I'm baack!
Chapter XIII. Valen?s confidences
Once the team had found all the shards of mirror that Sabal had not managed to get her hands on yet, they made their way to the palace to find the Valsharess? agent waiting for them there. The Valsharess? and the Seer?s factions being equally determined to secure for themselves the powerful artefact, whatever it was, that had pulled the avariel town down to the Underdark, Chama expected the battle to be bloody.
The meeting between the Fool, who acted as something of an arbiter, Sabal?s group and Chama?s team took place in the throne room of the palace. It was a large room with a high vaulted ceiling made of painted glass. While no doubt magnificent when lighted by the sun or the moon high in the clear air of the mountains where the avariel resided, it was gloomy and depressing in the greyish brownness of the Underdark. The high ceiling was supported by a series of eight pillars which Chama had noticed on her first visit to the palace to be radiating with magical energy.
This is sage advice that somebody once mentioned to me, i'm afraid i'ts been too long for me to remember in whose direction i should nod.
Anyway it goes something like: "Avoid the words
Was and
Were outside of dialog.
It's something that i try to stick with.
I'll make an example here:
The meeting between the Fool, who acted as something of an arbiter, Sabal?s group and Chama?s team took place in the high vaulted throne room of the palace. While the painted glass ceiling no doubt looked magnificent when lighted by the sun or the moon high in the clear air of the mountains where the avariel resided, but covered in the greyish brown dust of the Underdark, it only gave off a feeling of gloom and depression. A series of eight magic-radiating pillars supported the ceiling, Chama had noticed their function on her first visit.Well, of course i overdid it there, lacing in my own writing style, but whatever.
Anyway, the palace here is redundant, it seems safe enough to assume that the pillars hadn't been moved in from elsewhere in her abscence;
"...Chama had noticed on her first visit to the palace to be radiating with magical energy..."The Fool informed both adversaries that the pillars? magic would be awakened and triggered by any artefact powerful enough, and the shards of glass from the broken mirror more than qualified. Sabal had an understandable moment of doubt when she realized that Chama, holding the vast majority of the shards of glass, would have access to most of the power from the pillars.
The battle went well for Chama?s side, with Nathyrra using her spells, Valen his flail, and Chama combining the use of the magical pillars and her powerful evocation spells. When the last waves of fiery mist dissipated from the scorched battlefield, Chama strode to Sabal?s body and retrieved the last piece of broken glass missing to reassemble the Mirror.
That seems just like too much of an boss fight to pass with such short mention...
She ceremoniously presented all the shards of glass to the Fool. She helped him fitting the shards of glass in the mirror frame like the pieces of the puzzle. Valen averted his flashing red eyes each time a drop of blood beaded on her fingers from the sharp edges of the glass pieces.
The second sentence is kind of funny i think...
Making THE puzzle be A puzzle instead might help; now the puzzle metaphor seems kind of doubled, it comes both as an "like a puzzle", and by calling the broken mirror a puzzle directly.
?I wish I could do something for you,? Chama said quietly to the Fool when they looked at the assembled Mirror, ready to be empowered again. ?I can see no way for my magic to spare you without condemning all of your fellow avariel.?
Valen and Nathyrra looked at each other, unsure what she meant. Seeing their incomprehension, the Fool explained, ?Once I restore the mirror, I will again be nothing more than a dancing fool. Order must be restored, even if that means I will once again be a fool.? There was fear in his eyes.
?You are brave, little man,? Valen praised. ?I hope your sacrifice is not forgotten when the kingdom is restored.?
"You are brave, little man"? Anyone else saying that and it'll be horribly ironic or something...
And, with slightly trembling hands, the Fool cast the spell that would pull the avariel back up on their aerial summits.
Chama was surrounded in a drowning mist and she fought to conserve her foothold in reality. When the mist dissipated, she was back in Queen Shaori?s cave, and the avariel and their village were gone. Only the Queen and the Fool stayed behind to do their farewells. The Queen looked adequately regal now, and the Jester was a simple soul again.
Chama accepted the Queen?s gratitude and the Mirror of All-Seeing. She bowed graciously to the avariel and left the cave. As soon as she was out of it, followed close behind by her two companions, she heard the incantation for a teleport spell, and she turned to look at the two last winged elves leaving the Underdark.
"Followed close behind", well, doesn't following usually mean walking behind someone?
?My lady??, she heard.
He had seemed to make a habit of this new name, she reflected. She tried to focus, growing progressively detached as the poison coursing through her veins sapped her life away from her.
?What??, she slurred.
?You do not seem well.?
?I bet Sabal?s bolts were poisoned,? Nathyrra remarked.
?They were. I would have already done something about that, but we have no more healing kits or antidotes. I thought it was about time to go back to Lith My?athar anyway.?
They started back to where Cavallas? boat was anchored and, about half-way, Chama stopped and knelt.
?I think I?m about to faint again.?
She removed her helmet slowly and looked with confused eyes at Valen coming nearer. He saw her fighting against unconsciousness, blinking slowly, and he realized just how close to death she was.
Ooo... poison...
Chama was more than half unconscious, and she saw strange things through her subconscious? eyes when Valen knelt next to her and said something. She perceived his eyes big and clear, like those of a bird of prey, his long straight nose a predatory beak, his horns changed to plumes of feathers. She thought in an unseemly fashion that even if she heard nothing but silence, the usual sounds of his armour were much too loud for him to be one of the silent predators of the night.
But then her strange vision disappeared as he suddenly bent towards her to encircle her in his powerful arms. She startled, trying to move away, but she was too weak and just fell down in the dust. Sound returned to her ears.
?My lady, allow me to carry you. You require the Seer?s assistance urgently,? Valen repeated.
No taxis there back then i guess.
She nodded. With surprising gentleness, he knelt besides her and lifted her. She was pressed against his metallic armour, but he was careful not to poke her with the pointed ends of his stylish collar. She held her breath in a physical sign of her attempt to push down all of her feelings and memories boiling below the surface, and saw with relief Cavallas?s boat appear in sight. Valen climbed the narrow railway and put her down gently near the prow. She let out a sigh of relief, and gladly passed out for the duration of the short and uneventful trip. Chama awoke with a start when the boat hit the docks of Lith My?athar. Valen was still by her side, looking at her with an intense expression. He extended a hand towards her, moving to lift her again.
?No, help me to my feet. Now is one occasion when to put up a brave face.?
His eyes clouded in grey.
?You are far too unsteady to climb down the railway,? he countered quietly. ?The poison of the Dark River would be deadly to you in your current state. Let me get you down the boat, and then I will put you down on your feet.?
What kind of an boat is it? You climb down a railway to... get down from it?
?I should warn you, Chamaedaphne? I know something of this mirror. It is a very powerful ? but very dangerous ? item. What do you intend to do with it??
Does she maybe have a make up purse to keep it in?
Chama hesitated. ?I don?t know. Can you make use of it??
?I might be able to, though I would have to be extremely careful with such an item. But I could never ask you to turn such a valuable artefact over to me.?
?You do not have to ask, I am offering it. If you can make use of it, take it, and I will be glad if maybe it can help.?
She extended the mirror to the Seer. The drow?s eyes widened in shock, and Chama smirked. For once, something she had not foreseen.
?I? that is very? generous of you, Chamaedaphne. Thank you. I? will try to put it to good advantage. I dare not use it before the coming battle, for I fear to fall victim to its power. But in the days that are to come it may one day help us to find our way to a better life than this.?
Rephrasinated:
"I don't dare to use it now, but maybe we can enjoy living dangerously later on."
She's weird. 
Chama was only momentarily disappointed. ?I am glad I gave it to you, Seer. I thought it might serve immediately. That you are reluctant to use it shows that you have a greater wisdom than I, and I fear little for you if you know when to use it and when it is better not.?
The Seer bowed, accepting the compliment, and then returned it, ?That you can see this shows that you have a greater wisdom than you might think. Kneel, my child.? She pushed down gently on the elf?s shoulder. Slightly curious, Chama obeyed. ?Do not fight,? the Seer ordered gently, ?it is to help in your healing.? The Seer cast her spell and Chama obediently fell asleep without resistance. The Seer held the elf?s shoulder when she went limp, and looked up at Valen still standing there. The tiefling now looked relieved.
?Valen, would you please carry her to her room??
The tiefling nodded, knelt and gently lifted Chama. The Seer and Nathyrra followed him when he went up the stairs and into Chama?s room. He stayed just long enough to put her down on her bed gently, and he left so the drow women could make Chama more comfortable. He waited in the corridor in front of Chama?s door for a while, uncertain, until the Seer came back and took his arm to guide him to her antechamber. She could feel his confusion and the intensity of his feelings, and she guessed correctly that he wanted to talk.
The Seer?s antechamber was a small study simply furnished and adorned in black and silver; it was the place the priestess used to meet those of her followers in need of guidance and, occasionally, to hold meetings and receive reports. As soon as she was alone with Valen, and the door was closed behind them, the weapon master asked anxiously, ?Is she going to be alright??
Hummm Hummm Hummm, doing good...
?Of course, my good Valen. I have healed her, and she will rest tonight.?
?I don?t doubt your healing capabilities,? Valen hastily specified, frowning deeply.
?Then what is it you are doubting??, she inquired softly.
She was surprised to see him blush. ?I doubt she is herself. She would never allow herself to pass out if she was not more than halfway to the gates of death.?
The Seer pondered for a while. ?Maybe she doesn?t allow herself to pass out, but permits others to order her to, when the command agrees with her desires.?
Valen chuckled. ?I will remember this. I have no doubt that I will have ample occasion to order her to rest or something of the sort, and we shall see if it is not simply you that she is willing to obey.?
"Yay! I'll start bossing here about right away!" 
A silence stretched, and finally the Seer stated, ?Something happened while you were there. You look at her in a different manner than before, and you are intensely troubled.?
He smiled ruefully. ?Am I so transparent?? She smiled kindly. ?She was poisoned by arrows and bolts a first time, yesterday. And after that, she was touched by Talona. Today, she was sickened a third time by Sabal, a Red Sister.?
The Seer gasped in shocked anger. ?How did Talona extend his hand to her here??
?One of the avariel was a priest of Talona. He was entertained by watching her fight against sickened creatures in an arena while she was crippled by the disease.?
?How did she survive??
?She used spell scrolls and wands to kill the creatures thrown at her, and potions and enchanted objects to keep the worst of the disease tolerable.? Valen?s eyes had hardened, but they remained blue. His regard, his voice and his countenance all hinted to his restrained fury. ?There were five rounds of fights,? he explained further. ?Afterwards, the priest healed Chama and gave us a piece of the Mirror. She was walking steadily when we exited the temple. She wore her helm and it was hard to tell that she had suffered at all from the disease. She closed the doors of the temple, and she fainted. Even so, she still tried to struggle when I carried her to the secure location Nathyrra had chosen to set up the camp. That?s why I say that Chama would never have allowed you to force her to sleep unless she was seriously injured.?
Hmmm hmmm...
Or maybe "Valen recounted the events of the last few days".
Just all about taste though, and he does bring in the focus... Hmmm...
?I think she was,? the Seer agreed smoothly. ?She must have been exhausted from the three poisons affecting her in as many days. But you blush. Why??
His blush darkened to a brighter shade of red. ?I don?t know, Seer. I am embarrassed to have carried her three times. I don?t exactly feel as thought she welcomes it.?
?But she accepts.?
?She? she allows, yes.?
?You are troubled.?
He sighed. ?She troubles me, yes.? He blushed at the admission. The Seer waited for long seconds, and eventually he went on. ?I don?t know what to make out of what I feel for her. At first, I was suspicious, but not anymore. I have observed her closely; she is a powerful ally and I trust that she is truly dedicated to our cause. I admire her idealism. I? don?t know what I should feel.?
Nietzsche: [i]What does your conscience tell you? Become the man that you are. 
The priestess smiled kindly. ?Valen, you must know what your feelings are.?
?Do I??, he asked ruefully. ?I barely know her.?
The silent admission was not even disguised.
?Of course,? his drow friend answered, ?but you will get to know her better as you continue your travels together.?
The Seer was grinning and looking much like a teenager matchmaker in Valen?s opinion. The whole experience was totally alien to him.
?Is this supposed to help me with my confusion??, he asked, half-mocking, half-frustrated.
?I would expect things to become clearer with time,? she countered softly. ?I see you?re not denying yourself, so things will sort themselves out, one way or the other. Everything will be fine, Valen, as long as you don?t deny yourself.?
Valen?s features hardened and threads of yellow started to twist in his irises. ?But how can I not deny? How can I accept? I? am vulnerable when she is near. My demon half does not agree with the way I feel when she is there. The infernal part of me denies mightily. It leaves me confused and disgusted of myself for unclear a reason. Then how can I not deny??
The Seer was suddenly thoughtful. ?I?m sorry, I should have understood this sooner. You should realize, however, that whatever you do and whatever the infernal part of you says, you will never stop being human.?
But what IS human?
?I would like to think so, but in the Abyss, there was nothing in me that was human.?
?That is not true. Even then, you took the decision of getting out of the Abyss. You had to be partly human. You can never be only demon or only human. You will always have to accept a part of you, and live with the feelings of the other. You need not be ruled by the demon, nor do your human feelings, but you will be influenced. But do not look so desperate. I am telling you that it is normal to be influenced by the feelings of the demon, but it will not keep you from experiencing some of the best aspects of mortal life, such as what you might come to feel for Chamaedaphne, in time.?
Valen sighed. ?Thank you, Seer, I know your words are meant to soothe me.? It was clear, however, that he was not feeling much better than when he came in, and that he felt like being alone now.
?Don?t worry overmuch,? the Seer concluded. ?Trust me, things will sort themselves out.? She was willing to let him go; there was only so much she could do for him. There were things he needed to think out for himself.
He nodded, bowed and left, leaving a thoughtful Seer behind. You are always so wise, my Goddess. If Chamaedaphne could make the human in Valen know love, then what could Valen accomplish for Chamaedaphne?s soul tormented with guilt?
The Seer smiled sadly. The road had not been easy for either of them. Maybe that is how they could find solace in each other now, after a long, winding and treacherous road.
***
Hmmm... This is just a flying thought... But since the seer seems to be predicting that the protagonists will live happily ever after, it could serve either to (if she is correct), make things unsurprising and slightly dull feeling ("Yeh, she saw it coming alright"), or as a good trampoline for further shock and tension...
Hmmm...
When Valen went to his room afterwards, he saw Deekin, asleep on the floor with his crossbow just outside Chama?s door. Valen squinted in the dim magefire light of the corridor, but his eyes had not tricked him; there were reptilian wings protruding from the creature?s back. He shook his head; a red dragon disciple? This kobold bard held many mysteries. Not that Valen was overly curious about them.
***
Imloth gave a reproving glare as Nathyrra walked closer. She was back in Lith My?athar for two hours already, but she had run around between stores for all this time before finally coming to tell her old friend the last developments in their adventures.
?Hey, Nat! I heard he calls her ?my lady? now. Is that true??
The drow assassin nodded and Imloth noticed how tired she looked. He relented slightly.
?Didn?t you think of poor old me who would have preferred to learn it from you, not from one of the temple?s guards??
She shook her head. ?I?m sorry, I thought of armour to be repaired, rations to be bought, clothes to be washed, packs and quivers to be restocked, maps to be copied??
She gave him a piece of parchment. ?The plan of the avariel?s isle. It could be a good refugee if necessary, it?s remote enough and easy to defend.?
Imloth nodded and accepted the map. ?Thank you. Doesn?t Valen usually take care of weaponry concerns??
?Yes, but he needed to talk to the Seer. He was looking so troubled that I didn?t have the heart to ask him to take care of equipment.?
At that Imloth was concerned. ?Troubled??
?Unstable. You know what I mean.?
Everyone in Lith My?athar could recognize Valen?s ?episodes? of torment. There were days when the infernal part of him was agitated, and people knew to avoid baiting or irritating Valen in those circumstances.
?But he looked sad, not angry,? Nathyrra specified. ?Really, he was a sorry sight. I hope the Seer will calm him a bit.?
Imloth nodded, but seeing Nathyrra did not appear too eager to run for a well-deserved rest, he insisted, ?So, what happened out there??
She suddenly grinned impishly.
?Well, you see, there was this avariel priest of Talona. He hurt Chama pretty hard, and she fainted afterwards. Valen carried her. You should have seen his eyes? all grey from concern. I?m sure that?s when he decided to call her ?my lady?.?
?Now, that?s what I call gossip worthy of my notice??
?I am wounded, Imloth, that you accuse me implicitly of losing my touch. But that?s not all there is to it. We went to the palace after that, and??
Such professional pride, how unusual for a gossip.
Anyway, ahh, repeat all the compliments i've posted previously here, then add "Keep writing and i'll keep reading" as a bottom line, ok?
Good.
And yes, you remember correctly: Gulhrys is neutral evil (which is why I put in some lines when Chama speaks of their dinner regarding his despicable attitude of "I'm going to save my own skin and let House Mae'viir sink without me if it comes to that"). Hm, I admit I hadn't thought of that little detail of drow hating surface elves... It's just that Gulhrys' condescendance in-game just grated on my nerves so much that I decided to humble him a bit in my fic by smiting him with awe facing Chama's wizardry knowledge. I hope that his arrogance in his own accomplishments as a mage and his attraction to a female who could best him (while wizardry is typically a male drow occupation, isn't it?) are not too out of character for a drow?
Cheers! And two horns up for metalheads all around the world!
