7.
"Hunters!"
"The previous several years have seen two dragon flights ranging out of the Frostback and Orkney Mountains, even though it was thought that dragons had been hunted to extinction by Nevarran dragon hunters during the Steel Age. The dragons devastated the countrysides in Orlais and Nevarra, and all attempts to slay them ended in disaster. Despite this destruction, some see the return of dragons to Thedas as a glorious sign—Chantry scholars, however, claim that this is the worst of omens. As the Blessed Age draws to a close, they named the Dragon Age, saying that it will be an age of violence and upheaval."
-End of Age historical records, Pentaghast Library, Nevarra City, 8:99 Blessed
They came at night as they always did, to catch the majority of the brood asleep. The cultists that guarded them would be at their dullest. It was a long-held strategy that had served them well over the centuries. They were dragon hunters from Nevarra, experts at their craft. They came from a distinguished line of dragon slayers…the Pentaghasts. And they were the ruling clan of the country of Nevarra, militaristic and politically astute.
Nevarra was originally one of the the larger Free Marches city states. But as a result of an aggressive expansion campaign that spanned the Storm and Blessed Ages, they had become a powerful rival of Orlais, and indeed, had engaged in a border war with them over the mineral rights of the western hills at Perendale. Nevarra had emerged victorious, but an uneasy truce remained, with civil unrest still percolating in the conquered region…fueled by Orlais, of course.
The Pentaghasts had assumed leadership of a powerful federation of Free Marches states…alliances formed either by persuasion or pressure. Either way, they ruled with an iron grip. They were well-suited to the task and their illustrious history spoke to it. Famed for their dragon hunting heritage, each of the dragon hunters throughout their history had led a crusade to hunt dragons to extinction. And they came close to succeeding. While they were revered as heroes, the truth was they hunted primarily for glory and dragonbone, not for the good of the people. But for all their efforts, inexplicably, at the end of the Blessed Age, dragons resurfaced across the land, leading to the new age being titled the Dragon Age.
But this was a boon and a bounty for the men that appeared at the mouth of the cave harboring Morrigan's cult. The Nevarrans knew that dragons prefer to settle in old ruins and cave complexes. Through the Steel Age, humans often destroyed such locations to discourage dragons from nesting close to settlements, but such precautions fell out of practice after dragon hunters had nearly ended their existence. This particular location was well away from any settlements, and well-disguised. It was only their expertise that had allowed them to recognize cultists getting supplies in Gwaren, and track them back to their seaside lair many leagues away. Nevarran dragon hunters were renowned for their ability to sniff out dragons and those that worshipped them. One of the hunters had spotted the odd physical appearance of a cultist and the group had followed them on the long march back to the brood. And they waited for nightfall.
They were 36 strong in the hunting party, a small army, in fact...all seasoned warriors, all experienced dragon slayers. They were well-armed and well-armored. They expected to be victorious…to clean out another nest of the beasts and their loyal followers. But they did not know of the fledgling God the cultists harbored. They were not aware a most powerful sorceress was their high priestess. They did not expect a Grey Warden, and this Grey Warden in particular, to be among the enemy. It was a bad day to be a dragon hunter.
"I will free you somehow, Dekker, I swear it," Morrigan vowed. "As long as the Old God needs me, I will have some measure of freedom within the lair. I will arrange something…a diversion, perhaps. And you will be able to escape. We will find a way," she said, a determined look on her features.
The Warden had to smile at her ferocity in trying to protect him. He nodded. "And then, I will find a way to free you, my love, if it's the last thing I do," Dekker said.
She allowed a half smile to spread across her lips and took his hand. She realized she felt the ring she had given him and looked down at it hopefully. "Perhaps," she said wistfully.
He took her chin in his palm and looked in her eyes, wondering what was going through her mind. She only smiled, but it was tinged with sadness he thought. He would tell Morrigan that she was no longer an apostate. That would surely cheer her.
Before he could tell her about it, they heard shouting and the clanging of sword and shield outside the room. The Warden instinctively reached for his gear, momentarily forgetting his circumstance…that it had been taken from him.
Morrigan paused for a moment, then she answered aloud, "Yes, I will come."
The Warden was startled…until he realized she had just been summoned. The link she had referred to had been activated.
"Stay here, Dekker. The brood is under attack by dragon hunters. 'Tis my place to defend them," she said, as she moved to the door aggressively.
The Warden grabbed her arm protectively, "No, don't…you don't know how many or how well-armed they are…I…I don't have my weapons…"
"You know I must…" she said sadly. Then she smiled encouragingly at him, flung open the door, and vaulted into the fray, a frosty wintery mix spewing from her hands into the group of hunters that stood before her.
The Warden looked around him frantically for anything he could use as a weapon. Seeing nothing, he decided to improvise. He only needed to subdue one armed man to gain his arsenal. The Warden grabbed a wooden chair and hurtled himself like a madman at the nearest hunter, smashing the chair over his head. The man's armor prevented him from being hurt, but the force with which the Warden hit him was enough to knock him to the ground, stunned. That was all Dekker needed. He stomped the man's chest, knocking the air from his lungs, and before the hunter could regain his wind, the Warden had deprived him of his sword, shield and a dagger. Ah, that is better, Dekker thought. The man rolled over and regained his footing, but finding he was facing a fully armed man and had been stripped of his own weapons, he began to back away towards the front door of the manor.
"Run, dragon hunter, and never come back or I shall strip you of your armor, too!" the Warden shouted. He turned to find Morrigan standing next to him, having already dispatched the three hunters she had faced. She burst out laughing, "Well done, my Warden…and with a chair! Imagine what damage you could have done had you real weapons. They are no match for you."
He grinned.
Then she noticed the open door behind him…and no guards between the Warden and the door. "Now! 'Tis your chance! Go!" she cried.
The sounds of battle raged elsewhere in the manor and in the cave below.
He shook his head. "Not till I know you are safe…that these dragon hunters are defeated," he said.
Morrigan started to argue with him, but she felt her blood warm and Narsul's commands more insistent in her head. "I…must go…Dekker, please," she tried once more.
He shook his head again. "Come, it will be like it once was…we will make short work of them together," he said. He offered her his best mischievous grin.
Morrigan could not help but return his smile and nodded. They had made a good team. She charged down into the lair with the Warden at her side just like in the days of old.
"'Tis a Griffon rider, a Grey Warden, I recognize him!" said one of the men in the group that blocked the tunnel.
"Why do you not travel in appropriate gear so you may be recognized, Warden?" the leader of the hunters said. "Perhaps you are in league with these cultists and you wish to be anonymous," he theorized, eying the Warden suspiciously.
"No!" Morrigan shouted, "'Tis not so! He is not part of the cult! He is their prisoner!"
"Bah! We cannot take the word of the high priestess! If he were your prisoner, you would not be so anxious to protect him. No, she seeks to protect her flock. We shall do the Grey Wardens a service and slay you for the traitor that you are! Kill them!" the Nevarran hunter ordered.
The men flew at the Warden. His lack of armor put him in a precarious position, but Morrigan was ahead of him. A cone of frigid arctic air blasted from her hands, instantly freezing three of the men in mid-stride. One of the attackers diverted to take out Morrigan, but the Warden was at her side, bashing the man with his shield and spinning to strike him from behind. He rolled back to the frozen forms of the hunters and swung his shield flat, shattering two of the men. Then he struck 2 mighty blows with his sword in rapid succession killing the third as he thawed.
Morrigan had turned her attention to the remaining hunters, unleashing an arc of lightning that conducted from one man to another, killing three in a line of onrushers.
The Warden was engaged with two others, and with expert blocking and striking tactics, dispatched them quickly.
The two men that remained in the rearward group, one of them the man who had recognized the Warden, looked awestruck. Slack-jawed and terrified, they turned to run.
Morrigan looked over at him and then at the group of men they had just taken out. A satisfied smile came over her face. A smile of fond remembrance.
The Warden returned it. They were just as effective together as they had been against the darkspawn, nearly two years ago.
Then the smile ran away from her face. "Yes, I understand," she answered. Morrigan turned to the Warden. "There are more. In the main chamber and the beach entrance. They hope to block our escape. Come," she said authoritatively.
When they reached the main chamber, the fighting was furious. Dragon screeching filled the air. Shouts and screams and metal striking metal. Drakes were breathing fire at the hunters, snapping at them, trying to defend the dragonlings, who bit at the legs of the well-armored men uselessly. The cultist numbers were great, but dwindling. The skills and equipment of the hunters were far superior.
Morrigan estimated there were perhaps 15 dragon hunters here, all actively engaged. She did not see the Old God. He would undoubtedly be hidden away to protect Him from harm…and from discovery, doing what He could from a safe vantage point. She saw this as her chance to free the Warden. "Quickly, Dekker. We will go to the beach entrance to take on the men there. I will not be subjected to the burning as long as I am making an effort to engage the enemy, and you will be given your opportunity," she said.
He nodded, understanding her idea…bypass the fighting here, which kept the drakes and cultists busy. Then take out the hunters at the beach entrance and he would be free to escape. Clever. He admired her once again. "Wait! My equipment!"
She nodded and they ran to a chest in the main chamber that held his gear, retrieved it and he donned his armor as he ran, enjoying the feel of his weapons in his hands again.
When they reached the beach, there were only five men blocking the way.
Morrigan glanced at him, smiling. "Child's play," she murmured, and unleashed a lightning storm on them, killing two instantly, and downing another. The Warden was on the remaining two, hacking and slashing. They never knew what happened. They simply were alive one moment and not the next.
Morrigan and the Warden ran out onto the beach to be sure the coast was, in truth, clear. There was no one. The only sound was the crashing of the surf as it rolled onto the shore. It was an odd disparity from the noises within the cave they had just exited…surreal, as though they had just left one world and entered another.
Morrigan looked at him sadly. "Go quickly, Dekker. I will return to the main chamber. There were not so many left. I will do away with them easily, I think, with the help of the brood. Take care, my Warden," she said, unable to keep the tears from welling.
He gripped her shoulders. "I love you, Morrigan, I'll be back for you, I swear it," the Warden said, resting his head against hers.
"No! You must never come back here. I cannot leave, do you not understand?" she wailed.
"I'll find a way. I'll talk to every mage in every town. I'll have the Circle research it. Wynne, Anders, Velanna…everyone. There must be some spell, some potion that will end the burning," he said, desperation rising in his voice.
"Do you not think I have searched? That I have not tried to end this nightmare? I found nothing. No…I will not let you waste your life searching for something that does not exist…not …for me," Morrigan said, her voice breaking. "You must forget me, you must…"
He cut her off. "I will never forget you…why do you not believe me when I tell you? I love you beyond anything I could have imagined. I want no other. I cannot get over you. I cannot. I know you feel it, too. Can you not tell me you love me after I have come all this way, searched all this time? Can you not say it? Even now? When I am leaving?" he pleaded, his eyes begging her.
Her lips parted to speak, but she stopped, and said nothing. How could he understand? 'Twas because he had gone to such great lengths…because he loved her so, that she would not say it. She wanted to, but she would not tie him to her for the rest of his life and keep him hanging forever with her words. If she told him the truth now…if she told him she loved him, he would never give up on her. He would never stop trying to free her, and it would consume him. She did not wish him to spend the rest of his life pining for her. She had hurt him enough.. If she could not be with him, she would rather…he…find someone else. Even as she thought it, a lump rose in her throat and her eyes welled. She did love him…enough to give him up
She turned away. "Dekker, I…'tis impossible, no. I am sorry. But I told you not to look for me, not to follow. I did not wish this for you, to be enslaved as I am. I beg you, leave now, before they find you. I must go back and help the others before my blood warms," she said numbly.
The Warden's face fell. He had thought she might admit it then.
"Goodbye, Dekker, fare thee well," Morrigan said softly as she started back to the lair.
He grabbed her arm. "Morrigan, do you think I do not know why you will not say it? I know you think to protect me from myself, from spending my life trying to save you. But you cannot. Whether you speak the words or not, I will never stop trying to help you. I told you once, I will always protect you, and I meant it. I will not rest until you are free, and nothing you say or do will stop me. Please, Morrigan, I need to hear it from your lips before I leave," Dekker entreated.
She would not face him. His pleas were met with silence.
The Warden sighed, and released her. "I will come for you, Morrigan, when I have the answer. And I will find an answer. Please be careful, and do not anger them. You will be free one day, I swear it. Goodbye, my love," he said emotionally, and turned to leave.
He had only taken a few steps when she cried out, "Dekker!"
He turned and she was in his arms. "If you are such a fool that you stubbornly refuse to give up on one such as I, then I must at least send you away with the truth, must I not?" she murmured into his ear. "I love you, Dekker, my Warden, I love you…I will always love you," she whispered. Then she kissed him.
When she released his lips, she looked him in the eye, "Promise me you will not return unless you can free me from the blood ties. I could not bear it if…promise me."
Dekker nodded grimly.
"I must go, the dragons must not be allowed to die, or I will face the same fate. There are only a few hunters left, I can easily dispatch them," she said pulling away from him.
The Warden reluctantly let her go. "Stay alive, Morrigan, damn it! Don't fight them. Do what they ask and wait for me. I'll find a way to help you. I'll come for you. I love you, Morrigan," he said, choking on his own emotion.
She offered him an encouraging half-smile. "Do not fear for me, my Warden. It will take more than a few dragons and an Old God to slay me. I am much too obstinate to die. I will wait for you. But if you do not come, know that I will always remember our…'entanglement'," she said. Morrigan gazed at him a moment longer, her reluctance to leave transparent.
Then she turned and ran back into the cave to finish the hunters, leaving the Warden standing alone on the beach, the sound of the surf and her words ringing in his ears…'I love you, Dekker'. At last, he thought. He swallowed the lump in his throat and took off at a brisk trot, bound for Ferelden and the Circle of Magi to begin his search for Morrigan's cure.
