A Feast on Crows
The company of Grey Wardens continued their walk on the Imperial Highway. Morrigan continued to eye Aedan but always focused her attention somewhere else when he looked at her. Leliana happily played her lute and sung a hymn as they walked to make their journey a little lighter. Alistair tried to make light conversation with Sten. Something about playing "I spy". Aedan remained silent as he threw a stick for Dane and the dog always brought it back. Their monotonous sojourn was suddenly interrupted when a young woman frantically ran up to them.
"Oh, thank the Maker! We need help! They attacked the wagon! You must help us!" she cried. "Please, follow me! I'll take you to them."
Aedan and Alistair shrugged at one another and hastily followed after her. They chased her around the corner of a hill and saw the woman run up to the fallen wagon and met up with a dusky-skinned elf with blonde hair. Aedan felt the sudden change in the air, like something was wrong. Not like people were in danger but like they were walking into a trap.
The elf gave some kind of signal and suddenly armed assailants came out of their hiding places and a group of bowmen assembled on the hills on either side of them. And to make things better a giant tree fell behind them cutting of their retreat. This was getting better and better. The assailants all drew their weapons and charged!
"The Grey Warden dies here!" The elf cried as he charged Aedan. The elf lunged at Aedan, aiming his red steel longsword at Aedan's heart. Aedan swiftly evaded to the side, grabbing the elf's sword hand and jammed his elbow right into the assassin's chin. Then Aedan lifted the elf over his head and threw his unconscious body right into the other assassin's! Who then fell right into their own traps! Aedan found the irony to be hilarious.
Leliana and Morrigan made quick work of the bowmen on the hills, while Alistair dispatched the young woman who lured them into this trap, by cutting of her head. Dane finished off the assassins who weren't fortunate enough to die when they fell on their traps.
That had to be the most pitiful assassination attempt that Aedan ever had to suffer. He looked over to the elf who led this sorry excuse for an assault and noticed that he was still alive. At first Aedan was tempted to just snap his neck and be done with it, but then he decided it would be more prudent to interrogate him first….then snap his neck.
The elf began to regain consciousness. "Mmm…what? I….oh. I rather thought I'd wake up dead, or not wake up at all, as the case may be. But I see you haven't—ohfff!"
Aedan cut his off short as stomped his boot onto his chest. "Shut Up! You'll speak when I tell you to speak!" Aedan yelled in Antivan.
"Well, I do enjoy a good beating from a handsome brute from time to time." The crow coughed as Aedan's foot began flatten the elf's chest. "And the way your Fereldan accent sounds while speaking my native language is sexy too. Please, continue!"
Aedan obliged and applied more pressure onto the elf's chest, slowly crushing his diaphragm. In few moment his foot was going to punch a hole through this assassin. Zevran could feel the Warden's boot slowly crush his bones and innards. And despite how erotic he found this situation to be, he probably wouldn't live long enough to enjoy it before his internal organs were flattened into paste. "If your intention is to get information out of me I could save you the trouble and just get right to the point."
Aedan quickly took his foot of the elf's chest and wiped it on the grass as if he'd just stepped in shit. "Start talking, elf."
"My name is Zevran Arinai. Zev to my friends. I am a member of the order of The Antivan Crows, brought her for the sole purpose of eliminating any surviving Grey Wardens. Which I have failed at. Sadly"
Aedan quirked an eyebrow curiously. "The Crows?"
"Have you not heard of them, Aedan?" Leliana asked. "They are an order of assassin's out of Antiva, very powerful and very professional. Known for always getting the job done, so to speak. Someone went through great expense to hire this man."
"Quite right, my dear." The assassin confirmed conceitedly. "I'm surprised you haven't heard of us out here in this country. Where I'm from we are quite infamous."
"Not for being very good assassins, apparently." Aedan snorted.
"Oh, fine. Is that what you Fereldans do? Mock your prisoners? Such cruelty." The Antivan elf lamented sarcastically.
"Actually, we torture them to death and then feed their bodies to our dogs. Especially the smart-ass ones." Dane growled at Zevran to back up Aedan's story. Aedan had in fact heard of the Crows from his sister-in-law. She used them as a bedtime story to scare Oren into behaving or they'd sneak in his window and take him away for being naughty. "Who hired you to kill us?"
"A rather taciturn fellow by the name of uh…what was it? Oh, yes, Loghain, that was it."
Aedan felt his hand itching as it reach for his axe at the mention of that name. "Does that mean you're loyal to Loghain?"
"Oh, I have no idea what his issues with you are. The usual, I suppose. You threaten Loghain's power, yes? I just happened to be in the area when the job came up and took the contract. Beyond that, no, I am not loyal to him."
That was Zevran's saving grace. Aedan's hand stopped itching. "When and where were you to meet Loghain again?"
"Oh, I wasn't. I was contracted to perform a single job. If I succeeded I would have left the country on the first boat out of Denerim. And if I failed I'd be dead."
"If you failed?"
"Well, what can I say? I'm an eternal optimist. Although the chances of me succeeding at this point seem a bit slim, don't they. Ha-ha, ha-ha. No I don't suppose you'd find that funny."
"Why didn't they send their best?" Aedan inquired.
"Oh, I am one of their very best, in fact. It's why the Crows were paid so handsomely"
"If you're one of the best how is it you failed so epically?"
That question actually stunned the Crow. "….Because…the Grey Wardens are as skilled as legend claims?"
This was slightly pathetic. "How much were you paid?"
"I wasn't paid anything. The Crows, however, were paid a rather handsome sum just for their attention."
"Who paid them?"
"I believe it was Loghain's right-hand man. Arl Howe."
That caught Aedan off guard. He didn't expect to hear those two names in the same sentence. "What…was…that…name again? And please be sure you're telling me the truth."
"Yes, it was Arl Rendon Howe. He was the one who contacted the Crows in the first place. Seemed like a total bastard truth be told, even by a trained killer's standards."
Aedan couldn't believe his ears. Not only does Loghain betray their king but he is in league with Arl Howe? Could they have been working together the whole time? It made sense. Aedan directed his attention back to the Crow. "You know, you're singing like a Chantry choir boy. Are you even loyal to the people you serve?"
The elf's eyes lit like lanterns. "Loyalty is an interesting concept. And if you done with your questions we could discuss it further."
"Speak."
"Well, here's the issue: I was contracted to kill you but I've failed and you spared my life, and the code of the Crows demand that I die for the crime of failure. If you won't do it, the Crows probably will. Thing is, I like living, a lot. And you certainly seem like someone who'd give the Crows pause if they thought of coming after you again. If you allow it, I will pledge my service to you."
"Ha! And are you going to be as loyal to me as you were to Loghain or even your Crows?" Aedan sneered.
"I happen to be a very loyal person. I just simply wish for the option of choosing who I am loyal to. That's not a fault, is it? I mean would you be loyal to anyone who practically owned you?"
That was a fair point. "And what's to stop you from finishing the job later?"
"To be honest, I was never really given the option of joining the Crows. They bought me from a slave market when I was a child. The only way to ever leave them is to die not matter what. So it seems my only option is to join with someone the Crows won't touch. Even if I did kill you now they'd probably kill me anyway on principal."
"You want to join me simply to escape the Crows?"
"I would gladly fight for your cause, of course. After all you did see fit to spare me and would happily pay my debt. And for once I'd rather have the freedom to choose who I raise my blade for. Is that so much to ask? I mean, aren't you Fereldans all about independent freedom?"
Zevran had Aedan there. That was the core virture of Fereldan culture, one that Aedan valued the most. "What skills do you have?"
"Well, let's see. I am highly trained in the arts of assassination, subterfuge, and traps and poison. I know how to pick locks and how spot a potential assassination attempts. Oh, and I know a great many jokes, five massage techniques and I can dance. I'd do wonderful at parties. I'll even shine armor and clean the dishes. Trust me you won't find a better deal."
He thought for a moment and decided that having a highly trained assassin could be of use to them. "Very well, Zevran. Welcome aboard."
"What?" Blurted Alistair. "You're taking the assassin with us now? Does that really seem like a good idea?"
"This probably won't be the last assassin to be sent after us. I figure the presence of a veteran assassin watching our backs can only benefit us, Alistair."
"Alright, fair point. But if there was ever a sign that said that we were desperate I think it just knocked on the door and said hello."
"A fine plan indeed, Aedan." Morrigan commented. "Though I would examine, your food and drink far more closely from now on, were I you."
"I didn't realize you cared so much, Morrigan." Aedan laughed.
"But of course. If you died than we'd be stuck with Alistair. Then we'd all be doomed."
"Hey!" Alistair protested.
Aedan helped Zevran to his feet. "Thank you, Warden. I, Zevran Arinai, hereby pledge my oath of loyalty to you, until such a time you see fit to release me from it or death takes me. I ameyour man without reservation…this I swear."
Aedan looked at him seriously. "I accept your oath of loyalty, Zevran. And will hold you to it, lest you shame us both. Welcome to our merry little band."
And so the Wardens, with their newfound companion continued their long journey. Perhaps in serving the Warden, Zevran would find some worthy meaning to his life. Although Aedan questioned the wisdom of his decision when learned that Zevran was as deviant as he was skilled. This became apparent when Zevran immediately set to work on trying to get into Leliana's, Morrigan's and even his pants. Why couldn't he attract more normal people?
