W/N - The closer I get, the more long winded I get. :P There's just so much to say and so many plot bunnies. Will Eamon's machinations undo the alliance? Will Allistair come unto his own and be the prince he was meant to? I meant to end this after Howe, but I've decided to complete the Landsmeet. I'm on the fence about going all of the way through the Archdemon.

Other Malarkey - Good thing I could sit around and read and write this evening. We did P90X Upper Body Massacre for an hour, Iso Abs for half and hour and then ran. My body is jello.

A warm thank you to everyone for your input and support! :D

CODEX –

Conical helm – an open faced pointed helmet made of a single piece or riveted together, sometimes with a nasal piece to protect the nose. Much like the Norman or Viking helms.
Bearded axe – axe with a long blade, often used by headsmen
Quintain – a target used in the training of knights on horseback with lance. If you don't strike it properly it swings around and hits you in the back

The Estate of the Arl of Denerim

The way in was relatively easy compared to what they knew that they would face. Just as Erlina said, the vast majority of guards were thugs that only worked for gold and drink. The elf distracted the guards at the side door by telling them that Darkspawn were in the garden. Perhaps they were tending the sunflowers and tomatoes. Still, the guards rushed off and the party snuck in, wearing their guard disguises – conical helms and long cloaks bearing the combined coat of arms of the Arling of Denerim and the Howe family, three silver diamonds on a field of green over a green burning sun with the bear, passant, over all.

Alice chaffed at wearing the arms of her sworn enemy. If she could have erased that livery from the face of Thedas once and for all, she would have. After the sack of Highever, she spent countless nights imagining Rendon Howe on the gallows, soldiers forcing his neck onto the block to await the long, bearded axe. Then, his rich wife and his children would swing from a noose for justice, the whole, rotten family obliterated from history. Months ago, Zevran told her that Howe's wife and daughter were still in Amaranthine, but that his only living son, Nathaniel, had fled to the Free Marches. Zev offered to 'do his thing' with them, but the Warden told him to hold off. She wanted to deal with the head of the snake first before she decided what to do.

She was feeling the stress of so many competing priorities in her mind. Through sheer force of will, she had slapped together an unheard of alliance of dwarves, elves, mages, Templars and nobles. She had saved Arl Eamon only to find him a tenuous ally, one who had an agenda of his own. Even now, though, this giant bowl of fruit on her head could come crashing down at any moment if tilted too far. The alliance was still focused on unseating Regent Loghain and restoring the rightful heir to the Throne, but petty squabbles and ancient feuds could tear them apart with one wrong move. The Warden knew that only the common enemy held them all together.

And then, how long could they keep the succession issue under wraps. The other nobles would roar when they heard that Connor was next in line. They would accuse the Warden of merely swinging power from one family to the other – and they would be right. And, Maker's Breath, when the Circle and the Templars became aware of a mage prince, there would be the Fade to pay. Knight Commander Greagoir could very well throw the weight of the holy warriors behind Loghain and be justified for doing so.

In spite of the near unbearable pressure, the Warden smiled and nodded to Howe's other guards and servants as they passed by. Every time one of them gave her more than a passing glance, she swallowed hard, praying that they wouldn't be exposed, but the bits of Denerim guard armor, a long surcoat and a cloak wrapped around her kept prying questions at bay. As long as the gold was flowing and the arl kept an iron fist in the estate, no one would get too curious or too far out of their lane. The only glares were directed at Erlina as elves were thought to be a greater threat than any infiltrators.

"There was an uprising," Erlina told Alice in explanation. "The elves here in the Alienage, they rose against Bann Vaughn, the son of the Arl of Denerim. I am not an Alienage elf," she said proudly. "I serve the Queen, but no one cares. To them, an elf is an elf."

"What happened? I heard Vaughn died."

"No one knows for sure. His body was never recovered. Vaughn was a sadist. He went to the Alienage during one of the weddings and he kidnapped several of the elven women for his right of First Night."

"I've heard of that. Barbaric."

"Four of the women, this Shianni, Valora, Nesiara and Kallian Tabris were all violated by that monster and his friends. Kallian fought her way out with the help of her fiancé, Nelaros and friend, Soris."

This was beginning to sound familiar to Alice. Duncan once told her this story. It didn't have a happy ending. "Nelaros died fighting Vaughn, right? Kallian wounded Vaughn, but she was hung before she could be conscripted into the Wardens."

"Yes, how did you know?"

"I heard it from a friend…a man named Duncan," she said sadly.

"Oh, Duncan, yes, I should have known that you would be his friend and that he would tell you that."

"There aren't a lot of happy endings here, are there?"

Erlina seemed thoughtful for a moment. "No, it is the world that we live in."

By this time they had passed through the barracks and the kennels where the guards were busy drinking and playing cards. When they were through the grand hall, Erlina picked up the pace with Alistair right behind her. The elf led them up to a large door that seemed to glow from some unholy power.

"My Queen, she is in here!" Erlina said.

"Anora, it's me, Alistair! I'm here with the Warden."

A ghostly voice penetrated the door. "Alistair? Thank the Maker you're here with the Warden. I'd greet you properly, but I'm trapped in here with the Revered Mother," the Queen said calmly with just a hint of stress in her voice. "Yes, it's a long and unpleasant story. It seems that Rendon Howe intends to marry me and become the Prince Regent. Trust me, I'd rather marry a dwarf and a crate full of nugs right now."

This brought a grin to Oghren's face. "Then, there's still hope for me."

Alice smacked the dwarf on the back of the helmet. "What about Felsi?" she asked, wondering about the lady love that he had worked so hard to woo…with her help.

Oghren chuckled lecherously. "What about Felsi? Anora's tall and haughty with…with large things right at eye level," he said, holding his palms out right in front of his face. He reached out and put his hands on the Warden's armored breasts, wonder in his eyes. "Just like this."

"Step back right now, dwarf."

"Oh, right, sorry. Well, maybe she and Felsi could, you know, heh heh heh."

Alice let out an exasperated sigh and turned back to Alistair, who seemed to have a self-satisfied grin on his face.

"While you and Oghren were groping, the Queen told me that a blood mage barred the door and we can't release her without the key, which is in the possession of one, Rendon Howe."

"Well then, I like it when things get simpler. Shall we?" It was hard to leave Anora when they finally had her so close, but what else could they do? They headed down the hall to pillage the treasure room and Arl Howe's office, pocketing gold and valuable documents, including some with indecipherable encryption. This would all be good intelligence when they could sit down and go through it. But, that would all have to be for later.

Alistair pointed down a long ramp into the basement. "Something tells me that we have to go this way. I don't get a good feeling about this at all," he said nervously, but then he straightened himself up and looked at Alice. "Stand in front, point the way, don't be scared. See, I'm teachable."

In spite of his silly foolishness, the Warden felt a certain pride in him. He had come a long way from being the lost boy, riding on Duncan's coattails, unable to make a decision to save his life. She reached under his open faced helm and patted him on the cheek. "Now, you just have to learn that thing with the tongue I've been telling you about."

The prince stopped short and reddened several shades. "I…umm…oh, it definitely gives a guy something to live for."

Morrigan shoved Alistair with a grunt. "Gods of the woods and the rivers, you two make me want to vomit. If you're going to lead, then lead."

Alice blushed herself and fell into step behind Alistair as they worked their way down the ramp. They opened the great wood and iron door, leading to the dungeon. This was it. She could taste Howe's blood on her lips already. It would only be a matter of time. They stepped through the door and the movement of a guard immediately caught their attention.

"Halt, who goes there?"

Before anyone could react, an arm poked through the doors of a cell and wrapped around the guard's neck, pulling the man tight against the iron bars. In another moment, there was a snapping sound and the guard went limp. The hands quickly found the guard's keys and the door squeaked open.

Alistair gripped the handle of his sword. "This could be good or bad."

A man walked out, dressed only in a dirty loincloth. His hair was dark and greasy and his beard, several weeks old. Bruises and welts covered his pale skin, but he still seemed proud and strong. With a bit of a painful grunt, he bowed and then began to take the guard's weapons. "I sense that you are not one of the arl's men, so I thank you for this timely and honorable rescue," he said in a faint Orlesian accent, tinged with something familiar to the Warden. "I…," he began before his eyes bore in on the prince. "Alistair? Is that you?"

Alistair looked back at the man, studying the face. "Wait, I do know you. You were at my joining. He's one of us," he told Alice. "A Warden from Orlais, Jader, I think. Or was it Montsimmard? I'm afraid I don't remember your name."

The man had removed much of the guard's armor by now and was putting some of it on, but he stood and bowed again. "I am Riordan, Senior Warden in Jader, but born and bred in Highever," he said, now looking at Alice. "My lady, it is good to see you alive. I knew your parents. They were always good to me and I was most saddened by news of their deaths."

Alice bowed her head. "I am comforted by your words, good sir. It is most pleasant to see another Warden. I had begun to lose hope for our Order."

"You may not remember me, but I was there years ago when you were still learning to ride and just learning the quintain. You were exceptional with a lance for your age."

She looked at Riordan with narrowed eyes, trying to remember. "Maker's Breath, you taught me to ride and taught Fergus before that. No, Riordan, it is I who am honored to rescue you. I know we do not have much time, but please, can you give me some information on how you came to be here?"

The Senior Warden told them that they had been sent by the Warden Comander of Orlais when no word was received from King Cailan as to the outcome of Ostagar. "The King had invited the Wardens of Orlais and their support troops to combat the Blight. But then, nothing."

"Now you know what happened, huh?"

"Yes, we came with two-hundred Wardens and two dozen divisions of cavalry, near three-thousand men. I am sorry that it was too late. Loghain's soldiers turned us back at the border. My agents then began to hear that the Wardens were being blamed for the massacre. As a native Ferelden, I volunteered to investigate."

"Will the Orlesian Wardens not help?" Alistair asked.

"We cannot risk widening the war and starting a conflict between Orlais and Ferelden. This is not about kingdoms, this is about the Blight. If Ferelden is too foolish to save itself then we will be ready when the Archdemon comes north." Riordan stepped forward and clapped Alice and Alistair on the shoulder. "But, I hear that you have not done too bad raising an army yourselves, no?" He went on to say how Loghain's emissaries had received him, but then he was poisoned and thrown into the dungeons of the arl.

Alice took a chance and showed him the coded papers from Howe's office. To their delight, it was a cipher that the Wardens used and fully explained the Joining Ritual as well as the names of the Wardens that Duncan had attempted to recruit. She read down the rolls and, when she got to Daveth and Jory, her gut tightened. "These two men, they are more than just names on a paper to me. I…Alistair and I knew them well, as well as anyone could."

"I do not doubt it. Many who come to the Wardens are thieves and rogues, but have no doubt that those who come to the joining are special." Riordan then spoke of a vault in Denerim that held the Wardens' secret stores. Duncan never had time to access it, but it was supposed to contain blood of an Archdemon necessary for the Joining. "By the time I got there, it was gone."

"Then, there is no hope for recruiting other Wardens?"

"I do not know. You should press on before we are discovered. I would come with you, but I am in no shape to fight. I can, however, still run."

Alice sighed. There was hope, but also disappointment. "Riordan, stay behind us a short distance. We can't risk you trying to escape back the way we came and being recaptured. Once we are done, you can come with us."

"Then I look forward to seeing your meeting with Rendon Howe."