Borrowed Time, Ch 9 – Where's Carl?
AN: Can you guys tell I love The Walking Dead? This has my cheesy horror stuff in it. It was delightfully fun to write.
It was past midnight in Redcliff when the undead, rotting corpses shuffled around the streets, searching for live bodies to tear apart. The corpses could hear whimpering within most of the walls, but with their still mostly inactive brains they didn't know how to get inside. They would stare at a wall, search for an opening, then move on for something easier to catch.
One large body, once the blacksmith, stumbled on the stairs and collided with the door. It heard a scream from a woman that had been listening closely on the other side. Rising and using its bulk as a battering ram, it smashed through the door. It now stood in the den, surrounded by a family of three – a mother, daughter, and young lad.
The mother turned and shouted to her children, "Kaitlyn, Bevin! Run!"
Once her children fled, she grabbed a knife from her kitchen, holding it against her chest with the blade facing the corpse in her home. She clearly had never wielded a weapon, she held it so close to her own body in panic she would sooner send the blade up into her own chin than into the body of the monster looming over her. She slashed at it anyway, making a large cut on its chest over its stilled heart.
This only angered the monster though. It didn't acknowledge pain as much as it recognized a potential threat. A large hand wrapped around the mother's throat and squeezed, crushing her windpipe. She dropped her knife and had it not fallen and bounced away, she would have fallen on it, for she was close behind. The undead blacksmith dragged her away, ignoring the crying of her children in the upstairs bedroom.
Several villagers were dragged to the center of the chantry's courtyard and disemboweled. Each that died on this night, as with the previous, would return tomorrow and claim their own former loved ones. The number of safe citizens in the chantry dwindled each day, and Bann Teagan stood inside the chantry, between them and the heavily barricaded doors. His hand was on the hilt of his sword and he was prepared for the worst. He listened to the screams that nearly broke his heart while his brother was in the castle near death. For the hundredth time, his lips moved in a silent prayer to the Maker, begging Him for a savior.
Loki bounded around Sten's feet, much to the qunari's annoyance. "Barshera! This troublesome hound needs to be disciplined!" He glared and the irritating animal as it grinned and ran to and fro. Leliana was just as cheerful as Loki, and reprimanded Sten for being in such a foul mood.
"Sten, he is just being a dog! No one would mind it if you were as joyful as he is being, especially on a day with such nice weather!" Sten growled in response to Leliana, and sunk to his knees to growl at the dog when it passed him again. Loki skidded to a halt in front of his aggressor and growled in return.
Leliana giggled as she watched them, then continued torturing Morrigan. "As I was saying, when we go shopping you won't have to worry about a thing. I will pick out the best dresses that suit you. Oh, if we could find a purple or dark red dress, I think that would be perfect. It would have to be fitted above the hip, of course. You have a very nice, shapely body and breasts. Oh, and shoes! If there are any like it in Ferelden, we should get you shoes with raised heels an black lace embroidery. And-"
"Enough!" Morrigan's hands were raised as if she was trying to ward of the headache she got from Leliana's fashion talk, caught between covering her ears and slapping Leliana in the face. "I have absolutely no desire to go shopping with you. And stop paying such attention to my body. Tis most disturbing!"
Behind them, Alistair was grinning about Morrigan being so thoroughly irritated. His glee died down when Shiva continued insulting his favorite snack.
"Ugh, that Maker forsaken blob of fuzz that stinks to high heavens? You put it in your mouth? I have a better idea. We should start chucking it at the darkspawn. They'll run straight back to the Deep Roads and run themselves in deepstalker shit just to forget that awful smell!"
"No! We are not throwing cheese at darkspawn! That's a waste of delicious-"
"Disgusting!" She emphasized her description by wrinkling her nose.
"No cheese throwing!" Alistair became the picture of a scolding mother – splintmail, sword, shield and muscles aside. He had one hand curled into a fist and was waggling a finger from the other hand at Shiva.
"Fine, how about you eat it and we'll just use your breath against them. Just know no one will ever kiss you after that. Unless you find an Orlesian lass. Hey, we'll ask Leliana!"
"No, we're not talking about kissing. We're talking about food." Food was a comforting, neutral, not embarrassing conversation. Alistair had yet to go a week without blushing.
"Fine, but let's find something we both think is delicious. How about bread? Oh Maker, I love bread!"
"Bread is only one of the most amazing things! You know why? It goes good with cheese!"
"Oh, Aliiis!"
"Alice? That's a girl's name! Anyway, what could be better than cheese? I bet you can't come up with three things!"
"Besides bread, ale, and sex? Oh Alistair, please tell me you like sex more than cheese." She was truly worried how he would respond at this point.
Alistair's eyes widened. He turned his head away hiding his growing blush. "Well, I might, probably… If, you know."
It was Shiva's turn to be surprised. "Alistair! Have you never-"
"Silence, woman! We are not talking about this." He moved away from her, putting Loki between them as if the dog was a wall.
"You won't get off that easy!" Shiva was giggling at his embarrassment. "Actually, if you are what I think you are, you probably would get off easily the first few times. After that you would hopefully build up some stamina." Alistair kept moving away until he was on the other side of Leliana and Morrigan. He was practically horrified by then. "Oh, come back. I'll be nice and drop it for now." He didn't believe her but moved back anyway, deciding he'd rather deal with Shiva and her dirty talk over Morrigan any day. Shiva decided she really was going to be nice and went back to a neutral topic. "The way we talk about food though I'm surprised we're not a couple of fatties rolling down the road."
Alistair kicked a rock that was in his way, making it tumble past Loki, who chased and bit at it. "It's because of all this walking! We're working off fat we haven't even gained yet."
A merchant on the road caused them to stop. He introduces himself as Felix. Shiva couldn't quite catch his last name wit the overly bouncy way he said it. It sounded pretty much like "Felix de gross-bwah!" Shiva shrugged after her third failed mental pronunciation attempt. She didn't intend to listen to whatever he was selling, but then he said the word "golem."
A golem? Wow, talk about your pet rock! It's not like it has to be fed or taken in the yard to shit or anything. Sten would be out-muscled by their new companion, it wouldn't whine like Alistair, bitch like Morrigan, bark like Loki.
Other than that, she sure didn't know what they would use it for. But since it was free, why not? They accepted the control rod and went down the road where Felix said the village was. It would be farther south than they were heading, since Redcliff was now due west, but Redcliff would have to wait. They had a golem to claim.
Of course there was a catch. Why wouldn't there be a catch? The whole damn village was overrun by darkspawn. Shiva felt it the same time she heard screaming. A handful of villagers stumbled past them with darkspawn running close behind. The darkspawn stopped, recognizing that Shiva and the companions she had with her – Sten, Leliana, and Morrigan – were far more threatening than the terrified citizens they had been chasing before. The darkspawn hesitated no longer than a few seconds, however. They charged forward with more determination.
Shiva withdrew her sword from a darkspawn's head. Sten was standing near her with blood welling up through his heavy chainmail. "Are you all right?" He didn't show any pain, she didn't expect him to. But he was considerably more agitated now that he had been wounded. He had been cut when he had to dodge one of Morrigan's ice spikes that had been shot too close behind him. Dodging her magic caused him to be open to the darkspawn's swing, which connected.
"There is no need for concern," he grunted. It was one of the milder responses she had received from him. He didn't dislike her outright, but he had reservations about her leadership – ones he had yet to voice. But it was evident his anger wasn't directed at her. Especially when he turned to glare at Morrigan, blaming her for his pain.
Shiva realized she had underestimated the witch's bravery when Morrigan addressed him. "Do you find me interesting, Qunari? You are staring at me as if I were covered in jewels." She was a seductive woman to begin with, but when she purred the word 'interesting,' Shiva wondered if even Sten could ignore the temptation. He seemed as though he did, considering his retort.
"It would be something. You should watch your spells, mage. Qunari know how to keep you animals contained. I have shown restraint thus far considering the way humans let you all run free, spreading your chaos like a disease." Sten was definitely not tempted.
Shiva left them to their bickering. The spikes of taint she felt were growing stronger. She walked forward with Leliana by her side. When they rounded a curve, they could see most of the village. Before the darkspawn came, it must have been picturesque. The grass was a lush green, the paths were neat and languidly curved. Following the path left, there was a fence surrounding an island of grass. A golem stood in the center, arms raised as if in fury. After killing several more darkspawn, with the help of Sten and Morrigan, who had settled their dispute for now, Shiva approached the golem. It didn't activate. She tried using the phrase and waving the control rod twice. Nothing happened.
They entered the door to what looked like a basement. Upon entering, they found stairs leading to a large library. Some shelves were overturned and the books had fallen into a heap on the floor. Most of the corners had thick cobwebs from years of abandonment. In one alcove, there was a barrel of mead next to four stacked journals. Leliana, Sten, and Morrigan were each going through different parts of the room, so Shiva was free to fill her flask, which had been empty since Lothering. She flipped open the top journal while sipping at the flask. The journals were from over 30 years before. The one who wrote them, a mage named Wilhelm, was traveling with an army. He complained through most of the pages Shiva flipped through, but one page was different. The writing was more sprawled, as if it was written in a hurry or some other time of extreme excitement. The first words of the page caught her eye.
Prince Maric is alive!
Shiva's eyebrows shot up and she started reading the journal's contents more diligently.
It's really him! I cast a spell on him to make sure.
We had all lost hope. Oh, had he been slain by those Orlesian lickspittles, like his dear mother, Queen Moira – Maker rest her soul – Ferelden would have no one to replace that loathsome Orlesian pig in Denerim. But here he was! Passed by my tent not an hour ago! With Lady Rowan and some commoner at Prince Maric's heel.
Shiva didn't realize she had been holding her breath. She would often dream of coming across something so important – treasure maps were one thing, they led to gold and gold would be too quickly spent – but this was a fascinating piece of the war with Orlais. She hadn't read any personal accounts from that time, just stuffy books that had been fabricated with glorious this and that. Here was truth. It was worth so much more.
Her history lusting daze was interrupted when she felt breath on her neck. She turned quickly, ready to attack if it was an enemy, but she turned to find large, clear blue eyes and red hair that smelled like lilies. Leliana was so close, her face hovering over Shiva's shoulder, that Shiva's movement nearly had her kissing the sister's cheek.
"Do you know what this is?" Her voice was full of girlish excitement. Shiva suddenly found her lisp adorable, but why, she didn't know.
"Yes," Shiva answered, wondering why she was looking at the woman practically pressed up against her body this way. "It's the journal of a mage who was in the rebel army. I'm so taking this. Who cares who it belongs to." Shiva greedily snatched the stack of journals, four in all. Leliana was nodding behind her.
"Absolutely. Finders keepers, after all."
After stuffing the journals in her pack, Shiva refilled her flask. She didn't realize she drank so much of it while she read, but she felt a little different.
"How is the mead?" Leliana bent down to sniff at the spigot. "It smells… Different from any drink I've ever tried."
Shiva offered her flask. Leliana took a small sip and hummed. "It's… Magical!" Shiva raised her eyebrow, tasting what of the drink was still on her tongue.
"It's pretty good, I guess-"
"No, I mean – I feel like someone just cast a healing spell on me. I feel rejuvenated. Don't you feel it too?"
The former pirate wondered why she hadn't noticed it before, but that was the feeling it had given her as well. "Well, this guy was a mage. Maybe he mixed it with some sort of potion. Either way, it's not half bad. Makes me wish I still had a second flask."
Leliana giggled, shaking her head. "A second one? How much do you drink?"
"No, no. The second was filled with fresh water. It was for those rough days at sea."
"Oh," the sister giggled some more. "That's a relief. I was about to tell you that there's a small chance you have a drinking problem."
"It's only a problem when I start losing my lunch," Shiva winked.
The girls had wasted enough time with their banter and went further into Wilhelm's cellar. There was a group of darkspawn trying to figure out how to get past a magical barrier some of the surviving villagers had erected. Shiva and her companions had them slain before their audience knew who had come to their rescue.
Matthias was the son of Wilhelm. He asked Shiva if she could find his daughter deeper in the cellar. Shiva acquiesced, mostly because she wanted an excuse to see what else could be beyond there.
Unfortunately, there wasn't much. Some demons, some crystals, a dead man. No more magical mead. Oh, and a possessed cat that told her to solve a floor puzzle. The puzzle was in the center of the room, five by five tiles. There was an active furnace on one corner and each tile somehow directed the flow of the flames. Tampering with it and standing in the wrong spot got Shiva burned several times. Her companions didn't need to offer any help since she understood what she had to do pretty quickly. When the flames had been brought to the opposite corner, the anti-demon cat barrier was removed. She had no intention of letting the demon cat be free, however. Especially since it was going to possess Matthias' daughter. They killed the demon after it shifted back to its natural form and were free to head back out of the cellar. They had seen all it had to offer, and then some. Matthias was grateful enough to give them the correct phrase to activate the golem, who had been the reason for Wilhelm's demise.
Outside, they tried once more to activate the golem.
Shiva held her breath. This had been a full days detour that had resulted in injury - there was no way she would allow it to be for nothing. She already felt eyes on her back when Sten was behind her, ever since she opened his cage.
She knew the ways of the Qun, and she knew Sten was a firm believer in it since he was still identifying himself by his rank in the army. The Qun had specific rules about women's roles. In all honesty, it reminded her of her home outside of Thedas. But Thedas had been her whole world for the past 12 years, and she didn't have to follow what her people said. She sure didn't have to follow the Qun. Unfortunately, a warrior with a larger blade, superior strength, and most likely more experience on the battlefield did. She did not trust Sten. He was definitely not at ease around her - if their race was capable of being at ease.
But he was following her, as were Leliana and Morrigan. She didn't want to be made a fool of and waste their time in the process. The seconds before the large golem moved felt long. It did move though. Its head turned. Its arms shook before coming loose of whatever held it still. With a final shake, it was free. The golem stood to its full height and observed the scene before it - turning it's head both directions before looking down at Shiva standing directly before him. She was considering it with a look of academic interest. His gaze upon her was filled with contempt
"Well?" The golem snapped. "What is its command?" Shiva took a step back, mouth agape, before she burst into a fit of laughter.
"Oooh, no one told me golems were so touchy. Those dwarves are tricky folk, I'll tell ya."
The golem raised what would have been an eyebrow. "It does have the control rod, doesn't it? I am awake, so it must."
Shiva waved the control rod to show she did indeed have it. She let it drop to her side. "Considering your will is bound to it, you must know something about how the control rod works, yes? If I did not command you, would you be able to do as you wish?"
The golem gaped in surprise. It seemed to become skeptical however, as the seconds passed. "Is it playing some kind of game? Just command me already."
Shiva considered her next action carefully. If she was wrong, whatever soul inhabited the golem may depart and they would be left with nothing. If she was right, the creature would be in her debt. Perhaps even grateful.
"Oh, go on." The golem prodded. "It'll be fun."
"Very well. What is your name?"
"It can call me Shale."
"A pleasure to meet you, Shale." Shiva crossed her ankles and gave a slight curtsey. "Shale, destroy the fence." The action was carried out immediately. In a marvelous display, Shale strode over to the fence and reduced the logs to splinters with its massive stone fingers. Swiping left and right as it walked, the golem destroyed nearly half of it before she commanded him to stop. Shale stilled, standing before a vertical post. Shiva walked over to Shale, feeling how sturdy the control rod was. She couldn't tell what it was made of, but it seemed to be ivory veined with lyrium. She placed the control rod on the post.
"Sten, may I borrow your sword?" The qunari removed his steel claymore and handed it to her.
It had been long since she held a two-handed sword. Much less used one. She loved training with them. It best suited her when she fought in a rage, which was her usual mood when she had undergone training. With each powerful swing, she could feel the fury leaving her body. But now she would not sink the blade into some foe. No foe of hers, at least. She raised the sword over her head and brought it down on the control rod. With a burst of lightning, the control rod shattered in the center. Lyrium began to leak out of it and Shale stood in shock. Shiva had been thrown back by the force of the control rod breaking, but she was already on her feet, wondering if Shale was frozen in place once more.
Thankfully, it was not. "Could it actually be… broken? Then this means… I have free will! Command me once more and we shall find out!"
"Okay… Dance!" That seemed like a win-win situation. Who can claim to have seen a golem dance? How would that look? Would they dance as a small child does - hands curled into fists by their chest and jumping like they're stomping ants? Would it sway? Walk in place?
Shiva was a little disappointed when Shale responded with no dance. It was at a total loss for what to do. "Why would it break the control rod? Not that I disagree with what it has done, no. I grew tired of commands long ago, with that ridiculous mage. 'Golem, fetch me that chair. Golem, squish that insipid bandit.' Best of all, 'Golem, pick me up. I tire of walking.'"
Wilhelm sounds like a dick.
"I have no desire for a mindless stone rolling behind me. I am a leader, not a master. If you wish to follow me, you are welcome to. We are traveling, killing things, being followed by bounty hunters that were sent by a fussy general that's blaming us for his actions."
"I will follow it about then."
Shiva, Morrigan, Leliana, Sten, and Shale left the ruined village of Honnleath.
Lloyd was running fast for a fat man. He was even able to keep up with Bella, though that is only because when he groped her and she tried to get away, she twisted her ankle. Bella was still limping. It didn't help that she ran into a table and hit her hip that morning as well. Same side as the twisted ankle.
They were running toward the chantry. They thought staying in the tavern's cellar would keep them safe, but the walking dead had broken through. Several members of the militia at that, so they were armed with the last weapons the blacksmith made before he died. The chantry was too well barricaded for them to be let in, so Lloyd went to the ladder that was still propped up against one of the buildings and clambered up it. He had enough of a lead so he could get to the roof in time, but he kicked the ladder down, leaving Bella screaming in the courtyard with nowhere to go.
She limped to the chantry door in desperation, beating on the door and begging for help. She felt clammy hands wrap around her neck and pull her back enough to smash her head into the door with enough force to have her forehead cave in. The corpse smashed her head a few more times for good measure before it and some others sunk to the ground to devour her flesh.
Lloyd did not survive the night either. He was on top of the smithy, lying face down trying to keep quiet and out of sight. The corpses did not sense him and had forgotten all about his presence after Bella's unwilling sacrifice. Nearly two hours past midnight, the roof caved in and he fell right into the forge. It was still blazing since one of the men that remained had attempted to forge some shields. It had to be abandoned as the fog signaling the return of their undead nightmares came early.
Lloyd landed on his face. The impact knocked him out but did not kill him. Coals burned the side of his face and through his right eye. He awoke after some minutes, becoming aware of the pain and the noise from the undead breaking the door down. Pork roast, anyone?
Teagan was leaning against the wall. He knew the corpses wouldn't get in side. But that didn't stop the blood. He heard the poor tavern girl screaming. He wanted to help her. The thud and cracking of bone that came through the door, followed by the seeping of her blood under the door had sickened him. He paled and brought his hand to his lips. His usually graceful, steady hand now shook as it was poised by his mouth in an attempt to hold everything in. The only bit of luck on this night was that he was able to swallow the mouthful of vomit without anyone noticing how much it had affected him. He needed to be strong for the few souls left.
He tried to leave with them, but they were weak since there wasn't enough food left. One child fainted before they got across the small bridge up the hill. They all had to turn back with their hope shattered. Teagan was giving up. Surely none of them would survive the following night.
The two wardens had overslept. They had stayed up, drinking the magical mead and joking. Leliana kept distracting her, too, asking without words if they could look over Wilhelm's journals together. Shiva wanted to make sure Leliana was the one to sleep first so the sister wouldn't take a notion and get the journals out of Shiva's pack. She wanted them all to herself for the first reading.
It was late morning before camp was picked up. The only ones who hadn't lent a hand were Shale and Loki, who were still not getting along. Loki didn't know what to make of Shale. He kept running around the golem, barking. Shale didn't trust Loki either. It kept stomping around in a circle, warning Loki not to pee on him. Everyone but Sten watched the two creatures, chuckling and wondering how much longer they would be at it.
"Enough! Stop running about so I can KILL IT!" Shale did a massive stomp. The ground under the entire camp shook. Loki was feet away from the golem so he felt much more force than anyone else. The hound yipped and ran behind Shiva for protection. Those of the party that had served as an audience were howling with laughter.
It was a great start for the day and they were not at all prepared for what they would see when they'd reach Redcliff.
