I see Xen successfully returning with Alex, and Chei running after. Good, I was hoping that it shouldn’t be too hard to draw them away. I also hear something about a “Larry”, but it can’t be that important.
I breath deep, hoping my guess is wrong. It felt like we were down there for half a day, which should have been long enough for the bread to wear off… And Alex is still a centaur, still corrupted. That makes things harder.
I leap atop Chei’s back as the two speed past, the Golem throwing the sword up at me as I right myself. The construct crumbled to the ground, a slight shimmer running up the blade. Handy trick, that. Will make getting around much easier, but it doesn’t seem to like having it’s spirit held in the sword too long.
Xen spares a glare for me, between all the ones she is shooting off at passing centaurs, “So, next part of your ‘Master plan’! Get out, find a safe spot, clear their heads?”
I nod, resulting in a curse. Well, we can’t just beat them back to their senses. I got my hands on some of the wine we tasted earlier, and it is more potent than that. Swinging Mountain Hewer in a broad arc, the power of the blade smashed down the entire front wall, and knocks the breath out of me. Yep, sticking to my Frozen Blade after this.
Out the front we go, and bolting across the hills. I close my eyes, and focus on Mountain Hewer again. A thrust of the mighty blade, and a cave explodes out of the dirt, with us tumbling in shortly after. I reseal the entrance, except for a small crack for air and light.
As the Golem reforms himself, I pant as sweat drenches my body. Just… Just one more. With a swing of my Frozen Blade, the two centaurs get trapped in giant hunks of ice, pinned to the wall just as they finished getting up.
The Golem catches me, and I lay there in a daze as Xen takes over as planned, “Uugh, you could have given my the dirt-sword, ya pansy… Anyway, you, Chei. The one who ain’t going to be transforming back any time soon. How long were we gone?”
She spits at us, rather unladylike. I giggle a little, still dizzy. A slap from Xen, a scowl in return. A few more slaps, another giggle from me, and Chei bursts out, “If you puny mortals must know, it was 4 hours. Not that it matters, we shall break free soon enough, and you will pay fo-!” A punch to the jaw this time. Ouch.
I feel a bit clearer now, and groan as I sit up, “Not too harsh, Xen… We will probably need them on the way out of this impromptu hiding place.”
“Impy what now? And fine, you princess. You take back over.” She begins to clean her blade off, muttering.
I turn to Alex, and free his bag from the ice. Rummaging around, I see that he has still been eating the centaur bread. I look up, and ask him, “Did you turn back at all? Or did you eat before the change back?”
He scowled, and tried to headbutt me. I was at a safe distance though, so he settled for glaring for now, “I did for a moment, and it felt disgusting, being forced back into that puny form. I also felt grossly tired and weak just before I took a bite, uugh.”
Oh thank Nageel. Alex should be easy enough, at least for now. The drug only knocks out humans, not corrupts them, so Alex just needs to wait. Whether he is permanently corrupted as a centaur is an issue though… And so is Chei. I reach into her with my magic, and try to free her from the effects.
Inside her, I find barely any trace. Not in the stomach, not in the heart… Not in the core either, that invisible centre of magic. Odd, that is where most hypnosis takes hold. The rest go for the head… I poke around as gently as I can, not wanting to have the effects backlash. That could go… Unpleasantly. I find what I am looking for, a slight malaise hiding within her eyes and brain.
Darn. It is woven in deep, and shows no sign of letting go. A harsh approach will take her sanity with it… I work slowly, oddly calmed by the curses spat at me by Chei in the background, and Xen’s returning threats. One hook pried free, and another… Unwinding a dark thread here, and an evil whisperer there. I hate hypnotic magic, it is a pain to remove…
After nearly an hour, the effects are gone from Chei’s mind, and a very groggy Alex is unconscious, back to human form. I make another check that only the eyes remain, and Chei smiles at me, “Saved yet again, I see. Sorry for the trouble.”
I smile shakily, worn by the day’s events. I would reply, but I am too darn tired… I lightly pry away some of the magic from her eyes, and she suddenly screams. I let go, and he goes limp, panting. Backlash! “Chei, talk to me. What happened?”
“It… it burned. And my vision went darker than it already is. The corruption made everything look… Darker.”
I hesitate, afraid of my options. Blind her forever, or leave her eyes be, and hope the effects don’t spread once more? I glance at Alex, and sigh… “Can… Can you still fight with your eyes darkened?” She nods, and I go to Alex next, prying free the remaining effect on him. Thankfully, turning human forced the spell out of his eyes, but I remove it all just in case.
And so a very, very tired priest Thaws their ice, and trembles as I climb onto Chei’s back. “Let’s leave this place…”