Chapter 14: The Judgment
The storm came upon them as the last of the bodies were thrown onto the funeral pyre, the grey skies opened up and the rains began.
By then the werewolves were mostly bone and ash. The last of the corpses went to the flames missing a head, so that Reaper could bring it back to the village and show the people that the danger had passed. Since the flames had come from Reaper's hands, the downpour did little to stop it from burning away the last traces of Tanda Forester's tragic ambition.
Fire cleanses, the chant of light says, and in this instance at least, the chant was right.
Fire cleansed.
As for the lady herself, the hunter built her pyre himself. She would not lay with her men, he would not allow that. He said nothing as he worked, asking only that the paladin and his allies leave this matter to him. It was private…personal.
He needed to see the woman he had loved off by himself.
Despite everything that had happened, and everything the girl had done, Reaper and the two elves agreed to honor the hunter's wishes. They watched as he scooped the girl into his arms and carried her off one last time.
Reaper had led Dee back to the small campsite in the ruined courtyard. Once there the two elves tended to their injuries. Reaper's wounds were those expected after a battle, no matter how brief. Cuts, burns and bruises, all easily dealt with through elven healing magic. Aneirin tended to him, while his apprentice saw to Dee, bruised and battered as she was, Dee more than welcomed the boy's help.
Dee was understandably, a little self-conscious, at first. Tanda Forester had snatched her from her room in nothing but her nightgown and a robe. She did not know this boy, and was…understandably concerned as his fingers drifted over her injuries.
"Hold still, Milady," he said softly, "Let the magic do its work."
He worked quickly, speaking only when wishing to know where she might be injured. She answered plainly, and no sooner had she said the words that she felt healing magic flowing over her, sealing cuts and accelerating the healing of bruises that would have been with her much longer if left to heal on their own.
Despite his youth the boy proved a skilled and able healer. She had never doubted the usefulness of magic when it came to healing wounds, and was not above giving credit where it was due.
With healers like this, she thought dryly, I may be soon out of a job.
It was clear that the boy had learned well from his master.
He knew what was expected of him.
When Grey Eyes returned, he informed them that there was one more thing that he needed to do before they could rest, to make sure that none of them had been infected with the curse that Tanda and her minions had carried in their blood.
He needed to make sure that they would not change into wolves as well.
Dee listened as the hunter tended to them each in turn. Listened as the werewolf declared each of them "Clearrrr," in is rough gravelly voice. When it was her turn, Reaper instructed her to hold out her hand. The hunter needed to smell it, to determine if she was infected.
She did as he asked, though she could not deny a sense of trepidation. She remembered the strange scent of the lady and her men, she could still smell it, and was afraid that it was coming from her now, that perhaps the beast's claws had changed her.
Her hand shook as she felt the werewolf's mussel touch it. The cold wet nose, sniffing her fingers.
She had to resist the urge to shy away, even at that moment; she feared that those jaws might come open and snatch her wrist in their grip.
"Don't fearrrr," she heard him say, "Noooo hurrrt."
She swallowed hard, trying to be brave, to ignore all impulse to pull away.
"I'm not afraid," she murmured, "I'm not."
Her heart skipped as she felt the werewolf pull away, he said nothing at first, and she feared what that pause meant, finally she heard it…
"Clearrrrr."
Dee almost sobbed with relief.
"Praise the Maker," she heard her knight say; she felt strong calloused hands pull her to her feet, pulling her into a gentle embrace.
She felt his lips on her forehead, his breath ruffling her hair.
"Thank the Maker."
Dee hated to admit it, but she enjoyed this, this embrace, even the fact that her knight was still armored did not take away that joy. The smell of him, his breath warm on her face.
Her bodied warmed as her head rested against his broad shoulder.
Part of her wished that they were here alone. As her fingers drifted up to Reaper's face she could feel his heartbeat in his neck, it was fast…excited. If only they were alone, that guilty little part of her brain brought up, and then she could truly thank him for her rescue. They could find a quiet corner just for themselves. The two of them could…
Dee blinked.
Whoa there!
The sister shook her head, pulling away quicker than she would have normally.
"Is something wrong?" Reaper asked, his voice sounding confused, and perhaps a little hurt.
"Nothing," she said quickly, fighting to slow her breathing, to clamp down on any physical excitement that his embrace had caused…
Be careful, her conscience chided, many a person has done something foolish after a life or death situation, the moment has been known to take away a person's sense of self-control. You don't want to do anything you will regret later. Your vows, remember your vows Sister Daelle.
It was natural for a woman in her early twenties to feel desire and lust, but you are also a sister of the chantry…remember that.
Remember.
She sighed, back in control of herself.
I'm fine, Reaper." She assured him, that dark part of her mind that desired more than simple friendship from the knight screaming that she had denied it.
We can't, she thought, my vows, I…I must remember my vows.
Down Girl.
She pulled closer to him then, but only so that they were only touching arms, she would not risk such intimacy again, not until she had full control of her emotions.
Down girl.
Only the thunder caused them to separate, that and the first drops of rain, a sprinkle really.
A sprinkle that soon turned into a deluge.
Wulfe Grey eyes, once again in his human form, led Reaper, Dee and the two elves down into the ruins. He brought them to the main chamber where the Lady of the Forest had once dwelled, where she had soothed the rage of her people, and let their personalities reemerge.
Dee knew of this place of course, she had heard Leliana speak of it many times over the years. A beautiful green grove, she had called it, all but hidden between crumbling rock and stone.
A sad smile touched the girl's lips.
She felt a sense of tranquility here, the smell of growing things, the gentle chirp of insects, the gurgling sound of water as it flowed into the chamber.
A beautiful place, Leliana had said of it, beautiful but isolated…lonely.
Dee regretted the fact that she could not look upon it herself with her own eyes.
Reaper led her to the most comfortable spot in the great chamber; she sat down near the water, where she could rest. The feel of moss and clover between her fingers was soothing after the manic trek through the forest, held hostage by what she now knew to be a pack of werewolves.
Reaper was of course; still concerned, seeing her bruised and bloody was not a something that he enjoyed.
"Are you sure you are okay?" the paladin asked her for perhaps the fiftieth time.
"I'm fine Reaper," she reminded him with a soft smile.
"I'm tougher than I look."
"Never doubted that," she heard him chuckle, "I'm just glad that I was able to reach you in time. I had hoped that when I mentioned our little problem in Lydes you would get the idea of what I wanted you to do."
"I remembered," she said.
When the paladin had mentioned the bandits back in Lydes, she remembered very well what had happened. Reaper had not saved her that day; in fact, she had had to save herself. The two of them had been settling in for the night, just having made camp when the thieves had come upon them. Reaper had been hobbling the horses, and the two men must have thought a blind chantry sister was easy prey.
She had proven otherwise.
By the time he had returned to aid her, one of the men was retreating, and the other man was writhing on the ground in pain, as Dee had struck him over and over with her whitewood staff. The man had crawled away after that, she did not think she had done any permanent damage, but the man would not soon forget the price he paid for his attempted crime.
Fighting bandits is one thing, she thought to herself, werewolves were quite another.
Thunder rumbled overhead, the waters that flowed into the chamber gushed as the downpour continued.
Dee was grateful for the rain.
It would wash whatever wickedness remained here away.
She sighed as she reached out with her hand. She thought she could hear the water gurgling; the small pond that flowed into the chamber was before her Reaper had said.
She felt the cool water. She cupped it, splashing her face, washing off the dirt and blood of the day, and then bringing a cupped handful to her lips, the taste was sweet on her tongue.
"Many times did I drink from here as a pup."
She pulled back quickly. She had not realized that Grey Eyes had returned; the hunter had a lighter step than even the two elves.
She feared that he might hold these waters sacred, or something. Perhaps he would not want someone using them for so common a means.
"I'm sorry," she said quickly, "I did not realize that you had returned. I was thirsty and…"
"I take no offense," the young man replied, "What is water if not to cool us and as a means to quench our thirst."
She heard him sit down beside her. She heard splashing, it sounded like the man was washing.
"When I was small," he continued, "I would try to catch the small fish that swam about this pool. I would dip my snout in the water, but no matter how fast I was those blasted fish were always faster."
The hunter chuckled.
"My antics amused the lady; she commented that perhaps I was more heron than wolf."
He laughed again.
"It was rare when our lady could find amusement. I was more than happy to oblige."
Dee laughed lightly.
"So you are both a bit of a jester and a hunter?"
"When it suits me," he replied.
Dee laughed again.
She would not think such a fierce being could sound so…warm.
"You truly loved her, didn't you?"
"I did," he responded, "We all did, the lady was not only our protector and teacher, but mother to us all."
She heard the hunter sigh.
"She left us so that we could have our own lives, but for me, it was different. I was born into the pack, not bitten. For me…when she left…I lost everything I knew."
Dee frowned.
"You were not bitten like the others?"
"No," he said, "My mother was bitten. She had only just learned she was with child when she was attacked. She turned, and the lady did what she could for her, though she feared that I would die in the womb. The change is extremely hard on the body. I should not have survived."
"But you did."
"Yes," he sighed, "I was born not a human child, but a small werewolf pup. My mother did not survive the birth, so the lady took it upon herself to raise me, her and the other she-wolves of the pack…"
Dee considered that, trying to imagine werewolves teaching a child of their own, a creature that knew nothing before the curse in its blood.
"I was different from the others; even then, I did not feel the pain that the curse caused them. For the first nine years of my life I hunted as a forest beast, avoiding the humans and elves that passed through our forest. I knew little of the world outside this place, and in truth, I did not really care to."
"Then the hero of Ferelden came," Dee added.
"Yesss," the hunter hissed, "the warden."
"I don't blame the warden," he said, "Our lady asked for help against Zathrian. When she was gone, we all changed back into what we were before, or rather…the rest of the pack did. I was a human boy, though I was not quite sure what that meant. One of the women who had been changed offered to take me with her, to finish raising me."
Dee frowned; she could hear the sadness in his voice.
"What happened," she asked.
The hunter sighed again.
"I soon learned that I had the power to change back into a werewolf, the power was mine to change when I wish. The lady who took me in grew scared that I might change her back; she had no desire to return to what she had been. She sent me away to the village chantry, eventually, I came back here. I came home."
The hunter let out a shuddering breath.
"I turned to hunting to support myself. I was good at it I discovered, and why not? I had hunted often with the pack, even in my youth. I sold the pelts of animals I took, and became well known in the village. Well known enough that I caught the attention of the Lord Mayor of Forest's End, and his children. That is when I met Tris and Tandy…perhaps I should have stayed in the forest."
Dee reached out, trying to take the man's hand, to offer comfort if she could. He did not take it; perhaps he felt he was unworthy of comfort.
She frowned.
"It wasn't your fault," she said.
"Tandy and I grew close," he continued, not bothering to take her hand. We were…intimate in this very cave a few weeks ago. It was afterwards that I discovered what had happened, that I had passed what I was on to her. I offered to teach her, like the lady had done for me and the others, help her hold onto the human, but to embrace the wolf as well. I told her stories about the lady, tried to make her understand that what had become of her was nothing monstrous, but a gift.
"Tandy had her own opinions of what she could do with what I had given her. She started speaking madness, of becoming the new Lady of the Forest, of expanding the pack and making the surrounding villages and towns ours. I tried to convince her of the foolishness of this plan, but she would not listen…"
The boy growled in the back of his throat.
"She would not listen."
"From what I heard her say, it is clear that she had ambitions larger than being a mere mayor's daughter, ambitions that had taken root long before the two of you met."
"Perhaps," he agreed, "But it was I that gave her the curse. It was I that gave her the means to make her mad desires a possibility. You told me that the lord may was dead?"
"I can't say for certain," Dee answered, "Lady Tanda said that she had retired him, perhaps I'm wrong and…"
"He is dead," the hunter said flatly, angrily, "I got him killed, just as I got Tris killed. I may not have done the deed myself, but I am to blame. She could not have done such things without me."
"Perhaps you are right," she heard Reaper say from somewhere behind her, she noticed then a familiar sound, the rasp of a whetstone sharpening a blade.
Reaper's blade.
Her breath caught in her throat.
"Reaper," she gasped, "No."
She heard the hunter sigh again.
"Perhaps it is better that the curse ends here. I'm as much a member of Tandy's pack as those fools we destroyed in the courtyard."
There was a brief pause, a pregnant pause.
"Perhaps I should go and be with Tandy and Tris."
"What is going on?" she heard Aneirin say, the elf had likely not been paying much attention to conversation by the pool. Perhaps he had finally noticed the tension; perhaps he realized then that Reaper was sharpening his blade.
"You can't Reaper," she told her knight.
"Why not," he answered his voice cold and hard, as cold and as hard as it always was when he was about his dark work.
"Is it not my mission to make sure that evil does not spread, that it is contained?" he asked her.
"Would you kill someone because they were born different," she demanded, "Isn't that way of thinking what the Divine has us fighting against? Isn't that the reasoning used when a Templar condemns a mage?"
"Wise words girl," she heard Aneirin say, "But Ser Reaper has a point as well."
"Master," she heard Zath say, "You cannot mean…"
"Grey Eyes was touched by evil," he continued, "Zathrian's evil, perhaps it would be better if that evil not be given the chance to grow again. Perhaps it should end here."
Dee heard a tired sigh, Grey Eyes? She could not say for certain.
"Perhaps it is better this way," he said, "I can be with my lady again, with Tandy and Tris…"
"What happened wasn't your fault!" Dee said quickly, hoping to sway her knight from this course. Did he have a point? Perhaps, but that was not why the Divine had sent them here.
They came here to find a murderer, and that wasn't Grey Eyes.
He did not deserve to be punished for another's crime.
Reaper said nothing, she could still hear the rasp of whetstone and steel, her knight remained silent, considering his next move.
"You knew what Grey Eyes was when we first met, didn't you Aneirin?" he asked the healer.
"I knew," the elf admitted, "As I told you yesterday, it is possible for evil to touch something, but not to rule it. I can see the value in ending it, perhaps it would be better if this last vestige of a Dalish born curse die in this chamber, but is it worth the life of an innocent man? Is Grey Eyes even innocent?"
She heard the elf sigh.
"Perhaps that is a matter best left to the gods, or the Maker."
"I will accept your judgment," the hunter said sadly, "Once again I find myself alone, and this time by my own hand…I…I will accept your decision, if I am to die, so be it."
Reaper paused in his work. For once Dee wished her eyes worked, so that she could see the expression on her knight's face, determine what he might do, and that she might sway him from any rash decision.
She heard the sound of a sword being sheathed, and Reaper sigh.
"Some would say it is my duty to end this," he admitted, "That I should consider what might happen in the future and take steps to prevent it. Perhaps I should, perhaps that would be better, but Dee is right as well. Wulfe Grey Eyes did not kill anybody. It would be wrong to punish him for the crimes of another."
"But the curse," the hunter said quickly, "I could…"
"You could," the paladin agreed, "But I don't think that you will. You have learned a dire lesson today. The only crime you are guilty of is falling in love with the wrong girl, a crime too many men are guilty of, and are equally free of blame. You will be more careful in the future with what lives in your blood, I think. One day, hopefully, you will find one who will accept you and your gifts; I hope you will at least."
She heard her knight rise; Dee felt a surge of pride, when she grasped what he was saying.
He was making the right choice, she thought.
Perhaps not the safest, but the right one.
"You could have stood aside when the Lady came, but you didn't. You could have joined her, but you didn't. You gave me a chance to save my partner, myself, and those who aided me. I will not punish you for the way you were born. You are not a monster ser, you are a hero."
Reaper paused then, she heard Grey Eyes rise.
"But the danger," she heard the hunter say.
"If there is a threat, I will return and deal with it, that is my job, but for now, I will not harm you. You were innocent in this. You do not deserve to be punished."
She heard the werewolf breathe a sigh, of relief? Dee could not say.
"I've lost everything, my love, my friends…"
"You have lost friends," she heard the paladin say, "But you have gained one as well, in me."
"And in me," Dee called out.
The young man deserved to know he was not alone.
She heard a sound metal and leather meeting, a handshake perhaps?"
Dee smiled.
Thank you Reaper she thought.
Thank you.