[Violet De Camp]

** This entry from Cele’s journal is dated a few weeks back IRL **

Spoiler

HE COMES FOR YOU NEXT, WITCH!

“Cele, I’m going to draw the circle with this…” The wizard woman said as she produced five vials of pure red liquid. I knew what they were the moment I saw them… Vials of my own blood. The normally reserved and abrasive woman brushed her hair out of her eyes as she knelt down and began to draw a circle of binding. With her expertise in such magics, the chances of our success have grown greater… Though even without her, I would have still attempted it.

TRY AS YOU MIGHT, HE WILL SEE YOU WRITHE IN PAIN! OH, WHAT A JOY IT WILL BE FOR US TO WATCH YOU SUFFER!

Not wanting to feel useless, I did my best to support her in the only way I could… By playing a song imbued with my magics to try and enhance her senses and intelligence. Though, I will admit, I also did it because I thought it would help drown out the voices… It didn’t work.

SING, CURSED ONE, SING! JUST AS YOU DID IN LIFE, YOU DROWN OUT OUR VOICES TO EASE YOUR OWN GUILT!

“... There, that should do it. Cele, are you ready to draw them out?” The wizard stepped back and prepared a few last second spells as I nodded my head and braced myself. It was time to face those who had been normenting me for weeks… The five woman I had supposedly failed to protect.

YOU DON’T HAVE THE COURAGE TO FACE US, WRETCH! WHERE ARE THE FILTHY HALF BREEDS AND LESSER BEINGS YOU HIDE BEHIND?

“Can I truly face them?” I thought to myself. My stomach tossed and turned, and my mind remained unfocused…

WELL, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? LET US HAVE OUR VENGEANCE! LET US OUT!

But… Even so, without removing the evil from them and destroying the evil being that continued to torture them from beyond death, they could never be saved. I remained firm in my convictions… This is what I must do.

LET US OUT! LET US OUT!

“Now, Nica!” I yelled as I felt for the tortured souls and released them from the bell. One by one, black specters emerged from the bell as it rang an ominous tone… Without hesitation, they set upon me with haste.

FAILURE!
WITCH!
ARROGANT!
COWARD!
TYRAND!

Nica assisted me as I stood my ground against their assault. With my Blade of Holding and my Shield of Sehanine, I struck back against their blows… Their attacks, though they did little damage, left me feeling weak… Or, perhaps it was their insults that continued to hurt me so…

PAY YOUR PRICE!
SUFFER WITH US!
BEND YOUR KNEE!
GIVE UP!
DIE!

Despite my reduced strength, I struck true with every ounce of courage I could muster. One, then two… Before long, all five had been well struck, and the taint fell away from them… I could immediately feel their souls being put at ease…

But then the terror showed itself.

Black as night and three times taller than myself, the nightmare shade towered over Nica and I as we desperately tried to defeat it. It fought like something I had never seen… It didn’t even it look like it moved a muscle, yet it ran about the battle field and struck at me from all angles… within moment, I was near death on the ground…

If it hadn’t been for Nica, I would surely be dead.

But, with her help and her bravery, we both rose up and struck back. As the battle wore on, we were each near one more small blow away from death… And it was at this point, when I was about to be felled with the monster’s elongated hand, that Nica committed one of the bravest acts I had ever witnessed.

She jumped in front of me, being struck true enough to end her life… Yet, in that same moment that she lost her life, she struck down the monster on one final, empowered strike.

I could feel the bell purify immediately… Though I didn’t care. I rushed over to her side and held her lifeless body in my hands… Terribly saddened that yet another friend had to die for my foolishness and failures.

“Ah, fair elven maiden… Yet again, you bring me great satisfaction.” A familiar sinister voice echoed in her mind. “Even in the midst of a victory, you grieve and anguish over your failures… Oh, how I shall never tire of looking upon such beauty! Ahaha!”

I gritted my teeth, trying to tone out his words as I reached in my pack. I could still feel her soul remain close by… If I acted in time, I could revive her…

“Even if she comes back to life, she will resent you for your failures, much like those other woman I tortured did. I wonder, how many more must suffer and die for you before you finally snap?”

“Corellon and Sehanine, I beseech you, with this scroll I ask that you bring the one known as Nica Vossk back to life!” A shimmering moonlight fell upon her corpse, and amidst its splendor, I could feel her soul returning to her body…

“I could not have asked the archmage himself for a better plaything… Oh, how I do look forward to our next meeting! Muahaha!”

As Nica began to once again show signs of life, the moonlight faded away from the grove… For a moment, we were safe… But even so... Why do I feel so... Angry?