The Adventure

Etta is lost in her and Sann's combined agony, and is barely able to understand what's happening in reality. That is, until the Vestige decides to repel Truth-Eater. The effect severs her connection with Sann, and she gasps for breath and blinks through sweat and tears.

This damnable artifact! Why do I keep messing up?!

She glances around slowly, the simple act of turning her neck requiring tremendous effort. Gevin was near, but was also out of sorts. Had the Vestige affected him as well, or had Truth-Eater and his friend assaulted him?

She doesn't have time to call out to Gevin, as the husk is advancing rapidly, his greatsword promising a gruesome death!

Etta lurches to her feet and shoves the staff and the Vestige in front of her. Pushing past her fatigue, she yells at Truth-Eater in as commanding a tone as she can muster:

Etta: "Stop right there, or be destroyed!"

The gemstone flashes bright-red, and the husk stares at it...and stops, thankfully. In all the chaos, it apparently hadn't gotten a good look at the Vestige until now.

Truth-Eater: "What is that thing?! Why did you hide it from me?!"

Etta: "You're seriously asking that?! But I'll tell you what it is, now that I've unleashed it, and you feel its might: it's called Malkath's Vestige, and its powers are incomprehensible to one such as you. It was created centuries ago by a great and terrible wizard named Malkath. I am his direct heir, and thus able to wield this artifact."

The husk's lips twitch as it processes this: "Filthy, lying harlot! If it's as powerful as you say, you would've used it by now! And look at you! You can barely stand! Either you're exhausted from the earlier fight, or using this Vestige depletes you! I'm betting on the latter!"

Etta: "Then place your bet, husk. Come forward, and see what happens."

The husk snarls at Etta...but then stamps the ground and wails, like a toddler throwing a tantrum.

Truth-Eater: "I'm besieged by liars, backstabbers, thieves, and vermin! When will I get my deserved vengeance, and then my deserved peace?!" A long pause. "Fine. I won't attack you or Gevin...for now. But I want something in return for my...benevolence."

Etta: "I don't think so, husk. You're in no position to bargain. And you still owe us information!"

Truth-Eater: "That agreement is null and voice, because you invaded my private vengeance, and then repulsed me with that blighted artifact! I'm in a perfect position to negotiate! You two are dead on your feet! Do you really think you can make it through this wilderness unscathed, if I choose to stalk you? That Vestige may keep me at bay when you're controlling it, but what happens when you fall asleep? What happens if I find allies and ambush you? What happens----"

Etta: "Alright, alright! You've made your point! What do you want in return for being a nice husk?"

The husk licks its lips: "I want you, Etta."

Etta: "That better not mean what I think it means...."

A mocking cackle: "I don't mean physically. I know I'm...quite a sight. And I doubt I can...perform like that anymore. I mean mentally, spiritually, psychically. I believe you can use the Vestige to connect with others, right? I felt...something like that. Sann did too, I believe. Connect with me, show me your wit, grace, bravery...and your sensuality."

Now it's Etta's turn to laugh: "Sann must've knocked out some o' your brains, such as they are. Ain't no way I'm connecting with you."

Truth-Eater: "Don't think of it as connecting, then. Think of it as...buffeting me with your essence. It might make me...happy. It might change me. Isn't that what you want? I'm not pure evil, Etta, no matter what you think. Husks aren't born, they're made! I was made!"

Loathsome, vile thing. There's no joy, love, or hope within your carcass. If only we were at full strength....

Etta: "And if I...waft my essence over you, we're even? You go your way, we'll go ours?"

The husk nods, and puts his hand on his chest: "Yes. I plan to spend days chatting with Sann here anyway. You'll be long gone when I'm finished. But if we ever meet again in the far future, well...who knows what will happen then?"

Always plotting more malice, you rotting jackass....

Etta: "Fine then. I'll give it my best shot. Get ready, because I'm not keepin' this up for hours on end...."

Etta concentrates, and the Vestige finally reacts favorably to her thoughts. Swirling red magic drifts slowly towards Truth-Eater, who gapes, and even drops his greatsword in his amazement.

Here goes. I hope the bastard doesn't infect me with his villainy....

The magic meshes with the husk, and Etta feels its presence. Rage, madness, and lies worm their way into her mind. But there's also...something else? An image flashes into view: Truth-Eater as he existed in life. A lean, strong man saving a caravan from bandits, his greatsword ferociously cutting through bodies.

Was it real? A trick? Etta doesn't care. She just wants this to be over. She focuses on her selfhood: her emotions, thoughts, dreams. Then she sends this essence over to the husk. She feels resistance at first...then acceptance.

Then it's over. The Vestige goes dim, and the two stare at each other.

Truth-Eater smiles...a genuine smile, not its usual sadistic, mocking grimace: "That was...special, Etta. I mean that truly. There's more to you than I expected. More than Gevin knows, eh? But I won't reveal what I saw. That would...tarnish what we just experienced."

"Well..." He tilts his head and looks her up and down, like he wants to...what? Hug and kiss her? Sweep her off her feet? "Our agreement is complete. You're free to leave. If you do, I say...farewell. Until fate brings us together again...or not."

The husk turns slowly away and heads back to Sann. Etta slumps down, literally unable to anything more. Even with Gevin's help, they'll be delayed if they decide to leave now.

Just as the bond between Sann and Etta ends, so does Gevin's headache. He shakes his head, literally trying to shake the feeling. It works. He feels better and ready to take action. But it seems in the mean time, things have calmed down. Etta and Truth-Eater are settling this without bloodshed it seems.

Gevin decides to remain hidden for now and instead of speaking up, he circles around between the branches towards Etta. Trying to stay out of sight of the husk.

He hears bits and pieces of the conversation, but not everything. If he had, he would have told Etta not to link with this creature.

Gevin walks slowly towards Etta to not be noticed and keeps his eyes on the husk as much as possible. Unfortunately this means he doesn't notice that he's walking into a patch of poison ivy. Too late he feels his ankles start to itch and then burn. Luckily it's a slow, nagging pain that wouldn't make him cry out and give away his position.

When he's about 5 meters away from Etta, he sees her slumping down onto the ground. The husk turns away, back to its victim. This is their chance to get out. Legs still burning, he crouches next to his friend and whispers. "Put your arm around my shoulder and lets get out of here."

Etta still wishes she could do something for Sann. Not save him; he'd proven to be a scoundrel, and his death wouldn't cause her to shed tears. But put him out of his misery, before his mind disintegrated from the pain of torture...if it hadn't already.

But she'd already tried to surreptitiously kill him, and failed. They had a chance to get away from Truth-Eater, and she felt they had to take it.

Maybe I just need to toughen up. Weren't we ready to torture Reina and Sann's friend, anyway? Maybe my feelings towards this husk are affecting my judgement. An Ironsworn shouldn't wring their hands over tough choices such as this.

She gladly accepts Gevin's help, and the two move slowly away. They get back on the path and begin heading south. Sann's screams resume, but fade as they move away. Finally, the normal noises of the forest return...though the memories of Sann's agony still drift through her mind.

Etta: "Thank you, Gevin. I don't know how much you heard or saw, but I took a gamble with the Vestige...and messed up. Only after...connecting...with the husk was I able to douse the bastard's anger."

She ties a cloth over the gemstone, so the Vestige's eye-catching redness can't be seen. Then she straps the staff securely to her back. Once done, she draws her trusty bow, caressing the wood with her hands.

Etta: "It's pretty fuckin' obvious I need more training with the Vestige, so I ain't gonna use it unless things are dire. I trust my bow, and my dagger, if need be."

"Maybe the damned thing just needs to be destroyed. Seems like it...I dunno...seduces you with the promise of power, then betrays you when you need it most...."

"Anyway, did you learn something from Sann's friend? I think I heard something about monks before I snuck away...."