Blowing out the last of the candles that gave a dim light to her room, Elissa climbed into bed, the covers warm protection against the night chill. Beneath her door, she drowsily watched the dancing shadows of the firelight in the atrium, and was soon asleep. She was awakened several hours later by a low growl.
Rhyfelwr was not in his basket, and she could see his dark silhouette standing watchfully at the door. He growled again. Someone was out there. Not a servant, or one of the family. Rhyfelwr never growled at familiars.
She quietly slipped out of bed, stone floor cold to her bare feet. In the dim starlight from the window, she tiptoed to her weapons chest, grasping hold of one of the knives within, and then hurried back behind the cover of the bed, concealed from the door as the handle began to turn.
The door swung open. Rhyfelwr had gone silent, shrinking back into the shadows, but as a figure appeared in the dim light of the atrium, he lunged forward, rearing up and using his considerable bulk to overwhelm the assailant
Elissa, too, jumped up from her hidden position. In the greyness, she caught a glimpse of the sigil on the soldier's shield. A black thornbird on an inverted red triangle. Howe.
What was happening?
She pushed the thought aside. The stricken Howe soldier cried in pain and terror as Rhyfelwr bit down hard on his right soldier, disabling his sword arm.
Two more Howe levies, lightly armed and armoured, rushed to his aid. Elissa, still barely visible in the darkness of her room, flung her knife at them with deadly precision, the heavy blade shearing through leather armour and deep into the side of the nearer of the levies. He doubled over, crying in pain. Rhyfelwr barrelled forward toward the final assailant, who dropped his mace and shield, and fled into the gloom of the hallway beyond the atrium. The hound followed.
Elissa hesitated a moment. From across the atrium came another scream, and she could see that the door had been broken down. She shuddered to think of what might have happened to Oriana and Oren.
Steeling herself, she pulled down her suit of hardened leather jerkin from its stand and donned it, the armour giving protection to her arms as well. From her weapons chest, she decided on her bow, the bright sheen of the whitewood standing out against the surrounding blackness. Taking it in one hand, she slung the quiver across her shoulder and clipped a long knife in its holster to her belt.
From Fergus' quarters emerged a pair of Howe levies, swords in hand and red with blood. As Elissa stepped into her doorway, they caught sight of her. They were well-equipped, partial steel plate covering knee-length chainmail.
"The Cousland girl! Get her!"
Elissa had only seconds to aim and shoot, her arrow punching through the first levy's poorly armoured neck, severing his carotid artery and sending bright red blood spurting out messily. In spite of herself, she felt bile rise in her throat at the sight and smell of the man's death, fighting it back as the second approached, his metal club raised.
As he swung, she ducked beneath the arc of the stroke, in the same instance lowering her grip on her bow and jabbing the end hard into the levy's stomach, driving the rings of his chainmail against his skin. He grunted in pain and lashed out again with his club, the blow striking hard on the top of her hipbone.
A burning fire shot up and down her side, and stars flashed before her eyes. As the levy raised the club again, looking to shatter her skull, she managed to recover, dancing backward to momentary safety, and with her left hand reaching to draw her knife.
The levy watched her carefully, eyeing for an expected feint or false move with either hand, club now held at waist height. She suddenly darted forward toward him, making to slash with the knife in her left hand while simultaneously reaching out with her bow looking for another strike to his stomach.
He caught the first feint, but not the second as she closed in rapidly, dropping her bow and bringing her foot down hard on his instep, and then ignoring his wild swing and reversing the grip on her knife, bringing the pommel up hard against his chin. As the levy dropped, unconscious, she shoved him away, sprinting the rest of the way across the atrium and into Fergus' quarters. The stout wooden door was cracked through, one hinge torn from its holding.
Another Howe knight emerged from Fergus' bedchambers, bloodied sword in hand and armour and clothes slightly loose. He held the blade toward her, face twisted in sadistic malice, "I'll have you next. Arl Howe will pay well for your head, but I'll enjoy you first."
Rhyfelwr had returned, and from behind her, he let out a dreadful howl. She dropped flat, knowing what was coming. Rhyfelwr leaped over her, snarling ferociously. In the instant he had, the knight retrieved his shield, sidestepping the mabari and bringing the point of the shield down on his neck just below the skull.
He landed on his feet, but was visibly staggering, dazed by the blow. Elissa tried to stand, but was unable to gain purchase on the blood which now covered the floor. Suddenly, the knight was driven backwards, an arrow punched through his shoulder pauldron. Seconds later, there was another twang and a second arrow thunked into the armour below his arm.
Standing in the doorway was her mother, bow in hand and grey eyes blazing with wrathful vengeance. She shot again, the third arrow only just stopped by the knight's metal gorget. Elissa used the distraction to sit up, stabbing sharply downward into the armour join at his foot. The Teyrna loosed a fourth time, the arrow finding its mark through the seam at his neck.
Her mother's anger burned low, replaced in her eyes by a weary sadness. Elissa saw her glance toward Oriana, naked form lifeless in her bed, and shake her head. "What manner of monster does this to innocents?"
"Oren?" Elissa asked, already knowing the answer.
"Dead," her mother replied, flatly, "Oh, poor Fergus. Howe must pay for this."
Elissa hesitated only a moment more, rushing to her mother, arms outstretched, as tears began to stream down her cheeks. Her mother ignored the muck that covered her, ignored ignored everything as they hugged tightly. Both were now sobbing uncontrollably.
In the other bedroom, she could hear her mother tending to Oren. The boy had been killed first, no doubt the scream she had heard; and had been left carelessly on his bedroom floor. Behind her, Rhyfelwr whined miserably. Mabari were intelligent, and Elissa had no doubt that he understood what had happened just as well as she did.
She knelt down and stroked his head, burying her face in his soft coat. He barked, followed by a sad whimper. "Let's go," she replied, slowly rising to her feet.
"Have you seen your father?" her mother asked as the entered the atrium, "He never came to bed."
Elissa closed the cracked door behind her. "No. Do you think he's alright?"
"I don't know. It worries me that he isn't here. I know he would have been looking for us, if he were able."
"What should we do?" Elissa asked.
Her mother unslung her bow, arrow ready on the string, "Let's go to the main hall. Some of our guards may yet hold out there."
As they neared the main corridor running the length of the castle, she spotted one of the castle servants, armed with a large kitchen knife, fighting desperately against one of Arl Howe's guards. He was bleeding heavily from cuts to his chest and arms.
TWANG! Her mother loosed, the arrow piercing the Howe guard's thin armour above his heart. As he fell, the servant looked wildly toward them, eyes wide and unfocused. "The castle is lost! I'm getting out of here!"
"No!" ordered Elissa in a firm, commanding tone.
It had no effect, the man beyond comprehension, he ran off away from the main hall and away from the castle quarters. As she watched, she saw the orange glow of flame spreading in the distance. It seemed that Howe's men had already begun to torch the castle.
Rhyfelwr howled, standing alert. As Elissa listened closely, she heard the familiar clink of metal on metal. Someone was still fighting.
They ran forward. Near the dining hall, a lone castle knight was warding off two Howe guards and a black-coated mabari hound. The knight was in full plate armour, and so far had held his ground, but was noticeably tiring under the onslaught of the attack.
Elissa drew her bow, nocking an arrow with the same movement. As she loosed, her mother's bow twanged almost in unison, the two arrows hammering into the mabari's unprotected flank.
As she prepared to shoot again, the knight was able to slam one guard to his knees, then drove his sword through the weak join at the neck. Elissa shot again, disabling the last guard.
The knight removed his helmet, breathing still heavy and ragged, revealing a shock of red hair and brilliant green eyes.
"Lady Cousland, my Lady," bowed Ser Gilmore, "I trust you are unharmed?"
"Yes, Ser Gilmore, thank you," her mother replied, "Have you seen the Teyrn?"
Gilmore nodded, "The main hall, not a quarter of an hour ago. Howe's men are outside and he was leading the defence. He sent me to find you."
"Can they hold out?"
"No, my lady. Howe only had his personal guard inside the castle. Once the main force breaks through we are too few to hold them."
There was no further resistance between the dining hall and the main gates. At the gates, what was left of the castle's defenders had gathered. Several were working to reinforce the defences and erect barricades.
Outside, she could hear the sounds of the besiegers slowly breaking through the gates.
"That's it men, we can hold them still," shouted Gilmore, trying to kindle what little right remained in the defenders.
"Ser Gilmore," one of them approached, saluting the knight, "The Teyrn said that he was going to the kitchens."
"Of course! The tunnels!" exclaimed her mother.
The gates shivered again, and then suddenly seemed to shatter completely. A fireball roared through the empty space, and Elissa watched in horror as three castle guards were caught in the blast, screaming as they roasted alive.
In the darkness beyond, she could see the torches and vague outlines of the gathered army. The mage's staff was still glowing with an unearthly green light from his attack, and Elissa had an arrow on her string and loosed in an instant.
Several feet from the mage, the arrow seemed to stop in mid-air, and then shattered to fragments against the mage's spell shield. With his work done, he retreated from the front lines, armoured knights closing in around him.
"Go!" ordered Gilmore as the besiegers marched inexorably toward them, "Get out of here. Find the Teyrn. We can buy you some time."
"Gilmore," said her mother, reaching out and putting a hand on the young knight's shoulder, "Thank you. For everything."
He nodded wordlessly, then turned back to face the approaching battle. Elissa ran from the hall as arrows began to whistle overhead, Rhyfelwr and her mother a few steps behind. As they fled, she could hear every scream, every grunt and every cry as the last Cousland defenders fought and died. They did not have long.
"Bryce!" cried her mother, rushing forward into the kitchens.
One the stone floor of the pantry, her father was half sitting, half lying in a pool of his own blood. He clutched a gaping wound at his side.
"Eleanor. Elissa. Thank the Maker you're ok," he managed to gasp, wincing from the pain even of that.
Her mother knelt beside him, cradling his head and shoulders. "Go, Eleanor," he groaned "Take Elissa and get out of here."
"No, Bryce," she cried, tears in her eyes, "I'm not leaving you. We can get you to safety, find a healer…"
"I don't think I'll survive the standing," his voice was urgent, "Howe's men will be here soon. You need to go. Leave me."
"I'm afraid the Teyrn is right," came another voice. Duncan walked up to them, sword still in hand, "Howe's men are sweeping the castle as we speak. It will not take them long to find you."
"Duncan," groaned her father, "Will you take Eleanor and Elissa to safety?"
The scarred man nodded, "Yes. But I must ask something in return. I came here seeking a recruit. The Blight demands that I leave with one."
"I…I understand. Elissa," her father looked at her fondly, "My dear child. You must join Duncan. Become a Grey Warden."
She felt a lump rise in her throat, "But…what of you and mother? What of Fergus? What if he doesn't return from the south?"
"The Blight is what matters. The Couslands have always done their duty first. If Fergus is alive, then once this is all over, find him and tell him that he is now Teyrn. If not…if not, then we must rely on the King to deliver justice. Can you do this, for me?"
She wiped her eyes, "Yes father."
"Good," he groaned again, "Now go. Leave me. You as well, Eleanor."
"No," replied her mother quietly, "My place is here, with you. We shall be together, in life or in death. We have had a good life. It's up to our children now."
"Come, Lady Cousland," said Duncan, "We must go."
The Warden bent almost double at the entrance to the concealed tunnel. Elissa embraced her mother wordlessly, and then kissed her father's forehead as gently as she could. "Goodbye," she whispered, following Duncan as he disappeared into the darkness.
As Rhyfelwr padded behind her, she risked a final backward glance as her mother closed up the entrance behind her.
The tunnels continued on for some way, Elissa soon losing track of time and distance, other than feeling that they were moving generally westward. Duncan remained silent, leaving Elissa to herself. She tried desperately to avoid thinking of her parents, knowing they were dead while she turned and ran.
Sometime later, the finally emerged from the tunnel into a wooded copse. It was still night, and Elissa blinked as she looked up at the stars shining brightly in the night sky.
"Come on," said Duncan, his voice low, but with a sense of urgency, "Howe's men will be close behind and we must be far away from here before daybreak."
In the dark, not knowing if their pursuers were behind them, the Highever countryside was terrifying. The hooting of owls, chirping of crickets and croaking of frogs created a cacophony of noise in the still night air. They continued to hurry across the broken terrain. Branches slapped across her face in the dark and her knees and shins were soon bruised and scraped from trips on exposed roots and sharp stones.
As the sun rose, Elissa was almost falling over with exhaustion, the physical and emotional toll of the night draining her. Rhyfelwr padded behind her, head bowed and whining occasionally, reflecting her own mood.
Duncan alone seemed unaffected, picking his way easily across the rough terrain, no emotion visible on his dark features. Eventually, he looked back at her, sensing her weariness, and nodded. "This will be far enough."
A shallow cave provided shelter, out of the sun and hopefully hidden from searchers. "Sleep now," said Duncan abruptly, "I shall take the first watch."
Elissa nodded, too tired to contemplate arguing. The cave's floor was covered in soft earth and she curled up in one corner, Rhyfelwr lying down beside her. She watched drowsily as Duncan sat cross-legged at the cave mouth, before her eyes closed and she entered a deep sleep.
It was late afternoon when she awoke, the sun set below a distant line of hills, throwing up a brilliant red-orange corona across the western sky. Rhyfelwr sat alert at the cave mouth. Duncan was gone, but as Elissa sat up, he returned, leaves and sticks crunching under heavy boots.
"Arl Howe has men sweeping the countryside," he said, "We must set off again as soon as darkness falls."
She looked up at him and saw a tiredness behind his dark eyes, "You need sleep. At least for a few hours. I can keep watch."
The warden hesitated momentarily, then nodded. "Very well. Wake me if anything happens."
Elissa stood, shaking the vestiges of sleep from her head and legs. With the sun already behind the distant hills, the back of the cave was almost completely dark.
As she sat by the entrance, Rhyfelwr whimpered next to her.
"I know, boy," she replied, "I miss them too. But this is our life now."
He barked defiantly.
"I don't know. What am I supposed to do?" she sighed, "I just hope Fergus is alright."
Another bark.
"No, I can't do that. I'm a Warden now, remember. I can't just abandon my duty like that."