"Tempt of Fate" - A Baldur's Gate 3 Story

Underneath a Shadow's Heart...is a lot of sand.

(It'll start off anthological with the first two short chapters, they're the prologue I guess.)

Waves crashing against solid surface sounded off in the ethereal void. Splashes.. lovely ocean mist.. all around the space of total blankness. Shar's embrace, maybe. Or peace, hopefully. Alas, sore muscles. A throbbing skull. The first few signs that she may have been alive after all.  As Shadowheart came to, her eyes fixed on the open blinding blue sky above. No telling how long she'd been lying there, she'd been inclined to move when a pair of footsteps began to approach.

°What in the hells do I now? Bandits, no doubt. I can overtake them..just need a lure.° Shadowheart shut her eyes, steadied her breathing and lightly opened her palm with an odd artefact sitting within.

The steps stopped short of her supposed corpse.

"Hm..she looks dead..not entirely sure. Rather not risk it, especially with how those creepy pasta faced fellows were looking." The man's voice came off inquisitive, cautious but not exactly malicious. If anything, she was almost familiar with the tone. Shadowheart didn't dare peek in case her hunch was wrong. If they were good samaritans, maybe they'll ally with her -

"Alright, nothing I can really do now. My magick isn't for resurrection." He sighs, recounting some prayer or mantra. It wasn't known to her in any common language. The man simply continued walking off until he was outta range.

Shadowheart opened her eyes after a good half an hour before sitting up and dusting off her gear.

"What an odd man, he didn't rob my corpse even after presuming I was dead. Respectful, but foolish." Shadowheart scoffed, a bit frustrated she couldn't trick a potential ally into an alliance.

"Shar, guide me. Through this confusion and pain, I learn and follow what is set before me. Guide me to what is your will. Align me to your strength. In darkness, there is might." Shadowheart speaks a prayer of her own. A cold bitter touch wraps hands around Shadowheart. It is Shar. Her goddess.

••
*You know what must be done. Exact what I ask. What you were destined for.*

"It shall be so, Lady Shar." Her eyes fiercely sharpened.  She marched forward, seeing corpses of Mind Flayers, fishermen, and Intellect Devourers ahead. The Intellect Devourers were much fresher than the others. This had to mean the passerby was in fact not a pawn of the Flayers. A good sign.

Dark, tied back hair dangled behind her stride. Shadowheart kicked around the mushy brain creatures with disgust.

"Awfully foul smelling for a creature of your measure.." Her face turned from the bodies toward some rubble and a clearing on the other side. Her mace smashed through some old biowall, just as disgusting as everything else about these Flayers. Someone, some thing sprung from the shadows and knocked her over. It was extremely quick and strong. Shadowheart sprung back to her feet with a wild swing attempting to hit whatever was ambushing her. Although, once she met the space with an open gaze there had been no one there.

She kept moving, frustrated but relatively safe. More than most of these unfortunate people could say. Within the space, a mind flayer corpse was hanging by a nearly chopped off leg, leaking all of its innards from an open wound. Three goblin corpses surrounded the dead flayer.

"Was this some sort of.. murder party?" She wondered and became nauseated soon after pondering. Her mace made short work of bashing the hanging corpse from the bio- hallway. It rapidly went hurdling against the nearby wall. Shadowheart watched an onyx gem fly out of it's body, landing in some gore filth beneath her boots.

"Ah, let me pull you from this muck." She spoke gently to the crystal and cleaned it off.

Once pocketing that, something in the corner struck her as extremely odd. A boar. Two, to be exact. Both appear to be very thin, gray but not so much decayed. Upon further inspection, she noticed two puncture holes. Small space in between.