Our Ghosts Are The Same
Dragon Age 2
Chapter 10: Taint, Taint, Taint
A/N: Um, because I'm lame I used EVE Online's character creator to make Aedan, Cartier, and Sienna sooooo if you want to see what they look like they're on my blog, vault-escape-artist under the tag "our-ghosts-are-the-same". I'd also include a link to it, but links never work on here so I really can't. Sorry.
Fuck, this chapter is long. As always your reviews make my fucking day. So thanks.
Hawke fell asleep in her chair, her father's staff uncomfortably positioned across her lap. Rebel, her mabari, was running in circles around her, chasing after dust or his own tail or whatever. His sudden spout of barking woke her and she jerked her head up so fast she felt as if she had just broken her own neck. Not the way she wanted to go out.
Rubbing her neck and groaning, Hawke headed for her doorway which was being filled up by the last person she wanted to see; the Seneschal.
"Who let Bran in?" she moaned, looking around for someone to pin this on. "Maker, why are you here? Unless you need something decimated, like that awful wardrobe of yours, you should leave. I'd walk you home but...I really don't want to."
He didn't seem appreciative of her fashion advice. "Where were you all night?! You ran off, leaving your guests! Do you have any idea how rude that was?"
"No, but I'm sure you're going to tell me." She sighed, knowing Bran's visit was going to be more unpleasant than usual.
"It was inexcusable. Kirkwall wasted precious funds on that banquet, funds we could have spent on reconstruction!"
Then why was he yelling at her? She never asked for that damn banquet. She didn't even want to go. "Right... I see why you're upset. Why don't I show you to the door and you can spend a night at the Blooming Rose, on me. Just put it on my tab." Hawke started nudging him towards her door.
"You're mother would have been ashamed of you."
She froze, utterly taken aback. Would even Bran stoop so low? The Seneschal turned to face her, preparing for another scolding, and suddenly his head whipped back. Hawke was vaguely aware of a throbbing pain across her knuckles before she connected the dots. Maker, she had just punched the Seneschal in the face.
Sensing a fight, Rebel stopped playing and charged at Bran, causing the man to swallow whatever curse he had been ready to throw at Hawke and run out her door instead.
Well, it looked like Hawke would be getting a visit from Aveline tonight. Whether she wanted it or not.
Ohgren was coming to Kirkwall? Aedan loved that drunken, crazy bastard, but he was not who Aedan wanted on a mission like this. It was too political. If Ohgren didn't have a darkspawn head to decapitate the dwarf would lose what was left of his mind. Aedan thought about it all the way to breakfast. Seriously, why couldn't Nathaniel send Sigrun instead?
It was early, really early in the morning. The Comte and Comtessa were still asleep and Aedan tried not to wake up the servants while he made breakfast. Sienna and Cartier were not happy about the early hour. Both of them were muttering curses as they sat down at the Comte's dining table and Aedan served them porridge, eggs, and whatever fruit was available. He had only been meaning to cook for himself, but every time he entered a kitchen he emerged with an entire bloody banquet.
Oh, Maker, the banquet. That night certainly hadn't gone down how he had planned. Running after thieves, slaughtering said thieves... At least they had obtained their mission goal; retrieve the Champion's weapon. Even though last night she had shown that she had no qualms about jumping into a fight completely empty handed. She was more of a beserker than a mage. She and Ohgren would get along fantastic...if Aedan had any intention of letting the two ever meet. And he did not.
Edith ate her breakfast in silence, staring at Cartier who was sleeping on the table with his head in his arms. "Someone's fucking hungover," Sienna observed drily. Edith nodded her assent.
"I noticed," Aedan replied, going into the kitchen and retrieving one of the Comtessa's largest metal pots. When he returned he unceremoniously dumped the pot, letting it clatter loudly to the floor. Cartier's head snapped up from the table at the sound. "Commander, please-"
"Are you hungover, Cartier?" Aedan asked him icily. When one of the Comte's servants went to pick up the fallen pot, Aedan stopped him saying, "No, no. I dropped it. I'll get it." Aedan picked the pot up once more, held it out at chest length, and then let it slip from his fingers. "Damn. That was completely unintentional."
"All right, Commander, you made you're point." Cartier sat up, grumbling. It was amazing how he could make Commander sound like 'you little shit'. Aedan might have been his commanding officer, but Cartier had quite a few years on him.
"Eat fast. I want to make it to the Chantry before the crowd." Aedan quickly finished off his plate and used water from his water skin to wash it down.
Sienna was incredulous. "The Chantry has a crowd?"
Aveline arrived in the morning, as Hawke had expected, flanked by a few of her guards. Hawke glanced up at her from over her toast. Smirking, she asked, "How's Bran's face doing? He's rather pretty for a man, but not so much with a broken nose, I bet."
"Hawke," Aveline sighed heavily.
"If it makes you feel better I made sure he really deserved it," Hawke offered with a disappearing grin.
Aveline took away her plate of toast, frowning. "That doesn't make it any better. The Seneschal is demanding you be punished. And I can't really argue with him, Hawke. You did attack him." Aveline looked apologetic, but Hawke simply shrugged it off.
"It's fine, Aveline. I'll just sit in your jail until someone bails me out." She paused, suddenly second guessing her brilliant plan. Her companions weren't exactly known for visiting her just for shits and giggles. "Nah, it'll work. One of them will need something eventually." She had her money on Varric being the one to come and bail her out. He had impeccably good timing.
"Then you know the drill."
Sadly she did. Hawke held out both of her arms and one of the new guards tied her wrists together. She sighed, "Lead the way, Aveline. Preferably before the Chantry crowd wakes up and sees me."
The scene Aedan, Cartier, and Edith saw on the way to the Chantry was odd, though not surprising. The Champion was partially bound and was being escorted by a few of the city guards, the Captain of the Guard among them. He considered whether or not he should get involved. Cartier was asleep on his feet and Edith, honestly Aedan didn't know what was up with her. She was too bloody quiet for him to get a reading on her.
Shit. The Champion had caught him staring. She raised her bound wrists and wiggled her fingers at him. He couldn't just stand there now. Grimacing because he genuinely didn't want to be involved in whatever mess the Champion had got herself into (maybe those thieves had had families that missed them?), Aedan walked over to her and her keepers. Because he was dressed as a noble today, the guards stopped at his approach while their captain scowled at them for halting without orders.
"Hawkling," he greeted her, remembering at the last minute the name he had given her the previous night. "Are you in some sort of trouble?"
"Oh." Hawke looked around at her escorts and then down at her tied wrists. "Well, I could see how it might look that way to the untrained eye. But, nah, I'm fine. No templars, no problems."
Aedan was far from convinced. "This isn't about last night, is it?" He looked to Aveline for answers. "If so, I'm afraid I was involved as well. If restitution is called for, I'll have to join the Champion." He went to go on to say that his squire should be pardoned since she was following his orders, but Hawke interrupted him.
Wide eyed, she laughed, "You punched the Seneschal in the face, too?!"
"What? No!" Aedan stared at her. His first seneschal at Vigil's Keep had laid down his life for him. Evidently Hawke had not been so lucky with seneschals.
"Damn. Someone should hit Bran again." It took Hawke a moment to realize that Aveline had been less than pleased by that statement. "Oh. No, Aveline, I meant I am so sorry for what I've done and I'm ready to reenter society as a solid, reformed citizen."
"Shut it, Hawke. We both know when you're lying." Guard-Captain Aveline was reprimanding the Champion, but it was done in the most loving way possible. "If you'll excuse us, my lord."
Aedan nodded to them all as they headed on for the Keep. Hawke would probably need bailing out, but he was not sure he could justify using the Crown's gold for that. At least not until he learned a little more about Hawke to be more certain of her character.
It would be easier, he supposed, to recruit her as an agent if her moral compass was wayward. But for some reason he didn't want that to be the case.
He'd have plenty of time to contemplate why while he was in the Chantry. Nodding to his companions, Aedan led the way up the steep steps of the Chantry and went inside the first confessional he saw. Cartier had straightened up and knelt down in front of Andraste, fervently praying. Orleasians, as a rule, took their religion very seriously. Edith opted for waiting outside the confessional in order to guard her commander. Aedan only hoped she wasn't one for eavesdropping.
After a few minutes of waiting, a sister entered the other side of the confessional, her face obscured by the curtain between them. She started the rite and Aedan efficiently listed his sins, not bothering to add any unnecessary overtones of remorse to his words.
"I confess that I have been judgmental of a woman I know little about. I have also recently committed acts of violence against my fellow man, though I was acting in self defense and I personally ended no lives." He paused for a moment, reminiscing, before he informed her that he had nothing more to confess. She listened and gave him his penance; he had to recite sixteen verses from the Chant of Light. He frowned and bowed out. The sister at Vigil's Keep usually only gave him three verses to recite, knowing that he always had a lot to get done. He received no such courtesy in Kirkwall.
Trying not to think about all the time he was wasting, Aedan knelt down next to Cartier in front of Andraste's statue. He personally was unused to such unnecessary splendor and decoration in the Chantry's he had visited in Ferelden. Back home the Chantry was simple, carved from Ferelden wood, and filled with more people than it could properly care for. In Kirkwall everything was cut from stone and every crevice and corner boasted of the Chantry's wealth. Cartier probably felt right at home. Kirkwall was more similar to Orleais than it was to Ferelden.
Edith quickly made her way to her male companions, bending in half so she could whisper discreetly in Aedan's ear. "Ser," she began in hushed tones. "The Knight-Commander has arrived for her morning prayers."
"So mote it be." Forget it, he decided ruthlessly. If I can make it through a meeting with this templar that'll be penance enough. For someone who had no magical talent whatsoever Aedan still did not get along with templars. Ah, perhaps that was unfair. He rarely got along with anybody.
Aedan sat behind the pew Meredith was occupying and waited for her to finish her morning prayers before he approached her.
"Isabela!" Hawke grinned at the pirate as she was pushed into the same jail cell Isabela was sitting cross legged in. Isabela let loose with a pleased, deep throated chuckle as Hawke had her bounds removed by one of the overworked jailers. "What are you in for?" she asked as Aveline began filling out the paperwork for her arrest.
"Public intoxication," Isabela shrugged.
Hawke nodded sagely. "That was me last week. This time I almost broke my fist on Seneschal Bran."
"You fisted Bran?!"
"Maker, no!" Hawke's color drained as Isabela fell over and laughed madly. "Don't say it like that! What is wrong with you?"
Aveline snorted dryly, "Well, she's in jail. That's one thing."
"Hey, I'm in jail, too!"
"And there you have it."
Isabela shot another insult at Aveline and Hawke lied down on the dusty floor, trying to drown them both out. It was awhile before Hawke realized Aveline had stopped insulting Isabela and was now trying to talk to her.
"Hawke. Hawke!" Aveline was resorting to her exasperated hawke-i-swear-if-you-make-one-more-pun voice. "Where did you end up last night, anyway? We never rendezvoused."
Hawke squirmed and tried to sound as calm as she could. "The foundry."
"Oh, Kitten," Isabela began, but Hawke shook her head fervently.
"I'm fine, both of you," she added, looking to Aveline as well. "Granted, it wasn't pleasant, but there really isn't a pleasant place left anywhere in Kirkwall." When Aveline didn't seem convinced Hawke added, "Oh, can you send in one of the pretty guards to watch us this time? The last one you sent looked like he ran face first into a brick wall. Bert, was it? Yeah, don't send Bert."
Aveline shook her head. "If you want to avoid the subject, fine. Have it your way. But I'm sending in Bert to guard you."
Hawke and Isabela both groaned.
"Knight-Commander," Aedan began once he was sure Meredith was finished with her prayers. Her blonde head turned round so she could scrutinize him fully in the bright, Chantry light. Aedan noted that while her blue eyes were bright and clear, there was quite a bit of grey creeping into her hairline. "If I could have a moment of your time, I would be much obliged."
She seemed hesitant, irked even, but she wouldn't say so. Aedan wondered if perhaps his reputation proceeded him. Not the slaying the Arch-demon bit, the recruiting Circle mages for grey wardens bit. That was the part the templars usually focused on.
Meredith nodded once. "I've been made aware of your presence, Commander," she told him, standing so she could lead him to one of the Chantry's small, private rooms. Once they were inside she added briskly, "And I have to inform you that none of our current Circle mages are fit to be Grey Wardens. They must be watched closely and I-"
He cut her off right there. "Commander Meredith, I'm not here for recruits." Though, he continued silently, that would make this trip less of a waste. "This is more of a request for information, ma'am."
This seemed to surprise her, though Meredith still kept her suspicions. "What would you like to know?" Even if she didn't care to talk to him, and Aedan didn't blame her for that (he had killed a few templars in his time), she was still in the Chantry and had to be polite under the Maker's direct gaze.
"The Champion," he answered, finding a spot along the wall to lean against. "She's an apostate, you must have received various reports concerning her. What do you have to say about her character?"
"Her character? The Champion is similar to most apostates. You'll have to be more specific in your inquiries."
Aedan knew he didn't have much time before Meredith grew irritated and made some excuse to leave. "Why did she fight the Arishok? Was it for her city? Was she paid to do it?" He crossed his arms and waited for the commander to respond.
Meredith's eyes flashed. "I didn't give her a choice."
Oh. That was interesting. "I was under the impression that apostates didn't take orders from templars."
To his surprise Meredith actually laughed at that. It was a quick, unpracticed chuckle but it was a laugh all the same. "That's what the Champion said when I enlisted her help. I more or less had to threaten her to join our ranks against the Qunari. Hawke may not be overtly loyal to Kirkwall, but she was fiercely loyal to her family. And when her family died out her loyalty switched to her ragtag team of companions."
Aedan prompted her, "So what you're saying is..."
"Hawke is not loyal to her city or homeland. She's loyal to people. A dangerous trait for an apostate to have," Meredith finished. "Now if you will excuse me, I have a Circle to oversee."
He bowed to her as she walked out. Hawke's sense of duty was not as idealistic as his own. She protected her own family and would never even consider sacrificing them for the "greater good". It was a way of thinking entirely different from his own. He had left his family to die, after all, all in the pretense of "it was best for Ferelden".
So Hawke was not completely loyal to Kirkwall or Ferelden. It would perhaps be possible to pay her for her services as a spy or figure out some other reward. Then he could get back to Amaranthine and actually accomplish something useful.
As Aedan found Edith and Cartier and lead them out, he caught sight of something that might help him be of service here. The Chanter's board.
Most of the Chantry's tasks were mundane, but Aedan studied the Chanter's board for any tasks that were suited for his current team regardless. There were a lot of posters for missing people, people that vanished during the Qunari's attack. As he was new to the city and to it's people, Aedan had to admit that he was currently unable to aid that lost cause. But there had to be something...
"Darkspawn!" he shouted a little too gleefully, shoving a notice under Cartier's face. "Spotted near the Dalish encampment." Even Edith startled at his sudden outburst.
Cartier was frowning, not a good look for him. "And yet you sound excited, Commander."
"Not excited," Aedan argued, rolling the notice up and placing it in his pack. "Eager to serve."
"Not to be insubordinate, Commander, but there's something wrong with you."
"You're bail has been paid," one of Aveline's less enthusiastic guards deadpanned, opening up Hawke's jail cell door. Isabela hopped up as well, but the guard growled, "Not you," and slammed the door shut. Hawke waved a hand nonchalantly at the still caged pirate. "Relax, I'll get whoever paid mine to pay yours. I'm very persuasive."
Isabela saluted her as Hawke left to thank her generous sponsor. She had guessed Varric would be the one to get her out, or perhaps it would be Sebastian paying her way with a Chantry collection made in her name. But, no, surprisingly she was wrong. It was no one she had ever even seen before.
Hawke cocked her head to the side, saying, "Uh, hello, dwarf I'm fairly certain I don't know."
The red-headed dwarf stared up at her in confusion. It was a good five minutes before he actually spoke, having realized his mistake, "You're not the Warden."
"Noooo," Hawke sang, rocking back on her heels. "I am not."
"Sodding liars," the dwarf snarled under his breath. "They told me the Champion was in town and the Warden was in jail...Wait, scratch that. I may have reversed that." The dwarf scowled again, producing a flask from somewhere underneath his impressive beard. "It's probably this damn fruity Antivan liquor. It makes me foggy." As he said that he took another long drink before he offered some to Hawke. She declined it quickly.
Hawke was beginning to put the puzzle pieces together. Well, some of them. "You thought the Warden was in jail so you came to bail him out? What is he to you?"
"What? Can't you tell?" The dwarf seemed disappointed. "I'm a Grey Warden, girl, and the boy's my commander." When she didn't at once realize who he was, he growled, "I'm Ohgren. I was there when the Arch-demon fell? Ah, the pretty girls only ever remember Cousland, damn him."
"One of the Heroes of Ferelden, eh?" She brightened immensely. "That's my homeland. I daresay the only polite thing for me to do is buy you a drink."
Ohgren shrugged. "I don't know about polite, but I could use another drink."
Hawke doubted that. What the dwarf probably needed was a cold bath, but this was the quickest way to get Isabela out. "Right. And here's a pretty girl ready to pay for it. The only thing better would be having two pretty girls ready to buy drinks for a war hero."
"I'm listening."
Isabela clinked her mug against Hawke's, grinning mischievously. "You still manage to surprise me, Hawke," she laughed, eying the dwarf that was three drinks ahead of them and still going strong. "You just got bailed out by one of the maniacs that slayed the Arch-demon. How do you do it?"
Hawke acted like she was seriously considering the question. "It helps to be ridiculously charismatic. It helps a lot."
"I'm sure," Isabela purred and they both turned to watch the dwarf drink.
Hawke passed her pint over to him and asked, "So...you're a Grey Warden, then? And you know Cousland? Please tell us you know really embarrassing stories about him. Please."
Ohgren opened his mouth to reply before his eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Champion, there's a creepy elf standing behind you all silent like. It's weirding me out. And it takes a lot to creep me out. You ever see a brood mother? Ugliest sodding thing you'll ever see."
Sadly Hawke knew exactly who he was talking about. She turned her head and smiled weakly. "Fenris! You could have said something, you know. I know I have a thing for tall, dark, and creepy but you don't need to impress me anymore. I've seen it all."
From Fenris's sudden blush Hawke fretted that she might have gone too far. But he decided to ignore her joke and said briskly, "There have been reports of Tevinter slavers near the mountains. I doubt it's Danarius but I'd like to take care of them regardless."
Hawke nodded too quickly. "Yeah, we can take care of that. If it's in the mountains I'd like to take Merrill along." When he frowned Hawke reminded him, "She knows that area best. And I think Varric's upstairs if you want to grab him while we're here." Hawke turned to Isabela to invite her along and found her chair empty. "Lazy, wannabe pirate," Hawke muttered crossly.
There was a loud burp and Hawke suddenly remembered that Ohgren was still there. She grinned madly and asked him as sweet as she could, "How'd you like to decapitate some slavers, Ohgren?"
"You had me at 'decapitate'."
"I miss our horses," Cartier complained for what Sienna pointed out was the fifth time. The Orleasian narrowed his eyes at her. "Oh, right. This is nothing for you. You're wearing robes, not a ton of armour like the rest of us." He gestured to himself, Aedan, and Edith in one grand gesture.
Aedan kept up the pace, but spared a glance back at Cartier. "Don't worry, Cartier, once we get back to the city we'll find you some robes of your own. Or a nice, new dress. As long as you still kill darkspawn I don't care what you wear."
Sienna brightened at that. "Then can I wear my hair down? 'Cause this fucking bun gives me a headache."
"No." Aedan was strict about that. "If I die because you couldn't watch my back because your hair was in your face I will haunt you all."
She surprisingly didn't complain. She was most likely just glad to be freed from guard duty with the Comtessa's daughters. They walked onward, under the blazing hot sun for another hour. Aedan had decided to go around the Dalish camp, instead of through it. He was on good terms with the Dalish in Ferelden, but he didn't care to test the patience of Kirkwall's free elves.
"Commander," Cartier's voice was a harsh whisper, and Aedan already knew what he was going to tell him.
"Darkspawn. I sense them, too." Aedan stepped towards the rocky mountains, searching the jagged rock for an opening. They walked along the mountainside for a bit more before Aedan found a narrow split in the mountain. It was wide enough for a man to fit through, only one at a time. A foul stench originated from the inside and he heard Edith behind him cough violently. There was darkspawn inside for certain, as well as quite a few corpses. He briefly considered which one he should send in first before he decided on himself.
"I don't hear any movement inside," Sienna quietly pointed out. Cartier nodded his agreement.
Edith kept back and added, "Whatever's in there might already be dead."
Aedan shrugged. "Possibly. I'll go ahead and check it out. Wait ten minutes and then follow. Sienna," he pointed to the mage, "you lead. Put up one of your barrier spells first."
"Right, Commander."
Aedan took one last breath of fresh, clean air before he inched his way inside. His armour caught on some of the rock but he managed to slip through. The narrow passage way opened up to a large cavern that was lit by lyrium veins all along the walls and ceiling. It was a perfect place to stash stolen goods and it seemed that that was what it had been used for.
A good number of human bodies lay dead at the front, their wounds definitely from common darkspawn forged weapons. Their bodies also held signs of taint, but it seemed they had been killed before the taint had changed them. Further inside were cages, most filled with dead or dying elves. If Aedan had to guess slavers had used this cavern to hide from the authorities until they were attacked from darkspawn from the outside. It was a slaughter. A few of the darkspwan had made it inside before they were cut down. Any darkspawn or humans or even elves that had survived the onslaught were long gone and probably not coming back.
Aedan sighed. This would be a simple clean up mission, nothing more. The elves that had survived in their cages moved slowly and unnaturally. The taint had reached them to quickly for any chance of a cure. And the Joining was not an option. Even if they were healthy enough to survive it, he didn't have the materials nearby to make the Joining possible. The most they could do was put the infected out of their misery before they completely changed.
It was not a task he looked forward to completing, even less so when Aedan heard the cry of a newborn child pierce the musky cavern air.
"Shit," he breathed, scrambling towards the sound. It seemed to be coming from one of the cages. "Sienna! Get in here!" he yelled, peering into one of the cages. This one only held one adult elf inside. The taint had gotten to him fully and he-it moved forward when it noticed Aedan's presence. Now that the elf was close Aedan could see it was wearing some sort of sling with a pouch in the front. And lying in that pocket against the elf's chest was the babe.
With every movement of the tainted father, the babe cried anew. Aedan could hear Sienna shouting outside, saying that darkspawn had found them and he knew he wouldn't get any help from his comrades.
Gritting his teeth, Aedan plunged his arms between the bars, trying to grab the babe before it's tainted parent decided it would make a nice appetizer before trying to kill the warden. Aedan caught the sling with one hand, but the former elf found the other and clamped down on it with his broken teeth. "Maker's balls," Aedan swore, attempting to pull his hand out of it's jaw. When that failed he released the sling and went for the dagger on his hip. Without another thought, Aedan jabbed the blade into the tainted elf's skull and worked it in until his other hand was freed.
Black blood splatted and dripped down onto the child, but Aedan managed to slip the baby out of the pouch and cage and into his own arms.
There was a chance that the child could be tainted, too, but Aedan shoved that idea away. The babe's sobs were not the dark gargle of darkspawn. It sounded lonely.
Aedan brought him out into the open air, prepared for a fight. Fortunately, Sienna and the rest of them had taken care of whatever 'spawn that had found them. Sienna herself stood atop one of the kills, grinning triumphantly. "Commander, look! I roasted this fucker alive." She continued to smile until Edith asked, her eyebrows raised in concern, "Is that a baby?"
As Aedan nodded Sienna whistled appreciatively. "Shit, Commander. I knew you were quick but this is fucking unreal."
Cartier's eyes rolled at her behavior. "It's not his," he hissed and then asked louder, "Orders, Commander?"
Aedan was wiping the babe clean of blood with his own handerchief. "Edith, I need a waterskin now. Food later. I think he's old enough to have solid food."
Sienna danced forward. "It's a he?" When Aedan removed the babe's soiled diaper she nodded again. "Yep, that leaves nothing to the imagination. Do the Tevinters not practice circumcision? Congratulations, it's a boy!"
Aedan waved her away. "There are bodies in there. The slavers are mostly dead, but some of the elves are alive and too tainted to save." Sienna stopped smiling. "The slavers are to be burned where they lie. Sienna, you can take care of that. The rest are to be put down and then we'll, ah, make them a funeral pyre."
"Cut down?" Edith repeated dumbly.
Aedan's eyes darkened. "I told you I didn't do chivalrous knight's work. Go with Cartier. He'll tell you what to do." He looked down, avoiding her gaze and wrapping the child up in one of his spare shirts. The babe took to his waterskin immediately. It was a miracle that he hadn't already starved. By the time Cartier, Sienna, and Edith had the bodies ready to be burned Aedan was feeding the babe bits of dried meat.
Aedan watched them work. "Since these are elves and we don't know which religion they followed, if any, just cover all bases. Cartier, give them an Andrastian funeral rite. Sienna, give them the Dalish version."
"And what if they followed the Qun?" Cartier asked out of curiosity. "What do we do then?" He was quickly elbowed by Sienna.
"Are you trying to get us more work? I already had to memorize two damn funeral rites. Let's not add a third."
"The Qunari have no special rite for the dead bodies themselves. Just stick to the Chantry rite and the Dalish rite for now."
Sienna sighed and began the Dalish ritual in a monotone. "...and fuck, I can't remember the rest." Sienna pouted for a moment before she brightened and tried to continue.
Cartier stared at her, horrified, before he cut her off. "Woah, woah, you need to start over. You can't just blaspheme in the middle of a funeral rite and then keep going! Have some respect for the dead. Do it over again."
"Is that an order?" Her eyes narrowed dangerously.
Cartier answered without missing a beat, "Uh, I think you should do it regardless. Common decency and all that."
She was indignant. "You're not my superior. You don't get to order me about."
"Commander!"
Aedan didn't even turn around to look at them. Their bickering was upsetting the child. Bouncing the babe in his arms, Aedan called over his shoulder, "Cartier is your superior, Sienna. You don't get to say 'fuck' in the middle of a funeral and then get to be in charge." He wasn't bothered about her lack of respect for the dead. As a Circle mage she was probably deadened to it. Mages didn't get funerals; they just vanished.
"Well, fuck."
Instead of chastising her for her language, Aedan was prepared to repeat her eloquent phrasing. Because coming over a sandy hill was Hawke, followed closely by a few of her companions. And there was no doubting where their company was headed...straight for Aedan and his subordinates, all surrounded by a large and incriminating amount of carnage.
Ohgren, who had previously been complaining about the unnecessary amount of walking, suddenly fell silent. Hawke glanced back at him in surprise. "Darkspawn got your tongue, warden?"
"You could say that," he answered too loudly, just a little bit tipsy. There was a odd glint in the dwarf's blue eyes, shadowed by his thick, blood-red eyebrows. "There's a large group of the nug humpers up ahead. Can't say if they're dead or alive, though."
"Then what good are you?" Fenris snorted contemptuously. Hawke, Varric, and Merrill ignored his snide remarks, being so used to them, but Ohgren was going to damned if he was going to let the skinny elf sass him without consequence.
"Hold on, I'm sensing something else nearby. Yeah, yeah. There's an snarky little elf somewhere in the vicinity. Someone should go and kick his scrawny ass. I volunteer."
Hawke snickered, but didn't take him up on his offer. As they were coming over a hill she caught sight of four standing bodies and a large, smoking pile of something that smelled awful. She gestured to her companions to hold. "We've got company."