Finally the Document Manager works! =) So here's a treat for the long wait, sorry about that! Again thanks to my awesome beta for looking over the chapter =)


From Campfire Stories to Flames of Rage

A field. A forest engulfed in flames. Darkspawn swarm in every direction.

Mark stood on the edge of a medium sized clearing, far away from the blaze of the traveling Wardens' campfire. Mark was surrounded by scorches in the earth and stumps from fallen trees. Most of the field had overgrowth to it, but was one spot was barren. He slowly walked forward and stood in the center of the spot, eyes cast down to the ground, visions flashing through his mind.

He knelt and ran his hand over the dirt. It was dry. The roots of the surrounding grass would touch it. He crushed the dirt in his hand and let it fall between his fingers. He stood back up and took in a deep breath, closing his eyes.

"How many do you think are out there?"

"Too many to count. We've been set up."

"Then let's show them they picked the wrong people to mess with."

He opened his eyes and ran a hand through his hair. His hand went lower as he rested it on the hilt of his sword. He unsheathed it slowly, metal brushing against leather a sound he's heard one too many times. Mark looked at his reflection in the sword as he spun it around in a circle, as if preparing himself for a battle long since lost.

Dark splotches in the night running forward. Falling in a sea of red.

The hum of the blade slicing through air was like music to his ears. He placed one foot back and started twirling the blade quickly, switching from left to right side. Mark stepped forward and closed his eyes again, listening as the blade hummed as he spun it from side to side. He started going through his practiced motions, staying within the barren circle.

Step. Spin. Slice. Duck. Shield block. Thrust. Dodge. Step. Spin. Slice.

It was like a dance, albeit with a deadly sword. Mark's foot tapped the edge of the circle and he stopped, opening his eyes. It was pitch black now, and the moon was full, casting light onto the field. He sighed and sheathed his weapon. His eyes drifted up to star at the moon, the light reflecting off of his eyes.

Darkspawn running and falling. Endless wave upon wave rushing towards them. Slipping on the enemy's blood.

Mark took in another deep breath as he laid his sword on the ground, sliding into stance. He started moving, his feet light, as he went through the form he practiced so many times before. Punches quick; feet slow. His mind was a blur of memories and visions of times he spent with his love. And then, in one foul swoop, it all was ripped away from him.

There was an Alpha Hurlock General. It spoke to them. It raises its bow and pulled back, aiming at the shorter one.

"Get down!"

Too late.

The Warden pushed himself harder, a faint red outline shimmering around his body, evidence of his expended energy against his imaginary foe. He grit his teeth as his eyes clouded over.

He knelt on the ground, holding her close to him. The battlefield stilled, nothing made a sound. He looked at his hands, covered in red.

A sorrowful scream tore through him.

His eyes slammed open as he heard a twig snap behind him. He turned only to find Elise walk out from the tree line, watching him. Mark breathed a slight sigh of relief as he plopped down on the ground, a hand resting on his sword.

His eyes clouded over. All he could see was red. Rage took over.

"I'm surprised you found me." Elise stopped as she heard her mentor's words reach her. She kept on walking and sat down next to him, stretching her feet out and leaning back on her hands.

"Well you weren't that hard to find. I could just follow the taint. It's weird though..." She let the end of her sentence hang in the air, and Mark just had to grasp at it.

"What is?"

"Well, usually when I started sensing the darkspawn, it was like closing my eyes and seeing medium specs of light. When I would try and find Alistair or Shianni, or other Grey Wardens, they were slightly smaller specs. I guess because we aren't completely like the darkspawn."

Mark propped his leg up, resting his arm on his knee. He turned his head and cocked an eyebrow up, looking at her. "And when you try to sense me?"

Elise blinked and tilted her head back to look at the sky. Her eyes sparkled as she looked up at the millions of stars. "I don't know exactly. You're a pretty big spec of light. It's like looking at the stars, and finding the North Star. You're always there, guiding all the others. Though when I try to sense you, it changes colors."

Mark looked at the sky as well, easily finding the North Star. A smile touched his lips. "Hopefully I'm not that easy to spot."

Elise giggled and sighed, laying her back on the grass, stretching. "So, I've only heard bits and pieces from your sister, but I'm curious. What happened to that woman?" She heard him sigh and turned her head to look at him.

Mark rubbed his eyes and lay back next to her, staring up at the star lit sky. "It was supposed to be a simple recon mission. A large group of Darkspawn were sighted off the coast of Fereldan to the North, and Ellie and I were asked to check it out. Since we did not have that many Grey Wardens, the two f us made the trip alone. We did not want to risk anyone dying."

"Was she your Second Hand?"

Mark smiled as he remembered her training the recruits. "Yes she was. She was sometimes even better than I was at training recruits. I still admire her skill with dual weapons." Ellie stretched and rested her head on her hands.

"So what happened?"

"We mainly stayed next to the rivers and roads, traveling light. We did not really need to bring much, just poultices and bandages. We made it close to where they were last spotted pretty quickly. Though it was all for naught," Mark stayed quiet for a time, a frown on his face. Elise did not want to ruin the moment, so she stayed silent. Finally, Mark took a deep breath and continued his story. "Apparently the traveler we ran into who gave us the location was a bandit, a hired mercenary. He led us into a trap. Ellie and I were surrounded, in this field actually. Wave after wave of darkspawn charged us. They died easily enough. Soon the ground was coated in blood, and you couldn't step anywhere without tripping over darkspawn." He chuckled dryly, lifting his hand to look at it in the night sky.

"We stood back to back, killing anything that came within a five foot radius of our circle we had made. There was one darkspawn, one of the generals. It, somehow, could talk like we could. It didn't have any sort of accent. It kept on taunting us, sending his minions to die." He sat back up, wrapping his arm around his legs as he stared straight ahead.

"He had a bow, and aimed toward Ellie. I tried to push her out of the way, but I slipped in some blood. I was too late. The arrow hit her in the throat." He closed his eyes as a tear slid down his cheek. "She died before she hit the ground. I…I didn't even get to tell her I love her."

Ellie sat up and looked at Mark, scooting up close to him as she hugged him comfortingly. He smiled as he placed a hand on her head.

"I remember kneeling, holding her as close as I could, afraid that she would just vanish. Her blood was everywhere. I still see it on my hands some days…" He fell silent, as the two of them just sat in the clearing, watching the stars.

"I know I can't say anything to help bring her back, but know that we are all here for you. You aren't alone." Hearing that made him smile as he hugged her tightly for a second. "What happened after that?"

"All I could see was red. I screamed so loud I thought I would tear my throat out. There is a part of a warrior that when you get angry enough, you just let the rage take over. After that, nothing can stand I your way. Pain becomes irrelevant. Needless to say…I slaughtered the remaining thirty or so darkspawn. They did not stand a chance. Only the general escaped." He shook his head, throwing the thoughts and anger from his mind. "The rest is all a blur really, then I blacked out."

Elise stayed silent after Mark finished. The wind was starting to pick up, and she shivered. Mark stood up and offered his hand. "Come on, it's starting to get cold. We should head back to the campfire." Elise nodded and stood, but not before turning back to look at the sky, seeing a shooting star. She smiled and closed her eyes, silently wishing for something to bring happiness back to her friend.

.