For a moment, Nike didn't dare react. She was struck with the sudden sensation that if she moved, Duncan would immediately see all her thoughts, her plans to take off into the Wilds and find her brother, laid bare. If he even suspected that was her plan, he would keep her here under guard and prevent her setting foot out those gates.

Don't be ridiculous, she thought a breath later. The man is not a mind reader. Don't let those tales of the Wardens get to you.

Her self-reassurances didn't help much. The way he was looking at her so intently was disconcerting. He may not be able to read minds, but it seemed the slightest flick of her eyes or flutter of their lashes might give her away just as well.

Apparently Alistair took her hesitation as something else. "There's nothing to fear," he said kindly. Almost jolting with indignation, she glared at him.

"I am not afraid."

Alistair appeared taken aback and about to reach for a fumbling apology, but Duncan spoke before he could.

"Then there is no problem. Two hours. In the meantime I must speak with the King and his advisors. I will see you again when you return."

As he walked away, Nike couldn't help but think the Maker must be on her side. They were sending them out into the Wilds; just the four of them. Once out there, she had no doubt she'd be able to give her companions the slip. After that, it was merely a matter of having Holly track her brother down.

The darkspawn were a concern. The Wilds were not safe; something Alistair had reminded her of when he'd told her not to be afraid. However she was used to being silent when she tracked, as was Holly. One woman and one mabari moving cautiously and bringing no attention to themselves had a fair chance of slipping past the darkspawn unnoticed. She hoped, at least.

First things were first, however. She looked at Alistair just as he opened his mouth, the two speaking simultaneously.

"You've probably got a million questions about-"

"Where can I get a bath?"

He paused and blinked at her. "A wh-…? Oh! Well, I'm…I'm not sure."

He looked around as if a bathtub might be creeping around the edges of the camp, trying not to be spotted. "Do you want me to find out-?"

"Yes. And some additional clothes would be nice. Lovely as these were, they're fit for little more than rags at this point."

He stared at her as if he hadn't noticed her clothes or her greasy, tangled hair before in his life. Color started to warm his cheeks and in a moment, he was blushing as if she had stripped down right in front of him.

"I'm sorry, of course. I'll see what I can find, right away."

He turned and walked out of camp, still blushing. Nike turned toward the tents to see where Tahja had gone and to further consider her plan for slipping away into the Wilds, and nearly ran into Daveth.

"He's a Warden, you know," Daveth said conversationally, as she started.

"What? Who?"

"Alistair," he said. He took a sizeable bite out of a half-withered crabapple he must have fished out of a pack. "'e's a Warden."

"I know that," she said with irritation.

"Thought you might have forgotten. You seem to think he's a Highever servant, ordering him about as you do."

"I didn't order him about," she said, aghast. "He offered-"

"Look, I know you're a highborn lady and all that, but it don't matter anymore. I'm nothing but a street pickpocket, and that don't matter anymore either. Ser Jory's a knight- also don't matter. We're all in the same place here, the three of us. Wardens, or near enough."

For a moment, Nike couldn't speak. The audacity of the man to be saying such things was one thing, but his accusation was so off the mark to begin with it left her momentarily speechless. She had done nothing but ask where she could get a bath. Alistair had offered to find out- she had merely accepted his offer.

"If Alistair is displeased with any way I have spoken to him, he can mention it to me," she said instead. "He's a Warden, after all. He hardly needs you defending him."

Not interested in pursuing the ridiculous conversation any further, she moved away from him, toward where she could now see Tahja near the campfire, ladling what looked like old stew from a pot into a couple of bowls.

She felt a momentary twinge of guilt. She wouldn't be able to take Tahja with her to find her brother. Asking to bring the elf along when they went into the Wilds would be suspicious, and it would only put her into danger. She was a maid, and as far as Nike knew had never stalked game in her life. Even if they successfully gave the Wardens the slip, Tahja would only end up making undue noise and draw attention.

She'll be far safer here than out there. She has an entire army to protect her here.

Even so, other than Holly Tahja was the only connection to home she had left, if she failed to find Fergus.

Hungry as she was, she couldn't help the slight grimace as the elf handed her one of the bowls. The stew looked like it had been scraped off a wagon wheel.

She couldn't afford to be picky. She was too hungry to be picky, and she would need every ounce of energy she could get for the next few days. She could theoretically find food in the Wilds but the fauna would undoubtedly be different than what she was used too at home, and with the darkspawn around what she did find might be tainted.

Giving Tahja a nod of gratitude, she hurriedly started shoveling the slop into her mouth, hoping Alistair hurried up with news about the bath. Clean and with some food, she just might start feeling human again.

Alistair returned sometime later with news that there facilities set up for washing, but that if Nike wanted an actual bath only the Circle mages had the equipment to do so. Of course, that required talking the Circle mages into allowing her use of them. She found the Templar guarding the mage camp a bit reticent about even passing on her request at her word alone, but by happenstance the same white haired mage from the road had passed through the gate on return from some errand. Recognizing Nike, she told the Templars that she was a Warden and guest of the King, and they allowed her entrance.

Three actual bathing tubs had been placed in their own private tent in the middle of camp, and as Nike sank into hot water she felt as if her entire being would melt away into the water and vanish. It was both a luxuriant sensation and an agonizing one. For a moment, she wished that she would dissolve into this water like a spoonful of sugar into porridge and that would be it, the end of the nightmare. She'd wake up back in her bed at Highever and find it had all been a dream. Or, if that wasn't to be, she wouldn't wake up at all- and for more minutes than she'd have liked, that was ok too.

When she left the tub, however, she felt renewed. Just having her hair clean, dashing away the sensation of crawling bugs, had brightened her focus like she had never expected. She was practically skipping as she returned to the Warden camp, now beyond confident that her plan to vanish into the Wilds and find her brother would succeed. The clean clothes that had been found for her fit well, down to the new boots- though those would take some breaking in.

So energized was she that it seemed no time passed at all before Alistair was calling them together to depart. Armed with her bow and a full complement of arrows as well as the short sword she'd taken from home, Nike whistled for Holly and tried not to look too apologetic when she told Tahja goodbye- nor too guilty when she said they'd be back shortly and not to worry.

Duncan met them at a small gate, and in the half shadow thrown by torchlight the impression he was carved in stone only intensified.

"Through these gates is a narrow pathway through the pass and down the mountain. It is treacherous in and of itself, but the Wilds even more so. Be cautious. You will be in danger every moment until you return-but take courage in remembering that you were chosen because you are skilled."

"What are we going out there to do?" Jory asked. "Is it a kind of test?"

"In a way," Duncan said. "Someone who could not return safely from the Wilds, even under threat of darkspawn, would not be suitable to join our number. However, this is a secondary consideration. We need you to retrieve some items for us. A full vial of darkspawn blood-"

"Darkspawn blood?" Jory said in surprise. "That stuff is the foulest poison, why would we need a vial of it?"

"Each."

"A vial each?" he gaped, incredulous. "How easy do you think that's going to be?"

"Not easy at all," Daveth told him. "I suspect that's most of the point."

Nike had no intention of actually performing said task, or even being in the company of these men longer than it took for her to slip away, but she was irritated at Jory's words.

"You were a knight of Highever, and you are lamenting that the task put to you is not easy?"

Possibly because she was the daughter of a man he had served so faithfully, but her accusation seemed to shame him far more than Daveth's had. He colored and closed his mouth.

"You said 'some items,'" Daveth said. "More than just the blood, I wager?"

"In Ages past the Wardens had an outpost here, a tower," Duncan said. "Alistair knows where it is. Hidden in the ruins are some treaties that were left behind when we abandoned this area. We need those treaties retrieved."

Ages old treaties? Nike was perplexed. Unless magically protected those treaties would have long rotted away…and what purpose could they be put to? Those who had made them would be long dead, as would any obligation beholden to them.

"Return with the vials and the treaties," Duncan said. The clear 'do not return without them' was left unspoken. "As soon as you are able."

"And then we'll be Wardens?" Daveth asked.

"There is an initiation ceremony that will take place when we get back," Alistair said. "Then, you'll be Wardens."

"Good luck to all of you," Duncan said.

Jory made the sign of the Maker low against his chest, as if he didn't want the others to see it, but Nike saw. She wasn't one for making the sign herself, but she'd have respected him more for it if he'd done it openly, instead of hiding it as if he thought it shameful.

The soldiers guarding the gate unlocked it and pulled it open, just far enough that they could pass through. As Nike stepped through the wind cutting up the pass seemed to similarly cut through her clothes and she gave an involuntary shiver. The way ahead was narrow and steep, and wreathed in darkness. As the gate closed and latched behind them, Alistair gave them all a thin smile.

"Well, shall we?"

Nike sent Holly ahead and they began to work their way down. Daveth and Jory wasted no time drawing their swords. Nike didn't bother with her bow. It was strung, but firing it with this much wind would do nothing but send it astray. She'd have to wait until they were out in open land before she readied it.

Glancing at Alistair, who was walking nearby, she noted he hadn't drawn his sword with an uplifted brow.

"Not worried?" she asked. "Darkspawn are supposed to be everywhere out here."

"There aren't any close," he told her calmly. "And we wouldn't come upon any in the pass anyway. We've got guard posts and sentries at regular stations. The darkspawn would not get up this far along this route without us noticing."

"Still, there could be scouts couldn't there? How are you sure there are none close?"

"Oh, something in my gut," he said lightly. When her expression didn't change he said, "Wardens can sense darkspawn. The closer, the stronger that sense. We're not about to be ambushed, don't worry."

"Well, that's comforting," Daveth said, overhearing. "You will warn us if that sense starts tingling won't you?"

"You'll be the first to know," Alistair said jovially. "Or, rather the second, since I'd be the first."

Down and down the steep stone path wound. An occasional glimmer of a torch or a campfire high above them told of the sentries and manned outposts that were keeping an eye on this route, but they seemed as far away as distant stars.

Some time had passed since she'd seen the last glimmer, when the rock beneath their feet transformed into dirt, and the path opened up.

Dirty hills rolled off to the horizon, dotted by small woods and forests of scrubby trees that looked squat and mean. A rising full moon cast plenty of light to see by, but also bred a thousand different shadows everywhere they glanced.

The focused wind had died away and now Nike did draw her bow, setting an arrow to the string. The Wilds seemed to stretch on forever, but her brother and his party couldn't be too far away from Ostagar. All Holly needed to do was catch their scent and they'd…

The mabari came rushing toward them. She knew not to alert Nike at night by barking when they were hunting, and of course she would consider this a hunt. Her attitude- ears up, head up, but lips tense- told Nike immediately that she had found something of interest but not necessarily dangerous.

The three men, who didn't know the dog or her behaviors, immediately lifted their swords and started looking around for enemies.

"You feel darkspawn?" Daveth whispered.

"Not close," Alistair whispered back. "But darkspawn aren't the only danger in the Wilds."

"She's not found danger," Nike said, stepping past them and toward the mabari, who was now drumming her front feet impatiently on the dirt. "But she has found something."

Without waiting to see if they'd follow she hurried off after the dark. In fact, she was halfway hoping they wouldn't, as it would give her the very opportunity she'd been looking for. Of course, they immediately moved after her, quashing that hope before it had even fully formed.

Holly turned and disappeared into a squat little copse of those scrubby trees. Following her cautiously, Nike smelled the blood before she could make out the shapes of the shadows scattered about. Half a dozen forms, easily, lay scattered about in the copse. They were torn apart, the blood so thick it had turned the dirt into a quagmire and could almost be tasted in the back of her throat. A few looked to be human men but there were one or two darkspawn among them.

Holly moved toward one of the far shapes propped against a tree and then looked back, stamping her paws again and huffing. Nike, careful not to slip in the mess, picked her way hurriedly toward the dog as the men behind her reacted to the slaughter.

"Poor sods! Maker!" Daveth said. "Looks like they took one or two along."

"Appears it was one of the scout parties," Alistair said. "They look to have been returning to Ostagar when they ran into bad luck. We'll have to tell them when we get back."

Nike had reached the mabari as Holly turned and began nosing the propped form. It stirred a bit, a hand lifting and draping over the dog's broad head. Then a rasping voice spoke and Nike felt as if she'd been struck in the gut.

"Holly? Maker, what are you doing here, girl?"

"Fergus!"

Nike dropped down at his side, the bow falling unnoticed from her hand. Dimly through the shadows she could see her brother's pale face, shadowed itself by several days' worth of beard. His cheeks above the scruff looked gaunt, his eyes hollow. He blinked stupidly at her.

"Nike? What are you doing here? Did Father change his-"

He tried to shift, then winced noticeably in pain. She grabbed hold of him.

"Be still, Fergus!"

A bit of light flashed in the darkness, coming from a small bottle that Alistair was holding in his hand. Whatever it contained glimmered brightly in the dark and illuminated their faces in pale yellow.

"How bad is it?" he asked, even as he searched Fergus's face as if inspecting for lice.

"Better than my men got," Fergus said. "Got a sword through the meat of my leg. I've got the bleeding stopped but I can't stand on it long."

"There's no sign of taint," Alistair said. Passing Nike the bottle he dug in a pouch and came out with another vial. She recognized this one instantly, though the light turned its normal red color to black. As he opened it he said, "There's enough edevas in here to get you back on your feet, though it may be painful. The narrow pass is not far. You should be able to reach it and get back to Ostagar for better treatment."

As he tipped the healing potion against Fergus' lips, Nike picked up her bow and slipped it over her back. "I'll get him back safely."

"No, I'm sorry," Alistair said. "We need to go on."

"This is my brother," she said venomously. "I don't care about your vials of blood or your treaties or your damnable Wardens. This is my brother, he's wounded, and I am seeing him safely back to Ostagar!"