Estella faded back into consciousness slowly, intentionally keeping her body slack the whole time. It was better to have an idea of what was happening before committing herself to any course of action, and she immediately remembered that she'd been put to sleep with a spell, meaning she was likely not safe, even now. Keeping her eyes closed, she ran through a quick mental checklist of questions, seeking each piece of information in turn, in order of their priority.
The spell's effects were wearing off. Her hands and feet were bound, probably by rope or something similar, and her weapons gone, judging from the absence of weight at her hip and back. She was moving, her body folded over what felt like another person's shoulder, held firmly but not uncomfortably. She could hear the sound of the person's tread as they moved, but no others, and no voices. That meant the others probably weren't here. She risked opening her eyes, moving them as much as she could without turning her head.
They seemed to be heading back down the path towards the campsite. The ruin entrance was now a way off, but still just within her range of vision. She could see pieces of clothing belonging to her captor now, too—Shae. It seemed she had two choices: either she could attempt to use surprise in her favor, maybe employ close-range magic or use the rope around her wrists as a makeshift garrote. That might work, or it might not. Surprise or no, she knew Shae was formidable, and she suspected her success would depend very much on how well she managed to execute the maneuvers Rilien had taught her. Those were not excellent odds, to say the least.
The other option was to try and talk Shae into letting her go. Considering that the elf was as taciturn as she was intimidating, those weren't good odds, either. She wasn't the most convincing of people, and it was extremely difficult to ever get a read on the other woman, even for someone as practiced in reading subtle cues as Estella was. Still... it seemed like the better choice, not least of all because she didn't want to try and hurt her.
“Are you okay with this?" she asked softly. “I don't know what he's doing in there, but I have an idea. And he has Astraia." It hadn't escaped her attention that Shae seemed to be naturally protective of the young woman, whereas her attitude towards Zethlasan seemed more like duty than any kind of affection, however remote.
Shae slowed her walk for a moment, something that was almost unnoticeable, but it was something Estella could catch, that way just one of her steps hitched a bit, hesitated even though the ground in front of her was level and easy to tread. The mace hanging from the elf's hip swayed back and forth, the flanged head of it moving like a pendulum in her vision. "Zethlasan will not harm his sister," she stated, though as ever her dull delivery made it hard to tell if she believed that or not. "I'm sworn to serve and protect him, and he would have me take you to a safe distance. He wishes to avoid having an Inquisitor caught in this."
“You're probably right about that," Estella agreed readily, still making no attempts to resist being carried. She'd spoiled the element of surprise, so it was probably making this work or nothing, and she refused to let it be nothing. Not when her friends were in such evident danger. “But what if it's not just him? Things like being able to recover from a sickness like that... those things don't just happen. What if it's not Zethlasan making the decisions? You're sworn to protect him, and I understand that, but if something's happened and there's a demon or something in there with him... you're not sworn to protect that." She paused. “Isn't it at least worth making sure?"
"I will make sure," she said, "as soon as you're tied to your horse and on your way back to Skyhold. Your friends will follow in due time." The light was shifting, the campfire growing closer. She could hear it crackling now. The horses wouldn't be far. "I'd expected the sleep spell to last longer. If you attempt to resist, shem, know that I will be more than willing to render you cooperative more painfully."
“What if it's too late by then?" Estella insisted. “For all you know, he could be doing anything in there already, right now, and the only two people who might be able to do anything about it are out here, arguing pointlessly with one another. If he really didn't want to hurt Astraia, why would he let you take me out of there first? If there wasn't a risk of collateral damage, he wouldn't have needed to remove me at all." Estella kept her voice even and clear, but she couldn't deny that she was beginning to feel agitated. She should be there, helping the others, or at least facing down whatever there was to face beside them, not out here and safe and about to be shuttled away.
Shae grunted in annoyance, hefting Estella a bit higher onto her shoulder, but she only took another step before a deep, low boom sounded out from within the ruin. Estella could only get a glimpse of the blue lights in the entrance turning a darker red before Shae whirled around to look for herself, providing Estella only a view of the horses they rode in on. She could hear the effects of whatever magic was being used in there, though. Small rocks running down the side of the mountain the ruin was burrowed into, straining and crumbling stone, and even at this distance it was hard to mistake the strength of the magic coming from within. Shae, for the moment, had stopped to stare at it, quite plainly uncertain. But her grip on Estella did not lessen in strength.
“Please," she implored, struggling a bit despite her awareness that it wouldn't do much. “What would be worse? Delaying this to go make sure and finding nothing wrong? Or spending the time to tie me to my horse and then arriving too late?"
Exhaling a frustrated breath, Shae placed both hands around Estella's hips and heaved her forward, tossing her down the nearly six feet to the ground to land heavily on her back. She then took off at a sprint towards the entrance, leaving Estella behind in the dirt without so much as a word.
Fortunately, she needed no assistance getting out of rope bindings. These were obviously a quick job, and with a few tugs and twists, Estella freed her hands. Untying her feet was even simpler, and she stood quickly. It occurred to her that she was still without her weapons, but there just wasn't any time to bother about it—they were probably back in the cave anyway. She needed to get there, fast; too much time had been spent letting herself be hauled away from the others.
Almost as if responding to the thought, the mark on her right hand crackled faintly. Her last attempt to use it in a stressful situation like this had snapped a rib, but she didn't have the luxury of choosing whether to try again. It was just necessary.
A muted crack preceded the spread of the green light over her body. She knew it was right as soon as it happened; it felt the way it had in the Fade the first time. Estella lunged, propelling herself forward at a sprint. The third footstep pulled her through space; she landed several feet in front of Shae.
Shae stopped in complete surprise, skidding to a halt and almost tripping, but she kept her feet and locked her eyes on Estella in front of her. A moment passed before her hand went to her waist, and drew her weapon.
“I'm sorry," Estella said. “But I've got people to protect, too." Staying here and having this fight she probably couldn't win would waste time she didn't have.
Again.
Her second jump was longer, and she spent little time transitioning from it to the third, at which point she was halfway back to the cave. The light was still shifting evenly around her, still felt aligned to her will. What had pulled her up short was not the fact that she couldn't do it again, but rather the screaming. She recognized it, somehow, as being Ves's voice, but this... Estella gritted her teeth and sprang forward once more, reaching the mouth of the cave in three further jumps. She didn't withdraw the light, deciding she was more likely to need to spring again than to need the stealth of a more discreet approach. She doubted she'd ever be heard over Ves, and the kind of magic that could... it didn't matter. Not now.
She landed next at the bottom of the descending stairs, maybe five or ten feet behind Zethlasan, who was himself directly in front of Ves. Khari and Astraia were tied up nearby, bound by what seemed to be red-tinted magic to the stone pillars supporting the ruin's sole chamber. Estella didn't dare risk a spell so close to her friend—her aim was nowhere near that good. Grimacing, she braced for one last jump, and launched herself for Zethlasan.
Something almost gave her approach away. Perhaps it was the way Astraia turned her attention to the newcomer to the room, or some other sense of Zethlasan's, but he turned around almost in time to react to her. It wasn't quick enough, though; Estella slammed hard into his chest, knocking him back until he collided bodily with the restrained Ves, who ceased his scream once the spell was interrupted.
Zeth was still armed with a knife in his left hand, and he might've had an opportunity to stab her in the close proximity they found themselves in. He chose not to, however, responding with a powerful mind blast strong enough to throw Estella backwards across the room.
He stepped away from Ves, who groaned in pain as his head lolled forward for a moment. He blinked rapidly, trying to focus, but he at least seemed to have remained conscious. What state his mind was in couldn't be determined. When the sound of more footsteps coming down the hall reached their ears, the magical bonds restraining Astraia suddenly vanished, freeing her. Immediately she took a position of cover, halfway putting the pillar she'd been lashed to in between her and her brother.
"I wasn't finished," Zethlasan said, sheathing his knife and taking his staff in both hands. His right arm was bleeding from a self-inflicted cut, and his eyes were alight with a dull red glow. "It might be hard to see, but I'm doing Ves a favor. I'd advise you not to get in the way of that, Inquisitor."
“Stel!" Khari seemed far and away more aware of her surroundings than Ves, but then, she hadn't been tortured just now, so that made sense. “Our stuff's behind the pillars!" She was pulling at her magical bonds; the angry red burns on her unprotected wrists were evidence enough that she'd been doing so for a while.
Estella digested this information quickly, but deciding what to do with it wasn't as simple. “Astraia, can you free them?" She hated to ask her to do anything here, but there wasn't really a choice. She might be able to keep Zethlasan or whatever had become of him busy for a little while, but chances were it wouldn't be long. Not with her bare hands and her bare fragments of magic. She'd learned to use both in only the most basic and fundamental of ways, but she could at least move fast enough to keep her body between Zethlasan and anyone he tried to hurt.
She kept her eyes on him, watching for tells in motion that would reveal where and possibly what he meant to cast. To his assertion, she said nothing. It deserved no response.
"I—" Astraia stammered, hands pressed against the pillar. She was terrified. "I don't think—" She couldn't seem to get out any more, looking uncertainly between Estella and Zethlasan. He held out a hand to her.
"It's all right, sister. I'm sorry you had to see this, but it'll be done with soon." From behind Estella, Shae came running in, mace in hand, her hood pulled back to offer her better visibility. She took in the situation quickly: Zethlasan bleeding from the arm, Estella unarmed and opposing him, and Astraia watching from the side, free but clearly quite afraid. Her eyes narrowed at Zethlasan.
"Blood magic?" she asked, the words more an accusation than anything. Zeth nodded firmly.
"All Keepers, and all mages worth their power, should know a little. I know what I'm doing, Shae. And I warned you this would not be pretty." He didn't move from his spot, even as Shae came down the stairs, moving around behind Estella while keeping her distance, eventually positioning herself on Astraia's side of the room, but still facing Estella.
"Did he hurt you?" she asked.
Astraia's mouth hung open again. "What? I—I don't... no, he didn't, I—"
"I would prefer if mine is the only blood shed here, Inquisitor," Zethlasan said. "Go and wait outside. Ves will be returned to you alive and well, and Saraya along with him. Khari, too. We'll all just go our separate ways." His red-hued eyes darted down to her hands, and then back up. "You're outmatched. Force this, and it won't end well for you."
“I'm not letting you hurt my friends," she replied, balling her hands into fists. Estella's jaw tightened; abruptly, she aimed herself at the space behind the pillars and jumped, taking up her sword in one hand and Khari's heavier blade in the other. Sprinting to where Khari was, Estella aimed Intercessor for the arcane bonds on the pillar and swung the cumbersome sword as hard as she could, chopping forward with her enchanted saber for the ones at the elf's feet.
The bonds holding Khari's arms behind her held strong, but her feet were suddenly freed amidst a flashing of light as the magic fizzled and burned away. Zeth was momentarily disoriented by her sudden change in location, but by the time she'd halfway freed Khari he had unleashed an arcane bolt right at her.
"Shae, if you would please assist me in subduing the Inquisitor," he said, his tone somehow managing to remain polite despite the commanding nature of it. "Don't kill her if you can avoid it. But this interference needs to end now." Shae looked openly uncertain for a moment, but if anything the act of going for the weapons and trying to free Khari pushed her in the wrong direction. She walked a path around Zethlasan, trying to position herself on the other side of Estella.
Astraia looked rapidly between them all. "Please... please don't fight." Ves, meanwhile, groaned. It sounded as though he was trying to say Estella's name, or something similar, but couldn't quite manage it.
Estella took a large step away from Khari, leaving the thick dwarven blade by her friend's feet. She couldn't afford to get trapped between Shae and Zethlasan, and she didn't have quite enough time to try freeing her arms as well. She kept her saber lowered, eyes moving between the others quickly, so as not to lose sight of anyone. “I don't want to fight him, Astraia. But I can't let him hurt Ves like that. You saw it, didn't you? Heard it? It's wrong, and he doesn't seem to care."
She swallowed thickly. There was no mistaking how dangerous this situation was for her, even armed. She could very easily die. As could anyone caught up in the crossfire. And she didn't want either of those things, of course, but it wasn't like she was being given a third option here. “You might... you might want to leave. This isn't going to be safe." And if she couldn't commit to a course of action here, she was in even more danger. Estella did care about not creating collateral damage.
"You don't have to fight," Astraia said, though her words were aimed at her brother, not Estella. "Please Zeth, just talk to us, this isn't you."
"She's... right, you know." Ves barely managed the words, prompting a slight head turn from Zeth, though he was quick to keep his eyes on Estella. "You've let something... dark into you. You have to fight it." The corner of Zeth's lip curled up in anger, or frustration, and he shook his head violently once, as though trying to shake off cobwebs or wake himself up in the morning.
"Enough of this. Shae, with me." The mace-armed woman was looking more unsure by the minute, but she nodded uneasily.
"I can't let you hurt the First, either, Inquisitor."
"He's... he's tired, Estella," Ves said. He couldn't seem to catch any sort of breath, no matter how hard he tried. "You can do this." Zeth had indeed had enough of the talking, for he lashed out with a wide cold spell, ice springing up from the floor and reaching for Estella's legs, trying to pin her down or even let the ice stab into her if she wasn't quick.
Fortunately, quickness was about the one thing she honestly had going for her. Estella backed up rapidly, green light fizzling out around her. Apparently that was no longer an option, which left her with whatever she could conjure in herself naturally. She had no desire to hurt any of them—and it would be easy to avoid doing any harm to Astraia if she kept herself away, since she was certainly where all the attacks would be aimed. It left her less room to work in, but so be it.
Shae came in first, movement abrupt and powerful, swinging her mace for Estella's legs. Pulling in a sharp breath, she threw herself away from it and tucked into a roll against the hard stone floor of the ruin. The second blow was aimed much the same—it seemed at least that Shae wasn't interested in killing her, and Estella turned the hit aside with the blade of her saber, not even attempting to counterattack. Another ice spell barely grazed her left hip, coating her leathers in a thin layer of frost. She could feel it biting even through the material and her clothing underneath. Taking one of those directly would almost certainly end the fight.
But she needed to get Zethlasan to expend more energy than he had. If she could just wear him down to the point that he didn't have anything else to throw at her, then it was a safe bet that he wouldn't have enough to keep her friends pinned or do... whatever he'd been doing to Ves again. That was her only goal here, anyway, and the most likely way of achieving it. So Estella pushed down her worry, pushed down her doubt, and focused only on what she needed to do to make it happen.
Shae replaced the mace at her hip and switched tactics, trying to bring her to the ground, from the way she lunged. Estella just bolted, trying to bring the fight back around somewhere near Khari, who might at least be able to help a bit if someone got within range of her legs.
That brought her closer to Zethlasan, though, and she wasn't able to get out of the way of the arcane bolt he hurled with a powerful motion of his staff. It struck her in the side, sending her to the ground almost directly next to Khari's pillar. Shae moved in with clear intent.
She was intercepted somewhat awkwardly by Khari, who swung her lower half forward and wrapped her legs tightly around Shae's waist from behind. “Get up, Stel; I can't hold her forever!" The shout was more urgency than reprimand, the strain of holding the much taller and stronger elf in place already showing in her expression.
Estella didn't need to be told twice, scrambling to her feet despite the fact that her muscles were still spasming intermittently from the spell's impact. It hurt, pretty much everywhere, but the pain was low-level enough that she could still move, and she used the chance Khari had given her to dash for Zethlasan.
Another ice spell caught her shoulder, spinning her half way around, which turned nearly into a stumble and another fall when she staggered out of it. Fortunately, her unexpected movement went unanticipated by him as well, and the follow-up missed, allowing her to lower her shoulder and run, attempting to check him bodily to the ground.
She impacted an arcane shield instead, jarring her shoulder and throwing her to the side. Unbalanced, she couldn't possibly keep her feet when he let free another mind blast; it threw her back into the staircase, sharp stone edges digging painfully into her spine.
"Astraia!" Ves called. It sounded like he was steadily gathering more strength, at least. "You can end this, I know you can. Please, you know what's right here! Your brother isn't himself!" Astraia crept back to the weapons, where her staff lay among them, and she picked it up, returning to her position of cover near the pillar.
"Zeth, stop." Her tone was pleading, desperate. "Please! It's not too late."
"Not before I've done what I came for." He was breathing heavily, but called forth the magic to cast down a crushing prison spell, his spells still enhanced by his blood magic. A significant amount of it had run from his arm to drip onto the floor.
Estella tried to roll out of the way, but the spell was wide enough that she hit the wall before she'd totally escaped the radius, and it came down on her right arm, trapping it within a red-tinged pillar of light. There was half a second's worth of delay, and then the interior field began to collapse, like gravity had suddenly multiplied dozens of times over. She heard the bones in her arm snap in at least three places, but only then did the pain hit.
A scream tore free of Estella's throat; her free hand dropped her sword and scrabbled frantically at the stone wall. She tried to pull herself away from it, but there was little chance of escaping before the spell ended on its own. Where the pain of the arcane bolt was dull, now, this was acute: she swore she could feel every ligament straining and tearing under the pressure.
"Stop!" The cry came from Astraia, who had been spurred forward by the sound of Estella's scream. Her face was dead serious, angry, and finally set. Her staff leveled at her brother, she conjured forth a stonefist, powerful and quick, and hurled it at him from close range. Range where she couldn't miss.
Zethlasan abandoned the spell on Estella, turning and raising an arcane shield in time, but the stonefist smashed through it, the force of it dulled but still catching him hard and throwing him backwards across the room. His back slammed into a wall, and he dropped to the ground, the red light fading from his eyes just before he lost consciousness.
All light vanished from the ruin. The red fires fizzled out and cast them into complete darkness, a sudden silence broken only by the heavy breathing of those that had been in the fight. The bonds restraining Ves and Khari faded as well, judging by the sound of armor clattering against the floor, and Ves's sudden groan.
Estella bit her tongue, stifling a pained sound. Her arm... she couldn't move it, not even at the shoulder. It took her several moments just to regain her breath, but blinking the pained tears out of her eyes proved to do nothing for her eyesight. Oh, that was right. The dark. Between her body and the wall, her sword was still faintly glimmering, but it wouldn't do much to illuminate the area. For that she needed... she needed...
It took a moment to come to her; the pain made it feel like thoughts were moving too slowly. The same as trying to move her body through water instead of air. Light. She needed light. Raising her uninjured hand, Estella reached for the little spark of magic she knew was there. A gleam appeared at the tip of her index finger, growing until it was a hand-sized sphere of blue-violet light. With a soft exhale, she released it, sending it up closer to the ceiling, and in a more central location, giving the whole chamber a dim illumination.
“Is everyone..." She ran out of breath too soon and had to try again. “Is everyone all right?"
“Us?" Khari, at least, had a much more robust tone of voice. “Never mind us. You better be okay over there, Stel." A metallic scrape was probably her picking up Intercessor; she stepped into Estella's range of vision when she approached Ves, apparently intent on helping him stand.
He got to his feet easily enough with Khari's help, not bothering to go for his weapon and instead making his way straight over to Estella. He sank heavily to his knees next to her. "I'm... I'm fine," he said, as though he'd almost forgotten she'd asked. "How bad is it?"
She tried to smile, but it was more like a grimace. “Ah... I'm glad I didn't get more of myself caught in it. I'll be fine, though." She pulled a breath in through her teeth as she tried to sit up, but she only made it as far as getting her good elbow beneath her before she felt a tremor in the ground. A low rumble, almost like the beginnings of an earthquake.
“What's... what's that?"
Astraia, who seemed to be somewhat in shock after attacking her brother, noticed it as well. The earth wasn't rumbling so much as the air seemed to carry the tremor. Shae quickly went to check on Zeth, but after confirming that he was alive made her way back over to Astraia's side. Ves had been about to help Estella get up when he turned.
The air quite suddenly tore itself open in a bright green glow, blasting out a wave of force that was enough to knock both Astraia and Shae onto their backs. It washed over Ves from behind, pitching him forward. He almost fell on top of Estella, but caught himself just before his weight could press on her. The ruin shook violently, the pillar Khari had been attached to now crumbling and falling to pieces under the strain. Larger chunks of the ceiling crashed down, some large enough to pose a threat.
And in the middle of the chamber, where Zeth had cast his spell, a Fade rift had been torn open. A single demon emerged: a lithe figure, purple-skinned, and standing on tall clawed feet. She—and the demon seemed to be taking a female form—sported a golden mask only revealing her eyes, with two impressive jet black horns extending back away from it. A long, sharp dagger was held in one of her hands. Her eyes glinted at the people around her, evidence of a smile behind her mask.
The desire demon laughed softly, and then used some form of magic to bend the light around her, vanishing into thin air. But her laughter continued to echo.
The spell's effects were wearing off. Her hands and feet were bound, probably by rope or something similar, and her weapons gone, judging from the absence of weight at her hip and back. She was moving, her body folded over what felt like another person's shoulder, held firmly but not uncomfortably. She could hear the sound of the person's tread as they moved, but no others, and no voices. That meant the others probably weren't here. She risked opening her eyes, moving them as much as she could without turning her head.
They seemed to be heading back down the path towards the campsite. The ruin entrance was now a way off, but still just within her range of vision. She could see pieces of clothing belonging to her captor now, too—Shae. It seemed she had two choices: either she could attempt to use surprise in her favor, maybe employ close-range magic or use the rope around her wrists as a makeshift garrote. That might work, or it might not. Surprise or no, she knew Shae was formidable, and she suspected her success would depend very much on how well she managed to execute the maneuvers Rilien had taught her. Those were not excellent odds, to say the least.
The other option was to try and talk Shae into letting her go. Considering that the elf was as taciturn as she was intimidating, those weren't good odds, either. She wasn't the most convincing of people, and it was extremely difficult to ever get a read on the other woman, even for someone as practiced in reading subtle cues as Estella was. Still... it seemed like the better choice, not least of all because she didn't want to try and hurt her.
“Are you okay with this?" she asked softly. “I don't know what he's doing in there, but I have an idea. And he has Astraia." It hadn't escaped her attention that Shae seemed to be naturally protective of the young woman, whereas her attitude towards Zethlasan seemed more like duty than any kind of affection, however remote.
Shae slowed her walk for a moment, something that was almost unnoticeable, but it was something Estella could catch, that way just one of her steps hitched a bit, hesitated even though the ground in front of her was level and easy to tread. The mace hanging from the elf's hip swayed back and forth, the flanged head of it moving like a pendulum in her vision. "Zethlasan will not harm his sister," she stated, though as ever her dull delivery made it hard to tell if she believed that or not. "I'm sworn to serve and protect him, and he would have me take you to a safe distance. He wishes to avoid having an Inquisitor caught in this."
“You're probably right about that," Estella agreed readily, still making no attempts to resist being carried. She'd spoiled the element of surprise, so it was probably making this work or nothing, and she refused to let it be nothing. Not when her friends were in such evident danger. “But what if it's not just him? Things like being able to recover from a sickness like that... those things don't just happen. What if it's not Zethlasan making the decisions? You're sworn to protect him, and I understand that, but if something's happened and there's a demon or something in there with him... you're not sworn to protect that." She paused. “Isn't it at least worth making sure?"
"I will make sure," she said, "as soon as you're tied to your horse and on your way back to Skyhold. Your friends will follow in due time." The light was shifting, the campfire growing closer. She could hear it crackling now. The horses wouldn't be far. "I'd expected the sleep spell to last longer. If you attempt to resist, shem, know that I will be more than willing to render you cooperative more painfully."
“What if it's too late by then?" Estella insisted. “For all you know, he could be doing anything in there already, right now, and the only two people who might be able to do anything about it are out here, arguing pointlessly with one another. If he really didn't want to hurt Astraia, why would he let you take me out of there first? If there wasn't a risk of collateral damage, he wouldn't have needed to remove me at all." Estella kept her voice even and clear, but she couldn't deny that she was beginning to feel agitated. She should be there, helping the others, or at least facing down whatever there was to face beside them, not out here and safe and about to be shuttled away.
Shae grunted in annoyance, hefting Estella a bit higher onto her shoulder, but she only took another step before a deep, low boom sounded out from within the ruin. Estella could only get a glimpse of the blue lights in the entrance turning a darker red before Shae whirled around to look for herself, providing Estella only a view of the horses they rode in on. She could hear the effects of whatever magic was being used in there, though. Small rocks running down the side of the mountain the ruin was burrowed into, straining and crumbling stone, and even at this distance it was hard to mistake the strength of the magic coming from within. Shae, for the moment, had stopped to stare at it, quite plainly uncertain. But her grip on Estella did not lessen in strength.
“Please," she implored, struggling a bit despite her awareness that it wouldn't do much. “What would be worse? Delaying this to go make sure and finding nothing wrong? Or spending the time to tie me to my horse and then arriving too late?"
Exhaling a frustrated breath, Shae placed both hands around Estella's hips and heaved her forward, tossing her down the nearly six feet to the ground to land heavily on her back. She then took off at a sprint towards the entrance, leaving Estella behind in the dirt without so much as a word.
Fortunately, she needed no assistance getting out of rope bindings. These were obviously a quick job, and with a few tugs and twists, Estella freed her hands. Untying her feet was even simpler, and she stood quickly. It occurred to her that she was still without her weapons, but there just wasn't any time to bother about it—they were probably back in the cave anyway. She needed to get there, fast; too much time had been spent letting herself be hauled away from the others.
Almost as if responding to the thought, the mark on her right hand crackled faintly. Her last attempt to use it in a stressful situation like this had snapped a rib, but she didn't have the luxury of choosing whether to try again. It was just necessary.
A muted crack preceded the spread of the green light over her body. She knew it was right as soon as it happened; it felt the way it had in the Fade the first time. Estella lunged, propelling herself forward at a sprint. The third footstep pulled her through space; she landed several feet in front of Shae.
Shae stopped in complete surprise, skidding to a halt and almost tripping, but she kept her feet and locked her eyes on Estella in front of her. A moment passed before her hand went to her waist, and drew her weapon.
“I'm sorry," Estella said. “But I've got people to protect, too." Staying here and having this fight she probably couldn't win would waste time she didn't have.
Again.
Her second jump was longer, and she spent little time transitioning from it to the third, at which point she was halfway back to the cave. The light was still shifting evenly around her, still felt aligned to her will. What had pulled her up short was not the fact that she couldn't do it again, but rather the screaming. She recognized it, somehow, as being Ves's voice, but this... Estella gritted her teeth and sprang forward once more, reaching the mouth of the cave in three further jumps. She didn't withdraw the light, deciding she was more likely to need to spring again than to need the stealth of a more discreet approach. She doubted she'd ever be heard over Ves, and the kind of magic that could... it didn't matter. Not now.
She landed next at the bottom of the descending stairs, maybe five or ten feet behind Zethlasan, who was himself directly in front of Ves. Khari and Astraia were tied up nearby, bound by what seemed to be red-tinted magic to the stone pillars supporting the ruin's sole chamber. Estella didn't dare risk a spell so close to her friend—her aim was nowhere near that good. Grimacing, she braced for one last jump, and launched herself for Zethlasan.
Something almost gave her approach away. Perhaps it was the way Astraia turned her attention to the newcomer to the room, or some other sense of Zethlasan's, but he turned around almost in time to react to her. It wasn't quick enough, though; Estella slammed hard into his chest, knocking him back until he collided bodily with the restrained Ves, who ceased his scream once the spell was interrupted.
Zeth was still armed with a knife in his left hand, and he might've had an opportunity to stab her in the close proximity they found themselves in. He chose not to, however, responding with a powerful mind blast strong enough to throw Estella backwards across the room.
He stepped away from Ves, who groaned in pain as his head lolled forward for a moment. He blinked rapidly, trying to focus, but he at least seemed to have remained conscious. What state his mind was in couldn't be determined. When the sound of more footsteps coming down the hall reached their ears, the magical bonds restraining Astraia suddenly vanished, freeing her. Immediately she took a position of cover, halfway putting the pillar she'd been lashed to in between her and her brother.
"I wasn't finished," Zethlasan said, sheathing his knife and taking his staff in both hands. His right arm was bleeding from a self-inflicted cut, and his eyes were alight with a dull red glow. "It might be hard to see, but I'm doing Ves a favor. I'd advise you not to get in the way of that, Inquisitor."
“Stel!" Khari seemed far and away more aware of her surroundings than Ves, but then, she hadn't been tortured just now, so that made sense. “Our stuff's behind the pillars!" She was pulling at her magical bonds; the angry red burns on her unprotected wrists were evidence enough that she'd been doing so for a while.
Estella digested this information quickly, but deciding what to do with it wasn't as simple. “Astraia, can you free them?" She hated to ask her to do anything here, but there wasn't really a choice. She might be able to keep Zethlasan or whatever had become of him busy for a little while, but chances were it wouldn't be long. Not with her bare hands and her bare fragments of magic. She'd learned to use both in only the most basic and fundamental of ways, but she could at least move fast enough to keep her body between Zethlasan and anyone he tried to hurt.
She kept her eyes on him, watching for tells in motion that would reveal where and possibly what he meant to cast. To his assertion, she said nothing. It deserved no response.
"I—" Astraia stammered, hands pressed against the pillar. She was terrified. "I don't think—" She couldn't seem to get out any more, looking uncertainly between Estella and Zethlasan. He held out a hand to her.
"It's all right, sister. I'm sorry you had to see this, but it'll be done with soon." From behind Estella, Shae came running in, mace in hand, her hood pulled back to offer her better visibility. She took in the situation quickly: Zethlasan bleeding from the arm, Estella unarmed and opposing him, and Astraia watching from the side, free but clearly quite afraid. Her eyes narrowed at Zethlasan.
"Blood magic?" she asked, the words more an accusation than anything. Zeth nodded firmly.
"All Keepers, and all mages worth their power, should know a little. I know what I'm doing, Shae. And I warned you this would not be pretty." He didn't move from his spot, even as Shae came down the stairs, moving around behind Estella while keeping her distance, eventually positioning herself on Astraia's side of the room, but still facing Estella.
"Did he hurt you?" she asked.
Astraia's mouth hung open again. "What? I—I don't... no, he didn't, I—"
"I would prefer if mine is the only blood shed here, Inquisitor," Zethlasan said. "Go and wait outside. Ves will be returned to you alive and well, and Saraya along with him. Khari, too. We'll all just go our separate ways." His red-hued eyes darted down to her hands, and then back up. "You're outmatched. Force this, and it won't end well for you."
“I'm not letting you hurt my friends," she replied, balling her hands into fists. Estella's jaw tightened; abruptly, she aimed herself at the space behind the pillars and jumped, taking up her sword in one hand and Khari's heavier blade in the other. Sprinting to where Khari was, Estella aimed Intercessor for the arcane bonds on the pillar and swung the cumbersome sword as hard as she could, chopping forward with her enchanted saber for the ones at the elf's feet.
The bonds holding Khari's arms behind her held strong, but her feet were suddenly freed amidst a flashing of light as the magic fizzled and burned away. Zeth was momentarily disoriented by her sudden change in location, but by the time she'd halfway freed Khari he had unleashed an arcane bolt right at her.
"Shae, if you would please assist me in subduing the Inquisitor," he said, his tone somehow managing to remain polite despite the commanding nature of it. "Don't kill her if you can avoid it. But this interference needs to end now." Shae looked openly uncertain for a moment, but if anything the act of going for the weapons and trying to free Khari pushed her in the wrong direction. She walked a path around Zethlasan, trying to position herself on the other side of Estella.
Astraia looked rapidly between them all. "Please... please don't fight." Ves, meanwhile, groaned. It sounded as though he was trying to say Estella's name, or something similar, but couldn't quite manage it.
Estella took a large step away from Khari, leaving the thick dwarven blade by her friend's feet. She couldn't afford to get trapped between Shae and Zethlasan, and she didn't have quite enough time to try freeing her arms as well. She kept her saber lowered, eyes moving between the others quickly, so as not to lose sight of anyone. “I don't want to fight him, Astraia. But I can't let him hurt Ves like that. You saw it, didn't you? Heard it? It's wrong, and he doesn't seem to care."
She swallowed thickly. There was no mistaking how dangerous this situation was for her, even armed. She could very easily die. As could anyone caught up in the crossfire. And she didn't want either of those things, of course, but it wasn't like she was being given a third option here. “You might... you might want to leave. This isn't going to be safe." And if she couldn't commit to a course of action here, she was in even more danger. Estella did care about not creating collateral damage.
"You don't have to fight," Astraia said, though her words were aimed at her brother, not Estella. "Please Zeth, just talk to us, this isn't you."
"She's... right, you know." Ves barely managed the words, prompting a slight head turn from Zeth, though he was quick to keep his eyes on Estella. "You've let something... dark into you. You have to fight it." The corner of Zeth's lip curled up in anger, or frustration, and he shook his head violently once, as though trying to shake off cobwebs or wake himself up in the morning.
"Enough of this. Shae, with me." The mace-armed woman was looking more unsure by the minute, but she nodded uneasily.
"I can't let you hurt the First, either, Inquisitor."
"He's... he's tired, Estella," Ves said. He couldn't seem to catch any sort of breath, no matter how hard he tried. "You can do this." Zeth had indeed had enough of the talking, for he lashed out with a wide cold spell, ice springing up from the floor and reaching for Estella's legs, trying to pin her down or even let the ice stab into her if she wasn't quick.
Fortunately, quickness was about the one thing she honestly had going for her. Estella backed up rapidly, green light fizzling out around her. Apparently that was no longer an option, which left her with whatever she could conjure in herself naturally. She had no desire to hurt any of them—and it would be easy to avoid doing any harm to Astraia if she kept herself away, since she was certainly where all the attacks would be aimed. It left her less room to work in, but so be it.
Shae came in first, movement abrupt and powerful, swinging her mace for Estella's legs. Pulling in a sharp breath, she threw herself away from it and tucked into a roll against the hard stone floor of the ruin. The second blow was aimed much the same—it seemed at least that Shae wasn't interested in killing her, and Estella turned the hit aside with the blade of her saber, not even attempting to counterattack. Another ice spell barely grazed her left hip, coating her leathers in a thin layer of frost. She could feel it biting even through the material and her clothing underneath. Taking one of those directly would almost certainly end the fight.
But she needed to get Zethlasan to expend more energy than he had. If she could just wear him down to the point that he didn't have anything else to throw at her, then it was a safe bet that he wouldn't have enough to keep her friends pinned or do... whatever he'd been doing to Ves again. That was her only goal here, anyway, and the most likely way of achieving it. So Estella pushed down her worry, pushed down her doubt, and focused only on what she needed to do to make it happen.
Shae replaced the mace at her hip and switched tactics, trying to bring her to the ground, from the way she lunged. Estella just bolted, trying to bring the fight back around somewhere near Khari, who might at least be able to help a bit if someone got within range of her legs.
That brought her closer to Zethlasan, though, and she wasn't able to get out of the way of the arcane bolt he hurled with a powerful motion of his staff. It struck her in the side, sending her to the ground almost directly next to Khari's pillar. Shae moved in with clear intent.
She was intercepted somewhat awkwardly by Khari, who swung her lower half forward and wrapped her legs tightly around Shae's waist from behind. “Get up, Stel; I can't hold her forever!" The shout was more urgency than reprimand, the strain of holding the much taller and stronger elf in place already showing in her expression.
Estella didn't need to be told twice, scrambling to her feet despite the fact that her muscles were still spasming intermittently from the spell's impact. It hurt, pretty much everywhere, but the pain was low-level enough that she could still move, and she used the chance Khari had given her to dash for Zethlasan.
Another ice spell caught her shoulder, spinning her half way around, which turned nearly into a stumble and another fall when she staggered out of it. Fortunately, her unexpected movement went unanticipated by him as well, and the follow-up missed, allowing her to lower her shoulder and run, attempting to check him bodily to the ground.
She impacted an arcane shield instead, jarring her shoulder and throwing her to the side. Unbalanced, she couldn't possibly keep her feet when he let free another mind blast; it threw her back into the staircase, sharp stone edges digging painfully into her spine.
"Astraia!" Ves called. It sounded like he was steadily gathering more strength, at least. "You can end this, I know you can. Please, you know what's right here! Your brother isn't himself!" Astraia crept back to the weapons, where her staff lay among them, and she picked it up, returning to her position of cover near the pillar.
"Zeth, stop." Her tone was pleading, desperate. "Please! It's not too late."
"Not before I've done what I came for." He was breathing heavily, but called forth the magic to cast down a crushing prison spell, his spells still enhanced by his blood magic. A significant amount of it had run from his arm to drip onto the floor.
Estella tried to roll out of the way, but the spell was wide enough that she hit the wall before she'd totally escaped the radius, and it came down on her right arm, trapping it within a red-tinged pillar of light. There was half a second's worth of delay, and then the interior field began to collapse, like gravity had suddenly multiplied dozens of times over. She heard the bones in her arm snap in at least three places, but only then did the pain hit.
A scream tore free of Estella's throat; her free hand dropped her sword and scrabbled frantically at the stone wall. She tried to pull herself away from it, but there was little chance of escaping before the spell ended on its own. Where the pain of the arcane bolt was dull, now, this was acute: she swore she could feel every ligament straining and tearing under the pressure.
"Stop!" The cry came from Astraia, who had been spurred forward by the sound of Estella's scream. Her face was dead serious, angry, and finally set. Her staff leveled at her brother, she conjured forth a stonefist, powerful and quick, and hurled it at him from close range. Range where she couldn't miss.
Zethlasan abandoned the spell on Estella, turning and raising an arcane shield in time, but the stonefist smashed through it, the force of it dulled but still catching him hard and throwing him backwards across the room. His back slammed into a wall, and he dropped to the ground, the red light fading from his eyes just before he lost consciousness.
All light vanished from the ruin. The red fires fizzled out and cast them into complete darkness, a sudden silence broken only by the heavy breathing of those that had been in the fight. The bonds restraining Ves and Khari faded as well, judging by the sound of armor clattering against the floor, and Ves's sudden groan.
Estella bit her tongue, stifling a pained sound. Her arm... she couldn't move it, not even at the shoulder. It took her several moments just to regain her breath, but blinking the pained tears out of her eyes proved to do nothing for her eyesight. Oh, that was right. The dark. Between her body and the wall, her sword was still faintly glimmering, but it wouldn't do much to illuminate the area. For that she needed... she needed...
It took a moment to come to her; the pain made it feel like thoughts were moving too slowly. The same as trying to move her body through water instead of air. Light. She needed light. Raising her uninjured hand, Estella reached for the little spark of magic she knew was there. A gleam appeared at the tip of her index finger, growing until it was a hand-sized sphere of blue-violet light. With a soft exhale, she released it, sending it up closer to the ceiling, and in a more central location, giving the whole chamber a dim illumination.
“Is everyone..." She ran out of breath too soon and had to try again. “Is everyone all right?"
“Us?" Khari, at least, had a much more robust tone of voice. “Never mind us. You better be okay over there, Stel." A metallic scrape was probably her picking up Intercessor; she stepped into Estella's range of vision when she approached Ves, apparently intent on helping him stand.
He got to his feet easily enough with Khari's help, not bothering to go for his weapon and instead making his way straight over to Estella. He sank heavily to his knees next to her. "I'm... I'm fine," he said, as though he'd almost forgotten she'd asked. "How bad is it?"
She tried to smile, but it was more like a grimace. “Ah... I'm glad I didn't get more of myself caught in it. I'll be fine, though." She pulled a breath in through her teeth as she tried to sit up, but she only made it as far as getting her good elbow beneath her before she felt a tremor in the ground. A low rumble, almost like the beginnings of an earthquake.
“What's... what's that?"
Astraia, who seemed to be somewhat in shock after attacking her brother, noticed it as well. The earth wasn't rumbling so much as the air seemed to carry the tremor. Shae quickly went to check on Zeth, but after confirming that he was alive made her way back over to Astraia's side. Ves had been about to help Estella get up when he turned.
The air quite suddenly tore itself open in a bright green glow, blasting out a wave of force that was enough to knock both Astraia and Shae onto their backs. It washed over Ves from behind, pitching him forward. He almost fell on top of Estella, but caught himself just before his weight could press on her. The ruin shook violently, the pillar Khari had been attached to now crumbling and falling to pieces under the strain. Larger chunks of the ceiling crashed down, some large enough to pose a threat.
And in the middle of the chamber, where Zeth had cast his spell, a Fade rift had been torn open. A single demon emerged: a lithe figure, purple-skinned, and standing on tall clawed feet. She—and the demon seemed to be taking a female form—sported a golden mask only revealing her eyes, with two impressive jet black horns extending back away from it. A long, sharp dagger was held in one of her hands. Her eyes glinted at the people around her, evidence of a smile behind her mask.
The desire demon laughed softly, and then used some form of magic to bend the light around her, vanishing into thin air. But her laughter continued to echo.