of Bhaal? Are you his Chosen?” Riley gets closer to her sister, “do you lead his followers? Are you Bhaal’s first pureborn daughter? No!” Riley shouts, “I am! I know what Father wants, what he cares for! You think he cares for beauty? For the art of the kill? No! He cares for the blood! When we stand upon the world with all life extinguished he will want the world presented by his own pure flesh, not some half breed like you. And what? Do you think Father wants the world’s death because of its beauty or because he cares for death itself! I’ll give you a hint, he wants everyone bit of life snuffed out! It does not matter how many times you complain about this! I understand you desire beauty, but he does not care!”

“He does!” Orin’s cry sounded like that of a child in the midst of a tantrum “He does! He does! He does! He has always cared for beauty! His followers have not heard his divine proclamations in years because YOU refuse to do what he desires! You butcher and bleed and carve and cleave with no taste, with no sense! No intrigue! No artistry!”

“Stop whining! I have gouged infants that were more silent than you, and at least they were delicious. Gods must you always act like a child wanting attention from your-oh. That makes sense.” Riley’s posture becomes more confident, more knowing, “Your mother tries to murder you so now you demand attention from everyone else in your family. And since your Grandfather is tending to the Murder Tribunal and Father is divine, you must pester me.” Riley’s face stares back at her sister with a sly grin.

“QUIET! You just love to talk and talk and talk about Father. About how much he loves you because you're his favorite, but you haven’t shown him HALF the devotion I have!”

“Enough!” Riley shouts, “if all you came here to do was yell then leave!” Riley begins to surge past her sister. “I have important matters to de-”

Before she can finish, however, Riley feels the familiar singe of a blade stab through her abdomen. First comes the shock of the attack, keeping her from reacting. Following that, Riley’s limbs fall slack as she fully understands what her sister has planned. Her limp body falls back on the stone desk next to her, feeling more like a ceremony to Bhaal rather than any ordinary murder, as her sister finally returns to her view.

With a smile on her face, Orin plucks Bloodthirst from Riley’s waist and begins to stab her sister over and over and over again. Riley’s eye becomes a gaping hole into her gray matter, the pain indescribable. If she could speak, her scream would be heard from Baldur's Gate to Waterdeep. Once the blade stops, Orin grabs a mindflayer tadpole and inserts it into Riley’s eye. The ultimate insult, from the leader to the absolutist plot to the first True Soul, the first victim,the first puppet.

Leaving her sister in their bloody heap, Orin walks out of Moonrise and heads back to Baldur’s Gate to assume control over Bhaal’s cult. And in doing so, Orin unknowingly dooms both her sister's plot as well as her own.

—

Over time the experiments on the corpse began to consume his wife. What started as her merely finding a near-dead body to experiment on had turned into him watching as that body was molded into a near perfect tool for violence. Day in and day out Kressa would disassemble and reassemble the body

And he could not help but get worried. She was his wife, and in all their time together Maghtew never saw her consumed in her work. It was worrisome, and it did not help that when the cadaver was conscious it would try to murder his wife. And he figured a fair solution. In a day or so the Nautiloid was to be unleashed, and it would collect peoples from all across the planes. He could easily arrange for this body to be planted in that ship. Perhaps once this thing is removed from her sight then maybe Kressa would rest well.

—

As the Nautiloid took flight the last pieces of Riley’s mind put themselves back together. Memories of murders past were gone. Her history, gone. All knowledge of their past, out of reach. Their whole identity, except for their name is erased. Almost all aspects that made Riley the Red the most vile and vicious murderer this side of the Sword Coast fell to the wayside as bits of grey matter reassembled.

As the layers of her very being were carved away, in part from her sister's blade and in part from the tadpole residing in her skull, another soul was reborn. Not the child of Bhaal but the child born outside of Bhaal’s temple, once destroyed as her Father called, received new life in that Nautiloid.

As the Nautiloid continues its flight and as it gathers more victims, one observer notices Riley. For when the Emperor, safely locked away in his Astral Prism gazes upon a pureblooded Bhaalspawn with a mind fractured like a broken mirror, and sees potential. They see one with the power to stop the Grand Design, to stop the Absolute. And in doing so, they grant Riley protection from the monster she helped make.

Unbeknownst by Orin or the Emperor, though, two parts of Riley’s mind were not fully destroyed by the tadpole nor Orin’s blade. For all their damage, Orin failed to destroy her sister's free will nor her autism.

Chapter Text

Under normal circumstances, waking up on a beach with a skull splitting headache would be evidence of a hell of a night out. And in a strange sense, that isn’t entirely wrong. Though normally the process would involve a lot more alcohol and a lot less mindflayers. 

As evident by the giant carapace of the Nautiloid, though, last night was not a normal night of revelry. With little more than her name, a stick, and a cool rock she found on the beach Riley rises to her feet and begins to explore.

Searching around she found a few new friends. That reserved cleric, the wizard with a neat beard, and the vampire who thinks no one has noticed the fangs. Or the pale skin. Or how he looks at everyone like he’s going to eat them. They also met a Githyanki but she’s being rude so she’s been grounded in camp. As Riley reassesses what’s going on, and does her best to remember what their names are, she hears a cry coming from just out of view. Deciding to check it out, she walks towards a small, well it’s not quite a hill but it’s not a boulder. Mound? Yeah mound feels like the right word.

As the party approached the top of the mound they caught sight of two stalking goblins hiding next to the ledge. Over the crest, the party overhears the desperate pleas of humans trying their damnedest to get to safety. As the gate falls and the humans form a rudimentary line, another human with some eldritch power…jumps down from the highground to engage in melee? What? That’s kinda dumb, dude could have just stood up there raining eldritch power down without much risk of retaliation. Oh well, there’ll be time after the fight to give him a lil shit for that blunder.

The party seems to be not so enthusiastic about engaging in this fight, Astarion and Shadowheart seeming disinterested in the pleas for help while Gale seems to be the only moral man here. But how could they be so disinterested? Look at all the lovely blood that’s just waiting to be spilled! Riley’s excitement and giddiness can’t be contained as she rushes the first goblin archer that she can reach on the perch and she starts to pummel the wretched creature into the dirt. Her quarterstaff finds a nice place above the brow to land, causing Riley’s smile to go as wide as can be from the new puddle of blood. Turning to their friend, Riley rushes forward to push the other goblin off of their peak. 

Fortune must be smiling on her as the goblin loses its footing and falls down to the earth, its skull opening as it lands in an eruption of blood. To her right, Riley watches as her friends start to have fun as firebolts from Gale and Shadowheart are let loose towards that pathetic excuse for a leader they have down there while Astarion fires an arrow towards the next closest goblin. The goblins don’t even turn to face them, with their Worg trying to sink their teeth into some lovely man-flesh only to taste the club held by the flesh-bag. The eldritch ally of theirs seems to cast some spell which oh so deliciously decimates a goblin.

Riley’s smile grows ever wider as she watches the humans and goblins fight, but she begins to fear that she may miss out on more of the killing if she stays up here. Making haste she rushes down and prepares to unleash a flurry of blows on the Hobgoblin as more arrows and bolts of flame rain down upon the beast. With her opening, Riley barely grazes the Hobgoblin with her first strike but manages to push the arrow deeper inside the creature, causing its eyes to widen as the life fades fast as it falls lifelessly to the ground. Alas the Worg still has some fight left in it, taking a good bite at that club wielding human. It’s a real shame that the thing didn’t rip his throat out, the fields could use the scent of more human blood to balance out the goblin. Though before Riley can finish her fun, the eldritch human swiftly ends the Worg with a blast to the brain, killing it in moments. With the last body finally falling still, Riley hears a voice call to “Open the gates!” as the moment passes and her senses return to normal as she assesses her surroundings. The air smelt of blood, mainly from the goblins but a few faint hints of human and Tiefling break through. The ground drenched in blood is a sight that’s a bit more familiar than Riley expected it to be . 

Looking back towards her companions as they fast approach the gate, Riley yet again has to shelve her introspection so that she can focus on figuring out what’s going on. Following the humans she is greeted by the sight of a Tiefling and the human with the club. Judging by their expressions, the pair might start another fight right after the previous one. Judging by their heated words Riley knows she has to be calm, collected, reasonable, and diplomatic to prevent these two from trading blows.

“Can you two pretty please not kill each other?” Says Riley.

“Shut it imp!” Declares the human, the desire to hit him growing stronger even as her urge keeps its distance.

“That imp just saved your hide,” The Tiefling says, sighing “but you have a point, albeit in a roundabout way. Go back to the others, Aradin, I wish to speak to this outsider.”

The human, apparently named Aradin, mutters something that Riley couldn’t be asked to give a shit about before he fucked right off. “How’d an asshat like that end up working with you?”

“Believe me, if I could choose other guards I would have done so already.But right now our options are not so plentiful. Still, I believe I do owe you thanks for lending your assistance at the gate.”

Riley nods. “No problem. I mean I couldn’t just leave you to die, right?” She says, trying to cover up the fact that half the reason she even joined the fight was so she could partake in the slaughter herself . “Oh! Not to get side tracked,” said the person who’s about to get sidetracked, “but where are we?”

“We are currently in a druid's grove, or the Emerald Grove to be more precise. The former Archdruid, Halsin, allowed us to take refuge here. However, in his absence the druid Kagha has taken the role of Archdruid and she is currently conducting a ritual that would force us out. Which brings me to my request. For helping us at the gate, Kagha is going to want to talk to you. If there is anything you can do to help us, I ask you to do it.”

Ok, shitty situation to be in. From the look of their defenses and livestock these people are refugees, now forced to pick whether to apply more pressure to the rock or the hard place. Riley could help the goblins butcher these fools but she feels that these Tieflings deserve a break. Looking to her allies, she begins to speak. “Alright gang, first we’ll talk to this Kagha figure then we’ll find a healer.” She turns back to the Tiefling leader. “Oh, by the way, I’m Riley.” She extends her hand.

Taking her hand and shaking it, with fair strength, the Tiefling man responds. “And I am Zevlor, the leader of this group.”

Riley, after shaking for a moment, retracts her hand. “Nice to meet you. Anyways we got some things to take care of right quick so we’ll be back once we’re done. See ya!” Riley says as she begins to walk deeper into the Enclave.

  As she begins to walk away she can hear Zevlor ask “Does she do this often?” to her companions. 

“Apparently,” says Gale.

“Unfortunately,” quips Astarion.

“As far as I am aware, yes.” Shadowheart states, followed by an exhausted sigh. 

A normal person might take offense at that, but Riley was far from normal so it isn’t a big deal. Proceeding down the path down towards the druids, yeah that’s definitely a ritual being conducted, Riley encounters that eldritch man she just saw fighting at the gate. Right now he’s teaching a few kids some sword fighting basics as if they’d survive any encounter with a foe like herself. Approaching she watches as one child makes two pathetic, or more diplomatically put, poor attempts at attacking him. It’s good practice, and hearing how they just need to run instead of fight was a bit inspirational. 

As some eyes fall upon Riley, she decides to enter the lesson and pitch in. “He’s right ya know. Not every foe can be beat in a fight, sometimes you just have to run. Take that to heart kids, it’ll get you far. Literally.”

With a few smiles growing wider at those words of encouragement, the children get back to practice. As the two lock eyes Riley’s mind merges. She is the Blade of Frontiers, racing through Avernus. Ahead is a diabolical figure, skin red like her very own, one horn as opposed to Riley’s two, coated in flames, and wielding a bloody battle axe. Before the Blade of Frontiers gets a moment to speak, Riley starts “Oh cool, that saves us a lot of time. Me and these guys over here,” she gestures towards the others, “were all also on that ship and we’re trying to figure out a way to get these tadpoles out. You in?”

The Blade, weirdly taking a second to process her rather straightforward message, gathers himself before nodding. “It seems I have few other options, don’t I?”

Riley, her curiosity getting the better of her, prepares her flurry of questions. “So, what’s your name and who was that Tiefling lady?”

“Ah, where are my manners? I am Wyll Ravenguard, the Blade of Frontiers. As for your second question, that was no Tiefling but a great demon. Zariels attack dog, Karlach.”

Riley’s mind merges with Wylls for a moment, imagery of who could only be Karlach fill her mind. An imposing figure slashing its way through the hells as their axe only bloodies further, though Riley’s examination of the figure doesn’t change her mind. That isn’t a demon, that’s a Tiefling. She’s pretty sure she can identify a fellow Tiefling. “Ah, that’s not something I’m gonna get used to. But Wyll, my guy, that’s a Tiefling.You’re hunting a Tiefling, not a demon. Totally a Tiefling.” 

“You say that now, but if you see that towering one-horned demon before I get a chance to end it then you’ll know I speak the truth.” 

Weirdly insistent that the Tiefling is a demon, but if he’s spent a few months hunting them then it’d make sense if he simply didn’t want to deal with any more annoying little questions when the big kill draws closer. Oh well, she’ll let it pass. Maybe she’s wrong too? After all she’s just looking at his memories of an event, it’s not like she’s looking at it right now. “Eh, potato, tomato, carrot. By the way, Wyll, I’m going to go talk to Kagha about getting some help for either our tadpoles or the Tieflings. I’ll meet back at camp once I’m done talking to her and I’ll catch y’all up.” Riley says as she points on her map where camp is before walking away, just as the rest of her allies make it to her.

Wyll turns to the party“Is she always like that-”

“Yes.” a more defeated Gale says.

“If only she weren’t” goes Astarion.

“I fear this won’t be the last time she does that.” A tired Shadowheart states.

Again, valid criticisms. Riley’s still pretty confident she wasn’t socialized properly and her sense of social decorum is severely flawed, however while she is self aware this does not mean that  she, in fact, gives a shit. Plus, she finds those dramatic exits to be fun. Passing a kid staring off into the void and two kids trying to pawn off utter garbage, she finds her way stopped by a crowd of Tiefling adults blocked by a handful of druids. After one druid turns into a very huggable bear, many of the Tieflings disperse leaving her on her lonesome as her companions finally make it in time. Oh well, here’s hoping the meeting with Kagha goes well.

—

Holy fucking shit, that could have gone so better. Before they even have a chance to talk to Kagha she nearly fucking kills a kid and Riley had to talk her down and shit but fucking hell, if luck hadn’t been on her side that kid would be a goner. Then Shadowheart has some magic pain she has to deal with, then Gale admits he needs to fucking EAT a magic item or else he blows up, and finally Nettie says she can’t help so instead she just handed Riley poison to kill herself in case of transformation.

So after dealing with that, Riley thought it’d make sense to check out that temple nearby. Maybe it had some goblins or clues on where to go next? Turns out there were some looters who were searching it for some treasure. Following that they go to the basement only for a handful of other skeletons to just get back up and start a fight, THEN it turns out there’s a bone-man …thing…whatever this Withers fellow is. It may have been a tough fight…had Riley not instinctively started looting their weapons as soon as they entered the room. It was a bit funny to watch the skeletons just punch people. 

Going back to the grove to see if they have a lead, and totally not because Riley needed to sell off all of the gear they just “acquired.” Going to Zevlor, Riley prepares a few questions. “So…quick question. We’re helping you guys fight the goblins, obviously, but I kinda forgot to ask where they are or if there’s anything I need to know. So…can you help with that?”

“I may be able to assist, though our information on the camp is scarce seeing how our scouting party includes Aradin. The Goblins camp is to the west and they’re commanded by a Drow.”

“Great! Thanks!” Riley says as she exits his…does this count as an office or is it Zevlors room? Who knows? Not her, that's for sure. Alright, plan time. First, find someone who can pass as a drow. Then they walk right into the goblin encampments like they own the place. Once the guards think we’re all friends, the disguise won’t be needed and we can just go back to camp and finally hit the hay.

Turning towards the party, Riley begins relaying her thoughts to her companions. “Alright, I have a plan on how we can infiltrate the goblin camp. For this to work we need someone to disguise themselves as a drow woman.”

“What a way to start an explanation, go on,” Astarion quips.

“Thank you. So here’s my thinking: the goblins have drow leaders, right? And drow aren’t known for being surface dwellers, right?” Riley pauses waiting for the others to encourage her. 

“It’s not unheard of, but generally yes a drow in the sun is about as common as a wizard in a gymnasium.” Astarion says as all eyes move to Gale. All eyes going up and down, gauging how infrequently he goes to the gym.

“A fair point, I suppose.” Gale said, sounding slightly hurt but also fully aware of his weaknesses. “But you don’t look to be any stronger than I.”

“Right,” Riley calls out,  “so when the goblins see a surface dwelling drow with the other three of us, they’re gonna think we’re with them. So they’ll just let us in and then after a bit of looking around we can leave and head back to camp. And from then on, the goblins will think we’re friends so they’ll just let us in! Easy peasy lemon cheesy! Any questions?”

“While this isn’t the worst plan I ever heard, what makes you say drow are important instead of there being a few important drow among the goblins ranks?”

“Well if they pick a fight we’ll kill them and just go to camp early. Sounds good?”

“Ah, quick question? Who exactly do you think among our group would pass as a drow? I mean, between myself and Shadowheart neither of us look the part and I don’t think a Tiefling could pass as one.”

Riley locks eyes with Astarion, a scroll of Disguise Self in hand,“Thank you for volunteering Astarion” 

“... Gods damn it.” 

Chapter Text

Great news, the plan worked. They just walked right into the decimated village and the Goblins let them through. Didn’t even take five minutes. They just walked in like they belonged and bam, free access with or without Astarion in drag. No questions asked. There was that weird bit with the dead dwarf and his tadpole…something about “True Souls” or some crap like that. Honestly Riley couldn’t be bothered with the pair of siblings so she just told them to book it. So, like, are the goblins part of a cult instead of just like regular bandits? That’d explain the whole situation with the drow. 

Bad news, a fucking devil showed up. Not like a metaphorical or rhetorical or even a hyperbolic devil but an honest to gods devil showed up and promised that he can get their little worms out of their head. Horns and Wings and all the like. Riley may not know much, be it from either her impaired intelligence stemming from the memory loss or the natural stupidity she finds really funny, but she knows a bad idea when she sees one. That bitch probably has a lot of wild details in the fine print that she’s not yet read and, therefore, cannot trust him.

Great news part two, Riley’s adopted a dog. His name is Scratch, his fur is white and very fluffy. He is adorable and he now has a new home and if anything happens to him, gods forbid anything happens to him else both Riley and her Urge will both agree to raise literal hell. He loves scratches behind the ear and pats on his side and hugs and pets. He is the best boy and Riley will fight over this.

Overall, good day. Though before she hit the hay Riley had a…unique conversation with Wyll. When they were talking about deals with devils he got…unusually defensive. His eye, the flesh one and not the stone one, grew the second she started to rant on how terrible of an idea it was. In hindsight, he is a warlock so that might just be it. His patron could be a lesser devil, or something like that.

When it was finally time to rest her head, she was interrupted by Astarion going to take a bite out of her neck. And while it was nice of him to confess, and she does appreciate his honesty, literally everyone at camp knew he was a vampire. Shadowheart commented on how pale he was, Wyll caught his fangs, and Riley remembers the visions from the alleyway stalking, him hunting his prey. Pretty big give away in her eyes.

Shadowheart wasn’t much for conversation, nor was Lae’zel. Both were rather reserved and mainly focused on their mission. Lae’zel seems…focused and at least Shadowheart is sympathetic towards Riley since she’s somewhat familiar with memory loss. Riley tried to push that topic but Shadowheart didn’t want to talk about it and Riley was not about to piss off the only Cleric they know. 

After finally getting a full night's rest, and taking a moment to acknowledge the walking mummy, Withers, that just…hangs around camp, Riley gathers her new friends and they begin to make their way out. Astarion, after having been voluntold to turn back into the drow woman got the group into the whole of the goblins camp proper.

Initially it appeared the journey would be of no note. But when they crossed the bridge into the party Riley, and by extension the rest of the party, fell to the ground only to be plagued by visions. A powerful voice filled their ears as visions of strangers appeared. Strangers they were meant to…serve? Why? Was this that Absolute figure that these goblins worship? And that feminine figure seemed…familiar. Who knows why or how but hey, it is what it is. As the vision’s grip tightens Riley watches as the artifact…artefact? Which is it again? Anyway the artifact Shadowheart was keeping on her. After it emitted some strange power, the voice rescinded and the world returned to normal. Turning to Shadowheart, Riley decides that right now some secrets are gonna have to come to light. “Ok, what the hells was that?”

“Don’t give that look. I don’t know what just happened any more than you?” She states defensively.

“Alright, ok. In that case, what is that thing?” In reference to the artefact, deciding that’s a more pressing topic than the energy it emitted. 

“I…don’t know.” She says, her tone softening.

“Fucking hells. I won’t hold it against you given, well, my amnesia kinda means I know nothing of my life but in the future, tell us what you can about that thing.” Turning towards the rest of the party, Riley takes a headcount “Alright, I am going to assume everyone else heard that voice, right?”

“Indeed.” Wyll states, still somewhat taken aback by the sudden…is it divine intervention? Does that count?

“That would be correct, unless of course one of us happens to be a lunatic” Astarion adds, staring daggers at Riley.

Riley chooses to ignore Astarion’s comment,“So…I guess going forward tell us more if you can. Onto other topics, I’m not sure we can kill all these guys just yet, so how about we find that Tiefling you're hunting Wyll.”

“I will repeat myself, they are not a Tiefling.” Wyll says as he grows increasingly more agitated.

Riley turns to Astarion without missing a beat “Ten gold says they’re a Tiefling.” Her hand extends with her offer. 

“Oh, this sounds fun. Count me in.” He says, accepting her handshake.

—

After deciding to depart from the Goblin Camp, at least for the moment, the gang starts exploring around to see if they can find any sign of that Karlach fella and settle once and for all if she is a devil or not.

After crossing the river right by where they found Scratch, they find a rather large trail of blood. Up above them, a bridge and a small trading post. In front of them, a Tiefling woman who seems to be on fucking fire and a couple of day-or so old corpses.

As they approach, Wyll begins to march ever so slightly faster than the rest of the ground as they close in on the flaming Tiefling. “One horn, the stink of Avernus, Advocatus Diaboli .”

“That’s a Tiefling! So Astarion,” Riley says, cutting Wyll off “you owe me ten gold.”

“Quiet!” Wyll says, his anger at his target moving towards Riley for a brief moment. It is then that all of their tadpoles connect to one another, and Riley begins to watch the world from Karlach’s eyes. They watch as Karlach cleaves countless foes in two as she serves her mistress. Before Wyll can declare those visions of proof, though, other visions begin to flood into their minds, visions of Karlach defying her mistress and slaughtering Zariel’s servants as she tries to run. Through their tadpoles Riley can feel as Wyll’s worldview suddenly starts to crack. This is not a demon, not a beast, not a monster worth slaying. This woman, this Tiefling woman as Riley was so eager to point out, was a victim. Though as his heart began to accept Karlach’s innocence, his mind was not yet ready to follow suit. “No, I will not be tricked.”

Astarion, after producing his ten gold and handing it over to Riley, decides to pop in “Wyll, dear, you’ve already been tricked.” Wyll grows more stressed, his eyes daggers pointed towards the other Tiefling, “Wyll relax, we all saw the same thing. She’s not a demon, like I said, or a servant of Zariel. We’re good, the servant of Zariel’s gone. You’re good. Just breathe.”

“No! Devils cannot be trusted!” He declares, dread filling his face as his heart fully accepts the truth while his mind stubbornly refuses. 

Riley, in her very finite wisdom, realizes that distracting Wyll might be enough for him to fully accept the truth. “Wyll, I just caught this crazy fish. Are you hungry?”

Karlach, seemingly either catching what Riley was putting down or just ignoring it, presses the advance “Fucks sake, won’t you listen to sense? This doesn’t have to end badly for either of us.”

Wyll stands there for a moment, his tadpole letting Riley feel his reason triumph. “Shit, shit!” He shouts as Wyll finally realizes he cannot fulfil whatever deal he’s in. 

“So…for the time being can you two call a truce?” Riley begins to point at her head “We kinda got bigger fish to fry.”

“You can say that again. So, Mr Blade of the Frontiers, truce?”

“Aye, Truce.”

“Good, cause I have my own problems to deal with right now. I have a few people on my tail, so called Paladins of Tyr-”

“ We get to kill bad guys, sounds like fun, mind if we tag along .” Riley and the Urge say at once.

“Wicked! Let's do this.” Karlach adds.

“Hold on, that’s all it takes to convince you that she’s not a demon?” Wyll adds, a bit agitated given his weird thing with Karlach.

“We literally saw a demon like half an hour ago and he made literally zero effort to disguise his demonic presence, I can’t imagine the other demons doing the same.” Riley says with confidence.

“You met a demon earlier today?” Karlach says, intrigued.

“Yeah, he spoke in rhyme and was really obviously trying to get us to sell our souls to him.”

“Ah, one of those fuckers. They never seem to quit, do they?” Karlach adds.

“No, they don’t.” Riley replies. “It’s just annoying, honestly.”

“Ah don’t worry too much.” Karlach adds.

“Wait Wyll, we saw a devil earlier today and you still called Karlach one. Why?”

Wyll looks somewhat disheartened, “I was deceived, simple as that.”

Riley looks confused, “Who even deceived you?”

“Yeah,” Karlach adds, “I’ve been in the hells for ten years so it’s not like anyone from Baldur’s Gate’s going to be looking for me.”

“Oh you’re from Baldur’s Gate?” Riley asks, genuinely intrigued since she has a vague memory of being from there.

Karlach lights up, metaphorically and literally, “Yep, grew up in the Outer City with my folks.”

“Are you two done or are you going to deal with those paladins you mentioned earlier?” Shadowheart adds.

“Oh shit, slipped my mind.” Riley says, turning to Karlach, “You ready to split some skulls?”

Karlach grabs her axe, “Fuck yeah!” 

—

“Oh, you’re a Paladin of Tyr? Name three tenants.” Riley says as her and her companions' eyes flatly lay upon these false paladins. 

“You cannot seriously believe the word of that flaming beast over mine?!”

“One, I don’t do much seriously. Two, can and will. And three, I just read your thoughts and you didn't even think of two,” Riley says as she hears the bastard have some really strange thoughts about some Duchess.

“I’ll rip your tongue out liar.” Karlach says, venom pouring out as she calls this ass a liar. And judging by the sheer hate in her voice, Karlach might make good on that threat. Ooh! How exciting!

The liar, apparently deciding to drop the whole wounded paladin act, begins “Enough, enough. I won’t pretend anymore.” 

Riley’s eyes widened at that. Karlach has verifiably been proven to be chill, well metaphorically chill considering Karlach looks to be on fire, and these guys are liars. That means these are servants of devils, men who need to go. They’ve got to be evil people right? Right. As this false-paladin ends his tirade and Karlach begins her own anger-filled declaration, Riley can’t help but notice that one of these false-paladins is standing by the door, and the door is right by a cliff. Running off before Karlach finishes, she puts all her weight into sending one of the false-paladins to their grave. From behind her, Riley can hear as the rest of her companions begin to combat the remaining few. Returning to the frey, Riley watches as her companions struggle against the paladins. Watching Karlach get smote..smitten? Smited? Smote is funnier, get smote. Karlach, in turn, rams her battle axe into the paladin's side while Wyll and Shadowheart focus spells on the other one remaining. Wasting no time, Riley focuses her strength on finishing off Karlach’s foe. Riley’s first strike is dodged but her second and third strikes land, giving an opening for Karlach to finish him off. With two of the three paladins dead, the four tadpole-infected souls focus their ire on the last one standing.

They managed to strike Wyll with an arrow before Karlach and Riley could get close enough to end them, shame. Between her fists and Karlach’s axe the last paladin died before her head ever reached the ground. After the dust settled Karlach began to hype herself up, her frustrations still burning hot in the most literal sense. Looking around the wooden room and back towards the flaming hot tiefling they just befriended, Riley makes the executive decision to let Karlach vent her frustrations inside while Wyll, Shadowheart, and Riley herself mind their business outside. 

Once outside and witnessing Karlach break everything in sight, Riley’s urge subsides yet again. Thinking it over, it feels like Riley gets incredible amounts of joy from the act of killing. Frightening for sure, but at least she can decide who she kills and who she does not. 

Turning to Shadowheart “So…how are you feeling about our new fiery friend?”

“I like her. She looks like she could throw me over her shoulders and carry me to safety, should the need arise.” The last half said quickly, in a failed attempt to cover her own ass.

“I mean, fucking same,” Riley says, not bothering to hide her appreciation for Karlach’s physique, “but I was more going to say that she seems nice.” As soon as Riley says that, Karlach could be heard igniting then subsequently decimating a desk. “As well as fucking fierce as hell.”

“Ah, I see.” Shadowheart says, a slight amount of embarrassment creeping up. “Well, it appears she is kind.”

“Great recovery there, ten out of ten.” Riley says sarcastically. “I’ll totally forget what you said and I certainly won’t quote you on it in the future.”

“Shut it,” Shadowheart says, annoyed.

As she says that, the three watch as Karlach emerges from the now ruined trade post. “Phew. Had to let off a little steam after facing those ignot. Granted, the fire’s lasting a bit longer than it should. How do I look?”

Riley turns to Shadowheart and, with a smirk, looks back to Karlach. “Oh girl, you look hot as hell. But, ah…what’s that?” Riley says as her eyes lock onto the glowing part of Karlachs chest. 

“Ah. that? I got an infernal engine for a heart.” Karlach adds, like that’s the most obvious fucking thing in the world.

“Fucking hells, that’s both really cool and also really fucked. How do you deal with it?”

“High pain tolerance.” Karlach replies as if it were, again, the most obvious answer in the world.

“...I fucking guess. I know a smith that might be able to help, wanna go pay him a visit. Tiefling weaponsmith, so he’s probably our best bet.”

“Sure thing, might as well see if he can help or not.” Karlach says with enthusiasm.

—

So, as it turns out, Dammon couldn’t quite fix her engine but he did amp it up. He promises that if we meet again he’ll probably be able to fix her engine so at least we know it’s a waiting game. Other than that, the four of them did a fair amount of exploration when looking for the infernal iron needed to fix Karlach’s chest. They found a secret wizard’s basement, a giant spider that’d give any child nightmares, a shiny gem, a book made of human flesh that Riley thought was good literature, a dozen or so gnolls worth slaughtering , and saving a duegar who was tied to a windmill. All in all, a solid bit of adventuring there. Though after a long day of adventure, it was about time for everyone to hit the hay.

 Though as she began to ready herself for her rest, she found herself approached by a guest. A bard who wishes to spend the night in camp so they might be safe. A dragon born, Quil, who seems nice and harmless so of course the camp decides to let her stay the night.

What’s the worst that could happen?

Chapter Text

Blood.

As Riley’s eyes steady and her senses come to her she looks upon the scene in front of her.

Blood

The corpse of the bard, Quil, laying in a pool of her own blood…no that’s not all. Her blood is arranged in a pattern that Riley cannot discern. Her guts exposed, eyes blood red, her expression that of horror. Whatever killed her looked her in the eyes, gave her time to understand what was happening. There is no way all that damage, all that blood, was spilled while she was still alive. Whatever killed her didn’t stop attacking when the blood stopped running.

Blood

Looking down towards her hands, Riley can feel the warmth of the dragonborns blood coating her flesh like a shroud. She can just imagine what it was like to end this fool. Riley looks around, no one else around. No other possible culprit, nor any known reason. Riley was certain she was asleep moments ago, yet there’s no doubt that this murder was by her hands. 

Blood

There is no explaining this, no reason Riley can come up with for why she killed her. It’s just not logical. It’s as if she murdered her for the simple pleasure of ending an innocent life. Riley tries to go through her mind to find an explanation, either a memory of the murder or of her past to explain the crime, but all efforts are in vain. 

Blood

Now the question is what to do. There’s no point in hiding it, the bloody rune around the corpse needs a few hours to clean . Riley pulls out a scroll of revivify but alas, the body won’t respond. Riley runs to the river and begins to wash the blood off her hands, her hands growing numb as the cold takes hold. A shame that she couldn’t keep the blood, it was all nice and warm.  

Once her hands were clean, Riley approached Withers. He’s a magic skeleton and he’s promised to revive her before, so if anyone’s gonna know how to bring Quil back it’d be him, right? In a hushed tone, she begins to plead with him. “Withers, I don’t know what the fuck I did but Quil is dead. Bring her back”

“The bard’s death is a weight for thine conscious to bear. She will be left to the peace of eternity, where the Urge shall seek her no more.”

Returning to the corpse while doing her best to keep whispering, Riley vents her frustration. “Fuck,fuck,fuck,fuck,fuck!” 

What now? She has to own up to the act, but at the same time she has no fucking clue what to do? She’s just killed a woman for, as she continues to remind herself, no known fucking reason. Does she start to dig a grave? That’d be a nice thing to do? But the others are asleep and she’s got…how long till sunrise? Hazard a guess, like an hour or so? That’d be enough time? Right? 

First things first, Riley puts a scavenged blanket atop the body. They don’t have a regular shroud but this will work for the moment. Then, Riley grabs a shovel from her pack quietly and walks a short ways away from camp, crossing the fallen tree and over the river. Finding a body-sized patch of dirt, she begins to start digging her hole as silently as possible. 

Minutes go by,seconds feel like they drag and her interrupted rest is beginning to gnaw at her. Yet she does not flake or fail, pushing through her exhaustion. Finally, after what felt like an hour and a half, the grave is complete. Ok, part two is complete. Part three now would be…moving the corpse. The corpse that’s in the middle of camp. The camp which is now illuminated by the morning light. The very-awake camp who have seen the body. Ok…shit. Coming clean is important but it’s not exactly going to be an easy conversation. 

“Gods, what the hells is this?” Karlach explains, confusion and anger dominating her tone as Riley approaches the small crowd that has formed.

“I…I don’t really know. I think I killed her in the night but I don’t remember what the fuck happened. I don’t know when or why ... gods why’d I do it?” Riley says as her composure breaks.

“So how about you get started on telling us what you DO know?” Karlach says as a hint of sympathy emerges in spite of her, very appropriate, anger.

“I…awoke standing…here.” Riley says as she positions herself in the appropriate spot. “She was already dead and my hands were covered in blood. I…didn’t know what to do. I can’t remember anything about why I did it. I was just…possesed.”

“Ah,well. Fuck me.” Karlach says, her fury lowering as she begins to understand the rather insane circumstances. “Maybe it was the tadpole?”

“I fucking guess? But…I don’t know. Whatever the reason, I’m giving her a proper burial.” Riley says as she approaches the body. “May I?” After Karlach moves out of the way, Riley picks up the shrouded corpse of Quil and walks towards the grave she dug with Karlach following shortly behind.

After laying the body in the grave, Riley begins to fill it in. While the rest of their companions prepare themselves for the coming day, Karlach looks over to her murderous associate. “Anything you know that might have caused this? Did you hit your head on the nautiloid? Any history with demonic possession? Anything like that?”

Riley shakes her head as she continues to fill the grave. “Amnesiac here. So…I can only remember the past two or so days. Probably hit my head really hard on the way down. I…I do have some violent urges but I don’t know how that’d translate to me killing someone when I’m not even awake.”

“Yeah, that’d probably do it.” Karlach says before the two return to silence. As minutes pass the dirt covers the whole of the dragonborn. Following this, Riley leaves a sword and a lute on the site of the body. Over the body, Riley apologies.

“I’m so fucking sorry. I’m sorry, I don’t know what happened, I don’t know why I did it, I don’t know why I can’t bring you back. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I'm sorry.” With tears flowing, Riley begins to repeat the phrase “I’m sorry.”

After a little while, the tears stop and Riley goes silent. Wiping her tears, she rises to her feet and readies herself for the day. Before crossing the log towards the rest of the camp, Karlach extends a hand and nearly grabs Riley’s shoulder before remembering her..predicament.  “I don’t care if it’s the worm or not, this NEVER happens again.” Her voice stern and angry, though following it her face returns to that of sympathy. 

Riley meets her gaze. “Got it.” Her voice was hollow and nervous. While a part of her relished in the murder the rest couldn’t stand the act. Quil, annoying she may have been, didn’t deserve to die. She should have just been a brief annoyance while they worked a way to get their tadpoles out. Now she’s nothing more than a corpse. “I…I swear not one more.” Her tone cowering.

Riley does her best to gather herself, doing her best to center herself and move on from the grief. The tadpoles are not gonna remove themselves. After getting in decent shape, Riley gathers a party to go back into the wilds. 

—

Of all the possible consequences to fighting a harpy, Riley was not anticipating the need to de-feather herself. Those things look mostly human-like but, apparently, hitting them so hard their skulls break results in their feathers coming loose. Who'd thunk it? It’s not like human hair does the same thing, that usually sticks with the skin.  

But, good news, the kid’s safe. He almost got lured to his death, a feat she’d give him shit over if she didn’t watch Shadowheart also fall for the Harpy’s song, with Wyll succumbing to the same trick mere moments after Shadowheart. Regardless of their…less than stellar performance, they did good.

Then there was the matter with Alfira. Despite her…literally murdering a different bard only hours before their meeting, the pair got along quite well. Riley may or may not have fucked up a few notes but it appears the mistakes got Alfira to figure out what was missing from her song. 

After that, the gang took a quick rest before heading back out to see if they can find any other allies in their search to remove their tadpoles.

“You know…I half expected I’d need to restrain you with Alfira” Karlach says, in part teasingly with a touch of genuine concern.

“A fair assumption.” Riley says before sighing. “So,I’ve been thinking. Trying to figure out what or why I killed Quil.”

“Oh? Can you explain yourself, soldier?” Karalch says, anger and curiosity meeting on her lips.

“That’s the thing, I can’t.” As she says this, their tadpoles connect. Emanating from her head Riley shows Karlach, and by extension Wyll and Shadowheart, all the memories she has of that night. From her drifting off to sleep to the awakening above the corpse. All the sensations, all thoughts, everything. From her moment of waking to her desperate attempt at resurrection. Everything. “I…you see what I mean, right?”

“Agh..Well fuck, you weren’t kidding.” Karlach says, recovering quickly.

“Hells…you don’t have a clue why, do you?” Wyll says with disbelief, his one eye widening. 

“Not fucking one. I’m guessing whatever caused me to lose my memory might have caused this, but I can’t say.” Riley says, knocking on her noggin when speaking on her memory. 

“It fucking better be.” Karlach says, still somewhat angry.

“Hold it a moment.” Shadowheart says, causing the four to come to a dead halt “Could you attempt to remember anything? Like from before the nautiloid?”

Confused but willing, Riley’s mind attempts to conjure up anything from before the dreaded ship. Her thoughts flow, disconnected and seemingly random, through the tadpoles and back towards the others. Memories of caverns, dark temples, and the night fill her mind. Nothing of substance, until one memory makes itself clear. A curved blade, staring into her eyes. A pale face, filled with red veins, staring back. The blade entering her skull, the sensation of the incursion, the pain, the feeling of the blood as it vacated her body. Then the blade retracted only to enter deeper into the hole made by the first strike. Then the third, and fourth.Then the fifth. As her vision fades and the sensation repeats there becomes no knowing how many times she was stabbed.

Try as she might, Riley cannot learn any more about that scene before her. No memory of who that was, no saying on where they were, nor when this happened. All there is to remember is the sight of the blade, the smell of fresh and dried blood, and the songs of…whatever those chants count as. She couldn’t discern a tune or anything, just its presence. As she returns to reality she feels the tadpole finish transmitting the memories to the rest of her group. 

“That certainly explains the amnesia, though I can’t say I anticipated that.” Shadowheart says, her tone and tadpole implying that she had hoped on a different method.

“I’ll say, though now looking at you again I only have one question.” Wyll says, his literal stone gaze meeting Riley’s confused eyes “How in the hells do your eyes still work?” 

Riley, unbeknownst to anyone including herself, actually comes up with a solution. “If I had to guess, they destroyed the eye but something aboard the nautiloid fixed the eye? Since my circumstances on the nautiloid were unique that’d explain why I’m the only one with these issues. My brain is still recovering and last night could have just been a tragic result of the damage.”

“Then you better be fucking good now, otherwise we’re not letting you sleep unsupervised.” Karlach says.

“Fair.” Riley says before the group returns to silence. “...so…does anyone else find Auntie Ethel to be a little weird?”

“Fucking thank you!” Karlach cries out “That bastard’s been giving me a creepy feeling since we set foot in the grove.She acts all nice but I keep getting a feeling she’s sizing us up, or like she knows something we don’t. Rubs me the wrong way.”

“Though I wouldn’t put it like that, I don’t disagree with you on that front.” Shadowheart says, her eyes lose focus for a moment as she goes through her memories of Auntie “at the very least, her potions seem to work.” She says, having used one of the aforementioned potions to clean a wound on her arm. 

“True enough. I think I might have some kind of experience in medicine but I can’t heal a broken arm with just bandages and surgery kits.” Riley says as she takes note of the lightened mood. “Or worse, if any among our ranks get a flu or a case of Ligma I’d be unable to treat you without proper medicine.”

 “What in the hells is Ligma?” Shadowheart says in confusion. At that response Karlach, Riley, and Wyll all lock eyes as their collective smiles grow rapidly. The fire burned in all of their eyes, including Wyll’s stone one, as Riley prepared the punchline. 

“Ligma balls!” Riley nearly shouts. Laughter bellowing from their companions as the, admittedly immature, joke. Wyll seemed to enjoy it a little, giving a brief laugh before regaining his composure, but it seems to have hit Karlach especially hard. 

“Very mature of you three, if you’re done we have somewhere to go.” Shadowheart says, her smirk betraying her annoyance.

After a few seconds, Karlach regains her composure. “Heh. Sorry, it’s just…it’s been a while since I heard that kind of joke.”

“Reminds you of your youth?” Wyll asks.

“Yeah. Before Zariel,before Avernus, before Gortash” huh, that name is somewhat familiar “me and the kids around the lower city used to play and play pranks on one another like that. Ah, I miss that Karlach.” Her voice grows somber.

Hearing this and remembering Karlach’s past in Avernus, Riley lays a sympathetic hand on Karlach’s shoulder. It burned like hells, forcing her to remove the hand after holding it there for a brief moment, but it seems to somewhat have the desired effect. “Fuck sake soldier, what are you doing that for?”

“It was either that or hugging you.And relax, I’ll be fine” Riley says as she rubs a minor healing potion across a rag before patting down her burnt hand “Thank the gods for our fire resistance, else that’d be so much worse.”

After the sudden shock of someone touching her, Karlach cools down. “I appreciate it, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

“I get that, trust me, but I can’t quite do that. If helping you requires me getting a little hurt then I’ll try.”

—

Those words kept playing in her head. As fucked up as Soldier is, they’ll try to do good. And sure, hard to take the word of a murderer but it’s not like they are totally lying. Karlach could see her fucking thoughts, and she doesn’t remember murdering. So when she’s out cold, murderer. And when she’s awake? Soldier seems none the wiser.

From Zariel’s bastards, to the kid who got caught in the harpies music, Soldier volunteering to help fix her engine, to helping her calm Wyll down when they all first met, all of that points to a good fucker in there. 

At least Soldier’s been decent enough to mention that they apparently like to kill people. If the hells are anything to go off of, that’s not a fun thing to figure out about the poor fucker you just met. 

Oh, right. Then there’s when Soldier laid her hand on Karlach. That was the first time in…gods how long has it fucking been since someone touched her. Not like a bastard trying to hurt her, but like when was the last time a friend tried to help. Just a friend laying a hand on her shoulder. Fucks sake, the bastard risked their own skin to try to cheer her up. That was really fucking kind.

But then there’s the murder. It’s not something she can just…overlook. Something is fucking wrong with them and they know it, and if their tadpoles anything to go off then they’re scared shitless of it. They’re not just a heartless murderer,they’re just as creeped out by it as the rest of us.  Except maybe Astarion, or Lae’zel. Lae’lae can be a bit extreme and Astarion’s just weird. Oh, she’s got distracted. Anyway, Soldier isn’t a bastard, she’s just got a major issue crawling around in her head. And it seems like a problem that could be solved if she just helped out. 

Wait a second, I got it!

—

And so, Karlach Cliffgate had a most dangerous idea. One echoed throughout the histories, from those of great importance to those long forgotten by time. An idea wielded by the wicked and damned. A thought which meant a near certain disaster in one’s future. A thought that has a chance to ruin all the lives on the Sword Coast as much as it has the potential to save them.

The idea Karlach had?

“I can fix her.”

Suffice to say, dinner at camp was about to get a lot more interesting.

Chapter Text

To whatever god is listening, what would it cost this camp to get a singular uneventful night? Just a normal period of rest, nothing more. One night where they don’t learn something tragic about one of their numbers. Night one was Astarion going out for a nice snack on her neck, last night was the murder of Quil, and tonight we all learn that Wyll’s patron is a pretty fucking important devil in the hells. 

The plus side is that there’s now another member of the camp who has horns. Sitting around the campfire as they cook their food, Riley and Karlach have decided to educate Wyll on how to deal with horns and proper maintenance.

“So, getting in and out of shirts can be a bit tricky.” Riley starts “It’ll take a bit more maneuvering to get in and out, oh and don’t forget to mind the points of the horns! I don’t know how many shirts have been destroyed because I rushed.”

Wyll sits with a piece of parchment out and a quill, writing notes. “So be more careful when dressing, noted. Speaking of destroying clothing, how are your trousers still intact Karlach?”

Turning towards Karlach, the two look upon her robes and Riley realizes that she never questioned it before. Karlach’s on fire all day, as evidenced by the faint burns on Riley’s own hand, so what are her clothes made of to keep them intact?

“Oh, that’s a long story. So, I was Zariels champion, right? She used me for all sorts of vile shit, but after every mission she forced me on I’d come back nearly naked. She’d spend money getting me gear, but between the engine” Karlach hits her chest, letting them hear it “ and battle they’d all get fucked.So, after a few weeks of that, Zariel orders a fucking tailor to make me something that doesn’t burn.”

“Wait, a fucking archdevil commissioned you clothes?” Riley asks, fully engaged in this story. “Hold on, there’s no way that,” Riley gestures at Karlach’s current outfit, “is what an Archdevil commissioned. “So what did it look like?”

“Are you expecting it to be covered in skulls or something?” Karlach asks. After Riley gives an all too enthusiastic nod, she continues “Well…I can’t say that’s unheard of, but no. It started looking regal, but it still got thrashed so I had to repair it myself. After a few dozen or so repairs, and a new set of trousers being added, and we’re here.”

“Huh, neat. I don’t suppose the Blade has a more interesting story on where he got his armor?” Riley says, infernal eyes meeting stone.

“That depends, does commissioning a blacksmith in Baldur's Gate compare?” Wyll says, coyly.  “I assume the same would be true for you too,though I doubt you would know where your  seamstress is from .”

Checking her own robes out, she can’t help but agree. “I mean, I don’t know for certain but these certainly don’t feel all that important.” Her eyes begin to analyze the clothes she wears. “I suppose I was a monk?”

“You fight like one, aye, but otherwise you don’t quite act like it.” Wyll notes.

“Yeah. You don’t seem to be the kind of bloke to take a vow, or be all that patient really.” Karlach adds as Riley takes another swig of wine.

“Fair enough. So, we know a bit about your past,” Riley says, gesturing to Karlach “and we know a bit about yours,” her hand moves to Wyll “but what do we know about my past? I was at least partially trained to fight like a monk, somehow I know some things about medicine, and I got stabbed in the eye. I got fucked up thoughts that I’ll have to fight every day, I think I’m from Baldur's Gate, and that’s all.”

“Hey, we’ll help you get your memory back.” Karlach says. “Whether you like it or not, we’re all in this together now. And if you need help in your fight against your fucked up thoughts, then ask away.”

“Thanks.” 

As the three continue to chat, the others begin to join them by the fire. Soon Gale, Shadowheart, and Lae’zel all join the others.

“Sorry Gale, we don’t have any spare boots to cook for you.”  Karlach jokes.

Gale lets out a tired sigh. “When I consume magical artifacts, I don’t mean it in the literal sense, I am consuming the magic from the artifact.”

“Not true!” Riley says, preparing herself to lie her ass off “I saw him down by the river absolutely devouring a pair of leather boots.”

“I believe I saw him lick his lips when he gazed upon my boots, I was wondering what that was about.” Shadowheart says playfully.

“Hells, should I be worried?” Wyll says, moving his boots away from Gale.

Gale lets out an exhausted sigh,“I consume magic from a pair of magical boots, just once, and for the rest of time I am known as a boot muncher.” Gale says, slightly tired with a hint of playfulness.

“Soldier, quick, give Gale something to eat stat! We can’t risk losing our footwear.” Karlach jokingly orders. After a quick salute, Riley gives Gale a bowl of stew. Smiles all around, including Lae’zel weirdly, as the party jokes around.

“You know, consuming different pieces of clothing is part of Githyanki training. In Creche K’liir students are taught which articles of clothing could be utilized for sustenance, should the need arise. Leather is difficult to chew but can be digested.” 

“Really!? You’ve eaten boots?!” Riley exclaims in shock.

“No” Lae’zel flatly states.

At that, Riley’s face goes from excited to taken aback. Between Riley’s face and the solid comedic timing, it causes a laugh to emerge from the rest of the group. After a brief pause, Riley herself would join the rest of their camp in laughter.

“I can’t say I expected you to be the one to make jokes Lae’zel.” Shadowheart says.

“Wait a moment, are my eyes deceiving me? Shadowheart being friendly with Lae’zel?” Riley calls out.

“What can I say, after the stunt you pulled on me earlier I can’t help but feel a bit of catharsis while I am watching you suffer.” Shadowheart responds teasingly.

“You fiend, you dare strike someone at their most vulnerable?” Riley jests “I deal with my unstable mind and totally forgotten past only to come back to camp and get ridiculed? Gods I should check to see if I got Ligma or if ceremorphosis has any symptoms I don’t know of.”

“Memory loss is a symptom of ceremorphosis, though none of the rest of us have it. Perhaps it is this…Ligma that you mentioned.” 

Riley, with a massive dumb smile plastered on her face, turns back to the group to gauge their reactions. Karlach and Wyll have a glint in their eyes, ready to watch round two. Shadowheart seems keen on letting Lae’zel fall into the same trap she did mere hours ago. Asterion looks playfully annoyed at the joke while Gale seems a bit disappointed. 

“Ligma balls!” Riley cries “Two for two, baby!” Riley turns to Karlach and winds up a high five. On instinct, Karlach accepts the invitation and the two hands meet mid air.The sound billows across the camp and over the water, likely startling surrounding wildlife. Riley pulls back immediately and checks for damage, thanks to her fire resistance, none of any real consequence.

Around the campfire immature laughs could be heard amongst the group. Wyll laughs like he did the first time, Astarion giggles, and Gale lets out an amused sigh. Shadowheart isn’t laughing but the look she is giving Lae’zel is filled to the brim with schadenfreude. Lae’zel, for her part, seems a bit annoyed.

“It appears my understanding of Faerûn’s humor is lacking, and after that display of it I will see to it that you educate me on these matters.”

“Uh, sure? What exactly are you expecting, exactly? I’m not a lecturer.” Riley says.

“I expect you to explain jests so that in the future I would not make a fool of myself in front of my superiors. Do you understand?”

“In that case, sure. I’ll see to it that you only look like a fool in our company.” Riley says with a smile.

“I am beginning to regret following your lead, Teifling.” Lae’zel says in annoyance. 

“It’s pronounced Tiefling.”

Lae’zel does seem to grow more confident at that. “Good, you are educating me already.”

Karlach laughs at that “See, soldier. You’re a natural. Maybe you were a teacher before all this.”

“Counterpoint, after what I did this morning would you trust me around a kid?” She says, her eyes wander towards the bard’s grave.

“I mean, all things considered, you’re not the last person I’d trust with a kid,” Karlach says nervously. “I mean, we did save a kid’s life earlier today.”

“Who, in the gods name, would be worse around a kid than me?”

Karlach got more serious. “I know a few fuckers who’d sell a kid off for parts. Trust me mate, you’re not great but far from the bottom of the barrel.”

“What a reassuring thing to say” Astarion quips “But you do have a point. Our bloodthirsty friend might have a bad habit,but they’re not a monster.”

“I appreciate it, truly, but I want to point out the irony in you saying that. I don’t feel like I can agree with you, but I appreciate the thought.” Riley says, still not sure if she should move on.

“Oh don’t sulk like that.” Astarion remarks.

“As fucked as it is, I don’t disagree with him mate. Your remorse isn’t going to bring her back and right now we got to move. Maybe use her death as a sign not to do it again?”

“Maybe.” Riley says, her voice silent.

The conversation switched to a new topic and continued, but by then Riley’s contributions had ceased. Wyll and Karlach began talking about Baldur's Gate while the other four of them struggled to comprehend what was being said. A few names did ring in Riley’s head, but they never connected with anything. Eventually, they started talking about local legends, and that seemed to really ignite Karlach, pun intended.

“You fucking joking? Jaheira and Minsc helped a Bhaalspawn defy Bhaal, how could a story surpass that?”

“The city is named after Balduran, that’s got to take the cake.” Wyll argues. 

“Oh so just because they named the city after him that means he’s the most interesting hero? Fuck that. Being friends with a literal child of Bhaal and instead of following his bloody footsteps you put in the work to free them from their father is a far better legend then Balduran’s.”

“A fair point, but I still don’t agree with you on that. There are far more statues of Balduran than there are of Minsc, so it’s clear I am not alone.” Wyll says.

“True, but it’s not like it’s been all that long since their legend started. Jaheira’s still alive and I think most people only put statues up when you’re gone.” Karlach adds.

“Fair enough.” Wyll says

As those two continued, more and more among the group headed back to their tents. For her part, Riley finds herself sitting by the river, looking up at the stars.

“Got something on your mind, Soldier?” Karlach says, startling Riley. In spite of her large figure and literal glowing heart Riley didn’t notice Karlach approach. In response to the shock Riley does what many scared fools have done before her, she threw the object in her hand, which in this case was a rock, towards Karlach. It bounces off her arm as it barely grazes its target.

“Sorry, you startled me. You alright?” 

“Ow, I’m good. Hurts a little but I’d be in the wrong line of work if that put a damper on anything. So, what’s on your mind?” Karlach asks, sitting near Riley by the banks of the river.

“Oh…I was kind of just thinking on something you said earlier. Are you…are you sure you’re willing to help me?”

“I did say that, yeah.” Karlach says.

“But why? I’m a murderer, I have made no effort to hide that. You should hate me or try to ditch me. So why?”

Karlach’s smile recedes a little. “You did murder someone, yes, but of all the murders and killers I’ve ever met, not many show remorse for their crimes. The fact you helped me and that kid earlier tells me you’re not faking it. Plus, you’re forgetting the tadpole mate.” Karlach says, pointing at her head. “There's a good person in you, a really good one, who needs help fighting off the bad in them. And I’m not the kind of person that walks away when they see someone drowning. So while I might not like that fucked up part of you, I’d wager the rest of you could use a hand putting itself back together. So as long as you keep your bloodlust on the baddies, you’re good in my books. Deal?” 

“Deal.” Riley extends her hand, ready to shake on it, only to remember the temperature of Karlach’s engine. “Right, sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it mate.” Karlach says through gritted teeth. “As fucked up as it is, I’m sort of used to not touching anyone. Engine and all.” Karlach pounds her chest causing the infernal engine to make some noise. “It’s…been a painful few years.Imagine every time you feel an emotion, any one of them, you burn anyone close enough to touch. After a while…you stop getting close to people all together.”

“Oh gods, I'm sorry. So…does that mean I’m the first person in a few years to try?”

“Yep. Ten years I’ve gone without so much as a pat, and then I meet you. Crazy bastard you.” Karlach starts laughing as she says the final part. “I swear, you’ve never met someone so desperate for a hug.”

“Alright, so shall we?” Riley says, standing up. “I’m betting I can hug you for a few seconds before I burn up so we best get started soon if we do this.”

Karlach pats to the ground. “I appreciate the thought Soldier, but sit the fuck down. You’ll burn yourself silly if you do that and we still need you in the fight.”

“Damn it, well it was worth a shot.” Riley says as she returns to the dirt below her. “If, no, when we fix your engine I’ll make sure you get a good long hug. You have my word. In the meantime, though, would you like a pat on the back? High Five? I think I can handle touching you for a moment.”

“Soldier, I appreciate it, I really do, I’ve said as much, but you don’t have to touch me to cheer me up. I don’t want anyone getting burned doing so.” Karalch’s eyes strain with a bit of annoyance while her smile shows a bit of relief. 

“I don’t have to, I want to.” Riley’s eyes turn to Karlach and soften. For someone as fierce as she is, Karlach has an awfully open soft side. For a moment the pair simply observed one another. The two of them were total opposites in their past, Karlach knowing every moment in the hells and working to end her torment while Riley knows nothing of her past yet found herself its newest victim. Karlach wielded a greataxe and crossbow that required significant strength to wield, Riley used her dexterity as her strength and used nothing but her hands.

After the moment passed the pair turned back to the stars and watched them. For an hour, perhaps more, the pair observed the cosmos above them before they turned in for the night. Returning to the fire, she begins laying on her bag as her mind succumbs to sleep. Riley’s last thoughts are about Karlach. Her only real issue is that damned engine of hers, when they fix that they can fix her. But then something else drew Riley to think of that beautiful Tiefling. Something…familiar.

—

Well fuck. Soldier wasn’t kidding around. All she had to do was mention how fucked it is to be touchstarved and Soldier was trying to figure out how to give her a hug. Just like that.

And that’s not even mentioning the look in her fucking eyes. Soldier might have the memory of a smoked ham but somehow Soldier looked at her like she knew her. Like she knew the pains of isolation, the pains of not having anyone close. Course, neither of them actually knew if she went through that but it looked like she at least understood it. Damn that amnesia, it’s making Soldier far more confusing.

And between the understanding look, their willingness to do the right thing, and their promise to give her a hug the second they fix the engine in her chest Karlach updates a few of her thoughts.

It’s no longer a matter of if she can fix Soldier, it’s a question of how? The doubt on this has cleared and filled Karlach with an infernal resolve.

The murderer and the savior are two halves of the same whole Soldier, and if Karlach can help Soldier get those two from doing anything bad then they’ll have a fucking tough friend. 

And lastly, Soldier’s pretty. What, Karlach herself knows she’s a hot piece of ass so she considers herself a qualified expert on the subject. Maybe she’d be down for…more than a little hugging? Still up in the air though, Soldier might do something rough that turns her away. Keep an open mind girl, you’ve known her for like two days.

Chapter Text

 Following the road past the newly made gnoll corpses, the party found a burning inn. After encountering a few Flaming Fists, the four noticed the remaining Fists trying to break down a door that, apparently, wouldn’t budge. The fists call for aid, as they still have to rescue those who are still stuck inside including the Grand Duke. Looking at Wyll and Shadowheart tells Riley that they can’t handle it.

Riley began to try and figure a way to get through, “Ok, lets use our heads to get through this.” Riley calls out, hoping for unique ideas.

“Got it!” Karlach shouts out as she begins sprinting towards the door. Riley realizes Karlach took that metaphor in the most literal meaning and begins to race towards the door, hoping to beat Karalch. Karlach might have started running first, but Riley has a metaphorical ace up her sleeve. Despite her normally unimpressive physical prowess, the potion of Hill Giant’s strength made her feel like this was a great opportunity to put it to good use. Riley turns to Karlach with a competitive glare as she sprints full-speed towards the door. Not to be outdone, Karlach also begins to sprint towards the door.

Between the force of Riley and Karlach’s heads impacting the door, the thing shattered into dozens of smaller pieces. Wasting no time, the pair rush upstairs following voices of trapped insiders. When they first make it up the stairs, they hear one voice coming from their left and one from their right. 

“Karlach, you take care of the man over there and I’ll save her.” Riley says as she moves towards the feminine voice.

“Got it.” Karlach replies, breaking down a door next to her before rushing inside. Wasting no time, Riley can hear the voice coming from behind a broken door. Deciding to take matters literally into her own hands, she begins punching the burning door until it breaks. In spite of logic, this actually works and ends with the door open and the woman free. As Riley rushes her to the exit Karlach appears with her own rescue as the Fist just catches up with them. After that point, everyone ran straight out of the building.

Once everyone was outside it appears people started to assess the situation around them, notably Wyll and the Elven woman they just rescued.

“Wyll-by the Maimed God what’s become of you?” The woman asks, her regal robes still covered in a line of ash.

“Long story, but quick question: how do you know Wyll?” Riley asks.

“I’ll get to that in a moment, Gauntlet.” She says, calling out to the Flaming Fists. As they gather around her she begins again. “A new duty calls. Drow have taken Grand Duke Ulder Ravenguard, westward, if my eyes and ears can be believed. Report to the manip and send for reinforcements. We must find the Duke.” She turns to Wyll. “Yes Wyll, they have your father.”

“Hold up Wyll, you’re noble? How in the hells did THAT not come up in conversation?”

“The circumstances of my birth is no matter of pride for neither me nor my father.” Wyll says.

“Oh, sorry. I was more surprised than anything, though in hindsight that does explain a few things. So, we’re getting your father back, right?” Riley adds.

“It appears so,” Wyll says with a smile.

“Thank you.” The woman says before returning to the fist and barking orders towards the Fist. Considering they’re taking her seriously, Riley’s wagering she’s also a member of nobility.

“So…your father is Ulder Ravenguard. You know, I was wondering where your surname came from.” Riley jokes. “...who is Ulder Ravenguard again?” Riley says nervously “I…kinda only remember the name.”

“Ulder Ravenguard’s probably the most important duke in the city, mate.” Karlach calls out.

“Oh, that explains it. Thanks Karlach.” Riley begins to think 

“Exactly, his absence can lead to ruin across the Sword Coast.” Wyll adds.

“And now Drow have him. And since we know there are Drow leading the Absolutists.” Riley begins thinking aloud.

“The Absolutists have father.” Wyll says fearfully.

Riley lays a hand on his shoulder, same as she did for Karlach “We will get him back Wyll, you have my word.” She pats twice. “But in the meanwhile, let’s check around, see if anything else is still here.”

—

As it turns out, a lot was still there. A Zhentarim outpost hiding underneath the stables, one with a rather comical number of traps at the front door, which included that guy they rescued not twelve minutes prior. Thankfully he got them to disarm all those traps before she had to methodically disarm each and every one of them…wait, why does she know how to disarm traps?

Anyways, after a bit of snooping and a bit of shopping the gang found a hidden elevator to the Underdark. After going down it, the four present remembered they still had a Goblin problem to deal with and agreed to come back later. Returning to the surface, the four talk about ideas on what to do. 

“I think we should investigate the destroyed village a bit more, we could probably find a weakness there.” Riley throws out. 

“You’re just saying that so you can loot the Alchemist's place.” Karlach calls out.

“Yeah, I am. I want more potions, they’re very useful.What’s wrong with that?” Riley responds.

“While I do appreciate potions, I would rather think there are probably some other advantages. Perhaps we can find any dissident goblins or less than loyal allies employed by them who would be willing to turn in our favor?” Shadowheart throws out.

“That’s not a terrible plan” Wyll says in support of Shadowheart.

“But potions” Riley’s attitude growing into that of a disappointed child.

“We can do both, so chin up Soldier.” Karlach's hand reaches out only to retract after, yet again, remembering her condition.

“Fair” Riley sighs. “Though I may need some help lying. Don’t know about you, but my charisma only works in specific situations.”

“Like when you calmed Wyll down?” Karlach suggests.

“Yeah, like when I flummoxed Wyll.” Riley agrees.

“Oh, so you were trying to confuse me!” Wyll cries out. 

“What? Did you think I actually just caught a fish in that little stream as you were having a moral dilemma?”

Shadowheart turns to Riley, “Actually, I wouldn’t have put it past you.” 

Riley waves her hand, dismissively, “Oh come on, I’m not that weird”

Riley’s three companions all glance to one another, wordlessly, with a look of doubt plastered across their faces.

—

As the group returns to the basement of the blacksmith's house, the four reignite an investigation to see if there are any supplies they could use down here. As they investigate, the four find that they currently have enough privacy to begin speaking.

“I’d say that was one thousand gold well spent.” Karlach says, holding the horn in her hands.

“Hopefully.” Riley adds.

“Is anyone going to mention how strangely articulate the orge was? Especially compared to his companions he was a tad…strange.” Shadowheart adds.

“I…wait yeah good point.” Riley adds.

“Considering that ogre had an unusual amount of jewelry on, I would wager he’s acquired some artefact that’s helping him.” Wyll adds. 

“Yeah right, what kind of artefact would do that?” Riley’s skepticism knows no rival.

“A headband of intellect, if I had to guess.” Wyll finished. 

Correction, her skepticism is only rivaled by her stupidity. “...ok that’d explain it. Actually it’d explain it perfectly.” Riley replies in defeat.

“You should probably keep a more open mind, you never know what other memories have been lost.” Shadowheart states. 

“I mean, I did get stabbed in the brain so a lot of my mind has already been opened.” Riley jokes before her tone turns serious. “And you sound like you’re speaking from experience.” She says, more as a joke.

“I do. I have had my bouts with amnesia before, it is part of my faith.” Shadowheart says casually as if that wasn’t one of the crazier things said today.

Doing a mental headcount of the three gods she is aware of, Riley can’t figure out which god would actually demand that of their followers. “Oh. I see… if you don’t mind me asking, which god is that?”

“I do mind, unfortunately.” She replies quickly. 

“Hey, I can only think of three gods right now and they’re the Dead Three. If you aren’t going to correct me I’m just going to assume you’re a Bhaalist.” Riley’s eyes focus on Shadowheart, the normal friendliness of Riley’s smile receding.

“If you must know, I worship Shar, lady of shadows. I am on a mission to bring the artefact to Baldur's Gate.”

“Ah, neat.” Riley’s smile returned to being friendly. “I was worried there for a second.” Riley says, returning to her investigation. “Hey guys, does this wall look loose?”

Shadowheart, a bit puzzled by that reaction, turns to Riley “Is that… it?”

“I mean, yeah?” Riley adds as she punches the wall down, “Wyll’s made a deal with a devil, Karlach was Zariel’s servant, and I literally murdered someone a day ago. Sure your god’s kinda dark, but among our lot, you’re tame.”

“...Huh, I didn’t expect you to see it that pragmatically, or so nonchalantly” Shadowheart says as the four enter into the webbed cave.

“What can I say, I can be very wise at times,” Riley says as she goes deeper into the cave littered in webs in search of forgotten valuables.
—

“What did I say?” Karlach says like a disappointed family member.

“Not to open the scary book lined in human flesh.” Riley says, like a dofus who just did something foolish.

“And what did you do?” 

“Open the big scary book lined with human flesh.”

“And why did you open the big scary book?”

“Because I thought it would reveal secrets.”

“And did it reveal any secrets?”

“Actually, yes,” Riley says, slightly excitedly, “I now know how to cast a Speak with Dead.”

“Fucks sake. It went well this time, but don’t do anything like that again. Got it?” Karlach says, more annoyed that she was ignored than upset about the outcome.

“Got it.” Riley says as the four return to silence. “So, did anyone else see Autnie Ethel outside of town?”

“I thought I saw that, perhaps we should go check in with her?’ Shadowheart suggests, “It’s not like we’re going to learn anything else down here.”

“Fair. Alright, as much as I don’t like her, let’s say hello. What’s the worst that can happen?” Wyll adds.

“Ah fuck, he said it.” Karlach cries in anguish.

“Fuck!” Riley cries in concert with her fellow Tiefling. 

—

Standing among the putrid bog and the carcases of forest spirits, Riley and her friends recover after their most recent encounter. With Auntie revealed as a hag, the gang decided it would be better to just look around the swamp for any possible clue on how to deal with her. Any spell, any note of a fallen hero, anything like that. That brought them to the small island that was, apparently, haunted by animated mud and bark. After tending to her wounds, Riley turns to Wyll.

“You had to say it Wyll, just had to tempt the fates.” Riley says with annoyance.

“All I asked was ‘what’s the worst that can happen,’” Wyll argues “How was I supposed to know that the investigation would lead to this?”

“You didn’t, but you tempted fate, mate.” Karlach says, steadily raising to her feet. 

“Enough,” Shadowheart calls out. “If you haven’t noticed, your conversation has gone nowhere. Move on.” Her annoyance became palpable.

“Right. Sorry Wyll, we’re just being super-” Riley pauses. Her eyes caught on a stray piece of wood protruding out of the log. Normally seeing broken wood on a log wouldn’t be strange, but in this case there seemed to be a letter hidden behind it.

Opening it up and reading it, Riley learns of a rather sinister plot.

“Gang, heal up. We got one more bastard to take care of.” Her tone is full of venom.

“What’s that saying, Soldier?” Karlach’s eyes wander to the letter.

“Kagha is working with some fuckers and trying to usurp the Grove. She’s doing the Rite of Thorns to get that power. With this,” Riley raises the paper “We’re going to put a stop to it. We’ll try to talk her out of it, but if push comes to shove I’ll break her in fucking two.”

Chapter Text

Marching down towards Kagha, Riley’s fury only hardened. Soon the woman who nearly doomed her fellow Tieflings was going to meet justice, to face her sins in the flesh. Kagha, who had planned on murdering a child and leaving her people to die. Kagha who would overthrow the grove for power.For varying reasons, the two voices in her head agree on this one course of action.

To seal herself and her grove away from the slaughter, to cower behind their spikes as the river runs red. She must be both a coward and a fool. Figure out if she is a coward or a fool and give her an appropriate death.

Approaching Kagha, Riley’s voice bellows. “Arlight Kagha, the jig is up! I know about your plot with the Shadow Druids. You mean to take the whole grove for yourself!” Her voice is projected across the inner sanctum. Eyes from all over fall upon Riley as she marches closer to Kagha.

After exclaiming her shock, three rats begin to glow. First assuming they were going to explode, Riley is proven wrong as the rats turn into three halflings. The eyes of the apparently leader of these, well given the wildshaping and all it’s safe to say these are the Shadow Druids, moves around the room. Her gaze meeting the others, her face looking disappointed, and her warpaint hidden beneath a layer of dirt.

“Tsk, that damned nose of yours has gone pocking in our business,” the leader says. 

“Well, you made it my fucking business. So congrats,” Riley states with annoyance.

“What is the meaning of this?” Calls out Rath, looking as concerned and confused as he did when Arabella nearly got murdered.

Riley hands him the letter “It’s all here.”

Rath reads it over the various charges “cloakwood? Kagha, have you lost your mind?”

“Evidently so” Riley calls out.

As the druids solidify their battlelines, Riley gives diplomacy one last shot before she starts tearing these halfling twats limb from limb and feasting upon their innards. Reaching out to Kagha’s mind, Riley's mind can begin hearing what Kagha truly wants. And that is… to be right?

“Oh come on, are you so desperate to be proven right you’ll abandon your principles, abandon yourself?!” Riley lets out her last true attempt to reason with Kagha.

While she may not be listening too deeply, Riley watches as Kagha has an existential crisis as she realizes she’s probably defying her basic principles. As the shadow druid leader tries to corral Kagha back, only to be rebuked.

“I belong to the shadows no longer.” Kagha says in defiance.

Despite being severely outnumbered, the Shadow Druids still seem confident in their stance. Knowing these are casters who are more than likely readying spells at the moment, Riley wastes no time and engages.

Flying past her, bolts of flame and eldritch blasts close in on their targets, striking Shadow Druids as Riley’s fist connects with its target. The leader has no time to react before her jaw is shattered into thousands of tiny pieces. Following behind her, Karlach rests her axe in the leader's skull, creating a beautiful crack in their face as their body falls limp. At that, the two remaining Shadow Druids panic. One wildshapes into a wolf while the other makes the brilliant and oh so pretty decision to try and flay Riley’s skin. Oh, it’s such a beautiful wound. If only it were a bit more to the left, then they’d be able to see an artery fail, but alas Riley shall survive from this minor slash.

As more arcane energy fills the sky the fool who took the form of a wolf returns to normal as Riley begins to break the spine of the fool who wished to part her skin from her bone. They put up a struggle, their fear tasting so delicious as they try to fight the inevitable, to resist the urge. As Riley’s own eyes gorge on their fear her smile grows to that of a child after their first bloodbath, a smile of pure joy. As their bone’s crack and their muscles slack, Riley turns her eyes to the last of the Shadow Druids as Karlach carves a path through their guts. With Wyll sending a blast straight through the Druid’s head, the battle ceases and Riley releases her grip on the flesh. A shame she didn’t get any blood on her hands, they’d feel so warm right now.

As eyes dart around the rest of the cove as the last Shadow Druid falls. Most people return to their normal posts, some only taking a moment of pause to close wounds. Kagha herself seems a bit shaken from this.

“I believe one of your companions called me a monster once. It seems I’ve proven them right.” Kagha’s voice is lined with regret. “I… endangered a child, I betrayed the circle's trust. We will stop the rite and I shall stand trial.Silvanus have mercy on me.”

For the first time since she met Kagha, Riley’s expression softens. “Thank you for seeing sense. And as for mercy, I’d wager he’ll see sense as well. For all the danger you threatened, your hands are rather clean.”

“Thank you for the reassurance. Your people will be granted safe harbour until they depart, but in the meanwhile I would ask you to help face the goblins.” Concern seems to be a new look for Kagha.

“We’ll handle them, rest assured.” Riley says, heading back to the rest of her party. “I think we should call it a day, and rest. Thoughts?”

“I could use a good meal,” Says Karlach

“No complaints here,” Wyll adds.

“None here either,” Shadowheart follows.

“Terrific!” Riley finishes.

—

After finishing her food, Riley found herself sitting around the campfire alone. Mulling over the day’s events and various plans for the following day’s confrontations. Ideas flow through her head like a river, ideas branching off into streams while others pool up. 

The goblins might be weak, but they have numbers enough to make a straight forward assault impractical. The goblins were drinking out of a massive bowl so… maybe Shadowheart downs an invisibility potion and poisons the pot? That could work, but once one goblin goes down then the rest would know something's up, she’s got to figure a way to take all of those guys out at once. Maybe a toast? 

But if she starts a fight outside then they run the risk of alerting the goblins inside. Then saving the druid inside would be near impossible. So maybe poison, get the goblins to drink, then just act like they didn’t do it? 

But what then? They never actually entered the fucking keep, so it’s not like she knows what’s inside. There’s going to be a Drow, but anyone else is just guesswork. Perhaps that warhorn that they bought could come in handy? 

“Hey Soldier,”

Riley did not scream like a banshee at the sound of Karlach’s voice, no sir. She screamed like a goat, thank you very much. With the eyes of camp falling on her, Riley turns back to Karlach and thinks on the situation. “How in the hells did you sneak up on me?”

“Well, either you were lost in thought or you saw something really interesting in the fire. Care to tell me which?” Karlach teases.

“Ah, right. Oops,” Riley laughs nervously “but seriously, I’m trying to figure out how to make tomorrow work. I’m trying to figure out a way to even the odds but the more I think it over, the more I realize we know nothing about the inside. There could be dozens more goblins, there could be four. There could be a whole command structure of Drow officers, there could be none.”

“You’re putting an awful lot of thought into this, should we get used to it?” Wyll calls out. “Or is this a rare case of you using your head figuratively instead of literally?” 

“Uncalled for, but fair,” Riley calls out, remembering how earlier Karlach and her opened a jammed door by running head first into it. 

“But really, you’re acting a bit… odd. You’re acting cautiously, carefully, hells I’d even wager there’s some cunning. In the short time we’ve all known you I can’t think of a time you were this thorough in a plan.” Karlach notes.

“I’ve never had a plan up until this point,” Riley points out.

“Precisely, that’s why watching you come up with one is so bizarre.” Shadowheart cuts in.

“Exactly. Up until today I would have thought you a reckless brute, one who would charge into battle without an ounce of precaution or preparation. After listening to your various mumbles on tactics and poisons, I believe there may be more to your mind than reaction.” Lae’zel adds, her backhanded compliment weirdly feeling like a genuine compliment there.

“... Thanks?” Riley says, accepting the insult/compliment. 

“Look mate, what I think we’re all trying to say is that you’re overthinking it.” Karlach says.

“Actually-” Gale interjects

“We are all thinking it,” Karlach says, not giving Gale a say in this, “so relax. We’ll make it through this, one dead goblin at a time.”

Riley’s shoulders relax as she looks upon the various members of camp. “I guess so, but I can’t help but worry a little. This isn’t just fighting a handful of imps,” she says, gesturing at Lae’zel in reference to their first meeting “or a handful of gnolls” her arms move to Wyll, referencing the Risen Road, “or even a few devil's servants” her arms point towards Karlach “but instead we’re facing an enemy that has the advantage! Not just some guys standing around, an actual semi-organized encampment with an unknown number of soldiers at the ready.“

“A fair assessment,” Lae’zel praises, “However if you do not reveal your plans then we will not be able to act on them. Would you care to change that?” 

“Sure thing. As of now we don’t know their numbers so we’ll have to approach this cautiously. First we’ll have Shadowheart drink an invisibility potion and poison their drinks. From there, I’ll lead them in a toast and see how many of them drink with me. To avoid an early grave I’ll mime drinking my glass, don’t worry.”

“I wasn't,” Shadowheart jokes.

“Anyways, after that we’ll head inside. From there we find the druid and take out the goblin’s leaders, picking off any goblin who strays far enough from the main pack. If, or more likely, when we’re found out we’ll have to fight our way out. Following the doctrine ‘no plan survives contact with the enemy’ I expect I’ll need to improvise so I’m only going to give vague ideas for now. Any questions?”

Karlach raises a hand, as if she were a student in class who was called upon.

“Any questions pertaining to the plan itself instead of questions directed at me?”

Karlach’s hand lowers.

“In that case, everyone eat up. We’ll need our strength for tomorrow.”

—

With dinner over and done with it appeared everyone retired to their tent to rest. Though as Riley was preparing to retire for the night, she noticed Karlach laying out by the water. Going out to meet her, Riley decides to give her friend fair warning. “Hey Karlach.”

While Karlach didn’t scream, she did immediately toss a glass directly at Riley’s face. Riley was able to catch the glass before it made contact, but Riley couldn’t deny that Karlach’s throw was good. After the initial shock settled in, Karlach’s face settled on a somewhat interesting expression, “Good catch soldier.”

“Thanks, and sorry for startling you.” Riley says, sitting down next to Karlach.

Karlach sits up, “Ah, it’s all good. I was just appreciating the sky.”

Riley looked intrigued for a moment before recalling her friend's harrowing experience, “Ah yeah. You’re still getting used to the world again, aren’t you?”

“I am. It’s just…so bizarre. I spent years without a night’s sky, not really, and yet when I look up,” Karlach’s gaze aims for the heavens, “I feel like I never left.”

Riley follows her friend’s gaze. “Yeah, I feel that. I take it you're acclimating well?”

Karlach nods her head, her eyes never leaving the stars embrace, “I’m bloody elated to be back! Sure, I would have killed to have been back without the tadpole, but I can’t say I’m not grateful for this view.”

Riley smirks, “You know, we will be killing to get rid of these tadpoles so I guess the universe took you up on that offer, didn’t it?”

Karlach chuckles, her eyes briefly meeting Riley’s, “I suppose so.”

The pair look back up to the stars, “So,” Riley asks, “do you have any real plans after this, you know, after we get these tadpoles out of our head?”

Karlach shakes her head, “No. My parents are long gone and it’s been ten years since I saw anyone so I can’t say I got any friends I know of still in the city.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.” Riley looks at Karlach with sympathy in her eyes.

Karlach’s smile grows a tad, “Thanks, but I’ve grown used to it.” Karlach’s eyes lower, towards the water. Her expression is growing more somber.

Riley takes notice, “Something on your mind?”

Karlach nods, “I guess I just figured out my plan.”

“Oh?”

Karlach continues, “I figure my old boss, Gortash, is still in Baldur’s Gate. “

“He’s the guy who sent you to the hells, right?” Riley asks.

“That’s the bastard, aye.” Karlach nods, her heat growing as her anger lets slip “I can’t let that bastard get away with everything he’s done to me.”

Riley nods towards Karlach, “Then we’ll see to his death, I give you my word. By our adventure’s end you’ll stand over this Gortash fellow.” Riley’s expression shifts slightly at the name Gortash.

Karlach’s fury recedes as intrigue takes its place, “You ok, Soldier?”

Riley looks at Karlach, confused,“Yeah, why?” 

“You made a funny face when you said Gortash.”

“I did?”

“Yeah you did. You figure you knew him before everything, Soldier? "

Riley shrugs, “Possibly. He seems familiar but I don’t know from where, can you help with that?”

Karlach nods, “Bastards was a weapons merchant, a damn good one at that. It’s been a minute since I last saw him so who knows what’s changed.”

“Ah, I see. So I probably would have known him if I were a criminal.” Riley says with light humor, “great.”

Karlach looks to her friend, “Look on the bright side, you might start remembering some really interesting scores.”

Riley chuckled, “True. I might start remembering my prolific heists like how I broke into the counting house, or how I stole wine from the Upper City for months.”

Karlach looked at Riley with an expression that was near impossible to read, “Well, if you start remembering those, I’ll listen.”

“Will do!” 

—

After a brief detour into an owlbear cave, the party found themselves among the goblins. After spending a moment to subtly steal a goblin’s ring by…ah…particular use of tongue which, based upon the level of skill, may or may not be indicative of her forgotten romantic past. Following the plan, an invisible Shadowheart poisoned the drink in time for Riley to lead a toast. The poisoned drink ended many goblins who initially suspected her of being the culprit. Considering Riley “drank” the drinks,however, the goblins decided in the end that she couldn’t have been the one.  In an unfortunate coincidence, however, it appears the owlbear cub they encountered in the den was now here, alone. It appears after they left the den that a few goblins went in, killed the mother, and captured the cub. And now, the probable only way to win its freedom is to play a game where you chase it around.

Or she could kill every goblin here and let it run free. That’d free it right up. Though as tempting as that would be, for now Riley is dedicating herself to stealth. Placing her bet and calmly leading the owlbear to the end, she takes her hard earned gold and leads the rest of her allies deeper into the camp.

—

Chapter Text

Finding the Archdruid, Halsin, proved to be rather easy. All it took was a passing comment about prisoners to one of the guards and next thing they knew they found themselves in a jail. In the jail stood a bear…wait that’s probably a druid wouldn’t it? Stood a druid who is in the form of a bear, yeah. A druid in bear form who was currently being pelted at by a few goblin children throwing sharp stones.

“Can you asshats stop throwing that?” Riley asks the child.

“Sod off” declares the older goblin.

“Ah well, I tried. Let’s do this!” Diplomacy was always going to fail, so there’s no use just pretending it’ll work now. As soon as the hostilities flared up, Karlach cleaves the closest goblin in two. At that the children try and run, their small and nimble and crunchy and juicy legs. A stray goblin in the corner calls in a few spiders,fancying himself a threat. 

Going full speed Riley reaches this beast master and slams her fist into their skull. The creature falls to the ground and begins to twitch in such a wonderful manner, their mouth filled with foam and their eyes still wide open. Behind her, the Worgs try to break their way out of their cage, the fools. 

Following the chants, Riley watches as the children avoid Shadowheart’s sacred flame and Wyll’s Eldritch blast. What a cruel joke that neither the heavens nor the hells have the power to stop mere children. Karlach and Riley focus down the spider as the children make their escape. 

With the spider tensing up and falling limp, her attention can return to the children. Watching…holy shit the bear just tore a goblin in half when Riley wasn’t looking. Realizing her attention left the children, Riley watches as the kids make it to the door and call out for help only for a sacred flame to tear them asunder. The other child falls with a blast going through their chest, perhaps through the heart or maybe lungs if Wyll’s feeling adventurous. 

The good news at least is that now there are more bodies! The backup guards who heeded the children’s vain call entered with determination splayed across their face and hope presumably in their hearts. Oh how lovely, their deaths will only be more poetic. As one receives a crossbow bolt through the leg, thanks to Karlach’s impressive aim, Riley rushes forward and pushes the arrow through the other side. It cries out in pain before that very pain consumes their mind and they fall like the children they so desperately wished to avenge.

Before the blessed fools lay a finger on Riley, though, the bear mauls one into the ground while the other embeds their spear into its thick hide, and gets it caught. With them effectively immobilized it’s little wonder that Wyll and Shadowheart could land their attacks. With their fall, however, the Worgs manage to break down the horribly maintained metal bars and rush the party's position. Between the wrath of the two tieflings the worgs stand little chance as their arms find their marks. As the bear follows their lead and the final worg is decimated, the battle ceases and the world returns to normal. After one moment, the bear ceases being a bear and reveals an absolute fucking unit of a Druid.

“Pardon the viscera. One should cherish all of nature's bounty… but goblin guts are quite far down the list.” He says.

“It happens,” Riley casually notes,like it’s totally normal to be covered in guts, “I take it you’re Halsin?”

“That would be me, yes. Say, are you feeling alright?” At that, he extends his hand and begins to use some sort of magic upon Riley. “Oak Father preserve you, child… You’re infected, aren’t you? The mind flayers spawn. But… something is different. You’re aware of the monster inside you. You don’t bow to the Absolute, like True Souls do…How is this possible?” 

“I got this artefact…I think it’s helping,” Riley’s voice totally devoid of confidence, “Regardless, we need to get you out of here.”

“I wish I could, but there’s still work to be done-blood I’ve yet to spill. I’ve no right to ask more of you-”

“If it involved killing the goblins here, say no more, I am interested.”

“I…was expecting more pushback. Very well then, help me kill the leaders of this horde, save my grove. Then I will help you.”

“Sounds good to me, is everyone else ready to do this?”

“Yep!” Karlach’s voice filled with enthusiasm

“If we must.” Shadowheart adds

“Of course.” Wyll says.

“Motion passes unanimously, who are we killing?”

—

Killing the three leaders was going to be a challenge. The goblins aren’t strong individually but they have the numbers to be a problem. Gathering her companions outside the prison, Riley begins explaining her plan.

“Alright, so, here’s the plan. Killing all three without raising the alarm is probably not possible, so it’s probably a good idea to pick off any stragglers we find, right?” Riley turns to her companions. 

“Right.” Karlach nods along.

“With that in mind, let’s scout out and see what we can do. Wyll, do you know how to speak with animals?”

“Whilst you are correct in this instance I would like to know your reasoning for that assumption.” Wyll’s eye looking at her, confused.

“I thought I heard you talk to Scratch.”

“I  have heard you talk to Scratch though, can you cast that spell?” Wyll calls out.

“Yeah, but I was reminding him that he was a good boy. It was very important.” 

Karlach nods again. “Very important, couldn’t agree more.”

“Indeed, it needs stating,” Shadowheart says, nodding as well.

“Ah-Fair enough,  I suppose.” Wyll gives up trying to argue with the resident lunatic.

“Anyways, I wanted to see if you could convince the spiders to eat the goblins,” Riley points to the spider pit. “That would make our job far easier than us having to kill them all.”

Wyll, after looking into the spider pit for about four seconds, turns to Riley “I can try.”

Riley lights up “Terrific, then once we’re done with that let’s just go talk to the priestess and say we’re sick and that we should speak about it in private.”

“Oh please, that would never work.” Shadowheart quips.

—

“AAAAAAaaaahhh!” Cries priestess gut as she is flung into the abyss.

“Alright, that takes care of that. One down, two to go,” Riley says, stretching a little.

Karlach looks down into the pit and pauses. “Gods, that’s gotta go all the way down, can’t even hear her impact.” Following that comment, Karlach began whistling, enjoying the slight echo present. “Hello…Hey.”

As Karlach continues to enjoy her own echo, a goblin enters, watches Karlach talk to herself for a moment, and speaks “You new true souls are…bizarre.”

“You know what happened to the last Goblin to say that?” Karlach replies, cheekily.

“No?” The Goblin’s anxiety peaks.

—

“AAAHHH!” Cries the goblin as he is tossed into the abyss.

—

After Karlach was done entertaining herself, the party moved on. Dispatching small groups or stragglers was little challenge, none landing a solid hit on any of the four before the party could end them. 

Following that, the four approach the second leader. Before crossing the bridge to the Drow, Riley notices that the Drow is preoccupied with their goblin companion. As her eye’s wander to the literal Wandering Eye that was floating next to her. Hitting it swiftly, the eye vanished in a puff of smoke, never to return. 

Finally approaching the Drow as she continued to verbally assault the goblin, really laying it into him. Turning her head towards the party, her mind merges with that of Riley. Peering in, Riley views a scene. A pale woman, the…the familiar one from the visions earlier, whispering into her ears.The voice is familiar, though the hole in her brain keeps her from making any connections.

“Ah, a true soul. Are you here to join my hunt?”

“Right, so, about that.” Riley laughs awkwardly as she shifts to a more advantageous stance “I’m hunting you.” Following suit, her companions also readied their weapons.

“Blast!” The Drow cries out. Before her swords leave her sheathe, however, Riley is upon the Drow. Riley’s fist connects with the Drow’s cheek, nearly putting her into a daze. The second strike finishes the process, stunning the Drow. Continuing to strike at the now defenseless Drow, Riley concentrates on hitting at just the right angle so that she may cause this waste of flesh to have a seizure and fall into a coma, never to rise again. Behind her, Shadowheart attempts a cast at Sacred Flame and Wyll prepares an Eldritch Blast. The Blast connects and sends the Goblin’s charred corpse into the wall. Finally, Karlach tries to take a swing at and gets a good slash in. Riley attempts to finish the job with her last few hits and manages to send the Drow to the ground. Their body still draws breath but their eyes remain wide as they lay there. It's clear that they’re in a coma.

“I think I’ll count this as a kill since I’m fairly certain her brain’s irreversibly damaged and her ever being awake again is unlikely. ” Riley says as she stares upon her handiwork with a fair amount of pride .

“Are you certain? They could just be knocked out.” Karlach notes.

“If they survive that then…well,” Riley pauses, “normally you’d say something like ‘I’d eat my own shoe’ but that’s Gale's department. I’ll…hmm,” Riley pauses again and begins to pace, “I’ll chew on Scratches ball?”

“Eh, that’ll do.” Karlach shrugs.

“I suppose that will suffice, although you may need to steer clear of him after,” Shadowheart notes.

“Fair enough,” Riley closes. “Alright, so. We have one guy left, and fortunately enough, I think I know how to take care of him.”

—

“AAAAaahh!” Cries Dror as he too is propelled into the abyss. 

“Three for three baby!” Riley’s voice inflates with pride even as the goblins around her stare at her with anger in their eyes.

 Though, this time they may have bitten off a little more than they can chew. Surrounded on all sides by faithful goblins and two rather pathetic humans, Riley was in, her opinion as a professional goblin killer, a rather difficult position. Karlach and Wyll quickly dispatch the pair closest to her while Shadowheart ignites the war drums, cutting off reinforcements. The goblins begin to swarm Riley, their crude weapons parting flesh from her bones as her blood begins to coat the ground. As more blows land upon her flesh, Riley realizes this fight would prove her last should she fail. 

Taking a page out of her other works, she grabs one of the wretches and tosses them down into them to the spiders. Hearing the spiders consume that goblin, Riley follows the ancient maxim “misery loves company” and sends another goblin down. It appears her companions are of similar minds, as Karlch launches one pest into the pit after cleaving another in two. Soon, all of the remaining goblins had been launched into the spider’s pit. The two humans who were in the audience found themselves as the only surviving absolutists, and in spite of their devotion to their “Goddess” fear, oh so sweet fear, was plastered across their faces. The pair make their final stand, getting a good hit on Riley and Karlach before the tieflings finish the final group of absolutists.

As their fight ends Riley and Co look down upon the spiders as they feast, the goblin’s who still draw breath doing their damndest to fight off the inevitable.

“You know…I'm starting to feel a little bad for those guys.” Riley says, watching as poison claims one goblin while others give their best warcry.

“Poor fuckers,” Karlach adds as she watches as one goblin manages to lay a spear into the eye of a spider, only for the spider to bit the hand off the goblin. 

Watching as the final few goblins fall, the party hears movement coming from outside the audience chamber. Gazing through the poorly made walls, it appears the rest of the camp has been alerted of their true intentions, and have rallied out. All of them looked eager to die like their leaders.

“Incoming!”

—

The walk back to Halsin was short but painful. Fighting their way through the goblin camp had covered her party in cuts and bruises and while they could still walk it was starting to feel as if they could collapse at a moment's notice.

Passing the various corpses and entering the prison, the party approaches Halsin with the news of the goblin massacre visible from the blood on their clothes.

“They’re dead,” Riley cries out, her energy levels waning “now it’s safe to go back to the grove.”

“Wonderful!” Declares Halsin, “and before you go, I would speak to you on the tadpoles. I’m sorry I cannot remove them, there is some powerful magic embedded in them.”

“Damn it!” Riley cries in frustration, “sorry, got my hopes up.” Riley straightens herself a bit, “Halsin, forgive me if this is rude, but perhaps we can continue this conversation later? Preferably at our camp so the others who are infected don’t have to get their information from me.”

“Of course. I first need to tend to the grove, of course, but once that is done I will come to your camp to explain.” Halsin declares. 

As Halsin turns into a bird and flies away, Riley’s attention turns to her companions.

“That was…awfully self aware of you.” Shadowheart adds. 

“Thanks?”

“Don’t mention it.” 

“Forget that for a moment, we gotta go tell the tieflings they’re safe.” Karlach adds.

“Fuck, yeah. Sorry, slipped my mind.” Riley adds, “Yeah lets get back to them.”

With that, the party began to make the trek back to the Grove. Stepping over corpse after corpse was… nostalgic for Riley. Exiting the main gate and climbing to the village, she idly wonders if any of the goblins in camp alerted the goblins in the village.

As they entered she got her answer, a resounding no. One goblin did approach them, though.

“Oy, why are you covered in blood?” it asked.

“Goblins were drinking, one thing led to another, and we fought to the death.” Riley says as she confidently walks past “Oh by the way, we’re going to go scout. See ya!” Riley and her companions walk through the blighted village without concern or fear. The goblins, based on the few views she could get, were more confused than afraid. The excuse made some sense, but the ogre’s horn she blew meant a hell of a fight went down. Watching as the goblins failed to make a decision, the gang exit the blighted village as confidently as they entered it and proceed to the Emerald Grove to tell the tieflings that they’re free to go. And hey, maybe they can organize a party back at camp. That’d be fun.

—

Chapter Text

For Riley, hope felt foreign. Even as she stood surrounded by people just like her, people celebrating her success, people celebrating the good deed she did, and yet Riley couldn’t help but feel out of place. It just…didn’t sit right. She couldn’t remember what exactly was the detail that was out of place, though. By all rights she should be here, and yet she felt as though she were intruding, that her own camp is foreign. 

She is a Tiefling, so it’s not insane to think that she’s been around other Tieflings. She can handle her drink well enough, so it’s probably her first party. Perhaps it’s saving people? It’s probable. Considering the violent urges she gets it’s not a wild theory.

Realizing she’s being a bit weird, sitting by the riverside, thinking about her past while everyone else here is living in the moment. Turning back towards the camp Riley watches as all the others socialize in their own ways. Lae’zel sits proudly by her tent, regaling any who are drunken or naive enough to walk near with stories from her creche, Shadowheart sits by her tent, though she can be seen occasionally joining conversations. Wyll is sitting out by the river, but all things considered she can’t anxiety past him after his deal with a devil.

Deciding it was time for her to stop skulking, Riley decides it’s her time to enter back into the party. Looking around, she finds Alfira and Lakrissa talking with Karlach and decides to join.

“-and the lemures just kept coming.Non stop for hours,” Karlach says, emphasizing how long it was. “ No joke, had my axe break on me twelve times that day.” Karlach says, finishing a story. “And that’s how I got these scars.”

“Oh,I’m sorry to hear that.” says Alfira.

“Ah, don’t worry about it mate. I’m out of there and free from Zariel.” Karlach’s voice is enthusiastic, though Riley detects a hint of anxiety, a hint of fear. 

Deciding that she has, in fact, learned something from her previous attempts, Riley grabs a clean rag and uses it so she can reassuringly lay her hands on Karlach’s shoulders. “Hey, if you need someone to vent to, I'm all ears.” Riley adds, formally joining the conversation. With help from the rag Riley is able to lay her hand there for about three seconds longer before the rag itself nearly sets itself ablaze, causing Riley to throw the rag to the ground as she stomps out the flame.

“Oh, it’s you!” Alfira’s eyes light up, “I was asking around your camp trying to gather inspiration for a new song! I was wondering if I could compose one based on your heroics!”

Riley mulls it over for a moment. Sure, her ego would absolutely love a song in her name. But at the same time…those are for real heroes. And Riley can’t say she is one. She’s murdered a random girl and, well, she might have killed those goblins just for the sake of killing. And as her thoughts flow Riley finds her eyes drift towards the barely visible marker which sits above Quills grave before her eyes return to the party.

“I think you should make one for our people,” Riley’s eyes wander towards the other Tieflings, “gods know we could use it.”

“I suppose we could,” Alfira’s eyes also begin to wander, watching all the other refugees as they celebrate surviving another day before lingering upon Lakrissa.

“So I take it Karlach’s been regaling you and your girlfriend with stories, ay?” Riley asks.

“Oh, ah…no. We’re just friends.” Alfira says, her tone laced with anxiety and disappointment at her answer. Alfira’s eyes lock with Lakrissa’s as the pair have a conversation with just their eyes.

Riley’s eyes meet Karlach’s as the pair both express their doubts at that statement. The adventurers turn back to the bard and both watch as the bard continues her heartfelt discussion with her closest companion, words being expressed with only their gazes. After a few moments Alfira and Lakrissa’s conversation seems to end as the pair of “friends” return to the conversation. “Sure, friends.” Riley says with a smile, confidence that the pair will get together growing.

“Well…that’s not fair. You can make those kinds of jokes because you’re with your partner.” Alfira’s voice sounds defeated as she seemingly realizes her feelings.

“Ah. Now it’s your turn to be mistaken,” Riley’s confidence apparently takes a vacation to the same place Alfira’s went,  “because I-ah, well, would someone like Karlach be interested in someone like me?” Riley gestures at herself. “...Unlikely” While Riley can’t be a fair judge on her physical appearance she is aware that Karlach know’s of her murder and that probably plays a bigger part in this than any beautiful aesthetic. . 

Her eyes returning towards Alfira and Lakrissa, Riley notices the pair of them have very familiar looks on their faces. Thinking on the look, Riley realizes that the pair of them are beginning to look like Riley and Karlach did when they doubted Alfira’s relationship.As she recognizes their expressions, Riley’s tadpole begins picking up…interest? Curiosity?

Looking into it Riley feels an unusual amount of interest directed towards her. As Riley’s eyes fall upon Karlach Riley begins to wonder if, in fact, she has misread the situation. Because the sight that greeted Riley was not an angry Karlach, but a nervous Karlach. Nervous not because Karlach wants to find a diplomatic way to let her down, but because she seems to be disagreeing with Riley’s initial assessment.  

“Oh…well. Shit.” Riley turns to Alfira “I take it you felt exactly like I do, didn’t you?” 

“Just about.” Alfira says with her own devious grin. “I was somewhat hoping I could turn the tables on you, never thought it would be this easy.”

“Well, shit. You got me good.” Riley concedes. Now that she is thinking about it, Riley actually asks herself if she really likes Karlach like that. Ever since the murder Riley had assumed everyone hated her, for valid reason, and that she shouldn’t like them like that. It just made sense. Now that it’s not true, Riley feels a bit stupid. 

So, does she like Karlach? Well she’s nice, cute, always a joy, strong, pretty, cool, and probably one of the most compassionate people she’s probably ever known. She has a strong moral compass and isn’t a pushover. And for someone like Riley, someone who has to fight herself just to do the right thing, Karlach would make a great partner. So yeah, she probably likes Karlach. As Riley turns to face Karlach once again, Riley notices the flattered look on Karlachs face. Her eyes look down towards her mouth and she tries to figure out if she said all of that aloud or not. Wouldn’t this be the first time she’s had these thoughts, right? 

Feeling her mouth stay stagnant, Riley tries to figure out how Karlach caught wind of her emotions. The emotions weren’t considered much less acted upon before tonight, so when else would they have crossed her….mind.

“Ah… right.” Riley says aloud. In her confusion she forgot the tadpole.

Karlach laughs at that. “Yeah, so,ah. If you want to,ah, meet up later so that we could…meet up later?” Her nerves get to her as she ends her sentence.

“Oh, ah, sure.” Riley gets out, her own nerves following suit. “Sorry for taking so long.”

“You weren’t the only nervous one here mate, so you’re all good here mate.” Karlach says, her smile growing more relaxed.

“Right.” Riley’s eyes return back to the other two participants in this conversation. Sitting on the log near them, Alfira and Lakrissa watch Karlach and Riley as if they were actors on a stage. Returning her eyes back to Karlach, Riley decides to just go for it. “So…shall we wait until the night ends or should we go somewhere more…private?”

Karlach’s attitude sours slightly. “I don’t think I’d ever hear the end of it if I accepted that, as much as I really, really want to.”

“Oh, right. I keep forgetting about that,” Riley’s beginning to realize she’s incapable of salvaging this conversation and decides to retreat to save all parties involved, “…well, see you later?” 

“Yeah, I’ll come find you when everythings dies down.” Karlach gives a look confirming it. With that Riley evacuates towards Shadowheart, pausing briefly as she hears Karlach whisper “Yes!” under her breath.

“Hey Shadowheart,” Riley calls out, her excitement from her discussion with Karlach making her a bit loud. “How’s it going?”

“I’m well… It’s strange. You know who I never saw myself caring for?” Shadowheart asks.

Riley looks at her a bit confused before turning her own gaze towards where Shadowheart is looking. “Lae’zel?”

“Not her, no. I meant the refugees. Never gave them much thought. Certainly not that bunch in the grove.”

“Oh no, you don’t get to be a worse person than me.” Riley says as she retrieves her goblet, “We already have a vampire and a murderer here, we’re already full of bloodthirsty companions.” She jests. 

“You say that like it is a challenge.” Shadowheart laughs a little, “Alas, I see your point. I will try my best to be less murderous than you.” 

“Thank you.” Riley also laughs, accepting the slight jab at her ego.  “So, would you care to split a bottle of wine?” Riley holds the bottle up with her tail, barely managing to keep it from slipping.

“Certainly,” Shadowheart extends her glass. Picking it up and uncorking it, Riley pours herself and Shadowheart a drink. “So, I saw you speaking to Karlach earlier. I take it you’ll be busy later?” Shadowheart’s eyes meet Rileys, her look knowing and playful. 

“Ah, well…” Riley’s nerves fail her as she starts to stutter. “Yes I am. Sorry if that interrupts any of your plans.”

Shadowheart eyes her, playfully “Oh, I’m far from judging you.”

“I figured. I didn’t forget what you said about Karlach when we first met her.” It was Riley’s turn to tease, “What was it again? How you’d like her to ‘pick you up over her shoulder?’” 

“Don’t look at me like I'm some sort of deviant.”

“Oh no girl, I fully fucking get what you mean. I wasn’t judging you for that, just pointing out that we’re on the same page.” Riley’s look goes from playful to rather matter of fact before her mind wanders for a moment. Thoughts centered around the word page, “Shadowheart, you’re also dealing with a bout of amnesia, right?”

“Something like that, yes. Why?”

“It's just,for the past few days I’ve tried to articulate what it feels like and I couldn’t quite get it. It’s like the amnesia feels as if my mind were a book with most of its pages ripped out, and since you’re the only person I know who's had any kind of amnesia I was wondering if that’s how it was like for you?” 

“For me it’s more complicated, but in a way yes. Most of my experience with memory loss comes from my faith in Lady Shar. I have the knowledge that most memories I have lost were done in her service, but it sounds as if you don’t have the same luxury. Can you elaborate on the feeling?” Shadowheart’s eyes focuses on her fellow amnesiac, face relaxed, with the occasional sip of wine. 

“Of course. It’s…strange. It feels like my education is intact, like I have not suddenly lost my knowledge of medicine-”

“I am still amazed that you of all people studied medicine,”

“Does everyone have to comment on that?” Riley thinks aloud, “but aside from my semantic memories I can barely recall a thing. Not a clue what my parents looked like, what my childhood looked like, where I got my education, my trade. It’s like…well to avoid repeating myself it feels like going through a library that’s mostly empty shelves. I know the books are gone but I don’t know what knowledge they held.” 

“That sounds…how do I put it?” Shadowheart ponders as she refrains from her drink, “tragic?”

Riley, after finishing a bit of her own wine, helps Shadowheart “For me it’s mostly infuriating. It’s tragic, of course, but in a way I’m more annoyed that I don’t have a clue what I lost. It’s not like I saw my home destroyed, it's just…gone. It’s like it never existed. Does that make sense?”

“At least to me it does.” Shadowheart’s eyes wander, “What in the?” Shadowheart looks beyond Riley. Turning around Riley see’s Karlach doing something rather stupid.

As her eyes turn to the scene infront of her, Riley watches as Karlach manages to arm wrestling Lae’zel on top of a stone that they’re using like a table. Taking a moment to figure out how Lae’zel is touching Karlach without bursting into flames, Riley notices Lae’zel is wearing an oven mitt which is slowly losing integrity, probably bought from one of the Tieflings. Focus returning to the armwrestling, the pair are struggling, neither party making headway. Deciding to support her…whatever thing they were now, Riley starts whistling “You got this Karlach, Whoo!” The cheer made little impact, so Riley decides to bring out the big guns “Karlach if you win I’ll give you a kiss!”

With that call out, Karlach’s flames grow even stronger causing Lae’zel to release her grip and retreat from the stone. “Tsk’va! You said you could control your heat!” Lae’zel shouts as some Tieflings begin to watch.

“Ah, sorry about that, Lae. Something came over me.”

“Do not play coy, Istik. We all know exactly what has just happened.” Lae’zels focus turns to Riley “And for your part, you shall face my ire!” Lae’zel throws a stone at Riley before she begins running after Riley. For her part, Riley catches the stone before running off herself, “Sorry Shadowheart, talk to you later.” 

  Lae’zel runs full speed, her eyes focused on her quarry. Her movements were precise and efficient, ensuring her progress towards her prey. Lae’zel’s training proved to be her greatest asset, but in this case her greatest weakness. For she was trained to run in spite of armor, while her prey is adept at running into battle with nothing but the clothes on their back. 

The chase forces Riley to do many unpleasant actions. From running through Rolans magic show with only enough time to say “Good job!” to jumping around rocks to even Riley drinking the little that remained of her wine while she ran. The hunter and prey raced around the central boulder, passing Gale then Alfira, the pair continued their sprint. Passing Scratch it appears a third participant has entered their impromptu chase, though his allegiance is unknown as the chase drags on. 

The rest of camp begins to cheer them on, some encouraging Lae’zel because it’s funny, changing the atmosphere of the chase. What began as a potential murder has begun to feel like a childhood game. Lae’zel may still have the focus of a hunter but her posture has weakened, though that may be an effect of the alcohol. Riley herself is beginning to feel her glass of wine catch up to her, so it’s not an unfair assumption. When making her run towards the river, Scratch accidentally runs in front of her, causing Riley to stop in her tracks and allowing Lae’zel to catch up.  Lae’zel prepares a strike with her fist and Riley’s slightly tipsy mind quickly plans how to avoid such a maneuver. Riley ducks out of the way of Lae’zels fist and grabs Lae’zels arm and tosses her to the ground. Lae’zel picks herself back up and readies herself for a fight.

“Are you sure you want to do this Lae’zel?” Riley asks as she prepares her stance.

“I am sure, are you?” Lae’zel’s eyes shift to a hunter finishing its prey.

Unfortunately for Lae’zel, it appears the alcohol has inhibited some of her critical thinking skills as she engages in an unarmed battle against a monk of the open hand. Lae’zel starts the battle landing two solid blows on Riley’s upper torso, but neither compare to the four rapid strikes that land either on Lae’zels face or on her torso. Lae’zel falls to the ground defeated and Riley approaches her fallen “foe.” Examining her body, Riley notes no fractures or breaks in Lae’zel’s bones, though quite a few bruises that won’t go away till the next morning.

“Do you yield?” Riley asks her downed opponent.

Lae’zel struggles to pick herself back up. “N…never.”

“Well, we won’t make it to your creche if you’re dead so how about we settle on a truce?” Riley offers Lae’zel a hand.

“A truce then.” Lae’zel accepts the hand up, raising to her feet. As she makes it to her feet, the crowd that gathered around them cheers out in celebration.

With her cup safely returned to her hand, after she was forced to toss it, Riley refills her glass and goes out to socialize some more with her friends. Perhaps she’ll see why Wyll’s still out there.

—-

As the hour drew late and the Tieflings began to leave, Riley began to rest for the night. She looks around the camp as everyone retires to their tents and retires to her bedroll she leaves by the fire. Closing her eyes and preparing to rest, Riley’s mind briefly forgets her earlier agreement with Karlach.

“Psst. Hey Soldier. You’re not asleep, are you?” Karlach asks.

“Nope, wide awake.” Riley begins to sit up as Karlach begins to sit down. “Sorry I didn’t talk more with you earlier, I got nervous and then got in that fight with Lae’zel.”

“Don’t apologize about that, mate. Me and Shadowheart had a blast watching.” Karlach’s smile widens as she takes a deep breath in. “Isn’t it mad? How good life is?”

“Yep. In spite of everything bad going on nights like tonight feel, well I don’t know if magical is the word I want to use lest Gale comes out and corrects me.”

At that Karlach lets out a soft laugh. “He would do that, wouldn’t he,” Karlach lets out a deep breath, audible sounds of stress leaving her body “Ten years I was trapped in the hells. Ten years without a kind word, a touch,” Karlach’s eyes meet back at Riley’s. “When I look at you, I feel real again. Alive,” Riley’s heart starts to flood with emotions. “Gods I want to ride you till you see stars,” Now a different part of Riley was beginning to flood with emotions in spite of the tonal whiplash. 

“Me too.” Riley responds, using all of her brain power that isn’t dedicated to imagining Karlach’s words. “But that has me thinking, I still owe you a kiss don’t I?” 

“Don’t tempt me. I’d do anything to touch you but I don’t want to burn you.” Karlach’s dismissal causes her face to cringe slightly in disappointment.

“Karlach, look here,” Riley sits up more and shows Karlach the palms of her hands. “Remember how I’ve patted your shoulders a few times? Do you see any burns here?” The pair’s eyes return to Riley’s hands, searching for any sign of damage. “See? Nothing. Now, may I kiss you?” 

Karlach seems to weigh the options. On the one hand, she could play it safe. On the other, she gets her first real touch after ten years. “Alright, but only this once.”

With that, the pair began to kiss. A rush of heat filled Riley as the pair’s lips met, some heat being solely metaphorical while the rest was quite literal. Riley tries to deepen the kiss, but it’s then that Karlach stops them in their tracks as Riley’s lips begin to spark up.

“Wait, no!” Karlach’s voice fills with fear as she pulls away, a spark bursting out as the pair part. “Are you alright?”

Riley wipes her lips with her hand, “Heh…never better,” Riley giggles a little, “I mean, I was licked earlier today by a giant ogre and we took down a goblin camp. Compared to that, a literal hot kiss isn’t so bad, is it?”

Karlach laughs at that, her earlier worries easing “Thank the gods.”

The pair share a brief moment of silence. Riley, ever the more curious, breaks it “So, want to just talk?”

“Eh, fuck it, sure.” Karlach’s posture eases, “What do you want to talk about?”

“So you said you’re from Baldur’s Gate, right?” 

“Right, born and raised in the Outer City with my folks.”

“Can you describe it?” Riley’s voice somewhat cracks, “I think I’m from Baldur’s Gate but I have no memory of it. I’d…I’d like to see if your explanations would help me remember what it was like.”

“Ah well, fuck. So the city’s not exactly perfect, plenty of grime and blood to go around, but it’s got its charms.” At that Karlach says that the pair feel a memory emerge from Riley’s mind and flow to the pair of them. Images of children playing in the street as Riley sat at a tavern somewhere in the lower city, enjoying a nice afternoon meal. As the memory fades the new lovers look at eachother with glee “Oh my gods, Soldier! You’re starting to remember!”

Riley’s excitement grows “Gods, yes! I mean, it’s not much but I’m starting to remember the city!” As she finishes Riley’s face turns sour in disappointment, “though, I was kind of hoping I’d remember more of home. Oh well.”

“Ah, sounds rough.” Karlach replies, unsure how to confront the subject.

“Don’t worry about it. If I can’t remember my past home, I’ll make sure this camp becomes my new one.”

“Now there’s an outlook I can get behind!” Karlach’s smile grows radiant.

“So…sorry if this is sensitive but what’d you do back in Baldur’s Gate? I know you were in the hells for a while but you said something about working there, right?”

“Ah, I mentioned that, did I? Well sorry to say mate but it’s not a happy story.”

“Oh no,” Riley’s voice fills with sarcasm, “I don’t think I, the sleeping murderer with 

amnesia can handle that.”

Karlach chuckles, “fair enough Soldier. Like I said, I was born and raised in Baldur’s Gate. We weren't the richest folks in the outer city and I got worried about money. So I started working as a bodyguard for a man by the name of Enver Gortash,” the name finds itself a home in Riley’s mind as specks of familiarity spurt out, “I worked with him for years, and I ended up respecting him. A lot. Then one day he sells me to Zariel. And then I serve ten years as her personal fucking champion.”

“Gods damn, I’m sorry you had to deal with that.”

“Don’t sweat it Soldier,” Karlach’s positive attitude somehow doesn’t break, “damn shame I can’t really ask you about your past.”

“I fucking know right?” Riley’s voice showed more annoyance than anger, “I mean seriously. Everyone here has something going on with their past, like Lae’zel’s in a whole new plane or how Gale’s got a magic bomb in his chest or Wyll’s pact or even your engine, and then there's me. We know I’ve been stabbed and that my tadpole’s probably made me more murdery, but fuck all aside from that. It’s annoying!”

“Ya know, phrased like that, and everyone here’s got some insane baggage.” Karlach says, eyes wandering camp. “Can’t say I dislike that. It’d be boring if everyone was normal.”

“Oh gods a dramaless camp would suck. Imagine how dull camp would be if the most interesting thing about it was the resident boot crucher.” Riley jokes as the pair chuckle as the silly joke as the night rolls on.

—

Hours after the lovers' part, as Riley rests her mind becomes consumed with dreams of red. Visions of the woman she murdered, the woman whose blood stained her hands, the woman whose body is buried a short ways away. Thoughts of ripping her insides asunder cloud her, fuel her. Her imagination goes wild as depravity takes root.

Riley awakens in a sweat, her heart beats leagues faster, her eyes quickly dart around the camp for threats. As her eyes find no foe her breathing slows, allowing her heart to return to normal. With the adrenaline of the nightmare still flowing through her veins Riley decides to take a brief walk, hoping that she’ll outlast the energy. The silence of the camp before dawn is strange, what is normally such a vibrant and noisy site lying as silent as the dead. 

Leaving camp and finding a ruined house. As she enters she tries to wipe the visions, a voice breaks the silence.

“Ah, hello mas-”

The small creature is not given time to finish its remarks. Riley, in a state of fear, instinctually kicks the fiend. The potion of strength must still be in Riley’s system as the small thing flies from one side of the room to the other. 

The corpse landed with a sickening crack as blood began to leak from the fresh corpse. Only then does Riley look upon the corpse to figure out who she was fighting. A small suit, a proper hat, this was a butler. Why a butler appeared behind her, she can’t say.

As she continued to think about the situation the corpse began twitching, then moving. What started as rigor mortis began to morph into the corpse patting itself down. After more movements that defy anatomy, the corpse began to rise. Bones snapped into place as the corpse got to its feet. “Oh that was oh so delicious of you master.”

“WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU!” Riley shouts out in fear. In her mind, corpses can’t do that. The only times a corpse rises are because someone else made them rise, corpses should not get back up on their own.

“Sceleritas Fel,” the thing says, bowing, “your loyal and ever-adoring butler. I followed you, my dear rotted Master.”

“Oh fuck, I’m still dreaming. That’s it, of course.” Riley begins pacing around, attempting to convince herself, “I had too much to drink and my mind is punishing me for it. That makes sense.”

“Oh no master, this is oh so very real. I found you, following the stench of that bard.” Sceleritas notes.

“I swear I buried the body, did an impromptu embalming. Thought the smell wouldn’t be noticeable.”

“Oh don’t fret, my master, for I have found you. But let’s not waste any more time reminiscing, I come bearing a part of your dreadful inheritance.” As he says that he holds his hands out as magic begins to flow, forming a cloak.

Riley takes the cloak, if only to get this dream over with, “Thank you. Now, I hope you don’t mind, but I’m beginning to feel tired so I shall be going now.”

“Oh, but of course my murderous master. One cannot face their foes exhausted, can they? I hope to see you soon.” Sceleritas declares.

With that ominous and confusing conversation over, Riley walks back to camp and straight for the bedroll. No looking around, no more appreciating the silence of the still night, not even a bath to clean herself of the stench of sweat and alcohol. Just right to bed. The bath in the river will just have to wait until morning.

—

What a fucking night that was! For once in ten years she got to actually just relax and have fucking fun. No orders from Zariel, no worry of imps flying in and fucking everything up, hells even her engine felt like it was doing alright. One night where she could really, and I do mean really, just enjoy being alive and out of the hells. Just chatting with friends, drinking, and just having fun.

Then there was the matter of the end of the night. Soldier finally acknowledged her interest and the two of them actually talked about it. Well, they didn’t exactly talk about it, the tadpole kind of…just told her that Soldier was interested. Hey, silver lining to the whole tadpole thing.

Then the kiss, oh the fucking kiss. Gods, she’s getting worked up over a little kiss. It’s like being a kid again, gods. But can you fault her? Ten fucking years no physical contact, the  fucking loneliness and then she finds someone crazy enough to go for it even while she’s burning up. Sure she’s not perfect, but at least she’s trying to do better. Considering all the fucker’s Karlach’s met in the hells, including Gortash, that’s a massive step up.

Then they got to talking and they started to fix that head of hers. Turns out Soldier is from the Lower city, so hey maybe they’ll run into some familiar faces when they get there. Or at least, that’s where Karlach thinks they’re heading. The absolutists seem to be heading that way, so that’s probably their target.

As Karlach continues to wake up she exits her tent and see’s Lae’zel sharpening her sword, Shadowheart petting Scratch, and Gale making breakfast. Wait…where’s Soldier? Karlach, after spending a moment searching for her new lover, got her answer when she looked out towards the river.

In the river was the top half of Soldier, scrubbing herself with the soap they bought from the Tieflings. On top of that, Soldier was singing an old infernal song that only Karlach could understand. Fuck, right now Soldier looks gorgeous. It’s hard not to state.

And her voice…well it’s not great but it’s far the worst she’s heard.

As she continues to stare that one thought replays again in her head as she watches the scene.

“Yeah, I definitely can fix her.”

Chapter Text

After removing the scent of alcohol from her body, Riley finished preparing herself for the day. A process that takes her little time, the benefits of not having to strap armor to herself no doubt. With food in her belly and her friends…fuck it she’s calling them her friends, at her side. 

Returning to the Blighted Village was strange. With the goblins in camp dead, it appears the other goblins retreated, probably to Moonrise Towers if Halsin’s correct, leaving the village to be deserted once more. 

“Did anyone else expect for the goblins to still be here or is that just me?” Riley turns towards her friends.

“In hindsight it makes sense for them to flee, but I was also getting used to seeing them here.” Shadowheart says as she checks out the rooftops, scanning for any remaining goblins.

“Same, it’s weird.” Karlah also looks a little concerned, “I’m half expecting an ambush, but I can’t pick out from where.”

The rest of the group begin to worry, eyes darting around searching for any unseen foes. Concern, whether it was stemming from the tadpole or just Karlach’s words, briefly consumes the four, overwhelming their sense of rationality. As time moves on though, and no enemies make their presence known, the four lower their guard again.

Through the tadpole they all hear the sound of what appears to be wood creaking, putting everyone back on guard. Riley rushes the position she thinks she heard a noise from, only to be met by nothing. 

As the anticipation builds, the fear of the unseen enemy grows, it finally occurs to Riley.

No one’s here. It’s probably abandoned, no goblins, no ambushes. Nothing. Riley decides the best way to scout for any possible attacker is the simplest method.

“HELLOOO!” 

As birds rustle in the trees and the windmill sits idle, Riley concludes it’s not an ambush. “Well, I'm not dead, so I think the coast is clear.”

At that the various looks of concern and fear dropped like a sack of bricks. The four of them met back up and, after taking one last moment to see if there was a single soul left, began to converse again.

“Is everyone good?” Riley looks around as faces return to normal. 

“Got worried there for a bit but all is good here.” Goes Karlach

“Same goes for me,” follows Shadowheart.

“Here as well,” finishes Wyll.

“Terrific!” Riley’s voice echoes through the empty town, “we’ll make it to Ethel's hut in no time.”

“You mean Auntie Ethel?” Karlach jokes, her smile wide and a tad bit silly.

“Karlach, I don't think she’s my aunt.” Riley responds, misinterpreting Karlach’s joke as a serious query. 

Shadowheart, noticing the shit eating grin, decides she wants one of her own, joins in “Surely you’re not serious? The familial resemblance is clear as day. Have you checked a mirror lately?”

Riley, still not quite catching on, retorts “Oh come on! I’m not even human!”

Wyll, who sees an opportunity, chimes in “I wouldn’t be so hasty. As you can see,” Wyll gestures towards his face, “there are some handsome devils out there so I wouldn’t be so confident in your heritage.”

Despite the happy smiles on the faces of her friends, Riley’s eyes full of worry before realizing the joke, leading to her copying the silly grin currently worn by her friends “You know what, you’re right. I’m starting to remember all of those family holidays where Auntie Ethel would come by Baldur’s Gate with her stew, it was to die for.”

“Oh? Go on.” Karlach’s smile radiates like it did last night at the party.

“Oh yeah, so every year me and the folk would meet up in our house, down in the lower city. We’d have my folk, Auntie Ethel of course, my cousins, Aunt Jaheria and Uncle Minsc, and of course, Boo.”

In response to the hamster's name Wyll lets out a soft laugh, picturing the scene, while Karlach continues smiling. Shadowheart remains engaged but doesn’t seem as invested in Baldurian legend.

“Wait Wyll, your father is a duke. Have you ever met Jaheira?” Karlach adds excitedly.

“The name rings a bell, but I can’t say I’ve ever met her. She’s a Harper, right?” Wyll adds.

“Are you kidding me? The High  Harper?!” Karlach cries out “Her and Minsc stopped Sarevok, they are local legends mate. Wait, the other night we fought over local legends and you didn’t know Jaheira?”

“Ok I admit it, I may have somewhat gotten Jahiera mixed up. I may have other things on my mind. But,” Wyll throws his hands up in defeat, his smile and happy tone showing the joy behind his words, “It appears I have failed the great history of our great city, and as such I yield the title of ‘best Baldurain Historian’ to you, Karlach.” Wyll gives a ceremonial bow as all eyes turn to Karlach.

Karlach raises both hands in the air and cries “Fuck yeah!” Karlach then begins hopping a little in celebration as Shadowheart and Riley provide a polite applause. 

As Karlach returns to the ground once more, Riley’s mind begins swirling. She knows the story of Jaheira and Minsc, though she’s unsure how well she knows it. She knows the pair, alongside a rogue Bhaalspawn and a hamster, Boo, took down Sarevok’s plot and murdered him in Bhaal’s temple. And yet why does part of the story feel…upsetting to her? Why does she have a bitter feeling about the death of a Bhaalspawn? 

Perhaps the storyteller who regaled Riley with the tale was annoying, perhaps she had to learn it in what passed as school for her, or perhaps she had a bad experience with Jaheira. She lived in the city, it’s not out of the question. Perhaps Jahirea got annoyed by her lemonade stand and poured it directly into the city’s streets. Who knows, really.

As Riley’s mind ponders the reasoning behind her distaste she feels memories try to take shape, though as normal nothing but images and half formed ideas form. Blobs resembling human form but never quite decipherable. The story of Jahirea seemingly split in two, as if her mind were trying to reconcile two interpretations of the tale. One side sounded hopeful while the other felt of failure, of defeat. 

As her mind lingers on the question her eyes catch sight of a childhood game. Thinking about it, the story sounds like the sort a parent would share to their child by their bedside. Riley’s eyes find an old chalk game sitting on the floor.

“Hey guys,” Riley calls her friend’s attention, “do you know what game this is?”

Turning to see her friends Riley see’s Shadowheart shake her head “It’s familiar but I can’t say.”

Wyll, however, nods. “I know this game, I used to sneak out of the castle to play this with the kids in the lower city.”

“You lived in a fucking castle?” Riley nearly shouts.

“His father is the ArchDuke, not really a surprise there.” Karlach calls out.

“Oh…right. Forgot about that,” Riley responds.

“We were literally just talking about it,mate.” Karlach teases.

“We were?” Riley’s mind recalls the past few minutes and notices her mistake, “oh right we were. Sorry, my mind is all over the place right now.”

“In that case, copper for your thoughts?” Karlach jests as she searches around her pockets for a copper piece.

Riley’s eyes return to the child’s game, her mind trying to conjure up any memory of her childhood. Maybe a round of tag, a game of catch, maybe even just a minute of playing pretend. Though her efforts were sound, at the end Riley fails to recall even a single second of her youth. “I was….just trying to remember my childhood. Do you remember anything, Shadowheart?” Her eyes turn to meet her fellow amnesiac.

“I have some memories, but none like this.”  Shadowheart meets her gaze with a slight look of fear, the memory she keeps must be an unpleasant one if it causes her to react like that.

“Ah, damn. Sorry.”

“I assume your past is still a mystery, yes?” Wyll’s eye moves with sympathy, with pity.

“Yep, still a mystery.” 

“Damn, sorry to hear that Soldier.”

“Thanks. It’s…just a weird feeling, you know? I know I had to have been a little kid at some point but I just can’t remember it. I don’t know how much of a little shit I was, I don’t remember my parents, I don’t even remember if I was tutored. I just have to keep guessing. Like was I sweet once? Who knows.”

“I like to imagine every child is sweet.” Says the fellow amnesiac.

“Even you?”

“Yes, even me.”

“So would you say you were a sweet Sharin child?”

“Is that like ‘sweet summer child?’” Wyll asks.

“I mean, when I heard someone get called a ‘sweet summer child’  it’s like they’re innocent. But last I checked Shar’s not exactly the most innocent god out there.” Karlach adds, “So would the Sharin child be someone who’s lost innocence? Because that’d make some sense.”

“Are we really having this discussion?” Shadowheart states, her chastising words fail as her smile betrays her. 

“Well, yeah. I was half thinking when I came up with that idea but now we might have a chance to coin a phrase.”

“Gods,”Shadowheart lets out a soft laugh, her expression far from the dark of Shar, “Were you always so distractible?”

“I mean, I could take this more seriously, but I mean why would I? For the foreseeable future we’re dealing with these bastards” Riley’s hand points to her head, “so we’re going to be in some deep shit. And if I have to be serious every second, I think I’ll either go insane or be consumed by stress.”

“Fucking same.” Karlach’s face lights up, metaphorically in this case, “I don’t know about you, but I’d rather live my life. No sense wasting what little we have for certain.”

“See, she gets it.” 

“A fine disposition for these circumstances, but Shadowheart’s point does lead me to wonder, what’s the plan for today?” Wyll’s demeanor shifts away from playful to more serious, “after dealing with Ethel of course.”

“Ah, right. I was thinking that after Ethel we go down to the underdark and see if there’s anything down there that can help us either understand what the fuck the Absolute is or help deal with the parasites.”

“I can work with that.” Shadowheart’s face also returns to normal, the joy receding from her face.

“Bet, let's go!”

—

“You ate a Hag’s hair? Their hair? That was something you did?” 

“Well when you put it like that you make me look like a crazy person,” replies the woman with constant thoughts of murder and death.

The wizard’s somewhat annoyed glance hardens, “I would argue someone willingly consuming the flesh and/or hair of a Hag is more likely to be insane.”

“Oh come on, it’s not that weird, right? Astarion, back me up here.”

“No, I'm with Gale on this one, darling. It’s far weirder, and far more fun, to tease you about this.” The vampire’s laugh begins to echo.

“I am not taking dietary criticism from a man who ate a pair of boots and a boar sucker.” Riley’s tone begins to lighten as Gale’s serious criticism makes way for a playful bout with the resident vampire.

“Oh don’t act so high and mighty, you Hag hungry fiend!” Astarion continues to tease, his eyes relaxed and smile unbound.

“You…..fuck I got nothing,” she throws her hands up in defeat. 

“Well, now that we’ve settled the matter of your diet, please darling, tell us why you ate the hair of a Hag?”

“I thought it would make me wiser.” Riley replies with a hint of shame.

“And what led you to that conclusion?”

“The Hag said so.”

“And did eating the hair make you any wiser?” 

“Weirdy, yes.” She couldn’t lie, she felt wiser already. Her perception was slightly sharper, her reaction time ever so subtly quicker.

“And have you learned anything with your new found wisdom?”

Only one thought comes to answer the vampire, “I probably should have at least hesitated before eating the hair.”

“Yes, you should have.” The vampire continues to tease.

“Thank you for that. Going forward if I’m pressured into eating anything with the promise of power I’ll be more hesitant.”

With a tired sigh, the weight of disappointment finally starting to wane, Gale returns to the conversation. “That’s all I ask. Really. This is a very basic standard. A standard I never thought I’d need to enforce.”

“In my defense, it made sense at the time. I think I heard a story about powerful barbers.”

“Really, Barbers? What is it?” Quips the vampire.

“It's a person who cuts hair, but that’s not important right now. We need to finish packing up and we’ve spent a bit too much time talking.”

Seemingly caught off guard by Riley’s statements, Astarion attempts to regain his understanding of the current situation, “I-you walk over here and start talking to us about how you’ve eaten a Hags hair and then you complain that we’re running late!”

“Actually I was going to offer to carry some of your gear. Neither of you look like you can carry all that much, no offense.”

Gale looks down towards his arms and smiles, “I suppose I do bear a striking resemblance to the archetypal wizard.”

“And I, for one, would appreciate not lowering myself to that of a pack mule.” 

“Astarion, your tent and gear weigh a combined twenty pounds. I’m pretty sure a child could carry that,” Riley says, eyes looking behind the vampire towards his temporary home.

“What kind of children do you think could carry 20 pounds of gear down to the Underdark?”

From behind the three, the unmistakable sound of Lae’zel’s native tongue could be heard, “Chk. On Creche K’liir all younglings must learn to carry their camp supplies and their plate by the age of nine.”

“Really?” Riley’s curiosity peaks.

“No.” Lae’zel’s smile grows wide as Rileys face grows agitated, not at Lae’zel for making that joke but annoyance at herself for falling for the same trap again. “Those exercises are not conducted until the age of twelve.”

“So I’ll take that as you not needing any assistance with your gear then, yes?”

“Of course. A true Githyanki is never a liability.”

“Alright, that’ll make it easier for me.”

“Eh-excuse me!” Astarion calls out, “But you’ve never exactly explained to us how we get down there.”

Riley takes a moment before answering the question, “Do you want the fun way or the boring way?”

Astarion goes first,“Fun sounds interesting, I vote for that.” 

“As much as I find that prospect fascinating, I’ll have to go with the safe and boring but safe option.” Gale says, casting his boring vote.

“I would rather live to get this parasite removed, so I vote for safety.” Lae’zel votes.

Riley turns to her other companions who are still packing and shouts,“Wyll, Shadowheart, Karlach! Safe way down or fun way!?”

“FUN!” Karlach’s voice responds with even greater energy than Riley’s own.

“To the hells with it, fun it is.” Wyll catches Karlach's energy.

“There’s still the matter of my quest, so I vote safety.” Shadowheart votes in vain.

“Well I want to have fun, so fun it is!” Riley votes.

“Oh gods, are we going to die?” Gale asks, jokingly.

“Eh, probably not.” Quip’s Astarion

—

Entering the cave through the busted down hole in the blacksmith's basement, the party finds themselves towards the opening where the massive Phase Spider lies dead. 

“An impressive kill,” Lae’zel’s eyes the corpse like a hunter gazing on downed prey.

“I wouldn't say that. Wyll shot it in the eyes twice, it bit me, and I put my fist through its exoskeleton. Not really that impressive of a fight. Good shooting by the way,Wyll.” Riley gives Wyll a thumbs up and a proud smile.

“So why, pray tell, are we here specifically?” Gale’s concern grows ever more prominent.

“Well we need a quick way to the Underdark, and since it’s windy down there then I assume this hole,” Riley points at the big hole in the center of the room, like the group could somehow fucking miss it, “which means this is probably are fastest way down.”

“And what? Are you planning on jumping?” The wizard asks with far more interest than concern, “Oh, is this the part where you demand I cast feather fall on you?”

“Astute observation, but not quite.” Riley throws Astarion, Gale, and Lae’zel scrolls. “Now tell me, have you ever been asked if you’d jump off a bridge if all of your friends did it?”

Astarion couldn’t hide his grin while Lae’zel looked on confused as Gale prepared his response, “Yes, are you-”

Without saying much more, Riley used her own scroll of Feather Falling on herself as well as Karlach, Shadowheart,who was carrying Scratch, and Wyll. Once she cast the spell, she immediately dove head first down the hole.

Following almost immediately behind Riley would be Karlach, then after a moment’s hesitation Shadowheart, and finally Wyll. The four drifted down into the dark as wind lifted the hair up and away from their heads. Standing atop the hole, Gale and Astarion watch on as their comrades slowly leave their view. Lae’zel, taking only a moment’s hesitation, chooses to follow and casts her own spell and joins her associates. Astarion, now with a wide smile, casts it on himself and falls into the abyss. Gale, with a playful sigh, joins his friend's descent.

–

Setting up camp again in the Underdark was not an easy feat by any means. Finding an area that could fit everyone’s tents while isolated enough to not draw attention from every critter and creature took hours, but alas it was done.

It took a bit of hard work to clear, a few minotaurs stood in their way and had to be dispatched , but nothing out of the ordinary. Their corpses should hopefully drive all the other fun critters away, letting them find a need to kill again . 

Though those thoughts of murder are set aside as Riley simply admires the surroundings. She’d thought the Underdark was totally devoid of light but the shine of the various mushrooms and plants always kept everything visible. 

With a camp established in the Underdark, and a day's worth of fighting already done, Riley decides to call it for the day and heads to the campfire to rest. A short while later Gale would approach.

“Oh, hey Gale. What’s up?”

“Hello, I was wondering where our food is located. I want to get started on dinner but I cannot seem to find anything.”

“Oh yeah, my bad. Hold on,” Riley quickly runs over to her trunk, grabbing four backpacks, and running back to Gale, “here! That’s all of our current supplies.”

“Thank you, my friend.” Gale begins grabbing various items out of the bags. First he pulls out some roasted meat, then a sausage, then a fish head. Then another fish head, then another, and another. As Gale drew out the third and final fish head eyes from across camp were starting to watch, though none seemed to want to directly intervene. “Why do you have so many fish heads?” He asks before he begins his search again in a new bag. As his hand enters the sounds of produce hitting produce could be heard as Gale pulls out a handful of apples. “Why do you have so many apples?” He investigates the third bag and hears the unmistakable sound of filled bottles of glass clinking on one another. Gale pulls out a bottle of wine before investigating the rest of the bag which remains filled with alcohol “Why…Scratch that this makes perfect sense.”

Riley defends,“I was about to say having a bag of  drinks isn’t that strange.” 

“But it’s perfectly normal to have three fish heads?”

“I mean you didn’t say anything about the various pieces of pork I left in that bag.”

“Don’t distract me, why do you have the heads of fish but not the rest of their bodies?”

“I mean I stole two of those from Goblins and got the last one from a bear, really I don’t know what to tell you.”

Gale’s confusion only grows more erratic, “What do you mean you stole the fish from a bear?!” Gale’s hand reaches inside the fourth and final pouch and pulls out an entire pizza. Not out of a box, not in a crate, just a whole pizza that had been sitting in the bag for the past few hours. Nothing stopped the sauce from staining the bag, and yet the pizza looked as if it were just plucked from a restaurant rather than it being stuck in a sack for a few hours. Gale now looks towards his companion in utter bewilderment, “It’s times like this that I question your leadership.”

It was Riley’s time to be confused, “Wait, what?” Her eyes scour the camp towards the rest of her friends, “Since when am I the leader?”

Shadowheart pipes up, “It was your idea to team up on the beach, so I assumed that was the case.”

Astarion is the next to join in, “I assumed the same after you rescued Gale.”

Lae’zel is the next to speak, “When the Teiflings captured me, I saw the others look to you for guidance. It was also my assumption that you were taking command over the situation.”

“Wait,wait,wait” Riley calls out, “Did any of you guys make any other assumption? That maybe Shadowheart or Gale or Wyll were the leaders? Or just the assumption that we didn't have one?” Riley pauses, waiting for a response, anything. As her eyes darted around the silent camp, Riley soon learned that no one made any noise, “Really? All of you thought of me as the leader but none of you tried to usurp me after I killed Quil?” 

“I won’t lie to you, Soldier, really considered it for a while. The two reasons I didn’t go for it were that you seemed genuinely horrified by it and I thought Astarion and Lae’zel wouldn’t support it.” 

“Oh my friend, you know me so well.” Astarion says as he takes a sip from a small cup of wine. Lae’zel, for her part, remains silent while her stalwart face confirms the validity in Karlach’s statement.

“Oh, ah. Thanks for your faith? I think.” Riley says, looking Karlach in the eyes.

“Don’t mention it.”

“Well…shit. I hadn’t really thought of myself as the leader up until this point. Well, in that case,” Riley’s voice fills with faux authority and a silly smile on her face, “I will make my first decree as leader of this camp. Gale of Waterdeep, I declare that you will be in charge of cooking tonight's meal. You may use any of the supplies in these bags but be careful not to overuse these supplies. After you finish cooking we will all eat it, revel, and unwind after the last days.” 

The humor of the declaration seems to lighten the mood of most of the camp, with Lae’zel even staring slightly less sharply at Riley. Karlach begins giving a polite applause to the “speech” which is picked up by Wyll, Shadowheart, and Astarion as Gale begins to cook.

—

Chapter Text

Riley continues staring, trying to understand what her eyes are viewing. Failing to figure out any meaning, she informs her friend, “I don’t know what it says, Astarion.”

“Oh don’t give me that, you know infernal you can just tell me what it says.”

“It’s all legalese. At best I can translate some words like ‘bound’ and whatnot but the rest are just random words to me. It’s something to do with an oath and binding but it’s not complete. Probably just an excerpt in a larger text.”

“Damn it, what was that bastard up to?” Astarion wonders aloud.

Riley then thinks further on it. If this is an infernal oath, then the implications of this are far larger than any normal vampire, “Well…shit. Looks like Cazador is a pretty big threat.”

“You sound surprised.”

“I mean I know he’s a threat, but I didn’t consider an infernal pact being in the right realm. The question changes though because I have no clue what the rest of the pact says but it’s clear it’s something big. Any clues?”

“No, Cazador was only figuratively hellish and there weren’t any Devils hanging about the crypt.”

Realizing the potential severity and pain this conversation could cause should it go the wrong direction, Riley tries to switch topics, “Well it’s not like it’s hard to get a devil’s attention, if Raphael's anything to go off of.”

“You know, devils are normally harder to contact, right?”

“I mean, probably. But I mean, I imagine attracting a devil's attention isn’t hard to do. Just have money or power and then just go on a walk. Probably throw on something sexy to get their attention and bam, dozen devil suitors at the door.  It happened to me.”

Astarion giggles, a behavior that’s getting more common, at the mild jest “Oh gods, are you trying to lift my spirits.”

Riley throws her hands up, “You got me. I’m actually trying to be a good friend.”

“How devilish.” Astarion says as Riley’s ploy to distract Astarion from his vampiric scars. “But in all seriousness, thank you.”

“For what?”

“For helping me, I…was worried I would have to figure out what it says on my own.”

“Don’t worry about it. Anyways I'm going to hit the hay, nig-wait. Is it even night right now?”

“It’s probably night, but who cares? And I’m sorry darling, but is that what you are focused on right now? You nearly slay a hag, jump into the underdark, and then kill a beast the size of a small tree and you're focused on the time rather than thinking of resting. “

“True. I’ll take my leave then. See ya.”

—

Finding the missing mushroom picker was rather straightforward. Find the little guy, toss him a scroll of Misty Step, and let him escape. Gathering the Noblestalk itself was also incredibly difficult, but nothing is truly unreachable if you have scrolls of Misty Step and a willingness to explode.

Grabbing the Noblestalk and returning to the party, Riley holds it out towards Shadowheart. “You want to take the first bite?”

“I’m sorry, are we not retrieving it for the mushroom picker?” Shadowheart states in a moment of confusion.

“What? No. I was going to give it to you?” Riley says, equally confused, “Did I not imply that?”

“You said, and this is a direct quote, ‘we’ll get your boy toy back, don’t worry.’ before you left the colony without another word.” Wyll adds. “We barely knew you were coming here.”

“Oh, forgot to add that part. My bad.” Riley says, lightly bonking her head.

“Soldier, don’t do that. You are the last person here who needs more brain damage.” 

Riley stares at her partner, in one eye a look of betrayal while the other is ready to laugh. “Touche”

“But yeah Soldier, I think you might want a bit of that mushroom. You’ve spent the past few days talking about wanting to know about your past so now we’d get a chance.”

“I don’t talk about it that much…right?”

Shadowheart looks at Riley with disbelief,“Respectfully, you bring it up around four times a day at least.” 

Wyll nods at that, his eyes somewhat remorseful at telling a friend off, “Somewhere around that.”

Riley just throws her hands up in defeat, “Ok, compromise. I’ll take one single scrap and Shadowheart gets the rest. Deal?”

“Will you continue to annoy us with your past?” Shadowheart somewhat jokes, though a hint of true annoyance leaks through.

“I’ll promise to reduce the amount of questions unless we meet someone from my past. Is that fair?”

“Fuck it, I can work with that.” Karlach gives a thumbs up.

Wyll extends a hand with a tired smile on his face, “As can I.” Riley grasps his hand and the pair shakes on it. 

Extending the Noblestalk out to Shadowheart, Riley lets Shadowheart take a majority of the mushroom while Riley herself only takes a small piece. Riley, having less to consume, decides to eat first.

—

Years ago.

It was a beautiful summer afternoon. She was sitting at a restaurant in the upper city of Baldur’s Gate, a fine wine in her hand and a roasted lamb on her plate. Riley’s eyes look out down the street, but the images of the locations are blurred.

“Is your food to your liking, sister?” Riley states, her eyes now turning towards the Tiefling sitting across from her. 

Her sister looked to be happy, if not a little agitated. “The food is adequate, though I would have preferred something more…dwarven.” Her sister’s tone alluded to some common thought the two had, a thought that does not come to mind now.

“I would have as well, but we cannot have the world finding out about some of father’s recipes, no?” Again, the subtext of the conversation continues to go missing, “But if you wish, when our business is done here we could go to the market and fetch some ingredients, if you wish.”

Her sister claps her hands in excitement, “What a lovely idea, my dear kin.” Her sister takes a bite out of her lamb.

“Why thank you, dear sister.” Riley takes another bite out of lamb, the pair taking a moment to simply enjoy their meal. Following that, Riley’s eyes wander around the restaurant towards the other patrons of the restaurant. Eyes searching for those she deemed worthy. Her eyes pass a bard and land on what appears to be a man in noble attire. He was tall, handsome, muscular, and he had the demeanor of a kind and gentle soul. “Sister, what’s your opinion on that hunk of meat over there.” She points towards the man in question.

“Oh my,” her sister looks on at the man, licking her lips,a devilish grin adorning her face, “I wouldn’t mind taking a bit out of him.”

“My thoughts exactly. How about this, my dear sister. I can take care of our business on my own if you wish to pursue this man. Would that be alright with you?”

The look her sister gave her was filled with unbridled joy, “What an interesting plan, my kin.”

“Oh why thank you my dear sister.” 

“Though, my dear kin, before I go I must ask you this, why do you always let me indulge in the pleasures of flesh when you are so stringent?” 

“I enjoy the pleasures of flesh the same as any, do not be mistaken, but to me it’s less important. I derive pleasure from the acts rather than the artistry. You though,” Riley gives her sister a wicked smile, “I know how much you love to express your artistry. How you will take your prey on your altar and make a show of it. How every time differs, how you take the time to get the details just right. I am content simply moving from body to body, no sense in learning anything more than what number they are.”

Her sister simply sighs, seemingly remembering this argument from before. “I should correct your misconceptions now, but if I do I will miss my chance to get in with that wall of meat, so I will simply leave you to your business while I tend to mine.” She stands and begins walking towards the mountain of a man, a certain swing in her step revealing her intentions.

Riley smiles, watching her sister with pride as she makes her moves. Riley reaches to her coin purse and removes some gold, enough to cover their meal, and leaves the establishment. Exiting and moving out with purpose, she seemingly begins business. Passing a beggar in the streets, Riley can feel an urge to utterly mangle the poor fool wash over her, though knowing it would cause a commotion she chooses to ignore the urge just this once.

She makes her way through the streets and eventually finds herself outside of an unfamiliar tavern. Checking a note for the name, a name she cannot piece together, she confirms the location and heads inside. Upon entering her eyes search for someone, someone dressed in regal robes and wielding an iron bracer. 

Finding the man sitting alone in a booth, Riley walks in and takes a seat next to the strange man. “I was informed that you were looking for me.”

The strange man eyes her with intrigue and trepidation, “Perhaps I am, perhaps I am not. The question is, who are you?”

With a feeling of unrivaled confidence, she responds. “I am Riley, and who might you be?”

“My name is Env-” 

The memory begins to fade, details begin falling apart. The face becomes a series of shapes, the words forming meaningless sounds. The memory fades, and her mind begins to return to the present.

—

Grasping her head, Riley’s eyes open as the memory fades out of focus.The memory remains but any details beyond that one moment are lost.

“Fuck, that was weird.” 

Karlach looks at Riley with joy, “Welcome back Soldier, what’d you see?” 

“Just a memory of me going out to lunch with my sister, nothing major.” Riley says nonchalantly. 

“Considering I don’t have siblings, I’d say that’s actually a big deal.” Wyll adds.

“Same, that’s pretty important.” Karlach nods.

“I have no siblings by blood, but I now remember an old friend who may as well be my brother.” Shadowheart adds.

“Wait, now I remember…Shadowheart what did you remember?”

“Flashes of my childhood, mostly. I remember a young boy, an old friend it seems.”

Riley smiles, “Aw, that’s adorable. Guess even you were sweet once.”

“But back to it, what did you remember? Any details?”

Riley thinks of her memory, “Not really anything of any real note. I never got my sister’s name or anything else. I know I ate lamb in the upper city and that I managed business for the family. No idea what that business is/was either.”

“Well at least it’s a start, eh?” Wyll adds, “Besides, now that you say you were in the upper city I now must wonder if we’ve ever crossed paths.”

Riley shrugs, “I mean, it’s possible. Hells, all of us could have passed each other without any of us knowing. Shadowheart said there's a Sharen temple in Baldur’s Gate so she might be around, Karlach and you lived there for a bit, and now we know I lived there.”

“Eh, sounds neat.” Karlach adds as the conversation dies down.

“Anyways, let’s get back to the mushroom pickers, we’ve got a lot more Underdark to check out.” 

“Understood, let's get going.” Shadowheart adds.

—

“I’m calling bullshit on this ‘god’ business. Bhaal is the god of murder and that’s just a Redcap.”

As those words exit Riley’s mouth, the disguised Redcap’s anger burst out into an explosion of blood which was followed immediately as his illusion failed. 

“Ah, damn.” Riley said sarcastically, her voice filled with faux disappointment, “I guess we won’t be killing a god today.”

Karlach piped up, “Alright Soldier, this charade has gone on long enough, crush his nuts.”

Riley, who was not even processing how strange of a request it was, complied. “On it.” In a flash the Tiefling monk was upon the Redcap. Her strikes all landed with a satisfying crunch as the poor creature's bones broke. To describe this conflict as a battle would be an overstatement. The Redcap had endured three bone busting blows before the rest of the party followed up on their leader’s assault. Eldritch bolts carve chunks of flesh off the creature's head, a sacred flame engulfs it causing boils across its body, and Karlach's blade removes their head from shoulders.

With the Redcap dead, the sea people decide that instead of following the Redcap that they’ll now follow Riley. As Karlach praises Riley in her new name, a name she will not try to write down, Riley takes a moment to figure out why this situation feels so weird. So… familiar. The reverence and deification just seemed normal, for some reason.

With the moment of praise wrapping up, she turns to her partner with one question in mind. “Crush his nuts. That’s what you went with. Those are the last words that Redcap ever heard,” She pauses for dramatic effect, “Crush.His.Nuts.”

Karlach starts giggling like a child who just learned the word ‘fuck’ can be used in any sentence “Ah cheer up soldier, it was funny.”

Riley, despite the grin of her own, continues, “Oh no, you’re right.Sounds really fun,” she sees two small grins from her other two companions, “but I’m more wondering why was that the first thing that came to mind.”

“What person, who has their nuts intact, would want them to be crushed?” Karlach suggests, still laughing at her own joke. 

“It’s true,” Wyll adds, “I can speak from experience that the threat Karlach presented is potent.”

“You heard the expert, it’s an effective threat.” Shadowheart also adds, joking. 

Riley just gives up, “you know what, fuck it. I'm not gonna question it any further,” she pointed a finger at Karlach, “If I can use that line.”

“Done deal, let's get out of here.”

—

Returning and having taken a moment to rest, Riley walks around camp to check on everyone. Astarion was still looking in the mirror, Lae’zel was sharpening her many blades, and Shadowheart was having a hard time braiding her hair. Seeing the Sharran braid, a host of memories flooded Riley and she decided to lend a hand.

“Hey, need any help?” She calls out to her Sharran friend, pointing to her own hair.

Shadowheart, after a moment of shock at the sudden arrival, relents. “If you wouldn’t mind.”

The pair sat down on a rug taken from Shadowheart’s tent and Riley got to work. Riley found her rhythm in the process far faster than she expected as she got into it. As she does this memories of her past start to flow, for the first time in a while. Memories of this position with her sister as the two talked while Riley braided her sister’s hair. Her sister’s name still eluded her, but for now that didn’t matter.

Shadowheart, after letting Riley work for a minute, pipes up “For someone without any braids, you seem awfully experienced with braiding. Perhaps a remnant of your past?” Shadowheart asks. 

Riley shakes her head and laughs a little, her companions are so used to her amnesia comments that they simply guess on instinct, “Something like that.”

“Oh? Our camp’s second favorite amnesiac finally remembers something.” Shadowheart teases.

“First of all, ow. Second of all, yes I do.” Riley laughs a little at the initial comment. “I remembered my sister had a massive braid, we’re talking down to the knees level braids, I somewhat remember doing her hair. We had to have done it hundreds of times and I think it was just…us time. Time where we could be sisters. I think that’s what it was, at least.” 

“Sounds nice,” Shadowheart notes, a hint of sadness coming out. “There are times I wish I had a sister, you know. I only remember fragments of my childhood and a majority of it was not spent happily.”

“If it’s any consolation, I don’t know if I had any happy moments outside of what I said. I could have been just as miserable as you.”

Shadowheart seems to find that a little funny, “please don’t make this a misery competition. If you do that we’ll have Lae’zel mentioning some of the most ludicrous things to win.”

“Like how she’d stab her playmates if they lost a game of hide and seek?” Riley jokingly suggests.

“Exactly!” Shadowheart exclaims. Following that exchange the pair return to silence as Riley’s concentration on the braid returns. With time passing and the braid nearing completion, Shadowheart asks one last question before the pair part, “Do you think your sister is still alive?”

Riley pauses for a moment and thinks not just of her sister but her urge. What a danger it could pose to her sister, to anyone close should she fail to contain it. “No clue. Maybe she’s gone, maybe she’s still kicking. We won’t know until we reach Baldur’s Gate.”

Chapter Text

Sailing into what appeared to be an ancient Sharran citadel was not something Riley expected to see when she went off to hunt Nere. She was expecting something like the camp they found the boat at and maybe a proper house or something, but certainly not this.

“Feeling at home, Shadowheart?” Riley teases.

She looks around the architecture, past the various statues of her goddess in astonishment. “It’s fascinating. The remnants of a place once devoted to our lady Shar.” Her eyes wide with a small smile adorning her face. 

Riley can’t help but smile as one of her darkest companions enjoys her time, “In that case, perhaps once we’re done with our Nere business here then we’ll explore around a little. Maybe find that forge we read about.”

Karlach looks around as well, intrigued but not nearly to the same extent as Shadowheart, “We could do the exploring now. It’s not like Nere’s going anywhere.” 

Wyll, whose intrigue is closer to that of Karlach, simply nods “I’ll second that.” Though as Wyll says that aloud, his tadpole sends a message to the party “Though we may wish to speak less openly about betraying these cultists”

Riley’s eyes widen briefly in shock as she fully comprehends how utterly stupid it would be to openly plot an insurrection in front of the people they wish to overthrow. “Good point.” She relays back via tadpole. 

Deciding to explore before committing to any action, Riley and co begin to search around the various ruins for anything of value. The history of this place? Intellectually valuable, but not really any value to her plan at an insurrection. The spiders having a religious feud? Utterly fascinating, not important to her overall plans. The corpses being disposed of? Aside from potential provisions, nothing of value at all. Those chests sitting by the bottom of the cliff? Actually that might be valuable.

As Riley leads her friends towards the chests, she finally picks up on something. The chests are positioned in really weird spots, just out in the open for all to see and pick up. As she halts her position her expression shifts from fun to focused. At first her instincts say the chests are decoys, meant to lure out any passers by into looting. But that doesn’t make sense, someone might have just moved the chests if that were the case to use elsewhere. They couldn’t be old chests, since they have little if any dust on them and seem too out of place 

Wait, they didn’t look dusty and the ground around them was disturbed. But there aren’t any footprints. So how would they get here? Riley’s mind raced before it finally recalled what a Mimic is, and in that moment the dots finally connected. 

Oh shit, this is an ambush. Her friends just descended to her level and they might not have figured it out. “Hold!” She stands in front of her friends, stopping them in their tracks. “Everyone, ready yourselves for a fight.” The faces on her friends' faces focus again on the coming battle. Karlach moves between Wyll and Shadowheart and positions herself behind Riley. Further behind the pair, Wyll and Shadowheart prepare to deliver ranged support. Focusing on the fight ahead, Riley relays some orders, “Wyll, Eldritch Blast, that bottom chest. Shadowheart, Firebolt, top chest.”

The pair fire their respective spells. The Eldritch blasts connects with one of the chests on the bottom and sends it off into the abyss. The other blast lands on the idle chest and causes a slight burn, revealing the beast for what it truly is. From both surviving chests eyes begin to appear, the former hinges and locks break as the illusion shatters, the chest head opens up to reveal a saliva filled mouth ladened with teeth as sharp as daggers and with a tongue like a whip. 

“Karlach!” Riley cries, “Take the bottom one, I’m taking the top chest.” In less than a second Riley and the Mimic were looking upon one another, Riley’s two eyes to the many of the beast. A tongue wrapped itself around her hand, threatening,soaked with acid, threatening to swallow her whole.

Riley’s first connection with the beast's head, its false wood shattering and splintering as the blows landed. The beast cries out, seemingly in pain, as more hits find their mark. Deciding to be a bit more vindictive, Riley lays a hand right in one of the beast's eyes and continues to push through to the other side. The creature lets out its final scream as its body limply falls to the floor. Rushing to the aid of her partner, Riley watches as Karlach cleaves the remaining Mimic’s tongue clean off. With more bolts landing on the Mimic’s hide, it falls down dead.

“Clear!” Riley calls out. With all three Mimics seemingly dead and the fight over, Riley checks for injuries. “Karlach, all good?”

Karlach looks herself up and down for injuries. After some searching, she finds nothing, “All good here. You ok Soldier?” Karlach asks, nervously as she stares at the one hand that is entirely engulfed in Mimic blood.

Riley then checks herself for any damage, “No, nothing. Good job everyone!” She cries out in a little too much excitement.

Her companions look at her with unusual amounts of nonchalance as Shadowheart begins to speak. “You know, if anyone else were to have their arm engulfed in blood then I’d imagine they’d be concerned. But you, I don’t know why I expected you to be disturbed in the slightest.”

Riley follows her friends strangely comfortable gazes and it registers that her hand is, in fact, covered entirely in blood. This fact changed absolutely nothing about Riley’s mood. Perhaps if it were a more, delicious kind of blood she'd be happy, but alas it was just a pathetic lying creature's blood. Oh well, there’s always the next time.  

“Eh, I’ve done worse.”

“We know, that’s why we’re not bothered by it.” Shadowheart snips.

Riley looks at her friend's smug look and sighs, “I swear, I will one day beat you at this.” A small smile emerged from her face.

ShadowHearts smirk grows, “We shall see.”

—

Today was not turning out to be Riley’s day. 

Once she got cleaned up after the Mimic fight the party found a duergar beating a Rothé, Wyll convinced the Rothé to launch the Duegar off the cliff, and then they all killed the Duegar. With their freedom and a debt to pay, the Rothé cleared their way to other parts of the citadel.

Which led to someone tripping a few traps. In a row. And for what felt like the first time in a while, it wasn’t Riley who did the dumb thing. The downside of not triggering the trap, however, was that she still stood in the front and still got hit. Every. Time. 

Shadowhearts’ normally smug attitude took a blow after Riley called out a pressure plate, only for Shadowheart to step on it and ask “What, this?”  

And don’t get her STARTED on the shit she had to do to get the Adamantine Forge up and running again, not to mention the fucking GIANT AUTOMATON they had to kill. Like holy FUCK what a day it’s been.

But oh no, they weren't done there, oh no. They just had to find the missing gnome, set up a whole uprising, and then actually free and fight the fucking Nere fellow. 

At least most of the fighting is done, all that’s left to do is remove the head from the body. Though that wouldn't be too bad, right? 

Riley lowers herself and grabs the bottom of Nere’s neck and starts counting the vertebrae, looking for the sweet spot where the head comes off cleanly. Her hand finds the gap and her blade cleanly carves through the flesh. The blade movements are smooth, practiced, and within mere moments the head parts ways from the body with a literal handful of vertebrae still attached. From there, it’s only a matter of picking the head up and heading back, pun intended, to the Myconids to finally be done for the day.

Rising to her feet, Riley takes a moment to center herself and heads back to the party, her face exhausted and bruised, “Alright, I got the head. We are done here, let's go.” Her voice carried the weight of her weariness.

Looking at her companions, their various cuts and burns, she looks as all of them simply look at her with the same tired eyes she probably has. 

“Let’s just…let’s go.”

The party walks back down to the boat they arrived on and heads back. As the voyage progresses down the river, a question is poised for Riley. “So Soldier, everything alright?” 

Riley looks at Karlach, “Yeah, all things considered. Do I look hurt?”

Karlach’s eyes land on the severed head in Riley’s hands, “I’m more referencing how and why you're holding the head like a sword, if I’m honest.” 

Riley looks down at how she’s holding the head and yeah, she’s holding it as if the spine were a handle “Oh, that’s just so it’s an easier carry. Carrying a head by the hair can be a bit inconvenient and the teeth can give you some nasty cuts and if their teeth aren’t cleaned then you could get an infection.”

Karlach continues to look concerned at Riley, “Soldier, I used to be in with a rough crowd and I have never heard anyone thoroughly explain why they decapitated someone like that.”

“Really?” That statement was more of a shock than anything else, the consideration of the decapitation was instinctual meaning it never struck Riley as an odd idea, “I thought it’d only make sense to consider the health effects carrying a head could bring.”

Shadowheart looks over to the couple as she continues to steer the ship, “You have a point, as strange as it is, though that doesn’t address Karlach’s question.”

Riley turns to face her friend, “How else would you carry the head? I already showed why I don’t like to carry by the hair and I don’t think anyone’s gonna hold the damn thing by the nose?”

Karlach ponders it over for a moment, visible considering the options. She puts her hand on her face, moving around to get a good grip, “Eh, I somewhat see your point Soldier. Still a little weird, but it makes sense.”

Riley turns to her partner, “Thank you, Karlach.”

“Still a bit weird that you had that answer ready to go, though.”

Riley looks towards the head, “I just figured everyone else knew the proper procedure for separating a head from its body.”

“Mate,” Karlach adds, “the fact that it’s a procedure you have memorized is a bit creepy.”

Following that, the voices fall silent and the rest of the journey proceeds without a word.

—

With the day over, Riley approaches Shadowheart as she returns to camp with wet hair,“Hey, need help with your braid?”

“I would appreciate it, if you would be so kind.”

The pair sat down in the same spot as the night before. “Also, before I forget, I picked something up back in Grymforge.” Riley reveals the idol of Shar she got for Shadowheart, “I thought you’d like this.”

Shadowheart holds the idol in her hands and looks at it with, presumably, the whole of her attention, the image of her god occupying a majority of her attention “I’ve never received a gift before, thank you.” Her voice was entirely filled with joy. “I’ll make it up to you.”

Riley can’t help but smile at her friend's happiness, “I’ll look forward to it, but don’t worry about it too much.” Riley returns to the braids.

“Is it normal to give gifts, in your opinion?” Shadowheart’s voice mixed with curiosity and concern.

“In my eyes, it depends.For an acquaintance I think it’s a bit strange outside of holidays but between friends I think it’s pretty normal.”

“In that case,” Shadowheart’s curiosity still lingering in her tone, “Did you ever give your sister any gifts?”

Riley chuckles a little as her one solid memory of her sister plays in her head, “Probably. I remember her and I getting something to eat in Baldur’s Gate. We had business to deal with, family business if I have to guess, and then I spotted this hunk. We’re talking big, muscular, beautiful clothes, a handsome face, and an adorable smile. She was interested, I mean who can blame her, and I gave her the day off so she could get a taste.” Riley’s voice shifted from playful to simply happy, “I hope I gave her gifts.”

Shadowheart looks back to Riley, “Do you think you were a good sister?”

Riley’s face grows somber, “No idea. I want to say I was, but something’s…confusing about it all. It’s like…” Riley tries to recall a word, snapping her fingers hoping anything will trigger the memory, trigger the word, to appear. 

“An echo?” Shadowheart suggests, “Or only just the emotions of a memory rather than the actual memory itself.”

Riley smiles to her friend, “Exactly! You can remember part of an idea but not why.”

Shadowheart turns away, her smile somehow audible, “Indeed. I suppose you are grateful to not be the only amnesiac, aren’t you?”

Riley smiles,“Very much so. Anyway, with my sister I don’t know if we had a falling out or so but I’m getting the feeling our more recent braiding sessions were a bit more hostile. I can’t say why, of course. I just…know something happened between us.”

“Perhaps that man was important?” Shadowheart suggests, “There must be some reason that memory returned, right?”

Riley ponders it as she continues to brain, her hands slowing as she weighs the options, “I mean, possibly? I think I made a comment on how she and I don’t share the same views on…the pleasures of flesh so maybe that’s it?”

“Oh gods, don’t tell me your relationship with your sister was destroyed by a man.” Shadowheart groans in annoyance.

Riley laughs at her friend's frustration, “I pray it’s not that.”

Shadowheart turns towards her again, “Perhaps we’ll have to ask her, then.”

“What, you mean head to Baldur’s Gate and check in on her? We don’t even know her name.”

Shadowheart’s eyes continue to be playful, “Then perhaps we shall have you sniff out your old home, once I am done with my mission of course. Does that sound fair?”

Riley holds her hand to her chest, her face aghast in faux outrage, “Shadowheart, how dare you! You think I am just some common hunting dog?”

“Indeed I do.” She jests back.

Riley decides to go even more outrageous, “What a fool you are to see me as something so common, so pedestrian. For you see, I am the most regal of all creatures.”

“Oh,” Shadowheart looks on at her friend while her hair continues to be braided, “do enlighten me then. What creature are you, truely?”

Riley goes full pedal to the medal, “I am the noble Eagle!” she declares, a lie as blatant as it was goofy. 

Shadowheart nods in understanding, “I see, forgive me my friend. I must have mistaken your great coat of feathers,” Shadowheart gestures to where Riley’s wings would theoretically be, “for a coat of fur.”

“Oh my dear friend, you are forgiven. Not everyone can be perfect.” Riley’s composure slightly breaks as she starts to laugh.

Shadowheart chuckles in turn,“Gods, this is stupid.” 

“It really is,” Riley says, breaking character fully as her hands finished the last of the braids. Double checking her work, with no small amount of pride, and when she discovered no issue she let the braids go. “Arlight, we’re done here. Want to see what Gale’s cooking?” Riley rises to her feet and offers a hand to her friend.

Taking her hand, Shadowheart rises to her feet, “I would.”

The pair walk towards the campfire and are met with the scent of Gale’s cooking as the rest of camp sits around the fire, chatting.

“-honey would make a fine addition to the stew, but I don’t know how much I trust the honey we found on the road.” Gale notes while stirring a pot above the fire.

Karlach waves her hand off, dismissively, “Eh, I wouldn’t worry about it mate. I’ve had honey that’s not seen the sun in decades and it was still fine.”

“Karlach is correct,” added Lae’zel, her expression stoic for a small hint of a grin, “in Creche K’liir we study all manner of Istik provisions. Your honey would stay edible for possibly centuries.”

“Oh no, I’m not falling for that one again,” Riley says, entering the conversation as she passes by Karlach, “No sir. You didn’t actually study honey, did you?”

Lae’zel looks at Riley with a profound smugness, “As a matter of fact, we did study honey. It was part of our courses on survival should we get dislocated from supply.”

Riley glares at Lae’zel, trying to discern if that is true. As painful as it is for Riley to realize, Lae’zel is speaking true, “Damn it, I thought I had you this time.”

“Ah, good evening to you two.” Gale says to Riley and Shadowheart as they join the camp’s conversation, handing Riley an empty bowl.

“Evening,” Riley responds, taking the bowl and holding it up as Gale pours the stew into her bowl, “thank you.” She sits down by Karlach.

“So Soldier, what were you two doing back there? Anything I should be worried about?” Karlach teases, her eyes darting to Shadowheart’s braid while Karlach’s face grows more confident, more knowing.

Riley's eyes widened initially, not realizing the joking nature for a moment causing a quick spike in stress. The realization that it’s a joke brought Riley back down, nearly to where she was twelve seconds ago, “No, no no. I was just braiding her hair.”

“Oh?” Astarion adds, now suddenly slightly intrigued by the new information regarding the most confusing person in the camp aside from the skeleton “And where did you learn that, darling?”

“I mean, I don’t think I ever really forgot how to braid. I remember braiding my sister’s hair so I think I learned it in childhood?” Her voice was uncertain.

“You have a sister?” Gale asks as he hands Shadowheart her meal as a curious spark lights in his eyes.

“Oh yeah, I don’t know if I brought that up!” Riley’s face lights up with pride, “I apparently have a sister.”

“What do you reckon, older or younger?” Asks Wyll.

“Younger.” Riley responds without doubt, without hesitation, compelled by instinct. “I’m starting to remember a little bit about her. I remember we both worked for our father’s business and we were apparently really close. Do any of you guys have siblings?”

“No,” Goes Gale

“In the traditional sense, no.” Astarion says, a look of pain urging Riley to not push him on it.

“Nah, my parents could barely handle me.” Karlach says, a smile adorning her face.

“My peers would be the closest I have to the bonds of kinship you describe.” Says Lae’zel.

“No, sadly.” Wyll adds.

Riley and Shadowheart make eye contact as Shadowheart gives Riley the smirk of a woman about to make a really bad joke, “I don’t remember.”

“Damn, it’s really just me huh.” Riley says as she registers this information.

“So Soldier,what’s it like? To have a sibling, I mean.” Karlach adds, her fascination growing.

“It’s…hard to describe, even without the severe brain damage. I feel it’s like having a friend who’s always going to be there with you. Like your interests or beliefs may vary wildly but at the end of the day you’d go through the hells with them.”

“Aw, that's nice.” Karlach notes.

“Do you know what happened to her? Like is she still in Baldur’s Gate or is she gone?” Asks Astarion, as a couple of eyes stare at him in irritation, “What? It’s a perfectly reasonable question. I was kidnapped from Baldur’s Gate and it’s possible she got caught too.”

Riley waves her hand, “I don’t know how, but something tells me she’s still out there. I don’t know where, I don't know how, but I know she’s out there.”

“Do you think she’s looking for you?” Asks Gale, intrigued.

“Possibly, but since I think we last parted on bad terms I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not.”

Chapter Text

Riley paced around an open field, the summer winds filling the air and the light of the moon illuminating the world. She looked upon her sister, blade in hand, standing within striking distance, looking for an opportunity to strike. In Riley's hands lay a curved crimson blade, her sword, a familiar weight swinging and swaying as the blade moves.

“Remember,” Riley says, “your opponent's weapon is just as important as your own.” Riley parries a thrust and pushes her sister back, “You communicated that too clearly. Again.” Riley stated flatly. Her sister sends a slash towards Riley, forcing Riley to intercept the blade and knock her sister to the ground. “Good attempt, but your footwork is off. You need to be ready for a counter attack.” Riley offers a hand up to her sister.

Her sister takes it and rises to her feet, her face agitated and tired, “Bloodkin, I already know how to duel. We do not need to continue to practice this.”

Riley shakes her head, lightly, “No, sister. You understand how to best a commoner, one whose only blades can be found in a kitchen. What you must practice is how to take the life,” Riley dodges another strike from her sister, “of one who knows how to wield a weapon or sling a spell.” 

Her sister’s anger grows to a boil as she begins a whirlwind of attacks. Riley evades thrusts to her abdomen before backing away and deflecting a slash aimed at her eye. 

Deciding to end this fight now, Riley lands a kick to her sister's leg, forcing a knee, and follows it up with a shove to the ground. “Enough!” She cries out, “We are done for tonight, let us just head back and rest.” She reaches out yet again to her sister. 

Her sister takes the hand and rises. The pair begin walking out of the field and onto a dirt road. “You know, bloodkin, one of these days I will get the better of you.”

Riley smiled at that, “I hope so, sister.” The pair continue their walks, “You know sister, I don’t want you to get injured. Our work is not safe and I do not wish for you to die so soon.”

Her sister looked at her with a small smile, “Oh but of course, my death would ruin your plan, wouldn’t it?”

Riley looked to her sister, “I am more than just a conglomeration of my plans, dear sister. While it may not feel like it at all times I do truly care for you.”

“And yet,” her sister adds, “you keep me from my purpose, you stay my blade, because you do not think of me as a warrior.”

“Sister, you cannot relish in your artistry if you are dead. You cannot fuel father’s ambitions with a blade in your neck. I merely wish to ensure you survive long enough to finish your work.”

Her sister remained silent, “You could at least make training more interesting.”

Riley thought about it, “Perhaps. We could shift to traditional fights if you wish for more practice.”

“Against whom?” asks her sister.

“For our purposes, criminals, the like. Until the Flaming Fist are more malleable or distracted we need to operate with discretion so we should only focus on those with loose safeguards against assault.” Riley then remembers a piece of information from an old conversation, “Say my dear sister, I might have a proposition you would thoroughly enjoy.”

“Oh?” 

“I have been invited to a masquerade being hosted in the upper city and I have been informed it would be unsightly to go alone. Would you be intrigued?”

Her sister snickers, “One moment you go on about how you wish to only dispose of the weak, next you target those of influence.”

“Hey!” Riley jokingly responds, “we are permitted a treat on special occasions, no? Besides, there’s nothing wrong with a loose end so long as we tie it up.”

Her sister lightly chuckles, “In that case, I would be delighted.”

—

Riley walks into the hall with an aura of supreme confidence. Dressed in finery she would normally find exorbitant and a small mask adorning her face, she entered the room. Surrounding her were the upper echelons of the city, those who have never done a real day's work in their lives. They were weak, slow, and uncoordinated. Unfortunately, for this evening she must refrain from acting aloof. For there was someone amongst these petulant fools who she needed to make a deal with.

To her side was her sister, their hands intertwined as they entered. “Remember,” Riley says, “while we are looking for a diabolist, there may be other persons of interest here. Carouse and network.”

Sister nods, “If I must. But, my dear kin, what shall I do if I find someone that…piques my interest?”

Riley smiles, “You have already picked a mark, haven’t you?”

“You know me so well, kin.” Sister’s eyes wander towards a man standing at the far end of the hall alone.

“I see, good choice.” Riley looked at the man. Even with his mask obscuring her view it was clear that youth had still clung to the man’s face, his face still looking immature, his body skinny and slim. “Have at him, but it may pose a problem if you are away from me for too long. So when you are finished, please find me.”

With that, her sister began her walk out towards the man left to his lonesome as Riley began to look around. The floor hosted a few pairs dancing while a majority of the rest of the hall was holding various conversations. She watched as a man in a wine stained suit clung to the arm of his far more inebriated colleague, preventing his fellow man from connecting with the stone beneath their feet.

As her search persists she finds her eye drawn to an oddity. By the floor stood an elf who bore a familiar gaze. There was a certain hunger that lingered that she felt resonated, that of a hunter looking for prey. She tracked as his eyes went from one party goer to another, his eyes lingering on the drunk and the alone. Even with a face partially obscured it was clear this man was like her. And as he began to drink his wine she noticed his canines, or rather, his fangs. 

As she stared she realized this unique opportunity. This man has likely been here longer than her. He may have seen the diabolist and he may be willing to part with that information should she hold her tongue, or threaten him properly. 

Riley quickly sips some wine, enough to get alcohol to cling to her breath, and disheveled her hair slightly. She adjusted her posture to be less stable and began to approach the elf.  Her voice cracking as she begins to imitate a drunkard, “W-woUld you’ve carE to dAnce?” She extends her hand out.

The elf looks at her with astonishment. Not that Riley was particularly pretty, but that of a hunter having his prey walk up to them with seasoning already coating their body. The elf’s façade quickly reverts to that of a pretty boy as he grabs her hand, “Oh, of course darling.”

The pair begin to dance and, to credit to the elf, his footwork is quite impressive. While she had to fake her coordination failing, the elf never failed to dodge her foot.

As they continued their dance, the elf looked her in the eyes, “So darling, I take it you’re unaccompanied?”

Riley fakes a chuckle, “Nho! I’m with my sissster. She, she’s over there.” Her faux dunk hands gesture towards where her sister was last. The elf shifts his attention over, checking to see if his prey was as isolated as he’d hoped. With his eyes no longer on her, Riley decides to straighten her posture and begin actually dancing. When the elf returned his gaze to his partner Riley made sure to meet him with her own look of hunger, “It would seem this has not gone to plan, has it?”

The elf smiled deviously, “It would seem so. Funny, isn’t it? How things can go from dull to so fascinating so quickly?”

Riley matched his smile, “Quite.”

“So,” said the elf, “I take it you have something you want, yes?”

“Oh of course, and I have a feeling I can do something for you.”

“Ah,” says the elf, "lovely. If you don’t mind me asking, darling, but why should I even bother helping you?”

Riley’s confidence didn’t waver, “Because I know you. I know what you are, vampire. And I know how you’re hunting, and we both know I have one too many loose ends to be an easy mark.”

“A woman after my own heart.” He quipped, “So what do you want?”

“I’m after a diabolist. Point me there and I can promise you this, you will not have to worry about loose ends tonight.”

“Oh, what a tantalizing deal. Pray tell, what exactly do you need a diabolist for?”

“

Let’s just say there’s a special place in the hells that I need to get to.”

“Oh? Do tell.”

“No.” She says, flatly, “I would rather not have you go tell your master of this.”

“And what makes you think I have a master, darling?”

Riley’s face changes again, authority flowing as her gaze solidifies. “ I know how a leader truly hunts, their tactics, their fears, and that is not you. Had you been your own master then you would not be idly waiting for prey. And had you been hunting for your own sake, your hunger would have been sated already by staff.”

“You’re good, darling. If you don’t mind, before the song ends, how about you answer one question about yourself?”

Riley continues to smile, “Alright, I will humor you. Whatever shall it be, vampire?”

“Who, no, what are you?”

Riley’s face grew colder. “I am a hunter, like you. But unlike you, I will not starve if I go without tearing a throat out.” Riley  smiled, “Now identify the diabolist and I will leave you.”

As the music died down for a moment, the pair broke their embrace. The vampire gestured to Riley right, “You’ll want to speak to the dwarf.”

Riley gave a courteous bow, “Thank you. And please, if you drain anyone tonight, please be quiet. I have work to do.” Riley walks away towards the diabolist. “So, I heard from a friend that you were the person to speak to if I wanted to go to the hells.”

They smiled, “Oh? And who might this friend be, friend?”

“I believe you met him the other day, his name was Env-”

—

Riley’s hand meets her head as she wakes. Her eyes open and she looks upon the silent camp. Her friends are in the midst of preparing themselves for the day. Gale is cooking eggs, Shadowheart is playing with Scratch, and Karlach is sitting in her tent humming to herself. 

Riley sits up as her senses return to her. That dream was no mere dream, it was a memory of her life before the nautiloid, before the tadpole. Riley goes through her mind, trying to recall anything more about the scene she just witnessed. Where they were, the clothes they were wearing, how long ago this was, her sister’s name, anything. As the memory continues to flow through her mind, Riley fails to discern anything significant. This memory is old, but how old is up in the air, where is indiscernible, and why is as straightforward as it gets. Riley only knows that she once practiced fighting with her sister, that they were likely criminals, and that she attended some social gatherings in the upper city. 

Rising to her feet Riley walks over to Gale as she grabs some bread for breakfast, “Morning Gale, you sleep well?”

“I slept quite well, all things considered. Thank you for asking.” He says, sitting by the fire as he enjoys his eggs, “What about yourself?”

Riley stretches her back, the sounds of muscles cracking echo through the caves, “Alright. I had a dream about my past but it wasn’t that interesting. Just a party and a lot of unanswered questions.”

“Ah well, not all memories are going to be revelatory.” 

Riley nods, “I know, just a bit annoyed that all I really learned is that I used to spar with my sister.”

Gale hands Riley a bottle of water, “Oh cheer up, perhaps you’ll remember something more whimsical next time.

Riley laughs, “Yeah, like I will have any stories that compare to anyone else in this camp.”

Sitting down next to Gale, Astarion joins the conversation, “Ah yes, how is that by the way? You know, being one of the least interesting members of this camp?”

“Hey!” Riley said in a faux offense, “It’s not my fault that everyone else has an interesting story while I’m just an idiot.”

“Oh no darling, you’re so right.” He gives a malicious smile, “It’s not your fault you can’t remember a thing. It is your fault that you are an idiot though.”

Riley looked at Astarion as parts of her dream flew through her mind. That elf, the vampire, was strikingly similar to Astarion. “You know what, funny you should say that. Because last night I had a dream last night that you were in.”

“Oh darling, was it something like we were at school and I bullied you because you showed up to school naked? Was it that kind of dream?”

Riley shook her head, noticing the rest of camp staring at the pair. “Actually, it was us at masquerade ball. I approached you, pretending to be drunk, and threatened you into giving me the location of a diabolist.”

Astarion seemed to be in slight shock, “Wait, that did happen.” His interest seemingly piqued, “What in the sweet hells were you doing at a masquerade party in the upper city?”

“No idea,” Riley scratched the back of her head, “I just remember someone invited me and told me that a diabolist was there. I vaguely remember training with my sister before that but I can’t say much more. I just know someone wanted me there and that I needed a diabolist.”

“Oh perfect,” Astarion quips, “your past gets even more confusing. What, did you sell your soul to a devil?”

Riley shakes her head, “No, I was way too arrogant to ever sell my soul-.”

Astarion mumbles, “You said it, not me.”

“But I’m now worried that I did something else stupid. Wait, Astarion, how long ago was that?”

Astarion thinks for a moment, “It’s been a while.”

“Gods damn it, so it’s not within the last few months?”

Astarion shakes his head, “No.” He sits down, “But hey, it could be worse.”

Riley sits down, “Yeah, I could be the dumbest person here.”

Astarion smirked, “Don’t say that with skepticism, we all know you are an idiot.”

The rest of their companions, who were all seemingly waiting for Astarion to sit down, all approach the campsite and chuckle at the comment.

Riley looks at her friend's smiles and lets a smile of her own out, “I swore to Lae’zel that I’d get her back and now I extend that oath onto you. I will get you for that.”

“And yet,” Lae’zel adds, joining the conversation with a smug look on her face, “you are yet to ‘return the favor’ and exact your vengeance upon me.”

“I mean, I could count beating you at the Tiefling party and we’d be even.” Riley jests, “so watch out Astarion.”

“What? You expect me to pick a fist fight with you? Oh no, no, no I’m not falling for that one.” He says with a concerned smile, pointing at Lae’zel, “I’m not drunk enough to do that any time soon.”

“I would have you know on Creche K’liir basic unarmed combat was taught amongst our ranks. It is not my fault I am less experienced than our leader.” Lae’zel says the word leader with a hint of agitation, her face somewhat strained as if admitting defeat causes physical pain.

“Hold on,” Karlach calls out, “She didn’t deny being drunk.”

Lae’zel rolls her eyes at that, “Yes, yes. As I understand it, it is not uncommon for one to drink more than their tolerances at a party so I believe some leeway is in order.”

“Oh don’t get me wrong, fully understandable.” Riley says, knowing she wasn’t too far from drunk herself, “I just thought it was kinda funny to see the great Lae’zel slightly off her game.”

“Oh,” Astarion adds on, “don’t forget that it was fun to watch the pair of you two running around.”

Karlach laughs, “You two looked like a pair of toddlers who just learned to run. It was adorable.” 

Lae’zel looks unamused, “If we are done discussing my shortfalls, we have more urgent matters to discuss.” Lae’zels eyes shift from Karlach to Riley, a new intensity taking root, “We have wasted too much time, we need to go to the Creche soon or else we may turn.”

Wyll rubs his temples in agitation, “Oh gods, not this again.”

Lae’zel’s glare shifts to Wyll, “The Creche is our only chance at removing these tadpoles!” Her face hardens, “Have you forgotten?”

Karlach sits down next to Riley and turns to Lae’zel, “We haven’t forgotten, Lae’zel. We’ve just been worried about other things.”

Riley follows Karlach’s lead, “Yeah. With what Halsin said about our tadpole’s magic I’m willing to bet that your Creche won’t be able to save us. But,” Riley says, her attention focused on Lae’zel, “I would be a fool to pass up on an opportunity to get rid of the little bastards. So I vote that we head to the Creche. Who’s with me?”  Riley’s hand raises.

Karlach raises a hand, “As good a reason as any.”

Wyll, falling to peer pressure, raises a hand, “Fair enough, I suppose.”

Shadowheart looks upon her friends and sighs, “I suppose this ‘Creche’ is our next destination then.”

“Indeed,” says Lae’zel, proudly. 

“Alright, a majority has been reached. Everyone, you heard Lae'zel. After breakfast we’ll pack up and begin looking for the Creche.”

Chapter Text

“Is it technically kidnapping if they’re still in the egg?”

“I’d say so.” Karlach nods.

“I thought so,” Riley added, “but I felt it’d be important to double check.”

“Are you seriously considering that mad woman's proposal?” Lae’zel adds.

Riley shakes her head, dismissively. “Not really,” and that’s the truth, she couldn’t care less about what that crazy woman was talking about, “I just wanted to buy those robes off her.”

“For what possible reason would you wish to buy a garb like that?” Lae’zel wonders.

“I think it’d look good on me.” Riley says, confidently.

“Is it really worth eight hundred gold, though?” Shadowheart asks, “That’s certainly a large sum to pay for an outfit for just yourself.”

“True.” Riley says as the four arrive at the broken gondola, “I could try to steal it from her later.”

“Quick question: How?” Karlach asks, “It’s not like there’s a lot around here to hide you.”

“I was going to just rob her and just run, if I’m being honest.” Riley shrugs.

“How in the gods damned hell would you steal robes off of a person?” Karlach asks.

“I don’t know, but she certainly doesn’t keep it on her person.” Riley states, “I mean, do you think she’s got a pocket that just contains a sword, a couple of gloves, and a whole ass robe?” 

“Then where the hell did she keep all those things?” Karlach asks.

Riley is about to speak up before she too thinks on that question. That woman, Esther or something like that, seemingly just had that on her. Riley recalls she reached behind herself and the item simply…appeared. Her mind quickly tries to explain the situation away, focusing on any possible method of storage. “Maybe she has a bag of holding?”

Shadowheart shakes her head, “It would have been noticeable if she did have one, so that’s not possible.”

“Small bag?” Riley throws out.

“I would have noticed it had she used a bag, so no.” Lae’zel says in denial.

“She’s just…storing them in her pockets?”

Karlach chuckles, “Those must be some pretty deep pockets to store all of that.”

Riley shakes her head. There’s got to be some logical explanation on how that shopkeeper is storing all of those items with nothing nearby to store them in. 

Perhaps if she battered and broke the beleaguered old belch then she would understand where those items are being located.

She dismissed the wayward call of violence. It’s just…so impossible. How does someone carry all those supplies just on their person. “I don’t get it.”

“Don’t act so surprised, mate.” Karlach adds, “sometimes things are just like that.”

“But it doesn’t make sense?!” Riley cries out in slight anguish.

Karlach turns to Riley, “Our camp provisions are carried in a bag, all together. I have seen you reach into the bag and pull out a small, undamaged, pie out of there. Some things are magical because they’re arcane, some because they’re divine, and some just are. Don’t think too hard about it.”

Riley’s brain briefly recalls the pie incident, as well as a separate instance with a whole pizza with Gale, and reconciles these two ideas for a moment. In a way, Karlach’s right. It doesn’t make any sense. But at the same time, how the fuck does that work? Was she not understanding it because of the brain damage? Was that it? Everyone else seemingly acts like it’s perfectly reasonable to carry eighty pounds worth of gear just…in a pocket.

Hopefully the Creche is less…confusing.

—

“Tsk’va!” Lae’zel declares in fury, her tadpole exposing the rest of her allies to her emotions. “That blasted machine was almost my end!”

As it turned out, the situation only got more confusing. The Githyanki…thing, for lack of a better word, just detonated and the Gith in charge of it pulled a knife on them for having the audacity to not vaporize in the explosion. To describe the experience as unpleasant would be an understatement, but right now there was one thing on her mind that she couldn’t get out. The experience on that damned must have been a nightmare, if the tadpole is anything to go off of, and Riley is now focused on the health of Lae’zel.  Riley looks to her companion, “Are you certain you are alright?” Her own worries about brain damage coming out in full force, “Does anything feel wrong? Dizziness, nausea, anything?”

Lae’zels anger does not waver at her friend's concern, “Would you stop treating me as if I were a child!”

“Hey,” Karlach calls, “She’s just trying to check up on you mate.”

Riley locks eyes with Lae’zel, “Exactly. I know you're agitated, and you have very good reason to be, but I would like to make sure you are not in any danger.”

Credit where credit is due, Lae’zel was able to quickly center herself. “I am alright, but if you know more I will tolerate it.”

Riley nods and approaches. Riley inspects Lae’zels eyes and lights a small flame in her hand to see how they react. “Are you feeling unwell in any way? Nausea, headaches, anything I should know about?”

“No.” Lae’zel says, sharply.

Riley’s inspection of Lae’zel continues, “Well it appears aside from potentially pissing off your tadpole, you’re alright.” Riley backs away, “You don’t show signs of concussion or brain damage as far as I can see, you don't seem sensitive to light, so I’d say you’re good.” Riley looks around Lae’zel’s head, “I don’t see anything that might indicate a fracture, and judging by the noticeable lack of pain in your face I can imagine you’re alright. You’re still conscious so no internal bleeding in the brain and since you aren’t commenting on weird smells I’ll assume you haven't experienced anything too bad. I might check in on you later but otherwise you’re all set.”

“It’s unusual to see you act like that.” Shadowheart says, her smile looking somewhat surprised.

Riley looks to Shadowheart, annoyed, “This is not the time to make a snide comment about Lae’zel.”

Shadowheart was caught even more off guard by that, “Ah-I meant more I was surprised to see you practice medicine.”

Riley’s hostility fades as she realizes her assumption was wrong, “Oh, apologies. I thought you had witnessed me perform these acts before.”

“We have, yeah. But it’s still weird.” Karlach adds.

Riley looks at her companion, “Eh, I’m unorthodox. So what?” She looks around at the Githyanki around her and realizes they're not done here. “Oh shit, Lae’zel do you know what we should do going forward?”

Lae’zel looks to the two tieflings, “We should inform the commander of our artifact, perhaps they will have insight on our next step.”

“I don’t know,” Riley adds, her face nervous, “I fear they will want to take it from us. And if they do that, Shadowheart’s out of a job and we’re all fucked.”

“We shall see what happens.” Lae’zel comments as she walks towards, what Riley will assume, is the commander’s office.

“Well, shit.” Riley says, “I guess we’re doing this.”

—

The walk back to camp was done in silence. It had been an hour since they returned from camp. An hour after they learned the Artifact held a secret that would dismantle Vlaakith’s reign. An hour since the Githyanki turned on them. It had been an hour since Riley, Lae’zel, and the party left the Creche, Lae’zel’s former comrade’s blood still clinging under her fingernails and in clumps on her armor.

The battle was fierce, the skill of the Githyanki matched the many descriptions Lae’zel provided. Their reflexes were sharp, their swordsmanship was impressive, and their magic was potent. As the battle progressed into a fight of attrition against the many waves of Githyanki Riley felt the Urge’s presence grow. What started as her normal bloodlust quickly devolved into a frenzy of death, her hits broke bone, her movements more manic, and the Githyanki who could deflect her blows could scarcely prepare to counter all of her attacks. 

Despite Lae’zel, Karlach, and Shadowheart all participating on her side, none reached the same frenzy as Riley. It was not to say they were incapable, but none of them were her mirror. 

And when the battle ended, when the blood ran cool, Riley stood upon a pile of corpses. Many of their eyes clawed out, mandibles torn from  shattered skulls, visible bones from many of their chests. Riley couldn’t help herself, could she? They attacked her after all so it’s not like they didn’t ask for it?

No, no. She went too far. It’s one thing to kill someone who’s trying to kill you, it’s another to stab a soldier in the neck with their own blade and watch them drown in their own blood. That went way beyond what was needed for their escape.

The only words spoken were to that lady Esther, or whatever her name was, as they dropped off some of the various Githyanki equipment they stole in exchange for some potions and that expensive robe Riley wanted. 

As soon as they returned to camp they all went their own ways, most going to their tents while Riley went off to look out over the cliffs. Her mind filled with questions on what the hell happened back at the Creche. 

“Hey Soldier, you alright?” Karlach calls out as Riley’s mind is brought back to the present Her eyes leave the mountainous view and turn to Karlach.

Riley rises to her feet, “Yeah, sorry. Just thinking about today. I…there is something deeply wrong with me, isn’t there?” Her face sours, “I mean my bloodlust is just…unnatural.”

Karlach’s face grows somber, though her smile never leaves her face, “I won’t lie to you, you got a major bloodlust. But it’s not unnatural. I can sometimes get caught up in the frenzy, same as you.”

Riley shakes her head, denying it, “No, like I mean literally it feels unnatural. Like it’s not just me in control”

“Well Soldier, think of it this way.” Karlach holds her hands out as if to display two options, “On the one hand, it’s absolutely freaky and fucked up.” She lifts her left hand, “On the other hand,” she raises her right, “as long as you stay in control that fucked up force is on our side. So I say don’t worry about it so long as you are in control.”

“I’m specifically afraid of losing control!” 

“And if you do,” Karlach loudly declares, “I will be there to help you get back in control. Does that sound good?”

Riley blushed at that, or at least she thinks she’s blushing. When your skin is literally red it’s hard to tell if you actually can blush or not. “Thanks. You know, I keep having this same damned conversation about fighting the urge and you’re always so damn supportive. Why?”

“I care for you, mate.” Karlach says with an adorable smile, though Riley picks up that there’s something more hidden behind those eyes.

“Is there anything more? Like a selfish reason at least?” Riley asks with suspicion.

Karlach shrugs, “I mean, what are you expecting to hear? I’ll help cause I like drama? Because I do, but that’s not why I’m here.”

Riley laughs at that. “That’s more like it.” She takes a moment to breathe, “Come on, we should check in on Lae’zel.”

—

Karlach isn’t one to talk about her friends behind their backs, but she feels an exception can be made for this. She creeps over to Shadowheart while Lae’zel and Soldier go over what happened.

“Hey Shadowheart, can I talk to you really quickly? It’s about Soldier.”

Shadowheart nods, “Understood, I take it you would rather not tell them what we say here.”

Karlach nods, “Yeah. It’s not a problem, per say, but I wanted to get a second opinion on what happened at the Creche. You know, when she was checking up on Lae’zel.”

Shadowheart gives Karlach a somewhat confused look, “What, when she got annoyed at me? It was unpleasant but not completely unreasonable.”

“No,no, no. Not that. I’m just noticing a pattern and I wanted to know if it’s just me. It’s just…everytime Soldier talks about anything medical her vocabulary just…changes. Like one moment she’s speaking like me and then the next she’s on par with Gale.”

Shadowheart looks away from Karlach, her face shows her search for memory, a search their tadpoles communicate. As Shadowheart goes over their past with Soldier she begins noticing how relaxed Soldier’s normal speech is and the pair both are hit by the realization that this could be something worth investigating.

“I’ll be damned, it appears you’re right. Now what do we do with this information?” Shadowheart looks at Karlach, drink in hand. 

Karlach looks to Soldier as thousands of thoughts flood into her mind. What does she do? “Let’s keep this as a secret for now, but later on I want to see if this leads us anywhere.”

—

Chapter Text

When Riley heard the name “Shadow-Cursed” lands she really wasn’t sure what to expect aside from magical shadows.Like the name didn’t really leave much to the imagination.

 Finding a Drider carrying a magical lantern was certainly not on that list of possible ideas but hey, not the weirdest thing she’s seen in these past weeks.

Getting ambushed by Harpers was unique, but they at least got a chance to steal a lanturn. The worst part was, really, just killing a damned Drider. It was unusually strong and just…weird. Like the way the body of the drow and the spider fuzed together was just unsettling. The sounds of the carapace were just disgusting, really.  It was a tough fight, no question, but damn that thing could hit. 

With their weird lantern in hand, the Harpers lead them back to their holdout. Cresting the hill, Riley was pretty quickly able to deduce that the giant bubble of light is where these guys are holding up.

But, you can never be too careful, “Hey Karlach, you reckon that is where the Harpers are held up?”

Karlach puts her hand on her chin and makes a faux-contemplative look, “I don’t know. Hey Wyll, do you think the Harpers are hiding from the Shadow Curse in the giant ball of light?”

Wyll puts his hands on his hips and narrows his eyes, “I can’t say. Shadowheart, your thoughts?”

Shadowheart smirks, “How would I know? I cannot figure out where they would hide out. The destroyed village, the dark forest, or the giant orb of light centered around that inn. Where should we start looking?” She responds, sarcasm laying thick.

The four chuckle as the bit concludes and the harpers continue to walk away, with the four party members safe thanks to the Blood of Lathander’s luminous properties. “Oh gods I think we’re all losing it.”

“Hey!” Cried out a Harper from below, “Let’s get a move on! We’re almost there!”

Riley looks to her friends, “Well then, let’s not keep them waiting.” She begins her descent as her companions follow suit.

Finally entering the bubble she hears someone call out “Oy Jaheria!”

“Jaheira?!” Riley nearly shouts in shock. Jaheira is here?! Riley’s eyes quickly searched around for anyone that could fit the description of Jaheira, before finding the real deal. 

Holy shit, the little Baldurian in her was excited while a small other part was filled with disdain, but she couldn’t tell why. It’s fucking Jaheira! Kids used to play around pretending to be her. 

As she stood there, somewhat star struck, Jaheira cast a spell. Vines tangle up Riley’s legs, binding her to the ground. This comes as a light shock to Riley, who was foolishly expecting the High Harper to be more kind.

“Uh…hi?” Riley says, more confused than anything.

“Hello,” Says Jaheria, a small smirk appearing.

“So…” Riley says, unsure how to proceed given the several dozen eyes on her, plotting her demise. Remembering the corpses she passed as she got her, she decides to ask a question “Have any other Tieflings come by here recently?” Not the most ideal question to ask but the only other thing she could think to say would be to comment on the weather.

Jaheira seems to smirk at the question, “A handful.” She reaches into her back pocket and pulls out a parasite, encased in a jar.

Riley looks at that in a mix of concern and confusion, “Uh…were you able to find a way to extract that without killing the person infected with it?” 

Jaheria looks at her, intrigued, “No, we could not. Curious creatures, these things are.” She begins walking towards Riley, “That they know their own kind.” Jaheira presents the tadpole, and at that moment the tadpole in Riley’s head connects with the one in the jar. The tadpole sounds like it’s screaming, sending rather difficult signals to Riley’s. “You should never have come here, True Soul!” At that Jaheira and the Harpers seemingly ready to fight.

Riley begins plotting her move, maybe fighting her way outside or maybe fighting long enough to stop them. She scouts around the stop-gap defenses and notices a familiar face. “Wait, Mol?!”

Mol and Riley make eye contact and Mol, seeing the situation, jumps in to help “Stop!” Mol cries as she joins the fray, “She’s the one who saved us!”

Jaheria looks to Mol, then back to Riley, “She is the one who protected the Grove?”

“Does it count as protecting the Grove when all I really did was kill a bunch of goblins and expose a druidic coup?” Riley asks, “Because if so, then yes, yes I am.”

“She also saved two of my friends, so I’d trust her with my life.” Added Mol.

This might not be the time to point out that all she really did was call Kagha an idiot for one of those, so Riley shelves that comment. “See! Not a True Soul. Just someone looking to get their tadpole removed.”

“How is that possible?” Jaheira asks, hostility and confusion lining her face.

Riley turns around and finally sees how her friends are reacting, and they seem to be less on-edge as she expected. She gives everyone a thumbs up before turning back to Jaheira with the artefact in hand, “Something to do with this thing, I don’t know.”

“Congratulations, you’ve earned yourself the benefit of the doubt. Harpers, at ease.” Jaheira calls out. The Harpers, appropriately, stand down. “I’m old and wise enough to recognize a sliver of hope when it crawls out of the dark. Tell me, why did you come here?”

Riley looks at Jaheira, “If you had a tadpole that big in your head,” Riley points to the jar, “would you want to let it just stay there or would you rather get it removed?”

“I suppose I would try to find a way to remove it.” Jaheria says, her posture easing up. “There’s food and bed if you need it, but later come have a drink with me. I would like to know more about your situation.” Her tone is as serious as the grave.

Riley, however, chooses to misconstrue what she said, “If you’re flirting with me I’ll have to decline that offer.”

Jaheira chuckles at that, “Don’t flatter yourself, I am referring to the arefact and your history with the tadpole.”

Riley gives a genuine smile, one born from relief, “I figured. I’ll be right over, I’ll just have to get a few things sorted before then.” Riley’s eyes spot a few other Tieflings not too far into the camp, hoping Dammon is one of them.

Riley turns and walks to her friends as Jaheria turns to the Inn. Karlach looks like she’s about to metaphorically explode, “Oh my gods, was that Jaheira? That Jaheira!?”

Riley got caught up in the excitement, “Yeah, it is!” Her own smile grew pretty wide.

“Yes, the Jaheira of legend just threatened you.” Shadowheart said, unamused.

“I know, it was kinda cool!” Riley says, not letting a near-death experience get her down. 

“Right!” Karlach said, enthusiastically. 

Wyll just continues to look at the two Tieflings, having grown used to the pair’s rather disturbing lack of self-preservation, “Not how I expected to meet a hero like her, to be honest.”

“Eh,” Riley shrugs, “I’ll take what I can get. Anyways, since we know Mol’s here, how about we go look for Dammon?”

“Oh hells yes!” Karlach storms away from the lot, her head on a swivel as she looks for her mechanic. 

“Well, let’s not keep her waiting.” Riley begins to chase after Karlach as the other two start to follow. Karlach takes a peek inside the inn only to find nothing, a look towards the courtyard reveals nothing, and a look to the stables finds the man of the hour.

“Hey Dammon!” Karlach calls out.

“Karlach! I thought you’d be in the city by now. We were ambushed by cultists. Half of us were captured, the other half ran here” Dammon looked quite happy to see her.

“Off the anvil and into the forge,” Karlach quips.

Riley calls out as she stands next to Karlach, “We saw what happened to your caravan. We’ll get as many people as we can out of Moonrise, I promise.” 

“Thank you. Oh, before you run off into the belly of the beats, there are two things I should tell you. Good news and bad news.”

“Good news please!” Karlach calls out before Riley processed Dammon’s statement.

“I only need one more piece of infernal iron to craft an insulating chamber that could make it possible for Karlach to-”

“Touch people?!” Karlach’s enthusiasm literally radiated as the engine seemed to heat up. 

“Exactly.” Dammon says.

“Oh my gods it's happening! It’s really happening!”

Riley looks do Dammon and notices a grim look in his eyes, even as he smiles, “And what’s the bad news.”

“The bad news is…it’s not a permanent solution. Your engine is too hot to exist in the material plane indefinitely.”

Riley catches his meaning, “But it would be fine in Avernus, wouldn’t it?”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

“No,” Karlach says with disdain, “The moment I set foot in Avernus, Zariel will put me back into her service.”

“She can try.” Riley says with conviction as her brow slightly hardens before she turns back to Dammon, “And here,” Riley hands Dammon a bit of infernal iron, “I found this a while back.”

With the iron in hand Dammon turns back to the forge and begins molding the infernal iron into form. As he finishes, he turns back to Karlach “I’ll need you to install this again.”

Karlach grabs the device and sticks it into her engine. After a moment’s pause she looks to Dammon, “So…did it work?”

Dammon looks to Karlach and then to Riley, “Only one way to find out.”

Riley takes the invitation, and as Karlach and Riley lock eyes Riley does something she has had intermittent thoughts of doing ever since she met Karalch.

She kissed Karlach. On an objective level, the kiss was really quite chaste. On a personal level, though, it was like a floodgate finally released. For weeks the pair have been wanting to do this but have been stopped by literal fire. Riley had been thinking of this for more time than she would care to admit, and now that it was here it was exquisite. 

The pair stay in the embrace for a moment which feels like an eternity before parting. As Karlach’s grip loosens and Riley takes a step back. Karlachs eyes scour Riley’s body, searching for flames that may have caught their skin. “You’re alright,” Karlach says, a giddy smile still adorning her face, “no burns.”

Riley looks back to Dammon, “Thank you, for everything.”

“My pleasure.” Dammon says with a smile.

Riley turns to her friends, “Alright, before we go to Jaheira how about we check around to see what’s in stock?”

—

 “That had a truth serum in it, didn’t it?” Riley comments to Jaheira as the strange taste meets her tongue moments after she downed the glass of wine. 

“Perhaps.”

“Funny,” Shadowheart said with an audible smirk, “I think you’ll regret that.”

“Is that a threat?” Jaheira asks, the intrigue in her voice being devoid of any malice.

“Oh trust me, you’ll know what I mean in a moment. Now go on,” Shadowheart says, egging on Riley to speak.

“Well alright then. I guess I’ll answer your questions.”

“Very well, let’s get started. Has the tadpole changed you?” Jaheira asks.

Riley’s ramble begins, “Well, that entirely depends on what you mean by change. I’m an amnesiac so I can’t really tell you if I am acting any differently compared to my life before the tadpole, as I have no recollection of that time, however if I were to judge that claim based on my friends here then no. But that’s only speaking to our personalities, there are a couple of unusual changes we have experienced since acquiring our tadpoles which include, but are not limited to, telepathy, limited telekinesis, and on occasion the ability to manipulate others who have tadpoles. Additionally I am fairly certain I could acquire a few more abilities if I were to acquire more tadpoles but I find that whole thing disgusting so I would rather not try. If you meant ceramorphosis then no, nothings actually different and as a matter of fact I feel-”

“Enough!” Jaheira calls out as her eyes turn towards Shadowheart, “I understand the nature of your threat now.” Her eyes return to Riley, “Perhaps I should narrow my focus, are you feeling any new feelings?”

Riley pauses, “Honestly I’m not qualified to say since, again, I’m an amnesiac.” 

“Ah,” Jaheria notes, “Forgive the confusion, I could barely make out half of the words you said.”

Turning to her friends, Riley asks, “Are any of you guys feeling any different since the tadpole?”

“Nope, not really.” Says Karlach.

“Nothing discernible.” Adds Wyll

“No,” Shadowheart adds, “It doesn’t appear people protected by the artefact feel any different than before the tadpole.”

“That is reassuring, to say the least. These people,” she gestures towards the rest of the Inn, “good people, are stranded here-two feet in the grave. If we’re to survive, I have no choice but to trust you. Can I?”

“I would hope so.” Riley says with a smile.

“Very well.” Jaheira says.

Just behind Riley, Karlach could be heard letting out a gitty squee. As eyes land on her, she looks down bashfully, “Sorry. I’m just excited to meet you Jaheira.”

“Yeah,” Riley added, “I think all of us here aside from Shadowheart here heard your tale when we were little. Wyll’s got your story a little messed up though.”

“Hey!” Wyll call out.

“Heh, I appreciate your flattery. But I must warn that those stories are exaggerated nonsense.”

“Jaheira, in the past few days I have personally witnessed a nautiloid crash, a hag trying to steal an unborn child, and I orchestrated a slave revolt in the underdark. I have a feeling the stories about you aren’t as exaggerated as you claim.”

“Perhaps you are right, perhaps you are not. For some of these tales my mind was focused on other things, so I can’t be arsed to remember all of the details. And besides, there are more important things on my mind that distract me from those stories” Jaheira adds.

“Oh no, for sure. I’ve been distracted thinking about all the places I could go with my tongue on Karlach so I know I’ve missed a few things.” Riley says without thinking. 

Jaheira laughs at that while Riley’s mind realizes what she just openly said. She turns back to her friends and watches as Wyll looks on at her while Shadowheart gives Karlach an incredibly teasing look as Karlach looks at Riley bashfully. It’s at that moment that Riley’s face grows warm, though her face doesn’t get any more red than it already is. 

Jaheira laughs at Riley’s embarrassment, “I suppose now would be a good time to usher you away, yes? I would suggest speaking to Isobel, she may be able to provide you a boon of protection against the curse. She is upstairs.”

Without a word, Riley ushers her friends upstairs as she takes the out Jaheria gave her. There were not words that could express how utterly embarrassed she was to merely exist. Riley can’t stop thinking about all the people who just heard, out loud, what she’s planning to do to Karlach.

Riley isn’t even listening when Isobel describes the blessing she’s granting, all Riley can think about is if there is any hole she can just crawl into.

Though those thoughts of shame were numerous, they ceased when a flaming fist landed upon the balcony with rotted wings adorning his back. The man offered Riley a chance to help take down Isobel, and she wouldn’t lie it was tempting. Hells, she had half a mind to kill Isobel herself. But alas, Riley would not follow. 

Then the battle began. Winged horrors, creatures seemingly composed of corpses grafted and sown together in an unholy manner, descended upon the tavern. They destroyed walls and captured or murdered many residents. And then the screams began, the fear of death bellowing from the hearts of all of those who cried. It was… enticing. Riley was composed enough to call to her companions to defend Isobel, but not composed enough to resist. Why should she even resist The Urge now of all times? There was a fight to be won and blood to be spilled. This was the perfect time to let go, right? And these weren’t even people she’d be killing, well aside from Marcus. And with that, Riley embraced the Urge and began to fight.

Marcus was simple, really. A well-placed hit to his abdomen forced him to lean over and from there breaking his spine was mere child’s play. Riley turned around to check and saw Karlach and Shadowheart deal with two winged horrors by Isobel while Wyll began working on a third. They wouldn’t mind if she helped herself to the slaughter, right? Right.

She ran over and began bludgeoning the horror by Wyll, her fists curled tightly as she aimed for arteries and veins and organs. Any one of those rupturing would decimate these abominations in moments, surely?

This theory would be proven correct when the horror in front of her stumbles and crumbles before falling limp.  As the beast falls she watches its claws dig deep into Wyll’s side. Nothing fatal but he would be out of action for a day. 

How tragic, anyway! Her attention shifts to Karlach and Shadowheart as the pair slay their first horror. How marvelous! The one that still stands makes a slash at her but it makes a fatal mistake, it goes too low. Riley dodges the blow and grabs the creature’s arm and kicks it as its body contorts in reaction to the blow. Her smile grows ever wider as she cries out for all to hear, “Behold the dance of death!”

She pulls the horrific creature towards her so that her hand may destroy its brain. When that one falls limp she wastes no time and rushes to find the next one! As she passes through the double doors she finds three on the ground level, one of those being fought by Jaheira. Oh no, Riley wasn’t going to let a good kill get away from her that easily. 

She hurls herself towards the one by Jaheira, hoping to steal the High Harpers kill. Her fall is without grace, but the blow upon the horror sends its jaw flying as the rest of its body lays slack upon a fallen table. 

But there are far more than that creature still around. A few harpers murder one of the wretched beasts while another is still standing. The one still standing landed a crisp blow by her eye, the feeling of blood running down her face growing more intoxicating. She rises to her feet and stuns the last creature before she gets behind the damned things back. She grabs the two wings and begins to tear. Bones crack and stitches holding skin together break as the wings part from the body. She takes the two wings and impales the disembodied hand she holds in her left hand into its liver while the wing in her right arm goes through its neck. 

She scans the rest of the tavern for foes. Her eyes lock onto Alfira’s as the thought of ending her life briefly passes her mind, only for her to move on. Then her eyes land upon Jaheira’s, but she knows better and moves on. As the screaming fades to memory and her vision finds no horrors left standing, the Urge recedes and Riley takes back full control over herself.

Riley turns towards where her friends were only to see the three of them and Isobel looking down upon her. Riley does one more look around as the post battle calm reaches her ear “Is it over?”

“It appears to be.” Jaheria says, her eyes locked on Riley with suspicion. 

“Good. Let’s survey the damage and plan our next step.”

Chapter Text

In spite of the battle at the Inn, the camp was in a rather good mood. This stemmed, mostly, from Karlach going around to everyone and giving them a hug. There are no words in the common or infernal lexicon that could describe how adorable it was to watch Karlach pet Scratch and the Owlbear cub at the same time. Karlach nearly cried as Scratch leaned into her scratches and as the Owlbear cub purred. Riley didn’t pass judgement, she had the exact same thing happen to her and she barely fought back the tears.

The various chatters were lighthearted and kind, as Karlach’s joy was pretty damn infectious. Gale seemed far more enthusiastic when he was camping and everyone else began to visit the camp’s alcohol supply. 

Riley had taken a bottle of red wine for herself and took a seat by the fire. She was followed by Shadowheart, then Lae’zel who sat on the opposite side of Shadowheart. From there Wyll sat between Riley and Shadowheart while Astarion sat on the opposite side as Riley.

“So,” Astarion opened, “it appears you have solved that problem. Well done.” 

“We didn’t solve it entirely,” Riley says as her smile cracks a bit, “she’s still burning up. But at least now she’s not limited to just touching me.”

Astarion looks at Riley with a knowing grin, “Oh don’t worry, darling, something tells me you’ll have more than enough time to touch her later.”

Riley did not initially do a spit take at that comment, but she would privately admit it was close. Hells, she was tempted to do one directed squarely at Astarion’s face just to fuck with him. Actually, that would be funny. She leans forward and directs a blast directly into Astarions’ face before she speaks again, “Ah…I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

As Astarion’s face grows confident again following the attack, he gives Riley a look that screams “I know, bitch” as others in camp seem to mirror his expression. “Darling I don’t know if you know this, but you two are as subtle as a Dragon.”

Lae’zel looks at Riley, “He is right. The moment you arrived in camp Wyll informed me that you tested Karlach’s heat through a kiss. This was before Karlach grabbed me with the force of a bear, I presume Wyll’s attempt at convincing me to let her embrace.”

“Ok so first off, Wyll come on man.” Riley says as she looks to her friend, the faux betrayal oozing out, “And secondly, it was a really chaste kiss.”

“That was then followed up by your earlier comment on the matter,” Shadowheart adds, her face clearly amused by the opportunity to tease and by Astarion’s annoyance.

“Oh,” Astarion’s eyes light up as the wind returns to his sails, “go on.”

Riley locks eyes with Shadowheart and pleads with her eyes. The embarrassment at having said that she’s thought of all the places she could put her tongue across Karlach out loud in front of the actual Jaheira. As Riley’s pleas begin to fail, she whips out the desperate measures. Her tadpole connects with Shadowhearts and she begins to plead “please don’t, please don’t, please don’t.”

As Shadowheart recoils to her pleas, the connection ends. “Agh!” Cries Shadowheart as the brief pain of connection subsides, “Don’t do that again. And since you felt it would be wise to do that, I will tell everyone about what you said.”

Riley is forced to watch as Shadowheart begins to regale their friends on what happened earlier today. “After browsing the goods across the Inn, Jaheira invited us to drink. She,” Shadowheart gestures to Riley, “drank the wine in front of her without a second thought, downed it in a matter of moments, and had then looked Jaheria in the eyes and said ‘That was spiked, wasn’t it?’ Could you have been more reckless?”

“Probably” Astarion jokes as Riley kinda just nods. He’s not wrong, she’s done dumber.

“Regardless of our friend's foolishness, the wine was laced with a powder that forced her to speak the truth.”

“Oh gods, how did you shut her up?” Astarion quips, yet again hitting Riley while she’s down.

“Hey!”

“That was Jaheira’s problem, not ours. It’s a shame, really, that she only had to endure a light ramble.” Shadowheart’s eyes look to Riley before she inspects her glass for wine.

“Have you categorized my rambles?” Riley calls out sheepishly.

“Yes.” Shadowheart responds without hesitation, “Anyways, Jaheria made a comment about how her legend is exaggerated, or something to that effect.” 

Riley cries out, “Please don’t do this!”

Astarion looks on with his attention solely devoted to Shadowheart “Go on.”

Shadowheart looks upon Riley’s wretched state, how Riley’s eyes fill with grief, how Riley’s smile has shattered. And the only emotion that Shadowheart seemingly derives from such a look is not that of pity, but of schadenfreude, “And then our good friend here looks Jaheira square in the eyes and says ‘I’ve been distracted thinking about all the places I could go with my tongue on Karlach so I know I’ve missed a few things.’”

With that the campfire lights up with laughter. Gale nearly falls into the flames while Astarion nearly spills his wine. Lae’zel’s laughter is more subdued, at least compared to Wyll who is laughing damn near hysterically despite being there for the damned confession.

As the gang laughs, and Riley’s face grows flustered, Karlach returns and takes a seat next to Riley with a small giggle emerging from her mouth, “Hey come on Soldier, it was kind of funny.”

Riley remained embarrassed, “It’s not that it’s not funny, it’s just…I wanted to pitch the idea in a more romantic way.” A moment passes, “And maybe it was really embarrassing to admit that in front of Jaheira.”

“Ah come on,” Karlach says, trying to cheer her partner up, “it’s not the worst thing she’s ever heard.”

Riley’s remaining composure breaks “I looked your childhood icon in the eyes and told her effectively that I have detailed plans on how to rock your world. How in the world do I recover from that!?”

The camp’s laughter died down as Riley said that, even if only for a moment. They grew quiet enough so that everyone heard exactly what Riley just said. And then they laughed again.

“Well,” Karlach says with some wind taken from her sails, “maybe if we meet up later we can…work this out?” Her voice grew as low as a whisper.

Riley nodded, “Yeah…I’d like that.”

“Gods,” Astarion says, recovering from his laughing fit, “you two are adorable. It’s like watching a pair of newborn fawns try to stand."

“Hey!” Riley calls out, still flustered from the various liquored lampoons, “I’m not normally bad at this!”

“Oh?” The vampire quips, “Aside from me asking how you know that, I think it would be smarter to ask why you think that?”

Riley’s defensive strategy shifts, “I’m not saying I’m amazing at flirting, I’m just saying…Im having a hard time right now.”

“What an amazing defense, darling.”

“Why are you so focused on me!?” Riley cries in embarrassment, as other’s smiles grow. Riley turns to Karlach for any assistance but the look in Karlach’s eyes tells Riley that Karlach is too caught up in how cute Riley is apparently. Alright, shit, how does she get out of this one? Oh! Riley points to Gale, “He’s claimed to have fucked a literal god, and you’re coming after me for trying to bang Karlach!”

“Hey!” Gale says, his eyes looking more annoyed than hurt, “this quarrel is between the pair of you. No use getting me involved.”

“And besides, Darling,” Astarion adds, “between the old bugger telling Gale to kill himself and the way Gale cooks I could believe he’s laid with Mystra.”

Riley had hoped Gale would be bashful, perhaps even as embarrassed as Riley was. He did look somewhat embarrassed, but only barely, “Well,” Gale’s hand scratches his hair, “I suppose that it is a bit of an absurd claim, even if it is true.”

Riley sighed, “I won’t lie, I was really counting on you being more embarrassed so that I might be able to escape Asterion's teasing.”

Lae’zel let out a noise, “Why are you so squeamish around sex? On Creche K’liir I was rather proficient a-”

Riley extends her hands before loudly interrupting Lae’zel, “I don’t doubt your skill in the…carnal arts. I’m just not entirely used to this many people knowing this much about my private life.”

Shadowheart looks at her, “You are the leader of this group, were you expecting any leniency?”

Riley turned to Shadowheart, “I wasn’t expecting this much attention to be drawn to my sex life!”

Wyll nods at that, “As much as I enjoy watching this, I can’t say I expected to learn about your, shall we say, private time.”

Gale smiles, “Ah, I was more than comfortable discussing my own past but I can imagine it is not an easy thing to discuss in public.”

“Now,” Riley attempts to distract, “after that we were blessed by a Selunite and fought some flesh-beasts.”

Gale looks at Riley, confused, “And when you say flesh-beast, what do you mean?”

“I mean,” Riley turns to Gale, “the damn thing was like if you tried to make a demon with recycled human parts.” Riley begins thinking, “Ok maybe not all humans, but the flesh looked uniform so either it’s all the same race or there’s a tanner that bleached the skin.”

Gale looks at his cooked meat, with tanned human skin in his mind, and looks towards the camp. “I don’t know about you, but that story is putting a damper on my appetite.”

Wyll looks at his meat, the same thought likely going through his head “I’ll have to agree with you.” With that most of the others begin to retire to their tents, with a few exceptions remaining around the campfire.

Astarion looked towards his meat, indifferently, “Oh don’t be such a spoilsport, we’re not eating human flesh.”

Karlach pipes in, “I can’t say for certain, but I know it’s not a dwarf.”

Riley begins to examine her food. “If it were human it’d taste more like pork but a bit saltier. If this were close to anything, I’d wager it tastes like Wood Elf , but that comparison is a bit of a stretch.”

Astarion and Karlach turn to their friend, confused. “You’re not wrong, but now I need to know how in the hells do you know what Wood Elf tastes like?” Asks the elf.

Riley looks at the pair, confused, “What?”

Karlach keeps her eyes locked with her lover, “Soldier, that’s not a very common thing for anyone to know. I know what dwarf tastes like since I’ve been in some desperate situations. Figure you’ve been in any?”

Riley nods, “I think so. I don’t think I’m a doctor but I know a lot about anatomy and medicine, so it’d also check out if I just know what flavors different races tasted like.”

Astarion nods, “You know, it’s funny. I can vouch for that. There are a few medicinal books I have read that mention human tasting like pork.”

“Or it could be a result of a traumatic event which forced me to consume flesh. Who knows, honestly.” Riley says with the same relaxed tone one would use when explaining where to put laundry.

Astarion chuckles, “Or that.” With that, the three fell into silence as they finished what remained of their dinner.

—

Dinner had ended a little over an hour ago and, instead of retiring to her pack Riley instead sits on a spare bedroll down by the river. Karlach and her had, to put it mildly, plans for the evening. Plans to end Karlach's decade long dry spell in one singular night, with some plans involving her carefully manicured index and middle fingers. It was an exciting prospect. Riley was confident she knew what to do to make this night as magical as it could be, as her mind fantasized about what would occur she found certain acts to be far more familiar than others, and all she could do now was wait.

As she passed the time, staring up at the stars, she heard the sound of footsteps approaching behind her. Riley turns around and witnesses her lover attempt to sneak towards her. “You know,” Riley jokes, “I think you may be a bit too tall to sneak up on me.”

Karlach smiled, “I don’t know, Soldier, it hasn’t stopped me before.”

Riley chuckles, “Good point.” Riley raises to her feet, approaching her lover. “So…you ready?"

Karlach looks on, longingly. “I’ve waited for this long enough. Aye, I’m ready. A better question is, are you?”

Riley looks to her partner as fantasies of this moment play again and again in Riley’s head. “Oh I am all yours, Karlach.”

Upon hearing that Karlach shivered as her flame burned blue, her eyes now filled with a hunger hither to unseen. “Oh gods, I was hoping you’d say that. It’s like you read my mind.”

Riley stammered, “Ah, well, I didn’t actua-”

She would not finish that thought as Karlach pulls her into a kiss that caught Riley off guard. Karlach hooked an arm around Riley’s waist as her other arm pulled Riley’s lips to hers. Karlach moved perhaps too fast, their teeth bumping together while their noses squashed each other. Pulling back a moment the pair have a soft laugh at the silly mistake. Riley’s hands hook around Karlach’s shoulders as she kisses Karlach as the shock fades and her desires show themselves. The kiss started slow and tender but as soon as it was returned passions took over, and take over they did. As the floodgate bursts Riley does her absolute damndest to show how much she cares for Karlach while Karlach releases her decade of forced chastity out. Her hunger for Riley seemingly neverending as the pair stayed locked in their embrace. Their lips suck onto one another, drawing both in as all air seems to escape them. Time becomes a concept for another day as the pair’s tongues dance, moving from one mouth to another.

As their passions roared the pair briefly broke their kiss, if only so that they may let air reach their lungs. Their eyes meet again, their desires written plainly upon their faces. Wordlessly the pair begin to kiss again, though instead of wrapping her arms around her lover Riley’s hands begin to disrobe Karlach. Her hands quickly yet delicately maneuver under Karlach’s top and begin to pull it off. As Riley did that, Karlach’s hands moved and took off Riley’s tunic. The pair break their kiss again as their clothes pass over their heads and get tossed to the wayside. 

Once their tops were out of the way, Karlach led her lover down to the bedroll beneath their feet before catching Riley in yet another kiss. Their hunger and longing for the other only grew more feral, more impatient. Soon both of their hands would free their bottoms. 

As they break for air once more, Riley looks upon her partner’s body. Wearing nothing but a look of hunger, Karlach was beauty incarnate. How her scars directed attention towards her muscles, how her eyes glowed a bright blue hue, and how her smile somehow shined brighter than any flame. As she devoured the sight of Karlach she watched as Karlach devoured the sight of her.

It was this beauty, this sincerity, that solidified Riley’s next actions. Riley let her left arm hook back around Karlach’s neck while her right ventured further south. Riley’s hand skimmed across Karlach’s stomach and landed right on Karlach’s thighs. Looking back at Karlach's eyes, she gives Karlach a devious smile as she walks her fingers mime walking towards their final destination.

No sooner had she begun rubbing Karlach’s inner folds had Karlach began to visibly react. A shiver ran up her body and a small moan escaped Karlach’s lips. Riley felt her fingers grow ever more wet as she continued to manipulate her lover’s parts and she cannot help but smile watching Karlach react, and she lets instinct take hold. Her fingers move with a safecracker’s touch, dancing around Karlach’s little button with the strength to give Karlach pleasure yet gentleness to ensure pain was the furthest thing from her lover’s mind. 

Karlach’s shivers continued and her eyes could barely stay open. Her mouth had a moan emerge every other moment, “S-soldier,” Karlach stammered out, “ke-ep going.”

Riley’s confidence grew when those heavenly words reached her ear. Riley continued as her lover’s mouth produced a most beautiful melody. Moments later Karlach twitched and let out an oh so pleasant moan as the melody she produced reached its climax.

As that sound reached Riley’s ears she could feel the heat inside her grow as her heart’s beat swelled up and her breathing only grew more frequent. Riley withdrew her hand, now covered in the fruits of their passion, and gazed upon her lover. Karlach sat, her breaths audible and heavy, with a look of near bliss. Riley wrapped her clean hand around Karlach’s neck and pulled her close. Soon Karlach’s hands would follow suit as the pair simply relaxed in each other's arms. 

As the pair continued to lay there Karlach began to speak, “Gods, I needed that.”

Riley gave her lover a soft squeeze, “Glad to hear it’s been good so far.”

A soft chuckle left Karlach’s lips before pausing for a moment, “You know what’s funny? In all that time I spent in the hells I fantasized about nights like this. Just laying out on the soft ground with a partner at my side, letting a cool breeze go through my hair,  smelling grass, and just staring up at the stars.”

“So, how does the real thing stack up to the fantasy?” Riley asked.

“Gods,” Karlach’s voice filled with joy, “it’s been a dream come true. “Karlach pauses, “My fantasies haven’t done you justice, mate.”

Riley pulls Karlach close and kisses Karlach’s forehead, “Thanks for the vote of confidence.” As Riley pulls back from Karlach, she notices Karlach’s blue flame dim as she pulls away from the kiss, “Aw, do you light up blue when you're kissed?”

Karlach looked to her lover, “Indeed I do.” Karlach’s face glowed as she gave a look of adoration towards Riley.

Riley, in turn, gave Karlach her own adoring look, “Gods, why are you so damn adorable?” 

“I could ask the same of you, Soldier.”

Riley looked away bashfully for a moment before returning Karlach’s gaze, “Don’t change the subject, why are you so damn cute?”

Karlach shrugged her shoulders, “That’s just who I am, what can I say?”

“I know,” Riley looked at Karlach, longingly, “I could just eat you up, you know?”

Karlach turns to Riley, a mischievous grin adorning her face, “What’s stopping you?”

With one last look of pure admiration, Riley kisses Karlach again. Riley melted into it, her hunger exceeding any sense of moderation or decorum as she felt Karlach’s warmth grow. As her left hand began to tweak Karlach’s nipple she could feel shivers run through her partner's body. Karlach let out a soft moan in response and soon Riley’s right hand would return down to Karlach’s slit.

Their kiss breaks and Riley begins to bite lightly down on Karlach’s collarbone. She nibbles and sucks hard. She feels as Karlach squirms, her thighs slightly shaking as her arms weaken in strength. Riley continues to devour Karlach’s collarbone like she had just been starving, her head pulling back and maneuvering without the suction ever breaking.

When she finally removed her mouth from Karlach’s collar she took a moment to breathe and look upon her lover one more time for any signs of discomfort. With a pleasant smile, Riley’s head lowered to Karlach’s breasts, her nipples standing proudly, waiting for attention. Riley’s head lowered once again to Karlach’s breasts, her lips engulfing Karlach's nipples. Her tongue is playing with Karlach’s nipple. She feels Karlach’s engine start to get warmer the closer she gets to release, her fingers remaining dancing around Karlach’s clit.

Soon Riley pulled her head back once again only to be pulled into yet another deep kiss. Riley had to remove her hand from Karlach so that she may hold herself up while Karlach locked their lips together. The temperature rose further as Karlach’s engine went into overdrive. Karlach broke the kiss and threw Riley to the ground as she nibbled on Riley’s ear. It was soft, sensual. The suction drew noises out of Riley that she could never imagine herself making with anyone else. After Karlach finished Riley flipped positions with Karlach and began to nibble on her ears instead. 

The pair continued this song for some time, each lending the other their voice for a symphony of lust. As the rhythm continued and Karlach’s voice grew louder so too would Riley’s desire. Their kiss broke and before Karlach had a chance to gather any breath Riley began laying kisses down Karlach’s body. Her first was one by the collar, a second on Karlach’s breast, the third kiss landed right on Karlach’s stomach, and the fourth lay just above Karlach’s slit. 

Her eyes turn to Karlach, asking permission before she lets loose. As Karlach meets her eyes Riley watches as Karlach’s face fills with anticipation, with desire. Riley’s head lowers and lets her tongue do its duty. Her tongue found its way to Karlach’s most sensitive parts with near perfect precision as she felt Karlach squirm, her thighs shaking in anticipation. 

She could hear signs of pleasure echoed in the air and felt as it clung to her face. They were close, both of them. Her arousal and pleasure she gained from serving Karlach was as potent as the pleasure Karlach was feeling. Had Riley been thinking of anything other than the pleasure of her lover, she may have realized this was because of the tadpoles. That all pleasure felt by Karlach was transmitted to her. How every jolt, every twitch, and every flick of Karlach’s clit sent shivers through both their bodies.

Though she may not have figured out why, it was clear that her lover would release in mere moments. Riley’s tongue pushed harder as her rhythm accelerated slightly. Her instincts moved her body like it were possessed, feasting on Karlach like she needed her more than she needed air. Because in that moment, just as Karlach reached her climax, she did. As Riley felt Karlach’s legs shake she could hear Karlach’s voice cry “Oh Soldier!” as she let everything go. As those sounds hit her ears Riley too came as she lost her balance and hell upon her lover.

For just a moment the pair laid in each other's embrace, letting the afterglow of their release set in. Though that moment would end as Karlach shifted her position. Riley kneels to let her lover move in peace. As Riley meets Karlach’s gaze she does not see the face of a woman who has had her fill for the night, quite the opposite. Karlach grabs both of Riley’s hands and lunges down towards the ground, pinning Riley beneath her. As Karlach straddled her lover her face let out only one emotion: Lust. 

“Didn’t I tell you, Soldier?” Karlach licked her lips, “I want to ride you till you see stars? Well, hold on.” 

Riley looked Karlach dead in the eyes like a deer caught in a trap, but unlike any deer she was not filled with fear. Because looking upon Karlach’s face as she was reintroduced to sex, Riley only had one fear.

That in these lands without sun, there would be no reason for them to ever stop.

—

As fate would have it, the pair did not spend the entire night partaking in some of the pleasures of flesh. As the late hours of the night passed the pair would grow weary and take solace in each other's arms, with their hours of passion leaving the pair sore in a way most pleasant. With nothing to cover them aside from one singular blanket Riley had the foresight to leave just a ways away from the bedroll. 

Riley laid there in the solace of her partner and found herself sleeping peacefully, at least as peacefully as she could sleep. Indistinct visions of Isobel’s murder flew by with some calling for her death, but Riley paid it no mind. That butler of hers may be a prominent hallucination but she is strong enough to forget and ignore him.

Speaking of strength, it was not just Karlach’s strong arms that kept the pair intertwined. As the night progressed the pair became a tangle of limbs with Riley’s legs hooked around Karlach’s waist and their tails found themselves wrapped around one another. Riley could feel Karlach’s muscles relax as Riley’s own body met with hers. 

Riley could lay there forever. Basking in the warmth of her lover, feeling the afterglow of her passions finally released without fear. The heat of her lover contrasted with the cool air that ran across their face, creating the most comforting mix for the pair. 

It was not noticeable at first, but as Riley continued to lay with Karlach she began to notice her Urge, or rather, the lack thereof. Aside from her bad dream there was nothing but bliss. Her mind was clear, and it was…relieving. 

As the light of the moon began to rain down upon the pair she could feel Karlach stir in her sleep. Karlach’s muscles tensed and relaxed as a tired groan passed through her lips as Riley felt Karlach wake.

“Morning, darling.” Riley whispers as Karlach’s eyes start to open. When their eyes met she saw Karlach’s face light up and her flame turned back to blue, if only for a second. 

“I could get used to this.” Karlach said as a heavenly smile grew across her face. She began to stretch her body as she began to sit up. Karlach began to take a deep breath in before her stomach growled, “I don’t know about you Soldier, but I think we should get cleaned up and grab some grub.”

Riley rose to her feet, her body bare for her lover to witness. “Sounds like a plan, my love.” Riley offered Karlach a hand up.

Grabbing her partner's hand, Karlach rises to her feet. “Gods, I really could get used to this.”

Riley began guiding Karlach into the water, “Same.”

The pair entered the water and had a quick, chaste, kiss. Of course they could have gone further, acting as if this were merely a continuation of the night prior, but they both knew now was not a great time. Noises from camp told her that people were both awake and around, so neither made any move beyond the kiss. The water was quite warm, its source clear as Karlach seemed to be engulfed in steam and boiling water. After scrubbing themselves down they both redressed in their camp clothes and, after putting the bedroll away in a bag that would be washed later, entered the main camp and sat around the fire.

Gale approached the pair, “Good morning to you two. Might I say, congratulations. Though I might suggest next time finding somewhere more…isolated.” He hands Riley some bread for breakfast.

Riley turned her eyes, her hand still taking the food, “Oh gods…were we too loud?”

Astarion pops into the conversation “Darling, if you were any louder Jaheira would have sent harpers over here thinking there was a monster they had to slay. And besides,” he looks at Karlach and points to his collarbone, “you look the part.”

Riley first looked at Karlach’s collarbone and right there was a very noticeable hickey. Oops. She looks away, trying to find a way to turn her head as far from this conversation as possible, “Sorry.”

“Oh lighten up, won’t you?” Gale comments, “We’re all adults here, we can handle a little bit of sex. It was a bit too loud but that does not mean I hold it against you. If you need any help hiding that,” he gestures to the hickey, “I would be of service.”

Riley turns back to Gale, though her eyes do not meet his, “Thanks…and yeah next time we’ll try to find somewhere better.”

“Next time?” Karlach says with quite fascination, with hope dangling in her voice.

“My friend,” Gale says, looking at Karlach, “from what I heard you two made sounds of the heavens. If my experience with Mystra is anything to go off of, there will be a next time. Perhaps I could regale you with a few pieces of advice that I know would-”

Riley turns away, “And this conversation’s getting weird. New topic-Today’s plans!”

Chapter Text

Aside from occasional banter about the night before, the plans were relatively simple. The fairy’s blessing meant they could head straight to Moonrise and that was, frankly, the whole of the plan. They knew nothing about the Absolutists, nothing about their plans, and nothing about their leader. As far as Riley was concerned, the plan would be formed after they at least investigated Moonrise. If they found any captured refugees they’d free them, but that assumes they’re alive. With the plans relayed and her friends ready, the party set forth. 

The party walked down the decrypted and decaying roads, shadows clinging to the sides. Bodies of wildlife litter the ground as they wade through the ruins of land that people once called home. It was…unsetteling. Even for Riley, someone whose trade deals in death and destruction this was bizarre. Not too far away they could see Moonrise but with the road in this state it brought no comfort.

Deciding to vocalize her unease, she begins to speak, “Hey…does anyone else feel…off?”

“Aye,” Gale adds, “I can’t say this is my idea of comfort.”

“Right!” Riley says, tension thick in her voice, “I feel like there’s something out there that’s just waiting to pop up and attack.”

“There probably is,” Karlach says, nonchalantly, “It’s not like we haven’t fought any shadows yet.”

Riley’s shoulders tensed up slightly, “Great, now I'm more worried than before. Thanks!”

Karlach looks to Riley, confused, “I’ve seen you kill a shadow in a punch or two, what exactly about them intimidates you?” 

“The fucking shadows are coming out of the ground and stabbing people, how are you not at least a little freaked out?!” Riley calls out.

“Mate, our job has us nearly dying every fucking day. Why is this where you draw the line?” Karlach calls out.

“It’s weird!” Riley cries out.

Shadowheart looks to Karlach, “Yesterday she beat a winged creature to death with her bare hands, today she’s afraid of her own shadow. What did you do with her last night?”

“This has nothing to do with that!” Riley cries out in embarrassment, her tone settling down as soon as the moment fades  “I’m just…feeling something's off.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, we’re in the Shadow Cursed Lands. Everything here is off.” Gale calls out.

As the group continued walking forward they would find a sight that would end all conversations. Ahead of them laid the corpses of dozens of tieflings, probably refugees. Their bodies mangled and deformed.

Riley couldn’t help but admire the artistry. How the corpses laid upon the dirt, how their blood still puddled in the small irregularities of the dirt road. How-

Riley immediately cast those thoughts away. What the ever loving fuck was she on about? This is a tragedy in front of her. Sure, she can accept maybe appreciating her own handiwork but this? This is just slaughter. A beautiful, no, terrible slaughter.

“Gods…” Riley’s voice gets out. Her eyes examine the bodies for details. This was not a predator, no wild animal, this was an attack by men. 

A quite declaration of “fucking hells” escaped Karlach’s mouth. Shadowheart remained silent as Gale sighed.

“These bastards will pay.” Karlach declared. Not a question or a demand, a simple statement. A note that the Absolutists will pay no matter what.  Riley met Karlach's eyes and nodded, an unspoken agreement shared. Soon Gale would join in that agreement followed shortly by Shadowheart.

Riley could picture it now, how their bodies, broken and battered, will look. How sweet their blood will taste, how savory their skin would be. Oh it would be glorious.

Ok no, this needs to be addressed. She could understand that she’s got an insatiable bloodlust, that wasn’t hard to figure out. She could understand her lack of concern for gore, she knew medicine and worked as a killer. But where the fuck did this affection and longing for death come from? That wasn’t her, not entirely at least. That part of herself just…didn’t click with the rest of her. Was she literally cursed? It’s not inconceivable.

“Hey Soldier,” Karlach calls out, bringing Riley back to reality, “everything alright?”

Riley was quick to respond, “Yeah, yeah. I was just…conflicted.”

“May we dare ask what?” Gale asks.

“It’s…weird. I feel my violent urges are…differnet. You know?”

“What, like they’re not normal?” Karlach adds, a hint of concern lacing her words. “Mate, we talked about this. They aren’t.”

“No, I realized that when I killed Quil. I mean…I don’t know if these urges are entirely mine, you know?”

“What, like just some random other person's desire?” Karlach asks, “Because if so then maybe it’s just your tadpole being fucked.”

“Maybe, but  I don’t feel it’s that.” Riley responds.

“Well, in the absence of certainty, why don’t we test to see if it is the tadpole?” Gale adds with a slight cheer. “Why don’t you try to send us a small taste of your urges. I have a theory that you may be picking up the more violent thoughts of others through your tadpole, though I am uncertain as to why this would be the case. If any of us can recognize your urges as our own, then the issue may be as simple as a faulty tadpole."

Riley thinks about the proposal, trying to find flaws. Finding none, or at least not finding any that she couldn’t dismiss because she wants clarity, she proceeds. “Alright, hold on.” Riley conjures up a small taste of what her Urge might offer. Just the slaughter of the goblins at the grove’s gate. It was only a small slaughter, nowhere near as potent as it can get. How the lust for blood moves her limbs without fear, without thought. Looking at her friends, she watches as they take in the taste. The three of them seem slightly taken aback. She breaks the tether, letting them return to normal. “What do you think?”

Karlach turns to Riley, “Soldier, you were supposed to give us a little drop of it, not a massive wave of the stuff.”

“That was a small taste.” Riley responds, as if it were the most natural and reasonable thing to say. 

With that revelation Karlach’s eyes grow in surprise with similar, albeit less animated, reactions coming from Gale and Shadowheart. Karlach just looks at her lover, “That’s your normal?”

“For the Urge, pretty much. It gets worse the longer and/or gorrier it gets.” Riley says with ease.

“Well, this has been illuminating, albeit incredibly disturbing.” Gale notes. “But I do feel we did gain some insight into this ‘Urge’ of yours.” 

“I’m going to go out on a limb and guess it’s unusually strong, then?” Riley adds, “Judging by your reactions, I’m getting that vibe.”

“Soldier, you’re really underselling how fucked that is.” Karlach joins, a bit freaked out now. “I’ve had bloodlusts, I get it, but this wasn’t like any of fucking mine. Soldier, that’s not normal.”

“Really?” Riley says with confusion.

“And you feel this way frequently?” Shadowheart asks.

“Yeah, sometimes whenever we see a corpse it comes up or whenever we fight I tend to feel it.”

“Hells,” Karlach adds, “I’m honestly unsure what to say.”

“Pardon me, but we have gotten a tad bit off track.” Gale adds, “I think I speak for all of us when I say it’s probably not the tadpole, I can tell you that there’s something more here. Perhaps a curse?”

Shadowheart looks at Riley, “I don’t feel a curse, per say. But I have noticed that you have a small hint of divine in you. Perhaps you did something to upset a god?”

“What god would do this, though?” Riley comments.

“Tempus?” Gale throws out, “It doesn’t explain everything perfectly, but if you disgraced him it’s not out of the question he would curse you to go insane.”

“Maybe?” Riley notes, slightly confused. It doesn’t quite line up but it does make some degree of sense. A god of honorable combat would see an insatiable bloodlust as a curse. “It doesn’t solve every issue but it can work. But how, or really why, would I get a god to curse me like that?”

“No idea, mate. Could be another god too, could be Beshaba. If I were a god of misfortune I’d curse a doctor with bloodlust, seems fitting.”

Riley nods, understanding that logic. “That also makes sense.” She double checks her surroundings, making sure they’re alone. “Well, thank you all for helping me with that. It’s been eating away at me for the past few weeks, and as much as I would love to continue thinking about this I do feel we should get moving. We still need to learn what the Absolutists are doing.”

Gale nods, “Of course. Perhaps we’ll theorize on which god you’re foes with later. For now, we should get moving.”

With that the four begin their march once again. Riley’s head fills in, ensuring they do not end up ambushed while another part tries to narrow down what god would be responsible. The two theories she already heard made sense but something deep down in her knew these weren’t the case. She focused more on that part of her, that subtle confidence in her origin, to find it’s origin. And as she scours her scattered mind she only finds one oh so simple answer on where her Urge comes from. 

It’s Father’s gift.

But that begs the question.

Who is Father?

—

Moonrise itself was remarkably bizarre, fitting for the heart of a cult based on Mindflayer tadpoles. The courtyard outside the fortress held more of those flesh beasts, the inner rooms filled with cultists delusionally believing their mythical god will prove herself and that their vengeance on their families will be both viscous and righteous. 

Upon entering the throne room of Ketheric Thorm they found he had already taken an audience, as it so happened it was with the leader of the goblin’s Riley had initially assumed would either die, have an unrecoverable seizure, or was knocked into a coma. Deciding that this woman, Minthara, was stronger than she initially presumed, Riley decided to manipulate the judgement so that she may live. She would rescue Minthara shortly, but before that Riley decided it would be wise to consult with her companions. It was as the conversation shifted to the goblins that Riley’s mind began recognizing things. She locked eyes with Ketheric and memories began unveiling themselves, memories of this throne room. Memories of anger and fury, but not one detail more. Ketheric and her continued to study one another as her face grew cold. For the moment she would give no emotion, let no hint of her thoughts slip from her lips nor the twitch of her face. Riley watched as he analyzed her every move, and yet she couldn’t quite parse what his intentions were.

It may have taken a moment for her to realize but Ketheric was not looking at her like you would a subordinate. There was no authority or superiority in those eyes. He was probing her for any possible cue. His caution also implied a level of knowledge of her that no stranger in his position would possess. 

From his throne Riley notices a small smile form on Ketheric’s face. “I’m surprised to see you again, True Soul. You are here to assist and not meddle, I trust?”

Riley stayed her tongue. Ketheric knew her and was extracting some pleasure from taunting her with that. Until his monologue concludes, she will simply extract what she can from what’s being freely stated.

“I would remind you that while in my halls, you obey me-just as you would any other Chosen.” Ketheric taunts. Combining that with her memories of anger, it’s clear to her that the last time she was in Moonrise it interfered with whatever Ketheric’s operations were, and that she defied him in some way. In what role she worked, or what position could lead to her being on equal footing as Ketheric was unknown to her. “I’m sure you will enjoy watching my justice enacted. You have to take what pleasure you can, after all, in your diminished state.” Ketheric begins to smirk. 

Even with her mind in thousands of pieces, she knew whatever carved her mind up happened just prior to the nautiloid. Whatever happened wouldn’t be out in public. With that, the knowledge of his position in the cult of the Absolute, and simple intuition meant he knew about the nautiloid. 

Riley’s eyes scan the room, with none having the gall to meet her. Their eyes worked to avoid her. They knew her, and seemed weary of interacting with her. Returning her gaze to Ketheric she saw his look of glee, his pleasure at knowing about Riley while she knew not of him. Realizing it would be best to play the fool, she asked a simple question that he had already answered. “I take it we’ve met?”

“Oh that we did, but we are here to deal with these goblins, not reminisce.” He stands, “Kill them, quickly.”

As she watched, one goblin stole a polearm and threw it into Ketheric's chest. It made the oh so familiar sound of organs squishing and bones breaking, yet Riley knew this was not a kill. His head had not gone limp and his legs were still supporting his weight, had he truly been injured he would have been knocked unconscious momentarily before he died.

True enough, he rose to his feet and let the goblin fail to kill him again. With two failures under its belt, Ketheric turned the thing's skull into paste. As he left to deal with other matters, Riley was granted the opportunity to choose the fate of the surviving goblins. Once Ketheric was out of the room she let them simply walk away.

As Z’rell and Kethric leave, Riley ushers her companions to a side room so that they may discuss their current findings. Finding an empty balcony, Riley begins to speak. “So, it appears I may have been here before.”

“You knew Ketheric.” Karlach added, “So you weren’t just anyone.”

“Indeed,” Gale adds, “being a God’s Chosen gives one a certain air of confidence. Given his attitude towards you that tells me you somehow found yourself opposed to him.”

Riley nods, “On top of that, he’s told us the Absolute has something to do with the nautiloid.”

“How so?” Adds Gale.

“He knew me before the memory loss, his comments made his confidence on the matter clear.” Riley notes, “As far as we have been able to tell, my memory loss happened just prior to the nautiloid. If we merge his knowledge of me prior to my amnesia with the latter fact of the nautiloid in context with the understanding that the cult operates using tadpoles, we can extrapolate that he, as well as the other Chosen of the Absolute, are directly responsible for the tadpoles.”

“To describe that as worrisome is an understatement.” Gale says with anxiety clearly beginning to take effect, “Ketheric does not appear to have a tadpole of his own so whatever is making isn’t giving him direct control.”

“Which means that there’s likely an artifact that provides the invulnerability to Kehteric as well as a separate artifact that grants the Absolute’s chosen power over the infected.”

“Not only power over the infected, but the ability to prevent ceremorphosis.” Gale notes, “Many of the guards here are also infected and are also likely not undergoing ceremorphosis.I don’t know about you, but I didn’t see any tentacles emerging from any of their heads.”

“True,” Riley adds, “which, given the scale of the Absolutist forces, likely means the artifact responsible of the tadpoles is vastly more potent than the one in charge of invulnerability because, presumably, it is far simpler to make one heal wounds quickly than it is to enslave a cult of this scale.”

Gale nods, “Yes. It would still need some potent power but it would be leagues too weak for the power needed for the tadpoles.”

Riley nods. “Indeed. In any such case, I think it would be wise to go liberate the Drow. I, admittedly, presumed she would never walk again when I last met her. She’d prove a valuable ally.”

Gale nods, “I can see the value in exercising a former leader of the cult. They would provide valuable insight into the logistics of the cult.”

“Exactly. Additionally, her rank may have made her privy to information we’re unable to access otherwise.”

“Wonderful. Though before we do this I must ask a question on how we plan to break her out?”

Riley pulls out a potion of invisibility “It won’t work on the scrying eyes, but it only needs to work so long as it can get us out of the building. If anyone asks we can say we were unaware how she got out.”

“Ah, a solid cover. Well, that seems sorted. Shall we get going, then.” Gale adds.

“Lets.” Riley nods. Riley and Gale begin to walk towards the door as Karlach and Shadowheart simply stand there, confusion lining their faces.

—

Shadowheart and Karlach look to one another, as if to double check their reality.

“Did Soldier just…?” Karlach asks, unsure how to phrase the question she’s got.

“Did their vocabulary suddenly, yet  dramatically, improve in a handful of seconds?” Shadowheart asks.

Karlach nods, now far more sure of herself with confirmation. “I thought I was hallucinating for a moment.”

“Agreed.” Shadowheart says, looking towards the door which Riley and Gale left, “So, it appears your hypothesis is correct. Somewhat, anyway.”

“I’ll say. It seems the closer we get to her past, the more like that she’ll become.” Karlach says with slight worry. “I won’t lie, it’s strange learning more about her.”

“Strange as in worrisome?” Shadowheart asks.

“Nah,” Karlach waves her hand, dismissively, “more just bizarre. I sometimes have a few guesses on what’s going to come next and so far none of them have come true.”

“Oh? Not even the ones you tested last night?” Shadowheart says, teasingly.

With a confident grin Karlach turns to Shadowheart, “No, I underestimated her.”

“Good for you,” Shadowheart says, “but perhaps we should go fetch our companions before they get into any trouble.”

Karlach nods as the pair make their way to where their friends probably are.

—

The rest of the trek through Moonrise was rather straightforward. Breaking Minthara out of prison was as simple as a double homicide and took a literal minute. After that Riley went to Z’rell, talked to her in her office, killed her in her office, acquired a key to Balthazar’s room, broke into Balthazar’s secret room, and got a clue on what’s going on. More importantly, though, was the intriguing fact that the cult of the Absolute has a necromancer who clearly still worships Myrkul. 

After they got those notes, Riley decided to find those missing Tieflings. Seeing Rolan on the side of the street ready to kill himself freeing his siblings nearly broke her so the rescue had to be done as soon as possible. It was, genuinely, convenient that the patrol route of the guards was oh so close to the chasm which led to gods know where. In dealing with the guards she utilized an ancient technique she utilized to defeat the goblins threatening the Emerald Grove.

“AAAAAAHHH” cried the last sentry as they were sent down into the unknown.

In contrast to her unremarkable subordinates, the Warden was actually quite fascinating. At the sight of Riley she seemed to be reminded of her nebulous past. The Warden recognized her and treated her as a possible annoying bastard. She was wrong, of course. Riley was specifically there to kill the Warden and break her prisoners loose, but not annoy the warden. Riley tried to pry any information on her past from the Warden but all she learned was that the Warden was a zealot and that Riley was annoying, so a moot point. 

Deciding to take advantage of their shared infernal heritage, she invites the Warden out to “convert” some of the Tiefling prisoners. With a bit of faux antagonizing the Warden was distracted long enough for Riley to simply break the warden’s neck. Looking up at the prisoners she simply tells them to prepare to escape.

How to prepare was anyone’s guess. The guards were all dead, the floating eyes were all disposed of, and there was no one alive in that entire level of the building. It was a dull affair, but it had to be done. From there it was only a matter of joining them on their boat and sailing them to Last Light.

The ride itself was silent as emotions swelled. She could sense the lingering fear of the prison mixed with the excitement at freedom and the concern of what comes next. Upon arriving at Last Light much of the trepidation had lowered while their excitement bloomed, say for the minutes they had to spend waiting for the harper to scan them all for parasites. When they were cleared the party watched as everyone slowly began making their way inside, say for Lakrissa who was running full speed.

Turning to Karlach, knowing full damned well where Lakrissa was going, Riley smiles, “Want to go check in with Alfira?”

“Sure,” Karlach responds, “sounds like fun.”

“Alright, let's do it. Shadowheart, Gale, we’ll need a minute.”

With that the couple rushed upstairs to catch the reunion. Riley and Karlach followed behind Lakrissa as she entered the Inn and announced herself to Alfira, who was still sitting by the fire. It was cute, the rush of emotions that flooded onto Alfira’s face ranged from shock to joy as she saw her partner safely return. When the shock wore off Alfira rose to her feet and embraced her partner tightly, as if Lakrissa would vanish if she didn’t hold on tight enough. An embrace her partner returned with much the same attitude. While Lakrissa maintained her composure tears began to stream down Alfira’s face as she began to softly sob.

“Easy, easy. I’m not going anywhere.” Lakrissa says, moving her hand gently to hold Alfira’s face. Their eyes meet and Alfira’s pain seems to fade in favor of relief. 

Alfira smiles, pain still wrapped around her face “Don’t you ever leave me again.”

Lakrissa lays a soft kiss on the top of Alfira’s head, “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

Alfira’s smile grows wide as she continues the embrace. For a brief moment, the pair looked as if they were caught in their own little world. It was adorable, pure even. Glances may be exchanged, looks shared, but nothing disturbed their peaceful silence.

Though there are some ideas that cannot be communicated solely through looks. As seen by Alfira’s thoughts, “So, how did you get out of Moonrise? I was certain you were…” Her voice trails off.

Lakrissa smirks, “Well, I had some help from a friend of ours.” Lakrissa turns her head, looking towards Karlach and Riley.

Riley didn’t quite know what to say so she gave the same polite wave she gave Vlaakith. Karlach wasn’t much better, saying “Oh, hi.”

Alfira looked frightened for a moment before she calmed. “Oh, hello.” She chuckles to herself, “I should have expected it would be you two.”

Riley looks at Karlach, “Yeah, not to brag or anything but we’re a bit good at dealing with Absolutists.”

Alfira’s grin becomes slightly awkward, “After how you looked at me the other day, I could believe it.”

“How did she look at you?” Lakrissa looked towards Riley, puzzled. Neither Alfira nor Lakrissa break their embrace.

Riley scratches the back of her head, “Yeah so, funny story. So Last Light was attacked and I may have gotten a bit…bloodthirsty.” She says with an awkward smile and nervous chuckle, “When I ran out of baddies I looked around and may have locked eyes with Alfira. Sorry!”

Karlach smiles, “Yeah, sorry about that Alfira. They’re weirdly blood hungry and sometimes she shows too much.” 

Riley whispers in a somewhat hushed tone to Karlach “That’s not reassuring.”

Karlach hits back, “Well what do you want me to do, lie to them? It’s weird.”

“I know it’s weird but you’ve given them the impression I’m a threat!”

“Soldier, I didn’t do that.” Karlach says, doubtfully.

Lakrissa speaks up, “I mean, I saw you kill the Absolutist Warden with your bare hands, you didn’t really change my view with a bit of bloodlust there.”

“And I saw it first hand,” Alfira adds, “So the explanation doesn’t really change much for me.”

Riley looks away, nervously. “Yeah, sorry to shatter that  hero image you mentioned.”

Alfira shakes her head a bit, dismissively, “It puts a damper on it but that’s not going to dismiss it entirely. After all,” Her eyes return to Lakrissa’s, “you brought her back to me.” Alfira’s temple bumps into Lakrissa’s.

Riley says nothing but the smile on her face told the world she found that display adorable. Turning to Karlach, it appears she is of the same mind. After a moment they break yet again and Lakrissa turns back to the other set of Tieflings, “You saved me from those torturous bastards. Honestly, you could have been more brutal and I wouldn’t have said anything.”

“Lakrissa!” Alfira calls out.

“What? I’m not lying.”

“Excuse me,” a voice calls out from Riley’s left. Turning to find it’s owner, the gang realizes it’s Jaheira, “as much as I respect your reunion, I would wish to speak to these True Souls about Moonrise.”

Riley turns to Alfira, “Mind if we carry on this conversation another day?”

Alfira nods, “I can work with that. Now go on.” She says, an unsaid declaration that she wishes to be alone with her partner left hanging in the air.

With a swift nod Riley and Karlach leave Alfira in the arms of her partner. They approach Jaheira as she asks, “Any updates?”

“Quite a few, matter of fact.” Riley adds, “First and foremost would be noting that Ketheric doesn’t have a tadpole. So the Chosen have some other way of enchanting the tadpoles and controlling the infected.”

“I see,” Jaheira nods, “so that means there’s more to that than we thought, good to know. Have you learned anything about his invunerability.”

“Nope.” Karlach adds, “Well, nothing direct. We got told there’s something in his family tomb that might be related.”

“At least you have direction. Have you learned anything about the Shadowcurse?” Jaheira looks a bit more optimistic.

“Not really, no. We’re still trying to figure that one out.” Riley adds.

“Ah, it was worth a shot. Anything else related to our predicament? Did Ketheric wake up on the wrong side of the bed lately?” Jaheira jests.

“Well, we got something none of us expected. Soldier here,” Karlach smacks Riley’s back, “apparently used to be an Absolutist.”

Jaheira’s eyes widen as she goes on alert, “Do you still hold those loyalties?” Her voice is sharp and precise.

Riley shakes her head, “No, I’m no longer with the Absolutists. Though….” Riley pauses, “there’s more to the story than what Karlach said.”

Jaheira’s posture relaxes but her eyes stay sharp, “Go on.”

“I, apparently, was at Moonrise just before I lost my memories. And, apparently, I held enough authority to antagonize Ketheric and live to tell the tale.”

“And you are certain he is not the cause of your…” Jaheira gestures vaguely to her head, “broken mind?”

“Nope. He wasn’t taunting me that way. It was more like he let it happen than he did it himself. Ya know?”

“Ah, well. Not every operation goes to plan, nor is any intelligence ever easy to find.” She says, dismissively. There is a brief pause as none speak, a pause broken by Jaheira “What? Were you expecting more?”

“Honestly,” Riley says, “I was expecting more of a reaction. Like I reveal I was a member of the cult that’s holding us under siege and you react like I stole a dessert.”

“You hold your sword at someone who steals your treats?” Jaheira asks.

“You can hold a sword?” Karlach asks.

“I can hold a sword, yes. Would I do it to someone who stole my treats…well depends on the dessert.”

Karlach thinks about it for a moment, “Alright, what about apple pie?”

“I’d probably punch them if they stole that.”

Karlach nods, “Fair enough.”

Riley nods, “You see the vision.” She looks up and sees Jaheira looking at her. “Ah, right. Back on topic. Yeah, I expected hostility.”

Jaheira smirks, “Oh please, I have traveled with Bhaalspawn and faced far stranger foes than you. If I couldn’t look past your past, I’d make a poor harper.”

Riley chuckles, but as Jaheira says that an unknown part of her begins to feel more disdain. But at what? Jaheira forgives her, what’s there to be upset about? Was it something to do with being referred to as boring? Or what? 

What detail in that sentence provoked the anger?

—

Entering camp Riley and crew were just fucking exhausted. There had been some whisper in Last Light that they may find out a little more about the Shadowcurse if they woke this guy up. They realized he’d only be woken from a musical instrument somewhere in town and that led to its own thing. And then he woke up which led to them grabbing Halsin, which then led to another huge thing, which then led to fighting a shadow child who was in desperate need of therapy. 

Considering the number of steps that were just skimmed over, it’s not unfair to say the four adventurers were just fucking done. Gale needed a lot more help than normal cooking dinner with Riley cutting the carrots, Wyll boiling the potatoes, and Karlach stopping Minthara from putting poison into the pot of stew.

The conversations were interesting, to say the least. Halsin describing how it was in the Shadowfell, Gale analyzing how the Shadowcurse may have come to pass, and Minthara making literally every possible insult towards Gale while also making her home in Menzoberranzan somehow sound more dangerous than their current situation.

After their food had been eaten and stories shared, Riley retired to her bedroll yet again. As she relaxes and begins to drift off, she hears some familiar footsteps approach.

“Hey Soldier,” Karlach calls out, “may I?” She points at Riley’s bedroll.”

“Yeah, hold on.” Riley scoots over a little bit, allowing Karlach to lay down. As Karlach settles in Riley wraps her arms around Karlach, “That better?”

“Perfect.” Karlach replies, lighting up blue again as the lover’s eyes began to drift shut.

—

Chapter Text

Riley entered the room, finding her sister carving the symbol of the Absolute into the chest of a Harper who lays upon a dining table. In the periphery of the room rest other Harpers alongside some of the civilians they swore to protect. Or at least, so she assumed. She felt no intrigue or tug of interest when it came to the Harpers, there was no shameful fascination. Had Jaheira not been a Harper, Riley would have entirely just written off the entire group as nothing but a more annoying offshoot of the Flaming Fist.

Though now was not the time to think about Jaheira. As her eyes focus on the symbol and how her sister is drawing, “Did you use his hand to trace the hand of Myrkul?”

Her sister looks back to her, agitated, “Why would I? It might ruin the viscera. And besides,” She holds up the limp hand, “this is not exactly the most helpful limb.”

Riley looks to the other corpses in the room, “Then why not just hack off one of theirs and use that instead?” She walks over and grabs a rather accurate hand, “Like this?” She flops the limp hand around, “It appears it would work.”

Her sister begins to look agitated, “Because there is no fun, no artistry, no worship, no passion!” She stands, the symbol complete, though some details are left unfinished. Her sister looks to Riley with anger, “You do not reveal in its glory nor savor the sanguine yet YOU claim to know Father’s wishes?”

A wicked scorn goes across Riley’s face as her tone fills with venom, "I know what Father wants because I am his favorite. And if you want this plan to work-”

Her sister cuts her off, “No, no, no, no, no Bloodkin. It’s HIS plan, that dirty, stinking, pile of filth has drilled his way into your mind-matter!” She approaches Riley, “He seeks to drive us from our purpose. Turn you into his little lap pup.” Her sister’s smile grows sinister, “Why not rip out his throat before he puts on the collar?”

Riley can’t help but fight a grin, “Oh, we will rip out his throat. Do not make any mistakes.” She grabs her blade from the abdomen of a random corpse, “But if we want to drive a dagger through the heart of the world, we will need him alive.”

Her sister grows more angry, furious even. “What does that pathetic piece of man-meat have to offer? Hmmm? Do his tin-men slaughter? Has he ever butchered a body? No!” She shouts, “Have you gone soft, bloodkin?”

“I am a pragmatist not a fool, sister.  His connections open doors and ours opens throats, and if we wish to give the world to Father then we will need more than sweet crimson upon our lips. And besides,” she looks upon her blade, “It’s not as if we lack any enemies to slaughter.”

“But he does not care for Father! His plan is an insult to everything Father is, to what we are! The little tyrant does not wish to rule upon a kingdom devoid of crimson, so why do you enable him?”

Riley smiles, looking back to her sister, “Because it’s fun.”

Her sister only grows angrier, “Fun, fun?!” She screams, “You and Grandfather have done nothing but decry my joys as wasteful, as pointless, as void! Why must your joy be prioritized!?”

“Because I am the favorite!” Riley cries out, “Now will you persist with these childish demands or shall we get to work staging the attack?”

Her sister does not bend, “Do not speak to me as if I am a child!”

Riley begins to shout, “Cease acting like one and I may treat you as an adult! Do you understand?! If you were Chosen then perhaps your grandfather and I may treat you as one. Now all you are doing is acting as a stain on our blood. Now, will you center yourself? We are not at home and our mission is still incomplete.” Riley says, grabbing her blade out of the corpse and slicing its arm free from its shoulder.

Her sister falls into a silent fury. No words of anger spoken yet a clear fury resided within her. Riley watched as wanked out into the hall and into some other room. She would not follow her sister, a choice she is quite thankful of as she listens to her sister stab into some husk left in there. Her hatred, her passion, her fury were all focused on carving a hole through this corpse large enough for her hand to go from one end to another. Blood from the carcass flows into the halls, leading to Riley bending down to sample on it. The flavor leaves much to be desired and it would at best be described as lukewarm, but it was a good flavor nonetheless.

As her sister’s pace grew more tired and confused, Riley decided it was time for her to leave, “I will leave the rest of this to you, then. I trust you’ll see it through.” She begins to leave, “Oh, and sister?” Riley walks to the room housing her sister, “I do love you. I understand it does not always feel that way, but I do.” Riley is about to leave before she remembers, “I’ll make your favorite for dinner, if that would make you happy?”

“Roasted Dwarf?” Her sister cries out, anger lingering on her tongue.

“Roasted Dwarf with cream.” Riley says with a nod.

Her sister’s response is muddled but Riley thinks she hears something to the accord of “you only love the tool.” Riley doesn’t quite understand the whole of the statement and leaves her sister to finish butchering. 

She walks down the streets of Baldur’s Gate as though she had not just ended the lives of families and friends, her smile filled with fake cheer. Oh what fools.

As she continued to walk down the street she happened upon a beggar, sitting in an alley. There were no Fists around, nor another soul in sight. Just her and the poor bastard. If she killed him, there would be no one to tell the story, none to report their missing kin. There would be no investigation, no concern. It would go totally unnoticed by the world.

And yet, she hesitated. She felt no malice towards this man, her thirst for death made no claim for this man’s life. She merely dropped a few coins into his hat and proceeded on her merry way.  Soon she would descend into the sewers, away from prying eyes. 

As she continued her way through the filth, she noticed her butler following her. And yet he remained silent. Curious, normally he would have an avalanche of words praising her. 

—

Riley’s eyes slowly open, her dream over and done. Her arm wrapped around Karlach’s back as Karlach continued to sleep. As Riley’s mind races she can’t help but put things together. The Butler….that fucker was from her past.

“You called, Milord?” Sceleritas asks.

“Holy fuck!” Riley softly states, in shock, “What are you doing here?” 

“I’ve come here to give you another powerful tithe.” He says, bowing his head down.

“A tithe? What is it?”

“It is a religious gift, Milord, but that is of little consequence right now. Because I cannot grant you this prize quite yet.” 

“I don’t want it!” Riley whispers, “get out!”

“And miss out on the bloodshed? Oh, my malignant master, I would not dream of it.”

“I won’t kill anyone else for you, go!” She whispers slightly louder, “Fuck off.”

“Oh, but picture how many more would perish if you snuffed out this pretty little thing.” Suddenly he summons an illusion in front of her. Before her stands Isobel, or some hollow illusion. 

To her side Riley could feel Karlach begin to wake. She yawns and shifts in her bed towards Riley, “Good morning Soldier.” Her eyes drift slightly and she seems to notice the butler and the illusion of Isobel. Riley can feel her confusion through the tadpole. Soon Karlach’s tadpole reaches out to Rileys, to see through her eyes. She lets Karlach observe and their minds seem to intertwine, an experience that would be far sweeter if it were not currently being used to confirm that they are not crazy. “What the fuck is that thing?” Karlach’s voice remains quiet even as she rapidly rises to her feet.

“That’s the butler I mentioned earlier.” Riley whispers back.

“He’s fucking real?!”

“I thought not, but apparently he very much is.” 

“Oh my dear master, I am very much real.”

“I thought you were just a dream, a figment of my twisted mind.”

“Oh you flatter me, Milord.”

“Soldier, why the fuck is Isobel here?”

“He wants me to kill her.”

“What?!” Karlach states in anger.

“I denied him before you woke up, don’t worry.”

“Oh but your brilliant mind has not yet forgotten your Urge, I take it?” The butler adds.

“How does he know about your Urge, Soldier?”

Riley looks confused, “I don’t know, I don’t think I mentioned it to him.”

Karlach looks at the butler in anger, “So…you’re the cause of all of this?!” Her voice fills with anger even as the logic doesn’t quite fully connect. “You cursed her with this?” She approaches the little bastard.

“Oh no, I only serve my wicked maste-”

He would not finish the sentence before Karlach would stomp the butler’s head into the fucking ground, stomping on it more just for good measure, and then tossing the twitching corpse into the water. With the corpse hitting the water the image of Isobel fades and the two Tieflings are left on their lonesome.  

“Soldier,” Karlach kneels down to look her partner in the eyes, concern wrapped across her face, “what the fuck do you know about that thing?”

Riley sits up, “Not a whole lot that helps. I know he’s tied to the Urge somehow, don’t have any fucking clue how, but he is.”

Karlach nods, “Infered that much, at least.”

Riley continues, “I knew him back when I was an Absolutist. He’d apparently worship me and all…well you heard him a bit.”

“A bit, aye.” Karlach nods.

“Anyways he promised power and, weirdly, I believe he’s being honest.”

“But why kill Isobel? I mean, even Ketheric wants her alive so why in the hells is she the bloody target?” Karlach asks.

“I mean,” Riley thinks for a moment, “if she died then the rest of Last Light would be doomed. I can see why an evil bastard would want her dead.”

“So,” Karlach thinks for a moment, “wait,wait, wait.” Karlach seems to have picked something up, “Maybe the Urge is related to your Absolutist past. Think about it.” Karlach sits down across from Riley, “You randomly want to butcher people, which the cult seems to be keen on given the whole army thing.” Riley nods, ushering Karlach to continue, “That’d explain why you’d be on the nautiloid and why you’re the odd one out, the cult did something to you to make you that way!”

Riley’s somewhat relieved to hear her partner state her innocence but another part of her was nagging her. Denying the reality, but she couldn’t figure out what. Why is this easy out so…wrong? What was fucking with her? What didn’t quite fit? “What about the brain damage, then?”

“What?” Karlach asks.

“I mean, if I were a member of the cult wouldn’t they want me to have the whole of my memories? To, ya know, avoid turning against them.”

Karlach seems to think for a bit, “Well, maybe you fucked with Ketheric and got the bad end of the stick?”

Riley dismisses that, “If that were true I’d just be dead.”

“Well, whatever it is, we’ll get to the bottom of it.” Karlach says assuringly.

“Yeah,” Riley says. After a moment of the pair sitting in silence Riley lets out a weak laugh, “I just realized, I now know I'm not that crazy.” The laughing picks up, “I thought I was insane for thinking I had a magic butler, but that’s real.”

Karlach chuckles nervously at that, “Yeah, starting to feel a lot better about that.”

Riley pats their bedroll again, “Alright, well since that’s done I’m gonna get a bit more sleep, would you care to join me?”

Karlach smiles sweetly, “Don’t mind if I do.”

—

Returning to Last Light to pick up some supplies, Riley finds herself in a unique predicament. Right now she is mere meters away from the woman she wishes , no, is urged to kill. Even just sitting by the fire she can’t help but think about how easily it would be to tear her limb from limb. She takes some time to concentrate on her thoughts, trying to ignore her birthright . 

“Hey Soldier, you alright?” 

“Yeah, yeah. Just…the Urge is acting up.”

“Ah fuck, about Isobel?” Karlach asks.

“What about Isobel?” Gale asks, curiously. 

Karlach turns to him and Shadowheart, “Last night Soldier got visited by some demon butler who wants her to kill Isobel.”

Shadowheart looks worriedly to Riley, “A horrible dream, perhaps?”

Karlach shook her head, “Nope, it was real. I woke up and saw it too. After I heard it talk about Soldier I just punted the little fucker into the river.”

Gale looks at Karlach with a small bit of concern that is overwhelmed by academic intrigue, “Fascinating. Was there any indication on why a fiend would be tied to you?”

Riley shook her head, “Not a clue. I didn’t do anything I can think of to summon him and he seems to have known me before the tadpole.”

“I see.” Gale nods, “If it’s able to appear out of thin air, then I would assume it’s somehow tied to you in particular. Though there’s no saying what is specific. Regardless, it appears you may have been someone of particular note.”

“Yay,” Riley says sarcastically.

Gale nods, “Yes, such a tremendous thing to learn.” He says, matching her sarcasm. “If I may suggest, it would be wise to warn Isobel that forces we don’t quite understand wish for her death.”

“As much as I’d like to see her perish,” Shadowheart says, her Sharran side sticking out like a sore thumb, “I concede that she should be given fair warning.”

“Alright, let’s go.” Riley begins to ascend the stairs, followed shortly by her friends. Finding Isobel was as complicated as turning a corner and opening a door. They found her on her balcony outside looking out at the…technically it’s not night’s sky but with the shadow really made it feel like the night sky.

Isobel turns to the group with a soft light still glowing in her eyes, “Oh, do you need something.”

Riley looks her dead in the eyes, “Alright, don’t freak out, but something wants you in particular to be dead.”

“Yes?” She replies, a bit confused, “I assumed as much when Marcus betrayed us.”

Riley shakes her head, her posture growing more nervous, “No, no. That’s not what I mean. Like, ok how to explain this. I’ve been cursed to be unreasonably violent at the drop of a hat. Like I keep getting the Urge to rip limbs off and shit. And right now a fiend butler who’s apparently my servant wants you in particular to die.”

Isobel’s concern grows, not nearly as much as Riley anticipated but that might just be because she described the Urge so strangely. “And…do you feel the Urge to kill me now?”

“Yes.” Riley says without question, the thoughts of caving her skull in or strangling her with her own innards fill her mind.

Isobel’s worry seems to melt away as a newfound confidence seems to adorn her, “And yet,” Isobel gets up and begins walking closer to Riley, “you haven’t attacked me. And judging by your companions, you won’t be. So let me ask you this.” She stops a few feet in front of Riley, “Who am I speaking to, that Urge of yours or you?”

The thoughts of violence cloud her mind, circling her every thought like vultures , and yet she persists. With determination she ushers these thoughts from her head and exhales, “It’s just me.”

Isobel’s smile relaxes, “I hoped so. You know, I could sense another presence when you mentioned that. But I couldn’t tell what it was.”

Riley’s eyes light up, “Wait, you’re telling me part of the Urge doesn’t come from me?”

“At least partly, yes.” Isobel replies, “While I cannot speak for all occasions, it feels as though some outside force was engulfing you.”

Riley lets a breath go, like she had just had a major burden lifted. “Oh thank the gods!” She cries out, “I thought I was just insane!” She lets out a tired, desperate laugh, “Oh thank the gods I got someone else to confirm it.” 

“Intriguing. I hope you don’t mind, but I’d like to inquire on how you could sense the Urge? I would be most grateful if you could lend any assistance. So far we have only speculated that it is somewhat divine but we were not able to confirm what it is nor how it is triggered.” Gale says as he pulls out a small quill and paper.

“There’s a certain…hunger in her eyes,” Isobel looks to Riley, “and a powerful presence looming over her. A moment ago I could feel it attempt to claw its way into her mind, and following that I could feel her mind breaking free.” Her eyes soften, “I can sense a somewhat similar presence with your Sharran, but your dark lady’s presence is nothing compared to your friend's Urge.”

Shadowheart looks to Isobel with a predictable amount of annoyance, but her face softens too as the words sink in. “So Shar really is with me?”

“A small part, really. I would best describe it as Shar has given you a drop of water from a lake. Your friend here,” she gestures to Riley, “has a flood.”

“Can you tell which god?” Riley asks, “because that would make this so much easier.”

Isobel’s smile wains, “I’m sorry, but I can’t quite tell. I can tell you it’s neither Shar nor Selune, if that at all helps.”

Riley sighs, “Well, at least it’s not nothing. Thank you so much!” Riley almost hugs Isobel before realizing the possible dangers of doing so, “Maybe I’ll…not do that.”

“It may be for the best if you don’t, but I appreciate the sentiment. So, truce?” Isobel offers.

Riley nods, “Yeah, truce. Or, well, I don’t know if truce is the right word since I don’t want to kill you.”

“You get the idea,” Isobel handwaves the term.

“Got it. We’ll be off at the Thorm family mausoleum, then.”

“Ah right, we still need to check that out.” Karlach adds.

“Didn’t we discuss this yesterday?” Gale adds.

“I didn’t understand a word you two said, I was a bit busy trying to figure out what the fuck Soldier was doing.”

“Ah, perfectly understandable. I also thought it was bizarre that she was speaking at my speed.” Riley looks at Gale, annoyed. Missing this look, or perhaps just not caring, Gale adds, "Regardless, let’s get moving. We’re losing sunlight.”

“No we’re not.” Riley says. “There’s not been sun here in years.”

“You know what I mean.”

—

Chapter Text

“Not that I am the best interior decorator,” Riley says, looking upon the masses of bones across the Thorm Mausoleum, “but I am concerned on where all of these bones came from.” Her eyes dart across the various just…piles of bone that lay scattered across the room. Some coated in smoke, others left to gather dust in the corners of the room, while even more are mounted as decorations.

“Gods, how many skulls are here?” Karlach asks, “how many bodies does it take to make a fucked up shrine like this?”

Gale looks around the room, “Hard to say, really. The house of healing is right beside the cemetery, and that’s ignoring the number of travelers wandering through here while the Shadowcurse was in effect.”

“But then why the fuck are they just in a pile in this room? Was there seriously no other place he could have stored bodies?” Riley calls out, “like burial?"

“Considering the necromancer who supposedly lives down here is a follower of Myrkul, it’s not unreasonable to think they used this place as a cold storage.”

“Gods,”  Riley picks up a skull for a moment and puts it down, “do necromancers seriously have just…no other aesthetic? I mean, really? You don’t have any other artistic flair? No art, no architectural intrigue, just fucking bones?”

Shadowheart smiles, “Perhaps you should mention your critiques on the interior decorating skills of this necromancer when we meet him?”

Riley nods, “I mean, we’re gonna kill him but I might lecture him on that before we end him.”

“Are you certain he won’t have any tricks up his sleeve? Anything that may prove an issue for us?” Karlach asks.

“Gale, do you know the spell Silence?” Riley asks

He scans his spellbook, “Not yet, no.” 

Shadowheart pipes up, “I do, actually.”

Riley smiles, “Great. We’ll just silence him and then kill him that way. Should be pretty simple.”

“Why would that work?” Karlach asks.

Gale’s eyes light up, “I think I know what she’s plotted. Presumably, Balthazar is a potent necromancer, meaning his prowess is primarily based on his connection to the weave.”

Karlach jumps in, “And his spells.”

Gale nods nervously, knowing he doesn’ t have the time to correct Karlach for being technically wrong, "Effectively, yes. But a key component when casting any spell is our ability to vocalize the proper incantation. If I were to whirl my arms around and just shout ‘Fireball’ then-” Gale watches as Karalch jumps in front of Riley in an effort to body-block the non-existent fireball. “...then the spell would not activate because that is not the proper incantation.”

“Ah.” Karlach says as Riley moves from behind her to her right side, “I see. I thought you guys were just speaking Elvish or something.”

Gale looks at Karlach, confused, “No, they are not Elvish, that’s a wholly different linguistic structure I don’t want to get into at this moment, if you don't mind. Though on a related note: do you know what Elvish sounds like?”

“No,” Karlach admits, “but I figured you might all know it and be using it.”

Shadowheart, as the only present elf, ok half elf technically,  looks a bit bewildered. “I see.”

Karlach turns to Riley, “Soldier, did you think they were speaking Elvish?” 

Riley shakes her head, “I figured it was just the language of magic. I don’t really know magic and I just thought that was how it worked.”

“Ah, damn.” Karlach says, “Now I look like a fool.”

“Oh lighten up will you, so long as your partner is here you’ll never look foolish.” Shadowheart snidely remarks.

“Hey!” Riley responds. Riley turns to Gale in search of aid, but he simply stares back nervously. “Fine.” She decided to let it go. Riley’s eyes go around the room and she sees the tombstone of Melodia Thorm,“hey Shadowheart, good time to ask this but can you translate what this says?” Riley asks, intrigued.

“Here lies Melodia Thorm, beloved wife and mother.” Shadowheart reads the common, “Ai armiel telere maenen hir…” she pauses for a brief moment, as a saddened look grows on her face, “you hold my heart forever.”

The four stood in silence for a moment as they thought about that statement for a moment. Looking to the bedroll besides the sarcophagus Riley realized that those words, etched in stone under Ketherics order, still held true. At first she thought of Ketheric as nothing but a brute, a sword for the absolute, but now that illusion was beginning to falter. Her mind raced to the one moment the pair met face to face and thought of his tone. He did not sound broken, yet he did not seem enthusiastic. He acted in a manner fitting for a leader, but not in a manner that showed this was his will. 

While a tinge of sympathy may have started to form, an even greater concern was starting to form. If Ketheric’s heart was not in service to the Absolute, or puppetering it, then whose plan is he following? He had to have a master whom he is bound to, who is still unknown, who’s probably dictating his instructions.

Pushing those thoughts aside, as right now she didn’t have enough raw information for it to be useful, she looks to the rest of her friends, “Alright, let’s just move on. Let’s hope there’s not as much depressing imagery with the necromancer than there is here.”

“Ah fuck, she said the thing.” Karlach calls out.

“Damn it, well we’re in for a surprise.” Gale notes.

“What did we say about tempting fate?” Shadowheart asks.

Riley shrinks a little, “Not to?”

Shadowheart nods, “Yes, not to. And when, not if, when we find something more tragic than this we are all” she gestures to herself, Karlach, and Gale, “going to blame you.”

Riley shrugs, “Fuck it, fair enough.”

—

Riley took a swig out of a healing potion, her breathing labored and exhausted, “Me and my big fucking mouth.”

Shadowheat finished healing Karlach, “Ah cheer up Soldier, we’re all fine.”

Shadowheart looks at Karlach, annoyed, “You do not get to say that after I replace, what feels to be, half of the blood in your body.”

Gale sits down, uninjured. “I would say, it could have been worse.”

“Of course you say that,” Shadowheart says, annoyed, “Not one creature we’ve faced has actually hit you.”

“To be fair,” Riley cuts in, “most of his spells require a bit of range. It’s not his fault, nothing's ever close enough to hit him.”

“Thank you,” Gale adds. “At least someone acknowledges my tactical limitations.”

“Still, I feel Karlach’s right. It could have been worse.” Riley adds.

Shadowheart looks to Riley with a tired look in her eyes, “How exactly could it have gone worse?”

Riley’s posture shifts as she prepares to count on her fingers, “For starters, we might not have been able to bait that flesh thing into throwing itself off the cliff.” She counts off one, “Then he did…something? I don’t know for certain but all the rats are now gone and I can see something down by their feet, “ Riley points to the giant statue of Shar, at the bottom where the Flesh thing was laying alongside a stray suit of armor, “but I’ll count it as a positive until further notice. Then we’re lucky Balthazar wasn’t expecting to be jumped,” a third finger goes down, “And finally, the Self-Same trial could have gone a lot worse if Karlach and I didn’t just kill our copies in the first few seconds.”

Shadowheart still looks tired, "Regardless, please be more careful next time.”

“Shaddy,” Karlach says, laying a hand on Shadowhearts shoulder.

“Never call me that again.” Shadowheart says, bluntly.

“Shadowheart,” Karalch amends, acting as if she didn’t say anything before, “we’ll be fine. We got the orbs we need to move the plate closer to that thing that makes you a Dark Justiciar.”

“While her diction isn’t exactly…” Gale pauses, “accurate, Karlach has a point. We shouldn’t be too far from completing these trials.”

“You’d think they’d be harder,” Riley calls out, “Aside from the faith one, that’s just fucking bullshit.”

“It’s a test of faith, why would it be easy?” Shadowheart asks.

“Because there’s no fucking way to see where the fucking cubes end on the actual floor.” Riley states, annoyed.

“Again, it’s a test of faith. What about this is surprising?” Shadowheart continues to be somewhat annoyed.

“A test of faith would have been where you jump into the void with faith there’s a path for you. The path here is so god damned curvy you’d have to arbitrarily guess where the next part is.”

“That, to me, sounds like a navigational issue with you rather than a design flaw.” Shadowheat states.

“Right, and not like the totally legit design choice which allows us to bypass most of it with any means of flying.” Riley says.

“Alright, admittedly that may have been a bit of a design flaw. But I imagine this place was made with the assumption there would be another Dark Justiciar preventing that from happening.”

Riley shakes her head, “I don’t know, there’s nothing written that says anything about not flying.”

“Perhaps we stop this heretical talk and get ready to move on.” Karlach’s hand leaves Shadowheart as Shadowheart turns towards their goal.

“Yeah, fair.” Riley says, “Let’s get going.”

—

It was not what happened next that was all too surprising. The devil, demon? Whatever that guy Rapael was warning about seemed to be rather tame. It wasn’t until after Raphael appeared and spelt out what happened that Riley realized that Flesh landed upon the last living Dark Justiciar in the temple. How he got there or why he was there was totally unknown to Riley. Regardless, the devil was gone and the final orb was in their possession. 

With that they began their descent to the final trial of the Dark Justiciar, only stopped as Shadowheart felt an otherworldly presence. In a way, so did Riley. The vast open space of the temple, the countless shrines to the Dark goddess, the plain silence, and the ancient architecture always curving made it feel as if the only things left in these halls were them and spirits.

Proceeding down into the deepest recesses the party followed Shadowheart as she led the charge, pausing only to pray before crossing the bounds of this world.

As they entered it felt…off. This was not any mortal realm, no. This felt different. Gravity was not a thing, as noted by the floating rocks, and ghosts of Sharran’s past lingered as they followed Shadowheart as she jumped down towards her destiny.

As they continued down Riley could only help but feel more and more uneasy. Her initial skepticism and acceptance of Shar began to shake, and Riley was starting to wonder if Shar really is the goddess Shadowheart believes. Because in this…void there feels to be a malignant air around. Something malicious, like poison on the soul. 

They continued downward only to see a silhouette standing alone. Not a silhouette of a Dark Justiciar, no. Whoever this was, Riley now realizes the Nightsong isn’t a metaphor but instead is a literal person, and was the key to the final trial.

But as they approached and Shadowheart confronted this lady it became increasingly clear that Shadowheart had been misled. The memory of wolves she shared and the one memory of her childhood that she could muster, was seemingly based on a lie. 

Under normal circumstances, Riley might have been skeptical about the prisoner’s claim. Thing was: there has not been a singular normal circumstance since before the fucking Nautiloid. On top of that, Shadowheart’s mentioned losing memories before because of Shar. Who’s to say she didn’t lose more, like her family's Selunite practices, because of Shar?

And it seems Riley isn’t the only one thinking this. For the entirety of their conversation Riley’s eyes had been locked on Shadowheart and it was clear that Shadowheart was even more hesitant than Riley. Through their tadpoles Riley could feel a fraction of the doubts Shadowheart was dealing with. 

Shadowheart’s mind went over every teaching of Shar, every practice, and every single ritual. How many of those were lies meant to simply keep her under Shar’s thrall? How many teachings did she not align with on a fundamental level? Shar was the Lady of Sorrows, but does that benefit Shadowheart in the slightest? Does she wish to spend the rest of eternity serving a god of loss, one who would keep joy at arms length? And that is not to mention the needless pain she seems to suffer at the whim of this god.

Shar would have her devoid of connections, devoid of community, outside of the one with Shar. She would not get to keep animals as companions, not act in any way outside of Shar’s service. And in return? Nothing.

As Shadowheart grappled with this, she stood in front of the Nightsong, still trying to understand her next steps. She could just kill the Nightsong, accept her place like she had wanted all those years, or she could walk away. 

But to walk away would be to defy all she knows. She only knows Shar and her teachings. Her whole life is built around Shar, her worship, her practice. To abandon the Dark Lady would be to abandon everything. She would be a heretic, hunted by her former friends, her family.

Yet her family, her parents, may yet be saved! If the Nightsong is speaking true, then there is a chance she can save them. She may meet them!

Shadowheart struggled to make a decision as she stood in this liminal world. No matter which choice she makes, she will exit this place a different person than she entered. So who will that person be? 

Fear consumed her as she looked for answers. Her mind knew that she should defy Shar, that conclusion forming far faster than she had ever expected, yet her heart still hesitated to act. Could she really defy everything that she stood for?  Her posture became uneasy, her confidence in her actions completely gone. 

Her eyes start to look around for help. She locks eyes with Karlach, yet Karlach doesn’t speak. A supportive look on her face even as she seems concerned. After Karlach she looks to Gale, and he too carries a concerned look on his face.

And then her eyes locked onto those of Riley, and they held a vastly different feeling. Shadowheart could feel her friends and her tadpole syncing. She knew her friend could feel her anxiety, her every fear. In this moment, this singular moment, she made no effort to mask her feelings of fear. As heretical as it is, she bore her emotions on her sleeve. And yet even as her mind processed the choice ahead of her, Riley’s face communicated was that of a soft confidence. Not a confidence born from ignorance of her plight, but one born in spite of it. 

That Riley somehow knew that Shadowheart would make the right call even if she had her doubts. And it was that confidence that helped sway her heart. Because while she may have had a family under Shar she also has one thanks to the tadpole, and it is that family that she would fight for. Her friendships that were made over cool nights by the fire and long treks through the wilderness. One born out of circumstance but nurtured by compassion and tended to in quiet moments. Can she think of many Sharran’s who cared for her? Perhaps Nocturne, but were there any else? In the whole of her youth did she have any one as close to her?

Shadowheart’s mind filled with all of the small moments she’s had so far with this merry band of misfits. Gods, they have gotten far closer than that first night in camp. Before this started she wouldn’t have considered having anyone help her with her hair, now she doesn’t need to ask and her friend is ready to aid. Before she would never expect to have any animals living with them, and now they have Scratch and an Owlbear cub keeping the camp company.

She never thought she would find a life outside of Shar, but standing in the Shadowfell, spear in hand, she has finally realized she already has one. With that, Shadowheart’s mind is made up. With one move, she throws Shar’s spear into the unknown.

Oh gods, she’s done it. It’s one thing to consider throwing your old life away but it’s a whole different beast when you literally do. Oh gods, she can feel Shar’s disapproval, her hand aching as she hears the voice of Shar condemn and cast her out.

As she recovers from the blistering pain she sees the Nightsong call out for an act of friendship, and with the point of no return crossed, she offers. Soon the dark void would be illuminated, a pillar of holy light shining upon this solemn ground. The Nightsong began to be adorned in splendorous armor and wielding a greatsword, her Celestial form showing itself.

The Nightsong makes some condemnation towards Ketheric, but Shadowheart is only half listening to that. She learns that after his death they will elaborate on her past, and with the Nightsong flying off and a portal opening it seemed as if their time in Shar’s domain would have to end. With haste, she left, followed shortly by her friends.

—

After exiting the Shadowfell Riley took a moment to gauge what happened. The Nightsong is free, sure, but that wasn’t her concern. Turning around Riley finds Shadowheart sitting on the ground. In a flash Riley was there, at her friend's side, ready to talk “Are you alright?” 

Shadowheart looked shaken, “No…I don’t think I will be for a while.”

Riley can see the pain in Shadowheart’s eyes and embraces her without thought, the tears reminding her of when her sister would cry. “It’s alright, you’re safe.”

Shadowheart didn’t relax but her voice felt less worried “Thank you. I…gods I will be hunted now.”

“Hey, no. Look at me, “ Shadowheart’s eyes meet hers, “you did the right thing. Never forget that. I know you’re going through it, that’s perfectly fine. Do you need anything? Water, food, Scratch?” 

“No, I can manage.” Shadowheart says, dismissively.

“Ok, whatever you say. Do you want to head back to camp?”

“I can fight,” Shadowheart adds, “but don’t expect any colorful commentary.”

Riley releases the embrace and raises to her feet, offering her hand to Shadowheart so that she may rise. “Gotcha.” Shadowheart takes it and rises to her feet. “If you need anything, just ask.”

Shadowheart smiles, “Understood.”

Riley looks away for a moment towards Moonrise, the sight of the Nightsong flying through the sky illuminating the world. “In that case, I believe we have a Chosen to kill. All in favor say ‘Aye!’”

“Aye!” Karlach declares.

“Aye.” Shadowheart says, her voice less enthusiastic but filled with determination to get Ketheric.

“Aye.” Gale states.

“Alright, it seems we have work to do. Let’s get it done.” Riley says as they begin their brief trek back to Moonrise to finish Ketheric.

Chapter Text

The assault on Moonrise went rather effortlessly. Z’rell seemed to be their leader so long as Ketheric wasn’t around and since Riley had killed Z’rell just the other day it was clear the defenders weren’t ready. They made a valiant attempt, don’t get her wrong, it’s just that it was futile. Their phalanx would have been impressive, had the assault not been headed by Jaheira, who is an experienced druid who could call lightning down, Gale, a wizard with the capacity to launch fireballs, and a cleric, who is practiced in casting Spirit Guardians.

The violence may have been delightful but a part of Riley couldn’t help but feel a bit of pity for these bastards. They may have committed some of the most heinous sins in the name of their “God” or whatever was in charge of them, but it’s not as if they’re totally responsible. How much of these choices are theirs and how much stems from their tadpole? How responsible are “true souls” for their actions when under the Absolute’s influence? 

It’s not a real wonder as to why she feels this way. Even as she ends the few survivors of the halfway battle, she can’t help but wonder if they're just like her. If things had been different, would she have been among their ranks?  Alas, things were not different and they had to die. It just was what it was. 

With the resistance in the bottom floors dead the assault continued upward to the roof, where they confronted Ketheric. To the shock of literally no one, their conversation was brief. Ketheric said some bullshit about the prism, Riley called him a musty ass bitch, Ketheric looked confused for a split second, and the Nightsong loudly declares that Ketheric dies today.

This would have made a fitting end for the decrepit fool…had a giant tentacle not appeared out of nowhere. With the Nightsong and Ketheric gone Riley can only really formulate a singular thought.

“What the actual fuck was that?”

Karlach looks slightly less bewildered to Riley, “Something Illithid, probably.”

“An Illithid thing that has taken Ketheric downwards, it seems.” Gale says like he’s asking for someone to pass the bread.

“Ok, why the fuck does no one act with any measure of actual surprise here?” Riley cries out in confusion, “Why is it always me pointing out how weird things are?”

“We have a worm in our brains and met aboard a flying Illthid ship.” Shadowheart states.

“And besides, things have been only getting stranger as this merry band of ours presses on.” Gale adds with mild enthusiasm, “Surely you’re growing numb to the absurdity as well, no?”

Riley nods, “I am, but I was expecting at least a raised eyebrow at the giant tentacle. You guys act like you see this every day.”

“Oh come now,” Jaheira states with a smug grin on her face, “Surely you’re more concerned about the Chosen who just got away than you are concerned about the minutiae of your friends' reactions.”

“Fuck it, you’re right. We should follow him. But!” Riley turns around, “I am now going to make a conscious effort to not react to information with enough emphasis.”

“But how do you propose we follo-” Gale does not finish his sentence as Riley walks over to the exposed hole and jumps in while holding her nose, like she were diving into water. Turning back to the rest of the party, Gale lets out a small smile, “I suppose she truly meant it. So, shall we-” Gale watches as Karlach strolls by him and jumps down, following her partner. He turns back to where he was looking before but only Jaheira still stands there. He looks back to the hold and watches Shadowheart jump in as well.

Jaheira grins, “It appears as if your question had been answered.”

“It appears so.” He nods. “Well, unless you wish to indulge in a leap of faith into that thing,” Gale gestures to the giant pillars of flesh emerging from the cracked tower as the sound of wet flesh fills the air, “then this will be where we part ways for now. I do wish to see you again in good health.” He bows politely before casting Featherfall upon himself and diving as well.

“Gods,” Jaheira chuckles as the wizard leaves her sight, “it’s times like this that I miss Minsc.” 

Jaheira leaves the rooftop, intent on securing the rest of the fortress.

—

The colony was disgusting. The cavern was lined in flesh,  viscus dripping from the ceiling, and some unknown ooze coating the floor. While there may be stone below her feet it was coated in nothing but skin. While a part of her found this amazing the rest of her realized how utterly disgusting this was. Skittering across the floor were a dozen intellectual devourers, all of whom seem to ignore the existence of the four adventurers in their entirety. The land they stood on still felt…alive. No, the whole structure seemed to draw breath, strands of flesh seeming to flex and move as time Riley stood to observe. And yet as she stood here, something felt…wrong. No, not wrong. “Hey guys, does anyone else feel any deja vu?”

“Well this does resemble the Nautiloid, but I wouldn’t put this in deja vu territory.” Gale notes, “I’ll assume you are feeling it then, yes?”

Riley nods, “Yeah.”

Karlach pops in, “Could be you used to work down here, Soldier. You might have helped put some things together down here.”

“And where does this accusation come from?” Shadowheart adds, defensively. 

“Well, we know she probably worked for the cult before, yeah?” The three others nod.

“Right, sorry. Slipped my mind.” Shadowheart closes.

Riley lays a hand on Shadowheart’s shoulder, “Remember, if you need anything just ask.”

“I know, don’t worry. And besides, perhaps we should be more focused on getting Ketheric.” 

“I mean,” Riley looks around, “We still have a few people we need to rescue, that Devil for Wyll and the other Tieflings. So we should probably start looking around.”

Karlach looks to the intellect devourers, scurrying across the ground muttering commands with no concern or thought of their own. With a disgusted look on her face she throws a pike into one, killing it on the spot. 

“Really?” Riley looks towards Karlach, disappointed, “The thing’s not even hostile towards us.”

“Well who’s to say that won’t change?” Karlach asks in response.

“True…” Riley thinks about it for a second, “Ya know what, fuck it. Fair enough.” Riley walks over to one, tosses it up, and slams it back down upon her knee. The thing flops, lifelessly as she lets it droop to the side. 

As she does that Shadowheart throws a sacred flame upon another, its legs crumbling beneath it as its body begins to fail. Gale throws a bolt of flame upon another and it lets out an unholy cry as it slowly melts away. Soon more creatures began to appear and the four of them let a whirlwind of death engulf this pack of putrid, pitiful, predatory primordial puppets. Plucking out the spikes from their backs, breaking their legs, and ripping them in two. Their blood coated the floor as well as Riley’s own hands. Had they been a respectable creature, she may have considered it glorious, but as it stands Riley felt nothing other than disgust, disdain. 

“You think that’s all of them?” Karlach asks as she passes over a dozen dead creatures.

“In this portion of the colony, most likely.” Gale says, eyes looking around, observing the rest of the cavernous halls.

“Lovely,” Shadowheart adds, “Perhaps we should begin to investigate?”

“Yeah, let's.” Riley sets out.

To describe their search for the Tieflings as long would be like describing Karlach as short. Their first left turn immediately revealed the various pods holding Zevlor. Freeing him from his pod was quite easy. Really, it took a singular thought to get the mechanism to open. What was a pain in the ass was dealing with the three surviving Mindflayers.

Sure they were easy to punch, they levitated a foot off the ground at most, but the fact they attacked psychically was incredibly painful. Their attacks felt as if her mind was being ripped apart for the second time even if no literal wound reopened. 

When the blood settled into the floor a stray flaming fist lay dead while the corpses of three illithids lay drenched upon the ground. With Zevlor safe, and having told him that being controlled into a mistake isn’t an irredeemable crime, a concept Riley was intimately familiar with. After he and the surviving fists evacuated they proceeded to the next room.

“Is that fucking Mizora?” Riley yells in shock.

“That’s fucking Mizora.” Karlach replies in annoyance, “Of fucking course it’s Mizora.”

“What an astute observation, really.” Mizora replies, calmly, “Now are you going to get me out of here?”

“How the fuck did you get captured?” Riley asks, genuinely curious, “You’re a demon-”

“Devil, not demon.” Karlach corrects.

“Right, a devil.” Riley amends herself, “How the fuck does a devil fuck up so supremely that you end up captured by a cult?”

“I can’t say, now are you going to stand there all day or are you going to release me.” Mizora’s voice starts growing agitated.

“I say we kill her,” Shadowheart votes.

“No, that would harm Wyll.” Gale quickly adds, “Sadly we’ll have to let her live.”

“Fuuuck.” Riley cries out, annoyed. In her agitation she punches the pod, incidentally breaking the locking mechanism and letting Mizora go free. Quickly regaining her composure, and trying to keep it hidden that this was not her intent, Riley lets her general disdain for the devil out, “Now fuck off you shit smearing fuck.”

“Oh, and miss your delightful company?” Mizora adds, cheekily. “Very well, oh and Karlach, Zariel sends her regards.”

“Oh yeah, tell her to go fuck herself.” Karlach says without a thought. In a puff of smoke and ash Mizora vanishes. 

With her gone, and Riley deciding it would not be a genius idea to check if the morphic soup tasted anything like normal soup, she began to just look around the rest of the room. It felt…familiar. More so than the hallway itself, her mind has some memory of this place. When she looks to the other pod in the room, she realizes why as she looks upon a familiar pod. With that, memories begin to flash.

—

She is locked, contained, caged. Her limbs were bound, a wet carrion locking them still, yet she could not wait. Her head smashes against the translucent membrane. There is no sense, there is only a desire for freedom, a desire for blood. Her arm bends and pops in and out of place so that she may destroy the membrane faster.  Her head continues to meet hard carapace, blood dripping out from her head.

Thud, thud, thud. Until the unmistakable sound of a crack is heard. Her enthusiasm only grows as she continues to throw herself to the wall until it breaks. 

Soon the form of a woman with a fascinated expression joins her. In a moment the pod begins to shift and Riley’s vision begins to fade.

–

She awakens on an operating table, one eye not working. Her entrails are exposed, a needle sitting deep in her skull. She looks around and finds that same woman from before, smiling, no, laughing.

The woman began to inspect her guts and it would be her fatal mistake. In a moment of hate, Riley’s hand would wrap around her intestines and she would use them as a garrote. The strange woman begins to struggle against the assault, her fingernails ripping through her innards, yet Riley’s grip did not loosen. 

Riley can feel the woman’s body slowly drain of air, her erratic fighting growing only more desperate, as another pair of hands try to wrestle her guts from her hands. A deranged laugh escapes Riley's throat as she slams her head into the other hand, her teeth sinking deep into the flesh of her new attacker. 

When the third hands wrestle her guts free she tries to continue the strangulation with her trail, it too wrapping around the deranged woman’s throat, but alas it isn’t strong enough.

—

Riley’s hands thrash and her restraints, a wicked anger overtaking her.

“Oh, come now,” the strange woman calls out, “I just recovered your eye and that is how you thank me?”

“Why don’t you get closer so I can really show you my appreciation?” Her voice’s hungry.

“I would be delighted too, alas my husband worries about what you’ve done so I will have to hold off. So sad.”

“Oh, but where’s the fun in that? Why don’t you just come over so I can take a bite!”

“I must say,” the strange woman circles the table Riley is restrained at, “I never thought I would be able to speak with you. Not especially after I fix that pretty little eye of yours.”

“Lie as you like, I’m still blind you fool! So let me go so I can show you what happens whe-”

“You cannot see? Why didn’t you say so? Your mindmatter is still fresh for the fixing, so let me just.” The woman pulls out her needles. 

The only thing Riley’s mind can remember from there was more pain in her skull, a second assault going through her mind.

—

  “Hey Soldier, why are you looking at that so…intently?” 

“This was my pod.” Riley flatly declares. “I was held here and torn apart.” Her voice is devoid of emotions. “There was this…woman. She apparently fixed part of my brain and eye,” she gestures to her left eye, assuming the itchier eye is the one with the knife went through, and continues, “She would just…open me up and look around. She looked through my guts and started poking at them, so I fought back. She locked me in there,” she gestures to the broken pod, “Seems I broke this one.”

“So you were here before the nautiloid?” Gale inquires.

“As far as I’m aware, yes. But I got nothing else.”

“So you are the way you are because of a lobotomy?” Shadowheart teases.

Riley smiles at that, "Genuinely, yes.”

“You mentioned a woman, correct?” Gale asks, getting a nod from Riley, “How would you describe her?”

Riley tries to formulate a description based on the fragments she has… “She’s definitely a cultist of some kind…wore a weird ass triangle headpiece. Kind of like…” as she begins to articulate the headgear, a woman matching her memories appears from a fleshy door, seemingly prompted by her very words. Riley walks towards the woman. “You!” Her pace picks up, “You trapped me in here!”

“It speaks! Oh I knew you could, my lovely, but so strongly!” The woman says with the tone of a mother watching her infant stand, full of pride in their ‘childs’ accomplishment, “ I knew you could, you were always such a fighter.”

“Yeah, I strangled you with my own guts. I remember that. I want to know how the fuck you got me here?!” Riley yells, missing the slight shock on her friends' faces.

“Oh my lovely, I found you just in these very halls. It was as if my lord delivered you to be my subject.” The woman’s face grows more sinister, “Oh I so missed playing around with your grey matter.”

Riley rushes to the woman, grabbing her by the neck, “You found me in these fucking walls? Why was I here? Tell me!”

The woman laughs, “Oh my dear, I neither know nor cared for that. Oh my sweet I missed our little moments.” Riley’s grip tightened slightly, “I got to see how you react to the worm, and I got to fix your eye.” The woman chuckles to herself, “Really, you should thank me.”

“Fuck yourself.” Riley was moments away from just murdering this remorseless bastard.

“Oh come now, show your class.” The woman grinned, “I would rather you die the elegant bastard than the common fool.” A ball of fire grows in the woman's hands as other cultists enter the room from where she came.

Riley throws the woman back as the battle begins.

—

The woman was dead, but the questions remained. Riley was the first person to be tadpoled? Why? Why was she down here? The party and her scoured the rest of the mindflayer den but found no answers. The necromancer’s lair held only corpses mimicking life and further questions, such as the whereabouts of Mol. The other room simply held a thrall who held the intellect devourer from the Nautiloid.

Yet no such answers were present. It was gnawing at her. Here they were, the heart of the cult, and there were no answers. There were some answers to questions, but none lead anywhere. What does it matter that she was infected first when why she was here is unknown? What does it matter that she was a member of the cult when she doesn’t know why her mind was mangled?

This sense of frustration only brought out other anxieties, making Riley’s mood shift from her normal lightheartedness to a colder, more angry focus.

With every inch visible combed for clues on either the Absolutist, there was only one direction left unexplored. The four descended deeper into the depths of the deepest recesses of the colony, their worms beginning to act more erratic. The feeling causes all four to pause a moment and recoil, the feeling was ungodly painful and discomfort overwhelms them. When their descent ends the four march forward, not a word spoken as Riley’s anger only grows. 

Upon reaching the lowest depths, the four begin to slowly approach where they, presume, Ketheric ran. Upon seeing Ketheric standing with two…no, three others their hunt concludes. Standing next to him is someone Riley can’t help but recognize, and it’s only when Karlach speaks up that she realizes why. 

“Motherfucker, Gortash!” She loudly declares, though not so loud that he heard it, apparently. Riley began to shush Karlach, trying to keep their cover from being blown.

“Shh, we’ll kill him in a bit. Right now we need to figure out what the fuck is going on.” She whispers to her partner.

And despite her hesitation, Karlach nods and returns to silence. As they observed the witness…wait a second. Riley also knew that woman. She didn’t know where but for some reason her braid was…familiar. Not just a fishtail braid, no. Something about the way it was structured, the size, or something was just…intimatly familiar to Riley. As for the man being used as a seat, it took little effort to realize that it was Wyll’s father.

The four listened quietly, not quite understanding the context to the supposed allies' disagreement. It was only when the gigantic brain emerged from the water that the questions began to truly be answered.

As they observed Riley could hear Gale fumbling around in his pack, and as he pulled one out a knife. He stares at it, seemingly unsure of what to do next, whether he should fulfil his destiny or live to see another day. Riley can feel his doubts, his anxieties, like she felt Shadowhearts.

Could he do it? Was this the lasting legacy of Gale Dekarios? He had a moment to decide if he would act or not, and in that moment, he decided to not. He would live to see another day, to stop the Absolute without needing to sacrifice himself, and his friends, to do so.

With that moral decision over, their attention returns to the three standing before the brain. Gortash raises his hand and shouts “The Edict of Bane!” followed shortly by the Pale woman “The Lash of Bhaal!” Ketheric hesitates a moment before declaring “The Testament of Myrkul!” In a flash the power overwhelms the brain and moments later, all that still stood there would be Ketheric.

It was noted that the three Chosen of the Absolute were the Chosen of the Dead Three, but at the current moment Kehteric’s isolation was invoking Riley’s rage. She made no effort to hide herself, there was little space to do so anyway, and made a point of locking eyes with Ketheric as she got close enough to understand the words that were guaranteed to be spoken. “Here I am Ketheric, prism in tow, just as you planned.”

“Indeed you are. You brought the one thing in the world that could stop my master’s plan right to me. You didn’t run, you didn’t hide away in some forgotten corner of the world, safe from all we could bear.” Ketheric smiled, “But I suppose I should have expected that, shouldn’t I? After all, it was never in your nature to run from challenges.”

Riley’s anger grew, “I suppose it never was.”

Ketheric stifled a laugh, “I should have expected as much. In all the time I knew you, I have never once known you to avoid  a challenge. You would get what you wanted however you needed, and I have seen the bodies to prove it.” His posture relaxes, even if slightly, “Let us speak plainly. Seeing how we are in your final few minutes of life.”

“Why!?” Riley shouts, “Why all of this?!”

“Isobel.” He states, swiftly, “When I lost Isobel, my goddess turned her back on me. I turned to Shar to fill that hole, but she failed. But Myrkul? He gave me Isobel back, alive and well, in exchange for my service to him.” Ketheric’s eyes harden, “He has never known a more devoted servant.”

Riley felt a tinge of sympathy towards the villain, though not enough to see him as a man worthy of life, “I understand, partly.”

Ketheric smiled yet again, "Fascinating, you grew a heart. Congratulations.” His voice dripping with sarcasm, “In all the time I’ve known you,” a line Riley has begun to hate with a passion coming from him, “you have only shown emotions towards two people.”

“I presume my sister is one of those two?”

“Impressive,” Ketheric begins to pace around the structure he stands upon as if it were a stage, “Last I heard it was a miracle that you could speak. Now you mean to tell me you can remember her? And have you remembered your oh so important Father?”

“Sister? Father?  You conceal their names, even now?! Why?! What do you have to gain from that?”

“Amusement, nothing more.”

Riley looks towards Ketheric with murder in her eyes, “For playing with my memory like a toy, I will kill you. For at least revealing anything, I promise I will try to make it quick.”

Ketheric’s smile grew, “Funny, I was going to say something similar. I am going to kill you, and raise you as my servant. Because this conversation has been interesting, I might keep the four of you serving together.”

With that, the fight had officially begun. In a flash Riley began to rush Ketheric, only to notice the Nightsong imprisoned yet again. She rushed to her and managed to liberate the Aasimar in a few seconds.

Behind her Gale threw a fireball towards the crowd of undead. Shadowheart engaged a stray mindflayer, getting locked in a battle of casters. 

With the way clear, Karlach and the Nightsong appeared next to Ketheric himself, the pair overwhelming the general's defenses. He could block a blow from Karlach but that would only mean he was vulnerable to Nightsong, he could dodge a blow from Nightsong but would end up with his back to Karlach. Ketheric’s counter attack was fierce and efficient, slashing Karlach’s chest, unholy energy surrounding the site of the wound. Ketheric turned to see Riley rushing towards himself, and in a moment of desperation he threw himself into the pit.

The mindflayer and undead fell just in time so that all five people present could give Ketheric their full attention. Emerging from the pit came a terrifying voice, one that spoke of Ketheric as merely a servant, and that implication shook Riley to the bone.

She could feel power growing, rising, from the pit as she began to listen to the voice of Myrkul list its feats. His nature, his power, and his inevitability. Because now, floating in front of the party, was a God’s avatar. It’s scythe being larger than any party member.

“Well…” Karlach says in dumbfound awe, “Fuck!”

—

Despite their challenges, the battle had ended in their favor. Ketheric had fallen, his Netherstone claimed, and the mindflayer colony departed from. Returning to Moonrise, Riley arranged with many of her allies in this war against Ketheric to meet her back in camp for a more thorough debrief. There was a lot to cover and there’s not much time to go over it.

From the true nature of the Absolute and her Chosen to the future ahead of them, there was a lot to discuss that needed discussion. Though, that does not mean Riley revealed everything just yet. Because in the depths of the colony she found a note that she couldn’t help but recognize. A note that summarized a significant part of the plan of the Absolute, that summarized the roles of the Dead Three and how the members knew one another.

A note written in a familiar hand.

Chapter Text

Today was…a lot. In the morning they went through Shar’s trials and killed a necromancer, by noon Shadowheart had defied Shar, and by the end of the afternoon the Absolute’s identity was revealed, Gale had to decide if he was going to kill himself or not, all the while Riley learned both infinitely more and absolutely nothing about her past. In this one day they have probably killed a dozen mortal humans, a couple dozen undead, and a frankly disgusting amount of illithids. 

With that in mind, it is no wonder that the party was both emotionally and physically drained. So when the four daring adventurers arrived in camp with a priestess, a godspawn, and one of the most legendary druids this side of the Sword Coast the rest of camp certainly took notice.

After they entered the bounds of camp the four all went in their own directions. Gale went towards the food stores and began to prepare dinner, Karlach followed Jaheira and began to regale her with questions about her countless adventures, and Shadowheart went to the Selunites to learn more about her past.

Finding a small stump, Riley takes a seat upon it and simply thinks about everything. Their group started as just a rag-tag group of crash survivors and now they’re dealing directly with forces far beyond her wildest imagination. A whole pantheon of gods, a cult based on a lie, and an Elderbrain.

Her mind returns to the whole fucking pantheon because it’s not a fucking small list of gods who they have to deal with. Myrkul and the rest of the Dead Three are probably going to come up in the future. Then there’s Selune and Shar, then there’s Mystra with Gale, and finally there’s Vlakith. Fuck man, that’s seven fucking gods. Seven! And if you add the other fuckers like Zariel and Raphael to the mix you have an uncomfortable number of devils in the mix. And  that’s not to mention the mortal fuckers they still have to deal with.

Her mind raced with the various different things they would have to do once they get to the city. They had to figure out what was up with the Elderbrain, the Netherstones, and all of their various personal conflicts.

As her mind whirled over the various conflicts her mind circled back to the words Ketheric said about both her sister and her father. He knew of them, hells spoke of them like he was well acquainted, yet still held that from her. There has to be something to this, something he would never admit. Think, Riley, think. If they were just regular folk then it’d be especially unusual, if they were dead there would be no need to hide it, and if they were never to cross paths then it would be strange to obscure the name. So…her family are connected, somewhat, with the Absolute and both her sister and father are somehow involved in the cult, probably really influential. And if she had to guess, the Urge came from them.

But what the fuck does any of that really mean? He spoke like they’d be impossible to miss, but what does that fucking mean? The fucker has been dead like two hours and Riley is already tempted to bring him back to life so that she can just fucking kill him again.

Taking a deep breath Riley takes a moment to just…let it go for the moment. The weight of the world may be on her shoulders, having to deal with what may turn out to be a cataclysm worse than the Second fucking Sundering, Her eyes look out into the night sky, stars starting to break through the Shadowcurse as it slowly begins to regress in front of her. 

Perhaps, she thinks, the odds aren’t impossibly stacked against her. They did slay Myrkul’s avatar, after all. Perhaps repeated acts of blasphemy aren't as impossible as she had thought.

As she continued to sit there her muscles finally began to relax, she felt tension leaving part of her that she didn’t even realize she had been flexing, She heard cracks coming from all across her body as she stretched. Yeah maybe we got this, she thought to herself. 

A few minutes passed before Shadowheart approached, her eyes far more at peace than they were earlier, “Hey!” Riley calls out, a soft smile adorning her face, “Are you feeling better?”

Shadowheart replied with her own smile, “I am, thank you for noticing.”

“I try my best.” Riley stands, “Do you need anything else?” She approaches Shadowheart.

Shadowheart shakes her head, her hair undone, “A bit, but not with what you’re thinking.” Riley looks a bit confused at Shadowheart before Shadowheart pulls out a small brush and a pouch. “I was going to ask for help with my hair. I want to do something different.”

“Oh, of course. What’s on your mind?” Riley looks around for a good place for the pair to sit down. Seeing a good spot, Riley sits and ushers Shadowheart to follow suit.

Shadowheart sits down in front of Riley, “I was thinking…I look a little too Sharran, so I was hoping,” she hands Riley the small pouch, “we could change that.”

Opening the small pouch, Riley finds a small glass bottle filled with white liquid, “Is this?”

“Hair dye, yes. It turns out someone at Last Light had brought it with them without knowing, funny how the world works.” Shadowheart says with slight mischief.

“Alright, we’re going from black to white, I’m all for it.” Riley begins to put a small amount of dye on her brush.

“Actually,” Shadowheart chimes in, “While we’re doing this, perhaps we get rid of the bangs?”

“Thank the gods,” Riley whispered, jokingly.

“Hey!” Shadowheart adds with a playful note, “They aren’t that bad.”

Riley chuckles, “No, but I won’t be missing them.” Her brushwork is careful.

“Should you really be so insulting today?” Shadowheart adds, “It’s not been an easy day for me either.”

“No,” Riley’s eyes don’t leave Shadowhearts hair, “You had it worse, don’t reduce your pain or exaggerate my own. I appreciate the sympathy but right now you have priority. I just thought making a jab at the bangs would lighten your spirits.”

“It did, though I would recommend not trying that same tactic on everyone in camp. The amount of emotional traps you would just walk into would be astounding.”

Riley chuckled, “Yeah, I won’t be attempting any banter like that with Lae’zel.”

“Gods,” Shadowheart says, “You’d be lucky to survive that.”

“I damn well would be, to be honest.” Riley brushes over more hair, “But now that I think of it, I have a question for you. I’d think that after going against Shar you would take a bit more time to think about picking a new god and all? Like maybe just hover around for a bit?”

“I get your concern, but don’t worry.” Shadowheart adds, calmly, “Selune is a lot more open to others. I wouldn’t be forced to only speak to Selunites, I would be free to do as I wished, and to live how I wished. And if I perhaps find that she is not the god for me, I can still part ways.”

“And I imagine your family being Selunites was a fairly major part of this decision?”

“Of course, I thought that was obvious.”

“It is, but I just wanted to double check.”

Shadowheart presumably smiles as continues to sit. A moment passes before Shadowheart speaks up, “I do have a more…personal question, if you wouldn’t mind me asking?”

 “Go for it.”

“In the Shadowfell, everyone else looked at me with uncertainty. But you didn’t. Why?”

“Because I wasn’t uncertain, simple.”

“Then why weren’t you uncertain?” Shadowheart’s curiosity piques.

“Because I know you, not the Sharran you tried to be, you. I can hear you recite Shar’s dogma but I saw how your face looked when you followed it. Shar isn’t a kind goddess, and if I had to hazard a guess I would say she does not condone kindness.”

“One of the tenets of Shar is ‘Love is a lie.’” Shadowheart confirms.

“See, not a kind goddess, yet when I gave you that statue of Shar your first reaction was gratitude and a promise to return the favor. Then there’s how you treat Scratch, that also doesn’t feel like it fits in with your,I guess I should say your former Dark Lady’s teachings.”

“I suppose not. But, that’s why you were certain? Two interactions,”

“You know damn well you play with Scratch more than twice a day, don’t give me that.”

Shadowheart waves dismissively, “Fine, those two details were enough to make you certain?”

“Yes.”

“How, logically, does that make sense to you?”

Riley finished brushing,  the dye fully applied to her friend's hair,“Isn’t that statement a bit redundant?”

“You know what I mean.”

“I do,” Riley responds, teasingly, “and to answer your question I know because those two are examples of your thoughts.”

“That doesn’t clear up my confusion even remotely.”

Riley pulls the brush back, away from Shadowheart’s hair,“I mean that's what you’re thinking. Not the years of dogma, not the doctrine, you. That first thought, the initial response, is your real nature. You’re kind, you’re sincere, and you care about your friends. And so when I saw you in the Shadowfell, with the weight of the world on your shoulders, I was confident in you. Because I knew you’d make the right call, because that’s who you are.”

Shadowheart pauses. She turns around, a genuine smile adorning her face with tears in her eyes, “Thank you.” Her voice is soft, quiet.

Riley rises to her feet, walks in front of Shadowheart, sits on her knees, and gives Shadowheart a hug. She’ll probably have to re-apply some of the dye but that doesn’t matter now. “Shadowheart, I know it’s a corny thing to say but you are family to me. Like a sister to me, I will be there with you as far as it fucking takes. I am not exaggerating, if I have to punch Shar to help you then you can bet your ass I’ll be there.”

Shadowheat chuckles, “I don’t think I’ll need you to punch Shar any time soon. Her followers, though…”

Riley’s grin grows slightly, “One, it’s far easier to punch people than it is to punch a god so I'm game. Two, I punched Myrkul’s avatar earlier today.”

“You needn’t remind me, I was there.”

“I know, but I am damn proud of it so I wanted to say it again.”

A small chuckle slipped through Shadowheart’s lips, "Admittedly,I think we’ll all be boasting about besting a god.”

“Yeah,” Riley adds, “I gotta imagine that’ll get us a few free drinks.”

They break the hug as Riley returns to her former post so she can re-apply the dye she may have messed up. Shadowheart says, “I have a sneaking feeling people won’t be inclined to believe us if we told them we bested Myrkul in a fight.”

“No,” Riley begins the quick fix, “but there’s bound to be at least one person out there who will.”

“True.” Shadowheart adds.

Riley finishes the reapplication, and after a moment appreciates her work. “Alright, the dye’s good. Do you think we should get to the braid?”

“Considering what I know about this dye, we should get clear.”

“Got it, I’ll get to it.” Riley begins to rebraid Shadowhearts hair, after quickly moving Shadowhearts braids to the side.

“You didn’t waste a moment in removing the bangs.” Shadowheart laughs.

“When I said I didn’t like them, did you think I was lying?” Riley jokes.

“I didn’t, but I was anticipating a bit more tact.”

“Am I really the person you expect to be really tactful?” 

“On rare occasions, yes I think you may be tactful. But only on rare occasions, understand, I remember how you once referred to a lost dwarf as a ‘boy toy.’”

“Hey, that was funny.” 

“It was, admittedly, mildly amusing.” Shadowheat concedes. “Though…come to think of it, I just thought of another thing to ask.”

“Alright, go for it.”

“Earlier you said my first thoughts were the real me. Well…I was wondering how that logic applies to you. What is your first thought?”

Riley pauses, unsure how to answer. “What?”

Shadowheart continues, “You constantly mention your urges, your need for violence. So, using your reasoning, is that you?”

Riley doesn’t answer immediately. “I don’t know. Sometimes it feels like my first response to anything is to try and kill it. But most of the time, I don’t feel the urge until I get a chance to look at whatever I am looking at. Like I felt the urge to kill Isobel but it wasn’t the first thought I had.”

“But, by your own reasoning, that would not be your nature.” 

“No, it would not.” Riley nods, “after what Isobel confirmed, I guess we can just say it is not in my nature.”

As the pair were sitting there the sound of armor approaching could be heard. Soon Dame Aylin and Isobel appeared, “Hail friend.” Declared Dame Aylin, “Did you wish to speak to us?”

“No, but if you’d like to talk I’d be open to it.” Riley says, enthusiastically. Then a thought hits her like a warhammer, “Isobel, have you told Aylin about the…uh…” Riley becomes tongue tied. How do you tell the warrior-woman, the literal daughter of a goddess, dressed head to toe in plate, that you had been possessed and had vivid visions of the viscera of her lover?

“I haven’t yet, no.” Isobel denies.

Riley looks nervously, “Can you please explain the situation to Aylin?”

“Considering the nature of the tale, yes. So our friend here has been haunted by…something. Any clue on what it is?”

“There’s a fiend butler who apparently loves me but that’s as far as I know.”

Isobel nods, “I see. Anyway, whatever malignant spirit seems to haunt our friend here had attempted to control them into killing me. As you can tell,” Isobel looks down at herself and dramatically gestures to herself, “they did not kill me.”

Aylin looks a bit bewildered upon learning that, and looks at Riley. Riley quickly throws her hands up defensively, “I didn’t do anything! This entire situation happened specifically because I didn’t hurt her!”

Aylin’s expression returns to a more neutral smile, “Apologies, friend. But you can imagine my shock upon learning that. That one of the soldiers who helped me slay the villain Ketheric had been tasked to slay my beloved Isobel.”

Riley’s hands return to the braid, “Understandable to be honest. Had the roles been reversed I would be quite gobsmacked as well.”

Shadowheart chuckled, “To be fair, there aren’t many circumstances where someone is trying to kill Karlach and not trying to kill you.”

Riley nods.“True.”

“But,” Isobel cuts in, “there is a nuance that we still aren’t clear on. Whatever compelled you-”

Riley corrects, “Compels. The urge to kill you was unique in that it was targeted but the urge in general has been present with me for as long as I can remember. Usually I can fight it off or ignore it but…there have been occasions where I couldn’t.”

Alyin looks to her friend more sympathetically. In her eyes she was not looking at a danger to her Isobel, but to a friend who’s in dire need of some help. “Pray tell, friend, how long has this affliction taken hold over you?”

“As far as we know, the last few weeks.” Riley responds, “Before that, I don’t have any memory of anything.”

“Back to the matter at hand, if you don’t mind me cutting in,” Isobel notes, “when you were speaking about your urges I felt a presence surrounding you, something strong. When they faded, you relaxed and seemed more at ease.”

“Well, yeah. When the countless thoughts of murder and death cease my mind becomes quiet.”

Aylin seems worried, “Do you need a remedy, a cure perhaps?”

Riley looks a little confused, “I could use one, but I don’t know if one really exists. I mean, I know medicine pretty well and as far as I am aware there’s not really any herb or tonic that can end a curse like this one.” Riley finally finishes braiding, “And done. What do you think?”

Riley hands Shadowheart a small mirror so that she may look upon her new hair. Her hair is now white like the two other Selunite’s in front of her. Her smile is far more full, her bangs absent forever more. “Well done.” She looks to the other two Selunites, “Perhaps we carry this conversation over to dinner?”

Isobel looks to Alyin before nodding, “Lets not keep them waiting.”

—

Chapter Text

Dinner that night was delicious, a proper feast even. To celebrate the end of Ketheric Gale decided the camp could afford a feast worthy of their feats! From Shadowheart finding the strength in herself to reject Shar to the five slayers of Myrkul’s avatar and Chosen they have come a long way and have earned their feast. Of course, Gale was exhausted from the day and it became the solemn duty of all those in camp to aid with the cooking, just as it had been the night prior. 

Karlach and Jaheira had been working on preparing a few potatoes, Wyll managed to whip out a whole roast, and Minthara had selected only the best of booze for their celebration. Gale had apparently revitalized some bread, claiming his magic could make them as if they were fresh. Riley was skeptical, but after she tore a part off a loaf and ate it she could sense the truth. It was warm as if it were fresh out of the oven, its texture was light as if it hadn’t spent weeks sitting, and it tasted fresh even though it should have rotted. Riley did not fully understand how prestidigitation worked but she was not going to ask or complain if it meant she could get fresh bread all the time. If anyone criticised Gale for this specifically, Riley’s specifically thinking of Minthara when she thinks this, she is inclined to beat the ever loving shit out of them.

That night the whole of camp sat around the fire, sharing stories and enjoying one another’s company. Riley sat upon the ground with Karlach on her left and with Shadowheart on her right. 

“Hey Soldier, are you doing good?” Karlach asks.

“Yeah,” Riley nods, “I’m better. Sorry about earlier, I was just…frustrated.”

“Mate, Ketheric was literally toying with you. I get it. Still, I’d be a shitty partner if I didn’t at least check up on you.” 

Riley leans over and kisses Karlach on the nose before pulling back, “Thanks.”

Dame Aylin, a woman with somehow fewer social graces than Riley, pipes in, “I must say, my friend, that intrigued me the most. The villain seemed to take quite a fair bit of joy questioning you. Pray tell as to why?”

Riley scratched the back of her head, “Ok, long story short, we think before I got stabbed in the brain that I may have worked with the Absolutists.” Riley pauses for a moment, “And since we now know the Absolutists were a front for the Dead Three, and the fact that Ketheric knew me, that means…” Riley paused again, “I worked with one of the Dead Three.”

Shadowheart jumped in, “All things considered, we probably should have expected that. Hazard a guess, it looks like you were cursed by Bhaal.”

“Why Bhaal?” Riley asks, confused.

“Easy, you have a bloodlust and that feels like a thing Bhaal might sick upon someone.” Shadowheart adds, calmly, “Besides, neither Bane nor Myrkul seem like the type to enjoy random bloodlust.”

Riley nods, “That checks out, but in that case I must ask why you’re sitting so close to me?” Riley says as Shadowheart’s hand lies next to Riley’s own.

Shadowheart turns to Riley, “If you were going to kill me, I have a feeling you would have done so already. Either that,” Shadowheart smirks, “or I think I could take you in a fight.”

From across the campfire, Jaheira speaks up, “Speaking from experience, I agree with Shadowheart. Though now I might wonder why Bhaal would drive you mad, and more so why were you attacked in the first place?”

“How so?” Riley wonders.

Jaheria locks eyes with Riley, her eyes searching for something Riley is either too stupid or too ill informed to know, before answering, “It wouldn’ t surprise me to learn Bhaal made one of his enemies mad for blood, but it would make far more sense to me if he made one of his most valued followers.” Her eyes continue to stare sharply at Riley. 

“Uh…” Riley looks quickly to Karlach, “Did I miss something or is she just staring at me?” She says quietly.

“No, I’m a bit confused about this as well.” Karlach confirms.

“Thanks,” Riley looks back at Jaheira, “I could have been?” Her voice lacked any semblance of confidence, “I mean, it’s perfectly possible I was Orin’s follower before this.”

“Of course,” Jaheira’s eyes relax but only slightly, her guard still up.

“Are you going to stare at me all night?” Riley asks, worriedly.

Jaheira’s guard drops fully, “Ah, forgive me. You just remind me of an old friend.”

Riley’s face lights up, same as Karlach as the pair both think they just received the same compliment. In sync the pair cry out, “Minsc!” before locking eyes. Some laugh at their silly gesture, others laugh at the two idiots working in perfect sync, and Scratch begins desperately begging for scraps of the roast. For a brief moment both Karlach and Riley’s focus turns to the dog that stands in front of them. His eyes dilated, his stance wide, his ears up at full alert, his tail wagging, and his gaze locked onto their food. Riley, failing to stop the urge to feed the little guy, tears a little off the meat and tosses it to the dog before telling him that this will be his only treat of the evening, even though in her heart of hearts she knew it would not be.

Jaheira’s laughter dies down, “At first, not him. But after that display of…” Jaheira gestures at the pair, “that, then who am I to deny the resemblance?”

“Speaking of old friends of yours,” Karlach adds, “Do you have any idea where to go once we reach the city?”

Jaheira nods, “There’s a harper safehouse in Wyrms Crossing, I say we go there and check in with my network.”

Riley nods, “Sounds like a plan.”

—

The rest of the dinner went off without a hitch. Conversions were far more mild than anticipated. What Riley expected would be asking Jaheira for any of the juiciest details on her past adventures, or really digging into Isobel/Alyin’s love story for anything fun. Jaheira wouldn’t share anything fun, making that a moot point, and Aylin would immediately jump right to how lustful her first thoughts were which caused Isobel to get a bit flustered, leading to Aylin not going further.

Slowly the party began to die down as people would retire to their tents. First it was Shadowheart, weary from the hell of a day, then it was Gale. And so on and so forth until Riley and Karlach retreated to their bedrolls. With her lover in her arms and with the stars now shining clearly down, Riley drifted off into sleep with a smile on her face.

Her body rests, dreams coming and going without form or thought. Then, in a flash, her stomach churns. She jolts awake, the rest of her body on high alert. Her eyes burn, stomach feels as though it is trying to claw its way up through her mouth, her lungs peppered filled with bile.

She gets up quickly, her lover's body reacting but not waking. She feels the deep need to cough, be rid of whatever ails her, but the moment she is fully awake the ailments fade. She sits in silence, totally unaware as to why. Her eyes dart around as she thinks of a cause. Food poisoning? No, that isn’t instant. Regular poisoning? Possibly, Minthara could have lied. But no one else is expressing symptoms so that’s off the table. Riley looks down at Karlach, sleeping peacefully, and wonders if it’s just her being sick. If so, that’s just annoying.

Then a familiar, and hated, voice speaks,“She thinks she is finally away from monsters.” Sceleritas Fel says, an evil smile adorning his face, “Poor fool.” He says as he stands nearby the pair.

Riley, doing her absolute damndest to not wake Karlach, locks eyes with Sceleritas “The fuck are you doing here? Go!” Her voice filled with venom, her posture defensive towards Karlach. 

“Oh my dear master, I do not know what’s making you care for her.” He points to Karlach, “You could do so much better, Milady.”

“I don’t want better, I want Karlach! Now go fuck yourself before I toss you away for the third time.”

“Oh milady as much as I would love to die by your hands, I would not wish to rob you of the delight of ending her.” He looks towards Karlach.

“No!” Riley nearly shouts. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. She knows where this is going and cannot say no fast enough. Her mind fills with images of Karlach’s end a-no stop that! Stop! She loves Karlach, she wouldn’t lay a finger on her if it meant harming her-then perhaps we shall impale her on a spear, then we’d never lay a finger on her-no,no,no,no,no!

“Your clever mind is penning tragedy as we speak.” Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut your fucking mouth you fucking snobbering shitter, Riley thinks. Still Sceleratis continues to speak, “Your repressed Urge yearns to kill, and kill you will.” Sceleritas starts smiling like the amazing and devoted servant he is-fuck off! “Tonight! The moment you close your eyes, your favorite person will be brutalized.” His voice was angry for the first time, disappointed fury leaking out.

This cannot happen, this will not happen. No. But why not? She’s not long for this world anyway? Shut up, we can fix her. Why bother? Because she deserves a good life! Bah, pitiful. Why not just snuff the life out of her now? She wouldn’t care for false hope and we both know how much she loves your touch. And besides, she said she’d rather die than go back to Avernus? We’re just helping her out.

I am not fucking killing Karlach, end of story! It’s not the end of the story, don’t kid yourself. The moment you fail, and you will, it will be our pleasure in bringing your paramour to the other side.

Her lovely-Fuck that, the little fucker with a shit eating grin says “It is my duty to ensure you are making the right decision here, Master. There was much…disapointment at your reluctance to kill the little Moonmaiden.”

Fuck off! In a moment of fury, she grabs the bastard's neck and breaks it. Lifting the body above her head she twirls and tosses it far, far away. When she sees his limp body fold against the ground her head begins to feel heavy, her eyelids demanding closure. With what little energy she has left she reaches out to Karlach and wraps her fingers around her throat-NO! She grabs Karlach's shoulders and shakes a little. She could shake harder, a traumatic brain injury might be the way to-shut, the fuck, up.

Karlach lets out a tired groan as she begins to sit up, her eyes not yet opening. As they open Karlach smiles reflexively, her mood quickly souring as she sees the manic state of her partner. “Soldier, are you good?”

“No,no,no-Ok Sceleratis was here and now he wants me to kill the one I love most. Karlach you’re in fucking danger!”

“Oh gods, is this because you didn-”

“Yes! But we’re running out of time! The second I fall asleep I’ll be possessed and my eyes feel like they weigh a ton!” Riley runs to her bag and pulls out a bit of rope before rushing back to Karlach. “Here!” Riley’s head starts to droop.

“Got it. We’ll get through this, Soldier.” Karlach stands up and gets behind Riley, already tying knots.”

Riley fights to stay awake as long as possible, the veins on her head pounding, her eyes failing to stay open, and every muscle seems to conspire to go taught at once.

—

Her eyes open in full for the first time in what feels like a century. Her teeth hunger for the taste of flesh, her eyes thirst for the sight of blood, the whole of her being yearning for death! She tries to raise herself to her feet yet she finds her limbs uncooperative. 

Her eyes wander to the source and see the bindings. Tight, but not impenetrable. 

She fought and struggled and wrestled and battled. Her hands grew raw and her pace furious, but progress was slowly made!

“Attention Soldier!" The Tiefling calls out, its fingers venturing close to her mouth. “Now is not the time to freak the fuck out!” In a moment of desperation she throws herself, her teeth nearly grazing the target.

“Ha,” says the unbound Tiefling, “Almost got me there mate. I must say,” another lunge for its toes is made, her teeth falling short. “Oh come on, you can do better than that.” A third lunge, “Mate use your tongue not teeth. It’s uncomfortable for me.”

Mocking, it was mocking her. Every instinct is telling her to kill, butcher, bleed, cleave, starve, stake, break, raze it. Her most animalistic side grows and lets out an angry growl. Her decency gone, abandoned. When the Tiefling growls back she only feels a momentary pause in confusion. 

“Come on Soldier, fight it! Fight it!” The Tiefling- no, Karlach says.

Struggling with all of her might, Riley locks eyes with Karlach and through the struggle utters only three words. “Sorry! Love you!” Before her rightful state of mind returns.

A disgustingly sweet smile grows on Karlach's face, “I know. Gods, don’t I know it.” She approaches, her face devoid of any fear, “I know you’re in there, Soldier. I know.” She tries to bite at the Tiefling, “and I know you’re fighting the good fight in there.”

The Tiefling grabs her face, its hands holding on so tightly she cannot fight it, and it points her head towards its own. Its eyes met with hers and it began speaking, “You can do this!” She struggles, albeit less than earlier, “You are strong! You are kind, you are beautiful, you are amazing! And if some god thinks I won’t be there for the woman I love when she needs it most then they have another thing coming!”

Her struggling ceased, as her eyes were locked with Karlach's. The battle turned in her favor, at least for now. Her eyes stay locked on Karlach’s with a few more words still lingering in her throat, “Thank…you.” The Urges start to return, even stronger than before. Every muscle in her body, every fiber, every drop of blood fights for control. 

“Come on, just hold on a bit longer! You’re doing it!” Karlach cheers on, “just hold on!”

Riley’s brow sweats, her teeth grind, her ears ring as she tries every possible way of fighting. Her discipline is tested again and again, her mind emptied over and over trying to send the visions of red away.

Her mind and body continue to stress against themselves, neither Urge nor sanity ever dominating the temple of the mind and the butchery of her heart. Soon what feels like a fever sets upon them. Their minds begin to struggle to maintain consciousness, neither side willing to fade away and let the other survive.

In the end, neither Urge nor Sanity would triumph over the other as everything faded to black.

—

When her senses return Riley is exhausted. Her wrists burn, her jaw aches, her head pounds, and her mouth is coated in dust. Her mind slowly catches up with her body, the memories of what feels like hours ago catching up. 

The urges, the visions of red, the hunger for carnage, the desire for death. All of it directed at Karlach. She may be stuck laying in dirt, her limbs still bound behind her back, but she could move her head around. 

“Hey Soldier, you back in there?” Calls Karlach’s voice from just out of view.

“Oh my gods you’re alright!” Riley says quickly, following that with a short exhale, “Thank the gods!” Relief washing over the tied up Tiefling.

“I’ll take that as a yes, then.” Karlach adds, playfully.

“Yeah,” Riley turns her head to Karlach, “I’m back.”

“Any Urges I need to know about?” A small smile adorning Karlach’s face.

Riley shakes her head, “Aside from hugging you, no.”

Karlach begins to approach her restrained partner, “In that case, let’s get those binds off you.” She pulls out a small knife before getting behind Riley and cutting her loose.

The moment the restraints are taken off Riley turns around at full speed and embraces her partner as tightly as physically possible, her eyes watering. “I’m so sorry, I’m sorry,” her voice repeating those words, coated in grief and fear. Every fiber she could muster wanting to do everything to apologize to the woman she almost killed! If Karlach wanted to dump her right then and there then Riley couldn’t blame her, hells if she killed Riley she wouldn’t have held it against her.

Karlach returned the hug softly, patting her partner on the back as she did, “There, there Soldier. It’s alright, I’m fine.”

A part of Riley heard those words, really. It’s just that the entire rest of her being was currently debating digging a small hole and crawling in there for the rest of time. Her mouth continued to repeat the phrase “I’m sorry,” over and over again until there wasn’t any doubt that she deeply regretted the actions she tried to take.

“I know, Soldier, I know.” Karlach says, her own embrace strengthened, “You don’t have to keep saying that.” Her voice is calm and loving.

“I just tried to kill you!” Riley’s voice shrinks to barely louder than a whimper, “I was thinking of hurting you in every conceivable way possible! Every possible way to inflict harm, every cruel insult to throw at you! I’m so sorry!”

Karlach squeezed, “You are forgiven.”

“How!?” Riley’s voice grows loud and confused. How? How could anyone forgive, let alone care for someone as vile as her? How?

“Because I love you.” Karlach pulls back, her eyes full of adoration and care. “Because I care for you.”

“Why?!” Riley’s voice cries out, her embrace loosening so she can better look at Karlach’s face. “Why do you even care! I just tried to end you, you should be throwing me to the cur-” Riley did not get to finish that thought as Karlach's lips quickly pecked her own. It was quick, soft, and filled with affection. As Riley’s brain struggled to  process what had happened her eyes witnessed Karlach’s color change yet again to that beautiful blue hue.

A happy smile adorned Karlach’s face as she began to reply, “Darling, you aren’t getting rid of me that easy.”

“But-”

“Nope, no buts.”

“But-”

“What did I just say?” 

“Why?”

“Soldier,” Karlachs’s beautiful eyes glow blue, “If you were half the monster you think you are, I’d be dead. Full stop. I wouldn’t have woken up, I would have just died in the night. But instead of me laying in the dirt, you saved me.”

Riley’s mind starts to function again, her grief and anguish battling her love of Karlach for control of her mood. “I saved you from me, I was the threat on your life!”

“No, not you.” Karlach shakes her head, “A few weeks ago I probably would have agreed with you on that one, but now? After all our time together, all of the fucked up shit we’ve been through, and all the shit we learned about you? That’s not you. When someone needs a hand, you give one without a second thought. When someone’s heart isn’t doing great you’ll give them someone who will listen. Hells, you’ve literally helped fix my heart. You would risk burns across your whole body just to give someone like me a hug.” Karlach’s hand caresses Riley’s face, wiping a tear away, “You are just the type of person a gal like me could fall in love with.”

New tears formed in Riley’s eyes, born not from sorrow but from love. “I…I love you.” Her voice was not strong enough to eloquently display all her emotions, but that didn’t matter.

Karlach looked at her, “I love you too. And that’s why I forgave you.”

“Forgave?” Riley asked.

“Darling, I forgave you the moment the Urge took over. I knew you fought as hard as you could to stop it, so I wasn’t going to take any of that weird shit you did personally.”

“Really? You could resent me a little you know. I did try to bite your fingers off.” Riley asks, playfully. A dumb, lovestruck smile plastered on her face. 

“Ah, come on. You didn’t actually get me. At worst you probably just got a little dirt on my toes.”

“I growled at you.” Riley points out.

“And I growled back, what’s your point?” 

Riley looks at Karlach, a bit surprised, “Wait, that was actually you?”

“What did you think that was?” Karlach replies.

“I thought it was just part of the fucked up dream nature of the whole possession thing, I didn’t actually think you growled.” Riley laughs.

“Gods, your laugh is adorable.” 

“You’re just saying that.” Riley continues chuckling.

“I’m telling the truth, I swear it.”

Riley’s laughter calms, “Gods.” As she says that a small light in the distance catches Riley’s eye. More specifically, what appears to be a small camp fire. As Riley looks around she realizes Karlach and herself are no longer in the heart of camp. “When did we get here?”

“Oh, I picked you up and plopped you down here after you passed out. I didn’t want the rest of camp to see you like this.”

“Thanks, but perhaps we should get some more rest?”

Karlach shakes her head, “I’m afraid we missed that window. Everyone’s starting to wake and Gale’s already getting breakfast going. Are you still tired?”

“No, I was more worried I’d kept you up.”

“Nah,” Karalch denies, “I’m good to go. I am starving though. Mind if we take this conversation to breakfast?”

“No, I don’t mind.” Riley releases Karlach from her embrace. “Let’s go,” Riley grabs hold of Karlach's hand as the pair walk towards the heart of camp.

—

Chapter Text

Witnessing the Shadowcurse cease was a once in a lifetime thing. To watch as the land dominated by cold shadow was parted by the sun's rays and as warmth finally found its home there yet again. How the plant life, once dead, returned to life. It was beautiful, it was inspiring, it was wonderful.

It was also one of the last interesting things the party would witness for the remainder of their trek to Baldur’s Gate. Not to say the company was dry or dull, mind you, but there was little left on the road to the city that was of any interest. For the first portion of their trek they were following in the wake of the army of the Absolute, for the second portion they were passing towns that had been scorched preemptively.

So their many days on the road were of little note. There was little to discuss when all you saw for hours on end was tragedy upon tragedy. Even with the dust settled and the flames burnt out each house, every village, felt depressing. You could stand in the middle of the town square, see the husks of places people once called home, and really realize how alone you were. The memories of each village, gone. The feeling of comfort, of familiarity that once existed here, is extinct. But they had a job to do, and waxing poetically about another’s tragedy would only waste time. 

In an intriguing twist of fate, the most interesting night would be their last one on the road to the city. As on that night they had learned the truth about their dream visitor. With the city in sight, literally just a couple of hours of march, they would learn a secret that had plagued them the entire journey. She had many guesses on who or what the visitor was.

If you told her the visitor was actually a disguised mindflayer who was holding a powerful psionic Githyanki prince who is effectively part of the Githyanki founding myth and lost to history, Riley would have called you insane.

Though that is the simple truth. A truth she had to confirm with several other people because Riley was fully expecting to be insane instead of the truth being so utterly ridiculous. Alas, she was not insane in this instance.

With that the night made way for the day and it was time to decide who would be first to enter the city and who would secure the lodging for their, increasingly large, band of companions. With most of her friends standing by the campfire, Riley decides to ask her questions.

“Alright,” Riley called out, her gear ready, “I’m heading into the city, who’s coming with?”

Karlach raises a hand“ Oh! Oh! Dibs!”

Riley nods, “Karlach, you’re up.”

“Wicked!” Karlach walks over and stands besides Riley.

“No surprises there,” Astarion adds, sarcastically.

“You know,” Jaheira says, “my contacts are in the city. I believe it would be wise if I were there to greet them in person.”

“Makes sense, you’re in.” Riley adds as Jaheria starts to approach, “any other volunteers?”

“Quick question, darling. Why are you always going out with a group of four? Couldn’t you gather more of us?” Astrarion asks.

Riley thinks about it for a second, “I mean, at first it was just because there were seven of us and I thought it made sense to have half of us.”

“Right,” Astarion nods along, “but now we number too well over seven. So why are there still only four of you in the field while the rest of us sit around camp?”

“First off, Astarion, you're coming with me today,” Riley adds.

“Gods damn it!”

“Oh come on, you were just asking about that!” 

“I was asking because I was intrigued by the choice, not because I felt any altruistic desire to do more work.”

“Alright, fine. In that case, Shadowheart you’re up.”

“Very well.” Shadowheart rises.

“But back to my question, why don’t more of us leave camp?” Astarion inquires.

“I mean, ever since we killed the Goblin camp,” Riley’s eyes drift to Minthara before returning to Astarion, “Our enemies have only gotten more complicated and powerful. First it was Vlakith’s loyalists, then the Absolutists, then the Sharrans, Cazador, Raphael, and gods know what I’ve got waiting for me here.” Riley looks at the rest of her friends, tadpoled and normal alike, “So I’d prefer to have most people together in camp than outside. If the party we took into the city is too large, we may have issues with city guards and we may just move slower. If we have a couple of groups scouring the city then we risk any number of them being ambushed as well as risking compromising the integrity of the camp. In my view the best strategic dispersion of manpower. The four of us can deal with any enemy that comes our way while the rest of you can rest and recover while defending our backline.”

“That,” Astarion pauses, “makes far more sense than I ever thought you could conceive.”

“This is not the first time I’ve explained my thought process, what is surprising about what I just said?”

“Well yes, but between then and now I have witnessed you dive head-first into the underdark, eat a hag’s hair, threaten to punch a god, punch a god, I have learned you can sometimes lose control of yourself.”

“Hey,” Riley calls out, “Wisdom isn’t a monolith. A fool I may sometimes be, but an idiot I am not.”

Astarion clearly contemplates a rebuttal, his index finger raised and his eyes looking concerned. Eventually, his finger lowers and his arms cross, “Well, I can’t think of a witty rebuttal. Well played with your last comment.”

Riley nods, “Thanks, I phrased it that way specifically so you wouldn’t have any ammunition against me.”

Jaheira lets out an amused sigh, “I am beginning to understand why you were elected as leader.”

“Elected is…certianly a word to describe it,” Karlach adds.

“Oh?” Minthara adds, intrigued, “Pray tell, how did you become the leader of these vagabonds?”

“I just…took charge.” Riley adds with no fanfare. “I woke up after the nautiloid and just began gathering all the survivors I could find into our group.”

Minthara nodded approvingly, “You took charge after a disaster and took swift action in resolving your unifying conflict while gathering allies. While I may not approve of all of your allies,” Minthara glares at Gale with the strength of a thousand suns, no effort wasted trying to hide her disdain for him, “I recognize your priorities differ from my own.”

Halsin chuckles, “I see,” they look to Riley, “a part of me was intrigued as to how you ended up in the role of leader.”

Riley shrugs, “I mean, what’s a girl supposed to do? Just accept that ceremorphosis is irreversible? Fuck that, I want to live.”

“Here here!” Karlach cheers.

“Yeah! And we weren’t going to get these damn tadpoles out if we just sat on that beach. So, I got to work. Which reminds me,” Riley looks at Jaheira, Karlach, and Shadowheart, “are you guys ready to go?”

With various expressions of approval like Shadowheart nodding, Jaheira stating as much, and Karlach kissing Riley on the cheek, the four left camp towards the city proper. To find answers, solutions, and in Riley's case, family.

Unbeknownst to her, her sister had just watched her leave from the comfort of camp. And she was going to make Riley’s reintroduction to the city unique.

—

Rivington was, to put it mildly, quaint. A small, rustic town on the outskirts of the main city. There were shops abound, temples to visit, and people to talk to-

“Holy fuck it’s the Circus!” Riley yells out as she begins to run excitedly towards the gate.

 “Oh! Let’s go!” Karlach replies, following shortly behind her partner.

Jaheira looks at Shadowheart, “Are those two always like that?” 

“Yes, why?” 

Jaheira sighs, “Because I just know those two are going to give me a headache later.”

Shadowheart pats Jaheira’s back, reassuringly, “You’ll get used to it.”

“Bah, I am used to the antics of fools. I only fear how those two will be if they ever meet Minsc.” Her face sours somewhat at the mention of the Ranger, “But that is a headache for another day. Come, I would rather not leave those two unsupervised.” 

As the two begin to walk towards the circus grounds Shadowheart pipes up, “You say that like they are children.”

“Do they not act like children?” Jaheira asks.

“They do, yes.” Shadowheart nods, “But I can hardly blame the pair of them for being excited. This seems like one of the few fun things we’ve had going for us through our entire journey so far.”

“Wise words.” Jaheira adds as the pair approach the gates, only to be stopped by a man and a ghoul. A ghoul with a particularly colorful dress guarding the entrance. “Excuse me! Did two Tieflings previously come through?”

The man nodded, “I believe we have. Does one of them have one horn while the other is a reformed murderer?”

Shadowheart nods, “That would be them. May we follow them in?”

“Of course, but first Benji here,” the man gestures to the Ghoul, “needs to check if you are a vicious murderer. Benji?”

The Ghoul takes a strong sniff, the air entering the thing's body before it recoils, “You smell like moss and mud!”

The man looks at the pair, “Alright, you’re all clear. Have a lovely time!”

“Thank you,” Jaheira says as the pair enter the circus in full. To their right a Dragonborn bard was playing, to their left a colorful mummy was in the midst of selling facepaint. And directly ahead of them, standing by a table and a Kobald, was Karlach Cliffgate engaging in what appeared to be an impromptu pie eating contest with a redcap. A small crowd of fellow circus goers surround them as the children amongst the group cry out the names of the two contestants. Observing the contest was intriguing as the pair’s faces got progressively more dirty. Various voices, young and old, were all chanting their respective champions names with glee. While the humans were a bit more divided on whether to cheer for Karlach or the redcap Fred, every single Tiefling was chanting Karlach’s name in unison. “Karlach! Karlach!Karlach!”

“You got this Karlach!” Shouts Shadowheart. Jaheira looks at Shadowheart, slightly judgementally, “What? I’m not unbiased.”

Eyes return to Karlach as she scarfs down the rest of the pie and holds the empty pan and lets out a victorious cry. Applause erupts from the handful of onlookers and Karlach turns to her competitor, “Well played mate.” With her victory the children rush up to her leg and hug it tightly, their smiles brimming with joy.

The redcap mutters something but it’s something that anyone nearby, much less Jaheira herself, could understand. Karlach seems to grab a handful of coins from the Kobald. She counts her coins and, upon seeing Jaheira and Shadowheart, she walks over with a victorious smile on her face and a bit of smutz still on her cheeks, “Hey.”

“So,” Jaheira asks teasingly, “was it any good?”

“I’d say victory tastes sweet, can’t say the same about the pie though.” Karlach wipes a bit of pie off her face, “Say,” she looks around briefly, “have either of you two seen Soldier anywhere?”

“I thought she was with you.” Shadowheart adds, “We saw her rush in first before you.”

Karlach looks, confused, “Last I saw her she was going to spin that wheel-” 

As the words left her mouth a small portal appeared behind the three of them, four if you count the Kobald, as Riley suddenly entered the scene. She was covered in blood and in her left hand was a bag filled with…something while her right hand held a javelin. She looks at Karlach with an unexpected shine in her eyes, “So good news I got you some Chult teeth and a new weapon.” Riley walks over to Karalach and hands her the luminous spear as Shadowheart speaks to the Kobald.

“And the bad news?” Jaheria asks playfully.

“The Spin the Wheel game over there was rigged, and when I fixed it I got teleported away to a place filled with Chult.”

“I see,” Karlach looks at her partner, still coated in blood. “You know, it’s probably for the best that you wear red a lot.”

Riley nods, “Oh for sure.”

“Are you in any pain?”  Shadowheart asks, somewhat confused.

Riley shakes her head, “Oh no, don’t worry. None of this is my blood.”

“And to think the man at the gates said you were a reformed murderer.” Jaheria jests.

“Hey! I tried to be civil about it but I couldn’t exactly tell the Chult that!”

Shadowheart turns to Jaheira, “Remember what I said about supervising these two?”

“Considering we just had that conversation, yes.”

“I may wish to amend that sentiment.” 

Karlach joins in, “What are you two talking about?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Shadowheart quickly adds, “Hey! What’s that?”

As Riley turns to look at whatever Shadowheart is intrigued by she see’s nothing of note…then nothing as Shadowheart slams a foam pie into her face. After pulling the tin off her face and wiping the foam from her eyes, Riley looks Shadowheart in the eyes, “Really?”

“What?” Shadowheart teases, “I never said I was above these kinds of tricks.”

“I was going to pie you.” Riley says as she wipes a bit of foam out of her face and starts trying to get small pieces out of her hair.

“In that case, I feel I should be glad I beat you to the punch.”

“Fair enough.” Riley splashes her face with her waterskin, trying to rub the remains of the foam away, “Did I get it?”

“Eh,” Karlach says noncommittally, “Pretty much.”

“Yippie” Riley says flatly before something catches her eye, “Hey Karlach,” Riley gestures towards Dryad, “want to go see what she’s up to?”

“Sure, sounds like fun.”

—

“You’re in love, are you not?” Asks the Dryad.

“Yeah.” Karlach and Riley say at roughly the same time. The pair look at one another with a stupid, happy smile plastered across their face, “Jinx!” they both say in unison.

“Then come,” the Dryad gestures towards herself, “I will look into your hearts and see if your love is eternal. Or doomed eternally.”

“You game Karlach?”

With all the enthusiasm in her heart, Karlach responds, “Let's do it!”

With a smile the Dryad commands the pair to close their eyes as they seem to be transported. Instead of the bustle of the city or the sound of music the air was filled with the sounds of water moving, the grey cobblestone streets are replaced by the green of grass and the blue of water, and the crowds of the circus fading away. 

Now Riley stood across from Karlach, a river running between the pair with naught but a fallen tree to serve as a bridge between the pair.

“I see you.” The dryad’s voice calls out, “I see the bond between you, so tender. So fragile. But do you see it for yourselves?” After everything the pair has gone through, Riley would hope so.”

The Dryad continues, “Karlach, your lover would face all the hells on a whim, but who does she fear more than any other?”

“Herself” Karlach replies, a small worry buried deep in her throat.

And Riley can’t disagree. Who else is even worth being afraid of? She can run headfirst into danger and face death with a smile, but she can’t do the same to herself. If she can’t win a fight against an enemy she can run away and regroup, but you can’t run away from you. Who can she turn to when she can’t even trust herself? “Hit the nail on the head.”

As Riley confirms Karlach’s assumptions Karlach takes two steps closer to her, now standing on the log between the pair.

The Dryad continues, “Karlach: her fire within can incinerate an enemy or warm a beloved. Think, who does she loathe above all others?”

This one didn’t require much thought. “Gortash followed shortly by Zariel”

“Right on the money, can’t stand the fuckers. Saying their name makes my blood boil, probably literally. Two points for you!”

It was Riley’s turn to take a step onto the log and time for the Dryad to continue, “Hear how your bond thrums with pleasure. Listen, think. Your lover holds a curious mind, what does she seek to learn?”

“Probably anything about her, really. Her past, family, all that jazz.”

Another accurate answer,“Amnesia will do that to a person.” Riley's smile returns as Karlach takes a step closer.

“Many things delight the heart, but only one makes it sing. Tell me, what is her idea of a perfect day?”

Riley put some thought into it, “Something exhilarating in the morning and afternoon, probably fighting, followed by a soft evening in each other's company.”

“Are you talking about cuddling or sex?” Karlach asks, playful curiosity clearly on her mind.

“Could be both, honestly. I just can’t figure out what order to put those two in.”

“Hey, variety is the spice of life. And besides, that sounds like a lovely day to me.”

With that Riley steps forward and the Dryad speaks again, “Your lover’s mind holds madness beyond most all, yet her heart beats for those she cares for. Karlach, who is family to your lover?”

“Our friends are.” Karlach adds without much thought. In her head visions of Riley braiding Shadowheat’s hair begin to show thoughts of their nights together as friends, all the time they spent laughing and playing around with Scratch. There was no doubt in Karlach’s mind, Soldier’s family are her friends.

Again, a true answer. Riley may consciously know she has family outside of her friend group, whoever her nebulous father and sister are. But they aren’t here, and Riley’s friends have been there for her. When she was consumed with madness she had those close hold her back, when she acted rashly she had friends to hold her back, and when she made mistakes her friends helped fix them. So yes, they would be her family. “Indeed they are.” Riley steps closer, now so close the pair are nearly touching.

“How close you two are. But I know the truth. Only one face haunts your dreams each night.” Both Karlach and Riley look at each other, confused, as the Dryad continues, “Close your eyes, sweetness, and she will come to you…”

Following the instruction their eyes close yet again. Opening them they watch as their world returns to that of the circus, and watch as the Dryad transforms into a familiar figure. Skin pale like bone, blobs of something moving across her skin, her body adorn in a suit of tanned flesh, and her hair in an all too familiar fishtail braid. From memory Riley knows this is the Chosen of Bhaal, the one who taunted Wyll’s father and helped infect him. But from instinct, this was someone more.

“Look at it, come crawling home, hands covered with the Bone Lord’s soot. And you carry his stone.” The familiar figure stares with hunger.

“Who…” Riley’s voice grows curious rather than intimidated, “are you?” She recognizes that this is Orin, Minthara’s description of her was quite accurate but it doesn’t answer why Orin is so focused on her.

“Oh, my dear sweet bloodkin. Have you forgotten everything? Do you not know the way home, Sibling?” Venom leaks from the utterance of the word sibling.

Her mind races at the mention of that word. The innocuous word that has haunted her dreams for months. Bloodkin. Not sister, not sibling, not even kin, bloodkin. Only one person ever called her that. Riley looks Orin dead in the eyes, “You’re my sister?!”

“She’s your fucking what?” Karlach calls out.

“Oh good, you’re starting to remember. Perhaps there is more to your mind matter than I thought.”

Her mind raced at that mention, “You’re the one who did this to me? You stabbed me in the fucking head?”

“Oh you needn’t remind me of that day, I’ve yearned to watch your body, broken and beaten, since that day. Alas, I will be patient. Father will see us together again.” Orin grabs a ring on her hand, “He will see you bleed!” And at that she vanished into thin air. 

As Orin vanished both Riley and Karlach were left speechless. In a mere moment, half of Riley’s questions were answered. Why couldn’t she remember her sister's face? Because she was a shapeshifter. Her first outing with her sister that she can recall had Orin with the face of a Tiefling, but none of the following memories recalled what she looked like. Her sister’s body was, as far as Riley remembered, just a blob. But that didn’t matter, because Riley remembered it was her sister and she just accepted that fact.

Oh gods this makes too much sense…oh fuck. Orin is Riley’s sister, Orin is the Chosen of Bhaal. Gods, Bhaal fucking did this to her. She served the lord of fucking murder and he made her sister stab her. 

Oh fuck she’s killed people, oh so fucking many people, hasn’t she? Riley begins hyperventilating. Holy fuck, she’s a cannibal. That comment on the “pleasures of flesh” was fucking cannibalism. She knows recipes for different fucking races. She knows how to sauté Dwarf, how to broil Tiefling, how to pluck Dragonborn. What wines mix with blood, how much blood you put in a red wine before the iron taste becomes overwhelming. 

Riley’s face grows more mortified as the contents of her stomach start to feel uneasy. What has she done? Her hands can’t stop shackings, her fingers freeze, her heartbeat grows so loud she can hear the constant pumping in her ears.

“Soldier!” Karlach holds Riley’s hand, fear starting to drape over her. She holds her free hand in front of Riley and snaps, “Look at me! You are fine!”  to little effect, Riley is starting to spiral. Her knees give out as her grief consumes her.

And who wouldn’t? She was, no, is a monster! She’s butchered countless innocents for Bhaal! And now her father wants her and her sister back! Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck-

Her thoughts are interrupted as she hears Jaheira shout out a spell as water absolutely drenches the pair. The sudden cold water pauses Riley’s spiral while also removing much of the blood from her body. As Riley rises to her feet she can feel Karlach wrap her into a hug, and as Riley begins to become aware of her surroundings again she feels Shadowheart quickly embrace her as well. 

“What happened?” Jaheria asks with a maternal tone.

Karlach looks to Jaheria, “Well, good news is we know who Soldier’s sister is. The bad news is that her sister is the Chosen of Bhaal.”

Jaheira’s face as she stares at Riley seems somewhat haunted, like she is seeing a ghost. “And I take it she didn’t take the news well?”

As Riley’s emotions are somewhat calm, the care from her partner and friend helps her from breaking down again, “I…gods what have I done?!”

“All things considered, she’s taken it about as well as you can.”

Riley continued, “Oh gods I’m a fucking cannibal…I’ve killed so many people and ate them. Oh gods kill me!” She weakly adds, fighting tears the whole of the way through.

With that Shadowheart releases her embrace and takes a step back for a moment. While Riley cannot see what Shadowheart is doing, she can hear the chant Shadowheart calls out. And whatever spell Shadowheart cast caused Riley to quickly calm down. Her breathing calmed, her legs solidifying. In a bit of a daze, Riley looks to Shadowheart, “What did you just cast?”

“Calm emotions.” Shadowheart replies, sympathy still in her eyes, “I didn’t particularly enjoy watching you crumble, so I thought it would be kind to act.”

“Thank you, thank you so fucking much.” Relief coating Riley’s words. She turns back to Karlach, who never broke her embrace, “I’m alright now, you can let go if you want.”

“I think I’ll stay put, if you don’t mind.” Karlach adds.

“Thank you.” 

Jaheira approaches Riley, “I can understand the shock and the horror at your revelations, and while I could interrogate every vile thing you may have done I would like to ask you this and only this. Are you disgusted by what you have done?”

Riley nods like a maniac, “Of fucking course.”

“Do you fear Bhaal?”

“Who doesn’t?”

Jaheria’s face hardens, “Are you clamboring to return to the cult?”

“Fuck no!” Her voice is sharp, “If we could avoid it I’d be all fucking for it but I don’t think we can.”

Jaheira’s posture does not soften, “And for my final question: If presented with the option to return to your former life, to your family through the blood of Bhaal, will you embrace it?”

Riley holds Karlach tighter, “No! I’m not abandoning the people I love!”

Jaheira finally relaxes, her shoulders lowering as she lets out a breath she must have held in, “In the past I have helped others defy Bhaal’s will, I had hoped to put those skills to rest.”

“Sorry!”

Jaheira smiles, “Don’t be, I would be a poor harper if I wouldn’t lend a helping hand.”

“Soldier, air” Karlach's voice is strained, like she’s choking…oh shit.

Riley releases Karlach from her grasp, “Sorry!”

“Don’t worry  about it, I thought it was cute.” Karlach adds, her eyes moving away from Riley for a moment, “Say Soldier, how about we go watch the clown instead of marinating in this shit?”

“Sounds fun, but right now I’m entirely drench-” As she says that her clothes and hair suddenly dry as a magical aura surrounds them, “What the fuck?”

“Scrolls of prestidigitation,” Jaheira says, holding up the scrolls in her hand, “I would recommend familiarizing yourself with it, less the Flaming Fist find you coated in blood and think you a serial killer.”

Riley nods, “Alright, in that case let’s go see the clown. This should be fun!”

Chapter Text

As a matter of fact, the clown was not there on funny business. As it turned out, it wasn’t even a clown at all, it was another fucking shapeshifter assassin. Following the swift defeat of the faux clown, the investigation into the real clown's whereabouts was started. From a murder in the temple of the Open hand, to a cave filled with delightful-sorry, dreadful corpses. After that it was only a hop-skip until the investigation was paused so that they may contact the harpers. Standing in the Harper’s hideout, the corpses of a half dozen Doppelgangers surrounding them Riley, Karlach, and Shadowheart discuss very important matters.

“Are you sure it’s worth the hassle to assemble the clown?” Karlach asks.

“Isn’t it technically re-assemble?” Riley adds.

“That’s not the relevant part of the sentence to be hung up on.”

“I mean, if we’re going to be uncovering the Bhaalist plot then I don’t see what the big deal is.”

“I mean, it’s just…how are you so sure you’ll find all the parts? Couldn’t some of them just be impossible to distinguish?”

“That’s what you’re hung up on?” Shadowheart adds, “Not the fact you plan on walking across the city with stray limbs. Have you even thought about the smell?”

“No,” Riley shakes her head, “but have you considered how easy it would be to store the arm? Like they’re foldable, you can pretty easily make it fit into a spare bag.”

“I wouldn’t recommend walking across the city with a bag containing severed human limbs.” Karlach comments.

As the three continue to discuss the logistical issues surrounding the reassembly of a long dead clown, Jaheira finally returns to the group. “Are you three still discussing the clown?”

“Yeah,” Karach confirms.

“You want to join in?” Riley asks.

“I have heard enough about jester’s disassembled corpse for one afternoon. I was hoping you three would feel the same.” Jaheira sighs disappointedly. “But it appears I am mistaken once again.”

“Right, changing the topic. So, are we all ready to enter the city proper? We got the pass from the detective so we should be good to go.” 

“Looking forward to it,” Karlach nods.

“Fine by me.” Shadowheart seems interested.

“If that’s what’s needed.” Jaheira adds indifferently.

With three stamps of approval for moving out, the four left the basement of the Dancing Axe and walked right up to the draw bridge. With their pass in tow the drawbridge was lowered and the four could walk straight into Wyrm's Rock without any resistance. But as they crossed the threshold into the keep itself Riley’s head begins to ache, her vision starts to fade, and her balance begins to wane. She can feel a hand holding her shoulder and a voice speaking but she can’t tell the source.

The world begins to fade from her. Her vision goes to black and her body falls limp while her mind goes far, far away. Her mind goes back many years, to one of her most defining moments.

—

She stands in her rightful place in the world. At her feet lay a corpse upon the altar to Father. The chants of the cult fill the air, the smell of blood fills the air, and the visage of death clings to almost every stone in the temple.

For years she had waited for this moment, for her to take her rightful place as leader of the cult. Years of practice, of learning, of prayer and discipline. Cultivating every skill, every trick, so that she could faithfully carry out the will of her father.

And now with this sacrifice, she has finally earned her rightful place. The bodies' innards were exposed, displaying her devotion. Her hands were coated in warm crimson, showing her commitment. And her eyes showed the world her hunger for more death, more corpses, for the end of all that lives!

As the ceremony ends and the cultists return to their tedium, Riley continues to stand in the center of the temple. It’s…overwhelming. Her whole life had been building up to this moment. There was excitement, there was jubilation, there was blood! But as the excitement faded from her veins a new feeling took hold. 

There was…nothing else planned. No more rituals to conduct, no higher station to achieve. Sure there were countless days of slaughter to come, but she yearned for more. The end of all things was what she was made for and yet…she could not see a means to enact that.

As she stood there, she could hear footsteps rapidly approaching her. Turning to see who it was, Riley saw her sister running to her. A smile adorned Orin’s face like Riley had never seen before. Orin looked proud, she looked happy, she looked energetic, she looked proud.

“Sister!” Orin cried out with enthusiasm. Her arms wrap around Riley in a tight hug. “You’ve done it!”

“Orin!” Riley couldn’t fight off her own smile.

“Now we can finally reap death upon the world!” Orin called out.

“Yes,” Riley says nervously.

Orin pulls back a bit, “Why the hesitation, sister? You’ve proven yourself to father, what ails you? Are you worried, afraid?”

“I’m…unsure.” Riley confesses, “I have our plans for the future but none of them feel like they’re enough.”

And yet Orin did not look deterred, “Sister, we are Bhaal’s children. You are made from Bhaal’s own unholy flesh! There are no beings we cannot slay, no kingdoms we cannot decimate, no city we cannot end, there is no limit to our ambition! We will be the last two living souls, and when that time comes I will gladly be with you as we give Father a dead world.”

“Just as we promised?” Riley asks.

“Just as promised.” Orin confirms.

Riley turns her head and gazes upon the skull of Bhaal, the way his presence is felt in the temple. “Father,” she stares at the monument to death, “I will make you proud-no” Riley pulls Orin closer, “We will make you proud.”

—

More memories flood her mind, scenes of destruction and death, worship and warfare. All of it comes flooding back to her, and Riley finally knows who she was. She was no normal being, no. She was a child of Bhaal, a Bhaalspawn, a slayer. Suddenly everything about her Urge started to make sense. The Butler was Bhaal’s, and his service was to coax her back into Bhaal’s service. 

The rest of Riley’s senses begin to return as her mind comes back to the present. She laid upon the floor of Wyrm’s Rock Fortress with Karlach sitting by her side. Riley’s arms shaked in fear, in disgust. “You alright Soldier?”

Riley’s worry only grew. She had to tell them, but how the fuck do you explain to anyone that you’re a Bhaalspawn. “No, not at all. I-ok I just learned something about my past. I got a vision and I am scared.”

“Darling,” Karlach says reassuringly, “whatever it is, I think I can handle it.”

Riley takes a deep breath in, steadying her nerves, “Ok, don’t freak out. I just had a vision about this so I only just learned about it.”

“You just said that.” Karlach comments.

“I just want to make it very clear I wasn’t aware of this until now.”

“Got it,” Karlach nods, “You just learned.”

“Ok,” Riley takes another deep breath, still steadying herself, “I just learned who my father is…” Riley pauses, looking Karlach dead in the eyes with fear clinging to her gaze, “Karlach, I’m a Bhaalspawn.”

While Riley feared Karlach’s reaction would be that of horror, disgust, and despair, that was not how Karlach actually reacted. Karlach looked down at Riley not with anger or hatred, but with sympathy and understanding. “Gods,” she pauses, “that makes far more sense than you just being cursed. Don’t worry Soldier,” Karlach stands up and offers Riley a hand up, “I know it’s a heavy load, but I know you can carry it.”

Shadowheart, also with a look of sympathy, looks to Riley, “And if there is anything we can do to lighten that load, say the word.”

Riley looks at the pair, somewhat bewildered. “Uh…” Riley pauses, her anxiety having been replaced by confusion. “I was expecting a bit…more violent reactions.”

“Seriously, Soldier? You expected Shaddy and I”

“I’ll let you call you that one time,” Shadowheart comments.

As if Shadowheart said nothing, Karlach continues on, “To turn on you for that?”

“My dad literally is murder. Like specifically murder, not death, murder.” Riley comments, her attitude having almost entirely transformed from her earlier from dread to genuine confusion. “I feel like that should be a lot more alarming than you guys are acting.”

“I mean,” Karlach scratches the back of her head, “in hindsight it makes perfect sense.”

“Exactly. Plus, we were already aware you had something going on that made you violent. Being a Bhaalspawn doesn’t exactly push that envelope any further.” Shadowheart says.

“If we are being wholly honest,” Jaheira adds, “I have known your true nature for a few days now. .”

Riley looks at Jaheira with a bit of shock, “You knew!? And you said nothing!?”

“Of course I knew, did you forget that you are not the first Bhaalspawn I’ve known? I thought you knew your nature as well. If I were certain you were unaware of your nature I might have stepped in sooner.”

“Wait, so the other night when you said I reminded you of an old friend-”

“Yes, I was referring to the Bhaalspawn.” Jahiera adds. “I know how your father calls for you, but I also know that you can choose to defy that call.”

“Like when her Urge wanted me dead?” Karlach comments.

“When was this?” Shadowheart asks, concerned, “because I certainly don’t remember it.”

“Ah, right. I didn’t tell anyone about it. So it was the night after we killed Ketheric. Soldier here told me they were going to be possessed and gave me some rope and one thing led to another and now we’re finally learning why that happened.”

“You are unusually nonchalant about nearly being murdered by your lover.” Jahira adds.

“Eh,” Karlach shrugs, “We fight for a living, no sense in being hung up on violence.”

As the four continued to talk the sound of metal churning was heard behind them as a Steel Watcher began to approach. As Riley turned to acknowledge it the thing began to speak in a familiar voice, “Ah my friend, you have returned.”

With the memories of her bloody past finally unveiled, she finally knew that voice. The voice of the man who gave her the location of the diabolist, the man who she helped climb the social ladder, and the man who is to be crowned Archduke.

“Enver,” Riley says to the Steelwatcher, “It’s…it’s been a while.”

“It has indeed, and may I say you look to be doing splendidly. I would have searched for you sooner had I known of your survival. You have come at quite the time, and might I say not a moment too soon. My inauguration is to begin shortly and I would be remiss if you were to miss this momentous occasion. So, allow me to formally extend an invitation to you and your associates to my inauguration.”

Riley turns to her friends and see’s Karlach staring fucking daggers at the Steelwatcher. If Riley didn’t know any better she would think Karlach is trying to kill Enver with her mind…ok on second thought she might actually be trying to do that right now.

“I will see you there, Enver.” Riley says to the Steelwatcher.

“I look forward to seeing you again, my friend.” The voice says from the Steelwatcher before the thing walks away.

“I suppose a meeting with him may prove useful,” Shadowheart concedes.

“Don’t fucking trust a word he says,” Karlach says with anger.

“I won’t,” Riley says, unsure of herself, “But I get the feeling he might be willing to trade some information.”

“And what the fuck makes you think that bastard would be cooperative at all?” Karlach adds, furiously.

“If he and Orin were allies in this, the Flaming Fist would have killed us on sight.” Riley says with a confidence born from her knowledge of the pair, “Gortash is evil, yeah, but he can be pragmatic.”

“Pragmatic by normal standards or Bhaalist standards?” Jaheira says partly as a joke.

“Probably by Bhaalist standards.” Riley responds, “But right now we don’t really have many better options than speak with him and learn what he wants.”

“Fine! Fine!” Karlach says, her anger slightly dying down, “We’ll talk to the fucker.”

—

In the Grandhall there were many things Riley consciously knew were present. The ornate decor, the crowds of onlookers, various traps laying dormant. Voices speaking in hushed words as the grand speech is delivered by Ulder Ravenguard, the sounds of machinery working as intended.

These were all details Riley knew were present, but they were not the ones she was focused on. Because in front of her, standing just a few steps away, was Enver. Enver Gortash. Emotions surrounding him were…complicated.

There was a connection, a familiarity that she couldn’t shake. A small part of her would have smiled at the mere sight of him. Faint glimpses of their many, many flowing through her mind like a current bringing a log down a river. None of the memories feel fully formed, some seemed made of many days grafted together.

Some days the pair engaged in various acts of violence, Riley would create the bodies and Enver would dispose of them. Other memories would be more tame, perhaps a bribe here or an interrogation there, maybe even a long stakeout. 

The memories that were the most intact were of the pair planning, those long nights where the pair would lock themselves in a room and talk, perhaps spend hours pouring over maps, the less vivid parts of her memory keying her into the fact they explored more than just maps in their times together. 

But those memories and feelings felt so…alien. She knew they happened, knew that her heart once yearned for the slightly disheveled man who stands not too far from her. And yet…none of them feel like her feelings. She may have once deeply cared for Enver, but now she struggled to muster more than a pleasant smile at him. 

Even when he looked at her again, a familiar light shining in his eyes, she couldn’t feel anything towards him. He paused the coronation to speak with her and yet the spark she once felt would not be reignited.

Though the spark imagery may be better suited for Karlach, whose anger is causing her to start to burn. “That’s him, that’s the fucker.”

“Karlach, we can kill him later.” Riley tells her, hoping it would calm her down, “if we fight now Wyll’s dad might die.”

Seeing sense, Karlach’s heat cooled and she turned to her partner, "Alright, fine. Not now, but he will fall.”

“Oh, undoubtedly." Riley confirms, “we just need to buy some time.” Her gaze returns to the man of the hour. The great host of the event, the man who would be Grand Duke.

“Patriars, a moment.” He calls out as he descends the steps and walks towards the four. “Ah Riley, my dear friend. It is so great to see you again.”

“Likewise.” Riley nods with a friendly demeanor.

“So,” Karlach says through gritted teeth, furiously, “Since when were you on a first name basis with Gortash?”

“Because we were partners, it is a good sign of respect to address Riley by her name. And besides, it’s not as if she has a surname for me to refer to her by. And before I forget, Karlach, I wasn’t expecting you to befriend my favorite Bhaalspawn. Say, has she been any trouble for you?”

“That’s how you fucking greet me? After selling me to the fucking devil THAT is what you say?!” Karlach responds, furiously.

“Were you expecting anything else? Besides, there are far more pressing matters to discuss.” Enver looks back to Riley, “Orin implied that you have lost your memories, could you clarify that?”

Riley nods, “Yes, the situation as far I can tell is as such. At Moonrise months ago, presumably after we had subjected the Elderbrain, Orin ambushed me. She got the upperhand on me and she…well there is no polite way to put it, she lobotomized me. Stabbed through the eye any number of times.” Riley looks to Enver to see if he has questions but his familiar look ushers her to keep going, “From there, one of the Myrkulites took me away and started to…experiment. The memories are unclear but I recall being torn apart and reassembled. They learned how the tadpole worked, and for one reason or another I was sent on that Natiloid.”

Enver seemed to be satisfied by that answer, “Forgive my failure to find you, I had assumed Ketheric would have been more cooperative.” 

“In hindsight, his apathy towards his mission may have hinted that he knew more than he let on.” Riley adds. Over her tadpole Riley can hear Karlach just repeating the phrase “Kill him, kill him!” over and over again in her own head. 

“A fair assertion, my friend. For more clarity on my end, how much of your memory has been scattered by your…shall we say failed fratricide.” 

“Almost all of the episodic memory was erased, I could only pry bits and pieces for months. The semantic memories were left intact and my ability to make new memories has seemingly not been damaged at all.” Riley reads Enver’s slight dismay upon learning this.

“A shame, truly. However for my offer to be understood I may need to remind you of our shared history together.” Enver also looks to Riley waiting for her approval to begin speaking. With a nod, she gives it and he begins to speak, “Many years ago you and I struck up a partnership. We worked together on countless plots, some for our masters and some for ourselves. In that time we grew quite close, you and I.” He looks at Riley with a mischievous desire, “but I will let you remember that on your own accord.”

“I’ve remembered parts, you needn’t remind me of everything.” Riley responds. The implications on what that means flood into Karlach’s mind as Karlach begins thinking of new and exciting ways to murder Enver.

“I see. But to get back to my point, I imagine you can either remember or reason what came next?”

Riley nodded, “I’ll assume our masters decided that the Chosen of the Dead Three should orchestrate a plot, presumably the Absolute hoax. The three of us led the plot until Orin took my place, and that sounds like it ended cooperation between the three Stoneholders.”

“In effect, yes.” Enver confirm. “You and I working together was one of the few things keeping Ketheric from disconnecting entirely. But with Ketheric gone, I believe it would be a fine opportunity to rekindle our old partnership.”

As they have spoken Riley can feel Karlach’s fury through the tadpole, her desire to kill Enver growing to, and probably beyond, what Bhaal’s blood demands. The only reason Karlach isn’t disemboweling the man standing in front of Riley is simply because Karlach might end up hurting her friends in the process. “And what partnership was that?” Karlach asks, anger as clear as day, her heat starting to make the human sweat.

“Asides from our business, I would say we were the nearest and dearest of confidants.” His look again feels suggestive, hinting towards more.

Riley knows what he is trying, what feelings he wishes to elicit, but as much as he may try to revive those feelings Riley knew that his effort was in vain. Those feelings, as well as that old version of herself, died on the floors of Moonrise. “I recall.” She adds with little warmth, “I know you. And you would not offer a partnership like this unless you had an ace up your sleeve. Not just the benefit of having your Steel Watch, no. ” Riley looks Enver up and down, “And if it were material, you would have it on your person. So you offer information.”

Enver’s grin grows, “Ah Riley, I had hoped your mind would still be as sharp as your blade, though I suppose I should retire that saying considering you seem to go without one these days.” His eyes lower for a moment, again implying a level of intimacy Riley no longer reciprocated. His eyes return to Riley’s “Orin has infiltrated your camp, I do not know whom she replaced or when or even how, but I know she has done so.”

“So we have an imposter in our camp.” Riley repeats, “Which means any partnership between us wouldn’t function until the hole is plugged. So long as Orin remains in camp she knows what we know, knows where our food is, and can stab us in the back the moment she wants us dead.”

“Precisely. Until you deal with Orin our partnership would lead to our graves.” Enver adds, “Now, while I let you mull over which of your compatriots is a traitor, I believe we have stalled my coronation for long enough. Care to witness the final parts?”

Riley wordlessly nods as the rest of her friends stand and watch, some with significantly more vitriol than others, as Enver becomes Grand Duke. Karlach’s fury at what had just occurred literally burning a hole in the carpet they stood upon.

Chapter Text

“What the fuck was that?!” Karlach yelled out the moment the four left the great hall. “We go there to confront the man who ruined my life and he greets you like you’re fucking friends?! Is that it!? Did I fucking miss something?!”

Riley’s demeanor feels somewhat dead as she speaks. “I…suppose I knew Enver in my old life.”

“Enver?!” Karlach shouts with even more anger “You are still using his first fucking name?”

“Right, Gortash.” Riley quickly amends, “Sorry! I guess I got used to calling him that.”

“Gods damn it!” Karlach says, her body still burning up, “Of all the people in the fucking world it had to be YOU!” Karlach points at Riley in anger, “It just had to be you who Gortash wants! Of everyone in the fucking world to have been Gortash’s partner, why did it have to be you!?”

“I’m sorry!” Riley cries to Karlach, “I-”

Karlach continued, uninterrupted, “I just can’t have anything apparently. I can’t be free from the hells, I can’t get this damn tadpole out of my head, and now I can’t be the only one to love her.”

“I’m sorry! I didn’t know I used to be his partner!” Riley yells, tears building up in her eyes, “I didn’t know!”

“I know!” Karlach yells with all her heart, the anger that consumes every fiber of her being exploding out. Her flames surround her, forcing Riley to take a step backwards, before her flames quickly die down as Karlach stands there, meekly. “Gods, damn it I know.” Karlach’s eyes fill with grief.

Riley approaches, hesitantly, “Is there anything I can do?” 

“No, it’s, ok it’s fucked. Soldier it’s just fucked.” Karlach wipes away a small tear in her eye. “I feel betrayed, heartbroken, and destroyed. I am fucking furious at Gortash and he greets you like you two were the best of pals. Like the woman I loved set me aside for the man I hate more than anything in the world.”

“Gods…” Riley locks eyes with Karlach, “I’m so sorry I never wanted you to feel that way.”

“I know,” Karlach looks at Riley with a weak smile, “but that’s not as comforting as I’d like.”

“Again, is there anything I can-”

“Please,” Karlach adds, “let's just get back to camp. I-I think I’m done for today.”

Riley nods, “Yeah,” her own emotions are a whirlwind of confusion and mystery. She turns to see Jaheira and Shadowheart sitting in the wings, trying to keep out of the couple's dispute. “We’re calling it here. We’ll go to the city tomorrow, we’re done.”

Sensing the tense moment, neither Shadowheart nor Jaheria say a word and the four return back to camp.

—

The four walked out of Wyrms rock with new information and broken views on themselves. For what feels like the first time ever Riley and Karlach remain silent, neither feeling comfortable speaking. To an outside observer it would appear like the pair were going to split, however Karlach’s tadpole was communicated differently. Karlach was angry, furious even, at Riley but she knew that Riley didn’t know. It was that ignorance of herself, that apathy towards Env-towards Gortash that kept Karlach from going insane. Hells, the fact Karlach knew Riley would never return to Gortash’s side was practically the thing holding Karlach together.

Together the four walked out, passed the draw bridge and towards Rivington proper. Passing the weapons merchant and the brothel the four emerge out towards the greater town. Though as they exited the checkpoint they were flagged down by a brightly clothed Tiefling. “Oh oh, excuse me! A word if I may?”

Riley looks at Jaheira, “Looks like someone wants to talk to you. Mind if we do so?”

“Fine, but if they start talking about rumors about my past journeys I will walk away.”

“Fair enough.” Riley and her friends walk towards, “So, I take it you want to get an interview with Jaheira?” Riley steps aside and lets Jaheira take center stage.

“Actually,” The random Tiefling says, “I was hoping I could ask you a few questions. I had seen you enter Lord Gortash’s coronation and was hoping I could ask you a few questions.”

Riley looks at Jahiera in confusion. The pair both went to the coronation, that’s not justification to talk to Riley. And while Riley was more than willing to accept the interview on the assumption that Tiefling wanted to speak to another Tiefling, Riley remained slightly skeptical. “Of course,” Riley takes back her position at the front of the pack, “And who might you be, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Ah, right. Where are my manners? The name’s Lens, reporter with the Baldur’s Mouth Gazette. I witnessed you enter Gortash’s inauguration earlier, so I am intrigued by the nature of your relationship with him?”

As Riley begins to think about the question she notices yet another oddity. She didn’t say Archduke or Lord Gortash, just Gortash. Not insane for a journalist, perhaps she has a closer relationship with E-Gortash than most people, but still slightly odd. “Former business partner.” Riley answers, cautiously. 

“And nothing else?” The journalist pushes further, writing down something in her ledger. “Former business partner, possibly friend? Maybe more?”

“In the past we were close.” Riley confirms outright, though slightly agitated. “However after unforeseen events, our former relationship is over.”

“Oh now that is serious? Were you two lovers? How close were you two?” The journalist pushes further.

“I would like to not discuss my past mistakes in front of my girlfriend, thank you very much!” Riley nearly yells in anger 

The journalist takes a step back, frightened, but Riley notices another oddity with the movement. It felt rehearsed, fake. The surprise seemed genuine but there was a familiarity in those eyes Riley couldn’t shake. Like she knew this reporter from somewhere else. “Understood, mam.” The journalist’s composer returns to normalcy. “Now, how would you describe the ceremony?”

“Aside from my brief conversation with Gortash, dull. I spent half the time I wasn’t speaking to him purging the memories we shared from my mind.” Riley responds. “Are you sure you don’t have any questions for anyone else?”

“No, I get the ‘hero of the hour’ feeling from you, if you don’t mind the attention. Now, how did seeing Gortash” there it is again, “again feel?”

“Weird. I know we’re quite familiar,” considering Riley’s diction changed to match Gortash’s it was clear they spent loads of time together, “but I can’t say I hold any affection towards the guy.”

“Fascinating, fascinating.” The journalist writes more down. “Now, onto a new topic. Recently the city has been witness to an increase in violent murders. Do you believe this is the work of the Absolutists?”

“No,” Riley responds almost instinctively, “this is the work of more Bhaalists. Aside from my investigation into the matter there is no one in the city who would be this meticulous with murder.” 

“Oh my,” The reporter adds with…a slight happiness in her voice. “And how familiar are you with Bhaalists?”

It was that comment that finally broke the illusion to Riley, the strange feelings finally making sense, as she realized who really stood in front of her. Only one person in this damned city would want to know about Riley instead of Jaheira. Only one person is both strong enough and hateful enough to call him Gortash instead of his title. Only one person would delight in hearing about Bhaalist’s work.

So when Riley looks at Orin, she doesn’t hide the fact that the jig is up. Her eyes give a look that screams “Really?” and her posture becomes a bit more confrontational. “You know,” Riley says skeptically, “I’d rather speak to you normally.”

Orin’s disguised face seems slightly impressed, “Well done bloodkin, I thought you’d never know me again.” Orin’s head falls to the side in the way that Riley feels is familiar before Orin’s limbs start to crack. Bones break, skin shifts, and with a puff Orin wears her own face yet again. “What gave me away, sibling?” Orin says the word ‘sibling’ with untold venom, an unknown disdain for their connection by blood showing itself.

“Really Orin?” Riley says, her attitude far more relaxed when compared to her friends who have all taken battle stances. “Jaheira is right here and you asked me questions. Big giveaway.” Riley nor Orin seem to tense up at the sight of the other three prepping for battle.

“Oh my dear bloodkin, I did not expect you to have any wits about you after that little tyrant got his hands on you.” Orin looks Riley in the eyes, “I am glad he’s failed to get his dirty paws on you again.”

“As fucked up as it is to say,” Karlach says with uncertainty, “I gotta agree with ya there.”

“Oh!” Orin’s smile grows wider, “My dirty, rotten bloodkin’s lover, I must say I am oh so glad to hear that.” She looks Riley in the eyes, “It means my blade really did purge those blasphemous thoughts from your putrid mind.”

“Alright enough toying, you and I both know you have something to say so just say it.” Riley says to Orin, impatiently.

“Oh my sweet bloodkin, I just wanted to pop in and have a little talk. Is that so much to ask?”

“Considering we could be fighting to the death instead, I’m fine just talking if that’s what you want.” Riley responds, nonchalantly, “But I doubt you’re just here to discuss the weather or ask me about anything before my improvised lobotomy.” Riley mimes stabbing herself in the eye, repeatedly.

“Yes, thank you for reminding me of that blessed day, when your crimson finally clung to my blade.” Orin’s smile grows ever wider, “But you are correct, bloodkin, I am not here for that. I had hoped you’d make clear your intentions with that little tyrant. Oh please don’t keep me waiting.”

Riley’s attitude seems to grow more comfortable, more relaxed, “Oh him…” Riley’s voice fills more with disgust and disapproval. “I want to know, Orin, how much did I care for him before? Because I’m starting to remember and every memory just makes me want to vomit more.”

Orin looks fairly pleased at hearing that, “You aren’t going to go crawling back with your mind on a platter, blood spattered, back to that pitiful flatter, and give him all your mind matter.”

Riley looks to Orin with a bit of warmth, “No,” a slight chuckle escapes her lips, “gods, it was that bad?”

Orin’s sadistic smiles grew wider, “Horrifically bad. He kept you from your work and fed you pretty little lies. But I feel we should continue this discussion later. See you back at camp!” Orin says sadistically as she yet again vanishes into thin air.

As Orin vanishes Riley’s friends put their weapons away and their posture finally relaxes. “You know,” Shadowheart adds, “you were awfully calm when speaking to Orin.”

“Well, she is my sister.” Riley says nonchalantly.

“Your sister who stabbed you in the brain, repeatedly.”

“She wasn’t going to do it here.” Riley points out.

“And what makes you so confident she wouldn’t do that again?”

“Orin wanted to talk, and clearly wants to talk more. Easy.”

“And how do you know that?” Shadowheart asks.

“Because she disguised herself,” Riley answers confidently, her knowledge of Orin slowly creeping in, “if she wanted us dead she would have just stabbed us. If she wanted to injure us she’d just do it. But she stayed her blade and bore her real face.” Riley says with a smile, “So she wasn’t a threat here, not really. She really did want to just see if I was still…” Riley pauses, “let’s just say enamored with Gortash.”

“Yeah, and just for clarity sake, what are those feelings exactly?” Shadowheart asks, probably on Karlach’s behalf.