Halsin eased William down onto the cold, soot-slick ground.
A splinter of timber, nearly the length of William's forearm, jutted from his abdomen like a grotesque arrow, each shallow breath forcing fresh blood to spill around the wound and pool beneath him.
Astarion's gaze lingered a moment too long. His tongue flicked unconsciously across his lips at the sight of ruby life slipping away, before restraint snapped into place and his expression smoothed into practiced concern.
Karlach burst from the smoke-choked ruin she'd escaped through moments earlier. In one hand she half-dragged the high elf she had rescued. In the other, she carried a woman's corpse.
She hauled the sobbing elf clear of the wreckage before he collapsed in a trembling heap, weakly clawing at Karlach's grip as if only then realizing the weight of what she held.
The moment Karlach saw William, the corpse slipped from her grasp without ceremony.
She ran.
Two soldiers were sent sprawling as she barreled past them, heedless of shouted protests.
She skidded to a halt only when she reached William, her momentum collapsing her to her knees at his side.
Her eyes, once wide with shock, narrowed into something sharp and feral. Beneath her ribs, the infernal engine embedded in her chest thundered to life, its frantic rhythm vibrating the air around her.
"W… William…"
Tears streamed down her face, sizzling into steam the instant they left her skin.
The roar of her heart grew so loud it seemed it might rupture her from within.
Before she could reach for him, Halsin stepped in.
Golden-green light flared from the Archdruid's staff and off-hand, potent yet measured. His brow furrowed in grim focus as his glowing fingers closed around the blood-slick timber embedded in William's gut.
"Aaaaaaaahhhhh—!"
The scream tore from William's smoke-raw throat, strangled and broken, followed by a spray of crimson.
SQUELCH.
The sound was wet and visceral as Halsin wrenched the splinter free. William's body arched reflexively, another agonized cry ripping from him as Halsin immediately pressed his palm against the gushing wound.
Halsin's eyes flared with ancient druidic power.
"CURE WOUNDS!"
Magic surged.
Flesh writhed beneath Halsin's hand as torn organs pulled themselves back into place with sickening, grinding sounds.
Muscle fibers slithered together one by one, knitting with a serpentine precision that made more than one onlooker avert their gaze.
William gasped sharply as the pain receded, replaced by dizzying shock.
Halsin withdrew his hand and offered the other. William took it, hauling himself upright on unsteady legs, eyes wide with the hollow stare of someone who had just brushed the edge of death.
Karlach surged forward, arms half-raised.
Then she stopped.
Reality caught up to instinct.
Her hands fell to her sides, fists clenched as she fought herself not to touch him.
"Are… are you alright?" Her voice trembled despite her strength. "I thought… gods, I thought that explosion—"
"I'm fine now," William said hoarsely. "But gods… that hurt."
A faint flush crept across his face as he met her eyes, the air between them warming, charged with something soft and unspoken.
Footsteps broke the moment.
Councilor Florrick approached, flanked by two armored guards.
One carried a trident unlike any other William had seen.
Lightning danced faintly along its prongs, the air around it tinged with the metallic bite of ozone.
Florrick raised a hand, gesturing calmly. One of the guards stepped forward.
"This weapon," she said, her voice steady but sincere, "is called Sparky Points. I offer it to you in gratitude. Not only for saving me and my guard, but for risking your life to save another."
The guard extended the trident. His grip was respectful, his eyes watchful.
"Th… thank you," William said, phantom pain ghosting through his core as he reached for it.
The instant his fingers closed around the shaft, lightning surged into him.
His arm spasmed, numb for a heartbeat, before his body adapted, the electricity settling into a constant, resonant hum beneath his skin.
William exhaled slowly, a grin tugging at his lips.
"This is… phenomenal," he said, genuine awe coloring his voice. "Thank you, Councilor Florrick. I'll treasure it."
He secured the trident across his back, slotting it neatly between reinforced bandoliers. The weapon crackled softly, as if acknowledging its new bearer.
Before William could gesture for the others to follow him back to the task at hand, his arm was caught by Florrick, and he met her pleading gaze with one of confusion.
William directly addressed her, asking, "Did you need anything, counselor?" He knew exactly what she was going to ask, having anticipated her question.
Her brows furrowed deeply, revealing the lines of her age etched into the natural beauty of her elven face.
"I'm not merely here for a sightseeing tour through the countryside; I'm in search of Duke Ravenguard, who has gone missing. The most recent news placed him within this area. Have you seen the Duke or anyone remotely out of place within a woodland area?"
He frowned as he pretended to think, "Me and my group here were on our way to deal with the goblins in the camp down below. If someone has gone missing here, they would likely have him!"
His frown deepens, and he continues, "The goblins are oddly organized, and they go on and on about an unknown being or person who goes by the Absolute!"
"The Absolute..." she whispered to herself before nodding in response, "Thank you very much for your assistance, citizen. I will certainly make sure to speak highly of you with the Duke once he is successfully rescued!"
William nodded gratefully as he continued walking further away from them, heading down the road for a few more minutes. Finally, he came upon an opening in the rock wall, which had been caused by a now dried-up river.
They moved through the crack in the rock wall, occasionally having to leap small distances to reach the other side, before they came upon an open cliff face that perfectly overlooked the entirety of the temple where the goblins were camped out.
William and Astarion peered over the edge to get a better look and caught the sight of multitudes of goblins drinking booze that smelled like fermented mushrooms and desperation, as well as eating generous slices of a rather tasty-looking boar skewered over a fire.
Halsin stepped between them before asking, "So how are we doing this and how are we getting down?"
It was a good question but William had a good answer.
He pulled at a satchel at his side where he held a series of scrolls and produced one that thrummed with heat like a small self contained sun.
With this scroll in hand William reached into another satchel and found four potions of feather fall and handed one to each companion before they simultaneously took a full swig of the bubbling pink concoction.
Gulp
He wasted no time after drinking the nasty feather fall potion and raised the scroll above his head, channeling his magic through the paper to activate the spell sealed within.
WHOOOSH!
A tiny sphere of flames erupted into existence as the scroll crumbled into dust, and with each passing second, as he continued to pump his magic energy into the sphere, it swelled and rose higher into the sky above the cliff, growing larger and brighter with each passing moment.
As the fiery sphere of flames ascended into the vast expanse of the sky, a few of the drunk goblins who were huddled together below looked up, their eyes squinting in the light. In that moment, they saw something that appeared to be the sun actually rising over the distant horizon.
"Ok how long av we been drinkin..." HICK! "The fuckin sun is rising... Wake the sleepy lads we have a grove to burn!"
The sound of goblins scurrying around, their hurried footsteps echoing in the air, as they diligently prepared for the impending battle that would finally rid them and the Absolute of the pesky Druids once and for all.
They began to line up, their formation somewhat disorganized but not entirely without structure.
They stood in loose, somewhat haphazard lines, patiently awaiting the arrival of their commander, Dror Ragzlin.
They anticipated that he would deliver a final, boisterous speech intended to boost their morale and rekindle their spirits.
It was only a matter of minutes before a heavily intoxicated and visibly frustrated Dror Ragzlin could be seen emerging from the fortress gates, his warhammer resting reassuringly against his shoulder.
"Alright... All fucking right who the fuck turned the sun on? I was having such a nice dream, but hey I can always have me a Tiefling when we kill all the men eh hahahahaha! Let's fucking slaughter them and take their women hahahahaha!"
But it did not take long for Dror Ragzlin to notice something odd.
Despite the sun the surroundings were still dark, and the way the shadows lengthened made it obvious that something wasn't right.
Dror spun on his heels and held his Warhammer in a combat ready stance as he looked around for the the source.
Upon looking up however a cold sweat began forming on the Hobgoblin chieftains forehead.
The previously small sun like ball of fire now stood in the sky the fireballs size reaching dangerous size as it rose above them, the heat it gave off warped the air around it and they were just beginning to feel the heat.
Standing precariously atop a sheer cliff face, William felt the intense magical energy he was focused into the fireball generating a powerful updraft of wind, lifting him just a few inches off the ground making it seem as if he was levitating.
His fiery gaze was fixed directly on the group of goblins below, his eyes particularly narrowed towards the Hobgoblin, who appeared to be leading them.
William pointed one finger towards the Hobgoblin chieftains direction and said with eyes blazing with magical energy and a wicked smile stretching from ear to ear on his face that turned him from handsome into damned near demonic.
"BURN!"
The fireball shot down like a meteor towards the gathered goblins smashing into the ground before any of them could run for cover.
BOOOOOOM!
The fireball, hurtling through the air at an incredible speed, landed directly between the goblins and their commander, exploding with a blinding flash and a deafening roar.
The impact sent shockwaves rippling through their ranks, and the ensuing wave of inferno instantly turned the nearest and weakest goblins into standing statues, their bodies reduced to charred flesh, their faces contorted in expressions of terror and disbelief.
The individuals who were situated farther away were violently smashed against the stone walls, accompanied by a sickening, wet sound.
It was a sound that echoed through the space, rather like the thud of a tomato falling from a great height, if, of course, those tomatoes had been fortunate enough to possess bones.
Dror Ragzlin himself managed to shield himself from the brunt of the explosion by using a nearby goblin as a living shield, the goblin which was now dissolving into black motes of charred flesh and when he let go the goblin fell to the ground and crumbled.
The Hobgoblin chieftain however did not come out unscathed; the half of his body that he used to hold the goblin was scorched into mostly scar tissue, which continues to spurt blood and puss.
He made a desperate attempt to grab a potion with his good hand, but before he could manage to get the life-saving liquid down his throat.
SQUELCH... BZZZT... CRACKLE...
Three prongs protruded from his back and out from his chest and the hobgoblin chieftain looked back to see William's smiling face nearing his ear.
He whispered menacingly into Dror Ragzlin's ear, his voice laced with a dangerous undertone, as lightning crackled around him, its flashes illuminating his intense presence.
William kicked off the back of the The Hobgoblin chieftain with his feet, landing with a loud and obnoxious flip that sent him tumbling. He then pulled the trident along with him, making a sickening, wet sound as it tore through the chieftain's skin and drew three ribbons of blood.
Dror Ragzlin attempted a swing of his warhammer, but the severe blood loss combined with the fact that he was only able to utilize one arm effectively rendered his attack utterly ineffective.
Aware of this, William executed a swift, tight spin which successfully closed the distance between them and, with remarkable ease, shoved the prongs of his prongs deep into Dror's neck.
"Taste my lightning fucker[1]!"
BZZZZZZZZT... CRACKLE...
Karlach, Astarion, and Halsin arrived shortly afterwards, with Karlach having a strangely giddy expression before she was unable to hold it in any longer and she shouted to the goblins still alive.
"Burn!!" With a guttural cry that echoed through the cavern, she swung the axe with brutal force at the nearest goblin.
The axe struck its mark, cleanly severing the creature in two, the sound echoing through the narrow space.
Her infernal heart beat like a war drum, the rapid rhythm accompanied by a searing heat that radiated from her body.
"BURN!"
She grabbed another by its face and let her internal heat burn the flesh off before she applied pressure and crushed the goblin with her bare hand.
Just as the goblin was attempting to strike her from behind, a strange red glowing arrow suddenly punctured the back of its neck, piercing through the creature's flesh and emerging from just in front of its head. Before it could even react, the arrow ignited within the goblin's body, causing it to explode from the inside out. Karlach spun around and quickly kicked the remains away, then reared up on her hind legs and let out a bloodcurdling scream.
"BURNNNN!"
[1] Tenacious D: the Pick of Destiny... iykyk