Sorry this is so late. New medication has been making me sleepy. Also this went way over word count again. So I cliff hangered. =D
Enjoy.
Chapter 4: Six legs two claws
After escaping the warehouse, utilizing Isabela's spectacular display of pantless acrobatics out a high window to then maneuver the doors blockage, Hawke and co returned to the Hanged man wet and soggy for several depressed drinks and a round of pitiful cards. Lyn was at a corner table across the crowded tavern with a number of suspicious looking individuals; barely noticeable unless you were aware of their existence. It made Hawke uncomfortable, suddenly he felt as if he could see every nefarious plot being concocted around the room and like a dwarf smacking him over the head with a hammer he was painfully aware of just how dark this place truly was. As they cruised past the third round of drinks and into the fourth, Hawke realized he couldn't stomach the atmosphere anymore and guiltily turned down Isabela's promise of a paid round.
The Hawke brothers returned home uncharacteristically early and with a somewhat more favorable relationship, though only by minute variables, and were even greeted with joint mother and doggy kisses with a promise of warm stew. Things were looking up already.
However, when bedtime finally reared its head, and left alone with nothing but inner thoughts, Hawke discovered he could no longer hide from responsibilities, concern and plans. He was a mage after all, hiding out from the Templars, with a family that needed a constant stream of protection and coin; and when it came down to it was Kirkwall any safer than Fereldan? All those choices. All those lives. His trip to the fade would not be a pleasant one tonight; he could already feel the stir of demons eager to promise him an end to all his worries.
When the sun finally rose, from its nightly visit of the other face of Thedas, Carver was surprised to find his usually lay about elder brother awake and dressed in the main room of the shack. Garrett was soberly finishing off a bowl of grey lumpy porridge with the help of Bounce eagerly licking at the proffered spoon every second dig into the bowl of contents. It was this kind of intimate relationship and sharing that often earned all Fereldan's a new line of dog-related insults.
"You're up early, brother."
"Well we can't all be carefree late rises like you, Carver."
"Oh, Carver, there you are." Leandra seemingly appeared out of thin air somewhere behind the startled youngest Hawke, disrupting him at the beginning of an epic comeback. "I've mended your shirt from last night but I'm afraid I can't get all these blood stains out."
"Uh, thank you mother." Carver was now a bright red colour much to Garrett's amusement and silent mouthing of 'I told you so.'
"I won't ask what you two were up to last night. I'm sure I don't want to know but please try to be careful."
"Yes, mother." Both admonished boys chimed.
"Garrett!" Leandra huffed, arms raised in exacerbation before slumping back down to her sides. "How many times do I have to tell you? Don't let Bounce eat dairy. The poor dear will be sick all day now."
"Whine?" Bounce licked his chops clean of any suspicious looking porridge lumps.
"You heard her boy, no more porridge." Garrett pushed the eager snout leaning on his thigh away and finished his breakfast on his lonesome.
"Whine." Bounce was utterly heart broken and soon settled down in his nest of rags and wood chippings; most of the latter he'd accumulated himself from scratching at the rotting floor beams.
"You two will have to excuse me," Leandra pulled each of her sons into a quick embrace peppered with motherly kisses. "I have some letters to write and a old friend to visit in Hightown later."
"You have friends?" Carver looked astonished at this revelation. "Here?"
"Yes dear, your mother is not always mending shirts and fussing over little boys with scraped knees." She sighed, wishing for a moment all her children had been girls. "I will be spending the evening with Lady Sybil at her estate so you'll have to make your own dinner."
"I don't like the idea of you wandering the streets in the evening, mother."
"Oh Garrett, I can't be cooped up in this place like a prisoner." She rolled her eyes with a tut before sighing into a nod of agreement. "I'll take Bounce with me. I'm sure he will enjoy Sybil's gardens. What an odd sight we'll make, a mother and her mabari."
"Bark!"
"Well that's decided then." Leandra disappeared into the side room before any more objections could be heard.
The boys had plans anyway and were soon out the front door, faces pulled into displeased frowns at their mothers appearance of a social life; that just wasn't right, life was supposed to be over when you had children. Right? Things to do, of course, can't be worrying about mother all day, Garrett mentally sighed and followed this up by a live action yawn.
The rest of the day was filled with collecting sleepy companions from the Hanged man; though only one answered the call to arms. Isabela had shouted various curse words when the Hawke's had banged loudly on her door before kicking a half naked man out of her room and threatening to cut soft appendages off if the brothers attempted to rouse her so early again. Ego a little bruised, but soft appendages in tact, Garrett thought better of plying the hung over pirate with sweet words and decided to let her be. She wasn't really necessary in their groups' plans anyway.
Varric and Carver now in tow, the three made their way into Lowtown market searching out a woman by the name of Lirene. She wasn't too difficult to find. A crazy shopkeeper surrounded by starved Fereldan refugees certainly drew a lot of attention. Especially in this Fereldan hating neighbourhood, Hawke mused.
"What do you want?" Lirene frowned over her shop counter.
"I hear you know where I can find a Fereldan grey warden." Hawke questioned, not put off by the woman's obvious dislike of him.
"Only Fereldan grey warden I've heard of is sitting on the throne. We're out of the blights path now. Why would you need a warden?"
"The healer was one of them once, wasn't he?" A thin looking Fereldan girl chimed into the conversation unasked. "A warden?"
"Well he's not now." Lirene folded her arms giving the girl a rather stern look. "And busy enough without answering fool questions about it."
"Who are you protecting?" Hawke was suspicious now.
"You see what our people face in Kirkwall. They have no jobs, no homes. Most can barely buy bread. This healer, he serves them without a thought for coin. He's closed their wounds, delivered their children. He's a good man. I won't lose him to the blighted templars."
"You mean he's a mage?" He was somewhat surprised by this revelation but at least it explained the woman's apprehensive demeanor.
"Would I stick my neck out for some purveyor of henbane and leeches? He doesn't want to be locked in the Gallows just for using the gifts the Maker gave him."
"He has nothing to worry from me."
"I suppose it isn't my secret to keep. Anders has certainly been free enough with his services. Refugees in Darktown know – to find the healer, look for the lit lantern. If you have need enough, Anders will be within."
"Well that's vague and cryptic." Carver grumbled.
"Hah!" Lirene snorted before shooing the group away, obviously having had enough of the interrogation and wanting to get back to work. There was a long queue of refugee's to see to after all.
As they left Lirene's run down shop, looking somewhat puzzled about the information they were given, a number of men stepped out of the mid-afternoon shadows brandishing weapons. Hawke didn't think twice about it, someone carrying a weapon and glaring that hard was obviously not worth talking to.
"We heard you in ther-"
"Whatever. Let's do this." Hawke readied his staff, the others following suit with their weapons whilst the band of would be thugs thought about it for a moment.
"Now, now, we don't have to-"
"You mean you don't want to fight anymore? Awww, and we were so looking forward to it."
"Yes, well, we should go." The leader of the thugs threw his hands up in surrender and backed away slowly with his men in tow.
"Well that seemed pointless." Varric scratched the back of his head with an arrow he'd readied in his hand. "Who wants a round at the Hanged man?"
After several late-afternoon drinks Carver, Garrett and Varric, Isabela was still not talking to them, went off to discover Aveline's hiding place. It was of course where she usually was after work; in the barrack being boring and writing reports. The guardswoman really needed a life outside of work and after several pouts and pleads they finally convinced her to join them on their late night mission to meet a mysterious man called Anso in Lowtown. Though honestly, she was more worried that the Hawke's were going to get into some illegal business and felt the need to protect them from themselves.
As the quartet arrived in the emptied Lowtown market, there contact stood out like a sore thumb. He was a twitchy dwarf, eyes constantly darting from sky to ground as if he were terrified he would be sucked either way. Varric chuckled at the sight making some comment about how his elder brother was exactly the same when he first began living on the surface.
After a rather jumpy conversation the group discovered Anso's purpose for requesting their help. It turned out he was new to the surface and trying his hands at making large amounts of coin quickly by smuggling lyrium to the Templar's. Varric seemed the most shocked by this disclosure and begged everybody to lower their voices least the Chantry or a disreputable group like the Coterie heard their discussion. This was dangerous territory and just the thing Aveline had worried the Hawke's would get themselves into.
It turned out the smuggling had gone awry from the word go. Anso's business partners, a band of freelancing smugglers, had decided to keep the goods for themselves and not share in the profits. Smart move really, the dwarf couldn't turn to official channels for help and so here he was asking the unofficial ones.
It didn't take much of a beard stroking for Hawke to make up his mind; even with Aveline, Varric and Carver voicing un-keen opinions. They were in this now, having spoken openly with the dwarf, and might as well continue on to a pay out. Maker knows we need the coin, Hawke internally groaned.
The group of adventurers, most reluctant but not willing to show disloyalty to their leader, headed out towards the Alienage; where Anso had suggested the smugglers were holed up. It was pretty late by now, most everyone indoors either asleep or being quiet for safety sake. This was the roughest part of town after all and of course the elves, outcasts of human society, were forced to live in it. As they came down the chiseled stone stairs, the sole entrance and exit to the Alienage, the evening quiet was rudely broken by raised voices and a startled cat fleeing the scene of some crime.
Hawke paused, on the step before the final descent into the Alienage, with his posse flanking him on either side. There was a short woman in the muddy courtyard, with her back to them, shouting profanity at a small group of three-thug type humans.
"Come on Aeron, you know it's just business." A lady thug, no doubt a rogue by the way she pawed at her daggers, was attempting to placate their victim. "Kharis shouldn't of paid the coin back so quick. We barely got any interest on it."
"Loan sharks that don't like being paid back." Aeron circled her arms wide in exaggeration then returned her grip to the hilt of her sword. "You the fucking Chantry now, doing good deeds?"
There was a snort of laughter from the thugs, the kind filled with malicious humour.
"Listen, girl, we're gonna take what we want, like we always do, and you and your pretty little self is going to go back indoors and pretend like this isn't happening." A gravel voiced man-beast of a thug tried to throw a bit of negotiation onto the table, evidently an unusual tactic he wasn't very good at by the glares all round he was receiving. "Unless you want me to drag you to bed, like a naughty little girl, and give you something to remember me by."
"Hey, no need for that. She knows me. I can make her listen."
"Why don't you shove his cock further up your arse, Vivian, or go back home to the whore house?" Aeron spat in the thug woman's general direction. "You look like you're having withdrawals from not having sucked enough tonight."
"I'm going to end you, Aeron!"
"Shut your cunt mouth before you infect everyone with your diseases."
That was it, gloves off. Both women, thug and non-thug, were in each other's faces quicker than you could say 'cat fight'. A flurry of implications that a whore mothered each circled the space before the two women abruptly broke out into laughter; a private joke non-else were privy too breaking down the walls of enemy-hood. Women really are the most sanity deprived creations of the maker, Garrett sighed inwardly, tousling a rogue weave of hair behind his ear and mused at past experiences.
"This isn't getting us nowhere." A runty, rat faced thug-teen, that had been previously silently rolling his eyes and wondering when he could finally kill someone, called out for some sort of sanity. "Lets just kill the bitch and get on with it."
"The boys right." Man-beast looked to his youngest member with some sort of pride then nodded at lady thug, now returned to his side, in agreement. "Lets end th-"
There was a high pitched scream, accompanied by a set of squelching sounds, as a rotten goat's head scored a direct hit with the thug-teen's face. He flailed uncontrollably backwards, his vision disrupted by a tangle of disintegrating hide and brain matter, before tumbling off the side of a ledge and into the piss infused sewage system below. What happened next was inevitable after Aeron had successfully scored the first hit. There was a pause and silence, punctuated by the yelps and sobbing of a young man trying to climb out of a bath of excrement in the dark, before eyes turned from the pitiful but amusing scene to seek out their sides for battle.
The lady-thug, Vivian, was the first to announce her battle cry and fling a deadly intended throwing knife in Aeron's direction. The solo fighter stood her ground, rebounding the projectile with her blade before spinning around to confront the rogue woman's confusing somersaults that saw her landing to Aeron's back. She dipped low, dodging the slicing motion of lady-thug's dagger before bouncing up onto the balls of her feet and delivering a kick to the rogue's abdomen sending her hurtling backwards. It was all the solo fighter could do in order to prepare for the 'shink' of metal she heard coming for her to the right. There was a clashing ring of blades followed by dueling grunts of effort as Aeron and man-beast's swords met in mid-air. He was much stronger than the small woman and easily beginning to over power her as they pushed upon each other for space.
"Hawke, we should stop this." Aveline looked to the dark haired mage.
"I'm still trying to figure out who is harassing who here." Hawke shrugged.
"This is no time for mockery."
"Oh Aveline, why must I be dragged into every petty squabble we come across?"
"Because," Aveline frowned, arms folded with an aura of general disapproval, "someone has to."
Escaping the pinned position she was stuck in, by dive rolling directly under the man's legs, Aeron tried to reach a defensive stance before her attacker could round on her again. He was ridiculously big, too big, and making life difficult for the much smaller woman.
She blocked the lead thugs sword again with her own, only to have a elbow smack her in the teeth from her left. Tumbling sideways, she staggered back to her feet and palmed the side of her mouth, tasting copper from the inside and spitting a cracked piece of tooth to the floor with bloody phlegm.
"I'm going to kill you." She looked up at the two thugs, quickly accompanied by the now soggy runt, with hooded eyes and gave a pure burst of unadulterated intimidation.
The younger man actively flinched at the red eyes piercing him like hot needles but the other two were not so easily impressed as they lunged forward in unison. It was then a new player came into play; a flurry of burning locks shrieked in front of the lunging pair and rebounded them back with a well-placed shield maneuver. Aeron tittered back several paces unsure what was going on as eyes now darted around taking note of the others standing in the stairwell.
"What's this?" Man-beast called out as his men quickly formed a tight triangle in order to guard against the surrounding forces. "Friends of yours, Aeron?"
"I wouldn't say that." Hawke huffed, having recognized the red-eyed woman as the one who got in first on his last job. "I'm staying out of this. Only fair."
"Brother…" Carver glared at the elder Hawke's back, as it retreated to a dark corner, then quickly moved to follow Aveline. "Let's make this even shall we."
"Shit." Lady-thug was worried now. Three warriors and an archer on the stairs, this wasn't good. It wasn't worth it either. "Let's just get out of here."
"Yeah, sure." Man-beast, eyes twitching in nervousness, placed his hands up in universal surrender and kicked the runt into a forward march. "We'll just be going then. Let your cousin know if he wants to borrow money from us again-"
"Go home and fuck your mother some more." Aeron glared at the thugs retreating backs.
"What was that about?" Carver turned, sheathing his great sword now the thugs were gone, and began a line of questioning as the lead Hawke on the scene.
"More importantly what are you lot doing here?" Aeron stared them all down, sword still held out on show just in case. "We're not sharing the reward if that's what you're after."
"Reward?" Aveline's curiosity was peeked now. What had she missed?
"The other night-" Carver began only to be cut off by a moody Garrett appearing from the shadows like a specter.
"This little fox beat us to a retrieval job then locked us in a warehouse." Hawke, obviously still bitter, sniffed. "I got all wet and cold."
"So you thought you'd just stand there and watch the poor girl get assaulted by three armed men because you were feeling sore at losing to her?" Aveline was in full admonishing mode now.
"Well… sort of." Hawke looked away feeling somewhat embarrassed.
As Aveline and Hawke went into a mini argument, Carver frowning at his feet between them, Varric moved from the stairwell placing his crossbow behind his back. A door creaked open behind Aeron as the dwarf approached and she turned her suspicious gaze away to watch the shacks occupant step out.
"Everything all right now, cousin?" A tired looking, dark haired elf man inquired.
"They're gone, Kharis. Go back to bed." Aeron shooed him back to his door.
"Who are these people?" Kharis seemed determined to lurk a little longer. "They know this is the Alienage right?"
"As if you could mistake the smell."
"Or the large tree you elves are so obsessed with." Varric smirked despite the confused and glaring look he was receiving. "I'm Varric Tethras, at your service, and you are?"
There was a pregnant pause whilst Aeron looked the dwarf over, trying to figure out his motives. Kharis on the other hand was happy enough to hide behind his cousin's shoulder in amused bewilderment.
"Aeron, Aeron Vhenan." She swallowed back some of her distrust. "And this is my cousin, Kharis."
"Greetings dwarf." Kharis was now leaning on his cousin's shoulders and peering down at Varric with utmost curiosity. "I think I've seen you before in the Hanged man."
"You go there?"
"Sometimes. When I have coin to play cards."
"You never have coin to play cards." Aeron shook him off her and straightened her spine.
"But that's why you are here, cousin. To scare my loan sharks away." Kharis chuckled before yelping at the slap to the back of his head. "Ow, what was that for?"
"Getting me a bust lip." She threatened him with another slap as he looked about ready to snigger.
"All right, all right." He leaned into his door, preparing to slip away. "I'm going to bed. Scream if you need me."
"Family, the root cause of all our troubles." Varric smirked as he was left, sort of, alone with the red-eyed woman.
"Urgh, you can say that again." She palmed her face, wincing as she placed pressure on her clotted lip and beginning of a bruise. "Now, why you lot here in our neighborhood? It's usually never good when non-elves are down here."
"I promise it's nothing to untoward. We're just here to sort out a little problem a client of ours is having with smugglers that have taken up nest in your, neighborhood."
"Smugglers?" She leaned back against a shack wall, eliciting creaking noises at her weight, and began thinking deep thoughts. "There's been something strange going on in the house just over there." She pointed to an abandoned looking building. "If I'd known they were smugglers they'd of been out on their arses the moment they stepped foot in the Alienage."
"What's that you're talking about?" Hawke had swaned over, having been eavesdropping whilst Aveline was scolding and eager to get away from the guardswoman. "You know where the smugglers are?"
"Hawke, I haven't finished talking to you." Aveline growled but soon followed to listen to the groups chatter.
"Aeron here thinks our mark has taken up residence in that building." Varric pointed it out to them, all eyes following his indication like school children in the throws of education.
"Good job, Varric." Hawke patted the dwarf on the back, ignoring the scowling woman whom had really brought the information to the table.
"Where are my manners?" Varric quickly changed the subject onto pleasantries. "Everyone this is Aeron Vhenan, who most of you have met before. You remember Hawke and Carver and this is Guard-captain-"
"Not yet." Aveline corrected the hosting dwarf.
"Soon to be Guard-captain," he amended, "Aveline Vallen."
"Charmed I'm sure." Aeron rolled her eyes giving a mockery of a curtsy with crossed arms. "But we have smugglers to clear out."
"I'm sorry I think I just hallucinated." Garrett glared like sunlight hitting a mirror; enough to blind. "We? There is no we, girl."
"Elf… Alienage… that makes this my town."
"You're clearly not an elf."
"Closer than you'll ever fucking be."
"Watch your mouth, girl."
"Call me girl again. I dare you."
"Now, now." Varric practically threw himself between the pending battle. "I'm sure there's a way we can all get what we want without additional bloodshed. Come on Hawke, pissing off the elves isn't good for business."
"But she's not an elf and she's not coming with us."
"Human… elf. You all look the same to me down here."
"Varric's right Hawke." Aveline eyed the other woman up and down; evaluating. "Let her help if she thinks she can. What harm can it be having an ambassador to the elves with us? Stop that!"
"Stop what?" Hawke quickly stopped his soundless mimicking of the guardswoman.
"You know what you were doing, Hawke."
"Right, yes. Let's get on with this then." Hawke cleared his throat and straightened up into his 'I am the leader' posture. "Where's that Aeron girl gone?"
"She went in after the smugglers whilst you were pretending to be Aveline." Carver stared off at some spot in the distance, like he usually did when everyone was talking around him yet not too him.
"Shit!" Hawke ran for it, trailing his companions and burst in through the lockless shack door.
As he hurtled to a stop within the derelict building, narrowly dodging three bodies piled on the floor evidentially having been taken by surprise, Garrett summoned a spurt of lightening in his hands and followed it through with his staff into a nearby combatant about to cleave Aeron from behind. The fight that ensued was rather bloody and cramped within the small hovel rooms; and what a mess of elbows.
The sword-wielding warriors were forced out of their comfort zones, unable to swing their weapons from fear of hitting a friendly. Aveline switched to using her shield like a club, grunting with effort as she brought an armored smuggler to his knees, whilst Carver and Aeron relied on fisticuffs. Even Garrett was a bit pushed as he tried to keep his spells to the less radiating kind. Varric on the other hand had come in and immediately walked out of the building again not wanting to get involved.
When it was finally over everyone shared a joint sigh of relief. With that kind of close combat there was sure to be a few extra bruises for all tonight; except Varric.
"What do you think you were doing?" Hawke was fuming and sweating profusely; two things he hated above all. "Running off like that! You could of gotten yourself killed! I… I… I am so disappointed in you!"
"What did I do?" Carver answered in automatic response to berating from his elder brother.
"Not now, Carver." Hawke continued to give his greatest reprimanding look of all time to the not-elf-elf woman.
"Do I know you?" Aeron tightened her arms across her chest. "Are we related? Do I work for you? What makes you think I give a sack of piss soaked harlots about your disappointment in me? Your smugglers are dead, so why don't you retrieve whatever you were sent to get and get the fuck out of my town."
"Bitch." Hawke mouthed as he pushed pass her to a chest at the corner of the room. Sadly it was as empty as the smugglers corpses. "… Girl?"
"Arseface?"
"Oh that's mature." Garrett rounded on the red-eyed woman intimidating her enough to make her back up a couple of paces. "This chest is empty. Have you been sticking your grime covered fingers in my pie again?"
"Did your mother drop you on your head as a child?" Aeron steeled herself not liking the wild look on the man's face and the close proximity of his companions.
"Hawke," Aveline to the rescue, "it doesn't make sense. Think about it. She didn't even know they were here until we came. How could she have possibly taken the lyrium-"
"Lyrium? You're lyrium smugglers?" Aeron's eyes went wide with fear. "Fuck me… fuck me… the Coterie will torch this place. Or the Chantry. Creators… shit."
"Calm down. We're not lyrium smugglers." Hawke backed off, finding the woman's sheer panic utterly believable. "They were." He indicated the corpses on the ground with a flail of his hand.
"But, if the goods aren't here? Where could they be?" Carver strained his forehead with thinking. "Something doesn't feel right here."
"I agree." Aveline nodded her accord.
"Hmm, I suppose we'll just have to go back and tell Anso we couldn't complete the job." Hawke sighed. "We'll be getting out of your hair then, girl. No need to thank us for killing the smugglers and saving your 'town' from the Coterie's burning wrath."
Aeron clenched her jaw, causing her right eye to squint at the pressure she was placing on her facial muscles to stop from growling out some tirade of vile terminology. It wasn't worth it. He wasn't worth it. Two toned sack of scum filled, piss drinking, dog loving, cunt faced, lord of all the faeries, smeg smelling man, she practically hummed with the pure venom she was thinking.
"What was that?" Carver spun around and dragged his great-sword free at the sounds of shouting outside.
"That sounds like Varric." Aveline rushed forward and exited the building with the others in tow; including Aeron eager to check on the commotion.
Back in the Alienage courtyard, Varric was surrounded and backed into a corner by a large group of armored men. He was fending them off as best he could but armed only with a crossbow against swords had to really give his short legs a workout as he attempted to duck and weave blades.
Aveline was the first to his aid, ploughing through most of the enemy with her shield and knocking them about like bowling pins. Next was Carver leaping into action with a thrust and swing of his heavy sword, effectively mopping up what Aveline missed. Garrett hung back, out of reach from the dangerous battleground and began a series of fantastical spells to effectively keep things on an even plain and slow the remaining horde in order for the two warriors to parry and strike the killing blows. All in all it was a lot more action packed and fun than the fiasco in the shack. Even Aeron seemed to be enjoying herself, as she worked with Hawke, keeping stray warriors and the odd rogue from sneaking up on the mage.
"HAVE AT IT!" Hawke crowed as he narrowly dodged a wall of ice from impaling him and quickly spun his staff in a well-practiced arc cracking it over a rogue's head and simultaneously tossing a fireball directly into an enemy mage's chest.
There was a howl and scream as the mage caught fire and danced around in a circle, trying to put his robes out, as Aeron darted forward ending his too short life. As she pulled away, wiping her sword casually on a dead man's tunic, she looked around at the others panting from the exertion and reformed their tight knit group now the danger had passed.
"I told you something didn't feel right." Carver was brooding with disapproval.
"Yes, yes." Hawke shrugged him off to turn a corpse over with his foot. "But who are they? This doesn't seem like a simple smuggling ring."
"They're covered in tevinter symbols." Aeron stared solemnly at the corpse between her and the mage. "Looks like slave hunters."
"Tevinter slavers? Here?"
"I've heard reports about slavers in the wounded coast and surrounding areas." Aveline sighed. "Never thought they'd be this bold. To come into the city."
"Well it is the Alienage." Aeron sniffed. "Not like any of you guards notice a few elves going missing."
"That's not fair." Aveline seemed hurt but also resigned to the fact there was perhaps truth in the other woman's words. "We try our best but there is only so much the guard can do. But, perhaps I can arrange some additional patrols this way when I am fully instated as guard-captain."
"What good would that d-"
"I don't know who you are, friend, but you made a serious mistake coming here." A rather ugly looking, bug eyed, slaver sauntered down the stairs into the Alienage as if he owned the place. "Lieutenant I want everyone in the clearing now!"
"Captain…" Apparently the slavers Lieutenant gurgled out as he staggered into sight, pouring blood all over the place, before dropping dead.
"Your men are dead and your trap has failed." This time it was a white haired, strangely tattooed, elf strutting down the stairs and passing the slaver as if he were nothing worth the time. "I suggest running back to your master while you still can."
"You're going nowhere slave!" The slaver came up behind him, latching onto the elf's shoulder.
Bad move. Especially as the elf's tattoo's began to glow a brilliant bright blue right before he pivoted gracefully on the balls of his feet and lunged his hand through the slavers chest as if there was no skin and ribcage protecting him. The man stared at the elf in pained surprise, attempting to gasp for air that would never reach his lungs, before watching his own heart be removed with a sickening squelch. Everyone agreed later this was probably the most revolting sound they had ever heard and would haunt their nightmares.
"I am not a slave!" The elf growled as the now lifeless body of the slaver slid effortlessly to the floor.
Exhaling he looked up, as if noticing the group of adventurers for the first time and seemed to actively calm. His demeanor changing to one of curious suspicion as apposed to rage and disgust.
"I apologies." The elf man seemed uncomfortable but hiding it well. "When I asked Anso to provide a distraction for the hunters I had no idea they'd be so… numerous."
"I take it these men were looking for you." Hawke was stone faced, internally fighting the urge to puke at the sight of the human heart casually discarded on the floor.
"Correct. My name is-"
"Fenris." He was startled at hearing his name spoken by a voice not his own but even more so when the female voice accompanied it with her fist lodging unexpectedly into his face.