Asli and her loyalists started to get closer to us, the group tailing us arriving at the opposite side of the corridor. We were surrounded, and there was no way we could cut our way through them; our only chance was the narrow, dark passage on the rocky wall. It was then that I noticed that, besides the guards, Janissaries and commoners, there were also a few Priestesses with Asli, mostly Confessors. A few of them were the ones that we assigned to keep tabs on her activities. So obviously they were also feeding her information on our actions. No wonder they managed to catch up to us so fast. Clever bitch!

“Hail Blesses Princess Asli of Ysle!” I mockingly saluted her and her retinue with a half-assed bow. “How can we lowly peasants assist you today?”

Asli glared at me briefly, her brow furrowed in slight anger, before turning her attention to Shjasta and the others. “This is the end of the line for you all,” she said as her soldiers stepped forward, arms trained at us. “Surrender now and end this needless bloodshed. You will be well treated and have a fair trial, you have my word.”

“If there was bloodshed today and in the past days, is because of your actions, Asli!” Shjasta replied angrily. “You set up the people of Ysle against itself!”

“I didn’t do such a thing, Princess,” the former Head Confessor assured her, a small, sly smile forming on her lips. “I merely showed them the truth. It stoked them, yes, but I never commanded them to wreak havoc. It was years of pent-up anger and frustration that compelled them to act this way. But you can help quell this anger if you surrender without further resistance. If you genuinely care about Ysle and wish to serve our Gods, this is the only way available to you now.”

A Confessor approached Asli and whispered something to her ear. She nodded and looking back at us continued, her smile quickly evaporating:

“Also, I need you to surrender the Soul Prism,” she remarked.

“So you plan on lighting the Soul-fire yourself?” Lyra, the Head Fire-keeper, interjected. “What makes you think you'll succeed where the Princess failed?”

“If you let me at least give it a try, perhaps the Gods will answer that question,” Asli replied very calmly. “Or are you so afraid of what they might say through the Sacred Fire?”

Asli rose her hand and her retinue took another step forward, their weapons pointing at us menacingly. I raised my guard and tensed my body in preparation for the imminent battle.

“Want the Prism? Then come and get it, bitch!” I jeered while pointing my sword at her throat.

“So be it, then!” the usurper finally said, making no effort to hide her anger. “Seize them!” she commanded her followers.

The next couple of minutes were of utter chaos as steel clashed in the middle of that relatively narrow corridor. I was at the front of our line alongside our remaining guards, doing our best disarming and dispatching the fools that Asli sent after us. The Four Heads stood in the middle, protecting the Princess and the Emissaries with their holy magic.

But our efforts only served to slow down their advance. The hidden passage was our only way out now.

“You and the Emissaries must continue, Princess,” Priestess Lyra said to Shjasta, handing her down an object covered by a piece of white cloth. By the size and shape of it, I assumed that was the Prism. “We will hold the line and try to reach you as soon as possible.”

“I can’t leave you behind like this!” Shjasta protested.

“Your safety and the Prism’s are more important than ours, Your Highness!” Lady Zafira pressed on. “You must-”

“Shit!” I hissed as one of our attackers managed to slip past my guard.

“Look out!” Priestess Ankita warned the old lady.

The Asli loyalist launched himself forward, ready to strike down the Head Mentoress. The old woman, however, moved surprisingly fast and produced a flash of white light from her right palm. It blinded her assailant. While this was enough to make him miss Zafira’s chest, It still managed to pierce her right side, just below her ribcage.

“Mother Zafira!” the Princess shrieked as she rushed to Lady Zafira’s side.

“Dammit!” I protested as I took care of Zafira’s attacker with a quick series of slashes.

“Bastard slipped past me! Are you alright, Priestess?” I ask while parrying the next attacker’s slash.

“I’m… I’m all right!” The old lady winced in pain while her hand covered her wound. It was bleeding profusely, so I knew it was quite bad.

“Change of plans!” I said. “Everyone, into the passage! Now!”

Shjasta and the other Priestesses helped the wounded Zafira enter the passage. Next followed the Emissaries, and finally me. Our last guards stood in front of the entrance to cover our escape. As I entered the hole behind the palace wall, the Head Healer pulled a lever that closed and locked the wall section back into place, preventing our attackers from following us.

“Can they open it from the other side?” I asked.

“The mechanism is designed to make it impossible to open it back from the palace side once it’s closed from the tunnel side.” Lady Nadya assured me. “They’ll have no choice but intercept us at the other end of the tunnel, or tear this wall down.”

The stone wall was quite thick and solidly built, so it would take them some time to break through it. We could hear Asli’s muffled voice, ordering her men to bring the wall down, while ordering a few others to find the passage’s exit and catch us there.

“They only know that the exit’s on the other side of the hill, so it will take them a while to find it.” The Head Fire-keeper said. “We must hurry and reach the other side before they do!”

“We must stop and heal the Head Mentoress first!” Shjasta objected. She was quite busy channeling a healing spell on the wounded Priestess.

“Save that for when we are away from harm, Your Highness.” The old woman gasped while taking a step forward. She was weak and nearly fell but was supported by her fellow Priestesses.

The old woman’s resolve to carry on despite literally bleeding to death was remarkable. She really cared about the Princess, and not just because she was Ysle’s ruler. Shjasta protested again, but we managed to convince her to move on. She and the Head Healer still tried their best to heal Zafira’s wound while on the move, but this only served to delay the inevitable.

I don’t know how long we walked through that dark, narrow corridor. It had several twists and turns but it followed a general direction northward and slightly downward. At one point the tunnel ended up into a larger cavern. It was so big and deep I couldn’t see shit past the line of torches lighting our way. We walked through a long wooden scaffolding. I could hear the slight murmur of water running below us.

“We are right above the Underground River now.” Priestess Lyra explained. “We must walk through the scaffolding to the other side of the cavern, where another tunnel awaits us. From there we'll be just a few more minutes from reaching the other side of the hill.”

“Let’s hurry!” Shjasta said. “We must mend Mother Zafira’s wound!”

The old lady looked pale, her forehead covered in a cold sweat, but she swallowed her pain and tried to keep a straight face to assuage Shjasta’s worries. But we knew she needed immediate attention if we wanted her to have a chance of making it, so we pressed on.

Just as the Head Fire-keeper said, the scaffolding ended up right next to another narrow tunnel. As we moved forward I felt that this one had a gentle upward inclination. After several minutes we finally saw some light, and soon enough we emerged to the outside world once more. It was late in the afternoon, and the sky was starting to turn red as the sun’s golden disk approached the horizon.

It was at this point that old lady Zafira’s strength finally faltered, and her legs refused to carry her weight any further. Her breathing was ragged, and her eyelids were becoming heavier.

“Mother Zafira!” Princess Shjasta cried as she knelt beside her to use the full extent of her healing arts. “Let me help you!”

“My dear… I’m afraid it’s too late for that…” The old woman winced in pain, still managing to flash Shjasta a weak yet warm smile.

“Please don’t say that!” Shjasta would have none of that, redoubling her efforts. But the old Priestess grabbed her hands.

“Save your strength for what comes next... Princess.” The Head Mentoress’ voice was now very weak, almost a whisper. “The real battle is still ahead of you, and you and your Champion must save your strength if you hope to overcome it…”

“What shall we… What shall I do now? I… I have no idea!”

“Ask the Gods for guidance... my dear child.” Zafira’s eyelids started to become heavier and she struggled to keep her eyes open. “They haven’t abandoned you. If you ask Them, They will… show you… the way…”

The old lady’s eyes finally closed, and she exhaled one final time before becoming still.

Shjasta placed her head gently over the old woman’s chest and started to sob. She stayed like this for a minute, rising back up just as the sun started to disappear behind the horizon and the colors of twilight started to fade into black.

Seeing Shjasta like this, I couldn’t help but feel genuinely sorry for her.

Fuck! is this damned Champion job making me soft? Before, I would give a shit for anyone’s sadness. I was that kind of bastard.

“May the Gods grant Mother Zafira’s Soul Peace…” She said as she joined her palms in prayer.

“May the Gods grant Mother Zafira’s Soul Peace!” the other Priestesses replied, bowing their heads out of both respect and grief.

I closed my eyes and silently bowed my head as well. She deserved at least that much for the courage she showed in her final moments.

As we were still under pursuit by Asli’s followers, we had little choice but to cover Mother Zafira’s remains with as many loose rocks we could find around the place. Considering the rushed nature of the task, I'd say we did a fine job making a makeshift grave for the old lady. The Princess vowed that once things returned to normal she’ll have her proper send-off.

As the Yeonbrookean Earl said earlier, his entourage was waiting for us at the foot of the hill. There was no time to lose, so each of us took a horse. Shjasta was a bit apprehensive. She confessed she had never ridden before. I helped her get into her mount, telling her to just sit tight and hold the reins. I explained a few quick tips about horse-riding, and she seemed to get it quite fast, thankfully.

As I took my ride Earl Lorrick said:

“We'll escort the three surviving Church Heads south to Norden, and from there straight to Yeonbrooke. I suggest you and the Princess come with us as well.”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” I nodded.

"I..."

We all turned our eyes towards Shjasta. Sitting on her mount, she had produced the uncovered Prism, her eyes fixed on the faint light coming from it. Her eyes were fixed on it, her brow furrowed in contemplation.

“I appreciate your concern and the offer, Earl, but I’m afraid my Champion and I must decline,” Shjasta finally said as she shifted her gaze towards us.

As we tried to form a counter, she got ahead of us to explain her reason. “The Gods have spoken to me through the Prism."

“What are you talking about?” I asked. “Unless we secure the Compact’s support, there is no chance you can return to Ysle and reclaim your place as ruler.”

“I’m aware of that. That’s why I think Mother Lyra, Mother Nadya and Mother Ankita shall proceed as Earl Lorrick suggested. You and me, however, have a mission of our own.”

“There’s nowhere else to go, Princess!” I said, trying to dissuade her.

“Actually… there is…” She corrected me. She sounded surprisingly confident.

“Where to, then?” Lady Elandra, the Nordenian envoy, asked.

“Due West towards The Vigil,” Shjasta said after a brief pause. “And from there to the Wastes.”

“What!? You can’t be serious, Your Highness!” the Head Fire-keeper exclaimed concerned. “What are you thinking?”

“The Gods whispered it to me,” The Princess said.

Then she spoke more resolutely, though her words made little sense to me.

“By Our Hands the Prism was not made, but it is Our Boon nonetheless. To restore it, the Forgotten Arts of the Makers are required. In the Accursed Land where the Dark Heart beats, you will find answers to questions you have yet to ask."

"A Revelation from the Gods?" the Fire-keeper exclaimed.

“That’s crazy!” I shook my head. “There is no guarantee we might find a way to restore the Prism there!”

“I know!" Shjasta yelled. "I know that, but… I'm sure of what the Gods told me!”

The Emissaries and I tried our best to dissuade her from this nonsense, but she was certain that her destiny awaited in the cursed wasteland. And the Priestess seemed to accept this without further questioning, just like that.

And as her sworn Champion, I had no choice but to go with her in this fool's errand.

I was this close to tell Shjasta, the Priestesses and everyone else to go fuck themselves, spur my horse and ran as far away from all this madness as I could.

I thought about going South to my old homeland, or maybe just keep going all the way East towards one of the Merchant Cities in the Evergreen Crescent, as far away from Ysle and their crazy people as I could. I’ve heard that the women of Venetus are drop-dead gorgeous!

But... for some reason, the Princess’s enigmatic words dissuaded me from just going my own way and putting all this crazy shit behind me. I don’t know if she would find a way to restore that damned Prism or an early grave, but I felt compelled to follow her and do my best to keep her away from harm’s way.

Maybe I was starting to act like a proper Champion. That, or I was getting stupid. I sighed.

“The Gods have spoken, and the Princess has her task.” The Head Fire-keeper finally said. “We must go our separate ways now, lest Asli’s forces find us.”

“Don’t worry,” I said. “I’ll keep the Princess safe.”

“Thank you, Champion.” the Head Confessor said while bowing respectfully.

“Why do you insist on thanking me?” I shrugged. “It’s my job after all!"

“Go, and may the Gods protect you!” The Head Healer bid us farewell.

“May they protect you as well, my friends!” Shjasta said, waving her arm. “Farewell!”