text / un: starkov

[peasant]

the good news first: rhys and i found the princess of kilnan in the castle and woke her. she's with us right now. the castle was designed to protect her against her mother's soldiers trying to force her back home, which is why it's been so tricky. it's meant to alert remi — her uncle, and the wizard we came looking for — to any unwanted guests, which would be us.

the reason he hasn't come to greet us is that he's asleep. aureliah — the princess — should be able to talk her uncle down before he throws us all out into the mud. he's trapped behind an entrance sam's group found, but aureliah should be able to unseal its magic.

i think more of us should be there when it's opened, just in case something goes wrong with the orb.

the bad news: the orb's name is phyllie. remi made a deal with her and fed his own arcane energy to her in exchange for curing a curse that was placed on aureliah and her mother, but something went wrong during remi's bargain and that energy was transferred from the orb to aureliah instead. that's the reason she has her uncle's magic, and why her mother is so eager to use her daughter as a weapon against kilnan's neighboring countries.

the queen thinks kilnan will be better protected if she can force her daughter to learn war magic. it sounds like remi has been searching through dimensions to find the "right world" (for him and aureliah to hide? we don't know what he meant) but the orb has been draining him of his energy.

from what aureliah said, he feeds "phyllie" monthly. the princess and i think that's the price he's chosen to pay for keeping the curse at bay.

the worst news: i don't know what will happen if we break the bargain remi has made, but i'm sure it can't possibly be anything good. aureliah's life force was given to her by the orb, and the wizard who cast the curse in the first place was killed in the war. so that's a dead end, but maybe someone has a better solution we can offer remi once he's awake.

[ as per this npc thread! feel free to threadjack and hop around threads here to your hearts' content. ♥ ]

Comments

[cruelyethuman]

I'm trying to stop you from throwing your life away.

Why? Why did you run, Alina? What did my mother tell you that was so horrible that living in the forest was the better choice?

If that is what you think - then think of it as speaking from experience. Giving yourself to this would be a mistake.

[peasant]

you're trying to get involved in something that's none of your business.

why don't we start with all of the dead children that are YOUR fault? i know exactly where those creatures in the fold came from, aleksander. ravka's blood is on your hands. don't put that on me.

at least it's my choice this time.

[cruelyethuman]

It's your life.

I know what I did, and I have spent 400 years trying to find a way to make it better. I know this better than anyone, even you, what my creation has done to the world and I have bled for it, burned for it and I have almost died to bring it down.

But when I finally found a way, you ran away without a word. I thought you were dead, or dying or being put at the stake somewhere. I imagined Shu labs with you in them, but you simply ran away?

[peasant]

you're right. it's MY life. meaning you don't get to tell me what to do with it.

i saw you slaughter people for it, too.
if you were so sorry for it, you wouldn't shift the blame for your sins onto me.
and you certainly wouldn't have thought to use it as a weapon. to use ME as a weapon.

this act of yours is getting quite tired, aleksander. haven't you exhausted yourself pretending to care yet?

[cruelyethuman]

If you're thinking about doing something with it that will greatly affect all of us, yes. I do get a say. We all do, because you're claiming to do it for all of us. The princess gets a say most of all, would she want you to sacrifice yourself for her?

They wanted to murder you, they already murdered Marie and tried to kill other Grisha. They had trade deals with Fjerda, Grisha for weapons.
You were the one to turn your back on your own people, Alina, not me. I did what I had to, to protect them. Even if it meant losing you.

You speak my name so carelessly. You are blind, but you will see. I just hope you see it before it's too late.

[peasant]

then losing me again shouldn't bother you.
seeing as how willing you were to sacrifice me the first time.

[cruelyethuman]

You will run to a place that I cannot follow. It would bother me greatly.

Where are you?

[peasant]

you should be relieved. i won't be around to ruin such important plans.
why do you want to know?

[cruelyethuman]

Alina- there is no plan without you.

I want to help.

[peasant]

right. there's no pawn for you to use without me.

and you need to know where i am to do that?
i'm in the castle.

[ isn't she hilarious. ]

[cruelyethuman]

You are the one using yourself as a pawn right now, not me.

Yes, I need to know that. Which room?

[peasant]

the whole point of a pawn is that it's used by someone else, staryy kozel.

hm. a hallway. with a staircase.
🤷‍♀️

[cruelyethuman]

You're trying to trade your life away for a child, Alina. Ask her if she wants that, persiki.

Fine, I will find you myself.

[peasant]

don't be so dramatic. i'm not going to die from making a deal with it, you donkey.
and you're not going to scare her by suggesting i will.

[ what she really wants to ask is why are you calling me that? and how do you know about that as she reads over that nickname again, and again, but — ]

no you won't.
i'm better at hiding than you are.

[cruelyethuman]

I'm sure every other person we've found who made a deal with the orb thought the same thing. That they would be in control, and we've seen where that leads.

Let's make a bet, then. If you're so sure, you can hide from me.

[peasant]

i'm not cheruvia. she was a monster to begin with.

betting implies you'll give me something when you lose.
which you will. lose, that is.

[cruelyethuman]

How do you know what she was when it all started? She was loved, after all. No one is born a monster.

I know what it implies.

[peasant]

you must've missed the part where she willingly killed her parents in the worst way imaginable to get what she wanted.
being loved by another monster doesn't make her any less of one.

good. then when i win, you'll finally shut up about this.
i would add "and go along with whatever plan i come up with", but i wouldn't expect you not to ruin it on purpose.

[cruelyethuman]

And the thing that demanded it, you are so willing to bind yourself to one just like it.

I have always kept my word. Will you keep yours this time?

[peasant]

whatever price i choose to pay for that is my decision, not yours.
i don't even know why we're speaking of this. i've already told you we're looking at other options first.

🙄
i've seen how you've "kept your word" before. i have to say, i'm not impressed.
if what you want is for me to take this option off the table, it's not happening. how is that for honesty?

[cruelyethuman]

If you've already made up your mind to sacrifice yourself, you will stop looking for better options. We're speaking about this because you announced to the group at large, that we can stop fighting now because you are willing to offer yourself and your Small Science to an orb.

If I find you, I want you to give everyone at least 24 hours before you offer the deal to the orb. No matter how dire the situation might look at the time.

[peasant]

does it look like anyone has stopped searching for ideas, aleksander? we're still discussing our options. no one has said, "sure, let's let alina do it herself."

24 hours is too long, especially if it does turn out to be dire. i can't promise that.

[cruelyethuman]

12 hours. Give everyone half a day to think up something that does not involve you and give me your word that you will not start negotiating with the orb before then.

[peasant]

that doesn't involve me? you want me to stay out of every plan now?

[cruelyethuman]

Just every plan that could get you killed.

Do we have a deal?