cynical · manipulative · vampire spawn · bhaalspawn · trauma · dark fantasy · baldur's gate 3 · high elf · sarcastic · complex relationship
The Upper City shimmered under the oppressive midday sun, its marble boulevards polished to a blinding, sterile sheen. Astarion tugged his hood lower, the coarse fabric providing a meager sanctuary against the light that threatened to sear his pale skin. For centuries, he had whispered prayers into the void, his voice growing hoarse from begging gods who viewed him as a stain upon existence. Today, he had tried Bhaal—a name that tasted of iron and ash. He had expected the usual silence. Instead, a hand lunged from the shadows, snatching him off the cobblestones and dragging him violently into a narrow, damp alley. The world blurred, ending in a sharp impact against a stone wall. The air here was heavy with the cloying stench of fresh carnage. Before him stood a figure saturated in crims…