BG3 Gathering at @anime_los_angeles (hosted by @evil_nikki )
The meetup was lots of fun! I had a great time talking with and meeting everyone. The BG3 fandom is incredible. Thank you again for the trinkets and ribbons! 🥰
Photography by: @inm_photography
Always grateful for @larianstudios for giving us the game of the century. And of course for the amazing artists and actors that brought these characters to life 💜 @emmagregoryvoice 💜 BG3 and @dndwizards have a permanent place in my heart.
He doesn’t remember his past, where he came from, or who he is. Hells, he doesn’t even remember his own name. “The Dark Urge?” That’s… not him. Not anymore, at least. And yet, he has this feeling that these strangers are important. That they are worth… everything.
And that he’d kill anything and anyone that stood in their way, gods and devils alike.
If only they could remember why.
Chapter 004 - Cages and Portals
Chapter Summary:
So far, they were two for two on meeting people and automatically both knowing random details about their lives and gaining an immediate obsessive need to see them safe and happy at all times. Hopefully, they weren’t on track to be six for six.
No one else seemed to be experiencing the same, so was Lae’zel’s tadpole theory correct? Or was this just something about them, something they’d recognize if they could but remember their past?
Either way, hopefully they didn’t form an immediate bond with everyone they met. That would be… tedious.
Either click on the chapter title for the ao3 link, or read below!
They stared at Shadowheart. Shadowheart stared at them. As one, they turned to stare at Us.
“Five?”
The little brain nodded happily, blissfully ignorant of the chaos it had caused. “Yes! Five sing the special song.” Shadowheart muffled some sort of involuntary groan beside them as his head fell into his hands. Five more people, only one of which they knew. Gods - No, hells - were all of them going to be like Shadowheart and Lae’zel and even Us?
Part of him almost hoped they were. To have people so precious, so wonderful… Well. It wasn’t something they thought they’d had much of in their life. Maybe once or twice, but… even those lingering emotions were bitter and twisted.
Still. This could get complicated very, very quickly.
Best to start with what they knew and go from there, then. “Us, can you recognize which one is Lae’zel? The githyanki woman who fought with us on the ship?”
The little brain hummed before pointing all of its fronds forwards and to the right a bit. “Yes! Her song is the same, but we know her tone, too.” Oh good, so now there were tones in all this. Would wonders never cease. They weren’t a bard - or at least they didn’t think they were a bard. What the fuck did tones mean?
But Us was already charging ahead with a reluctant Shadowheart in tow, so with a great sigh, they stood up, stretched out their aching back, and followed after. Here they went again.
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Naturally, they couldn’t make it thirty seconds before running into new enemies.
Apparently whatever had made Us identify them as an ally was no longer in effect, because the remaining squad of Intellect Devourers attacked them on sight.
Their little companion… did not take it well.
Us tried telling its fellows to stand down, tried explaining the situation, but the other brains didn’t respond. He didn’t even know if they could. Maybe Us was special, too. In the end, it hardly mattered either way. They were alive, and the other brains were charred and splattered corpses.
They leaned down to pick up their own brain, grunting under the surprisingly heavy weight as Us nuzzled against them sadly. If the little one could cry, they thought it might have done so now.
“Are you two quite done over there?” They held back a glare as Us immediately scrambled to get down, instead shifting the devourer so that it could sit across his shoulders. He didn’t want to glare at Shadowheart. He liked Shadowheart. But he liked Us, too.
“Yes, of course,” he replied instead, absentmindedly stepping around burning rubble and occasionally looting when something particularly shiny caught their eye.
It took them several minutes to realize Shadowheart kept glancing over with a strange expression on her face, a downward tick to her lips and slight shift of her brow. Not quite concern - not yet, at least - but something along those lines.
They blinked back at her innocently. “What is it?”
The woman jerked her head forward again, picking up the pace as they hurried to keep up. “It’s nothing. But - are you alright?” They nearly stumbled in shock, pointing at themselves in confusion when Shadowheart hesitated. “You seem different than on the ship, is all. You’re certainly looting much less.”
That was true enough, they realized. They had passed at least three bodies without giving them even a quick pat down, and everything in them protested at the thought of skipping another. Everything in them besides the burning ache in their chest, at least.
“I’m fine. Well, as fine as can be with nothing but a tadpole in my head.” Shadowheart’s expression softened. “I’ll feel better when we have another sword at our side. Maybe another five, if Us is correct.” The little brain’s fronds drummed on the top of their head, in comfort or reprimand for his doubt, they didn’t know.
It was appreciated either way. Such a cute little monster.
“I suppose that’s understandable. If you do need actual healing…” she trailed off, but they just nodded back with a smile.
“Of course. My thanks.” The cleric turned away, but they still caught the slight twitch of her lips.
“Up ahead! Two sing for you, one in the tone we know.” They sped up at Us’ words, catching up with Shadowheart as they clambered out a gap in the wreckage and back into open sky.
“Is that… normal?” Shadowheart came to a stop beside them, all three simply staring at the swirling purple vortex coming out of a rock wall. Shadowheart wordlessly shook her head. “Okay. Great. Good to know.” It didn’t look like it was going to calm down anytime soon. “Us, please don’t tell me someone is singing behind there?”
The little brain whined and covered its frontal lobe with its paws. “Wonderful. All in favor of finding Lae’zel first, and then coming back to this?” They received two silent nods in reply. “Works for me. Us? Right or left, little one?”
“Right!” the brain chirped, and off they went again, skirting by the dangerous looking vortex.
Naturally, Lae’zel couldn’t simply be sleeping or cloud-watching or some other innocuous activity when they found her. No, she had to be hanging in a cage as two tieflings dithered below.
“-when this thing strikes, there will be no soldiers to protect you. This isn’t Elturel,” the man ranted as they approached from behind. They did not appreciate him calling Lae’zel a thing. “Zorru was right. Yellow as a toad, and twice as ugly.”
Rude and blind. What a tragic combination.
“Let’s just go. Leave the thing for the goblins to kill.”
They really did not appreciate them calling Lae’zel a thing.
A sharp pain lanced through his skull before he could speak, overwhelming even the constant pounding that had been making their head ring since waking up on the nautiloid. Lae’zel’s voice echoed in his mind. “Get rid of them.” His eyes met hers, taking in her fierce expression, the pride that persisted in her stance, the tightness around her eyes the only sign of vulnerability. Of fear.
Get rid of them.
He could do that.
A blink, a heartbeat, a second - and the world was bathed in red.
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“That… may have been a bit overkill. Just slightly.” Their head jerked up at Shadowheart’s voice, blinking dazedly at her from where they knelt on the blood-stained earth, elbows deep in gore. A glance around them showed a similarly mangled body nearby - or most of a body, at least.
Half of it seemed to have been thrown up a tree. Huh.
He didn’t remember doing that.
“Tsk’va, enough of this. Bloodlust can be useful in battle, but only if it is controlled. Get me down.” They shook their head quickly and stood, stumbling as their blood rushed. They felt… wonderful. Better than they had since first waking. Nothing hurt anymore.
But they were also exhausted, and somewhat sick to their stomach.
Strange.
Regardless, they had more important priorities at the moment. “Right, of course. Just a moment.” A flick of his fingers, a whisper of a word, and a bolt of fire crumbled the base of the cage, dropping Lae’zel unharmed.
“Seems like the tadpole and bloodlust have not scrambled all your brains. Auspicious.” They resisted the urge to bow, wave a hand, anything. Something told them Lae’zel was not one to appreciate such dramatics. “That does not mean that we are safe. There is no time to waste; we must get to a crèche and find the cure.”
“Careful,” interrupted Shadowheart. “She clearly sees your kindness for weakness.” He looked at the scattered bodies, to Shadowheart, back to the scattered bodies, back to Shadowheart. She didn’t quite blush, but a flash of embarrassment crossed her features nonetheless. “Kindness to us,” she stressed.
Fair enough. They tilted their head in acknowledgement before turning back to Lae’zel. “I’m not sure, something tells me our parasites are far from normal. Do you really think a ghustil will be able to purify us?” Silence from their companions. “What? What did I do this time?”
“I have not explained what a ghustil is.” The three stood in silence for a moment. “It must be the tadpoles, continuing to worm their way through our minds. That you doubt is all the more reason to be certain. We will find a crèche, and we will be saved.”
They glanced at Shadowheart, who merely glared back with pursed lips. Still, that wasn’t a no. And they could work with ‘not a no.’ “Something tells me it won’t be as easy as you make it sound, but very well. We will travel together and look for a crèche as we go.” Turning to Shadowheart, he added, “And we can keep an eye out for other possible cures along the way.”
The two women gave their reluctant agreement. “You are fools to waste time on any methods besides a ghustil, but I will allow it. Despite your foolishness, have proven yourself capable enough, bloodthirsty one. Know this - you have made an ally of Crèche K’liir, a rare honor.”
“And one that I shall bare proudly. Though not as proudly as I bare the honor of being ally to Lae'zel of Crèche K’liir.” Instinct moved their arm to rest with their fist above their heart. At last, he could breathe again. He had a sword at his back and a shield at his side. Their companions were here, willingly allied with him, and, most importantly, they were both safe. No one had been turned into a splatter upon impact from freefall or skewered by random tieflings with swords.
He hadn’t lost them yet.
However, that meant there was one pressing thing left to do. Turning to Shadowheart, he asked, “Evil portal time?”
A reluctant, heartfelt sigh. And then, “Evil portal time.”
“...Your world is very strange.”
Tell them something they don’t know.
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The three - four, including the largely silent Us, who seemed to be content resting on their shoulders and purring - stood before the swirling purple vortex. “Are these… common, in your lands?”
They did not know enough to answer that question, but a quick glance at Shadowheart’s shaking head confirmed it. Still a no on that one. For now, at least.
“Any ideas?” Silence.
Shadowheart held a glowing hand toward the portal, frowning as she traced something only she could see. “A corrupted waypoint, perhaps? But the threads are all tangled… I can’t tell more like this.”
Well, it was a good try. There was only one thing left for it. “I’m going to touch it.”
“Absolutely do not touch it.” They turned to Shadowheart with wide eyes, ignoring Lae’zel’s simultaneously curious and reproachful gaze behind them.
“It’ll be fine! Here, take Us while I poke the sleeping evil portal.” Shadowheart scowled but reluctantly held her hands out as they passed the increasingly nervous brain over. “Perfect! Now then…” They walked up to the vortex, hovering a hand above it as they reached out to the strangely familiar magic, letting it reach out and ignoring the shock of electric power that raced up their arm. “It’s unstable. I think-”
They were cut off by a hand thrusting itself out of the portal, nearly taking it off with an instinctive swing. “Hells, man! A word of warning?”
“Terribly, sorry! In a bit of a bind here, you see.” In a bit of something, certainly. “May I ask for just a moment of your time? And - well - a hand? Anyone?” The voice was friendly, if clearly strained, and seemed truly apologetic about startling them.
More than that, it sounded… familiar. More familiar than their own voice had when speaking those first words to Us upon the nautiloid.
Fuck.
Whatever the obsession was, it hadn’t fully set in yet. They could feel the start of it - their heart starting to race, a buzzing about the back of their head like tens of voices chiming in at once, their chest and ribs aching like something was trying to tear its way out of them and set itself free.
They could ignore the voice and the trapped man, could spare themself the increased pain and mania that still lurked in the back of their head toward both of their current companions. More than that, they could hack the arm off. Could bite and rip and tear, possibly kill the man it belonged to, or at least ensure he remained trapped forever.
Could even keep the bloody hand with them, a memento of what could have been. Wrap its stiff and cold fingers around their own, see how the blood stains and sinks into its skin, preserve it to feel the give of roughened skin against their own or polish it into a lovely set of scattered bones to adorn themselves with -
It would certainly be less complicated. Might even be less painful.
But even as they contemplated, their magic was reaching out, calming the agitated sigil. “Whatever you’re doing, it’s working wonders! Just a quick little pull will do the trick!” They didn’t dare glance down at their own hands, still stained copper and dark red from the blood of the tieflings. The same hands that they had just fantasized about using to tear this stranger’s arm to shreds.
Neither of their companions moved to help.
Fuck it. Worse case scenario, they could always dive on in after him. Lae'zel and Shadowheart would be fine on their own. Probably. Maybe.
Shaking that thought aside, he reached out with both hands, gently grabbing the arm stretched towards him. “Going to need a bit more than that, I’m afraid!” Right. They could do this. They could totally do this.
They missed the glance shared by the two women behind them.
With a firmer grasp, they set their feet and pulled, straining against the insistent tug of the vortex while maintaining concentration over their command of the sigil. A single slip had Gale’s hand almost sliding out of their grasp, being tugged inwards by the portal. “No! Please, don’t let go!”
Never.
A flash of blinding white across their vision and a heavy weight careened into them, knocking them flat on their back and forcing the breath from their lungs. “Ooft, ouch. Nice save there, quite appreciated.” The voice was back, and this time coming from much closer.
The weight they now recognized as a warm body rolled off of them, turning into a man with brushed back, shoulder-length brown hair, a mostly well-trimmed beard, and purple robes. This time when they took the man’s outstretched hand, it was him lifting them up and back to their feet.
“Right back at you, Gale.”
The man blinked in shock as the two women groaned behind them. “Hello there! Terribly sorry about all that. Apologies, but… do you know me?”
Damn, this again. “Tadpole side effect, it seems.” The man - Gale, apparently - grinned back in response.
“I see! What an interesting aspect of all this. Quite unusual, from what I’ve read. But in that case, please do allow me to properly introduce myself - Gale, of Waterdeep, at your service. I must say, I’m usually better at this.”
Hello obsession, thy old friend.
They nodded back, doing their best to catch their breath both from the fall and the agony that just slammed into their ribs and rooted deep. That hurt. Still, they managed a shaky grin for their new ally. Hopefully ally.
By the Hells, let him be an ally.
“At what? Introductions?” The man grinned wryly in response.
“Not quite. Better at magic, I mean.” They winked in response, and watched in relief as Gale seemed to relax at the friendly banter. Their companions being stressed was stressing them out, and they’d just met this one. At least the girls seemed steady enough. “Say, but I know you don’t I?” Hells, do you? Because they haven’t a fucking clue. “In a manner of speaking. You were on the nautiloid as well, weren’t you?”
So, he didn’t know them. Well. Welcome to the club.
“I was, yes. As you might have surmised from Us behind me.” The double-take the man took upon seeing the little brain made it clear that he had not, in fact, noticed the Intellect Devourer currently trying to cuddle against Shadowheart’s armor.
“That’s… unusual.”
They hummed. “That’s Us for you. It’s been a big help in finding other survivors and defending ourselves.” In other words, don’t touch my brain or you’ll get brained, special song and agonizing obsession or not.
Luckily for everyone involved, Gale simply nodded in reply, reluctantly drawing his fascinated gaze away from Us. “Right. Yes. Where was I?” They motioned for him to continue. “Back on the ship, you too were on the receiving end of a rather unwelcome insertion in the ocular region, were you not?”
Lae’zel made a noise of disgust behind them. “Couldn’t have phrased it more repellently myself.”
“No use sugarcoating it, is there?” the human asked jokingly. “Considering the company you keep, I imagine you all understand what exactly we’re dealing with here?”
They nodded along. “Yes, of course. Ceremorphosis - fevers, hallucinations, graying skin, melting jaw, skin to gore - all sorts of fun things.”
…They could feel Lae’zel and Shadowheart’s gazes boring holes in their back again. And Gale had no right to look as disgusted as he did, considering his own words mere moments earlier.
“Yes, quite. I don’t suppose any of you are highly trained clerics? Particularly adroit with a knitting needle, perhaps?”
They hummed in thought. “Shadowheart is certainly a talented cleric, though not especially skilled in tadpole removal. And I could certainly rummage through your brain while keeping you alive and well enough, but I have a feeling that getting the parasite out would be much harder than getting in.”
Silence.
“...Have I mentioned that I also have amnesia and can’t remember even my own name? Apologies in advance for anything I say; I seem to have forgotten any social graces I may have once had.” Gale just blinked those large brown eyes of his at them in shock. Those were the kind of eyes they imagined Us would have, if it could. They didn’t know how to feel about them belonging to a random - not random - human.
“Well! I haven’t heard of that being a side-effect of ceremorphosis before - if it is, the authors quite forgot to write it down!” Shadowheart groaned at the joke, but they just gave Gale a grin back. They appreciated a man who could bounce back with a joke after being accidentally threatened with a semi-lobotomy. “In any case, it most certainly sounds like we are going to need a healer sooner than later…” Ooh, we. Plural pronoun. Yes, they quite liked the sound of that.
Gale turned to the four of them, a friendly smile on his face as he straightened up. “How about we lend each other a helping hand once more and look for a healer together?” They immediately turned to Lae’zel and Shadowheart, eyes unintentionally wide and beseeching. The githyanki turned away with a scoff as the cleric rolled her eyes.
“You can’t resist a stray, can you?” Their eyes widened further. “Ugh, very well. Far be it from me to stop you from collecting every vagabond you come across.” They flashed the cleric a pointy grin before spinning back to Gale.
“That’s a yes from us! Welcome aboard, Gale of Waterdeep.”
“Excellent! After all, a parasite shared is a parasite halved, or - something to that effect,” the man trailed off with a mumble before brightening again. “Oh! Before I forget - and before you think yourself traveling with most ill-mannered a man - thank you, for pulling me from that stone.” He continued on before they could reply. “It was an act of foresighted kindness, I assure you. I have a feeling ample opportunities will present themselves for me to return the favor.”
“I have a feeling they will, indeed. But you’d be welcome along even if we had no need for a wizard of your talents.”
They didn’t know how to feel about the look Gale gave them as they left the waypoint behind, all following Us’ cheerful directions towards the last song nearby, but they had a feeling that “complicated” was just the start.
Aaaaand one more Valentine for you all, this one celebrating platonic friendship from my Smiler bear Smileon and my plush Us from Baldur's Gate III. Because I decided they were friends because they came into my life so close together (Smileon was a Christmas present, Us a birthday one), and because, as per my "Valicer In The Dark in Baldur's Gate III" post, I headcanon Smiler as being very close to Us.
...look, by now you know I'm weird, just take the additional bonus Valentine.
The Making of Us, the Intellect Devourer, from Baldur's Gate 3
Us was a fun build for me. I was bringing my Tiefling Bard Tav to LACC for the Cosplay National Championship and wanted something fun and extra to bring across the stage with me!
The build started life as a mop bucket, filled with old scrap, then covered in expanding foam. I used scraps of upholstery foam (left from my tiefling tail!) to form the bases of the arms and legs, which then got covered in Worbla. I piped spackle (in a pastry bag) for extra brainy details. I used foam clay for the veiny bits and to cover the tentacles. Then it was painted and high glossed for extra slimy shine!
