second rune; death; video

[deadelfwalking]

 [When the feed starts, the netbook's camera shows you a view of the forest floor.  A deer carcass lies among the grass and twigs, and it's obvious that the poor thing did not have a clean death.  It's in the advanced stages of decomposition, even though the blood around its body is red and fresh.  The camera does not linger on this image for more than a few seconds; it pans upward, to show Koltira's face.

 He's standing over the deer, holding the device in one hand, holding Byfrost with the other.  Agony creases his expression: his jaw is clenched, his eyes narrowed, every muscle in his pale, sallow face is taut with pain.  The guttural growl of his voice occasionally rises in octave as he talks, as though something is beating the shit out of him from the inside.]

Were we brought here to fight for something, or to waste time reliving the past?  Send.  Us.  On.  A mission.

[He stabs the tree next to him with Byfrost, and the sword glows sickly green; the tree bark begins to decay rapidly, as though it's practically melting.  Diseased fumes pour out of the bark, forming a nasty miasma around Koltira's body.]

I need a battle. [he hisses, and blood trickles from the corner of his mouth as he bites down on the inside of his cheek.]  Now.

Comments

[deadelfwalking]

[Koltira nods.]

The Lich King appeared, announcing that the entire battle--and everything that had lead to it--was all a ploy to draw Fordring into the open. But then Highlord Mograine threw the Ashbringer to Fordring, and in his hands the sword was purified. We watched as the Lich King fled in the face of such holy power.

Our chains shattered at this sight. Our wills and minds were restored to us, and Fordring welcomed us back. He suggested an alliance between the Argent Dawn and ourselves, devoted to seeing the Lich King defeated. Mograined reformed our order as the Knights of the Ebon Blade and agreed.

We had all done terrible things, unforgivable things, and the weight of them was unbearable on our newly freed minds.

[one last drink, and the bottle is done. He sets it down beside him on the ice.]

But we neither asked for nor expected forgiveness. We knew--I knew--that the only thing we could do now was turn our power against our creator, re-direct all of the rage and hatred he had instilled in us and throw it back at him. All we could offer was retribution.

[staring out across the lake, grimly.] And so we did.

[healplz]

[ Retribution in place of forgiveness isn't usually anything Ashraf would encourage, but in this case, he suspects there would really be no other way. He'd seen the memory, the horrors committed within. And that Koltira asks for no forgiveness for it speaks profoundly. ]

Thank you for telling me.

[ It's not usually polite to go about demanding people's dark histories of them, after all. He glances to the side, trying not to fidget and only mostly succeeding. This part doesn't come naturally at all. ]

...Would you accept an apology?

[deadelfwalking]

[well that jolts him out of the sad-spiral that was about to get itself going. He raises an eyebrow.]

For what, exactly?

[healplz]

You are... not what I accused you of.

[ oh watch him squirm, apologizing to an undead. It shouldn't be so hard to just say "you're not a horrible monster like I kept insisting you were, and I'm sorry for being a dick", but oh, it is. ]

[deadelfwalking]

[Is this the real life? IS THIS JUST FANTASY? He has an impulse to be a huge asshole and make Ashraf say it again, just to be sure, but he's just so, so exhausted. Instead, he stares dumbly for a moment, before shaking his head and laughing a little.]

Well. Thanks for that. [he picks up the bottle of scotch, peering into it to see if there's any left, because wow. But no; it's well and truly empty. He shakes it.] And for this, as well. You'll have to try some next time.

[healplz]

[ Great, and Koltira just takes it. He almost wish he'd forced a less half-assed sorry out of him, because now Ashraf gets to feel bad about the shitty apology, too. ]

Perhaps.

[ Drinking with a dead guy seems a little ill-advised, even if this isn't one that will be ripping out the throats of innocent bystanders any time soon. He pushes himself back to his feet. ]

I will leave you to your solitude.

[deadelfwalking]

[The truth is that Koltira's not even sure he believes it. An apology is one thing, but will future actions bear it out? He can't say. He shrugs off the return to coldness; it's more in line with what he expects, at any rate, and lifts the empty bottle in farewell.]

As you like.

[healplz]

[ He begins to teleport away, but pauses. After a brief hesitation, he waves a hand to align a silent blessing with Koltira. Useless, as he's not in battle, but still soothing and rejuvinating, as well as part of his customary greeting and farewell.

And then he's gone, vanished into that white light. ]