Lhiannon and Sigrun returned to Arl Eamon's office. This time, Isolde was with him, putting several ledgers back on shelves when the Grey Wardens arrived. Lhiannon and Sigrun shot each other a curious look. This is going to be very interesting indeed, Lhiannon thought. She would try to convince Eamon to release Jowan into her custody first and have the Joining preformed at Vigil's Keep among all the Grey Wardens; if he resisted, she would invoke the Right. If he resists? Maker's breath, this isn't the Fade; of COURSE he's going to resist. What are you thinking?

"Arl Eamon, do you have a moment?" Lhiannon asked, steeling herself for what was to come.

Eamon looked up from the paperwork on his desk as Isolde shot a withering glance over her shoulder at Lhiannon, who ignored the gesture by keeping her gaze focused on the Arl. "Of course, Commander. What can I do for you?"

"I would like Jowan to join the Grey Wardens."

Lhiannon never saw a person spin about faster than the Arlessa did just then. "What? No! You can't do that!" Isolde quickly rushed over to Eamon's side, grabbing his arm and pulling him to his feet. She pointed emphatically at Lhiannon. "You can't allow her to conscript him, Eamon! Not after what he did to you and Connor."

Eamon looked at Lhiannon with wide-eyed shock, which quickly turned to stone as Isolde spoke to him. "I'm sorry, Commander," Eamon began, his voice taking on a frosty tone. "I cannot allow that. You may call me vengeful and petty if you wish, but I will not allow him to live; not after what he did to my family."

"Eamon, the Joining is dangerous," Lhiannon calmly explained, keeping her eyes on the Arl. "There is a strong possibility Jowan may not survive."

"That's not good enough," Isolde spat at Lhiannon. "I want to see his body swinging from the gallows. Hanging him is certain."

"I'm afraid I have to agree with Isolde, Commander," Eamon said. "Jowan will be executed tomorrow as planned."

Lhiannon took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, willing her frayed nerves to calm. "Then I hereby invoke Right of Conscription. Jowan will take the Joining immediately and return to Vigil's Keep as a Grey Warden."

Isolde's face went red with rage. She quickly rounded the desk and stood in front of Lhiannon, her breath hot in Lhiannon's face. "No! You cannot do this. We will not comply!" She turned to the Arl, motioning him toward the door. "Have the maleficar killed now, Eamon, before she can conscript him!"

Lhiannon looked at Isolde, narrowing her eyes at the Arlessa. "You don't have a choice. The Right cannot be denied. And if you are thinking of taking this matter before the King, let me assure you that he will allow it. He is a Grey Warden himself and knows full well that the Right cannot be denied."

"Isolde, please, come to me," Lhiannon heard Eamon beseech his wife. Isolde paused for a moment, glaring at Lhiannon in a blind fury before finally backing away and joining Eamon. Eamon took Isolde's hand before looking at Lhiannon with dark anger in his eyes.

"I wish you had not done that, Commander," Eamon spoke softly, the anger evident in his voice. "I will accompany you to the prison to inform the guard. You will perform your Joining and then I would ask you to leave the castle. Finish whatever other business you have Redcliffe, then be on your way."

Lhiannon nodded once to Eamon. "As soon as Jowan is able to travel, we shall return to Vigil's Keep; I will not have him endure travel if hs is unwell." She then turned to Isolde and nodded, giving the Arlessa what she hoped was a neutral expression. "I bid you farewell, My Lady." She and Sigrun turned to go back to the dungeon where Jowan was being held, listening to the sounds of vicious swearing coming from the Eamon's office; in Orlesian, of course. Lhiannon recognized a few of the more colorful metaphors and tried not to laugh as she and Sigrun walked through the halls and out of earshot. Eamon followed close behind, saying nothing as they traveled. Once they reached the dungeons, Lhiannon and Sigrun moved aside so the Arl could admit them. She and Sigrun quickly got to work, pulling a chalice and a small vial of corrupted blood out of their pack and mixing it with a small amount of wine.

The Arl stood next Lhiannon and Sigrun as the guard opened the cell and released Jowan from his manacles. They dropped to the floor of the cell with a heavy thud. Jowan walked out of the cell to stand before Lhiannon, who held the small chalice with the wine and darkspawn blood mixture. The smell of corruption made Lhiannon's stomach turn, as it always did. She brought her eyes up to meet his; he looked at peace, prepared to meet the next phase of his existence, no matter what it may be.

"Jowan, there are words we say before each Joining. They have been said at every ritual since the first. Today, Sigrun will say them." Lhiannon turned to Sigrun, nodding for her to begin. Sigrun's sweet voice filled the dark passage in the prison, intoning the words to begin the Joining. As she finished, Lhiannon handed the chalice to Jowan, nodding to him as he took it. Jowan said nothing, but simply brought the chalice to his lips and quickly drank the mixture without hesitation. Almost immediately, he dropped the goblet, screaming in pain as the corrupted blood coursed through his veins. Lhiannon felt the alarm growing as Jowan's screams intensified. He fell to his knees, grasping his head in both hands as he howled in agony for several moments. Finally, he slumped forward to the floor and lay still.

Sigrun looked up at Lhiannon, the blind fright evident in her eyes. Lhiannon knelt down and pressed a visibly shaking hand to Jowan's neck, looking for signs of life. His heart still beat; it was erratic, but still beating. Lhiannon let out the breath she did not realize she was holding. "He lives," she sighed to Sigrun.

Behind her, Arl Eamon's fists clenched and he whirled about, stomping through the dungeon and out the door.

Cauthrien was waiting for Loghain at the manor gate when he and his guards arrived; they had made it from Vigil's Keep in record time, shaving two days off the journey. Loghain could see that his lieutenant had not slept much in the past few days. She had assumed Thorne's duties while he recovered from the attempt on his life. Loghain knew he did not feel much better than she looked; the punishing pace he set from Vigil's Keep, coupled with the fading effects of the mortality spell, left him weary and short of temper.

"I am glad to see you so quickly, Your Grace," Cauthrien greeted him, turning toward the manor. Loghain quickly climbed the steps, ignoring his fatigue, and proceeded to where Cauthrien had Thorne kept under guard until she could interrogate the perpetrators. "I didn't think it would be safe for Thorne anywhere else but here," Cauthrien explained as their armored footsteps echoed through the manor. "I wanted him under the protection of the manor guard until we could fully investigate."

"You did the right thing, Cauthrien," Loghain said as they reached the guest suite where the seneschal was recovering. He opened the door to see Thorne seated at a small table, working in a ledger. He looked up to see his Teyrn approaching. "Welcome home, Your Grace," Thorne greeted Loghain, his voice low and hoarse.

"Thorne," Loghain began, taking in the battered form of his seneschal. "It is good to see you recovering so quickly."

It was clear that the conspirators had beaten Thorne to within an inch of his life. Though the attack was nearly two weeks ago now, the rainbow of bruises still on Thorne's skin made Loghain seethe. Thorne's face was still slightly swollen and Loghain also saw the fading bruises on his throat showing where they had nearly choked the life from him. One of Thorne's wrists had been splinted and as he rose to greet Loghain, he noticed the seneschal's pronounced limp.

"They meant to send you and the Warden Commander a message, Your Grace. They had hoped to bring you both here so they could attack her while you were investigating the assault on me." Thorne scowled with concern. "The Commander isn't here, is she?"

"No. She is currently in Redcliffe," Loghain said.

"That is where the thugs that beat Thorne received their orders from," Cauthrien said, crossing her arms on her chest. "They were paid twenty sovereigns each to send that message." She paused briefly, her brow raised in questioning. "Is the Warden Commander safe in Redcliffe?" Though Cauthrien and Lhiannon were not friends, she did not want to see harm come to the Commander. She was important to the Teyrn, Cauthrien knew, and for that fact alone, she would treat the Commander with respect.

"The Commander has two other Grey Wardens with her, as well as the Captain of the Vigil's guard and several soldiers." Loghain paused briefly and Cauthrien watched his brow furrow slightly. "She is safer with those around her than she would have been alone. Have any other conspirators been spotted in Gwaren?" Loghain asked.

"Not that we have seen, Your Grace," Cauthrien said. "It appears that any others that were here fled or went to ground when their cohorts were captured."

Loghain walked over to the window of the guest suite, looking outside toward the port and the ocean beyond. "What sort of trouble did they attempt to stir up?" Loghain asked both of them. "What of the nobles that appear to have been bribed? What was the motivation behind the bribery?"

"Bann Ceorlic was approached by the conspirators, Your Grace," Thorne explained, setting his splinted arm on the top of the table. "He immediately came to Cauthrien when he heard of my misfortune."

Loghain nodded, a dark scowl on his face; of course the conspirators would approach Ceorlic. There was a great deal of history between Loghain, Maric, and both men named Ceorlic. During the rebellion, Ceorlic the Traitor—as Loghain thought of him—sided with Meghren and was one of the men responsible for the betrayal and attack that killed Maric's mother, Queen Moira. The elder Ceorlic met his fate at the end of Maric's sword, babbling promises of more men and support for the new King. Maric had given Ceorlic's children one day to denounce their father and the acts he had committed during the rebellion. Ceorlic the Younger quickly denounced his father and Maric allowed him to inherit his father's lands. That they bordered Loghain's own served as a deterrent, a quiet warning that the Teyrn was always watching. It was no secret among the nobility that Ceorlic feared Loghain and did everything he could to stay on whatever good side he felt the Teyrn had. Ceorlic knew that the moment he stepped out of line, the Teyrn would be there, sword at the ready. "What did he say?" Loghain asked.

"The eventual goal of the conspirators was to have some of the nobles cause unrest through protests of your being Teyrn as well as a Grey Warden. They wanted to stage work stoppages and withhold their taxes and food shipments to the teyrnir. If the common people and workers began to rebel, it would compel you to return to Gwaren. With the unrest they hoped to cause, they believed you would eventually have to choose between the Grey Wardens and the teyrnir, having been ordered to do so by either the Warden Commander or the Crown itself. They believed you would likely vacate your title of Teyrn, leaving the teyrnir open again for one of their supporters to assume the title."

Loghain scoffed derisively, shaking his head as he did so. "And they thought Ceorlic would be a good start, knowing the past history between me, Maric, and his father? Ceorlic is a complete fool who would lick my boots if I demanded it; the man all but faints in my presence. I have no tolerance for any foolishness from him and he damn well knows it." Loghain paused briefly, rubbing his chin in thought. "But then why the beating?" he asked, furrowing his brow and scowling. "What did they hope to accomplish with that?"

"As I said before, Your Grace, they wanted to lure you and the Commander here and attempt an assassination; if she were assassinated here in Gwaren, that would not have reflected well on you and served to undermine your authority and influence," Thorne explained. "While that was a short term, almost impulsive plan, the long term goals were the bribery of your vassals, undermining your position, and the installation of a new Teyrn. Perhaps they wanted to show you that you could not tend to your duties as Teyrn from Vigil's Keep."

Loghian's scowl deepened; Thorne was right. Had the Hero of Ferelden been assassinated in Gwaren, it could have easily undermined him. "I have managed for years to tend to my duties from afar; they will not change me now. You were able to stop them before they began implementing those plans, yes?" Loghain asked, earning nods from both Cauthrien and Thorne. "Excellent. You both have done well in my absence and in the investigation." Loghain turned to Thorne. "I will stay in Gwaren until those that perpetrated these actions are brought to justice and you feel you are ready to resume your duties."

"The mages say I should be completely healed within a week or so," Thorne said. "I intend to return to duty as soon as possible."

Loghain nodded to Thorne before turning his attention to his lieutenant. "Cauthrien, I want to bring the perpetrators to justice right away. I want to hold a session of court for high justice as soon as possible. Send a messenger to Bann Ceorlic; tell him he is to come to Gwaren immediately. I will send a written summons to him as well as those implicated in the bribery. If the bribed nobles will come forward and both offer testimony against the conspirators and forfeit their ill-gotten proceeds to the teyrnir, they will be shown mercy this one time. If they do not come forward, we shall go to them; I assure you, they will not like that option."

Cauthrien nodded her understanding. "With your permission, I'll take the summons to Ceorlic myself. If I leave tomorrow morning, I can be back in a few days." She raised a brow to Loghain, a wry smirk crossing her features. "I will make sure Ceorlic understands the meaning of haste. Court can be held the day after we return."

"Do it," Loghain commanded, turning his attention once again to his seneschal. "Thorne, I will leave you to rest now. I shall be in my quarters if I am needed."

Thorne nodded. "Thank you, Your Grace." Loghain turned and left, heading for his chambers. He was rankled that the conspirators would attempt sedition here in Gwaren and that some of his vassals would entertain their notions. "Mercy" was not often in his vocabulary, but he needed their testimony against those involved in this conspiracy of assassination and sedition. If mercy to a few would bring those more deeply involved to justice, then so be it. Regardless, their names would be marked; death would await them the next time they so much as stepped one toe out of line. He had promised himself, after all, that he would find the dark heart of this conspiracy and thrust his blade through it by any means necessary.

His thoughts turned to Lhiannon as he entered his chambers, thinking of when he was last occupying these rooms, with her in his bed for the first time. The first time he told her he loved her. He removed his armor and lay on the bed, slinging his arm over his eyes in his weariness. His limbs began to grow heavy as he rested, his thoughts wandering in any number of directions before returning to Lhiannon. If he thought about it hard enough, he could almost feel her breath brushing against his skin as he lay in his bed. He missed her and was anxious to conclude his duties here in Gwaren and return to her side. He began to think of what he would say to her when he returned to Vigil's Keep to explain his absence. He also thought about what he would say in asking the most important question he would likely ever pose to her.

"We need to find somewhere for Jowan to rest," Lhiannon said, her hand on Jowan's clammy brow. She directed a small amount of healing magic into him to help calm the fever that began to rage through him. She also wanted him cleaned up and fresh clothing brought to him.

"You know that grouchy old Arl won't let us stay at the castle," Sigrun said, crossing her arms over her chest. "Besides, I don't want to hear the Arlessa whining like a stuck nug."

"I would rather not stay at the inn, but we may not have a choice. Jowan can't travel right now; I don't want to move him far," Lhiannon said as she raised her eyes to speak to Sigrun.

"Excuse me, Commander," a voice said quietly from behind them. Lhiannon turned to see the Redcliffe guard standing behind them, looking down at Jowan with concern. "My name is Pickering; 'Pick' for short. I'm the second in command of the armies here. The barracks are at your disposal, if you wish it." He paused briefly, considering. "You are still the Hero of Ferelden and highly regarded here in Redcliffe, regardless of what the Arl and Arlessa think. You and your Wardens would be most welcome with us."

Lhiannon shook her head at Pick. "I don't want to see you encounter the wrath of the Arl and Arlessa. To say that they are not happy with me is putting it lightly."

Pick moved to sling Jowan over his shoulder, waving off Lhiannon's concern with a laugh. He easily picked up the mage as if he were nothing more than a sack of grain. "Come, Commander; follow me to the barracks." He led them from the dungeon area to where the soldiers were housed in their barracks.

Nathaniel and Garavel were quickly at Lhiannon's side when she arrived at the barracks with the newest Grey Warden in tow. Pick gently set Jowan on the bed before stepping back, nodding a greeting to his counterpart Garavel. Jowan was deathly pale except for the bright red flush on his cheeks. His breathing was shallow, but beginning to even out.

"Will he survive?" Nathaniel asked, looking at Lhiannon with concern.

"I hope so," she confided. "I've never witnessed a Joining like his where a candidate went through so much pain but survived. He's made it thus far, so I'm optimistic."

"How did the Arl take the news?" Garavel asked.

"Not well," Lhiannon admitted, sighing heavily as she pulled at the tie holding her hair back, running her hand through the locks as they fell free. "I fear the Grey Wardens won't be welcome in Redcliffe any time soon. At least, not any of us currently present."

"Again, you are most welcome to stay here tonight," Pick offered. "It's obvious even to me that your newest recruit cannot travel yet." Lhiannon nodded, thanking Pick for his hospitality.

Lhiannon breathed a healing spell, placing her hand on Jowan's forehead to confer it. He was still burning with a raging fever, but her spell managed to calm the redness in his cheeks. He moaned softly and turned his head, but remained unconscious. "I think I will need to heal him occasionally. I only brought a few lyrium vials with me; I will likely need more." She turned to Nathaniel and Garavel. "As much as I don't think I should, I need to find more lyrium. That means a trip into town."

"You're not going alone," Nathaniel said as Garavel nodded his agreement.

"Warden Nathaniel is right, Commander," Garavel said. "We should accompany you. I don't think Redcliffe is safe for you just now."

Lhiannon nodded. "I fear you're right. Garavel, make sure the Vigil's guards are posted near Jowan while we're gone; I don't want him meeting with an 'accident' while we're in town."

They quickly made their trip into Redcliffe, purchasing Lhiannon's lyrium. She also bought a set of light armor and a dagger for Jowan; she wanted him to have some sort of protection other than mages robes for the trip back to Vigil's Keep. As they reentered the barracks in their haste to return to Jowan's side, none of them noticed the figures watching them from the shadows.

A small sound jolted Lhiannon out of her light sleep. She held her breath and listened, waiting for the sound to come again. There...it sounded like a footstep, light and clothed in soft materials rather than metal. Lhiannon slowly moved her hands out from beneath the covers of her bed, bringing the freedom of movement she would need to cast a spell. Reaching out with her tainted senses, she found the presence of another Grey Warden nearby: Sigrun. Lhiannon began to call forth a small ball of flame, waiting to breathe the last word until she was ready to move. She waited, listening for the sound again. There was nothing for several moments before she finally heard something, even closer to her than before. Lhiannon suddenly rolled to the side, away from the sound as she breathed the last word of the spell and tossed the ball of flame up toward the ceiling, where it hovered overhead and bathed the room in a faint, orange light. Quickly looking up, she saw a shrouded figure creeping toward her bed with a small dagger in hand. She also saw the small form of Sigrun directly behind the intruder, stalking it like a predator, her face held in a dangerous snarl.

Once the figure saw that they were discovered, it lunged at Lhiannon, trying to sink the dagger into Lhiannon's body. Lhiannon darted away as Sigrun quickly rushed forward, grabbing the intruder around the waist and, twisting, threw the figure to the ground. Her dagger was quickly at the figure's throat and Sigrun snarled at the intruder. "Epic fail," she snorted. "You couldn't sneak up on a deaf genlock."

Lhiannon bounded to the door in her nightclothes, calling the Vigil's guards over and telling them to gather Nathaniel and Garavel from the next room. Once the guard bounded off, Lhiannon went to her armor stand, pulling Spellweaver and joining Sigrun, who still sat on the shrouded intruder with her dagger pressed firmly into their throat. Lhiannon pointed her sword at the intruder's neck.

"Should we remove the shroud?" Sigrun asked, reaching forward. Lhiannon held a hand out to Sigrun. "Not yet. I want Nate and Garavel here first." Lhiannon looked down at the figure pinned to he floor. The intruder looked warily between the Grey Wardens; Lhiannon could also see what appeared to be raw hatred there. There was no doubt in Lhiannon's mind just who this was.

A noise at the door told Lhiannon that Nathaniel and Garavel had arrived with two Redcliffe guards in tow. "What in the Maker's name is this?" Garavel asked. "Are you well, Commander?"

"I am, Garavel," Lhiannon assured him, turning toward the guards at the door. "Go and get your Arl," she barked at them, turning back to watch the intruder warily.

"But, My Lady, the Arl is surely sleeping at this time of night," the senior guard protested.

"Then wake him!" Lhiannon snarled, not taking her gaze or Spellweaver off the intruder. The guard ran off to wake the Arl. When Eamon arrived a number of minutes later, he was dressed in little more than his sleeping clothes with a cloak thrown hastily around him. His hair was mussed and dark circles framed his eyes. He stared with confusion at the scene before him when he first entered the room, but his eyes quickly widened in shock when he saw Lhiannon and Sigrun had their weapons trained on a shrouded intruder. A dark look crossed the Arl's features.

"What is this? Someone has tried to harm you?" the Arl asked, looking warily at the shrouded figure on the floor.

"Perhaps you should ask our guest yourself, since you know her so very well," Lhiannon retorted, reaching forward to grasp the shroud covering the intruder's face. Lhiannon yanked the shroud off the intruder to reveal the snarling face of Arlessa Isolde.

"Hello there, Isolde," Lhiannon said icily, "now why am I not surprised to see you here?" She turned back to regard the Arl, who was staring down at the floor in what looked like disbelief. "As you can see, I'm still in my nightclothes. Isolde appears to be dressed in light leathers. Her buckles are covered in dark lacquer and the soles of her boots are supple leather rather than hard soled. Oh yes, and she's holding an impressive looking dagger. I'm no expert, but it appears she's acting as an assassin would." Lhiannon paused, looking at the Arl suspiciously. "Or a bard. An extremely poor bard at that."

Eamon appeared to come to his senses as he marched forward and grabbed Sigrun by the shoulders, trying to pull her off Isolde. "Get off of my wife, dwarf," he growled at her, the venom dripping from his voice.

"Not until we have ascertained what has happened here, Eamon," came a new voice from the doorway. Everyone looked toward the door and saw Bann Teagan standing there, his face torn by anguish. It appeared he had quickly dressed and hurried to the barracks when the guards had summoned Eamon. He looked down at Isolde, shaking his head slowly. "Isolde, I never thought you could come to this."

Isolde glared at Teagan before turning to Lhiannon. She said nothing, just simply glared.

Teagan turned to Eamon, sadness on his face. "Eamon, Isolde is behind the conspiracy to kill the Commander. The Grey Wardens have letters she wrote to her agents, giving the orders to harm her."

Eamon looked both angry and anguished. "What? Is this true, Isolde?"

Isolde snarled at her husband, her face turning a shade of scarlet in her apparent blind rage. "It's not as if you and the others didn't want to see this harlot dead either." Isolde returned her glare to Lhiannon, her eyes narrowing in hate. "La mort est à venir pour vous, mage," she snarled quietly, her voice low so that only Lhiannon and Sigrun could hear. Sigrun pressed the knife a little deeper into Isolde's throat. "You're awful snarky for being on the business end of a dagger," the dwarf whispered, drawing her own glare from Isolde.

Silence descended on the room as everyone looked at Eamon, waiting for his response. It was Teagan who spoke first. "Eamon, is this true? You also wanted to see the Commander dead?"

Eamon continued to glare at Isolde; Lhiannon could not tell if it were in anger, disgust, or something else. After a long moment of silence, Teagan spoke again, his voice turning hard. He marched to Eamon's side, jerking on Eamon's shoulder so he would look Teagan in the eye. "Is this true, Eamon? You will answer me, by the Maker."

The Arl sighed heavily, shaking his head in apparent disbelief as Teagan's gaze bore into him. "I didn't think Isolde would actually do anything. We weren't happy with the Commander and her public endorsement of Loghain and her conscription of the mage, but I never thought she would act upon her urges. It was something we had spoken of in private..."

As the words hung in the air between the brothers, Lhiannon glared at Eamon, her anger and disappointment clear in her voice. "Isolde will return to Vigil's Keep with us. I will ask the King to come to Vigil's Keep to hear the charges against her and dispense justice." Lhiannon turned to Nathaniel. "Find manacles to secure the prisoner." With a nod, Nathaniel turned and ran through the door, barking the orders to the guards nearby.

Eamon quickly stepped forward to Lhiannon, a plea crossing his features. "Is it necessary to take her all the way back to Vigil's Keep? I do not want to see harm come to her on the way. Let her stay here while we wait for the King to come to Redcliffe."

"And have her 'escape'? I think not, Eamon," Lhiannon replied. "She comes with us." Lhiannon turned to Garavel. "Gather the men and make the necessary preparations; we leave for Vigil's Keep at dawn." She turned toward the door as Nathaniel rushed into the room, a pair of manacles and accompanying key in hand. He quickly moved to Sigrun's side and helped the dwarf pull Isolde to her feet, securing her wrists behind her back. Lhiannon watched as the manacles snapped shut, then turned to Garavel and pulled him to the side. "When we leave, I want you and two of your fastest men to ride to Denerim," she said, her voice low so that only Garavel heard it. "I'll give you a message for the King, but I also want you to relay the details in person."

"Understood, Commander."

As Garavel moved to gather the men and secure Isolde, Lhiannon was left to ponder the Arlessa's words; what did she mean by 'the others'? Who were they? Where were they? Just how much was Eamon involved in everything? Was he a clueless husband or a willing participant? He had already admitted that he and Isolde had discussed their mutual dislike of her; she found it hard to believe that Eamon would be completely uninvolved. Lhiannon found herself fighting the urge to simply gather her entourage, strap Isolde to the back of their carriage, and immediately make haste for Vigil's Keep in the dead of night. She would feel much better within the walls of the Vigil, with Loghain, her Wardens, and her soldiers around her. Fear settled into her gut, threatening to overwhelm her. It was time to leave Redcliffe behind and the sooner it faded in the distance behind her, the better. Shaking her head and trying to quash her fear, she began to dress, preparing for the long day ahead.

A figure moved silently through the halls of the barracks, keeping to the darker recesses until they reached a door leading outside. The figure moved toward the stables where the soldiers kept their horses, guiding an already outfitted horse through the stalls and outdoors. The rider quietly mounted and maneuvered the horse outside town, quickly moving off toward the northwest and setting a punishing pace away from Redcliffe in a rush of thundering hooves.

So why Ceorlic? I figured the conspirators would try to turn Ceorlic's fear of Loghain against him. If he fears the Teyrn so much, why not throw his lot in with them and force change? I think, after so many years, his fear of Loghain is so ingrained, it's almost instinctual. He is going to do whatever it takes to stay on Loghain's good side; a pissed off Loghain as a next door neighbor probably isn't a good thing. So, off he goes to Cauthrien, quaking in fear.

I haven't forgotten about Eamon; he will be dealt with. ;)

I may approach a couple of you more experienced authors in the coming days with a small dilemma I am having near the end of the story; specifically, where to end this one and pick up the next one. I find myself wavering and I think a second, third, and/or fourth opinion may be needed.

Extra special thanks to my reviewers Shakespira, Arsinoe de Blassenville, Aura of Darkness Night, Dante Aligheiri, and Enaid Aderyn. You're the best! I very much appreciate your support and feedback, more than you may think.

As always, thanks to you readers and lurkers, and those who bookmark and favorite the story. I appreciate it! I always look forward to reviews and PM's too.