Chapter 27: We All Have Our Secrets

Eying each other warily, Nienna pushed herself up from Egil and backed away. He remained where he was on the ground in a show of faith until she was clear of him. He then retrieved his sword and got to his feet. The two opposing groups stood silently apart from each other in an unspoken but mutually agreed upon moment of peace. However, the air still felt charged. A single sparked word could have ignited the tension, and they would be right back at each other’s throats. Nienna hoped this wouldn’t be the case. Brandt and his friends had their fight, and she managed to stop the altercation before anyone was killed. In her opinion, it was a win for both sides. She only hoped the three norn would see it the same way.

Nienna put a hand to her aching side and winced. Egil had given her a run for her money, and she couldn’t help but wonder if she could still hold her own anymore. The blade’s sickness had been ravaging her body. It was only a matter of time; she knew it would consume her eventually. She frowned as she brought her hand away from her side to find red smeared on her palm. It wasn’t deep and would heal quickly, but it was still painful. She spat a colorful curse and wiped the blood off on her leggings. Then, she gathered her will and waved her hand out above the frozen ground before her as she firmly planted her foot. A circular well of dark energy pulsated and swirled on the ground around Nienna. She breathed a sigh of relief as she felt the well of power’s dark energy seep into her wounds and repair the damage done.

Feeling eyes on her, Nienna glanced up to find Egil staring at her. He motioned to his side and then to her.

“Sorry about that. Nothing personal,” he said.

Nienna motioned to her neck. “Likewise.”

He reached for his neck, wiped away drops of drying blood, and flashed her an easy look. “Sure.”

Ylva looked back and forth between Brandt and Nienna’s people, her mouth agape. “What do we do now?”

Brandt was silent, his eyes trained on Dee, who in turn stared back at him. They remained deadlocked for some time until Brandt eventually sheathed his sword, symbolically ending the altercation. Ylva’s nose flared, and she punched him in the arm, eliciting a sharp glare from him.

“That’s it? It’s over, just like that?” She cried out in disbelief. “Surely, we’re not going to just let her go so easily.”

The tension in Brandt’s face grew, and Nienna could see the veins bulging at his temples. Unconsciously, she tightened her grip on her axe, ready to leap into action if the situation required her to do so. But instead of taking his anger and frustration out on them, the norn instead turned toward a sapling and kicked it so hard, it nearly shattered. Nienna felt her eyes widen as she unconsciously raised a hand to her stomach. She felt lucky to not be on the receiving end of his kick. She glanced over at Egil, thankful that he either wasn’t as strong or had been pulling his punches during the fight. She was also equally thankful Salara hadn’t been there to witness such an atrocity. The poor sylvari would have been beside herself.

“He was my father, Brandt,” Dee blurted out, breaking the heavy silence that had fallen over the courtyard. “I lost my mother already. I didn’t want to lose him too. I couldn’t just stand by and let you all kill him before I had the chance to talk some sense into him.”

“You lost him well before that day, lil’ bear,” Egil said. With the back of his hand, he dabbed at fresh drops of blood blooming along the cut from Nienna’s axe. “That man isn’t your father anymore. He’s one with the dragon now.”

The faded band tattoo over Dee’s eyes wrinkled as she furrowed her brow. She hadn’t heard that nickname in ages. Her father used to call her that, and the habit spread to his hunting party, who were also his closest friends: the very same people standing before them. “He was still in there,” she argued. “I had to try to reach him.”

“He killed Gunnar.” Brandt turned back around. His eyes were bloodshot and on the verge of spilling tears. “You let that happen by not letting us do what needed to be done. We could have stopped him and saved Gunnar’s life!”

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry he killed Gunnar.” Dee let out a heavy sigh as she drove the tip of her great sword into the frozen ground. She leaned against the weapon and bowed her head. “He won’t be killing anyone else. I promise you.”

Tuborg silently moved to her side and placed a hand gently on her back in a show of support. She glanced down at him, and the two shared a silent look. Nienna hated to admit she envied the connection those two had. They could share a thought with a single glance and no doubt knew each other’s secrets hidden in the far corners of their minds. She wished she had that. One day she thought it possible, but now…she wasn’t so sure.

“What do you mean. Dee?” Nienna asked.

She motioned to Brandt and his people. “While they took Gunnar’s body back to Hoelbrak, I followed my father north. I caught up to him near Svanir’s Dome. He tried to convince me to come with him. He told me family should stay together, but I could see it on his face. He had a new family now in the Sons of Svanir. I didn’t want to admit it, but you’re right—he was gone.”

Seeing Dee’s face fall, Nienna started to make her way over to her, holding her side. “Dee,” she started, but stopped as the norn waved her off.

“I killed him on that mountain.”

A deathly silence fell upon the courtyard again. As they all mentally digested the confession.

“You never told me that before,” Nienna said.

Dee looked over at her, her usual stoic expression fallen. “I guess we all have our secrets.”

The simple statement meant more than what was said. Dee was right; they all had their secrets, especially her. Even though Nienna herself had come clean on her history and the blade, there was still one secret left she couldn’t bring herself to tell them—yet.

At this time, onlookers who had stopped to watch the carnage finally started to disperse. Nienna breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed a bit as she shuffled her way over to Dee. She offered a comforting smile and pat on the norn’s arm, wishing she could do more to comfort her friend.

“We’re done here,” she said, looking over her shoulder at Brandt.

Ylva started to argue and even took a step toward them, but Nienna turned and shot her a glare that made the color drain from the norn’s face. Nienna could feel the shadow ripple across her face as it fully enveloped her vision. The sensation startled her at first, but the comfort it offered lulled her into a sense of confidence and power. “We’re done here,” she said again, her voice echoing throughout the courtyard.

His fists clenched tightly at his sides, Brandt frowned, but then begrudgingly made a sharp gesture in the air for them to leave. “Let’s go.” He then paused and pointed a finger at Dee. “But I don’t ever want to see you around here again.” He then turned and walked away with Egil following. Ylva trudged along behind them but paused and shot a glare over her shoulder before continuing on.

As Nienna watched the three norn leave, the shadow retreated, but it left her feeling unexpectedly drained. She exhaled slowly but saw no cloud of vapor that usually hung in the air. Her fingers grew cold, to the point of aching. She tried rubbing some warmth into them. No matter how much friction she created, Nienna could not seem to warm her hands. The cold creeped up her arms, and she tried rubbing them as well, but she could feel it spread into her chest. Trying to keep the panic from showing on her face, she silently excused herself from the rest of the group, desperate to find a place to sit down to compose herself.

Around the side of the tavern was a large stump left from where a tree had been cut down. Nienna sat down upon it and bowed her head. Her heart had started to race as the chill overtook her entire body. She could hear it thundering in her head. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on her breathing in hopes it would calm her speeding heartbeat. Somewhere in the distance, she heard her name being called. Thinking it was Alena checking on her, Nienna opened her eyes and looked aside, but the asura wasn’t there. She looked around, but found only the occasional stranger passing by.

Nienna went back to focusing on her breathing, but by this time, her arms had started to ache so badly, nothing seemed to be able to console them. She took of her gloves and coat, and then pulled at her sleeve to see the state of her veins. The black tendrils had spread all the way up past her shoulders and were reaching for her collar bones.

“Oh no,” she whispered and then quickly put her coat and gloves back on before anyone could see.

Nienna’s senses immediately perked up as she heard the voice call out to her again. She looked up to find a hooded figure in the distance staring at her. At first, she thought it was one of the Byrnes’ people, but when her surroundings began to shift, she knew the encounter was something altogether different. Trees overburdened with snowy needles withered until they appeared lifeless, and constructs eroded into ruins. The overall sky took on a sickly green hue as well. She recognized this lifeless place. She had been here before.