Markos adjusted the straps of the Maraium cuirass over his wool gambeson. 'It seems too cruel. To lock women like Iliana away for a circumstance of birth to curse them to perish upon leaving. A life blessed by the Goddess and cursed by the Gods.'
Iliana sat alone in the courtyard covered in snow as Caelyn quietly talked to the Cameron's men.
Markos watched the lovely woman with a shiver. He felt cold watching her. He supposed it was like having the horses out to pasture in the winter without a blanket. They'd form a layer of snow on their coats and be comfortable. But a the placement of a blanket over the horse would make the snow melt and the blanket damp. It was miserable for the horse. Even still, he did not like the cold. He liked what waited in the night even less. The darkness only deepened in the mountain forests in the shadow of the wall.
Once he finished with his armor he noticed that Iliana was no longer in her spot. He glanced around for her as he felt warmth press against his back through the cuirass and cloak. He turned his head and only saw the top of Iliana's cloak. "Helka?"
"Iliana," her voice was soft as her arms wrapped around his waist. The heat of her body soothed him.
"Iliana." He paused. "Are you going to be okay?"
"...I don't know." She hugged him a little tighter.
Markos turned to face her, her arms still around him. He gently tilted her chin up. Blazing cyan eyes watched him with tears swelling up at the edges. He never knew that an Ember could cry. There were a lot of things he didn't know about Embers. There was a familiar fear in her eyes. He wasn't sure of what to do. He leaned down, gently wiping away a tear with a gloved hand. 'She reminds me of the elf terrified to be facing her death.'
The sounds of the evening courtyard drifted away to the soft whistle of the wind and the rapid thudding of his heart in his ears. 'Iliana is real and here in my arms.' He closed his eyes and tenderly kissed her.
He felt a surge of heat into his lips and spread through all of his body. Then he felt something within his own body reach up to met the foreign warmth. When the energies wrapped together with a press of lips and the taste of honey, he heard something whisper at the edge of his hearing that he couldn't understand. His body tingled and he wanted something more than a kiss in a snowy courtyard. His desire gnawed at him as he regained his control and pulled back.
Iliana's cheeks were flushed pink as she stepped back, disentangling herself from him. "Markos... I..."
He let his hand fall away as the noises of the world returned to him in a rush. He blinked and rubbed the back of his neck. "...I just didn't know what to do. You looked so lonely and afraid."
"I..." Iliana lightly touched the side of his face, pursing her lips together. "When this is over, I can explain. I promise." She looked past Markos into the distance. He followed her gaze but didn't see anyone. "We need to go. It's stirring." She retreated before he could say anything else. He watched her disappear through a door into the battlements.
Markos wasn't sure what to make of his feelings. He was drawn to Iliana but he thought of the elf. He wondered what it'd feel like to have the elf in his arms and pressed so tightly against him. 'What the hell is wrong with me?' He adjusted his rifle sling over his shoulder and checked his sword belt. The inherited Maraium sword was actually lighter than the swords he was used to at the Arand manor. It didn't feel like he had earned the right to wear the Order's armor or to kiss Iliana like that. But it felt good to share a moment of life before going to face down the incarnation of death.
He had more questions than answers. Was Caelyn interested in Iliana? Was he drawn to her like he was due to resonance or was it something else?
"Markos, it's time!" Caelyn's voice called from the west gate.
Markos pulled on his helmet, hurrying to join his templar mentor. 'The hunt is on. I have to focus or else everyone here will die.'
-------
Barren branches stretched skyward with skeletal fingers draped with stalagmites of icicles. The normal sounds of the night birds were distinctly absent. Silence greeted them, even the wind held its breath. Slivers of moonlight peeked through holes in the straw roof and vaguely illuminated the rough clay brick walls. A decimated wooden door barely hung on one of its hinges. There just something about the house that even an untrained man like Markos could feel, this area had been forsaken. It feel colder in the shadow of the structure. A thick metallic odor mingled with the pungent stench of rotting flesh.
Iliana shivered, her body tensed as she withdrew to stand between Caelynn and Markos.
"Tell me what you sense, Markos." Caelynn quietly ordered.
"All the life has been drained from this area. It's almost like I can hear their screams... it stinks of blood, decoy. It's freezing, things don't decompose that quickly in winter."
Caelynn nodded approvingly. "What else?"
"Ripped the door apart. Holes in the roof might mean they tried to shoot it but failed," Markos's grip tightened on his rifle. He spotted a blood soaked teddy bear in a tendrils of moonlight. "...oh Gods... this was a family."
"For me, it feels like my body has been shattered. My nerves are raw, bleeding. What you are sensing is the lingering despair of a violent death," Iliana whispered, rubbing her arms. "I will cleanse this area and free them once we stop the aphotic."
"How long until it reaches us?"
"Ready yourself." Iliana gently placed a hand on their arms. Her expression was grave, the light in her eyes was dimmer than normal.