Chapter 29: Dealing with Monsters
Two weeks had passed since the Carta's failed attack on the Viscount's Keep. Two weeks since the Viscountess had gathered her family to discuss what they were going to do about it. Such a blatant attack like the one they endured could not be allowed to stand. If Solona did not respond, then she would look weak in the eyes of not only the court, but the rest of the Free Marches as well.
In the end, she had decided to be subtle.
Varric had used his contacts among the Carta to locate their new base here in the Free Marches. It appeared to be nothing more than an old dwarven trading post along the route that passed near the Vimmark Mountains. It had been decided that Hawke, Varric, Aveline, Bethany, and Anders would pay a visit there, to make sure that the dwarven band of criminals knew what was and was not going to be tolerated in Kirkwall.
Garrett Hawke had taken the attack extremely personal. It was one thing to attack him, which the Carta had apparently tried the night before the raid on the keep. A band of Carta dwarves had assaulted him while coming back from one of his late night meetings at the Hanged Man.
He had not mentioned it to the rest of his family because he was quite familiar with such attacks, they were something of an occupational hazard given his and Varric's various business interest.
The attack on Bethany and Carver however was more than enough to make the rogue see red. Also the fact that Aveline had taken a blade in the shoulder trying to keep the dwarves out of the royal apartments further infuriated him.
He and Aveline might be not what they once had been, but that did not mean that he did not care when someone tried to harm her.
No, Hawke was more than ready to see them pay for that.
Anders had healed the Guard Captain's injuries, which led to her volunteering to accompany them. Hawke had not wanted her to, but she refused to take no for an answer.
As Captain of the Guard she considered an attack on the keep a personal affront, and besides…
She had no intention of letting him walk into danger alone.
Anders had confirmed Gray Stark's theory that the dwarves had been tainted, even in death the darkspawn taint remained in their diseased flesh. The apostate might have left the Grey Wardens, but he understood that his training under Commander Aedan would come in handy if they were dealing with ghouls.
He would therefore go and act as healer.
Bethany was furious about the dwarves attempt to attack her infant son. It was all her brother could do to keep her calm as the details of the attack were explained to her. She had no intention of the giving the Carta a second chance at striking at either her or her house…
There was nothing so dangerous, as a mother defending her young.
Solona promised to watch over little Carver while she went with her brother to deal with this threat. Ser Avery had offered to send a company of men with her, but she had refused.
She appreciated the offer, but this was extremely personal.
As both an Amell and a Hawke, she would stand by her brother and his friend and see this through alone.
Varric had been pleased by the speed in which his contacts had located the Carta's knew base. In the past the dwarves of the merchant's guild refused to talk about such things, fearing Carta reprisal or the loss of resources that the criminals sometimes supplied. The ease of which the information had been discovered meant only one thing in his eyes.
The Carta wanted them to find out where they were. They had failed to capture the Hawkes, now they would lure them straight to their base.
It was a trap, the Hand of the Viscountess was sure of it, but that only hardened his resolve to accompany his best business partner on this most dangerous road.
Something had changed in the Carta in the last year. Business had suffered, and the criminals had become far too quiet, it was quite suspicious.
As both a member of the dwarven merchant's guild, and as the Hand it fell to Varric to investigate what had happened to the Carta. If profit was no longer their motive, he wanted to know why, and why this sudden interest in the Amell family.
Of course, the Carta had made no move against Solona, Sebastian, or the twins. Both Bethany and Garrett were extremely wealthy, him from his deep roads treasure, and her from her various business ventures. Ransom made sense enough for them, but why go to all the trouble of assaulting the keep and not try to get and the Viscountess herself?
It was yet another question he would have to ask Rhatigan, the casteless bastard who was now leading the Carta here in the Free Marches.
Serene had also wanted to accompany them, but Varric had refused. He wanted someone he trusted keeping an eye on his affairs in the city. He certainly would not leave the matter to one of his many cousins that was for sure.
Besides, he reminded her, a Carta stronghold was no place for a kid.
The elf's expression had turned chilly at that little statement, but Varric seemed to have not noticed. She promised him that she would take could care of his charges while he was away.
The Viscountess had promised herself to speak with the bard, but Serene all but vanished from the keep after Varric left.
She was likely dealing with those foolish enough to think that they could take advantage of the Hand's absence from their city.
If Serene was angry at Varric, she would likely take it out on their many enemies.
The Viscountess wondered if she should feel sorry for any of them.
As for Solona and Sebastian, they kept themselves busy. The city not only required their attention, but also the demands of first time parents. Amell wealth meant that they could have hired a cadre of servants to tend to the children's needs, but that was not the kind of life that Solona wanted.
She was intent to be the best mother she could be for Livia and Perrin.
Orana was the only servant that spent any real time with the twins. The Viscountess tried to get the twins to synchronize their feeding times, but the babies were not being cooperative. When one was hungry, the other seemed to want to sleep, and vice versa. Then there were the demand of tending to the children's other needs.
Solona felt like a fool the first time she had tried to change a diaper. Orana, who had been up with Livia most of the night before was napping in her quarters.
That left Perrin's diaper duty to the Viscountess.
She had tried hard not to panic that first time, but between the smell and the boy's crying she almost went running for the nearest servant.
Help had come from a surprising place during that little crisis.
Gray had been coming to speak with her on military matters, seeing the panicked look in her eyes; he had taken pity and aided her. He showed her the proper way to both remove and dispose of mess that came with changing a baby.
The care that the night had shown surprised her; Gray merely chuckled at the look on her face.
Warfare was not the only thing he knew about. House Stark, though noble, had not been the wealthiest of families in Ferelden. On the Farm hold that Gray had grown up on, it often fell to the older children to care for the younger ones.
When the knight was thirteen, his father had married a much younger woman, and produced a little brother for him to care for. Between little Nigel and his older sister's two children he had gotten very good at helping care for babies.
Stark's expression turned sad.
As the eldest son, his father had expected him to take over the Farm hold. Gray had not wanted that. He had both seen and heard how the other nobles looked at them. No Starks had served in the Ferelden military since his grandfather had died at the massacre of West Hill.
It was all that Gray's father could do to hold onto their holdings after that. He had been just a boy himself back then and had feared that the Orlesians might strip them of their home.
His Father had not been a coward, but he had been a bit too careful.
He had threatened to disown his eldest son when he joined the Teyrn's service. The old man had not even come to the ceremony that had seen young Gray fully knighted.
That fact had always eaten at the young Fereldan.
After hearing that story Sebastian had asked him if he and his father had ever mended fences.
Gray shook his head.
They had never gotten the chance.
The darkspawn horde had hit the southern bannorn hard, pushing as far as the Brecilian passage. The Stark Family holdings had been swept away during one of those attacks.
Ser Graydon Stark was now the last of his family.
"Or the first of the new," Solona had suggested.
Gray had chuckled at that.
He had never seen himself as a family man. Taking a wife and having children were an alien prospect to him. No, he always believed that he would die young, an enemy's sword or arrow in his chest.
That would be for the best, he felt.
Gray Stark was not good father material.
IOI
The keep had fallen silent since Hawke and the others had left. Little news had reached them about Leandra's meeting with this Lord of Estwatch, and Seekers had turned up nothing in their hunt for Neria Surana.
The New Year would soon be upon them, and the Viscountess hoped that 9:34 of the Dragon Age would bring more peace than 9:33 did.
The keep seemed so quiet with her family gone, and spread out on their missions. She and Sebastian invited several members of the royal court to share a meal with them. There would be no grand ball this year, but that did not mean that the Amells had nothing to celebrate.
The arrival of the children was surely a sign from the Maker that things would be changing for the better.
It was during this meal that one of the servants came for Solona, demanding that she accompany her.
The Qunari woman was back in the keep.
Solona met with Tallis, the woman who had once been Isabela was a welcome sight for her. Gray had told her of the Qunari's bravery in dealing with the Carta in the marketplace.
She was pleased to see that her friend had suffered no ill effects.
Once again Tallis asked to have a chance to speak with Daylen. The Viscountess had refused this in the past. She saw two possible nightmare scenarios. One: Tallis got angry with her brother and killed him, it might be a good thing in the long run, but it would also give those who still supported Daylen a platform that they could use against her. That she was merely a puppet for the Qunari. It could possibly be used as a rallying cry to unite her enemies under one banner.
The second scenario was that Tallis, on the Arishok's behalf, would make a deal with Daylen. That he would offer the missing Tome in exchange for being put back on what he felt was his rightful throne. The War of Lions had greatly weakened her forces, and even had they not, the Qunari soldiers still outnumbered Kirkwall's guards by almost a three to one margin, or had before the Qunari had lost some of their own to battle and desertion.
Either way, it was a risk that the Viscountess could not take.
She did however offer to speak with her brother on the Qunari's behalf, to try and reason with him.
Tallis agreed to let her try.
Alas, the rest of Solona's advisors and loved ones did not share that opinion.
IOI
Gray had shaken his head when he heard that news.
"You cannot believe a word he says."
"You know Daylen, love," Sebastian added, "He is not without cunning. He may see this request on your part as a weakness."
The Viscountess's brow furrowed.
"If humbling myself before my brother is what it takes to get the Qunari out of my city then so be it," she replied, "Tallis's warnings about them are growing more urgent. We can no longer ignore this."
Sebastian was not yet ready to concede the point.
"He will use this book as leverage. You would be smarter searching on your own. The Qunari will respect that from what you have told me about them…"
Solona sighed.
"The Arishok is running out of patience. The respect of his people will not matter if he believes we are trying to deny him what is his. "
She gave the two men a pleading look.
"I do not like this anymore than either of you, but Daylen maybe the only one in this city who knows where the tome is. "I'm not prepared to let him go over this, but…perhaps I can use his daughter for leverage, convince him that it is in her best interests to aid us."
Her husband winced.
"You would threaten a child?"
"I will threaten Death's Hand," she replied, "If he believes his daughter's life is in danger he may break."
Gray nodded, but his face remained grim.
"Tread carefully here Milady," he warned, "I have spoken with some of the men you have trusted to watch over Death's Hand. The thing…the man that lives in that cell is not a rational being."
"Daylen is still my brother," she said, "I know his motivations, his politics. I can convince him to tell us what he knows.
Sebastian and Gray both looked at each other. The expression on their faces told the tale.
They did not think that she was ready for this.
That opinion only hardened her resolve.
She would prove them wrong.
IOI
The next morning found Solona on her way down to the dungeons, four guards standing watch over her.
Soon enough she came to Daylen's cell, her heart beating a little faster than it should have.
She had not been back here since the failed attempt by the children of eternity to take Daylen's demonic hand. At that time, her brother had been almost raving mad.
She hoped that his sanity had returned somewhat.
The senior guard rapt loudly on the door, making her jump slightly, she could not help but wonder if this had been a bad idea.
"The Viscountess to see you Death's Hand," the guard called out.
Silence greeting them, an almost deafening silence.
Then…
"I am here," her brother purred softly, he slipped his hand outside of the slot, waiting to be manacled.
Solona shivered.
The claws had changed since she had last seen them. The first time that she had seen them they seemed almost skeletal, but now, they seemed stronger…larger.
The binders sealed over his wrists, Death's Hand stepped back to allow his sister to enter.
The guards gave her a reassuring look; they would not let Daylen get out of control, if he tried…
He would not try anything else again.
The Viscountess mustered her courage. She nodded to the guards to open the door.
It creaked loudly on its hinges.
She entered her brother's cell.
He sat on the floor, his bound hands out in front of him; his smile was that of a hungry predator.
"Good evening sister, or is it morning, I can't tell down here," he said politely, "You are looking well."
His reaction to her presence surprised her. She had expected more venom, more rage.
"Good morning Daylen," she responded, it sounded so strange down here in the dark, almost as if they were about to sit down in her apartment and have breakfast together, her, Daylen, and Mother.
Even here, the past haunted her.
Death's Hand smiled.
"Is Cousin Leandra all right?" he asked.
"She is fine."
"She has not come to visit me lately."
"I sent her on an errand," she informed him, "She should be back soon."
Her brother's smile faltered slightly.
"Is she in danger?"
The Viscountess thought to torture him a bit by lying, but decided against it.
Daylen's continued love for Leandra was the only thing that still gave her hope that her brother might be saved one day.
"Fenris is with her," she informed him, "He will keep her safe."
Daylen nodded.
"He is a good guard," he admitted, "Provided he remains loyal."
She did not allow herself to be baited by that. Fenris had told her how Daylen had suggested that he convince her to kill herself after she had fled Kirkwall, and if she decided not to…
The elf was to have ended her.
The fact that Fenris had not apparently still bothered her brother, she decided to change the subject.
She decided to try the carrot before she turned to the whip.
He was after all, still her brother.
"How are you feeling?" she asked.
He grinned at her.
"I could use a little fresh air."
"Perhaps I can help you with that?"
Death's Hand's smile widened.
"And now we come to the heart of the matter," he smirked, "My sweet sister wants something of me?"
His blue eyes blazed with curiosity.
"Tell me sister, what do you want? Inspire me."
"I am prepared to let you out of here for a few hours a week. You may walk on the gardens under heavy guard of course, but it would likely be better than being caged up all day."
"An interesting offer," he said thoughtfully, "but it is not the only thing I want."
"One day a week," she promised, "You shall get to have a visitor in the gardens."
She tried to put on her best reassuring smile.
"I am willing to let you see your daughter."
Death's Hand's claws extended slightly.
"I see," he said smiling again, a smile that did not touch his eyes, "That is very generous of you sister, very generous indeed."
She knew Daylen very well, and she knew when a 'but' was coming.
He did not disappoint.
"But," he sighed, "I must ask you what you need from me. Clearly this is not simply a matter of familial respect?"
Solona swallowed hard, mustering her courage.
Here, we go.
"I need the location of the Tome of Koslun, brother."
Daylen smirked.
"The Tome of what," he asked innocently.
"We have reports that your Winters acquired the Qunari book, they would have brought such a prize to you and only you. Prisoners that we have captured have confirmed it."
Death Hand chuckled.
"You should not believe everything that you hear," he replied.
"Are you saying that you do not know where it is?" she said with a frown, "If you don't then this conversation is over."
She backed up towards the door.
Daylen's eyes widened, perhaps he saw his chance to get out of here slipping away.
"I think…" he said quickly.
She paused.
"You think you know where it is?"
He leaned back a contented smile on his face.
"Possibly," he said, "But I also think that you should stick with bribes."
His smile turned vicious.
"You don't have the stones to be truly ruthless, but that is what you needed me for wasn't it? I played the ruthless demon, while you got to be the spirit of love and compassion."
His claws clicked loudly.
"I wonder what people would have said if they knew your secret?"
"I thought it amused you to say nothing about that," she said, "That is what you said when I sentenced you down here."
Daylen shrugged.
"I have thought about that day quite a bit," He confessed, "That is all I do now, think and consider."
His expression turned sad.
"Mostly, I think about Angelique, about our child, and how they died."
Solona awaited the explosion, Daylen to start snarling how it was all her fault.
Again it did not come.
"I think about the dagger," he continued, "Poisoned, not the kind that Cousin Garrett would have used, and at the same time clearly a rogue's weapon."
Solona's eyes narrowed.
"I don't think…"
"I think you will want to hear this," he interrupted, his smile turning downright merry.
He pushed forward.
"I don't think one of your Tevinter slaves, the dagger was not of Tevinter design, and yes, I remember how it looks, you never forget the weapon that murdered your soul mate. The design had no markings of Starkhaven so I realized it was not your husband or any of his people. I thought the Qunari whore, for a moment, but once again the blade was not of Qunari origin.
Daylen's smile never faltered, he continued to push on.
"It was not your pet dwarf either, if he had killed my beloved he would have used a bolt from that crossbow of his. I…I don't think he even knows how to use a throwing knife does he?"
The Viscountess did not have the chance to respond.
Daylen did not let her.
"Which leaves only one possibility," he said, "One possible suspect…the child bard you brought in from Orlais, the one that my bard was supposed to have slain with their master."
Solona did not confirm or deny. She knew Daylen; he had already made up his mind.
"Yes," he murmured, "I do think it was the elf. She makes the most sense, and the look on your face tells me far more."
He gave her a conspiratorial wink.
Solona crossed her arms over her chest.
"This is not about your late wife."
A hint of madness flashed in her brother's eyes.
"No, this is about saving our home," he said, "And in the name of that mission, I have a counter proposal for you sister."
She knew she was not going to like what he was about to offer, but she listened anyway.
If she could save Kirkwall…?
Wasn't that worth the risk?
"I can't tell you where the tome is," he said, "I can only show you. The defenses were designed to keep out all but a child of Revka and Aristide Amell. Anyone else tries to recover the tome, they will die horribly. I can lead you to the tome sister, but there is a price attached."
"Name it," she said.
Death's Hand giggled.
"You will take me out of this cell," he began, "and together we shall journey to my estate, I trust the play room I had built beneath it is still there?"
She did not answer.
He continued.
"You will have the little elf brought there. Once she has been…secured, we shall begin."
For just a second it looked as if Daylen's eyes were glowing.
Solona blinked, but the glow had faded.
What was…?
"You want the tome, sister? I want the elf, and I want you to watch. I want you to watch as I indulge myself. I want you to watch as I peel the flesh from her bones. I want you to watch as I inflict the tortures the little bitch deserves for killing my wife."
Daylen's eyes blazed with hate.
"I want to hear her beg, to plead for her worthless little life. I want to take her past the line where agony and ecstasy join, and I want you to be there. I want you to go up to her and offer her salvation."
Death's Hand smiled dreamily.
"Then…I want to watch as you betray her. I want to watch you split the little whore's skull. I want to see her blood cover your hands like crimson gloves."
Daylen sprang to his feet. Solona did not flinch.
She faced him, both horrified and enraged by his sick vision.
"That is the price of my aid you Starkhaven Slut," he spat, "I want the elf to suffer. I want her life, her very soul, and then…I will take the last bit of light in you."
His smile widened.
"Then you get to be the monster sister. The loss of a single elven life, and your innocence, that is worth that tome I think."
He sat back down.
"Do we have a deal, sister?"
She shook her head.
"You're a monster," she spat.
She pounded on the door; the guard opened it without any further word.
They must have been listening.
In the cell, Death's Hand was laughing.
"My offers still on the table, Lona," he called out, "You can either accept or learn to start speaking Qunari. It is your choice. I'll be here when you make up your mind."
She tried not to think about it, tried not to think about what Daylen wanted.
Sebastian had been right.
Death's Hand was not a man anymore.
"I'll be waiting, sister," he called out jovially.
Yes you will, she thought…
For a very long time.
