"Thank you, if it wasn't for you I would've died and my son would've been left an Orphan."
"It's no problem Kanon."
After saving the Tiefling they allowed us into the Grove since saving one of their guards lives gave us quite a good reputation with them.
"Damays also told us about you, a Cambion without looking like one interesting..."
Now we were walking towards the area where the tieflings we're holed up in being led by their leader Zevlor.
"We need your help, this matter isn't something we can talk about it public. Meet me in my quarters inside that abandoned tomb and we'll discuss it."
"Mhm."
Nodding we watched him go into his chamber and then I focused my attention on someone entirely else, a Tiefling working a poorly made forge it was Dammon the only reliable Blacksmith in the whole game.
"Hello there!"
I walked up to him confusing the others, but before he could say anything I brought out 8 bars of Beskar from my inventory and showed it to him.
"I'm wondering if you could make some armor with this."
[Dimensions May Die]
Expect a bit more DnD into the lore, so don't be surprised when their random encounters and other side quests.
[Dimensions May Die]
"This is a wonder, where in the realms did you find this metal!?" Right now Dammon was expecting the Bars of Beskar I've given him, he's been trying to melt the bars for the past hour tot he point that I told the others to gather supplies after giving them some gold and gems I got form my deal with Riser.
I had given Astarion more than I should've, it was a gift he appreciated. He actually tried to get more from me but I just looked at him like he had gone mad.
"It was from a part of the underworld sealed off by my grandfather." Sorry gramps but I'm really gonna be using your name a lot in this world.
"You've told me about your Grandfather, I still can't believe such a thing..." Dammon was trying his best to melt the Beskar, but apparently even magic couldn't do that much against it.
"If we're to keep the Beskar melted would you be able to shape it into a fullchest plate?"
"If you could melt the metal it into a mold but are you sure?, even Infernal metal isn't this resistant to heat how will you even melt it?"
"Just leave it to me, I just want it to look like this."
I handed him a sketch of the armor I wanted, I even asked him if he had some leather or cloth that could handle heat and apparently he did.(Image will be given here, minus the faulds)
"I could do this but it'll take days with how hard the metal is to heat..."
"Just prepare the molds and I'll handle melting the metal, just make sure the metal is pure." And so I watched as Dammon prepare the molds, he used some sort of mix of sand and whatever red dirt he had from a sealed bag marked as Home.
Dammon finally stood, red dirt still clinging to his gloves, and gave a sharp exhale.
"The mold's ready," he said, voice tinged with awe. "But unless you've got the breath of a dragon tucked away, we're not going to melt this stuff with anything I've got here."
I stood up, dusting off my coat.
"Good," I said simply, walking toward the forge. "Because I didn't plan to use your flame."
I raised a hand. The air warped subtly, as if reality itself was drawing in a breath. Then with a snap of my fingers.
Blue fire burst to life, my very own inferno. focused and narrow, wrapping around the first bar of Beskar.
Dammon took a step back, shielding his eyes. Shadowheart, who had been leaning on a crate, pushed herself upright, her expression shifting from bored to riveted.
"That… that's not Infernal magic," Dammon muttered. "That's something else entirely."
"It's refined," I said calmly, letting the fire spin tighter. "A flame sharpened by will. This isn't chaos, this is control."
The Beskar, long defiant to even magical flames, began to glow. Slowly, it softened not cracking, not hissing. It just started to melt. In all honesty I didn't even know if it would work.
Shadowheart stepped closer, her eyes reflecting the eerie blue glow. "That fire... it doesn't consume like normal flame. It commands."
"Exactly."
I rotated my wrist, guiding the stream of molten Beskar into Dammon's prepared mold. The mix of sand and red earth hissed gently, absorbing the heat without crumbling. Dammon hurried to seal it, carefully pressing the casing closed as the last of the liquid steel settled in.
"It's done," he said after a moment. His voice was hushed. "The mold's full. That's… I don't know what to say. I've worked with Infernal iron, adamantine, even enchanted star metal and none of them behaved like that..."
I stepped back from the forge, the blue flames on my hand vanishing with a soft flick.
The three of us waited as the mold cooled slower than usual, even with the strange red earth Dammon called Home. While we did, Shadowheart sat down again beside me, resting the sack of supplies she had gathered.
"I used some of the gold for scrolls and potions," she said offering the pouch back. "Here's what's left."
I pushed her hand away gently without looking. "Keep it. I have more than enough."
Her smile curled into something sly. "You do live like royalty, don't you?"
"Not royalty," I muttered, watching the forge. "Just someone who knows how to make devils pay their debts."
"Let me guess. More deals with the devil?"
"With a devil heir," I corrected. "A spoiled one he paid me after I embarrassed his fiance and her servants"
"That's strange for a Knight."
I gave a shrug. "I needed funds for a church I was protecting. The angels sent to 'help' were more interested in preaching than building and the nun I was caring for needed to eat."
That caught her off guard. She leaned in slightly. "Angels… helping you?"
"After what my grandfather did, our whole bloodline got tagged as 'redeemed.'" I shook my head. "Even if I don't act like it."
"The Order didn't support your mission?"
"They're a bunch of stuck up folks but their good people, they just didn't want toe aste resources on something I could easily handle."
A quiet clank interrupted us.
Dammon stepped forward, gently prying open the mold with a pair of reinforced clamps. A small hiss of heat escaped as he lifted the top off.
The armor gleamed. A full chestplate seamless, matte-black with a subtle shimmer. Traces of blue fire were still visible in the cooling metal, like veins of raw power frozen mid-flow.
The Arm brace's we're still cooling, but after awhile Dammon finished and now he gave me a long sleeve made of a hide from a young drake.
"It's done," Dammon said breathlessly.
I stepped forward and lifted it.
It was heavy but not cumbersome. Dense, protective, and utterly unyielding.
I handed Dammon a sack of gems, more than enough to pay for his work.
"Zevlor's probably waiting," Shadowheart said, standing beside me now. "Think we've earned enough goodwill to ask him for a favor?"
I gave her a sidelong glance.
"We've earned enough to turn this entire Grove into a fortress if we wanted, if we were to get rid of the Druids." I said jokingly
"Let's hope it doesn't come to that."
[Dimensions May Die]
Right now with the armor and his Cloak Victor may start looking like an actual Knight, I'll be continuing this fanfic randomly so don't expect much. But until College starts at August 19 I'll be working on it.
Gotta love studying to be a Nurse.
[Dimensions May Die]
"I see no reason why were out in this dirt!" Astarion said complaining as always.
After everyone gathered instead of making our way to Zevlor we made my way to an area near the Statue of druids Oakfather Silvanus, specifically under a fallen pillar close by where the Tiefling I remembered being named Alfira practiced.
"Well, we have a Knight, a Rogue, a Cleric, and a Wizard."
As we walked closer they could hear the sound of a Lute playing, not greatly but it was still playing a beautiful song.
"A bard!?"
"Yes Astarion, a bard."
The Grove was quieter than usual.
Most of the Tieflings were tucked away behind barricades or resting after long shifts. Our party stood near a fallen pillar not far from the statue of Silvanus. That's when I heard it off-tune lute strings, hesitant, searching.
It was Alfira.
The young bard sat alone, surrounded by grass and two curious squirrels watching her with more patience than most mortals could muster. She looked up as we approached, nervous.
"That's sounds a bit..... unfinished" Shadowheart said cuasing Alfira to whine in frustration.
"What's it about?" I asked
Clutching her lute tighter she spoke. "It's called Weeping Dawn. For my master, Lihala. She died before we made it here...."
She glanced at me specifically, unsure whether she should continue.
I was confused why she would ask a random stranger for permission "Then sing it."
She looked shocked at first then grateful. The others were quiet. Even Astarion, who'd been midsigh, caught my expression and decided not to be clever.
Alfira breathed in and began to sing.
Dance upon the stars tonight
Smile and pain will fade away
Words of mine will turn to ash
When you call the last light down
Her voice wavered, but not from lack of talent grief did that. The melody clung to the stones around us like a morning fog.
Moon reminds me of your grace
All the love I can't repay
Rest and know that I will pray
Farewell my dear old friend
Shadowheart's eyes were on the ground now. Gale crossed his arms but listened with full attention.
Moon, sun, all remind me of your grace
Faith, care, all the love I can't repay
Moon, sun, all remind me of your grace
Faith, care, all the love I can't repay
I didn't know her master. I didn't know how she died. But that pain singing as if it was the only thing left to do, that I knew. And I understood that kind of silence after the last note.
Dance upon the stars tonight
Smile and pain will fade away
Words of mine will turn to ash
When you call the last light down
Moon reminds me of your grace
All the love I can't repay
Rest and know that I will pray
Farewell my dear old friend
Dance upon the stars tonight
Smile and pain will fade away
She stopped.
Not dramatically just like someone who had nothing more to say.
I stepped forward. "She would've heard you," I told her. "And if she was anything like you, I imagine she'd have smiled through the tears."
Alfira looked down, visibly shaking. "I wasn't sure if it was good enough…"
"It wasn't meant to be good," I said. "It was meant to be true. You gave her a song no one else ever could. That's more than most ever get." Damn man I'm really giving my best performance here.
Shadowheart knelt beside her and offered a quiet word. Gale gave a respectful nod.
Astarion rolled his eyes. "Well, we're officially a traveling choir now. Should I start writing a dramatic solo for myself?"
Gale smacked him lightly on the back of the head with his staff.
"For the love of Baldur!"
I couldn't help but let a short laugh slip through. "He has a point," I said. "But your part should definitely be a tragic waltz."
Alfira chuckled through her tears, wiping them quickly. "Thank you, all of you. Maybe… maybe I'll finish it someday."
"You already did," I told her, turning back toward the path. "Now keep singing it. For her and for you."
Shadowheart stepped in beside me as we walked.
"That was kind of you," she said. "Didn't expect that."
"I don't sing," I replied. "But I know what it's like to lose someone and still want their name to mean something."
"And here I thought you only knew how to burn things."
I smirked. "Turns out I've got more than one use."
As we left, I could still hear Alfira strumming faintly behind us. Less unsure this time.
The kind of sound someone makes when grief starts turning into something… survivable. If everything goes well she'll want to adventure with us.
I know I could do everything on my own but what would be the fun in that?
As we approach the way we came from I heard suddenly heard something.
A song no, not just a song.
Something wrong.
It wasn't the melody itself. It was what it made me feel like I was being pulled forward, like I should stop thinking and just… follow.
The others felt it too.
"Do you hear that?" Shadowheart asked, pausing mid-step.
"I feel it," Gale muttered. "Enchantment magic. Subtle. Dangerous."
Astarion scoffed. "Unless the trees have started singing, I'd say we've got company."
I stepped ahead, making my way to the edge of the cliff then I saw him
A boy. Tiefling then I finally remembered one of the chance encounters in this area when I was playing the game.
He was standing right at the beaches edge, swaying like he was sleepwalking.
And above him… I saw wings.
Not divine.
Harpies.
Three of them, circling lazily overhead like vultures with better vocals. Their voices blended into one another, too smooth, too sweet honey laced with venom.
One hovered lower, cooing, her voice like silk.
"Come to me, little one… Don't be afraid. Just a step… just a breath…"
The boy obeyed. His foot hovered over open air.
"Move!" I shouted, snapping a thread of my Inferno's flame into existence in my palm. "Get away from him!"
The harpy's illusion cracked the second I spoke. Her voice faltered, and the child froze mid-step, blinking like someone shaken from a dream.
She hissed at me, face twisting from beauty to malice.
"Well, that ruined the mood," Astarion sighed, drawing his blades.
Shadowheart surged forward, with her Mace and Shield in hand. Gale slammed down his quarter staff gathering arcane power.
I didn't wait.
I launched myself toward the child, tackling him to the side just as the harpy dove for him.
Claws missed his head by inches.
I rolled with him, then rose as I used a projection of my wings to launch us, placing myself between him and them. My hand flared to life as I shot a mirage blade at one of them.
The harpy screamed.
One charged. I met her head-on, my fist full of fire slamming into her chest mid-flight.
"Ha!"
She was engulfed with it burning her into ash.
Shadowheart blocked a second one's swipe with her shield, jamming the butt of her spear into its gut and sending it reeling.
Gale let loose a beam of force that cracked through the air and sent the third one tumbling backward in a daze.
Astarion was already behind her, daggers flashing.
By the time the harpy even realized she'd been flanked, he had already opened her throat.
She gurgled something that might've been a curse. Then fell, twitching, into the sea.
The third tried to retreat wings struggling to stay airborne with Gale's magic still dragging at her. I stepped forward forming my hand into a Fox symbol.
"Kon!"
And on que the Fox Devil showed up swallowing the Harpy.
"Hmm, a bit thin but delicious..."
Poof!-
The boy had curled against a rock, shaking.
Shadowheart checked him quickly. "He's not injured. Just stunned."
I knelt in front of him. "Hey."
He flinched.
"You're safe now," I said, quieter this time. "What's your name?"
He blinked at me, eyes glassy. "M… Mirkon."
"Why were you out here alone?"
"I-I heard music. I thought someone was playing… and then I couldn't stop walking."
Shadowheart glanced at me. "They nearly took him."
"They would've fed on him." My tone came out flat. "Mind and flesh."
Astarion scoffed, sheathing his blades. "And people wonder why I avoid children."
Gale knelt beside the boy. "You need to go back to the Grove, Mirkon. Do you remember how to get there?"
He nodded, still trembling.
I gave him a quick look-over. "You'll be alright. Don't stray again. Harpies aren't the only thing out here with claws."
He stood slowly, then turned and ran without another word.
As he vanished over the hill, Gale stood and brushed his robes off. "Well. That's one child saved from a siren's death song. Lad reminds me of myself! "
Shadowheart gave me a sidelong glance. "You acted quickly. Not many would have."
"Wasn't planning to let some oversized pigeons rip a child apart in front of me," I said.
Astarion rolled his eyes. "Yes yes, noble knight routine again. Shall we go get boss-man Zevlor his secret chat now?"
I smirked. "He technically isn't the boss here, hell whoever's in charge even wants to see us"
"You don't need to remind me, almost got myself bitten by that blasted druid in a wild shape" Astarion complained.
"I'm sure whatever it is won't be nearly as loud as harpy screams." Shadowheart said
We turned back toward the path.
Behind us, the sea crashed against the rocks, and the breeze carried away the last notes of that cursed lullaby.