Addiela strolled up the path to the large House of Three Graces, not seeming to be hurried by or even pay mind to the dark, ominous clouds that stirred and billowed across the sun above her, casting the entire island into a shadowy darkness. In the distance, standing near the stairs that swept upward toward the steel doors of the home, Nethrida watched and waited for Addie’s approach; the captain was hesitant about having to speak to the woman on these matters again, but it had gnawed on her mind ever since their argument in the Old Archives of Minas Tirith. After taking in a deep breath and steeling herself, she marched down the path to meet her, calling out to the woman in a stern voice as she neared, "Addie, it is time we had a little talk."
Addie slowed her pace even more when she heard those words, but continued to proceed up the path and stopped just a few steps in front of the commanding form of the captain; her hollow eyes locked with Neth's and an evil smirk curled on the corner of her lips. The words that proceeded from her mouth would sound sweet to any other, but Neth would be able to feel the disdain behind them. "Time we had a talk?... Time is an interesting concept, is it not? It gives the illusion of structure, of control; people think they can use it to map out their day and even wait upon it to bring certain events into fruition... and yet, it is fleeting all the same; time waits for no one... But tell me, Captain, what is it you wish to speak of?"
Nethrida crossed her arms and frowned, already disappointed in the one standing before her and the words that rolled off her tongue. She huffed, "Whoever you are, I would rather you let my friend speak for herself instead of using her words as your own."
Addie cackled. "Am I not still Addiela, daughter of the late Tirbold of Grimslade? Am I not still the same person you first met in Bree; the one that traveled throughout Ered Luin, Eregion, Rohan and now Gondor with you; the one that faced kidnappings and torture with you; the one that has seen many trials turn to victories due to the strength of our friendship?"
Nethrida furrowed her brow as she looked toward Addie skeptically. "Perhaps..." she murmured, her feet moving now to pace back and forth. “Yet the Addie I knew wouldn't have lied to me about the nature of her research in the archives.” The pacing stopped for a moment as Neth turned to look Addie directly in the eyes once more. “I know you lied to me and Finchley when we came to retrieve you that day," her voice gaining a sterner tone to it as her eyes glanced down to the dagger secured at Addie’s side- the same one that Rathvald had retrieved from Imladris, “and now I see you bear a dagger, one I am almost certain I have seen before.”
The sound of rain, soft and steady as wardrums, filled the air as drops began to fall and hit the pavement the two were standing on. Unbothered by the weather, Addie did not budge from her position; she merely tilted her head to the side, her smirk showing her amusement of these accusations, and continued speaking. "Curious, is it not? That one which sought to hide and escape her own identity, even to the point of allowing those she left behind to think her dead, is concerned over a perceived deception… But please do enlighten me on what untruth I have spoken."
Nethrida furrowed her brow even further, knowing that Addie was trying to distract her from the true issue by taunting her with her own former offenses; however, she didn’t falter in pressing the matter. "The untruth you have spoken is of the true nature of what you've been researching; the lore within those halls is ancient, dangerous, and you've been dabbling with something you shouldn't have... Tell me, what sort of black magic have you gotten yourself entangled with and how do you reckon it will aid us in seeking vengeance?” Nethrida shook her head and frowned, “You've wasted your time pursuing selfish means... And for what? To drive the rest of us away from you; to play into the hands of our enemy?”
The laugh that proceeded from Addie's mouth next was both sinister and unsettling. "I would question your assessment of time again, Captain, as well as which one of us has been wasting it. While all of you have been sitting here in your comfortable surroundings, licking your wounds, I have been hard at work. But do any of you truly value what I am capable of or even understand? I would wager that you do not, but soon you all shall see… What once was disregarded as useless and that which was thought to be lost... shall change."
Stinging pellets of rain chipped away at both of them as the downpour intensified, and yet, neither of them budged. Nethrida shook her head in frustration, "No! You're the one that's been wasting time, dabbling in black magic... That is madness! I can see you're no longer yourself..." She frowned and began to pace back and forth once more, like a caged animal waiting for the door to be opened, ready to pounce. "Indeed, I wonder if you even desire to aid our cause anymore."
Addiela's eyes followed the pacing, but she remained still and her words calm. "Did any of you ever consider me an aid to your cause to begin with? Nay, I was a liability to be looked after and protected; one that could not fight like the rest of you… one that couldn't even watch over Hawk properly. However, I see clearly now and I know my purpose."
“Whatever you learned within those archives was sealed away for a reason, Addiela!” Neth snapped. “If you cannot see the danger in wielding this knowledge, then, you are lost... And I would bring you back to sanity, away from this... folly that you labor under.”
Addie's eyes flashed a dark fire, but her voice didn't rise in intensity to match those internal feelings of rage and hurt. "Folly? You wish to speak of folly? You were the one that threatened to turn me back over to that witch of a woman... And you dare attempt to speak now of freeing me from ‘evil?”
Nethrida raised her voice. "Because I was right, you fool! Your zealotry to plunge yourself into this… this lunacy was drawing attention in the City. I've lived there for most of my life, I know how it works; there was a chance you could've been sent back. Yet you choose to ignore advice from someone who has been a part of that system for eleven years?" She shook her head in disbelief. "And what do you speak of being a liability? You were there at Kheledûl, fighting side by side with us. Do you genuinely believe Hawke would wish to see you like this; filled with darkness, pushing everyone else away? Whatever it is you seek to do is obviously not working.”
Forked lightning, brilliant and white-hot, flashed through the blackened sky accompanied by deafening thunder. Addiela finally raised her voice now, spurred on by her manic state of thinking. "Hawk would do the same thing if he were presented with it! At least someone is attempting to take action to correct the mistakes we've made! We all failed, Captain... and this 'system' which you swear loyalty to... it failed. Because of it, Hawk is dead! And you would be too if it weren't for the Banshee and her pawn!"
Nethrida pursed her lips "Of course it failed for it was betrayed! We were betrayed! And do not lie to me, Addiela; I may not have known him very well but I am quite comfortable saying that he would revile what you're doing. Why else would they have wanted him dead?... I saw in him a fine young fellow, beset by hardship and enemies that reveled more in the idea of him perishing rather than in joining their cause. You're taking all of that and twisting it into a foolish justification to your errant grief."
Addie narrowed her eyes, but before she could respond, Neth continued. "And yes, I could have died as well; or I may have been tossed in the dungeons- the same dungeons where he was tortured. Do you remember? Or was that all in vain now that you've chosen to go down this dark road?" She frowned after she finished with those words, more upset than angry now.
The thunder rolled as Addie’s voice turned eerily calm once again; her cold stare fixed on Neth after the mention of the dungeons and of the torture that Hawk endured. "Of course I remember; I was there. I alone heard the beatings and the cries of agony- a silent witness to the injustice of the system you still champion… And this ‘road’ that I have chosen will bring back to all of us what we have lost. It hasn't failed, nor will it; the pieces are falling into place now."
Nethrida narrowed her eyes. "Speaking of, what is it that you're collecting? Need I remind you of a promise you insisted I make long ago… and then again at the stone of Erech?" As she inquired, her tone shifted, now more chilly than before, and her hand grabbed onto the handle of her blade. “Do you remember... what you made me swear to do?”
Addie’s eyes followed as Neth placed her hand on her sword and a devilish smirk curled on her lips; without hesitation, she walked forward and guided Neth's hand to fully pull the sword from the sheath. Once freed, Addie placed the point over her heart and then locked eyes with Neth's once more. "Do it if you can, Captain,” the smirk danced on her lips as she offered over the temptation to the battle-hardened soldier, in her mind she already knew that the woman wouldn’t follow through on the action, “for this is the path I have chosen and I will see it to the end… or rather a new beginning... for Hawk and for my father."
"A new…” Nethrida's eyes widen as the realization finally hit her. “Necromancy? You're dabbling in the art of raising the dead?!" Now genuinely angry, she lowered her sword and pulled back her left hand to punch Addie square in the jaw.
Addie’s head rocked to the side as the blow landed and she stumbled back several paces. After reaching her hand up to check the alignment of her jaw, she slowly turned her head back to look at Neth. The smirk crept back on her face as Addie silently stared at Neth, but it was now adorned with a fresh trickle of blood, which the rain quickly delivered to the ground as a tribute.
Nethrida dropped her blade and closed the gap; her hands reached up to grab Addie by the front of her robes. "You're attempting to desecrate the rest of those already passed?! Have you lost your mind?! What do you think Xan will think when she hears about this?! And Addiela, I swear she will hear about this! She lost the most of any of us, more than any of us can ever even begin to comprehend, and she hasn't turned to the black arts... Do you think she will allow you to go through with this? Be glad Lif isn't around or she'd have slain you on the spot for even entertaining such a thought!”
Addiela didn’t struggle against the grip, she simply laughed. "The Banshee? She is helping me with my task, Captain; she already knows…”
Nethrida blinked, the shock of having heard that Xandilif was helping made her loosen her grip a little. "What?! Have you both lost your minds?!”
“As for Xanderian , what makes this any different from her situation? She was once dead and was brought back; she even has the scar as a memory. If anyone could understand, it would be her.” Addie licked some of the diluted blood from her lip. “I seek to restore life that the darkness has taken away. Many think of this as the dark arts, but is it truly? How can darkness compete against itself and bring back that which it destroyed?"
“You cannot bring back those who have passed on!" Neth shouted.
“Maybe you cannot, but I will.”
“No, you will not! Xan and I will put a stop to this madness; all of us will… and if Lif chooses to side with you then we shall have to deal with her too.”
Another flash of lightning illuminated Addie’s wicked smile. “Will they now, Captain? Rathvald and Finchley are also privy to these matters; in fact, it was Rathvald that went to fetch this dagger for me. You are on the wrong side.”
“Finchley is young; she may not fully understand the ramifications.” Nethrida shook her head, released Addie, and took a few steps back. “You should know that you cannot bring back the dead! The legacy of Angmar, not that far from Bree speaks of that- the Barrow Downs, and the Wights. And you think that Xan will leap of joy when she sees the love of her life, the father of her now lost daughter, standing in front of her a shambling, decrepit construct that likely wont even recognize her?"
“It shall not be like that; he will be whole.”
Nethrida scoffed, “You would compare yourself to the Witch King of Angmar, who brought ruin to Cardolan and Arthedain?
Addie rolled her eyes and huffed. “You know of one example and use that to define all. The Witch King seeks to enslave those that were lost to his will; I seek to set them free, to give them a new chance at life.”
“Do not be a fool! If I stand alone in thwarting this madness then so be it. You are insane to even think that you could succeed… And I will speak with the others about this.”
Addiela straightened her posture and brushed back her blonde, rain-soaked hair from off of her shoulders; she nodded once, resolute, "So be it, then. I see that you still doubt both me and my ability to be useful. I will prove you wrong soon enough."
She stepped to the side to move past Neth and walk toward the house once again; however, Neth put up her hand to prevent her from walking away. "Yes, I doubt you, because I know it to be folly and I will make you see reason eventually. They will see this is madness too." She nodded as though to confirm her words, before lowering her tone, along with her hand. “And should it fail... and you truly are lost... I will not hesitate to fulfill that promise I made...”
Addie briefly side-glanced over toward Neth when she spoke of the promise once more, but quickly looked back toward the door. "It is good to know that we are both women of our word, is it not? The question then becomes, which of us will succeed first?" Addie brushed past Neth, taking a few steps before stopping again to look back over her shoulder. "Oh, and by the way, Captain... wouldn't it be good to see Therion again?"
Nethrida's gaze hardened and she closed her eyes to take a deep breath. "I've said my farewells and I will see him again… when the time is right."
Addiela chuckled in amusement, "And it seems that we're back to the subject of time again…"
Opening her eyes again, Neth glanced back at Addie. “That we are...”
Without another word, Neth and Addie both walked away- one entered the house and the other walked toward the pier- leaving the rain alone to whisper its thoughts the earth. Perhaps the waters were a foreshadowing of things to come, threatening to erode away what was left of the light; or perhaps they were aiding in the attempt to cleanse the path one dared to tread. Either way, both women were determined to succeed. Now, only time stands in the way of the final outcome.
