Author's Note: Here we are with the third chapter of our tale. Please enjoy!
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They ran far from Highever. They ran for hours without rest, without food, without water, without hope. Arutha felt defeated, everything that he had ever fought for was gone. His parents were dead, his home in ruins, and a great deal of his friends were now dead. He had no sense of himself any longer. He was broken, beaten, he felt dead. He paid little attention to anything as they walked, allowing himself to be tormented by his thoughts. What would become of him, of Katherine? After they helped Duncan with his blight would they be allowed to seek vengeance? Would they live through the ordeal? Was Fergus alive? All were questions that he could not answer. They circled his mind, demanding his attention.
So lost was he in thought that he did not notice the sun rising. When it had risen high enough into the sky for them to see clearly Duncan stopped them for some much needed rest. "Get some sleep you two, we have many miles yet to travel."
"Do you have any blankets?" asked Kate. "It is freezing."
"I'm afraid I do not, you may use my cloak if you wish. I will light a fire while you two rest."
Arutha was not about to complain, he flopped unceremoniously onto the ground. It took him only moments to fall into the blackness of dreams. . .
. . . Everything was dark. Arutha was in a very large bedroom, lying upon a very comfortable bed. He rose, curious to discover something of his alien surroundings. They seemed strangely familiar, yet he could not remember ever having seen them before. He opened the door to the room and found himself looking at a grassy meadow. He turned around, confused. The bedroom was gone, replaced by a desert wasteland.
He heard voices behind him and turned to face them. His parents were standing there, smiling at him, waving to him in greeting, welcoming him home. He smiled; it was good to know that his parents were still okay, that they hadn't been killed by Howe's men.
A shape appeared, amorphous and colorless, but Arutha watched curiously. His parents took no notice, still waving to him happily. The shape became Arl Howe; he drew a sword and ran his father through. Arutha wanted to scream a warning to his mother, but his vocal chords did not work properly. He could make no sound. His mother noticed the danger too late, and he watched in horror as his mother was struck down before his eyes.
Howe smiled at him, and raised his sword in salute before once again becoming intangible. He faded from view, leaving only the corpses of his parents. . .
. . . Arutha sat bolt upright. He was covered in a cold sweat and panting heavily. It was not yet midday. Duncan sat calmly a few meters away, staring off into the trees. Arutha took several deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself, or to return his breathing to normal at the very least.
Arutha suddenly became painfully aware that Duncan was paying more attention to him than to the trees. "I see you're awake," the old Grey Warden said.
Arutha did not reply, instead he rose shakily to his feet, and made his way over to where Duncan was sitting. The events of the previous night seemed like nothing more than a bad dream, a night mare that would ebb away. All of it had been so surreal: the fighting, the death, the pain. Never before had he experienced such things, such tragedies. He knew that when everything really sunk in, when he believed what had happened had not been a dream, he would break down. That was something he could not let happen, not now. Kate was going to need him, and he had to be strong for her if for nothing else. Privately he was more afraid of his own emotional response than anything else. He did not want to face himself.
Duncan took note of his silence, and chose not to speak again. Arutha was grateful; he did not want to be questioned, at least not yet. He would have to answer a great deal of questions when he met up with his brother. He shuddered; Fergus would not take that news well at all.
"How long until we reach Ostagar?" Arutha suddenly spoke up.
Duncan turned to look at him, his gaze piercing and knowing. "I suspect we will be on the road for several days yet. King Cailan will be able to hold off the darkspawn until then."
Arutha felt his face pale. In all the excitement of the previous night, he had put the darkspawn out of his mind. Fighting them would be difficult, but they would distract him from his grief, at least for a time.
"Wake your sister," Duncan said. "We cannot stay here any longer."
Arutha turned away from the Grey Warden and went to his sister's side. She looked more peaceful than he would have imagined considering the circumstances. He felt as if waking her would be a crime. Slowly he placed a hand on her shoulder, and shook her gently. "Hey squirt," Arutha said. His voice was soft. "It's time for you to get up now." She did not respond, so he shook her again, slightly more vigorously. "Kate, you have to get up now." She mumbled something and opened her eyes.
Arutha smiled down at her. "Hey there, I'm glad to see that you slept well."
"Me too," she said plainly as she sat up. Arutha watched as she rubbed her eyes and yawned. He was very happy to see that she did not seem to be too shaken up, at least he would have a little bit more time to come to terms with recent events before he started worrying about his sister.
"Let us move on." Duncan came over to them with a gentle smile on his face. "We have much ground to cover before we reach our destination."
They were on the road again less than five minutes later, this time moving at a much slower pace. The road before them seemed endless, they had to travel hundreds of miles to the south. Each step Arutha took seemed more difficult than the first. They had covered so much distance already, and it was but a fraction of the distance that they would have to travel.
To pass the time, Kate took to interrogating Duncan about the Grey Wardens. "So, what exactly does a Grey Warden do?" Her question was broad, and could take time to answer, so Arutha focused his attention on the discussion, intent on learning what he could.
"A Grey Warden battles against the blight, dear girl." Duncan said.
Arutha was surprised by the simplicity of the answer; he had expected a great deal more in response to such a question. "When were the Grey Wardens originally founded?" Arutha asked, the cryptic answer Duncan had given had instigated his curiosity.
"The first Blight had already raged for 90 years. The world was in chaos. At Weisshaupt fortress in the desolate Anderfels, a meeting transpired. A group of warriors and mages, seasoned veterans who had known nothing their entire lifetimes except hopeless war, came together. When they left Weisshaupt, they had renounced their oaths to the Imperium. They were soldiers no longer: They were the Grey Wardens." That was the kind of answer Arutha had expected: a short, detailed history lesson that could inspire a great many more questions.
Arutha racked his brains for a question that would keep them talking for a great while, but he could think of none that would allow him to listen and not speak. He was grateful when Katherine jumped in with a question of her own, and Duncan began explaining the specific duties of a Grey Warden.
They passed the better part of three days this way, asking Duncan about the Grey Wardens and the Blight. Arutha listened more than he spoke, but he added to their conversations when he felt it was necessary.
It became apparent very quickly that Duncan was a very skilled survivalist. He knew a great deal about hunting and tracking, and he was able to keep them fed and watered as they trekked south. The constant travel kept him from becoming overcome with sorrow, and Arutha was glad to see that their journey seemed to have the same effect on Kate.
On the fourth day, their questions about the Grey Wardens ran out, and they continued their journey in private. Arutha began dwelling on the loss of his family, his friends, his home. He dwelt on it for countless hours, and he thought of all the ways he could kill Arl Howe. He was consumed by the idea of vengeance.
When Kate and Duncan talked, Arutha brooded, he had lost so much, and he would fight to the death to protect Kate. She was the only thing that he still had. And he loved her more than anything in the world. He would kill Howe; he would keep his sister safe.
On one particularly cloudy afternoon, Duncan pulled Arutha aside. "You have been growing distant. You must focus on the blight, anything you plan to do can come after."
"I can't do that! It is my responsibility, my duty, to make sure that Howe sees justice." Arutha's tone was outraged. He did not like the thought of anyone telling him that he could not pursue revenge.
"Your duty is to Ferelden. You are a Grey Warden recruit. You must see that the blight is ended."
Arutha bared his teeth at Duncan. Who was this man to tell him what to do? He had barged unwelcome into their lives, forced a great burden upon them.
"Restrain yourself Arutha. I know that you are in pain, but you must keep a level head. When we reach Ostagar, we will be thrust into battle, and you could be killed if you lose your temper."
The two men stared each other down, Duncan with a calm and collected expression, Arutha with a leer of almost unrestrained rage. Their stare-down did not go unnoticed by Kate, who was now eavesdropping on them. She stepped between them and turned to her brother. Arutha locked eyes with her and was startled by what he saw. She was giving him a desperate, pleading look. He realized then, that she could not handle him acting in this way. His emotions had to remain in check. He nodded at her, and slowly let out a deep breath.
They would drive back the darkspawn, and then Howe would pay.
As the tense moment passed, they once again set off towards Ostagar. All hope of conversation lost, for a time.
When they were no more than a day's journey from Ostagar, things once again became interesting. A group of bandits rushed out from their hiding places along the road, their weapons drawn.
"Give us your gold!" demanded the bandit who appeared to be their leader.
"Now now," Duncan said, his voice soft. "There is no need for you to attack us. We do not wish to fight you."
"We won't have to fight you if you give us all of your money, and maybe some time alone with that pretty girl of yours." The man sniggered stupidly. All of his men laughed with him.
Arutha felt his self control slipping away. His desire to hit something had been growing ever since Howe's men had taken over Highever. He drew his sword, and held it out towards the bandits. "You will not lay a hand on her."
"And I suppose you think you can stop us?" The bandit questioned. "Get them!"
The ragtag group of bandits surged forward at the three travelers, all of them with their weapons drawn. Arutha dashed forward, the sword and shield of Highever held proudly in his grasp. He met the first bandit head on, viciously swinging the sword. Arutha's assailant faltered under the strength of the blow, and Arutha pressed his advantage. It took mere seconds for the first of the bandits to fall, lying on the ground in a pool of his own blood.
Arutha looked up to see Duncan swiftly cut down two of their attackers. He moved with more grace and speed than any man Arutha had ever met, and he killed with calculated efficiency. Duncan was a very dangerous man.
It was over in minutes. The bandits had not stood a chance against Duncan, he had felled nearly all of them in the time it had taken Arutha to kill just the one.
"Let us continue," Duncan said, wiping his blades on the body of one of the fallen bandits.
That night, Arutha could not sleep. He stayed up late, staring into the slowly dying fire as he contemplated what he had seen earlier. Duncan had easily slaughtered those men. Could he perhaps learn how to fight like Duncan? If he could, he would be that much closer to taking the fight to Arl Howe.
"Something on your mind?" Duncan asked, sitting down beside Arutha and extending his hands to the fire.
"I've been thinking about today," Arutha said slowly.
"What specifically about today?" Duncan persisted.
"You killed several bandits in the time it took me to kill one. Where did you learn to fight like that?"
If Duncan was taken aback by Arutha's comment, he did not show it. He was silent for a time, and Arutha feared that he would not answer the query. Eventually the Grey Warden spoke, "I was trained by Grey Wardens, and my skills have been tested many times in combat .It is how I have grown strong."
Arutha nodded, "will you teach me?" he asked.
Duncan looked at him, and captured his gaze with his piercing dark brown eyes. "I will teach you once all this business at Ostagar has been concluded."
"Thank you," the young son of Highever said as he lay down.
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Author's Note: Well? What do you think? Kate did not have a large part in this chapter, but I felt that this piece was a necessary transition to show the development of Arutha. Anyways, let me know what you think or ask any questions you have in a review!