Chapter 20: Chosen, Chapter 21: Paths Part

Aidan

The Realms

Fifthday, 3rd week of the 7th month, Godless Age 597

Pre-dawn

Mistvale Highlands, near Ceallach Macht

Aidan woke covered in a cold, clammy sweat. His heart was hammering in his chest, and at first, he thought they were under attack again. When no siren sounded, though, Aidan settled back against Brighid's armored flank and took stock of the situation. It was still dark outside, although the eastern sky was just beginning to lighten, so he had slept through the night. He felt tired, though, as if he had only managed to take a short nap.

Brighid murmured and shifted, twitching in her sleep, then began to whimper and shake her head from side to side. He reached up and shook her shoulder, trying to wake her, but she didn't respond. She started to thrash around, crying out wordlessly, and Aidan scrambled to his feet, then stepped up against her and shook her by her shoulders more firmly. After a few vigorous attempts, she jerked awake, her eyes opening wide in panic and her hand grabbing him around his wrist. He could feel his bones creaking in protest as she squeezed hard, and he could see from the wildness in her eyes that Brighid still saw dream phantoms.

"Shhh, it's me, Brighid. You were having a nightmare, it's okay, you're awake now," he murmured to her, speaking softly and gently until he saw sanity return to her eyes and she released his wrist.

"Thank you, Aidan. I was having a most unpleasant dream. I cannot remember the details now, though."

"I know," he soothed. "I think I had nightmares, too. I didn't sleep well, anyway."

Brighid frowned and sighed. "We did not realize that the corruption had grown so strong. The stars last night and now we both have nightmares and wake tired... this is not a coincidence. I can only imagine how bad it will be inside the wards." She rose to her feet and stretched, then bent and retrieved her glaive and saddlebags. Since they slept in their armor, once Aidan retrieved his own backpack, they were ready to break camp. They shared a quick, unappetizing meal, then set out over the last hill.

Upon reaching the top, Aidan expected to see the object of his quest spread out before him; unfortunately, the thick morning mist was even thicker here than in the rest of the Highlands. What he did see was a massive translucent dome encompassing a large area of flat ground surrounding a large hill. Inside the dome, the mists were even thicker and harder to see through; Aidan could make out the top of the hill, and the shadows of what he assumed were buildings, but little else.

Beside him, Brighid hissed, "This is bad, very, very bad." He turned to look at her, and she pointed. "Look closely at the mists near the ward. Do you see how they are moving?"

Aidan looked more closely at the mist itself rather than what was inside of it, but couldn't see what his friend was referring to. Then, a breeze blew past them from the west, and he realized: the mists were swirling around the dome clockwise, ignoring the wind. No, that's not quite right; there are multiple layers, and they're each moving in a different direction. It was clearly not even a little natural, and Aidan's stomach began to knot up with apprehension.

Brighid continued, "The mists outside the wards should not be affected by anything inside. Either something outside is trying to break in, or something inside has already managed to break out. Even worse, it is being done in a way that Mother and the other ward-holders cannot detect, or there is no way she would have tricked me into escorting you here. If she knew of this, Ceallach Macht would already have been dealt with one way or another."

"So... what does that mean for us? For my quest?" Aidan asked slowly, not liking where this was headed.

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Brighid grimaced and shook her head. "Unfortunately, the terms of the quest are clear. If you turn your back on Ceallach Macht, you will fail the quest, and I will be compelled to kill you. Brigantia's flames claim that bitch Anwn, I know it was her who insisted on that." She audibly ground her teeth in anger and frustration. "We have no choice, I am sorry to say. We must enter Ceallach Macht, find the root of the evil within, and burn it to ashes." She started to walk down the hill but stopped when Aidan called out to her to wait.

"You're wrong, Brighid. I don't have a choice, that is true. For me, it's either enter that city down there and probably die or fail the quest and definitely die. You, on the other hand, do. This is my quest, Brighid, not yours. Your mother even told you that you were not to shoulder my burdens and implied that you do not need to help me now that I am here. Please, I beg of you, turn away, go back to the village, and warn the Council of what is happening here. No, listen to me!" He commanded her forcefully as she shook her head in protest. "This is bigger than you or me. You know that is true. I must go face my fate, but if we both die down there, then your people will remain unaware of the threat on their border for who knows how much longer. You need to go back and warn them. You're the only one who can."

Aidan inhaled deeply and closed his eyes, then opened them again and gave Brighid a reassuring smile. "Besides, I have a trick up my sleeve that you don't know about. I know you told me to swear no oaths to you, but I'm going to have to ask forgiveness. I swear to you, Brighid: this is good-bye for now, not good-bye forever. You will see me again, I promise. And not as a creepy Manikin, either. Go on now. You know in your heart that I'm right." Tears streamed from the centaur's eyes as she shook her head in denial. He told her again, voice gentle now, "Go, Brighid. And tell Roark that I did as he asked."

Brighid stared at Aidan for long moments, and he feared that she would refuse to leave, but then, with a strangled, grief-stricken cry, she reared up on her hind legs, whirled in place, and leaped into a full gallop back towards the south. He examined the prompts which popped into his mind, then dismissed them and turned back to face the swirling mists of the forbidden city.

Aidan quickly assigned one point each to Intuition, Willpower, and Charisma, two to Toughness, and one to Luck. Without Brighid to guard him, he was going to need the extra Health and whatever assistance Luck could bring him. A quick examination of his Skills led him to put that bonus into Evasion again, which brought another prompt.

Once he could no longer hear Brighid's hoofbeats, Aidan relaxed and allowed himself to acknowledge that he was almost certainly going to suffer his first death in the valley below. He wished he knew more about the respawn process in The Realms; did he get to keep his gear, how long in-game time would it take, would he leave a body to be reanimated by whatever necromancer ruled the city and would that interfere with the respawn?

He didn't know the answers to those questions, and didn't want to find out, but all he could do was follow his heart. Refusing to enter Ceallach Macht would force Brighid to kill him, and he couldn't make her do that. He didn't even know if one killing would be enough for the quest's failure condition or whether she would be forced to continue to hunt him down. Not an option.

On the other hand, he also couldn't take Brighid with him. Undoubtedly, her assistance would be beyond valuable in fighting whatever waited below; his plan didn't involve fighting, though. She would do far more good by leaving him behind and warning her people. It was hard giving up the assistance of someone as capable as the fire-haired centaur, but he was confident he made the right decision.

He planned to sneak into the city using the mist as cover and explore as much as possible before dying. If he was lucky, he would uncover useful information to tell the Starchasers when he respawned. If he was fortunate indeed, he might even find something which would persuade them not to kill him for returning with his quest unfinished. Either way, though, there wasn't much point in lingering. He squared his shoulders, checked the straps of his armor and backpack one last time, and set off into the roiling mists.

By the time he reached the base of the hill, the mists rose over the top of his head. The closer he got to Ceallach Macht, the harder it became to see where he was going. Patron, if you're listening, please let whatever sentries are in there be just as blind in this mist as I am. His only hope without any Skill in hiding, moving silently, or anything else stealthy was to move slowly and trust that the mist would give everything else a penalty to finding him. He thought back to the old man berating him for choosing mage over the other options and mentally tipped his cap to him. There were dozens of other Skills he could have picked that would be far more useful here. Again, though, there was no sense beating himself up for choices that couldn't be undone; he could only move on and make what he had work for him.

It took Aidan a little while to get to the ward, and the feeling of the mist swirling around him against the wind unsettled him more than a little, but at last, he stood at the threshold of Ceallach Macht. He was greeted with another prompt, which he read and quickly dismissed.

With one last look behind him, making sure Brighid hadn't circled around and followed him in, Aidan stepped through the barrier. Surprisingly, the ward itself might as well have been empty air for all the resistance or sensation he felt from it while passing through. The other side, though… A sense of dread and despair instantly gripped him. This place was intrinsically wrong somehow. Even the mist felt different, thicker and almost alive in the way it swirled around him. That was something he hadn't considered—could the mist itself act as a sentry and provide a warning to the inhabitants?

He quickly decided that he couldn't change his plan. If the mist did function as a warning system, then he'd already triggered it. If it didn't, then the plan was still his best shot. He did have one thing to do immediately, however. Having already accepted that he wouldn't survive this visit, he removed the silver talisman from around his neck and placed it on the ground. He had to destroy his only way out of this place; his plan was literally to die and respawn, and he didn't know if he would keep the key or not, so he had no choice.

He pointed the palm of his right hand towards the talisman and invoked his Flame Jet spell. A stream of fire poured out of his hand and engulfed the key. After the 5-second duration was up, he cast it again, then a third and a fourth time as rapidly as he could. After the fourth cast, he waved the mist away and knelt down to inspect his handiwork. The talisman was a bubbling pool of molten silver rapidly hardening in the cool, moist air. Quickly, he swiped the tip of his sword through the molten metal, deforming it further and separating it into multiple clumps. I hope that's enough; I don't know how to destroy it more thoroughly than that.

Obligations complete, Aidan oriented himself with the ward at his back and proceeded into the city.

Zurai

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