Holier Than Thou

[Soran Nightblade]

Hakom seemed to sense her discomfort. "Do you believe that he is correct?" he asked. His voice was both considerate and stern. It was no small thing to claim relation to Attara.

[Emora Deen]

"I do not know if he is correct or not. She has never cared to pay me a visit," Tenele replied, lifting her gaze. "I can only tell you that my mother is Ariena, and that my father think's she is Attara. Verin used him against my mother, so he could be mad. He was dying of a disease, and took the bite of a werewolf to spare himself. 'Tis why I mentioned him being dead. He was dead to me until now."

Tenele took a step forward. "I just want to save my brother. I lost my mother, my father, I do not want to lose him too."

[Soran Nightblade]

Hakom stroked his jawline and studied her. "You have had personal conference with Verin? It is rare to survive such a thing." It was clear from his tone that he was skeptical. His momentary softness seemed to be replaced with something harder and more distanced.

* * * *

Erom walked down one of the bridges, wishing he could think of another way to observe the outsiders. He looked over the edge of the bridge at one of the lower platforms as he heard some men talking. He vaguely heard the word "Athraki" as the left the lower platform and levitated up to one of the adjacent platforms at Erom's level. The boy looked down curiously and leapt over the edge of the platform, controlling his descent with unsteady magic. There was a reason younger elves were kept within the city until they reached 16. Their control took many years to master.

He reached the lower platform and scanned around him. He had been at the lower level before, but only in secret. He turned toward the building from which the men had emerged and walked toward it. When he moved to open the door, he was thrust backwards in a burst of red light.

He fell back on his rump, shivering. That was no simple shielding spell. He'd touched a ward. A true containment spell, powerful enough to do real damage if forced open. It took a few minutes just to get his nerve back together, but eventually, the fear of being discovered lying in the middle of the lower platform outweighed his intimidation. He scrambled to his feet and crept back toward the building. Now he was certain that something important was here, and he supposed it could only be the Athraka Ilthe had mentioned.

Forbidden as it was, his curiosity had the best of him as he stepped around the edge of the small building, carefully avoiding touching the walls. He had never seen an Athraka, but he knew of them. He edged to the back, wedging himself up against a tree trunk that rose through the platform. He finally reached an open window that looked in on the room, and he leaned toward it carefully, making sure to touch nothing.

His eyes widened as he realized what he was seeing. A figure was hanging by his wrists at the center of the room. He had room to stand, but his legs weren't holding weight. A huge magic circle, larger than any he'd seen before, was drawn on the floor around the figure. From it leapt a literal bonfire smokeless but hot as any flame. Erom had been burnt minorly when cooking with mage fire in the past. His stomach twisted with horror as he imagined the pain of being immersed in it. It was clear the figure was being burnt alive, but he looked almost bored.

Then those eyes opened. Red, gleaming like Verin himself. Erom shrank back from the window. Bright ruby irises with pupils contracted to tiny dots looked straight at him, weighing him. He straightened slightly, as if to speak to the boy, but his mouth had been bound. The vampire rolled his eyes and returned to looking bored.

[Emora Deen]

Tenele's teeth set tight. She didn't want to describe her encounters with the God because it brought attention to it. To a point where she to had to notice that it wasn't just trivial points of contact to irritate Vlad. She could already here the scepticism in the elf's voice.

"I have had several personal conferences with Verin," Tenele told him sternly. "I have survived his realm. I have survived burning his temples. I have survived a war in the Outerlands which he led with demonic drones. I even survived him paying a personal visit to congratulate me on my wedding. Unless you have this place warded he might pop in for another impromptu visit if I talk about him loud enough. He's very egotistical."

[Soran Nightblade]

Hakom narrowed his eyes on her. Her last words bordered on a threat, and it was not lost on him. His skepticism battled with curiosity in his expression. "If your words are true, then this curse you describe may very well be real."

[Emora Deen]

"I have no reason to lie," Tenele muttered. "I didn't come here, risk imprisonment, or the life of my husband, so I could stand before you and make up stories about Gods. I have no need to impress you with my apparent inability to stay out of trouble. If you know what curse it is, then please tell me. If you don't, please let me and my husband go."

[Soran Nightblade]

Vlad twisted his head, pushing with his tongue against the rag that had been tied across his mouth. The rag was in bad shape, burnt to crisp threads. It occurred to him it shouldn't take much effort to break it, but apparently he didn't have much strength at the moment. Roasting for a while had certain effects on his body, even if it couldn't kill him. He managed to stretch the fabric just enough for it to crumble away. With a deep breath of molten air, he summoned a voice that was just ruined enough from heat to sound truly demonic. "Enjoying the show?" he rasped.

The boy's eyes widened. He was too scared to say anything other than the first thing that crossed his mind. "No," he whispered.

Vlad smirked weakly. His blackened legs crackled as he made a pass at standing and quickly abandoned the idea. "Then why... are you watching?" he croaked.

Erom's stomach dropped to his knees. He'd just wanted to see an Athraka. He hadn't planned to have a conversation with it. This form of execution was the harshest punishment known in their culture. It had never been needed in Erom's lifetime. It was, however, standard for disposal of Athraka - demons and other children of Verin that entered their territory. He'd known it was done, but he had not seen it performed. Supposedly, it was usually over quite quickly. Was it normal for the Athraka to endure for so long? What did it mean? He wondered if he should call the men back. Let them know that it hadn't worked.

Something beyond the simple fear of being caught down there made him decide not to seek out the executioners.

He stared at the blazing red eyes that were shining brighter than the flames surrounding them.

"Name," Vlad inquired, apparently having the mental stamina for a conversation but not the physical dexterity to complete a sentence.

"Erom," the boy murmured, having no idea how to carry out a conversation with a creature that was burning alive. "...does it hurt?"

The vampire's laughter sounded raw. "Tickles a little."

"This isn't right..." Erom whispered, trying to understand the terror building in his gut. An Athraka shouldn't be capable of this. An elf shouldn't be capable of this. "Something's not right!" he burst out, turning on his heel and running to a jumping start toward the upper platforms.

* * * *

Hakom seemed convinced by Tenele's plea. Something about her seemed very genuine. Moreover, she looked the part. "It has long been known that to cross with a god is forbidden. Any mortal who attempts this will bring misfortune on his own line. Attara is the goddess of nature. The curse brought forth by such a coupling would undoubtedly be a natural one. Unidentifiable, simple, regressive illness with no unique or flamboyant symptoms. A simple and straightforward denial of life."

[Emora Deen]

Tenele swallowed. "My brother is cursed because my father unknowingly coupled with a God?" she narrowed her eyes. "My mother didn't know she was a goddess..." Tenele wanted to sit down again. Her mind couldn't wrap around the fact it was true. "Verin cursed her to a mortal form, hid her from Thar. So, my family is being punished for that? Will I too die, then? My father thought it only affected the men, but he could be wrong."

Tenele's mind ran in circles, going over the truth of her situation, and the audacity of it all. "Can I cure him?"

[Soran Nightblade]

"It is very possible that only the males of the line would be affected," Hakom said, his tone becoming slightly more sympathetic. "As for a cure, however..."

Their conversation was interrupted as the door to the meeting hall slammed open and Erom half-stumbled in. He blinked in the darker light of the inside of the building and froze as he looked up at Hakom and Tenele talking together. All speech seemed to fail him as he suddenly remembered what the outsider had said, that the Athraka was her husband. She would not take well to his being exorcized, if this was the case. But it had to be done. Didn't it? "E...Erom," he said carefully. Suspiciously. "The..um..."

[Emora Deen]

Tenele looked to the boy, who seemed startled, or fearful... maybe both. She then turned her eyes to Hakom. Tenele went to the boy slowly. "Is something wrong?" she asked him in that sweet, motherly-tone she often got with children.

[Soran Nightblade]

He froze, torn between the expectant stares of Hakom and the leyap. "I...um. Something is wrong with the Athraka, Elder."

Hakom frowned. "You've been to the lower levels."

"Yes," Erom admitted. "I just wanted to see."

"Explain what is wrong."

"He's..." he stared at Tenele anxiously. "It's not... he's just..."

"Goddess sakes, boy, spit it out," Hakom said.

The elder's harsh tone broke down the teenager's last bit of nerve. Tears gathered in his eyes as he struggled to look like he was in control of the situation. "It isn't...ending. He can speak like a person. He's just burning," the tears dropped down his cheeks.

[Emora Deen]

Tenele blinked at his words, trying to make sure she heard him right. She would have asked for clarification, for him to repeat, but he was already crying from having to say them once...

"Burning?" Tenele asked, the words coming out in a breath. "Burning?" Just a second time to make sure, but even then she couldn't wait for an answer. She whirled on Hakom, murder in her eyes. She took several steps towards him. She could kill him, but the time it would take to do that would mean more time that Vlad was being burned alive.

She turned abruptly for the door, leaving to go back to the rope bridges that connected the walk ways. She paced back and forth, frantic to find a ladder of some sort.

"How do you get off this bloody thing?!" Tenele screamed, near panic now. She turned, stomping back into the room and moving to grab Hakom by the throat. "You'll get me down there, you'll put out whatever fires you've started, and if he's dead... Verin will be like a sweet blissful dream compared to what I do to you. You think the wrath of gods is scary? You haven't met me."

[Soran Nightblade]

"Now listen to me," Hakom said firmly. "The daughter of Attara has no business with an Athraka monster. It reeks of the very perverted union that doomed your mother to mortality. I understand you may have formed an alliance with this creature, but you must not attach yourself to him. He will doom you as surely as the curse had doomed your brother."

Erom stared at his elder and, for the first time in his life, disliked him. He reached out, terrified, and grasped Tenele's hand. He had no idea what he was doing now, but he just knew that something wasn't right. Something was horribly wrong. He overcame his terror and squeezed her half-human fingers tightly, feeling her wedding ring within his smaller grip. "Come," he said, his hands and voice shaking. They began to float off the ground.

"Erom!" Hakom commanded sternly.

The boy pulled back on her arm, hoping Tenele would allow it.

[Emora Deen]

Tenele looked surprised at the boy, and then squeezed his hand tightly. "Please, please, take me to him." She would get back to Hakom. She would make him answer her questions, and pay for hurting Vlad.

[Soran Nightblade]

Half driven by terror and half propelled by the sudden sureness that this was what he wanted to do, Erom pulled he to the edge of the platform and held her hand with all his might as he jumped off. Controlling his levitation was difficult enough for him alone, but guiding two people was a serious challenge. The 'ride' was not smooth as he struggled to reclaim his effect against gravity more than once on the way down. When they finally got to the bottom, they wound up on a bridge several hundred feet from where he'd wanted to go, but hey, at least they hadn't dropped past the bridge toward the ground. Climbing back up was a very different magical endeavor and he was almost positive he'd kill them both if he tried it. He dropped to his knees on the bridge and pointed breathlessly at the hut at a neighboring platform, where he'd seen the Athraka.