[Hunt] The Pyre of the North
Astrid and Alektô join their efforts to fight the Pyre of the North
Author's Notes
8 (WC=815) +2 (Milestone) +1 (magic use Astrid and Alektô) +1 (world specific) +1 (backstory bonus) +2 (dialogue) = 15 gold x 2 (event prompt) = 30 gold
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It’s a cold and clear winter morning, and your character finds themselves in the small village of Sommerang, about a day’s brisk walk north of Faline.
Sommerang might be small, but it is prosperous: dotted around it, on rolling hills and fields edged by neatly stacked stone walls, are some of Ivras’ finest silkberry orchards. In summer and early autumn, the lattices and trellises that line the fields are all overgrown by the vines, but in winter, they lay bare, with only a tangle of dead-looking shrubbery at their feet.
As your character passes by one of the farmsteads, there is a strange, unpleasant smell on the wind. It seems to come from beyond one of the barns, and as your character watches, suddenly bright flames burst forth and begin to lick the roof, and black smoke accompanies them.
There are shouts of FIRE! and suddenly the whole village seems awash with activity. Save the barn!
Everyone’s attention is caught by the fire, but as the strange smell comes back, stronger this time, your character turns to look out towards the fields—and there, something is happening. Another fire, despite there being nothing but fallow fields to burn. From the flames, something seems to rise…
Does your character stay to help with putting out the barn fire, or do they investigate the second blaze?
Prompt 1 : a spark among dry grass
"I do not understand why you want to bring me to Faline. There are Witchfinders everywhere. I am not getting caught, I have a family to come back to."
Astrid cannot help but overthink it. She's a fighter, yes, but she's never been suicidal. And she's tired of struggling to survive. Alektô's plan stinks. Yet, when she decided earlier to assess the witch' bloodflow, prying for any sign of a potential lie, it gave nothing. Alektô must have felt the intrusion considering her side eye but she did not protest and waited for Astrid's verdict. She seemed to tell the truth.
It's cold, and Astrid is hungry. Alektô stays silent for a while as they enter Sommerang. It's a small village, lowkey reminding Astrid of her past life in Erast. They're not exactly the type to fit in considering their appearances, but the long hooded coats Alektô provided when they met actually help them meddle in. And Alektô is far from her usual extravagant attires, picking muted colors and actual pants instead.
"You're right, there are Witchfinders. But there are also powerful allies I would like you to meet. Come on, you know me."
"I don't."
Alektô's eyebrows raise up at that, hand on her heart, faking hurt. Her amused face disappears as fast as it appeared though, and she stares back with intent at Astrid.
"Have I ever put you in a position of danger ? I do remember helping you. Twice."
"You corrupted me."
"I pushed you at the best of your abilities. Corruption is yours alone. I gave my power away so you could fight back with it. I enhanced you."
"And it backfired when you intervened. I turned red. My left eye is blind. Nightmares won't let me fucking sleep."
"I heard your plea. You invoked me. You give too much credit to me and not enough to yourself, this," Alektô points to the red moon and raises her voice as Astrid was about to protest," is your magic, and yours alone. You begged for my help and I did - was I the only one you prayed for ?"
Astrid's memory provides an image of her younger self, weak and on her knees begging for strength in front of Fortune's shrine in Faline. Twice. Alektô catches the silent admission.
"Look - magic is a flow of energy. I can enhance it. I may be able to disrupt it - haven't tried yet. But I cannot create it. Your choices and actions are yours alone. Not Fortune, not me or anyone else's. They're yours. You needed the power to survive, you sacrificed a part of yourself in doing so. You didn't sacrifice it to anyone but you. You pushed too far at the time and you paid the price for it. Accept it. Embrace it, even, because it was the price for your freedom and I personally think it was worth it. But mostly, be careful not to land into that kind of trap ever again. Because if you don't, one day the thirst will be impossible to control and I won't be able to help you."
Astrid follows blindly the witch in the midst of the crowd, staring at the ground, chewing on it.
"Who are these allies ?" she concedes after a few minutes of silence.
Alektô lets a smile distord her face at the small win. She doesn't have time to answer though - FIRE abrubtly cuts their conversation. SAVE THE BARN !
Bodies rush past them in a hast, pushing them out of the way left and right. In a blink, Astrid gets engulfed in the crowd and follows the flow blindly. There's too much people, too much blood around her and her head immediately buzzes with a headache. She keeps going though, and soon enough she's in the midst of farmers to extinguish the fire with her limited water abilities.
On the other side of the village, Alektô stayed behind. Astrid ran head first in the mess, as a hot headed she is. Alektô should get used to it by now. Yet, something is odd. Her guts scream it but she cannot place her finger on it. She frowns, breathes in and out, looks around for any clue. Another round of screams catch her interest, as farmers discover another fire, further in the midst of fields, that acre smell stronger than ever. This is not normal. She grabs her detection amulet and runs towards the fields in a hast when said amulet suddenly buzzes and burns in her hand. She squints her eyes as she gets closer. In front of her intrigued stare, in the midst of winter and snowy fields, from unnatural flames seems to rise a large, dark skeleton oozing with black ichor.
A monster is born, and Faline is too far to provide immediate support. She needs Astrid, she thinks as she rushed back inside.