Mairèad sits quietly, eyes closed. She is apparently trying to meditate.
Lius glances to his left, head tilting in slow and jerky movements. It lingers there for a moment before turning back to Mairead, a small chuckle escaping the veil of shadow.
Mairèad 's cheek twitches slightly at the laugh, though she doesn't open her eyes. "You've come back to th'city," she observes.
Lius sighs, rolling his head to scan the sky. "So I 'ave, little sister."
Mairèad 's expression flickers for a moment to one of pain, though she still doesn't open her eyes. "Have you recovered from yer madness? Are you done hurtin' people?"
Lius takes a single step forward, his fingers toying with the hilt of his blade. "Hurt people, little sister? I 'ave 'urt no one, I fix them. I 'ave fixed ye all at one time or another. Ye seem quick t'forget tha'."
Mairèad finally opens her eyes, staring at the tree rather than at Lius. "I haven't fergotten. Walk with me?"
Lius says: Fine then, we shall walk.
Mairèad nods, letting her libram fall at her side. She doesn't look either to the right or to the left as she begins, well, walking.
Mairèad -finally- looks at Lius. "Lius, what are y'doin'. Yer actin' like you've been alone all this time, but we've been -here-. I've been -here-. Meditatin', prayin', but here. And you've jest... gone -mad-."
Lius stares ahead of him, still toying with the hilt of his blade. "Ye've been as far as gone as any of th'others. I 'ave nae gone mad, little sister, I 'ave merely found m'self."
Mairèad says: And -where- have I gone? I've been -here-. I've been waitin' fer alla you t'come back.
Lius says: An' none will. They're all gone, we're all gone. We're all ghosts.
Mairèad shakes her head. "I'm more alive than I've evarrr been before. And y'ent a ghost. I saw yer ghost... this ent it."
Lius tilts his head, staring at the lamp post. His hand slips away from the knife, a line of shadow perfectly mirroring the movement of his arm. "M'ghost 'as yet t'escape, dear sister. It claws an' bites, all it wants is t'be released."
Mairèad watches the shadow, looking up to Lius' face. "You wish fer death, then," she guesses quietly. "Yer ghost came to me when I was sick. He laughed at me, said he was gunna kill people and there was nothin' I could do."
Mairèad says: Is that true? D'you wanna kill people? D'you wanna die?
Lius lets out a condescending chuckle. "Do I wish fer death? Nae...nae." He shakes his head, the shadow appearing again. "I cannae die, why woul' I wish fer it?"
Mairèad says: Everyone can die, even the dead. Answer me question: d'you wanna kill people? D'you wanna cause more pain?
Mairèad 's voice shakes just a little on the last word.
Lius says: I only cause pain so tha' people may enjoy pleasure. Wha' is life withou' contrast? Bleak, colorless, without scent. We wander mindlessly.
Mairèad says: If people wanna contrast their pleasure and pain, that should be -their- choice, not yers. If they wanna be bleak and colorless, that's -their- choice, not yers. It ent up t'you to decide who's hurt and who ent!
Lius says: My blades say otherwise, little sister. They hum an' they sing as they meet flesh, th'world comes back through their chorus.
Mairèad closes her eyes, her face tensing in pain. "I cannot let you go down this path...me brother. I cannot let you fall so far from grace that the Light can't touch you."
Lius snaps his head towards her, nearly to the point of his neck breaking, it looks rather painful. "Th'Light? Wha' do ye know of th'light, little sister? Ye only made it out of tha' fuckin' mess of a drop because of me, nae th'Light."
Bryn can't be invisible, even though she wishes she could. Instead, the girl has been silently watching in one of the far shadows of the odd tunnel-thing. "Don't kill m'Surgeon, Mair."
Mairèad was going to make a big speech about the Light being her shield and such but Bryn interrupts her train of thought. She hasn't even reached for her sword yet. "If he is a danger t'you or to the Alliance, I will do what must be done."
Lius turns his body to face her, the constant echo of shadow mirroring every inch of movement. "Ye think ye can kill me, little sister?" He laughs, small bursts of shadow pushing against the veil.
Bryn says: ... Lius, don't kill 'er. Please.
Lius rolls his head, crazed laughter and a singsong voice coming through. "Buuuttt we're all ghooossstttssss~"
Mairèad 's hand rests on the hilt of her sword, finally, though she still doesn't draw it. "The Light will give me th'stren'th to do what must be done. I won't let you fall to the shadow, brother."
Lius says: A shame tha' ye view it as falling, rather than th'ascension tha' it is.
Mairèad says: An ascension doesn't end with people dyin'. An ascension doesn't end with pain. That ent enlightenment; it's madness.
Lius says: If ye wish t'break yerself against me, little sister, we shall do it where guards will nae aid yer cause. If ye can still tha' tingling between yer legs long enough t'pull a blade, if ye can quench tha' lust tha' ye've always felt fer me.
Lius breaks into laughter again. He amuses himself so.
Bryn remains silent, watching. When did he bring his knives? When did she let him slip?
Mairèad shakes her head, looking disgusted. "Yer madness ent appealin'. We've all failed you, Lius. I shan't fail you this time. I shall give you what you deserve."
Lius says: Ye know m'home, little sister. Ye'll 'ave nae 'elp there, shoul' ye wish t'kill yer salvation, it will be there.
Lius gives a sharp whistle. ROCKETS RESPOND TO WHISTLES.
[at Lius' home]
Mairèad breathes softly, shivering in the rain. He's in his shadowform; this can only end well.
Lius says: Nae hallowed ground 'ere, Paladin.
Mairèad says: Gilneas wasn't hallowed ground either.
Lius says: Others are nae 'ere t'keep ye alive, t'stop th'nightmare from claimin' ye.
Bryn says: Mair, please walk away. Let it be anybody but you.
Bryn 's gaze flickers between the two. Obvious inner turmoil is obvious.
Lius says: Pull yer blade an' claim yer prize, little sister. Pull my skeleton from me, smite m'soul away.
Mairèad says: I've no intention 'a doin' somethin' so demeanin'. I wish onleh to redeem yer soul fer the Light. If I can do so and spare yer life, I shall.
Mairèad still makes no move to draw her sword; if she's scared or angry or anything at all, she's hiding it pretty damn well.
Lius sighs, a surge of shadow taking his right arm. "Yer as mindless as th'rest, a shame tha' it is I tha' will 'ave t'set ye righ'."
Mairèad draws her shield and sword. "Are you that blind, brother? Have y'lost yer way so completely?" With her voice cracking on the last word, like a twelve-year-old boy to his hot teacher.
Lius says: I see a little girl defendin' somethin' tha' she doesnae even fully understand, an' striking out against those tha' protected 'er.
Mairèad says: You hid behind me and stuck thin's in me that made me mad fer blood to th'point where I couldn't see. And then you healed me, for which I thank you. I've sat idly by too many times, though, while you've threatened good people.
Mairèad says: And I've heard what you said about people like Bryn. About how yer wife and you fell in love makin' them scream. Y'said it to Emi.
Lius says: My little shadow understands me. Perhaps if ye did, it woul' be yerself at m'side instead of 'er. Is tha' wha' this is all abou'?
Lius chuckles, bringing the arm up, shadow errywhere. "Ye an' yer little wolf, aye, I 'ave 'eard."
Mairèad says: Yer 'little shadow'? D'you know nothin' about her? D'you know what yer -doin'- to her while she "understands" you?
Mairèad says: And Shep's got -nothin'- to do with this.
Lius says: I am givin' 'er a fresh view on life, allowin' 'er t'be 'erself. Unlike ye an' yers, who woul' see her kneelin' in th'church.
Lius says: I will tell ye, little sister, she kneels plenty.
Lius chuckles. blowjobs are funny.
Mairèad says: I'd have her -livin' her life- and not feelin' she needs t'be yer playthin' to earn love! I'd have her see that she has a family what loves her already, what won't turn her purple with burns! I'd have her understand that y'don't fix somethin' by lettin' it hurt you! And what of you? D'you know that th'onleh reason she comes around is 'cause she thinks you need her? 'Cause she doesn't realize that it could be anyone willin' t'let you burn 'em?
Lius shakes his head. "Perhaps she likes th'burn, little sister. Perhaps ye will as well? Let us find out." With that, he releases the buildup of shadow, sending a stream of the energy towards her head.
It's always the fucking head. Mairèad brings up her shield in the nick of time, the shadow colliding with it in a shower of golden sparks. The time for talking is now over. With barely a word of blessing breathed, she charges in, bringing her sword in an arc for Lius' side.
Lius blows his usual load of Dispersion, exploding into a fine mist of shadow. It only lasts a few seconds, the medic appearing on the fence. His entire body pulses with shadow, a single word spoken under his breath if the spell works, PSYCHIC HORROR, Mairead's world would become her worst waking nightmare.
Mairèad 's palerdin aura -mostly- does its trick, a burning pain searing right back at Lius. The world becomes hazy for a moment, though, and there are Liuses everywhere, all of them laughing. "Fuck hallucinatin's," she mutters, along with a word of prayer that sends jolts of holy Light in every direction.
Lius catches a bolt of holy pain in his shoulder, nearly losing his balance on the railing. His right hand flicks to the side, a shadowfiend poofing into existence before launching itself at the paladin. Lius is busy still trying not to fall.
Mairèad catches the shadowfiend on her shield, hissing as its tendrils lash at her arm. She drops her sword a second, a hammer of glowing Light appearing in her hand. This hammer she releases with an explosive BWONG into the shadowfiend's body, and even after that, it has enough energy to rebound straight for Lius.
Lius was too busy trying to gain his balance again to notice the hammer of fucking pain coming straight at him. He catches it in the chest, dropping to the ground. A low groan escapes, his hands groping for a vial along his belt, making no attempt to get up.
Mairèad grabs her sword and stands, the remains of the shadowfiend dispersing as she does. One step and she's closer to Lius; the next, and the ground below her glows golden with a consecration. And then she leaps for him.
Lius crushes the vial in his hand as soon as she's airborne, throwing his hand out at her as she comes down. The plague is infused with shadow, a mixture of the liquid and shards of glass flying towards her.
Mairèad is pretty glad to be a paladin at this point; the plague burns at her face and arms, but not nearly as much as it could. Now, though, her face is streaked with blood, tiny cuts appearing where the glass settled. And in her attempt to block the vial and keep herself from inhaling bees or something, she's turned herself into a flying ball of plate and Light that's falling straight down on Lius' groinal area.
Lius ' SHADOW EYEZ OF PURPLE ORB go wide at the sight of his dick nearly getting plowed into in a horrible way. One leg comes up to block the falling paladin, a loud snap sounding off as it breaks against the weight.
Mairèad grunts as she connects with Lius' leg, falling to the side. She's no more than landed on the ground than she brings her shield about to try and slam into his other knee.
Lius reaches a hand out for her face, screaming out as her shield takes out his other knee. He attempts to pretty much smother her face with his hand, shadow licking out towards her.
Mairèad gives a snarl of pain as the shadow licks out towards her face, attempting to smother her. Among her cries is a word of blessing, pushing an aureate shield out from her body for a few seconds, enough for her to scramble backwards, holding her hands to her now purple-burnt face.
Lius rolls, his legs useless. He lets out a sharp whistle. The rocket picks him up and rides into the sunset.
Mairèad roars as Lius rockets away, cursing her inability to ever wear a helm that covers her face. With shaking hands, she begins to try and mend the damage done.
Shepard totally comes running from the muddied road. He didn't materialize from the guillotine, nope. He skids to a halt before Mairead, eyes wide.
Mairèad 's hands are shaking so hard that she can barely bring them across her wounds. Her arm is healed pretty quickly, but her face... well. The tears aren't making it much better, that's for sure.
Shepard drops to a knee. With a shaking hand, he tentatively reaches out towards Mairead's arms, but stops short of actually touching them. The worgen looks to her for permission more than anything; he wants to assist in this healing endeavor, yo.
Mairèad just nods, dropping her hands from her face to fumble for her libram. She doesn't have to cleanse very often, and that's not a prayer she's memorized. "Lius," she says, by way of explanation. "Broke both his legs."
Shepard switches to helping with the libram; he brings it up, cracking it open, and slowly begins to flip the pages. His eyes are locked on Mairead, however, awaiting for any reaction. "Where is he now?" he growls.
Mairèad puts her hand on the pages of the libram once Shepard reaches the page she needs. "D-dunno... had a rocket, could be anywhere..." She runs her fingers over the words on the page, that familiar glow coming to her hands as she does. A bit of sparkle seems to carry the purple away from the burns on her face, leaving them nasty but just red.
Shepard snarls, a fist slamming into the nearby fence. It splinters. After that display of rage, he sighs. "...I should have been here with you," he mutters, looking the remaining traces of the burn over.
Mairèad 's burns are still pretty nasty, and she's still shaking pretty hard. Despite this, she leans towards Shepard as if for comfort. "He wouldn't have attacked if you were here. He's a c-coward like that."
Shepard inches forward, his arms immediately wrapping Mairead. "Then I would have hid, I would've-" He stops himself, grunting.
Shepard says: I could have waited. Close by. Watching.
Mairèad laughs softly, still weeping either way. "And when he attacked, you'd've jumped outta th'shadows and it'd be you all burnt."
Shepard says: Maybe, maybe not. I could've just gutted him from the shadows.
Shepard smiles, doing his best to appear brave and charming and confident... because yeah. This situation is fairly bleak. "But then, that wouldn't have been as dramatic, would it?"
Mairèad sighs. In this moment, she seems even older than Shepard. "I wanted to redeem him... I failed."
Shepard says: Redemption, Mair, can only come to those who wish for it. And sometimes, the ending to a story won't be a happy one.
Mairèad nods stiffly, her voice growing smaller as she speaks again. "S-shep? Remember after you bit me, what y'did to the wound?"
Shepard says: ... I licked it, didn't I?
Mairèad nods and tilts her face up towards Shepard. She looks -awful- and the aforementioned action would probably hurt like a bitch, but she still asks, "...would y'd-do that fer me now?"
Shepard looks away for just a moment, contemplating. And then he looks back with furrowed brows. "... Alright, Mair." His tongue pokes through a pair of jowls before raking across Mairead's face. It's a slow, gentle gesture.
Mairèad cringes in pain because, let's face it, this isn't going to tickle. She follows the movement of his tongue, though, with her fingers, gently mending the cleaned flesh, though still crying as she does so.
Shepard winces because, well. This is actually a little gross. But he soldiers on! Licking. Until there's nothing left to lick.
Mairèad doesn't disagree that it's kind of gross, but it's the comfort of the gesture more than anything that gets to her. Like having a cut kissed when you're a child. When it's over, the burns are largely gone from her face, though the newly-mended skin is paler than what surrounds it and is free of freckles.
Shepard says: ... We should get you somewhere warm. For rest.
Mairèad nods, letting her head fall against Shepard's shoulder. "I'm warm in yer arms, always," she murmurs because one is never too injured for shmoop. Nope.
Shepard laughs, but shakes his head. "Maybe, but I'll start smelling like wet dog soon. And I'm not exactly the best cover."
Mairèad says: Then let's go home. And tomorrow, I'll find me brother and send him home, too.
Shepard says: I'll be sure to join you.
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