Narya woke when she heard the key turning in the door. The massive iron slab swung open and she instinctively pushed back against the wall behind her, as if it would yield and swallow her. She squeezed her eyes shut, her heart racing as she strained against her shackles, expecting the first blow to land at any moment. Instead, she heard a voice. Gentle, but urgent. “Narya.” Recognising the voice, she opened her eyes. Before her stood a wood elf with dark hair, scars over his left eye and a red ritual tattoo over his right. “Gods, what have they done to you.” His eyes shone in the darkness as he reached for her, and she flinched. Stunned by the pain lancing over her broken, torn skin, she could only groan in response. Halsin slowed his movements. “Narya, I’m not here to hurt you. I’m here to free you.” “Now’s our chance, while they’re distracted.” Narya watched the wood elf silently, her vision blurring as he slowly reached for the shackles around her ankles. “What… what do you mean?” She winced as pain lanced from the tear in her lip. “What happened?” Before Halsin could answer, a scream echoed through the halls of the dungeon. He moved faster as he reached for the shackles around her wrists, unlocking them with a snap.
“There’s no time to explain. We have to get out of here. Now.” Narya could only watch silently as he moved, her mind shrouded in fog. Her shackles undone, Halsin’s eyes tracked over her body and she looked down. The blood soaked rags she wore hid little, including the extensive network of cuts, burns and other wounds all over her torso, arms and legs. Halsin’s lips thinned as he looked upon her. Similarly dressed in little more than rags, his own scars shone in the darkness against his caramel skin. But unlike Narya, his wounds were freshly healed, the ragged edges pink. Narya’s brows knitted together. “How…?” Closing his eyes, Halsin murmured an incantation under his breath. His eyes glowed a bright cyan colour as he reached for Narya’s hand. Recognising the spell, she fought the urge to flinch and pull away from his touch. She shuddered as the magic flowed from his palm into her skin. It reminded her of a gentle stream warmed by the noon day sun, and she sighed with relief as the worst of her wounds stitched closed. Halsin smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes.
“That’s the best I can do for now—” A shout, much closer this time, interrupted him and the sound of blades clashing against one another followed soon after. “We must go. Now.” Despite the urgency in his voice, Halsin moved slowly as he reached for Narya, lifting her arm and wrapping his own around her as he lifted her. But now, Narya’s usually dark skin was pale and grey, a sheen of sweat across her forehead. She bit down on her lip as the pain from her remaining injuries—still significant despite Halsin’s spell—ripped through her. She stumbled, Halsin catching her just before she hit the floor. He grimaced as he shifted her weight against him, holding her closer. “You’ve lost too much blood.” Narya tried to lift her head to look at the wood elf, but felt too weak. Suddenly, everything was shrouded in darkness as she fell unconscious.
Been working on my book, which for now is a #BG3 & #D&D #fanfic (I plan to do my own world-building later once I have the main story done.)
The question is whether I should post it on #AO3 as I go, or keep working offline? Here's the prologue as a teaser!
#Halsin #MishWrites
