The Broken and Departed
Ch.1 - A Spy and Her Games
Carver Hawke Fanfic
Claire's POV
I'm running, I've been running for awhile now and I just can't stop. I know they're still behind me, chasing me, hoping that they will catch me. I don't know why I decided to run this way, after the wilds nothing else exists. I hear an astranged sound and stop to look behind me, I don't see anything. I turn to start running again, but then I see nothing but blackness fill my whole being.
I awakened, probably a good few hours later. I am lying on my side in a bed where there was nothing but a fireplace to light up the room. I can smell nothing, but dampness, burning wood and fresh herbs. I finally sit up and get a good look at the tiny room. There is a table with a few chairs to my right, hafely hidden behind a wall next to me. There are two chests around the room, and books of magic and forrbidden knowledge cover other tables. I hear a faint sound behind the door that was to the left of me and before I could conclude what it was, it opened. What came through the door was an elderly looking woman with long hair as white as snow. She looked at me with stunning bright yellow eyes, that seemed to pirece through my body like daggers. She held a crooked smile and then she started to speak with me.
"I see that you are finally awake, welcome back."
I could tell that I had an astonished look upon my face when she laughed at me. I then started to speak with her, I needed to ask where I was.
"Wh-where am I? Who are you? What happened to me? Why am I here?" All the questions came out of me like a river I could not stop, that desperately needed to escape. "Well if you must asked everything so forward." the old woman said with a chuckle in her voice. "I am Flemeth or Asha'bellanar, you may know me where you come from as 'The Witch of The Wilds', you are in fact in my lovely home. You are here because I brought you here to save you my dear." Everything she said, I had problems with adjusting to. I mean 'The Witch of The Wilds' that I have heard of since I was a little girl living at home and in the circle. The witch that was known for murdering and kidnapping and preying upon people without them ever seeing it coming. She said to save me? What did she possibly mean by that? "What do you mean by...to save me?"
She then paused for awhile as if she was contemplating whether or not to tell me. "There were Templars chasing you, were there not. They found you, caught up to you only because of a simple mistake made by you. I saw you stop and turn around only to see you get startled and ram yourself headfirst into a tree." She gratefuly ended this with even more laughter, and I couldn't blame her, that sounds like me alright. So completely oblivious to see a tree right in front of me, and black myself out. She then came and sat at the end of the bed and then continued.
"I then saw the whole group of them coming to the clearing where you were, so I made a rash decision to save your life. I took you quickly away before they even spotted you. So that is what happened to you and why you are here." She finished this sentence quite haslty I might add. "I don't mean to seem ungrateful, but why did you save me?" I had to ask, but for some odd reason I needed to know. "Hmm, I don't know... maybe because I have a soft spot for fellow Apostate Mages." After this she didn't seem to give off the essence of being regretful, all in all she seemed to be very humorus to herself. "Thank you I-" I was cut off by her when she began to say something else while getting up to come back to a stand. "Although I saved you dear, I have been watching you for sometime after your escape from the circle. There is something powerful inside of you that I just couldn't let slip out of my grasp. Don't be misjudged, but it can also kill you... and misguide you."
She had so much pain and care in those last few words, but just in an instance I had another whole lot of questions I wanted answers to, but I knew I shouldn't press so many so I chose wisely. "You have been watching me? and what is so powerful inside of me that makes me so special to you?" I was afraid that she would just shurg it off and not answer me, but she didn't. "Yes I have, I saw how you fought your way from those Templars, so from there on I have kept a close eye upon you. Yes, I imagine you do not know of the power you possess inside, but I don't think I should be the one to tell you. Though I do believe you should know and be aware, the power you have is called 'Jacturae Vitae'."
"I'm sorry, but what does that mean?" She told me but I knew nothing of the sort or even heard of it before. " 'Jacturae Vitae' is a forrbidden power once acostumed to the Tevinter's of Old. Their magic and knowledge are intertwinned within you child, which can also go by the meaning of the name, which is 'Loss of Life'. The Tevinter's that had this power used it for destruction to rule and conquer those around them. They abused it in other words, thus making the magic overtake them piece by piece until they just couldn't stand it any longer. That is also the way it can kill you child so be wary, and use it wisely."
I got up out of the bed and stood face to face with her. "I didn't know any of this, thank you for telling me and saving my life. I am forever in your debt, is there anything I can do for you in return?" She looked at me as if she thought I was lying, but then she engulfed herself in a histerical laughter and answered me. "There is something I need."
"And what might that be?"
"I need someone to do things for me that I cannot always do, I need someone who can get close to anyone without any trouble, I need someone who can protect themselves from anyone but themselves, I need someone with vast knowledge of everything in this world. I see all of this within you child. Since I saw you I knew I wouldn't have to look any longer. Can you do all of this for me?" I stood still for an instance to fill myself with everything she wanted from me. I couldn't think of any reason that she needed all of this, so I didn't think much of it. All I could think was 'This woman saved my life, this is the least I can do for her'.
"Yes I can." I replied later to her. She then started to walk out of the room, but stopped and turned back to face me. "Thank you child, just so you know there is a war coming. You shall be apart of it, tomorrow there will be people at Ostagar and among them will be Grey Wardens. I need you to gather their leaders' respect and ask him at all cost to be a 'Pretend' Warden to the others. And from there on, anyone you come in contact with must be told that you are one. You must know everything about them, what they do, who they know, and even wear their armor."- "Why can I not just ask to be a 'Real' Warden?"- "Because! I cannot have you dead! One more thing you should know is that the war will not be won, after you see a signal lit to get more troops to advance in, I want you to retreat and make your way towards the town of 'Lothering' and there I want you to follow a family to make sure they get safely out. When they get to 'Gwaren' I want you to take yourself to 'Redcliffe' and get acquanted with two Grey Wardens that will survive this battle, and from there on I need you to go everywhere with them. After this war is defeated and you spend the rest of the year with the future Queen of Ferelden, I need you to go straight to a city named 'Kirkwall'. Do you understand this?"
I processed everything in my mind to remember what she needed me to do throughout and entire year, I couldn't help thinking why she needed me to do this, but I did not ask. "Yes I do understand. In 'Lothering' how do I know which family to watch get safely out?" I asked her. She then started to laugh once again. "Oh, trust me my dear girl, you of all people will know by your own heart of whom to watch for. One of the family members will indeed be at 'Ostagar', but do not look for them. Do what I asked you to do first. I will indeed see you again Claire." She then left into the shadows out of the dimly lit room. Wait? how did she know my name, I never told her? I push these thoughts out of my mind because I knew I should get started towards 'Ostagar' now, but all now that repeated inside my mind was the words 'You of all people will know by your own heart of whom to watch for.' By the Maker, what did she mean by that!, and the thought of being a 'Pretend' Warden made me feel a little sorrow inside. I thought nothing at all, but about this as I took my long and dangerous walk towards 'Ostagar' under the starry black night.