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eternalalchemagical · 1 year

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(idk if anyone will care about this but i finally put together something realtively cohesive that wasn't just gratuitous pining and smut about my favourite chaotic disaster lesbians and if i don't post it, it will continue to rot in my drafts forever)

Chapter 1: The Drifts

The day was bleak and bitter cold, even as the sun broke over the distant peaks. Theiya found herself in dour company: temperamental dolyaks overladen with supplies, a handful of weary scholars shivering in worn Priory robes, and, at the head of the caravan, two young Lionguard trudging along silently. Scarcely a word passed between them as the group plodded along, too exhausted to bother with anything more than the occasional grunt or frustrated curse. Theiya could not afford to lose focus, her eyes fixed ahead of her, constantly scanning for signs of movement or a familiar landmark; but despite her diligence, the Norn's thoughts eventually strayed to the events that had landed her here.

One morning as she had been sparring with her Kodan mentor, Followed by Night, on the outskirts of Lost Child’s Sorrow, a raven arrived with a message from the Priory. Offered within it was a generous sum in exchange for safe passage: it detailed the need for an armed guide to escort a small caravan through Snowden Drifts from an outpost far to the East to deliver delicate supplies and research to a fortification nestled in the Ossencrest. The small group of self-exiled Kodan had gathered to analyze the strange missive, arguing about whether to accept. Theiya had only been half listening, mostly in attendance out of respect to the matriarch; but, when the decision was left solely to the young Norn with a steady, piercing gaze, she had naturally been taken aback. Theiya had travelled across the Drifts numerous times before; she was a skilled hunter and fighter and had worked diligently since adolescence to gain the Kodan's trust and respect, honing her affinity to mesmer magic with their careful guidance. Theiya knew by the pointed silence that fell around her that this was a test of her loyalty and that there was ultimately no real choice offered. So, she agreed with a stiff nod and immediately prepared to set off. However, it soon became apparent that this journey would be a greater challenge than even the wisest Kodan had feared.

The road had been long- much longer than any of the historians had anticipated. What would normally have taken a week had almost surpassed two, and their supplies had dwindled dangerously low. Unseasonably heavy snowfall and wandering Icebrood had blocked access to the main roads, forcing them to detour farther and farther south, picking carefully along a rough brush trail and coaxing the frightened dolyaks across the treacherous frozen ground. More than once, Theiya had feared the stupid beasts would slip and break a leg, or charge and knock the whole lot of them into the icy rapids below to drown.

The Lionguard were of little help. When given pause to make camp, the pair complained endlessly of the cold and condemned Durmand and the Captain’s Council alike for their misfortune of being assigned to this perilous escort through the Drifts. Theiya wordlessly picked up their slack, busying herself with gathering fallen boughs to build fires and offering the few remaining snowcherries of the season left in her rucksack to the exhausted pack animals, knowing that her payment and her place with the Kodan depended upon their cargo's safe arrival at the Ossencrest; and that was still a two days' walk at least. As the group continued to fumble along, she managed to hunt some small game and forage a few bitter roots to offer a meagre stew for the hungry cohort, but the near-constant threat of encroaching storms and wandering Icebrood prevented her from being able to stray too far.

After several more taxing days of trudging through the snow, the small caravan finally came within sight of their destination. The Priory fortification on the Ossencrest rose unassumingly out of the late morning mist: a tower of weathered stone that promised a welcome respite from the cold, shards of sunlight splintering around it through the gloomy winter clouds. As the tower broke over the horizon, the caravan’s collective mood brightened. The group of historians exclaimed their relief in a staggered chorus of excitement, their postures relaxing some as they began to chat amongst themselves for the first time in days. A few cheered and laughed. Even the Lionguard, who until this point had been mostly sombre and uneasy, seemed to perk up. Theiya was being jostled by an amiable Charr researcher promising to buy her a round of the best mead on offer in the mess hall when the air shifted. She paused mid-step, unsettled by the feeling of the hair on the back of her neck beginning to rise. It was almost as if the air itself was charged with the low static hum of electricity, the prickle of it stinging her nose.

Just as she opened her mouth to call out to the cohort to stop, a thin crackle of lightning suddenly leapt up from the ground ahead of her. With a deafening crack, the air splintered apart into searing cascades of blue and white light, and she screamed as the unbearable brightness bored into her skull. Waves of heat washed over her, and the frozen ground instantly transfigured into a slurry of mud and stone beneath her feet. She couldn’t hear. She couldn’t see. The light was inside her skull, ricocheting around like a bullet. She tried to turn away from the agony of it and stumbled, landing hard on her side in the muck. Theiya curled into herself, trying to protect her eyes from the pain. She could feel herself screaming. Something heavy landed near her; Theiya recoiled instinctively from the commotion as the scent of blood engulfed her. Her thoughts were a deluge of searing white light. Another shock wave of heat roiled over her, the force of it like a kick to the chest sending fresh pain shooting across her ribs and shoulder as her body was flung backward, skidding helplessly through the mud.

Theiya lay still for several agonizing moments- winded, blind, defenceless. Then, she was aware of a vague sense of motion. Hands grappling with her thick cloth jerkin, distant vibrations- a voice? More jerking and fumbling. Was she being dragged? She struggled to right herself but faltered as her ribs sang. It was too hot to even breathe. She coughed and felt she may be sick at the pain of it, something wet and hot spilling over her chest and neck. I’m going to die.

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Theiya’s mind was aware of warmth long before she could convince her body to move. She heard fire crackling. The soft pad of boots over stone. A distant bird song. Muffled voices drifting from somewhere below.

She struggled to consciousness between waves of dizzying pain, shifting clumsily where she lay. Heavy furs were drawn up around her chin, and the air smelled vaguely of parchment and charcoal. After some effort, Theiya was able to open her eyes, blinking heavily. Her vision swam. She shifted onto her elbows and attempted to sit up, but even this exhausted her, so she laid back again with a pained groan.

Theiya had no idea how long she bobbed on waves of unconsciousness before the creak of a heavy door and tentative footsteps roused her.

“Miss…?” Theiya opened her eyes to see a Human woman hovering near the edge of her bed. She seemed young- a pleasant round face framed by a bob of messy blonde hair- but her jade eyes were fraught with worry.

“Oh, thank the Six, you’re finally awake!”

Theiya winced at the sound.

"Are you in much pain?" the woman asked, reaching across to lay a hand gingerly on Theiya's forehead. Before she could answer, Theiya felt the cool skitter of magic over her skin, and the deep ache in her chest began to ebb away. The woman withdrew her hand, smiling warmly.

"Better?"

"Yes. Thank you."

"Glad to help. My name is Elena; I’m an Arcanist with the Priory. I hope I'm not troubling you miss- I can come back later if you feel you need to rest a bit more." Theiya shook her head and sat up, easing her weight against the headboard, bracing for a ripple of pain that didn’t come.

“It shouldn’t bother you for a while, now. I might not be attuned to healing magics naturally, but the Priory ensures all the Arcanists have proper training for…well. Emergencies.” Her tone was jovial, but tight.

“I was…an emergency?”

Elena’s expression screwed into a mix of sadness and uncertainty.

“Do you not remember what happened? How you got here?”

Pain like a bullet rattling in her head. Blinding white light. The smell of blood.

“I—no. Not really. It’s…like a dream, just bits and pieces.”

The Human sighed shakily and drew herself up in her seat. Theiya could almost… feel the effort it took to steady herself enough to speak plainly.

“There was…an accident. Or…an attack. We’re not certain yet. There’s an ongoing investigation to ascertain who- or what- might have been responsible.” Theiya stared, unblinking.

“The caravan you were paid to escort was transporting some important findings related to the Zephyrites, and the disaster in Dry Top. Our best guess so far is that the Inquest are responsible, but the evidence is…inconclusive.”

Theiya shook her head. “No. It couldn’t have been the Inquest.”

The Human woman looked up in surprise. “What makes you say that?”

Theiya grappled for the words. She realized there was no explanation for why she knew. She just…knew.

“It was blue,” she managed eventually, closing her eyes.

“Blue…?”

Theiya huffed, frustrated and embarrassed. “I know it doesn’t make any sense. I feel…concussed. I don’t know what I’m saying.”

Elena sat in contemplative silence for a few moments. Theiya opened her eyes to find her staring intently, expectant.

“What?”

“You said it was blue. What was?”

“The—rift. The creature inside of it.”

“Creature?”

Theiya grimaced and grasped her head with one hand as a jolt of white light flashed behind her eyes. Was there a creature? How do I know that?

Elena jumped up and leaned over the bed, reaching to touch Theiya’s forehead again. When her fingers met the Mesmer’s skin the pain spiked so suddenly, she couldn’t help but cry out, crumpling back onto the bed in agony.

“What’s happening?” Elena exclaimed. “My magic isn’t working!” Theiya could barely hear her over the roar in her head. She tried to grit her teeth against it, compose herself, but the breath was being crushed out of her by the blades of white light cutting through her skull. Her thoughts splintered into shards of blue, and nothing made sense except the pain.

As Theiya reeled, recoiling from the unbearable brightness, she noticed a figure – vaguely humanoid, crackling with the same bluish electricity arcing across her skull. It hurt to look, but she couldn’t turn away. As the light bored through her, a rhythmic hum began to vibrate under her skin; almost like a second pulse. Was it…speaking?

As she strained to catch words amidst the agonizing discord, suddenly, mercifully, Theiya was jerked from the excruciating light and plunged into peaceful, painless darkness.

#corvi's characters #arcanist elena #theiya runespur #gw2 #guild wars 2 #if you want the pwp that goes with this hmu i have...so much

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eternalalchemagical · 1 year

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Chapter 2: Oculus

When Theiya opened her eyes again, a sea of faces crowded her vision: an incomprehensible blur of commotion as hands reached across each other, voices cutting through the haze of her confusion, and the unmistakable thrum of magic pulsing in the center of her chest. She tried to raise her arms, but failed, the effort turning her stomach.

“Stop,” she mumbled weakly.

“She’s awake!” one of the troupe cried, and the uproar intensified, that painful thrum in her chest escalating. Her head lolled as she blinked against the confusion, trying to regain her faculties, and slowly realized that she was being pinned down.

“Let go of me.”

The faces continued to swim in and out of her vision: Charr, Humans, Sylvari, all scrambling over each other, grappling against her as she tried to sit up.

“I SAID LET GO OF ME!” The force of her voice shocked her, and many who had moments before hovered inches away recoiled in fear. She jerked her wrists free from the last, stubborn few who remained and frantically searched the room for a familiar face.

“Who are you? Where is Elena?” she roared, close to tears.

“I’m here,” a small voice choked. The quiet, anxious sound cut through the pain and confusion; shame and fear bloomed in her chest in their place.

“I’m sorry, I’m—I don’t understand what’s happening—" Theiya’s voice broke as tears prickled in her eyes, and she folded in on herself, cowering.

“She’s stable now- everyone, take your leave, please. Give her space. She’s frightened. I’ll call if aid is needed.”

“You can’t be serious, she almost—”

“Enough!” the elementalist snapped. “Your superior gave a direct order. Return to your duties.”

Theiya heard the uncertain shuffle of boots as the group filed out of the room until finally, the heavy door swung shut behind them with a loud thump. She wished at that moment that she might fold far enough into herself to evaporate, and disappear into her bedclothes.

After a few moments, Elena moved stiffly across the room and lowered herself cautiously onto the edge of the bed. She sat there for a while, unmoving, as Theiya tried to make sense of what had happened, her eyes welling with tears. She could sense the others standing just outside the door, waiting.

“You never told me your name.”

The elementalist’s gentle voice coaxed Theiya to raise her head.

“It’s Theiya,” she managed eventually, unable to meet the Human’s eyes.

“Theiya,” she repeated, in that gentle, musing way. “Do you have a family? Someone wondering where you are?”

Theiya exhaled shakily, unsure of how to respond.

“My mother, Astra. A small group of Kodan far to the east of here. But they won’t wonder after me. It’s not our way.”

“They…won’t want to know you’re safe?”

“Am I?” Theiya scoffed. When she finally turned to meet Elena’s eyes, her gaze remained soft. Sympathetic.

“I want to help you Theiya- we want to help you. But we also need your help to understand what happened.”

“Can’t you ask someone else?” She snapped. “There is obviously…something wrong with me.”

The beat of silence that followed fell across Theiya like a lash.

“There isn’t anyone else to ask,” Elena replied quietly, turning away and folding her hands in her lap. “No one else survived the blast.”

“I—all those people…?” Theiya trailed off, wracking her brain for details. She was afraid to think back, afraid to summon that horrific pain again, the light splintering her thoughts into nothingness.

“Yes.” Elena’s voice was quiet, but tight. “You were blown far enough away from the initial blast when it happened, the second didn’t quite reach you. That’s the only reason I was able to pull you to safety.”

“You-?”

“Mhm,” she smiled feebly, her eyes misty when she finally turned back to face Theiya in earnest. “I was on my way to Lion’s Arch to liaise with the other Orders about some…sensitive new developments. I had planned to rest at the Ossencrest briefly to resupply before making the rest of the trek south. I saw your caravan on the road. When the first shockwave happened, I was only a few hundred feet behind you.”

“I think I remember…being dragged. That was you?”

“I’m stronger than I look,” she retorted defiantly, a playful smirk flashing across her face. “Besides,” she shrugged, “you were hurt. I had to do something.”

Slowly, Theiya glanced down: thick, white bandages covered the right side of her neck and the expanse of her ribcage, a series of strange blue sigils embroidered over the center of her chest. How hadn’t she noticed them before?

“I don’t remember what happened,” Theiya conceded somberly. “All I remember is a jolt of lightning. Blindness. And then…waking up here.”

“More details will come to you with time. You need to rest and regain your strength. I am sorry today was so difficult, I shouldn’t have pressed you. I admit, I can be a bit brazen at times.”

Theiya opened her mouth to protest, but Elena continued.

“Would you be willing to let me sit with you for a while? We don’t have to speak; I only want to make sure you’re safe and that you have help available in the event of another…episode." Theiya searched the elementalist's face for a moment before she answered.

“I am sorry to make you responsible for all of this…unpleasantness. Truly I am. I don’t know what happened, what’s going on in my head—"

Elena reached to lay a hand gently on Theiya’s own, squeezing lightly. “There will be time for all of that when you’re feeling better.”

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The next few days passed in a blur of fever. Elena visited Theiya’s bedside frequently, bringing trays with warm, hearty soups and bitter tinctures that helped keep the migraines at bay. Nervous healers would stop by in the evenings to change the thick bandages and offer medicine that made her feel warm and sleepy. She found in Elena an effortless companion, conversation and silence passing easily between them in turn.

Theiya learned a lot about Elena in those few short days: she told stories about her family, her childhood in Divinity’s Reach, her younger sister Quinn, and how she came to be in the Priory. She talked about the perilous work she had done in Southsun Cove as a novice, regaling Theiya with stories of hunting Karka to keep their nests from spreading to mainland Tyria. Theiya was stunned into silence often, gazing fondly at the young noble despite herself as she laughed and talked, or closing her eyes to imagine the scenery. Elena’s descriptions were so vivid, Theiya almost felt she had been there herself, fighting alongside the fiery elementalist and splashing through the narrow spring channels to avoid geysers of steam erupting from the scorched ground.

When it came Theiya’s turn to speak, though, she found she had nothing much of herself to share.

“My mother Astra left our family’s lodge in Hoelbrak before I was born. She never truly explained the reason, only that something had happened to our people after Jormag devoured Owl, and she couldn’t be a part of it any longer. She lived as a nomad for a while, until stumbling upon a Kodan settlement far in the north of the Drifts. The Kodan living there had lost their offspring in the journey south fleeing Jormag’s corruption, their kin swallowed by the waves or corrupted by Jormag’s whispers. They took pity on Astra and welcomed her into their fold, helping to raise me under the way of Koda. I learned to meditate, to fight, to understand the balance of all things. Astra refused to visit her own family in Hoelbrak, but the bear Havroun, Grechen, made the trek twice a season.”

Theiya had often wondered why the dutiful Havroun never stayed longer than a day or two after such a long journey. She knew her mother’s love for Gretchen was fiercer than a friend, more loyal than spiritual duty. She caught them several times, embracing in a way that lovers might before Grechen departed, but never dared bring it up. She had no reason to. She had never known her father, and her mother was often cold and indifferent. But the Kodan of Lost Child’s Sorrow raised her as their own, so she was never truly alone. Though the Kodan often spoke in cryptic vagaries, they had mostly found peace. Lost Child’s Sorrow had no voice, no claw, but the will of Koda somehow lingered in the bitter, grieving hearts of those that had chosen exile from their kin in the wake of their loss. Perhaps Astra could not overcome her grief for her people in much the same way, refusing to take another mate or bear more children after leaving her home.

“That must have been difficult,” Elena said softly, looking up from the dusty tome and rolls of parchment spread in her lap.

“It was all I’d ever known,” Theiya shrugged, “no different than being the eldest heir to a noble human lineage I imagine.” Elena let out a sharp, bitter laugh.

“That life was never for me. All the pomp and pageantry, endless hours of boredom, forced to parade around in itchy dresses and flatter old, slippery aristocrats? I joined the Priory to see the world, to learn of things beyond Kryta’s borders.”

“I’m glad of it,” Theiya replied softly, suddenly embarrassed. Elena smiled, brushing a stray strand of blonde hair from her face. She closed the heavy tome in her lap and gathered up the loose parchment into a neat pile, setting them gingerly on the table behind her, before standing to brush the dust from her clothes.

“Would you like to walk with me? You must be sore from laying on that lumpy old mattress for so long.” Theiya cocked an eyebrow, turning as if to inspect the bedding.

“Yes, it must be the mattress that’s done it,” she replied playfully, “these stitches and bandages are merely a lucky coincidence.” Elena laughed, the sound bright and sweet. When Theiya turned back smirking, the breath nearly went out of her in surprise. She hadn’t really taken the time to look at the young noble before, too preoccupied with her own pain and confusion, but Elena was undeniably beautiful.

She stood in the middle of the small room, mid-day sunlight streaming around her in a golden pool from the small window above, diffusing a halo of flaxen light over the loose strands of her short blonde hair. A delicate silver pendant hung at the hollow of her throat, catching the sun as it dangled from a simple indigo ribbon. Her robes were finely tailored, but well-worn. A thin leather half-vest with an intricate, geometric pattern was cinched around her pale lilac tunic, the sleeves of which fell loosely around her wrists. An elaborately woven belt sat at her hips, hung with small bandoliers and colourful cloth pouches, and a pair of cream linen trousers peaked from the topline of tall, leather boots that reached almost to her knee.

Theiya felt her face flush, suddenly aware she had been staring, and averted her gaze. Elena stood patiently by the bedside, waiting for a response. Unable to muster words through the sting of embarrassment, Theiya braced herself and grunted with the effort of hoisting her weight from the bed. Her limbs felt weak and unsteady, straining to extend to her full height, the stitches in her chest pulling painfully under their bandages.

Elena stepped forward, offering a hand as if to steady her, but Theiya hesitated.

“Take it as slowly as you need,” the elementalist’s quiet voice assured, “there isn’t any rush.”

Theiya felt a lash of anger crack across her spine at the indignity, but she bit back the harsh words she might have said. It wasn’t Elena’s fault she had been lain so low, after all. Theiya took a few deep breaths and finally pushed off the bedpost, wobbling for a moment as her body made sense of her surroundings. Elena smiled warmly, and the sharpness of her anger blunted and then melted away. This young human hadn’t any need to be so kind, so gentle. Yet there she was, patient and assuring.

“There now, you’ve got your feet under you. Shall I show you the grounds?” Theiya shifted her weight uncomfortably but nodded after a moment.

“Perhaps I should take a moment to freshen up? I am not certain these blood-stained bedclothes are exactly appropriate for a tour.”

“Oh, of course! There are clean robes in the closet by the corner, and the water in the basin brought up with your midday meal should still be warm. I shall give you some privacy, but I’ll be just outside if you need assistance.” Elena turned on her heel and strode quickly away, stepping into the stone hallway beyond and swinging the heavy wooden door shut behind her.

Theiya stood in the center of the room awkwardly for a few moments, before slowly limping across to the armoire and reaching to open the small cabinet door. She pulled a pair of plain brown trousers and a matching linen tunic from within that looked as if they might fit, then gingerly began to step out of her bedclothes. As she bent to fold the soiled garments, she noticed there was a small, dusty mirror hanging beside the armoire in a slight alcove. Realizing she hadn’t looked at herself since the accident, she hesitantly stepped toward it.

Tawny eyes peered back at her from beneath heavy, swollen lids. Even then, her face looked much thinner than she remembered, and deep purple bruises bloomed across the normally russet skin of her face and neck. Ink-dark hair that once hung down the length of her back in a thick, neat plait was now so short she could barely tuck it behind her ear, and strands stuck out wildly from all sides, singed and jagged. She stared in stunned silence, tilting her head carefully to follow the mottle of dried blood and bruises to the lip of the heavy layers of bandages enclosing her ribcage. The urge to rip them off and examine the wound beneath nearly overwhelmed her and a shaking hand hovered over the center of her chest as she stared at the faint blue runes embroidered across the cotton. After careful examination, she realized they must form some kind of intricate magical ward; against something seemingly not even these highly trained Priory scholars fully understood. With much-concerted effort, Theiya lowered her hand and finally turned away from her reflection to finish dressing before shouldering open the gnarled wooden door to join the elementalist waiting beyond.

#gw2 #guild wars 2 #corvi's characters #arcanist elena #theiya runespur #ngl i am probably not gunna post this in order so I can skip to the spicy stuff sooner

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