Summer Court Lovin' - Derthaad - 01/09
Sept 26, 2022 20:31:02 GMT
Riah, stephena, and 1 more like this
Post by Derthaad on Sept 26, 2022 20:31:02 GMT
Co-written with the endlessly chatty Celina
This write-up also contains Celina's write-up for A Strive for Redemption
"Truth, more dangerous than a lie."
Those are words that stuck with him since he returned from the Damphenite Tangle. If it was a younger him, a younger Derthaad, then such words would have deterred him, made him afraid of his worst fears coming to surface, would have made him give up trying to find it. But this version of him has already made up his mind and is more determined than ever. He will face what is to come.
As per what seems to be their now usual meetup hour, it is early evening as the sun hangs low, shedding some of its light through the windows of the Three Headed Dragon. And as per usual, Celina is at the bar, her gaze unfocused as she most likely is lost somewhere in her deepest thoughts. He knows that getting through grief is a long process that requires time, a shoulder to cry on... and in this case, some booze.
"Hello Celina," he says, as he sits down next to her, gesturing to the barman for another glass and, this time, a wine of better quality.
Celina is at the bar drinking when as per usual she recognizes a voice. “You know one of these days maybe I’ll surprise you”. She smiles “How are you doing Mr. Citywatch?”
Derthaad gives a small chuckle, "I'm sure you will, Miss Apple Princess. Too bad the bar isn't that much of a constant for me."
As the wine bottle and the glass are being brought in, Derthaad tackles Celina's question. 'How am I doing?' He pours himself a glass, then places the wine bottle towards Celina, lifting his glass as if to take a sip, but leaves it hanging for a moment. "Honestly... not sure. What about you?"
Celina looks to Derthaad and takes a sip of her drink “Not sure? In what sense? What happened? And how I’m doing… I’m doing great”. Celina clenches her teeth together as she puts down her drink and sighs. “Or maybe I’m not sure as well”.
Derthaad looks at Celina, his face layered with curiosity and concern. Last time he saw her this angry, gritting her teeth, was that day right after the war. "That bad, huh?"
After an awkward, needlessly long pause, he sighs. "Well... guess I'll start." His voice is more solemn than usual, not wanting to add unnecessary cheer in the air between them. Not now, at least. He takes a long sip before continuing. "So... this adventure... it was on Kavel's request. He needed a presentable crew for a respectable job."
Celina says nothing but she silently listens as Derthaad begins his story. Happy to get distracted for a moment. She takes a sip of her drink and looks over “Ok, Kavel recruited people for a job. Interesting. What was the job?”
"Meeting up with his girlfriend," he says, ending in a smile before taking a sip from his wine glass.
Celina’s eyes widened, “Girlfriend… interesting. And that required… chaperones?”. She grins waiting to hear more of this story.
"In... a way... It was mostly a matter of where we had to go." His usual demeanor has returned, his voice less mellow, now slightly brightened by the reminder of how well it felt having someone to share stories with. Celina's eyes wide with curiosity are always welcomed.
"You see, before the war, Beets, along with some friends, went to the Summer Court to recruit the help of a gem dragon. Among those friends was Kavel. In their travels, they ended up in a place called the Damphenite Tangle, a place where a massive society of fairies live. I... don't know much of the details... but what I do know is that there was a duel between Kavel and their leader, by the name of Nathalie Walnut." Derthaad pauses for a bit, trying to come up with a better explanation, but gives up. "The two seemed to have fallen in love by the end of that duel."
Celina grins hearing everything. “Ha, oh wow. Wow, Wow. They had one duel and fell in love. You sure it wasn’t a spell or something?”. Celina chuckles and sips her drink. “So you were there to help guide them to this Damp… Damphate Tangle place? What’s so dangerous going to the Summer Courts? Aren’t they easy enough with the right spell?”
"Damphenite and, well, first of all, it's the Feywilds. You never know what's going to happen. And secondly, I wasn't there the first time, when it happened, I only heard it from Kavel. So it was more me asking him for directions and trying to go off of that."
“Ok true”, and Celina nods to continue.
Derthaad stops for a second before continuing, eyeing Celina as leans in. "And, knowing Kavel, I am pretty sure there wasn't any spell involved."
Celina laughs out loud “Ha”. And sips her drink listening in silence to the rest of the story.
He then pulls back, continuing with his retelling. "Our destination was in the Summer Court, in an area called Spiritland Valley. It was, as you'd expect from something in the Feywilds, a tropical paradise, something you'd find in the picture books. But, just as one would expect... it was hot... like, sweltering hot... and humid. Never was I so grateful for knowing Prestidigitation, it really helped keeping the clothes cool," he says, taking a sip as if he'd just toasted in the name of said cantrip.
"The Damphenite Tangle was in the heart of this valley. It looked like a cavernous canyon and it seemed deeper than the sunlight was able to go. Either that or it was the ambient fey magic that made it like that. That's the thing with the Feywilds, there's so much ambient magic that you don't know what effects are magical and what are naturally occurring. Heck," he chuckles, "when we looked down over the ledge, both Kavel and Sorrel seemed to have gotten a bit dizzy. I mean, we both know them. We know how tough those two are. And yet they got dizzy by just... looking down," he says, still not believing it for himself. "So yeah, that place was covered in fey magic."
“They got dizzy from looking down from the heights? Or the heat? Or just the magic in general?”
"I think it was just the magic," he says, still pondering his answer. "I felt it as well, but myself and Taz were able to shake it off. Kavel, Sorrel and Felix, on the other hand, seemed a bit woozy, but only for a short moment."
“Do you mean Tayz?”, Celina starts to wonder if Derthaad said the wrong name. She’s never heard of Taz before.
“Right, well, that's magic for you. Unpredictable. But you’re used to the magic… ha no surprised”. Celina chuckles and looks over to hear more.
Derthaad raises an eyebrow at her in surprise. "Taz, as in Tazmuck, 7ft tall red dragonborn with black armor with crimson details and a longsword of similar fashion." Derthaad's confusion then dissipates as he realizes that, up until this event, he only met Taz once before. "Anyway," he waves it off "you've clearly seen him around. It's impossible for someone like him not to be noticed."
Celina grins “A red dragonborn? Ha, any relation to you?”. She reaches for her drink to take a sip “But no, I have not seen this person. I will keep my eyes peeled going forward”.
He eye Celina at the mention of 'relatives', but says nothing of it. He continues his story after taking another sip of his wine, taking a moment to appreciate the taste now that the wine is no longer a cheap means towards getting drunk, but a pleasant medium to share a story with. "The one Kavel wanted to see, Nathalie, was deep within this canyon and in order to get there, we had to jump in. On the way down bit, there seems to have been some effect akin to the Feather Fall spell, however, we couldn't just jump down straight away. You see," he gestures as if, for a moment, is performing a lecture, "sprites are pretty small, which means that their establishments are pretty small, which means that two 7ft tall dragonborns and a 7 and a half ft tall Kavel wouldn't particularly fit that well. Thankfully, we were provided a batch of potions to help with reducing our size and thus we were able to squeeze in."
At the sound of people getting smaller, Celina laughs “Wait… so you had to get super duper tiny?”
"Well, we're talking about sprites here, so yes we had to become pretty tiny. Hilariously enough, the dragonborns and goliath of the group were still taller," Derthaad says with a smirk. "However, don't be fooled, the Damphenite sprites are a warrior group. Their attire and their mannerisms suggested that."
"Upon arrival, Kavel expected to be greeted by Nathalie herself, since she was their commander and leader. However, we were greeted by their second-in-command, a sprite by the name of Sterel. Reason for that? Well... there was a level of unease among them."
“Let me guess they didn’t trust you all”, Celina looks over to Derthaad see if she’s correct
Derthaad pauses for a moment, very slightly flexing his left hand as he remembers the way Nathalie and the rest of the sprites have reacted to him once they found out about his... mark, the way they have looked at him with distrust, as if he's been branded as an enemy. "Partly... but no, it was something else. And we were about to find out."
“Ohh mysterious”, Celina sips her drink waiting for Derthaad to continue.
"Sterel led us deeper into their caverns. That entire place had a... weird feeling to it. As if it should be underwater, but the walls were as dry as a desert. Can't say the same about the air, it was humid. Seems that, the aspect of the place, was due to that one archfey dude called Ulorian. At some point they were at war against the Wandering Court and he tried to drown their entire civilization by sending an entire river through the tangle." Derthaad takes another sip as he continues. "As we were guided deeper, Sterel also told us that Nathalie isn't just their commander, but also their spiritual leader, the one with the strongest connections to their ancestors. She said that two days prior to our arrival, Nathalie said something was coming. But... that wasn't their main reason for their unease."
“Ohhh what was the reason? It wasn’t your presence… but something else?”, Celina asks questioningly.
"We found out once we reached one of their sacred places. Reaching there was something on its own, but thankfully, through some clever use of ropes and Feather Falls, we got to the bottom." Derthaad downs the rest of his drink and, as per usual, refills both of their glasses. "Hmh, better tasting wine does make the storytelling more... pleasant," he says with a smile towards Celina.
"Anyway, one of their interesting features is the lighting. They have these massive columns of magenta-coloured crystal that seem to capture the sunlight from above. It seemed this was their main method of illumination down there. But where we landed, the light was darker, dimmer, but not impossible to see. Where did we land, you might ask? To a meditation circle; indigo and violet carvings and lines on the ground, matching the crystal column extending high above. It is here that we found the source of their tension. We found Nathalie... still, barely breathing, the light of her wings gone dim."
Celina looks confused "Wait Nathalie...? What happened? Was she… dead?"
Derthaad shakes his head. "On our way down, Sterel was kind enough to tell us more about them, most importantly the magenta crystal that seemed scattered all over the place. She said it is their 'Guide and Protector'. She explained that the strongest among them become attuned to the crystal and are able to use it to travel the realm through a place they call the 'Spirit Road'. It's a sort of Astral Projection in that your spirit travels but your body remains behind."
Derthaad takes a break, long enough to take a sip, taking in Celina's curious look. "However, there is a warning to this. One should not walk it alone. And Nathalie did just that. Sterel said that she woke up one day, sensing that something was coming, so she went in two days before we arrived. Nathalie is the strongest among them, but her going in alone and for so long was still a matter of concern."
Celina listens while sipping her drink. “So this Nathalie thought she was strong enough to do it all alone? Ha strong lady. Sounds like a good match for a strong Goliath”.
"That was the thing... although she was strong, her appearance suggested that there was a possibility that she may have gotten into something that was too much even for her." Derthaad takes another sip of his wine, enjoying the taste of this one way more. "The council... I think… can't remember what they were... they tried to get in, to find her in the Spirit Road and help her, but somehow Nathalie was blocking them. They needed someone with a strong connection to her."
He grins, eyes turning towards Celina. "And this is where our main man Kavel comes in. Due to their 'meeting' during the Summer Solstice celebrations, he had the strongest connection to Nathalie. Hence, he was fit to enter and help Nathalie. And, by extension, and the rule of ‘never walk the Spirit Road alone’, we tagged along in this... 'journey'."
Celina chuckles “Ha, ok I see it now”. Celina sips more of her drink “So, what happened next? Did he find her instantly?”
"Not... quite. There was some sort of challenge... a test. Sterel said that only the strong can walk the Spirit Road." Derthaad then pauses for a moment, thinking strongly on how much he wants to reveal. 'Not yet...' he thinks to himself. "Thankfully," he continues after taking another sip of his wine, "we were all strong enough to pass. It wasn't long after that we found Nathalie."
"She was indeed fighting something, something made out of... shadows? We helped dispatch it. She then told us that there were more of those things and that she has yet to find out from where or by whom they were sent."
"In the end," he says with a wave of his left hand which, at a quick glance, seems to have its palm bandaged, "we helped, she was grateful, most notably to Kavel, of course, we got back and everything was well." He quickly downs the rest of his wine glass and reaches for the bottle to refill both their glasses as he glances towards Celina. "Your turn."
Celina stops mid sip “Wait wait wait. I still have questions….”. She smiles and sits back in her chair “Like what did your tests entail? Was it a group one or individuals? What did you see or have to do?”
Derthaad takes a deep breath. Alas, he wasn't quick enough. "Individual," he answers briefly. "And for the test... we each had to face our greatest fears."
“Oh shiiit”, Celina looks surprised. Then she looks over to Derthaad. She immediately feels concern and curiosity. She has to know “So, care to share what you saw?”.
Derthaad smirks at that question, but upon turning towards Celina, seeing her look of concern, genuine concern, his smirk drops, leaving only a fraction of it behind. 'She's concerned... for my well being? Why? Since when is Ms. Apple Princess this concerned for me?' he thinks to himself. He then shakes the thought away as he tilts his glass towards Celina. "Your turn," he says "and maybe I'll feel inspired to tell you more about it. Don't want to hog all the time and attention just like last time," he finishes with a wry smile.
Celina laughs and then replies “Fine”. She takes a sip of her drink “So, Toothy was looking for help. Sardaq, Toothy’s ex lover or friend, was also helping out. So he managed to get a group. I decided to help out because… I’m amazing”, she grins. “Toothy was saying we had to go fight a bunch of Loviatans. This is when trouble arose. Half of the group was split on what to do. Some wanted to kill them right out and others wanted to try reason with them. Here’s the thing: there's no reasoning with Loviatans. They are only there to inflict pain. Have you ever come across them before?”.
Derthaad rests his chin, pondering on the question, scouring his mind for something that may be related to what she's talking about. "Loviatan... maybe? Not quite sure. Where did you meet these individuals, exactly?"
“I came across these once before in the Angel Bark Forest, they are nasty things. Get inside your head, make you see the thing you want and… then bring immense pain. They can all go to hell for what I care”, Celina grumbles
Derthaad, still pondering, is trying to figure out if and where he may have heard of Loviatans before, but his focus shifts out of it at her last statement. He takes in a sharp breath, then releases with the realization of what may have happened, of what those things may have shown her... of what exactly was taken from her... again. He looks at her with concern, understanding now where the sliver of anger from earlier came from. "Where did you find these? And, did you guys deal with them?"
“Just north of Feythorn. And yes we came across them again. We managed to find an abandoned house of sorts, we were informed that they would pass by. We had a sorta plan. We would all hide and wait to see what would happen as they pass and then surprise attack them. Sure enough a few moments later, a Loviatan turned up. Then summoned a bunch more creatures to join and fight against us. It was a tough battle not gonna lie. Like I said, Loviatans enjoy inflicting pain. This one really enjoyed it. They managed to get into all our heads… well you can’t see what happens when they get in your head. But it usually ends with someone screaming in rage or pain. It’s… shitty thing. I think this is finally when the rest of the group decided they got onboard and stopped them. This particular Loviatan turned up and summoned a freakin' abomination thing. I thought I could nearly stop it… I thought I nearly had it but it got inside my head and…”, Celina pauses for a moment and takes a sip of her drink. She debates: how much was she willing to share with Derthaad? “It was… unpleasant and I got extremely angry after”.
"There's only one thing that could have made you that upset," Derthaad grumbles. Celina also grumbles as she sips her drink, glaring into the distance.
Derthaad lifts his glass to take another sip, but stops, glass suspended in front of him. He knows that one can only drink his problems away for so long. He came to her the first time to have her unload this anger, this grief. In these past weeks, he's seen how well it feels to have someone to talk to. A silence has been set in between the two, neither one of them wanting to share more than they should. But they needed to talk.
They both needed to talk.
Derthaad finally relents. "A decade ago... I lost my squad. I was the only one alive... when I normally shouldn't have been. One of my greatest fears... is to be the one convicted for their deaths." He looks over at Celina to see her reaction. "In case you were wondering what I have seen on the Spirit Road."
Celina looks over. She’s surprised to hear this. She figured nothing would have phased Mr Citywatch but there it was. She stares at him, feeling more concern but curiosity takes over. Derthaad hasn’t opened up like this before. She wants to know more. “Why… why would you be blamed? Did you do something?”
"That's the thing... I don't know. All I know is that I was alive and they were not. I was left alive when, by all accounts, I shouldn't." He fully downs his glass, almost chugging it. "Maybe it was just the panic of the moment... but I always felt that if I were to go back, if I were to give account as to what happened... I would be found guilty. I had nothing to prove it wasn't me."
Celina stares over “What did you do after? Did you just… runaway?”. Celina pauses for a moment waiting to hear what Derthaad will say.
Derthaad nods. "Didn't know what else to do at the time. In the panic of the moment I ran until I reached Waterdeep, which was quite far from where I was, and from there... it's a boring story."
Celina is completely taken aback. She didn’t expect Derthaad of all people to run away. To do something… exactly like she’s done. As she’s processing the information she nods and replies “Interesting”.
She looks over to Derthaad, unsure what to say to comfort him. Eventually she replies “Being blamed for something you didn’t do… huh? It sucks. Well if it’s any consolation knowing you… I highly doubt you did anything to be worried about. Sounds like there’s more going on behind what could have caused that. Like magic or something… but the fear holding you back. I know that feeling…”
Derthaad looks over at her, a single, half surprised half curious, eyebrow raised. He didn't know what to expect from her. And not even after her reply he wasn't able to formulate another version. He was slightly pleased that Celina of all people was actually trying to comfort him.
"Oh? Care to share? Or are we digging too deep?"
Maybe it’s the booze or the fact that she's enjoying the chats but she decides to share something. Images of a face she’d forgotten about come swirling into view, Ludwig. Celina sighs “My old boyfriend died… right in front of me. Let’s say he had an interesting hobby and was selling some… things and then some shady people came looking for him. Things got heated… and I was… well… not strong as I am now. They injured me and killed him. I fled after that… and some people pin his murder on me. Their word against mine. I would never have hurt him. I loved him… or at least thought I loved him. That was until Sammy. And now that’s also ended in death…”, Celina immediately regrets being so truthful. “Fuck”. It feels weird, she gets the bartender's attention and asks for four shots of anything. Celina sits in silence until the shots arrive. Once they’re in front of her she downs three of them one after the other. She sighs a bit of relief and nudged the last shot to Derthaad’s “You want?”
"I'm sorry you had to go through the same ordeal twice," he says, accepting the shot from Celina. "Gotta admit, you're stronger than me on that. Love is... still something I have yet to go back to. Part of me still fears that the same thing will happen if I do. That I may lose that person as well." He then downs the shot glass, releasing a sharp exhale as he feels the sting of the strong liquor going down his throat. "Be it friend of foe, I wouldn't wish it upon anyone." He places the shot glass face down on the counter.
"Speaking of hobbies, you should really find one better than drinking."
Celina listens to Derthaad and she nods along. She’s not sure she wants to give love a go again either. Then she thinks back to it and realizes that Sammy came out of the blue. She was still moaning Ludwig when she found him. Crazy things happen. She goes back to take a sip of her drink but she ends up taking a big sip hearing Derthaad’s comment. “HEY! I think it’s a pretty good hobby”, Celina grins towards Derthaad. “What do you want me to take up painting or something? Ha, that ain’t happening”.
Derthaad downs his wine glass and places it face down as well. "That would be for you to decide,'' he says, returning her grin. "Well..." he continues, getting up from his stall, "I shall be taking my leave. Pleasure talking with you, as always. Until we meet again..." he then places a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "stay safe."
Celina looks up to Derthaad. She has been enjoying their conversation. She doesn’t want him to leave. A sudden wave washes over her, she starts “Don’t…”, she trails off confused at the sudden thought. She wanted to follow up ‘leave’ but doesn’t know why. She stops herself from saying that. She shake the thought out of her heads and realizes she needs something to reply with else. She quickly thinks on the spot and replies “forget to pay your tab… ha”. She chuckles, “See you Derthaad”. She picks up her drink and stays sitting drinking with her thoughts.
As Celina is mid-way through taking another sip, she sees a blue spectral hand placing a single gold piece on the counter in front of her before disappearing, followed by the same trick he's been using so many times, that voice in her head.
"I heard horticulture is a nice hobby."
This write-up also contains Celina's write-up for A Strive for Redemption
"Truth, more dangerous than a lie."
Those are words that stuck with him since he returned from the Damphenite Tangle. If it was a younger him, a younger Derthaad, then such words would have deterred him, made him afraid of his worst fears coming to surface, would have made him give up trying to find it. But this version of him has already made up his mind and is more determined than ever. He will face what is to come.
As per what seems to be their now usual meetup hour, it is early evening as the sun hangs low, shedding some of its light through the windows of the Three Headed Dragon. And as per usual, Celina is at the bar, her gaze unfocused as she most likely is lost somewhere in her deepest thoughts. He knows that getting through grief is a long process that requires time, a shoulder to cry on... and in this case, some booze.
"Hello Celina," he says, as he sits down next to her, gesturing to the barman for another glass and, this time, a wine of better quality.
Celina is at the bar drinking when as per usual she recognizes a voice. “You know one of these days maybe I’ll surprise you”. She smiles “How are you doing Mr. Citywatch?”
Derthaad gives a small chuckle, "I'm sure you will, Miss Apple Princess. Too bad the bar isn't that much of a constant for me."
As the wine bottle and the glass are being brought in, Derthaad tackles Celina's question. 'How am I doing?' He pours himself a glass, then places the wine bottle towards Celina, lifting his glass as if to take a sip, but leaves it hanging for a moment. "Honestly... not sure. What about you?"
Celina looks to Derthaad and takes a sip of her drink “Not sure? In what sense? What happened? And how I’m doing… I’m doing great”. Celina clenches her teeth together as she puts down her drink and sighs. “Or maybe I’m not sure as well”.
Derthaad looks at Celina, his face layered with curiosity and concern. Last time he saw her this angry, gritting her teeth, was that day right after the war. "That bad, huh?"
After an awkward, needlessly long pause, he sighs. "Well... guess I'll start." His voice is more solemn than usual, not wanting to add unnecessary cheer in the air between them. Not now, at least. He takes a long sip before continuing. "So... this adventure... it was on Kavel's request. He needed a presentable crew for a respectable job."
Celina says nothing but she silently listens as Derthaad begins his story. Happy to get distracted for a moment. She takes a sip of her drink and looks over “Ok, Kavel recruited people for a job. Interesting. What was the job?”
"Meeting up with his girlfriend," he says, ending in a smile before taking a sip from his wine glass.
Celina’s eyes widened, “Girlfriend… interesting. And that required… chaperones?”. She grins waiting to hear more of this story.
"In... a way... It was mostly a matter of where we had to go." His usual demeanor has returned, his voice less mellow, now slightly brightened by the reminder of how well it felt having someone to share stories with. Celina's eyes wide with curiosity are always welcomed.
"You see, before the war, Beets, along with some friends, went to the Summer Court to recruit the help of a gem dragon. Among those friends was Kavel. In their travels, they ended up in a place called the Damphenite Tangle, a place where a massive society of fairies live. I... don't know much of the details... but what I do know is that there was a duel between Kavel and their leader, by the name of Nathalie Walnut." Derthaad pauses for a bit, trying to come up with a better explanation, but gives up. "The two seemed to have fallen in love by the end of that duel."
Celina grins hearing everything. “Ha, oh wow. Wow, Wow. They had one duel and fell in love. You sure it wasn’t a spell or something?”. Celina chuckles and sips her drink. “So you were there to help guide them to this Damp… Damphate Tangle place? What’s so dangerous going to the Summer Courts? Aren’t they easy enough with the right spell?”
"Damphenite and, well, first of all, it's the Feywilds. You never know what's going to happen. And secondly, I wasn't there the first time, when it happened, I only heard it from Kavel. So it was more me asking him for directions and trying to go off of that."
“Ok true”, and Celina nods to continue.
Derthaad stops for a second before continuing, eyeing Celina as leans in. "And, knowing Kavel, I am pretty sure there wasn't any spell involved."
Celina laughs out loud “Ha”. And sips her drink listening in silence to the rest of the story.
He then pulls back, continuing with his retelling. "Our destination was in the Summer Court, in an area called Spiritland Valley. It was, as you'd expect from something in the Feywilds, a tropical paradise, something you'd find in the picture books. But, just as one would expect... it was hot... like, sweltering hot... and humid. Never was I so grateful for knowing Prestidigitation, it really helped keeping the clothes cool," he says, taking a sip as if he'd just toasted in the name of said cantrip.
"The Damphenite Tangle was in the heart of this valley. It looked like a cavernous canyon and it seemed deeper than the sunlight was able to go. Either that or it was the ambient fey magic that made it like that. That's the thing with the Feywilds, there's so much ambient magic that you don't know what effects are magical and what are naturally occurring. Heck," he chuckles, "when we looked down over the ledge, both Kavel and Sorrel seemed to have gotten a bit dizzy. I mean, we both know them. We know how tough those two are. And yet they got dizzy by just... looking down," he says, still not believing it for himself. "So yeah, that place was covered in fey magic."
“They got dizzy from looking down from the heights? Or the heat? Or just the magic in general?”
"I think it was just the magic," he says, still pondering his answer. "I felt it as well, but myself and Taz were able to shake it off. Kavel, Sorrel and Felix, on the other hand, seemed a bit woozy, but only for a short moment."
“Do you mean Tayz?”, Celina starts to wonder if Derthaad said the wrong name. She’s never heard of Taz before.
“Right, well, that's magic for you. Unpredictable. But you’re used to the magic… ha no surprised”. Celina chuckles and looks over to hear more.
Derthaad raises an eyebrow at her in surprise. "Taz, as in Tazmuck, 7ft tall red dragonborn with black armor with crimson details and a longsword of similar fashion." Derthaad's confusion then dissipates as he realizes that, up until this event, he only met Taz once before. "Anyway," he waves it off "you've clearly seen him around. It's impossible for someone like him not to be noticed."
Celina grins “A red dragonborn? Ha, any relation to you?”. She reaches for her drink to take a sip “But no, I have not seen this person. I will keep my eyes peeled going forward”.
He eye Celina at the mention of 'relatives', but says nothing of it. He continues his story after taking another sip of his wine, taking a moment to appreciate the taste now that the wine is no longer a cheap means towards getting drunk, but a pleasant medium to share a story with. "The one Kavel wanted to see, Nathalie, was deep within this canyon and in order to get there, we had to jump in. On the way down bit, there seems to have been some effect akin to the Feather Fall spell, however, we couldn't just jump down straight away. You see," he gestures as if, for a moment, is performing a lecture, "sprites are pretty small, which means that their establishments are pretty small, which means that two 7ft tall dragonborns and a 7 and a half ft tall Kavel wouldn't particularly fit that well. Thankfully, we were provided a batch of potions to help with reducing our size and thus we were able to squeeze in."
At the sound of people getting smaller, Celina laughs “Wait… so you had to get super duper tiny?”
"Well, we're talking about sprites here, so yes we had to become pretty tiny. Hilariously enough, the dragonborns and goliath of the group were still taller," Derthaad says with a smirk. "However, don't be fooled, the Damphenite sprites are a warrior group. Their attire and their mannerisms suggested that."
"Upon arrival, Kavel expected to be greeted by Nathalie herself, since she was their commander and leader. However, we were greeted by their second-in-command, a sprite by the name of Sterel. Reason for that? Well... there was a level of unease among them."
“Let me guess they didn’t trust you all”, Celina looks over to Derthaad see if she’s correct
Derthaad pauses for a moment, very slightly flexing his left hand as he remembers the way Nathalie and the rest of the sprites have reacted to him once they found out about his... mark, the way they have looked at him with distrust, as if he's been branded as an enemy. "Partly... but no, it was something else. And we were about to find out."
“Ohh mysterious”, Celina sips her drink waiting for Derthaad to continue.
"Sterel led us deeper into their caverns. That entire place had a... weird feeling to it. As if it should be underwater, but the walls were as dry as a desert. Can't say the same about the air, it was humid. Seems that, the aspect of the place, was due to that one archfey dude called Ulorian. At some point they were at war against the Wandering Court and he tried to drown their entire civilization by sending an entire river through the tangle." Derthaad takes another sip as he continues. "As we were guided deeper, Sterel also told us that Nathalie isn't just their commander, but also their spiritual leader, the one with the strongest connections to their ancestors. She said that two days prior to our arrival, Nathalie said something was coming. But... that wasn't their main reason for their unease."
“Ohhh what was the reason? It wasn’t your presence… but something else?”, Celina asks questioningly.
"We found out once we reached one of their sacred places. Reaching there was something on its own, but thankfully, through some clever use of ropes and Feather Falls, we got to the bottom." Derthaad downs the rest of his drink and, as per usual, refills both of their glasses. "Hmh, better tasting wine does make the storytelling more... pleasant," he says with a smile towards Celina.
"Anyway, one of their interesting features is the lighting. They have these massive columns of magenta-coloured crystal that seem to capture the sunlight from above. It seemed this was their main method of illumination down there. But where we landed, the light was darker, dimmer, but not impossible to see. Where did we land, you might ask? To a meditation circle; indigo and violet carvings and lines on the ground, matching the crystal column extending high above. It is here that we found the source of their tension. We found Nathalie... still, barely breathing, the light of her wings gone dim."
Celina looks confused "Wait Nathalie...? What happened? Was she… dead?"
Derthaad shakes his head. "On our way down, Sterel was kind enough to tell us more about them, most importantly the magenta crystal that seemed scattered all over the place. She said it is their 'Guide and Protector'. She explained that the strongest among them become attuned to the crystal and are able to use it to travel the realm through a place they call the 'Spirit Road'. It's a sort of Astral Projection in that your spirit travels but your body remains behind."
Derthaad takes a break, long enough to take a sip, taking in Celina's curious look. "However, there is a warning to this. One should not walk it alone. And Nathalie did just that. Sterel said that she woke up one day, sensing that something was coming, so she went in two days before we arrived. Nathalie is the strongest among them, but her going in alone and for so long was still a matter of concern."
Celina listens while sipping her drink. “So this Nathalie thought she was strong enough to do it all alone? Ha strong lady. Sounds like a good match for a strong Goliath”.
"That was the thing... although she was strong, her appearance suggested that there was a possibility that she may have gotten into something that was too much even for her." Derthaad takes another sip of his wine, enjoying the taste of this one way more. "The council... I think… can't remember what they were... they tried to get in, to find her in the Spirit Road and help her, but somehow Nathalie was blocking them. They needed someone with a strong connection to her."
He grins, eyes turning towards Celina. "And this is where our main man Kavel comes in. Due to their 'meeting' during the Summer Solstice celebrations, he had the strongest connection to Nathalie. Hence, he was fit to enter and help Nathalie. And, by extension, and the rule of ‘never walk the Spirit Road alone’, we tagged along in this... 'journey'."
Celina chuckles “Ha, ok I see it now”. Celina sips more of her drink “So, what happened next? Did he find her instantly?”
"Not... quite. There was some sort of challenge... a test. Sterel said that only the strong can walk the Spirit Road." Derthaad then pauses for a moment, thinking strongly on how much he wants to reveal. 'Not yet...' he thinks to himself. "Thankfully," he continues after taking another sip of his wine, "we were all strong enough to pass. It wasn't long after that we found Nathalie."
"She was indeed fighting something, something made out of... shadows? We helped dispatch it. She then told us that there were more of those things and that she has yet to find out from where or by whom they were sent."
"In the end," he says with a wave of his left hand which, at a quick glance, seems to have its palm bandaged, "we helped, she was grateful, most notably to Kavel, of course, we got back and everything was well." He quickly downs the rest of his wine glass and reaches for the bottle to refill both their glasses as he glances towards Celina. "Your turn."
Celina stops mid sip “Wait wait wait. I still have questions….”. She smiles and sits back in her chair “Like what did your tests entail? Was it a group one or individuals? What did you see or have to do?”
Derthaad takes a deep breath. Alas, he wasn't quick enough. "Individual," he answers briefly. "And for the test... we each had to face our greatest fears."
“Oh shiiit”, Celina looks surprised. Then she looks over to Derthaad. She immediately feels concern and curiosity. She has to know “So, care to share what you saw?”.
Derthaad smirks at that question, but upon turning towards Celina, seeing her look of concern, genuine concern, his smirk drops, leaving only a fraction of it behind. 'She's concerned... for my well being? Why? Since when is Ms. Apple Princess this concerned for me?' he thinks to himself. He then shakes the thought away as he tilts his glass towards Celina. "Your turn," he says "and maybe I'll feel inspired to tell you more about it. Don't want to hog all the time and attention just like last time," he finishes with a wry smile.
Celina laughs and then replies “Fine”. She takes a sip of her drink “So, Toothy was looking for help. Sardaq, Toothy’s ex lover or friend, was also helping out. So he managed to get a group. I decided to help out because… I’m amazing”, she grins. “Toothy was saying we had to go fight a bunch of Loviatans. This is when trouble arose. Half of the group was split on what to do. Some wanted to kill them right out and others wanted to try reason with them. Here’s the thing: there's no reasoning with Loviatans. They are only there to inflict pain. Have you ever come across them before?”.
Derthaad rests his chin, pondering on the question, scouring his mind for something that may be related to what she's talking about. "Loviatan... maybe? Not quite sure. Where did you meet these individuals, exactly?"
“I came across these once before in the Angel Bark Forest, they are nasty things. Get inside your head, make you see the thing you want and… then bring immense pain. They can all go to hell for what I care”, Celina grumbles
Derthaad, still pondering, is trying to figure out if and where he may have heard of Loviatans before, but his focus shifts out of it at her last statement. He takes in a sharp breath, then releases with the realization of what may have happened, of what those things may have shown her... of what exactly was taken from her... again. He looks at her with concern, understanding now where the sliver of anger from earlier came from. "Where did you find these? And, did you guys deal with them?"
“Just north of Feythorn. And yes we came across them again. We managed to find an abandoned house of sorts, we were informed that they would pass by. We had a sorta plan. We would all hide and wait to see what would happen as they pass and then surprise attack them. Sure enough a few moments later, a Loviatan turned up. Then summoned a bunch more creatures to join and fight against us. It was a tough battle not gonna lie. Like I said, Loviatans enjoy inflicting pain. This one really enjoyed it. They managed to get into all our heads… well you can’t see what happens when they get in your head. But it usually ends with someone screaming in rage or pain. It’s… shitty thing. I think this is finally when the rest of the group decided they got onboard and stopped them. This particular Loviatan turned up and summoned a freakin' abomination thing. I thought I could nearly stop it… I thought I nearly had it but it got inside my head and…”, Celina pauses for a moment and takes a sip of her drink. She debates: how much was she willing to share with Derthaad? “It was… unpleasant and I got extremely angry after”.
"There's only one thing that could have made you that upset," Derthaad grumbles. Celina also grumbles as she sips her drink, glaring into the distance.
Derthaad lifts his glass to take another sip, but stops, glass suspended in front of him. He knows that one can only drink his problems away for so long. He came to her the first time to have her unload this anger, this grief. In these past weeks, he's seen how well it feels to have someone to talk to. A silence has been set in between the two, neither one of them wanting to share more than they should. But they needed to talk.
They both needed to talk.
Derthaad finally relents. "A decade ago... I lost my squad. I was the only one alive... when I normally shouldn't have been. One of my greatest fears... is to be the one convicted for their deaths." He looks over at Celina to see her reaction. "In case you were wondering what I have seen on the Spirit Road."
Celina looks over. She’s surprised to hear this. She figured nothing would have phased Mr Citywatch but there it was. She stares at him, feeling more concern but curiosity takes over. Derthaad hasn’t opened up like this before. She wants to know more. “Why… why would you be blamed? Did you do something?”
"That's the thing... I don't know. All I know is that I was alive and they were not. I was left alive when, by all accounts, I shouldn't." He fully downs his glass, almost chugging it. "Maybe it was just the panic of the moment... but I always felt that if I were to go back, if I were to give account as to what happened... I would be found guilty. I had nothing to prove it wasn't me."
Celina stares over “What did you do after? Did you just… runaway?”. Celina pauses for a moment waiting to hear what Derthaad will say.
Derthaad nods. "Didn't know what else to do at the time. In the panic of the moment I ran until I reached Waterdeep, which was quite far from where I was, and from there... it's a boring story."
Celina is completely taken aback. She didn’t expect Derthaad of all people to run away. To do something… exactly like she’s done. As she’s processing the information she nods and replies “Interesting”.
She looks over to Derthaad, unsure what to say to comfort him. Eventually she replies “Being blamed for something you didn’t do… huh? It sucks. Well if it’s any consolation knowing you… I highly doubt you did anything to be worried about. Sounds like there’s more going on behind what could have caused that. Like magic or something… but the fear holding you back. I know that feeling…”
Derthaad looks over at her, a single, half surprised half curious, eyebrow raised. He didn't know what to expect from her. And not even after her reply he wasn't able to formulate another version. He was slightly pleased that Celina of all people was actually trying to comfort him.
"Oh? Care to share? Or are we digging too deep?"
Maybe it’s the booze or the fact that she's enjoying the chats but she decides to share something. Images of a face she’d forgotten about come swirling into view, Ludwig. Celina sighs “My old boyfriend died… right in front of me. Let’s say he had an interesting hobby and was selling some… things and then some shady people came looking for him. Things got heated… and I was… well… not strong as I am now. They injured me and killed him. I fled after that… and some people pin his murder on me. Their word against mine. I would never have hurt him. I loved him… or at least thought I loved him. That was until Sammy. And now that’s also ended in death…”, Celina immediately regrets being so truthful. “Fuck”. It feels weird, she gets the bartender's attention and asks for four shots of anything. Celina sits in silence until the shots arrive. Once they’re in front of her she downs three of them one after the other. She sighs a bit of relief and nudged the last shot to Derthaad’s “You want?”
"I'm sorry you had to go through the same ordeal twice," he says, accepting the shot from Celina. "Gotta admit, you're stronger than me on that. Love is... still something I have yet to go back to. Part of me still fears that the same thing will happen if I do. That I may lose that person as well." He then downs the shot glass, releasing a sharp exhale as he feels the sting of the strong liquor going down his throat. "Be it friend of foe, I wouldn't wish it upon anyone." He places the shot glass face down on the counter.
"Speaking of hobbies, you should really find one better than drinking."
Celina listens to Derthaad and she nods along. She’s not sure she wants to give love a go again either. Then she thinks back to it and realizes that Sammy came out of the blue. She was still moaning Ludwig when she found him. Crazy things happen. She goes back to take a sip of her drink but she ends up taking a big sip hearing Derthaad’s comment. “HEY! I think it’s a pretty good hobby”, Celina grins towards Derthaad. “What do you want me to take up painting or something? Ha, that ain’t happening”.
Derthaad downs his wine glass and places it face down as well. "That would be for you to decide,'' he says, returning her grin. "Well..." he continues, getting up from his stall, "I shall be taking my leave. Pleasure talking with you, as always. Until we meet again..." he then places a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "stay safe."
Celina looks up to Derthaad. She has been enjoying their conversation. She doesn’t want him to leave. A sudden wave washes over her, she starts “Don’t…”, she trails off confused at the sudden thought. She wanted to follow up ‘leave’ but doesn’t know why. She stops herself from saying that. She shake the thought out of her heads and realizes she needs something to reply with else. She quickly thinks on the spot and replies “forget to pay your tab… ha”. She chuckles, “See you Derthaad”. She picks up her drink and stays sitting drinking with her thoughts.
As Celina is mid-way through taking another sip, she sees a blue spectral hand placing a single gold piece on the counter in front of her before disappearing, followed by the same trick he's been using so many times, that voice in her head.
"I heard horticulture is a nice hobby."
