Marika wandered into the evergaol entrance, for only one could enter. They had scouted out the strange village enough to find how the puzzle worked. There were statues hidden by magic walls that they suspected could be lit to undo the spells binding shut the gateway. They hoped this would lead them to their goal, though the map Blaidd had been carrying was a little off. They had gotten turned around more than a few times.
She gave a nod to her beloved. Their hands traced one another for a moment before she stepped on the glowing blue pad, and the statue of the two imps pulsed brightly. A moment later and she was within the special space of the evergaol. The air grew dark, the sky seemed devoid of light, and thenair suddenly tasted so much more stagnant. Even the wind itself has stilled, and that alone sent chills along the gilded queen's spine.
She sparked a torch they had pillaged off one of the great mounted guardians, and it blazed with a strange light that Marika soon recognized right away. "Sentry torches..." She had helped make them herself, and she couldn't believe she didn't recognize her own handiwork. These were made to ensure the invisible was visible. She doubted it would be of much use for that, but it was neat to remember.
She walked along the frozen, still path. The ground was thick with icy paths, and the ruins around her had opened up. She could see at least three of the statues as she walked, taking in her surroundings. This seemed almost too easy as she found the first long ladder that was furthest from the main entrance. The ruined towers were a decayed grey stone, but the ladder was metal and seemed to be polished recently. So someone was locked in this evergaol alongside the spell.
"Who -" She felt the air shift behind her first, and she ducked under the swipe. Her eyes widened in shock as she saw that twisted black knife, the rune of Death carved into along its central edge. "No..." She whispered as she slid across the icy ground with her momentum. She turned, meeting the shadowed gaze of the black knife assassin.
She was clad in near silent navy blue plate section armor that was itself further covered by a night like a veil. Their face completely hidden beneath a black hood, but she could feel the woman's hateful glare. It burned into her with all the vindictive spite of a scorn and broken woman. She could practically taste the way the woman's mind salivated over, sinking that knife into Marika. Perhaps there was a time she would have welcomed that.
The gold goddess drew out her hammer and matched the thrusting charge of the assassin, sending its dagger flying before crashing the hammer back down with a messy and wet crunch. These were skilled killers, but she had come too far and fought too long to simply fall to a single mind addled assassin.
She should have known there would be more than just one, and not just assassins. She heard the twang of the bow as three arrows of glintstone flew towards her with a slight bend that seemed to arc toward Marika. She raised her hand as golden light poured out. It caught the projectiles, melting down their mana as the barrier domed and solidified in her palm before launching like a speeding meteor of gold. The shot instantly tore the archer apart.
Her shoulder exploded in pain a second later as she screamed, turning and grabbing the net assasssin by the wrist as a third came charging in and threw the body into the additional attacker before smashing down her hammer. The ground burst open with golden light, and the two were painfully launched back toward the queen as she gripped her hammer with both hands.
The aecond archer's arrows struck across her hip and already wounded arm, making the queen roar as she caught the two bodies with her hammer and twisted her swing to launch them behind her at the building just beneath her. It was a loud crash as the two assassins fell on top of the archer, followed by the very loud shattering of the roof that told Marika they were eliminated.
She reached behind her, ripping out the dagger with a painful cry. She could feel its power burning into her flesh, and she grabbed her arm by the shoulder. She needed to get out of this fight quickly and prepare a spell to start undoing the curse. She started to chant, only for a third and final archer to launch their arrows.
She felt the burn of the curse tearing at the sinew of her arm, but another strike would leave her too wounded to stop it. This curse would not let her simply revive.
Her main hand dropped her hammer, raising itself in another bubble that caught the spells, and fired back to a defeaning crunch at the archer, which became paint, but her worries crystallized as a fourth and final of the black knifes landed on her back, twisting itself around her before raising its blade for the perfect strike as the black steel gleamed horrifically in the gilded queen's eye.
She wrenched herself, unable to move her arms just yet as her thighs held around her, but the blade missed its mark. The edge tore into the bicep of her injured arm, and she took the chance to grip and shatter the assassin's hand around the knife. "Get OUT OF MY WAY!" She screamed as she pushed off her grappling assailant with a violent spreading of her arms before she turned with a vicious and terrible anger in her eyes. These were her fault. Her schemes had resulted in these monsters, and she was so fucking tired of being reminded of her failings!
"I have had ENOUGH OF THIS!" She jumped on the assassin, gripping her shoulders and shattering them in her powerful grip. "WHY! WHY WON'T YOU ALL STOP HAUNTING ME!" She was long past grief or guilt. Now, she had become a raging storm. Her fists began to pound as she screamed in fury, even as the burning creep of the curse began to turn her left arm a sickly black, and she felt it beginning to creep further still.
"YOU CAN HAVE ME WHEN YOU CHILD KILLERS EARN ME!!!" As she smashed two fists down on the skull of the assassin, turning the snow beneath her into an angel of red. Marika screamed in pain as she felt all the ache begin to set.
"No... it doesn't end here!" As her other hand gripped her cursed left shoulder and yanked with all she could muster.
The scream was heard even outside the barriers of the evergaol, and the moonlit night felt her eyes widen in panic. Her queen was in pain.