solar flare

It was almost too easy the acquisition of this one. But he would not let this detract from his enjoyment. Because this one, she was the flurry he hoped would cause the avalanche. She was the impetus. This girl, who assumed the good in all she met. If she survived this, perhaps she would learn a valuable lesson in trust. And now, days later after he'd allowed her true desolation in a windowless room, he would finally set the cogs in motion. 

The door opened, casting waning firelight into the small room. He waved his hands and small flames from the torches along the passageway sought his hand, wending now in a larger ball between his fingers. With a snap of his fingers, the torches in the cell were light and there in the middle was a chair. Hello tiny witch. he purred. He knew of her mother for she was the very reason they were standing here now. You can thank your mother for this. He smiled as he stopped to stand  in front of the tall backed chair. And her mother before her. Both of whom he would love to meet in battle again if only to draw a line in the sand with this girl's blood. 

Sit He said simply, giving her the option of doing so willingly before he moved on to more drastic measures.

It had been such a nice day, Asha remembered it so vividly. She'd been celebrating the end of the blight by going off on a walk by herself. Not exactly a big party, but while the blights had been going on, going off on her own was a rare treat. Her mother had always said one of her flaws was being too trusting, but she was really just too young to understand what that could really mean, and now she was paying for it.

Asha was curled up in a ball on the cold, hard floor. She wasn't great at casting magic without her staff and even with her staff; she was no match for the ancient elves that guarded her. Asha had only been learning magic for a few years, and a lot of it she was still rubbish at. She flinched as the door opened and the light shone in. She rubbed her eyes, trying to adjust. When she saw who it was, she tried to back up away from them, but she could only go so far. A tear slid down her cheek.

W... When my mother finds out what you've done, she'll come for me and you won't like her when she's angry. At the command she got up off the floor and sat, not because she wanted to do what she was told, but because she was afraid of what might happen if she didn't. I don't know why you took me, Kieran is more important to mother than I am. Not that she wanted him to take Kieran, though Kieran was probably a lot better guarded than she was, and a lost less trusting.

At the very least she had preservation enough to do as she was told. Perhaps she far more clever than he initially surmised. Either way it boded well f for the purposes of his grand plan. Elgar'nan never counted on Morrigan's maternal distress and instead planned to play off her pride. It was a hope that her stalwart pride would refuse to suffer such a slight. A mother that could no more protect her daughter than she could protect Thedas. 

He listened as she protested her imprisonment, moving slowly around her as he committed every inch of her to memory. When he finally stopped moving he was leaning down in front of her, his arms behind his back. I'm counting on it little one. He wasn't scared of the Witch of the Wilds or her mother. If you believe that, then I don't think you know your mother as well as you should. Maybe she would come, maybe she wouldn't but this wouldn't go unacknowledged. And if this didn't work, he was prepared for grander measures, measures that would not be ignored even if it meant taking out half of his lands along the way. Do you know who I am?

Asha was at a total loss, part of her wanted to fight, but another part of her saw how fruitless it would amount to. It left her feeling utterly desolate, alone, confused, scared, a slew of emotions that she wasn't used to feeling all at once. The walls around her loome over her, making her feel small. The elf's voice making her feel even smaller. She didn't like crying in front of him, she tried to sniffle them aside, but her eyes welled up and were turning shades of red from the tears.

She din't like the way he said that he was counting on it, she didn't like the way he said a lot of things. At the question as to who he was, she shrugged. He felt important by the way he talked, the way he said things about her mother. He was counting on it, not they, not we, he was counting on her mother's reaction to her being taken. She might be young and naive but even she picked up on that much. Not that it told her anything of substance. 

A duche bag with a superiority complex? she uttered defiantly. He had asked after all.

He liked this one. He liked her fight. Were he not intent to take her apart piece by piece, he might consider letting her go. Occasionally a human surprised him, curious that it was her, a shame that she would not live to her full potential. A shame indeed. 

At her words he let out a snort of laughter that eventually blossomed into a belly laugh. She was right of course, he was many things to many people and all of them were undesirable at best. He paced around several feet, willing his spasms of laughter to recede so that they might get back to the matter at hand. Just as his voice trailed off so did he into shadow, manipulating the light to his advantage until he spoke again. 

This time it was inches from her face, appearing as if from nowhere, his hands shooting out to braze on the rickety arms. He leaned towards her, his true form materializing before her before reverting to his palatable high elvhen form. 

You know, he started Were you not about to serve such a grand purpose, I might offer you another choice. He gently pinched her chin encouraging her eyes to meet his, before he pushed away, standing straight and imposing. Your mother hates you. he said bluntly, clasping his behind his back. But I think, he mused as he started pacing. Yours is the blood she can't have on her hands. She would come if she wanted to reconcile her tattered pride.

Asha wasn’t sure how she felt about having made the elf laugh, in some ways it rather made him seem dreadfully normal, but on the other hand something about his laughter just wasn’t funny at all. She didn’t want to be scared, she imagined if Morrigan were in her position, she wouldn’t be scared at all, but then she didn’t imagine that her mother was stupid enough to end up in her position, nor would Kieran or her father for that matter, at least not without a massive fight. Instead she’d been so bloody naive and so bloody stupid, now here she was at some dumb elf’s mercy, an elf that didn’t seem to have much in the way of mercy. She looked away and tried not to let it show that she was crying, but a tear slid down her face, followed by another.

She stiffened some as he talked about Morrigan hating her, perhaps it was exaggerated, there were so many days that Asha felt like it was impossible to please her mother, but did that mean the woman actually hated her, that was to be seen. Her father loved her more than anything, but he was gone, he wouldn’t be coming for her. Knowing the truth now about how her father had died had been a hard truth to swallow, she sniffled and tried to continue to be as brave as possible

You’d be surprised what blood she’s able to have on her hands. Speaking of Loghain’s of course, but then what she didn’t know was the ritual that Morrigan had performed, she had no idea her father was alive again, no idea the price her mother paid for it, or the price Loghain had paid for it. She was tired, and she hurt, and she wasn’t sure how much longer she could be brave.

He would give it to the girl, she had a steel spine to remain as stalwart as she had. While most of his play things survived the arrest and subsequent interment by his guards, few remained sane when he stepped into the room. He relented the glamour, allowing them to see a supernatural aura around his ethereally chiseled form. Needless to say, it was generally effective in getting results. 

But there were always exceptions. 

Ah, he started, nodding his head. I see,he mused. She didn't think she was worth being saved did she? Either that or she was that sure that she would be rescued. He settled in a wide stance before her, arms crossed over his chest. I think you underestimate the nature of her pride. His gaze softened somewhat on her. In a way he could sympathize. 

He too loved someone who refused to love him back. 

Though the idea of his barbarous actions being an expression of love was truly terrifying. So perhaps the lines were blurred but at the core of it all remained the facts. Tell me why I should let you go He wanted her to fight like her life depended on it.

A tear slid down her cheek, she was trying so hard to be strong and defiant. She kept asking herself what would her mother do, but then her mother probably never would have been in this situation to begin with. There was a part of her that wanted to attack the man before her, even if she knew he was far stronger than she was, by miles.

As much as she felt unsure what her mother would do when she found out that Asha had been taken, she of course couldn’t forget there were others who would want to step up and come for her. Her brother of course, which would be a terrible idea considering he was the husband to the Emperor of Orlais, a far tastier object to possess than she was. Then there was Cullen and Lana of course, along with countless other friends she had made over the last few years.

Another tear slid down her cheek, she wanted to go home, but she didn’t trust the man as far as she could throw him with her magic, which wasn’t far. Not that she’d ever tried to throw people with her magic. She also wanted to protect her family, if they came for her, would they meet the same fate. Of course, she knew so little about who had taken her and why. It wasn’t like she was up on news from the north, Ferelden was still barely recovering from the blight ending.

I don’t even understand what you expect to gain from having me, how am I supposed to answer that? He terrified her, as hard as she tried not to show it, anyone with eyes could see she was cracking.

Ah the bravado of youth, how endearing to behold albeit easy to lose with the right...motivations. She was testing his patience whether she meant to or not. Frankly she was ruining the fun a moment like this brought him. He was certain that it wouldn't bother her to know that so it was for that reason he stayed mum on it all. 

The self doubt wafting off of her in waves was almost intoxicating. It was palpable. Addictive even. She didn't understand. Her words. He sighed woefully, resigned to spell it out so that she could play her unwitting part in his game. He straightened, crossing his arms snuggly over his chest. What do you know of Thedian legend? The Evanuris were a formidable and prolific sort of legend. The kind of legend that had a strong basis in truth, amplifying some truths and smothering others until they became something Thedas would remember. A lot of the stories of him were fabricated but some of them, were far more real than anyone wanted to believe. He stared at her intently for a moment before adjusting his stance. 

Because a girl like you should truly know better. It irked him that she hadn't figured it out yet. His patience and humility knew little reason. It made him impatient, jitty with anticipation he hadn't felt in a very long time. 

He leaned close to her, bracing his hands on either side as his face flashed. His eyes seared, turning into bursts of flame that lashed and flared towards her with an eerily cool caress. I am a god you mewling quim and you belong to me now. He leaned inches closer as he extinguished the visage as assumed his natural form once more. 

You will rot here child. And it won't matter if your mother ever comes for you or not. She'll never have the opportunity. Your worth is far greater to me than your mother's ability to care for her own child. He paused, his anger abating. I know who dwelt within you, what dwelt within your mother, and her mother before her, passed down from each accursed generation to the next. You're apart of a much grander scheme Asha'Bellanar. History will know you to be complicit in the events to unfold. 

He would find Morrigan regardless of whether she came for her daughter or not. 

Daughters and their mothers were a barbed thorn in his side. 

Welcome to my court, tiny witch He smiled sardonically.

Asha just wanted the whole conversation to end, to just get it all over with already. The man made her skin crawl, and with the cracks appearing in her stubborn teenage armour, she was feeling incredibly vulnerable. She was tired, so very tired. She kept thinking about her mother, what her mother would do in this situation. Would she be stronger, hold out longer, Asha couldn’t be entirely sure, but as she always felt like a failure in her mother’s shadow, she suspected her mother would be stronger.

She tipped her head, a confused look on her face. Thedian legend. She knew the Chasind legends, and Andrastian legends, but as she suspected he meant Elvhen legend which she sadly knew very little about. Even less than the Dalish she suspected. She didn’t want to admit she new almost nothing, but she wasn’t about to lie about what she did or didn’t know either, suspecting he would see right through it. Before she could come up with an answer, he proclaimed his godhood. An eyebrow raised, confusion with a touch of terror.

She wasn’t sure if she believed him, but she was smart enough to take pause. So what if he wasn’t a god? He was still terrifying, he still had the upper hand, he was still much stronger than she was. God or not didn’t seem to matter much at this point.

She swallowed as he said she’d rot there, a tear sliding down her cheek and betraying her. Bottom lip trembling as she tried to hold back the flood of tears that were threatening to appear. He had followers, that was clear, she wasn’t sure what that meant in regards to ever being rescued.

Then he mentioned the, well she assumed he meant the magical shard that had saved her life, but she was a bit confused when he mentioned it as a who and not a what. Something passed down, was that why her mother had it to be able to save her life when the veil went down? Her look was clear, pure confusion. She then stuttered a response.

Who? You mean the shard that saved my life when the veil came down? My mother never said much about it, and neither did that strange man who took it from me. Maybe she’d been too trusting with letting that man have the shard, but he’d left her with a spirit companion, and she’d felt so much better after that, much more at peace and far less conflicted with inner turmoil. Curiosity was peaking, making her a little calmer, though not by much, but if his man knew more about the shard that had once been in her, well, she was curious and that was etched all over her face along with the fear and sorrow.

The sight of moisture running along her cheek was like a balm to his greedy, depraved and otherwise nonexistent soul. It would seem she finally understood and could appreciate her current predicament. He felt his chest warm with happiness, stemming the remainder of his excitement for a far more opportune moment. He also knew that the moment he let his satisfaction become known, the universe would scheme some way to take it from him. Instead he just smiled at her like she'd done something as mundane as completing her daily chores. He reached out thumb away the tear, bringing it to suckle at his lips so that he might relish his victor in his own way. He fed off pain like this, for it compounded the breadth of his power, the tendrils stemming from each victory like this one compounding together to form something altogether formidable. 

He straightened again, standing back to his full height as he regarded her pathetic form slumped in the seat before him. Her fear was apparently but he had a feeling that she still did not appreciate the magnitude of her presence here. It was likely due to the fact that she hadn't even known the importance of the shard she'd possessed until it was too late. A shame really, that power could've been manipulated to considerable extent despite it's diminished capacity as a mere shard of Mythal's power. 

You lost something great that day, my dear. Something beautiful and I will make sure you live to regret that every other choice in your life that has brought you to me. He hadn't thought he'd need to explain everything to the girl given who she was, who her mother was, but here they were. He stroked her cheek again, almost lovingly if not for the malevolent determination reflected in his gaze. You serve me now and as your first command, I order you to beg for your life. Mythal forsook you that day, but I will not

Asha had heard stories about villains growing up, perhaps not Elgar’nan, others that had wreaked havoc on Thedas throughout the years. Some weren’t always straight up villains, sometimes they were stories about genuinely good people doing fucked up shit. There was Anders of course, even her own father. Then there were the villains like Corypheus., and all sorts of people in between the two to varying degrees.

As she thought about all of them, she looked at Elgar’nan and realised, there weren’t really any stories that had prepared her for someone like Elgar’nan. At least, that was how it felt to her. He came across as not just evil, but fifty shades of what the fuck. She flinched as he wiped the tear with his thumb.

When he said he would make her live to regret all the choices that had brought her to him, she couldn’t help but briefly thinking about how many of those choices had been outside her control. Sure it had been her choice to give the shard to Solas, but if it hadn’t been for the veil crashing down and the magic killing her, she never would have had the shard of Mythal to begin with. She’d still just be an ordinary eight-year-old.

She felt anger and fear raging inside of her. She wanted to sob, but she also wanted to be very very angry. Her mind was spinning, how did she answer him, how COULD she answer him. She didn’t want to, but she also didn’t know how. Did she want to die? Fuck no, but would begging really even matter, was it all just some sort of thing where no matter how she answered, she was fucked either way, and if she was going to die any way, did she really want to die begging for her life.

Instead of begging, she suddenly was blinded with red, her body started moving before her brain had even registered that it was. She screamed, she tossed around some rather creative obscenities. She lunged at Elgar’nan, without thought to her physical safety, fists swinging, in the biggest fit of rage the girl had ever been in. Did she expect to overpower Elgar’nan, fuck no, nor did she expect to injure the man, but reason had left the building. She was reduced to a caged and injured animal fighting to stay alive.

He was pleasantly surprised by her will to live. She could likely thank her mother for that trait. Her mother, mind, that never really had a chance of saving her daughter to begin with. This little one was firmly in his grasp now, wriggling under his paw like some crazed rodent desperate for escape. He wished her all the hope in the world, especially if it brought her some semblance of comfort to know that when she faced death she was strong enough to fight. Her will was sound, he couldn't deny her that. 

Despite his admiration however, he had no intention of letting her go. Not while she was still breathing, not even when she succumbed to his power completely. He owned her eternal soul now. 

Elgar'nan laughed, a sardonic chorus amid the screws of frustration and determination. She flailed and growled in her effort to destroy him and he watched with poorly concealed intent reflecting back. When she pounced she was met with resistance. A massive hand encircled her fragile throat she invariably revealed to him in her furry. He would wrench her to him by that harsh grip, bringing her face to his. Then he squeezed, the whole of his hand intent on forcing her into compliance. It was the look of hopelessness in her eyes that drove him toward delirium seconds before she turned limp into his hold. 

When she woke she would find herself well and truly trapped, this time with no illusion as to her rescue. 




*The above actions were sanctioned by Bach and left to the dice to decide whether or not Asha's actions were met with a simple retaliation or total knock out. Unfortunately, on two separate dice rolls the dice rolled poorly......