The Amell Legacy: Transgressions

[Haliel Lightsong]

Haliel nods sadly. "I was hoping you might be able to settle-" She cuts off, face tightening. "Wait, no. I need to... bargain. Help. Marian. Sorry, I just can't seem to- What about my life?"

[GamesMaster]

"I would rather not," says Andraste, rapidly. "If that's what you wish, we can bargain, but your life is precious, and you can do far more good with it than I could."

She pauses, tilting her head slightly. "I can settle many questions about romantic love -- but your question was about sex, was it not?"

[Haliel Lightsong]

"Well... sort of? I guess...see, I think love is- well, maybe I should just ask of love has... types. Like... is the love between two very good friends different than the love between lovers?"

[GamesMaster]

"Mortals do insist on telling me this, yes," admits Andraste. "They speak of eros, agape, philia, storge; from my vantage, there is either only love, or there are myriad forms. I do not understand the distinctions mortals draw, but I understand it is important to them."

[Haliel Lightsong]

Haliel's face grows triumphant, then she winces. "Damnit, I- sorry! I shouldn't- Marian needs my help. I just- it's so hard to... concentrate, I just- So not my life. Less than that. A quest? A series of quests?"

[GamesMaster]

"I could send you on a quest," agrees Andraste. "Or you could promise to do one later. It seems a little rude to abandon the one IT-THAT-IS-RAPLIN gave you."

[Haliel Lightsong]

"Qu- right, the mold things. Didn't we- no, we have to close the path to the Underdark. Right. Yes, I would promise that. I-" She swallows, eyes wet. "If- if it's worth anything. You say my life has more worth but... what have I actually done with it so far?"

[GamesMaster]

"Worth is not about doing," says Andraste gently. "Worth is not about capability. Worth is about being, essence, and choices. I would not relish accepting her life for yours, either. But she chose to make that sacrifice, to risk her life to save yours, and I cannot and will not stop her. If you ask me to, I will not stop you from returning her gift."

[Haliel Lightsong]

"But... but this is my fault. I wasn't able to reach Marian. I wasn't fast enough to stop the dragon from- from-"

[GamesMaster]

"The dragon? The dragon didn't touch her," says Andraste, frowning. "You did an excellent job of protecting her from the dragon, Beloved -- may I call you Beloved? It's my favorite part of your name."

[Haliel Lightsong]

Haliel blushes a little, nodding. That's what I call Marian... "Wait... but then... something else attacked?"

[GamesMaster]

"Her shell collapsed due to her own actions. She reached for a power that was not hers -- a power very few can wield. It happens, sometimes, under extreme duress, to those who have a particular fault in their shells. Most who reach for it perish. She thought only of saving you as she did."

[Haliel Lightsong]

Haliel whimpers, eyes wide, deeply distressed by this new information. "Unacceptable!" she blurts out. "I- she shouldn't- I am the shield against the dark, she should- she shouldn't have even come with us, she's not- she's not an adventurer, she's a scholar."

[GamesMaster]

"It seems she is now a perfectionist," says Andraste, frowning. "She was hungry, I think the term is. She desired much that she did not have. She charted a course intended to get her those things. She died in pursuit of her dreams; I suspect HE-THAT-IS-ZANON would have been disappointed had she died in her bed, without reaching for more."

[Haliel Lightsong]

"She..." Haliel closes her eyes. "She had so much available but it never... It never seemed enough. Or... or she never trusted it. She... she seemed to think that unless she... tricked the world into giving it to her, it wasn't real. It would fade or be taken back from her."