#but gortash is not a 'young man' by any stretch of the imagination

[eff-plays]

Controversial statement: I do not get the thirst for Gortash. Just like ... visually. He's a cool enough villain to thirst over in theory, and his style is absolutely enviable (zing), but like ... He's just not doing it for me. Even after I heard the drider's nasty and creepy voice and saw his face up close I thought he was kinda fuckable. But Gortash?

[iplaytillifallasleep]

His Dearest Companion

Oneshot

Durge x Gortash

Young Enver Flymm was just sold by his parents to pay off their debts. The warlock grabbed his hands and bid farewell, Enver glanced one last time at his parents, his mother looking sorrowful but had no choice, their house that he may not ever see again, and the place, Baldur’s Gate, where people thrive.

They travelled into the hells where fires and brimstones are around.

The warlock transformed into a skeleton, still wearing the same robes. From there, he met a man, with eyes as a brown as his hair, Devishly handsome and voice so alluring and poetic.

“Young man, do you have a name?”

“Enver — Gortash. Enver Gortash sir.”

“You will now work for me here, in the House of Hope, where the souls come in search of Hope. “

As Enver navigated the challenges of Hells, he met a young Tiefling, with hair as white as the moon, paired with piercing red eyes.

“Are you new here?” She asked. “We can play together after work.”

Seeing the first person of his age approach him, this may be the normal person he could have met.

“My name is Durge, you can tell me stories when you were in the mortal plane, we can also play hide and seek in this house.”

Durge became a steadfast ally, offering companionship when he feels alone, encouragement and advice in moments of doubt. Their connection was an invisible thread woven through the fabric of Enver’s daily life, a bond that transcended the boundaries of the tangible world.

One day, as Enver stood on the brink of a major decision, doubts and insecurities crept into his mind. Durge, with her gentle glow, appeared by his side, encouraging him to embrace the uniqueness of his ideas. Inspired, Enver continued to plan his escape in the Hells, dodging Nubaldin and not leaving any trace.

He was able to escape Hells, a feat for someone mortal that not everyone can accomplish, he has his friend with him, together they are inseparable. Enver Gortash worked his way out to become a public servant, he climbed the ladder atop and realized he wanted more power and together with his friend, they can accomplish everything they desire. As years passed their connection deepened. Durge, with her presence and wisdom it became part of Enver’s daily life. Their laughter echoes through the waking streets as they discuss their missions and other potential allies.

However, one day, as Enver stood on the precipice of power, a subtle shift occurred. Durge’s presence began to fade, and Enver started to question the reality of his companion. Doubt crept into his thoughts like shadows stretching across the meadows.

“Deliver this message and package to Durge, make sure she gets ready by sundown, we can’t miss the ball tonight.” Enver gave his message to his butler.

“Who sir?”

“Durge, come on now I don’t have time for these games.”

Enver looks at the face of his butler clueless as ever.

In a moment of introspection, Enver realized that Durge, despite the joy and comfort she provided, might be a creation of his own longing for friendship and adventure. The vibrant tales they had woven together felt like whispers of a distant dream. A sense of melancholy washed over Enver as he acknowledged the truth – Durge was a figment of his imagination. The games they played, the secrets they shared, all confined to the realms of make-believe. It was a tender farewell to a friend who had been a reflection of Enver’s innocent yearning for companionship.

As Enver embraced the reality, the memories of Durge lingered, leaving an indelible mark on his heart. He learned to navigate the complexities of growing up with newfound resilience, drawing strength from the lessons he believed Durge had imparted...

[oathbreakerapologist]

i think the way u decided to have gortash drive a wedge between orin and your durge (as opposed to the other way around) quite interesting. what insecurities/hangups do you think he preyed upon to make that happen? what changes did ghost notice in her, if any, and how did he respond? did he suspect gortash had anything to do with this?

ah this is such a fun question!! answer below the cut because this is a long one lol

Orin was brought up in an environment that encouraged treachery with deadly stakes; arguably her most significant formative experience was being attacked by, and then slaughtering, her own mother as a young child, and I can't imagine that was the only time she encountered and overcame a similar threat. As a result, she was primed to expect betrayal—even anticipate it—and react aggressively. After all, she earned Sarevok's favor by doing exactly that. Orin survived to adulthood specifically because she eliminated potential threats before they could eliminate her.

For that reason, then, she was ideally positioned to be turned into a usurper. She was already capable of murdering even those to whom she was closest. But seeing everyone around you as either a future victim or a possible threat leaves very little room for the sort of social bonds that humans, as social beings, tend to need.

One could say Niro was the only person Orin trusted, but really their relationship was built on a stranger sort of dependence than that: they thought of each other as extensions of a single being, the lone two tokens of one type, parts of a whole that would melt back together once there was nothing left but blood, gore, and death. Nobody else thought like her, felt like her, acted like her—he was transparent, comprehensible, predictable to her in a way other people weren't, in a way he wasn't to anyone else. She trusted him because she trusted herself.

So what Gortash had to do was force her to see differences between herself and Niro. He leaned into their differing statuses, involving Niro and leaving Orin behind whenever he got the opportunity. He concocted schemes to draw Niro away from the Temple as often as possible, and added forged letters into the mix of the barrage of correspondence Niro sent back to Orin each time he was away. The letters were easy to forge, too; he didn't even need to match handwriting, as Niro—who is blind and at this point could neither read nor write—dictated all his letters to a scribe. Those letters picked at things Gortash knew Niro loved about Orin, particularly her artistic flair (in my canon the letter you can find from the Dark Urge to Orin criticizing the spectacle of her killing style exists courtesy of Gortash). The letters didn't even need to match up with what Niro would undoubtedly say to Orin in other letters; all Gortash needed to do was introduce inconsistency, confusion, unpredictability.

Soon after Gortash began targeting Orin in this way, Niro noticed her seeking reassurance from him in odd ways, as if she'd suddenly become uncertain again about things like her artistry, her place in the Temple, her place in Bhaal's visions of a slaughtered world. But his responses never seemed to improve the situation; it was as if everything he added to the mix only perturbed her further. Then she pulled away from him, which he found deeply upsetting.

He did indeed consider the possibility that Gortash had engineered this situation, but because of his particularly low opinion of Gortash made Gortash a bit of a blind spot to him. As far as he was concerned, Gortash was useful because of his ability to cultivate alliances and develop technology of war, and just about all else the man did was, at best, pathetic. Niro did not think highly enough of Gortash to believe him capable of meddling in his relationship with Orin. Without a clear reason for their newfound strife, he spiraled, disappearing for long stretches of time to go on murderous rampages through the loosely-settled areas around Baldur's Gate in an attempt to exorcise his fear and grief. Of course, his absences only made the situation worse. There was a time that, when Orin didn't know where he was, she didn't believe him to be off plotting her downfall, but that time was long gone.

Ultimately, Orin betrayed Niro because Gortash, through a lens of falsehood and exaggeration, had forced her to confront something true: Niro was not her. He was someone else, he was someone else in a position of power, he was someone else in a position of power with the knowledge and physical prowess make him capable of doing her harm, and therefore he was a potential threat. And Orin had survived to adulthood specifically because she eliminated potential threats before they could eliminate her.