Chapter 3: Ode to the Dead

He was only barely able to block the dagger that came flying at him, Oathkeeper ringing as steel met steel. The others were fighting off the ambush around him, Leliana working to dispatch the archers perched atop the small cliffs overlooking the road, Morrigan targeting the mage, and Alistair and Sten engaging the armored men that had appeared from behind the destroyed wagons.

This left Kayden with the elf fighter that seemed to be their leader. He still had that wicked smirk on his face, as if he knew how this little battle of theirs would end. His friends might have been doing well with the rest, but Kayden was by far outmatched and he knew it.

He blocked again, a feint. He realized it a bit too late as the other blade made contact with his flesh, leaving a deep gash in his right arm. He barely noticed it at first, but a few seconds later it began sending jolts of pain throughout his arm. He cried out and his head swam. The blade had been poisoned.

The elf laughed and attacked again, this time cutting into his other arm. Kayden tried to step away, but the world seemed so far away now. The affects of the poison were already taking its toll on him.

"Kayden! Stop being a stubborn ass and fight! Focus!" It was Morrigan's voice. Or was it? It was a woman's voice, but it couldn't have been Leliana. She was right. He had been trying so hard to work on his swordsmanship that he pushed aside the possibility of using magic at all.

The world seemed to halt around him as he closed his eyes. So slow. Everything was so slow. He reached deep, concentrating, and when his eyes opened, everything went back to their normal pace. He would most certainly collapse later, but he needed all the help he could get now. He chanted the spell under his breath and then let it go. It hit all the foes around him, stopping them in their paths. Alistair and Sten took the opportunity to cut the helpless enemies down, and gave Kayden a chance to attack the stunned elf.

This was his chance. Kayden held his arms up in front of him and a swirl of white appeared and spread over his hands and forearms, then into the air before him, engulfing the elf and encasing him in frost. Sten took down the last of the armored men, and now the frozen elf was all that was left of the ambushers. The battle was over.

"You damn fool!" Morrigan yelled, striding over face the white-haired mage. "That little stunt you pulled could have gotten all of us killed! Remember first and foremost, you are a MAGE. You are not a swordsman, your skill is barely on the level of a squire boy tending to his master's horse!"

Alistair sighed, "I hate to say this, but I agree with Morrigan. There's nothing wrong with wanting to learn to fight with a sword, but survival is more important. You are a Grey Warden now, and we must do what needs to be done to stop the Blight. You can't leave me to do it all by myself after all."

"That fool over there certainly couldn't stop the Blight on his own. Tis better for him to be dead than you," Morrigan added.

"Hey!"

"Now is not the time for that. The elf is still alive. What do you plan on doing with him?" Leliana asked, finally joining them after checking the dead men for useful items.

Alistair nodded, "Yes, this was no mere bandit raid. These men were better trained."

"Assassins, yes." Leliana added.

"We question him then," Kayden suggested, the world starting to get fuzzy again as he felt his concentration slipping once more, "and make it quick."

"I have some rope, I'll be ready to tie him up as soon as the ice melts." Leliana rummaged through her pack, pulling out a few feet of thick hemp rope. She knew it wouldn't take long for the spell to wear off so she'd have to act quickly. Alistair joined her just in case.

"Morrigan." Kayden started.

"Kayden." She snapped back at him, the glare still in her eyes.

"I think he... poisoned me."

"I can tell. I'll take care of it as soon as we're done here."

"Thanks..."

Her gaze softened, and she seemed to want to add something else, but decided against it. Was she actually worried? "You are welcome."

"Wake him up," he heard Alistair say. Kayden looked away from Morrigan. The spell had worn off and Leliana had tied him up already. The elf was out cold, and with a loud thump, he hit the ground as soon as the ice melted off his legs and feet. Leliana didn't even need to do anything, because when he hit the ground, he jolted awake.

"I... rather thought I would wake up dead, or not at all as the case may be. I see you haven't killed me yet."

Kayden raised an eyebrow. "Well, I could rectify that. However I have some questions for you before I make that decision."

"Ah, so I am to be interrogated then? Let me save you some time. My name is Zevran, Zev to my friends."

That was almost too easy, Kayden thought as the elf told him about the Antivan Crows and how he was hired by Loghain to kill the surviving Grey Wardens. Something didn't seem quite right about this. Why would he just tell them everything without even just a little bit of resistance?

"And how do I know you're telling the truth, I wonder?"

Zevran laughed, "Well I wasn't paid to keep silent!"

The laugh didn't seem forced. In fact, it actually seemed genuine. Kayden looked over the man for a moment, not entirely sure what to say next. He hadn't really gotten much of a chance to look at him while they were fighting but now... He was gorgeous, everything about him. Kayden had to force himself to look away, something that would be quite rude under normal circumstances, but with a man tied up at his feet he didn't see how it mattered.

Kayden sighed and finally looked back. "So this means you are not loyal to Loghain then?"

"Loyalty? Now that is an interesting concept. If you wish, and you are done interrogating and staring at me, not that I mind, perhaps we can talk about it further."

Leliana giggled behind Kayden, and he felt his cheeks grow hot. Of course the elf would notice. Sly bastard.

Zevran must have been planning something, but against his better judgment, Kayden helped him up and untied him. The elf gave him a proposition; his life was forfeit and the Crows would likely kill him eventually for failing is mission, so instead, he asked to join Kayden and his group. Right now, Kayden was in no position to turn down any help offered. He needed to stop the Blight and Loghain, and if the assassin really meant to help he could prove rather useful.

He was finding it hard to concentrate again but managed to get out, "I agree." Much to Alistair's dismay.

"Morrigan... did I mention... that I'm not... feeling so good?" He somehow got it all out before he finally collapsed.

o O o

Kayden's eyes went wide when he saw the boat that would be taking them across the Waking Sea to Amaranthine. It was a rather small boat, the nicer templar told him, but to a nine year-old it was a giant floating in the green water. The excited boy would have ran ahead of the templars onto the boat if the other templar hadn't stopped him. He stared at the man's helm for a moment, and returned to the nice templar's side. By this point, he had dubbed them Nice Templar and Mean Templar.

Kayden didn't like the little cabin he was supposed to share with the templars, much preferring the deck. He enjoyed looking out over the sea, smelling the salty air and feeling the ocean spray on his face. When someone wasn't around to shoo him away, it was calm and relaxing and he tried his best to spend most of his time there, legs dangling over the side and looking at the horizon in the distance.

Halfway through the first week, Nice Templar gave him a book to read, The Legend of Calenhad. When he wasn't reading, Nice Templar told him stories of the Witches of the Wilds, the Dalish Elves, the Orlesian bards, and the ghosts that haunted West Hill, a fortress port in Ferelden just south of Kirkwall. Kayden was entranced by these stories, giving the templar his full wide-eyed and excited attention. The stories were almost as good as the ones his mother used to tell him.

The voyage took nearly two weeks, and by the time they arrived in the city of Amaranthine, the entire crew knew Kayden by name. Most of them treated him cautiously, even fearfully, shooing him away on site. They believed he was a bad omen and they prayed constantly that they wouldn't be caught in a huge storm just by the boy's presence.

From Amaranthine they rode on horseback, Kayden with Nice Templar while Mean Templar followed behind them. They stopped often in small towns along the way. Nice Templar continued to tell him stories while Mean Templar barely spoke to him. When he did, it had been the mean-spirited remark of a man who clearly hated mages. This was something Kayden had begun to think was normal among templar, even though Nice Templar was different. He was gentle and kind, not at all like any of the others he had met.

"I'm sure any day now the Viscount will be swarming the Gallows, if he hasn't already. Good thing we're not there." Nice Templar had been speaking to Kayden in a soft tone, but all he could do was nod in response. If Mean Templar could hear them, he never responded.

After a while, Kayden finally spoke. "You're protecting me then? Why?"

The man chuckled a bit and ran a hand through the boy's hair, "If I didn't, I think I'd regret it every day for the rest of my life."

This only made the 9 year-old more confused. He stiffed up a bit and pouted, but turned his gaze forward, watching the scenery pass by. This was his first ride on a horse after all.

After a while he couldn't take the silence anymore. The hooves meeting road weren't nearly enough for him. "What is happening in Kirkwall then? Will I ever go back?"

"That is a lot to tell, but I believe the Grand Cleric in Orlais has something to do with it. No need to worry yourself about such things. And no, I don't suspect you will be going back. Not any time soon at least. You will be studying in the Ferelden Circle for a while yet."

And then he saw the Tower growing in the distance, larger with each step they took. It was a tall, dark figure amidst the grey skies. It loomed over the land like a ghost, a creature of death ready to call the souls back to the Dreams. This was to be his home, his prison, and he realized seeing the grand spire that it still wasn't nearly as terrifying as the Gallows on the outside. This building looked dark and cold, while the Gallows had screamed of pain, death, and suffering.

When they finally reached the docks, they met by a kindly older man who was to ferry them across the lake to the island in the center. The island was where the Tower sat, hovering over them now. He looked up and up and up into the sky. The dark needle of the spire blotting out the sun and the thick shadow it cast loomed over them. He gulped and held tightly to Nice Templar.

The ride wasn't long, maybe fifteen minutes before they reached the other side. Nice Templar helped him out, as Mean Templar simply watched. They ushered him through grand doors into the Tower's entrance hall.

Another templar was there waiting for them. He must have known about their arrival beforehand. He didn't wear the helm of the templar so Kayden could see that his short dark hair and well-trimmed beard were starting to grey with age. He took an instant dislike to this man. Nice Templar stopped to talk to him, but Kayden was pushed to continue toward another set of doors without even a chance to say goodbye.

"Ah, and there you are Templar -"

Kayden cursed himself for not being able to hear the man's name, as quickly as he was being rushed away, but he looked back and he saw the templar take off his helm. Blue eyes met his, deep blue, the color of lyrium and long hair, white as snow, just like his. He knew he would regret not asking the man about himself.

The templar smiled.

Then he heard whispering. Someone was calling to him. The hall around him began to grow dark as if someone were snuffing out all the lights. When he looked back, the templar was gone, and in his place darkspawn. The room was gone, and the light with it, but he saw the darkspawn still, and up on a high rocky cliff the dragon. He was compelled to go to it, its very presence tugging at his legs.

He felt weak as he was forced forward. The dragon turned its gaze to him and all the darkspawn stopped. They saw him and he couldn't run away, he could only move closer, ever closer. But they didn't attack. They seemed to be welcoming him instead. In fact, they seemed to be urging him closer to the dragon.

Kayden tried to scream, but no sound came out. He couldn't halt his steps.

The dragon roared.

o O o

Kayden shot up, blankets falling to his waist. He was shaking and covered in sweat. The dragon had appeared to him again, or he had appeared to it. He wasn't sure. Did the darkspawn know where he was? Did he even know where he was?

He looked around. He was in a tent, no shirt on, his arms bandaged. Alive at least, he thought. Then he remembered. They had been ambushed on their way to Redcliffe. He had been poisoned. Had Morrigan treated his wounds and the poison? Most likely. This was the second time she had patched him up. He'd never hear the end of this.

What was worse... he passed out in front of the assassin. The terribly sexy assassin. Kayden cursed himself. "I hate my life."

He pulled the covers back up over his face. He didn't want to leave the tent. How could he let them see him now? He wished he could just die of embarrassment. That would be more merciful than having to meet all their faces again after that. How could he have been so stupid? If he had gone into that fight using his magic right away the elf never would have touched him, but he had had something to prove. He wanted to get better, he didn't want the others to think he was some silly weak mage dependent completely on his magic. After all, being a mage had brought him nothing but pain his entire life.

But Morrigan was right, he was stubborn. Too stubborn. If things had gone wrong and he had refused to fall back on magic they really could have all died back there; he could have died. Too much was at stake for that with the Blight and civil war likely creeping up on the Ferelden people. He really did have to let his duty as a Grey Warden come first.

Kayden's head fell into his hands. How could he do that? How could he, who had only just taken his Harrowing, stop the Blight? He had only just become a Warden, and already so much rode on his shoulders, it was almost too much to bear. He had never asked for this.

There was no going back now.

Kayden pushed the blankets aside, and stepped out of the tent, not bothering to put his robes on over his trousers.

Alistair sat by the fire, a piece of wood in one hand and a knife in the other.

"Bad dreams?" he asked, setting the items aside.

Kayden nodded and sat down next to his friend and gestured with his head towards the bandages, "Morrigan?"

"Yeah, she was the one to bandage you up after we forced the assassin to give us an antidote."

"What did you do with him?"

"He's fine. He's in his tent, minding his own business. Or so I'd hope after the stern talk he got."

"Stern talk?"

"Don't worry about it. We trust you, no one hurt him if that's what you're thinking."

Kayden nodded again, "These dreams. I saw a dragon. It seemed so real."

"Well it is real, sort of. All Wardens get those dreams. Some learn to live with them, sometimes they fade away after a while. You'll get used to it." Alistair picked up the wood and knife again and went back to carving.

"Is that the archdemon?"

"Maybe. This is how we know it's a real Blight. Kade, you really need to get some more sleep. We are planning to leave at sun up. We'll likely reach Redcliffe by noon if all goes well."

"Yeah, okay. I'll do that then." He looked back toward his tent, then to Alistair again, "Thanks for talking to me."

"That's what I'm here for. Giving people bad news." And then under his breath, "Maker knows there's more of that to come."

Kayden pretended not to hear. He really did need the sleep and he could always ask Alistair what he meant later. He opened the flap on his tent and slid in again, laying back against his bedroll and staring at the cloth above him. His arms were throbbing, but he forced himself to relax, breathing slow and deep. Soon he drifted off once more.

o O o

"Okay, so let me get this straight. You want me to get a drunk that locked himself into the smithy to repair all the armor, ask the knights if they need anything, and try to persuade a stubborn dwarf to come out and fight? Why do I get the feeling I've just become an errand boy?" Kayden asked, firmly planting his face in his palm.

"You did not complain about that in Lothering, Kayden," Morrigan reminded him. She sounded just as annoyed as he did, however.

"This is pointless. There are no darkspawn here." Sten finally spoke.

"Usually, I'd agree with you, Sten, but we need to get to the castle and seek the aid of the arl."

"Why do we need him?"

"He has knights. We need an army..."

Kayden really hated having to explain himself.

"Not to mention we need him to help us stop Loghain. When he hears about what Loghain did at Ostagar-"

"Alistair! I know, you go talk to the knights! Do they know you too? Or is it just Teagan that knows you?"

"Some of them might remember me."

"Good, you go talk to the knights. Don't forget to mention the barrels of oil to them. Maybe they'll be useful tonight."

"Don't forget, Owen is most important. We need all our armor repaired," came Murdock's grisly voice.

"I'll talk to him first then. Leliana, Morrigan, will you go find Kaitlyn's younger brother?"

"So you are to send me to do something meaningless then?" Morrigan protested, "And you plan to take the elf with you?"

"Sten's coming with me too."

"I'm here you know. I can hear you," Zevran said. The witch just glared at him.

Kayden hadn't even thought of where to send Zevran, but he couldn't send the assassin off on his own. He didn't trust the man, none of them did. He'd have to stay with Kayden and Sten for now.

"Just... go find him, Morrigan."

Morrigan sighed, "Fine, fine. I'll do it, but you owe me."

"I owe you for more than just that."

"Ha! Well, I should have to open a tab for you then. By the time you've stopped the Blight, you will owe me your firstborn." Morrigan joked.

Kayden shuddered, "I should hope not!"

"Right. Now make yourself useful, Tower-Boy, and do keep yourself in one piece, no secret poisons this time."

"Just go!"

The women laughed as they walked away and Kayden turned to Sten and Zevran, "Maker, when did I become a teasing magnet?"

"Probably when you started carrying a sword," Sten offered. "It is your own fault. You are a mage, why change that?"

Kayden threw his arms into the air, "I give up. Alright let's go see the blacksmith."

Owen was drunk, the door to the smithy locked. Though it didn't take long to persuade him to unlock the door and let them in, it was clear it would take a bit more to get him to work. His daughter, the Arlessa's maid, was stuck in the castle while the dead were terrorizing the town. He didn't know if she was alive, but he refused to help the town without a promise from Kayden that he would look for her while he was in Redcliffe Castle. He was already tired of the blacksmith, and there were other things he needed to do. He made the promise.

"Is that a promise you plan to keep?" Sten asked.

"What was that?" Owen looked at the Qunari.

"I said nothing to you, human!"

"Right, well, I have your word, Warden?"

Kayden nodded, "Yes, I will look for her."

"Alright, I'll get to work then."

They left the blacksmith's house, Kayden rubbing his temples, "When we're done at Dwyn's, let's go to the tavern then."

"Ah, planning on getting drunk before the battle tonight? Good plan!" The elf teased.

"No, but a drink would be nice, don't you agree?"

"Yes, yes I do. A drink would be marvelous right about now. I hope there will be women there too."

Kayden rolled his eyes, "Pah, women. And here I thought we sent them away."

"Do I sense sarcasm, my friend?"

"Oh no, not at all," he deadpanned, scratching the back of his head.

They found the dwarf's small house. Kayden knocked, but there was no answer. The door was locked, hopelessly jammed. With the impending battle that night, he figured the man probably locked himself in there and wasn't planning to come out until everything was over.

"Coward..." He said, "I'm kicking the door down. Any objections?"

Sten shook his head and Zevran said, "None from me."

"Good." Kayden grinned and turned back to the door. He'd always wanted to do this, now was a good time as any to let out a little steam. With a Qunari and an assassin watching him, he decided he didn't want to look stupid if he tried kicking it down and it did not work. He expected he would fail. So he decided to cheat, it was unlikely that they'd notice anyway.

Kayden focused for brief second, then brought up his leg, and slammed it into the door, pushing just enough magic into it to break the lock. The door swung open. He grinned. It wasn't too flashy, hopefully believable enough for them not to notice.

"Hey! What in the... Why did you break into my house?" Came the angry response inside. Kayden looked in, seeing the dwarf flanked by two men. Bodyguards he guessed. He might have looked the same way with a giant and an assassin at his side.

The Qunari ducked through the door and pointed to the other side of the room, "That is my sword."

Kayden glared at the dwarf, "Where did you get that?"

"Not that it's any of your business, but I bought it," The dwarf answered, but when he looked at the Qunari he added, "But the man never told me he took it off a live giant. Look, I spent a lot of money on it..."

"I have a better idea," Kayden started, "Your life or the sword. Pick."

"I like living, so just take the sword and get out."

The Qunari went to the other side of the room and took the sword. It was like watching a reunion. That sword was more than just a weapon to him.

"If you don't need anything else, please just leave," the dwarf said again when he noticed Kayden wasn't budging.

"There is one more matter. The battle tonight."

"Oh no, I'm staying in here, there ain't nothin' getting me out of this house tonight. Now just leave so I can bolt the door back again..." He looked at the door. It was barely on the hinges anymore as it was. It would take some work to get it back into place.

"I shouldn't be surprised by this," Kayden started, "Everyone always has to be a right pain in the ass when I'm having a bad day. The lot of you realize I'm a mage, right?" He really hated having to resort to something like that. He gritted his teeth a bit, and then one of Dwyn's men spoke up.

"I don't want to be turned into a toad, boss." It was a whisper, barely audible. He obviously hadn't wanted Kayden to hear him.

Kayden narrowed an eyebrow, "Look at me! No really, look at me. Good, becoming a toad would be the least of your worries. Oh no, I'd do worse, FAR worse. Now get out before I break more than your damn door."

"I'm going. You can tell Murdock he won," the defeated dwarf said, slinking out of his tiny house.

When he was gone, Zevran turned to look at him, "My my aren't you violent. Would you really have killed him?"

"I was prepared to." Kayden snorted.

Sten made a sound, though Kayden wasn't sure what sort of sound it was meant to be, "I heard about your first kill."

Kayden cringed, "Let's not talk about that, shall we?" Certainly not in front of Zevran, he thought. The elf, of course, was amused by the turn of events and pressed Sten for details. He was refused of course. Good thing Sten wasn't really the talkative type. Word really did travel fast in their little group though, and he was sure Leliana would end up telling Zevran eventually anyway. He, however, did not plan on being around when she did.

o O o

The undead were just as expected, mindless bodies of decaying flesh, practically falling apart at most joints, and they came at their small force in waves. Because of the barrels of oil however, things were a little more interesting than that; they came in waves of burning, decaying flesh. They weren't particularly strong. The main problem was just how many of them there were. They just kept coming!

A song rose up over the village. A song of sorrow, war, and victory. Leliana's voice carried the men and they fought for their home.

When Kayden finally thought they were done, someone came from the town below saying more undead were coming from the lake. Great, just what they needed.

Kayden, Sten, Alistair and Zevran made their way toward the Chantry to join the other group of men, including the fat bartender that Kayden had persuaded to come out and fight. He had been another coward planning to lock himself in the tavern's cellar that night. Nice to see he was pulling his weight, quite literally.

This time, however, they didn't have fire to aid them in killing these and Kayden found out quickly that his ice spells didn't have much of an affect on them unless he could completely freeze them in place. Doing that, however, would risk injury to the other men around him. Kayden had to rely almost completely on his sword. Though this time, it was different. After breaking down the door earlier, he realized he could put some magic into his movement. He hit faster and harder, but that was the extent of what he could do for the moment. It wasn't a huge improvement but it certainly helped.

His goal that night had been to impress the assassin, but with the undead pretty much being pushovers, he hardly thought he stood out at all. It wasn't really a bad thing though, because when the sun began coming up and the undead stopped coming, he saw the toll they took on the village. A few wounded, but none dead. It all had gone rather well really.

Alistair patted his back later, "Much better. What did you do?"

Kayden grinned, "I cheated."

Alistair raised an eyebrow and laughed. "You should have been doing that from the beginning you know. Well that makes things easier on me, but not on you. Training's going to get harder from now on."

"What are you going to do? Use your Templar powers to keep me from using my magic for physical combat?"

"Nope, you keep doing that. Maker knows it can only help. I'm just going to stop holding back. We're probably going to need to put you in armor though. If you plan on being in the middle of a fight, those robes of yours aren't going to help at all."

"You're right. I guess I could benefit from a decent set of armor."

This felt good. Alistair had not been the person he set out to impress, but Alistair was his trainer after all, and impressing his trainer was always a good thing, no? He cleaned off his blade as Bann Teagan stepped up to the porch outside the Chantry and addressed the villagers, proclaiming their victory.