I roared with laughter as we walked away from it. I honestly thought I'd seen everything. I'd been a werewolf. I'd seen Sovngarde. I'd fought and defeated dragons, including one who threatened to destroy our very existence. Vampires existed… Well, not on Thedas, but elsewhere. I'd seen some bizarre shit during my days as a warrior in Chorrol, and then as the Dragonborn while living in Skyrim.

But a talking, rhyming oak tree? That took the biscuit. Took the cake. Took the whole…

I was still laughing at the rear of the column, joined by Solona and Leliana. The former giggled away, no doubt because I found it all so funny, while Leliana smiled but probably thought I was being a bit of a fool. I know I was. I'm not exactly sure what I did find so funny. But it was.

"I can't believe we're being sent to look for a fucking acorn," I finally stated once my laughter died down.

"It's a harmless job, Uhtred," Leliana retorted, "You've probably done similar things before."

"How are we meant to find a single acorn?" Solona wondered.

"The tree suggested it was stolen. I doubt it was the Dalish. Probably not the werewolves either. So there must be others living in this forest," Leliana replied.

"What sort of lunatic would live here?" I asked.

We found out a few hours later.

Before that, we actually found darkspawn, and somewhat amusingly, I think they were as surprised to see us as we were them. Lyna had never seen darkspawn before, so was scared for about three seconds before the staff in her hand glowed and fire rained down on them. As there was only half a dozen or so of them, most of us barely had a chance to even wet out blades with their blood.

Once the darkspawn were handled, we moved on, still on guard but the forest was… well, it was weird, as it was alive. Not in the sense that trees and flowers are obviously living, but there was something unnatural about our surroundings. What kept going through my head was the warning the veil is thin here. I didn't think that related to the werewolf curse, but there was something slightly unsettling about the forest. Like that feeling which crawls up your neck, almost as if we were being constantly watched by… something.

Lyna and Aedan continued to lead, but I think by now, they were merely guessing the best way to go. I think if we were in serious danger, Lyna would find the way back to the Dalish camp, but I know I wasn't the only one feeling lost. The size of the forest beggared belief, and it wasn't reassuring when Morrigan stated it was probably far larger than we could possibly imagine.

Entering some sort of clearing, I heard Aedan call our column to a halt, all of us gathering together at the sight of, well, the only polite word I can think of using is lunatic. Full of boundless energy and incessant ranting, he paid us no mind as he continued doing whatever he was doing. "You know who this guy is?" Aedan asked of Lyna.

"I don't know who he is, but yes, hunters have returned to the camp with stories of a strange man in the forest. He's the only one who I think could have stolen the acorn."

Those of us with a modicum of sense left Aedan and Lyna to converse with the madman. I sat my arse on the ground, keeping my sword close, but as he was one lone lunatic, I didn't think he'd be stupid enough to try and attack us. Most of the group took a seat on the ground nearby, watching as Aedan and Lyna negotiated, or at least attempted communication, with someone who was clearly out of their mind. I wasn't the only one who found Aedan's increasing frustration amusing, the conversation apparently going around in circles. More than once his hand to his sheathed sword. It took Lyna to put the conversation back on track, gently moving his arm away each time.

I'm not sure how long it took, but the situation was finally resolved peacefully, the lunatic walking towards a nearby tree stump, eventually handing over a single acorn to Lyna. With what I assumed were thanks, she walked towards us with my brother almost meekly by her side.

"We've got it. We should return to the tree," Lyna stated.

"And the tree will open the way?" I asked.

"That was the promise. Let's see if the tree keeps it, shall we."

Sten muttered something about taking care of the lunatic, but as he had proven relatively harmless, we asked Shale to… escort Sten away from the clearing. Walking back to the oak tree proceeded without incident, most of us now relaxing, as any pack of wolves we saw were smart enough not to approach, while we hadn't seen too many packs of darkspawn. Even they appeared smart enough to avoid being this deep in the forest. Huh, what does that make us then?

The giant oak tree was delighted to have its acorn back, waxing lyrical about what it all meant. And it kept its promise, stating the magics of the forest would no longer bar the way. I know a couple of our mage companions had questions about just how the tree managed to talk, but it had already been a long couple of days, and I think all of us just wanted to find the werewolf lair and find out if we could even cure them. Or if they'd accept our help.

Finding our way back to the diverging path where the barrier had once stood, we were all relieved to find it had disappeared, the way clear ahead though it was now a case of walking into the unknown. None of us knew what was behind the barrier, so weapons were again unsheathed, warriors flanking the mages, me at the rear as always, making sure we were not flanked. I sometimes wondered if I shouldn't join Aedan up front, considering my Thu'um, but he liked knowing I was protecting us all at the rear. Anyway, I'd done my fair share of leading while fighting dragons. For the moment, I was happy to follow.

The forest didn't change beyond, though we walked a little slowly, far warier of our surroundings. Our entire group remained silent, ears listening for any sounds that appeared out of place. The trees loomed over us, almost closing in. If anyone felt claustrophobic, I'm sure they were growing anxious.

I don't think any of us knew what we were going to find behind the barrier. We knew the werewolf lair was around, but had no idea where it was or what it would look like. What we found to begin with surprised us all.

A Dalish elf appeared to have made camp in a small clearing. He had a staff, so was obviously a mage, and appeared as startled at seeing us as we were at seeing him. He got to his feet, and was ready to arm himself, before realising we were friendlies. It probably helped that Lyna was at the front too.

"Aneirin?" Lyna exclaimed, "You're alive?"

"Lyna! What are you doing here? Did Zathrian send you to find me?" Then his eyes moved all over us, and I could see the surprise, "And who are these people?" Then his eyes stopped on someone specific. "Wynne?" he asked quietly, "Is that really you?"

Wynne weaved her way to the front. "Aneirin, it's good to see you."

I had no idea who that was, but figured Aedan had an idea, as he immediately closed in, the group conversing quietly. From my position, I couldn't hear too much, but I could see Aneirin. He was relaxed, seeing the occasional nod or smile. They talked for a little while before the pair hugged, Aneirin said his farewells, and he walked back in the direction of the Dalish camp.

"You'd better tell them what that was all about, Wynne," Aedan suggested.

"The kindly old woman you see standing before you hasn't always been this way. In my youth, I could be hot-headed, temperamental, impatient, in a hurry to improve and expecting the same from my apprentices. Aneirin was a good child, coming to us far older than usual, but I pushed him too hard, too soon." She looked at Lyna. "He also spoke of his people constantly, and wanted to seek you out. I didn't take him seriously, considering it nothing but idle fantasy. Little did I know."

"What happened?" Lyna asked.

"He escaped. But those of us who know the Circles realise the dangers of escaping. Templars have phylacteries that help track down apostate mages. And from what I was told, Aneirin was tracked down and… the situation resolved."

"You thought he was dead," Leliana stated. It wasn't a question, Wynne simply nodding.

"We found him, Wynne. He was grievously injured but we nursed him back to health. And he's been part of our group for a long time now," Lyna explained.

"I'm just glad he's doing okay."

For those wondering, Wynne didn't turn into a blubbering wreck upon the reunion with her former, once thought dead apprentice. In fact, it appeared a long carried weight had been lifted from her shoulders. I'd spoken to Wynne often in camp, but the subject of Aneirin had never come up. I assume it was something deeply personal that she would only share with those who knew her best. Aedan, as leader of our little group, spoke to everyone, every day, whether in camp or on the road. Little wonder he knew her secrets.

We moved on again, passing by long abandoned ruins, the forest continuing to close in around us, the path growing ever darker. Even I was growing a little concerned, particularly as sunlight was starting to fade, and I knew none of us would want to wander the forest in darkness. As suddenly as the forest closed in around us, the path turned sharply and we entered another large clearing. Ahead of us was the entrance to some long abandoned ruins. I had no idea who would have built them. Alistair usually had an eye for such things.

The werewolves were waiting for us once again. In particular one werewolf, Swiftrunner. Somewhat surprisingly, he was alone, though I could see a trio of werewolves in the distance.

"You are stronger than we could have anticipated, I will credit your group that much. But none of you belong here. Leave this place!"

Swiftrunner roared, and werewolves descended from the surrounding trees. Four werewolves turned into at least a dozen. All Aedan did was turn and wave me forward. "Tell them what we all know," he asked of me.

"Lycanthropy is a disease that can be cured. We can help you," I said.

Swiftrunner snorted. "You will try any tricks to gain entrance. We do not believe your lies, human."

"I was once like you, but I was cured. I'm not sure how we cure you on this world, but it is a disease. And diseases can be cured."

"You're not here to help us. You were sent by the Dalish to kill Witherfang!"

While we were expecting an attack, the surprise of it did catch some of us by surprise. Standing as close to Swiftrunner as we were, I took a swipe across my chest, Aedan left bleeding from a wound on his arm. Magic spells quickly descended upon the werewolves, and those brief moments allowed me to unsheathe my weapon and start swinging.

Having been a werewolf myself at one point, I didn't like killing them. But if they were going to act like mindless beasts, then I would have no problem putting them down like that. I put my sword through at least one, its claws coming far too close to my face for comfort. I'd earned a couple of scars during my time on Thedas, replacing those I'd earned over my years at home, but I didn't particularly want to be disfigured by the strike of a werewolf.

We quickly had the upper hand, and although I didn't want to, Aedan and I closed on Swiftrunner. "Please don't make us do this," I pleaded.

He merely growled at us, ready to go down swinging. I had to give a grudging amount of respect for his bravery. But shake my head at such stupidity.

Just as we were about to strike, I found myself knocked onto my arse, my brother falling into me. I pushed him off to find a pure white wolf looking at us, putting itself between us and Swiftrunner. It didn't growl. Didn't bark. It howled, sensing it must have echoed across the entire forest. Then, as quickly as it appeared, the wolf turned and ran, following Switftrunner and the surviving werewolves.

Approaching the ruins, it had been another long day, and I wasn't the only one thinking that entering the lair would be difficult work. We had no idea how many werewolves lay within and we knew it would be a long, gruelling battle until we found Witherfang. Or whatever else happened to lie inside. Aedan, Alistair and I gathered together and discussed what we should do, eventually deciding to make camp a little way back and would then entire the lair in the morning. We would continue to try and convince them that we would help find a cure, but if they continued to refuse peace, we would bring war.

We built a fire, set up our tents and cooked dinner. Most headed for an early night, thinking we should enter the lair not long after daybreak, figuring we could be fighting all day, if the ruin was large. None of us knew what to actually expect.

A few hours later, with the campfire burning bright, and the forest appearing to be rather quiet, I took a seat on one of the logs and passed a few minutes simply staring into it. Though I was on watch, I was confident enough that nothing would take me by surprise. I kept an ear out for anything approaching, but I figured the werewolves would keep away from us, hiding within their lair, and any wild animals would probably be asleep. As for darkspawn, we hadn't seen any for some time, and I didn't think they'd get this close to the lair either.

"Uhtred," a voice whispered.

I almost jumped out of my skin at the sound of the voice, mostly because it wasn't Leliana or Solona. I know their voices, so they wouldn't have surprised me, and figuring they'd just want to talk, or would want something else personal. I turned towards it to see Brosca, of all people, walking quietly towards me, taking a seat on the log next to me.

"I didn't think you would be taking watch and would instead by all cuddled up next to Aly."

"I was. But I just wanted to talk to you in private."

"Oh, about what?"

"I'm going to ask this bluntly, Uhtred. Have you ever fucked a dwarf?"

I had to cover my mouth to stop the loud laugh that nearly escaped my mouth. Then I looked at her in part surprise, part… rising anger. "Hang on a second. What about Alistair?"

She laid a hand on my forearm. "Please, Uhtred. I love Alistair. And it is because of that I am asking that question. So, I will ask you again. Have you ever fucked a dwarf?"

"Yes. Just the one, but more than once over a couple of days."

"And what did you think?"

"Well, pretty much the same as a human. Slightly different too. But a good sort of different."

"Okay, good. That makes asking the next question a little easier. How would you like to fuck me?"

"Which would lead me back to the original question of 'What about Alistair?'"

"He'd be involved too."

I took a few seconds to put that altogether in my mind. "So… You're talking about a threesome?"

"Yes."

"Why on earth do you want someone else… You know what, never mind. Considering my circumstances, I guess I should just shut up."

Now she shrugged. "Listen, I love Alistair. But… Well… I see Leliana and Solona, and I find myself wondering… We're not talking open relationship or anything, but I've mentioned to Alistair that I would like to 'experiment'. Surprisingly, when I mentioned you, he was rather agreeable. He likes you simply because the advice you've given him has helped him, and he considers you a friend. And he's rather open-minded and willing to try new things. Um, to a point. Obviously he's not thinking of what your brother and Zevran got up to."

"So he's agreed to this idea?"

"Yes."

"Listen, I'm flattered by the idea but…"

"I have already spoken to Leliana and Solona. I speak to them often about many things. You are often a topic of conversation."

"I am?"

Her hand moved to my thigh. "Please, Uhtred, they both speak at length about… yours." I almost burst into laughter again, though almost jumped when her hand slid further up towards my crotch. "So, how does the idea of fucking me sound? Because, I will be incredibly honest with you, I need to find out if everything Leliana and Solona talk about is true or not."

"As long as Alistair is fine with all this, sure, why not." I paused before adding, "I'm assuming since you've spoken to Leliana and Solona that they are okay with this?"

"I have spoken to them about this. As long as you talk to them first, they will be fine with it. And I will talk to Alistair and organise it all. I'm thinking when we return to Redcliffe, or sometime in Denerim during the Landsmeet. If we don't have time, we can always do it once all is said and done. We can make a real night of it. Do you find like that idea?"

"I do, as long as others are okay with it." I paused a moment. "You've done it before, I assume?"

The smirk she returned answered the question, though she added, "What do you think?"

"I'm thinking, if Alistair wasn't around, I'd throw you on the ground right now and not wait until Redcliffe or Denerim."

She smiled, kissed my cheek, then whispered in my ear, "Something to think about for the rest of the night. I'll just tell a white lie and tell Alistair I was thinking of him."

The next morning wasn't as awkward as I thought it would be. Brosca didn't say a word about our conversation. Alistair was as friendly as always, and we chatted about what we would find upon entering the lair. Aedan approached me and we put together a plan. It wasn't sophisticated and the only major change was that he wanted me in front, hopefully to persuade the werewolves that I had once been like them and that we all wanted to help. I was doubtful they'd listen, but I was willing to take the lead to prevent further bloodshed.

The entrance to their lair was open, the doors that once kept out the elements having long fall off and apart. That didn't mean there was light inside, and it was the work of mages to help provide illumination as we entered the ruins. They were similar to others we had explored before, though Alistair mentioned the ruins had hints of both Tevinter and elven origin. Lyna was startled by that revelation. I asked what that could possibly mean, but all Alistair could do was shrug his shoulders and admit he didn't know. The architecture was what it was.

Werewolves were lying in wait, of course. No sign of Swiftrunner or the white wolf. And there was no chance of talking. As soon as they saw us, the werewolves attacked. We met force with force, and I quickly blooded my blade. I remember being a werewolf, the speed of movement, the better eyesight, hearing and smell. I remembered all the advantages. And they had numbers at their disposal, and they knew the layout of the ruins. I'm sure I wasn't the only one wary of walking into traps.

They had their own advantages, we had ours. Lyna was new to our group. The rest of us had been working together for some time now. We worked as a well drilled unit. Warriors usually at the front, or protecting flanks. Those with bows to the rear. Mages in the centre, protected by the warriors.

We killed in great numbers. The werewolves got in a few hits. None of us was left unbloodied, but Wynne and Lyna had healing magic, so kept us alive and fighting at least. And while we may have taken hits, the werewolves were brave, I'll give them that, but they had no response to our overwhelming strength and power. We moved together slowly, cautiously, but inexorably. We would not be stopped until we had either killed them all or someone finally talked to us.

Then we entered the room with giant spiders. A million memories of ruins in Skyrim, and of the Deep Roads, came flooding back. And I almost shit my pants at the sight of them.

Aedan knew something was wrong immediately as I stopped, dead in my tracks, fighting the fear that bubbled up. It was a new feeling and even caught me by surprise. I have very few fears, but after fighting all those spiders in the Deep Roads, I never wanted to see another spider for as long as I lived. So while Aedan, Sten and the two dwarves stepped forward, swinging weapons with precision, I simply closed my eyes, took a deep breath, swallowed the fear, then went spider hunting.

No-one said a word once all the spiders were dead, though I asked the mages to burn all the webbing. That caused a few more to descend, and we killed those too. Once we were sure everything in that room besides us was dead, I sheathed my sword and looked at my hand. I'm not sure if it was adrenaline or fear, but it shook for some time.

"Are you okay?" Aedan asked quietly.

"I don't fear many things. But spiders? I'd rather fight dragons or darkspawn."

"I feel the same way," Brosca admitted.

"Yeah, but you have the excuse of having found yourself on the ground underneath one," I retorted.

"Why the fear then?" she wondered.

"Ruins in Skyrim were always full of them. You would think I'd get used to it, but no, there comes a point when you've just had enough, and that kernel of fear deep inside explodes into something else. I've always just bitten down the fear, but I guess even I have my limits. Give me a dragon ten times out of ten."

Unsheathing my sword again, I started to feel better, my hand stopped shaking, and after asking if we were all ready to go, we stepped around the spider bodies and headed for the exit. Our mage colleagues continued to provide light, the ruins crumbling and, while there were a few gaps in the ceiling, they didn't provide a lot of light.

The path started to descend, and I was left wondering just how large this ruin was, and how long it would take us to find these werewolves. We walked for a good few minutes with no sign of any life, and I know I wasn't the only one thinking we were walking into some sort of trap.

It wasn't a trap we eventually walked into. I heard one or two of my colleagues grow concerned at sounds we could hear in the distance. The sounds were familiar, but I didn't think it would be possible we'd find one of those in the ruins. That would have been impossible. Before I knew it, I was walking ahead by myself, most of my companions coming to a stop at the size of the hall we had entered. I have no idea how old the ruin was, but the murals that had once been painted on the ceiling, walls and floor had faded, and there was little chance of deciphering what this hall may once have been for. But it was the mosaic underneath our feet that grabbed attention. I couldn't decipher it, and by the time I'd moved on for the others to take a look, something else descended from what must have been its hiding spot above us, landing no more than a couple of feet in front of me.

Sword already in hand, all I did was raise it as I yelled, "Dragon!"

It was smaller than dragons I was used to fighting. I knew dragons on Thedas lay eggs, so the dragon in front of me wasn't a baby, but it wasn't a fully-grown adult either. That didn't make it any less dangerous as it turned quickly a circle, using its tail to knock a couple of my colleagues off their feet before they even knew what was happening. With it not being as large, my usual ideas went out the window. We'd have to take it down from the ground.

First, though, was to show the dragon and my colleagues my gift once more. Out of my peripherals, I could see my colleagues start to ring the dragon, but it only had eyes for me. The dragon tried once, twice, three times to bite me, using my shield the first two times just to block, timing it right the third time to smack it in the head. It wasn't the hardest hit, but it was enough to leave it momentarily stunned, allowing me to take a step or two back, hearing Aedan yell out for everyone to be ready before I used the full force of my Thu'um.

"IIZ – SLEN – NUS!"

The dragon froze solid, and I could see the confusion on the faces of my colleagues. Pointing my sword at the dragon, I yelled, "Mages! Stonefist!"

The ice holding the dragon immediately began to crack as balls of rock were fired from all directions. Continuing to issue instructions, I gestured to the two dwarves. "Duran, Ohgren, turn this dragon into ice cubes."

With the mages continuing to hurl rocks, and the two dwarves cutting into the dragon with their giant axes, the dragon had no chance of surviving for very long. The ice did eventually melt after a few minutes, and I didn't even have the chance to take a killing blow, as the dragon immediately dropped to the ground, blood gushing from innumerable wounds. As I said, it wasn't even fully grown, and I took absolutely no pleasure in ordering the killing the creature. As always, I just did what needed to be done.

After the excitement of fighting a dragon, despite it being a rather shorter battle than I was used to, the enemies we faced afterwards were not as difficult, and didn't require the use of my Thu'um again. In addition to the occasional pack of werewolves on patrol, the ruin was also full of the undead, including skeletons, and also the occasional demon. We handled all of that without any major problems. There was the occasional wound taken, some blood spilled, though Wynne always managed to heal the wounded.

I was still in the lead as we continued to head ever downwards. I was always amazed at the size of ruins I would find myself adventuring through, and though they were starting to crumble most of the time, considering many had been standing for thousands of years, I did sometimes wonder if I would be walking through at just the wrong time, and the roof would come crushing down on top of me. It hadn't happened yet, but there was always a first time.

The werewolves would have known we were coming. We'd enough bodies behind us that word would surely have been passed to where they were based. So it was little surprise that we were finally greeted by a different werewolf, who didn't immediately attack us on sight. I could see its eyes watch the size of our party as we stood in attack positions, but as they didn't move to attack us for once, I let my own weapon to drop to my side. A quick glance suggested that my colleagues would follow my example, for the moment at least.

"We do not wish any more of our people hurt, stranger. Are you willing to parley?"

"I would have parlayed as soon as we entered if you had no attacked us. As I told Swiftrunner outside, we can resolve this without any more deaths, and we may even help find a cure," I replied.

"What about the Dalish?" Lyna asked.

"That is different," the werewolf replied, looking her direction, before looking at me again, "But the Lady wishes to speak with you, outsider. She wishes to hear your story and of your apparent cure. She also believes you have not been told the full story of how we came to be. Therefore, she has asked me to escort you to her."

"The Lady? Who is she?" I asked.

"You will see soon, stranger. But I can assure you that she means you no harm. She is a peaceful creature, as long as you are peaceful in return. Is your acceptance of our parley an honest one?"

I sheathed my sword and nodded. "It is. Please, lead the way." I glanced left and right, to see a few of my companions look unsure. "Sheathe all weapons. We can resolve this issue peacefully. And I'm sure I'm not the only one who would like to meet this Lady."

Despite one or two grumbles, everyone followed my order and we followed the werewolf into their lair. I'll be honest, I expected the Lady to be a werewolf, just a different sort of werewolf. I'd taken half a guess that the white wolf we had seen was somehow related.

The Lady was not what I expected at all.