The carriages rounded up and formed a tight circle at the base of a low, snow-choked hill. Teyva stepped out of the carriage and took a deep breath of the air. White flakes fell from the sky and she peered up at them, scowling. One landed on her nose and she felt nothing. She’d always hated the cold, though she supposed this wasn’t so bad. She stepped out toward the center of the gathered wagons and crossed her arms behind her back as the rest of her inner circle slipped out of the carriage behind her. Elat stayed behind to watch Stella, having taken on the role of a nanny over the course of the trip. Conrad fell into step to her left, “I thought you didn’t like the snow.”

Teyva’s eye twitched, “Oh hush,” She grumbled. 

The fallen knight chuckled and stepped aside to give his queen some space. Ahead of her, the Cultists had gathered in their heavy robes at the very center of the wagon circle. They all looked at her with reverence plastered across their thin, angular elven faces. They spoke with quiet voices among themselves. Teyva glanced over at Azrael who smirked a little, “They’re wondering what you have planned next, some of them are expecting you to kick off the apocalypse right here and now.”

“Hilarious,” Teyva rumbled, parting from her group and approaching the gathered elves. She caught the word ‘Zenvek’ whispered among them until they eventually fell silent when she was close enough to speak comfortably. She canted her head to the right, “So where is your base?”

“Past this hill,” One of the elves said, pointing past the ring and towards a rise of snow that blended into the bleak-white sky. “An old fortress.”

Teyva pursed her lips, “How old?”

“It was not built by elves,” The man insisted.

Teyva grinned, “Neat, lead the way.”

They looked among themselves hesitantly and Teyva tapped her foot against the snow. One of them managed to catch the hint that she was feeling impatient and began to move towards the edge of the ring, the other dark figures following behind her. Teyva glanced over her shoulder at her own group, “Have you all decided?”

“Sari and I will be joining you,” Conrad insisted.

Teyva glanced at Azrael who nodded, “I will hang back, majesty. I doubt you will need my presence in dealing with this. I will reserve my strength for something more appropriate. Besides, I would prefer to be close to protect Stella.”

Teyva smiled, “Alright then,” She waved her hand and turned to follow the cultists. Conrad and Sari hurried to fall into step with her. She cast Sari a sidelong look, “You seem pretty gung-ho about this.”

“I do not know what that means, but I will not leave your side until my debts are paid off. Your familiar provided me with an invaluable gift the other night and my debt to you has only grown,” She clipped, resting her hand on her hip.

“If that’s how you want to justify it,” Teyva said offhandedly. She turned to Conrad, as she stepped through one of the gaps between the wagons and continued to follow behind the cultists. The snowfall began to grow heavier as the wind picked up around them, “How is your new aspect treating you, dearie?”

“You’ve blessed me with a great power, majesty,” Conrad said with a wicked smile, “I look forward to using it on Count Otel one day,” He raised a hand and several droplets of foul-smelling fluid dripped from his fingertip before striking the ground. From the pools that formed a trio of Wightlings writhed into existence. They shrieked and trembled before falling still in Conrad’s presence and crawling up his person to hang off his shoulders, jabbering incoherently.

Sari glanced his way, “You can create those wretches?”

“Conrad possesses what is left of the being that created them in the green sea in the first place. The Bound One. The reason why they’ve dwindled is because that thing is dead and Conrad has left the forest,” Teyva explained, squinting up at the point where the hill broke and dipped back down. Already the cultists were beginning to disappear from sight as they moved from ascending to descending.

Sari pursed her lips and turned away from the conversation, focusing on the hill, “Are you sure we can trust them?”

“Of course not,” Teyva said, “I figure only about half of them actually believe I’m this Zenvek thing. The others just want to get back to the safety of their base.”

“Yes, and then from the security of their walls they will attempt to rain death upon us for heresy,” Conrad growled.

“Glad we’re on the same page,” Teyva said, reaching over and petting one of the wightlings that hissed and trembled beneath her affections.

“I meant the creatures, but if that's the case, then, aren’t we actively walking into a trap?” Sari asked, incredulous, as they crested the hill and took in the view. They were standing at the peak of a long slope going down into a low valley. To their right a thick forest stretched out and wrapped around the northernmost part of the hill they were standing on before disappearing behind the land formation. A good distance past it another mountain stretched into the horizon before breaking into a series of peaks that went on as far as the eye could see. To their left a frozen lake stretched toward the center of the valley before wrapping around a solitary structure made of dark stone.

Teyva licked her lips, “Traps are meant to be sprung. And Conrad's little darlings would never hurt their grandmother.”

“Looks like Osan,” Conrad murmured, side-eyeing Teyva, “Grandmother?” He muttered.

“It's Labyrinthian in make, I’d guess,” Teyva said, turning her attention back to the fort as she started down the hill. Ahead of them one of the cultists glanced back at them before breaking into a run toward the fortress which lowered a narrow drawbridge to welcome them. Sari reached for her weapon and hissed, Teyva raised a hand, “Don’t bother.”

“Why? They’ll be harder to deal with if we let them hide,” Sari demanded.

“They’ll let us in,” Teyva said.

“You sound confident,” Conrad chuckled, “Planning to put on a show, Majesty?”

Teyva grinned at him, “I’m going to summon the big one if words don’t work.”

He turned to her wide-eyed, paused, thought about it, and then nodded, “Makes sense. They do want a ‘Goddess of Destruction’,” He laughed and shook his head. “Are you sure you aren’t enjoying this?”

“Don’t tell Perry, he’ll never shut up about it if he finds out,” Teyva griped as she grinned, rubbing her hands together. Sari looked between the two of them in confusion.

“I’m missing something,” She said warily.

“Just watch,” Conrad grunted, slowing a little to fall into step just a few paces behind Teyva as they drew closer to the fortress. There was no reaction until the arrived at the edge of the frozen surface, the drawbridge having been raised shortly after the cultists had retreated inside. 

Teyva stood there and put her hands on her hips, looking the surface of the building over. Now that she knew what to look for in comparing it to Osan it was most certainly of Labyrinthian make. She tilted her head and squinted at the raised walls of the structure, she could see a few people stepping out along the outer walls to peer down at her. Behind them, the fortress’ narrow, zigurrat shape made it look more like a tower than anything. Teyva scratched at her chin and squinted to see if anyone gathered there looked like a ‘dark priestess’. Instead, she saw the men gathered on the side point narrow sticks in her direction.

“Wands,” Sari murmured, “They mean business.”

“Hello there!” Teyva called, waiving with her right hand and turning her chain into her second right limb. “I would like to speak with your leader, if you wouldn’t mind! Please and thank you!” 

Conrad snorted, “Really?”

“Nothing wrong with trying to be nice!” Teyva chuckled.

“You want to antagonize them,” Sari grumbled.

Teyva gave a mocking gasp, “Me? Antagonize them? Why?”

“Because they annoy you?” Conrad asked.

Teyva pretended not to hear him and squinted up at the gathered men who were talking among themselves. One of them gestured at her with his wand frantically while another shook his head. Finally one of them raised his wand to his own neck and his voice shot across the space between them. “You are not welcome here, false one! Take your heresy elsewhere!”

Teyva raised her eyebrows, “Wow, not even going to test me or something.”

Conrad cleared his throat and started backing away from Teyva. Sari glanced at him and then to Teyva who turned her arm back into a chain. She let out a breath and cast a spell, “<Long Wind Voice>.” She muttered and then raised her head high to call out to them. “Let’s try this again!” Teyva’s voice boomed across the distance, “Let me speak to your leader, I have tried asking nicely and I will soon lose my patience!”

A flash of light erupted from the wall and a bolt of fire crashed against the ground at her feet. Teyva looked down at the smoldering spot where the heat had left a hole in the snow and ice. She looked back up. She heard Conrad shift on his feet and could practically feel his anger growing. Teyva held up a hand to ease him and rolled her neck. “Very well!” She called out to them, “It would seem you need additional proof!” 

Teyva cast [Summon Elemental] and picked Death. The enormous glob of pale-white light began to form behind her, slowly taking on a vaguely humanoid shape. Icy bones began to form within its frame and fill its limbs until it took on a cohesive shape. At its feet, the packed snow hardened into solid ice. The air stilled as its skull-like face took form and it thrashed, its arms reaching out to the sky as it let out a horrible bellow of rage. Teyva tilted her head towards the side of the fortress and the creature leaned forward, opening its jaws as a ripple of sound and power burst from its jaws. The terrible howl cracked the ice and parted the snowfall before breaking against the walls of the fortress. The building shuddered and several of the robed men standing there were sent flying against the wall behind them. Shouts broke out and they began to try to cast spells in her direction.

“Are you kidding me?” Teyva rumbled, she pointed her hand in their direction, “Okay lets try another new one,” She said and cast another verbal spell, “<Big Area Silence>!” She barked and a ripple burst forward, centered around her. Sound died and the men on the wall found themselves looking at their wands in confusion. They turned to one another but not a word came, no shouts, nothing. Teyva started walking toward the fortress, the dead silence amplifying the sound of her heels across the frozen water. Each step a deafening clack as she strode toward the raised drawbridge. Behind her, the Death Elemental stood as a monolithic warning. She stopped at the draw bridge and looked up at the sheer metal surface. She looked around for an external release or something, some sort of way to open it from the outside in an emergency.

Finding nothing she frowned and rubbed her head. She glanced back at the Elemental and considered calling it over but she didn’t know if the frozen lake would be able to support him. She turned back to the draw bridge, spat, and kicked one of the corners, hard, “Just frigging let me in!” She demanded, feeling a small tantrum coming on.

A loud crack sounded from the wall and the partially exposed hinge of the drawbridge. That sound was followed by an equally unsettling creaking sound. She frowned and looked down at her foot and then back up at the drawbridge. She rolled her jaw and reached forward to grab the side of the drawbridge and began to pull, putting her back into it. Her muscles tensed and somewhere behind her, she could hear Conrad laughing. His laughter immediately died when the drawbridge budged and a horrible creaking crack signaled the mechanism of the drawbridge failing. With another wrench she pulled back and down, the entire drawbridge shuddered and fell crashing against the ground with an enormous boom.

Teyva looked back at the ruined bridge, the enormous crack in the frozen lake, and the ripped chains that had been used to raise it. She looked back at the now open entrance and scratched her chin, “Neat. Was I always that strong?”

Teyva stepped on top of the drawbridge and pulled out her journal, “How does the Physique stat even work?” She mumbled, “Probably should have read the rest of the manual by now,” She admitted.

Teyva looked up from the journal and started walking into the courtyard, “Alright, so that means I am almost nine times stronger than a Precursor Labyrinthian, with an eighty-six in physique,” Teyva said, rubbing her neck. She stepped over a few broken pieces of dark stone that had fallen after she had ripped the drawbridge off and stepped into the small courtyard between the main part of the fortress and the outer wall. Above her, she could see a few of the robed elves staring down at her with their jaws slack. “I wonder how a Precursor Labyrinthian compares to an orc or something. I should ask Nephral,” Teyva said thoughtfully. 

She let out a breath and put her hands on her hips before looking up at the men again, “I’m losing my patience!” She called out to them. “Your leader, now!”