How long had it been since he’d last seen true sunlight? Norfire couldn’t remember… The days and nights trapped in the dreadful realm of Ravenloft had completely muddled his perception of time… and the rest of his mind hadn’t fared that much better. At the very least it was finally over. Barovia was freed from its cursed cycle, its souls no longer trapped, no longer doomed to reset their oppressed mortal existence again and again. No more empty vessels would be forced to live mockeries of existence… no more aspiring heroes would fail in their endeavors and become puppets under their sworn enemy’s command… Perhaps such fates were still tragically relevant in the multiverse at large, but at least one small corner of reality could now experience a freedom they had been long devoid of.
Norfire had to repeatedly remind himself of all this. He’d helped bring this to pass, amongst his accomplices. They’d done good. Even if they had to make dire choices, even if things had gotten terribly grim along the way… in the end they’d done the right thing… They even managed to bring their comrade back to live her own life, apart from the soul she’d originally had. She was no longer merely a continuation of Tatyana, she was Ireena, without question, without doubt. This was good… This was the right thing to do…
And yet despite it all he still had some doubt.
Without ceremony or any sort of warning, he’d walked away from the rest of the adventuring party after all the loose ends had been tied up, with only his peculiar pet cat to accompany him. Rather ironically, the ranger didn’t simply disappear off into the woods, but rather, he’d ended up right back in the very inn of which he’d been a patron when this surreal adventure began. He’d only ordered a single drink to meet whatever minimum was required, and he’d hardly taken a sip of it yet. He merely sat in the same spot in the corner of the bar, strumming his lute as if the entire journey had never even happened…
Perhaps there was a part of him that still very much wished it hadn’t.
The doubt in his mind still lingered. Though there was the occasional question of whether a few of the party’s more questionable acts had ultimately been justified… particularly when it came to the matter regarding the lich that had given them the final hint in granting Strahd a permanent death… It was less the actions of the group as a whole that bothered him, and more so his own. The immature squabbling, the constant moral dilemmas, the numerous moments of vulnerability, the sheer bloodlust he’d started to develop with every passing conflict… and to top it all off he’d nearly made the decision to kill himself just to keep Strahd from manipulating him. Rational or not, there was a corner of his mind that questioned if he’d been more a help or a hindrance to the rest of the party. Much as he may have questioned their views of the world, at least they seemed to be secure with them. They knew exactly what they were willing to sacrifice to get the job done, to save themselves, to keep their allies alive, and to get back home… or at least it sure seemed that way to Norfire.
“If they were just putting on a façade… it was a damn good one…” he muttered, addressing his cat, Esme, as she quietly rested on the table, ears perked to listen to her human’s amateurish lute performance. Whether he was any good or not, she didn’t seem to mind either way… Perhaps she merely appreciated the effort, or maybe she was just very patient with him. Hard to tell with Esme… Far too often Norfire couldn’t manage to decipher what she was thinking because merely looking into her unnaturally red eyes brought faint memories of a life that most certainly wasn’t his present one. That tended to mess with the thought process quite a bit.
As Norfire continued his strumming, attempting to put to practice the advice that Al had given him on the subject, someone approached his table and took the seat across from his. It wasn’t the most crowded day at the pub, so it stood to reason that this individual was looking for him.
“Falling back into old habits, Mr. Latimer?”
As Norfire looked up to see who’d decided to pay him a visit, he was greeted by the stoic expression of a Dragonborn with deep-green scales and yellow eyes that seemed to shine in the dim lighting of the tavern. Having no recollection of meeting such a person before, the fact that she knew his name was enough to definitely pique his interest, to say the least… and the fact that she was a Dragonborn of all things certainly didn’t do anything to hinder that.
“I didn’t think my introversion was so well-known amongst the masses,” he replied, after a moment’s thought.
“Amongst the masses it isn’t. Your employers however, are a different matter.”
Ah, so it was this meeting… Norfire had expected the Horizon Walkers to approach him eventually. After all, they’d sent him to investigate what ended up becoming the Ravenloft incident in the first place. Naturally they’d come around to the whole matter of debriefing.
“Guess there’s very little in the way of privacy in our organization, eh?” He said as he leaned further back in his chair. There once had been a time when he’d have stood up to attention and saluted in the presence of a full-fledged Horizon Walker, but by this point he simply couldn’t be bothered with such formalities… and that also tended to draw a lot of unneeded attention anyways.
“Only in regards to some… Particularly in high places for instance,” the Dragonborn answered.
“That right? Would it be too much to ask just where that places you in the whole ranking system?” Norfire further inquired.
“Well, someone had to send you all that invaluable knowledge, yes? Those occasional dreams of yours that seemed to always end with you knowing significantly more than you had the night prior? It is hardly a process we can simply automate.”
Norfire arched an eyebrow at this. “That was you?”
This actually brought a faint smile to the Dragonborn’s face. “Indeed. I must apologize if some of that knowledge seemed occasionally too much to handle by the way. The closer we get to the inner workings of the multiverse, the more taxing it can be on our mortal minds.”
‘Yeah, no kidding…’ Norfire thought to himself, having easily recalled just how out of sorts he always felt whenever the Horizon Walkers deemed him ready to learn new abilities and powers. When the adventure began, he lacked any magical ability whatsoever… and now he was steadily gaining the capacity to toy around with the ethereal plane as if it were the most mundane of things. That was to say nothing of the new language he’d picked up, or the bizarre way fate seemed to sometimes twist in his favor in dire situations. “Well… much as it could be something of a headache, I think it’s probably more appropriate for me to offer you my thanks instead of forgiveness. Something tells me I wouldn’t be sitting here speaking to you right now if you didn’t do your job correctly.”
“Well, it likely would have been far more difficult at least… but let’s not tarry with such discussions of ‘what-ifs’. I’m here for another matter,” the Dragonborn explained. Norfire carefully put his lute down, figuring whatever this matter was, it was something worth paying attention to.
“With the decisive death of Strahd von Zarovich, the land of Barovia has been freed from its temporal shackles. Your participation in this event has proven that you are ready to officially join our ranks.” At that, the Dragonborn placed something down on the table and slid it over to Norfire. Upon picking it up, he saw it was a badge, designed to model that of the Great Wheel cosmology, with all the various planes and realms of which Toril was known to inhabit. “Congratulations are in order, Mr. Latimer. We trust you will make for a dutiful agent.”
Norfire merely stared at the badge for a good while in total silence. He’d nearly given up on ever having this moment come to pass. More than once he’d been ready to die for the sake of the Ravenloft mission’s completion… and in fact he’d gotten quite close to doing so a few of those times. The fact that he’d not only made it out alive, but he was now faced with the fulfillment of his one true aspiration, was enough to render him speechless.
“You are a true Horizon Walker from here on in. We’re all happy to see that your brother’s confidence in you was not misplaced,” the Dragonborn added as she moved to stand up. “Perhaps you will even prove yourself a match for your old mentor… In time…”
Norfire’s trance was snapped at the mention of his brother and mentor, stammering to speak up before the Dragonborn left. “Y-you knew them both?”
“Of course. I’ve worked with Auglathla many times… and your brother… well, we were fortunate to find his spirit before he departed. He was quick to vouch for your potential.”
She’d spoken with Whitmore after his death? Once more Norfire was speechless at this. Truly this sect of Horizon Walkers knew more than he initially realized.
“Before I excuse myself by the way… Your associates… Have you truly departed from their company already?” The Dragonborn asked.
“Ah… Well I guess I felt it’d be easier to just head off on my own before we inevitably drifted apart otherwise…” Norfire explained, though he spoke rather sheepishly. While he wasn’t lying, he’d already started to question if this action had been for the best. Sure, he clashed with his allies a few times, and interactions with them outside of the adventuring matters had been… limited… but was it really for the best to just desert them like this?
“Your actions are your own to make, Mr. Latimer… Just remember, it was a team that brought Strahd down, not any one individual. I understand you are more familiar with venturing alone, but in the struggles to come, you might wish to reconsider such a lifestyle… It is like my father once told me, you must look after your clan. I ask you to think on that, if you will.” At that, she looked down at the black cat who’d been watching her throughout the conversation. “Keep an eye on this one, Esme,” she said, and the cat seemed to almost nod in the affirmative.
“H-how did you…” Norfire began to ask in bewilderment, but the Dragonborn cut him off.
“We must keep a few secrets from you yet, Mr. Latimer. In due time.” With that she turned and calmly walked away, leaving the newly appointed Horizon Walker to ponder over her words.
Norfire had to repeatedly remind himself of all this. He’d helped bring this to pass, amongst his accomplices. They’d done good. Even if they had to make dire choices, even if things had gotten terribly grim along the way… in the end they’d done the right thing… They even managed to bring their comrade back to live her own life, apart from the soul she’d originally had. She was no longer merely a continuation of Tatyana, she was Ireena, without question, without doubt. This was good… This was the right thing to do…
And yet despite it all he still had some doubt.
Without ceremony or any sort of warning, he’d walked away from the rest of the adventuring party after all the loose ends had been tied up, with only his peculiar pet cat to accompany him. Rather ironically, the ranger didn’t simply disappear off into the woods, but rather, he’d ended up right back in the very inn of which he’d been a patron when this surreal adventure began. He’d only ordered a single drink to meet whatever minimum was required, and he’d hardly taken a sip of it yet. He merely sat in the same spot in the corner of the bar, strumming his lute as if the entire journey had never even happened…
Perhaps there was a part of him that still very much wished it hadn’t.
The doubt in his mind still lingered. Though there was the occasional question of whether a few of the party’s more questionable acts had ultimately been justified… particularly when it came to the matter regarding the lich that had given them the final hint in granting Strahd a permanent death… It was less the actions of the group as a whole that bothered him, and more so his own. The immature squabbling, the constant moral dilemmas, the numerous moments of vulnerability, the sheer bloodlust he’d started to develop with every passing conflict… and to top it all off he’d nearly made the decision to kill himself just to keep Strahd from manipulating him. Rational or not, there was a corner of his mind that questioned if he’d been more a help or a hindrance to the rest of the party. Much as he may have questioned their views of the world, at least they seemed to be secure with them. They knew exactly what they were willing to sacrifice to get the job done, to save themselves, to keep their allies alive, and to get back home… or at least it sure seemed that way to Norfire.
“If they were just putting on a façade… it was a damn good one…” he muttered, addressing his cat, Esme, as she quietly rested on the table, ears perked to listen to her human’s amateurish lute performance. Whether he was any good or not, she didn’t seem to mind either way… Perhaps she merely appreciated the effort, or maybe she was just very patient with him. Hard to tell with Esme… Far too often Norfire couldn’t manage to decipher what she was thinking because merely looking into her unnaturally red eyes brought faint memories of a life that most certainly wasn’t his present one. That tended to mess with the thought process quite a bit.
As Norfire continued his strumming, attempting to put to practice the advice that Al had given him on the subject, someone approached his table and took the seat across from his. It wasn’t the most crowded day at the pub, so it stood to reason that this individual was looking for him.
“Falling back into old habits, Mr. Latimer?”
As Norfire looked up to see who’d decided to pay him a visit, he was greeted by the stoic expression of a Dragonborn with deep-green scales and yellow eyes that seemed to shine in the dim lighting of the tavern. Having no recollection of meeting such a person before, the fact that she knew his name was enough to definitely pique his interest, to say the least… and the fact that she was a Dragonborn of all things certainly didn’t do anything to hinder that.
“I didn’t think my introversion was so well-known amongst the masses,” he replied, after a moment’s thought.
“Amongst the masses it isn’t. Your employers however, are a different matter.”
Ah, so it was this meeting… Norfire had expected the Horizon Walkers to approach him eventually. After all, they’d sent him to investigate what ended up becoming the Ravenloft incident in the first place. Naturally they’d come around to the whole matter of debriefing.
“Guess there’s very little in the way of privacy in our organization, eh?” He said as he leaned further back in his chair. There once had been a time when he’d have stood up to attention and saluted in the presence of a full-fledged Horizon Walker, but by this point he simply couldn’t be bothered with such formalities… and that also tended to draw a lot of unneeded attention anyways.
“Only in regards to some… Particularly in high places for instance,” the Dragonborn answered.
“That right? Would it be too much to ask just where that places you in the whole ranking system?” Norfire further inquired.
“Well, someone had to send you all that invaluable knowledge, yes? Those occasional dreams of yours that seemed to always end with you knowing significantly more than you had the night prior? It is hardly a process we can simply automate.”
Norfire arched an eyebrow at this. “That was you?”
This actually brought a faint smile to the Dragonborn’s face. “Indeed. I must apologize if some of that knowledge seemed occasionally too much to handle by the way. The closer we get to the inner workings of the multiverse, the more taxing it can be on our mortal minds.”
‘Yeah, no kidding…’ Norfire thought to himself, having easily recalled just how out of sorts he always felt whenever the Horizon Walkers deemed him ready to learn new abilities and powers. When the adventure began, he lacked any magical ability whatsoever… and now he was steadily gaining the capacity to toy around with the ethereal plane as if it were the most mundane of things. That was to say nothing of the new language he’d picked up, or the bizarre way fate seemed to sometimes twist in his favor in dire situations. “Well… much as it could be something of a headache, I think it’s probably more appropriate for me to offer you my thanks instead of forgiveness. Something tells me I wouldn’t be sitting here speaking to you right now if you didn’t do your job correctly.”
“Well, it likely would have been far more difficult at least… but let’s not tarry with such discussions of ‘what-ifs’. I’m here for another matter,” the Dragonborn explained. Norfire carefully put his lute down, figuring whatever this matter was, it was something worth paying attention to.
“With the decisive death of Strahd von Zarovich, the land of Barovia has been freed from its temporal shackles. Your participation in this event has proven that you are ready to officially join our ranks.” At that, the Dragonborn placed something down on the table and slid it over to Norfire. Upon picking it up, he saw it was a badge, designed to model that of the Great Wheel cosmology, with all the various planes and realms of which Toril was known to inhabit. “Congratulations are in order, Mr. Latimer. We trust you will make for a dutiful agent.”
Norfire merely stared at the badge for a good while in total silence. He’d nearly given up on ever having this moment come to pass. More than once he’d been ready to die for the sake of the Ravenloft mission’s completion… and in fact he’d gotten quite close to doing so a few of those times. The fact that he’d not only made it out alive, but he was now faced with the fulfillment of his one true aspiration, was enough to render him speechless.
“You are a true Horizon Walker from here on in. We’re all happy to see that your brother’s confidence in you was not misplaced,” the Dragonborn added as she moved to stand up. “Perhaps you will even prove yourself a match for your old mentor… In time…”
Norfire’s trance was snapped at the mention of his brother and mentor, stammering to speak up before the Dragonborn left. “Y-you knew them both?”
“Of course. I’ve worked with Auglathla many times… and your brother… well, we were fortunate to find his spirit before he departed. He was quick to vouch for your potential.”
She’d spoken with Whitmore after his death? Once more Norfire was speechless at this. Truly this sect of Horizon Walkers knew more than he initially realized.
“Before I excuse myself by the way… Your associates… Have you truly departed from their company already?” The Dragonborn asked.
“Ah… Well I guess I felt it’d be easier to just head off on my own before we inevitably drifted apart otherwise…” Norfire explained, though he spoke rather sheepishly. While he wasn’t lying, he’d already started to question if this action had been for the best. Sure, he clashed with his allies a few times, and interactions with them outside of the adventuring matters had been… limited… but was it really for the best to just desert them like this?
“Your actions are your own to make, Mr. Latimer… Just remember, it was a team that brought Strahd down, not any one individual. I understand you are more familiar with venturing alone, but in the struggles to come, you might wish to reconsider such a lifestyle… It is like my father once told me, you must look after your clan. I ask you to think on that, if you will.” At that, she looked down at the black cat who’d been watching her throughout the conversation. “Keep an eye on this one, Esme,” she said, and the cat seemed to almost nod in the affirmative.
“H-how did you…” Norfire began to ask in bewilderment, but the Dragonborn cut him off.
“We must keep a few secrets from you yet, Mr. Latimer. In due time.” With that she turned and calmly walked away, leaving the newly appointed Horizon Walker to ponder over her words.