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| + | turn:28 | ||
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| + | author:Guy and Clarys | ||
| + | </ | ||
| + | < | ||
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| + | < | ||
| + | //Written by Lindsey and Eli from 2018-03-18 through 2018-03-22// | ||
| + | //This story takes place the evening after the battle with the second largest storm giant outside of Mystvalle// | ||
| + | </ | ||
| + | |||
| + | ---- | ||
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| + | |||
| + | " | ||
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| + | Clarys stood for a moment before turning to head back towards her own quarters, her feet somewhat unsteady beneath her. Guy was in his element up here in Mystvale- he was probably out doing... whatever it was that he did. Most of the time Clarys figured it was better that she didn't know. | ||
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| + | Clarys was right. There were a lot of things Guy could have been doing. A lot of things he should have been doing, in fact, not the least important of which was sleeping, but recent events had left him distracted, to the point where he'd almost frantically fallen back into his undisguised personality. At the temple, at the gates, he'd been a very unconvincing noble. | ||
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| + | He was distracted enough that he didn't register Clarys' | ||
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| + | Guy took a deep breath, and by the time he opened the door, he was composed and smiling. " | ||
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| + | Clarys let out a snort at Guy's assumption as she led him down the short hallway, brushing her hand down the wall as she walked. "No murders that //I// know of." Through the open door, Guy could see Clarys drag a spare chair across the polished floor towards her desk. On the far wall, the fireplace was roaring, stoked high to drive away the remaining chill from the storm as the poker lay forgotten on the floor. She unceremoniously sat down in her desk chair and gestured for Guy to take the extra seat next to her. "Well, probably no murders." | ||
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| + | Her desk was in disarray, uneven stacks of papers sticking off its edges. To her side was a nearly empty wine bottle and tumbler, with an untouched glass of water pushed to the far edge. | ||
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| + | "I know I have the right words, but it's not working." | ||
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| + | Guy took in the whole scene -- the wine, the disarray, the expression on Clarys' | ||
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| + | She tapped on the paper in front of her, scribbled with notes about the day's news from Allentia. Guy recognized a rough timeline of the Order of Mystra' | ||
| + | |||
| + | " | ||
| + | |||
| + | "Our rituals don't even work anymore, Guy. Something is wrong." | ||
| + | |||
| + | This was about the last thing Guy expected Clarys to come to him about, so it took him a second to respond. "Yeah, I'd... started to put that together." | ||
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| + | Clarys picked up the empty tumbler as Guy spoke, looked at the dregs in the bottom and placed it back on the desk, tapping her nails on the fine glass and rolling the base in a circle. "I don't know. Maybe Par Prometheus was holding something together... But new things were happening before that, and he was trapped the entire time, as best I know. Last year, magic was growing, was it not? And so were our numbers- more people were joining, and her gift was used not just by our order but by others. Used to amazing effect." | ||
| + | |||
| + | " | ||
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| + | " | ||
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| + | Clarys blinked. “I knew you were kind, but you’re more optimistic than I thought, Guy.” She waved her free hand in front of the amulet around her neck. “I’ve felt her presence wax and wane before, but now it feels like a door has closed. The sword won’t even hold the edge it once did.”She drained the remnants of the bottle into the glass. “Maybe there is some truth to what you say, Guy. I truly hope there is. If it isn’t, then...” She looked into the glass, almost as if she was hoping to see something there, then gulped the remaining mouthful with a sour expression. When she finally spoke, her voice was much quieter, hitching as she talked, “Guy, if it isn’t people, if my order needs to renew our devotion to the goddess... we need to consider Her last decree.” | ||
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| + | "Her last...? Oh." Guy looked down at his hands. Kill all the magic users. That was the last decree. And with Lucious and the others flapping their lips, guess who would be the first to go. He looked up at Clarys after an uncomfortably long silence. "Would you really do that? I have to admit, for a long time, I assumed you would. I thought that was just the way the Temple of Mystra worked. But I feel like I've gotten to know you better since then. Heck, you've gotten to know me well enough..." | ||
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| + | Clarys placed the glass upside down on the desk, letting a ring of red form on her tally sheet. “I’ve sworn my life to the goddess. I promised to never question her commands. My obedience should cover every order, not just those I agree with.” She spoke deliberately and quietly, her eyes meeting Guy’s. | ||
| + | |||
| + | “I would gladly kill Zarth, and the group he represents. I’d.. deal with the White Order as well. They fight the balance their own way.” A frown passed over her face. “And many more would fall, if we didn’t first.” | ||
| + | |||
| + | She reached out to Guy’s hand, her grip firm. “I assumed I would do it too, Guy, before I met any of you. But I can’t- not completely. You wouldn’t forsake your power, and I couldn’t kill you.” | ||
| + | |||
| + | "Eh, power comes and goes. But I'm glad our relationship has progressed to the point where you no longer want to kill me." Guy often resorted to humor when he was feeling vulnerable, but his smirk quickly faded. This was important, and it was something he'd been worried about for a long time. " | ||
| + | |||
| + | Clarys smiled a little at the joke before looking away, “I don’t want this to be the answer, Guy. It terrifies me to think I’d need to give that order- I don’t want to be that person, and I don’t want to live with.. doing that to people.” | ||
| + | |||
| + | Was that her hand or Guy’s that was so sweaty? Probably hers. She looked back at him, loosening her grip slightly, “I think we can agree this past year proves we can’t predict what the future holds, but no, I don’t think much could change it. You care about what’s right.” She tried to smirk back at him, “Even if you don’t really go to the temple.” Why did he ask if she would change her mind? Did he think that some minor misstep would make her turn on him? Clarys tried to push the stinging thought back; he was rightly nervous about this talk and might not mean it like that. | ||
| + | |||
| + | "Oh, don't start thinking // | ||
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| + | “I’ve got no idea.” Clarys released her hand from Guy’s, trying to subtly wipe her palm on her pant leg before she leaned back in her chair. “At this point, I wish I were being modest when I say that. I had some things in common with some of the Pars, but that hasn’t kept them from losing their powers- or lives, as you noted. Rachel shares some of my abilities, as did Amarra. She was growing very powerful.” Clarys frowned for a moment before shaking her head. “I don’t think there is much reason to it.” | ||
| + | |||
| + | " | ||
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| + | “Of course they do, Guy. That wasn’t some little girl. She lamented the Edict’s breaking, she... said that it’s outcome wouldn’t be good. Goddess, even after //that// I thought it would be enough to guide Ladiana, to hold her back from all that destruction rather than kill her. But everything has gotten so out of hand, it’s so much worse than that drow now..” Her face flushed. Saying it out loud, Clarys felt like a fool. | ||
| + | |||
| + | A long silence passed between them before she finally spoke, “They did say Amarra had a conversation with the Lady. She admitted it herself, although I had my suspicions.” She pushed her hair back from the sides of her marred face, “I thought the goddess warned me not to trust her, but... what if I haven’t listened properly to Her? Clearly I didn’t listen before-” | ||
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| + | Clarys realized she was saying too much- those glimpses of the divine had been meant for her, these new doubts should be reflected on first. She straightened in her chair, trying to regain her composure, and found herself at a loss for words. | ||
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| + | Clarys talking to a god was something Guy couldn' | ||
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| + | "Hey, I get that there are parts of this you want to keep to yourself. I have no business digging in to temple business, or your relationship with Mystra, or even -- the point is, any time you need someone to bounce thoughts off of, now or whenever, I'm here. If nothing else, you know I can keep a secret." | ||
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| + | She relaxed a little at his reassurance. “Thank you, Guy. Maybe I did say too much, but I’m not worried that you heard it. Temple business is tough to address inside the Order- shouldn’t worry the other leaders further, shouldn’t confuse our eight-or-so followers. Shouldn’t cross a line you aren’t even aware of.” She nodded her head towards the ritual scrolls on her desk, “They need to think I know what I’m doing. | ||
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| + | “Listen, I know you choose to keep your secrets, but remember that I’m here for you too. We’ve made so many decisions that we really have no business making- don’t drive yourself mad trying to make sense of it alone. I mean, doesn’t keeping all of-“ she made a vague swirling gesture with her hand “what you do- doesn’t keeping that to yourself get exhausting? | ||
| + | |||
| + | Guy chuckled at that, and leaned back in his chair. With both of them leaning now, they were the farthest apart they'd been during this conversation. "You know, maybe it does. I'm not sure how I'd tell. I think secrets must be in my blood or something. | ||
| + | |||
| + | "You know, before I met you and we started this whole improbable adventure, one of the things I dealt in was information. Things like who'd recently bought some unusual item from whom, or who might be having an affair, or how much money each guard took and for what, or the best ways to get in and out of the city without being noticed. I know, not the most honorable profession, but it beat hauling scraps to the blacksmith, or running messages. | ||
| + | |||
| + | "When you're the only one with a piece of information, | ||
| + | |||
| + | " | ||
| + | |||
| + | Clarys listened to Guy, nodding in concentration as she tried to follow his business strategy, then breaking into a slightly bewildered grin as he grew more animated describing webs of information. Should she wipe away that wine from her blood? No, then she might have enough sense to kick him out, protect them both. | ||
| + | |||
| + | She looked at him, sitting with his eyes downcast. "I get it. Well, that last part at least. It's so hard to change. Look, it's a blessing that you don't always come at things the way I do- we'd probably be dead here. Or dead in Allentia. When I fight, I go in and get stabbed, or crushed, or set on fire, or whatever else, and I just have to trust that I have enough strength to get back up. It's not that different than how this politicking goes. Sure, I try to be diplomatic and set an example, but I know most of them are trying to play me for whatever their ends are. It's not that hard for these people to figure me out and try to use the power I stumbled into. So I try to weather those stabbings, too." She chuckled. "...So I'm sure that makes a lot of work for you. But whatever you've done, I'm not dead yet." | ||
| + | |||
| + | She let out a small sigh, a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. They would have eaten her alive here. | ||
| + | |||
| + | "And here I was thinking I'd been subtle." | ||
| + | |||
| + | "Such flattery, but at least the team thing is true" Clarys waved her hand dismissively, | ||
| + | |||
| + | It faded after a moment. "Guy, I mean it though when I say this isn't my strength. It's not the time to speak of this in public, but I've been considering stepping down.. stepping out of the ducal seat after we get Allentia used to its new role, if someone will rise to guide it right. Winthrop wasn't appointed for my absence just to placate some of the nobility." | ||
| + | |||
| + | " | ||
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| + | Clarys cocked her head to the side, "So tell me, is that some secret you're trying to hold onto, or actual speculation?" | ||
| + | |||
| + | " | ||
| + | |||
| + | At least Guy didn't immediately have dirt on hand about Winthrop. Maybe that was a good sign? She eyed the empty bottle, her expression remaining decidedly neutral. " | ||
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| + | Guy had never been much of a drinker -- not much for beer, and wine had always been too expensive -- but this was the most intense -- the most honest -- personal interaction he'd had in a very long time. "Be right back," he said, and went off to his own room. The very short walk gave him a chance to clear his mind a little, but exactly what he was thinking, he couldn' | ||
| + | |||
| + | "Sorry that took so long," he said, sitting down and filling his glass half way. " | ||
| + | |||
| + | She paused and turned the glass on the desk right side up. "Only a little, please." | ||
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| + | "What you were saying about betting on Winthrop- that's what I'm worried about. He seems okay, even good, but maybe he's just a better actor. I hope leaving him in charge might provide some insight, but what if he just behaves himself for these weeks? The city has gone through so much, handing it over to another person looking to exploit it would undo the little progress we've made. And once I'm out of that circle, I doubt the nobility would be glad to have me back, even as Par. And with that, your legitimate access to the palace would be gone, wouldn' | ||
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| + | "Eh, I could take it or leave it. My back's been spoiled by fancy beds anyway. I need a thin pile of straw on stone, a ceiling I can reach lying down, and maybe the sound of slowly dripping water in the background if I'm really in the mood for luxury. Winthrop' | ||
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| + | “To loyalty.” She raised her glass and took a sip, trying to hide the sour face from this disgusting stuff. Sure, Clarys indulged in drink- this year had been stressful, and the brandy and ales afforded to her new station could be surprisingly good. But wine couldn’t be palatable again. | ||
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| + | "Do you really think they wouldn' | ||
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| + | “Oh, they wouldn’t keep me from being Par, they’d just keep me from being relevant. Only 50 paladin left- not as much of a reason for them to care about the Order as when we had hundreds.” | ||
| + | |||
| + | She raised an eyebrow at Guy’s glass, “You’re going to have to make a lot more toasts if you’re going to catch up with me.” A crooked grin crossed her face, “Not that I’m encouraging such an irresponsible thing.” | ||
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| + | Guy raised his glass and looked through it as he swirled the wine around. "The trick is to get the other person to drink, and just make them think you're matching them. Tilt the glass back more than you have to but just sip, and refill often. If you angle the bottle just right --" He demonstrated by quickly tilting it over his glass. "-- there it goes. You get that same sound you'd get if you were really pouring. I once used that trick get a man who was accusing his wife of cheating to admit that he was doing it too. But I guess tonight isn't a night for tricks." | ||
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| + | "Can I ask you a question? I know it's prying, so you say the word and I'll shut up about it... Clarys... hasn't always been your name. From what I can piece together -- not from any deep digging, just overhearing things here and there -- you used to go by ' | ||
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| + | “I guess it’s not even prying at this point. I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed if you’re hoping for something as dramatic as how you use all those names.” | ||
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| + | Clarys took a sip, unsure what to do with her hands otherwise. “My mom named me Aster- she liked the flower. It was tough for her.. well, you know what it’s like to have very little. So she sent me to the abbey as soon as I was able to ‘help’. Clarys was the priestess there- she was a second mother to me. I was less than grateful, in the way kids are.” She paused, looking at some nondescript spot on the floor. “When the Shinga- the blue crystal- killed them, I left. I took her name with me. It was better to leave Aster behind.” | ||
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| + | Clays glanced at her wine cup and reached, setting it far from her on the desk. “A new start, and all that.” | ||
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| + | Guy didn't know what he'd been expecting. He stared into his glass for a few seconds. "You lost the priestess, and your mother. Then you came to Allentia to track down the source of the crystal?" | ||
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| + | Clarys shook her head, “No, my mother lived in the city over, thank the goddess. I came to Allentia to serve the Order, no grand plans or anything. Vengeance had nothing to do with it- I had no idea what happened.” | ||
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| + | " | ||
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| + | She mumbled, “I didn’t really do anything, Guy. That was kind of the problem.” After a second, Clarys waved her hand, the thought brushed to the side. “That’s far in the past though. Besides, //I’ve// talked far too much tonight.” She looked thoughtful. “You insist ‘Guy’ is your actual name, so I can’t ask you that yet again... You know, for my life I can’t even think of a thread to pull to get a story out of you.” Clarys smiled, leaning back in the chair and crossing her ankle over her knee, holding her palm up. “Surprise me.” | ||
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| + | He grinned, but the wine in his glass rippled ever so slightly, betraying his true reaction to a keen observer. " | ||
| + | |||
| + | "How about I tell you the story of Wentler Barlaby?" | ||
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| + | "So I worked the richer parts of town from time to time, figuring out who was having an affair, or who was dealing with the black market, or who had certain... tastes... that others might turn up their nose at, or even who just wanted to unload on someone. There were ups and downs, which evened out over time. But one thing that always drew my eye -- don't laugh -- was what the nobles got up to at night. The parties, the balls. You know sometimes they' | ||
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| + | "By then I'd gotten pretty good at turning a bolt of cheap cloth into formal wear that was convincing at least the first time it was worn, and I was a fair hand at make-up, so I invented the noble personage of Wentler Barlaby. For months, I just planted a few key phrases here and there, got his name around, until a fair number of people were pretty sure they'd heard of him or even met him. I stole a whistle. This whistle --" Guy slipped the long silver instrument out of an inner pocket, simple in design but finely crafted, with eight holes and a delicate mouthpiece. Clarys realized she'd seen it recently, in the hand of the minstrel at that party before the negotiations. "-- and learned to play it. I can't say any of this was good for my finances, at least not in the short term, but I survived. | ||
| + | |||
| + | " | ||
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| + | " | ||
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| + | Clarys kept her smile as Guy talked, trying to hide the pang of disappointment as he spoke about the person he wasn' | ||
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| + | She looked pointedly around the richly appointed room, " | ||
| + | |||
| + | "// | ||
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| + | Guy froze. Countless lies swirled around inside his head, and any one of them -- well, maybe not that one -- could convince her. Freezing wasn't an option. He relaxed his face, no longer smiling, but at least natural, he hoped. He took a breath, as if he was about to speak, but each time a plausible lie came to the front of his mind and almost came out of his mouth, he stopped. The problem was, he didn't //want// to lie to Clarys. There were half-truths, | ||
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| + | Is he // | ||
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| + | "You know, I really care about you, Clarys. More than I thought I could care about anyone." | ||
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| + | As her concern grew, his last words cought her by surprise. “W- thank you. I care about you too.” A slightly embarrassed smile. “We’ve been through a lot, I’m so glad you’re here.” What was this? These were the kind of things that get followed with a ‘but..’, | ||
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| + | For Clarys to be that concerned, Guy had look pretty bad. Years of learning to steel his expression, to keep any emotion from leaking out, and now that was breaking down, just because she wanted to know his name. Or did it have nothing to do with that? Did she just not feel the same way he felt? Best not to find out, at least not now. | ||
| + | |||
| + | What were his options? He could tell her now, and trust that she wouldn' | ||
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| + | "I have to check on something," | ||
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| + | What in the... By the time he rounded into the hallway she couldn' | ||
| + | |||
| + | Guy listened at Mugul' | ||
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| + | "I told you that secrets are in my blood," | ||
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| + | His face upon return worried her. That was actual fear, not just his normal type of paranoia. She made to rise from her chair as he crossed the room, “I wouldn’t tell a soul, Guy. You’ve shown me who you are already, a name won’t change that. Tell me.” | ||
| + | |||
| + | "Well if it does change anything, at least give me a ten minute head start." | ||
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| + | "I think I'm going to need this," Guy said, filling his glass. He tried to drink down the entire thing, but half way through, he choked and went into a coughing fit -- a strangely quiet one, since he was trying not to wake anyone, which only made it worse for him. He just barely managed to save his glass, and Clarys' | ||
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| + | "Okay, I'll tell you my name, but it comes with a story, one that's been passed down in my family for generations, | ||
| + | |||
| + | " | ||
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| + | "But hey. Even a big fancy wizard can’t understand everything. After a couple seasons, he decided she was better off left alone. Her neighbors believed in her, and she believed in herself, and that would just have to do, especially since the hints he kept throwing her way on how to do real magic never stuck. But what he didn't realize was, something did stick, just not in the way he expected. Or maybe he did realize it and pretended not to, because he left behind a little box carved out of myrtle which had a rock inside, granite with faint green veins, which just happened to have inside it a tiny fragment of the source of all magic, and before you ask, no I don’t have it. It was lost long time ago, if it ever existed at all. | ||
| + | |||
| + | " | ||
| + | |||
| + | " | ||
| + | |||
| + | "A few months ago, I learned that Salien' | ||
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| + | "So you can see why I wasn't the biggest fan of Prometheus when we found him, and why talk of bringing back the Edict makes me a little nervous. If word spreads, then whichever followers of Mystra are left might see me as the one who got away. I've walked into dangerous situations before, but that doesn' | ||
| + | |||
| + | "So tell me. Should I start running now?" | ||
| + | |||
| + | Clarys watched Guy’s nerves play out in silence before his story began, vaguely remembering a kerchief in her pocket right after he ruined a sleeve. | ||
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| + | She had told him to surprise her, but this wasn’t what she had expected. As he launched into segments of the history that she was unfamiliar with- there wasn’t much in the libraries talking of Salien before the halflings, besides his many students- she sat motionless, trying to turn her face to stone. | ||
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| + | There was something about this story that felt... was eerie the right word? The way Guy spoke of Tuljerie and Salien felt so odd, so //off// but Clarys couldn' | ||
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| + | Halflings? Dink? And the White Order knew of this- which parts? Clarys immediately tabled that whole line of thought to untangle later. And then- like a fool- less than an hour ago she'd gone on about considering reenforcing the Edict. No wonder Guy was scared to bring this up. Sure, it made sense to be based on his powers alone, but to have family that narrowly escaped- or died by her people’s own hands... And how had Guy even managed to walk alongside Par Prometheus himself? If Clarys had been terrified of the man, then- | ||
| + | |||
| + | She realized he was asking her a question. | ||
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| + | After a long moment, Clarys stood up slowly, feeling much more tired than she had before. She carefully walked over to the fireplace, turning her back. “No, no running.” Her voice came out a little rawer than she would have liked. | ||
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| + | Guy had known that would be her answer, but it was a great relief to hear her say it. It was a relief to tell the story at all. While the information broker in him was tying together the strings of his secret and trying to keep them taut, pushing in one more pin with ' | ||
| + | |||
| + | He sat in his chair silently, staring at Clarys' | ||
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| + | The seconds drew out into a minute or so of silence. Guy stood up and joined Clarys at the fire, standing a little behind her so she wouldn' | ||
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| + | She kept watching the flames, “No.” Not sure what she had expected, but it wasn't that. Why had Salien even been killed? It had never really made sense. Would her order care if they knew his bloodline survived? If that was Guy's bloodline at all. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Clarys let the silence sit there for a bit before speaking. “Soren used to teach us a formation, that one where you line up with your shields together- I’m sure you’ve seen the militia do it poorly. It’s tough to do right, though. You have to match each other- if someone hangs back, it’s pointless. That person and those next to them are easy pickings. He used to swing a mace at us- a damn //mace//- to teach us not to flinch. Everyone got hit at some point or another. I went flying more than I want to admit. We all want to protect ourselves. But eventually you step back less, and the person next to you does too, because it hurts less that way. | ||
| + | |||
| + | "I guess what I'm saying... There' | ||
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| + | Bella, Mort, Clarys, Soren, Aurelia, Lauris, far too many paladin, even Ladiana and Asher, in their own ways. The list only grew. Guy couldn' | ||
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| + | " | ||
| + | |||
| + | She turned her head slightly towards his hand, a hint of a smile seen on the side of her face. "The shields are a metaphor, Guy. But I get what you mean." | ||
| + | |||
| + | Guy gave Clarys' | ||
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| + | "Fair enough. By the way, you didn't get me this time." She scooped the poker from the floor, giving the logs a few languorous jabs. | ||
| + | |||
| + | "I didn't get you?" | ||
| + | |||
| + | She cocked her head at him, smiling as she set the poker tip on the marble. "So you really didn't mean to do it this time? I've asked you what your real name is- and I'm still waiting." | ||
| + | |||
| + | Guy matched her smile, and folded his arms over his chest. "I guess I didn't get you, did I? It's Salien. Pretty ridiculous, right?" | ||
| + | |||
| + | “Salien, hm? I see why you went with a nickname.” | ||
| + | |||
| + | She waved her hand in front of her apologetically. “Not that it’s a bad name! Just, you know, since you were trying to be subtle.” | ||
| + | |||
| + | Clarys and Guy continued to talk, but they moved on to lighter topics -- recent events, their friends' | ||
| + | |||
| + | < | ||
| + | < | ||