W/N - I'm going to split this up over two chapters as it got long. I want to bring some life to the forging of a sword and wrote in a mix of things from European and Asian forging. There is a little guest cameo, a character that I really adored, but was frustrated with and thought deserved a bit of the story. I'm taking a little artistic license with the main character here to add a little depth and passion to him. This will be a little fluffy and light before vengeance takes it course.

Other malarkey - Ran an 8k today plus swimming. Big into the Tudors at the moment along with Game of Thrones. Many thanks to roxfox and Padawan Mage!

CODEX

Livery Collar – a chain, often of gold, worn as an insignia of rank or fealty

Soldiers Keep – The Courtyard – One Week After the Keep is Taken

The place was actually looking like it could be livable once again. In the aftermath of the closing of the tear in the Fade, swarms of the Warden's followers and a horde of people using the Dryden name came to the keep in the hopes of returning Soldiers Peak to its prominence in Grey Warden and Ferelden politics as well as in finding a home. The sound of saws and hammers filled the air in the courtyard as workmen replaced beams and rebuilt doors and battlements. The snow had already been cleared from the area and small shops, set up to support the rebuilding, had already open for business.

Mikhail Dryden quickly found himself a very busy man as the Warden had commissioned him to forge weapons for her growing army. His apprentices carefully hauled the forge and all of the implements up the hill and set them up exactly as it had been in Tantervale in the Free Marches a few years ago. With hammer and tongs now hanging above the anvil, Mikhail began selecting pieces of iron that would become axe, mace and sword.

His cousin, Levi, strode through the keep, barely able to contain his excitement. "Mikhail, Mikhail! We have a new home! Look at this!" he said, sweeping his hand across the courtyard where brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces and all the others of the Dryden clan were working and playing.

Mikhail, ever a stoic one, simply nodded. "It is good, cousin," he said as he squeezed the bellows that brought the fire in the forge to an orange glow. He pointed to one of his apprentices. "Go get more coal. There is much work to be done." He nodded to Levi with the hint that his cousin should let him work.

Levi seemed to take the hint. "I'll…let you get back to forging, Mikhail," he said and turned to leave, but he looked back one more time. "Oh, and Mikhail, the Warden and Prince Alistair wish to meet with us in an hour. I believe the Dryden fortunes are looking up. And, I'm sorry that I did not discover the truth about Sophia. I suppose we will never know now."

"I suppose not." Mikhail pursed his lips and used the tongs to pull an iron blank from the forge and placed it on the anvil. Another apprentice moved in and took the tongs while handing the smith a hammer. He struck the glowing blank, sending white hot sparks into the air. "We will have to work quickly, boy. We only have an hour. Our work saves lives, thank the Maker." He really didn't care about Sophia or the long lost titles of the Dryden family. His care went into iron and steel and the living creations that he made with them.

The hour went by quickly, but Mikhail had made much progress. He plunged the long, flat piece of metal into the trough of cold water, sending up steam into the chilly air. Then, he laid it on his work table and apprentices covered it with cloth. "All right, we will take a break now. Get some food and drink and then prepare more blanks for forging and begin carving handles and grips. I'll be back soon and I want the forge to be ready. You understand?"

His apprentices nodded in unison. Over the years they had become a well oiled machine, forging quality weapons for warriors across Ferelden and the Free Marches. It was something he could be proud of. Without another word he left and walked over to the gathering near the keep.

The Warden, Lady Alice, stood with Alistair and her Mabari hound along with a young elven girl with wheat blonde hair. Several of the Drydens were already there with Levi standing at their head. The Warden was not dressed in armor, but wore an emerald colored gown with hair styled in ringlets, which matched the appearance of the young girl. Mikhail was never one for ceremony and just nodded to the party. "Wardens…cousins."

The Warden and the girl made curtsy to him while Alistair made a respectful bow. The girl went up and touched Mikhail's rough hands. "Greetings, Master Dryden, I am Amethyne, Lady Cousland's adopted daughter. I am pleased to make your acquaintance."

Mikhail was a tough man with a heart of iron, but the girl made him smile. He had heard a little of her story and felt pity for all of those who suffered. He got down on his haunches and looked Amethyne in the eye. "Young lady, I will make you a gift soon, crafted with my own hands. Would you like that?" Amethyne gave him a shy smile and nodded and then ran back behind her adopted mother.

Lady Alice rubbed the girl on her head. "I knew her mother at Highever…Iona was her name. She perished in the sack of the castle…another thing I will make Arl Howe pay for. I found Amethyne in the Elven Alienage in Denerim and I brought her here." It was clear that the Warden had a lot of affection for the girl. In his short time of traveling with the Warden, Mikhail learned that the woman was an often confusing mix of kindness and cruelty.

Then, the Warden turned back to Levi and reached down into a purse to retrieve a golden livery collar with the badge of a silver griffon. She placed the collar around Levi's neck and announced, "As the acting commander of the Wardens in Ferelden…all two of us…I hereby bestow Levi Dryden with the title of Senechal and Steward of The Peak with all privileges and rights therein."

Levi was speechless. He knelt and took the Warden's hands in his and then did this with Alistair as well, kissing the Theirin signet ring that he now wore. Mikhail nodded. His cousin finally received the thing that he had searched for all these years even if they would never know the truth about their ancestor – their family honor.

"But, a title is only a title," the Warden continued. "Levi, your family never lost its honor and the Drydens I see around me prove this."

Mikhail's iron heart was moved and he stifled a sniffle. Usually a man uncomfortable with displays of affection, he swallowed his discomfort and patted Levi on the back. I could not be said that the man of iron had no heart.

"And, there is one last thing," the Warden added. She lifted up a heavy glob of dark metal and held it out to Mikhail. "This is our gift to you, Master Mikhail. I recovered it from a fallen-"

"Meteor," he finished. He knew what this was and the magnificence of the find. He took the glob in his hands and felt the pulsing energy from the ore. It was almost difficult to breathe as he admired the veins of silver and blue that streaked the darker metal. "I…I am honored, my lady." He set the glob down and took her hand. "Please, allow me to forge you a weapon…a weapon of unsurpassed might."

All it took was a nod and Mikhail scooped up the ore and dashed back to his forge. A grin crossed his usually stoic face as he laid the ore on his table with a thunk. "Boys, from this metal that fell from the sky, let us forge a sword, the like of which will never be seen again," he said, electrifying his apprentices.