Tim Waggoner - Lady Ruin

Vaddon glanced at the unmarked mounds where their dead were buried. “Sixty men and women rode with us when we left Geirrid two days ago, and now only four remain. We might have won a victory here this day, but if so, it was a costly one.”

“Was it a victory?” Lirra asked. “Both Elidyr and Rhedyn escaped.”

“We destroyed the Overmantle,” Osten pointed out.

“Elidyr’s an artificer,” Lirra countered. “He can build another.”

“I don’t think so,” Ksana said. “The crystals he used to make the device were expensive and rare. He was able to afford them only because Lord Bergerron funded our experiments. I highly doubt he’ll ever be able to acquire replacements on his own.”

“So … what now?” Osten asked.

Lirra frowned. “What do you mean?”

“What are we going to do about Elidyr and Rhedyn? We have to hunt them down. Whether Elidyr makes another Overmantle or not, he’s still extremely dangerous, and he’s responsible for the deaths of those farmers he turned into the white-eyes, not to mention all the people in Geirrid the white-eyes killed, and he’s responsible for the deaths of the soldiers who lost their lives trying to stop him-both in Geirrid and in the battle with the dolgrims. He has to be brought to justice.” Osten scowled. “As does the traitor Rhedyn.”

“Of that there is no question,” Vaddon said. “But as to whether or not we’ll be involved, that will be up to Lord Bergerron. I’ll report to him as soon as I am able, and we’ll see what, if anything, he’ll want us to do.” Vaddon paused. “Considering how this campaign turned out, Bergerron may well wish to place his trust in others to track down my brother.”

Up to that point the two warforged had been silent, but suddenly Longstrider spoke up.

“You did the best you could given the circumstances, General Vaddon. I doubt anyone could’ve done better, and I’ll make sure Lord Bergerron knows that.”

Vaddon looked surprised, as if he’d never expected this sort of consideration from a being he viewed as nothing more than a mobile weapon. He inclined his head gratefully. “Thank you, Longstrider.”

Osten turned to Lirra. “Sounds like we’ll be on the hunt again soon.”

“We may be,” Vaddon said, “but my daughter won’t.” He turned to Lirra. “Your part in this is finished. I agreed that you could keep your symbiont temporarily only so you could use it to stop Elidyr. But my brother has escaped, and you must leave the search for him to others.”

Lirra felt a surge of anger, and she struggled to contain it. “You saw what I can do with the tentacle whip, Father! If it hadn’t been for my symbiont, I wouldn’t have been able to destroy the Overmantle!”

“Please understand, Lirra. I am not denying your contributions, but you must give up your symbiont. For your own good, if for no other reason. Yes, you are strong-willed, and you will hold out against the aberration’s influence as long as you can-longer, probably, than most people could-but inevitably it will corrupt your mind and spirit, just as it did to Rhedyn. You need to return with us to the garrison at Geirrid, and once there, Ksana can see to removing your symbiont.” Vaddon paused. “I’ve lost my brother to the insanity of chaos and corruption. I don’t want to lose you too.”

Lirra felt her tentacle whip twitch, and she knew it wanted to bury its stinger into her father’s throat and start pumping venom into his body and not stop until he was dead a dozen times over. But she understood how Vaddon felt, and though she didn’t agree, she still loved him for it.

“What if I refuse?” she asked.

Sorrow filled Vaddon’s eyes for a moment, but then his expression became impassive as he worked to constrain his emotions, just as Lirra had seen him do on the battlefield a hundred times before. When he next spoke, it wasn’t as her father but as the general. “I’m afraid you don’t have a choice in the matter.”

“Really?” Despite her determination to keep her own emotions under control, she clenched her fists in anger.

Ksana stepped between them, and Lirra couldn’t help thinking it was a place where the cleric had stood many times before. “Lirra, please-I understand how you feel, we both do, but you have to listen to reason …”

Lirra’s anger built inside her, like a fire on the verge of blazing out of control, but she fought it. Part of her wanted nothing more than to strike out at Vaddon and Ksana, but these were two of the dearest people in the world to her and, however misguided their actions might be, she knew they did them out of love for her.

“I’m going to find Elidyr on my own,” she said, voice tight with restrained anger. “I’m leaving now, Father, and if you want to prevent me from going, you’ll have to kill me.”

Shatterfirst turned to Longstrider. “She’s joking, right?”

Longstrider shook his head. “I don’t think so.”

Ksana looked shocked by Lirra’s words, but Vaddon-no longer able to hold back his feelings-regarded her with a sorrow-filled gaze.

“Very well, Lirra. You may go-for now,” Vaddon said. “But this isn’t the end of it. I intended to do everything I can to cure you. And if I can’t …”

“What?” Lirra demanded. “You’ll have me imprisoned for the rest of my life, where I can’t be a danger to anyone? Or will you decide not to risk it and have me killed?”

Vaddon didn’t reply, but he didn’t need to. The sadness in his eyes spoke for him.

A storm of conflicting emotions raged through Lirra. Though she felt anger and frustration over her father’s inability to see her point of view, she understood that he believed he was acting out of love for her. How could she fault him for that? He was a proud man, a strong warrior, and a capable leader-all in all, a noble son of Karrnath. But he was also a limited man in his way, unable to see beyond the world-view that had always shaped his life. Military discipline, rigid adherence to rules and regulations … Lirra had once been like that too, her father’s daughter in every way. But the last few days had taught her that sometimes the rules changed on you, whether you liked it or not-and sometimes you had to make your own rules. Perhaps symbionts normally corrupted their hosts, but it didn’t have to be that way for her. She would find a way to live with the aberration and make use of the abilities it granted her, whether or not her father believed it was possible. She wished Vaddon could understand, that they could somehow work together to track down Elidyr, but she knew it wasn’t possible, and the realization filled her with heart-rending sadness.

Ksana must have realized much the same thing, for the cleric’s gaze was sorrowful as she stretched out her hand and gently touched Lirra on the forehead. “May the blessings of Dol Arrah be upon you, my child.”

Lirra felt a wave of warmth pass through her body, and when it was done, her anger was gone. She nodded her gratitude to the cleric, and then, without looking at her father, she turned to go.

“Hold up, Lirra,” Ranja said. “You’re not leaving without me!”

Lirra turned to the shifter. “I appreciate everything you did to help us, but the path I’ve chosen is one I must walk alone.”

“Spare me the dramatics. You choose your path, I choose mine. It just so happens that they’re the same.” She grinned. “For the time being, at least.”

Lirra was going to argue with the shifter, but then she decided not to bother. If the woman wanted to follow her, she would find a way to do so. It was simpler to let her come along openly if she wished. Besides, given the way Lirra felt right then, she figured she could use the company.

“Very well,” Lirra said.