Abandoned Courtyard
Autumn 73
Talith
A Painted Swan soldier made his way down a tight alley near the Observatory. Each step reverberated off the walls on either side as he approached a dead end with some boards leaned up against the wall. The soldier caressed his hand across each board until finding its way to the right most one, which he proceeded to slide out of the way to reveal a much more narrow path which continued onwards. The path was too narrow to simply walk through, and so, after placing the board back behind him, the soldier sidestepped his way through, squeezing through the concrete walls. Roughly ten feet down, the path opened up into an abandoned courtyard with no windows in sight and an old well at its center filled with rubble and debris. The soldier waved a hand across his face as his image dissipated into thin air to reveal Talith Elinasti.
Talith had used the system designed by the group in order to make contact with Astarael. They were to meet here so that they may discuss. There was no denying that Talith was a bit nervous. He felt that he had messed up and Ethan had confirmed it.
Maybe I really should have waited… He thought to himself. But if only Ethan would have helped… or maybe…
Talith dug into his scalp as he scratched his head, fingertips led by the hand of anxiety until his bum found the edge of the well. He sat there as he ran his fingers through his hair one last time.
“You know I’ll always have your back, brother,” Vivian said. She had manifested in a seated position on the other side of the well.
“I know, Viv. It’s just frustrating. I thought I was doing the right thing. No, I WAS doing the right thing. It’s just… I should have—”
The anxious head scratching returned for a moment before Talith realized what he was doing. He took a deep breath and relaxed his hands before continuing. “How am I supposed to keep a level head when IT’S still out there? When it’s causing so much—”
His words were cut off as soon as he heard a board shifting around down the tight alleyway. He readied himself and put on his happy go lucky face that he always wore as a kid. It was then that he’d realized he should tone it back. They weren’t exactly meeting under happy circumstances. And so, he sat there with the most neutral expression he could display as he picked at his fingernails, waiting for Astarael to emerge from the alley.
Astarael
Astarael found the meeting place without much issue. The boards in the alleyway were exactly as described, and she located the correct one and squeezed down the narrow passage way with ease. Talith was sitting on the edge of the well already. He looked a little anxious. She couldn’t really blame him, after how things were left, last she saw him. She looks around the small courtyard, and not wishing to stand next to him, attempts to sit next to him on the edge of the well.
“Hi. Nice meeting spot. I’m surprised to see you so soon. But I’m glad you reached out. What’s on your mind?”
Talith
“Ah, yeah it’s a nice little place. Thanks for meeting me.” Talith’s words are a bit raspy, as if he hadn’t used his voice often today.
He glanced to Astarael as she sat down only to see that she was already eyeing him, awaiting his response. He averted his gaze. Talith found it difficult to look someone in the eye when he felt so much guilt, especially considering that someone was a person he hardly knew. Astarael didn’t seem to want to beat around the bush, no small talk, straight to the point. Though, Talith would be lying if he said he didn’t expect that she might guess as to why he asked her here.
Ahem. Talith cleared his throat, “Well, I—” his right fingers subtly latched into his knee as his left hand stressed down his left thigh. “To be honest, I just wanted to—I wanted to apologize for screwing up and putting everyone at risk…”
Talith knew it’s better to at least have the decency to look at someone when apologizing, but his eyes protested with each attempt. This was the best he could currently do.
Astarael
She can see how hard this is for him.
“I appreciate you saying that. And you should know that I’m not mad about what you did. It’s funny. I’ve found that often bravery and recklessness are two sides to the same coin. And you definitely are brave. But it was also reckless to have jumped down in that particular moment. But I also made a choice to follow you. And then use my powers. Which, I admit, was not the smartest thing to do.”
She pauses, and looks at him.
“I just… I freaked out when I saw that Inquisitor. I saw him, and totally panicked. I… spent a lot of time at the mercy of a different inquisitor. I know what they will do to get what they want. So, I wasn’t going to leave you down there alone.
“I definitely didn’t foresee how powerful he would be, though. So, you did make a mistake. I’ve made plenty, myself. What matters is if you learn from them. That’s what I aim to do. Do better next time.
“So, now you know why I followed you. Why… why did you jump down when you did?”
Talith
It was nice to hear her words. He’d expected to be scolded for his actions, so this was a pleasant surprise. If anything, it at least gave him a bit of an idea of her character. Part of him was ready to defend himself, to question Ethan’s actions, or lack thereof, but as she continued with her words, the window to bring that up seemed to sail by for the moment at least.
Talith almost forgot to breathe as he prepared to explain his own actions.
“I did what I did because—”
He couldn’t help it. What she had just said about the inquisitor seemed to claim every ounce of his focus. Before answering her question or even considering how his next question might make her feel, he gasped followed by an alarming tone as if he’d come to a realization.
“Wait! You said that you know what an inquisitor will do to get what they want—”
Like a dart piercing across the air, he snapped his attention towards Astarael, his eyes meeting hers, searching for something.
“What… will they do, Astarael? What happened to you?”
Astarael
A serious look comes across her face.
“If they think you have something they want, they will stop at nothing to get it from you. Be it information, or…”
She turns her body more to face towards Talith, pulling her cloak closer around her to warm herself from the cool air. She speaks in a lower tone. As if she’s more afraid of what she has to say being overheard, despite the privacy of the courtyard.
“When I was younger, I made a mistake. I used my powers publicly. And because of that, I was captured by the Swans. They brought me to Galoring, where I later learned I was imprisoned for about two years. It was dark, where I was held. No windows to the outside world. Time passes strangely, when you can’t tell what time of day it is. It felt like I spent a lifetime there. It could have been days, weeks, months, where I was tortured on end by one Inquisitor. Each time, he asked me to confess. To admit I was a witch, to say I had made a pact with a demon. To tell them the name of what had given me my power.
“I don’t know why I can do what I can. It’s a mystery to me.
“And so, every time he asked, I told him I had no answer. But, that never deterred him from trying. Eventually, I could bear no more. So, I told them what they wanted to hear.
“They wanted the source of my power, Talith. To learn about it. To control it, to control me. Use it for themselves.
“I know you have magic of your own. And so, I was so afraid that you, or anyone else in our group, would be captured and subjected to the same treatment. When they are determined to get something from you, there’s nothing you can do to stop them. So, I would do anything, even put myself in harms way, to stop them from capturing one of us.
“But I am worried that in staying here, trying to help…I’m worried that I’m putting all of you in even more danger. But, I feel like I have to try to do something, you know? Whatever it is they are up to in Northgate isn’t good.”
Talith
Talith absorbs every word Astarael has to say. Her tale of torture was one that Talith knew all too well and as a result, it doesn’t seem to shock him anymore than if she had told him that she had received a minor wound. That’s not to say it didn’t bother him that she had gone through this trauma, however. That being said, Astarael had undoubtedly provided the confirmation he needed. Normally, the sentiment and compassion displayed in the rest of her words wouldn’t go unnoticed by Talith, however there was a more pressing topic at hand now, and it took priority above all else.
Talith moved to his feet and looked down to Astarael, hands hanging at his side.
“Astarael, I have something to tell you that you and some of the others are likely unaware of - it will also explain why I did what I did when we were below ground. However, in order to thoroughly explain it, I’ll have to tell you a bit about my past. I won’t bother to give you every detail, only what’s essential. So please hear every word I have to say.”
Talith takes a deep breath and folds his arms. He takes a moment, seemingly contemplating something, before the words leave his lips.
“When I was eight years old, my sister, Vivian, had gone missing. Nobody ever found her and so she was presumed dead.”
Vivian holds her hand out in front of her, palm out, as she examines it.
“It was around that time, that my parents—no, those monsters, whom I lived with, began to reveal to me their true nature. Every two or three nights, sometimes longer, they would inflict pain onto me. Torture. Sharp rocks pierced the nerves in my gums, needles under my fingernails, cuts on the soles of my feet, the roof of my mouth, and it goes on. There were plenty of new tactics they’d come up with so as not to inflict too much damage in one area. They always needed new spots on my body that wouldn’t be noticed. Without going into too much unnecessary detail, this went on for eight years until Aelorean’s Crossing was taken by the Swans. That was when the rest of my friends and I, some of which you know, managed to escape.”
Talith shifts his weight a bit to his left leg.
“There was a time, while we were staying in the woods outside of Aelorean’s Crossing, that Roux and I were forced to run for our lives from a Swan. Roux was wounded and I used every ounce of my strength to carry him into a nearby cave to hide, but it did no good. The Swan had found us. Roux was already drifting in and out of consciousness and I had thrown the only weapon I had, a dagger, in an attempt to stop the swan, but I was inexperienced. I did all I could think to do. I yelled at the top of my lungs for help, and it came. The Swan was dead, scattered across the cave walls, floor, ceiling, and myself. To be completely honest, I had no idea what had happened. The man just floated and well, he was dead shortly after.
“Months later, after we took back Aelorean’s Crossing, I went back to my house. I had been having dreams of my sister still being alive there, though some were nightmares. They were so real and—I couldn’t leave it unchecked. I also knew that I finally had to face my parents, though I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t secretly hoping for some miracle. Hoping that they were forced to do what they did to me all of those years. That wasn’t the case. I entered my home and went into the ‘forbidden’ room that I was never allowed into. It was there that I saw the corpse of my father, or what was left of it. It was also there that a ritual of some sort had seemed to take place. A red candle was burning a bright red flame, the room had a horrible stench, and a blood stain into the wood was in a separate place than my father. That was when I saw my mom. I thought that maybe I could charm her with my newly discovered magic, just so that I could—”
He shakes his head.
“She mutated into a horrendous grotesque figure and attacked me. All of my magic proved ineffective and she had me pinned. She only ever kept saying how I was so loved. That’s when I noticed an old tarnished sword under my hand, seemed to come out of nowhere. I plunged it through her ear and continued until I was sure the monster had been slain. It was after the battle that I searched through the room. That was when I was finally reunited with my sister, only, she revealed to me that she had in fact died eight years prior. That was also when I had discovered that before me, my parents tortured Vivian, whom they killed when she tried to run away. She and I discovered that she and the sword I now carry are one in the same. She had no answers for me when I tried to dig deeper, to ask why my parents did what they did and what the cause and purpose was. She simply couldn’t seem to recall any valuable information.”
Talith begins to scratch a single finger on the side of his scalp.
“That’s when we found a book. It had revealed why my parents did what they did. There is a being, or was and still is, called The Suffering. Apparently, the only way to please being is to inflict pain, to inflict suffering. The more suffering there is in the world, the closer it gets to becoming full or resurrected completely. I realized that when my parents told me things like ‘you’re so special’ or ‘you’re so loved’ they didn’t mean by them. They meant by The Suffering. I was in denial at first, and kind of still am, but thinking back on it… There were times when I’m sure I saw this being, felt it. In that cave for example, after the Swan died, I heard a creature with a broken, almost undead like voice speak my name, but saw nothing. The same thing had happened to me while living with my parents after Vivian had died as well. Also, in my dreams, I would see Vivian, but sometimes she would mutate into the same grotesque figure that my mom did. There was even a time that I saw a grotesque shadow looking figure in that same cave. Within seconds, I lost consciousness only to find out I had stabbed Lumotu.
I can’t deny that there might be some connection between Vivian, The Suffering, and myself, but now I can’t help but wonder if you hold a connection as well maybe. The others from Alorean’s Crossing are aware of this being, though, I imagine that maybe this dispute between barons and baronesses is taking priority. I can’t blame them, the Swans alone are a more tangible threat.
Once we arrived here in Northgate over a year ago, we found a building where some people were performing horrendous acts. They were torturing and killing children. Bax and the others later described the scene to me, it sounded very much like previous encounters I’ve had with this Suffering. We later found a connection between the swans and that place. The Swans were taking children and giving or selling them to Grammy’s Orphanage and from there, they were given or sold to that other building to be tortured. For the past year, I’ve tried to gather more info, but it was fruitless. With the connection between the swans and the torturing of children, the best I could think of to do was to capture a higher ranking Swan alive and get answers. And so, when we saw an inquisitor, well, he’s a higher ranking Swan. I couldn’t risk the chance of letting him escape. He was right there within my grasp and yet, Ethan just stood—”
Talith is now anxiously scratching his head once more.
“Anyways, that’s why I jumped. I needed that Swan. I realize now that Ethan was being logical, practical, and I didn’t give warning, but in my experience neither of those things have gotten me anywhere in regards to the Suffering. Had I hesitated to shout in that cave, I might be dead. Had I hesitated to kill my mother, I might be dead. I’m not saying my actions were right, but I did what I felt like I needed to do and yes, I hoped, almost knew that the rest of you would jump down to help. And so yes, I’m sorry for using you all.”
Talith squats down a bit in front of Astarael, his eyes level with hers with his hands on his knees.
“But Astarael, you had said that an inquisitor tortured you, asking about a demon. That’s already enough to reinforce my logic. The higher ranking Swans have the information I’m looking for. And the fact that they’re asking you about a demon is worth noting. That book, the ritual I found at my house - The Suffering, it’s a religion Astarael. And that being seems to be it’s deity, a demon.”
Talith stands back up, watching Astarael, watching her expression. That’s when he notices something different in his peripheral. Vivian is no longer sitting on the edge of the well. She had vanished.
Astarael
Astarael gave her full attention to Talith, as he told her his story. A tale of pain. Of loss. Of…so much suffering. The suffering. She folded her hands in her lap, looking down at them while she absorbed all of the information he had just given her.
The Suffering. There seems to be so many things at work here. And all of them somehow connected to the Swans, the Inquisition. This is troubling.
“My own parents were absent, at best. Restrictive, and kept me isolated. I once thought it was because they were ashamed of me, controlling. But now I wonder if they knew more about me, about what I could do, than they let on. But I can’t even imagine the horror you lived through, having the people who raised you, claimed to love you, put you through such a nightmare. You, and your sister. Eight years is a very long time. Especially when you’re young.”
She looks up at him.
“I’m really not sure where my own powers come from. It’s possible that it could be connected to what you call the Suffering. But I think, maybe not. My source of power…it seems to be tied to storms, and lightning somehow. Most of what I can do relates to lightning somehow, anyways. But there’s more to it. There’s something else. An undercurrent of anger. At times it threatens to consume me. And…”
She hesitates. She’s never told anyone this. She’s afraid of what he’ll think of her. But, it’s reassuring to know that his own magic source seems similar to her own, anyways.
“I hear voices speak to me. Many voices, all different, but somehow, also so much like my own. Sometimes they seem to offer encouragement, suggestions. Power. But other times, they remind me of what I’m ashamed of, how weak I really am. I think it’s all connected together. The voices. The anger. The storms that were blamed on me, as a child. I gained my abilities one day, when I was very upset, and was struck by lighting. But, people around me died that horrible day. And plenty more have died at my hand since.”
She sighs deeply.
“I wish I could say that I was shocked to hear that innocent children are being used in such horrible ways, at the hands of the Swans. But, I’m not. I saw a few others, while I was imprisoned. And one was a child. It’s clear that they are attempting to gather power any way they can—and many ways at once. I don’t think that capturing an Inquisitor is currently our best bet for more information, though I can see your reasoning for that. But I think maybe we could come up with some other means to find out what’s going on. And maybe find a way to sabotage the operation.
I do feel like something brought us together. You and I, that night in the alleyway when you first spotted me. And meeting all of your friends, meeting Danica, whose own father is the reason I’m here at all. I had originally planned to get away, escape all of this. I just wanted to survive. But now, I want to do more than that. I want to hurt those who hurt me. And do everything I can to stop their plans to become more powerful. Stop them from hurting more people. ”
She looks Talith in the eyes, a determined look on her face.
“That is, if you want my help.”
Talith
There is a moment of silence as Talith contemplates all that she’s said.
He takes note of her last question. It’s not the words, but the tone, the expression that conveys her meaning. Talith holds her gaze a moment longer before nodding and responding with a tone to match her own,
“I need your help.”
After another moment, Talith stands upright again, his tone a bit lighter.
“As far as my past, it’s fine. 5 years ago—or maybe even one year ago, I would be lying, but I’ve come to terms with it all now. As far as I’m concerned, I never had any parents. That being took that away from me and I will without a doubt stop it somehow.”
He then folds his arm and ponders, placing a knuckle beneath his chin.
“Still though, if not an Inquisitor, then who? The similarities between our past is definitely something, but the contrast between our abilities only raises more questions. It seems that’s all I’ve been discovering lately, more questions..”
His eyes scan the ground, searching for an answer in thought. In quite literally the blink of an eye, his eyes find their way to Astarael.
She really is pretty.
“Ahem. Anyways, I’m sure we’ll think of something, yeah?”
Astarael
“Yes. I’m thinking that it would be good to talk to Lumotu some more. Seeing as how he’s been living there. And maybe we can set our sights on gaining some information from some lower level people, if you haven’t done that yet. You’d be surprised what people will share, when given some coin. Or, there’s other ways to gain information from them.”
They’ve been talking for a while, and the day is getting even cooler. She stands up.
“Let’s see if we can talk to Lumotu soon. And I think Sav may also know some things about the orphanage in general.”
She looks at Talith, making note of how he stands. The expression on his face.
“Talith, I’m glad you trusted me enough to share this with me. I hope that you know I’ve placed my trust in you as well. I haven’t told anyone about some of the things I told you today.”
Talith
Trust. It was indicative of a bond. Such a powerful, yet fragile thing. Now, Talith held this piece with him. It was heavy, to say the least, but he would carry it for the girl in front of him as he hoped she would do the same.
He smiled, one that reached his eyes with no hints of deceit, masks, or falsehood. It was completely pure and genuine as he looked to his new ally.
“Thank you, Astarael. Thank you for trusting me.”
Astarael
“Of course. We’re all in this together, right? We won’t get very far if we don’t trust each other.”
She moves back towards the alley, but stops and turns back to him, a smile on her face.
“You should also know that I was really amazed with the powers you used in the fight the other night. So, you should remember for the future—the best way to impress a girl is not by boasting about your abilities, but by demonstrating them.”
She gives a little wink, and leaves.
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Instant Betrayal (Talith)
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