Waffle: Hey, guys! Get ready for my new ongoing story! It's a Naruto/Dragon Age Origins crossover, with a sort of "WTF" twist! Loghain ends up being a good guy, AND Naruto's adoptive father!
Zhug-Zhug: That sound like train wreck.
Waffle: Quiet, you! Oh, and is Sprinkles' pit cleaned out like I asked?
Zhug-Zhug: Yes. Why you name rancor Sprinkles anyway?
Waffle: Yuffie named him, and I don't have the heart to make her give me the kawaii sad eyes again. Anyway, disclaimer time! I do NOT own Naruto, Dragon Age, or anything referenced in the story. I do own all OC's, so no stealing, or I feed you to Sprinkles!
Zhug-Zhug: You now Yuffie's bitch.
Waffle: Hey, you know I can't fight the kawaii sad eyes! Let's just start the story!
Roof of Fort Drakon
The terrible roar of the Archdemon echoed throughout the city of Denerim, the once beautiful crown jewel of Ferelden, now in shambles in the wake of the final battle between the Darkspawn horde and the united army of Ferelden's people. The once mighty dragon was on its last legs, and the City elf Aldin, one of the three remaining Grey Wardens of Ferelden, stood with his party, ready to deliver the finishing blow to the horrific beast and put an end to the Blight. However, Aldin knew the risks that came with this. The Warden who kills the Archdemon would be infused with its taint, destroying them both. Morrigan, the apostate witch who sided with the former City elf ever since the defeat at Ostagar, had offered to use a dark, and I must admit, sexy, ritual to have her bear his child so the taint would pass on to the infant, ensuring that no Grey Wardens would die. Aldin, not caring for his own safety, and also not wanting to betray the trust of his beloved Leliana, refused the offer. He engaged in a Mexican Standoff with the beast, then drawing his Dalish sword and dagger (I forgot the names of the weapons from the game), prepared to charge, only to be blocked off by a large shield, worn on the arm of Loghain Mac Tir, Former Regent of Ferelden. "Stop! If anyone is to die with this beast, let it be me! I care not for my own life. Only for the safety of Ferelden." He told the elven Warden, who raised an eyebrow. "Says the man who allowed Tevinter slave operations to take place in my home, right in the capital of your so-called beloved homeland." He said with a glare.
Loghain could understand this. The feeling of having strangers take your home and everything you love from you was something the two had in common. The real kicker was that Loghain had allowed the Tevinter to capture the elves of the Alienage. "I have done many a terrible deed, even before my time as regent. This, I understand, Elf. I also understand that I will never fully redeem myself for the crimes I've committed against the home I've fought so hard to protect, but what I CAN do is ensure that its people can live in peace. I will lay down my life. Tell my daughter Anora that I am proud of her. She will make a fine queen" The newest Warden said.
Aldin listened carefully, then looked to the body of a Redcliffe soldier, taking the poor sod's blade and handing it to Loghain. "If you're gonna do it, do it now, before Scaly over there gets his second wind." The elf told the former regent, who gave his fellow Warden a nod, taking the blade. The Archdemon roared as Loghain began his charge, and the wicked beast struck out, only to be evaded. The Son of Ferelden saw his opening and sprinted forward, dragging the blade of the longsword along the throat of the dragon, effectively giving himself a crimson shower. The beast roared in agony and came crashing to the ground…or was it the roof? Gah! I'm confused! Anyway, with a final warcry, the former tyrant and traitor plunged his steel into the head of the Archdemon, ending its life. Suddenly, the body of the monster surged with energy, which resulted in a massive explosion akin to that of a star. The soldiers down below saw this, and then noticed the fleeing remains of the once fearsome Darkspawn armies, causing the surviving heroes of Ferelden to cheer wildly.
As for the burst of dark power, none of Aldin's companions were touched, but there was nothing left of the wicked Archdemon…OR the tyrant-turned-hero who had slain the beast. The elven rouge couldn't help but respect the sacrifice made here today, but he was also surprised that it was LOGHAIN, of all people, to lay down his life. Aldin understood that Loghain's actions in life were cruel and awful, but his sacrifice was dedicated to the homeland he had loved so dearly. Though his actions were misguided, he truly wished to defend Ferelden, and through this final act, he got his wish. The country would return to peace, and its people could look forward to a bright future. Aldin got down on one knee and offered a prayer for the now departed Warden. "You have done many horrible things, Loghain, but you are an example that the world must look to the future. This may not be enough to redeem you in the eyes of the Maker, or your fellow Wardens, but know that the people of Ferelden will never forget your sacrifice. Though severely misguided, you only wanted what was best for your homeland. May you find peace." He said quietly. He, Leliana, and Morrigan then left to meet up with Queen Anora and her troops to inform them that the deed was done. The Archdemon was now dead and gone, and peace would once again grace the land of Ferelden.
Meanwhile, in…Maker-knows-where…
Loghain opened his eyes, only to see white. That's it. Just…white. This place looked almost purgatorial. Was this what the Maker had planned for him? Leave him here to regret his actions until the time came for him to enter the Black City? The former regent and Warden let out a sigh, knowing that he should have seen something like this coming. "At least I know that my Anora will rule Ferelden wisely." He said to himself.
"True. She loves her home just as much as you do, if that's possible. However, I think her father's blunders have given her the experience needed to keep the Darkspawn threat in check." A young voice echoed, laced with wisdom. Loghain scanned the area with his eyes, searching for the source, but no one was there. "Am I going mad?" He asked himself. Suddenly, a pure azure light shined, forcing the Warden to shield his eyes. When the brilliant light faded, there stood….an elf. He was a decent looking young man, about 22, with fair skin, long hair the color of pure snow, and eyes of emerald hue. He was clad in pure white robes and wore a holy-looking staff on his back, marking him as a mage.
Loghain lowered his hand from his eyes, staring at the elven mage and raising an eyebrow. "Who are you, spirit? What do you know of my Daughter?" He asked. The mage gave him a smile. "It's my job to know everyone in the living world. I gave them all life, after all." He told Loghain, who scoffed at this. "You believe yourself to be the Maker? Don't be ridiculous. The Maker isn't some elven brat!" He said, catching a joking glare from the elf. "Does the phrase 'all powerful' mean anything to you? I can change my form at will. I just use this one a lot because Andraste had a weird elf fetish, and I got used to it. No wonder she had so many Legend of Zelda posters in her chambers." He told him.
Loghain, not exactly trusting this elf who claimed to be his god, decided to get right to the point. "Why are you here, spirit? Are you my escort to the Black City? Am I to rot for my crimes against my own people?" The Warden asked.
"Not exactly. Quite the opposite, in fact. I've come to make you an offer, Loghain Mac Tir. If you choose to accept, I will revive you into a different world, far from your Ferelden. As for your redemption, I'll explain when we get there." The elf told him, confusing the former regent. "We? You're coming along? If you really ARE the Maker, should you stay here and, I don't know, be GOD?" Loghain asked. "Meh. I have a temp. However, to follow you into this new world, I must give up a great deal of power. I'll be at the level of a Senior Enchanter, in terms of magical strength. We don't want reviewers to start bitching about not being fair, now, do we?" He said, chuckling at his own destruction of the fourth wall as Loghain raised an eyebrow yet again. "So, Loghain Mac Tir, son of Ferelden…will you go on this journey of redemption, or are you content with waiting to arrive in the Black City?" He asked.
Loghain thought about this offer carefully. A chance at Redemtion and a way to live again…what more could a dead man ask for? Loghain wondered if the spirit in front of him was telling the truth. Then again, Loghain was already DEAD. What did he have to lose? The Warden gave the "Maker" a nod. "Yes, spirit. I will take you up on your offer." He told the elf, who gave a smile. "Good. Oh, and before we go, you might want to stop calling me 'spirit'. Don't want to scare the poor mortals, now, do we? Call me….Daylen." He told the Warden. Daylen then raised a hand, opening a shining blue portal to Maker-knows-where. Hah! See what I did there? The two then walked through the portal, leaving this place behind.
Konohagakure: Night:
Sprinting through the streets of the village was a young blond with spiky hair and whisker-like birthmarks on his face, beaten and bruised. Most would consider this an atrocity. For him, this was his typical day, but he still didn't like it. Only seven years old and poor Naruto suffered at the hands of the villagers, and even some of the shinobi, for reasons he didn't even know. He found himself cornered in an alley, a group of hateful civilians blocking his only exit.
"This is where you pay for your crimes, demon!" The leader of the five man group yelled out with bloodlust, scaring the defenseless child even more.
"Is this really the end! Am I really going to die? Kami, what did I do to deserve this!" Naruto thought to himself, tears welling up in the child's eyes as the beating began.
Meanwhile, a good twenty feet from the alley, the same shining blue portal from before reappeared, spitting out Daylen and Loghain. The Warden was clad in the heavy armor he had died in, but all evidence of battle was gone from the metal. His shield and longsword from the battle with the Archdemon had returned as well. Everything he had with him when he died was with him now.
"Thought I'd give you a piece of home while we're here." Daylen told him, earning a nod of thanks from the former tyrant.
"Is this the world you mentioned? What is this redemption you spoke of before?" He asked. Sounds of a struggle then hit his ears, along with the pained scream of a child and shouts of "Die, demon!"
"Answer to question one: yes, this is the right place. Answer number two: I can't give any real concrete details, being a cryptic asshole and all, but I can tell ya that saving that kid over there would be a good first step." The elf told his companion, pointing over to the mob. Loghain still had doubts about this elven brat being the Maker, but the mage was right about one thing: not even someone like Loghain would stand by and watch a child get beaten. Loghain walked over to the crowd of people, shoving his way through them and standing in front of the wounded blond. "I suppose you have a good reason for attacking a helpless child." He said, venom seeping from his tone.
"This is no child, outsider! Stay out of this! This demon must pay for its crimes!" The leader roared. Loghain looked over to spot Daylen entering the fray as well. "This kid is no demon. Trust me. I know demons. However, anyone who would strike a harmless child is pretty close, morally." He said, wishing he could just smite these fools with a blink of an eye. Of course, beating them with his staff would still be fun, but this would be handled by his companion. The angry villagers cried out for blood until they couldn't hold themselves from lashing out. The five men charged, wanting to see the "demon" slain, only for the leader to be met with a heavy metal pimp slap from Loghain's shield with a sickening crunch, instantly knocking the bastard on his ass. Two of them charged the armored Warden with kunai, but ended up on the wrong end of his longsword, blood and limbs scattered on the ground. The last two went after Daylen, who only shot them a glare that said "Do you REALLY want to fuck with me?" The mage pulled his staff off his back, slamming it into the temple of the first and sending it crashing into the groin of the second. These fools would be a waste of good mana, so he held off the urge to burn them alive. The three surviving men got up and ran off, shouting that they would have vengeance, or whatever. The outsiders didn't really give two shits.
Naruto watched in awe as these odd looking men had fought on his behalf. He found them to be nothing like he had ever seen before, especially the black haired man in the heavy armor. His clothing and features told the boy that he had a history of battle behind him. The man looked like a knight, a brave warrior from stories that Sarutobi had read to him. Naruto always thought he would make a good knight, if being a ninja didn't work out. A chance at glory while defending his home and getting respect would be a dream come true for the boy.
Naruto walked over to the man and tapped on his armored leg, causing him to turn and face the boy. "That…was…AWESOME! Thanks for saving my life, mister!" He said, looking like he had just met frigging Superman. Daylen sighed, but still managed to smile at the boy's failure to mention his part in the rescue, but the good deed itself was enough for the Maker, who hadn't done, well, ANYTHING, for quite some time now. Maybe little kids just liked shiny things like Loghain's armor.
Even the once cold Loghain couldn't help but crack a smile at the boy's reaction. Even after such a painful experience, the boy could still find the energy to get excited over the warrior's little display. The boy was either incredibly brave, or dumber than a brick. Or both. Suddenly, the three were surrounded by people in….weird animal masks? These men and women looked like seasoned assassins, and they were led by an old man in red and white robes and a strange looking hat. "What is the meaning of this? Who are you two?" The man asked, suspicious of the two outsiders. The pair put away their weapons, clearly wanting to avoid confrontation with this elder man and his assassins. "Hold. My name is Loghain Mac Tir, and this is my companion Daylen. We spotted these men attacking this boy, and we stepped in." He told him. Naruto ran up to the old man with a smile. "It's true, jiji! These two saved my life! They were so cool! Those bad guys were all like 'raaagh!', but Loghain-san was all like 'swish' with his sword, and Daylen-san beat the other two with his staff like a kung-fu master or something! It was AWESOME!" The boy said, still in awe of the two foreigners who had rescued him. The old man couldn't help but smile. He could always trust the word of the whisker-faced blond. "Well, Naruto here seems to like you two, so I take your word for it. My name is Hiruzen Sarutobi. I am the Hokage, leader of this village, Konohagakure no Sato. I thank you for helping Naruto. He is like a grandson to me. I would like you two to accompany me to my tower. I may be grateful for your kindness to the boy, but I would like to discuss why you two are here in the village unannounced." He told the two, who nodded. "Neko, take Naruto-kun back to his apartment. I'm sure he could use some sleep after today." He told the female ANBU in the cat mask, who nodded and vanished with Naruto. Sarutobi then looked back to the warrior and mage, then led them off to his tower. Loghain was curious, though. Why did those idiots attack the boy? He didn't look like a demon. Was he possessed somehow? He would find out soon enough.
Waffle: Holy shit!, That might be the most I've ever typed for a fanfic! Don't worry, Peeps! I'll keep this story going, along with Fox Boy Blues! College is after my ass again, but Waffle won't forget you guys! As for pairings, I'm thinking NaruHina, LoghainXKurenai, and DaylenXAnko. Read and review, boys and girls!