Chapter 6: Darkspawn

For a moment, it seemed as if time stood still. Alistair's mind whirled as he took in the messenger's frantic words. Darkspawn? Here? For a moment he even entertained the notion that this was some sort of Feastday prank pulled a few months early for effect. Though if the look of terror on the servant's face was an act, he deserved some sort of award for sure. Closing his eyes, Alistair could feel the distinctive tingling at the edge of his consciousness, a sensation he had almost forgotten in the last few years of peace.

Pulling his thoughts together, Alistair's eyes narrowed and he switched into the now familiar mode of commander. He turned to Garrett. "Make sure all the Wardens are out there, if they haven't heard already. You too, Oghren. Zevran, I'm sure you know what to do…" Alistair turned, but the assassin's chair was already empty. Oghren was busy picking up his heavy hammer off the floor with a grunt. "Leliana, you are of course welcome to do as you please, though I always welcome your bow."

Leliana smiled, leaning over on the table. "There is nowhere else I'd rather be, Your Majesty."

"And Elissa…care to join me for a little dance, my dear?"

"I thought you'd never ask," she grinned, a dark glint in her eye. "To the armory then?"

"Your Majesties," Garrett interrupted. "I'm sure the Grey Wardens can handle…"

"Of course they can," Alistair remarked. "Or did you forget that we are Grey Wardens too?"

"As you wish, Your Majesty," Garrett bowed. "Darien, it looks like you'll get a chance to use that blade sooner than you had thought." He motioned for Darien to follow him when Alistair held up his hand.

"Perhaps not," Alistair said. "Darien, take Lyana back to her room and stay there."

Lyanna jumped up from her seat in protest. "But…!"

"I don't have time for your buts," Alistair called as he followed Elissa and Leliana from the room towards the armory. With a last second thought, he turned and pointed a stern finger at Darien. "And you…mind your manners!"

Fully geared in a kingly suit of armor, shield emblazoned with a dragon crest, Alistair ran down the palace steps to meet a scene that jolted him back to another time. Chaos ruled as screams filled the air. His subjects scattered as the darkspawn ran after them, tearing them down in their tracks. Tents from the festival were aflame, creating a choking cloud of smoke. Blood ran between the cobblestones as too many bodies already lay dead in the street. Alistair spotted a child who desperately gasped his final breaths, and the sick feeling in Alistair's stomach only fueled his rage.

He spotted Zevran, leaping from the shadows to slit the throat of a genlock before whirling around and stabbing both knives into the chest of a towering hurlock. With a grin, he jerked the knives free and did not even seem to mind the blood that spattered across the front of his fancy leather breastplate. Nearby, Oghren swung his hammer around wildly, connecting with more than one head. He wobbled just a little as the hammer hit the ground, and pulled out a flask from his pouch. After a long swig, he threw back his arms and bellowed loudly, a sound that stopped the advancing darkspawn dead in their tracks, and sent more than a few scurrying off to find other quarry.

Axe in hand, a hurlock sprinted towards Alistair, snarling as it came. He raised his shield in preparation, but before he could move, an arrow whizzed by and pinned the creature right through the head. It crumpled to the ground. Alistair looked back at Leliana, who shrugged and smiled coyly.

"Right then," Alistair remarked, running into the square to join the Grey Wardens who were already fighting to push back the intruders. His hand clenched his sword more tightly, and the rush of adrenaline filled his muscles. It had been a long time since he had felt this way…too long perhaps. With a defiant yell, he raced into the battle, swinging his sword in familiar motions. In a downward arc, he slashed through the shoulder of a genlock that squealed as it fell before whirling around to meet the axe of another behind him. The sound of metal on metal clanged in his ears. The genlock managed to parry a few of his blows before making a fatal mistake and leaving an opening for Alistair to stab his blade deep into the darkspawn's stomach. As Alistair pulled his sword free, it dripped of the dark red blood.

A sharp blow to his chest startled him, and Alistair looked down to see an arrow falling to the ground, a small indention left in his armor. It didn't take long to find the creature responsible a few meters away, another arrow already poised in its long bow. Raising his shield, Alistair charged. He barrelled into the hurlock, knocking it off its feet. The darkspawn reached for a knife, but Alistair pinned its hand to the ground with his foot and thrusted his sword deep into the creature's chest without hesitation. The smell of darkspawn blood filled his nostrils, a scent that was both revolting and intoxicating.

Alistair searched for his wife in the melee, only to see Elissa surrounded by five hurlocks. With a speed and grace that didn't seem possible in heavy armor, she dispatched three of them in a flurry of her sword. Whirling around to face the fourth one, however, found her turning just in time to catch the creature's blade on her helmet. The impact left a dent and sent her stumbling back a few paces. Alistair ran towards her, but before he could even get there, Elissa had let out a furious yell and run the hurlock through with her blade. Alistair caught the last darkspawn by surprise from behind.

Alistair quickly moved to check on his wife. A trickle of blood ran the side of her head, staining her cheek. "You're bleeding," he remarked with concern, but Elissa brushed him off with a roll of her eyes.

"Don't make me kill you too."

A roar from behind sent them both whirling around. Alistair stretched his sword arm as they sized up the new threat. "Oh, look, they brought an ogre," he said dryly. "Shall we, dear?"

The two rushed towards the ogre. The massive beast turned in their direction, punching the ground and throwing them off their footing for a moment. It swiped its hand towards Elissa, who knocked it away with her shield and put a gash in the creature's arm with her blade. Alistair circled from behind, slicing open the ogre's ankle.

The darkspawn bellowed in rage, whirling around and grabbing Alistair in its monstrous hands. The impact knocked his blade from his hands, and it clattered to the cobblestones at the creature's feet. Raising the king to eye level, the ogre roared, putrid breath and spittle blowing Alistair's hair back. He could feel his armor beginning to crumple in the creature's grasp, making it difficult to catch his breath. "This would be a great time to rescue me," he strained to yell down to Elissa.

A trio of arrow's flew out of the air, sticking into the ogre's cheek and neck. As it turned to see where the attack had come from, Oghren appeared, swinging his massive hammer at the creature's legs, and sending it sprawling onto its back. Elissa lept up onto the beast, running up its torso and plunging her sword deep into its heart. The ogre yelled in pain before its body spasmed a final time in the throes of death.

Zevran ran up, daggers poised, as Elissa moved to extract her husband from the dead creature's grasp. "Really? You couldn't wait for me?" Zevran pouted.

Ignoring him, Elissa helped Alistair to stand. "I guess now it's my turn to act concerned."

"Oh, I'm sure it will take more than an ogre for you to get rid of me," Alistair remarked, though he didn't refuse the small bottle his wife offered. The red liquid burned on the way down, but he felt almost instantly invigorated. Glancing down at his crumpled armor, Alistair frowned. "And this was brand new, too…"

"Stop being such a girl," Oghren yelled, moving to take another swig from his own flask. He frowned and lifted the bottle up, watching as only a single drop dripped its way onto the ground. "Damn," he muttered. "We've got to get this battle over quick. I've run out of beer!"

Meanwhile, Lyana sighed as she slowly made her way through the palace. "This is really unneccessary, you know," she told Darien.

"I just do what I'm told, I'm afraid," Darien replied, trying valiantly to keep his eyes averted from the princess' figure as she led him through the unfamiliar hallways of the castle. "I'm just surprised he sent me. Don't you have Royal Guards?"

Lyana laughed. "Of course I have Royal Guards. Most of them got that position by being the child of somebody important, and their combat experience is laughable. I'm pretty sure even I would win in a fight against them. Father has much more faith in a Grey Warden, no matter how young and inexperienced they might be." She turned and looked Darien over. "But you look capable enough."

Darien nodded at the possible compliment, before a statue just ahead caught his eye. "Not to offend you, your Highness, but we've been wandering through these halls for twenty minutes, and unless there are dozens of that statue of King Maric lying around, I'm pretty sure we've been this way before."

Lyanna stopped walking and turned to face Darien, arms folded. "Fine. I was hoping to lose you somewhere back there but you're a little more observant than I was expecting."

"Thanks…I think."

"I just want to see what's going on out there," Lyana remarked persuasively, but Darien would have none of it.

"I don't think that's a good idea…" Suddenly, a strange sensation twitched in his mind. It was almost as if there was an itch inside a corner of his brain, like some small creature trying to burrow its way to the surface. Hairs on the back of his neck stood up. The sensation began to grow stronger, and he put his hand to his temple, trying to shake his head of the feeling.

Lyana noticed the strange look that washed over Darien's face. "Are you all right?" she asked.

"I…I think so," he told her. Suddenly, the feeling exploded across his whole mind, and his stomach clenched with impending danger. "Something's wrong…"

Before he could finish that thought, the door at the end of the hallway flung open, splintering the wooden beams. A gang of the most fearsome looking creatures Darien had ever seen rushed towards them, their twisted black faces contorting into a snarl. Heart pounding, he quickly pulled the sword and shield free from his back and positioned himself in front of Lyana.

As the first creature sprung at him, Darien blocked the swing of its short sword with his shield and knocked the creature backwards off its feet. He moved to strike, but the darkspawn brought up its weapon just in time to catch his blow. After a few more blocked swings, Darien finally connected, his blade severing the creature's arm. The genlock howled, and Darien plunged his sword into the darkspawn's chest. Blood flowed out freely, staining the carpet, and time slowed as he watched his first kill sink into oblivion.

A club connected with his left shoulder, sending a sharp pain down his arm and quickly removing him from his thoughts. Darien delivered a swift kick to the creature's knee, feeling the cracking of bone beneath his foot. Whirling around, he caught the axe of another darkspawn on his shield and stabbed it in the stomach before returning to dispatch the disabled creature.

A feminine yell from behind startled Darien. He frantically searched for Lyana in the writhing mass of bodies that attacked them, and was surprised to find her wielding two knives and fiercely catching one of her attackers in the neck. Her nose upturned as blood spattered onto her robes, but it didn't deter her from going after another darkspawn with the same ferocity. The creatures circled her warily, not quite as eager to attack her as Darien it seemed.

Suddenly, from behind Lyana appeared a darkspawn that seemed even more intimidating than the others, wearing a spiked suit of armor and a helmet that sported two large, twisted horns.

"I'm coming, Lyana," Darien yelled, pushing back the creatures as he tried to fight his way towards her. They worked to block his path, seeming to be rallied by the sight of the new darkspawn. One of the last hurlocks rushed him, pinning him back against the wall. He struggled to fight back, but felt helpless as he watched Lyana nervously confront the Alpha.

The creature did not even draw its weapon as it moved towards the princess, reaching his hand out towards her. She stabbed one of her knives deep into its palm, but the Alpha laughed, catching her wrist and pushing the knife in even deeper until the blade pierced through to the other side. Lyana gasped and recoiled her hand as the darkspawn pulled the knife free and tossed it aside. It didn't seem to notice the blood that dripped freely down to the ground. It stepped towards Lyana and she turned to run, but the creature grabbed her hair and flung her against the wall. With its free hand it grasped her wrist and pounded it against the stones until she relinquished her grip on the second knife.

Still grasping her hair by its bloodied hand, the hurlock Alpha turned and began to walk away, pulling Lyana crouching and screaming behind him. A rage filled Darien and with a shout he threw off the creature pinning him and hacked his way through the last four darkspawn until he and the Alpha were all that were left. With a yell, he charged towards the creature.

The Alpha turned at the last minute, flinging Lyana aside and drawing a massive two-handed sword from its back. Its swing crashed hard against Darien's shield, but he pushed back, flinging the weapon away and making his own move with his blade. The darkspawn caught its weapon against his, and they each swung and parried, steel flying as they sought to find the other's weakness. Darien could feel Lyana's eyes on him as she pressed herself against the wall, murmuring words from the Chantry of Light as if that would protect them from the evil in their presence.

Darien could feel himself tiring, obviously outmatched by the creature that was taller than him and twice his strength. The Alpha swung at him relentlessly, until it seemed all Darien could do was block the blows with his shield, being pushed further and further back. A piece of the rug had become crumpled up in the fight, and as the darkspawn pummelled him, Darien stumbled backwards, barely catching himself on his knee, shield poised upwards in defense.

He expected another arm-numbing strike, and when one did not immediately come, he peered around his shield to discover that he had managed to perfectly position himself by the window so that the sunlight streamed in and reflected off his metal shield into the face of the Alpha. The darkspawn raised a hand to cover his eyes, leaving its massive sword hanging weakly in its other hand. A clarity of focus washed over Darien, and he leapt to his feet, knocking the beast's sword aside with his shield as his blade sought out the gap in the armor at the creature's neck. It slid inside, and the hurlock let out a gurgling cry as it fell to its knees, and then clanged facedown to the floor.

Darien stepped back, breathing heavily, as the hurlock Alpha fell, his sword still plunged into the creature. Lyana rushed towards him, throwing her arms around his neck. "You did it," she breathed in wonder. Darien put his free hand around her in a daze, hardly noticing the princess as he gazed at the carnage around him. It was as if someone else had caused the scene, despite the blood spattered across his weapon and armor. He only realized what he was missing as Lyana pulled away, looking at her own hands and clothes in disgust. "I think I'm ready to go to my room now," she said quietly.

Snapping back into reality, Darien nodded and put his foot on the shoulder of the fallen darkspawn, wrenching his sword free with a final spurt of blood. "Anywhere without darkspawn sounds like a good place to me."