Coming Clean (Mostly)

I mulled over the truth the whole walk back to camp. I could come clean—tell them everything. But then what? There’s no telling how they’d react to learning I was, in part, an envoy of corruption. And then there were the transformations… Karlach would probably laugh it off, Shadowheart would stew in silence but likely forgive me at some point, and Lae’zel—she’d kill me. Painfully. No, better to keep it simple. The Grove’s loss of magic, Ethel’s involvement, Kagha’s transformation—those were on a need to know basis. Graz’zt, was not. The only one who knew about him was Kagha, and her loyalty was… ****. Out of curiosity, I checked her stats in my UI : Approval locked at Devoted: 100, corruption 32—stage one. Interesting. The seeding had changed her mind moreso than her body. Kinks: Free-use and Breeding. Fitting, if a little unnerving.

By the time I reached camp, dusk had deepened into an amber hush. Kagha stood by my bedroll, hands clasped in front of her. She turned as soon as she heard me, smiling with that serene, obedient warmth that reminded me disturbingly of an old-timey wife welcoming her husband home. “Welcome back,” she said softly. “This is where you sleep, right?” She gestured to my bedroll. “I’ll sleep here as well.”

I blinked. “How do you know that’s mine?”

“It smells like you.” She stepped closer, inhaling lightly—strangely intimate, not creepy at all.

Before I could respond, laughter echoed down the trail. The others had found each other on the way back—Karlach in front, booming with colorful stories about her day, beside Shadowheart, who was casually giggling at the energic retelling. Wyll trailed behind, still trying to chat with Lae’zel, who ignored him, and everyone else, like a professional.

They all froze when they reached camp. Eyes landed on Kagha instantly.

Karlach groaned. “Why is SHE here?”

Wyll bowed politely. “Kagha? An honor as usual, say did you change your hair?”

Lae’zel studied her closely, then broke her silence with a loud scoff. “Hmph! She is not the same fierce warrior who spilled blood yesterday."

Shadowheart folded her arms unamused. “Tav, what happened to her?”

“Easy, everyone.” I spread my arms with mock ceremony. “Gang—meet our newest member, Kagha.”

She smiled, hands clasped sweetly. “Thank you. I look forward to getting to know you all.”

Karlach’s jaw dropped. “WHAT? NO! No, no, no, NOOOOOO!”

[Karlach: Approval -5]

Shadowheart sighed. “Really? Another one?"

[Shadowheart: Approval -3]

Lae’zel just looked at her, then at me, then nodded once—face unreadable.

Wyll squinted, intrigued. “No, it’s not just the hair,” Wyll said, tilting his head curiously. “If I may say, you look stunning.”

Karlach gasped. “Oh gods, soldier—you didn’t! You did the thing on her, didn’t you?”

Shadowheart scowled. “You’ve got some explaining to do.”

Kagha looked at me, calm as still water, trusting my lead. Time to talk.

“Okay, listen up. You all remember that sweet old lady, Ethel? And the deal I made with her?"

The girls nodded cautiously.

“So, Kagha and I brought her into a grotto beneath the Idol of Sylvanus.” I paused. “Turns out she was a hag.”

Shadowheart’s eyes narrowed. “I could have told you that.”

“No, I mean a real one. Claws, glamour magic, swamp monster—the works.”

Karlach snorted. “Obvious in hindsight.”

“Apparently.” I rubbed the bridge of my nose. “Anyway, bringing a hag into their most sacred grounds doesn’t go over well with the druids.”

Kagha’s voice carried no hesitation. “Hags are corruption incarnate. Their very presence defiles nature.”

Everyone nodded, uneasy.

“She tricked us,” I continued. “Gave Kagha a potion that made her younger but wiped her experience and levels.”

Kagha looked down, feigning shame. She was a natural.

“When the other druids found out, they banished her on the spot,” I said quietly. “She had nowhere to go, no-one to turn to, and I couldn’t just leave her there.”

Kagha moved closer, her fingers brushing my arm in a tender, deliberate touch. “And for that, I am eternally grateful,” she said, tasting each word, her tone low and velvety. Karlach and Shadowheart shot poison and daggers from their eyes, while Lae’zel didn’t even blink, unfazed by both the intimacy and sob story. Wyll, however, looked genuinely moved—his gaze soft, eyes misty at the heroics of saving a poor damsel.

Shadowheart inquired with a frown, her tone dripping with suspicion. “Still doesn’t explain why you brought her there in the first place?"

I hesitated, then exhaled. “Alright. I wanted to skew the Grove’s balance a little. Nudge the scales—give my patron a taste of its power, a little tipple, if you will.”

Karlach stared. “A tipple? What, you gave your mysterious sugar daddy a sip of godhood?”

I shrugged weakly. “More or less.”

Shadowheart’s eyes narrowed. “And who exactly is this patron of yours who ‘likes a little taste’?”

I smiled thinly. “Doesn’t matter now. It backfired. Badly.”

Lae’zel crossed her arms, unamused. “Explain.”

I nodded. “The ritual broke the balance. The druids… lost their connection to Sylvanus entirely. And with that, all of their magic."

...

“WHAT?!” they shouted in unison.

[Karlach: Approval -5]

[Shadowheart: Approval -3]

I lifted my hands quickly. “Calm down! Some of them are adapting, finding power from other sources. But the magic of the Grove—whatever it was, is gone.”

Karlach ran a hand down her face. “You’ve really fucked it this time, soldier.”

“Yes, and there’s more,” I said grimly. “I’ve secured some assistance tomorrow—Ethel will fight with us in the defense. But she expects a prize in return. The children in the Grove—after the battle."

A tense silence fell, so heavy you could almost hear the fire crackle between heartbeats. Every face around the fire froze, shock and fury warring in their eyes.

Wyll went pale and staggered back, gripping a nearby log for balance. “Gods... the children?” he stammered, lowering himself to sit before his knees gave out.

Karlach’s voice cracked the silence like thunder. “WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU JUST SAY?!”

[Karlach: Approval -20]

I raised my hands quickly, voice wavering but urgent. “I won’t let her! I have plan on how to deal with her"

Shadowheart’s stare could’ve frozen lava. “No more deals, Tav. None.”

[Shadowheart: Approval -3]

“Hear me out,” I said, raising both hands as if to calm a storm. “She’s a hag—an ancient, crawling thing that feeds on misery. You don’t kill something like that and expect it to stay dead. Cut her down and she’ll crawl back from of some other swamp with a vengeance. Cast her out, and she’ll just find new prey. The only way to deal with her for now is to anchor her—to bind her to this Grove so she doesn't come knocking in the dark.”

Wyll blinked, disbelief carving lines across his face. “Are you mad?”

“Perhaps,” I said with a smile half humor, half warning. “Maybe. But I’ve got a carrot and a stick.” I leaned in. “She can stay here—or she can suffer something far worse than ****. I just need to get her into the right position, within an inch of her life, and then she’ll see which choice is ****.”

Shadowheart gave a low, incredulous laugh. “So your grand plan is to let her fight for us, betray her when she’s weak, beat her half to ****, and then trap her here?”

I met her gaze and didn’t flinch. “And save the children in the process,”

Another long, uneasy pause hung between us, until Kagha stepped forward—equal parts adoration and conviction. “Our leader is both cunning, bold, and strong,” her voice was smooth but full of certainty. “The hag is as slippery as they come—he has dealt with her twice, and survived to tell the tale. He’s already proven himself to me. If he says he’ll defeat her, then she doesn't stand a chance.”

Shadowheart went quiet at Kagha’s lavish praise, her jaw tightening as she glanced away. For once, the sharp-tongued cleric had no retort.

Wyll cleared his throat, ever the optimist. “She’s right. Tav's pulled us through worse, that hag won’t know what hit her.”

Lae’zel folded her arms, nodding with fierce approval. “Without the druids’ aid, the goblins will be a real challenge... Good.” Her lips curved faintly—her first smile all day.

[Lae'zel Approval: +3]

Karlach leaned forward, her voice weary. “Look, it’s done. You made a mess, soldier, but we’ll fix it. Just… don’t run off getting into deep shit without me again, alright?”

“I promise,” I said firmly.

[Karlach Approval: +5]

Karlach smirked, tossing a twig into the flames. “Then tomorrow, we’ll crush the goblins and throw that hag in the deepest pit we can find.”

Lae’zel raised her fist in salute. “Victory awaits.”

Kagha echoed instantly, her voice bright and certain. “Agreed.”

Shadowheart sighed. “Fine.”

Karlach muttered last, “I really hope you know what you’re doing, Tav. You’re dancing awfully close to the fire, and not in the good way.”

I gave her a small, reassuring smile that didn’t quite reach my eyes. Only time would tell if—and how badly—I’d get burned.