Enrolled in Epicness - A Baldur's Gate 3 Fanfic

10. Reprieve

Moonrise Towers Prison, with its torture devices, cramped holding cells, and unfashionable heaps of skulls—again. Not the best place to land in, but at least he was alive. A small astral portal on the wall behind him closed, sealing the return path. Waterdeep was grabbing his head—apparently changing their destination took a toll on him. Lae'zel and the freed slaves were dazed as well, although unhurt.

The cell door was wide open. Outside, a ghoul lay dead under a flickering torch, its head resting a meter apart from the necrotic body. Astarion sniffed the air and twisted his nose. "It smells different from last time... less putrid."

"I agree," Lae'zel said. "I smell more undeath and less exposed feces."

Shadow's face twisted into a grimace. " Repulsive . Could it be because we've purified the Shadowlands?"

"I'll scout for answers," Astarion said, rising to his feet. "Maybe some of the Harpers who remained to secure the place are still alive."

"Try not to get killed." Shadowheart used her usual snarky tone, but when he prepared to retort, her lips were smiling. What a strange woman.

"Don't worry, Darling; staying alive is my expertise."

The sight outside the cell gave him pause. The prison was littered with corpses—ghouls, Sahuagin, and one drow, still clasping his halberd. No Harpers, though. The stench of death hung about while he sneaked through the hallways. The cell that once held a group of annoying gnomes showed no indication of their presence. He didn't smell the thick odor of Tieflings either, which—excluding other factors—was an improvement.

Tav was an annoying, stubborn, capricious, overly flirty, and disturbingly violent woman, but at least she loathed the entitled, self-obsessed creatures with a passion. Especially the bards, which she sometimes slayed in sadistic rituals. Only Karlach had been spared that wrath. Oddly, nobody took her dark urge seriously, so he pretended to do the same. It was entertaining, after all.

He followed the trail of destruction to another glowing portal. The evidence suggested the invading force had left through it. Crossing another astral gate could bring him anywhere, and the trip could be dangerous or even lethal. Thus, Astarion returned to report his findings. In the cell, Waterdeep and Liz were resting, the drow family was still grieving over the mother, who'd been covered in a white shroud, and Shadowheart sat with them, laying a consoling hand on the daughter's shoulder.

How unbecoming.

When Astarion finished updating the others, Gale stroked his stubble in thought. "Another portal, a different smell, and missing signs of past prisoners... As I suspected, we're in an astral replica of the real Moonrise Towers."

"How sharp, Waterdeep. You could've said that earlier and save me the patrol."

"Can you act like an adult for two seconds?!" The rubbed his head, sighing. "Sorry, this ride was bumpier than I expected."

"Perhaps we should start wearing our helmets."

Gale tapped on his head. "And mess up this perfect hairdo?"

"Now who's not being an adult?"

"Anyway! Based on your patrol, I believe whoever has recreated Moonrise Towers conjured only specific parts of the location and connected them via portals."

"The design choice is unimportant!" Lae'zel said, tapping a nervous foot on the floor. "We need to get going."

Gale twisted his face. "We'll likely run into opposition past the portal, and my magic is spent . I think we should rest and regain our strength."