Act 1: Alliance of the Grey

Chapter 14: The Civil War Begins

Shadow stood in amidst a field. Tall grass, there wasn't much else to describe about it. The sun was rather warm this day, and a fully armored man would have to take many breaks throughout his day. Those engaged in battle faced a real threat of dying not by sword, but by heatstroke. He was leading the Logosha under his command into the heart of the Blight's advance. So far, their front lines placed them directly at Lothering. It was time to change that. They may have been miles from Castle Cousland, but that didn't matter to the man. It had to be done. Someone had to slow down the advancing hordes. There would be no better force to oppose them than their more superior brethren.

To most he'd be resting, sitting amidst a field that provided good cover from the sun. In reality he was just waiting patiently. The Darkspawn taint hadn't reached this far. Though it wasn't far off. Despite the summer heat, the man could feel the chill of the Darkspawn. He could sense their movements, their actions. Somehow they hadn't sensed him relatively close by. It was either that, or they were busy with something amidst the ruins of the human village. The latter would surprise him. There was nothing there for the Darkspawn and their Archdemon to be interested in.

"My Lord, our scouting party reports that the Darkspawn are gathering more towards the East than here." One of the Logosha reported in a snarl, "They are planning to travel straight up North from there, landing them close to the Ferelden capital."

Shadow nodded, "That would explain why we haven't been submerged in bodies by now... Though that doesn't explain why they have sent nothing towards us."

"Unfortunately, we could not figure that out. If we know the Darkspawn, however, it's because the Archdemon is splitting his forces. It would be most productive to have a forked strategy than a single push." The Logosha replied, earning a chuckle from Shadow.

"The thing may be smart, but I don't think it's that smart. Not yet at least. Have two men scout out the Western areas, though, just so we can be sure. I don't want to take any unnecessary risks with this." Shadow ordered, getting a bow from the Logosha before he went to join the others to relay the orders.

It was entirely possible that the Dwarves were making a move against the Darkspawn down in the Deep Roads below them. It would make sense as well, seeing as how Blights made the Darkspawn's power in numbers dwindle below the surface. This would also explain a sudden halting in the Archdemon's advance, if one could call it that. It was evident they were still making a good push on the surface, but it wasn't as fueled as it was before. When they stormed the Southern lands and took Ostagar by force, just for the old fortress simply being in their way.

It was time to move. Shadow was getting impatient, and he knew that if he loitered any longer the Darkspawn would move on him. Not that he would mind it. He just didn't want to give the Archdemon any further ideas. The less land the creature's forces owned, the better Ferelden was in the long run. He just hoped the other Grey Wardens could complete their tasks in a timely matter. Even with him and the Logosha striking up against the Darkspawn's advance... well, it wouldn't be too long before they were defeated or exhausted.

Shadow turned around and approached the Logosha who had just dispatched two of their brethren to scout the West, the regrouping point being Castle Cousland in four days. If they didn't make it, they would be presumed dead. Not that it really mattered to anyone. It was just number management really, though the Logosha often had something of a family with each other. There were no females, but many considered those born alongside them to be their brothers. Or as they were more commonly known, Broodbrothers.

"Logosha, assume offensive stances. Form standard traveling positions. We head East." Shadow ordered, and immediately the Logosha carried out his orders.

They then set out on their march for the Darkspawn. When they met with him upon the battlefield, it would be for an indeterminate amount of time. There wasn't anything saying how long the Darkspawn would hold out before getting pushed back, or how long the Logosha and Shadow could keep on fighting before they were forced to retreat or overwhelmed. But no one that was a part of the Logosha really cared about that. They respected death in combat. It was the best way to die, in their eyes at least. Though they wouldn't meet with the Darkspawn for another hour, excluding random patrols and stragglers they may happen across. The bulk of their forces were amassing towards the East, preparing for a straight shot North towards Denerim. Shadow should have figured that would be their plan. Take the capital and the rest of the Kingdom would fall, and by extension, the rest of the world with it.

Meanwhile, up North near Castle Cousland the newest Teyrn began to form his newly formed army. Rendon Howe's forces were spotted as soon as they reached the Imperial Highway. There was no hiding from the Logosha scouts that ran rampant throughout Ferelden now. All reporting in to their Dark Mother, and Aedan himself. Howe wouldn't even step foot near the village or the castle itself. The entirety of his forces would be annihilated within the hour. Or so the young self-proclaimed Teyrn had thought.

In reality, it would take much longer for that to stop all of Howe's forces and perhaps send them into a full retreat. The Logosha were great in number, but there were only so much available to him. The rest would come as reinforcements to fill the space left by the casualties. Howe's men could at least rest assured that they'd receive quick deaths. If it was one thing the Logosha had in common with their Darkspawn brethren, it was that they were quick and brutal. There was no torturing unless they wanted information, and that was assuming that they had managed to capture them without slaughtering them in the first place. This time, however, there was literally no purpose to keep Howe's men alive. Unless there was some noble, or a high ranking officer, there would be no sparing anyone. The Logosha would have free reign to kill anything in their sight.

Of course, this was restricted to Howe's men alone. There would be no civilian casualties. Not unless the Logosha wanted to all get slaughtered and replaced with newer, better listening Logosha. There was also the matter of the human mercenaries Aedan had heard the Dark Mother speaking of. Men recruited to serve faithfully in the land above, to keep people from recognizing or identifying the Logosha. Working with such creatures would of course lead to Aedan being branded as a traitor to all of Thedas. That was something he couldn't risk. No matter how much he wanted to be truthful to his people. Though this anonymity gave him an advantage over practically any foe. No one would know what they would be up against. Not until they were dead, if they even knew then. It was more than likely going to be a short lived secret, as the more the Logosha got sent out, the more likely it was that they'd be discovered. Therefore the mercenaries would have to be recruited and sent out fast. The only issue was just that; recruitment. There wasn't enough willing souls out there in times like a Blight that would join up for that. Especially since many would-be mercenaries would have found that life choice by losing loved ones to the Blight. He'd have to think of something.

But that was enough about anything unrelated to Howe's advancing forces. He had to be prepared, which he and his armies were. Now it was just up to him to pose a decent threat against the waves. The Vanguard of Howe's men had already hit, and were decimated by the Logosha. They were skilled and killed many of Aedan's new army, but not enough. Not anywhere close to enough. Thirty six casualties was nothing against an entire force of experienced Logosha. Wiping out the Vanguard was a decent blow to Howe's advancing army. When the actual body of it reached them, then the real damage would be brought down upon Howe. Unfortunately for the poor man. He was a rat, and Aedan had no sympathy for men who were nothing more than soon-to-be corpses.

"Maintain your positions, await for my order to charge!" Aedan called out to the Logosha. "When we strike, do not fight fair! Do not give our enemy any advantage! They must never reach the village, or beyond!"

The Logosha stood there, not moving and terrifyingly silent. Usually drums would be heard, or the bashing of plate would be heard as they tried to pump themselves up for battle. Such things were what Humans did. Not the Logosha. They awaited the enemy to arrive whilst examining them in their quiet discipline. When their enemy arrived, it would be a battle to the death.

"Steady!" Aedan called out, "Prepare to charge!"

Nothing. Silence and heavy breathing were all the Logosha provided Howe's men to see and hear. No Logosha moved. No Logosha spoke a single word. They just stood there like statues, awaiting the command from their Warchief.

"Hold!" Aedan called as Howe's men passed a certain line Aedan had marked out. "ATTACK!"

That was when the battlefield erupted into sound. It was a large scale battle, one that would be a costly mistake on Howe's part. The man didn't know his enemy, which was one of the biggest mistakes one could make. If you didn't know your enemy, and you knew yourself, then chances were you had a massive error coming your way. Sure, you could make due with what you had, but if the enemy was overwhelmingly powerful in number and strength? No amount of tactics would work when you met them head on.

The first wave was the most brutal. The clash saw to the deaths of multiple men and Logosha alike. Howe's men fought with honor, and regarded these creatures as equals. They thought they were men, after all, and Howe's men weren't entirely without honor like Loghain's. The Logosha, however, didn't play around with honor. They had no honor that the Humans would be able to recognize. They were attacking anywhere and everywhere they could, quite literally going berserk on their opponents. Their hands clawed at the eyes, throats, and their swords and axes swung at weak spots. One unfortunate Lieutenant got his privates torn away by a Logosha's axe.

The thing with this type of fighting was simple. Howe's men expected first a confrontation, not a direct attack as soon as they arrived. It was what usually happened. Howe just made the grave mistake of sending a son as a Commander for this very reason. This Commander soon saw his entire force decimated within the blink of an eye, and with the Logosha having been exposed during the short battle, he saw multiple of the terrifying creatures.

The man tried to run, and he ran well. The only problem was Gruk, the Logosha that had just tore his horse's legs off with one swoop of his blade. Immediately the Logosha grappled onto the man's throat, lifting him up off of the ground and staring him square in the eyes. Anger burning within them. The man tried fighting back, managing to knock Gruk's helmet off and slice his face. This only set the Logosha into a rage as he slammed the man into the ground and punched him directly into the chest with spiked gauntlets. None long enough to kill, but all long enough to cause pain.

"Human dog!" Gruk growled as he once again grabbed Howe's son, lifting him up and bashing him in the face with the other hand; this one not spiked.

The battle, though it was coming to a close, was still raging all around them. It was two hundred and something versus a whopping seventy four. The former being Rendon's army. Three hundred was what he had sent. Excluding the vanguard and scouting forces. It was an impressive feat, seeing as how the Logosha started with a measly one hundred exactly. No more, and including Aedan.

Aedan's army on the battlefield had been comprised of Logosha in its entirety. There was not a single human upon the battlefield other than Aedan and Howe's men. This was mainly because the young Teyrn was giving his men rest. Those that survived had either been battered and bruised, or sustained heavy damage that would require immediate and concentrated medical attention. War was never easy, but that wasn't even a battle. It was a betrayal; a stab in the back by someone the Couslands thought they could trust. The Logosha were proving themselves to be worthy in the eyes of Aedan, taking most of the Arl's forces without hesitation upon command. He had been observing them each chance he got amidst the battle, watching as the Logosha ignored their fallen comrades in order to press the attack. Something Humans lacked the ability to do. Their emotions got the best of them. The Logosha? They were warriors bred for a single purpose; death upon the battlefield.

It took a few moments before Aedan observed Gruk holding up the Arl's son, Nathaniel, and rushed over to the two. "Gruk! Don't kill him! We can use him!" Aedan ordered just before evading a blow from one of the knights, quickly ending him with a slash to the throat.

"Here, pass him over to me. Order the Logosha to stop at high ranking Commanders, they'll be the ones with the most decorated armor. Now, go!" Aedan said as he took the man from the Logosha, and held his sword to the man's back. "Move it! To the castle, scum!"

Gruk groaned as he felt a sword clash into his gut, having watched Aedan walk away to ensure he was safe. Now that he was being attacked, however, the Logosha looked down at the puny man in front of him. He grinned as he grabbed the sword by its blade and pulled it out of his stomach slowly, using his other hand to grapple onto the man's head and crush it underneath his sheer strength.

"DISARM AND CAPTURE THE COMMANDERS, LOGOSHA! LEAVE NO OTHERS STANDING!" He roared before charging back into the fray, ignoring his bleeding gut.

Battle was always bloody, and this one was no different. Three hours had passed, and the Logosha had hunted down the last of the warband. There was no one alive save for four others, suspected Commanders of the army. They had spiked chains slapped onto their wrists, penetrating their flesh, and rendering their hands useless. The only parts they didn't penetrate were veins, and that was for obvious reasons. They were to be kept alive, not die slowly.

The battlefield was quite the sight to behold. A sight that would make those with weak stomachs vomit. Corpses laid on the ground, feeding Thedas their blood. Several limbs were dismembered, and the air reeked of death. There was no misplacing that smell. Iron, sweat, manure and piss... Such were common smells upon the aftermaths of battle. Thankfully the wind was running South, and the only ones who really had to smell it were possibly some farmers, and the Darkspawn when it reached them. By then the odor would probably be very faint.

Inside the Castle Cousland dungeons, Aedan overlooked the unconscious and hanging Nathaniel Howe. He was on his knees, his arms shackled to the wall with his feet shackled separately to the ground. This rendered the man unable to move without causing himself pain, and he could only force his body forward a certain distance.

"Guard. Retrieve Ysil for me. I wish to get information from our favorite Arl's son..." Aedan ordered as he rubbed his stubble.

"Yes, my Lord!" One of the men said before rushing out of the dungeons to retrieve the woman.

AN: And so another chapter ends. Hope you enjoyed. :)