Rest for the Wicked

The campfire was nothing more than glowing coals when I returned to my bedroll. The night pressed close and quiet, cool air carrying the faint scent of smoke and ash. Kagha sat there already—awake, waiting. I sat down beside her on the edge of the bedroll, close enough to feel the faint warmth from the dying embers. When I caught her eye, she smiled, the sort of slow, knowing smile that said she had been counting the moments.

“How did the rituals go?” she asked, voice soft, meant only for me.

“Quite good,” I said, sitting down and letting out a tired breath. “Soothing, even. And good progress. They shouldn’t turn anytime soon.”

Kagha tilted her head, studying me with those sharp, thoughtful eyes. I could almost see the wheels turning behind them. “When did you get infected?” she asked finally.

“About two weeks ago,” I replied.

She nodded once, fingers idly tracing the seams of her blanket. “And you’ve been performing these rituals ever since?”

“Every night.”

Kagha’s smile returned—this time smaller, more curious. “The others in camp… they don’t know who your patron is, do they?”

I glanced at her, surprised at how easily she pieced things together. “No. They don’t.”

She gave a quiet hum of amusement. “The first time I saw you, the girls looked rather different,” she murmured. “And yet you look exactly the same.” She leaned closer, lowering her voice until her breath brushed my ear. “Will they end up like me? Bound to you?”

I met her gaze, forcing my expression to remain neutral. She was frighteningly perceptive. “Hopefully,” I admitted. “Though your progress got… hypercharged.”

Her lips parted in delight. “Ohhh, how fun,” she purred. “So they’ll be my sisters in sin. How glorious.” She blinked a few times, then smiled again, her tone softening. “And you’ve trusted me with this truth." Her eyelids dancing at me "Im honored, I’ll help you however I can as your confidant, your consort.”

I gave her a wary look, but she seemed utterly sincere—too sincere, maybe. Still, the warmth in her joy was strangely disarming. For all her madness, she was… cute.

“These rituals,” she said after a moment, voice lilting with mischief. “I suspect they’re carnal in nature.” Her gaze dipped meaningfully toward my lap. “Do you need me to clean you? Or prepare you in any way?”

[Kagha Corruption: +1]

I almost laughed, shaking my head. “No. I’m fine. More than fine.”

“Mm.” She made a small, thoughtful sound. “Satiated, then. Good. I wouldn’t want to tire you out before your next conquest.”

I couldn’t help it—I chuckled. “You really have no filter, do you?”

“I suppose I don't?” she countered, amused. “I might’ve lost a bit more than just age and scars.” She gave a sly grin, stretching her arms motioning her fingers. “Let’s see if I still got this.”

Moving behind me, she hummed playfully. “I’ve untangled more oak roots than I can count. At this point it should be muscle memory—not experience.” True to her word, she began a deep, steady massage that surprised me with its strength and precision. Warmth spread through my back, my shoulders relaxed, and whatever tension remained after Shadowheart's care slowly melted away, like snow in spring.

She purred quietly as she worked. “Tell me. What have you seen out there? I’ve never been beyond the Grove. Everything I know of the world has come from scrolls and rumors.”

So I told her. About the goblins drinking festivities, the Giant Matriarch spider underground, the gnolls which screams where as frightening as their arrows. She listened with rapt attention, the rhythm of her massage never faltering. Her curiosity was childlike, but her tone remained steady, analytical.

When I mentioned the spider queen, she leaned over my shoulder, eyes wide. “You’ve truly walked the Underdark?”

“Just scratched the surface,” I said, a small smile tugging at my lips. “I sent the Spider Matriarch tumbling through a tunnel toward certain **** deep in the Underdark, but in doing so managed to lose my trusty magical shield. If we ever happen to pass through, I’ll have to look for it.”

Kagha’s eyes went wide with wonder, the firelight catching the emerald hue within them. “I have always wished to see it with my own eyes,” she breathed. "The poisonous flora and rare ingredients there are spoken of in every druidic tome. If fate allows, I would love nothing more than to walk its caverns myself.”

I studied her expression—the unguarded awe in it. She looked less like the calculating druid I’d met and more like a child staring into a forbidden garden. That spark of fascination caught something in me. I could already see it—the moment when the choice would come, to descend into the Underdark or head for the Githyanki stronghold. The logical part of me knew which was safer, but the idea of watching that light in Kagha’s eyes burn brighter made the decision all too easy.

She shifted closer, her voice softening again, thoughtful. “You know… I’ve spent most of my life studying, praying, abstaining. But this—this new body, this youth—it feels like a second life. The air feels sharper, the world wider—open in a way that I can't explain. As if I can walk and talk freely for the first time ever.”

I glanced at her, struck by the quiet awe in her tone. Hearing her speak of freedom was almost surreal. Could she truly feel the shift? I gave a small, tired smile. “Sounds like you’ve been given a new start,”

Kagha’s voice dropped to something soft and honest. “Then I’ll make the most of it. And if helping you is how I do that, so be it.” She hesitated for a heartbeat, her lips curving into a small, almost playful grin. “Confidant, servant, weapon—whatever you need, I’ll be it. Besides,” she added with a faint chuckle, “I rather enjoy being near you.”

Her tone carried no deception, only strange, serene devotion. It should have unsettled me, but instead, I felt the tension drain from my chest.

She kept speaking softly about small, unimportant things—the constellations, the rhythm of the fire, the way night creatures whispered to one another in the dark. Her voice blurred pleasantly into the edge of a dream. When my body finally gave in, I leaned back, resting my head against her thighs. Kagha froze for only a heartbeat before her hand came up, fingers brushing my cheek in a slow rhythm.

“Sleep,” she whispered. “I’ll keep watch.”

As I drifted off, faint flickers danced at the corner of my vision.

[Corruption +1]

[Corruption +1]

[Corruption +1]

They ticked softly, lazily, counting me toward rest. Like sheep. Like sin. Until the dark took me.