Chapter 52: You Get What You Gave

With a groan, Nienna opened her eyes. Her head throbbed like it was stuck in a vice, and her whole body felt like it had been turned inside out and back again. Her memories scattered throughout her brain. She couldn’t quite remember where she was or what she was doing. Getting her hands under her, Nienna pushed herself up so she could take a look around. Crumbled stone ruins and dead trees spread out as far as she could see. It felt familiar, but she couldn’t remember why. She reached out for her axe laying on the stone floor next to her and secured it on her belt before reaching for her pack.

She looked around at all the death and decay, and slowly her memories began to order themselves. Her journey, her purpose for being here—it all came back. Her throat tightened with panic as she looked around. She was not the only one who came through the portal. Something uttered an angry growl from behind her, and she turned around to find a hulking mass of ice and malice rose to its feet. The corruption had grown over Lord Byrne, taking over more of his arm and shoulder and now spread across his chest and down his left leg. His eyes had grown even more pale and lifeless as he bent to the will of the Sanguinary Blade.

He mumbled something while completely unaware of Nienna’s presence. As he continued a conversation with an unseen source, he swayed back and forth. “I won’t let them take it. I…need…your…strength.”

“Get him before he recovers!” a voice rang out.

Seren rushed toward the corrupted lord with her sword in hand. Afraid for her sister’s life, Nienna yelled and hoped she would stop, but her warning fell on deaf ears. She tossed her pack aside, grabbed her dagger, held it to her lips, and blew in Lord Byrne’s direction. A shadowy cloud of insects swarmed Lord Byrne, obscuring his vision just long enough for Seren to chip away a thin layer of ice on his hip and sink her blade in deep.

“Seren, get out of there!” Nienna yelled as she watched the enraged lord flail in pain and claw at his eyes, trying to rid the cloud from his vision. As it cleared, Lord Byrne’s focus suddenly narrowed in on Seren, and he thrust the Sanguinary Blade at her, narrowly missing her shoulder as she ducked and pivoted to dodge his attack. She tried to pull her sword free from his hip, but it was stuck fast from the ice crystals now growing over it.

Seren uttered a curse, her brow furrowed in confusion and anger as she tugged again. The weapon didn’t even budge. She tried pulling again, but Lord Byrne sharply twisted his torso, flinging Seren aside easily as if she was a rag doll.

Having finally come to her own senses from the shock of the portal trip, Salara ran to Seren’s aid, but she neglected to see Lord Byrne move in to attack. He thrust his foot against her side, sending her tumbling along the ground until she collided against the ruins of a stone wall. It split the bark along her left cheek, and sap seeped from the wound. She wiped at it with the back of her hand. Her pain and the sight of her own sap ignited a fire deep within her being that gave her the energy to push herself up and face him again.

She recovered her staff and held out her hand with her palm facing the Underworld’s sickly-green sky. The sylvari’s fury took shape in the form of a phoenix made of flame. It took flight, soaring toward Lord Byrne and leaving a trail of fire in its wake. The flames broke against his icy armor, engulfing him in its immolation. The corrupted lord roared and doubled over as he stamped his foot down upon the ground, creating a force that sent the sylvari flying back against the same crumbling stone wall she hit before.

When she did not see Salara get back up, Nienna called for the shadow’s help. She needed its speed and strength if she was to take on Lord Byrne in his current state. Darkness edged into her vision and covered her in its shroud. Her axe elongated, its twin blades merging and forming one long, curved edge. She swept her scythe in front of her, letting its spin propel her forward toward the lord. He was ready for her and met every swing of her scythe with savage determination. Using the unique balance of her weapon, Nienna swung it in a circle over her head and used the momentum to bring it down toward Lord Byrne’s neck.

He reacted quickly to her advance. He parried her strike with his blade, and with his free hand, he grabbed Nienna by her throat and lifted her up until her toes barely touched the ground. She coughed and gasped as she fought to fill her lungs. Her scythe dissipated, and her axe clattered to the ground as she reached up to her throat with both hands in a desperate attempt to pry the corrupted lord’s fingers off of her.

“Foolish to think you bringing me here would stop me,” Lord Byrne said. His voice was rough, like his throat was coated in ice shards. “You’ve only managed to separate yourself from your people. You’re all alone now. They aren’t here to help you.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Nienna spied shadows moving. A rough chuckle rose up from the depths of her throat and spilled through her lips. The defiant act angered the corrupted lord, and he threw her to the ground. She landed hard on her side, pain shooting up her right arm. Breathing hard through clenched teeth, she used her uninjured arm to try to drag herself away from him.

“I’m not the one who’s alone,” she replied with a pained grin.

Lord Byrne turned his attention to the seven hooded figures now surrounding him. He turned his head from side to side as he sized them all up. “It’s no matter. I’ll turn you all into my frozen icebrood, and I’ll finish what I began!”

The first Nienna Valar, also known as Nina to her family, pulled down her hood. She moved forward, the end of her staff striking the worn, stone floor with each step. She didn’t seem threatened by his presence, nor the threat he posed with the dragon blade. She didn’t even flinch when he thrust his blade into her. Lord Byrne’s pale eyes widened in surprise, and he slowly pulled his blade back through her incorporeal body.

“You can’t turn what’s already dead,” she said.

One by one, the other six figures pulled down their hoods, revealing ghostly figures with either red or earthen hair. There were traces of familiarity on each one of their faces that piqued Nienna’s curiosity. Nina Valar stepped forward once again. She thrust the end of her staff against the stone floor with purpose as she approached Lord Byrne, facing him head on with a witty smile on her lips.

“Your body has been taken over by the dragon’s corruption. There may still be time to surrender the blade and save yourself,” she said.

Lord Byrne’s face twisted in agony, as if the very thought of parting with the weapon caused him immense pain. “No…no, I can’t. Not after everything I’ve worked for.” His lifeless eyes narrowed at Nina. “You want it for yourself! I won’t let you have it!”

Another one of the figures stepped forward. She had a more youthful face with long, earthen hair held back by a leather band. A slender Melandru’s Stalker slunk around her short legs and settled down next to her on its haunches. It let out a warning growl, its amber eyes locked on Lord Byrne.

“He’s too far gone. He can’t leave with that thing,” the young woman said.

Nina nodded. “No, he certainly can’t.”

Something in the air shifted as the figures surrounding the corrupted lord drew their weapons. Shadow fell over each of them, armoring them in its darkness. Nienna cradled her injured arm against her chest as she watched Nina and the others swarm him like hungry locusts on a crop. Despite his attempts at fighting them off, the seven Underworld reapers proved to be too much for him, even with the power of his Sanguinary Blade. Calling the shadow once more, Nienna rushed into the fray to join the fight, taking up her scythe with her good arm. Even with her injuries, she was not going to miss out in dealing the final blows. She found an opening and swung her scythe at Lord Byrne’s arm, hitting the Sanguinary Blade near the hilt. It went flying, landing off in the distance as a pitiful howl filled the air. The defeated lord fell to his knees.

Nienna let out a sigh of relief and stumbled back. The shadow fell from her eyes and her body, now the need was over. She clutched her injured arm to her chest as she looked upon him. He was doubled over, staring at his empty hands. The ice melted and dripped from his pale skin, pooling on the ground around him, while he struggled against the ghostly chains that had snaked around his body. They held him down with a weight heavier than what their appearance suggested. Suddenly, he looked like a frail middle-aged man who had lost everything. She almost felt sorry for him.

Almost.

“Did I give you enough time to make it?” Nienna asked Nina.

She nodded as she gestured to another reaper who pulled a strange looking scabbard from their belt. “Yes, we have it ready.”

Nienna wandered over to where she left her pack and picked it up with her good arm. With a groan, she hoisted it up over her shoulder. “Good. Thank you. I owe you…quite a few.”

“One day,” Nina replied without any further clarification.

 “What about him?” Nienna asked as she pointed at Lord Byrne.

“I will walk this one,” Nina said. “I suppose this means good-bye for now.”

“For now?”

Her ancestor flashed her a knowing smile then turned and looked down at Lord Byrne, who was still on his knees, glaring up at her.

“It is your time. You will get what you gave in life,” Nina said to him.

Nienna watched her ancestor take him down the river of souls as if leading an unwilling puppy on a leash. With the immediate threat now dealt with, she turned her attention to her next and final task.