The Age of Dragons
The Chantry teaches us that it is the hubris of men that brought the Darkspawn into our world, the Mages had sort to usurp heaven but instead they destroyed it. They were cast out, twisted and cursed by their own corruption and they returned as monsters; the first of the Darkspawn. They became a Blight upon the lands, unstoppable and relentless. The Dwarven kingdoms were the first to fall, and from the deep roads the Darkspawn drove at us again and again until finally we neared annihilation. Until the Grey Wardens came, men and women from every race, warriors and mages, barbarians and kings, the Grey Wardens sacrificed everything to stem the tide of darkness and prevail. It has been 4 centuries since that victory and we have kept our vidual. We have watched and waited for the Darkspawn to return. But those who once called us heroes have been forgotten. We are few now and are warnings have been ignored for too long. It may even be too late for I have seen with my own eyes what lies on the horizon. Maker help us all.
The young girl plunged through the trees with her back to the Castle. She clawed at the branches attacking her face as sticks and twigs snapped beneath her feet. Mud splattered on her leather boots and heavy cotton trousers as she ran through the foliage, which clung to her cloak like a thousand beggars reaching for a Lord. Her heart beat fast under the boiled leather jerkin and her sweating skin caused her wool and linen doublet to stick to her; but she continued to run until she came to the clearing.
She was now in the outskirts of Highever where most of the peasants would farm their crops for the market. Corn, soybeans and small grains; the cattail marshes were a good place to find what the girl was looking for, but the dense grass made it easy for her prey to hide. She continued forward towards the wetlands a short distance away as the ground squelched beneath her feet, adding to the grime and filth on her boots and knees, peasants couldn't grow anything here because the ground was generally too wet to plough since it was so close to the stream corridors. She wrapped her mitten dressed hand around the sanded wood of her recurve bow and pulled it over her head then with her naked hand she pulled a long arrow from her quiver as her finger tips brushed the cock feather fletching, she then rested the arrow on the riser as she made her way through the wetlands keeping her eyes peeled for her catch.
She stayed close to the ground using the tall grass as cover as she quietly made her way through, until all of a sudden a gaudy rooster bursts from cover with a boisterous cackle as it flapped his wings for lift off, the girl pulled back the bowstring which grazed her leather arm guard that only dressed her left, the girl followed the foul with the tip of her arrow head until she let the string leave her fingers as the arrow flew through the air and penetrated the pheasant straight through the neck. Its dead weight pulled the bird down to the ground with a dull thud. The girl smiled as she holstered her weapon and ran to her kill, she held the neck of the bird before pulling the arrow out, wiping the excess blood on her cloak and putting the bird in her leather satchel.
The young girl trudged through the low-lying ground as she neared the stream and fell to her knees; her satchel hit the ground first now filled with three pheasants. She unfastened her arm guard and slipped off her mitten so she could dip her hands in the water and wash her face from the mud it had collected whilst hunting, she immersed her hands in once more and cupped the water into her palms and brought her lips to it and took a refreshing sip, she sighed in delight before wiping the moisture on her cloak and brought herself to her feet. She then brought her fingers to her lips and sounded a high pitched toot, followed soon after with a deep bellowing bark, in no time a large canine beast galloped out of the long grass in the distance and straight towards the young girl, in its mouth was another pheasant as its teeth were securely lodged in the foul's neck.
'Good boy, we'll definitely be having a feast tonight won't we?' She rubbed the hounds head before massaging his ear as he made a delighted whine, she then took the bird from her familiar's mouth and adjusted the contents to make room for a fourth pheasant, after a few pushes the satchel was now packed and the dog was helping itself to the water from the stream before it licked it's lips and barked at his master.
'Yes, I know we should be getting back. Come on then.'
The two then took off back into the Wetlands, through cattail marshes and into the trees which would eventually lead them back into the city, she took out a bread roll from her pocket and ate it as she trudged over the uneven grassy earth, when she got half way through she tossed the leftovers into the air and on its way down it landed in her hound's mouth, his lips smacked together with a wet slobbering sound until he finished it off. All of a sudden the girl stopped in her tracks when she heard something ruffle the branches to her left, she focused into the distance as she tried to make out anything peculiar, all of a sudden she saw someone in armour appear and then disappear just as quick, could it be someone from the Castle?
'Did you see that?' She asked her canine companion, she then noticed that judging by how low his head was to the ground he had seen it too and had became very wary. A smile then curled on her lips. 'Do you want to follow him?' The hound growled as the girl took that as a confirmation. 'Let's go then.'
The young girl followed the mysterious stranger as if she was continuing hunting pheasants, she made her place low to the ground and hidden whenever she thought she was getting too close, the hound always stayed by her side as they both followed the sound of his footsteps. Eventually they found themselves close to the mountain side, she eventually climbed out of the woodland and walked at the edge of the peak trying to find the person's tracks, some dirt and foliage was dragged from the forest area and led to part of the rock face where there seemed to be a large hole; a cave. The wind travelled down it creating a deep whistling sound, eventually accompanied by whining causing the girl to look to her hound to see him walking slowly backwards with his ears bent back.
'What's the matter?'
The dog only whined more causing the girl to furrow her brows.
'Are you scared? Is something down there?' The dog then clamped his teeth onto her cloak and began tugging her backwards but the girl loosening it from his grip. 'Let go, I'm sure whatever's down there isn't going to be dangerous. We might find some nice juicy bones, don't you want those?' The dog then barked in protest. 'Oh stop whining you big baby, it's not like I'm going to see a dragon; although that would be exciting.' The dog barked once more. 'Ugh, you're like Mum. Fine, if you're so scared you can wait here and I'll go in alone.' The girl then made her way down the steep hill that led into the cave, holding onto the rock face and nearby vines and branches to ease her stepping, but was mindful of the thorns entwined within them, she walked through the mouth of the cavern only to then hear a rumbling dragging sound behind her and as she turned she saw her dog sliding down, the girl only smirked victoriously before she continued on.
The cave was cold and damp and left an arid taste on her tongue that caused her face to contort in discomfort, the floor continued to be slanted as the girl adjusted the angle of her body to traverse down, eventually the floor became flat and she was able to normalise her steps. The more she ventured the more the walls took shape, she began to make out parapets and pillars, archways and even statues. Everything was covered in dust, bones and even cobwebs; large cobwebs, it looks like a place long since forgotten. The wind continued to travel through the open areas, her ears adjusted to the noise as she took in the design of the vicinity. She brushed her hands over the stone engravings.
'This…looks like Elvish…but…we're nowhere near-'
There was a loud hiss that echoed through the halls and bounced off the walls making the origin of the sound difficult to pinpoint, all of a sudden the hound began to bark continuously, the girl spun around and noticed whatever he was barking at was coming from above. She looked up and saw a large spider making its way down to them. At first her body felt as if something had just walked through her and left her numb and shaking, she was paralysed on the spot as the menacing aura of the oversized creature held her on the spot. But then her body reacted, breaking into a run she was off deeper and deeper into the unknown cave, she had no idea where she was going or what else she would run into but at that point she just wanted to get as much distance between her and the spider, she saw her dog run by her side but as she looked back she saw that the spider was getting closer and closer as the sound of its scurrying legs was getting louder. The girl tripped on debris and cobwebs a few times as she continuously lost her footing but she managed to take it back every time until she got to another door. With her current momentum she did not have the timing to slow down as she ended up slamming into it; though luckily she managed to hold out her hands first which cushioned the blow somewhat. She tried to open the door but it was heavy and did not move all that fast, like an old man trying to wake up in the morning, though she was making headway with the exit it was not fast enough since the spider was catching up, the dog made a defensive stance as it bared its teeth ready to fight, the girl felt an impeding sense of doom before she caught hold of her senses, took an arrow from her quiver and loaded her bow as she waited for the spider to show itself. When it did she wasted no time as she began shooting her arrows at it, one after the other, the first few missed out of anxiety and fear but it didn't take long for her to make contact. The spider squealed and tripped over its many legs as it tried to stand up in its injured state as if trying to walk on ice, and though it didn't manage to stand up again it still continued to make its way towards the young girl, so she loaded in one more arrow and aimed it at the creature's head as it shrieked once more before curling into a rigamortis state. The girl staggered backwards as her heart beat faster and faster, she managed to catch the wall before her quivering knees dragged her down to the ground; making sure to keep her eyes on the ceiling in case she received another surprise encounter.
She then looked around and took in the details of the district a second time searching for answers. She heard her brother in her mind telling her to get out, to go back home and to tell everyone what happened but her curiosity got the better of her, she may have been scared but it also fuelled her curiosity. Once she gained control of her breathing and her heart continued its normal beating, she pushed herself upright once more and continued to explore the ruins; this time more cautiously.
Her boots echoed with every footstep that she took, roots had broken through the decrepit walls causing large amounts of debris to pile on the floor with the giant plants spreading and possessing the stonework, beams of light crept in through the dilapidated ceiling, even the paving on the floor were collapsed as if an ogre had tripped and fallen. After sometime of venturing she came to a door, she gripped tight of the rusty iron handle and pushed, only after a short distance did it wedge against some plantation debris, the girl used her shoulder to shove past the rogue veins and make a gap large enough for her and her hound to fit through. Once inside she realised that this room was even more eerie than the one before, she followed the cobwebs on the ceiling to come across what looked like a cocoon probably where the spider had come from and meant that there were more than one she thought to herself, she looked on the walls to only come across more vines and shattered pieces of rubble. Then when her eyes travelled to the floor she noticed some sort of stone plinth, but as she walked closer to it, it appeared to be a sarcophagus. This vicinity wasn't just a place of forgotten history, but also of death. Who was inside? She wondered as she reached her hand out towards it, dare she open it? Would she be able to recognise the person even if she did? Would a thousand spiders burst out of it once she uncovered it? No, best to leave it alone.
She progressed into the next room with her hound at her side who had been whimpering and whining all the way through, just as she took a step through the next door a burst of fire exploded in front of her causing her mouth to confess a shriek of fear as she staggered backwards; almost falling down, she surveyed her skin for burns but luckily she was unscathed. Once again she calmed herself down as she investigated the sudden appearance of the flames, the girl didn't step a foot through the door but merely poked her head through only to notice a dog-like statue against one of the walls with an open mouth; the source of the fire. But what triggered it? Her eyes landed on the floor where she saw a stone paving different from the rest, it was dingy brown almost resembling rust with an almost unnoticeable bordered pattern. She took a step back out of range and only pushed one foot on the edge of the rusty-esque paving, as the fire returned once more in front of her eyes causing them to imitate the glow. She pulled back her foot, paced backwards a little and jumped over the paving to make sure she did not trigger the blaze once again, she spun on her heel and looked at her canine companion.
'Jump over it!' She instructed as she pointed at the discoloured panel. 'Jump!'
The hound seemed to understand as it shuffled backwards a few steps before leaping over it and staggering to a stop. The young girl pet her dog. 'Good boy.'
The corridors grew more and more darkened, though luckily the statues were lit with flames in their carved hands and palms, the young girl was thankful for the light but who was illuminating these hallways? More doors led to more rooms and it had been some time since the young girl had come across any enemies, which just made her feel more uneasy. Just as she thought this her boots scuffed up against something that made an odd sound, she looked down and saw a golden brown skull at the tip of her toes that was covered in dirt and webs, other bones were also gathered around it with the same dressing and discolouration. The young girls face grew pale as she stepped away from the remains and continued, she then saw another skeletal carcass not too far away from her, and another near the next door. Once she got closer to it she hesitated as she reached for the iron loop, what would be behind this one? More spiders? More dead bodies or worse? Why were her feet taking her so far into a place she had never seen before, and where was the man she had followed? Her brain and her body never did have a clear understanding of the others intentions, it had always got her into trouble that made her infamous in the town as a troublemaker, but she was obsessed with adventure and mystery regardless of how much fear she would be feeling at that time. This memory of herself gave her the courage she needed to wrap her fingers around the handle and push; she closed her eyes as much as possible without taking away her ability to see in front of her.
She felt her hound brush up against her leg which gave her solace that she was not alone in this exploration; she waited a few moments before opening her eyes fully to be greeted with an empty corridor.
More vines had broken through the ceilings and the walls; roots of the very trees she had ventured between not too long ago, this brought back the light from the surface above allowing her to see more of the Elvish craftsmanship that still bemused her given that Elves resided mainly in the Brecilian Forest which was just under month away on horseback. Of course some Elves always kept on the move so that humans would not find and capture them – the two species never got on well due to their past.
She continued onwards as opposed to wondering over history and came to a conjunction, there were two doors she could take. Whenever she was brought to this decision in her past explorations, she always brought ease to the decision making by always deciding to go right no matter what the appearance of either paths, so that's what she did. She turned towards the right door and opened it with her canine following close behind.
She began to question returning to the surface but she had come so far now and she was more or less unscathed. Perhaps she could risk venturing a little further into the ruins. It'll definitely be a story to tell once she returned home. Her thoughts were then disturbed when she heard a monotonous banging from the door ahead of her; this wasn't another spider, she pulled out an arrow and loaded her bow as she slowly edged towards the door and waited for her next enemy to appear, it continued to bang on the other side until the wooden door flung open and out came what looked like a badly injured bear but it's size was above normal, and it appeared to have bony spikes protruding from its fur, the blood was coming from them as it seeped down it's body and dripped on the floor causing the creature to leave small puddles in its steps. As it crept closer its foul stench reached the girls nose as she adopted a nauseated expression, she brushed off the smell and aimed her arrow at the beast but this only caused it become angry, as it let out a mighty raw before charging at the young girl and her hound. The girl managed to roll out of the way as she then fired a few arrows in its back but it didn't seem to hinder it to well, she then saw her dog was about to attack but she called it back.
'No! Don't! It could be infected with something!' The dog seemed to abide by his masters command as it backed up into a corner but it's posture still showed it was on guard, the bear creature then turned back towards her and went for another attack with its clawed paws, the girl held up her bow in defence but the power behind it's strike caused her to be brought down to the floor; still her bow was raised. The strength of the creature made it difficult for the young girl to keep up defence much longer, she then risked pushing back what little she could in order to sweep her leg out and kick the beast's hind legs, causing it to retreat its assault as the girl scrambled to her feet. She ran the opposite direction to get some distance as she loaded the bow once more only to find that her quiver was empty, a feeling of dread crept from the pit of her stomach. She had nothing. She kept running to bide her time but she did not have much as she soon heard the creature chasing after her, his steps were sluggish and clumsy now that she had injured him but it did not mean he wasn't a threat, what could she use? What did she have? If she hit it with her bow it would just break like a twig with the creature's weight. As she ran back where she came through the cave, she began to realise where she was heading as the fear lifted from her; if only a little. She took in the dog-like statue by one of the doors and with a burst of adrenaline she broke into a sprint and before she got to the end, she tucked and rolled through the doorway and avoided the floor in front of it completely, she then ducked toward the side and stuck to the wall like fat to a kitchen pan as she waited for the beast. All of a sudden the doorway filled with fire as the bear-like monster charged into the room engulfed in flames as it roared in agony, it darted around the room, head butting the walls and rolling onto the floor, doing anything to put out the flames. Whilst it was trying to put itself out the girl searched the room until she saw something she could use, she darted upright, battling with her balance until she broke into a run and skidded back onto the floor near the pile of bones, where she grabbed what looked like a tibia due to its length and broke the end off like a hammer. She turned to the creature as it's flames were almost out, she had little time to smell the foul black rotting stench in the air as she charged towards it, the broken bone raised in her hand, she stabbed the beast deep in the stomach and continued to stab it anywhere she could as her mouth let out unconscious shrieks as she thrusted the piece into its flesh over and over again, it bellowed causing the area to quake but the girl continued. With so much blood oozing from the monster her hand slipped and she fell forwards, her face almost coming into contact with the infected body she pushed herself away onto her backside whilst giving the dying bear a few kicks in the rib cage before she scurried away to catch her breath. There was no doubt it was dead now as the girl's breathing continued to be erratic, she swallowed and then took a deep breath as she closed her eyes and tried to concentrate to make her trembling body cease. Once she was calm she tried to stand with shaking knees and gradually began to walk back where she had met the beast before and there like the loyal companion it was, her dog was waiting for her. The hound trudged towards her and nuzzled it's snout under her hand as she weakly massaged his ear to reassure him that she was fine. She now had the opportunity to search the room the bear creature had come from, and what drew her attention immediately was a beautiful mirror with steps leading up to it as if it was a gateway and on either side were statues of ominous looking Elvin warriors.
'There's writing on it but I can't understand the language…' She spoke aloud as she walked up the steps and ran her fingers over the foreign engravings on the frame. Something then caught her eye, she looked toward the mirror and for a split second she saw a shadow, she looked over her shoulder to see if it was her canine companion but she then found him sniffing around the corners of the room in front of her so it couldn't have been him, the young girl became more and more intrigued. She looked back at the mirror and saw the shape again, it wasn't a shadow but more like a ripple of water, the girl began to get a strange sensation, she grew goose bumps on her skin and the hair on her arms and the back of her neck began to stand up, somehow she was drawn to go nearer. She reached her hand out towards the reflective surface and began to see an image within it.
'Some kind of…city…underground maybe? There's a shadow…could it-'
More ripples emerged as the mirror then consumed itself in a large ray of light that attacked the young girl, sending her off her feet and hurtling in the air and crashing onto the cold hard ground.