Dragon Age Origins: A Grey Warden's Tale.
Chapter 11: The Joining Ritual.
The Gates.
The tall wooden gates of Ostagar stood closed as two Chasind Men guarded the gates, tall hulking men of sheer muscle and wrapped in leathers and furs from slain beasts and animals with hefty heavy axe leaning against the stone walls only feet away from the guards.
"It's been a few hours since those Warden Recruits left for their survival test" The First Guard spoke lowly; having witnessed the group leave but the sun had long since set and the howls of wolves filled the dark long-shadowed wilds that stretched out for miles upon miles.
"I'll bet ten silvers that they don't show in the next ten minutes" The Second Guard spoke with a smirk; caring little for The Grey Warden Order as he'd only come for a good fight, a hot meal in the mess hall and good pay once the battle had been won.
"Make it twenty and you got a deal" The First Guard spied an opportunity to have some money himself; making the prize bigger to pander to her compatriot's desire for money.
The Second Guard raised an eyebrow at the higher bet before nodding and shaking The First Guard's hand thus sealing the bet, "Fine; I'll take that bet".
"Ha! Easy money… take a look" The First Guard laughed and pointed out as Jory's sword slashed through a semi-fallen tree thus letting it fall into the road and offering his hand to help Kallian and Neria cross the tree's trunk with Daveth, Aeden and Alistair pulling up the rear.
"You've been gone a long time; Ser Duncan ordered us to keep the gates unlocked to give you time to return, where have you all been?" The First Guard spoke as Alistair walked towards the gates with the satchel clutched to his person; beckoning Alistair and his fellows closer to the gates.
"Sorry we took so long; we had to take a detour as well as risk the uphill trail" Alistair spoke with a smirk; his boots and armour noticeably splattered with mud along with the boots of the men and women alongside him.
"You dared that shit?! You lot are braver than us! Please head back inside" The First Guard spoke as he took up his giant axe, quickly and impressively striking the gate with the flat of the blade with surprising speed considering the size and weight of his weapon.
After striking the gates with the flat of his axe's blade causing a fair sound; a moment later the gates opened from the opposite side allowing The Recruits to enter into the safety of Ostagar's walls leaving the two guards to enter afterwards with the gates closing behind them.
"Like I said… easy money" The First Guard spoke; offering a beckoning hand with the expectation of the twenty silver coins they'd bet on the return of the all the Recruits.
"Asshole… you played me for a fool" The Second Guard contested the bet even though he'd agreed and shaken on; reluctantly taking a leather pouch of coins from his belt and tossing them to his fellow Guard, grimacing as he'd wanted to use the coins and the winnings on a round of meat and drinks in the mess hall.
"Yeah… I did!" The First Guard spoke cheerfully as he counted a full set of twenty silvers from the pouch but noticed the sullen expression on his friend's face, "come on; the first round of drinks is on me".
Ruined Antechamber.
Set within a wide-spaced antechamber deep within the walls of Ostagar that had once led into a grand chamber fit with long broke banquet tables that was set into a large U-Formation with a head table that had long since broken, the antechamber lit by a huge bonfire and illuminated the chamber with The Three Senior Wardens: Duncan, Claude and Dalila stood gathered in wait for Alistair and The Recruits.
"Welcome back Recruits; we're all pleased to see that all of you have returned safe and sound, it is not often that a group of recruits gather and so many return alive after their first encounter with Darkspawn"
"I apologise that we're so late returning, we were forced into making a side-trip deeper into The Kacari Wilds to meet a pair of Apostate Mages living at the bank of the lake…" Alistair gave a bow as he gave an abridged report of their excursion into The Kocari Wilds; opting to ignore their encounter with a pack of wolves though he didn't have to report on their Darkspawn encounter as the vials of blood were visible to The Senior Wardens as he presented The Treaties to Duncan's beckoning hands, beginning to speak on their encounter with Flemeth and Morrigan before Ser Dalila cut him off with an angered look in her midnight eyes.
"Yes; we are well aware of Flemeth and Morrigan; they mean us no harm as they much prefer to keep to themselves, I have personally known about them for many years and they've never once intervened in Grey Warden Business, I fail to see why she would intervene now on the eve of a Blight" Dalila spoke clearly as the fluttering of wings echoed within the chamber's walls though a hint of doubt shone in her midnight eyes as she thought it strange that they'd get involved now on the eve of a battle to defeat The Blight before it could truly begin.
"Flemeth did give us a warning regarding The Blight and our allies; she told us that the threat is much greater than we know and there is…" Alistair continued to speak of the warning he'd been given by Flemeth but receiving a look of displeasure from Dalila as he continued to speak of a woman whom Dalila did not wish to hear about given by the furious look she gave Alistair.
"We shall discuss this later Alistair; right now, we have a Joining to conduct… now administer the vials to our proud recruits" Duncan raised an open hand to Alistair thus cutting him off for a second time; instructing him to hand out the five vials to The Recruits as the chamber became noticeably darker whilst the flames continued to blaze with life.
"Ser Jory: Knight of Redcliffe and honourable guard of Arl Eamon, Daveth: trained thief and con-man, Kallian Tabris: Elf of Denerim's Alienage; you've suffered much but you've proven strong, Neria Surana: Mage of The Circle; you have endured much prejudice and also the betrayal of a man you once called friend… these trials have only proven your own strength, and lastly Aeden Cousland of Highever: you suffered greatly as you have lost your entire family to the betrayal of a man you once called friend… but you remained steadfast and resolute as you stand here now alongside your fellows recruits! Each equal and deserving of the honour… prepare yourselves to undertake The Joining!".
Jory glanced to Aeden upon hearing his name and what had transpired in Highever; the death of The Cousland Family, for Highever had been the home of his dear wife and this sad news caused his heart to sink and distract him as Alistair planted the vial in Jory's gauntlet-covered hand.
Kallian and Neria both gazed sadly in Aeden's direction as they'd known about his family's deaths but not that their fates had come by betrayal, Kallian thought on that Aeden may have come from the Noble Class that she despised but Aeden's Origin allowed her to realise that he and her weren't so different, Neria's eyes glowed softly as she again saw a slight similarity to Aeden and the boy she longed to reunite with as they had the same hair colour, the same eyes, the same complexion, but she still doubted that Aeden was the man she was seeking for.
Alistair walked from Recruit to Recruit whilst The Senior Wardens spoke their names and origins in turn; handing each of the five one of the vials of Darkspawn Blood to each Recruit's dominant hand, upon handing the last vial to Neria he backed off and waited for what was about to transpire and the truth of The Joining to be revealed.
Aeden looked up above the roaring flames and spotted the same, black-feathered crow staring down at him as he held the vial of Darkspawn Blood between his fingers; glancing to his left as Kallian glanced back at him, her eyes flickering with awareness as she too had spotted the crow watching them with a glint of keen interest in its familiar yellow eyes.
Duncan stepped forward as the most-senior Warden present with Claude standing at his left and Dalila at his right; each sharing a proud expression as the five Recruits had all returned alive and uninjured, "You five stand at the precipice of becoming Grey Wardens in name and deed; you all have succeeded in the tasks we set before you, you survived an unexpected fight against a pack of wolves, held your own against our natural enemy: The Darkspawn, recovered The Treaties from the two Mages living within The Kocari Wilds and even dared the perilous path back to Ostagar… all these have proven your strength of character and your will to overcome odds, thus you have one final task to accomplish and that is to undergo The Joining itself".
Claude glanced behind him to catch Alistair's eye before he spoke, "Each of you has extracted the blood of a Darkspawn Hurlock; their blood contains the deathly disease known as The Taint; a disease that slowly pollutes the body and degrades you until you die, however the process is slow but The Joining Ritual calls for a sacrifice".
Dalila continued from Duncan and Claude; her expression turning stern as she too had witnessed the failed men and women who'd attempted The Joining and died, "Each of you holds a vial contained Darkspawn Blood; you all must drink this blood and accept The Taint within your own bodies as we all have"
Aeden felt his eyes widen with shock at this revelation; he'd known that The Grey Wardens kept The Joining's actual ritual process highly secretive from those not of The Order as well as their allies and now he knew why, it was sickening and life-threatening.
Kallian clutched the vial in her fingers to her chest; she shook with fear as the realisation dawned on her mind but she had little choice as The Warden: Ser Claude had saved her from execution for her crimes in Denerim, her mind calming slightly as she glanced to Aeden as he glanced back to her; both nodding to one another as they both took deep breaths to calm their nerves.
Neria felt a cold shiver down her spine as she felt the same realisation of truth that she'd felt when Jowen had exposed himself to becoming a Blood Mage; gazing down at the vial between her fingers and the blackish-red substance held within struck fear and hesitation into her mind.
"Well then… bottoms up I guess" Daveth grinned as he lifted the vial to his lips without so much as a second thought, as the first to undertake The Joining; his thumb flicking out the cork from the vial's opening and emptied the blackish-red contents into his mouth.
As soon as the blood touched Daveth's throat he clutched his neck like something had gotten lodged within; dropping the vial to the tiled floor leading it to shatter as he groaned and gagged before dropping to his knees, the whites of his eyes overtaking the once hazel irises as black veins quickly spread across his neck, cheeks and hands until forming an intricate web across his flesh much to the horror of his fellow recruits.
Aeden, Kallian and Neria all took a step back as they watched Daveth scream loudly into the night sky until his voice went silent but his mouth remained open moments before his own red blood flushed out from his open mouth; the blood spewing down his neck and the shirt and breeches he wore until Daveth slumped forwards and crashed into the floor where he lay still as the cold wind blew through the fortress.
"Did he die?" Neria spoke lowly; having never seen a person's life leave their body in any manner, the sight struck fear into her mind whereas she had been resolute about becoming a Warden but now feared what might happen when she drunk the blood she held in her left hand.
"Yes; he did… a bad way to go for a rogue… a rogue should always strive to die with dignity but he died a martyr" Aeden spoke through biting down on his lip; in truth he too was scared of what he'd just witnessed and even more so of the blood he held tightly between his fingers but if we wanted a future then he'd have to risk everything on swallowing the accursed blood.
Jory took a step backwards as he'd watched Daveth die; staring down at the vial of Darkspawn Blood sitting in his palm, he thought on how Alistair had said to not let any get on your hands when extracting it and he now had to ingest the vile, poisonous liquid to become a Warden! It was something he could never bring himself to perform much less stand to witness three more needless and pointless deaths.
"It is sad to lose such a promising candidate… Jory; it is your time to undertake The Joining" Ser Claude spoke lowly; his voice unfeeling after witnessing Daveth's death due to having been witness to countless deaths of Recruits and fellow Wardens in defence of Ferelden in the countless years he'd been a Warden.
"No! this isn't glorious! This is madness! If I'd known of this then I would never have gone with you!" Jory stuttered in obvious fear of Daveth's sudden death; his right hand drawing his heavy weapon and holding it in a weak stance that could be easily defeated as irrational fear had taken hold of the man's mind and judgement.
"You swore an oath that you'd do anything to become a Warden for the sake of your family Jory… I ask you now to honour that oath" Duncan spoke as he stepped towards Jory with Claude and Dalila by his sides; each slowly walking towards him until Jory's back met a wall leaving him with nowhere to go except through The Senior Wardens.
"No! I refuse! You three are just as mad to even consider such an act of self-abuse!" Jory shouted as loudly as he could; hoping that he might draw the attention of the many soldiers present within the walls of Ostagar to save him from The Wardens, his attention shifting to Aeden, Neria and Kallian as he called them crazy and mad moments before he felt cold steel pierce his chest.
"Very well… I am sorry for what has to be done" Duncan spoke again as Jory's attention was on the other Recruits; his left hand reaching for his Longsword and thrusting the waving-bladed weapon between Jory's ribs and through his vitals in a single fluid motion.
Jory spluttered as a mixture of saliva and blood erupted from his mouth as Duncan had plunged his Sword into his chest; the man falling into Duncan's arms and gargling something incomprehensible before he died at the hands of Duncan's Blade, as Duncan pulled his weapon from Jory's corpse and allowing Jory to fall with a crash to the floor but the small vial contained the Darkspawn Blood rolled from his lifeless hand leading Alistair to recover the vial and stow it away within his glove.
"Did either of you understand him?" Kallian spoke lowly; finally witnessing a human death that did not come by her own hands, the sight of life leaving Jory's body sent shivers down her spine but the cold sensation remained as she gazed down at the small vial of blood held between her slender fingers.
"I did… he said… you're all doomed" Neria spoke with a tear in her eye; watching Jory and Daveth die brought back the terrible memory of witnessing Jowen assault The Templar's and Chantry Sisters with Blood Magic and how they'd barely escaped with their lives.
Aeden stared down at Jory's lifeless corpse; as a fellow knight he should have died with honour and valour but instead died as a coward, he could only pray that his family would remember him for the loving man he was to them instead of the coward he truly was.
"Two have fallen… know that you all have sworn to undertake this Rite, you must drink the blood and receive The Taint to become part of The Grey Warden Order" Dalila spoke; her hands tight around her Staff as even Aeden and Kallian could tell by the shimmering air that she would end their lives if they too refused to drink the poisonous blood and end up just like Jory.
Alistair stood behind the bonfire alongside Claude and Dalila as he glanced at the vial he'd recovered from Jory's dead hand; he'd mentioned a disgraced Chantry Sister who'd undertaken The Joining along with him but she'd drunk the blood a moment before him due to his own hesitation only to die a highly unpleasant death as she'd writhed and squirmed under the pain of The Taint before begging for death only to be given her wish in the form of beheading courtesy of Claude's Axe.
The silence hung in the air like a deathly stillness with only the cracking wood within the bonfire giving sound the site of The Joining, Duncan turned his gaze from the dead corpse of Jory towards the remaining three Recruits; waiting for them to decide to either drink of The Darkspawn Blood or die by his blade.
The three remaining Recruits glanced to one another; Aeden, Neria and Kallian all held the vials in their fingers before their thumbs prised out the corks sealing the tainted blood within, each raising the vial to their lips in unison much to the wide-eyed shock of the four Wardens gathered as witnesses as in all The Joining's that the three Senior Wardens had witnessed they'd never seen a group drink in unison before now.
As soon as the blood slid down their tongues and into the throats; the pain struck like a fire had been lit within their throats as the same black veins spread across their skins, Aeden sank to his knees first in a violent fit of coughing as his Family Shield fell from his back and onto the ground within Aeden's field of view allowing him to place a hand on his Family Crest whilst Neria fell second and landed on her buttocks screaming in pain as the pain exploded within her throat along with frosty mist seeping from her hands as the stone floor around her turned to frost, Kallian stayed on her feet the longest before also dropping to her knees with her Elm Staff falling to the ground away from her hands; clutching her right hand with her left as she still wore the wedding band from her deceased fiancée as a source of strength to anchor herself to her will to live.
Flashing before the eyes of the three remaining Recruits; they saw a red-walled cavernous location with thousands of Darkspawn Genlocks and Hurlocks and other nightmarish creatures screaming in unison as a large shadowy beast from Hell flew overhead, a deafening roar that sounded like the howl of death itself as the shadowy creature took its place at the head of a stone statue of an ancient Dwarf Lord thus tearing the head off the statue and tossing it into a river of molten lava with his sword-like claws as the sight of its brilliant purple and blood-red scales reflected the glow of the lava before a gleaming pair of red eyes spied the existence of the trio even from the beast's unknown location.
The screaming echoed into the pitch-black night sky until lasting a full minute; the trio of Aeden, Kallian and Neria laying still on the frosty stone floor with their anchors to life within their fingertips touch for another minute before the three recruits began breathing again with each inhaling so deeply that The Senior Wardens felt shocked by their shared survival, the trio slowly rising back up to their feet; Aeden and Kallian holding each other by the arms for support whilst Neria used her Elm Staff to support herself until she was back on her feet.
The Crow had perched overhead and having watched the entire Joining Ritual; its yellow eyes blinking with satisfaction before spreading its black wings and flying off with a strangely pleased caw as the bird flew off into the night.
"Congratulations to you three; from this moment forward: Aeden Cousland of Highever, Kallian Tabris of The Denerim Alienage and Neria Surana and The Circle, you three are now Grey Wardens" Duncan spoke with his arms wide as he gave a warm embrace to the three successful Recruits, naming them and their place of origin with each embrace he shared with his newly-ordained Wardens.
Alistair stood with a proud smile to witness three successful Joining Rites; the two deaths saddened his heart but the trio who lived brought hope and warmth to his soul, stepping forwards and clasping his right hand with the right hand of Aeden, pleased to see that a fellow swordsman had survived along with their new feisty Elf Maiden/Friend and a powerful Mage.
The trio smiled proudly to each other before collapsing into a heap on the stone floor with Aeden on the bottom, Kallian laying at his side with her hands taking hold of his opposing shoulder in a sleeping embrace, and Neria laying on top of Aeden's chest and Kallian's waist; each as exhausted as the last, all sound asleep and would likely not wake until long after the sun had risen.
"They have done well to survive this long… I shall take them to a tent so they may sleep peacefully" Dalila spoke; tapping her Staff on the ground as a light blue shimmer ran over the stone floor as the three newly ordained Wardens levitated off the ground and followed Dalila as she escorted the three to a tent so they would sleep in proper beds.
"The road ahead is long and hard… I just hope they'll have the strength and will to overcome the trials to come" Duncan spoke calmly to Claude; the two leaving wordlessly to find something to eat and drink whilst leaving Alistair to ponder what Duncan had meant by the road ahead and what Flemeth had truly meant in her warnings.
