Before heading down with some of Elisa's companions, the hostage introduced himself as Varel, the seneschal of Vigil's Keep. When she glanced towards the soldiers and saw the Royal Banner, Elisa stiffened slightly. The last thing she needed after a fight with Maker-know-what kind of darkspawn was a confrontation with the King; especially with Loghain here as well. The latter noticed her body tensed commented with a smirk. "It seems you can't wait to see His Majesty."
She glared at him sharply. "Shut up." Moving her arm from his shoulders, she tried to stand upright just as the pain had gradually decreased compared to earlier. He voiced out his protest on her ability to walk alone now, but she held up a hand to silence him before she stood straight to show her condition. As they made their way back down to join the others, she noticed that it was not Alistair but Anora that had been accompanied by both soldiers and templars. The latter did not seem too pleased the blonde mage though as he fidgeted a bit from where he stood.
"It seems we've arrived too late to be of assistance." Anora glanced towards her father who stood behind the Warden-Commander. "My apologies." She looked back at Elisa now standing up, before she asked, "what's the situation?"
Varel stepped forward and answered, "what darkspawn remained had fled, Your Majesty. The Grey Wardens who arrived from Orlais appeared to be either dead or missing."
Anora looked surprised by his last word. "Missing? As in taken by the darkspawn?" She shifted her gaze back to the Commander. "Do they take prisoners?"
Elisa held back a disgusted look at the sudden reminder of the Broodmothers. "Not unless they're women..." She glanced towards the seneschal, and he shook his head as he replied, "a few, but most are men, Commander."
"Unfortunate..." Anora sighed then stated, "I will offer what aid I can, but it seems you will be largely on your own."
That's when Oghren made his presence known. "Hey! What am I? Chopped nug livers?"
Anders quipped. "From the smell that's not a bad guess."
"I came here to join the Grey Wardens and from the looks of it, you need an extra hand!" The dwarf grinned.
"I see no reason to decline," Elisa stated. She side-glanced towards Loghain and asked, "do you?"
"The smell for starters," he grumbled low enough for only his Commander to hear. Her lips twitched up slightly before telling Oghren, "you're welcome amongst the Wardens."
A woman wearing a templar armor pushed her way through the crowd and bellowed, "Queen Anora, Your Majesty! Warden-Commander! Beware! This man is a dangerous criminal!"
"Well, the dwarf might have made a few... vulgar demonstrations in public but I wouldn't call him-" Elisa explained but Anders interrupted. "She means me..."
The templar began berating something about bringing the mage back to the Circle to face justice. Elisa was only half-listening with a passive expression on her face as her mind considered whether to face the Chantry's wrath later on by recruiting a wanted highly-skilled healer, or allowing the templars to take the mage and do some boot-licking to the Grand Cleric and offer huge monetary donation to the Chantry just so they would allow him to join their ranks. The former sounded very appealling to her, especially when she heard the templar say something about hanging the murderer.
"Wait, I invoke The Right of Conscription on this mage," she stated, stunning everyone who heard her sudden random statement. However, the templar quickly recovered from the shock and began her protests.
"This man helped with not only dealing with the darkspawns but also healing the injured survivors we found inside the Keep. The Wardens will benefit greatly if we have him in our ranks." Elisa looked at the templar sternly as the latter glared back.
"Rylock," Anora interrupted their glaring competition. "I believe the Wardens still retain the Right of Conscription. I will allow it."
Rylock scowled but reluctantly agreed. "If... you think it is best..." She turned around to leave, and Elisa had to hold back a laugh when Anders' two middle fingers made a rude gesture towards the templar.
Oghren's hand slapped the blonde mage's forearm, making the latter winced slightly. "Welcome aboard kid!"
"Me? A Grey Warden..." Anders muttered, still surprised by the strange turn of events. He met his new commander's gaze and she offered a small but geniune smile. He grinned back. "I guess that could work..."
Elisa turned her attention back to Anora. "Thank you for allowing me to conscript him."
"I did say I will offer what aid I can," Anora replied, smiling briefly, then added, "now if you have everything under control..." Her gaze turned to Loghain. "I would like to speak to my father."
Must be a family matter, she mused as she gave the queen a nod. She turned to Varel as he called her attention while Loghain and Anora went off to somewhere more private. "First off," he explained, "as seneschal, I will aid you in ruling Amaranthine. Second, we must perform the Joining to remedy our... situation."
Ah hot meal and bath would have been nice...She sighed and nodded. "Very well. Let's get it done." She, with Oghren and Anders, followed the seneschal to the throne room.
"Uh, Commander, a moment," Anders called as he moved to walk beside her, "I just want thank you."
"Oh..." She stared at him for a moment, wondering if she truly did him a favor. She shrugged and merely replied, "well, it'll be a waste to have someone with your skill to be hanged for crime I'm certain you did not commit."
He chuckled. "Just because of that? And here I thought, I've charmed my way through your heart."
It was difficult for her not to laugh when around someone as light-hearted as Anders. It would be a shame if he dies during the Joining, she mused before pushing such grim thoughts away. They need more Grey Wardens. Pessimism isn't going to help achieve that. "If it makes you feel better, you're almost there." She grinned slightly. "Perhaps after the Joining, you can try your luck again."
Once the Joining Ritual had ended, Elisa was relieved that neither died. Oghren, for that matter, drank the blood like some normal dwarven ale. Whatever doubts she had on the dwarf becoming a Warden had completely vanished as she heard him belch then mutter, "not bad".
The mage had her more worried though. She considered the possibility that he might run away. If that happens, she wondered, could I do what Duncan did to Ser Jory? She watched Anders and sighed in relief when Anders accepted the cup and muttered something about waking up in Rivain wearing only his smallclothes before drinking the cup's contents.
When his body collapsed on the floor, Varel bent down to check his pulse. "He lives Commander," he announced. She nodded, her shoulders relaxing before she called some of the servants to carry Anders and escort the new Wardens to their respective quarters.
Before anything else, she had Varel show her where the Orlesians had been staying. She searched each room for anything that could pinpoint them as accomplices of Orlais' nobility. She felt relieved by that, at least.
Her seneschal looked confused as to what she was looking for exactly, but she merely explained that she wanted to check if there were Warden documents left in their rooms — which is partly true since did find some.
After that, Varel led her to her quarters. She paused for a moment when they stood just outside, realizing that this was the old arl's room. I rather sleep in the cold hard floor than Howe's bed! Somehow sensing the Warden-Commander's internal distress, Varel explained, "every furnishings here had been replaced Commander. I doubt you would like them either way. Most were too gaudy."
Elisa sighed in relief and grinned. "Thank you Varel." As she entered the office which was connected to her bedchambers, the sound of clunking armor echoed in the hallway. She and the seneschal turned towards the direction of the sound and saw Loghain approaching.
Varel nodded to the entering Warden before he turned his attention back to the Commander. "There is one last thing before I take my leave. Recently the Orlesian Wardens caught a thief wandering around the Keep."
She raised a brow. "What about him?"
"Well, you see," he explained, "it took four Grey Wardens to restrain him. I heard he even gave one of the Wardens a black eye."
Her curiosity was now piqued. "Interesting..."
Loghain noticed that glint in her eyes while she was in deep thought. "You're not going to..."
Shifting her attention towards him, she asked, "why not? I recruited you."
"Oh, I see. So now I'm the new standard for recruitment," he muttered dryly, though made no further protest as his Commander then asked Varel, "so where is he now?"
"In the dungeons Commander."
She responded with a nodded. "I see. I will see him after supper. You may take your leave." The seneschal bowed to her before left the room. Once the door closed, her hand gestured for Loghain to sit on one of the two chairs near her desk then placed the documents she found on top of the desk. "So," she started when he had sat down and she placed her bow on a weapon rack and the quiver beside it, "is the Queen staying in for the night?"
He shook his head. "She left immediately after our brief conversation."
She sat down on the larger chair behind the desk then leaned back against it. "May I ask what she wanted to discuss to you? If it's not a private matter."
"It isn't." He sighed heavily before handing the letter Anora gave to him. He watched her read the contents as he added, "the letter came from Weisshaupt." His lips curled down into a deep frown. "I've been commanded to join the Wardens in Montsimard. They think I might interfere if I stay here in Ferelden." He grumbled bitterly, more to himself, "and here I thought darkspawn blood will be the last poison I have to swallow."
"You're not going."
He blinked for a moment as he looked at her with knitted brows. "Weren't you listening? I said it came from-"
"Weisshaupt. Yes, I heard." She placed the letter down on her table then glanced up to meet his gaze.. "And my reply to that is you're not going."
He stared at her incredulously, lips parted slightly as he found no words for such open defiance. "You're going to disobey direct orders from the First Warden just like that?"
"The First Warden can kiss my arse," she replied, a scowl forming on her lips, "if he wants you shipped off to Orlais, he could have had at least told me about it while I was there then sent a battalion of Wardens with me back to Ferelden."
"So that's my worth then. A battalion of Wardens?" He leaned back against his chair, crossing his arms.
"The entire Wardens of Weisshaupt actually but I doubt he would approve of that kind of agreement." She sighed then stood up from her seat and walked towards the window, her eyes glancing down at the Keep's staffs and soldiers busying themselves with searching for survivors, tending to the wounded, or burning darkspawn corpses.
After a few seconds of silence, she finally spoke while still facing the window. "With the arling threatened by this... new breed of darkspawns, we will need more than just four Wardens, not to mention, there's also running Amaranthine..."Maker! i should have listened to mother's lecture more closely! She exhaled and rubbed the bridge of her nose then turned around to face him. "I'll send the First Warden a letter that your trip to Orlais will be delayed. I'll explain our situation as well. Maker willing, he forgets all about it once this is over."
He scoffed. "Such optimism."
"I'm doing you a favor as well." She grinned slightly. "Unless, you're excited to join the Orlesians in Montsimard. If that's the case, don't let me stop you." The scowl he gave her was enough of an aswer. She went back to her desk and scanned the documents she found earlier. "Speaking of Orlesian Wardens..."
"Orlesians or not, they did not deserve their fate here," Loghain muttered.
Elisa nodded. "I agree, though that's not what I wanted to discuss." Setting down the parchments, she added, "the Orlesian Wardens are not involved. I checked their rooms. There are no evidence to support my theory."
"Even so," he replied, "we should be wary. I'll send word to Anora to secure our borders." He stood up to leave but as he approached the door, she asked, "did you... mention to her about... the letters I showed you?"
He grimaced as silence deafened the entire office for a few moments. "No. She was fond of that bastard, and though pragmatic as she may be, I prefer not to see her get hurt."
"She would be asking questions sooner or later, no doubt," she pointed out.
"I know." He opened the door and turned his head to the side and met his Commander's gaze. "But until then, I prefer if we keep that between us." He waited for her nod before leaving the room.
After changing from her leather armor into a white tunic and pair of trousers, Elisa made her way down to the dungeons on her own, knowing the way all too well. The soldier who was guarding the outside of the prison, stood up and bowed lightly to her when she approached him. She nodded to him in acknowledgement. "What can you tell me about this prisoner?"
"All I know is that he was caught poking around the estate at night," the soldier replied.
"Not even a name?" She asked and the man responded by shaking his head. She sighed and added, "very well. I will speak to him alone though."
"As you wish Commander." The soldier took out his keys and opened the door. "There's a dagger inside a wooden crate, just in case. You best be careful. I'll tell the seneschal you came. He'll want to know what you want to do with him."
She slowly entered the room and approached the cell. She could see a figure of a man stepping out from the shadows. His eyes that were filled with anger, suddenly shifted to surprise as they widened. "Elisa?"
She stared at him intently and quickly recognized who he was. He may have grown taller, his built larger, but those grey eyes were something she would never forget. "Nathaniel..." She didn't realize she suddenly breathed out his name until the word left her lips.
He stepped forward, his hands clutching the bars tightly. "Maker's breath... What are you doing here? They said the Couslands—"
"Are dead?" She finished as her arms crossed. "They did die except for Fergus and me. I suppose I should thank your traitorous father for that."
His brows furrowed. "How can you say that!? Father would never do that to Teryn Cousland! They have been good friends since the Orlesian occupation!"
She snorted. "You must have been raised by a different man then. The Arl Howe that ordered that attack was an ambitious bastard who would not settle for less than everything."
His fists clenched even tighter on the bars. "There must have been a mistake!"
"What other proof do you want Nathaniel!? Do you want to hear testimonies from the other people he tortured?" She stepped closer, now few inches from where he stood. "What are you doing here anyway? This is already property of the Wardens."
He held her gaze for a moment then looked away. There was no point in hiding it. If the Warden-Commander had murdered his father in his own home, he doubted he would let him go alive even just for the crime of theft. "I... I intended to kill the Warden-Commander... to avenge my father.."
Her eyes widened as stared at Nathaniel whose grip on the bars slackened. "But then I considered... to just take the rest of my family's things... They're all I have left."
She closed her eyes and sighed heavily. "Nathaniel..." Her words were soft but loud enough for him to hear. "I am sorry... Truly sorry..."
He looked at with utter confusion written on his face. He was about to ask her to clarify but then a Varel entered the room and called out, "Warden-Commander."
She turned around and replied, "please wait outside for a few more minutes. I wish to interrogate this man privately." With a reluctant nod, he left the room.
Grey eyes stared at Elisa in disbelief as his rage began to fuel up. "You're... the Warden-Commander!?"
She faced Nathaniel once more, her expression filled with sadness, yet she kept her voice steady. "I am."
"How could you kill my father!?" He yelled as his banged on the bars.
"He left me no choice! He was holding Queen Anora hostage! He refused to yield!" She yelled back. "Do you think I want him dead!? For all the crimes he committed, death was too merciful!" She took a deep shaky breath and calmed down a bit.
"Look…" He spoke after a heavy sigh. "The war was... horrible… The entire Blight was… But whatever my father did shouldn't affect my entire family. The Howes are pariahs now… those of us left…"
"But…" She opened her mouth to defend herself but no words came out since she knew that he was right. It was their father's crime, not his or anyone else in their family. Guilt made her avoid his gaze. "You're right… It shouldn't have."
Nathaniel walked away from the bars and slid down on the floor, his back against the wall. "And now you get to decide my fate as well…"
She turned her back away from the cell and walked towards the door; yet she stopped just as the knob was at arm's reach. Was she really going to execute this man? Just for the crime of theft? It wasn't even theft considering the items he took belonged to his family in the first place. She turned around and saw him slumped down, succumbing to his fate. Maker, this might bite me in the arse in the future, she thought as she approached his cell once more. "If I let you go," she began, "what will you do?"
"If you let me go…" His head shot up as his eyes widened. Was she serious? "I-I don't know… I just came back to Ferelden a month ago." Why would she even… was she expecting me to be grateful and just forget what she did to my family!? The thought made him glare at her sharply. "If you let me go, I might come back here, and you might not catch me next time."
"And then what?" Her question left him silent, and that was all the answer she needed. Returning to the door, she opened it called out her seneschal. When she and Varel returned, her next statement had both stare at her as though she was mad.
"Return to him his belongings and let him go."
"C-commander," Varel sputtered, "I… I must object! You want to let a thief keep what he stole!?"
Her sapphire eyes were calm when she stared at him yet she held his gaze to signify her certainty. "Those are things he owned in the first place. He's Nathaniel Howe, if you did not recognize."
"A Howe?" He glanced towards the prisoner for a moment then back to his Commander. "More reason for us not to release him. What if he–"
"What? Tries to kill me?" Elisa finished with a raised brow. "I interrogated him earlier and he didn't know that I was the Warden-Commander until you called me. He said that he only returned to claim some of his family's things – no doubt they hold some sentimental value to him. Now, give his things back so he can leave."
Varel hesitated for a bit before he sighed. "Very well, Commander." He took out the keys and opened the prison cell. Elisa watched Nathaniel step out before she turned around and left.
Maker, I hope I did the right thing.
End of Chapter 3